gredient in that divine energy or power: "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word" of God. When God, by the miniftry, of his fervants, fends his word with power, fo that the finner is judged, condemned, and the thoughts of his heart made manifeft, he will fall down on his face and worship God, and report that God is in that fervant of a truth. This is ftrong faith in terrible tidings; here are terrible sensations and terrible things in righteousness, and a strong confidence that this power is of God, and he reports it of a truth. What a man feels that he believes; faith and power always go together; faith stands not in the wifdom of men, but in the power of God. When Peter charged the blood of Chrift upon his audience, all that felt the dint of the fword believed the charge, and cried for quarter. Faith, when wrought in the foul, is a general receiver of all that God fends; nor fhall the power of unbelief, however ftrong in a chosen veffel, make either the faith of God or the word of God without effect.

Every notion that à careless finner entertains of God is falfe, and unworthy of him. He talks of his mercy and goodness, pity and compaffion; but he cannot endure to hear of his fovereignty, holiness, juftice, truth, immutability, or terrible majefty. None of the fubjects of Satan's kingdom hold these things in their creed, unless it be here and there one who hath been lifted up with,

pride till he is fallen into the condemnation of the devil, and then he is obliged to do as the devil does, "believe and tremble." But this is a defperate faith which attends the entrance of the devil when he returns to take poffeffion of the houfe from whence he came out, which is the enemy's laft ftage, and the finner's worft end. It was this faith that influenced the heart of Judas when Satan entered into him, and which Satan Labours to ftrengthen and confirm, and often eafes himself of fome part of his burden by fpending the fhafts of his rage on the trophy of his victory.

- But the convictions of God's elect are attended with the inceffant groanings of a fpirit of fupplication, and an infatiable thirst for the mercy of God; a continual fear of his convictions leaving him, or of their going off the wrong way; a fear of being left to himfelf, and of being given up to the hardness of his own heart; fo tired is he of his own way, and fo fick of himself. And that foul that would carry his burden to the grave, if he might obtain hope in his death, rather than be given up to carnal ease and a worldly spirit, is the man that hears the rod (Micah vi. 9); and the man that accepts the punishment of his iniquity, Lev. xxvi. 41-43: he is the hungry foul to whom every bitter thing is fweet; and to fuch the promife is made, They fhall come that

were ready to perish."

Chrift Jefus, who is the omniprefent God,

when

when he comes to fet up his kingdom in the heart of a poor finner, does not difcover or manifeft himself all at once. It is as the spouse explains. It is firft the voice of my Beloved. The life-giving word of reproof and rebuke, piercing, fearching, and trying our hearts, comes firft; this finks us, and falvation for fuch appears impoffible; but Behold he comes, leaping upon the mountains and fkipping upon the hills." Mount Sinai ftands fadly in our way. Election (called a mountain of brafs, Zech. vi. 1) Satan's power, and the huge catalogue of our fins, are all in our way as fo many mountains. But " every mountain and hill fhall be made low, and the crooked fhall be made ftraight, and the rough places plain; and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed." Ifa. xl. 4. The next view the spouse had of him was fomewhat nearer than the last. "He ftandeth behind our wall." Song. ii. 9. The ceremonial law was a wall that hid Chrift; the substance was obfcured by the fhadow: but when he discovered himself to the spouse the fhadows fled, and when he came in the flesh he broke down the middle wall of partition, and made Jew and Gentile one; and gives us both accefs by one Spirit unto the Father, and even communion with himself. Moreover, our own fuppofed merit ftands fadly in our way. "The rich man's wealth is his ftrong city, and as a high wall in his own conceit." But Chrift always sends the

rich empty away, and never relieves us till we become poor in fpirit: the kingdom of God is promifed to fuch. When the above wall is down he comes a little clofer-" He looketh forth at the windows." Song. ii. 9. Thefe windows are, firft, the doctrines of the gofpel, in which Chrift appears as the fubject-matter of them. In this glafs the natural man fees his face, and his heart too; and in the fame glafs the Lord is to be seen. "We behold, as in a glafs, the glory of the Lord; and are changed into the fame image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord." 2 Cor. iii. 18.. Zion's windows are the brilliant and illuttrious perfections of God fhining in Chrift Jefus, and reflected on the word of his grace. "I will anake thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles, and all thy borders of pleasant stones : and all thy children fhall be taught of the Lord." Ifa, liv. 12. Hence it appears that these windows and gates are a difplay of the glory of God when a poor finner enters into the prefence, grace, fa vour, and joy of the Lord, and is favoured with an unctuous experience of his glorious grace. When thefe windows from on high are opened by the miniftry of the word (Ifa. xxiv. 18), how do poor fenfible finners fly to them when the report of it is spread abroad. "Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as doves to their windows?" Ifa. Ix. 8. Furthermore, the mind and underftanding of a man are the windows of the foul,

even as the eyes are of the body; and every time' he fhines into the foul, like the fun, he illumi-. nates us and warms our hearts. Thefe are the foul-ravifhing difcoveries that he makes of himfelf when he looketh in at the windows: thus we fee through a glafs darkly, but in time to come we fhall fee him face to face. The last view the fpoufe had of him was flourishing through the lattice. Song ii. 9. A lattice is a wooden or iron window, cross-barred; fomé parts of it are entirely open, but where the bars go it is entirely dark and obfcure. There is a glorious ray of light at times that shines upon every grace of the Spirit in the heart; but there is an inbred corruption, like the wooden bars of a lattice, which fadly intervenes and obfcures the light: the light fhines in darkness (in this fenfe), but the darkness com-/ prehends it not. Sometimes we are wonderfully indulged with the light of his countenance, which fills us with joy and gladness; but these are sure to be followed with defertions. "He hideth his face, and then who can behold him?" He keeps back the face of his throne, and fpreads his cloud upon it when he fhines, grace flows out; when he is hid, corruptions ftruggle hard. Through this lattice-work he fhews himself; for when the bridegroom vifits us what a heavenly banquet doth the foul enjoy! But when the bridegroom is taken away, then we faft in thofe days; for the children of the bride-chamber cannot faft while