God's design in the covenant of gi'ace is to exalt the riches of his mercy above all sin and unworthiness of man ; and we peld him more gloiy of his mercy by believing, than it would be to his justice to destroy us. If we were perfect in omrselves, we should not honour him so much, as when we labour to be found in Christ, having his righteousness upon us, Philip, iii. 9.
There is no one portion of Scripture oftener used to fetch up djt'ooping spirits than this : ' Why art thou, cast down, 0 my soul?' It is figurative, and full of rhetoric, and all little enough to persuade the pei-plexed soul quietly to trust in God ; which, without this retiring into oui-selves and checking our hearts, will never be brought to pass. Chiysostom brings in a man loaden with troubles, coming into the church, where, when he heard this passage read, he presently recovered himself, and becomes another man, (Homil. in Genes, xxix.). As David, therefore, did acquaint himself with this form of deahng with his soul, so let us, demanding a reason of our- selves. Why we are cast down ; which wiU at least check and put a stop to the distress, and make us fit to consider more sohd grounds of true comfort.
Of necessity the soul must be something calmed and stayed before it can be comforted. Whilst the humours of the body rage in a great distemper, there is no giving of physic ; so when the soul gives way to passion, it is unfit to entertain any counsel, therefore it must be stilled by degrees, that it may hear reason ; and sometimes it is fitter to be moved with ordinary reason (as being more familiar unto it), than with higher reasons fetched fi'om our supernatm-al condition in Christ, as fi-om the condition of man's nature subject to changes, from the uncomehness of yielding to pas- sion for that which it is not in our power to mend, &c. ; these and such like reasons have some use to stay the fit for a while, but they leave the core untouched, which is sin, the trouble of all troubles. Yet when such considerations are made spu-itual by faith on higher grounds, they have some operation upon the soul, as the influence of the moon having the stronger influence of the sun mingled with it becomes more eflectual upon these inferior bodies. A candle Ught being ready at hand is sometimes as useful as the sun itself.
But our main care should be to have evangelical grounds of comfort near to us, as reconcihation with God, whereby all things else are reconciled to us, adoption and commimion with Christ, &c., which is never sweeter than under the cross. Philip Lansgrave of Hesse, being a long time prisoner imder Charles the Fifth, was demanded what upheld him all that time ? who answered that ' he felt the divine comfort of the martyi's.' Respondit divinas consolationes martyrum se sensisse. There be divine comforts which are felt under the cross, and not at other times.
Besides personal troubles, there are many much dejected with the pre- sent state of the church, seeing the blood of so many saints to be shed, and the enemies oft to prevail ; but God hath stratagems, as Joshua at Al, Josh, vii. He seems sometimes to reth-e, that he may come upon his enemies with the greater advantage. The end of all these troubles will no doubt be the ruin of the antichiistian faction ; and we shall see the church in her more perfect beauty when the enemies shall be in that place which is fittest * ' Us,' omitted in C.
126 TO THE CHRISTIAN KEADKR.
for them, the lowest, that is, the footstool of Christ, Ps. ex. 1. The church, as it is highest in the favoui" of God, so it shall be the highest in itself. ' The mountain of the Lord shall be exalted above all mountains,' Isa. ii. 2. In the worst condition, the chm-ch hath two faces, one towards heaven and Chi'ist, which is always constant and glorious ; another towards the world, which is in appearance contemptible and changeable. But God will in the end give her beauty for ashes, and glory double to her shame, Isa. Ixi. 3, and she shall in the end prevail; in the mean time, the power of the ene- mies is in God's hand, robiir hostium apml Deum. The chm'ch of God con- quers when it is conquered, even as our head Christ did, who overcame by patience as well as b}^ power. Chiist's victory was upon the cross. The spirit of a Christian conquers when his person is conquered.
The way is, instead of discouragement, to search all the promises made to the church in these latter times, and to tm^n them into prayers, and press God earnestly for the performance of them. Then we shaU soon find God both cursing his enemies and blessing his people out of Zion, by the faith- ful prayers that ascend up from thence.
In all the promises we should have special recourse to God in them. In aU storms there is sea room enough in the infinite goodness of God for faith to be carried with full sail.
And it must be remembered that in all places where God is mentioned, ■we are to understand God in the promised Messiah, typified out so many ways unto us. And to put the more vigour into such places in the reading of them, we in this latter age of the church must think of God shining upon us in the face of Chi-ist, and our Father in him. If they had so much con- fidence in so little light, it is a shame for us not to be confident in good ■ things, when so strong a light shines round about us, when we profess we believe ' a crown of righteousness is laid up for all those that love his ap- pearing,' 2 Tim. iv. 8. Presenting these things to the soul by faith, setteth the soul in such a pitch of resolution, that no discouragements are able to seize upon it. ' We faint not,' saith St Paul. Wherefore doth he not faint ? Because ' these light and short afiiictions procure an exceeding weight of glory,' 2 Cor. iv. 17.