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fear it will one day fall upon thee and be thy portion ? Be- hold a covert, a sure defence is here provided.
[3.] There is drought, causing barrenness, making the heart as a dry place, as a heath, or a parched wilderness. In reference whereunto Christ is a river of w^ater, abundantly, plentifully flowing for its refreshment. Drought in the Scripture denotes almost all manner of evil, it being the great, distressing punishment of those countries. When God threatens sinners, he says, they ' shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good (or water) cometh ; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilder- ness;' Jer xvii. 6. he shall be left to barrenness and want of all refreshment. And David complains in his great distress, that his ' moisture was turned into the drought of summer ;' Psal. xxxii. 4.
Two things are evidently in this drought: want of grace, or moisture, to make the soul fruitful; and want of rain or consolation to make it joyful. Barrenness and sorrow or disconsolation are in this dry place. Let us then suppose this condition also. Doth the soul find itself like the parched ground ? It hath no moisture to enable it to bring forth fruit ; but is dry, sapless, all the fruits of the Spirit seem to be withered ; faith, love, zeal, delight in God, not one of them flourishes ; yea, it thinks they are quite dead, it hath no showers, not any drop of consolation, no refreshment, but pines away under barrenness and sorrow. What would now best suit such a condition ? Why turn in a stream of water upon this parched ground, let there be springs in this thirsty place, let ' water break out in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;' as Isa. xxxv. 6. and how will all things be changed? Those things that hung their heads, and had no beauty, will flourish again ; and the things that are ready to die will be revived. Why in this condition Jesus Christ will be water, and that in abundance, rivers of water, that there shall be no want. He will by his Spirit give supplies of grace to make the soul fruitful: he will give in consolation to make it joyful.
[4.] There is weariness, and in respect hereof, Christ is said to be ' the shadow of a g-reat rock.' Weariness of travel and labour through heat and drought, is insupportable. He that is to travel in a thirsty land, dry and hungry, the sun
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beating on his liead, will be ready with Jonah in such a con- dition to wish he were dead, to be freed of his misery. Oh, how welcome will ' the shadow of a great rock' be to such a poor creature ? If Jonah rejoiced in * the shade of a gourd ;* how much better is ' the shadow of a great rock V Many a poor soul exercised with temptations, hindered in duties, scorched with a sense of sin, is weary in his journeying to- wards Canaan, in his course of obedience ; and thinks with himself, it were better for him even to die, than to live, hav- ing no hopes to come to his journey's end. Let now this poor soul lie down and repose himself a little under the shadow and safeguarding protection of this rock of ages, the Lord Jesus Christ, how will his strength and resolution come to him again ?
Thus, I say, is Christ in the promises peculiarly suited to all the several distresses, that we may at any time fall into. I might multiply instances to this purpose 5 but this one may suffice to make good the consideration proposed, for the encouraging of us to believe, from the suiting of the grace in the promises to all our wants.
Two things then may hence be deducted. 1st. The willingness of God that w'e should be esta- blished in believing. To what end should the Lord thus obviate all objections that can possibly arise in a misgiving- heart, and accommodate grace in Christ to all perplexities and troubles we at any time lie under, were he not willing we should lay hold on that grace, own it, accept it, and give him the praise of it. If I should go to a poor man, and tell him. Thou art poor, but see here are riches ; thou art naked, but here is clothing ; thou art hungry and thirsty, here is food and refreshment ; thou art wounded, but I have the most precious balm in the world: if I have no intent to have him partake of these riches, food, raiment, medicine, do not I egregiously mock and deride the man's misery and sorrow? will a wise or good man do thus ? Though many will deafen their ears to the cries of the poor ; yet who almost is so des- perately wicked, as to delight himself in sporting at their misery, and increasing their sorrow? And shall we think that the God of heaven, ' the Father of mercy, and God of all consolation,' who is all goodness, sweetness, and truth (as hath been declared), when he doth so suit and temper