My Yoke is caly, and my Burden light,

Matt. II. 30.

Didft Thou, O bleffed Lord, feel fo many His MeditaInconveniences, and endure fuch Contra- tions upm Humility. 'diction of Sinners? Didft Thou come from

Heaven, to be a Man of Pain and Sorrows? To be despised among thy Friends, flandered and blafphem'd by thy Enemies, and not to have where to lay Thy Head? Wert Thou oppos'd in all thy Endeavours to do good, and ill requited for many of thy Mer 'cies? Coud'ft Thou hear thy felf call'd a "Friend of Publicans and Sinners; a Glutton and Wine-bibber, and a Confederate with . Beelzebub the Prince of the Devils? And yet coud'ft Thou fay, My Yoke is easy, and my Burden is light. O what love was that to Man, which made fuch great Troubles and Miseries seem light and easy! Shou'd it be faid, How can this be? Thou thy • felf givest us the Reason, For Iammeek and lowly in Heart; and 'tis this, in the midst of all Troubles, that procures reft to my Soul. So then to be cloathed with thy Humility, is fo far from being a Burden, that like our ' ufual Garments, it ferves to defend us from 'the injuries of the Air and Weather; from piercing Cold and fcorching Heat; from the cold of Difdain and Want; and the heat of Injuries and Perfecutions.

Hear then, O my Soul, the charming Language of thy kind Saviour! Put on the Cloaths that he wore, Humility and Meeknefs; in which he found fo much eafe, and < which

' which will bring fo much Rest to thee. And grant, O my dear Saviour, that I may groan to be cloath'd upon with Thy Robes; and out of love to Thee, may think that 'Work eafy; which by making me like Thee, (in Humility and Meeknefs) will make alí other things eafy to me, and bring true and 'eternal Reft to my Soul. Amen.

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To the fame purpofe does he argue with himself in another place, as follows.

Lord, Thou inviteft me to come unto Thee for eafe; But is it not by becoming lowly in Heart, as Thou wert? But what means lowly in Heart? Surely there is a lowlinefs that is not in Heart: An affected shew of Humility before Men, while Pride may yet reign Within. Outward Fawning, Affected Complaifance, or Submiffiveness, ' is not that lowlinefs of Heart which will give us eafe; while at the fame time, we may grow impatient at an Affront, and not be able to bear an Outrage. If our Heart boil within us at an Injury, and be put into a Tumult by a flight or difrefpect, it is plain that we have not eafe, and confequently ' have not learn'd to be lowly in Heart.

• We find Three correfpondent Expreffions, us'd by our Bleffed Saviour; Poor in Heart, Pure in Heart, and Lowly in Heart. All which must refer to the inward fentiC ments and affections of our Minds, in op< pofition to the ufual acceptation of these • Words: Poor, Pure, and Lowly,when apply'd to outward things: And that in which they

all

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all feem to agree, is Defire. Thus he is poor in Heart, who Defires not Riches, whether he hath them or not; he is pure in Heart, who Defires not fenfual Pleasure, 'whether he is capable of it or not; and he is lowly in Heart, who Defires not Honour, whether he hath it or not: And these Defires all proceed from this Principle, that we fo value unfeen things, the things of ⚫ God and Heaven and Eternity as not to defire Wealth, nor be troubled at the Difrefpect of Men; and to dread that Pleasure, which fhou'd make us unworthy of Pleasure, ' in the favour of God.

'That therefore which makes us lowly in 'Heart, is converfing with another World; for that renders us uncapable of being Proud of any thing that Men can do to us." "What cares a truly learned Man, to be thought learned by Peasants? They will think the fame, of One that has no other Learning, but hard Words; nay, perhaps, ⚫ will think fuch a one, more learned than he who is truly fo. What cares that happy 6 Soul, whofe Converfation is in Heaven, for 'the judgment of the Men of this World? They value me, fays he, for my outward Figure, Beauty, Riches, Wit, Accomplishments, that is, for Trifles: Thefe things 'don't make me valuable; 'tis real Goodness does that, in refpect of that World which only is of value: And God only, is Judge of this, because it lies in the Heart: Men H

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of this World, are no more Judges of it, than Peafants are, of Learning. If they think well of me, it is but by accident; a meer chance; they guess at it, and may as well guefs wrong as right; and shall I think my felf more valuable for their gueffing? If I am good I am indeed more valuable for being fo, not for their thinking me fo. But if Thou, my God, doft not think me fo, wo be to me; their judgment will do me L little fervice.

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In another place,I find the followingPrayer.

Lord, it is not enough, that thou giveft i me leave to think of Thee; give me a Heart alfo, to think humbly of my felf: It is not enough, That thou openest me a Glade to look towards Thee; O fhut up the World on each fide alfo, from my Eyes. For the remembrance of having thought on Thee, will not yield me pleafure; If I cannot think on Thee, without being moved to confider, what the World will think of me. If thou givet me leave to think on Thee, O let me gain this by it; to know my felf to be Nothing, and the World worfe than Nothing. And, O Lord! O gracious Goodness, heal my Soul, and change the • Evil affections that are there; and then fhall I neither think of the World, nor of my felf, but of Thee, who art the only Cen& ter and Happiness of my Soul. Amen.

It is probable that fome commendations which he met with for his Piety, gave occafion to the following Prayer.

• We.

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When, O when fhall it be, Gracious Lord, that I shall be content with thy Judgment of me, without looking further, or 'confidering what others think of me? • St. Anthony ús'd to hear the Devil often crying out make way for the Servant of the Lord, behold the beloved of God: Or fuch like. In his folitude the Devil discovered himself more plainly to him than he does ¿ to us whofe thoughts are involv'd in the multiplicity of worldly matters:

Yet we may be fure the Devil is in all fuch founds come they from the Mouths of never fo good < Perfons, we may well have leave to fay get 'thee behind me Satan.O make me watchful and careful of my felf that I be not circumvented by his Deceits and the fraud and treachery of my own finful Heart. Amen. And how his Prayers for Humility, were anfwer'd; and what a happy progress he made in that heavenly Virtue, the following Meditation will fhew.

A

To adminifter Arfenic, is no injury to a C Man, that has made Poifon his Diet. little Disrespect is no injury to me, who 'love my own Abjection; who can, God be bleffed, bear a great many Slights and Affronts, nay, and delight in them too, But 'how or on what Ground is it that a Man 'can love his own Abjection? It is because 'I believe thefe Slights and Affronts ' fent on purpose by God, for the ' good of my Soul: Itake them as tokens of his Love, and therefore I love them. Shou'd the encrease my Eftate, or caufe great PreH 2 • fent