longs unto thy peace! Call like a tender compaffionate Father, How often would I have gathered you, as a Hen doth gather her Chickens under her wings, and ye would not! That he should bear affronts, and in the midst of thofe injuries, entreat Men to be reconcil'd to him, and seek for a Pardon! That he should make nothing of being flander'd, fo he might but win them to Repentance; be content to undergo Reproaches, fo he might but allure them to God's Ways; fuffer himself to be abused, so he might but undeceive them in their ftrong delufions; bear with their peevishness and frowardness, so he might but perfuade them to mind their eternal interest, That like his Apostle afterward, though free from all Men, he should yet make himself a Servant to all, that he might gain the more; unto the Jews become as a Jew, that he might gain the Jews; to them that are under the Law as under the Law, that he might gain them that are under the Law; to them that are without Law, as without Law, being not without law to God, that he might gain them that are without Law; to the weak become as weak, that he might gain the weak; and be made all things to all Men, that he might by all means fave fome; that he fhould conjure Mankind by Tears, and Wounds, and his own Blood, by thofe very Torments and Agonies he endured for them, to have mercy on themfelves, to take a view of the burning Lake beneath, and run away, to look upon the Joys above, and be ravifh'd

ravish'd with the fight! That he should court them by the sweeteft invitations, and the kindeft Calls; by the greatest offers, and the fofteft promises; promiles of affiftance, and of his Holy Spirit, of peace and joy in the Holy Ghoft; and feal his ftrong defires and longings after their holiness with his own death; ad after his death, being rifen again, fend Apostles, and whole Armies of Confeffors and Martyrs, to establish those defires, ordain a Function of Men, that might preach those Desires in Mens ears to the Worlds end; this indeed is a condefcenfion, which the great Miniftring Spirits in Heaven ftand amaz'd at, and may juftly be look'd upon to be one of those things, the Angels defire to pry

into.

By fuch astonishing means hath the great immortal. God endeavour'd to effect that Holiness in men, that Serioufnefs, that Piety, that Heavenly-mindedness, which he hath appointed to be the only way to endless blifs. Glorious means indeed! But then they are no more but Pearls thrown before Swine, where Men confider not how far they are concern'd in the heavenly Call, and what can be the meaning of all these arts and ftratagems of Divine Compaffion, and what fhould make God thus follicitous and careful to procure Man's happiness, and how dreadful it must be to neglect fo great a falvation, what God can defign by all this, and what the intent of these unufual endeavours must be, whether things are so, or no, and if they be fo, what monftrous

C

ftrous stupidity it must be to lie ftill, and fleep under fuch strong and powerful invitations. To lay all this labour, and industry, and indefatigable pains of God before their eyes, when they will not fix their contemplations on the Remedies intended for their recovery; what is it, but to make a learned Oration to a Flock of Sheep, and with the Popish St. Francis to addrefs our selves to Falcons, and Pheasants, and other Birds, or with him in Sulpitius Severus to fpeak to Wolves, to talk to a blind Man of Colours, to discourse Mathematicks to one in a Fever, and to prepare Elixirs and Cordials for Men depriv'd of life and sense? Without Confideration, we have little but shape and fpeech left us to distinguish us from Beafts; and God clearly loses the virtue of his Exhortations and Entreaties, except Confideration fets them home, digefts and applies them to the Soul and the inward thoughts, like Sun-Beams in a BurningGlass, unite and continue fo long upon these Spiritual Objects, till they fet the heart on fire.

CHAP. IL

CHAP. II.

Confideration no transitory view of Spiritual Things, imports laying the heart and mind clofe unto Spiritual Concerns; refembles Magnifying Glaffes, which difcover things imperceptible by the naked Eye. The great Ingredients of it, Self-Examination, Expoftulation, and strong Refolution.

HOW

OW Confideration, Thinking, Pondering, Meditation, Contemplation do differ, is not material to enquire. Confideration includes all these, and is nothing, but exercifing and improving that rational Faculty, the great Architect hath bestowed on us, to the glory of God, and the felicity of our immortal Souls. The Character St Bernard gives of it, may help to illuftrate this defcription: It diftinguishes, faith he, things confus'd, collecteth fuch as lie difpers'd, Searches and dives into fuch as are conceal'd and hid, examines probabilities, reflects upon what is done, refolves what to do, and preffes towards the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

The School-men are in the right, when they call it, Employing the whole understanding about a thing; for indeed, a flash of Thinking is no more Confideration, than a few wandring fparks C 2

can

can be faid to warm a spacious Room: As well may a Man hope to fet a Mill a going by fprinkling fome drops upon the Wheels, as imagine that a few tranfient thoughts will reform the Soul and as in cold weather men do not get themselves a heat by a step or two, but by fuch exercises as put the Body into violent motion; fo neither will a careless thought now and then, heat the heart within, but Confideration, which puts the Soul into a strong and vigorous motion or agitation, is that which must kindle the holy fire, and fhed abroad life in all the faculties of the inward Man.

Not to mention here, that the word was originally us'd to express the industry of Astronomers, who by diligent contemplation, and obfervation of the Stars, their Motion, Pofition, Conjunction, Influences, c. gave a judgment of the feveral Phenomena, or appearances they met withal, from whence it was afterwards applied to Men, who seriously and attentively ponder things of moment, whether Civil or Sacred; The Scripture ufually expreffes it, by laying our hearts close to our ways, as if it were with Confideration, as it is with Mens liftening to a confus'd noise, and laying their ears close to a Wall, with defign to get a more diftinct knowledge of it.

שימו לבבכם

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Hagg. I. 5, 7.

And indeed, without Confideration, Eternal Life, and our Duties, in order to it, appear no very great attractives. Confideration clears up

thofe