2. You must read the word with diligence ; that is every man's work that hath a soul to be saved. They that busy themselves in other books will not have such lively impressions : Ps. i. 2, ' His delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night ;' that must be our exercise, not play-books, stories, and idle sonnets. How many sacrilegious hours do many spend this way! CasUv delicice onew fiunt scripiurcc tucc — Augustine. Nay, good books should not keep from the scriptures. Luther in Gen. chap. xix. saith, Ego odi lihros meos, et sa'pe oplo eos interire, ne moreniur leciores, et abducant a lec- iione ipsius scripiura'. We should go to the fountain : 2 Tim. iii. 15, ' And that from a child thou hast known the holy scrijjtures, which are
VeR. 3.] SERMONS UPON JOHN XVII. 145
able to make thee wise unto salvation.' We put a disparagement upon the word when we savour and relish human writings, though never so good and excellent, better than the word of God itself. This is the standing rule by which all doctrines must be confirmed ; and you do not know what sweet, fresh, and savoury thoughts the Spirit of God may stir up in your own minds ; for word-representations are not so taking as our own inward thoughts and discourses ; these, like a draught of wine from the tap, are more fresh and lively. It is necessary, as I said before, to wait upon preaching, to hear what others can say out of the scriptures ; but it is good to read too, that we may preach to our- selves. Every man is fittest to commune with his own heart ; and that conviction which doth immediately arise out of the word is more prevalent. A man can be angry with any preacher but conscience. In another, when a matter is expressed to our case, we are apt to suspect the mixture of passion and private aims ; but read thyself, and what thoughts are stirred up upon thy reading will be most advantageous to thee. Besides, those that are studious of the word have this sensible advantage, that they have the promises, the doctrines, the examples of the word more familiar and ready with them upon all cases. It is said of one, that he was a living bible and a walking library, ^lI3\o<; efx'^v- ^o<i, Koi fxovaaiov ireptTraTovv ; such a christian is a walking concord- ance. And whereas other christians are weak, unsettled in comfort or opinion, these have always scriptures ready. And let me tell you, in the whole work of grace you will find no weapon so effectual as the sword of the Spirit, as scriptures readily and seasonably urged. There- fore no diligence here is too much. If you would not be barren and sapless in discourse with others, if you would not be weak and comfort- less in yourself, read the scriptures, that you may bring sic scriptum est upon every temptation, and urge the solid grounds of our comfort. I speak the more in so plain a point, because I would make men more conscionable, both in their closets and families, in this point, that they may not only have recourse to learned helps, and books of a human original, but to the word itself.
3. The scriptures must be read with prayer. We must plough with God's heifer if we would understand his riddle ; we must beg the Spirit's help. The Spirit is the best interpreter : bene orasse, est bene studuisse. Every minister findeth prayer to be hia best comment. So should you pray before and after reading the scrip- tures, as you do before and after you receive your bodily food. You do not know how prayer will clear up the eyes: Ps. cxix. 18, ' Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.' There is some excellency in the letter of the scriptures ; but this is nothing to what we see by the Spirit ; it will make a man won- der at the excellency, efficacy, consonancy of these truths ; a man seeth far more than ever he saw before. The Spirit is needful both to open the heart and to open the scriptures : Luke xxiv. 32, ' Did not our hearts burn when he opened to us the scriptures? ' compared with ver. 45, ' Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures.' To understand the truth, and to give us an active and certain persuasion of it ; ' to open the heart,' Acts xvi. 14, inclining it to obedience, giving in light, that works a ready assent and firm per- suasion, bringing forward the heart with power to obedience. In dark
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places and difficult cases, when you have no certainty, you should ' cry for knowledge, and lift np your voice for understanding ; ' us- the blind man that cried to Jesus, ' Lord ! that I might receive my sight/ Mark x. 52.
4. Study the creatures. God is known out of his word, but his works give us a sensible demonstration of him. You have David's night and day meditation. His night meditation : Ps. viii. 3, ' When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy hands, the moon and the stars which thou hast ordained." Not a word of the sun, the most noble creature : Ps. xix. 5, he speaks of the ' going forth of the sun like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoicing as a strong man to run a race;' that is his morning meditation. When we walk out in the night or morning, we may think of God, view his stupendous works. The heathens had no other bible. Consider that the huge Avcight of the earth hangeth on nothing, like a ball in the air : Job xxiii. 7, * He stretcheth out the north upon the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.' Consider the beauty of the heavens, with their ornaments ; the bounding of the sea ; the artifice in the frame of the smallest creatures, the excellent ministries, and subordi- nation of the services of the creatures one to another, &c.