* That is, ' over-confident.'— Ed.
416 . THE RETURNING BACKSLIDER. [SeRMON XIY.
Now, when the understanding of a man is made wise by the Spirit of God, it will relish wisdom and prudence. For the Spirit of God, together with the Scripture, takes the scales off the eyes of the soul, subdues rebel- lious passions in the aflections, especially that rebellion of the will, putting a new relish in all, so as they come to love, affect,- and joy in heavenly things. Now, when these scales of spiritual blindness are fallen off the eyes of the soul, and when rebellion is removed from the will and affections, then it is fit to join and approve of heavenly things, else there is a con- trariety and antijiathy betwixt the soul and these things. As the body, when the tongue is affected with some aguish humour, cannot relish things, though they be never so good, but affecteth and relisheth all things suiting that distemper ; so it is with the soul. When it is not enlightened it judgeth all things carnally, there being an antipathy between the soul and divine truths brought home unto it. Perhaps a soul not enlightened or sanctified will apprehend the generalities of truth very well, but when they are pressed home to practice, then, unless the soul be changed, it will rise up and swell against divine truths, and reject the practice of them. With- out subduing grace, to alter and change the soul, the affections thereof are like the March suns, which stir up a great many humours, but not spend- ing them, they breed aguish humours and distempers. So the light of the word in a carnal heart, it meets Avith the humours of the soul, and stirs them ; but if there be not grace in the soul to subdue these affections, it stirs them up to be the more malicious, especially if they be pressed to par- ticular duties in leaving of sinful courses. So that the Spirit of God must alter the understanding, and subdue the will and affections, ere there can be a conceiving of divine truths savingly. Therefore, before these acts, he joins these graces. * Who is wise ? and who is prudent ?' &c.
Use. The use hereof is thus much : Not to come to the divine truth of God with human affections and spirits, but to lift up our hearts to God. Why, Lord, as things themselves are spiritual, so make me spiritual, that there may be a harmony between my soul and the things ; that as there is a sweet relish in di\ine truths, so there may be a sweet taste in me, to answer that relish which is in divine truths ; that the wisdom of thy word and my wisdom may be one ! Then a man is wise. There is not the commonest truth, or practical point in divinity, but it is a mystery, and must be divinely understood, and must have prudence to go about it as we should do. Repentance and the knowledge of sin, it is a mystery till a man be sanctified in his understanding. He can never know what spiritual misery is till the inward man be enlightened and sanctified, to know what a contra- riety there is between sin and the Spirit of God. As no man can know thoroughly what sickness is but he that hath been sick ; for the physician doth not know sickness so well as the patient who feels it ; so it is with a holy man, sanctified with the Holy Ghost. Tell him of sin, he feels it, and the noisomeness of it, the opposition of it to his comfort and communion with God. Only the spiritual enlightened man can tell what repentance, sin, sorrow for sin, and the spiritual health of the soul is. Therefore it is said here, * Who is wise ? and who is prudent ? and he shall understand these things.'
* That is, ' choose ' = cherish. — G.
HOSEA XrV. 9. J THE RETUKNING BACKSLIDEB. 417
THE FIFTEENTH SERMON.
Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and he shall know them ? for the ivays of the Lord are riyht, the just shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein. — Hos. XIV. 9.
At length, by divine assistance, we are come unto the conclusion of this short chapter, wherein the Holy Ghost, from God, hath shewed such bowels of mercy and tender compassion unto miserable sinners, encouraging them to return unto the Lord by many and several arguments, being formerly insisted upon. Our last work v.as to shew you what wisdom and prudence "was, the difference of them, and how that none, without these endowments, are able to know and make use of divine truths and mysteries of religion. ' Who is wise, and he shall understand these things ? prudent, and he shall know them ?' &c.
We came then to shew, that there must be prudence and wisdom, before we can understand divine truths ; there must be an illumination within. It is Dot sufficient to have the light of the Scripture outwardly, but there must be a light of the eye to see ; there must be wisdom and prudence gathered from the Scriptures. Now, wisdom and prudence, if they be divine, as here is meant, it is not a discreet managing of outward affairs of our personal condition, but an ordering of our course to heavenward. Wherefore a man may know whether he be wise and prudent by his relish- ing of divine truths, for otherwise he is not vdse and prudent in these things which are the main.