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hold, to their vexation and grief, the workings of corruption in them.

It is a remark of Plutarch, in his morals, "Nicoles lived not to see the noble victory obtained by Themistocles his son; nor Miltiades, to see the battle his son Cimon won in the field; nor Xantippus, to hear his son Pericles preach and make orations. Ariston never heard his son Plato's lectures and disputations; but men commonly live to see their children fall a gaming, revelling, drinking, and whoring." Multitudes live to see such things to their sorrow. And if thou be a gracious soul, O what a cut would this be to thy very heart, to see those who came out of thy bowels, sinning against God, that God whom thou lovest, and whose honor is dearer to thee than thy very life!

But admit that they should prove moral and hopeful children, yet mightest thou not live to see more misery come upon them than thou couldst endure to see? think what a sad and doleful sight was that to Zedekiah, "The king of Babylon brought his children, and slew them before his eyes." Horrid spectacle!

5. And how know you, but by this stroke which you so lament, God has taken them away from the evil to come?

It is God's usual way, when some extraordinary calamities are coming upon the world, to hide some of his weak and tender ones out of the way by death, Isa. lvii. 1, 2. He leaves some, and removes others, but he takes care for the security of all. He provided a grave for Methuselah before the flood. The grave is a hidingplace to some, and God sees it better for them to be under-ground than above-ground in such evil days; just as a careful and tender father, who has a son abroad at school, hearing the plague is broke out in or near the place, sends his horse presently to fetch home his son before the danger and difficulty be greater. Death is our Father's pale horse which he sends to fetch home his tender children, and carry them out of harm's way.

Surely when national calamities are drawing on, it is far better for our friends to be in the grave in peace, than ex posed to the miseries and distresses which are here. This

is the meaning of Jer. xxii. 10; "Weep not for the dead, neither bemoan him; but weep for him that goeth away, for he shall return no more, nor see his native country." And is there not a dreadful sound of troubles now in our ears? Do not the clouds gather blackness? Surely all things round about us seem to be preparing and disposing themselves for affliction. The days may be nigh in which you shall "Blessed is the womb that never bare, and the paps that never gave suck." It was in the day wherein the faith and patience of the saints were ex ercised, that John heard a voice from heaven, saying to him, "Write, blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth."

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Thy friend by an act of favor is disbanded by death, whilst thou thyself art left to endure a great fight of affliction. And now if troubles come, thy cares and fears will be so much the less, and thy own death so much the easier to thee, when so much of thee is in heaven already. In this case the Lord, by a merciful dispensation, is providing both for their safety, and thy own easier passage to them.

In removing thy friends before-hand, he seems to say to thee, as he did to Peter, John xiii. 7; "What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know hereafter." The eye of Providence hath a prospect far beyond thine; probably it would be a harder task for thee to leave them behind, than to follow them. A tree that is deeply rooted in the earth, requires many strokes to fell it; but when its roots are loosened before-hand, then an easy stroke lays it down upon the earth.

6. A parting time must needs come, and why is not this as good as another?

You knew before-hand that your child or friend was mortal, and that the thread which linked you together must be cut. "If any one," says Basil, "had asked you when your child was born, What is that which is born? what would you have answered? Would you not have said, It is And if a man, then a mortal, vanishing thing. And why then are you surprised with wonder to see a dying thing dead?" "He," says Seneca, "who complains that one is dead, complains that he was a man."

a man?

All men are under the same condition; to whose share it falls to be born, to him it remains to die. We are indeed distinguished by the intervals, but equalised in the issue. "It is appointed to all men once to die." There is a statute law of heaven in the case.

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Possibly you think that this is the worst time for parting that could be; had you enjoyed it longer, you could have parted easier; but how are you deceived in that! The longer you had enjoyed it, the more loth still you would have been to leave it; the deeper it would have rooted itself in your affections. Had God given you such a privilege as was once granted to the English parliament, that the union betwixt you and your friend should not be dissolved till you yourself were willing it should be dissolved, when, think you, would you have been willing it should be dissolved? It is well for us and ours that our times are in God's hand, and not in our own. And how immature soever your blessing seemed to be when it was cut down, yet it came to the grave in a full age, as a shock of corn in its season." T They who are in Christ and in the covenant, never die unseasonably.

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Whensoever they die," says Caryl, "they die in a good old age; yea, though they die in the spring and flower of youth, they die in a good old age; that is, they are ripe for death whenever they die. Whenever the godly man dies, it is harvest time with him. Though in a natural capacity he be cut down while he is green, and cropt in the bud or blossom, yet in his spiritual capacity he never dies before he is ripe; God can ripen him speedily, he can let out such warm rays and beams of his Holy Spirit upon him, as shall soon mature the seeds of grace into a preparedness for glory." ~10It was doubtless the most fit and seasonable time for your friends that ever they could die in, and as it was a fit time for them, so for you also. Had they lived longer, they might either have engaged you more, and so 'your parting would have been harder; or else have puzzled and stumbled you more by discovering their natural corruption; and then what a stinging aggravation of your sorrow would that have been!

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Surely the Lord of time is the best judge of time; and

in nothing do we more discover our folly handarashness, than in presuming to fix the times either of our comforts or troubles. As for our comforts, we never think they can come too soon; we would have them presently, whether the season be fit or not, as, Num. xii. 13, Heal her now, Lord," O let it be done speedily. We are in post-haste for our comforts, and as for our afflictions we never think they come late enough; Not at this time, Lord; rather at any other time than now. But it is good. to leave the timing both of the one and the other to him, whose works are all beautiful in their season, and who never does any thing in an improper time.

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7. Call to mind in this day of trouble, the covenant you have with God, and what you solemnly promised him in the day you took him for your God.

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It will be very seasonable and useful for thee, Christ tian, at this time to reflect upon these transactions, and the frame of thy heart in those days, when a heavier load of sorrow prest thy heart, than thou now feelest In your spiritual distresses, when the burden of sin day heavy, when the curse of the law, the fear of hell, the dread of death and eternity, beset thee on every side, and shut thee up to Christ, the only door of hope; ah! what good news wouldst thou then have accounted it, to escape that danger with the loss of all earthly com forts! Was not this thy cry in those days, Lord, give me Christ, and deny me whatever else thou pleasest? Pardon my sin, save my soul, and, in order to both, unite me to Christ, and I will never repine or open my mouth. Do what thou wilt with me. Let me be friendless, let me be childless, let me be poor, let me be any thing rather than a Christless, graceless, hopeless soul.-And when the Lord hearkened to thy cry and showed thee mercy; when he drew thee off from the world into thy closet, and there treated with thee in secret, when he was working up thy heart to the terms of his covenant, and made thee willing to accept Christ upon his own terms; then, how heartily didst thou submit to his yoke, as most reasonable and easy, as at that time it seemed to thee!

Call to mind these days; the secret places where Christ and you made the bargain. Have not these words, or

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words to this effect, been whispered by thee into his ears with a dropping eye, and melting heart mung ri Lord Jesus, here am I, a poor guilty sinner, deeply laden with sin. Fear and trouble on one hand, and there is a just God, a severe law, and everlasting burn ings, on the other hand: but blessed be God, O blessed be God for Jesus the Mediator, who interposes betwixt me and these judgments.onThou art the only door of hope atowhich I can escape thy blood the only means of my pardon and salvation. Thou hast said, “Come unto me allye that labor, and are heavy laden." Thou hast promised, that he that cometh to thee, oshalb vim no wise be cast out." Blessed Jesus, thy poor creature comes to thee upon these encouragements. I come; but O it is with many staggerings, with many doubts and fearst of the issue yet Ibams willing to come and make abcovenant with thee this day. I take thee this day to bes my Lord, and submit heartily to all thy disposals. Do what thou wilt with me or mine; let me be rich or poor, any thing or nothing in this world: am willing to be as thou wouldst have me. And I do likewise give myself to thee this day, to be thinens All Ibam, all E have, shall be thing, thine to serve thee, and thine to be disposed of at thy pleasures Thou shalt henceforth be my highest Lord, my chiefest good, mydast end.25 m › Now, Christian, make good to Christ what thou didst so solemnly promise him. He, I say, he has disposed of this thy dear relation, as pleased him, and is thereby trying thy uprightness in the covenant which thou madest with him. Now where is the satisfaction and content thou promisedst to takeringall his disposals? Where is that covenanted submission to his will? Didst thou ex-. cept this affliction that isy come upon thee? Didst thou tell him, Lord, I will be content thou shalt, when thou pleasest, take any thing I have, save only this husband, this wife, sor this dear child? I reserve this out of the bargain. Inshall never endure that thou shouldst kill this comfort. If so, thou didst in all this but prove thy→ self a hypocrite. If thou wast sincere in thy covenant, as Christ had no reserve on his part, so thou hadst none on thineb It was all, without any exception, that thou didst

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