for it. It is my constant companion." With these brief but emphatic eulogies we entirely agree. There is a peculiar mellowness and richness in the writings of Sibs, that we have seldom met with elsewhere. They are full of unction; they are marked by the strong impress of a character eminently holy and judicious; and they cannot be read, in a right frame of mind, without spiritual improvement. His very titles, with the exception of one or two rather unfortunate adaptations, give promise of the rich fare which they announce. A Fountain sealed -The Spiritual Man's aim-The Church's Echo-St. Paul's Challenge-The Soul's Conflict-The Riches of Mercy-God's Inquisition are the names of some of his treatises and sermons, and the attention which they bespeak, will be amply rewarded.

The volume before us contains four treatises which were designed, as it would appear from the general title, to have some kind of connexion with each other. The links, however, are not very obvious throughout, though a general combination may be traced by the aid of a little accommodation. The first, entitled "The Fountain opened, or the Mysterie of Godlinesse revealed," is founded on 1 Timothy iii. 16. The second, "Angels' Acclamations, or the Nativity of Christ, celebrated by the Heavenly Host," is from Luke ii. 13, 14. The third, "The Churches Riches by Christ's Poverty," is from 2 Corinthians viii. 9. The fourth, "The Rich Poverty, or the Poore-man's Riches," is from Zephaniah iii. 12. These important subjects are admirably treated; with perhaps a little redundancy of words, but on the whole in a fine strain of evangelical eloquence. After having illustrated the nature of the Gospel as a mystery, Sibs proceeds to inquire whether "the doctrine of

the Gospel itselfe onely be a mysterie?" and answers,

"No: all the graces are mysteries, every grace. Let a man once know it, and hee shall find, that there is a mysterie in faith; that the earthly soule of man should be carryed above it selfe, to beleeve supernaturall truths, and to depend upon that he sees not; to sway the life, by reasons spirituall: that the heart of man should beleeve, that a man in trouble should carry himselfe quietly and patiently, from supernaturall supports and grounds, it is a mysterie: that a man should be as a rocke, in the middest of a storme, to stand unmoveable, it is a mysterie: that the carriage of the soule should be turned universally, another way; that the judgement and affections should be turned backward, as it were; that hee that was proud before, should now be humble; that hee that was ambitious before, should now despise the vaine world; that hee that was given to his lusts and vanities before, should now, on the contrary, be serious, aud heavenly minded: here is a mysteric indeed, when

all is turned backward. Therefore wee see how Nicodemus (as wise as hee was) it was a riddle to him, when our blessed Saviour spake to him of the new-birth, that a man should be wholly changed, the same, and not the same; the same man for soule and body, yet not the same, in regard of a supernaturall life and being put into him, carrying him manner, by other rules and respects, as another way, leading him in another much different from other men, as a man differs from a beast."-pp. 12, 13.

and new-molded; that a man should be

compared to all other mysteries. Creation "It (religion) is a great mysterie, if

was a great mysterie; for all things to be made out of nothing; order, out of confusion; for God to make man a earth, it was a great matter: but what is glorious creature, of the dust of the this in comparison, for God to be made man? It was a great and wondrous thing, for Israel to be delivered out of Egypt and Babylon: but what are those, to the deliverance out of hell, and damnation, by the Gospel? What are the mysteries of nature, the miracles of nature, the loadstone, &c. to these supernaturall mysteries? There are mysteries in the providence of God, in governing

the world; mysteries of Satan, mysteries of iniquity, that deceive the world: the

wise men of the world all wonder at the

beast; a great mysterie: but what are all mysteries, either of nature, or hell, to

this great mysterie ?"—pp. 37, 38.

"Being a mysterie, it cannot be

:

and for the obtaining of all good, he is sure of all. For God is a sunne, and a shield, a sunne for all that is good, and a shield to defend us from all ill; hee is so to all that trust in him, he is a buckler, and an exceeding great reward, he is a buckler to award and shield ill from us, and an exceeding great reward for all that is good therefore in how happy a condition is the soule that is acquainted with this blessed exercise of trusting and beleeving in God? It is a state wherein we shall be kept from all ill. I meane from the ill of ills, not from the ill of sense, but from the ill of ills, and from the poyson of all ill. Whatsoever ill we endure, there shall be comfort mixed with it, and it is better to have it, then the comfort: what a comfort is this? they that trust in the Lord, shall want nothing that is good. He that trusts in the Lord, is as a tree planted by the river side, Jer. 17. He shall alway have his leafe flourishing, and beare fruit, because he is at the well-head. He that hath the spring can never want water; and he that is in the sunne can never want light; he that is at the great feast, can never want provision; he that hath learned to trust in God, and can improve what is in him, what can he want? Oh it is the scarcenesse of our faith that we want comfort, as our faith is, so is our comfort, and if we could bring a thousand times larger faith to graspe the promises, we should carry away larger comfort and strength."--pp. 156, 157.

Without entering into a formal examination and estimate of the works at large of this excellent and eminent man, we shall take this opportunity of inserting a few paragraphs from his other publications. His "Divine Medita

tions" contain much that is highly valuable, and impressive-much that may be read with gratification and profit. e. g.

"To discern your state in grace, chiefly look to your affections, for they are intrinsical, and not subject to hypocrisy. Men of great parts know much, and so doth the devil, but he wants love. In fire, all things may be painted but the heat; so all good actions may be done by an hypocrite, but the sacred fire of a divine love, for offerring the sacrifice, he hath not. Oh! therefore chiefly examine the truth and sincerity of your affections towards God, whose name is love.

"We may be blest with large views of the love of God, but can never possibly comprehend it; all the fruits of his love will for ever surpass our finite understandings. The Holy Spirit is graciously

given, to take away the veil, and to make report of it to our souls; then, as soon as the love of Christ is apprehended, it constrains us to all holy duties; not as fire out of a flint, but as water out of a spring. The love of a wife to her husband may begin from the supply of her necessities, but afterwards, she may also love his person: so the soul first loves Christ for salvation, but when it is brought to him, and finds what sweetness there is in him, then the soul loves him for himself, and esteems his person, as well as rejoices in his benefits.

"It should be our continual care to manifest sincerity of heart towards God, in our several callings; and this is done, when we look at God in every action, and endeavour to yield our souls entirely to the whole will of God, serve him with all the heart, and perform the work of our callings by his spirit, according to his word, and promote his glory: if we thus labour to approve ourselves to him, whatsoever be the issue, we shall be endued with holy boldness, and enjoy much inward peace and comfort, having, by his grace, carried ourselves as in the sight of God, and advanced his glory.”pp. 280-282.

"The Christian's Portion," is a sterling sermon, from 1 Corinthians, iii. 21, 22, 23. The division is as follows:-1. All persons are yours.-2. All things are yours.

-3. All events are yours. Persons, Paul, Apollos, Cephas.-Things, the world, or life, or death. Events, whatsoever can come, for the present, or for time to come. "All are yours." We shall take part of the illustration of the third particular of the second head.

"As life is ours, so death is ours. It

is a strange thing that death should be ours, which is a destroying hostile thing to nature, the king of fears,' as the scripture calls it; and that terrible of all terribles,' as the philosopher terms it;

the last enemy,' as Paul saith-that death should be ours. Death is ours many ways; you see here it is a piece of our jointure; for these words contain the jointure of the church. The church is Christ's spouse, all things are Christ's; and, therefore, all things are the spouse's; and, among other particular gifts, given to the church, death is ours.' It is a strange thing that death should be given to the church, and yet so it is; and we shall see this, if we consider how death, in the gospel, is turned into another thing; it is a harmless thing in the gospel, the sting is pulled out, it hath

lost all its venom in Christ. Now death is a passage to another world, it is the gate of glory; death does nothing but divest us of these raiments that we have here on our bodies, and puts us into garments of glory; it puts off these rags, and puts us into a better condition, that is all the hurt it doth; it ends all that is ill, and all is determined in death; it is the last evil, and it is the beginning of all that is good, that is everlastingly good, that is spiritually good, and eternally good; for by death we are freed from the labour of sin, which is a labour irksome to God's people, by reason of a principle of corruption which they have in them, that accompanies them till they be in their grave. Death is the accomplishment of mortification; in death there is an end of the labour of sin, and of all other labours whatsoever; for death is a sleep, and all labour ends in sleep; and as, after sleep, the spirits are refreshed, so, after death, we shall be more refreshed than we can conceive now. So death is ours; it ends all labours of sin, and all labours of the body, and it frees us from all contagion of wicked men, and from all grief from wicked men, and it sets us clear out of satan's reach; satan hath nothing to do with us when we are dead once; because the world here is the kingdom of satan. But when we are gone hence, satan hath nothing to do with us, and that is a great privilege. So death is ours, it frees us from all that is evil, our death. is cur birth-day. Indeed, we never live till we die; for what is your life? alas! it is a dying life. Every day we live, a part of our life is taken away-we die every day."

Dr. Doddridge, when characterising Dr. Sibs, selected, as particularly worthy of praise, his "Bruised Reed," and his "Soul's Conflict." The latter was first preached in a series of sermons, and, notes having been taken, there was some danger of surreptitious publication. To prevent this, the discourses were thrown into the form of a regular treatise, and published by the author. This work is fraught with experimental knowledge, and has contributed to the comfort of many a dejected follower of the Lamb. The annexed passage contains much useful discrimination and instruction.

"We must remember, though the main pillar of our comfort be in the free forgiveness of our sins; yet if there be a

neglect of growing in holiness, the soul will never be soundly quiet, because it will be prone to question the truth of justification, and it is as proper for sin to raise doubts and fears in the conscience, as for rotten flesh and wood to breed worms; and therefore we may well join this as a cause of disquietness;

the neglect of keeping a clear conscience.' Sin, like Achan, or Jonas in the ship, is that which causeth storms within and without; where there is

not a pure

conscience, there is not a pacified conscience, and therefore though some, thinking to cure themselves whole in justification, neglect the cleansing of their natures, and ordering of their lives; yet in time of temptation, they will find it more troublesome than they think. For a conscience guilty of many neglects, and of allowing itself in any sin, to lay claim to God's mercy, is to do as we see mountebanks sometimes do, who wound their flesh, to try conclusions on their own bodies, how sovereign the salve is;, yet oftentimes they come to feel the smart of their presumption, by long and despe rate wounds. So God will let us see what it is to make wounds, to try the preciousness of his balm; such may go mourning to their graves. And though, perhaps, with much wrestling with God, they may get assurance of the pardon of their sins, yet their conscience will be still trembling (like as David's, though Nathan had pronounced unto him the forgiveness of his sin,) till God at length speaks further peace, even as the water of the sea after a storm, is not presently still, but moves and trembles a good while after the storm is over. A Christian is a new creature, and walketh by rule, and so far as he walketh ' according to this rule, peace is upon him.' Loose walkers that regard not their way must

think to meet with sorrow instead of peace. Watchfulness is the preserver of peace. It is a deep spiritual judgment to find peace in an ill way."

Dr. Sibs was a sound practical divine of the Calvinistic school. Trail, in his masterly vindication of the Protestant doctrine of justification, mentions the following anecdote.

"I have heard that Dr. Thomas Goodwin was, in his youth, an Arminian, or at least inclining that way; but was, by the Lord's grace, brought off by Dr. Sibs, his clearing up this same point, of Christ being the head, and representative of all his people."