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 LIBRA.RY 
 
 Theological Seminary, 
 
 DmMr:F-TnN N.J. •_, 
 BV 4811 .H384 1845 
 
 , Hawker, Robert, 1753-1827 
 The poor man's morning 
 portion 
 
 Book, . 
 
# • 
 
THE POOR MAN'S 
 
 MORIIIG PORTION; 
 
 A SELECTION OE A VERSE OF SCRIPTURE, 
 
 WITH SHORT OBSERVATIONS, 
 
 FOR EVERY DAY IN THE YEAR; 
 
 INTENDED FOR THE USE OP THE POOR IN SPIRIT, 
 
 "who are rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom." 
 
 BY ROBERT HAWKER, D. D. 
 
 LATE VICAR OF CHARLES, PLYMOUTH. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 ROBERT CARTER, 58 CANAL STREET, 
 
 AND PITTSBURG, 58 MARKET STREET. 
 
 1845. 
 

 PREFACE. 
 
 The title page of this humble work, sufficiently explains itself. It is 
 designed as a means, in the divine hand, to promote the Redeemer's 
 glory, and his people's happiness. It hath often struck me, that such a 
 method, under the blessing of the Lord, might prove eminently useful. 
 By publishing in this cheap way, some sweet portion of Scripture, for 
 every day in the year, it might come within the reach of all pockets, be 
 within the reach of ail hands, and bid fair to be read, when larger books 
 are laid aside and forgotten. 
 
 It was, indeed, with the same view, that some few years since I sent 
 forth a Diary of this kind. But, in that work, the selection was confined 
 wholly to the Promises. Experience hath since shown, that reference 
 may be occasionally had, with great advantage, to other parts of the 
 word of God. In this therefore, I have enlarged the plan. And be- 
 sides making extracts from the whole Scripture, I have ventured to add, 
 under each passage, such thoughts as psissed over my own mind in the 
 perusal, hoping that the Lord might render them profitable to others. 
 
 It will be scarcely necessary to go over the same ground, by way of 
 preface, as was then done. But it cannot be too often said, by way of 
 reminding the believer, that the promises of God in Christ, are evidently 
 meant, by the gracious Giver of them, for the daily comfort of his people. 
 And what is said of the Promises, may be equally applied to the whole 
 tenor of covenant love, which runs through the Bible. Indeed, if the 
 truly awakened soul did but consider the word of God in this point of 
 view, and make use of it, upon every occasion, as his own circumstances 
 are found to require, it could not fail of opening to his mind a perpetual 
 source of joy and consolation all the day. 
 
 For what are the promises, but so many bonds and engagements of a 
 Covenant God in Christ? In them, the Lord hath pledged himself to 
 his people, as they stand related to Christ ; and by the fulfilment of them, 
 they prove his faithfulness. So that strictly and properly ^speaking, 
 God's promises are our Charter : His word our security : His Verily and 
 Amen, the breeists of consolation from whence God's Uttle ones are 
 nourished. And if the Lord's people would seek from the Holy Ghost, 
 
iv ^ PREFACE. 
 
 the testimony he gives in them, concerning Jesus ; and from general 
 promises, make application of them to their own particular state and 
 circumstances, as they may require ; they would find upon numberless 
 occasions that the Lord is speaking in them and hy them, to the souls 
 of his people, and in the sweetest and most endearing language. " I 
 would rather have God's Amen, and his Yea, and Verily, (said a tried 
 soul of old,) than the promise or oath of all the men upon earth." And 
 so would every believer, when from long experience of God's fulfilment 
 of his word and promises, he could set to his seal that God is true. But, 
 if we never make use of God's promises ; never exercise faith upon them ; 
 never bring them before the throne for payment ; nor make memoran- 
 dums, when they are paid ; how shall we know their value, or God's 
 love and faithfulness in their accomplishment ? 
 
 Convinced of the importance of the thing itself, and with a view to 
 direct the minds of God's people to the daily exercise of this grace of 
 faith upon the word and promises of our Covenant God in Christ, I have 
 here gathered out of the holy treasury, some sweet portion for gracious 
 souls to feed on, from day to day. And so fully persuaded am I, of the 
 preciousness of this employment, that I am confident to say, if the peo- 
 ple of God would make it their uniform custom, morning by morning, 
 with the first return of day, and, if possible, before the world hath power 
 to break in upon the mind, thus to have recourse to God's word, and (as 
 David said he did) to hearken what the Lord God would say concern- 
 ing him; they would find, and perhaps frequently, before night, sufficient 
 cause to bless God for his faithfulness in the accomplishment. Nay, 
 sometimes indeed, they would discover the word to be so immediate and 
 direct to the present moment, as if the Lord had left, for a while, the 
 whole world, to draw nigh to them, in those visits of his love. Like the 
 Patriarch at Bethel, they would be constrained to say. Surely the Lord 
 is in this place, or in this word, and I knew it not ! 
 
 It was thus holy men of old walked with God. They communed 
 with the Lord, and the Lord with them, through the medium of his word- 
 They made known their wants, and the Lord made known his grace. 
 Prayers went up, and answers came down ; and He made all his good- 
 ness to pass before them. In a more especial manner, they considered 
 all the promises as their own. And they accepted of them, as given of 
 the Lord with this express design, as if the Lord pledged himself by them 
 to his people, that they might bring them before the mercy-seat, when- 
 ever they needed, and plead for payment. Hence they kept house, 
 feasted, and lived joyfully upon them, when they had nothing else to 
 live upon. And from this cause it was, that after a succession of many 
 generations from father to son, they could, and did, appeal, to the unin- 
 
PREFACE. V 
 
 terrupted experience of every preceding history, and left it upon record 
 for the assurance and comfort of all that should come after, that not one 
 thing had failed of all the good things which the Lord had promised^ 
 but all was come to pass as it is this day. 
 
 I cannot therefore but earnestly recommend to the gracious souls, for 
 whom this little work is intended, similar conduct, that we may be the 
 patient /oZZowers of them who now through faith and patience inherit 
 the promises. And a method so short, s6 easy, and so practicable, as is 
 here set forth, and which the most busy life, even among the labouring 
 poor of our people, cannot find much difficulty in performing, will I 
 trust be abundantly blessed of our gracious God. The labourer, who is 
 straitened in time, and obliged sometimes to hasten to his work, without 
 falling upon his knees in family prayer, may yet, even while putting on 
 his clothes, look at the Morning Portion ; and if unable to run through 
 the observations, which follow the Scripture, may yet take with him 
 the Scripture itself, and gather subject from it, under divine teaching, 
 for prayer and praise, as he hastens on. And if this plan be constantly 
 and invariably followed up, without the omission of a single morning, 
 I venture to believe his diligence will be abundantly recompensed, upon 
 numberless occasions, through life. 
 
 There is one advantage more, from the use of this work, which I de- 
 tain the Reader, to mention, and which will be, I conceive, of no small 
 importance, in making it blessed, if so be the Lord should dispose the 
 minds of many gracious souls to the daily use of it I mean, the Cmn- 
 munion of Saints. This privilege of God's people, is much spoken of; 
 but I rather fear not so much attended to, or regarded, as it ought And 
 yet, next to the rapture arising from communion with our glorious Head, 
 what can open to more enjoyment, than communion, through Him, with 
 the members of his mj^stical body ? I cannot help telling, in this wav, 
 many precious souls, whom I love in the faith, and who I know love me, 
 that I am looking forward to much spiritual enjoyment on this account, 
 from our use of this little work, humble eis it is. Not from my poor la- 
 bours in the observations, which follow the Scripture ; but from God's 
 blessing on the Scripture itself. Let it be supposed, (what is very pos- 
 sible,) that many a true believer in Jesue^^ in different places, be led, in 
 one and the same moment in the morning, to the perusal of the Morn- 
 ing Portion. Now, as the Scripture is the same ; as the Almighty Spirit, 
 who is the Author of that Scripture, the Quickener in prayer, and the 
 Helper of the infirmities of his people in prayer, is the same ; and as He, 
 who leads out the minds of the people, at all times, and in all places, is 
 the same ; and his blessed work, in glorifying the Lord Jesus, is always 
 the same ; what can be more animating or delightful than the thought, 
 
 1* 
 
Tl PREFACE. 
 
 that all so engaged, in one and the same Scripture, being under the 
 same gracious influence, must necessarily be all looking up to the Lord 
 Jesus, in one and the same moment ; and, having fellowship with the 
 Father, and with his Son Jesus Christ, have spiritual union also one with 
 another, as members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. Hence, 
 though far asunder from each other, in the body, and in numberless in- 
 stances having never seen each other's face in the flesh, yet by virtue 
 of the connexion with our spiritual Head, we truly participate in one 
 and the same divine life, and enjoy the very sweet and distinguishing 
 felicity, of the Communion of Saints. 
 
 I stop the Reader no longer than just to say, I humbly hope every 
 truly gracious and awakened soul, who makes use of this Morning Por- 
 tion, will not fail to connect with the use of it, a constant application to, 
 and dependence upon, the Holy Ghost, as the Glorifier of the Father 
 and of the Son ; without whose work upon the heart, not a promise can 
 we plead, not an argument can we use, not a grace caji we exercise, 
 even to the knowledge of our wants, or of the fulness of the Lord Jesus 
 to supply them. But, my Brother, let me add, if your soul be warmed 
 under the influence of the Holy Ghost, and while you read God's pro- 
 mise you find grace to convert that promise into a prayer, and when you 
 have thus done act faith upon it, this will be to realize the mercy, and 
 to make every promise your own. And oh ! how truly blessed is it, 
 when the believer thus proves that all the promises of God in Christ 
 Jesus are Yea and Amen, unto the glory of God by us. 
 
THE 
 
 POOR MAN'S MORNING PORTION. 
 
 JANUARY 
 
 1st. — ^Jesus Christ ; the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever. — 
 Heh. xiii. 8. 
 
 Precious truth to open the year with, and to keep con- 
 stantly in view amidst all the fluctuating and changeable cir- 
 cumstances arising both within and without, and all around ! 
 My soul, meditate upon it : fold it up in thy bosom to have 
 recourse to as may be required. Contemplate thy redeemer 
 as he is here described. He is Jesus, thy Jesus, a Saviour, 
 for he shall save his people from their sins. He is Christ 
 also, God thy Father's Christ, and thy Christ ; the Anointed, 
 the Sent, the Sealed of Jehovah. He is the same in his glo- 
 rious person ; the same in his great salvation. — Yesterday; 
 looking back to everlasting : Today; equally so through all 
 the periods of time : For ever ; looking forward to the eter- 
 nity to come. And, blessed thought ! He is the same in his 
 love, in the efficacy of his redemption ; his blood to cleanse, 
 his righteousness to justify, his fulness to supply grace here 
 and glory hereafter. And what sums up the precious thought ; 
 amidst all thy variableness, thy frames, thy fears, doubts, and 
 unbelievings, he abideth faithful. He is, he will be, he must 
 be, Jesus. Hallelujah ! 
 
 2. — Lord ! let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it, and dung it ; 
 and if it bear fruit, well ; and if not, after that thou shalt cut it 
 down. — Luke xiii. 8, 9. 
 
 Do I not behold the Lord Jesus here represented in his 
 glorious office of our High-Priest and Intercessor ? And is 
 it thus, that he so mercifully pleads for the unawakened and 
 unprofitable among his people? Pause, my soul! Was it 
 not from the effects of his intercession, that the world itself 
 
8 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 was spared from instant destruction, when Adam first brake 
 through the fence of God's law? Is it not now by the same 
 rich grace that thousands are spared from year to year in 
 Christ Jesus, before that they are called to the knowledge of 
 Christ Jesus ? Nay, my soul ! pause once more over the 
 view of this wonderful subject, and ask thyself, Was it not 
 from the same Almighty interposition that thou was kept 
 from going down to the pit, during the long, long period of 
 thy unregeneracy, while thou wert wholly unconscious of it 1 
 Hadst thou died in that unconverted state, where must have 
 been thy portion ? And was it from thy gracious interces- 
 sion, blessed Jesus, that 1 then lived, that I am now spared, 
 and, after all my barrenness, that another year of grace is 
 opening before me ? Oh precious, precious Jesus ! suffer me 
 to be no longer unfruitful in thy garden ! Do, Lord, as thou 
 hast said. Dig about me, and pour upon me all the sweet 
 influences of thy Holy Spirit, which, like the rain, and the 
 sun, and the dew of heaven, may cause me to bring forth 
 fruit unto God. And, Lord ! if so unworthy a creature may 
 drop a petition at thy mercy-seat for others, let the coming 
 year be productive of the same blessings to all thy redeemed ; 
 even to my poor una wakened relations ; and to thousands of 
 those who are yet in nature's darkness. Oh ! that this may 
 be to them the acceptable year of the Lord ! 
 
 3. — The year of my redeemed is come. — Isaiah Ixii. 14. 
 
 Yes ! from everlasting the precise period of redemption 
 was determined, and the appointed time of the vision could 
 not tarry. Every intermediate event ministered to this one 
 glorious aera, redemption by Jesus. The Church was in 
 Egypt four hundred and thirty years, and in Babylon seventy. 
 But we are told in the former instance, " the self-same night 
 the Lord brought them forth with their armies, and the lat- 
 ter did not outstay the hour of their promised deliverance. So 
 when the fulness of time was come, the Son of God came for 
 the redemption of his people. And observe how graciously 
 Jesus speaks of them ; he calls them his redeemed. They 
 were so in the covenant from everlasting; and when the 
 time arrives for calling them by his grace, he claims them as 
 the gift of his father, and the purchase of his blood. My 
 soul, is this thy jubilee year ? Art thou living as the re- 
 deemed of the Lord ? If so, plead with thy redeemer for the 
 hourly renewed visits of his love to thee, and for the year of 
 redemption to all his unawakened. 
 
JANUARY. 9 
 
 4. — And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the Lord appeared 
 to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Ahnigiity God : walk before 
 me, and be thou perfect. — Gen. xvii. 1. 
 
 Our old Bibles, in their margin, have retained the original 
 El Shaddai^ which we now read God Almighty, and marked 
 it also God All-sufficient ; meaning, that Jehovah in covenant 
 with Jesus as the Head of his people, is all sufficient in him- 
 self, and all sufficient for all their need in time and to eter- 
 nity. He is God All-sufficient, or of many pajjs^ many breasts 
 of consolation (as some derive the word), for his faithful ones 
 to suck at and draw from, in an endless supply. Here then, 
 my soul, take this sweet title of thy Covenant God and Fa- 
 ther in Christ Jesus for thy daily meditation, both at the open- 
 ing and through all thepeiiods of the coming year. And as 
 even at old age the Lord still opened to Abraham this pre- 
 cious source for his comfort, so look up in Jesus and behold 
 it as thine. And oh, my soul! do thou walk before him in 
 the perfect righteousness of God thy Saviour, and thus daily 
 keep up fellowship with the Father, and with his Son Jesus 
 Christ. 
 
 5. — I am my beloved's, and his desire is towards me. — Song vii. 10. 
 
 Yes, dearest Jesus ! I am truly thine, for thou hast dearly 
 bought me with thy blood, and conquered me with thy grace. 
 And now, through thy Spirit's teaching, I can and do discover 
 that from everlasting thy desire was towards thy redeemed 
 ones, and even when dead in trespasses atid sins it was thy 
 desire to quicken them into life, and bring them to thyself. 
 And even now, notwithstanding all my backwardness to thee, 
 thou restest in thy love, and thou art calling me by thy grace, 
 and seeking continual fellowship in ordinances, and by thy 
 word and providences; all which prove that thy desire is 
 towards me. And as to the everlasting enjoyment of all thy 
 church above, thy prayer to thy Father manifested thy desire, 
 when thou saidst " Father, I will that they whom thou hast 
 given me, be with me to behold my glory !" Are these the 
 desires of my God and Saviour, my Husband, my Brother, 
 my Friend ? And shall my heart be thus cold towards 
 thee ? Oh ! for the reviving influences of thy Spirit, that I 
 may cry out with the Church, " Let him kiss me with the 
 kisses of his mouth ; for thy love is better than wine." 
 
10 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 6. — For verily he took not on him the nature of angels, — Heb. vii. 10 
 
 Contemplate, my soul, the peculiar sweetness of that 
 grace which was in thy Jesus, when, for the accomplishment 
 of thy salvation, he passed by the nature of angels to take 
 upon him thy nature. There were but two sorts of trans- 
 gressors in the creation of God ; angels and men. But an- 
 gels are left in everlasting chains, under darkness, to the judg- 
 ment of the great day : and fallen, sinful, rebellious man, 
 finds grace of redemption. Had Jesus taken their nature, 
 would not this have been nearer to his own ? Would not 
 their services have been vastly superior to ours ? Would not 
 the redemption of beings so much higher in rank and intel- 
 lect, have opened a far larger revenue of praise to our adora- 
 ble Redeemer? Pause over these thoughts, my soul, and 
 then consider therefrom how our Jesus, in his unequalled 
 condescension, hath thereby the more endeared himself to thy 
 love. And learn from hence, that if Jesus need not the ser- 
 vice of angels, how is it possible that man can be profitable to 
 God. And the simple act of faith of a poor fallen sinner, in 
 believing the record that God hath given of his dear Son, 
 gives more honour to God than all the services of men or an- 
 gels for ever. Mark this down as a blessed truth : Jehovah is 
 more glorified by thy faith and trust in him, than by all thy 
 works. Lord, give me this faith, that I may cleave to thee, 
 hang upon thee, follow thee, and never give over looking 
 unto thee, until mine eye-strings break and my heart-strings 
 fail, and then be thou '• the strength of my heart, and my por- 
 tion for ever!" 
 
 7. — One pearl of great price. — Mat. xiii. 46 
 
 Great indeed, and but One ! for " Salvation is in no other ; 
 neither is there any other name under Heaven given among 
 men, whereby we can be saved." My soul, hast thou con- 
 sidered Jesus in this precious point of view ? Hast thou be- 
 held him both in his divine and human nature, how unspeak- 
 ably glorious in himself, and how enriching to the souls of 
 his peopJe? Art thou a spiritual merchantman, seeking 
 goodly pearls ? and is Jesus the One, the only One, costly, 
 precious, and so infinitely desirable in thine eye, that thou 
 art willing so sell all, that thou wouldest part with millions 
 of worlds, rather than lose Christ ? Hast thou found him in 
 the field of his Scripture, and dost thou ask how shall I buy ? 
 Listen to his own most gracious words : — " I counsel thee to 
 
JANUARY. 1 1 
 
 buy of me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich," 
 Yes, thou generous Lord ! I am come to buy of thee without 
 money and without price. For well I know, through thy 
 teaching, that neither the obedience of men or angels can 
 purchase the least title to thee, but thine own precious merits 
 and thine atoning blood. And now, Lord, possessing thee, I 
 possess all things: and will give up all beside, and part with 
 all, and forget all, since Jesus is mine, and I am his, in time 
 and to all eternity. 
 
 6. — Thou hast kept the good wine until now. — John ii. 10. 
 
 The good wine of the gospel must be Jesus himself; for 
 He, and He alone, trod the winepress of his Father's wrath, 
 when the Lord bruised him and put him to grief. This is 
 the wine which, in Scripture, is said to cheer both God and 
 men : for when God's justice took the full draught of it for 
 the sins of the redeemed, the Lord declared himself well 
 pleased. And when the poor sinner, by sovereign grace, is 
 first made to drink of the blood of the Lamb, he feels con- 
 strained to say, the Lord had kept the good wine until now ; 
 for never before had his soul been so satisfied. Oh, precious 
 Jesus! how sweet is the thought! Thy first miracle con- 
 verted water into wine. Moses's ministry, under thy com- 
 mission, was first manifested in turning water into blood. 
 Yes I dear Lord ! when once thy grace hath wrought upon 
 the heart of a sinner, thou makest his most common mercies, 
 like water, to become richer than wine. Whereas the law, 
 which is the ministration of death as long as the poor sinner 
 continues under its power, make all his enjoyments to partake 
 of the curse. Oh ! for continued manifestations of thy glory, 
 dearest Lord ! Give me to drink of thy best wine, my be- 
 loved, " which goeth down sweetly, causing the lips of those 
 that sleep to speak." 
 
 9. — That will by no means clear the guilty. — Exod. xxxiv. 7. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over these solemn words I Will not Je- 
 hovah clear the guilty? And art thou not guilty? How 
 then wilt thou come before God, either now or hereafter ? 
 Hearken, my soul, to what thy God hath also said : — •' De- 
 liver him from going down to the pit ; I have found a ran- 
 som." Oh! soul-reviving, soul-comforting words! Yes, Jesus 
 became my surety, took my guilt, and bought me out of the 
 hands of the law and justice. God hath not therefore cleared the 
 guilty, but taken ample satisfaction on the person of the sin- 
 
12 MORNING PORTION 
 
 ner's surety. Hence now the double claim of justice and 
 grace demand the sinner's pardon. Here then, my soul, rest 
 thy present and thine everlasting plea. Keep up a daily, an 
 hourly remembrance of it at the mercy-seat. While Jesus 
 lives, and lives there as thine advocate, never doubt thy ac- 
 ceptance in the beloved. Guilty as thou art in thyself, yet 
 spotless in him. The same God which made thy Jesus to be 
 sin for thee, who knew no sin, makes thee the righteousness 
 of God in him. 
 
 10. — My beloved is gone down into his garden, to the beds of spices, to 
 feed in the gardens, and to gather Ulies. — Song vi. 2. 
 
 Wonderful condescension ! Jesus, the beloved of all his 
 people, is indeed come down into his garden the Church ! for 
 he loves the sacred walks of a spot so near and so dear to 
 him, which is at once the gift of his Father, and the purchase 
 of his own most precious blood. Moreover, he hath gathered 
 it out of the world's wide wilderness, and separated it as a 
 sacred inclosure by his distinguishing grace. Surely then he 
 will visit it ! Yes ; here he constantly walks : here he comes 
 to observe the souls of his people as trees of his own right- 
 hand planting. He is said to feed here : for the graces of 
 his Spirit, which he calls forth into exercise, are more fragrant 
 to him than all the spices of the East. And all the beauty 
 and whiteness of the lily is not to be compared to the glory, 
 loveliness, and sweet-smelKng savour of the righteousness of 
 Jesus, in which he beholds the souls of his redeemed as clad. 
 And oh! here Jesus is gathering them to himself in all the 
 different degrees of their growth, from the first moment of 
 planting them in his garden, until he transplants them into 
 the paradise of God. Art thou, my soul, in this garden of 
 Jesus ? Art thou rejoicing under his gracious hand ? Are 
 the dews of his ordinances, in this inclosure of thy Lord, 
 dropping upon thee ? 
 
 11. — I am the bright and morning star. — Rev. xxii. 16. 
 
 How oft, in some dark wintry morning like" the present, 
 have I beheld the morning star shining with loveliness, when 
 all the other lights of heaven were put out! But how little 
 did I think of thee, thou precious light and life of men ! Thou 
 art indeed the bright and Morning Star in the firmament of 
 thy Church, thy word, and in the souls of thy redeemed. 
 Henceforth, dearest Jesus, let the morning visit of this sweet 
 Planet to our darkened earth remind me of thee, amidst all 
 
JANUARY. 13 
 
 the gross darkness in which, by nature, we are surrounded. 
 Sure pledge of day as this beneficient Star is, yet not more 
 sure than thou in the day-dawn and day-star of prophecy 
 which ministered to thy coming ; and, in the twilight of grace 
 upon the soul, the forerunner of a glorious day. Be thou my 
 morning song, my noontide-joy, my evening meditation, and 
 midnight light. Through all the wintry seasons of my pil- 
 grimage shine forth, sweet Jesus, upon my soul. Oh ! ye 
 sons of sloth, ye children of darkness and of nighl, rouse from 
 your beds of drowsiness, before the sleep of death seal up 
 your eyes in everlasting darkness. Jesus, the Morning Star, 
 now shines ; and ere long Jesus, the Son of Righteousness, 
 will appear, no more to go down, and all the sons of God 
 will shout for joy ! 
 
 12. — If thy brother be waxen poor, and hath sold away some of his pos- 
 session, and if any of his kin come to redeem it, then shall he re- 
 deem that which his brother sold. — Levit. xxv. 25. 
 
 How poor and wretched was I before I knew Jesus ! 1 
 had not only sold some of my possessions, but all. I was 
 utterly insolvent, helpless, and ruined ; one like the Son of 
 Man redeemed me. But what a double blessedness was it to 
 my soul, when I discovered. that this Redeemer was so very 
 near of kin to me that he was my brother. Hail, thou pre- 
 cious, precious Jesus ! thou art, indeed, a " Brother born for 
 adversity." Yes; blessed Jesus! thou art He whom thy 
 brethren shall praise ; and all thy Father's children shall bow 
 down to thee. My soul, see to it that thou make the most of 
 this relationship. Never, oh never, will thy Brother suffer 
 his poor indigent relation to want any more, after that he hath 
 thus redeemed both thyself and thy possession. Now do I 
 see why it was the Church so passionately longed for Jesus 
 under this tender character. " Oh ! (said she.) that thou 
 wert as my brother that sucked the breasts of my mother ; 
 when 1 should find thee without I would kiss thee, yea, I 
 should not be despised." 
 
 13. — Master! where dwellest thou? — John i. 38. 
 
 Is this the earnest inquiry of my soul? Hear then the an- 
 swer : " Thus saith the High and Lofty One, whose name is 
 Holy, I dwelL in the high and holy place : with him also that 
 is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the 
 humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones." Pause 
 my soul ! Are these the qualities produced by grace in thine 
 
 2 
 
# 
 
 14 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 heart? Jesus, Master, make me what thou wouldest have me 
 to be; and then come, Lord, agreeable to thy promises. 
 Thou hast said. My Father will come, and I will come, and 
 make our abode with him. And thou hast said, The Holy 
 Ghost shall come and abide with you for ever. What, my 
 soul ! shall I indeed have such glorious personages for my 
 companions 1 Behold, Lord, the heaven, and the heaven of 
 heavens, cannot contain thee ! Oh ! for grace and a sanctity 
 of thought corresponding to such mercies, since our bodies 
 are the temple of the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us ! 
 
 14. — A.nd she said to the king, it was a true report that I lieard in mine 
 own land of thy acts, and of thy wisdom. Howbeit, I beheved not 
 the words until I came, and mine eyes had seen it ; and behold the 
 half was not told me. — 1 Kings x. 6, 7. 
 
 If the Queen of the South was so astonished in the view 
 of Solomon's wisdom, what ought to be thy surprise, my soul, 
 in the contemplation of Jesus, in whom are hid all the trea- 
 sures of wisdom and knowledge? When thou didst first 
 hear of Jesus, and when constrained by necessity to come to 
 him, a poor, blind, ignorant sinner, how little didst thou con- 
 ceive either of th^^self or him ! He told thee, indeed, all that 
 was in thine heart, and made thy very spirit, like her's, to 
 faint Vv'ithin thee, when he shewed thy sin and his salvation. 
 Surely then, and often since, even now hast thou been con- 
 strained to say, as she did, the half Avas not told thee by 
 others, of what sweet discoveries he hath made to thee of 
 himself Think then, my soul, what holy surprise and joy 
 will burst in upon thee in the day when, at the fountain-head 
 of glory in his courts above, he will unfold all his beauty, 
 love, and wisdom ; when thou shalt see him as he is, and 
 know even as thou art known ! 
 
 15. — I was brought lov,'^ and he helped me. — Psalm cxvi. G. 
 
 It is blessed sometimes that the streams of creature-comforts 
 should be dry, in order to compel us to go to the fountain- 
 head. When the fig-tree doth not blossom, and the fields 
 yield no meat, then a Covenant God is precious to fiy to. 
 My soul ! say, w^as not that assault of Satan sanctified, when 
 it brought Jesus thereby to thy rescue ? Was not that cross 
 sweetly timed, when it tended to wean thee from the world ? 
 And wouldest thou have been without that sickness, when 
 Jesus sat up by thee, soothed thee in thy languor, and made 
 all thy bed in thy sickness ? Well was it for me that I was 
 
JANUARY. 15 
 
 brought low, or I should never have known in a thousand 
 instances the help of my God. Oh then, my soul ! like Paul, 
 learn to glory in thy infirmities, that the power of Jesus may 
 rest upon thee ! 
 
 16. — And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared 
 the people ; for the thing was done suddenly. — 2 Chron. xxix. 36. 
 
 Sweet thought ever to keep in view, that it is the Lord 
 that prepares the heart, and gives answers to the tongue. 
 And, oh ! how sudden, how unexpected, how. unlooked-for, 
 sometimes, are the visits of his grace ! " Or ever I was aware 
 (saith the Church) my soul made me like the chariots of 
 Amminadib." Is my heart cold, my mind barren, my framo 
 lifeless ? Do thou then, dearest Lord, make me to rejoice in 
 warming my fmzen affection, making fruitful my poor estate, 
 and putting new hfe into my soul. All I want is a frame of 
 mind best suited to thy glory. And what is that ? Truly, 
 that when I have nothing, feel nothing, can do nothing, am 
 worse than nothing, that then, even then, I may be rich in 
 thee amidst all my own bankruptcy. This, dear Lord, is 
 what I covet. And if thou withholdest all frames which 
 might melt, or warm, or rejoice my own feelings, yet if my 
 soul still hangs upon thee notwithstanding all, as the vessel 
 upon the nail, my God and Jesus will be my rock, that feels 
 nothing of the ebbings and flowings of the sea around, what- 
 ever be the tide of my fluctuating affections. 
 
 17. — My beloved standeth behind our wall. He looketh forth at the 
 window, shewing himself through the lattice. — Song. ii. 9. 
 
 It might be truly said, that it was behind the wall of our 
 nature the Lord Jesus stood, when, by taking a body of 
 flesh, he veiled the glories of his Godhead, during the days 
 of his humanity. And may it not be as truly said, that it is 
 still, as from behind a wall, all the gracious discoveries he 
 now makes of himself are manifested to his people ? For 
 what from the dulness of our perception, the unbelief and 
 the sins and infirmities of our nature, the most we see of our 
 Jesus is but as thro"ugh a glass darkly. But yet, my soul, 
 how sweet are even these visits of his love, when we can 
 get, though but a glimpse of the King in his beauty through 
 the windows of ordinances, or the lattice of his blessed word. 
 Oh! precious Jesus ! let thy visits be frequent, increasingly 
 lovely, and increasingly glorious, that the souls of thy people 
 may increasingly delight in thee. Methinks I would lay 
 
16 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 about the doors, and windows, and courts of thy house, and be 
 sending in a wish, and the fervent prayer of a poor beggar 
 who is living on thy bounty, that thou wouldest come forth to 
 my view and bless me with thy presence, until that all inter- 
 vening mediums of walls and windows are thrown down, and 
 Jesus manifests himself to my longing eyes in all his glory. 
 
 18. — Therefore doth my Father love me, because I lay down my life 
 that I might take it up again. — John x. 17. 
 
 Mark, my soul, the precious cause thy Jesus here assigns 
 for the love of his Father. God the Father not only loves 
 God the Son as God, one with him in nature and in all di- 
 vine perfections ; but he loves him peculiarly because he 
 voluntarily undertook and accomplished by his death the 
 salvation of his people. Now then, my soul, make these 
 two sweet improvements from what Jesus hath here said. 
 First, think what must have been, and now is, the love of 
 thy God and Father to thee and every poor sinner, when he 
 truly loves his dear Son because he became the Saviour of 
 poor sinners. And, secondly, think what love Jesus hath 
 shown to poor sinners in thus manifesting his mercy in such 
 a way, and how dear they must be to the heart of Jesus, 
 which have made him dear in the sight of God. My soul ! 
 never lose sight of this argument when thou goest to the 
 mercy-seat. Tell thy God and Father thou art come to ask 
 mercies in his name, and for his righteousness' sake, whom 
 the Father loveth on this very account. And oh ! how very 
 dear should Jesus be to thee for his blood and righteousness, 
 who is dear to the Father for the same cause. 
 
 19. — As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it 
 not, for a blessing is in it ; so will I do for my servant's sake, that 
 I may not destroy them all. — Isaiah Ixv. 8. 
 
 It is blessed to trace our mercies to the fountain head, and 
 to find them all folded up from everlasting in Jesus ! What 
 was it that preserved our whole nature when blasted and 
 withered by the fall? Was it not because Jesus, the promised 
 seed, was in it? And what is it that preserves every indi- 
 vidual among the children of God, during the dark season 
 of their unregeneracy, but the same precious cause? He 
 that looks on (and who is this but Christ himself?) amidst 
 all our perishing circumstances, by his powerful and all-pre- 
 vailing intercession commands the destroyer not to touch his 
 people; for though in themselves loathsome, yet in Jesus are 
 they fair and lovely. My soul, learn hence thy security. 
 
JANUARY. 17 
 
 The whole cause for which thou wert preserved until called, 
 andj when called, preserved through grace unto glory, both 
 in conversion and in every after-act of God's dealings with 
 thee, all refers itself to this one source — Destroy it not, there 
 is a blessing m thee, though not from thee : Jesus is in thee, 
 as the new wine is found in the cluster ! 
 
 20. — What shall be done to the man whom the king delighteth to hon- 
 our ? — Esther vi. 6. 
 
 Nay, my soul, ask thine own heart what shall be done to 
 the God-man whom Jehovah, the King of kings, delighteth 
 to honour? Oh! for the view of what John saw, and to 
 hear what John heard, when he beheld heaven opened, and 
 heard the innumerable multitude chanting Salvation to God 
 and the Lamb ! Lord, I would say, let every knee bow be- 
 fore him, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, 
 to the glory of God the Father. And oh ! most gracious 
 Father, dost thou take delight that Jesus should be honoured ? 
 Is it thine honour when Jesus is honoured ; thy glory when 
 Jesus is glorified ? Oh ! what wonderful encouragement is 
 this to the faith and belief of a poor sinner ; that I not only 
 praise my adorable Redeemer when I come to him for all 
 things, and trust him for all things ; but these exercises of 
 grace are as acceptable to God my Father, as they are hon- 
 ourable to God the Son. And this is the only way, and a blessed 
 way it is indeed, by which a poor sinner can give glory to the 
 Father, in believing the record which he hath given of his 
 Son. Here, then, my soul, do thou daily be found in hon- 
 ouring the Glory-man, the God-man Christ Jesus, whom 
 God the Father delighteth to honour. 
 
 21. — But for Adam there was not found an help meet for him. — Gen. 
 XX. 20. 
 
 My soul ! mark what is here said, for sure it is a sweet 
 Scripture. Amidst all the works of God, there was not one 
 that could be found an help meet for man. The inferior 
 creatures could indeed minister to his bodily comfort, but not 
 to his soul. Eve herself, with all her loveliness, must have 
 failed in this particular. Both the woman and her husband alike 
 needed this help to the soul. How refreshing is the thought, 
 and what a lovely view doth it give us of God's grace and 
 mercy, that in the seed of the woman an help, in the fullest 
 sense of the word, was found, both for time and eternity. 
 Yes ; blessed Jesus ! in thee we trace this wonderous gift of 
 God. Pause then, my soul! and add this thought to the 
 
 2* 
 
18 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 vast account : The same love which fitted thee with an help 
 meet in a Saviour, hath fitted thee, and will continue to fit 
 thee, with the supply of all thy need. It were to be wished 
 that every child of God would never lose sight of this cer- 
 tain truth — that he must have the fittest station in life, the 
 fittest frame of mind and of body, the fittest yoke-fellow, the 
 fittest circumstances ; in short, the fittest mercies and the 
 fittest trials ; because every thing is made subservient to the 
 divine glory in Jesus. Sweet thought! He that spared not 
 his own Son, will, with him, freely give all things. 
 
 22. — They shall cry unto the Lord, because of the oppressors, and he 
 shall send them a Saviour, and a great one, and he shall dehver 
 them. — Isaiah xix. 20. 
 
 Mark, my soul, the sweet encouragement contained in 
 these words. Here is a cry — and it is the cry of the soul ; 
 for it is directed unto the Lord. There is (as Elihu tells us) 
 a cry of nature under oppressions ; but as this is not to God, 
 it is evident that it never came from God ; for he tells us that 
 none of them saith, " Where is God my Maker, who giveth 
 songs in the night?" Job xxxv. 9. But when the Holy 
 Ghost convinceth of sin, and puts a cry in the heart by 
 reason of it, he convinceth also of the righteousness of Jesus. 
 Hence the difference of those cries is as wide as the East is 
 from the West. Mark therefore, my soul, this distinguishing 
 feature of grace ; and see whether thy cries are praying 
 cries, and not complaini?ig ones. And now observe what 
 follows. When poor sinners thus cry unto the Lord, he 
 shall send them a Saviour, and a great one. Who, but God 
 the Father, sent his Son to be the Saviour of poor lost sin- 
 ners? Was not Jesus a Saviour indeed, and a great one? 
 Who, but He, could deliver the sinner from destruction ! 
 And remark, further, the absolute certainty of the promise ; 
 for it is said. He shall deliver them. Yes, blessed Jesus ! 
 thy deliverance is sure ; thy salvation certain. Thou hast 
 said, thy sheep shall never perish ; neither shall any pluck 
 them out of thine hand. Pause now, ray soul, over this 
 sweet verse. Surely in its bosom is folded up the sum and 
 substance of all the gospel. Here are all the Persons of the 
 Godhead, engaged for the salvation of every poor crying 
 sinner. Here is God the Holy Ghost, agreeably to his 
 blessed office, causing the sinner to feel the oppressions of 
 sin, and putting a cry in his heart, to the Lord, to be deliv- 
 ered from them. Here is God the Father answering that 
 
JANUARY. 19 
 
 cry, in mercy, and sending his Almighty Son to be the Sa- 
 viour of the poor sinner. And here is Jesus the Saviour, 
 and a great one, saving the poor sinner with an everlasting 
 salvation. Shout then, my soul, and begin the song of Sal- 
 vation to God and the Lamb. 
 
 23. — As sin hath reigned unto death, even so might grace reign through 
 righteousness, unto eternal life, by Jesus Christ our Lord. — Roj7i. 
 V. 21. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and put forth thy fullest thoughts in the 
 contemplation of those two united sources of thy felicity, 
 marked in this verse : the Father's eternal purpose, in the 
 reign of grace ; and the everlasting efficacy and infinite value 
 of thy Jesus's righteousness, to eternal life. None but God 
 himself can know the fullness and extent of either. I am 
 persuaded, that angels of light can never entertain adequate 
 conceptions of either. The eternal purpose of God hath 
 bounded the reign of sin : it is but unto death. But those 
 purposes give a further extent to the redemption from death 
 and sin, by Jesus ; for the glory of Christ's person, and the 
 worth of his salvation, possess, in both, a vast overplus, a re- 
 dundancy of merit, which brings the redeemed into favour 
 and acceptance in Jesus, and with such a title to everlasting 
 felicity as eternity itself can never exhaust — no, nor fully re- 
 compense or pay. Oh ! for grace to contemplate the love of 
 the Father, and of the Son, by this standard. Lord, I would 
 be lost, I would be swallowed up, day by day in the unceas- 
 ing meditation. Dearest, blessed, precious Jesus ! give me 
 to think of nothing else : to speak of nothing else ; but, by 
 faith, to possess in anticipation the joys of thy redeemed, until 
 I come, through thee, and in thee, to the everlasting enjoy- 
 ment of them, in thy kingdom of glory. 
 
 24. — And he shewed me Joshua the high -priest standing before the angel 
 of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right hand to resist him. 
 And the Lord said unto Satan, the Lord rebuke thee, O Satan : 
 even the Lord that hath chosen Jerusalem, rebuke thee. Is not 
 this a brand plucked out of the fire ? — Zech. iii. 1 , 2. 
 
 Who shall say, how many such transactions as these are 
 continually going on, for and against the people of God, in 
 the court of Heaven, while we, upon earth, are unconscious 
 either of our misery or mercy. The Holy Ghost was gra- 
 ciously pleased to have this made knowm to the church. And 
 John had it again in commission to tell the church, that a 
 song in heaven was sung at the expulsion of the devil from 
 
20 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 heaven, because the accuser of the brethren was cast douTi. 
 
 My soul ! doth he that first tempts thee, then become thine 
 accuser ? Is he carrying on this practice, day and night, be- 
 fore God ? And while Satan is thine accuser, is Jesus thine 
 Advocate 1 Oh ! precious, precious Lord ! how little hath 
 my poor ignorant and unthinking soul been meditating on 
 thee, in this thy merciful, sweet, and gracious office. Oh ! 
 glorious thought ! Now I see a blessedness in that Scrip- 
 ture which I have often read with indifference in times past. 
 ^' If any man sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, 
 Jesus Christ the righteous ; and he is (for God my Father 
 hath set him forth so) the propitiation for our sins." Hail, 
 holy, wonderful Counsellor. Condescend, thou mighty 
 Pleader, still to take up my cause. Oh ! may I behold thee 
 often in this high office ! Oh, may I often hear thee with 
 the ear of faith, and my whole soul going forth in love to- 
 wards thee, while thou art pointing to my poor soul, and 
 saying, " Hath not God the Father chosen this brand plucked 
 from the fire ! Take away the filthy garments from him. I 
 have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee." 
 
 25. — This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ 
 Jesus came into the world to save sinners. — 1 Timothy i. 15. 
 
 Hark, my soul, to the proclamation from heaven ! Is this 
 the faithful saying of a faithful God? Surely, then, thou 
 may est well regard it ; for it is for thy life. And if it be 
 \vorthy of all acceptation, it must be eminently so of thi?ie ; 
 for thou hast been a transgressor from the womb. But did 
 Jesus indeed come to save sinners ? Yes ! so the proclama- 
 tion runs. Sinners, enemies to God. Jesus, it is said, re- 
 ceived gifts for the rebellious, that the Lord God might dwell 
 among them. And with that tenderness which distinguished 
 his character, he said himself, that he came not to call the 
 righteous, but sinners to repentance. Well then, my soul, 
 upon this warrant of the faithful word of a faithful God, wilt 
 thou not so fully rely as to believe unto salvation? If any 
 inquiries arise contrary to this belief, let this be thine answer: 
 — Christ came to save sinners: that's enough for me; for I 
 am one. God's salvation is said to be for enemies : that is my 
 name by nature. Jesus received gifts for the rebellious : to 
 this character I plead also guilty. If men or devils would 
 endeavour to work unbelief in my heart, this is my answer: 
 Christ came to save sinners. Let those that never felt sin, 
 and consequently know not the need of a Saviour, stay and 
 
JANUARY. 21 
 
 argue the point as they may ; my soul's eternal welfare is 
 concerned, and I will not lose a moment to close with the 
 heavenly proposal. Lord Jesus, thou waitest to be gracious ! 
 The faithful saying of my God I accept on my bended knees. 
 It is, indeed, worthy of all acceptation, and, above all, of 
 mine. Here, while upon earth, will I proclaim thy praise ; 
 and, in Heaven, the loudest of all voices must be mine, that 
 Christ came to save sinners, of whom I am chief 
 
 26. — And they said one to another, Did not our heart bum within us 
 while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the 
 Scriptures ? — Luke xxiv. 32. 
 
 Ought not the disciples of Jesus to do now, as the disciples 
 of Jesus did then ? What but of Jesus should we speak of 
 by the way? Methinks the Lord's people, and especially 
 when coming from the Lord's house, should be distinguished 
 from the frothy conversation of mere carnal worshippers. I 
 would, by talking of Jesus, invite him to mingle with us, and 
 open to our understandings the Scriptures. I would there- 
 fore sometimes ask one, and another, when returning from 
 the house or the table of the Lord, How went the matter with 
 your soul to-day ? I pray you tell me ; was the King at 
 court? Did he receive petitions? Did he answer prayers? 
 Were you refreshed : were any healed ; any comforted ; any 
 made joyful, in his house of prayer ? Surely we might hope, 
 by such edifying inquiries, each would help his fellow. And 
 He, of whom it is said the Lord hearkened and heard, when 
 of old the people of God were often talking one to another, 
 would again draw nigh, and make the heart burn with the 
 sweet manifestations of his love. But chiefly, blessed Master ! 
 if I meet with none to ask whether they have seen the King 
 in his beauty, give me to taste of the sweet savour of thy 
 grace myself: come to me, Lord, in the refreshing, strength- 
 ening, heart-warming, soul-rejoicing, manifestations of thy 
 presence ; for thy love is better than wine ; and the very 
 crumb from under thy table is more delicious than the honey 
 and the honey-comb. 
 
 27. — He shall glorify me ; for he shall receive of mine, and shedl shew 
 it unto you. John xvi. 14. 
 
 Some precious souls are at a loss to apprehend how the 
 Holy Ghost makes application of Jesus, and his benefits, to 
 his people. Hence they ask, How am I to know that the 
 righteousness of Jesi^s, and the blood of Jesus, are applied to 
 
22 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 me? But be not thou, my soul, ignorant of so important a 
 matter, on the clear apprehension of which thy daily comfort 
 depends. Attend, my soul, to what thy Jesus saith in those 
 precious words ; and, under the blessed Spirit's teaching, the 
 matter will appear abundantly plain. He shall glorify me, 
 saith Jesus. And doth not the Holy Ghost do this in every 
 believer's view, when he gives the soul to see that all that 
 vast extent of redemption blessings, which the Father 
 treasured up in his dear Son for poor sinners, flow immedi- 
 ately from Jesus ? And observe, the Holy Ghost doth not at 
 first show the sinner that all result from the everlasting love 
 and grace, and purpose of God the Father ; but he leads the 
 sinner to view them, and receive them as the blessed fruits 
 and effects of Jesus's meditation ; and then opens more fully 
 the glory of the Father in the original design of them, in this 
 precious way, from everlasting. This is indeed to glorify 
 Jesus, and to glorify the Father in him. And how are these 
 blessings applied? The scriptural answer is the best an- 
 swer: — " He shall receive of mine," saith Jesus, " and show 
 it unto you." And doth not that Almighty teacher do all 
 this most sweetly and effectually, when, at any time, he so 
 holds up the Lord Jesus, in all the glories of his person, and 
 in all the beauties of his finished work, as to incline the sin- 
 ner's heart so to behold the Saviour as to believe in him, and 
 firmly to rely upon him ? Is not the righteousness of Jesus 
 received, and his precious blood applied, when the soul is led 
 to the hearty and cordial assurance, that that righteousness is 
 effectual to justify, and that blood to cleanse from all sin 1 
 Yes, precious Jesus ! I praise thee for these blessings in 
 thee. I adore thee, thou Holy Spirit, for thy divine teaching 
 concerning them. And I glorify thee, thou Almighty Father, 
 for thine abundant grace and mercy, in the gift of thy dear 
 Son. 
 
 28. — As having nothing, and yet possessing all things. — 2 Cor. vi. 10. 
 
 My soul, hast thou learnt this holy science 1 There are 
 three blessed lessons the Holy Ghost teacheth on this ground. 
 As, first, The believer is thoroughly emptied of himself Art 
 thou thus taught of God? Hast thou been led to see, to 
 feel, to know, to be convinced that, after all thine attainments, 
 after all thy long standing in the school of Jesus, thou hast 
 nothing, canst do nothing, art worse than nothing ; and, lite- 
 rally, hast no more in thyself now to recommend thee to Jesus, 
 than the first moment thou didst hear of his name ? This is 
 
JANUARY. 23 
 
 to have nothing. This is to be poor in spirit. Secondly^ 
 Dost thou possess all things in Jesus ? Yes ! if so be thou 
 art living out of thyself wholly upon Him. And how is this 
 known? Nothing more evident. When a sense of my 
 emptiness endears to me his fulness ; my poverty, his riches ; 
 my weakness, his strength ; my sins, his righteousness : my 
 guilt, his blood ; I truly possess all things, as far as I ap- 
 prove what Jesus is to his people, and rest upon Him and the 
 blessed fruits of his salvation, as God the Father designed 
 him, who hath made him wisdom, righteousness, sanctifica- 
 tion, and redemption, to his people. And there is a third 
 precious lesson the Holy Ghost teacheth to the poor that have 
 nothing, and yet possess all things; namely, so to possess Jesus 
 himself, that he may not only make his poor ones rich in his 
 riches, but be himself their treasure ; so to supply them not 
 only with what they need, but to be himself their fulness ; 
 not only to open to them light and life, but to be himself both 
 their light and hfe ; so to impart to them salvation, as to 
 show them that he is himself their salvation : and, in short, 
 so to give them present peace, and the assurance of everlast- 
 ing happiness in his blood and righteousness, as to give them 
 the perfect enjoyment that he is himself both their present 
 and everlasting happiness, and their portion for ever ! My 
 soul ! hast thou learnt, and art thou every day more and 
 more learning these precious truths ? Oh ! then, look up to 
 thy Jesus, and say with one of old, " Whom have I in heaven 
 but thee; and there is none upon earth I desire beside thee. 
 My flesh and my heart faileth ; but thou art the strength of 
 my heart, and my portion for ever." 
 
 29. — If the servant shall plainly say, I love ray master, my wife, and 
 my children, I will not go ont free. Then his master shall bring 
 him unto the judges ; he shall also bring him home to the door, or 
 unto the doorpost, and his master shall bore his ear through with an 
 awl, and he shall serve him for ever. — Exodus xxi. 5, 6. 
 
 How sweet is Scripture explained by Scripture. Jesus 
 saith, when sacrifice and offering under the law were both 
 unprofitable, " Mine ears hast thou opened ;" or, as it might 
 have been rendered, " Mine ears hast thou digged." Psalm 
 xl. 6. And elsewhere : — " The Lord God hath opened mine 
 ear, and I was not rebellious." Isaiah 1. 5. The Apostle to 
 the Hebrews decidedly explains this in reference to Christ. 
 Heb. X. 5. And what was all this but to show the voluntary 
 service of Jesus to the office and work of the Redeemer ? 
 
24 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Was not Jesus, in all that high work, the servant of Jehovah ? 
 Though he was in the form of God, and with him it was no 
 robbery to be equal with God, yet he made himself of no re- 
 putation, and took upon him the form of a servant. And for 
 whom did he this ? Was it not, in effect, saying, like the 
 Jewish servant which was typical of him, " 1 love my Master, 
 my Father, in the work of redemption ?" John xiv. 31. — " I 
 love my wife, my church, my spouse." Song iv. 10. — " I love 
 my children : behold I and the children whom thou hast 
 given me." Isaiah viii. 18. — " I will not go out free." Oh ! 
 precious Lord Jesus ! well might the Apostle say, " Hus- 
 bands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the Church, 
 and gave himself for it." Surely it was thy love, dearest 
 Lord ! to thy Church, that moved thee to serve Jehovah, as 
 Israel served for a wife ; and for a wife kept sheep. Hosea xii. 
 12. Oh ! for grace to love thee, and to serve thee for ever ! 
 
 30. — That in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of 
 his grace, in his kindness towards us, through Christ Jesus. — Eph. ii. 7. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and gather in all the powers of arithme- 
 tic, and try if thou art able to count what the exceeding 
 riches of God's grace amount to. Think how great, how 
 free, how sovereign, how inexhaustible, how everlasting ! 
 All that a poor sinner hath in time, all that we can enjoy to 
 all eternity, all is of grace. And what a title hath thy God 
 chosen to be known by among his people, when, to make 
 himself known more fully in Jesus, he stiles himself the 
 God of all grace ! All grace ? Yes ; all grace, and all 
 sorts and degrees of grace : pardoning grace, renewing 
 grace, quickening grace, strengthening grace, comforting 
 grace ; in short, all grace. And is all this treasured up in 
 Jesus ? Oh ! then, my soul, see that Jesus be thine, and all 
 is thine. And mark this down as a sure unerring rule — as 
 grace hath no source but in the Father's love, so the exalting 
 that grace, in Jesus, is the Father's design in salvation. The 
 brightest pearl in the Redeemer's crown, is that which shines 
 with this inscription : " To the praise of the glory of his 
 grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the Beloved." 
 Here, my soul, seek thy daily grace, more earnest than thy 
 daily bread. 
 
 31. — What think ye that he will not come to the feast ? — John xi. 56. 
 
 Is this thy inquiry, my soul, when, at any time, thou art 
 seeking Jesus in his word, in his ordinances, at his table? 
 
FEBRUARY. 25 
 
 Will he not come ? Will Jesus not be there ? Think how 
 he hath dealt in times past. Did not Jesus rejoice, when the 
 hour arrived for coming into the world for salvation ? Doth 
 he not rejoice, when coming to the heart of the poor sinner 
 for conversion ? And will he not come with joy, in all the 
 renewed visits of his love 1 Besides — doth not Jesus know 
 that it is a time of need to thee ? And hath he not opened a 
 way to the throne of grace, on purpose that his poor helpless 
 children might come boldly to a throne of grace to obtain 
 help, and find grace, in every time of need ? Oh ! then, mark 
 it down as a sure thing, thy Jesus will be there. He spreads 
 the feast, and he will be present. He waits to be gracious j 
 waits to be kind to thee. Love is in his heart, and salvation 
 in his hands. Hasten then to his house, to his table, to his 
 bosom, to his heart ; and say with the Church, " Come, my 
 Beloved, and be thou like a roe, or a young heart, upon the 
 mountains of Bether." 
 
 FEBRUARY. 
 
 1.— ^And they shall call his name Emmanuel ; which, being interpreted, 
 is, God with Ms.—Matt. i. 23. 
 
 My soul ! hast thou never remarked what a peculiar beauty 
 and sweetness there is in every name by which thy God and 
 Saviour is made known to thee in his holy word ? Surely, 
 if nothing more had been intended by it, than to identify and 
 prove his sacred Person, one name would have answered this 
 purpose : evidently, therefore, somewhat of great importance 
 is designed from his many names. And depend upon it, my 
 soul, so much loveliness is there in every individual name of 
 thy Jesus : and at one time or other, in thy walk of faith, so 
 very much wilt thou need every one, and find the precious- 
 ness of every one, that thou wouldest not part with one of thy 
 Redeemer's names — no, not for the world. This of Emma- 
 nuel, by which thou art commanded to call him, is a sweet 
 one to endear him to thee. Had he not been Emmanuel, he 
 could not have been Jesus ; for none but God can save a sin- 
 ner. And therefore he is called Emmanuel, which signifies, 
 God with us. Hence therefore he is God. Put this down, 
 as a glorious truth, in thy esteem. God in our nature. God 
 
 3 
 
26 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 tabernacling- in our flesh. God in us ; and God in our hearts, 
 the hope of glory. It is the Godhead of thy Jesus which 
 
 fives efficacy and value to every act of redemption. As God, 
 is righteousness is the righteousness of God to justify thee. 
 Mark that! His sacrifice to atone — His blood to cleanse — 
 His grace to bless. All these blessed acts of thy Jesus derive 
 efficacy to answer all their glorious purposes, because they 
 are the acts of God. And remark, my soul, yet further, that 
 all that yet remains to be fulfilled, in what he hath promised 
 concerning salvation ; in now pleading thy cause, and here- 
 after taking thee to glory: these cannot fail — because He 
 who hath promised is Emmanuel. Go on, my soul, one step 
 further, and remember that He, whom thou art to call Em- 
 manuel, is also God in thy nature. Hence he is so very near 
 and dear, in all tender alliances, as to be bone of thy bone, 
 and flesh of thy flesh. My soul ! never, never lose sight of 
 this most sweet and precious name of thy Jesus. Call him, 
 as thou art commanded, call his name Emmanuel. 
 
 2. — Seest thou this woman ? — Luke xvii. 44. 
 
 My soul ! lo(ik at this woman at the feet of Jesus ; for thy 
 Jesus bids thee look, and gather instruction from the view as 
 well as the Pharisee. Behold how she wept, how she washed 
 the feet of Jesus, and anointed them with ointment. These were 
 sweet tokens of her love and adoration. But were these 
 the causes for which she obtained forgiveness? Oh! no. 
 Read what the Lord said to her : — " Thy faith hath saved 
 thee." Learn then, my soul, in what salvation lies. Love 
 may bring ointment to Jesus. Sorrow for sin, when grace is 
 in the heart, will cause tears to fall. But faith brings nothing ; 
 for it hath nothing. It casts itself wholly upon Jesus. Amidst 
 all its guilt, and fears, and tears, it is Jesus only to whom 
 faith looks. It is Jesus upon whom alone it depends. It hath 
 nothing to do with self; neither our own feelings, nor the ex- 
 ercise of our graces. These are blessed evidences of the 
 work of the Lord upon the heart: but they are not salvation. 
 It is Jesus, all precious, all glorious, all suitable Jesus ! He 
 is the one blessed object of faith's joy, and hope, and pursuit, 
 and desire. And depend upon it, thy God and Father in 
 Christ Jesus is more pleased, more honoured by this simple 
 act of faith upon Jesus' glorious person and righteousness, 
 than by all the tears in the world ; when those tears lead us 
 to place a stress upon the effects of faith, instead of hanging 
 wholly upon the cause^ in the glorious object, Jesus. Pause, 
 
FEBRUARY. 27 
 
 my soul, over this nice but proper distinction ; and this will 
 be to find comfort always in Jesus. " Seest thou this wo- 
 man?" 
 
 3. — Who loved me, and gave himself for me. — Gal. ii. 20. 
 
 See, my soul, how Paul is for ever using Jesus, and feast- 
 ing for ever upon him. Oh ! seek grace to do the same. He 
 saith Jesus loved him. Jesus the Son of God loved Paul. 
 Now love, from any object, is valuable ; but from the first, 
 and best, and greatest of all Beings, what invaluable love is 
 this ? And who did Christ love ? " Why me," saith Paul ; 
 " who was a blasphemer, a persecutor, and injurious." And 
 how do you know, Paul, that Jesus loved j^ou 7 " He gave 
 himself for me," saith Paul. Gave himself? Yes! him- 
 self Not his gifts only, not his grace, not his mercies, 
 though all creation is his. And whatever he gave must 
 have been an undeserved mercy ; for I merited hell, when 
 he bestowed upon me heaven. " But even heaven, with all 
 its glories, is nothing," saith Paul, " to what Jesus gave me ; 
 for he gave himself for me." Oh ! my soul, wilt thou not 
 look up, wilt thou not be encouraged to hope, to believe, to 
 hang upon Jesus, for the same. Oh ! for faith to believe. 
 Precious Jesus ! thou Author and Finisher of faith, grant 
 me this mercy. And while 1 read these sweet words con- 
 cerning thee, who loved and who gave thyself for poor lost 
 sinners, oh ! like Paul, and with the same assurance of faith, 
 cause me to add — me, me ; Jesus loved me, and gave himself 
 for me. 
 
 4. — The Comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me. — 
 Lament, i. 16. 
 
 Whence is it, my soul, that those distressing thoughts arise ? 
 Pause and inquire. Is the Holy Ghost the Comforter in- 
 deed withdrawn, when Jesus, thy Jesus, sweetly and gra- 
 ciously promised that he should abide for ever ? This can- 
 not be. Is the righteousness of Jesus less ; or hath his 
 blood, to atone and cleanse, lost its efficacy ? Oh ! no. Je- 
 sus' righteousness, and Jesus' all-atoning propitiation, like 
 the Almighty Author of both, must be eternally and everlast- 
 ingly the same : yesterday, and to-day, and for ever. Hath 
 God thy Father forgotten to be gracious ? Oh ! no. God 
 thy Father proclaimed from heaven, that he is well pleased 
 for his dear Son's righteousness' sake. And never, never 
 shall a word gone out of the Lord's mouth be altered. From 
 
S8 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 whence then, my soul, is thy leanness, thy fears and despon- 
 dency? Canst thou not discover? Ohl yes. It is ail in 
 thyself, and thy unbelieving- frame. Thou art looking to thy- 
 self, and not to all-precious Jesus ! Thou wantest to feel 
 some new frame of thy own ; some meUing of heart, or the 
 like. And if thou couldest be gratified in this, then thou 
 wouldest go to Jesus with confidence ; and there plead, as 
 thou thinkest, Jesus' name, and blood, and righteousness, for 
 acceptance. And doth the want of these feelings keep thee 
 back ? Oh ! fie, my soul, is this thy love, thy kindness, to thy 
 friend ? Can any thing be more plain, than that thou art 
 making a part Saviour of thy feelings, and not a whole Sa- 
 viour of thy Jesus ? No wonder thou criest out, the Com- 
 forter is far from thee. For the Holy Ghost will teach thee, 
 that all comfort is only in Jesus. And mark this, my soul, 
 for all future occasions : — If thou wilt seek comfort in any- 
 thing out of Jesus, though it be in the sweetest frames, 
 as thou mayest think, of thine — Jesus, in mercy and love, 
 will put thy comforts out of thy reach. Oh ! then come to 
 Jesus poor and needy, with, or without frames. Make him 
 all and in all; and He will be thy joy, thy comfort, and thy 
 portion for ever. 
 
 5. — In the hand of a Mediator. — Gal. iii. 19. 
 
 The hand of a mediator was the great blessing every en- 
 lightened son of Adam, from the fall, sighed after, and looked 
 for, in every approach to God. Hence the first transgressor, 
 for the want of it hid himself from the presence of God, amidst 
 the trees of the garden. Hence Israel cried out to Moses, 
 " Go thou near, and hear all that the Lord our God shall 
 say ; but let not God speak with us, lest we die. And Job 
 longed for a Daysman (that is) a Mediator, that might lay 
 his hand on both parties. See then, my soul, thy privileges ; 
 for thou hast a Mediator, and a glorious one indeed, in whose 
 mighty hand all thy concerns are eternally secured. " Ye 
 are come," saith the Apostle : he doth not say ye are com- 
 ing ; but, ye are come, " to Jesus the Mediator of the new 
 Covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling." Oh ! then^ in all 
 thy approaches, have an eye to Jesus. Put all thy affairs in 
 this glorious Mediator's hand. Remember he wears thy na- 
 ture, pleads thy cause, takes up all thy concerns, and ever 
 liveth to make intercession for sinners ; and therefore cast all 
 thy care upon him ; for he careth for thee. And look to this 
 one grand thing — -that all thy confidence and all thy joy ari- 
 
FEBRUARY. 29 
 
 seth wholly from Jesus' s person and righteousness ; not from 
 any supposed graces, tears, repentance — nor even from faith 
 itself, if viewed as an act of thine. Cast aside, as filthy rags, 
 all that is thine ; and never, no not for a moment, look at any 
 thing as a procuring cause ; but let Jesus have all thy confi- 
 dence, all the glory, and thou wilt have all the comfort. 
 Though Satan accuse, though conscience pleads guilty, God's 
 broken law pronounceth condemnation, and justice demands 
 the penahy ; Jesus hath answered all, and is in the throne to 
 see the issue. Oh ! the blessedness of having all in the hands 
 of a Mediator. 
 
 6. — The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than 
 half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the Lord, to maike 
 an atonement for your souls. — Exod. xxx. 15. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this Scripture, and mark the gra- 
 ciousness of* thy God and Father in the blessed truth con- 
 veyed in it. What, were all the souls of the redeemed 
 charged equally alike in the account of God ? Did God thy 
 Father rate them thus ? And did Jesus, thy precious Jesus ! 
 purchase all his redeemed with an equal price, when he 
 bought them with his blood ? If this be so, my soul, it must 
 follow, that thou, a poor unworthy creature as thou art, over- 
 looked as thou art by the great ones of the earth, and too 
 frequently overlooking in thyself how precious every re- 
 deemed soul must be in Jesus' sight, cost as much to Jesus 
 as the soul of Peter or of Paul, or any of the patriarchs, 
 apostles or prophets. Oh ! think of this ; write it down on 
 the tablets of thy remembrance. Will not this tend to endear 
 Jesus yet more to thee, and bring home thy Father's love in 
 the strongest affection ? Add one thought more to this pre- 
 cious relation. If, to Jesus, thy redemption cost as much as 
 any one of the redeemed in glory, think, my soul, after such 
 a purchase, such a price, will he lose his property ? wiU he 
 forego what cost him so dear, and suffer one pearl of his 
 mediatorial crown to be wanting? Add another sweet 
 thought, my soul, to this delightful meditation. If, amidst 
 the various inequalities of Ufe, some poor and some rich, yet 
 whatever difference was allowed or even expected in other 
 offerings, according to the abilities of God's people; yet 
 here, as a representation of the offering of the soul in Jesus' 
 purchase, no one distinction was to be made ; is it not plain 
 that the redemption by Jesus is in him, and him only ; and 
 his righteousness unto all, and upon all, that believe ; for 
 
 3* 
 
30 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 there is no difference ? Dearest Lord ! may my soul never 
 lose sight of this blessed equality. Here thou art indeed, no 
 respecter of persons. 
 
 7— Behold the Lamb of God I— John i. 36. 
 
 Who is it calls upon thee, my soul, to this most gratifying 
 and enriching of all employments ? Is it not God the Holy 
 Ghost, by the ministry of his servant John 1 And doth not 
 God thy Father do the same, by the ministry of his servant 
 Isaiah, when he bids thee behold Him, in whom his soul de- 
 lighteth? And is not Jesus himself calling, again and again, 
 in the ministry of his word and ordinances, upon thy poor 
 forgetful heart, when he saith, " Behold me ! behold me ! 
 Look unto me, and be ye saved !" And wilt thou not obey 
 the sweet and gracious calls, on which all thy present peace 
 and everlasting happiness depend ? Precious, precious Jesus ! 
 Yes, my Lord ! I would, methinks, so look unto thee, and 
 so behold thee, until my whole heart, and all its affections, 
 followed my eyes, and left not a thought behind for a single 
 object beside thee. I would eye thee, thou dear Redeemer, 
 as the Lamb of God \ both where thou once wast, and where 
 thou now art, and follow thee whithersoever thou goest ! I 
 would behold thee, as the Lamb of God, set up in the decrees 
 of eternity, from everlasting ; for thou art the Lamb slain 
 from the foundation of the world I would behold thee, set 
 forth in all the representations of thy redeeming blood, in the 
 innumerable sacrifices of the law, and in the Lamb of the 
 morning, and the Lamb of the evening, through the inter- 
 mediate ages, to thy coming. I would behold thee, oh ! thou 
 unequalled pattern of excelling meekness ! when, in the days of 
 thy flesh, thou walkedst through the streets of Jerusalem ; and 
 when, as a Lamb, thou wert led to the slaughter. I would eye 
 thee, oh ! thou Lamb of God ! until my eye-strings could hold 
 no longer, when as the lamb of God, and my soul's surety, thou 
 didst hang upon the tree, putting away sin, and satisfying 
 divine justice, by the sacrifice of thyself And never would 
 I take off my eyes from thy cross, until called by thee to be- 
 hold thee as the Lamb in the midst of the throne, where 
 thou art feeding thy church above, and dispensing blessings 
 to all thy church below. Yes, yes, blessed triumphant Lamb 
 of God ! thou art the Lamb still. Change of place hath 
 made no change in thy nature, or thy love, or the efficacy of 
 thy redemption. Thou still appearest as a Lamb that has 
 been slain. And still thou bear est on thy glorified body, the 
 
FEBRUARY. 31 
 
 marks of thy redemption. Shall I not behold thee, then, 
 dearest Jesus? Shall I not unceasingly behold thee, thus 
 called upon by the Father, Son. and Spirit ; and thus finding 
 every thing that can satisfy my most unbounded desires, for 
 time and for eternity ? Help me, blessed Jesus ! so to look, 
 and so to Vive upon thee ; and oh ! do thou behold me, and 
 bid me live, and make me thine own for ever. 
 
 8. — Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect ? It is God 
 that justifieth. Who is he that conderaneth ? It is Christ that died ; 
 yea, rather, that is risen again : who is even at the right hand of 
 God, who also maketh intercession for us. — Romans viii. 33, 34. 
 
 See, my soul, what a blessed security thou hast. Here is 
 God justifying ; Christ dying ; the Holy Ghost raising the 
 sinner's surety from the grave, as an evidence that the debt 
 of sin is cancelled ; and Jesus ever living to see the travail 
 of his soul and be satisfied in the redemption of his people. 
 What, then, shall rob thee of thy comfort, while thou art tri- 
 umphing in thy Jesus 7 Sin shall not, for Jesus hath put it 
 away by the sacrifice of himself The law cannot ; for thy 
 Jtsus hath answered all its just demands. Divine justice 
 cannot ; for God himself justifieth. Death and hell cannot ; 
 for Jesus hath conquered both. In short, all that stood in thy 
 way, the Son of God hath removed. And wilt thou not, my 
 soul, triumph in the great salvation of thy Jesus ? Surely 
 the poor debtor may walk as boldly before the prison door, 
 as the king in his palace, when his debts are paid. No 
 bailiff can touch him; no mittimus again confine him. If 
 the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. Tri- 
 umph then, my soul ! in the liberty wherewith thy Jesus 
 hath made thee free ; only be sure that all thy triumphs are 
 in him. Let him have all the glory who hath wrought the 
 whole redemption. Make thy Jesus all ; for he hath done 
 all for thee ; and then sweetly repose thyself upon the person 
 and work of thy Beloved. Let the adversary accuse, or 
 opposition arise from without or within, yet, saith an apostle, 
 here is the answer: — "God justifieth; for Christ died." 
 Oh ! how precious it is, after all the storms, and winds, and 
 boisterous tossings, of law and conscience, to enter into that 
 harbour which is Jesus. " We, which have believed," saith 
 the apostle, " do enter into rest." He is indeed the rest, 
 wherewith he causeth the weary to rest ; and he is the re- 
 freshing. 
 
39 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 9. — ^The Lamb that is in the midst of the tlirone shall feed them. — 
 Rev. vii. 17. 
 
 My soul ! thou hast not forgotten what thou wert so lately 
 engaged in, a day or two since, at the call of God the Holy 
 Ghost, to behold the Lamb of God. And art thou not still 
 looking at him, gazing upon him, feasting thine eyes, thine 
 heart, all thy affections upon him, and following him, in the 
 sweet contemplation, from his cross to his crown ? Come 
 then, my soul, harp again and again upon this blessed string; 
 for sure it is most blessed. And remember, my soul, as thou 
 lookest, thy Jesus is in the midst of the throne — that is, the 
 very centre of it. In Him dwelleth all the fulness of the 
 Godhead bodily. For what is the Lamb of God, but God 
 revealing himself in him, to thee, my soul, and all his 
 people ? And remember, also, that the throne in the midst 
 of which thy Jesus is, in Scripture is called the throne of 
 God and the Lamb, on purpose to show thee that it is one 
 and the same. And what is that throne, my soul, but a 
 throne of grace ; a mercy-seat, a place for the poor and the 
 needy to approach, to obtain mercy, and find grace to help in 
 time of need ? Flee to it, my soul ! haste ! stay not : and 
 remember, as Jesus is in the midst of it, it is accessible every 
 way, and all around. The poor timid believer, that fears to 
 go in front, may, like the woman in the gospel, who came 
 behind, touch but Jesus' garment : efficacy from the Lamb 
 is in every direction. If Jesus was not there, it might be 
 alarming to approach ; but, remember, the Lamb is there — 
 and he is the Lamb of God. Sweet encouraging thought ! 
 Come then, my soul, look to the Lamb. See, iDy faith, how 
 he feeds the church which is above. And will he not feed 
 the church below? Oh! yes. His flesh is meat indeed, 
 and his blood is drink indeed. He is the heavenly Pelican, 
 that feeds his young with his blood. And oh ! what spi- 
 ritual food, what divine food, what suitable food, what soul- 
 satisfying, soul-ravishing, soul-strengthening food ! Precious 
 Lamb of God ! every thing in thee is food. Feed my hun- 
 gry soul, oh thou that art in the midst of the throne, and 
 send me not empty away. 
 
 10. — Unto you, therefore, which believe, he is precious. — 1 Pet. ii. 7. 
 
 My soul ! art thou anxious to know whether thou art a 
 true believer in Jesus 1 Try it, then, by this mark, which 
 the Holy Ghost hath given by his servant the Apostle. Do 
 
FEBRUARY. H^ 83 
 
 you believe in Jesus for life and salvation ? Yes, truly ; if so 
 be he is precious. Look at him, then. 1. Is Jesus precious 
 in his person, precious in his work, precious in his offices, 
 precious in his relations, precious in his whole character ? 
 2. Do you know him so as to love him, to live to him, to re- 
 joice in him, and to cast your whole soul upon him, for life 
 and salvation ? 3. Do you accept him as the Father's gift, 
 the Sent, the Sealed, the Anointed, the Christ, of the Father? 
 Is he so precious that there is nothing in him but what you 
 love — nothing that you would part with ? His cross is dear, 
 as well as his crown ? Afflictions with Jpsus sweeter than 
 prosperity without him ? Pause over these questions. Re- 
 collect that there is nothing out of Jesus that can be truly sat- 
 isfying. Thy dearest earthly friend, however sweet, hath 
 yet some tinge, some alloy, of what is not sweet. But there 
 is no mixture in thy Jesus : all is pure, and lovely, and trans- 
 cendently glorious. He is, as one of old described him, a 
 sea of sweetness, without a single drop of gall. And now, 
 my soul, what sayest thou concerning Jesus ? Is he precious 
 to thee under all these, and a thousand more distinguishing 
 excellencies ? Say, if Jesus were to be bought, wouldest 
 thou not sell all thou hast to buy? Were he to be sold, 
 wouldest thou not rather lose thy life than part with him ? 
 Surely, then, he must be precious to thee : and as such, thou 
 art a believer : for the Apostle has commanded us to say, 
 that unto them which believe, he is precious. Take comfort 
 then, my soul ; He that is precious now, will be so for ever. 
 Yes, precious Lord ! there is none in heaven, or earth, I de- 
 sire beside thee ! 
 
 11. — Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab : be thou a covert to them 
 from the face of the spoiler. — Isaiah xvi. 4. 
 
 When a man's ways please the Lord, he maketh even his 
 enemies to be at peace with him. Moab was the sworn foe 
 of Israel ; but yet Moab shall be overruled to shelter and 
 feed Israel. The world, like Moab, dislikes God's people : 
 but as God's people must sojourn in the world, until the time 
 comes for God to take them home, they shall be taken care 
 of " Let mine outcasts dwell with thee, Moab ;" house them 
 as travellers in an inn. See that they have a lodging. Let 
 their bread be given, and their water sure. " They are 
 poor ; but they are rny poor, saith our God. " They are 
 outcasts ; but they are mine outcasts." Oh ! precious Jesus ! 
 I see thou wilt still own thy people. And wherefore is it, 
 
34 xMORNING PORTION. 
 
 dearest Lord ? Not for their worth, not for their deservings, 
 not for their adherence to thee ; but because thou hast loved 
 them ; because the Father hath given them to thee, and thou 
 hast purchased their persons, redeemed them, and washed 
 them, and made them thine. Grant, dearest Lord ! that 
 though we are constrained to dwell with Mesech, and to 
 have our habitation among the tents of Kedar ; though we 
 are made as the filth of the earth, and the offscouring of all 
 things — yet never, never may we forget our relationship to 
 thee ! Though outcasts, yet Jesus' outcasts. Be thou, Lord, 
 our hiding place, our covert, in the midst of Moab ; and so 
 shall we be free from every spoiler : thou wilt be to us all we 
 need — rivers of water in a dry place, and as the shadow of a 
 great rock in a weary land. 
 
 12. — And the Lord shut him in. — Gen. vii. 16. 
 
 It was a sweet invitation to the patriarch Noah, when the 
 Lord called him to the ark. Jehovah did not say, Go thou 
 into the ark ; but '' Come." So saith Jesus to his people : 
 " Come with me, from Lebanon, my spouse ; with me, from 
 Lebanon." Yes, precious Jesus ! to be with thee is heaA'-en ; 
 for thou thyself art the heaven of the soul. But observe fur- 
 ther, my soul : when Noah had entered the ark, what kept 
 him there ? " The Lord shut him in." Yes ! neither bolts 
 nor bars were his security ; but God himself, in his covenant 
 engagements, kept him. The Patriarch could no more get 
 out, than the unbelieving carnal throng (who, perhaps, hung 
 about the ark when they saw the flood arise, and felt its 
 power) could get in. Precious Jesus ! and what is it keeps 
 thy people now ? Is it not thyself? Are not thy redeemed 
 eternally secure in thee, and thy blood and righteousness, as 
 Noah in the ark ? Yes ! thou who hast the key of all things ; 
 thou openest, and none shutteth ; thou shuttest, and none 
 openeth. In thee my soul is kept secure; for the Lord Je- 
 hovah hath shut me in ; and I shall ride out all the storms 
 and floods of sin and Satan, and Noah-like, rise above the 
 fountains of the greatest deeps, being shut in in the ark Christ 
 Jesus. 
 
 13. — Clirist has redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a 
 curse for us. — Gal. iii. 13. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and contemplate the unspeakable mercies 
 contained in those precious words ! However little thou hast 
 regarded them, yet they contain in their bosom the whole 
 
FEBRUARY. 35 
 
 t 
 
 blessings of the gospel. It is to Jesus, in this one glorious 
 act of his faith, should the sinner be continually looking. 
 There, (the believer should say,) there hangs my hope, my 
 joy, my confidence. Christ hath redeemed me from the 
 curse of the law, being made a curse for me. Now, my soul, 
 observe how Jesus accomplished this great mercy for thee. 
 Whatever Christ redeemed the sinner from, he became that 
 for him. In the act of redemption, by substituting himself in 
 the sinner's place and room, he redeemed him from that place 
 and room, by standing there himself Hence, as the sinner 
 stood before God, accursed by reason of sin ; so Christ, by 
 taking the sinner's sin upon himself, and standing in his 
 stead to answer for it, was made a curse also. If, therefore, 
 Christ will come under the law for sinners, that law will 
 have as much to demand of him, as of sinners. If Jesus, 
 from his boundless love and mercy, will take the sinner's 
 curse upon himself, the law will speak as harsh to him as the 
 sinner that is under the curse; and not only speak, but exact 
 from him all that could be demanded from the sinner. Pause, 
 my soul ! And did Jesus, thy Jesus, thus stand, thus be con- 
 sidered ; and was he made a curse for thee 1 Did he really, 
 truly, suffer the cursed sinner's punishment, and die, the just 
 for the unjust, to bring sinners unto God ? Look to it then, 
 my soul ; he hath bought thee out, paid the full ransom, and 
 taken away both sin, and the curse of sin, by the sacrifice of 
 himself. Shout, my soul ! shout salvation to God and the 
 Lamb ! Say, as Paul, " Christ hath redeemed us from the 
 curse of the law, being made a curse for us." 
 
 14. — For where two or tliree are gathered together m ray name, there 
 am I in the midst of them. — Matt, xviii. 20. 
 
 What an encouraging declaration is this of our Jesus, to 
 prompt the faithful to meet together on the Lord's Day ; or, 
 in short, any day, at all times, and all places. Observe, my 
 soul, how sweet the Lord speaks : — '■ There am I in the 
 midst of my people ; not by my word only, not as represented 
 in ordinances, not by the ministry of my servants, but I my- 
 self spiritually. The calls, the motions of grace felt in the 
 heart, the tender tokens, the manifestations of my suitable- 
 ness, fulness, all-sufficiency ; these are all truly mine, which, 
 by the influences of my Spirit, I communicate among you." 
 Oh ! precious, condescending Lord ! now we see what it is 
 that constitutes a true gospel church — even thy presence. 
 Thou art the beauty and glory of it ; and from thee alone all 
 
$f MORNING PORTION. 
 
 power and efficacy is derived. Thy churches are, indeed, as 
 thou hast taught, the golden candlesticks ; and thy ministers 
 are as stars in thy right hand. But the candlesticks have no 
 light, until thou, by thy presence, enlighten them; neither do thy 
 servants, the ministers, hold forth the light of thy word pro- 
 fitably, until thou openest the heart, as thou didst poor Lydia's, 
 to receive the things delivered to the salvation of the soul. 
 Ye ministers of my God ! draw all your comfort and encou- 
 ragement, amidst all the difficulties you meet with, both from 
 within and without, in your sacred service, from this sweet 
 assurance of Jesus. Whenever you go up to the assemblies 
 of God's people, hear the footsteps of your Master behind 
 you. And ye who pant after sweet fellowship and commu- 
 nion with Jesus, seek it by the footsteps of the flock, beside 
 the shepherd's tents, where Jesus feeds his sheep. Who 
 would be absent from that blessed place where Jesus comes 
 to bless 1 And oh ! what encouragement to the faithful to 
 bring with them their unawakened friends and relations, to 
 the assemblies which Jesus honours with his presence. 
 Surely He, who wrought salvation in our hearts, can work 
 the same in theirs. No wonder, when such mercies Jesus 
 brings with him to his people, that the heart of David fainted to 
 go up to the house of the Lord, that he might see the power 
 and glory of Jesus, as he had seen it in the sanctuary. 
 
 15. — ^With purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. Acts xi. 23. 
 
 My soul ! art thou cleaving to thy Jesus ? It is a grand 
 thing so to do; and it must be from continued supplies of 
 grace, in Jesus, if thou art really doing it. A few points 
 will show. Is Jesus thy all ? Is he uppermost in all things ? 
 Faith has for its one object Jesus. Let a true believer be 
 wheresoever he may — at home, or abroad ; alone, or in com- 
 pany ; the closet, or the church — it is all the same, if he 
 really, truly, cleaves to the Lord with purpose of heart ; 
 there is a looking unto Jesus for all things, and in all things. 
 Again, if I cleave to the Lord, I shall do no one thing but 
 in his strength, and deliberately desire nothing but for his 
 glory. The graces of the Holy Spirit, implanted in the souls 
 of the faithful, are fed and kept alive, and brought forth into 
 exercise, by the communications of Jesus. My joy then is in 
 Jesus ; not in myself, not in what I feel. These feelings of 
 mine may languish ; but while I cleave to the Lord, my spi- 
 ritual joy will always be the same. " From me," saith that 
 sweet Lord, " from me is thy. fruit found !" Once more — If 
 
FEBRUARY. 37 
 
 I cleave unto Jesus, shall I not find an increasing love for 
 him, an increasing desire for him, and an increasing commu- 
 nion with him, from increasing knowledge of him, and of 
 his love and preciousness 7 To be sure I shall. Well then, 
 my soul, art thou indeed cleaving to him 1 Think how pre- 
 cious Jesus was, when first thou wast brought so savingly- 
 acquainted with him as to see thy need of him, and his suit- 
 ableness and disposition to save thee. Dost thou think of 
 these blessings less now ? Oh ! no. You love him more, 
 because you know your need of him more, and therefore 
 cleave to him the closer. Lastly, to add no more — Doth my 
 soul truly cleave to Jesus ? Why, then, I am loosening more 
 and more from every thing beside. If Jesus hath my whole 
 heart, then is the world and all creature idols thrown down. 
 One Lord Jesus Christ is portion enough for a whole ran- 
 somed church of God to live upon to all eternity. In him 
 there is portion enough for me. Oh ! then, precious Lamb 
 of God ! be thou my portion ; for in thee I have all things. 
 
 16. — Help, Lord! for the godly man ceaseth ; for the faithful fail from 
 among the children of men. — Psalm xii. 1. 
 
 My soul ! art thou sometimes distressed in the recollection 
 of the languishing state of Zion ? Are faithful men, faithful 
 ministers taken away from the evil to come ? And dost thou 
 sometimes at a mercy seat, feel thyself drawn out in fervent 
 prayer, that the Lord would fill up the vacancies he is mak- 
 ing by death, and raise up pastors after his own heart, and 
 believers who love Zion, to supply their place? Take com- 
 fort, my soul ; thy Jesus loves Zion ; and she is still engraven 
 on the palms of his hands, and her walls are continually be- 
 fore him. Jesus must have a church in the earth as long as 
 the sun and moon endureth. Remember the reins of gov- 
 ernment are in Jesus' hands ; and however the enemies 
 of Zion, like wild horses, would ride over the children of 
 Zion, Jesus puts his bridle in their jaws, and will turn them 
 back by the way they came. Remember, also, that the care 
 of the church is with Jesus. He saith himself concerning 
 it ; "I the Lord do keep it. I will water it every moment : 
 lest any hurt it, I will keep it night and day." Blessed 
 Jesus ! I would say then, Zion is, and must be, safe. Die 
 who may, Jesus lives ; and to his church he saith, " Because 
 I live, ye shall live also." Here then is enough for me, for 
 the church, and for every child of God. -My seed, saith 
 Jesus, shall serve him. Hallelujah. 
 
 3 
 
38 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 17. — Knowing that whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent 
 from the Lord ; we are confident, I say, and willing rather to be ab- 
 sent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. — 2 Cor. v. 6, 8. 
 
 My soul ! is this thy real language ? Pause. Whilst 
 thou art at home in the body, how dark and dim, how few 
 and short are all the glimpses thou hast by faith of Jesus. 
 What from the workings of corruption, the claims of the 
 body, the concerns of the world, and the numberless, name- 
 less, obstructions which surround thee, how little dost thou 
 know of Jesus. And wouldest thou desire for ever to live at 
 this distance ? Think what the first view only of Jesus will 
 be, when thou art once absent from the body, and present 
 with the Lord ! What holy transports will break in upon 
 the soul, when all the lines of love meet in one centre, to 
 manifest the Lord Jesus to thy view in his redeeming fulness ! 
 If here below a single hour's enjoyment of thy Jesus, 
 through the medium of his word or ordinances, be so pre- 
 cious that no felicity on earth can equal, what must a whole 
 eternity be, in the full uninterrupted vision of God and the 
 Lamb? If, through the influences of thy blessed Spirit, 
 dearest Jesus ! the tear of joy, and love, and praise, will here 
 fall in the contemplation of thy person and work, surely all 
 the flood-gates of the soul will open when I see thee as thou 
 art, and come to dwell with thee for ever. Oh ! for grace, 
 then, to long for that blessed hour, when, absent from the 
 body, I shall be present with the Lord ; when I shall behold 
 thy face in righteousness, and shall be satisfied when I awake 
 with thy likeness. 
 
 18. — And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will 
 not turn away from them to do them good ; but I will put my feJir 
 in their hearts, that they shall not depart from me. — Jeremiah xxxii. 40. 
 
 Precious consideration to a poor exercised soul, that a Co- 
 venant God in Christ, hath not only engaged for himself, but 
 undertaken for his people also. God will not ; and his people 
 shall not. My soul ! take a short view of the foundation of 
 this precious, precious promise. It is God's everlasting love, 
 everlasting grace, everlasting covenant. And remember, the 
 Author of it is not changeable as thou art. With Him is no 
 variableness, neither shadow of turning. Moreover, it is 
 purchased by the blood, sealed in the blood, and made eter- 
 nally firm and sure in the blood and righteousness of Christ ; 
 the everlasting efficacy of which is as eternal as the Author 
 of it. Neither is th;s all. There is an union with the Per 
 
FEBRUARY. S9 
 
 son of thy Jesus. The head without a body would be incom- 
 plete ; and, united to his Person, the believer is interested in 
 all his graces, fulness, suitableness, all-sufficiency : so that 
 this preserves grace from perishing, because it is an everlast- 
 ing spring. And Jesus lives to see it all complete. His in- 
 tercession answers every want, and supplies every necessity. 
 Neither is this all ; for God the Holy Ghost sets to his seal 
 in the heart, that God is true. His quickening, convincing, 
 converting, manifesting grace, in the soul, in taking of the 
 things of Jesus, and showing to the heart, becomes an earnest 
 and pledge in assurance ; and all tending to confirm, that 
 God will not, and his redeemed ones shall not, turn away, 
 but his covenant remain everlasting. 
 
 19. — The prisoner of Jesus Christ. — Epkes. iii. 1. 
 
 My soul ! art thou a prisoner of Jesus Christ ? See to it, 
 if so, that, like the Apostle, thou art bound with Jesus' chains 
 for the hope of Israel. They are golden chains. When 
 Paul and Silas were fast bound in the prison, the conscious- 
 ness of this made them sing for joy. Men have their prisons, 
 and God hath his. But here lies the vast difference : no 
 bars or gates, among the closest prisons of men, can shut 
 God out from comforting his prisoners ; and, on the contrary, 
 nothing can come in to afflict Jesus' prisoners, when he 
 keeps them by the sovereignty of his grace, and love, and 
 power. Blessed Lord ! look upon thy poor prisoner ; and 
 come in, dear Lord : with thy wonderful condescension, and 
 do as thou hast said : sup with him, and cause him to sup 
 with thee. 
 
 20. — I will say luito God, do not condemn me ; show me wherefore thou 
 contendest with me. — Job x. 2. 
 
 My soul ! art thou at any time exercised with any trying 
 dispensations ? Doth thy God, thy Jesus, seem to hide his 
 face from thee? Are his providences afflicting? Art thou 
 brought under bereaving visitations ? Is thy earthly taber- 
 nacle shaken by sickness ? Are the pins of it loosening ? 
 Are thy worldly circumstances pinching? Is prayer re- 
 strained? Oh ! refer thy state, my soul, be it what it may, 
 to Jesus. Tell thy Lord, that, of all things, thy greatest 
 dread and fear is, lest thou shouldest be mistaken concerning 
 his love to thee. Say, as Job did, "Show me wherefore 
 thou contendest with me." There is an Achan in the heart. 
 Thy Jesus doth not withdraw for nothing. Love is in his 
 
40 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 lips. Salvation fills the whole soul of Jesus. Fly to him, 
 then, my soul ! Say to him, Lord, make me what thou 
 wouldest have me to be. Oh! for a word, a whisper, of 
 Jesus. I cannot live without it. I dare not let thee go, ex- 
 cept thou bless me. Not all the past enjoyments, experi- 
 ences, manifestations, will do me good, until thou again shine 
 in upon my soul. Oh ! come then. Lord, Jesus ! I fly to thee 
 as my God, my Saviour, my portion, my all. Never, surely, 
 wilt thou say to the praying seed of Jacob, Seek ye my face 
 in vain. 
 
 21. — Saw ye him whom my soul loveth ? — Song iii. 3. 
 
 Is Jesus still the object of my soul's warmest affection ; the 
 subject of all my thoughts, all my discourse, all my inquiry? 
 Oh ! yes, my soul ; whom else, m heaven or in earth, wilt 
 thou seek after but him ! Tell me, ye ministers of Jesus, ye 
 watchmen upon the walls of Zion, " saw ye him whom my 
 soul loveth?" Ye followers of the Lamb, can ye show me 
 where Jesus feedeth his flock at noon ? Or rather, ye in the 
 upper regions, where the Son of God manifesteth himself in 
 the full glories of his Person ; ye spirits of just men made 
 perfect, ye who have known, while sojourning here below, 
 what feeling of the soul that is, which, in the absence of 
 Jesus, is longing for his appearance ; ye angels of light also, 
 ye who see him without an intervening medium — tell him, I 
 beseech you, how my soul panteth for his visits : tell him that 
 a poor pensioner, well known to my Lord, is waiting his 
 morning alms : nay, tell him that I am sick of love, longing 
 for a renewed view of his Person, his pardoning love, the 
 renewals of his grace. Jesus knoweth it all before you tell 
 him, and he will send his gifts and mercies — nay, he will 
 come himself; for he hath assured me of this : he hath said, 
 " If a man love me, my Father will love him, and we will 
 come and make our abode with him." Behold, my soul, thy 
 Jesus is come ! I hear his well-known voice : he saith, " I 
 am come into my garden. Now will I hold him and not let 
 him go. and pray him not to be as a wayfaring man that 
 turneth in to tarry for a night, but abide with me until the 
 breaking of the everlasting day." 
 
 22.— Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.— 2 Cor. iii. 17. 
 
 What liberty, my soul, art thou brought into by thine 
 adoption into the family of God in Christ ? Not from the 
 assaults of sin ; for thou still carriest about with thee a body 
 
FEBRUARY. 41 
 
 of sin under which thou groanest. Not from the temptations 
 of Satan ; for he is still levelling at thee many a fiery dart. 
 Not from outward troubles ; for the world thou art still in, 
 and find est it a wilderness state. Not from inward fears ; for 
 thine unbelief begets many. Not from the chastisement of 
 thy wise and kind Father ; for then many a sweet visit of 
 his love, under the rod, would be unknown. Not from death ; 
 for the stroke of it thou must one day feel ; though, blessed 
 be Jesus, he hath taken out the sting in his blood and righ- 
 teousness. What liberty then is it, my soul, thou enjoyest ? 
 What hath the Spirit of the Lord, as a spirit of revelation 
 discovering to thee the glory of Jesus, and thy interest in 
 him, brought thee into ? Oh ! who shall write down the 
 vast, the extensive account of thy freedom 7 Say, my soul, 
 hath not the sight of God's glory in Christ freed thee from 
 the curse of the law, from the guilt of the law, from the do- 
 minion of sin, from the power of Satan, from the evil of un- 
 belief in thine own heart, from the terrors of justice, from the 
 alarms of conscience, from the second death ? Say, my soul, 
 doth not the sight of Jesus dying for thee, rising for thee, 
 pleading for thee, enlarge thy heart and loose thy bonds, and 
 shake oflf all thy fetters and all thy fears ? Doth not Jesus 
 in the throne give thee liberty to come to him, to call upon 
 him, to unbosom thyself unto him, to tell him all thy wants, 
 all thy necessities, and to lean upon his kind arm in every 
 hour of need 1 Shout, my soul ! and echo to the Apostle's 
 words, " Where the spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty :'' lib- 
 erty to approach, liberty to plead, liberty to pray, liberty to praise 
 and to adore the whole Persons of the Godhead, for having 
 opened the prison-doors, and given thee freedom in Christ Je^us. 
 
 23. — Hath a nation changed their gods, which are yet no gods ? But 
 my people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. 
 Jeremiah ii. 11. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over these words ! Was it ever known 
 that any nation changed their dunghill gods for others ? Such 
 regard had they for whatever ignorance had set up, that the 
 veneration never after ceased. But Israel, above every other 
 nation of the earth, manifested folly, and even exceeded the 
 most senseless and stupid of men. My soul ! dost thou not 
 in Israel's folly behold thy own ? Was there ever one, when 
 the Lord first called thee, less deserving ! A transgressor, 
 as the Lord knew thee, from the womb ! and yet this did not 
 prevent the Lord from calling thee. He loved thee because 
 
 4* 
 
42 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 he would love thee : gave thee his Christ ; gave thee his 
 Holy Spirit; gave thee the name, the privilege, the adop- 
 tion, of a son. What returns hast thou made ? How often 
 since hath thy backslidings, thy coldness, thy departures, 
 been like Israel? What vanity, what pursuit, what unpro- 
 fitable employment, hath not at times been preferred to thy 
 God ? Oh ! how do I see my daily, hourly, continual need 
 of thee ! thou art the hope of Israel and the Saviour thereof. 
 Keep me, Lord, near thyself; for without thee I am nothing ! 
 
 24. — He that had gathered much, had nothing over ; and he that had 
 gathered little had no lack. — 2 Cor. viii. 15. 
 
 My soul ! here is a delightful morsel for thee to feed upon 
 this morning. Thou art come out to gather thy daily food 
 as Israel did in the wilderness. Faith had no hoards. Thou 
 wantest Jesus now as much as thou didst yesterday. Well 
 then, look at what is here said of Israel. They went out to 
 gather — what 1 Why the morning bread : God's gift. Such 
 is Jesus, the bread of God, the bread of life. And as Israel 
 would have been satisfied with nothing short of this, so 
 neither be thou. And as Israel was never disappointed, so 
 neither wilt thou, if thou seek it in faith as Israel did. And 
 observe, they that gathered most had not"hing over ; so he 
 that gathered least had no lack. Yes, my soul ! no follower 
 of Jesus can have too much of Jesus : nothing more than he 
 wants — nothing to spare. So the poorest child of God, that 
 hath the least of Jesus, can never want. The very touch of 
 his garment, the very crumb from his table, is his, and is 
 precious. Dearest Lord ! give me a large portion, even a 
 Bertjamin's portion. But even a look of thy love is heaven 
 to my soul. 
 
 25. — Who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, sanctifi- 
 cation, and redemption. — 1 Cor. i. 30. 
 
 What a sweet subject for my morning meditation is here ! 
 Who is it, my soul, is made of God to thee these precious 
 things, but Jesus 1 And mark how they are made so ! — I 
 am a poor ignorant creature, grossly ignorant by reason of 
 the fall. I knew not my lost estate, much less the way of 
 recovery. Here Jesus became to me wisdom. By his illu- 
 minating the darkness of my mind, he led me to see my ruin 
 and my misery. But this would never have brought me out 
 of it ; for though I saw my lost estate, yet still I had no con- 
 sciousness by what means I could be recovered. Here again 
 
FEBRUARY. 43 
 
 Jesus came to my aid, and taught me, that as I needed righ- 
 teousness, he would be my righteousness, and undertake for 
 me to God. But even after this was done, I felt my soul still 
 the subject of sin ; and how to subdue a single sin I knew 
 not. Here Jesus came again, and gave me to see, that as he 
 was wisdom to cure my ignorance, and righteousness to an- 
 swer for my guilt, so he would be my sanctification also ; 
 purging, as well as pardoning and renewing, by his Spirit, 
 my poor nature, when he had removed the guilt of it. Still 
 I sighed for complete deliverance, and to make my happiness 
 sure ; and therefore Jesus came again, that, by his full re- 
 demption from all the evils of the fall, I might be made free ; 
 and therefore he became the whole together — wisdom, righ- 
 teousness, sanctification, and redemption. And to stamp and 
 seal the whole with the impression of God my Father, all 
 that Jesus did he did by God's gracious appointment ; for he 
 was made of God to me all these, that all my glorying might 
 be in the Lord. See to it, my soul, then, that this be all thy 
 glory. 
 
 26. — As for me, I will behold thy face in righteousness. I shall be 
 satisfied when I awake with thy likeness. — Psalm, xv'n. 15 
 
 Is it refreshing to thee now, my soul, the least glimpse of 
 Jesus' face ; the smallest manifestation of the glories of his 
 Person and of his work ; and the very sound of his voice, in 
 his word or ordinances ? Think, then, what will be thy fe- 
 licity in that morning of the eternal world, when, dropping 
 thy veil of flesh. He, whom thou seest now by faith only, will 
 then appear as open to thee as to the church above in glory ! 
 Pause, my soul, over the vast thought ! What will be thy 
 first sight of Jesus ? What will be thy feelings, when, with- 
 out any intervening medium, thou shalt see him face to face, 
 and know even as thou art known ? Precious Lamb of God ! 
 grant me grace to feel the blessedness of this first interview. 
 Appearing, as I trust I shall, in thine own garments, and the 
 robes of thy righteousness, and which thou hast not only pro- 
 vided for me, but put on, what will be the burstings forth of 
 my heart, in the full view of the glories of. thy Person, and 
 the perfection of thy righteousness ? Surely, Lord, when I 
 thus behold thy face in righteousness, I shall be so fully satis- 
 fied, that the rest after which my poor soul, through a whole 
 life of grace, since thou wert pleased to quicken me, hath 
 been pursuing, will pursue no more. My immortal faculties 
 will seek i •> more — will need no more. In thee, the whole 
 
4^ MORNING PORTION. 
 
 is attained. In thee, I shall eternally rest. Thou art the 
 everlasting centre of all happiness, glory, and joy. I shall 
 be so fully satisfied when I awake to this view, that here, in 
 thee, I shall be at home. And what is more, it will be an 
 everlasting duration, not only in happiness, but in likeness. 
 And as the coldest iron, put into the fire, partakes of the pro- 
 perties of the fire, until it becomes altogether heated and fiery 
 like it, so in thee, and with thee, thou blessed Jesus ! cold as 
 my soul now is, I shall be warmed with thy love ; and from 
 thee, and thy likeness imparted, become lovely from thy love- 
 liness, and glorious from thy glory ! Precious, precious Je- 
 sus ! is the hour near ? Are thy chariot wheels approach- 
 ing? Dost thou say, "Behold, I come quickly?" Oh! for 
 grace to answer — Even so come. Lord Jesus. 
 
 27. — He will be very gracious unto thee, at the voice of thy cry ; when 
 he shall hear it, he will answer thee. — Isaiah xxx. 19. 
 
 Mark, my soul, what is here said ; for every word in this 
 sweet Scripture tells. Thy God, thy Saviour, thy Jesus, 
 knows thy voice, hears thy cry, and will assuredly answer. 
 He will not only be gracious, but veiy gracious. He waits 
 to be gracious : waits the most suited time, the best time, the 
 praying time, the crying time ; for he times his grace, his 
 mercy, to thy need. And though thou knowest it not, yet so 
 it is : when his time is near at hand, which is always the best 
 time, he puts a cry in thine heart ; so that the time of thy 
 cry, and the time for the manifestation of his glory, shall 
 come together. Is not this to be gracious — yea, very gracious. 
 So that while thou art looking after him, he is looking upon 
 thee. And before thou callest upon him, he is coming forth 
 to bless thee. Is not this very gracious ? Now then, my 
 soul, make a memorandum of this for any occasions which 
 may hereafter occur. Put it down as a sure unerring truth : 
 — thy Jesus will be very gracious unto thee. Never allow 
 this promise to be called in question any more. Next, bring 
 it constantly into use. Faith, well-grounded faith in Jesus, 
 should always bring down general rules to particular cases 
 and circumstances, as the soul's experience may require. 
 Hence, when God saith he will be very gracious unto thee, 
 it is the act of faith to answer — If God hath said it, so it shall 
 certainly be. And therefore, as that gracious God, who 
 giveth the promise, giveth also the grace of faith to depend 
 upon the promise, the mercy is already done, and faith enters 
 
FEBRUARY. ^ 46 
 
 upon the enjoyment of it. God's faithfulness and truth be- 
 come the believer's shield and buckler. 
 
 28. — Leaning on Jesus' bosom. — John xiii. 23. 
 
 Methtnks I would contemplate for a while the privilege 
 of this highly-favoured disciple John ! Surely to sit at the 
 feet of Jesus, to look up at his face, to behold the Lamb of 
 God, and to hear the gracious words which proceeded out of 
 his mouth, what should I have thought of this but a happi- 
 ness unspeakable and full of glory? But the beloved Apos- 
 tle leaned on Jesus' bosom ! Oh ! thou condescending Sa- 
 viour ! Didst thou mean to manifest, by this endearing token, 
 how dear and precious all thy redeemed ones are in thy 
 esteem ? But stop, my soul ! If John lay on Jesus' breast, 
 where was it Jesus himself lay, when he left all for thy sal- 
 vation? The disciple whom Jesus loved lay upon Jesus' 
 bosom ; but He whom the Father loved, lay in the bosom of 
 the Father — nay, was embosomed there ; was wrapt up in 
 the very soul of the Father from eternity. Who shall under- 
 take to speak of the most glorious state of the Son of God, be- 
 fore he condescended to come forth from the bosom of God 
 for the salvation of his people? Who shall describe the 
 blessedness of the Father and the Son in their mutual enjoy- 
 ment of each other ? Jesus, when he was in the bosom of 
 the Father, had not emptied himself of his glory. Jesus had 
 not been made in the likeness of sinful flesh. Jesus had not 
 put himself under the law. He was not then a man of sor- 
 rows. He was not then acquainted with grief He had not 
 then exposed his face to shame and spitting ; neither to 
 poverty, temptation, the bloody sweat, and the cross. And 
 did Jesus go through all these and more ? Did Jesus leave 
 the Father's bosom ; and did the Father take this only begot- 
 ten, only beloved son from his bosom, that John might lean 
 on Jesus' bosom ; and all the redeemed, like him, one day 
 dwell with Jesus, and lean and rest in his embraces for ever? 
 Oh! for hearts to love both the Father and the Son, who 
 have so loved us ; that we may be ready to part with all, and 
 forsake all, and die to all, that we may live in Jesus and to 
 Jesus, and rest in his bosom for ever. 
 
46 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 MARCH. 
 
 1. — And his name shall be called Wonderful. — Isaiah ix. 6. 
 
 In the opening- of the last month, the fragrancy of Jesus' 
 name, as Emmanuel, gave a sweet savour to my soul. May 
 He, whose name is as ointment poured forth, give a new re- 
 freshment to my spiritual senses this morning, in this name 
 also as Wonderful ; for surely every thing of Him, and con- 
 cerning Him, of whom the Prophet speaks, is eminently so. 
 But who shall speak of thy wonders, dearest Lord ! — the 
 wonders of thy Godhead, the wonders of thy Manhood, the 
 wonders of both natures united and centred in one Person % 
 Who shall talk of the wonders of thy work, the wonders of 
 thy offices, characters, relations ; thy miraculous birth, thy 
 wonderful death, resurrection, ascension ? Who shall follow 
 thee, thou risen and exalted Saviour at the right hand of 
 power, and tell of the exercise of thine everlasting priest- 
 hood ? Who shall speak of the wonders of thy righteous- 
 ness, the wonders of thy sin-atoning blood? What angel 
 shall be found competent to proclaim the wonders of the 
 Father's love in giving thee for poor sinners ? What arch- 
 angel to write down the wonders of thy love, in undertaking 
 and accomplishing redemption ? And who but God the 
 Spirit can manifest both in the height, and depth, and 
 breadth, and length, of a love that passeth knowledge ? Is 
 there, my soul, a wonder yet, that, as it concerns thee and 
 thine interest in Him, whose name is Wonderful, is still 
 more marvellous to thy view ? Yes ! oh thou wonderful 
 Lord! for sure all wonders seem lost in the contemplation 
 compared to that, that Jesus should look on me in my lost, 
 ruined, and undone estate ; for his mercy endureth for ever. 
 Well might Jesus say, " Behold, I and the children whom 
 thou hast given me are for signs and wonders." Isaiah viii. 
 18. Well might the Lord, concerning Jesus and his people, 
 declare them to be as men wondered at. Zach. iii. 8. And 
 blessed Lord, the more love thou hast shown to thy people, 
 the more are they the world's wonder and their own. Pre- 
 cious Lord ! continue to surprise my soul with the tokens of 
 thy love. All the tendencies of thy grace, all the manifesta- 
 tions of thy favour, thy visits, thy love-tokens, thy pardons, 
 thy renewings, thy mourning call, thy mid-day feedings, thy 
 
MARCH. 47 
 
 noon, thy evening, thy midnight grace — all, all are among 
 thy wonderful ways of salvation ; and all testify to my soul, 
 that thy name, as well as thy work, is, and must be, Won- 
 derful ! 
 
 2. — For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that 
 a maa hath, and not according to that he hath not. — 2 Cor. viii. 12. 
 
 Sweet thought this comfort to the soul under small attain- 
 ments, -'If there be first a willing mind." Surely Lord, thou 
 hast given me this ; for thou hast made me willing in the day 
 of thy power. I feel as such, my soul going forth in desires 
 after thee, as my chief and only good ; though, alas ! how 
 continually do I fall short of the enjoyment of thee. I can 
 truly say, " Whom is there in heaven, or upon earth, that I 
 desire in comparison of thee!" When thou art present, I 
 am at once in heaven ; it makes a very heaven in my soul : 
 thou art the God of my exceeding joy. When thou art 
 absent, my soul pines after thee. And, truly, I count all 
 things but dung and dross to win thee ; for whatever gifts 
 thou hast graciously bestowed upon me, in the kindness of 
 friends, in the affections and charities of life, yet all these are 
 secondary considerations with my soul. They are more or 
 less lovely, as I see thy gracious hand in them ; but all are 
 nothing to my Lord. Is not this, dearest Jesus ! a willing 
 mind 1 Is it not made so in the day of thy power % But in 
 the midst of this, though I feel this rooted desire in me after 
 thee, yet how often is my heart wandering from thee. Though 
 there is at the bottom of my heart a constant longing for thy 
 presence, and the sweet visits of thy love, yet through the 
 mass of unbelief, and the remains of indwelling corruption 
 in my nature, which are keeping down the soul, how doth 
 the day pass, and how often doth the enemy tempt me to 
 question my interest in thee. Dearest Jesus ! undertake for 
 me. I do cry out, " When wilt thou come to me, though I 
 am thus kept back from coming to thee?" When wilt thou 
 manifest thyself to my soul, and come over all these moun- 
 tains of sin and unbelief, and fill me with a joy unspeakable 
 and full of glory 1 And doth Jesus, indeed, accept from the 
 willing mind he hath himself given, according to what a 
 man hath, and not according to what he hath not? Doth my 
 Redeemer behold amidst the rubbish, the spark of grace he 
 himself hath quickened ? Will he not despise the day of 
 small things ? No ! he will not. It was said of thee, that 
 thou shouidest not break the bruised reed, neither quench the 
 
48 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 smoking flax. Mine, indeed, is no more. But yet Jesus 
 will bear up the one, and kindle the other, until he send 
 forth judgment unto victory. Peace then, my soul! weak as 
 thou art in thyself, yet art thou strong in the Lord, and in the 
 power of his might. 
 
 3. — That ye may be able to comprehend with all saints, what is the 
 breadth and length, and depth, and height, and to know the love of 
 Christ, which passeth knowledge. — Ephes. iii. 18, 19. 
 
 Did Paul pray that the church might be thus blessed? 
 So should all faithful pastors. And there is enough in Jesus 
 to call up the everlasting contemplation of his people. All 
 the dimensions of divine glory are in Jesus. Who, indeed, 
 shall describe the extent of that love which passeth know- 
 ledge? But, my soul, pause over the account. What is the 
 breadth of it ? Jesus' death reaches in efficacy to all his 
 seed — all his children : to thee, my soul ; for thou art the 
 seed of Jesus. And though that death took place at Jeru- 
 salem near 2,000 years since, yet the efficacy of his blood, 
 as from an high altar, as effectually washes away sin now, 
 as in the moment it was shed. Remember, Jesus still wears 
 the vesture dipped in blood. Remember, Jesus still appears 
 as the Lamb slain before God ! Indeed, indeed, Jesus was 
 the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. So that 
 in breadth, it is broader than the sea, taking in all the seed of 
 Jesus, through all ages, all dispensations, all the various 
 orders of his people. Neither is the length of it less propor- 
 tioned. Who shall circumscribe the Father's love, which is 
 from everlasting to everlasting? Who shall limit Jesus' 
 grace? Is he not made of God wisdom, righteousness, 
 sanctification, and redemption ? Is he not all this, in every 
 office, every character, every relation ? " Jesus Christ ; the 
 same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever !" And what is the 
 dejpth of this love, but reaching down to hell, to lift up our 
 poor fallen nature ! And what is the height, but Jesus, in 
 our nature, exalted far above all principalities, and powers, 
 and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not 
 only in this world, but also in that which is to come ? Pre- 
 cious God of my salvation ! oh ! give me to see, to know, to 
 entertain, and cherish, more enlarged views of this love, 
 which hath no bottom, no bounds, no shore ; but, like its Al- 
 mighty Author, is from everlasting to everlasting. Shall I 
 ever despond ? Shall I ever doubt any more, when this 
 Jesus looks upon me, loves me, washes me in his blood, feeds 
 
MARCH. ^m 
 
 me, clothes me, and hath promised to bring me to glory ? 
 Oh ! for faith to comprehend, with all saints, this love of 
 God, which passeth knowledge. 
 
 4.--H0W shall we sing the Lord's song, in a strange laud? — Psalm 
 cxxxvii. 4. 
 
 Methinks, my soul, this strange land is the very place to 
 sing the Lord's song in, though the carnal around under- 
 stand it not. Shall I hang my harp upon the willow, when 
 Jesus is my song, and when he himself hath given me so 
 much cause to sing? Begin, my soul, thy song of redemp- 
 tion ; learn it, and let it be sung upon earth, for sure enough 
 thou wilt have it to sing in heaven. Art thou at a loss what 
 to sing ? Oh ! no. Sing of the Father's mercy, in sending 
 a Saviour. Sing of Jesus' love, in not only coming, but dy- 
 ing for thee. Are the redeemed above now singing, " Worthy 
 is the Lamb that was slain?" Join in the chorus, and tell 
 that dear Redeemer, in the loudest notes, that he was slain, 
 and hath redeemed thee to God by his blood. Strike up thy 
 harp anew to the glories of redeeming grace, in that he not 
 only died for thee, but hath quickened thee to a new and 
 spiritual life. Add a note more to the Lord's song, and tell 
 the Redeemer, in thy song of praise, that he hath not only 
 died for thee, and quickened thee, but he hath loved thee, and 
 washed thee from thy sins in his own blood. Go on in thy 
 song, my soul ; for it is the Lord's song. Sing not only of 
 redeeming love, but marvellous grace, for both ai-e connected. 
 He that redeemed thee, hath all grace for thee. He hath 
 adopted thee into his family ; hath made thee an heir of God, 
 and a joint heir with Christ. He hath undertaken for thee, 
 in all troubles, under all difficulties, to be with thee at all 
 times and all places, until he brings thee home to behold his 
 glory, that where he is, there thou mayest be for ever. And 
 are not these causes enough to keep thy harp always strung 
 — always in tune ? And wilt thou not sing this song all the 
 way through, and make it the subject of thy continual praise 
 and love, in the house of thy pilgrimage ? Moreover, the 
 several properties of the song are, in themselves, matter for 
 keeping it alive every day, and all the day. Think, my soul, 
 how free was this love of God to thee. Surely if a man de- 
 served hell and found heaven, shall he not sing? If I ex- 
 pected displeasure, and receive love — if I was brought low, 
 and one like the Son of Man helped me, shall I not say, as 
 one of old did, " He brought me out of the horrible pit, out 
 
 5 
 
^ MORNING PORTION. 
 
 of the mire and clay; he hath put a new song in my mouth, 
 even thanksgiving to our God ?" If I think of the greatness 
 of the mercy, of the riches of the mercy, of the sweetness of 
 the mercy, of the all-sufficiency of the mercy ; of the sureness 
 and firmness, and everlasting nature and efficacy of the 
 mercy — can I refrain to sing ? No ; blessed, blessed Jesus, 
 I will sing, and not be afraid ; for the Lord Jehovah is my 
 strength and my song, and he is become my salvation. I 
 will sing now, I will sing for evermore. In this strange land, 
 in this barren land, in this distant land from my Father's 
 house, I will sing, and Jesus shall be my song. He shall be 
 the Alpha and the Omega of my hymn ; and until I come to 
 sing in the louder and sweeter notes of heaven, among the 
 hallelujahs of the blessed, upon the new harp and new- 
 stringed chords of my renewed soul, will I sing of Jesus and 
 his blood, Jesus and his righteousness, Jesus and his complete 
 salvation. And when the last song upon my trembling lips, 
 with Jesus' name in full, shall be uttered ; as the sound dies 
 away, when death seals up the power of utterance ; my de- 
 parting soul shall catch the parting breath, and as it enters 
 the presence of the court above, the first notes of my everlast- 
 ing song will go on with the same blessed note to Him that 
 hath loved me, and washed me from my sins in his own 
 blood ! 
 
 5. — Faint, yet pursuing. — Judges viii. 4. 
 
 Surely what is said here, concerning the little army of 
 Gideon, suits my case exactly. I know that in Jesus the vic- 
 tory is certain ; but I know also, that I shall have battlings 
 all the way. From the moment that the Lord called me out 
 of darkness into his marvellous light, my whole life hath been 
 but a state of warfare ; and I feel what Paul felt, and groan 
 as he groaned, under a body of sin and death; as sorrowful, 
 yet rejoicing ; as dying, but behold I live ; as chastened, and 
 not killed. Truly I am faint, under the many heavy assaults 
 I have sustained ; and yet through grace, pursuing as if I 
 had met with no difficulty. Yes, blessed Jesus ! I know that 
 there can be no truce in this war; and looking unto thee, I 
 pray to be found faithful unto death, that no man may take 
 my crown ! But, dearest Lord ! thou seest my day of small 
 things ; thou beholdest how faint I am. Thou seest, also, 
 how the enemy assaults me, and how the world and the flesh 
 combat against me. While without are fightings, within will 
 be fears. Yet, dearest, blessed Lord : in the Lord I have 
 
MARCH. 1^1 
 
 Strength ; and how sweet is the thought, that though I have 
 nothing, though I am nothing, yet thou hast said, " In me is 
 thy help." Thou hast said, " The righteous shall hold on 
 his way ; and he that hath clean hands shall wax stronger 
 and stronger." The worm Jacob, thou hast promised, shall 
 thresh the mountains. Write these blessed things, my soul, 
 upon the living tablets of thine heart, or rather beg of God 
 the Holy Ghost, the Remembrancer of thy Jesus, to stamp 
 them there for ever. He giveth power to the faint; and to 
 them which have no might, he increaseth strength. Even 
 the youths shall faint and be weary ; and the young men 
 shall utterly fall. But they that wait upon the Lord shall re- 
 new their strength : they shall mount up with wings, as 
 eagles ; they shall run, and not be weary ; and they shall 
 walk, and not faint. 
 
 6. — And every one that was in distress, and everj' one that was in debt, 
 and ever}^ one that was discontented, gathered ihemselves unto him, 
 and he became a Captain over them. — 1 Sam. xxii. 2. 
 
 My soul, was not this thy case when thou first sought after 
 Jesus'? Thou wert, indeed, in debt, under an heavy load of 
 insolvency. Distress and discontent sadly marked thy whole 
 frame. Unconscious where to go, or to whom to seek, and 
 no man cared for thy soul. Oh ! what a precious thought 
 it was, and which none but God the Holy Ghost could have 
 put into thine heart, — Go unto Jesus ! And when I came, 
 and thou didst graciously condescend to be my Captain, 
 from that hour how hath my soul been revived. My insol- 
 vency thou hast taken away ; for thou hast more than paid 
 the whole demands of the law ; for thou hast magnified it and 
 made it honourable. My distress under the apprehension of 
 divine justice thou hast removed ; for God's justice, by thee, 
 is not only satisfied, but glorified. My discontent can have 
 no further cause for exercise, since thou hast so graciously 
 provided for all my wants, in grace here, and glory hereafter. 
 Hail ! thou great and glorious Gaptain of my salvation ! In 
 thee I see that Leader and Commander which Jehovah, thy 
 Father, promised to give to the people. Thou 'art indeed, 
 blessed Jesus ! truly commissioned by thy Father to this very 
 purpose, that every one that is in soul-distress, by reason of 
 sin, and debtors to the broken law of God, may come unto 
 thee, and take thee for their Captain. And truly. Lord, thy 
 little army, like David's, is composed of none originally but 
 distressed souls. None would take thee for his Captain 
 
52 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 whose spiritual circumstances are not desperate. None but 
 the man whose heart hath felt distress, by reason of sin, and 
 is sinking under the heavy load of guilt, will come under thy 
 banner. Oh ! the condescension of Jesus to receive such, 
 and be gracious unto them. Oh ! that I had the power of 
 persuasion, I would say to every poor sinner, every insolvent 
 debtor, every one who feels and knows the plague of his 
 heart — Would to God 3'^ou were with the Captain of my sal- 
 vation, he would recover j-ou from all your sorrow. Go to 
 him, my brother, as I have done ; he will take away your 
 distress by taking away your sin. He will liberate you from 
 all your debt by paying it himself He will banish all dis- 
 content from the mind, in giving you peace with God by his 
 blood. Yes ! blessed, almighty Captain ! thou art indeed 
 over thy people, as well as a Captain to thy people. By the 
 sword of thy spirit, which is the word of God, thou workest 
 conviction in our hearts ; thou makest all thine enemies fall 
 under thee ; thou leadest thy people on to victory, and makest 
 them more than conquerors through thy grace supporting 
 them. Lord, put on the military garments of salvation on 
 my soul, and the whole armour of God, that under thy ban- 
 ner, I maybe found in life, in death, and for evermore. 
 
 7. — They shall hunger no more. — Rev. vii. 16. 
 
 My soul ! contemplate for a moment, before thou enterest 
 upon the concerns of time and sense in the claims of the 
 world, the blessed state of the redeemed above. They are at 
 the fountain head of happiness, in their station, in their ser- 
 vice, in their society, in their provision, in their everlasting 
 exemption from all want, and, above all, in the presence of' 
 God and the Lamb. " They shall hunger no more.'' Sweet 
 thought. Let me this day anticipate as many of the blessed 
 properties of it as my present state in Jesus will admit. If Je- 
 sus be my home, my residence, my dw^elling-place, \\'i\[ not 
 the hungerings of my soul find supply? Yes! surely. A 
 life of faith on the Son of God, is a satisfying life under all 
 the changes o{ the world around. Finding Jesus, I find sus- 
 tenance in him, and therefore do not hunger for aught besides 
 him. " Thou art my hiding-place," said one of old ; and my 
 soul finds occasion to adopt the same language. And He 
 that is my hiding-place, is also my food and my nourishment. 
 In JesiKithere is both food and a fence ; there is fruit as well 
 as a shadow ; and the fulness of Jesus needs vent in the 
 wants of his people, for the pouring forth of his all-suffi- 
 
MARCH. 53 
 
 ciency. My soul ! cherish this thought to the full. If thy 
 hunger be really for Jesus, and him only, then will thy hun- 
 ger be abundantly supplied in his communication. As long as 
 I look at my wants, without an eye to Jesus, I shall be mise- 
 rable. But if I consider those wants, and that emptiness pur- 
 posely appointed for the pouring out of his fulness, they will 
 appear as made for the cause of happiness. Jesus keeps up 
 the hungering that he may have the blessedness of supplying 
 them ; he keeps his children empty that he may fill them, 
 and that his fulness may be in request among them. So far, 
 therefore, is my hungering from becoming a source of sorrow, 
 it furnisheth out a source of holy joy. I should never be 
 straitened in myself, when I am not straitened in Jesus. Nay, 
 it would be a sad token of distance from Jesus if a sense of 
 want was lessened. While on the other hand, the best proof 
 I can have of nearness to Jesus, and living upon him, is, 
 when my enjoyment of Jesus discovers new and increasing 
 wants, and excites an holy hungering for his supplying them. 
 By-and-by I shall get home, and then, at the fountain-head 
 of rapture and delight, all hungering and wants will be done 
 away in the full and everlasting enjoyment of God and the 
 Lamb ! 
 
 8. — From this day will I bless thee. — Haggai ii. 9. 
 
 My soul ! what day is the memorable day to thee from 
 whence commenced thy blessing ? No doubt from everlast- 
 ing the Lord hath blessed his people in Jesus. But the com- 
 mencement of thy personal enjoyment of those blessings, 
 was at the time the Lord graciously laid the foundation of his 
 spiritual temple in thee ; the blessed, the gracious, the auspi- 
 cious, the happy day, when the Lord made thee willing in 
 the day of his power ! Oh ! blessed day, never, never to be 
 forgotten ! A day of light ; when the light of Jesus first 
 broke in upon me. A day of life ; when the Lord Jesus 
 quickened my poor soul, which before was lying dead in 
 trespasses and sins. A day of love ; when his love first 
 was made known to my soul, who so loved me as to give his 
 dear and ever-blessed Son for me : and His love was sweetly 
 manifested, who so loved me as to give himself for me. A 
 day of the beginning of victory over death, hell, and the 
 grave. A day of liberty ; when the Lord Jesus opened my 
 prison doors and brought me out. A day of wonder, love, 
 and praise ; when mine eyes first saw the King in his beauty, 
 and my whole soul was overpowered in the contemplation of 
 
 5* 
 
54 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the grace, the glory, the beauty, the loveliness, the suitable- 
 ness, the all-sufficiency, of his glorious Person and his glo- 
 rious work. A day ! oh what dear name shall I term it to 
 be? A day of grace, a jubilee, a salvation day ; the day of 
 my espousals to Jesus, and of the gladness of my Redeemer's 
 heart. And, my soul, did thy God, did thy Jesus, say, that 
 from that day he would bless thee? And hath he not done 
 it ? Oh ! yes, yes ; beyond all conception of blessing. He 
 hath blessed thee in thy basket and thy store. All the bles- 
 sings, even in temporal mercies, which were all forfeited in 
 Adam, are now sweetly restored, and blessed, and sanctified, 
 in Jesus : nay, even thy very crosses have the curse taken out 
 of them by thy Jesus ; and thy very tears have the spiced 
 wine of the pomegranate. And, as to spiritual blessings, 
 God thy Father hath blessed thee with all in his dear Son, 
 Thy Father hath made over himself, in Jesus, with all his 
 love and favour. And Jesus is thine with all his fulness, 
 sweetness, all-sufficiency. And God the Spirit, with all his 
 gracious influences and comforts. And the present enjoy- 
 ment of these unspeakable mercies becomes the sure earnest 
 of blessings which are eternal. Jesus himself hath declared, 
 that it is the Father's own gracious will that he should give 
 eternal life to as many as the Father hath given him ; and 
 therefore eternal life must be the sure portion of all his re- 
 deemed. He that believeth in the Son, hath indeed everlast- 
 ing life ; and Jesus wall raise him up at the last day. Pause, 
 my soul ! and view the vast heritage to which thou art begot- 
 ten from the day of thy new birth in Jesus. Oh ! most gra- 
 cious Father ! let me never lose sight of those sweet words, 
 ,nor the feeling sense of my interest in them, in which thou 
 ''hast said, " From this day will I bless thee." 
 
 9. — But now in Christ Jesus, ye, who sometimes were far off, are made 
 nigh by the blood of Christ. — Ephes. ii. 13. 
 
 Of all the vast alterations made upon our nature by grace, 
 that which is from death to life seems to be the greatest. I 
 do not think the change would be as great, if Jesus were to 
 make a child of God, after his conversion, at once an angel, 
 as when by his blessed Spirit, he quickens the sinner, dead 
 in trespasses and sins, and brings him into grace. My soul ! 
 contemplate the sweet thought this morning, that it may lead 
 thee, with thy hymn of praise, to all precious Jesus ! First 
 then, my soul, think where you then stood., before this vast act 
 of grace had quickened you. You stood on the very con- 
 
MARCH. 55 
 
 fines of hell — unawakened, unregenerate, uncalled, without 
 God, and without Christ. Supposing" the Lord had not 
 saved you ; supposing a sickness unto death had,by his com- 
 mand, taken you ; supposing that any one cause had been 
 commissioned to sign your death-warrant while in this state; 
 where must have been your portion ? And yet consider, 
 my soul, how many nights and days did you live in this un- 
 conscious, unconcerned state ! Oh! who, in this view of the 
 thought, can look back without having the eye brim-full of 
 tears, and the heart bursting with love and thankfulness 7 
 Go on, my soul, and contemplate the subject in another point 
 of view ; and pause in the pleasing thought, ^vhere you now 
 stand. " You are now," saith the Apostle, " made nigh by 
 the blood of Christ." You that was an enemy to God by 
 wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled in the body of his 
 flesh, through death, to present you holy, and unblameable, 
 and unreproveable, in his sight. And now, my soul, if 
 death should come, it is but the messenger to glory. Precious, 
 blessed thought. And oh ! how much more precious blessed 
 Jesus, the Author of it ! Advance, my soul, one step more 
 in this sweet subject, and pleasingly consider, where you soon 
 shall be. Paul answereth, " So shall ice be ever with the Lord." 
 Ever with the Lord ! Who can write down the full amount 
 of this blessedness ? Ever with the Lord ! Here we are, in 
 Jesus, interested in all that belongs to Jesus ; but there, we 
 shall be also icith Jesus. Here we see him but as through a 
 glass darkly : but there, face to face. Here even the views we 
 have of him, by faith, are but glimpses only — short and rare, 
 compared to our desires : but there, we shall see him in reality, 
 in substance, and unceasingly the precious, glorious, God- 
 man Christ Jesus. Here our sins, though pardoned, yet dim 
 our view, by reason of their effects : there we shall for ever 
 have lost them, and see and know even as we are known. And 
 have these blessed changes taken place in my soul ; and all 
 by thee, thou gracious, precious. Holy One of Israel ? Oh ! 
 for grace to love thee, to live to thee, to be looking out for 
 thee, dearest Jesus ! that I may be counting every parting 
 breath, every beating pulse, as one the less, to bring me 
 nearer and nearer to Jesus, who is my everlasting home, and 
 will, ere long, be my never-ceasing portion and happiness in 
 eternity. HallelujaL 
 
56 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 10. — And hast feared continually every day, because of the fury of the 
 oppressor, as if lie were ready to destroy ; and where is the fury of 
 the oppressor? — Isaiah li. 13. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over those sweet expostulating words of 
 thy God. Wherefore should the fear of man bring a snare ? 
 How much needless anxiety should I spare myself, could I 
 but live, amidst all my changeable days and changeable cir- 
 cumstances, upon my Unchangeable God. Now, mark what 
 thy God saith of thy unreasonable and ill-grounded fears : — 
 " Where is the fury of the oppressor?" Can he take from 
 thee thy Jesus'? No! Shouldest thou lose all thy earthly 
 comforts, Jesus ever liveth, and Jesus is thine. Can he afflict 
 thee if God saith no ? That is impossible. Neither men 
 nor devils can oppress without his permission. And sure 
 enough thou art, thy God and Saviour will never allow- 
 any thing to thy hurt ; for all things must work for good. 
 And canst thou lessen the oppressor's fury by anxious fears % 
 Certainly not. Thou mayest, my soul, harass thyself and 
 waste thy spirits, but never lessen the fury of the enemy 
 thereby. And wherefore, then, shouldest thou crowd the un- 
 certain evils, and the may he's of to-morrow, in the circum- 
 stances of this day's warfare, when, by only waiting for the 
 morrow, and casting all thy care upon Jesus, who careth for 
 thee, his faithfulness is engaged to be thy shield and buckler? 
 Peace then, my soul, thou shalt be carried through this op- 
 pression, as sure as thou hast been through every former ; 
 for Jesus is still Jesus, thy God, and will be thy guide even 
 unto death. 
 
 11. — And behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord I 
 if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. And Jesus put forth his 
 hand and touched him, saying, I will ; be thou clean. And imme- 
 diately the leprosy was cleansed. — Matt. viii. 2, 3. 
 
 Behold, my soul, in the instance of this leper, thine own 
 circumstances. What he was in body, such wert thou in 
 soul. As his leprosy made him loathsome and offensive be- 
 fore men, so thy polluted soul made thee odious in the sight 
 of God. He would not have sought a cure, had he not been 
 conscious of his need of it. Neither wouldest thou have ever 
 looked to Jesus, had he not convinced thee of thy helpless- 
 ness and misery without him. Moreover, he would not, 
 though convinced how much he needed healing, have sought 
 that mercy from Jesus, had he not been made sensible of 
 Jesus' ability to the cure. Neither wouldest thou ever have 
 
MARCH. if 
 
 come to Jesus, hadst thou not been taught who Jesus 
 is, and how fully competent to deliver thee. The poor 
 leper did not doubt whether Jesus was able ; though he 
 rather feared that ability might not be exercised towards 
 him. His prayer was, not if thou art able ; but, " Lord, if 
 thou wilt^ thou canst make me clean." Now here, my soul, 
 I hope thy faith, through grace, exceeds the Jewish leper. 
 Surely thou both knowest Jesus' power and Jesus' dispo- 
 sition to save thee. Unworthy and undeserving as thou art, 
 yet his grace is not restrained by thy undeservings, no more 
 than it was first constrained by thy merit. His love, his own 
 love, his free love, is the sole rule of his mercy towards his 
 children, and not their claims ; for they have none, but in his 
 free grace and the Father's everlasting mercy. Cherish 
 these thoughts, my soul, at all times, for they are most sweet 
 and precious. But are these all the blessed things which 
 arise out of the view of the poor leper's case ? Oh ! no ; the 
 most delightful part still remains in the contemplation of 
 Jesus' mercy to the poor petitioner, and the very gracious 
 manner the Son of God manifested in the bestowing of it. He 
 not only healed him, and did it immediately, but with that 
 tenderness w^hich distinguished his character and his love to 
 poor sinners, Jesus put forth his hand and touched him : 
 touched a leper. Even so, precious Lord ! deal by me. 
 Though polluted and unclean, yet condescend to put forth 
 thine hand and touch me also. Put forth thy blessed Spirit. 
 Come, Lord, and dwell in me, abide in me, and rule and 
 reign over me. Be thou my God, my Jesus, my Holy One, 
 and make me thine for ever ? 
 
 12. — FoUowere of them who, through faith and patience, inherit the 
 promises. — Heh' vi. 12. 
 
 How gracious is the Holy Ghost, in not only holding forth 
 to the people of Jesus the blessedness and certainty of the 
 promises, but opening to our view multitudes, who are now 
 in glory, in the full enjoyment of them. My soul ! dost thou 
 ask how they lived, when upon earth in the full prospect, be- 
 fore that they were called upon to enter heaven for the full 
 participation of them? Hear what the blessed Spirit saith 
 concerning it in this sweet Scripture. It was through faith 
 and patience. Now observe how these blessed principles 
 manifested themselves. Another part of Scripture explains 
 — " They all died in faith, not having received the promises ; 
 but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, 
 
68 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 and embraced them. Now this is the whole sum and sub- 
 stance of the believer's life : he sees them afar off^ as Abraham 
 did the day of Christ — as David, who had the same enjoy- 
 ment in a believing- view, with which his whole soul was 
 satisfied ; for he saith, it was all his salvation and all his de- 
 sire ; a covenant which he rested upon, as ordered in all 
 things, and sure. Pause, my soul, over this, and ask within, 
 are your views thus firmly founded ? What, though the day 
 of Christ's second coming be far off, or nigh, doth thy faith 
 realize the blessed things belonging to it as certain, and as 
 sure as God is truth ? Pause, and see that such is thy faith 
 — then go on. The faithful, who now inherit the promises, and 
 which the Holy Ghost bids thee to follow, not only saw with the 
 eye of faith the things of Jesus afar off, but loere 'persuaded of 
 them ; that is, were as perfectly satisfied of their existence 
 and reality, as if they were already in actual possession. 
 Pause here again, and say, is this thy faith? Are you per- 
 fectly persuaded that God was in Christ, reconciling the 
 world to himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them? 
 Are you convinced that it is God's design, God's plan, God's 
 grace, God's love, God's mercy, in all that concerns Jesus ? 
 Art thou convinced that God's glory is concerned in the 
 glory of Jesus, and that every poor sinner gives glory to God 
 in believing the record that God hath given of his Son ? Dost 
 thou, my soul, believe heartily, cordially, fully, joyfully be- 
 lieve, these precious things ; nay that, in fact, it is the only 
 possible way a poor sinner can give glory to God, in looking 
 up to him as God, in giving him the credit of God, and 
 taking his word as God, concerning his dear Son Jesus 
 Christ. Dost thou, my soul, set thy seal to these things ? 
 Then art thou 'persuaded of the truths of God, as the patriarchs 
 were 7vho saw them afar off. Once more — the faithful, whom 
 the Holy Ghost calls upon thee to follow, embraced them also, 
 as well as were persuaded of them. They clasped by faith, 
 Jesus in their arms, as really and as truly as Simeon did m 
 substance. Their love to Jesus, and their interest in Jesus, 
 their acquaintance by faith tinth Jesus, were matters of cer- 
 tainty, reality, delight ; and their whole souls were, day by 
 day, so familiarized in the unceasing meditation, that they 
 walked by faith with Jesus while here below, as now, by 
 sight, they are with him above in glory. Pause, my soul ! 
 Is this thy faith? Then, surely, Jesus is precious, and thou 
 art indeed the follower of them who now, through faith and 
 patience, inherit the promises. And ere long, like them, 
 
MAB.CH. Sm 
 
 thou shalt see him whom thy soul loveth, and dwell with 
 him for ever. 
 
 13._0 thou of Uttle failh, wherefore didst thou doubt ? Matt. xiv. 31. 
 
 My soul ! how sweet is it to eye Jesus in all things, and 
 to be humbled in the recollection of his compassions to thy 
 unaccountable instances of unbelief, after the many, nay con- 
 tinued, and daily experiences which thou hast had of his love 
 and faithfulness. And doth thy Jesus speak to thee this 
 day, in those expostulating^ worcfs, " Oh thou of little faith, 
 wherefore didst thou doubt?' What answer wilt thou re- 
 turn ? Is there any thing in thy life to justify, or even to 
 apologize, for doubting ? Look back — Behold thy God and 
 Father's grace, and mercy, and love ! A Saviour so rich, so 
 compassionate, so answering all wants, in spirituals, tem- 
 porals, and eternals! A blessed Spirit, so condescending to 
 teach, to lead, and by his influences, to be continually with 
 thee! Surely a life like thine, crowded with mercies, bless- 
 ings upon blessings, and one miracle of grace followed by 
 another — wherefore shouldest thou doubt ? What shall I say 
 to thee, oh thou that art the hope of Israel, and the Saviour 
 thereof I Lord give me to believe, and help thou mine un- 
 belief. I beseech thee, my God and Saviour, give me hetice- 
 forth faith to trust thee when I cannot trace thee : give me to 
 hang upon thee when the ground of all sensible comforts 
 seems sinking under my feet. I would cling to the faithful- 
 ness of my God in Christ, and throw my poor arms around 
 thee, thou blessed Jesus! when all things appear the most 
 dark and discouraging. And thus, day by day. living a life 
 of faith and whole dependence upon thy glorious Person and 
 thy glorious work, pressing after more sensible communion 
 with thee, and more imparted strength and grace from thee, 
 until at length, when thou shalt call me home from a life of 
 faith to a life of sight — then, precious Jesus ! would I say to 
 thee, with my dying breath, " Oh present me, washed in thy 
 blood and clothed in thy righteousness, among the whole 
 body of thy glorious church, not ha\'ing spot or wrinkle, or 
 any such thing, but that I may be without blame before thee 
 in love." 
 
 14. — And for their sakes I sanctify myself. — John xviL 19. 
 Let thy morning thoughts, my soul, be directed to this 
 sweet view of thy Saviour. Behold thv Jesus presenting 
 himself as the Surety of his people before 6od and the Father. 
 
60 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Having now received the call and authority of God the 
 Father, and being fitted with a body suited to the service of 
 a Redeemer, here see him entering upon the vast work, and, 
 in those blessed words, declaring the cause of it — / sanctify 
 myself. Did Jesus mean that he made himself more holy for 
 the purpose 1 No, surely ; for that was impossible. But by 
 Jesus' sanctifying himself, must be understood (as the Naza- 
 rite from the womb, consecrated, set apart, dedicated to the 
 service to which the Father had called him) a voluntary 
 offering — an holy unblemished sacrifice. And observe for 
 whom : for their sakes ; not for himself, for he needed it not. 
 The priests under the law made their offerings, first for them- 
 selves, and then for the people. But such an High-Priest 
 became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from 
 sinners, and made higher than the heavens; and who needed 
 not daily, as those high priests, so to offer. For the law 
 maketh men high-priests which have infirmity ; but the Son 
 is concecrated for evermore. My soul ! pause over this view of 
 thy Jesus ; and when thou hast duly pondered it, go to the 
 mercy-seat, under the Spirit's leadings and influences, and 
 there, by failh, behold thy Jesus, in his vesture dipped in 
 blood, there sanctified, and there appearing in the presence 
 of God for thee. There plead the dedication of Jesus ; for it 
 is of the Father's own appointment. There tell thy God and 
 Father (for it is the Father's glory when a poor sinner glo- 
 rifies his dear Son in him) that He, that Holy One, whom 
 the Father consecrated, and with an oath confirmed in his 
 high-priestly office for ever, appeareth there for thee. Tell 
 God that thy High-Priest's holiness and sacrifice was alto- 
 gether holy, pure, without a spot ; and both his Person, and 
 his nature, and offering, clean as God's own righteous law. 
 Tell, my soul, tell thy God and Father these sacred solemn 
 truths. And while thou art thus coming to the mercy-seat, 
 under the leadings of the Spirit, and wholly in the name and 
 office-work of thy God and Saviour, look unto Jesus, and 
 call to mind those sweet words, for whose sake that Holy 
 One sanctified himself; and then drop a petition more before 
 thou comest from the heavenly court : beg, and pray, and 
 wrestle, with the bountiful Lord, for, suited strength and 
 grace, that as, for thy sake, among the other poor sinners of 
 his redemption-love, Jesus sanctified himself, so thou maycst 
 be able to be separated from every thing but Jesus ; and as 
 thy happiness was Christ's end, so his glory may be thy first 
 and greatest object. Yes, dearest Jesus! methinks 1 hear 
 
MARCH. 61 
 
 thee say, thou shalt be for me, and not for another : so will I 
 be for thee. Oh ! thou condescending, loving God ! make 
 me thine, that whether I live, I may live unto the Lord ; or 
 whether I die, I may die unto the Lord; so that living or 
 dying I may be thine. 
 
 15. — Then went King David in. and sat before the Lord. And he said, 
 Who am I, O Lord God I and what is my house, that thou heist 
 brought me hitherto ? And is this the manner of man, O Lord God? 
 —2 SaM. vii. 18, 19. 
 
 The language of David, under the overwhelming view he 
 had of divine goodness as it concerned himself, is suited to 
 the case of every child of God, as he may trace that good- 
 ness in his own history. Surely every awakened soul may 
 cry out, under the same impressions, '• Who am I, O Lord 
 God ! and what is my house, that thou hast brought me 
 hitherto?" My soul! ponder over the sweet subject as it 
 concern's thyself Behold what manner of love the love of 
 God is from the manner of man ! View it in each Person 
 of the Godhead ! What is the highest possible conception 
 any man can have of the love of God our Father to us? 
 Was it not when, as an evidence of the love he had to our 
 nature, he put a robe of that nature, in its pure and holy 
 state, upon the Person of his dear Son ; when he gave him 
 a body in all points such as ours, sin only excepted, that he 
 might not only in that body perfect salvation, both by his 
 obedience and death, but also that he might be our ever- 
 lasting Mediator for drawing nigh to the Godhead, first in 
 grace, and then in glory 1 Tell me. my soul, what method, 
 in all the stores of Omnipotency, could God thy Father have 
 adopted to convince thee of his love, as in this sweet method 
 of his wisdom. God intimates, by this tender process, that he 
 loveth the human nature which he hath created. And though, 
 to answer the wise measures of his plan of redemption, he hath 
 not as yet taken all the persons of his redeemed up to his hea- 
 venly court, yet he will have their glorious Head, their repre- 
 sentative, there, that he may behold Him, and accept the whole 
 church in Him, and love them and bless them in Plim, now and 
 for ever. Oh ! my soul ! if this view of thy Father's love was 
 but always uppermost in thine heart, what a ground of encou- 
 ragement would it for ever give thee, to come to thy God 
 and Father in him and his mediation; who, while he is One 
 in the divine nature, is One also with thee in the human, 
 on purpose to bid thee come. And as for thee, thou blessed 
 
 6 
 
62 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Jesus ! thy love and thy delights were always with thy 
 people. From everlasting thy tendencies of favour have 
 been towards them; thine whole heart is ours. All thy 
 grace, in being set up as the Covenant-head for us ; and all 
 the after-actings of the same grace in time ; all that thou 
 didst then, and all that thou art doing now — all, all testify 
 the love of our Jesus. And may I not say to thee, thou dear 
 Redeemer! as David did — "Is this the 'manner of man, O 
 Lord God ?" Yes ! it is ; but it is of the glory-man, the 
 God-man Christ Jesus ; and no less thou Holy Spirit, whose 
 great work is love and consolation. What a thought is it to 
 warm my spul into the most awakened contemplation and 
 delight in the view of thy love, that though thou art of purer 
 eyes than to behold iniquity, yet dost thou make the very- 
 bodies of the redeemed thy temples, for thine indwelling resi- 
 dence. My soul ! do as David did ! go in before the Divine 
 Presence ; fall down and adore in the solemn thought — 
 " Who am I, O Lord God ! and what is my Father's house ?" 
 
 16. — The man will not be in rest, until he have finished the thing this 
 day. — Ruth iii. 18. 
 
 Behold, my soul, in this scripture history, some sweet 
 features by which the disposition of Jesus' love, and the 
 earnestness in his heart to relieve poor sinners, is strikingly 
 set forth. When a poor sinner is made acquainted with the 
 Lord Jesus, hath heard of his grace, goes forth to glean in 
 his fields ; at the ordinances of his house, and under the 
 ministration of his word, lays down at his feet, and prays to 
 be covered with the skirt of his mantle ; Jesus not only takes 
 notice of that poor seeking sinner, but gives the poor crea- 
 ture to know, by some sweet and secret whispers of his Holy 
 Spirit, that he is not unacquainted with all that is in his heart. 
 And when such have lain long, and earnestly sought, even 
 through the whole night of doubt and fear, until the morning 
 of grace breaks in upon the soul, yet may they be assured 
 the God-man Christ Jesus will not rest until he hath finished 
 the thing. It is one of the most blessed truths of the gospel, 
 (and do thou, my soul, see to it, that it is written in thy best 
 and strongest remembrance to have recourse to, as may be 
 needed, on every occasion,) that a seeking sinner is not more 
 earnest to see Jesus, and enjoy him, than Jesus is to reveal 
 himself to that seeking sinner, and form himself in the sin- 
 ner's heart the hope of glory ; for Jesus will not, cannot, 
 cease his love to poor sinners, until the object for which he 
 
MARCH. 63 
 
 came to seek and save them is fully answered. And it is a 
 thought, my soul, enough to warm thy coldest moments, that 
 all the hallelujahs of heaven cannot call off thy Jesus' atten- 
 tion from the necessities of even the poorest of his little ones 
 here upon earth. In every individual instance, and in every 
 case, Jesus will not rest until that he hath finished the thing, 
 as well in the hearts of his people as in the world, when he 
 finished the work his Father gave him to do. Yes ! Jesus 
 will not rest until the last redeemed soul is brought home to 
 glory. Precious consideration ! how ought it to endear yet 
 more the preciousness of the Redeemer ! 
 
 17. — Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye 
 are in heaviness tiirough manifold temptations. — 1 Pet. i. 6. 
 
 My soul ! it is too difficult a task for flesh and blood, but 
 it is among the most blessed triumphs of grace, to glory in 
 tribulation, that the power of Jesus may rest upon the soul. 
 Pause over the subject, and see whether in the little exercises 
 of thy life, such things are among thine experiences. A 
 soul must be truly taught of God the Father ; truly ac- 
 quainted with Jesus, and living near to him ! and truly 
 receiving the sweet and constant influences of the Holy 
 Ghost: when, in the absence of the streams of all creature 
 comforts, he is solacing himself at the fountain-head ; and 
 amidst all the fiery darts of temptations ! But, my soul, if 
 this be thy happy portion, thou must have acquired it in the 
 school of grace. There are some precious marks by which 
 thou wilt ascertain these things. As first — I must see that 
 the manifold temptations, be they of what kind or number 
 they may, are in the permissions of Jesus. I must trace the 
 footsteps of Jesus in them, the hand of Jesus directing me 
 through them, the voice of Jesus I must hear in them ; and, 
 in short, his sacred person regulating and ordering all the 
 several parts of them. If I see his love, his wisdom, his 
 grace, his good-will, in all the appointment ; whatever heavi- 
 ness the temptations themselves induce, there will still be 
 cause left for joy — yea, for gi^eat joy. Moreover, it will be 
 an additional alleviation to soften their pressure, if, through 
 the whole of their exercise, the soul be enabled to keep in 
 view, that God's glory, and my soul's happiness, will be the 
 sure issue of them. If I can realize Jesus' presence, as I 
 pass through them, and interpret with an application to my- 
 self that blessed promise, in which the Lord saith, " I know 
 the thoughts I think towards you, saith the Lord, thoughts 
 
64 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 of peace, and not of evil, to give ^'■ou an expected end;" 
 these mercies, mingled with the trial, will sweeten and al- 
 most take away all its bitter. And lastly, to add no more — 
 If, my soul, the Holy Ghost should lead out thine whole 
 heart upon the person of Jesus during the conflict, and, by 
 making thee sensible of thy weakness, to take shelter in him, 
 and to lean altogether upon his strength ; so that thou art 
 able to believe and to depend upon the fulfilment of his pro- 
 mise, when, to the eye of sense, there doth not seem a way 
 by which that promise may be fulfilled ; these are founda- 
 tions for rejoicing, and of great rejoicing too ; because they 
 are all out of thyself and centred in Him, with whom there 
 is no possibility of change. These are, like the Michtams 
 of David, precious, golden things. For this is to ifte upon 
 Jesus, to rejoice in Jesus, and to find in him a suited strength 
 for every need. Blessed will be these exercises, my soul, if 
 thou art enabled thus to act under manifold temptations. 
 
 18. — And Israel strengthened himself, and sat up m the bed. — Gen. xlviii. 2. 
 
 This was an interesting moment in the life, or rather the 
 death, of the patriarch, and may serve, my soul ! to show 
 what ought to be the conduct of the believer in his last, ex- 
 piring hours. The imagination can hardly conceive any 
 situation equally momentous, in every point of view, both as 
 it concerns a faithful God, a man's own heart, and the 
 church the dying saint is going to leave behind. What can 
 form a more lovely sight than a dying saint, sitting up in the 
 bed, (if the Lord permits the opportunity,) and recounting, 
 as Jacob did, the gracious dealings of the Lord, all the way 
 along the path of pilgrimage — " The God which fed me," 
 said Jacob, "all my life long unto this day: the angel (and 
 who was this but Jesus?) which redeemed me from all evil." 
 Pause, ray soul ! Anticipate such a day. Figure to thyself 
 thy friends around thee, and thou thyself strengthened, just 
 to sit up in the bed, to take an everlasting farewell. What 
 hast thou to relate ? What hast thou treasured up of God's 
 dealings with thee, to sweeten, death in the recital, to bless 
 God in the just acknowledgment, and to leave behind thee a 
 testimony to others of the truth as it is in Jesus'? My soul, 
 what canst thou speak of? What canst thou tell of thy God, 
 thy Jesus? Hast thou known enough of him to commit thy- 
 self into his Almighty hands, with an assurance of salva- 
 tion ? Pause ! Didst thou not in the act of faith, long 
 since, venture thyself upon Jesus for the whole of thy ever- 
 
MARCH. 65 
 
 lasting welfare? Didst thou not, from a perfect conviction 
 of thy need of Jesus, and from as perfect a conviction of the 
 power and grace of Jesus to save thee — didst thou not make 
 a full and complete surrender of thyself, and with the most 
 perfect approbation of this blessed pian of God's mercy in 
 Christ, to be saved wholly by him, and wholly in his own 
 way, and wholly to his own glory? And, as such, art thou 
 now afraid, or art thou now shrinking back, when come 
 within sight almost of Jesus' arms to receive thee ? Oh no ! 
 blessed be God ! this last act of committing thy soul is not as 
 great an act of faith as the first was ; for since that time thou 
 hast had thousands of evidences, and thousands of tokens in 
 love and faithfulness, that thy God is true. Sit up then, my 
 soul, and do as the dying patriarch did, recount to all around 
 thee thy confidence in the Son of God, who hath loved thee, 
 and given himself for thee. Cry out as he did, " I have 
 waited for thy salvation, O Lord." And as this will be the 
 last opportunity of speaking a word for God, testify of his 
 faithfulness, and encourage all that behold you to be seeking 
 after an interest in Jesus, from seeing how sweetly you close 
 a life of faith before you begin a life of glory ; in blessing 
 God, though with dying lips, that the last notes which you 
 utter here below, may be only the momentary interruption to 
 the same subject in the first of your everlasting song — " To 
 him that hath Loved, you^ and washed you from your sins in his 
 bloody 
 
 19. — Oh that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even 
 to his seat I I would order my cause before him, and fill my mouth 
 with arguments. Will he plead against me with his great strength ? 
 No ; but he would put strength in me. — Job xxiii. 3, 4, 5. 
 
 My soul ! are these thy breathings ? Dost thou really long, 
 and, like David, even pant, to come before the throne of 
 grace? Art thou at a loss how to come, how to draw nigh? 
 Wouldest thou fill thy mouth with arguments, and have thy 
 cause so ordered as to be sure not to fail ? Look to Jesus ? 
 Seek from him the leadings of the Spirit ? And while thine 
 eye is steadily fixed on thy Great High-Priest within the vail 
 still wearing a vesture dipped in blood, see to it that thy one 
 great plea is for a perfect and complete justification before 
 God and thy Father, upon the sole footing of righteousness. 
 Yes, my soul ! plead earnestly, heartily, steadily : and, like 
 Jacob wrestling with God, upon the sole footing of righteous- 
 ness. Wouldest thou fear on this ground ? Yes ! thou 
 
 6* 
 
66 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 wouldest have cause enough to fear and tremhle, if thy plea 
 was with the least reference to any righteousness of thine. 
 But, my soul, remember it is Jesus' righteousness, and his 
 only, with which, like Job, thy mouth must be filled with ar- 
 guments. This is the strength thy God and Father will put 
 in thee: and it is a strength of Jehovah's, founded in his 
 justice. As a poor guilty sinner, thou couldest have nothing 
 to plead but free grace and rich mercy. But when thou 
 comest in Jesus, thy Surety's righteousness, thou mayest ap- 
 peal, and art expected so to do, to God's holiness and his 
 justice also. Oh! how sweet the assurance, how unanswer- 
 able the plea, how secure the event ! Jesus hath fulfilled the 
 law — Jesus hath paid the penalty of justice ; and God hath 
 promised to pardon and bless his seed, his redeemed in him. 
 Hence the apostle Paul, in the contemplation of death and 
 judgment, while looking at his everlasting security in Jesus, 
 cries out — " Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of 
 righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, shall 
 give me at that day ; and not to me only, but unto all them 
 that love his appearing." Behold then, my soul, thy vast 
 privilege; and when, like Job, thou art desiring to approach 
 a throne of grace now, or looking forward to a throne of 
 judgment hereafter — never, never for a moment forget that 
 this is the way, and the only way, (for a blessed sure way it 
 is,) of maintaining communion with God in Christ. Thy 
 God, thy Father, will net plead against a righteousness of 
 his own appointing ; but he will put Jesus, his strength, in 
 thee. Hallelujah. 
 
 20. — Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty. — Isaiah xxxiii. 17. 
 
 Who, my soul, but Jesus could be intended by this sweet 
 promise ? And who is beautiful and lovely in thine eyes but 
 him % There was no beauty in him, while thou wert in a 
 state of unrenewed nature, that thou shouldest desire him ; 
 neither can anj- man truly love him, until that a soul is made 
 light in the Lord. Is Jesus then lovely to thee ? Hast thou 
 seen him ? Dost thou now know him, love him, behold him, 
 as altogether fair, and the chiefest among ten thousand ? Then, 
 surely, this promise hath been, and is, continually fulfilled in 
 thy experience. Hast thou so seen him, as to be in love with 
 him, and to have all thine affections drawn forth toward him ? 
 Dost thou, my soul, so behold him, as to admire him, and love 
 him, above all ; and so to love him, as never to be satisfied 
 without him ? Moreover — hast thou seen this King in his 
 
MARCH. 67 
 
 beauty, in his fulness, riches, and suitableness, to thee as a Sa- 
 viour ? Surely, blessed Jesus ! there are not only glorious, 
 precious excellencies in thee, and thine own Divine Person, 
 which command the love and affection of every beholder, as 
 thou art in thyself; but there is a beauty indeed in thee, con- 
 sidered as thou art held forth by our God and Father, in all 
 thy suitableness to thy people. In thy beauty, blessed Lord, 
 there is to be seen a fulness of grace, and truth, and righteous- 
 ness, exactly corresponding to the wants of poor sinners — 
 thy blood to cleanse, thy grace to comfort, thy fulness to sup- 
 ply ; in thee, there is every thing we can want — life, light, 
 joy, pardon, mercy, peace, happiness here, glory hereafter. 
 And do I not see thee, thou King in thy beauty ! indeed, 
 when I behold thee as coming with all these far my supply ? 
 So that, under the enjoyment of the whole, I feel constained 
 to cry out, with one of old, " I will love thee, O Lord, my 
 strength. The Lord is my strength and my song ; and he is 
 become my salvation."' Neither is this all: for in beholding 
 the King in his beauty, I behold him also in his love. Yes, 
 blessed Lord ! thou art indeed most beautiful and lovely ; for 
 thou hast so loved poor sinners as to give thyself for them ; 
 and the conscious sense that our love to thee did not first be- 
 gin, but thine to us was the first cause for exciting ours, and 
 the shedding forth that love in our hearts, by thy blessed 
 Spirit, first prompted our minds to look unto thee, makes thee 
 lovely indeed. And now, Lord, every day's view of thee in- 
 creaseth that love, and brings home thy beauty more and 
 more. The more frequent thou condescendest to visit my 
 poor soul, the more beautiful dost thou appear. Every re- 
 newed manifestation, every view, every glimpse, of Jesus, 
 must tend to make my God and King more gracious and 
 lovely to my soul, and add fresh fervour to my love. Come 
 then, thou blessed, holy, lovely One, and ravish my spiritual 
 senses with thy beauty, that I may daily get out of love with 
 every thing of created excellency, and my whole soul be filled 
 only with the love of Jesus : until, from seeing thee here be- 
 low, through the mediums of ordinances and grace, I come to 
 look upon thee, and live for ever in thy presence, in the full 
 beams of thy glory in thy throne above. 
 
 21. — Truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his Son Jesus 
 Christ. — 1 John i. 3. 
 
 Precious, blessed consideration ! Art thou, my soul, at 
 this time in the full enjoyment of it ? Pause over the inquiry. 
 
68 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Sometimes for the want of this search of soul, and the neglect 
 of it, deadness, or at least leanness, creeps in. Say then, my 
 soul, how ait thou dealing with thy God ; and how is thy 
 God dealing with thee? When were his latest manifesta- 
 tions ? When did he take thee to his banqueting-house ; or, 
 when didst thou sit under his shadow ? Hast thou very lately 
 heard his voice, saying, " Fear not, I am thy salvation ?" 
 The discovery of these things are among the sweetest ex- 
 ercises which flow from the indweUing Spirit. Go on fur- 
 ther in the inquiry — How art thou seeking with thy God ? 
 When hadst thou fellowship and communion with the Fa- 
 ther, and with his Son, Jesus Christ ? What petitions hast 
 thou now awaiting for answers from the heavenly court? 
 What grateful acknowledgements have lately gone up for 
 mercies received ? How is thine acquaintance there advanc- 
 ing? How art thou growing in grace, and in the knowledge 
 of thy Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ? If these things are 
 neglected by thee, will not a strangeness between thy God 
 and thee come on ; such as is induced by earthly friendships, 
 when absence and time, where there is no correspondence 
 kept up, wears out remembrance ? My soul ! rouse up and 
 consider the vast importance of keeping up constant inter- 
 course with thy God and Saviour. Precious Jesus ! do thou 
 keep the flame of love alive ; manifest to my soul the cer- 
 tainty and reality of my union with thee, thou sweet Saviour, 
 by causing this blessed communion to be constant, unceasing, 
 and full of divine communications. Let thy Spirit call forth 
 in me the exercise of the graces he hath planted ; and do 
 thou come forth in refreshing manifestations of love ; so that, 
 while prayers go up, blessings may come down ; and while 
 thou art graciously saying, " Seek ye my face," my heart 
 may say unto thee, " Thy face. Lord, will I seek." Oh the 
 blessedness of such a life ! to break the power of sin ; to re- 
 vive and strengthen the spirits ; to open and enlarge to my 
 view the discoveries of thy Person, thy glory, thy riches, thy 
 suitableness, thine all-sufficiency ! If, dearest Jesus ! thou 
 wilt mercifully keep this fellowship, this partnership, alive in 
 my soul, how will my poor soul be living upon thee, and 
 with thee ; and how shall I be exchanging with thee all my 
 leanness, poverty, wretchedness, and weakness, for thy ful- 
 ness, riches, righteousness, and strength. Come then. Lord 
 Jesus ! and 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 !" 
 
MARCH. 69 
 
 22. — Thus saith the Lord ; I remember thee, the kindness of tliy youth, 
 the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wil- 
 derness, in a land that was not sown. — Jeremiah ii. 2. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this condescending token of God's 
 love to Israel, and see whether it doth not hold forth to thee a 
 blessed portion for thy encouragement. Israel had been 
 most undeserving; but yet the Lord, would put Israel in re- 
 membrance, by assuring his people that he remembered their 
 love. When God first formed Israel into a people — when 
 he led them into the wilderness, and married Israel, they 
 sung the praise of Jehovah in their love songs, on the day of 
 their espousals. "Now," saith the Lord, "I remember thee 
 in these things ; for these were tokens of affection, when thou 
 wentest after me, in following the pillar of cloud through the 
 desert ; in trusting to a harvest, though as yet the land was 
 not sown." And may I. blessed Lord, sweetly interpret this 
 precious portion with application to myself, as though my God 
 so spake to me of the day of my espousals ? Doth my God 
 and Saviour remember me in the first awakenings of his 
 grace, when at the first mention of his name, my soul made 
 me like the chariots of Amminadib ? Well, then, may my soul 
 remember thee, oh thou God of my salvation ? The saviour 
 of thy past love and past experiences gives now, at this mo- 
 ment, new delight to my soul, and awakens new desires of 
 communion with my God. The very recollection of what I 
 then was, and how thou calledst me, and made my time a time 
 of love ; and how thou passedst by, and didst bid me live, and 
 didst cleanse me, and take me home, and betrothedst me to 
 thyself, and made me thine for ever ; the very thoughts re- 
 fresh my soul now ; and these former experiences drive away 
 present distresses and despondency ! How is it my soul, 
 with thee now ? Art thou less in frame — less in love ? Hast 
 thou not the same earnest liking to Jesus now, as then 1 Is 
 the strength of thy love, and desires, and delights, abated? 
 Look at this blessed Scripture. Hear what God saith to Is- 
 rael, in a time of Israel's coldness. See how God's love was 
 not changed, though Israel's was so abated. Art thou, my 
 soul, conscious of the same ? Art thou lamenting it ; desir- 
 ing, waiting for some renewed token of thy Jesus' love? Is 
 his name, his Person, his righteousness, still precious ? Dost 
 thou wait but for the whispers of his grace ? See, here it is 
 — " I remember, though thou hast forgotten, the day of thine 
 espousals!" Oh ! the wonderful condescension of the Son of 
 God ! Behold, my soul, how, in this very way, how prepar- 
 
70 MOPwNING PORTION. 
 
 ing thine heart for the renewings of his love, and his sweet 
 manifestations towards thee ! Oh ! cry out with the church 
 of old, under similar circumstances, " Draw me ; we will 
 run after thee." Unless thou drawest, Lord, the distance will 
 remain ; but the desire of being drawn shows the earnestness 
 for union. Lord, I beseech thee, do this ; bring me near to 
 thyself, to thine everlasting embraces: then shall I run, nay, 
 even flee to my beloved, and will hang upon thee as the 
 vessel hangeth on the nail, and dwell, and remain, with thee 
 for ever. 
 
 23. — By his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having 
 obtained eternal redemption for us. — Heb. ix. 12. 
 
 Ponder, my soul, these solemn expressions concerning 
 thy Jesus. Mark, in them, their vast contents. Jesus, as a 
 Prophet, hath revealed his salvation : as a Priest, he alone 
 hath procured it, and offered it up to God and the Father : 
 and, as a King, he ever lives and reigns to see its efficacy 
 fully accomplished in all his redeemed, being made partakers 
 of it. Behold in this his priestly office, both as an High- 
 Priest and as the Sacrifice, what he hath wrought, and what 
 he hath accomplished ; even eternal redemption. Mark, my 
 soul, the several volumes of mercy comprised in it. First — 
 Of man's revolt from God. Secondly — The deadly breach 
 by reason thereof Thirdly — The proclamation from Heaven, 
 of God's determined purpose to take vengeance of sin. 
 Fourthly — Man's total inability to appease the divine wrath, 
 either by doing or suffering. Fifthly — Divine grace, in the 
 love of the Father, permitting a substitute, competent to do 
 this great act of salvation, for men ; and appointing and con- 
 stituting no less a Person than his dear Son to the accom- 
 plishment of it. Sixthly — Jesus, the Son of God, voluntarily 
 giving himself an offering and a sacrifice for sin, and by that 
 one offering of himself, once offered, for ever perfecting them 
 that are sanctified. Seventhly — Having thus accomplished 
 the purpose of salvation upon earth. Jesus is now by his own 
 blood entered into the holy place, to make the whole effectual 
 by the exercise of his priestly office in heaven. And lastly^ 
 to add no more — God accepting and confirming his perfect 
 approbation of the whole, and now proclaiming peace on 
 earth, good-will towards men. Ponder over these grand, 
 these glorious, these momentous subjects, my soul, this day ! 
 Take them about with thee wheresoever thou goest ; fold 
 
MARCH. 71 
 
 them in thy bosom ; write them on the tablets of thine heart ; 
 let them arise with thee, and lay down with thee. And, in 
 all thine approaches to the mercy-seat, behold Him, and let 
 him never be lost to the view of the eye of faith, by whom 
 the whole is wrought, and of whom this sweet Scripture 
 speaks ; who " by his own blood entered in once into the 
 holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us." 
 
 24. — I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one 
 John xvii. 23. 
 
 Think, my soul, to what a trancendent honour, to what a 
 state of unspeakable happiness, the truly regenerated believer 
 in Jesus is begotten. Who shall declare it ; what heart shall 
 fully conceive it ! Mark, my soul, how graciously thy Re- 
 deemer hath pointed it out, in those sweet words. Observe 
 the foundation of the whole, in that glorious mystery of union 
 between the Father and the Son. This is at the bottom of 
 all our mercies, and becomes the source and spring of every 
 other. " Thou in ?we," saith Jesus ; not only as One in the 
 nature and essence of the Godhead, in a sameness of nature, 
 of design, of will, of perfections, and in all the attributes which 
 constitute the distinguishing properties of Jehovah : but pecu- 
 liarly as Mediator, the Head of his church and people, in 
 communicating all the fulness of the Godhead to dwell bodily 
 in Jesus as the Glory-man, the God-man, the Anointed of 
 God. Thus, being one with Christ, and dwelling in Christ, 
 in such a way and manner as the Godhead never did, and 
 never can, dwell in any other. And as Jesus is thus One 
 with the Father in the essence of the Godhead, and all Father 
 in him, dwelling in him, and being in him, in the work of 
 redemption, as Mediator — so is Jesus One in the nature of the 
 manhood, with all his mystical members. " / in them^^^ saith 
 Christ, '• as thou art in me." Jesus is the Head of his body 
 the church, and he is their fulness ; and they members of 
 his body, of his flesh, and of his bones. Hence result the 
 blessed effects which his redeemed all derive from him, that 
 they may be made perfect in one. Sweet and precious thought ! 
 In Jesus they are made perfect. From him they derive per- 
 fection. As one with him, they are counted and beheld per- 
 fect before God ; and by him they will be found so to all 
 eternity. And what particularly endears this view, this lovely 
 view, of the believer's perfection in Christ Jesus, is this ; that 
 every individual member of Jesus' mystical body, is all alike 
 
MORNING PORTION. 
 
 equally interested in this perfection in Jesus. For as it is 
 from the same Spirit dwelling in them all, that they are 
 quickened to this spiritual life in Christ Jesus, and are all of 
 them made living members, and united to Jesus, their own 
 glorious Head ; so there must be an equally near and dear 
 union to Jesus, and to one another. Delightful consideration ! 
 As the Apostle reasons upon another consideration, " The 
 eye cannot say to the hand, I have no need of thee ; nor the 
 foot say, because I am not the hand, I am not of the body." 
 In Jesus they are all one ; neither can any touch the least of 
 his people, no more than the apple of his eye, without touch- 
 ing him. Is it so. my soul? And art thou one with Jesus, 
 one with the glorious Head, one with the precious Members 1 
 Hast thou communion in all that concerns Christ ; commu- 
 nion and interest in his Person ; communion in his righteous- 
 ness ; communion in his life, in his death, in his resurrection, 
 in his church, in his people, in his ordinances, in all that con- 
 cerns Jesus ! Oh ! then, rest assured that thou shalt have an 
 everlasting communion, and nothing shall separate thee from 
 Jesus — neither in time nor to all eternity. Go down, my 
 body, go down to the grave with this perfect confidence — 
 that if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead 
 dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall 
 also quicken your mortal body, by his Spirit that dwelleth in 
 you. 
 
 25. — The mercy promised. — Luke i. 72. 
 
 The mercy promised ! Why, God graciously promised 
 many mercies, and most faithfully and fullj'- performed them. 
 Yes ! every thing out of hell may well be called a merc}^ 
 Every child of Adam beaveth about with him, day by day, 
 tokens of God's mercy. The air we breathe, the garments 
 we put on, the food v/e eat ; all the comforts, conveniences, 
 enjoyments of life ; these are all mercies. But none of these 
 are what the sweet portion of the morning points at It is 
 here a particular, a special, one specific mercy. And who 
 can this mean, my soul, but Jesus, thy Jesus ? He is indeed 
 the mercy promised ; the first mercy, the first promise ; the 
 first, best, and comprehensive gift of God in the Bible. He 
 is indeed the mercy of mercies, the first-born, the sum and 
 substance of every other. He is essential to make all other 
 mercies really and truly mercies ; for, without him, they ulti- 
 
MARCH. 73 
 
 mately prove injurious. He is essential to put a sweetness, 
 to give a relish, a value, an importance, to every other. 
 Where Jesus is, there is mercy ; where Jesus is not, what 
 can profit 1 My soul ! hast thou considered this 1 Dost thou 
 know it? Is Jesus thine? Is this mercy promised, really, 
 truly given to thee? Hast thou taken him home to thine 
 house, to thine heart? Pause! If it be so, how dost thou 
 value him, know him, use him, live to him, walk with him, 
 hope in him, rejoice in him, and make him thine all ? Hast 
 thou received him as a free mercy, an undeserved mercy? 
 Hast thou accepted him as so seasonable a mercy, that, with- 
 out him, thou wouldest have been undone for ever? Is he 
 now so truly satisfying to thee in all thy desires, for time and 
 for eternit}^, that thou canst bid adieu to every enjoyment if 
 needful ; and, looking up to Jesus, canst truly say, ^' Whom 
 have I in heaven but thee ? and there is none upon earth that 
 I desire beside thee !" Oh ! my soul ! if this be thy portion, 
 then hast thou a Benjamin's portion indeed ! God thy Father 
 hath given thee indeed the mercy promised ; and Jesus is, 
 and will be, thy mercy, and the mercy of all mercies, to all 
 eternity. Amen. 
 
 26. — Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honey-comb. — Song iv. 11. 
 
 While Jesus is so precious to his people, that they seek 
 him in every thing that is lovely, and indeed can discover 
 nothing to be lovely until they have found Jesus in it, what 
 an endearment is it to the soul of a believer, when he dis- 
 covers Jesus looking upon him, eyeing him, and even com- 
 mending Jesus' own graces, which he hath imparted to the 
 soul, brought out into exorcise again by the influences of his 
 own holy Spirit. Aly soul ! canst thou really be led to be- 
 lieve that Jesus is speaking to his church, to his fair one, his 
 spouse, to every individual soul of his redeemed and regene- 
 rated ones, in those swoel words of the Song? Doth Jesus, 
 the Son of God, call thee his spouse; and doth he say thy 
 lips drop as the honey-comb? Pause, my soul, and ponder 
 over these gracious words of thy God. By thy lips, no 
 doubt, Jesus means thy words ; of which Solomon saith — 
 " Pleasant words are as an honey-comb, sweet to the soul, 
 and health to the bones." Prov. xvi. 24. Do thy lips drop 
 in prayer, in praise, in conversation, in Christian fellowship, 
 in ordinances, and in all the ordinary intercourse of life? 
 Is Jesus thy one theme ; his name, his love, his grace, his 
 
 7 
 
74 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 work, his salvation ; what he hath done, what he hath 
 wrought ; how he hath loved, how he hath lived, how he 
 hath died, how he now lives again to appear in the presence 
 of God for his people ; and to give out his fulness, his mer- 
 cies, his treasures ; in visits, in manifestations, and the ten 
 thousand numberless, nameless, ways by which he proves 
 himself to be Jesus 1 Do thy lips, my soul, drop in these 
 topics when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, 
 when thou risest up ; and when thou goest in before the 
 presence of God, in the public worship of the temple, or the 
 private closet where no eye seeth thee but Him that seeth in 
 secret? And doth thy Jesus really mark these things'? 
 Doth he condescend to notice his poor creature, and to esteem 
 these droppings as the sweetness of the honey? Precious 
 God ! prfecious Jesus ! what a love is here. Oh ! for grace, 
 for love, for life, for every suited gift of my God and Saviour ; 
 that my lips, from the abundance of the heart, may drop 
 indeed as the honey-comb — sweetly, freely, not by constraint, 
 except the constraint of thy love ; but constantly, unceasingly, 
 for ever, as the drops of the honey-comb which follow one 
 another ; that prayer may follow praise, and praise succeed 
 to prayer ; and that there may be a succession. in magnifying 
 and adoring the riches of grace ; that the name of Jesus 
 may be always in my mouth ; and from that one blessed 
 source, that Jesus lives in my heart, and rules, and reigns, 
 and is ormed there the hope of glory. 
 
 27. — The trumpet of the jubilee. — Levit. xxv. 9. 
 
 My soul ! pause over the subject of the jubilee trumpet ; 
 for surely much of gospel Avas proclaimed by it. It should 
 seem that there were four distinct and special sounds of the 
 trumpet in the camp of Israel. The trumpet of memorials 
 so called, (Levit. xxiii. 24,) was blown on the occasion of 
 the new moon, calling the people to the joyful assembly, 
 Psalm. Ixxxi. 3. There was also the fast trumpet, of which 
 the prophet sccaks, Joel ii. 1. Besides these, the 7^ar trumpet 
 gave a certain sound to prepare to battle, 1 Cor. xiv. 8. And 
 this of "he jubilee, which differed from all. And akhough 
 the jubilee trumpet was never heard but once in fifty years, 
 yel sc sweet and so distinguishing was the sound, that no 
 poor captive, among the servants in the camp of Israel, was 
 at ?. moment's loss to understand its gracious meaning. Say, 
 *^'.' soul, is no^ the gospel sound, when first heard by the 
 
MARCH. tS 
 
 ear of faith, precisely the same? When pardon was first 
 proclaimed to thee by the blood of Christ, and the day of his 
 atonement so manifested to thy spiritual senses, that the cap- 
 tivit}'- of sin and Satan lost their powers upon thee, was not 
 this indeed the jubilee trumpet, and the acceptable year of the 
 Lord ? Hast thou heard this joyful sound ? Hath the Son 
 of God made thee free? Hath Jesus caused thee to return to 
 thy long-lost, long-forfeited, inheritance? And wilt thou ever 
 forget the unspeakable mercy ? Hail ! thou Almighty De- 
 liverer, thou Redeemer of thy captives ! I had sold my pos- 
 session, sold myself, for nought; and thou hast redeemed it 
 for me again without money. 1 had sold it indeed, but could 
 not alienate it for ever, because the right of redemption was 
 with thee. Yes, blessed Jesus ! thou art He whom thy 
 brethren shall praise. Thou art the next of kin, the nearest 
 of all relations, and the dearest of all brothers ! And thou 
 hast redeemed both soul and body, both lands and inheritance, 
 by thy blood ; and so redeemed the whole, as never more to 
 be lost again or forfeited for ever. And now Lord, thy 
 jubilee trumpet sounds; and the proclamation of the ever- 
 lasting gospel is heard in our land, to give liberty to the 
 captive, sight to the blind, to bring the prisoners out of the 
 prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison house ! 
 Oh ! cause me to know the joyful sound, and daily to walk 
 in the light of thy countenance. Cause me, by the sweet 
 influences of thy spirit, to live in the constant expectation of 
 the year of the everlasting jubilee, when the trumpet of the 
 archangel shall finally sound, and all thy redeemed shall 
 then return to Zion, with songs of everlasting joy upon their 
 heads ; Avhen they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow 
 and sighing shall flee away. Hallelujah ! 
 
 28. — For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death 
 of the testator ; for a testament is of force after men are dead, other- 
 wise it is of no strength at all whilst the testator liveth. — Heh. 
 ix. 16, 17. 
 
 Behold, my soul, how graciously the Holy Ghost hath 
 here represented the necessity of Jesus' death, in order that 
 the testament or will he left behmd him, might have the 
 intended effect ; and all the benefits and blessings he be- 
 queathed in it to his people, might be fully paid and made 
 over to them for their present peace and everlasting happiness. 
 Now, my soul, mark down, for tliis day's special meditation, 
 
76 MORNING POE.TION. 
 
 the many precious things here contained. Observe how very- 
 accommodating the Holy Ghost is, to explain to thee divine 
 things, by the similitude of human transactions. As a man 
 makes his will, so Jesus made his. As what a man gives is 
 altogether a free and voluntary act, so Jesus w^as not con- 
 strained by what he gave in his blessed will ; but the whole 
 was the result of his own free, gracious, and everlasting love. 
 And as a man must die before his will can be put in force, 
 so Jesus must, and did die, that his testament and will might 
 have the full eifect also. But there is one sweet point more 
 to be taken into this account, in which, my soul, thy Jesus 
 hath infinitely surpassed all men in this article of their wills. 
 When a man dies, he appoints by will an executor, to whom 
 he must trust the management of all his effects after his de- 
 cease : and should this executor prove unfaithful, his best 
 designs for those he loved, when living, may all fail of the 
 end when he is dead. Now here lies the sweetness of Jesus' 
 will: — He not only made the will, but he himself will see it 
 fully executed ; for as he died once, in order that by his death 
 his will might be confirmed, so he ever liveth to see the whole 
 of his blessed gifts and legacies paid. Precious, precious 
 Jesus ! how sure then is thy will, and the certainty of every 
 tittle of it being fulfilled. Now, my soul, there are two grand 
 things which concern thee to inquire concerning the will of 
 the Lord Jesus. The first is, whether thou hast any interest 
 in it? And the second is, what the Lord Jesus hath left 
 behind him ? Recollect, my soul, that in this instance, as in 
 the former, when men make their wills, it is to dispose of their 
 effects to their relations, their friends, their families. Jesus 
 also hath his relations, his friends, and his family. Yes ! 
 thou dear Lord ! thou condescendest to call thy people thy 
 spouse, thy brethren, thy children, thy jewels, thy redeemed ! 
 My soul ! dost thou claim relationship to Jesus? Canst thou 
 prove, or hast thou proved, his will ? Is Jesus thine husband ? 
 Hath he betrotlied thee to himself? Again — Hast thou the 
 marks of a child in God's family ? Art thou born again ? 
 Again — if you are his, then hast thou his Spirit ; for he that 
 is joined to the Lord is one Spirit. If you are a child of 
 God, and a joint-heir with Christ, then art thou under his 
 divine leadings ; for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, 
 they are the sons of God. If thou hast these marks of rela- 
 tionship, thou mayest safely look for his gifts. Surely Jesus 
 hath remembered in his legacies his spouse, his children. 
 And oh ! what an inventory wilt thou find, my soul, under 
 
MARCH. 77 
 
 the second, inquiry, when thou hast fully proved the first ! 
 Oh ! what legacies, what gifts, what an inheritance, art thou 
 entitled to by the will of Jesus ! All temporal blessings, all 
 spiritual blessings, all eternal blessings! Pardon, mercy, 
 peace, in the blood of his cross ; the sweet enjoyment of all 
 providences in this life, and the sure possession of everlasting 
 happiness in that which is to come ! Oh ! how true was it, 
 my God and Saviour, when thou didst say, " I will cause 
 them that love me to inherit substance !" 
 
 29. — The precious ointment upon the head that ran down upon his 
 beard, even Aaron's beard, that went down to the skirts of his gar- 
 ment. — Psalm cxxxiii. 2. 
 
 My soul, behold, in the anointing here set forth of the 
 Jewish high-priest, a type of His anointing who is a Priest 
 for ever, and a Priest upon his throne ; and while looking at 
 Aaron, say, as the Lord Jesus did upon another occasion 
 concerning Solomon, "a greater than Aaron is here." It is 
 sweet, very sweet, and very profitable, to behold the old 
 church shadowing forth the new, and the law ministering to 
 the gospel. Yes, blessed Jesus ! I behold in Aaron, and in 
 the precious ointment poured forth upon his head, thus run- 
 ning down to the skirts of his garments, the beautiful repre- 
 sentation of that fulness of the Spirit, which was poured out 
 on thee without measure ; that from thee the communication 
 might flow down to the poorest, the humblest, the lowest of 
 thy members, even to the very skirts of thy clothing. It 
 pleased the Father that in thee should all fulness dwell ; that 
 of that fulness all thy people might receive, and grace for 
 grace. And by virtue of our interest in thee, and union 
 with thee, all thy people do richly partake of communion in 
 all thy benefits, blessings, mercies. The sun shines not to 
 itself,'nor for itself, but to impart light and life to others : so 
 dost thou, the Son of Righteousness, shine forth in all thy 
 glory, not for thyself, but to bless, and enliven, and give out 
 of all thy grace and fulness, every suited blessing, according 
 to the measure of the gift of Christ. "My soul ! bring home 
 these precious truths to the conviction of experience. Was 
 Jesus, indeed, anointed for his people? Was grace poured 
 into his lips? Was he, like Aaron, so installed into the 
 office of the priesthood, and the Holy Spirit so immeasurably 
 communicated to him, on purpose that all his little ones 
 should partake of this unspeakable gift of God ? Did God 
 
 7* 
 
78 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the Father say to Jesus, " I will pour my Spirit upon thy 
 seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring?" Well then, my 
 soul, hast thou partaken of the Holy Spirit? Hast thou 
 communion with Jesus in all that concerns thy salvation? 
 A child of God, a joint-heir with Christ, and a soul begotten 
 of the Holy Spirit, hath interest and communion in all that 
 belongs to Jesus, as the great Head and Mediator of his 
 church ; interested in his person, interested in his work, in- 
 terested in his righteousness, in his life, in his death, in his 
 resurrection, in his everlasting priestly office, and in his 
 everlasting glory. What saith my soul to these things ? Go, 
 my soul, go this morning, go in the strength of this interest, 
 and look at a throne of grace, within the vail, whither thy 
 fore-runner is for thee entered ; behold thy glorious Aaron, 
 wearing the priestly vestments still, and having all grace, all 
 fulness ; waiting to be gracious, and to impart of that ful- 
 ness to thy necessities ; and having received gifts for men, 
 yea, for thee, the most rebellious, that the Lord God might 
 dwell among them. Lord, proportion thy mercies to my 
 wants ; and, as the day is, so let the strength be. 
 
 30. — So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God ; but with 
 the flesh the law of sin. — Romans vii. 25. 
 
 Is this thy language, my soul? Hast thou learnt with 
 Paul, with Job, with Isaiah, and all the faithful gone before, 
 to loath thyself in thine own sight? Dost thou groan, being 
 burdened with a body of sin which drags down the soul ? 
 Pause over this view of human nature. In the first place — 
 think, my soul, what humbling thoughts such a state of cor- 
 ruption ought to induce. Though the mind be regenerated, 
 though with the mind the believer serves the law of God, 
 delights in the law of God, loves the law, and would make 
 it the subject of devout meditation all the day ; yet such is 
 the body of sin, the flesh, with its affections, and appetites, 
 and desires, that it draws away the attention, imperiously 
 puts in its claims, and rises up in rebellion continually. And 
 are the souls of God's children thus exercised, thus afiiicted, 
 in the struggles between the different motions of grace, and 
 corruption from day to day ? Yes ! such is the state, such 
 the uniform experience of God's people in all ages. Paul 
 thus complains, though he had been so highly sanctified. 
 Perhaps there never was a child of God brought into closer 
 and more intimate communion with God. He had been 
 
MARCH. 79 
 
 caught up to the third heaven, and heard unspeakable words. 
 He had laboured more than all the apostles. He had been 
 converted by a miracle from heaven, and by the immediate 
 call of the Lord Jesus personally to him. But yet this highly 
 favoured servant of the Lord, this blessed apostle, who was 
 continually flying on the wings of zeal and love in the ser- 
 vice of his master, even he, with his flesh, he tells us, served 
 the law of sin : nay, he felt and discovered a lav/ of sin in 
 his members, warring against the law of his mind, and 
 bringing him into captivity/ to the law of sin which was in 
 his members ; and under a deep distress of soul he cried out 
 — " O wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me from 
 the body of this death?" Is it so then, my soul, with thee 
 also ? Dost thou discover the same in thy experience ? Dost 
 thou feel the rebellions of sin rising up within thee? Dost 
 thou detect thine heart, wandering even in the moment of 
 solemn exercises; and, in short, thine own body, the worst 
 and greatest enemy thou hast to contend with? Oh! then, 
 learn from hence what humbling views oughtest thou to have 
 of thyself, and to lay low in the dust in consequence thereof 
 before God. When thou hast fully contemplated this state 
 of a fallen nature, let thy next improvement of this subject be 
 to endear the Lord Jesus to thee, my soul, more and more ; 
 to fly out of thyself, to fly to Jesus, to take refuge in him and 
 his great salvation ; from even thyself, with all that body of 
 sin and death, under which thou thus continually groanest; 
 and to derive herefrom a daily and hourly conviction yet 
 more strong and unanswerably conclusive, that nothing but 
 the blood of Jesus can cleanse, nothing but the righteousness 
 of Jesus can save and justify a sinner. Say as Paul did, 
 when from the bottom of his heart that soul-piercing question 
 arose, "Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 
 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord." 
 
 31. — Having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ. — Phillipp. i. 23. 
 
 My soul ! thou hast not, I hope, dismissed the solemn 
 thoughts opened to thy view by the Scripture of yesterday. 
 Surely, since that last morning, thou hast had but too many 
 renewed occasions to feel the truth of it. Sin is not only 
 present icith thee at all times, but in thee, and as inseparable 
 from thy unrenewed part, as the shadow from the substance. 
 Thou knowest this, thou feelest it, thou groanest under it ; 
 and the consciousness of it is, in itself, enough to make thee 
 
80 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 g-0 humbly all thy days. All other afflictions are nothing to 
 this affliction : this, like the ocean compared to rivers, sur- 
 passeth and swalloweth up all. It is indeed a soul-supporting 
 thought, (and, blessed be God, thou feelest the sweetness of 
 it,) that under all, and in all, Jesus is thy hope. And while 
 sin is always present with thee, Jesus, thy Advocate and 
 Propitiation, is present for thee with the Father. But though 
 in Him and his righteousness accepted and secure, yet the 
 consideration how much thy daily short-comings and trans- 
 gressions dishonour God, and deprive thee of comfort here, 
 is matter sufficient to make thine eyes run down with water, 
 and thine heart continually to mourn before the mercy-seat. 
 And will these things always be the same whilst thou ear- 
 liest about with thee this body of sin ? Shall this perishing 
 part of thine be always so unfavourable to the sweet and 
 gracious desires of the soul? Shall I never, never truly and 
 uninterruptedly enjoy Jesus, until the body is dissolved, and 
 the dust returns to the earth, out of which that part of my 
 nature was taken ? Pause, my soul, and say — Hast thou not 
 then a desire to depart, and to be with Christ? Is not the 
 grave, in this view, not only made bearable, but even desi- 
 rable — nay, even pleasant ? What ! shall I never be wholly 
 free from sin, until that I am wholly freed from the body ? 
 Shall I never be secure of sweet enjoyment with Jesus in 
 ordinances, in retirement, in prayer, in praise, until that I 
 drop this body of sin ? And wouldest thou not, my soul, 
 gladly part with such a partner, near and dear as it is, if this 
 partner, in its present state, so dreadfully robs thee of thy 
 most precious enjoyments? It is true, death in itself is not 
 desirable ; but if only by dying thou canst enjoy Jesus ; and 
 if only by dying this body will lose its corruptions ; if the 
 grave hath a commission from thy Jesus to destroy that part 
 only of thy body which is corrupt, and, at the same time, to 
 act as a preserver of that part which Jesus, at the last day, 
 will raise up to glory ; if Jesus hath assured thee that, 
 though worms destroy thy corrupt part, yet thine eyes, even 
 thy bodily eyes, when raised up by Jesus a glorified body, 
 shall see God ; and if thy body, thus raised up and reani- 
 mated, shall then be not only wholly freed from all corrup- 
 tion, but equally disposed as the soul to praise thy God and 
 Saviour for ever and ever, and both soul and body united as 
 dear friends in this blessed service ; oh ! then, from hence- 
 forth never, my soul, look at death any more but as thy kind 
 
APRIL, 81 
 
 friend. It is to die to sin ; but it is to live to Jesus. It is to 
 be dead to all things but Jesus, that Jesus may be all things 
 in life for ever. Oh ! then, for this desire to depart, and to 
 be with Christ. 
 
 APRIL. 
 
 1. — And this is his name whereby he shall be called — The Lord our 
 Righteousness. — Jeremiah xxiii. 6. 
 
 Begin this month, my soul, with contemplating thy Jesus, 
 in this glorious distinction of character ; and beg of God the 
 Holy Ghost, who hath here declared that, under this charac- 
 ter, Jesus shall be known and called, that every day through 
 the month, and through the whole of life, thou mayest find 
 grace and strength so to knov\^ and so to call Jesus, as to be 
 everlastingly satisfied that thou ait made the righteousness of 
 God in him. And first, my soul, consider who and what this 
 Holy One is. He is the Lord Jehovah. In the glories of 
 his essence^ he is One with the Father. In his 'personal glo- 
 ries, he is the Lord thy Mediator. And in his relative glo- 
 ries, he is thy righteousness. For, by virtue of his taking 
 thy nature, what he is as Mediator and as the Surety of his 
 people, he is for them. Pause over this blessed view, and 
 then say, what can be more blessed than thus to behold Jesus 
 as what he is in himself /o?- his people? Look at him again, 
 my soulj and take another view of him in his loveliness ; in 
 what he is to his people. This precious Scripture saith, that 
 he is the Lord our Righteousness ; that is, by virtue of his 
 Godhead he is our Righteousness, in such a sure way, and 
 with such everlasting value and efficacy, as no creature could 
 be. The righteousness his redeemed possess in him, and 
 have a right in him, and are entitled to in him, is the 
 righteousness of God ; and therefore impossible ever to be 
 lost, and impossible ever to be fully recompensed in glory. 
 Sweet and blessed consideration ! it seems too great to be 
 believed. And so it would, indeed, if the authority of Jeho- 
 vah had not stamped it, and made the belief of it the first and 
 highest act of a poor sinner's obedience. And, observe, my 
 
82 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul, yet further, there is this blessed addition to the account 
 — he shall he called so. By whom ? Nay, by every one that 
 knows him. The poor sinner shall call him so, who is lead 
 to see and feel that he hath no righteousness of his own ; he 
 shall call Jesus his Lord, his Righteousness ; he shall call him 
 so to others, he shall call upon him for himself; he shall be 
 that true Israelite, that very One whom the Prophet describes 
 — " Surely shall one say, in the Lord have I righteousness 
 and strength." The redeemed upon earth, the redeemed in 
 heaven, the church of the first-born, shall call him so. The 
 whole army of patriarchs, and prophets, and apostles, all 
 shall know Jesus, as the Lord our Righteousness. Nay, God 
 himself, our Father, shall call his dear Son by this glorious 
 name ; for it is He who hath constituted and appointed him 
 as the Lord our Righteousness. And that Jesus is our Righ- 
 teousness is from this very cause, " that he is made of God to 
 us wisdom and righteousness, sanctification and redemption, 
 that he that glorieth may glory in the Lord." Now, my 
 soul! what sayest thou to this sweet view of Jesus in this 
 most precious Scripture ? Is not this name of Jesus most 
 grateful to thee, as ointment of the richest fragrancy poured 
 forth % Can any name be as sweet and delightful to one con- 
 vinced, as thou art, that all thy righteousness is as dung and 
 dross, as the name of Jesus — the Lord our Righteousness ? 
 Witness for me, ye angels of light, that I renounce every 
 other ; and from henceforth will make mention of his righte- 
 ousness, and his only. Yes, blessed Jesus ! my mouth shall 
 daily speak of thy righteousness and salvation ; for I know 
 no end thereof 
 
 2. — And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, 
 and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and 
 all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head 
 of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into 
 the wilderness. And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities, 
 unto a land not inhabited. — Levit. xvi. 21, 22. 
 
 Pause, my soul ! and behold the tender mercy of thy God, 
 in thus causing to be represented to the church of old, by so 
 striking a service, that grand and most momentous doctrine 
 of the gospel, which, in after ages of the church, was fully 
 set forth and completed when Jehovah laid upon our Lord 
 Jesus Christ the iniquities of his people. And do, my soul, 
 attend to those several most interesting points here graciously 
 revealed. As first — This was the express command of God. 
 
APRIL. $^ 
 
 Yes! who but God could transfer, or permit a change of per- 
 sons in the transferring of sin ? This is one of the most 
 blessed parts of the gospel, that when Jesus bore our sins in 
 his own body on the tree, it was by the express will and ap- 
 pointment of Jehovah. The Lord Jesus took not those sins 
 on himself; but the Lord laid on him the iniquity of us all. 
 Mark this down in strong characters. Then next consider — 
 that as Jesus had a transfer of all the sins of his people, con- 
 sequently they were no longer upon the people from whom 
 they were transferred. Here faith finds full scope for exer- 
 cise, in giving God the credit due to God. The sending 
 away the goat was intended to represent the full remission of 
 sins ; and by the goat bearing them away to a land not in- 
 habited, intimated that those sins should never be seen or 
 known any more, according to that precious Scripture of the 
 Holy Ghost by the prophet: ^^ the iniquity of Israel shall he 
 sought for ^ and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah^ and 
 they shall not be found.''^ Jerem. 1. 20. And there is one 
 sweet thought more, not to be overlooked in this blessed Scrip- 
 ture, concerning those sins. Observe, my soul, the particu- 
 larity of the expression. The confession of Aaron, the great 
 high-priest, was not only of all the iniquities of the children 
 of Israel, but of all their transgressions in all their sins. 
 Pause, my soul, over this view, and recollect that there are 
 many, and sometimes very heinous and aggravated, circum- 
 stances of transgression in thy sins. Now what a sweet 
 thought of relief to thy mind is it, under particular and gall- 
 ing circumstances of sin, to behold thy Jesus bearing thy 
 sins, and all the transgression of all thy sins. The Lord 
 caused to meet in him, as the passage might have been ren- 
 dered, the iniquities of us all. Isaiah liii. 6. Jesus was made 
 the common receiver, the drain, the sink, into which all the 
 sins, and every minute and particular sin was emptied. He 
 shall drink of the brook in the way, said the Holy Ghost, 
 Psalm ex. 7. Was not this the black, the filthy brook of Ce- 
 dro?i, into which all the filth from the sacrifices of the temple 
 were emptied ? Here it was Jesus passed, when, in the night 
 of his entering on his passion, he went into the garden. Look 
 on this, my soul, and see where it doth not strikingly, though 
 solemnly at the same time, set forth Jesus bearing all and 
 every particular transgression in all thy sins. One thought 
 more. The goat, thus laden with all the sins of the people, 
 was to be sent away by the hand of some fit man into the wil- 
 derness. As none but Jesus could be competent to bear sins, 
 
84 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 SO none but Jesus could be fit to bear them away into a land 
 of everlasting forgetfulness. It doth not lessen the beauty of 
 this blessed Scripture in the representation here made, in Je- 
 sus being set foith under two characters ; for he is so in many. 
 None but Jesus can indeed accomplish all ; he is the High- 
 Priest, the Altar, and the Sacrifice, through all the law ; and 
 he is the fit man here represented, as well as the burden- 
 bearer of sin. Hail, thou Great High-Priest ! Blessed for 
 ever be thou who hast borne away all the sins of thy people 
 into a land not inhabited. Thou hast crossed out, in God's 
 book of account, each and every individual sin, and the trans- 
 gression of all our sins, in the red letters of thy blood ; and 
 never shall they appear again to the condemnation of thy 
 people. 
 
 3. — A man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief. — Isaiah liii. 3. 
 
 My soul ! there is one feature in thy Redeemer's charac- 
 ter which in the unequaled abasement of his person, demands 
 thy constant contemplation. I fear it hath not been con- 
 sidered by thee as it ought. And yet it is so sweetly accom- 
 modating and lovely that the more thou beholdest thy Jesus 
 in this tender light, the more endeared he must appear to 
 thee. The prophet, under the Holy Ghost, hath here in a 
 few words sketched the outlines of it — " A man of sorrows, 
 ami acquainted icith griefs It was most essential that Jesus 
 should be all this, because it belonged to the curse which he 
 became for his people, when he offered himself as their 
 suretJ^ You will remember, my soul, the curse which God 
 pronounced upon the earth, and man's passage through it, 
 when he broke the divine law. The ground was cursed ; 
 the produce of it was to be thorns and thistles ; in sorrow, 
 and in the sweat of the brow was man to eat bread ; and, at 
 length death was to close his life. Now it behoved Him who 
 undertook to remove the curse, to bear that curse before the 
 removal of it, and, as such, it behoved Jesus to be a man of 
 sorrows, and acquainted with grief Hence all these seized 
 on the Lord Jesus, in the first moment he assumed our na- 
 ture. And though he had no sin in his nature, not being 
 born in the ordinary way of our nature, yet, as a Surety, he 
 was at once exposed to all the frailties, in the sinless sorrows, 
 and travails and labours of it. This sentence would not have 
 been fulfilled had not Jesus eat bread in the sweat of his brow. 
 So interesting a part, therefore, was it in Christ's life, that he 
 
APRIL. 85 
 
 should labour in a common occupation, that this part of the 
 curse might not go by without being accomplished. And 
 how eminently, my soul, was this part indeed fulfilled, when, 
 in the garden, the sweat of his brow, was drops of blood ! 
 How full of thorns and thistles was the earth to Jesus, may 
 be in some measure considered, when we behold him in the 
 unequaled sorrows of the opposition he met with from the 
 world, the unkindness of friends, the malice of enemies. The 
 thorny crown put upon his sacred head was little considered 
 by those that put it; but yet it was in reality crowning him 
 Lord of sorrow and grief, beyond all men that were ever ex- 
 ercised with affliction. So great indeed was the continued 
 load he bore of grief, and so much did it tend to waste and 
 wear the spirits, that according to the expression of the Jews 
 to him — thou art not y^t fifty years old^ evidentlv proved that 
 he had the visage of one of fifty, when only thirty. And it 
 is remarkable, though we are told that Jesus rejoiced in spirit, 
 yet we never read that he was once seen to laugh during his 
 whole life. Precious Jesus ; enable me ever to be looking 
 unto thee, thou meek and lowly Lamb of God ; and may I 
 never lose sight of this .sweet part of thy character also, that 
 whilst thou didst bear our sins, so didst thou carry our sor- 
 rows ; and in fulfilling the law, didst take away the curse 
 also, when in sorrow thou didst eat bread all the days of thy 
 life. 
 
 4. — A place called Gethsemane. — ?ilatt. xxiv. 36. 
 
 My soul ; let thy morning meditation be directed to the 
 garden of Gethsemane ; that memorable spot, sacred to the 
 believer, because so much beloved and resorted to b}' Jesus. 
 Here Jesus oft came with his disciples. And here, my soul, 
 do thou often take the wing of fliith, and flee in devout con- 
 templation. Was this place dear to thee, thou precious Re- 
 deemer ? And was it not because here thou didst enjoy the 
 sweetest refreshings in communion with the Father? Was 
 it not because here thou knewest Avould begin the conflict 
 and the agony, in which the great business for which thou 
 camest on earth would be accomplished ? Didst thou abide 
 here, Lord, a whole night, after a day's constant preaching 
 to the people, the week only before thy crucifixion? (See 
 Luke xxi. 37,) and when the night was passed, didst thou 
 again repair to the temple to the same employ ? Was Geth- 
 semane dear to Jesus ? Was here his favorite haunt ? And 
 
 8 
 
86 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 shall not my soul delight to be often here in solemn medita- 
 tion ? Will not my Lord lead me there, and going- with me 
 there, sweetly speak to me there? that while in imagina- 
 tion I tread the sacred ground, my soul may view the several 
 spots, and say, — Here it was, perhaps, my Redeemer was 
 withdrawn a stone's cast from his disciples that the powers of 
 darkness might more furiously assault his holy soul ! And 
 here the angel stept from heaven to strengthen him ; and 
 here the Lord Jesus was in his agony, when the sweat of his 
 body forced through all the pores great drops of blood, faUing 
 down to the ground ! Is this Gethsemane ? and why Geth- 
 semane? The Jews called it Ge-hennom^ or Hell; for here 
 it was Josiah burnt the idol-vessels. 2 Kings xxiii. 4, 5, 6, 10. 
 And it is the same as Tophet, the only word the Jews used 
 for hell after their return from the Babylonish captivity. 
 The field of Cedron was indeed a dark and gloomy place; 
 and by its side ran the foul and black brook which Jesus 
 passed over when he went into Gethsemane. Here David 
 of old went mourning and lamenting, when Ahitophel, like 
 another Judas, betrayed him, and his life was sought after. 
 2 Sam. XV. 28. And here the son of David passed also, 
 when the man of whom David by the spirit of prophecy spake, 
 (Psalm xIj. 9,) which eat bread with Jesus, lifted up his heel 
 against him. And was this Gethsemane the favoured spot 
 of Jesus, because here he had so sweetly enjoyed communion 
 with his Father, and because here he should encounter the 
 powers of darkness ? Learn then, my soul, from thy Jesus, 
 where thou oughtest to seek grace in a refreshing hour, to 
 comfort a trying hour. Say, my soul, where should be thy 
 dying place, but where thy God hath most blessed thy living 
 place? There, Jesus, make my seasons (if it needs be) of 
 conflict, where thou hast sanctified and made blessed by thy 
 Bethel visits. And was a garden the favoured spot of Jesus? 
 Yes ! It was in a garden the first Adam lost himself and 
 his posterity ; there, then, Jesus Avill recover the forfeited in- 
 heritance. Did the devil begin in Eden to ruin man ? Why, 
 then, in Gethsemane Jesus will begin to conquer hell for 
 man's recovery. Did Satan, from the garden, bind and carry 
 captive the first Adam ? Then from a garden also shall he 
 cause to be bound, and carried away to the cross, the second 
 Adam, that he, by death, might destroy him that had the 
 power of death — that is, the devil, and deliver them who, 
 through fear of death, are all their lifetime subject to bondage. 
 Solemn Gethsemane ! awful, but hallowed spot ; here would 
 
APRIL. 87 
 
 1 often come: here contemplate Jesus, my blessed surety, 
 groaning yet conquering; pressed under all the hellish 
 malice of the devil, yet triumphing over all ; deserted by his 
 disciples, sweating a bloody sweat, sustaining the wrath of 
 offended justice, drinking the cup of trembhng! Is this 
 Gethsemane ! Oh, thou Lamb of God ! thou Pascal Lamb ! 
 here oft bring me : here show me thy loves ! and as thy joys 
 Avere here turned into sorrows, give me to see how the curses 
 which I deserve, but which thou didst endure, were con- 
 verted into blessings, and that by thy stripes I am healed. 
 Hail, sacred Gethsemane ! 
 
 5. — Being in an agony. — Luke xxii. 44. 
 
 My soul ! art thou still in Gethsemane ? Look at Jesus 
 once more : behold him in his agony ; view him in his 
 bloody sweat, in a night of cold, and in the open air, when 
 we are told that the servants in the high-priest's hall were 
 obliged to make a fire of coals to warm themselves. In such 
 a night was thy Jesus, from the extremity of an anguish 
 in his soul by reason of thy sins, made to sweat great drops 
 of blood. Look at the Lord in this situation, and as the 
 prophet by vision beheld him coming up with his dyed 
 garments, as one that had trodden the wine-fat ; so do thou, 
 by faith, behold him in his bloody sweat when, from treading 
 the wine press of the wrath of God, under the heavy load of 
 the world's guilt, his noble raiment v/as stained with blood. 
 Sin first made man to sweat, and Jesus, though he knew no 
 sin, yet taking out the curse of it for his people, was made to 
 sweat blood ! Oh ! thou meek and holy lamb of God ; me- 
 thinks I would, day by day, attend the garden of Gethsemane 
 by faith, and contemplate thee in thy agony. But who shall 
 unfold it to my wondering eyes, or explain all its vast concern 
 to my astonished soul. The evangelists, by their different 
 turns of expression to point it out, plainly show that nothing 
 within the compass of language can unfold it. Mattheiv saith 
 the soul of Jesus was exceeding sorroiofid^ even unto death. 
 Matt. xxvi. 38. The sorrows of hell, as is elsewhere men- 
 tioned, encompassed him. Psalm xviii. 5. My soul ! pause 
 over this. Was Jesus' soul thus sorrowful, even with hell- 
 sorrows, when, from the sins of his people charged on him, 
 and the penalty exacted from him as the sinner's surety, the 
 wrath of God against sin, lighting upon him, came as the 
 tremendous vensfeance of hell 1 Mark describes the state of 
 
88 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the Lamb of God as sore a?nazed. The expression signifies 
 an horror of mind ; such a degree of fear and consternation 
 as when the hairs of the head stand upright through terror 
 of mind. And was Jesus thus agonized, and for sins his 
 holy soul had never committed, when standing forth as the 
 surety for others ? Joh?i's expression of the Redeemer's 
 state, on this occasion is, that his soul teas troubled. John 
 xii. 27. The original of this word, troubled, is the same as 
 the Lathis derive their word for hell from. As if the Lord 
 Jesus felt what the prophet had said concerning everlasting 
 burnings^ Isaiah xxxiii. 14. " My heart," said that patient suf- 
 ferer, " is like wax ; it is melted in the midst of my bowels." 
 Psalm xxii. 13. Hence Moses, and after him Paul, in the 
 view of God's taking vengeance on sin, describes him under 
 an awful account — Our God is a consuming fire. Deut. iv. 24. 
 Heb. xii. 29. Beholding his Father thus coming to punish 
 sin, in his person, Jesus said — my iniquities have taken hold 
 upon me, therefore my heart faileth me^ Psalm xl. 12. And 
 Luke folds up an account of Jesus being in an agony ; such 
 a labouring as implies an universal convulsion : as dying 
 men, with cold clammy sweats ; so Jesus, scorched with the 
 hot wrath of God on sin, sweated in his agony clots of blood 1 
 My soul, canst thou hold out any longer? Will not thy eye- 
 strings and heart-strings break, thus to look on Jesus in his 
 agony ? Oh ! precious Jesus ! were the great objects of in- 
 sensible, inanimated nature, made to feel as if it took part in 
 thy sufferings, and am I unmoved ? Did the very graves 
 yawn at his death and resurrection 1 and were the rocks rent, 
 while my tearless eyes thus behold thee ? Oh, gracious God ! 
 fulfil thy promise by the prophet, that I may look on him 
 whom I have pierced, and mourn as one that mourneth for 
 his only son, and be in bitterness as one that is in bitterness 
 for his first born. 
 
 6. — Jesus knowing all things that should come upon him, went forth, 
 and said unto them, Whom seek ye? They answered him, Jesus of 
 Nazareth. Jesus saith unto them, I am he. And Judas also, which 
 betrayed him, stood witli them. As soon as he had said unto them, 
 I am he, they went backward and fell to the ground. — John xxviii. 
 4, 5, 6. 
 
 What a glorious Scripture is this ! Ponder it well, my 
 soul ; for of all the miracles of thy Jesus, there is not one 
 more sweet and satisfactory to contemplate. Yesterday thou 
 wert looking at thy Redeemer under a heavy cloud. Look 
 
APRIL, 89 
 
 at him as he is here represented, for he is still, in this trans- 
 action, in the same garden of Gethsemane : and behold how 
 the Godhead shone forth with a glory surpassing all descrip- 
 tion. Observe what a willing sacrifice was Jesus. He knew 
 the hour was come ; for he had said so. He doth not wait 
 to be taken, and by wicked hands to be crucified and slain ; 
 but he goeth forth to surrender himself Yes ! Jesus did not 
 go to the garden of Gethsemane for nothing : he knew Judas 
 would be there : he knew the powers of darkness would be 
 there ; he knew how his whole soul would be in an agony ; 
 but there Jesus would go. He had said at the table to his 
 disciples, " Arise, let us go hence." Precious, precious 
 Jesus ! how endearing to my poor soul is this sweet view of 
 thy readiness and earnestness to become a sacrifice for the 
 sins of thy people. Thou hadst this baptism, Lord, to be 
 baptized with ; and how wast thou straitened until it was 
 accomplished! There was a time, dear Lord, when the 
 multitudes sought for thee to make thee a king, so convinced 
 were they, for the moment, who thou wert ; and then thou 
 didst hide thyself from them. But now, when thine enemies 
 come to make thee king with a crown of thorns, and to nail 
 thy sacred body to the cross, thou didst hasten to meet them. 
 Well might the Prophet say, thou wentest forth for the salva- 
 tion of thy people ! Look at this scripture again, my soul. 
 " Whom seek ye ?"' said Jesus. Did they not know him ? 
 It was a light night, most probably, for the moon was then at 
 the full: beside, the seekers of Christ had lanterns and 
 torches. How was it they did not know him ? Didst thou 
 for the moment, dearest Lord ! do by them as thine angels at 
 the gate of Lot by the Sodomites, so cause their eyes to be 
 holden that they should not know thee 1 Was there some- 
 what of a miracle in this also? But, my soul, behold the 
 wonder of wonders that followed : no sooner had Jesus said 
 to their inquiry. Whom seek ye ? '-I am he," than they 
 went backward and fell to the ground. Was there indeed 
 some sudden overpowering emanation of the Godhead, break- 
 ing through, the vail of Jesus's flesh, which induced this 
 effect? Was it ever known, ever heard of, in any age or 
 period of the world, of such an effect before ? Supposing all 
 the monarchs of the earth, with the mightiest armies of men, 
 could be assembled together, how should such an event be 
 induced by the breath of their mouth? Contemplate this, 
 my soul ! again and again. Rejoice, my soul ! in this view 
 of thy Saviour ; for never, surely, was a greater miracle of 
 
 8* 
 
90 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 thy Redeemer's wrought : and remember how soon it took 
 place after his agony. Never go to Gethsemane in medita- 
 tion, without taking the recollection of it with thee. Behold 
 the Man ; behold the God ! Here was nothing exercised by 
 Jesus ; no weapon, no threat, no denunciation, no appeal to 
 the Father. Jesus only simply said, " I am he," and they 
 fell to the earth. Precious Jesus ! what a volume of instruc- 
 tion doth it afford. If such was the effect in the day of thy 
 flesh, how sure is that Scripture concerning the day of thy 
 power, in which it is said, "The Lord shall consume the 
 wicked with the breath of his mouth, and destroy them with 
 the brightness of his coming." 2 Thess. ii. 8. And if, my 
 soul, there was such power in the word of thy Saviour, when 
 he only said to his enemies, " I am he," why shouldest thou 
 not feel all the sweetness and gracious power of his love, when 
 he saith, " Fear not, I am he," behold I am with thee : it is I, 
 be not afraid." Ponder, my soul, in this view also, the awful 
 state of a soul hardened by sin. The enemies of Jesus, 
 though they fell to the ground at his mere word, felt no 
 change, no compunction at the display of it, Judas also was 
 with them. Yes ! he fell also ; but Satan had entered into 
 him, and a reprobate mind marked him as the son of perdi- 
 tion. Oh ! precious Jesus ! how fully read to thy people, in 
 every part of thy word, is the solemn truth, that grace makes 
 all the difTerence between him that serveth God, and him 
 that serveth him not. Oh ! keep me. Lord, and I shall be 
 well kept ; for unto thee do I Hft up my soul. 
 
 7. — He hath poured out his soul unto death, — Isaiah liii. 12, , 
 
 My soul ! from the garden to the cross, follow Jesus ! Be- 
 hold him apprehended and hurried away, both to judgment 
 and to death. He who struck to the ground the band that 
 came to take him, might surely, by the same breath of his 
 mouth, have struck them to hell, and prevented his being ap- 
 prehended by them. But one of the sweetest and most blessed 
 parts of Jesus' redemption of his people, consisted in the free- 
 ness and willingness of his sacrifice. Yes ! thou precious 
 Lamb of God! no man (as thou thyself hadst before said) 
 had power to take thy life from thee ; but thou didst lay it 
 down of thyself: thou hadst power to lay it down, and thou 
 hadst power to take it again. Delightful consideration to 
 thee, my soul ! Now, my soul, let this day's meditation be 
 sacred to the view of thy Redeemer, pouring out his soul unto 
 
APRH.. 91 
 
 death. And to-morrow, if the Lord gives thee to see the 
 morrow, let the solemn subject of thy study be the sufferings 
 of Jesus in his body. Pause, then, my soul, and call up all 
 the powers of thy mind to the contemplation of what the 
 scripture teacheth, concerning thy Redeemer's pouring out 
 his soul unto death. Seek the teachings of the Holy Ghost 
 in this solemn and mysterious subject. The original curse 
 pronounced on the fall, which Jesus took upon himself, and 
 came to do away, contained somewhat vastly great. For as 
 the blessing promised to obedience, do this and thou shall live, 
 certainly meant somewhat much greater than mere animal 
 life, and implied sweet fellowship and communion with God ; 
 so the curse to disobedience, dijing thou shalt die, as plainly 
 intimated much more than the mere return of the body to the 
 dust out of which it was taken ; it meant what in Scripture 
 (Rev. XX. 6.) is called the second death, meaning hell and 
 everlasting misery. Hence, in the recovery of our lost and 
 fallen nature from this awful state, when Jesus undertook the 
 salvation of his people, he was to sustain all that was our 
 due ; and in the accomplishment of this, he not only died in 
 his body, but he poured out his soul unto death. As the 
 sinner's Representative, and the sinner's Surety, he bore the 
 whole weight and pressure of divine justice due to sin ; ac- 
 cording to what the Holy Ghost taught — " Indignation and 
 wrath, tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that 
 doeth evil." Rom. ii. 9. Not that the Redeemer needed, in 
 the accomplishment of this, to go down into hell to suffer the 
 miseries of the damned ; for when the avenging wrath of God 
 came upon him, he endured it here. The wrath of God may 
 be sustained in earth as well as hell ; witness the evil spirit 
 that is called the prince of the power of the air, Ephes. ii. 2 ; 
 for wherever the apostate angels are, they still endure divine 
 wrath. Hence, when the Lord Christ poured out his soul 
 unto death by reason of the extremity of his soul's sufferings, 
 and soul's travail for his redeemed, he sustained all this as 
 the sinner's Surety, in becoming sin and a curse, to feel and 
 suffer all that was the sinner's due. Oh ! who shall say, 
 what heart shall conceive, the greatness and extensiveness of 
 thy sufferings, precious, precious Lamb of God ? Oh ! who 
 shall undertake fully to show the infinite suitableness of Je- 
 sus to every poor humble convinced sinner, in delivering him 
 from the wrath to come? Here, my soul, fix thine eyes; 
 here let all thy powers be employed in the unceasing con- 
 templation, while beholding Jesus, thy Jesus, pouring out his 
 
92 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul unto death ; while numbered with the transgressors, and 
 bearing the sin of many, and making intercession for the 
 transgressors. 
 
 8. — He humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the 
 death of the cross. — Philip-p. ii. 8. 
 
 My soul ! dost thou not feel, at every step towards Calvary, 
 somewhat of the angel's words, when he cried " One woe is 
 past, and behold there come two woes more hereafter!" Rev. 
 ix. 12. Surely never was there a manifestation of the holi- 
 ness of Jehovah, nor the utter detestation of God against sin, 
 as was set forth in the crucifixion of Jesus. Would men, 
 would angels, see what sin really is, let them go to the cross 
 of Jesus. The casting rebellious angels out of heaven ; the 
 curse pronounced upon the earth ; the drowning the old 
 world by water ; the burning Sodom by fire ; nay, the mil- 
 lions of miseries among men, and the unquenchable fire of 
 hell; though all these may make the souls of the awakened 
 exclaim against sin, yet all these are slight and inconsidera- 
 ble things, compared to the wrath of God poured out upon 
 the person of God's own Son, when he died the accursed 
 death of the cross. My soul, take thy stand this day at the 
 foot of the cross. Behold the Lamb of God! There see 
 divine justice more awfully displayed than it would have been 
 in the everlasting ruin of all creation. And oh ! may it be 
 thy portion, my soul, while looking unto Jesus, to say as 
 Paul did — " I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless I live ; 
 yet not I, but Christ liveth in me ; and the life which I now 
 live in the flesh, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who 
 loved me, and gave himself for me." But, my soul, while 
 thou lookest up to Jesus hanging on the painful tree, contem- 
 plate the sufferings of the Lord Jesus in his sacred body. 
 The death of the cross was a violent death ; for as there was 
 no sin in Jesus, there could not have been those seeds of 
 death, which, in all the race of Adam are found to bring 
 forth fruit unto death. Precious thought this, even in the 
 moment of beholding Jesus' life taken by violence. Had Je- 
 sus not died by a violent death, he would have been no sacri- 
 fice ; for that which died of itself naturally, could not by the 
 law have been offered to God. The death of Jesus was also 
 a cursed death; for it is written, "Cursed is every one that 
 hangeth on a tree." Behold, my soul, thy Lord thus lifted 
 up as a spectacle between heaven and earth, as if cursed and 
 
^ APRIL. 93 
 
 despised both of God and man. The death of Jesus was a 
 painful death, in which many deaths were, as it were, con- 
 tained in one. The nails driven through the most feeling 
 parts of the hands and feet, and the body stretched forth on 
 the transverse timber, in this manner the cross, with the Lord 
 Jesus fastened upon it, was lifted up in the air, until the bot- 
 tom fell into its socket, which suddenly shook the whole and 
 every part of his sacred body : and thus the whole weight 
 hanging on his pierced nailed hands, the wounds in both 
 hands and feet, by degrees, widened as he hung, until at 
 length he expired in tortures. Precious, precious Redeemer ! 
 was it thus thou didst offer thy soul an offering for sin ? 
 Was there no method in all the stores of Omnipotency, for 
 satisfying divine justice, but by thy holy, harmless, undefiled 
 body dying the violent, cursed, painful death of the cross? 
 Oh ! by the crimson fountain of thy blood, which issued from 
 thy pierced side, enable me to sit down, day by day, until I 
 find my whole nature crucified with thee in all its affections 
 and lusts. Let there be somewhat, dearest Lord, of an holy 
 conformity between my Lord and me: and if Jesus died /or 
 sin, may my soul die to sin ; that by mortifying the deeds of 
 the body I may live: and by carrying about with me always 
 the dying of the Lord Jesus, the life also of Jesus may be 
 made manifest in my mortal body. 
 
 9. — Then said Jesus, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they 
 do. — Luke xxiii. 34. 
 
 My soul ! art thou still taking thy stand at the foot of the 
 cross ? Art thou still looking up to Jesus ? If so, listen now 
 to his voice. There were seven expressions of Jesus which 
 were the last words that he uttered on the cross. The last 
 words of dying friends are particularly regarded : how much 
 more the last words of the best of all Friends, even the dying 
 Friend of poor lost perishing sinners. Those which I have 
 chosen for the portion of the day vrere the first : and they 
 contain the strong cry of Jesus to his Father for forgiveness 
 to his murderers. And what endears those expressions yet 
 more to the heart, are, that they are not only the first upon 
 the cross, but they are wholly, not for himself, but the people. 
 During the whole painful process of suffering, when they 
 scourged him, crowned him with thorns, smote him with 
 their hands, and mocked him, we hear no voice of complaint. 
 " He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep be- 
 
94 MORNIJMG PORTION. ^ 
 
 fore her snearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth." 
 Precious, meek Lamb of God ! But now, when lifted up on 
 the cross, Jesus broke silence, and cried out, " Father, for- 
 give them, for they know not what they do." Pause, my 
 soul ! Look agam at the cross. Was not Jesus now entered 
 upon his high-priest's office ? Was not the cross as the altar 
 from whence the sacrifice was offered 1 Was not Jesus him- 
 self the Sacrifice '? And was not Jesus the Sacrificer ? Might 
 not the pale, the dying, whitened visage of Jesus, be com- 
 pared to the white ephod of the high-priest ; the streaming 
 blood, flowing over his sacred body from the several wounds, 
 as the incense of his censer; and the dying sweat of his holy 
 frame, like the smoke ascending with the sweetest savour be- 
 fore God ? As the arms of .Tesus when he thus prayed, were 
 stretched forth on the cross, so the high-priest spread forth 
 his hands, when burning the incense for sacrifice, in pleading 
 for the people. Hail, thou glorious High-Priest ! in this the 
 humblest moment, and the most powerful of thine intercession. 
 Surely every wound of thine, every look, every feature, every 
 groan, pleaded with open mouth this gracious intercession for 
 forgiveness of sinners. Lord ; was I not included in the 
 prayer ? W^as not the eye of Jesus upon me in the moment 
 of this ail-prevailing advocacy? Oh! ye, of every descrip- 
 tion and character, that still sit unconcerned and unmoved at 
 this cry of the Son of God, is it nothing to you, all ye that 
 pass by? Think, my poor una wakened brother, how justly 
 * that voice might have been heard for all the enemies of Jesus 
 — " Depart from me, ye cursed ;" when the tender language 
 of Jesus was, '-Father, forgive them, for they know not what 
 they do." And think, moreover, that the same gracious 
 voice is still heard in heaven, and of the same blessed force 
 and efficacy as ever ; for while our sins are calling for judg- 
 ment, the blood of Jesus calls louder for mercy. Dear Lord ! 
 let this first cry of thine upon the cross, be the first and last 
 of all my thoughts under every exercise and temptation of 
 sin and Satan — " Father, forgive them, for they know not 
 what they do." 
 
 10. — When Jesus therefore saw his mother and the disciple standing by 
 whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy Son. 
 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother. — John xix. 26, 27. 
 
 This was the second among the dying words of the Lord 
 Jesus; and, no doubt^ of high importance in their full sense 
 
^ APRIL, 9SL 
 
 and meaning : not simply to recommend Mary to the care of 
 the beloved Apostle John, but probably of greater moment in 
 reference to the church of Jesus at large. My soul ; is it not 
 very certain that the Lord Jesus knew all the events which 
 would take place in all generations of his people ? And, as 
 such, did not Jesus perfectly well know also that the time 
 would come when divine honours would be offered to Mary? 
 These points cannot be disputed. Well, then, is it not wor- 
 thy the closest observation, that Jesus, both in this place 
 and upon all other occasions, when speaking of Mary, called 
 her woman? Why so? if as Jesus knew that there would 
 be some who would pray to her, and call her Mother of God, 
 by which name the Holy Ghost never distinguished her, nei- 
 ther the Lord Jesus himself; could there have been a more 
 decided method adopted than this to discountenance such 
 idolatry, than when Jesus, in his dying moments, called Mary 
 only woman ? Besides, was it not on another account, that 
 as Jesus was to be the seed of the woman which was prom- 
 ised to bruise the serpent's head, such a dying testimony 
 might serve instead of a thousand witnesses in proof of the 
 confirmation of the fact: and Mary's song might be the song 
 of thousands — " My soul doth magnify the Lord, and my 
 spirit hath rejoiced in God 7)ij/ Saviour.^' But when we 
 have thus attended to the second cry of Christ upon the cross 
 in reference to those sweet points, do thou my soul remember 
 also how tenderly those expressions of thy Lord recommend 
 all the endearing affections of love and regard through all 
 the members of Christ's mystical body. To behold our mo- 
 ther, or to behold our sons, are only different expressions 
 to intimate that all true believers in Jesus are members of 
 one another and of his body, his flesh, and his bones ? And 
 as it was by our Lord himself in this life, so is it with all his 
 redeemed, both in this life and in that which is to come ; 
 they who do the will of his Father, which is in heaven, the 
 same are Christ's brethren, and sisters, and mother. 
 
 jfll. — And Jesus said imto him, Verily I say unto thee, to-day shall thou 
 V be with me in paradise. — Luke xxiii. 43. 
 
 My soul ! hear the gracious words of thy Jesus. This was 
 the third cry of the Redeemer on the cross. And oh ! how 
 full of grace, rich, free, unmerited, unexpected, unlooked-for 
 grace, to a poor, lost, perishing sinner, even in the very mo- 
 ment of death. Let the self-righteous pharisee behold this 
 
96 MORxMNG PORTION. 
 
 example of redeeming love, and wonder, and be confounded. 
 Surely no one will venture to suppose that this man's good 
 works were any recommendation, when the poor wretch was 
 dying under the hands of justice. What was it then that 
 saved him but the complete salvation of Jesus? The Son 
 of God was offering his soul on the cross a sacrifice for sin, 
 and, being between two notorious sinners, gave a rich dis- 
 play of the sovereignty of his grace and his love to poor sin- 
 ners ; and, in confirmation, snatched this one as a brand from 
 the burning — took him from the very jaws of hell, and that 
 very da}^ led him in triumph to heaven, thereby manifesting 
 to every poor sinner in whose heart he puts the cry for merc}^, 
 that that cry shall never be put forth in vain. And mark, 
 my soul, how powerfully the grace of the Lord Jesus wrought 
 upon this man. He and his companion both knew that be- 
 fore night they would both be in eternity. The thought 
 affected neither: they joined the rabble in insulting Jesus. 
 Save thyself, and us, was the language of the heart of both, 
 until the grace of Jesus wrought on this man's mind, and 
 changed the reviler into an humble suitor. What could 
 there be in Jesus thus to affect him ? Jesus hung upon the 
 cross like a poor Jew. Jesus had been always poor, and 
 never more so than now. And yet, in the midst of all these 
 surrounding circumstances, such a ray of light broke in upon 
 this man's mind, that he saw Jesus in all his glory and 
 power, acknowledged him for a King, when all the disciples 
 had forsook him and fled, and prayed to be remembered by 
 him when he came into his kingdom. Precious Lamb of 
 God ! bestow upon me such a portion of thy grace as, under 
 all the unpromising circumstances around, may call forth the 
 like conviction of thy power and my need. And oh ! that 
 this pattern of mercy might be reviewed by thousands of 
 poor perishing, dying sinners. Methinks I would have it 
 proclaimed through all the public places of resort, through 
 all the haunts of licentiousness, among the numberless scenes 
 of hardened sinners who fear that they have sinned beyond 
 the possibility of forgiveness. Oh ! look at this example of 
 Jesus' love, ye that are going down to the grave full of sin 
 and despair ; behold the thief, behold the Saviour ! And 
 oh ! for a cry of grace like that of the dying malefactor — 
 " Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom ;" 
 and Jesus' gracious answer — " To-day shak thou be with me 
 in paradise." 
 
APRIL. 97 
 
 12. — And about the ninth hour, Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying 
 Eh, Eh, lama sabachthani ? that is to say, My God, my God, why 
 hast thou forsaken me ? — Matt, xxvii. 46. 
 
 Mark, my soul ! Jesus had hung upon the cross now for 
 six hours. Think what agonies he sustained both in soul 
 and body. The fury of hell had broke out upon him, and 
 in the cruelties of the men around him, exercised upon his 
 sacred person, manifested how extensive that fury was. But 
 had this been all, had God the Father smiled upon him, had 
 the cup of trembling been taken away, some alleviation 
 would have taken place in Jesus' sufferings ; but so far was 
 this from being the case, that the heaviest load of sorrow his 
 holy soul sustained, was the wrath of the Father due to sin, 
 as the sinner's Suret}^ Angels, no doubt, looked on. All 
 heaven stood amazed. And, at length, overpov^^ered with 
 the fulness of sorrow and anguish of soul, the dying Lamb 
 cried out, " My God, my God, why hast thouforsaken me?" 
 Pause, my soul, while thou hearest in the ear of faith, still 
 vibrating in the air, the dolorous cry, and conceive, if it be 
 possible, what the holy, harmless, undefiled Jesus felt, when 
 such expressions of exquisite terror and distress were forced 
 from his dying lips. What forsaking of Jesus was this by 
 God his Father 7 Not the dissolving of the union between 
 them : not the withdrawing the arm of his strength ; for 
 Jesus still calls him, " Eli, Eli," that is, my strong one : not 
 that he left him to himself; neither that his love for Jesus 
 was lessened : but it was the withdrawing or withholding 
 those sweet manifestations whereby he had sustained the hu- 
 man nature of Jesus through the whole of his incarnation. It 
 was beholding Jesus in this solemn season as the sinner's 
 Surety ; and, as such, it was a punishing desertion, implying 
 that, as Jesus stood, or rather hung, with all the burden of 
 our sin, he was so deserted for that time as we, out of Jesus, 
 deserve to be forsaken for ever. The cry of Jesus, the shriek 
 of his precious soul, under this desertion, represented the ever- 
 lasting shrieks of them that are cast out of God's gracious 
 presence to all eternity. Here pause again, my soul. And 
 wouldest thou have howled in this endless, pitiable cry for 
 ever, had not Jesus uttered it for thee once? And art thou, 
 by virtue of it, saved from this wrath to come? Hath Jesus 
 both borne thy sins, carried thy sorrows, and been forsaken of 
 his Father, that thou mightest enjoy his presence and favour 
 for ever ? My soul, what wilt thou render to the Lord for 
 bU his benefits ? Wilt thou not take the cup of salvation and 
 
 9 
 
98 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 call upon the name of the Lord now thy Jesus hath for thee 
 taken the cup of trembling, and drank all the dregs of it? 
 Precious, precious Redeemer ! may I never, never lose sight 
 of thee in this part of thy sufferings also ; and especially eye 
 thee still more when my soul is under the hidings of God's 
 countenance. Let me recollect, dearest Lord ! that thou hast 
 been forsaken hefore thy people and/o;- thy people ; and here, 
 as in all other instances, thou hast the pre-eminence, so as to 
 sanctify even our momentary desertions to our good and to 
 thy glory. Yes, precious Lord ! such are the blessed effects 
 of thy desertion, that hence my soul learns, my God still sup- 
 ports, though my God may withhold his comforts. Jesus 
 was forsaken for ever. And grant me, dearest Lord ! from 
 thy bright example, to cast myself wholly upon thee, as thou 
 didst upon thy Father, when all sensible comforts fail, con- 
 vinced that thou art the strength of my heart and my portion 
 for ever ! 
 
 13. — After this Jesus, knowing that all things were now accomplished, 
 that the Scriptures might be fulfilled, saith, I thirst. — John xix. 28. 
 
 After this, that is, I conceive, (though I do not presume to 
 mark the very order in which the Lord Jesus uttered his 
 loud cries upon the cross,) after his complaint of desertion : 
 for whether this was the fourth or the fifth of the seven last 
 words of the Redeemer, I dare not determine ; yet the words 
 themselves Vv-ere highly important, and significant of great 
 things, in reference to Jesus and his people. Jesus thus cried 
 that the scriptures might be fulfilled, it is said ; for it had been 
 prophesied of him, that gall was given him to eat — and, when 
 thirsty, vinegar to drink, Psalm Ixix. 21. And the soldiers, 
 unconscious what they did of fulfilling this very prophecj^, 
 gave him spunge dipped in vinegar. But, my soul, was it 
 the thirst of the body thy Jesus complained of? I think not. 
 He had before declared, at his last supper, that he would 
 drink no more of the fruit of the vine, until the day he drank 
 it new in the kingdom of his Father. What could be then 
 the thirst of Jesus, but the thirst of his soul for the accomplish- 
 ment of redemption /or his people, and the accomplishment of 
 redemption in his people. He thirsted with an holy vehe- 
 ment thirst for the everlasting salvation of his ransomed, and 
 seemed to anticipate the hour, by this expression, when he 
 should see the travail of his soul, and be satisfied. But did 
 not Jesus also in this hour, as bearing the curse and wrath 
 
APRIL. 99 
 
 of God for sin, thirst in soul with that kind of thirst which, 
 in hell, those who bear the everlasting torments of condemna- 
 tion fee], when they are under an everlasting thirst which ad- 
 mits of no relief? That representation the Lord Jesus gives 
 of this state, in the parable of the rich man's thirst, serves to 
 afford a lively but alarming view of such superlative misery. 
 Oh ! that those who now add drunkenness to thirst, would 
 seriously lay this to heart. Did God suffer his dear Son, to 
 whom sin was but transferred, and not committed by him — 
 did he suffer him to cry out under this thirst ; and what may 
 we suppose will be the everlasting cry of such as not only 
 merit his wrath for sin, but merit yet more, his everlasting 
 wrath for refusino- redemption by Jesus, who thirsted on the 
 cross to redeem sinners from endless thirsting in despair and 
 misery? My soul! did Jesus thirst for tliee? Were his 
 dying lips parched, and his soul made deeply athirst for thy 
 salvation ? And shall not this thirst of thy Redeemer kindle 
 an holy thirst in thee for him, and his love, and his great sal- 
 vation ? Wilt thou not now this morning, anew, look up by 
 faith to the cross, and to the throne, and catch the flame of 
 love from his holy, loving, longing, languishing eyes, unti- 
 all thy powers go forth in vehement desires, like him of old, 
 crying out — " As the hart thirsteth for the water-brooks, so 
 longeth my soul after thee, O God. Let him kiss me with 
 the kisses of his mouth ; for thy love is better than wine." 
 
 14. — When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is fin- 
 ished. — John xix. 30. 
 
 Perhaps these words formed the sixth cry of the Lord 
 Jesus on the cross. The glorious close of all his sufferings 
 was now arrived ; and, full of these high ideas which occu- 
 pied his holy mind, he cried out, " It is finished." What is 
 finished ? Redemption work is finished. All the long series 
 of prophesies, visions, types, and the shadow of the good 
 things to come, which pointed to Jesus, and redemption by 
 him, were now finished in their accomplishment. The law 
 was finished in its condemning power ; and the gospel com- 
 menced its saving influence. Jesus, by that one sacrifice now 
 offered, had for ever perfected them that u'ere sanctified. The 
 separation between Jew and Gentile was now finished, and 
 done away for ever. Jesus had now gathered together in 
 one all the children of God which were scattered abroad. 
 The iron reign of sin and Satan, of death and hell, were now 
 
100 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 broken in pieces by this Stone cut out of the mountain with- 
 out hands ; and life and immortality, pardon, mercy, and 
 peace, were brought to light, and secured to the faithful, by 
 this finished redemption of the Lord Jesus Christ. The 
 peace, the love, the favour of God the Father, was now mani- 
 fested, and that spiritual kingdom of the Lord Jesus, which 
 shall have no end, was from this moment set up in the hearts 
 and minds of his people. The sure descent of the Holy 
 Ghost was now confirmed : and the Lord Jesus already, by 
 anticipation, beheld his Israel of old, and his Gentile church, 
 as well as Ethiopia and the multitude of the isles, stretching 
 forth their hands unto God. With these and the like glorious 
 prospects the mind of Jesus was filled ; and having received 
 the vinegar, as the last prophecy remaining then to be com- 
 pleted, hecried out, '• It is finished." My soul ! never let these 
 precious, precious words of Jesus depart from thy mind. Do by 
 them as Moses commanded Israel concerning the words he 
 gave them ; let them be in thy heart and in thy soul : bind 
 them as a sign upon thine hand, and let them be as frontlets 
 between thine eyes. Tell thy God and Father what thy 
 Jesus has told thee — " It is finished." He hath finished re- 
 demption for thee ; and He will finish redemption in thee. 
 He hath destroyed death, hath satisfied and glorified the law, 
 taken away the curse, made full restitution for sin, brought 
 in an everlasting righteousness, and opened the glorious 
 mansions of the blessed as the home and rest of all his peo- 
 ple. Oh ! my soul, let these dying words of thy Jesus be 
 made by thee as an answer to all thy prayers, and begin that 
 song to the Lamb, which, ere long thou wilt fully and loudly 
 sing among the church above — Worthy is the Lamb that 
 was slain ; for thou wast slain, and has redeemed us to God 
 by thy blood. 
 
 15. — And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into 
 thy hands I commend my spirit ; and having thus said, he gave up 
 the Ghost. — Luke xxiii. 46. 
 
 My soul ! ponder well these last of the last seven words of 
 thy God and Saviour, which he uttered on the cross ; for 
 surely they are most sweet and precious, and highly interest- 
 ing, both on thy Saviour's account and thine own. And first 
 remark the manner in which the Lord Jesus thus breathed 
 out his soul: not like a man spent and exhausted, after hang- 
 ing so many hours on the cross, faint with loss of blood, and 
 
APRIL. 101 
 
 such agonies of soul as never one before endured ; but it was 
 with a loud voice, thereby proving what he had before de- 
 clared — " No man taketh my life from me ; I have power to 
 lay it down ; I have power to take it again." Precious Jesus ! 
 how sweet this assurance to thy people. But wherefore cry 
 with a loud voice 1 A whisper, nay, a thought of the soul 
 only, if with an eye of communication to God the Father, 
 would have been sufficient, if this had been all that was in- 
 tended. Wherefore then did Jesus cry with a loud voice ? 
 Was it not that all in heaven, and all in hell, might hear ? 
 Did not angels shout at the cry 1 Did not the spirits of just 
 men made perfect among the faithful gone to glory in Jesus' 
 name, hear and sing aloud ? Did not all hell tremble when 
 Jesus thus cried aloud, conscious that the keys of the grave, 
 and death, and hell, were now put into his Almighty hand ? 
 Oh, precious, precious Jesus ! was this among thy gracious 
 designs for which, when thou wert retiring from the bloody 
 field of battle, as a conquerer, thy loud voice shouted Victory ? 
 And was there not another sweet and gracious design in this 
 loud cry, oh thou blessed Jesus? Didst thou not intend 
 thereby that poor sinners, unto the ends of the earth, might, 
 by faith, hear, and believe to the salvation of their souls ? 
 Didst thou not, dearest Lord ! when bowing thy sacred head, 
 as if to take a parting look of the disciple and the Marys, at 
 the foot of the cross, and beholding them as the representa- 
 tives of all the members of thy mystical body, didst cry with 
 a loud voice, that all with them might behold thy triumphs, 
 and rejoice in thee their glorious Head ? Yes, Lamb of 
 God ! we adore thee in this glorious act ; for we do accept it 
 as it really is, the act of our one glorious Head, In this so- 
 lemn committing of thy Spirit to the Father, we consider our 
 spirits also as committed with thee, and by thee. My soul ! 
 mark this down carefully in the inmost tablet of thine heart. 
 In all this, blessed Jesus! thou wert, and art, our Head. 
 Thou didst, to all intents and purposes, take every individual 
 believer of thine as a part of thyself, and by this act didst 
 commit, with thyself, the whole into thy Father's hands, to 
 be kept until the hour of their dropping their bodies, then to 
 be united to thee for ever. Oh ! precious Jesus ! oh precious 
 mercy of our Jesus, how safe, how eternally safe and secure, 
 are all thy redeemed ! Well might thine Apostle say, " No 
 man liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself ; for in 
 Jesus his people ever live, and in Jesus they securely die." 
 Henceforth, dear Lord ! let me know myself to be already 
 
 9* 
 
102 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 committed with thee, and by thee, into the hands of my God 
 and Father in Jesus, and when the hour cometh that the cas- 
 ket, in which that precious jewel, my soul, now dwells, is 
 opened for the soul to take her departure, oh then for faith, 
 for lively, active, earnest faith, to follow the example and to 
 adopt the very language, of my God and Saviour, and to 
 cry out — Lord Jesus, into thy hands I commend my spirit ; 
 for thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, thou God of truth ! 
 
 16. — There laid they Jesus. — John xix. 42. 
 
 My soul ! it is usual for the relations and friends of those 
 that are deceased to attend the funeral. Art thou a friend, a 
 relation of Jesus ? Oh ! yes ; I trust thou art. He was, and 
 is, the dearest of all friends, the nearest of all relations. He 
 is at once all and every one — the Father, the Husband, the 
 Brother. The invitation is therefore sent to thee, personally 
 to thee. Every voice of affection calls thee to the tomb of 
 Jesus, saying, " Come, see the place where the Lord lay." 
 And if, like Mary Magdalene, from more abundant love, thou 
 art asking, "Where have they laid him?" — the answer im- 
 mediately is returned, Come and see. Yes, thou dear Re- 
 deemer ! by that faith thou hast graciously given me, I will 
 come and see. Let my faith take wing, and light down in 
 Joseph of Arimathea's garden, and behold the place where 
 the Lord lay. Was this the memorable spot ? Did Jesus lay 
 here ? Did he here make (according to the ancient prophecy 
 foretold of him) his grave with the wicked and with the rich 
 in his death, because he had done no violence, neither was 
 any deceit in his mouth ? Here let me look ; here let my 
 soul wander in contemplation! Oh! what a marvellous 
 sight to behold Jesus thus lain in the grave ! Surely we may 
 cry out, as the church did in the view, " My beloved is white 
 and ruddy." Never did death so triumph before. Never 
 did the grave receive and hold such a prisoner. But, my 
 soul, behold also, in the view, how Jesus triumphed even in 
 death. It was through death he destroyed him that had the 
 power of death — that is, the devil, that he might deliver them 
 who, through fear of death, are all their life-time subject to 
 bondage. And what saith Jesus to my soul from the grave % 
 Fear not, I have the keys of death and the grave : fear not 
 to go down to the Egypt of the grave ; I will go with thee, 
 and will surely bring thee up again from thence. And ob- 
 serve, my soul, as the grave could not detain thy Lord, thine 
 
APRIL. 103 
 
 Head, a prisoner ; so neither can the grave beyond the ap- 
 pointed time, detain any of his members. And as the union 
 between the Godhead and the manhood in Jesus was not 
 broken off by death, so neither can the union between Jesus 
 and his people be interrupted by death. The covenant of 
 redemption, the union of Jesus with his people, the love of 
 God in Christ to the souls and bodies of his redeemed, all 
 these rot not in the grave : nay, where sin is taken out, the 
 very enmity of the grave is slain : and though it acts as a de- 
 vourei" of our corrupt bodies, yet it acts as a preserver also of 
 the refined part, that the dust and ashes of his saints Jesus 
 may visit, and manifest his care over from day to day. Precious 
 Lord ! here then, as in every thing, thou hast the pre-emi- 
 nence. Thou hast gone before : thou hast sweetly perfumed 
 the grave by having lain there. And where should the dy- 
 ing members be but where their living Head hath been be- 
 fore ? Hence, then, my soul, take comfort, and fear not when 
 thy partner the body is called upon to go down to the grave. 
 When the soul flies to Jesus in heaven, the body will sweetly 
 rest in Jesus till summoned from the grave. Thy God, thy 
 Jesus, hath the appointment for thy departure ; both the place 
 where, the time when, and the manner how, are all with him. 
 He hath the keys both to open the door of death, and to open 
 the kingdom of heaven. Leave all then with him. Fre- 
 quently, by faith, visit his sepulchre, and behold where they 
 laid him. And in the triumphs of thy Jesus, as thine head, 
 already take part, as a member of his body, crying out with 
 the Apostle, " O death, where is thy sting ; O grave, where 
 is thy victory ? God be praised who giveth us the victory, 
 throuofh our Lord Jesus Christ" 
 
 17. — The Lord is risen indeed. — Luke xxiv. 34. 
 
 Let thy meditations, my soul, this morning be sweetly ex- 
 ercised upon thy risen and exalted Saviour. For if thy Lord 
 be indeed risen, then will it undeniably follow, that as he died 
 for our sins, so he arose for our justification, and is thereby 
 become the first fruits of them that sleep. Beg of God the 
 Holy Ghost to lead thee into the devout contemplation and 
 enjoyment of this soul-reviving subject. Trace the testimo- 
 nies of this wonderful event, until, from being overpowered 
 in the vast assemblage of witnesses, thou art prompted to cry 
 out in the same language, " The Lord is risen indeed." And 
 surely never was there any one fact so fully, so clearly, and 
 
104 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 SO circumstantially confirmed. It hath the united testimony 
 of heaven and earth ; of angels and men ; of the living and 
 the dead ; of friends and foes ; and God himself confirming 
 it in the midst of his people, by sending down the Holy 
 Ghost agreeably to the promise of Jesus at the day of Pente- 
 cost. Review these things in order. First,^ heaven gave in 
 its evidence in those supernatural signs, which issued in the 
 morning of Jesus' resurrection ; for we are told that an angel 
 descended from heaven, and rolled back the stone from the 
 door of Jesus' sepulchre, and sat upon it. And, secondly^ 
 earth gave her testimony also to the same, by the convulsions 
 sustained at his approach — there was a great earthquake. 
 And then again, as angels came to inform the pious women 
 who waited to embalm the sacred body of Christ, that Jesus 
 was risen ; so the testimony of multitudes among men gave 
 equal attestation to this glorious truth. For beside the many 
 separate and distinct appearances Jesus made to numbers, he 
 appeared to above five hundred brethren at once, by way of 
 confirming the undoubted fact. The living^ who ate and 
 drank with him after he arose from the dead, surely could 
 not be mistaken. And the dead^ which arose from their 
 graves, as if to celebrate the glories of his resurrection, in 
 which they took part, came forth, when the sepulchres 
 yawned at "the triumph of Jesus, and went into the holy city 
 and appeared unto many. And not only the friends of Jesus, 
 but the foes of Jesus, became undesignedly the witnesses of 
 this great truth: for by attributing his resurrection to the 
 disciples' stealing away his body, they positively prove that 
 the body of Christ remained not in the sepulchre. And that 
 the poor timid disciples, whose meetings were all in secret, 
 for fear of the Jews, should project such a scheme as to take 
 away the body, which the Roman soldiers were purposely 
 placed to secure, is not to be equalled in folly in the very 
 idea, unless by that other part of the childish story, that the 
 body was stolen while the guard slept ; and so the testimony, 
 it should seem, to this tale, is the testimony of men sleeping ! 
 Here, then, my soul, in devout contemplation^ take thy stand 
 at the door of the sepulchre of thy Jesus, and ponder over 
 such a multitude of witnesses who all cry out, with one voice, 
 as the angels did to the astonished women, " He is not here ; 
 for he is risen, as he said. Come, see the place where the 
 Lord lay." And oh ! thou dear Redeemer ! do thou, while 
 my soul is pondering these things, do thou draw nigh, as 
 thou didst to thy disciples on the morning of thy resurrection^ 
 
ATRIL. 1 05 
 
 and sweetly commune with me of all these blessed truths 
 concerning thj^self ; lead me, by faith, through all the pre- 
 cious subject, from the sepulchre to thine house of prayer, to 
 the ordinance and thy table, from thy cross to thy crown ; 
 and cause my whole heart to burn within me, while thou art 
 talking to me by the way, and while thou art opening to me 
 the Scriptures. Then shall I truly rejoice that my Lord is 
 indeed risen from the dead, and my soul is risen with him, 
 from dead works to serve thee the living and true God. 
 
 18. — And declared to be the Son of God with power ; according to the 
 Spirit of Holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. — Romans i. 4. 
 
 Do not, my soul, hastily pass away from this most pre- 
 cious subject of thy Lord's resurrection. It is an inexhaustible 
 theme, and will be am.ong thy felicities in eternity. Yester- 
 day, thou didst but barely consider the fact. Let this day 
 occupy thy thoughts on another sweet portion of it, in be- 
 holding how Jesus effected it by his own power and God- 
 head. He had said before, that he had power to lay down 
 his life, and power to take it again. And he had told the 
 Jews to destroy the temple, by which he meant the temple of 
 his body, and he would raise it again in three days. He had 
 proclaimed himself to be the resurrection and the life: and 
 here he proved it, when he was declared to be the Son of 
 God with power ; according to the Spirit of holiness, by his 
 resurrection from the dead. Now, then, pause over this glo- 
 rious view of Him who was thus proved to be one with the 
 Father, and who, at the same time, was one in thy nature, 
 bone of thy bone, and flesh of thy flesh. Beautiful and com- 
 prehensive is the expression: declared to be the Son of God; 
 for who but God could accomplish such an event ? And by 
 the Spirit of holiness he was equally declared to be not liable 
 to corruption ; for, as God's Holy One, it was impossible that 
 his flesh should see corruption. Psalm xvi. 10. And the 
 Holy Ghost again, by Peter the Apostle, explains it when he 
 saith, " Christ was put to death in the flesh, but quickened in 
 the Spirit." 1 Pet. iii. 18. The flesh here means his human 
 nature ; and the quickening by the Spirit (being what is 
 called the antithesis, that is, the opposite to flesh) means his 
 own Spirit, his own power and Godhead ; similar to what is 
 said in the Hebrews concerning the offering of Jesus, that 
 through the Eternal Spirit he offered himself^ Heb. ix. 14. — 
 meaning, that his Godhead gave dignity and value to the 
 
106 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 offering of his body for the sins of his people. Ponder this 
 blessed truth, my soul ; for it is most blessed, and of much 
 greater importance than at the first view of the words, it may 
 strike you. Behold in it, that it was the Godhead of Jesus 
 by which thy Jesus triumphed over death and the grave. 
 The Father's hand was in it most certain, as it was in all the 
 other acts of redemption; for the Holy Ghost taught the 
 church, by Paul, that God had raised up the Lord. 1 Cor. 
 vi. 14. And manifested by this, saith the Holy Ghost, that 
 he was the God of Peace, in bringing again from the dead 
 the Lord Jesus Christ. Heb. xiii. 20. And the Holy Ghost 
 had his almighty hand in the same ; for it is the Spirit that 
 quickeneth ; and hence Christ is said to have been justified 
 in the Spirit. 1 Tim. iii. 16. But while we are taught by 
 these Scriptures, and others to the same purport, to behold 
 both the Father and the Holy Ghost acting in the resurrec- 
 tion of Jesus — by this, and others of the same kind, we are 
 taught to view the Godhead in Christ as the cause of his 
 resurrection. For if Jesus had been raised by the power of 
 the Father and the Holy Ghost only, how would he have 
 been declared to be the Son of God by his resurrection? 
 For, in this case, nothing more would have been manifested 
 in his resurrection than in the resurrection of others ; for it 
 is by the power of God that the dead are to be raised. 
 Hence, my soul, behold the vast importance of this great 
 point in the resurrection of thy Lord: and never lose sight 
 of this blessed truth, that thy Jesus, vv^ho is thy resurrection 
 and thy life, arose himself by this self-quickening principle. 
 Behold, in this point of view, what a glorious truth is the re- 
 surrection of Jesus. And what a lovely promise did the 
 Lord, by the Prophet, give to all the people of God concern- 
 ing this, ages before this glorious event took place — " Thy 
 dead men shall live ; together with my dead body shall they 
 arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust ; for thy 
 dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out her 
 dead." Isaiah xxvi. 19. 
 
 19. — Who was delivered for our offences, and raised again for our justi- 
 fication. — Romans vi. 25. 
 
 My soul, thou must not yet dismiss — no, nor ever dismiss, 
 the sweet and precious subject of thy Lord's resurrection. 
 One part of it thou hast not yet scarce glanced at ; and yet it 
 is such a one as thine everlasting safety, and thy justification 
 
APRIL. 107 
 
 before God, depends upon. " For," as the Holy Ghost hath 
 said, by the mouth of his servant, the Apostle, "if Christ be 
 not risen, then are believers yet in their sins." 1 Cor. 15, 
 17, See to it then, my soul, that what this sweet Scripture 
 of the morning saith be true, that Jesus was delivered for 
 thine offences, and w^as raised again for thy justification. 
 While Jesus was on the cross, and when Jesus was taken down 
 and laid in the grave, the payment and the ransom for sin 
 was then discharging. Jesus was then truly delivered for 
 our offences. And when he arose from the dead, then the 
 poor sinner, for whom he was delivered, and for whom he 
 died, was truly justified before God ; for thereby proof was 
 made that the debt was paid, the receipt given, and God, in 
 confirmation of it, styled himself by a new name, even the 
 God of Peace, in bringing again from the dead, our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, as the great Shepherd of his sheep, through 
 the blood of the everlasting covenant. Hence the resurrec- 
 tion of Jesus was like going into the presence of God to can- 
 cel the bond, the hand-writing of ordinances, that was 
 against us. It was as if Jesus gave this testimony in his 
 glorious resurrection, that both sin and death had now lost 
 their retaining power ; the dominion of both were for ever 
 done away, and all true believers in Christ might join the 
 Apostle's song — " Who shall lay any thing to the charge of 
 God's elect? It is God that justifieth ; who is he that con- 
 demneth ? It is Christ that died — yea rather, that is risen 
 again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh 
 intercession for us." My soul, be sure to keep this in con- 
 stant view, when, at any time, thou art meditating on the 
 death and resurrection of Jesus : and let both be thy daily 
 meditation. Think how truly blessed, how truly happy, how 
 present, and everlastingly secure, must those souls be who 
 are interested in the death and in the resurrection of the Lord 
 Jesus. By the one he hath purchased their pardon, and by 
 the other, he had justified their persons ; so that, when law 
 and justice present their charge against them, this is the un- 
 answerable plea, — Jesus w^as delivered for our offences, and 
 raised again for our justification. Oh! dearest Lord ! grant 
 me daily and hourly to be bringing into all ray spiritual en- 
 joyments the sweet sense and consciousness of being thus in- 
 terested, justified, and secured. Give me a present right 
 and title, that I may live upon it ; and by and by, when thou 
 shalt call me home, then, O Lord, present me finally and 
 fully, once for all, as made comely in thy comeliness, clothed in 
 
108 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 thy righteousness, and fully prepared, both in soul and body, for 
 everlasting happiness and glory among them that are sanctified. 
 
 20. — Now is Christ risen from tlie dead, and become the first fruits of 
 them that slept — 1 Cor. xv. 20. 
 
 One view more, my soul, while thou art meditating upon 
 this delightful subject of thy Redeemer's triumph over 
 death and the grave, and now look at Jesus' resurrection 
 as a sure pledge and confirmation of thine own. Did Jesus' 
 holy body arise ? Then so shalt thine, sinful and polluted as 
 it now is, but then made a glorified body by virtue of thy 
 union with him. For so saith the Holy Ghost, by his ser- 
 vant the Apostle, " He shall change our vile body, that it 
 may be fashioned like unto his glorious body. For if the 
 Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead, dwell in 
 you, he that raised up Christ from the dead, shall also 
 quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in 
 you." Phil. iii. 2 1 . Rom. viii. 1 1 . Pause then, my soul, and 
 rejoice in this glorious and transporting doctrine. As sure 
 as Jesus arose, so sure shall all his people : for Jesus arose as 
 the first fruits. Jesus arose, not as a private person, but as 
 the public head. Never call to mind the resurrection of 
 Jesus, but be sure to connect always with it this blessed view 
 of the subject — every redeemed believer is part of Christ's 
 body. And as we are by nature part of the first Adam, and 
 die, from our union and connexion, and being of the same 
 nature with him ; so, by grace, being part of Christ's mysti- 
 cal body, who is called in Scripture, particularly on this ac- 
 count, the second Adam, his people are interested in all that 
 concerns him, and because he liveth, they must live also. 
 Hence he is called the first fruits, the first born from the dead. 
 And as all the after fruits of the harvest follow the first fruits ; 
 so the saints, born again of God, follow the first born from 
 the dead to glory. Oh ! heart-reviving subject ! The eyes 
 that now read these lines, and the hand that now writes 
 them, if a part of Christ's mystical body by regeneration, 
 must assuredly be a part in the resurrection. In the eye of the 
 law, they are one. Jesus is the head of his body the Church : 
 and how incomplete in glory would be that glorious head 
 without the whole and every individual member of his fair 
 one, his spouse, which he hath betrothed to himself for ever. 
 Shout then, my soul ! and shout aloud, and say with Job — 
 " Though after my skin, worms destroy this body, yet in 
 
APRIL. 109 
 
 my flesh shall I see God," My flesh shall moulder indeed in 
 the dust, and see corruption. And so would I have it to be. 
 Vile and polluted as it now is, and fighting as it now doth 
 against my soul's desires and affections, methinks, I would not, 
 if it were possible, take it with me to heaven as it now is. But 
 when Jesus shall change this vile body, and have fashioned it 
 like unto his glorious body, then it will be without spot or 
 v/rinkle. or any such thing ; and then soul and body united 
 together in love, and both united to the Lord, will form one 
 united object to praise and glorify God, Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost, to all eternity ! My soul, dwell upon these 
 things ; give thyself wholly to them ; and as thou believ- 
 est that Jesus died and rose again, so equally believe also, 
 that all they that sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 
 For this the Apostle had in commission from the Lord, to 
 tell all true believers that when Jesus shall descend from hea- 
 ven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and Vv^ith the 
 trump of God, the dead in Christ shall arise; and then they 
 which remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall be caught 
 up together Vv^th them to meet the Lord in the air, and so 
 shall they ever be with the Lord. Oh ! for grace to comfort 
 one another with these words. 
 
 21. — The glory which thou gavest me I have given them, that they may 
 be one, even as we are one. — John xviii. 22. 
 
 Those are sweet views of Jesus which point to our oneness 
 and union with him, by which alone we derive an interest in 
 him, and are made partakers both in his grace and glory. 
 By virtue of this it is, that the glory the Father gave Jesus, 
 as Mediator, all his people are interested in, and truly enjoy. 
 For though, like the heir of the kingdom, when an infant, 
 the babe is unconscious of his dignity, yet is not the less en- 
 titled to his high birth and rank ; so the seed of Jesus, while 
 in this childhood of existence, though they do not live up to 
 their high privileges through the weakness of their faith, yet 
 their claim in Jesus is not the less. Jesus hath given them 
 the glory of being brought within the covenant ; the glory 
 of redemption ; the glory of the Holy Ghost's gifts and influ- 
 ences ; and, in short, all the glory which a state of grace im- 
 plies, and which is the earnest of the future fulness of glory. 
 And, my soul ! dost thou ever pause over this account of 
 present glory as if thou didst now truly know thine interest 
 in and enioyment of it? Look at it only under these two 
 
 10 
 
110 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 considerations, and then bow down under a sense of it in the 
 dust before God. In the first, put forth thy utmost faculties 
 to calculate that glory which, if thou art one of Jesus' re- 
 deemed people, thou now truly hast in having union with 
 Christ ! Who shall undertake to describe that glory imparted 
 to a poor worm of the earth, who is brought into union with 
 God's dear Son ? Paul speaks of it as an high privilege, 
 when he said, " Ye are come to an innumerable company of 
 angels." But what is the society of angels, compared to an 
 union with Jesus? Moreover, angels have no such privi- 
 lege : for while Jesus is to them their Lord and Sovereign, 
 and governs them by his supreme command, yet is he 
 not to them as he is to his church, the glorious head of 
 that church, which is his body, and by which he per- 
 petually communicates to all his members a source of gra- 
 cious and glorious influences, according to what he hath 
 said, " Because I live, ye shall live also." Hence what the 
 Redeemer said to the Father is explained on this sure testi- 
 mony --" The glory thou gavest me I have given them, that 
 they may be one, even as we are one." Look at the subject 
 under another consideration. Hath not Jesus given present 
 glory to all his redeemed in that communication which is 
 perpetually passing and repassing between him and them, by 
 virtue of this oneness, and unity, and interest, into which 
 they are actually brought 1 My soul ! what saith thine ex- 
 perience to this precious truth % Dost thou really and truly 
 partake of what is Jesus' ; and doth he not really and truly 
 partake of what is thine? Is there not an exchange, a 
 barter, a fellowship, carried on between thy glorious head 
 and thyself? Surely thou hast communion in whatever be- 
 longs to Christ as Mediator, in his righteousness, in his grace, 
 his redemption, his glory. And doth not Jesus manifest con- 
 tinual tokens that he takes part in all that concerns thee ; thy 
 sorrows, thy wants, thine afflictions? Was it not said of him, 
 ages before his incarnation, when speaking of his people, 
 "in all their afiiiction he was afflicted?" And is it not said 
 now, that whosoever toucheth his people, touched the apple 
 of his eye? Oh! unparalleled grace ! Oh! matchless love ! 
 that the Son of God should thus manifest his affection. What 
 will you call this, my soul, but what thy God and Saviour 
 hath called it — the glory which the Father gave him he hath 
 given to his people ? And all this on purpose to prove that 
 they are one with him. Hallelujah ! 
 
APRIL. 1 1 1 
 
 22. — Wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered to- 
 gether. — Matt. xxiv. 28. 
 
 My soul ! these are the words of Jesus, none of which 
 should be suffered to fall to the ground. No doubt much in- 
 struction is contained in this passage. An eagle is a bird of 
 prey : and Job saith that the eagle hasteth to the prey as the 
 swift ships. Job ix. 26. In all birds of prey there is great 
 sagacity, a vast quickness of scent to smell their proper food 
 afar off; and thus natural instinct, added to a rapacious appe- 
 tite, compels those creatures to fly swift to their prey, and to 
 devour the carcase. Is there nothing in all this that suits thee, 
 my soul ? Oh ! yes. If Jesus hath given thee a real prin- 
 ciple of life in himself, which becomes a spiritual quickening 
 from day to day, and from one hour to another, thy hungering 
 and thirsting for Jesus will be as earnest and as importunate 
 as the instinct of nature in those birds for daily food. Pause, 
 my soul, and say — is it so 1 Dost thou seek after Jesus in 
 his ordinances, in his word, in retirement, in meditation, in 
 prayer, in providences, and, in short, in all the various ways 
 by which thou mayest enjoy him, as a famished bird would 
 hasten to its prey 1 If Jesus be indeed the one blessed object 
 of thy desire, will not this be manifested by the earnestness 
 of thy desires ? Did David long for the waters of Bethle- 
 hem when thirsty 7 Did he declare, that as the hart panted 
 for the water-brooks, so he longed for the enjoyment of God 7 
 Here then, my soul, mayest thou learn how to estimate the 
 real standard of thy affections to thy Jesus. Oh ! for grace 
 to have the soul exercised day and night, and never, never to 
 give over those longings, like pregnant women, until the full 
 desires of the soul in Jesus, and upon Jesus, be fully gratified. 
 Methinks, as the eagles gather together unto the carcase, so 
 should believers be found feasting upon Jesus. In Jesus, and 
 his glorious excellencies, every thing is suited to the wants 
 of the believer: his name, his person, his work, his blood, his 
 righteousness ; every perfection, every promise, every expe- 
 rience we have had in him, in times past, becomes food to the 
 soul. So that the spiritual cravings of the soul, when the 
 soul is in health and strength, like the natural cravings of the 
 bird of prey, act like the same instinct to lead to and to feed 
 upon Jesus. See then, my soul, whether this morning thou 
 art risen with a keen appetite for Jesus. Surely thou hast 
 tasted that the Lord is gracious in times past. And if thou 
 art in health of soul, wilt thou not as much hunger again for 
 
112 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 this heavenly food, as the body of an healthy man craves for 
 his morning meal 1 Oh ! blessed Lord ! give me this ap- 
 petite. Excite an hungering in me for thee. Let it be for 
 thyself ; not for thy gifts only, not for thy graces only, sweet 
 as these are ; but, blessed Jesus, let it be for thyself And let 
 this desire be continual ; every day, and all the day. And 
 let it be wholly to thee, in all that belongs to thee : I mean, 
 after every thing in Jesus ; thy cross, if needful, as well as 
 thy crown ; a love to thy precepts as well as thy promises. 
 And oh ! let this desire be so insatiable, so earnest, so unceas- 
 ing, that nothing I have of thee may so satisfy me that I 
 should long no more after thee ; but, rather, provoke my 
 soul's appetite, and tend but to inflame my heart in longings 
 more and more, till, from tasting of thee here below, thou 
 bringest me to the fountain-head of enjoyment above, where 
 my longing eyes and longing soul shall feast upon Jesus and 
 his love for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 23. — For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he 
 might be Lord both of the dead and hving. — Romans xiv. 9. 
 
 And was this the cause, dearest Jesus ! of all thy suffer- 
 ings, that thou mightest be the universal monarch on thine 
 eternal throne ? Then bend thy knee, my heart, and all the 
 affections of my soul, and hail thy Jesus Lord of all ! Now, 
 Lord, I see, through thy blessed teaching, though a fool, and 
 slow in heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken — 
 now I see how expedient it was that Christ should suffer, and 
 should enter into his glory. Yes ! thou art, indeed. Lord 
 both of dead and living — the dead to raise, even the dead in 
 trespasses and in sins ; and the living, to live in them, and rule 
 and guide them. And as thou art Lord both of dead and 
 living, so, precious Jesus ! wilt thou be Lord over all the 
 dead and lifeless affections of thy redeemed. Surely, Lord 
 Jesus, my soul may well believe this ; for if, when upon the 
 cross, thou didst conquer death, now thou art upon the throne, 
 every power must be put beneath thy feet. Shout then, my 
 soul ! shout all ye followers of the Lord ! never more let 
 dead frames, or dying affections, or unbelief, or all the temp 
 tations of Satan, cast us down. Is not Christ upon the throne ? 
 And is he not Lord both of dead and living? And hath not 
 this Almighty Lord both of dead and living, power to save, 
 power to quicken dead sinners, and comfort living saints ; to 
 give grace to the weak ; and to them that have no might, to 
 
APRIL, 113 
 
 increase strength ? Hath he not power to kindle anew his 
 own graces that he first planted ; to bring back again wander- 
 ers, to reclaim the long-lost backsliders, to soften hard hearts, 
 to bind up broken hearts, to justify the guilty, to sanctify 
 the filthy, to adopt orphans, to bless the fatherless, to be gra- 
 cious, and kind and merciful — in a word, to be Jesus? For 
 in that one word is summed up all ! Oh ! blessed Master ! oh 
 for an heart to love thee, to live to thee, to walk with thee, to 
 rejoice in thee, to be always eyeing thee on thy throne ; and 
 never, never to lose sight of thee, my glorious, risen, and ex- 
 alted Saviour ! in this sweet and endearing point of view, in 
 which thy servant the Apostle hath here represented thee ; 
 that it was for this end, as well as a thousand other blessed 
 purposes, that Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that 
 he might be Lord both of dead and living. Hallelujah ! 
 Amen. 
 
 24. — The breaker is come up before them ; they have broken up, and have 
 passed through the gate, and are gone out by it ; and their king shall 
 pass before them, and the Lord on the head of them. — Micah. ii. 13. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this precious scripture, and ask thine 
 own heart who this almighty Breaker can be, except the Lord 
 Jesus Christ ; for he, and he alone, answers to such a divine 
 character. Was it not he which came up as the Breaker 
 from everlasting, when, in the council of peace, the divine 
 decree was broken open, and the Son of God stood forth the 
 sinner's Surety ? Was it not he whom John saw by vision, 
 who alone was found worthy in heaven to open the book, 
 and loose the seals thereof? Was it not the same precious 
 Holy One who, when in the volume of the book it was found 
 written of him, that he should fulfil the law of Jehovah for 
 sinful man, cried out, " Lo ! I come ?" And was it not Je- 
 sus, even thy Jesus, my soul, that in the fulness of time came 
 up as the Breaker, to break down the dreadful bar of separa- 
 tion which sin had made between God and man, and to open 
 a new and living way for the sinner to God by his blood ? 
 And when he had broken down the fence sin had made in 
 disobedience to the divine law ; the accusations of Satan ; the 
 dominion of death and the grave, by sustaining the whole 
 weight and burden of all in his own precious Person ; did he 
 not, as the almio^hty Breaker, burst asunder the bars of death, 
 and prove himself thereby indeed to be this almighty Breaker, 
 in such a palpable evidence, that it was impossible his holy 
 
 10* 
 
114 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul could be hold en by it ? And hath he not broken through 
 all intervening obstacles, ascended up on high, led captivity- 
 captive, entered into glory, and there ever liveth and appear- 
 eth in the presence of God for us? Is not Jesus then this 
 almighty Breaker ? But, my soul, look yet further. It is 
 said also, in this blessed Scripture, that the Breaker is not only 
 come up before them, (that is, his people,) but that " they have 
 broken up, and have passed through the gate, and are gone 
 out by it ; and their king shall pass before them, and the Lord 
 on the head of them." And so they are, if so be this al- 
 mighty Breaker hath broken down the strong holds of sin and 
 Satan in which they lay bound ; broken down the natural 
 hatred and enmity of their own heart against God and his 
 Christ in which they were born, and in which they lived, and 
 must have died, but for his sovereign grace manifested in 
 them and towards them ; burst open the prison doors of Satan, 
 and broke off his cursed chains, and brought them out : if 
 these things are wrought and accomplished in the people, 
 may they not be said, in his strength, to have broken up and 
 have passed through the gate of Satan's dominions, and are gone 
 out by it into the glorious liberty of the sons of God ? Is it 
 so, my soul, in thy experience ? Dost thou indeed know Je- 
 sus for thy almighty Breaker, by such sweet and precious 
 tokens of his love and power? Hath thy King passed thus 
 before thee, and thy Lord on the head of thee ? Oh ! then, 
 be ever on the look out for all the renewed visits of his grace, 
 in which he still acts as thine almighty Breaker, in breaking 
 down all the remaining obstacles which thy unbelief, and 
 fears, and doubts, are continually raising up against thy own 
 happiness, in his precious manifestations. Look up to him 
 daily, hourly, minutely, if possible, that he may break down 
 all the remains of indwelling corruption in thy nature, by 
 which these fears and this unbelief gets holdfast in thy soul ; 
 and be often on the look out also for that glorious day of 
 God, when this almighty Breaker shall finally and fully 
 come, and break through the clouds to judgment, to break 
 down every remaining evil that keeps thee now from the ever- 
 lasting enjoyment of thy Lord. Hasten, blessed Jesus ! come, 
 my Beloved ! and, with a glory infinitely surpassing all con- 
 ception, manifest thyself as the almighty Breaker, in this full 
 display of thy sovereignty and power. And then, as Samson 
 (thy type in this instance) carried with him the gates of his 
 prison, so wilt thou break up and carry away all the gates of 
 thy people's graves, and take all thy redeemed home with 
 
APRIL. 115 
 
 thee to glory, that where thou art, there they shall be also. 
 Hail, thou almighty Breaker ! Jesus omnipotent reigneth ! 
 
 25. — And the apostles said unto the Lord, Increase our faith. — Lake xvii. 5. 
 
 Did the apostles need so to pray ? Then well may I. Oh ! 
 thou great Author and .Finisher of our faith! I would look 
 up to thee, with thankfulness, that thou hast granted even the 
 smallest portion of faith to so unworthy a creature as I am. 
 Surely, my soul, it is as great a miracle of grace that my God 
 and Saviour should have kindled belief in thy strong heart, 
 amidst all the surrounding obstructions of sin and Satan 
 which lay there ; as when the miraculous fire from heaven, 
 in answer to the prophet's prayer, came down and consumed 
 the wetted sacrifice. I praise thee, my God and King, this 
 day, in the recollection of this unspeakable, unmerited mercy. 
 And though this faith in my heart still be but as a grain of 
 mustard seed ; though it be but as a spark in the ocean ; 
 though it be but as the drop of the dew, in comparison of 
 the river ; yet, blessed, precious Jesus ! still this is faith, and 
 it is thy gift. And is it not a token of thy favour 1 Is it not 
 an earnest of the Holy Spirit, and a pledge of the promised 
 inheritance? Babes in faith, as well as the strong in the 
 Lord, are equally thine : for it is said, that as many as were 
 ordained to eternal life believed; (Acts xiii. 48.) and to as 
 many as believed, thou gavest power to become the sons of 
 God : so it is by thyself, blessed Redeemer ! and not by the 
 strength or weakness of the faith of thy people, their justi- 
 fication before God the Father is secured. Precious is that 
 Scripture which tells us, that by thee all that believe, whether 
 great faith or little faith — all that believe^ are justified from 
 all things. Acts xiii. 32. But, my soul, while the con- 
 sciousness of thy possessing the smallest evidences of faith 
 in thy beloved, gives thee a joy unspeakable and full of 
 glory, dost thou not blush to think what ungrateful returns 
 thou art making to thy Redeemer in the littleness of thy 
 faith in such a God and Saviour ? Whence is it that thine 
 affections are so warm in a thousand lesser things, and so 
 cold towards Jesus ? Whence that his holy word thou so 
 often hearest as though thou heardest not? Whence the or- 
 dinances of Jesus' house, the promises of his Scriptures, the 
 visits of his grace ; whence these pass again and again be- 
 fore thee, and thou remainest so cold and lifeless in thy affec- 
 tions ? Whence that the temptations of Satan, the corrup- 
 
116 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 tions of thine heart, the allurements of the world, gain any 
 influence upon thee? Whence that thou art so anxious 
 about things that perish ; about any thing, about nothing, 
 deserving to be called interesting ; whence so seldom at the 
 court of the heavenly King, where thou oughtest to be found 
 daily, hourly, waiting ; and whence, under trials, or the want 
 of answers at a mercy-seat, fretful, impatient, and misgiving 
 — whence all these, and numberless other evils, but from the 
 weakness and littleness of thy Jove to Jesus, thy trust in 
 Jesus, thy dependence upon Jesus, and thy comnmnion with 
 Jesus? All, all arise out of this one sad cause, my soul, 
 thine unbelief Jesus! Master! look upon me, put the cry 
 with earnestness in my heart, that I may unceasingly, with 
 the Apostles' prayer, be sending forth this as the first and 
 greatest petition of my whole soul — " Lord ! increase my 
 faith !" 
 
 26. — Thy teeth are like a flock of sheep that are even shorn, which come 
 up from the washing ; whereof every one bear twins, and none is 
 barren among them. — Song iv. 2. 
 
 See, my soul, how Jesus sets off the beauties of his church, 
 when made comely in his comeliness, which he hath put 
 upon it. Jesus' whole church forms but one flock; for there 
 shall be one fold and one shepherd. And though it is called 
 a little flock, and a flock of slaughter, yet it is a beautiful 
 flock in the Lord's hand. But wherefore are the teeth of the 
 church said to be like a flock shorn ? Probably from their 
 never being exercised but upon divine things : shorn to all 
 desires in which unshorn and carnal persons delight. The 
 believer feeds on Jesus : his flesh he finds to be meat indeed, 
 his blood drink indeed. To the roof of his mouth this 
 becomes like the best wine, which goeth down sweetly, caus- 
 ing even the lips of those that sleep to speak. And how do 
 believers, like sheep, come up from the washing ; but when 
 from the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the 
 Holy Ghost shed upon them abundantly, through Jesus 
 Christ, they come up clean and washed in Jesus' blood, and 
 adorned in the robe of Jesus' righteousness, and are pre- 
 sented before God and the Father, and accepted in the 
 Beloved ? And oh 1 how fruitful are they, like sheep which 
 bear twins! None are barren or unfruitful among them, 
 because they show forth the praises of him who hath called 
 them out of darkness into his marvellous light. The twin 
 
APRIL. 117 
 
 graces, if they may so be called, of faith and love, of prayer 
 and praise, mark whose they are, and to whom they belong-. 
 The old fleece of nature being- taken from them, they are 
 shorn to the world. And the former filthiness and unclean- 
 liness of mind they are washed from to themselves ; and 
 hence they come up to mention the loving kindness of the 
 Lord, and to prove that they are neither barren nor unfruitful 
 in the knowledge of the Lord, and in the power of his 
 might. My soul ! is this thy state ? Are thy teeth like this 
 flock ? and thy knowledge and enjoyment of Jesus a real 
 heart-feh enjoyment of him ? Canst thou truly relish nothing 
 of food but what hath Jesus in it ? Is nothing pleasant to thy 
 taste but this bread of God, which came down from heaven? 
 Comfort thyself then, my soul, that by and by the teeth of 
 death will separate, like the sheep that is shorn, the body of 
 corruption under which thou still groanest. being burdened ; 
 and thou shalt come up from the washing in the fountain of 
 Jesus' blood, clothed in his garment of salvation, and made 
 a meet partaker of an inheritance with the saints in light ! 
 
 27. — Behold how he loved hmi I — Join xi. 36. 
 
 The tears of Jesus at the tomb of Lazarus produced that 
 astonishment in the mind of the Jews, that they thus ex- 
 claimed ! But had they known, or did the whole world 
 know, what I know of th}' love to me. thou dear Redeemer 
 of my soul, every one that heard it might with greater won- 
 der cry out, Behold how he loveth him ! I would for the 
 present pass bv, in mv contemplation of thy love, all the 
 numberless instances of it, which I possess in common with 
 thy church and people : for though these in every and in all 
 cases carry with them the tokens of a love that passeth know- 
 ledge, yet, for the meditation of the morning, I would pause 
 over the view of Jesus' love to me a poor sinner, not as it is 
 displayed in general mercies, even the glorious mercies of re- 
 demption, but as those mercies come home, in their persojial 
 direction to my own heart, even to mine. Think, my soul, 
 what a huge volume thou wilt have to read over in eternit3% 
 of Jesus' love to thee, as distinguished, express, personal, and 
 particular. And, amidst all the several chapters of that love, 
 how wilt thou dwell with rapture on those two sweet verses 
 of it, which, like the hymn in one of the Psalms, thou wik 
 have to chaunt aloud, after the review of every blessing noted 
 down : for his mercy endureth for ever : I mean, first, that 
 
118 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Jesus should ever look with pity on thee ; and oiext to this, 
 that after such distinguishing grace, the floods of sin and cor- 
 ruption in thee should not have quenched that love and ex- 
 tinguished it for ever. The thought of Jesus' love, if looked 
 at only in these two points of view, will be enough to employ 
 thy immortal faculties in contemplation, and love, and praise, 
 to all eternity. Pause, my soul, and take a short view of 
 each. Jesus looked on thee, loved thee, called thee, redeemed 
 thee, manifested himself to thee, otherwise than he doth to 
 the world ; and this at a time when thousands and tens of 
 thousands are passed by, of temper, mind, disposition, and un- 
 derstanding, in every point of view vastly thy superiors, and 
 far more promising to glorify him ! Bow down, my soul, 
 while thou ponderest over the rich mercy, and refer all the 
 praise and all the glory unto Him, whose free grace, not thy 
 deserts, became the sole cause. And when thou hast fully 
 turned this astonishing subject over in thy mind, think again, 
 that after such distinguishing grace, how increasingly aston- 
 ishing it is, that all thy repeated and aggravated transgres- 
 sions have not extinguished his love towards thee, but that 
 Jesus still loves, though thou hast been, and still continuest, 
 so ungrateful. Oh ! love unequalled, past all comprehen- 
 sion ! when shall this base, this shameful heart of mine so 
 love thee, as to live to thy glory ? Lord, I abhor myself in 
 this view of thy grace and my vileness ! 
 
 28. — And the Lord said, Arise, aucint him ; for this is he. Then Sam- 
 uel took tlie horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his breth- 
 ren.— 1 San. xvi. 12, 1.3. 
 
 Was David singled out from amidst his brethren, to be the 
 Lord's anointed ; and do I not behold in this the representa- 
 tion of Jesus, that Holy One, concerning whom the Lord 
 spake in vision, and said, I have laid help upon One that is 
 mighty: I have exalted One chosen out of the people? Yes ! 
 thou Lord our Righteousness ! in this I behold thee. And 
 let my soul make this sweet subject the meditation of my 
 morning song, for surely it is a lovely song, to hail thee, the 
 chiefest among ten thousand ! I behold thee then, thou dear 
 Emmanuel, by the eye of /aith, as coming up from everlast- 
 ing, when amidst that immense multitude of those thou dis- 
 dainedst not to call thy brethren, thou stoodest forth, in the 
 eternal view, as the glorious One, to be the Christ, the God- 
 man Mediator, for the salvation of thy church and people. 
 
APRIL. 119 
 
 Here, precious Jesus ! didst thou appear, to God our Father's 
 view, pre-eminent above thy fellows ! And of the whole 
 body, the church, which God our Father in the great decree 
 determined to form as the receivers of grace and mercy, and 
 of eternal life and salvation, thou wert appointed their glo- 
 rious Head ; that, i/i thee, and fro?)i thee, and through thee, 
 they might become a glorious church, not having spot or 
 wrinkle, or any such thing, but that thou mightest present it 
 to thyself in love. And surely, dearest, precious Jesus ! had 
 every individual of thy redeemed brethren been present, as 
 all the sons of Jesse passed in review before the prophet, to 
 have chosen their glorious head, on none but thee could that 
 choice have fallen. Ail voices would have echoed to Je- 
 hovah's proclamation: '-Arise, anoint him; for this is He." 
 Yes ! truly, Lord, thou art He whom thy brethren shall 
 praise, and all thy Father's children, with devout rapture 
 and holy joy, shall bow down before thee. Thou art heir of 
 all things, the chiefest and first-born in the womb of mercy. 
 It is thou that art the most entitled to the most full, honourable, 
 and unchangeable right to all thy Father's inheritance. Men 
 shall be blessed in thee, and all nations shall call thee Blessed. 
 My soul ! delight thyself unceasingly in this contemplation 
 of thy Jesus. God thy Father hath chosen him. He hath 
 anointed him with the holy oil for salvation, and the Spirit 
 was given unto him, not by measure. And is not God's 
 chosen thy chosen ; the Father's anointed thine anointed ! Is 
 there any in heaven, or upon earth, to whom thou art look- 
 ing for help, or strength, or comfort, or salvation, but to Jesus? 
 Who but Jesus, my soul, wouldest thou have for a Saviour? 
 What object so desirable as Jesus to claim thy love? Witness 
 for me, ye sons of light, ye angels that see his face and do 
 his pleasure, that Jesus is my only Beloved, my Hope, my 
 Portion. Shortly I shall join your assembly, and with you 
 bless and adore Jesus in endless song, the fairest and chiefest 
 among- ten thousand. 
 
 29. — The Marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made her- 
 self ready. And to her was granted, that slie should be arrayed in 
 fine linen, clean and white : for the fine linen is the righteousness of 
 saints. — Rev. xix. 7, 8. 
 
 Behold, my soul, behold that day, that glorious day, in 
 which redemption is to be consummated, in the kingdom of 
 heaven ; when the Son of God brings home his bride, the 
 
120 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 church, the full celebration of God's glory, in the happiness 
 of the redeemed in Jesus, everlasting joy will burst forth. 
 See how thy nature is then to be adorned ! The whole body, 
 the church, is then to be arrayed in the robes of Jesus' righ- 
 teousness, having been washed from all their sins in his 
 blood. And these nuptial ornaments are to be granted or 
 given to the church ; for she hath no righteousness of her 
 own, but as all along in this world she had professed, so there 
 in the upper world she triumphantly sings, "I will greatly 
 rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God ; for 
 he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath 
 covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom 
 decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth her- 
 self with her jewels." Isaiah Ixi. 10. Pause, my soul, over this 
 view! Is this to be thy adorning in glory? See to it then, 
 my soul, that it becomes thy covering now. How suited is 
 it to all thy circumstances ! Thou hast no fine linen, nothing 
 clean, nothing white. Think how comely Jesus' robe of 
 righteousness must be to appear in ! This is the wedding 
 garment by faith worn at his supper upon earth, and the 
 same in fruition in which thou art to sit down at his table 
 above. And oh ! how suitable a covering to hide all thy 
 deformity, to conceal and take away all thy pollution ! And 
 will not this procure thee favour and acceptance with God ? 
 Is it not thus that Jesus' followers are distinguished from men 
 of the world? Art thou now clothed with it? Hath God 
 the Spirit put it on ? Doth Jesus now send thee these love 
 tokens as his betrothed ; and, in the ordinances of his grace, 
 doth he grant thee many sweet espousals? Oh! then, my 
 soul, see to it, that thy righteousness is that of Jesus' own, 
 with which his church is arrayed, and that these robes are 
 always clean and white, which are washed in the blood of 
 the Lamb, for, ere long, the midnight cry will be heard. Be- 
 hold, the Bridegroom cometh, go ye out to meet him ! Oh ! 
 precious Lord Jesus ! give me to hear that voice with joy, 
 that with holy wings of love, in the last office of faith, to be 
 then swallowed up in sight, I may arise to enter with thee 
 into the marriage, to sit down with thee for ever 
 
 30. — Nevertheless, I am continually with thee. — Psalm Ixxiii. 23. 
 
 Yes ! my soul, and well is it for thee that it is so ; there 
 is a nevertheless in the precious redemption by Jesus, which 
 secures thee, amidst all thy languishing seasons, when to thy 
 
APRIL. 121 
 
 view it sometimes appears as though the Lord had forgotten 
 to be gracious, and had shut up his loving kindness in dis- 
 pleasure. And whence this security but in Jesus, and the 
 covenant engagements of God thy Father in him ? The 
 everlasting v\'orth and efficacy of the Redeemer's righteous- 
 ness and death, are the same amidst all the changeable cir- 
 cumstances of his people's vrarfare. By the expression of 
 being continually with Jesus, is meant, no doubt, that union 
 with his person, as the sinner's Surety, which gives security 
 and firmness to the everlasting state and happiness of his re- 
 deemed. And it is this which constitutes, not only the safety 
 of his people now, but the happiness of his people for ever. 
 Heaven itself, but for Jesus, and the constant flow of righ- 
 teousness and glory in him, and fro;n him, would cease to be 
 heaven. The souls of just men made perfect could be no 
 longer happy nor righteous, but as those supplies flow in 
 upon their souls from him. So that the everlasting precious- 
 ness of Jesus, as the glorious Head of his people, is thus con- 
 firmed, and the felicity of the church must be wholly made 
 up from this eternal union with him. Hence, how precious 
 the thought, / am coatinuaUy with thee ! And is this thy por- 
 tion, my soul 1 Art thou alive to this sweet and soul-reviving 
 thought? Is Jesus, thy Jesus, continually with thee, and 
 thou continually with him? See to it, that the nearness of 
 Jesus to thee hath the same effect upon thee, as with things 
 in nature, when the earth and the inhabitants testify their 
 sense of feeling. Doth not the earth, and the plants, and the 
 birds, and every thing look gay, when the sun renews the 
 face of the earth, and shines with loveliness, to make all na- 
 ture smile ? And shall thy Sun of righteousness arise unob- 
 served or unenjoyed, who comes with healing in his wings? 
 Oh ! precious Jesus ! cause me so to live upon thee that I 
 may be always eyeing thee, in dark seasons as well as bright 
 hours ; that, from never suffering thy dear image to depart 
 for a moment from my heart, I may be so prepared to behold 
 thy face in open glory, when the veil of this fl.esh is removed, 
 and I awake up after thy likeness, that, though I change my 
 place, I shall not change my company. In earth or heaven, 
 5^et if with thee, happiness is begun in the soul; and faith, 
 in lively exercise, is itself an anticipation of glory, by just so 
 much as the soul realizeth thy sweet presence, in being ever 
 with the Lord. 
 
 11 
 
122 MORNliMG PORTION. 
 
 MAY. 
 
 1. — Thoushalt call his name Jesus. — Matt. i. 21. 
 
 This is one more of the Redeemer's names, which is as 
 ointment poured forth. As if the Holy Ghost had been gra- 
 ciously consulting the everlasting comfort and happiness of 
 his people, and therefore commanded the church to know 
 their Lord by so many different and endearing appellations. 
 As if he had said. Are ^-^ou kept back from approaching 
 him through fear? Oh ! no ; — go to him, for he is Emman- 
 uel. So great, as God, that he is able to save ! so tender and 
 near, as man, that he is more ready to "bestow mercy than 
 you are to ask it ! Are you kept back for want of righteous- 
 ness ? Be not so, for he is the Lord our Righteousness, and 
 what you need he hath for you. — Or are you depressed by 
 reason of sin ? Let not this discourage you, for his name is 
 purposely Jesus, because he, and he alone, shall save his 
 people from their sins. My soul ! what knowest thou prac- 
 tically and personally of this most blessed name of thy Sa- 
 viour? It is one thing to have heard of him as Jesus, and 
 another to know him to be Jesus. There are multitudes who 
 rest satisfied with the name. The Jews knew him, saw him, 
 conversed with him ; but they knew him not as a Saviour. 
 Nay, more than this ; many have had, and still have an his- 
 torical knowledge and belief that Jesus is a Saviour, but yet 
 no apprehension or concern for an interest in him. Thus 
 Balaam, whose eyes were so far opened, but his heart never 
 affected, as to have visions concerning Christ. But what 
 an awful account did this impious creature give of himself! 
 I shall see him, (said he,) but not now: I shall behold him, 
 but not nigh. Numb. xxiv. 17. What an awful state I Oh, 
 my soul ! bless thy God, thy Jesus, that thy knowledge is not 
 of the head only, but of the heart. Thou hast not simply 
 heard of Jesus, but received him as Jesus, to the salvation of 
 thy soul. Thou hast seen God in Christ ; the Father's name, 
 the Father's authority in him. Thou hast come to him in 
 that name, and by that authority as a poor sinner, and found 
 Jesus precious. And is not Jesus precious to thee ? Is not 
 the very name of Jesus most precious ? As one of old ex- 
 pressed it, so hast thou found it, that in this one name of thy 
 
MAY. 123 
 
 Lord, the whole of the gospel is folded up ; it is the light, the 
 food, the medicine, the very jubilee of the soul. Yes ! thou 
 blessed, holy, gracious Lord ! Yes ! thy name is indeed Je- 
 sus, for thou art, thou wilt be Jesus. And they that know 
 thy name will put their trust in thee, for thou shalt save thy 
 people from their sins. 
 
 2. — And they called Rebekah, and said nnto her, Wilt thou go with 
 this man ? and she sciid, I will go. — Gen. xxiv. 58. 
 
 See, my soul, with what readiness Rebekah determined to 
 accompany the servant of Abraham to Isaac. And wilt thoii" 
 not arise and go forth at the invitation of the servants of Jesus, 
 who sends them to call thee to his arms? Hath he not by 
 the sweet constraining influences of his Holy Spirit, as well 
 as by the outward ministry of his blessed word, made thee 
 willing in the day of his power? Did the servant of Abra- 
 ham give an earnest of his master's affection in putting the 
 bracelets upon Rebekah's hands, and the ear-rings, and the 
 gold? But what was this to the love-tokens which Jesus 
 himself hath given thee, when he set thee as a seal upon his 
 heart, and as a seal upon his arm, and when all the waters 
 of divine wrath his holy soul had poured upon him for thy 
 sins, and all the floods of corruption, which like a deluge, 
 had overspread thy whole nature, could not quench his love, 
 nor drown it. And if it be demanded, then, from thine own 
 mouth this day, wilt thou go with this man, this God-man, 
 this Glory-man, this Jesus ? Wilt thou not instantly cry out, 
 I will go? Yes! thou altogether lovely Lord, thou chiefest 
 and fairest among ten thousand, I will go with thee. I would 
 forget mine own people, and my father's house. For my 
 father's house is a house of bondage. I was born in sin, and 
 shapen in iniquity. A child of wrath, even as others, and 
 by nature dead in trespasses and sins. It is thou, blessed Je- 
 sus, who hast delivered me from the wrath to come. It is 
 thou who hast quickened me by thy Holy Spirit to a new 
 and spiritual life. It is thou who hast sent thy servants to 
 call me to thyself, and hast betrothed me to thyself for ever. 
 And is there any that yet asketh me. Wilt thou go with this 
 man? My whole soul would outrun the question, and, like 
 the Aposde, I would answer, To whom else shall I go? 
 Witness for me ye servants of my Lord, ye angels, and min- 
 isters of light, I have none in heaven, neither in earth, but 
 him. Yes ! thou dearest Redeemer ! I will go with thee, 
 
124 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 follow thee, live \Yith thee, hang upon thee, die with thee, 
 nor even death itself shall part thee and me. Oh ! let those 
 precious words of thine, concerning thy church, be sweetly- 
 felt in my soul, " I will say, it is my people :" and my whole 
 soul will make her responses to the gracious sound, and say, 
 " The Lord is my God." 
 
 3. — Sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in his right mind. — 
 Luke viii. 35. 
 
 Look at this man, my soul, and see whether thou canst 
 find any resemblance to thyself Before that he heard the 
 voice of Jesus, he was under the possession of the evil spirit. 
 It is said of him, that he wore no clothes. He dwelt in no 
 house, but abode among the tombs. He was cutting himself 
 with stones. No man could tame him, neither fetters nor 
 chains bind him. Poor miserable creature ! And yet, my 
 soul, was not this a true emblem of thy state, and, indeed, of 
 every man's state, by nature? Had not Satan full possession 
 of thine heart and affections, my soul, before that thou be- 
 camest savingly acquainted with the Lord Jesus Christ ? 
 Did he not lead thee in the pursuit and gratification of thy 
 lusts and pleasures at his will? Thou mightest truly be said 
 to wear no clothes, for, so far from having on the garment 
 of Jesus' righteousness, in those days of thine unregeneracy, 
 thou wert naked, to thy shame, in the fikh of nature. Thou 
 didst not dwell in the house of God, nor even delight to go 
 thkher. And, as this poor creature abode among the dead, 
 so didst thou live and abide with characters like thyself, dead 
 in trespasses and sins. And as this miserable man was 
 wounding himself, with stones, so wert thou, for thy daily 
 commission of sin was giving wounds to thy soul, infinitely 
 more alarming than the wounds he gave his body. And 
 could no chains or fetters be found strong enough to bind 
 him? so neither did all the solemn commands and threaten- 
 ing judgments of God's holy law act with the least restraint 
 upon thine ungoverned passions. Pause, my soul, over the 
 representation, and acknowledge how just and striking the 
 similarity. Then ask thyself, Art thou now sitting at the feet 
 of Jesus, clothed, and in thy right mmd ? Yes ! if so be, like 
 this poor man, thou hast heard the voice of Jesus, and felt the 
 power of his grace in thine heart. If one like the Son of 
 God hath set thee free, brought thee to his fold, opened thine 
 ear to discipline, and thine heart to grace, then art thou free 
 
MAY. 125 
 
 indeed. What sayest thou, my soul, to these things? Is 
 there this change, this blessed change, from dead works, to 
 serve the living and true God ? Oh ! then will not the lan- 
 guage of thine heart be like Jesus and his church of old ? " I 
 will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in 
 my God : for he hath clothed me with the garments of salva- 
 tion, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a 
 bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride 
 adorneth herself with her jewels." 
 
 4. — The hind of the morning. — Psalm xxii. in the title. 
 
 The dying patriarch Jacob, under the influences of the 
 prophetic spirit, pointed to the seed of Naphiali as a hind let 
 loose. But it is the church which points to Jesus as the Hind 
 of the morning ; for he is, indeed, the loving Hind, and the 
 pleasant Roe. It is sweet and profitable to observe in what 
 a variety of methods the Holy Ghost hath been pleased to 
 give sketches of Jesus. My soul, look at Jesus for thy pre- 
 sent meditation as the Hind of the morning. Was he not, 
 from the very morning of eternity, marked under this lovely 
 character? Did not the church speak of him, and desire his 
 appearance, under this same character, when she begged of 
 him, that, until the shadows of Jewish ordinances were 
 passed away, and the day of gospel light should break in 
 upon her, that her beloved would be like a young hart or a 
 roe, upon the mountains of Bether ? And was not Jesus, in- 
 deed, when he did appear, truly as the hind, which the dogs 
 that compassed him about, and the assembly of the wicked 
 enclosed ? Did he not say, in those unequalled moments of 
 suffering. Save me from the lion's mouth, for thou hast heard 
 me from the horns of the unicorns ? Yes, precious Jesus ! 
 thou art, indeed, the Hind of the morning! In the morning 
 of our salvation, thou camest over the hills and mountains of 
 our sinful nature, with the swiftness of the hind, and the love- 
 liness and gentleness of the roe, to expose thyself to the ser- 
 pent, and the whole host of foes, for the deliverance of thy 
 people. And having trod upon the lion and the adder, and 
 the young lion, and the dragon, trampled under thy feet ; by 
 thy death thou didst overcome death, and him that had the 
 power of death, that is, the devil ; and hast delivered them, 
 who, through fear of death, were all their life-time subject to 
 bondage. And now, precious Lord ! thou art as the hind 
 slain, the food of the souls of thy redeemed by faith, until 
 
 11* 
 
m 
 
 126 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 faith itself is done away in sight, and hope swallowed up in 
 absolute fruition. Oh ! let the language of my heart daily, 
 hourly, correspond to the church of old ; and, during the 
 shadows of ordinances, and all the dark clouds of unbelief 
 and temptations with which I am here exercised, let me still 
 by faith, behold thee as the Hind of the morning, fleeing 
 swiftly to my assistance, hearing and answering my prayers, 
 leaping over all the mountains of distance which sin and un- 
 worthiness would throw up between thee and my soul, oppos- 
 ing all my enemies, and beating them under my feet that 
 would keep me from thee ; until that day, that glorious ever- 
 lasting day, which will have no night, shall break in upon 
 my soul, and thou wilt then appear, to my unceasing, unin- 
 terrupted joy, the Hind indeed, of the morning. Make haste, 
 my Beloved ! and be thou like unto a roe, or to a young hart, 
 upon the mountains of spices. 
 
 5. — Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me ? — 
 John xiv. 10. 
 
 My soul, thou wilt never sufficiently contemplate this 
 blessed oneness between the Father and the Son, in the great 
 work and glory of redemption. Pause, this morning and ob- 
 serve, for the confirmation of thy faith, that as Jesus is one 
 with the Father in all the essence and attributes of the God- 
 head, so God the Father is one with Jesus in all the offices 
 of redemption. God was in Christ's human nature, for he is 
 said to have been God manifest in the Jiesh. God was in 
 every name of Christ, every work of Christ, every word of 
 Christ, every office of Christ, every attribute of Christ. And 
 hence, in seeing Christ, we truly see God ; in all his grace, 
 mercy, love, salvation, and every blessing connected with our 
 present, future, eternal happiness. And what a sweet thought 
 is that, my soul, for thee to dwell upon ; that as the Father is 
 in Jesus, and in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead 
 bodily, so, in consequence, there is a fulness of grace and a 
 fulness of glory in Jesus, to give out a supply here of the one, 
 and hereafter of the other, to satisfy the most capacious de- 
 sires of the souls of his redeemed to all eternity. For the 
 human nature being personally united to the Godhead in the 
 person of the Lord Jesus, there must be this fulness everlast- 
 ingly dwelling. There may be, and for certain purposes 
 sometimes there are, great gifts and graces of the Spirit 
 poured out upon the Lord's servants ; but never could the 
 
MAY. 127 
 
 Godhead be found in any but Jesus. God was in Christ re- 
 conciling the world unto himself. Pause once more, my soul, 
 and ask thyself, Hast thou Christ? then hast thou God the 
 Father in him. Where Christ is, God the Father is : and 
 where Christ is not, there God is not. See then, my soul, 
 that this is the standard to ascertain the reality of thy case as 
 it appears before God. Hast thou Jesus for thy portion ? then 
 the Father is in him. Dost thou love Jesus ? then must thou 
 love the Father in him. Dost thou seek Jesus ? then art thou 
 seeking the Father in him. Oh! for grace to discover our 
 true interest in all the Father's covenant engagements and 
 promises, from this very source ; that this everlasting oneness 
 between the Father and Son infallibly secures to his peo- 
 ple all the blessings of redemption, for in seeing the Son, we 
 literally and truly see the Father, and glorify the Father in 
 Jesus. Amen. 
 
 6. — And he said, I am Joseph, your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. 
 Gen. xlv. 4. 
 
 What an interview was this in the first manifestation the 
 governor of Egypt made of himself to his brethren ! We 
 are told that he wept aloud. His bowels yearned over them. 
 He had long smothered in his own bosom those tender feel- 
 ings he possessed, of the greatest love towards them ; and 
 when he had dismissed every looker-on, and stranger, he 
 broke out in those kind expressions, I am Joseph, your bro- 
 ther, whom ye sold into Egypt. But what were the feelings 
 of the patriarch, compared to those of the Lord Jesus, when 
 he made himself known to his disciples after he arose from 
 the dead ; and as he now manifests himself to every poor sin- 
 ner, whom, by his grace, he makes partaker in the first re- 
 surrection, on whom the second death hath no power"? I am 
 Jesus, your Brother, (saith that adored Lord ;) but he doth 
 not add, whom ye sold for worse than a slave. There is no 
 upbraiding, nothing of our baseness and our sins. And yet 
 we have all not only sold him, but, by our transgressions, cru- 
 cified him. What a beautiful feature this is in the Redeemer ! 
 and how much even the love of Joseph falls short of Jesus ! 
 And what endears it still more, is the peculiar attention the 
 Redeemer manifesteth upon the occasion. If there be one 
 of his brethren more distressed and discouraged by reason of 
 sin than another, to him will Jesus direct his manifestation 
 more immediately. Witness the case of Peter after his fall. 
 
128 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Jesus will have the account of his resurrection not only com- 
 municated to all, but Peter is mentioned by name. Go tell 
 his disciples, and Peter. As if knowing the apostle might 
 fear that, having denied Jesus, he might justly be denied by 
 him. No, saith Jesus, let Peter be particularly told the joj^fiil 
 news, to make his heart glad. And dost thou, dearest Lord, 
 speak to my soul ? Dost thou say to me, I am your Brother ^ 
 Art thou not ashamed to call such sinners brethren? Oh, 
 thou unequalled pattern of unexampled love ! add one mercy 
 more to the vast account, and let a portion of it kindle a flame 
 of love in my soul. I have, indeed, sold thee for a slave, 
 nailed thee, by my sins, to the cross, and put thee to an open 
 shame. But since thou hast redeemed me by thy blood, and 
 bought the pardon of my sins so dear, and now, by thy tri- 
 umph over death, art become the first-born among many bre- 
 thren, and exalted as a Prince and a Saviour to give bles- 
 sings infinitely superior to those Joseph was exalted to bestow 
 on his brethren ; behold, Lord, to thee do I come, manifest 
 thyself still the forgiving Brother, and supply all my wants. 
 Yes, blessed Jesus ! thou art he whom thy brethren shall 
 praise ; and all thy Father's children shall fall down before 
 thee. 
 
 7. — They shall revive as the com. — Hosea xiv. 7 
 
 Sweet promise to comfort a soul like mine, under so man3^ 
 and such frequent languishing graces f How often hath it 
 appeared to my view as if the gracious seed had perished ? 
 It was small, indeed, in its first beginning, like the grain of 
 mustard-seed ; and no sooner had it appeared, than I per- 
 ceived it almost choked with thetares of corruption, unbelief, 
 and Satan's rubbish. I was soon led to suspect God's work 
 upon my soul. Surely, I said, this is not grace. Presently 
 I could see no more of it. I was ignorant that by thus dying 
 to self the Holy Ghost was opening to my view the only living 
 in Jesus. In a moment unlooked for it revived as the corn. 
 Ah! from whence the source? Not from self, not from 
 labours, not from exertions : can dead roots live ? The Holy 
 Ghost taught me this must be Jesus. Your life, he said, is 
 hid with Christ in God. Here are the springs of grace ; 
 here, from hence, flow the streams of that river which make 
 glad the city of God. Here, then, is faith's view of God's 
 glory in Christ. Here is the promise. They shall revive 
 as the corn. And thus it is fulfilled. In me, (saith that 
 
MAY. 129 
 
 precious Redeemer) is thy fruit found. Mark this down, 
 my soul. Both root and fruit are in one and the same, even 
 Jesus. Spiritual attainments are in Jesus, not in the greenest 
 buddings or fairest blossoms of our own labours. Live then, 
 my soul, wholly upon Jesus, and then thou wilt revive as the 
 corn. Suppose it trodden down, suppose the tares of the 
 wicked rise to oppose it, yet if Jesus be the root, and the 
 springs of grace in him flow, as they cannot but flow, to keep 
 alive all the branches in him, there shall be, there must be, at 
 last, a glorious harvest. Oh ! what a volume doth the soul 
 sometimes read at once in that short promise, " Because I 
 live, ye shall live also.^^ Hail ! hail thou glorious root out of 
 a dry ground! Thou wilt send forth the golden ears for 
 thine own garner. Thou wilt weed out every thing that 
 annoys. Thou wilt water, and by the sweet influences of thy 
 blood, thy word, and spirit, thou wilt shine upon the standing 
 corn. And when, by all thy gracious husbandry, (for the 
 whole work and glory is thine,) thou hast caused the plentiful 
 crop* to hang down their heads in all the humbleness of self- 
 abasement, as the token of ripeness, thou wilt command thine 
 angel to put in the sickle of death, and take home every stalk 
 and every grain of the precious seed to thy garner in heaven. 
 
 8. — Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection and the Ufe : he that be- 
 Ueveth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whoso- 
 ever liveth, and believeth in me, shall never die. Believest thou 
 this ? — John xi. 25, 26. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over those divine, those glorious, those 
 soul-quickening, soul-reviving words of thy Almighty Re- 
 deemer ! What man, what prophet, what servant of the 
 Lord, what angel, but He that is the Angel of the Covenant, 
 One with the Father over all, God blessed for ever, could as- 
 sume such a language, and prove that assumption, as Jesus 
 did. both by his own resurrection, and that of Lazarus'? 
 And mark, 'my soul, the many precious things contained in 
 this sweet scripture. Observe the blessing itself, even resur- 
 rection and life. Observe the source, the author, the fountain 
 of it, Jesus, thy Jesus. Observe for whom this stupendous 
 mercy is designed, and to whom conveyed, namely, the dead 
 in trespasses and sins, and for the dying, languishing frames 
 of believers. And lastly, observe "'how absolute the thing 
 itself is ; they shall live. Oh, precious words of a most pre- 
 cious Saviour. And may I not say to thee, my soul, as Jesus 
 did to Mary, after proclaiming himself under this glorious 
 
130 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 distinction of character, " Believest thou this ?" Canst thou 
 answer as she did, " Yea, Lord, I believe that thou art the 
 Christ, the Son of C4od, which should come into the world?" 
 This is a blessed confession to witness before God. For if I 
 believe that Jesus be indeed the Christ of God, every other 
 difficulty is removed to the firm belief that, as the Father 
 hath life in himself, even so hath the Son life in himself, and 
 whom he will he quickeneth. Witness then for me, every 
 looker on, angels and men, that my soul heartily, cordially, 
 fully subscribes to the same precious truth, and in the same 
 language as Mary. Yea^ Lord^ I would say to every word 
 of thine concerning thy sovereignty, grace, and love : as thou 
 hast said it, so I accept it : in the very words of thine I take 
 it, and cry out. Yea, Lord, even so be it unto me according to 
 thy word. And now, my soul, under all remaining seasons 
 of deadness, coldness, backslidings, wanderings, and the like, 
 never henceforth forget from whom all revivals can only 
 come. Never look within for them ; for there is no power 
 of resurrection in thyself Can these dry bones live? Ves, 
 if Jesus quickens ! And is Jesus less to quicken thee than 
 thy connexion with Adam to have killed thee ? Oh ! how 
 plain is it that the very wants of the soul correspond to the 
 very fulness of Jesus to answer them. And therefore, when 
 the Lord Jesus saith, 1 am the Resurrection and the Life, he 
 comes to seek employment in this glorious character, to 
 quicken the dead and revive the living. Oh, Lord ! give me 
 to hear thy blessed voice this day, and my soul shall live, and 
 live to praise thee. 
 
 9. — A certain Samaritan — Luke x. 33. 
 
 Look, my soul, beyond the letter of the parable, and see if 
 thou canst not instantly discover who it is that is here meant. 
 Mark how he is described : "A certain Samaritan." Not any 
 indifferent undetermined one among the whole mass of men 
 called Samaritans ; but an identical certain one : and who 
 but Jesus answers to this character 1 Said we not well, (said 
 the Jews,) that thou art a Sam.aritan ? Yes, truly, thus far 
 ye said right ; for our Jesus is the true Samaritan that came 
 a blissful stranger, from his blessed abode, to deliver us from 
 our lost estate ; for his mercy endureth for ever. And, my 
 soul, observe how exactly corresponding to all that is said of 
 this certain Samaritan in the parable thy Jesus proves to 
 have been. Our nature, universally speaking, was going 
 
MAY. 131 
 
 down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when it fell amongr thieves, 
 and when it was left more than half dead by the great enemy 
 of souls; for we had all miserably departed from the Lord, 
 when Jesus came from heaven to the Jericho of this world, 
 to seek and save that which was lost. And what could the 
 Priest or Levite do by law or sacrifice to help our ruined 
 nature? But when Jesus came and bound up the wounds 
 which sin and Satan had made, by pouring in the balsam of 
 his own precious blood, then he proved himself to be this 
 certain Samaritan ; for none but Jesus could have done this, 
 since there is salvation in no other, neiiher is there any other 
 name under heaven given among men whereby we must be 
 saved. And what is it now, but the same gracious mercy 
 carrying on the same blessed purpose in completing the per 
 feet recovery of our nature? It is Jesus, Samaritan-like, 
 which hath brought us to the inn of his church, hath ap 
 pointed his servants and angels, who are ministering spirits, 
 to minister in all divine things to the heirs of salvation. He 
 hath commissioned the whole train of ordinances, and provi- 
 dences, and promises, to minister to our good. His holy 
 word, his holy Spirit, are unceasingly engaged to the same 
 blessed end. And what crowns all, and makes our state and 
 circumstances most safe and blessed indeed, is, that Jesus 
 hath commanded all the remaining costs and expenses of our 
 cure to be put down to his account. He saith himself to me, 
 a poor worthless sinner as I am, and to every individual of 
 his redeemed, Whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come 
 again, I will repay. And is it so, my soul? Is not the 
 blessing too great to be bestowed, and thou too worthless to 
 receive it? Oh, nol For it is Jesus who promiseth. That's 
 enough. Hail then, thou certain Samaritan, thou Almighty 
 Traveller through our miserable world ! Since the first day 
 that thou didst pass by, and didst behold me in my blood 
 cast out to perish, and didst bid me live, how hath my soul 
 hailed thee, and now and unceasingly will hail thee, as my 
 life, my hope, my joy, my portion for ever ! 
 
 10. — By the highway side, begging, — Mark x. 46. 
 
 My soul, learn a lesson from the beggar this morning-. 
 And oh, thou blessed Friend of beggars ! do thou sweetly 
 make the view gracious to my soul. What was it led this 
 poor man to the highway side to seek alms ? Surely his 
 poverty, wretchedness, and a sense of want. And art thou 
 
t32 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 come forth, my soul, from the same cause and on the same 
 errand ? I presume this creature came forth empty ; for had 
 he been full he would never have come. And art thou so, 
 my soul? for otherwise it is certain they that are full in 
 themselves never seek Jesus. But amidst his want and po- 
 verty, had this poor beggar hopes that the passers-by would 
 commisserate his case and relieve him? Yes, no doubt! 
 though some might overlook and disregard him, all would 
 not. But, my soul, thy case far exceeds his. Though all 
 disregard, Jesus will not: and thou art sure he will pass by, 
 and not only behold thy misery, but give thee needed relief. 
 Jesus, Master, have mercy upon me ! Behold, I am come out 
 this morning as poor, as wretched, as empty, and as needy, 
 as though I never before had heard of thy dear name, or 
 been living upon thy fulness. But thou knowest that I can- 
 not live upon the alms of yesterday, no more than my body 
 can keep in health from the food received in the many days 
 that are past, w^ithout a new supply. Lord, I know that I am 
 thine, and that thou art mine. I therefore come to thee for a 
 suited supply, and surely, thou wilt not send me empty away. 
 Indeed, Lord, I rejoice that I feel my poverty ; for I am 
 thereby, as an empty vessel, better suited for receiving of thy 
 fulness. Give in, blessed Jesus, to my poor hungry soul, and 
 then I shall find cause to rejoice that my emptiness and beg- 
 gary constrained me to seek thee ; and that my need afforded 
 an opportunity for the display of thy grace. Yes, yes, 
 blessed Lord ! I am not only content to be poor and to be 
 needy, but to be nothing, to be worse than nothing, so that 
 thereby my blessed Jesus gets glory in the manifestation of 
 his love and giving out of his riches. I will glory even in 
 my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 
 A beggar still I wish to be, and to lay at thy gate, if but to 
 glimpse at thy face, and to receive one token from thy fair 
 hand. Indeed, indeed, then am I most full, when most empty, 
 to be filled with Jesus. 
 
 11. — Let him alone, and let him curse ; for the Lord hath bidden him. 
 It may be that the Lord will look on mine affliction, and that the 
 Lord will requite me good for his cursing this day. — 2 Sam. xvi. 11, 12. 
 
 My soul, see here a believer in his best frame. To be 
 sure, it is not always thus with a child of God ; but it were 
 to be devoutly desired always thus to be. But while we ad- 
 mire the faith, let us yet more admire and adore Him, and 
 
MAY. 133 
 
 his grace and mercy, who gives it. Oh ! what a blessed state 
 it is to eye the hand of the Lord in every thing. When 
 Shimei thus cursed David, he passeth by the instrument, and 
 recognizeth the hand of the Lord in the appointment. Let 
 him alone, for the Lord hath bidden him. Sin is at the bot- 
 tom. The Lord doth not correct for nought. How unjust 
 soever on the part of man, it is both just and right on the 
 part of God. And observe, moreover, the comfort he takes 
 to himself out of it. If my God bid my enemy distress me, 
 is it not that my Almighty Friend may more sweetly comfort 
 me ? There is not only a may be^ but a certainty there shall 
 he, in God's requiting evil with good to his people. My soul, 
 never overlook this in any, and in all of thine exercises. Be- 
 hold his hand in it, be it what it may, and then thou wilt 
 never faint under any burden. Jesus not only looks on, but 
 he it is that permits and appoints. Oh ! he is tender even in 
 rebukes. By those means he makes his children more like 
 himself; and, moreover, it is his gracious plan to extract 
 pleasure from pain, and by impoverishing the soul in self, 
 and in creature-love, to turn curses into blessings, and convert 
 loss into gain. Doth the enemy curse you ? Doth he come 
 out against you? Oh! then, depend upon it, Jesus is going 
 to confer some special blessing upon you. Thou art to be 
 advanced to great honour, to be made more conformable to 
 his blessed image. Jesus is hereby giving you not only to 
 believe in him, but to suffer for his sake. Precious Lord ! 
 grant me then this grace which thy servant David was en- 
 abled to exercise ; and when the Shimeis of the day come 
 forth to curse, let them curse, so thou do but bless. And oh for 
 sweet influences from thee, dearest Lord ! that I may know 
 thee and the power of thy resurrection, and the fellowship of 
 thy sufferings, being made conformable unto thy death. 
 
 12. — Then said he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my 
 hands ; and reach hither thy liand, and thrust it into my side ; and 
 be not faithless, but believing. — John xx. 27. 
 
 Was Jesus willing to have his wounds searched, rather 
 than his unbelieving disciple should go unconvinced? Look, 
 then, my soul, at Jesus, and he will grant thee a suitable tes- 
 timony, to hush all thy remaining doubts, if so be, after such 
 manifestations of grace as he hath shown thee, there be a 
 single doubt left behind. Doth not Jesus, in effect, say, in 
 every renewed ordinance, Reach hither thy finger, thrust in 
 
 12 
 
134 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 thine hand, and the precious blood thou needest shall flow ; 
 for the fountain for sin, for uncleanness, for unbelief, and, in 
 short, for every necessity of my people, is still open. Is not 
 this the language of all ? Doth unbelief doubt the reality of 
 the thing itself, like Thomas ? Doth unbelief tempt the soul 
 to doubt the particular efficacy of it to special cases, such as 
 a man's own? Doth unbelief suggest the circumstances 
 hopeless from delay, from past neglect, from present unwor- 
 thiness? In answer to all Jesus speaks, " Reach hither thy 
 finger ; and if a touch will not satisfy thee, thrust thy hand 
 deeply into my side ;" here is enough to silence all fears ; 
 why are those wounds still open 1 " Wherefore did I appear 
 to my servant John as a lamb that had been slain, but to 
 convince, by so palpable a testimony, that I am the same 
 yesterday, to day, and for ever." Oh for grace to return 
 the grateful answer to Jesus, My Lord, and my God ! My 
 soul, now thou art commanded, this do. Put forth thine 
 hand, and leave every other consequence with Jesus. While 
 Jesus thus gives himself to thee, my soul, do thou make a 
 complete surrender of thyself to him ; for this is the very 
 exercise of faith that Jesus is come after, and therefore let 
 him not go away until he hath taken thine whole affections 
 with him, as thy Lord and thy God. 
 
 13. — And one man among them was clothed with linen, and a writer's 
 inkhorn by his side. — Ezek. ix. 2. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this scripture. Who could this one 
 man be, but Jesus, thy Mediator! Did not his garment of 
 linen mark his righteousness, and the inkhorn to write down 
 his people, his pierced side? Hath he not written in the 
 book of life the names of all his redeemed, that none of them 
 may be lost when he cometh to make up his jewels ? And 
 was it not whh an eye to this the soldier pierced his side, 
 when by his death he had obtained eternal redemption for 
 them, that he might with his precious blood mark his people, 
 as a shepherd doth his sheep ? Yes, thou dear Redeemer ! 
 surely I behold thee sweetly set forth in this Scripture. 
 Surely the Holy Ghost, who all along delighted to set thee 
 forth under various similitudes before the old church, hath 
 graciously represented thee here. Methinks I behold thee 
 now coming forth in the white garment of thy spotless 
 righteousness, with thy pierced side, to mark all thine, before 
 the destroying angels" go forth to the everlasting destruction 
 
MAY. 135 
 
 of unawakenea, unregenerated sinners ! Methinks I hear 
 thy blessed, gracious, compassionate voice, in the same tender 
 tone of words as thou once didst utter to thy servant John: 
 Him that overcometh tcill I make a pillar in the temple of my 
 God^ and he shall go no more out. And I will write upon him 
 tJie name of my God, and the name of the city of my God : 
 and I loill write upo7i him my new name. Oh, Lamb of God ! 
 fulfil these blessed promises in my soul ! Mark me as thine, 
 unto the day of redemption. Seal me as a signet in thine 
 image, and give me that new name which no man knoweth 
 saving he that receiveth it. Then, amidst burning worlds, 
 my soul will stand secure, being justified in thy righteous- 
 ness, and sprinkled with thy blood ; and I shall hear, with 
 holy joy, that glorious, but awful voice, Come not near any 
 man upon v:hom is the mark. 
 
 14. — If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. — Gal. v. 25. 
 
 My soul, take this sweet scripture for thy motto, not only 
 this day, but every day ; for every day's walk should be the 
 same, with Jesus "by the Spirit. And surely, my soul, if Je- 
 sus really, truly dwells in thee, he will manifest that he is 
 at home, by ruling in thee. It is blessed, and gracious, and 
 edifying, when out of the abundance of the heart the 
 mouth speaketh, and like the spouse, the lips drop as the 
 honey-comb, sweetly of Jesus. But the life of Jesus in the 
 soul consisteth not in talking only of Jesus, but walking in 
 him, and walking with him. But, my soul, how wilt thou 
 accomplish these things, carrying about with thee, as thou 
 dost daily, a body of sin and death? There is but one plan, 
 and that a simple plan, mortifying, indeed, to the pride of 
 human nature, but giving glory to Jesus ! Art thou truly 
 content to be mortified, so that Jesus be glorified ? If so, this 
 is the only way the apostle hath marked. They, and they 
 only, that live in the Spirit, will walk in the Spirit. The 
 same grace which teacheth thee of Jesus, must give to thee 
 power in Jesus. As long as Jesus is in view, looked to, and 
 lived upon, all the blessed effects of the grace from Jesus 
 will follow, as sure as the rays of light diffuse their bright- 
 ness when the sun is risen. If, my soul, thou goest forth in 
 a firm dependance upon Jesus' strength, that strength will 
 be assuredly perfected in thy weakness ; but if Jesus be lost 
 sight ofj and a fancied strength in thyself supply the place, 
 this defect in faith will bring forth a defect in practice. My 
 
136 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul, learn to exercise an holy jealousy over thyself ; for after 
 Jesus is once truly known, all thy danger begins at this 
 place : so that the great secret is, to live out of self, upon 
 his falness ; to do nothing but in his strength ; to propose 
 nothing but for his glory; and in every step you take, in the 
 whole walk of life, to make Jesus every thing, and depend 
 upon him in every thing ; and this is the way to find both 
 security and comfort. Dear Lord ! do thou enable a poor 
 worm thus to live, by living in thee ; and then, sure I am, I 
 shall be happy, by walking in thee. 
 
 15. — Thou shalt also be a crown of glory in the hand of the Lord, and 
 a royal diadem in the hand of thy God. — Isaiah Ixii. 3. 
 
 It is very easy to conceive how the Lord of hosts in the 
 day of salvation becomes for a crown of glory and for a dia- 
 dem of beauty unto his people, as the prophet hath said, 
 Isaiah xxviii. 5. But that the church, and every individual 
 redeemed of the church shall be the Lord's crown and dia- 
 dem ; oh the wonders of grace ! Pause, my soul, over this 
 sweet scripture, and take to thyself the blessedness of it. 
 What a variety of images and similitudes thy God hath made 
 use of, to manifest how highly he prizeth his redeemed ! 
 " Yea, he loved the people, (said one of old,) and his saints 
 are in thy hand." He calleth them jewels, precious stones, 
 his treasure, his chosen, his inheritance, his portion, his 
 crown, his diadem ! And what a thought it is for thee, 
 my soul, to meditate upon, that though in thyself thou art no- 
 thing, yet, considered in Jesus, thou art all this and more ; 
 polished, made comely, and glorious, from the comeliness 
 put upon thee, and the glory of Jesus. See then, my soul, 
 the vast mercy in Jesus ! A worthless worm made dear to God ! 
 How infinitely precious and dear should God in Christ be to 
 thee! Let this encourage thee, then, at all times to come to him. 
 Thou art giving glory to thy God, when thou coraest to him. 
 to give out of his fulness to thee. Jesus wanteth needy crea- 
 tures to be glorified upon, by giving out of his abundance 
 to their necessities ; and the more he gives, the more he 
 is glorified. Mark that also, for thy greater encourage- 
 ment to come to him. The more thou art blessed in his ful- 
 ness, the more blessed he is in imparting it ; so that while 
 thou art his crown of glory, he is glorified in thy redemption. 
 And while thou crownest Jesus' head, in ascribing all the 
 glory of thy salvation unto him, he condescends to make 
 
MAY. 137 
 
 thee a crown of glory in his hand, as a token that thou art 
 his, both by purchase of his blood, the gift of his Father, and 
 the conquest of his grace. Hallelujah ! 
 
 16. — And he that had been possessed with the devil, prayed him that he 
 might be with him. Howbeit, Jesus suffered him not, but saith unto 
 him, Go home to thy friends, and tell them how great things the 
 Lord hath done for thee. — Mark v. 18, 19. 
 
 Mark this, my soul, and especially when at any time thy 
 Jesus is so graciously revealing himself to thee, in a way 
 of love that thou art longing to be absent from the body, 
 that thou mayest be present Vv-ith the Lord ; think, then, of what 
 Jesus said to this poor man. The thought of being made instru- 
 mental in ihe hand of the Lord in calling sinners to Jesus, 
 made holy Paul willing to wait in a sinful world, and put off 
 his own happiness. Precious frame of mind ! Paul knew 
 also, that if the Lord housed his children from the lions' dens 
 and from the mountains of leopards, as soon as he had 
 brought them to the knowledge of himself, then, in this 
 case, Jesus would have no church in the wilderness. The 
 holy seed would not be found amidst the tares of the 
 earth. Blessed Lord ! give grace to every exercised child 
 of thine to think of this ; that when, under the various trials 
 with which thy wisdom and love seeth fit to try their 
 graces, they long to be home with thee, and are sending 
 forth the cry of the soul for dismission, they may hear thy 
 voice speaking as to this poor man, " Go home to thy 
 friends, and tell them how great things the Lord hath done 
 for thee." But pause, my soul ! Is this thy case? Hath 
 Jesus done great things for thee, and art thou proclaiming it 
 abroad to call others to partake? Suppose one from the 
 throng was to ask thee. What is thy Belcfved more than 
 another beloved? What would be thy answer? Wouldest 
 thou say, how he hath blest thee in health, or wealth, or 
 worldly success, or prosperity ; in friends, and relations, and 
 the like? And are these all the things or the chief of 
 them that thou couldest speak of? If so, what are these 
 more than carnal men can, and do speak of? The infidel, the 
 Turk, the Pagan, can boast as much ! But if thou canst say, 
 " Oh, come hither and barken, all ye that fear God, and I will 
 tell you what he hath done for my soul ! I was once darkness, 
 and am now light in the Lord ! I was once in Satan's chains, 
 and Jesus hath set me free ! I was once like this poor man, 
 
 12* 
 
138 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 under the possession of sin and Satan ; but now I sit down 
 
 at the feet of Jesus, to hear the gracious words which 
 proceed out of his mouth !" Here, my sou], this is indeed to 
 tell thy friends how great things the Lord hath done for thee. 
 Oh for grace thus to proclaim his adorable name while 
 on earth, until Jesus comes to take me home to himself, there 
 to sound his praise before the whole redeemed church of God 
 for ever ! 
 
 17. — I am poor and needy, yet the Lord thinketh upon me. — Psalm xl. 17 
 
 Precious consideration, my soul, under all thine exercises, 
 the Lord, thy Lord, thy Jesus, thinketh upon thee. Where- 
 fore should I faint, then, under any burden ? Surely I 
 may say, as Hagar did at the well. Thou, God, seest me ! 
 Surely I may give my God, my Saviour, this name as she did ; 
 for she said, " Have I also here looked after him that seeth 
 me ?" Yes, however unconscious my poor heart is of 
 the blessed truth, yet a very blessed truth it is ; while I 
 am looking after Jesus, he is before-hand, thinking and 
 looking upon me. Precious Lamb of God ! I will re- 
 member my poverty no more : that is, I will remember it no 
 more, but as it is made the means in thy hand to make me sen- 
 sible of my need and thy fulness. Art thou thinking upon 
 me % Do I hear thy gracious voice saying to me, " I 
 know the thoughts that I think towards you, saith the 
 Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an 
 expected end ! Oh ! then, herein I will rejoice. Poor 
 and needy as I am, let me be more poor, more needy, 
 so but I see my fulness in Jesus. He is thinking of me, 
 providing for me, blessing me. I would not be full for the 
 world, or fancy myself so ; for what room should I then have 
 for Jesus ? What it will be in heaven, I know not ; in the 
 fulness of happiness that is there, though that fulness can only 
 be in and from Jesus. But here below, a full state, or a sup- 
 posed full state, would be an empty wretched state. No, let 
 me be poor and needy, empty and in want, wretched and 
 helpless, in myself; for then I am sure my Jesus will be 
 most precious. Mark it down then, my soul, this day, and 
 wear it about thine heart as a pleasing consideration — When 
 thou feelest thy need and poverty most, the Lord thy Jesus 
 thinketh upon thee. 
 
MAY. 189 
 
 18.— The flower of the field.— Psalm ciii. 15. 
 
 Do I not behold Jesus here pre-eminently set forth above 
 his fellows ? Yes, dear Lord ! thy people, planted by thy 
 hand, do indeed flourish as a flower of the field : but never 
 any like thee. Indeed, all their loveliness, fragrancy, value, 
 all are only so as derived from thee. Never did God our 
 Father plant so lovely a flower, so sweet, so fragrant a flower, 
 in the field of his garden, in the heavenly Paradise, or the 
 earthly Eden, as when he planted thee. Sweet Plant of Re- 
 nown ! aid my meditations this morning to contemplate thee 
 under this interesting view, as the Flower of the field. And 
 first, let me behold thee as truly the Flow^er of the field, be- 
 cause thou art altogether of God's right hand planting, and 
 not of man's. The flower of the field hath no father but 
 God, and no mother but the virgin earth. Precious Jesus ! 
 thou wert conceived in thy human nature wholly by the over- 
 shadowing of God the Spirit, when thou condescendest, for our 
 salvation, to be born of the virgin's womb. And let me look 
 at thee, oh Lord, under another beautiful illustration of thy 
 nature, as the Flower of the field, when I consider the hum- 
 bleness and lowliness in which thou didst appear. Was 
 there ever a sweet flower of the field more hid, more ob- 
 scured, and, when brought forward to view, less regarded, 
 than Jesus, of whom it was truly said, " He was despised 
 and rejected of men : without form or comeliness, and having 
 no beauty that we should desire him?" And is there not 
 another thought w^hich ariseth to the mind in the contempla- 
 tion of Jesus as the Flower of the field ?- Yes ! methinks I 
 behold, in the exposure of the flower of the field to the mer- 
 ciless treading of the foot of the passenger, and to the pluck- 
 ing up or destroying by wild beasts, a striking representation 
 of Jesus, who, in the days of his flesh, was encompassed by 
 beasts of prey, and trodden down of men. Alas ! how many 
 even now in the present hour despise thy person, live regard- 
 less of thy righteousness, have trodden under foot the Son of 
 God, and count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing ! 
 But, precious Jesus ! give me to behold thee as the sweet 
 Flower of the field, open to the view of every traveller, and 
 shedding the richness of thy fragrancy, under all the influ- 
 ences of thy Spirit, both in the north wind, and the south 
 wind of thy power. Ye travellers to Zion, come, see this 
 lovely Flow^er in the open field of his word, his church, his 
 ordinances ! Behold the freeness of his bloom, his beauty, 
 
140 MORNING* PORTION. 
 
 and odour. He sheds his influences, not in a garden in- 
 closed that ye cannot approach, but in the open field. Here 
 he stands, as the Plant of Renown, which God hath raised 
 up. Oh ! come to him as the Balm of Gilead, and the Phy- 
 sician there, that the hurt of the daughter of his people may 
 be healed. 
 
 19. — Is this thy kmdness to thy friend ? — 2 Sam. xvi. 1 7. 
 
 My soul, borrow the words of Absalom to Hushai, and 
 make application of them this morning to thyself, as if Jesus, 
 the best of all friends, were thus reasoning with thee. In 
 how many wavs hath Jesus manifested his love to thee ? 
 Think of this unparalled love in the various ways by which 
 he hath shown it. He engaged as thy Surety before that 
 thou knewest any need of one. He took thy nature to fulfil 
 all those engagements. He loved thee so as to die for thee. 
 He loved thee so as to shed his blood for thee. He loved 
 thee so as to wash thee from thy sins in his blood. He 
 loveth thee now, so as to appear in the presence of God for 
 thee. He loveth thee so as to be continually supplying thee 
 with all grace, to visit thee, to smile upon thee, to sanctify to 
 thee all his appointments for thy good ; and will never give 
 over until he hath brought thee where he is, to behold his 
 glory, and to partake of it. And hast thou not recompensed 
 this love, this mercy, in a thousand, and ten thousand in- 
 stances, with ingratitude, wdth indifference, with forgetful- 
 ness, with disobedience? Is this thy kindness to thy friend? 
 Precious Jesus ! I do remember my faults this day. Oh, 
 gracious Lord, grant me from henceforth to live wholly to 
 thee ; to be continually eyeing thee, walking with thee, cleav- 
 ing to thee, hanging upon thee, and to remember thee and 
 thy love more than wine ! Yes, thou dearest Redeemer ! I 
 would pray for grace to set thee alwaj'-s before me, to record 
 in my heart thy mercies, and to set up in my heart thy person, 
 to follow thee whithersoever thou goest, to watch the steps of 
 Jesus, to pursue thee in all the haunts of thy paths, at thy 
 table, at thine ordinances, in thy word, in thine house of 
 prayer, in thy providences, in thy promises : every where, 
 and in all things, where Jesus is, there may my soul be ; 
 that, having nothing to give my Lord to recompense his 
 bounty, I may at least by his grace follow him, to bless him, 
 and to manifest that all 1 am, and all I have, is his. My 
 soul, see to it, that this is at least thy kindness to thy friend ! 
 
MAY. 141 
 
 20. — Length of days is in her riglit hand, and iu her left hand riches 
 and honour. — Prov. iii. 16. 
 
 What is sweetly said of Jesus in one scripture, as the 
 Glory-wisdom, is as sweetly sung- in another scripture, as 
 the Husband of his church and people. Yes, Lord ! thy 
 right-hand blessings may well be called length of days, for 
 they are life itself, even life everlasting in thee: and thy left- 
 hand mercies, \vhich include all temporal good, may well 
 merit the name of riches and honour, for thou givest to all 
 that love thee to inherit substance, and thou fillest all their 
 treasures. There is no substance in any, nothing satisfying, 
 nothing substantial, where thou art not. Why then, blessed 
 Jesus, if these things be so, I would say to thee, as the church 
 of old did, "Put thy left hand under my head, and let thy 
 right hand embrace me." This will make every thing sweet, 
 and every thing precious. Even thy left hand blessings, in 
 the sanctified use of afflictions, sorrow, bereaving providences, 
 sickness, and the like, even these, being Jesus' appointments, 
 will bring with them Jesus' blessing ; and while thine hand 
 is under my head, how shall these, or aught else, separate 
 nie from thee? And concerning thy righthand blessings, 
 in the pardon of my sins, washing me in thy blood, clothing 
 me with thy righteousness, justifying me with thy salvation, 
 feeding me, sustaining me, leading me, coniforting me, bring- 
 ing me on, and bringing me through, and by and by bringing 
 me home, to glory : that where thou art, there I shall be also : 
 oh, precious Jesus! grant me in this sweet sense to know 
 thee, and to enjoy thee, in every thing ; for sure I am, that 
 riches and honour are wath thee, yea, durable riches and 
 righteousness. 
 
 21. — He found him in a desert land, and in the v^^aste howling wilderness. 
 Deut. xxxii. 10. 
 
 My soul ! behold in this view of Israel thy case and cir- 
 cumstances. Where did Jesus find thee, when he passed by 
 and bade thee live, but cast out, loathsome in thy person, and 
 perishing in nature ? Remember, then, it was Jesus found 
 thee, and not thou him. And where wast thou born, and 
 new-born, and nursed, and educated, and trained ? Was it 
 not in a desert land, and in the waste howling wilderness? 
 Can any thing be better suited to represent thy state by na- 
 ture ? Is not the heart of man like the heath upon the desert, 
 
142 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 that knoweth not when good cometh? Is it not like the 
 ground, dry, parched, and barren ? And as a wilderness is 
 a land not inhabited, full of perplexed paths and intricate 
 ways, without food, without sustenance, and no springs of 
 water ; can any thing more strikingly resemble the whole 
 of thy spiritual circumstances, w^hen Jesus called thee from 
 darkness to light, and from the power of sin and Satan to 
 himself the living God ? And as the wilderness is a barren 
 state, so is it dangerous also, by reason of the prowling beasts 
 of prey which inhabit it. And hath Jesus called thee out of 
 it, brought thee to a city of habitation, and made himself 
 known unto thee as thy Redeemer ? Oh ! how sweet is it to 
 trace ail our spiritual circumstances, in the mercy, grace, and 
 favour, Jesus manifested to Israel, thus beautifully illustrated 
 and explained, and to see, and know, and truly rejoice in our 
 unspeakable mercies in Jesus. My soul ! never forget then 
 that it was in the wilderness of nature Jesus found thee! and 
 hath he indeed brought thee out of it 1 See then that thou 
 art now coming up from it leaning upon thy Beloved ; hang- 
 ing wholly upon him, cleaving- wholly to him, and determin- 
 ing for thyself, in ever}-- remaining period of time, and to all 
 eternity, to make Jesus thy all. thy life, thy portion, thy shield, 
 and thine exceeding great reward ! 
 
 22. — Thy daughter is dead ; trouble not the Master. — Luke viii. 49. 
 
 Mark, my soul, in the exercises of the father of this child, 
 and in the happy issue of his application to Jesus, how very 
 precious it is, to wait the Lord's time for deliverance, and al- 
 ways to keep in view that delays are not denials. The poor 
 man's child was nearly dead when he first came to Christ. 
 And had the greatest dispatch been used, there would have 
 been still much occasion for the exercise of faith and pa- 
 tience. But as if this was not enough, another poor suf- 
 ferer comes in the way to stop the progress of Jesus in the 
 cure of his daughter, and during this loss of time his child 
 dies. My soul ! here is a sweet subject for thee. Do thy 
 fears, and unbelief, and doubts, and misgivings, aided by the 
 suggestions of the enemy, too often pronipt thee to think thy 
 case hopeless ; and every thing joins the cry. Thy daughter 
 is dead, trouble not the iVlaster ? Oh! think what a precious 
 opportunity all these afford thee to follow up the patriarch's 
 faith, and against hope to believe in hope. What cannot 
 Jesus accomplish ? Though the daughter be dead ; though 
 
% 
 
 MAY. 143 
 
 Lazarus be four days in the grave ; yet Jesus, who is the 
 resurrection and the life, need only speak the word, and both 
 live. In like manner, when exercises arise to the greatest 
 height, until unbelief suggests all is over, dead frames, a 
 dead heart, deadness to all, then is the very time to believe, 
 m order to see the glory of God. Strictly and properly 
 speaking, Jesus cannot be glorified until the stream of all 
 other resources is dried up. Mark it then, my soul, thy time 
 to trust Jesus is, when nothing in nature, but wholly grace, 
 must trust him. And depend upon it, the greater the diffi- 
 culty for the keeping faith alive, the greater glory will you 
 give to Jesus in the exercise of it, and the greater glory that 
 blessed Saviour will receive from you in supplying that faith 
 during the dead hour, until the deliverance comes. Hear 
 Jesus' voice in thy instance, be it what it may, as in the case 
 of this distressed father, for the issue will be the same : fear 
 not ; believe only, and thou shalt live. 
 
 23. — Such au one as Paul the aged. — Philemon 9. 
 
 And what was Paul in the moment here represented? 
 Verily an aged servant of his Master, but not retired from 
 the scene of action. Paul, though grown old in the Lord's 
 service, was still as hotly engaged as ever, in the Lord's 
 battle. Art thou such an one, my soul, as Paul was % Then 
 learn from hence, that however many, or however heavy, 
 former campaigns have been, there is no rest for thee this 
 side Jordan, no more than for Paul ; no winter quarters for 
 the true soldiers of Jesus Christ. Until thy Captain undress 
 thee for the grave, the holy armour in which he hath clad 
 thee is not to be taken off Art thou such an one as Paul the 
 aged 1 Then, like Paul, see that thou art strong in the Lord, 
 and in the power of his might. And how sweet the thought! 
 Thy Jesus, who hath borne thee from the womb, and carried 
 thee from the belly, knows well the burthen of thy increas- 
 ing years, and all the infirmities belonging to them, and will 
 carry both thee and them. Yes, my soul, those very infirmi- 
 ties which the tenderest-hearted friend sometimes feels impa- 
 tient at, and even thyself, thou knowest not how to bear, Jesus 
 feels, Jesus commisserates, Jesus will soften ! He that hath 
 carried all thy sins, carrieth also all thy sorrows. Doth he 
 not say so ? Even to your old age I am he ; and even to 
 hoar hairs I will carry you. I have made, and I will bear ; 
 even I will carry, and will deliver you, Isaiah xlvi. 3, 4. 
 
144 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Precious Lamb of God ! henceforth I cast all my burdens 
 upon thee. Thou hast never called thyself, I AM, for no- 
 thing. Thou hast indeed made me, and new-made me. Thou 
 hast borne all my sins in thine own body on the tree. Art 
 thou not both the Alpha and the Omega, both the Author and 
 Finisher, of my salvation? Oh, yes: thou hast been every 
 thing to me, and for me, from the womb of creation ; borne 
 me on eagle's wings ; made me, and new-made me ; re- 
 deemed me, in a thousand redemptions, and been better to 
 me than all my fears ! What, indeed, hast thou not done for 
 me? And now then, being such an one as Paul the aged, 
 shall I now doubt, or now^ fear, when every pain, and every 
 cross, and every new assault from sin, and Satan, bid me go 
 to Jesus. Oh ! for grace, ever to keep in view what thou 
 hast said and done, and what thou hast promised. Yes, yes : 
 it is enough ; Jesus hath said, " even to your old age I am 
 he." The same I have been, the same I will ever be. I 
 will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. Shout, my soul, and 
 cry out Hallelujah ! He that hath been my first, will be my 
 last ; my strength, my song, my salvation for ever ! 
 
 24. — Then ceased the work of the house of God. — Ezra iv. 24. 
 
 Ah ! how distressed was Zion, when this decree took 
 place. And yet the history of the church plainly proves 
 that the hand of the Lord was in it ! My soul, are thine 
 exercises sometimes similar ? Doth it seem to thee as if the 
 work of God in thee was at a stand ? nay, as if it was to- 
 tally over ? Pause! recollect there is a set time to favour 
 Zion. Thy Jesus is of one mind, and who can turn him ? 
 He is everlastingly pursuing the designs of his love. And 
 as Zion was graven upon the palms of his hands, and her 
 walls were continually before him, when she appeared in her 
 most desolate circumstances ; so the work of his grace, in 
 the heait of his people, doth not remit, though, to thy view, 
 all thy promising beginnings seem to be blighted, and as it 
 seems in thy apprehension, thou findest growing imperfec- 
 tion. And is not Jesus, by this very means, emptying thee 
 of self, and all the pride of self-attainments? Is he not pre- 
 paring thee for his own glory, by removing in thee the rub- 
 bish of all creature-confidences? Remember what is said; 
 When the Lord shall build up Zion, he shall appear in his 
 glory. Mark here, that it is the Lord that is to build Zion : 
 and it is the Lord's glory, and not thine, that is to result from 
 
# 
 
 MAY. *^^B^ ^^^ 
 
 it. The work of the house of God in thee would indeed 
 cease, if the work was thine, or thou hadst any hand in the 
 performance of it! But the same almighty hand which laid 
 the foundation of this house, those hands shall also finish it. 
 And by this process, the glorious Builder is teaching thee to 
 cease from thine own works, as Jesus when redemption-work 
 was finished, did from his. Precious Lord ! is this the cause, 
 and are these the lessons, thou art teaching me, in the dead- 
 ness, emptiness, and the numberless complaints under which 
 I daily groan? Oh! then, for grace to cease from self, to 
 cease from all fancied attainments, and to have my whole 
 heart and soul centred in thee, in whom alone is all righ- 
 teousness, grace, work, and fulness. Yes, Lord ! the work 
 is thine, the salvation is thine, the glory is thine, all is thine ; 
 and all that remains for me, is to be for ever giving thee the 
 just praise that is due to thy most holy name, content to be 
 nothing, yea, less than nothing, that the power of Jesus may 
 rest upon me : for when most weak in myself, then am I most 
 strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 
 
 25. — And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick ; the people that dwell 
 therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. — Isaiah xxxiii. 24. 
 
 What is this ? What happy climate is there where any 
 of its inhabitants are exempt from sickness ? Where is that 
 salubrious air, that is not impregnated with disease? Surely, 
 no where but in heaven. But if the cause of sickness be 
 1-emoved, if the envenomed dart of sin be taken out, and hath 
 lost its poison, the inhabitant no longer complains, for both 
 the evil and the pain is gone. My soul, hast thou found this 
 happy spot? Hath Jesus manifested such views of his par- 
 doning grace, in the all-sufficiency of his blood and righ- 
 teousness, that thou not only art fully convinced and satisfied 
 that his blood cleanseth from all sin, but that thou as fully 
 believest and restest in it for thy salvation, and art of the 
 happy number of those who believe to the salvation of the 
 soul ? Hath Jesus said to thee, as to the poor man in the 
 gospel, "Son, be of good cheer, thy sins are forgiven thee?" 
 Surely, then, thou art the inhabitant the prophet pointed at, 
 and art no longer sick, but dwelling in the faith, and for- 
 given thine iniquity. Blessed Physician ! I am no longer 
 sick of that dreadful sickness which is unto death, in an un- 
 renewed, unpardoned, unregenerated state; but I am sick 
 indeed, and fainting, for the fresh manifestations of thy grace. 
 
 13 
 
146 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 I am languishing, thou dearest Lord, for the renewed visits 
 of thy love, the enjoyment of thy person, the larger, fuller, 
 more constant discoveries of thyself and thy glory. When 
 wilt thou come unto me ? When will the day of everlasting 
 light break in upon my soul? When shall I behold thee 
 among the inhabitants of the upper, brighter world ? Oh ! 
 ye spirits of just men made perfect, ye who now dwell for 
 ever under the perpetual smiles of Jesus' face ; ye who once 
 knew what it was to live in the unceasing desire of his re- 
 newed visits, and how precious all his love tokens are — tell 
 him what longings my soul now hath, and what faintings I 
 feel, for his manifestation. Tell him, I charge you, Oh ye 
 daughters of the New Jerusalem, ye that everlastingly be- 
 hold my Beloved, tell him that I am sick of love ! 
 
 26. — Thou hast ascended on high ; thou hast led captivity captive : thou 
 hast received gifts for men ; yea, for the rebelUous also, that the 
 Lord God might dvi^ell among them. — Psalm Ixviii. 18 
 
 Sweet view of a risen, ascended, and triumphant Saviour. 
 My soul, ponder over these words, and while meditating upon 
 them, see that thou art ascending after thy exalted Head, and 
 partaking in his glories. Jesus is he who hath indeed as- 
 cended, far above all heavens, that he might fill all things. 
 He hath led captivity captive ; and that not only in conquer- 
 ing all the powers of hell, but taking his people that were in 
 captivity out of the prison-house, and causing them to partake 
 in the felicity of his triumphs. And mark, my soul, Avhat 
 follows: He hath received gifts for men ; or, as the Apostle 
 to the church of Ephesus expresseth the same blessed truth, 
 he gave gifts to men. Eph. iv. 8. And sweetly Jesus hath 
 done both ; for he received that he might give. He needed 
 not for himself, but it was all for his people. He said him- 
 self, when speaking to the Father, " that I should give eternal 
 life to as many as thou hast given me." And, my soul, mark 
 another sweet expression in these vv^ords ; he hath received 
 gifts for men ; or, as the margin of our old Bibles hath it, 
 (and our old Bibles are like old gold, precious things,) he 
 nath received gifts iji the man ; that is, in his human na- 
 ture, as Mediator, to give out to his people. See then, my 
 soul, all thy blessings are treasured up in Him that is, in one 
 and the same moment, thy God and thy Brother. Oh, glo- 
 rious thought ! oh, soul-cornforting truth ! Neither is this 
 all: for this sweet scripture points out also for whom he hath 
 
MAY. 147 
 
 received gifts. It is for men. Not for angels, but for men. 
 Not for holy men neither, but for sinners. Not for Jews 
 only, but for Gentiles. " Yea," saith the Holy Ghost, as if 
 the Lord the Spirit would lay an emphasis upon it, that it 
 might be particularly noticed, '• for the rebellious also, that 
 the Lord God might dwell among them."' Oh, matchless 
 grace! Oh, world of wonders! Fallen angels passed by, 
 and rebels of men taken into favour. Great Father of mer- 
 cies ! what manner of love is this which thou hast bestowed 
 upon our fallen nature? Oh, thou risen and exalted Jesus ! 
 send down, Lord, thine ascension gifts. Nay, blessed Lord ! 
 come down thyself and dwell among us. Set up thy church 
 in the earth, in the hearts and souls of thy people, and reign 
 and rule there, the Lord of life and glory. 
 
 27. — Thine ears shall hear a word behmd thee, saying, This is the way, 
 walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right band, and when ye turn to 
 the left. — Isaiah xxx. 21. 
 
 My soul, who is this Almighty Teacher, out of sight, but 
 the Holy Ghost? And to what way doth he point, but to 
 Jesus, who is both the way, and the truth, and the life? Art 
 thou ever at a stand ? listen to this voice. Art thou about to 
 turn to the right, or left? see how seasonably he is promised 
 to come to direct thee. Condescend, thou gracious, matchless 
 Instructor, to guide me I I shall not fail then to know the 
 wholesomeness of thy teaching, when thou hast opened mine 
 eyes to see the wondrous things of thy law. I shall indeed 
 know that thou art my Director, because thou hast said, '• I 
 the Lord teacheth thee to profit." And when thy word comes 
 not in word only, but in power, and in thee the Holy Ghost, 
 surely I shall know it, in that it not only reaches mj ear, but 
 will influence my heart; not only will instruct and teach me 
 in the way wherein I should go, but will incline my feet to 
 walk in it. Yes, thou infallible Teacher ! I shall knovrthee 
 to be the Spirit of truth, by guiding me into all truth. I shall 
 know the voice of the Spirit of Jesus, because it vrill prompt 
 me to follow Jesus. Did I hear a voice, telling me of a way 
 of salvation in a righteousness of my own : did I sit under a 
 teaching which sent me to my tears, and repentance, and 
 alms deeds, by way of recommending me to God : did I 
 listen to the siren song, which told me of safety in myself, 
 and my own best endeavours, and that Christ would do the 
 rest; or did any teach me that I must not come to Jesus until 
 
148 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 that, by some previous acts of soul-cleansing in prayers and 
 fastings, I had made myself fit : in all these cases, and the 
 like, I should know that they could not be the voice behind 
 me, promised to direct ; because it is thy one glorious office, 
 thou holy and eternal Spirit, to testify of Jesus, and to glorify 
 him. When, therefore, I hear the voice behind me, saying, 
 This is the way, walk ye in it ; and when it directs me 
 wholly to Jesus ; when every thing in this divine teaching 
 enlightens my mind in the knou^edge of the person, relation, 
 work, power, grace, righteousness, and love of the Lord 
 Jesus Christ ; and when that blessed voice bids me to come 
 unto him, just as I am, a poor, vile, needy, perishing sinner, 
 to venture upon him for life and salvation, and how to receive 
 and improve the Lord Jesus, in his infinite suitableness to all 
 my necessities : oh, how fully verified to my experience is 
 this sweet promise of my God to my soul ! Holy Father ! 
 cause me to hear this blessed voice, in the daily, hourly path 
 of my pilgrimage ; and grant me the spirit of wisdom and 
 revelation, in the knovvdedge of thy dear Son. 
 
 28. — They shall grow as the vine. — Hosea xiv. 7. 
 
 And how doth the vine grow ? Why, in those soils that 
 are favourable to it, vines are not erect like trees, neither are 
 they fixed, as we do our vines, against walls ; but the vine 
 creeps along upon the ground, and rests its tender stalk and 
 branches upon the nearest prop that will stay it. And, my 
 soul, is it not so with the believer that wholly leans upon 
 Jesus, and throws the arms of faith wholly upon Him, as the 
 staff, and stay, and support of all confidence ? And there is 
 another property of the vine which carries with it a striking 
 resemblance to the believer, namely, the tenderness of its 
 nature, and danger to which it is exposed. How very weak, 
 and poor, and frail and helpless is the child of God ! What 
 can a believer perform in himself? And what an host of 
 foes is he exposed to ! Corruption within, and the enemy on 
 every side, make his case truly like the vine, exposed to the 
 wild beast, and nipping v/inds, and storms, which every mo- 
 ment threaten to destroy it. And there is a third particularity 
 by which both are known. While flourishing, to what an 
 extensive length will the vine throw out her branches, and 
 what an abundance of fruit will it bear ! And doth not the 
 believer, in this sense, grow as the vine, when, from being 
 ingrafted in Jesus, and nourished by him, and from him, his 
 
MAY. 149 
 
 fruit being found, sends forth the graces and fruits of the 
 Spirit, and brings forth some thirty, some sixty, and some an 
 hundred fold ? And, to mention no more, wJiat a likeness 
 is there between the dry, unpromising stick of the vine, and 
 the lifeless and unpromising appearance of the believer! As 
 Jesus himself, when upon earth, was like a root out of a dry 
 ground, so all his followers now are men every where won- 
 dered at. Precious Jesus ! thou glorious Vine of thy church ! 
 cause me to be so united to thee, as a branch in thee, the one 
 heavenly Plant thy Father hath planted, that in thee my 
 fruit may be found ; that I may be perpetually receiving fresh 
 communications from thee, and living upon thee, and to thee, 
 and rejoicing in thee, the Source and Fountain of all that is 
 gracious here, and the everlasting Spring of glory, happiness, 
 and joy, that shall be hereafter. 
 
 29. — As by the offence of one, judgment came upon all men to condem- 
 nation ; even so by the righteousness of one, the free gift came upon 
 all men unto justification of life. — Romans v. 18. 
 
 Concerning the ruin in which thou art involved in Adam, 
 surely, my soul, thou knowest and feelest it from day to day. 
 No one can persuade thee out of this. Thou art as much 
 concerned in the sin, and consequently implicated in the pun- 
 ishment, of the first man's transgression, as if thou hadst been 
 (and which indeed as thy root and head thou really wert) in 
 the garden with him when he did it. And thou feelest the 
 same disposition to sin, the same rebellion in thy very nature. 
 So that most fully and freely dost thou subscribe to the rights 
 of God's judgment, that condemnation cometh upon all men, 
 because all have sinned. Now then see, my soul, whether, 
 through the same Almighty Teacher who convinced thee of 
 sin, thou art convinced also of the righteousness of Jesus, and 
 art as fully and as truly interested in all that belongs unto 
 him. Now as Adam and his seed are one in sin and its just 
 consequences, so equally Christ and his seed, in the eye of 
 God's law and justice, are one in Christ's righteousness. 
 Remember, my soul, (and it is a great point to remember,) 
 Jesus is never spoken of in Scripture as a single person and 
 as the Christ of God, but as the Covenant Head. He is as 
 much the head, the root, the common stock, of all his spiritual 
 seed, as Adam was the head, and root, and stock, of all his 
 natural seed. So then, as Adam's sin is the sin of all his 
 children, because they are his children ; even so the righ- 
 13* 
 
150 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 teousness of Christ, the second Adam, so called, is the righ- 
 teousness of all his children, because they are his children. 
 This is so plain a truth, that it can need no further argument. 
 The next point now is, in order to enjoy all the comfort and 
 blessedness which ariseth out of this precious doctrine, that 
 thou shouldest be able, my soul, to prove that thou art of 
 Christ's seed. Very fully thou provest from day to day, by 
 the remains of indwelling corruption that ariseth within, that 
 thou art of the stock of the first Adam : how wilt thou prove 
 thy relationship to the second? For as upon the presump- 
 tion I had not sprung from the stock of Adam, and none of 
 his blood was running in my veins, I should not have par- 
 taken of his sin, or been subject to his punishment ; so equally 
 evident it is, that if I am not born again and belong to the 
 seed of Christ, I am not interested in him or his righteous- 
 ness. Blessed be God ! the relationship with Jesus, as the 
 glorious Head and Mediator of his people, is as easily to be 
 proved as the relationship with Adarn. God promised to 
 pour out of his spirit upon Christ's seed, Isaiah xliv. 3, 4, 5. 
 Hast thou then, my soul, the s.pirit of Christ, as thou hast the 
 nature of Adam ? Is Jesus precious, more precious than gold 
 — his salvation dear — his righteousness thy only confidence 1 
 Canst thou, and dost thou, say with one of old, this is ail my 
 salvation, and all my desire. Is He whom the Father de- 
 lighteth in, thy delight — he that is the desire of all nations, 
 thy desire ? If these and the like testimonies are in thy ex- 
 perience, my soul, what greater evidences dost thou need, to 
 manifest thy relationship to thy Jesus, as thy corruptions prove 
 thee allied to the old nature. See then, my soul, that thou 
 foldest up this soul-reviving truth for thy bosom, and carriest 
 it about with thee daily wherever thou goest ; so will Jesus 
 be thy hope and thy portion for ever* 
 
 30. — Renewing of the Holy Ghost, which he shed on us abundantly, 
 through Jesus Christ our Saviour. — Titus iii. 5, 6. 
 
 Precious office of the Spirit ! Condescend, great God, to 
 grant it to me this morning. Oh, renew my soul with all thy 
 sweet revivals, after a night of sleep, as thou renewest the 
 face of the earth. Oh, send forth, I beseech thee, Lord, all 
 thy graces, as suited to my necessities and the Redeemer's 
 glory, and let it be most abundantly shed abroad through all 
 the faculties of my soul, through Jesus Christ my Saviour 
 Pause, my soul, over the blessed prospect, and, having now 
 
MAY. 151 
 
 pleaded in Jesus' name for the mercy, act forth upon thy God 
 in his promises. Is not every morning a renewing of the 
 Holy Ghost? Is it not said concerning the productions of 
 the earth, that God " sendeth forth his Spirit, and they are 
 created, and thou renewest the face of the earth." See what 
 an evidence the earth gives in this lovely season, in the fruits, 
 and plants, and verdure all around. And are the saints of 
 Jesus of a less sweet smelling savour, when perfumed as they 
 are with the everlasting odour of Jesus' never-failing righteous- 
 ness ? Do the fields, when renewed by the sun of the morn- 
 ing, look gay, ajid lovely, and after the dew or the refreshing 
 shower, give out their odour, perfuming the air with their 
 fragrancy ; and shall not the saints of God, when the Sun of 
 righteousness ariseth upon them with healing in his wings, 
 send forth all the blessed effects of that presence which re- 
 vives the grace Jesus hath planted, and calls forth into exer- 
 cise the faith he hath given? Shall not the showers of his 
 love, when he comes down in them as rain upon the mown 
 grass, and the dews of the Holy Ghost's renewings, revive 
 all the languishing frames of the soul, and cause even the 
 desert to blossom abundantly, and to rejoice with joy and 
 singing? Yes, yes, thou blessed Lord! methinks I feel thy 
 sweet and gracious reneuings : my very heart is refreshed 
 in the thought. Under thy influence I will look up and wait 
 the coming of Jesus. He is near. He comes. I hear him 
 say, " Rise up, my beloved, and come away : for lo, the win- 
 ter is past, the rain is over and gone, 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." 
 
 31. — And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is g^ven 
 unto me in heaven and in earth. — Matt, xxviii. 18, 
 
 Hail then, thou Sovereign Lord of all ! I have lately 
 been following thee in sweet and solemn meditation through 
 the seasons of thy humiliation ; now let me behold thee on 
 thy throne. And here I am called upon to contemplate my 
 Lord a.nd my God as possessing universal dominion. Pon- 
 der, my soul, the vast extent. Thy Jesus, as God, as one 
 with the Father, possesseth in common with him all power 
 from everlasting. This is his, as God, essentially so ; not 
 given to him, for by nature it is his, being " one with the 
 Father, over all God blessed for ever. Amen," said Paul, 
 so let it be, so shall it be. And so say I, and so saith all the 
 
152 MORNLNG PORTION. 
 
 church : Amen, Amen. But what thy Jesus saith here, in 
 these blessed words, is of a power given to him : and that is 
 a power as the Head of his church and people. And al- 
 though had he not been God, one with the Father, he never 
 could have been suited for the exercise of this power ; (for 
 unless he had been the mighty God, how should he have 
 been the mighty Redeemer?) yet being God, and both God • 
 and man, it is precious to consider the power that is given to 
 the Lord Jesus as Jesus, the Head over all things to the 
 church, which is his body, the fulness of Him that filleth all 
 in all. Here then, my soul, let thy thoughts take wing 
 this morning. Behold thy Jesus the Head over all princi- 
 pality and power. See him, by virtue of his Almighty God- 
 head, exercising and giving energy to the fulness of his 
 power as Mediator ; and in this view conceive if it be possi- 
 ble, to what an extent thy Jesus is unceasingly exercising 
 his power for the everlasting benefit of his church and peo- 
 ple. All power in heaven : not only among the highest or- 
 der of created being, angels and archangels, but a power 
 with God the Father to prevail for the eternal salvation of 
 all his redeemed. He left it as a record how he exercised 
 this power when he said before his departure. Father, I will 
 that they whom thou hast given me, be with me where I 
 am, to behold my glory." And he hath power to send the 
 Holy Ghost to all his people. He said himself, before he 
 went away, '• If I go not away, the Comforter will not come ; 
 but if I depart, I will send him unto you." Here then, 
 my soul, here let thy thoughts be directed, to meditate 
 upon the fulness and extensiveness of that power which thy 
 Jesus possesseth in heaven. Well may it be said that he 
 hath the keys of heaven, when he hath all power with the 
 Father and with the Spirit. And w^ell may it be said that 
 he hath the keys of hell also, when all things in heaven and 
 earth, and under the earth, are subject to his command. 
 And hath he not power then, my soul, suited to answer 
 every want of thine, and of all his church and people 1 Hath 
 he not power over all flesh, to give eternal life to as many 
 as the Father hath given him ? Wilt thou complain, shall 
 the church complain, of any want, while Jesus is upon 
 the throne 1 Art thou poor, is the church poor, weak, help- 
 less, needy, guilty, polluted, oppressed, exercised ? What 
 of all these, and ten thousand other situations, while Jesus 
 lives, and hath all power ? Nay, is it not so much the better 
 that the people of Jesus are what they are, that they may be 
 
JUNE. 153 
 
 the better suited for his glory, and that their wants may give 
 occasion for the supplies of his grace 1 Hail ! thou Almighty 
 Sovereign, now methinks I would be always poor, always 
 needy, always feeling my nothingness, thaX all these may 
 constrain me to come to thee : so that every day's necessities 
 may afford a fresh occasion to crown thee Lord of all in a 
 day of grace until I come to crown thee, with the whole 
 church, the everlasting Lord of all in heaven, to the glory 
 of God the Father. Amen. 
 
 JUNE. 
 
 1. — The Lord said unto my Lord. — Psalm ex. 1. 
 
 Some have called this Psalm David^s Creed. Certain it is 
 that there is scarce an article of a true believer's faith, but 
 what is in it. My soul, look through it this morning, if thou 
 hast time, and see whether it is thy creed. If not, look at 
 this precious portion of it, and ask of the Holy Ghost to 
 teach thee the blessed things contained in it The Lord said 
 unto my Lord : that is, Jehovah said unto my Adonai. Ob- 
 serve, my soul, that here, as in many other parts of the Bible, 
 one of these words " Lord" is m capital letters, the other in 
 small characters. This no doubt was done by the translators, 
 by way of telling the English reader that the two words in 
 the original Hebrew are not the same. They had no better 
 method of explaining the difference. But by using different 
 sized letters, they meant to say that there is a difference, 
 and the difference seems to be this : the word Lord, when- 
 ever used in the Bible in capital letters, signifies Jehovah ; Fa- 
 ther, Son, and Holy Ghost : not as a name of office in the 
 work of redemption, but as intimating his own glorious in- 
 communicable essence. The word Lord in small letters, 
 Adonai, is very frequently (as in this Psalm) applied to 
 Christ in his gracious office as the Christ of God and of his 
 people. And a most sweet and precious name it is. It sig- 
 nifies in a double meaning, y?r.<^, his own personal authority 
 and power ; and, secondly^ that power as exerted and called 
 forth into action for his redeemed. Look at thy Jesus, my 
 
154 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul, as thy Adonai this day, and everyday; and a thousand 
 sweet and precious blessings such a view of Him, as a rulerj 
 and a support^ and a sustainer, will open to thy meditation. 
 Yes, all-lovely, all-powerful, all-gracious Adonai ! thou art 
 my Adonai ! In this thy name, which is as ointment poured 
 forth, would I contemplate thee. In this thy name would I 
 rejoice all the day, and in thy righteousness would I be ex- 
 alted. 
 
 2. — Living waters shall go out from Jerusalem ; half of them toward the 
 former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea : in summer and 
 in winter shall it be. — Zech. xiv. 8. 
 
 My soul ! was not this fulfilled in part when the gospel 
 went forth from Jerusalem ? And is it not now fulfilling, 
 while the same blessed gospel is going forth from sea to sea, 
 and from the river even unto the ends of the earth? Surely 
 neither the summer's drought, nor the winter's frost, shall 
 dry up or congeal those living waters. But, my soul, hast 
 thou asked of Jesus, as the woman of Samaria did in the mo- 
 ment of Jesus' promise, for those living waters? Oh ! if thou 
 knowest my soul, this gift of God, and wilt daily, hourly, ask 
 of him, both in summer and in winter, he will give thee 
 these living waters. Oh, contemplate their property, and then, 
 my soul, ask and receive, that thy joy may be full. Jesus 
 himself is this well of living waters ; and wherever he comes, 
 like the waters in Ezekiel's vision, he gives life, and quickens 
 sinners dead in trespasses and sins. Also, Jesus in those 
 streams maintains the life he hath first given. Moreover, 
 Jesus not only maintains, but revives, and renews them, again 
 and again, when the grace of his people languish. Again, 
 these living waters of thy Jesus are always running : here is 
 nothing stagnate, but always flowing. Lastly, into whatever 
 heart Jesus gives them, they shall be, as he hath promised, a 
 well of water springing up to everlasting life. Are these 
 things so ? And have the saints in all ages, and under all 
 dispensations of the church, both in the Old Testament and 
 in the New, been thus supplied ? Is it indeed He, my be- 
 loved, who is the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever, 
 that thus hath supplied, and is supplying, and ever will sup- 
 ply all ? Is it thou, oh thou precious Lamb of God ! that art 
 in the midst of the throne, leading the church above to fountains 
 of living waters, and becoming the same to the church be- 
 low? Wilt thovi not give of thy fulness to satisfy my 
 
JUNE. 155 
 
 thirsty soul in this dry and barren land, where no water is ? 
 Yes, yes, my soul, exult with the church of old, for thy Je- 
 sus is the same : a fountain of gardens, a well of living wa- 
 ters, and streams from Lebanon, is my beloved ! 
 
 3. — In his favour is lil'e. — Psalm xxx. 5. 
 
 Oh, for grace to keep this always in view ! for then, thou 
 dear Lord, I should never consider my dead frames, or dead 
 feelings, since I well know that thou ever bearest favour and 
 good will towards thy people. For if thy providences frown, 
 or seem to frown, do I not know that behind that aspect thy 
 countenance is the same, always gracious, always favourable, 
 and that thou art invariably pursuing the everlasting happi- 
 ness of thy people ? Let it please thee, my Lord, to grant 
 me this morning such views of thy favour, that I may hence- 
 forth trace it in every thing. Was it not this favour that first 
 opened a source of salvation? Was it not this favour that 
 brought me into a participation of it ? Was it not this favour 
 that begat me to the knowledge of it — that quickened me to an 
 enjoyment of it — that opened the communication of it, by 
 v/hich thy grace became imparted to my soul ? And was it 
 not the same favour that kept alive the incorruptible spark, 
 and maintained it through all attempts of sin, and the world, 
 and the powers of darkness, to extinguish it? Nay, blessed 
 Jesus ! what is it now but thy favour that secures me in thy 
 love, and gives me ail the inexpressible felicity of mercy, par- 
 don, and peace now, and everlasting glory hereafter ? And 
 is not thy favour, then, better than life ? Is it not more pre- 
 cious than rubies? Can there be aught desirable like it? 
 Truly, Lord, in thee and thy favour I hav^e life, for thou art 
 both my light and my life : my heart trusteth in thee, and I 
 am helped. Remember me then, oh Lord, with the favour 
 that thou bearest unto thy people ; oh visit me with thy salva- 
 tion! 
 
 4. — Awake, O north wind, and come, thou south, blow upon my g£ir- 
 den. — Song iv. 16. 
 
 Are these the words of my Lord ? Yes, surely, they can 
 be no other : for none but Jesus can send the Holy Ghost to 
 his church and people. And, beside, none can call the church 
 my garden^ but he that is the rightful owner of it. Surely, 
 Lord, it is thine, both by thy Father's gift, and by thy choice, 
 
156 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 and by thy purchase, and by the conquests of thy grace, and 
 by the voluntary surrender of thy people, when thou hast 
 made them willing in the day of thy power. And dost thou 
 call, then, both the north wind and the south, thou dearest 
 Lord, to blow upon my soul? Dost thou command all suited 
 influences of thy grace to visit me, that one may search, and 
 another warm, my affections, and call thine own gifts and 
 graces forth in exercise upon thy glorious Person, and thy 
 glorious work ? Oh, come then, thou Holy Spirit, with all 
 thy sweet and precious offices ! Come, Lord, to convince 
 and comfort me, to humble and direct me, to chill my affec- 
 tions to the world, and to warm them towards the Lord Je- 
 sus ! Come, thou holy, gracious, Almighty Gluickener, Re- 
 viver, Restorer, and Glorifier of my God and Saviour ! Oh, 
 if thou wilt make my soul like the chariots of Amminadib, 
 and cause those graces thou hast planted there to go forth in 
 a way of love, and desire, and faith, and expectation, and 
 hope, upon the Person and glory of Him whom my soul 
 loveth, then shall I cry out, with the church, and say, " Let 
 my beloved come into his garden, and eat of his pleasant 
 fruits !" 
 
 5. — Have ye received the Holy Ghost ? — Acts xix. 2. 
 
 My soul, ponder over the solemn question again and again, 
 and then see what answer thou canst give to a point so infi- 
 nitely interesting and important. The Holy Spirit is clearly 
 known by the exercise of his blessed offices in every heart 
 where he abides, and where he is the glorious inhabitant. 
 He comes in Jesus' name as an Ambassador, to propose to the 
 sinner a rich and precious Saviour. He comes as an Al- 
 mighty Teacher ; and this condescending office he graciously 
 exerciseth, in convincing of sin, and convincing of the righ- 
 teousness of Jesus. He comes as an Advocate ; and by his 
 pleading the cause of a poor sinner's own necessities, and 
 the cause of a rich Saviour's willingness and ability to sup- 
 ply all these necessities, he manifests himself a most power- 
 ful advocate, when, by his constraining grace, he makes the 
 poor sinner willing in the day of his power. He comes as an 
 Enlightener of the dark and untutored mind of the sinner, 
 and this he doth most efftctually, when, by shining in the 
 heart, he gives the light of the knowledge of the glory of 
 God in the face of Jesus Christ. Most gloriously he shines 
 upon the soul, when, by the ministry of his blessed word, 
 
JUNE. 1 57 
 
 and by the influences of his divine grace, he leads the mind 
 forth to the contemplation and love of the person, blood, and 
 righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. He comes as a Wit- 
 ncss. also, to testify of Jesus. And this sweet office is mani- 
 fested in the conscience, when at any time he shows sin to be 
 exceedingly sinful ; and that nothing but the blood of Jesus 
 can cleanse from it. And his witness in the soul is proved to 
 the fullest demonstration,- when he powerfully brings the 
 guilty conscience under so deep a sense of sin, and so alarm- 
 ingly concerned for the consequence of it, that nothing will 
 satisfy until Jesus is revealed and brought home to the heart, 
 in all the beauties of his Person, and the fulness and suitable- 
 ness of his salvation, and formed there the hope of glory. 
 He comes also as a Comforter ; and oh how sweetly and fully 
 doth he manifest both the power of his Godhead, and the 
 sovereignty and grace of his character, when, by his conso- 
 lations, as he opens and explains them, and makes application 
 of them as they are in Jesus, he revives the drooping spirit, 
 relieves the distressed spirit, animateth, refresheth, sanctifieth 
 the whole heart, and soul, and mind, and gives a joy and 
 peace in believing, abounding in hope by the power of the 
 Holy Ghost. My soul, what sayest thou now to the ques- 
 tion ? Hast thou received the Holy Ghost ? Surely I do 
 know thee, thou gracious God the Spirit, by these sweet to- 
 kens of thy covenant office and character. Lord, I pray thee, 
 be ever with me, and, agreeably to Jesus' gracious promise, 
 abide with me for ever. Oh, may I never grieve thee, by 
 whom my soul is sealed in Jesus to the day of eternal re- 
 demption. 
 
 6. — Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits. — Psalm 
 Ixviii. 19. 
 
 Behold, my soul, what a sweet portion for my morning 
 meditation is here. See what thou canst gather out of it, to 
 furnish new songs of praise to the bountiful Lord whose 
 mercies it records. Blessed Spirit ! I beseech thee open these 
 precious words of thine to my view. Blessed be the Lord, 
 it saith. Yea, so say I! Blessed be Jehovah. Blessed be 
 the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, for they are the united 
 source of all my blessings. And blessed be the majesty and 
 glory of God for ever, who daily loadeth his people with 
 benefits. Count over, my soul, each of these blessed expres- 
 sions, for every word is weighty and ponderous. God not 
 
 14 " 
 
158 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 only gives blessings, but daily. His mercies are constant as 
 the morning, unceasing, continual ; strength suited to the 
 day, and mercies adapted to every moment. Faith needs no 
 hoards, no banking-houses : nay, it is faith's precious pro- 
 perty, and her blessedness, to be always empty, in order that 
 the sweetness of being filled by Jesus may be the better 
 known. But this is not all. God not only daily gives out 
 blessings, but loadeth his people with benefits. He openeth 
 the windows of heaven, and poureth out of his grace in such 
 fulness, that there is not room to receive. He makes their 
 souls like the heart of Elihu, as it is said of him, for want 
 of vent, like new bottles, he was ready to burst. So Jesus 
 poureth out his love into the souls of his redeemed, that they 
 are overpowered with his goodness. Knowest thou not, my 
 soul, somewhat of this ? Oh yes ! I trust I do. Why 
 then, blessed be God, who daily loadeth me with his benefits. 
 And what endears all this in a ten thousand times greater 
 degree, is the assurance that the whole is in a way of salva- 
 tion. So saith this sweet scripture. He that loadeth us with 
 benefits is the God of our salvation. He that is our God, 
 even he is the God of our salvation. Oh, precious, blessed 
 consideration! then are these blessings everlastingl}' secured : 
 for He that now daily loadeth us with benefits, will unwea- 
 riedly do the same to all eternity. He is not only the portion 
 of- his people now, but will be so for ever. He not only 
 gives strength to the day, but will be himself our strength to 
 all eternity. And mark it down, my soul, as the most blessed 
 part of those daily benefits, he that thus loadeth the soul with 
 all the benefits of covenant blessings, in the grace, mercy, 
 favour, love, blood, righteousness, and all the sweet tokens 
 of redemption in Jesus, signs and seals every one of them in 
 his dear name : and as he said to Abraham, so he saith to 
 all Abraham's seed, " Fear not, I am thy shield, and thine 
 exceeding great reward." Shout then, my soul, and hence- 
 forth let this be thy morning song: "Blessed be the Lord, 
 who daily loadeth thee with benefits." 
 
 7. — If there be a messenger with him, an Interpreter, one among a 
 thousand, to shew unto man his uprightness ; then he is gracious 
 unto him, and saith, DeUver him from going down to the pit, I have 
 found a ramsom. — Job xxxiii. 23, 24. 
 
 My soul, how precious are those views in looking back 
 upon where the first discoveries of grace were made. Mose? 
 
JUNE. 159 
 
 ^ever forgot the first visions of God at the bush ; neither did 
 Jacob outlive the remembrance of the first Bethel visit of a 
 God in Christ to his soul ; and why should I ? Hast thou 
 not known this Messenger, this Interpreter, one among a 
 thousand to show unto thee God's uprightness? Oh, yes ! 
 Jesus, by his Spirit, hath shown to me that my God is 
 righteous in all his ways, and holy in his works. When by 
 the blessed discoveries which have been made to me in his 
 word, by his ordinances, providences, judgments, mercies, 
 like the poor creature described in this sweet scripture, when 
 reduced to a mere skeleton, by reason of soul-sickness, driven 
 out of all resources in myself, and utterly despairing of ever 
 seeing the face of God in glory, bj'- any creature attempts, 
 and by all creature righteousness : oh, then it was, thou 
 blessed, glorious Messenger of thine own covenant, thou 
 faithful Interpreter of the mind and will of Jehovah, then it 
 was I was led to see the freeness, fulness, suitableness, and 
 all-sufficiency of a Redeemer's righteousness, and to cast my 
 poor, defenceless, naked, trembling soul, upon the rich, 
 powerful, and altogether-sufficient salvation of thee, my God 
 and Saviour! Oh! how hast thou sweetly and mercifully 
 explained to me the secrets of covenant mercies, the glories 
 of thy person, and the greatness of thy finished work. And 
 now at every step I take, at every portion of thy blessed word 
 I read, when my mind feels the remains of indv.-elling cor- 
 ruption, and all the lurkings of the enemy's suggestions 
 within : then, then it is I hear the Father's gracious voice : 
 -' Deliver him from going down to the pit, I have found a 
 ransom." Yes. precious Jesus, thou art my ransom, and my 
 righteousness for ever ! 
 
 8. — A red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which 
 never came yoke. And ye shall give her unto Eleazar the priest, 
 that he may brinor her forth without the camp, and one shall slay 
 her before his face. — Numbers xix. 2, 3. 
 
 I p.E:krE:^iBEPc well it is said of our Lord Jesus, that, in order 
 to sanctify the people with his own blood, he suffered without 
 the gate. " But though I clearly apprehend that the law, with 
 all its sacrifices, was but a shadow of good things to come, 
 and the body was Christ, yet, had not the Holy Ghost been 
 graciously pleased to illustrate and explain by other Scriptures, 
 somewhat either direct, or by allusion, in reference to Jesus, 
 I should have overlooked how, in many striking points, Jesus 
 
160 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 is here set forth in this type. Surely, Lord, thy spotless* 
 purity was beautifully represented in the spotless heifer, here 
 appointed for sacrifice. And the very rare colour of a red 
 heifer, plainly testified the singularity of thy sacrifice. Adam 
 himself was so called, as a token of the red earth from 
 whence he was taken. And when Jesus, as the Son of man, 
 came, to do away all the effects of Adam's sin and transgres- 
 sion, he manifested, by the redness of his apparel, and the 
 blood sprinkled upon his garments, the gracious purposes 
 which all implied. But I do not recollect, in any other type 
 of my Redeemer, a particularity which pointed to the freeness 
 of thy voluntary sacrifice, oh, thou Lamb of God ! as the 
 one here represented, in that this heifer was to be one upon 
 which had never come yoke. Nothing, Lord, but thine own 
 free sovereign love, and at the call of God thy Father, 
 prompted thine infinite mind to be the willing sacrifice for 
 poor sinners. There was no yoke, no obligation, nothing to 
 compel thee. Lo, I come, was thy gracious voice, when 
 neither sacrifice nor offering could ransom thy people. Oh, 
 Lord ! let the sense of thy freeness in salvation comfort my 
 soul under all heart-straitenings in myself, and the concious- 
 ness that there was no yoke upon thee, Lord, but thine own 
 everlasting love, be the sweet constraining yoke on my soul, 
 to bind me to thy love, and to thy service for ever. 
 
 9. — I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of tlie juice of my pome- 
 granate. — Song viii. 2. 
 
 What, my soul, hast thou aught to offer to thy Jesus ? 
 Will he accept a present at thine hand ? Yes, Jesus will 
 accept those goings forth of his own grace, his own gift, in 
 the exercises of faith, and love, and joy, and praise ; when, 
 by his own sweet and reviving communications, he hath 
 called to the north wind, and lo the south wind, to blow a 
 gracious gale upon my soul, and causeth the very graces he 
 himself hath planted in my heart to send forth all their 
 powers in the enjoyment of his Person and righteousness. 
 And do not forget, my soul, for thine encouragement to this 
 lovely and becoming frame, these will be more grateful to 
 thy God and Saviour than all whole burnt offerings and 
 sacrifices. These will be indeed like spiced wine, and the 
 juice of the pomegranate, when those tears of faith, and love, 
 and repentance, drop at the mercy-seat, in the contemplation 
 of that love of Jesus, which is better than wine. Help me 
 
JUiNE. 161 
 
 then, thou dear Lord, thus to come to thee. Help me, as the 
 poor woman at thy feet did, to shed my tears, and to offer thee 
 this spiced wine: and no longer by sin, and unbelief, and 
 rebellion, to give thee wine mingled with myrrh, as the Jews 
 did at thy crucifixion. Oh God, my Saviour ! let it never be 
 said of my soul, from neglect and indifferency to thee and 
 thy sufferings, as thou complainedst of them, ""They gave 
 me also gall for my meat, and in my thirst they gave me 
 vinegar to drink."' No, precious Lord ! if thou wilt shed 
 abroad the influences of thy Spirit in my heart, so as to lead 
 out my whole soul in love to thee, in living upon thee, in 
 contemplating thy glory, thy suitableness, thine all-sufficiency, 
 then will my soul praise thee with joyful lips : and then will 
 my beloved say, as to his church of old, " Thy lips, O my 
 spouse, drop as the honey-comb ; honey and milk are under 
 thy tongue." 
 
 10. — My voice shall thou hear in the morning, O Lord ; in the morning 
 will 1 direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. — Psahn v. 3. 
 
 Sweet thought, my soul, to encourage thee this morning, 
 that thy God in Christ is a praj'-er-quickening, a prayer- 
 hearing, and a prayer-answering God. Art thou dull, dead, 
 lifeless? one look from Jesus, one influence of the Spirit, 
 will kindle desire, and lead thee to the mercy-seat, and to the 
 throne of grace. Jesus will do more in one moment, to call 
 off thy wandering thoughts, to open to thy views his glory, 
 to reveal to thee what thy wants are, and to give thee a spirit 
 of prayer suited to thy wants and his praise, than all thy 
 laboured attempts, without an eye to Jesus, can do for thee 
 for ever. Whence is it, my soul, that prayer is ever a burden, 
 but because we have lost a sight of Jesus ? Why is it that 
 thou art at times so little affected with the remains of indwel- 
 ling corruption, and canst neither rightly value God's mercies, 
 or be humbled under thy own infirmities? Is it not because 
 thou dost not look up, and behold Jesus in his priestly vesture, 
 waiting to be gracious? Oh, didst thou but eye thy God and 
 Saviour under this blessed character, how wouldst thou feel 
 the preciousness of his great salvation, and haste to unload 
 thyself upon the Lord Christ, and cast all thy burden of 
 coldness, deadness, and sin, upon Him who is mighty to 
 save! Come, Lord, then, I pray thee, with all thy sweet 
 influences, fill my mouth with arguments, and my heart do 
 thou warm with love. I know, Lord, I shall surely speed 
 
 14* 
 
162 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 this day, this morning-, at the mercy-seat, the moment thou 
 hast loosed my tongue, and enlarged my heart with thy 
 grace. Yes, yes, blessed Jesus, my voice shalt thou hear, 
 my voice wilt thou hear in the morning ; at the dawn of day, 
 before cock-crowing, I will direct my prayers to thee, I will 
 send them up to heaven ; and through the day, and all the 
 day, and seven times a day, will I praise thee, oh thou God 
 of my salvation, when thou hast caused me to praise thee 
 Avith joyful lips. 
 
 ] 1. — And my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith the Lord. 
 Jeremiah xxxi. 14. 
 
 Examine thine heart, rny soul, this morning, and see 
 whether this blessed promise is really and truly fulfilled in 
 thy experience. Art thou satisfied with Jehovah's goodness ? 
 Yes, if so be thou hast received that goodness as manifested 
 and treasured up in the peiyon-and work of Christ, and art 
 so believing as to be living wholly upon it. This is the 
 grand thing to do : and when it comes to be strictly inquired 
 into, few, very few, are living so wholly upon it, and so com- 
 pletely satisfied with it, as to be seeking for no additional 
 satisfaction elsewhere. Now, my soul, as there are but few 
 that are so fully satisfied w'ith the Lord's goodness in every 
 thing that concerns salvation, both in providence and grace, 
 let thy morning thoughts be directed to see whether thou art 
 one of that happy few. I will, for the sake of shortening the 
 inquiry, take up the subject from this ground ; that thou art 
 satisfied thou hast an interest in Jesus. Thou hast a long 
 time since been driven by thy necessities to Christ as a com- 
 plete Saviour : and thou art resting all thy hopes, joys, and 
 expectations, upon his blood and righteousness. I will con- 
 sider this point as fairly and fully determined. Why then, 
 perhaps, my soul, thou wilt say, Is not this to be satisfied 
 with Jehovah's goodness ? Alas ! here is the great defect of 
 God's people ! Though resting on this foundation, how often 
 may they find their hearts exercised with endless perplexities 
 how this grace is to be improved, or how that gift is to be 
 employed. And according as it appears to their view they 
 have improved the one, or employed the other, their peace 
 and comfort is proportioned. My soul ! do you not see that 
 this is self-satisfaction, and not being satisfied with God's 
 goodness? This is setting up the comforts of Jesus' grace 
 and Jesus' gifts above the glorious Author of those gifts and 
 
JUNE. 163 
 
 graces. To be really satisfied with God's goodness,' implies 
 living upon that goodness, and that is Christ himself. Living 
 upon Jesus, acting faith upon Jesus, perceiving all our fresh 
 springs to be in Jesus, and therefore drawing all from him. 
 And, my soul, if thou art thus satisfied with God's goodness, 
 thou wilt find it is injurious to the comfort and blessedness of 
 this life of faith to be ever looking off Jesus to any thing his 
 grace and goodness worketh in thee, lest in the view of the 
 work itself, be it what it may, the source of that work is over- 
 looked, and self-satisfaction, instead of Christ exalting, should 
 creep into thy soul. In every act, my soul, see to it then that 
 all thy satisfaction is in Jesus, as the goodness of Jehovah, 
 Lord, fulfil this sweet promise, and make me satisfied with 
 thy goodness ! 
 
 12. — And confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth, — 
 Heh. xi. 13. 
 
 My soul ! hast thou also witnessed this confession before 
 many witnesses? See whether thou hast the same evidences 
 they had. In the first place, they were led to see that here 
 they had no continuing city. Sin, sorrow, sickness, death, 
 inhabited this region. Every thing said to them in that sweet 
 voice of God, Arise ye. and depart, for this is not your rest, 
 because it is polluted. What sayest thou, my soul, to this 
 first view of the subject ? Look at it under another. Hast 
 thou learnt, and so learnt as to prize it, the blessedness of that 
 promise. There is a rest that remaineth for the people of 
 God % What sayest thou to this also, my soul ? Dost thou 
 see that Jesus is that nest ; and he is the object of thy desire 
 in rest ? For the prophet saith. He is the rest wherewith he 
 will cause the weary to rest, and he is their refreshing. Isa. 
 xxviii. 12. Hast thou heard, and welcomed his invitation, 
 " Come unto me all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and 
 I will give you rest?" Go one step further in the inquiry. 
 Under these convictions of soul, art thou travelling the hea- 
 venly road, asking the way to Zion with thy face thitherward, 
 as a stranger and pilgrim upon earth ? Go further yet. Art 
 thou guided as Israel was in the way, by the pillar of cloud 
 by day, and guarded by the pillar of fire by night ? Art 
 thou coming up out of the wilderness of this worJd, leaning 
 upon Jesus? Advance yet further in the inquiry. While 
 the Holy Ghost as the pillar of cloud is going before thee, 
 and thou art resting upon Jesus as thy staff and stay, knowest 
 
164 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 thou God for thy father, his word thy guide, his promises thy 
 treasure, his ordinances thine inns, not to dwell in, but like 
 the way-faring man to tarry but for the night? And dost 
 thou draw water with joy out of those wells of salvation 1 
 Pause, my soul, as thou seekest answers to these questions. 
 Knowest thou the difficulties of a wilderness dispensation ; 
 and the sweets of those streams from that river which make 
 glad the city of God ? Art thou like other travellers, some- 
 times enjoying fine weather, when Jesus' face, his love, his 
 mercy, are all in view ; and sometimes walking in darkness, 
 w^hen storms of sin and Satan throw clouds over the gracious 
 prospect? More especially, art thou the scorn and derision 
 of the carnal ? Do they make thee their subject of laughter, 
 and art thou the drunkard's song ? And lastly, to mention 
 no more, knowest thou, my soul, what it is sometimes to be 
 discouraged by reason of the way, while Satan would prompt 
 thee to go back ; but sweetly constrained by Jesus'slove, thou 
 art still the patient follower of them, who through faith and 
 patience inherit the promises? Hast thou, my soul, these 
 precious marks of the stranger and pilgrim upon earth ? 
 Oh ! then, remember what is said of them to whom the Holy 
 Ghost bears testimony, and by thy covenant interest in Jesus 
 behold thy vast privilege in the same blessed promise, God 
 is not ashamed to be called their God, for he hath prepared 
 for them a city. 
 
 13. — The Master is come, and calleth for thee. — John xi. 28. 
 
 My soul, mark how gracious the Lord is to his people in 
 the special and distinguishing tokens of his grace. Jesus 
 doth not barely send his gospel to the church, or house, or 
 family, but he speaketh by the soft, but powerful, whispers 
 of his love, to the individual soul. To thee is the word of 
 this salvation sent. Hence the soul who feels the sove- 
 reignty of his words in the constraining influence with 
 which it is accompanied, cries out, I shall never forget thy 
 word, for by it thou hast quickened me. But beside the calls of 
 his grace in his house of prayer, in how many ways, and by 
 what a variety of methods, is the Lord Jesus calling upon his 
 people. My soul ! I hope that thou art always upon the 
 look out, and art getting to thy watch tower, to hear what the 
 Lord thy God hath to say to thee, by his word, by his provi- 
 dences, in chastisement, in love, and in all the gracious man- 
 ifestations of his favour. Behold, he saith. I stand at the door 
 
JT*NE. 165 
 
 and knock. So Jesus calleth, and so let my soul hear. Now 
 Lord ! thou art calling me by thy word and providence in a 
 Avay of grace ; by and by I shall hear thy voice in the hour 
 of death and judgment. And who shall say how very 
 powerful, sweet, and gracious, that call is, when Jesus 
 cometh to take his people home to himself, that where he 
 is, there they may be also. '■ I hear my Master's voice," said 
 an highly favoured servant of God in the moment of his de- 
 parture. Perhaps a loud voice, a glorious distinguishable 
 voice to him that is called, when no stander-by is at all con- 
 scious of the sound. Hence another said, when he was dy- 
 ing, " I shall change my place, but not my company." Je- 
 sus ! Master ! in that hour be it my happiness to say. Let 
 me hear thy voice, let me see thy countenance : for sweet is 
 thy voice, and thy countenance is comely. 
 
 14. — Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her 
 beloved ? — Song viii. 5. 
 
 Who is it that asketh this question, my soul ? Is it the 
 holy angels, astonished, as well they may, at the gracious 
 condescension of thy Jesus in the grace and favour he hath 
 bestowed upon thee ? Or is it the world at large, looking on 
 with amazement at the love of Jesus to his chosen ? Is it the 
 Jewish church, amazed that Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, 
 and of the same body, and partakers of God's promise in 
 Christ? Or above all, is it Jesus himself, not because he 
 knoweth not the grace he hath bestowed, but because he ad- 
 mireth the grace he hath given ; and as he did the Centu- 
 rion's faith, which he himself was the author of, he looketh 
 upon it with pleasure? And art thou, my soul, come up 
 from the wilderness of nature, a dry, barren land, where no 
 water of Life is : from the wilderness of the world, and from 
 all the unsatisfying and empty pursuits of it? Art thou 
 leaning upon thy Jesus, cleaving to him, hanging upon him, 
 strengthening thyself upon him, determining, like another 
 Ruth concerning Naomi, vdiere Jesus goeth thou wilt go, 
 and where he lodgeth thou wilt lodge? Is this thy con- 
 duct ; and dost thou rest the whole stress of thy present and 
 everlasting happiness upon his glorious person and righ- 
 teousness ? if so, angels may well look on, and cry out. 
 Who is this to whom the Father of all mercies hath been so 
 gracious ; to whom Jesus hath manifested his love otherwise 
 than he doth to the world ; and on whom the Spirit hath 
 
166 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 shed his blessed influence to make thee willing- in the day 
 of his powet.? Yes ! precious Jesus ! I would come up 
 from every thing near and dear in this wilderness state, for- 
 get mine own people, and my father's house ; I would lean 
 wholly upon thy glorious Person, for my acceptance before 
 God ; lean wholly upon thy righteousness, as all-sufficient 
 for my justification ; I would lean upon thy fulness, day by 
 day, for the supply of all grace here ; and I would lean solely 
 upon the divine efficacy and blessedness of thy blood, to 
 cleanse my soul for everlasting fitness for happiness hereaf- 
 ter. Witness for me, ye angels of light, that this is my be- 
 loved, on whom I lean and in whom I trust, and desire to be 
 found, for time and for eternity. Amen. 
 
 15. — Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. — 
 Gal. iv. 28. 
 
 Mark, my soul, the distinguishing characters of those who 
 are the children of promise, and see whether thou art of this 
 blessed family. For as the law and the gospel are strikingly 
 distinguished from each other, so are the children of nature 
 from those of grace. And how is this to be known 1 Look 
 at the case Paul hath referred to : Isaac was the son of Abra- 
 ham. And the Apostle saith that they which are of faith, the 
 same are children of Abraham. And if ye be Christ's, then are 
 ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise. And 
 as Isaac was a child of Abraham by promise, not by natural 
 power, so believers in Jesus are born, not of blood, nor of the 
 will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. Hence 
 Paul saith, to Abraham and his seed were the promises 
 made. He saith not to seeds, as of many, but as of one ; and 
 to thy seed, which is Christ. Precious truth ! The children of 
 promise are of Jesus ; for he himself is the one great promise of 
 the Bible. So that from everlasting they are the seed of Christ: 
 their beinsf, their well-being their everlasting being, are all 
 folded up in Jesus, as the oak in all its foliage is contained and 
 folded up in the first and original acorn. Hence they are 
 spiritually begotten, born, nourished, fed, sustained, led, 
 strengthened and carried on, through all the gradations of 
 grace, until grace is consummated in the ripeness of their 
 full stature in glory. My soul! art thou as Isaac was, a child 
 of promise ? Oh ! live by faith on Jesus, and in Jesus, and 
 see to it, in all thy daily, hourly exercises and experiences, 
 
JUNE. 167 
 
 that all the promises of God in Christ Jesus are Yea, and 
 Amen, unto the glory of God the Father. 
 
 16. — He shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his 
 bosom. — Isaiah xl. 11. 
 
 My soul ! mark in this sweet scripture, how Jesus is de- 
 scribed, in not only attending to all the various wants of his 
 fold, but to the very method of imparting to their several 
 wants in a way corresponding to his own character and their 
 state. In the fold of Jesus, like the sheep-folds among men, 
 some are sheep and some are lambs ; some of advanced age 
 and some of younger standing. Well ! where will Jesus 
 put the lambs and the weaklings of his fold ? Certainly, if 
 there be one place in the heart of Jesus softer and more ten- 
 der than another, there the lambs shall lie. And as Jesus 
 himself lay in the bosom of his Father, so the lambs of his 
 flock shall lie in his bosom. Sweet thought to encourage 
 thee, my soul, and all the followers of Christ ! Jesus will 
 not thrust out the lambs into the dangers of the wilderness, 
 where the prowling beasts of prey are, nor expose them to 
 over-driving, or the speed Avith which the more mature sheep 
 can travel. But he will proportion their burden to their 
 back, and their day to their strength. And besides this, he 
 will keep them nearer to himself: his arms shall clasp them; 
 the warmth of his bosom shall nourish them ; if they cannot 
 walk, they shall be carried ; and when they cannot find their 
 way, they shall be led. Oh ! thou great shepherd of thy 
 sheep ! is it thus thou sweetly dealest with thy little ones 1 
 Hence I see then explained, why it is that young believers, 
 in the first season of their knowledge of thee, find so many 
 blessed refreshings, which they afterwards do not so sensi- 
 bly enjoy. Yes. Lord, it is thus thou gatherest the lambs 
 and carriest them in thy bosom. And sweetly and sea- 
 sonably dost thou do all this, and in a way which fully 
 proves thy love and compassion to the necessities of thy 
 flock. 
 
 17. — He restoreth my soul. — Psalm xxiii. 3. 
 
 Yes, Lord ! it is indeed thou that bringest back the strayed 
 sheep ; for as no man ever quickened, so none can keep alive, 
 his own soul. It was indeed thy promise, and most gra- 
 ciously doest thou fulfil it, — " As a shepherd seeketh out his 
 
168 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 flock in the day that he is among his sheep, so will I seek 
 out my sheep, and bring- again that which was driven away." 
 Ezek. xxxiv. 11, 16. My soul ! mark this trait of character 
 in thy Jesus for thy morning meditation. It is well for thee 
 that restoring work, reclaiming work, reviving work, all is 
 with Jesus ; begins in him, and is carried on and completed 
 by him, and through his grace in thee. And it is well for 
 thee, my soul, that though thou so often ftulest in all things 
 towards thy Jesus, yet he never faileth in his love to thee in 
 any thing. Sweet consideration ! his love, and not thy de- 
 serts, becomes the standard for all his tenderness to his peo-*^ 
 pie. And mark it down, my soul, in strong characters, that 
 Jesus' grace is much shown thy way: he doth not wait our 
 return, for then we should never return at all ; neither doth 
 he wait our cry for help, but he puts that cry into his soul. 
 Alas! how often have we wandered and gone away, even 
 before that we were sensible of our departure. How blessed 
 is it then to see and know that Jesus' eye is upon us, and 
 that before we return to him, he is coming forth to us. His 
 love, his pity, his compassion, are the security of his people's 
 recovery. Yes, Lord ! it is thou that restorest my soul. 
 Praise to thy name, for thou doest it all in such a way as 
 proves it to be for thy great name's sake, that thy grace comes 
 freely and without upbraiding. " He restoreth my soul, and 
 leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake." 
 
 18. — To Him whom man despiseth ; to Him whom the nation abhor- 
 reth. — Isaiah xlix. 7. 
 
 My soul ! let thy longing eyes be directed to Him this day 
 whom man despiseth, and whom God honoureth, and to 
 whom he hath given a name above every name. Pause ! in 
 the contemplation^ of the wonderful mystery. Was Jesus 
 indeed despised, and by the very creature he came to redeem? 
 Did angels hail his wonderful incarnation, and man despise, 
 hate, and abhor him ! Be astonished, Oh ye heavens ! and 
 wonder, Oh earth! But, my soul, go further in the contem- 
 plation of this mysterious subject. What man, what indi- 
 vidual man, was it, that could thus requite the unparalleled love ***' 
 of Jesus ? Alas ! not an individual only, but a whole nation ; 
 nay, the whole nature, both Jew and Gentile, abhorred him ; 
 for while in a state of unrenewed nature, to the one he is a 
 stumbling-block, and to the other his cross is foohshness. Ah I 
 is it so, my soul ? Why then it follows that thou, even thou, 
 
JUNE. 169 
 
 my soul, wert once in the same state of hatred, and wert by 
 nature, as well as others, a child of wrath, despising this wis- 
 dom of God in Christ for the salvation of sinners. And art 
 thou then, my soul, recovered by almighty sovereign grace 
 from this deadly hatred of nature, and dost thou look this day 
 with love, with joy, with rapture, and unspeakable delight, to 
 Him whom man despiseth, to Him whom the nation abhor- 
 reth ? Is Jesus indeed lovely, the altogether lovely, to thy 
 view? Is he precious, nay, infinitely more precious than the 
 golden wedge of Ophir ? Yes, thou holy One of God, thou 
 art the all in all to my soul. Witness for me, Oh ye saints ! 
 that are now around his throne, that I have none in heaven 
 or in earth that I desire beside him. My whole soul desires 
 to know him, to follow hard after him, to trust in him, to 
 cleave to him, to hang upon him, and to accept and receive 
 him ; and to make use of him as the wisdom of God, and the 
 power of God, for salvation to my soul, as he is to every one 
 that believeth. Oh ! ye sons of men, who are still in the un- 
 renewed hatred of your heart, in your hatred against the 
 precious Christ of God, what will ye do when He whom ye 
 now despise shall come to your everlasting shame ! Well 
 might the apostle echo the words of the prophet, for from age 
 to age the astonishing truth remaineth : " Behold, ye despisers, 
 and wonder, and perish ; for I work a work in your days, a 
 work which ye shall in no wise believe, though a man de- 
 clare it unto you !" 
 
 19. — Go thy way, eat thy bread with joy, and drink thy wine with a 
 merry heart ; for God now accepteth thy works. — Eccles. ix. 7. • 
 
 My soul ! here is a sweet subject for thy morning thoughts. 
 Art thou accepted in the Beloved? Hast thou accepted Jesus, 
 and God accepted thee in Jesus ? Well mayest thou then eat 
 of the bread of common providences, and drink of the sweet 
 of all sanctified mercies, for every thing is blessed in Jesus, 
 and Jesus is blessing thee in every thing. Surely an ac- 
 cepted soul is a blessed soul, for he is blessed in his basket 
 and in his store : blessed in his lying down, and blessed in 
 his rising up ; blessed in his going out, and blessed in his 
 coming home ; yea, blessed in time, and blessed to all eter- 
 nity. Yes, thou blessed source of all my blessedness! thou 
 precious Jesus! I will go my way, for thou art my way ; I 
 will eat my bread with joy, for thou art my bread of life ; I 
 will drink the wine which thou hast mingled for me, for thy 
 
 15 
 
170 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 love is better than wine. And as God my Father accepted 
 me in thee, this forms an everlasting cause of everlasting joy ; 
 joy in what 1 have ; joy in what I expect ; joy in even what 
 I want, for those very wants will lead me the closer and the 
 nearer to thee ; joy in what I fear, for my fear will keep me 
 depending upon thee ; joy in what I suffer, for my sufferings 
 are sweetly blessed when they afford a renewed occasion for 
 my Jesus to sooth me under them, and in his time to deliver 
 me out of them ; and joy in all I lose, for lose what I may, I 
 cannot lose thee, I cannot lose God's Christ; I cannot lose his 
 love, his favour, his grace, his Spirit, the efficacy of his 
 blood, and the merits of his righteousness. Oh! precious se- 
 curity ! precious salvation in the Lord our Righteousness ! 
 Shall I not then live up to this heritage, and live under its in- 
 fluence, in the thankful, joyful, use of it from day to day? 
 Go thy way, my soul, go in Jesus as thy way ; every day, 
 and all the day, eat thy bread with joy ; eye Jesus as the 
 spiritual food, and always present at thy table ; drink hourly 
 of his cup of salvation, with a cheerful heart, for thou art ac- 
 cepted in the Beloved. 
 
 20. — Grace be with all them that iove our Lord Jesus Christ in shicerity. 
 Ameu. — Eph. V\. 24. 
 
 And dost thou, my soul, with the same affection and love 
 as the apostle, bend thy knee this morning before His throne 
 of whom the whole family in heaven and earth are named! 
 Dost thou look up, and pray that all grace may abound? Oh! 
 what a delightful thought is it, my soul, to warm thy affec- 
 tions, that in the moment thou art waiting at the mercy-seat, 
 thousands are waiting also for the morning blessing. Go 
 then, my soul, and tell thy Redeemer this ; tell him that he 
 hath all-suited grace, and that the eyes of his redeemed, as 
 the eyes of one man, are all directed towards him. Yes, 
 thou glorious, rich, and gracious Saviour! we do behold thee 
 still as the Lamb in the midst of the throne, leading thy 
 church which is above in glory to fountains of living waters. 
 And, Lord, Ave know that thou art equally attentive to thy 
 church in the dry and barren wilderness here below, where 
 no waters are. Vouchsafe, blessed Lord, to supply each soul. 
 Thou hast every grace, suited to all wants ; grace to pardon, 
 grace to save, grace to renew, grace to strengthen, grace to 
 bless. Oh, Lord ! awaken, convince, humble, comfort, and 
 pour out of thy fulness as our several necessities may be, in 
 
JUNE. :17l 
 
 calling, cleansing", justifying, adopting, sanctifying, and build- 
 ing up thine household, that all grace may abound according 
 to God's riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Oh ! ye attendants 
 at the heavenly gate ! see that ye come not empty away. Re- 
 member Jesus is on the throne ; eye him there. Behold, the 
 very grace you need is in his hand ; read the love that is in 
 his heart, and remember that he hath not onl}'- the very grace 
 you need, but every grace, and every mercy for all that wait 
 upon him. Tell every poor sinner this, and bid him ask in 
 faith, nothing doubting: tell all you know, and all you meet, 
 and all you see, that He who is on the throne hath abundant 
 grace, and wants vessels — the empty vessels of his people, to 
 give out into. Tell them that his grace exceeds all sense of 
 grace, all thoughts, all prayers, all praises, all desires ; nay, 
 that he hath exceeding abundantly above all that they can 
 ask or think. Behold, then, Oh Lord ! thy children, thy re- 
 deemed, thy family, and let all grace be with all them, and 
 upon all them that love thee in sincerity. Amen. 
 
 21. — Men wondered at. — Zech. iii. 8. 
 
 Men wondered at indeed ! And every redeemed soul may 
 truly say, I am a wonder unto many, a wonder to myself. 
 Oh : thou whose name is Wonderful ! both thou, and the 
 children the Lord hath given thee, are for signs and wonders. 
 Behold ! my soul, how it was fulfilled in Him whose name 
 is Wonderful, and then thine astonishment will be the less 
 that it should be fulfilled in his followers. I would contem- 
 plate thy Person, blessed Jesus, and behold thee, not barely 
 wondered at, but despised and rejected of men. The world 
 gazed at thee, but saw no beauty nor form of comeliness in 
 thee to desire thee. In thine oflices also, how did the multi- 
 tude despise thee as a Prophet; v.-hen blind-folding thee, and 
 smiting thee on thy sacred head, they tauntingly cried out, 
 " Prophecy, thou Christ, who is he that smote thee." As a 
 Priest, what blasphemy did they utter, when they saw enough 
 to be convinced, and to confess, that thou didst save others, 
 but thyself thou couldest not save. As a King, when having 
 nailed thee to the tree, they demanded a proof of thy power 
 in coming down from the cross. And wert thou not, blessed 
 Jesus, wondered at in thy words, when they acknowledged 
 never man spake like this man ; yet charged thy doctrines 
 with blasphemy, and derided thee in them ? Wert thou not 
 the wonder and the hatred of the world, when thy miracles 
 
172 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 astonished them, but were ascribed to the agency of Beel- 
 zebub 1 Wert thou not, oh, thou spotless Lamb of God ! 
 wert thou not charged with immorality, and called a wine- 
 bibber, a sabbath-breaker, the friend of publicans and sinners ? 
 Did the world thus treat Jesus, and call the Master of the 
 house Beelzebub ? Oh ! then, my soul, well may they so 
 treat them of his household ! And must it not be so ? Yes. 
 The world knoweth them not, because it knew him not. 
 They are made a spectacle, a gazing-stock, a reproach, a 
 bye-word. How unknown in their new birth from God ! 
 how little understood in their union with Jesus ! How per- 
 fectly hidden from the world their life in the Spirit! What 
 an everlasting opposition to carnal men are their pursuits, 
 their pleasures, their happiness, their conversation, their de- 
 sires ! How wondered at their life of faith on the Son of 
 God ! They have meat to eat the world knoweth nothing of, 
 for they feed upon the person, body, blood, grace, and righ- 
 teousness, of the Lord Jesus Christ. My soul ! hast thou this 
 rarity of character? Hast thou this blessed singularity? 
 Art thou wondered at because thou runnest not to the same 
 excess of riot, but art blameless and harmless, among the sons 
 of God, in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation ? 
 Oh! blessed, for ever blessed, be His name, who hath called 
 thee to this high, this glorious, this distinguishing honour, 
 of being wondered at, and reproached for Jesus' sake ! Yes, 
 Lord ! I will not regard the reproach of men, neither be 
 afraid of their revilings, for " the moth shall eat them up 
 like a garment, and the worm shall eat them like wool ; but 
 thy righteousness shall be for ever, and thy salvation from 
 generation to generation." 
 
 22. — And they came unto the brook of Eshcol, and cut down from thence 
 a branch with one cluster of grapes. — Numbers xiii. 23. 
 
 Was not this single cluster God's earnest to the people of 
 the sure possession of the land where those delicious fruits 
 grew ? And was not the size and weight of this one branch 
 a sample how full and extensive all the blessings, both of the 
 covenant and of the promised land, should be to the after 
 possessions of God's people ? My soul ! dost thou not see in 
 it then a precious representation of Jesus, that one Branch, 
 and of all that cluster of blessings which are in him. Well 
 might the church cry out concerning the Redeemer, " My 
 beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards 
 
JUNE. 173 
 
 of Engedi." For whether this camphire, this copher, denotes 
 the vine of Cyprus, or the fruit of the palm-tree, in either, or 
 in both, the soul-strengthening, soul-exhilarating, soul-healing 
 virtues of his unnumbered excellencies, may well be set forth 
 under the beautiful similitude of the cluster of grapes from 
 the brook of Eshcol. Yes ! thou dear Lord ! thou hast con- 
 descended to compare thyself to the vine ; and to thy people 
 thou art indeed a cluster of all that is lovely, sweet, gracious, 
 and endearing. In thee dwelleth, like the berries of the 
 richest cluster, all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. In thee 
 is found all the purity, holiness, harmlessness, and perfection 
 of the human nature, as God manifest in flesh. In thee, as 
 God-man Mediator, we behold the cluster of all spiritual 
 graces ; all spiritual, temporal, eternal, blessings, all divine 
 promises ; all, all are in thee, to give out to thy people. 
 Neither is there a mercy thy people can want, of grace here, 
 or glory hereafter, but what is treasured up in thee, in a fulness 
 perfectly inexhaustible. Precious Jesus ! revive my spirits 
 this day with this view of thee. Give me to see when my 
 soul desireth the first ripe fruit, that thou thyself art all my 
 soul can need. Bring me to the brook of Eshcol, and there 
 let my eyes, my heart, my whole soul, and body, and spirit, 
 feast itself in the contemplation and enjoyment of thy Person, 
 thy graces, gifts, and fulness, until under the full satisfaction 
 my soul findeth, in being eternally filled with thy goodness, 
 I cry out with the church. My beloved is unto me as the 
 richest of all the clusters of copher in the vineyards of 
 Engedi. 
 
 23. — And he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering cast 
 over all people, and the vail that is spread over all nations. — 
 Isaiah xxv. 7. 
 
 What a precious promise was this, with which the Lord 
 comforted the church under the Old Testament dispensation, 
 that the faithful might look forward to the New Testament 
 dispensation, when Jesus in the holy mountain, where he 
 finished transgression by his triumphant death, would effec- 
 tually remove the covering which had blackened all faces, 
 and had separated between God and guilty sinners. And, 
 that the gracious promise might be had in everlasting remem- 
 brance by the people, the evangelists were commissioned to 
 tell the church, that in the moment Christ died, the vail of the 
 temple was rent in twain, by an invisible hand, from the top 
 
 15* 
 
174 MORNING PORTION, * 
 
 to the bottom. My soul! see how Jesus, thy Jesus, hath 
 most effectually fulfilled this precious promise. There was a 
 vail of covering spread to separate thee for ever from God, 
 had not Jesus taken it away, even the covenant of' perfect 
 obedience. God's injured perfections formed also a total 
 separation. And as if these were not sufficient, the vail of 
 sin would have for ever kept up this distance : " Your iniqui- 
 ties have separated between God and you," saith the prophet. 
 But now by his precious undertaking in fulfilling the whole 
 covenant of works, restoring the honour to God the Father's 
 injured perfections, and opening a new and living way by 
 his blood, which he hath consecrated through the vail of his 
 flesh, he hath opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. 
 Precious Jesus! how endeared to my heart is this view of 
 thee and of thy great salvation ! Yes, thou Lamb of God ! 
 I have seen by thy Spirit's teaching this deadly face of cover- 
 ing, which by sin hath been cast over all people ; and I have 
 seen, by the same Almighty grace, that vail removed by thee. 
 Now, Lord, in thee, and through thee, and by thee, I am led 
 to behold the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. And 
 having fled for refuge to the hope that is before me, this hope 
 I have in thee, as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stead- 
 fast, and have cast it within the vail, whither thou our Fore- 
 runner hast for us entered, even our glorious High Priest for 
 ever, after the order of Melchizedic. 
 
 24. — And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden 
 censer ; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should 
 offer it with the prayers of all saints, upon the golden altar which 
 was before the throne. — Rev. viii. 3. 
 
 My soul ! behold this mighty Angel, even thy Jesus, in 
 his priestly office. Look at him with an earnest eye of faith, 
 before thou goest this morning to the mercy-seat. See his 
 golden censer, with his much incense, and contemplate both 
 the fulness of merit in his own glorious Person, and the ful- 
 ness of efficacy in his work and righteousness, for the sure 
 acceptance of all his redeemed. Go near, my soul, having 
 boldness to enter now into the holiest by the blood of Jesus. 
 Hear thy great High Priest bidding thee to take shelter under 
 his golden censer, and behold him presenting thy person and 
 thy poor offerings upon the golden altar, even his divine 
 nature, before the throne. Yes, Lord ! I would draw nigh 
 in thee, and by thee, convinced that it is wholly from thee, 
 
JUNE. 1T5 
 
 and for thy sake, either my person or my prayers can find 
 acceptance. For thee, and for thy sake, my sins are pardoned, 
 my offerings are accepted, grace is bestowed, communion and 
 fellowship is obtained ; peace in this life, and glory in that 
 which is to come, are the portion of thy people. Hail ! thou 
 glorious, gracious, all-sufficient. High Priest ! To thee be 
 glory, in the church, throughout all ages ! Amen. 
 
 25. — The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous, and his ears are open 
 unto their cry. — Psalm xxxiv. 15. 
 
 My soul ! never more allow thyself to suppose that thou 
 art overlooked or forgotten amidst the immensity of God's 
 works. Is it not the province of a father to attend to the 
 wants of his children 1 And will not God regard his own, 
 that cry night and day unto him, though he bear long with 
 them ? This was the very argument of our Redeemer, Do 
 you, saith Jesus, that are evil, know how to give good gifts 
 unto your children, and shall not your heavenly Father give 
 his Holy Spirit to them that ask him ? But, my soul, while 
 thou art taking comfort from this view of divine love, take 
 with thee another sweet thought from this precious verse of 
 scripture. Whose eyes are thus upon thee, and whose ears 
 are thus open to thy cries, but those of the Lord Jesus 1 Oh, 
 how sweet the thought ! that by reason of the Son of God, as 
 Christ, being in our nature, and he having taken upon him 
 our nature, he hath eyes to see, and ears to hear, such as we 
 have. What a blessed light the Holy Ghost hath thrown over 
 all those precious passages in which God is spoken of as hav- 
 ing eyes, and ears, and an arm, and the like, describing him- 
 self by human powers : that it is indeed the divine nature of 
 the Man Christ Jesus. It is Jesus the Mediator, the Redeemer, 
 the exalted and triumphant Saviour, who hath all power in 
 heaven and in earth ; who, having loved his own which are 
 in the world, hath loved them unto the end. My soul ! learn 
 then to behold in all these sweet proportions, that it is Jesus, 
 thy Husband and Brother, as well as thy God and Saviour, 
 (and both forming one glorious Christ.) whose eyes are al- 
 ways upon thee, and whose ears are always attentive to thy 
 cries, and to the cries of all his redeemed. 
 
 26. — The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way ; before his 
 works of old ; I was set up from everlasting. — Prov. viii. 22, 23. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over those most blessed words, and see 
 what glories are contained in them. May God the Spirit glo- 
 
176 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 rify Christ to thy view, while pondering- these words. Who 
 is it that speaks them ? Is it not Wisdom 7 Even Christ, 
 the wisdom of God, as the apostle elsewhere calls him ? But 
 how was he possessed by the Lord, and how set up from 
 everlasting ? Not openly in the human form that he was in 
 the fulness of time to take upon him for the purposes of re- 
 demption ; but, as it should seem, secretly, as subsisting in 
 covenant engagements from everlasting. As Mediator, was 
 it not ? Not as yet made flesh, but (if we may from another 
 scripture draw the conclusion) as the image of the invisible 
 God, the first-born of every creature. Coloss. i. 1 5. What 
 a glory, beheld in this view, doth this precious scripture, 
 with all that follows it in the chapter, hold forth ! The Son 
 of God, in covenant engagements from everlasting, was in 
 time to take into himself manhood, and from the union of 
 both God and man become one Christ. Hence, from ever- 
 lasting. Wisdom, one of those natures, is set up and speaks 
 as a person not separate or distinct from the other nature of 
 the Godhead, but as in union, and from both, forming (in 
 covenant settlements) the one glorious Mediator. So that it is 
 not Wisdom, as a person, speaking, without subsisting in the 
 Son of God, neither is it the Son of God, without Wisdom 
 subsisting as such in him, but both forming one identical per- 
 son, and that person the Mediator, whose name was then se- 
 cret, but afterwards was to be called Wonderful, when by the 
 open appearance of the Son of God, tabernacling in a body 
 of flesh, redemption-work, from everlasting covenanted for 
 and agreed upon by the several persons of the Godhead, was 
 to be completed. What a blessed contemplation is here 
 opened, my soul, to thy diligent and humble inquiry. Here 
 direct all thy researches ; here let prayer ascend for divine 
 teachings to guide thee ; and here behold Him, who, in the 
 after-ages of his love, made an open display of himself as the 
 God-man, when he manifested forth his glory, and his disci- 
 ples believed on him ; thus, as the Wisdom-man, declaring 
 himself as possessed by Jehovah in the beginning of his 
 way, and set up before all worlds as Jehovah's delight, while 
 his delights were with the sons of men. Oh ! the wisdom of 
 God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom which God or- 
 dained before the world began ! 
 
 27. — I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last. — Rev. I 11. 
 
 My soul ! if the precious meditation of yesterday be not 
 wholly gone off from thy poor forgetful mind this day, here 
 
JUNE. 177 
 
 is another blessed view to revive the thought afresh, in look- 
 ing at the Mediator, as the Alpha and Omega, the first and the 
 last, in the same covenant engagements. Jesus is indeed, as 
 the 8th verse of this same chapter expresses it, the Alpha and 
 Omega, as one with the Father, over all God blessed for ever. 
 But he is also here the Alpha and Omega, as the Mediator, 
 both God and man. For he is the first and the last of all 
 God's thoughts, and in his covenant engagements, of all Je- 
 hovah's works, for every thing in creation begins and con- 
 cludes in him. From everlasting he was set up. So that 
 though Adam was the first man openly, yet not the first man 
 secretly, and as subsisting in covenant engagements. Here 
 again, as was remarked before, and from an authority not to 
 be disputed, he is the image of the invisible God, the first- 
 born of every creature, that in all things he might have the 
 pre-eminence. Precious Jesus ! be thou to me the Alpha and 
 Omega. And as it is plain that Jehovah possessed thee as 
 the glorious covenant Head of thy people in the beginning of 
 his way, and before his works of old, so cause me to possess 
 thee as the all in all, the first and the last, the Author and 
 Finisher of my salvation. 
 
 28. — Carry down the man a present. — Gen. xliii. 11 
 
 Ah, poor Jacob ! how unconscious wert thou that this man, 
 the governor of Egypt, was so near and dear to thee, and 
 that his bowels yearned to tell thee how much he loved thee. 
 And oh, ye sons of Israel ! who would have had power to 
 convince you, while you were bowing down before Joseph 
 under the dreadful apprehensions which agitated your minds, 
 and he was assuming a voice of displeasure, that this very 
 man was your brother 1 My soul ! and what was all this, 
 heightened to the greatest possible degree in the real love and 
 affection of Joseph towards his family, compared to that love 
 of Jesus which passeth knowledge? Jesus is thy Brother, 
 and he is the Governor, not of Egypt only, but of heaven 
 and earth. The famine, it is true, is sore in the land, and to 
 him thou must go for sustenance, or thou wilt perish for ever. 
 But wilt thou carry down the man a present 1 My soul, 
 what hast thou to carry ? Not thy duties, nor thy prayers, 
 thine alms, thy righteousness : these are all fihhy rags. Be- 
 sides, he to whom thou goest needeth not the gifts and offer- 
 ings of his creatures. His terms are, without money and 
 without price. Go then, my soul, poor and wretched as thou 
 
178 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 art, go to him with a broken and a contrite heart, for that he 
 will not despise. And oh ! what a volume of mercies, bles- 
 sings, and graces, is contained in that one word of his, when 
 he shall say, I am Jesus your Brother ! Precious Jesus ! I 
 would say, thou art indeed a Brother born for adversity. Thou 
 art he whom thy brethren shall praise, and all thy Father's 
 children shall bow down before thee. 
 
 29. — And they sought him among their kinsfolks and acquaintance, and 
 found him not. — Luke ii. 44, 45. 
 
 May we not gather a lesson of sweet instruction from the 
 anxious and fruitless search the parents made for Jesus in 
 the days of his flesh ? What kinsfolks and acquaintances 
 shall we now search among for the Saviour? My soul ! how 
 little of Jesus is to be found in this Christless generation ! 
 What parlor conversation makes mention of his name ? Is 
 it not plain and evident, from the general, nay, almost uni- 
 versal, silence observed in all companies concerning his 
 name, and offices, and characters, and relations, that Christ is 
 not there? Shall we seek him among the professors of the 
 gospel ? Who are they that honour Jesus ? Not they who 
 deny his Godhead ; not they who deny the influences of his 
 Holy Spirit ; not they who set up their own righteousness as 
 part, or the whole, of their justification before God. Jesus is 
 not in that house, in that family, in that heart, among that 
 people who live in sensuality, profaneness, and impiety. 
 Where shall we seek Jesus ? Blessed Lord ! mine eyes are 
 unto thee to be taught. I would say unto thee, in the lan- 
 guage of the church, '• Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, 
 where thou feedest, where thou makest thy flock to rest at 
 noon. O, when I shall nnd thee without, I would lead thee, 
 and bring thee into my mother's house, who would instruct 
 me ; and I would cause thee to drink of spiced wine of the 
 juice of my pomegranate." 
 
 30. — In thee the fatherless findeth mercy. — Hosea xiv. 3. 
 
 Sweet thought! In Jesus, and the relationship which he 
 hath condescended to place himself in, all his poor followers 
 may find a supply to fill up every vacancy. My soul ! con- 
 template Jesus in this blessed feature of character. What 
 relation do we need? The fatherless are commanded to 
 look to him whose name is the everlasting Father. The mo- 
 
JULY. 179 
 
 therless also, for he hath said, " As one whom his mother 
 comforteth, so will I comfort thee." Doth death make a 
 breach between the husband and the wife? then the scrip- 
 ture saith, " Thy Maker is thine husband, the Lord of 
 Hosts is his name." Are we friendless ? " Jesus is the 
 friend that loveth at all times, that sticketh closer than a bro- 
 ther." In short, there is no situation among- the affinities 
 of life, the kinder charities of nature, but what Jesus fills, 
 and infinitely transcends all. Pause, my soul : over this 
 view of Jesus, and behold how he graciously proposeth 
 himself to supply all wants, and to fill all vacancies. Jesus 
 is both the Father, the Friend, the Brother, the Husband, 
 the whole in one of all relationships and of all connexions. 
 And amidst all the changes the fluctuating circumstances of 
 human afikirs, the frailties and infirmities of our own hearts, 
 and the hearts of others, which sometimes separate chief 
 friends, what a blessed thought it is, " Nothing can sepa- 
 rate from the love of Christ!" Precious Lord ! give me to 
 cry out with the church, under the full assurance of thine 
 unalterable love, " This is my beloved, and this is my friend, 
 O daughter of Jerusalem." 
 
 JULY, 
 
 1. — ^Because of the savour of thy good ointments, thy name is as oint- 
 ment poured forth. — Song i. 3. 
 
 Why, my Lord, is thy name so truly blessed, but because 
 thou hast so endeared it to thy redeemed, by every tie which 
 can gain the affections ! Didst thou, even before I had a 
 being, enter into suretyship-engagements for me, that thou 
 wouldest redeem me when fallen, that thou wouldest take my 
 nature, live for me, die for me, become a sacrifice for me, 
 shed thy blood for me, wash me in thy blood, clothe me in 
 thy righteousness, justify me before God and thy Father, be- 
 come my Ad vocate, High-Priest, Intercessor, betroth me to thy- 
 self here in grace, and everlastingly unite me to thyself in 
 glory hereafter ! Didst thou do all this, and art thou still 
 
180 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 doing it, maKing" my cause thine own, and following me 
 with love, and grace, and mercy, every day, and all day, and 
 wilt thou never leave me nor forsake me ! And must not thy 
 name be as ointment poured forth? Can there be a savour 
 as sweet, as fragrant, as full of odour, as the name of Jesus? 
 Precious ointments, it is true, have a smell in them very 
 grateful ; but what savour can be like that, which to the spi- 
 ritual senses manifests Jesus in his person, love, grace, and 
 mercy ; in whom there is every thing desirable, and nothing 
 but what is lovely ; all beauty, power, wisdom, strength, an 
 assemblage of graces, more full of odour than all the spices 
 of the east ? Precious Lord Jesus ! let thy name be writ- 
 ten in my heart, and let every thing but Jesus be for ever ob- 
 literated there, that nothing may arise from thence but what 
 speaks of thee ; that through life, and in death, the first and 
 last, and all that drops from my lips, even in the separation of 
 soul and body. Jesus may form in the close of grace here, and 
 in the first opening of glory to follow, the one blessed precious 
 Name, as ointment poured forth. 
 
 2, — And thou shalt not be for another man ; so will I also be for thee. — 
 Hosea iii. 3. 
 
 My soul, was not God the Holy Ghost representing, by the 
 similitude of his servant the prophet's marriage with an 
 adulteress, the astonishing marriage of Jesus with our na- 
 ture, and his personal union with every individual of his 
 church and people ? Look at this scripture, and see how 
 sweetly it points to Jesus. The prophet was commanded to 
 love this woman, beloved of her friend, and yet an adulteress. 
 He was to buy her also to himself: and he was to charge 
 her to abide with him, and not to play the harlot any more, 
 saying unto her, " And thou shalt not be for another man, so 
 will I also be for thee." Precious Jesus, do I not behold 
 thee in all this ? Can any thing more strikingly shadow- 
 forth thy grace, thy mercy, thy love, to thy people ? Was 
 not our whole nature estranged from thee, when thou camest 
 down from heaven, to seek and save that which was lost? 
 Were not all in a state of daring adultery, when thou hadst 
 from everlasting betrothed thyself to us, in standing up our 
 glorious Husband and Surety ? And how striking the ex- 
 pression ; " Then said the Lord unto me, go yet, love a 
 woman beloved of her friend ;" surely at the command of 
 God thy Father, and not uncalled, unsent, unauthorized, 
 
JULY. 181 
 
 didst thou come. Our nature was indeed yet beloved of 
 thee, our best and dearest Friend, though in a state of 
 spiritual adultery, and wholly gone away from thee. Yes, 
 blessed Jesus ! in defiance of all our multiplied transgres- 
 sions, it might be truly said, we were yet beloved of thee 
 our Friend and Brother, born for adversity; for thou wert 
 then, as now, unchangeable in thy love, the same Jesus yes- 
 terday, to-day, and for ever. And surely, Lord, in another 
 feature the prophet shadowed thee forth : for as he purchased 
 the harlot, so thou, Lord, before we became thine, didst pur- 
 chase us by thy blood. And dost thou now say to me this day, 
 " Abide with me, and thou shalt not be for another man, so 
 will I also be for thee ?" Oh, condescending God ! oh, pre- 
 cious, lovely, all-loving Saviour ! Lord make me thine, yea, 
 altogether thine ! Let my whole soul, and body, and spirit, 
 be all thine, both by the conquests of thy grace, as they are 
 justly thine, and by the purchase of thy blood, that never, 
 never more, I may depart from thee, but with the same full 
 consent as the church of old, I may exult in this blessed as- 
 surance : Ml/ beloved is mine, and I am his. 
 
 3. — Now the end of the commandment is charity, out of a pure heart, 
 and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned. — 1 Timothy i. 3. 
 
 See, my soul, what Jesus hath secured for thee, by his 
 gracious undertaking and accomplishment ; and which his 
 servant was commissioned to tell the church, was the very 
 end of the commandment, namely, charity and^^love. And 
 this law of love is given thee, that thou mightest manifest 
 whose thou art, and to whom thou dost belong ; not as a rule 
 of acceptance, for then that vs/'ould be to make thy love a co- 
 venant of works, but as a sweet testimony of thy affection in 
 the hand of Jesus. It is a law of love indeed, because the 
 cords of love, by which thou art drawn, prove it to be so. 
 Thy obedience is not from slavish fear, for then this would 
 be bondage, but the love of Christ constrains thee. Thy 
 love to him makes thee long to be like him. Thy love to 
 him makes his commandments not grievous but gracious. 
 Thy love to him makes ordinances precious, because Jesus is 
 the whole of them. And thy love to him makes all that 
 belongs to him dear, and in which Jesus requires thy proofs 
 of affection ; not in thy strength, as the poor Israelites were 
 demanded to make brick without straw, but living in thee, 
 and working in thee, both to will and to do of his good plea- 
 
 16 
 
182 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 sure. Here, my soul, thou truly findest strength and grace 
 equal to thy day. The end of every commandment, as well 
 as the beginning, is love, for it begins in Jesus, is carried on 
 in Jesus, and ends in Jesus, and he is all love. And in him, 
 and by him, the conscience, the heart, faith, all, are kept pure, 
 undefiled, and unfeigned, because love in Jesus is at the bot- 
 tom ; like the chariot of Solomon, paved with love. Oh, 
 thou glorious pattern of all holiness ! make me like thy- 
 self! 
 
 4. — I am among you as he that serveth. — Luke xxii, 27. 
 
 Surely there is a blessedness in these words that affords 
 substance to feed upon. My soul, read them again and again ; 
 pause over them, pray over them, and look up to Him, that 
 thus so humbly, graciously, and lovingly, expressed himself! 
 Art thou, blessed Jesus, among thy people as he that serveth ? 
 I know, Lord, that thou didst condescend to become the ser- 
 vant of Jehovah, though thou w^ert Lord of all, when, for the 
 salvation of poor sinners, thou didst undertake to veil thy 
 Godhead, and in our nature to become our Surety. And I 
 know. Lord, also, that thou didst, in a very memorable mo- 
 ment, and at a time when (as the Evangelist had it to relate 
 to the church) ihou knewest that the Father had given all 
 things into thine hands, thou didst condescend to wash thy 
 disciples' feet. But art thou still among thy people as one 
 that serveth? Be astonished. Oh heavens I and wonder. Oh 
 earth ! All power is thine in heaven and in earth I And 
 is Jesus among his people, among his redeemed ones, his ex- 
 ercised ones, as he that serveth? Pause again, my soul. 
 Meditate upon the blessed gracious words. Was there not a 
 circumstance of trial, when Christ was upon earth, but what 
 he felt in his human nature, when fulfilling all righteousness? 
 Then will it follow, that there cannot be a circumstance of 
 trial which his members now feel but what he knows ; nay, 
 what he appoints. And if he appoints it, is he not looking 
 on; nay, measuring out suited strength, suited grace, as the 
 circumstances shall require ? And if all this be in Jesus now, 
 and every minute event, both his ordering, supporting under, 
 carrying through, crowning ; in all is he not, though Lord 
 of all, servant of all ; and doth he not now say to every poor 
 disciple in the present moment, as fully as he did to them in 
 the garden with him, "I am among you as he that serveth?" 
 My Lord and my God, would 1 cry out, under the same con- 
 
JULY. 183 
 
 scious shame of my dreadful unbelief, as Thomas did under 
 his. Yes. Lord, thou art still ministering, still serving ! And 
 though I lose sight of thee in a thousand and ten thousand 
 instances, where nothing but thy imparted strenslh could 
 carry me through ; yet plain and most evident it is, that ia 
 all the blessings of thy finished redemption, thou thyself art 
 giving out, and serving up, grace to thy people. Thou didst 
 first purchase all blessings with th}^ blood. And now thou 
 ever livest to see them administered b}^ thy spirit. Precious 
 Jesus ! thou art ever with me. By and by I shall be with 
 thee, I shall see thee as thou art, and shall be satisfied when 
 I awake with thy likeness. 
 
 5. — Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of linen and wool- 
 len together. — Deut. xxii. 11. 
 
 TnorGH the true believer, who, like the king's daughter, 
 is all glorious wuthin, cannot but know, that as meat com- 
 mendeth us not to God, so neither doth the necessary dress, 
 which, since the fall, is become suited to cover our sinful 
 bodies, make a part of our holy faith : yet it is highly proper, 
 that persons professing godliness should use great plainness 
 of apparel. The ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, we are 
 told, is of great price in the sight of God. But who should 
 have thought that such a precept as this of Moses had a gos- 
 pel signification. And yet as Christ was preached under 
 types and figures through the whole law, we may reasonably 
 suppose that not a single command was then given, but what 
 had an eye to him and his great salvation. But if we find 
 the Lord so strict respecting the outward dress of the body, 
 what may we conclude the Lord would enjoin respecting the 
 inward clothing of the soul ? If woollen and linen were of- 
 fensive to be worn together, surely we cannot appear before 
 God in the motley dress of Jesiis' righteousness and our own. 
 The fine linen, scripture saith, is the righteousness of saints. 
 With this, which Jesus puts on his people, nothing of our 
 own woollen garments must be worn. The righteousness 
 of a creature, had we any. (which in fact we have none.) can- 
 not be suited to mix with the righteousness of the Creator. 
 And no man that is wise for salvation, would put the old 
 piece of our corrupt and worn out nature upon the new gar- 
 ment of the renewed nature in Christ Jesus. When there- 
 fore the Lord saith, Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers 
 sorts, my heart replies. No, Lord ! let me be clothed with the 
 
*^ 
 
 184 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 rote of thy righteousness, and the garment of thy salvation ; 
 then shall I be found suited for the marriage supper, when 
 the King comes in to see the guests at his table. 
 
 6. — Nay, in. all these things we are more than conquerors through him 
 that loved us. — Romans viii. 37. 
 
 More than conquerors ! mark that, my soul. Conquerors 
 all the soldiers of Jesus must be, for in his strength they fight, 
 and he hath himself subdued all our foes, even death the last 
 enemy, and Satan, whom the God of peace will bruise under 
 our feet shortly. So that victory is sure. For we overcome 
 by the blood of the Lamb, by the sword of the Spirit, and by 
 the shield of faith, whereby we subdue all the fiery darts of 
 the wicked. But though conquerors, how are we 7}ior€ than 
 conquerors ? Yes, through Him that loved us, believers ab- 
 solutely conquer Him that is himself unconquerable. For, 
 by union with Jesus, we may be said to have the power with 
 God, and to prevail. "■ I will not let thee go," said the pray- 
 ing Jacob, " except thou bless me." A blessing he came for, 
 and a blessing he would have. So all the praying seed of 
 Jacob have power through the blood and righteousness of 
 Jesus, in like manner. Hence Jesus saith to his church, 
 " Turn away thine eyes from me, for they have overcome 
 me." Sweet and precious thought! my soul, never lose 
 sight of it. Through Him that loved thee, and gave himself 
 for thee, thou art more than conqueror : nay, thy present vic- 
 tories are more than the victories of the church in heaven. 
 For they have now no more conflicts with tribulation, or dis- 
 tress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or 
 sword ; but, by Him that loved us, we arise above the midst 
 of them now, and while troubled on every side, we are not 
 distressed; while perplexed, are not in despair: the love of 
 Jesus is seen in these very exercises, and that in very love, 
 and very faithfulness, the Lord causeth us to be afflicted. 
 Hence, through him, we conquer them ; nay, we are more 
 than conquerors. We love him that sends the affliction, be- 
 cause we discover his love in it ; and as, without that afflic 
 tion, the love of our Jesus in sending it would in that instance 
 not have been known, therefore here we have a blessed vic- 
 tory the church above cannot know. Precious Jesus ! to thy 
 love, however, and thy grace, be all the praise and all the 
 glory ; for under thy banner of love alone it is that we are 
 more than conquerors. 
 
JULY. 185 
 
 7. — Hope deferred maketh the heart sick : but when the desire cometh 
 it is a tree of life. — Prov. xiii. 13. 
 
 Surely, my Lord and Saviour is the sum and substance 
 of this sweet verse ! For art thou not the hope of Israel, and 
 the Saviour thereof? And if thou deferrest giving to my 
 soul renewed views of thy pardoning love, or withholdest the 
 renewed visits and manifestations of thy grace, will not my 
 soul languish, and my whole heart be sick? Can I, dear 
 Lord, continue for a moment in health of soul without thee ? 
 And art thou not my desire, when thou art the desire of all 
 nations ? And when thou comest to ray soul in all thy free- 
 ness, fulness, suitableness, and all-sufficiency, art thou not the 
 very Tree of Life in the paradise of God? Precious, pre- 
 cious Jesus ! give me to sit down under thy shadow with 
 great delight, for surely thy fruit is sweet to my taste. Do 
 not defer thy blessed visit to my soul this morning, for thou 
 knowest, Lord, that though, through thy grace, that sickness 
 of sin which is unto death, thou hast already cured by the ap- 
 plication of thy blood and righteousness : yet there is a sick- 
 ness not unto death, and which my soul will pine and lan- 
 guish under, unless thou renewest me from day to day. Oh, 
 blessed Jesus, I want every moment fresh manifestations, re- 
 newed discoveries, of thy presence, grace, and favour ! I 
 w^ant to know thee more, to love thee more, to live to thee 
 more ; and the deferring these precious mercies maketh my 
 heart sick. Come then, thou blessed Lord, with all thy ful- 
 ness : my desires are to thee, and to the remembrance of thy 
 name. With my soul have I desired thee in the night : and 
 now, with the first dawn of day, would I seek thee early. 
 And surely, when thou comest, as I know thou wilt come, 
 thou wilt be indeed, and in truth, the Tree of Life. Methinks 
 my soul is now opened by thee for thy reception ; and there- 
 fore. Lord, do thou now make such rich discoveries of thy 
 person, glory, grace, and love, as may fill every portion of 
 my heart. Nay, Lord, I pray to feel such goings forth of 
 my poor soul, in waiting for thy coming, that, like the queen 
 of Sheba, overpowered in the view of the riches and wisdom 
 of Solomon, my views of thy condescending grace, and a 
 sense of my unworthiness to be so blessed of my God, may 
 melt my whole soul before thee, and, like her, there may be 
 no more spirit in me from such ravishing enjoyments of thy 
 presence. 
 
 16* 
 
186 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 8. — ^Ye are my witnesses, saith the Lord, and my servant whom I have 
 
 chosen. — Isa. xliii. 10. 
 
 Doth God indeed appeal to the souls of his people for the 
 truth of his covenant love ? Oh ! the gracious condescension ! 
 It is sweet, it is blessed, and a testimony enough to make the 
 heart of every child of God that possesseth it to leap for joy, 
 when the Spirit witnesseth to our spirits that we are the chil- 
 dren of God. But it is still carrying on that blessedness with 
 increasing delight, when the people of God themselves be- 
 come witnesses of covenant love and faithfulness ; and, from 
 numberless experiences in themselves, can and do set to their 
 seals that God is true. See then, my soul, this morning, 
 whether thou art one of thy God's witnesses, and thy Re- 
 deemer, as the servant of Jehovah, witnesseth /or thee, and by 
 his sweet influences in thee, all that thine heart can wish con- 
 cerning the word of his grace, and thy fellowship and com- 
 munion with him. Run over a few leading points in which 
 thou canst, and dost, bear witness for thy God. Did he not 
 remember thee in thy low estate, when he passed by, and bid 
 thee live ? Did he not convince thee of sin, and put a cry in 
 thine heart for salvation ? Did not God the Holy Ghost con- 
 vincingly prove to thee, both the infinite glories and perfec- 
 tions of Jesus, and by his gracious leadings constrain thee to 
 a love towards him, dependence upon him, and a perfect ap- 
 probation of having him for thy Saviour ? Did not Jesus so 
 graciously visit thee, show thee his love, his tenderness, his 
 power, his suitableness, his all-sufficiency, as to warm all thy 
 frozen affections into a warmth for him, and attachment to 
 him? And did not thy God and Father, again and again, 
 manifest to thee his covenant love, in accepting thee in Jesus, 
 blessing thee Avith all spiritual blessings in him, hearing and 
 answering prayer, and proving by all these tokens that he is 
 thy God, and that thou art one of his people. And art thou, 
 my soul, day by day looking up for salvation only in Jesus, 
 and renouncing all other Saviours ? Dost thou know all 
 these precious things, my soul, and a thousand more of the 
 like nature, in which thou art bearing daily testimony to the 
 word of his grace ? Then surely thou art one of those to 
 whom Jehovah appeals in the blessed scripture of the morn- 
 ing. Think then, my soul, what an honour thou art called 
 to ! What a privilege is thine ! See to it, my soul, that 
 thou witness for Jesus, whom God hath given for a witness 
 to the people. And while Jesus takes up thy cause before 
 
JULY. 187 
 
 the throne in heaven, do thou plead his cause, and he valiant 
 for his truth, here upon earth. And do ye angels of light, 
 and ye spirits of just men made perfect, witness for me that 
 this Lord is my God ! 
 
 9. — But he answered her not a word. — Matt. xv. 23. 
 
 Mark, my soul, this feature in thy Redeemer's conduct 
 towards the poor woman that so long and so earnestly en- 
 treated him — Jesus answered her not a word. And yet, 
 from the close of the subject, nothing can be more evident 
 than that the Lord had determined, not only to grant her pe- 
 tition, but to throw the reigns of government, concerning her- 
 self, into her hands so completely, that it should be as she 
 would. Learn then from hence how to interpret silence at 
 the throne upon every occasion of thine. In every dark pro- 
 vidence, under every dispensation of grace, never forget that 
 Jesus' love is the same. What though he answereth not a 
 word, yet his whole heart is towards his redeemed. What- 
 ever frowns there may be in outward things, there can be 
 none in what concerns the real happiness of his people. Jesus 
 may try, as in the instance of this poor woman, the graces he 
 gives. Faith may be hard put to it, and silence at the throne 
 may make temptations and exercises of every kind more sharp 
 and painful. But Jesus is the same, — his love the same, the 
 merits and efficacy of his blood and righteousness the same. 
 These speak /or thee, my soul, though they may not speak to 
 thee. That's a precious thought ; never forget it. And re- 
 member, moreover, covenant mercies are not suspended upon 
 our deserts. The free grace of God in Christ depends not 
 upon the will or the worth of man ; according to the beauti- 
 ful account by the prophet, of the rain, or dew of heaven, 
 which waiteth not for man, neither tarrieth for the sons of 
 men. Henceforth, therefore, my soul, do thou learn to wait 
 at the mercy-seat as cheerful, and with as lively actings of 
 faith, when Jesus answereth not a word, as when thy peti- 
 tions are all complied with. Men ought always to pray, and 
 not to faint, saith one that could not be mistaken. Oh, for 
 grace and faith to take God at his word, and like Job to say. 
 Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. 
 
188 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 10. — And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. — 
 
 Coloss. i. 17. 
 
 How doth the apostle mean that Jesus is before all things? 
 Not as God only, for then the observation would have been 
 needless ; and not as man only, for then how could all things 
 consist by him ? What is it then, my soul ? Is it not as 
 Mediator, both God and man ? And was not Christ thus set 
 up from everlasting ? Not openly revealed indeed, neither 
 openly manifested in a body of flesh, until the fulness of time; 
 but secretly, and in the divine counsels. What a blessed 
 thought for the redeemed to exercise their rapturous medita- 
 tions upon ! And is it not this which the apostle hath said, 
 He is the image of the invisible God 1 The image ! Yes ! 
 that representation of what is in itself invisible ; that identical 
 image concerning which Jehovah, when calling Adam into 
 existence, said, Let us make man in our image, after our like- 
 ness. So then Adam was the first man indeed openly^ but 
 not so secretly^ for it is plain that Adam was made after this 
 likeness, which was set up from everlasting. Hence this 
 union of natures, subsisting in one Person, formed the one 
 glorious Mediator, who is and was before all things, and by 
 whom all things consist. Here is the foundation then of the 
 church, and that from everlasting : without this, the church, 
 and indeed all things beside, had wanted foundation. For 
 there is nothmg created that can stand out of God ; and there 
 was nothing created that could stand in God by a personal 
 union, but him. What a glorious thought ! Cherish it, my 
 soul ! Never lose sight of it ! In Christ the Mediator, all 
 things consist. The church is preserved, redeemed, sancti- 
 fied, glorified ! And how are all his redeemed ones person- 
 ally and individually secured, but by the same ? By him 
 all things consist. Hence their consisting is in him ; they 
 are living in him, feeding on him, made righteous in his 
 righteousness, and hereafter will be glorified in his glory. My 
 soul ! think what a world of mysteries thou art in ! think 
 what an unspeakable life is a life of grace here ! think what 
 a world of glory in Jesus hereafter ! Now see if thou canst 
 better enter into an apprehension of those divine words of Je- 
 sus, Because I live, ye shall live also. And again. At that 
 day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, 
 and I in you. 
 
JULY. 189 
 
 11. — If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, 
 Give me to drink ; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would 
 have given thee living vrater. — Jo-hn iv. 10. 
 
 ArtiiDST a thousand precious things concerning Jesus, there 
 are two views of him which are peculiarly so, and which those 
 words of his to the woman of Samaria bring home to the heart 
 in the plainest and most blessed manner. The one is, who and 
 what Christ is in himself; and the other is, the Father's au- 
 thority in him, so as to give faith in him a divine w^arrant to 
 act by, when a poor sinner comes to make use of Christ. It 
 is our ignorance in those two grand points concerning salva- 
 tion which is the sad cause of all our miseries, and the little 
 enjoyment even gracious souls, for the most part, have in 
 Jesus. Now, my soul, do thou meditate upon both these 
 things, this morning, and, from these sweet words of thy 
 Saviour see if thou dost not prove what he so graciously saith 
 to be true. First, consider who and what Jesus is as he is 
 in himself. Let thy faith have for its object of meditation the 
 Person and the w'ork of God thy Saviour. In all he wrought, 
 in all he did, in all he accomplished, it was as the surety of 
 his people. And in all the fulness by virtue of it, which is 
 treasured up in him, it is not for himself, for he cannot need 
 it, but it is for his people. So that a poor sinner is as much 
 suited to Jesus for him to give out of his fulness, as Jesus is 
 suited for a poor sinner to supply his em.ptiness. And there- 
 fore, if w^e did but thus know him, and thus come to him, we 
 should find that he is as earnest to receive every poor sinner, 
 and to give out of his fulness, as that poor sinner can be to 
 come and take. Now, my soul, when thou hast duly pon- 
 dered over this, look at Jesus in the other point of view also, 
 as the gift of God. Here thou hast a warrant, an authority, 
 nay, a command, to come to Jesus, and to make use of him 
 for every want w^hich poverty, ignorance, and sin, have occa- 
 sioned in the circumstances of our fallen nature. Christ is 
 the one blessed ordinance of heaven ; Christ is the one, and 
 the only one, appointed way for a poor sinner's acceptance 
 with God. And therefore, did a poor sinner always keep in 
 view that Christ is the gift of God, and that God is honoured 
 when that poor sinner honoureth his dear Son, by believing 
 the record God hath given of him, would not this make every 
 poor sinner happy, in thus glorifying God ? And therefore, 
 my soul, look to it that this is thy daily exercise ; for then 
 thy thirst for Jesus will not be supplied, as from a pool which 
 depends upon dry or wet seasons, but Jesus himself will give 
 
190 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 thee living water; nay, Jesus will himself be that everlast- 
 ing- living spring in thee, which springeth up unto everlast- 
 ing life ! 
 
 12. — And they began to pray him to depart out of their coasts.— 
 Mark V. 17. 
 
 And was this Jesus whom they desired to depart ? Yes ! 
 And what had the Redeemer done to merit this treatment? 
 He had dispossessed the evil spirit from the mind of a poor 
 creature, and caused the whole country to be freed from the 
 fury of one whom no chains could bind ! Was this the 
 cause? Yes ! And is it possible that so divine an act could 
 have had such an effect upon the minds of a whole body of 
 people? What, would these Gadarenes rather have the 
 devil raging among them, in the person of this poor creature, 
 than the Son of God in the kindness of our nature? Pause, 
 my soul. Is it not the same now? Do not men still prefer 
 the raging uncontrolled lusts of their own hearts, the dominion 
 of Satan, and the customs, pursuits, and follies, of the world, 
 to the grace, mercy, and sweet dominion, of Jesus ? Do they 
 not in deed, if not in words, say. Depart from us, we desire 
 not the knowledge of thy ways? Pause again, my soul! 
 Was there not a time when the same was thy case ? Indeed 
 there was ; and is not every one so by nature ? And what 
 but an act of grace, like the miracle Jesus wrought on this 
 poor man, can bring any one out of it ? Art thou, my soul, 
 brought out of it? Yes, if so be, like him, thou art now 
 sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed, and in thy right mind. 
 Surely, Lord, thou hast wrought this blessed change upon 
 me. Could I desire thee to depart out of our coasts? Nay ; 
 is it not the daily, hourly desire of my heart, that thou wouldst 
 be with me, dwell in me, reign and rule in me, and be my 
 portion, my God* my Saviour, and make me thine for ever? 
 Sweet testimony, in the midst of all my wanderings, coldness, 
 undeservings. Cherish it, my soul. Jesus will not depart 
 from thee. That love which brought him down from heaven 
 to save a world, led him over the lake of Genesaret to save 
 one poor sinner. And he who came in love unsent for, 
 departed not until he was sent away. Oh, ye poor, blind, 
 deluded, Gadarenes! Oh, my poor, equally blind and de- 
 luded, countrymen and fellow-sinners, who know not, nor 
 desire to know, Christ Jesus I Who are ye that thus reject 
 
JULY. 1 9 1 
 
 the Lord of life and glory, and desire him to depart out of 
 your coasts ? 
 
 3. — This year thou shalt die. — Jer. xxviii. 16. 
 
 I HAVE often thought this passage, pronounced on the 
 lying prophet, a most suitable sermon for a birth-day portion, 
 to be sounded in the ears of the sinner : and if qualified with 
 the possibility and probability which arise out of our dying 
 circumstances, it might, when commissioned by the Lord, 
 have a blessed effect. My soul, take it for the meditation of 
 thy birth-day. It may he fulfilled this year, it must he fulfilled 
 some year, it cannot he a very distant year, and there is a birth- 
 day when it shall he passed upon thee in the year. And why 
 not the present % Pause ! my soul, and meditate upon it, as if 
 this were the very year. And what though carnal men cele- 
 brate the anniversary of their birth-day, as best suited to their 
 carnal minds, let thine be wholly spiritual. If indeed a man 
 came into the world laughing, there might be a suitable cor- 
 respondence in commemorating the annual return of such 
 a birth with laughing : but cries first indicate the birth of a 
 poor helpless creature born to want, and the subject of sin and 
 misery. Can rioting and folly be the proper celebration of 
 such an event? And is there no joy suitable on the return 
 of a man's birth-day? Oh, yes, there is. and ought to be, 
 real, heart-felt joy with every child of God. When a man 
 begins to count birth-days in grace, ev^ery return calls for joy 
 in the Holy Ghost. Not for that he was born an intelligent 
 immortal creature only, but for that he was' made a new 
 creature in Christ Jesus ; not for that he came into the world 
 in a state of nature only, but for that he was brought also 
 into a state of grace ; not for that he was of the stock and 
 lineage of Adam only, but of the seed of Christ. Here is an 
 alliance royal, holy, heavenly, divine ! My soul ! how many 
 moons or years in the new life canst thou mark down? Let 
 this be the arithmetic of thy calculation. And if, like the 
 herald of the morning, the voice should say. This year thou 
 shalt die, oh ! how sweet to answer. Lord, my times are in 
 thine hands. Can they be in a wiser, or more tender, oi 
 more loving, hand, than Jesus' ? Precious Lord ! wean me 
 from everything here below, that 1 may be living nearer with 
 thee, and in thee, and to thee ; that as the last year of my 
 
192 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 pilgrimage lessens to the month, and the month to the week, 
 and the week to the day, nay, to the very hour and moment 
 of my departure from a body of sin and death, the last expi- 
 ring words on my trembling lips may be of Jesus, and thine, 
 Oh Lord, come home with power and sweetness to my soul, 
 like thine to him on the cross, To-day shalt thou be with me 
 in paradise. if 
 
 14. — And I only am escaped alone to tell thee. — Job i. 19. 
 
 My soul, is there nothing in this account which the mes- 
 senger to Job gave concerning himself which suits thy case 
 and circumstances ? Nay, mayest thou not in a great variety 
 of ways, both in providence and grace, adopt similar lan- 
 guage, in which thou art escaped alone to tell ? Pause. 
 Look back to thy boyish daj'S. Nay, look further back, even 
 to the birth and to the womb ; for had not the Lord carried 
 thee from thence, surely from the womb vvouldest thou have 
 died and given up the ghost. And what was thy child- 
 hood, but years of peril and danger, in which multitudes 
 dropped all around thee, so that thou mightest say, while 
 contemplating them, " And I only am escaped alone to tell 
 thee." And where are numbers with whom the stages of thy 
 youth, and years at school were spent? Where are they? 
 May it not here again be said, "And I only am escaped 
 alone to tell thee?" Go on, and trace the wonderful history 
 of the eventful path of riper years ; through what sickness, 
 pains, and death hast thou passed, and mayest thou not, my 
 soul, here again cry out " And I only am escaped alone to 
 tell?" Oh, the wonders of distinguishing love, even in com- 
 mon providences, towards his people, before that the highly- 
 favoured objects have any consciousness how that love is 
 watching over them, and whereby they are preserved to the 
 day of their calling ! Who shall count the sum of distinguish- 
 ing mercy, in preserving and upholding providences, during 
 the whole of an unconverted state ! My soul, hadst thou died 
 in any one of these perilous seasons, (and how very near 
 sometimes hath death seemed,) the language of Job's mes- 
 senger would not then have been thine as it is now, " And I 
 only am escaped alone to tell thee." Pause once more. Art 
 thou now, my soul, indeed escaped to tell of converting grace? 
 Canst thou now look round, and amidst the dying and the 
 dead in trespasses and sins, ungwakened, unconcerned, unre- 
 generated, canst thou indeed, say, " And I only am escaped 
 
JULY. 193 
 
 alone to tell thee ?" Oh then, my soul, proclaim with earnest- 
 ness the glorious truth, invite all as far as thy sphere of infor- 
 mation can reach, as if thou, and thou alone, wert escaped to 
 tell of the wonders of redeeming love; and let thy daily 
 language be, " O come hither, and hearken all ye that fear 
 God, and I will tell you what he hath done for my soul." 
 
 15. — Rivers of waters run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy 
 law. — Psalm cxix. 136. 
 
 Who is there of whom this may be said ? Jesus, and Jesus 
 only. He wept indeed over his beloved Jerusalem, for he 
 was a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief And the 
 love he had to his redeemed, induced a bloody sweat through 
 all the pores of his sacred body. But of every other may it 
 not be said, All seek their own, not the things which are 
 Jesus Christ's. Did we truly love Zion, would not rivers of 
 tears run down at the present languishing state of Zion ? 
 Did we feel the full sense of distinguishing grace, would not 
 every heart mourn over the ruins of our common nature? 
 Think, my soul, what a mass of sin ascends as a cloud before 
 the view of the Lord every day from a single heart of the 
 desperately wicked transgressor ! Think what an accumu- 
 lation in a town, a province, an empire, the world. Might 
 not rivers of water run down at the contemplation ? And 
 worse, if possible. Think of that higher source of sorrow, 
 in that the only possible remedy for this evil is slighted, and 
 Christ, which is God's one gracious ordinance for the recovery 
 of our ruined nature, is so little esteemed among men. Oh 
 how might the people of God be supposed to have their very 
 souls melted in the contemplation. This, this is indeed the 
 condemnation : this is the soul-destroying sin, that light is 
 come into the world, and men love darkness rather than light, 
 because their deeds are evil. Oh for grace to mourn over a 
 Christ-despising genemtion. Oh for the Deliverer to arise 
 out of Zion, and turn away ungodliness from Jacob. 
 
 16. — I say unto you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God 
 over one sinner that repenteth. — Luke xv. 10. 
 
 What a precious information is this, which the Son of God 
 hath given of heaven's joy over every individual instance of 
 the recovery of our poor fallen nature. Surely if angels of 
 light thus participate in the triumphs of our Jesus, well may 
 
 17 
 
194 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 sinners rejoice over sinners, whenever a single one is awak- 
 ened from darkness to light, and converted from the power 
 of sin and Satan unto God. Think, ^^-e ministers of my God, 
 what motives arise out of this thought, to stir up your most 
 earnest exertions in labouring in the word and doctrine. 
 Ought it not to be the first and most importunate petition at 
 the mercy-seat, whenever entering upon your labours, that, 
 by the Lord's blessing upon you, new causes might arise to 
 call forth this joy in heaven 1 Nay, ought it not to be the 
 fervent prayer and hope of faith, at the close of those labours, 
 and especially every Lord's day, that some souls may have 
 been awakened, and angels may have rejoiced through your 
 instrum.entality ? Can there be a prayer more interesting 
 upon earth, than when the servant of Jesus saith, " Lord, 
 crown my labours this day with success ?" And can there be a 
 subject to call forth more animated praise than when at the 
 close of a sabbath, you look up and say, " Lord, have angels 
 rejoiced this day over the conversion of any poor sinner in 
 this congregation ?" And no less, ye parents and guardians 
 of the rising generation, should the same hope prompt ye to 
 wrestle in prayer with God for the sanctification of your 
 household ? Go on and hope that answers are coming down 
 to your earnest requests. Perhaps the next joy in heaven 
 may be over one for whom you have now prayed ! Precious 
 Jesus ! it is enough. I bless thee. Lord, for this, among a 
 thousand other proofs of thy care over us, that the salvation 
 of poor sinners adds new joy to the felicity of heaven, and 
 that there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over 
 one sinner that repenteth. 
 
 17. — I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place 
 for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where 
 I am, there ye may be also. — John xiv. 2, 3. 
 
 How shall I ever sufficiently enter into an apprehension 
 of the love of Jesus ? Much less, how shall I ever sufficient- 
 ly love thee, and adore thee, thou unequalled pattern of ex- 
 celling love, blessed, precious Jesus? Was it not enough to 
 have given such palpable evidences of thy love in dying for 
 poor sinners, but must thou tell them also, before thy depar- 
 ture, the cause for which thou art gone away, and to give 
 them an assurance, at the same time, that thou wouldest come 
 again and take them home with thee to glory? Oh help me, 
 Lord, to love thee, to live to thee, to be always on the look 
 
JULY. 195 
 
 out for thee, and to rejoice with a joy unspeakable in the pro- 
 mise of thy coming. And, my soul, while thou art taking 
 all the sweetness of those precious words of thy Jesus to thy- 
 self, in the prospect of his shortly coming to take thee to 
 himself, let them also have their full comfort under any be- 
 reaving providences of thy friends. Wouldest thou regret if 
 an earthly king had conceived such a love to any friend of 
 thine, that he had sent for him to advance him to some high 
 dignity, to make him his favourite, and to load him with ho- 
 nours? Considered as to earthly accommodations, would 
 this advancement of some near and dear friend of thine be 
 distressing to thee, because thou wert to see him no more ? 
 Nay, would not the generosity of the prince be highly ex- 
 tolled by thee, and more especially if the messengers which 
 came to fetch thy friend brought with them a promise, that, 
 ere long, a royal guard would be sent to take thee also, to 
 live with thy friend for ever, in the king's palace, and under 
 the king's eye, both enjoying the royal favour ? But what 
 would all this fading, dying, perishing, and uncertain gran- 
 deur be, to that which Jesus promiseth in these blessed words 
 of the morning? And hath Jesus taken any of thine home 
 to his glory? Are they now at the fountain-head of blessed- 
 ness, and art thou weeping over their breathless remains? 
 Raise up, my soul, thy thoughts from earth to heaven. Hear 
 the voice that speaks, " Blessed are the dead which die in the 
 Lord." Keep up the constant expectation of thine own call. 
 Walk as on the borders of the invisible world. And above 
 all, so watch the daily hourly visits of Jesus, by his grace, 
 and enjoy the sweet communion and fellowship in spirit, by 
 which he now speaks to his people, and they to him, that 
 when Jesus draws back the curtain of thy bed at death, and 
 appears to thy ravished view in all his glory, thou mayest 
 leave the trembling body, and run to his embraces, crying 
 out," My Lord, and my God !" 
 
 18. — Take us the foxes, the little foxes that spoil the vines, for our vines 
 have tender grapes. — Song ii. 15. 
 
 My soul, mark the sweetness and tenderness of this pre- 
 cept ! Foxes no doubt resemble, in this scripture, the subtle, 
 less open, less discovered, sins and corruptions which lurk 
 in us, like these cunning creatures, under a covering, and 
 perhaps sometimes under a fair covering. Moreover, they 
 may mean also false but fair teachers. " O Israel," said the 
 
196 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Lord, " thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts," crafty, 
 designing, malignant, and filthy. And in proportion as they 
 put on a more fair and specious appearance, the more are 
 they to be dreaded. Satan never more artfully, nor perhaps 
 more effectually, deceives, than when he is transformed into 
 an angel of light. Moreover, the precept is enforced by that 
 important consideration, that vines (by which, no doubt, are 
 meant believers) have tender grapes. What more tender than 
 a weak conscience ? And what more liable to be wounded 
 than the tender principles of young beginners in a life of 
 grace ? My sou], look up to Jesus, the Lord of the vineyard, 
 for grace to be on the look out against these destructive ene- 
 mies to thy welfare. And, conscious that all thy vigilance, 
 without his watchful eye over thee, would never protect thee 
 from foes so shrewd and artful, beg of Jesus himself to take 
 these foxes for thee, and destroy them before thine eyes. 
 " Lord," I would say, " keep me from every enemy which 
 doeth evil in thy sanctuary, and preserve alive in flourishing 
 circumstances all those tender graces of thy Spirit bestowed 
 upon me, that I may bring forth fruit to the praise of thy 
 holy name, and may flourish and spread abroad as the cedar 
 of Lebanon. 
 
 19. — ^Without me, ye can do nothing. — John xv. 5. 
 
 Dear-est Jesus ! I know this in theory, from thy gracious 
 teachings, as well as I know that I am by nature a sinner ; 
 but I am for ever failing in this knowledge, when I come to 
 put it into practice. Teach me. Lord, how to preserve the 
 constant remembrance of it upon my mind, that I may never 
 go forth to the holy warfare to subdue a single foe but in thy 
 strength, and never make mention of any thing but thy righ- 
 teousness, and thine only ! Be convinced, my soul, every 
 day, more and more, of this most precious truth, and behold 
 it proved from all the circumstances around thee. See and 
 remark the total inability either of God's judgments or God's 
 mercies to induce the least alteration upon the heart of man, 
 without his grace. Behold the prosperous sinner, bathing in 
 a full river of blessings: himself in health, his circumstances 
 flourishing, his children like olive branches round his table, 
 wealth pouring in upon him from every quarter ; and yet he 
 lives without God, and without Christ in the world ; and as 
 he lives, so he dies, in the vanity of his mind. See him 
 amidst distinguishing preservations, in battles by sea or land, 
 
JULY. 197 
 
 still preserved, while floating carcases, or opened graves, are 
 all around hiin : do these things bring his heart to God ? Not 
 in the least. The sum total of his character may be com- 
 prised in a few words : Neither is God in all his thoughts. 
 Look at him in the opposite side of the representation : let 
 such an one be visited with chastisements ; in his own per- 
 son, sickness ; in his family, misery ; in his substance, want ; 
 in short, in all that concerns him, a life of sorrow, care, anx- 
 iety, disappointment, ruin : perhaps to all these, a body long 
 the dwelling-place of some loathsome disease, under which 
 he groans, and at length dies, and dies the same unawakened 
 sinner as he had lived. And suppose these accumulated evils 
 had been distinguished also with some more peculiar mala- 
 dies, in perils in the sea, in perils in the war, in perils among 
 men. Nay, let him be maimed in his limbs, let him be rot- 
 ting in a prison, let him be worn out with misery from evil 
 upon evil, like waves of the sea following each other ; yet 
 still he continues the same hardened unsubdued sinner, under 
 all, and as unconscious of God's rods as the prosperous sin- 
 ner before described is of God's blessings. Are these things 
 so, my soul, and hast thou seen them ? Yes, in numberless 
 instances : Oh then learn, that without Jesus thou canst do 
 nothing ! Outward circumstances, unaccompanied with in- 
 ward grace, leave men just where they found them; and plain 
 it is, that grace alone can change the heart. Lord Jesus, let 
 these loud and crying truths day by day lead my soul to thee ! 
 Be thou all in all, my hope, my guide, my strength, my por- 
 tion ; for without thee I can do nothing. 
 
 20. — Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause 
 thee to hear my words. — Jeremiah xviii. 2. 
 
 Yes, Lord, with the first of the morning will I arise, and 
 go down at thy command, where, by the secret and silent 
 whispers of thy divine teaching, I may gather suitable instruc- 
 tion for interpreting all thy dispensations, both in providence 
 and grace, towards me ! Mark, my soul, the vessel marred 
 in the hand of the potter. Alas ! how hath our nature been 
 marred since it came out of the hand of our Almighty Potter ! 
 Will the potter cast his vessel away 1 No, he will new make 
 it. Oh, thou glorious Lord ! methinks I hear thy words in 
 this, for thou hast not thrown us away, but hast new made 
 us, and more blessedly made us, in Christ Jesus. My soul, 
 art thou indeed thus new made, a vessel unto honour, sancti- 
 
 17* 
 
198 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 fied and meet for the Master's use ? Attend then to thy pro- 
 per character, and never lose sight of it. Refer every act of 
 mercy and favour in thy original creation, in thy new crea- 
 tion, when marred by sin, and in all the appointments and 
 dispensations, both in nature, providence, and grace, in which 
 thou art placed, to the sovereign will and pleasure of Jehovah, 
 thine Almighty Potter. All the different forms, and the dif- 
 ferent ends, for which the whole is appointed, result from his 
 sovereignty, in which the richest display of wisdom and of 
 love is shown. Shall the thing formed say unto him that 
 formed it, Why hast thou made me thus ? Much less in any 
 of the dispensations, either in providence or grace, shall any 
 say, Why dost thou use me thus? Precious Jesus! It is 
 enough to be new made in thee, to be new formed in thy 
 blessed likeness, to be taken into thy service, and to be made 
 a meet vessel for the Master's use in thy family. Thy church 
 is as a great and well- furnished house, where there are not 
 only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of 
 earth. And if my Lord condescend to look on me, to use 
 me, nay, to bring me into his house and family, that I may 
 be always under his own gracious eye, how humble soever 
 the place, or lowly the station, to belong to Jesus is the su- 
 preme honour of all his saints. My soul, make frequent 
 visits to the Potter's house, and never fail to go down there 
 whenever any temptation from the enemy, or thine own heart, 
 causeth thee to forget thy creatureship, and the wonders of a 
 marred creature being new made in Christ Jesus ! 
 
 21. — The righteovis shall flourish like the palm tree. — Psalm xcii. 12. 
 
 It forms a beautiful illustration, which the Holy Ghost 
 condescends to give of a true believer's state, as it stands be- 
 fore God, in the allusion not unfrequently made in scripture 
 to that of the palm tree. The direct tendency of the palm 
 tree is upwards : it lifts its head, in defiance of all impedi- 
 ments, towards the clouds. Now a true believer in Jesus is 
 always looking upwards, and directing all his pursuits after 
 Jesus. His person, blood, and righteousness, are the objects 
 of his desire. And as the palm tree is said to flourish the 
 more when trodden upon, and attempted to be crushed, so the 
 believer most oppressed for Jesus' sake, will flourish in the 
 graces of the Spirit more abundantly. How fruitful also is 
 the palm tree ! And how much the people of God bring 
 forth fruit in their old age, when, after long experience, they 
 
JTJLY. 199 
 
 have found, that in Jesus alone their fruit is found ! How 
 much the palm tree likes sunny places ! How precious the 
 Sun of Righteousness is to his people ! And as the branches 
 of palm trees are worn in tokens of victory, so the church 
 above are beheld with palms in their hands : and the church 
 below carry the palm of rejoicing, when, from the atoning 
 blood and righteousness of Jesus, they are made more than 
 conquerors through Him that loved them. My soul, art thou 
 flourishing like the palm tree ? Yes, if so be thou art planted 
 in Jesus, and watered from the streams of that river which 
 maketh glad the city of God. Yes, if directing all thy views, 
 all thy hopes, all thy desires, to Jesus, thou art living in him, 
 acting faith upon him, making him the Alpha and Omega 
 of hope here, and happiness hereafter. Blessed Sun of Righ- 
 teousness ! shine with such warm, life-giving, fruit imparting, 
 beams of thy rich grace upon my soul, that I may flourish 
 indeed under thy divine influence ; and show that the Lord, 
 loho is my rock^ is upright^ and that there is no unrighteous- 
 ness in him. 
 
 22. — These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall over- 
 come them : for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings ; and they 
 that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful. — Rev. xvii. 14. 
 
 What an awful thing must sin in its own nature be, which 
 hath introduced such evil into the whole creation of God, in 
 its consequences. One might have hoped, however, that the 
 meek and gentle Lamb of God would have been exempt from 
 the daring rebellion, and that sin would not have bid defiance 
 and waged war against the peaceable, and holy, and harm- 
 less, Jesus. But so far is this from being the case, that, in all 
 probability, war first broke out in heaven against the person 
 of God's dear Son, as man's glorious Head, and Mediator, 
 even before the deadly malignity manifested itself against 
 God and his Christ upon earth, in tempting the first man and 
 his wife in the garden of Eden, to rebel against God. Pause, 
 my soul, over this scripture. Who are they here described 
 that make war with the Lamb ? Nay, rather, who are they 
 not? All the powers of darkness, all the varieties of the 
 earth, all the inhabitants of hell, all that are under the influ- 
 ence of that evil spirit, which now vvorketh in the children 
 of disobedience. Under this dreadful banner of open rebel- 
 lion against heaven, every man by nature is enlisted ; and 
 until an act of sovereign grace and power is past, and he ihaJt 
 
200 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 is Lord of lords, and King of kings, overcomes, and brings 
 them under his blessed dominion, all ranks and orders of 
 men are found. My soul, are the weapons of sin fallen out 
 of thine hands ? Art thou brought under the conquests of 
 Christ's grace? Hast thou bent the knee of willing homage 
 to the Lamb, who hath bought thee with his blood, and made 
 thee his by his grace ? Read thy character, if so, in these 
 sweet words, " And they that are with the Lamb are called, 
 and chosen, and faithful." Art thou called with an holy call- 
 ing? Art thou chosen, and fully convinced of this, that had 
 not Jesus first chosen thee, thou wouldst never have chosen 
 him? Art thou faithful, in seeking and desiring no other 
 salvation, convinced that there is salvation in no other ? Take 
 with thee then, my soul, these precious marks of thy high- 
 calling and fellowship, and see that thou follow the Lamb 
 withersoever he goeth, 
 
 23. — One like imto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the 
 foot, and girt about the paps with a golden girdle. — Rev. i. 13. 
 
 My soul, thou art going this morning to the throne of grace, 
 art thou not? Pause then, and behold Jesus, as John saw 
 him, for the church's joy, in his priestly vestments ; for, re- 
 member, he is still a Priest upon his throne, and by the oath 
 of Jehovah abideth a Priest for ever. . Nay, my soul, be not 
 afraid ; draw nigh ; hark, surely he calls. Methinks he 
 speaks to thee — " Behold me ! behold me. See, I am thine 
 intercessor. For this cause I wear these priestly garments, 
 and, as the high-priest of old represented me, I appear in 
 them down to the foot, and the golden girdle round and be- 
 neath the breast. What is thy cause ? What blessings and 
 praises hast thou to offer for past grace ? And Avhat suppli- 
 cations for present and future favours ? Behold my vesture 
 dipped in blood. Think of the everlasting efficacy of my 
 righteousness : and for whom should I make intercession, but 
 for transgressors ?" Fall down, my soul, with holy reve- 
 rence and goldly fear. Jesus will do by thee as he did by 
 John. He will lay his right hand upon thee, and say. Fear 
 not. Oh, precious, precious Lord ! thou art indeed he that 
 was dead, and now livest for evermore. And thou livest to 
 see the fruits of thy great salvation faithfully and fully applied 
 to every one of thy redeemed. Thy priesthood is for ever. 
 Thy intercession unceasing. I do behold thee. Lord, by 
 faith, even now standing with the blood of the covenant i» 
 
JULY. 201 
 
 thine hand, and presenting me, even me, — poor, wretched, 
 worthless me, — as one of the purchase of this blood ! Do I 
 not hear thy voice in those soul-reviving words, " Father, 
 keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given 
 me ? Father, I will that they also whom thou hast given 
 me, be with me where I am ?" Oh, glorious, gracious, al- 
 mighty High-priest ! thou art indeed a Priest for ever, after 
 the order of Melchisedec. Oh, ye trembling souls ! ye who 
 have any cause this day to bring before the court of heaven, 
 look unto Jesus, look within the vail, see Jesus there ; look 
 steadily, though humbly, and behold his hands, his side ; 
 Zion is still engraven on his palms. Nay, do we not see, 
 may we not read, our very names, as the high-priest bore the 
 names of Israel on his breast, while his hands were lifted up 
 to bless ! Yes, Jesus takes up our cause, bears our persons, 
 and all our concerns. And how shall either fail, while he 
 is able to save to the uttermost all that come to God by him, 
 seeing he ever liveth to make intercession. 
 
 24. — The stranger did not lodge in the street ; but I opened my doors to 
 the traveller. — Job xxxi. 32. 
 
 Though Job was thus hospitable, yet we know that angels 
 would have lodged in the street, if Lot had not taken them 
 in. Nay, the Lord of angels, when he came a stranger upon 
 earth, had not where to lay his head. He came indeed unto 
 his own, but his own received him not. My soul, pause ! 
 hast thou done better by thy Lord 1 Nay, thou hast not. And 
 though thou knowest the precept the apostle had it in com- 
 mission to tell the church, not to be forgetful to entertain stran- 
 gers, for thereby, as in the instance of the patriarch and 
 others, some have entertained angels unawares : yet, my soul, 
 how long did the Lord of life and glory stand without knock- 
 ing at the door of thine heart, by the ministry of his word, 
 and ordinances, saying, " Open to me :" yea. and would have 
 stood to this hour, had he not, by his own sovereign grace, put 
 in his hand, by the hole of the door, and opened to himself 
 Oh, thou blissful stranger ! didst thou, indeed, come from a 
 far country, on this gracious, blessed errand, to seek and save 
 that which was lost ; and didst thou find every h^art resolutely 
 shut against thee? Didst thou, blessed Jesus, when travel- 
 ling in the greatness of thy strength, open to thyself an en- 
 trance into the souls of thy people, by the sweet and constrain- 
 ing influences ofthy holy Spirit? Do thou, then, almighty Lord, 
 
202 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 throw open the street-doors of my heart, for thy constant re- 
 ception ! Make them like the gates of that blessed city, 
 which are never shut, day nor night. And cause my soul, 
 like the prophet on the watch-tower, or Abraham in the tent 
 door, to be always on the look out for my Lord's approach, that 
 I may invite thee, yea, constrain thee, to come in, and abide 
 with me, and to make thyself known unto me, by the heart- 
 burning discourses of thy word, and in breaking of bread, 
 and of prayer. Yes, yes, thou glorious Traveller ! who art 
 perpetually on the visits of thy love, I do know thee ; I do some- 
 times catch a sweet glimpse of thee, and trace the footsteps of 
 thy grace, in thy word, in thy ordinances, and in the various 
 ways by which thy presence is discoverable. Indeed, indeed, 
 thou heavenly Stranger, thou shalt not lodge in the street ; but 
 I will take thee home to my house, to my heart and soul ; and 
 thou shalt sup with me, and I with thee, according to thine own 
 most gracious promise, and I will cause thee to drink of spiced 
 wine, of the juice of my pomegranate. 
 
 25. — Thou art my hiding-place. — Psalm xxii. 7. 
 
 Yea, dearest Jesus ! thou art indeed my hiding-place. In 
 every point of view I desire grace so to behold thee. Surely, 
 from everlasting, in thee, and thy person and righteousness, 
 were all thy redeemed hid in the counsels of peace and 
 salvation. And is not every individual hid in thee also, oh ! 
 thou glorious Head of thy church ! while in a state of renewed 
 nature, to be secured from death and the grave, and from the 
 unpardonable sin ; and as one of the apostles terms it, pre- 
 served in Christ Jesus and called ? And when called, and 
 quickened by grace, what but from having our lives hid with 
 Christ in God, could keep alive the incorruptible seed, or pre- 
 serve unextinguished the immortal spark ? Whence is it, 
 my soul, that the smoking flax, which Satan and thine own 
 remaining indwelling lusts strive to blow out, is not quenched ; 
 or the bruised reed, which appears so continually falling, is 
 not broken — but because Jesus is thy security, through 
 whom, and in whom, thy languishing graces revive as the 
 corn, and grow as the vine ? Oh ! what springs of grace 
 must there be for ever flowing from Jesus, though hidden 
 from mortal view! Surely, Lord, thou art my hiding-place, 
 and therefore, with thy leave, I will consider thee as a strong 
 Tower, into which the righteous runneth and is safe. Yes, 
 
JULY. 203 
 
 both my person and life, both my safety and happiness, 
 both my present peace and everlasting joy, all, all are in thee. 
 Doth any then ask thee, my soul, Where dwellest thou 1 
 Tell them, in Jesus, in the clefts of the rock, in the se- 
 cret places of the stairs, even in Christ himself and his 
 justifying righteousness ; secret and hidden indeed from mere 
 men of the world, but revealed from faith to faith to all his 
 redeemed ; and into which, tell them, thou hast found shel- 
 ter from the broken law of God, from the dreadful effects of 
 sin, from death, from hell, and all the powers of darkness. 
 And all these, and numberless other unknown blessings, 
 because Christ is my hiding-place, who hath both preserved 
 me from trouble, and hath compassed me about with songs 
 of deliverance. 
 
 26. — Aud there wrestled a man with him until the breaking of the day. — 
 Genesis xxxii. 24. 
 
 My soul! here is a lovely portion for the morning. For 
 the morning did I say ? Yea, both for night and morning, 
 and, indeed, until the everlasting morning break in upon 
 thee, and all the shadows of the night flee away. For are 
 not all the seed of Jacob, like their father, wrestlers in the 
 actings of faith and the favour of pra3'er, until they come off, 
 like him, prevailing Israels? And who was this man which 
 wrestled with the patriarch ? Let scripture explain scripture, 
 and give the answer. " By his strength," said the prophet Ro- 
 sea, (chap. xii. 3, &c.) " he had power with God ; yea, he had 
 power over the angel, and prevailed ; he wept, and made sup- 
 plication unto him : he found him in Bethel, and there he spake 
 with us ; even the Lord God of hosts, the Lord is his memorial," 
 Here then light is thrown upon the subject. He that is 
 called a man in one scripture, is called an a/igel in this other. 
 And that we might not overlook nor forget the identity of 
 his Person, as the very man whose name was then secret, 
 (Judges xiii. 18,) but hereafter to be made known, and him- 
 self appear openly, the prophet was commissioned to tell the 
 church that he that spake with us, in the person of Jacob our 
 father, was the same that found Jacob in Bethel, even the 
 Lord God of hosts ; for that was his memorial. Gen. xxviii. 
 10, 19. And was it then He, whose name is Wonderful, 
 which wrestled with Jacob ? And when the poor patriarch 
 was hard put to it, full of fears, doubts, and distresses, on ac- 
 count of his brother Esau, and was stirring up himself to 
 
204 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 take hold of God's strength, by way of strengthening himself 
 against Esau, did he that came to strengthen him, first take 
 hold of him, and seem to contend with him, until the break- 
 ing of the day? Oh, then, my soul, here learn a sweet and 
 precious lesson against the hour of the many contentions with 
 the Esaus of thy warfare; for thou wrestlest not only against 
 flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against 
 the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual 
 wickedness in high places. See, my soul, where thy strength 
 is — even in Jesus. See what a blessed example of prevailing 
 in prayer the Holy Ghost hath here set before thee. Look 
 to this God-man, with whom Jacob wrestled and came off 
 successful, and say with Job, Will he plead against me with 
 his great strength? No, but he will put strength in me. 
 Job xxiii. 2, 7. Fill thy mouth with arguments, as Job did. 
 Tell Jesus of thy wants : tell him of his riches, tell him of 
 thy guilt, tell him of his precious blood and righteousness ; 
 and tell him, that thy misery, and weakness, and un worthi- 
 ness, renders thee a suitable sinner for so gracious a Saviour 
 to get glory by in saving. Go to him, my soul, with these 
 strong, these unanswerable pleas. Jesus will love to hear 
 and to receive them. And while he wrestles with thee, do 
 thou wrestle with him, all the night, in which thou art con- 
 tending with thy sins within and temptations without, with 
 the errors of the infidel, and the crying sins of the profane. 
 And do as Jacob did, wrestle, plead, supplicate, cry, and take 
 hold of his strength, his blood, his righteousness, and God 
 the Father's covenant-promises in him ; and never give over, 
 nor let him go, until the day break and he blesseth thee. 
 
 27. — That thy trust may be in the Lord, I have made known to thee 
 this day, even to thee. — Prov. xxii. 19. 
 
 My soul, mark for thy morning meditation what is here 
 said. Observe, in the first place, the general knowledge the 
 Lord hath given of his saving truth and mercies in Christ 
 Jesus, and which becomes a sufficient warrant and authority 
 for all the world to believe in Christ, and to accept of Christ, 
 to the salvation of the soul. Christ in the word is the Fa- 
 ther's authority for every sinner to believe the record God 
 hath given of his Son ; and the rejection of this command 
 will be the condemning sin to every one who despises this 
 plan of salvation, because he hath heard, and then turned his 
 back upon this love of God in Christ Jesus the Lord. My 
 
JULY. 205 
 
 soul, ponder over this view of the subject, and then turn to 
 another sweet and distinguishing property of God's revela- 
 tion, which he makes by his blessed Spirit, in the particular 
 apprehension of it. And this is done in every heart that is 
 made willing in the day of God's power, when the same 
 grace which reveals Christ in the word, reveals Christ also 
 in the heart, the hope of glory. Here the verse of the 
 morning is confirmed, in what God saith, that in order to 
 every child of God putting his trust in the Lord, he hath 
 made known to thee, even to thee, this day. Observe, my 
 soul, the personal application of the divine truth. God, by 
 his Spirit, makes it known to thee. It comes like a present 
 sent down from heaven. Who is it for ? Read the direction. 
 It is for thee, my soul. Thus faith takes home the contents 
 to the heart, and finding how exactly every thing in Jesus 
 and his salvation suits his own case and circumstances, he 
 lives upon it. feeds upon it, takes it for his portion, trusts in 
 God for the truth of it, and rejoiceth evermore. My soul, 
 hast thou marked these distinct things? And dost thou know 
 how to distinguish rightly between general proclamations of 
 mercy, and special personal enjoyments of if? Oh, then, live 
 up to the full enjoyment of God's rich mercy in Christ ; ac- 
 cept Christ, and use Christ, daily, hourly, to the glory of 
 Father, Son, and Spirit, as the redemption by Christ was in- 
 tended ; and bless God more and more for his unspeakable 
 gift. 
 
 28. — As an eagle stirreth tip her nest, fluttereth over her young, spread- 
 eth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings ; so 
 the Lord alone did lead him. — Deut. xxxii. 11, 12. 
 
 Here learn a lesson, to form some faint idea how the Lord 
 is unceasingly engaged in taking care of his people. If thy 
 God condescends to represent it by such a similitude, is it not 
 both thy privilege and thy duty to mark the several particu- 
 lars of such grace and tenderness? The eagle not only 
 possesseth, in common with other creatures, the greatest af- 
 fection for her young, but manifests a vast superiority over 
 every other of the winged tribe, in her management of her 
 brood. She provides for them and protects them, as other 
 birds of the air do : but in educating them, and the method 
 by which she shelters them from danger, here is displayed 
 such superior wisdom and power as far exceeds whatever we 
 meet with in other creatures. She stirreth up her nest : by 
 
 18 
 
206 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 which we may understand, she suffers not the young eagles 
 to lay sleeping, but calls them forth to Jife and exercise. She 
 jluUereth over thein^ as if to show them how they are to use 
 their wings, and fly. And when she taketh them from the 
 nest, this is not done like other birds who carry their young 
 in their talons, and in their haste or flight may drop them — 
 or, when pursued or fired at by an enemj?', may have them 
 killed and herself not hurt ; but the eagle beareth her young 
 on her wings, so that no arrow from beneath can touch the 
 young, until it hath first pierced through the heart of the old 
 bird. What a sweet thought do these views afford ; and 
 what a blessed instruction do they bring ! My soul, do they 
 not teach thee, since the similitude is the Lord's own, that 
 He that hath stirred up the nest of thine old nature, in which 
 thou wast born, because he would not suffer thee to sleep 
 there for ever in the unawakened state of sin, and hath 
 brought thee out, and brought thee abroad, and taught thee 
 how to fly up, in devout aspirations after him, is the Lord? 
 Is it not he that fed thee and sustained thee from thy youth, 
 even until now; taught thee, and hovered over thee, and 
 caused thee to mount up as upon the wings of eagles ; 
 to run, and not to weary; to walk, and not faint? Yes, 
 yes, blessed Jesus ! it is thou that hast indeed borne me, 
 as thou hast said, upon eagles' wings, and brought me 
 to thyself: so that I see, by this delightful comparison, that 
 thou wilt not suffer any of thy little ones to perish : for he 
 that toucheth them, toucheth the apple of thine eye — nay, 
 while on thy wings, he that destroyeth them, must first de- 
 stroy thee ! Oh ! Lord, give me grace rightly to enjoy and 
 use such marvellous blessings. And since, to the wisdom 
 and strength of the eagle, thou hast now added the tender- 
 ness and solicitude of the hen, do thou, Lord, gather me un- 
 der thy wings, and nourish me with thy love and favour, 
 that I may be thine for ever, and live here by faith, as here- 
 after I hope to live with thee in glory ! 
 
 29. — We, being many, are one body in Christ. — Rom. xii. 5. 
 
 One of the most delightful of all thoughts, and which 
 when fully enjoyed under the influence of the Holy Ghost, 
 gives an unspeakable felicity in the heart, is that union and 
 fellowship of Christ with his church. Ponder it, my soul, 
 this morning. All the members of Christ's body are but one 
 body, the apostle saith, in Christ ; and he is the Head over 
 
JULY. 207 
 
 all things to the Church, which is his body, the fulness of 
 Him that filleth all in all. I would never, if possible, lose 
 sight of this, because in the perfect conviction and assurance 
 of it must be found all our security and joy. And the way 
 by which this blessed truth, under divine teaching, will be 
 kept alive in the soul, is this : I would behold myself what I 
 am by nature anc^ practice in Adam, and connect by this 
 view what I am by grace and faith in Christ. Now as Adam 
 was the common head of all his seed in nature, equally so is 
 Christ the common head of all his seed in grace. Do I con- 
 sider that, when Adam sinned in the garden, I as one of his 
 children, and then (as scripture saith of Levi, in respect to 
 his connexion with Abraham) was in his loins, part of him- 
 self, and consequently implicated and involved in all the 
 good or bad belonging to him ? then it will follow, that in 
 Adam's sin I sinned, and in Adam's condemnation I was in- 
 cluded. So then, as Adam did not transgress only for him- 
 self, but for all his seed by nature that should come from 
 him ; equally so when Christ fulfilled all righteousness, and 
 when Christ expiated all sin by the sacrifice of himself, his 
 seed were considered righteous in him ; and his expiatory 
 sacrifice, as the Head of his people, must be, to all intents 
 and purposes, the same as if they had been sacrificed with 
 him. Cherish this thought, my soul ! and never allow thy- 
 self to behold Christ as the Christ of God, in the capacity of 
 a private or single person, but as the Covenant-Head, the 
 Father's Chosen, the Sent, the Sealed, the Anointed of God, 
 in whom all his members are one body in Christ. See that 
 thou hast the Spirit of Christ, by which thou art proved to be 
 one of his ! And for the full enjoyment of all the blessings 
 contained in this union and communion with thy glorious 
 Head, daily and hourly remind God thy Father of all his 
 covenant promises made to Christ as the Head of his church 
 and people, in which the Lord hath said, "I will pour my 
 Spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring." 
 
 30. — My grace is sufficient for thee. — 2 Cor. xxii. 9. 
 
 My soul ! gather a rich cluster this morning of those pre- 
 cious fruits, which hang upon the Tree of Life — even upon 
 Jesus. Thou wilt find their taste more sweet and pleasant 
 than all the branches of the vine. Consider the fulness in 
 thy Lord. Such a fulness indeed, by virtue of the covenant 
 engagements in Jehovah, is treasured up in Christ, that all 
 
208 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the grace every individual of his seed could possibly want in 
 time, and all the glory hereafter — all, all is lodged in him. 
 What a thought is here! Consider also the free?ies<i of this 
 grace. Never, surely, did God give any gift more free than 
 when he gave his Son. And, as the apostle from hence 
 justly reasons, " He that spared not his own son, but de- 
 livered him up for us all, how shall he«iot with him freely 
 give us all things ? When, my soul, thou hast feasted thy- 
 self upon the fulness and freeness of the fruits of Jesus' rich 
 salvation, gather another rich portion for thyself, with the 
 hand of faith, in the suitableness and sujfficiency there is in him 
 for thee. Take the sweet words spoken here to Paul, but 
 not limited to Paul, as if personally addressed to thyself It 
 is Jesus now speaks and saith this day, " My grace is suffi- 
 cient for thee." Which is as if he had said, all the grace I 
 have is for my people ; and I have not only enough for all, 
 but for every one ; and I have it for thee ; I have the very 
 portion which I knew each would want every day, and all 
 the day, through the whole of their pilgrimage state : from 
 everlasting I knew their need ; and from everlasting I have 
 laid every individual child's portion by, and do keep it for 
 him to the moment required ; and each shall find a suited 
 sufficiency, exactly answering to all their wants, and corres- 
 ponding to all their necessities. Precious thought! Hence- 
 forth, my soul, cast all thy care upon Jesus ; for thou now 
 seest how he careth for thee. Morning by morning hear his 
 voice, speaking personally to thyself, " My grace is sufficient 
 for thee." 
 
 31. — Watchman, what of the night ? Watchman, what of the night. — 
 Isaiah xxi. 11. 
 
 While this solemn inquiry may be supposed to have pecu- 
 liar reference, as addressed to the servants of the Lord, whom 
 he hath set as watchmen upon the walls of Zion, may it not 
 be made personaUy to every man's bosom also, as it refers to 
 himself? And the repeating of it twice should seem to im- 
 ply the importance and earnestness with which it should be 
 followed up. My soul ! What is the night with thee? Art 
 thou watching in it more than they that vratch for the morn- 
 ing; yea, I say, more than they which watch for the morn- 
 ing ? How art thou exercising this watchfulness ? Is all safe 
 respecting thine everlasting welfare ? Art thou watching the 
 
AUGUST. 209 
 
 approaches of the enemy ? Art thou watchful in prayer ; 
 watchful for the gracious moments of the Spirit's helping thee 
 in prayer : watchful in guiding thee in the exercise of it ; 
 watchful of the Lord's gracious answers to prayer: and, like 
 the prophet on the watch-tower, having given in thy petition 
 to the heavenly court, into the hands of the High-priest and 
 Intercessor, art thou waiting to see what the Lord will say 
 unto thee ? Lord, make me eminently watchful in these 
 things. Go on, my soul, in this heart-searching inquiry. 
 Art thou waiting and watching thy Lord's return? What 
 of the night is it now ? May not Jesus come at even, or at 
 midnight, or at cock-crowing, or in the morning? Pause, 
 my soul ! Suppose his chariot-wheels were at the door, 
 wouldest thou arise with holy joy, crying out, "It is the voice 
 of my Beloved," saying " Behold, I come quickly ?" And 
 wouldest thou answer, " Even so, come. Lord Jesus ?" Oh ! 
 for grace to be of that happy number, of whom the Lord him- 
 self saith, '• Blessed are those servants whom, at his coming, 
 he shall find so doinar." 
 
 AUGUST. 
 
 1. — In thy name shall they rejoice all the day ; and in thy righteous- 
 ness shall they be exalted. — Psalm Ixxxix. 16. 
 
 See, my soul, what a blessed cause is again before thee to 
 begin the month, and to carry it on through every day, and 
 all the day, and in every part of the day, for joy in the name 
 and righteousness of Jesus. And mark it with peculiar em- 
 phasis, that it is Jesus, as Jesus the Christ of God ; and his 
 righteousness as the righteousness of God, in which all thy 
 rejoicing is, and not in the finest frames or spiritual exercises 
 of thine own. A daily sense of a need of Christ, and as con- 
 stant a sense of acting faith upon Christ ; these form the foun- 
 dation of every true believer's joy, and make the savour of 
 Christ's name like ointment poured forth, And whence is 
 it, my soul, that all the redeemed are said to rejoice in the 
 name of the Lord all the day, but because the Lord hath 
 
210 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 saved them and redeemed them for his name's sake ? And 
 whence is it said, that in his righteousness they shall be ex- 
 alted, but because from their union with Christ, as their spir- 
 itual Head, they are accepted in his righteousness, and are 
 made the righteousness of God in him ! Here's an exalta- 
 tion indeed, enough to make the heart of the most sorrowful 
 glad, let outward circumstances be what they may, when in- 
 ward joy and peace in believing give such a blessedness to 
 the believer's view of the name of Jesus. See to it then, my 
 soul, that all thy fresh springs of joy are in him. Be very 
 jealous over thyself, in the happiest moments of thy comfort, 
 that Christ's name, and his righteousness and salvation, lie at 
 the bottom of thy joy. Where is Jesus ? I would ask my 
 heart, when I am most at ease and happy ? Is He in this 
 happiness ? And is this happiness enjoyed, and enjoyed 
 purely, because Christ is in it ? Trace this, my soul, through 
 all the parts of salvation, and through all thy paths in grace, 
 and see whether thou art bottoming every hope and every 
 mercy, both for time and eternity, in the name and righteous- 
 ness of Jesus only : for, depend upon it, as Jehovah hath said, 
 in pardoning and blotting out the transgressions of his people, 
 " I, even I, am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for my 
 name's sake ;" so it is to the everlasting praise of his name, 
 that all the glory of salvation is, and must be, ascribed. 
 Nevertheless, he saved them for his name's sake, that he 
 might make his mighty power to be known ! 
 
 2. — My Father is the husbandman. — John xv. 1. 
 
 Blessed truth, and blessed assurance, to the true follow- 
 ers of Jesus ! Yes, Almighty Father ! I would pray for 
 thy continual teaching, to behold thee as the Husbandman of 
 thy vineyard the church, in which thou hast raised up the 
 Plant of Renown, the Man whose name is the Branch, the 
 true Vine, in whom, and upon whom, and through whom, 
 all thy redeemed, taken from the olive-tree that is wild by 
 nature, are grafted, and bring forth fruit unto God. Yes, 
 Almighty Father ! I would desire grace to behold thee, and 
 while I behold, to love, to praise, to adore thee, that from 
 everlasting thou hast graciously been the Husbandman of 
 thy church. It was in thee, and from thee, as the contriver 
 and appointer of all that concerned redemption, we trace the 
 fountain and source of all that grace, mercy, peace, and 
 favour here, with all the unknown treasures of glory here- 
 
AUGUST. 211 
 
 after, which thou hast placed in His most blessed hands, who 
 is the Lord our Righteousness. In every renewed view of 
 Jesus, as the true Vine which thou hast planted ; and in 
 every renewed communication, from his fulness, nourish- 
 ment, and life-imparting influences ; may it be my happy 
 portion. Oh Lord, to eye thee as the Husbandman, while I 
 feel and know my union in Jesus as the Vine.. And do thou, 
 most gracious God and Father, condescend to act the part of 
 the kind Husbandman still. Let thine eyes be upon me for 
 good, as the Husbandman visits his vineyard. Water, Lord, 
 with the heavenly dew of thy word and Spirit, the dry and 
 languishing plantation. Oh, that the Lord may give showers 
 of blessings, and that he may be to me as the latter and as the 
 former rain, upon the barrenness of my heart. Preserve me, 
 Lord, from the wild boar of the wood, even Satan, that he 
 may never tread me down. Weed out, Lord, the briars and 
 thorns, even the corruptions of my own heart, which would 
 twine themselves with the tender branches. And lop off. Oh 
 Lord, all the superfluous shoots, even the world's enticements, 
 which might prevent fruitfulness in Jesus. In all things, 
 blessed God and Father ! be thou the kind, the tender, the 
 wise Husbandman, in doing for me what thou seest to be 
 needful, however painful to flesh and blood thy pruning dis- 
 pen.sations and wintry providences may be found. Do thou 
 purge, as Jesus hath said, every branch that beareth fruit, that 
 it may bring forth more fruit: and by thy gracious Spirit 
 80 cause me to abide in Christ, and that Christ may abide in 
 me, that thou, my God and Father, mayest be glorified in my 
 bearing much fruit, to the praise of thy grace, wherein thou 
 hast made me accepted in the Beloved. 
 
 3. — Now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld 
 thy son, thine only son, from me. — Gen. xxii. 12. 
 
 My soul, ponder these words. By whom were they 
 spoken? It is said by the angel of the Lord! Probably 
 the Messenger of the covenant : He who, in the fulness of 
 time, was to make known, face to face, to all Abraham's 
 seed, the whole revelation of Jehovah concerning redemp- 
 tion ! It was a critical moment in Abraham's life, and a 
 trying moment to his faith. It is said, "Now I know." 
 Did not the Lord know before ? Oh ! yes : but He that 
 gave Abraham the faith, now afforded an opportunity foa: the 
 exercise of it. My soul, how blessed is it to remark, that 
 
212 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the largest gifts of grace are dispensed when there is the 
 largest occasion for them. As thy days, so shall thy strength 
 be. And, my soul ! do not forget to remark also, that our 
 Isaacs, our children, our earthly comforts, are most likely to 
 be continued to us, when the Lord gives grace and faith to 
 be most ready at his holy will to part with them. When I 
 can say, Lord, all that thou hast given me is thine ; and if 
 thou art pleased to take all, or any part, back again, still it is 
 thine own — not mine, but lent. Oh ! for grace, like Abra- 
 ham, to bless a taking God as well as a giving God, and to 
 withhold nothing from him. Pause, my soul, one moment 
 longer over this precious portion ! Is there nothing more to 
 be gathered from it? Look again. Read it over once more. 
 Pass beyond Abraham, and contemplate the God of Abra- 
 ham, and see if thou canst not discover the infinite, un- 
 equalled, astonishing love of God the Father typified in this 
 solemn transaction : and while we behold Abraham, at the 
 call of God, giving up his son, his only son, may we not be- 
 hold God, uncalled, unsought, and without any one cause 
 but his own free, everlasting love, giving up his only be- 
 gotten Son, as a sacrifice for the redemption of his people? 
 The patriarch gave up his son but in intention ; but God, in 
 reality. And, my soul, what oughtest thou now to say to 
 God in the view of this transaction ? Methinks I find au- 
 thority, from these sweet words, to make a paraphrase upon 
 them, and to make application of them, for all and every cir- 
 cumstance with which I may be exercised ; and, looking up 
 to God my Father in Christ Jesus, I would say, " Now, O 
 Lord and Father, I know thou dost love a poor, sinful, un- 
 worthy worm as I am, seeing thou hast not withheld thy 
 Son, thine only Son, from me !" 
 
 4. — And he led them forth by a right way, that they might go to a city 
 of habitation. — Psalm cvii. 7. 
 
 My soul ! what are thy daily exercises concerning the 
 way the Lord thy God is leading thee through a wilderness 
 dispensation ? Art thou convinced that it is the right way ? 
 What if it be a thorny way, a tempted way, frequently a 
 dark way ; yet art thou satisfied that it is the right way, be- 
 cause it is thorny, tempted, dark, and with numberless other 
 exercises? This is the plan to judge by. And though, my 
 soul, I trust thou hast grace enough given thee to see and 
 know, in thy cool hours of thought, that whatever thy God 
 
AUGUST. 213 
 
 appoints must be right, and his holy will must be done ; yet 
 there is an exercise of grace which goes much beyond these 
 views of the subject, and which a believer is enabled to bring 
 into practice, when he not only submits to a painful dispensa- 
 tion, but rejoiceth in it, because it is the right way. When 
 he saith, I am afflicted ; but afflictions are useful. I am in 
 dark and trying circumstances : but these also are useful. I 
 am buffeted by Satan ; but this also I find to be right, be- 
 cause Christ is the more endeared thereby, and his strength 
 is perfected in my weakness ! My God is bringing me by a 
 right way, to a city of habitation. Of this I am sure. And 
 every step leading to the final attainment, is already marked 
 by infinite wisdom, and provided for by infinite love ; and 
 Jesus himself is with me through all the pilgrimage ! Hence 
 then, I conclude, that if at any time I am at a loss to see my 
 way, to find comfort in my way, or if I am obstructed in my 
 way; still it is the right way, because Jesus himself is the 
 way, and his unerring wisdom is in the appointment ! Oh, 
 for grace in lively exercise, to be as satisfied now, of all thy 
 dispensations concerning thy church and people, as when of 
 old in the wilderness ; the Lord is leading forth by a right 
 way, to bring to a city of habitation, whose builder and 
 maker is God. 
 
 5. — Therefore thus saith the Lord, I am returned to Jerusalem with 
 mercies. — Zech. i. 16. 
 
 My soul, think what a sad state that land, that church, that 
 family, that heart, is in, where God withdraws but for a mo- 
 ment! This will be one way of rightly appreciating his 
 presence. What a mercy, what an unspeakable mercy, is it 
 when God returns ! For until he returns in grace, there 
 will be no return to him in a way of seeking mercy. Pause, 
 my soul, over the thought. Though a child of God loseth 
 not the interest and favour of God in his covenant, because 
 what unworthiness soever, as in ourselves, we mwst appear 
 in before God, yet in Christ there is an everlasting worthi- 
 ness, in which his people are accepted and beloved ; yet if 
 the Lord suspends his gracious influences to the soul ; if 
 Jesus speaks neither by Urim nor Thummim ; if the Holy 
 Ghost, though at home in the heart, manifests not himself to 
 the heart ; what shall the soul do ? Ordinances are nothing, 
 if the God of ordinances be not in them. To look inward, 
 the soul finds no peace. To look upward, there can be no 
 
214 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 comfort. For if the Lord commands the clouds to pour no 
 rain upon his inheritance, their heaven is as brass, and their 
 earth as iron. Hast thou, my soul, experienced trying sea- 
 sons ; and though convinced of an interest in Jesus, hast thou 
 languished after the sweet and blessed visits of his grace? 
 Listen, then, to this precious scripture ; " I am returned, saith 
 the Lord, unto .Jerusalem with mercies." Welcome, Lord, 
 to my soul, to my heart ! Thy presence is better than life 
 itself And the mercies thou hast brought with thee, in par- 
 doning, quickening, renewing, reviving, comforting, and 
 strengthening me, will put more joy in my heart than thou- 
 sands of gold and silver. There will be no barren ordi- 
 nances, no barren hearts, no barren land, where our God 
 comes. Thou hast said, " I will be as the dew unto Israel." 
 Oh ! what a revival in my poor heart ; what a revival will 
 thy presence make in my family ! what a revival in thy 
 churches ; what a revival in this dear land of our nativity ! 
 Oh ! come, Lord Jesus, come in our midst ; and let us hear 
 thee say, " I am returned to Jerusalem with mercies. Thou 
 shalt no more be termed forsaken ; neither shall thy land any- 
 more be termed desolate : but thou shalt be called Hephzibah, 
 and thy land Beulah ; for the Lord delighteth in thee, and 
 thy land shall be married." 
 
 6. — Set me as a seal upon thine heart, as a seal upon thine arm : for 
 love is strong as death ; jealousy is cruel as the grave : the coals 
 thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement flame. — Sovg 
 viii. 6. 
 
 My soul, is this the language of thine heart to Jesus ? Yes, 
 it is. Can any desire to be nearer Christ than thee? Can 
 any long more to be worn as a signet upon his arm, and to 
 lay nearer his heart, than thee? And can any desire more 
 than thou dost, to be sealed with his Holy Spirit unto the day 
 of redemption? Surely, my soul, thou longest earnestly for 
 these precious things, that that arm of Jesus, on which thou 
 wouldest be set as a seal, may be ever clasping thee ; and 
 that heart of thy Redeemer's upon which thou art engraven, 
 as the high-priest bore the names of the people of Israel, 
 may be always folding thee, and bearing both thy person and 
 thy wants before the throne, and thus unceasing fellowship 
 may abound with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 
 And canst thou not say, as the church did to Jesus, " For 
 love is strong as death ; jealousy is cruel as the grave ?" For 
 
AUGUST. 215 
 
 as death conquers all, and the grave admits of no rival, so 
 thy love to Jesus, which he hath planted in thine heart, hath 
 conquered thee ; and no rival, no partner, can divide the 
 throne of thine heart with Jesus. Every thing in thee, con- 
 cerning Jesus, is as though on fire ; and all the flames of 
 thine affection burn with this language: "Whom have 1 in 
 heaven but thee 1 and there is none upon earth I desire beside 
 thee. My flesh and my heart faileth : but thou art the strength 
 of my heart, and thou art my portion for ever !" But pause, 
 my soul ! Is there not somewhat in those precious words of 
 the morning, in which Jesns may be supposed to say the 
 same to thee? Surely, my soul, if thou lovest him, it is be- 
 cause he first loved thee ! And if the real cry of thine heart 
 is to be set as a seal upon his heart, and upon his arm, de- 
 pend upon it, it is because he hath been beforehand with thee 
 in both. Precious Redeemer ! and dost thou indeed bid me 
 set thee in my heart, and on my arm ? Lord Jesus ! I would 
 wear thee in my heart ; I would never, never suffer thee to 
 depart from my arms ; I would feel thee inward, manifest 
 thee by every ouHvard testimony, and as seals upon the arm 
 and upon the breast are in sight, so would I set thee always 
 before me, and tell the whole earth whose I am, and whom I 
 love ; that whither thofl goest I would go, and where thou 
 dwellest I would dwell : for I am no longer my own, but am 
 bought with a price ; therefore I would glorify God in my 
 body, and in my spirit, v/hich are his. 
 
 7. — A friend that sticketh closer than a brother. — Prov. xviii. 24. 
 
 And who is this, my soul ; indeed, who can it be, but Je- 
 sus? None among the fallen race of Adam could ever re- 
 deem his brother, or, if he could, w^ould have done it at the 
 expense of his own soul. But Jesus did all this, and more, 
 when our cause was desperate, and gave himself a ransom 
 for his redeemed. Oh ! for grace to mark the features of his 
 love. It began in eternity ; it runs through all time, and con- 
 tinues everlasting. As Jesus is himself, so is he in his love ; 
 the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever. And how hath 
 he shown it? First, by engaging as our Surety ; then, pay- 
 ing all our debts; fulfilling the whole law; purchasing our 
 persons ; undertaking for our duty ; nay, even to the conquer- 
 ing the stubbornness of our nature, and making us willing 
 to be saved in the day of his power ? And what is it now ? 
 Having accomplished redemption for us by his blood, he is 
 
216 MORNING PORTION. "* 
 
 gone to take possession of a kingdom in our name. There 
 
 he still manifests the friend that sticketh closer than a bro- 
 ther ; for he takes up all our causes, pleads our suits, and 
 makes every case his own. And by and by he will come to 
 take us to himself, that where he is, there we may be also. In 
 the mean time he supplies all our wants, and this with a free- 
 ness, fulness, suitableness, and all-sufficienc)', that knows no 
 bounds, to manifest the unalterable friendship which he bears 
 us. He visits us continually, sympathizeth with us in all our 
 afflictions, and increaseth with his tender love the enjoyment 
 of all our comforts ; and all this, and a thousand other 
 nameless, numberless tokens, Jesus is continually showing, as 
 proves that his whole heart and soul is ours. So that he is a 
 faithful, loving, constant, powerful, kind, everlasting, un- 
 changing Friend, that sticketh closer than a brother. My 
 soul, what wik thou say to such a Friend ? How wilt thou 
 love him ? Oh ! precious Lord ! I am astonished when I 
 think of thy love and my ingratitude. But, Lord, it is thine 
 to love, thine to pity, thine to pardon. Lord, give me grace 
 to appropriate thee to myself; and while thou art still saying 
 to me, and to thy church, " I have called you friends" — may 
 I say, " This is my Friend, and this is my Beloved, O daugh- 
 ters of Jerusalem !" 
 
 8. — Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which 
 the Lord the righteous Judge shall give me at that day : and not to 
 me only, but unto all them that love his appearing. — 2 Timothy iv. 8. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this blessed verse, and mark the very 
 weighty things contained in it. Many a soul is for deferring 
 the thoughts of this great day of God, and concludes, that 
 the justification of the sinner cannot be known until the day 
 of judgment. But, my soul, see to it that thou art for bring- 
 ing the firm and unshaken belief of it into immediate posses- 
 sion and enjoyment now ; for surely Jesus hath effectually 
 and fully provided for it. Whom he called, them he also 
 justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified. 
 See to it then, my soul, that thou dost not suffer thy- 
 self to live a day, no, not an hour, in a state of uncer- 
 tainty, upon a point of such infinite consequence, in which 
 the pardon of thy sins, and the justification of thy person be- 
 fore God, is so highly concerned. If Jesus be thy Surety, 
 his righteousness and blood must be thy full justification be- 
 fore God, and his salvation as much now as it will ever be. 
 
A AUGUST. 217 
 
 Pause then, and ask thine heart, Dost thou love his appearing ? 
 Suppose the trump of God was this moment to sound, would- 
 est thou love his appearing ? No doubt the moment would 
 be solemn ; but would it not be glorious ? Is Jesus thine ? 
 his righteousness thine ? his blood thy ransom ? Wouldest 
 thou love his appearing if these things were sure ? And 
 what makes them not sure ? Art thou looking to any other 
 righteousness? Hast thou not disclaimed all other saviours ? 
 Ask thyself again : dost thou love his appearing in the sea- 
 son of ordinances, providences, retirements; in his word, in 
 the visits of his grace ; at his table, his house of prayer, 
 among his churches, his people? Dost thou love his appear- 
 ing in the conversion of every poor sinner ; and doth the 
 same make thee to rejoice over the recovery of such, as an- 
 gels do, when one repents ? My soul ! let these things be 
 among thy daily meditations concerning Jesus ; for then will 
 thy meditation of him be sweet. And by thus making the 
 justification of thy person in the blood and righteousness of 
 Jesus thy daily comfort, thou wilt be prepared to love his ap- 
 pearing, in death, and finally at judgment ; that when the 
 Master comes, and calleth for thee, thou mayest arise with 
 holy joy, and mount up to meet the Lord in the air, and re- 
 ceive that crov^rn of Jesus' righteousness which fadeth not 
 away. 
 
 9. — And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it : it shall not be put 
 out. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar ; it shall never 
 go out. — Levit. vi. 12, 13. 
 
 Pause, my soul ! Behold the precept in one verse, and 
 the promise in the other. The Israelite was not to 2^iit out 
 this altar-fire ; and Jehovah promised that it should never go 
 out. Neither did it, through all the Jewish church, until 
 Christ came. And if it be true that it actually did expire (as 
 it is said it did) the very year Christ died, what is this but a 
 confirmation of the grand truths of God concerning the put- 
 ting away sin by the blood of Christ ? For is not fire an 
 emblem, through all the scriptures, of Jehovah's displeasure 
 against sin ? Is not God said to be a consuming fire ? 
 And by its burning, and that miraculously preserved 
 under all the Jewish dispensation, is it not meant to man- 
 ifest Jehovah's perpetual wrath, burning hke fire against 
 sin ? And as the fire Avas never extinguished upon the altar, 
 notwithstanding the numerous sacrifices ofl^ered, can any 
 
 19 
 
218 MORNING PORTION. * 
 
 thing more decidedly prove the inefficacy of sacrifices under 
 the law, how expensive soever they were, to take away sin ? 
 And is the fire now gone out ; Hath God himself indeed put 
 it out? Then hath he accepted that one offering of the body 
 of Jesus Christ once for all, who came to put away sin, and 
 hath for ever put it away by the sacrifice of himself Hail ! 
 thou great, thou glorious, thou everlasting Redeemer ! Thou 
 art indeed both the High-priest and the Altar, both the Sa- 
 crifice and the Sacrificer, w^hose one offering hath both put 
 out the fire of divine wrath, and caused the holy flame of love 
 and peace to burn in its stead, which hath kindled in every 
 heart of thy people. Yes, yes, thou Lamb of God ! it is 
 thou which hast delivered us from the wrath to come ! Thou 
 hast made our peace in the blood of thy cross. Thou hast 
 quenched, by thy blood, the just fire of divine indignation 
 against sin. Thou hast quenched no less all the fiery darts 
 of Satan. Thou hast subdued the flaming enmity of our 
 hearts, with all their fiery lusts and buining affections. What 
 shall I say to thee, what shall I say o/thee, what shall I pro- 
 claim concerning thee. Oh thou, the Lord our Righteousness ? 
 Lord, help me to begin the song, and never suffer sin or Satan — 
 nay, death itself, for a moment, to make an interruption in 
 the heavenly note : but let thy name fill my whole soul, and 
 vibrate on my dying lips, that I may open my eyes in eter- 
 nity, while the words still hang there: Tahim who hath loved 
 us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood, a7id made us 
 kings and priests unto God and the Father ; to him be glory 
 and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 
 
 10. — Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not accord- 
 ing to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace which 
 was given us in Christ Jesus, before the world began. — ^2 Timothy i. 9. 
 
 Mark, my soul, all the precious things, if thou hast power 
 or time to do so, which are contained in this blessed scripture. 
 Eternity itself will not be sufficient to allow space to enume- 
 rate them ; neither will thy ripened faculties, even when full- 
 blown and full-fruited, be found sufficient to enter into the 
 complete apprehension of them all. Who is it that is here 
 said to have saved us, and called us with an holy calling, but 
 the holy, glorious, undivided Jehovah, existing in a threefold 
 character of persons — Father, Son, and Holy Ghost? For 
 all have concurred in that blessed work ; and all, in the es- 
 sence of the One Jehovah, must have the joint praise and the 
 
AUGUST. 219 
 
 joint glory to all eternity. Well, then, put thy salvation 
 down to this glorious account : it is God who hath saved and 
 called thee. Next, mark the order here set forth. Thou art 
 said to be saved before thou art said to be called. Mark that ! 
 salvation precedes our knowledge of it. The covenant en- 
 gagements of the almighty Covenanters took place from ever- 
 lasting. For so saith the apostle concerning the hopes of 
 happiness founded on salvation : " In hope," saith he, " of 
 eternal life, which God, that cannot lie, promised before the 
 world began." Next, my soul, take notice of the call itself 
 It is an holy call ; for we are called to the fellowship and 
 communion of Jesus Christ. And as He who hath called us 
 is holy, so are we called to be holy, in all manner of conver- 
 sation and godliness. See to it, my soul, that thy fellowship 
 and communion is in the holiness and sin-atoning blood of 
 Jesus. Lastly, never my soul, lose sight of the cause of these 
 unspeakable mercies — no, not for a moment. We are saved, 
 and called, not according to our works, but according to his 
 purpose. Hence, what is God's gift, cannot be man's merit : 
 and what resulted from infinite love, from all eternity, cannot 
 flow from creature-love in time. Blessed purpose, and blessed 
 grace ! and thrice blessed, being given to us in God's dear 
 Son, even Christ Jesus, before the world began ! 
 
 11. — By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than 
 Cain. — Heh. xi. 4. 
 
 The Holy Ghost hath here marked down, by his servant 
 the apostle, in the very first offerings which we read of in 
 the Bible, the vast importance of faith ; by which it most de- 
 cidedly proves, that it is faith which gives efficacy to all the 
 offerings of his creatures. Faith in what? Nay — there can 
 be but one view of faith throughout the u'ord of God, namely, 
 faith in the promised Seed, to bruise the serpent's head. This 
 was the first promise which came in upon the fall. Every 
 offering therefore offered unto God, unless it had an eye to 
 this, became offensive. Cain did not offer the first fruit of 
 the ground with an eye of faith in Christ — hence, he was the 
 first Deist the world ever knew. Abel, by faith, offered the 
 firstlings of his flock with an eye to Jesus — and hence the 
 testimony that God respected his offering. What a striking 
 evidence is here, my soul, of the vast and infinite importance 
 of faith. Cain made an offering to God, and, by doing so, 
 he did, as the Deists now do, acknowledge God to be his 
 
220 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Creator ; but not looking to him as a Redeemer, and thereby 
 intimating that he needed none, both his person and his offer- 
 ing were rejected. Meditate on this, my soul ; and learn, by 
 grace, to mix faith in all that concerns thy soul. Oh ! keep 
 an eye on Jesus, convinced that there is no other name under 
 heaven, given among men, whereby we must be saved. And 
 if, through the gracious teachings of the Spirit, in taking of 
 the things of Jesus, and showing unto thee, thou art able 
 daily to apprehend by faith, and bring him, as the bee doth 
 from the flower, his person, his work, his character, his rela- 
 tions, his grace, and righteousness, as the Sent and Sealed, 
 and Anointed of the Father, full of grace and truth ; by thus 
 living upon him, and living to him, and making him what he 
 is to all his people, the Alpha and Omega of thy salvation, 
 faith in him will give a sweet leaven to all thy poor prayers, 
 and praises, and offerings, and thou wilt find favour with 
 God, to the praise of the glory of his grace, who maketh thee 
 accepted in the Beloved 1 
 
 12. — To the chief singer on my stringed instruments. — Habakkuk iii. 19. 
 
 My soul, take down thine harp from the willow, and now 
 the night is past, let the first of the morn find thee going 
 forth, in the matin of praise, to the Chief Singer on all the 
 instruments of his grace, which he hath strung thine heart to 
 use to his glory. And who is this Chief Singer, but Jesus ? 
 Doth not the prophet say, " The Lord God is my strength, 
 and he will make my feet like hinds' feet, and he will make 
 me to walk in mine high places ?" Surely he that is the 
 Lord God of my salvation is the Chief Singer and Chief 
 Musician of my song. And he that will be my portion, my 
 everlasting portion, in the upper world, will be my strength 
 and song in this. Surely David would not have directed, as 
 he hath in such numberless places, his psalms to a singer 
 among men, in the temple service, when the whole scope of 
 the psalm itself treats of the Lord, and of his Christ. The 
 root of the word singer or musician itself means the end ; and 
 Christ is the end of the law, for righteousness to every one 
 that believeth. Come then, my soul, strike up this morning 
 thy hymn of praise. God the Holy Ghost is exciting thee. 
 It is he which points to Jesus. He shows thee the King in 
 his beaut}'-, and bids thee behold his suitableness, transcendent 
 excellencies, grace, love, favour, glory. Carry, then, all thy 
 concerns to this Chief Musician. Put forth all thy strength 
 
AUGUST. 221 
 
 to praise him, that while Jesus is attentive to the hallelujahs 
 of heaven, he may hear thy feeble notes amidst all the songs 
 which are offered to him, giving glory to his great name, 
 from the uttermost part of the earth. Follow the prophet's 
 example ; and let the goings forth of thy warmest desires be 
 to the Chief Singer on thy stringed instruments : — " The 
 Lord is my strength and my shield ; my heart trusteth in him, 
 and I am helped : therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth, and 
 in my song will I praise him." 
 
 13. — And every oblation of thy meat-ofFering shalt thou season with salt ; 
 neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be 
 lacking from thy meat-offering : with all thine offerings thou shalt 
 offer salt. — Leviticus ii. 13. 
 
 Ponder over these words, my soul ; and looking up for 
 grace, and the divine teachings, see whether Jesus is not 
 sweetly typified here. Was not Jesus the whole sum and 
 substance of every offering under the law ? The Holy Ghost 
 taught the church this, when he said the law was a shadow 
 of good things to come, but the body is of Christ, And did 
 not the church, by faith, behold him as the Salt which sea- 
 soned and made savoury the whole ? Moreover, as all the 
 sacrifices were wholly directed to typify Him who knew no 
 sin, but became sin for his people, the seasoning the sacrifice 
 with salt, which was also a type of Christ's purity and sin- 
 lessness, became a sweet representation to denote that the sin- 
 ner, when he came with his offering, came by faith ; to inti- 
 mate that he looked for acceptance in the Lord as his sacri- 
 fice, and for preservation in the salt of his grace, in Christ 
 Jesus. And who then, among believers now, would ever 
 approach without an eye to Jesus, and the seasoning with 
 this salt all his poor offerings. Lord, grant that the Salt of 
 the covenant of my God may never be lacking; for where 
 Jesus is not, there can be no acceptance. Lord, let me have 
 this Salt in myself, and may every renewed presentation of 
 myself be there saUed. Then shall I be as the salt of the 
 earth, amidst not only the putrefactions of the world, but the 
 corruptions of my own heart. Lord, say to us, and impart the 
 blessing of thyself in saying it. Have salt in yourselves ; and 
 then shall we have peace with thee, and with one another. 
 
222 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 14. — And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night 
 unto him, though he bear long with them ? I tell you that he will 
 avenge them speedily. — Luke xviii. 7, 8. 
 
 My soul, mark, for thy encouragement, in all thine ap- 
 proaches to a throne of grace, what Jesus here speaks, and 
 never lose sight of it. Remember how well acquainted He 
 who came out of the bosom of the Father, must be with the 
 Father's mind and will towards his people, over and above 
 the gracious exercise of his priestly office in their behalf. 
 Now, my soul, do mark down distinctly what blessed things 
 are here promised. First^ — God's people are said in it to be 
 his elect, his chosen, his jewels. This people, saith God, I 
 have formed for myself; they shall show forth my praise. 
 Secondly^ — God's people are a praying people : they cry day 
 and night to him ; they are unceasing in their applications ; 
 and they wrestle, like their father Jacob, in prayer. Lord, I 
 will not let thee go except thou bless me. Give me Jesus, 
 and in him I shall have all things. He will subdue this cor- 
 ruption ; he will soften this affliction ; he will conquer Satan, 
 and with him all his temptations. Thirdly^ — God's people 
 will and must be exercised. There will be sometimes long 
 silence at the throne. The enemy will endeavour to improve 
 this to strengthen his temptation : he will suggest, God hath 
 forgotten thee ; he will return no more ; he hath cast thee 
 off Lastly^ — mark what Jesus saith : — " Shall not God 
 avenge his own elect, who cry day and nigh unto him, though 
 he bear long with them ?" Yes, yes ! he will : " I tell you," 
 saith One who could not be mistaken, " he will avenge them, 
 and that speedily." When the hour of deUverance comes, it 
 shall come so sudden, so sweet, so unexpected, that all their 
 long waiting shall be forgotten ; and it shall seem as if that 
 promise of answering before they called was in it. And he 
 will not only bless them, but avenge them of their foes. And 
 whence all this, my soul, but because he is the Father of 
 mercies, and God of all consolation. His people are his 
 chosen, the gift of his love, the purchase of Jesus' blood, 
 the conquests of his Holy Spirit. Lord, cause me ever to 
 keep those precious things in remembrance, and to hang on, 
 and hold out, and never, never to give over pleading in Jesus, 
 until I hear that precious voice, " Be it unto thee, even as 
 thou wilt." 
 
AUGUST. 223 
 
 15. — ^The good will of him that dwelt ia the bush. — Deut. xxxiii. 16. 
 
 And who is this, my soul ; who indeed can it be, but 
 Jesus 1 Surely He is the glorious person. It was good 
 will in the highest possible instance of it, that prompted his 
 infinite mind, from everlasting, to love his people, to engage 
 for them in suretyship engagements, and to stand up and 
 come forth, at the call of God the Father, as the Head of his 
 body the church. It was a continuation of the same good 
 will which prompted him, in the fulness of time, to assume 
 our nature for the purposes of fulfilling those engagements. 
 Then it was, indeed, he dwelt in the bush ; for what is our 
 nature, at the best, but a poor dry bramble bush, fit for burn- 
 ing? But yet, by Christ in it, so sustained, and so preserved, 
 that though the bush burns with fire, even the fiery lusts of 
 our corruptions, and the fiery darts of the wicked, and all 
 the fiery opposition of the world, it shall not be consumed. 
 Precious Jesus ! what good will hast thou shown, dost thou 
 show, and everlastingly wilt show, to our poor nature, since 
 thou hast been in it \ and art now, indeed the dweller in it ! 
 And did Moses, when dying, thus connect the first views of 
 thy love, when from the burning bush thou didst make thy- 
 self known to him as God tabernacling in our flesh for the 
 purpose of salvation, with his last views as he was closing his 
 eyes to this world, and looking up to thee as God-man Me- 
 diator, and thus pray for thy good will to the church ? Oh, 
 then, let my every day meditation do the same. Lord Jesus ! 
 I would seek thee and thy good will beyond all the riches of 
 the earth, and all the enjoyments of the world. Lord ! I 
 would never forget that it was thy good will which brought 
 thee down from heaven ; thy good will which prompted thee 
 to die, to rise again, for poor sinners ; thy good will which 
 makes thee wash them from all their sins in thy blood ; all 
 the visits of thy grace here, all the glories of redemption 
 hereafter ; all are the purchase and the result of thy good 
 will. Precious Lord ! do thou, day by day, grant me re- 
 newed tokens of thy good will ; and let those visits be so 
 gracious, so sweet, and so continual, that I may think of no- 
 thing else, speak of nothing else, but the good will of my 
 Dweller in the bush. I would pray for grace to spend all 
 the moments of my life here, in receiving from thee grace 
 and love, and bringing to thee love and praise, until thou 
 shalt take me home to live at the fountain of thy good will, 
 and the whole happiness of eternity consist in the praises of 
 
224 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 God and the Lamb, and in enjoying the good will of Him 
 that dwelt in the bush. 
 
 16. — I am black, but comely. — Song i. 5. 
 
 See, my soul, whether thine experience corresponds to 
 that of the church. Hast thou learnt from God the Spirit 
 what thou art in thyself? Art thou truly sensible of the 
 many sins and corruptions which lurk under fair appear- 
 ances, and that, from carrying about with thee a body of sin 
 and death, as the apostle said he did, in thee, that is, in thy 
 flesh, dwelleth no good thing? Dost thou appear not only 
 black in thine own view, but art thou despised for Christ's 
 sake, and counted the offscouring of all things in the view 
 of the world ? Pause my soul ! Now look at the bright 
 side. Art thou comely in Christ's righteousness, which he 
 hath put upon thee ? Comely in the sweet sanctifying grace 
 of the Holy Ghost dwelling in thee? Comely in the eyes 
 of God the Father, from being accepted in Jesus the Beloved ? 
 Comely in Church communion and fellowship, v^^alking in 
 the fear of God, and under the comforts of the Holy Ghost? 
 What sayest thou, my soul, to these sweet but soul-searching 
 testimonies ? If thou canst now take up the language of the 
 church, " I am black, but comely ;" lowly in thine own 
 eyes, self-loathing, self-despising, self-abhorring ; but in Jesus 
 rejoicing, and in his salvation triumphing, all the day ; think, 
 my soul, what will it be when the King, in whose comeli- 
 ness thou art comely, shall take thee home as a bride adorned 
 for her husband, and thou shalt then be' found, not having 
 spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing ; but shall be everlastingly 
 holy, and without blame before him in love. 
 
 17. — The dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God ; and they that 
 hear shall live. — John v. 25. 
 
 What a promise is here ! and what an encouragement for 
 every dead sinner to hope, and for every living saint, who is 
 interested for dead sinners, not to despair. Observe, my soul, 
 the extensiveness of the mercy : it is the dead. Why all are 
 dead in trespasses and sins. Is there not hope then for all ? 
 And they that hear shall live. Why then every sinner 
 should ask his heart. Do I hear ? But my soul, mark how 
 this is done. It is by the voice of the Son of God. Yes, 
 there is salvation in no other. He saith himself, " I am the 
 
AUGUST. 225 
 
 resurrection and the life : he that believeth in me, though he 
 were dead, yet shall he live ; and whosoever liveth, and be- 
 lieveth in me, shall never die." But, my soul, while taking 
 comfort from this blessed passage, as it concerns poor dead 
 sinners, ask thine own heart ^vhether thou hast been the 
 happy partaker of it thyself Hast thou heard the voice of 
 the Son of God ? Yes, if so be thou livest i?i him, and 
 upo?i him, and w^alkest with him. Jesus' voice is a quick- 
 ening voice, a life-giving voice, a soul-feeding voice, soul- 
 strengthening, heart-warming, heart-breaking, heart-melting 
 voice ! What sayest thou, my soul, to these examina- 
 tions ? Oh ! if Jesus' voice hath been ever heard by thee, 
 thou wilt be desiring the renewal of it from day to day ; 
 and thou wilt be saying, in the earnest language of the 
 church, " Let me hear thy voice, let me see thy countenance ; 
 for sweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely." 
 
 18. — Give strong drink unto him that is ready to perish, and wine to those 
 that be of heavy hearts. Let him drink and forget his poverty, and 
 remember his misery no more. — Prov. xxxi. 6, 7. 
 
 What is the strong drink of the gospel but the covenant 
 love, faithfulness, and grace, of Jehovah ? And what is the 
 wine of the gospel but the love of Jesus, which the church 
 saith is better than wine ? Tell a poor sinner that is ready 
 to perish, of God the Father's everlasting love tow^ards his 
 people, who were all by nature sinners ready to perish, when 
 God passed by and bid them live. Tell them, that such was 
 God's love that he gave his only begotten Son, to the end that 
 all that believe in him should not perish, but have everlasting 
 life. Tell them of Jesus, his Godhead, his Manhood — both 
 natures united in one Person, forming one Christ. Tell them 
 that faith in his blood will save the soul ; that God the Fa- 
 ther hath respect only to the person and worth of his dear 
 Son ; and that for his sake, and his sake alone, the greatest 
 saint, and the greatest sinner, if believers, are alike saved. 
 This is strong drink ; and a poor perishing sinner needs the 
 cordial. Neither will the heavy in heart be any more sad, 
 that thus is made to drink of the w^ine of the gospel. My 
 soul ! hast thou tasted of this strong drink ? Oh ! then, take 
 the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. 
 Drink of this cup which Jesus puts into thine hand, and, in 
 his riches, forget thy poverty ; and in his free, and full, and 
 finished redemption, remember thine own misery no more. 
 
226 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 Live only to Jesus, and let him be thy strong drink, thy wine, 
 and thy cordial for ever, 
 
 19. — My beloved is white and ruddy. — Song v. 10. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and contemplate thy Redeemer this morn- 
 ing-, under this engaging description of his person. It opens 
 a delightful subject for meditation in several points of view. 
 Jesus is white and ruddy, if considered in his human nature 
 only. He might be said to be white, in reference to the im- 
 maculate holiness of his body, underived as it was from a sin- 
 ful stock like ours. He was born of the Virgin Mary, by 
 the miraculous conception of the Holy Ghost, and therefore 
 emphatically called, that Holy Thing : agreeably to all 
 which, his whole life was without sin, or shadow of imperfec- 
 tion. " Such an High-priest became us, who is holy, harm- 
 less, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than 
 the heavens." Hence Jesus was truly ivhite as the Lamb of 
 God, without blemish, and without spot. And was he not 
 ruddy also, in his bloody sufferings, when his head was 
 crowned with thorns, and his side pierced on the cross ? Was 
 he not ruddy in the garden, when his agony was so great as 
 to force blood through all the pores of his sacred body, 
 which fell in great drops on the ground ? Behold, my soul, 
 thy Beloved in both these views, and say. Is he not white 
 and ruddy? But do not stop here. Look at him again, and 
 contemplate the Lord Jesus as the Christ of God, in his two 
 natures^ divine and human, and say, in the union of both. Is 
 he not white and ruddy ? What can set forth the glories of 
 the Godhead, to our apprehension, more lovely than the pu- 
 rity of whiteness, which, as in the mount of transfiguration, 
 became a brightness too dazzling for mortal sight to behold ? 
 And what can represent the human nature more strikingly 
 than the ruddiness of the countenance ? Adam, the first 
 man, takes his very name from hence ; for Adam, or Ada- 
 mah, signifies, red earth. And such, then, was Jesus. And 
 is he then, my soul, white and ruddy to thy view ? And is 
 he also thy beloved ? Oh, then, let him be thy morning, 
 noon-day, evening, midnight meditation ; and let him be 
 sweet to thee, as lie is to his church and people — the Be- 
 loved who is white and ruddy. 
 
AUGUST. 227 
 
 20. — ^Within the vail, whither the forerunner is for us entered, even 
 Jesus— Heb. vi. 19, 20. 
 
 Pause over these words, my soul, this morning. Is the 
 vail removed ? Was the vail rent in twain, from the top to 
 the bottom, in the hour that Christ died 1 And did Jesus, as 
 thy High-priest, with all his blood, then enter into the place 
 not made with hands, having obtained eternal redemption for 
 us ? Did he enter too as thy Forerunner ? Pause over this 
 thought — it is a sweet one. Is Jesus still there? Nay. my 
 soul, look in and see. He calls thee to look unto him — nay, 
 to follow him, having boldness to enter into the holiest by his 
 blood, in the new and living way which he hath consecrated 
 for us through the vail, that is to say, his flesh. And what 
 canst thou see there ? Within the vail of the Jewish temple 
 there was the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant, 
 and the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron's rod that 
 budded, and the tables of the covenant ; and over it the che- 
 rubims of glory, shadowing the mercy-seat. But within that 
 vail, whither our Forerunner is entered, look up my soul, 
 and see Jesus with the golden censer of his own merits and 
 blood ; and not the symbols of the covenant only, but he 
 himself the whole of the Covenant, God the Father hath 
 given him for the people ; not merely manna, but himself, 
 the living bread, the bread of God, of which whosoever 
 eateth shall live for ever : not the rod of Aaron, but the rod 
 of his power, to make poor sinners willing in the day of his 
 power • not the cherubims of glory, but himself, the mercy- 
 seat, the propitiatory, the sacrifice, High-priest, and all in all. 
 Look up — look in — go in, my soul, after him, by faith, and 
 contemplate him as thy Forerunner ; and while all thy facul- 
 ties, in grace and faith, are going forth in the most lively 
 exercise, hear him say, and let his words sink deeper and 
 deeper in thine unceasing remembrance, " I only go to pre- 
 pare for you a place. I will come again, and receive you to 
 myself, that where I am, there you may be also." Hail, thou 
 glorious Forerunner, who art made an High-priest for ever, 
 after the order of Melchisedec 1 
 
 21. — Fear not ; for they that be with lis, are more than th y that be 
 with them. — 2 Kings vi. 16. 
 
 My soul ! never lose sight of this, which was shown to the 
 prophet's servant in his fright. Though thou seest not, with 
 bodily eyes, the mountain full of horses and chariots of fire 
 
228 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 in thy defence ; yet, with thy spiritual eyes, thou mayest see, 
 infinitely beyond all this, as surrounding thee at all times 
 and in all places, God thy Father, with all his divine attri- 
 butes and perfections, all engaged, all made over, all pledged 
 in covenant engagements, in Jesus, for thy defence, protec- 
 tion, comfort, security, and guiding thee in all things. There 
 is more in that one assurance than in a thousand worlds, / 
 will be thy God — and all in Jesus ; yea and amen. Then, 
 moreover, thou hast God thy Redeemer with thee, with all 
 his fulness, all his grace, all his love — his whole heart, his 
 whole soul thine. And thou hast God the Holy Ghost, with 
 all his influences, gift, teachings, .quickenings, consolations, 
 strengthenings. All these are with thee ; to say nothing of 
 angels, which are ministering spirits, sent forth to minister 
 unto them which are heirs of salvation. Surely God's attri- 
 butes, Jesus' graces, the Holy Ghost's comforts, being all 
 thine own, and always with thee ; let what armies of men, or 
 legions of evil spirits, assault thee — unbelief, or fear, or doubt, 
 or misgiving ; let nothing driv^e out the recollection, nor re- 
 move thy confidence : fear not ; for they that be with thee, 
 are more than all that can be against thee. Hallelujah ! 
 Amen. 
 
 22. — Seeking for Jesus. — John vi. 24. 
 
 This, my soul, should be thy constant employment. Wher- 
 ever thou art, however engaged ; in going in, or out ; at 
 rising up, or lying down: whether in public, or private, in the 
 church, or market-place ; the closet, the family, the garden, 
 the field, the house ; the question ever arising in the heart 
 should be, Where is Jesus ? Blessed Spirit ! thou glorifier 
 of my Lord ! wilt thou constantly excite this seeking for Je- 
 sus in my heart? Wilt thou. Lord, give me every moment 
 a sense of need, then a view of his fulness, suitableness, rea- 
 diness to impart, then bring Him, whom my soul loveth, and 
 me together ; and then open a communication, in leading me 
 forth in desire, and giving me faith to receive, from the infi- 
 nite fulness of my Lord, and grace for grace 1 Lord Jesus ! 
 I would desire grace to seek thee, as for hidden treasure. I 
 would seek thee, and thee only, oh ! my God. I would se- 
 parate myself from all other things. It is Jesus my soul 
 chooseth, my soul needs. I would trust in nothing beside 
 No duties, no works ; neither prayers nor repentance ; no 
 nor faith itself, considered as an act of my soul, shall be my 
 
AUGUST. 229 
 
 comfort, but Jesus alone I would make my centre ; and every 
 thought, and every affection, and every desire, like so many 
 streams meeting in one, should all pour themselves, as rivers, 
 into the ocean of thy bosom ! And the nearer, as a stream 
 that draws near the sea is propelled to fall into it, so the more 
 forcible and vehement let my soul be in desires after thee, as 
 my soul draweth nearer the hour of seeing thee. Oh ! Lamb 
 of God ! give me to be seeking after thee through life, pres- 
 sing after thee from one ordinance to another ; and when or- 
 dinances cease, and all outward comforts fail, then. Lord, may 
 I gather up (as the dying patriarch did his feet in the bed) 
 all my strength, and pour my whole soul into thine arms, 
 crying out, Iho.ve icaitedfor thy salvation^ O Lord. 
 
 23. — The beloved physician. — Coloss. iv. 14. 
 
 My soul ! catch a thought of what the apostle here speaks 
 of the servant, to think of the Master ! If Luke the phy- 
 sician was beloved, how much more so ought Jesus to be by 
 thee in this sweet character. The Son of God came, as the 
 great Physician of the soul, to heal all that were diseased, to 
 bind up the broken heart, to give sight to the blind, to set at 
 liberty them that are bound, and to proclaim the acceptable 
 year of the Lord ! My soul, dost thou know Jesus in this 
 tender and affectionate office? Hath he examined thy case, 
 made thee sensible of thy disease; and art thou, through his 
 mercy, restored to health? Though, through shame and 
 fear at the first, you would never have made known your 
 case to him, had he not first, of his own free accord, called 
 upon you, yet hath he done so? Have you heard him ask- 
 ing the tender question. Wilt thou be made whole ? And 
 have you rejoiced to come under his care ? Do you know 
 what it is to have his blood applied to heal the wounds of sin, 
 his righteousness to cover them, his grace to refresh under 
 them, and his name, as ointment poured forth, to make a fra- 
 grancy for all uncleanness ? Moreover, hath Jesus shown to 
 thee the freeness of his remedies, without payment, without 
 money, and without price ? And doth he do all this, and a 
 thousand affectionate offices beside, which belong to the Phy- 
 sician, calling himself by that endearing name, Jehovah 
 Rhophi, I am the Lord that healeth thee ? No longer let it 
 be said, then, Is there no balm in Gilead — no physician 
 there? but tell to every poor sin-sick soul, Jesus is the be- 
 loved Physician, who visits the poor and the needy, and heals 
 
 20 
 
230 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 all manner of sickness, and all manner of diseases among the 
 people. He hath healed me ! 
 
 24. — God, according to his promise, hath raised unto Israel a Saviour, 
 Jesus. — Acts xiii. 23. 
 
 Mark, my soul, the blessedness of these words. Jesus is 
 not only Israel's Saviour, and hath fully answered, in every 
 point, to that glorious character, but here we are led to dis- 
 cover his credentials. This is faith's warrant — I believe in 
 Jesus. Why ? He brings with him the name, the authority, 
 the commission of God the Father. Jesus is the appointment, 
 the ordinance, the method Jehovah hath set forth for salva- 
 tion. Sweet thought ! So that, added to all that I behold in 
 the Lord Jesus adapted to my case and circumstances, I here 
 see that Jesus is the Father's Gift, the Father's Sent, the Fa- 
 ther's Anointed, full of grace and truth ! Jesus is therefore 
 the great Promise of the Bible ; for in him are folded up and 
 contained all the promises. And I see, also, that God our 
 Father was, and is, the great Promiser ! And I see that 
 God not only gave this rich Saviour to poor sinners, but, ac- 
 cording to his promise, raised him up also from the dead, 
 when he had made his soul an offering for sin, to bless them: 
 for it is said, that he was delivered for our offences, and 
 raised again for our justification. My soul! pause over this 
 blessed account, and look for thine own interest in it. If 
 God hath raised up to Israel this Saviour, whatknowest thou 
 of him? Hast thou felt thy need of a Saviour? Dost thou 
 accept the Father's Saviour ? Is .Tesus thy Saviour ? Art 
 thou come to him for salvation ? Now God the Father hath 
 raised him up, doth he appear to thee in all his beauties, ful- 
 ness, suitableness, and complete salvation? 
 
 25. — And his servants shall serve him. And they shall see his face ; 
 and his name shall be in their foreheads. — Rev. xxii. 3, 4. 
 
 Mark these characters, my soul ! Jesus hath servants ; and 
 they are distinguished from the world. They serve him. 
 What is it to serve Christ? The prophet hath described. 
 Free grace hath made them servants, in bringing them from 
 the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the sons 
 of God ; and therefore he saith, in the Lord's name, " My 
 servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; my servants shall 
 drink, but ye shall be thirsty ; my servants shall rejoice, but 
 
AUGUST. 231 
 
 ye shall be ashamed ; my servants shall sing for joy of heart, 
 but ye shall cry for sorrow of heart." How distinguishinor 
 these characters ! God's servants have the table of Jesus to 
 sit down to ; the bread of life, the bread of God, the living 
 bread, which is Jesus himself, to feed upon. They shall 
 drink also ; for He that is their living bread, is their living 
 water also — even the water of life, of which whosoever drink- 
 eth shall thirst no more ; but it shall be in him a well of wa- 
 ter springing up into everlasting life. The servants of the 
 Lord shall rejoice, and sing for joy of heart also ! Yes ! 
 the kingdom of God is not meat and drink, but righteousness, 
 and peace, and joy, in the Holy Ghost. Neither is this all. 
 The servants of the Lord shall see his face. They do now, 
 by faith, in his word, in his ordinances, in his manifestations, 
 visits, grace, and providences ! And, by and by, when this 
 vail of covering cast over all people, is totally taken down 
 and removed at death, they shall have a glorious view of the 
 King in his beauty by sight. Moreover, his name is said to 
 be in their foreheads. Yes ! It is so : the image of Christ 
 is impressed upon them, as "Holiness to the Lord" was en- 
 graven on the mitre of Aaron. Beholding, as in a glass, the 
 glory of the Lord, they are changed into the same image, 
 from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord. My 
 soul! what sayest Ihou to these evidences? Are they thine? 
 Canst thou take the comfort of them to thyself? 
 
 26. — The God of our fathers hath glorified his Son Jesus. — Acts iii. 13. 
 
 See, my soul, how every part and portion of scripture is 
 directed to this one subject — to glorify the Lord Jesus ! What 
 is the very design of redemption, but to glorify the Lord 
 Jesus? What hath God constituted a church for, but to glo- 
 rify the Lord Jesus ? To what do all the precepts, promises, 
 ordinances, sacrifices under the law, and institutions under 
 the gospel, minister, but to this one end — to glorify the Lord 
 Jesus ? Talk they of promises ? Why, all the promises of 
 God are, in Christ Jesus, yea and amen, to the glory of God 
 the Father by us. Talk they of the law ? Christ is the end 
 of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. 
 Talk they of commandments ? This is the commandment — 
 that ye believe on the name of the only begotten Son of God ; 
 and that believing, ye might have life through his name. 
 And how hath the God of our fathers glorified his Son Jesus, 
 in giving him as a Covenant to the people ? Hath he not 
 
232 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 constituted him the glorious Head, the Mediator, the Hus- 
 band, the Lord, the Prophet, the Priest, the King of his 
 people? How hath he glorified him in his person, offices, 
 characters, relations? How hath he carried him through all 
 the parts of redemption, in his incarnation, ministry, miracles, 
 obedience, life, death, resurrection, ascension ; and in all his 
 triumphs over sin and Satan, death, hell, and the grave? 
 And having constituted him the universal and eternal Lord 
 of all, commands that every knee should bow before him, and 
 every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory 
 of God the Father ! And is there any thing left, by which 
 the God of our fathers might manifest that he hath glorified 
 his Son Jesus ? Yes ! there is one thing more, my soul, by 
 which the wonderful grace is shown ; and that is, when the 
 God of our fathers hath glorified his Son Jesus in the heart 
 of every poor sinner, who gives the glory of his salvation 
 fully, heartily, completely, to him, and puts the crown of re- 
 demption upon the head of Jesus. My soul ! hast thou done 
 this? Hast thou glorified Jesus in this way, the only way in 
 which thou canst glorify him, and the Father in him? Then, 
 if so, what a sweet thought is it, that the God of our fathers, 
 and thou, a poor sinner, are both agreed in this one blessed 
 Avork, to glorify Jesus. And here both meet, in the only pos- 
 sible meeting-place for an holy God and unholy men to 
 meet ; and both are engaged in one and the same deed — to 
 glorify Jesus ! Oh ! thou Lamb of God ! be thou eternally 
 glorified in my salvation ! 
 
 27 — I have exalted one chosen out of the people. — Psalm Ixxxix. 19. 
 
 My soul ! wert thou refreshed, on the past day, with the 
 precious meditation of the God of our fathers glorifying his 
 Son Jesus. Suffer not, then, the blessed subject to pass away 
 from thy thouohts this day, or any day ; but look at the same 
 delightful meditation proposed in the words, which God spake 
 to his Holy One in vision — " I have exalted One chosen out 
 of the people." Yes! the Lord Jesus, as Man and Mediator, 
 was chosen, in the infinite mind of Jehovah. Father, Son, and 
 Holy Ghost, from everlasting. And before that God went 
 forth in the immediate acts of creation, when that vast mass 
 of beings the Lord determined to call into existence arose in 
 his own infinite mind at his command ; this blessed One, this 
 glorious, this distinguished, this precious individual, which 
 was to become One with the uncreated Word, in order to 
 
AUGUST. 233 
 
 constitute the Wisdom-man Mediator, was from everlasting 
 chosen. This was the glorious act — this was the great ap- 
 pointment. Then Christ Jesus, our glorious Head, our 
 Surety, Redeemer, Saviour, was then set up from everlasting. 
 And, my soul, hadst thou been present, had there been a pos- 
 sibility of such a thing, had the whole church been there, 
 would not every heart, every soul, of his redeemed, have 
 shouted aloud in the contemplation of such a Saviour, and 
 cried out, " He is the altogether lovely, the chiefest among 
 ten thousand." Precious Jesus ! thou art indeed lovely in 
 thyself, lovely in thy cross, lovely in thy crown, lovely in 
 all thy gracious acts, victories, triumphs, grace, and mercy. 
 Every thing in thee is lovely ; and thou communicatest love- 
 liness to all thy people. Thou hast chosen our inheritance 
 for us — reign and rule over us, and in us ; for thou art The 
 Lord our Righteousness. 
 
 28. — The creditor is come to take unto him my two sons to be bondmen. — 
 2 Kings iv. 1. 
 
 My soul! how doth this affect thee? Art thou in debt? 
 By nature and by practice thou wast miserably so, unless the 
 debt be cancelled. As a creature, and as a sinful creature, 
 thou art in thyself for ever insolvent. Thou hast nothing to 
 pay, and art shut up in a total impossibility ever to pay. 
 And how much owest thou unto my Lord ? Alas ! my soul, 
 thou owest millions of debts to thy Almighty Creditor. The 
 law thou hast broken : justice demands retribution, conscience 
 condemns, Satan accuses ; and the Creditor is come to take, 
 not thy two sons only, but both thy two parts, soul and body, 
 to the prison of death and hell, unless some Almighty Surety 
 hath stept in and paid the dreadful debt, that thou mayest be 
 free. At death, and at judgment that follows, the everlasting 
 release, or the everlasting imprisonment, will take place. 
 And who knows whether the decision may not be to-morrow; 
 nay, whether the same sentence as went forth to the rich man 
 m the gospel is not already gone forth concerning thee — 
 " This night thy soul shall be required of thee?" Pause, my 
 soul ! Is it not high time to flee to the Prophet, even to the 
 Prince of the prophets, the Lord Jesus, to tell him thy case, 
 and to seek his deliverance ? Hark ! doth he say, as the 
 prophet did to the poor woman, " What shall I do for thee ? 
 Tell me what thou hast in the house ?" Is not Jesus with 
 thee? Is not his fulness suited to thy emptiness ? Hast thou 
 20* 
 
234 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 him with thee in the house ? Shut then the door : bring, 
 bring, my soul, all thy empty vessels — Jesus will fill them 
 all. Nor will his bounty stay until that all thy vessels be 
 filled ; nay, every vessel will fail before that his grace fails. 
 And when thou art full of Jesus, live on Jesus, and see that 
 Jesus hath paid thy Almighty Creditor, and left enough for 
 thee to live on for ever. Oh ! the rapture and the joy when 
 the Almighty Creditor comes, at midnight, or at cock-crowing, 
 or in the morning, to know the dreadful debt is paid, and to 
 hear him say, " Deliver him from going down to the pit ; 
 I have found a ransom !" 
 
 29. — Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known 
 me ? — John iv. 9. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this question of the Lord Jesus, which 
 he put to Philip — figure to thyself that the Lord saith the 
 same to thee ; and now see what answer thou wilt give him. 
 It is a great question: and if thou art able to answer it with 
 a — " Yea, Lord ;" and, from the blessed Spirit's teaching, 
 thou truly knowest Jesus to be what the scripture saith he is, 
 and canst as truly, from the receiving that testimony which 
 God hath given of his dear and ever-blessed Son, set to thy 
 seal that God is true ; then art thou truly happy, and mayest 
 humbly take to thyself a portion in that blessedness, which 
 the Lord Jesus pronounced upon Peter from the same grace 
 manifested : " Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, 
 but my Father which is in heaven." Pause then and inquire, 
 Dost thou know who Christ is ? Art thou perfectly satisfied, 
 my soul, of the Oneness, in nature, in essence, in glory, in 
 will, in worship, in work, in design, in attributes, perfections, 
 power, sovereignty ; in short, in all and every thing which 
 constitutes the Godhead between the Father, and the Son, and 
 Spirit? Oh, yes, my soul cries out, I do, through the teach- 
 ing of my God, most firmly, heartily, and cordially believe 
 that Jesus is One with the Father over all, God blessed for 
 ever. Amen. Pause again, my soul, and say, Dost thou as 
 firmly and heartily believe that thy Jesus, who, in the divine 
 nature is One with the Father, is no less in the human nature, 
 which he united to the Godhead for the purposes of salvation, 
 one with thee, bone of thy bone, and flesh of thy flesh? 
 Doth this make an equal article in thy creed? Oh, yes ; I 
 am, through the same divine teaching, as fully and perfectly 
 convinced that He who is, and was, and ever will be, the 
 
AUGUST. 235 
 
 uncreated Word, was made flesh, and thereby became the 
 true Emmanuel, God with us, God in our nature. Pause 
 once more, my soul, and say. Dost thou believe that, by this 
 union of God and man, Jesus became the true, the only, the 
 blessed Mediator, the Christ of God, the Sent of God, the 
 Sealed of God, the Anointed of God, the Lamb of God, the 
 Word of God, the Wisdom of God, and the Power of God, 
 for salvation to every one that believeth? Bow down, my 
 soul, with unceasing thanksgivings and praise, to the Author 
 and Giver of faith, for the stupendous discoveries he hath 
 made to thee of himself, while thou cryest out in transports 
 of rejoicing — Lord ! all this I believe ; and am perfectly 
 satisfied that thou art One with the Father, and art in the 
 Father, and the Father in thee. And while thou thus givest 
 in thy testimony of the Lord Jesus, wilt thou not, my soul, 
 at the same time, under a conscious sense of the distinguishing 
 mercy, cry out also with the astonished disciple — " Lord, 
 how is it that thou hast thus manifested thyself unto me. and 
 not unto the world?" 
 
 30. — And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in the land 
 of Egypt, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee. — Deut. xv. 15. 
 
 Say, my soul, canst thou ever forget the wormwood and the 
 gall of that state of nature, from which the Lord thy God 
 brought thee ? Figure to thyself the most horrid state of 
 captivity which the world ever knew ; and what could the 
 whole be, bounded, as it must be, by the short period of human 
 life, compared to the everlasting vassalage of sin and Satan, 
 in which thou didst lay when Jesus passed by and brought 
 thee out ? No galley-slave, chained to the oar, could equal 
 thy misery, bound with the chain of sm. No duration of 
 misery, bounded by time, equals that endless state of woe to 
 which thou wast exposed. Thou wert a bondman to the 
 power of sin, to the love of sin, to the desire of sin, to the 
 punishment of sin ; a bondman to the law of God, to the 
 justice of God, to the displeasure of God, to the threatenings 
 of God ; a bondman to thine own guilty conscience ; a bond- 
 man to thine own corrupt lusts — not one lust, but many — 
 serving, as the apostle saith, divers lusts and pleasures, hateful, 
 and hating one another ; a bondman to Satan — a willing 
 drudge — wearing his livery, delighted in his service, though 
 full of sorrow, vexation, and disappointment, and his wages 
 sure death ; a bondman to the fear of many creatures among 
 
236 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 the inferior creation, many of whom had continual power to 
 vex and distress thee ; a hondman to the fear of death, hell, 
 and a judgment to come. Was this thy state, my soul, by 
 nature and by practice 1 And hath One like the Son of Man 
 brought thee out ? Precious Jesus ! what shall I say to thee 
 — what shall I say for thee 1 What shall I render to the 
 Lord for all the mercies he hath done to me, and for me ? 
 And dost thou say, Lord, that I may remember that bondage 
 and thy redemption. Oh, may my tongue cleave to the roof 
 of my mouth, if I forget thee, thou Author of all my joy, and 
 all my happiness : — nay, if I do not remember thee, and prefer 
 thy love more than wine. In life, in death, and to all eter- 
 nity, may my soul hang upon thee, as the bee upon the flower; 
 and let the fragrancy of thy name be as ointment poured forth, 
 
 31. — One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, now I see. — Jno. ix. 25. 
 
 This is a great thing to say, my soul : on what foundation 
 dost thou rest this knowledge? If the Lord Jesus hath 
 opened thine eyes, then indeed thou canst not but discover thy 
 former blindness ; for, during that state of nature, thou liter- 
 ally could discern nothing. And if thy former blindness be dis- 
 covered, then thy present sight hath brought thee acquainted 
 with new objects. Pause over the review of both this morn- 
 ing. The blindness of nature to spiritual things is marked 
 in. scripture in strong characters. A poor blind sinner sees 
 nothing of the light of hfe. The Sun of Righteousness is not 
 risen upon him. He discerns nothing of the love of God in 
 Christ. If he reads the scripture, the veil is upon his heart. 
 If he hears of Jesus, he sees no beauty in him. Nothing is 
 nearer to him than the Lord, and nothing further from his 
 thoughts. To tell him of the sweetness of the word of God, 
 is strange to him ; for he tastes nothing of sweetness in it. 
 To tell him of the loveliness of ordinances and the sabbaths ; 
 these are strange things in his esteem. My soul, if indeed 
 thine eyes be opened, thou wilt know that thou wert once in- 
 deed blind, in the fullest sense of the word, to all these de- 
 lightful views of sacred things which now are thy supreme 
 pleasure and thy joy. Say, then, what hast thou seen to justify 
 this saying, " One thing I know, that, whereas I was blind, 
 now I see?" Hast thou seen the King in his beauty? 
 Hast thou seen with the eye of faith the glories of Jesus ? 
 Yes ! if so be all other objects are obscured. The sight of Je- 
 sus, as the Christ of God, hath darkened the glory and excel- 
 
SEPTEMBER. 237 
 
 lency of all beside, Jesus, as he is in himself, as he is in his 
 offices, characters, relations — as he is to thee and thy happi- 
 ness — is the one, the only one thing needful ; and thou must 
 count all things but dung and dross to win Christ. These, 
 my soul, are blessed tokens that Jesus hath opened thine eyes, 
 and brought thee out of darkness into his marvellous light. 
 By-and-by thou shalt see him as he is, and dwell with him 
 for ever ! 
 
 SEPTEMBER. 
 
 1. — And his name, through faith in his name, hath made this man 
 strong. — Acts iii. 16. 
 
 My soul, begin this month, as the Lord in mercy hath en- 
 abled thee to begin some that are past, in taking the name of 
 Jesus for thy theme. Let his name be as ointment poured 
 forth, whose fragrancy shall make thee strong, as it made the 
 poor man whole. And as the Lord hath opened a new mouth 
 to thee in grace, do thou take up his name, through faith in 
 his name, in praise and prayer. And see to it, my soul, that 
 through the month, and indeed the whole of life, thou 
 improve his name in every case, in every want, in every 
 need. Depend upon it, his name w^ill answer all. What- 
 ever thy necessities are, in Jesus' name there is a supply for 
 all. Art thou poor ? he is rich : sick ? he is thy health : 
 weak? he is strong: sinful? he is The Lord thy Righ- 
 teousness. Every thing, and in every way, upon all ac- 
 counts, and upon all occasions — his name, through faith in 
 his name, is the universal charm, the everlasting remedy, 
 supply, comfort, strength, of all. Jesus hath every thing, and 
 all things ; and he hath them all for his people. Oh ! then, 
 my soul, look to Him and his name for the suited grace in 
 every time of need. He will, as the psalmist sweetly reasons, 
 — he will, nevertheless, (notwithstanding all thy undeservings, 
 this 7ievertheless is still in the covenant,) he \\i\\ save for his 
 name's sake, that he might make his mighty power to be 
 known. 
 
^^ MORNING PORTION. 
 
 2. — The Lord, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as ye have spoken.— 
 Amos V. 14. 
 
 My soul, pause over this precious scripture, and ask thy- 
 self. Is it indeed confirmed to thy experience ? And do re- 
 mark how the promise of the Old Testament scripture is con- 
 firmed in the New. Jesus assured the same, when he said, 
 " If a man love me, he will keep my words : and my 
 Father will love him, and we will come and make our 
 abode with him." Pause, my soul, again, and see whether 
 both Testaments concurring in the same, and the Holy Ghost 
 ever abiding with the Lord's people, to confirm his word in the 
 heart ; are not these promises thine, and art thou not everlast- 
 ingly enjoying them ? Precious Jesus ! morning by morn- 
 ing would I besiege thy mercy-seat to put thee in mind of 
 this promise, which, in its blessedness comprehends every 
 other. If the Lord the God of hosts be with me ; if the Fa- 
 ther graciously come: if the Son himself come, both to make 
 their abode, not as a way-faring man that turneth in to tarry 
 for a night, but to make their abode ; and if the Holy Ghost 
 abide with me for ever — oh, the blessedness of such a state, 
 the glory of such company ! Lord, I pray, be it unto me ac- 
 cording to thy word. 
 
 3. — Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty 
 man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches ; but 
 let him that glorieth, glory in this, that he understandeth and know- 
 eth me, that I am the Lord. — Jeremiah ix. 23, 24. 
 
 And didst thou, my poor, proud, vain, sinful heart, after so 
 much as hath been said to thee of Jesus, and so much as thou 
 hast been feelingly taught thy want of Jesus — didst thou need 
 this precept ? Oh, yes, my soul, every day it had need be 
 sounded in thy ears, and wrote over again by the Holy Ghost 
 upon thine heart. Now it is. Lord Jesus, I learn from hence 
 why thou art so suited to a poor convinced sinner. Thou, 
 and thou only, art the Lord our Righteousness ; and therefore 
 let those that know not their own worthlessness, nor thy 
 glory, boast in what they may ; let others talk of what they 
 will ; I see plain enough there is nothing out of thee for a 
 poor soul to rejoice in. The wise man hath no wisdom, but in 
 thee; nor the mighty man strength, nor the rich man riches; 
 but if thou art my portion, thou art made of God to me, both 
 wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, and redemption ; and 
 then indeed I shall glory in the Lord. 
 
SEPTEMBER. 239 
 
 4. — A just God, and a Saviour. — Isaiah xlv. 21. 
 
 My soul, hast thou learnt, from the teaching of God the 
 Holy Ghost, to contemplate him with whom thou hast to do, 
 under these blessed united characters? If thou hast, thou 
 hast found it a blessed and an approved way of opening 
 communion with God, and maintaining that communion 
 alive in the soul. Thou knowest, then, that God, as a just 
 God, can admit of no pardon to sin, but upon the footing of a 
 complete satisfaction ; for, without this, his truth and justice 
 would still be violated by unatoned sin. But if thou behold- 
 est God in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, and hast 
 been taught by the Spirit that Christ hath redeemed thee 
 from the curse of the law, being made a curse for thee ; that 
 as thy Surety and thy Representative, he hath paid thy debt, 
 and restored that which he took not away ; here thou behold- 
 est indeed " a just God, and a Saviour," and hast learnt that 
 precious, blessed truth, how God can be just, and the justifier 
 of every poor sinner that believeth in Jesus. See to it, then, 
 my soul, that thou keepest this precious thought always in 
 view. Always blend together, in all thy approaches to a 
 mercy-seat, that thou art approaching "a just God, and a 
 Saviour." jNever lose sight of the high demands of God's 
 righteous law ; neither the perfect worth and efficacy of Je- 
 sus in his blood and righteousness: and connect always 
 with the blessed view thine own personal interest in that 
 obedience by thy union with him. Then wilt thou as much 
 delight in God's justice as his mercy ; and his holiness will 
 be as dear to thee as his love. Then wilt thou understand 
 that blessed truth, and join issue with it in every part. — 
 Surely shall one say, " In the Lord have I righteousness 
 and strength ; even to him shall men come ; and all that 
 believe in him shall not be ashamed nor confounded, world 
 without end." 
 
 5. — The praise of all his saints. — Psalm cxlviii. 14. 
 
 And who is this, my soul, but Jesus ? Is he not indeed 
 both the praise and the glory, the delight and the joy, the 
 portion and the happiness, of all his people? His saints, 
 doth it say? Yes ! saints made so by his righteousness and 
 salvation, when taken from among sinners ; and when them- 
 selves sinners. He hath washed them in his blood, clothed 
 tiiem with his garment of salvation, and granted them an in- 
 
240 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 heritance among the saints in light ! And is he not their 
 praise? Indeed, is there any other the object of their praise, 
 to whom they look up, in whom they delight, but Him, in 
 whom God their Father hath made them accepted in Him, 
 the Beloved 1 Say then, my soul, is he not thy praise, this 
 day ; and will he not be thine everlasting, unceasing praise, 
 every day, and all the day, and through the endless day of 
 eternity ? Who shall be thy praise but Jesus ; his beauty, 
 his glory, his excellency, in whom all divine perfections 
 centre ? Who shall be thy praise but Jesus, the Mediator, 
 the Christ of God, whose glory it is to redeem poor sinners, 
 and make them saints ; to give out of his fulness, and grace 
 for grace? Who shall be thy praise but he that hath made 
 thy peace in the blood of his cross, and ever liveth to make 
 intercession for thee ? Oh ! thou fair and lovely One, the 
 chiefest among ten thousand ; thou art my praise, my glory, 
 my song, my rejoicing ! Every day will I praise thee : 
 morning by morning will I hail thy name, and night by 
 night testify thy faithfulness. Here, while upon earth, will 
 I unceasingly speak of thy praise ; and, ere long, I shall 
 join the happy multitude above, in that song — To Him that 
 hath loved us^ and washed us from our si7is in his own blood ! 
 Oh ! thou that art the praise of all thy saints ! 
 
 6. — And the' Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. — Luke xxii. 61. 
 
 My soul ! hath that eye, that looked so graciously upon 
 Peter, looked graciously upon thee ? Pause, and determine 
 the point by the effects. Peter went out and wept bitterly. 
 Hath such impressions of grace been upon thee, my soul ? 
 Hast thou wept over the recollection of sin and a ruined 
 nature, which is continually manifesting itself in the san>e 
 faithlessness and worthlessness as in the apostle ? Moreover, 
 hast thou ever looked with an eye of faith and love to Jesus ? 
 If so, it must have been wrought by this eye of Christ upon 
 thee, my soul : for, mark it, we never look to him with an 
 eye of faith, until Jesus hath first looked on us with an eye 
 of love. If we love him, it is because he first loved us. 
 Sweet testimony this, if so be thou hast it in thine experience, 
 that he that turned and looked upon Peter, hath looked on 
 thee also. Moreover, any thing short of this glance of 
 Jesus' eye, is short of all to induce true repentance. Peter 
 heard, unmoved, again and again, the crowing of the cock ; 
 just as we hear, unmoved, the warnings of God's holy word 
 
SEPTEMBER.^ 241 
 
 in his scriptures ; until Jesus accompanied the crowing ot 
 the cock, which he had admonished the apostle concerning, 
 with his tender and remonstrating look : then, and not before, 
 the blessed effects were wrought. Oh! precious Master! 
 turn, I beseech thee, and look on me ; and let that look enter 
 my very soul, that I may look on thee whom I have pierced, 
 and mourn, as one that mourneth for his only son, and be in 
 bitterness as one that is in bitterness for his first-born. Let 
 all my soul's affection be continually going out after the look 
 of Jesus, until eye-strings and heart-strings break and give 
 way ; and when they close in the sleep of death, may I, 
 with the eyes of the soul, behold thy face in righteousness, 
 that I may be satisfied when I awake with thy likeness. 
 
 7. — For the Lord God of Israel saith, that he hateth putting away. — 
 Malachi ii. 16. 
 
 And well is it for thee, my soul, that he doth : for if the 
 Lord God of Israel had dealt by thee once, as thou hast been 
 dealing with him always^ thou would est have been ruined 
 for ever. But what is the cause of thy mercies ? Is it not 
 the covenant faithfulness of God thy Father, founded in his 
 own everlasting love, engaged in his promise and his oath, to 
 Jesus, and secured in his blood and righteousness ? And is 
 this the cause why the Lord God of Israel hateth putting 
 away ? Oh ! for grace to see the cause, to adore the mercy ; 
 and where the Lord God of Israel rests, there, my soul, do 
 thou rest also ! See to it, my soul, that thy life of faith, and 
 thy life of hope, are both founded in Jesus, and not in the 
 sense thou hast of these precious things. The things are the 
 same, how different soever, at different times, thy view of 
 them may be. The everlasting worth, the everlasting ef- 
 ficacy, of Jesus' blood and righteousness, is always the same ; 
 and his people's interest in it the same, although, from the 
 different view we have of it, at different times, it seems as if 
 sometimes it were lost, and our own state was worse and 
 worse. My soul ! upon such occasions call to mind this 
 sweet scripture : " The Lord God of Israel saith, that he 
 hateth putting away." Observe, the Lord not only doth hate 
 putting away, but he saith it, that his people may know it, 
 and properly esteem his unchanging love. Oh ! to cry out 
 under the assurance of this precious truth, and to feel the 
 blessedness of what the Lord saith by his servant the pro- 
 phet : " The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty : 
 21 
 
242 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 i 
 
 he will save ; he will rejoice over thee with joy, he will rest 
 in his love, he will joy over thee with singing." 
 
 8. — Ye have dwelt long enough m this mount. — Deut. i. 6. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and remark the gracious words of God 
 to Israel. They were just entering the borders of Canaan 
 at that time. Forty years long had they been in a wilderness 
 state : many ups and downs, battles and restings, conflicts and 
 trials. God graciously said, " It is long enough." There is 
 a rest that remaineth for the people of God. Hark, my soul ! 
 doth Jesus speak to thee to the same amount ? Hast thou 
 indeed dwelt long enough in this mount of exercises, sin, 
 sorrow, and temptation ? Hast thou seen enough of the 
 emptiness of all creature-comforts to satisfy thee ? Hast thou 
 felt enough of a body of sin and death, which drags down 
 the soul, to make thee groan under it, being burdened? Is 
 there any thing now worth living for? Are not the glories 
 above worth dyi7ig for ? Doth Jesus call thee, invite thee, 
 allure thee, to come up to the Canaan which he hath taken 
 possession of in the name of his redeemed ; and wilt thou 
 not mount up upon the wings of faith, love, and longing de- 
 sire, to be for ever with the Lord? Doth Jesus say, Thou 
 hast dwelt long enough here below? And wilt thou not say 
 the same ? Doth Jesus call thee to his arms ; and wilt thou 
 say, Not yet. Lord ? Ah ! my soul, art thou indeed in love 
 with this prison ? Dost thou wish to wear thy chains a little 
 longer? And is this thy kindness to thy Friend? Precious 
 Lord ! break down every intervening thought or passion that 
 would rob thee of thy glory, and my soul of thy presence ; 
 and give me to cry out — Hasten, my Beloved ! and be thou 
 as a young hart upon the mountains of Bether. 
 
 9. — In those days, and in i.hat time, saith the Lord, the iniquity of Israel 
 shall be sought for, and there shall be none ; and the sins of Judah, 
 and they shall not be found : for I will pardon them whom I reserve. — 
 Jer. 1. 20. 
 
 What those days and that time refer to is very plain, 
 namely, the day when the great trumpet shall be blown, and 
 when they shall come which were ready to perish : the glo- 
 rious days of gospel grace by Jesus. For God the Father, 
 having appointed and accepted a Surety for poor sinners, in 
 the blood and righteousness of his dear Son, beholds no 
 
SEPTEMBER. 243 
 
 iniquity in Jacob, nor perverseness in Israel. Blessed thought 
 to comfort a poor soul ! that, seen in Christ, and accepted in 
 the Beloved, there is no condemnation to them that are in 
 Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the 
 Spirit. Pause, my soul, over this precious scripture, and 
 take to thyself the comforts of it. If thou art in Christ, thou 
 art beheld righteous in his righteousness ; and, as thy Surety, 
 what he wrought and what he suffered was for thee. So 
 that, in this sense, thou art, as Christ tells the church, all fair, 
 and there is no spot in thee. So that, amidst all thy groans 
 for the remains of indwelling sin, (and groan thou dost 
 daily,) and as thou sometimes art prompted to think, there is 
 growing imperfection in thee ; yet in Jesus, as thou art found 
 and beheld in him, sin is pardoned, and thy person accepted ; 
 and thou art in a state of justification before God, in the 
 righteousness of God thy Saviour. And as this is so essen- 
 tial to be known and enjoyed, see to it, my soul, that thou 
 livest upon it. Go, in the strength of Christ's righteousness, 
 every day to the throne, pleading that righteousness, and that 
 only. And under a perfect conviction, that not a single sin 
 of thine was left out when Jesus bore the sins of his people 
 on the tree, beg for grace to exercise faith, and to know that 
 in Jesus thou art justified before God, and that God hath 
 cast all thy sins into the depth of the sea. Oh ! the depth of 
 the riches, both of the wisdom and goodness of God. What 
 shall separate from the love of Christ? Surely not sin: for 
 Jesus hath put away sin by the sacrifice of himself The 
 law of God cannot: for that law Jesus, as the sinner's Surety, 
 hath satisfied. And justice, so far from condemning, now 
 approves. God is just to his dear Son, as our Surety, who 
 hath answered all the demands of sin, and therefore hath 
 forgiven sin, and cleansed from all unrighteousness. Blessed 
 thought ! in this way sin is pardoned in Christ ; and in that 
 day, when God shall arise to judgment, the sin of Judah, 
 and the iniquity of Israel, cannot be found. 
 
 10. — While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the 
 smell thereof. — So7ig i. 12. 
 
 That was a precious testimony Mary gave of her love to 
 Jesus ; and Jesus himself hath given his approbation of it, 
 when she anointed Jesus' feet with the spikenard. God our 
 Father hath anointed his dear Son ; and so ought we. Surely 
 God's Anointed should be our Anointed : and if Mary poured 
 
244 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 forth the hes't of her offerings, my soul, do thou the same. 
 Indeed, while the king sitteth at his table, and reigneth in 
 thine heart, the graces will flow. Yes, thou heavenly King ! 
 when thou spreadest thy table, and callest thy redeemed as 
 thy guests ; while thou suppest with them, and they with 
 thee: the humble spikenard, in the heart of a sinner, awa- 
 kened by thy grace, and brought forth into exercise, will send 
 forth all that shall testify love, and praise, and affection, and 
 duty, and regard. Do thou then, dearest Lord ! sit as a king 
 frequently at thy table. Let me hear thy gracious invitation : 
 " Eat, O friends ! yea, drink abundantly, O beloved !" And 
 oh ! thou heavenly Master ! as all at the table is thine ; the 
 bread of life, the water of life, the wine of thy banquet — and 
 all is thine own, and of thine own do thy redeemed give thee ; 
 let me hear thy voice, let me see thy countenance. And 
 while thou givest forth thyself with all thy fulness, oh ! let 
 my poor spikenard send forth faith and grace in lively exer- 
 cise, that I may eat of thy flesh, and drink of thy blood, and 
 have eternal life abidinir in me. 
 
 11. — For thou hast been a strength to the poor, a strength to the needy 
 in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, when 
 the blcist of the terrible ones is as a storm agamst the wall. — Isaiah 
 xxi. 4. 
 
 Who so poor as Jesus' poor ? Who so needy as the needy 
 of the Redeemer ? The world knoweth them not, because it 
 knew him not. And as the Master was, so are his servants 
 in this world. But, my soul, observe how sweetly Jesus is 
 all this. A strength to the poor in his distress, by taking all 
 the storm himself He is a shadow from the heat, the heat 
 of the wrath of a broken law, which Jesus bore himself, when 
 he died to expiate the breaches of it. His blood and righ- 
 teousness cool the heat of sin, and quench all the fiery darts 
 of the wicked : these terrible ones which beat upon a poor 
 sinner, like a storm against the wall. Moreover, when the 
 showers of wrath shall fall at the last day on the wicked ; 
 when that horrible tempest of fire and brimstone, the Psalmist 
 speaks of, shall come down on the ungodly ; Jesus will be 
 an hiding-place from the storm, and a covert from the tem- 
 pest: not a drop can fall on those that are undr him, and 
 sheltered by his blood and righteousness. As the church is 
 now said to sit under his shadow with great delight in this 
 wilderness state, and his fruit sweet to her taste ; so when 
 
SEPTEMBER. 245 
 
 she is fairly come up out of it, having all along leaned upon 
 her Beloved, and having entered with him into his glory ; 
 there will be both security and delight, everlasting safety and 
 joy. Precious Jesus ! thou hast been a strength indeed to 
 my poor soul ; and thou wilt be my portion for ever ! Oh ! 
 give me to see my daily need of thee, to feel my poverty and 
 weakness : the exercises of persecution, both without and 
 within ; that from all the terrors of the law, the claims of 
 guilt in the conscience, the remains of indwelling sin in a 
 body of death, which is virtually all sin — the accusations of 
 Satan, the just judgments of God ; in thee, thou One glorious 
 Ordinance of heaven, precious Lord Jesus ! I may behold 
 myself secure in thee, and continually cry out, in the language 
 of thy servant the prophet : Surely shall one say^ In the Lord 
 have I righteousness and strength ; even to thee do I come ; 
 and never shall I be ashamed or confounded, loorld without end. 
 
 12. — And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must 
 the Son of man be lifted up ; that whosoever believeth in him should 
 not perish, but have eternal life. — John iii. 14y 15. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over these words, and remember that they 
 are the words of Jesus, Call to mind the wonderful event, 
 to which Christ refers, in the church's history, in the wilder- 
 ness, as related. Numb. xxi. 5, 9. Israel had sinned : and 
 the Lord sent fiery flying serpents among the people, which 
 bit them, and they died. In their distress they cried unto the 
 Lord ; and the Lord appointed this method of cure : — A 
 figure of a serpent was made in brass, to which Israel w^as 
 commanded to look only, and be healed. They who did so, 
 lived. If any refused, he died. This was the ordinance of 
 God. " Now," saith Jesus, " as Moses, at the command of 
 God, lifted up the serpent, so must I be lifted up ; that who- 
 soever believeth in me shall never perish, but have eternal 
 life." Now, my soul, mark what the Saviour saith, and see 
 the blessedness contained in his precious assurance. It was 
 a serpent that stung the Israelites ! It was the old serpent, 
 the devil, which poisoned our nature at the fall. All his 
 temptations, assaults, and poisons, are fiery. And when the 
 dreadful effects of sin are felt in the awakened conscience, 
 how do they burn with terrors in the soul 1 What could the 
 dying Israelite do, to heal those venomous bites ? — Nothing. 
 Would medicine cure % — No. Was there no remedy within 
 the power of man ? — No ; it baffled all art — it resisted all at- 
 
 21* 
 
246 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 tempts to heal. Such is sin. No prayers, no tears, no en- 
 deavours, no repentance, can wash away sin. If the sinner 
 be restored, it must be by the interposition and mercy of God 
 alone. Now observe the method God took with Israel. A 
 figure of brass : and if, as some men tell us, any thing shi- 
 ning like brass, to look upon when the head and brain is dis- 
 eased, would make the person mad ; so far was this serpent 
 of brass likely to cure, that it was the most unpromising thing 
 in the world to accomplish it. But yet it was God's com- 
 mand ; and that was enough. It infallibly cured. Look 
 now to Christ. Here also is God's appointment, God's com- 
 mand, God's authority. Christ was made in the likeness of 
 sinful flesh ; and though holy in himself, yet becoming sin 
 for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in 
 him. This single precept is, " Look unto me, and be ye 
 saved." What, must I do nothing, bring nothing, take no- 
 thing? — No, The answer is, " Look unto me." This is the 
 appointed way. Christ is the One only Ordinance ; Christ 
 is the Altar, Offering, High-priest. " If thou liftest up thy 
 tool upon it, thou hast polluted it." Christ is the Father's 
 gift for healing. In Jesus there is a fulness to heal. Faith, 
 then, hath a double plea — the authority of God the Father, 
 and the fulness of salvation in God the Son. Lord ! I take 
 this for my warrant. Help me, thou blessed Spirit ! so to 
 look, so to depend ; so to fix my whole soul, on this complete 
 remedy for all my need, that heaven and earth may witness 
 for me, I seek salvation in no other, being most fully con- 
 vinced that there is salvation in no other ; neither is there 
 any other name under heaven, given among men, whereby 
 we must be saved. 
 
 13. — And thou shall write them upon the posts of thine house, and on 
 thy gates. — Deut. vi. 9. 
 
 See, my soul, what a gracious provision the Lord made 
 for the glory and honour of his Israel, that every traveller 
 passing by might say, " Here dwelleth an Israelite indeed ! 
 He hath the name of the Lord of .hosts upon his house!" 
 And did it please the Lord God of Israel so to have his people 
 known ; and shall it not be my desire to have thy name. 
 Lord, upon the gates of my house ? Shall any pass by my 
 door ignorant that a lover of the Lord Jesus dwelleth there? 
 Nay, shall I not esteem it my highest honour to have it 
 known whose I am, and whom I serve, in the gospel of his 
 
SEPTEMBER. 247 
 
 dear Son ? Shall I be ashamed of that name before which 
 every knee bows in heaven and in earth ? Oh, Lord, Jesus ! 
 not only write thy name upon the gates of my house, but en- 
 grave it in the centre of my heart, my affections ; my first, 
 and last, and earliest, and latest thoughts ! Let it be my rap- 
 ture and my joy, to speak out of the abundance of my heart 
 concerning thee and thy great salvation ! In all I say, in 
 all I do, let it be manifest that I am in pursuit of Him 
 whom my soul loveth. Let every action tend to recommend 
 thy dear name ; and whether at home or abroad, in my 
 house or family, when lying down or when rising up, let all 
 creation witness for me, that the love, the service, the interest, 
 the glory, of my God in Christ, is the one only object of 
 my soul's desire ; and let every thing speak this language — 
 " Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon 
 earth I desire but thee : and though my flesh and heart fail- 
 eth, yet thou art the strength of my heart, and my portion for 
 ever." 
 
 14. — ^Liid he must needs go through Samaria. — John iv. 4. 
 
 And what was there, blessed Jesus, that constrained thee 
 to this necessity ? Was it because there was a poor adulter- 
 ous woman there that needed thy grace, and the hour Avas 
 come for her conversion? Sweet thought! let me cherish it 
 this morning. Was there not the same needs be for the Fa- 
 ther setting thee up, from everlasting, for the Head of thy 
 church and people ? Could there have been a church with- 
 out thee? And when thy church had fallen by sin, what 
 archangel could have recovered her but thee? Why then 
 there was a needs he^ that thou shouldest take the nature of 
 thy people upon thee, and come to seek and save that which 
 was lost ! And as it is said of thee, concerning this poor wo- 
 man, that he must needs go through Samaria ; so must it be 
 equally said, Jesus must needs go to Jerusalem, to save Jeru- 
 salem sinners by his blood. Oh, yes, there was a biessed ne- 
 cessity upon thee, thou Lamb of God ! that thou shouldest do 
 all this. Ought not Christ to have suffered these things^ 
 and to enter into his glory ? My soul, indulge this precious 
 thought yet further, and see if there be not a need.s he in thy 
 Jesus for numberless other occasions. Is there not a blessed 
 necessity that Jesus should give out of his fulness to his people ? 
 Is there not a needs be, when his blessed gospel is preached, 
 that he should be present to give virtue and efficacy to the 
 
248 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 word delivered ? Might not every poor waiting needy sin- 
 ner say, There is a blessed necessity Christ should be here ? 
 Surely he is constrained by his promise, that where two or 
 three are met in his name, he is in the midst of them ; and 
 therefore he will come, he will bless his word, he will give 
 out of his fulness ; for he knows my need, and the need' of 
 all his people present. Nay, is not the glory of our Jesus de- 
 pending upon the receiving of his poor, and making them 
 rich by his bounty? Go one step further, my soul, this 
 morning, as it concerns thyself Doth not Jesus know now 
 thy state, thy want, thy circumstances, and that thou art 
 waiting for thy morning alms, before that thou canst leave 
 his gate 7 Then is there not a needs be that he, who was 
 constrained to pass through Samaria, should come to thee? 
 Precious, precious Jesus ! I wait thy coming ; I long to 
 hear thy voice. What I need thou knowest. And as thy 
 glory and my salvation are both blended, do for me. Lord, as 
 shall best conduce to this one end, and all will be well. Jesus 
 will be glorified, and my soul made happy. Amen. 
 
 15. — As for me, I am poor and needy ; yet the Lordthinketh upon me. — 
 Psalm xl. 17. 
 
 My soul! sit down and reckon up thy true riches. See 
 what are thine outward circumstances, and take an inventory 
 of all thine inward wealth. Thou art, by nature and by 
 practice, one of the children of a bankrupt father, even Adam, 
 who lived insolvent, and died wretchedly poor in himself, 
 having entailed only an inheritance of sin, misery, and death, 
 with the loss of divine favour, upon the whole race of his 
 children. By nature and by practice thou art poor in the 
 sight of God, despised by angels on account of thy loathsome 
 disease of sin ; thine understanding darkened, thy will cor- 
 rupt, passions impetuous, proud, self-willed — all in opposition 
 to the law of God: exposed to all present evil, everlasting 
 evil, a slave to Satan, a willing captive in his drudgery ; 
 hastening daily to death, to the secoiul death, and with an in- 
 sensibility which is enough to make every heart mourn that 
 beholds thee. Such, my soul, was thy state by nature ; and 
 such, and far worse, would have been thy state for ever, had 
 not Jesus interposed, and looked upon thee, and loved thee, 
 when thou wast cast out to perish, and no eye to pity thee, 
 nor help thee from thy ruin. My soul ! canst thou now say, 
 though poor and needy, the Lord thinketh upon thee? Oh, 
 
SEPTEMBER. 249 
 
 blessed Jesus, thou dost indeed think upon me and provide 
 for me ; and hast given me to see, to feel, Yny poverty, need, 
 and misery, and to live wholly upon thee and thy alms from 
 day to day. Yes, Jesus, I would be poor, 1 would be needy; 
 I would feel yet more and more my nothingness, worthless- 
 ness, poverty, wretchedness, that Jesus may be increasingly 
 precious, and thy salvation increasingly dear. Oh, for grace, 
 as a poor needy debtor, daily to swell my debt account, that 
 my consciousness of need may make thee and thy fulness 
 increasingly blessed. Let it be my daily motto — " As for 
 me, I am poor and needy ; but the Lord thinketh upon me." 
 
 16. — I will strengthen them hi the Lord, and they shall walk up and 
 down in his name, saith the Lord. — Zech. x. 12. 
 
 My soul, mark these words, how precious they are ; and 
 mark the Speaker and Promiser, and consider how sure they 
 are. Is not this C4od the Father speaking of the church, and 
 most graciously assuring the church that he will strengthen 
 the church in Jesus, the church's glorious Head? Is not 
 this said with an eye to Christ, w^ho is represented in another 
 part of this blessed prophecy as calling upon the church to 
 attend to him, who is come to build the temple of the Lord, 
 and to bear all the glory ; and who expressly saith that the 
 church shall know that He, the Lord of hosts, is sent by the 
 Lord of hosts unto his people? Who but the Lord of hosts 
 could build the temple of the Lord of hosts ; or who but him 
 bear all the glory? Zech. vi. 12. So, then, my soul, observe 
 that Christ is the strength, as well as the righteousness, of 
 his redeemed: and do observe further, that when at any 
 time thou art strengthened in Jesus, it is the Father's gracious 
 hand and office which is manifested in this merciful act. If 
 thou art drawn at any time to Jesus, it is the Father's sweet 
 constraining love that thus works upon the soul, John vi. 44. 
 If thou enjoyest at any time some new and delightful revela- 
 tion of Jesus, which lifts thee up with a joy unspeakable, re- 
 member, my soul, from whom the blessing comes ; and learn 
 to ascribe the mercy, the distinguishing mercy, as the apostle 
 did, to the Father's grace, when it pleased him to separate 
 thee from thy mother's womb, and called thee by his grace to 
 reveal his Son in thee. Gal. i. 15, 16. Yes, Almighty Fa- 
 ther ! it is thy special mercy, both to give thy Son, and with 
 him all things, to the highly-favoured objects of thine ever- 
 lasting love. It was he who, from all eternity, did. contrive, 
 
250 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 order, will, appoint, and prepare, the great salvation of the 
 gospel ; and choose Christ as the Head, and the church as 
 the body, of this stupendous work of redemption. It is thou 
 which hast carried on and executed all the great designs ; 
 and it is thou who dost strengthen and complete the whole in 
 the final salvation of all the members of it, in grace here, and 
 glory hereafter. Blessed, holy, compassionate Lord God 1 
 for Jesus' sake fulfil this promise daily in my soul : bear me 
 up, carry me through, and strengthen me in the Lord my 
 God, that I may indeed walk up and down in his name, until 
 thou bring me in to see his face in thine eternal home, and 
 dwell under the light of his countenance for ever. 
 
 17. — Brethren, pray for us. — 1 Thes. v. 25. 
 
 My soul, mark how earnestly the apostle sought an inte- 
 rest in the prayers of the faithful. And if so eminent a ser- 
 vant in the church of Jesus thus entreated to be remembered 
 by the brethren at the mercy-seat, how needful must it be that 
 the brethren should remember one another ; not only minis- 
 ters to pray for the people, but the people for their ministers. 
 " Brethren, pray for us," should be the constant request of 
 every lover of Jesus. Methinks I would ask every one that 
 I knew to be a constant attendant at the heavenly court, to 
 speak for me to the King, when he was most near, and in 
 the enjoyment of his presence. Tell the Lord, I would say, 
 that his poor prisoner needs his alms, longs for his grace, and 
 is waiting the anxious expectations of his visits. Beg for me, 
 that I may live always under the blessed tokens of his love ; 
 that I may be ever living near the Lord, and strong in the 
 grace which is in Christ Jesus. And do tell his Sovereign 
 Majesty that the one great object of my soul's desire is, that 
 I may have increasing views of the infinite dignity of his 
 Person, work, merit, offices, relations, characters ; and, in 
 short, every thing that relates to One so dear, so lovely, so 
 glorious, and so suited to a poor sinner, as the Lord Jesus 
 Christ is in all things. And do add for me, that ray humble 
 suit is, that after he hath given me all his gifts and graces 
 that he sees needful for me in my pilgrimage state, that Jesus 
 will give me yet more than all, by giving me himself, and 
 causing my heart to be dissatisfied with all but himself; for 
 until Jesus himself be my portion, I shall have not what I 
 want. It is not enough to give me life ; but He himself must 
 be my life. It is not enough to give me rest, unless He 
 
SEPTEMBER. 251 
 
 himself is my rest, and I rest in him. Precious Jesus ! I 
 would say, in thyself is all I need : all to pardon, all to justify, 
 all to sanctify, all to glorify, all to satisfy, all to make happy, 
 here and for ever. Brethren, let this be your prayer for me, 
 and it shall be mine for you ; that Jesus be the all in all of 
 our souls, and our portion for ever. 
 
 18. — The King is held in the galleries. — Song vii. 5. 
 
 And who but Jesus is King in Zion ? As one with the 
 Father over all, God blessed for ever, he is indeed the King 
 eternal, immortal, invisible ! And as Mediator God-man, he 
 is my God and King, both by his conquest of my heart, and 
 the voluntary surrender of my soul. Yes, blessed Jesus ! I 
 not only hail thee my God and King, but I would have 
 every knee bow before thee, and every tongue confess that 
 thou art Lord and King, to the glory of God the Father. 
 But, my soul, what are those galleries where thy King is 
 held ? Are they the scriptures of truth where Jesus is held 
 and retained, adored and admired 1 Or are they the public 
 ordinances of thine house, or the place where thine honour 
 dwelleth ; or the secret chamber, or the closet, of retirement 
 and meditation ; when thou comest to visit thy people, and 
 when thou knockest at the door of their hearts, v/hen thou 
 comest in to sup with them, and they with thee ? Well, my 
 gracious, condescending Lord ! be they what they may, or 
 where they may, methinks, hke the patriarch, when thou 
 comest to wrestle vv^ith my poor, heedless, and sleepy heart, I 
 will hold thee in the galleries, and say, as he did, " 1 will not 
 let thee go, except thou bless me." I would say, as another 
 famous patriarch did, " My Lord, if I have found favour in 
 thy sight, pass not away from thy servant. Rest yourself 
 under the tree j and I will fetch a morsel of thine own bread, 
 and of thine own giving, and comfort ye your hearts : for 
 therefore are ye come to your servant." Gen. xviii. 3, 5. 
 I would entreat thee, Lord, not to be as the wayfaring man, 
 that turneth in to tarry but for the night : but I would hold 
 thee in the galleries of thine own graces, in thine own 
 strength, imparted to my poor soul ; and I would beg of thee, 
 and entreat thee, to tarry until the dawn of day, and make 
 thyself fully known unto me, in breaking of bread, and in 
 prayer. Yes, my adorable King ! my Lord and my God ! 
 I would detain thee in the galleries, I would hold thee fast, I 
 would not let thee go, until that I had brought thee into my 
 
252 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 mother's house, the church — and until thou hadst brought me 
 home to thine eternal habitation which is above ; and there 
 to sit down at thy feet to go out no more, but at the fountain- 
 head of joy to drink of the spiced wine of the juice of the 
 pomegranate in everlasting felicity. 
 
 19. — I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it. — 
 Rev. iii. 8. 
 
 Blessed Jesus ! thou hast indeed done all this, and more. 
 Thou art thyself the Door into thy fold here below, and to 
 thy courts above ; for thou hast said, by thee, whosoever en- 
 tereth in, shall go in and out, and find pasture : and it is thou 
 that hast opened a new and living way by thy blood. Thou 
 art the only possible way of access to the Father. And be- 
 cause thou hast opened it, no man can shut it ; for thou ever 
 livest to keep the way, which thou hast once opened, still 
 open, by thy all-prevailing intercession. Yes, thou heavenly 
 Lord ! the gate is never shut, day nor night. In the preach- 
 ing of thine everlasting gospel, all the ends of the earth shall 
 see this salvation of our God. And, as thou hast graciously 
 said, all that come to God by thee shall never be shut out. 
 The word, the authority, the warrant, of Jehovah, is gone 
 forth to this purpose. Thy blood and righteousness secure 
 it. The Spirit sets his seal to it. Thou wih receive, thou 
 wilt bless, thou wilt cause all the Father hath given thee to 
 come to thee ; and thou wilt keep the door always open for 
 all comers. Oh ! heavenly way ! oh ! precious, endless sal- 
 vation ! My soul ! see to it that thou art entered in, and 
 there abidest securely. Oh ! ye, my fellow sinners, yet with- 
 out, rouse up from your carnal security and sloth, before the 
 Master of the house hath arisen and shut to the door ; and 
 ye then, too late, cry out — Lord, Lord, open to us. Now is 
 the accepted time ; now is the day of salvation ! 
 
 20. — Behold the man whose name is The Branch. — Zech. vi. 12. 
 
 My soul ! listen to the call, and behold this wonderful 
 Man, whose name is The Branch ! Mark the wonderful 
 features of his person. This is one of the prophetical names 
 of Him, in the faith of whom, as the Redeemer of Israel, 
 all the Old Testament saints died. The Branch of the Lord 
 — the Branch of Righteousness ; or, as he is elsewhere 
 called, the Nazarene. But observe how very descriptive of 
 
SEPTEMBER. 25^ 
 
 his nature is this title. He grows up out of his place. And 
 where is that 1 — In the eternal counsel of Jehovah. Who 
 shall declare his generation ? He is indeed a rod out of the 
 stem of .Tesse, and a branch out of his roots. But all this as 
 the root himself of David : planted in the eternal purpose of 
 God's own sovereign decree, and budding forth as a branch 
 i:^ all the periods of his incarnation, death, resurrection, as- 
 cension, glory. And what a Branch of never-failing loveli- 
 ness, and everlasting verdure and fruitfulness, in all the pro- 
 clamations of his gospel, converting sinners, and comforting 
 saints ! And what an eternal perennial Branch to all his re- 
 deemed in grace and glory. Hail, thou glorious, wonderful 
 Man, whose name is The Branch ! Thou art indeed, as the 
 prophet described thee, beautiful and glorious in the eyes of 
 all thy redeemed. On thee, Lord, would I hang all the glory 
 of thy Father's house, and all the glory of my sah-ation. 
 May^ it be my portion to sit under thy shadow with great de- 
 light here, until thou bring me home to sit under thee, the 
 Tree of Life, in the Paradise of God, in the fulness of en- 
 joyment of thee for ever. 
 
 21. — Ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost. — Acts xi. 16. 
 
 Blessed promise ! realize it, oh thou Holy Spirit ! day by 
 day, in and upon my soul. Bring me under the continued 
 baptisms of thy sovereign influence, and cause me to feel all 
 the sweet anointings of the Spirit sent down upon the hearts 
 and minds of thy redeemed, as the fruits and effects of Jesus' 
 exaltation, and the promise of God the Father! Yes! 
 blessed Spirit ! cause me to know thee in thy person, work, 
 and power ; in all thy offices, characters, and relations. I 
 need thee, daj^ by day, as my Comforter. I need thee, as the 
 Spirit of truth, to guide me into all truth. I need thee, as the 
 Remembrancer of the Lord Jesus, to bring to my forgetful 
 heart all the blessed things he hath revealed to me. I need 
 thee, as the Witness of my Jesus, to testify of my wants, and 
 his fulness to supply. I need thee, as the Glorifier of my 
 Lord, to take of his, and show to me. I need thee, as my 
 Advocate and Helper, in all my infirmities in prayer. I 
 need thee, as the Earnest of the promised inheritance, that I 
 may not faint, nor want faith to hold on and hold out in all 
 dark seasons. I need thee, Lord ; nay, I cannot do a mo- 
 ment without thee, nor act faith, nor believe a promise, nor 
 exercise a grace, without thy constant, ihine unceasing, 
 
 22 
 
254 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 agency upon my poor soul. Come then, Lord, I beseech 
 thee, and let me be brought under thine unceasing baptisms. 
 Shed abroad the love of God my Father in my heart, and 
 direct me into the patient waiting for Jesus Christ ! 
 
 22. — The justifier of liim who believeth in Jesus. — Romans iii. 26. 
 
 And who is this, indeed who can it be, but Jehovah ? It is 
 God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth ? But, my 
 soul, mark how each Person of the Godhead is revealed in 
 scripture under this character ; as if to convince every poor 
 sinner that is looking for redemption in Israel only in Jesus, 
 that God can be just, and yet the Justifier of him that believ- 
 eth in Jesus. God the Father justifieth the poor believing 
 sinner : for he manifests that he is faithful and just to forgive 
 us our sins, having found a ransom in the blood of his Son 
 for sin, whereby he is faithful to all his covenant-promises in 
 pardoning us, having received at our Lord's hand double for 
 all our sins. God the Son justifieth also his redeemed : for 
 it is expressly said by the prophet, " In the Lord shall all the 
 seed of Israel be justified, and shall glory." And that God 
 the Holy Ghost justifieth, is as evident also: because it was 
 through the Eternal Spirit the offering of the body of Jesus 
 Christ was offered, by which Christ is said to have been jus- 
 tified in the Spirit ; and believers are said to be justified by 
 virtue of it in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit 
 of our God. Hence all the Persons of the Godhead concur 
 in the act of justifying every believer in Jesus ! by whom we 
 have peace with God, fellowship with the Father, and with 
 his Son Jesus Christ. Here then is a portion to live upon 
 through life, in death, and to all eternity. 
 
 23. — Is there no balm in Gilead ? Is there no physician there ? Why- 
 then is not the health of the daughter of my people recovered ? — Jere- 
 miah viii. 22. 
 
 Yes ! there is both balm in Gilead, and a Physician there 1 
 For the blood and righteousness of Jesus is the truest balm ; 
 and Jesus himself a Sovereign and an Almighty Physician. 
 But if that blood be not applied, if Jesus be not known nor 
 consuked, how shall health be obtained ? My soul ! hast 
 thou known thy disease, fek thy disorder : art thou convinced 
 that it is incurable by all human means — no medicine, no 
 earthly physician, can administer relief? Hast thou known 
 
SEPTEMBER. 255 
 
 these things? And, convinced of the infinite importance of 
 seeking elsewhere, art thou come to Jesus ? What sayest 
 thou, my soul, to the inquiry ? Art thou acquainted with Je- 
 sus ? Hast thou made known thy case to him ? And hath 
 he told thee all thai is in thine heart? Hath he taken thee 
 under his care ? Is he administering to thee the balm of 
 Gilead ? Oh ! my soul, see to it that nothing satisfieth thy 
 mind, until that thou hast heard his soul-reviving voice, say- 
 ing, / am the Lord that healeth thee. Exod. xv, 26. Seek it 
 for thy life. Say unto the Son of God — Speak but the word^ 
 Lord, and my soul shall be healed. 
 
 24 — How much owest thou unto my Lord % — Luke xvi. 5. 
 
 My soul ! if this question, which the unjust steward put 
 to his lord's debtors, was put to thee, concerning that im- 
 mense debt which hath made thee insolvent for ever, what 
 wouldest thou answer ? Never couldst thou conceive the ex- 
 tent of it, much less think of paying the vast amount. A 
 debtor to free grace for thy very bei?ig ; a debtor to free grace 
 for ihy ivell-being ; ten thousand talents, which the man in the 
 parable owed his master, would not be sufficient to reckon up 
 what thou in reality owest thy Lord, for even the common 
 gifts of nature and of providence. But when the calculation 
 goeth on in grace, what archangel shall write down the sum 
 total ? To the broken law of God, a bankrupt : exposed to 
 the justice of God : to the dreadful penalty of everlasting 
 death ; to the fears and alarms of a guilty conscience ; to the 
 worm that dieth not ; to the accusations of Satan, unable to 
 answer one in a thousand. My soul, how much owest thou 
 unto thy Lord ? Are there yet any other outstanding debts ? 
 Oh! yes, infinitely and beyond all these. What thinkest 
 thou, my soul, of Jesus ? How much owest thou to the Fa- 
 ther's love in giving, to the Redeemer's love in coming, and 
 to the Holy Ghost in making the whole effectual to thy soul's 
 joy ; by which Jesus hath paid all thy debts, cancelled all 
 the demands of God's righteous law, silenced Satan, an- 
 swered justice; and not only redeemed thee out of the hands 
 of everlasting bondage, misery, and eternal death, but 
 brought thee into his everlasting kingdom of freedom, joy, 
 and glory. Say, say, my soul, how much owest thou unto 
 thy Lord? Oh, precious debt! ever increasing, and yet 
 everlastingly making happy in owing. Lord Jesus, I am 
 thine, and thy servant for ever : thou hast loosed my bonds. 
 
256 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 25. — Thou shalt prepare thee a way, and divide the coasts of thy land 
 (which the Lord thy God giveth thee to inherit) into three parts, that 
 every slayer may flee thither. — Deut. xix. 3. 
 
 Sweet thought to my soul, that He who is the refuge is also 
 the way to every poor soul-slayer, who hath murdered his 
 own soul by sin. And who, my soul, could prepare thee 
 this way, but God thy Father, who gave both Jesus for the 
 way, and Jesus for the refuge? And how hath God the 
 Spirit pointed to the way, cast up and prepared it, by taking 
 up the stumbling-blocks out of the way, as God saith of his 
 people? Isaiah xlvii. 14. Is it not God the Holy Ghost that 
 sets Jesus up, as Moses did the serpent ; points to his person, 
 to his blood, to his righteousness, as the sanctuary and the 
 city of refuge to every poor sinner that is the man-slayer of 
 his own soul ? And if what the Jews have said be true, that 
 magistrates once a year made it their duty to have the roads 
 examined, lest any obstruction should arise to block the path 
 of the poor fugitive ; and that they were obliged to set up a 
 post at every turning and avenue, with the word Miklat — Re- 
 fuge, upon it, to direct the murderer in his flight ; well may 
 ministers every daj'-, and all the day, stand in the gates of the 
 city, and in the high places of concourse, pointing to Jesus, 
 and crying out, " Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh 
 away the sin of the world !" Precious Lord Jesus, lo, I 
 come to thee : thou art my city of refuge — thou art the Miklat 
 of my soul ! Under thee, and in thee, I shall be safe. 
 Cease, ye avengers of blood, your vain pursuit: Christ hath 
 taken me in. Thou shalt answer for me, oh Lord, my God. 
 
 26. — And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house. — 
 Isaiah xxii. 24. 
 
 And who is this but Jesus, the true Eliakim and Governor 
 of heaven and earth ? Jesus sweetly explained it himself, 
 when declaring himself possessing the key of David. Rev. 
 iii. 7. And hath not God the Father literally given all 
 things into his hands ? Is there any thing which Jehovah 
 hath kept back ? Hath it not pleased the Father, that in him 
 should all fulness dwell ? Is not Jesus the Head over all 
 things to the church, which is his body ? Is he not the Al- 
 mighty Lord and Treasurer of all things — grace here, glory 
 hereafter? And is not our Jesus the Administrator of all 
 things in the world, both of providence and grace? My soul, 
 is there aught remaining to hang upon Jesus ? Pause. Hast 
 
SEPTEMBER. 267 
 
 thou hung upon him all the glory of thy salvation ? Pause 
 again ; my soul. Is all and every tittle given ? Is there 
 aught kept back ? Is there any Achan in the camp of thy 
 heart ? Forbid it, Lord. See to it, my soul, (for it is thy 
 life,) that thou art hanging all the glory of the Father's 
 house upon Jesus. Make him not only the Alpha, but the 
 Omega also of thy salvation. And as the Father loveth his 
 Son, and hath given all things into his hands ; so do thou 
 come to him for all things, receive from him all things, and 
 ascribe to him all things, in the receipt of grace here, and 
 glory hereafter — that Christ may be all, and in all, to the 
 glory of God the Father. Amen. 
 
 27. — He hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted : 
 neither hath he hid his face from him : but when he cried unto him, 
 he heard. — Psalm xxii. 24. 
 
 My soul! behold Jesus the Lamb of God in this sweet 
 scripture. Is it not said of him, that in the days of his flesh 
 he oifered up strong crying and tears, and was heard in that 
 he feared ? Though he were a son, yet learned he obedience 
 by the things which he suffered. And was Jesus the holy 
 One, the afflicted One, also ? Was he truly so, when he bore 
 thy sins? And was this the time to which this scripture 
 refers, when God the Father had respect to the sufferings of 
 Jesus, and neither despised nor abhorred them? Did the 
 Father behold him then through the whole as the sinner's 
 Surety, and graciously accept Jesus, and the church in him? 
 Oh. then, my soul, think of this in all thy trials and afflictions. 
 Carry all thy sins and soriows to the throne. Jesus knows 
 them all, sees them all — nay, appoints them all. He is always 
 looking upon them, and presenting thee in himself to the 
 Father. And depend upon it, as thy afflictions are not only 
 known to him, but appointed by him, he will measure out no 
 more to thee than he will sanctify. And so far from abhor- 
 ring or despising thy affliction, he will with every sorrow 
 grant support, and with every temptation make a way to 
 escape. Go then, my soul ; cast all thy care upon him ; for 
 he careth for thee. 
 
 28. — And there was a rainbow round about the throne. — Rev. iv. 3. 
 
 Mark this, my soul, and connect with it what God said 
 after the destruction of the old world by water : — " I do set 
 
 22* 
 
258 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant 
 between me and the earth. And I will look upon it, that I 
 may remember the everlasting covenant between God and 
 every living creature of all flesh."' And was not this rain- 
 bow round the throne which John saw, to tell the church of 
 Jesus, on whom the Father is always looking, to remember 
 his everlasting covenant of grace ? And what doth it say 
 but this — there shall be no more a deluge, nor floods of ven- 
 geance poured out upon the sinner that believes in Jesus ? 
 He looks to Christ, while the Father beholds Christ ; he 
 trusts in Jesus, whom the Father hath trusted with his 
 honour: he accepts Jesus as the whole of the covenant, in 
 whom the Father beholds the whole of the covenant fulfilled. 
 Help me, Lord, in the view of every renewed token of the 
 rainbow in the heavens, to connect with it the promise of Je- 
 hovah to his poor redeemed upon earth. Yes, blessed Lord! 
 there is a rainbow round about the throne ; and Christ is the 
 Bow which Jehovah hath set in the cloud. On him, my soul, 
 gaze and feast thy ravished eyes. On him thy God and 
 Father looks, and is well pleased. 
 
 29. — And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto 
 her son. Bring me another vessel. And he said unto her, There is 
 not a vessel more. And the oil stayed. — 2 Kings iv. 6. 
 
 Do I not see Jesus and his fulness here ? His giving out 
 never ceaseth, until we have no more empty vessels to receive. 
 And surely it is but proper the oil of grace should stay when 
 there are no more souls to be supplied. Pity indeed would 
 it be, that any thing so precious should be spilt on the ground. 
 My soul, art thou not poor as this poor woman? Is the 
 creditor come to take thee for bondage ? Cry mightily to 
 Jesus, the Lord Cxod of the prophets. And wilt thou borrow 
 vessels to receive his bounty? Borrow not a few ; for every 
 vessel must fail before that Jesus fails. Hast thou filled all ? 
 See then that thy Almighty Creditor is paid from Jesus' 
 bounty ; for he hath paid all thy debt: and see that thou live 
 henceforth on Jesus' fulness. Oh, bountiful Lord ! let me 
 learn from hence sweet lessons of faith. There is no nar- 
 rowness in thee, but all fulness. All thou hast, moreover, is 
 for sinners. And, precious Lord ! art thou not glorified in 
 giving out to sinners? Is it not thy glory, thy delight, so to 
 do ? Art thou not pleased when sinners come to thee ? Oh, 
 for grace to come to thee, and to know and believe that it is 
 
SEPTEMBER. 259 
 
 thy glory and thy pleasure to receive them. Indeed, indeed 
 thou keepest open house — an open hand, an open heart. 
 Lord, give me daily, hourly, to come empty to thee to be 
 filled, with grace here, and glory hereafter ! 
 
 30. — And this day shall be unto you for a memorial. — Exodus xii. 14. 
 
 It is h]essed to end the month, and end every day, as we 
 would wish and desire to end life, blessing and praising God 
 in Christ; rising from the table of divine bounties, and thank- 
 ing the great Master of the feast. Pause,-my soul, and see 
 whether, in the past month, such hath been thine experience 
 of sovereign grace and unmerited mercies, that thou canst 
 now set up thine Ebenezer, and mark this day for a memo- 
 rial. What visits hath Jesus made to thee, my soul ; and 
 how hath thine heart been drawn out after him ? Hath the 
 Father, as well as the Son, come and made his abode with 
 thee ? Hath the Holy Ghost, the glorious Inhabitant in the 
 souls and bodies of his people, manifested his continued 
 presence to thee ? This day is indeed a memorial, if, in 
 summing up the wonderful account of divine manifestations 
 and divine love in providence and grace, during the month 
 now nearly closed, and the years already passed, thou canst 
 mark down the blessed enumeration. And will not my Lord, 
 while the day is not passed, and yet remains to be added to 
 the month, will he not make it memorable by some renewed 
 favour ? Oh ! for some new visits from Father, Son, and 
 Spirit, — this morning, this day, and all the day ! As long as 
 I live I would have my soul going forth in exercises of faith 
 and love upon the person of Emmanuel, that I may carefully 
 mark down the numberless instances of it: here, I would 
 say, Jesus visited me ; here it was he met me ; here he showed 
 me his loves, and made the place and day ever memorable by 
 his grace. 
 
260 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 OCTOBER. 
 
 1.— Shiloh.— Gen. xlix. 10. 
 
 Precious name of the Lord Jesus! how blessed hath it 
 been in all ages to thy people ! Oh ! Lord, make it as oint- 
 ment poured forth this morning to my soul. Both Jews and 
 Christians alike agree in it, that it belongs only to the Mes- 
 siah. And how then is it that they do not see Christ in it, 
 even our Jesus, who suffered under Pontius Pilate, and died, 
 as Caiaphas predicted the expediency, that one man should die 
 for the people, and that he should fulfil the dying patriarch's 
 prediction, by gathering together in one the children of God 
 which were scattered abroad? That Jesus answered to 
 Jacob's prediction, and none but Jesus ever did, is evident 
 from their own testimony : — " We have a law," said they to 
 Pilate, " and by that law he ought to die." Now, then, they 
 themselves hereby confess that, as Jacob prophesied, the Law- 
 giver was not departed from Israel when Christ came. And 
 Avhen they added, " We have no king but Caesar," certain it 
 was, from their own testimony, the sceptre was gone out of 
 the family of Judah, when the heathen emperor was king. 
 Think of these evidences, my soul, and feast thyself upon the 
 precious name of thy Shiloh. Thy Jesus, thy Shiloh, thy 
 Almighty Deliverer, is come. He is both thy Law-giver and 
 thy Law-fulfiller ; thy God and thy King, who sprang out 
 of Judah. Oh ! thou glorious Shiloh, let my soul be gathered 
 to thee, to live upon thee, and to thee, and do thou. Lord, 
 arise out of Zion ; and, when the fulness of the Gentiles be 
 completed, let both Jew and Gentile be gathered into one 
 fold, of which be thou the ever-living, ever-loving, ever- 
 governing Shiloh! to bless them in thyself for ever. Amen. 
 
 2. — By night on my bed I sought him whom my soul loveth. — Song iii. 1. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this account which the church gives 
 of herself, and see whether such be thine exercises. It is 
 night indeed in the soul whenever Christ is absent, or his 
 presence not enjoyed. And though, blessed be God ! the 
 believer's interest in Christ varies not, yet his joy in the 
 sense of safety is not always the same. Though it be the 
 
OCTOBER. 261 
 
 bed of affliction, or the bed of sickness, it is not the bed of 
 carnal security, when the soul seeks Jesus. We cannot be 
 said to be in a cold, lifeless, and indifferent state, while Jesus 
 is sought for. It may be night indeed, it may be a dark 
 season ; yet, nevertheless, when we can say, With ray soul 
 have I sought thee in the night, yea, with my spirit within 
 me will I seek thee early — surely this earnestness implies 
 grace, and love, and desire, in lively exercise. However 
 dull, stupid, and unprofitable, at times, ordinances and means 
 of grace may seem ; still grace, like the live coal under the 
 embers, is not gone out, nor extinguished. Him whom my 
 soul loveth frequently breaks out, and plainly shows that 
 Jesus still lives and reigns within. Oh! precious Lord! 
 thou art still the lovely one, the chief one, and the fairest 
 among ten thousand. Be thou my all in all, the hope of 
 glory. 
 
 3. — Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ 
 unto all, and upon all, them that believe ; for there is no difference. — 
 Romans iii. 22. 
 
 Here, my soul, is a morning portion for thee ! Surely 
 here is enough for a morning portion, for poor believing 
 souls to live upon to all eternity. Mark, my soul, what is 
 here said. That righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ, 
 which he wrought out for his church, is the righteousness of 
 God : for, as he was God as well as man, his righteousness 
 was, to all intents and purposes, the righteousness of God. 
 Now the sin of Adam, and the sins of all Adam's children, 
 put the whole together, form but the sins of creatures ; con- 
 sequently, the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ is 
 more than an equivalent, a more full payment than their debt 
 can demand, because it is the righteousness of the Creator. 
 Sweet thought! for God is more honoured by Christ's obe- 
 dience, than dishonoured by our disobedience. And observe, 
 my soul, how this righteousness is the church of Christ's, 
 namely, by faith ; it is unto all, and upon all, that believe. It 
 is received by faith. The scripture language of this unspeak- 
 able mercy is, that as it was imputed to Abraham for righ- 
 teousness, so it shall be imputed unto us also, if we believe 
 on Him that raised up our Lord Jesus from the dead. This 
 is another delightful portion of this precious verse. Neither 
 is this all — for, as if to encourage the poorest, weakest, and 
 most timid believer, this righteousness of God, which is by 
 
262 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all, that believe, hath 
 no difference in its blessed effect. All partakers of it are alike 
 partakers. By him, (that is, by Christ,) the scripture saith, 
 all that believe are justified from all things. Acts xiii. 39. So 
 that, though the faith of an Abraham or of a Peter might 
 have been vastly greater than the timid Ananias, or the poor 
 man that came to Christ for his son, saying, " Lord, I believe, 
 help thou mine unbelief;" yet the justification by Christ, to 
 all, is one and the same — it is to all, and upon all, that be- 
 lieve ; for there is ho difference. Oh ! precious righteous- 
 ness of the God-man Christ Jesus ! 
 
 4. — Behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou 
 goest : for I will not leave thee, until that I have done that which I 
 have spoken to thee of. — Genesis xxviii. 15. 
 
 Here is a promise to Jacob, and not to Jacob only, per- 
 sonally considered, but to Jacob's seed. For the. apostle Paul 
 was commissioned, by the Holy Ghost, to tell the church of 
 Jesus, that we, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. 
 Hence this, like all other promises in Christ Jesus, is yea and 
 amen. Pause then, my soul, and ask thyself. What hath the 
 
 Lord spoken to thee of? Hath he met with thee in Bethel 
 as he found Jacob '? And hath he there spoken unto thee ? 
 How wilt thou know 1 Very plainly. Jesus hath met with 
 thee, hath indeed spoken unto thee; if so be thou hast seen 
 thine own unworthiness and sinfulness by nature and by 
 practice ; and if thou hast seen the King in his beauty, even 
 Jesus, in his own glory, suitableness, and all-sufficiency, as a 
 Saviour ; and inclined thine heart by his grace to believe in 
 him, to depend upon him, and to live to him and his glory. 
 What sayest thou, my soul, to these things? Is thi^ promise, 
 made to Jacob and his seed, thine ? If so, live upon Jesus, and 
 plead the fulfilment of it daily, hourly ! Say to him, my soul, 
 Lord! what hast thou spoken to me of, but mercy, pardon, 
 peace, and grace, with all spiritual blessings, in Christ .Tesus? 
 And what have I to depend upon, or what indeed can I need 
 more, but thy promise and the great Promiser ? Yes, Lord 
 Jesus ! I do depend, I do believe. Surely thou wilt never 
 leave whom thou hast once loved ; and therefore thou wilt 
 not leave me, until thou hast done that which thou hast 
 spoken of in grace here, and wilt complete in glory here- 
 after. 
 
OCTOBER. 263 
 
 5. — He goeth before you into Galilee : there shall ye see him — 
 Mark xvi. 7. 
 
 Mark this, my soul. In all thy goings forth, look out for 
 thy gracious, glorious Forerunner ; and see whether the 
 same going before thee of thy Lord hath not been from ever- 
 lasting. Was it not Jesus that was set up as the Head of his 
 people from everlasting? Did he not then go before them, 
 when he went forth for the salvation of his people ? In the 
 council of peace, did he not go before them ; not only before 
 we knew our need, but before we had a being 1 In all his 
 covenant-engagements, as the Surety of his people, he went 
 before them. And in all his offices, characters, and relations, 
 he was preventing us with the blessings of his goodness. 
 And in the personal salvation of every individual of his re- 
 deemed, was not Jesus beforehand in quickening, illu- 
 minating, redeeming, mercy ? If ice love him, is it not be- 
 cause he first loved us ? And what is it now 1 Do not his 
 mercies go before our prayers ; and before we call, doth not 
 Jesus answer? And will it not be so during the whole day 
 of grace, even to the eternal day of glory ? Precious Jesus ! 
 surely thou art going before me into Galilee. Oh! for grace 
 to follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. And do thou, 
 Lord, walk with me, and talk with me, as thou didst to the 
 disciples in the way ; and make thyself knowm unto me in 
 continual manifestations, and in breaking of bread, and in 
 prayer. 
 
 6. — Trust in him at all times ; ye people, pour out your heart before him. 
 God is a refuge for us. Selali. — Psalm Ixii. 8. 
 
 My soul ! the Holy Ghost hath marked this verse with 
 Selah ; therefore pray observe it. You see the argument for 
 trust, because God — that is the Eiohim — is a refuge. Yes ! 
 God the Father is a refuge, in his covenant-engagements, 
 word, oath, promises. God the Son is a refuge, in his sureti- 
 ship-engagements, in his perfect righteousness, in his blood- 
 cleansing, sin-atoning death and salvation ; and in all his se- 
 curities of grace here, and glory hereafter. God the Holy 
 Ghost is a refuge, in all his blessed offices, characters, and 
 relations ; by which he undertakes and fulfils all the pur- 
 poses of salvation, in the glorifying the Father and the Son, 
 to every poor believer's joy and comfort. And wilt thou not, 
 my soul, then trust to this glorious Eiohim? Wilt thou not 
 pour out thyself before him, and trust in him at all times, at 
 
264 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 any time, at every time ? Nay, wilt thou not call upon all the 
 people to this soul-rewarding service, and tell them of his 
 grace and glory? Come hither, I would say, and hearken, 
 all ye that fear God ; and I will tell you what he hath done 
 for my soul. Oh ! let us magnify his name together ; for he 
 is a Rock, and his work is perfect. 
 
 7. — Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great 
 God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ. — Titus ii. 13. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over these sweet and solemn w^ords ! Is 
 Jesus my hope ? Surely then it is a blessed hope ; for all 
 blessings are in him. Art thou looking for his appearing % 
 Pause — for the thought is solemn. How shall I know? 
 Suppose this moment the trumpet of the archangel was to 
 sound, Arise ye dead, and come to judgment — my soul! art 
 thou ready? Pause once more. Do I long for Jesus' ap- 
 pearing now, in the conversion of every poor sinner ? Do f 
 rejoice to hear at any time, that a soul is born to God ? If 
 so, is not this looking for his appearing? Again — Do I long 
 for Jesus' appearing in the after-manifestations of his grace 
 to the souls of the people ? for this is to rejoice with them 
 that do rejoice, and to prove a family interest. Again — Is 
 Jesus precious to me ; and do I long for the renewal of his 
 visits, as the earth longeth for the rising sun ? When I read 
 his word, sing his praise, call upon his name, mingle in the 
 congregation, go to his table ; is his appearing upon all these 
 occasions precious now, and are bis love-tokens sweeter to 
 my soul than honey, and the honeycomb? If, my soul, thou 
 canst bear a cheerful testimony to these things, and canst 
 truly call them blessed noio ; surely the hope of Jesus' 
 second coming is blessed also, and thou canst well subscribe 
 to the apostle's words ; for his appearing being now gracm\is^ 
 will then be glorious^ in the appearing of the great God and 
 our Saviour Jesus Christ. 
 
 8. — But him they saw not. — Luke xxiv. 24, 
 
 Mark, my soul, what is here said. Though Jesus sought 
 out his disciples in the morning of his resurrection, and was 
 found of them that sought him not ; yet many sought him 
 not, while he was thus gracious to many that looked not for 
 him. So is it now. Many, like those women, have seen the 
 sepulchre as it were of Jesus, heard his word ; nay, many 
 
OCTOBER. 265 
 
 saw his body when on earth, yet saw not God in Christ in 
 him. " The grace of God," saith the apostle, " hath ap- 
 peared unto all men ;" that is. the gospel grace is preached 
 in common before believers and unbelievers ; but believers 
 only see Jesus as the wisdom and the power of God for sal- 
 vation : of others it may be said, as here, but him they see 
 not. Oh ! precious Jesus ! give me to see thee as the Sent 
 and Sealed of the Father, that my soul may have such a sav- 
 ing sight and knowledge of thee as the apostle had, which 
 flesh and blood cannot reveal, but the Father only which is 
 in heaven. Oh! heavenly Father, give me the Spirit of 
 wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of thy dear Son ; 
 and do by me as by Paul — reveal thy Son in me. 
 
 9. — And all mine are thine, and thine are mine ; and I am glorified in 
 them. — John xvii. 10. 
 
 Precious testimony of a precious truth. See to it, my 
 soul, that thou suffer not these blessed words of Jesus to drop 
 from thy remembrance ; but make them the everlasting me- 
 ditation, not only of this morning, but every morning, and 
 every day, and all the day ; and mark thine interest in them. 
 All Jesus' treasures, in his people and his grace, are still the 
 Father's ; for as Jesus and the Father are one in essence and 
 in w^ill. so also in property. And the Father's giving the 
 church to Jesus, with all blessings in him, doth not alienate 
 the Father's right. So in like manner, all that Jesus hath 
 are the Father's, and Christ is glorified in them. It is a 
 blessed order in the work and purpose of redemption, to 
 trace the Father as the original Giver, Fountain, and Source 
 of all. And then to trace them as Jesus', by virtue of his be- 
 ing the glorious Mediator. And hence the Holy Ghost is 
 said to take them as Jesus', and show unto the people. The 
 Holy Ghost doth not take them immediately from the Father, 
 but mediately from Christ ; because, without the person 
 and work of Jesus, they never could have been communi- 
 cated to us. So that Christ is glorified by the Holy Spirit in 
 the hearts of his people, when that blessed Spirit takes them, 
 and gives them, and shows them, not immediately as the 
 Father's, but as the fruit and consequence of Christ's merits 
 and death : and thus showing the common interest both of 
 Father and Son, in all the blessed things of salvation. My 
 soul ! dost thou understand these precious things ? Oh then 
 . 23 
 
266 MORNING PORTiON. 
 
 live in the enjoyment of them, and see that Jesus is glorified 
 and the Father glorified, in his dear and ever blessed Son. 
 
 10. — That ye may know how that the Lord doth put a difference be- 
 tween the Egyptians and Israel. — Exod. xi. 7. 
 
 Who shall mark down all the properties of distinguishing 
 grace ! What a vast difference doth grace make, in this life, 
 between him that serveth God and him thatserveth him not ! 
 And what an everlasting difference will be made in the life 
 which is to come ! My soul ! make this thought the subject 
 of thine unceasing meditation. Thou canst not walk the 
 street, nor go to public worship, nor watch the Lord's deal- 
 ings in all the vast and numberless dispensations going on in 
 life, in the wide world of providence and grace, but what 
 every thing speaks, in the language of the Morning Portion, 
 of the difference there is still put between the Egyptians and 
 Israel. Every thing proclaims it, every event confirms it. 
 And do not overlook the great point of all. It is the Lord 
 that doth all this. Who maketh thee to differ from another ? 
 Oh ! for grace to be always on the watch-tower to mark this, 
 and for grace to acknowledge it. Precious Jesus ! thou art 
 the Source, the Fountain, the Author, the Finisher, of all. 
 Oh ! the depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and know- 
 ledge of God ! How unsearchable are thy judgments, and 
 thy ways past finding out ! 
 
 11. — He -wakeneth morning by morning ; he wakeneth mine ear to hear 
 as the learned.-^ Isaiah 1. 4. 
 
 Who is this but Jesus in his human nature, of whom the 
 Prophet speaks ? Eminently to him doth it refer, to whom 
 was given the tongue of the learned, that he might know hew 
 to speak a word to him that is weary. Precious Lord ! it is in- 
 deed thy province, and thine only, to speak a v/ord to weary 
 souls, and to be the rest wherewith thou causest the weary to 
 rest, and to be their refreshing. Not only to give them rest, 
 but thyself to be their rest. Not only to give them salvation, 
 but thyself to be their salvation. — But, blessed Lord ! may 
 not a poor soul like myself say of thee also, that thou 
 wakenest me morning by morning ? for who is it but Jesus, 
 that by the sweet influences of the Spirit wakens his people 
 morning by morning, and openeth the ear to hear, and the 
 eye to see, and the heart to feel, the blessed tokens of his 
 
OCTOBER. 267 
 
 coming ? Have I not found thee, Lord, wakening my soul 
 sometimes before the dawn of day, and calling my soul up in 
 gracious meditation, to attend to the soft whispers of thy love ? 
 Have I not heard thee saying, as to the church of old, Rise 
 up, my love, my fair one, and come away? And hast thou 
 not made my soul, or ever I was aware, like the chariots of 
 Amminadib? Do thou, Lord, waken me, I beseech thee, 
 morning by morning, and while thou art thus speaking to 
 my soul, let mine answer be. My voice shalt thou hear be- 
 times, oh Lord, in the morning ; early will I direct my prayer 
 unto thee, and will look up. My soul shall wait for thee, 
 more than they that watch for the morning, yea, I say, more 
 than they that watch for the morning. 
 
 12. — And this man shall be the peace, when the Assyrian shall come 
 into our land. — Mic. v. 5. 
 
 What man is this but the Glory-man, the Mediator between 
 God and men, the man Christ Jesus ? And what peace, 
 when all enemies oppose the soul, but peace in the blood of 
 his cross ? Yes, my soul, Jesus is the wonderful man, who 
 alone could make thy peace. For as it was by one man's 
 disobedience many were made sinners, so by the obedience 
 of one shall many be made righteous. And none but one in 
 our own nature could redeem that nature, for the right of re- 
 demption belonged only to him. Leviticus xxv. 25. And 
 none but one in our nature could atone, could bleed, could 
 die, and rise again, that he might be the Judge, both of the 
 dead and living. Oh ! precious Jesus, how suited wert thou 
 by the union of thy two natures, as God and man, and God- 
 man, both in one, to be our glorious Mediator, and to be the 
 Lord our righteousness. Yes, precious Lord. God hath 
 said it, and my soul evermore rejoiceth in the blessed truth : 
 this man Christ Jesus shall be my peace, my glory, my sal- 
 vation, my refuge, when the Assyrian shall come into our 
 land. 
 
 13. — ^Jesus made a surety. — Heb. vii. 22. 
 
 My soul, look at Jesus as a Surety, and as 7?iade thy Surety 
 this morning. — Blessed view, if so be the Holy Ghost will 
 enlighten thine eyes to see him under all these characters. 
 First, a Surety. We are all ruined by a debt, incapable of 
 being ever paid by any, or by all, the fallen sons of Adam. 
 
268 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Jesus steps in, becomes a Surety for our debt, and pays the 
 Vv'hole by his obedience and death. But we owe a duty also, 
 as well as a debt. Jesus becomes here again the Surety. He 
 will put his Spirit in us, and we shall live. He becomes also 
 a Surety for promises, that all God hath promised for his 
 sake, shall be fulfilled in him, and in us for him. But he i-s 
 not only a Surety, but made a Surety ; for the Father's name, 
 and the Father's authority, is in him. It is God the Father 
 which saith, I have given him for a covenant. Precious 
 thought for faith to act upon. And, my soul, is not Jesus thy 
 Surety? Yes, if while the Father thus freely gives, thou as 
 fully receivest, and art looking to no other. Say then, my 
 soul, is it not so with thee ? Is not Jesus thy all in all, thy 
 Surety, thy Sponsor, thy Redeemer ? And dost thou not say, 
 Thou shalt answer for me, oh Lord my God ? Oh ! compre- 
 hensive word, Jesus made a Surety ! 
 
 14. — Behold, I give you power to tread on serpents and scorpions, and 
 over all the power of the enemy. — Luke x. 19. 
 
 Astonishing the mercy, and wonderful the privilege, mani- 
 fested to the followers of the Lamb ! Poor, and weak, and help- 
 less, as they are in themselves, yet how strong in the grace 
 that is in Christ Jesus. My soul, never lose sight of these 
 blessed things. In Jesus thou art not only a conqueror, but 
 more than conqueror. As the armies in heaven overcame 
 by the blood of the Lamb, so here below, it is all in him, and 
 by him, the victory is obtained. God will bruise Satan under 
 our feet shortly ; but it is God that must bruise him, and it is 
 he that must put him under our feet. Oh for grace to see 
 where our strength is, and as cheerfully to ascribe all to him; 
 that He in whom, we are made to tread on serpents and scor- 
 pions may have the glory due to his name, and He who 
 gives the strength may have the praise. 
 
 15. — Whose names are in the book of life. — Philippians iv. 3. 
 
 How is this known? It must be a blessed privilege this, 
 and highly desirable to attain, if there be a true scriptural tes- 
 timony to it. That there is a book of life, in which the 
 record is made of the people of the Lamb, is without all dis- 
 pute, from many parts of scripture. The church of the 
 first-born are said to have their names written in heaven \ 
 such as are chosen of God in Christ before the world besran. 
 
OCTOBER. 269 
 
 But these are secret things, which belong to the Lord our 
 God. Yet it is said, the secret of the Lord is with them that 
 fear him, and he will show them his covenant. Hence, 
 therefore, is not the Bible a copy of this book of life ? Are 
 there not scriptural marks and characters given, by which 
 the correspondence is proved ? In both, they are distin- 
 guished by one and the same name and character. They 
 are called the people^ the seed, the offspring, of Jesus. They 
 are his by gift, by purchase, by conquest, by a voluntary sur- 
 render. They are known by the character as well as by 
 name. They seek salvation only in Jesus. God is their 
 Father, Jesus their Redeemer, the Holy Ghost their Sancti- 
 fier. My soul, see thy name in bible characters answering 
 to this persuasion, and be assured, that the original writing 
 of the book of life in heaven, and the book of God for life 
 upon earth, which is his written word, is in exact correspond- 
 ence. Blessed Jesus, give me in this way to know whose I 
 am, and to whom I belong, and then assured shall I be, that 
 my name is in the book of life. 
 
 16. — ^We will make thee borders of gold, with studs of silver. — Song i. 1 1. 
 
 My soul, ponder over these words. What borders of gold 
 shall be made for the believer, but the robe of Jesus' righ- 
 teousness ? And what silver but the garment of his salva- 
 tion 1 If thou art clothed with this, my soul, thou wilt shine 
 indeed, with more lustre than all the embroidery of gold and 
 precious stones, which perish with using. But mark, my 
 soul, who it is that makes them, and who puts them on thee 
 — Surely none but God. And observe how all the persons 
 of the Godhead are engaged in this work. We will make 
 thee, is the language. Yes, Jehovah Elohim, who said, Let 
 us make man, at the original creation : the same now saith, 
 at the new creation. We will make thee borders of gold, with 
 studs of silver. And is not the hand of God the Father in 
 this blessed, gracious act, in the gift of his Son to the poor 
 sinner? Is it not Jesus who. hath wrought out a robe of sal- 
 vation for the poor sinner? And is it not the Holy Ghost, 
 who puts on the blessed adorning upon the poor sinner, in 
 taking of the things of Jesus, and showing unto him? Oh, 
 precious testimony of a precious God in Christ. Be it unto 
 me, Lord, according to thy word. Let me be thus clothed 
 and adorned, and I shall be happy now, and happy to all 
 eternity. 
 
 23* 
 
270 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 17. — And on the cities of Judah shall the fiocks pass again under the 
 hands of him that telleth them, saith the Lord — Jeremiah xxxiii. 13. 
 
 See, my soul, what a blessed scripture is here. Meditate 
 upon it this morning. Whose hands can these be but Jesus' ? 
 For whose are the flocks but his ? Is he not in all the scrip- 
 ture said to be a Shepherd, and the good Shepherd, that 
 giveth his life for the sheep 1 And would he give his Hfe 
 for sheep he knew not ? Surely, that is impossible. More- 
 over, did not the Father give them to him ? Did he not re- 
 ceive them from the Father ? And did he not know them, 
 and count them over, when he received them? I know my 
 sheep, saith Jesus, and am known of mine. And observe, 
 the flocks are said to pass again under his hands. A plain 
 proof that they have all passed before. Nay, is it not said 
 that he telleth them ? Yes ! He calleth them all by name, 
 and leadeth them forth, and goeth before them. And he saith 
 himself. Of all thou hast given me, I have lost none. Precious 
 scripture of a most precious Saviour. How then can any be 
 lost ? If Jesus knew them when he received them, counted 
 them over, set his seal upon them, and they must all pass 
 again under his almighty hand, how shall one, even one, be 
 found wanting, when he maketh up his jewels'? Poor 
 weather-beaten shorn lamb of Jesus' fold, whosoever thou art, 
 think of these things, when wandering, or cold, or in dark- 
 ness, or on the mountains. Jesus will seek thee out in the 
 dark and cloudy day. He will bring thee home, and thou 
 shalt lie in his bosom, and by and by dwell with him for 
 ever : for he is, he must, he will still be Jesus. 
 
 18. — And God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant. 
 Exod. ii. 24. 
 
 This is a precious scripture. My soul, put a note upon it. 
 No sigh, no groan, no tear of God's people can pass unob- 
 served. He putteth the tears of his people in his bottle. 
 Surely then he can never overlook what gives vent to those 
 tears, the sorrows of the soul. Our spiritual afflictions Jesus 
 knows, and numbers all. How sweet the thought ! The 
 Spirit maketh intercession for the saints, with the groanings 
 which they cannot utter. And do, my soul, observe the 
 cause of deliverance. Not our sighs, nor our groanings, nor 
 our brokenness of heart; not these, for what benefit can 
 these render to an Holy God % But God hath respect in all 
 
OCTOBER. 271 
 
 to his own everlasting covenant. Yes, Jesus is the all in all 
 of the covenant. God the Father hath respect to him. For 
 his sake, for his righteousness, for his atoning blood, the 
 groanings of his people find audience at the mercy-seat, and 
 redress. And God hath respect to his own word, his oath, 
 his promises to his dear Son. Oh ! blessed assurance ! Oh! 
 precious security ! How shall anj'- poor groaning child of 
 God go unheard, unpardoned, unrelieved ; who hath double 
 security, in the glory of God the Father's sovereign grace, 
 and covenant word and oath, to depend upon : and the ever- 
 lasting covenant righteousness and atoning blood of God the 
 Son to be found in 1 Here, my soul, rest, for ever rest, thy 
 sure claim to grace and glory. 
 
 19. — There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man 
 that hath not filled his days ; for the child shall die an hundred 
 years old, but the sinner being an hundred years old, shall be ac- 
 cursed. — Isaiah Ixv. 20. 
 
 My soul ! contemplate, this morning, the auspicious and 
 blessed effects brought into the circumstances of mankind by 
 the gospel. Not only shall there be new heavens, and a new 
 earth, but new hearts, new minds, new dispositions to enjoy 
 them. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old 
 things are passed away, and all things are become new. 
 And among the many blessed changes that shall take place 
 in consequence of Jesus' salvation, all untimely deaths are 
 done away. Indeed, there can be no such thing as an un- 
 timely death to those who are in Christ : for a voice from 
 heaven pronounced all blessed that die in the Lord. A child 
 new born, if born also in Christ, an infant of a day, if a gra- 
 cious day, is as ripe for glory as if an hundred years had 
 passed over him. Indeed, he is an hundred years old in Je- 
 sus. Sweet thought ! what a blessedness, dearest Jesus, hath 
 thy great salvation introduced into the circumstances of thy 
 people. But what an awful thought! the life of an unawa- 
 kened, unregenerated sinner, though protracted to an hundred 
 years, is lengthened only to misery. As he came into the 
 world, so he goes through it, and so he goes out of it, an un- 
 renewed sinner ! Oh, distinguishing grace ! oh, great salva- 
 tion ! 
 
 20. — Christ is all, and in all. — Coloss. iii. 11. 
 
 Hail, thou great, thou glorious, thou universal Lord. To 
 thee, blessed Jesus, every knee shall bow. Thou art all in 
 
272 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 all, in creation, redemption, providence, grace, glory. Thou 
 art all in all in thy church, and in the hearts of thy people : 
 in all their joys, all their happiness, all their exercises, all 
 their privileges. Thou art the all in all in thy word, ordi- 
 nances, means of grace, the sum and substance of the whole 
 Bible. Speak we of promises ? Thou art the first promise 
 in the sacred word, and the whole of every promise that fol- 
 lows ; for all in thee are yea and amen. Speak we of the 
 law ? Thou art the end of the law for righteousness to every 
 one that believeth. Speak we of sacrifices ? By thy one 
 sacrifice thou hast for ever perfected them that are sanctified. 
 Speak we of the prophecies ? To thee give all the prophets 
 witness, that whosoever believeth in thee shall receive remis- 
 sion of sins. Yes, blessed, blessed Jesus, thou art the all in 
 all. Be thou to me. Lord, the all in all I need in time, and 
 then surely thou wilt be my all in all to all eternity. 
 
 21. — All are your's ; and ye are Christ's ; and Christ is Grod's. — 1 Cor. 
 iii. 22, 23. 
 
 Oh ! what a rich inventory is here. All things, all bles- 
 sings, all gifts, all grace, all mercy ; all, all, the Christian's. 
 And observe, my soul, on what it is suspended — if ye are 
 Christ's. And whose art thou, my soul, but his % Hath not 
 the Father given thee to him ? And hath not the Son of 
 God bought thee with a price ? Hast thou not made a volun- 
 tary surrender of thyself to Jesus, and given thyself to him 
 in an everlasting covenant which cannot be broken ? Oh ! 
 yes, yes ; all this is certain. Lord, grant me grace, and faith 
 in lively exercise, that I may now take to myself all the bles- 
 sedness of it by anticipation, until I come to realize the whole 
 in absolute enjoyment, in glory. Christ is mine, and with 
 him, heaven is mine ; God the Father is mine ; the Holy 
 Ghost is mine ; all covenant blessings are mine ; ordinances, 
 means of grace, the holy book of God, all are mine here, and 
 will be my portion for evermore. Hallelujah. 
 
 22. — The Lord will command his loving kindness in the day time, and 
 in the night his song shall be with me, and my prayer unto the God 
 of my life. — Psalm xlii. 8. 
 
 Both night and day open sources of comfort, when Jesus 
 is present, and when Jesus sanctifies. How, indeed, my soul, 
 canst thou be otherwise than comfortable, while Jesus is with 
 
OCTOBER. 273 
 
 thee, and manifesting himself unto thee ? And do observe, 
 my soul, the sweet expression in this verse. Thy Lord, thy 
 Jesus, will both create blessings and command them. His 
 loving kindness, which is better than life itself, will make day- 
 light in the soul, when otherwise it is night. And his love 
 will shine, as the stars in the darkest night sparkle with more 
 lustre, with increasing brightness, when dark providences 
 are around. Nay, Jesus will give songs in the night, when 
 all things else are out of tune. Do thou. Lord, do thou, my 
 Lord, command then thy loving kindness both by day and 
 night ; and my prayer and praise shall both go forth to thee, 
 the God of my life, and it shall put more gladness in my 
 heart, than when corn, and wine, and oil, increase. 
 
 23. — Now therefore go, and I will be with thy mouth, and teach thee 
 what thou shalt say. — Exod. iv. 12. 
 
 My soul ! pause over this sweet promise which the Lord 
 gave to Moses ; for surely the same is in effect said to every 
 minister, every child of God, and every believer. He that 
 made man's mouth, will give every thing suitable to the 
 mouth, and proportion every thing to the necessity of his peo- 
 ple. And do, my soul, remark the comprehensiveness of 
 the promise. Will not He who undertakes to be with the 
 mouth, be also with all the renewed faculties of the soul ? 
 Jesus gives the tongue of the learned. Jesus gives grace to 
 the lips, understanding to the heart, eyes to the blind, feet to 
 the lame : thy bread shall be given, and thy water shall be 
 sure ; and thy defence shall be the munition of rocks. Go 
 then, my soul, go wheresoever the Lord leads : for he saith. 
 Be not afraid, I am with thee, I am thy God. Learn, my 
 soul, then to eye Jesus in all, and depend upon it, Jesus will 
 bless thee in the use of all. Make his glory thy aim, and 
 thy happiness will be his glory. 
 
 24. — And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as 
 a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth 
 not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. — Micah v. 7. 
 
 Observe, my soul, the character given of Jacob's seed, and 
 bless the Lord for being included in the number. For so 
 saith the apostle, If ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's 
 seed, and heirs according to the promise. Mark then their 
 characters. They are a remnant. But they are God's rem- 
 
274 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 Tiant, being in covenant with God in Christ ; and as such, 
 distinguished and separated from the world. They are a 
 people that dwell alone, and not reckoned among the nations. 
 They are in the midst of many people, but belong to none of 
 them. For though living in the world, they are not of the 
 world, but chosen out of the world. They are, moreover, as 
 a dew from the Lord. Beautiful resemblance ! For as the 
 dew is from heaven, so believers in Christ are born from 
 above : not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but 
 of God. Moreover, they are as showers upon the grass ; 
 meaning, that as Jesus is promised to come down as showers 
 upon the mown grass to refresh his people, so his people live 
 in a constant dependence upon Jesus, and receive out of his 
 fulness, while all the earth is dry as stubble around them. 
 Moreover, as the rain waiteth not for man, but wholly falls 
 from God's appointment, so grace is not dispensed for man's 
 desert, but the Lord's free bounty. Oh ! precious promise, 
 or rather precious cluster of promises, — and all in Jesus. 
 
 25. — My beloved is unto me as a cluster of camphire in the vineyards of 
 Engedi. — Song i. 14. 
 
 How full indeed, how infinitely full, abundant, and soul- 
 satisfying, is Jesus, in all that concerns life, light, grace, 
 glory ! A cluster of all is Christ ; whether the copher of 
 medicine to heal, or of sweetness to satisfy, or of riches to en- 
 large, or salvation to impart. Every way, and in every thing 
 that is lovely or desirable, Jesus is a cluster indeed to his peo- 
 ple. And whether we meet him in the valley or the mount, 
 in the plains of Jericho, or the vineyards of Engedi, neither 
 place nor situation, neither state nor circumstances, make any 
 alteration in our Beloved; he is, he must be, Jesus, and that 
 is always lovely. 
 
 26. — He went on frowardly in the way of his heart ; I have seen his 
 ways, and will heal him. — Isa. Ivii. 17, 18. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this sweet scripture : and while thou 
 readest it, wilt thou not cry out, with David, in the contempla- 
 tion of the overwhelming mercy, " And is this the manner 
 of man, O Lord God?" 2. Sam. vii. 19. Think, oh my soul, 
 how it was with thee, when in the days of thy unregeneracy 
 thou wentest on frowardly in the way of thy perverse heart. 
 Who could have stopped thee, had not sovereign grace % And 
 
OBTOBER. 275 
 
 how justly might the Lord have said, I have seen thy ways, 
 and will punish thee ; will give thee over to a reprobate mind, 
 and forsake thee for ever. Oh ! the riches of grace, when, 
 from my very unworthiness. the Lord took occasion to mag- 
 nify his love and mercy. Oh ! Lord Jesus ! do thou incline 
 the heart that thou hast healed to live to thy praise, and let 
 the life that thou hast saved from destruction, be spent in thy 
 service. 
 
 27. — I have chosen thee, and not cast thee away. — Isaiah xli. 2. 
 
 Is this thy portion, my soul ? Hath the Lord thy God in- 
 deed chosen thee ? Hath he manifested his love to thee in 
 so distinguishing a way ? Take comfort, then, in all thine 
 exercises, when seasons of darkness and discouragement are 
 around ; think of God's choice, and venture on God's love! 
 Art thou distressed, exercised, afflicted ? Dost thou call on 
 God and find no answer ? Doth the enemy tempt thee to 
 doubt? Doth thine own unbelieving heart misgive thee ? 
 Still recollect, Jesus knows all. He chose thee — and he that 
 chose thee, knows all thine exercises : nay, he himself hath 
 appointed them. And remember, thou wast not forced upon 
 him. It was his own free choice first made thee his: and his 
 own love will be the security of thy present dependence. Je- 
 sus resteth in his love : he hateth putting a^'ay. Cast down 
 as thou art, thou are not cast off Though fallen, he can 
 raise. Though dejected, he can and will comfort. Sweet 
 thought! He will turn again; he will have compassion 
 upon us : and he will cast all our sins into the depths of the 
 sea. Hallelujah ! 
 
 28. — Casting all your care upon him, for he eareth for you. — 1 Pet. v. 7. 
 
 Yes, blessed Jesus, I would cast all upon thee : sins, sor- 
 rows, trials, temptations. Thou art the Almighty Burden- 
 bearer of thy people; for the Lord Jehovah hath laid on thee 
 the iniquity of us all. And as thou bearest all our sins, so 
 thou carriest all our sorrows. And dost thou not bear all the 
 persons of thy redeemed? Dost thou not bear all our trou- 
 bles, all our exercises, all our temptations, trials, difficulties ? 
 The government is upon thy shoulder; the care of the 
 churches is all with thee. And shall I not cast all my care 
 upon thee? Shall I be careful for many things, while JesuJ 
 saith, " Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain 
 
276 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 thee i" Oh for grace to set loose to all things, and to leave 
 all things with thee ! Lord, do thou bear me up when I am 
 falling, support me when weak, uphold me against all mine 
 enemies, carry me safe through a life of grace here — and, 
 finally, bring me home to thy glory to behold thee, and dwell 
 with thee for ever, 
 
 29. — He sent his word, and healed them. — Psalm cvii. 20 
 
 Of all the subjects to comfort our minds in the recollection 
 of the mercies in Jesus, the authority and name of Jehovah 
 in the appointment comes home with the greatest comfort to 
 the heart. This is faith's warrant — this is faith's confidence. 
 Who sent Jesus ; who sent his word ; who is it that gives 
 validity and efficacy to salvation ? Jehovah. " Beware of 
 him," saith the Lord, " my name is in him." And how then 
 can my soul fail, or any promise in Christ pass unfulfilled, 
 when Jehovah sends, and Christ completes the work the Fa- 
 ther gave him to do. Blessed Jesus, may I always look to 
 thee under this precious character : and may I hear thee 
 speaking under that solemn but blessed title, " I am the Lord 
 that healeth thee." 
 
 30. — Thy shoes shall be iron and brass ; and as the day so shall thy 
 strength be. — Deut xxxiii. 25. 
 
 What a thought that is which the word of God furnish- 
 eth, in the view of everlasting engagements, that a suitable 
 strength is laid up for every emergency. God's love hath 
 provided adequate supplies to the wants of all his people. 
 What strength of enemies shall be equal to the everlasting 
 strength of God ? What shall drain the resources of ever- 
 lasting love? What shall dry up the streams which flow 
 from an everlasting fountain 1 Jesus therefore will propor- 
 tion the back of his people to the burden. His grace shall 
 be sufficient for all : it shall be sufficient for you, it shall be 
 sufficient for me, for every one, for all. Sweet thought ! Oh 
 for grace to keep it always in remembrance ! 
 
 31. — There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. — Heb. iv. 9. 
 
 Blessed motto for the close of the month, or the day, or 
 year ; after being fatigued with the thoughts, and cares, and 
 anxieties, of life. My soul, delight thyself in the thought of 
 
NOVEMBER. 277 
 
 it — look forward to the speedy enjoyment of it. Like the 
 prophet's vision, it will come : wait for it. No sorrow you 
 have gone through will ever come over again. No persecu- 
 tion already felt shall exactly be again practised. The same 
 trial shall not be again known. Every day, every hour of 
 the day, we are nearer home. Precious consideration ! 
 And Jesus is the rest of his people. Lord, in thee alone I 
 find rest : be thou my hope, and be thou my portion for ever. 
 
 NOVEMBER 
 
 1. — For thou wilt light my candle. — Psalm xviii. 28. 
 
 PRECiors consideration ! It is the Lord that lighteth the 
 candle of his people. And if the Lord light it, what power 
 can put it out? Cherish, my soul, the faith this thought 
 awakens, amidst all the darkness around thee and in thee. 
 Hath the Lord indeed given thee light ? Dost thou in his 
 light see light ! In the light of God the Father, dost thou 
 behold God the Son ; and, by the enlightening of the Holy 
 Ghost, hast thou the light of the knowledge of the glory of 
 God in the face of Jesus Christ ? Oh, the blessedness of 
 such a state of light, and life, and knowledge ; how is it pos- 
 sible then any more to be in darkness, when the Lord himself 
 is my everlasting light, and my God my glory 1 Now con- 
 sider the reverse of this in creature-enlightening. " How 
 oft," saith Job, " is the candle of the wicked put out?" And 
 how exposed is it to be every moment put out ; for it is not 
 of God's kindling. A Jieeting of its own oil will do it. 
 What is called a thief in the candle \\\\\ do it. It may be 
 blown out ; it may be snuffed out ; or if none of these causes 
 occur, yet of itself it must shortly hum out. For what is our 
 life but a vapour ? My soul, ponder these things. Hath the 
 Lord lighted thy candle? Is Jesus thy light, thy joy, thy 
 sunshine, thy morning star, thy all in all? And hath he 
 risen upon thee, never more to go down ? Oh, then, though 
 all thou knowest, all thou beholdest now, is but as the faint 
 taper of the night, compared to the glory of that day which 
 shall be revealed, yet take to thyself by faith all the sweet 
 
 24 
 
278 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 comforts of thy state of grace, and say — It is the Lord that 
 hath lighted my candle ; the Lord my God will enlighten all 
 remaining darkness : I shall see thy face in glory, and 
 shortly awake up after thy likeness. 
 
 2. — But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will 
 send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things 
 to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you. — John xiv. 
 26. 
 
 Oh, blessed Spirit, to whom I owe such unspeakable mer- 
 cies! Let me, Lord, contemplate thee this day under this 
 gracious, kind, compassionate office, of the Comforter. Thou 
 art indeed the Holy Ghost the Comforter. And how merci- 
 fully dost thou sympathize with all the followers of Jesus 
 in their various afflictions, both, of soul and body ! How 
 tenderly dost thou show us our sins, and lead to Jesus' blood 
 to wash them away ! How sweetly dost thou visit, encourage, 
 strengthen, instruct, lead, and guide, into all truth? And 
 how powerfully at times, by thy restraining grace, dost thou 
 enable us to mortify the deeds of the body, that we may live! 
 Hail, thou holy, blessed, almighty Comforter! Oh, let thy 
 visits be continual ! Come, Lord, and abide with me, and be 
 with me for ever. Manifest that thou art the Sent of the 
 Father and of the Son, in coming to me in Jesus' name, in 
 teaching me of all the precious things concerning Jesus, and 
 acting as the Remembrancer of Jesus ; that in thee, and by 
 thy blessed office- work, I may know, and live in the sweet 
 enjoyment of fellowship with the Father, and with his Son 
 Jesus Christ, through the influences of thee, the Holy Ghost 
 the Comforter ! 
 
 3. — And in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house 
 of the Lord of hosts. — Zech. xiv. 21. 
 
 Oh, precious day of God, when will it arrive ? Shall the 
 house of Jesus be indeed delivered from all false pastors, all 
 corrupt worship, and the Lord have turned to the people a 
 pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the 
 Lord, to serve him with one consent? Shall my soul indeed 
 be freed, not only from all the sorrows, pains, evils, and 
 afflictions, of sin around me, but what is infinitely better than 
 all. from the very being and indwelling of sin within me? 
 Shall the fountain of corruption, both of original and actuaJ 
 
NOVEMBER. 279 
 
 sin, be dried up, so that I shall never think a vain thought, 
 nor speak an idle sinful word any more ? Is there such a 
 day, in which the Canaanite shall be wholly driven out 1 
 Oh, blessed thought ! precious, precious promise. Oh, dear- 
 est Jesus, to what a blessed state hast thou begotten poor sin- 
 ners of the earth by thy blood and righteousness. Hasten 
 it. Lord. Cat short thy work, thou that art mighty to save, 
 and take thy willing captive home from myself, and all the 
 remaining Canaanites yet in the land, which are the very 
 tyrants of my soul. 
 
 4. — For I know that ye seek Jesus which was crucified. — Matt, xxviii. 5. 
 
 Is it indeed known unto my Lord that I seek him ? Doth 
 Jesus know that I desire him more than my necessary food? 
 Ye angels of light, that watched over his sepulchre, do ye 
 witness for me that he is more precious to me than gold, yea, 
 than the golden wedge of Ophir. And can I, do I, humbly 
 appeal to him that readeth the heart and knoweth all things, 
 and say. Thou knowest, Lord, that I love thee ? Be com- 
 forted then, my soul : He whom thou seekest will be soon 
 found of thee. He is near at hand. He hath never been a 
 wilderness to his people : neither hath he ever said to the 
 praying seed of Jacob, Seek ye my face in vain. While 
 thou art seeking him, he is looking on thee. And the very 
 desires in thine heart of seeking him, it is Jesus hath kindled. 
 And nothing can be more sure than that He who kindled 
 them in thine heart did not kindle them in vain. Sweet 
 thought. I bless thee for it, thou gracious Lord ! 
 
 5. — The king hath brought me into his chambers. — Song i. 4. 
 
 Yes ! he who is King of nations. King of saints, is my 
 God and King also ; for he hath an universal empire, being 
 One with the Father over all, blessed for ever ! Amen. To 
 him I bow the knee, and humbly and gratefully desire to put 
 the crown of my salvation on his adorable head. And what 
 hath this Sovereign done for thee, my soul 1 Oh ! record his 
 praise ; tell it to saints and sinners all around. This great, 
 and glorious, and condescending King, hath not only brought 
 thee out of darkness and the shadow of death, but hath 
 brought thee into his chambers. What chambers? Cham- 
 bers of sweet communion and fellowship ; chambers of love, 
 of grace, of mercy, of redemption, of ordinances, and of all 
 
280 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 covenant blessings. He hath taught me of his love and my 
 privileges in him, and so assured me of my everlasting safety 
 in him and his finished salvation ; that by-and-by, when, 
 from those outward chambers of grace, he hath accomplished 
 all his blessed purposes concerning me, he will bring me 
 home into his inner chambers of light and glory, from whence 
 I shall go out no more, but dwell in them, and in the presence 
 of God and the Lamb, for ever and ever. Hallelujah ! 
 
 6. — For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and 
 have believed that I came out from God. — John xvi. 27. 
 
 See, my soul, how thy Jesus hath endeared to thee the 
 Father in the assurance of his love. And wilt thou not feel 
 thine whole affections going forth in continual love after 
 him 1 Was it not thy Father which, from everlasting gave 
 thee Jesus as thy Saviour, and gave thee to Jesus that he 
 might redeem thee ? Was it not from the same precious 
 source that Jesus came as a Saviour, and a great one, to re- 
 deem thee, and other great sinners ? Is it not thy Father, 
 that hath adopted thee into his family in Jesus, and given 
 thee the spirit of adoption, whereby thou criest Abba Father? 
 And doth he not accept thee in Jesus, bless thee in Jesus, 
 nourish thee with the body and blood of Jesus, clothe thee 
 with the righteousness of Jesus, and give thee all temporal, 
 spiritual, and by-and-by will give thee all eternal, blessings in 
 Christ Jesus ? Nay, even his chastisements have nothing in 
 them of wrathful punishment, but fatherly love and mercy in 
 Jesus ! Oh, my soul, pause, and behold what manner of 
 love the Father hath bestowed upon thee, that thou shouldest 
 be called a child of God ! And wilt thou not then from hence- 
 forth and for ever say unto him, in Jesus, My Father ! thou art 
 the guide of my youth, for thou hast commanded me so to 
 call thee. Jeremiah iii. 19. 
 
 7. — And yet there ia room. — Luke xiv. 22. 
 
 Room ! where, and for whom ? Room in the gospel of 
 salvation, and for poor perishing sinners, in the blood and 
 righteousness of Jesus Christ. Room in the heart of God 
 the Father ; in the love, grace, mercy, and peace of God the 
 Son ; and in the teachings, influences, and fellowship of God 
 the Holy Ghost. Room in the plentiful provisions of grace, 
 the calls of the gospel, the ministration of the word and or- 
 
NOVEMBER. 281 
 
 dinances in the house of prayer. Whosoever toill^ is the 
 gracious invitation ; whosoever feels his heart made willing- 
 in the day of God's power, let him come and take of the neater 
 of life freely. Lord, is there room for me ? Thousands, and 
 tens of thousands, have found room, through thy grace in- 
 clining them to come ; and yet the scripture sweetly saith 
 again this day, And yet there is room. Oh, give me grace 
 to see that 1 am one of the invited, one of the happy number 
 that hath found room ; and from experiencing the blessed 
 fulness, riches, grace, suitableness, and all-sufficiency in the 
 blood and righteousness of Jesus for poor sinners, I may 
 proclaim every where around, that others may find the same, 
 that yet there is room. And oh. Lord, grant, that while yet 
 there is room, multitudes that are ready to perish may come. 
 And then all thj'- royal guests whom thou br ingest to thy 
 banquet, and who find room in all the mercies of Jehovah 
 for redemption here below, will find room in the house not 
 made with hands, eternal in the heavens. 
 
 8. — The people shall dwell alone, and shall not be reckoned among the 
 nations. — Numb, xxiii. 9. 
 
 Mark, my soul, the character of God's Israel, and re- 
 member that they are the same in all ages. Distinguishing 
 mercies are sweet mercies. God's people dwell alone, in the 
 everlasting appointment of the Father, by whom they were 
 set apart, and formed for his glory, and given to his Son. 
 They dwell alone, in being brought into the church of Jesus, 
 as the redeemed and purchased by his blood. They dwell 
 alone under the sweet influences of the Spirit, by whom they 
 are known, distinguished, regenerated, and sealed, unto the 
 day of redemption. Thus set apart, thus formed, thus given, 
 thus redeemed, thus purchased, thus sealed, surely they are 
 not reckoned among the nations, but are supposed to show 
 forth God's praises, who hath called them out of darkness 
 into his marvellous light. My soul, what saith thy experience 
 to these things 1 Oh, how different the state, the circum- 
 stances, the new birth, the fellowship, pursuits, way, life, and 
 work of God's people, from the world. Blessed Jesus ! 
 cause me to dwell alone from the nations around : but let me 
 not dwell a moment without thee ; but do thou come with 
 thy Father and the Holy Spirit, according to thy sweet pro- 
 miseSj and make constant abode with me. 
 
 24* 
 
282 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 9. — And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, 
 some to everlasting Ufe, and some to shame and everlasting con- 
 tempt. — Daniel xii. 2. 
 
 What a morning will this be! how distinguished from 
 every other ! Lord, how often do I now awake, with 
 thoughts of earth, and sin, and trifles, and vanity ! How 
 have I opened mine eyes this morning ? Was it, dearest 
 Jesus, with thoughts of thee ? In that solemn morning, there 
 will be no longer dreams as now, even in our waking hours: 
 for all childish imaginations, shadows, doubts, and fears will 
 be done away. Precious, blessed Lord Jesus ! cause me, 
 morning by morning, while upon earth, to awaken with 
 sweet thoughts of thee. Let the close of night, and the open- 
 ing of the day, be with thy dear name in my heart, on my 
 thought, and on my lips : and in that everlasting morning, 
 after having dropped asleep in Jesus, and in thy arms by 
 faith, may I awake up in thy embraces, and after thy like- 
 ness, to be everlastingly and eternally satisfied with thee. 
 
 10. — For such an High Priest became ns, vfho is holy, harmless, unde- 
 filed, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens. — 
 Heb. vii. 26. 
 
 What a sweet thought ! Surely, as a poor sinner, I need 
 an High-priest to act for me. I cannot, I dare not, approach 
 in myself, and with my poor polluted offerings, without one. 
 But he that intercedes for me, must be himself holy, free from 
 sin : his sacrifice holy, his obedience holy, and in all points 
 suited to his office, and my necessities. Cherish, then, the 
 thouglit, my soul. He that is thine High-priest, is all this, 
 and infinitely more. So holy in himself, that not the shadow 
 of sin was in him. So harmless, that in his mouth was found 
 no guile. So undefiled, that though he took all the sins of 
 his people upon him, yet in himself he was free from all sin. 
 So separate from sinners, that though he took the nature of 
 man, yet wholly underived from man ; and so much higher 
 than the heavens, that his own personal holiness infinitely 
 transcended the holiness of angels. For while they are said 
 to be charged with folly, Jesus is the Holy One in whom the 
 Father declared himself well pleased. Meditate, my soul, on 
 these precious features in thy Jesus, at all times, and upon all 
 occasions : and more especially, when thou drawest nigh the 
 throne of grace in and through this glorious Mediator. And 
 moreover, for thy further comfort and encouragement to come 
 
NOVEMBER. 283 
 
 boldly to the mercy-seat, forget not to recollect the still fur- 
 ther blessed thought, that this holiness of Jesus is the righ- 
 teousness of all his people ; for he was made sin, when he 
 knew no sin, that they might be made the righteousness of 
 God in him. And, as if this was not enough, Christ glori- 
 fied not himself to be made thy High-priest, but was called 
 to it, as was Aaron. Go then, my soul, go to the precious, 
 the holy, the harmless, the undefiled. High-priest, Christ Je- 
 sus, in whom, and in whose righteousness and atoning blood, 
 thou mayest always have boldness to draw nigh, to find 
 grace, and mercy to help, in all time of need. 
 
 11. — And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand 
 for an ensign of the people ; to it shall the Gentiles seek ; and his 
 rest shall be glorioiis. — Isaiah xi. 10. 
 
 Jesus is both the root and the offspring of David, and the 
 bright and morning star ; and, therefore, is not this the day, 
 the very day, the joyful day, in which he was set up, as 
 God the Father's ensign from everlasting, for salvation in the 
 council of peace ? And was he not brought forth, and set 
 up, and proclaimed, as God's salvation to us poor Gentiles in 
 the fulness of time, as well as the light of his people Israel ? 
 Surely it can have reference to no other. Precious Jesus ! I 
 do indeed behold thee, as set up from everlasting. Thou 
 wert so exhibited in the council of peace ; and thy goings 
 forth were from everlasting, when thou wentest forth for the 
 salvation of thy people. In the Bible, thou art the great 
 Promise, and the whole of the promises. Thou art the 
 whole of the law and the prophets. Both the Old Testament 
 dispensation, and the New Testament grace, all pointed to 
 thee, and in thee they had their completion. Thou art the 
 Father's ensign of redemption, the signal of war with sin, 
 with Satan, and all the powers of Hell and corruption. Lord! 
 to thee do I seek ; under thy banner, and in thy strength, 
 would I enjoy a rest which indeed must be glorious. And 
 oh, thou blessed Spirit of all truth ! when at any time the 
 enemy cometh in hke a flood, do thou lift up thy ensign, even 
 Jesus, as a standard against him. 
 
 12. — And they shall come which were ready to perish. — Isaiah xxvii. 13. 
 
 What a blessed promise is this to a poor sinner, that is 
 conscious of his being in perishing circumstances. My soul, 
 
284 MORNING roRTlON. 
 
 pause over it this morning. Art thou not, if considered out 
 of Christ, in perishing circumstances, hy reason of the cap- 
 tivity of sin ? Art thou not perishing under the sentence of 
 God's broken law ; under the just judgment of God, the 
 alarms of thine own guilty conscience, the accusations of Sa- 
 tan, the fear of death, and the prospect of judgment and eter- 
 nity? And doth this sweet scripture hold forth a provision 
 for such perishing circumstances ? Doth it really say, that 
 such shall come ? Nay, that they shall come, whatever ob- 
 structions, either from within or without, shall block up the 
 way ? Will the Lord enable them, lead them, help tnem, 
 nay, constrain them to come, in defiance of all impediments ? 
 Oh ! precious, precious Jesus ! may the blessing of him that 
 is ready to perish come upon thee : for thou dost indeed make 
 the widowed heart, and the sorrowful heart, to sing for joy. 
 Blessed be thy name, for that thou hast made me willing in 
 the day of thy power ! 
 
 13. — Christ hath given himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God, 
 for a sweet smelling savour. — Eph. v. 2. 
 
 If, when Noah offered by faith his sacrifice at the coming 
 forth from the ark, the Lord smelled a sweet savour in it, be- 
 cause both the ark and sacrifice was a type of his dear Son ; 
 how fragrant and acceptable must have been the substance, 
 when Jesus offered himself without spot to God? Behold 
 him by faith, my soul, in that hour, in the full incense of his 
 own merit, the censer of his own offering, and the golden 
 altar of his own nature ! And while God, even the everlast- 
 ing Father, accepts Jesus as thy Surety, in the fragrancy of 
 his offering, wilt thou not by faith so apprehend the sweet 
 influence of his person, work, and righteousness, as to rejoice 
 before God in the sure acceptance of thyself and all thy poor 
 offerings in the Beloved ? Oh, let a throne of grace be a 
 daily, hourly, testimony for thee, that all thy approaches here 
 are under the incense and intercession of Jesus ; and all thine 
 hopes and expectations of glory hereafter, are all founded in 
 him and his finished salvation. Yes ! thou Lamb of God ! 
 let all witness for me, that thou, and thou alone, art the Lord 
 my Righteousness, and that I seek salvation in no other, most 
 perfectly assured from thine own Spirit's teaching, that there 
 is no other name under heaven, given among men, whereby 
 we must be saved. Hallelujah ! 
 
NOVEMBER. 285 
 
 14. — And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land 
 springs of water. — Isaiah xxxv. 7. 
 
 Oh ! how refreshing is this promise to my poor, dry, bar- 
 ren, thirsty soul ! Surely every poor sinner like me, that 
 knows his own leanness and poverty, will feel the blessedness 
 of it ; for whether he be in the sapless state of unawakened 
 nature, or whether in a scorched or languishing state, from 
 the want of the renewings of grace, nothing can be more 
 refreshing than such a promise. Precious Jesus ! do thou 
 revive the languishing frame of thy people ; do thou pour 
 water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground. 
 Oh what a fulness, blessed Lord ! there is in thyself to sup- 
 ply all. Surely thou art, as the church said, " A fountain of 
 gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon." 
 Do thou then, oh Lord, send forth this day, this blessed day, 
 such copious streams from thyself as may cleanse, revive, com- 
 fort, satisfy, and strengthen, all thy churches. Lord, cause 
 me to drink of the rivers of thy pleasure ; for with thee is 
 the fountain of life. 
 
 15. — At our gates are all manner of pleasant fruits, new and old, which 
 I have laid up for thee, O my beloved. — Song vii. 13- 
 
 Yes, blessed Jesus ! at the gates of ordinances, and the 
 word of thy gospel, all the pleasant and precious fruits of 
 the Spirit, which come in new and fresh supplies from thee, 
 are indeed laid up. And oh ! how sweet and refreshing are 
 they, brought home and laid up in my heart, by thy divine 
 power, when thou enablest me by faith, and in thy leadings 
 and strength, to go forth and bring them home, and to live 
 upon them, and feed upon them, from day to day. And shall 
 I not then blessed Jesus ! by the endearing name of my Be- 
 loved, call upon thee to command the north wind, and the 
 south wind, to blow upon thy garden in my heart and in my 
 soul, that the spices may flow ; and that then my Beloved 
 may come into his garden, and eat of his own pleasant fruits 
 which his grace alone planted, and which his Spirit bringeth 
 forth and ripens. 
 
 16. — Thou shalt weep no more : he will be very gracious imto thee at 
 the voice of thy cry ; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee. — 
 Isaiah XXX. 19. 
 
 Listen to this, my soul. Ponder ov^ every precious word 
 in it. Are not all tears dried from thine eyes, when behold- 
 
286 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 ing that complete salvation in which thou art interested, in 
 Christ Jesus ? Believers are commanded to sorrow no more, 
 as others without hope. And doth Jesus indeed wait to be 
 gracious, nay, very gracious ? Is it possible to consider, that 
 He, w^ho hath all power in heaven and in earth, waits upon 
 a poor worm of the dust, and this in order to be gracious 1 
 Come then, my soul, unto the mercy-seat. Do thou wait for 
 him who thus waits for thee. And as soon as thy Lord 
 hath heard, and answered one prayer, do thou follow it up 
 with another. Remember that he waits to be gracious ; and 
 Jesus is glorified in giving out of his fulness, to supply the 
 wants of his people. And what petitions, my soul, hast thou 
 now before the throne ? What mercies art thou waiting for 1 
 Lord, help me to know my need, and thy fulness to supply. 
 Help me to be for ever bartering my poverty for thy riches, 
 and my sins for thy righteousness : that while thou art com- 
 ing forth to me in mercy, my soul may be going forth to 
 meet thee in prayer ; and while Jesus is loading me with 
 benefits, my poor heart may for ever be proclaiming his 
 praise. 
 
 17. — And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood. — Rev. xix. 13. 
 
 Oh, thou bleeding Lamb of God ! didst thou thus appear 
 to thy serv^ant John, to tell him, and the church through him, 
 that thy priesthood and thy sacrifice are of the same ever- 
 lasting nature and efficacy as thy person and thy finished 
 work — the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever ? And 
 didst thou thus manifest thyself, by way of assuring thy poor 
 needy follower that thou delightest in thine office, and lovest 
 to be employed ! Was it not, dearest Jesus, to this end, and 
 as much in effect, as if thou hadst said, See, I wear these 
 priestly garments : behold my vesture still fresh with the 
 blood which I ofTered, in the day of my sacrifice on the cross, 
 for my redeemed ; and for whom I still appear in the bloody 
 robe, as a proof of its everlasting efficacy. For whom, but 
 for my people, do I wear this vesture ? My soul, art thou 
 looking now, with an eye of faith, within the veil? Hast thou 
 a blessing to ask at the court of heaven this day ? Fly then 
 to Jesus. Behold him still as John beheld him, and hear 
 w^hat he saith. Remember, his blood speaks ; for so the 
 Holy Ghost declares — it speaks better things than that of 
 Abel ; for Abel's bloo«[ cried for vengeance: Jesus' pleads for 
 mercy. And doth it not speak to God for pardon ; and /row 
 
NOVEMBER. 287 
 
 God in covenant promises of pardon? Oh, the blessedness 
 to behold Jesus clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, in 
 confirmation that we have redemption through his blood, the 
 forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace. 
 
 is. — Good news from a far country. — Prov. xxv. 23. 
 
 From a far country indeed ! for it is no less distant than 
 from heaven to earth, and from beings as opposite as holiness 
 and sin could make — even from God to man, from a rich Sa- 
 viour to poor sinners. And so remote, that had not this 
 good news been sent, heaven must have remained at an eter- 
 nal distance, as an inaccessible region. And what is the 
 good news itself? The angels who were first sent to pro- 
 claim it, called it glad tidings of good things, of great joy to 
 all people. And, indeed, such glad tidings it contains, as 
 language fails to describe. It is pardon, mercy, and peace, 
 to poor rebels. It holds forth joy, happiness, and everlasting 
 felicity, to sinners, enemies, and the fallen race of men. God 
 revealed, sin atoned, Satan conquered, death destroyed, hell 
 vanquished, heaven opened. And these not all. This good 
 news informs also of the stupendous way by which the bles- 
 sings are given, and everlasting happiness secured. Jesus, 
 the Son of God, the Author, the Finisher, the Source, Cause, 
 Sum, Substance, Beginning, End, and Portion, of all his peo- 
 ple. These, among an infinite and endless volume of mer- 
 cies are contained in the good new^s from a far country ; but 
 we must enter upon that country, to which indeed we are in- 
 vited by the proclamation of the gospel, before that we shall 
 fully know, or even conceive, the thousandth part of what 
 God hath laid up for them that love him. My soul, hast 
 thou heard this good news ? Dost thou know the joyful 
 sound 1 Art thou truly alive to the blessed things contained 
 in it, and anxious to be interested therein ? Oh ! then, medi- 
 tate upon them ; give thyself wholly to them. And while 
 men of the world, from the world are seeking their chief 
 good, and asking one another. What news? do thou turn a 
 deaf ear to every other relation of a dying world, from which 
 thou art dying daily, and let thy meditations be all the day, 
 and let thine eyes prevent the night-watches to dwell upon 
 this good news, and this only, which cometh from a far 
 country. 
 
288 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 19. — The strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God which giveth 
 us the victory, through our Lord Jesus Clirist. — 1 Cor. xv. 56, 57. 
 
 Pai'SE, my soul, over this solemn, but yet sweet verse. The 
 strength of sin is the law. Does sin derive strength from the 
 law ? Yes, for the motions of sin, which is in our members, 
 gathers strength from the precepts in God's holy law, just as 
 pent up waters, that are increasing from various sources, will 
 swell and rage the more because they are restrained. And 
 this is what the Apostle means, when he saith, " Sin, taking 
 occasion by the commandment, wrought in me all manner of 
 concupiscence." For the mass of indwelling corruption is 
 stirred up, and excited into action, by the law. The Lord, in 
 rich mercy, teaching us by this very process, that so totally 
 corrupt is our nature, that we do not know the whole work- 
 ings of sin, until, by the holiness of his commandment, we 
 are led to see and feel a disposition to break it: hke the first 
 transgressors in the garden of Eden, who lusted to eat of the 
 forbidden fruit, because it was forbidden. So that the very 
 precepts of God, by the sin of our nature, become the means 
 of giving strength to that sin of our nature. The law of 
 God, in this instance acts upon the heart, as when the gar- 
 dener's spade uncovers the surface of the earth, and the worms 
 which before lay concealed, appear. The worms were there 
 before, but they did not appear before. In like manner, the 
 law turns up the heart, and then appears the sin which, 
 though there before, lay undiscovered. Is this thy case, my 
 soul 1 And dost thou still carry about with thee such a body 
 of sin and death? Well might Paul call it the mystery of 
 iniquity. And well might Paul from his deeper knowledge 
 in the anatomy of the heart, cry out so greatly under the bur- 
 den of it. Oh ! precious, precious, precious. Lamb of God ! 
 how little understood, and less regarded, even by those that 
 know somewhat of thee in the riches and greatness of thy 
 salvation, is it considered, in ten thousand instances which 
 pass away in the gulph of forgetfulness over our unthinking 
 minds ? Lord, give me to see and feel, yet more and more, 
 that in myself I am virtually all sin! And, Oh Lord, give 
 me to see and feel, yet more and more, that thou, and thou 
 alone, art my Righteousness. And let the Apostle's hymn 
 of praise be henceforth, daily and hourly mine — "Thanks 
 be to God which giveth us the victory, through our Lord Je- 
 sus Christ." 
 
NOVEMBER. 289 
 
 20.— Christ, the Wisdom of God.— 1 Cor. i. 24. 
 
 Think, my soul, what wisdom is contained in that one 
 word, and that one person, Christ. An whole eternity will 
 not be sufficient to read over the immense volume ! Wisdom 
 in planning, wisdom in executing, wisdom in completing, thjt 
 great salvation. And what a world of wisdom, in the two 
 natures united in one person — the God-man, the Glory-man, 
 the Wisdom-man, Christ Jesus. And oh ! what wisdom in 
 making sin, which strikes at God's sovereignty, the very 
 means of manifesting God's power and love. Such is the 
 wisdom of God in Christ, that sin, which in its nature be- 
 comes productive of the greatest dishonour to God, should be 
 rendered subservient to produce the greatest glov}'". My soul, 
 ponder these things. Then ask thyself, Is there not a wisdom 
 in this vast subject, as far as it concerns thee, yet more won- 
 derful than all ? Yes, for surely the greatest of all myste- 
 ries in this wonderful volume, to thy view, is, that thou, even 
 thou, shouldest be made the subject for the exercise of such 
 wisdom, as Christ the wisdom of God, and the power of God, 
 for thy salvation. And all this even against thy determined 
 resolution to ruin thyself Well mayest thou join the apostle 
 in his overwhelming song of praise, and cry out. Oh ! the 
 depth of the riches, both of the wisdom and goodness of 
 God! 
 
 21. — And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness 
 the girdle of his reigns. — Isaiah xi. 5. 
 
 Mark these expressions, my soul, concerning thy Cove- 
 nant God in Christ. The Lord condescends by them to re- 
 present both his righteousness and faithfulness, as they are 
 engaged to make good the purposes of redemption, in the 
 Father and the Son. Jehovah's righteousness, and Jehovah's 
 faithfulness, are blessed securities for this purpose; for so 
 saith the Holy Ghost. God is faithful and just to forgive us 
 our sins. Wherefore 1 Because Christ is the end of the law 
 for righteousness, to every one that believeth. And do not 
 overlook the striking figure of the girdle which is chosen to 
 represent it by: for as a man binds on the girdle round his 
 loins as a strengthener, so Jehovah takes to himself the righ' 
 teousness of his dear Son. Let him take hold, saith Jehovah, 
 of my strength, to make peace with me, and he shall make 
 peace with me, Isaiah xxvii. 5. This is the girdle of Jeho- 
 25 
 
290 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 vah, which compasseth him about, and cleaveth to him all 
 around. So that his people, whether they are behind or be- 
 fore, may lay hold of the girdle of his perfections, and hang 
 upon them, and depend upon them : and even when God's 
 providences seem to frown, or the Lord seemeth to have 
 turned his back upon them. Oh for grace and faith both in 
 Jehovah's covenant faithfulness, and Christ's righteousness, 
 thus to trust, and thus to stay ; for he is faithful that hath pro- 
 mised. 
 
 22. — Come, buy wine and milk, without money, and without price. — 
 Isaiah Iv. 1. 
 
 Surely no man can plead poverty as an excuse for not 
 buying, when the things sold are not only without money, 
 but without even the proposals for money : not only without 
 ready mone}'-, but without any money. Here is not even a 
 price given. My soul, remember this. The poorer the 
 wretch, the more welcome to this market. But what are 
 the tilings sold ? Both wine and milk. A blessed variety 
 in the gospel feast — wine to cheer, and milk to nourish. 
 Yes, blessed Jesus, thy love is better than wine ; and thy sal- 
 vation more healing than milk. Besides, it comes free, it 
 comes pure, it comes in plentjr. And it far, very far, exceeds 
 the strongest wine, and the richest milk. For though wine 
 may remove a temporary heaviness, yet it was never known 
 to raise the dead. But thy love, blessed Jesus! hath raised, 
 and will keep alive for ever, sinners dead in trespasses and 
 sins, and preserve the languishing graces of thy saints. 
 Come then, my soul, obey the gospel-invitation this day, and 
 every day : come, buy these precious things without money, 
 and without price. Come, ye poor, needy, perishing sinners ; 
 come, every one of you, and buy — there is enough in Jesus 
 for us all. And depend upon it, not one of you will be sent 
 empty away, if you come empty to be filled, and hungering 
 to be satisfied. This is the only mark and evidence of every 
 real purchaser. If Jesus, with all his blessings, be welcome 
 to your heart, you are welcome to take of his free salvation. 
 Lord ! I am come this day, and every day. Now let me 
 hear thy voice : " Eat, O friends ! drink ; yea, drink abun- 
 dantly, O beloved." 
 
NOVEMBER. 291 
 
 23. — If the Lord were pleased to kill us, he would not have received a 
 bunit-ofFering and a meat-offering at our hands ; neither would he 
 have shewed us all these things. — Judges xiii. 23. 
 
 Precious faith this of the wife of Manoah, and sound and 
 conclusive reasoning. My soul, hath the Father, who gave 
 thee Jesus for a Saviour, accepted thee in Jesus? Hath the 
 Father, who sent his dear Son to be the Saviour of the world, 
 accepted Jesus for thy Saviour? Hath the Holy Ghost 
 showed thee the glorious things of redemption in his blood, 
 the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of his grace ? 
 And hath he given thee to believe in the record, that God 
 hath given eternal life, and that this life is in his Son ? Oh ! 
 then say, with the wife of Manoah, Surely the Lord would 
 never have done all this, neither would he have showed me 
 all these things, had he not intended my salvation ! Treasure 
 up, then, these past tokens of favour: consider present evi- 
 dences of mercy, and say. Is not Jesus still "precious ? Are 
 not my desires after him? And small as you sometimes 
 think your hope, yet would you, my soul, relinquish it for a 
 thousand w^orlds ? Oh, then, my soul, hang upon Jesus, 
 cleave to Jesus, hold fast on Jesus. Never would the Lord 
 have showed me the beauty, glory, fulness, suitableness, and 
 all-sufficiency of Jesus, nor enabled my soul to hold up Jesus 
 in the arms of my faith for acceptance, if the Lord had been 
 pleased to kill me. 
 
 24. — Behold I send an angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and 
 to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. Beware of him, 
 and obey his voice, for my name is in him. — Exod. xxiii. 20, 21. 
 
 Who can this be, my soul, but Jesus ? He, and he only, 
 who is the whole of the covenant, is also the Messenger, and 
 the Angel of the covenant. Jehovah hath never put his 
 name in any other ; neither given his honour to any other. 
 But in Jesus he is eternally w^ell pleased, and hath given all 
 things into his hand. Pause then, my soul, and contemplate 
 this holy, this blessed, this only begotten of the Father, full 
 of grace and truth. I see in Him all the glory, the sove- 
 reigntv, the wisdom, grace, and goodness, of the Father. 
 And he is Jehovah's salvation to the ends of the earth. And 
 wilt thou then, my gracious God and Father, send Jesus be- 
 fore me in all my way, to keep me, to guide me, and to bring 
 me in, to behold thy glory in the face of Jesus Christ, and to 
 dwell with thee for ever ? Oh ! Lord Jesus ! I would desire 
 
292 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 grace so to beware of thee, so to love thee, so to obey thee, so 
 to adore thee, so to make thee my all in all, my life, my love, 
 my joy, my present, my everlasting hope and portion, that in 
 life, and death, in time, and to all eternity, Jesus may be my 
 glory and salvation for ever and ever. 
 
 25. — Once have I sworn by my holiness, that I will not lie unto David. — 
 Psalm Ixxxix. 35. 
 
 Wonderful condescension. Was it not enough that Je- 
 hovah gave his Son to poor sinners ; gave his word, his pro- 
 mise, that all that believe in him should not perish, but have 
 everlasting life? But as if consulting the weakness of our 
 faith, confirmed it with an oath : pledged his holiness to Jesus, 
 and to poor sinners in Jesus, for the sure accomplishment of 
 all covenant engagements, in the blood and righteousness of 
 his dear Son. Oh, my soul, never, never more call in ques- 
 tion the truth of thy gracious God. Say with Job, " Though 
 he slay me, yet will I trust in him." What are afflictions, 
 trials, darkness, poverty? These are in me, and about me, 
 but no obstructions to the efficacy of Jesus' righteousness, or 
 the Father's faithfulness. Read under every one of them the 
 charter of rich sovereign grace ; hear what God hath said, 
 what God hath sworn : and believe the record that God hath 
 given of his dear Son : — Men shall be blessed in him. Jesus 
 shall see the travail of his soul, and be satisfied. Here then 
 rest, my soul ! God hath sworn once by his holiness : Jesus 
 hath once died, the Just for the unjust, to bring sinners unto 
 God. Return to thy rest; the Lord hath deah, my soul, 
 bountifully by thee. 
 
 26. — And it shall come to pass, that cA^ery thing that liveth, which 
 moveth whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live. — Ezek. xlvii. 9. 
 
 Listen to this promise, my soul, and make it the subject 
 of this morning's meditation, of this day, and every day. 
 See how rich, how extensive, it is in the life-promising power. 
 And the river of life in Jesus possesseth all these blessed 
 effects. To every poor sinner, brought into this rich stream, 
 it gives life, spiritual life, eternal life. And who shall de- 
 scribe the length, the breadth, the heights, the depths, of it? 
 Not only extending over all the continent of the earth, but 
 from the borders of hell to heaven, and from one eternity to 
 another. And its sovereignty is such, that it bears down all 
 
NOVEMBER. 2^3 
 
 before it — washing away sin, and guilt, and misery ; diffusing 
 streams of life, and grace, and mercy ; opening sources of 
 joy, and peace, and happiness, for ever and for ever. Oh, 
 precious, precious Jesus ! make glad my soul with the streams 
 of this river : be thou the fountain of all my happiness, and 
 let all my springs be in thee. 
 
 27. — For lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among 
 all nations, like as com is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least 
 gram fall to the earth. — Amos ix. 9. 
 
 Blessed promise to my poor soul, sifted and blown about 
 by temptation ! Look then to Jesus with it, and plead it 
 under every new sifting time. Corn must be sifted, for it is 
 much covered at times with tares and chaff And so must 
 the seed of Jesus, that the precious may be known and sepa- 
 rated ; for what is the chaff to the wheat, saith the Lord ? 
 Oh, Lord! if it please thee, for thou knowest the necessity 
 of it, sift me, try me, separate me, not only from the ungodly, 
 with whom I am constrained to dwell, but from myself, from 
 my own trifling, vain conversation, from the corruption of 
 the indwelling sin in my fallen nature, from the vain thoughts 
 which lodge within me. Yes, precious Jesus ! sift all and 
 every thing which is unsuitable to thee, and let the whole 
 fell through the sieve, that thou alone mayest remain with 
 me: for sure I know my God hath said, though his Israel 
 be sifted, yet not the least grain of the true wheat shall be 
 lost. 
 
 28. — For, when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died 
 for the ungodly. — Romans v. 6. 
 
 My soul ! fold up this sweet and precious scripture, and 
 carry it about with thee in thy bosom, and in thine heart, that 
 it may help thee on at any time, and at all times, when thy 
 strength seems gone, and there is no power left. Was it not 
 when the whole nature of man was without strength, that 
 Christ was given of the Father ? And was it not equally so, 
 when Christ came to seek and save that which was lost ? 
 And was it not in due time, when Christ died for the un- 
 godly? due time in his resurrection, due tim.e in his ascen- 
 sion, when he ascended up on high, led captivity captive, and 
 received gifts for men, yea, even for the rebellious, that the 
 Lord God might dwell among them? Go further yet, my 
 
 25* 
 
294 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 soul, as it concerns thyself — Was it not due time indeed, 
 when Jesus passed by, and saw thee in thy loathsome state 
 of sin, cast out to perish, and when- no eye pitied thee, that 
 then his eye compassioned thee, and bid thee live ? Who 
 more ungodly than thee ? Who more weak ? Who more 
 undeserving ? Did Jesus then look upon thee, call thee, 
 strengthen thee when thou wast without strength, and hath 
 helped thee to this hour ? Oh, then, trust him now, trust him 
 for ever. His strength is made perfect in thy weakness. 
 And depend upon it, when thou art most weak in thyself, 
 then is the hour to be most strong in the Lord, and in the 
 power of his might. He that in due time died for the un- 
 godly, will be thy strength in the time of need. 
 
 29. — Until the day break, and the shadows flee away, I will get me to the 
 mountains of myrrh, and to the hills of frankincense. — Song iv. 6. 
 
 Methinks I would have every poor sinner, until the day- 
 dawn of awakening grace breaks in upon his soul, get away 
 to the ordinances of God in the mountain of the Lord's 
 house : there he should live, there wait, until the Lord speaks 
 to his soul. And methinks I would have every poor sinner 
 that is awakened, until the day of glory breaks in with an 
 everlasting hght upon him, get away to the gospel mountain, 
 where the odour of Jesus' incense, and the savour of his 
 blood and righteousness, become sweeter than myrrh, and 
 more fragrant than frankincense. Here, Lord, cause me to 
 get away from all surrounding impediments, and to be con- 
 stantly found waiting, that my soul may drink in the fresh, 
 reviving, renewing streams, until Jesus himself, the Morning 
 Star, breaks in upon my soul, to lead me home to his ever- 
 lasting glory, in his bosom for ever. 
 
 30. — It is high time to awake out of sleep ; for now is our salvation 
 nearer than when we believed. — Romans xiii. 11. 
 
 Solemn consideration ! What time is it with thee, my 
 soul? Let me ask with the prophet, Watchman, what of the 
 night? The morning Cometh, and also the night. Perhaps 
 there may be but a step between me and death. Am I really 
 awakened from the sleep of carnal security ? Am I alive 
 from spiritual death ? Am I dead to the w(^ld, but alive 
 unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord? Oh, Lord Jesus ! 
 impress these solemn inquiries upon my soul yet more and 
 
DECEMBER. 295 
 
 more: since everlasting happiness, or everlasting misery, 
 hangs upon the decision. My beating pulse is hastening to 
 fulfil the appointed number. Even while I think of these 
 things the account is increased. Every fleeting breath is one 
 the less to take. Lord, make me wise to remember my 
 latter end. 
 
 DECEMBER 
 
 1. — Praise waiteth for thee, O God, in Zion. — Psalm Iv. 1. 
 
 Is this the language of my heart ? Am I indeed waiting 
 until that Jesus be ready to receive my poor praise ? Hath 
 God the Holy Ghost prepared my heart? Oh, then, hasten 
 to him, my soul, with thy morning offerings, poor as they 
 are ; for sure I am, Jesus is waiting to be gracious. God will ac- 
 cept both thee and thy offering in him the Beloved ! Go forth 
 to meet him as early and as often as thine heart can wish: 
 depend upon it, thy Redeemer will be beforehand with thee, 
 and is waiting thy coming. Neither thy praise nor thy 
 prayer can outrun his love ; for both are the blessed effects 
 of his grace, and of his own quickenings. Precious Jesus! 
 grant me to come as often as I need thee. And, Lord ! if 
 thou wilt grant me this blessing, I shall never be from thee, 
 for I need thee every moment. 
 
 2. — It is written in the prophets, And they shall be all taught of God. 
 Everyone therefore that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, 
 Cometh unto me. — John vi. 45. 
 
 Mark, my soul, these precious words of thy .Tesus. It was 
 one of the Old Testament promises, that all God's children 
 should be taught of him. And as this condescension of God, 
 in teaching, implied the Father, so the blessed consequence 
 and effect of it should be, that every one thus taught proved 
 his being a child, and inclined his heart to come to God in 
 Christ as a Father. My soul, art thou come 1 Art thou 
 looking to, leaning upon, trusting in, walking with, and seek- 
 ing for, Jesus ? Is he the Lord thy Righteousnes.s, thine only 
 
296 MORNING PORTION, 
 
 righteousness : thine only hope, thine only confidence ? Dost 
 thou, like the Apostle, count ail things else but dung and 
 dross to win Christ, and to be found in him ? Courage then, 
 my soul ! These are blessed tokens of thine adoption-cha- 
 racter. None but God the Father, by his Holy Spirit, could 
 have taught thee these things. None but He that revealed 
 his Son in the heart of the Apostle, could have been thy 
 Teacher. Thou hast both heard and learned of the Father ; 
 and, in proof thereof, thou art come to Christ for life and sal- 
 vation. Fold up, then, this precious scripture in thy bosom 
 for thy daily use, and examine thine interest in Christ con- 
 tinually, by a mark so sure and infallible. And remember 
 what the Lord Jesus hath said, as a collateral testimony to 
 the same blessed truth : all that the Father giveth me (saith 
 Jesus) shall come to me : and him that cometh I will in no 
 wise cast out. 
 
 3. — ^Whether our brethren be inquired of, they are the messengers of the 
 churches, and the glory of Christ. — 2 Cor. viii. 28 
 
 What a blessed account is here given of the children of 
 God to all inquiries concerning them. See, my soul ! whe- 
 ther thy experience corresponds to it, and mark their charac- 
 ter. They are not only brethren to one another, but to 
 Christ also : for we are told that he is not ashamed to call 
 them brethren. Precious condescending Saviour ! More- 
 over, they are the messengers of the churches. What is 
 that? A messenger, in scripture, is called also an Angel. 
 And if the brethren of Jesus do know, and can speak of him 
 as his people should, then are they like angels come down 
 from the court of heaven, to relate what they have seen and 
 know of the king in his beauty, and their hearts glow with 
 a warmth of earnestness to proclaim his glory, and his love 
 to poor sinful creatures here below. Neither is this all. 
 For they are the glory of Christ. Mark this, my soul, and 
 dwell with rapture upon it. A true believer in Jesus is the 
 glory of Jesus. Not only because he gives glory to the Re- 
 deemer for his grace, but because Jesus derives glory from 
 his redemption. Not only because the poor sinner hath ever- 
 lasting happiness from Jesus ; but Jesus hath everlasting 
 glory from that poor sinner's salvation. Never lose sight of 
 this, my soul, when thou goest to Jesus. Indeed, indeed, 
 Jesus is glorified in receiving thee, in pardoning thee, in 
 blessing thee, in giving to thee of his fulness. And the 
 
DECEMBER. 297 
 
 Father is glorified in this great salvation by his Son. Oh ! 
 what encouragement is this to faith ; what inducement to 
 come to Jesus. Lord! how ought I to blush when I think 
 how little glory I give to thee in not seeing that thy church 
 and thy people are thy glory, in being saved and redeemed 
 by thee I 
 
 4. — Come, see the place where the Lord lay.^Matt. xxviii. 6. 
 
 Lord! I would desire grace to accept the call, for it is al- 
 ways profitable to have faith in lively exercise. I would 
 pray that my meditation might frequently take wing, and 
 view the memorable sepulchre of my Lord. Did Jesus once 
 lay in the grave ? Surely death never had such a prisoner 
 before ! But did Jesus lay so low for me ? Am I shortly to 
 lay there? Sweet consoling thought! The grave is now 
 softened, and the chambers of death are perfumed with the 
 fragrancy contracted from his holy incorruptible body. — But 
 is there not another place where the Lord lay? And doth 
 not the Angel invite his people to see him there are also? 
 Yes ! Jesus lay in the bosom of the Father from all eternity. 
 And doth he not lay there now, and will he not through all 
 eternity? But can I see him there? Yes. For if by faith 
 I behold Jesus as the Christ, the sent, the sealed of the Fa- 
 ther ; in seeing him, I see the Father also. He saith this 
 himself, John xiv. 9. And again, John xiv. 20. At that 
 day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and you in me, 
 and I in you. Blessed assurance. Jesus is one with the 
 Father : and all his people one with him. And as he is in 
 the bosom of the Father, so are they in his, and there shall 
 dwell for ever and ever. Hallelujah. Amen. 
 
 5. — It pleased the Father to bruise him : he hath put him to grief. — 
 Isaiah liii. 10. 
 
 The depths of wisdom were explored to furnish redemption, 
 and to find a Person competent to accomplish it. And when 
 found, the depths of love were broken up, to make it com- 
 plete. My soul, read ov^er the mysterious volume which the 
 Lord hath in part opened before thee. It cost the Father his 
 thoughts from all eternity, to appoint a plan by which, con- 
 sistent with his holiness and his justice, thou mightest be 
 saved. It cost the Father his Son, his dear Son, his only 
 Son, before that thou couldest be redeemed. Jesus must die 
 
298 MORNING Por.TlON. 
 
 ere thou canst live. Pause over the subject as it is here ex- 
 pressed. It pleased the Father to bruise him. Jesus, who 
 was in himself holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sin- 
 ners, and made higher than the heavens ; he, who knew no 
 sin, must be made sin ; he, w^ho never merited wrath, must 
 be made a curse. Read on ; Jesus must die — And by whom ? 
 Not by Jews, nor Gentiles only : not simply by high-priests, 
 and governors among men : but by God the Father. He 
 must bruise him, and put him to grief. For though Jesus 
 was taken, and by wicked hands crucified and slain, yet all 
 this, we are told, was by the determinate counsel and fore- 
 knowledge of God. And is there yet another chapter of 
 w'onder in this mysterious volume 1 Yes ! what can it be ? 
 Namely, that all this was for sinners, for rebels, for enemies ; 
 nay, my soul, for thee ! Wonder, O heavens, and be aston- 
 ished, O earth ! Had our whole nature been bruised to all 
 eternity in the mortar of divine wrath, for the sin of our na- 
 ture, what would all this have been to the sufferings, agonies, 
 and death, of the Lamb of God ? And didst thou die for 
 me, oh thou unequalled pattern of love and mercy ; and by 
 thy stripes is my soul healed ! Precious Jesus ! 
 
 6. — If ye ask any thing in my name, I will do it. — John xiv. 14. 
 
 Is it SO, blessed Jesus, that if I go to the Father in thy 
 precious name, my petitions shall be certainly heard, and an- 
 swered 1 Lo, then I come: I feel my faith and confidence 
 imboldened in this gracious assurance. And as thou know- 
 est. Lord, this day, what is most suited for me, let thy wis- 
 dom choose, and let thy love bestow, that very grace and 
 mercy, be it what it may. And let a throne of grace witness 
 for me, that I seek it w'hoUy on Christ's account. I consider 
 it as good as given, from the high love my God and Father 
 bears towards his dear Son, as my Surety and Saviour. And 
 although in the moment that I ask with this boldness of faith, 
 I see and know in myself, that I have nothing to recommend 
 me to thy favour, as in the least meriting that favour, but 
 much, very much, to make me an object in meriting thy dis- 
 pleasure : yet looking up in Jesus, depending upon his blood 
 and righteousness, and wholly asking in his name, and for 
 his righteousness' sake only, I am encouraged to hope th.at I 
 shall not ask in vain. Oh, then, Lord ! hear for Jesus' sake, 
 and let my petition and prayer be answered, that the Father 
 may be glorified in his Son. 
 
DECEIVEBER. 299 
 
 7. — And we know and have believed the love that God hath to us. 
 
 1 John iv. 16. 
 
 Who hath known and believed in terms equal to the great- 
 ness of the mercy itself, the love of God to the poor sinner ? 
 God's love must be an infinite love, and consequently the dis- 
 play of it must be infinite also. God, we are told, commend- 
 eth his love to us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ 
 died for ns. Had God loved and delighted in saints that 
 loved him, this would have been love. Had God taken the 
 holy angels into a nearer acquaintance with him, this would 
 have been love. But when he raised beggars from theduno-- 
 hill, and took rebels from the prison to sit upon his throne; 
 and at a time when his justice would have been magnified in 
 their destruction, to prefer sinners, haters of God, and des- 
 pisers of his grace ; to bring them into the closet and nearest 
 connexion with him, in the Person of his dear Son, and all 
 this by such a wonderful plan of mercy as the incarnation 
 and death of Jesus — who hath ever calculated the extent of 
 such grace ? Who hath thoroughly known, or considered, 
 or believed, in any degree proportioned to the unspeakable- 
 ness of the salvation, the love that God hath to us ? Oh ! 
 Lord ! add one blessing more. Cause my cold heart to grow 
 warm in the contemplation of it : and let it be my happiness 
 to be daily studying the breadth, and length, and depth and 
 height, and to know the love of God, which passeth know- 
 ledge, that I may be filled with all the fulness of God. 
 
 8. — Gad, a troop shall overcome him : but he shall overcome at the last. — 
 Gen. xlix. 19. 
 
 Is there nothing, my soul, in this sweet promise, that suits 
 thy case and circumstances? Was not Gad one of the chil- 
 dren of Israel ? And are not all the seed of Israel interested 
 in the promises ? Was the tribe of Gad for a time brought 
 down, and brought under, by a troop of foes? And are not 
 all the seed of Israel oppressed and brought into subjection? 
 Was not that glorious Israelite, the great Captain of our sal- 
 vation, made perfect through sufferings ? Think, my soul, 
 what troops of hell assaulted him ! But was the issue of the 
 battle with him doubtful? Neither is it now. In his blood 
 and righteousness, all the seed of Israel shall be justified and 
 overcome by the blood of the Lamb. What then, though 
 there be troops of lusts within, and legions of foes without: 
 troops from earth, and troops from Hell, may, and will, as- 
 
300 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 sault thee ! but look unto Jesus, It is said of his people of 
 old, that they had an eye unto him, and were enhghtened, 
 and their faces were not ashamed. So now, Jesus undertakes 
 for thee, and for thy faith. He saith, I will be an enemy to 
 thine enemies, and an adversary to thine adversaries. God 
 the Father is looking on: angels are beholding: all heaven 
 is interested. Nay, hadst thou but eyes to see, thou wouldest 
 behold, like the Prophet's servant, mountains around thee, 
 full of horses and chariots of fire, all engaged for thy defence. 
 Shout, then, for the battle is already obtained by Jesus for all 
 his people. Though a troop may overcome the Gadites of the 
 Lord, yet shall they overcome at the last. Thanks be to God 
 who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 
 
 9. — For he said, Surely they are my people, children that will not lie : 
 so he was their Saviour. — Isaiah Ixiii. 8. 
 
 Oh ! what a tenderness of expression is contained in these 
 words ! Jesus not only takes his people into relationship 
 with him, but undertakes for their faithfulness. In the birth 
 of God's everlasting purpose, this was done from everlasting: 
 so that in one and the same moment, we are his people, his 
 children, his brethren, his wife, his redeemed, his fair one, 
 made comely in his comeliness, and in his blood cleansed, 
 and in his righteousness justified, before God. And observe, 
 my soul, the grounds of this relationship: Surely, he saith, 
 they are my people. Not only as God's workmanship and 
 property, but as his purchase. Not only in first giving them 
 being, but in giving them new being in Christ Jesus. The 
 Lord hath taken them into covenant with him in Christ, and 
 granted them a charter of grace and salvation in Jesus. Sweet 
 and precious thought ! God the Father, whose right they 
 are by creation, hath given them to his Son. And Jesus hath 
 made them his, both by his own purchase, and the conquests 
 of his grace : therefore he hath an interest in them, and in 
 all that concerns them. Surely, saith Jesus, they are my 
 people, my jewels, my treasure, my hidden ones. And ob- 
 serve further, how he speaks for them as well as of them : 
 They will not lie. How is this? Why, they are children 
 of the covenant. And because he hath undertaken for them, 
 therefore he was their Saviour ! Oh ! the preciousness of 
 such a Saviour, to every circumstance, to every state, in every 
 way, and upon every occasion in life, in death, in time, and 
 to all eternity. Jesus ! thou art indeed a Saviour 1 thou art 
 
DECEMBER. 30 1 
 
 truly called Jesus, for thou hast saved, and thou wilt save, 
 thy people from their sins. 
 
 10. — But there the glorious Lord will be unto us a place of broad rivers 
 and streams ; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gal- 
 lant ship pass thereby. — Isaiah xxxiii. 21. 
 
 See, my soul ! how thy God condescends to represent him- 
 self 'to thee as thy God, under various similitudes, so as to 
 strengthen thy faith and thy confidence in him. He that is 
 thy gracious Lord, is also thy glorious Lord ; for he is both 
 a Sun and a Shield: and he that gives grace, will give glory; 
 one is the earnest of the other. Well, then, this glorious 
 Lord will be there. Where? Why in Jesus, in thy Jesus, 
 God in covenant with him : he will be unto thee a place of 
 broad rivers and streams. What is that ? Why, as Jerusa- 
 lem had no navigable rivers or seas, to defend her from the 
 approach of enemies all around, so God's people are unpro- 
 tected by nature, or by art, and lie open to their foes. But 
 what they want in nature, shall be abundantly made up to 
 them in grace. And as they have no art nor contrivance in 
 themselves. God's wisdom and love will provide true counsel 
 for them. Since they have no sea for their frontier, God in 
 covenant love W\\\ himself be their sea, their ocean, their bul- 
 wark. And what galley or ship shall pass God to attack his 
 people? Surely none can. And observe, my soul, as God 
 himself will be rivers, and broad rivers too, to defend, so will 
 he be streams to provide, and full streams to provide plenti- 
 fully all possible blessings. Hallelujah. Shout, my soul, as 
 the church of old, and say, A Fountain of gardens, a W^cll 
 of living waters, and Streams from Lebanon, is my Beloved! 
 
 11. — And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver. And he shall 
 purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they 
 may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. — Malachi 'in. 3. 
 
 My soul, contemplate this gracious office of thy Jesus, and 
 then see, whether he hath as graciously wrought it on thee. 
 Jesus found our whole nature, when he came to save it, 
 ^vanting refining and purifying indeed. By the operation of 
 his holy u'ord, and by the influences of his blessed Spirit, he 
 brings the souls of his people into the furnace of purification. 
 By the fire of troubles, of afdictions, of persecutions, he melts 
 down their stubborn nature there. By the Spiiit of judgment, 
 
 26 
 
302 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 and by the Spirit of burning, he purg-eth their dross, taketh 
 away their tin, and forms all his people into vessels of mercy 
 and sanctification, that he may at length present them unto 
 himself, a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle, or 
 any such thing ; but that they may be without blame before 
 him in love. And what endears him to his people under this 
 blessed character as their Refiner, is this, that all the while 
 the process is going on, Jesus sits by, watches over them, 
 tempers the fire in exact proportion to what it should be, and 
 suffers not the enemy to fan it a jot more than his love and 
 wisdom see it fit to be. Is this the case, my soul, with thee? 
 Are all the fierj^ trials thou hast gone through regulated, kept 
 under, and blessed, by thy Jesus, to so much good ? Oh ! 
 my foolish heart ! how have I repined in my affliction, be- 
 cause I saw not Jesus' hand in the appointment', nor discerned 
 his love carrying me through it. Blessed Refiner ! hence- 
 forth give me to see thee. And do thou sit in this most need- 
 ful office over my soul, that as all true believers are of the 
 royal priesthood, being sons of Levi, and made kings and 
 priests to God and the Father, never may my soul come out 
 of the furnace of thy purification, until that I am enabled, by 
 thy grace, to offer to the Lord an offering in the blood and 
 righteousness of Jesus, whereby alone I can find acceptance 
 with God in grace here, and glory hereafter. 
 
 12. — Take this, and divide it amongst it yourselves. — Luke xxii. 17. 
 
 Ppv-ecious Lord! such was thine unbounded love to thy 
 people, that thou gavest all to them ! And, dearest Jesus, 
 what didst thou reserve for thj^self? And how wise was thy 
 love manifested. To every one grace according to the mea- 
 sure of the gift of Christ; for the purchase of redemption, in 
 the case of all, cost thee the same. If, indeed, a lamb of thine 
 be weak, or diseased, or torn, or scattered, thou wik take it 
 to thy bosom, while thou wilt gently lead those that are with 
 young. But every one, and all, shall have thy care : all, as 
 their several wants may be. Here, then. Lord, to thy table I 
 would come. Thy death hath confirmed all thy purchased 
 blessings. And in thy holy Supper I would seek grace, that 
 my right may be confirmed in them. Before God, and angels, 
 and men, I would take the seal of thy gift. In thy blood 
 thou hast signed them : in the word of thy gospel thou hast 
 recorded them : in the ordinances of thy church they are 
 published and brought forth : and by thy Spirit thou givest 
 
DECEMBER. 303 
 
 the tokens and the pledges of them to thy redeemed. Wit- 
 ness for me, then, ye angels of light, that I accept of all in 
 Jesus and in his free gift, the purchase of his blood, and the 
 tokens of his love. Sweeter are they to my mouth than 
 honey and the honey-comb. Blessed Jesus ! thy love is bet- 
 ter than wine ! 
 
 13. — The Tree of Life. — Revelation xxii. 2. 
 
 Lead me, oh Holy Ghost, by the hand of faith, this morn- 
 ing into the paradise of God, and cause me to sit down under 
 the tree of life ; and for a while, before the world breaks in 
 upon me, enable me to meditate on its beauties, its loveliness, 
 and its fruit. Is it not Jesus which I behold in this charming 
 similitude ? Surely Jesus is to me the Tree of life, for I have 
 no life but in him ! And it is not only he which gave me 
 life at the first, but preserves it, maintains it, and will preserve 
 it for ever. He saith himself. Because I live, ye shall live 
 also. And as he is himself the life of my soul, so every thing 
 in him is the promoter of my life. His fruit also is all my 
 sustenance, all I want, all I desire, all I can truly enjoy. He 
 bears twelve manner of fruits. Yes ! for there is in him both 
 fulness and variety : pardon, mercy, and peace, in the blood 
 of his cross : favour with God, affection with men ; the Spirit's 
 gifts, graces, influences : comfort in this life, happiness and 
 joy in that which is to come. And every month these fruits 
 abound. Yes! He saith himself. My fruit is better than 
 gold, yea, than fine gold : and my revenue than choice silver. 
 I will cause them that love me to inherit substance ; yea, I 
 will fill all their treasures. Nay, the very leaves of this tree 
 of life are for the healing of the nations. And how healing 
 indeed is Jesus, in his word, his ordinances, his providences, 
 his promises, his dispensations ? Neither is this all : the tree 
 of life grows in the midst of the street, and is open in every 
 gospel-ordinance, both to Jews and Gentiles, both to bond and 
 free. He is also on either side of the river. The church 
 above, though sitting under the full enjoyment of him, doth 
 not keep him wholly to herself Blessed be his name, he is 
 as much for the glory and happiness of his church here be- 
 low, on this side of the river of death. And is this Tree of 
 life, this Jesus, mine ? Oh ! the vast privilege ! I bless thee, 
 oh, thou Holy Spirit, for giving me the knowledge of him 
 now by faith : and ere long, I hope to sit down for ever in 
 the paradise of God, in the unceasing enjoyment of him, from 
 
304 MORNING rOR-TION. 
 
 whence I shall arise no more, but dwell under his branches 
 for ever. 
 
 14. — Nevertheless, he saved ihem for his name's sake, that he might 
 make his mighty power to be known. — Psalm cvi. 8. 
 
 Pause, my soul, over this verse, and observe how thy gra- 
 cious God took occasion, from the misery of Israel, and even 
 from their unworthiness, to magnify the riches of his grace. 
 Israel had highly sinned : they had provoked the Lord ; and 
 their provocations were aggravated from the spot where they 
 were committed, for it was at the sea, even at the Red Sea, 
 that memorable sea where the Lord had made a path for their 
 deliverance. And wherefore then did he save them? 
 Wherefore did not the Lord drown them in the depths of the 
 sea, for their unbelief and hardness of heart? This sweet 
 scripture gives the reason. He saved them for his name's 
 sake. His name was engaged in covenant-promises. And 
 his glory was magnified in making good his engagements, 
 notwithstanding all their undeservings. And what saith this 
 doctrine to thee, my soul ? There is a nevertheless with thee 
 also, from God's covenant engagements in Christ, and to 
 Christ, thy glorious covenant-head, notwithstanding all thy 
 unworthiness and provocations. Though I fail in all, God's 
 covenant fails in none. Though my unbelief breaks out like 
 Israel's, even at the red sea of Christ's blood ; yet the efficacy 
 of that blood is still the same, and the Father's engagement 
 to his dear Son, by virtue of it, never can fail. His own love 
 is the standard of his grace, and not my deservings. His 
 name's sake, and not my merit, the rule oif his favour towards 
 his people; and all in Jesus. Fold up, then, this blessed 
 scripture, my soul, for thy daily meditation, and learn to bless 
 the freeness of that grace, which hath for its object the glory 
 of God's name, and no motive for thy salvation, but God's 
 glory in Christ Jesus. 
 
 15. — Knowing that tribulation worketh patience. — Romans v. 3. 
 
 Have former trials been blessed to thee, my soul? Why 
 then, depend upon it. this, be it what it may, will be also. 
 The covenant love and faithfulness of God in Christ, are both 
 the same now, as they ever were. If the Lord hath hitherto 
 been making all things work together for good, so will he 
 now. Only pause and consider why it must be so. Thy 
 
DECEMBER, 305 
 
 God is the same God as ever: is he not? And his love to 
 thee the same, because it is in Jesus. His covenant the same. 
 His promises the same. The blood and righteousness of the 
 Lord Jesus in efficacy the same. Well then, as all the per- 
 fections of God are engaged for God's people, certain it is, 
 that no trial to his people can arise which he knew not, nay, 
 which he appointed not, and for which he hath not made a 
 suitable provision. Well then, what trouble of thine can be 
 so great, as to counteract and overcome divine strength? 
 What burthen so heavy that Jesus cannot bear ? What af- 
 flictions so painful that Jesus cannot soften ? What grief so 
 scorching, as to dry up the streams of God's love? Hear 
 then his words : In your 'patience possess ye your souls. My 
 soul, rest in this. Let past experience bring thee present 
 confidence. See that all thy fresh springs of patience flow 
 from Jesus. Wait patiently for the Lord, by believing in 
 him. And depend upon it, thy present tribulation, of what 
 sort or kind soever it is, will terminate, like every former, in 
 bringing glory to God, and comfort to thy soul. 
 
 16. — He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it ; and he that 
 hateth suretiship is sure. — Prov. xi. 15. 
 
 Blessed Jesus ! well is it for me, that thou didst not hate 
 to become a Surety. For hadst thou so done, and refused 
 the vast undertaking, I must have perished for ever. And 
 hadst thou consented to have become a Surety only for friends, 
 and those only that loved thee, still here again I should have 
 been lost. But when thou condescendest to become a Surety 
 for me, oh Lord ! it was not simply for a stranger, but for a 
 rebel, a hater and despiser of thee, and of thy great salvation. 
 Oh the love of God that passeth knowledge ! And how, 
 blessed Jesus, didst thou indeed smart, and wert crushed and 
 broken, when for my dreadful debt of sin, which surpassed 
 all the angels of light to pay, it pleased the Father to bruise 
 thee, and to put thee to grief. Oh matchless love of a most 
 compassionate Saviour! Methinks I see thee taking my 
 place under the angry eye of God's broken law. Methinks 
 I see thee striking my worthless name out of the bond of the 
 covenant of the law of works, and putting thine own in. 
 Methinks I still hear thee, like another Judah, who in this 
 was evidently thy type, saying to God and the Father, I will 
 be Surety for him: at my hands thou shalt require him. Oh 
 Lamb of God ! I bless thee as my Surety. I acknowledge 
 
 26* 
 
306 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 thee as m}^ glorious Sponsor. I was a stranger indeed, and 
 thou hast owned me, and brought me home. I was in debt, 
 and insolvent, and thou hast cancelled the whole in the blood 
 of thy cross. I was naked, and thou hast clothed : sick and 
 in prison, and thou hast visited, healed me. and brought me 
 out. I was lost, and thou hast redeemed and saved me. Oh. 
 what shall I render unto the Lord, for all the benefits he hath 
 done unto me ? Bless the Lord, oh my soul ! and all that is 
 within me, bless his holy name. 
 
 17. — Fear not ; I have the keys of hell and of death. — Rev. i. 17, 18. 
 
 Is it Jesus, all precious, all lovely, all powerful Jesus, saith 
 this? He who hath redeemed my soul from hell, mine eyes 
 from tears, and my feet from falling? And hath Jesus, my 
 Husband, my Brother, my Redeemer, the keys both of hell 
 and of death? Why then it is impossible for any to open death's 
 door, one moment before that he give the appointment. And 
 doth he command m.e to fear not ? Oh, then, my soul ! dis- 
 miss all anxiety about thy departure. Thy time is in Jesus' 
 hands. The keys are hanging at thy Redeemer's girdle. 
 Never fear neither, to die as thou hast lived, and art living, 
 in a believing frame in Jesus. This is as much suited to a 
 dying time, as it is to a living time ; for with this thou mayest 
 go out of the world, as safe as living in it. To live is Christ, 
 and to die is gain. God's covenant love, and God's cove- 
 nant promises in Jesus, are the same. They are both in 
 death and life, fixed and sure. When Jesus therefore comes, 
 when the Master calls for thee, wilt thou feel reluctant? 
 What ! reluctant to go to Jesus ? Is this thy love, thy kind- 
 ness, to thy friend ? Forbid it, dearest Lord. No ! my pre- 
 cious, blessed Jesus ! open the gate of death to me wheii thou 
 pleasest, where thou pleasest, and how thou pleasest. Sure I 
 am thou wilt be present, and that's enough for me. And 
 when the ground of all sensible comforts is sinking under 
 me, oh for a vigorous effort of faith, communicated by thee, 
 that I may drop the body, and leap at once into thy arms, 
 with the last cry of faith. Lord Jesus receive my Spirit, for 
 thou hast redeemed me. O Lord, thou God of truth ! 
 
 18. — For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the 
 Father. — Ephes. ii. 18. 
 
 Who would have thought that so short a verse should con- 
 tain so much sweetness? And who would have conceived 
 
DECEMBER. 307 
 
 that in it the gracious offices of all the Persons of the God- 
 head, as they are mercifully exercised towards a poor sinner, 
 are described ? Is not the access to a throne of grace, the 
 work, the leading of God the Holy Ghost ? Surely, he is 
 the Spirit here spoken of. And through whom can a poor 
 sinner have access to the mercy-seat, but in Him, and by 
 Him, and through Him, whom the Father heareth always ? 
 And to whom should the regenerated adopted child of God 
 have access, but unto his God and Father in Christ Jesus ? 
 Are then all the glorious Persons of the Godhead thus re- 
 vealed, as engaged in every poor sinner's approach to the 
 heavenly throne? Oh for grace to give to each, and to all, 
 the praise, and glory, and love, due to such transcendent 
 mercy ; and in a conscious sense of being interested in 
 this great salvation, to cry out with the Apostle. Now 
 thanks be unto God, who always causeth us to triumph in 
 Christ. 
 
 19. — God is faithful, by whom we were called unto the fellowship of his 
 Son Jesus Christ. — 1 Cor. i. 9. 
 
 Think, my soul, what a dignity believers m Jesus are 
 called unto, when brought into a nearness of communion 
 with their glorious Head, in any exercise of trials or afflic- 
 tion for his sake. God is faithful in the appointment. How 1 
 In that it proves God's fulfilment of his covenant promises, 
 when Jesus and his members are considered by him as one. 
 God is faithful in manifesting this oneness and fellowship, in 
 making the members conformable to their glorious Head, by 
 trials or sufferings. CTod is faithful in sending the affliction. 
 And God manifests his faithfulness in guidmg through it, 
 and supporting under it. The trial itself, be it what it may, 
 is a discovery of the covenant love and faithfulness of Jeho- 
 vah. Nay, God would not have manifested his faithfulness 
 to a believer without -it What a sweet consoling thought 
 this is to the afflicted exercised followers of the Lamb, under 
 their trials ! My soul ! do thou look at the subject, and learn 
 from it to consider all tribulations in this view, and what a 
 blessedness will pour in upon thee from so doing. Hath the 
 Lord called thee to exercises ? Hath the progress of them 
 led thee more to Jesus ? Hath the issue of them tended to 
 endear Jesus? Oh, then, proclaim God's faithfulness! I 
 know. Lord, (said one of old under trials,) that thy judg- 
 ments are right, and that thou in very faithfulness hast af- 
 
308 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 flicted me. Precious Jesus! what a dignified path is tribula- 
 tion, when we are enabled to see thy footsteps going before, 
 marked with blood. 
 
 20. — The blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. — 
 1 John i. 7. 
 
 My Soul, sit down for a while by this crimson fountain, 
 £Rid duly ponder over this glorious property of thy Re- 
 deemer's blood. Oh, the sovereign efficacy of it ! For it not 
 only cleanseth sin, but all sin : not only others' sins, but our 
 sins : not only the present evil of sin, but the everlasting evil 
 of it: not only now, but for ever. It cleanseth from all sin. 
 Pause, my soul ! Is there any other laver to wash away sin ? 
 Can prayers, or tears, or repentance, or ordinances, or com- 
 munions, or duties, or alms ? Oh no. We must say of 
 every thing, and of all things, out of Christ, and void of 
 Christ, as Job did concerning his friends. Miserable comforters 
 are ye all ; physicians of no value. Here then, my soul, 
 seek thy cleansing, and here only. And while to this foun- 
 tain thou art daily brought by the Holy Ghost, look up and 
 behold the whole assembly of the redeemed above, who are 
 now standing around the throne, owing their bliss and their 
 cleansing to the same source. Listen to their songs of joy, 
 and catch the notes, to sing even now the same song of re- 
 joicing. They have washed their robes, and made them 
 white in the blood of the Lamb. And therefore it is, and for 
 no other cause, that they are now before the throne, and 
 serve the Lord in his temple day and night. 
 
 21. — Then I restored that which I took not away. — Psalm Ixix. 4. 
 
 Whose words are these ? They can be none but the words 
 of Jesus ; for none ever made restoration but him ; and none 
 but him could say, I took nothing away. And what was 
 taken away? God's glory was taken away by sin : and, 
 consequently, man's happiness also. For when Adam sinned, 
 he robbed God of his glory, and robbed himself and all his 
 posterity of God's image, and with it all happiness. Nay, 
 my soul ! thou hast done the same in every renewed act of 
 disobedience. And in breaking the divine law, thou hast 
 justly lost the divine favour. And hath Jesus, all-precious 
 Jesus, restored all these 1 Yes, blessings on his name, he 
 hath ! And what renders it ten-fold more gracious, he hath 
 
DECEMBER. 309 
 
 SO done it, as never to be lost any more. By his finished 
 work of salvation he hath restored to God his glory. And 
 by his obedience and death, as our Surety, he hath restored 
 to man his happiness. The favour of God we lost by sin : 
 Jesus hath restored it by justifying us, in his righteousness. 
 The image of God we lost by rebellion : Jesus hath restored 
 to us this image, in sanctifying us by his ioliness. So that 
 every v*ray, and in all things, Jesus hath made up the breach, 
 and the poor sinner who is led by grace to believe in Jesus, 
 stands more complete and secure now than before the fall. 
 For if Adam had never sinned, nor his children in him, yet, 
 after all, tbeir righteousness before God would have been but 
 the righteousness of creatures. Whereas now, in Jesus, the 
 believer stands accepted and secured in the righteousness of 
 the Creator. Hail then, thou Almighty Restorer of our 
 ilillen nature! In thee. Lord, would my poor soul triumph- 
 antly say, have I righteousness and strength : even to thee 
 shall men come ; and all that believe in thee, shall never be 
 ashamed nor confounded, world without end. 
 
 22. 
 his 
 
 •Haviujs: made known unto us the mystery of his will, according to 
 is good pleasure, wliich he hath purpo.sed in himself. — Eph. i. 9. 
 
 My soul! pause over these volumes of divine truth: for 
 they are not as so many simple v\'ords, but contain vast vo- 
 lumes indeed, and such as a whole eternity will not afford 
 space to read over and finish. The first is a large one in- 
 deed — even the mystery of God's will : namely, the mystery 
 of redemption, originating in the divine mind, before all 
 worlds. And this is not the smallest part of it, that it should 
 be made known in any degree or measure to thee, my soul: 
 a poor creature of a day, and that day, a day of nothing but 
 sin. The second volume in this vast subject is another pre- 
 cious part of the same glorious truth, namely, that this mercy 
 of God in Christ is the sole result of God's good pleasure. 
 No foresight, no merit, no pretensions of thine, my soul; no, 
 nor the merits of archangels, becoming in the least, the 
 cause. For though a gracious God hath taken occasion to 
 make a glorious display of the depths of his grace, from the 
 depths of men's ruin: yet it was not our state, but his good 
 pleasure, which laid the foundation of our recovery by Jesus 
 Christ. And the third volume in this stupendous subject is, 
 that He that planned, executed and finished it. As none but 
 infinite wisdom could purpose, so none but infinite power 
 
310 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 couid accomplish. Pause, my soul, and contemplate the vast 
 mercy ! It comes from a God in Christ, as the first cause ; 
 and reverts back again to God in Christ, as the final end. 
 Hallelujah ! 
 
 23. — Lo, I come ! — Psalm Ix. 7. 
 
 What a longing had Old Testament saints for the Lord 
 Jesus' coming ! And what an earnest wish and prayer it is 
 among New Testament believers, for Jesus' coming by the 
 visits of his grace, and the sweet influences of his Holy 
 Spirit, from day to day ! My soul ! methinks I w^ould re- 
 alize by faith this day, even this very day, these words of thy 
 Redeemer, as if he were now standing at the door of thine 
 heart, and asking for admission. And shall I not say, under 
 this sweet impression. Come in, thou blessed of the Lord ! 
 wherefore standest thou without ? Oh, blessed Jesus ! when 
 I consider the many precious instances of thy coming, set up 
 from everlasting in thy goings forth for the salvation of thy 
 chosen — thy anticipation, in thy visits before the season of 
 thy tabernacling in our flesh : thy visits to the patriarchs and 
 prophets : thy manifestation openly to the people : thy secret, 
 sweet, and inexpressibly gracious visits now, and thy pro- 
 mised return in the clouds at the final consummation of all 
 things: oh. Lamb of God ! dost thou say. Lo, I come? Oh 
 for the earnestness of faith, in all her devout longings, to cry 
 out with the church of old, and say. Make haste, my Beloved, 
 and come ; oh, come quickly, Lord Jesus ! 
 
 24. — God sent forth his Son made of a woman. — Gal. iv. 4. 
 
 How little did Adam suppose, when he charged God fool- 
 ishly, (as, b}'' the way, it may be observed all sinners do by 
 this plan.) in attempting to palm ofl' his sin upon God, that 
 the Lord in after ages would put distinguishing honour upon 
 the woman, in which the man should bear no part. The 
 woman, said Adam, whom thou gavest to be with me, she 
 tempted me, and I did eat. Thus endeavouring to throw the 
 whole blame of his transgression upon his gracious Bene- 
 factor. It is as if he had said, Hadst thou not given me this 
 woman, I should not have disobeyed thy command. Now 
 observe, my soul, God's benignity and grace upon this occa- 
 sion. The seed of the woman, said God, shall bruise the 
 serpent's head. Not the seed of the man, but of the woman. 
 
DECEMBER, 311 
 
 And when the fulness of the time was come for this promise 
 to be accomplished, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, 
 without the intervention of an human father, but by the mi- 
 raculous impregnation only of the Holy Ghost. As if to 
 honour the weaker vessel, and to open a source of peculiar 
 comfort in the female breast. As if God had said, in answer 
 to Adam's daring impiety, Though all the redeemed among 
 men shall partake in this great salvation, yet the woman 
 shall have in it an eminent token of divine favour. And as 
 the accursed enemy of God and man did first beguile the 
 woman, from the woman shall arise Him, that shall destroy 
 the Devil. The blessings of redemption shall begin with the 
 woman, to her peculiar honour, and to the serpent's everlast- 
 ing shame. For He that in after ages shall do away more 
 than all the evil of sin and the fall, by the sacrifice of him- 
 self, shall be born of a woman. And thus the Lord mani- 
 fested forth his grace, in silencing Adam's unbecoming ex- 
 postulation. Oh ! the wonderful way and method of our 
 wonder-working God. 
 
 25. — And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us John i. 14. 
 
 Turn aside, my soul, this day, from every vain and worldly 
 thought, as Moses did at the bush, and behold by faith the 
 accomplishment of what he then saw in type and figure, of 
 this great sight which the Lord hath made known unto thee. 
 — The Word, the uncreated Word, even the eternal Son of 
 God, taking upon him the nature of man, and uniting both 
 in one Person, that by the union he might be a suitable Sa- 
 viour for his people. As God, he was mighty to save, and 
 fully competent to the wonderful act. As man, he was a 
 suitable Saviour, for the right of redemption belonged to 
 him. And as both. He, and He alone, could become a pro- 
 per Mediator, to reconcile and bring together God and man, 
 which by sin were at variance. This was the glorious news 
 angels posted down from heaven to proclaim. This was the 
 song of heaven, for which they sung, Glory to God in the 
 highest, and on earth peace, good will to men. My soul ! 
 canst thou join the song ? Yes, if so be thou hast received 
 Christ in those glorious characters ; if, as for this divine pur- 
 pose he was born in our streets, he is born in thy heart also, 
 and formed there the hope of glory. Oh ! it is a blessed 
 thing to have true scriptural views of the Lord Jesus, and so 
 
312 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 to receive him, as Jehovah hath set him forth, the Christ of 
 God. Amen, 
 
 26. — Jesus Christ of the seed of David. — 2 Timothy ii. 2. . 
 
 Sweet thought ! Jesus will have regard to both sexes, in 
 his incarnation. He will be of the seed of the woman ; he 
 Avill be also truly and properly man. As both the man and 
 woman had sinned, so redemption shall be for both. But in 
 the holy nature, in which as Redeemer he will come, he will 
 partake of none of their sins. The man shall have no hand 
 in his generation. And the womb of the woman shall be 
 but the deposit of "that holy thing'' so called, (Luke i. 35,) 
 by the miraculous conception of the Holy Ghost. So that 
 the body which God the Father prepared him, belonged to 
 both, but was unconnected with either. He must be truly 
 man ; for the law had said. Every male that openeth the 
 womb shall be called Hoi}?- unto the Lord. He must be a 
 priest ; and no woman could minister in that office. He 
 must be a prophet; and no woman could exercise that pro- 
 vince, for it is not permitted for a w^oman to speak in the 
 church. He must be a king ; and the kingly office belong- 
 eth not to the weaker vessel. But both sexes shall be equally 
 at the same time concerned in the blessed event of his incar- 
 nation. The w^oman is saved in the child-bearing of this 
 Redeemer, and the man brought into favour and reconcilia- 
 tion ; for as by man came death, by man came also the resur- 
 rection of the dead. So that, as the Apostle strongly and 
 satisfactorily concludes, there is neither Jew nor Greek, there 
 is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female, but 
 ye are all one in Christ Jesus, 
 
 27. — For tlie mountains shall depart, and the hills shall be removed : but 
 my kindness shall not depart from thee, neither shall the covenant 
 of my peace be removed, saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee. — 
 Isaiah liv. 10. 
 
 What a rest is here, for a poor redeemed sinner to stand 
 firm upon, in time and to all eternity ! Well may he cry out 
 concerning Jesus, and his great salvation in him. He is a 
 rock, and his work is perfect. Yes ! yes, thou Lord God of 
 my salvation : thou art my dwelling-place in all generations. 
 My soul, look all around thee, look within thee, look every 
 where about thee. Search, behold, examine diligently, what 
 
DECEMBER. 313 
 
 else will or can afford thee any security. And think what a 
 dying world it is in which thou art dwelling", or rather tra- 
 velling through. What friend, what brother, what child, 
 what relation, can give thee help of soul, or even of body, 
 when thou most shalt need it? Think what a day, a week, 
 an hour, may bring forth ! Amidst all these changes, is Jesus 
 thine? 'Qoih he tell thee, that though mountains depart, and 
 hills be removed, his salvation and the Father's covenant of 
 peace is the same ? Shout, shout, my soul, and begin the 
 song, which in a dying hour will only swell louder : Salva- 
 tion to God and the Lamb ! 
 
 28. — The eyes of the Lord thy God are always upon thee, from the be- 
 ginnmg of the year, even unto the end of the year. — Deut. xi. 12. 
 
 Oh for grace to live always under an abiding sense of this 
 most blessed truth. My soul, never forget it, if possible, but 
 always possess in recollection an abiding apprehension of 
 Jesus' gracious presence. And do thou, dearest Lord, when 
 thou art coming forth in mercies, give me grace to be going 
 forth to meet thee with praises ; and while thou art bartering 
 thy riches for my poverty, let all thy bounties be doubly 
 sweetened in coming from thine own hand, and being sanc- 
 tified by thy blessing, that I may receive all to my soul's joy, 
 and to the praise of the Father's grace in Christ Jesus. 
 Amen. 
 
 29. — Not one thing hath failed, of all the good things which the Lord 
 your God spake concerning you. — Joshua xxiii. 14. 
 
 Say, my soul, in looking back the past year, canst thou set 
 thy seal to this truth ? Is there a promise which thy God 
 hath not fulfilled ? Is there an instance in which God hath 
 forfeited his word ? Canst thou point to the time, or place, 
 in any one trial, or under any one afliiction, in which thou 
 hast not found God faithful? Give then the Lord the honour 
 due unto his name. If not one thing hath failed, proclaim 
 his glory, set forth his praise, declare his truth, let the father 
 to the children make known that God is faithful. And oh ! 
 let thine heart bear testimony to what must be said of all his 
 Israel, in all ages. What hath God wrought ! 
 
 27 
 
314 MORNING PORTION. 
 
 30. Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpah and Shen, 
 
 and called the name of it Eben-ezer, saying, Hitherto the Lord hath 
 us. — 1 Sam. vii. 12. 
 
 Dm Samuel do this? Was that servant of the Lord, who 
 lived not to see Christ in the flesh, so full of faith in the com- 
 ino- Saviour, and in the experiences of Jehovah's faithfulness 
 in what was past, that he set up his Ebenezer 1 Surely, my 
 soul, thou wilt blush to be outdone by the prophet, when thou 
 hast not only seen the day of the Son of man completed, but 
 felt his power. Oh, my soul ! let thine Ebenezer be Jesus ! 
 Let the stone thou settest up, be indeed the Rock of ages. 
 Yes, my soul ! set up Jesus indeed, in all places, at all times, 
 upon all occasions. And oh. Lord ! do thou by thy blessed 
 Spirit set up thyself in my heart, and enthrone thyself there, 
 and reign and rule there foreever. Surely, my soul ! Jesus 
 is thine every day Ebenezer ; for he not only hath hitherto 
 helped, but he doth help, and will help, and be himself thine 
 Help, thy God, thy Portion, thy Jesus, for evermore. 
 
 31. — And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying. Speak unto Aaron, and 
 imto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Is- 
 rael, saying unto them, The Lord bless thee, and keep thee. The 
 Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. 
 The Lord lift up his countenance upon ihee, and give thee peace. 
 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel, and I will 
 bless them. Numbers vi. 22 to 27. 
 
 Pause, my soul, and in these sweet words behold thine 
 almighty Aaron, even Jesus, in his everlasting priesthood, day 
 by day, thus blessing his people. Observe, the blessing in 
 the name of the Lord Jehovah is thrice pronounced, as if to 
 teach the plurality of persons in the Godhead. And observe 
 also, after this blessing thrice pronounced, Jehovah, as if to 
 intimate the unity of the divine essence, declares, I will bless 
 them. My soul, mark each. The First may be considered 
 as the personal blessing of God the Father, whose gracious 
 office it is in the work of redemption to bless and keep his 
 people. The Second is the peculiar mercy of Jesus, whose 
 face is always upon his people, and his grace their portion. 
 And the Third is the work of God the Holy Ghost, when 
 his blessed influences are shed abroad upon the soul, in the 
 light of his divine countenance. And, my soul, observe fur- 
 ther, how personally this blessing from the Holy Three in 
 One is to each individual : it is to thee, even to thee. And, 
 
DECEMBER. 315 
 
 my soul, do not forget nor overlook this vast privilege in the 
 blessing. Aaron the great high-priest of the church, could 
 only pray for the people that these mercies might be upon 
 them ; but thy great High-priest, the Lord Jesus, confirms 
 them. His language is, Father / will. And God having 
 raised up his Son Jesus, hath sent him to bless us. Here 
 then, blessed, precious Jesus ! thou Great High-priest of my 
 soul! close the day, every daj^, close the year, close my life, 
 whenever thou shalt be pleased to call me home, in thus 
 blessing me. Lord ! put thy name upon me, and upon all 
 thy church and people, and we shall be most blessed indeed, 
 in life, in death, and for evermore, Amen : Hallelujah : 
 Amen 1 
 
 THE END. 
 
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 as well as in England. Some of his children and grand-children are here. And he 
 has, doubtless, not a few spiritual children among us. We trust that many will read 
 and understand, and derive abundant profit from the example thus furnished, of min 
 isterial fidelity and its earthly rewards." — Boston Recorder. 
 9 
 
R. CARTEPv'S PUBLICATIONS. 
 
 THE LORD'S SUPPER. 
 
 Bickersteth's Treatise on the Lord's Supper. With an Introduction, 
 Notes, and an Essay. By G. T. Bedell, D.D. Fifth Edition. 
 
 " This work is characterized by sound and scriptural views of the ordinance of the 
 Supper, which are adapted to strengthen the Christian's faith, to increase his value of 
 this divine institution, and to secure to him the legitimate benefits of an attendance 
 upon it." — Argus. 
 
 COMMUNICANT'S COMPANION. 
 
 By the Rev. Matthew Henry. With an Introductory Essay, by the Rev. 
 John Brown of Edinburgh. 
 
 " This volume comes to us as an old familiar acquaintance and friend, from which 
 we derived essential benefit in the early part of our Christian career. It is lucid, in- 
 structive, and devotional ; and an intimate acquaintance with its contents, devoutly 
 improved, will render the Christian's approach to the sacrament happy to himself and 
 greatly subsidiary to his growth in grace." — Christian Mirror. 
 
 BAXTER'S CALL, 
 
 Now or Never, and Fifty Reasons. With an Introductory Essay, by Dr. 
 Chalmers. 
 
 RELIGION AND ETERNAL LIFE; 
 
 Or, Irreligion and Eternal Death. By J. G. Pike, author of '' Persuasives 
 to Early Piety," &c. 
 
 THE FARMER'S DAUGHTER, 
 
 A Tale. By Mrs. Cameron. 
 " This is a well-told tale, replete with incident, and full of instruction and good 
 counsel to young ladies. The heroine relates her own history, and that of her pa- 
 rents, in simple and affecting language. Her mother was the daughter of a pious 
 Welsh curate, married a Lincolnshire farmer, who took her from among the lovely 
 hills and vales of Cambria, to the low levels of the fen country on the eastern coast 
 of England, where she sickened and died, leaving an only daughter, who was brought 
 up by her grandmother, a widow of considerable estate, but little refinement, and less 
 religion. The mother, however, was a religious woman, and carried a good infiueuce 
 into the farmer's family ; and the tale ends well, as all tales should do, without a 
 word about elopement, murder, or suicide." — Christian Advocate and Journal. 
 
 LIFE OF REV. JOHN NENA/'TON, 
 
 Written by himself to A.D. 1763 ; and continued to his Death in 1807, 
 by the Rev. Richard Cecil. 
 
 " It is very instructing, and of absorbing interest, and illustrates the grace of God 
 in a most remarkable manner, showing the power of that grace to change the hardest 
 heart, to restore the lost prodigal. A stubborn, rebellious youth, a roving sailor, an 
 outcast on the barbarous coasts of Africa, assimilated to the natives by his vices and 
 d^radation, a slaver, and commander of a slave ship, becomes the meek and humble 
 follower of Christ, and an exemplary and successful minister of the Gospel." — Port- 
 land Mirror. 
 
 THE HARP ON THE NA^ILLOWS, 
 
 Remembering Zion, Farewell to Egypt, The Church in the House, The 
 Dew of Hermon, and the Destination of the Jews. By the Rev. Jas. 
 Hamilton, of London. From the forty-fifth London .Edition. 
 " The first three Essays have especial reference to the recent movements of the 
 Church of Scotland ; and they not only exhibit a faithful historical outline of the 
 separation, but connect with it many appropriate reflections, characterized by exqui- 
 site beauty, fervent piety, and melting pathos. The subjects treated in the remain- 
 ing parts of the work are of a difi"erent character; but there is not a paragraph in 
 the book which does not indicate the union of genius and piety."— ^r^'tw. 
 10 
 
R. CARTER'S PUBLICATIONJ 
 
 WORKS BY THE HEY. JOHxN A. CLAEK, D.D. 
 
 Late Rector of St. Andrew's Church, Philadelphia. 
 
 His works are all characterized by good thoughts expressed in a graceful and ap- 
 propriate manner, by great seriousness and unction, and an earnest desire to promote 
 the spiritual interests of his fellow-men." — Daily Advertiser. 
 
 A WALK ABOUT ZION. 
 
 ReviseJ and Enlarged. Fifth Edition. 12mo. Two steel Engravings. 
 
 XHE PASTOR'S TESTIMONY. 
 
 Revised and Corrected. Fifth Edition. 12mo. Two steel Engravings. 
 
 THE YOUNG DISCIPLE; 
 
 Or, a Memoir of Anzoaetta R, Peters. Fourth Edition. 12rao. 
 
 GATHERED FRAGMENTS. 
 
 Fourth Edition. 12mo. Two steel Engiravings. 
 
 CoNTAiNTXG.— The M'Ellen Family.— The Paralytic— The Withered Branch Re- 
 Tived.— The Baptism.— Little Ann. — The Meeting of the Travellers.— Mary May- 
 wood. — A Family in Eternity. — One whose Record is on High, &c. &c. 
 
 GLEANINGS BY THE NA^AY. 
 
 Or, Travels in the Countiy. 1 vol. 12mo. 
 AWAKE, THOU SLEEPER! 
 
 A Series of Awakening Discourses. 12mo. 
 "Few American clergymen have contributed more by their efiForts from the pulpit 
 and through the press, to promote the cause of evangelical truth and piety, than the la- 
 mented author of this volume. Happily, though dead, he yet speaks in a tone of im- 
 pressive and earnest admonition ; and the present volume particularly, is a witness 
 to the fidelity and zeal with which he discharged his ministerial duties. The subjects 
 of which it treats are of the deepest moment; and the manner in which he treats 
 them is worthy of the tenderness and fidelity of an ambassador of Christ. The work 
 is admirably adapted to promote a revi\ ul of religion." 
 
 COMPLETE NA^ORKS OF BISHOP BUTLER. 
 
 Containing Analogy of Natural and Revealed Religion, Dissertations, Ser- 
 mons, Correspondence with Dr. Clarke, &c. &c. To which is prefixed 
 an Account of the Character and Writings of the Author. By Dr. Ha- 
 lifax, Bishop of Gloucester. 1 vol. 8vo. Splendid Edition, on pica 
 type and fine paper. 
 
 BUTLER'S ANALOGY. Large type. 8vo. 
 
 BUTLER'S SERMONS. 8vo. 
 
 BAXTER'S SAINTS' REST. Large type. 
 
 DICK ON ACTS. 
 
 Lectures on the Acts of the Apostles. By the late John Dick, D.D., 
 
 Professor of Theology of the United Secession Church, Glasgow, author 
 
 of " Lectures on Theology," <fec. From second Glasgow Edition. 8vo. 
 
 *' The style of the author is peculiarly adapted to a work of this description. It 
 
 is uncommonly perspicuous, terse, nervous and calm. His ideas are the production 
 
 of a highly-cultivated mind, originally endowed with strong common sense. lu 
 
 many respects he has the characteristics of Andrew Fuller, with more of the polish of 
 
 the school." — Baptist Advocate. 
 
 MEMOIR OF MRS. ISABELLA GRAHAM. 
 
 11 
 
R. CARTER'S PUBLICATIONS. 
 
 JAY'S MORNING EXERCISES 
 
 For the Closet, for Eveiy Day in the Year. New Edition. 12mo. 
 
 JAY'S EVENING EXERCISES 
 
 For the Closet, for Every Day in the Year. New Edition. 12mo. Uni- 
 form with the Morning Exercises. 
 
 DAVID'S PSALMS. 48mo. gilt. 
 
 Do. do. With Brown's Notes. 18mo. 
 
 THE INQUIRER DIRECTED 
 
 To an Experimental and Practical View of the Work of the Holy Spirit 
 By Rev. Octavius Winslow. 1 vol. 12mo. 
 
 CHRIST OUR LA\A^. 
 
 By Miss Caroline Fry. Author of " The Listener," " Christ our Exam- 
 ple," &c. 1 vol. 12mo. Second Edition. 
 
 LIFE, NA^ALK AND TRIUMPH OF FAITH. 
 
 By the Rev. W. Romaine, A.M. 12mo. New Edition. Muslin 
 
 KEY TO THE SHORTER CATECHISM, 
 
 Containing Catechetical Exercises, a Paraphrase, and a new Series of 
 Proofs on each Question. New Edition. 18mo. 
 
 SORROWING YET REJOICING. 32mo. gilt edge. 
 CONTEST AND ARMOUR. 
 
 By Dr. Abercrombie. 32mo. extra cloth, gilt edge. 
 
 GIFT FOR MOURNERS. 
 
 By Flavel and Cecil. 32mo. extra cloth, gilt edge. 
 
 CECIL'S REMAINS. 
 
 Remains of the Rev. Richard Cecil, M.A. To which is prefixed a View 
 of his Character. By Joseph Pratt, B.D., F.A.S. From the eleventh 
 London Edition. 1 vol. 12mo. 
 
 ALLEINE'S LIFE AND LETTERS. 12mo. 
 
 HERVEY'S MEDITATIONS. 2 vols. 1 Brno. 
 
 MEMOIR OF DR. NISBET. 
 
 By Dr. Miller, of Princeton. 12mo. 
 
 HILL AND VALLEY. By Miss Sinclair. 12mo. 
 
 LIGHTS 86 SHADONA^S OF SCOTTISH LIFE. 
 
 By Professor Wilson. ISmo. 
 
 MEMOIR OF MARY LUNDIE DUNCAN. 
 
 Second American Edition. IBmo. 
 
 PRACTICAL REFLECTIONS. 
 
 On the Second Advent. By the Rev. Hugh White, A.M. 18mo. 
 12 
 
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