shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see, that it is an evil thing and bitter that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord God of hosts."

-But he adds-I will make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. This is another image to convey the same truth, only with this addition -that if lighter afflictions fail of their end, God will employ heavier. "They may be fool hardy enough to break through the thorns, and may go on, though wounded and bleeding-but they shall not get over the wall-I have stones as well as brambles-I will present insuperable difficulties." Yes, God can deprive us of liberty: he can reduce our means; he can deprive us of health and property; he can take away the desire of our eyes with a stroke; and easily and effectually stop us in all the ardour of our schemes and enterprises.

It shows us what a variety of troubles God has to dispose of: afflictions of all kinds, and of all degrees; suited to our natural dispositions, and our moral perverseness. It shows us also our obstinacy-that God is compelled to deal with us as with brutes, who are not to be governed by reason and ingenuous motives, but require blows and restraints. So foolish are we, and ignorant; so much are we like a beast before him, that we must be hedged in with thorns, and confined in with a wall.

At length, wearied to find their paths, and unable to overtake their lovers, they are convinced of their folly, take shame to themselves and resolve to go back. To this they are excited, not only by present distress, but by former pleasure. They remember the happiness they once enjoyed

in the service of God-and say, "What have I any more to do with idols? I will go and return to my first husband, for then was it better with me than now."

Thus it was with the prodigal. He had destroyed his reputation, and wasted his substance among harlots, and in riotous living; he had reduced himself to the most abject condition, and lived on the husks which the swine did eat, and no man gave unto him. One day-a thought of home struck him-he instantly formed a comparison between his present and his former circumstances-he recollected the honour that had attended him before his wanderings; the plenty that crowned his father's board; how much was always taken away from the table, yea, how much the servants left-and sighed and said—" How many hired servants of my father's have bread enough, and to spare-and I perish with hunger!-I will arise and go to my father, and will say unto him, Father, I have sinned against Heaven, and before thee, and am no more worthy to be called thy son; make me as one of thy hired servants.Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths. And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she

say, I will go and return to my first husband;

for then was it better with me than now."

From the passage thus briefly explained, let us glance at four things. The first reminds us of our depravity. The second of the divine goodness and care. The third of the benefit of affliction. And the fourth, of the difference there is between our adhering to God, and our departing from him.

I. We are reminded of our depravity. It ap pears in our proneness to go astray. There is in us an "evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living of God." We transfer to the creature, those regards which are due only to the Creator. We fear other things more than God; we love other things more than God. We make friends, and fame, and fortune our dependence, and withdraw our hope and confidence from Him, who is the only portion of his people. Thus they become our idols.

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And these are our lovers, who profess to give us our bread and our water, our wool and our flax, our oil and our drink." These are the rivals of the Supreme Being; and, alas! they are too often successful, and draw away our hearts from God. Our backslidings are many. For let us not deceive ourselves. Let us not judge of our declensions only by gross acts, but by the state of our minds. It is indeed a mercy if we have been preserved from those scandalous falls which disgrace our profession. But where none of these vices have appeared in the life, there have been many deviations from God in our thoughts and affections and pursuits. By this, therefore, we should try ourselves. For in proportion as we "love the world, the love of the Father is not in us. 99 And in the same degree that we make flesh our arm, our heart will always depart from the Lord.

But our depravity is not more observable than, II. The divine goodness and care. For while we are thus perpetually roving from him-what does he? Does he destroy us? No. Does he abandon us to ourselves, saying, they are joined to idols, let them alone? No-but he employs

means, various means, to hinder and to reclaim us:-"I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths; and she shall follow after her lovers, and shall not overtake them, and she shall seek them, but shall not find them."

And why does he make use of all these various expedients? Is it because he stands in need of us ?-No-But because we stand in need of him, and can do nothing without his counsels and his comforts-because he is very pitiful, and of tender mercy-because he is concerned for our everlasting welfare-hecause he would not have us deceived, ensnared, destroyed-because he would not have us take up with this world as our portion, but keep our eye upon a better even a heavenly country, and confess ourselves to be strangers and pilgrims in the earth.

And when the believer comes to himself, and considers these dealings of God with him, he exclaims, "Lord, what is man, that thou art mindful of him, or the son of man, that thou shouldst visit him! What am I to engross the attention of the Almighty? Am I worthy of all these pains? Can I ever bring forth fruit to reward this expense of cultivation? What is man, that thou shouldest magnify him? And that thou shouldest set thine heart upon him? And that thou shouldest visit him every morning, and try him every moment?"

This brings us, III., to remark the benefit of affliction. This benefit might be exemplified several ways.

Afflictions are designed to be trials. They evidence the reality, and the degree of our religion, both to ourselves and others.-When a person is

surrounded with worldly possessions and enjoyments, it is not easy for him to determine whether he is leaning on these, or on God. But let them be removed and his reliance will quickly appear. If he is placing his dependence on these he will sink when they are removed. But if, while he uses them and is thankful for them, he still make God the strength of his heart, and his portion for ever," he will not faint in the day of adversity; but be able to say with former sufferers, "We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed: we are preplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not forsaken: cast down, but not destroyed. Although the fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flocks shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls: yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. ”

Afflictions are excitements. They quicken to the exercise of grace, and to the performance of duty. When Absalom wished to see Joab, he sent to him a messenger, but he would not come-he sent a second time, but he still refused. Well, what was he to do now?-Says Absalom to his servants, "See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath barley there-go, and set it on fire;" and he will soon come to know the reason; and so it fell out: "Then Joab arose and came to Absalom, into his house, and said unto him, Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?" Why, says Absalom, not because I wished to do thee an injury, but wanted an interview and could obtain it in no other way. Thus, when we become indifferent to communion with God, and