2 CORINTHIANS CHAP. IV, VER. 6. 3-45
more, and still they be unsearchable. 'Neither eye hath seen, nor ear heard, nor hath it entered into the heart of man to conceive of the excellent things in Christ,' 1 Cor. ii. 9. They transcend the capacity of the soul, which no other treasure can do.
4. And then they have another excellency. They make the soul and the whole person a treasure ; as God saith, Mai. iii. 17, ' I will make up my jewels.' The grace of God makes us gracious, turneth us into jewels. No other treasure can change the cask wherein it is ; but these blessed things of God and of Christ, wheresoever he dwelleth, he makes the soul like himself, stamping his own image and likeness upon it. For such is the change of nature into grace that it makes us treasures.
Other treasures perhaps make us worse, as indeed they do, by reason of the proneness of our dispositions to earthly things, they soil and stain our natures. But these treasures of excellent things purify our natures, make us better, and change us into the nature of themselves ; nay more, grace changeth the worst things to be good to us : that is the excellency of its virtue. They talk of the philosopher's stone, and strange things, but I am sure the grace of God is so excellent a treasure that it extracts good out of every evil, and as grace, turneth all to good, and so the sanctifying Spirit concurring with it, draweth the greatest comforts out of the greatest crosses. And is not that a rich treasure, that turneth the worst things to good ? It will make every thing to guide us to the main,
5. That our affections may be raised higher. All other treasures ivliatso- ever they be, here wejind them, and here ive 7nnst leave them, irhether ive will or no, or they will leave vs. As the wise man saith of riches, ' they have eagles' wings,' Prov. xxiii. 5. Peritiira jwrituris, we must leave perishing earthly things to perishing men. But is this treasure of that nature or no ? For it makes the soul eternal, it doth raise the soul to be spiritual, the soul carrieth them to heaven with it. The earthen vessel indeed is cracked to pieces, but the treasure remaineth. The soul goeth out of this earthen vessel to heaven, and thither carrieth all the love it had, and all the graces, and the image of Christ it had. All is there perfectly, nothing is taken away. As we say of an earnest, it is part of the bargain, and not taken away again. Luke x. 42, it was said of Mary's part, that ' her part shall never be taken from her.' All other things will be taken from us. We shall be stripped of all, and turned naked into our graves, we know not how soon. As we came naked, so must we be turned naked ; but Mary's part, the interest in the treasure of the gospel and the . good things of Christ, shall never be taken from us, but shall be perfected in heaven. When friends are taken away, and life taken away, and all comforts taken away, yet Mary's part endures for ever. When nothing will comfort, all our treasures fail, as at the hour of death, then comes in this treasure and com- forts most. So that herein it differs from all treasures : it is never taken from us, and stands us in greatest use and stead in our greatest necessity.
6. And which is of special use, other treasures we cannot carry about us whithersoever we go. But this is like [a] pearl rather than treasure. A Chris- tion carrieth this treasure wheresoever he goeth ; nay, he carrieth it in his heart, it is hid there, and who can take it out thence? Can the devil? No. It is hid in his aftections. His love, and choice, and judgment hath gotten it and mastered it. This I have, and this I must stick to in life and death; for having got it in his heart, judgment, and affection, he carrieth it wheresoever he goeth, maketh use of it wheresoever, in prison, at libertj^, abroad or at home. Let all the devils in hell conspire, they may take away
8-lG COMMENTARY OK
liis life, but not his treasure, tbey must leave liim the gospel. Perhaps they may take it out of the book, but can thuy get it out of the soul ? Indeed, unless divine truths be gotten into the heart, the devil will como between us and our souls and rob us of them ; but if it bo in the judgment and heart, wo carry it with us, and that continually and in all places, else it could not serve for all turns. You sec then in what respect this treasure is so excellent.
First, that wo may believe these thinga we must believe God, and be- lieve his saints, and believe Christ.
(1.) God hi his Spirit suith it is so, Prov. iii. 14, 15. The knowledge of Christ and the good things by him, nothing is to be compared to them, Mat. vi. 29. God's judgment is the rule of the goodness of things. If he saith it is so, it is so. Christ calleth it a treasure, that a wise man that hath God's Spirit in him will sell all for to obtain it. ' Lay up treasure in heaven,' Luke xii. 21. Labour to be rich in God, for that is ' true riches,' Luke xvi. 11.