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upon heaps? Behold I, by my abominable wickedness, flew my own mafter, but who flew all these? The riders on horfes are confounded, while thofe that ride upon white affes rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord; even the daughters of Zion celebrate thy victories, yea, in the places of drawing water, fhall they who are delivered from the noise of archers rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord toward the inhabitants of the villages in Ifrael; then fhall the people go down, and poffefs the gates of their enemies. Befiege, my fon; arife, and anoint the fhield, for the ftouthearted are spoiled, and none of the men of might have found their hand. The Lord God, and the moft mighty, hath mounted his white horfe; King of kings, and Lord of lords, appear both on his vefture and on his thigh; his power proclaims his majefty, and the flaughter the dint of his fword. He hath raised thee up that thou mayeft requite them, therefore purfue, for thou shalt surely overtake them that have blafted thy reputation, and without doubt recover all. Send no ambaffage, defire no conditions of peace, and beware of their old bottles, their clouted fhoes and mouldy bread; make no league with thefe; old bottles are not fit for new wine, clouted fhoes are not those which the gofpel prepares, nor is the bread which came down from heaven ever mouldy. They pretend to come because of the name of the Lord, but by the life of Pharaoh they

are nothing but fpies, therefore contend with them, fmite them, and pluck off their hair, for baldness shall come upon all their heads, and they shall walk naked, and the juft fhall fee their fhame. The fifter, and spouse, of my Lord and master begins to appear in her cultivated state; digging, manuring, fowing, and planting, is fweetly going on; the wall of falvation, the bond of the covenant, and the hedge of thorns which is promised to Zion, and which was fuch a bleffing to Job, that even the ferpent could not bite him till he was permitted by the divine hufbandman; joy, peace, praife, love, and life, will spring up abundantly to the honour of God, and thine eyes will fee it. But the fountain of all this is fealed, and when unfealed it will fpring up, and flow out; but all this depends upon the Holy Spirit's operations, who opens and fhuts both the heart and the mouth; and who difpofes his gifts and grace as he will. That the Lord blefs and keep thee, is the daily prayer of,

/W. H. S.S.

LETTER IX.

I HAVE received my brother's epistle, and he is still occupying bufinefs in deep waters, and through fire and water we must go before we come out into the wealthy place. All the spoils that Ifrael took under the law was to be purified, that which would stand the fire muft go through the fire, and all the rest through the water; and fo muft all the spoils taken from the great, and from the strong man armed; you know what to do with that text. There is no getting into the bond of the covenant without paffing under the rod; you are not deeper in the path of tribulation than Job, nor than poor S. S. therefore all the time you can find one bleating sheep or lowing ox before you, it is the footsteps of the flock, and is holy and confecrated ground: and our Jacob will not overdrive the cattle, nor let Esau help him, left he should. Quit yourself like a man, ftand your ground; plead guilty, plead the atonement, plead the promise, the covenant, and the invitations of God, and confess all that is amifs; "The kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force." We are to pray, and not to faint; to beg the three loaves. at midnight, and importune till

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the mafter arifes and gives us for the poor friend that is on his way, that is, the poor starving soul that calls for the bread of life. The importunate widow fainted not, and the elect cry day and night, and fhall not God avenge them? yea, furely. Various are the changes that país over a foul in your cafe, fometimes hoping and then hopeless, active and then dead, earnest and then indifferent, fubmiffive and then rebellious, melting and then callous, fhining and then begloomed, talkative and then dumb, at the door of hope and then in the belly of hell; and this is all furnace-work, tribulation-work, paddling in the pit of horror, and mire of corruption. Go on, my fon, go on, and never give it up. I have just got another fhower of paper kites raining upon my head, and have been these three weeks describing in a fermon the workings of legal bondage; it will be published next Saturday, and I will fend you ten or a dozen.

God bless thee.

W. H. S. S.

LETTER X.

Nor unto me, O Lord, not unto me, but unto thy name give glory, for thy mercy, and for thy truth's fake. It is enough for me that God regards the fon of my vows, and not for our fakes, but for his own covenant name's fake, and for his dear Son's fake in whom that name is manifested; that he hears the cries of poor worms, and humbles himself to grant their requefts. I have done as thou haft defired me, I have thanked the best and moft benign of all parents in thy behalf, and bleffed him, and praised him for thee, and on thy account; and if heart and conscience, if feelings and affections can speak, God cordially accepted it, and it was more pleafing unto him than a bullock that has horns and hoofs. I cannot help weeping and laughing while I write this, thinking what a poor, blind, beggarly mafs of ignorance, filth, and fcum they are who now do the fervice of the fanctuary, and minifter to the Lord in the prie's office: one came from the fwine-herd, another from the coal-barge, to take orders; but ftill it is Aaron and his sons, the everlasting Father and

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