Psa. xlvii. 8 : ' Thou hast pvit gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and wine increased. I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep.' This same peace with God, enjoyed in the conscience, redounds to the comfort of the body. Now David can sleep sweetly, when he lies on a hard bed ; what here he saith he would do, Psa. iii. 5, he saith he had done, ' I laid me down and slept; I awaked, for the Lord sustained me.' The title of the psalm tells us when David had this sweet night's rest; not when he lav on his bed of down in his stately palace at Jerusalem, but when he fled for his life from his unnatural son Absalom, and possibly was forced to lie in the open field under the canopy of heaven. Truly it must be a soft pillow indeed that could make him forget his danger, who then had such a disloyal army at his back hunting of him ; yea, so transcendent is the sweet influence of this peace, that it can make the creature lie down as cheerfully to sleep in the grave, as on the softest bed. You will say that child is willing that calls to be put to bed ; some of the saints have desired God to lay them at rest in their beds of dust, and that not in a pet and discontent with their present trouble, as Job did, but from a sweet sense of this peace in their bosoms. ' Now let thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy salvation,' was the swan-like song of old Simeon. He speaks like a merchant that had got all his goods on ship-board, and now desires the master of the ship to hoist sail, and be gone homewards. Indeed, what should a Christian, that is but a foreigner here, desire to stay any longer for in the world, but to get this full lading in for heaven ? And when hath he that, if not when he is assiu'cd of his peace with God? This peace of the gospel, and sense of the love of God in the soul, doth so admirably conduce to the enabling of a person in all difficulties, and tem2>tations, and troubles, that ordinarily, before he calls his saints to any hard service or hot work, he gives them a draught of this cordial wine next their hearts, to cheer them up and embolden them in the conflict. God calls Abram out of his native countij', Gen. xii. 1 : and what so fit as a promise of Christ to bi-ing his heart to God's foot? ver. 2, 3. A sad errand it was that sent Jacob to Padan-Aram : he fled from an angry, wrathful brother, that had murdered him already in his thoughts, to an mikind, deceitful uncle, imder whom he should endiire much hardship. Now God comes in a sweet gospel-vision to comfort this poor pilgrim ; for by ' that ladder, whose foot stood on earth, and top reached heaven,' Christ was signified to his faith, in whom heaven and earth meet, God and man are recon- ciled ; and by the moving up and down of the angels on the ladder, the ministry of the angols, which Christ by his death and intercession procures for his saints, that they shall tend oia them as servants on their master's children ; so that the sum of all is as nuich as if God had said, Jacob, thy brother Esau hates thee, but in Christ I am reconciled to thee ; thy uncle, Lr.ban, he will wrong thee, and deal hardly by thee, but fear him not ; as I am in Christ at peace with thee, so through him thou shalt have my especial care over thee, and the guardianship of the holy angels about thee, to defend thee wherever thou goest. Tlie Israelites, when ready to take their march out of Egypt into a desolate wilderness, where they should be put to many plunges, and their faith tried to purpose ; to prepare them the more for these, he entertains them at a gospel-supper before they go forth, I mean the passover, which pointed to Christ ; and no doubt the sweetness of this feast made some gracious souls among them (that tasted Christ in it) endure the hardship and hunger of the wilderness the more cheerfully. And the same care and love did our Lord Jesus observe in the institution of his supper, choosing that for the time of erecting this sweet ordinance, Vv'hen his disciples' feet stood at the brink of a sea of sorrows and troubles, which his death, and the consequences of it, would inevitably bring upon them. Now the pardon of their sins sealed to their Souls in that ordinance nuist needs be welcome, and enable them to wade through their suflTerings the more comfortably. Indeed, the great care which Christ took for his disciples, when he left the world, was not to leave them a quiet world to live in, but to arm them against a troublesome world ; and to do this, he labours to satisfy their poor hearts with his love to them, and his Father's love to them for his sake ; he bequeaths imto them his peace, and empties it in the sweet consolations of it into their bosoms ; for which end he tells them, as soon as he got to heaven, lie would pray his Father to send the Comforter to them with all
THE PREPARATION OF THE GOSPEL OF PEACE. 429