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wait, and wilt not thou? Oh! the firm belief of his wisdom, power and goodness, what difficulty will it not surmount? So then be humble under his hand; submit not only thy goods, thy health, thy life, but thy soul, Seek and wait for thy pardon as a condemned rebel, with thy rope about thy neck. Lay thyself low before him, stoop at his feet, and crave leave to look up, and speak, and say, "Lord, I am justly under the sentence of death. If I fall under it, thou art righteous, and I do here acknowledge it; but there is deliverance in Christ, thither I would have recourse: yet if I be beaten back, and held out, and faith with-held from me, and I pe.. rish, as it were, in view of salvation, if I see the rock, and yet cannot come at it, but drown; what have I to say? In this likewise thou art righteous. Only, if it seem good unto thee to save the vilest, most wretched, of sinners, and shew great mercy in pardoning so great debts, the higher will be the glory of that mercy. However, here I am resolved to wait, till either thou graciously receive me, or absolutely reject me. If thou do this, I have not a word to say against it; but because thou art gracious, I hope, I hope, thou wilt yet have mercy on me." I dare say that the promise in the text belongs to such a soul, and it shall be raised up in due time.

And what though most or all of our life should pass without much sensible taste even of spiritual comforts; a poor all it is. Let us not over-esteem this moment, and so think too much of our better or worse condition in it, either in temporals, yea, or in spirituals, such as are more arbitrary and accessary to the name of our spiritual life. Provided we can humbly wait for free grace, and depend on the word of promise, we are safe. If the Lord will clearly shine on us, and refresh us, this is much to be desired and prized; but if he so think fit, what if we should be all our days held at a distance, and under a cloud of wrath? It is but a moment in his anger.

b. Psal. xxx. 5.

Then follows a life-time in his favour, an endless lifetime. It is but weeping, as it there follows, for a night, and joy comes in the morning, that clearer morning of eternity, to which no evening succeeds.

Ver. 7. Casting all your care upon him, for he careth for

you.

AMONGST other spiritual secrets, this is one, and a prime one, the combination of lowliness and boldness, humble confidence: this is the true temper of a child of God, towards his great and good Father; nor can any other have it, but they that are indeed. his children, and have within them that spirit of adoption which he sends into their heartsa.

And these two the apostle here joins together, Humble yourselves under the hand of God, and yet cast your care on him; upon that same hand under which you ought to humble yourselves, must you withal cast over your care, all your care, for he careth for

you.

Consider, 1. The nature of this confidence, casting all your care on him. 2. The ground or warrant of it, for he careth for you.

1. For the nature of it, every man hath some desires and purposes that are predominant with him, besides those that relate to the daily exigencies of life with which he is compassed; and in both according to their importance or his esteem, and the difficulties occurring in them, he is naturally carried to be proportionally thoughtful and careful in them. Now, the excess and distemper of this care is one of the great diseases and miseries of man's life. Moral men, perceiving and resenting it, have been tampering at the cure, and prescribing after their fashion, but with little success. Some present abatement and allay of the paroxism or extremity, their rules may reach; but they never go near the bottom, the cause of the evil; and therefore cannot work a thorough sound cure of it.

* Gal. iv. 6.

Something they have spoken, somewhat fitly, of the surpassing nature's rule and size in the pursuit of superfluous needless things; but for the unavoidable care of things needful, they knew no redress, but refer men entirely to their own industry and diligence. They can tell how little will serve him, that seeks no more than what will serve; but how to be provided of the little, or to be assured of it, and freed from troubling care, they cannot tell.

Now, truly, it were a great point to be well instructed in the former; and it is necessary for the due practice of this rule here given, touching necessary cares, first to cut off cares unnecessary, to retrench all extravagant superfluous desires. For, certainly, a great part of the troubling cares of men relate merely to things that are such as have no other necessity in them, but what our disordered desires create, nor truly any real good in them, but what our fancy puts upon them. Some are indeed forced to labour hard for their daily bread; but, undoubtedly, a great deal of the sweat and toil of the greatest part of men is about unnecessaries". Such an estate, so much by the year, such a place, so much honour and esteem, and rank in the world; these are the things that make some slaves to the humours of others whom they court, and place their dependence on, for these ends; and those, possibly, to whom they are so enthralled, are themselves at as little liberty, but captivated to the humours of some others, either above them, or that being below them, may give accession and furtherance to their ends of enrichment, advancement, or popularity. Men set on these things forge necessities to themselves, and make vain things as necessary as food and raiment, resolving that they will have them, or fall in the chace, being wilfully and unavoidably bent on them. They that will be rich, says the apostle, that are resolved on it upon any terms, meet with terms b Ad supervacua sudatur. c 1 Tim. vi. 9.

hard enough; they fall into temptation, and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition. There is no recovering, but still they are plunged deeper and deeper, and these are foolish lusts too unreasonable, childish desires; after one bargain, such another; and after one sin, another; to make even, and somewhat then to keep that whole; and so on without end. If their hearts are set upon purchase and land, still some house or neighbour-field, some Nabothvineyard is in their eyes, and all the rest is nothing without that, which discovers the madness of this humour, this dropsy-thirst.

And this is the first thing indeed to be looked to, that our desires and cares be brought to a due compass; and what would we have? Do we think contentment lies in so much, and no less? Alas! when that is attained, it shall appear as far off as before. When children are at the foot of a high hill, they think it reaches the heavens; and yet, if they were there, they find themselves as far off as before, at least not sensibly nearer. Men think, Oh! had I this, I were well; and when it is reached, it is but an advanced standing to look higher, and spy out for some other thing.

We are indeed children in this, to think the good of our estate is in the greatness, and not in the fitness of it for us. He were a fool that would have his clothes so; and think the bigger and longer they were, they would please him the better. And certainly as in apparel, so in place and estate, and all outward things, their good lies not in their greatness, but in their fitness for us: as our Saviour tells us expressly, that man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things he possesseth. Think you great and rich persons live more content; believe it not. If they will deal freely, they can tell you the contrary; that there is nothing but a shew in them; and that great estates and places have

Luke xii. 13.

great grief and cares attending them, as shadows are proportioned to their bodies.

And if they have no real crosses, luxury frames troubles to itself; variety of dishes corrupting the stomach, and causing variety of diseases; and for need, fantastic vain discontents that will trouble men as much as greater, be it but this hawk flies not well, or that dog runs not well, to men whose hearts are in those games.

So then, I say, this is first to be regulated; all childish vain needless cares are to be discharged, and, as being unfit to cast on thy God, are to be quite cast out of thy heart. Entertain no care at all but such as thou mayest put into God's hands, and make his on thy behalf; such as he will take off thy hand, and undertake for thee.

All needful lawful care, and that only will he receive; so then rid thyself quite of all that thou canst not take this course with, and then, without scruple, take confidently this course with all the rest. Seek a well regulated sober spirit. In the things of this life, be content with food and raiment, not delicates, but food, not ornament but raiment, rpophy à τpuphr, σκεπάσματα & κοσμήματα : and conclude, that what thy Father carves to thee, is best for thee; the fittest measure, for he knows it, and loves thee wisely. This course our Saviour would have thee take, first to cut off superfluous care, then to turn over on thy God the care of what is necessary; he will look to that, thou hast him engaged, and he can and will give thee beyond that, if he see it fit.

Only this is required of thee, to refer the matter to his discretion wholly. Now, in thy thus well regulated affairs and desires, there is a diligent care and study of thy duty. This he lays on thee; there is a care of support in the work, and the success of it; this thou oughtest to lay on him, and so indeed all the care is turned off from thee upon him, even that of duty, which from him lies on ́us.

e Matt. vi. 31.

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