in it, the heart, which is perpetually in motion, might be kept from being inflamed into a distemperecf heat? The devil is pleased if he can, at any time, get a saint to sin ; but he glories most, when he can lay them in the dirt, in their holiday clothes, and make them defile themselves when they have their gai- ments of salvation on ; I mean those which God hath in some more than ordinary discovery of himself clothed them withal. If at such a time he can be too hard for them, then he hath, he thinks, a fair occasion given him to go, and insultingly shew God what pickle his child is in, and hold up the Christian's assurance and comfort mockingly, (as the patriarchs their brother's coat to their father,) besmeared with blood and filth of some beastlj' sin he hath thrown him into, and ask God, Is this the assurance thou hast given him of heaven ; and this the gannent of salvation which thou didst put on him ? See where he hath laid it. Oh, what gracious soul trembles not at the thought of putting such blasphemy into the mouth of the devil to reproach the living God with ! That Christian is the beloved child, and shall be most made of by his heavenly Father, who sits not down to loiter in the sunshine of Divine love, but gathers up his feet the nimbler in the way of duty, because his God is so kind as to make his walk moi-e cheerful and comfortable than others, and who loseth not his reverential fear of God, in God's familiarity with him. Moses, for instance : did ever the great God treat a mortal man, a saint in flesh, with the like fami- liarity and condescension, as he did that holy man, with whom he spake mouth to mouth, and before whom he caused all his goodness to pass ? Exod. xxxiv. G. And how bears he this transcending act of grace ? Doth he grow bold, and forget the distance between God and him hy this low stoop of the Divine Majesty, to converse with him in such a humble manner ? No ; his heart was never more filled with the I'everence of God than now : he trembled, indeed, and quaked more (it is very likely) on Mount Sinai, but his filial fear was as conspicuous nov/ as then. It is true, this extraordinary manifestation of those soul-ravishing attributes of God's love and goodness, especially his pardoning mercj' to him that knew himself a sinner, and at that time made much more sensible thereof by the terror which the dreadful promulgation of the law had left on his spirit, could not but exceedingly heighten his joy, and overrun his soul with a sweet love to so gracious a God. Yet was not Moses's awful fear of God drowned in the high tide of these sweeter affections; ver. 8, " And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.' This favourite of heaven, mark how he shews his fear of God most, when God expresseth his love to him most.
CHAPTER XI.
AN EXHORTATION TO STRENGTHEN HOPE ; PRESSED FROM THREE ARGUMENTS.
Labour, O ye slants, to strengthen your hope. There is a weak faith, so a wavering hope ; this you are, by the diligent use of all means, to establish. Now, hope is firm and solid when the Christian doth not fluctuate, but by this anchor-hold, which hope hath on the promise, is kept from those dejections and tumultuous fears with which they that have no hope are swallowed up, and they whose hope is but weak are sadly discomposed and shaken ; that is, a solid body which is compact, and free from heterogeneous mixtures. The more pure gold is from dross, and whatever is of a different nature to itself, the more solid it is : so hope, the more it is refined from groundless presumption on the one hand, or slavish fear and distrust on the other, the more solid and strong it is. This, in Scripture, is called, ' The assurance of hope.' Now, to provoke you to a holy zeal in your endeavour after this :
Section I. — Consider it is thy duty so to do. By the Papist's doctrine no man is bound to labour for such an assurance. But whether we should believe God or them, judge ye. What saith the Spirit? Heb. vi. 11 : ' We desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end : that ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inhei'it the promises.' Observe, first, the thing he exhorts to endeavour for, — ' the full assurance of hope.' They whose hope is weak, sail but with a little side wind : the apostle would have them go before the wind, and be carried with a full gale to heaven, which is done when the soul, like a
AND TAKE TJIE HELMET OF SALVATION. 545