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His Spirit in the gospel chariot rides,

And thews his loving heart to draw the bride's; Though oft in clouds his drawing pow'r he hides.

His love in gracious offers to her bears,
In kindly answers to her doubts and fears,
Refolving all objections more or lefs

From former fins, or prefent worthleffnefs.
Perfuades her mind of's conjugal confent,
And then impow'rs her heart to fay, Content.
Content to be divorced from the law,
No more the yoke of legal terms to draw.
Content that he diffolve the former match,
And to himself alone her heart attach.
Content to join with Christ at any rate,
And wed him as her everlafting mate.
Content that he fhould ever wear the bays,
And of her whole falvation have the praife.
Content that he should rife, though the fhould
And to be nothing, that he may be all. [fall,
Content that he, because fhe nought can do,
Do for her all her work, and in her too.
Here fhe a peremptory mind difplays,
That he do all the work, get all the praise.
And now fhe is, which ne'er till now took place,
Content entirely to be fav'd by grace.

She owns that her damnation just would be,
And therefore her falvation nuft be free :
That nothing being hers but fin and thrall,
She must be debtor unto grace for all.
Hence comes fhe to him in her naked cafe,
To be invested with his righteoufnefs.
She comes, as guilty, to a pardon free;
As vile and filthy, to a cleanfing fea:

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As poor and empty, to the richest stock;
As weak and feeble, to the ftrongest rock
As perishing, unto a fhield from thrall;
As worfe than nothing, to an all in all.
She as a blinded mole, an ign'rant fool,
Comes for inftruction to the Prophet's school..
She, with a hell-deferving confcious breast,
Flees for atonement to the worthy Prieft.
She, as a flave to fin and Satan, wings
Her flight for help unto the King of kings.
She all her maladies and plagues brings forth
To this Phyfician of eternal worth.

She fpreads before his throne her filthy fore ;
'And lays her broken bones down at his door.
No mite she has to buy a crumb of blifs,
And therefore comes impov'rifh'd, as fhe is. '
By fin and Satan of all good bereft,

Comes e'en as bare as they her foul have left.
To fenfe, as free of holinefs within,

As Chrift, the fpotlefs Lamb, was free of fin.
She comes by faith, true; but it fhews her want,
And brings her as a finner, not a faint;

A wretched finner flying for her good
To juftifying, fanctifying blood. -

[vaunts,
Strong faith no ftrength, nor pow'r of acting,
But acts in fenfe of weakness and of wants.
Drain'd now of ev'ry thing that men may call
Terms and conditions of relief from thrall;
Except this one, that Jefus be her all.
When to the bride he gives efpoufing faith,
It finds her under fin, and guilt, and wrath,
And makes her as a plagued wretch to fall
At Jefus footftool for the cure of all.
Her whole falvation now in him fhe feeks,
And mufing thus perhaps in fecret speaks:

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Lo! all my burdens may in him be eas'd; The juftice I offended he has pleas'd; The blifs that I have forfeit he procur'd; The curfe that I deferved he endur'd; The law that I have broken he obey'd; The debt that I contracted he has paid: And though a match unfit for him I be, I find him ev'ry way moft fit for me. [part, 'Sweet Lord, I think, would thou thyself imI'd welcome thee with open hand and heart. • But thou that fav'ft by price, muft fave by • O fend thy Spirit in a fiery show'r, [pow'r;

This cold and frozen heart of mine to thaw, That nought, fave cords of burning love, can draw.

O draw me, Lord, then will I run to thee, And glad into thy glowing bofom flee. I own myself a mafs of fin and hell, • A brat that can do nothing but rebel: • But didst thou not, as facred pages fhew*

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(When rifing up to fpoil the hellifh crew, • That had by thousands, finners captive made, And hadft in conquʻring chains them captive • Get donatives, not for thy proper gain, [led)

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But royal bounties for rebellious men,

Gifts, graces, and the Spirit without bounds,

• For God's new houfe with man on firmer grounds?
O then let me a rebel now come fpeed,
Thy holy Spirit is the gift I need.
His precious graces too, the glorious grant,
Thou kindly promis'd, and 1 greatly want.
Thou art exalted to the higheit place,

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To give repentance forth, and ev'ry gracet.

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O Giver of fpiritual life and breath,
The author and the finifher of faith;

• Thou húfband-like muft ev'ry thing provide, If e'er the like of me become thy bride.*

SECT V.

Faith's view of the freedom of grace, cordial renunciation of all its own ragged righteousness, and formal acceptance of and clofing with the perfon of glorious CHRIST.

THE

HE bride with open eyes, that once were dim, Sees now her whole falvation lies in him; The Prince, who is not in difpenfing nice, But freely gives without her pains or price. This magnifies the wonder in her eye,' Who not a farthing has wherewith to buy; For now her humbled mind can difavow Her boafted beauty and affuming brow; With confcious eye difcern her emptiness, With candid lips her poverty confefs.

O glory to the Lord, that grace is free, Elfe never would it light on guilty me. I nothing have with me to be its price, But hellish blacknefs, enmity, and vice.' In former times fhe durft prefuming come To grace's market with a petty fum Of duties, prayers, tears, a boafted fet, Expecting Heav'n would thus be in her debt. These were the price, at least she did fuppofe She'd be the welcomer becaufe of thofe : But now the fees the vilenefs of her vogue, The dung that clofe doth ev'ry duty clog;

Heb. xii. 2.

The fin that doth her holiness rèprove,
The enmity that clofe attends her love;
The great heart-hardness of her penitence,
The ftupid dulnefs of her vaunted fenfe;
The unblief of former blazed faith,
The utter nothingness of all fhe hath.
The blackness of her beauty fhe can fee,
The pompous pride of ftrain'd humility,
The naughtinefs of all her tears and pray'rs,
And now renounces all as worthless wares;
And finding nothing to commend herself,
But what might damn her, her embezzled pelf;
At fov'reign grace's feet does proftrate fall,
Content to be in Jefus debt for all.
Her noised virtues vanish out of fight,
As ftarry tapers at meridian light;

While fweetly, humbly, the beholds at length
Chrift, as her only righteousness and ftrength.
He with the view throws down his loving dart,
Impreft with pow'r into her tender heart.
The deeper that the law's fierce dart was thrown,
The deeper now the dart of love goes down:
Hence, fweetly pain'd, her cries to heav'n do flee;"
"O none but Jefus, none but Chrift for me:

O glorious Chrift, O beauty, beauty rare, • Ten thousand thoufand heav'ns are not fo fair. In him at once all beauties meet and fhine, • The white and ruddy, human and divine. As in his low, he's in his high abode,

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The brightest image of the unfeen God *. How juftly do the harpers fing above,

His doing, dying, rifing, reigning love!

Heb. i. 3.

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