my money and estate for his truth, his ordinances, his cases, and now he hath given me, and all into the hands of spoilers. We read of David that he was twice thrust out from his home, once by his father in law Saul, and once by Absalom his son; when he was thrust out by Saul, though driven into a wilderness, we do not read, as I remember, that he wept; Saul the persecutor wept, but not David the persecuted: but when he was driven out by Absalom, he went barefoot, and wept, he wept and he went, and he went and he wept, why so? oh, that was the punishment of his sin, God had threatened that the sword should never depart from his house and now that threatening did seize upon him. Take heed therefore that this evil may not be the fruit of your sin, and do nothing now that may make your condition uncomfortable then; and because these three things will do it, take heed of them I pray you in the Lord.

But in case this evil feared should come, and who knows how soon it may? then some things are to be practised, and some things considered.

By way of practice. If it pleased the Lord to bring you or me or any of us into this sad condition, first humble yourselves, accept of the punishment of your iniquity, kiss the rod, and say, the Lord is righteous in all that is come upon you; so did Daniel, Dan. ix. 6., " O Lord, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion of faces, as at this day," &c., so must we do, saying, As for me I confess indeed I deserved this long ago, for I did not pity those enough that were driven from their houses and habitations; I would not part with my house, and liberty, and estate for the truth, and give them up as a sacrifice unto the gospel, and now it is just, all should be taken from me; the Lord is righteous, the Lord is righteous.

Then be sure you bless and praise the Lord for that little that you have left; and if nothing be left, praise God for others that are free from your condition. If a man be in prosperity, and grieve for others in adversity, it is the only way to keep him in prosperity; if a man be in adversity, and can praise God for others and rejoice in their prosperity, it is the only way to have his own adversity changed into prosperity. A man is never so low but he hath somewhat left to

praise God for; so did Job, and so saith the apostle, “ Be in all things thankful;" not in some conditions, but in all.

If ever you be brought into this estate, be sure that you keep God's promise in your full view. The promise is very full and clear; what condition is there enriched with more promises? Are you afraid when you are driven out of your houses, that you shall faint and fall in the streets, that you shall die in the fields, or some ditch? Remember that promise where God hath said; "Those that forsake house and land shall receive an hundred fold:" then remember the hundred fold promise. But would you return to your own house; and are you afraid that you shall not do so? then remember that promise; Micah iv. 6, 7., " In that day, saith the Lord, will I assemble her that halteth, and will gather her that is driven out, and her that I have afflicted." In the interim are you afraid of misery, poverty, beggary? then remember that promise which hath five seals upon it," I will never leave you nor forsake you ;" Heb. i. 3. 5; Joshua i. 5.; where in the original there are five negatives, as if he should say thus, "I will never, never, never, never, never leave you nor forsake you." Luther insists much upon that promise of our Saviour Christ unto his disciples: "You shall not have gone over all the cities of Judea until the Son of man shall come." The Son of Man was already come, saith Luther, when he did speak these words, and therefore the promise belongs not only to the disciples, but to all the disciples of Jesus Christ that shall be; the promise speaking thus much that though they be persecuted and driven from one place to another: yet there shall be always some place open to receive them; when persecution is one place, another shall be free from it; and there shall be always some place free, until the Son of Man shall come. Stock and store yourselves with many suitable promises, and when this misery spoken of shall come, keep them in your full view. These things are to be practised.

Again, By way of consideration. Though such a condition as this be exceeding sad and very lamentable, yet consider this, that it is not any new thing that doth befal you, but such as befals the saints and best of God's servants. This sometimes bears the breadth of a great temptation, that my condition is like to none; and it may be you will think, Oh,

never any was in such a condition as I; what, driven from my houses and from my friends? Yes, Abraham; yes, Jacob; yes, Joseph; yes, David; yes, Daniel; yes, John, And Luther saith, as usually he doth speak boldly, This is the common chance and fortune of the gospel.* The very land of Canaan, the place of God's people is called by such a term as doth signify a land of beauty or comeliness, and a land of hinds,* or roes, or harts, that are swift in going, and of a flying nature, to shew, say some, that when God's people are in the most beautiful state, it is but a flying, moving state, &c. Yet when they are so, they are notwithstanding a delight unto God himself. Think, therefore, with yourself, There is no new thing befallen me.

Consider the way that God takes ordinarily to bring his people to mercy. He seldom brings them to any mercy but he brings them about by the way of the contrary misery. If he intends to give them a sure peace, he will bring them about unto it by the way of war; so he brought Israel to Canaan, the land of rest, through much war. If he brings them to riches, he will bring them about by the way of poverty, as with Job. If he intends a kingdom to them, he will bring them by a wilderness, as with David. If a sure habitation, he will suffer a man to be driven from his habitation.* And therefore when you are driven from your's, despair not, but say, Ah, this is God's way, now am I in God's way to a sure habitation.

Consider seriously with yourselves what that is which you leave, what the cause is that you do leave it for, and who it is you do leave it with: you leave your house, your habitation, your land, your riches, which shortly would leave you, whose wings are like the wings of an eagle, strong to fly away; you leave it for your God, your country, your religion. And is that lost which you do lose for truth? Is there any loss in losing for Jesus Christ? And with him you leave it, who is a faithful paymaster, and will pay you forbearance money * Hic mos hæc fortuna evangelii.-Luther in Ezek. 、x. 6.

+ Hic enim 'y usurpatur sæpius existimo spiritum consulto vocabulum hoc adhibuisse quo complecteretur utrumque de pulsionem et fælicitatem ne desponderent ejus cives animos sed in media sua tristissima abdicatione se esse Deo ' cordi et deliciis.-Brightman in Dan. p. 22.

* Si enim non impense te deligeret Deus non ita tecum luderet hoc est non differet neque in contrarium disponeret suam promissionem et auxilium.—Luther.

also. Did he not pay Ruth well all that ever she did leave for him; mark but that one example of Naomi and Ruth: Naomi being in Israel, where the ordinances were, and there coming a time of famine, she left all to go into the land of Moab, and the text tells us (Ruth i.) she went for bread. If you inquire what became of her, you shall find she returns empty, bitter: "Call me not Naomi, call me bitter, for the Almighty hath dealt very bitterly with me." Her daughter Ruth, on the contrary left her country, Moab, to go to the place of God's ordinances; and when she came into Israel she was so poor, at the first, that she was fain to glean for her living, yet contented; and after a while the Lord provided a husband for her, the richest man in all the country, Boaz. The moral of this example is this: those that will leave the ordinances and way of God's true worship for bread, shall return home empty and full of bitterness; yea, though they be good people: but those that will leave their own places and habitations and friends to go unto the place of God's ordinance, though they be put to a gleaning condition at first, yet the Lord, in his providence, in his due time, will make them exceeding rich and very wealthy. Consider, therefore, when you are in this estate, what is that you leave, why, and with whom you leave it, even with Ruth's paymaster, who is as good a paymaster now as he was to Ruth.

If you would have comfort and supportance in that condition, consider seriously and much how God hath dealt with his people that have been thus served and used. And if you look into Scripture, you shall find that he still hath provided for them, given them favour in the places where they have come, and brought them back again from those places into which they have been scattered. He hath provided for them. Did not God provide for Jacob when he was driven out of his father's house by his rough brother Esau? Says Jacob, "I passed over this brook with this staff and rod, and now I am returned with two bands." When at the first he went out and took up his lodging in the cold fields the first night, lying upon a stone for his pillow, as the Scripture speaks, there the Lord appeared to him in a vision, and shewed him a ladder, with angels ascending and descending upon it, which is interpreted by Christ to be Christ himself, in John i. 51. And so if it should ever be your portion to be driven out by

your rough brethren Esaus, though you lie in the cold fields, God will there shew you this ladder. It is observed that our Saviour Christ sent out his disciples twice; the first time he commands them to take no money, nor sword, nor scrip, and then, upon account, they said they wanted nothing: afterward he sent them out again, and said unto them, "Now let him that hath a sword take it, and he that hath a coat take it;" then they met with more suffering than we read of before, teaching thus much, that God will then more fully provide for his people when they are purseless, scripless, swordless, and in the most shiftless condition. Besides, the Lord gave them favour in the eyes of the people in the places where they came. Had not Abraham favour, and Joseph favour, and Moses favour? David favour in the eyes of the king of Achish, Nehemiah favour, Ezra favour, and others of his people favour in the places into which they were driven? And if you look into the xxxivth of Ezekiel, you shall find that when God's people were by the proud prelates of those times abused, the Lord promised to gather them from those places into which they were scattered. First he complaineth of the proud prelates that they would not gather them: verse 4," The discased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost, but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them." Then he promiseth that he would do it himself: verse 13, "I will bring them out from the people, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers," &c. This he did, this he doth, this he will do. If my people would but think of these things, they would never stick with God for their houses and liberties when the profession of his truth doth call for them. Think of it, therefore, seriously, it will bc exceeding helpful to you now, and comfortable then. In such a condition God hath always provided for his people, given them favour, and in due time gathered them to their own place again; and he is the same God now that ever he was.

If you would have comfort and be supported in that estate, put yourselves often to these disjunctions. Either I am one