The beams of our house are cedar, and our rafters of fir. And behold, the congregations of saints, the places where we do sweetly converse and walk together, are both firm and during, like cedars amongst the trees, not subject, through thy protect- How is the faithful city become an harlot! it was full of judgment. Jerusalem was once my faithful spouse, a holy city: how is it, x 2 that she is now turned strumpet, and become desperately lewd and debauched? &c. Thy silver is become dross, thy wine mixed with water. Those good graces, that thou didst once profess to have, are now utterly corrupted and depraved; thine obedience, which was once sincere and pure, is now adulterated with abominable wickedness. And I will turn my hand upon thee, and purely purge away thy dross, and take away all thy tin. Yet, in my judgment will I remember mercy: I will not utterly destroy thee as I might, but I will turn my hand upon thee, for thy restoration; and, whereas I might burn thee quite up, yet I will only purge away thy dross, and take away the base metal from thee, that the small remainder of the pure and precious may be reserved. For they shall be ashamed of the oaks which ye have desired, and ye shall be confounded for the gardens that ye have chosen. They shall be ashamed of that foul idolatry, wherewith ye have been tainted; and of those groves, which ye have used to that purpose; and of those gardens and orchards, which ye have so employed. For ye shall be as an oak whose leaf fadeth, and as a garden that hath no water. And, if ye again relapse, ye shall be left like one of the oaks of those destroyed groves, without leaf or sap; or like one of those gardens, which you have abused, in a time of drought, without water. And the strong shall be as tow, and the maker of it as a spark, and they shall both burn together, and none shall quench them. And that mighty idol, whereto ye trust, shall be as tow; and the maker and worshipper of that idol shall be as a spark; and both of them shall burn together, with unquenchable fire. I am the rose of Sharon, and the lily of the valleys. Thou hast not without just cause magnified me, O my Church; for, as the fairest and sweetest of all flowers which the earth yieldeth, the rose and lily of the valleys, excel for beauty, for pleasure, for use, the most base and odious weeds that grow; so doth my grace, to all them that have felt the sweetness thereof, surpass all worldly contentments. As the lily among thorns, so is my love among the daughters. Neither is this my dignity alone; but thou, O my Spouse, that thou mayest be a fit match for me, art thus excellent above the world, that no lily can be more in goodly shew beyond the naked thorn, than thou in thy glory thou receivest from me overlookest all the assemblies of aliens and unregenerates. THE CHURCH. And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Loud's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, &c. It shall come to pass, in the days of the Messiah exhibited, and the Gospel revealed, that the Church of God shall not be obscurely confined to a corner of the world, but shall be eminently conspicuous; and so famously noted, that the Gentiles shall come in, and generally adjoin themselves unto it. As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons. I sat down under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste. And, to return to thy own praises, as some fruitful and wellgrown apple tree, in comparison of all the barren trees of the wild forest, so art thou, O my beloved Saviour, to me, in comparison of all men; and under thy comfortable shadow alone, have I ever wont to find safe shelter against all mine afflictions, all my temptations and infirmities, against all the curses of the law, and dangers of judgment, and to cool myself after all the scorching beams of thy Father's displeasure, and besides, to feed and satisfy my soul with the sovereign fruit of thy holy word unto eternal life. For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Loud from Jerusalem. For in the Evangelical Church only, which is figured by Zion, shall the truth of God's sacred word be professed; and from it shall spread itself over the world. He brought me to the banquetting house, and his banner over me was love. He hath graciously led me by his Spirit, into the midst of the mysteries of godliness; and hath plentifully broached unto me the sweet wines of his Scriptures and Sacraments. And look how soldiers are drawn by their colours from place to place, and cleave fast to their ensign; so his love, which he spread forth in my heart, was my only banner, whereby I was both drawn to him, directed by him, and fastened upon him. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke ISAIAN, CHAP. I. II. many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. And the true Messiah shall, by his spiritual government, rule over many nations, and hold many several kinds of people in an awful subjection, and shall so calm and quiet them, that they shall be altogether composed to peace; and therefore shall turn their swords, whereof they shall have no further use, into instruments of husbandry, &c. Stay me with flagons, comfort me with apples: for I am sick of love. And now, O ye faithful Evangelists, Apostles, Teachers, apply unto me, with all care and diligence, all the cordial promises of the Gospel: these are the full flagons of that spiritual wine, which only can cheer up my soul; these are the apples of that tree of life, in the midst of the garden, which can feed me to immortality. Oh come and apply these unto my heart; for I am even overcome with a longing expectation and desire of my delayed glory. O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the LORD. Yea, those new-converted Gentiles shall be ready to provoke and incite Israel to a holy and conscionable obedience, and say, O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk together in the clear and glorious light of the Gospel, to the praise and honour of him that hath called us. His left hand is under my head, and his right hand doth embrace me. And while I am thus spiritually languishing in this agony of desire, let my Saviour employ both his hands to relieve mine infirmity; let him comfort my head and my heart, my judgment and affections, which both complain of weakness, with the lively heat of his gracious embraccements; and so let us sweetly rest together. Therefore thou hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers. O God, while thou admittest of the Gentiles, thou findest too just cause to cast off thine own people; for that they are full of the superstitions and idolatries of the Syrians; and are given to magical practices, like the Philistines; and take pleasure rather to imitate the false worship of foreign nations, than to keep close to thy holy prescriptions. I charge you, O ye daughters of Jerusalem, by the roes, and by the hinds of the field, that ye stir not up, nor awake my love, till he please. In the mean time, I charge you, O all ye that profess any friendship or affinity with me, I charge you, by whatsoever is comely, dear, and pleasant unto you, as you will avoid my uttermost censures, take heed how you vex and disquiet my merciful Saviour, and grieve his Spirit, and wrong his Name, with your vain and lewd conversation; and do not dare, by the least provocation of your sin, to interrupt his peace. Their land also is full of silver and gold, neither is there any end of their treasures; their land is also full of horses, neither is there any end of their chariots. They give themselves over to the immoderate desire and pursuit of wealth; neither is there any end of their covetous endeavours, to heap up ill gotten treasures: they do also, in a proud or distrustful affectation, lay for abundance of horses of war; neither can they be satisfied with the number of chariots; as if these were the strength wherein they trusted. The voice of my beloved! behold, he cometh leaping upon the mountains, skipping upon the hills. Lo, I have no sooner called, but he hears and answers me with his loving voice: neither doth he only speak to me afar, but he comes to me with much willingness and celerity; so willingly, that no human resistance can hinder him: neither the hillocks of my lesser infirmities, nor the mountains of my grosser sins once repented of, can stay his merciful pace towards me: My beloved is like a roe or a young hart: behold, he standeth behind our wall, he looketh forth at the windows, shewing himself through the lattice. So swiftly, that no roe or hind can fully resemble him in this his speed and nimbleness: and lo, even now, before I can speak it, is he come near unto me, close to the door and wall of my heart. And though this wall of my flesh hinder my full fruition of him, yet lo, I see him by the eye of faith, looking upon me; I see him as in a glass; I see him shining gloriously, through the gates and windows of his word and sacraments, upon my soul. And the mean man boweth down, and the great man humbleth himself: therefore forgive them not. O God, since they are so vile, and will not be reclaimed from their idolatry, spare them not, but make them examples of thy justice. My beloved spake, and said unto me, Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. And now, methinks, I hear him speak to me in a gracious Enter into the rock, and hide thee in the dust, for fear of the LORD, and for the glory of his majesty. And now, O thou wilfully idolatrous and rebellious people, since thou wouldst not prevent these judgments, see if thou canst withdraw thyself from them: go, hide thee in the rock, or shroud thyself within the earth, from his vengeance, &c. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. For behold, all the cloudy winter of thy afflictions is passed: all the tempests of temptations are blown over: the heaven is clear; and now there is nothing, that may not give thee cause of delight. The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; Every thing now resembles the face of a spiritual spring: all the sweet flowers and blossoms of holy profession put forth, and shew themselves in their opportunities: now is the time of that heavenly melody, which the cheerful saints and angels make in mine ears, while they sing songs of deliverance, and praise me with their Hallelujahs, and say, Glory to God on high, in earth peace, good will towards men. For the day of the LORD of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty. For in that terrible day, the fierce judgments of the Lord of Hosts shall seize upon every one, that hath proudly and stubbornly resisted his word and ordinance, &c. The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. What speak I of blossoms? behold, those fruitful vines and fig-trees of my faithful ones, whom my husbandry hath carefully tended and dressed, yield forth both pleasant, though tender, fruits of obedience, and the wholesome and comfortable savours of better desires; wherefore now, O my dear Church shake off all that dull security, wherewith thou hast been held, and come forth and enjoy me. And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan. And upon all those proud and lofty potentates, which bear themselves as high as the cedars of Lebanon, and as stiff as the oaks of Bashan. O my dove, that art in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the stairs, let me see thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. O my beautiful, pure, and chaste Spouse, which, like unto some solitary dove, hast long hid thy head in the secret and inaccessible clefts of the rocks, out of the reach and knowledge of thy persecutors; however thou art concealed from others, shew thyself in thy works and righteousness unto me, and let me be ever plied with thy words of imploration and thanksgiving: for thy voice, though it be in mourning, and thy face, though it be sad and blubbered, are exceedingly pleasing unto me. Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines: for our vines have tender grapes. And in the mean time, O all ye that wish well to my Name and Church, do your utmost endeavour to deliver her from her secret enemies; not sparing the least, who, either by heretical doctrine, or profane conversation, hinder the course of the Gospel, and pervert the faith of many, especially of those that have newly VOL. III. U given up their names to me, and are but newly entered into the profession of godliness. And upon every high tower, and upon every fenced wall. And all those high towers and strong forts, wherein vain men have wont to put their trust, shall be cast to the ground: My beloved is mine, and I am his; he feedeth among the lilies. My beloved Saviour is mine, through my faith; and I am his, through his love: and we both are one, by virtue of that blessed union on both parts, whereby we mutually enjoy each other with all-sufficient contentment. And how worthily is my love placed upon him, who leadeth me forth into pleasant pastures, and at whose right hand there is the fulness of joy for evermore! And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all pleasant pictures. And all that rich traffic, which you were wont to have with Cilicia and the countries round about, shall be cut off: and those pleasant and costly tapestries and pictures, which you had wont to bring home, shall fail and disappoint you: Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, turn, my beloved, and be thou like a roe or a young hart upon the mountains of Bether. Come, therefore, O my Saviour, and until the day of thy glorious appearance shall shine forth to the world, wherein our spiritual marriage shall be consummate, and until all these shadows of ignorance, of infidelity, of troubles of conscience, and of outward tribulations be utterly dispersed and chased away, come and turn thee to me again: thou, which, to the carnal eyes of the world seemest absent, come quickly, and delay not; but, for the speed of thy return, be like unto some swift roe or hind, upon those smooth hills of Gilead, which Jordan severs from the other part of Jewry.