come. (Luke x. 33-35.) Now thou perceivest the greatness of thy sin and misery, thou art fit to study the greatness of his mercy; and with all saints (to strive) "to comprehend what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height, and to know the love of Christ which passeth knowledge." (Ephes. iii. 18, 19.) Now thou hast "smitten upon the thigh," and said, "What have I done?" (Jer. xxxi. 19; viii. 6,) thou art fitter to look unto him that was wounded and smitten for thy transgressions, and to consider what he hath done, and suffered: how he "hath borne thy grief and carried thy sorrows, and was bruised for thy iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was laid upon him, and we are healed by his stripes: all we like sheep have gone astray: we have turned every one to his own way, and the Lord hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah liii. 4—6, &c.) Art thou in doubt whether there be any forgiveness for thy sins; and whether there be any place for repentance? Remember that Christ is "exalted by God's right hand to be a prince and a Saviour, to give repentance unto Israel, and forgiveness of sins. (Acts v. 31.) And that he himself hath spoken it, that" all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men, except the blasphemy against the Spirit. (Matt. xii. 32.) And this forgiveness of sins thou art bound to believe as an article of thy creed: that it is purchased by Christ, and freely offered in the Gospel. Mercy did but wait all this while, till thou wast brought to understand the want and worth of it, that it might be thine. When a Peter that denieth Christ with oaths and cursing, goeth out and weepeth, he speedily finds mercy from him without, that he but now denied within. When so bloody a persecuter as Paul findeth mercy, upon his prostration and confession; and when so great an offender as Manasseh is forgiven upon his penitence, in bonds; when all his witchcraft, idolatry and cruelties are pardoned, upon a repentance that might seem to have been forced by a grievous scourge; what sinner that perceives his sin and misery, can question his entertainment if he come to Christ. Come to him sinner, with thy load and burden; come to him with all thy acknowleged unworthiness: and try whether he will refuse thee. He hath professed that " him that cometh to him he will in no wise cast out." (John vi. 37.) He refused not his very murderers, when they were pricked at the heart and inquired

after a remedy; (Acts ii. 37;) and will he refuse thee? Hath our Physician poured out his blood to make a medicine for distracted sinners; and now is he willing to work the cure? 6 Fusus est sanguis medici, et factum est medicamentum frenetici,' saith Augustine. O sinner! now thou art brought to know thyself, know Christ also and the cure is done. Let thy thoughts of the remedy be deeper, and larger, and longer, than all thy thoughts of thy misery: it is thy sin and shame if it be not so. Why wilt thou have twenty thoughts of sin and misery, for one that thou hast of Christ and mercy? when mercy is so large, and great, and wonderful as to triumph over misery: and grace aboundeth much more where sin hath abounded. (Rom. 5. 20.) ' Inspice vulnera pendentis; sanguinem morientis; pretium redimentis; cicatrices resurgentis. Caput habet inclinatum ad osculandum; cor apertum ad diligendum; brachia extensa ad amplexandum, totum corpus expositum ad redimendum,' saith Augustin. Behold the wounds of Christ as he is hanging; the blood of him dying, the price of him redeeming, the scars of him rising. His head is bowed to kiss thee: his heart open to love thee; his arms open to embrace thee; his whole body exposed to redeem thee.

Homo factus est hominis factor, ut sugeret ubera regens sydera; ut esuriret panis; ut siteret fons; dormiret lux, ab itinere via fatigaretur; falsis testibus veritas occultaretur; Judex vivorum et mortuorum à judice mortali judicaretur; ab injustis justitia damnaretur; flagellis disciplina cæderetur spinis botrus coronaretur; in ligno fundamentum suspenderetur; virtus infirmaretur; salus vulneraretur; vita moreretur,' saith Augustin: that is, The Maker of man was made man; that he might suck the breasts that rules the stars; that bread might hunger; the spring (or fountain) might thirst; the light might sleep; the way might be weary in his journey; that the truth might be hidden by false witnesses: that the Judge of quick and dead might be judged by a mortal judge: justice might be condemned by the unjust; discipline might be scourged; the cluster of grapes might be crowned with thorns; the foundation might be hanged on a tree; that strength might be weakened; that health might be wounded; and that life itself might die. This is the wonderful mystery of love, which will entertain the soul that comes to Christ, and which thou must study

to know when thou knowest thyself. But till then all these will be riddles to thee, or little relished: and Christ will seem to thy neglecting heart to have died and done all this in vain.

And hence it is, that as proud, ungodly, sensual men, were never sound believers, so they ofttimes fall from that opinionative common faith which they had, and of all men do most easily turn apostates: it being just with God that they should be so far forsaken as to vilify the remedy, that would not know their sin and misery, but love it, and pertinaciously hold it, as their felicity!

4. If you know not yourselves, you will not know what to do with yourselves, nor to what end, and for what work you are to live. This makes the holy work neglected, and most men live to little purpose, wasting their days in matters that themselves will call impertinent when they come to die; as if they were good for nothing else: whereas if they knew themselves, they would know that they are made and fitted for more noble works. O man, if thou were acquainted well with thy faculties and frame, thou wouldst perceive the name of God thy Maker, to be so deeply engraven in thy nature, even in all thy parts and powers, as should convince thee that thou wast made for him; that all thou art and all thou hast, is nothing worth, but for his service: as all the parts and motions of a clock or watch are but to tell the hour of the day. Thou wouldst know then the meaning of sanctification and holiness; that it signifieth but the giving God his own, and is the first part of justice, without which no rendering men their due can prove thee just. Thou wouldst then know the unreasonableness and injustice of ungodliness and all sin: and that to serve thy fleshly lusts and pleasures with those noble faculties that were purposely formed to love and serve the Eternal God, is more absurd and villainous, than to employ the highest officers of the king in the sweeping of your chimnies, or the serving of your swine. Remember it, unreasonable, brutish man, the next time thou art going to thy lusts and sensual delights. It is no wiser a course thou takest: it is no more honourable or just but as much worse, as God is to be preferred to a king; and as thy sin is worse than the serving of thy swine. O man, didst thou but know thyself, and for what employment thy faculties are made, thou wouldst lift up thy

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head, and seriously think who holds the reins? who keeps the breath yet in thy nostrils, and continueth thee in life? and where it is that thou must shortly fix thy unchangeable abode; and what is now to be done in preparation for such a day: Os homini sublime dedit, &c.' Thou wouldst know that thou hadst not that reason, and that will and executive power, to roll in the earth, and be but a cunning kind of beast, that hath wit to play the fool, and can ingeniously live below understanding, and do that with argument which other brutes can do without it. Thou wouldst know that thy higher faculties were not made to serve the lower thy reason to serve thy sensual delights. The horse was not made to ride the man, nor the master to follow and attend the dog. O man! hadst thou not lost the knowledge of thyself, thou wouldst be so far from wondering at a holy life, that thou wouldst look upon an unholy person as a monster, and wouldst hear the deriders and opposers of a holy life, as thou wouldst hear him that were deriding a man because he is not a swine, or were reproaching men of honour and learning, because they live not as an ass.

I confess, my soul is too apt to lose its lively sense of all these things; but whenever it is awake, I am forced to say, in these kind of meditations, If I had not a God to know and think on, to love and honour, to seek and serve, what had I to do with my understanding, will, and all my powers? What should I do with life and time? What use should I make of God's provisions? What could I find to do in the world, that is worthy of a man? Were it not as good lie still, and sleep out my days, and professedly do nothing, as to go dreaming with a seeming seriousness, and wander about the world as in my sleep, and do nothing with such a troublesome stir, as sensual, worldly persons do? Could not I have played the beast without a reasonable free-working soul? Let them turn from God, and neglect the conduct of the Redeemer, and disregard the holy approaches, and breathings, and workings of the soul towards its beloved centre and felicity, that know not what an immortal soul is, or know how else to employ their faculties, with satisfaction or content unto themselves. I profess here, as in his presence that is the Father of spirits, and before angels and men, I do not, I know not what else to do with my soul that is worth the doing, but what is subservient to its proper object, its end

and everlasting rest. If the holy service of God, and the preparation for heaven, and making after Christ and happiness, be forbidden me, I have no more to do in the world, that will satisfy my reason, or satisfy my affections, or that as a man or a Christian I can own. And it is as good not live, as to be deprived of the uses and ends of life. Though my love and desires are infinitely below the Eternal goodness, and glory, which they should prosecute and embrace, yet do my little tastes and dull desires, and cold affections consent unfeignedly to say, Let me have God or nothing: Let me know him and his will, and what will please him, and how I may enjoy him: or, O that I never had an understanding to know any thing! Let me remember him; or, O that I had never had a memory! Let me love him and be beloved of him; or, O that I never had such a thing as love within me! Let me hear his teachings, or have no ears: Let me serve him with my riches, or let me have none; and with any interest or honour, or let me be despised. It is nothing that he gives not being to and it is useless that is not for his glory and his will. If God have nothing to do with me, I have nothing to do with myself, and the world hath nothing to do with me.

Let dark, and dreaming, doating sinners, declare their shame, and speak evil of what they never knew, and neglect the good they never saw; let them that know not themselves or God, refuse to give up themselves to God, and think a life of sensuality more suitable to them. But "Lord lift thou up the light of thy countenance on me," (Psal. iv,) and let me no longer be a man, nor have reason, or any of thy talents in my trust, than I shall be thine, and live to thee. I

say as Bernard, Dignus plane est morte, qui tibi Christe recusat vivere; et qui tibi non sapit, desipit; et qui curat esse nisi propter te, pro nihilo est et nihil est. Propter teipsum Deus fecisti omnia; et qui esse vult sibi, et non tibi, nil esse incipit inter omnia.' Worthy is that man, O Christ to die, that refuseth to live to thee: and he that is not wise to thee, is but a fool; and he that careth to be unless it be for thee, is good for nothing, and is nothing. For thyself, O God, hast thou made all things; and he that would be to himself and not to thee, among all things beginneth to be nothing.

5. If you know not yourselves, you know not how to