I , ; Head Il. apprehendJng a Sinmr. 2~9 but the pieces into which it is broken, fiill continue to be ftone: the terrors cannot foften it into a heart of fl eih. Yet terror may begin the work, which lave crowns. 'Tht:jlro11g .Wind, the eqrthqua*e a:nd the jjn going before; the fli/1 fmall .voice, in which the Lord is, may come after them. · \Vheo the b!efred Jefus is fe.eking finners to match with him, they are bold and perverfe, they will not fpeak with him, till he hatb \v,ounded them, made them captiyes, and bound .~hem with the cords of dea~h. When this is done, then jt is ·thu he makes love to them, and wins their h~arts·. The Lord tells us;• Hof. ii. 1 6.-_20. That his chofen If· rael fhall be married unto himfelt. B.1,1t, how will the bride's confeot be won? \tVhy,' jn the firfl p'ace; he will briog)1er in,to the wilderne/i, as ,he did the people when he brought them out of Egypt, ver. 1 4· There fhe wiB oe hat·dly dealf with, fcorched with thidl, and bitten with f.erpents: and then he will fpeak com/ortably to her, or, as the expreffion is, he will [peaR. upon her heart. The fmn~r is fir{l dr.ipe.n~ aQd then dracwn to Chrift . It is with the fo~l a$ whh Noah's dove; fhe was forced back agaiq to .the ark, becaufe ·fu~ could find nothing elfe to refl 1;1pon ; but, .whel) !he did re- . tnrn, fue would have relled on the outfide of it, if Noah, had not put forth hi! han4, andp'ulle(/ her in, ' Gen. vii.i. 9.i The Lord fends the avenger of blood in purfuit of the cri– minal ; and be, with a fad heart, leaves his own citoy; :iln<l · with tears in his eyes, pa rts with his old .acquaintances, be· caufe he dare not !lay with them ; and he fl.ees for his life -to the city of refuge . This is not at all his choice, it is for– ced work; nece.Jlity hat no law. B~ t, when he comes to the. gates, and fees the beauty of the place, the. exce!len ~y ,and lovelinefs of it charms him; and then he enters it with heart andgoocf will, faying, Thit is my refl, a,Ji here I rwi/1)lay : and, . as one faid in another cafe, I hadper.i./hed~ r~..,!efl I .hadper~/hed. Secondly. 'Nhen ChrHl: apprehend! a fo al, the heart is.·. difengaged from, and turned againfifin. As in CTttting off the branch from the old floc~, the great idol flifis brought down, the man is powerfully tar.:Jght to d~ny himfelf; fo, in the apprehending of the finner by his Spirit, that union is diffolved . which was betwixt the man and his luf!t, while h e was in th~ flo/b 1 as the apo£He expreffes it, Rom.vii.J . u -1 ·hilt
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