church in Solomon's Song, viii. 14, * Make haste, my beloved;' or as the original has it, mi n~l3, 'Flee away speedily, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of spices.' Will you remember these two things, to engage you to be much in longing for this day, wherein the saints shall appear in glory. Divers things might be said, but I shall reduce all to two things.
Till this day your happiness will not he complete, therefore long for it. Till the saints shall appear glorious, all will be incomplete ; yom* comforts, your graces, your enjoyment of God, and of that glory that he hath provided. Till this glorious day your glory will be incomplete ; therefore long for the day wherein all shall be complete.
Secondly, Till then the innocency of the saints shall not he fully cleared : that is another thing. Oh long for that day wherein the saints shall appear in glory, for till then the innocency of the saints shall not be fully cleared. Now I say, the devil and wicked men throw much dirt on them, and reproach and revile them, and what not, and something of that will stick ; but let this bespeak all such to long for that day wherein all dirt, scorn, and filth shall be wiped off, wherein God will clear the righteousness, integrity, and innocency of his saints. Therefore seeing the saints shall appear glorious, be not discouraged, however you appear in the world to the eye of men. Now you are strangers, far from your Father's house ; but it will be but as a day before the trumpet sound and the angels shall gather you, before the robes of glory shall be put on, and your mourning weeds shall be taken off, and the glorious crowns put on your heads, and your happi- ness shall be complete. Long for this day; for this will be a day in- deed of refreshing from the Lord. I shall say no more to this point, but earnestly desire that God w^ould please to make it take impression on your spirits. The saints shall appear glorious. Oh let it be our glory, while we are here, so to walk as they that expect to appear glo- rious another day !
As for this thrice-honoured champion now in the dust : for his enjoy- ment of God, from my own experience, being with him both at sea and land, I have abundance of sweetness and satisfaction in my own spirit, which to me exceedingly sweetens so great a loss. I shall not speak of the wife's loss, nor the brother's loss, nor the army's loss ; for the loss of this worthy is a loss to the kingdom, and if they are not in a sad, sinful sleep, they will say so. And, indeed, it is with me, I ingenuously confess, as it was with liim who, when he Avas demanded what God was ; he desired three days' consideration to give an answer, and when those days were expired, three more ; and then he gives this answer, ' That the more he thought of him, the further he was from discovering of him.' The more I think of the gallantry and worth of this champion, the further off I am from discovering his worth. I think he was one of whom this sinful nation was not worthy; he was one of whom this declining parliament was not worthy ; he was one of whom those divided, formal, carnal, gospellers was not worthy. He served his generation faithfully, though he died by the hand of treachery. I am fully satisfied, w^ith many more, that he is now triumphing in glory ; and it will be but as a day before he
334 CHRIST IS THE LIFE OF BELIEVERS. [CoL. III. 4.
shall see his enemies stand at tlie bar. For ray own i)art, I can truly say that, to the best of my memory and understanding, I have not observeil tliat tlie hearts of the people of God have been so generally and eminently affected with the loss of any worthy, as with the loss of this worthy ; no, not for any worthy that hath fallen since tlie sword was drawn, though many precious worthies have fallen upon the ground ; which strongly speaks out the love of the people of God to him, and their honourable esteem of him. They honoured him in his life, and they shewed no small respect to him in death. He was a joy to the best, and a terror to the worst of men. But for my part I should rather choose, I ingenuously confess, if it were possible, to wTep over him with tears of blood, than to trouble you further with relating his gallant service for the good of this sinful kingdom.
We will cease from saying anything more of him, and sit down satisfied and joying in this, that the day is coming when the saints shall appear glorious ; and with that we will refresh and cheer our spirits as with a cordial, tliat there is a day coming when we with this deceased worthy sliall appear glorious. And it will be but as a day before our robes shall be put on our backs, and crowns set on our heads. I have now done ; and so shall commend you ' to God and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them wliich are sanctified,' [Acts xx. 32.]
PROGRESS OF THE UPRIGHT.
The title-page of 'God's Delight' will be found below.* The usual 'order' is prefixed as follows: — 'Die Mercurii 30mo Decern. 1C48. Ordered by the Commons assembled in Parliament that Sir John Bourchier do from this House give thanks to Mr Brooks for the great pains he took in hia sermon preached at Margarets, Westminster, before the House of Commons, upon the day of their public Humiliation last preceding .• and that he be desired to print his sermon, wherein he is to have the like privilege in print- ing of it, aff others in the like kind usually have had.
' Henrj' Elsynge, Cer. Dom. Com.
' I appoint Eapha Harford and Thomas Brewster to print this sermon,
* GOD'S DELIGHT IN THE PROGRESSE OF THE UPRIGHT.
Especially In Magistrates Uprightnessc and constancy in waves of justice and righte- ousnesso in these Apostatizing Times, notwithstanding all discourage- ments, oppositions, &c.
Presented in a Sermon before the Honorable House of Commons at their last monethly Fast, December 26. 1648.
By Thomas Brooks, Preacher of the Gospel at Thomas Apostles.
Job 17. 8, 9. The righteous shall hold on in his way, and he that hath clean hands
shall be stronger and stronger. Upright men sliall be astonished at this, for the Innocent shall stirrc
vp himsel/e against the Hypocrite.
Numb. 35. 33. Yee shall not pollute the Land icherein yee are; for blond, it defileth the Land, and the Land cannot be cleansed of the blond that is shed therein, but by the blond of him that shed it.
London, Printed by M. S. for R. Harford at the Bible in Queen's-head-alley in Paternoster-row, and Thomas Brew- ster at the West end of Pauls, 1649.
THE EPISTLE DEDICATORY.
To the Honourable House of Commons in Parliament assembled.