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angels with his uncreated sweetness: yet, as Daysman, thou art for ever King, Priest, and Prophet of thy chosen; the eternal Head of men and angels; the First-born among many brethren," having "the pre-eminence in all things," Rom. viii. 29; Col. i. 18: thou art the great Lord Mediator, the crowned King of Sion, for ever and ever. We are under thee so many crowned kings in Sion; but thou art exalted above all; upon the throne of thy father David dost thou sit; and "of thy kingdom there shall be no end," Luke i. 33. The Lord hath laid help upon One that is mighty, he hath exalted One chosen out of the people; he hath made him his first-born, higher than the kings of the earth: his mercy doth he keep for him, for ever; and his covenant standeth fast with him: his seed also hath he made to endure for ever, and his children, as the days of heaven: all kings fall down before him; all nations serve him. There is a handful of corn in the earth, on the top of the mountains; the fruit thereof doth shake like Lebanon: and they of the city do flourish like the grass of the earth. O Plant of Renown, men and angels are as so many branches engrafted in thee eternally! or else we should in a moment wither; to all eternity we stand in need of a Daysman, we are not able eternally to stand on our own legs: neither are we able to behold God so fully and familiarly, as in the face of Emmanuel. And what amazing dignity, men and angels, for us to reign over all, as co-heirs with this essential Heir of all things! Do I reign with thee, O King of kings? wonderful! thou

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hast given me power over the nations," and I do "rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter are they broken to shivers," Rev. ii. 26, 27; even as he received of his Father! What were earthly kingdoms and principalities, but vanishing vapours, night-dreams, and vanities? What were the shields of the earth, but bits of half-dead clay; breathing for a few hours, days, and years, at the most, and then returned to dust again? No wonder he loaded the basest of men with the greatest portion of thick clay; such a dunghill was a fit portion for dunghill worms: no wonder he gave so little of earth to his chosen; such gifts are below sublime, heavenly, and divine spirits. Sirs, have we not been ordained for far better and more excellent things than earth's silly glory? It was not our Father's will we should be troubled with many nothings: much clay would have clogged us in our way. He knew best what was suited for us, who cut us short of creature enjoyments. What have we lost, who have received gold for clay, diamonds for common stones, solid satisfaction for vexing vanities, heaven for earth, eternity for time, all things for nothing? All glory to Him that sits upon the throne, and the Lamb. Let the crown eternally flourish on the head of the Purchaser of such superabundant happiness. Oh the great things we have escaped! oh the great things we have attained! And were these joys purchased by sorrow? this golden life, by a shameful and cruel death? this glory, by shame and contempt? this rest, by labour and wrestling? this exaltation, by lowliness and submission? Oh the price,

the price! every sight of the Man, who is God, would overvalue and overbuy ten thousand excellent worlds. Oh my happiness! art thou not of infinite value, though thou wert not, in the thousandth part, what thou art? "What can we render unto the Lord for his wonderful goodness?" what can we, thy eternally bound debtors, do but cry aloud thy excellence? And the more we praise thee, the more our obligation grows upon our hand. O let us ever, in this manner, run ourselves into thy debt. No greater liberty, no higher prerogative, than to be eternally obliged debtors to thy free grace, redeeming, exalting grace. Oh, then, shall I not praise thee, my Redeemer, my Exalter? Shall not boundless eternity be filled with thy praises? Is my happiness life immortal; and shall not my praising be immortal also? Oh this high, high praising frame ! Nothing but rapturous hallelujahs throughout eternity. Oh sirs, is not this frame altogether inexpressible, wholly inconceivable ?

tion of God, in time, eternity; and that to what dwells hid

Even the small breathings of 43. The manifestathese full gales of the Spirit, that nothing to that of blows strongly in this higher re- of eternity, nothing gion, falling down upon the land of den in Himself. grace, filled my heart with such surpassing sweetness, that I could not but cry out, "Lord, my heart is fixed, my heart is fixed; I will sing praise unto thee," Psa. lvii. 7. O let all creatures, in all places of thy dominion, sing forth thy excellences. Let me behold thy name set on high, and the desires of my soul are accomplished. I am enraptured with thy surpassing sweetness, thy overcoming loveliness!

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this heaven, even glory come down to grace's region? or, what can glory be more? But now, now I clearly find these have been but the firstfruits; some drops falling off this boundless ocean and no wonder little seemed exceeding great to a little child; then I could not be capable of glory, in the perfection and bloom thereof. The ground sufficient to bear a tree, in its first arising through the earth, would not be able to bear the least branch when it attained its perfect pitch. Yet the remembrance of thy ways to me, in my childhood, is full of delight. How thou hast brought thy sons to glory, is an eternal wonder. Oh, to think of the wonderful discoveries of thyself to weak mortals! whence thou didst evidence, that thou couldst show forth thine excellency by weakness and emptiness. Did I not sometimes, even when a blockish mortal, live rather by sight than faith? Oh the strange discoveries of thy infinite beauty! from whence arose high flaming love, then zeal for setting thee on high, far above all. Continually were thy praises in my mouth; I desired that all I thought, spake, or did, should tend to thy glory, "for whom are all things," Heb. ii. 10. How tor

mented was I, to see so few on earth for extolling thee! to see almost all minding their own things, and very few thine. How vexed was I, that my heart was so shallow, and my faculties so unfit for glorifying thee! Therefore did I long to be here, for nothing more than to praise thee aright, before this glorious assembly of men and angels. How often have I been crying out, Oh to be an instrument of His superexcellent glory! Let me

be eternally confounded, (abstract from sinning,) if thereby his excellence may be manifested. What are all creatures to him? Let him be exalted, let him be praised, though we all should be abased for evermore. Oh the inexpressible sweetness my soul finds in praising thee! in the bosom of this divine exercise is contained a great reward. It is both the work and the wages; it is happiness to extol thee; it is only hell not to be for thy glory. Oh praise him, for ever praise him, all his works. It is a light thing that thou alone shouldst praise him, oh silly I! Oh when shall I stand among the innumerable assembly of praisers; and tell, and hear told over thine acts, and glory, and wisdom, and infinite excellences for ever and ever! Verily, all thy promises are Yea, and Amen, to those who put their trust in thee. Thou hast given unto me all the desires of my heart now, oh now, I am in the land of praises, in the midst of you. Oh glorious creatures, who for ever sing forth hallelujahs, to Him that sits upon the throne, and the Lamb! it was but the weakness of mortality caused small stirrings appear high and mighty overflowings. Oh glory, glory! thou art indeed substantial and massy. Since glory cannot fully delineate thy excellence, I behold thy amiable countenance to the full, O God of glory; and oh then the enlargement of my heart! oh then the wonderful flames of love! nothing was known, was felt, until now. I have heard some rumour of thee; but now I behold and perceive, that all possible creatures, exalted to the highest pitch of excellence, can never be able to praise thee to the full ;

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