A treatise on comforting afflicted consciences - The Digital Puritan

AFFLICTED CONSCIENCES. 345courses, from Isa. xliv, 22, that as the heat and strength oftlie summer's sun doth disperse and dissolve to nothing athick mist, or foggy cloud, so the inflamed zeal of God'stender love through the bloodshed of his ow^n only dear Soahath done av^'ay all his oflences, his iniquity, transgression,and sin, as though they had never been : and, Micah vii,19, that that God which " delighteth in mercy" (ver. 18)hath cast all his sins into the bottom of the sea, never torise again, either in this world or the world to come. Theprophet alludes to the drowning of the Egyptians in the RedSea ; and therefore they assure him, that as that mightyhost sunk down to the bottom like a stone (Exod. xv, 5), oras lead (ver. 10), so that neither the sun of heaven nor sonof man ever saw their faces any more, so certainly all hissins are so swallowed up for ever in the soul-saving sea ofhis Saviour's blood, that they shall never more appear beforethe face of God or angel, man or devil, to his damnationor shame. Yet for all this, lying in a spiritual swoon, hefinds his heart even key-cold, and as it were stark dead inrespect of relishing or receiving all or any of these incomparablecomforts. The case thus proposed may seem verydeplorable and desperate ;yet consider what good David'sexperience might do in such distress ; what a deal of lifeand light were it able to put into the very darkest damp,and most heartless faintings of such a dying soul, to havesuch a one as IJavid, even a man after God's own heart,remarkably enriched and eminent with heavenly endowments,one of the highest in the book of life and favoui*with God, to assure it, that himself had already suffered asgrievous things in his soul, if not greater, and passedthrough the very same passions and pressures of a troubledspirit, if not with more variety and sorer pangs ; that proportionablyto his pre-ent perplexities, he cried out with amost heavy heart — First, " W ill the Lord cast off for everland will he be favourable no more 1 Is his mercy clean gonefor ever l Doth his promise fail for everm. re 1 Hath God forgottento be gracious? Hath he in anger shut up his tendermercies " ? (Psalm Ixxvii, 7, 8, 9.) Secondly ; That " whenhe remembered God he was troubled " (ver. '6). Thirdly ;That when he prayed unto God, and " complained, hisspirit was overwhelmed." Fourthly; That lie "was sotroubled that he could not speak " (ver. 4). Fifthly ; That" his soul refused to be comforted " (ver. 2), which painfulpassages of his spiritual desertion answer exactly to thecomfortless case of the supposed soul-grieved patient. Nay,and besides assurance of the very sameness in apprehensionsof fear and thoughts of horror, David also out of his