686 Chap. 21. An Expo/ition epos the Bookof J O a. Vert. 14, The Church faith to God, Leave us not(Jer, t4.)The world faith , 0 that Ged would leave us. When fhall we be eafed and unburdened ofhis prefence.There is nothingfo joyous to therigh- teous, norfo grievows to the wicked, as to bave God neere them. Bot it may be. laid, Is God nacre the wicked 2 or have they any need to delire the Lord to depart from them ? Is he not al- ready departed and gone farre from them ? I anfwer ; Wickedmen are farre from the favour and love ofGod , but they are not farce from his eye and knowledge. God is already departed fromwicked men, or rather wasnever neere Chem, in regard ofhis fpeciall prefence, but he is neere even to them in regard ofhis generals and common prefente; Yeawicked men find and feele God often in their confciences, though they never found him in their af%&ions. God makes offers to wicked men, and though God be not attively in all their thoughts (as theScripture fpeakes, Tf. I o. 4) that is, theydoe not willingly meditate or thinkeofGod, they main. Caine no correfpondence or communion with him in their in- ner man ; yet God doth ( like an unbidden and anunwelcome Gueft) put himfelfe into their thoughts andmoves in their mindes, this proves their trouble, and becomesa paire unto them. 1/1.1' god is notfarre from every oneof to (good and bad) becaufe as the Apoftle arguer) with thofe at Athens, Ath 17. 27, 28.) in himwe live andmove, and-have our being ; So we may fay, that he is not fare from manywicked men,becaufe be tnoveth and 'titres in them, he prefenrs to their mindes fogne manifeftations of him felfe, in his Juft;ce and holinefs, vea of his truth, long fufferance and goodneffe, in noneofwhich they eyther delire or accept acquaintance with him ; arrd therefore lay to God, depart from us, trouble usnot; and when once they can banifh thefe thoughts, and live thus without God in the world then they thinke they live indeed,and till then they reckon their lives a kinde of death : and hence it is, that (as we have faene by fad examples) tome have thruft themfelves out of the world wich their owne hands, becaufe they could not thruft thefe thoughts of God out oftheir hearts and conkien_ ces. Their foules have fometimas proved a burden to their be. dies, to whole fouls the thought of God was a burden ? And they who upon thefe teams, part foule and body, have indeed faid to God, depart from eu.. Thirdly,
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