these shut the windows of the soul, that.no light can come in to cheer it. Despairing thoughts make a man fight against God with his own weapons ; they make a man cast all the cordials of the Spirit against the wall, as things of no value ; they make a man suck poison out of the sweetest promises ; they make a man eminent in nothing unless it be in having hard thoughts of God, and in arguing against his own soul and happiness, and in turning his greatest advantages into disadvan- tages, his greatest helps into his greatest hindrances.* Despairing thoughts of mercy make a man below the beast that perisheth. Pliny speaks of the scorpion, that there is not one minute wherein it doth not put forth the sting, as being unwilling to lose any opportunity of doing mischief'^ Such scorpions are despairing souls, they are still a-putting out their stings, a-wrangling with God, or Christ, or the Scripture, or the saints, or ordinances, or their own souls. A despairing soul is Magor- missabib, a terror to himself; it cannot rest, but, like Noah's ark, is al- ways tossed here and there ; it is troubled on every side, it is full of fears and fightings.^ A despairing soul is a burden to others, but the greatest burden to itself It is still a-vexing, terrifying, tormenting, con- demning, and perplexing itself Despair makes every sweet bitter, and every bitter exceeding bitter ; it puts gall and wormwood into the sweetest wine, and it puts a sting, a cross, into every cross.* Now whilst the soul is under these despairing thoughts of mercy, how is it possible that it should attain to a well grounded assurance. Therefore for the helping of the soul out of this despairing condition, give me leave a little to expostulate with despairing souls. Tell me, 0 despairing souls, is not despair an exceeding vile and contemptible sin ? Is it not a dishonour to God, a reproach to Christ, and a murderer of souls ? Is it not a belying of God, a denying of Christ, and a crowning of Satan ? It doth without doubt proclaim the devil a conqueror, and lifts hira up above Christ himself* Despair is an evil that flows from the greatest evil in the world ; it flows from unbelief, from ignorance, and misappre- hensions of God and his grace, and from mistakes of Scripture, and from Satan, who, being for ever cast out of paradise, labours with all his art and might to work poor souls to despair of ever entering into para- dise. O despairing souls, let the greatness of this sin effectually awaken you, and provoke you to labour as for life, to come out of this condition, which is as sinful as it is doleful, and as much to be hated as [to] be lamented.
Again, tell me, O despairing souls, hath not despairing Judas per- ished, whenas the murderers of Christ, believing on him, were saved ? Did not Judas sin more heinously by despairing than by betraying of Christ ?* Despairing Spira is damned, when repenting Manasseh is saved. O despairing souls, the arras of mercy are open to receive a
' There is a threefold despair : 1, worldly ; 2, moral ; 3, spiritual. And this last is the worst and greatest.
« Nat. Hist. lib. xi. cap. 30 (25).— G.
3 It makes a man call good evil, and evil good ; light darkness, and darkness light ; sweet bitter, and bitter sweet ; a Saviour a destroyer, a Redeemed a revenger, &c. [Cf. Isa. v. 20, &c.— G.]
* A despairing soul is like the spider, that draws poison out of the sweetest flowers.
" Despair is Satan's master piece ; it carries men headlong to hell ; it makes a man twice-told a child of hell ; it is a viper that hath stinged many a man to death.
^ Flut peccavil Judat duperando quam prodendo Christum, saith one.
Rom. VIIL 32-34.] heaven on earth. 375
Manasseh, a monster^ a devil incarnate ; he caused that gospel prophet Isaiah to be sawed in the midst with a saw, as some rabbins say ; he turned aside from the Lord to commit idolatry, and caused his sons to pass through the fire, and dealt with familiar spirits, and made the streets of Jerusalem to overflow with innocent blood, 2 Chron. xxxiii. 1-15. The soul of Mary Magdalene was full of devils ; and yet Christ casts them out, and made her heart his house, his presence chamber, Luke vii. 47. Why dost thou then say there is no hope for thee, O despairing soul ? Paul was full of rage against Christ and his people, and full of blasphemy and impiety, and yet behold, Paul is a chosen vessel, Paul is caught up into the heaven, and he is filled with the gifts and graces of the Holy Ghost, Acts viii. 1, 2 ; ix. 1 ; xxvi. 11 ; 1 Tim. i. 13, 15, 16. Why shouldst thou then say there is for thee no help, O despairing soul ! Though the prodigal had run from his father, and spent and wasted all his estate in ways of baseness and wickedness, yet upon his resolution to return, his father meets him, and instead of killing him, he kisses ; instead of kicking him, he embraces him ; instead of shutting the door upon him, he makes sumptuous pro- vision for him, Luke xv. 13-23. And how then dost thou dare to say, 0 despairing soul, that God will never cast an eye of love upon thee, nor bestow a crumb of mercy on thee ! The apostle tells you of some monstrous miscreants that were unrighteous, fornicators, idolaters, adul- terers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, thieves, covetous, drunkards, revilers, extortioners ; and yet these monsters of mankind, through the infinite goodness and free grace of God, are washed from the filth and guilt of their sins, and justified by the righteousness of Christ, and sanctified by the Spirit of Christ, and decked and adorned with the precious graces of Christ, 1 Cor. vi. 9-11. Therefore do not say, 0 despairing soul, that thou shalt die in thy sins, and lie down at last in everlasting sorrow.' Did it make for the honour and glory of his free grace to pardon them, and will it be a reproach to his free grace to pardon thee? Could God be just in justifying such ungodly ones, and shall he be unjust in justifying of thee ? Did not their unworthi- ness and unfitness for mercy turn the stream of mercy from them ? No. Why then, O despairing soul, shouldst thou fear that thy un- worthiness and unfitness for mercy will so stop and turn the stream of mercy, as that thou must perish eternally for want of one drop of special grace and mercy ?
Again, tell me, 0 despairing soul, is not the grace of God free grace, is not man's salvation of free grace V ' By grace ye are saved,' Ephes. ii. 8. Every link of this golden chain is grace. It is free grace that chose us, Rom. xi. 5. Even so then at this present time also there is ' a remnant according to the election of gi-ace.' It is free grace that chooses some to be jewels from all eternity, that chooses some to life, when others are left in darkness.
The Lord Jesus Christ is a gift of free grace. Christ is the greatest, the sweetest, the choicest, the chiefest gift that ever God gave ; and yet