| OCR Text |
Show ro apply m>·fllvu unto Gcid in an e~il ti~e, another .thing _to (II dorv;t in tim :ipplicati'on, i.t.IO have our~md at refi and f~tt~fi.ed, that our own thoughts !hall no longer d1fiurb us; but th1s IS tm. ported i" this phrafe. , 3• Yea and it is advantaged by that other phrafe, 'M.,!:lM we tranllate it, with gr<at dtligbt. The H_eb is, I Je~red and I fate "' down in it, which is capable of another Interpretation; for this de-fire may be either confidered in the Soul, as previoUI to her fitting down, or the confiqumt ofit ; ifin the firfi fenfe this is the Cubfiance. In the day of evil, all my defire was after Chri!l, and I obt,•ined my dejire, thus the Arabick..: I wifhed to get into his iliadow, and I had my wifh, I fate down under it • . So the VtJg. Lat. I fate down under tbej1udow of him whom I dtfired: There Is truth in this. In an evil day the believer defires no more but Chrifi ; - kt him but fpeak kindly to her; let him but fet his fcal upon the believers Soul, and his Soul cries ; lt Sl encttgh, Lord. But our tranllation you fee reads it otherwife,and the Original will beu it well enough.lfate down Hilder hu jhadow with great deJight. I war ~ weUpl~afidwitb the a.l[i<rance of Gods lo~e,or in the exercife of my Fa1tb, as tf I had the greatelt fenfible fe•unty,oJ objects of fenfible fatlsfadion. · 3· ~.Whence is it that tht believing SoHljits Ultdt, thefhadowof Cbri{t with fo greRt delight ? rr>henct if it that the believer: runs to tbu jhado11>? 2. That tbe believer tallts [a mHchDeligbt,and Satisja{JiDn in ill 1 • # l ... \ ,\ ' I. The reafon of the firfi,is the believers ajfora11ce,- Tb'at there if llo[hAdowliktthejhadowof Chri{t. Reafon dif.ta(es (o every one in a day of evil, to make the belt ·provifion that be can for·hi'mfclf; the Traveller chufeth the ibic~eft tree or hufh, every one chufeth the bell San~uary: R.eafim tc~chetb the bclieva to do the lik.f. Na· ture teacheth him this i'n rhe general; indeed .Gr~ce tea.~herh' him to difcern Chrift to be the ·bdi jhadow. llhis he•k11tiws ~caufe he • believ<;th rhe Word of God•which foitn•thus much·: Shall I open tKis a little>· I did it in parr the lafi day ; whenrl compared the ihadow of. the Apphtrteto Chrifts.(hadow: but l'fhall open it in two onhree mo~e partic~J~r s now. , . I. The believer kno.ws lh~t no>te but Ohrifts jhadow can fhclttr the inn>urd ,ani the beli.N in'g 'S~>t11 is•one;whom Grace hath thu~ far improved tfl con.fider ; Phbt the'Soul 'if tbt.befo •nd'noble/f part oj man. The Phik>lupher ~W'a :unle of this, bdt alas ! ho\'V Iirde " to What it n to fit under chrJ.fts sbado'lf!. to 'that Soul,dtat believes that the~gu.l•f man is qrdaiutd to ,, ftff'nity of joy or mifery :hence be ra1ipnally concludes if a ·llorm comes, that that iliad ow is bell which will defend ~he in ..,.ard map; pow this no !harlow in the world will d.o but that o!Chrill.Many a man in a day of evil runs to thefo>do,-, of groat perfons,and rhipks_they are falil; and.it may be they are fo; but 'tis only as to thei~ ottta> a.dl:oncerns: ralas·thcy cannot·keep their mind from the to1ments ufft<ar..i .andfo•rows and &rflontents: but -rhis C.hrift qn dq, he ca11 make the Soul gtory in 'lribu/4tion, l \ llf> "·a Pri{o1r, tjlkC j,;y[H/iy th( fPoiling ofgiJIJdJ, &c. . 2. The believer kn&.ws, That .~ris the f/,.~drorv ofChrifl: al01ze,that can keel' him from the hcrit ~fQodt prath t~Hd l'f.atap! malice; he jolt)y apprehends, that ther.t are no·fcqrchiqgs, lik~ the fcorching~ ofConfcience by ~qe'wrluh of God; no ft.ouns, 'li~e thofe_r)1at .. are made by the Prinf• of the. Air when Go;! ,lets him. loofe: But Chrifi doth all this, he is the Screen that 'J\ands betwixt a poor Soi.tl and· Hell-lire, betwixt the wrath of God and-the Con(cience,& c. 3· Thirdly he knows that aU otherfhadi!Ws are butjl,a,dcws.as they are IO!netimcs little lhelte•s fr;>r men and wAmCn, fo they arc like {hadows.thatflec •m•J· TheJ~ee that one·wh.ile is an excellent fhadow, when the Sun comes about,becomes ufelcfs. Jonah! Gourd was a line fhadow, but it went down in a night; and ~hen the Sun beats hot upon the poor man's head , and he is weary qf his life Olga in. Man fometimes. proves a line tbadnw to hi.s qeigh· 'bour; but ·alas! his breath is in his no!lrils. 'J•fepb in Ejgypt wasa:rare fhadow to rhelftaelites, but a lhadow that fled ~way . There arofe a King m Egypt, that ~nen> not 'Jofeph, and then the Ifraclitu wanted a lhadow: within thefe few years !all pa(J, how many brave fhadows ( to look on ) have men fate under, and all now fled away? But nbw Chri!l is a !had ow that,neerh npt a,w~y : God promifcd his people a King tl111t j1JOuld reign i!t tightep~foefi; (it was Chrill under the type of Htzrkjab,) and he fhould be lfa. 3'' '· '· ····M thcfhatlow•f ~- grtat R.ocl(in a n>rary /Jnd. The tbadow of a great Rock is durable; there are holrs in tbr Rork.. where a man may hide in all weathers, Ifa. 4 6. He i4 caUed a T•brrn~cle fi.r ~ jhadorr> iittht>day-time j.cmtbe heat. A tree for a n1adow is one thing, the 1!:;1-ves of it may wither and fall off, the boughs may be cut olf,the Sun may pierce through; but the Tabernacle il a l>lling lhelter: no wonder then th.at the believer prefers this iliad ow be-fore any other lbadow. G z 2 . Thr. |
