only in our selves but our own happiness must be aimed at for glorifying God by it We must aim at happiness and being in Heaven thereby to be in a most perfect state that we may attain the most perfect principle for the highest exalting of God Althugh in Heaven seeing more and tasting more and having the vessels of body and soul filled up with glory and happiness makes our state more glorious yet the end of that seeing tasting and all enjoyings there are to put us into a most perfect capacity highest heart-readiness and alacrity upon the most over-powring incentives to lift up to the utmost the glorious praises of God This then is a very considerable particular that besides glorifying God the supreme end aiming at our own salvatition must be more then for our selves We use to speak of several spiritual ends relating to our own spiritual good which we are allowed to set up and seek and strive after yet all these must have this reduction must all have this glory of God for their chief end The last end as hath been said gives the rules to all both subservient ways and ends Therefore in our examination let us take in all the spiritual ends before spoken of for heavenly light and larger knowledge for a spirit of wisdom to be wiser to salvation to be warmer at the heart melt off all incumbrances make up to Heaven better to fix our resolutions firmer strengthen our grand purpose of still walking with God to stablish our course and make straiter steps for our feet and to press harder to the mark Are our spirits acted to these aims and all those other Meditation is so excellently and usefully appointed to 2. Do we meditate in the right way of calling off our thoughts from impertinencies and diversions Do we set a strong guard upon our spirits and watch them diligently Do we act Meditation in bending our minds to it strive to act with all seriousness we can Do we act searching and pondering and keep up constancy of thoughts till we both bring our hearts to the heavenly temper and the duty to the kindly issue it should have and cannot be content with any thing but that a God who sees our actings will approve of CHAP. IX Of the Directions relating to Meditation First for such as would begin AFter some Characters given of a right Meditation I shall next speak of Directions or Rules to be observed about it The Rules must be suited to the several sorts of persons that will set upon this work or proceed in it with success 1. If it be a person who would enter upon this way being sensible of the sin of hitherto neglecting it and is now willing to be advised how to perform it Then consider it is no undertaking it or hope of doing it aright and holding on with constancy and to the spiritual advantages of it unless there be an endeavour after a right principle a living spring within to found and still feed a due performance of this spiritual work To undertake it without thou wilt find it too high and hard arrive at the best at a formal doing a slight and overly doing and in the end grow weary of it and cast it off and so return to it no more Therefore thy great intendment to which thou must bend thy self and whole soul which should not must not be given over until it be effected is to make sure of a new heart this will bring in a new power a new principle introduce a bent and inclination of spirit a love unto it a firm and abiding purpose a rooted resolution for doing it against all difficulty and opposition This will make the duty of Meditation easie and also sweet by the pleasure and advantages found in this heavenly way thou wilt be encouraged to hold on success will encourage thee that will sweeten the way to thee and help to stablish thee in it Though thou canst not change thy own heart and make it new lay in a new principle of Holiness but it must be God who gives the new heart Ezek. 36.26 27. And works the will and the deed of his own good pleasure Phil. 2.13 Yet as he calls thee to convert and in order to thy converting requires thee to consider and bethink thyself so is it thy necessary and important duty to consider and ponder deeply and frequently those things and in that manner order which are most effectual to that end which God uses to set home For by putting thy self into Gods prescribed way of seriously and frequently considering thou mayest meet with a help with God helping at last who helps them that seek him diligently and give not over striving That relation is remarkable of the bad Son whom his father dying calls to him and gets him to make this promise That every day he should for but one quarter of an hour meditate of some one thing or other what he would Accordingly he every day employs a quarter of an hour or some time in serious thinking But this at last most happily issues in serious considering his sinful state and a real converting to God at last Thus often it hath come to pass when persons have set themselves to consider as God in Scripture exhorts it hath ended in a true returning so the Prodigal is described Luke 15. So Ezek. 18. If thou art very desirous more particularly to be here directed what to do to obtain the right principle and thence the right way of acting this duty and others in the holy and spiritual required manner I must not engage far in so large a point yet if I exceed something it will I hope get pardon Only I shall mention some particulars more necessary for this so weighty a concern If really and in good earnest thou wilt engage strive to purpose for obtaining a sure principle of performing this or any duty aright a principle of Grace and Holiness a new heart and a new spirit 1. You must go about it with the greatest seriousness that ever thou canst and endeavour the firmest and strongest purpose for prosecuting it till thou hast attained it But then thou must see thy utter inability without Gods lending a hand to help thee in so high an undertaking It is thou must endeavour but God he must draw thee Joh. 6.44 No man can come to me unless the Father draw him Thou must strive for but God must give repentance 2 Tim. 2.25 If God will give repentance Jer. 31.18 Turn thou me and I shall be turned Ezek. 36.26 A new heart will I give you Yet God must see us when he calls for returning to endeavour and strive and wait for his giving who works the will and the deed of his own good pleasure 2. Thou must resolve to sequester thy self at times at fit seasons from all diversions not suffering any thing then to interrupt thee thou must sit alone as Lam. 3.28 3. Do all thou possibly canst to be awakened
a due time for percolation and straining for a segregating and seperating of the finer parts from the Feculent and Dreggy And some things a longer space in a slow and constant Fire in the Operation or the cost and labour is lost Intensions for effecting things greatly beneficial and admirable are most freely allowed a larger proportion of time both for frequencies and Repetitions of Musing seriously But O how too ordinarily do the best of Saints fall short of the actings of Rare Artists in their higher Operations in their stands and abodes of thoughts for more curious Observations and ntellectual satisfactions Usually we are too hasty and eager to have Duties over The Soul is in pain till it be delivered of them In Meditation it is hard sometimes at least to take off the thoughts for it from preingagements of other thinkings and apply them to the duty But harder to become duly serious in acting in it harder yet to Dive and Ponder and hardest of all to hold up in an abode of thoughts and dwell long enough and after views to make reviews to re-act the same thinkings to taste things over and over when the freshness and newness is past when by long thinking the things before us seem old we are ready to grow dead and flat in a performance except we stir up our selves often in it It is hard to hold on and hold up unless we hold up a wakeful Eye a warm affection a strong and quick repeated Resolution yea and without often lifting up the Soul to Christ for fresh recruits of strength to hold on David that so excellent Artist in this way saith he will Meditate Psal 119. often saith he will Doubtless he not only said I will when he was to make his entrance into this hard work but likewise for continuance in it to keep up his heart from flaging till he well ended his work It is not the Digging into the Golden Mine but the Digging long that finds and fetches up the Treasure It is not the Diving into the Sea but staying longer that gets the greater quantities of Pearls To draw out the Golden Thread of Meditation to its due length till the spiritual ends be attained This is a rare and happy Artainment This is the Art but of the ends of Meditation we shall speak hereafter CHAP. XIII Of Affectionateness in Meditation or the life and lustre of it in the intermixings of sutable Affections THree things we proposed in treating of this Divine Meditation 1. The right Preparative to it fervent Prayer 2. The main Foundation of it in the free choice of the Will 1. To firmly purpose a right work that it be sincere 2. To purpose and intend a wise work 3. To design a warm work 4. To have it earnest against lets and oppositions 5. To have it a successful work 3. The Forming and Finishing of it For the Forthing and Constituting of it which is 1. By a Reverential frame of heart stir'd up answerable to the Duty 2. By first sounding a Retreat of the Thoughts from all other Objects 3. By setting a strong Guard upon our slippery Spirits Then as to the constituting the work 4. By setting the Thoughts on the Object 5. By seriousness in Thinking 6. By searching of Thoughts 7. By a staying and abode of Thoughts 8. For Finishing the work by intermixtures of the Life and Beauties of such Affections as are proper and sutable for the Duty It must be an affectionate acting warm and zealous lively and vigorous So David's Meditation Psal 39.3 while musing the Fire burned Not only it should be so eventually but by way of concomitancy when we Meditate with the Mind we should be warm at the Heart The fuel and fire of holy Affections must come to the offering up this Sacrifice There must be an Affectionate acting which brings the life and beauty into the body and face of the Duty They say Beauty must have these four things 1. Perfection or Intireness of parts no part wanting 2. Proportions due no part too great too little or unsutable And proportion of Colour White and Red in a just proportion 3. There must be Right Order of parts that nothing be misplaced 4. There must be spirit and vivacity appearing in the Face as a chief Ingredient or superaddition to all the rest as that which adds singular grace and lustre to all So besides the parts and chief lineaments there must be that which compleats the Beauty of Meditation Those things which are as not only the Beauteous Colours but the freshness liveliness and spirits aspersed and appearing over all the Face of this Rare Piece this Excellent Performance That as the Heart with its Diffusions of Heat and Spirits in a due proportion makes a comely graceful and lovely Colour which in Heart-Distempers Faintings and Sinkings disappear and vanish So the Holy Heart with its Diffusions of heavenly warmth and spirits heavenly affectionateness makes Meditation comely beauteous and lovely If Meditation be only Head-work and not Heart-work it is like a Picture without life like a Student that studies in a meer acting of Wisdom only The right and genuine Meditation is an affectionate thing as the Head acts the Heart glows The life veins of warm Affections run and disperse themselves through the whole Duty and give lustre to it This we may see in the Meditations of that great Artist in this kind in holy David you may see a beauty and excellency of Holy Affection mixt and interwoven like the Gold in the Tissue with the Silk and sparkling in his this-way-acting Affections appearing set as so many Rich Stones Rare Beauties and Glories among his various Musings There are Three sorts of Affections that shine gloriously in David's and other holy mens Meditations left upon Record in Scripture which needs must be patterns to provoke us to imitation 1. The Affection of Desire 2. Of Love 3. Of Delight I shall briefly dispatch them CHAP. XIV Of the First Affection Desire 1. THat Affection of Desire wound up and let out to pantings and longings Heaven-ward and being above in this Heavenly Exercise of Meditation David with his Meditating of God and his Word he tells us what longings and heart-pantings he had Psal 119.20 His Soul breaks for desire which he had to Gods Testimonies How was this to have the Book of the Law no it was to be exercised in it to an improving of Meditation on it Ps 1.2 Ah he could not Meditate enough act freely enough far enough The Commandment was so exceeding broad as he saith Psal 119.96 so very broad and his heart so narrow Sin so incompast and straitned him that his Soul breaks that he could have no larger thoughts Such an edge and eagerness of Affection such a large strong and vehement desire should be an attendant an assistant of Meditation one strong Feather impt and added to the Wing of Contemplation to make it mount up fast to Heaven Ah say Christian Lord
they think bare knowing without due Meditating is an undervaluing of spiritual things CHAP. XXVII Of the third Ground of this Meditation as to several ends and uses THE third great ground of this necessary Duty is from the Ends and the great concernments of them as to all sorts of persons 1. For a sinners first conversion to God 1. Meditation is a Duty incumbent on and highly necessary for persons yet strangers to God to bring them home Ezek. 18.28 Because he considereth and turneth 1 King 8.47 If they bethink themselves and turn returning of the sinners is upon considering and self bethinking thus the Prodigal Luke 15. No man ever truly converts to God without some consideration of his Misery with his absolute need of Christ and his Grace and flying to him Although the efficacious drawing of a sinner be Gods work he awakens convinces humbles and he changes the heart yet not without the sinners considering minding mourning seeking and striving God converts men as reasonable Creatures and conversion is founded on the deepest set reasons and the strongest working and prevailing arguments in the world God he awakens and the sinner looks about and considers he reasons with himself as the Prodigal and out-reasons himself but by Gods mighty working keeping down the hearts corruption and by its quickning the soul with a new living principle and so he resolves and returns to God If more would muse and consider did do it duly more God enabling would return When the one is to be done the other shall be done men shall come to consider and ponder 2. For all renewed repenting There 's great necessity of consideration for our renewing our returning continually for holding up an evenness and constancy of renewed repentance Psal 119.59 I considered my ways and turned my feet to thy Testimonies Fresh godly sorrow self-loathings serious returnings must have new fresh considerings of the sinfulness of sin and laying loads of aggravations on particular new warpings and miscarriages Especially greater Repentings require a deeper and larger foundation in consideration as David did in Psal 51. that evidences great and deep thoughts of heart 3. For a vigorous acting of Grace For vigorous acting any Grace Faith Love Hope Fear Humility Patience and others as is frequently seen in the Saints in Scriptures what reasons and perswasions they drew out of the depths of considerations Job David others All the heart Graces are stirr'd and acted in some measure by consideration either of the command enjoyning the Promise encouraging threatning awing examples exciting arguments in some sort or other inducing and helping It is something that works and weighs is first pondered before the soul acts or is rightly moved A Christian acts not as Water or Fire which move by their own inclination But as men act in things as men which is by choice and free election but upon preceding instigation of Reason and consideration Grace though it be a spring of living water it is not that which runs over of it self That 's for Heaven where the heart will be full and run alone It is not like the spring-head of Jordan that ran of it self but like Jacob's well that had always water but must always be drawn It must be drawn out by consideration Christians mistake and complain oft of their hearts and would have them like a running Spring to run to act alone when here in the best though there be water as in Jacob's Well yet the well is deep there must be drawing for every drop or none will come Therefore to make it come the Bucket of Consideration must be letting down and pulling up and so pouring forth What the Apostle said to Timothy 2 Tim. 1.6 Stir up the gift that is in thee must be said to all and done by all that would do any thing Some Horses we say go on meer Metal without out provocation of switch or spur others will go well with some stirring up So our hearts if good will go on in godliness but not on meer Metal but with provokings of considerations There should be endeavoured the best and strongest mindings and reasonings if we would act Graces vigorously and strongly There 's a necessity that strong purposes and resolutions for believing trusting loving hoping all acting all enduring strongly be bottom'd in strong mindings and considerings The fuller the consideration the better the actings of Graces the stronger the spring in the Watch the better all the Wheels move CHAP. XXVIII Of other ends of this Meditation 4. FOR all Duties and holy performances there is great necessity of Meditation in some due measure for a due wise warm lively and spiritual acting them acting from the right principle of Grace within by the right rule eying the Word and to the right mark and end salvation Real and vigorous performing in this sort must have some good allowance of pondering what we are to perform This is very conspicuous in holy David so great a performer of holy Duties Praying confessing and praising his prayings and all things in that way he calls his Meditation Certainly those so excellent Psalms of prayings and praisings were no flashes of a meerly raised phansie or some hasty runnings over of a hot Brain not an uttering what came next but the passages so rare spiritual and heavenly and so strongly rational as they had a touch from Heaven in the Spirits guidance and assistance so they had a tincture from a wise holy heart within laying them asteep in consideration and acting them with it in highest heeds and mindings concurring with their utterings Things so well spoken must be well weighed especially when they also were to be Scripture Records For holy Prophets and Scripture Pen-men were to use their own natural gifts and their graces in their writings though the Spirit of God infallibly guided sometimes raised and elevated them above themselves Duties of Religion ebb and flow are more lively spiritual and heavenly or more dead carnal and such as run lower according to their fomentings and feedings from the warm spring of Meditation thus in our praying and other duties we may daily experience Christians complain they are dead-hearted and cold slight and perfunctory in performances confessions are not accompanied with heart-meltings shame and self-loathings Petitions not with fervency strong cryings and earnest wrestlings Thanksgivings not with that flame of love and joy and high admirings of the so great goodness and rich free Grace of God in his ways and dispensations toward us commonly the cause is the spring of Meditation is stopt the soul runs not in such a current of considerations and quickning reasons as it ought and used to do When any part or member of the body fails in heat sense or motion where there is actio laesa as the Physicians say there 's principium laesum that is where is an action or acting hurt or hindred from its natural and usual way there the principle and feeder of that action hurt and
have no other means for it and the walks wherein the Spirit comes 4. Use to cast a wishly eye on all such conducing things formerly mentioned as thou canst have opportunity 5. Look to well enter into and fix upon the Meditation daily examination of review looking over matters of the day and if hindered at any time help it by after-industry I say the Meditation of Review in the close of the day to see and judge thy self as to thy hearts frame and thy carriage in the time of the day This at the first is like the working with an Awkhand this must not be slubbered over slightly done But being harsh and unpleasant work at first thou must so manage it in care and constancy that thou mayst gain a hand at it it may become easie and pleasant Suarez a Jesuit says of himself that his times of self-reflection and examining his conscience for matters of the day were the sweetest part of all the day Thy Rule must be to perform this work so as it proves easier and sweeter and thereby thou improvest in it The more impartial and sincere you are in it the sweeter you will find it The more accurate and exquisite your inquiries and heart-searchings are and the more impartial towards your self the sweeter peace the higher boldness and confidence will thy heart be filled with For this brings in the clearer evidence of thy sincerity thy impartiality Nothing perfumes the spirit of a Christian with sweeter peace and more heavenly joy than a clear discovery of the hearts uprightness and integrity which by searching our hearts and impartially judging them we attain As Psal 26.1 2. David prays Judge me O Lord for I have walkt in mine integrity And Psal 139.23 Search me and see if any way of wickedness be in me This came from his own first impartial searching and finding his sincerity Vsual and diligent self-searching brings in and keeps up a setled peace and confidence by a mans being daily more assured of sincerity and heart-uprightness Be careful therefore and diligent in this self-searching CHAP. XI Of the Directions for particular Cases of young Christians how they should do therein BEsides these more general things last mentioned I must next come to the Rules of Meditation as to thy particular case and condition Here that thy Meditation must pitch upon will be either 1. The Case of thy assurance either wanting and not yet attained or else weak and feeble 2. It must be something relating to sanctification thy weak grace and many imperfections here the purging of thy heart from divers evils subduing of new rising and stirring corruptions some particular sin that haunts and troubles thee some temptation which follows thee some cross or affliction lying heavy upon thee or any other particulars wherein thou art concerned here to meditate how to have help the best and speediest 1. That is a principal point of wisdom to study and ponder the case of thy peace and assurance of Gods love and favour if not yet obtained or but enjoyed in a small measure accompanied with divers doubts and fears to meditate how best thou mayst come to assurance and be strong and stablisht in it How to have thy good condition made out to thee and thy fears discouragements and doubts may seatter and be driven away Here thou must be willing to take pains and resolve to exercise very humble patient waiting Psal 27.14 Wait on the Lord be of good courage he shall strengthen thy heart wait I say on the Lord. Psal 130.4 There is forgiveness with thee that thou mayst be feared 5. I wait for the Lord my soul doth wait 6. My soul waits more than they that watch for the morning I say humble patient waiting until by frequent ponderings and searchings thou art replenisht with such a furniture and treasury of Scripture-grounds Gospel reasons and inducements and these so full and clear as thy heart now changed by the gracious help of the Holy Ghost who assures by the Gospel-promises arrives at the skill and wisdom as to be able to answer thy own cavilling doubting spirit and to repel the false reasons that Satan uses to hinder thy peace and assurance Assurance is chiefly bottomed on our sanctification assured So Divines say assurance of Election Justification Perseverance and Glorisication cannot be without assurance of Sanctification this being the ground of our assurance in the other four In particular thou must labour to draw forth out of the sure Word of Christ the infallible Characters clear descriptions and evidences of the new creature and of sincerity of grace then meditate and ponder so duely upon these sure evidences and right Scripture-descriptions given of the new Creature and sincerity of grace as to come to as clear and distinct an understanding of what is held forth to thee as thou canst I pass divers things might be mentioned and shall touch on the following 1. As that change and renewing of the mind and judgment which in respect of sin is to have it out of measure sinful Rom. 7.13 The greatest evil in all the world as that only contrariety and emnity to the greatest good namely the infinitely blessed God his insinite holiness and purity and all his so infinitely glorious Attributes yea his very Being with his Soveraignty and Government all his most holy righteous and good Laws and Word the signification and demonstration of his Soveraignty over us and of his will concerning us Hereby likewise manifesting the extreme injuriousness and unrighteousness in sin in regard of God whom upon infinite and indispensible obligations we are engaged perfectly to obey And as the abounding sinfulness of sin must be seen so as the judgment disallows all known sin the very least so there must be an universal liking and an allowance of all good of all known Truths and all known Duties Truths as revealed by God and to be believed by us and Duties commanded by God and to be performed by us 2. In seeing the fulness 1 Pet. 2.7 of beauty and excellency with the mightiness of Christ to save in all respects all that come to God by him by faith with the vanity of all earthly things to make us happy and the excellency of Grace Holiness Faith Love and the other required heavenly graces and soul-abilities and beauties above all other endowments This is the first part the first right change of the mind and judgment 1 Cor. 2. Whereas the natural man knows not the things of God nor can he because they are spiritually discerned 2. The next part of the new Creature is that change and new heavenly frame of that noble faculty the will Rom. 7.18 To will is present Oft in the Psalms David mentions his will his choice his curpose his firm and rooted resolution Psal 119.8 I will keep thy statutes Vers 30. I have chosen the way of truth Vers 106. I have sworn and will perform to keep thy righteous judgments Isa 56.4 That abuse
and must be performed as a Duty of indispensible necessity 1 Tim. 4.15 Psal 1.2 1. A Duty in reference to Christ Necessity in reference to Christ himself an Obedience to his Law a subjection to his Crown Imperial an homage and service due to him as the Sovereign Lord of our Souls and of that Meditating and pondering faculty he endowed them with Meditation is Jesus Christs Reservation in the great Gift and Grant of our Souls Thinking power He hath endowed us with that so Noble Faculty of minding and musing and also with a large Mind-Charter and liberty of thoughts for our own occasions and sober Recreatings in our Contemplations or Studies But yet 't is always provided that a holy Tribute out of the whole of our thoughts is still duly to be paid in and that as an acknowledgment both of holding our thinking faculty upon him Rom. 11.36 and our best way of employment of it and this to be done in the due seasons both Ordinary and Extraordinary The neglect of this Duty is a denying of his Right and Royalty over my thoughts and over that which is so eminent an Endowment of the Mind and given in to the Spirit by God for its chiefly Thinking of him that is so High and Allsufficient and the surpassing excellent things of God as being the Souls best acting Certainly thus the Saints in the Scripture acted highly upon this account of their paying in the Reserved dues of Christ their Leige Lord 1 Cor. 6.20 His Dues and their Duties moving strongly to act highly in this work and way 2. Duty to my self and my own Soul Concernments is another great Consideration here In all doing Duty there 's a doing my self right paying in to my own Soul its due Neglecting in any kind my Duty is a wronging my own soul Prov. 8.36 He that sins against me wrongs his own soul Performing it is a doing my Soul Right Yea holy Duties are the Highest doings of right to our Souls There 's no way of doing better to my self than going in the King of Heavens High-way His ways are my Souls best ways wherein I act best for my self and when I perform them in them in the best manner This leads me to the next particular the Requisites and the Ingredients of this Meditation considered as a holy Duty which are these next following CHAP. IV. Of the Requisites in Meditation THere are these three things I shall mention as the Requisites for holy Meditation as a Duty 1. That I call a Foundation or Preparative to it 2. Those things that are for the forming and framing it as to the parts and proportions 3. The things that finish it up 1. As to the Foundation or Preparative to it This must be laid above in Heaven by the Dispositive or Preparative work of fervent Prayer The foundation of this Soul Affair must be as a Learned man saith of the Foundation of the World The Foundation of the World he saith is the. Third Heaven which is of a constant incorruptible Nature of no pre-existent principles and so not liable as other things are to corruption and resolution and which as to the convex or outward superficies or the highest part is only bounded or terminated by its own limits or terms of Essence and Quantity but in its concave or bollow superficies or the lowest part contains all inferiour things and is fixt immoveable If the Foundation of the great World is laid by the Third Heaven the Foundation of this great Work of holy Meditation must be laid in Heaven laid by the Soul 's strong mounting up thither and fixing it self there by fervent Prayer as the great Preparative to this Meditation Fervent Prayer The word in the Hebrew used for Meditation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies also Prayer Prayer and Meditation being so near a kin and the one helping mutually the other 1. To begin with a bringing the Soul into the Glorious and Tremendous Presence of the Great God and under his so pure and all-seeing Eye 2. To act the Soul and lay it as it were asteep in self-abasings and humblings for its former miscarriages and failings in and present unfitness and indisposedness for what is now undertaking 3. To exercise fresh Self-denyings as to any sufficiency of ability to perform any thing herein acceptably and profitably 4. To act vigorous and strong recumbencies on Jesus Christ for his both Teachings and Touchings of our Spirits and upholdings likewise in the work 5. To procure and beget a warm temper in us such as may make the heart to Glow all the Duty over 2. As to the forming of the Duty in the Parts and Particulars of it 1. It must be bottom'd and rise from the Spring and Great Principle of Motion and Action which is the will in a both free choice and firm purpose A resolvedness and rooted purpose Thus David Psal 119.48 I will meditate in thy Statutes and verse 15. I will meditate in thy Precepts The evil heart saith I will not Meditate Satan saith so far as he can hinder you shall not And the prophane World saith you need not But the holy heart saith I will Meditate This is my free and firm purpose and nothing by Christs assistance shall divert me The Philosopher saith that in every virtuous action there must be a choice of Will it must be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 be Elective come free from the Spring of the Will and run in Resolution otherwise it is not a virtuous Action The Scriptures for all Religious Actings call for Willingness Psal 110.3 Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy Power or as it is in the Hebrew A people of willingnesses thy people And in divers places call for Readiness in what we perform to God No work in the World can challenge that intense degree and share of Readiness and Freeness as Christs work and such ways as have a clear and lively Stamp of his Royal Will and Command No higher Character is given in Scripture of a Real Godliness than freest Choice of Will and Readiness To Chuse the good part Luke 10.42 To Chuse the things that please God Isa 56.4 and as in abundance of places is to be seen A Carnal heart acts from Carnal Wisdom and self-Interest or from Passion and self-biassing affection but not from pure freeness and deliberate Choice of Will That is not the Spring and rise of his Duties as it is in a good and holy heart A good heart acts from purpose a well and deep set purpose Acts 11.23 with purpose of heart to cleave to the Lord. And Psal 119.106 I have sworn and I will perform c. So the Will for holy Duties must put forth in Purposes firm Purposes varieties of fresh Purposes Act all the still needful and conducing Purposes any Duty in any respect calls for There are many Rare and Rich Attendants and Properties Ingredients and Excellencies Divine and Heavenly Beauties appertaining to holy Duties
when he was to be Crowned 2 Chr. 23.7 so when this Duty is endangered and ready to be hindred from having the Crown of a right performance set upon it The Scripture Rules impose Circumspection great Caution in all our Concernments but more peculiarly in things pertaining to God and his Worship Eccles 5.1 Take heed to thy foot c. so Take heed what you hear Aud Take heed how you hear So there must be heed and a great take heed how we Meditate The strongest Guard is little enough yea too deficient and weak for the holiest heart and the best exercised in this part of Godliness O how inconceivably evil is every heart in its leakings and runnings out in its rovings and wandrings in its slipperiness and inconstancies and likewise in its sinkings and fallings instead of keepings up in its heat and heavenly vivacity and keepings on in any evenness and equality No Sieve is more unapt to hold water no hand more unable to hold Sand or Oyl poured into it no bone which often hath been out of joint is more apt to dislocate and slip out of place than is the best heart to slip off rove and range from this Duty in Diversions and Admissions of Impertinencies When we are most serious and intent suddenly our carnal Spirits give us the slip and are gone Like the Bird if the Cage be but open Or the Prisoner if the Doors be not fast and watcht Or if the heart get not out in Diversions it falls flat in Deadness and sudden Coolings Like the Iron in forging no longer hot than the Workman keeps blowing like melted Metal which cools as it runs and is pouring forth This made David in the Psalms so often and earnestly to call for Quicknings from the sense of his frequent heart-coolings and sinkings The Acting of Meditation must not be going up a Hill of Ice where footing is both slippery and cold but like the going up the Burning Mount Etna where the footing if not firm yet is that which the Travellers as they say feel warm Or like Moses Going up the Mount to God which was steady and earnest till he came to the top Still a due Guard must be kept about our hearts in this so important soul affair An Intense care must be used and a holy fear against all Diversions all heart-sinkings and against all Disappointments also that we lofe not the real benefit and comfort of this work These three now Explained Particulars are as Requisites or Attendants of Meditation The next four are the special things wherein the Nature and Notion of it consists CHAP. IX Meditation in applying the Mind to a proper Object 4. MEditation stands in an Application and bringing the thinking power of the Soul upon the Object or Thing to be Meditated of Taking that Great Engine of the Spirit and setting it to act upon some fit subject The thinking faculty is a rare Endowment an Engine whereby the reasonable Creature can draw up and take in any Object and act or exercise it self about it for that use or end we aim at in our thinking In all Meditation there must be an Applying and Conjunction of the mind and the thing As Sensitive seeing must have some union virtual union with the thing seen so Intellectual seeing seeing by the Eye of the understanding must be by a bringing the thoughts upon that is to be thought upon The Scripture hath this Expression of setting the heart upon a thing Hag. 1.5 So it is in the Hebrew that which we Translate Consider your ways is put or set your hearts upon c. In Consideration or Musing there 's not only a taking of the heart and thoughts from foregoing minded Objects but a putting or setting it on some New thing setting that on there where it was not set before The sinful heart of it self will run any way upon Earthly things upon evil things or upon Impertinent and unseasonable things not come to or keep upon that it should intend and mind Therefore it must be taken as by strong hand and set upon spiritual things set on Musing and Meditation of heavenly things A carnal heart is like the Loadstone it cleaves to nothing but Steel or Iron and both of them easily unite but the heart must be of another property and act in a higher way And a good heart though it thinks too much Earth-ward runs often wrong yet it will set it self in its thinkings right on right Objects make it self and them to meet and unite Psal 119.112 David tells us how he did he inclined his heart to Gods Commandments both to keep them and to meditate on them He took and bent his heart as a thing bending too much to other things set his mind on Musing on it He found his Heart and the Law of God too far asunder and so would continue unless he brought them together and made them one If he had not brought his heart to the Word he had never Meditated The Object cannot apply it self to the Mind but the Mind must bring it self to the Object No Holy Duties will come to us we must come to them Many in a secret folly and sluggishness would have things do alone of themselves without their stirring or acting but they mistake 't is something like to Mahomet the Deceiver who once told the People that were met by his means to see him have a Mountain upon his call to remove and come unto him but when the Mountain would not come he boldly then tells them if the Mountain will not come to Mahomet Mahomet must or will go to the Mountain What he did attempt in pretence and act in impudence but was fain to go at last to the Mountain that would not come to him I say like to this we are ready to do in slothfulness we look that Duties should come to us that they do themselves and we do nothing But that which will not come to us we must go to it We must bring and set our hearts to this and all other Duties There must not be a letting the Mind lie still that so matter of Meditation may come to us and make us Meditate But we must bring and set our hearts to Objects of Meditation and make this Happy meeting of Excellent Objects and this excellent Musing power This is the more to be Contended for in that this work of Holy Meditating hath so many busie Adversaries but chiefly in the constant progress and carrying of it on Ah 't is extreamly against the grain of a natural heart to be broken off from its customary wildness wandrings and rangings of thoughts To cage up it self and become tame and tuned to serious Musings and Thinkings Heaven-ward In the best heart that sin that so easily besets us it will be ready quickly to interpose and cut off the Passages otherwise open O how the heart strives to beset and block up all Passages when we are beginning to enter on this Work
Grace and the Degree of that Grace the Grace he doth Meditate the Degree day and night Thus much hereby must then be implyed that as it is to be performed often so it cannot well be performed by the Rule in this Scripture passage if every day in course there be not something done this way either more or less certainly we cannot give God and our souls concerns too much measure So Psalm 119. He tells us his daily practice to Meditate both in the day and night Now his Example being a King and under such varieties of important Affairs so many and so great as none can have more And if he had still such cares troubles and dangers attending might not these have excused to some abatement of his constancy but it did not This therefore leaves all sorts of persons without excuse none being able to alledge that which he could or not more urgencies of daily occasions There is no doubt that as it is a work lies upon every one so sure as the day returns and the fresh businesses of it so this Meditating of right doth challenge for it self some fit season and portion of the day being one of the great businesses for the Souls help As no Christian can plead exemption from this daily incumbency this daily soul affair so no good prudent Christian can conceive but he may find out in the revolution of the day some at least fit opportunity for serious Meditation Or if not in the day time the time of action and avocation yet in the night upon the Bed the time of rest and freedom What was said of that great Warriour Hannibal making his way into Italy over the high rocky Mountains the Alpes with Fire and Vinegar Hannibal will either find a way or make one and is said of Love It will creep if it cannot go a good heart will find or make its way over Mountains of Difficulties and Business to have Communion with Jesus Christ Cant. 3.1 2 3. Ah it is most sad if I can allow so many hours in the night for rest and sleep so many in the day for business and emergencies so many for eating and drinking so many for company and discourse yea so much time for pleasure play for trivial things next to nothing it may be for things worse than nothing for sins and lusts and that no part of the twenty four hours must be afforded for serious thinking thinking of things ten thousand times more momentous and concerning than the total sum of matters that sweep away and swallow up precious time so much The good Christian cannot but at least close with the eternal obligation of this duty And the wise and fruitful Christian cannot but yield some complyance with the practice of it and let this come in for its due share in the time of the day as one important business to be dispatcht and that must still contribute to the right making of it up and improvement of it After some evidence of the equity of this daily Duty I come to speak to the Nature and way of this Meditation This being of all other sorts the principal which therefore challenges a more distinct and careful handling If Christians very well understand not this way or fall very short of the due manner and order of it the work is neither so pleasant or successful as it might be and should be and questionless is to Christians such as are the great Artists herein such as have been well practised and experienced in it I shall therefore now endeavour to shew the Nature of it and something of a Method of due proceeding in it In general it is that daily exercise whereby we single out purposely some spiritual or useful matters to act the searchings and ponderings which according to our ability and opportunity of the day we can exercise for our spiritual advantage The Mind is a Spring alway running in thinkings a Wheel alway turning a Forge alway framing a Wing ever moving it is the most active busie nimble thing in all the world therefore hath the greatest need to be well lookt unto to be kept as Solomon saith Prov. 4.23 With all keeping keep thy heart to be guided with the best skill and care with the steadiest and stiffest rein like a Horse of highest metal ready to run away with his Rider it will run wildly away and carry the soul into vanity folly and self-mischieving Meditation is a spiritual rein and curb and the peculiar designed way to reduce rectifie and order it To bring the hearts thinking power into the highest subserviency the greatest usefulness to the main to the Souls grand interest Therefore there is a great necessity upon every good heart of daily and much Meditating CHAP. II. Of the manner and way of daily Meditation 1. EVery Christian is to awake with God in the morning Psal 139.13 as David when he awoke was ever with God at his awaking times in the night by thinking of God so chiefly when he awoke last when the night was past with all the dangers of it and the day dawned then the morning-star of Meditation arose in his heart The first work in the morning is to awake with God and the noble thinking faculty which upon awaking will instantly awake and begin to stir begin to act Let it be awakened into this sweet way of self entertainment by engaging of it in holy Meditation Look we that the heart be first of all seasoned sweetned and perfumed with heavenly thoughts 1. Begin we with serious reflections upon the great goodness and tender mercies of God in our preservations from Satans malice and mischiefs what affrightments in noises and appearances in violence and harms would he exercise if he were let loose upon us What other harms from wicked men usually taking the advantage of the dark and still night when all are at rest besides harms from accidental occasions that we are liable to There is also the great mercy of Beds to lie on rest without tossings ease without torments sleep without holding our Eyes in awaking having our sleep sweet awaking with refreshing having our formerly weary bodies and decayed spirits revived and cheared and we our selves under a new adaptation and fitness for the succeeding days occasions There should be also a stand and abode of thoughts upon any thing in the night which is more signal and remarkable that comes down from Heaven as a brighter beam of favour to take the Eye with that is let down as a more peculiar hand to take up our thoughts to Heaven by that is sent as a more special Love-token stampt with more legible Characters of the care and kindness of a God towards us 2. When the nights past mercies have had some due Reflections and Musings had a down-weight of improvement endeavoured for warming and enlarging the heart toward our good God If then it conveniently may be nothing to the contrary interposing and that justly may hinder the next thing
when he would have those come right and return that have gone wrong and such to go on that have well begun he calls them to consideration and minding their ways Hag. 1.5 Consider your own ways in your hearts and again verse 7. Isa 46.8 Bring it to mind Put your hearts upon your ways in the former here they must bring their doings upon their hearts by considering Ezek. 18.28 He considereth and turneth Consideration is the rise of returning Luke 15.17 The Prodigals returning was upon his considering common wisdom acting in consideration is the souls helm and spiritual wisdom acting in Meditation is the Christians Helm as the Word is his compass and the Gales of the holy Spirit fill his sails and make him move We cannot look for a Ship to sail well without the Helms steering well Meditations Helm must steer our course our course to the Harbour of true happiness must have its rise in due consideration as the Scripture every where shews O let me Lord keep up ever this right order and method in my walkings let Meditation be the spring that carries all the Wheels of my spirit right and even that still pondering all my paths my ways may be established This then I propound as a principal ground of the necessity of Meditation that dependance of the Will Affections and actings spiritual on the understanding sanctifi'd and furnisht with light and wisdom for salvation which wisdom and light is the guide to and stirrer up of the will affections and endeavours by the means of Divine Meditation This I have the more now insisted on in that the great failings of all sorts rise from neglect of this consideration and Meditation because this consideration is no more considered All Christians that would have the Will purpose the Affections move the executing power endeavour well must use the grace of spiritual wisdom that is the first wheel in the heavenly frame of spirit and wisdom by the way of Meditation to set on going all the wheels of other graces disperst through the heart The Graces planted as principles of spiritual life strength and motion and given to animate all operation CHAP. XXVI Of the second ground of this so necessary Duty of Meditation HEavenly things should have not only a meer seeing and knowing but a minding and meditating from their obliging and challenging excellencies Prov. 8.6 and 22.20 Excellent things have I not written to thee excellent things saith Solomon Phil. 3.8 For the excellency of the knowledge of Christ c. their so far transcending excellencies their rare objective excellencies give me leave to call them so that is they are not only excellent things in themselves though never known or shewn to us but they are made to be excellent objects for our observation and minding All made to be minded but some of them more peculiarly made and prepared made great made high deep and large fil'd brim full yea running over with both native excellency and likewise sutableness for us sutableness for our spirits to act and make their chief abode of seriousest thoughts upon for a spiritual and holy eye to fix upon and be pleased in As in Philosophy they reason if there be objectum sensibile an object of the outward sense and that which especially is excellent if there be Odours and rich Scents if sounds excellent sounds or if there be rare Colour Feature Motion and that so excellent object Light especially such glorious Lights as the several Stars the Moon and the most glorious Sun there must be those Senses of smelling hearing seeing which may perceive their objects and receive the pleasure and benefit of them otherwise they must be all in vain If there were no Creatures with any Senses to perceive these Objects of Colour Light and the rest to what end were any of them What use would Colour or Light be of without any eye to behold it The omniscient God he cannot need it The Angels and Spirits being without bodies they do not need it Creatures blind and Creatures made without sense Elements as Earth Water and the other Elementaries such as Stones Metals Trees and such like insensitive things they need it not neither need any smells sounds or tastes only the sense is suted to the Object and the Object to the sense The Object is made or manifested and shewn for the sense So if there be spiritual Objects and no spiritual eye fitted for them and if spiritual Objects be held forth and shewn and there were never any eying of them they then in that respect as to their holding forth would be in vain And the spiritual eye would be in vain as if the eye had no Object to behold it would be in vain and as no eye at all Therefore doth God in Scripture call so oft for a beholding of the things of Heaven because of their excellencies purposely shewn for that end Joh Behold the Lamb of God 1 Joh. 3.1 Behold what love the c. Therefore when there are such abundance of spiritual and heavenly things set out in such rare Colours and proportions shining in such high splendour and glory When so many most bright and beauteous when so great and extensive rarities and excellencies beam forth and shine so gloriously in heavenly and spiritual things there then needs must be an Eye a spiritual Eye for these so excellent Objects to behold them and be exercised about them Yea when there is such a height depth latitude and length and vastness every way of dimensions of excellency shining in them and this purposely that they may be viewed and admired and also improved therefore there must be an answerable eying and considering 1. A real sincere acting of minding and meditating to answer their most real worth 2. A deep searching of thoughts to answer their height and depth of excellency 3. An abode and dwelling and enlarging of thoughts to answer the latitude and extensiveness of excellency in them that all their glory and excellency so near as can be may be known and tasted The excellencies therefore of spiritual things are for eying and pondering the greatness of their excellencies for great eying and earnest Meditating Therefore we find that great Artist in Meditation the holy Psalmist so busying his thoughts and meditating in several things as about God and his Glory Greatness Holiness Righteousness Truth Mercy Severity and Power Psal 104. Psal 12.6 About the Word of God in those shining rays of its infallible Truth Purity Perfection mighty efficacy and glorious excellencies Psal 19.7 8. Psal 119. And so about the works and ways of God 2 Tim. 3.16 The blessed Apostle Paul was so acted in his thoughts about the Word of God and the Gospel Christ and Free Grace the fullness of Christ Ephes 2.4 7. the workings of his Spirit and the whole mystery of godliness 1 Tim. 3.16 Thus other Saints in Scripture Prophets Apostles and divers else The wise hearted will have their eyes thus exercised
not as if they were not at all oblig'd but free from any such engagement of their thoughts any employing of their serious thoughts this way O how many are there to be found that never considered what that noble eye of the understanding was given for they use it as if it were made to look only downward or any other way but upward and heavenward that lose contentedly lose the principal end of that so rare faculty made most peculiarly to mind and contemplate heavenly beauties and excellencies What was said by Duke Alva he did not use to look up to Heaven this may be said of too many yea they may say it of themselves they do not use to look up to Heaven by meditating on the things above Ah sad eye and sad frame of spirit but saddest state not to have God nor the things of God in the thoughts to have an eye made purposely for them above all but uses to look from them not towards them that fixes on the Earth that hath their eyes All and Heaven the allowance of a Nothing 2. Others mistakingly think Meditation may concern some sorts of persons but not them they have no leisure they have no Learning as others have We read of a King when a Treatise of happiness was presented unto him would not look on it but said he was not at leisure O how many are there too like him in this they are not at leisure They can find time for looking every way on every thing fond phansie carries them to but it is for others who have time and a mind to it thus to employ it in Meditation 3. Others there are who think religious seriousness and musing of things heavenly the greatest folly the worst bestowing of thoughts and time they loath all trouble of consideration this way license their thinkings to a roving ranging liberty let their thoughts fly as Children do their Arrows any way and every way but to no certain mark at all with such any way is vanity but walking in the vanity of their minds Ephes 4.17 with them no thoughts are savoury but such as are remotest from Heaven a seriousness and sixing their thoughts is a fettering to their freeness of phansie all stay of thoughts is a meer tediousness and the more spiritual the things are they are perswaded to mind the more unkind entertainment they meet with O that ever that eye which the great soul-maker bestows purposely and principally to act its seriousness and best mindings on best things should be so strangely perverted to an only minding the worst O what a wonder is it that the great Giver of this great Talent of the thinking power doth not totally take it away doth not let it quite quench in a seizing stupidity and loss of reasons use as it happens to some by sad Diseases or that the wildness and wickedness of phansie be not revenged with wildness of phrensie and striking all such willfully mindless sinners mad as sometimes some are and it may be partly on this account O let every one take heed of provoking their God in such a sort and set themselves to ponder what it is not only to forget God carelesly but to refuse to remember him purposely and designedly purposely to refuse minding those things of Heaven which like the lights of Heaven have purposely the greatest â—â—stre and glory that they may have the greatest eyâ—â—gs and lookings upon Every one therefore should learn to be concluded under this great truth under the great necessity and importancy of this Duty see it most clearly Christs blessed way for the frequent and constant walk of his thoughts to improve communion with God and perfect holiness by Lord clear up my Eye to see daily more into the excellencies of this heavenly way and have my spirit lifted up and enlarged in it O let me not faint and grow weary but have the Loins of my spirit girded with strength my goings held up in this path of pleasantness unto the end CHAP. II. A second improvement of this truth by way of conviction and for deep humbling 2. Vse LET this serve for conviction and deep humbling of every one for no better discharging this obedience to the Lord of our spirits and that thinking power of them The natural faculty for thinking was given by God chiefly for spiritual objects and for acting it self in a spiritual way as the bodily eye is given much more for beholding the light of the Sun than the light of Candles That so precious Talent of the thinking power was not lent us by our Lord to embezle and ravel out but to employ and improve for his best advantage not to be as water spilt upon the ground not to be as a spring of pure excellent water which empties it self into some near noisome ditch or is swallowed up in some Bog or Quagmire O no it was given us for excellent ends to act and be in exercise to put forth its strength and vigour upon things most excellent and high in themselves and most sweet and sutable to it 1. Therefore let every person look back and be greatly humbled for those times of childhood and youth and that excessive vanity of thoughts and evils continually evil imaginations as Scriptures charge all with Gen. 6.5 O let us learn much to be humbled for being so long under the total neglect and daily exclusion of all thought-seriousness not at all complying with but dis-relishing but refusing all reducing of the thoughts to any due mindings and ponderings of heavenly things In that forecited 6. of Genesis the Lord when he was threatning the drowning of all the Earth he saw the wickedness of man was great and then among others when he is making a review and looks back to former times the times of mens youth he casts into all the sum of sins the youths sins of thoughts the then evils of its imaginations with the aggravations reckons not the ways only and wildness of youth discovering it self to others but the evil thoughts of youth and punishes for them with other sins I say drowned the world for youth sins yea youngest times thoughts Though youth be least considerable and youths thoughts least of all considered yet the holy God puts these mites into the black bill makes the weights of thought sins to help cast the Ballance hangs these about the sinners necks to help drown them in the flood O let us then look back to them be duly humbled for them humbled for that All of the evil of imaginations humbled that there was then no consideration nothing of this so incumbent Duty this then even in youth so needful duty O what a sad time was that which did not would not meditate that could not would not spare time time from pleasures play vanities and follies time from very toys trifles poor petty despicable things yet so eagerly minding them and being so taken with them enslaved led and befooled by them Ah when the holy God
happiness Christ must be received in the Promises rested upon as sure good and free 4. By earnest often praying for grace faith and other graces a new heart and new principles which will introduce a new power and make godliness in all the duties of it and this of Meditation sweet and easie CHAP. VII An Application to such as are godly and have tasted the sweetness of Meditation 2. Vse of exhortation THE next perswasion and instigation is of all such who from a right principle planted in them by heart-changing grace and their experience from often and usual practice of Meditation have tasted the benefit and sweetness of it to take heed of neglecting it and to endeavour a constancy and improvement in it As there is nothing harder than to hedge in the thoughts and govern them so how hard is it to make them keep and beat this path of Meditation to have the soul go as with Hinds feet most readily and with enlargements of steps in it The holiest heart is too apt to flag and be weary in the best path-way to Heaven Meditation hath a strong and active Enemy in every bosom when any would do this good evil is present in backwardness to it regret and reluctaney rises up puts in a caveat hangs a weight and clog to hinder which watchfulness and resolution must spy out and cast off Cast off every weight saith the Apostle Heb. 12.1 Every weight the flesh casts upon a Duty the spirit must cast off and then run sin at all times can easily beset us and now at this time we may easily find it How easily will sin beset us with excuses how easily with whole Troops of Arguments will it charge us how easily with swarms of diversione diverting thoughts purposes affections will it seek to warp us this thing and the other and a third and a thousand that flye about as thick in the heart as motes in the Sun-shine 1. Meditation is harder than some other Duties of godliness for in other Duties the body comes in as an assistant to the soul and lends a hand of help As in praying there may the voice come in which is a great furtherance keeping better up the minds intention and keeping better off deadness and distraction In reading the eye is exercised and the mind is the better as to attention and heeding if not to heat and intention The eye affects the heart so preaching hath the ear to convey and make the better impression But in Meditation the soul acts single and unassisted without a stirring up or exciting by any sense or any help from the body and so it is the harder as the condition of our Nature now makes it In the state of imperfection we need the bodies help to farther the soul in its workings in some sort 2. Meditation hath least opportunities of coming under observation of others and thereby less provocation and encouragement for doing well by either bad or good before whom in other cases our light should shine and God by them be glorified 3. Meditation is hard in that it is an acting of the quickest faculty and the most slippery piece of the soul nothing is nimbler than the thinking power no act in the world quicker and of more expedite motion than that of a thought and nothing sooner slips off the object or thing acted upon and makes a way faster to a new than the thinking faculty like the Bird put wild into a Cage the door is no sooner open but she is gone Meditation is harder being not bare thinking a flash a sit for an instant a touching but a fixing and stay of thoughts a detaining them which otherwise are as Oyl in a mans right hand that will not be retain'd A carnal heart counts all Ordinances and spiritual engagements but coming into bonds tyings with Cords longs to break them and be free so doth it by this Cord and tye of Meditation it 's harsh work to the flesh O it 's a most high attainment to be able to say O God my heart is fixed Psal 108.1 fixed as to the purpose of heart the choice and intent of the will so to have the head the mind to cease the rowling ranging vanity and slipperiness and to act fixedly in the way of seriousness not be a light-headed but a musing man a person of ponderings and thought-stayings like the Bee that lights on the Flower and stays to have the Honey with her e're she removes 4. Meditation is the harder in that Satan hath greater power upon and more immediate passage to the faculty of imagination than other faculties of the will and affections he works not so immediately on the will and affections as upon the imagination and there he endeavours interruptions by his injections and suggestions there he endeavours diversions to think quite another way from the work in hand and disturbances casting in by-thoughts and sundry objects of different or contrary nature to the duty we are in As Satan fill'd Ananias heart but first by filling the imagination with thought of covetousness so he can cast suddenly into the best heart thoughts and apprehensions when about the best work to disturb and hinder Besides consider his malice is great against Meditation knowing how great advantage comes to us by it and how much disadvantage to him Satan is much prejudiced by ponderings he ever watches when this work is taking in hand and therefore Christian thou hast greater reason of taking the greater heed to watch him that so watches thee to fight him that fights against thee and so envies thee the help of this Ordinance that would not have thee enjoy the freedom of one good one serious thought but is casting the dust of evil thoughts in the eyes of our minds when they are looking up to Heaven but principally he envies and opposes seriousness searchings and dwelling of thoughts upon spiritual things Satan deals with us here as deceitful Courtiers and Councellors have done with their Masters diverting them from minding their affairs and all right seriousness by pleasures and new devices under the pretence of freedom from incumbrances and trouble and enjoying themselves but that hereby they might more securely prosecute compass their own private interests Satan had rather we should do any thing than keep up a seriousness in Meditation or any other holy Duties which may keep us awake and in a watchful posture against his enterprises 5. Meditation is the harder by reason of the exemplary mindlesness of so many we daily meet and converse with who refuse and slight all seriousness as unnecessary niceness or neglect it out of slothfulness and lothness to trouble themselves Bad Examples are very infectious apt to convey a secret poyson into mens hearts when they heed them not by touching this pitch the best are ready to be defiled 6. Meditation is like the road or passage where many things meet us justle us and are ready to turn us out of the way
cares they strive to come in businesses and multiplicity of affairs sudden emergencies and sundry things that may attempt to interpose and these if our watch and guard be not the stronger and stricter will miscarry the Duty Yea sometimes one Duty may drive out another often we let holy duties interfere and cross each other hearing praying and the rest sometimes there 's hastening from one to another sometimes letting one detain us so long that others are cut short and so helps are turned in part into hindrances opportunities for some Duties into obstructions to others when godly prudence allows every thing its season and due proportion of time The external hindrances to Meditation are many from common business and things of this life and we often create our own hindrances by our sloth and imprudence not carefully redeeming and wisely ordering our times and opportunities Ah then my soul if Meditation be so high so hard as to its spiritual nature and hath withal such Enemies and oppositions look to it then I must the more cautiously but not less resolutely perform it The Moralists say that difficulty is cos virtutis the incentive and heightener of magnanimity to a great and heroick spirit nothing must be so great as to outlook it and discourage it The greater and braver fish swim against the stream the noble Christian by difficulty and opposition is caution'd but not cowed out If there were nothing to set against and weigh with the former cautions and arguments from Enemies and opposition if no high inducements and advantageous arguments to put into the scale of perswasion to weigh against such as fill the scale of diswasion it then might the more reverse and turn the edge of thy courage yet arguments from evil and mischief in many cases are sufficient alone the danger of an armed Enemies approaching as in Jacob's case the danger of deadly poyson prepared for thee or infection coming very nigh thee is enough But we have encouragements and those in full measure pressed down and running over As Elisha to his servant discouraged when encompast in Dothan we have moe with us than against us What if there be a principle of flesh that makes opposition yet thy principle of spirit and grace is a real ground of hope and help If thy grace Christian be true though but a grain of mustard-seed it will live and hold and act and grow act into endeavour and striving till it overcomes A principle will help thee 1. Consider a principle introduces an inclination a bent and tendency of heart against the inclination and contrary tendency of corruption Psal 119.112 and it 's a principle must live and the contrary carnal principle must die Rom. 6.11 Reckon your selves dead unto sin but alive unto God Sin as to the purchase of Christ is dead in the Saints totally and it is dead in the habit and root initially and in part in respect of the communicated and inherent grace of Christ which upon union with Christ begins the death of sin in mortification Rom. 6. 2. A principle besides inclination and tendency introduces power and ability as the Flesh hath its power so the spirit and grace hath its contrary power 3. A principle introduces facility though the Flesh makes Duties hard yet the Spirit is ready and makes godliness easie 4. A principle introduces delight and complacency the Flesh acts reluctancy the Spirit delight and pleasure Psal 119.47 5. A principle works holding on and constancy Gal. 5. as the Flesh lusts against the Spirit so the Spirit against the Flesh Psal 119.12 last part of the verse not only begins but holds on a principle will help you to hold on for God will hold that on Phil. 1.6 He that hath begun a good work in you will finish it to the day of Christ 6. A principle is blest by the using of it with progress and growth the flesh that shall decrease and waste but the grain of Mustard-seed shall grow to a great tree Math. 13.32 7. A principle shall be crown'd by contending and striving with glorious conquest and victory the Spirit wars against the Flesh and it conquers in the issue by its still warring judgment is brought forth to victory Rom. 8.37 Ah never be discouraged for any thing within be very sensible of sin within and the stirrings of it but sink not under the sight of it take thou encouragement Christian to fight it and to subdue it if thy hearts badness appear its backwardness and crossness to any Duty know you can get nothing by giving way but by going on and striving and use this herein as thy rule wear out thy own backwardness to and weariness in a Duty by doing it in a resolved constancy wear out the indisposition to duty by doing that Duty and doing it fervently 2. What if Satan be such an Enemy yet have we not more and stronger with us than him we have the holy Spirit that helps to pray and he will help us to meditate If he sees we are labouring to get up the Mount in Meditation he will give us his hand to help us up if Satan and all Hell be against us in this or any other Duty he will be for us yea Father Son and Spirit are and will be all assistants to us Do we not use to say God came in at such a time in such a Duty He delights to see how the pulse of thy spirit beats heavenward how the eye of thy soul looks upward how it fixes its looks of heavenly love upon him he delights to help up thy heart in its holy Meditation to help it tower up to Heaven to taste of those surmounting glorious delicacies prepared for his beloveds entertainment and highest solace What others in their exemplary carelesness hold forth what their mindlesness is they use must not have any impression of discouragement or prove to us any impediment It is no staying till we can take every one along with us in our journey to Heaven Neither must the example of any the highest the greatest the richest the wisest and learnedest the nearest related the dearest affected nor any under any consideration whatever have that ill influence upon us either to discourage or divert us weaken our hands or hinder our making straight steps in this blessed path of meditating diligently upon heavenly things Neither let the cares and pleasures business and affairs of this world hinder this soul great affair of serious Meditation in the seasons of it The Saints of Christ in all ages have found a way to this duty as well as others and that through the throng and multiplicity of crowding and justling occasions As it is said of our Lord Christ in Luk. 4.30 when they of Nazareth angry with him thrust him out of the City and would have cast him down headlong he passing through the midst of them goes his way the Saints of Christ have made their way passing through the midst of businesses and emergencies
troubles and disquiets They had a wisdom given them to find out a way they had a will a purpose and resolvedness fixt so as to overlook and overcome obstructions and lets from throngings of business and multitudes of still successively interposing diversions That holy David who had so many highly urging and pressing occasions as no man now whatsoever he be can have more yet he made his way continually through all the throngings of so high importancies and most urgent affairs he had a wisdom given to find a way and a will to resolve to Meditate and he did it daily Psal 119.48 He says he will meditate in Gods Statutes when he so determined certainly he did it not rashly and without consideration of his many occasions and weighty affairs and those great diversions which he might after meet with at home and abroad in Peace and War yet thus he resolves And Psal 119.97 he saith it and to the Lord himself that he did it and all the day first he saith he will then saith he doth meditate and saith it to the all-knowing God It therefore hence appears how feasable and practicable this Duty is notwithstanding cares business troubles of all sorts whatever from the world and living in it there is an attainable will 1. A godly heart may come to say I will may set an universal purpose of heart a firm purpose and a purpose of equal extent to the whole latitude of Gospel Duties and whatsoever the Word requires 2. And likewise he may have a latitude of wisdom to understand his way every way he is to walk Prov. 14.8 The wisdom of the wise is to understand his way Psal 119.98 Thou hast made me wiser than mine Enemies and 99. I have more understanding than my teachers There David discovers he had wisdom for his way and how he arrived at such a height of wisdom and directs us how to come by it 3. And as a Christian may come to say he will do such a required Duty and arrive at the wisdom of doing it so by grace he may come up to an answerable extensiveness of practice and performance walking in all the ways of the Lord as Zacharias and Elizabeth Luke 1.6 David oft professes his both universality as of his heart-purpose so of his practice as the 119. Psalm and others abundantly shew Yet first fixing our purpose in the strength of Christ then following after the wisdom of our way making it a grand scope to attain the wisdom the right and sure wisdom of our soul affairs to be Artists in Religion and then falling close to practise what we resolve and understand this with Christs help will make our work any work upon our hands to prove easie Prov. 8.9 They are all plain to him that understands easie the old Translation hath it we have a saying in Divinity Iter ad pietatem est intra ipsam pietatem the way to godliness is within godliness that is the way to learn it is to act it and the way to facilitate and make it easie is by exercising our selves still in it setting upon and keeping up the practice of it He that doth much in it fervently and frequently will come to perform with increasing facility Slack and listless doing slight and negligent performing may come to loathing and leaving end with the disadvantage of a far worse temper of heart-aversness than there was at the first Formality in Religion ends oft in falling first off from it and then falling out with it contrarily doing with care and fervency encreaseth spiritual strength and the encrease of strength makes the work more easie In using to do it earnestly we arrive at a doing easily O therefore let every one be highly encouraged to hold up our constancy in this excellent Duty to walk with an extensive and increasing evenness and equality in this so pleasant high road to Heaven both in daily Meditation in that for the entrance and that other for the ending of the day in also the occasional solemn Meditation that rare way of spiritual improvement in wisdom and heavenly warmth and in that way of Meditation by short and sudden ejaculations This threefold cord will draw strongly Heaven-ward will make thy soul go from strength to strength from warmth to warmth from pleasure to pleasure make thee keep upon the wing mount up aloft and not be weary by the successive varieties and the abundant sweetness flowing hereby into thy bosom and to winde up this instigation in a word 1. Is my heart dead at any time and listless how soon will Meditation quicken it and reduce it into activity 2. Is it barren and unfruitful alone or in company what rare rich matter can meditating bring in and spread over the barren soil of my spirit and make it soon put forth fruitfully 3. Is it chill and cold without wonted warmth and vivacity what fuel can it fetch to kindle a fire on this hearth fuel from Heaven and Earth from the Word and Works of God and all sorts of objects whatever spiritualizing them for my use what sparks can it strike what coals can it kindle and blow up into a flame to thaw my frozen heart 4. How high a preparative is Meditation to prayer to enrich it with choicest materials to enliven it and make it burning hot in holy fervency 5. How rare a dispositive to hearing the Word of Christ to open the everlasting doors of the heart to widen the heart for a letting in more freely of heavenly Truths and increasing the good hearts treasure to make us swift to hear to hear with the largest and liveliest affections readiest purpose most raised and fixed resolutions to receive and obey the Word in every thing most abundant readiness to be moulded into the form of Doctrine that shall be delivered 6. What an efficacious helper is Meditation to spiritual digestion and reducing divine Truths into sound and good nourishment which miscarry in others for want of due meditating And what a mighty assistant is it to holy Duties what is there performed wisely and with vigour unless directed and assisted by Meditation For to make the instigations more full we may look back to the ends of Meditation and the afterward grounds were given and enlarged upon which being many will be too long to repeat Two things only remain to finish this Improvement 1. The Evidences and Characters of a right and due Meditation 2. The Directions and Rules for the best managing of it CHAP. VIII Of the Evidences of a due Meditation FOr the Evidences of a due and right Meditation it must have the Nature Properties and Attendants of it and therefore it is not to be taken up as a custom as a thing made to stop the mouth of a calling and urging conscience or a meer acting for Notions a study and search of Curiosity to know Novelty or to know much and be able to hold discourse with others But it must have a higher nature purer
ends and be performed in another sort then an only wise or a learned man yea then any formal Christian can act or compass of himself And for the Characters of a right holy Meditation there will be no need to fetch any other lights of discovery but only to take up and hold those to this intendment which were opened in the discovery of the nature of divine Meditation 1. As making it our real and high obedience to God the soveraign Lord of our souls and to the golden Scepter of his Word in that express Law of his laid upon the thinking power and grounded upon the high and infinite obligations he hath on us to impose this thought-tribute and homage a pure obedience to him and doing his will herein He that meditates aright hath been taught and learnt to obey God to yield it to him as his due I am under my God saith the right Christian and infinitely obliged to all which he commands me This among others is one of his righteous and holy Laws one great signification of his Royal will I must not will not deny it dispute it or put it from me but comply freely with it And this comes from that spring that root which lyes at the bottom of the heart that supereminent love to God the holy hearts chief good and the great ground of all right obedience Rom. 13.10 Love is the fulfilling of the Law and so is it the fulfilling of this particular Law of holy Meditation love to God so infinitely excellent in himself and who hath so unspeakably loved the holy soul Therefore if it be the right and genuine obedience it hath this high this warm spring of love running in this channel this of Meditation an over-powering constraining love that breeds this thinking this looking of the soul in Meditation O therefore try if this heavenly love hath first been planted in the soil of thy heart if from a new heart circumcised to love the Lord above all that thence thou comest to love Meditation because thou lovest the Law-giver first who writes his Law and writes this particular Law in thy heart by love to it by making thee a lover of Meditation 2. If Meditation be genuine and right then is it from a choice of will wrought up by the power of holy love subduing and mortifying carnal and formerly predominant unwillingness and stubbornness reluctancy and refusals of this work and framing it to willingness freeness and fixedness of purpose to do it and hold it Psal 119.48 I will meditate saith the holy Psalmist Meditation arose from resolution from a will fixed and that arose from love acted and working the will to resolution Therefore in the 97. verse of this Psalm he speaks it to God himself O how love I thy law and what fruit doth this noble root of love put forth it is my meditation all the day Meditation of the Law proceeds from love to the Law Love lay at the bottom and that engaged the will into a firm resolution to meditate Never is the will freer and its purpose firmer then when love inclines and engages it The highest and strongest resolutions that ever were taken up by any holy heart were the rare products and sweet fruits of heavenly love love efficaciously exciting the will winding it up to the top and then fixing it fast 3. Where the work of Meditation is right the aims and ends of it are pure spiritual and holy it is carried beyond and above self it is an acting with self-denying self is neither the total nor the predominant ingredient in this undertaking That which Christ calls for of denying a mans self Mark 8.34 in the extent of all Christianity must particularly be performed in this duty Self seeking must not be uppermost not the main intent or inducement For this is the Sphere an unsound heart moves ever in The aim and end in the best natural man is never higher then self and no other really then self and that because he chiefly loves himself But a right work must be aimed and acted above all to the living God Therefore Zec. 7.5 God tells them their fasting was not right because they did it not to God so is Meditation or any other duty not right if it be not to him aimed above all at his Glory In this respect therefore Religion is in Scripture called Godliness because it is a frame of spirit acting above all self-ends and inferior respects unto the living God above all So Heb. 9.14 To serve the living God works not done to the living God are dead works a living work is aimed and level'd to the living God The end more particularly must be the glorifying God 1 Cor. 10.31 Do all to the glory of God If eating drinking and such inferior things then much more holy duties must be done to Gods glory There must be an inward powerful principle that can aim so highly really and an acting of that principle that God is actually glorified It is not enough to say we do as many erringly affirm they aim their duties when they never had first that right principle of Holiness wrought in their hearts Without the principle of Holiness it is impossible to have holy aimings holy ends It 's impossible without an eye to see to level at a mark Wheresoever there 's a right doing there 's a potent elevating principle that sets the spirit above the predominancy of self-seeking and acts it into a reality of God-exalting above all that kindles and inflames the soul into an ardency of desire love delight of glorifying God in every undertaking This is unspeakably sweet and heart-gladding nothing pleases a holy heart more then when the heart below can run in some degree parallel with the hearts of Saints and Angels above in hallowing and advancing the highest God and his Name Try we therefore if our meditating be a real acting up to the grand scope and highest end the exalting of God if his honour be indeed the preponderating inducement and greatest soul-aim 2. Happiness and our own Salvation was the next aim formerly mentioned happiness propounded and declared in the Gospel and no other To this next subordinate end must all the golden lines of holy duties tend here they must center Every right duty must be a real levelling at Gospel-happiness that which God proffers and Christ hath purchased If Meditation be right it is a part of true wisdom for our selves Prov. 9.12 Wisdom to salvation as really aimed at it as any marksman aime at his mark God next to himself and his glory allows and requires to look and seek labour and strive for eternal life and happiness and all our duties as they are subservient to his glory so our own happiness is complicate and wrapt up in it yet not above it or equal with it but next under it Accordingly therefore in this duty as in all others our aim at happiness must not be a meer self-seeking it must not terminate
to be better composed more serious and intent is a good furtherance to Meditation if we are not timorous and apt to fright Isaac Gen. 24.63 went out in the evening to Meditation It may be the duskishness of the time might be part of his purpose because he could less see about which the lightsomness of the day would not so suit All things which prevent scatterings of the thoughts and abate seriousness which may conduce to intending the mind and quicken to the duty in hand should so well as we can be considered and applied until by frequent practice we get a hand at this work that thou provest an Artist in it and arrivest at a heavenly habit to work readiness easiness and constancy in doing it The Prophet Psal 108.1 saith His heart was ready so the old Translation hath it the new Translation My heart is fixed The word in the Hebrew signifies first ready or prepared Then secondly it signifies fixed We first fit prepare a thing sharpen it before we drive it into the ground and then drive it in and fix it So act seriously and often that thy heart may be ready and may also be fixt and this by a habit which brings readiness and fixedness as in other holy duties so in this of Meditation CHAP. XVI Of Directions in reference to short and ejaculatory Meditations 1. HEed here must be taken that neither these short and quick actings of the soul in ejaculations Prove exclusive of the more serious and solemn or take off from it from either the daily Meditation or the solemn occasional formerly spoken of Nor that we lay more stress upon these short and frequent dartings up of the heart than upon our daily Meditation or the other that this short thing be not made to stand for all or almost all else meditating The heart of the best person is a deceitful and slippery an inconstant and fickle a dull and slothful piece under a lothness to do good especially that which is high and hard that comes not off easily and that which must have time a space and good proportion of time This we are ready at least in our hearts to call tedious and think too long although there be but bare allowance of so much time as the very necessity for the well-doing the duty requires As naturally a slightness and shortness to have a serious duty quickly over pleases much so a tang of this yea too much of this carnal hastiness is in the best Any spiritual performance we would oft have over before it be on and get into the heart before it be warm in the heart kindle it quicken it draws it up to Heaven and hath its efficacy and real ends Things that are hard and work trouble we are ready quickly to call tedious and because other occasons may call loud our corruption present hath an itch for any duties being over ended so soon as begun Therefore thou must look this short sooner over work get not ground of the other more serious and solemn Meditation that a help convert not it self into a hindrance that it justle not out the solemn or rob it of its due Holy duties are to be all Links of the same golden Chain Pearls all strung upon the same silken thread the greater must not keep off the less nor the less the greater Both must have their just allowance of place come all upon the thread make up the chain entire and be all our helps in their connexion Holy duties must not clash not be their own hinderers by opposition one set against another or derogating one from another But as the noble parts in the body and the meaner parts have all their several places offices uses for the good of the whole yet with their diversity act not contrariety but a sweet harmonious subserviency mutually to each other and to the whole 2. Neither must this sort of Meditation be slight and remiss grow into and setle in a meer customariness and formality It must not on the one hand shut out the more solemn Meditation nor on the other hand fix in an easie and slight performing But must have its true and spiritual warm and lively acting with reverence care pure aiming to have heart for the shortness of time to ascend up to Heaven making a short visit for meeting with some soul-refreshing by a sight and taste of the pleasures and delicacies set ready for all that travel this road of heavenly Meditation We must look it be a right work how short soever that it be the use of our spiritual Archery from a right principle to take a true aim at the mark flye round up to it by acting spiritual skill and strength some wisdom and warmth as the nature of the work will admit That it be not a flash a fit of phansie a meer custom which calls on us and carries us but a spark of the holy heart-fire within flying up to Heaven 3. This being a short visit made to Heaven a journey of less charge and labour and of a quick dispatch It therefore should be done the oftner and with greater frequencies From friends that are near we expect more frequent visits Common and easie things we look to be done more constantly to us What thing in the world is so cheap as a thought What is so short and of so quick a dispatch A thought-visit is the easiest visit God expects of us it should be frequent very oft and reason urges to a greater frequency for making up that which this sort of Meditation must want of the more set and solemn As they say of gold that it is found either in the Oar mixt or in the lump and small pieces Pipins as they call them but purer or else in sand and small dust very pure and good But the small golden sands when they are many gathered and put together may make so large quantities for use as that is found in the Oar or lump and greater pieces Many golden sands of precious ejaculations will amount to much and help to make a Christian rich at last Though great gains in trade fill the purse sooner when ordinary yet light gains when thick will make a heavy purse also at last I will add no more Directions for younger Christians in their Meditations having already exceeded Now we must come to Directions for others CHAP. XVII Directions for more grown and elder Christians 1. YOu must daily contend to better establishment and confirmation in this way and work of Meditation Psal 119.15 I will meditate in thy precepts and vers 18. I will meditate c. David had formerly meditated accustomed himself to this rare practice was not now to begin to resolve or do Therefore his meaning must be a fixing his resolution and purpose stronger The Apostle Paul often for the establishment of those he wrote unto prays earnestly 2 Thes 2.17 Stablish you in every good word and work in every duty of godliness The best
Christians and most establisht in their way have always need of more establishing as to their graces and frame of heart so to their duties and whole course of godliness There must be an earnest care and striving as you have begun and practised so to be stablished Not to begin and then draw back nor yield to do with a weakness weariness and unevenness but here to say as David oft O God my heart is fixed I will meditate Meditation is neavenly but hard in it self comes off sometimes harder The best heart is a slippery piece that sometimes not only flags and falls low but sometimes also fails the purpose within and the practice without may have their stops and faltrings The Watch may want a winding up There may be failure in the practice from a failing in the purpose a fit of dying away may come upon thee if there be not a constant care of stability A good mans heart must be like Solomons Temple with the two Pillars set up in it Jacin and Booz establishment and strength 2. As thou must endeavour establishment so strive for improvement Growth is necessary both in Graces and Duties as the Scripture shews 1. There must be care to improve in the Art and skill of holy Meditation To understand thy way better Prov. 14.8 The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way not only with an initial understanding it but a progressive understanding of it Not only to know in the same degree and to be always alike at the last as at the first but to understand far better As the wise Artificer that contents not himself with the same measure of skill in his way but to be a better Artist proceed to a perfection If a Christian be trading for Heaven in good earnest he will strive every way to excel Not like a Bungler that does in a poor pitiful manner just to live and no more but as an Artist and man of ingenuity to live plentifully I must study how to study better to comprehend the whole wisdom of my way to live more fruitfully to others serviceably to God comfortably to my own bosom Not to only just so much skill as will serve to get creeping but for flying to Heaven 2. To learn how to kindle a fire in my heart and do my work warmer Strive to more affectionate Meditation To have things have a quicker passage from the head to the heart That the spiritual things meditated on come sooner to my heart kindle it quickly and make me all on fire Bom. 12.11 Fervent in spirit serving the Lord. It is not to be taken only for real fervency but growth He would not have them no warmer and fervent at last than at first So Meditation should heap hotter coals upon thee make thy fire a flame This by Meditations applying warmer and more heart quickning reasons and arguments We call motives reasons for doing a thing a duty of Religion Incentives Meditation should strike fire and blow it up into a flame Strive to have Meditation more heart-warming not only to have it more notional but cordial not only a shining but a burning light as it was said of John Baptist That 's Meditation to purpose when the head moves the heart brings in light and heat also The Moon-light is pleasant but the Suns is best because chiefly it is with vivifical heat it is the worlds warmer Therefore see search in Meditation for such things and manage them in such a manner as may warm thee at the heart most make thee daily warmer 1. Warmer in that grand affection that strong spring of spiritual operation Love love to the work of Meditation love to heavenly and spiritual things the lovely beauteous and glorious things which Meditation brings and sets before thee to highly treat and entertain thee Principally most inflamed love to the highest beauty and glory for whom most peculiarly that best affection the best piece of thy heart was made the most blessed God Father Son and Holy Spirit 2. Warmer in ardency of desire to keep in and improve in this heavenly way of Meditation Psal 119.20 My soul breaketh for the desire it hath to thy judgments which soul-breaking was for looking into them by reading reading for meditating to present and supply new heavenly matter that he might exercise himself there by Meditation know Gods will and be better affected more resolved and enlarged That desire so earnest was greatly among others to be at that his rare mind-exercise of Meditation the best way of thinking that possibly can be none like this this had this holy mans chief heart-workings nothing had that share of constant seriousness here were his longings to breathe his soul up this hill he grudg'd the time that gave stop or interruptions to this best thought-work 3. Warmer should Meditation be as to delight and complacency to not only burn and be fervent in love and desire but to flame up in joy and delight more generally men like a fire best when it flames The holy Prophet Psal 119.47 I will delight my self in thy Commandments Meditation in the word is the holy hearts walk of pleasure a broad large walk Psal 119.96 Thy Commandment is exceeding broad so our new Translation exceeding large so the old We so far live a duty as we act delight When David saith he will delight he meant not the mixture of a meer drop or smallest spark of delight should be stirred up but a great yea growing delight Delight in Meditation should not only live and have a being some moving but should thrive and grow As every Ordinance should prove a still greater pleasure So Meditation should prove a more refreshing soul-eye walk an ascent from delight to delight to higher delight till we come to the top in ravishments and highest attending admirations CHAP. XVIII Directions more particular 1. WHatever thou meditatest upon let it not be only an intuition or dying a thing or a meer recognition or remembrance Or if divers things come before thee let not thy work be a bare enumeration or as it were a telling them over to be able to say I have thought of such and such things in particular but let it be a review with something that new is with some new considerations as thou art able Something fresh which may bring the better savouriness and sweeter relish that may set a better edge and quicken things more upon thee Meditation though it be not for feeding phansie with curiosities yet should be so ordered as to season and sweeten suit and prepare things to more spiritual delight and to a larger perceiving of that extensive and abounding savouriness and excellency in holy things Every Meditation should endeavour a more exquisite preparation better still reducing things that we ponder both to spiritual advantages with spiritual pleasure accompanying To do this most easily and effectually our way is to improve and quicken Meditation by our gathering up the graciously afforded varieties of Scripture-passages
relating to those things Meditation is to be upon gather the varieties of Scripture-passages about that particular subject you mean to meditate on The Scripture in the diversities of passages about particular subjects is like a rich banquet where are set before thee great varieties of rarities There are all manner of subjects All the credenda and facienda all things to be believed and practised in order to salvation There are great varieties of heavenly Truths for knowledge and wisdom and right believing Great varieties of Precepts Rules and Directions for due practice Many Promises and many Threatnings to back the Precepts sundry Patterns and Precedents to assist them and make them and thereby the Precepts more effectual on us Oft in Scripture the same things are expressed in a various manner in a different a new mode and fashion in new trimmings as it were and new dressings to both edifie and also please us Variety in expression carries oft variety of Notion holds forth something more to be learnt and affords something that may gratifie our spirits as to pleasure and delight So the lame thing hath it may be varieties of Arguments and Reasons for conviction and demonstration Inducements to perswade and lead Arguments and Inducements with the highest Art of Reasoning with the best improvement of Rhetorick and Perswasion Thus if thou meanest to meditate upon God or Jesus Christ or the Holy Spirit upon Faith or Love or any Grace upon any duty any sin any affliction Thy way is to see what the Scripture hath and holds forth in the several passages of it as concerning Faith of the Nature of it of the effects and properties of it priviledges coming by it reasons to perswade to believe to live by Faith in all conditions how great variety of expressions have you for all things relating to Faith so of other particular subjects By this variety taking up one expression after another at such times as you can best how may thy Meditation be carried on with great delight and to great advantage This is one excellent way to order and improve thy Meditation take varieties of Scripture-passages about any particular subject thou wilt meditate on 1. For Scripture expression hath a bottom and foundation of sure and infallible truth which comes from God that cannot lye your Meditation goes on sure ground 2. Scripture-expressions are suited for us by the so infinite wisdom of a God who knows how best to declare his own mind and how best to convey and teach it to our capacity and condition None can speak so to me as God in the Scripture doth 3. Yea Scripture-expressions are sanctified by God to enable us to sanctifie him in this and all other duties This therefore is our best way to feed on these rarities this rich banquet of so great varieties when we are to meditate Hereby we may ever have matter abundantly to meditate never be to seek and for the manner perform it with great delight and pleasure which will otherwise be a weariness This certainly was the way of the highest Artists in Meditation David and other holy persons upon Record in Scripture They could not but see the same things to be repeated yet oft in a various way of expression therefore must conclude that the holy Inditer had his wise intendment in so various expressions Therefore their godly wisdom must teach them when they meditated to go in that way the Spirits condescending intent led them So let it be thy Rule for thy help for to make thy Meditation pleasurable and profitable together I will mention some Instances The Grace of Faith is thus variously exprest By trusting in God Prov. 3.5 Trust in the Lord with all thy heart Isa 26.4 Trust in the Lord Jehovah and in other places Psal 37.5 By rowling our way on God By taking hold of Gods strength Isa 27.5 and divers others In reference to Christ by seeing the Son Joh. 6.40 Coming to Christ Matth. 11.28 And believing on and in Christ often Love of God Deut. 30.6 Love thy God with all thy heart and with all thy soul Deut. 6.5 Love thy God with all thy heart and soul and a third is added With all thy might Mark 12.10 Christ adds to the three former With all thy mind Certainly these varyings had their intent were that when we meditate of these or other graces we should furnish our Meditation and improve by them Thus things cited in Deuteronomy are variously exprest from those very passages and particulars in the former Books So the Chronicles express differently things in the Kings and the Four Evangelists vary the expressions of the same things both the matters historical and doctrinal and all the Scripture over this is practised Variety of expression calls for observation and holds forth oft some peculiar Notion and Instruction Let this therefore be thy Rule in Meditation 2. Be sure frequently and earnestly to meditate both of thy supreme and chief end and of the proper and proportionate means thereto conducing But do daily something more to purpose in that great Meditation of the supreme end as wisdom teaches and being that in its nature which deserves the highest and first things that also which gives Rules to all thy other actings and endeavours that glorifying exalting God above all Do very much in collecting together spreading before thee well considering acting the most vigorous and intense Meditation of all such things which may reduce thee to higher apprehensions warmer affections firmer resolutions and more earnest and even contendings for glorifying him that is God and there is none beside him for him that only gave thee thy all body soul life and only preserves thy all That gave his only Son to death to save thy souls life His Spirit to draw thee to Christ or thou hadst never come To dwell and work in thee and do all for thee as to applying Christ and all fellowship in Christ and with him and hath so infinitely obliged thee Therefore how sinful how unworthy to not honour and glorifie him how unkindly he takes it and how it grieves him Let Meditation gather up and indusstriously strive to improve all it possibly can Ah! how that holy Apostle was looking and striving this way how near was this glorifying God to his heart how much in his eye and endeavour how oft is he speaking of it How earnestly doth he provoke all he had to do with to it 1 Cor. 10.31 Whatsoever ye do if eat or drink do all to the glory of God acting all to it must imply an always minding of it 3. Lay sound stress likewise in Meditation as to that thy next chief end self-saving to have more serious thoughts and industrious pressings on hard to work it out and make thy calling and election sure To work it out against all difficulties and oppositions look more earnestly up to Heaven and into Heaven And it is good when thou thinkest of Heaven be then so bold with thy self
The true and sound cure must be well studied Although such as are Christs have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts Gal. 5.24 Quoad animi propositum cordis purificati principium as to the inward living principle and the real heart-purpose initially and gradually in little degree for that which is in no degree begun is not a grain of mustard is nothing at all Though those that are in Christ have crucified as we said their carnal affections in some degree Coming in of Christ and Grace into the heart gives the carnal affections a deadly dash like the taking of some incurable poyson given to kill gradually The first taking gives the advantage for deaths seizing yet this is not enough as experience sadly shews there must be a studying and great pondering how to rule the daily discovered unruliness of the affections and how to cure them which is not the Philosophers way nor the wise moral mans way which is to curb and moderate them but the Scriptures directed and commanded way and therefore the Christians way that he must use and that is to crucifie and mortifie them Col. 3.5 Mortifie your affections that are on the earth The Art and sure way for carnal affections as so and then to study to order these affections which are noble natural plants and dispositions of heart that they may be acted by graces principle on and for things heavenly with a real warmth and a growing fervency 3. Strongly thou must resolve and most exquisitely endeavour to study and meditate for the government of thy will The will in its nature and rank is a most noble faculty the Empress of the soul the spring of action the weight and biass for motion the door that opens and admits in chusing or shuts out in refusing that which sets up the mark and aim every end and interest and likewise makes choice or rejections of the means to the end In its corrupt and carnal state it is the wickedest piece in every person it sets up the greatest Idol in the world Self in the Throne above God Nothing in Scripture hath so great frequent and high complaints and charges brought in by God against it that which is the most hellish and devilish piece in its repugnancy contrariety stoutness and stubbornness against God and whatever is holy and the hellish hold-fast of evil chiefly when it receives the grain-colour and scarlet-tincture of habit by customary sinning In hearts changed by grace it is in a great measure still carnal and accordingly in part hath all the forementioned wickedness and is ready to act it if it be not the better watcht and ordered continually Being then in the best men so evil it needs the best study the most serious and constant Meditation to find the best way for it to rule this unruly will 1. Especially as to base self-aims in which it is the most slippery and soonest swayed hastily burried and entangled 2. And as to the cursed contrariety and hellishness against the Law will ways of God and God himself The Art of ruling this Ruler in chief is well worth thy chiefest Meditation the wretchedness of it will disquiet the pliantness and obedience holiness and purity of its aims choices and refusals will comfort most as carrying highest evidences of thy sincerity 4. Meditation hath great need to act its part industriously and accurately as to know how to govern the tongue that rare instrument called by David Psal 188.1 his glory But by sin called by the Apostle Jam. 3.8 An unruly member full of deadly poyson that sets on fire the course of nature is set on fire of Hell vers 6. David prays for a watch before his mouth Psal 39.1 I said I will take heed that I sin not with my tongue and keeping his mouth with a bridle To refrain evil words requires care to refrain vain and idle words requires a curiosity and exactness Study this Art not as Pythagoras the Philosophers Scholars that had their quinquennium silentium first spent five years in his School to learn silence but all a mans life is too little But there 's more to be learnt than just silence and that is savouriness of speaking Prov. 10.20 The tongue of the just is as choice silver the heart of the wicked is little worth then and therefore the tongue of the wicked is little worth because the heart out of whose abundance the mouth speaketh is little worth Study the Art of savoury speaking by getting three things 1. A good treasure in thy heart 2. A wisdom to discern times of speaking 3. A true godly humble boldness to speak and not be ashamed Psal 119.46 I will speak of thy testimonies before Kings and will not be ashamed Meditate for the true Scripture-way for speaking 5. Meditate how as to fill up with heart-beauties of graces within knowledge wisdom holiness and every particular grace so to have a fruitful shining exemplary conversation suitable to thy rank and station in Christianity How to walk worthy of the Lord to all well-pleasing Col. 1.11 To all fruitfulness in every good work in all conditions and in all relative duties as husband or wife parent or child master or servant and the rest It is hard to be good indeed harder to be growing better hard to become and suit a change in condition never under before hard to come up to relative duties and be Christian in them and so good as a well-grown Christian should be Some are very heedless here they too little mind a proportionate growth herein as in other parts of godliness but this must be minded Meditate universal growing how to honour thy longer standing in godliness by shooting up and spreading out more 6. Lastly Make it thy great study how to have suitably to thy rank in godliness a richer treasury and stock of experiences useful and rare experiences for thy own and others advantage make Meditation a great observer a diligent gatherer a careful layer up of experiences choice and precious to have a large treasury to bring out of it new and old CHAP. XXI Directions to Christians of the uppermost Rank 3. FOr such as are Christians of the highest form in Christs School such the Apostle in this 1 Joh. 2.13 calls Fathers not for their long living here or being long Christians visible Members of the Church as for great growth and improvement in real godliness much Knowledge Wisdom Experience Faith Love and Eminencies of Christianity their Meditation like the highest Artists must be acted higher 1. The Meditation of such as are fathers should carry higher in all the ways and concerning all the several points and particulars formerly exprest and relating to all persons in general in all the sorts of Meditation 1. In the daily Meditation to be more eminently exercised and constant in drawing out a thread of far exacter evenness and equality without such frequent breakings off and inconstancies that younger Christians more unprincipled and