JE-SUS left the crowd, and went to a lone place to pray to God. And he spent the night there. The next morn he chose twelve men, that he might send them out to preach, and to heal those that were sick, and to cast out dev-ils. Their names were Pe-ter, An-drew, James and John, the sons of Zeb-e-dee, Phil-ip, Bar-thol-o-mew, Thom-as and Matth-ew, James and Leb-be-us, Si-mon and Ju-das Is-ca-ri-ot. [Illustration: THE SER-MON ON THE MOUNT.] And the crowd was so great that Je-sus went up on a hill, and the twelve went with him and he taught them there. He told them that those who were in a high state of joy, with not a care to vex them, were called blest. And he said, not in these words, but in words that meant the same: Blest are the poor in spirit, for God is with them. By poor in spirit he meant those who did not think too much of them-selves, who were not vain nor proud, but rich in love to God. And he would be with them, and bless them all their lives. Blest are those that mourn, for their tears shall be dried. To mourn is to weep, and to grieve. Je-sus meant that those who wept for their sins should shed no more tears, for Christ had come to save them, and the good news should make them glad. Blest are the meek, for the whole earth shall be theirs. Je-sus meant by this that those who were fond of peace, and did not love strife, might dwell where they chose, and would be blest in this world and the world to come. Blest are those who hun-ger and thirst for that which is good, for they shall be filled. This meant that those who sought to do right and to grow in grace had but to pray to God, and he would give them all the strength they might need from day to day. Blest are those who are kind and good, for the Lord will be kind to them in their hour of need. Blest are those who are pure in heart, for they shall see God. Those who are pure in heart will be fond of good works, and will lead good lives, and God will not turn his face from them. Blest are the peace-ma-kers--those who try to keep the peace and to put an end to strife--for they shall be called the chil-dren of God. Blest are those who are ill-used for my sake, for the more the world hates them the more will God love them. Je-sus told them that when men said hard things of them for his sake, and called them vile, and were harsh with them and full of spite, they were not to grieve but to be glad. For so did bad men treat the seers of old who told them of their faults and their sins and tried to lead them to Christ. Salt is good, and gives a taste to our food. Je-sus told them they were to salt the earth. This meant that they were to tell the good news in such a way that men should want it and need it just as they did salt.