not be in thy condition for ten thousand worlds; and yet I cannot but have bowels of pity towards thee, which constrain me to speak, knowing thy condition better than thou dost thyself. Oh! couldst thou but speak with thy fellow-drunkards that are now in hell, O what a dreadful story would they tell thee of their burning, suffering, pain and torments; some are in hell already for the same sins you live in; and if you live and die without Christ you shall ere long be with them.

Thirdly, The swearer, the blasphemous swearer prefers his oaths before Christ; many can swear by their Creator and Maker, speak proudly, look highly, and walk contemptuously, as if there were no God to punish, no devil to torment. Well, let me tell thee, O thou swearer, that now delights in cursing, thou shalt be ere long sent with a curse to a cursed place. Depart ye cursed into everlasting flames, will Christ say to such persons.

Lastly, The proud person prefers his pride before Christ; if a fine suit of clothes did lie on the one hand, and Christ on the other, the proud person would rather put on the suit of clothes than Christ. O, I beseech you consider what a vile and abominable thing it is to prefer anything before Christ: Consider this, saith the Psalmist, ye that forget God, lest he tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver you. O poor wretch! consider of that text. Thou liest open to all the judgments in this life, and to all the torments in the life which is to come, all ye wicked ones that prefer any thing before Christ.

Eighthly, The last inference is this, If Jesus Christ be so wonderful, Oh then every one that heareth of Christ should think it to be a most dreadful thing to miss of Christ.

Oh Christians and friends! consider of it; certainly that man or woman's condition must needs be sad indeed, that lives and dies without Jesus Christ. O poor wretch! the devil looks but for a look from God to come and rend thee to pieces, and draw thy soul to hell. Poor soul, thy soul is in danger every hour, of being arrested by death and carried prisoner to hell. O sirs, I beseech you do you think and consider yourselves, what a sad thing it is to miss of Christ. Until a man is in Christ, he hath nothing, knows nothing, enjoys nothing, can do nothing, is fit for nothing, and is worth nothing, Prov. x. 20.

O, I beseech you, that you would consider seriously that of all miseries, that is the greatest of miseries to miss of Christ: we are never able to iament the loss of the poor soul that loseth Jesus Christ; all losses are wrapt up in that one loss.And therefore I beseech you all both good and bad, bethink yourselves, what a sad condition that person is in that misseth of Christ. So much for this use of information.

A BELIEVER'S GOLDEN CHAIN.

I come now to the second use, aud that is an use of exhortation: and here I shall make a Golden Chain of twelve links for believers to wear about their necks.

1. Hear the best men. 2. Read the best books. 3. Keep the best company.

1. Hear the best men. O sirs, hear a soul-enriching minister, a soul-winning minister, a soulsearching minister, one that declareth the whole council of God. and gives the Father his due, the Son his due, and the Holy-Ghost his due; one that maketh hard things easy, and dark things plain. Many there are, I may speak with grief, and to their shame, who instead of making hard things easy to the people, make easy things hard to the people, plain things dark, speaking in an unknown tongue which the people understand not; and all to work a vain admiration of them in the ignorant: But how unlike to Christ, the prophets and apostles these are, I will leave you to judge.

This is, as if a man should make a scaffold as high as a steeple, when his work is done upon the ground: ministers are fishermen, now you know if fisherman should wind their nets together, they

would catch nothing; but if they would catch the fish, they must spread the net. The application is easy, a sanctified heart is better than a silver tongue; a heart full of grace is better than a head full of notions; notional knowledge, it may make a man's head giddy, but it will never make a man's heart holy: that which most tickleth delicate ears, least helpeth diseased spirits; How are we to speak to God and live, much less to speak from God and to the people that they may live? How holy had they need to be that draw near to a holy God? Ministers are called angels because we should be as angels in our lives: but if angels fall they turn devils. O we should be holy as the holy angels.

It is the foolishness of preaching that saves souls, but not foolish preaching; Christ taught them as they were able to hear it, and as they were able to bear it, Mark iv. 33. Paul was excellent at this, I had rather speak five words in a known tongue, than ten thousand in an unknown tongue. A man may be a great scholar, and yet a great sinner; Judas the traitor, was Judas the preacher: and therefore, let me beseech you, for your poor souls, sake, hear those ministers that come nearest to Christ the Prophets and Apostles. He is the best preacher that does the most good, and wins the most souls. You may go from men to truth, but not from truth to men; for the best of men are but men at the best. 2. Read the best books, for in them you will find the best things; and compare what is spoken in

the books of men, with what is written in the book of God.

3. Keep the best company; be much with them that are much with God; walk with them that walk with God. Truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. John. i. 3. Forsake all bad company, and join thyself with good company; let them be thy choicest companions that have made Christ their choicest companion; lay them nearest your hearts, who lie nearest Christ's heart; carry them in your bosom by love, who shall be carried by the angels into Abrahan.'s bosom; let Christ's love be your love; with whom shall believers be, but with believers? You know what our English proverb is, birds of a feather will flock together; Acts. iv. 14: they went to their own company. are fit company for a believer, but a believer; to see a saint and a sinner associating one with another, is to see the living and the dead keep house together; carnal men, though they be naturally alive, yet they are spiritually dead; it is better to be with Lazarus, though in rags, than to be with Dives, though in his robes. He that walketh with the wise shall be wise, Prov. xiii.

Being let go,
Indeed none

II. Meditate often, think often on the four last things; death which is most certain, judgment which is most strict, hell which is most doleful, heaven which is most delightful.

1. Meditate upon death, which is most certain; It is appointed unto men once to die; Heb. ix. 27.