Chap. 3.] THE SAINTS' REST. 47 thoughts of Christ, unbelieving thoughts of Scripture; or injurious thoughts of Providence ! to be tempted some- times to turn to present things, to play with the baits of sin, andventure on the delights of flesh, and sometimes to atheism itself! especially when we know the treachery of our own hearts, ready as tinder to take fire as soon as one of those sparks shall fall upon them ! Satan hath power here to tempt us in the wilderness, but he entereth not the holy city; he may set us on a pinnacle of the temple in the earthly Jerusalem, but the New Jerusalem he may not approach; he may take us up into an exceed- ing high mountain, but the Mount Sion he cannot ascend; and if he could, all the kingdoms of the world, and the gloryof them, would be a despised bait to a soul possessed of the kingdom of our Lord. No, it is in vain for Satan to offer a temptation more. All our temptations from the world and the flesh shall also cease. O the hourly dangers that we here walk in ! Every sense and member is a snare; every creature, every mercy, and every duty, is a snare to us. We can scarce open our eyes, but we are in danger of envying those above us, or despising those below us; of coveting the honors and riches of some, or behold- ing the rags and beggary of others with pride and unmer- cifulness. If we see beauty, it is a bait to lust; if defor- mity, to loathing and disdain. How soon do slanderous reports, vain jests, wanton speeches, creep into the heart ! How constant and strong a watch does our appetite re- quire ! Have we comeliness and beauty ? What fuel for pride ! Are we deformed ? What an occasion of repining ! Have we strength of reason and gifts of learning ? O how prone to be puffedup, hunt after applause, and despise our brethren ! Are we unlearned ? How apt then to despise what we have not ! Are we in places of authority ? How strong is the temptation to abuse our trust, make our will our law, and cut out all the enjoyments of others by the rules and model of our own interest and policy ! Are we inferiors ? How prone to grudge at others' pre eminence, and bring their actions to the bar of our judgment ! Are we rich, and not too much exalted ? Are we poor, and not discontented ? Are we not lazy in our duties, or make a Christ of them ? Not that God hath made these things our snares; but through our own corruption they become. so
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