fort that flows from the Spirit of life, "Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God which liveth and abideth for ever," 1 Peter i. 23. Therefore, As new-born babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby, if so be ye have tasted that the Lord is gracious," 1 Peter ii. 2. Observe the Apostle's words, being born again, that is, regenerated by the Holy Spirit, not of. corruptible seed, as our first birth was, but of incorruptible seed; by which he means the various graces of the Holy Spirit, to which he gives four

names.

1st. The hidden man of the heart.

2d. The grace of life.

3d. A lively hope, to which God begets us by the resurrection of Christ from the dead.

4th. The divine nature.

And

And these through Christ, who ascended to heaven, there to appear for us; and who received of the Father the promise of the Spirit, and sent him down to renew us, and to implant this incorruptible seed of his grace in our souls, which is done by the ministry of the word, or by the instrumentality of preaching; for as God, in the great and precious promises of the new covenant, promised to pour his Spirit upon Christ's seed, and his blessing upon his offspring, so by the word preached he gives testimony of his faithfulness and truth, by sending his Holy Spirit to attend it, and make it effectual by working this

divine nature in all them to whom it comes with power, and who yield the obedience of faith. Now this incorruptible seed, saith he, liveth and abideth for ever: For, as sin by Adam's fall hath reigned unto death, through the infernal hatred of Satan both to God and man, Even so shall the love and favour of God reign, through the obedience of the second Adam, to eternal life.

He calls them new-born babes, because very lately begotten to this lively hope, and because they had but newly begun to taste that the Lord is gracious, and to relish the joys of his countenance, the consolations of the Spirit, the sweetness of the promises; and had some small beginnings of the preciousness of Christ, which he calls the sincere milk of the word. For the promises are full of spiritual blessings; and, as these promises are applied by the Spirit, so we suck these cheering blessings out, as we are enabled to mix faith with them.

Now, although the poor coming sinner, who is favoured with this blessed hope in its first stage, and who begins to feel the first encouraging entrances of the word of life, yet, being baffled by Satan, hood-winked with the wretched remains of the old veil, it having but lately begun to rend, and often to close again, he may not be able to discern the safety and goodness of his state, yet I believe that, the very moment the spirit of life enters the heart, and quickens the soul, then, the principle of life being infused, that soul is brought

forth from the dismal and insensible sleep of death, which the Apostle calls a being dead in trespasses and sins. "You," saith he, "hath God quickened who were dead in trespasses and sins." For such a soul is not only alarmed and awakened, but quickened; and, if quickened, he comes forth from the sleep of death. "He that is our God is the God of salvation; and unto God the Lord belong the issues from death," Psalm lxviii. 20. As soon as the soul verges from the sleep of death he is styled an issue, or an offspring; and is begotten from death by the quickening energy of the Spirit, to a lively hope by the powerful application of the word of truth. "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures," James i. 18. And in this sense I understand the

following passage; "Before she travailed she brought forth, before her pain came she was delivered of a man child. Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath seen such things!" Isaiah lxvi. 7, 8. The Lord may well say, Who hath heard such a thing? No such thing ever appeared in nature, but in grace it doth appear. Before she travailed she brought forth: before her pain came she was delivered of a man child.

A soul

Now take notice of what I advance. dead in sin, and altogether insensible of it, is said, in scripture language, to be in the sleep of death, as I before observed; and God is said to pour out upon the Jews the spirit of a deep sleep, and

some sleep a perpetual sleep, and shall not awake, Jer. li. 39; that is, they shall never be awakened nor alarmed, nor open their eyes in this world; but, like the rich man, lift up their eyes in hell.

Against this sleep David prays; "Consider, and hear me, O Lord, my God; lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death," Psalm xiii. 3. Now it cannot mean that before Zion travailed perfect love cast out all fear, which is that glorious work that makes our new birth clear to us; for her fears and torments were not come on But the sense appears to me to be this. She brought forth a principle of divine life before she travailed; before her pains came the new man was formed, and her soul delivered from death. And I think my own experience will bear me out even in this; for, when this work was begun in me, something like a flash of lightning, but quicker than that, shone into my soul, and all through me; my understanding or mind perceived something of a pale flame; and I now believe that the Holy Spirit that moment took possession of me; and I have always viewed that to be the Spirit's first illuminating and quickening power on my soul, and God is the best judge of the labour and travail that followed upon it.

Divine life, in its springing up, is discovere further by the sensible workings of faith; for, as the word gets free course into the heart, it brings its own evidence with it; and the more powerful it comes, the more powerful the confidence is

that attends it. "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God," Rom. x. 17. Faith is the handmaid of the word, which accompanies it to the heart, makes room for it, and entertains it; and, if the word comes with great power, and in the Holy Ghost, then it comes also with much assurance, 1 Thess. i. 5. Faith takes its steps as we are enabled to exercise it. "He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life," John v. 24.

The first entrance of the word, in its convicting operations, being attended with the divine displeasure, and terrible majesty of God, leads the sinner to believe the truth of all divine revelation. Much of the threatening part of the scriptures being already applied to him, and fulfilled in him, makes him believe the promissory part also, and the safety of those who are interested therein. Even Saul, when God left him, and answered him no more, saw both his own rejection and the choice of David; and told David he knew that he would surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel would be established in his hand; which prophecy is fulfilled in every believer to this day. The whole of divine revelation gains credit in the souls of all that are truly convinced of sin. But, when any encouraging discoveries are made of Christ, and of all salvation being alone in him, our scattered thoughts fly like doves to their windows, to consider the record that God has given of his Son. And, when the glo