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Thus fouls for ruin are prepar'd.
What! truft no farther than you fee,
You'll truft a thief as far as me.

Deluded wretch! Will nought but sight
And fenfe convince thee? O how right,"
How juft is God? whofe direful fcourge
Such arguments in hell fhall urge.
WORLD.

Chrift threatens wrath to come, but I
Do threaten thee with poverty.
And why wilt thou thyfelf, and those

That are fo dear, to want expofe!

Come fee, the faints, for all their brags,

How well they thrive, they're cloath'd with rags..
CHRIST.

If my dear faints in rags do go,

'Tis not religion cloaths them fo;
But by fuch wants the Lord prepares
Their fouls against the killing fnares:
They all are heirs, tho' under age,
Expectants of their heritage :

Kept fhort for prefent, yet contemn
A change with those that scoff at them.
WORLD.
It is in vain to plead, for I

With present things charm pow'rfully;
Whate'er thou offer'ft, they'll defpife,
I hold them pris'ners by their eyes.

CHRIST.

If they will ferve no other Lord,
Then let it ftand upon record,
Against their fouls, that they refus'd
My wages, and my grace abus'd.
Remember this when they fhall fee
All turn'd to afhes that's in thee.
ANOTHER.
TONE will deny but those are bleffed pains
Which are attended with the richest gains.
Grant this, and then moft clearly 'tis inferr'd,
Soul-work to all deferves to be preferr❜d.
This is an unknown trade: O who can count
To what the gains of godlinefs amount?
For one poor fhilling, O what risques some run?
Some toiling, as i' th' fire, from fun to fun.

Whereas one hour spent with God brings in
Such heav'nly treasures, that poor fouls have been
Enrich'd for ever. Even as you fee

A prince's favourite, upon the knee,
Can in an hour's time more wealth obtain,
Than all your lives by labour you can gain.
Pray'r-gains are great, and quick returns are made,
Sure then the Chriftian drives the richest trade.
"Tis true, the hypocrite that never drove
A ferious trade for heav'n, may bankrupt prove:
But holy fouls, which mind, and closely ply
Their bus'nefs, greatly are enrich'd thereby;
The diff'rence 'twixt the one, and t' other's best
By fuch a fimile as this, expreft:
As in a fummer's day you often fee
The wanton butterfly, and painful bee;
On fragrant flowers fix, whence one doth strive
To bear his precious burden to the hive;
The other's pains no profit with it brings,
His time is spent in painting of his wings.
When winter comes, the bee hath full supplies,
The other creeps into an hole, and dies.
Like different events fhall be betwixt
The painful faint, and lazy notionist.

CHA P. III.

Upon the chearfulness of the Husbandman.

The plowman fings, and whistles, though he fweat,
Shall Chriftians droop, because their work is great?

TH

OBSERVATIO N.

HOUGH the labours of husbandmen are very great, and toilfome, yet with what chearfulness do they go through them? It is very delightful to hear the melody they make, by whistling, as they follow the plow; yea, the very horfes have their bells, which make a pleasant noife. Horfes (faith Mr. Fuller) will do more for a whiftle than a whip; and their bells do, as it were, gingle away their weariness. I have been often delighted with this country mufic, whereby they fweeten their hard labours with an innocent pleafure, and verify the faying of the poet';

Tempus in agrorum cultu confumere dulce eft. Ovid.
Altho' they plow from morning until night,

Time fteals away with pleasure and delight.

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APPLICATION.

UT how much greater caufe have the people of God to addrefs themselves unto his work with all chearfulness of spirit? And, indeed, fo far as the heart is fpiritual, it de lights in its duties. "Tis true, the work of a Chriftian is painful, and much more spending, than the husbandman's (as was opened chap. 1.) but then it as much exceeds in the delights and pleasures that attend it. What is the Chriftian's work, but "with joy to draw water out of the wells of falvation?" Ifa. xii. 3. You may fee what a pleasant path the path of duty is, by the chearfulness of thofe that have walked in them, Pfal. exix. 14. "I have rejoiced in the way of thy judgments,

as much as in all riches." And by the promises that are made to fuch, Pfal. cxxxviii. 5. "Yea, they fhall fing in the "ways of the Lord, for great is the glory of the Lord." And again, "You fhall have a fong as in the night, when an

holy folemnity is kept, and gladness of heart, as when one "goeth with a pipe, to come to the mountain of the Lord, to "the mighty one of Ifrael," Ifa. xxx. 29.

And, laftly, by the many commands, whereby joy in the way of the Lord is made the duty of the faints. "Rejoice in "the Lord, ye righteous, for praife is comely for the upright," Pfal. xcvii. 12. "Rejoice, and again I fay rejoice," Phil. iv. 4. where the command is doubled, yea, not only fimple rejoicing, but the highest degree of that duty comes within the command. Pfal. cxxxii. 9, 16. "Shout for joy, all ye that are upright in "heart." And Luke vii. 22, 23. they that are bid to leap for joy, when about the difficulteft part of their work. And that you may fee there is a fufficient ground for it, and that it is not like the mad mirth of finners, be pleafed to confider,

1. The nature of the work about which they are employed: It is the most excellent, and heavenly employment, that ever fouls were acquainted with. O what a ravishing, and delightful thing it is, to walk with God! And yet by this, the whole work of a Chriftian is expreffed, Gen. xvii. 1. Can any life compare with this, for pleafure? Can they be chill that walk in the fun-fhine? Or fad, that abide in the fountain of all delights; and walk with him whose name is the God of all comfort, 2 Cor. i. 3. "In whose presence is the fulness of joy," Pfal. xvi. II. O what an angelical life doth a Chriftian then

live?

Or, 2dly, If we confider the variety of spiritual employments, Varietas delectat. Change of employment takes off

the tedioufnefs of labour. Variety of voices pleases the ear, variety of colours delight the eye, the fame meat prepared fe veral ways, pleases the palate more, and clogs it lefs. But O the variety of choice dishes wherewith God entertains his people in a Sabbath! as the word, prayer, facraments, &c. Ifa. Îviii. 13. If thou call the Sabbath thy delights; or, as Tremellius renders it, thy delicate things." My foul (faith David) fhall "be fatisfied, as with marrow and fatnefs," Pfalm lxiii. 5.

And

3dly, Or laftly, If we confider the suitableness of this work to a regenerate foul. Is it any pain for a bird to fly? Or a fish to fwim? Is the eye tired with beautiful objects? Or the ear with melodious founds? As little can a spiritual foul be wearied with spiritual and heavenly exercises. Rom. vii. 22. “I de* light in the law of God after the inner man.' Gravia non gravitant in eorum loco, (faith the philofopher) weighty things are not heavy in their own element, or center. furely God is the center of all gracious fpirits. A faint can fit from morning to night to hear difcourfes of the love and loveliness of Jefus Chrift. The fight of your thriving flocks, and flourishing fields, cannot yield you that pleasure which an upright foul can find in one quarter of an hour's communion with God. "They that are after the flesh, (faith the apostle, "Rom. viii 5.) do mind the things of the fleth, and they that "are after the Spirit, the things of the Spirit." But then look how much heavenly objects tranfcend earthly ones, and how much the foul is more capable of delight in those objects, than the grofs and duller fenfes are in theirs; fo much doth the pleasure arifing from the duty excel all fenfitive delights on earth.

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REFLECTION S.

The carnal heart's

How am I caft and condemned by this, may Ifay; who never favoured this reflection. fpiritual delight in holy duties. When

I am about my earthly employments, I can go on unweariedly from day to day; all the way is down-hill to my nature, and the wheels of my affections being oiled with carnal delight, run fo faft, that they have need moft times of trigging. Here I rather need the curb, than the fpur. O how fleet and nimble are my fpirits in these their purfuits! but O what a flug am I in religious duties! fure if my heart were renewed by grace, Ifhould delight in the law of God, Rom. vii. 22. world is alive in their ways, every creature enjoys his pleasure; and is there no delight to be found in the paths of VOL. VI.

F

All the

proper

holiness? Is godlinefs only a dry root, that bears no pleasant fruits? No, no, there are doubtless, incomparable pleasures to be found therein; but fuch a carnal heart as mine favours them hot.

I cannot fay but I have found delight in reThe hypocrite's ligious duties, but they have been only fuch as reflection. rather fprang from the oftentation of gifts and applaufes of men, than any fweet and real communion I have had with God through them; they have rather proved food, and fuel to my pride, than food to my foul. Like the nightingale, I can fing fweetly, when I obferve others to liften to me, and be affected with my mufic. O false, deceitful heart, fuch delight as this will end in howling! were my fpirit right, it would as much delight in retirements for the enjoyment of God, as it doth in those duties that are most expofed to the obfervation of man. Will fuch a spring as this maintain a ftream of affections, when carnal motives fail? What wilt thou anfwer, O my foul! to that question? Job xxvii. 9, 10. "Will God hear his cry when trouble comes "upon him? Will he delight himself in the Almighty? "Will he always call upon God?" What wilt thou reply to this question? Deceive not thou thyfelf, O my foul! thou wilt doubtlefs be eafily perfuaded to let go that thou never delighteft in, and, from an hypocrite in religion, quickly become an apoftate from religion.

The upright heart's reflection.

From all this, the upright heart takes advantage to rouze up its delight in God, and thus it expoftulateth with itself: Doth the plowman fing amidt his drudging labours, and whistle away his wearinefs in the fields; and fhall I droop amidst such heavenly employment? O my foul, what wanteft thou here, to provoke thy delight? If there be fuch an affection as delight in thee, methinks fuch an object as the bleffed face of God in ordinances, fhould excite it. Ah! how would this ennoble all my fervices, and make them angel-like! how glad are those bleffed creatures to be employed for God? No fooner were they created, but they fang together, and shouted for joy, Job xxxviii. 7. How did they fill the air with heavenly melody, when fent to bring the joyful tidings of a Saviour to the world? Afcribing glory to God in the higheft, even to the highest of their powers; yea, this delight would make all my duties Chrift-like; and the nearer that pattern, the more ex cellent he delighted to do his Father's will, it was to him meat and drink, Pfalm xl. 7. John iv. 32, 34.

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