He is fo watchful and careful of his charge, that his mercy and goodness follow his people all their life long. He is ever mindful of his covenant, and of his people; and will perfect that which concerns them: and if at any time his people run into evils, and go aftray, during all fuch time, his eye and care are towards them; yea, and over them then most; to weaken the temptation, to reftrain corruption, and, even when actually fallen, to reftore and recover his people, and bring them back again to him, who is the great Shepherd and Bishop of their fouls. His care is principally exercised about preferving his people, that fin may not have dominion over them. So that we are to understand fuch promises of God's keeping us from all evil, and preserving us blameless, to have respect to keeping us from the evil of fin, fo as not to fuffer us to be tempted above what he enables us to bear; or of his keeping us from being finally conquered, and eternally overcome with it. He takes fpecial care of our goings in his way, and will therefore, when we wander from him, be fure to reduce us again by repentance, and bring us back. He will keep the feet of his faints. He keeps his people from the evil of fin, as it refpects the love, guilt, and power of it. And he preferves his people from all evil, not by preferving them fo as they do not experience what evil is, but by fo working for them, in and by it, that all things work together for their good; and though they are not always victorious, but are fometimes foiled by fin and Satan, yet they have a complete victory in Chrift their head: and when they refift fin,

felf, and Satan, in his name and ftrength, they alfo conquer; yea, the feelings and conflicts they have of and with fin, make them to hate it the more perfectly, and groan for perfect deliverance from it. For though the child of God is not freed from the inbeing of fin, yet he hates it, and loathes himself on the account of it. Every real evil that he is preserved from, is owing to the Lord alone.

I pass on to the fecond thing pointed out under this head, which is the Lord's concern to water the fouls of his people. I, the Lord, do keep it; I will water it every moment. The care of God towards his vineyard, the church, appears most divinely in his keeping it, and watering it. And the clouds wherewith he refreshes his people are the minifters of the everlafting gofpel; who as clouds are in the visible heavens, so are they in the visible churches of Chrift: as the clouds are for watering the earth, that it may bring forth fruit, so the minifters of the gospel, as filled with the gifts and graces, with the word and doctrine of Chrift Jefus, refresh the Lord's people with showers of divine bleffing. The Spirit of Christ accompanying his word and ordinances, the fouls of his people are quickened and ftrengthened. I will be (faith the Lord) as the dew unto Ifrael. In a fovereign, gradual, free, and wonderful manner, the Lord quickens, refreshes, exhilarates, and comforts his people. As the glorious perfections of God's nature fhall fail before the church of Chrift be forfaken and left to the power and rage of her enemies, fo fhe is also affured of conftant fupplies and nourishment from the Lord himself, and that with

out fail, even for the least moment. I, the Lord, do keep it, and will water it every moment: left any burt it, I will keep it night and day. He will water her with his heavenly doctrine to preserve her verdure, and increase her fpiritual growth, and promiseth to be her guardian night and day; in the darkness of adversity, and in the day of profperity: fo that Satan fhall not outwit, nor the craft and fubtilty of heretics and deceivers waste and infnare her, I wall water it every moment. Chrift is a fountain of gardens, a well of living waters and freams from Lebanon. He it is who waters, refreshes, and makes glad the city of our God, his chofen and beloved ones. As rain refreshes the earth, waters the hills, and defcends to the refreshment of both man and beaft, fo Chrift's gracious prefence, the facred influences, the bleffed fhowers of heavenly communications from him to his people, cause their fouls to revive, their hearts to rejoice, and their graces to be excited and drawn forth towards him whom their fouls love. The river of God's love ran, as it were, under ground from eternity, and broke forth in the heart of Chrift when he hung upon the crofs; and when it once, breaks forth towards, and upon any of us in converfion, it never ceafes to be flowing forth in the communication of fome bleffing or other to the believing foul. Our Chrift is the fountain of living waters: he is full of grace, and he is continually watering his church and people, and bestowing upon them real good. I will water it. That Chrift waters his church none will deny; that it is an infinite bleffing, his people will confefs and acknowledge; that

it is all of grace, no faint will object unto: but that this fhould be every moment, here, ten thousand to one, but unbelief will start and raise objections. Í will therefore perfonate the believer, and fuppofe him arguing against the truth of the promise as it respects his own experience of it, thus: Surely, though I believe the word of God is immutably true, and that God cannot deny himself, yet, fure I am, that this is not true concerning me: I am not watered by the Lord every moment; I have not his refreshing and comforting prefence. Give me leave here to afk, Is God no further gracious to thy foul, O believer! than thou canft fee, feel, and discover? Depend upon it, whoever thou art, who doft believe on Chrift by the power of the Holy Ghoft, thou hast experienced, art interested in, and doft partake of more grace than thou doft conceive.

This promife of the Lord, I will water it every moment, respects all and each of the children of the Moft High; and it is continually fulfilled. Confider, believer; who continues fpiritual life in thee? Who quickens thee in prayer, and draws out thy foul in defires after God? Is it not the Holy Spirit? What is this but the real fulfilment of this promife? Thou wilt have no objection against this; but how this fhould be the cafe every moment, is the greatest wonder. And yet, believer, if Christ did not water thy foul every moment, though it is altogether imperceptible by thee, thou wouldft die: for inherent grace could not support itself. This plant would wither and fail without the conftant care of Chrift, and

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did he not renew thy foul, and water thee afresh every To this, it may be, thou wilt yet object : furely it is not fo, it cannot be; for the truth is, I have been in finful frames, I have even fallen under finful influences; how can I think God has been watering my foul every moment, when thus it has been with me? To this I answer, that believers would be in a miferable state, if in the worst of frames, if at any time, even when they fin, and have finned moft, they were not fecretly renewed by the Holy Spirit; for then this would follow upon it, that we fhould fall back inftantly into unregeneracy; but in the worst days we do not, He upholds by renewing fomething of his grace and gracious conflicts in us against fin: and though we feel not these renewings, yet we are thus daily, yea momently, renewed: which caused that holy man, Mr. Dodd, once to fay in the hearing of that man of renown Dr. Thomas Goodwin, I believe that I am thus renewed every day, 66 though I discern it not." So it is also, as it respectṣ the Lord's watering the fouls of his people every moThis is certainly the cafe, though they do not every moment perceive it. Bleffed be God for it, his going forth in the church is prepared as the morn ing. His appearance for her and in her, is as certain as the morning light at the appointed hour. All the clouds which threaten a perpetual night cannot hinder it; all the workers of darkness cannot prevent it: the morning will dawn, whether they will or not: Chrift will not fail his people, nor forfake them for one fingle moment:

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