398 THE RETURNING BACKSLIDER. [SeRMON XII.
tliiDk often of these things. What a blessed thing it is to be in the state of a Christian, that hath alway a certain and sure protection, quiet, and rest in God ! And what a fearful thing is it to be as the Ahithophels of this world ! to be as Cain, Judas, or Saul ! who are shrewd in counsel and policy, and yet, when conscience is awakened by the storm of God's wrath, want a shelter, whilst he who is above conscience, and should be a shelter to them, frowns upon them. What a pitiful state is this ! The wickedest man in the world, though he have never so gi'eat dependence, parts, and strength from human helps, yet when the storm of God's wrath comes, he is as a naked man in the midst of a storm, and knows not whither to go. Therefore let us be wise to have God for our shelter, if we would not be like these miserable politicians and worldlings.
Now, from this, that the shadow is comfoi'table in those hot coimtries. where the sun is directly over their heads, comes these sweet phrases in the Psalms and other Scriptures : ' Thou shalt keep me under the shadow of thy wings. As the apple-tree amongst the trees of the forest, so is my be- loved amongst the sons. I sat down under his shadow with gi'eat delight,' &c., Cant. ii. 3. The church speaks of Christ, ' I sat under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste.' The like you have in many places in the Psalms. I will name one or two, more pregnant than the rest, to help our memories, and to breed a deeper impression of so comfortable a point. Ps. Ixiii. 7. There the psalmist speaks of resting under the shadow of God's wings. And so in that other sweet and excel- lent psalm, in the greatest extremities of God's people, ' He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High,' that is, God, ' shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty,' Ps. xci. 1. He says after, ' I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and fortress ; ' for where God tells a man that he is a hiding-place and a shadow, there foith adds the application presently ; and then he goes on, speaking of himself, ' He shall cover me with his feathers ; under his wings will I rest ; his truth shall be my buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid of the terror by night ; nor of the arrow by day ; nor of the pesti- lence that walketh in the dark. A thousand shall fall,' &c., vers. 4-7. So that we see how God doth that to our souls and conditions that the fii*-tree, which is God's good creature, doth to the body in the time of storm and heat, that is, he doth refresh us mider the shadow of his wings. He is a sweet, comfortable, and gracious God unto us. This, you see, is a clear truth ; yet, because it is so comfortable, we will enlarge it further. Look what God speaks, ' The Lord will create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and upon her assembly, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flame of fire by night ; for upon all the glory shall be a defence,' Isa. iv. 45. See what a comfortable shadow God is ! He saith, ' He will create.' If they want the comfort of the fir-tree, and such like shadows, he says, ' God will create,' that is, make them of nothing. He will ' create upon every dwelling-place of mount Zion,' where his children dwell, and upon their assemblies, ' a cloud and a smoke by day ;' that is, when they are ainioj^ed by the sun, God will create a cloud to keep the rage and the scorching heat of the sun from them, and then a ' shining flame of fire by night,' because in the night we need light, for ' upon all the glory shall be a defence,' that is, upon all the glorious saints of God. They are glory, for there is a Spirit of gloiy put into them, 1 Pet. iv. 14. The people of God, in whom God will glorify himself, are glorious, and shall be further glorified, and they shall in the mean time have a defence by day and by night from all dangers whatsoever.
HOSEA XIV. 8. J THE RETURNING BACKSLIDER. 399
Thus it is clear that God will be a shadow to his people, as the fir-tree, which is an allusion to that grand passage of his providence in conducting the childi'en of Israel out of Egj'pt, where God, to guide them, provided a ' cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night,' Exod. xiv. 20. The same pillar which was lightsome to the Israelites, was dark to the Egyptians, which cloud and pillar of fii-e continued, God conducting them, till they came into the land of Canaan. He shadowed them by day with a cloud, and lighted and heated them by a pillar of fire at night, thus conducting them till they came to Canaan. So we, passing through the wilderness of this world till we come unto our celestial Canaan, heaven, God will be a ' cloud' by his gracious special pro'vidence, to keep all ill whatsoever from us, and a * pillar of fire ' to lighten and direct us till we come to our hea- venly Canaan, where he will be all in all, when we shall need neither sun nor moon, nor have anything to annoy us. Rev. vii. 16. There the noou- daj shall not bum us with heat of the sun, nor the fire by night. "When we are in heaven there shall be no annoyance of the creature. There shall be no more want of light, because we shall have all light and refreshing there for ever and ever. For, as it is written, then ' all tears,' all sorrow, and cause of sorrow, shall be for ever wiped away, an allusion whereunto we have comfortably set do\\Ti, Ps. cxxi. 7. The more we shall enrich and refi'esh our memories with thinking of these things, the more comfort will sink into our hearts. The 121st psalm is all spent on comfort in this kind. ' I will Uft up mine eyes to the hills, whence cometh my salvation. My help cometh from the Lord, who made heaven and earth,' all my help is from him. ' He will not sufier my foot to be moved ; he that keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.' ' He \vill not slumber ;' that is, his eyes are always open to see, as his ears to hear. ' Behold, he that keepeth Israel doth neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is thy keeper, thy sha- dow, so that the sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in, from this time for ever.' Thus we see this Scripture is a large gloss and commentar}- upon this truth, that God, with a special providence and protection, cares for his children, to keep them fi-om all ill. He will be as the fir-tree to them in regard of shadow. Whence we obseiTe in special,