enter the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." This door will be opened at the firft refurrection, after the living faints are changed, and the dead in Chrift raised; in which they will be fafe, while the wicked are burnt up, and the world with them. And this will be Wisdom's laft cry, "Thy dead men fhall live; with my dead body fhall they arife. Awake and fing, ye that dwell in the duft; for thy dew is as the dew of herbs; and the earth fall caft out the dead."-" Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the Lord cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth alfo fhall difclofe her blood, and fhall no more cover her flain." Ifa. xxvi. 19-21.

Now will the Mafter be rifen up, and have fhut the door, after which all knocking and calling will meet with no regard, for there can be no ad

mittance.

Thus, dearly beloved Philomela, have I endeavoured to fhew thee fomething of the paths of Wildom, together with her myftical gates and doors, as well as I could, and as far as I have been led through them; and through which all regenerate fouls pafs who "follow the Lamb in the regeneration." This "is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the vulture's eye hath not

feen:

feen the lion's whelps have not trodden it, nor the fierce lion paffed by it." Job xxviii. 7, 8. The lion of the bottomlefs pit never walked here, nor were any whelps of his ever found there. And to this agrees the prophet: " And an highway shall be there, and a way, and it fhall be called the way of holinefs; the unclean fhall not pafs over it, but it shall be for those the wayfaring men, though fools, fhall not crr therein. No lion fhall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it fhall not be found there; but the redeemed fhall walk there. And the ranfomed of the Lord fhall return, and come to Zion with fongs, and everlafting joy upon their heads." Ifa. XXXV. 8-10. Numbers are fearching to find this path, who never had fo much as their face Zionward, but ftumble upon the dark mountains in a way not caft up: "The labour of the foolish wearieth every one of them; because he knoweth not how to go to the city." Eccl. x. 15. This is the that is "above to the wife, that he may way

depart from hell beneath;" it is "the way of life; and in the path thereof there is no death." The curfe and wrath of God attend every other way but this. "There is a way that feemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death." Because they feck not union with the true vine, nor have they any regard to the branches in it, therefore "their portion is cursed in the earth: he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards."

vineyards." Job xxiv. 18. And now, what is this highway and a way? The highway is Chrift and faith in him: "I am the way; no man cometh unto the Father but by me." This is the highway. And the way, which is to be called, "The way of holinefs," is, following Chrift in the regeneration; for fuch fhall fit down with him on his throne.

Thus, Philomela, I have led thee in the way which, in a state of nature, I knew not, and in a path which, to all unregenerate men, is not known, nor can be, till God make darkness light before them, and crooked things ftraight. Upon all other paths but this hypocrites as well as faints may walk. But no lion nor lion's whelps, no fierce lion nor ravenous beaft, no unclean creature, no apoftate, no heretic or hypocrite, have I ever met with or found upon this path: the way of regeneration is untrodden and unfrequented by all these. I could wish thee to make a few high heaps, and to fet up a few land-marks, to be of use in future times. But nothing of this fort can be attended to at prefent; for at Wifdom's gates and doors not only her heavenly voice is heard and felt, but all manner of fruits, new and old, are laid up at thefe gates for his best beloved. Song vii. 13. Hence the pleafantnefs of the ways, the ravishing voice, and delicious fruit, take up all the attention; fo that all advice upon this head is in vain. Therefore fing on, Philomela; for to

add

add to the melody of thy heart, and to afford some fresh matter for the fong, is the cause of my fending these "to the chief finger on my ftringed inftruments." Hab. iii. 18.

The Defert.

NOCTUA AURITA.

LETTER XIV.

To NOCTUA AURITA, in the Defert.

YOUR having informed me that the bee came to your hive with wax on its legs, and honey in its bag, encouraged me to come again to you. Precious was your last to me! delicious fare for really it has been fo refreshing to my foul, that I can feed upon nothing else: therefore have compaffion on me, and go on ftill to help me; and you will certainly experience the wife man's words to be true, viz. "There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth." Confider that this week there is no going up to Bethel. Our watchman is removed into a corner, fo that we can neither fee him nor hear him. The Lord blefs the interview, and grant that he may foon return, and

come to us in all the fulness of the bleffings of the gospel of Christ. I have read again and again your last letters, and found a fecond benefit. I believe, while I remain upon this earth, that I shall never have done with them. Some of the mysteries I had the key to before they came, or I never could have found out the riddle. Sweetly was my foul led into the experience and enjoyment of those bleffed truths; which did fo humble and meeken my foul, that it crucified me afresh to this finful world; fo that I am not fit to live in it. I feem quite infenfible to every thing in it, and hardly at times know what I am about, or where I am. This has given me fome light into those words of our bleffed Saviour, in his prayer to the Father before he entered upon his fufferings. Praying for his difciples, he fays, "They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world." I cannot but think that you have been lately a fabbath-day's journey into fome part of the promised land, and have reached as far as the brooks of Efhcol; for what you have fent to me feems to be fome of the first ripe fruits, a moft precious clufter. It could not be carried by one; but it hath been laid on a ftaff, and born betwixt two. It was one of the choiceft of all bleffings; no lefs than an earneft of the whole inheritance. O that I was but with you, to tell you what I enjoy now, while the King's herald is with you! But this is impoffible. Wives

and