Sixthly, Men should keep their hearts, as a fond father keeps his only child. The fond father will still keep his child within doors, he will still have him under his eye, and in his presence, that so no hurt, no harm may befall him day or night. Our eye should be still upon our hearts, or else they will give us the slip, and play the wanton with us. But,
Seventhly, Men should keep their hearts, as lovers keep the love- tokens that are mutually sent one to another. They love to be often a-looking upon them, and a-thinking of them, and a-talking of them ; and will be sure to keep the strictest and the strongest guard upon them. So a Christian should still be a-looking upon his heart, and a-thinking upon his heart, and a-speaking of his heart, either of the badness of it, or of the wants of it, and a-keeping of the strictest and strongest guard upon his heart. But,
Eighthly, A man should keep his heart as a man keeps his house, when he is afraid and in danger of being robbed by thieves in the night. Oh how wakeful, and watchful, and active will a man now be ! But what is a man's house to his heart ? A man's heart is in ten thousand times more danger than his house, and accordingly his guard should be most about liis heart. But,
Ninthly, A man should keep his heart, as men keep their gardens that are full of choice, rich, rare, ripe fruits and flowers. Now, what care, cost, and pains men are at to keep such gardens, you well know. And oh that you did but every day more and more experimentally know
' All our spiritual riches are in our hearts. A good man may say with Bias, Omnia nea mecum porto, all my goods I carry about with me.
388 A CABINET OF JEWELS. [ChAP. II.
what it is to spend your greatest care and pains about your hearts, which are Christ's garden, his bed of spices, where all graces flourish ! Cant. iv. J 6.
Tenthly, and last, A man should keep his heart as spruce men and women do their fine clothes. Oh they won't endure a speck, a spot upon them ! It is your wisdom, and oh that you would more and more make it your work, to keep your hearts from all sinful specks and spots ! Let not others be more careful to keep their outsides clean, than you are to keep your insides clean ; for what are clean clothes to a clean heart? It is better to go to heaven in ragged clotljes with a clean heart, than to go to hell in fine clothes with an unclean heart. Doubt- less that man that makes it his business to keep his heart as men keep dangerous felons or traitors, or as soldiers keep their garrisons or castles when closely besieged, or as the priests and Levites kept the sanctuary of God, or as a man keeps his natural life, or as a man keeps a rich treasure, or as a fond father keeps an only child, or as lovers keep their love-tokens, or as a man keeps his house when he is in danger to be robbed, or as a man keeps his pleasant garden, or as spruce men and women keep their fine clothes, that man is doubtless a true Nathanael, a man that has a work of God passed in power upon his soul ; yea, that man whose sincere desires, and whose gracious purposes, and fixed resolutions, and faithful endeavours, is to guard and watch his heart, according to the particulars we have now hinted, that man, without a peradventure, is a gracious man, and one that has the root of the matter in him, and shall be happy to all eternit}''. Look, as no man can hear as he would and should, nor pray as he would and should, nor believe as he would and should, nor repent as he would and should, nor walk as he would and should, so no man can keep his heart as he would and should ; but if a man makes it his great business and work to keep his heart, to watch his heart, to reform his heart, to better his heart, he is accepted of God, and shall be blessed for ever. It is one of the greatest and clearest evidences of grace for a man to make it his greatest busi- ness, work, and concernment in this world to keep his heart always in a gracious frame, to keep his heart always in a wakeful frame, in a watchful frame, in a tender frame, in a believing frame, in a repenting frame, in an humble frame, in a patient frame, in a serious frame, in a heavenly frame, and in a jealous frame ; for the more gracious the heart is, the more suspicious it will be.^ Satan has a strong party, a nume- rous party, an old party, a subtle party, in all our hearts, and therefore it liighly concerns us to watch our hearts with a holy jealousy. 0 sirs! God iiath never said. Above all keepings, keep your shops; or above all keepings, keep your estates ; or above all keepings, keep your flocks ; or al)ove all keepings, keep your bags; or above all keepings, keep your iriends; or above all keepings, keep your bodies; or above all keepings, keep your names ; or above all keepings, keep your conversations ; but lie hath said. Above all keepings, keep your hearts. Look, as the heart is the fountain of natural life, and if it fail, life fails; and therefore it is strongly secured with ribs about it, it is guarded in a castle of flesh and bones ; so is the soul the fountain of spiritual life, and runs in-
' Cant. V. 2; 2 KinKS xxii. 19 ; 2 C'bron. xxxii. 2G; James v. 11 ; Ecclca. v. 1,2; Col. iii. 1,2; 2 Cor. vii. 11.
Chap. II.] a cabinet of jewels. 389
visibly through all the body. Fountains were to be kept pure, by the Roman laws of the twelve tables/ and the heart, that is the spring and fountain of all actions, is to be kept pure, by the laws of the great God, 2 Cor. vii. 1 ; 1 Thes. v. 23, &c. Men keep the heart principally from hurt, because every wound there is mortal. Oh that men were as wise for their souls ! God's eye is mainly upon the heart. The heart, well guarded and watched, keeps all in security. Alexander was safe while Anbipater kept the watch, so all within that little world Man will be safe while the heart is strongly guarded. The heart is the fountain, the root, the store-house, the 'primunb raohile, the great wheel that sets all a-going, and therefore, above all keepings, keep your hearts. It is a foolish thing to watch the outworks, and leave the fort-royal without a guard ; so it is a foolish thing to watch the out-works, the eye, the ear, the tongue, the hand, the feet, — though these must all be watched, — and to leave the heart, which is a Christian's fort-royal, without a guard.
Omnia si perdas, animam servare memento.'^ ' If all thinsjs else must neeris be lost, Yet save thy soul, whate'er it cost.'