5. "Riches make themfelves wings, and flee away as an eagle to"wards heaven." As the wings of a fowl grow out of the sub. ftance of the body, so the cause of the creature's tranfitoriness is in itfelf: it is fubjected to vanity, and that vanity, like wings, carries it away they are but fading flowers, James i. 10.

Third Confideration.

The change of providences is never nearer to the people of God, than when their hearts are lifted up, or grown fecure by profperity. Doth Hezekiah glory in his treasures? The next news he hears is of an impoverishing providence at hand, Ifa. xxxix. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Others may be left to perish in unfanctified profperity, but you fhall not.

Fourth Confideration.

This is a great difcovery of the carnality and corruption that is in thy heart: It argues an heart little fet upon God, little mortified to the world, little acquainted with the vanity and enfnaring nature of these things. O you know not what hearts you have till fuch providences try them! And is not fuch a discovery matter of deep humiliation?

Fifth Confideration.

Was it not better with you in a low condition than it is now? Reflect and compare ftate with ftate, and time with time. How is the frame of your hearts altered with the alteration of your condition? So God complains of Ifrael, Hof. xiii 5, 6. "I did know "thee in the wilderness, the land of drought; according to their "pafture, fo were they filled; they were filled, and their heart "was exalted, therefore have they forgotten me, faith the Lord:" d. You and I were better acquainted formerly, when you were in a low condition; profperity hath eftranged you, and altered the cafe. How fad is it, that God's mercies fhould be the occafion of our estrangement from him?

Question 2.

Upon the other fide, it is worth confidering how our hearts may be established and kept steady under calamitous and adverfe providences. Here we are in equal danger of the other extreme, viz. defpondency, and finking under the frowns and strokes of cross providences. Now to fupport and establish the heart in this cafe, take three helps.

Firft Confideration.

First, Confider that afflictive providences are of great use to the people of God; they cannot live without them. The earth doth not more need chaftening frofts and mellowing fnows, than our hearts do nipping providences. Let the beft Chriftian be but a

few years without them, and he will be sensible of the want of them; he will find a fad remiffion and declining upon all his graces.

Second Confideration.

No ftroke or calamity upon the people of God, can feparate them from Chrift. Rom. viii. 35. "Who fhall separate us from the "love of Chrift? Shall tribulation?" There was a time when Job could call nothing in this world but trouble his own: he could not fay, my eftate, my honour, my health, my children; for all these were gone; yet then he could fay, my Redeemer, Job xix. 25. Well then, there is no cause to fink whilst interest in Chrift remains fure to us.

Third Confideration.

All your calamities will have an end fhortly. The longest day of the faint's troubles has an end; and then, no more troubles for ever. The troubles of the wicked will be to eternity; but you fhall "fuffer but a while," 1 Pet. v. 13. It a thousand troubles be appointed for you, they will come to one at last, and after that, no more: yea, and though our troubles "be but for a moment, yet they work for us a far more exceeding and eternal "weight of glory." Let that fupport your hearts under all your fufferings.

Question 3.

Lastly, Let us confider what may be useful to fupport and quiet our hearts under doubtful providences, when our dear concernments hang in a doubtful fufpenfe before us, and we know not which way the providence of God will caft and determine them.

Now the best hearts are apt to grow folicitous and penfive, diftracted with thoughtfulness about the event and iffue. To relieve and fettle us in this cafe, the following confiderations are very ufeful.

First Confideration.

First, Let us confider the vanity and inutility of fuch a folicitude, Mat. vi. 27. "Which of you (faith our Lord) by taking "thought can add one cubit ?" We may break our peace, and wafte our fpirits, but not alter the cafe. We cannot turn God out of his way, Job xxiii. 13. He is in one mind. We may, by ftruggling against God, increase, but not avoid or lighten our

troubles.

Second Confideration.

How often do we afflict and torment ourselves by our own unquiet thoughts, when there is no real cause or ground for fo doing? Ifa. li. 13.-" and haft feared continually every day, because "of the fury of the oppreffor, as if he were ready to deftroy, and

"where is the fury of the oppreffor?" O what abundance of difquiet and trouble might we prevent, by waiting quietly till we fee the iffues of providence, and not bringing, as we do, the evils of the morrow upon the day!

Third Confideration.

How great ground of quietnefs is it that the whole dispose and management of all our affairs and concerns is in the hand of our own God and Father! No creature can touch us without his commiffion, or permiffion. "I know (faith Christ) thou couldst "have no power against me, except it were given thee from "above," John xix. II. Neither men nor devils can act any thing without God's leave; and be fure he will fign no order to your prejudice.

Fourth Confideration.

How great fatisfaction must it be to all that believe the Divine authority of the fcripture, that the faithfulness of God ftands engaged for every line and fyllable found therein? And how many bleffed lines in the Bible may we mark, that refpect even our outward concerns, and the happy iffue of them all? Upon these two grounds, viz. That our outward concerns, with their steady direction to a bleffed end, is found in the word; and this word being of Divine authority, the faithfulness and honour of God ftands good for every tittle that is found there. I fay, these are grounds of fuch ftability, that our minds may repofe with greatest security and confidence upon them, even in the cloudiest day of trouble. Not only your eternal falvation, but your temporal interests are there fecured. Be quieted therefore in the confidence of a bleffed iffue.

Fifth Confideration.

How great and fure an expedient have the faints ever found it to their own peace, to commit all doubtful iffues of providence to the Lord, and devolve all their cares upon him, Prov. xvi. 3. "Commit thy works unto the Lord, and thy thoughts fhall be "established." By works, he means any doubtful, intricate, perplexing business, about which our thoughts are racked and tortured. Roll all these upon the Lord by faith; leave them with him, and the prefent immediate benefit you shall have by it (befides the comfort in the laft iffue) fhall be tranquillity and peace in your thoughts. And who is there of any ftanding or experience in religion that hath not found it fo.

The Fifth Cafe.

How may a Chriftian work his heart into a refigned frame unto the will of God, when fad providences approach him, and prefage great troubles and afflictions coming on towards him?

For the right ftating and refolving of this important case, it will be needful to thew, (1.) What is not included and intended in the question. (2.) What it doth suppose and include in it. And laftly, What helps and directions are neceffary for the due performance of this great and difficult duty.

First, Negatively.

As to the first; It must be premised that the queftion doth not fuppofe the heart or will of a Christian to be at his own command and difpofe in this matter: we cannot refign it, and subject it to the will of God whenever we defire fo to do: the duty indeed is ours, but the power by which alone we perform it is God's: we act as we are acted by the Spirit. It is with our hearts, as with meteors hanging in the air by the influence of the fun; while that continues, they abide above; but when it fails, they fall to the earth we can do this, and all things elfe, be they never fo difficult, "Through Chrift that ftrengthens us," Phil. iv. 13. But "without him we can do nothing," John xv. 5. He doth not fay, without me ye can do but little, or without me ye can do nothing but with great difficulty, or without me ye can do nothing perfectly; but without me ye can do nothing at all. And every Chriftian hath a witnefs in his own breaft to atteft this truth: For there are cafes frequently occurring in the methods of providence, in which, notwithstanding all their prayers and defires, all their reafonings and ftrivings, they cannot quiet their hearts fully in the difpofe and will of God; but, on the contary, do find all their endeavours in this matter, to be but as the rolling of a returning ftone against the hill. Till God fay to the heart, be still, and to the will, give up, nothing can be done.

Secondly, Affirmatively.

Next, let us confider what this cafe doth fuppofe, and include in it, and we fhall find,

1. That it fuppofeth the people of God to have a forefight of troubles and diftreffes approaching and drawing near to them. I confefs it is not always fo, for many of our afflictions, as well as comforts, come by way of furprizals upon us. But oftentimes we have fore-warnings of troubles, both public and perfonal, before we feel them. As the weather may be difcerned by the face of the sky, when we fee a morning-fky red and lowring, this is a natural fign of a foul and rainy day, Mat. xvi. 3. And there are as certain figns of the times, whereby we may difcern when trouble is near, even at the door. And thefe fore-warnings are given by the Lord to awaken us to our duties, by which they may either be prevented, Zeph. ii. 1, 2. or fanctified and fweetened to us when they come. Thefe figns and notices of approaching troubles are gather

ed, partly from the obfervation and collation of parallel fcripturecafes and examples; God generally holding one tenor and steady courfe in the adminiftration of his providences in all ages, 1 Cor. x. 6. Partly from the reflections Chriftians make upon the frames and tempers of their own hearts, which greatly need awakening, humbling, and purging providences. For let a Chriftian be but a few years or months without a rod, and how formal, earthly, dead, and vain will his heart grow? And fuch a temper prefages affliction to them that are beloved of the Lord, as really as the giving or sweating of the ftones doth rain. Laftly, The ordering and difpofing of the next causes, into a posture and preparation for our trouble, plainly premonifheth us that trouble is at the door. Thus, when the fymptoms of fickness begin to appear upon our own bodies, the wife of our bofom, or our children, that are as our own fouls, providence herein awakens our expectations of death and doleful feparations. So when enemies combine together, and plot the ruin of our liberties, eftates, or lives, and God feemeth to loose the bridle of restraint upon their necks, now we cannot but be alarmed with the near approach of troubles, efpecially when at the fame time our confciences thall reflect upon the abuse and non-improvement of these our threatened comforts.

2. The cafe before us fuppofeth, that these premonitions and fore-runners of affliction, do ufually very much disturb the order, and break the peace of our fouls; they put the mind under great difcompofure, the thoughts under much diftraction, and the affections into tumults and rebellion.

Ah, how unwilling are we to furrender to the Lord the loan which he lent us! To be difquieted by troubles when at ease in our enjoyments! How unwelcome are the meffengers of affliction to the best of men! We are ready to fay to them, as the widow to Elijah, "What have I to do with thee, O man (O messenger) "of God; art thou come unto me, to call my fin to remembrance, ❝ and to flay my fon ?" 1 Kings xvii. 18. And this arifeth partly from the remains of corruption in the best fouls; for though every fanctified perfon is come by his own confent into the kingdom, and under the government and fceptre of Chrift, and every thought of his heart de jure, and of right, must be subjected to him, 2 Cor. x. 5. yet de facto, the conqueft and power of grace is but incomplete and in part, and natural corruption, like Jeroboam with his vain men, riseth up against it, and causeth many mutinies in the foul, whilft grace, like young Abijah, is weak-handed and cannot refift them. And partly from the advantage Satan makes upon the season to irritate and affift our corruptions. He knows that which is already in motion is the more eafily moved. In this confufion and hurry of thoughts he undifcernedly fhuffles in his