' Blessed Jesus, thy poor creature cometh to thee upon these en- ' couragements : I come, O but it is with many staggerings, with ' many doubts and fears of the issue ; yet I am willing to come and ' make a covenant with thee this day.
' I take thee this day to be my Lord, and submit heartily to all thy ' disposals ; do what thou wilt with me, or mine, let me be rich or ' poor, any thing or nothing in this world : T am willing to be as ' thou wouldst have me, and I do likewise give myself to thee this ' day, to be thine ; all I am, all I have shall be thine, thine to serve ' thee, and thine to be disposed of at thy pleasure. Thou shalt ' henceforth be my highest Lord, my chiefest good, my last end.'
Now, Christian, make good to Christ what thou so solemnly pro- mised him : He, I say, he hath disposed of this thy dear relation, as pleased him, and is thereby trying thy uprightness in the cove- nant which thou madest with him : Now where is the satisfaction and content thou promisedst to take in all his disposals ? Where is that covenanted submission to his Vvill.^ Didst thou except this affliction that is come upon thee ?
Didst thou tell him. Lord, I will be content thou shalt, when thou pleasest, take any thing I have, save only this husband, this wife, or
656 A TOKEN FOR MOUIINEIIS,
this dear child ; I reserve this out of the bargain ? I shall never en- dure that thou shouldst kill this comfort. If so, thou didst in all this but prove thyself an hypocrite ; if thou wast sincere in thy covenant, as Christ had no reserve on his part, so thou hadst none on thine.
It was all without any exception thou then resignedst to him, and now wilt thou go back from thy word, as one that had out-promised himself, and repents the bargain ? Or, at least, as one that hath for- gotten these solemn transactions in the days of thy distress? Wherein hath Christ failed in one tittle that he promised thee ? Charge him, if thou canst, with the least unfaithfulness ; he hath been faithful to a tittle on his part, O be thou so upon thine ; this day it is put to the proof, remember what thou hast promised him.
Consider. 8. But ^fiJiy covenant ic'ith God zoill not qii'iet thee^ yet methmJcs God's covenant with thee might he presumed to do it.
Is thy family, which was lately hopeful, and flourishing, a peace- ful tabernacle, now broken up and scattered ? Thy posterity, from which thou raisedst up to thyself great expectations of comfort in old age, cut off? So that thou art now like neither to have a name, or memorial left thee in the earth.
Dost thou sit alone, and mourn to think whitherto thy hopes and comforts are now come ?
Dost thou read over those words of Job, chap. xxix. ver. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. and comment upon them with many tears ; " O that I were as " in months past, as in the day when God preserved me ! when his " candle shined upon my head, and when by his light I walked " through darkness ! as I was in the days of my youth, w^hen the *' secret of God was upon my tabernacle, when the Almighty was " yet with me, when my children were about me."
Yet let the covenant God hath made with thee, comfort thee in this thy desolate condition.
You know what domestic troubles holy David met with in a sad succession, not only from the death of children, but, which was much worse, from the wicked lives of his children. There was incest, murder, and rebellion in his family ; a far sorer trial than death in their infancy could have been ; And yet see how sweetly he relieves himself from the covenant of grace, in 2 Sam. xxiii. 5. "Although " my house be not so with God, yet he hath made with me an ever- *• lasting covenant, ordered in all things, and sure, for this is all my " salvation and all my desire, although he make it not to grow."*^
I know this place principally refers to Christ, who was to spring out of David's family, according to God's covenant made with him in that behalf; and yet I doubt not but it hath another, though less principal aspect upon his own family, over all the afflictions and troubles whereof the covenant of God with him did abundantly com- fort him.
And as it comforted him, although his house did not increase, and
A TOKEN FOR MOURKERS. 637
those that were left were not such as he desired ; so it may abun- dantly comfort you also, whatever troubles, or deaths, are upon your families, who have an interest in the covenant. For,
Fii'st^ If you are God's covenant people, though he may afflict, yet he will never forget you. Psalm iii. 5. he is ever mrndful of his covenant : You are as much upon his heart in your deepest afflic- tions, as in the greatest flourish of your prosperity.
You find it hard to forget your child, though it be now turned to a heap of coiTuption, and loathsome rottenness ; O liow doth your mind run upon it night and day ! your tjioughts tire not upon that object : Why surely it is much more easy for you to forget your dear child, whilst living, and most endearing, (much more when dead and undesirable) than it is for your God to forget you. Isa. xiix. 15. " Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not " have compassion on the son of her womb ? Yea, they may forget, " yet will not I forget thee.""
Can a icnman, the more affectionate sex, forg'et he?' siicJciyig child, her own child, and not a nursing child ? Her own child, whilst it hangs on the breast, and, together with the milk from the breast, draws love from its mother's heart ; can such a thing as this be in nature ? possibly it may, for creature-love is fickle, and variable ; Eut, I ivUl not forget thee ; it is an everlasting covenant.
Second!?/, As he will never forget you in 3'our troubles, so he will order all your troubles for your good : It is a zveU-o?'dercd covenant^ or a covenant orderly disposed ; so that every thing shall work to- gether for your good.
The covenant so orders allyour trials, ranks and disposes your vari- ous troubles so, as that they shall, in their orders and places, sweetly co-operate, and join their united influences to make you happy.
Possibly you cannot see how the present affliction should be for your good ; you are ready to say, with Jacob, Gen. xlii. 36. " Joseph is not, and Simeon is not ; and ye will take Benjamin " away ; all these things are against me."*' But could you once see how sweetly, and orderly all these afflictions work under the bles- sing and influence of the covenant, to your eternal good, you would not only be quiet, but thankful for that which now so much afflicts and troubles you.