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Joy, complaineft for Want of Joy, longeft for Joy; thou then fhalt have full Joy, as much as thou canst hold, and more than ever thou thoughteft on, or thy Heart defired. In the mean Time walk carefully, watch conftantly, and then let God measure out to thee thy Times and Degrees of Joy. It may be he keeps them till thou haft more Need. Thou hadst better lofe thy Comfort than thy Safety. If thou fhouldft die full of Fears and Sorrows, it will be but a Moment, and they are all gone, and concluded in Joy inconceivable. As the Joy of the Hypocrite, fo the Fears of the Upright, are but for a Moment. God's Anger endureth but a Moment; in his Favour is Life; Weeping may endure for a Night, but Joy cometh in the Morn ng (f). O bleffed Morning! Poor, humble, drooping Soul, how would it fill thee with Joy now, if a Voice from Heaven should tell thee of the Love of God, the Pardon of thy Sins, and affure thee of thy Part in thefe Joys? What then will thy Joy be, when thy actual Poffeffion fhall convince thee of thy Title, and thou fhalt be in Heaven before thou. art well aware?

§ 14. AND it is not thy Joy only; it is a mutual Foy, as well as a mutual Love. Is there Joy in Heaven at thy Converfion, and will there be none at thy Glorification? Will not the Angels welcome thes thither, and congratulate thy fafe Arrival?Yea, it is the Joy of Jefus Chrift; for now he hath the End of his Undertaking, Labour, Suffering, Dying, when we have our Joys; when he is glorified in his Saints, and admired in all them that believe (g); when be fees of the Travel of his Soul, and is fatisfied (h). This is Chrift's Harveft, when he shall reap the Fruit of his Labours; and it will not repent him concerning his Suffe

(f) Job xx. 5. Psalm xxx. 5, (h) Ifai. ii, 11,

(g) 2 Thell, i. 10,

Sufferings, but he will rejoice over his purchased Inheritance, and his People will rejoice in him.

Yea, the Father himself puts on Joy too, in our Joy. As we grieve his Spirit (i), and weary him with our Iniquities (k); fo is he rejoiced in our Good. O how quickly does he now fpy a returning Prodigal, even afar off? How does he run and meet him? And with what Compaffion does he fall on his Neck, and kifs him, and put on him the best Robe, and a Ring on his Hand, and Shoes on his Feet, and kills the fatted Calf to eat and be merry (1). This is indeed a happy Meeting; but nothing to the Embracing and Joy of that laft and great Meeting.Yea more; as God doth mutually love and oy, fo He makes this His Reft, as it is our Reft. What an eternal Sabbatifin, when the Work of Redemption, Sanétification, Prefervation, Glorification, is all Anifhed, and perfected for ever! The Lord thy God in the Midil of thee is mighty, He will fave, He will rejoice over thee with Joy, He will reft in his Love, He will joy over thee with Singing (m). Well may we then rejoice in our God with Joy, and reft in our Love, and joy in him with Singing.

$15. ALAS! my fearful Heart fcarce dares proceed. Methinks I hear the Almighty's Voice faying to me, Who is this that darkeneth Counsel by Words without Knowledge (n)? But pardon thy Servant, O Lord. I have not pried into unrevealed Things. I bewail that my Apprehenfions are fo dul', my Thoughts fo mean, my Affections so stupid, and my Expreffions fo low, and unbefeeming fuch a Glory. I have only heard by the Hearing of the Ear; oh, let thy Servant fee thee, and poflefs thefe Joys; and then shall I have more fuitable Conceptions, and fhall give thee fuller Glory; I fhall abbor my prefent Self, and difclaim and

(1) Enh. iv. 30.
(my Zeph. ii. 17.

(k) Ifa. xliii. 24.
(1) Job xxxviii. 2.

renounce

(1) Luke xv. 20---23.

renounce all thefe Imperfections. I have uttered that I underfood not, Things too wonderful for me, which I know not (o). Yet I believed, and therefore have I poken (p). What, Lord, canft thou expect from Duft but Levity? or from Corruption, but Defilement? Though the Weakness and Irreverence be the Fruit of my own Corruption, yet the Fire is from thine Altar, and the Work of thy commanding. I looked not into thy Ark, nor put forth my Hand unto it, without thee. Wash away thefe Stains also in the Blood of the Lamb. Imperfect, or none, muft be thy Service here. O take thy Son's Excufe, the Spirit is willing, but the Flesh is weak (q).

(0) Job xlii. 3, 5, 6.
(c) Matt. xxvi. 41.

(F) 2 Cor. iv. 13.

СНАР.

CHA P. II.

The great Preparatives to the Saint's Rest.

§1. The Happiness of Chriftians in having a Way open into Paradife. There are four Things which principally prepare the Way to enter into it; § 2, 3. farticularly, (1) The glorious Appearing of Chrift: $4. (2) The general Refurrection; $5-8. (3) The last Judgment; $9, 10. and (4.) The Saint's Goronation; 11. Tranfition to the Subject of the next Chapter;

$1. THE Paflage of Paradife is not now fo blocked

up, as when the Law and Curfe reigned. Wherefore finding, beloved Chriftians, a new and living Way confecrated for us, thro' the Vail, that is to fay, the Flesh of Chrift, by which we may with Boldness enter into the Holieft, I fhall draw near with fuller Affurance (a): And finding the flaming Sword removed, fhall look again into the Paradife of our God: And because I know that this is no forbidden Fruit, and withall that it is good for Food, and pleasant to the fpiritual Eyes, and a Tree to be defired to make one truly wife and happy; I fhall, thro' the Affiftance of the Spirit, take and eat thereof myself, and give to you, according to my Power, that you may eat. The Porch of this Temple is exceeding glorious, and the Gate of it is called Beautiful. Here are four Things, as the four Corners of this Porch. Here is the most glorious.

(a) Heb. x. 19, 20, 22.

Coming

Coming and Appearance of the Son of God;-that great Work of Jefus Chrift in raifing our Bodies from the Duft, and uniting them again to the Soul;—the pubück and folemn Procefs at their Judgment, where they shall first themselves be acquitted and juftified, and then with Chrift judge the World;-together with their folemn Coronation, and receiving the Kingdom.

$2. (1) The most glorious Coming and Appearance of the Son of God may well be reckoned into his People's Glory. For their Sake he came into the World, fuffered, died, rofe, afcended, and for their Sake it is that he will return. To this End will Chrift come again, to receive his People unto himself, that where he is, there they may be alfo (b). The Bridegroom's Departure was not upon Divorce. He did not leave us with a Purpose to return no more. He hath left Pledges enough to affure us of the contrary. We' have his Word, his many Promifes, his Sacraments, which shew forth his Death till he come (c); and his Spirit, to direct, fanctify, and comfort, till he We have frequent Tokens of Love from him, to fhew us, he forgets not his Promife, nor us. We daily behold the Forerunners of his Coming, foretold by himself. We fee the Fig-Tree putteth forth Leaves, and therefore know that Summer is nigh (d). Tho' the riotous World fay, my Lord delayeth his Coming (e); yet let the Saints lift up their Heads, for their Redemption draweth nigh(f). Alas, Fellow-Chriftians, what fhould we do, if our Lord fhould not return? What a Cafe are we here left in? What? leave us in the Midst of Wolves (g), and among Lions (h), a Generation of Vipers (i), and here forget us? Did he buy us fo dear, and then leave

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