Upon the incurableness of some bad ground,
Husbandry Spiritualized; or, For ſtrangeneſs now is gotbetween MyGod and me, as maybe ſeen Bywhat is now, and what was then; :
'Tis juſt as if I were two men.
My fragrant branches blaſted be,
No fruits like thoſe that I can fee.
Some canker-worm lies at my root, Which fades my leaves, deſtroys my fruit.
My fout is banish'd from thy fight, For this it mournethday and night.
Yet why doſt thou deſponding lie ?
With Jonah call abackward eye.
Sure in thyGodhelp maybe had, There's precious balm inGilead.
ThatGod that made me ſpring at first, When I was barren and accurſt, Canmuch more easily reſtore My foul towhat it wasbefore.
'Twas Heman's, Job's, and David's cafe, Yet all recovered werebygrace.
Aword, a ſmile on my poor foul, Willmake it perfect found and whole.
Aglance of thine hath ſoon diffolv'd Afoul in finand grief involv'd.
Lord, if thou canst not work the cure,, Iam contented to endure.
CHAP.
VI.
Uponthe incurableness of ſomebadGround.
NoSkill can mend the miry ground; andfure Somefouls thegospelleaves aspasta cure.
OBSERVATION.
LTHOUGH the induſtry and ſkill of the husbandman can make ſomeground that was uſeleſs and bad, good for tillage and paſture, and improve that which was barren; and by his coſt and pains make one acre worth ten ; yet fuch isthenature ofſome rockyor miryground, where the water ſtands, and there is no way to cleanſe it, that it can neverbe made fruitful.
The husbandman is fainto let it alone, as an incurable piece of waſte or worthless ground ; and though the funandclouds ſhed their influences onit, aswell asuponbetter
TheHeavenly Use of EarthlyThings.
land, yet that doth not at all mend it. Nay, the more ſhowers : itreceives, theworſe it proves. Fortheſe do noway ſecundate or improve it; nothing thrives there, butworthless figs and ruſhes. 1
APPLICATION.
ANY alſo, there are, under the goſpel, who aregiven M overbyGod tojudicial blindness, hardness of heart, a reprovate ſenſe, and perpetual barrenneſs; ſo that how excellent ſoever the means are, which they enjoy, and how efficacious ſoever to the converfion, edification, and ſalvation of others; yet they ſhallnever do their fouls good. Ezek. xlvii .
9, 11. " Everythingwhereſoeverthe river comes ſhalllive,but " the miryplaces thereof, and the marshes thereof ſhall never
" behealed, but begiven to ſalt;" (i. e.)given to anobſtinate and everlaſting barrenneſs. Compare Deut. ix. 23. By: theſe waters, faith the judicious † Mr. Strong, underſtand the doctrineof the goſpel ; as Rev. xxi. 2. a river of water of life, clear as cryſtal ; Hicfluvius eft uberrima doctrina Chrifti, faith
Mr. Brightman.
This river is the moſt fruitful doctrine of Chrift ; yet theſewaters donot heal the miry, marſhy places,
(i. e.) men that live unfruitfully under ordinances, who are : compared to miry, marſhy places, in three reſpects :
(1.) In miry places the water hath not free paſſage, but frands, and ſettles there. So it iswith theſe barren ſouls, therefore the apostle prays, thatthe goſpel may run, and be glorified, 2 Theff. iii. 1.
The word is faid to run, when it meets with no ſtop, Gum liberepropagatur, when it is freely propagated, and runs through the whole man ; when it meetswith no ſtop, either inthe mouth of the ſpeaker, or hearts of the hearers, as itdoth in theſe.
(2.) Inamiry place the earth and water is mixed together ; this mixture makes mire. So when the truths of Goddo mix with the corruptions of men, that they either hold fome truths, and yet live in their luſts ; or elſe when men do make uſe of the truths ofGod to justify and plead for their ſins.
Or, (3.) When, as inamiry placethe longer the water ſtands in it, the worſe itgrows; ſo the longer men abide under ordinances, themore filthy and polluted they grow : These are the miry places that cannot be healed, their diſeaſe is incurable, defperate.
Othis is a ſadcaſe ! and yet very common; many perſons :
* Spiritual barrenneſs. p. 8.
H 2
Husbandry Spiritualized; or, are thus given over as incorrigible, and hopeless,Res. xxii. tr.
"Lethim that isfilthy be filthy ſtill." Jer. vi. 29." Reprobate " filver ſhallmen callthem, for the Lord hath rejected them. "
Iſa. vi . 10, 11. " Go make the heart ofthis people fat, their ears " dull," &c.
Chrift executes, by the gofpel, that curſe upon many fouls, which he denounced against the fig-tree, Matth. xxi. 19. "Let
" no fruitgrow onthee henceforth for ever; and immediately:
" the fig-tree withered away." To be given up toſuch a condition, is a fearfuljudgment indeed, a curſewith awitneſs; the fum of all plagues, miſeries, andjudgments, a fatal ſtroke at the root itſelf.
It is a woe to have a badheart (faith one) but it is thedepth ofwoe tohavea heart that never ſhallbe made better.
To be barren under the goſpel, is a forejudgment, but tohave thatpertinaxfterilitas, a pertinacious barrenneſs ; this is tobe twice dead, and plucked up by the root, as Jude ſpeaks.
Andto ſhewyou the woful, and miferable ſtate and plight of ſuch men, let the following particulars beweighed.
(1.) It is a ſtroke at the foul itſelf, an inward ſpiritualjudgment; and by how much the more inward and ſpiritual any judgment is, by ſo much the more dreadful and lamentable.
As foul-mercies are the beſt of mercies, ſoſoul-judgments are the ſaddest of all judgments.
If itwerebutatemporal ſtroke upon thebody, the lofs ofaneye, anear, ahand, afoot, though in itſelf it wouldbe aconfiderable loſs, yet itwere nothingto this.
Omnia Deus dedit duplicia, faith Chryfoftom, ſpeak-ingof bodily members; God hath givenmen double members, twoeyes, ifonebe loft, theother ſupplies itswants; twohands, two ears, two feet, that the failing of one may be ſupplied by the help of the other ; animamvero unam, butone foul ; if thatperiſh, there is notanother to ſupply its lofs. " The foul,
" faith a * heathen, is the man, that which is ſeen, is not the " man." The apostle calls the body a vile body, Phil. iii. 21. and ſo it is, compared with the foul ; and Daniel calls itthe
Sheath, which isbutacontemptible thing tothe ſword which is in it. O itwere far better that inany bodies periſh, than one foul; that every member were made the feat and fubject ofthe moſt exquifite torture, than ſuch ajudgment ſhould fallupon the foul.
(2.) It is the ſevereſt ſtrokeGod caninflict upon the foulin this life, to give it up to barrenneſs ; becauſe it cuts off all hopes, fruſtrates all means, nothing can be ableſſing to him.
TheHeavenlyUse ofEarthlyThings.
Ifonecomes from the dead, ifangels ſhoulddeſcend from heaven topreach to him, there is nohope of him. IfGod ſhut up aman, who canopen ? Job xii. 14. As there was none found inheaven or earth that could open the feals of that book, Rew v. 5. to is there no opening bythe hand of the moſt able and ſkiltul minitry, thoſe ſeals of hardness, blindness and unbelief, thus impreſſed uponthe ſpirit.
Whom justice to locks up, mercy will never let out. This is thatwhich maks upthe anathema Maranatha; 1 Cor. xvi. 22. which is the dreadfulleft curſe in allthebook ofGod, accurſed till the Lord come.
(3.) It is the moſt indifcernible ſtroke to themselves that can be, andby that ſomuch the more deſperate.
Hence there is faid tobe poured out upon them the ſpirit of ſlumber, Ifa. xxix. 10. " The Lord hath poured out upon you the ſpirit of " deep fleep, and hath cloſed your eyes."
Montanus renders it, The Lord hath mingled upon you the ſpirit of deep fleep.
Andſo it isan alluſion toafoporiferous medicine mingled, and made up of opium, and ſuch-like ſtupefactive ingredients, which caftsa man into fuch adeep fleep, thatdo what you will to him, he feels, he knows it not.
"Make their eyes heavy and " their ears dull; left they ſhouldfee, and hear, and be con- " verted," Ifa. vi. 9, 10. This is the heart that cannot repent, which is fpokenof, Rom. ii. 5.
For menare not fenfible at all ofthis judgment, they do not in the leaſt ſuſpect it, and that is their misery.
Though they be curſed trees, which ſhall never bear any fruit to life, yet many times they bear abundance of other fair andpleasant fruits to the eye, excellent gifts, and rare endowments; and theſe deceive and undo them.
Mat. vii. 22. " We have prophefied in thy name;" this makes the wound defperate, that there is no finding of it, no prope to ſearch it.
(4.) It is a ſtroke that cuts off from the foul all the comfort and ſweetness of religion. A manmay pray, hear, and confer, but all thoſe duties aredry ſtalks tohim, which yield no meat, no folid ſubſtantial nutriment; ſome common touches upon the affections he may ſometimes find induty, the melting voice or rhetoricof the preacher may perhaps ſtrike his natural affections, as another tragical ſtory pathetically delivered maydo ; but tohave any real communion with God in ordinances, any diſcoveries or views ofthe beauty ofthe Lord in them, that he cannothave; for theſe are the ſpecial effects and operations of the ſpirit, which are always reſtrained.
Godhath faid tofuch, as he did to them, Gen. vi. 3."My "Spirit ſhall no longer ſtrivewiththem;" andthenwhat fweet
Husbandry Spiritualized ; or, neſs isthere in ordinances ? What is the word, ſeparated from the Spirit, but a dead letter? It is the Spirit that quickens,
2 Cor. iii. 2.
Friend, thou must know that the goſpel works not like a natural cauſe upon thoſe that hear it; if ſo, the effect would always follow, unleſs miraculouſſy ſtopt and hindred ; but it works like a moral inftituted cause, whoſe efficacy and fucceſs depends upon the arbitrary concurrence of the Spiritwith it.
" The wind blows where it liſteth, ſo is everyone " that is born of the Spirit," John iii. 8. " Of his own will begat he us by the word of truth."
Ordinances are as the pool of Bethesda, which had its healing virtue only when the angel moved the waters; but the Spirit never moves ſavingly upon the waters of ordinances, for the healing of their fouls, howmany years foever they lie by them, though others feel a . divine power in them, yet they ſhallnot. As the men that travelled with Paul, whenChriſt appeared to him fromheaven, they saw the light, butheard not the voicewhich he heard to ſalvation: So it is with theſe, they fee the minifters, hear the words, which are words of falvation toothers, but not ſo to them.
Concerning theſe miferable ſouls, we may figh, and fay toChriſt, as Martha did concerning her brother Lazarus:
Lord, it thou hadſt been here, in this fermon, or in this prayer, this ſoul had not remained dead.
But here is the woe that lies upon him, God isdeparted from the means, and nonecan helphim.
(5.) It is ſuch a ſtroke upon the ſpiritofman, asisafearful Agn ofhis eternal reprobation.
It is true, we cannot poſitive. ly ſay of a man in this life, he is areprobate, one thatGod will never thew mercy to; but yet there are ſome probable marks of it upon ſome men in this world, and theyare of a trembling confideration wherever they appear; of which this is one of the faddeft, 2 Cor. iv. 3. " Ifour goſpel be hid, it is
" hid to thoſe that are loft, in whom the God of this world " hath blinded the minds of them that believe not; left the 44 light of the glorious goſpel of Chrift, who is the image of " God, ſhould shine unto them."
So Acts xiii. 48. " As many aswere ordained unto eternal life believed.
Ye believe not, becauſe ye are notof my sheep," John x. 26. And agaio, Matth. xiii. 11. " To you it is given toknow the mysteries
" of the kingdom, but to them it is notgiven."
There cannot be a more dreadful character of a perſon marked out for wrath, than to continue under the ordinances, as the rocks and mirv placesdo under the natural influences ofheaven.
What bleffed opportunities had Judas? He was under Chriſt's own
TheHeavenlyUse of Earthly Things.
miniſtry, he oftenheard thegraciouswordsthatproceeded out of his mouth; he was day and night in his company, yet never the better; and why ? Becauſe he was the son of perdition, that is, aman appointed to deſtruction andwrath.
(6.) And lastly, To add no more.
It is ſuch a ſtroke of Goduponthe fouls of men, as immediately fore-runs helland damnation , Heb. vi. 8. " But that which beareth thorns and " briars is rejected, and is nigh unto curfing, whoſe end is to " be burnt."
So that look as ſome faints, inthis world, have had a prelibation or foretaſte ofheaven,whichthe ſcripture calls the earnest of thespirit ; fo this is a precurfor ofhell, a ſign of wrath at thedoor. We may ſay of it, as it is ſaid ofthe pale horfe in theRevelation, that hell follows it.
" If a man abide " not in me, (faith Chriſt, John xv. 6) he is caft forth asa " branch, and withered ;" which is the very ſtate ofthefe barren, curſed ſouls. And what follows ? Why, faith he, men gather them, and caſtthem into the fire, and they are burned.
Lo, this is the vengeance whichthegoſpel executesuponthis barrenground.
REFLECTION S.
1. Well then, bleffed beGod that made me feel the ſaving power of the gospel. O,
Thefincerefoul's reflection. letGod be exalted for ever for this mercy ! thathowdefective ſoever Iam in commongifts, though I have adull underſtanding, a leaking memory, a ſtammering tongue; yet I have felt, anddo feel the power of the gofpeluponmy heart.
I bleſs thee(myGod)that although I labour under many ſpiritual infirmities, yet I am not fick of this incurabledifeaſe.
Ihavegiventhee indeedjust cauſe to inflict and execute. this dreadful curſeupon me alſo, but thou hast not dealtwith me after my deferts, but according to the riches ofthy mercy.
Some little fruit I bring forth, and what it is, is by virtue of my union with Jeſus Chriſt, Rom. vii. 4.
And this hath more initasto mycomfort, than all the glittering gifts and ſplendid performances of the moſt glorious hypocrite can yield tohim: if I might have my choice (faith one) Iwould chaſe andprefer the moſt deſpicable and fordid work of arustic Chriftian, before all the victories of Alexander, and triumphs of Caefar.
Bleffedtherefore be the Lord, who hath aboundedunto me in alt ſpiritual bleſſings, in beavenly places in Christ Jesus...
I cannot remember a fermon as another can, but bleſſed be God that I am able to favour it, and feel it ; that I have an heart to love, and a will to obey all that Goddiscovers tobe myduty.
Husbandry Spiritualized; or, 2. O, then how little cauſehave I to make my Theformal boast of ordinances, andglory in myexternal pri profeffor's reflection. vileges, who never bear ſpiritual fruit under them ? If I well confider my condition, there is matter of trembling, and not of glorying in theſe things.
It may be while Ihave beenglorying in them, and lifting up my fecure heart upon them, the Lord hath been ſecretly blaſting my foul under them, and inſenſibly executing this horrible curſeby them.
Shall Iboaſt, with Capernaum, that Iam liftedup toheaven, ſince I may, with her, at laſt be caſtdown to hell? And if fo, Lord, what a hell will my hellbe! Itwill be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than for me.
Itdrew tears from the eyes of Chriſt, when he was looking upon Jerufalem, under the fame confideration that Idoubt I havecaufe to look upon my own foul, Luke xix. 41. " He wept over it,
" faying, ifthou hadſtknown, even thou, at least in this thy "day, the things which belong to thy peace, but nowthey
"arehid from thine eyes." So long have I been a hearer, a profeffor of the goſpel, ſo many years I have enjoyed its diſtinguiſhing ordinances,buthave they not been alldry and empty things tome; hath not the ſpiritof formalityacted me in them?
Have not ſelf-ends and worldly reſpects lainat the bottom of any beſt duties ? Have not my diſcourſes, in communion with faints, been trade words, ſpeakingwhat I have learnt, but not felt? Sad is my conditionnow, but itwould be deſperate and irrecoverable, ſhouldſt thou execute this curſeuponme.
The lessfruit.
3. And what may I think of my condition?
Lord, I acknowledge my unprofitableness, underthe means, hath been ſhameful; and this hath made my condition doubtful. I have often ful Chriftian's reflection. trembled for fear, left my roothad been blaſted by ſuch a curſe; but ifſo, whence is this trembling ? Whence theſe fears and forrows about it ? Doth ſuch fruit grow in thatfoil which thou hast curſed ? I am told but now, that on whom this judgment falls, to them thou giveſt anheart that cannotrepent.
Lord, Ibleſs thee for theſe evidences of freedom fromthe curſe; for the fruits of fear, forrow, and holy jealoufy. *The laws of men ſpare for the fruits fake, and wilt thou not ſpare me alſo, myGod, ifthere be found in me ableſſing inthebud, Ifa. Ixv. 8.
4. To conclude, what a ſerious reflection Thegospel ſhould this occafion in every diſpenſer of the * The Roman laws defer puniſhing awoman with child. Chryst.
TheHeavenly Use ofEarthly Things.
goſpel ? How ſhouldhe ſaywhen he goes to preacher's reflections. preach the goſpel, I am going to preach that word, which is to be afavour oflife ordeath to these fouls ; uponhow many of my poor hearers may the curſe of perpetual barreneſs be executed this day! O how ſhould ſuch a thought melthis heart into compaſſionover them, and make him beg hard, and plead earnestly withGod for a better iſſue ofthegoſpel thanthisuponthem
Y The POEM.
OU thatbeſides your pleasant fruitful fields, Have uſeleſs bogs, and rocky ground, that yields
You no advantage, nor doth quit your coſt, But all your pains and charges on them's loft :
Hearken to me, I'll teach you how to get More profitby them, than if they were fet
Athigher rents than whatyour tenants pay For your moſt fertile lards; and here's the way.
Think when you view them, why the Lordhath choſe Theſe, as the emblem to decipher thoſe Thatunder goſpel-grace grow worſe and worſe;
For means are fruitless when the Lord doth curſe.
Sweet ſhowers deſcend, the fun his beams reflects Onboth alike, butnot with like effects.
Obſerve and see how after the ſweet ſhowers The graſs and corn revive; the fragrant flowers
Shoot forth theirbeauteous heads, the vallies ſing, All freſh andgreen, as in the verdant ſpring.
Butrocks arebarren ſtill, andbogs are fo; Wherenoughtbut flags, and worthless rushes grow.
Upon theſe marſhygrounds there lies this curſe, Themorerain falls, byſo much morethe worſe.
Even ſo the dews of grace, that ſweetly fall, From goſpel-clouds, are not alike to all.
The gracious fouldoth germinate andbud, But to the reprobate itdoth no good.
He's like the wither'd fig-tree, void of fruit; Afearful curſehath ſmote his very root.
Theheart's made fat, the eyes with blindneſs ſeal'd; The piercing'ſt truths the goſpel e'er reveal'd,
Shall be to him but as the fun and rain Areto obdurate rocks, fruitleſs and vain.
Be this your meditation when you walk By rocks andfenny-grounds, thus learn to talk
VOL . VI,