the doctrines of devils;-of Chrift the everlasting Father, and of a people who are of their father the devil;-of the children of God, and children of the devil; of the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils; the table of the Lord, and the table of the

devils;--of fellowship with the Lord, and of fellowfhip with devils;-of Chrift in the heart by faith, and of Satan in the hearts of the difobedient;-and, as fure as the love of God in the heart, and a hatred to fin, is the church's neck, that unites her to Chrift, fo fure love to fin, and hatred to God, is the neck that holds Satan and his whore together; and fo it will appear in the great day.

But the breath of the Lord, like an overflowing Stream, reaches to the midst of this neck, and breaks this bond of iniquity, and hedges up the finner's way with thorns; so that, if he pursues after his lovers, he cannot overtake them; the arrows of wrath, the bucklers of justice, and the ftings of guilt, pierce him, infomuch that he cannot get on in the old track. The yoke of his tranfgreffions fhall be destroyed, because of the anointing. His agreement with death fhall be difannulled, and his covenant with hell fhall not ftand; for Chrift will have a portion with the great, and he will divide the fpoil with the ftrong, because he hath poured out his foul unto death, in order to redeem this portion; and therefore he will fpoil the house of the ftrong man armed. It was this breath of the Lord, reaching the heart, and conveying Chrift's everlasting love into it, that

brought

brought about an eternal feparation between Mary Magdalen and her feven devils. This neck, this love to fin, which is the bond of iniquity, is the grand cement which holds all idolaters, all workmongers, or felf-admirers, which are idolaters, and all the mystical Babel builders to their fandy foundation; as was the cafe with Paul, till God difcovered it. Thou woundedft the head cut of the house of the wicked, by difcovering the foundation to the neck. Selab. Hab. iii. 13. Take notice of that.

When this foundation is difcovered, and this neck made bare, it inflicts a wound in the infernal head; it lays open his policy, and crushes his power; it alarms the poor fecure mortal, and makes him feel his bonds; and he groans under them, and calls for deliverance; and God, in answer to his cry, opens the prifon doors to him that is bound.

I now proceed to defcribe the fieve of vanity. This fieve is not the gofpel; it is not the miniftration of the Spirit, which God ordained for our glory; this is not a vain thing, or vanity; though fome men that perish have called it foolishnefs, when compared to Grecian wifdom: yet the gospel is not a light, trifling, empty thing; for it treats of the moft weighty, powerful, folid, and momentous things, that ever were heard of beneath the fun; fuch as redemption, falvation, the grace of God, and everlafting glory. Befides, the gospel is dif tinguished from this fieve in the text itself. The gofpel is called the breath of the Lord; but this fieve

is

is the fieve of vanity. Whatever it is, it feems to be fomething which is intended to fshake, to winnow, to try, and to exercife, in order to prove what is good grain and what is not; and so to separate the one from the other, or the vile from the precious: and therefore, under the all-wise conduct of God, it among the all things that work for good to them that love God; and fo it is written, For lo, I will command, and I will fift the house of Ifrael among all nations, like as corn is fifted in a fieve; yet shall not the leaft grain fall upon the earth. Amos ix. 9. It is well known that God's profeffing church is called a floor, and his children are called corn. O my threshing, and the corn of my floor; that which I have heard of the Lord of bofts, the God of Ifrael, have I declared unto you. Ifai. xxi. 10. This fieve of vanity appears to be the temptations of Satan: he is the drudge, or flave, that God makes ufe of to do this black and dusty work in his floor; and the malicious mind of this evil fpirit prompts him to be very fond of it. And the Lord faid, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan bath defired to have you, that he may fift you as wheat: but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not; and, when thou art converted, firengthen thy brethren. Luke xxii. 31, 32. In the above paffage feveral useful leffons of inftruction may be learnt to our comfort:-the firft is, the bent of the devil's mind to mischief, and to torment thofe that he cannot deftroy. Satan bath defired to have you; take notice of that; he bath defired, &c. he hath for fome

time

་

time been defirous of having thee; but I have not fuffered him hitherto, whatever I may do. Hence we learn that this poor fcavenger cannot perform his enterprise without leave from the Lord of the harvest: it is not what the devil defires, but it is what the Lord determines, that shall be done. We may perceive that the devil wished to go through ftitch with this bufinefs: he did not want to fift Peter like barley, or lentiles; nor like vetches, which require but a little winnowing; but like wheat, which muft go into the fieve again and again. But can we fuppofe that Satan has fuch an averfion to chaff, that he is fo defirous of fifting poor Peter, that he might make him as pure as wheat? No, no. Duft is Satan's meat, and chaff is Satan's fuel; and it is the only part or lot that falls to his fhare in all the floor. What the devil wifhed to blow out of Peter's heart was the grace of God, and especially the grace of faith: against this the devil fhook his riddle with all his might; and in behalf of this the Lord bent his whole prayer,. I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not. And thus the Lord's end, and Satan's aim, widely differ: the Lord intended to purge Peter from confidence in the flesh, and the devil to winnow him out of all confidence in the Lord:-the Lord intended to make Peter more ufeful by it, and Satan to make him both fruitless and ufelefs. When thou art converted (from thy felf-confidence, and art made fenfible of thine own weakness, and of my strength

made

made perfect in it), then strengthen thy brethren;strengthen their faith in me, Simon, that they may be strong in the grace that is in me, and not in their own frames, however lively, or however joyful.

.

Though all men be offended because of thee, yet will I never be offended, faith poor Simon. Those great words called aloud for this fieve of vanity; and poor Peter foon found himself in it: and the devil gave his riddle fuch a shake, as moved and ftirred up every corruption of his heart; enmity, carnal fear, cowardice, fhame, rebellion, infidelity, anger; and fo filled his heart with blafphemy, that the very oaths and curfes ran out of his mouth. But the Holy Spirit will ever glorify Chrift, and will teftify. of him; fo that he would not leave Peter; but, as the Spirit of all grace, and that of faith in particular, he kept poffeffion of Peter's heart, and made. his faith foon to work again by love, for he went out, and wept bitterly, cut to the heart with grief for what he had done to his dear Lord and mafter. However, the faithful and true Witnefs did not fail Peter in this time of trial; nor did the Lord fuffer Peter's faith or love to fail from the Lord:-Lord, thou knoweft all things; and thou knoweft I love thee, faith Simon.

This fieve of vanity always attends the breath of the Lord; or the miniftry of the Spirit. Soon after God had breathed into Adam the breath of life, this fieve of vanity came upon him and his wife, and fifted out all that was good. And, when God be