vish one; but look on God in Christ as the trysting-place himself has fet, for receiving the addrefies of the guilty on a throne of grace: 2 Cor. v. 19. "God was in Chrift, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trefpaffes unto them." This is the way to reprefs and curb the horrible effects of flavish fear, to make love to God, faith, and hope, fpring up in the foul, and fo mould that fear of thine into filial fear and reverence. In a God out of Chrift thou canft difcern nothing but inflexible juftice, and the utmost terror; and from his throne of unvailed majesty, hear nothing but terrible voices, thunders, and earthquakes. But in a God in Chrift thou mayeft behold bowels of mercy, and flowing compaffions; and from the throne of grace hear the still small voice of mercy and peace, Ifa. XXXV. 3. 4.

(5.) At what time foever you find the fear of God's wrath begin to choak the love of God in your hearts, or to drive you away from him in any way, check and curb that fear refolutely, let it not proceed, though you were in the time under the most atrocious fin: Pfal. lxv. "Ini3. quities prevail against me; as for our tranfgreffions, thou wilt purge them away." For then you are in the march between God's ground and the devil's; and there is a wind from hell, blowing up the fire of fear, that will confume you, if it be not quenched; for the feparation of the foul from God, and its going away from him, can in no cafe fail to be of a ruining nature: and the more that it increases with a person, his heart will be the more hardened, and he will be fet the farther off from repentance.

(6.) Greedily embrace any gleam of hope from the Lord's own word, and hang by it. Ye fhould do like Benhadad's fervants, and fay, We have

heard

heard that the king of Ifrael is a merciful king, and we hope he will fave us, 1 Kings, xx. 31. The apostle calls hope the Chriftian's head-piece, I Theff. v. 8. not to be thrown away in a time of danger.

Laftly, Come away refolutely to the Lord Jefus, lay hold on him in the gofpel-offer, and confent to the covenant: Heb. vii. 25. "He is able to fave to the uttermoft all that come unto God by him." Lay hold on the horns of this our altar, and you shall not die; he will swallow up death ́ in victory, Ifa. xxv. 8. Flee into this city of refuge; the avenger fhall not overtake thee. Do as the lepers of Samaria did, reasoned with themfelves, and went to the camp, where meat was to be found. Thou art like to fink in a fea of wrath, Jefus holds out his hand to draw thee afhore. Thou art afraid, perhaps, it is not to thee, it is vain to try; but know that it is the hand that must take thee out, or thou art a gone man; neglecting to take hold, thou art ruined; otherwise, thou can't be but ruined.

4. When is the fear of the Lord holy, filial, and reverential, such as the Lord takes pleasure in?For your fatisfaction in this inquiry, I would answer,

(1.) When the chief spring of it is not our own harm, but God's infinite excellence and perfection ftriking an awe upon the foul: Gen. xxviii. 17. "And Jacob was afraid, and faid, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and the gate of heaven.” On this account,

God was called the fear of the holy patriarchs, while in the world, Gen. xxxi. 42. Thus ingenuous children fear their parents, not because of the ill they may do them, but because of that authority and fuperiority they have over them.L 3

When

When the foul is awed into a profound reverence for God, by the confideration of his tranfcendent excellence in all things, this is a becoming or true filial fear.

(2.) When the offending of God is feared as the greatest evil. A graceless man may fear the punishment of fwearing, but a righteous man feareth an oath, Ecclef. ix. 2.; the former may fear the threatening as the greatest evil, but the righteous feareth the commandment, and shall be rewarded, Prov. xiii. 13. What would the most of the world fear about fin, if they were fecured against wrath? Nothing. But the fearer of God, his great fear would remain notwithstanding, viz. the difpleafing of his gracious Father.

(3.) When fear of his wrath is joined with a kindly affection and love to him, Pfal. xc. 11.13. No man fears God who has not dread of his anger, and the more grace, the more of this dread; fo that a godly man will fear a frown more than another a ftroke of his hand. But withal this does not ftraiten the heart, but enlarge it in love to him; for these perfections of God that are the most proper objects of fear, are beautiful and lovely in the eyes of a faint; and therefore under the effects of his anger, they condemn themselves and juftify God.

Lastly, When the fear of God draws the finner to God and makes him cling to him, Hof. iii. 5. "They fhall feek the Lord their God, and David their king; and shall fear the Lord and his goodness in the latter days." As if he had faid, They fhall fear away to the Lord, like a good-natured child under fear of his parent, running away to him, and catching hold of him; the language of which is, Any thing but feparation from my holy Father. Holy fear alfo keeps the foul

with the Lord, Jer. xxxii. 40. "I will put my fear in their hearts, and they shall not depart from me," and that upon the fame principle.

5. How doth this fear work in the gracious foul? To this question I answer, Holy fear is an influential grace, diffusing its influence through the whole man, and therefore all religion is often comprehended under the name of fear of God.

(1.) It makes God's verdict of things in his holy law the man's complete ftandard. In matters of faith, it caufes him believe that God has faid it; in matters of practice, to do or forbear, because God has bid or forbid it, though his own reason and all the world fhould contradict, Prov.iii. 7. "Be not wife in thine own eyes; fear the Lord, and depart from evil." Holy fear awes the foul into implicit compliance with all that an incomprehenfible God makes known in his word. So was Abraham brought to offer his fon, and the fear of God carried him over all obftructions, Gen. xxii.

12.

(2.) It awes the soul into abstaining from fuch fins as there is no other awe-band against. There are fome cafes of temptation, wherein there is nothing from any creature to marr compliance with it, the way is quite clear on that part. But then the fear of God will be a fufficient restraint. Sometimes thou mayeft have a fair occafion to wrong thy neighbour, and there is no fear of his knowing thou didst it; but if thou fearest God, thou dareft not for thy foul do it, more than if all the world were looking on thee, Lev. xix. 14. "Thou shalt not curfe the deaf, nor put a ftumbling-block before the blind, but fhalt fear thy God, I am the Lord." Sometimes occafions for fin occur, and men will bear thee out in the finful practice; but if thou feareft God, thou dareft

not

not do it, more than if all the world fhould conspire to hinder thee, Job, xxxi. 21.-23. Holy Providence lays fuch occafions before men for their trial.

(3.) It awes the foul into compliance with duties, even fuch as one has no other thing to drive him to, Ecclef. xii. 13. " Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man." Holy fear reverenceth the authority of God, not only in abstaining from fin, but in complying with duties, Deut. vi. 13. Thou fhalt fear the Lord thy God, and ferve him." Thofe who have no inward principle to fet them on to duty, have no fear of God before their eyes. But that principle will carry a man to duty, over the belly of oppofition and contradiction, from Satan, an evil world, and the corrupt reasonings of one's own heart.

(4.) It makes one mainly fear the offence of God in the commission of sin, and omission of duties. The great care of a fearer of God is, lest he depart from God, Jer. xxxii. 40.; holy fear and love are always joined, and therefore he that truly fears God, hates fin, and loathes it, because God hates it, Prov. viii. 13. "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil." He loves his duty because it is pleafing in the Lord's fight; whereas others hate fin for fear of wrath, and only love duty for the fake of the reward. It fuffers not the foul to reft in any degree of holiness already attained, but spurs it on towards perfection: 2 Cor. vii. 1. "Having, therefore, these promifes, dearly beloved, let us cleanfe ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." As Noah's fear made him not only begin the ark, but advance the work till it was perfected, fo this holy fear