66 a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined," Isa. xxv. 6. A sacrament day is a soulfestival day; here Christ takes the soul into his banqueting-house, and "displays the banner of love over it," Cant. ii. 4. Here are heavenly delicacies set before us. Christ gives us his body and blood. This is angels' food, this is the heavenly nectar, here is a cup perfumed with the divine nature; here is wine spiced with the love of God. The Jews at their feasts poured ointment upon their guests; here Christ pours the oil of gladness into the heart. This is the king's bath where we wash and are cleansed of our leprosy: the withered soul, after the receiving this blessed eucharist, hath been like a watered garden, Isa. lviii. 11. or like Egyptian fields, after the overflowing of the Nile, fruitful and flourishing; and do you wonder that a child of God delights in holy things? he must needs be a volunteer in religion.

But it is not thus with a hypocrite; he may be forced to do that which is good, but not to will that which is good; he doth not serve God with delight. "Will he delight himself in the Almighty?" Job xxvii. 10. That he hath none of this complacency and delight, appears thus, because he serves God grudgingly; he brings his sacrifice with a wicked mind, Prov. xxi. 27. Such a one was Cain: it was long before he brought his offering, Gen. iv. 3. it was not the first-fruits; and when he did bring it, it was grudgingly; it was not a free-will offering, Deut. xvi. 10. It is probable it was the custom of his father's family to sacrifice; and perhaps conscience might check him for forbearing so long; at last the offering is brought, but how? as a task

rather than a duty; as a mulct or fine rather than a sacrifice. Cain brought his offering, but not himself. What Seneca saith of a gift, I may say of a sacrifice-it is not gold and silver makes a gift, but a willing mind; if this be wanting, the gold is only parted with, not given so, it is not prayer and hearing makes a sacrifice, but it is a willing mind. Cain's was not an offering, but a tax; not worship, but penance.

CH. V.-Two Cases of Conscience resolved Bur here are two cases to be put.

Case 1. Whether a regenerate person may not serve God with weariness?

Ans. 1. Yes; but this delight in God is not wholly extinct. This lassitude and weariness in a child of God may arise from the in-being of corruption, Rom. vii. 24. It is not from the grace that is in him, but the sin; as Peter's sinking on the water was not from his faith but his fear; yet I say still a regenerate person's will is for God, Rom. vii. 15. Paul found sometimes an indisposition to good, Rom. vii. 23. yet at the same time he professes a complacency in God, "I delight in the law of God, in the inner man," ver. 22. One may delight in music, or any recreation, yet through weariness of body be for the present dull and indisposed; a christian may love God's law, though sometimes the clog of the flesh weighing him down, he finds his former vigour and agility remitted.

Ans. 2. This faintness and weariness in a regenerate person is not habitual; it is not his constant temper. When the water ebbs a while it is low water, but there is soon a spring-tide again; it is sometimes low water in a christian's soul, he finds

an indisposition and irksomeness to that which is good; but within a while there is a spring-tide of affection, and the soul is carried full sail in holy duties. It is with a christian as with a man who is distempered; when he is sick he does not take that delight in his food as formerly; nay, sometimes the very sight of it offends, but when he is well he takes his meat again with delight and appetite; so, when the soul is distempered through sadness and melancholy, it finds not such delight in the word and prayer as formerly; but when it returns to its healthful temper again, now it hath the same delight and cheerfulness in God's service as before.

Ans. 3. This weariness in a regenerate person is involuntary; he is troubled at it; he doth not hug his disease, but mourns under it. He is weary of his weariness. When he finds a heaviness in duty, he goes heavily under that heaviness; he prays, weeps, wrestles, uses all means to regain that alacrity in God's service which he was wont to have. David, when his chariot wheels were pulled off, and he did drive on heavily in religion, how oft did he pray for quickening grace! Psal. cxix. 25, 37, 40, 88. When the saints have found their hearts fainting, their affections flagging, and a strange kind of lethargy seizing on them, they never leave till they have recovered themselves, and are arrived at such freedom and delight in God as they were once sensible of.

Case 2. Whether a hypocrite may not serve God with delight? I answer, he may; Herod heard John Baptist gladly, Mark vi. 20. and those who fasted for strife and debate, "did delight to know God's ways," Isa. lviii. 2. A hypocrite may, out of some flashy hopes of heaven, show a delight in goodness;

but yet it is not such a delight as is found in the regenerate, for his delight is carnal. A man may be carnal while he is doing spiritual things. It is not the holiness and strictness in religion that the hypocrite delights in, but something else; he delights in prayer, but it is rather the showing of gifts he looks at, than the exercise of grace. He delights in hearing, but it is not the spirituality of the word he delights in; not the savour of knowledge, 2 Cor. ii. 14. but the lustre. When he goes to the word preached, it is that he may rather feast his fancy than improve his heart; as if a man should go to an apothecary's shop for a pill, only to see the gilding of it, not for the operative virtue. The hypocrite goes to the word to see what gilding is in a sermon, and what may delight the intellect. Hypocrites come to the word as one comes into a garden to pluck some fine flower to smell to, not as a child comes to the breast for nutriment; this is rather curiosity than piety. Such were those; "thou art to them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument," Ezek. xxxiii. 32. The prophet being eloquent, and having a pleasing delivery, they were much taken with it, and it was as sweet to them as a fit of music; but it was not the spirituality of the matter they so well liked, as the melody of the voice. It was a sharp yet seasonable reproof of Chrysostom to his auditory, "This is that which is like to undo your souls, you hear your ministers as so many minstrels, to please the ear, not to pierce the conscience." You see a hypocrite's delight in religion is carnal; it is not "the being nourished up in the words of faith," 1 Tim. iv. 6. which he ininds; but the eloquence of speech, the rareness of notion, the quickness of

fancy, the smoothness of style: he strives only to pluck from the tree of knowledge. Alas, poor man, thou mayest have the star-light of knowledge, and yet it may be night in thy soul.

CH. VI.-Trial of a Christian's Delight in God. LET this put us upon a holy scrutiny and trial, whether we have this delight in religion? It is life or death as we answer this.

Quest. How may this spiritual delight be known? Ans. 1. He that delights in God's law is often thinking of it; what a man delights in, his thoughts are still running upon; he that delights in money, his mind is taken up with it; therefore the covetous man is said to mind earthly things, Phil. iii. 19. thus if there be a delight in the things of God, the mind will be still musing upon them. Oh what a rare treasure is the word of God! it is the field where the pearl of price is hid; how precious are the promises! they are the conduit that holds the water of life; they "which through are like those two olive branches, the two golden pipes did empty the golden oil out of themselves," Zech. iv. 12. These seal up pardon, adoption, glory: "O Lord, by these things men live," Isa. xxxviii. 16. Where there is a delight in the law of God, the mind is wholly busied about it. 2. If we delight in religion, there is nothing can keep us from it, but we shall be conversant in word, He that loves gold will trade prayer, sacraments. for it. The merchant will compass sea and land to make money his proselyte. Men will not be kept from their fairs. If there be a delight in holy things, we shall not be detained from an ordinance, for there If a man were we are trafficking for salvation. bungry he would not stay from the market for the