3 60 Spiritual Hearts-84f, or, great; and ofptecious,ufe, (hall be prefentedfmall , and ofnoaccoun;;.rand-things again that arc finali and little, (hall be prefented wondrous great: The mercies of i God, thc,Attributes;of God, the promifes of the Gofpel, the fuficiency of the merits ofChrift, there 'hall freso (mall things, little tobe regarded, lcfs then ever' God intended them tobe:And on the contrary,amans own fins,his owndiltempers (hall be made exceeding, great:' Worldly things (hallbe prefented, as things of the greatefi confégttence ; and fpiritual things as meer acceffories,asthings that depend Iupon them,and that come in after. sometimes again, things that aremolt neceflary to be undetflood and known, things that fhould be particularly applied, 'hall be prefently obfcurély and confufedly ; and fometimes thingsof lefferconfequence, the knowledge whereof is.not foneceffary, than beprefented with more.clearnefs, and with'lrong perfvvafaonsto the ftudy and knovvledge,of them. But I vvill not Land on this s this is enoughtogive you a tafle of Slaps fubtilty this vvay, vvhereby he vvgndrouflyprevails in. bringingtrouble upon the fpirits ofmen. Thirdly, it isfrom our (elves, and fo it comes to pats fromthat general corruption thafis in our natures', fromwhence allother fins flow, that the fpirits ofmen are ¡ troubied,and difturbed, by things that fall out, from day.to day. 11 And fiat' it comes to pafs, thatthe foul ofman is miferably inbondage,andcap- tivated, andinthraled,andisdeprivedofliberty (as itvvere) through thediftemper. ofthe body ; as inMelancholy and fickncfs,yve fcehovv the foul is dthurbed by tlt very ,difeafes,anddiftempers in the body it felf, and that by venue ofthat fympathy in the foul vvith.the body,, it rifcthfromthcunionofit, to the body by the fpirits : but thisIvvill pats by. Sometimes vve fee the fourfubduedwith tufts andcorruptions, fame ftrong!u11, forneftrong fin or other prevails ; And then suit isvvith the Fovvl that is nove fly- ing in the air, itmay be there isbirdlime call upon the wings ofit, it falls down prefently,and can ffieno further ; fo it is with the foul, fomewhat preffethit down, fomewhat campaffeth it about, and coups itin, as thatexpreffton is ufed, Heb.s s. Let as ca4E of thefin that compafethus about, andthat prefab f heavydown, that.we array run with patience the race that is feebefore us. And fometimes the foul is difturbed by inordinatepaffrons,whicharife from that- general diftemper that is diffufcd through every faculty, and fo the underftanding looks upon things as through a mitt, it fees nothingclearly, and in molt common, things it is blind, and it is led by blind affe&ions too, and when the blind leads the blind, bothfall into the ditch, faith Chrifl : and lo the memory that'hould retain the precious treafures,the promifesofthe Gofpel to relieve the foulin all cafes, itis likea leaking veffel that lets things runout, as it is Heb. z. Take heedthat the things you have heard, run not oat, faith the A,poftle, alluding to that Metaphor. And thevery confcienceit felfthat fhnuld beconclufve, it now ref's in generals and uncertainties, confcience'hould determine what my cafe is, whether I liethe child ofGod, or no ; whether I be inthe 'late ofgrace or no,to put aman to bring things to particular : now for the moll .part by mans ownnegle& it remains in doubt, it may be I am,it may be I amnot, it may be I have a right in the Covenant ofgrace, it may be not, &e. And now becaufe confcience is not come to that re- folute conclufive a& that a man may determine ofhis own particular cafe, hence it is that every thingtroubles, and difquiets him. Thus beloved you fee the rea- fons of it. We will briefly pats it over with a word ofApplication. And firft it fhould teach us compaffiontowardsthofe whole fpirits are troubled ; our Saviour Chrift faith here,Letnot yourheartsbe troubled; He confideredof them in their weaknefs, and doth notmuch upbraid them with it, but helps to being than out of it inmuch mercy, and love, and fo fhouldwe. There is fuels a difpofition riling from the pride, cruelty, anduncharitablenefs ofthe hearts ofmen, that they are apt toadd to the burdenof theafiliited, and to make their afii&ions moreby their cenfuring of their troubles. You knowthe fpeech ofold Eli a goodman, but yet he failed in that, when he lawHannah in great trouble of fpirit, titteringher heart before the Lord ; Lay away thy drunkennefs, (faith he) he thought the was drunk. ßtound, ;. From our raves. from foam di. Retire' of the body. So Prevailing of Corne thong la&. }leb. it, t. 3. Inordinate pa(sions. Heb: 2. V.P. I. To teach arc compassion toward dilute that arc in
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