law, and the vengeance of heaven against fin, could demand. If ever you fang to purpofe of mercy and judgment, you have feen and admired the glory that fhines in this mutual embracing betwixt mercy and judgment.

12. The laft inference I offer, is this. Hence we may fee the duty of all the people of God, namely, to fing of mercy and judgment: As it is the duty of all hearing me, to feek and pray while they are out of heaven, fo to fing and praife while they are out of hell. But whatever others do, believer, you in parti cular are to fing of mercy and judgment: he hath done much for others, but he hath done more for you; he hath given you himself to be your God, his Son to be your fhield, his Spirit to be your guide, his covenant to be your charter, and his heaven to be your inheritance: he hath given you his word and oath, that though he will vifit your iniquity with the rod, and your tranf greflion with fripes, and execute judgment on your lufts, and take vengeance on your inventions, yet his loving-kindnefs will he not take away, nor alter the word that hath gone out of his mouth. "Once hath he fworn. by his holiness, That he will not lie unto David;" and therefore you may fing of mercy and judgment: and even at your loweft, when you are crying out," Behold I am vile!" O I am black, I am black, I am black; yet even then he is looking upon you in Chrift, and faying, Behold, thou art fair, my love;" behold, thou art fair, not only by imputed righteoufnefs, but even by implanted grace, which makes you lock upon fin as the greatest evil, and groan under it as the greatest burden: even at your loweft, there is fomething about the bottom of your hearts, that fays, O! I could be content to live in a coal pit with Chrift, rather than in a palace without him; "A day in his courts are better than a thoufand; I had rather be a door-keeper in the houfe of my God, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness," fee his name glorified in the world, and his coming in me, and in thoufands about me! fing, fing of mercy and judgment! you have fing of

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kingdom

O fing, both to

QUEST

QUEST. How fhall I fing one of the fongs of Zion in a ftrange land? I offer fome general directions, and then I clofe,

1. See that your fong be fung upon a new harp; I mean, with a new heart and a new fpirit, Ye that are gracelefs will never fing, till you get a new heart; O go to God, and cry for it: ye that are gracious will never fing aright, unlefs the new harp get a new fet, and the rings be drawn up, and the heart tuned by the hand of the Spirit; and therefore feek the new influence for every fong, and the Spirit to dictate the fong, and to raise the notes. As the dial in the day, light will not fhew the hour without the fun, fo your harp of graces will not afford melody without the Spirit; therefore feck the Spirit to help you, when you cannot utter his praife: and when you find your hearts in a praifing frame, O continue at the exercife, faying, às David, " My heart is fixt, my heart is fixt, I will fing and give praife."

2. If you would fing aright of mercy and judgment, then you may fing in your best robes; I mean, putting on Christ Jefus, and his righteoufnefs, for your garment; this is the garment of praife; and this garment fmells of aloes, myrrh, and caffia, and is the only thing that can perfume the praifes of the faints. If you have Efau's garments, what though you have Jacob's voice ; fo as you want a tongue, and a heart, and a voice, to praife him as you ought; yet, with your elder Brother's garment, you may get the bleffing. Come to God, under a fenfe of your own unworthiness, and want of righteoufnefs, and yet faying, Worthy is the Lamb that was flain." O pray and praise and praife both under the covert of blood.

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3. Put a mark upon mercy. If you would fing of mercy, though it were never fo little, it is more than you deferve. I have heard of a Jewish doctor, that was called RABBI THIS TOO, because he used to fay, whatever befel him, This is good too, and this too, and this too; you may well fay, how little foever you have, This is more than I am worthy of, and this too, and this too. He that fees that nothing is his but fin, can

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not but wonder that any thing is his, but hell: put a mark upon mercy, faying, "O my foul, forget not all his benefits," Pfalm ciii. 2,-5. Mind the vifit he gave you at fuch and fuch a place, in fuch and fuch an ordinance; mind his words of grace, and emanations of love; put up fome of the manna in the golden pot.

4. Put a mark upon judgments. If you would fing of judgment, as well as mercy, and lay your account with judgment, let not national judgments pafs without a remark, that God may get the glory of his holy and juft adminiftrations: many judgments are come upon us, and many fad tokens of judgment a coming, becaufe of our national apoflafy from the work of reformation, our covenant-breaking, our perjury, and, O the other rampant abominations of our day. Learn the language of judgment, "Hear the rod." See Ifaiah xxiv. 14. It is matter of finging, that Chrift hath a greater concern for his church than you have; for, The government is upon his fhoulders: God will take care of his own church; and Chrift hath more care of it than you can have; and, upon all the glory there fhall be a defence: but no thanks to a corrupt party, that would fet doctrine, difcipline, worship, and government, and all, before the wind. God ufually brings about church-reformation with a judgment, and then will the remnant fing of judgment, when God fcums the pot, and cafts the fcum into the fire; as you have it, Ezek. xxiv. 12. "She hath wearied herself with lies." O but Scotland hath wearied herself with lies of carnalpolicy, with the lies of court-flattery; and there is a great fcum that covers and clouds all our reformationlight, a great fcum of felf-juftifying pride, that will rather facrifice truth, than take with a fault, and rather let truth fuffer, than her credit; and yet her credit is cracked, ever fince her covenant with God was broken, and burnt, and never a hand put forth to take it out of the fire, and renew it, fince that time; but yet the covenant fhall be on the field, when the fcum fhall be in the fire. But, what fhall we say? there seems to be nothing but fcum among us, nothing but filth

and

though it be fo,

and baggage: muft all go to the fire together? Yea, yet a remnant fall fing in the fires, will be confumed therein, as you fee, 14, 15. If this fhall be done in the

when the fcum Ifaiah xxiv. 13, ifles of the fea, furely the ifles of Britain and Ireland are not excluded.Let not perfonal judgments and ftroaks pafs without a remark, but let God get the glory of his frowning, as well as of his fmiling difpenfations; and lay your account with judgments, that you may fing of judgment when it comes. Be not furprized, though affliction, temptation, and defertion come upon you, on the back of a communion: God ufes to feaft his people, to fit them for a trial: days of fweet enlargement are ufually like fun-blinks before a fhower; as Peter and John were witneffes of Chrift's transfiguration on the mount, that they might next be witneffes of his agony in the garden. Lay your account with trials from heaven, earth, and hell, that having laid your account with them before-hand, you may never forget to fing; yea, lay your account that the Philiftines will be upon you, Sampfon; all your lufts and corruptions will be upon you: therefore, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation;" and that your iniquity get not fuch hold upon you, that you shall not be able to fing. And therefore,

5. If you would fing aright of mercy and judgment, let your fong be a practical fong. Here I must tell you, that fome take the words, for David's mercy and judg ment that he was refolved to exercife in his government, namely, to be merciful and juft; the mercy of God fhall teach me to be merciful, and his juftice and judgment fhall teach me to be juft: I will praife thee, by exercifing mercy and juftice in my ftation, as a king, and a magiftrate. His refolution here is, that the mercy and juftice of God fhould be extolled in his thoughts, expreffed in his words, and exemplified in his actions, according to that command, Hof. xii. 6. " Keep mercy and judgment, and wait on thy God continually." If you would fing of mercy and judgment, then keep mercy and judgment have you fhared of the mercy of God,

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and will you not be merciful, as your heavenly Father is? Do you know the judgment of God, and will you not be juft and righteous, and equal in all your dealings with men, and converfation in the world? David's fong here is a practical fong; and you may fee, at your leifure, the feveral notes of this practical fong in the following part of the palm: and do you the fame according to your flation. One note of his fong is, verfe 2. "I will behave my felf wifely in a perfect way," &c. i. e. that, through grace, he will && confcientiously and confiderately; and in the mean time praying that the Lord would come and dwell with him in his houfe, O when wilt thou come to me?" Another note of his fong is, verfe 3. where he refolves to practife no evil himself, but shuts his eyes from feeing evil. Another note of his fong, verfes 4, 5. he will not keep bad fervants, nor en ploy thefe about him that were vicious; that he would have nothing to do with malicious people, thefe that were flanderers of their neighbours, nor thefe that are proud and haughty, nor thefe that were deceitful, and made no confcience of lying and deceit. Another note of his fong, verfe 6. That he world keep company with them that feared God; that he would keep good company, and honeft fervants: You do not practically fing to the praife of God, if you do Another note of his fong, ver. 8. That he will extend his zeal to the reforming of city and country: we are to ftudy the reformation of manners, and the fuppreflion of vice, in our feveral fiations; being filled with a zeal for the glory of God, the interest of Chrill and his truth.The gospel-church is the city of the Lord; we are to feek the honour of God in the purity of his church.

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6. And lastly, In order to your finging aright this practical fong, lay the burden of the fong upon the back of the chief musician. Who is the chief Singer? Even Jefus Chrift, in whofe obedience to the death was raifed a fong of praife and glory to God in the higheft; and by the breathing of whofe Spirit alone you can fing and ferve the Lord acceptably. He hath faid, "Without me ye can do nothing;" and furely without him you can.

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