his possession v. 8. which Kingdom he doth not only exercise over all in order to the gathering of his Church subduing the hearts of people unto himself and then over his Church gathered by giving laws to it and setting Officers over it but more particularly in the hearts of all believers in whom he ruleth by his Spirit But why doth the Spouse here speak to her beloved or of hÄ—r beloved in this lofty stile and not rather in that familiar stile which she generally useth in this Song What if we should say 1. That in other places of this Divine Song she is speaking to him here she is speaking of him God is the King of Kings the Lord of Lords yet when we pray unto him we are licensed and commanded to say unto him Our Father when she speaks of him to others she useth another stile and saith the King though we are allowed an holy boldness in our accesses and addresses to the Throne of Grace yet this is not exclusive of that holy fear and reverence which we owe unto God as our King we ought to remember that he who is our Beloved our Father is also our King 2. What if we should say that this lofty compellation is used to enhance the favour that she had received She was not admitted into ordinary Chambers but into Royal Chambers the King hath brought me into his Chambers No words are too big to express the singular favour of God to our Souls 3. What finally if we should say that she changeth her stile to intimate the persons who must expect signal favour from God and to remember her self of her duty in consideration of such favours I say first to intimate to us who those Persons must be that expect any singular favours from God they must be such as apprehend and receive Christ not for a Saviour as a Priest only but such as own and acknowledge him as a King as their Lord to command and to rule over them according to that promise John 14. 21. He that hath my Commandments and keepeth them he it is that loveth me and he who loveth me shall be loved of my Father and I will love him and manifest my self unto him It might also remember her of the duty she owed unto God in consideration of his favour to her she resolveth to own and to acknowledge him as her Lord her King But these things being premised I come to that Propesition which I raised from the connexion of these words testifying the Lords hearing of her Prayers the words are immediately annexed to her Petition Whence I observed That it pleaseth God sometimes to make very quick returns to his Peoples Prayers That it is so appears 1. By the Lords answering his People sometimes before they speak or while they are speaking Isaiah 65. 24. It shall come to pass that before they call I will answer and while they are yet speaking I will hear Nothing can be quicker then that for God to take notice of what his people have in their hearts to ask and to give it before they can form it by their lips into words or while they are speaking to give an answer you have the first exemplified in David Psal 32. 5. I said I will confess my transgression unto the Lord he had not confessed he had only said in his heart that he would confess his transgression to the Lord and saith he thou sorgavest the inquity of my sin you have an instance of the latter in Hannah the Wife of Elkanah 1 Sam 1. She was praying her lips moved but her voice was not heard yet the Lord heard her and though the time must be fulfilled before she could have a Son yet 1 Sam 1. 18. It is said of her at present that she went away and did eat and her countenance was no more sad She had a present answer of peace her mind was quieted her countenance was no more sad you have another instance in Daniel to name no more Dan. 9. 20. Daniel with the rest of the Jews had been in the captivity of Babylon near 70 years the time was almost expired as to which God had promised they should come out Daniel sets himself to pray and you have a copy of his prayer from Dan. 9. v. 4. to v. 20. Observe now v. 20. And while I was speaking and praying and confessing my sin and the sin of my People Israel yea v. 21. While I was speaking in prayer the man Gabriel whom I had seen in a vision at the beginning being caused to fly swiftly touched me about the time of the evening oblation and he informed me and talked with me and said O Daniel I am now come forth to give thee skill and understanding at the beginning of thy supplication the Commandment came forth and I am come to shew thee for thou art greatly beloved c. Here now the Lord made a very quick return to Daniels prayer while he was speaking the Lord answered him But a return of prayers may be quick though it be not thus quick but after the interval of some few months days or years Abraham was thus answered as to his Prayer mentioned Gen. 17. and David glorieth in the assurance of this Psal 4. 3. The Lord will hear when I call upon him But now because on the one hand this is a very desirable mercy and many times the Souls of Gods people are discouraged and flagg in duty because the vision is yet for an appointed time It will not be out of our way to inquire what prayers these are that meet with so quick an audience from God God doth not this at all times nor for all persons no not for those who are most beloved of him David himself complaineth Psal 22. 2. O my God I cry in the day time but thou hearest not and in the night season and am not silent The Church complains of some times when God is angry with the prayers of his people Psal 80. 4 Gods own People sometimes shoot arrow after arrow to find what they shot first hence you so often meet with it as a piece of the Saints Prayer Hear my prayer O God give ear to my Supplications Let us a little enquire from whence this variety of Providence proceeds as to this hearing and answering of prayers God is the Lord that changeth not therefore we are not consumed we must therefore find the cause in the persons praying or in the prayers which maketh this difference as to Gods answers That so quick and gracious answers may be obtained something is necessary on the party praying Something with respect to the matter prayed for Something as to the manner of putting up the prayer 1. As to the Person praying 1. No Soul can expect such an answer unless persons in special favour with God this the Angel told Daniel Dan. 9. 23. At the beginning of thy supplication the commandment came forth and I am come to shew thee c. for
his Spirit but thy Soul is yet unquiet and impatient it is thy duty yet to wait upon God to chide down thy tumultuous and unquiet thoughts all the risings up and murmurings of thy Soul against God to adore and to admire God where thou canst not see or understand him to acknowledge Gods goodness and holiness though thou canst not discern his goodness as to thee in this particular Thus did David Psal 22. 3. after he had complained that he had cried in the day time and the Lord did not hear and in the night season and was not silent v. 3. he saith But thou art holy O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel This is most certainly our duty under such providences as these are we must not look in this life to understand all Gods ways and methods of providence much less the reasons of them that is a piece of knowledge reserved for another world all that we have to do is to observe and study them and where we cannot find them out to admire and adore them and to wait upon him that wrappeth up himself in thick darkness and hideth his face from the House of Jacob. This waiting doth not only signify a passive quietness silence and patience but an active doing our duty Waiting on the Lord and keeping his way are put together Psal 37. we ought not to leave off praying because in our apprehensions at least our prayers lie by without answer much less to slacken our course of holiness but to resolve as the Church did for Zions sake so for our own sake not to hold our peace we have for this an excellent president in the example of the Church Psal 44. 17. All this is come upon us saith she yet have we not forgotten thee nor dealt falsely in thy Covenant Our heart is not turned back neither have our steps declined from thy way though thou hast sore broken us in the place of Dragons and covered us with the shadow of death then she concludeth with prayer v. 23 24 25 26. Awake why sleepest thou O Lord arise cast us not off for ever wherefore hidest thou thy face and forgettest our affliction and oppression For our Soul is bowed down to the dust our belly cleaveth to the Earth Arise for our help and redeem us for thy mercy sake Sermon XXV Cant. 1. 4. The King hath brought me into his Chambers IF any asketh who is this King whom the text speaks of as the question soundeth like that Psal 24. v. 8. Who is the King of glory So the answer must be much the same The Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in Battel the Lord of Hosts he is the King of Glory He is the King of Nations for all the Nations of the Earth are the work of his hands and he hath a Native Lordship and dominion over them He is the King upon the holy hill of Sion the King of Saints they have chosen him he ruleth in them and reigneth over them they have chosen him he hath subdued their hearts unto him and hath chosen them for his peculiar people this is the King of whom the Church and the believing Soul here speaketh and saith The King hath brought me into his Chambers It is the same Person of whom she spake v. 2. Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth To whom she said v. 3. Draw me and we will run after thee There she spake to him as her beloved here she speaketh of him as a King there she prayed for something that she wanted here she praiseth and giveth thanks for something she had received I have already taken notice of the alteration of her stile of her so sudden giving thanks upon the quick return God had made to her prayers I come now to consider the mercy or good thing she had received which she expresseth in the same metaphorical dialect which she useth throughout this Song The King hath brought me into his Chambers when I at first opened the whole verse I endeavoured to find out what this mercy was in the receit of which the Spouse triumpheth in this text I then considered Chambers as places more lofty then others and and of more privacy and secrecy and from thence concluded that the Spouse by this phrase signifieth some special favours which she had received from God some special and more near and intimate degrees of fellowship and communion with God into which her beloved had taken her The Proposition I offered from the words for my further explication was this That the Lord Jesus Christ hath Chambers in which he sometimes entertaineth the Souls of his people He hath a favour for them all Rooms in his House for all the sizes of his people but he hath Chambers for some or into which he sometimes takes up the Souls of his Saints the subject of my discourse will be such special favours as God sheweth to some Souls or to the Souls of his people at some times This is evident in holy writ Abraham was called the Friend of God Moses is called his Servant emphatically Moses my Servant is dead David the man according to Gods own heart Solomon was named by God Jedidiah a man beloved of God There are four degrees in the love of God as it respecteth the Children of men 1. He hath a Philanthropy or general love which he sheweth towards all He leaveth not the Heathen without witness In him all men live move and have their being from him they have fruitful times and seasons which fill their bellies with food their hearts with gladness their bellies are filled with his hid treasure The patience of God leadeth them to repentance The invisible things of God even his eternal power and God-head are made known to them by his works of Creation by the things which he hath made 2. He hath a more special love for his Church This is seen in his more special providence exercised towards his whole Church which are more watched over and preserved by a common providence then any other body of people are They have also the Oracles of God the Ordinances of God and means of grace and this latter is certainly an effect of the death of Christ 3. He hath yet a more special love for all those within his Church who are effectually called whose hearts God hath seized and subdued to himself they are made partakes of more special grace being called justified and sanctified and such who shall hereafter be most certainly glorified 4. But there is yet another specialty of Divine love even amongst those who are made partakers of special saving graces some are more specially favoured in this life and shall be more eminently then others glorified in that life which is to come These more special favours to the Saints that are all made partakers of the same saving grace are the subject of my present enquiry 1. Some here understand the mansions of glory but they are forced to make an
mouths they shew much love but their heart goeth after their covetousness Christ in the Parable of the Sower compareth some hearers of the Word to the ground that received the Seed amongst Thorns the cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches choked the Word and made it become unfruitful It is a great blackness of a Christian not to have his heart with God in Religious Services so as the Lord as the Prophet expresseth it is nigh in his mouth and far from his reins and it is a blackness that will cover the face of every man and woman that converseth too much with the world Paul therefore rightly adviseth the Corinthians that they should use the world in a careless manner that those that rejoyced in the affluences of it should be as if they rejoyced not and those that bought as if they possessed not and those that used the world as not abusing it But saith he I would have you without carefulness 1 Cor. 7. 30 31 32. 4. Worldly imployments have often an ill influence upon Christians to intice and allure them to sin not only by omissions of duty but by the commissions of things which are contrary to their duty there is a sensible sweetness in worldly enjoyments and those are the product of worldly business and imployment The Devil baiteth all his Hooks with some piece of the World or other Some with the sensibly sweet part of it some with the gay and splendid part of it some with the richer and more profitable part of it It is an hard thing for Christians to keep Vineyards and not drink some of that intoxicating Wine which is the fruit of them When Samuel gave up his account as a Judge in 1 Sam. 12. 3. Behold saith he here I am witness against me before the Lord whose Ox have I taken or whose Ass have I taken or whom have I defrauded whom have I oppressed or of whose hand have I received any bribe Paul in like manner thus acquitteth himself to the Church of Ephesus Acts 20. 33. I have coveted no Mans Silver or Gold or Apparel But shew me the Man or Woman that hath been much incumbred with worldly affairs and can say I have coveted no Mans House or Land or Silver or Gold or that can say To whom have I told a lie for my gain or said it hath cost me so much when indeed it did not Or whom have I done injustice to in a bargain Commonly the best of the Market which such Christians have is that of Zacheus Luke 19. If I have taken any thing from any man by unjust dealings I restore him fourfold 5. Lastly A too great incumbrance with the world leaves a blot upon Christians in the common repute of the world if they escape real blots from it Holy Men in the Greek are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is men who are not Earthly and the world expects it of such as profess to Religion and Godliness that they should be persons looking for better Houses then those made of Clay even an House in the Heavens not made with hands and for a better Country and a more induring substance Hence a too great pursuit of the world becometh a greater blot to Persons professing to an heavenly conversation then unto others Our conversation is in Heaven saith the Apostle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 our trading and business is in Heaven I shall only add two or three words for application of this discourse This in the first place giveth us all an opportunity to bewail the disadvantage we have all received from the fall of Adam It was a curse which upon the fall fell upon all the Posterity of Adam Gen. 3. 19. In the sweat of thy face thou shalt eat thy Bread till thou return to the ground I do not think that if man had continued in innocency he should have lived idly but Mercers opinion is very probable his labour should rather have been for delight then for necessity or rather his labour should not have been so great as now it is the Thorns and Thistles which the ground now naturally brings forth and in the prevention and extirpation of which the labour of the Husbandman is so much were clearly the effect of the curse upon the Earth Gen. 3. 18. a lively-hood for the Sons of Men had doubtless been got at a cheaper rate with lesser labour and man had been at a great deal more liberty and leisure for a communion with God and have had more time for his immortal Soul then his worldly occasions will now permit or allow This may be a profitable meditation for the poorer sort of Christians whom the need of Bread for themselves and the want of a just provision for their Families restrain from spending so much time in communion with God as they would to sit down and think of the woful effect and fruit of the sin of Adam that first sin of man which reduced the Sons and Daughters of men to these miserable necessities Secondly Observe from hence what an advantage those have whom the liberal hand of Divine Providence hath delivered from such a miserable servitude to secular affairs If they will make themselves slaves and drudges to the World they may but the Providence of God hath not put them upon any necessity so to do God hath given them Estates to live upon Servants to toil for them I will but offer two things to the consideration of these 1. How inexcusable will you be if you do not keep your own Vineyards well Your own Vineyards are your Souls those immortal Substances ordained to an Eternity ennobled with Reason and many gifts and faculties by which if you will you may bring forth much fruit to the honour and glory of God if now you be not found mighty in the Scriptures much in reading hearing prayer close in your walking with God c. You cannot plead that you want leisure A morning and evening Service God under the Law required and in the same proportion doubtless under the Gospel though not by way of Sacrifice properly so called I observe of David and Daniel that they prayed thrice in a day Psal 55. 17. Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud saith David Of Daniel we read Dan. 6. 10. that he kneeled three times a day and prayed and gave thanks unto God as he did before-time They were both great men and at more leisure than ordinary Jews they considered this and as God had doubled their portions so they thought it reasonable in some measure to proportion their duties to their circumstances 2. Secondly Consider how little you will have to say if you so far intangle your selves in the world as it becometh a snare to your Souls Who pitieth him that is burned who for meer wantonness puts his finger in the fire Hath God given us food and rayment Jacob begged no more The Apostle commandeth us if we have so
have a command more then another in it to make our addresses to God nor any to which any promise is made nor concerning which it can be said God hath in it more Manifested himself to People seeking him yet there are two sort of places in which we have more advantage then in others for a communion with God 1. Places of Solitude 2. Places where 2 or 3 meet together or a greater number of Gods People so meet to pray or in any manner to Worship God 1. The first give us advantage by freeing us from the noises business and distractions of the World hence you read of Jsaac's going into the field for meditation and our Saviour's going so often up to a mountain for Prayer Mar. 6. 46. Matth. 14. 23. 2. The second gives us advantage as from the promise of God made to the assemblies of his People so from the influence that the Affections of pious Souls in holy duties have one upon another of which it is an hard thing to give an account but it is no more then I believe any good Christian will find upon his or her experience that their hearts are otherwise affected when they are in a society of serious Christians praying to God or performing any acts of Worship then when they are alone Hence it is that you find serious Christians so covetous of opportunities to withdraw into their closets or when they may join with other serious and consciencious Christians in more publick Worship If any shall for the further explication of this notion ask me from whence a more full free and uninterrupted communion with God is to be adjudged and determined I answer shortly I have before told you That all communion speaks a mutual or reciprocal communication of two or more each to other God communicateth himself to the Soul in his influences of grace the Soul communicateth it self to God in the actings and exercises of its gracious habits so as the fulness freedom and more near communion with God is to be judged from several things 1. First from the attention of the Souls thoughts in the duty A Soul hath more or less communion with God in a duty as his thoughts more or less deviate and wander from the thing he is about When there is a meer bodily service performed either by the lips or knee or Eye the duty is but a mere formality the Soul hath no communion with God in it in Praying the man doth not Pray nor in hearing hear nor in singing sing As to this the best of Gods People must cry God be merciful to us sinners so that the degree of perfection attainable in this life as to this thing is but comparative some may have more of this attention then others or more at one time then at another but none is perfect in this thing Only the pious Soul as in other things so in this thing is striving after perfection pressing forward towards the mark and daily humbling himself for his imperfection and flying to Christs intercession and advocation and exercising faith on his more perfect righteousness A second thing wherein a fuller communion with God on the Souls part lyeth is fervency of Spirit this chiefly respecteth the duties of Prayer and Praise The effectual Prayer must be servent 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Prayer which setteth the whole Soul on work and while we sing we must make melody in our hearts to the Lord Eph. 5. 19. Prayer is oft times in Scripture expressed under the notion of crying wrestling with God pouring out of the heart before the Lord Psal 142. 2. Psal 62. 8. David calleth this a pressing hard after God Psal 63. 8. some think it is a metaphor from hounds pursuing their game in view 3. A third thing is a Freedom of Spirit This is as I take it that which David calls largeness of heart Psal 119. v 32. I will run the way of thy commandments when thou shalt enlarge my heart There is no good man but findeth his heart more free to duty and in duty at one time then at another there is a straitness of heart which at some times is the great grievance and incumbrance of pious Souls it is caused sometimes from immoderate sorrow sometimes from fear sometimes from one cause sometimes from another but what ever the cause be it certainly abates the Souls communion with God at least its communications of it self to God And by consequence a freedom of Spirit a readiness of heart to duty with a liberty not of tongue onely but of Spirit also for without the latter the former is but hypocrisy advantageth and promoveth the Souls communion with God 4. A fourth thing which maketh the Souls communion with God more full is An ability more strongly to exercise its saith upon God without doubting whether it be in a stronger adherence or more firm persuasion 5. On Gods part the Souls communion is more full when it receiveth from God more influences of grace testifying his acceptance of the Souls addresses unto him or filling it with the sensible manifestations of his love or inabling it more fully to communicate it self unto God that it can be more attent in its thoughts more fervent in Spirit more free to and in its performances or exercise its faith more powerfully and strongly This I conceive to be enough to have spoken in the explication of the Proposition hinting you both wherein this more full and free communion with God is discernable and also what those times or places are where and when it may most ordinarily and probably be obtained which I conceive is the thing which the Spouse in the text expresseth her desire towards and which she begs that her beloved would instruct her as to That this is the desire of every good Christian appeareth 1. From its deprecation of those things which would hinder it and avoiding them so far as it can Those things that hinder it are 1. Intestine lusts and motions to sin Vanity of thoughts c. 2. Diabolical Suggestions Now there are no two things which the pious Soul more deprecateth then these two Worldly distractions Observe David how he bewailed his dwelling in Meshek And having his habitation in the tents of Kedar and how bitterly in three several Psalms he bewails his being banished from Hierusalem Psalm 42. Psal 84. Psal 63. So Psal 120. v. 5. How sadly doth St. Paul bewail his body of death Rom. 7. 24. 2. From its thirstings after times and opportunities of communion with God of which also you have instances in all the Psalms before mentioned Psal 86. 11. He prays for an heart united to fear the Lords name Psal 86. 11. And rejoiceth in a fixed heart Psal 57. 7. Psal 208. v. 1. Nor indeed can it possibly be otherwise as will appear to any Soul that understandeth what communion with God is That which is the object of any rational Souls desire must come under the notion of good and
the third place How should this raise up the hearts of Christians above all discouragements as to hard and difficult duties O saith a Christian This is an hard saying who can hear it a difficult duty how shall I ever perform it how shall I ever get up my heart to it Put to thy hand Christian thou canst do nothing of thy self but thou mayest do all things through Christ that strengtheneth thee what cannot Christ and thou do together I live saith Paul Gal. 2. 20. yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God Remember Christ hath called thee fellow and why Because he is thy fellow helper in duty as well as thy fellow Prisoner and fellow Souldier in all thy sufferings Only do not like a Sluggard lye down and stand still and cry there is a lion in the way Isa 41. 10. Saith God Fear not for I am with thee be not dismayed for I am thy God I will strengthen thee yea I will help thee yea I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness v. 13. I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand saying unto thee fear not for I will help thee It is Christians great fault they pore upon themselves and discourage themselves from their own natural impotencies and insufficiencies and do not consider that their fruit is found in Christ and all their strength also laid up and found in him and to be derived from him Fourthly Doth Christ say to us My Love And shall not we say to him My Beloved shall not we Love the Lord Jesus Christ and compleat this Love of friendship It is said that when Christ was going with his disciples to Emaus their hearts burn'd within them while they heard him talking by the way Have not your hearts burned within you while you have heard Jesus Christ speaking to you in this dialect My Love My Fellow If you Love them that Love you saith our Lord Matth. 5. What reward have you even the Publicans do so O Love the Lord Jesus Christ all you his Saints for he loveth you and that too with the greatest and most unmeasurable love Is Christ our Companion let us not grudg then to be his Companions and let us behave our selves towards him as towards a Companion and such a Companion This learneth us several things 1. It learneth us what is our constant work and duty viz To Glorify God by doing the work which God hath given us to do by manifesting his name to those whom God hath given us This was Christs work he went up and down doing good saith the Evangelist This was Christs work this should be our work we should be thinking every morning how should I glorify Christ this day How may I shew my self this day a Companion in labour to my great Lord and Master this we cannot do by making our selves Companions of fools nor meer Companions of worldly men but by being the Companions of those that fear the Lord. 2. It learneth us our duty to be couragious valiant in fight striving against sin confident of Victory over all our Spiritual Enemies Of these I have spake before We should also in consideration of this use Christ as our Companion and behave our selves towards him as to our Companion and as to such a Companion as he is I shall direct in that in two or three particulars 1. Be no Companion to Christs Enemies David saith Psal 119. 63. I am a Companion of all them that fear thee Psal 119. 63. Solomon telleth us That a Companion of fools shall be destroyed Prov. 13. 20. Who those fools are you may read 1 Cor. 6. 9 10. Revel 21. 8. All such as shall never enter into the Kingdom of God such as shall be destroyed in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone are fools with a witness No Companion to these can shew himself a Companion to Jesus Christ Solomon saith Prov. 28. 7. A Companion of riotous men shameth his Father He that is a Companion an ordinary Company to loose and profane men Drunkards Swearers Blasphemers profane Swearers and cursers and professeth to be a Companion of Christ shameth Christ to whom he pretendeth to be a Companion Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness Eph. 5. 11. If you have see what the same Apostle saith 2 Cor. 6. 14. What fellowship can righteousness and light have with you The Gentleman abhorreth his Mistriss that makes herself a Companion to ever Tapster and Porter 2. Be you much in company with Christ Fellows and lovers use to be so they are never well but when they are so Frequent Communion with God is like the frequent meetings and converses of lovers which ripen things apace for the wedding day The Soul that is much with Christ in Soliloquies and meditations much in Prayer ripeneth apace for glory for the great marriage of the Lamb. Much communion with God hath these two eminent advantages God is by it much indeared to the Soul and the Soul is again reciprocally much endeared to God by it 2. When thou art in communion with Christ be not Idle A man may be in his study and do nothing of moment a Child may truant in the School Domitian may be killing flyes in his Councel-Chamber A Soul may lose that time that it pretends to spend with Christ Spend this hallowed part of your time as Lovers and Companions use to do 1. In imparting your secrets unto Christ Your secret wants doubts fears desires not concealing your most secret thoughts from the Lord. 2. In wooing of your beloved Begging his love and favour crying out to him with the Spouse Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth Draw me and we will run after thee Tell me O thou whom my Soul loveth where thou feedest where thou makest thy flocks to rest at Noon 3. In mutual embraces The embraces of faith and love I held him saith the Spouse and would not let him go Put the hand of faith about the neck of your beloved it is a Chain from which he cannot from which he will not get loose But I have dwelt long enough upon the compellation in the Text my Love or my Fellow I should now come to the matter of my text I have compared thee to a company of Horses in Pharaoh's Chariots But of that hereafter Sermon XLVIII Canticles 1. 9. I have likened thee O my Love to a company of Horses in Pharaoh's Chariots I Am come to the second Proposition I observed from these words I have done with the first raised from the Compellation Prop. Christ hath likened his Spouse to a company of Horses in Pharaoh's Chariots I shall speak to this Proposition in my usual method by way of Explication Confirmation and Application By way of Explication I shall shew you 1. In what sense that term I have likened or I have compared
those Ornaments with which he surnisheth the Souls of his beloved They are those borders of Gold and studs of Silver which are here spoken of They are the true and the best Ornaments Other Ornaments are but the Devils or at best our own Ornaments Such Ornaments as are put on for Pride or lust are the Devils Ornaments With these Souls are adorned whom he hath by the hand leading in the broad way which leadeth to destruction There are indeed other more innocent Ornaments which serve to signify the quality of Persons and to make them appear more lovely and amiable but at the best these are but humane Ornaments they are not the dresses in which Christ dresseth his Spouse a pious Soul may be dressed in these those that dwell in Kings houses that are of higher quality and in an higher station and greater estates in the World may wear soft rayment but these are none of the Ornaments which Christ puts upon the Soul that he Loves though he may allow their infirmity in the use of them There is other bread and men must use it but Christ is the bread of life There are other clothings but Christs righteousness is the true clothing and the white Linnen of the Saints There are other Ornaments of our bodies but the habits of grace with which Christ dignifieth and adorneth the Souls of his People are the only Ornaments of the Souls which he looks at Christs Ornaments are saith Love meekness humility temperance The Love and fear of God Heavenly mindedness Thus saith the Apostle Peter of old the holy women who trusted in God did adorn themselves You have an account of other Ornaments Isaiah 3. But you find not this sentence at the foot of that account Thus of old holy women who trusted in God adorned themselves With some of them you read that Jezebel adorned her self when she looked out at the window Methinks this should be a mighty humbling consideration to a good man or woman who have adorned themselves after the manner of the World that they might not be singular but go like Persons of their rank in the World to think Now I have decked and adorned my self at the expence of a great deal of mony and I have spent in the doing of it a great deal of time None of these things are Christs Ornaments he hath allowed me to wear them but these are none of those things which I have received from him as my Saviour and Redeemer none of those things which do commend me unto him or make me at all more lovely in his sight These are none of his rows of Jewels or his Chains of Gold None of that attire in which I must if ever I come to Heaven be brought unto the King of Kings This is none of that rayment of needlework mentioned Psal 45. 14. And would serious Christians but entertain some such thoughts with what a contempt and neglect would they look upon their other Ornaments while their circumstances make it but decent for them to wear them How would they use them only to put them in mind of those better things by Christ resembled by them This comparison also lets us know that the Ornaments of grace are the best the most valuable most desirable Ornaments Christ compares them to rows of Jewels to Chains of Gold to badges and spots of Silver Jewels Gold and Silver amongst things Ornamental are the bravest and amongst men counted above others Ah! that I could this day but fasten this one nail this one persuasion in your Souls That habits of grace are the best Ornaments how much wast of mony would be saved How many good works more would be done How much more given to the necessities of Saints how much glory would be more given to God How much more good done to others How much more peace would be brought to your own Souls How much more would the poor creature that upon the account of our vanity is made more a Servant to corruptions and groans as the Apostle speaks Rom. 8. for the day of judgment upon that account be rescued from that bondage How much more time would be rescued for holy duties were you but rooted and grounded in this persuasion that there are no Ornaments like those of the grace of Christ Hear what Solomon saith Prov. 1. 7 8 9. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of Knowledge My Son hear the instruction of thy Father and forsake not the Law of thy Mother for they shall be an Ornament of grace unto thy head and a Chain of Gold about thy neck Prov. 4. 9. Wisdom shall give to thy head an Ornament of grace and a crown of glory It were easy to demonstrate these to be the best and most excellent Ornaments otherwise then by the Metaphor of the Text. These adorn the Soul Others adorn the carkass only The substance of others is corruptible they are things beneath us for the most part in the lowest ranks of creatures It is a shame to man to be beholden to a stone or a little Earth or a Silk-worm or a little flax for his Ornament they are Ornaments that degrade the creature and make a man beholden for his Honour and Ornament to things he treads upon Grace is a supernatural thing a thing that entreth into the substance of the Soul and makes it substantially beautiful It is not a Pendent that hangs at the Ear or a Necklace that hangs about the Neck but makes no alteration in it the Neck the Ear is the same thing still with it and without it still the same grace makes a real a lovely change in the dispositions and the affections of the Soul Other Ornaments commend us but to our earthly Relations and the vainer part of the World Grace commends us to Christ to his Father to Saints and Angels The demonstration is easie But ah how few are they that believe our Report How few will believe that Grace is the Best Ornament Thirdly Observe The Spouses Ornaments are of Christ and his Fathers preparing making We will make thee Neither is the Soul natively adorned neither is it in its own power by any act of its own will to adorn it self It 's Righteousness is as raggs and as a filthy cloth faith the Prophet raggs and filthy cloths are no Ornaments neither can these Ornaments be purchased Job 28. 15. It cannot be gotten for Gold neither shall Silver be weighed for the price thereof Nor can these Ornaments be borrowed The wife Virgins could lend no Oil to those that were foolish Matth. 25. To talk of grace under any other notion than that of a free gift is indeed no better than Nonsense There are Ornaments for minds indeed to be got at Athens and other Schools of Philosophers But these are not that white Linnen in which at the great day the Lamb's Wife must be brought to her Husband Not that Garment of Needle-work in which the King's Daughter must be brought
motions of the Affections as it is said Sechem's heart clave to Dinah But I extend it further to all overt Acts by which this inward Affection may be discovered in the same sense as we say to our Friends I will stick to you or I will stand by you Christ performs his part he sticks he cleaves to the Believers in all its Spiritual Combates and Dangers with or from the World the Flesh and the Devil Thus must we cleave to him Fourthly 'T is a piece of Conjugal Communion That the Wife does nothing but she will first acquaint her Husband with it ask his Counsel take his Direction The Husband also imparts much of his Counsel to his Wife 'T is a piece of our Communion true Communion with Christ to do nothing without taking Counsel of him in his Word without asking his Directions in Prayer in every difficulty where we have not a clear direction in the Word of God to fly to him by Prayer and Supplications Are your Souls willing to entertain such a Communion with Christ as this is Are you desirous of it Do you pray for it This speakâ—eth well for the Union betwixt Christ and your Souls nothing less than this will This Discourse may be further useful to some Souls that it may be cannot satisfie themselves in that Communion which they have with the Lord Jesus they would willingly that Christ should impart more of his Loving-kindness and of his Power to their Souls and they are troubled that they can no more freely no more fully give up themselves to him their Hearts are not united enough to love and fear God and indeed the best Souls are seldom satisfied in the Reception of Grace or in the Actings of it Now such Souls as are overmuch troubled in this case troubled to that degree as for want of degrees to suspect all the truth of Grace in their Souls This may be some satisfaction to hear that it speaks a Soul to be the Spouse of Christ to be truly willing sincerely desirous much in Prayer for those degrees of nearest Communion with Christ which it stands in need of In Earthly Marriages three things are required 1. Consent of Parties 2. Consent of Parents 3. Publication of it to the World The first alone is essential to the Union The second to make it a perfectly lawful Act. The third only to avoid Scandal and to keep up Civil Order in the World In the Spiritual Marriage the Consent of Parties makes the Union Christs Consent to be united to thy Soul is evidenced in his Word declared by us who are his Proxies to espouse you to this Husband If thy Soul also truly consents if thou truly desirest this Union and that Communion which followeth and ought to follow it the Match is made thou art joined to the Lord though it may be there be not a Publication of it to thy own Soul much less to the World I shall conclude with a Word of Exhortation To labour for this evidence of Grace That you may be truly willing to truly desirous of such a Communion with Christ as I have been describing You that are yet strangers to it labour for the beginnings of it You that find any thing of it labour to uphold it and labour for the Perfection of it To the first by way of Counsel I would only speak a few things 1. Labour to be convinced of your sad condition till Grace hath brought you into this better State Christ told the Woman of Samaria she had had many Husbands and he whom she then enjoyed was not her Husband Unregenerate Men have many Paramours for there is no Soul but cleaveth to somthing one mans Heart cleaveth to his Pleasures another to his Profits but all these are not the reasonable Souls Husbands the Soul cannot feed upon these things Let a Woman be married to a Man and run away from him she may have another Paramour but he is not her Husband It is Mans Case he was in Creation united to God he is run away from God and followeth many Lovers but none of these are the Souls Husbands O therefore return to your first Husband what can you imagine God should do for any of your Souls more than any one of you would do for a Wife that had run away from you and clave to another man 2. Look as the Woman that wanteth her Husband hath none that so naturally careth for her none that will be a covering to her Head or a Light to her Eyes so neither hath the Soul in its state of disunion with God any that will care for it as to its Spiritual and Eternal Concerns I might add the infinite advantages of this Union and Communion I remember the Argument used by Hamor and Sechem to persuade their People into a Willingness to be circumcised that Sechem might be married into Jacob's Family Shall not say they their Cattle and Substance and all that they have be ours only consent to them Shall not the Grace and Glory and Kingdom of Christ be yours only consent to him and be willing to a Communion with him But it is the Lord that must persuade Japhet to come and to dwell in the Tents of Shem. No man comes to the Son but he whom the Father draweth and while there is a spiritual Union it is unreasonable to think there should be any Willingness in a Soul to any near Communion with Christ We may use Arguments with Souls estranged from God to reconcile them to him and it is our Duty so to do till God concurreth with the work of his Spirit they will be of no force Let me therefore turn to such with whom this mystical Union is made Nor shall I need use words with any such to persuade them to a consent or willingness to or desire of this near Communion with Christ which I have been discoursing there is no such Soul but must be willing must be desirous of it But there is none of them which hath attained there 's no such Soul but hath attained somthing nor any that hath attained to Perfection none but may receive from Christ more than it hath received none but desireth his Heart might be more in subjection to Christ than it is The way further to attain is Prayer rightly ordered Prayer It is the Spouse that speaketh in the Text she had attained she was already united to her Spiritual Bridegroom but yet she finds her Soul in a continuing need of his Influences and further Tokens for good to be shewed unto her for these she useth Prayer as an apposite means Only we may ask and not receive because we ask amiss Let us look over the form of the Spouses Petition and see what we may learn from thence to guide our Souls in our Applications to God First The word in the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the future Tense which is often used for the 〈◊〉 Mood in the Hebrew and may indifferently
because they agree the truth of the Propositions of Scripture they may miserably deceive their own Souls a Man by a mere natural power may as well agree that there was such a one as Jesus of Nazareth once in the world who went about doing good exhorting men to a good life and was Crucified c. as that there was in England a William the Conqueror or any thing else that is to be found in other Books of tolerable credit and reputation in the World Or if men think that they do truly believe because they agree many propositions of the Gospel which are evident in the light of Reason they again deceive themselves here may be nothing of the operation of God in this faith Nay if they agree the Propositions of the Gospel because they are revealed there and in the mean time do not agree the Scriptures to be the Word of God but look upon them in the same rank with human writings or only by an human saith agree them to be the Word of God because the Church hath so deliver'd and transmitted them here is all this while no thing of the special operation of God Nor will this agreement produce any steadiness and firmness of practice commensurate to the Revelation but only commensurate to the nature of the Assent which being not fixed constant nor it may be not universal but to some part only of the revelation must necessarily bring forth no more than a saint partial and incertain practice Hence it is that Hypocrites may do many things contained in the law and at one time be more warm than at other times But if thy Assent be the special operation thou assentest to the whole revelation because God hath fixed in thy Soul a persuasion that it is from him who cannot lie it is also steady and fixed and tho some doubts may possibly incumber thee sometimes yet they hold not long and thou firmly and generally with allowance for the frailty and infirmity of human nature endeavourest to live up to the whole of that duty which the revelation imposeth upon thee which thou canst not do without relying on Christ and him alone for Salvation and having a respect to all the Commandments of God And indeed herein that agreement or assent which is the special work of God in the Soul differs from that which is but a meer natural action 1. In that it is more fixed certain and universal and this must be so for our assent is according to our light we must first see before we agree the truth of a proposition now the light of the holy Spirit is without doubt the clearest and brightest light Our natural reason gives us but a dim light as to matters of Faith 2. In that it layeth a stronger obligation to practice Reason will tell us that the more firmly we believe the truth of Propositions holding forth rewards and punishments relating to our practice the stronger we shall find our obligation to practice in order to the obtaining such rewards or avoiding such punishments 3. In that it layeth an obligation to a more universal practice The obligation to practice riseth no higher than the assent so as if there be any duty to which we do not agree our assent obligeth to no practice of that Now the holy Spirit persuades us of the truth of the whole revelation and that in the fullest and truest sense Hence it is that the true believer is more warm and universal in his obedience than it is possible another should be because his assent unto the truth is from a quite differing light and a quite differing work of God the assent of the former proceeding but from a common work of God in nature the latter from a work of special grace by the Spirit of God upon the Soul I will not much contend with those who will have true Faith to be a practical Assent to the Proposition of the Gospel if they by Assent mean a firm and steady Assent and by practical such an Assent as obligeth strongly to an universal practice of whatsoever is revealed as our Duty 1. Because I know a reliance upon Christ for eternal Salvation must be the effect of such an Assent 2. Because I know there can be no reliance on Christ without such a praevious Assent to the Proposition of the Gospel 3. Because I know there can be no such thing without the mighty Power of God upon the Soul So that in this sense the Soul must be drawn by the Father before it come to Christ Only let none deceive themselves as to this point of true Believing by fancying such an Assent to the Doctrine of the Gospel true Faith wherein God hath no further concern than as he influenceth acts of Humane Nature flowing from that order of operations which he hath set in all rational Souls True Faith must be more than this 2. As to Faith men are also prone to cheat themselves by calling their Natural presumption Faith we say Faith lies in a resting and reliance on Christ Now many will tell us they rest and rely on Christ and yet it is no difficulty to evince they do but presume and not believe Resting and relying on Christ for Salvation must be the Father's drawing Natural presumptions are meerly from our selves Every man is willing to hope well for and to prophesie good unto himself Hence living under the publication of the Gospel and having heard of an eternal Life and Salvation and this to be had through Christ and by resting on him many naturally cry they rest on Christ and trust in him and him alone And our Saviour lets us know that men may die with such confidences Matth. 7. 22 23. Now there is a resting and reliance on Christ which is the Operation of God yea and the mighty work of God upon the Soul and this many a poor Soul finds that lives months and years under the Spirit of bondage before it can rest on Christ and quietly commit it self unto him and there is a resting which is no more than a natural hope or confidence arising either from the Souls natural desire of good to it self or from its ignorance of the true grounds of a true resting and reliance And indeed by this may these two be distinguished and known asunder That resting and reliance upon Christ for any spiritual and eternal blessing which is the Operation of God is alwaâ—es bottomed on a Promise and testified by a life suitable to the condition upon which that Promise is made These two things are alwaies in it 1. I say first it is founded upon a Promise for all Grace and Eternal Life being the gift of God it is as vain a thing for any to be confident they shall have it without God's revelation of his Will as to it with reference to them as it is for any man to pretend a confidence and trust in another for the making him rich with a great part of his Estate
temptations As easie a thing as some make it to believe many Souls smitten of God and truly afflicted under the sense of sin find it one of the most difficult things in the world to give such a firm and steady Assent to the Revelation of the Gospel as will produce in their Souls any grounded confidence and resting on the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour and shall be productive of such a change of heart and life as the Gospel requireth Hence though they be truly wounded in the sense of sin and have taken up resolutions through the Grace of God to sin no more as they have done formerly yet they cannot tell how to bring their Souls to any fiducial adherence and rest on the Lord Jesus Christ but they are still full of doubts and fears concerning their spiritual and eternal state the guilt of their sins is upon their consciences and they pine away in and under it but they are not able to reach out an hand to the Promise in and through Christ they have deep sights of their misery but they can see no hope no mercy at all in God for them Now to such Souls as these this is some relief to consider That no man cometh to the Son unless the Father draweth him It is no wonder that thou who hast formerly been not a stranger only but an enemy to God canst not at first come unto him without a powerful influence of Divine Grace when as those who are brought home to God stand in need of a daily Divine Influence to enable them to walk with him and to run after him This is not the weakness or frowardness or badness of thine heart alone it is the condition of every lapsed Soul And here the thinking Soul will come to feel the wound given it by the Fall of Adam and its own original corruption No man hath by nature more aptitude than another to acts truly spiritual You will say this is very cold comfort We are sure if we be without Christ we are undone and what if our hearts be no worse than others were till they were made better by the Power of Divine Grace so long as that they are so bad as we cannot come to Christ for life We have been lying in this state at the Pool of Bethesda under the Ordinances of God many months and years others within the time have been rolled in here we lie still as weak as ever I will but offer two things to the relief of a Soul thus complaining 1. That every Christian drawn to Christ doth not presently discern it Faith is one thing the sense of that Faith is another thing Many a Child of Light doth not walk in the Light I would hope charitably that that Soul which complains that it cannot believe and seriously bemoans its impotency doth believe a serious desire to believe is generally the fruit of believing I would say to the Soul that thus complaineth Thou art awakened to consider an Eternity and that thy Soul is hastening towards an Eternity yet thou dost not despair thou hast some hope In what is thy hope What dost thou trust in with reference to thy Eternal Happiness Such a Soul will easily see that its Moral Righteousness or Formal Performance of Duties are not the things it hopeth in Where then is thy hope those degrees of hope which keep thee out of the Pit of despair fixed Where can it be fixed but in Christ exhibited in the Promises of the Gospel so as thou rather complainest for want of sense than for want of 〈◊〉 2. If thou dost but pray and wait thou shalt see Christ will make thee to see that he hath drawn thy Soul unto himself Never poor Soul perished under thy circumstances that is heavy loaden under the sense of sin and weary of its sinful courses and sensible that it hath no Righteousness wherein it can stand before God and panting and thirsting after the Lord and his Righteousness I have alwaies thought that God would not be wanting to any as to his special Grace that had made the best improvement he could of common Grace But this case riseth higher God hath begun his good work in thy Soul and he will perfect it he hath begun with thee in a way of special Grace and more shall be added he hath brought to the birth and shall he not give strength to bring forth so as thou hast nothing to do but to pray to wait upon God in his Ordinances and to wait for God with patience Secondly I hear others complaining They would run after God they would follow the Lord fully the Spirit is willing but the Flesh is weak they find their corruptions their temptations so strong their strength against them so small that they wonder they hold out so long and fear they shall one day fall They cannot find that they run after Christ something of duty they do but with so much dulness and heaviness as is far from running Christian be of good comfort 1. The Lord will draw thee do what in thee lieth the Lord will draw thee Who saith Paul shall deliver me from this body of death He presently subjoyns I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. The Spouse prayeth in Faith when she saith Draw me and we will run after thee If Abraham had considered his own body at that time dead as to such acts or the deadness of Sarah's womb he had never glorified God by a strong Faith in the Promise Rom. 3. 21. He considered none of these but the Promise only and concluded that what the Lord had promised he was able to perform Thou considerest how busie the Devil is and what he can do How strong thy lusts are how weak thou art and how little thou art able to do But thou dost not consider what a mighty God can do what he can do who hath said To him that hath shall be given and he shall have in more abundance Thou seest a great Mountain of lusts and corruptions great Mountains of temptations and thou art afraid But what art thou O great Mountain before the Lord 's Zerubbabel If it be the Lord's work who shall let him 2. Consider The Lord may sometimes not draw 〈…〉 as at other times and our running will bear a proportion to his drawing The Mother will never leave the little Child to go wholly alone for fear it falls she will alwaies have an hand upon it but she may sometimes put forth more sometimes less of the strength of that hand God never leaveth us wholly to our selves he knows we cannot stand or go without him but he sometimes lets us feel more of his strength sometimes less 3. Going slowly when God slackens his hand is indeed running that is equivalent to a going faster with a further influence It is like the Widdows Mite who hath no more to put in Like Hezekiah's chattering like a Crane Like the voice of David's weeping Like the sorrowful sighings of the
is with the Soul its Spiritual distemper many times is not so much a weakness as a spiritual deadness dulness and inactivity so as it wants a promptness and readiness to its duty It cannot say with David My heart is ready O God my heart is ready I will pray and sing Praise Running argues the absence of this ill temper If the Lord draweth the Soul it will not only serve him but it will serve him with a ready mind and free Spirit praise and duty will wait for God in the Soul it will not only walk but run the ways of Gods Commandments David hath an expression to this purpose Psal 119. 60. I made hast and delayed not to keep thy Commandments Every Soul that loves God keepeth the Commandments of God it is the test of our love to God He that hath my commandments and keepeth them saith Christ John 14 21. he it is that loveth me But there is a great deal of difference in mens keeping and fulfilling the commandments of God The meanest weakest Christian doth in his measure keep the Lords commandments all the commandments of God Psal 119. 6. Then saith David shall I not be ashamed when I have a respect to all thy Commandments He that hath the least of saving Grace sets the law of the Lord in his Eye and makes the word of God a light to his feet and a Lanthorn to his paths and hath a reverence and regard to all the commandments of God and To will is present with him he would walk perfectly with God but in many things he doth offend through weakness and in many things through a dulness and heaviness which sometimes doth affect and afflict his Soul he doth not only want a strength to perform but he wants a life and quickness of Spirit in what he doth but now if the Lord draweth the Soul makes hast and delayeth not to keep the Commandments of God Jacob himself had forgot the vow which he had made unto God when he fled from the face of his Brother Esau God draweth him saith unto him Gen. 35. 1. Arise go up to Bethel make there an Altar to God c. then Jacob made hast and delayed not v. 2. When there is a suspension of this drawing Grace in its co-operating and concurring influences the Soul moves heavily like Pharaohs Chariots when the Wheels are taken off it hath a view of its duty and lieth under convictions as to it and it may be finds strength enough to the performance of it but wants a readiness of mind and is ready when it hath a monition to duty from such as wish well to it to say as he said to Paul Go thy way when I am at leisure I will send for thee Or tomorrow or at such or such a time I will do it as the young man in the Gospel whom Christ bid follow him said suffer me first to go and bury my dead So sometimes the Soul is ready to say suffer me first to go and do such or such a thing So the Soul is ready to delay and put off good motions but when the Lord draweth then it maketh hast and delayeth not to keep his Commandments It longeth for times of duty It is glad when they say unto it Come let us go up to the House of the Lord it sayeth when shall I come and appear before God There is a time when the Soul saith when will the Sabbath come the hour of Prayer come that I may appear before God and pour out my Soul before him This is now when God draweth hard when the Spirit of God cometh upon the Soul in a more than ordinary influence and there is a time when the Soul saith when will the Sabbath he gone the hour of duty be run out This is when the Lord doth not draw in such a manner The believing Soul like the flowers opens or shuts as the Sun of righteousness shineth more or less upon it Let me again allude to that Text Psal 65. 1. Praise watteth for God in Zion Praise is a rent due from our Souls to God we farm much mercy from the great Landlord of all good Praise is all the rent we pay Now look as it is in the world a bad tenant never hath his rent ready so it is with a bad Man he lives upon mercy and it may be hath liberal portions of mercy but God never hears of him to pay his acknowledgments A good Tenant if the times be good hath alwaies his rent ready for his Landlord so as his rent waiteth for his Landlord but if the times be bad even the best Tenants though they have an heart to pay their rent yet may not have it to pay their Landlords may wait for their rents so it is with the best Souls If the Sun of righteousness shines out clearly upon them and the Spirit of Grace draweth powerfully Praise waiteth for God in their Souls If not God may wait for his Praises Hence David so often prayeth Quicken me according to thy word Psal 119. 25. Quicken me in thy way v. 37. Quicken me in thy righteousness v. 40. I have now opened the term Run The Proposition opened lies thus before you That the Soul of a Christian once drawn not only by the motives and arguments of the Gospel improved by the gifts of Gods Minister but by the secret and powerful influence of the Spirit of God upon it doth no longer lie still as the Soul dead in sin nor move from a forreign power put forth upon it but from an inward principle within itself and that not weakly and impotently but with might and strength and that not dully and heavily but with life freedom speed and chearfulness after God in the way of its duty keeping the Commandments of God with its whole heart being first made willing it willeth being first set on work it worketh yet not of itself meerly nor principally I live saith the Apostle yet not I but Christ liveth in me and the life which I now live I live by the faith of the Son of God I can do all things saith the same Apostle to the Philippians through Christ that strengtheneth me and without me you can do nothing saith Christ to his Disciples Joh. 14. 3. The truth of this further appears from Gods Peoples promises of running upon Gods drawing in that excellent 119 Psal you shall find many passages of this tendency v. 32. I will run the ways of thy Commandments when thou shalt inlarge myheart 33 Teach me O Lord the way of thy Statutes and I shall keep it unto the end v. 34. Give me understanding and I shall keep thy Law yea I shall observe it with my whole heart v. 35. Make me to go in the paths of thy Commandments v. 36. Incline my heart to thy testimonies The inlarging of the heart his prayer for giving him understanding making him to go in the paths of Gods Commandments c. are but all several phrases
is full either of such as are excessive drinkers of Wine or Merchants for it but how thin is it of such as have any remembrance of Christs love who as the Apostle tells us died to redeem us from our vain conversation 1 Pet. 1. 18. For we were not redeemed with corruptible things as Silver and Gold from our vain conversation but with the precious blood of Christ as of a Lamb without blemish who can be said to remember Christs love more then Wine that lives in those sins which crucified him who was the Lord of life Yet is not this the course of the most Men and Women who never think of their dying Saviour to restrain them in their drunkennesses debaucheries in their greatest excesses of Riot Nay how many are there that seldom take the love of Christ into their thoughts the love of their cups and of their Harlots hath made Christs loves to be utterly forgotten by their Souls for how can they say that they remember Christs loves above their lusts that will not quench one lust for his sake they in whom the remembrance of Christs death will not extinguish one vile affection one spark of pleasing lust will not the most of men and women yea such in whose ears the loves of Christ are published every Lords day be found perishing for preferring the very lees and dregs of Wine before the loves of Christ I mean for preferring the basest and most sordid kind of pleasures and satisfactions of the flesh for such are those pleasures which are no more than the gratifying of the sensitive appetite 2. Do not most mens discourses and practice betray them to remember Wine I mean their profitable things before the loves of Christ How much is the world and the things of the world the discourse of all companies upon all occasions how few are the discourses concerning Christ and what he hath done for us an hours discourse of Christs loves in a Pulpit upon the Lords day is thought proportionable to six days discourse about our earthly occasions do we not even grudge the Lord a seventh part of our time for the remembrances of his loves the Lords day is a day to call to remembrance Christs loves It was the day of his resurrection by which he compleated mans redemption the Ministers work is to help us in our remembrance of his loves We have besides our attendance upon the publick ministry a private duty this day incumbent upon us viz. To remember him who died for our sins and rose again for our justification I beseech you consider whether your remembrings of Christs loves upon the Sabbath day bear any proportion to your remembrance of your worldly interests other days I mean not for the proportion of time spent in the one and the other God hath indulged our infirmity in that he hath set apart a seventh day only to himself but examine this whether you remember the loves of Christ on the Lords day as you remember your worldly concerns on any of the other six days do the loves of Christ come into your thoughts as much on the week day as the world comes into your thoughts on the Lords days I sear there is none of us all can say that in this thing our hearts are clean I hope I speak to many who remember the loves of Christ and will never suffer his dying love to go off their thoughts But when we come to these comparative examinations to enquire whether we remember his loves more then we remember our sensual or sensible objects ah how short do we come of the duty of Christians yea of what our selves will own and consess to be our duty Happy is that man that doth not condemn himself even in the thing which he alloweth to be his duty But I had rather spend my time in persuading my self and you to our duty which according to my explication of the text and this propositionwill lye much in two things 1. In a full and perfect remembrance of the Loves of Christ 2. In a remembrance of them proportionable to that degree of goodness and excellency in them I say first in a Scriptual remembrance a full and perfect remembrance of the Loves of Christ I am afraid that we satisfy our selves too much in a Notional formal remembrance of Christs Loves and so please our selves in hearing the Gospel read opened and applyed to our Souls in a formal keeping of the Lords day the day which God hath set apart for us to call to our minds all the acts of our redemption compleated in his resurrection some Churches aware of Peoples awkness to this Spiritual duty have thought fit to appoint other days for a more solemn remembrance of his incarnation and death Nor have I any thing to say against any Christians that will set apart any Special times to remember any Loves of Christ though I do not know that Christ hath left any power to his Church to impose particular times of this nature But alas this is the least part of our duty in the remembrance of his Love We may have a day to remember it in we have such a day every week we may have helps to remember it by The holy Scriptures the Ministers of the Gospel that Preach Christ to their People are such helps But if in these days if with these helps we do not set our selves to meditate of the Loves of Christ to turn our thoughts from other things to the contemplation of and meditation upon the Love of a Christ incarnate the Love of a Christ dying and riseing again from the dead if we do not study to get our hearts affected suitably to such Love with love faith hope c. we do not so live as a People that remember Christ died for our Sins declining whatsoever is contrary to his will and Law in the Gospel do what in us lyeth to promove his honour Glory we are so far from Satisfying our Duty by this formal remembrance of his Love that we are the greatest forgetters of his Love The Jews who never owned him as their Redeemer the Heathen who never heard of his name nor of what he was or did for Sinners can in no propriety of Speech be said to forget his Loves The Christian only the loose Christian the formal Christian he who hears every day of the dying Love of Christ yet goes on to defy him to crucify him afresh and to put him to open shame or he who every Lords day hears the sound of the Loves of Christ and reads of it yet never meditates upon it never suffers his soul by contemplation to pierce into the heights or sound the depths of it whose heart is never truly affected with it so as he hath any Love kindled in his soul towards Christ no breathings after him who exerciseth no faith no hope in him he that lives not in his measure up to it leaving his vain conversation worshiping God in the Spirit
that which should commend him or it No artificial beauty is our own and so a thing not to be gloried in All the comeliness of a Child of God is a derived comeliness His blackness is his own his comeliness is from another it is Christ that hath made him to differ he hath received his beauty and therefore ought not to glory as if he had not received it And this in the second place ought to mind them of their duty of thankfulness and admiration of â—he love of Christ When saith David I consider the Heavens the work of thy hands the Moon and the Start which thou hast ordained what is man that thou art mindful of him and the Son of man that thou visitest him Yet David in that Psalm is speaking of no more then Gods more common mercies of Creation and Providence but what greater reason hath a Child of God to cry out Lord what is man that thou shouldst remember him Lord What was I that thou shouldst remember me and fix thy love and put thy comeliness upon me I was by nature an Ethiopian and have contracted much more blackness by my conversation in the world now that the Lord should make us comely through his comeliness that he should fix his love upon any of our Souls and put any of his Chains about our Necks What manner of love was this To which of the Angels said he at any time aâ— Zech. 16. 8. When I passed by thee and looked upon thee behold thy time was a time of love and I spread my skirt over thee and covered thy nakedness yea I sware unto thee and entered into a covenant of life with thee saith the Lord God and thou becamest mine Or as Jer. 3. v. 14. Turn O backsliding Children saith the Lord for I am married unto you To which of them hath he at any time said my Love my Dove my Vndefiled We had none of us either Beauty or Portion Christ hath given us both Admire the height and depth of Divine Love and consider what an ingratitude it would be if any of us should now like Israel Ezek. 16. 15. Trust in your own beauty and play the Harlotâ— and pour out fornications on every one that passeth by Bestow our hearts our love and affections upon any objects contrary to him beneath and besides him whether it be not reasonable that we should be wholly to him and for him who are wholly from him and are nothing but what we are in him Thirdly This notion calleth to the people of God not to be overmuch disquâ—eted and dejected It is one thing to walk humbly that is our duty another thing to walk dejectedly that is our infirmity we have no reason to be proud because we are black nor yet to despond and be dejected because in Christs Eyes if we be upright if we prepare and fix our hearts to seek the Lord we are comely We have no reason because of our blackness to glory in our selves but we have reason to rejoice and to glory in our comeliness which though indeed Christs comeliness yet being puâ—upon us becometh ours A believer hath therefore hath nothing to do but to see that his interest in Christ be clear and to see to wash his feet and he is clean every whit We have reason to consider our ways to reflect upon our infirmities to be humbled for our failings and to walk humbly at all times in the sense of them but still to incourage our selves in the Lord our righteousness to hope in God and rejoice in Christ tho we have no confidence in the flesh either in any priviledges of our birth or in any works of our own Lastly This Doctrine calleth upon all not to look upon the Spouse of Christ because she is black They are the words of our Spouse following in the next verse but the proper application of what she saith in this verse the use which she desireth her Brethren to make of this her imperfect and black state Something God willing shall be spoken hereafter more largely for the explication of those woâ—dâ— then the streightness of my time will now allow I shall therefore reserve the fuller explication of this duty until I come to the next verse and shall give you but a short tast and specimen of what I shall then more fully inlarge upon 1. We ought not to look upon the Spouse of Christ in these circumstances with a supercilious scornful and censorious Eye The Eye is the Oâ—gan of the body by which the Soul first taketh the cognisaâ—ce of a thing and is suitably affected there are two false rules by which we judge of persons 1. When we judge of them by particular actions 2 When we judge of them by external acâ—idents the first of them indeed is more proper then the latter because they are the fruit of the Soul the other are forreign and adventitious neither of them are a safe rule of Judgment not the former because none is to be denominated from single and particular acts and this the Philosopher will teach us and indeed if this rule of judgment should be true what judgment must have passed upon Lot Noah Abraham Jacob Job David Pâ—teâ— all the most eminent Servants of God whose names are upon Sacred Record they were all guilty of irregular acts Not the latter for it is not that which is accidental to a man but that which proceedeth from him that defileth a man Take therefore heed of a censorious scornful Eye when you look upon the People of God in their blackness consider that you also may be tempted that although you now stand yet you may fall 2. Look not upon her with a pleased and satisfied Eye The Eye is that Organ of the Booy which giveth the Soul delight content pleasure and satisfaction in the object Psal 92. v. 11. Mine Eye also shall see my desire upon mine Enemies We have naughty and corrupt hearts ready to take a secret delight and pleasure in the slips and failings of our Brethren let this be far from you either to rejoice in the real blackness the failings and miscarriages of any whose general conversation is not unworthy of the Gospel or to rejoice in any of their afflictions we are to weep with those that weep not to rejoice when we see our Brethren weep The first rejoicing is opposite to your duty with respect to the honour of God which suffereth by others sins as well as our own The second is eminently contrary to that love and fellow-feeling and compassion which we owe unto our Brethren Thirdly look not upon them so as to take out a copy for your imitation Rocks stand up in the Sea and lights stand upon the Land to give Ships notice of Rocks and Sands not that Mariners should run upon them but that they may avoid them for this end also are the failings and sins of Gods People Recorded in Holy Writ When you see a Child of God
2 Cor. 12. 6. Lest as he saith any should think of me above that which he seeth in me or that he heareth of me We are to have a care of the corruptions of others hearts as well as our own 3. Look to the simplicity of thy heart in the end of thy action This will indeed be much regulated from the principle if the principle be true the end will be so A man can do nothing out of a true principle of love to God but his end will be the honour and glory of God if the principle be self-love the end will be our own honour praise and applause to have the reputation of a religious man in the world and to appear to be what indeed we are not Now if thy end be the honour and glory of God you have heard that is no other way attainable but either by the predication of his goodness or by the doing of his will either in the doing good to others or the preventing of scandals and offences or upholding the credit and reputation of Religion c. But of all these things I have discoursed more fully before Sermon XXXVI Cant. 1. 6. Look not upon me because I am black c. I Have done with the four first Propositions which I observed in these two verses I come to the fifth from those words Look not upon me because I am black Where the Spouse or rather the Holy Ghost by her doth not forbid all looking upon the Spouse whether we understand the Church or the particular believing Soul in the day of her blackness but some particular lookings And this is very usual in Scripture to deliver Propositions generally which yet must be understood in a limited and restrained sense of which a multitude of instances might be given Mat. 18. 3. Except you â—e converted and become as little Children that is in some things as little Children you cannot enter into the Kingdom of God So where Christ saith my Doctrine is not mine the meaning is not mine alone and again If I give testimony of my self that is if I alone gave testimony of my self my testimony is not true So often in precepts and exhortations when thou makest a feast saith our Saviour Luk. 14. 12. call not thy Friends or thy Brethren or thy Kindred that is not them alone There is nothing more ordinary in the phrase of Scripture and particularly in exhortations or prohibitions So here when she saith Look not upon me her meaning is not to dissuade all intuition and beholding her in her blackness but to caution us how to look upon her hence the Proposition was It is our duty to take heed how we look upon the Church or the particular Child of God because they are black What the blackness of the Church or of the particular Soul is I have heretofore largely discoursed Both of them are black through Afflictions and black through Corruptions the Corruptions of particular Souls are personal the Corruptions of the Church are the Corruptions of the body collective through the mixture of undue and corrupt Teachers or Members the reception of false and erroneous Doctrine idolatrous or superstitious Worship or Rites c. In some sense we may not be able to avoid looking upon them as looking signifies no more then the casting of our Eyes upon obvious objects that are before us In some sense it is our duty to look upon them to pity and compassionate them and contribute what we are able toward their help and recovery But in other senses it is our sin to look upon them The business as to which I am to instruct you under this Proposition is how truly to divide betwixt our duty and our sin in this case The Eyes are the windows of the Soul through which most of our affections and passions shew themselves Pride discovereth itself by the Eye hence you read of a Generation whose Eyes are lâ—fâ—y Prov. 30. 13. and David saith of himself O Lord mine heart is not haughty nor my Eyes lofty Psal 131. 1. Love and wantonness discovereth itself by the Eye Hence Peter tells us of Eyes full of Adultery and Job tells us he had made a covenant with his Eyes that he would not look upon a Maid Covetousness and immoderate desires discover themselves by the Eye Prov. 27. 29. The Eyes of man are never satisfied The joy pleasure and satisfaction of the Soul are discerned by the Eye Mine Eyes also shall see my desire on my Enemies Psal 92. 11. Hope looketh through the Eye hence David expresseth his hope in God by the action of his Eyes Mine Eyes are towards the Lord Psal 25. 15. and in many other Texts Pity sorrow and compassion are discovered and expressed by the Eye The Eyes for sorrow wax dim and run down with tears The outward man moveth according to the bent and inclination of the will and affections as a mans will stands bent and his affections are inclined so he moveth so he acteth and this will of man and his affections discovering themselves by the Eye The motions of that are made use of in Scripture to express the several affections and inclinations of the Soul of man The Spouse in this Text must not be understood to caution the Daughters of Hierusalem against the natural motions of their Eyes with reference to her But 1. Against those unkind affâ—ctions towards her which were not suitable to her state and condition 2. Against those unkind effects and actions which ordinarily follow such affections I put in those words unkind and unsuitable because there are affections and actions which are our duties towards the Spouse in the day of her blackness This will lead me to discourse two points under this Proposition 1. The duâ—y of Christians towards the Church of Christ black with Afflictions or through sinful mixtures and corruptions and towards particular Christians under affâ—â—ctions or lapses 2. How Christians may sin in their behaviours towards one or the other under such circumstances First Let me speak as to what is a Christians duty in the ease that I shall resolve in this general position That it is a Christians duty so far to look upon the Church and the particular Christian in the day of their blackness as they may be thereby affected with that due compassion which they owe unto their Brethren and quickned to those acts which brotherly love and compassion calteth to them for Thus not to look upon the Spouse because she is black is our sin So that the duty of a Christian here lieth in two or three things 1. In a sympathy or fellow feeling of a Churches or Christians burdens and misery The Eye naturally affects the heart according to the nature of the object which it seeth Nature itself teacheth a sympathy betwixt members of the same body No one member can be afflicted or pained but the whole body feeleth it and hath some sense of it The Apostle hath compared the Church the
a life according to the rule of the word To worship God according to the prescriptions of the Word in all things it calleth a man to the Law and to the Testimony It obligeth every man in his place to bear a testimony against whatsoever is contrary to the strict rule of the Word Now whoso considereth either the ignorance of the world which knoweth not the Son of God nor him that sent him nor what is the revealed will of God or the sensuality of the world how mad upon their lusts the most of Men and Women are Or the Pride of the world which maketh men impatient either of a verbal reproof by doctrine and admonitions or real reproof by a quite contrary conversation more pleasing to God acceptable to and beautiful in the sight of men Or the affectation of dominion over the conscience which a multitude are possest of and their impatience at good Christians not owning and submitting to their dictates and saying as they say and doing as they do can hardly imagine how those that will live godly in Christ Jesus should live any long time in the world without persecution Now the expectation of those searchings and Sun-burnings will have various good effects upon the Soul 1. It will put the Soul upon preparing for them He that liveth in the expectation of trials will be oft-times putting the case to himself if such a tryal should be what should I do My Soul wouldst thou stand to or desert the profession of thy faith wouldst thou keep close to God or depart from him we should be laying up something in store against an evil day 2. Expected tryals as I before told you are alwaies lighter and more tolerable and endured with more courage and patience We are not so frighted with evils which we see at distances and view in the approaches they make to us Nothing more weakneth a Soul in the bearing of an evil as a sudden surprisal like an Apoplexy to the body it at once stops those passages by which the Spirits should discover and exert themselves Secondly This Doctrine calls to Christians for patience and that both under Persecution and Afflictions and under the censures and obloquies of the world because of them Expectation of tryals is a previous duty in order to our preparation for them Patience is a present duty when the Christian is fallen under them It is indeed the work of the day that very grace which in the hour of tribulation should have its perfect work it lieth partly in a quiet submission to the good will and pleasure of God because he hath laid it upon us an holding our peace because it is the Lords doing partly in a quiet waiting for God in the fulfilling of his promises made to his People under such circumstances There are two things that call for our patience under afflictions 1. The smart of the Affliction for no affliction is joyous but grievous 2. The reproach of the world under it this often doubleth the affliction and maketh it more grievous and intolerable Now consider how many things have occurred in this discourse which may excite our patience under both these 1. This is the lot of the People of God There is none of them but the Sun at one time or other works upon The Apostle exhorteth the Thessalonians 1 Thes 3. 3. That no man should be moved by their Afflictions for faith he your selves know that we are appointed thereunto There is a great deal in that saying to quiet the Spirits of Christians under the burthens of tryals 1. God hath laid those burthens upon them I held my peace saith David because it was thy doing It is the Lord said that good man let him do what soever he pleaseth Perhaps saith David God hath bidden him curse It is a mighty thing to silence the Spirit of a Christian when he can see the hand of God in it 2. It is the Lords appointment What hath befallen us in pursuance of an eternal counsel this speaketh the tryal eventually necessary it speaketh it also good for his People for he hath not appointed us unto wrath nor to any means of that tendency Nor is it thy lot alone but the lot of all those who will live godlily in Christ Jesus The Apostles themselves were appointed thereunto and wherein are we better then our Fathers or our Brethren 2. You have likewise heard why God hath appointed our lot to be Trials and Afflictions for the punishment of our sins and for the tryal and exercise of our Graces this also calls for patience Why should a living man complain a man for the punishment of his iniquity We have much less reason to be disturbed at the trial and exercise of our graces 3. You have heard upon what mistakes it is that the World accounts the Christian black by reason of Afflictions because they judge of their complexions by a meer sensual Eye and from a meer erroneous judgment We have therefore no reason to be disquieted because of it But indeed the main use we should make of this point should be for Caution and that in two particulars 1. That afflictions may not blacken us 2. That we do not judge others black because of them 1. Will afflictions blacken the Spouse of Christ Let us take heed that they have not this ill influence upon us We have heard that they no otherwise make us black then as they are occasions to draw out our lusts and corruptions This is that which we are more especially to watch upon In afflictive providences God tryeth us and Satan and the world also try and tempt us God tryeth our faith our patience our submission to his will whether we will deny our selves and take up the Cross and follow him The Devil and the men of the World which are the Devils instruments try us whether we will desert our profession deny the Lord that bought us forsake the ways of God and imbrace a present World If upon Gods tryal his ends be obtained then are we by our afflictions purified and made white if the Devil and his instruments prevail upon us then are we by our afflictions made black This is the thing we are to take heed of Job 2. 3. after that God had taken away Jobs Estate and Children he saith to Satan Hast thou considered my Servant Job that there is none like him in all the Earth a perfect and an upright man one that feareth God and escheweth evil and still he holdeth fast his integrity although thou movest me against him to destroy him without a cause How white there did Job appear after his afflictions But I shall not inlarge my discourse to afflictions in the general but limit it to such afflictions as are more peculiar to the Spouse of Christ and which I have had a more special reference to in my former discourse viz. Persecutions or sufferings for our adherence to the truths of the Gospel and the good ways
profits honour c. as well as with the supply of our necessities We live in and converse with the world which is full of objects that gratifie our sensitive appetite in these things these are continual temptations to us to remit at least the care of our own souls to neglect our own Vineyards The Church also while it is militant here on Earth considered as Visible hath in it a great mixture of the world though not of the Pagen world there must be a profession of Christ in all the Members of the Visible Church yet of that world which lyeth in wickedness and it is this mixture of Hypocrites with such as are the sincere Servants of God that causeth the Church's neglect of its Vineyard All the remissness in a Church of its care as to the Doctrine Worship and Discipline of Christ proceedeth from this mixture of persons who are no more than Visible with such as are sincere and true Members of the Church of Christ 4. A fourth cause of this neglect is mens foolish presumptions that they are well enough The work of every particular Person in keeping the Vineyard of his own Soul is so contrary to the grain of flesh and blood that not only the natural man but even the Sanctified man in regard of that corruption which is yet in him is ready to take up with short measures of it and to think his Vineyard is well enough kept when indeed it is not men are loth to be righteous over much and are very apt to think that a little is enough We are very apt to think that we do enough duty and consider not the mark which we are to press after the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ It is something natural to us to think we may not only do but over-do what God requireth of us when alas when we have done all we can we are unprofitable servants servants so that what we do is but our duty unprofitable servants so that what we do cometh much short of our duty Perfection is what we are all bound to aim at and strive after but withal it is what no man attaineth not as though I had already attained or were already perfect saith the Apostle You know in works that are not naturally pleasing to us we are well pleased to think we have done enough Thus it is in the business of Religion and holiness they are things which please not flesh and blood so as we are well pleased when we can Satisfy our selves and think that we need do no more nor go any further and as it is with particular Christians so it is with Churches all which have not Pastors and Governours according to Gods own heart nor are all the members of them members of Christ Now those who are not so are no great lovers of nor zealous for the perfection of purity but can take up with measures short of those which Christ hath made and given Hence is that neglect of the keeping their own Vineyards which is but too obvious in all Churches and hence are those obvious declinations in that duty which men owe to God and in the purity of Churches every Age is still declining and growing worse then the former whiles a party in the Church still studyeth more and more to wriggle their neck out of the yoke of Christ and to get rid of some ingrateful things to flesh and blood which a former Age retained For as no particular Person at first runs up to the highest degree of wickedness so seldom doth any Church at first Apostatize to that degree but gradually declineth None shall need to enquire whence it is that this Neglect of our own Vineyards maketh us to appear thus black who but considereth that this Neglect is contrary to the Divine rule which obligeth us to keep our hearts with all diligence Prov. 423. to strive after perfection and to go on unto it and also obligeth all Churches to keep that which is committed to their trust to keep the Lords Word c. There is no medium in this case betwixt black and white The Whiteness beauty and glory of a Christian lyeth in his holding fast of his profession both of faith and holiness his keeping close to the divine rule and here in also lyeth the whiteness and beauty of those assemblyes of Christians which we call Churches and the more or less both of a Christians and of a Churches beauty and whiteness lyeth in his or their more or less conformity to the divine rule which being granted their neglect of this must necessarily render them black and make them to appear so to others This discourse may in the first place let us see the weakness of our faith in our different apprehensions of our worldly and spiritual concernments Certainly had we the same persuasions that we have Souls as that we have Bodies as quick apprehensions of the danger of our Souls miscarriage as we have of our bodily dangers had we but a firm persuasion of the excellency of our Souls above our Bodies we should have an equal if not a greater care to keep this Vineyard of our immortal Soul as we have to keep our Bodies but have we so It is true there are some in the World that are lazy and slothful as to their outward concerns they will rather steal or beg then work but these are but few in comparison of others God hath given men a body to look after with what diligence doth he keep that he riseth up early lyeth down late and eateth the bread of carefulness and all this for the keeping of his body but for this Vineyard of the Soul of man how few are they that look after it how little is the diligence that is used in keeping of that who attendeth the health of his Soul with that diligence that he attendeth his bodily health or the maintenance and food of his Soul with the same diligence that he attendeth his bodily food and sustenance or the adorning of his Soul with the same care and diligence that he attendeth the adorning of his body What doth this argue doth it not speak either that men have no great opinion that they have immortal Souls or that they have no great opinion of the price and value of them or that they do not think there is so much care necessary for the keeping of them We may observe from hence upon what the blackness of particular Souls and Churches is principally to be charged There may be some blame to be laid upon forrein causes Temptations from the World and the Devil but the greatest blame must be laid upon our selves Did we keep our watch so strictly as we might keep it Temptations could have no such power upon us as they have the Devil and the world can do no more then strike fire the tinder that receiveth it must be in our own box when the Prince of the World came to Christ
was a 2d which I also observed from that viz. That as there is a time when such a Soul will conceal its Love to Christ and will not be brought to own its Love to him So there is a time when it will own and acknowledge it This now would lead me to a discourse of those times when a believer is free to own and acknowledge its grace particularly its love to Christ And those times when it findeth a difficulty and will not be brought to do it But I remember I handled that point when I discoursed the forgoing words I am black but comely I shall therefore here pass it over and come to the matter of the petition or thing wherein she desireth to be instructed viz. Where he fed his flock Where he made his flocks to rest at Noon In the explication of the terms of the Text. I considered the Noon time 1. As the time when Shepherds having driven their flocks into some shady places to lye down and rest were themselves most at leisure and one might have the most private free and full communion with them with the least interruptions At other times of the day till night again comes the Shepherd must have a constant Eye upon his flock According to which sense the phrase is expressive of believing Souls desires of all occasions and opportunities when it may have the most private free and full communion with Christ with the least interruptions 2. Secondly As the time when the Sun shines out hottest So it may be understood of the Churches Noon or the Believers Noon When they were most scorched with Trials and Persecutions So there are 3 Propositions which I before observed The first of which I shall begin with Prop. That a believing Soul is very covetous of such occasions and opportunities when it may injoy the most private free and full communion with Christ with the least interruptions Whiles the Shepherd is driving his flock to their pastures he is in motion one may exchange some few words with him but he cannot have much serious discourse with him when he cometh to his feeding place still his Eye must be after his flock which in their feeding may be prone to straggle but at Noon when his flocks are in the shadow that is the fairest opportunity of converse with the Shepherd It is true it is the infirmity of our humane natures that we cannot at the same time duly attend two different things God is not under the Law of it God cannot be so taken up with one business of providence as to neglect another because of it But while Christ is set out to us under imperfect and infirm comparisons he is set out as one compassed about with our infirmities And certain it is that our communion with him in this life admitteth of many interruptions on our part and there are times and places wherein a good Christian may and doth injoy a more perfect free and full communion with his God then he doth or can do at other times and places The Spouse here desireth to know the times places and opportunities of most free full and perfect communion with God and this I say is the object of every believing Souls desire As to times of this nature they are easily discerned by considering what those things are which most interrupt and hinder our communion with God those are either 1. Worldly cares businesses and distractions or 2. Temptations whether from the stirrings of lusts in our own heart for every man saith James is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lust and enticed Or from his Grand adversary the Devil So that times of freest communion with God are times when we are likely to be most free from the incumbrances of the World or the â—â—â—lestations of our own lusts or Satans Suggestions As to the two latter there are indeed no times as to which which we can promise our selves an absolute immunity As to the former there are two times The morning or the night season 2. The Sabbath day 1. The morning or night season That is a time for rest and when the greatest part of the World are at their natural rest hence you shall observe that the Servants of God have often made choice of these times for their more private and free communion with God Psal 5. 3. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning in the morning will I direct my Prayer unto thee and will look up Psal 59. 16. I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning Psal 63. 1. O God thou art my God early will I seek thee v. 6. When I remember thee on my bed and meditate on the in the night watches Times of least business in the World and greatest silence from the noises businesses of the World are the times for freest communion with God not that God is not as ready to hear our Prayers and to communicate himself at other times but because the Souls of Gods People are not so free in themselves for whereas the life of our communion with God lyeth in the attention of our thoughts and fervency of our Spirits And the latter of these hath also a great dependence on the former it is impossible for us to keep our thoughts so intent upon our duty when the noises and businesses of the World distract us as when we have nothing of that nature from the World to disturb or divert us 2. The Sabbath day is likewise such another time and so are other times which we have voluntarily set apart for the Solemn seeking of God but the former especially For tho the Law of the Lord for the Sanctification of the Sabbath hath not such an influence upon the World as were highly to be desired yet in the places especially where we live it hath some influence so that the most of men and women cease from all servile labour and there is a great silence in the World that day in comparison of other days and that law taketh a great hold upon the hearts of all such as truly fear God so as none of them durst ingage themselves in wordly businesses as on other dayes and tho this be not the case as to such solemn days as Christians set apart for religious duties yet we having laid our selves under a private law tho the time at first was our own and we needed not to have dedicated it to the Lord yet having done it we think our selves justly to be more ingaged and concerned to lay the World out of our sight and thoughts and and this doubtless much commendeth the practice of Christians in setting some times of this nature apart for the solemn service of God As to places under the Gospel we have no such place as the Temple at Hierusalem none to which any such promise is made our Rule is Every where to Worship the Father Every where to list up pure hands But yet though there be no particular place concerning which we
work thou gavest me to do Christ and his Disciples have in the general one and the same work to glorifie God Though if we come to speak of the particular actions by which God is glorified by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Believer there is a great deal of difference Christ glorified his Father by performance of the acts of our Redemption according to his Fathers Will we by those good works which he hath commanded yet in the general scope viz. the glorifying of God and the more general mean by which this general End is attained viz. obedience to the Will of God they are both the same Christ glorified his Father by obedience to his Will The Child of God glorifieth God by obedience to his Will both of them glorified God by the praedication of his Name by praising him c. Christ took upon him the form of a Servant and became obedient Phil. 2. 7 8. The Child of God is by Birth a Servant and by Covenant a Servant there is that difference betwixt them but they are both Servants both obedient to the Will of God and both by that obedience serve the great End of glorifying God which justifieth the Notion though the Acts of their obedience differ according to their several spheres and stations In a great Family you know they are all fellow-servants though some of them have a more some a less noble Imployment 3. Christ is their Fellow-worker their Fellow-helper not only with reference to the Father as they both work to the same End and by the same general Means viz. obedience to the Will of God but as he worketh in them and excites their habits of grace and strengtheneth them in the exercise of them Phil. 4. 13. I can do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Phil. 4. 13. Without me you can do nothing Joh. 15. 3. His Spirit helpeth our infirmities Rom. 8. 26. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it lifts over against them The Child of God without the presence and assistance of Christ cannot pray a prayer nor hear a Sermon nor perform any spiritual duty so as that Christ is not only to the Believer a Fellow labourer and Fellow-servant doing the same work that they do or at least having done the same work but he is their Fellow-helper as to all their own spiritual Motions and Actions 4. You in holy Scripture read of a Fellow-Prisoner Aristarchus and Epaphras are both of them called Paul's Fellow-prisoners Coloss 4. 14. You read also of a Fellow-Souldier Philip. 2. v. 25. Philemon 2. This Notion signifieth one that is a Partner and Fellow to another in Conflicts Combates c. a common Partnership in hazards and sufferings In this sense our Lord properly calleth his Spouse the Believing Soul his Fellow He fought and overcame the same Enemies with whom they daily fight The Christian hath three great Enemies the World the Flesh and the Devil It is true Christ had none of the second to incounter he was born without sin he lived without sin he had no body of death But yet he had to die for our sins all our sins were set in Battel Array against him they were those which nailed him to the Cross but he conquered and declared his Conquest by his Resurrection from the dead The World is our Enemy one of those Enemies against which we are to maintain the Spiritual Fight It was also his Enemy he fought against it and overcame it Joh. 16. 33. Be of good cheer I have overcome the World The Devil is another of our great Enemies against whom we are commanded to put on the whole Armour of God Christ overcame him also Heb. 2. 14 15. Through death he destroyed him who had the power of death even the Devil And the same Apostle in the same Epistle tells us that he was therefore tempted that he might be able to succour those that are tempted The Apostle mentioneth Christ in this Notion when he calleth him The Captain of our Salvation It is long since that he let his People know by his Prophet Isaiah that In all their afflictions he was afflicted He took himself concerned in the persecution of his Church and therefore calleth from Heaven Saul Saul why persecutest thou me Indeed it is not easie to determine what kind of Sympathy the most perfect Nature of Christ is capable of but that he is their Fellow-sufferer the Scripture plainly determineth Thus you see that it is not in a complement that Jesus Christ speaking to his Saints speaks to them in this dialect Thou that art my Fellow But our Translation reads it O my Love and the word as I before shewed you is also so translated properly enough A Friend hath this name in the Hebrew because he is alwaies the companion and associate of his correlated Friend Hence we translate it My Loves and conformably to this our Lord speaketh Joh. 15. 14. You are my Friends if you do whatsoever I have commanded you And again v. 15. Henceforth I call you not Servants I call you Friends Let us a little inquire how Christ approveth himself a Believers Friend Friendship speaketh 4 things 1. Love 2. Free and ingenuous love 3. Mutual and reciprocal Love 4. Mutual communion and converse each with other 1. It Speaketh Love Amicus ab amando This is so obvious to every one that either understandeth any thing of the Revelation or History of holy Writ that it will need very few words to demonstrate Besides the frequent friendly compellations which Christ hath given his People whoso considereth his conjuction with his Father in the Eternal Purposes for their Salvation and all those means by which they are made meet for the inheritance of the Saints in light his concern in the Eternal Covenant of Redemption and of Grace in which he became a Surety for them his taking upon him humane Nature walking up and down in our flesh Dying upon the Cross for us sinners his resurrection from the dead for their justification his ascending up into Heaven and giving Gifts unto men Pastors and Teachers for the perfecting of the Saints his sending his Spirit to convince the World of sin righteousness and Judgment his daily influence upon his People strengthening quickening and comforting of them his being their advocate with the Father in case both of Sins and duties his passionate expressions while he was on the Earth for the conversion of Souls his intreating them by his Ministers as his Embassadors that they would be reconciled to God the charge that he hath given the World against offending them his declarations of his coming to judge the World to render tribulation to them that trouble them and to them Rest and Peace I say he that considereth any of these things much less all of them together must say that he loved them with an Everlasting unchangeable Love alone suted to all the necessities of his poor Creatures and that he hath willed them good sutable to all
see your good works Shew me thy saith by thy works faith James Faith without works is dead It were endless to reckon up the several Texts of Scripture by which God hath directed the Government of our Tongues our Eyes our Ears our Hands our Feet In short the several Precepts for good works are all proofs of this 2. It must be so if we consider what influence the heart and will affections have upon our whole outward man commanding all the outward members out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh from the dictates of the heart the Eye looketh the hand moveth the mouth speaketh the Feet turn this or that way So that if the Tree be good the fruit must be good also the Fig-tree brings not forth thistles nor the Vine thorns A naughty tongue eye hand foot is a certain indication of a corrupt and naughty heart 3. The â—â—liever is made conformable to Christ He went up and down doing good finishing the work which his Father had given him to do glorifying his Father on Earth doing his will manifesting his name no guile was found in his mouth no iniquity in his hand No iniquity towards God no unrighteousness towards men 4. See the Patterns of holy men upon Scriptural record Abraham and David all the holy Servants of God you will find their holiness did not lye only in the obedience of their heart but of their whole external converse a strict walking with God in obedience to his will 5. Observe the promises of God they are not onely made to Faith and Love and the more inward habits of the mind but to external acts such as Prayer hearing the Word Sanctification of the Sabbath shewing mercy to the poor doing justly walking righteously 6. The descriptions of holy men also make out this They are described to be men fearing God and eschewing evil walking in the Commandments of God Working righteousness all which expressions signify that a believer must not only be internally holy but externally so also Lastly the end which they serve shews also a necessity of it they are lights to inlighten the World and therefore they must not be hid under bushels They are Salt to season the World and therefore must be exposed to their use their end is to glorify God before men which cannot be without an external as well as an internal holiness thus the first thing appeareth I have passed over these things easy enough to have been extended into a much larger discourse Because it is a point so exceeding obvious and indeed agreed by all men The 2d thing is that holiness is a believers beauty it is so in the Eyes of Christ which is here spoken of Nor is this of any thing more difficult demonstration then the other What is that which we call beauty but an amiable external appearance of a Person arising from a Symmetry of parts a due mixture and Proportion of colours in conformity to some Original Pattern or Idea A Christians Original Pattern is God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ be you holy at your Heavenly Father is holy As I am holy saith the holy Writ What can be a Christians beauty but his conformity to God and that amiableness which ariseth from that All Spiritual beauty is to be measured from the symmetry of the Soul to the divine law That which makes the Soul amiable to God and to all those who are like God This is holiness But I shall sum up all in some few Words of application I shall first observe from hence two or three Corollaries for our instruction then close all with a few words of exhortation Observe then That it is not enough for one that owneth the name of a believer to glory in a good inside There goeth a good outside as well as a good inside to make up a good Christian There are 2 Sorts of hypocrites and I am at loss with my self to determine which is worst The first sort glory in appearance but not in reality The Pharisees were of this Sort they were painted Sepulchers they made clean the outside of the platter of this Sort are men that pretend much to acts of devotion praying fasting hearing and acts of righteousness toward men and perhaps charity but are without any true faith in God or love to God full of malice and envy and cruelty and covetousness these are Pharisaical Hypocrites The 2d are such as will pretend to a good inside but they have a bad outside These men bite and devour their brethren lye and cheat and defraud and oppress neglect duties of Religion c. And yet tell you they have a good heart they have faith in God Love to God c. Thou Hypocrite shew me thy faith by thy works thy pretended Love to God by thy keeping his commandments Truly of the two these are the worst they pretend to holiness but which way will you look for it What notion of holiness have these men taken up Will you look for it in their conscientious constant attendance upon duties of publick Worship there you see their places empty or if they be filled observe their behaviour they are prating or sleeping or sporting or with their Eyes compassing the whole congregation Will you look for it in their private families There it may be you may hear the voice of Cursing or Swearing or reviling but the voice of Praying of reading the Word of those that sing praise unto God is seldom or never heard in their Houses Will you look for their holiness in their behaviour toward men you shall there find neither Justice nor Charity cheating defrauding Oppression cruelty hard-hearted behaviour c. Yet they will tell you they have good hearts Either now these men have Souls not like other mens Souls that have no command of their tongues and hands c. Or else they speak falsely I say these are of all others the Vilest Hypoerites 1. Because they have nothing good the first mentioned do some good things materially good they read fast pray walk justly give alms But these wretches have nothing do nothing at all that is good There is nothing good in their lives and that assureth us there 's nothing good in their hearts 2. These men do much more hurt then others do these are they that cause the name of God to be Blaâ—â—â—emed and evil spoken of Brethren be not deceived they are fifty men that you can impose upon but you cannot impose upon that God who searcheth the heart tryeth the reins Let none be deceived by the pretences of these Hypocrites The Spouse of Christ hath beautifull Cheeks and a beautiful Neck as well as a beautiful inside her Cheeks are comely betwixt rows of Jewels She hath a Chain of gold upon her Neck The laws and instructions of her Heavenly Father are an Ornament to her head and a Chain upon her Neck She durst not before men dishonour God Let this be the first
so it is a creature of a great spirit and courage He rusheth into the Battel and is not afraid Jer. 8. 6. God speaking to Job concerning the Horse giveth an excellent and elegant description of him Job 39. 19 20. where God asketh Job Hast thou clothed his neck with Thunder Canst thou make him afraid at a Grashopper The glory of his Nostrils is terrible He paweth in the Valley and rejoyceth in his strength He goeth on to meet the armed man he mocketh at fear and is not affrighted neither turneth he back from the Sword The Quiverrattleth against him the glittering Spear and the Shield he swalloweth the ground with fierceness and rage neither believeth he that it is the sound of the Trumpet He saith amongst the Trumpets Ha Ha and he smelleth the Battel afar off the Thunder of the Captains and the shoutings With respect of this Quality of the Horse I conceive it is that the Spouse is here compared to Horses War-like Horses full of spirit and courage I have likened thee to a company of Horses That is I have made thee bold couragious full of resolution to make a spiritual resistance to thy Enemies to bid a defiance to them no more to regard the reproaches and revilings the threats and rage and violences of wicked men that oppose thee and cause thy trouble than the Horse regardeth the ratlings of the Quiver or the sound of the Trumpet or the glittering Spear or Shield Fear not the rage and madness of thy Enemies I have made thee like to the Horses in Pharaoh's Chariots which are so bred and so spirited that they mock at fear and the more their Enemies rage and make a noise the more couragiously and with the more mettle they go on This I take to be the most proper and likely sense of the Metaphor in this Text accordingly I shall handle it 2. But it is not said To an Horse only but to a company of Horses Why to a company of Horses The term company denotes Multitude and Unity 1. It denotes Multitude The Church of Christ consists of many Individual Believers who in respect of their Innocency and feeding in the same Pastures are compared sometimes to a Flock of Sheep here in respect of that spirit of valour courage and fortitude which animates them all to a company of Horses 2. It is a term which denotes Unity not a numerical Unity but an Unity in some common work and in some accidents common to them all Thus the Apostle saith We being many are one body There is saith the Apostle Eph. 4. 4 5. one Body one Spirit they are called in one Hope of their Calling they have one Lord one Faith one Baptism they have one God and Father of all The Spouse is not compared to a company of Horses in a field or in the streets but to a company of Horses in a Chariot where they draw together run together upon the Enemy Every Believer also hath a Company within himself the several powers and faculties of his Soul armed with the whole Armour of God These are like a company of Horses in Pharaoh 's Chariots 3. But why in Pharaoh's Chariots Pharaoh was a common name to the Kings of Egypt and a company of Horses in Pharaoh 's Chariots signifieth no more than a company of the best Egyptian Horses-Egypt at that time was one of the most famous places for Horses in the world Hence you read that Solomon had Horses brought out of Egypt 1 King 10. 28. And the King of Judah sent his Embassadors into Egypt that they might give him Horses Ezek. 17. 15. So Isa 31. 1. Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help and stay on Horses v. 3. Their Horses are flesh and not spirit So as I think they have but a feeble support from this Text who would make advantage of this Text to justify their notion that this Divine portion of holy Writ is no more but a Love-song betwixt Solomon and Pharaohs Daughter To all this I might add one thing more that the Horse by reason of those excellent qualities which the God of nature hath endued it with hath in all ages been in a very high esteem with men The vanity of some Persons in the expression of this hath been very great Historians tell us the Persians made solemn funerals for their Horses in other places they builded Pyramids over their Sepulchers Alexander the great built a City to the memory of his Horse Julius Caesar set up his Horse a marble effigies The Emperour Commodus would have his Horse buried in the Vatican Our age is more rational then to allow these vanities but yet it is vain enough many a man takes more care for the mangery of his Horse then for the Education of his Child and alloweth his Horses more attendance then his wife Which lets us see what a value men yet put upon this creature So as this sense may be put upon the Words of this Text thou art as dear to me and in as high esteem with me as the Horses in Pharaohs Chariots are to and with him The Proposition then of the Text amounteth to this Prop. That the Church of Christ and every particular believer in it is in Christs Eyes exceeding lovely and highly esteemed of by him and knowing that she is in the midst of Enemies he hath cloathed her with strength for the victory sufficient if she will make use of it he hath made her like to a Company of Horses in Pharaohs Charrots The proof of the Proposition then lyeth in the proof of these two things 1. That the Spouse of Christ is in his Eyes exceeding goodly and beautiful and highly esteemed of by him 2. That she is cloathed with sufficient strength and might to overcome her Enemies For the proof of the former I shall not insist upon it for besides the large discourse I have already spent upon that when I handled that phrase O thou fairest amongst women The expressions of Scripture are so obvious to every Eye where Christ setteth out his Love to and esteem of his Church and every particular believer that I need not spend time in giving you an account of them The latter is no less plain Immediately upon the fall God gave out this promise Gen. 3. 15. The seed of the woman shall break thine head and thou shalt bruise his heel The seed of the woman was Christ and his seed those that believe in him Conformable to this is that promise Rom. 16. 20. God shall bruise Sathan under your feet shortly It was an ancient promise made to Abraham and in him to all that walk in the steps of his faith Thy seed shall possess the gates of its Enemies God saith Zech. 10. 3. That he made his flock as a goodly Horse in the day of battel v. 5. And they shall be as mighty men which tread down the Enemies as mire in the streets in the battel they shall fight because the Lord
is with them I come to the Application I shall only apply it by Exhortation to two great duties Fortitude and unity I begin with the first upon which I shall most inlarge as to which I shall shew you 1. Wherein it lies and discourse it to you as it stands distinguished from a natural Spirit and stomack 2. From a moral fortitude 2. I shall offer you some directions in order to the promoving of it 3. Lastly I shall press it by some arguments It is agreed on all hands that the object of it is dangers and sufferings That the nature of it lyeth in a bold encountring and going through them That the vices opposed to it are 1 Cowardise 2. Rashness or fool hardiness as we call it There is a courage or fortitude which ariseth only from the natural Spirit and courage of the creature Now this is to be found in beasts as much as in men yea and more then in men the reflections of whose reason makes them less Spiritful then Horses or Dogs or Lions c. This commendeth no man for no man hath more of this then many Beasts have So it removeth not man at any distance from a Brute Creature Secondly There is a moral fortitude Which though it must have some foundation in nature for none that is naturally fearful and cowardly will by reason be improved to any degree of valour yet differeth from the other As it ariseth from knowledge and some just improvement of reason and is governed by the dictates of reason and directed to some noble and rational end such now as the preservation of our honour or Country c. But now Christian fortitude is quite another thing as it ariseth 1. From a threefold principle of grace 2. As it is directed by the rule of the Word 3. As it is exercised upon and against sin As lastly it works for a more noble end the glory of God and the Salvation of the Soul you may take this Description of it It is an habit infused into the Soul by the holy Spirit of God inabling the Soul from the dread of the Eternal God a Love to him and a faith in him and his promises to despise the prospect or presence of any danger in a resistance and fighting against sin and all temptations to it governing it self by the rule of Gods Word in order to the glory of God and the Salvation of a mans Soul From hence may easily be gathered both how it differeth from Natural Spirit and stomackfulness which is under no government either of reason or Religion and is a mere natural quality and found in beasts as much and more then in man It also differeth from Moral sortitude both in the Principle the rule and manner of its exercise and the End All which I shall open I shall begin with the first of these 1. The first Principle of Christian Fortitude is the holy Spirit Fear not saith God I will strengthen thee and uphold thee with the hand of my righteousness It is indeed God as the God of Nature that puts the natural Spirit and courage into the Horse or other beasts Job 32. 19. Hast thou saith God given strength to the Horse Hast thou clothed his neck with Thunder But here God acts as the Author of saving grace The holy Spirit is the Author of all gracious habits now there is a threefold Spiritual habit from which this fortitude or Christian courage proceeds they are as it were the Parents of it 1. The first is the fear of God No man is valiant against sin when temptations to it lye from great dangers but he that hath a true dread of God in and upon his heart It is said of Moses Hebr. 11. 27. That by faith he forsook Egypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he indured as seeing him who is invisible He forsook Egypt in obedience to the command of God he feared not the wrath of the King When he saw he must either incur the Kings wrath or Gods displeasure he feared not the wrath of the King though as Solomon saith The wrath of the King is as the Messenger of death Yet he feared not the wrath of the King here now was courage here was Christian Fortitude Whence was it that he was so courageous The Text tells you He indured as seeing him who was invisible he had the dread of the King of Kings upon his Soul agnovit imperatorem coeli he knew there was one that was higher then the highest mortal and this is necessary and that too in a very good degree to every Soul that is valiant for God Every Person that feareth not God will be a coward in the Spiritual fight 2. A Second habit contributing to this fortitude or Christian courage is The Love of God The Apostle tells you it constrains we see in daily experience the lover will indure no difhonour to be done unto no affront to be put upon the woman that he loveth The vain Gentleman is ready to fight upon any such account The Soul which truly loveth God will fuffer no affront no dishonour which he can help to be done unto and put upon God much less can he allow his own Soul in any such thing what ever be the consequent of it 3. A third habit from which this Christian courage or fortitude ariseth is Faith Faith respecting both the Proposition of the Word and the promise of the Gospel and Person of the Mediatour Faith agreeing to all which the holy Scripture revealeth concerning the wrath of God his power justice greatness concerning the reward of those who well fight the good fight who overcome c. And also hoping and trusting in God for the fulfilling of those promises Natural courage is much from Nature and derives much from the Blood Moral Fortitude deriveth much from Education and Reason Christian Fortitude in encountring dangers ariseth from quite different principles The Christian is stout and valiant in the resistance of sin because he feareth the great and living God whose wrath is a thousand times more formidable then the wrath of the greatest man who when he hath killed the body can do no more God can cast both body and Soul into Hell-Fire Because he loveth God and will suffer any thing rather than grieve and offend him and because he believeth whatsoever God hath revealed in his holy Word concerning the greatness power wrath and justice of God against sin and concerning those who strive in the resistance of it Hence you read in that martyrology which you have Heb. 11. 33. That they through faith subdued Kingdoms v. 34. quenched the violence of fire escaped the edge of the sword waxed valiant in the fight v. 35. they were tortured not accepting deliverance v. 36. they had Trials of cruel mockings and Scourgings yea moreover of bonds and imprisonment c. The principles of the Christian valour are not meer Natural Spirit and stomackfulness nor meer principles of honour and