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Show Tbe Spoufofoall heJr the voice of her Beloved again. me, and while you may come away tothefreer,andfuller enjoyments of me ond my Grace. This is the fub!lance of what lhe he.ard ~cr beloved fay ; From the words thus opened, we may ratfe dtvers profitable Obfervations. _ 'Ibougb tlu Spoufe of Chri/! may fometimtz not bear her btlovedJ 110ict, or iffhe bear it, it m•J be a terrible fad v•ice unto her; yet foe [lraU hear hzm ag4m,yea and-hu•r him fPeak,comfortably '"her. The Spoufe h~re after he~ hour of fadnefs, after her feeing him with an eye ofFatth, only at a di!lancf and feeing him but fiandicg behind her wall, at length lhe h~arJ him fpeaking comfortably to her in the words of my Text, Ari{e, &c. I beard my beloved fpeak faying, rijiHp my fair one,&c. ' When the Sp~ufe o_fChrifi is hind red by a Wznter, nipt with the [r4!, wafht wzth raz,ty weather ; yet lhe is Cbrijft Love his fair one fitll; her external accidents, neither divert the Love ~f Chrill' nor Y.et ma~e the Syoufe not beautiful in t.he eyes of Chrifi. · ' It IS Chn!\ alone that can fay to people, 1n their faUen ftate by 114_ tim, or under back.flidingt, or under any outward miferies,.Arijf. I fay none bul"'he can fave and help them: None but he can fay A. rife and come away. B1.lt I !hall handle this !all. ' The Spoufe o[Chri/l in this life will have a variety of jlatu,fome ofwhzch ":'U be ilk.,e the Wznter, and to ramy weather, in which lhc cannot enJOY her beloved as at other times. This Wintrr and rainy weather fhaU not lafl alwayt. The Churches and· the believing Soul's winter will be gone, her rainy weather will be over. When it is with the Spoufe ofCbrift, as it is with the Earth in fumrn~-time, that the j/owerrappear, the Birdt jing, zhe voice of tht THrtl~ rr he~rd zn the L~nd, the Fig-tree puJt forth her bloj[omr, ~fld the Vzllet wzth the te11der Graper give a good ]mel/: Then tht winttr u pa{! fllith her. . La Illy, It iz the fPuial wiU and pleafure of Chrift, that at focb • · tzme n>hm the Wintrr i1 paj!,and the rain it over and·gone, hit Spoufo fho~tld arife and com\"""}· I will begin with the firfi of thefe. I cannot promife my felfa Liberty to go through with all th em : lf nor, it will be becaufc the Text is ~ot this day fulfilled; we cannot fay, The Winter itp~ft am:l the rain itvver andgoue: how~ ver I !hall begin this long journey ; if the rain overtakts me tn the way ,it will be rime enough then to take ho~fe. Though the Spou{e ufChri{f may fomtlimer not bear brr Belovedz . 'ICI~Cf, voict, or if fhe heart it, it ht uuto b.r a terrible voice; yet jh: {lull . hear him ~gain, yea and hear him fPea~ comfortably to her, By the Spoufc I llill undedland either the particularly believing Soul, or the Church, the true Church, which is a colledi ve Body or Society of Believers. The Spoufe of rpy Text heard her VerfeS. Beloveds voice before, lhe he1rd him [peaking, but not in {peak-ing particularly applying hirnfelf to her, The former verfes had reprefented · her Eeloved at fome di!lance from her, though drawing nigher and nigher yet unto her; but here lhe hears him fPeakjng to her, My Beloved (faith !he ) foa~e, and faid unto trte, ay, and he fPak.! comfortabry to her. God fometimes is jilmt ttnto his prople, fometimes worfe thanjilent ; he [peaks, but he /Pta/;t ter-rible thingt: he faith unto him Loammi, yot< are not my people. Or, as he did to the Jews in the Book of ]Hdget, Go cry r<nto the godt whom you have ferved, and fee if they c>n deliver yoH ill tbe time of your tribulatioH, Jud. 10, 14. but I fay he will fpeak, yea and he will fpeak peace. Let us but confider how God fpeaks unro his people. There are three ways by which God fpeaks to · his people. r. Firll, He fPeak.f by hit Word. This is indeed mop properly fpeaking. Now the,Word of God is either the rrrittm Word,' or the Word opened or pre~ched to hit people. The holy Scriptures are the Word of God; their holy and heavenly matter, the Authority which they have upon the Confcicnce, &c. do fpeak them , to .be indeed the voice of God. · By thefe God ha'th fpoken to his Chnrch, thou(;h in varions degtees for many years. The Jews of old had Mojet, afterward they had Mofer and the Prophets: we have fuperadded to thefe the writings of the EvangelijiJ and of the Apof!ler, and by them the Ca11on i1 {ealed, nothing is further to be added to thofe holy· Books: But the 'Word ·is a dead Letter in itfelf. · 2. God by hir Word fpeaks by the lively voice of his Servants, the Mlnifim faithfully revealing rhe mind 11pd counfel of God to · his people. Of old he fpake by Pr•phett and PrirjiJ; tmder·the Gofpel by that order of men which are called Minitlers, to whom he ·hath faid ·, Go, preach and baptize: and of whom he hath • !aid,. He thot hearetb you bcareth me, and be that defPi{eth yo" dtfPifoth me, and be that defPi{eth me defPz{etb him that fent lm,Luke ro.t6. In this fenfe it is true; J, 'J'hat God forn¢timesfPea~elh mt 1! hi< p;•plt. In Sammfs time: |