meet him. And this i fhall endeavour to difcourfe by refolving the few following questions that may be put by the professed virgins that are hearing me.

1. What is fuppofed or implied in the duty, Go ye out to meet him?

2. What is the motion of the foul in going out to meet him?

3. For what end and purpofe are we to go out and meet the Bridegroom?

4. Where may we expect to meet him?

5. Who they are that stand fairest for a meeting with him in love and mercy?

6. What fort of a meeting have the wife virgins with the Bridegroom, when they go forth to meet him in a way of believing?

Quest. What is fuppofed or implied in the duty, G. ye out to meet him?

ift, It fuppofes a prefent diftance between them and the Bridegroom. There was a total distance between him and the foolish virgins; they had heard of him by the hearing of the ear, but their eyes had never feen him, the light of the knowledge of his glory had never shined in their hearts. Oh! how many fuch have we in our Chriftian affemblies, "whom the god of this world has blinded, left the light of the glorious gofpel of Chrift, who is the image of God, should shine unto them? And as there was a total distance between Christ and the foolish virgins, fo there was a partial diftance between him and the wife virgins, otherwife they had not been flumbering and fleeping.

2dly, Go ye out to meet him. It fuppofes, that it is the work and bufinefs of God's heralds to prepare the way for a meeting between Chrift and figners, to bring Chrift near to finners, and finners near to Chrift. When Chrift was coming, yea actually come in the flesh to the Jewish nation, John the Baptift cried, "Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the defert a high way for our God." We, as ambaffadors for the Bridegroom, come to befeech and intreat finners to go out and met the Bridegroom in a way of believing, and faints (wife virgins) to go out and hold communion with him in the renewed actings of faith. Witdom crieth to all promifcueufly, "Come, eat of my bread, and drink of the wine which I have mingled."

3dly, Go ye out to meet him. It implies, that the Bridegroom is not afar off, but that he is nigh at hand. It is the way of unbelief, and a deceitful heart, to fay, "The Lord delayeth his coming," he is behind the mountains, while yet he is at

the

the door: Rev. iii. 20. "Behold, I ftand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come into him, and will fup with him, and he with me." And therefore," say not in thine heart, who fhall afcend into heaven? (that is, to bring Chrift down from above) or, who fhall defcend into the deep? that is, to bring Christ again. from the dead)-For the word is, nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart; that is the word of faith, which we preach," Rom x. 6.-8.

4thly, Go ye out to meet him. It says, that the Bridegroom is a perfon of note and merit, that he is worthy of all reception and entertainment: 1 Tim. i. 15. "This is a faithful faying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Chrift Jesus came into the world to fave finners." Sirs, we tell you, that the Bridegroom is worthy of the greateft welcome: his person is worthy, for he is the Son of God; and he comes upon a worthy and wonderful errand, even to fave finners, and not only fo, but to wed them for a bride; for he is faying, "I will betrothe thee unto me for ever."

5thly, Go ye out to meet him. It implies, that the Bridegroom is not to be found within, but without, Go ye out to meet him. Quakers and enthufiafts boaft of a Chrift within them; but though Chrift, by his Spirit, dwells in the heart of a true be liever, yet the first meeting that faith has with Chrift, is by going out to meet him: It is a Chrift outwardly revealed in the word that true faith deals with: the grace of faith is indeed feated in the foul, as the eye is in the body, but then, like the eye of the body, it is wholly taken up with objects without itself. Faith lies in a continual outgoing toward Chrift revealed and exhibit in the word: Ifrael had never found the manna, unless they had gone out to gather it; and they had never been healed of the flings of the fiery ferpents, except they had looked without to the brazen ferpent: fo we thall never meet the Bridegroom, except we go out and mee him.

6thly, Go ye out to meet him. It fays, that in believing in Chrift, in receiving him, there is a difbanding of other lovers; for " no man can serve two masters." Sin, Satan, and the world, have dominion over the man, while in a natural and Chriftless state; he is playing the harlot with other lovers; fome luft or idol he is hugging in his bofom, that is as dear to him as a right hand or right eye. But now, whenever he goes out to meet the Bridegroom, he cries with Ephraim, Hof. xiv. 8. "What have I to do any more with idols? O Lord, our God, other lords, befides thee, have had domi

nion over me; but by thee only will I make mention of thy name," If. xxvi. 13.

7thly, Go ye cut to meet him. It fays, that the foul, in believing or receiving Chrift, quits all falfe confidences, and arifes out of thefe beds of floth and fecurity upon which it was ftretching itfelf. The virgins here, they were all flumbering and fleeping, fome of them upon one bed of floth, and fome upon another. But the cry comes at midnight, Beheld the Bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him; which fays plainly, that they behoved to quit their fhort beds, and cast away their narrow coverings, if they would meet the Bridegroom, and have fellowship with him. 1. There is the bed of fpiritual death and fecurity, Eph. v. 14. " Awake, thou that fleepeft, and arife from the dead, and Chrift fhall give thee light." 2. We must quit the bed of church privileges, and go forth from thefe; and beware of faying, "The temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord are thefe." 3. The bed of civility and moral honesty: the young man in the gofpel could fay, "All these things have I kept from my youth up," and yet was a ftranger to Chrift, and to the new birth. 4. The bed of a legal righteoufnefs; we must arife out of that, for by "the works of the law no fleth living can be juftified." 5. The bed of evangelical righteoufnefs; this alfo must be quitted, if ever we would go forth and meet the Bridegroom. Some feck righteousness not directly by the law, but, as it were, by the works of the law." They make their faith, love, repentance, and obedience, unto a pretended new gofpel law, a fort of righteoufnefs to themfelves, and thereupon build their faith and hope of the imputation of the righteousness, which is nothing but a fubtle way of fubverting the whole gofpel of Chrift, and the method of free juftification by the righteoufnefs of Christ alone, a building the imputation of Chrift's righteoufnefs upon straw and ftubble, and, at beft, a profane jumbling of Christ's righteousness and our own together, an error againft which the apoítle denounceth an anathema, Gal. i. 6. 8.

Sthly, Go ye out to meet him. It implies fome knowledge of the Bridegroom, accompanied with an affent of the mind unto the report of the gofpel, and the record of God concerning him; for we do not go out to meet frangers, of whom we have no knowledge, or of whom we have never heard: the foul that goes out to meet Chritt, is made to know him. By "his knowledge fhall my righteous Servant juftify many:" and, from the knowledge it has of his perfon and mediation, it allents to what is recorded of him in the word, and reported of him in a preached gofpel; and is ready to fay, as the Queen

Queen of Sheba, when fhe faw the glory of King Solomon, and heard his wifdom, The half (what I heard at a distance) was not told me, to what I now fee and know.' "This is life eternal, that they might know thee, the only true God, and Jefus Chrift whom thou haft fent."

9thly, It implies a high esteem and hearty approbation of the perfon of Chrift, and the method of juftification, sanctification, and falvation, through him. On! will the foul fay, he is "worthy of all acceptation" indeed: "Whom have I in heaven but thee, and there is none upon earth that I defire befides thee. Yea, doubtlefs, and I count all things but lofs, for the excellency of the knowledge of Chrift Jefus my Lord: that I may win Chrift, and be found in him; and unto you who believe he is precious."

1othly, Go ye out to meet him. It implies an outgoing of the whole foul, in all its powers and faculties, after the Bridegroom, and an actual fubfcribing the contract of the new covenant, with heart and hand, according to what is prophefied and promised, If. xliv. 3. "One fhall fay, I am the Lord's; and another fhall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another fhall fubfcribe with his hand unto the Lord, and firname himfelf by the name of Ifrael." And, from that time forward, the bride is betrothed unto the Bridegroom, according to that, Hof. ii. 19. 20. She now begins to call him Ibi; my husband being the echo of the bride's voice unto the words of the Bridegroom, If. liv. 5. " Thy Maker is thine Husband; the Lord of hofts is his name."

11thly, Go ye out to meet him. It implies, that it is the duty, and will be the defire of the foul efpoufed to Chrift to purfue after the enjoyment of him, and fellowship with him, in all the duties and ordinances of his appointment, while in a state of efpoufals, till the marriage be confummate at the end of time, Pfal. xxvii. 4. "One thing have I deûired of the Lord, that will I feek after, that I may dwell in the houfe of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to inquire in his temple." It is but a toom houfe to the bride when the Bridegroom is abfent; and therefore when the miffes him, the goes mourning without the fun, crying, "O that I knew where I might find him, faw ye him whom my foul loveth," &c. So much for the first question. I now proceed to,

The fecond queftion; What is the motion of the bride? or how doth the move when the goes out to meet the Bridegroom? For going out to meet him implies motion. I anfwer,

ft, It is not a carnal or corporeal, but a fpiritual and a

foul

foul motion: "O my foul, thou haft faid unto the Lord, thou art my Lord," Pfal. xvi. 2. "Return unto thy reft, O my foul," Pfal. cxvi. 7. Is. xxvi. 9. “With my foul have I defired thee," &c.

2dly, It is not a blind, but a rational and understanding motion he draws with the cords of a man, and with the bands of love. The entrance of God's word having given light to the mind, he has got an understanding to know him that is true. So that the man in going out to meet the Bridegroom, knows well what he is doing, for he knows the Lord, and therefore follows on to know him more and more.

3dly, It is not a forced, but a free and voluntary motion the foul hath, when it goes out to meet the Bridegroom, Pfal. cx. 3. "Thy people fhall be willing in the day of thy power." He rejoices to meet the Lord in his ways, &c.

4thly, It is not a cold, but a most affectionate motion. All the affections of the foul are taken up with the glory of the Bridegroom, fuch as love, delight, defire, that before were purfuing other lovers, do now centre upon him alone.

5thly, It is not a flow, but a swift and fpeedy motion: "I made hafte, and delayed not to keep thy righteous judgements.” Like the flight of a dove to its windows, when pursued by the birds of prey, or that of the man-flayer to the city of refuge.

6thly, It is not a careless, but a careful and refolute motion. The man, in going out to meet the Bridegrom, is refolved to be at him, and with him, whatever bars or impediments be in the way he will not fay, "there is a lion in the way, a lion in the streets" no; although lions and leopards be in his way; though all the armies of hell, and fhowers of fiery darts be in his way, he will break through them all.

thly, It is a praying, importunate, and wrestling motion. The man in going out to meet the Bridegroom, is crying, " when wilt thou come unto me? And O that I knew where I might find him," &c.

8thly, It is a very myfterious motion: the foul is carried out after Chrift, and it knows not how: like the wind which blows where it lifteth, we hear the found of it, "but cannot tell whence it cometh, or whither it goeth."

9thly, It is a joyful and cheerful motion. O with what alacrity doth the foul receive and embrace the Bridegroor, in the day of efpoufals? the foul is just filled "with joy and peace in believing; yea, a joy unfpeakable and full of glory," fay ing, "Let us be glad and rejoice, for the marriage of the Lamb is come."

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