him from it: and therefore the word of God is much in strengthening the christian mind against these two, and it doth it especially, by possessing it both with hopes and fears of a higher nature, that do by far weigh down the other.

The most frequent assaults of temptation are upon these two passions of the mind, therefore they are chiefly to be fortified and defended, by a hope and fear opposite to those that do assault us, and sufficiently strong to resist and repel them..

These two therefore our apostle here urges, 1. The hope of that glory that the gospel propounds, and so outbids all the proffers of the world, both in the greatness and the certainty of its promises. 2. The fear of God, the greatest and justest judge, only worthy to be feared and reverenced; the highest anger and enmity of all the world being less than nothing, in comparison of his smallest displeasure. We have here,

1. This fear. 2. The reason enforcing it. 3. The term or continuance of it.

I. The fear itself, In fear. But how suits this with the high discourse that went before, of perfect assured hope, of faith, and love, and joy, yea, joy unspeakable and glorious, arising out of these? how are all those excellencies fallen as it were into a dungeon, when fear is mentioned after them? Doth not the apostle St. John say, that true love casteth out fear? And is it not more clearly opposite to perfect or assured hope, and to faith and joy?

If ye understand it aright, this is such a fear as doth not prejudice, but preserve those other graces, and the comfort and joy that arises from them: and they all agree so well with it, that they are naturally helps to each other.

It were superfluous to insist on the defining this passion of fear, and the manifold distinctions of it, either with philosophers or divines. The fear here recommended is, out of question, a holy self-suspicion and fear of offending God, which may not

only consist with assured hope of salvation, and with faith, and love, and spiritual joy, but is their inseparable companion, as all divine graces are linked together, (as the heathens said of their three graces) and as they dwell together they grow or decrease together. The more a christian believes, and loves, and rejoices in the love of God, the more unwilling surely he is to displease him, and if in danger, the more afraid of it, and on the other side, this fear being the true principle of a wary and holy conversation, flying sin and the occasions of sin, and temptations to it, and resisting them when they make an assault, is as a watch or guard that keeps out the enemies and disturbers of the soul, and so preserves its inward peace, keeps the assurance of faith and hope unmolested, and that joy which they cause, and the intercourse and societies of love betwixt the soul and her beloved uninterrupted; all which are then most in danger when this fear abates and falls to slumbering, for then some notable sin or other is ready to break in and put all into disorder, and for a time makes those graces and the comfort of them, to present feeling, as much to seek as if they were not there at all.

No wonder then if the apostle having stirred up his christian brethren, whatsoever be their estate in the world, to seek to be rich in those jewels of faith, and hope, and love, and spiritual joy, and then considering that they travel amongst a world of thieves and robbers, (no wonder I say) that he adds this, advises them to give those their jewels in custody, under God, to this trusty and watchful grace of godly fear; and having earnestly exhorted them to holiness, he is very fitly particular in this fear, which makes up so great a part of that holiness, that it is often in scripture named for it all.

Solomon calls it the beginning or the top of wisdom, the word signifies both, and it is both, The beginning of it is the beginning of wisdom, and the progress and increase of it, is the increase

b Prov. xv. 33.

of wisdom. That hardy rashness that many account valour is the companion of ignorance; and of all rashness, boldness to sin is the most witless and foolish. There is in this, as in all fear, an apprehension of an evil, whereof we are in danger. The evil is sin, and the displeasure of God, and punishment following upon sin. The godly man judgeth wisely, as the truth is, that sin is the greatest of evils, and the cause of all other evils; it is a transgression of the just law of God, and so a provocation of his just anger, and the cause of those punishments, temporal, spiritual and eternal, which he inflicts. And then considering how mighty he is to punish, both the power and reach of his hand, that it is both most heavy and unavoidable; all these things may and should concur to the working of this fear.

There is (no doubt) a great difference betwixt those two kinds of fear that are usually differenced by the name of servile and filial fear, but certainly the most genuine fear of the sons of God, that call him Father, doth not exclude the consideration of his justice, and of the punishment of sin that his justice inflicts; we see here it is used as the great motive of this fear, that he judgeth every man according to his works. And David in that Psalm, wherein he so much breathes forth those other sweet affections of love and hope, and delight in God, and, in his word, yet expresseth this fear even of the justice of God, my flesh trembleth for fear of thee, and I am afraid of thy judgments The flesh is to be awed with divine judgments, though the higher, and surer part of the soul is strongly and freely tied with the cords of love. Temporal corrections indeed they fear not so much in themselves, as that impression of wrath that may be upon them for their sins. That is the main matter of their fear, because their happiness is in his love, and the light of his countenance, that is their life; they regard not, how the world looks upon them, they care not

c Psm. cxix. 120.

d Psm. vi. 1. &c.

who frown, so he smile on them; and because no other enemy, nor evil in the world can deprive them of this but their own sin; therefore it is that, they fear most.

As the evil is great, so the christian hath great reason to fear in regard of his danger of it, considering the multitude, strength and craft of his enemies, and his own weakness and unskilfulness to resist them. And his sad experience in being often foiled, teacheth him that it is thus; he cannot be ignorant of it; he finds how often his own resolutions and purposes deceive him. Certainly a godly man is sometimes driven to wonder at his own frailty and inconstancy. What strange differences will be betwixt him and himself; how high and how delightful at some times are his thoughts of God, and the glory of the life to come; and yet how easily at another time, base temptations will bemire him, or at the least molest and vex him; and this keeps him in a continual fear, and that fear in continual vigilancy and circumspectness. When he looks up to God, and considers the truth of his promises, and the sufficiency of his grace and protection, and the almighty strength of his Redeemer, these things fill his soul with confidence and assurance: but when he turns his eye downward again upon himself, and finds so much remaining corruption within, and so many temptations and dangers, and adversaries without, this forces him not only to fear, but to despair of himself; and it should do so, that his trust in God may be the purer and more entire: that confidence in God will not make him secure and presumptuous in himself, nor that fear of himself make him diffident of God. This fear is not opposite to faith, but high-mindedness and presumption is. To a natural man it would seem an odd kind of reasoning that of the apostle', It is God that worketh in you to will and to do of his good pleasure. Therefore, would he think, you may save labour, you may sit still, and not work; or if you work, you may work fearlessly,

Rom. xi. 20.

f Phil. ii. 12, 13.

being so sure of his help: but the apostle is of another mind; his inference is, therefore, work out your own salvation, and work it with fear and trembling.

But why should he, that hath assurance of salvation, fear? If there is truth in his assurance, nothing can disappoint him, not sin itself, it is true; but it is no less true, that if he do not fear to sin, there is no truth in his assurance; it is not the assurance of faith, but the mispersuasion of a secure and profane mind.

2. Suppose it so, that the sins of a godly man cannot be such as to cut him short of that salvation whereof he is assured; yet they may be such as for a time will deprive him of that assurance, and not only remove the comfort he hath in that, but let in horrors and anguish of conscience in its stead. Though a believer is freed from hell (and we may overstrain this assurance in our doctrine, beyond what the soberest and devoutest men in the world can ever find in themselves, though they will not trouble themselves to contest and dispute with them that say they have it) so that his soul cannot come there; yet some sins may bring as it were a piece of hell into his soul for a time, and this is reason enough for any christian in his right wits to be afraid of sin. No man would willingly hazard himself upon a fall that may break his leg, or some other bone, though he could be made sure, that he should not break his neck, or that his life were not at all in danger, and that he should be perfectly cured; yet the pain and trouble of such a hurt would terrify him, and make him wary and fearful when he walks in danger. The broken bones that David complains of after his fall, may work fear and wariness in these that hear him, though they were ascertained of a like

recovery.

This fear is not cowardice, it doth not debase, but elevates the mind; for it drowns all lower fears, and begets true fortitude, and courage to encounter all dangers, for a good conscience, and the obeying