rences for the fafety and prefervation both of you and yours. It is obferved that when Mary faluted Elizabeth, the babe 'fprang in her womb for joy, and Elizabeth was filled 'with the Holy Ghost,' Lukei. 41. Some think that this fpringing of the babe was by the prefence of an angel with John, otherwife that little embryo had been uncapable of fuch affections and motions, according to the course of nature; and immediately it follows, Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Ghoft. A ferious confideration of the an gels miniftring to fuch Embryos, may be a bleffed means to fill you with the comforts of God's Spirit. O renjoice i this! Nor is this all; For,

2. Parents ought to pray, not to the angels, but to the God of angels, for the favour, affiftance, and protection of the angels to their infants, I know fuch prayers are not ufual, but is not that a negle of duty to our babes? When David prayed against his enemies, he could fay, Let the angel of the Lord chafe them, and let the angel of the Lord perfecute them,' Pfal. xxxv. 5, 6. How much more may we fay for our tender infants in the womb, Let the angel of the Lord guard them, and let the angel. of the Lord keep them. Manoah and his wife were very careful what to do for the babe which must be born to deliver Ifrael out of the Philifines hands; and therefore after the angel had appeared to the woman, and told her, Then 'Manoah intreated the Lord, and faid, O my Lord, let 'the man of God, (or the angel of Cod) which thou didst fead, come again unto us, and teach us what we fhall 'do to the child that fhall be born; and God hearkned to 'the voice of Minoah, and the angel of God came again," Judg. xiii. 8, 9. Indeed when he came, he would have po burnt offering, offered unto him, but gate direction, 'If thou wilt offer a burnt offering, thou must offer it 'unto the Lord,' ver. 16. Angels would not be prayed. unto, nor worshipped, Rev. xix. 10, and. xxii. 9. But yet in reference to the angels, we find here Manoah praying, and offering unto the Lord, and if he prayed for angel direction, how much more may we turn the promifes fato prayers for angel-protection, and miniftration to those poor infants yet unborn.

2. For the children or parties themselves when grown. 1. Let them know and be acquainted with their angel keepers. When David confidered how he was made in fecret and curiously wrought in the loweft parts of the earth, and covered in his mother's womb, he cried out, Marvellous are thy works, and that my foul knows right well, Pfal. cxxxix. 14. It is enough to have angelkeepers before we are born, but in time we should endeavour to know them. It is fad to be ignorant ftill of fuch a glorious truth. Surely God would have us acquainted with his works, and to bear witness of what we know to his glory.

2. Let them praife God for the angels miniftring to them in the womb. Thou art he, faid David, that took me out of the womb, Pfal. xxii. 9. and thou art he that preferves me in the womb. "The Lord doth many things for us, which at that time when he doth them, we cannot obferve; it is our duty therefore to look upon them after. wards, that they may furnish us with matter of praise to God? But why is not praife rendered to the angels as well as to God? Because God will not give his glory to another. Angels must have their due, but they must not rob God of his praise; whatsoever inftruments and means the Lord makes ufe of, the fpiritual eye pierceth through them, and looks on God, and gives him all the glory. You that hear of this angel-miniftration in the womb, O prafe the Lord! it is, if you rightly apprehend it, a fmothered wonder, and fo glorious a work of God, that he deferves perpetual praife from you for that one work, Thou art he that preserved me in, and took me from my 'mother's bowels; my praise fhail be continually of thee, Pfal. Ixxi. 6.

3. Let them act their faith, and truft in God, even be caufe of this: To this end are all the experiences of God's love to his faints, that they might ftir up their faith, and truft God more. O then among other experiences of God's dealings, make ufe of this for enlightning of your faith! Thou art my hope, O Lord God; thou art my truft ⚫ from my youth, by thee I have been holden up from the womb,' Pfal. lxxi. 5, 6. As Satan makes affault after af

fault

fault against faith, fo fhould we raise bulwark against bul wark, for defence thereof. After we have looked upon other men's experiences, we should recount our own experiences of God's care towards us, and make use of all God's dealings for our ftrengthning. Thus Lord thou didft for me in my youth, and childhood, and infancy. Thou didst make me hope when I was upon my mother's breast, I was caft upon thee from the womb, thou art my God from my mother's belly; yea, in the womb before I was born, thou didst cover me, and guard me by the an gels, and therefore how should I but believe? How am I forced to acknowlege that the Lord never leaves me, even when I least perceive his presence? Pfal. xxii. 9, 10, Here's mighty encouragement for faith.

4. Let them love God and his angels, for this early ministration of the angels. Antient love is a loadstone of love; were it but a little love, yet long love might beget love again. Why, God hath loved us from everlafting, and the angels have loved us from our firft beginning, and therefore how should we but love them again? David's confideration of God's mercy towards us in the womb, took up his heart and ravifhed his Spirit, yea, he was fo exceedingly taken with it, that he could not off it: Thine eye did fee my fubstance, yet being imperfect, and in thy book all my members were written, which in continuance were fashioned, when as yet there were none of 'them; how precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God, how great is the fum of them? If I fhould count them, they are more in number than the fand; when I awake, 'I am still with thee,' Pfal. cxxxix. 16, 17, 18. Oh that our fouls were awaked, and oh that our spiritual fenfes. were renewed, that upon a ferious confideration of God's love, and of the angels love to us in the womb, we might love again, and in a holy pang cry out, How precious are thy thoughts unto me, O God? and how precious are your thoughts unto me, O ye angels of God?

CHA P. II. SECT. I. Of the Miniftration of Angels in our Infancy and Child hoo HE fecond period, wherein the angels minister to heaven's heirs, it is from their birth to their youth,.

T

Of

or riper years: This takes up the time of infancy and childhood. And in prefecution of this, first set we the object before us at this time, and fecondly, learn and prac tife we thofe feveral duties that will naturally flow from fuch an object.

1. For the object, viz. the miniftration of angels in our infancy and childhood. The fcriptures are exprefs, take * heed that ye despise not one of thefe little ones, for I fay ⚫ unto you that in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven,' Mat. xviii. 10, By little ones, I do not exclude the adult; who refemble little children in fome imitable qualities; nor would 1 exexclude little children, whom our Saviour propounds as a pattern for the imitation of the adult, ver. 2—6. But I would rather take all in, and fay, That by little ones is meant either those who are little in ftature, as the child fet in midft of them, or little in grace, parts, esteem, as fome of the difciples were; or little in their own eyes, as all the elect are, or muft be. All these have their angels, and therefore none of these must be despised. When Chrift was but a babe, the angel of the Lord appeared to Jofeph in a dream, faying, Arife, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be there until I bring thee word,' Mat. ii. 13. And when Herod was dead, the angel appeared again to Jofeph in Egypt, fay. ing, Arife and take the young child with his mother, and go into the land of Ifrael,' ver. 19, 20. Chrift provided for in his cradle by an angel. gar had not wherewithal to feed her child,

Thus was When ḤaShe caft the

child under a fhrub, and she went and fat her down o ⚫ver against him a good way off, faying, Let me not fee ⚫ the death of the child; and the fat over against him, and lift up her voice and wept, and God heard the voice of the lad, and then the angel of the Lord called to Hagar out of heaven, and faid unto her, What aileth thee Hagar? fear not, for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is, arife, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand, for I will make of him a great nation; and God opened her eyes, and fhe faw a well of water, and she went and filled her bottle with water, and gave the lad

⚫ drink,'

'drink,' Gen. xxi. 16-19. Here was an angel calling,. comforting, and directing Hagar in her child's behalf; and yet Hagar and Ishmael were not elect. When Jacob beffed the two fons of Jofeph, he said, The angel which 'redeemed me from all evil, blefs (or keep) the lads,' Gen. xlviii, 16. Many think this was the angel of the covenant to whom Jacob prayed for a bleffing on Jofeph's fons, and the rather because he is faid to redeem him from all evil, which is properly peculiar to Jefus Chrift; but others fay, that this form of prayer was only an interpretative kind of imploration, that God would biefs or keep Jofeph's fons by his angels; and of that of redeeming, if this was fpoken of eternal redemption, it were indeed peculiar to Christ, but Jacob, faith Dingley, fpeaks here of redemption and deliverance from temporal evils, which is confeffed to be a main office of angels. And Chryfoftom, Bafil, Rivius, Mercerius (as he cites them) quote this very place for the deputation of angels.

SECT. II.

Of the manner of Angel Miniftration at that Time.

B

UT how do the angels minister to us in our childhood? I anfwer,

1. They keep us from evil. Were it not fo, into how many dangers fhould we fall? Indeed a wonder it is, that moft children are not disfigured, and lamed with bruises and fearful mifcarriages, with cutting and burning themfelves, as hundreds and thousands of opportunities are offered, but that angels are very diligent to keep them out of harm's way. When father and mother forfake me, faith David, then will the Lord take me up, Pfal. vii. 10. When parents are without natural affection, when nurses are carelefs, and children of restless, stirring, climbing difpofitions, then doth the guardianship of angels efpecially ap pear. To this purpose is Chemnitius cited by the forefaid author, faying, Infants are obnoxious to fuch and fo many dangers, that no anxiety of parents, or diligence of fervants can fecure them without the tuition of angels. And Gerfon obferves the like, Whence is it, faith he, that little children are preferved from fo many periis of their infancy, as fire, water, falls, fuffocation, but by the agency of angels?

2. They