For, (1.) Though you do not yet enjoy the good you wait for, yet all this while you are exercifing your grace; and it is more excellent to act grace than to enjoy comfort. All this while the Lord is training you up in the exercife of faith and patience, and bending your wills in fubmiffion to himself; and what do you lose by that? Yea, and (2.) Whenever the defired mercy comes, it will be fo much the fweeter to you: for look how much faith and prayer have been employed to produce it, how many wrestlings you have had with God for it, fo many more degrees of fweetnefs you will find in it when it comes. O therefore faint not, how long

foever God delay you.

Seventh Confideration.

Are not thofe mercies you expect from God worth the waiting for? If not, it is your folly to be troubled for the want of them if they be, why do not you continue waiting? is it not all that God expects from you, for the mercies he bestows upon you, that you wait upon him for them? You know you have not deserved the leaft of them at his hands. You expect them not as a recompence, but a free favour, and if fo, then certainly the least you can do is, to wait upon his pleasure for them.

Eighth Confideration.

Confider how many promises are made in the word to waiting fouls. One fcripture calls them "bleffed that wait for him," Ifa. xxx. 18. Another tells us, "none that wait for him fhall be "afhamed," Pfal. xxv. 3. (i. e.) they fhall not be finally difappointed, but at last be partakers of their hopes. A third fcripture tells us, "they that wait upon the Lord, fhall renew their "ftrength," Ifa. xl. 31. a promise you had need make much use of in fuch a fainting time, with many more of like nature; and fball we faint at this rate in the midft of fo many cordials as are prepared to revive us in thefe promises?

Ninth Confideration.

How long hath God waited upon you when you will comply with his commands, come up to your engagements and promifes? You have made God wait long for your reformation and obedience; and therefore have no reason to think it much, if God make you wait long for your confolation. We have our hon-longs, and hath not God his? We cry, Pfal. vi. 3. "But thou, O Lord, how long? "Pfal. xiii. 1, 2. How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord, for "ever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me? How long "fhall I take counfel in my foul, having forrow in my heart daily? "How long fhall mine enemy be exalted over me?" But furely VOL. IV. 3 P

we fhould not think these things long, when we confider, how long the Lord hath exercifed his patience about us. We have made him fay, How long, how long? Our unbelief hath made him cry, "How long will it be ere they believe me?" Num. xiv. II. Our corrupt hearts have made him cry, "How long fhall "vain thoughts lodge within thee?" Jer iv. 14. Our impure natures and ways have made him cry, "How long will it be ere

they attain to innocency?" Hof. viii. 5. If God wait upon you with fo much patience for your duties, well may you wait upon him for his mercies.

Tenth Confideration.

This impatience and infidelity of yours, expreffed in your wearinefs to wait any longer, as it is a great evil in itself, so very probably it is that evil which obftructs the way of your expected mercies you might have your mercies fooner, if your fpirits were quieter and more fubmiffive. And thus of the fecond cafe.

The Third Cafe.

How may a Chirflian difcern when a providence is fanctified, and comes from the love of God to him?

There are two forts, or kinds of providences verfant about men in this world, the iflues and events of which are vastly different, yea, contrary to each other.

1. To fome, all providences are over-ruled and ordered for good, according to that bleffed promife, Rom. viii. 28. Not only things that are good in themselves, as ordinances, graces, duties, and mercies; but things that are evil in themselves, as temptations, afflictions, and even their fins and corruptions fhall turn, in the iffue, to their advantage and benefit. For though fin be fo intrinfically and formally evil in its own nature, that in itself it be not capable of fanctification; yet out of this worst of evils God can work good to his people; and though he never make fin the inftrument of good, yet his providence may make it the occafion of good to his people; fo that fpiritual benefits may, by the wife over-ruling of providence, be occafioned to the people of God by it.

And fo for afflictions of all kinds, the greateft and forest of them; they do work, by the influence of providence, a great deal of good to the faints, and that not only as the occafions, but as the inftruments and means of it, Ifa. xxvii. 9. « By this fhall the ini"quity of Jacob be purged," i. e. by the inftrumentality of this fanctified affliction.

2. To others nothing is fanctified, either as an inftrument or occafion of any spiritual good; but as the worst things are order

ed to the benefit of the faints, fo the beft things wicked men enjoy do them no good. Their prayers are turned into fin, Pfal. cix. 7, The ordinances are the favour of death, 2 Cor. ii. 16. The grace of God turned into wantonnefs, Jude 4. Chrift himself a rock of offence, ' Pet. ii. 8. Their table a fnare, Pial. Ixix. 22. Their profperity their ruin, Prov. i. 32. As perfons are, fo things work for good or evil, Tit. i. 15. "To the pure all things are pure, but to them that are defiled, and unbelieving, is nothing pure." Seeing therefore the events of providence fall out fo oppofite to each other upon the godly and ungodly; every thing furthering the eternal good of the one, and the ruin of the other; it cannot but be acknowledged a most important cafe, in which every foul is deeply concerned, whether the providences, under which he is, be fanctified to him or not?

For the clearing of which, I fhall premise two neceffary confiderations, and then fubjoin the rules which will be useful for the determination of the queftion.

And first, Let it be confidered, that we cannot know from the matter of the things before us, whether they be fanctified or unfanctified to us; for fo confidered, "All things come alike to all; "and no man knoweth either love or hatred, by all the things "that are before him," Eccl. ix. 1, 2. We cannot understand the mind and heart of God, by the things he difpenfeth with his hand. If profperous providences befal us, we cannot fay, Herein is a fure fign that God loves me; for who have more of those providences than the people of his wrath? Pfal. lxxiii. 7. «They have "more than their heart can wifh." Sure, that must be a weak evidence for heaven, which accompanies fo great a part of the world to hell. By these things we may teftify our love to God; but from ten thousand fuch enjoyments we cannot get any folid affurance of his love to us.

And from these adverfe, afflictive providences we cannot know his hatred. If afflictions, great afflictions, many afflictions, long continued afflictions should set a brand, or fix a character of God's hatred upon the perfons on whom they fall, where then shall we find God's people in the world? We must then feek out the proud, vain, fenfual wantons of the world, who spend their days in pleafure, and say these are the men whom God loves.

Outward things are promifcuously dispensed, and no man's fpiritual eftate is difcernable by the view of his temporal. When God draws the fword, it may "cut off the righteous as well as the "wicked," Ezek. xxi. 3.

2. Though the providences of God, materially confidered, afford no evidences of God's love to us, yet the manner in which they befal us, and the effects and fruits they produce in us, do dif

tinguish them very manifeftly; and by them we may difcern whether they be fanctified providences, and fruits of the love of God, or not. But yet thefe effects and fruits of providences, by which we difcern their nature, do not always prefently appear; but time must be allowed for the foul's exercife under them. As it is, Heb. xii. 11. "Now no affliction for the prefent feemeth joyous, but grievous: "nevertheless, afterwards it yieldeth the peaceable fruits of righ"teousness unto them which are exercifed thereby."

The benefit of a providence is difcerned as that of a medicine is ; for the prefent it gripes, and makes the stomach fick and loathing; but afterwards we find the benefit of it in our recovery of health and cheerfulness. Now the providences of God being fome of them comfortable, and others fad and grievous to nature, and the way to difcern the fanctification and bleffing of them, being by the manner in which they come, and their operations upon our fpirits; I fhall confider the cafe as it refpects both forts of providences, and fhew you what effects of our troubles or comforts will speak them to be fanctified and bleffed to us.

And first for fad and afflictive providences, in what kind or degree foever they befal us, we may warrantably conclude they are bleffings to us, and come from the love of God, when

1. They come in a proper feafon, when we have need of them, either to prevent fome fin we are falling into, or recover us out of a remifs, fupine, and careless frame of spirit into which we are fallen, 1 Pet. i. 6. « If need be, ye are in heavinefs." Certainly, it is a good fign that God defigns your good by thofe troubles which are fo fitted and wifely ordered to fuit the opportunity. If you fee the husbandman lopping a tree in the proper season, it argues he aims at the fruitfulness and flourishing of it; but to do the fame thing at midfummer, fpeaks no regard to it, yea, his defign to deftroy it.

2. When they are fitted both for quality and degree to work properly upon our predominant corruptions, then they look like fanctified ftrokes. The wifdom of God is much feen in the choice of his rods. It is not any kind of trouble that will work upon, and purge every fin; but when God fends fuch afflictions, as like phyfic, are appropriated to the difeafe the foul labours under; this fpeaks Divine care and love. Thus we may observe, it is ufual with God to fmite us in those very comforts which stole away too much of the love and delight of our fouls from God: to crofs us in thofe things from which we raifed up too great expectations of comfort. Thefe providences fpeak the jealoufy of God over us, and his care to prevent far worfe evils by thefe fad, but needful ftrokes. And fo for the degrees of our trebles, fanctified strokes are ordinarily fit

ted by the wifdom of God to the ftrength and ability of our inherent grace, Ifa. xxvii. 8. « In measure when it fhooteth forth "thou wilt debate with it: he ftayeth his rough wind in the day of "the east wind." It is an allufion to a physician, who exactly weighs and measures all the ingredients which he mingles in a potion for his fick patient; that it may be proportionate to his strength and no more; and so much the next words intimate, "by this there"fore fhall the iniquity of Jacob be purged."

3. It is a good fign our troubles are fanctified to us, when they turn our hearts against fin, and not against God. There be few great afflictions which befal men, but they make them quarrelfome and difcontented. Wicked men quarrel with God, and are filled with discontent against him. So the fcripture defcribes them, Rev. xvii. 9. "They were fcorched with great heat, and blafphemed "the name of God, which hath power over thefe plagues." But godly men, to whom afflictions are fanctified, they justify God, and fall out with fin, they condemn themfelves, and give glory to God, Dan. ix. 7. " O Lord, righteoufnefs belongeth unto "thee, but unto us confufion of faces," &c. And Lam. iii. 39, "Wherefore doth a living man complain, a man for the punish"ment of his fins!" Happy afflictions which make the foul fall out and quarrel only with fin.

4. It is a fure fign afflicting providences are fanctified when they purge the heart from fin, and leave both heart and life more pure, heavenly, mortified, and humble than they found them. Sanctified afflictions are cleanfers, they pull down the pride, refine the earthlinefs, and purge out the vanity of the fpirit. So you read, Dan. xi. 35. it purifies and makes their fouls white: hence it is compared to a furnace, which feparates the drofs from the pure metal, Ifa. xlviii. 10. " Behold I have refined thee, but not

with filver: I have chofen thee in the furnace of affliction." But for wicked men, let them be never fo long in the furnace, they lofe no drofs, Ezek. xxiv. 6. How many Chriftians can bear witnefs to this truth! After fome sharp affliction hath been upon them, how is the earthlinefs of their hearts purged! They fee no beauty, taste no more relish in the world than in the white of an egg. Oh how ferious, humble, and heavenly are they, till the impreffions made upon them by afflictions be worn off, and their deceit ful lufts have again entangled them! And this is the reason why we are so often under the difcipline of the rod. Let a Chriftian (faith a late writer) be but two or three years without an affliction, and he is almoft good for nothing: he cannot pray, nor meditate, nor difcourfe as he was wont to do: but when a new affliction comes, now he can find his tongue, and comes to his knees again, and lives at another rate.