it, and the cry given, "Who is on the Lord's fide ?" When judicatories of the church are bending their force to flay the witneffes, and to caft them out of the city, it is time for any that profefs friendship to Chrift, and own him as their King, to inquire where they are, or where they ftand. (6) By fuffering for him, through grace, when called, as he fuffered for

us.

9. Another word of exhortation to the fubjects of the King of Zion, is, to act the part of faithful foldiers in fighting your King's battles, against fin, Satan, and the world. Fight against fin; this is the grand enemy that Chrift came to destroy, and make an end of; and therefore, &c. Wage war against Satan; for Chrift came to bruife his head: "Refift the devil, and he will flee from you," &c. Wage war against the world; for "the friendship of this world is enmity against God; the world was an enemy to Chrift, and it will be an enemy to his caufe, work, and teftimony, to the end. Thefe are the enemies you are to enter the lifts with. Motive (1.) He has fought your battles; he entered the lifts with fin, Satan, and the world, yea, with the wrath of God, and the curfe of the law, to the dying of his garments, and the pouring out of his foul unto death. (2.) Your King has gained the victory, he has broken and routed the enemy, and is wearing the victorious palm, &c. (3.) His victory is yours in law, by virtue of the legal and myftical union betwixt you and him; and therefore he calls all his friends to rejoice, and take up the fpoils of his victory as their own: hence the apostle cries, "Thanks be unto God, which always caufeth us to triumph in Chrift." (4.) Your King, who is alfo your leader and commander, he has given command to "fight the good fight of faith, to ftand faft, to quit yourselves like men, and to be ftrong." All the fubjects of Chrift are foldiers, while in the church militant, and required to "contend for the faith, to refift even unto blood, ftriving against fin." (5.) Your King is a fpectator of your behaviour in the field of battle, and fees who acts as cowards in his caufe, and who acts the part of valiant foldiers. (6.) Your King is ready to fuccour you, when the battle is hot, and when you are like to be worsted: "Fear not, for I am with thee; be not difmayed, for I am thy God." The Lord flood with Paul, when all men forfook him. (7.) Your King will found the retreat in a little time, and call you off the field, to triumph with him in glory; for "if we fuffer with him, we fhall alfo reign with him; your light afflictions and combats, which are but for a moment, work for you a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,"

VOL. II.

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I conclude this branch of the exhortation with a few advices. If you would fight the battles of the King of Zion, (1.) Be fure to have his kingdom and authority established within you, and study to have every thought brought into captivity unto the obedience of the King of Zion, and be aware of harbouring any traitor in your own bofom. Can ever that man fight the open battles with the external enemies of the King of Zion, who is faying a confederacy with fin in his bofom? &c. And therefore give daily battle unto indwelling fin, a body of fin and death, and "take heed, left there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief," turning you afide "from the living God." (2.) You must make ufe of your King's armoury, and the weapons of his providing and appointing, if you would fight his battles; what thefe are, fee Eph. vi. 13. 14. &c. "Above all, taking the shield of faith," &c. (3.) Keep within the fight of your royal King. As we muft run our race, fo we must fight our battles, "looking unto Jefus." A fight of the King of Zion, infpires the foldiers with courage and greatnefs of fpirit: "They looked unto him, and were lightened: and their faces were not afhamed. Confider him who endured the contradiction of finners against himself, left ye be wearied and faint in your minds." (4.) Carry the blood of your King continually along with you, in the hand of faith, efpecially in the day of battle; for the enemy flees at the fight of it: Rev. xii. 11. "They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb," &c. (5.) In the time of open war study to know and keep the camp of the King of Zion, and be aware of the camp of the enemy. That is a queftion we would gladly be folved of, Where is the King's camp? for fome are faying, in our di vided day, "Lo, it is here," and others, "Lo, it is there;" will you tell us "where he feedeth, where he makes his flocks to reft?" Anfwer, negatively, it is not always where stands the greateft multitude; for Chrift's flock is but a little flock. In the days of Elijah it was among feven thoufand. It is not always with a body of men calling themselves the church of Chrift, enjoying the protection of law, and civil authority on their fide; for we have heard and feen the day when Popery and Prelacy had the law of the land, and civil authority for them.

Queft. How then may the camp of the King of Zion be known?

Anfw. (1.) The King's camp is where the King's ftandard is upheld, not where it is pulled down. Where is" the teltimony of Jefus," the covenanted teftimony of Scotland? Whoever they be that are holding the doctrine, worship, difci pline, and government of his houfe, in their purity, there is

the

the King's camp. (2.) The King's camp is where his flock is gathered, and not where they are scattered, born down, and oppreffed. (3.) The King's camp is where his glory is most difplayed, and not where his glory is darkened and obfcured. (4.) The King's camp is where the smell of his garments gladdens the hearts of his fubjects, Pfal. xlv. &c. (5.) The King's camp may be known by the current of the flood of the old ferpent's malice: Rev. xii. 15. 17. there we read that "the ferpent caft out of his mouth waters as a flood, after the woman;" i. e. the devil raised a storm of perfecution and trouble against the church of Chrift, reprefented by the woman: and, ver. 17. The dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her feed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the teftimony of Jefus Chrift." So then if you would know where is the camp of the King of Zion, where his ftandard is; you may obferve whereaway the weapons of hell are levelled, malice, reproach, perfecution of hand or tongue; for there is the camp of Chrift, for he "fights neither against small nor great, but against the King of Ifrael," and his feed and intereft.

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10. A tenth word of exhortation to the fubjects of the King of Zion, is, to rejoice in the hope of his heavenly kingdom; for ere it be long thy King, O believer, will call thee out of the church militant to the church triumphant; and therefore rejoice in the hope of the glory of God." And, to excite your joy, and quicken your longings after the heavenly kingdom, where the King of Zion is in perfon, I will tell you of a few things ye fhall then be freed of, which are gravaminous and heavy to you while in the church militant on earth. (1.) Freed of all neceffities of nature. No need of food when dismantled of the body of clay; and when it is raised again it will be a fpiritual body, they do not eat and drink, &c. No need of clothing to cover the fhame of your nakedness: for they fhall not only be like the bodies of Adam and Eve, but like Christ's glorious body. No need of armour; for then there fhall be no enemy. No need of fleep; for "there will be no night there." So then, (2.) Freed from all imperfection, both of foul and body. The infirmities of the body are left in the grave; and as for the foul it is made perfect in holiness; "that which is in part, fhall be done away." (3.) Freed from all your toil and labour: Rev. xiv. 13. "They reft from their labours," their work fhall be their element, like the finging of the bird, which is its pleafure. (4) Freed from all forrow: Rev. xxi. 4. "There fhall be no more forrow. We that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened." (5.) Freed from all temptations. The poifoned arrows of the enemy do not touch the inhabit

ants

ants of the church triumphant; he is caft out; "no lion to hurt," &c. (6.) Freed from all vexing and carking cares, whereby ye are now tortured. Care waftes the fpirits, and eats out the comforts of our life here always; but no fuch thing in the church triumphant; no fear, and therefore no care: no fear of want where all things will be enjoyed. (7.) Freed of all doubts of the love of God; none faying, "where is thy former loving kindness?" You fhall be in the embraces of your King for ever, wrapt up in his arms and bofom. (8.) Freed of the fociety of the wicked world. Chrift's lily is now among the thorns, but in the church triumphant there is no more pricking briers in all God's field; Chrift will "throughly purge his floor." (9.) Freed from all divifions. The faddeft thing in the church militant is the divifions among thofe that are really gracious. The divifions between godly and wicked are not fo afflicting as the divifions among faints. But this fhall be done away then, then they will be all one in the Lord, and all their jealoufies and cenfures of one another will end. (10.) Freed of all diftraction and wandering of spirit in the worship of God; now the heart will be fixed on God for ever.. Let thefe things excite you to long for the day-break of everlafting vision above.

Queft. What fecurity have we, while in the church militant, that we fhall come to the church triumphant, where the King of Zion is in perfon?

Anfw. (1.) God has ordained it for you, as you fee Matth. xxv. ult. &c. (2.) The promife of God, which is "yea and amen in Chrift," fecures it. Luke xii. 32. &c. and xxii. 29. &c (3.) Your King has purchased it for you; Eph. i. 14. a "purchafed poffeffion." (4.) Your King, who is alfo your Interceffor, has prayed for it, John xvii. 24, &c. (5.) Your King has taken poffeffion of it for you, John xiv. 2. "I go to prepare a place for you." (6.) Your King has given you the earneft of it; his kingdom within you fays you are come to his kingdom above; the firft-fruits of the Spirit affures you of the full vintage. (7.) Your union with the King of Zion fecures it; the glory of his natural body is a prefage of the glory of his myftical body. (8.) A goodly company are already arrived, an innumerable company of the first born," and therefore the reft fhall follow; therefore "look up, and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh."

I proceed now to offer a word of exhortation unto the second fort of perfons I named, and that is to you who are yet ftrangers to Zion's King, and enemies to his kingdom and govern

ment.

ment. I already gave you the character and marks both of his friends and enemies: in a few words, to clear the matter to: you. All who are yet in a state of nature, and never felt the efficacy of the grace of God in a work of regeneration, are among the enemies of Zion's King; for "the carnal mind is enmity against God." All who never felt the power of Chrift's prophetical office execute upon them in a work of illumination, opening the eyes of their understanding to know Chrift in his perfon, natures, offices, and undertaking, and to know the mind and will of God revealed in the word. All who are "ignorant. of the righteoufnefs of God, and going about to establish their own righteoufnefs," I mean all legalifts, who are cleaving to the law as a covenant, and have not " fubmitted to the righteousness of JEHOVAH TSIDKENU," are yet enemies to the kingdom and government of Zion's King; never any, in reality, fubmitted to his laws and government, who did not firft fubmit unto his righteoufnefs. All who fit under the drop of the gospel, and have a Saviour and his whole falvation brought, near unto them, and yet continue to reject him and his falvation through unbelief, Chrift will hold all fuch as enemies to his kingdom and government: Heb. ii. 3. "How fhall we escape if we neglect fo great a falvation?" They that were invited to the marriage-fupper of the King, and yet refufed, the King fends forth his armies, and miferably deftroys those wicked. men. All Gallios and neutrals in the caufe of Chrift, who are easy whether the caufe of Chrift fink or swim, they are among his enemies; for "he that gathereth not with us, feattereth abroad;" lukewarm Laodiceans the Lord fpues them out of his mouth. All that are combining against the Lord, and against his Anointed, and laying their heads and hands together to ruin the kingdom of Chrift, a covenanted work of reformation, and with axes and hammers breaking down the carved work of the temple, &c. All profane Efaus, who for a mefs of pottage are felling their birth-right as Chriftians, facrificing their liberties whereby Chrift hath made them free, for any fecular or worldly confideration whatever. All who are, with the ferpent, licking up the duft of the earth, and preferring the vanities of this world to things of eternal concern. All who are rejecting his laws as the rule of their obedience, and who are faying, 66 we ourselves are lords, and will come no more unto thee," and whofe practice has this language, "We will not have this man to reign over us: Let him depart from us, for we defire not the knowledge of his ways:' I fay, you, and all fuch, are enemies to Zion's King, and ftrangers to his government?

Now, my exhortation to you, as one of the heralds of the renowned