I be full of eyes without, and blind within? fhew me my ftains, and give me water to wash them out. Alas, I am altogether but one stain, and thou all purity. My foul is afhamed to see itself fo dark before thy light, and to be fo fmutted over before thine immortal whiteness. Do not write me upon the ground as a child of the earth, write me in heaven fince I am the portion which thou haft purchased with thy precious blood : blot out my fins, which are but too deeply graven upon my hands, and pardon, by thine infinite mercy what thou mayft condemn by justice.

The Gospel for Sunday the fourth week in Lent, St. John vi.

Of the five fishes and two barley loaves.

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FTER these things Jefus went beyond the fea of Galilee, which is of Tiberias; and a great multitude followed him, because they faw the figns which he did upon those that were fick. Jefus therefore went up into the mountain, and there he fat with his difciples. And the pafch was at hand, the feftival days of the Jews. When Jefus therefore had lifted up his eyes, and faw a very great multitude coming to him, he said to Philip, Whence

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shall we buy bread that these may eat? And this he faid tempting him, for himself knew what he would do. Philip anfwered him, Two hundred penny worth of bread is not fufficient for them that every man may take a little piece. One of his difciples, Andrew the brother of Simon Peter, faith unto him, There is a boy here that hath five barley loaves and two fifbes: But what are these amongst fo many? Jefus therefore faith, Make the men fit down. And there was much grafs in the place. The men therefore fat down in number about five thousand. Jefus therefore took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he diftributed to them that fat. In like manner alfo the fishes, as much as they would. And after they were filled he faid to his difciples, Gather the fragments that are remaining, left they be loft. They gathered therefore and filled twelve bafkets with fragments of the five barley loaves which remained to them that had eaten. Thofe men therefore, when they had feen what Fejus bad done, faid, That this is the prophet indeed that is come into the world. Jefus therefore, when he knew that they would come to take him and make him a king, he fled again into the mountain himself alone.

MORALITIES

MORALITIES.

1. WHAT a happy thing is it to ferve God, whofe converfation is so worthy all love? See how he carried himfelf toward this poor multitude which followed him with such zeal and conftancy. It feems they were his children, that he carried them all upon his fhoulders, that he had their names, their country, their qualities, and the conditions of their fmall fortunes graven in his heart. He is fo tender over them, he fo afflicts himself about them as a fhepherd over his poor flock. He inftructs them, he speaks to them of heavenly things, he heals their maladies, he comforts their fadness, he lifts his eyes up to heaven for them, and for them he opens his divine hands, the treafures of heaven, and nourifhes them by a miracle, as they had wholly refigned themselves to him with fuch abfolute confidence. O how are we cherished by heaven, fince God doth bind himself to help us and we fhould be unfaithful not to truft him, who makes nature itself fo faithful to us. It is here much to be ob ferved, that God doth no miracles for his own profit; he doth not change ftones into bread in the defert, to nourish himself after

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that long faft which he did there make, but for his faithful fervants he alters the course of nature; and being austere to himself, he becomes indulgent to us, to teach us that we should defpoil ourselves of self-love, which ties us to our own flesh, and makes us fo negligent to our neighbour.

2. What precious thing is to be gotten by following the world, that we should forfake Jefus in the defert, and run after vain hopes at court and great mens houses, where we pretend to make fome fortune? How many injuries muft a man diffemble? How many affronts muft we fwallow? How many deadly fweats must he endure to obtain fome reasonable condition? How many times must he facrifice his children, engage his own confcience, and offer violences to others to advance the affairs of great men? And after many years fervice, if any foreair'd or ruinous business committed to his charge (in the pursuit whereof he must walk upon thorns) thall chance to miscarry, all the fault must be laid upon a good officer; and if he prove unlucky he fhall ever be made culpable, and in the turning of a hand all his good fervices forgotten and loft: and for a final recompence he must be loaden with infinite difgraces. It is quite contrary in Ꮮ

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the service of God, for he encourages our virtues, he fupplies our defects, governs our fpiritual and yet neglects not our temporal occafions. He that cloaths the flowers of the meadows more gorgeously than monarchs, who lodges fo many little fishes in golden and azure fhells, he who doth but open his hand and replenishes all nature with bleffings, if we be faithful in keeping his commandments, will never forsake us at our need. But yet we find all the difficulties of the world to put our truft in him, we vilify our cares of eternity, and by seeking after worldly things whereby to live, we torment ourselves, and in the end lose our own lives. A man that must die needs very few worldly things; a very little cabbin will fuffice nature, but whole kingdoms will not fatisfy covetoufnefs.

3. Jefus flies from fceptres and runs to the cross; he would have no worldly kingdoms, because their thrones are made of ice and their crowns of glass. He valued the kingdom of God above all things, that he might make us partakers of his precious conqueft; an infinite rich prize. But now it seems that heaven is not a fufficient kingdom for us; men run after land, and itch after the ambition of fading greatnefs, and

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