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of Zarephath, with whom Elijah fojourned during the famine. Upon the death of her fon, which it feems was fomewhat extraordinary, fhe cried out unto the prophet, What have I to do with thee, thou man of God? Art thou come to call my fins to remembrance, and to flay my fon? 1 Kings xvii. 18. It feems fome great fim the had formerly contracted the guilt of, and now upon her fore affliction in the death of her only child, the remembrance of it was recalled and revived upon her foul. Thus deep calleth unto deep at the noife of God's water fpouts, and then all his waves and billows go over a perfon, Pfal. xlii. 7. The deep of afflictions calleth up the deep of the guilt of fin, and both in conjunction become as billows and waves paffing over the foul. We fee only the outside of men's afflictions, they ufually complain only of what doth appear. And an eafy thing it is fuppofed to be, to apply relief and comfort unto thofe that are diftreffed. The rule in this matter is fo clear, so often repeated and inculcated, the promises annexed unto this condition fo many and precious, that every one hath in readiness what to apply unto them who are fo exercised. But oftentimes, we know nothing of the gall and wormwood that is in men's affliction; they keep that to themselves, and their fouls feed upon them in fecret, Lam iii. 12. God hath ftir red up the remembrance of fome great fin, or fins, and they look upon their afflictions as that wherein he is come or beginning to enter into judgment with them. And is it any wonder if they be in darkness and filled with difconfolation?

2. There is in many afflictions fomething that feem new and peculiar, wherewith the foul is furprized, and cannot readily reduce its condition unto what is taught about afflictions in general. This perplexeth and entangleth it. It is not affliction it is troubled withal, but fome one thing or other in it that appears with an especial dread unto the foul, fo that he queftioneth whe ther ever it were fo' with any other or no, and is thereby deprived of the fapportment which from former examples

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examples it might receive. And indeed, when God intendeth that which fhall be a deep affliction, he will put an edge upon it in matter, or manner, or circumftances, that fhall make the foul feel its sharpness; he will not take up with our bounds and measures, and with which we think we could be contented: But he will put in the impress of his own greatness and terror upon it, that he may be acknowledged and fubmitted unto. Such was the state with Naomi; when from a full and plentiful condition, she went into a strange country with an husband and two fons, where they all died, leaving her deftitute and poor: Hence in her account of God's dealing with her, the fays, Call me not Naomi, (that is pleafant) but call me Mara, (that is bitter) for the Almighty bath dealt very bitterly with me. I went out full and the Lord hath brought me again empty; why then call ye me Naomi, fince the Lord hath teftified against me; and the Almighty hath afflicted me? Ruth i. 20, 21. So was it with Job, with the widow of Zarephath, and with her at Naim who was burying her only child. And still in many afflictions God is pleased to put in an entangling fpecialty, which perplexeth the foul, and darkens it in all its reafonings about the love of God towards it, and its intereft in pardon and grace.

3. In fome, afflictions are very ftrong and importu nate, as fixed on lawful things; whereby their nature is made fenfible and tender, and apt to receive very deep impreffious from urgent afflictions: Now, altho' this in it felf be a good natural frame, and helps to preferve the foul from that ftout hardnefs which God abhors; yet if it be not watched over, it is apt to perplex the foul with many intangling temptations. The apostle intimates a double evil that we are obnoxious unto under trials and afflictions, Heb. xii. 5. My fon, defpife thou not the chaftening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him. Men may either, through a natural ftoutnefs, defpife and contemn their fufferings, and be obftinate under them, or faint and defpond, and fo come fhort of the end which God aims at for them,

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to be attained in a way of duty. Now, though the frame fpoken of, be not obnoxious unto the first extreme, yet it is greatly to the latter, which, if not watched against, is no lefs pernicious than the former. Affections in fuch perfons being greatly moved, they cloud and darken the mind, and fill it with ftrange apprehenfions concerning God and themfelves. Every thing is prefented unto them through a glafs, compofed of fear, dread, terror, forrow, and all forts of dif confolations. This makes them faint and defpond, nto very fad apprehenfions of themfelves and their conditions.

4. Afflictions find fome entangled with very ftrong corruptions, as love of the world, or the pleafure of it, of name or reputation, of great contrivances for pofterity, and the like; or it may be in things carnal or fenfual. Now, when thefe unexpectedly meet together, great afflictions and ftrong corruptions, it is not conceivable what a combuftion they will make in the foul. As a strong medicine or portion meeting with a strong or tough diffemper in the body; there is a violent contention in nature between them and about them, so that oftentimes the very life of the patient is endangered. So it is where a great trial, a fmart ftroke of the hand of God, falls upon a perfon in the midst of his purfuit of the effects of fome corruptions; the foul is amazed even to distraction, and can fcarce have any thought, but that God is come to cut the perfon off in the midst of his fin. Every unmortified corruption fills the very fear and expectation of affliction with horror. And there is good reason that io it fhould do; for although God fhould be merciful unto mens iniquities, yet if he should come to take vengeance of their inventions, their condition will be dark and forrowful.

<. Satan is never wanting in fuch occafions to attempt the compaffing of his ends, upon perfons that are exercised under the hand of God. In the time of his fuffering it was, that he fell upon the head of the church, turning it into the very hour of the power of darkness.

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And he will not omit any appearing opportunities of advantage against his members: And this is that which he principally in fsuch seasons attacks them withal, namely, that God regards them not, that they are fallen under his judgment and feverity, as those who have no fhare in mercy, pardon or forgiveness.

From thefe and the like reafons, I fay it is, that whereas afflictions in general are fo teftified unto, to be fuch pledges and tokens of God's love and care to be defigned unto bleffed ends, as conformity unto Christ, and a participation of the holiness of God; yet by rea fon of thefe circumftances, they often prove means of cafting the foul into depths, and of hindering it from a refreshing intereft in the forgiveness thats with God: That this may prove no real or abiding ground of inward fpiritual trouble unto the foul, the following rules and directions may be observed.

1. Not only afflictions in general, but great and manifold afflictions, and thofe attended with all forts of aggravating circumftances, are always confiftent with the pardon of fin, after fignal tokens and pledges of it, and of the love of God therein, Job vii. 17, 18. What is man that thou shouldft magnify him, and that thou fhouldft fet thine heart upon him, and that thou shouldst vifit him every morning, and try him every moment! What were the confiderations that caft him into this admiration of the care and love of God, is expreffed, ver. 12, 13, 14, 15, 16. There are no words of a more difmal import in the whole book than thofe here expreffed; yet when he recollected himfelf from his overwhelming diftrefs, he acknowledgeth that all this proceeded from the love and care of God; yea, his fixing his heart upon a man to magnify him, to fet him up, and do himgood; for this end doth he chaften a man every morning, and try him every moment; and that with fuch afflictions as are for the prefent, fo far from being joyous, as that they give no rest, but even weary the foul of life, as he expreffeth their effects on himself, ver. 15, 16. And hence it is obferved of this Job, that when

337 when none in the earth was like to him in trouble, God gave him three teftimonies from heaven, that there was none on the earth like unto him in grace. And altho' it may not be laid down as a general rule, yet for the moft part in the providence of God, from the foundation of the world, those who have had most of afflictions, have had most of Grace, and the most eminent teftimonies of acceptance with God. Chrift Jefus, the Son of God, the Head of the church, had all afflictions gathered into an head in him; and yet the Father always loved him, and was always well pleafed with him.

When God folemnly renewed his covenant with Abraham, and he had prepared the facrifice whereby it was to be ratified and confirmed, God made a fmoking" furnace to pafs betwen the pieces of the facrifice, Gen. XV. 17. It was to let him know, that there was a furnace of affliction attending the covenant of grace and peace. And fo he tells Sion, that he chofe her in the furnace of affliction, Ita. xlviii. 10. that is, in Egyptian affliction, burning, flaming afflictions, fiery trials, as Peter calls them, Pet. iv. 12. There can then no argument be drawn from affliction, from any kind of it, from any aggravating circumftance wherewith it may be attended, that should any way difcourage the foul in its comforting fupporting perfwafion of an intereft in the love of God, and forgivenefs thereby.

2. No length or continuance of afflictions ought to be any impeachment of our fpiritual confolation. Take for the confirmation hereof, the great example of the Son of God. How long did his afflictions continue? What end or iffue was put to them? No longer did they abide, than until he cried with a loud voice, and gave up the ghoit. To the moment of his death, from his manger to his crofs, his afflictions ftill increafed, and he ended his days in the midst of them. Now, he was the Head of the church, and the great reprefentative of it; unto a conformity with whom we are predeftinated. And if God will have it fo with us, even in

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