928 AFFLICTION COMPARED TO DARKNESS. Book IV, V. There are Degrees of Darknefs; Darknefs, and thick Darkr.efs, and the Bbck– nefs of Darknefs, &c. One Degree of Darknefs may attend the Day; a Day may be dark, but not like the Darknefs of the Night •; and fame JSights arc darker than others, as Experience lhews. And hence we read of Darknefs, and of the Shadow of Death: '.(hough I walk through the Valley of the Shadow tf Death, I will fear 110 Evil, &c. Pfal. xxiii. 4· that is, the greatelt Darknefs and Evil that can befall a godly Man. The Shadow of a Thing in Scripture, faith Mr. Caryl, denotes the Power of a Thing; and to be u·nder the Shadow of a Thing, is to be under the Power of it : To be under the Shadow of the Almighty, is to be under the Power of the Almighty, &c. To be under the Shadow of Death, is to be under the Power anil reach of it: Thouah I may be fo near Death, that it may feem to others to be really Death, and that it"is impoffible to efcape Death, yet I will fear no Evil. . Some Af!lic1ions threaten Death upon God's People, and upon his Concerns and Interefr in the World, and Chri!lians may feem to be under the Influence of Death. The InAuences of Death are thofe Fears and Doubtings, Divir.ons, Diltractions, and Vexations of Heart and Mind, Cries and Confulions, which ufually accompany or prepare the Way for Death; Let Darknefs, a11d the Shadow of Death flaill it, &c. ]ob iii. :5· that is, fuch Darknefs as dwells with Death, fuch Darknefs as fills the Houfe of I)eath, the Grave. Such Darknefs as this, Heman complained of: I am accounted with them that go down into the Pit, &c. free among the l)ead, like the Slain that lie in the Grave, whom thou rememberejl no more, and they are cut off by thy Hand. '.fhou haft laid me in the lowejl Pit, in Darknefs, in the Deep: 'I"hy Wrath lieth hard upon me, and thou haft afflicted me with all thy Waves. Selah. Pfal. Jxxxviii. 4, 5, 6, 7· He feemed to be under the greatelt Darknefs, fo forely deferted, that he faw no Light, he fat in the very Shadow of Death, viz. deadly Darknefs, thick Darknefs, 11illing Darknefs, fuch as is in deep Pits and Mines under the Earth, where Vapors and noifome Damps do many times ltrike Men with Death, in the moll: deplor– able State and Condition imaginable. It is one Thing to have fame Af!lictions, and fame Doubtings of Mind and Spirit; and another Thing, to be in thefe great Deeps of Ailliction and Defertion. VI. No natural Darknefs is fo thick and difmal, but God can make it worfe; he hath Power over the Darknefs, as well as over the Light : I form the Light, and create Dark– nefs ; I make Peace, a1td create Evil: I the Lord do all this, !fa. xlv. 7· So no AllliC\ion or Sorrow is fo grievous, bm God can make it much greater. Though we may be in Darknefs, nay, in Night-darknefs, yet this Darknefs may increafe more and more, to a perfect Night of Darknefs. I will punifh you yet feven times more for )'OUr Sins. VII. Darknefs is more grievous to fuch as have enjoyed much Light, than to a Man that was born Blind ; for one that hath had his perfect Eye-light, and hath known how fweet a Thing Light is, how fad and lamentable is it for him to lofe his Sight, or to dwell in Darknefs! So it is more grievous to a Chrifrian, who hath lived in a Land of Light, and hath long enjoyed the fweet Favor and Light of God's Counte– nance, to be deprived of all fpiritual Light and Comfort, than it is to a Perfon, who never knew how fweet divine Light, Communion with God, and the Bleffings of the Gofpel are. VIIL Let Darknefs be never fo great, yet God can foon expel it, and bring forth Light in the Room of it : So it is eafy with God to turn our Night of Sorrow and Af– fliction, into Light, Joy, and a good Day. IX. Darknels is many times mixed with L ight, fo that it is hard to fay which is moll:, the Licrht or the Darknefs: So fometimes it is with a People, or particular Soul. But /j' jhall be one Day, which jhall be known to the Lord, not Day, n?r Night: But it jha/1 come to pafs that at Evming-time it foal! be L ight, Zech. xiv. 7· It lhall be dark; bm at Even-tide, that is, when thicker Darknefs is looked for, and fuddenly expected, infread of that, there /hall be Light. God grant it may be thus with his poor Church in England. I N F E R E N C E & I,BLESS God for Light: 0 what a fad Thing is it to be in Darknefs, either to be de– prived of the happy Fruition of the Light of God's Countenance, or of the Light of God's Word and Ordinances I IL Work whillt you have the L ight, Jefr Darknefs come upon you. Is not E~gland threatened at this Time with a Niglu of Popilh Darknefs ? 2 lll. Buc
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