III. Explain how it comes to pass, that their fafety, when thus favoured, is fecured.-And then,

IV. Make fome fhort improvement.

WE are,

I. To fhew that it is a wonder of grace that finful creatures are admitted to fee God, and be familiar with him. We think we need fay little for proof of this. Only confider,

1. The infinite diftance that there is between God and the creature in respect of perfection. The distance betwixt an angel and a moth is but finite; but betwixt God and us the diftance is infinite. And therefore, no wonder that when beholding the glorious perfections of God, we dwindle into nothing in our own eyes, and fay with Abraham, Gen. xviii. 27. "Behold now, we have taken upon us to speak unto the Lord, which are but duft and afhes;" and cry out with Solomon, 1 Kings, viii. 27. "But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven, and heaven of heavens, cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded?" Remember, ye faints, that though God has laid by his enmity, he retains his fovereignty over us; and therefore it is admirable condefcenfion, that he is pleased to allow us to fee him, and to enjoy holy familiarity with him. Confider,

2. That it is the fame God who is fuch a fevere and dreadful avenger of fin: Pfal. v. 5. "The foolish shall not stand in thy fight: thou hateft all workers of iniquity." Habak. i. 13. "Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity." This fame God who allows his covenant-people a fight of his glory, and a holy familiarity with him on the mount of ordinan

ces,

ces, is he who thrust Adam out of paradise,drowned the old world,-rained fire and brimftone upon Sodom and Gomorrah. He who gives fome the cup of falvation at his table, is the fame who makes others of their fellow-creatures drink the wine-cup of his fury. He who makes fome feast in his prefence, is the fame from whofe presence others fhall be punished with everlasting deftruction.

WE are,

II. To show that it is a wonder of grace that finful creatures, in their folemn approaches to God, and when they are thus favoured, come off fafe. This will appear if we confider,

1. The infinite holiness and spotless purity of that God before whom the finful creature appears. He is glorious in holiness, and fearful in praises, Exod xv. II. Even angelical purity is dim in his light, and is a fort of impurity, when compared with the infinite holiness of God, Job, xv. 15. Even they are chargeable with folly in his fight; potential folly, (though not actual), a kind of imperfection infeparable from the nature of the creature, in any state whatsoever: Job, iv. 18. "Behold, he put no truft into his fervants; and his angels he charged with folly." (Hebrew, He puts chargeth). And therefore, even the confirmed angels cover their feet with their wings, Ifa. vi. 2. as if they would tell us that perfect created. holiness is but a dark and fmoaky light before uncreated holiness. Shining helinefs in fome of the faints on earth, has a damping power with it. The very fight of one that convincingly walks clofe with God, is enough to ftrike a damp on the heart of a loose profeffor or apoftate. How

much.

much more may the fight of infinite holiness strike the most spiritual faints to the ground! -Confider,

2 That the best carry a finful nature even up into the mount with them. Paul, rapt up to the third heavens, brought a finful nature down with him again, an evidence he had carried it up, 2 Cor. xii. 7. Look on thyfelf, O faint in thy nearest approaches, and thou wilt fee the humbling fight, a finful heart, life, and lips, Ifa. Ixiv. 6.; fin woven into thy very nature, mixed with thy flesh and blood, making a vile body, Phil. iii. 21.; funk into the marrow of thy fpirit, and diffused through thy whole foul. And then canft thou ceafe to fay, as in Lam. iii. 22. "It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not confumed, because his compaffions fail, not." Is it not a wonder of grace, that hell, fo near heaven, has not funk with its own weight?-Confider,

3. That finful creatures never miss to leave the marks of their foul feet, even when they are on holy ground: Rom. vii. 21. "I find then a law, that when I would do good, evil is prefent with me." Peter falls a roving even on the mount, Luke, ix. 33. Even in the greatest light which ever fhone about the faints, they never wrote a line fo fair, but there was a blot in it. The facrifices were carried up to the mount with the nobles, for God knew they would need them even there. And if yé will look back to your carriage, when at a communion-table, you will fee fuch mifmanagements, as may make you wonder that he laid not his hand upon you.-Confider,

4. The particular jealoufy which God has manifefted about his worship. Therefore Joshua told the people, chap. xxiv. 19. " Ye cannot ferve the Lord; for he is an holy God: he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your tranfgreffions, nor

your

your fins." And he himself declared, "he would be fanctified in them that come nigh him, and before all the people he will be glorified," Lev. x. 3. And upon this he wrote a commentary, with a flaming evidence, in the blood of Nadab and Abihu, even two of these on whom he laid not his hand at this time. A flip in the holy ground is most dangerous and provoking in its own nature. To affront a king in his palace, his presence-chamber, or on his throne, ftirs up his anger with a peculiar keenness. How dear did the men of Bethfhemesh pay for a look, 1 Sam. vi. 19. ; Uzzah, for a touch, 2 Sam. vi. 6. 7.; Annanias and Sapphira, for a word, Acts, v. Now, who is able to ftand before the piercing eye of his jealoufy? Is it not a wonder of his grace, that the fire of his indignation burns not up finful creatures in their folemn approaches to him?-Confider,

5. That there is a folemn awfulnefs about the very ordinances of grace, which the finner could not bear if he were not fupported, Dan. x. 8. 9.

19. Pfal. lxviii. 35. "O God! thou art terrible out of thy holy places." Jacob understood this when he had one of the most comfortable fights which ever mortal had: Gen. xxviii. 17. "And he was afraid, and faid, How dreadful is this place! This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven." The very throne of grace ftands on juftice and judgement, which are its habitation, Pfal. lxxxix. 14. (Hebrew, its bafe; the covenant founded on blood, the blood of his own Son. All our mercies from the throne are dyed red in the blood of a Mediator. Thou canst not have a gracious look from the throne, but through the Redeemer's wounds; nor a pardon, but what is written with

his blood. So that fuch fights are fufficient to make one faint away, if they are not supported by grace.-Confider,

Laftly, That the emanations of the divine glory would overwhelm finners, burft the earthen veffels, if a gracious God did not graciously support them. Some have felt this, when they have been made to cry to the Lord to hold his hand, for that the earthen pitchers were able to hold no more. We know not what spirit we are off. It is our mercy we fee but through a glafs darkly, and not face to face now; for flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, 1 Cor. xv. 50. The flesh and blood of a giant would not be able to bear that glory now. And therefore, it is obferved as an instance of his goodness, Job, xxvi. 9. "He holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth his cloud upon it."

We now go on,

III. To explain how it comes to pass that the fafety of God's people, when thus favoured, is fecured. It is fo,

1. Because they are God's covenant-people by marriage with his Son. They are married to Chrift, and the Son of the Father's bofom is their husband. He has all freedom in his Father's house, and so it cannot be a ftrange house to them, Where he fits, his spouse may stand safely at his hand Pfal. xlv. 9. " Upon thy right hand did ftand the queen in gold of Ophir." They have freedom in the house of God, in the right of their Hufband. He has brought them up into his chariot of the covenant; and this has accefs to drive up into the mount, while it procures all fafety to those who are in it, "being paved with love," Song, iii. 9. 10.

2. Because they come up under the covert of

the