ON HOSEA XIV: VERSES 5 -7. 175 We esteem him a very rich man, and most excel- lently accommodated, who bath gardens for pleasure, and fields for corn and pasture, and woods for fuel, for structure, for defence, for beauty and delight ; and vine- yards for wine and oil, and all other conveniences both for the necessities and delights of a plentiful life. Thus is the church here set forth unto us as such a wealthy man, furnishedwith the unsearchable riches of Christ, with all kind of blessings both for sanctity and safety ; as the apostle praiseth God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ, namely, elec- tion to eternal life, adoption to the condition of sons, and to a glorious inheritance, redemption from misery unto blessedness, remission of sins, knowledge of his will, holiness, and unblamableness of life, and the seal of the Holy Spirit of promise, as we find them particularly enumerated, Eph. i. 3. 13. The words thus opened, do first afford us one general observation, in that God singleth out so many excellent good things by name in relation to that general petition, " Do us good." That God many times answereth prayer abundantly beyond the petitions of his people. They prayed at large only for good, leaving it (as it becometh us who know not always what is good for ourselves) to his holy will and wis- dom in what manner and measure to do good unto them. And he answers them in particular with all kind of good things : as in the former petition they prayed in general for the forgiveness of sin, and God in particular promiseth the healing of their rebellions, which was the greatest of their sins. God many times answers the prayers of his people, as he did the seed of Isaac, Gen. xxvi. 12. with a hundredfold increase. As God's word never returns empty unto him, so the
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