The words are thus:

THis place of Scripture is very useful to the Church of God in these times wherein we live: yea verily this Prophet did not so much pro­phesie to his own age as to ours, nor to the Jew­ish Church as to the Christian. 1 Pet. 1. 12. For unto them it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto us, they did minister the things which are now reported unto you.

[Page 2] The Prophet Isaiah prophesied in the Spirit touching the Kingdom of Christ; which stands not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, and delivers from the Father by the Spirit many excellent promises to be fulfilled in the Son Incarnate, head and mem­bers.

The first promise in this Chapter, is touching the great in­crease of the Church, in the days of the New Testament; that whereas before, the Church was to be found but in one kinred, and tongue, Revel. 5. 9. and people, and nation; now it should be gathered out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. And this is so desireable and comfortable a thing, that in the beginning of the Chapter, he calls upon all to rejoyce at this; vers. 1. Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and shout aloud, thou that didst not travel with childe: for more are the children of the desolate then of the married wife, saith the Lord. En­large the place of thy tent, and let them stretch forth the curtains of thine habitations. Spare not, lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes: for thou shalt break forth on the right hand and on the left, and thy seed shall inherite the Gentiles, and make the desolate cities to be inhabited. So that there shall certainly be a most won­derful and numerous increase of the faithful in the Christian Church, till they become as the stars of heaven, and as the drops of the morning dew, that cannot be told, all of them as­sembled in the beauties of holinesse.

And therefore let us not be over-much troubled, Ʋse. though at present we see, in a numerous nation, but few true children of the spiritual Church; for God shall blesse these few, and bid them increase, and multiply, and replenish the earth: so that though the Assemblies of the Saints be now but thin, and one comes from this place, and another from that, to these Assem­blies, and in many and most places of the Kingdom, these few are fain to come together secretly, for fear of the Jews, that is, the people of the letter; yet through the pouring forth of the Spirit, it shall come to passe, at last, that they shall come in flocks, as doves to their windows. And it shall be said to the Church by the Lord, Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold, all these gather fellows together and come to thee: At I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an [Page 3] ornament, and binde them on thee as a bride doth, &c. till at last the Church shall say in her heart, Who hath begotten me these, see­ing I have lost my children and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these where had they been?

Yea, these very promises are now in the very act of accom­plishing among us; for the spiritual Church hath received a ve­ry great increase, within these few yeers, and God hath many faithful people, in many places of this Kingdom; and of this my self and many more in this Army are witnesses: for having marched up and down the Kingdom, to do the work of God, and the State, we have met with many Christians, who have much Gospel light, and (which makes it the more strange) in such places, where there hath been no Gospel-Ministery; which hath put me in minde of that prophecie, Isai. 66. 8. Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day, or shall a nations be born at once? For as soon as Sion travelled, nay, before she travelled, she brought forth her children. There was no outward Ministery of the Gospel to travel or take pains with them, and yet Sion brings forth her children.

And one thing that is remarkable touching the increase of the Church at this day, is this, That where Christ sends the Mini­stration of the Spirit, there many young people are brought in to Christ, as being most free from the forms of the former age, and from the Doctrines and Traditions of men, taught and recei­ved instead of the pure and unmixed Word of God: whereas many old professors, who are wholly in the form, prove the great­est enemies to the power of godlinesse: and thus the first are the last, and the last first.

Now this great and sudden increase of the faithful, is that which doth so exceedingly trouble the world, and makes them angry at the very heart. For, if they were but a few, mean, con­temptible and inconsiderable persons, whom they might easily suppresse and destroy, they would be pretty quiet: but when they begin to increase in the land, as Israel did in Egypt, and not­withstanding all the burdens of their taskmasters wherewith they are afflicted and grieved, do yet increase abundantly, and [Page 4] multiply, and wax exceeding mighty, till they begin to fill the land; and when they consult to deal wisely with th [...]m, lest they mul­tiply too much, do yet see them grow and multiply the more, that they know not at what Countrey, or City, or Town, or Village, or family, to begin to suppresse them: this is that doth so exceedingly vex and inrage the world, and makes them even mad again, as we see this day. For the increase of the faithful, as it is the glory of the Church, so it is the grief and madnesse of the world. But these men in vain attempt against this increase of the faithful, as the Egyptians against the increase of the Isra­elites; for none can hinder the increase of the Church, but they that hinder God from pouring out his Spirit; and according to the measure of Gods pouring forth the Spirit, is and must be the increase of the Church, in despite of all the opposition of the world.

And thus much touching the first promise, of the Churches Increase.

Now in the words I read to you, the Lord comes to another promise: so that the Lord because of the Churches weaknesse, addes one promise to another; and these promises are nothing but the outgoings and manifestations of his love, through the Word Christ. But to look more neerly upon the words.

Affliction in the world doth so inseparably attend the Church, that the Church even takes its denomination from it, Oh thou afflicted. The condition of the Church, is an afflicted condition. For the Church being born of God, and born of the Spirit, is put into a direct contrariety to the world, which is born of the flesh, and is also of its father the devil. And so the whole world is malignant against the faithful and spiritual Church; and all that are not regenerate, set their faces, yea their hearts and their hands against the Saints; and the unregenerate world is against the regenerate, and the carnal world against the spiritual, and the sinful world against the righteous; and all the people and na­tions [Page 5] in the world, are against that people and nation, which the Apostle calls, a holy nation, and a peculiar people.

As the world cannot endure God in himself, so neither can it endure God in the Saints, and so the more God dwells in the Saints, the more doth the world afflict the Saints: for they oppose not the faithful for any thing of flesh and blood in them, but because that flesh and blood of theirs, is the habitation of God, and the very presence of God himself is there, as he saith, I will dwell in them, and walk in them. Agreeable to this, is that of Christ, where he saith, All this shall they do to you for my Names sake; that is, when the Name of Christ is called upon us, and we are taken into his Name, that is, into his righteous­nesse, and life, and truth, and wisedom, and holinesse, and into his Nature, which comprehends all this; then, when the world perceives the Name of God in the Sons of men, and the nature of God in the natures of men, then presently they fall a perse­cuting the Saints, for this Name and Natures sake; and he that strikes at God in his Saints, would if he could strike at God in himself. And therefore let the world take heed what they do in this point; for while they persecute the Saints, they are found fighters against God himself, because God is one with them, and they are one with God in Christ. And let the Saints be admo­nished so to hide and retire themselves into God through Christ, that whoever is an enemy to them, and opposes them, may rather be an enemy to God, and oppose God then them, they living and acting in God, and not in themselves.

Now this affliction the Church meets with in the world, is profitable for the Church; it is good for it, that it should be affli­cted: for the more it is afflicted in the flesh, the more it thrives in the Spirit: this affliction stirres us up to the exercise of our faith, and prayer; yea, then is our faith most active and vigor­ous, and our prayers most fervent, till they fill the whole heavens again; then are we most in the use of the Word; then are we set off furthest from the world; then do we keep closest to God; then have we neerest intercourse and communion with him: so that we could better want fire, and water, and the sun, then want affliction, which God out of his meer love, through his over-ruling power and wisedom, causes to work unto us for good, [Page 7] So that we who are placed in the hand of Christ, are set in such a condition, wherein nothing can do us any harm for ever, but evil it self must work good unto us. But we proceed.

Where we see that the Church is not onely afflicted, but vi­olently afflicted; one wave comes against it after another, as in a tempest; and the more spiritual the Church is, the more doth the world become as a raging sea against it; because the more spiritual the Church is made, it is set in the more contrariety to the world, and the world to it. The Psalmist describes this tem­per in the world against the Church; They came upon me like a ramping and a roaring Lion: And again, They came upon me to eat up my flesh as they would eat bread. When the Saints have appeared in the Spirit, and acted in the Spirit, how violent and enraged hath the world been against them? it would tosse them as in a tempest from place to place, from post to pillar, as they say, till it hath quite tost them out of the world. Yea, men na­turally meek and moderate, how fierce have they become against the Saints, when there hath appeared any glorious discoveries of Christ in them. For the enmity that is in the seed of the Serpent against the seed of the woman, will be still breaking forth: And though it may for a time be covered under many moral vertues, and a form of godlinesse, yet when God leaves them to them­selves, and lets them act outwardly according to their inward principles, how ernelly, and maliciously, and fiercely, and de­sperately, do they act against the Saint of God? Yea, there is not that enmitie between Turk and Jew, as there is between car­nac Gospellers and spiritual Christians; the former hating these, and being angry against these to the very death. And whenever the Lord shall suffer these to exercise their enmity against the Church, then shall the Churches condition become such as it is here described, afflicted and tossed with tempest.

The Chuurch of God in all the evil it meets withal in the [Page 6] world, hath not one drop of comfort from the world: it hath affliction, tribulation, persecution from the world, but no com­fort.

This we see in Christ the Head; you know what he suffered in the world in the days of his flesh; he was despised and rejected of men, and so full of sorrows, that he took his name from them, and was called A man of sorrows and acquainted with grief: At last, out of meer envie and malice, they apprehended him, bound him, buffeted him, spit on him, crucified him: and all this would have been but a small matter to have suffered from the Heathen; but he suffered all this from the onely visible Church of God in the world, who put him to the most painful and shameful death of the Crosse, between two malefactors, to bear the world in hand that he was the third and the chief. And in all this evil he had no body to pitie him, or have compassion on him; but they laughed at him, and derided him, and mocked and jeered him; but no body comforted him.

And as it was with Christ the Head, so it is with Christ the body and members; they in all the evils, and woes, and sorrows, and oppositions, and persecutions they have from the world, have no body to comfort them, or take compassion on them. Refuge failed me (saith David) no man cared for my soul. Lo­ver and friend hast thou put far from me, and mine acquaintance into darknesse, saith Heman, Psal. 88. 18.

Brethren and Beloved, ye that are partakers of the hea­venly calling and of the divine nature, if ever the Lord suffer the world to prevail against you, to afflict you, and tosse you from one evil [...]o another as in a tempest, to reproach you, throw you out of your comforts. banish you, imprison you, &c. you shall finde no body to comfort you; no body will take notice of you, or regard you, or own you, or pitie you, or be so sensible of your condition, as to say, Alas my brother.

You must look for affliction in the world, but you must look for no comfort there. When God shall cast us into sor­rows and sufferings, let us not look for one worldly man to stand by us, no not of those that now smile upon us, and pretend friendship to us; no nor yet of our neer relations; but then that shall be fulfilled, I was a stranger to my brethren, an alien to my [Page 8] mothers children. Nay yet further; they that are weak or world­ly Christians, will stand aloof from thee, and will be shye to own, and countenance, and encourage, and comfort thee publikely. The disciples of Christ, when he was led to the Crosse, they all forsook him, and fled, and left him to tread the wine-presse alone. And so if you suffer in the righteousnesse and truth of God, you shall finde little comfort from men. O thou afflicted, toss [...]d with tempest, and not comforted.

Now this the Lord doth in much mercy to his Saints; he leaves them destitute of earthly comfort, that they may look for heavenly; he leaves them destitute of all comfort from men, that they may look for comfort from God alone. And therefore when thou art brought into such a case, to be afflicted and not comforted, lift up thy heart to God, and expect all from him. Saith Christ, Joh. 16. The world shall hate you and persecute you, and shall put out of their synagogues, and shall kill you; and in do­ing all this, shall think they do God good service: But, saith he, I will send you the Comforter. Christ knew well enough, that a­mong all these evils, they should have no Comforter on earth, and therefore promises to send them ane from heaven.

And therefore when thy soul is placed in affliction, never look after any earthly, or sensual, or creature-comforts, for they will prove poison to thy soul; but onely look for heavenl [...] com­forts, such as the Spirit brings, such as flow immediately from God; for these are pure, and sweet, and unmixed, and refreshing, and supporting, and satisfying, and enduring comforts; comforts that are able to make thee rejoyce, not onely in fulnesse, but in wants; not onely among friends, but in the midst of enemies; not onely in good report, but in evil report; not onely in prospe­rity▪ but in tribulations; not onely in life, but in death: they will make thee go singing to prison, to the Crosse, to the grave: they are mighty comforts, infinitely stronger then all the sorrows of the flesh: and hence it is that many Saints and Martyrs have gone cheerfully to the stake, and sung in the very flames: the comforts of God in their souls, have strengthned them to this.

Thou that art a believer, and in union with Christ, never doubt of this comfort in thy greatest sorrows. When Christ [Page 9] had none to stand by him and comfort him, God sent an Angel from heaved to do it: And so when we are left alone in the world, rather then we shall want comfort, God will send us an Angel from heaven, to comfort us; yea, the Spirit it self, which is greater then all the Angels in heaven; and we shall certainly be comforted by God, when we are afflicted and tossed with tem­pest, and not comforted by men.

The Lord seeth the Church in its affliction, without all cōm­fort in the world, add then the Lord comes and comforts it him­self; and this he doth by a Promise. They are the sweetest com­forts, that are brought to us in the promises. The promises are the swadling-clothes of Christ, they carry Christ wrapt up in them; and Christ represented to the Church, hath been the comfort of it, in all its evils outward or inward.

And therefore whatever affliction takes hold on thee, have recourse to the Promises, to draw thy comforts from Christ through them. Oh how sweet is that life that is led in the Pro­mises I a life led in the Promises, is the best life in the world. Men that have estates in money or land, depend on those things for their maintenance; but a Christian may have little or no­thing of these in the world, but he hath a Promise, which is a thousand times better, and makes his life more comfortable: I am God All-sufficient; and, I will not fail thee nor forsake thee: whereupon he comes to this resolution, The Lord is my portion, saith my soul, I will trust in him. Oh how sweet a life is this life, that knows no cares, nor fears, nor troubles, nor disquietments: here, saith a believer, lies my estate, and living, and the lot of mine inheritance, and this is a thousand times better and more certain estate, then all the Mannors and Lordships in the King­dom: for, my bread shall be given me, my waters shall be sure: The Lord is my Shepherd, and I shall not want; no not then, when the Lions (the great men of the Kingdom, to whom every poor man is a prey) shall lack and suffer hunger. He that hath given me his own Nature and Spirit, will not leave me destitute of food and clothing.

[Page 10] Take another instance. A man feeling the bitternesse of af­fliction to flesh and blood, is ready to think, Oh how shall I ever be able to suffer this or that, or to part with my relations, with my estate, with my life, and all that is neer and dear unto me? Why then a Christian lays hold on the promise, God is faithful, and will not suffer us to be tempted above that which we are able. O, saith a Christian, God will never bring me to any temptation or trial, but he will give me strength proportionable to it, or above it: and so lives satisfied with the truth, and good­nesse, and power of God. And thus you see in these instances, that a life led in the promises, is the sweetest and best life; when a man can draw all from God himself, through a promise.

And this in general, That God comforts his Church by a promise.

But to come more particularly to the words.

The promise relates to the Spiritual Church of the New Testament: and this you shall observe, is oft in Scripture com­pared to a building, and that to a most stately, sumptuous, ma­gnificent and glorious building; as being all built of precious stones, and so more glorious then the first Temple, which was built up of common stones: and it was prophesied that the glory of the second Temple should far exceed the glory of the first. The first Temple was Solomons, which was indeed filled with the outward presence of God; but the second Temple is the humanity of Jesus Christ, or, the flesh of Christ, both head and members: this is the living temple of the living God, the Temple that God hath built by his Spirit, for his own ha [...]itati­on; wherein God dwels truely, really, spiritually, and most neerly, by the way of the most neer union, whereby God and the creature are knit together: and this Spiritual Temple is [Page 11] more glorious then the first material one, either according to the first edition of it by Solomon, or the second edition of it by the Fathers, in the days of Cyrus, Darius, and Artax­erxes.

Here then you see, that the Lord promiseth to build up the Church of the New Testament, with stones of fair colours, with precious stones. I wil not stand to enquire particularly into the natures of the several stones here named; for the Jews them­selves do not fully agree about them. It shall be sufficient for us to attain to the meaning of the Spirit in this place; and that is this:

That the Spiritual Church of the New Testament, is not to be built with common, but with precious stones.

Now the full sense of these words I shall give you forth in se­veral particulars.

1. You see here the matter of which the Church of the New Testament is made, and that is not of common, but of precious stones; elect and precious stones; and such are the faithful: For,

1. They have a more excellent nature then other men have: for they are born of God, and so partake of the nature of God; and so in this sense may be said to come forth from God, as the childe from the father: and the Lord Jesus did not more truely partake of the nature of man, then these do partake of the nature of God; and therefore saith Peter, Great and preci­ous promises are made to us, that we should be partakers of the di­vine nature. Others have onely the nature of men in them, or, which is worse, the nature of the devil: but the faithful have in them the nature of God communicated to them through a new birth.

2. They have a more excellent spirit then others have; as it was said of Daniel, that there was a more excellent spirit found with him, then with all the other wise men. Now the excel­lency of each creature is according to the spirit of it: but the Saints have the Spirit of God, even the Spirit of the Father and the Son dwelling in them; they have the same Spirit of God dwelling in their flesh, as Christ had dwelling in his flesh: so that the very Spirit of God, is found in the faithful, [Page 12] and therefore they are more glorious then the rest of the world.

3. They have a more excellent lustre then other men. One thing that appertains to the excellency of precious stones, is the lustre of them. Now this lustre in the faithful, is the glory of God upon them: The Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee, saith Isaiah, Chap. 60. And Paul saith, We all beholding as in a glasse the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. So that as Christ was taken into the glory of the Fa­ther, so are we taken into the glory of Christ, as he saith, Joh. 17. And the glory which thou gavest me, I have given them: for the head and members are taken into the same glory, according to their proportion.

4. They have more excellent operations; for the faithful are not such precious stones that are onely for shew, but they also have some vertue in them, even the very vertues of Jesus Christ: for they having the same Nature and Spirit of God as he had, are able according to the measure of the gift of Christ to do the same works that he did: and so the Saints are excellent in the ope­rations of faith, hope, love, humility, meeknesse, patience, tempe­rance, heavenly mindednesse, &c. and in this regard also are more precious then the rest of the world. And therefore the Lord calls them his Jewels, In the day wherein I make up my jewels: and elsewhere they are called the precious sons of Sion. The people of God are a most precious people, men and women of a pre­cious anointing; though some wicked and scurrilous libellers against the spiritual Church will not allow them this name; but (according to the anointing they have received from Sa­tan) reproach it. And yet still it is a truth, that the gates of hell shall not prevail against, That the truely faithful are pre­cious stones in the building of the Church, partaking of the Nature and Spirit of God, and of the lustre and operation of both.

Whereas, on the contrary, other people are the vile of the earth, the true filth and off scouring of all things; Psal. 15. in whose eyes a vile person is contemned: a man that is a natural man, a sinful and unregenerate man, who hath no other na­ture [Page 13] in him, but that corrupt nature he brought into the world, though in this present world he may be a Gentleman, or a Knight, or a Noble-man, or a King, yet in the eyes of God and his Saints, he is but a vile person; and a poor mean Christian that earns his bread by hard labour, is a thousand times more precious and excellent then he, according to the judgement of God and his Word.

And thus much for the first thing, The matter of which the Church of the New Testament is made, and that is of precious stones.

2. Now the next thing observable▪ is the variety of these precious stones. For the spiritual Church is not built up of precious stones of one sort onely, not all of Saphires, or all of Agates, or all of Carbuncles; but of all these, both Saphires, Agates, Carbuncles, and many other precious stones of fair co­lours.

And this notes the diversity of gifts in the Saints of God. For though all of them are precious stones, yet they are of diver­sity of colours, and lustre, and operations: And this also makes for the greater glory of the Church: for the variety of lustre addes to the beauty and ornament of it. In the body of a man, there is not one member, but many. If the body were all but one member, it would be but a lump of flesh; but the variety of members, with their several gifts and operations, are the glory of the body. And so it is in the Church, the Body of Jesus Christ, wherein are divers members, with diversity of gifts and operations, excellently set forth by Paul, 1 Cor. 12. 4. &c. Now there are diversity of gifts, but the same Spirit: and there are dif­ferences of administrations, but the same Lord: and there are di­versities of operations, but it is the same God that worketh all in all. But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every one to profit withal: for to one is given by the Spirit the word of wise­dom, to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; to ano­ther faith by the same Spirit; to another the gift of healing by the same Spirit: to another the working of miracles, to another prophe­cie, to another discerning of spirits, to another divers kind [...]s of tongues, to another interpretation of tongues: but all these work­ [...] that one and the same Spirit; dividing to every [...] [Page 14] he will. Here you see, are diversity of gifts, and administrations, and operations in the faithful; but all proceed from one and the same Spirit; and whatsoever gift proceeds from the Spirit, there is an excellent beauty, a heavenly lustre in it.

And therefore labour to distinguish between those gifts that are connatural to thee, and flow from thy own spirit, and those gifts that are supernatural, and flow from Gods Spirit. In all the operations of thine own spirit, in all thy natural abilities, parts, wisedom, learning, actings, there is nothing but unglori­ousnesse, deformity, darknesse, death, how specious soever they may appear to the world: but in the gifts and operations that flow from Gods Spirit, there is a heavenly beauty, and lustre, and glo­ry; yea, even in weak Christians that are true Christians, you shall oft see and discern an excellent beauty in some gift or other, which they have received from the Spirit; which shines not forth so clearly in some stronger Christians. And therefore let us not expect all gifts in all men, and that every man should excel in every gift; for then one would be saying to another, I have no need of thee. But God hath given diversity of gifts to divers Saints, that each may acknowledge something in another, which he hath not himself, and may reckon his perfection to lie in his union and communion with them; that so the Communion of Saints may be kept up in the world, in despight of the world. One Christian hath the gift of Faith, another the gift of Pray­er, another the gift of utterance in preaching, another the gift of courage, another the gift of meeknesse, and the like; and no man hath all things in himself, that every man in the sight of his own wants may be kept humble. And this is a glorius thing in this building, that the lustre of each stone addes to the lustre of all; and the lustre of all is communicated to each stone: and so in the Spiritual building, what one hath from the Spirit, it is for all; what all have, is for each one. If thou hast the gift of utterance in the ministration of the Spirit, it is to build up me; if I have the spirit of Prayer, it commends thee as carefully to God, as my self: one watches over another, as over his own soul; and if any be weak, the strong support them; if any be doubtful, they that have the gift of knowledge direct them: if one be troubled, the rest mourn with him; if one be comforted, [Page 15] the rest rejoyce with him; and they are all so linked together in the body of Christ, that the good and evil of one extends to all. Where thou canst finde such another communion, there joyn thy self: but if this be the onely excellent communion in the world, who would not willingly joyn himself to that spiritual people, where no man calls his grace his own, but all gifts are in common among all, every one having a share in the faith, hope, love, prayer, peace, joy, wisdome, strength of all, and all having a share, in these gifts and graces, that are in any one? And thus much for the diversity of the stones, as well as the preciousnesse of them.

3. The third thing that reveals the sense of the words, is to observe, that this spiritual building of the Church of the New Testament, is made up all of precious stones, without any mixture of common stones; is made up of Saphires, Agates, Carbuncles; and addes▪ And all thy borders of pleasant stones.

Here then must be no mingling of the precious and the vile, the holy and the profane, the faithful and the unbeliever, the spiri­tual and the carnal; but all must be precious. If a man had a jewel that had here and there onely a precious stone in it, and all the rest common pebbles, there would be no great glory in such a jewel; but the common stones would take off from the lustre of the precious ones: And so the Church is Gods jewel in the world, and it must be made up onely of precious stones, as you see here. And where are their eyes, that perceive not this?

There be some that talk much against New Doctrine, which is the old reproach of the Gospel; but surely, there was never newer Doctrine then this, That the Spiritual Church of the New Testament, should be made up of all the people that live in a Kingdom▪ and that all that are born in such a Nation, should ne­cessarily be stones for the building up the new Jerusalem. This is a new Doctrine indeed, which neither the Old nor the New Te­stament owns; but was conveyed into the world by the spirit of Antichrist. For God doth not now make any people, or kinred, or nation his Church: but gathers his Church out of eve­ry people, and kinred, and nation: and none can be stones of this building, but those that are first elect, and after made precious, [Page 16] through a new birth, and the gift of the Spirit. And this Do­ctrine the Word will justifie against the world; for Paul writing to the Churches of Ephesus and Corinth, &c. doth he mean all the people that lived at Ephesus or Corinth? No; but the faithful and elect children by adoption, Saints by calling, and saith, So it was meet for him to judge of them all. And if any were mistaken for a Saint that was none, surely he carried himself very like one; he was outwardly in sheeps clothing, or he had not been reckon­ed among the flock: and so if a stone be taken into this building, that is not truely precious, yet it is so like one in shew and co­lour, that it can hardly be discerned to be other, but a very skil­ful Lapidary. And indeed such a mistake there may be in Christs Kingdom here, that a few counterfeit stones may be taken up among many precious ones: but that is the mistake of a false Church, where a thousand counterfeit ones are taken in for one truely precious; wherein for one faithful Christian, there are many formalists, and many more profane. This is not such a building the Prophet speaks of; for this is all of elect and precious stones. But I cannot enlarge on these things, because this exercise I in­tend chiefly as an Exposition: onely I will adde one or two things more, touching this particular, and so go on.

1. If the Church of the New Testament is to be built all of precious stones, what a building is that, where the onely care is, to keep these stones out of the building, lest by their glory and lustre they should darken the rest?

2. Consider, when the Church shall be built up all of such precious stones, what a glorious Church will that be, when the glory of the Lord shall shine forth in every stone of this build­ing? how will there be then glory upon glory, till the glory of the Church first darken, and then put out all the glory of the world?

3. Consider, what great enemies they are to the true and native glory of the Church, that would have every man in a Kingdom a member of the Church, and would have those ta­ken into the flock, that are none of Christs sheep; and those ta­ken into the Church of God, that are not of God; and would gather up any stones to make up this Temple of God. These are the men that would keep off those glorious things from being fulfilled in the Church, which are spoken of it.

[Page 17] 4. We are to take notice, who is the builder of such a stru­cture as this, all made up of pretious stones: and you shall finde in the Word, that the builder and maker of it is God. I will doe it, saith the Lord, behold, I will lay thy stones with faire colours, and I will lay thy foundations with Saphirs, and I will make thy windowes of Aggates; it is all Gods worke from the beginning to the end. For who can build unto God a living temple to dwell in but himselfe? This the Prophet speaks plainly, where he saith, the man whose name is the branch, he shall build the temple of the Lord, even he shall build it. It lies in the power of no man, to make such a building as this is; what wild and wofull work do men make, when they will undertake to be building the Chu [...]ch, by their owne humane wisedome and prudence and counsell? when they think, we will have the Church of God thus and thus; and we will make it up of such and such men; and we w [...]ll govern it, by such and such Lawes: and we will get the power of the Magistrate to back ours; & then what we cannot do by the power of the Word & Spirit, we will do by the power of fl [...]sh and blood: Poore men! that think that these new heavens where in the Lord will dwell, must be the work of their own fingers; or that the new Ierusalem must of necessity come out of the Assembly, which is to come down from God out of heaven: or that they can build the house of God all of pretious stones, whereas this must be Gods own work and his own doing; and no State or Councel in the world can bring this about; and after much tryall and paines and wearinesse the Lord will at last teach his own, that the gathering and laying these pretious stones together, must be the Lords owne doing, even his own doing.

When the building of the Church is left to men, how wo­fully is it mannaged? why saith one, we must needs admit such an one, he is the chiefe man in the Parish, or he is a man of good esteem in the world, or he is a Nobleman, or he is my neere kinsman, or is thus and thus related to mee, or he is a good civill faire dealing man, and we must needs ad­mit him; and thus will flesh and blood bee ever mak­ing a carnall temple for God to dwell in, but Gods [Page 18] true habitation, can never be framed but by the Spirit.

And therefore, for the building of the Church, let us look higher then the highest instruments; for it must be the Lords own work by the Word and Spirit: and though every man be against it, and oppose it, yet the Lord will doe it; when there are no hands to build it up, he will build it up without hands. I will lay thy stones with, &c. It followes

See here how the Prophet by the Spirit carries up the Saints above all visible and sensible things, even as high as God himselfe; God ( saith he to the Church) shall build thee and God shall teach thee; all thy children shall be taught of the Lord. The note is this, That all the true and genuine children of the Church have Gods own teaching, in all the things of God; they have the Father and the Sonne, to teach them by the Spirit. This truth Christ himselfe confirmes, where he saith, It is written that they shall be all taught of God, he therefore that heard and learned of my father com­meth to me. And againe, the spirit when he is come he shall lead you into all truth; Which doctrine John after preached thus, 1 Ioh. 2. 27. The anointing which ye have received of him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man should teach you, but as the same anointing teacheth you all things.

Hereby now we perceive, how few true children of the Church there be, among those who are commonly called Christians; for among all these, how few are there who have the teaching of God? but most have their teaching only from men, and no higher.

Consider therefore I pray, whether the knowledge you have be from the teaching of God, or the teaching of man; you all pretend to know that Christ is the Son of the living God, and that redemption and salvation is by him alone; but how came ye by this knowledge? did you read it in the letter? or did some body tell you so? or hath God himselfe taught you this? For no man knowes the Sonne but [Page 19] the Father and he to whom the Father will reveale him; and therefore when Peter said, thou art Christ the Son of the living God, Christ answered, flesh and blood hath not taught thee this, but my Father which is in heaven. And so though all of you pro­fesse your selves Christians, yet none of you know Christ truly, but only such as are taught of the Father. And this holds in all other points, as touching calling, and faith, and union, and justification and sanctification, and the gift and sealing of the Spirit, touching the spirituall Kingdome of Christ and the Government of it; oh consider, whether you have the teaching of God in these things or no; and if you have not the teaching of God, you are none of the children of the Church; what ever truth thou knowest from the letter, if thou hast not the teaching of the Spirit, it will doe thee no good: thou knowest not any thing spiritually and savingly, wherein thou hast not the teaching of God. All thy children shall bee taught of the Lord.

And therefore what a sad thing is it, when men look for their teaching no farther then men? they only look to the Minister, or to such an able, learned, Orthodox man, as they phrase it; or at the highest to the Assembly; and what they shall teach them, they are resolved to stand by it, and build upon it, for their foundation; in the meane time ne­ver regarding in truth, the teaching of God: but say, what can so many grave, learned, godly men, erre? and shall not wee believe what they determine? why now these are none of the children of the spirituall Church; for they neither have Gods teaching, nor care for it: but the spirituall Church is all taught of God.

Object. But you will say, doth God teach without meanes?

Answ. I Answer no: God teacheth, but it is by the Word, and that chiefly in the Ministry of it: and he that pretends to bee taught of God without the Word, is not taught of God, but of the Devill. And therefore no man is to despise the Ministry of the Word, which is Gods own Ordinance, and to depend upon I know not what revelati­ons and inspeakings without the word; seeing God teacheth all [Page 20] his children by the word and none without it. And therefore it is not the Prophets meaning, when he saith all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, that they should neglect and despise the Word, and the Ministry of it; but that we ought so use the Word and the meanes, as not to look for our teaching from them, but from God himselfe in and through them; and when you come to heare, not to think, I will heare what Mr such an one, or Mr such one will say, but with the Psalmist, I will hear what the Lord God will say. And truly, I would not care to hear what any man in the world would say, in whom Christ himselfe did not speake.

Now much more might be said of this teaching of God (but that I intend brevity in all) as namely, that this teaching

1. Is a clear and evident teaching, that you shall have cer­tainty in what you are taught: and shall be so taught of God no man or Angel shall be able to unteach you againe.

2. It is an inward teaching though by the outward Word; reaching to the inward soule and spirit, to the hidden man of the heart.

3. It is a successefull teaching; he so teaches as men learn; he that hath heard and learned of my father; hearing and learning goe together: hee teaches faith, and wee believe; humility, and wee are humble; patience, and wee en­dure, &c.

But I cannot enlarge any farther in this point. It fol­lowes

That is, when men are taught of God, then there is no­thing but peace among them; when God comes and teacheth thee and me and another, and many, then we all agree, be­cause we are all taught of God▪ and see all things by the same light, and apprehend all things by the same knowledge, and perceive all things by the same spirit, because all have the same teaching. And so they that are taught of God, though one come out of the East and another out of the West, and [Page 21] another out of the South, and never had any former commu­nion together, yet they all agree in the same truth, and think and speak the same things, and so there is love and amity and peace and unity among them, because they are all taught of God, and have learned the truth, not as it is in this or that man, or assembly of men, but as it is in Iesus.

And truly, this is the true ground of all the differences and dissentions, and heats that are in the Kingdome, at this time, to wit, because some are taught of God, and some are not taught of God, but of men only: the carnall Church is only taught of men and goes no higher; but the spiri­tuall Church is truly taught of God. Now they that are taught of God, and they that are taught of men, see the same truths, with a great deale of difference, and here­upon arises the Controversie and quarrell; for one will have the truth, as hee sees it in the light of God; ano­ther will have it, as hee apprehends it in his own fancy: and the carnall man, will not yeeld to the spirituall, and the spirituall man cannot yeeld to the carnall. Saith one, this is the minde of God, and I have learned it from his own teaching; saith another, this is not the minde of God, for such a learned Minister, or Ministers, taught me otherwise, and so I apprehend it; and thus as the flesh and spirit are contrary, so are their teachings; and hence our divisions and troubles. But when men are all taught of God, then they are all at peace one with another, and all doe agree in the substance of the truth of the Gospel; and if some doe not know the same things they doe, they can waite with patience, till God also reveale that unto them; for they know with all their hearts, that they themselves could never have known those things, except God had taught them: and so they cannot be angry at others, whom the Lord as yet hath not vouchsafed to teach: and so they are meeke, and gentle towards all as be­seemes the spirit, as well as at peace among themselves. All thy children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall bee the peace of thy children: For they know that no man is higher or lower then another in the Kingdome of God, but all are equall in Iesus Christ; they know that no man can [Page 22] challenge Christ more to himselfe then another, but all have equall interest in him, and Christ is alike neer to all in whom he dwells, yea they all as willingly communicate their owne things to the brethren, as they themselves doe partake of Christs things; and so there is nothing but peace. When men know that no man is any thing in h [...]mselfe, but every one is all that he is in Christ: and when men love Christ meerly for himself, and where they see most of Christ, there love most, and if Christ be more in another then him­self, can love such a one more then himselfe, not for his owne sake but for Christs sake; then there is nething but peace. Great shall be the peace of thy children.

This spirituall Church had need of establishment; for when God hath done all this for it, when he hath built it, and taught [...]t himselfe, it shall not want trouble and oppo­sition and contradiction and persecution in the world, and ther­fore it stands in great need of establishment. But how shall this be done? Why saith he,

That is, not by any outward power or force, or armies, or fortifications, or factions or confederacies, all these are but a staffe of reed; but in righteousnesse, and that is both in the righteousnesse of Christ received by us, and working in us: the first is, the righteousnesse of justification: the second is, the righteousnesse of sanctification, and our establishment lies in both.

1. In the righteousnesse of Iustification, which is called the righteousnesse of faith, or Christs owne righteousnesse received into us; and in this sense it is said, Except ye beleeve ye shall never be established: for by faith we partake of the righte­ousnesse of God through Christ, and this is an infinite and everlasting righteousnesse, that hath neither spot nor blemish in it, this is able to establish us for ever and ever; so that [Page 23] the Church hath no more establishment, then it hath of the righteousnesse of Christ by faith; and as the Church goes from faith to faith, so it goes from establishment to establish­ment.

2. Our establishment lies, in the righteousnesse of our sanctification; which is nothing but Christ working in us, as the former was Christ dwelling in us; for the same Christ that is the righteousnesse of our justification, is the righteous­nesse of our sanctification. Now the establishment of the Church is, when we let the righteousnesse of Christ worke all in us, and we worke all in the righteousnesse of Christ; then are we established mightily and invincibly indeed, and how much Christians swerve from this Rule, so much they become weake and unsetled: sometimes Christians will bee living out of Christ in themselves, and they will be moving and acting and working according to humane wisedome and prudence and the counsels and devises of flesh and blood, but in all this they have no establishment at all. And therefore ye that are faithfull, see to it, that ye turne aside neither to the right hand nor to the left, through any worldly hopes or fears, but do ye live and act in the righteousness of Christ, and as the Lord lives, though you have Kingdomes and Nati­ons for your enemies, you shall not be moved, but shall bee established more firmely then the earth.

And therefore I pray consider your establishment where it lies, and that is in righteousnesse, and in righteousnesse only. Some trust to this strength, and some to that some to this aid, and some to that; but the spirituall Church scorns to trust to any creature for establishment, but looks to be establisht only in righteousnesse; and because of this, neither men nor devils shall prevaile against it. And therefore you that are of this Temple and building which is made by God, seeing you have so many enemies on all hands, pray look to your esta­blishment, which is in righteousnesse: In righteousnesse shalt thou be established.

[Page 24] Thou shalt be far from oppression for thou shalt not fear, and from terror, for it shall not come neer thee.

The feare and terror he speakes of here, is inward feare and terror, from which the Church shall be free, in the midst of all outward evills; for though the Church be full of danger and persecution without, yet it is free from feare and terror within; Nay the Church hath trouble without, but peace within; affliction without, joy within; weaknesse without, strength within; imprisonment without, liberty w [...]th­in; persecution without, content within: against all the sor­rowes and suffering of the flesh, they have refreshings, com­forts, hopes, sweetnesses, rejoycings, triumphs in the spirit, and so in the midst of evill, are free from evill, and in the midst of sufferings are free from paine, yea they rejoyce in tribula­tions, and in the midst of evil, are fild and satisfied with good.

A very strange thing it is, that the spirituall Church, being thus builded, and taught, and establisht, any should yet be so blinde and mad as to ingage against it; and yet the world, and the carnall Church especially doth this: yea the more pure and s [...]irituall the Church is, the more enmity the world and Formalists have against it.

When they shall see the Churches gathering together into the true communion of Saints, then will they gather them­selves together against the Churches; And why doe these men blame the Churches for gathering together unto Christ, when they themselves gather together against the Church, as we daily see? Indeed the gathering together of the Saints, the world doth most hate of all other things: Oh, this is a dreadfull and terrible thing to them, it makes their hearts ake within them, and looseth the joynts of their loines; they [Page 25] think their exaltation, will be their owne abasement, and their gathering together, their owne scattering, and their glory their owne shame, and their strength, their owne un­doing; and cut of these conceits the world acts so strongly and furiously to scatter abroad again Christs owne gathe­rings together. But the Lord hath decreed and promised to hew that little stone of Christs spirituall Church, out of the mountaine of the world, without hands, and will certainly ac­complish it, and is now about this very businesse; but the world that never looks beyond sense, they think this is sure­ly a plot of ours, and that we have a great designe in hand, and so we have indeed; but the designe is not our designe, but Gods, contrived in eternity, and discovered to Daniel chap. 2. and this is the setting up a Kingdome of Saints in the world, under Christ the King of Saints, wherein the people shall live alone in point of spirituall worship and communi­on, and shall have nothing to doe with the rest of the Nations. This councell of God begins to be accomplished, and the world thinkes that we are subtile, and wee are mighty, wher­as they are cleerly mistaken in us; for the wisedome and strength wherby this is done is Gods and not ours. For it is the Lord must build this spirituall Church, and set it up in the world, and preserve it against the world, and cause it to in­crease till it fills the world; so that the designe and the ac­complishment of it, belongs to God and not to us, and they that are displeased at it, let them go and quarrel against God: and so they will certainly do, through the operation of the Devill; Behold, saith he, they shall surely gather together: As soon as ever the Church separates from the world, the world gathers together against the Church.

Yea this place is not only to be understood of those that are open enimies without the Church, but of a generation in it, that are not of it, and so the gathering together against the Church, shall be in the Church: and so Calvin inter­prets, and such a thing will assuredly come to passe, that the Church as well as the Kingdome will have domestick ene­mies; it hath been so in all ages, and what wonder will it be, if it be so in this? The first division in this Kingdome, [Page 26] was between common profession, and open prophannes [...]e, and if ever there be another, it is like to lye between the form and the power of godlinesse; and the children that are borne after the flesh, will up and be persecuting them that are borne after the Spirit, and the deepest wounds we shall receive will be in the house of our friends; not our friends indeed, but of such who seem to be so; for they pray as well as we, and preach and heare, and receive the Sacraments, and use the same or­dinances with us; and yet their enmity, of all other will be the greatest against us, and we shall receive deeper wounds in the house of these friends, then in the streets of our enemies. They shall gather together in thee, against thee.

The Saints gather together by God, having the Spirit of God to bring them into union and communion: but the car­nall Church gathers together against the spirituall, not by God, but without him, for worldly base ends and interests, and profits, and advantages. But mark the end of such ga­thering together:

Whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall for thy sake.

Wee have seen the accomplishment of this promise with our eyes; even a great party of the greatest men in the King­dome, as well as of meane ones, gathered together against the Church, but all fallen: What is become of the great power, and armies, that were in the West and the North, and other parts of the Kingdom, are they not fallen through the strength of this promise? and if any new party shall rise up againe, they shall also fall in like manner,

For the Lord loves the Church the body of Christ, even as he loves Iesus Christ himselfe; thou hast loved them as thou hast loved me; he loves Head and Members with the same love: The Lords people are his portion on earth, as he is theirs [Page 27] in heaven, and so he will give Nations and Kingdomes for them, and hath said, The Nation and kingdome that will not serve thee shall perish▪ yea those Nations that be utterly wasted; On that this Kingdome in it selfe, and in its representati­on, would avoid this evill as they would escape this end. The 4. Monarchies for opposing the Spirituall Church, have fallen for its sake; and so shall every other Kingdome and Common wealth, that undertakes against it.

Thou art saith God to the Church, a small, weak, despi­sed, contemned, persecuted people; but thy safety, protection, blessing, lyes in me, and in my power, and wisedome, and lovs;

That is, I have formed him that makes the Sword and Gun and Pike, and that prepares the Ammunition; and both he that makes the weapon and he that useth it, are in my hands, and they shall only do what I would have them do, and no more: and so

God blunts the edge of the weapon, and weakens the hand, and puts fear into the heart of him that useth it; and so no weapons that have been used have prospered hitherto, and if any more weapons shall be used hereafter, they shall be as unprosperous as these.

Two wayes you see the enemies of the Church assault the Church, by their hands, and by their tongues; and this latter way is the more dangerous of the two: by the former they scourge the Church with rods, by this latter with Scorpions. This weapon of the tongue is the most dangerous weapon that ever was used against the Church in any age, and the last refuge of the Devill and his instruments to annoy the Church. And thus when the enemy failes at the strength of his weapons, he undertakes againe with the malice of his tongue: and with this, the enemy strikes against the Saints that professe the truth, and against the truth it selfe professed by the Saints.

Against the Saints that professe the truth, clothing them with odious names, and loading them with base aspertions, Independents and Sectaries and Schismaticks and Hereticks; & some such there are indeed in the Kingdome, but they abuse the precious Saints of God, with these and other reproaches, and so crucifie Christ againe in his body, not between two theeves, but between two hundred theeves, that so it may be the greater difficulty to discerne him: Their tongues rise up in judgement against them; it intimates, they shall have specious pretences against the Church, Oh these are the men that would turn the world upside downe, that make the Nati­on full of tumults and uproares, that work all the disturbance in Church and State; it is fit, such men and Congregations should be suppressed, and that they should have no imploy­ment in Church or State; it will never be a quiet world till some course be taken with them, that we may have truth and peace and government againe. And thus they have faire pretences against the godly, and use the glorious names of truth, peace and government, to the destruction of them all. And this is the sense of these words, for their tongues to rise up in judgement against them.

Yea, me thinks this phrase intimates thus much, as if they [Page 29] would call in the aide and power of the secular Magistrates against the spirituall Christians; and then their tongues rise up in judgement against them indeed, and except they engage the Magistrates power against the Saints, they think they can never doe them mischiefe enough. And thus their tongues rise up in judgement against the Saints that professe the truth.

2. As the enemy strikes with their tongue, against the Saints that professe the truth, so also against the truth professed by the Saints: and this they call by way of reproach new light, as their predecessors, at the beginning of the breaking forth of the Gospel in this Kingdome, called it, New learning: yea, they call the truth, error; and the very minde of Christ in the word, heresie; and the power of godlinesse, Independency; and the contending for the faith once given to the Saints, fa­ction, and sedition, and the like; and this grieves the Saints a thousand times more then any personall reproaches, to heare the truth and light and life and spirit of the Gospel, despised and spoken against, and blasphemed; this is that, that fetches not only teares from their eyes, but even drops of blood from their hearts: the truth of God being much dearer to them then their estates, or names, or lives.

But see how God conquers this weapon of the enemies tongue to the faithfull, aswell as the former weapons of their hands; every tongue that riseth up in judgement against thee thou shalt condemne. All that speake, and rage and raile, and reproach and slander and vilifie and abuse the Saints, either by their tongues or pens, thou by thy uprightnesse, integrity, in­nocency, truth, faithfulnesse, shalt condemn them: thy wayes and thy works that are led and acted in Christ and his Spirit, shall be the condemnation of all thine enemies; and their misreports and slanders shall be done away as a mist before the Sun; and thy righteousnesse and integritie shall break forth in that clearnesse and brightnesse and strength, that they shall sit down astonished and amazed; and they shall be condemned, not only by the word, and by the Saints, but by all the common morality of the world, yea, and by their own conscience; so that they shall carry their guilt with them [Page 30] night and day, and shall not be able to look the godly in the face, whom they have so reproached; the very presence of the Saints shall be the condemnation of their enemies, who have before so unworthily judged them: yea the whole world shall see the faithfulnesse and integrity of the Saints of God, and shall justifie them and condemne their enemies; and shall say, lo, these are the men, that the world judged for Sectaries, and Schismaticks, and what not; see how faithfull they have beene to God and the true Church of God, and to the State, and surely th [...]y must needs be bad men, that are enemies to these. And thus while our enemies judge us, they shall be condemned themselves. And this shall certainly be done, as sure as the word of God is true, and as sure as the Lord lives, to make good his word: For

That is, you shall have this by as sure right as any man hath an inheritance that is entailed upon him. This is your heritage O ye servants of the Lord, to make voyd the force of every weapon that is used against you, and to condemne every tongue that judgeth you. This promise is our portion, & the lot of our inheritance, and in this we rejoyce, that while we serve the Lord truly and faithfully, neither the hands nor tongues of the enemy shall hurt us, but in the end we shall be more then Conquerours over all. Let my portion fall in this pleasant place, and I shall have a goodly heritage.

That is, these servants of mine are not men of a humane and morall righteousnes only, but they pertake of the righteousnes of God in Christ, Their righteousnesse is of me; or thus, though they are sinners before the world (for as the world reckons their own sinne for righteousnesse, so it reckons Gods righte­ousnesse for sin) yet they are righteous before me and in my eyes. So that how ever the world reckons us evill doers, and [Page 31] not worthy to live in the world, yet God reckons us righteous, and our righteousnesse is before him.

To conclude, seeing God hath engaged himselfe to secure us in his wayes both from the weapons and tongues of men, Goe and tell the Foxes that we will walk with­out feare in the world both to day and to morrow, and the third day we shall be perfected.