of trial and in all other manner of Substance make thy self empty and know that thy Beloved is not only bountiful in giving but hath inexhaustible stores of all manner of good things so as though he gave mountains yet shall his store Houses be no emptier and therefore let not thy Poverty affright thee but rather embolden thee for what is poor shall be filled with durable riches what is cloathed in simple white shall be cloathed upon with Immortality what is empty shall be filled with all manner of pleasant and good things Consider the first Earth in its deformity and now behold the beautiful Structure raised out of it was it not empty dark confused a non Ens and did not the first seat of the same Master-Builder call forth the beautiful Light out of a darkness far more black than that of Egypt also the Air Sun Moon and Stars and many more heavenly Bodys without count and lastly the Soul of Adam all good beautifull innocent And whence now may we suppose he got these large stores with which he hath filled and beautified all these was it not out of himself did not his Word beget all and his Will bring all forth Can Infinity which fills all places and is all things seek to places or things for something it hath not Can he that hath no bounds step out of his own Territories to snatch and catch at somthing he wants in anothers bounds Therefore it must be him even thy Lord and Husband in whom all fulness dwels still abounding still running over Fear not threfore thou poor empty Spouse for thy emptyness is thy Innocence thy Innocence thy Rigtheousness thy Righteousness thy Beauty and thou art fairest among Women and thy Creator is thy Husband he is espousing thee in everlasting Love he will give thee of his own Grace for Grace Beauty for Beauty Glory for Glory and all he requires of thee is that thou take them not of due but of his own free Goodness and bounty and now let none deceive thee of thy reward 37. Who doth these things shall never be moved 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for ever or until Eternity or most properly in or until the Age but the Hebrew word as also the Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 being of great mystery and to long to be discoursed here and the English giving a well agreeing Paraphraise we shall close with it And now that which is the last close of all fitly falls in with the last exposition he that doth these things that is that attaineth the wedding Garment shall in the day of his Espousals be so closely united with his immutable Creator as neither hight nor depth things present or to come shall be able to remove him as is writ I give unto them Eternal Life they shall never perish nor shall any pluck them out of my hands and if Christ was thus Zealous for his Sheep not yet passed over with him into regeneration how much more for them espoused unto him in everlasting Love 38. Before we conclude we shall resite the two other Sister Texts and to avoid prolixity in exposition give them in a brief Paraphrase yet with respect to the Hebrism and first minding that Psal 24.3 doth in a more peculiar manner refer to the Warfare of the Cross And Isa 33. To the Tryal by Fire yea verily so like are these wayes and proceedings as what is said truly of one is applicable to both and some Scriptures as Mat. 24. seem to refer interchangably to both and indeed the chief difference seems to be in the subject matter upon which they work For the Trial of the Cross is in opposition to the pride of the Arm of Flesh in outward carnal Idolatry and the trial by Fire is against Spiritual pride and wickedness in highth or as the Original is heavenly places 39. Psal 24.3 Runs thus Who shall dwell in the pleasant Contemplation of Salvation Sanctification and future Glory with thee until thou having subdued our Lusts wilt bring us into the Nuptial Chamber arrayed in white Who is he that shall find a covering for his Sins under typical Signs and Seals until the avenger of bloods Commission is expired he whose hands are clean from blood oppression and bribes whose Heart is free from Hypocrisy whose Soul is meek and humble not carried away with lies or vain hopes in its own righteousness and sweareth in yea yea nay nay to his Sheepherd and Friend and keeps his Oath religiously and faithfully this man shall never be moved Blessing from the Lord and Righteousness from his Saviour he shall receive Of these the Generation of the new birth consists them that walk in thy wayes O thou Wrestler with Angels Lift up your heads O ye strait and terrible Gates and be you lifted up ye Doors of Hulam the hidden Age and Messiah shall come in Who is this Messiah He is all Glorious he is Lord of Hosts mighty in Battle subduing all things Now this is a manifest Prophesy of the passing over from the Legal Holy Place to the Church of the new born in Christ referring to the strait Gate and narrow Path leading to eternal Life 40. Isa 33.9 Thus the Body Soul and Spirit and all the lofty things of nature are whithered and now saith Christ I will return and will exalt and raise up the withered Soul c. But first he will convince you that your righteousness is chaff and your works stubble and out of the Spirit a fire shall proceed which shall burn up the dross of your works wrought in Silver and lay your hay and stubble in Ashes 12. They shall be as burnt Lime as Superstition cast into the consuming Fire they crackle and consume 13. Hear ye that are without ye not gathered within my pale what wonders I have done and ye that are near fighting the Good fight in your inwards 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 know ye my might 14. A Sinner though shrouded in Sion my holy Mountain shall fear in Pachad servile fear Trembling 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 shall surprise the Hypocrite Who is he that shall sojourn in the Baptism by Fire Who is he that shall abide the fiery Trial 15. He walking in Tammin and working in the Righteousness of Christ contemning riches gotten by Usury not working for servile hireling wages but is supported in all his painfull labour by the love and bounty of his Beloved At the name of persecution he stoppeth his Ears and shutteth his Eyes lest sin and vanity should enter by them This man shall dwell in the City which is above a Rock shall be the foundation of his Bulwark and God will appoint Salvation for the Walls thereof hidden Mannah shall be his food and of the Waters of Life he shall drink 17. The King of Glory he shall see in the beauty af Holyness The Holy Land of the rest of God he shall behold a far off And thus this elegant Prophet set forth in few Words what
Death he hath raised it into a Capacity of Life Which Experience worketh Hope and Experiences multiplied strengthen Faith and give assurance as David I have slain a Lion and a Bear God helped me in both and so he will against this Philistine And now the Soul begins to be a stout Champion and ready to say I have found by experience the Lord is on my side I will not fear what Man can do unto me And lastly this well-grounded Assurance like Oil supples the Heart and the Holy-Ghost diffuseth Love into it And thus Tribulation builds up Love the Top-stone ever And that this Self-contempt is the right Foundation is manifest from Christ the Corner-Stone of the Universal Church for he was the Contempt of Men His Visage saith the Prophet so marred more than any Man and his Form more than the Sons of Men despised rejected of Men no Form or Comeliness a Man of Sorrows c. And thus the Jews said of him Is not this the Carpenter's Son Are not his Brethren with us And they despised him Yea and according to this Scripture he in all things humbled himself making Fishermen Publicans and Children his Companions Now none are poorer than Fishers none more despised than Publicans nor none more simple than Children yet upon twelve such Pillars he founded his Church And hence Paul We are made the Filth of the World and Offscouring of all things And assuredly thus must every one be in his own Eyes before Christ can be born and crucified in him and the Birth of a new Creature consummated 4. And now to add a few words of those lovely Sisters which hence take their Original I say they are the very Balast of the Soul in this second Warfare And first touching Humility It is mighty in virtue as well under the former as latter Warfare for under the Law it helps to undermine the Pride of the Heart and boasting of the Tongue and in the Gospel it prepares the Soul to hear and receive the glad Tidings of Grace Indeed under the Law it grows and is made perfect and in the Gospel's breaking forth it is the Foundation upon which Grace builds and the Soul works it self upwards In confirmation of which divers Scriptures concur 1 Pet. 5.5 Yea all of you be subject one to another and be cloathed with Humility for God resisteth the Proud and giveth Grace to the Humble Humble your selves therefore under the mighty hand of God that he may exalt you in due time Which well agrees with the frequent Doctrine of our Saviour He that is greatest among you let him be Servant of all Mat. 18.4 23.11 Mark 9.35 Luke 14.11 18.14 So Jam. 4.10 Humble you selves in the sight of God and he shall lift you up Prov. 29.23 A Man's Pride shall bring him low but Honour shall uphold the Humble in Spirit So also Chap. 15.33 18.12 22.4 So that for a Man to be wasted and vile in his own Eyes is to be humble and to be humble is to be in the way of Exaltation and Ascension into the Image of our Saviour 5. But here it is to be observed that it is not all kind of Humility that pleaseth God namely not that which the Apostle calls Voluntary and is two-fold one in the neglect of the Body in Meats Drinks Apparel and sometimes imposing upon it more than a merciful Man would do to his Beast which things indeed have a shew of Wisdom in Win-worship and Humility and neglecting of the Body but not in any honour for the satisfying of the Flesh Col. 2.18 23. that is not humbling it by such an affective Humility as goes before Honour or depresseth the Body so as God will therefore make it full and exalt it for the excellency of the Body is not in being beaten down with long Fastings Perigrinations and voluntary Afflictions impoverishing it in the denial of such necessaries as are not forbidden in the Rule of Obedience indeed it is a Duty to restrain it from all excess and that with a strict hand because in its own nature 't is a licentious Beast and may if not kept under enter into Warfare with thee and therefore to curb it and keep it under as Paul did when it dares contend against the Rule is necessary but what is more than this is to bruise and break it and is of sin a voluntary Humility an Invention of thy own a Service not required at thy hands and indeed not true Humility but the effect of a proud heart boasting in Self-Righteousness as if it would do all and yet more than the Rule requires when indeed it can do no good thing for the Body is a Creature of God and therefore good and owes a Duty in its Generation which is good also and therefore its Mouth ought not to be musled while it treads out the Corn indeed it is in its right use the Ass of the Soul and ought to carry it to and fro and do all its grosser work for without it the Soul cannot perform the Ministry of its Generation either to God Neighbour or Nature Therefore as Christ rid upon an Ass in triumph to Jerusalem so ought the Soul to ride upon the Body towards its Hosanna and as that was deekt with Garments its Way spread with Palm-Branches so ought this to be decently provided for and from hence says Solomon Eccles 9.8 Let thy Garments be white always and let thy Head want no Oil that is keep thy Body in innocent chearfulness Furthermore it 's manifest from Scripture that the Body is capable of giving and receiving Divine Honour Phil. 1.20 So that as always so now also Christ shall be magnified in my Body whether it be by Life or by Death And again Phil. 3.21 Who shall change our vile Body that it may be fashion'd like unto his glorious Body according to the working whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself Which Scripture is of great Mystery and plainly implies That Christ hath a work upon our Bodies for Glory to be effected in that same operation he subdues and conquers all things to himself which Conquest is the very consummation of that Work for which he took upon him our Flesh Nature and Body 1 Cor. 15.27 and which God prepared for him that thereby he might work upon and change our Bodies namely those vile in their own eyes into his Image and by that Conquest may conquer all things to himself for without doubt when the first Earth was in its deformity Tohu and Bohu even then a precious Seed of the Election of Grace was in that sensless confusion but yet even then it was in the fore-knowledg of God and under the decree of his Will when and how it should be called cleansed sanctified and glorified the first step to which was to give it a Body a Soul and a Spirit as it is written Gen. 2.7 And the Lord formed Man out of the Dust of the Ground
and breathed into his Nostrils the Breath of Life and Man became a living Soul to which adjoin 1 Cor. 15.45 it clears the last part of the Assertion The first Man Adam was made a living Soul and the last Adam a quickning Spirit So that the Elect Seed is first subdued into a Body and Soul and lastly united and made one with the quickning Spirit by being again subdued by it in the good fight and while thus the Spirit subdues the Soul and the Soul the Body the Elect Seed is gathered from the East and from the West from the North and from the South and Christ's Victory atchieved in the glorifying every Hoof that is in the Commission of Election and condemning the Reprobate to the Pit of their appointment and for this end Christ took upon him our Bodies Souls Spirits and whatsoever is ours that his Body being glorified might glorify ours his Soul our Souls his Spirit our Spirits and lastly That his Conquest over us might compleat our happiness and this the Apostle strongly implies 1 Thess 5.23 And the very God of Peace sanctify you wholly and I pray God your whole Spirit and Soul and Body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ And besides these divers other Scriptures attest that there is a hidden excellency appertaining to the Body as Rom. 8.23 Even we our selves groan within our selves waiting for the Adoption to wit the redemption of the Body which compared with the context before implies a farther Mystery than we who are dull of hearing can receive for secret things belong to God and those things which are revealed to us Dan. 29.29 So again Rom. 12.1 Now I beseech you Brethren by the mercies of God that you present your Bodies a living Sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God which is your reasonable Service So 1 Cor. 6.13 The Body for the Lord and the Lord for the Body Also the 19. So as such a voluntary Humility which debases the Body beyond the Rule or denies those Refreshments it allows is not pleasing unto God 6. The second part of this Humility is when a Man thinks himself not worthy to go to Christ immediately himself but by the intercession of Angels or Saints Col. 2.18 But this perswasion is a great wrong to him who purposely came to save Sinners and vouchsafed to wash his Disciples Feet who took our Nature upon him that he might be touched with our Infirmities and tempted like us and all that he might be a merciful and expert Mediator and therefore himself calls to them heavey laden to come to him and also gives authority to us to go in his Name a begging immediately to the Father assuring us That in that Name we shall be heard and hence the Apostle Heb. 4.16 Let us therefore come boldly to the Throne of Grace that we may obtain Mercy and sind Grace to help in the days of our Conflicts And therefore in humble and reverential Gratitude let us be assured There 's no more need of a Mediator betwixt Christ and us than betwixt God and Christ for as he is in the Father and one with him so we in Christ namely those that are baptized into his death and therefore those that go to other Mediators have with Esau rejected one of the greatest Priviledges of their Birth-right and therefore true Humility consists not in debasing the Body or denying it its Rights and then calling it Vile and esteeming the martyrdom of it in the secret of the Heart meritorious but in being a careful Keeper of it as a piece of purer Clay upon which Christ designeth to engrave his Image and therefore it behoves us to deck it with all Ornaments Divine and Natural true Humility can shape for it and when all is done to esteem it and every Gift we have by nature vile and contemptible and the Body thus presented by the hand of Faith shall be a living Sacrifice holy and acceptable unto God 7. The next Sister of this Divine Off-spring is Meekness in all things so like to the former as we need not to enlarge upon it for what is well said of the one appertains of right to the other It is first ascribed to Moses the Type Meek above all Men upon the face of the Earth and next to Christ the Anti-type Take up my Yoak and learn of me for I am meek and lowly or humble of Heart and ye shall find rest in your Souls Which first shews We ought in all things to imitate Christ and more particularly in Meekness And secondly that the Reward shall be Rest to the Soul Another saith Blessed are the Meek for they shall inherit the Earth And our Psalmist He the Lord will save all the Meek of the Earth he will beautify them with Salvation The third is the great Vertue Patience which indeed is both first and last in our Warfare for from the first blow in the former on-set it was the Soul's Buckler and unto the last must be a Support So Job began in Patience and in the virtue thereof did not offend with his Tongue and was become a perfect Scholar therein before he was throughly humbled for he was not vile enough in his own sight until he perceived God by the eye which was in the period of his Trial And hence the Apostle Brethren count it all joy when ye fall under divers temptations knowing the trial of your Faith worketh Patience and let Patience have its perfect Work that ye may be perfect lacking nothing so as this vertue consummates the Work in that fulness as nothing is lacking Whence also by comparing this with former Texts it appeareth that the Temptations and Trials here spoken of the Tribulations bringing Patience afore-mentioned and the Warfare of the Cross are all one thing only differing as Majus and Minus for the former refer to the Cross of our Lord as he did and we ought to bear it daily and our Warfare refers to it in the more critical and especial Hour for all work Patience and Patience under all upholdeth the Soul and sows the Seeds of Experiences of the gracious workings of God And though no Tribulations in the present seem joyous yet at the long-run Experience convinceth that they are the very effects of Love which Love sheddeth it self abroad in the Heart so as to be perfect in Tribulations in Trials and bearing the Cross is the perfection of Patience Patience of Experience Experience of Love and Love fortified by Patience that it may wait until God see it fit to give the Crown of Glory is that perfection in the Life of the Body which lacketh nothing and therefore as it is written Blessed is he that endureth that patiently waits until the end until the Soul can say with the Captain of its Warfare It is finished I have fought the good Fight Again Patience is the fixing and confirming of a Saint as the Apostle saith Be patient establish your Hearts Behold ye
to exalt the Spirit and in this we wrestle against Principalities and Wickedness in Heavenly Places Then Satan's Interest was to uphold Vows Merit in Touch not taste not c. to persuade that the Spirit was a meer Chymaera or Sound only heard in deluded Ears and now he cries up the Spirit as all pure and perfect that it doth not nay cannot lust after Envy upright in all its ways and no Word or Work or Way holy or acceptable without it be its simple Act and so the Reason Sense and Body are esteemed vile things and the Service odious to God And thus Satan wrests to every extreme our Minds and Christ in his Bounty so defeats this old Serpent the Deceiver as in the first Warfare presumptuous Flesh is beaten down and under the Gospel the Spirit apt to be puffed up is humbled that all things both in Heaven and Earth in Soul and Body might bow to the exalted Name of Christ yea that every thing which is proud or exalts it self may be brought down and that he that glories may find nothing to glory in save Christ alone and lastly that the Spirit upheld in its Humiliation by the Spirit of the high-exalted Name may uphold the Body and the Body minister to the Soul until it become a fit Temple for the holy Spirit to dwell in and that Christ at his coming may find us perfect in Soul in Body and in Spirit 9. And lest some might take it amiss that now in our Gospel-day the Worship whereof consists in Spirit and Truth we should speak of a Warfare against the Spirit and of an acceptable Service from the Body I shall explain my self a little further First I say our Lord doth not teach that this Worship is of Spirit only but Spirit and Truth and against them united there is no Law For this In Spirit and Truth implies a Worship where the very Spirit of Truth is present and assisting the Spirit of Man and helping its Infirmities which Spirit also dwelleth in us and is that which raiseth up Christ and also that quickens our mortal Bodies and therefore to subdue this Spirit were to reject God and Good in as deep Rebellion and Blasphemy as the Angels reserved to Blackness and Darkness ever did But there are two other Spirits one of God and yet is not his very immediate Spirit aforesaid of which the beloved Apostle thus Believe not every Spirit but try the Spirits if they are of God for many false Prophets and consequently Spirits are gone forth Hereby we know that Spirit which is of God the Spirit that confesseth Christ is come in the Flesh is of God That Spirit which confesseth not so is not of God but of Antichrist Whence observe two Spirits one of God another not of him Secondly Consider that Confession which distinguisheth these Spirits namely Christ in the Flesh which cannot be meant of an historical Confession because also confessing must have had that Spirit of God and verily it is incompatible with the outward Profession to deny the History as far as concerns Flesh and Blood nor amongst those various Delusions touching his Nature which went abroad few or none held that Opinion Again the Spirit which denies this is the Spirit of Antichrist Now Antichrist doth not deny Christ in the Flesh but rather supposeth that he is extant as Flesh in the Bread to this day And lastly to make this the Caracter were to make Antichrist a Pagan which he is not but rather the Spirit which historically confesseth both God and Christ and sets up it self against them And this is that Spirit which in this Warfare ought to be made to bow the Knee And forasmuch as the Apostle affirms that this Spirit is of Antichrist the Man of Sin and Son of Perdition the best way to discern it is to apply to a fuller description of them 2 Thess 2.4 Who opposeth God and exalteth himself above all called God or that is worshipped So that he sitteth in the Temple of God shewing himself that he is God And now this must be a Spiritual Wickedness set in high Places usurping Authority in the Temple of God which Temple we are and the Spirit i.e. of God dwelleth in it 1 Cor. 3.16 And again Chap. 6.19 Your Body is the Temple of the Holy-Ghost in you which ye have of God and ye are not your own for ye are bought with a Price Wherefore glorify God in your Body and in your Spirit which are God's And now I ask what this which is spiritual Wickedness can be but the Spirit of Man lusting after Evil deluded by the Spirit of Satan whose first and original Crime was to make himself equal with God and shall again once more shew his foolish Pride as in the description of Antichrist is further shewn Ibid. vers 9. Whose Coming is after the working of Satan with all Power and lying Wonders and with all deceivableness of Vnrighteousness in them who perish because they received not the Love of the Truth that they might be saved And for this Cause God gave them up to strong Delusions that they should believe a Lie and that they might be damned who believed not the Truth but had pleasure in Vnrighteousness And besides this Text the holy Writers give sundry Admonitions to beware of the Pride and Deceitfulness of our own Spirits Jam. 4.5 Do you think the Scripture saith in vain The Spirit which dwelleth in you lusteth to Envy Which is a double Proof First as from James secondly as another Scripture cited by him tho perhaps we find it not So our Lord Ye know not what Spirit ye are of 1 Tim. 4.1 In the latter times shall come seducing Spirits and Doctrine of Devils 2 Cor. 7.1 Let us cleanse our selves from all Filthiness of the Flesh and of the Spirit perfecting Holiness in the Fear of God Mal. 2.15 Therefore take ye heed to your Spirits and let none deal treacherously with the Wife of his Youth see also ver 16. Where the Spirit refers to the Man or Spirit of Teaching and the Wife to Obedience as in the Allegory afore-mentioned and from the Context is as much as The Spirit and Wife are one Flesh 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the end they may bring forth Seed or Children to God and therefore let the Spirit beware it deal not perfidiously with the chast Form of Obedience that is go a whoring after strange Forms So as a Man's Spirit is as his Heart deceitful setting up spiritual Wickedness in high Places and dresseth them in so specious Forms of Light as who can find them out For doubtless to discern its workings from those of the Holy Spirit is me judging above measure difficult and few or none who do not sometimes mistake that for this And therefore we ought to take heed to our Spirits and above all to supplicate the Father of Spirits whom foul Spirits obey that himself would watch over them For in vain do the
ADVERTISEMENT THere is now in the Press the Continuation of the Diary of this Author which will shortly be compleated the same having been earnestly Solicited and Recommended by Persons of Eminent Worth out of several Nations And there are Daily more and more Excited some both in Neighbouring and in very Remote Countries to bear their Testimony to the Truths of the Kingdom of God declared therein of which there is one Instance added in the End that is very Peculiar and some likewise to suffer for the same very considerably Since the Year 1694 that these Writings began first to be Published in Germany and Holland it hath pleased GOD to bless them very Wonderfully and no manner of Oppositions or Prohibitions have been able to extinguish that Fire which they have been made a means of enkindling in many Hearts of all Ranks and Degrees A Judicious Writer in his Characters of the Mystical Authors in a Book Printed this very Year in Holland having just before spoken of Hermas Barnabas c. thence takes occasion to give a glance upon the Writings of this Author and the Conformity of their Character to such as are more generally allow'd to have been Written by the assistance of the Divine Unction and with a share of the Prophetical Spirit and tells us That they are full of Salutary Instructions and Lights as well as of Divine Revelations for the near Re-establishment of the Christian Church through the Renovation of the Life and Spirit of Jesus Christ and the Manifestation of the Wonders of his Kingdom And they that are in this Opinion saith he are not Persons of the least Judgment nor in few Places nor in a little Number Letre sur les Principes les Characters des principaux Anteurs Mystiques Spirituels When the Diary shall be Finished there may be an Abstract of all together in a Plain and Popular Way with a Methodical Account of the Sentiments therein dispersed and their Conformity with Scripture Lastly it is Advertised that both this that is above Written and the foregoing Preface was sent to the Press without the Advice Consent or Privity of the dear Author And without the Excitement or so much as the Knowledge of any one Soul whatever beside him who now holds this Pen and who is without all Aims and Ends but the Divine Glory The World is Crucified unto me And I unto the World THE Christian Warfare BEING Some Serious Humble and Practical REFLECTIONS On PSALM XV WHEREIN The Princely Prophet David's Great and Soul-ravishing Question divine Answer and Application are Considered By J. L. THEOPHILUS 2 Cor. 10.4 5. Arma enim Militiae Nostrae non Carnalia sunt sed Divinitus valida ad destructionem Munitionum Ratiocinationes evertendo omnemque sublimitatem quae sese extollit adversus cognitionem Dei in captivitatem redigendo omnem cogitationem ad obediendum Christo London Printed and Sold by John Gain Living in Merchant-Tailers Rents at the Lower-end of Moore-Lane 1680. PSAL. XV. Vers 1. LORD who shall * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Or abide but most properly in ae strange Land It is also He feared implying a sojournment in fear sojourn in thy Tabernacle Who shall dwell in the Mountain of thy Holiness Vers 2. He walking in Integrity and working Righteousness and speaking the Truth in his Heart Vers 3. Not †〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The root he reproached there 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a tongue because the Instrument of reproach that is according to the Gospel-rule not retorting or reviling one reviling him reproaching upon his reproacher nor doing ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Evil to his Neighbour or Friend so most read Which is so plain and well known a duty to Moral Nature that it sounds flat amongst these eminent Soul-exalting Graces and therefore the same Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 being for both I so read it according to our Lord's Precept Love your Enemies bless them that curse you evil to his evil-doer nor bringing shame upon his ††〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He aproached or drew near most properly to conflict Hence 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Battel also the Inwards of a thing especially of the Soul Spirit or Mind of Man Lex Heptag fully reads it Mind Thought I add another which from a Harmony of sundery Texts I have gathered namely Conscience which was the same I take it the Antients called Mens the Mind Jer. 31.33 I will put my Laws in their Kerab which the 70 renders Mind And the Apostle citing this Text reads the same Heb. 8. so And again he calls it 10.16 Heart not meaning the Bowel so called but Inward Mind and Conscience Isa 26.9 With my Soul I desired thee in the Night also in the Spirit of my Kerab Mind Conscience I will seek thee in the Morning See Psal 34.3 51.2.94.15 And besides this and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Heart the Hebrew Scripture hath not a Name for Mind or Conscience But neither could the holy Pen-men be ignorant of these nor fully express what appertains to a holy walking before God without sometimes making mention of them in the Law as the Apostles did in the Gospel and therefore I judge that by this and the Heart they signified Mind and Conscience And hence Kerab a Battel or Warfare because in the Mind and Conscience the Spiritual War is as the Apostle Rom. 7.3 I see the Law of my Members warring against the Law of my Mind And so I understand it here not bringing reproach upon his Conscience not making shipwrack thereof nor negligent in his Spiritual Warfare but behaving himself as a true Souldier of Christ Who doth these things shall not fail to do all things which lead to an immoveable Seat of Happiness Inwards Vers 4. Contemned in his own Eyes despised but honoureth them who fear the Lord ‖‖ Swearing to a Friend Some read swearing to his hurt but his is not in the Text indeed the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 will bear either But the sence grates as if performance of rash Vows were a Pillar in Piety as Jephtha's or Saul's or the eleven Tribes to the loss of an only Child or a Son or a Tribe in Israel Surely it were better in bitterness to repent for vowing foolishly than to perform such Vows Some read Who swears to afflict himself which is much easier but neither was this except upon some solemn occasions practised by holy Men of old that we read of nor not so necessary to an immoveable Seat as to be reckoned as one of the Pillars thereof The Gospel-Precept is much otherwise Swear not at all and therefore this doubtless being ranked in so eminent place hath a more lofty meaning Now 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is also a Friend a Shepherd and Christ sometimes manifestly signified by that word of which more hereafter and so I understand it here that is He who nails his ear to the door-post of the great
Perfection as is in Peace and Absolution or Compensation perfect and blind like the Servant of Jehovah That is If a Man have Eyes to see Beauty in or Ears to hear the Flatteries of his own Performances he is not perfect before God but yet as the next Verse saith he ought to see much and not perceive and to open his Ears and not hear that is he ought to be diligent in all Duties Jehovah hath commanded but to use them as he used them not confessing himself an unworthy Servant And in the like harmony our Saviour again speaks John 12.24 Verily I say unto you Except a Corn of Wheat fall into the Ground and die it abideth alone but if it die it bringeth forth much Fruit. He that loveth his Life shall lose it and he that hateth his Life in this World shall keep it Now compare this with Mat. 3.14 Luke 9.24 and the Interpretation is plainly thus He that denies himself and follows Christ in Death shall find Life Eternal and if he do not he cannot walk in Integrity So as Gospel Tummim Perfection is to walk in the total Consumption of his own Perfection which the Apostle to the Philippians fully asserts for having boasted of his Legal Preheminences Phil. 3.8 he concludes thus But what things were Gain to me I accounted Loss Dung and Dross for Christ and to be found in him not having my own Righteousness which is of the Law but that which is through the Faith of Christ The same also is fitly represented as it refers to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in both sences Legal and Evangelical in the Law of Leprosy Levit. 13.11 12 17. For if a Man was quite clear from the Scab he was clean or if the Scab was spread over the whole Body so as no part was free then also he was clean but if there was but one and that never so small a Scab and one other small place free the Party was unclean and forbidden the use of holy things And the same Rule holds under the Gospel for if a Mans Righteousness be perfect he needeth not a Mediator but if he hath failed in one point he ought to pronounce himself unclean and vile throughout and to hate his own Life to be blind and deaf that thereby he might be made capable of a new Birth And surely this Perfection in Consumption is that the Gospel-Believer ought to aim at for thereby alone is he made capable of the Answer of a good Conscience and that Union which maketh him one with God in Christ And this is walking in Gospel-Integrity 2dly And worketh Righteousness Both Sister-Texts omit the first Clause Walking in Integrity but imply it in this as Psal 24. that is innocent of Hands Now Innocence consists in emptiness and not being full of good deeds but void of evil and therefore must be attained in already nocent Nature by evacuation of its spots that is by consumption And indeed Integrity and Innocence in Man are the same thing Hence our Prophet I will wash mine Hands in Innocence and so will go to thine Altar which is as much as I will wash my Hands in Integrity by * Psal 26.6.73.13 Consumption and to have so washed is to begin the Works of Righteousness That of Isa 33. saith for both Walking in Righteousness taking the Verb of the first and Substantive of the latter But the Text hath it working Righteousness And indeed this hangs upon the former and is drawn in by it as one Link of a Chain draweth in another for until a Man hath attained Perfection by Consumption or washed his Hands in innocent emptiness and believeth in Christ he cannot work Righteousness but that effected the way is made smooth and easy into the Treasures thereof for if he lay hold of the true Mediator in whom and in whom alone the Lord is well pleased he becomes one with him and consequently Co-heir and Partaker of all his Righteousness And indeed such is the Prerogative of Saints in this case that according to the measure of their Faith so much of the Fulness of Christ they may call their own This was Christ's usual word when he healed the Infirmities of the Body Be it unto thee according to thy Faith And surely in the same words he healeth Souls consumed unto Integrity as it were leading them into his boundless Treasures and bidding them take according to their Faith and tho they have Faith can bear away Mountains yet shall it not be said to them ye take too much or yet shall any require a price for what they take Yet here it is especially to be regarded that in this State a Man is not discharged from the Rule of Obedience for surely here lies a Rock in the Mystery of Salvation upon which some even choice ones have stumbled and others once in a hopeful way have dashed to pieces for being come into the Treasures of Grace and Faith they perceive their Works and Merit of small force and strait grow slack in Duties and cold in Charity which makes shipwrack of Faith and a good Conscience for that Faith which hopes to live upon Grace and quits the rule of Obedience is no more Faith but blind bold Presumption For when a Man is adopted unto Sonship with Christ also his Obedience and Cross is entailed on him for if he a Son ought Obedience much more we that are Servants and therefore it is not enough for him that will work Righteousness to rest upon Faith without Works or Works without Faith but to weave both in a due Temperament together for Abraham our Father was justified in both for he believed and it was counted for Righteousness before the Covenant of Works was yet not without Works of Obedience to the Command of God for by Works he was justified when he offered Isaac Seest thou how Faith wrought with his Works and by Works Faith was made perfect and the Scripture fulfilled Abraham believed God and it was imputed to him for Righteousness And therefore Faith alone cannot attain our Prophet's Rule because he that works not at all cannot work Righteousness nor yet he that worketh in his own Merit And therefore the Work of Righteousness beginneth in Integrity by consumption of all Creature-Dependencies so far as the Soul may find it stands in need of a powerful Mediator that can forgive Sins which is Christ alone to whom it must next seek to be united which is by Faith for to believe in him is to be one with him And this effected the next is to apply zealously to good Works and Duties Charity Mercy Meekness for he is the true Vine every Branch in him that bringeth not forth fruit the great Husbandman taketh away And therefore now begins the right season of working for until now was but a plowing and sowing in Sorrow and now cometh a reaping in Joy for through this Union by Faith Christ pours forth his living Righteousness upon our dead Works giving them
Life as he did to leprous Lazarus after he had lain four days in the Grave And lastly having done all thou canst call thy self Unworthy Servant know that thy Obedience or Works cannot profit God but only that Obedience is better than Sacrifice and a humble contrite Heart better than Rams or Rivers of Oil and in so doing thou shalt work Righteousness The sum of all is Judg condemn the Works of proud Nature roul upon Christ work in Humility and account all dead without the quickning Spirit and so shalt thou attain the second step towards the Rest of God in his holy Mountain Thus with the Heart thou mayest believe to Righteousness and with thy Mouth confess to Salvation thou shalt believe and not be ashamed thus mayest thou call on the Name of the Lord and be saved But in vain doth the slothful Soul expect a station in the holy Mount for the Believers Prerogative and that a great one too is that having presented his best Fruits how light soever in the Ballance of Justice they be he may by Faith lay hold on the Righteousness of Christ and calling it his own take what Sums to make up his Accompt his Faith can bear away for in that only is this Mans abundance stinted for if he strain at a Gnat such will his portion in Righteousness be and if his Faith can carry away a Mountain rather than he want Spiritual Food Jordan shall overflow its Banks So that as an Object an Eye and Light make up the pleasing Sense of Seeing so commanded Duties Obedience and Christ compleat the Works of a Believer for as an Object is vain without an Eye and both without Light so are Duties or Commands without Obedience and both nothing without Christ And as the Light is that which gives life and vigor to both the other so Christ is the Life of our Works and Duties And lastly even as the Light profiteth not without an Eye or Object so verily Christ is of no effect where Obedience and the Precept or Rule of working are sacking So as David's Answer thus far in Gospel-Language is He that walks in the Consumption of his own Righteousness yet holding fast the Rule of Obedience by Faith in Christ makes his Works perfect 3. And speaketh the Truth in his Heart Psal 24. saith He that is pure of Heart I say 't is He that speaketh Equity which are all univocal This is the third Link of this Golden Chain for before we can work Righteousness in the School of Christ 't is impossible to speak Truth in the Heart because all other Righteousness is Lies and Vanity But for the understanding of this it behoves that we first mind in what sence the Heart is taken in Scripture-Language not as a meer Bowel or Member of the Body but allegorically as the Body bears the Image of the Soul so the Members of that answer to the Gifts and Graces of the Soul Now in Scripture 't is sometimes taken in the better part sometimes in the worse as the Source of all evil for not rarely some effects are ascribed to to it consonant to the Conscience or Mind and doubtless it hath some affinity with it and yet is not altogether the same because some things imputed to it are incompatible with the Conscience as Dissimulation Flattery Forgetfulness of God c. I judg thus the Conscience is the most Divine part of the natural Man and hath the most immediate Converse with God and the Heart answers to those Faculties in the Soul which have immediate converse with it above and also with Sense and sensual Affections beneath capable of receiving Leaven from the Wisdom of that or Folly of this and consequently is that before which Life and Death also Will or Arbitrement are placed for the Conscience refrains all Commerce with Sensual Affections except as a Judg and Reprover of their Exorbitances but the Heart doth not and therefore the Scripture saith The Word is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 near thee in thy Mouth and in thy Heart Which shews the Heart is a Faculty where the sound of the Word within is heard and again it ascribeth to it Imaginations Thoughts Passions Affections and Desires Love and Hate Appetite and Dislike Anger and Patience Grief Joy Fear and thence 't is accordingly as 't is leavened a great promoter of Vertue or Vice And therefore to order it aright so as it may learn to speak the Truth is the next part of our Warfare and ought to be an especial care in all who seek rest in the holy Mount as also 't is written Prov. 4.23 Before all keep the Out-goings Buddings of thy Heart for in it are the Issues of Life and consequently of Death also for between these there is not a third choice and therefore if it issue not Life it must bring forth Death And the keeping of the Heart as it is necessary so it is difficult because as is written it is deceitful above measure Jer. 17.9 desperately supplanting who can know it And again It is the Source of all evil Thoughts Murders Mat. 15.19 Adulteries Thefts False-Witness Blasphemies Now I say before we can successfully atchieve this great necessary Task three things are necessary First the last before spoken of namely to ascribe all Righteousness to Christ for as long as a Man believeth he has any of his own his Heart is a Liar and the Truth is not in him The second is to discover wherein its Falseness and Craft consists for these are hidden and not easily discerned from the specious pretences of Truth For if the Heart be so bold as it dare openly and avowedly tempt to known Sin this is not to be accounted any part of its Deceit but bold-faced Wickedness but there is its Deceitfulness namely when it obtrudes Evil under the Mask of Good or Impiety for Piety or Idolatry for pure Religion The third is to be diligently conversant in the use and management of those Helps God hath vouchsafed us to discover and undermine its Stratagems which are many but I comprize them under three General Heads The Word or Precept the Conscience and Experience The Word is the Law and Touchstone the Conscience Judg and Executioner and sometimes acts as a Witness Experience is a strict observer of its haltings also a Sollicitor mannaging the Evidence against it and it s own Reason Lusts and Satan are its chief Advocates The Law which is pure holy and manifest in all Essentials it defames as unreasonable and the written Word as obscure and dark nor will it stick to say the Wisdom and Morals of Aristotle and Seneca excell it The Conscience which will never lie flatter or play the Hypocrite it often deludes with false Glosses of the Law and Word Experience it rejects and at first easily because but weak at its first setting forth and perhaps brings but a single Witness but at length will so multiply and manage its Evidence as that the
Conscience stands firm and quick it will not fail to detect all its Sorceries To speak out of my own experience it hath already manifested four of its gross Deceits Of the first in the day of Vocation for until then it shews not the depths of its Craft because all Men by Nature set forth into the World much leavened with the Love Lusts and Vanities of the Flesh and as long as the Soul is content to take part with it in wallowing in Sin so long the Heart troubleth not the Soul nor Satan the Heart because his desires prosper in that way which is most pleasing to him because most destructive to Souls neither will he tempt in this State to Superstition or Idolatry because it makes better for his end that neither God nor Religion should come within his thoughts But if the Soul shall become sensible of this Bondage and threaten to leave Egypt that it may sacrifice to God in the Wilderness then the Heart leavened by Satan sets on foot all its Stratagems and if God in favour of the Design raise up a Moses in it and smite the Heart with some noisom Plague or Affliction it cannot bear it makes shew of Repentance and promiseth that if God will remove his Hand it will become a true Leige-man but no sooner is that taken away but it hardens it self as Pharaoh did and will not consent that the Elect Seed shall depart out of its Slavery until the ten Egyptian Plagues have passed upon it for in that Story the Conflicts of the Spiritual and Natural Seeds upon Vocation are shewn in Allegory The second is That after the Soul is manumitted by a strong hand the Heart also enters into Covenant taking upon it the Oath of a holy Life and promising to perform all that Jehovah commands but yet upon the first strait or want murmurs starts aside like a broken Bow oft wishing it self in the Pleasures of Egypt again as sometimes the Sons of Israel did for God will put Trials on his called Ones in the first Journeying and these are to teach us to beware of the like Evils as it is written Now all these things happened unto them for example the original Types and are written for our Admonition upon whom the ends of the World i.e. Age are come Another Admonition we have in good Peter whose Heart being warmed with Love to his Master strait way boasted And though all should be offended with thee yet will not I vehemently affirming that he could die with him rather than deny him and doubtless the good old Man intended to do all he professed but so far his false Heart deceived him as on the appearance of Danger he denied his Master thrice before the next Cock's Crow was finished Which also serves for our Instruction fore-warning us not to boast in our own Strength always to distrust our Hearts and if perchance we be overtaken in Peter's Snares that we may with him renew our selves by bitter Tears The next Deceitfulness of the Heart is now when it entred on the Rule and whole Course of Obedience and persuades it-self its Works are upright before God and done upon the pure Principle of Love towards God and Man but indeed is meerly hypocritical moving upon mercenary hope of Reward or a base servile fear of Punishment not loving Justice and Mercy for Christ's sake not doing good to others for love of them but because they love themselves and hope to be Gainers by their Gift And this I fear is a frequent Evil as Experience teaches for whose was once zealous in Obedience in Duties and Charity and after upon the Incomes of Grace and hope that the Scourge is over becomes cold and remiss therein let them boast of what new Light and Gospel-Liberty they please they will be found Hypocrites Bastards and not Sons and so they may behold themselves in the Glass of their own Conscience For if the Command for Duties be still the same and thy Brother in want as before and thou shalt not communicate in both as formerly where is thy Love or Obedience and how were they formerly sincere No assuredly because thy Fear of Punishment is vanished so also Love and nothing more certain than that it was founded upon some base Foundation And thus the false Heart makes many play the Hypocrite persuading that those Hypocritical Sacrifices were acceptable to God which were verily little better than Swine's Blood And therefore here is great need of watching over the Buddings of the Heart and if upon this account Zeal or Charity languish it ought to be brought before the Judg and its Hypocrisy manifested and that if possible that may be renewed which was ready to die And if this be not done by thy self be assured that he that searcheth the Heart and Reins rendring to every one according to the Fruits of their working will do it and appoint thy portion amongst the Hypocrites But now the fourth and last Treachery of the Heart is whilst it is indeed zealous and perhaps competently faithful in these Duties and pretends that all its performances are as Dross and Dung and i◠〈◊〉 uprofitable â—â—rvant and therefore hath no dependence in them but sâ—â—ply on free Grace but nevertheless doth in its secret thoughts say Soul take thy rest for thou hast much Riches laid up for many Years And this is a sore Evil and frequent and thus Experience discovers it If the Heart say to the Soul Take thy rest there is assuredly some shreds of it but if it say to another who fears the Lord and walks by the Rule whereunto it hath attained Get thee far from me for I am more righteous than thou it hath taken a deep root Or if it boast with the Pharisee I thank God I am not as this Man I fast twice in the Week I pay my Tithes I pray in Spirit and read the Scriptures in Understanding and this Man is carnal he prays by a form of words and reads and understands not the Case is clear For how canst thou prefer thy Holiness to another's that believes in the same Christ and owns him to be Righteousness except thou suppose thou hast inhanced thy Merit by some false Vertue or Performance for this is but the vain boasting of the Heart puffed up with knowledg not considering that not many Wise are called but that God hath chosen the foolish and base things of this World to confound the Wise for it is not the Whole but Sick that stand in need of the Physician of Souls therefore seeing the humble and poor in Spirit are the fit Objects of Grace and Christ hath promised them Blessedness why should not the Heart taught to speak the Truth rather boast that it is enrolled amongst these for I know that whatsoever it thinketh yet it will openly profess that it must be saved by Grace and how knowest thou but he that is the Fool in thine eyes hath more Humility Meekness yea is greater in
calls an immovable immortal Stability And indeed as in this so in all things they both mind the same thing their Weapons which David calls Integrity Tummim Righteousness Truth c. are the same with the Apostle's Armour of Righteousness Now therefore having found out what are the Weapons of this Warfare who the Enemies and what the strong Holds are which we are to subdue we shall now proceed to the manner of the War where first I say 't is perpetual from the day of a Believer's Call until his Consummation Secondly Universal in all Ages and to all the Elect. Lastly One Lord one Christ one Captain of Salvation unto all and as he was made perfect by Suffering so must all his Souldiers Now the first denouncing or proclaiming of this War was in the beginning of Time together with the first Promise of our Leader I will put enmity between thee and the Woman thy Seed and her Seed it shall bruise thy Head thou shalt bruise his Heel Gen. 3.15 Therefore early and irreconcileable was this War and no Cessation of Arms or Parley until one become absolute Victor Also it produces various Successes for sometime the Serpent and his Angels shall prevail as Amalech did against Israel cutting off some of the hindermost weary and slothful but the end shall be the destroying the Beast and false Prophet and taking Captivity captive Lastly It is Universal as the Preacher saith Eccles 8.8 No Man hath power over the Spirit to retain it neither power in the day of Death nor no discharge from this Warfare neither shall wickedness deliver her espoused Ones for this is that Hour of temptation that shall come upon all Flesh and happy shall they be that keep the Word of his Patience 11. Now though the whole Life of a Christian is a perpetual Warfare as no wary Christian who hath made any competent Essays in following and imitating Christ can be ignorant yet are there some more notorious Conflicts and one above all most Certain and Critical Certain because it must come upon all Flesh Critical because none knows the day it shall come and yet according to the decision thereof the success of the future War dependeth and therefore the Magnum Oportet of the Gospel-Church for first there are warrings in the Soul when a Man is called from a natural to a spiritual Estate which at first is legal and again another War when from this legal State we pass over into a State of Grace which indeed is the great and critical Battel c. Lastly There is a perpetual War even under this state of Grace and all these are represented to us in Scripture The first in the case of the Chrildren of Israel the Elect Seed out of Bondage pleasures of the natural Life figured by Pharaoh and his Egyptians in which we are chiefly to contend with Flesh and Blood for as yet spiritual Wickednesses have not molested us because as long as Satan hath the Soul fast in those carnal Fetters he never once troubles it with the Baits of Superstition because his Snares of Lusts do more surely and deeply inthral and plung the Soul into that destruction he aims at and as Pharaoh Jannes and Jambres withstood Moses so the carnal Powers and Wisdom of Man resists by crafty Sorceries the first breathings after God and so desireable is the vassalage of the Spirit of Nature whilst it serveth its Lusts as nothing can break its Chains but Plagues and Miracles from Heaven nor indeed until they be with Pharaoh sunk down into the bottom of the Sea And now here the Soul first inrolls it self as a Souldier in the Warfare of God and hence Jehovah is called The Lord of Hosts the Congregation of Israel the Hosts of God and the Books recording these Passages the Books of the Wars of God particularly mentioning what he did at the Red-Sea and Brooks of Arnon But yet this is not that inrolment which makes the true Souldier of Christ not a Volunteer serving freely and from Love but as I may say a Prest or Mercenary restrained and obedient through the severe Laws of Martial Discipline answering to a legal Obedience which yet in some manner happens even to all in our Gospel-Day for no Man upon his first inlightning becomes straitway a perfect Man of God but must bring it about by beating down one strong Hold after another for though the Power of the Law and the Sting of Death was taken away in Christ's Death yet still the Rule of Evangelical Obedience is to us a Law and as long as a Man legally or litterally obeys it or his false Heart perswades him that by the Works thereof he can work righteously or merit even so long is this Soul under a legal Yoke for what is not purely and simply of Grace that is legal for there is no medium betwixt these so as whilst a Man fights with the Spiritual Weapons legally he is but a legal mercenary Souldier which things by a Figure are represented to us by the Israelites often murmuring in the Wilderness clearly shewing they were led by a mercenary Spirit having their Desires fixed Moses Caleb and Joshua excepted upon the fertility and pleasure of the Promised Land and therefore upon any want of Food Water or the like were ready to forsake Moses the Type of Christ their Leader and to make themselves a Captain and return for Egypt as I fear many Gospel-Professors yet under legal hopes do who perceiving the great ease that Men of the World live under and finding themselves in their legal Performances under straits pinch'd with hunger and thirst and finding no saturity or peace of Mind in that way do again wish they could return to their natural Estate And that this Allegory is according to Truth the Apostle fully witnesseth for says he 1 Cor. 10.2 The Fathers were all baptized into Moses implying in the same similitude as we are into Christ with many of whom God was not well-pleased Now these things were our Greek A Type or Figure Ensamples c. vers 11. written for our admonition that we should not lust after evil things as they lusted not Idolaters not Superstitious not Fornicators not making the Ordinance of God an Idol not tempting of Christ not disponding that he will not or is not able to save in all straits for that which above all displeased God was that upon the return of their Spies they dispaired Moses or rather God was able to drive out their Enemies and give them possession of the promised Land which in all our murmurings ought to teach us that we ought not above all things to distrust our Captain as not able to bring us into the true Rest of God for hitherto God winked at their Rebellions but now sware in his Wrath They shall not enter into his Rest which therefore being a Figure unto us upon whom the ends of the * Gr. Ages World are come Therefore vers 12. let him that
to imitate in all for he not being called to that Trial tho he well knew he was to pass it before thirty years of Age he did not hast into it but was as Nature requires subject to his Mother and supposed Father Joseph and having received the Baptism of John and confirmation of his Witness This is he of whom I spake He that cometh after me c. And lastly a Testimony from the Father This is my beloved Son c. Yet did he not straitway challenge Satan to the Combat but stayed till he was led or as St. Mark hath it driven or compelled by the Spirit to be tempted of the Devil So as from his example we must not thrust our selves upon this Trial until a certain spiritual Compulsion impose it And the like we are taught by a Figure from those Israelites who first murmured because they thought the War was too hard for them but after finding God was angry at their diffidence then they would make their Peace with a presumptuous Attempt before their Call to it and were smitten and pursued unto Hormah by interpretation a cursed thing So as it is desperate to thrust our selves upon this good Fight that is to hasten out of our Legal and Wilderness-Estate until Christ leads and by a certain Spiritual Enforcement drives us unto it 16. But now to discern the time I say when a faithful Servant of Christ begins to perceive in the Inwards of his Mind that he doth not find that lively Relish Peace and Comfort in hearing the Word Prayer and other Duties as formerly he was wont I counsel him straightway to call his Heart under strict examination and betimes to be careful he bring not reproach upon his Conscience for some great matter is at hand either for better or worse And first let him enquire upon this account whether his Soul grow heavy and slothful in his wonted Performances without any trouble from his Conscience And if he do let him be assured it is of Satan who hath gotten a desperate advantage against him and if he beware not will bring him back to Egypt before he is aware and his latter end shall be worse than the beginning But if on the contrary he finds that in this juncture his Hungers and Thirsts after Righteousness encrease and his Desire to Duties and Love to his Brethren faint not then may he hope it is of Christ who now is ready to lead him forth to the Trial of his Faith whereof he may be further assured if he straight shall perceive disorder in his Soul and Mind that is to say Warrings and rumors of Wars For now shall his Heart charge the Conscience that its Government is too rigid and severe that it the Heart hath done all its Commands with faithfulness and yet cannot procure one smiling Look from it And the Conscience shall charge the Heart that it reserves still some hypocritical Corner and darling Sin in a dark place and therefore threatens it with the Law And in the mean time a Thorn in both and a certain Irksomness and fore-dooming in the whole Houshold that Wrath is at hand Persuasion rising against Persuasion and Duty against Duty one charging another with the cause of this Disturbance Faith says Thou hast neglected me and doted upon Works and Duties and Works say No but Sloth in Duty and Alms hath brought these Evils upon us and Prayer says If thou hadst been fervent in my way none of these things had befallen us And this as our Lord foretold is the beginning of Sorrows In the mean while the hungry thirsting Soul is ready to try all ways but if it say with it self 'T was Unbelief and I will now believe it will find no footing for Faith but Distrust increasing If it say My Duties have been few but now I will hear and pray twice for my former once it will be in fact easy to do so but they shall not satiate because he grounds upon a Spiritual Delusion believing that he hath it in his own Fingers by Works to save himself Now if the Soul finding it felf frustrated be convinced that Man lives not by Bread only but by the Word made Flesh a Spiritual Strong-Hold is beaten down and Christ hath got his end But seldom is Satan so easily cast forth and therefore the hungry Soul straight flies to another Delusion namely That it heard not with that attention and diligence it ought to have done Which is a most just Charge upon all and perhaps proceeds from Christ who is now watchful over it for indeed it points at that Confession and Self-condemnation which is the root of the Matter yet still hath a secret implication that it is in a Man's Power to hear with such diligence as may accomplish Peace But upon trial finding that he cannot so set and fix his Heart but it will run after its imaginations in two minutes forgetting its last good resolutions yea perhaps may in the middle of the next Duty fall asleep and he in vain seeks to rouze it up or yet as it happened to the Apostles even in the Combat of our Lord when he bad them watch with him the natural Eyes so heavy as the Soul in all its Vertues cannot persuade them to watch one hour with it Now again if upon this Conviction the Soul concludes 't is a weak unworthy Hearer and cannot hear as it ought unless Christ vouchsafe to hear in it then shall it raze to the ground one of Satan's Master-pieces a Fort-Royal And this may happen in part in a pliant and gracious Soul Yet not usually is the proud Heart of Man so easily humbled but having drawn it in from the Breast of its first Mother will thrust its own Fault upon another Either the Preacher spake not in Spirit and in Life or the Prayer was not lively or Text not well chosen seeing says it I went with a prepared Heart it could not have been if he had spoken to it that such a Sloth could have befallen me and therefore I will go hear another but tho thou change ten times yet assure thy self as long as thou layest the blame here or upon any but thy self thou shalt not tho an Angel preach to thee hear with comfort This therefore being found Vanity and vexation of Spirit the hungry Soul casts about again saying Surely the Ordinances are not rightly administred either the Minister is not rightly called or his laying on by hands was not Orthodox as the Apostles appointed or he is not gifted for the Ministry or the Ordinance it self is not administred in the right Form Now in this as in many of the former there may be a certain truth because these have been and still are disposed for private ends gain and self-interest made sale of even at Simon Magus's price and may call for reformation But to apply it to the present Crisis I say tho these should be reformed to the exact Rule of the Apostles yet
Mercies bountifully as to Noah after the Flood to whom the everlasting Covenant was given to Abraham after his great Sacrifice By my self I have sworn saith Jehovah because thou hast not with-held thy Son thy only Son in blessing I will bless thee c. Also Job was abundantly redintegraced Again at the Waters of Strife where God proved the People and they did but competently sustain it for they murmured yet there he made a new Statute and Ordinance he proved them and gave them a new Promise of which David thus Thou calledst in Trouble and I delivered thee I answered thee in the hiddeness of Thunder Now these things are written for our Instruction and ought to be great consolation to us in the height of our Tribulations when brought by God yea tho both the worldly Cross and Cross of Christ meet upon us at once as they did upon Job yet ought we to undergo them with his Patience and Faith the Lord gives and shall he not take I know I shall come forth as Silver tried in the Fire I know I shall see my Redeemer with these Eyes nay as St. James saith with Joy knowing all things shall be destroyed which are enemies to our Happiness and that preferved purified multiplied and exalted which is a Friend In Ezek. 14. there is this remarkable Passage If I send the Sword Famine noisom Beasts Pestilence to cut off Man and Beast tho Noah Job and Daniel were in it As I live saith the Lord they should neither deliver a Son or a Daughter they should but deliver their own Souls Yet therein shall be left an Escape of Sons and Daughters brought forth and they shall come forth to you and ye shall see their Way and their Actions and ye shall be comforted upon the Evil I have brought upon Jerusalem and you shall be comforted when you see their Way and shall know that I have not done what I have done without cause saith the Lord Jehovah Now this in an Allegory refers to this Trial and these four Evils to that Famine and Plagues which God shall bring in this Day For the Soul shall then hunger after Righteousness and not be satiated in its daily Bread because Christ is withdrawn and that is the Famine And all our Lusts shall perish by the Sword of the Spirit by the Lion of the Tribe of Judah and Pestilence by Noon-day Only the Famine of the Preacher of Righteousness by consumption the Patience of Job and self-judging Wisdom of Daniel shall deliver themselves And out of them shall spring forth a new-born Nature in which shall be comfort and we shall rejoice in the Wisdom and Goodness of God and perceive with Joy how he hath ordered all these to work together for the Good of them that love him and have kept the Word of his Patience 21. Whence therefore I say we ought to pray that we may not be led into this Trial and yet having so done to rejoice in it when the Spirit of God drives to it because he will keep us and that Saying shall be verified in us 1 Cor. 10.13 There hath no Temptation befallen you but such as is common to Men but God is faithful and will not suffer you to be tempted above what you are able but with the Temptation will make a way to the Escape of Noah Job and Daniel and their Sons that you may be able to bear it But it is also remarkable how the Apostle bounds this before and after with the next Context even with those Bounds all the Faithful ought in this Warfare to confine within The first is Wherefore let him that standeth take heed lest he fall namely not to err by presumption of our own Strength or thrust into the Battel as the Horse for who doth so if he fall he hath his amends in his own hands The other bound is Wherefore my Beloved fly from Idolatry which is When the Call cometh make not Duties a Nehushtan but gird up your Loins and follow your Captain believe his Conduct and Banner are sufficient Pledges of Victory for now to rely on Horses or Chariots of your own setting forth is flat Idolatry and Idolatry is the Rock of Perdition in the way And he that thus stands upon his Guard at his Post and confined Station let him count his Temptation all Joy but if he go beyond these let him thank himself for all the Losses and Buffetings he finds 22. Lastly All Men ought to watch hourly for this Hour as oft is admonished under Penalties and Blessings As our Lord Watch for the hour comes as a Thief in the Night Watch for you know not the hour the Lord cometh Be ready for in an hour you think not of the Son of Man cometh and blessed is the Servant who when his Lord cometh he findeth so doing Which is not smiting his fellow-Servants or reproaching them as if he were more holy than they but being humble of Mind sensible of Infirmity diffident of his best performances knowing the Lord will come to try his Heart and Reins And this must be a most excellent preparative Posture foreseeing the far end of the Account is to subdue the Arm of Flesh and to account all our Righteousness by Works as loss and dung for the Cross of Christ it must needs be a good Introduction to know all Flesh is vain and light in the Ballance Now therefore thus prepared set thy Conscience for Watch-man bid it declare whatsoever it seeth and call by Night as well as by Day Watchman what seest thou what of the Night And if he says Behold my Lord comes as a Lion and it is the dead of the Night cease thou from folding thy Hands together rouze up and offer a Peace-Offering and if it shall not be accepted as formerly and thy Watch-man chargeth thee not with Omission Commission or lack of Zeal above wonted Infirmity suspect thy Hour is at hand and if thy Hunger after Christ encrease and satiation in Duties decrease be assured thy Lord cometh to prove thee how far for him thou canst deny all things And if thou be an eater of Herbs observer of Days or a truster in Ordinances of Man or beggarly Elements of the World these will be first required which quickly shake off as the Fig-tree doth her untimely Fruit when shaken by a great Wind. But perhaps next even commanded Duties may be brought under disgrace and then thy Case will be more difficult for they are Holy yet Christ being hid they cannot satiate for it is not the Ordinance that sanctified Christ but Christ the Ordinance thou hast stayed in Prayer and thy Heart was sleepy thy Tongue slow and thy return as blasted Fruit thou hast tried again and wert as a dumb Man without utterance but be not cast down but go the third yea the seventh time perhaps it may be granted thee to sigh and mourn in Spirit how knowest thou but thou mayest find a Tear of Godly Sorrow
count them happy which endure ye have heard of the patience of Job and have seen the end of the Lord that is Patience will make you strong to endure to the end and see wherefore God gave Job Afflictions and Patience namely that he might be perfect lacking nothing Again our Lord speaking of the Great Trial saith In your patience possess your own Souls implying that the hasty and impatient of Spirit over-runs or leaps out of his Soul leaving it to be possessed of Anger Revenge Murmurings and such like brutish Passions But Patience keepeth the possession thereof in meekness and submission to the good pleasure of God so as Patience is one of the seven Pillars of our Warfare cementing and knitting together our Joints that we may stand under the Cross and lastly cryeth Grace Grace to the top Stone of the Building and therefore is the beginning and consummation of the Perfection of that Obedience that Man oweth to his Maker 8. The last of this beautiful Sisterhood is Mercy which is indeed rather two than one The first altogether Divine ever gracious and serene in countenance always present with the most High and dwelleth not in Houses of Clay but so propitious as it is always looking down upon the Sons of Men and so bountiful as there are none who have not tasted of its tenderness but our Subject leading to such Vertues as vouchsafe to dwell on Earth we shall pass this over The other also is of Heavenly Seed begot by the same Father but born of a Mother sprung from the Womb of Sarah to the end it might pitch its Tent among Men and instruct them to imitate the Father of all in Love Patience Long-suffering and pity towards all Men but especially to the Poor Hungry Naked or under Tribulation or Wants and also to minister in agreeable Supplies to them and therefore is of larger Heart and Arms than her other Sisters for whilst they only take care of things for the Family at Home this like it's Father in liberality careth for and extends its Goodness into every corner of the Land for it is the Mother of Charity and Founderess of Hospitals and Alms-Houses Yet if we consider it in reference to her Mother's House it is but of low and despised Parentage for the Seed thereof is vileness and contempt in its own Eyes For until the Soul hath fully learned by sure experience what need it stands of that Mercy which dwells above it can never be perfect in its Duty beneath because that is the Key that openeth its Bowels towards others and therefore our Lord that he might be perfect in all things touching our Redemption vouchsafed to take such a state upon him as stood in need of Mercy from above as it is written He took not on him the Nature of Angels but the Seed of Abraham for in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his Brethren that he might be a merciful and a faithful High Priest for in that he suffered being tempted he is able to succour them that are tempted so as by suffering under the Cross Christ learned this Vertue and so must we Eminent also is it amongst Graces drawing upon it self all the sweet and comfortable Blessings its Heavenly Sister hath prepared above as our Lord saith Blessed are the Merciful on Earth for they shall find Mercy from Heaven And so our Psalmist With the Merciful thou God wilt shew thy self merciful And again The Righteous is ever merciful and lendeth and his Seed is blessed so as Heavenly Gifts Blessings are intailed-Rewards upon the Merciful upon Earth It was well said of the Heathen Orator It shall never repent thee that thou hast shewn Mercy when it was in thy power to have executed Revenge Again saith Solomon He that is merciful doth good to as if he would say have mercy upon his own Soul Our Lord also enjoyneth it in these pressing words Love your Enemies do good and lend hoping for nothing and ye shall be the Children of the most High for he is kind to the unthankful and evil be ye therefore merciful as your Heavenly Father is merciful So that to be merciful on Earth as God is in Heaven is to love to do good to lend and expect nothing to be kind to the Unthankful and Evil and the Reward is to be the Children of the most High Again in reproof to the Pharisees They that are whole need not a Physician go and learn what this meaneth I will have Mercy and not Sacrifice where Mercy is preferred to the Rule of commanded Duties under the Law and doubtless also in our day to those Gospel-Duties which in the Divine Allegory are figured by Sacrifices And in another place Wo unto you Scribes and Pharisees ye pay tithe of Mint Annise and Cummin but have omitted the weightier matters of the Law Judgment Mercy and Faith 9. And now here to express my own Doubts I fear lest some of us nay indeed all in some degree do even as the Scribes did too slightly pass over these more substantial parts of Holy Duties and put too much weight upon a formal hearing or reading of the Word and Prayers oft I fear used more out of custom than a gracious sence of our own Spiritual Wants as if in these the Sinews of Religion consisted when indeed they are but preparatory Means and supporting helps in and for our fuller and stedfaster performance of the other for we ought not to hear for hearingsake or to spend one day in seven in a solemn meeting together with the old leven of Malice and lustings of the Flesh in our Hearts But the great ends of Hearing is first That we believe in the Promises for Faith comes by hearing Another end of Hearing is That we may be instructed from the Word in the Vertues Graces and Duties God requires at our Hands which are Love Joy Peace Long-suffering Gentleness Goodness Faith Meekness Temperance against which there is no Law And again Add to Faith Vertue to Vertue Knowledge to Knowledg Temperance Patience Goodness Brotherly-Kindness Charity for if these things abound they make that we shall neither be barren or unfruitful and to these we need not add Humility and Mercy because in them they are fully complexed so that we hear not that we may be present at the Duty or as if in it the measure of our Righteousness were fulfilled but we hear that we may learn the Promises and we learn them that we may believe and obtain Faith which is a Master-Builder and also that we may know what those Graces are in which Faith is made perfect which is this Sisterhood for Faith is not perfect until so meek and humble as it sees all Duties yea Vertues and it Self too vile in its own eyes and be so established in Promises and Experiences as stedfastly and without wavering it believeth that Christ is able to save to the uttermost and willing to do it for all that so
the Hungry for they shall be filled c. Wo to the Rich for they have received their Consolation Wo to the Full for they shall hunger c. Luke 6.10 Now compare this with Mat. 5.2 and it is clear that the Poor and Hungry are spiritually meant and therefore it were hard to suppose the Rich and Full are only literal Again They that will be rich fall into Temptation and many hurtful Lusts which drown in Perdition For the Love of Money is the Root of all Evil Which whilst some have coveted they have been seduced from the Faith and pierced through with many Sorrows Which is more effectual in Spirit than Letter Solomon thus There is one that makes himself rich and is not there is another that makes himself poor and Riches abound Which is as much as There is one who would save his Life and loseth it and another who would lose his Life and saveth it He that hastens to be rich shall not be innocent And sundry Texts to the like purpose And thus whilst the Word is interpretable in both sences it cuts as a two-edged Sword teaching two Duties in one Precept for the one doth not interfere with the other but each mutually interprets the other And if I mistake not this is more frequent than they are supposed For the Spiritual things signified by Man and Wife do not disanul the Literal Duties of Wedlock nor doth Spiritual Whoredom which is Idolatry excuse the Sinfulness of Fornication no more than a Spiritual Sodom and Egypt deny that that once was and this yet is in the Letter So there is a Spiritual Adam Israelite Jerusalem c. And therefore the Precept Promise and Punishment belong to both Spiritual and Literal Obeyers or Transgressors and in most Cases more especially to the Literal yet not always namely because the Letter is direct plain to all and the other is in a Mystery Again what the Letter requires is oft-times manifest to be just in the Glass of Nature so as none can pretend Ignorance but the Spiritual sence is oft mistaken and the Usurer and Adulterer oft do evil whilst they think they do well 5. Now this Usury or Covetousness is in respect of the nature of Works either Legal or Evangelical that trusting in such Merit as is gained by the Arm of Flesh and this hopes for Gain in the Works of its own Spirit mistaking its own which lusteth after Vanity for the Spirit of God and worketh as the Apostle calls it Spiritual Wickedness in high Places into which whilst some boast of the Spirit have fallen supposing themselves wise and righteous until Christ come to try the Spirit Heart and Reins And this usually falls in when having received a new Talent in Grace we fall chearfully to the Work and supposing our Work much better as indeed it is than under Legal Services we presently say with Peter What shall we now that we work in Spirit and Grace have greeding after Usury from God when indeed we ought to put our Talent to the Money-Changers upon his account and patiently to wait for the encrease First knowing that he who runs best so runs because God is with him and blesseth him and himself no better than Nay nay Secondly That God alone knows what and when to give Thirdly That yet a very little while and he that is to come will come and will not tarry beyond the fitness of Time and will reward us both with Principal and Interest Well done thou good and faithful Servant c. Thou hast been faithful over a little rule thou over ten Cities 6. And now this Precept Give not thy Money c. in this Acceptation falls in close with the Link aforesaid that is Having now followed the Captain of our Salvation into Death forsaking all for him and acknowledging our selves vile yet love the meanest of his Fold and lastly having his Promise and given our Yea and Nay to him at the first setting forth we fall to the Work in great hope and cheerfulness and as one whose Heart is warmed in Love not doubting to give a good account of our Stewardship hoping with Micha I know that the Lord will now bless me seeing I have a Levite for my Priest that is have the Spirit for my Priest and work in Grace not yet perceiving as the Parable hath it that Christ having again set us right in the New Covenant goes into a far Country not forsaking us but withdrawing his more immediate Presence from us but to prove us how we can manage our new Talent and thence teach us that in our best State we are as nothing without him 7. And now tho this our Confidence is not without cause yet rarely is it free from Spiritual Ostentation yet not the old one which leaned upon fleshly Confidence for together with the Old Man that perished but another which riseth up in the New Man and makes its boast of worshipping in the Spirit and is but a change from carnal to spiritual Wickedness and Idolatry For before we made the Flesh and now we make the Spirit Co-partner and Fellow-workman with Christ to effect what lacketh which again stops the willing Rivolets of free Grace which is incompatible with a Helper for if it give not simply upon the account of its sole Goodness no respect had to any other Workman or Work it loseth both Name and Nature for as Infiniteness is not infinite if it have an end so neither can Grace be Grace if it have any respect to another's Work or Merit Not that now the Faculties of the Mind ought to rest or Working is ceased but verily the Soul Body and Spirit ought now to labour more abundantly because until this was known they could not labour in pure Grace which is the Harvest for unless the Reaper doth labour much and not in Merit the Garners cannot be filled with pure Wheat And therefore Satan taking advantage of the Spirit of Man lusting to Pride set forth an Imp of Antichrist in the appearance of a Spirit of Light which joining it self to the Spirit of Man enlightned as was said seeks to persuade it it is the Spirit of God and like as the false Spirit deceived Ahab beguiles the Soul of its encrease in Grace and pure Religion save only as Grace that it may appear gracious steals in here a little and there a little in those Periods when least expected for sense of Infirmity and Breach of Spirit are the Opportunities of Grace 8. And now when Christ comes to prove all by Fire it proceeds much in the manner of our former Warfare but as I may say in a reverted Order as Peter's Crucifying was the reverse of our Lord's his Feet upwards of which Christ solemnly admonished him John 21.19 Follow thou me and we may presume was written for our Instruction And in such Order our first and second Trials differ For in the first carnal Confidence was smitten down and a way opened
Watchmen wake if the Lord do not keep the City 10. And now this I say is the Spiritual Wickedness which in this Warfare we are to contend against but yet are not to expect it now in that great and terrible manner as here it is described because he here speaks of it as it shall appear in the day of Christ's coming to take vengeance of the Man of Sin then to be revealed and also as it shall fall upon the Universal Church of God in the full Spirit and Strength of this Delusion And therefore he vers 2. bidds them not be shaken in Mind or troubled as if the Day of Christ were at hand of which more by and by which I take it is the same spoken of Rev. chap. 19 20. touching the Battel of Gog and Destruction of the false Prophet the Spirit of Delusion working the Signs and lying Wonders mentioned by Paul Vers 9 c. But that we speak of is as it doth fall upon particular Saints and Churches according to the measure of the Spirit of Delusion as it is already come for in early days it set forth as is written 1 John 4.3 2 Thess 2.7 Whereof ye have heard that it should come and even now already it is in the World But of this universal we shall add no more save that the particular works in the same express manner but in all respects in a much fainter measure If there was there a falling away first a shaking in Mind and revelation of the Son of Perdition so here also must be as it were a little Wheel within a great Wheel For as in the day of the Law many Sons of Israel David Solomon Isay Joel c. had a prospect of the abolishment thereof nakedness of Sacrifices and felt some Throws of the Cross unto Regeneration and some tastes of the sweetness of Grace and yet could not become perfect in either nor liable to the Temptations thereof in their full strength until the day of those things came in power So in our Gospel-day many have a prospect of this Day and a sense of the Glory Workings and Temptations thereof in their as I may say little Wheel 11. Now to come to the particular Trial I say it consisteth as that of the Cross did in many smaller Bickerings and Assaults but is determined in an universal deciding Battel which happens not until the Soul comes near to the measure of Perfection it can in this Life attain for as the great Day of Christ's Victory over Gog and Magog was before the general Consummation but a short space so is this in the particular And to this John seems to allude 1 John 2.18 Little Children it is the last time and as ye have heard Antichrist shall come Even now are there many Antichrists whereby we know it is the last time Not hereby signifying that the last and great Antichristian Day and Trial or last Time was then come for not only he himself shews in the Revelation that that Day was far off but Paul also Be ye not shaken as if the Day of Christ were at hand And therefore here he must refer to some particular Church or Saints who were near to this particular Trial which in reference to them was the last time And to begin with the smaller Onsets I say Christ having made us once more right in his sight he departs into a far Country leaving us to the managing of the New Covenant on part In which the Spirit of Man having received Rule over the Arm of Flesh broken and vile in it self and verily a Commission to be chief Priest in offering all Sacrifices of Prayer Confession and Praises and also to work in free Grace it sets forth in great Zeal and Jollity resolving in Faithfulness as far as it knows its own Mind to keep its Yea and Nay little suspecting that the Seed of Antichristianism is in it brooding and ready to break forth yea and by the assistance of Satan shall be able to bring it into a more wretched Captivity than that of Babylonish Superstition was if its Lord do not return in due time to rescue it For now the Soul being a little puffed up with its high Privileges and the Spirit apt to lust after Vanity Satan takes his advantage for when we think we stand fastest we are in greater danger of slipping than when we are under sense of Infirmity for he that thinks he walks sure seeks not for further support but who fears he may fall seeks one upon whom he safely leans And therefore never was more need of regenerated Fear Jara than now But it being in this State very faint Satan who still applies to them he tempts in such Delusions as they are most prone to be ensnared in and therefore setting forth his Antichristian Brat in the form of pure Piety it extolls the excellencies of the Spirit No Sacrifice is acceptable without thee thou art not like that poor legal Soul that hungers and eats Husks greedily and yet cannot be satisfied but thou canst preach and pray and give praise hear read and interpret in Spirit And now perhaps this is in a good measure true and by giving the Glory to God saying It is so because thou art with me and keepest me the Temptation will slide off without much harm But if upon this the Spirit begin to think better of it self then hath Satan laid a Foundation upon which he will build Be not therefore high-minded but fear Next he will set it upon a Pinacle of the Temple See says he thou art above Ordinances and Forms the Holy City and Publick Assemblies are under thy Feet be assured God loves thee so well as he hath set a sure Guard upon thee to keep thee from all Evil the Sun by day nor Moon by night the Noon-day Pestilence nor Midnight-Arrow shall harm thee if thou shouldest fall thou canst not be bruised if thou shouldest chance to slip and sin God will not see any Sin in thee And now if thou answer Tho all thy words were true yet can I not take thy Counsel I dare not tempt the Lord my God I dare not break my Yea and Nay as far as my God will be with me and help me s far will I eschew all Sin and appearance of Evil then shall it go well with thee indeed But if these Delusions make any dint upon thee as it is deep and wide so shall thy Loss be that is If thou slight them that legally fear if thou thinkest meanly of the least Ordinance if thou nibble at Sin because Grace abounds surely thy Enemy hath got a great Victory over thee and which is worse he hath so blinded thine Eyes that thou criest Victory victory growest supine and boasts of thy new-gained Wisdom in that it hath shaken off so many needless Signs Forms and Criticisms which were useless Incumbrances to thee And verily if thy Friend awake thee not thou whilst thou promisest thy self Liberty art
the Servant of Corruption 2 Pet. 2.19 and thy latter end worse than the beginning And next follows Usury the Soul boasting of the Spirit and its Works in Grace to a rejection of what it thinks is useless and superstitious it now looking upon it self as pure in Spirit and rich in Grace it asks with Peter I have forsaken all for thee and what shall I have In which Christ's Answer to Peter is our best Directory namely Inasmuch as thou hast followed me into Regeneration thou shalt not lose thy Reward but when I sit on my Throne fitting Thrones shall also be prepared for thee and over many things thou shalt judg but the hundred-fold Reward the everlasting immoveable State is not yet ready thou must first forsake Father and Mother Wisdom and Understanding Wife and Children Obedience tho in Regeneration and Fruits begot by thee the humane Spirit upon it thou must esteem them too slight to expect Usury upon them And in a word all thy acquired Substance thou must but enjoy as if it were not Thou O Spirit thinkest thy self first but thou must be last and the last first There is an empty Innocence which comes last and yet will be in Glory before thee And to this our Lord adjoins the Parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard shewing that neither long Labour nor bearing the heat of the Day nor repining at our short Pay will obtain Interest-Money but that must at the length come through free Grace giving to all where none have merited And if we can thus work and be content with our Penny driving away Usury as well as Sloth and patiently wait until he see fit to reward us with his precious Gifts then all shall do well with us But if we say Our Service is faithful our Ways right and our Works in Grace we are in favour with God so as he hath already given us Wisdom and Knowledg above our Teachers we hope before long to have the Gift of Prophecy of Healing of Miracles of Interpretation for so vain is this Spirit of Man as to these things it dare aspire and boastingly call our own Spirits the Spirit of God when indeed it is the Spirit of Man led by the Spirit of Antichrist who always pretends to Prophecy and Miracles and verily in the universal Warfare shall obtain them to the deceiving of many Revel 19.20 And tho in the particular it hath not so far attained as yet yet hath it often pretended to such things a Dream a Vision a Prodigy which it interprets and thinks God is obliged to make its words good And of the same Spirit and Leaven they are who by their Prayers hope to prevail or rather to charm God to do Miracles on their behalf whose Faith is Presumption their Prayers Charms and their Religion spiritually Drunkenness And now when Satan hath brought the Spirit to this pass it resolves to give one Push more for the Dominion Come let us slay the Heir and the Inheritance shall be Ours For now the Spirit of Antichrist claims all Dominion to it self exalting it self above all called God and as God sitteth in the Temple of God the Body denying in substance That Christ is come in the Flesh or hath any Right there but counts it its Slave and Reason and all things besides it self Unclean and Rejected things And now shall this Wicked One fill the measure of its Iniquity and be revealed and the Lord shall consume it with the Spirit of his Mouth and destroy it with the Brightness of his Coming 12. And now the Great Trial draws near Where first Observe That in the Pequeerings aforesaid we have alwayes stated the Case in the Extreams That is when the Soul resists the Temptation as it ought according to the Example of Christ Who was tempted in all things like unto us but without sin which whilst we imitate tho in sin this Trial will end in few throws rather Rebukes of Love than Anger But on the contrary as we represent it Overcome by the Tempter it oft perisheth by the way or at the best is but saved as a Brand pluck'd out of the Fire and these are rare Cases and most usually the Lot is cast between both in various degrees and still according to the measure of faithfulness or of failing so the ease or difficulty of the trial and in this mediocraty in the ensuing we represent it that is as in part faithful to its Yea and Nay in part overcome by Antichristian Pride 13. And things come to this pass Christ who like the true Shepherd loves the Sheep and will not loose a Hoof of what was given him returns in the nick of Time long before foreseen and decreed and demands an account of the improvement of his new lent Talent bringing that Fire with him whereby he will try every mans Work and forasmuch as the trial by Fire sometime hinted at by the Apostles is the same with this it behoves that we first take our Measures from 1 Pet. 4.12 Beloved think it not strange touching the Fiery Trial which is to try you as if some strange thing happened unto you but rejoyce inasmuch as ye are made partakers of Christs Sufferings that when his Glory shall be revealed ye may be glad with exceeding Joy Whence it appears First That this Trial is a common thing and none exempted Secondly That even our Lord did partake with us therein That is tho he Suffered but once for all yet in that once he suffered all that his Members suffer at many times Thirdly To rejoyce in it because thence exceeding Joy shall accrue to us when He shall so appear Fourthly From vers 14. We must then be reproached for Christ Who shall be evil-spoken by them i. e. Antichrists but glorified on our part Lastly Vers 19. That now it behoves We commit the keeping our Souls unto God who created them and is faithful Again besides what Paul teacheth of the Universal Day of which before again thus 1 Cor. 3.10 I have laid the Foundation namely Christ and other Foundation can no man lay than that is laid Now if any man Build upon this Foundation Gold Silver Pretious-Stones Wood Hay Stubble every mans Work shall be made manifest for the Day shall declare it because it shall be revealed by Fire and the Fire shall try every mans Work of what sort it is If any mans Work abide which he hath built thereupon he shall receive a Reward if any mans Work be burnt he shall suffer Loss but he himself shall be Saved yet so as by Fire Know ye not thae ye are the Temple of God and the Spirit of God dwelleth in you See unto vers 22. And now whereas before all Saints now all Works must pass this Trial. 2. This Trial is that whereby our Bodies are made Pure Temples to the Spirit of God namely That which confesseth Christ to be come in the Flesh and that the Dominion thereof belongs to him Vers 17.
was sufficient for thee I left with thee also my Cloud by Day and Fire by Night I sent before thee What could I have done more to my Vineyard than I have done And now how hast thou performed thy Yea and Nay To which the Soul must reply according as the Spirit of Antichrist hath obtained less or more Dominion and where that is much it boasts All that thou hast required I have done but whatsoever it be all its works must be brought to the Trial. And tho Antichrist knowing his time is short rage and bustles In thy Name we have Wrought Preached Prophecied done Miracles his Answer shall be I know thee not nor none of thine and so all Works which are of him or of Pride or Lust or Usury shall fall as stubble before the consuming Fire and that which the Soul esteemed a fair heap of lasting Treasure is brought to a small Remnant or perhaps to Nothing but all perished as Babylon did in one hour and Job's sad Messengers come one in the heels of another thy Plowing is at an end nothing left but Burnt-offerings and Sacrifices Fire from Heaven hath consumed them all thy Camels by Interpretation Retributions or Recompensations the Superstitious Chaldean have carried away thy Sons and thy Daughters supinely Banqueting in the House of they First-born the Wind from the Wilderness or the Spirit from the Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 smote the House and it fell upon the young men and they are dead and we alone of all thy Servants are escaped to tell thee And now if the Soul with Job fall down to the Ground and worship Naked I came naked I go the Lord gave the Lord hath taken away and blessed is his Name and so not sin nor charge God foolishly the Heb. is not give to God a tastless thing all its Sorrow shall be turned into Joy and God shall reward it double 17. But Job being a man of Thummim raised up by God in the perfection of Patience to the end he might be an Example for us to follow read and consider Jam. 5. unto 12. which refer to this Trial Go howl ye Vsurers c. he yet saw fit to bring further Trials upon him for his Body tho he had kept it as the Temple of the Holy Ghost was smit with Leprosie from the Soal of his Foot to the Crown And lastly his Wife set her self against him Wilt thou still retain thy Thummim thy Perfection by Consumption Give a * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Some read Curse as the Engl. but the Heb. will not bear it Blessing to God in thine own actual Righteousness and Merit and so make thy Peace and Die Yet could not this nor his three Miserable Comforters provoke him to sin in his Lips Again we find here Satan a great promoter of Job's Misery Touch him but and he will forsake his Thummim and Bless thee to they Face And again Touch but his skin c. and all to the end he might either provoke him to Bless God in his own Righteousness or to make him Murmure and offend God in his Tongue and doubtless so Satan will do with all who with Job keep their Integrity Thummon and are jealous over their own Hearts and Ways as he was over his Sons lest they should work in Merit but sure it is not so in the other extream namely where the Son of Perdition hath prevailed to the obtaining the destruction he sought And here we are warned how it behoves all in this day to beware of these Evils Satan sought to plunge Job into as most desprate namely not to Bless God in Vsury or boasting with some Gift of our own c. Nor lastly Not to murmure repine or distrust God But forasmuch as Job sate down in Ashes and cursed his day Chap. 3.1 It is manifest he was under great Consternation and Confusion and so must all others be even trembling with Isaac and apt to murmure with Esau Hast thou not one Blessing for me Have I now followed thee long and endured much and hast thou forgot to be gracious 18. And now Satan knowing this is his last opportunity bestirs himselfe to draw this Dispondency into Dispair and Rebellion and to that end sets before the Soul its former faithfulness Thy complaints saith he are just an austere Master thou hast served in a long Pilgrimage and what could have done more to please than thou hast Out of the pleasantenjoyments of the World he called thee in the prime of thy Youth and thou followedst him into a howling Wilderness Next He gave thee a Sweat paid him the purest Sacrifice thou wast able all was rejected for no other reason but because they were thine own and now having quit all thy Wages due for them thou upon pleasing hopes of a New Covenant nailedst thine Ear to his Post and didest cast thy self upon his Grace and Bounty and yet new Sorrows seize upon thee and all as thy Case now stands thou art like to reap is the Labour for thy pains And then setting it upon a high Mountain surely saies he If thou hadst chosen me thy Master thou hadst had a more pleasant Service and bountiful Master and then shewing it all the vain Glory of the World all these saith he are at my disposal and if thou wilt yet Serve and Worship me I will give thee a large and Princely Portion therein and more also if thou ask it I will enhance thy Desires to utmost content and pleasure Let not That word Pleasure grate in thy Ears Sin as if Perdition follows it I mean Lawful Pleasure for I will not give thee upon conditions only accept and temper my Gifts with Love or Charity or Justice as thou wilt for I will require no account of the abundance I give thee for many of my servants have built Monasteries Almes-houses and Hospitales But again consider how often thou hast begged of thy Master with tears and gone away empty and what was it that thou didest ask was it not to do him better service Thon askedst Wisdom and if he had granted was it not in thy heart to set forth his Goodness and Praise If he had given thee the Gifts of Prophecy wouldest thou not have prophecied in his Name and to his People as to his Glory the Prophets of old did If the Gift of Tongues I know thou wouldest have expounded Law and Prophets Gospel and Epistles to the honour and good of his Kingdom and encrease and fealty of his Subjects If he had set thee among Princes and Magistrates wouldest thou not have done Justice and Mercy and pleaded the Cause of the Fatherless Widow Poor and Oppressed Hast thou not often beseeched him to enable thee to walk more closely and holily with him than formerly thou hast done How often hast thou desired to draw near unto him upon his promise that he would draw near to thee and yet he sets himself afar off from thee He hath told thee
If thou believe in me and ask in my Name all shall be granted and hast thou not both believed and asked and yet hast not received but thy answer was Thou askest and hast not because thou askest to bestow upon thy Lust Is not this thy case Knock without him and none will open seek him to knock for thee and he hideth himself What therefore canst thou do more to this Master than thou hast already done yet what evidence hast thou got or what evidence hast thou that thy Works are accepted Why therefore dost thou spend thy time and self for nothing Break off this sullen obscure Life take a little ease before thou go hence and vanish into soft Air Hast not thou Parts and Gifts to make thee eminent among Men Art not thou as able to stand before Princes as many others who by a blameless compliance have gotten great Honour and Riches Be not therefore wise or righteous too much why wilt thou make thy self desolate Leave therefore this simpering Life and trie but my Service and the Riches and Pleasures of the World shall be thine which thou mayest use as thou pleasest none shall say why art thou good why prodigal why hoardest thou up why hast thou done thus And now I say if in this great Temptation the Soul stand fast it shall shortly tread down Satan under its Feet 19. And tho to answer Satan with our Lord Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only c. is the sovereign Cordial of all yet seeing for our further Instruction the holy Writers have enlarged further it behoves we enquire into their teachings St. James thus Chap. 5.8 Be patient Brethren until the coming of Lord. Be patient stablish your Hearts for the coming of the Lord draws nigh Ver. 10. Take the Prophets who have spoken in the Name of the Lord for an example of suffering Affliction and of Patience Behold we count them happy who endure Ye have heard of the Patience of Job and have seen the end of the Lord that he is pitiful and of tender Mercy But above all things swear not c. Whence it is manifest that Patience in this Crisis is a strong Fortress and Job's Patience and Example particularly recommended and above all things pernicious to swear in our own strength Thirdly not to murmur He gave he hath taken blessed be his Name Fourthly not to offend in words It also is of moment to observe at what the advice of Job's Friend tended and what he more righteously defended for their Plea still was that the Innocent and Righteous were never cut off and therefore Job was deep in Sin Self-confidence c. His Answer was that he was as righteous as they and therefore boasted much of his Righteousness in Tummim I cannot says he depart from it yet defending it was God's just Prerogative to afflict the Righteous as he pleased and yet to suffer the Tents of the Robbers to flourish but the end of these are miserable and those full of happiness And therefore sometimes he desires God not to spare Job 6.9 10. as if he would say Tread hard for nothing in me that is good wilt thou harm but the evil which makes me unripe for thy Mercy thou wilt consume And doubtless in this to conform to him is acceptable that is still holding his Faith I know my Redeemeer liveth Job 19.25 20. Another Example we have from the Prophet David Psal 77.2 In my Straits I sought the Lord my hands failed or were poured forth and ceased not my Soul refused consolation I remembred God and I tumultuâ—ted I meditated and my Spirit fainted Thou heldest mine eyes waking I was shaken and I spake not I considered the ancient days of Mountain-Worship and the Years or Changes of the Gospel-Ages to come I remember in the Song in former Darkness in my Heart I did contemplate and my Spirit made diligent search Will the Lord cast off in the hidden Age Will he be bountiful no more Is his Mercy clean gone for ever his Sayings to generation and generation quite failed Hath God forgot to be merciful hath he in anger shut up his Mercies Then said I This is my Infirmity these are the changes of the right-hand of the Most High I called the Works of Jah i. e. Christ to mind for thy marvellous Works from the ancient times I will remember Who is so great a God as our God! With thine Arms thou hast redeemed c. Which gives yet further light how we may fortify and ease our minds in this state namely to consider all former experiences of God's gracious dealing with us under the Law and Gospel and other particular Trials and thence argue Did God call us in our Natural State and save us in our Legal Warfare and will he now cast us off in the Gospel-State and break the Promises of Grace And lastly to conclude this is through my Infirmity and these are but the Changes of the Most High upon all his Elect for their good as in another place Psal 55.19 Because they have no Changes therefore they fear not God thence implying that all fearing God must undergo like Changes and therefore why shall I take this as if some strange thing had happened to me but rather rejoyce my Lot is fallen with Job David nay with Christ whom I will call to mind what he did for me in the War under the Cross and ever since I first knew him Who is so great a God who so powerful a Redeemer as He c. In Allegory this Trial by Fire is represented by the Burning at Taborah but in a far more tragical manner even unto blood for as the failing so the Penalty Numb 11. For after many Blessings and Mercies and as yet no defects in their Tents the People fell a lusting after base and mean Usury and murmured offending in Heart and Tongue for they had the Tabernacle newly reared and the Cloud by day and Fire by night which were sure Signals that the Divine Presence was with them and and they could not be out of the right way And for Food they had Angels Bread so qualified as he that gathered most had no spare nor he that gathered least any lack he that ate most could not surfeit nor who least went not away hungry yet so mercenary was their Spirits and greedy after gain and lastly so meritorious they thought their forsaking of Egypt at God's call was as they murmured at their Penny The Hebrew reads The People as it were made themselves complain or lament that is they made cause of complaint where no curse was for their pretence was That Angles food was not good enough All we have is Manna our Souls are dried up And their cry was In Egypt we had dainty Sallads forgetting that they had Brickils too and we have forsaken them at Jehovah's call who will give us Flesh which verily taken in the Gospel-sence are the express words of a Gospel-Usurer I
in yea yea to perform his determinate purpose And in the resisting of evil he ought to behave himself in the like manner only this distinction admitted if he have resisted evil sin calamities c. And hath not obtained he ought to say with Job Shall we receive Good at the hand of God and not Evil and yet to mourn with them and bear a share of their grief upon whom the Calamity fal's and yet so to mourn as not mourning knowing that his Resistance his not Succeeding his Mourning and Calamity work all together for the accomplishing the Counsels of God 29. Whence I say as far as this heavenly Fire hath consumed our lusts and subdued our wills to the will of God so far have we Peace and Rule as Kings with God and what is short retain's a Leaven which may produce bitterness and though few or none have attained yet no one which ought not to press hard after this mark as Paul Phil. 3.14 First despising Legal Righteousness touching which he was blameless He next rejoyceth in the Cross of Christ being made conformable to his Death And 3dly Speaks of a third state of perfection which he laboured after and had not attained which I suppose was that we now speak of For say's he If by any means I might attain unto the resurrection of the dead not as if I had already attain'd or were perfest but I follow after that I may apprehend that for which Christ apprehended me Bretheren I count not my self to have apprehended but this one thing forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth to the things that are before I press towards the mark for the prize of the high Calling of Christ Now these things manifestly refer to things of a sublime matter not yet attain'd by Paul but were attainable The first is To attain to the Resurrection of the dead Which by comparing 1 Cor. 15.51 52. We shall not all sleep but we shall he changed with 1 Thes 4.15 We which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep Whence I take this that Paul press'd after to be the perfection the dead in Christ shall arise in or that those which remains alive at his coming shall in this Life have attain'd namely that Innocency which in a moment may be changed into Incorruption And the second to apprehend that for which I am apprehended c. is much the same thing as by comparing these with 1 Thes 5.10 Who died for us that is apprehended us that whether we awake to the last or in the interim fall asleep we should live together with him And the third The prize of the high calling of God in Jesus Christ is the Close and Crown of all as in another place I have fought the good Fight I have finish'd my Course I have kept the Faith henceforth a Crown of Righteousness the Prize of the high Calling is laid up for me And now I say the burnings up of the lusting of the humane Spirit is the Threshold of this Resignation and it of these three attainments Paul pressed after for it consumates Perfection in Soul in Body and Spirit also it works in Gold in the Spirit of Love Faith Patience for greater Love on the part of mortals cannot be than to give up himself and all his to his Beloved nor greater Faith than in full ease and assurance to trust him withal nor greater Patience than to be sick of Love and yet to charge the Solliciters of her Nuptials by the Hinds and the Roes not to awake her Beloved until he please And surely this Resignation signed there remains nothing save such like Love passages until the day of Espousals come 30. Not taking a or the Reward upon Innocency or upon the Innocent for so all read and in both senses it may pass as of so necessary a performance as they that transgress cannot attain the immoveable State for a whole current of Scripture requires all men the Magistrate especially to defend the cause of the Innocent Widdow Fatherless and Oppressed recording it as a principle part of that Religion which is pure and undefilled in the sight of God And whereas the Scripture describes Justicers to bear to the Image of God the just Judge af the whole Earth above other high Callings among the Sons of men and placeth Justice upon two Pillars bringing the wicked to just punishment and rescuing the Innocent from oppression it rather gives the right hand of fellowship to this second part and to say all in one word God ownes it among the lofty Attributes ascribed to himself And our Lord among these weighty matters the Father required him to execute in the Earth Art thou a Magistrate surely then thou hast a Gift in thy hand which may promote thee to great honour in Heaven and in Earth but beware that thou abuse it not for to justify the Wicked and condemn the Innocent will make thee stink on Earth and gnash thy teeth in Hell 31. But yet this hath a further and more Spiritual meaning namely That man being emptied of all his fleshly confidence and spiritual Pride and drawn near to that Innocency capable to be attained by mortals This Precept the last Link of this golden chain teacheth him how to receive the reward that is not upon the account of his Innocency but still as the free gift of Grace Isai 33. hath it thus who shaketh off his hands from being supported in the reward that is not serving as a Hireling or expecting the reward as having obeyed but leaves all to the bounty of his Master whose Love he hath so often proved Now therefore the tenour of this Precept is that though a man have obtained all that perfection and innocency that Tammin the Cross and Resignation the Fire of God can give yea all that perfection Paul pressed after yet may he not upon this account stretch forth his hand to receive the reward but take it upon naked and free Grace from one that owes him nothing and that verily all his Perfection and Innocency only makes him capable of receiving what Grace offers 32. For the better understanding of this it behoveth that we first enquire what Innocency is and upon what it stand's for it remarkably differs from the rest of the Sisterhood of Gifts and Vertues First in its Original for of all it was first born before man even with the first void and empty Earth next in the Light Air Water Earth and first Elements of things so as it most especially before it was in Act In-bread and not acquired which is rare in other Vertues for Love is not Love until it doth Love nor is Patience until it suffer patiently c. Again of all other it is neat curious and gentle serene as Chrystal but tender as a bubble of Water in some respect and strong as Iron in another for from without itself no Enemy can harm it though Sin
and Satan assault it with Hammer and Anvil it laughs and smiles at the Attempt without paine or loss but so tender from within as to tast of a forbidden Apple makes it vanish quite away for such a constiution it hath that the least spot or blemish in any part defiles it in the whole and so defiled it is no longer innocency and therefore was early chassed out of the Earth and returned not again until the Immaculate Lamb of God espoused it and brought it back again but neither did Innocency restored long inhabit the Earth in one entire piece but returned to Heaven with its Spouse yet not so departed as it hath forsaken its Interest on Earth or forgot the end of its taking upon it the seed of mortality but dispersing its beams in the spotted nature of the Elect cast's in a leaven which shall leaven the whole lump and lives unspotted in spotted nature because it being rooted in immutability it self doth also remaine it-self immutable 33. Now therefore to clutivate this heavenly branch so as it may fill the whole land is the duty of the Servants of Jesus Christ which is effected two manner of wayes The one strange and contrary to the usual course of Propagation suffering and not acting enticeing and not receiving for Innocency once defiled can never be redintigrated by doing good but by purging out of its evil for by this meanes room is made for Innocency to take root and the two chief leading causes of this are more immediately from God namely the Warfare of the Cross and fiery Trial and also there are others in which man may cooperate Conviction Confession Self-condemnation Repentance and Godly Sorrow thus spotted Mary Magdalene became innocent and so all must do that are defiled and who is without spots even the Mother of the Lord is not excepted though blessed among Women though she come prepared by God in a Chast Seed a pure Virgin for Chastity above all other Vertues imitates Innocency in most of its Qualifications The other way of its cultivation is in acquiring such other vertues as most readily receive its leaven of which Love is chief for it cannot rest in ease until it appear innocent in the Eye of its beloved next Mercy Humility Meekness Patience c. For all these desire to wash in Innoency and to be clean so the first cultivation consist's in weeding out such stinking weeds as choak it and the other Plants such wholsom herbs as may nourish it and readily transform into its nature 34. The Hebrew which I think never gives Names at random calls it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is * Lex Heptag Lot Empty Wasted Pure Guiltless implying that it is obtained by evacuating of what is impure and therefore this being the last Diameter of ascent into the immoveable State our Prophet in all this Ps presseth hard after it First Consumption in Tammin Secondly emptying the Heart of deceit the Tongue of reproach the Arm of Flesh of all Power and to appear vild and contemptibly Thirdly To deal with the Spirit to the emptying it of its Pride Lusting and greediness in Usury And lastly to resign it Self Will and Wisdom unto God for assuredly as long as any parcel of these are retained there can be no Innocency and in part retained they must be until Soul Body and Spirit be given up to the will of another even God and his Christ so as Innocency is the utmost perfection whither we sleep or wake until Christ come that we can attain until Christ verily be come 35. In the Gospel Text Innocency is scarse read in our Versions but is signified by purity and cleanness and indeed they are but one thing Sometimes in both old and new it is Aligorically expressed by White Isa 1.18 Dan. 11.35 12.10 So Rev. 3.18 I counsel thee to buy of me Gold tried in the Fire referring to the fiery trial and white raiment that the shame of thy nakedness appear not Again Thou hast a few Names which have not defiled their Garments and they shall walk with me in white He that overcommeth shall be cloathed in white Another thus What are these arrayed in white Robes These are they which came out of great Tribulation and have washed their robes and made them white in the Blood of the Lamb. Rev. 19.7 All which Whites refer to that Innocency which never was defiled or being spotted is washed in Tribulation and Blood of the Lamb. And lastly 19.7 Let us be glad and rejoyce for the Marriage of the Lamb is come and his Wife hath made her self ready And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine Linnen clean and white for fine Linnen is the Righteousness of the Saints That is it was granted that the Spouse of Christ should be cloathed with Innocency and that was her Righteousness not Righteous in her own works or Usury nor rich in some Portion or Dowry brought from her Mothers House but in being cleansed from Spots by washing in that Baptism which gives the answer of a good Conscience and purged in that Fire which consumes our dross and thus also the Souldiers of the Armies of the Word of God were cloathed riding upon white Horses in fine Linnen pure and white And surely natural Argument is able to compass this namly that Innocency cannot receive upon merit for seeing it is not Innocent by working Good and much less in any other work and only to him that worketh is the Reward given of due therefore this Spouse though fairest amoung Women and no spot in her must receive the Glory of her Nuptials from the Grace and Beauty of her Beloved Again reason consenteth that the Vessel filled with dreggs cannot make room to receive the choice Wine offered it and consequently that the Soul full of the trash of its own righteousness and antichristian pride cannot receive the Grace and Merit of Christ Were not the Beggar rediculously sottish who being invited to a marriage Supper under promise that whatsoever Vessels he brings all shall be filled with choice things should offer such as are already stuffed full of old mouldy stinking fragments And yet is this a great Stone of stumbling even during our whole race so prone is man to believe he can do something that is good and so distrustful of Christ that he wants bounty to replenish him with his own Gifts except he bring a valuable price in his hand which yet never any Son of a man was able to do for it is the hungry empty and they that have no mony or price to purchase with that he filleth with good things and the rich whom he sends away empty 36. Now therefore when thou makest ready for thy Nuptials take no care for gorgious Apparel but only for the mariage garment white Linnen the Righteousness of the Saints nor yet for a rich Dowry but only those few shreds of Gold and Silver which thy Beloved reserved for thee in the day