what is contrary to it, with that eagerness that they can fcarcely bear that God and nature fhould not be fubfervient to their defire, and all rules of religion not be framed and modelled to their liking. Thefe are thofe rain aluas, vile affections, mentioned Rom. i. 26. Which though they do not rage with equal fury in all, yet they refide in the foul as in a stable; and being restrained to no purpose, burst out at times with the greater fiercenefs.

XXVI. Nor indeed is the body itself free from the tyran nical dominion of fin: the members are agitated by such an inordinate flow of blood and fpirits, that they easily carry away the mind, while it is forgetful of her own dignity. And, indeed, that pleasure which the members have in fin, or which they seek for by finning, is the cause of moft fins, even fpiritual fins not excepted, and of their reasoning against the law of God. This perverfenefs and corruption is by the apoftle called the law in the members, that power and efficacy of fin dwelling in the body, which had frequently forced it to a criminal compliance, and had warred againf the law of his mind; that is, against the law of God infcribed on the mind by nature and grace, and in which the mind delights, and had brought him into captivity, and having once taken hold of him, does not let him go, Rom. vii. 23. Certainly the members feduce and prove offenfive, which Job, being afraid of, made a covenant with his eyes, that they fhould not look upon a maid, Job xxxi. 1. And David prayed, turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity, Pf. cxix. 37. And wifdom advises, to put a knife to thy throat if thou be a man given to appetite, Prov. xxiii. 2. All these plainly declare the danger, arifing to religion from the members.

XXVII. As therefore this corruption wholly overfpreads all the parts and faculties of man, it is therefore called man. But it goes by the name of the old man: 1ft, Because it sprung up in Paradise itself at the beginning, by the infection of the tempting ferpent, and owes its original to that old dragon mentioned, Rev. xii. 9. 2dly, Because it is cotemporary with every man in particular, Pf. li. 7. and if not always in order of time, yet of nature, precedes man's gracious regeneration. 3dly, Because we ought to abolish, reject and abhor it, as a worthlefs and antiquated thing, which is wore out and disfigur ed by long ufe; just as old things pass away, that all things may become new, 2 Cor. v. 17.

XXVIII. This corruption is fometimes held forth under the emblem of an unfeemly, filthy, and loathfome garment; and then it is faid to be put off and laid afide by fanctification, Col.

B 2

iii..

iii. 9; and Eph. iv. 22. Sometimes under the emblem of a monftruous body, which deftroys by a horrid laughter every thing in man; and then it is faid to be mortified, Col. iii. 5. and crucified, "Gal. v. 24. Now this putting off and mortification of the old man is nothing else but the deftruction of the dominion of fin, and the purging of corruptions: fo that; ift, We be vexed at the heart and grieved because of them; for nothing dies without pain and anguish. 2dly, That we abhor them as we do a rotten carcafe. 3dly, That we have them in execration as things which have put God and man to *torment. 4thly, That we fupprefs all their motions, as far as poffible, both in the foul and the body, and never suffer them to revive again, Rom. vi. 6. Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of fin might be deftroyed; not only fome actions and parts of it, but that entire compound, made up of depraved habits, thoughts, lufts, words, and actions; as a body is made up of its members, that henceforth we should not ferve fin..

XXIX. By another phrafe, the godly are faid to be dead to fin, Rom. vi. 2. The meaning of which is, that as a dead body is not a fit habitation for the foul, feeing it has not those organs and that difpofition of parts, by which the foul operates, fo believers with respect to fin and its motions, are dead bodies, useless and motionlefs organs, in which it can no longer lodge, live, and exert its efficacy.

XXX. Not much different is that expreffion of Paul. Gal. vi. 14. in which he fays, the world was crucified to him, and he to the world; intimating, that he was no more delighted with the vanities of the world, than a good man would be with the rotten carcafe of a malefactor, who was juftly condemned to a fhameful death; and on the other hand, that the world was unable to act upon, or affect him with any greater efficacy, than objects of fenfe affect a dead perfon.

XXXI. This putting off, and this mortification of the old man is always accompanied with the putting on, or vivification of the new man, by which are denoted all those qualities wherein the excellency of the divine image is placed. Thefe come under the appellation man, for the fame reason, we juft gave of the depraved qualities: because

they

*The author's expreffion here is very firong; ut cruciarii Deo et hominibus erant ; and I think, he alludes to the crucifixion. of Chrift, who is God as well as man, and who was put to the torture of the cross for the fins of his people: and they alfo are generally brought to anguish and pain when their old man is crucified with him.

they overfpread the whole man, fo that there is nothing in the fanctified perfon, no part, no faculty, that remains untouched, or neglected, by the fanctifying Spirit, and unadorned with new habits. And as the citadel and throne of virtue stands in the mind and inward parts, therefore Paul fpeaks of the inward man, Rom. vii. 22. and Peter, 1 Pet. iii. 4. of the hidden man of the heart.

XXXH. A new and gracious light fhines upon the underftanding. The eyes of the mind are enlightened, Eph. i. 18. by which he fees divine truths, not under falfe and confufed ideas, but in their native form and beauty, as the truth is in Jefus, Eph. iv. 21. fo that the fanctified perfon really beholds in thofe truths, the manifold wifdom of God, the depths of his perfections, and the unfearchable riches of Chrift; nor does he fee them only, but in a manner not to be expreffed, feels them penetrating themfelves into his inmoft heart, embraces them with a glowing affection of piety, exults in them, and defires, that what is truth in Chrift may be also truth in him, and that he may be modelled to the likerrefs of those truths, and caft, as it were, into the very fhape of them. In fine, that knowledge of God, which flutters not in the brain only, but brings forth the fruit of every good work, from the day that he hath truly heard and known the grace of God, is a part of the new man, Col. i. 6, 9, 10. Whereas that other knowledge, which puffs up and boafts itself, and charges the wifdom of God with folly is vain; and the more boldly it counterfeits the new man, the more it appears to be earthly, fenfual and devilish, Jam. iii. 15.

XXXIII. Among other things, the understanding of a fanctified perfon beholds fo much purity in God, who is the pattern of the rational creature, fo much equity in the law of God, which is the rule of every virtue, fo much holiness in Christ Jefus, who exhibited himself to us as a living law fo much beauty in virtue, or holinefs itself, which is, as it were, the native image of the Deity, that he reckons nothing more excellent than exactly to refemble that pattern, that rule and that image. He fees nothing in any of these, that he would correct, nothing he would have otherwife appointed, neither does he imagine that any thing can be better framed; and thus he confenteth to the law, that it is good, Rom. vii. 16. This is, what Paul calls, a being filled with the knowledge of his will, in all wifdom and fpiritual understanding, Col. i 9.

XXXIV. And as the eyes are with difficulty diverted from a pleafing object, fo to him whofe mind is enlightened by the

Holy

Holy Spirit, nothing can be more defirable, nothing more pleafant, nothing more charming, than. to dwell on the contemplation of God, and the meditation of divine things. He loves to join the night to the day, Pf. i. 2. and then he entertains himfelf, then he is delighted, then he exults, and feems by his earnestnefs, to enjoy heaven itfelf; for. when he is deeply engaged in this facred meditation, and at the fame time forgetting himself, is plunged, as it were, in the immense gulf of the divine perfections and mysteries.

XXXV. Nor is the enlightened mind 'fatisfied to taste things alone by itself, nor enviously to conceal its treasure, but it difcovers thofe facred truths to the will, to which it frequently prefents them, as things moft precious which are far more valuable than gold and filver, or even than pearls, which are still more highly esteemed, that the will alfo may be united to them by the indiffoluble band of love, and with the utmost readiness, be in holy subjection to them. This is the activity of the fanctified understanding.

XXXVI. Now the will cannot poffibly reject so great a good, which is constantly pointed out to it by the understanding as fuch. It is therefore ravished with the love of it, Pf. cxix. 97. O! how love I thy law! Rom. vi. 22. It delights in the law of God. Pf. xl. 8. Í delight to do thy will, O my God! For, what is truth in Chrift becomes alfo truth in its order and degree in those who are Chrift's. The will is never easy, never fatisfied, when it finds it has displeased God and departed from his will.

XXXVII. Hence arifeth a steady and fixed purpose of heart, to be conformable in all things to God, Pf. cxix. 106. To whom the will wholly refigns itself up, to be fwallowed, as it were, in his will? eftablishing this into an inviolable and facred law for itself, to have the fame inclinations, the fame averfions with God. And God himself declares, that the true reverence or fear of the Deity lies in this, Prov. viii. 13. "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; pride and arrogancy and the evil way, and the froward mouth do I hate." He that truly fears God will hate what he knows to be hateful to God; and on the contrary love what God loves, Pf. cxxxix. 21, 22.

XXXVIII. And feeing the will commands the inferior faculties, as they are called, and in its measure, even the underftanding itself; hence, with the greatest alacrity, it makes all things to be ready at the will and pleafure of God and of Christ. So that the foul of one who is fanctified, is like a well marshalled army, in which. every individual will, in his place

and

and order, directly move upon the firft word or fign of command. This is that willing mind by which we are acceptable to God, 2 Cor. viii. 12.

XXXIX. The understanding and will being thus fet in order, the tumult of the wild affections gradually comes to fubfide; which being forced into order, learn to wait the commands of reafon before they take a fingle ftep; and in proportion to the object, act either more intenfely, or more remifsly; moreover they exert themselves in a right and proper manner with respect to spiritual and heavenly things, with which before they were wont to be fcarcely, if at all, affected: In short, they calmly refign themselves to be governed by the Holy Spirit, receiving from him, with full fubmiffion, the law of motion and of reft. When formerly furious luft held the reins they were accustomed to run mad after wordly, carnal, and vitious objects, now they fuffer themfelves to be led as circumstances require, and being fublimated to a higher pitch, and having obtained a more generous and noble guide, they strongly by their native vehemence, excite or push forward, the mind, otherwife flow in its motion, objects that are holy, heavenly and becoming a Christian.

XL. In the mean time, this admonition is continually incul cated upon them, that they must not confult with their affections, whenever they are called to comply with or submit to the will of God, whether that of his decree or that of his precept. In that cafe, they are enjoined to a perfect fubmiffion. He who is fanctified, does not prefume fo much as to wish, that God would regulate either his precepts or purposes from any regard to his defire, hope or fear. That felf-denial, which is the first leffon in Chrift's school, commands all the affections to be filent, and unlimited obedience obliges them to be refigned to God. It is not lawful for a Chriftian to will that any thing that God has done or spoken fhould be otherwise than it is; and whenever that foolish felf-love which is not yet quite rooted out begins, thro' its unmortified lufts and vain anxiety to go away from God to other things, then the fuperior faculty of the foul, under the conduct and direction of the Spirit, repeats that pious ejaculation, " And thou, my foul be filent unto [wait thou only upon] God," Pfa. Ixii. 5. This is to compofe the foul and keep it in quiet;" Pf. cxxxi. 2. that it may look upon it as unlawful, either to wifh or mutter any thing against the will of God.

XLI. Moreover, that holy difpofition of foul communicates itff to the members of the body, which, being before "in

struments