behold, I cannot speak, for I am a child." His heart fails him in such an undertaking, and he is afraid to meddle with it. The fame we see in Mofes, when the Lord called him to go unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and require him to let the children of Ifrael go out of his dominion: Exod. iv. 10. what an impertinent apology makes he for himself, through the prevalency of unbelief? "O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor fince thou hast spoken unto thy fervant; but I am flow of speech, and of a flow tongue." Yea, after the Lord had chaftifed him for his unbelief, and given him a fpecial promife of affistance, yet he adds, ver. 13. "O my Lord, fend, I pray thee, by the hand of him whom thou wilt fend." From all which it is plain, that fenfe and reason fofter unbelieving difcouragements in the work of the Lord; and no wonder, for they look only to the fund of created grace within, but not to the ftrength and grace that is in Jefus Chrift, fecured by a well-ordered covenant.

2. The fpirits of the Lord's people are ready to be frightened with the might and multitude of their enemies they have to grapple with in their way through the wilderness. This world is a den of lions, and mountains of leopards, where the believer must engage with principalities and powers, &c. He is many times like a befieged city, furrounded with dangers from all airths; and in this cafe he is ready to cry with Jeñoshaphat, 2 Chron, xx. 12. "We have no might againít this great company that cometh up against us:" or, like the houfe of David, moved like "the trees of the wood," because of great and dangerous enemies that pursued them. Senfe and reafon looks only to the power of the enemy, but overlooks the power of God; and therefore cries, One day or other I shall fall by the hand of my enemies.

3. The fpirits of believers are sometimes intimidated with a fenfe of guilt, and the awful terrors of vindictive anger and wrath pursuing them on the account of fin. Hence David cries out, Pfal. xl. 12. "Innumerable evils compass me about," &c. So, Pfal. xxxviii. 5. Job vi. 4. "The arrows of the Almighty are within me," &c. Heman, Pfal. lxxxviii. 15." While I fuffer thy terrors, I am distracted." When fin prefents itself to the foul's view, and the Saviour is out of fight, it "remembers God, and is troubled;" and no wonder though in that cafe he cry out, "If thou, Lord, mark iniquity: O Lord, who shall stand."

4. Sometimes they are ftruck with fear through the preva lency of indwelling fin, enmity, unbelief, ignorance, carnality, and the like; fwarms of heart-lufts, like an impetuous torrent, break in upon them; in which cafe they fear left they be car

ried away to the difhonour of God, the ruin of the foul, and the wounding of religion. This made David to cry, Pfal. xix. 12. "Who can understand his errors?" Pfal. lxv. 3. “Iniquities prevail againft me," &c. Paul, Rom. vii. "I am led captive unto the law of fin. Wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from this body of fin and death?"

5. Sometimes their hearts are intimidate with the black clouds of defertion, that overcaft their fky, and interrupt the fweet manifeftations of the love of God. In that cafe, they are like the difciples on mount Tabor; when, after a fight of the glory of Chrift, the cloud overshadowed them, then they were afraid or like David, Pfal. xxx. 7. : "Thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled;" immediately after he had been faying, "Lord, by thy favour my mountain ftands strong, I shall never be moved."

6. Sometimes their hearts are intimidate with the noise of great waters, I mean, the fhakings and reelings of this lower world. Sometimes providence hath fuch an awful afpect as if it were going about to shake heaven and earth; the "mountains are removed, and caft into the midst of the sea, and the "waters thereof roar" and fwell; the "mountains melt," and the "perpetual hills bow" at the presence of the Lord, when he appears in his terrible majefty. In fuch a case as this, the prophet Habakkuk, chap. iii. 16. cries out," When I heard, my belly trembled: my lips quivered at the voice: rottenness entered into my bones." And David, Pfal. cxix. 120. fays, "My flesh trembleth for fear of thee, and I am afraid of thy judgements."

7. Sometimes they are afraid at the wrath of man, and the fury of the perfecutor. Sometimes the Lord, for holy and wife ends, lets loose the feed of the ferpent, the rage and fury of man, under the influence of natural enmity; and, in this cafe, they are ready to be ftricken with a finful and flavish fear, If. "Thou haft feared every day, because of the fury of the oppreffor, as if he were ready to deftroy."

li. 13.

8. The dangerous fituation of the church and caufe of Chrift is fometimes matter of fear unto the faints of God. When the ark of God was in the open field, Eli's heart fell a trembling. When men are allowed to lift up their axes upon the carved work of the temple, when the boar out of the wood," and the "wild beaft of the foreft is devouring" the Lord's vineyard, and the "foxes fpoiling the tender vines;" then, and in that cafe, the true children of Zion are ready to lay with the church, Lam. i. 10. "The adverfary hath foread out his hand upon all her pleasant things; for the Heathen hath

entered

entered into her fanctuary, and her ftones are poured out in the top of every street."

9. Sometimes we find them ftricken with fear at the thoughts of the awful approach of death the king of terrors; as we fee in the cafe of Hezekiah, when the fentence of death was paffed upon him, If. xxxviii. 10. &c. "I faid in the cutting off of my days, I fhall go to the gates of the grave: I am deprived of the refidue of my years. I faid, 1 fhall not fee the Lord, even the Lord in the land of the living: I fhall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world. Like a crane or swallow, fo did I chatter: I did mourn as a dove; mine eyes fail with looking upward: O Lord, I am oppreffed, undertake for me." Some are faid to be held in bondage all their days through fear of death. Thus I have told you of fome of these evils that are ready to intimidate the hearts of the Lord's people.

II. The fecond thing is, to give fome account of that faith which fortifies the foul against the fear of thefe evils. I do not defign at prefent to infift upon the nature of faith, having not long ago infifted on this fubject: only I offer you, 1. Some of its names. 2. Its ingredients. 3. Some of its concomitants.

First, I offer a view of it in its fcriptural names. Sometimes it is called a trusting in the Lord: "What time I am afraid, I will truft in thee: Though he fhould kill me, yet will I truft in him." Sometimes it is called a looking to the Lord, "They looked unto him, and were lightened. Look unto me, and be ye faved, all ye ends of the earth. Let us run our race, looking unto Jefus." Sometimes a laying ourselves on the Lord: If. xxvi. 3. " Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whofe mind is ftayed on thee," &c. Sometimes a cafting of our burden on him: Pfal. lv. 22. "Caft thy burden upon the Lord, and he will fuftain thee," &c. Sometimes it is called a fleeing to him as a refuge, as the manflayer fled to the city of refuge when purfued for his life: Pfal. cxliii. 9. "Deliver me, O Lord, from mine enemies: 1 flee unto thee for help." Faith is a fleeing in under the wings of Chrift's mediation and interceffion, as the birds under the wings of the dam.

Secondly, I would give you fome of the ingredients of that faith which fortifies the foul against the fear of evil.

1. then, It has in it a knowledge and uptaking of a God in Chrift, revealing himfelf as reconciled, and making over himself to us in a well ordered covenant: for it is only a God in Chrift that can be the object of our faith and love;

and

and "they that thus know his name, will put their trust in him."

2. It has in it a firm and fixed perfuafion of the truth and certainty of the whole revelation of his mind and will in the word, and particularly of his promifes as yea and amen in Christ. Hence Abraham's faith (Rom. iv.) is defcribed by a perfuafion; he was " fully perfuaded, that what he had promifed, he was able alfo to perform." And it is faid (Heb. xi. 13.) of the Old Teftament worthies, who died in faith, "They faw the promises afar off, and were perfuaded of them."

3. It has in it an application of the promises to the foul itfelf in particular; fo that it not only looks on it as true in general, but true to me. The man finds the promise indefinitely indorsed to every man to whom it is intimate, Acts ii. 39. "The promise is unto you, and to your feed, and to all that are afar off," &c. attended with this declaration and promise, that "whoever believes fets to the feal that God is true;" and that "whofoever believeth, fhall not perish :" therefore the man takes it home to himfelf in particular, as a fecurity for all the grace that is contained in it, faying, "I believe that through the grace of the Lord Jefus Chrift I fhall be faved: God hath fpoken in his holiness, I will rejoice :" and "In this will I be confident."

4. It has in it a perfuafion of the power, love, and faithfulness of the Promifer. A perfuafion of his power to do as he has faid; as Abraham, Rom. iv. he was " perfuaded that what he had promifed, he was able alfo to perform." A perfuafion of his love; "How excellent is thy loving-kindness, O God!" &c. A perfuafion of his veracity and faithfulness, that "he is not a man, that he should lie, neither the son of man, that he should repent."

5. It has in it a renouncing of all other refuges, as entirely infufficient to shelter the foul against these evils wherewith it is furrounded: Hof. xiv. 3. "Afhur fhall not fave us," &c. Jer. iii. 23. "In vain is falvation hoped for from the hills, or multitude of mountains.”

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6. An expectation of help and safety from a God in Chrift, against all these evils that the man is purfued with: Pfal. Ixii. 5. 6. "My foul, wait thou only upon God; for my expectation is from him. He only is my rock and my falvation; he is my defence; I fhall not be moved." Pfal. cxlii. 4. 5. "I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me; refuge failed me; no man cared for my foul. I cried unto thee, O Lord, I faid, Thou art my refuge, and my portion in the land of the living."

7. This

7. This faith has a leaving of ourselves and all our cires and concerns upon him, to be difpofed of according to his wilk and pleafure. The man is content to take what lot God in his providence fhall fee fit to carve out for him: San xv. 25. 26. The king faid unto Zadok, Carry back the ark of God into the city: if I fhall find favour in the eyes of the Lord, he will bring me again, and fhew me both it, and his habitation, But if he thus fay, I have no delight in thee: behold, here am I, let him do to me as feemeth good unto him."

Thirdly, I will give you a few of the concomitants of this faith which guards the foul againft intimidating fears in a time of danger.

1. then, It is accompanied with a blessed quietness and tranquillity of foul, amidst all the dangers of a prefent life. Hence fays the Lord to his people, If. xxx. 15. "In quietness and in confidence fhall be your strength." The man having ran in under the wings of Shiloh, the perfections of a God in Christ, he cries with David, " Iwill both lay me down in peace, and fleep: for thou, Lord, makest me to dwell in fafety," Pfal. iv. laft.

2. It is accompanied with a waiting upon the Lord, in a way of duty, for his gracious prefence either in grace or providence: "He that believeth, does not make hafte. The vifion is for an appointed time; though it tarry, wait for it," &c. Mic. vii. 7. "I will look unto the Lord: I will wait for the God of my falvation," &c. Pfal. cxxx. "My foul waiteth for the Lord, like them that wait for the morning," &c.

3. It is ay accompanied with prayer, earnest prayer, `at a throne of grace. Faith having got the promife in its arms,. it runs ftraight to a throne of grace with it, to fue for the promised bleffing, Pfal. Jxii. 8. "Truft in him at all times; ye people pour out your heart before him." Prayer is juft the breath of faith; and to pray, and not to believe, is to beat the air; and to believe, and not to pray, is nothing but a prefumptuous confidence, that will never bear a man through in the evil day.

4. It is accompanied with a holy obedience or regard unto all God's commandments: Pfal. cxix. 166. “I have hoped for thy falvation, and done thy commandments. Shew me thy faith by thy works," Jam, ii. 18. Let us never pretend to believe the promife, if we do not keep his commandments: Pfal. 1. 16. 17. Unto the wicked, God faith, What haft thou to do to take my covenant in thy mouth? feeing thou hateft inftruction," &c.

5. It is frequently accompanied with a foul-ravishing joy in the Lord: If. xii. 2. "Behold, God is my falvation: I will

truft