Chap. 18, Q..rfn expoftion upon the 73oob,, of J o B. Verf 3. That therefhalifarad up in his efiate a vile perfn. This vile per fon was a man in honour, a great King, who is there called vile, becaufe he was a wicked Ting, a Perfecutor of the people of God : Wickednefiè obfc::res all our greatnetfe ; nothing makes us truly honourable but grace ; and nothing mikesus truly vile but fin : What fin Both, that it is ; if fin make a perfon vile, then fin in it f lte is molt vile. We are ufually more troubled at the effefts, then at the nature of !in : But we flïould chiefly -look to the natureof things. Sin it felfeíf fo vile, that whatfo- ever is vile, is but enough to bè. the fbadow ofit, it Both not re- alli.ze the vileneffe of it. As grace is fo excellent that all the excellencies in;the Crea- ture are gathered together to (hallow- out what that is, (. Ezek, 16.) I cloathed thee pith br,ydered work:, and flood thee with badgers skins, anddecked theewith fine linnen, and I coveredthee with fill. Idecked thee alfo with Ornaments, and I pat bracelets upon thine hands,r and a chaine on thy neck; And. Iput a 7ewell on thyforehead, and ear-rings in thine cares, and a beautiful' ,Crowne- upon thine head. Here's a colle6tion.of the molt excellent and precious things in the world. Andwhat are thefe ? the thadowes onely ofthat grace which the Lord puts upon his people when he bath taken them into Covenant with himfelfe : (verf8.) Then was the time oflove, andI fware to thee, and aoszred into Covenant' with thee, faith the Lord, and thoubecamef mine. Gold, and pre- cious flones, (hadow theRate ofthe Church of Chri(l in the pu- reft times, when abundanceof grace and fpirit (hall be powred out,Rev.zl. On the otherfide, when the holy Ghoft would (hew what fin is, all the filthineffe in the world is fcraped and throwne together to doe it : While the Prophet defcribes the hate of a man in nature, he iscompared to an Infant in blood, and pollati_. on,unwafbed,unbound up. (Ezek; 16..4.) The Apoftle gives us a like Character ofa naturali man, ( Rom. 3. 13. ) His throat isan openfepulchre : That which ftreams out of his heart by his tongue, and voyce, is nothingbut rottenneffe, and an unfavou-- ry flench, even as out of a fepulchre. The Prophet Ezekiel, ( Chap. zz. 18. ) compares that people in their wickedneffe to dro%; Son of man, the houfe ofIfrael is become to me drof e ; all they are Brafe, and Tynne, and Iron, and Lead in the middeft ofthe furnace; they, are even the drofe offilver, pr reprobateflver,Jer.6; z.80. 13
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