prayed earnestly against lying, so he as earnestly detested it : ver. 163, ' I hate and abhor lying.' Though lying was David's special sin, yet he hated and abhorred it as he did hell itself. And he tells us how he was affected, or afflicted rather, with that sin, whatsoever it was, which was his iniquity : Ps. xxxi. 10, ' My life is spent with grief, and my years with sighings ; my strength faileth, and my bones are con- sumed,' or moth-eaten, as the Hebrew has it. Here are deep ex- pressions of a troubled spirit ; and why all this ? Mark, he gives you the reason of it in the same verse, ' because of mine iniquity : ' as if he had said, there is a base corruption which so haunts and dogs me, that my life is spent with grief, and my years with sighing. He found, it seems, his heart running out to some sin or other, which yet was so far from being a beloved sin, a bosom sin, a darling sin, that it was the breaking of his heart and the consumption of his bones. So Ps. xxxviii. 18, ' I will declare mine iniquity, I will be sorry for my sin.' There is no sin that a gracious heart is more perfectly set against than against his special sin ; for by this sin God first has been most dishonoured; and secondly, Christ most crucified; and thirdly, the Spirit most grieved ; and fourthly, conscience most wounded ; and fifthly, Satan most advantaged; and sixthly, mercies most embit- tered ; and seventhly, duties most hindered ; and eighthly, fears and doubts most raised and increased ; and ninthly, afflictions most mul- tiplied ; and tenthly, death made most formidable and terrible ; and therefore he breaks out against this sin with the greatest detestation and abhorrency. Ephraim's special sin was idolatry, Hosea iv. 17 ; he thought the choicest gold and silver in the world hardly good enough to frame his idols of. But when it was the day of the Lord's gracious power upon Ephraim, then he thought no place bad enough to cast his choicest idols into, as you may see by comparing of these scriptures together, Hosea xiv. 8; Isa. ii. 20, and xxx. 22. True grace will make a man stand stoutly and steadfastly on Grod's side, and work the heart to take part with him against a man's special sins, though they be as right hands or right eyes. True grace wiU lay hands upon a man's special sins, and cry out to heaven, ' Lord, crucify them, crucify them ; down with them, down with them, even to the ground : Lord, do justice, do speedy justice, do signal justice, do exemplary justice upon these special sins of mine : Lord, hew down root and branch ; let the very stumps of this Dagon be broken all in pieces : Lord, curse this wild fig-tree, that never more fruit may grow thereon.' But,
[12.] Twelfthly, There is no time loherein a gracious soul cannot sincerely say ivith the apostle in that Heb. xiii. 18, ' Pray for us, for we trust loe have a good conscience, in all things ivillingly to live honestly.' Gracious hearts affect that which they cannot effect. So Acts xxiv. 16, ' And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence towards God, and towards men ; ' in all cases, in all places, by all means, and at all times. A sincere Chris- tian labom-s to have a good conscience, void of offence towards God and towards men: Pro v. xvi. 17, ' The highway of the upright is- to depart from evil,' that is, it is the ordinary, usual, constant course of
22 SERIOUS AND WEIGHTY QUESTIONS
an upright man to depart from evil. An honest traveller may step out of the king's highway into a house, a wood, a close ; but his work, his business, is to go on in the king s highway ; so the business, the work, of an upright man is to depart from evil. It is possible for an upright man to step into a sinful path, or to touch upon sinful facts ; but his main way, his principal work and business, is to depart from iniquity ; as a bee may light upon a thistle, but her work is to be gathering at flowers ; or as a sheep may slip into the dirt, but its work is to be grazing upon the mountains or in the meadows. But,
[13.] Thirteenthly and lastly, Jems Christ is the real Christians only beloved ; he is the saint's only darling : Cant. ii. 3, ' As the apple- tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved' among the sons ; ' ver. 8, ' The voice of my beloved, behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, and skipping upon the hills ; ' ver. 9, ' My beloved is like a roe, or a young hart ; ' ver. 10, ' My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away ; ' ver. 17, ' Turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the moun- tains of Bother ; ' Cant. iv. 16, ' Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits.' Seven times Christ is called * the beloved of his spouse ' in the fifth of Canticles, and twice in the sixth chapter, and four times in the seventh chapter, and once in the eighth chapter. In this book of Solomon's Song, Christ is called the church's beloved just twenty times. I might turn you to many other scriptures, but in the mouth of twenty witnesses you may be very clearly and fully satisfied that Jesus Christ is the saints' beloved.
1. When the Dutch martyr was asked whether he did not love his wife and children, he answered, ' Were all the world a lump of gold, and in my hand to dispose of, I would give it to live with my wife and children in a prison, but Christ is dearer to me than all.' 2. Saith Jerome, ' If my father should stand before me, and if my mother should hang upon me, and my brethren should press about me, I would break through my brethren, throw down my mother, and tread under foot my father, that I might cleave the faster and closer unto Jesus Christ.' 3. That blessed virgin in Basil, being condemned for Chris- tianity to the fire, and having her estate and life offered her if she would worship idols, cried out, ' Let money perish and life vanish, Christ is better than all.' 4. Love made Jerome to say, ' Oh, my Saviour, didst thou die for love of me, a love more dolorous than death, but to me a death more lovely than love itself. I cannot live, love thee, and be longer from thee.' 5. Henry Voes said, ' If I had ten heads, they should all off for Christ.' 6. John Ardley, martyr, said, 'If every hair of my head were a man, they should all suffer for the faith of Christ.' 7. Ignatius said, ' Let fire, racks, pulleys, yea, and all the torments of hell, come on me, so I may win Christ' 8. George Carpenter, being asked whether he loved not his wife and children, when they all wept before them, answered, ' My wife and children are dearer to me than all Bavaria, yet for the love of Christ I know them not.' 9. ' 0 Lord Jesus,' said Bernard, ' I love thee more than all my goods, and I love thee more than all my friends, yea, I love thee more
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