ning, he can find fomething in their hearts, words or ways that pleaseth him, much more in their duties. He is a skilful refiner, that can find much gold in that ore where we see nothing but lead or clay. He remembers the duties which we forget, and forgets the fins which we remember: He juftifies our perfons tho' ungodly, and will alfo our duties tho' not perfectly godly.

4. To give a little further fupport in reference unto our wretched miferable duties, and to them that are in perplexities on that account, know, that Jefus Christ takes out whatever is evil and unfavoury out of them, and makes them acceptable. When an unskilful servant gathers many herbs, flowers and weeds in a garden, you gather them out that are ufeful, and cast the reft out of fight. Chrift deals fo with our performances. All the ingredients of felf that are in them on any account, he takes away, and adds incenfe to what remains, and prefents it to God, Exod. xxviii. 39. This is the cause that the faints at the laft day, when they meet their own duties and performances, they know them not, they are fo changed from what they were when they went out of their hand. Lord when faw we thee naked or hungry; fo that God accepts a little, and Chrift makes our little a great deal.

5. Is this an argument to keep thee from believing? The reason why thou art no more holy, is, because thou haft no more faith. If thou haft no holiness, it is becaufe thou haft no faith; holiness is the purifying of the heart by faith, or our obedience unto the truth. And the reason why thou art no more in duty, is, becaufe thou art no more in believing; the reafon why thy duties are weak and imperfect, is, because thy faith is weak and imperfect. Haft thou no holiness, believe that thou mayst have; haft thou but a little, or that which is imperceptible, be ftedfast in believing, that thou mayft abound in obedience, Do not refolve not to eat thy meat until thou art strong, when thou haft no means of being ftrong, but by eating thy bread, which strengthens the heart of man.

Object.

7

Object. 4. The powerful tumultuating of indwelling fin or corruption, is another caufe of the fame kind of trouble and defpondency. They that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the lufts thereof. But we find, fay fome, feveral corruptions working effectually in our hearts, carrying us captive to the law of fin; they difquiet with their power, as well as with their guilt. Had we been made partakers of the law of the Spirit of life, we had ere this been more fet free from the law of fin and death. Had fin been pardoned fully, it would have been fubdued more effectually.

There are three confiderations which make the actings of indwelling fin to be fo perplexing to the foul.

1. Because they are unexpected. The foul looks not for them upon the first great conqueft made of fin, and univerfal engagement of the heart unto God. When it firft fays, I have fworn, and am ftedfastly purposed to keep thy righteous judgments, commonly there is peace at least for a feafon from the disturbing vigorous actings of fin. There are many reasons why it fhould be fo: Old things are then paffed away, all things are become new; and the foul, under the power of that univerfal change, is utterly turned away from those things that should foment, ftir up, provoke or cherrish any luft or temptation. Now, when fome of these advantages are paft, and fin begins to ftir and act again, the foul is furprized, and thinks the work that he hath paffed through was not true and effectual, but temporary only. Yea, he thinks perhaps that fin hath more ftrength than it had before, because he is more fenfible than he was before As one that hath a dead arm or limb, whilst it is mortified, endures deep "cuts and launcings, and feels them not; when fpirits and sense are brought into the place again, he feels the leaft cut, and may think the inftruments fharper than they were before, when all the difference is, that he hath got a quickness of fense, which before he had not. It may be fo with a perfon in this cafe; he may think luft more powerful than it was before, because he is more fenBbb 2

fible

fible than he was before.. Yea, fin in the heart, is like a fnake or ferpent; you may pull out the fting of it, and cut it into many pieces; though it can fting mortally no more, nor move his whole body at once, yet it will move in all its parts, and make an appearance of a greater motion than formerly: So it is with luft, when it hath received its death's wound, and is cut in pieces, yet it moves in fo many parts as it were in the foul, that it amazes him that hath to do with it; and thus coming unexpectedly, fills the fpirit oftentimes with difconfolation.

2. It hath alfo in its actings an univerfality. This alfo furprizeth; there is an univerfality in the actings of fin, even in believers. There is no evil that it will not move to; there is no good that it will not attempt to hinder; no duty that it will not defile: And the reason. of this is, because we are fanctified but in part. Not in any part wholly, though favingly and truly in every part. There is fin remaining in every faculty, in all the affections, and fo may be acting in and towards any fin that the nature of man is liable unto. Degrees of fin there are that all regenerate perfons are exempted from; but unto folicitations to all kinds of fin they are expofed, and this helps on the temptation.

3. It is endlefs and restlefs; never quiet, conquering nor conquered; it gives not over, but rebels being overcome, or affaults afresh having prevailed. Ofttimes after a victory obtained, and an oppofition subdued, the foul is in expectation of reft and peace from its enemies: But this holds not. It works and rebels again and again, and will do fo whilft we live in this world; fo that no iffue will be put to our conflict but by death. This is at large handled elsewhere in a treatife lately published on this peculiar fubject.

Thefe and the like confiderations attending the actings of indwelling fin, do oftentimes intangle the fout in making a judgment of itself, and leave it in the dark as to its ftate and condition.

A few things fhall be offered unto this objection alfo.

So

1. The fenfible powerful actings of indwelling fin, are not inconfiftent with a ftate of grace, Gal. v. 17. There are in the fame perfon contrary principles, the flesh and the Spirit; thefe are contrary; and there are contrary actings from thefe principles: The flesh lufteth against the fpirit, and the spirit against the flesh; and thefe actings are defcribed to be greatly vigorous in other places. Luft wars against our fouls, James iv. 1. 1 Pet. ii. 11. Now, to war is not to make faint or gentle oppofition, to be flighted and contemned; but it is to go out with great ftrength, to ufe craft, fubtilty and force, fo as to put the whole iffue to a hazard. thefe lufts war; fuch are their actings in and against the foul. And therefore faith the apoftle, You cannot do the things that you would; See Rom. vii. 14, 15, 16, 17. In this conflict indeed the underftanding is left unconquered; it condemns and difapproves of the evilled unto; and the will is not fubdued; it would not do the evil that is preffed upon it, and there is an hatred or averfation remaining in the affections unto fin; but yet notwithstanding, fin rebels, fights, tumultuates, and leads captive. This objection then may receive this speedy anfwer. Powerful actings and workings, univerfal endless ftrugglings of indwelling fin, feducing to all that is evil, putting itself forth to the disturbance and diffettlement of all that is good, is no fufficient ground to conclude a ftate of alienation from God; fee for this the other treatife before-mentioned at large.

2. Your state is not at all to be measured by the oppofition that fin makes to you, but by the oppofition you make to it; be that never fo great, if this be good, be that never fo reftlefs and powerful, if this be fincere, you may be difquieted, you can have no reafon to defpond.

I have mentioned these things only to give a fpecimen of the objections which men ufually raise up against an actual clofing with the truth infifted on to their confolation: And we have alfo given in upon

them

them fome rules of truth for their relief, not intending in them abfolute fatisfaction as to the whole of the cafes mentioned, but only to remove the darkness raised by them so out of the way, as that it might not hinder any from mixing the word with faith, that hath been difpensed from this bleffed teftimony that there is forgivenefs with God that he may be feared.

PRO

VERSES V, VI.

Roceed we now to the fecond part of this pfalm, which contains the deportment of a fin-perplexed foul; when by faith it hath difcovered where its reft doth ly, and from whom its relief is to be expected; even from the forgiveness which is with God, whereof we have spoken.

There are two things in general, as was before mentioned, that the foul in that condition applies itself unto; whereof the first refpects its felf, and the other the whole Ifrael of God.

That which refpects it felf, is the description of that frame of heart and spirit that he was brought into, upon faith's difcovery of forgivenefs in God; with the duties that he applied himself unto, the grounds of it, and the manner of its performance, ver. v. vi:

VER. 5. I wait for the Lord, my foul doth wait, and in his word do I hope.

VER. 6. My foul waiteth for the Lord, more than they that watch for the morning: I fay more than they that watch for the morning.

Herein I fay he defcribes both his frame of fpirit, and the duty he applied himself to, both as to matter and manner.

I fhall, as in the method hitherto observed, first con