]oh.8, II. HcbiT,Ij Book III. Looking UNto 1efru. Chap.zSeet.9 agony, he prt~yed more rarneft!y; fo a poor foul in the time ofits , agony, when it is firiving,as for life and death, if help come not at fir{\: call,, it pray.:s again, and that more earnefily; faith is very urgent wtth God; and the more flack the Lord feemes in an- · fwering, the more earnefl is faith in plying God with its prayers. it will wrefl:le with Cjod as 'fa cab with the Angel , it will take n~ denial, but will crave fii11, b!ef{e me, even me I'Jlfo, 0 fend me not away without a blejfing. , 2. Sometimes God anfwers in part , he fpeaks as it were out of a dark cloud; he gives fame little eafe , b1Jt he fpeaks not full peace; in this manner he fpeaks to the woman, go thy way andfin - no more ; he doth not fay, go in peace , thy fin is forgiven tfm. no, no , but go thy wny and jinne no more: hereby faith ufually gets a little firength , and looks after the Lord with more hope . it begins to plead with God as U'vlofes did, 0 Lord thou haft begu; to jbewgrace unto thy fervant , go on Lord to mamfeft unto me 11/l thy goodneffe. Here faith takes ,a li,ttle hold on ~he Covenant of grace; it may be the hand offatth ts feeble, fhaktng, and trembling , yet it takes a little hold, it receives fome encouragement, it findes that its former feeking is not in vain. 3. Sometimes God anfwers more fully and fatisfadorily; he applies fome promife ofgrace to the confcience by his own Spirit he lets the foule feel and taft the comforts of bimfelf, or offuch and fuch a promife more effectually then ever before, fear not (faith God,) for I n,m thy God;.- here faith waxeth bold, and with a glad heart entertaines the promife brought home unto it. The Apofile calls this the embracing of the promifes : now embracing implies an affectionate receiving with both armes opened ; fo the foul imbracetb the promife and the Lord Jefus in the promlfe; and having him like Simeon in his armes , it layes him in the bofome, it brings him into the chamber of the heart, there to refi and abide for ever. And now is the Covenant ftruck betwixt God and the foul: now the foul polfelferh God in Chrift , as her own; it refts in him , ::tnd is fatisfied with him, it praifeth God for his mercy; as Simeon did, when he had Chrift in his armes; it commits itfelf wholly and for ever to that goodneffe and mercy which hath been revealed_to it. 0 my foul! haft thou come t.hus by little and little to touch the !op of Chrills golden Scepter? why then is thy hand given to · - God
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