gives life and being to all creatures, and that gives spiritual and everlasting life; yet, as touching his manhood, and the human nature from whence he sprung, he is a living root out of a dry and barren ground, as all human nature, in its fallen state, is. And if there is nothing in Christ that is desirable to the unconverted man, how comes it to pass that so many shall seek him, and not find him? Yea, many shall seek to enter into his presence by the strait gate, and shall not be able; and others shall knock, and call too, and yet be rejected.

Quot. There is nothing in which Satan tempts a soul more, than in the method of seeking for

assurance.

Answ. Yes, there is. Satan tempts and perplexes the believer more about his sonship, than he does about the assurance of faith, God has many children in the faith, who are seldom blessed with the full assurance of faith; and, if the devil does tempt the soul about assurance, sure I am that he never perplexes the weakling more than when he tempts him to hear preachers, and read authors, upon the subject of assurance, who them

selves are destitute of faith.

Quot. As he is particularly averse to the believer's being in the possession of such a pearl as assurance, he practises all his cunning to prevent his obtaining it.

Answ. And never does Satan practise more cunning than when he appears in long bands,

long robes, and a white wig, leading the unwary soul to affect his false instrument, and rest in a false evidence, which is trusting in a lie. In this way Satan beguiled the Israelites, by the instrumentality of his false prophets; and brought the poor deluded wretches to credit their report, and to hope for the confirmation of their predictions, when there was no more truth in their prophecies than there is in Timothy's evidences. Satan uses all his cunning, as our friend Timothy says, but then it is by false teachers: hence they are compared to foxes, which is one of the most cunning creatures among all the tribe of vermin. "O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the desarts. They have seen vanity, and lying divination, saying, the Lord saith; and the Lord hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word." This hope of Israel, and the faith of Timothy's Christian, bear one and the same stamp; and I am sure, their evidences, and themselves, will never be confirmed by the God of heaven, only by the god of this world.

Quot. Those who seek it any other way than that which the Holy Ghost has prescribed, are sure to experience great perplexities.

Answ. And sure I am, that those who seek the assurance of faith among Timothy's evidences, will be perplexed enough. I would say to such, "Why seek ye the living among the dead?" assurance is not here, nor was it ever.

Quot. Many who have had great experience, have been kept much in the dark the greatest part of their travel, on account of their want of knowledge how this is obtained.

Answ. Persons who have had a great experience, must have some knowledge of God's fulfilling the good pleasure of his will in them, and the work of faith with power; or else their experience is nothing worth. And such as have experienced this, are sure to be brought to know, and feel too, that assurance does not spring from themselves, but that it is obtained by the donation of God, who is the giver of every good and every perfect gift. But Timothy's man of great experience has been kept much in the dark almost through all his travels; which serves to shew us, that the faith of this man is not like the faith of God's elect: For those that believe in Jesus shall not abide in darkness, but shall have the light of life. The word, travel, wants an explanatory

note.

Quot. Some have been tempted to look for extraordinary visions: this is frequently occasioned by hearing some poor deceived creature tell something of the marvellous, in order to make others admire them as heaven's favourites.

Answ. Some have been tempted to look for visions.' Here Timothy frankly owns, that he and his Christian are both of the world; for Christ says, "The world seeth me no more, but ye see me; then there must be vision, or they could

not see him any more than the world. And he adds, I will manifest myself to them that thou hast given me out of the world; though he doth not to Timothy. "The world seeth me no more, but ye see me and, because I live, ye shall live also." Here are both light and life: ye see me, and shall live. God says, Your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions; and I will shew wonders in the heavens above, and in the earth beneath. But then these dreams, visions, and wonders, are only to be seen by those servants and handmaids upon whom God pours out his Spirit, Joel ii. 28, 29. But, as Timothy and his Christian have not seen the Saviour, they cannot have this Spirit; it must, therefore, be as Tim. says, nothing but a temptation of the devil that has led his Christian to look for visions. But we are informed, that this temptation was occasioned by hearing some poor creature tell something of the marvellous. This curious phrase, 'something of the marvellous,' wants Timothy's note, or comment, more than the Bible does. But they are poor deceived creatures who have seen and told these visions: such poor creatures as Abraham, on the plains of Mamre; Lot, at the gates of Sodom; Jacob, at Bethel; Moses, at the bush; the seventy elders, in the wilderness; Joshua, in the plains of Jericho; whole families, at Bochim; Gideon, in the barn's-floor; Manoah and his wife, in the corn-field; David, in the floor of Atad; Solomon, in Gibeon; Isaiah, when he

saw his glory; Daniel, by the river Chebar; Job, when his eyes saw the Lord; Ezekiel, in Babylon; the three disciples, on the mount; the five hundred brethren, at once; Paul, who was born out of due time; and Mr. Hart also, whom Timothy succeeded. And, indeed, the vision and light of faith, in all the elect of God, makes the whole church of the living God to consist of these poor deceived creatures, who have told something of the marvellous, in order to make others admire them as Heaven's favourites. However, to give the devil his due, we must clear our friend Timothy from all charge of seeing visions: this appears by his confusion in every page; therefore, he cannot say it is a precious thing for his eyes to behold the sun. Notwithstanding Timothy's contempt of visions, "Thus saith the Lord God: Wo unto the foolish prophets that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing,” Ezek. xiii. 3. “Where there is no vision," says God, “the people perish." If this be true, what is to become of Timothy's Christian? and, if Timothy has had no vision, what is to become of him, and those who attend his ministry? "Where there is no vision, the people perish." And sure I am, that those who have no open vision in this world, will have an awful one in the next; I mean, when the blind have led the blind, till they both fall into the ditch: Then they will lift up their eyes in hell, and see our spiritual Abraham afar off, and the elect of God in his bosom: and let Timothy and imorous soul look to this.