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This Prophet kind himself has fet
To be my book and alphabet,
And ev'ry needful letter plain,
Alpha, Omega, and Amen. 1

SECT. XII.

The Mystery of the BELIEVER's mixed State further enlarged; and bis getting Good out of Evil.

EHOLD, I'm all defil'd with fin. 2
Yet, lo! all glorious am within. 3

In Egypt and in Cofben dwell; 4
Still movelefs, and in motion ftill; 5
Unto the name that moft I dread,
I flee with joyful wings and fpeed. 6
My daily hope does moft depend
On him I daily most offend. 7

minifter, and to give his life a ransom for many. Phil. ii. 7. Chrift Jefus made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men. Ifaiah xlii. 1. Behold my fervant, whom I up. hold; mine elect, in whom my foul delighteth. And liii. 11. By his knowledge fhall my righteous fervant juftify many.

1 Rev. i. 8. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, faith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. Verse 11. I am Alpha and Omega, the firft and the laft: and, What thou (John) feeft, write in a book, and fend it unto the feven churches which are in Afia. And xxi. 6. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end: I will give unto him that is athirit, of the fountain of the water of life freely. And xxii. 13. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. And iii. 14. And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans, write, Thefe things faith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God, &c.

Ifaiah Ixiv. 6. But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteoufneffes, are as filthy rags.

3 Pfalm xlv. 15. The King's daughter is all glorious within; her clothing is of wrought gold.

4 Pfalm cxx. 5, 6. Wo is me, that I fojourn in Mefech, that I dwell in the tents of Kedar. My foul hath long dwelt with him that hateth peace. And xvi. 5, 6. The Lord is the portion of mine inheritance, and of my cup: thou maintaineft lot: The lines are failen unto me in pleafant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.

my

5 1 Cor. xv. 58. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye ftedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forafmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

6 Pfalm cxliii. 2. O Lord, enter not into judgment with thy fervant : for in thy fight firall no man living be justified. Veric 9. Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: I fee unto thee to hide me.

7 Pfalm xxv. 11. For thy name's fake, O Lord, pardon mine iniquity: for it is great. Jer. xiv. 7. O Lord, though our iniquities teftify against us, do thou it for thy name's lake: for our backflidings are many, we have finned against thee.

All things againft me are combin'd,
Yet working for my good, I find. 1
I'm rich in midft of poverties; 2
And happy in my miseries. 3
Oft my Comforter fends me grief;
My helper fends me no relief. 4
Yet herein my advantage lies,
That help and comfort he denies. 5
As feamfters into pieces cut

The cloath they into form would put;
He cuts me down to make me up,
And empties me to fill my cup. 6
I never can myself enjoy,
Till he my woful felf destroy;
And most of all myfelf I am,

When moft I do myfelf difclaim. 7

: 1 Gen. xlii. 36. And Jacob their father faid unto them, Me have ye bereaved of my children; Jofeph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away: all thefe things are against me. Rom. viii. 28. And we know that all things work together for good, to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

2 Rev. ii. 8, 9 And unto the angel of the church in Smyrna, write, Thefe things faith the first and the last, which was dead, and is alive; I know thy works, and tribulation, and poverty, (but thou art rich).

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3 Rom. v. 35. And not only fo, but we glory in tribulations alfo, knowing that tribulation worketh patience; and patience, experience; and experience, hope and hope maketh not ashamed, becaufe the love of God is fhed abroad in our hearts, by the Holy Ghoft which is given unto us. 2 Cor. xii. 10. Therefore I (Paul) take pleafure in infirmities, in reproaches, in neceffities, in perfecutions, in diftreffes for Chrift's fake: for when I am weak, then am I ftrong.

4 Lam. i. 16. For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the Comforter that should relieve my foul, is far from me. Ifa. xlv. 15. Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Ifrael, the Saviour.

5 Ifa. xxx 18. And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you; and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment; bleffed are all they that wait for him.

6 Holea v. 15. I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will feek me early. And vi. 1, 2. Come and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath fmitten, and he will bind us up. After two days will he revive us, in the third day he will raife us up, and we shall live in his fight:Pfalm cvii. 9. God fatisfieth the longing foul, and filleth the hungry foul with goodnefs. Luke i. 53. And Mary faid,-He hath filled the hungry with good things, and the rich he hath fent empty away.

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For

7 Luke ix. 23, 24. And Jefus faid to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his crofs daily, and follow me. whofoever will fave his life, fhall lofe it: but whofoever will lose his life for my fake, the fame fhall fave it. Rom. viii. 13. If ye live after the flesh, ye fhall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye fhall live. 2 Cor. xii. 10. See figure 3. above.

I glory in infirmities, I

Yet daily I'm afham'd of these ; 2

Yea, all my pride gives up the ghost,
When once I but begin to boaft. 3
My chemistry is most exact,
Heav'n out of hell I do extract; 4
This art to me a tribute brings
Of useful out of hurtful things. 5
I learn to draw well out of woe,
And thus to disappoint the foe; 6
The thorns that in my flesh abide,
Do prick the tympany of pride. 7
By wounding foils the field I win,
And fin itself destroys my fin: 8

1

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1 2 Cor. xii. 9. Moft gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Chrift may rest upon me.

2 Pfalm lxxiii. 15, 16. If I fay, I will fpeak thus, behold, I fhould offend against the generation of thy children. When I fought to know this, it was too painful for me, &c. And Ixxvii. 8, 9, 10: Is his mercy clean gone for ever! Doth his promife fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies? Selah. And I faid, This is my infir mity: but I will remember the years of the right-hand of the Moft High.

3 Ifa. xlv. 24, 25. Surely, fhall one fay, In the Lord have I righteousness and strength: even to him fhall men come, and all that are incenfed against him, fhall be ashamed. In the Lord fhall all the feed of Ifrael be juftified, and fhall glory. Pfalm xliv. 6. I will not truft in my bow, neither fhall my fword fave me. Verfe 8. In God we boast all the day long; and praise thy name for ever. Selah.

4 Jonah ii. 1, 2. Then Jonah prayed unto the Lord his God out of the fish's belly, and faid, I cried by reafon of mine affliction unto the Lord, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardít my voice. Ver. 4. Then faid I, I am caft out of thy fight: yet I will look again toward thy holy temple. Mat. xv. 26, 27, 28. But Jefus anfwered and faid (unto the woman of Canaan) It is not meet to take the childrens bread, and to caft it to dogs. And the faid, Truth, Lord: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their master's table. Then Jefus answered and faid unto her, O woman, great is thy faith be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour. Pfalm xlii. 6, 7, 8. O my God, my foul is caft down within me: therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the hill Mizar. Deep calleth unto deep, at the noise Yet of thy water fpouts: all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. the Lord will command his loving-kindness in the day-time, and in the night his fong fhall be with me, and my prayer unto the God of life. my 5 Rom. v. 3, 4, 5. See figure 3. p. 210.

6 Micah vii. 8. Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy: when I fall, I fhall arife; when I fit in darkness, the Lord fhall be a light unto me.

72 Cor. xii. 7. And left I fhould be exalted above measure through the abundance of revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the meffenger of Satan to buffet me, left I thould be exalted above measure.

8 Rom. viii. 35. 37. Who fhall feparate us from the love of Chrift? Shall tribulation, or diftrefs, or perfecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or

My lufts break one-another's pate,
And each corruption kills its mate. I
I fmell the bait, I feel the harnı
Of corrupt ways, and take th' alarm.
I taste the bitterness of fin,

And then to relish grace begin. 2

I bear the fools profanely talk,

Thence wisdom learn in word and walk: 3

fword? Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors, through him that loved us. Pfalm 1xv. 3. Iniquities prevail against me: as for our tranfgreffions, thou shalt purge them away. 2 Chron. xxxii. 24, 25, 26. In those days Hezekiah was fick to the death, and prayed unto the Lord: and he fpake unto him, and he gave him a fign. But Hezekiah rendered not again, accord. ing to the benefit done unto him: for his heart was lifted up; therefore there was wrath upon him, and upon Judah and Jerufalem. Notwithstanding, Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart (both he and the inhabitants of Jerufalem) fo that the wrath of the Lord came not upon them in the days of Hezekiah.

1 Rom. vii. 7, 8, 9. What fhall we fay then? Is the law fin? God forbid. Nay, I had not known fin, but by the law. for I had not known luft, except the law had faid, Thou shalt not covet. But fin taking occafion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of concupifcence. For without the law fin was dead. For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, fin revived, and I died. Verfe 11. For fin taking occafion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it flew me. Verse 13. Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But fin, that it might appear fin, working death in me by that which is good; that fin, by the commandment, might become exceeding finful.-Where you fee the fight and feeling of fin killed felf. John ix. 39, 40, 41. And Jefus faid, For judgment I am come into this world that they which fee not, might fee; and that they which fee, may be made blind. And fome of the Pharifees which were with him, heard these words, and faid unto him, Are we blind alfo? Jefus faid unto them, If ve were blind, ye fhould have no fin: but now ye lay, We fee; therefore your fin remaineth. Pfalm lix. 11. Slay them not, left my people forget; fcatter them by thy power; and bring them down, O Lord, our fhield.Mat. xxvi. 33. 34. Peter answered and faid unto him, Though all men fhall be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended. Jefus faith unto him, Verily I fay unto thee, that this night, before the cock crow, thou fhalt deny me thrice. Verfe 75. And Peter remembered the words of Jefus, which faid unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And he went out, and wept bitterly.

2 Rom. vi. 21. What fruit had ye then in those things, whereof ye are now afhamed? For the end of thofe things is death. Pfalm xix. 11. Moreover, by them (viz. the judgments of the Lord) is thy fervant warned: and in keeping of them there is great reward. And lxxiii. 17, 18, 19. Until I went into the fanctuary of God; then understood I their end. Surely thou didft set them in flippery places: thou caftedit them down into deftruction. How are they brought into defolation, as in a moment! they are utterly confumed with terrors. Jer. ii. 19. Thine own wickedness fhall correct thee, and thy backflidings fhall reprove thee: know therefore and fee, that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou haft forfaken the Lord thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, faith the Lord God of hofts.

3 Job xxi. 13, 14, 15. They fpend their days in wealth, and in a moment go down to the grave Therefore they fay unto God, Depart from us; for we defire not the knowledge of thy ways. What is the Almighty, that we

I fee them throng the paffage broad,

And learn to take the narrow road. I

SECT. XIII.

The Mystery of the SAINT's Adverfaries and Adverfities.

A Lump of woe affliction is,

Yet thence I borrow lumps of bliss: 2

Though few can fee a bleffing in't,

It is my furnace and my mint. 3

Its sharpness does my lufts difpatch; 4
Its fuddennefs alarms my watch; 5

Its bitterness refines my tafte,

And weans me from the creature's breast; 6
Its weightiness doth try my back,

That faith and patience be not flack: 7

fhould ferve him? and what profit fhall we have, if we pray unto him?Eph. iv. 20, 21, 22. But ye have not fo learned Chrift; if fo be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jefus? that ye put off concerning the former converfation, the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lufts. And ver. 6, 7, 8. Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of difobedience. Be not ye therefore partakers with them. For ye were fome times darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light. Ver. 11. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but father reprove them.

1 Mat. vii. 13, 14. Enter ye in at the ftrait gate; for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: becaufe ftrait is the gate, and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

2 Heb. xii 11. Now, no chaftening for the prefent feemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless, afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteoufs nefs, unto them which are exercifed thereby. James i. 12. Bleffed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

3 Ifa. xxxi. 9. And he [viz. the Affyrian] thall pafs over to his ftrong hold, for fear; and his princes thall be afraid of the enfign, faith the Lord, whofe fire is in Zion, and his furnace is in Jerufalem.

4 Pfalm xlv. 5. Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies ; whereby the people fall under thee.

5 Mark xiii. 35, 36, 37. Watch ye therefore, (for ye know not when the Matter of the house cometh: at even, or at midnight, or at the cock-crowing, or in the morning,) leit coming fuddenly, he find you leeping. And what I fay unto you, I fay unto all, Watch.

6 Jer. ii. 19. See figure 2. p. 212. And iv. 18. Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee, this is thy wickednefs, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.

7 James i. 2, 3, 4. My brethren, count it all joy' when ye fall into divers temptations; knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.

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