with tears: O you females, let me entreat you to come to Christ, as this poor woman did; for she came behind her Lord, and stood at his feet weeping: and she washed his feet with her tears, and did wipe them with the hairs of her head; and she kissed his feet, and did anoint them with ointment; and her sins, which were many, were all forgiven her. It appears that her sins had been great, but by the grace of God, which brought her to repentance, her love became great. Therefore let me intreat you in the name of the Lord, to seek the Lord whilst he may be found, so that you may obtain grace from the Lord, so that your love may become like her love. (Luke vii. 87.) So that you may be changed from a love of sin, to the love of holiness, so that you may begin to bear much fruit to the glory of God; and the fruit of this holy spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the spirit, let us also walk in the spirit. (Gal. v. 22.) Now, I say against such characters as these, there is no law, that is to say, there is therefore now no condemnation to eternal death, to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the spirit. But at the same time, God Almighty oftentimes seeth it good, to chastise us in this life, because of our disobedience, to the intent that we may become, and remain his sons, and his daughters, and that we should inherit eternal life and happiness with him for ever: for if we endure the chastisement of God with patience, and that to our profit, then are we sons indeed, and not bastards: for what son is he whom the Father chasteneth not? (Heb. xii.) For behold, happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty. (Job v. 17.) For he maketh sore, and bindeth up, he woundeth, and his hands make whole. And again hear what Solomon saith, Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man that getteth understanding. My son, saith he, despise not the chastening of the Lord; neither be weary of his correction: for whom the Lord loveth he correcteth, even as a father the son in whom he delighteth. (Prov.iii.) And again, as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten, saith the Lord Jesus: be zealous therefore and repent. (Rev.iii. 19.) And this is the will of God, my brethren, even our sanctification. (1 Thess. iv. 3.) And this is a faithful saying, saith St. Paul, and these things

I will that thou affirm constantly, that they which have believed in God, might be careful to maintain good works: These things, saith he, are good and profitable unto men. (Titus iii. 8.) And my beloved brethren, hear what St.. James saith, Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world. (chap. i. 27.) Therefore, my friends, a well spent life, through Christ, is the way of safety, and it will bring our souls into peace at the last, when this uncertain life shall end. And hear the character again of a child of God described by David, Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? saith he, or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully, he shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation. (Psalm xxiv. 3,4,5.) But my brethren, this must be done by grace and faith,through Christ our Lord. And again, beside this saith Saint Peter, giving all diligence, add to your faith, virtue, and to virtue, knowledge, and to knowledge, temperance, and to temperance, patience, and to patience, godliness, and to godliness, brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness, charity; for if these things be in you, and abound, they make you, that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter i. 5.)

And now my dear friends, hear what another excellent character of Christ saith, and that is Saint Paul, O hear his zealous words towards Christ his Lord. Now after he had been preaching and suffering for the cause of God, and for the good of souls, he yet still expected that he had much more to suffer for the cause of Christ: and he saith, And now, behold I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there, save, that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying, That bonds and afflictions abide me, but none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I have received of the Lord Jesus to testify the gospel of the grace of God. (Acts xx. 22.) And again, saith he, I count all things but loss, for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung that I may win Christ. (Phil,

iii. 8.) I press toward the mark, for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. (verse 14.) And now, when this good man had finished his course, and the great part of his labour, and had suffered much, and had been persecuted much for the sake of Christ, yet it seems that he still expected to suffer more for his Lord and master, but he still had comfort in Christ, so that he could hold fast his faith and integrity so that he could say, I am now ready to be offered, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge shall give me at that day and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing. (2 Tim. iv. 6, 7, 8.) And now, those happy souls are gone to heaven, and methinks, that one day's enjoyment there will make amends for all their labours and sufferings that they underwent upon the earth. Therefore work whilst it is day, that you may have a full reward, for the night cometh in which no man can work.

:

And when such blest characters

Arrive then at home,

They sing Hallelujah

To God and the Lamb,

They ascribe their salvation

To Jesus's name,

And drink the sweet pleasure
That comes from the same.

Their love's full of rapture,
O, how holy is their joy,
No sin there can enter,
Nor Satan decoy,
They redound to his glory,
To him who hath died.
With songs, O how lovely,
In mansions so high.

And now, my beloved brethren, I would advise you to read my following Book, which still relates to the character of the righteous, and may God Almighty give us all grace, so as to believe and repent, so that we may be brought into holy fellowship and love with them, and at last may be brought to the Father, and the Lamb, and to his saints immortal. Amen,

END OF THE SIXTEENTH BOOK,
BY EDWARD CROOK.

BOOK THE SEVENTEENTH.

Our Duty towards our Neighbour.

You may rely on it that there is good counsel and advice in this Book, and the recommendation of this Work chiefly is, that of love and charity. This Work is very affecting, it is taken from the Holy Scriptures, and it gives us a full and true information of our duty towards our neighbour; and except we conform and comply our minds to it, and so copy after it, we cannot be real Christians. Be cause, the sum and substance of this Work is Love, and he that lives and dies without the Love of Christ cannot be really happy in this World, neither in that which is to

come.

Now, my beloved brethren, in my former treatise, I have shown you in part, the excellency of love, but still, let me by the help of God, show you a more full description of the Christian's character, and love, and their attachment towards each other, and their duty towards their neighbour; and this I intend to do by the plain word of God, which is most worthy of your attention. Now, this is the first and great commandment, saith our Lord, that is, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind; and the second, is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, as thyself. On these two commandments, saith our blessed Lord, Hang all the law and the prophets. And there is nothing greater than love. (Deut. v. 6.-Matt. xxii. 37.) Love worketh no ill to his neighbour, saith Saint Paul, therefore love is the fulfilling the law. Behold, saith David, how good and how pleasant it is, for brethren to dwell together in unity! (Psalm cxxxiii. 1.) And in love let the Church of Christ help each other. Hear the advice of Solomon, Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when

it is in the power of thine hand to do it. Say not unto thy neighbour, Go, and come again, and to-morrow I will give, when thou hast it by thee. (Prov. iii. 28.) And again, Two are better than one; saith he, for if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow but wo to him that is alone when he falleth! for he hath not another to help him up. (Eccl. iv. 9, 10.) Therefore, in our trials, and in our spiritual welfare, we may be helpful to one another, but at the same time, let us be sure to place our faith and confidence in God: but next to the help and comfort of God, is that of the Saints, as it is written, A good man sheweth favour, and lendeth, he hath dispersed, he hath given to the poor, his righteousness endureth for ever, and the righteous shall be in everlasting remembrance. (Psalm cxii.) Because the love of Christ dwelleth in him And again it is written, Let the righteous smite me it shall be a kindness, and let him reprove me; it shall be an excellent oil, which shall not break my head: for yet saith David, My prayer also shall be in their calamities. (Psalm exli.) For surely the righteous will do all things in love and for the good of the soul; therefore saith our blessed Lord, A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you: and, by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John xiii. 34, 35.) And again, remember the attachment of Ruth, and the love which she had for Naomi her mother in-law, and how she would not leave her, neither would she turn again to her native country, neither to the gods of the Moabites; for she said unto Naomi, her mother in-law, Whither thou goest I will go, and where thou lodgest I will lodge, thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God. And by this I believe, that the Spirit of Christ, had took place in her soul, and filled her heart with love for speaking from the genealogy of families, Christ was of the line and lineage of Boaz, who was the husband of Ruth. (Matt i. 5.) And we may see in the Book of Ruth, how she was rewarded, according to her kindness, and she was blessed by the name of the Lord. And again, it would be well if every master of servants, and servants, would imitate and follow and copy after the example of Boaz; for we see, that when he came into the field to his reapers, he said unto them, The Lord be with you, and they answered him. The Lord bless thee. (Ruth ii. 4.)

Ah! behold what a blessed, and a happy, and a comfortable thing it would be, if it were more so in our days, if we had