between the means and the end; still, if God has united them, it does not become us to put them asunder ; nor can we ever expect the Divine blessing, if we attempt to separate them. Moses was commanded to take his stick, or rod, and with that to work miracles in Egypt. What would he have wrought, if, in contempt of such means, he had left his rod behind him ? The Israelites were commanded to march round Jericho on seven successive days, and then to blow with rams' horns. Suppose they had disregarded these means on account of their inadequacy to produce any important result, would the walls of Jericho have fallen down ? Or if Naaman had persisted in preferring the waters of Abana and Pharpar to those of Jordan, would he have been healed of his leprosy ? Thus then, whether prayer have any proper effect or not, we must use it as God's ordinance ; and if we will not use it, we shall infallibly lose those blessings, which, in the use of the appointed means, we might otherwise attain. True, it is said of the Gentiles, that " God was found of them that sought him not ;" but this refers only to their heathen state: for none ever ultimately found him, who did not walk with him in the daily exercise of faith and prayer : nor can there be found in all the sacred volume one single word that justifies a hope of obtaining any thing at God's hands in the neglect of this sacred duty^.]
On the contrary, when prayer is offered aright, the whole inspired volume attests, III. Its efficacy —
[Nothing can be more express than the declarations of our text on this subject. The repetition of them is intended to assure us that no man shall ever " seek God's face in vain." It is of importance to observe, that in the promises before us there is no limitation whatever, either as to the person asking or the blessing desired. A person may have been as wicked as Manasseh himself, yet shall he not be cast out, provided he come to God with unfeigned penitence in the name of Jesus Christ. It must be remembered, that, since the coming of Christ, it is indispensably necessary that we should offer all our petitions in his name. This, in fact, was done even under the Jewish dispensation : for every penitent was obliged to put his hand upon the head of his sacrifice ; and, when the Jews were in captivity, and consequently were unable to offer sacrifices, they must look towards the temple ; which was a distinguished type of Christ, " in whom dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." Let but our prayers be offered in an humble dependence on the sacrifice and intercession of Jesus Christ, and they shall assuredly prevail. God may not indeed
g Jam. iv. 2.