State II. upon that there was reared up another of man's own making namely, a rooted enmity betwixt the parties, Eph ii. 44, 15. If we look abroad without the inclosure, (and except thofe profelytes of the Gentiles, who, by means of fome rays of light breaking forth unto them from within the inclofure, having renounced idolatry, worshipped the true God, but did not conform to the Mofaical rites) we fee nothing but dark places of the earth, full of the habitations of cru ltv, Pfal.. lxxiv. 20. Giols darkness covered the face of the Gentile world; and the way of falvation was utterly unknown among them. They were drowned in fuperftition and idolatry; and had multiplied their idols to fuch a vaft number, that above thirty thoufand are reckoned to have been worshipped by thofe of Europe alone. Whatever wifdom was among their Philofophers, the world by that wifdons knew not God, I Cor. i. 21. and all their refearches in religion were but groping in the dark, Acts xvii. 27. If we look within the inclofure, and, except a few that were groaning and waiting for the Confolation of Ifrael, we will fee a grofs darknefs on the face of that generation. Tho' to them were committed the oracles of God; yet they were most corrupt in their doctrine. Their traditions were multiplied; but the knowledge of thefe things wherein the life of religion lies, was loft: Maflers of Ifrael knew not the nature and neceffity of regeneration, John iii. 1o. Their religion was to build on their birth-privilege, as children of Abraham, Matth iii. 9. to glory in their circumcifion, and other external ordinances, Philip. iii. 2, 3. And to reft in the law, (Rom. ii. 17.) after they had, by their falfe gloffes, cut it fo fhort, as they might go well near to the fulfilling of it, Matth. v.

Thus was darknefs over the face of the world, when CHRIST the true Light came into it; and fo is darkness over every foul, till he, as the Day-ftar, arife in the heart. The former is an evidence of the latter. What, but the natural darkness of men's minds, could ftill thus wear out the light of external revelation in a matter upon which eternal happinefs did depend? Men did not forget the way of preferving their lives: but how quickly did they lofe the knowledge of the way of falvation of their fouls; which are of infinite more weight and worth!' when patriarchs and prophets teaching was ineffectual, men behoved to be taught of GOD himself; who alone can open the eyes of the understanding. But, that it might appear, that the corruption of man's mind lay deeper thạn to be cured by mere external revelation; there were but very few converted by CHRIST's preaching, who spoke as never man Spoke, John xii. 37, 38. The great cure on the generation remained to be performed, by the Spirit accompanying the preaching of the apoftles: who, according to the promise, (John xiv. 12.) were to do great works. And if we look to the miracles wrought by our bleffed Lord, we will find, that by applying the remedy to the foul, for the cure of bodily distempers, (as in the cafe of

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the man fick of the pally, Matth. ix. 2.) he plainly discovered, that it was his main errand into the world to cure the difeafes of the foul. I find a miracle wrought upon one that was born blind, performed in fuch a way, as feems to have been defigned to let the world fee in it, as in a glafs, their cafe and cure, John ix. 6. He made clay, and anointed the eyes of the blind man, with the clay. What could more fitly reprefent the blindnefs of men's minds, than eyes clofed up with earth? Ifa vi. 1. fout their eyes; fhut them up by anointing or cafting them with mortar, as the word would bear. And Chap. xliv. 18. he bath fhut their eyes; the word properly fignifies, he hath plaistered their eyes; as the houfe in which the leprofy had been, was to be plaistered, Lev. xiv. 42. Thus the Lord's word difcovers the defign of that ftrange work; and by it fhews us, that the eyes of our underftanding are naturally fhut. Then the blind man muft go and wash off this clay in the pool of Siloam; no other water will ferve this purpose. If that pool had not reprefented him, whom the Father fent into the world, to open the blind eyes, (Ifa. xlii. 7.) I think the Evangelift had not given us the interpretation of the name, which he fays, fignifies, fent, John ix. 7. And fo we may con lude, that the natural darknefs of our winds is fuch, as there is no cure for; but from the blood and Spirit of Jefus Chrift, whofe eye-falve, only can make us fee, Rev. i. 18.

Evid. 2. Every natural man's heart and life is a mafs of darkness, diforder and confufion; how refined foever he appear in the fight of men. For we ourselves alfo, faith the apostle Paul, were fometimes foolish, difbedient, deceived, ferving divers lufts and pleafures, Tit.iii. 3. and yet at that time, which this text looks to, he was blameless, touching the righteoufnefs which is in the law, Phil, iii. 6. This is a plain evidence that the eye is evil, the whole body being full of darkness, Mat. vi. 23. The unrenewed part of mankind is rambling through the world, like fo many blind men; who will neither take a guide, nor can guide themselves; and therefore are falling over this and the other precipice, into deftruction. Some are running after their covetoufnefs, till they be pierced through with many forrows; some sticking in the mire of fenfuality; others dashing themselves on the rock of pride and felf-conceit; every one ftumbling on some one stone of ftumbling or other all of them are running themfelves upon the fword-point of justice, while they eagerly follow, whither their unmortified paffions and affections lead them; and while fome are lying alone in the way, others are coming up, and falling headlong over them. And therefore, Wo unto the (blind) world becaufe of offences, Matth. xviii. 7. Errors in judgment fwarm in the world; because it is night, wherein all the beasts of the forrest do creep forth. All the unregenerate are utterly mistaken in the point of true happiness; for tho' Christianity hath fixed that matter in point of principle; yet nothing less than overcoming grace can fix it in the practical judgment. All men agree in the defire to be happy: 'but amongit un

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State II. renewed men, touching the way to happiness, there are almost as many opinions as there are men; they being turned every one to his own way, Ifa. liii. 6. They are like the blind Sodomites about Let's houfe, all were feeking to find the door, fome grope one part of the wall for it, fome another; but none of them could certainly fay, hè had found it and fo the natural man may ftumble on any good but the chief good. Look into thine own unregenerate heart, and there thou wilt fee all turned upfide down: heaven lying under, and earth a-top, look into thy life, there thou mayft fee, how thou art playing the madman, fhatching at fhadows, and neglecting the fubftance, eagerly flying after that which is not, and flighting that which is, and will be for ever.

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Evid. 3. The natural man is always as a workman left without light; either trifling or doing inifchief. Try to catch thy heart at any time thou wilt, and thou fhall find it either weaving the Spider's web, or hatching cockatrice-eggs, (Ifa. lix. 5.) roving thro' the world, or digging into the pit; filled with vanity, or elfe with vilenefs, bufy doing nothing, or what is worse than nothing. A fad fign of a dark mind.

Evid. 4. The natural man is void of the faving knowledge of Spiritual things. He knows not what a God he has to deal with; he is unacquainted with Chrift; and knows not what fin is. The greatest graceless wits are blind as moles in thefe things. Ay, but fome fuch can fpeak of them to good purpose: and fo might these Ifraelites of the temptations, figns and miracles, their eyes had feen, (Deut. xxix. 3.) to whom nevertheless the Lord had not given an heart to perceive, and eyes to fee, and ears to hear, unto that day, ver. 4. Many a man that bears the name of a Chriftian, may make Pharaoh's confeffion of faith, Exod. v. 2. I know not the Lord, neither will they let go when he commands them to part with. God is with them as a prince in difguife among his fubjects, who meets with no better treatment from them, than if they were his fellows, Pfal. 1. 21. Do they know Chrift, or fee his glory, and any beauty in him for which he is to be defired? if they did, they would not flight him as they do: a view of his glory would fo darken all created excellency, that they would take him for, and inftead of all, and gladly clofe with him, as he offereth himself in the gospel, John iv. 10. Pfal. ix. 10. Matth. xiii. 44, 45, 59. Do they know what fin is, who hug the ferpent in their bofom, hold faft deceit, and refufe to let it go? I own indeed they may have a natural knowledge of thofe things, as the unbelieving Jews had of Chrift, whom they faw and converfed with but there was fpiritual glory in him, perceived by believers only, Joh i.-14. and in refpect of that glory, the (unbelieving) world knew him not, ver. 10. But the fpiritual knowledge of them they cannot have; it is above the reach of the carnal mind, 1 Cor. ii. 14. The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, for they are fpiritually difcerned. He may indeed difcourfe of them; but no other

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way than one can talk of honey or vinegar, who never tasted the fweetness of the one, nor the fournefs of the other. He has fome notions of fpiritual truths, but fees not the things themselves, that are wrapt up in the words of truth, 1 Tim. i. 7. Understanding neither. what they fay, nor whereof they affirm. In a word, natural men fear, feek, confefs, they know not what. Thus may you fee man's underftanding naturally is overwhelmed with grofs darkness in spiritual things. Thirdly, There is in the mind of man a natural bias to evil, whereby it comes to pass, that whatever difficulties it finds, while occupied about things truly good, it acts with a great deal of ease in evil; as being in that cafe, in its own element, Jer. iv. 22. The carnal mind drives heavily in the thoughts of good: but furioufly in the thoughts of evil. While holiness is before it, fetters are upon it: but when once it has got over the hedge, it is as the bird got out of the cage, and becomes a free-thinker indeed. Let us reflect a little on the apprehension and imagination of the carnal mind; and we fhall find : unconteftible evidence of this woful bias to evil.

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Evidence 1. As when a man, by a violent stroke on the head, lofeth his fight, there arifeth to him a kind of falfe light, whereby he per. ceiveth a thousand airy nothings; fo man being ftruck blind to all that is truly good, and for his eternal interest, has a light of another fort brought into his mind; his eyes are opened, knowing evil, and fo are the words of the tempter verified, Gen. iii. 5. The words of the Prophet are plain, They are wife to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge, Jer. iv. 22. The mind of man has a natural dexterity to devife mifchief: none are fo fimple, as to want fkill to contrive ways to gratify their lufts, and ruin their fouls; tho' the power of every Ione's hand cannot reach to put their devices in execution. None needs to be taught this black art; but as weeds grow up, of their own accord in the neglected ground, fo doth this wisdom (which is earthly, fenfual, devilish, James iii. 15) grow up in the minds of men, by virtue of the corruption of their nature. Why fhould we be furprised with the product of corrupt wits: their cunning devices to affront heaven, to oppofe and run down truth and holiness, and to gratify their own and other men's lufts? They row with the ftream; no wonder they make great progress: their flock is within them, and increaseth by using of it: and the works of darkness are contrived with the greater advantage, that the mind is wholly deftitute of fpiritual light, which, if it were in them, in any meature, would fo far mar the work, 1 John iii. 9. Whofoever is born of God, doth not commit fin; he does it not as by art, for his feed remaineth in him. But on the other hand, It is a fport for a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom, Prov. x. 23. To do witty wickedness nicely, as the word imports, is as a fport, or a play to a fool; it comes off with him eafily; and why, but because he is a fool, and hath not wifdom; which would mar the contrivances of darknefs? The more natural a thing is, it is done the more easily.

Evid. 2. Let the corrupt mind have but the advantage of one's being employed in, or prefent at fome piece of fervice to God; that fo the device, if not in itfelf finful, yet may become finful, by its unfeasonablenefs; it fhall quickly fall on fome device or expedient, by its ftarting afide; which deliberation, in feafon, could not produce. Thus Saul, who wift not what to do, before the priest began to confult God, is quickly determined when once the priest's hand was in : his own heart then gave him an anfwer, and would not allow him to wait an answer from the Lord, 1 Sam. xiv. 18, 19. Such a devilish dexterity hath the carnal mind, in deviling what may most effectually divert men from their duty to God.

Evid. 3. Doth not the carnal mind naturally strive to grasp spiritu things in imagination; as if the foul were quite immerfed in flefh and blood, and would turn every thing into its own fhape? Let men who are used to the forming of the moft abftracted notion, look into their own fouls, and they thall find this bias in their minds: whereof the idolatry, which did of old, and ftill doth, fo much prevail in the world, is an unconteftable evidence. For it plainly difcovers, that men naturally would have a vifible deity, and fee, what they worship: and therefore they changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image, Rom. i. 23. The reformation of these nations (bleffed be the Lord for it) hath banished idolatry, and images too, out of our churches : but heart-reformation only can break down mental idolatry, and banish the more fubtile and refined image-worship, and reprefentation of the Deity, out of the minds of men. The world, in the time of its darkness, was never more prone to the former, than the unfanctified mind is to the latter. And hence are horrible, monftrous, and mishapen thoughts of God, Chrift, the glory above, and all fpiritual things.

Evid. 4. What a difficult task is it to detain the carnal mind before the Lord! how averfe is it to the entertaining of good thoughts, and dwelling in the meditation of fpiritual things! if one be driven, at any time, to think of the great concerns of his foul, it is no harder work to hold in an unruly hungry beaft, than to hedge in the carnal mind, that it get not away to the vanities of the world again. When God is fpeaking to men by his word, or they are speaking to him in prayer, doth not the mind often leave them before the Lord, like fo many idols that have eyes, but fee not; and ears, but hear not? The carcafe is laid down before God, but the, world gets away the heart tho' the eyes be closed, the man fees a thousand vanities: the mind, in the mean time, is like a bird got loofe out of the cage, skipping from bush to buih; so that, in effect, the man never comes to himself, till he be gone from the prefence of the Lord. Say not, it is impoffible to get the mind fixed. It is hard indeed, but not impoffible. Grace from the Lord can do it, Pfal. cviii. 1. Agreeable objections will do it. A pleafant fpeculation will arreft the minds of the inquifitive:

worldly man's mind is in little hazard of wandering, when he is riving of bulinefs, cafting up his accounts, or telling his money: