them that fear him. It may, therefore, fignify thofe who have a fincere and unfeigned regard to the commandments of God, and have chofen him as their portion and hope. Those who defire and deserve to be distinguished from the profane despiser,-the fecure formalift, or the difguised hypocrite. Thofe, in a word, who are, and who defire to appear, to use the strong language of Scripture, upon the Lord's fide in every ftruggle, and who refolve with Joshua, that whatever others do, for their part they will ferve the Lord.

But I cannot help thinking, we may alfo, with great fafety, explain the words in a clofer and stricter sense, and fuppofe, that by fearing the Lord, is to be understood a due reverence for his infinite majesty, a humble veneration for his facred authority. This is a moft excellent fence or guard to the confcience in an evil time, and a noble preservative from the spreading infection and infinuating poison of prevailing or fashionable fins. It is alío the usual character of a diffolute age to have caft off fear, to treat the moft facred things with fcorn, and to look upon that holy folicitude to avoid fin, which appears in the carriage and language of a child of God, as a mark of meannefs or weakness of mind. In fuch an age, one who fears God is well defcribed by the prophet Ifaiah, But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite fpirit, and trembleth at my word.

The next part of the character is, and obeyeth the voice of his fervant; that is to fay, is willing to hearken to the meffage of God by the mouth of his fervants. The words of the text, no doubt, may be confidered as primarily referring to the inspired Prophets, who bore an immediate commiffion, miraculously attefted from God. Many, even of thefe, were fet at nought, their meffage derided, and their perfons infulted, when they attempted to ftem the

tide of prevailing vice, or boldly denounced the Divine vengeance against high-handed finners. But the fincerely pious obeyed their voice. I shall make no scruple to apply this to ourselves, and the prefent age. Our blessed Redeemer hath established in his church a standing miniftry, and the regular administration of ordinances. And though we have this treasure in earthen veffels, yet in no other way doth he now communicate his will, and vouchfafe his presence to his people, but by the reading and hearing of his word, and attendance upon his inftituted worship. It will, no doubt, therefore be a part of the character of a good man, that he will love the ordinances, and obey the voice of the fervants of God; that he will confider him who hath fent them, and receive instruction, not as the word of man, but as it is in deed and in truth the word of God.

On the other hand, when iniquity prevails, when irreligion and profaneness lift up their heads, one of the most ufual concomitants, and one of the fureft proofs of it is, a neglect of ordinances, and contempt of those who are concerned in their administration: How far this is at prefent the cafe, I leave to yourfelves to judge. While I speak this, my brethren, I do by no means defire to see an ignorant people distracted by the gloomy terrors of fuperstition, or led blindfold by the enchanted cord of implicit faith. But fure I am, there is an extreme on either hand, and those who truly fear the Lord, will honour the perfons, and obey the voice of fuch as plead his caufe and speak in his name. You may rest affured, that though they neither deserve nor claim any authority on their own account, yet fo long as they ftand in the Divine councils, and fpeak the Divine word, their meffage will be attended with this awful fanction, He that defpifeth you,

defpifeth

defpifeth me, and he that despiseth me, despiseth him that fent me.

The last part of the character here drawn, which lays the foundation for the fubfequent direction is, that walketh in darkness, and bath no light. Darkness and light, befides their literal, have often a metaphorical sense in Scripture. They are, indeed, used with a good deal of latitude and variety. But I think their metaphorical fignification may be reduced to these two general heads. 1. Sometimes light fignifies knowledge, and darkness fignifies ignorance, as in Eph. v. 8. Ye were fometimes darknefs, but now are ye light in the Lord; walk as children of light. Acts xxvi. 18. To turn them from darkness unto light, and from the power of Satan unto God. Job xxxvii. 19. Teach us what we shall say unto him; for we cannot order our Speech by reafon of darkness. 2. Sometimes darkness fignifies distress or trouble, and the correspondent fignification of light is deliverance and joy, as 2 Sam. xxii. 28, 29. And the afflicted people thou wilt fave; but thine eyes are upon the haughty, that thou mayeft bring them down; for thou art my lamp, O Lord; and the Lord will lighten my darkness. Job xix. 8. He hath fenced up my way that I cannot pass; he hath put darkness in my paths. Pf. xcvii. 11. Light is fown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart. Efther viii. 16. And the Jews bad light and gladness, and joy and honour.

None of these fenfes is to be excluded in the paffage before us. Believers may walk in darkness, when ignorant or uncertain as to what nearly concerns them, as well as under diftrefs and trouble. They have alfo a mutual influence upon, produce, and are produced by one another. For illuftrating this a little more particularly, observe, that a good man may walk in darkness. 1. When he is in doubt or uncertainty as to his intereft in the Di

vine favour. 2. When he is under the preffure of outward calamity. 3. When the ftate of the church is fuch, that he cannot understand or explain, in a fatisfying manner, the course of Divine providence. Thefe particulars I have it not in view to enlarge much upon, but only to explain them fo far as is neceffary to lay a foundation for what shall be afterwards offered on the duty to trust in God.

1. Then, a good man may walk in darkness when he is in doubt or uncertainty as to his intereft in the Divine favour. I apprehend that some measure of hope in God's mercy is effential to true piety, and not only the right, but the poffeffion of every child of God. Faith and despair are beyond all question inconfiftent. Faith and hope are infeparable. Yet certainly the excellent ones of the earth may be fometimes involved in great, perplexity and doubt. This is plain from fcripture examples, from daily experience, and from the nature and reafon of the thing. How violent a ftruggle do we often find the Pfalmist David in, between hope and fear? O my God, my foul is caft down in me; therefore will I remember thee from the land of Jordan, and of the Hermonites, from the bill Mixar. How many do we fee every day under a spirit of bondage, who, though they still cleave to God as their portion, yet are often full of fears, and feldom dare confidently affirm their intereft in, or relation to him. And indeed how can it be otherwife? While we are here, our fanctification is but imperfect; and, alas! with regard to many, it is often hard to determine, whether we fhould not write upon it, Mene tekel, as effentially defective.

Sin separates between God and his people, and causes him to hide his face from them. Nay, fometimes, though there be no particular or provoking crime, as the cause

of his controverfy with them, he may withdraw from them the light of his countenance, to exercise their vigilance, or to try their patience. I know, my brethren, that the distress of serious fouls, when mourning after an absent or an angry God, crying to him in fecret, and following hard after him in his ordinances, is by many treated with the highest degree of contempt. But furely, if peace of mind from a well-founded hope of the Divine favour, is the greatest of all present bleffings; and if this, from the variablenefs of our own conduct, is sometimes more, fometimes lefs ftrong, and fometimes wholly fufpended; when this laft is the cafe, it must occafion inexpreffible concern, and there can be no greater evidence of irreligion and impiety than to call it in question.

2. A good man may walk in darknefs when under the preffure of outward calamity. This, in a real believer, is never wholly separated from the former. Even in itself, indeed, no affliction for the present is joyous but grievous. The diforders of this feeble frame, poverty, and straitness of provision, unjust flander and reproach, must be deeply and fenfibly felt by every good man, even as he is a man. To this may be added, the lofs of relations, and concerns for the fufferings of others of every kind, which is always most diftreffing to the best and tenderest spirits. But outward calamities by those that fear God, are felt moft fenfibly when they are confidered as the rod of his anger, and bring fin to remembrance. When he vifits his own children with any of his fore judgments: When he follows them with breach upon breach, they are ready to fay, Surely be is fetting me up as a mark for his arrows, he is counting me his enemy.— They are often at a loss to understand the cause of his controversy with them; and they alfo find it often extremely difficult to bring their minds to a patient and fubmifive

I