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Show 'the Dol1rine applied. worrey .the Lambs of his flock. But certainly it woulcllay a Iitle Law upon the P"fecutors bloody hands,if they would but confider this, That they cannot perpetuate the Spoufes Winter, they cannot make her Rainy-weather eternal. The enemies of Gods people fpeak the language of Pbaraob, Exod. 15· 9· I wiUpurfo<, 1 wiU ovtrta'<f, I wiU divide the Spoil ; my IH]I fh •U be fatisfil'd 11pon ,them; I will draw my Sword, my handfhaU dtftroy them. Thefe are the two things that perfecutors aim at. Not the fulfilling ojGod1 will, the accoinpliJhment of his pleafitre upon mount Zion, (he meaneth not fo,faith the Prophet ot the Affjrianl) No, I wiU {atisfy my own lu{l. fay they; bur they are miltalten, this is not the work they are fent about: They are fent to accompli( h Gods pleafure. Here are fome difobedient Children faith God, lam refolved they (hall be corrected. Jay lor, take and fcourge them ; and when wiU th•ir IHft be fatiJfied l My hand lhaU drftroy them,foith Pharaoh. The lull of prophane mens malice is never fatislied without a final ruine of Saints; we will not leave a Puritan in the Country, this is their language. But aliter in c£lo 'ac in inferno de hac re ftatutum eft; God hath other thoughts. The Spoufes Winter will over. And to this let me add one thing more, it feldom gouover without the RHine of the pro:<im•te cauJf1 ; God is jull in what he doth, but man is unjull, man is cruel and bloody. The I{raelitu had a Winter in Egypt. The Winter went over, and the Rainy-weather pall over Gofhen; but it went over with the drowning their adverfaries in the red-Sea. The J{raelitu Winter was to pafs over, If, 1 o. 12. but it "'"' R'ith the puuifhing of the {tout beartofthe Affyrian; yea,and it is the dregs of the cup of red Wine in the Lords hand, which the wickfd of the earth jhaU drink,., Pfal. 65. S. See lf.5'· 21, 22, 23. Hear now this (he jpeak.f to the Spoufe) Thou that art dmn'<fn hut not .,ith wine. 7huJ faith the Lord,and thy God, that pleadeth the caufi of hi1 people. Behold,lhave ta'<fn oHt of thy hand the e11p of trembling, rven the dreg1 ofthe cup of my fttry ; tho11 ]halt no mort drink,.it agai>1: WeU, what {haU be do11e nmh thi!Cup l I wiU {faith God) put it mto the hand of them that aJJiilltbee, which have {aid to thy Soul, bow down, that we may go over. 0 that the fools of this generation would learn and be wife; that they might not in their rage undertake what they can never accompliili, and a work in doing of which they will cer-tainly periCh. '· Cant. 2. ro; 11, 12, 13. ~ belowd fp4'<f,andfaid u11t• me, rife "P my Lovt, my fair one, and c•me away; for lo the Tf'inter i1 pa{f, the Rain is over and gone~ 7be Flower! appear upon the Earth, the time of the fingi~<g of Bird1 i1 come, the vozce of the T~trtle i1 heard in our land, the Fig-tree putteth forth her green Fig1, and th• Vinu with tbe tender Gr~ptl give a g,ood [meU. llrife, my Love, my f•ir one, and come away. I N my.lall exercife, I. promifed you by commilfion from my . I;ord and Ma.ller, that his Spoufes Winter iliould pafs, the rJtlly-weatber, whtch fometirncs hindc" fome degrees ofherfiUow· ]hip a11d communion with him, (for all her communion with him can by norh~ng b~ hindred and interrupted,) iliould be o~er and gone. I ilia II rn thts reach you how to i<fzow when her Winter i1 pa{f, ;-vhen ber ram 11 over audgone; and that is,as my Text exprelfeth It, w_hen the FJorRers app:ar on the Eartb, when the time of thefinging of Btrd111. come. A pomt not unworthy of fome iliort difcourfe. Fo~ though. men ~now their feafons, and can well enough dillin-gut. ili bet~Jxt Wmter and Summer, Rainy and fair weather, as to thetr ~odtes and outward concerns ; yet we by experience find Chrt!hans not fo able to difcern as to the llare of rhe Church or of their own particular Souls. TJ1e Prop.olition which I am in:or-der come unto is this. I • 7hat when it i1 witb the Spoufe a1 it i1with the EarJh, when the 5;Prop, . Flower~ appear, wbm the time of tbe finging of the Bird1 i1 come, whm the vo1ce of the 7~<rtle i1 be.trd in th, L•nd, when tbe Fig-tree putteth forth hrr green FigJ,a11d the Vine1 with the tender Grape~ J'.IVC "gooa fmeU; 7hen iJ the Spooje1 Wmter pajl; then i1 b!r Rainy. W(atbtr over and ganr. By the Spoufe you will remember we underlland, the Church of G~d more generally, and every pHticular believing Soul; this mmds us .rhat whatfoever is here fpoken is in a figure. that ufual figure whiCh we call a Mer•phor. By the Terms E~rth and Land you mull und erfland, 1he CIJHrch and the Snul dur rndy believeth. By the Flowers appearing, tb, SiHging nj the BirdJ, thE voict·of t/N .. |