IT is Probable, and more than so, That every Person in this Assembly of Zion, has Bitter Griefs that may be complain­ed of: There is not an Heart but what knows its own Bitterness. But it is as probable, that the Griefs of many People are Incurable ones; Griefs hopelefs of any Cure in this World; There is nothing that can be done to Cure them. It may be said unto them, as in Jer. XXX. 12. Thus saith the Lord, Thy Bruise as Incurable, and thy Wound is Griev­ous.

This CASE, What shall be done [Page 4]with Griefs, when there is no Cu­ring of them? 'Tis a Case, which I make no doubt, very many are concerned in; A Case, which I make no doubt, may be very Pro­fitably, and very Seasonably dis­coursed on.

My Discourse upon the Case, will have an agreeable Introducti­on, in pointing you to an Instance of it. The celebrated Job, was one in whom you find it instanced. It is well noted by the famous Jew Maimonides, That the Book of Job Was written, to Establish us in the grand Article of Divine Provi­dence. And the Mahometans them­selves, look upon it, as written to Instruct us in this particular My­stery of that Providence; That God may Afflict those, whom He has a great Favour for. He who writes the Ancient Commentaries on this Book, under the Name of Origen, says, that he found this Tradition, In Antiquorum dictis, That Moses beholding the Cala­mities [Page 5]of his Brethren in Egypt, made a Present of this History un­to them, to Encourage their Ex­pectations, that if they suffered Pa­tiently, God would in the latter End bestow such a Deliverance upon them, as He did upon His Patient Servant Job. And in like manner, it was the Custome of the Primitive Christians, when they visited one another in their perso­nal Calamities, to Read a Lesson out of Job in their Visits, for the Support of their Minds under what had befallen them.

It seems, I do no New Thing, when I call in the Patriarch Job, to serve the Intention, of giving some Direction about Incurable Ca­lamities. The Afflicted Patriarch here Complains of his Grief, as be­ing Incurable. Says he, Tho' I speak, my Grief is not asswaged; and tho' I forbear; what am I eased. ‘Neither Speaking nor Silence, will do any thing for my Cure. Let me try what Methods I will, my Grief [Page 6]will remain without a Cure.’ Per­haps, it was not without some Eye to this Passage, that Elibu charged Job, in Chap. XXXIV. 6. with saying, My Wound is Incurable. Be that as it will, my DOCTRINE will be Incontestible.

The Children of Men are frequently troubled with Griefs which cannot be Cured.

Many People have such Griefs as they have little hopes to Asswage and have eased, as long as they are in this present Evil World. Many People meet with Grievous Things, which they can't hope to see re­moved; but must look to bear them as well as they can; it may be, as long as they live. The Weeping Pro­phet said of the share which he must have in the Woful Things that came upon his Country; Jer. X. 19. This is a Grief, and I must bear it. We see many a Grief, which there is no Redressing of; We must [Page 7] bear it. But the Case now is, How to bear it? This is to be spoken to.

I. And it will contribute a little unto it, for us to lay down in the first Place, this more general Ob­servation. Griefs must come; There are Grievous Things, which in this World must be met withal. They are in the very Nature of the Cli­mate. It is the Condition of Man­kind; the common Lot, the constant Fate, which every Mothers Son must look for: A Condition of Afflicti­on, which is not Joyous but Grievous. We Read, Job XIV. 1. Man that is born of a Woman, is of short Life, and full of Trouble.

We will a little Enquire after the Cause of the Grievous Things that are appointed for us. For, Is there not a Cause? My Brethren, 'Tis not a meer Chance that brings our Griefs. Let us leave it unto the Philistines to say, It is a Chance that happens unto us. To ascribe our Grievous Things unto a Blind For­tune; [Page 8]to make no more of it than this, It was my hard Fortune; 'tis a very Foolish and Faulty Blindness. There is no Sense, and as little Grace, in the Expression, tho' it be a very frequent one. I remember, the Holy one threatens His Peo­ple; Lev. XXVI. 24. If ye walk contrary unto me. The Original Word signifies, not, Contrariety, but, Contingency. The Learned Jews Ex­plain it with such a Reading, If ye walk in the way of Chance. And who do so? They most Emphati­cally, who don't look above Chance in the Events which in their Walk they meet withal. They who don't see and own the Providence of God in all Events. Of such People it is threatned by God. That He will Walk in the way of Chance with them, and will regard their Prayers no more than if there were nothing but a Chance to Govern their Af­fairs. But,

First. Our Sin is the Cause of our Grief. Our Sin has made us worthy [Page 9]of Grievous Things. 'Tis to Cha­stise us for our Sin, that the Justice of Heaven dispences to us all our Grievous Things. Whenever any Grief befalls us, it may be said unto us, as in Jer. IV. 18. Thy Way and thy Doings have procured these Things un­to thee; This is thy Wickedness. It was by Sin, that the Curse of Hea­ven was first brought upon the Earth. In those Terms was the Curse denounced; Gen. III. 17, 18. Cursed is the Ground for thy sake; in Sorrow shalt thou Eat of it all the Days of thy Life. Thorns also and Thistles it shall bring forth unto thee. All the Grievous Things that Embitter our Lives, are the Thorns and Thistles, which the Earth does bring forth unto us. No Corner of the Earth is free from them. The Cottage has them; the Palace also has them. The First Adams World is always full of Grievous Things; Ever a Stranger to uninterrupted Prosperity. 'Tis a Vain Thing to flatter our selves. This World will be always [Page 10]filled with Vanity and Vexation. In­deed our Second Adam will bring us into a Better World. In the World to come, we read, Rev. XXI. 4. There shall be no more Death, neither Sorrow nor Crying: And Rev. XXII. 3. There shall be no more Curses. But until we come into that World, we shall al­ways have some Fruits of the Curse to Conflict withal; some Grievous Things always attending of us. Ah, Sin, Sin; Thou art the Distresser of the Nations!

A very plain Inference I now see so lying before me, that there is indeed no shunning of it. I Infer, Certainly, our Sin ought now to be our Grief. Oh! make it thy Grief, and except what the Blood of thy Saviour shall bring unto thee, do not ask for any thing, that may Asswage or Ease, a Grief that will not work thy Death, as every other will, but will save thee from it. If Sin bring all our Grief, certainly then Sin should be our greatest Grief. It becomes every one of us [Page 11]say with him; Psal. XXXVIII. 18. I will be sorry for my Sin. We Read of such a Blessed Thing, as A Godly Sorrow, working Repentance to Salvation which is not to be Repen­ted of. May every Grief which trou­bles us, be turned into that Channel: A Grief, because we have sinned, & we have by our Sin provoked the Holy One to send our Grief upon us. May all our Grievous Things cause us to Reflect on our Sins, & fill us with Grievus Thoughts because of our Sins. My Brethren, I am so far from any Wish to see this Grief cured in you, that I wish it may be ever growing in you as long as you live; and that it may Accompany you to the last Moment of your Lives. O Dye in the midst of this Grief; and so, Enter into the Joy of your Lord. It is a Grief that will End in a Joy which will never have an End!

Secondly. But, who was the Father of Sin? Give him his Due; He must be brought in, as having an Hand [Page 12]in the Grievous Things, which Dar­ken the World. Satan has a mighty Hand in them; Satan, the Prince of this World; Satan, the Ruler of the Darkness of this World. That Angel of Death, by the Permission of a just God, sills this World with Griev­ous Things, and with Deadly Ones. When Grievous Things befel the good People of Smyrna, our Savi­our told them, The Divel was the Doer of them. Satan, with his Le­gions of wicked Spirits, having lost his own Comforts, is full of Envy at ours. By our First Sin, we fell under his Dominion; Oh! what a Grievous one! By every New Sin, especially if it be a Gross one, we give him a fresh Advantage to ob­tain a Commission for our further Annoyance. We Read, Joh. VIII. 44. He was a Murderer from the Be­ginning. And who can tell, what Grievous Things are done, by the Influence and Energy of that Mur­derer upon the sinful Children of Men! The Ancient Pagans had [Page 13]their Minds much exercised upon that Question, What was the Origin of Evil; Or, Whence Evil came in upon us? There was a Tradition among them, and a very old one it was, That there were Two first Prin­ciples; One called Oromazes, who might be resembled unto Light; Another called, Arimanius, who might be resembled unto Darkness; the one a God, the other a Daemou. The one lodged this World, like an Egg under the shell of his Fa­vour; the other broke and pierc'd the Shell, and insinuated a Mix­ture of Evil into all that is Good. A Tradition that contain'd in it some notable Reliques of Truth: God, the Maker of the World, and the Author of all Good; Satan, the Spoiler of the World, and the Foun­tain of all Evil. The Result is, That the Grief of Mankind, is the Delight of Satan; What Grieves us, does Gladden him. He has no Pleasure, but that of an Executioner in Grievous Things upon a World, [Page 14]which alas, is always too worthy of them.

And here again, I could not but see an Inference, that looks Black upon some among the Children of Men. I infer, To be pleas'd because our Neighbours are griev'd, this is a Satanic Disposition. The Chil­dren of Men, who love to make or see others Miserable; I shall but speak Scripturally of them, if I say, they are too like the Children of the Divel; They have the Image of Sa­tan very plain upon them. We may say, In this the Children of God are Manifest, and the Children of the Di­vel. The Children of God; these are full of all Goodness; like their Fa­ther, they are Good, they do Good; they Rejoice in the Prosperity of their Neighbours. The Groans of the Miserable, are a Music to none but Satan, and his Children. In­deed, there may be the Triumphs of the Righteous, in the Ruines of the Wicked. But still the Triumphs have the Sorrows of a Gracious and [Page 15]to say with him; Psal. XXXVIII. 18. I will be sorry for my Sin. We Read of such a Blessed Thing, as A Godly Sorrow, working Repentance to Salvation which is not to be Repen­ted of. May every Grief which trou­bles us, be turned into that Channel: A Grief, because we have sinned, & we have by our Sin provoked the Holy One to send our Grief upon us. May all our Grievous Things cause us to Reflect on our Sins, & fill us with Grievus Thoughts because of our Sins. My Brethren, I am so far from any Wish to see this Grief cured in you, that I wish it may be ever growing in you as long as you live; and that it may Accompany you to the last Moment of your Lives. O Dye in the midst of this Grief; and so, Enter into the Joy of your Lord. It is a Grief that will End in a Joy which will never have an End!

Secondly. But, who was the Father of Sin? Give him his Due; He must be brought in, as having an Hand [Page 16]pensations of a Divine and most Glorious Providence. Whoever, or whatever Grieves us, by taking away what is dear unto us, we must say, 'Tis the Lord who has taken away! Whatever Instruments may Grievs us, they are but Instruments. We may say, The Lord has bidden them.

The Grievous Things which befal the Reprobate part of Mankind; These are the Punishments, which God in His Holy Providence does inflict upon them. In these Griev­ous Things He restrains them from such Outrages, as wou'd else break up Humane Society. In these Grievous Things He lays them up in those Fetters, and those Dungeons, that are to go before their final Execution.

And then, the Grievous Things which befal the People of God, belong to the Discipline, wherewith His Holy Providence does prepare them for their Eternal Happiness. By these Grievous Things, He weans them from a World, in which they would else be too willing to Abide, [Page 17]and carry on multiplied Idolatries; He kills the Weeds of those Cor­ruptions that would unqualify them for His Kingdom. He awakens them to the Things that are Holy and Just and Good. By these Grievous Things, He Humbles them, He Quickens them, He Ripens them for Heaven; He fits them for the Inheritance in the Heavenly Places re­served for them. The Things which for the present are not Joyous but Griev­ous, do afterwards yield the Peacea­ble Fruits of Righteousness unto them.

From this there will be an In­ference, that is very Obvious. I Infer, We have to do with God, as often as any thing that is Grievous occurs unto us. O all you that are in any Grief, Remember this; God orders it, God appoints it; You have to do with God in every Grief. To every one of 'your' Grievous Things you may say, Thou couldest have had no Power against me, if God had not given it. You have no Cross, but such as God has laid upon you. [Page 18]'Tis impossible for me to com­mend unto you a more useful Con­templation.

II. We may now go on to ob­serve more particularly; Many of the Griefs that come, are such as cannot be cured. We meet with some Grievous Things whereof 'tis a vain thing to expect a Cure. We have Griefs, which will not be asswaged by Speaking, or eased by Silence. They are altogether Incurable.

First. Be sure, we have this Grief that cannot be cured; That our state in general, must be a state of Grief; a state liable to Grievous Things. There are many Grievous Things that are the unavoidable Por­tion of Mankind. It is our Portion, and there is no Avoiding, there is no Preventing, there is no Escap­ing of it. Come, let us do like the Wise Man, in Eccl. III. 10. See the Travel which God hath given unto the Sons of Men, to be Exercised in it. There are the Laws of our present state, which are less to be altered, [Page 19]than the Laws of the Medes and Per­sians; Laws which oblige us to many. Humbling and Creepling Circumstances. And what art thou, O proud Worm, that thou shouldest propose for thy sake any Alterati­on of them? Shall the Earth be for­saken for thee, and shall the Rock be removed out of his Place? Vain Man, Rash Man, Tho' thou tear thy self in thine Anger, it shall not be done. A state of Grievous Things here, 'tis Unalterable, 'tis Unalterable! I shall speak very Comprehensively, when I say, Every Condition of Life, must have Temptations attending of it. There is no Condition free from its peculiar Temptations. Very much of our Work in the World, is to Watch against the Temptations in it. O our God, let them not be too hard for us! I go on; It is a Grief, that we must Labour under such Frailty, and such Meanness, and such Nece­ssities, as the Constitution of our Bodies does bring upon us; A Grief; but there is no curing of it. It is a [Page 20] Grief, that it is appointed for Men [...] to Die; and after we have, like the Sparks, mounted up for a little while, we must anon sink, and fall down into the common Heap of Ashes: A Grief, But there is no Curing of it. It is a Grief, that we must be always liable to Grievous Things; The Wheel always upon the Turn; and no Man know a Day aforehand what a Day may bring forth. Say, This is my Grief; I am Feeble, and Mortal, and Jog on from Day to Day, Ignorant and Uncertain every Day what may come upon me, in the Day that is coming on; But it is Incurable: It cannot be otherwise. A state liable to Griev­ous Things, is call'd, 1 Cor. X. 13. What is common to Man. O Man, Be not so Impertinent as to Dream of Curing and shunning, what is common to Man. Among the Incura­bles of our present State, wonder not that I omit the Body of Death which will cleave to us till the Death of our Body; An Inclination to Sin, a Pro| [Page 21]pensity to Sin, which will be a Le­prosy cleaving to us, till the Walls of our Clay-Tabernacle be all taken down. My Reason for this Omi­ssion, is, Because I propose the Mention of no Grievous Things, but such as we ought to bear Patiently, and be Reconcil'd unto. Now out Sin is a Grief, never to be born with any Patience. We are always to be Groaning under it. It will be no Offence unto Heaven to say, Lord, I cannot bear it! The most a­greeable Strain under it will al­ways be that; Lord, I am Oppressed, undertake for me!

But this Advice cannot leave us, without an Admonition; Heaven­born Souls, Long for Heaven! Since the present State will and must be a Grievous one, e'en bear it, as long as God shall please to keep you in it. But then, methinks, the Future state should be Preferr'd with you; should be Desir'd by you: A Better state, you may depend upon it. Syrs, You shall not therein do, ac­cording [Page 22]to the Things which you do here this Day. Nor shall you therein suf­fer such Abasements, and such En­cumbrances, and such Inconveni­encies, as are now the Grievous Things of your Pilgrimage. O de­termine this; I shall never be well, till I come to Heaven.

Secondly. There is a Variety of more particular Circumstances in our state of Life, which will cause Grief unto us; but the Grievous Things will be found such as cannot be Cured. In the Course of Life, we must meet with many Things, which we could very much wish were otherwise than they are. But our Wish will signify nothing; 'Tis to no purpose to Propound it. We read, Eccl. I. 15. That which is Croo­ked cannot be made Straight; and that which is wanting cannot be Numbred. There are Grievous Things, which the Decree of God has assign'd for us, and Sorrows which He distributes in His Anger: A Decree which can­not be Revoked, cannot be Resi­sted; [Page 23]there is no contending with it. Who can pretend unto the Num­bring of them?

First. We may have our Bodily Infirmities, which may be Grievous Diseases. But can they not be Cured? No; There comes that Message unto us from Heaven concerning them, Thou shalt use many Medicines, and thou shalt not be Cured. We must lye under the Grief, as long as we are in the Body. Old Age will be full of such Ails. Multa Senem—. Rarely can the Old Man say as he, I find nothing amiss, which Old Age may be accused of. Ah, Dim-sighted Old Man, whose trembling Hands lean on the Staff, whose Appetite flags, and whose Memory fails; There is no Curing of Threescore Years and Ten!

Again; Grievous Accidents may come upon us. But they were Un­foreseen. We could not by any Fore­sight or Caution, or Parry, keep them off. And they are come, they con­not be Cured. The Grief will abide; [Page 24]the Wormwood and the Gall, be al­ways had in Remembrance with us.

Moreover, We may be plung'd into Wants and Straits that will be Grievous to us. But such as we can­not get Reliev'd; We can see no way of Relief. The Grief is never like to cease as long as we live. We are staked down in the midst of Difficulties: There is no getting from them.

There must be something out of Joint in our Families; and it cannot be Cured; There will be no bring­ing of the Thing to Rights.— I find these Incurable Griefs to grow upon my Meditations, and crowd and press in at such a rate, as to spoil my Method. I can't Speak of them, as fast as I Think. But they are Immethodical Things; they cause Confusion where they come; and it will be no Indecency to go on with a Tumultuary Enumeration of them. I say then; There are Maladies which are, Opprobria Medicorum; such as Despise and Disgrace the Skill [Page 25]of our Physicians. And there are Miseries which are, Opprobria Ami­corum; such that our Friends are Physicians of no Value in them. Yea, perhaps our Friends themselves may be such Miseries unto us: Crooked Things, that cannot be made Straight: We cannot Mend them; And yet we cannot Leave them. Uncomfort­able Relatives, and yet Unescapable Relatives. A Grief; it may be, A Continual Dropping. But it cannot be Cured; It will stick by thee, as fast as a Rib in thy side; as long as thy Head upon thy Shoulders. O Prisoner of no Hope; There is no getting away; No Out-gate can be hoped for.

Shall I go on? There may Vi­pers fasten upon us, which cannot be shaken off. The Servant of God once Complained of, a, Thorn in the Flesh. A Wicked, Venemous, Reproach­ful Adversary, is by the Prophet Ezekiel call'd, A Vexing Thorn. I suppose, our Apostle Paul's Com­plaint was of such a Vexing Thorn. [Page 26]It was, A Messenger of Satan to Buffet him. He would fain have been de­livered. He besought the Lord with one Day of Prayer after another, more than Once or Twice, for Deliverance. But it must not be granted him. The Answer was, 2 Cor. XII. 9. My Grace is sufficient for thee. ‘Be satisfied with what my Grace has done for thee on other Accounts; This Trial must continue all thy Days; Tis e­nough that I will enable thee to bear the Trial.’

My Friends; There may be strong Chains laid upon us: And such may be our Madness, that Heaven will not allow the Chains to be taken off: 'Twill be a Madness to think of having them taken off.

I perceive, my Catalogue of In­curables, is not yet finished. You were told, They cannot be Numbred. Public Affairs, and Public Stations, will make a vast Addition to the Number of them. In Public Affairs, 'tis how Grievous? — to see the [Page 27]Horrid Oppressions, the Cursed Bri­beries, the Villianous Treacheries, and the Notorious Mismanagements, that Plague the Nations. That which makes the Grief become a desperate Sorrow, is, The Things are to be Cured by no Remonstrances. They may Lift up their Voice, if they please. There may be much Roaring at it: No Curing of it. No Cure, till He come, who is Mightier than many Waters. In Public Stations, 'tis Griev­ous to Encounter the Misconstructi­on, and the Ingratitude, which all that are in any Service must meet withal. O you Servants of Many, Heavy Loads must be laid upon you; and under your Loads you shall be Basely dealt withal. But I'll tell you for your Comfort, There is no Help for it; no Cure to be had; you must get along as well as you can; To have it any better, is a Thing to be despaired of.

There is this Advice, you might be sure would be left with you, be­fore we go any further. Beware [Page 28]of taking any Indirect Ways to get off the Annoyances that cleave so close unto you. We must bear our Grief, as long as we cannot Honest­ly get from under it. Sometimes, if we will Sin for it, we may by some Sin free our selves from these and those Grievous Things. That is to say, God has laid on the Grief, and the Divel offers, that if you'l accept his Help, he'l take it off. But, surely, The Remedy is worse than the Disease. Oh! Reject the Divels Offers. Never do any Sinful Thing to be made Easy by it. Say; 'Tu my Grief, and I will not speak any thing that is wrong to have it asswa­ged; I will forbear doing any thing amiss to have it eased. It shall be as it is, until God will put me into a way to be set at Liberty.

III. But now, the CASE is, How to bear these Grievous Things?

What tho' the Griefs cannot be Cured? Thanks be to our good God; They are not Intolerable, tho' [Page 29]they be Incurable. The Direction to be given in a more Summary way is this.

The Griefs that can't be Cured, must be born, as God shall Enable us, and as God has Directed us. 'Tis not enough to say, What can't be Cur'd must be Endur'd. The CASE is, How they shall be Endured? The only Cure for many of our Grievous Things, is to Bear them Decently, to Bear them Discreetly. Hearken to me, my beloved Brethren; A very considerable Part of what we have to do in the World, is to Bear suit­ably the Grievous Things of the World. The Bigger, and you will excuse me if I say, the Harder part of our Work, lies in our Passive Obe­dience. Common Sense taught the very Pagans to say, Levius fit Patientia, Quicquid corrigere est nefas. What no body can tell how to Cure, may by Patience be Asswaged and Eased wonderfully. Surely, special Grace will teach us more than the Beasts of the Earth. 'Tis our best Prudence to [Page 30]bear our Grievous Things with our best Patience; To carry our Bur­dens handsomely.

A due Patience under Grievous Things; I beseech you to consider it; This Patience does exceedingly Glorify God. No Devotion does more Glorify God. God sees our Pa­tience. The Glorious God is exceed­ingly Gratified with it. No Lan­guage, no, none, makes a more grateful Melody in the Ears of Heaven, than this; O my God, such a Grief is by thee order'd for me; and because thou hast order'd it, I Patiently, Willingly, Cheerfully submit unto it. By this Lovely Submission to our Grievous Things, Oh! the Glory that we give unto our God, and our Sa­viour. So did our Saviour Glorify His Father. 'Tis an High flight in our Conformity to our Saviour, when we come to that Language; The Cup which my Heavenly Father gives me to Drink of, shall not I Drink of it? Oh! 'Tis all well, that such a Father does! Our Saviour, who bore [Page 31]the Cross, will have every Christian to be a Cross-bearer. There can be nothing more Pleasing unto our Saviour, than to see a Disciple take his Cross, and bear the Cross as it becomes a Disciple. We also read, 1 Cor. IV. 9 We are made a Specta­cle unto Angels. The Angels of God, they are the Spectators of all the Grievous Things that are laid upon us: They are Spectators of our Car­riage under them Carry well, O Suffering Child of God; The Mor­ning-Stars will sing together, the Sons of God will shout for Joy, at the Spe­ctacle. The Grace of God working under thy Grief, will appear Ami­able and Admirable, to those Noble Spectators. And thou that art now the Occasion of their Praises, wilt one Day be the Companion of them. And by our Patience under Grievous Things, we are Gloriously prepar­ing for Glorious Things. Like our Blessed Fore-runner, we must first Suffer and then enter into Glory. By a right Behaviour under the Suffer­ings [Page 32]of this present Time; we make ready for the Glory that is to be Re­vealed. It is in this Preparation work­ing us up for it, that as we read, 2 Cor. IV. 17. Our light Afflictions here, which are but for a Moment, work for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of Glory. Briefly, There is no Remedy but Patience. Then Pa­tience, thou shalt be the Remedy.

The CASE is yet waiting; How must we bear our Grievous Things?

First; You have been already told, You must bear your Griefs, AS GOD SHALL ENABLE YOU. This implies, That they must be born Prayerfully. The first Thing you are to do, is to confess, That you can bear Nothing. But then, in an Humble Sense of your own In­ability to bear the least Thing in the World, fly to God, cry to God, ask for the Help of God Hope to Bear, as well as to Do, all Things, according to the Motto of Christi­anity, THRO' CHRIST, WHO STRENGTHENS ME. It was a [Page 33]most proper Counsil; Jam. V. 13. Is there any among you Afflicted? Let him Pray. When Grievous Things are laid upon you, receive them, as the Camels do their Burdens; re­ceive them on your Knees: Fall to Praying immediately. But more than so, Carry them in this Posture too, as long as they must lye upon you. Your Prayers under all your Griefs! Your Prayers: To call for these, verily, 'tis not the least Er­rand of your Griefs: This is the Message they come upon. Oh! pour out thy Prayer unto God, now His Chastning is upon thee. Now this is to be one very Repeted Stroke of your Prayers; Lord, help me to bear my Grief: To bear it Suitably. O my God, Let me not by any unsuitable Be­haviour Dishonour Thee, under the Grievous Things which thou dost Order for me! My Fellow-sufferers, I will now speak a Good Word, which may make your Heart Glad, when stouping with Heaviness. 'Tis this; A Sollicitude about this thing, To [Page 34]obtain Help from our God, that we may not Sin under our Grief; 'Tis a lovely Token of a Soul bound up in the Bundle of Life: A lovely Token of an Heart sound in the Sta­tutes of God. It is a Token of Salva­tion; And such a Token, that it is well worth meeting with some Grievous Things, to have such a Dis­covery of it.

It will be no Contradiction, to go on, and say;

Secondly. They must be born Silently too. Under all your Griev­ous Things you must keep up that Frame, Psal. XXXIX. 9. I was Dumb, I opened not my Mouth, because thou didst it. No Murmuring, I be­seech you. In a certain Place of the Psalms, there is a Passage, which may be so Translated, Silence is Praise to thee, O God. We never Praise our Glorious God so well, as by Silence under the Grievous Things that He lays upon us. Our Murmurs are to be silenced by the Sovereignty of God. O thou Afflicted, Whatever [Page 35]be thy Grief, lye at the Foot of the Sovereign GOD, and think; Lord, Here I lye before thee, as the Clay be­fore the Potter. Shall the Clay Complain of any Grievous Things done unto it? Lord, If thou break me to pieces, I can­not Complain of being hardly dealt withal. And by the Righteousness of God, our Murmurs are to be yet further silenced. O thou Afflicted, A­dore a Righteous God, and think, Why should a Living Man Complain; a Man for the Punishment of his Sin? In the most Grievous Things that are done unto me, Lord, Thou doest Punish me less than my Iniquities deserve; To be broken sore in the place of Dragons is no more than I deserve. But is this all that we have to Silence our Mur­murs? No; There is a Faithful Sa­viour, who does manage all. O Be­liever, Thou hast also this Consola­tion to delight thy Soul, in the Mul­titude of Thoughts which thy Griev­ous Things do fill thee withal. O my dear Saviour, whose Name is, The Lord my Helper; Thou art He, by [Page 36]whom all my Grievous Things are dis­pensed unto me; And I am sure, Thou hast meant all unto Good; Tho' what thou doest, I know not now, I shall know hereafter. In the mean time, I know, that thou wilt not lay more upon me, than thou wilt make me able to Con­flict withal. Oh! Let no unbecoming Expression be heard from you. Such Thoughts as these must Restrain your Passions. You must not be Pas­sionate, Outrageous, Tempestuous under your Grievous Things: Not be always, or often upon the Fret; Not give way to Discomposures. When you are in a Storm at any time, Oh! Rebuke it into a Calm, with such Thoughts as these; Why art thou cast down, O my Soul, and why art thou disquieted within me? Fear God and be Quiet. It is God, who in every Grievous Thing, does but per­form the Thing that is appointed for thee!

Thirdly. Humbly, but yet Stoutly. They must be born Manfully: With the Vigour of Manly Christianity. [Page 37]Under Grievous Things, don't for­get that Word, If thou Faint in the Day of Adversity, thy Strength is but small. There is Hazard, lest Griev­ous Things befalling you, O Diligent seekers of God, may discourage your Diligence. But, Oh! Don't give way to any Discouragement. Be not wearied, nor Faint in your Minds! Most Laudable the Cou­rage of the Godly Man; Job XIII. 15. Tho He stay me, yet will I trust in Him. Thus; Tho' you should have the Grief of being among the Poor of this World, yet Resolve, I will be as Rich towards God, as ever I can. Tho' you should have the Grief of a Name overwhelmed with Reproaches, yet Resolve, I will Ho­nour the Name of my great Redeemer, as much as ever I can. Tho' you should have the Grief of Languish­ments under Weaknesses, yet Re­solve, My God, I will yet Love thee with all my Strength. Yea, Tho' you cry unto God, and He does not hear you; A Thing, how Grievous, [Page 38]how Grievous? — Yet Resolve, Lord, I will continue my Cries unto thee; I will call upon thee as long as I live! Oh! Don't harbour the least Thought of Deserting the Service of God, tho' you should meet with never such Grievous Things in ser­ving of Him, and have never such Darkness in your Pathes. Bear all with Resolution. O Resolved Ser­vant of God, say; Lord, Tho' all this come upon me, yet I will not forget thee, nor deal falsely in thy Cove­nant!

Fourthly. They must be born Fruitfully. Your Grievous Things, you must bear them so well, as to be the Better for them. So bear your Grievous Things, as to make them Useful Things. You can't get rid of your Griefs, then get Good by your Griefs. Press after that Attainment; Psal. CXIX. 71. It is good for me, that I have been Afflicted.

It is Observable, That for the most part, the Grief which People would be most fond of having Re­moved, [Page 39]proves the most Abiding one, the most Confirmed one. The Griev­ous Thing which is, the Grand Ulcer of their Minds, the Grand Vexer of their Hearts, the Grand Imbitter­ment of their Lives; This Grievous Thing must prove a Lasting one. I will tell you the Reason; O grieved one, Thou hast not yet got so much Good by thy Grief, as ought to be The End of thy Grief is not yet gain'd, and therefore it must not yet come to an End. Syrs; Let nor your Griefs prove as Unprofitable as they are Incurable. You can't shake off your Troubles; But if your Troubles all Work together for your Good, This will be more to your Advantage, than if they were sha­ken of. Oh! 'Tis a Lamentable Thing, to see a Man tied fast unto what is Grievous to him; and yet this Man, as Foolish, and as Car­nal, and as Graceless a Wretch, as if he were under no Chastisement from God. The sight is a very Grievous one, but yet a very Fre­quent [Page 40]one; People in Griefs, and not at all improving in Piety under their Griefs. How Reproveable, but how Pitiable, that Obstinacy; Jer. XI. 30. In vain have I smitten them; they have received no Correction.

My Friends, Your Griefs can't be Cured. But cannot you then be Cured by your Griefs? Oh! May it come to this; Isa. XXVII. 9. Ini­quity shall hereby be purged, and all the Fruit shall be to take away Sin. Your Grievous Things, Let them Cure you of your Mistakes; Cure you of your Vices; Cure you of your Follies. Be not Fools bray'd in a Mortar. Let your Grievous Things bring you to Repent of those Evil Things which you have most of all Cause to be grieved for. Let your Grievous Things prevent your wandring in those Ways which are always Grievous, & Reclaim you to a serious Enquiry into the Cause of your Evil Things, or wherefore God is thus contending with you. Let your Grievous Things cause you to grow in that Acquain­tance [Page 41]with Christ, that Commu­nion with God, that Meetness for the Inheritance of the Saints in Light, and all that Good, which may make amends for all the Evil you meet withal.

Will you pemit me now, to sin­gle out Three or Four very usual Cases in the Neighbourhood; Griefs that are very usual in the Neigh­bourhood. The Neighbours have them; and they can't Cure them; they must bear them: If they speak, their Grief would not be asswaged; if they forbear, they will not be eased. My Neighbours, I will tell you, how to bear them, and find Cause to Bless God, that he has call'd you to bear them.

First. There are Corporal Indis­positions, wherewith many are in­commoded; and such as are not Curable ones. They are Indisposi­tions that will stick by you: If they don't shorten your Lives, yet they [Page 42] sower your Lives; and they will be on you as long as you live. Blind­ness, Deafness, Lameness, the Tongue of the Stammerer, or some Deformity; perhaps a Pain, or a Sore, beyond the Help of those, whose Profession it is, to Cure what they can. You must say, This is a Grief, and I must bear it! But, how will you bear it? Why, if you can't have your Na­tural Disorders taken away, I pray, Get your Spiritual Disorders taken away. This may be done. Get a Soul Cured of all Sinful Distempers. The Grief of a Soul out of Order, this is a Grief that should not be born. And, Oh! ply the Throne of Grace; Do it with Supplicati­ons, for contrary Effects of Grace, which may weigh against all the Defects of Nature. Ask, Lord, Give me Eyes to see Invisible Things! Ask, Lord, Open the Ears of my Soul to thy Discipline! Ask, Lord, Help me to walk Uprightly! Ask, Lord, Let me take heed, that I do not Sin with my Tongue! Ask, Lord, make me all Glo­rious [Page 43]within! Ask, Lord Heal my Soul, for I have sinned against thee! These are Points that may be come at. Come at these, O you that are bowed down, And you have an A­bundant Compensation for all that bows you down.

I will add; The Female-Sex is become subject unto several Cir­cumstances, that, no doubt, are Grievous ones. There are unavoid­able Sorrows, which the Third Chap­ter of Genesis has confin'd them to. What will you do, O Handmaids of the Lord, but make the Yoke as ea­sy as you can, by well-bearing of it; and look up to a dear Saviour, who has ways to turn Curses into Blessings! Many such things are with him!

Secondly. There are Impoverish­ments, which many do undergo, and must undergo; there can be no Curing of them. You must be Low in the World; you can't get clear of the Things that will keep you Low. There are many Things; [Page 44]you could be glad if you had them. You are distressed by the want of them. Yet you can't have them. Want is like to be your Master. You may say, This is a Grief, and I must bear it! But, how will you bear it? Become Rich in Faith. You can't make sure of Temporal Riches; You may make sure of Eternal Riches. Oh! Hearken to me; There is not the poorest Man in this great Con­gregation, but what may before Night become an Owner of Un­searchable Riches. Man, Embrace thy tendered Saviour, and all the Un­searchable Riches of Christ are made over to thee. And why should it not also be said, Honour the Lord with your Substance, tho' you have but a little Substance. Do what you can, when you can't do what you would. The Two Mites; These will be of great Account with God.

Thirdly. There are some, who have their Adversaries; People are disaffected unto them: The Dis­affection is Invaterate. It had perhaps [Page 45] little Cause; and it will have no Cure. 'Tis a Rooted Aversion. It will not listen to the Voice of any Char­mer. They will say, This is a Grief, and I must bear it! But, how will you bear it? Why, with incomparable Meekness; With the utmost Abhor­rence of all Personal Revenge; with Generous and Exquisite Projecti­ons, How to overcome Evil with Good? But this is not all. Mend your Pace, for Allatrations: as the Reine Deer, for the Dog in the Sled: Let your Pace in doing all the Good that is possible, be quickened by the Noise of your Enemies, as much as 'tis possible. And keep an exact Guard upon all your Steps, to keep in plain Pathes, because of your Observers.

Lastly. Many see Grievous Things in their Domestic Circumstances. There are those, whose Relatives bring to them, the Griefs that cannot be Cu­red. Some have been bereaved of Relatives, that were the Desire of their Eyes. The Death of such, has made a Breach upon them, which [Page 46]perhaps cannot be healed. They may say, This is a Grief, and I must bear it! But, how will you bear it? Thus saith the Lord, Refrain thine Eyes from Tears; Thy Resignation shall be Re­warded. The Tears will not fetch them to Life again. But now those are gone, that can't be fetch'd back, lay the faster Hold on a Glorious CHRIST; Converse more with Him than heretofore. The Lord is my Portion, saith my Soul! and He shall be more to me than all that is taken from me! Others there may be, who have their Hearts broken with Un­desirable Relatives: Foolish ones; Fro­ward ones; Wicked ones; Churlish and Wretched Consorts; Children which take to bad Courses; Bro­thers or Sisters that are strangely Abusive: Those of whom it may be said, They are a Grief of Mind unto them; They are an Heaviness unto them. They may say, This is a Grief, and I must bear it! But, how will you bear it? You can't Change the Untoward Things: You can't [Page 47]give New Hearts, or Kind Hearts un­to them. However, Two Things you may do. You may do This; You may carry it well to them, tho' they don't carry it well to you. You may do your Duty, tho' they do not theirs. An admirable way to Conquer them. How Happy are you, if God prosper you, and in this way give you a Conquest over them? Again; You may do This. When you can do nothing else for them, you can Pray for them. When there is nothing else to be done for them, still they are to be Prayed for. Be they never so Vicious, or never so Absurd, you may go alone, and Weep unto the Lord for them, and beg of Him, to Convert them from the Error of their way. It may be, The Almighty Hearer of Pray­ers, will anon say unto you, Con­cerning this poor Creature, I have heard thee; and thou shalt yet have some Comfort in what I shall do upon thy Supplications!

[Page 48] Our Dear People, We Preach many Sermons to make you Holy; I have now Preached one to make you Easy. Perhaps, it would be thrown into the List of Grievous Things, if by extending it unto any further Length, it should go so far as to be Tedious. In this also I will make you Easy; and here break off with saying, Hold out, O Patience, Hold out under all thy Grievous Things; It will be but a very little while; And Heaven will make Amends for all!