Souldiers Generals and Captains 5 4. Learned Men. Ib. 5. Women Ib. There be two sorts of Meditation of heavenly things 1. Sudden short occasional 6 2. Solemn set deliberate Ibid. 1. Of Occasional Meditation three Things viz. the Excellency Examples and Practise Ibid. 1. The Excellency of occasional extemporary sudden and ejaculatory Meditation from Scripture and humane Testimony 7 8 2. The Examples from Scripture and humane Testimony 9 3. Motives to perswade to the Practise of it viz. 13 1. It may be performed at all times Ibid. 2. Practic'd in all places and companies 14 3 It is easie to spiritualized ones Ibid. 4. 'T is the excellency of a Christian to spiritualize natural things herein exceeding a Bruit 15 All wicked men Ibid. 5. 'T is the greatest affront we can give to God not to make a spiritual use of his creatures 17 6. 'T is a Soul-destroying sin not to observe the Works of God and make a good use of them 18 II. Of Solemn Meditation the Nature and Necessity 22 1. The Nature of solemn Meditation in two particulars 23 1. 'T is a dwelling and abiding upon things that are Holy being typified two ways By the Beast That did chew the cud 24 That had eyes within and without 25 2. 'T is an act of the heart as well as the head Ib. It must enter into the door of the understanding heart and conversation 28 2. The Necessity of it evinc'd from the Mischiefs of neglecting this Duty 29 Advantage of practising this Duty 29 1. The mischiefs and inconveniencies of neglecting this duty It is the cause of sin and punishment 30 1. The want of practising this Duty causeth sin As particularly Ibid. 1. 'T is the reason of hard-heartedness Ibid. 2. Unprofitableness of hearing Sermons 31 3. Not relishing of sweetest promises 33 4. No impression from threatnings 34 5. No bettering by mercies Ibid. 6. No amending by afflictions 36 7. No heart softning by Providences Ib. 8. Reason of distrustfulness of Gods Providence 37 9. Censoriousness of others not of our selves Ibid. 10. Offering the sacrifices of fools in worship 38 2. The want of practising this duty causeth punishment 40 2. The advantages and benefits by a conscientious practise of this duty in begetting and increasing of grace and arming against temptations 42 1. 'T is a mighty help to the begetting and working of grace in 9 particulars Ibid. 1. To work repentance and reformation of life 43. to 55. 2. A love to God 43. to 55. 3. A fear of God 43. to 55. 4. A love to Jesus Christ. 43. to 55. 5. Faith and trust in God 43. to 55. 1. In his Providence in all outward streights 2. Promises in all spiritual troubles 6. A contempt of the world and worldly things 43. to 55. 7. Thankfulness for mercies and blessings 43. to 55. 8. A Preference of Gods house to our own 43. to 55. 9. A Keeping of all Gods Commandments 43. to 55. 2. 'T is helpful to preserve and increase grace 55 3. 'T is helpful to arm and defend against all the temptations of the Devil 56 The Application of this Doctrine concerning this necessary duty of Meditation may be for 1. The Reproof of those Christians that are utterly unaccustomed to and unacquainted with this duty and these are of four sorts viz. 1. The ignorant Christian that knows not how to set about the work 58. 2. Forgetful Christian that remembers not God 61 3. Rash-headed Christian that acts without consideration where are four evils viz. 63 1. Such is a spiritual fool in offering sacrifices to God 64 2 Often speaks that he 'l wish he had not 65 3. Quickly runs into error and by-paths 66 4 Will never persevere and hold out to the end 67 4. A slight-headed Christian that cannot dwell long upon any thing which argues a slight Christian. 68 Q. Are then all who have slight heads Hypocrites Ibid. A. There is a double slightness of head viz. 69 1. That which is a natural disease when a child of God of a weak head cannot think long of any thing at all Ibid. 2. That which is sinful when a man can be serious and dwell long upon the things of the world not on the things of heaven this is reprov'd Ibid. 2. The Reproof of those who meditate upon things that are evil and wicked 70 1. Such as design and do evil 2. Such as delight in the evil they have done 71 3. An Exhortation to all to accustom themselves to the duty of meditation viz. To 1. Ministers 2. Nobles 3. Souldiers 4. Young Gentlemen 5. Merchants 6. Women In speaking to this Exhortation six particulars proposed viz. 1. Place 2. Time 3. Properties 4. Companions 5. Materials 6. Helps 72 73 74 1. Concerning the Place to chuse one convenient which is freest from distractions 76 2. Time which proves seasonable in due circumstances Here four Rules are suggested 81 1. It behoves all not hindred to endeavour the setting apart of some time every day morning afternoon or night 82 2. To set a sufficient proportion of time a-part every day 84 3. The sabbath-Sabbath-day especially all should busie themselves in this duty 86 4. A sacrament-Sacrament-day more especially 87 Here 12 Things suggested as instances of Sacramental Meditation viz. 88 1. The great and wonderful love of God the Father in the giving of Christ. Ibid. 2. Love of Christ in giving himself 89 3. Hainousness of sin 90 4. Excellency of the Sacramental feast Ibid. 5. Our own unworthiness 91 6. Our spiritual wants and necessities Ibid. 7. The cursed condition of an unworthy receiver Ib. 8. The happy condition of those that come worthily 92 9. The Sacramental Elements of Bread and Wine Ib. 10. The Sacramental Actions 93 11. Sacramental Promises Ib. 12. What retribution to make to Christ. 94 3. Properties ingredients and qualities of Meditation viz. 1. Divine Meditation must be often Because 96 1. We shall know more of the best things 97 2. Have more near and intimate acquaintance with them 99 3. Heavenly Duties will become more easie to us 2. It must be solemn and serious not only formal 101 102 3. Not only notional and speculative but practical and reflective It must be in the understanding heart and affections yea and the conversation 105 4. It must be particular and applicative 108 5. It must be calm and quiet 110 6. It must be persevering 112 There be four Arguments to persevere Viz. From the 1. Necessity 2. Excellency of it 113 3. Mischiefs by not practising of it Ibid. 4. Easiness attainable by persevering in it 116 4. Companions of Meditation which are two 117 1. Praying must be joined with Meditation ibid. 2. Reading will do well to accompany in weak Christians with two Cautions viz. 118 1. Not to read much lest it hinder 120 2. Not to read at the Sacrament ibid. 5. Materials of Meditation 121 The four last things Death Iudgment Heaven Hell 1. Death 1. The certainty 2.
know thy interest in them thou wouldest often think of them or if thou didst love them thou wouldest often think of them or if thou hadst a Heavenly heart thou wouldest often think of them Oh therefore go to Christ and whatsoever you ask in the name of Christ it shall be given unto you 2. I am to set down Rules for the right ordering the materials the subjects that we are to meditate upon And here I shall give you in these four Rules I. Be sure that in the beginning till you come to be acquainted with this duty you pick out easie subjects to meditate upon there are some subjects that are very abstruse and sublime and difficult it is a hard matter for a weak Christian to spend an hour in the meditation of the ineffable and great mystery of the Trinity or in the meditation of the Hypostatical Vnion of the two Natures of Christ in one Person or in the meditation of the Mystical Union between Christ and a Christian. And therefore my advice is that in the beginning of the practice of this rare duty you would pick out easie subjects to meditate upon As for example I should think that it were an easie thing to spend an hour in meditating upon the Attributes of God to meditate of Gods Omnipotence and Gods Omniscience and Gods Omnipresence and the All-sufficiency of God the Everlastingness of God the Eternity of God the Perfections that are in God and so to meditate upon the works of God the work of Creation to meditate what God made the first second third fourth fifth sixth day to meditate on the goodness and mercy of God in creating the great fabrick of Heaven and Earth and to meditate of the work of Redemption to meditate of Iesus Christ of the Divine and humane nature of Christ. I should conceive it were an easie thing especially to you that love Christ to spend a great deal of time in meditation of the love of God in sending Christ to become man and of the love of Christ the mysery of love the miracle of love in God becoming man and to meditate of the life of Christ and the death of Christ what Christ suffered in the Garden when he sweat drops of blood and what he suffered upon the Cross when he cried out My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Of the love of Christ that died for us and of the persons for whom Christ died for us when we were sinners and of the patience and humility of Christ whilst he was dying for us and to meditate of the Resurrection of Christ the Ascension of Christ and the Offices of Christ the Kingly Priestly and Prophetical Office and to meditate of our interest in Christ and how we should do to walk worthy of Christ. I conceive there are few that truly fear God that are so little furnished with spiritual knowledg but are able to spend an hour in meditating upon these things I might add another meditation and that is the meditation of Heaven who is there that hath any thing of Heaven in him that cannot spend an hour in meditating 1. Of the happiness of Heaven in general It is a place where we shall have such joys that eye never saw nor ear heard nor ever entred into the heart of man to conceive it is a place where we shall be crowned with three Crowns a Crown of Life a Crown of Glory a Crown of Righteousness It is an inheritance that hath three Properties which any understanding Christian may spend many years in thinking of An inheritance immortal undefiled and that never fadeth away 2. To meditate of the happiness of Heaven in particular as for example who is there of such a low form of grace that cannot spend time to meditate of the Beatifical Vision what a happiness it will be in Heaven to see God face to face for God is an universal Good all good is in God God is all happiness and therefore he that is admitted to see God sees all happiness in God And then to meditate of the sight of Christ what a rare thing will it be for a poor soul to live for ever in Heaven with Jesus Christ and to behold his face to be with the Lord Christ And then to meditate of the company that we shall have in Heaven to be present with Angels and Archangels with all the Patriarchs and with all the holy men of God that ever have been And then to meditate of the place it self Heaven is the Paradise of God it is the Throne of God it is the first building the highest building the largest building the best building of the Creation of God And then to meditate of the perpetuity of those joys who cannot spend a little time in meditating of the eternity of the joys of Heaven not only the perfection but the perpetuity of them and then to meditate of thy interest in these joys whether thou be'st a person qualified to go to Heaven and then to meditate how thou maist do to get to be qualified to go to that holy place in which no unclean person shall ever enter That is the first Rule 2. I would have you use variety in your Meditation I would not have you always dwell upon one subject the strongest stomack will loath to eat always of one dish and therefore I gave you in several particulars to meditate upon I gave you a large field to walk in and I did this the rather that so you might have matter enough you might not be drawn dry for want of subjects that you might sometimes pick one flower and then another flower and then another flower Variety will much delight a Christian. And truly I would fain have this duty not be a burden to any but a delight to all Sometimes I would have you meditate of the vanity of the world and sometimes of death of the certainty and uncertainty of death and how to be fit for death Sometimes I would have you meditate of the day of Judgment sometimes of Hell sometimes of Heaven sometimes of the sinfulness of sin sometimes of the love of Christ. So I would have you walk in the garden of Divine Meditation from flower to flower that you may take the more delight and content in it The third Rule is this Be sure to pick out such subjects to meditate upon especially which do most of all work compunction in the heart that do most of all stir up holiness and provoke you to godliness and piety Of this kind is the meditation of the Incarnation of Christ the Meditation of the Life and Death and Resurrection and Ascension of Christ. It is a meditation if the Lord bless it that will mightily provoke you to holiness and to piety and to thankfulness so the meditation of death is a sin-mortifying meditation and so the meditation of Heaven and the day of Judgment these are soul-sanctifying meditations So likewise the meditation of the vanity of the
case is thy soul now that is on the Sea of this world and then to go to the Ensuring-office you know you have your Ensuring-offices wherein you ensure your Ships at Sea to get your souls ensured by reconciliation with God and by true faith manifested by holiness and righteousness to get your souls assured that they may come safe to the haven of Happiness In a clear bright frosty Winter-night when thou goest out and beholdest the bespangled heaven multitude of bright Stars what a rare thing were it to meditate This glorious bespangled Firmament is but the stable as it were but the out-houses of that Heaven where I am to go it is but the outward Court but the Wash-house as I may say and if the Stable and Out-houses be so glorious Oh what is the inward palace above the spangled Heavens is my Fathers house where I hope to live for ever with God and there my Christ is now interceding for me and by the power of his Spirit shall I be brought one day to that house Oh when will that time come when will my soul mount thorough these Heavens into the heaven of Heavens Now is not this comely for a Christian will not this heavenlize you and spiritualize you And then when you go to bed at night to remember I have one day more to answer for to remember there will a last night come after which there will be no day but the Resurrection of all Remember thy last night thy concluding night the end of thy life But I have been over-long in this a great deal more than I thought but I do it because here I shall put an end to this discourse of occasional meditation There is a second sort of Meditation and that is that that I call set solemn and deliberate when a man sets apart an hour a day it may be sets a part some time and goes into a private Closet or a private Walk and there doth solemnly and deliberately meditate of the things of Heaven Now concerning this meditation I shall handle by Gods assistance these two Particulars 1. I will shew you the nature of it 2. I will shew you the necessity of it 1. The nature of this duty what this meditation is that I would press you to I will describe it in two Particulars 1. This holy meditation is a dwelling and abiding upon things that are holy it is not only a knowing of God and a knowing of Christ but it is a dwelling upon the things we know as the Bee that dwells and abides upon the flower to suck out all the sweetness that is in the flower so to meditate upon God and Christ and the Sacrament it is to dwell upon God and the Sacrament to suck out all the sweetness we can in the things we meditate upon As we read of Anna Luk. 2. 37. She continued in the Temple praying and fasting day and night To meditate is to continue and fix our selves and our hearts upon the things we know this meditation in Scripture is called a holy musing Psal. 39. 3. My heart was hot within me while I was musing to meditate is to muse or else it is to commune with our own hearts Psal. 4. Stand in awe and sin not commune with your own heart upon your bed and be still It is a communing a consulting with our own hearts or if you will it is a bethinking our selves so it is expressed 1 King 8. 47. If they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they were carried captive and repent The Hebrew word is if they shall bring back to their hearts if they shall reflect upon themselves for meditation is a reflecting act of the soul whereby the soul is carried back to it self and considers all the things that it knows Meditation is an inward act of the soul a spiritual act whereby the soul doth recoil upon it self and looks back upon it self and considers all the things that concern its everlasting happiness and if I be not mistaken it is rarely typified under the Law two manner of ways 1. By those beasts that did chew the cud you shall read Lev. 11. of the clean beasts and the unclean beasts now the clean beasts were such as did chew the cud of those they were to eat now the unclean beasts were those that did not chew the cud a meditating Christian is one that chews the cud that chews on the Truths of Jesus Christ that doth not only hear good things but when he hath heard them chews them over ruminates upon them that so they may be fitter for digestion and concoction and spiritual improvement an unclean Christian is one that doth not chew the cud that doth not ruminate and ponder and bethink himself of the things of Heaven 2. Another type of this rare grace of Meditation is that of the Beasts Ezek. 1. that Ezekiel saw that had eyes within and without Vers. 18. their wings were full of eyes round about them And so likewise the Beasts Rev 4. 6. Round about the Throne were four beasts full of eyes before and behind A notable and a rare type of Meditation for meditation is nothing else but a looking thoroughly into the things of God a looking before and behind as I may so speak a meditating Christian is a man full of eyes that doth not only know God but sees much of God There is another metaphor to express it Psal. 119 59. I thought on my ways and turned my feet unto thy testimonies The word in the Hebrew is taken from Chapmen that when they buy a commodity they turn it over and over and over again they look all about it into every part of it Meditation is a thorow contemplation and a thorow consideration of the things of God a meditating Christian is full of eyes full of heavenly understanding 2. It is an act of the heart as well as of the head it is not only a speculative knowledg of things Divine but a practical knowledg it is not only an act of the intellect and understanding but of the will and affections it is an affective grace as well as an intellective grace and therefore it is said of the Blessed Virgin Mary She pondered all these sayings in her heart she did not only think of them with her head but she pondered on them with her heart and you shall read Deut. 4. 39. Know therefore this day and consider it in thy heart A true meditation is when a man doth so meditate of Christ as to get his heart inflamed with the love of Christ so meditate of the Truths of God as to be transformed into them and so meditate of sin as to get his heart to hate sin when it is such a musing of God as kindles a fire in the whole soul as David doth express it Psal. 39. 3. While I was musing the fire burnt When a man doth so contemplate on God that his heart is all on fire with the love of God
comforteth you who art thou that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die and the son of man that shall be made as grass and forgettest the Lord thy maker that hath stretched forth the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth As if he should say If thou didst remember and think on the Lord thy God who made the Heavens and the Earth and hath all things in his hand Thou wouldest not fear a man that shall die c. Jer. 10. 6 7. first the Prophet breaks out into an admiration of God Forasmuch as there is none like unto thee O Lord thou art great and thy name is great in might who would not fear thee O King of Nations for to thee doth it appertain forasmuch as among all the wise men of the Nations and in all their Kingdoms there is none like unto thee The meditation of God stirs up the Prophet to fear God Ier. 5. 22. Fear ye not me saith the Lord will you not tremble at my presence which hath placed the sand for the bound of the sea by a perpetual decree that it cannot pass though the waves thereof toss themselves yet can they not prevail though they roar yet cannot they pass over it Did we meditate much upon the power of God we would fear him and stand in awe of him 4. This Divine meditation is a mighty help to beget in us a love to Iesus Christ for Jesus Christ is a fountain sealed a spring shut up a garden inclosed Now you know no man is the better for a book sealed up or a treasure lockt up to a careless Christian Christ is a fountain sealed a treasure lockt up but meditation is the key that unlocks the treasury of all the Excellencies of Christ and opens the book to let us read all the Excellencies that are in Christ. Meditation doth as it were open the fountain and did we study what Christ is that he is the choicest of ten thousand altogether excellent the brightness of his Fathers glory and the express image of his Person and did we study the love of Christ to poor sinners the height the depth the length the breadth of the love of God toward us did we study how Christ became poor to make us rich how he became a curse to free us from the curse how he was made sin that we might be made the righteousness of God thorough him did we bury our selves in this meditation did you take half an hour in a day to meditate on the Excellency of Christ did you when you walk in the fields meditate on the love of Christ I am confident it would beget in you a love to Christ. 5. Divine meditation is a mighty help to inable us to believe and trust in God To trust 1. In his Providence in all outward streights 2. In his Promises in all spiritual troubles 1. It will help you to trust in his Providence when you are in any streights when all creature-helps fail and you are ready to sink then meditation will raise your faith and help you to trust in Gods Providence for outward provision Mat. 6. 25 c. I say unto you saith Christ take no thought for your life what you shall eat or what ye shall drink nor yet for your body what you shall put on be not solicitous for your outward provision But how doth Christ argue what way should we take that we may not distrust God saith he Meditate upon the fowls of the air behold the fowls of the air for they sow not v. 28. Why take you thought for raiment consider the lillies of the field how they grow they toil not neither do they spin and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these The meditation of the lillies and the fowls of the air is a means to help us to trust in the Lord in the day of our streights 2. It will enable you to relye upon the promises for the good of your souls Did you when you read the promises of the Bible chew them how sweet would they be the reason why the Promises are not sweet to you is because you read them but you do not chew them by meditating upon them if you did meditate upon them they would be sweeter than the honey and the honey-comb especially if you did join application with meditation Abraham was the Father of the Faithful and he was strong in faith and what made him strong in faith because he considered not his own body now dead neither the deadness of Sarah's womb but he considered the promise of God Rom. 4. 19. And the reason why the Saints of God are so void of comfort and hang down their heads and walk so disconsolately is because they consider the deadness of their own souls they consider their imperfections but they do not meditate upon the promises the freeness and the riches of them Mat. 16. 8. Which when Iesus perceived he said to them Oh ye of little faith why reason ye among your selves because you have brought no bread Here Christ reproves them for want of faith but how came they to want faith Do you not understand neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets ye took up and do ye not remember the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many baskets you took up As if Christ should have said If you had meditated on my former miracles you would never have doubted this miracle but because you do not remember what I have formerly done therefore it is that you are so full of unbelief Now the way to fill your souls with comfort is to meditate upon the Promises of God 6. Divine meditation is a mighty help to beget in us a contempt of the world and all worldly things for the world is like unto gilded copper it is an easie matter for a man to mistake gilded copper for true gold unless he considers what he takes for if a man take gold without consideration he may quickly be cozened there is a glittering excellency in the world the wealth and riches of it are glorious things to a carnal eye but meditation of the world will wash away all the paint that is upon the world the studying the vanity of the world the nothingness of all earthly things the unsatisfiableness of them and the perishing nature of them this will take away the glittering excellency that seems to be in the world and certainly you would never be so covetous and so worldly and dote so much upon the world did you meditate upon the vanity of it as you should do this is the course Solomon takes the book of Eccles is called The Book of the Preacher and the subject of it is to wean us from the love of the world But what course doth Solomon take Eccles. 1. 3. I gave my heart to seek and search out by wisdom concerning all things done under
a man that is ambitious you need not perswade him to think of honour and preferment but the love that he hath to preferment will force him to think of it So did you love God Christ Heavenly things you would be much in the meditation of them And the reason why you meditate no more of them is because you love them no more Psal. 119. 97. Oh how do I love thy law what then it is my meditation all the day What made David meditate all the day upon the Law of God because he loved it Psal. 1. 7. But his delight is in the Law of the Lord and in his Law doth he meditate day and night A man that is deep in love with a woman you need not bid him think of that woman Where the love is there the soul is Oh did you delight in the things of Heaven I need not lay down rules to perswade you to the practise of it the very love would be a loadstone love is a loadstone of Meditation and he that loves good things will think of them Cogitatione crebra cogitatione longa cogitatione profunda that is very often very long and very deep a man that is deep in love is deep in meditation of the party he loves The seventh Rule Labour to get an interest in Heavenly things labour by Scripture-evidences to make out thy interest in Heavenly things what comfort can that man have of meditating of Heaven that doth not know he hath a right to Heaven what comfort can that man have of meditating of Christ that doth not know that Christ is his what comfort can that man have in meditation of God that looks upon God as his enemy It is interest that will facilitate Divine Meditation a man that hath an interest in an inheritance will often think of it if he hath a thousand pound a year that is his own he is often thinking how to improve it and enjoy it but if he hath no title or right to it alas he will not think of it what doth he care for it It is your interest in the things of Heaven that will raise your meditation of them and as long as you have no assurance of a title to Heaven you will never heartily meditate of it you may know it by rote and by form but you will never heartily meditate of it till you know it to be your inheritance and you will never heartily meditate of the Promises till you know you have a title to them that they are Promises made to you The eighth Rule is this Labour to get a heart disengaged and disintangled from the world a man that is dead and buried in the world it is in vain to perswade him to go up the mount of Meditation a bird that is in a Lime-twig it is in vain to bid that bird fly alas poor bird she is intangled in the Lime-twig a man that is intangled in the lime-twigs of the world it is in vain to bid this man mount up in Meditation The love of the world is like the plague of flies that Pharoah had in Egypt he could not eat a bit of meat but the flies got into his meat and got into his drink so a man that is up to the ears in the world cannot pray cannot hear a Sermon and cannot receive the Sacrament but this plague of flies comes there the thoughts of the world is at the Sacrament with him in Prayer with him on the sabbath-Sabbath-day with him The love of the world pray pardon me in this expression is just like a familiar spirit for indeed I cannot speak too much against it a Witch that hath a familiar spirit it will go along with her wheresoever she goes when she hath once entertained it she can never be rid of it but the Devil will haunt her so the love of the world is an invisible Devil and will haunt you wheresoever you go if you go to the Sacrament there the Devil will haunt you if you go to the mount of Meditation the Devil and the world will be there if you go to pray there the Devil will be And you that are in these lime-twigs it is in vain to preach to you the Doctrine of Divine Meditation and therefore let me speak to you as God did to Moses Put the shooes off thy feet for the place whereon thou stands is holy ground So do I say if ever you would be qualified for this duty of Divine Meditation put the shooes off your feet You must labour to be mortified to the world and worldly things you must labour to get a Heavenly frame of spirit it is in vain to perswade a worldly man to meditate of Heavenly things I do but beat the air for such as the heart is such will the man be if the heart be lustful the man will meditate of lustful things and act lustful things if the heart be worldly the man will be worldly such as thy heart is such is thy thoughts such are thy affections such are thy actions and till thy heart be Heavenly thou canst never be a fit practitioner of this duty and therefore labour for a Heavenly heart The ninth Rule is this Be not discouraged though you find a difficulty in the beginning of practising this duty but accustom thy self to it Custom will make perfectness usus promptus facit Custom will make it an easie thing as an Apprentice that is newly bound to his Master finds his Trade very hard at first but afterwards by custom when he hath been a year or two at it then it is very easie so at the first you will find it very hard to meditate of Christ to abide and dwell long at it but let me assure you accustom your selves to it and you will find it very easie through Gods mercy Have you not known many a man and woman that hath been by the Physician prescribed to walk up a hill every day at the first he finds it very hard he is not able to do it but within a month or two it begins to be easie and they that before could not go up the hill without resting almost twenty times now they can go up without resting at all Oh the hill of Meditation is hard for us to climb that are so full of the world so full of vanity and folly but if you did accustom your selves to climb up this hill by often doing of it you would find it very easie The tenth and last Rule is this Do all these things by power derived from Iesus Christ I do not think that it is in your power to do these things but I know there is power in Christ and Christ will give you power as the Apostle saith Phil. 4. 13. I am able to do all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Go to Christ for a Heavenly heart for a serious spirit to kindle in thee a love to Heavenly things to shew thee thy interest in Heavenly things for if thou didst
did to his servants Gen. 22. 5. He said unto the young men abide you here with the asse and I and the lad will go yonder and worship Tarry you here below while I go up to the Mount of God Now I know this is a hard matter I am not ignorant of it to drive away this plague of flies that pester our best duties and therefore we must do as the Priest did to King Vzziah he would needs offer Incense and the Priest hindred him and the Lord plagued Vzziah and the leprosie appeared in his forehead and the Priest came and thrust him out of the Temple So I would have you do when you go to your Closets to meditate your vain thoughts will croud into the Temple of your hearts I would have you do as these Priest did thrust out these vain thoughts out of the temple of your hearts or rather pray unto God to do it for alas it is above our power to get free from distracting thoughts in this duty pray unto the Lord who is the heart-maker that he would be the heart-preparer for when you go to meditate God looks especially at your hearts and if your hearts be full fraught with lustful vain worldly carnal covetous thoughts he scorns all your service Now do not mistake me I mean if you willingly yield to this if you strive against it God will accept of it let it be thy work that is my rule to keep thy heart with all keeping when thou beginnest this work And labour to get thy heart disengaged and disintangled from worldly things So much for the beginning and of the six Rules to direct you in the entrance upon this work 2. I will lay down Rules for the better proceeding in this work for this you must know there are two faculties of the soul that must always be set on work in the practice of Divine Meditation the one is the Understanding the other is the heart and affections for Divine Meditation is not only an act of the head but of the heart and true Meditation must not only be intellectual and notional but practical and affectionative The work of the Understanding is to blow up and increase to kindle and inflame the love of God and Christ in the heart the Understanding to the heart and affections must be as the nurse to the child as the nurse cuts the meat and many times chews it and prepares it for the child to eat so doth the Understanding by Divine Truths it prepares them for the affections and the heart to close with them to eat them and digest them and to turn them into a holy conversation These are the two faculties we must set on work and you never meditate aright unless the affection be raised as well as the understanding and therefore both heart and head are the parts that must be exercised in the practice of the duty of Divine Meditation Now the work of the head or understanding is serious consideration of the Truths we come to meditate upon the work of the heart is increase of devotion and holiness by these Meditations Now I will speak to both I will give you Rules to help the intellectual part your contemplation of Divine things and Rules to help the affectionative part 1. I will give you Rules for the helping the understanding to chew and prepare the things you meditate upon for the heart and affections Now here I must tell you I shall be somewhat difficult and hard to be understood this is the knottiest and difficultest part of Meditation and therefore learned men that write of this subject that labour to teach the art of Divine Meditation do give in nine common-place-heads as so many several ways of the enlarging the understanding in the consideration of the Truths that they meditate upon 1. They would have you describe the thing you meditate upon 2. They would have you divide and distribute the thing you meditate upon 3. They would have you consider the causes of the thing you meditate upon 4. The fruits and effects 5. The adjuncts qualities and properties 6. The opposites and the contraries to it 7. The comparisons to which it is compared 8. The titles that are given to the thing of which you meditate 9. All the Scripture-testimonies that may be brought concerning the thing you are to meditate upon Now there are nine common-place-heads and these I fear are very difficult but that I might help you a little I will give you an example I will go over these Logical heads only I will preface thus much That it is not the intent of these learned men that we should be over-curious in prosecuting all these Logical heads for the end of Meditation is not to practise Logick but to kindle devotion and there are many subjects that will not admit of all these nine When I meditate of God I cannot shew any cause of God and I cannot make any comparison to compare God to but the meaning of those learned men is this that we should not rack and torture our understandings to pursue all these heads of reasons but we should pick out so many of them as are most suitable to the subjects we are meditating upon As for example Suppose I would go into my Closet and meditate of the sinfulness of sin then I would go over all these nine heads and by going over them you will understand the use of them I would meditate of the sinfulness of sin that so I might get my heart to hate it more that so I might study to be more mortified to it to mourn for it Now for this purpose that I might enlarge my intellectual part of consideration 1. I will begin with the description of sin and I will say thus to my soul when I am alone Oh my soul why shouldest not thou hate and abhor sin is not sin the breach of the holy law of God and doth it not therefore deserve eternal damnation is not sin a walking contrary unto God and certainly that man that walks contrary to God walks contrary to Heaven and contrary to his own happiness Is not sin most opposite to the greatest good and therefore must needs be the greatest evil and why then should not sin have the greatest sorrow why should not I hate sin above all things if it be the greatest evil 2. I would proceed to the distribution of sin and thus I would say to my soul Oh my soul how art thou be-leper'd with sin how art thou all over bespread with iniquity thou art guilty of the first sin that ever was committed in the world of Adam's eating the forbidden fruit that sin was jusdy thine by imputation For in him saith the Apostle we all sinned Rom. 5. 12. And thou wilt never be free from the guilt of the imputation of Adam's sin till thou be by faith made partaker of the imputation of Christs righteousness Thou art guilty Oh my soul not only of Adam's sin by