shall remove you hence by death, he may transplant you into the celestial paradise.

Be pleased to accept of these few notes which, some years since, you did seem to hear with much affection: I shall only desire two things of you, that you would thoroughly peruse them, and then copy them out in your daily practice. Get up into your tower of meditation, and look often, with Moses, upon him who is invisible, Heb. xi.27. But I will not hold you any longer. I remember St. Paul in the close. of his Epistle, craves the Thessalonians' prayers, 1 Thes. v. 25. and so shall I end my epistle begging a contribution of your prayers for me, that the Lord would give me the strength of Heaven to do the work of Heaven; that he would help me to take heed to myself and my doctrine; that he would make me, not only faithful, but successful in my ministry among you that so, "when the chief Shepherd shall appear I may receive a crown of glory which fadeth not away," 1 Pet. v. 4. I shall not

further enlarge, unless in my affections towards you.

"Now the God of peace that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus that great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work, to do his will, working in you that which is well pleasing in his sight," Heb. xiii. 20, 21. which shall be the earnest prayer of him, who is,

Your friend and servant,

for Jesus sake,

THOMAS WATSON.

THE

EPISTLE TO THE READER.

CHRISTIAN READER,

THERE are some exercises of religion which stand only in a form of godliness, when men draw near with their mouth and honour God with their lips, and bestow a little bodily exercise and attendance upon him, when in the mean time their hearts are far from him, running after other objects, Isa. xxix. 13. Ezek. xxxiii. 31. Other duties there are which are more spiritual, and wherein the life and power of godliness doth consist. Among these, that of heavenly meditation is one, when, (as the apostle saith of the blessed angels, 1 Pet. i. 12.) the heart desires to look into the mysteries of salvation.

Ever since the fall of Adam, sinful men have had the disposition of Adam, to fly away, and to hide from the presence of the Lord. Natural men are without God in the world: he is not in all their thoughts, they could be well enough content to have him " cease from before them," Isa, xxx. H. He is every where else to be found, only shut out of the hearts of wicked men.

The heart never willingly fixeth on God, till he be the treasure of it; for where a man's treasure is, there will his heart be also. It cannot easily meditate, but where it doth delight, Psal. cxix. 97. Love is the weight of the soul; it readily moves to the object which it loves. Mary will not away from the empty sepulchre, where a little before her Lord had lain. Every good man is of David's mind, Psal. xvi. 8. to set the Lord always before him, that he may be in his fear all the day long.

There is nothing of a more unstable and roving temper than the mind of man. Some have prescribed the study of mathematics to fix the volatile agility thereof; but certainly the more serious, the more settled the soul is. Nothing, therefore, will so balance and compose it, as true holiness, which doth of all other things make it the most serious, the most willing" to acquaint itself with God, that it may be at peace," Job xxii. 21. He is the rest of the soul. The more it knows of him, the more desirous it is to stay with him that it may know more. The more it tasteth of his favour, the more it longeth after his glory, as Moses did, Exod. xxxiii. 17, 18. What the philosopher saith of all knowledge, is indeed true only of the knowledge of God and Christ, that it is quies intellectus. And therefore our Saviour calleth it eternal life, John xvii. 3. in which alone the soul doth rest.

Now one excellent means of fixing the heart on