us in our way; but no testimony of Providence is to be accepted against the word. If scripture and conscience tell you, such a way is sinful, you must not venture upon it, how many opportunities and encouragements soever Providence may suffer to offer themselves to you, for they are only permitted for your trial, not your encouragement. Take this therefore for a sure rule, that no Providence can legitimate or justify any moral evil; nor will it be a plea before God for any man to say, The providence of God gave me encouragement to do it. If therefore in doubtful cases, you would discover God's will, govern yourselves in your search after it by these rules. Get the true fear of God upon your hearts. Be really afraid of offending him. God will not hide his mind from such a soul, "The secret of the Lord is with them that fear him, and he will shew them his covenant." Study the word more, and the concerns and interests of the world less.-Reduce what you know into practice, and you shall know what is your duty to practise. "If any man do his will, he shall know of the doctrine," John vii, 17. Pray for illu

mination and direction in the way that you should go. And this being done, follow Providence so far as it agrees with the word, and no further. There is no use to be made of Providence against the word, but in subservience to it. And there are two excellent uses of Providence in subserviency to the word-Providences, as they follow promises and prayer, are evidences of God's faithfulness in their accomplishment; and they give us loud calls to those duties which the command lays upon us. Thus, when sad providences befall the church or ourselves, they call us to humiliation, and let us know that then the command to humble ourselves at the feet of God, is in force upon us; "The Lord's voice crieth to the city, and the man of wisdom shall see thy name; hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it," Micah vi. 9.

2. How may a Christian be supported in waiting upon God,whilst Providence delays the performance of the mercies to him for which he has long prayed and waited?

Two things are supposed in this casethat Providence may delay the performance of those mercies to us that we have

long waited and prayed for; and that during that delay, our hopes may be very low, and ready to fail.

1. Providence may long delay the performance of those mercies for which we have prayed.

There is a twofold term or season fixed for the performance of mercy to us. One by the Lord our God, another by ourselves, who raise up our own expectations of mercies sometimes merely through the eagerness of our desires after them, and sometimes upon uncertain conjectural grounds and appearances of encouragement that lie before us. Now, nothing can be more precise, certain, and punctual, than is the performance of mercy at the time and season which God has appointed, how long soever it may be, or how many obstacles soever lie in the way of it. There was a time prefixed by God himself for the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt; and it is said in Exod. xii. 41, "At the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the self-same day, it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out of the land of Egypt." Compare this with Acts vii. 17, and there

you

have the ground and reason why their deliverance was not, nor could be, delayed one day longer, because "the time of the promise was now come."

But for the seasons which are of our own fixing and appointment, as God is not tied to them, so his providences are not governed by them; and hence are our disappointments. Hereupon is it that we fret at the delays of Providence, and suspect the faithfulness of God in their performance.

2. During this delay of Providence, the hearts and hopes of the people of God may be very low, and much discouraged. The causes of these despondencies are partly from ourselves, and partly from Satan. If we duly examine our own hearts about it, we shall find that these sinkings of heart are the immediate effects of unbelief. We do not depend and rely upon the word with that full confidence that is due to the infallible word of a faithful and unchangeable God. Faith is the only cordial that relieves the heart against these faintings and despondencies; where this is wanting or is weak, no wonder that our hearts sink when discouragements are

before us. Our judging things by the rules of sense is a great cause of our discouragements. We conclude, that according to the appearance of things will be their issues. In all these things Satan carries a design upon us. Hence he takes occasion to suggest hard thoughts of God, and to beat off our souls from all confidence in him, and expectations from him; and his suggestions gain the more credit with us because they are confirmed and attested by sense and feeling.

To assist the soul in this difficulty, I shall offer some farther help, beside what has been already given under the first caution, in the following considerations. -Though Providence do not yet perform the mercies you wait for, yet you have no ground to entertain hard thoughts of God; for it is possible God never gave you any ground for your expectation of these things from him. It may be you have no promise to found your hope upon; and if so, why shall God be suspected and dishonoured by you in a case wherein his truth and faithfulness were never engaged to you? If we are crossed in our outward concerns, and see our