man can say he thanks God for ease: for me, I bless God for my troubles.

XXII.

When I consider what an insensible atom man is, in comparison of the whole body of the earth; and what a mere centre-point the earth is, in comparison of the vast circumference of heaven; and what an almost infinite distance there is betwixt this point the earth, and that large circle of the firmament; and, therewithal, think of the innumerable number, and immense greatness of those hea venly luminaries: I cannot but apprehend how improbable it is, that those stars should, at such a distance, distinguish betwixt one man and another; betwixt one limb of the same body and another; betwixt one spot of earth and another; and, in so great a mixture and confusion of influences, should give any distinct intimation of particular events in nature, and much more of mere contingencies of arbitrary affairs. As for the moon, by reason of her vicinity to the earth, and sensible predominance over moisture; and for the sun, the great magazine of light and heat; I acknowledge their powerful, but unpartial, operations upon this whole globe of earth and waters, and every part of it, not without just wonder and astonishment: the other stars may have their several virtues and effects; but their marvellous remoteness, and my undiscernible nothingness, may seem to forbid any certain intelligence of their distinct workings upon me. But, whether these glorious lights give or take any notice of such an imperceptible mite as I; sure I am, there is great reason I should take notice of them; of their beauteous lustre, of their wonderful magnitude, of their regular motion; and be transported with admiration of that omnipotent power, wisdom, providence, which created this goodly and mighty host of heaven; and guides them in their constant march, without the least deviation, from their first setting out to the last moment of their final conflagration. Oh, the narrowness of my wretched heart, that affords not room enough for wonder at that, which I cannot but see!

XXIII.

It becomes not us to be niggardly, where our Saviour intends bounty. How glad should we be rather to ampliate the benefit of the great work of our Redeemer! But, surely, I cannot see upon what warrant that favour is grounded, that eulargeth the fruit of Christ's redemption to the angels: the good needed it not; the evil were not capable of it: only mankind was captived, and redeemable by that invaluable ransom. Doubtless, those blessed spirits have their part in the joy and gratulation of the infinite mercy of our deliverance: for, if they rejoice at the conversion of one sinner, what triumph do we think there is in heaven at the universal redemption of all believers! The propriety of this favour hath reason to engage us so much the more. Lord, thy mercy is free and boundless: thou wouldest pass by the lapsed angels, and leave them in their sin and their chains; and only rescue miserable man out of their hell. Oh, for a heart, that might be, in some

measure, answerable to so infinite mercy; and that might be no less captived to thy love, than it is freed by thy redemption!

XXIV.

Men do commonly wrong themselves, with a groundless expectation of good; fore-promising to themselves all fair terms in their proceedings, and all happy success in the issue; boding nothing to themselves, but what they wish. Even the man after God's own heart could say, In my prosperity I said, tush, I shall never be removed; Psalm xxx. 6: wherein their misreckoning makes their disappointment so much the more grievous. Had not David made such account of the strength and stability of his mountain, it could not have so much troubled him to have it levelled with the plain. On the contrary, the evils, which we look for, fall so much the less heavily, by how much we are fore-prepared for their entertainment. Whatever by-accidents I may meet withal besides, I have two fixed matches, that I must inevitably encounter with, age and death: the one is attended with many inconveniences; the other, with much horror. Let me not flatter myself, with hopes of jollity and ease. My comforts for heaven shall, I trust, never fail me: but, for the present world, it shall be well for me, if I can, without too much difficulty, scramble out of the necessary miseries of life; and, without too much sorrow, crawl to my grave.

XXV.

Heaven hath many tongues, that talk of it; more eyes, to behold it; but few hearts, that rightly affect it. Ask any Christian, especially, whom ye shall meet with, he will tell you, thither he shapes his course; there he hath pitched his hopes; and would think himself highly wronged by that man, who should make doubt of either his interest or speed: but, if we shall cast our eyes upon the lives of men, or they reflect their eyes upon their own bosoms, the hypocrisy will too palpably discover itself; for, surely, which way soever the faces look, the hands and feet of the most men move hellward. If malice, fraud, cruelty, oppression, injustice, excess, uncleanness, pride, contention, covetousness, lies, heresies, blasphemies, disobedience be the way thither, woe is me, how many walk in that wide and open road to destruction! But even there, where the heart pretends to innocence, let a man strictly examine his own affections, he shall find them so deeply earthed, that he shall be forced to confess his claim to heaven is but fashionable. Ask thyself but this one question, O man, whatsoever thou art, ask it seriously: "Might I this very hour go to heaven, am I willing and desirous, to make a present change of this life for a better?" and tell me sincerely, what answer thou receivest from thine own heart. Thy judgment cannot but tell thee, that the place is a thousand times better; that the condition would be infinitely advantageous, to exchange baseness for glory, misery for blessedness, time for eternity, a living death for a life immortal. If thou do now fumble, and shuffle, and demur upon the resolu

tion, be convinced of thine own worldliness and infidelity; and know, that if thy heart had as much of heaven as thy tongue, thou couldst not but say, with the Chosen Vessel, I desire to depart hence, and to be with Christ, which is far better; Phil. i. 23.

XXVI.

There is no earthly pleasure, whereof we shall not soon grow weary; and be as willing to intermit, as ever we were to entertain it: and, if the use of it continue, the very frequency makes it disregarded; so as, that, which at first we esteemed rare and precious, is now looked upon as common and despicable: and, if it be such, as that our impetuous affection is too much transported with a present fruition, we are so much the more distempered in the loss. On the contrary, those painful yokes, which, at the first imposing seemed insupportable, grow tolerable by custom and long acquaintance: so as, I know not how it comes to pass, that time hath a contrary power, both to aggravate and lighten evils. Those pleasures are only worthy to carry our hearts, which are measured by no less than eternity; and those pains most justly formidable, which know neither end nor remission.

XXVII.

The nearer our Saviour drew to his glory, the more humility he expressed. His followers were first his Servants, and he their Master; John xiii. 16: then, his Disciples, and he their Teacher; John xv. 8: soon after, they were his Friends, and he theirs; John xv. 14: straightways after his resurrection and entrance into an immortal condition, they were his Brethren; Go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend to my Father and your Father; John xx. 17: lastly, they are incorporated into him, and made partakers of his glory, That they also may be one with us, saith he, I in them, and thou in me; that they may be made perfect in one; and the glory, which thou gavest me, I have given them; John xvii. 21, 22, 23. O Saviour, was this done for the depressing of thyself, or for the exaltation of us, or rather for both? How couldest thou more depress thyself, than thus to match thyself with us poor wretched creatures? How couldest thou more exalt us, than to raise us unto this entireness with thee, the All-Glorious and Eternal Son of God? How should we learn of thee, to improve our highest advancement to our deepest humility; and so to regard each other, that, when we are greatest, we should be least!

XXVIII.

How apt are we to misconstrue the Spirit of God, to our own disadvantage! While the blessed Apostle bids us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling, he doth not bid us to work it out with doubt and distrust. It is the Psalmist's charge, that we should serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice in him with trembling; Psalm ii. 11: so as there is a fear without diffidence, and a trembling that may consist with joy: trembling is an effect of fear; but this fear, which we must affect, is reverential, not slavish, not dis

trustful. Indeed, when we look upon ourselves, and consider our own frailties and corruptions and God's infinite justice, we have too just cause of doubt and dejection; yea, were it not for better helps, of utter despair: but, when we cast up our eyes to the power of him that hath undertaken for us, and the faithfulness of him that hath promised, and the sure mercies of him that hath begun his good work in us; we can fear with confidence, and rejoice in our trembling. For, what are our sins, to his mercies; our unworthiness, to his infinite merits; our weaknesses, to his omnipotence? I will therefore so distrust myself, that I will be stedfastly confident in the God of my salvation: I will so tremble before the glorious Majesty of my God, that I may not abate of the joy of his never-failing mercy.

XXIX.

What a large and open hand hath our God! How infinitely doth his bounty transcend, not the practice only, but the admira tion of man! We think it well, if, upon often asking, we can receive small favours; if, after long delay, we can be gratified with a condescent; and, if we have received one courtesy, that is a bar to a second: whereas, our munificent God gives us, not only what we ask, but what we ask not; and, therefore, before we ask. Yea, it is he, that gives us to ask: neither could we so much as crave good things, if he did not put into us those holy desires. Yea, he not only gives us blessings, before we ask; but he gives us the best things, a right to eternal glory, before we are at all; yea, before the world was. And, as he prevents us in time, so he exceeds our thoughts in measure, giving us more than we ask: Rachel would have a son; God gives her two: Abraham sues that Ishmael may live; live; God gives him to prosper, and to be the father of many princes. Yet more, he gives us what we cannot ask: the dumb Demoniac could not sue for himself: his very silence was vocal; and receives what he would, and could not request. Yea, lastly, which is the great improvement of his mercy, he gives us against our asking: our ignorance sues against ourselves; requiring hurtful things; he will not suffer our hearts and tongues to wrong us; but withholds what we unfitly crave, and gives us what we should, and do not crave: as the fond child cries to his father for a knife; he reaches him a spoon, that may feed, and not hurt him. O the ocean of divine bounty, boundless, bottomless! O our wretched unworthiness, if we be either niggardly to ourselves, in not asking blessings; or unthankful to our God, in not acknowledging them.

XXX.

Infidelity and faith look both through the same perspective glass; but at contrary ends. Infidelity looks through the wrong end of the glass; and therefore sees those objects which are near afar off, and makes great things little; diminishing the greatest spiritual blessings, and removing far from us threatened evils: faith looks at the right end; and brings the blessings that are far off in time

close to our eye; and multiplies God's mercies, which, in a distance, lost their greatness. Thus, the faithful saw his seed possessed of the promised land, when as yet he had no seed, nor was likely to have any; when the seed, which he should have, should not enjoy it till after four hundred years. Thus, that good patriarch saw Christ's day, and rejoiced. Thus, our first parent comforted himself after his ejection out of paradise, with the foresight of that blessed seed of the woman, which should be exhibited almost four thousand years after. Still, and ever, faith is like itself. What use were there of that grace, if it did not fetch home to my eye things future and invisible? That this dissolved body shall be raised out of the dust; and enlived with this very soul, wherewith it is now animated; and both of them put into a condition eternally glorious; is as clearly represented to my soul in this glass, as if it were already done. Faithful is he, that hath promised; which will also do it.

XXXI.

Who can think other than with scorn, of that base and unworthy conceit, which hath been entertained by some, that our Saviour lived here on earth upon alms? He, that vouchsafed to take upon him the shape of a servant, would have hated to take upon him the trade of a beggar: service is a lawful calling; beggary, not so. He, that gave life to all creatures, could take a maintenance from them without asking. He, that did command the fish to bring the tribute-money for himself and his disciples, and could multiply a few loaves and fishes for the relief of thousands, could rather raise a sustenance to himself and his, than beg it. But here was neither need, nor cause: even ordinary means failed not: many wealthy followers, who had received cures and miraculous deliverances, besides heavenly doctrine, from him, ministered to him of their substance; Luke viii. 2, 3. Neither was this out of charity, but out of duty in the charge, which he gave to his disciples, when he sent them by pairs to preach abroad, he tells them the labourer is worthy of his wages; and can we think this rule doth not much more hold concerning himself? Had not himself and his family been furnished with a meet stock raised from hence, what purse was it, which Judas bore? and how could he be a thief in his office, if his bags were empty? He, therefore, that could say, It is a more blessed thing to give, than to receive; certainly would not choose, when it was in his power, rather to receive than give. The earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof; and he distributes it, as he pleaseth, amongst the children of men. For me, I hope I shall have the grace, to be content with whatsoever share shall fall to my lot; but my prayer shall be, that I may beg of none but God.

XXXII.

What a madness it is in us, to presume on our interest in God's favour, for the securing of our sinfulness from judgment! The angels were deeper in it, than we mortals can ever hope to be, in these houses of clay; yet, long since, are ugly devils: and they,