to seek some seci'et place, where he might more freely, with deep meditation, compose himself for this work. Gen. xxiv. 6',i. Neither was Rebekah a stranger to this duty, who, upon the babes' struggling in her womb, went to inquire of the Lord, Gen. xxv. 22; which, saith Calvin, was to pray in secret. Jacob is famous for his wrestling, as it were, hand to hand with (Jod in the night. Holy David's life was little else, — he gave himself to prayei", Psa. cix. 4 : allow but some time to be spent by him for nature's refection, and the nccessai-y occa- sions of his public emploj-ment, and you shall find most of the rest laid out in meditation and prayer, as appears, Psa. cxix. We have Elias at prayer mider the juniper-tree ; Peter on the house-top ; Cornelius in a corner of his house; yea, our blessed Saviour, whose soul could have fasted longest without an}- inward impair through the want of this repast, yet none more frequent in it; early in the morning he is praying alone, Mark i. 35, and late in the evening, Matt. xiv. 23 ; and this was his usual practice, as may be gathered from Luke xxii. 39, compared with Luke xxi. 37. Thus Christ sanctified this duty by his own example ; yea, we have a sweet promise to the performance of it, and God doth not use to promise a reward for that which he conmianded us not to do : Matt. vi. 6, ' But when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thj^ Father whicli is in secret; and thy Father, which seeth in secret, sliall reward thee openly.' Where oiu" Saviour takes it for granted, that every child of God will be often praying to his heavenly Father, and therefore he rather encourageth them in the woi-k he seeth them about, than commands them to it. ' When you pray ;' as if he had said, I know you cannot live without prayer; now, when you would give God a visit, 'enter into thy closet.'
Section IL — But why must the Christian maintain this secret intercoiu'se with God ? First, In regard of God ; he hath an eye to see our secret tears, and an ear to hear our secret groans, therefore we ought to pour them out to him in secret. It is a piece of gross superstition to bind this only to place or company: ' I will that men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands,' 1 Tim. ii. 8. God is everywhere to be found ; therefore we are to pray everywhere. O, what a comfort is it to a gracious soul, that he can never be out of God's sight or hearing, and therefore never out of his care ! This comforted holy David ; his friends and kinsmen, alas! were afar off; he might lie upon his sick bed, and crj' till his heart ached, and not make them hear; but see how he pacifies himself in all his solitude, — ' Lord, all my desire is before thee, and my groaning is not hid from thee,' Psa. xxxviii. 9. Jacob little thought that he had a son a prisoner in Egypt, laden with irons that entered into his soul ; but he had a God that was nigh unto him all the time of his distress, and heard the cry of the prisoner, though his earthly father never dreamt of any such matter. Great and rich arc the returns which in Scripture we find to be sent from heaven upon the solitary adventure of the saints in this bottom. ' This poor man cried, and the Lord saved him out of all his troubles,' Psa. xxxiv. 6: as if he had said. Haply you are afraid to be so bold as to go alone and visit God in secret : though you venture to join with others in prayer, and hope to find welcome when you go with such good company; yet you are ready to say. Will God look upon me, or my single prayer ? Yes, behold me, saith David, who am newly come from his door, where I lay praying in as poor a condition, and as sad a plight, as ever beggar was at man's : a poor exile, in the midst of my enemies, who thirsted for my blood ; yet I, and that when I betrayed so much dastardly unbelief, cried, and God heard. Who, then, need be afraid, either from his outward straits or inward infirmities, if sincere, to go with a humble boldness unto God? Nay, farther, as God hath a pitiful eye to see when we pray in secret, so also an angry eye that sees when we do not. I have read of a prince that would, in the evening, walk abroad in disguise, and listen mider his subjects' windows, whether they talked of liiin, and what they said. God's eye and ear watch us, — 'The Lord liearkencd, and lieard it,' Mai. iii. Hi : and he that hath a book of remembrance for liis saints that fear liim, and think upon his name, hath also a black bill for their names who shut him out of tlieir hearts and closets. ' Tlie Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to sec if there were any that did understand and seek God.' Though his seat be in heaven, yet his eye is on cartli ; and what doth ho observe, but whether
(332 PRAYING ALWAYS, ETC.