Godhead of Chrift, I muft have funk to all eternity.

Although at this time my heavenly Father chaftened me fore with the terrors of his righteous law, 'yet the bleffed Spirit often helped my infirmities at a throne of grace, and at this time in fuch a manner as he had not done for fome months before; and now, all on a fudden, hope began to fpring up, and I had a strong faith in the immutability of God, and in the promises of the gofpel; and, in a few weeks, I had light given me to fee that it was God's work on my foul; and when you was defcribing his work from these words, Behold ye, and wonder; for I will work a work in your days, &c. among the heathen; I could fee, as you went on, the way that God had brought me; though at other times I got into the dark again, and feared I should be loft after all; and thus, up and down, I went on till the 14th of February laft, which was nigh four months after I was raifed to hope-a day much to be remembered. It was on the fabbath-day morning, and a fabbath it was to my foul. I awoke out of fleep about fix o'clock, and thinking of the dubious ftate I was in, not feeing clearly my interest in Chrift, I was led out in prayer to God, after the following manner. "Oh! thou almighty and "eternal God, who didft condefcend to take on "thee my nature, in order to redeem loft, perifhing finners! I pray thee that thou wouldest be pleafed to make known thy falvation to my

"foul;

"foul; that I may be fatisfied with thy mercy; that the tongue of the dumb may fing for joy; " and that this may be a fabbath of reft to my "foul, &c." I had not been at prayer long before these words came powerfully into my mind, the fet time to favour Zion is fully come. I wift not that the vifion was fo nigh; but I had fuch longing defires after Chrift, which nothing but Chrift's coming himself could fatisfy, and I began to pray with fuch fervour and faith, that I told the Lord I knew he would answer me; my heart began to melt, the tears ran down my face like rain, and I had fuch a view of Christ crucified for me, that my heart felt as though it would burft with grief: I kept crying out, What! didft thou die for me? Didft thou bleed for me? Oh! make me love thee! Make me honour thee! Never let me, never let me, fin against thee again, &c. The fight of my dying Saviour made me weep fo loud, as to wake two people out of their fleep who were in the next room. When I had been weeping over and bleffing my dear Saviour about five minutes, I was filled with fuch amazing love, joy, and peace, in believing, which made me break out into finging or shouting, as loud and as faft as I could, in these words:

Thou dear Redeemer, dying Lamb,
I'll fing thy praife to harps of gold,
Because thou thed'ft thy blood for me.

These words I fhouted over and over near twenty times; my foul was fo filled with the glory of heaven, that my poor body felt as though it would be shattered to pieces. This was fome of the good old wine of the kingdom, which made me forget my poverty, and remember my mifery no more. What an almighty power operated on my foul as foon as my Saviour came! I knew it was that God that made heaven and earth; and when I faw him, by faith, bleeding in my nature for me, his condefcenfion and love feemed fo great, that I could not bear the fight; indeed it broke my heart: and foon after, when I began to rejoice, I had fuch a bleffed view of him in his beauty and glory, and of that land which is very far off, that I fhall never forget.

When I was in my diftrefs, like David I often faid all men are liars; but now it is, What shall I render to the Lord for all his benefits? After the Lord had raised me to hope, I expected (as I had lain fo long in bondage to the law, that) my deliverance would be confpicuous, and I thought I could not be fatisfied concerning my state unless it was; and, I blefs the Lord for it, fo it is come to pafs, and I think Satan will not eafily baffle me out of the reality of it.

I hope, Sir, you will excufe my intruding fo long upon your time; but I have fuch a fight of what the Lord has done for me, that I could not help mentioning fome of the particulars to you.

I am a fingle man, in the 22d year of my age. I muft conclude with begging an intereft in your prayers, that, as I have received Chrift Jefus the Lord, may fo walk in him; whilft I remain,

I

Your's affectionately,

A. W.

LETTER XXIV.

To Mr. A. W

BELOVED OF GOD,

Some on boards, and fome on broken pieces of the hip, and fo it came to pass that all got fafe to land; nor hath this voyage been attended either with harm or lofs. Good it is, my fon, for a man to bear the yoke in his youth, as Jeremiah did, whose remembrance of the wormwood and gall hung long upon his memory, and humbled his foul within him. Thou hast been pretty fharply handled, and I am glad of it, for it has bruifed and broken thy fpirit, which must make it fore and tender; and a

daily croís, with a little additional furnace-work by the way, will keep it foft, humble, and contrite; and if armed with a filial fear, and this fear obferved, cherished, and attended to, thefe will be a tolerable fence against the wiles of Satan, and will make thee tremble at the thoughts of nibbling at thofe lafcivious baits, with which he plies thofe awful profeffors whom God hath given up to work all uncleannefs with greedinefs. This fear, and a tender confcience, always go together; and fo fure as we fcale this fence, or break through this hedge, the ferpent will bite, and hardness of heart is fure to follow, and it is ten to one if ever fuch a foul gets his armour fo clofe and compact upon him again while he is under the fun. Thou haft felt what an

evil and bitter thing fin is,

and what a fearful thing

it is to fall into the hands of the living God-and thou haft had a clear view of that juft One in whom God can be propitious, and in whose face thou haft feen the light of the knowledge of his glory.-Let that glorious and open vifion be ftill in view, let thy mind be ftaid there, and perfect peace will enfue; and while thou thus lookeft through that glafs, though but darkly, thou wilt be changed into the fame image from glory to glory, as by the Spirit of the Lord; for we are predeflinated to be conformed to that bleffed image, and the transporting views of faith will effect it more and more, nor will the glory of heaven itfelf wholly efcape thy fight.

O! what