have knowledge enoiigli to bring themselves to heaven, but to ' ad- monish others,' see Eom. xv. 14. Well, then, do not put off this care to others, as if it were proper only to scholars and men of a public calling ; this is every man's work that hath a soul to be saved. It is Popish ignorance to be contented with an implicit belief ; you may best trust your own eyes. When the sun shineth, every man openeth his windows to let it in. We busy ourselves in other books, why not in the word ? Austin was pleased with Tally's Horiensius, but he cast it away because he could not find the name of Christ there. It is the description of a godly man, ' His delight is in the law of God, and in his law doth he exercise himself day and night,' Ps. i. 2. These are the chaste delights of a child of God, not in playbooks and idle son- nets ; how many sacrilegious hours do most spend in these trifles ! Good books should not keep us from the scriptures ; water is sweetest in the fountain. Luther professeth that he could wish all his books forgotten and utterly laid aside, rather than that they should keep men from reading the scriptures themselves.^ Christians, study the word more, that you may have promises, doctrines, examples ready and more familiar with you ; to be ignorant in a knowing age is an argu- ment of much negligence, Heb. v. 14. Now religion is made every one's discourse, will you alone be a stranger in Israel ? As the many helps call upon us to study the word more, so the many errors which are abroad : all error cometli from unskilfulness in the scriptures : Mat. xxii. 29, ' Ye err, not knowing the scriptures ;' in the dark a man may soon lose his way.
To cure this mischief, let me press you : —
1. To read the scriptures in your families; set up this ordinance among other parts of worship there— it is a family exercise — that your children may be trained up in them, 2 Tim. iii. 15. It is a good closet exercise for your own private instruction, none of you are in too high a form ; the prophets ' searched them diligently,' 1 Peter i. 11, 12.
2. Kead them with profit, so as you may understand them, and apply the doctrines and examples you meet with there. Ask thy soul, ' Understandest thou what thou readest ? ' Acts viii. 30, or as Paul, Kom. viii. 31, 'What shall we say to these things?' The scriptures are not to be read for delight, but for s[)iritual profit and use.
3. In cases of difficulty use all holy means; pray to God, the Spirit is the best interpreter ; pray before, pray after, as you do for food. If God answer not at first, ' Cry for knowledge, lift up thy voice for understanding,' Call in the helps which God hath given, many private helps of commentaries ; but above all, ' despise not prophesy- ing.' Consult with the officers and guides of the church, Eph. iv. 14, Mai. ii. 7.
Obs. 3. Observe again, that those truths which we understand already, they had need be pressed again, and revived upon us ; see 1 John ii. 21. Our knowledge is but weak, the eye of the mind is opened by degrees ; our memories are weak, and commands must be repeated to a forgetful servant ; our affections are slow, not easily wrought up to the love of good things. When the wedge will not enter with one blow, we follow it home with blow upon blow. Well,
^ Luth. in Gen. xix.
174 AN EXPOSITION, WITH NOTES, [VeR. 5.
then, we say — (1.) Repetitions are lawful for you ; it is a sure thing,
Phil. iii. 1. Christ in the Gospels, and Paul in the Epistles, do often
repeat the same passages. Till you be affected with them we must
inculcate necessary principles again and again : ' God speaketh once,
yea, twice, when men regard it not,' Job xxxiii. 14. Consider men are
dull to conceive, ' slow of heart to believe/ The way to pierce the
hard stone is by often dropping : apt to forget heavenly truths : leaky
vessels must be filled again, Heb. ii. 1. We must repeat, to make
shame more stirring : ' Peter was troubled when Christ said the third
time, Lovest thou me?' John xxi, 17. Let this which hath been said
prevent censure ; look upon it as a providence when the same truth or
sermon is presented again : Surely I have not meditated enough of this
truth, I am not enough affected with it, therefore the Lord hath again
brought it to my thoughts, or there is some new temptation that I shall
meet with, that I may find the need of this old truth, &c. (2.) That
it is a spiritual disease, a surfeit of manna, when men must- still be
fed with new things ; no truths are too plain for our mouths, or too
stale for your ears ; the itch of novelty puts men upon ungrounded
subtleties, and that maketh way for error or hardness of heart. Though