A treatise on comforting afflicted consciences - The Digital Puritan

246 INSTRUCTIONS FOR COMFORTINGhim, and become another man's, shall he return unto heragain 1 shall not that land be greatly polluted ? But thouhast played the harlot with many lovers yet return again;to me, saith the Lord/' (Jer. iii, 1). " Oh that my peoplehad hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways !1 should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned myhand against their adversaries. The haters of the Lordshould have submitted themselves unto him : but their timeshould have endured for ever. He should have fed themalso with the finest of the wheat : and with honey out ofthe rock should I have satisfied thee" (Psalm Ixxxi, 13— 16). " O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousnessas the waves of the sea : thy seed also had been asthe sand, and the offspring of thy bowels like the gravelthereof; his name should not have been cut off nor destroyedfrom before me" (Isa. xlviii, 18, 19).8. His merciful almightiness in putting life andlightsomenessinto the most dead and daikest heart. " Seek him,"saith the prophet, " that maketh the seven stars and Orion,and turneth the shadow of death into the morning " (Amosv, 8). Suppose thou settest thyself to seek God's face andfavour, and art presently set upon with this temptation —But alas! my soul is so black with sin and dark with sorrow,that it is to no purpose for me to proceed. But now,in this case, consider who he is that thou seekest. It is hethat made of nothing those beautiful, shining, glorious constellations,Orion and the Pleiades ; he it is that turneth thedarkest midnight into the brightest morning.9. Christ's sweetest, dearest, most melting invitations ofall truly troubled souls for sin unto the well of life, andtheir own everlasting welfare. " Come unto me, all yethat labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest "(Mat. xi, 28). " O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest theprophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, howoften would I have gathered thy children together, even asa hen gathereth her chickens under her wings," &c. (Matt,xxiii, 37). " And when he was come near, he beheld thecity, and wept over it, saying. If thou hadst known, eventhou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong untothy peace!" (Luke xix, 41, 42.) " In the last day, thatgreat day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, Ifany man thirst, let him come unto ir^e and drink " (Johnvii, 37).10. Experience perhaps of the comforter, converted froma more wicked and desperate course than the patient himself.And it doth not a little refresh the heart of him, who