34 Chap. io. .t.t Expofition upon the Book, of J O B. Vert: B. very painful, yet one. much exceeding, at once aft:Ha the body, the patient forgets the lefs' : fo it is, when inward andoutward forrows at once feize upon one man when :the arrows of God are fatined in his fpirit, he forgets the arrow in his flefh. The wounds of the fpirit heal all the woundsof the flefh ; they snake them, as if they were nowounds, or not worth the complaining of. Thirdly, obferve, To be accounted wicked, is a foreafli5i`ion. It is an aflliaion to havean ill name, though we deferve it not, and to be accounted wicked, though we are not ; it is,I grant,far better to be cenfured, then to be flattered. It is very ill when o- thers count us, and worfi of all when we account our felves bet- ter then we are, yet it is no (mall evil to be accounted worfe then we are, efpecially to be accounted evil, when we are good. A wound in our honour is not a wound to be fleighted. It was no (mall pit of the fuffcrings of Chrifi; that he was numbred with the tranfgreflburs in his death, and called Beelzebub, a friend of Publicans and finners, while he lived. Fourthly, obferve from this, Do not condemn me. That condemnation is the adjudgingof one to be wicked. Condemnation fuppofeth a manguilty, and leaveth himunder a penalty. As juftification is the adjudging and declaring of a perfon to be righteous, or the acceptingof him for righteous in another, who is not righteous in himfelf ; focondemnation is the adjudging, pronouncing and :declaring of a man to be wicked' who inhimfelf is wicked.That's fobs firfi requeft, I will fayunte God, Do not condemn me.As if he had faid,Seeing thou art the God and Father of all, who call upon the in faith, and fear thy Name ; therefore infaith andfilial reverence .1 befeech thee to acquit me of my fn : yeas becaufe!know thou haft acquittedme; therefore deal not with me, as if I were condemned for fin. Maki it appear that thou art my God,eitber by removing tbefe ftrokes (which 'repre- fent me to the worldas thy enemy, rather then thy fon) or by remov- ing the dreadandterrour of them, that they may appear as exerczfes of mygrace, not as revenges upon, orpunifhments of my fn :' that while my body is pained with thy rod, myfoul may rejoyce in thy love, and that, while Iam under thin crofs, Imay triumph over it. Or if thou art refolveditilito detainmeat this rateoffuueriüg,then Ihave comber humble Jute. .Sh4sr
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