6. The sixth position is this, There will come a time wlien in this world holiness shall he more general, and more eminent, than ever it hath been since Adam fell in paradise. The Scripture speaks clearly, roundly, and fully to this : Deut. xxx. 5, 6, 8, ' The Lord thy God will bring thee into thine own land, and the Lord thy God will cir- cumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and thou shalt return and obey the voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments.' Tliis gracious promise was made to the Jews above two thousand years ago, and yet to this very day it hath not been fulfilled ; and therefore there will certainly come a time wherein God will make it good : Isa. xi. 6, ' The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, &c., and they shall not hurt, &c., for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.' This glorious promise hath not been made good to this day, but there is a time a-coming wherein it shall be accomplished : Isa. xxxv. 8, ' There shall be a highway, and it shall be called a way of holiness ; the unclean shall not pass over IT.' Isa. lix. 21, ' This is my covenant, my word and my Spirit shall never depart from thee for ever.' Isa. Ix, 21, ' Thy people shall be
Heb. XII. 14.] AND BEAUTY OF HOLINESS. 435
ALL RIGHTEOUS.' Jei. xxxii. 40, 41, '1 will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them to do them good ; but I will put my fear into their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and whole SOUL.' So Ezek. xxxvi. 23-30 ; Mai. iv. 1, 2; 2 Pet. iii. 13.
Now it is very observable that this great promise must be fulfilled when the Jgws shall return and be settled in their own land. And so the prophet Ezekiel, speaking of the glorious state of the church in the last days, Ezek. xliv. 7, 9, adds, ' Thus saith the Lord, no stranger uncircumcised in heart shall enter into my sanctuary.' Zeph. iii. 13, ' The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies ; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouths.' Now the context clearly shews that these words relate to the glorious state of the church on earth, and they have never yet received their accom- plishment, but shall in the last days, for he is faithful that hath spoken it : Zech. xiv. 20, 21, * Upon all shall be holiness to the Lord.' I have opened this text pretty fully to you already in my former dis- courses on holiness, and therefore shall pass it by now, Kev. xxi.^ verse the first and verse the last, ' And I saw a new heaven, and a new earth, and I saw the holy city New Jerusalem coming down from God out of HEAVEN. Bchold the tabernacle of God is with men, &c., and there shall in no wise enter into it anything that defileth, &c., but they that are wi-itten in the Lamb's book.' I have formerly proved by several arguments, as divers of you knows, that this chapter cannot be understood of heaven, but must necessarily, and beyond all dispute, be understood of the glorious state of the saints on earth, which they shall certainly enjoy in the last days. By all these scriptures it is most evident that there will come a time when holiness shall be more gen- eral, and at a fuller height than ever yet it hath been since man fell from his original holiness ; and therefore pray and wait, and wait and pray, look and long, and long and look, for the breaking forth of this day of glory upon the world.
[7.] The seventh and last proposition is this. That though the peoph of God ought to he holy at all times, yet there are some special times and seasons wherein God calls aloud for holiness, more than he doth at other times, and wherein he looks, and expects that his people should he eminently holy, as well as really holy.
Quest. But what are those special times and seasons wherein God calls loudest for holiness and most for holiness ?
I answer, they are these :
[1.] First, After great and sore falls. Oh, now God calls aloud for holiness. David after his great falls greatly humbles himself before the Lord, Ps. li. ; and Job after his bitter cursing and heavy com- plaining abhors himself in dust and ashes. Job iii. and xlii. 4, 5 ; and Hezekiah, after his great miscarriage, did chatter like a crane and mourn as a dove, Isa. xxxviii. 14 ; and Peter after his hellish cursing, his desperate swearing, and his hideous lying, goes forth and weeps bitterly. Mat. xxvi. So Origen, after he had denied the truth, and sacrificed to an idol, he came to Jerusalem, and being desired to preach, ^ See the 'Eoglish Anaotations' on these words. [As before. — G.]
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and having opened his Bible, the first scripture that his eye was fixed upon was that Ps. 1. 16. 17, ' What hast thou to do to take my word into thy mouth, seeing thou hatest to be reformed?' whereupon he shut his book, sat down, and fell into a passion of weeping, and so came out of the pulpit, as not being able to speak to the people. After great falls God expects and looks that his people should be more fear- ful of sin than ever, and more careful of pleasing and honouring of him than ever, and more resolute in resisting of temptations than ever, and more constant and abundant in a way of duty than ever, and more thankful and fruitful under mercies than ever, and more quiet and silent under afflictions than ever, and more stout and courageous in the face of all opposition than ever, and more wise and circumspect in their walkings than ever, and more vigilant and diligent to prevent and avoid future falls than ever. How else will the honour of God be re- paired, and the glory of religion be vindicated, and the credit of the gospel be raised, and the grieved saints be rejoiced, and young begin- ners in religion be afresh encouraged, and secure sinners be awakened, convinced, and converted ? But,