upon which they fubmitted to him, and requested his mercy and forgiveness, to whom Jofeph replied, Gen. 1. 20, 21. As for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it for good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to fave much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you and your little ones. And comforted them, and spake kindly unto them, &c.

he

Friendly. What are the greatest providential trials that a Chriftian can be exercised with?

Truth. First, Loffes, ftraits, and real want of neceffary comforts, are very grievous to flesh and blood, and hard to be borne with, especially if the Chriftian has been bleffed before with affluence in the things of this life; this makes the trial, more keen, and pierces the heart with a thoufand forrows, which others, who never were in advanced circumstances feel not. Such a trial calls for great faith, patience, and refignation; but, that which adds to the weight of this forrow is,

Secondly, When they cry unto the LORD in earnest prayer, he feemingly regardeth them not, as the church complains, Lam. iii, 8. Alfo when I cry and fhout, he fhutteth out my prayer. This is a keen blow upon the head of faith, ftill more fo when the believer, in a state of exigency, fets apart days for humiliation, fafting and prayer, that God would appear in a way of mercy, remove the affliction, turn their mourning into joy; and after all, the door of mercy to be fhut, this makes the Chriftian write bitter things against himself, and conclude, that God hath forgotten to be gracious, his mercy is clean gone, he will be favourable no more, and to fay with the church, Lam. iii. 2, &c. He hath led me, and brought me into darkness, but not into light. Surely against me he is turned; he turned his hand against me all the day. He hath bedged me about that I cannot get out; he hath made my chain heavy. He hath inclofed my ways with hewn ftone, he hath made my paths crooked. And thou haft removed my foul afar from peace: I forgat profperity. And I faid, my ftrength and my hope is perished from the Lord: remembering mine affliction and my mifery. This trial tries the

life of faith.

Thirdly, There is another trial, yet weightier than this, which brings the Chriftian, not only to his wit's, but to his faith's end, as, when GOD gives the mercy which the Chriftian has been long waiting and praying for, then fuddenly draws back the mercy, deprives the Chriftan of that joy, which he had but juft poffeffed, and perhaps had been years in waiting for. This trial, of all others, cuts like a two-edged fword other

and of all afflictions, none like this to the Chriftian, especially when he looks upon it that the glory of GoD depended much upon the enjoyment of the mercy which the LORD had deprived him of; or at leaft withholds the enjoyment from him. This was the cafe of Abraham, GOD had promised him a fon; more than twenty years roll on, no fon appears; at last, after this long death upon the promise, the promised son is born, and Abraham receives him with double joy. But, O amazing! a veil is drawn over this furprising mercy, Abraham must offer up his fon for a burnt offering. Now confidering that Isaac was not only Abraham's peculiar delight, but the promile of the MESSIAH was laid upon him, in whom all nations of the earth were to be blessed, his being flain, not only (according to weak reafon) deprived Abraham of his joy, but God of his glory; and when this is the cafe, the Chriftian fays with Joshua, What wilt thou do for thy great name? O there is none knows, but the deep experienced Chriftian, what this trial is! to have life, joy, peace, the glory of GoD, and the honour of religion locked up in a particular mercy; to pray hard for the mercy, to wait long for it, to enjoy it, and then to be ftript of it this makes the heart of faith to bleed, Lam. iii. 11, 12. He hath turned afide my ways; and pulled me in pieces: he hath made me defolate. He hath bent his bow, and jet me as a mark for the arrow.

Friendly. What might be the design of Providence in such a trial?

Truth. To wean us from the breast of all comforts, and to take up our whole contentment in himself. He deals with us, in this refpect, as a tender and wife father doth with his child, who feeing the child's affections are fixed upon the nurse, inftead of the parent, judges it prudent to put away the nurse, that the child's affections may be placed upon the proper object. Though this may be the foreft trial the child ever met with, it appears in the end, to be the happieft mercy. This is often the cafe with Gop's own children, they act frequently, weak and infantine, as a child that thinks it cannot live without its nurse. But the parent will let the child know that its happinefs depends upon his favour, without the prefence of the nurfe; fo the LORD will let his children know, that their affections are wrong placed; they think that they cannot live without fuch and fuch a mercy, when, it may be, that their hearts are more fixed upon the mercy, than upon the enjoy ment of God in the mercy for which reafon GOD will let

them know, by his difpenfations, that he will fatisfy them in himfelf, without the enjoyment of that mercy.

Friendly. But how fhall I enjoy this contented frame of foul?

Truth. By taking up your whole happiness in GoD, and being entirely refigned to his will under every affliction, both with regard to the nature of the affliction, and the continuation of it. I know we are apt to fay, if it was fuch and fuch a trial, we could bear it; alas! this is our unhappinefs! this fhews our difcontentment, our wills are not fwallowed up in the will of GOD; and we do not take up all our happiness in him, independent of all other creatures, and enjoyments whatsoever. What, fhall we attempt to carve for ourfelves, and fo dictate infinite wisdom!

Friendly. But when the affliction hath continued for fome years, will it not make faith and patience complain?

Truth. No; but for want of faith and patience, the affliction may make fleth and blood complain, the only way to have an affliction removed, is to be thankful for it, and through grace to improve it to the glory of GOD; That God in all things might be glorified.

Friendly. What, thankful for afflictions and forrows; Atrange!

Truth. Thankful for them; yes, as GOD fends every affliction, even every light affliction, as an artificer to polish our crown of glory; our afflictions and forrows are at work about the embellishment of an immortal crown, even when the strokes make our hearts smart again; for every one is the adorning work of the hand of Heaven, as he thereby frames us for his heavenly building; fhall we dare fay to him, what doft thou? knowing that these light afflictions, which are but for a moment, work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory, 2 Cor. iv. 17. which made a good man once fay, "Let "him fit and frame me, mould and change me, so that he "make but his glory to fhine out of me."

Friendly. What is the only means to obtain at the hands of GOD the mercy I feek the enjoyment of?

Truth. To be content without it, is the only way to have it; as when a prudent parent hears his child cry, and be reftlefs, for a thing that he thinks it wants; he will not give it because it cries; no, but will rather make the child be quiet, without it; and when the child is in a contented and quiet frame, fo as to receive it with thankfulness, the kind parent will beftow it; when before it would have been received with

which reafon he ftops them; fo GOD ftops, by his providence, the pipes, I mean the various ways which our hearts take to let our love run wafte, that therefore it might wholly center in him. So that such a dispensation is no argument against the LORD's being the portion of your foul, but rather a proof that he is your God for ever and ever, For whom the Lord loveth be chasteneth.

Whence it is evident, that the love of GOD fhines with bright refulgent rays in the difpenfation of his providence ; and had we but clearer faith to difcern the glories of it, and ftronger faith to walk with GOD in this folitary way, we should enjoy much more of GOD, and be infinitely more happy than we are under all our afflictions, when we see that the end that GOD has in view is to bring us into his bofom, to give us folid peace and divine contentment in himself; and what is this but to afford us an Heaven on earth? for that which conftitutes Heaven, is enjoying GoD as all in all. Thus you may fee that our happiness is compleated by our affliction, and that there is a way for the Chriftian to be happy in GoD when he is deprived of every earthly comfort. This is the mystery of faith and providence, which only the experienced Chriftian is acquainted with; thus all things work together for good to them that love God, to them that are the called according to his purpose. Remarkable is the expreffion of the pious Patriarch to his brother Efau, when he enquired of him, Gen. xxxiii. 8, &c. What meaneft thou by all this drove which I met? and he faid, thefe are to find grace in the fight of my Lord. And Efau faid, I have enough, my brother, keep that thou hast to thyself. ~ And Jacob faid, take, I pray thee my bleffing, that is brought unte thee; because God hath dealt graciously with me, and I have enough, and he urged him, and he took it.

Obferve, Efau fays he has enough; and Jacob fays, he has enough; but then according to the original, Jacob's expreffion is much more full and fignificant than Efau's, which is, I bave all things. Indeed Efau fays, I have enough; but Jacob far exceeds him, for he says, I have all things. Though Efau was much richer than Facob, as to terreftrial enjoyments, yet Faceb far exceeded him, in that he had the God of all contained in his portion. Thus the carnal man, pleased with the affluence of fublunary enjoyments, may fay, I have enough, but the Chrif tian goes further, and fays, I have all, &c. as a good man obferves, he hath all things who hath him that bath all things; it is the mystery of divine contentment to make up all our wants in

GOD; thus happy is the believer who can say, Lam. iii. 24 The Lord is my portion faith my foul.

Friendly. Your advice my dear Truth, is replete with comfort, but, alas! my faith is feeble, and my afflictions many and weighty!

Truth. In this cafe you are to depend upon the Lord Jefus, who is the omnipotant GoD, to fupport you under all your affictions; and his power to ftrengthen your faith in his word of promife. Thus by living and relying upon the strength of another, your burthens will be light and easy to you; though this is a mystery to a carnal mind, how one that is not near us (as to outward view) can ftrengthen and support us under our burthens, and to be ftrengthened by another's ftrength is what they have no acquaintance with, yet herein lies the mystery of faith, and the joy of experience, in that the Chriftian (under divine influence) derives ftrength by faith from the omnipotent JESUS, and is thereby enabled to bear whatever God lays upon him; And indeed we find, that the LORD's defign, in laying repeated afflictions upon us, is to make us the more fenfible of our own weakness and debility, and thereby draw our hearts to truft in, and depend upon the omnipotence of the LORD JESUS; by which acts of faith, we are made ftrong in the Lord, and in the power of his might, as his ftrength ftands engaged to fupport us under all our burthens; my strength (fays he) fhall be made perfect in thy weakness. From hence we may infer,

That if we have mountainous trobles laid upon us, by the hand of Providence, yet if ftrength be added in proportion the burthen is light; and when our troubles increase, yet if our ftrength increaseth from the strength of Ifrael, we shall be able to bear whatever our heavenly Father feeth meet to lay upon us though we are too apt, under afflictions, to fay, we cannot bear the trial, then Providence, inftead of removing the trial, for our fretful complaint, feeth meet to add fresh troubles to us, and thereby easeth us of our burthen. You will fay, how can this be? What, my burthen made lighter by adding more weight? Yes, for thereby you foon become fenfible of your own weaknefs and inability to bear your trials in your own ftrength, and of your unmeet behaviour, under the afflicting hand of GoD, which will make you, with profound humility, to lean upon the ftrength of the mighty GoD of Jacob to fupport you; as you will thereby fee the precioufnefs of divine aids, fo it will make your burthen the more light, when you fee and feel the joy of the Lord to be your ftrength. And this is the bleffing which the Apoftle prays that the believing Colof