_A Difcour(e af Divine Meditation. h85 r~ciproc~outfe between Truth;;;;dthe Soul, whe~Soill meditates upon~ the Law of God, takes the Command of God, and fpeaks to it, and the Command Chap. I. fpeaks to the Soul; there's a mutual Conference. Therefore it is faid, the Law Jba!l~ talk with thee, it fhall give thee direaion how to manage the Courfe of thy Life. 2 . Reflexive Meditz:tion; and dia.t i s~ when ther~ is a Solemn d!fcourfe IJehVeC~ the Soul of !:lan, and himfelf; whcri there's a.Colloquy or Soliloquy, an inward Conference between a man and his owp. heart, and he inquires how the fiatc and cafC ftands in reference to himi<: If, whecher or no reconciled to God? and puts PraCl:ical ·Q!!.eflions concerning his Evcrlafting State. CH A P. Ii. Of the Nece:i/ity of Meditation. Deliberate Meditation Commm1ded. Hinderances of it, Di{abilitj; Multitude of Bujinefs, Lazinefs, and Senfoal Pleafares ; rifleEied on. The Duty prefs'd. I Come now io the Second Head, The Neceffity of this Deliberate Meditation. !t is not of Arbitrary Concernment, but it's necelfary, God Commands it; faith He to 'Jofhua, .T/Jou /halt meditate in the Law day and night , that thou m•Jft ob- Jofh. 1. s. ferve to do, a"ordtNg to all that ts written the.rein. Jofhila was a P~ince of Jfrae!~ had Numerous Imployments; and yet notwitilftanding fuch multiplicity of Buflnef-, faith God to him, Thou fhalt meditate. And Hag . t. 5· Thtu faith the L ord of hojiJ, ~;~:~d~i'6~d cJl~w 3t;&e ~~)~~,{:;;sor~:;n:f~b~o~~~d ~f~~rel~in~~r~~~:~ which take them off from this Duty. There are Four I fhall name, all cut off by this Command of God. Fidl, Some pretend their Unfitnefs· for this Duty, they want both Temper and Matter ; they cannot confine their thoughts to an Objel.l:, and there's fuch a Barrennefs in their Souls, they have not Spiritual Objel.l:s to difcourfc upon . For An• fwer, Confider, I. That Man's difability cloth not give him an Exemption from Duty. If you have loft your power, yet God bath not loft his Right. He Commands you to do it, 2~n~l,j~ 1 ~~~t~:fsao~"~f~~n~r~~~~d: f~~~I:ft&~~;~t~Jr:ef~/~~~~:. do.;\~~ Heart ~f ~:~~a~:~ed b~tnt~~e ~~dtl:~~~~'ret~~~uw~aul~ ~g·;~~~it~t:ar~n t;P~~~;~~~i~~~: Oh bow Love I th] L aw·! it i1 my Mediwion all the day (faith David in the Text . ) Daft thou think one Sin fhall excufe another? You cannot Meditate, what's the rea· fon? becaufe you have Carnal Hearts. Nay, l· This Argues thou haft been Guilty of the negleCt of this Duty ; thou art unfit becaufe thou haft negleCted it . We may lee in Nature, thofe Beafls that are very Fierce, yet are tamed by Cuftom, and manageable by ufe. A little Child will lead a Beaft when he hath been ufed to it; fo thy thoughts which are very Fleeting and Unruly, yet if thou didll: ufe to call them to an Account, if thou didll: Ilfue out a Command, and waft Rcfolved to ferve God in this Duty, this would bring thy Thoughts to a Confiftency. Secondly, (And this is the Common Objection againft this and all other Duties) Multitude of Bujinefi. There arc many who will tell you, that they are fo Har· rafsed by the Imployments of this World, that they cannot fpend time in this Duty Solemnly , and Seriouily. Butto Anfwer. • I. Confider, That the Duties of Religion, are not night matters, to be performed in an Id le Hour. Shall thofe things which are the fpecial Al.l:s of thy .Life, give way to thy Worldly occafions ? Suppofe you fhould hear a Husbandman fay thus, I have [o much bufinefs that I can neither Plow nor Sow, \VOUid you not look upon that man as Mad? and doth it not Argue a greater madnefs, for a man to fay thus; I bave fo many Imploymenrs tha t I cannot mind, ot· meditate upon thole thing• which relate
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