TV. Foiirtlily, A gracious heaii is an unifcri'm heaH. Ubiquity' is a sure evidence of integrity. He that is truly good, will be good in bad times, and in the worst of places. Principles of grace and holiness are lasting, yea, everlasting; they are not like the morning cloud, nor the early dew, Ps. cxix. 112 ; 1 John iii. 9 ; Hosea vi. 4. A gracious soul will be steady and fixed in its principles, in the worst times, in the worst places, and under variety of dispensations. Let times and places be what they will, he will not dishonour his God, nor blemish his profession, nor wound his conscience to preserve his safety, or to secure his liberty. An upright man is a right man ; so ■>k^''' , jasliar is rendered by the Septuagint, Judges xvii. 6. He is one that will not be bowed or bent by the sinful customs or examples of the times and places where he lives. Abraham was righteous in Chaldea, and Noah was perfect in his generation, though it was the worst in the world ; and Lot was just in Sodom, and Job was upright in the land of TJz, which was a place of much profaneness and superstition ; and Nehemiah was courageous and zealous in Damascus ; and Daniel was holy, yea, eminently and ex- em plarily holy, in Babylon. The several generations wherein these holy men lived, were wholly devoted to wickedness and superstition, and yet these precious, gracious souls had wholly devoted themselves to the Lord and his service ; so David, ' My soul breaketh for the longing it hath to thy judgments at all times," Ps. cxix. 20. Let the times be never so dangerous, licentious, superstitious, idolatrous, or erroneous, yet David's heart was strongly carried forth to God's judgments ; that is, to his word, for under this title, judgments, you are to understand the whole word of God. So there were some in Sardis that were of the same spirit with the worthies last mentioned : Rev. iii. 4, ' Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments ; and they shall walk with me in white : for they are worthy.' In polluting times pure hearts will keep themselves pure ; a holy heart will keep himself undefiled, even in defiling times, Ps. cxix. 1-3. Rev. xiv. 4, ' These are they which were not defiled with women ;' when others are besmeared all over, he will keep his garments white and clean. The three children, or rather the three champions, Dan. iii. 17-20, were so highly resolved to keep themselves pure from the abominations of their day, that it was neither Nebuchadnezzar's music that would flatter them, nor his fiery furnace that could scare them from their God, or from their duty, or from their religion. Let the times never so often turn, you shall find that he that is really holy, he will be holy under every turn ; no turns shall turn him out of a way of holiness : Job xvii. 9, ' The righteous shall hold on his way ; and he that hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger.' The laurel keeps its freshness and greenness in the winter season ; a gracious soul is semper idem. Let the wind, and the world, and the times turn which way they will, a gracious soul for the main will still be the same ; he is ' like mount Zion, which cannot 1)6 removed,' Ps. cxxv. 1. Job xxvii. 5, t), ' Till I die, I will not remove my integrity from me. My righteousness I hold fast, and will not let it go ; my heart shall not reproach me so long as I live.' A gracious heart is, in some measure, like the heart of God, without variableness or shadow of changing. That Christian that is not for substance the ^ Being alike in all places. — G.
Chap. II.] a cabinet of jewels. 355
same that once he was, was never what he ought to be, James i. 17. A gracious heart is firm and fixed for God and godliness, both in prosperity and in adversity ; take him among the good or among the bad, take him in storms or calms, in winter nights or in summer days, take him among friends or foes, take him at bed or board, take him in health or sickness, take him in an ordinance or out of an ordinance, take him iu his work or take him at his recreations, take him in his commerce or in his converse, take him living or take him dying, and you shall still find that the bias of his soul is still God-wards, Christ-wards, holiness-wards, and heaven-wards. A gracious man will stand his ground, and hold his own in all changes, his heart being fixed upon an unchangeable God. The philosopher's good man is nrouyuvog, four square ; cast him where 3'ou will, like a die he falls always square and sure. So cast a gracious man where you will, and into what company you will, and into what condition you will, yet still he falls sure and square for God and godli- ness.^ Let the times be never so sad, nor never so bad, yet a gracious soul will keep his hold ; he will let all go, he will let everything go, before he will let his God go, or his religion go, or his integrity go. A gi-acious Christian is like gold. Now cast gold into the fire, or into the water ; cast it upon the dunghill, or into the kennel ; cast it among the poor, or among the rich ; among the religious, or among the super- stitious, &c. ; yet still it is gold, still it retains its purity and excellency. So cast a gracious Christian, who is the only golden Christian in the world, intowhat condition you will, and into what company you will, yet still he will retain his purity, his innocency. Lapidaries tell us of the Chelydonian stone,^ that it will retain its virtue and lustre no longer than it is enclosed in gold : a fit emblem of an hypocrite, who is only good while he is enclosed in golden prosperity, safety, and felicity. An unsound Christian, like green timber, shrinks when the sun of perse- cution shines hot upon him. Mat. xiii. 6. The heat of fiery trials cools the courage of an unsound Christian. If you put water into a tub, it will have the shape of the tub that you put it into ; or if you put water into a glass, it will have the shape of the glass you put it into. This is the very picture of an unsound heart ; but a sincere Christian is like a massive vessel of gold, that keeps its own shape and figure, at all times, in all places, and in all companies. Unsound hearts, they will be right- eous among the righteous, and licentious among the licentious. They will be as the company is amongst which they are cast. With the good they will be good, and vnth the bad they will be bad ; with the zealous they will be zealous ; and with the superstitious they will be super- stitious ; and with the lukewarm they will be lukewarm. They are for all times and tides ; they are for any turn that will serve their tvirn ; they are for any mood that will bring either profit or pleasure to them ; they are like Alcibiades, of Avhom it was said, that he was omnium horai'uin homo, a man for all times ; for he could swagger it at Athens, and take any pains at Thebes j he could live most sparingly at Lacedpe- mon, and bib^ among the Thracians, and hunt among the Persians. They