As this man is joyful in sowing his grain in the earth, so the great Husbandman, with infinitely more joy, soweth the seed of grace in the heart of a sinner; for he rejoiceth over his elect to do them good, Jer. xxxii. 41.

This husbandman, I observe, uses his servants in carrying the seed to the ground, but he sows it there himself. So the So the great Husbandman useth his servants, the ministers of the gospel, for carrying the seed of the word to the ears of sinners, but he soweth it in the ground of their hearts himself by the Holy Spirit.

This man, I observe, is careful in sowing, that he miss none of the ground with the seed, and gives to every ridge its just proportion. With infinitely more care doth the great Husbandman sow the good seed in the heart; no place of it is missed; every faculty of the soul receiveth a proper measure of it: the understanding is not enlightened and the will left unrenewed; nor the conscience made tender, and void of offences, while the memory is unsanctified, and the affections cold:

No, all are sown with the good seed, which will in due time to perfection.

grow up

I observe the harrows following the husbandman and covering up the seed if this were not done, very soon would it be snatched from the earth by the fowls of the air. In like manner, the good seed of the word must be as it were covered up, and hid deep in the heart, lest the foul fiend Satan come and catch it out: thus did the Royal Psalmist : "Thy word have I hid in my heart," saith he, "that I might not sin against thee," Psalm cxix. 11.

From this ground which is now harrowed over, I behold large quantities of weeds gathered together with a number of stones, which would have intercepted the growth of the seed; yet some of the weeds, and many of their poisonous roots, still remain there, but will be more and more taken out as the seed springs up. In like manner, from the soul which the great Husbandman hath cultured and sown in the day of conversion, the hard and stony heart, that would have inter

cepted the growth of the heavenly seed, is taken out, together with a great deal of the weeds of sin and corruption; though, alas! many of them with a bitter root still remain, which will be taken more and more away as the believer groweth in grace, and the good seed springeth up in him to eternal life.

Next comes the ponderous roller, which saddens the ground, keeps it from heaving and spewing out the grain. So a proper sense of sin and man's state by nature, like a weighty roller, saddeneth the heart, keepeth it humble from proud risings, and throwing out the good seed.

To a partial observer this ground appears to be sown; and so does much that is only harrowed over, but has no good seed sown in it, which the husbandman has reserved for other purposes than growing of corn: but, by a more careful scrutiny, such as entering into the field, and turning over some of the mould, it may be certainly known whether the seed be there. In like manner, owing to some external reformation and civility of life,