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and empty profeffors under the gofpel; and the refemblance clearly holds in thefe following particulars:

1. The tree that is to be hewn down for the fire, ftands in the orchard among other flourishing trees, where it hath enjoyed the benefit of a good foil, a ftrong fence, and much culture; but being barren, thefe privileges fecure it not from the fire. It is not our ftanding in the visible church by a powerlefs profeffion among real faints with whom we have been affociated, and enjoyed the rich and excellent waterings of ordinances, that can fecure us from the wrath of God, Matth. iii. 8, 9. "Bring forth fruits meet for repentance, and "think not to fay within yourselves, we have Abraham to our faNeither Abraham, nor Abraham's God, will acknowledge fuch degenerate children; if Abraham's faith be not in your hearts, it will be no advantage that Abraham's blood runs in your veins. It will be a poor plea for Judas, when he fhall ftand before Chrift in judgment, to fay, Lord, I was one of thy family, I preached for thee; I did eat and drink in thy prefence. Let these scriptures be confulted, Matth. vii. 22. Matth. xxv. 11, 12. Rom. ii. 17,

and 25.

2. The husbandman doth not presently cut down the tree because it puts not forth as foon as other trees do; but waits as long as there is any hope, and then cuts it down. Thus doth God wait upon barren dead-hearted perfons, from fabbath to fabbath, and from year to year for the Lord is long-fuffering to us-ward, not willing that any fhould perish, but that all fhould come to repentance, 2 Pet. iii. 9. * Thus the long-fuffering of God waited in the days of Noah upon thofe dry trees, who are now fimoking and flaming in hell, 1 Pet. iii. 29. He waits long on finners, but keeps exact accounts of every year and day of his patience, Luke xiii. 7. "Thefe three years." And Jer. xxv. 3. thefe twenty-three years.

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3. When the time is come to cut it down, the dead tree cannot poffibly refift the ftroke of the ax; but receives the blow, and falls before it. No more can the ftouteft finner refift the fatal stroke by death, by which the Lord hews him down; Eccl. viii. 3. "There is no man that hath power over the fpirit to retain the spirit; nei"ther hath he power in the day of death; and there is no discharge "in that war." When the pale horfe comes, away you muft into the land of darkness. Though thou cry with Adrian, O my poor foul! whither art thou going? Die thou muft, thou barren profeffor; though it were better for thee to do any thing elfe than to die. What a dreadful fhrick will thy confcience give when it fees the ax at thy root, and fay to thee, as it is Ezek. vii. 6. "An end is come, the "end is come; it watcheth for thee; behold it is come." Oh! faith Henry Beauford, (that rich and wretched cardinal, bishop of Winchester, and chancellor of England, when he perceived whereunto he must go) wherefore must I die? If the whole realm would fave

VOL. V.

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my life, I am able either by policy to get it, or by riches to buy it. Fie (quoth he) will not death be hired? Will riches do nothing? No, neither riches nor policy can then avail.

4. The fide to which the tree leaned moft while it ftood, that way it will fall when it is cut down; and as it falls, fo it lies, whether to the fouth or north, Eccl. xi. 3. So it fares with thefe myftical trees, I mean fruitle's profeffors: Had their hearts and affections inclined and bended heaven-ward whilft they lived, that way, no doubt, they had fallen at their death; but as their hearts inclined to fin, and even bended to the world, fo when God gives the fatal ftroke, they muft fall hell-ward and wrath-ward: And, how dreadful will fuch a fall be !

5. When the dead tree is carried out of the orchard, it shall never be among the living trees of the orchard any more; many years it grew among them, but now it fhall never have a place there again. And when the barren profeffor is carried out of the world by death, he fhall never be affociated with the faints any more: He may then fay, farewel all ye faints, among whom I lived, and with whom I fo often heard, fafted, and prayed: I fhåll never fee your face more; Matth. viii. 11, 12. "I fay unto you, that many fhall come from the "eaft, and weft, and north, and fouth, and fall fit down with "Abraham, Ifaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven; but the "children of the kingdom fhall be caft forth into outer darkness; "there fhall be weeping, and wailing, and grafhing of teeth."

6. When the dead tree is carried out of the orchard, the husbandman cuts off its branches, and rives it afunder with his wedges. This alfo is the lot of barren profeffors: "The Lord of that fervant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and will cut him "afunder;" he fhail be diffected, or cut abroad, Luke xii. 46. Now therefore "confider this, ye that forget God, left I tear (or "rend) you in pieces," Pfalm 1. 22. O direful day! when the fame hand that planted, pruned, and watered thee fo long, and fo tenderly, fhall now ftrike mortal strokes at thee, and that without pity! "For, he that made them, will not have mercy on them; and he "that formed them, will thew them no favour," Ifa. xxvii. 11. For the day of mercy is over; and the day of his wrath is fully come.

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7. When this tree is cleaved abroad, then its rotten, hollow infide appears, which was the caufe of its barrennefs; it looked like a fair and found-bodied tree, but now all may fee how rotten it is at the heart; fo will God in that day, when he fhall diffect the barren profeffor, difcover the rottennefs of his heart, and unfoundness of his principles and ends: Then they who never fufpected him before, fhall fee what a hollow and rotten-hearted profeffor he was.

8. Laftly; The fruitlefs tree is caft into the fire. This alfo is the end and fad iffue of formality, John xv. 6. "He is caft forth as a branch, " and is withered; and men gather them, and caft them into the "fire; and they are burned." This is an undoubted truth, that

there is no plant in God's vineyard, but he will have glory from it, by bearing fruit; or glory on it, by burning in the fire. In this fire fhall they lie "gnathing their teeth," Luke xiii. 38. and that both in indignation against the faints, whom they fhall fee in glory; and against Jefus Chrift, who would not fave them; and against themselves, for lofing fo foolishly the opportunities of falvation. Do you behold, when you fit by the fire, the froth that boils out of thofe flaming logs? O think of that foam and rage of those undone creatures, foaming, and gnafhing their teeth in that fire which is not quenched! Mark

ix. 14.

REFLECTION.

How often have I paffed by fuch barren trees, A reflection for a with a more barren heart, as little thinking fuch formal bypocrite. a tree to be the emblem of myself, as Nebuchadnezzar did, when he faw that tree in a dream, which reprefented. himself, and shadowed forth to him his enfuing mifery, Dan. iv. 13. But, O my confcience! ny drowsy, fleepy confcience! wert thou but tender, and faithful to me, thou wouldst make as round and terrible an application of such a spectacle to me, as the faithful prophet did to him, ver. 22. And thus wouldst thou, O my foul, bemoan thy

condition.

Poor wretch! here I grow, for a little time, among the trees of righteousness, the plants of renown, but I am none of them; I was never planted a right feed; fome green and flourishing leaves of profeffion, indeed, I have, which deceive others, but God cannot be deceived; he fees I am fruitlefs and rotten at the heart. Poor foul! what will thine end be but burning? Behold, the ax lieth by thy root? and wonder it is, that there it fhould lie fo long, and I yet ftanding! Still mercy pleads for a fruitless creature: Lord, fpare it one year longer. Alas! he need ftrike no great blow to ruin me; his very breath blows to deftruction, Job iv. 9. A frown of his face can blaft and ruin me, Pfalm lxxx. 6. He is daily folicited by his juftice to hew me down, and yet I ftand. Lord, cure my barrennefs! I know thou hadft rather fee fruit than fire upon me.

THE POEM.

F, after pains and patience, you can fee

I'

No hopes of fruit, down goes the barren tree.
ou will not fuffer trees that are unfound,

And barren too, to cumber useful ground.
The fatal ax is laid unto the root:
'Tis fit for fire, when unfit for fruit.
But, though this be a dead and barren tree,
Reader, I would not have it fo to thee:
May it to thee this ferious thought fuggeft,
In all the orchard this dead tree's the beft,

Think on it fadly, lay it close to heart,
This is the cafe in which thou waft, or art.

If fo thou waft, but now doft live and grow,
And bring forth fruit, what praife and thanks doft owe
To that wife hufbandman that made thee fo?
O think, when juftice lifted up its hand,
How mercy did then interceding stand!
How pity did on thy behalf appear,
To beg reprieval for another year.

Stop, Lord! forbear him: all hope is not paft;
He can but be for fire at the laft.

Though many fermons, many a gracious call
He hath refifted like a brazen wall,

The next may win him; when thy grace fhall raife
Unto itself a monument of praife.

How fhould this meditation thaw and melt
The heart of him that hath fuch mercy felt ?
But, if thou fill remain a barren tree,
Then here, as in a mirror, thou may'st see
Thy wretched state, when juftice, at a blow,
Requites God's patience in thine overthrow.
And canft thou bear it? Can thy heart endure
To think of everlasting burnings? Sure,
This muft thy lot, thy fearful portion be,
If thou continue ftill a barren tree.

AN

INTRODUCTION

To the Third Part of

HUSBANDRY.

TOW, from the pleasant orchard let us walk

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A turn i' th' fields, and there converfe and talk
With cows and horfes; they can teach us fome
Choice leffons, though irrational and dumb.
My reader's weary; yet I do not fear
To be forfaken by one reader here:
He'll doubtlefs ftay to hear what questions I
Propound to beafts, and how they make reply.
The fatted ox, and pamper'd horfe you ride;
Their carelefs mafter for his care thus chide.

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M

CHAP. I.

Upon the Hufbandman's Care for his Cattle.

More care for horse and oxen many take,
Than for their fouls, or dearest children's fake.

OBSERVATION.

ANY hufbandmen are exceffively careful about their cattle, rifing themselves early, or caufing their fervants to rife betimes to provinder and drefs them. Much time is fpent in fome countries, in trimming and adorning their horfes with curious trappings and plumes of feathers; and if at any time their beafts be fick, what care is taken to recover and heal them : you will be fure they hall want nothing that is neceffary for them; yea, many will chufe rather to want themfelves, than fuffer their horfes fo to do; and take a great deal of comfort to fee them thrive and profper under their hands.

APPLICATION.

THAT one faid of bloody Herod, who flew fo many children at

W Bethlehem, That it were better to be his fwine than his fon,

may truly enough be applied to fome parents and mafters, who take lefs care for the faving the fouls of their children and fervants, than they do for the bodies of those beasts which daily feed at their stalls and cribs. Many there be who do in reference to their fouls, as Jacob did with refpect to the prefervation of their bodies, when he put all the herds of cattle before, and his wives and little ones behind, as he went to meet his brother Efau. It is a weighty faying of a grave author; It is vile ingratitude to rejoice when cattle multiply, and repine when children increafe; it is heathenith distrustfulness to fear that he who provides for your beafts, will not provide for 'your children; and it is no lefs than unnatural cruelty, to be careful ' of the bodies of beafts, and careless of the fouls of children.' Let us but a little compare your care and diligence in both respects, and fee, in a few particulars, whether you do indeed value your own, or your children and fervant's fouls, as you do the life and health of a beaft.

1. Your care for your very horfes is expreffed early, whilst they are but colts, and not come to do you any fervice; you are willing to be at pains and coft, to have them broken and brought to their way. This is more than ever many of them did for their children; they can fee them wild and profane, naturally taking a ftroke or way of wickedness, but yet never were at any pains or coft to break them; these must be fondled and cockered up in the natural way of their own cor

* Jenk. on Jude, part 2. p. 170.

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