1Ìló. MR THOMAS BOSTON. Q77 judged no great thingwould be done by the accents ; and advifed nie to snake no battle about them, as he termed it: On the account of this difcouraging event, and other things, I did, on the 234 of this month, fpend force time in prayer. And thinking on that ftudy the conviótion I had, made upon me by the light into forne paffages Of the holy text, by means of the accentuation, remained to be filch, as that I could not fee, how I could give over the ftudy thereof. And having begged of God a token for good, I was that fame night furprifed with a light into Jacob's vow, Gen. xxviii. 20. 21. 22. " If God will be with nie, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on fo that I come again to my father's houfe in peace : then that! the Lord be my God. And this tone, which I have fet for a pillar, (hall be God's houfe : and ofall that thou (halt give me, I will furely give the tenth unto thee," new to me, and that arifng from the accentuation. By reafon of the many avocations I had now for a good time had, there was little done by me in that ftudy, being of fuck a nature, as it could not be managed by parts. But a week or two after the O&-tober fynod, I made fóme colleátions OH the .fubje&. And the winter being come on, which in thefe days was the time I fpent to my greateft fatisfa6tion, I began, Nov. 27. to proceed in my book of materials mentioned above, pw 320: Plying it eagerly thereafter, I was, on Dec. 22. being the Lord's day, at night, laid under a deep conviction of the wofut difpofition of my heart, purfuing like fire the ftudy of the ac- cents, fo -that I could hardly ever get my heart from off them. I went to God, and bewailed my cafe, cried to get my heart under command, with refpect to that matter : and I got, from my prayer-hearing. God, my heart filled -with love to Jefes Chrift, and fet for him as the one thing needful. I had by -that time, through the good hand of God upon me, made a comfor- table progrefs in that itudy : but towards the latter end of that week, beginning to make theobfervations on the majors, I (tuck, day after day. At length I retblved, for that cause, to fet tome time apart for prayer, which neceflarily fell to be Jan. I. 1718. But the faid refolution being laid down, I was helped to make force progrefs ere the appointed day carne. Jan. 1. I accordingly fpent forne time in prayer, 1, On the account ofmy ftudy aforetùid ; 2. For the diftrefs of the parifh by the form lying on the ground, &c.: and the Lord was with me. That day, reading t Sam ii. in the original, new light broke out unto me, particularly as to two things, lit, The abut+ ing of the text by interrogations, where it really bears none, particularly 2 Kings v. 26. Job ii. 10. 2d, Soule inkling of quite new light into the repetition of the fame majors ; with Rome other things : and my foul was filled withjoy in the Lord, - and I was made to cry out again and again, ° What am I-it
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=