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EVE

VEN fo ye alfo outwardly appear Righteous unto Men, but within ye are full of Hypocrify and Iniquity, Mat. xxiii. 28.

God leaves the outward Appearance to Men: The Heart he reserves for himself. This is the Temple in which he will be served and adored, and the Seat of Chriftian Piety. --- Dreadful is the Judgement, and miferable the Condition, when Men are abandoned to this Paffion of defiring to hide the Filthinefs of a corrupt Heart, under the Veil of a falfe Righteousness; there being nothing more apt to increase Pride, and to render it incurable.

Foolish Heart, unjust and vain!
Pride was never made for Man:
Glory doft thou ftill purfue?
Glory all to God is due.

What haft thou whereof to boaft?
God alone is good and juft.
Only His be all the Praise,
What we are, we are by Grace.

FILL

ILL ye up then the Measure of your Fathers. --- Ye Serpents, ye Generation of Vipers, How can ye escape the Damnation of Hell? Mat. xxiii. 32, 33.

GOD cannot either command or approve of Sin, because he is infinitely juft. - Miferable is the State of him who has filled up the Measure of his Crimes. To be deaf to the Truth, to oppose it out of Intereft, Envy, or Jealoufy, and to perfecute Those who preach it, are generally the laft Sins.

There is a certain Measure of Grace and Mercy, after which God leaves his Juftice to take its Courfe: This Measure is known only to Him. When a Man is about to commit any Sin, he ought to fear, left that very Sin be the last to fill up the Measure; but, after the Commiffion of it, he fhould hope that it is not, and repent of it: This is the only Means to ef cape the Damnation of Hell; but how rare is the Grace of Repentance after a pharifaical Life, fuch as our bleffed Saviour has here represented it.

How then shall Sinners meet the Lord, The Men, who freely pardon'd here, Or bis dread Day abide,

If caft for every idle Word,

Who can be juftify'd?

On JESUS doth depend,
Shall boldly at the Bar appear,

And find the Judge their Friend.

Ferufalem, Ferufalem, thou that killeft the Prophets, and ftoneft them which are fent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy Children together, even as a Hen gathereth her Chickens under her Wings, and ye would not, Mat. xxiii. 37.

How great muft the Tenderness of CHRIST be for his Children, fince He fhews fo much for these obdurate Hearts; GOD earnestly defires the Sinner's Repentance, fince He caufes it to be preached to him by fo many Perfons, and in fo many different Manners: But the Sinner will not hear. Wretched Will! of which Man is fo fond and jealous; and which yet, by Reafon of its Corruption, is good for nothing, but to refift and oppofe the Will of GOD! But Thou, Lord, canst overcome this Refiftance whenever thou pleasest.

How kindly, Lord, doft Thou lament" I would, and ye would not,"
Their finful Misery,

What daring Blafphemy,

Who will not, while they may, repent, For Reprobates, fo dearly bought,

And thy Salvation fee:

Jerufalem, who e'er deny,

Jerufalem fhall prove

Excluded from thy Love.

To charge their Death on Thee!

But O! before they die

The Reprobates forgive,

Thou would't not have one Sinner die And, by thy gracious Will, may

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With them for ever live.

I

BEhold, your House is left unto you defolate. --- For I fay unto you, Ye fhall not fee me henceforth, till ye fhall fay, Bleffed is he that cometh in the Name of the Lord, Mat. xxiii. 38, 39.

The Jewish People, left to the Juftice of GOD, even to this Day, are a dreadful Inftance of the Punishment of Sin. When Men feek to avoid the Lofs of worldly Goods by forfaking GOD, they are themselves forfaken by Him; and his Juftice often takes away That, which they endeavoured to fecure at the Expence of their Fidelity. In what a fad Condition is a Heart, when GOD withdraws himself from it, when His Hand leaves it to itself, when the Eyes of its Faith are clofed, and it fees neither CHRIST nor his Truth, nor its own Duty. O, JESUS, let not this miferable Heart be mine! Let it never lofe Sight of Thee. Let thy Light continually shine upon it.

Come, divine effectual Power,
Fallen Nature to restore :
Wait we for thy Prefence here,
Long to fee thy Throne appear,
Bid the new Creation rife,
Bring us back to Paradife.

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Now our Universe create
Fair, beyond its first Estate,
When thine Eye with Pleafure view'd,
When thy Lips pronounc'd it good,
Ruin'd now by Sin, and curst,
Speak it fairer, than the firft.

Behold, I have told you before. --- Wherefore if they fhall fay unto you, Behold, he is in the Defert, go not forth: Behold, he is in the fecret Chambers, believe it not, Mat. xxiv. 25, 26.

Every new and ftrange Doctrine is falfe and pernicious. Let us have no Curiofity for new Discoveries: It is not the good Grain but the Chaff, which is carried about with every Wind of Doctrine. There are but too many, who seek here and there for fuch Remedies in their Diftreffes, as God has not promised them; and neglect to have Recourfe to JESUS CHRIST, the fole Deliverer from all our Miferies, whom all the Scriptures point out to us. Blind and miferable is every one who hopes to mend his Condition by forfaking CHRIST! It is to him we must apply ourselves: It is He, whom GoD hath given us Whatever turns us afide from Him is fatal to us.

Prophet, fent from GoD above,
To teach his perfect Will,
Lo! I wait to learn thy Love,
I tremble, and am ftill :
To thy Guidance I fubmit,

All my Soul to Thee I bow,
See me fitting at thy Feet,

Speak, Lord, I hear Thee now.

From the idle Babler, Man,

Behold, I turn away,
Trample on the fairest Plan

That human Wit can lay :
Foolish am I ftill, and blind,

"Till the Truth itfelf impart, Chafe the Darkness from my Mind, And shine within my Heart.

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