134 \ _ _ It_h~t_he_·'l'_fJl_·ce_!J_f_m_!J_B_elo_~_d ___ SB-R. V. places io our hou{es;There is the court,the hall, the parlour, and clofet : The hall for £ommon perfons, the parlour forthofe of better fliliion, the clofet for amans felfe, and thof<! that are in– timate friends: So a Chrill:ian hath roome in his 1 beam for worldly thor1ghts, but his clofet,his in. moll: affeetions, are kept for his inmofl: frienJ I· Chrift,who is not content with the hall, but will j come into the very clofet, he knocks that we : iliould open, and let him come into our hearts, \ into our more intimateaffections and love ; no- ' thingwill content himbut intimatenelfe, for he How ehrift u deferves it, as we OuIl fee, he knocks for this faidto!(ftoclte end.Butho,v dothheknocke? at ourhearts. Everykindofway:It is taken from thefailiion I i'y 4 '~~!ice. of men in this kinde ( God condefcending to fpeak tous in our own language) Somtimes you. know,There iJ4knocki.ng or caUing for entr11nce by voice, when a voice may ferve, and then there . . needs no further knocking. SomG~zmer both Somerimesboth6y voice 11ndknocking:Ifvoiee by 't/Otce a.nd 'll' r k k' fi S . . Jr.no,~ing. Wl not 1e!ve, noc mg comes a ter : o It 1s· here, Chnll: cloth knocke, and fpeake, ufetha voice of his Word, and knocks by his workes, and bothtoge~her fomrimes, whether by works of mercy or of judgement, he labours to enter into the foulc,w rai!e the fleepy·foute that way> he begins wi£h mercy ufually. I.Bymqcies,All the creatures and bleffings ofGod carry in them (as it were) a voiceof God to the foule, that it would entenaine his love. Theregoesa voice of love with every bleffing. And the I.ove,the mercy,
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