December 28. 16ez. 36.9 left, and they leek's), life to take it away. Thus you fee when the Ark is indanger, the peopleof God mourn, and are forrowful. And there )e four Reafons , why the people of God are fo much troubled when the Ark of God is in danger, Reaf. i. Becaufe of the great love they sear to the Ark of God; As God loveth the Gatesof Sion , more thou all the Da7i limp of Jacob, P141. 87.2. So thepeople, of God love the OrdinancesofGod , and the faithful lviinifters of Chelf} , Pia% 26. 8. Lord ihdait loved the habitation of thy hoof , , and the place where thine honour dwelleth. Pfal. 27.4. One thing haveI defi ed ofthe Lord, that will Ifetkafter, th it I may dwell in the hoop ofthe Lord all the dap: ofmy life , to be® hold the beauty of the Lord , and to enquire on hie 'Temple. Now love flirreth up the affeaions ; as young Crept., , though he were dumb , yet feting his Father like to be killed , cries out , DJ not kill my Fa- ther : Such is the love of the Saints of God to the Ark, that they cannot be fluent , they cannot but tremblewhen they fee the Ark itti danger ; and for Sion, fake they cannot hold their peace ; and they cannot be. fileht until the Lord nuke the tighteoufnefs the.reof go out like brightnefs, and the falvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. a. The people of God are rroubled ar this, becaufe of the intereft they have in the Arkof God : Now intereR flirreth up afire ions as when another mans honfe is on are ; as you had a iarhentahle and fad providence this la(} week , and it is not to be forgotten , how fuddenly in all our feaflings , may God dafla all our mirth. Nov confider , how were they affeaed that had an intereR in thofe that were burned; fo the people of God have an intereR in the Ark , God is the haven of a child of God, the portion and inheritance of a child of God ; ` and when god begins to forfake them , they cannot but be atfllaedand troubled : TheOrdinances of Go are the jewel4 of a .Christian, and the treaDire of a ChriRian ; and the lofs of, 'them cannot but trouble them : and j 'fus Chrtil is the joy of a CI-611in , and therefore when Chriil is departing , they cannot but be much affliaecl at it. she people of God are much troubled when the Ark is in dr.- 3 cer becaufe of the mifchiefs that comes 'upon a Na,ion when the a-.1/4- Ark of God is loft: woe be to that Nation when the .Ark is gone. The Heathens had the Image t/f po'10, and chy conceived, that as log as that Image was preferved arroegf+ them, they could never be worded, but be preferveJ ; and the Romani had a Bucker, upon which they had a tradition , that as long as that Buckler was refer° ved Rom: could not be taken. But fure I am , that where God is in a Nation, and where the Gofpel is preferved in purity in a Na-ion, B b b a that
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