Works of John Bunyan: WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH. 584

 

ISRAEL'S HOPE ENCOURAGED; OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE.

4. Add to these, the hidings of the face of God from the soul; a thing to it more bitter than death; yet nothing more common among them that hope in the Lord. He 'hideth his face from the house of Jacob!' (Isa 8:17). Nor is this done only in fatherly displeasure, but by this means some graces are kept alive; faith is kept alive by the word, patience by hope, and hope by faith; but oft-times a spirit of prayer, by the rod, chastisement, and the hiding of God's face (Hosea 5:14,15; Isa 26:16; Cant 5:6). But I say, this hiding of this sweet face is bitter to the soul, and oft-times puts both faith and hope to a sad and most fearful plunge. For at such a day, it is with the soul as with the ship at sea, that is benighted and without light; to wit, like a man bewildered upon the land; only the text saith, for the help and succour of such, 'Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness and hath no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and stay upon his God' (Isa 50:10). Yet as it is with children, so it is with saints; we are a great deal more subject to fears in the night than in the day. Therefore, that tends to the help of some graces; if not great care is taken, it will prove a hindrance to others.

5. Nor is the ruler of the darkness of this world wanting to apply himself and his engines so as, if possible, to use all these things to overthrow faith. For the removal of our hope from the Lord, as a tree is removed from rooting in the ground (Job 19:10). Behold! he can expound all things, so they shall fall directly in the way of our believing. As thus, we have sinned. Therefore, we have no grace; sin is a struggle in us. Consequently, we do not fear God; there is something on our side with sin. Consequently, we are wholly unregenerate; sin is in our best performances; therefore, wherefore should I hope? Thus, he can afflict us in our pilgrimage and make our hope difficult. Besides hiding God's face, he can make not only a cause of sorrow, for that indeed it should, but a ground of despair, and as desperately concluding he will never come again. How many good souls has he driven to these conclusions, who afterward have been made to unsay all again?

6. And though spiritual desertions, darkness of soul, and guilt of sin are the burdens most intolerable, they are not all; for there is to be added to all these, that common evil of persecution, another device invented to make void our hope. In this, I say, we are sure to be concerned; that is if we are godly. For though the apostle doth not say, 'All that will live in Christ,' that is, in the shared profession of him, shall suffer persecution; yet he saith, 'All that will live godly in him shall' (2 Tim 3:12). Now this in itself is a terror to flesh and blood and hath a direct tendency in it to make hope difficult (1 Peter 3:6,14). Hence, men of a persecuting spirit, because of their greatness and teeth (the laws), are said to be a terror and to carry amazement in their doings. God's people are apt to be afraid of them, though they should die, and to forget God their Maker, and this makes hoping hard work (Isa 51:12,13).

7. Besides that grimness that appears in the face of persecutors, Satan can tell how to lessen and make to dwindle in our apprehensions, those truths unto which our hearts have joined themselves afore, and to which Christ our Lord has commanded us to stand. So that they shall now appear but little, tiny, inconsiderable things; things not worth engaging for; things not worth running those hazards for, that in the hour of trial may lie staring us in the face. Moreover, we shall not want false friends in every hole, such as continually boring our ears with that saying, Master, do good to yourself. At such times also, 'stars' do use to 'fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken'; and so everything tends to weaken, or at least to lay stumbling blocks in their way, who are commanded to hope in the Lord (Matt 24).

8. Again, as Satan can make use of his subtilty, thus to afflict and weaken the hands and hearts of those that hope in God, so he can add to these the dismalness of a suffering state. He can make the loss of goods, in our imagination, ten times bigger than it is in itself; he can make an informer a frightful creature and a jail look like hell itself; he can make banishment and death utterly intolerable, and things that must be shunned with the hazard of our salvation. Thus, he can greaten and lessen, lessen and greaten, for the troubling of our hearts, for the hindering of our hope.

9. Add to all these that the things that we suffer for were never seen by us but are beyond our sight: things that are indeed said to be great and good, but we have only the word and the Bible for it. And be sure if he that laboureth night and day to devour us, can help it, our faith shall be molested and perplexed at such a time, that it may, if possible, be hard to do the commandment that here the text enjoins us to the practice of; that is, to hope in the Lord. And this brings me to the third particular.

III. That the grace of hope well exercised is the only way to overcome those difficulties.—Abraham had never laughed for joy, had he not hoped when the angel brought him tidings of a son; yea, had he not hoped against all things that could have been said to discourage (Gen 17:17). Hence it is said, that 'against hope' he 'believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, so shall thy seed be' (Rom 4:18). There is hope against hope; hope grounded on faith, against hope grounded on reason. Hope grounded on reason would have made Abraham expect that the promise should surely have been ineffectual because of the deadness of Abraham's body and the barrenness of Sarah's womb. But he hoped against the difficulty, by the hope that sprang from faith, which confided in the promise and power of God, and so overcame the difficulty and indeed obtained the promise. Hope, therefore, well exercised, is the only way to overcome. Hence, Peter bids those who are in a suffering condition, 'Be sober, and hope to the end, for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ' (1 Peter 1:13). And therefore, it is, as you heard before, that we are said to be 'saved by hope' (Rom 8:24).

Works of John Bunyan: WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH. 583

 

ISRAEL'S HOPE ENCOURAGED; OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE.

2. But as they are good, they are great: 'O how great is thy goodness which thou hast laid up for them that fear thee, which thou hast wrought for them that trust,' that hope, 'in thee before the sons of men!' (Psa 31:19). (1.) Their greatness appears, in that they go beyond the Word; yea, beyond the word of the Holy Ghost; it doth not yet appear to us by the Word of God to the full, the greatness of what is prepared for God's people. 'Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be' (1 John 3:2). It doth not appear in the Word; there is a greatness in the things that we are to hope for that could never be expressed: they are beyond word, beyond thought, beyond conceiving of! Paul, when he came down again from out of paradise, into which he was caught up, could not speak a word about the words he heard and the things that he saw there. He saw and heard things and words, 'which it is not possible for a man to utter.' (2.) Their greatness is intimated by the word Eternal; he that knows the bottom of that word shall know what things they are. 'The things which are not seen are eternal' (2 Cor 4:18). They are 'incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away,' reserved in heaven for us (1 Peter 1:4). (3.) Their greatness is shown in that one proper thought of them will fill the heart so complete, that both it and the eyes will run over together; yea, so complete, that the creature shall not be able to stand up under the weight of glory that by it is laid upon the soul. Alas! All the things in this world will not fill one heart; yet one proper thought of the things that God has prepared and laid up in heaven for us will, yea, and overfill it too. (4.) The greatness of the things of the next world appears in that when one of the least of them is shown to us, we cannot abide the sight thereof without support from thence. I count that the angels are of those things that are least in that world; and yet the sight of one of them, when the sight of them was in use, what work would it make in the hearts and minds of mortal men, the scripture plainly enough declares (John 13:22). (5.) Their greatness is intimated, in that we must be as it were new made again, before we can be capable of enjoying them, as we must enjoy them with comfort (Luke 20:36). And herein will be a significant part of our happiness, that we shall not only see them but be made like unto them, like unto their King. For 'when he shall appear, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is' (1 John 3:2). We shall see him, and therefore must be like him, for else the sight of him would overcome us and destroy us; but because we are to see him with comfort and everlasting joy, therefore we must be like him in body and mind (Rev 1:17; Phil 3:20,21).

II. But to come to the second thing, namely, That those that have believed there are such things as these will meet with difficulties before they come at them. This is such a grand truth that nothing can be said against it. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, and we must, through many tribulations, enter into the kingdom of heaven (Acts 14:22). The cause from whence these afflictions arise is known to be,

1. From ourselves; sin, having got such hold in our flesh, makes that opposition against our soul and welfare, continually putting us in trouble. Fleshly lusts work against the soul, and so do worldly lusts too (1 Peter 2:11); yea, they quench our graces, and make them that would live, 'ready to die' (Rev 3:2). Yea, because of these, such darkness, such guilt, such fear, such mistrust, ariseth in us, that it is common for us, if we live any while, to make a thousand conclusions, twice told, that we shall never arrive with comfort at the gates of the kingdom of heaven. The natural tendency of every struggle of the least lust against grace is, if we judge according to carnal reason, to make us question the truth of a work of grace in us and our right to the world to come. This made Paul cry, 'O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me!' (Rom 7:24). Only he had more wisdom than to follow the natural conclusions that carnal reason was apt to make thereupon, and so hoisted up his soul to hope.

2. Sin, by its working in us, doth not only bring darkness, guilt, fear, mistrust, and the like; it doth oft-times as it were hamstring us and disable us from going to God by faith and prayer for pardon. It makes the heart hard, senseless, careless, lifeless, spiritless as to feel, in all Christian duty, and this is a grievous thing to a gracious soul. The other things will create doubt and drive it up to the head into the soul, but these will go on the other side and clench it. Now, all these things make hoping difficult.

3. For by these things, the judgment is not only clouded. The understanding considerably darkened, but all the powers of the soul were made to fight against itself, conceiving, imagining, apprehending, and concluding things that have a direct tendency to extirpate and extinguish, if possible, the graces of God that are planted in the soul; yea, to the making of it cry out, 'I am cut off from before thine eyes!' (Psa 31:22).

Works of John Bunyan: WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH. 582

 

ISRAEL'S HOPE ENCOURAGED; OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE.

The Psalmist therefore, by exhorting us unto this duty, doth put us in mind of four things. I. The best things are yet behind and in reversion for the saints. II. Those who have believed will yet meet with difficulties before they come at them. III. The grace of hope, when well exercised, is the only way to overcome these difficulties. IV. Therefore, they who have hope and exercise it as they should shall assuredly at last enjoy that hope laid up for them in heaven.

For the first of these, the best things are yet behind and in reversion for believers; this is manifest by the natural exercise of this grace. For 'hope that is seen, is not hope; for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it (Rom 8:24,25). Hope lives not by sight, as faith doth; but hope trusteth faith, as faith trusts the Word and bears up the soul in a patient expectation, at last, to enjoy what God has promised. But the very natural work of this grace proves that the believer's best things are behind in reversion.

You may ask me, what those things are? and I may tell you, first, in general, they are heavenly things, they are eternal things, they are the things that are where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God (John 3:12; 2 Cor 4:18; Col 3:1). Do you know them now? They are things that 'eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, nor that have entered into the heart of man to conceive of' (Isa 64:4; 1 Cor 2:9). Do you know them now? They are things that are referred to the next world, for the saints when they come into the next world; talked of they may be now, the actual being of them may be believed now, and by hope we may, and it will be our wisdom to wait for them now. Still, to know what they are like them, or in the enjoyment of them, otherwise than by faith, he is deceived that saith it. They are things too big as yet to enter into our hearts and things too big if they were there to come out or to be expressed by our mouths.

There is the imperial heaven itself; does anybody know what that is? There is the mount Zion, the heavenly Jerusalem, and the innumerable company of angels; does anybody know what all they are? There is immortality and eternal life, and who knows what they are? There are rewards for services and labor of love shown to God's name here; and who knows what they will be? There are mansion-houses, beds of glory, and places to walk in among the angels, and who knows what they are? There will be badges of honor, harps to make merry with, and heavenly songs of triumph; doth any here know what they are? There will be a knowing, an enjoying, and a solacing of ourselves with prophets, apostles, martyrs, and all saints, but in what glorious manner we all are ignorant of. There we shall see and know, and be with forever, all our relations, as wife, husband, child, father, mother, brother, or sister that have died in the faith; but how gloriously they will look when we shall see them, and how gloriously we shall love when we are with them, it is not for us in this world to know (1 Thess 4:16,17). There are thoughts, words, and ways for us that we never dreamed of in this world. The law was but the shadow, the gospel the image; but what will be the substance that comes to us next, or that instead we shall go unto, who can understand? (Heb 10:1). If we never saw God nor Christ as glorified, nor the Spirit of the Lord, nor the bottom of the Bible, nor yet so much as one of the days of eternity,, and yet all these things we shall see and have them, how can it be that the things laid up for us, that should be the object of our hope, should by us be understood in this world? Yet there are intimations given to us of their goodness and greatness.

1. Of their goodness, and that, (1.) In that, the Holy Ghost scorns that things here should once be compared with them; hence, all things here are called vanities, nothings, less than nothing (Isa 40:15-17). Now, if the things, all the things that are here, are so contemptuously considered, when compared with the things that are to be hereafter, and yet these things so great in the carnal man's esteem, as that he is willing to venture life and soul, and all to have them, what are the things that God has prepared for them that wait, that is, that hope for him? (2.) Their goodness also appears in this, that whoever has had that understanding of them, as is revealed in the Word, whether king or beggar, wise mean or fool, he has willingly cast this world behind him in contempt and scorn, for the hope of that (Psa 73:25; Heb 11:24-26, 37-40). (3.) Their goodness even has testimony in their very consciences that hate them. Take the vilest man in the country, the man who is so wedded to his lusts that he will instead run the hazard of a thousand hells than leave them, and ask this man his judgment of the things of the next world, and he will shake his head, and say, They are good, they are best of all. (4.) But the saints have the best apprehension of their goodness, for the Lord doth sometimes drop some of their juice out of the Word, into their hungry souls.

Works of John Bunyan: WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH. 581

 

ISRAEL'S HOPE ENCOURAGED; OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE.

[FIRST. AN EXHORTATION.]

In the exhortation, three things to be considered in the text presented themselves. FIRST, The matter contained in it; SECOND, How it is expressed; THIRD, The inferences that do naturally flow therefrom.

[FIRST. The matter contained in the exhortation.]

We will speak first to the matter in the text, which presented itself to us under three heads. First, A duty. Second, a direction for the proper management of that duty. Third, some people are so good at managing it.

First, I will speak about the duty, and that is HOPE: 'Let Israel HOPE.' By which word is there something pre-admitted, and something of great concern insinuated?

That which is pre-admitted is faith, for when we speak correctly of hope and put others distinctly to the duty of hoping, we conclude that such have faith already; for no faith, no hope. To hope without faith is to see without eyes, or to expect without a ground: for 'Faith is the substance of things hoped for,' as well concerning the grace, as to the doctrine of faith (Heb 11:1). Doth such a one believe? No. Doth he hope? Yes. If the first is true, the second is a lie; he never thought or hoped in the Lord. When he said, 'Let Israel hope in the Lord,' he pre-supposed faith and signified that he speaketh to believers.

That which is of great concern insinuated is that hope has in it an excellent quality to support Israel in all its troubles. Faith has its excellency in this, hope in that, and love in another thing. Faith will do that which hope cannot do. Hope can do that which faith doth not do, and love can do things distinct from both their doings. Faith goes in the van, hope in the body, and love brings up the rear: and thus 'now abideth faith, hope,' and 'charity' (1 Cor 13:13). Faith is the mother-grace, for hope is born of her, but charity floweth from them both.

But a little, now we are upon faith and hope distinctly, to let you see a little. 1. Faith comes by hearing (Rom 10:17), hope by experience (Rom 5:3,4).  Faith comes by hearing the Word of God and hope by the credit that faith has given it (Rom 4:18). 3. Faith believes in the truth of the Word, and hope waits for its fulfillment. 4. Faith lays hold of that end of the promise that is next to us, to wit, as it is in the Bible; hope lays hold of that end of the promise that is fastened to the mercy seat, for the promise is like a mighty cable, that is fastened by one end to a ship, and by the other to the anchor: the soul is the ship where faith is, and to which the hither end of this cable is fastened. Still, hope is the anchor at the other end of this cable, entering into that within the veil. Thus, faith and hope get hold of both ends of the promise, and they carry it safely. 5. Faith looketh to Christ, as dead, buried, and ascended; and hope to his second coming (1 Cor 15:1-4). Faith looks to him for justification and hope for glory (Rom 4:1-8). Faith fights for doctrine and hope for a reward (Acts 26:6,7). Faith for what is in the bible, hope for what is in heaven (Col 1:3-5). 7. Faith purifies the heart from bad principles (1 John 5:4,5). Hope from bad manners (2 Peter 3:11,14; Eph 5:8; 1 John 3:3). 8. Faith sets hope on work, and hope sets patience on work (Acts 28:20, 9:9). Faith says to hope, look for what is promised; hope says to faith, So I do and will wait for it too. Faith looks through the word to God in Christ; hope looks through faith beyond the world to glory (Gal 5:5).

Thus, faith saves, and thus, hope saves. Faith saves by laying hold of God by Christ (1 Peter 1:5). Hope saves by prevailing with the soul to suffer all troubles, afflictions, and adversities that it meets with betwixt this and the world to come, for the sake thereof (Rom 8:24). Take the matter in this plain similitude. There was a king who adopted such a one to be his child, clothed him with the attire of the children of the king, and promised him that if he would fight his father's battles and walk in his father's ways, he should at last share in his father's kingdoms. He has received the adoption and the king's robe, but not yet his part in the kingdom; now, the hope of a share in that will make him fight the king's battles eac and tread the king's paths. Yea, and though he should meet with many things that have a tendency to deter him from so doing, thoughts of the interest promised in the kingdom and hopes to enjoy it will make him out his way through those difficulties and so save him from the ruin that those destructions would bring upon him, and will, in conclusion, usher him into a personal possession and enjoyment of that inheritance. Hope has a thick skin and will endure many a blow; it will put on patience as a vestment; it will wade through a sea of blood; it will endure all things, if it be of the right kind, for the joy set before it. Hence, patience is called 'Patience of hope' because it is hoped that makes the soul exercise patience and long-suffering under the cross until the time comes to enjoy the crown (1 Thess 1:3). The Psalmist, therefore, by this exhortation, persuadeth them that have believed the truth, to wait for the accomplishment of it, as by his own example he did himself—'I wait for the Lord,' 'my soul waiteth,' 'and in his word do I hope.' It is for want of hope that so many brisk professors who have so boasted and made brags of their faith have not been able to endure the drum in the day of alarm and affliction. Their hope in Christ has been such that it has extended itself no further than to this life, and therefore, they are, of all men, the most miserable.

Works of John Bunyan: WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH. 580

 

ISRAEL'S HOPE ENCOURAGED; OR, WHAT HOPE IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM FAITH: WITH ENCOURAGEMENTS FOR A HOPING PEOPLE.

'Auspicious hope! in thy sweet garden grow
    Wreaths for each toil, a charm for every woe.'

Christian hope is a firm expectation of all promised good, especially eternal salvation and happiness in heaven, where we shall be like the Son of God. This hope is founded on Christ's grace, blood, righteousness, and intercession—the earnestness of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and the unchangeable truths and enlightening power of God.[1] 'Every man that hath this hope in him purifies himself even as God is pure' (1 John 3:3). Blessed hope! (Titus 2:13). Well might the apostle pray for the believing Romans, 'That ye may abound in hope through the power of the Holy Ghost' (15:13). 'Which is Christ in you the hope of glory' (Col 1:27). This is the sacred, the solemn, the all-important subject which Bunyan in his ripe age makes the theme of his meditations and of his deeply impressive exhortations.

When drawing near the end of his pilgrimage—while in the fullest fruition of his mental powers—he gives the result of his long and hallowed experience to comfort and cherish his fellow pilgrims in their dangerous heaven-ward journey. One of his last labors was to prepare this treatise for the press, which it issued three years after his decease, under the care of his pious friend Charles Doe.

Here, as drawn from the holy oracles of God, we contemplate Hope, the helmet of salvation, without which our mental powers are exposed to be led captive into despair at the will of Satan. Our venerable author pictures most vividly the Christian's weakness and the power of his enemies; 'Should you see a man that could not go from door to door but he must be clad in a coat of mail, a helmet of brass upon his head, and for his lifeguard a thousand men, would you not say, surely this man has a store of enemies at hand?' This is the case; enemies lie in wait for Israel in every hole. He can neither eat, drink, wake, sleep, work, sit still, talk, be silent—worship his God in public or private, but he is in danger. Poor, lame, infirm, helpless man cannot live without tender—great—rich—manifold—abounding mercies. 'No faith, no hope,' 'to hope without faith is to see without eyes, or expect without reason.' Faith is the anchor that enters within the veil; Christ in us, the hope of glory, is the mighty cable that keeps us fast to that anchor. 'Faith lays hold of that end of the promise that is nearest to us, to wit, in the Bible—Hope lays hold of that end that is fastened to the mercy seat.' Thus, the soul is kept by the mighty power of God. They who have no hope enter Doubting Castle of their own free will—they place themselves under the tyranny of Giant Despair—that he may put out their eyes, and send them to stumble among the tombs, and leave their bones in his castle-yard, a trophy to his victories, and a terror to any poor pilgrim caught by him trespassing on Bye-path Meadow.[2] Hope is a guardian angel—it enables us to come boldly to a throne of grace 'in a goodly sort.' The subject is whole of consolation. Are we profanely apt to judge God harshly, as of one that would gather where he had not strawn? Hope leads us to form a holy and just conception of the God of love. 'Kind brings forth its kind, know the tree by his fruit, and God BY HIS MERCY IN CHRIST. What has God been doing for and to his church from the beginning of the world, extending to and exercising lovingkindness and mercy for them? Therefore he laid a foundation for this in mercy from everlasting.' 'There are no single flowers in God's gospel garden. They are all double and treble; there is a wheel within a wheel, a blessing within a blessing in all the mercies of God; they are manifold; a man cannot receive one, but he receives many, many folded up one within another.' Bless the Lord, O my soul!!

Reader, my deep anxiety is that you should receive from this treatise the benefits which its glorified author intended it to produce. It is accurately printed from the first edition. My notes are intended to explain obsolete words or customs or to commend the author's sentiments. May the Divine blessing abundantly replenish our earthen vessels with this heavenly hope.

GEO. OFFOR.

Works of John Bunyan: THE DOCTRINE OF THE LAW AND GRACE UNFOLDED. 579

 

Object. But now, if any should say in their hearts, O, but I am one of the old covenant men, I doubt—that is, I doubt I am not within this glorious Covenant of Grace. And what if I should not?

Answ. Well, thou fearest that thou are one of the old covenant, a son of the bond-woman. [1.] In the first place, know that thou wast one of them by nature, for all by nature are under that covenant; but set the case that thou art to this day under that, yet let me tell thee, in the first place, there are hopes for thee; for there is a gap open, a way made for souls to come from under the Covenant of Works, by Christ, "for He hath broken down the middle wall of partition between us" and you (Eph 2:14). And therefore, if thou wouldst be saved, thou mayest come to Christ; if thou wantest righteousness, as I said before, there is one in Christ; if thou wouldst be washed, thou mayest come to Christ; and if thou wouldst be justified, there is justification enough in the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the first. [2.] And thou canst not be so willing to come to Christ as He is willing thou shouldst come to Him. Witness His coming down from Heaven, His humiliation, His spilling of His blood from both His cheeks, by sweat under the burden of sin (Luke 22:44), and His shedding of it by the spear when He hanged on the Cross. It also appears by His promises, by His invitations, by His sending forth His messengers to preach the same to poor sinners, and threatened damnation upon this very account, namely, the neglect of Him, and declares that all the thousands and ten thousands of sins in the world should not be able to damn those that believed in Him; that He would pardon all, forgive and pass by all if they would but come unto Him; moreover, promised to cast out none, no, not the poorest, vilest, most contemptible creature in the whole world. "Come unto Me all," everyone, though you be never so many, so wretched, though your load is never so heavy and intolerable, though you deserve no help, not the least help, no mercy, not the least compassion, yet "cast your burden upon Me, and you shall find rest for your souls." Come unto Me, and I will heal you, love you, teach you, and tell you the way to the Kingdom of Heaven. Come unto Me, and I will succour you, help you, and keep you from all devils and their temptations, from the Law and its curses, and from being for ever overcome with any evil whatever. Come unto Me for what you need, and tell Me what you would have, or what you would have Me do for you, and all My strength, love, wisdom, and interest that I have with My Father shall be laid out for you. Come unto Me, your sweet Jesus, your loving and tender-hearted Jesus, your everlasting and sin-pardoning Jesus. Come unto Me, and I will wash you, and put My righteousness upon you, pray to the Father for you, and send My Spirit into you, that you might be saved. Therefore,

Consider, besides this, what a privilege thou shalt have at the Day of Judgment above thousands, if thou do in deed and in truth close in with this Jesus and accept of Him; for thou shalt not only have a privilege in this life, but in the life everlasting, even at the time of Christ's second coming from Heaven; for then, when there shall be the whole world gathered together, and all the good angels, evil angels, saints, and reprobates, when all thy friends and kindred, with thy neighbors on the right hand and on the left, shall be with thee, beholding of the incredible glory and majesty of the Son of God; then shall the Son of Glory, even Jesus, in the very view and sight of them all, smile and look kindly upon thee; when a smile or a kind look from Christ shall be worth more than ten thousand worlds, then thou shalt have it. You know it is counted an honor for a poor man to be favorably looked upon by a judge or a king in the sight of lords, earls, dukes, and princes; why, thus it will be with thee in the sight of all the princely saints, angels, and devils, in the sight of all the great nobles in the world; then, even thou that closest in with Christ, be thou rich or poor, be thou bond or free, wise or foolish, if thou close in with Him, He will say unto thee, "Well done, good and faithful servant," even amid the whole world; they that love thee shall see it, and they that hate thee shall all to their shame behold it; for if thou fear Him here in secret, He will make it manifest even at that day upon the house-tops.

Secondly, Not only thus, but thou shalt also be lovingly received and tenderly embraced of Him at that day, when Christ hath thousands of gallant saints, as old Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, together with all the Prophets, and Apostles, and martyrs, attending on Him; together with many thousands of glittering angels ministering before Him; besides when the ungodly shall appear there with their pale faces, with their guilty consciences, and trembling souls, that would then give thousands and ten thousands of worlds, if they had so many, if they could enjoy but one loving look from Christ. I say, then, shalt thou have the hand of Christ, reached to thee kindly to receive thee, saying, Come, thou blessed, step up hither; thou was willing to leave all for Me, and now will I give all to thee; here is a throne, a crown, a kingdom, take them; thou wast not ashamed of Me when thou wast in the world among my enemies, and now will not I be ashamed of thee before thine enemies, but will, in the view of all these devils and damned reprobates promote thee to honor and dignity. "Come, ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Thou shalt see that those who have served Me in truth shall lose nothing by the means. No; but ye shall be pillars in My temple, and inheritors of My glory, and shall have a place to walk in among My saints and angels (Zech 3:7). O! Who would not be in this condition? Who would not be in this glory? It will be such a soul-ravishing glory, that I am ready to think the whole reprobate world will be prepared to run mad, to feel that they should miss of it (Deu 28:34). Then will the vilest drunkard, swearer, liar, and unclean person willingly cry, "Lord, Lord, open to us," yet be denied of entrance; and thou in the meantime embraced, entertained, made welcome, have a fair miter set upon thy head, and clothed with immortal glory (Zech 3:5). O, therefore, let all this move thee and be of weight upon thy soul to close in with Jesus, this tender-hearted Jesus. And if yet, for all I have said, thy sins still stick with thee, and thou findest thy hellish heart loath to let them go, think with thyself in this manner—Shall I have my sins and lose my soul? Will they do me any good when Christ comes? Would not Heaven be better to me than my sins? And the company of God, Christ, saints, and angels, be better than the company of Cain, Judas, Balaam, with the devils in the furnace of fire? Canst thou now that readest or hearest these lines turn thy back, and go on in your sins? Canst thou set so light of Heaven, God, Christ, and the salvation of thy poor, yet precious soul? Canst thou hear of Christ, His bloody sweat and death, and not be taken with it, and not be grieved for it, and converted by it? If so, I might lay thee down several considerations to stir thee up to mend thy pace towards Heaven, but I shall not; there is enough written already to leave thy soul without excuse and to bring thee down with a vengeance into Hell-fire, devouring fire, the Lake of Fire, eternal, everlasting fire; O to make thee swim and roll up and down in the flames of the furnace of fire!

Works of John Bunyan: THE DOCTRINE OF THE LAW AND GRACE UNFOLDED. 578

 

Quest. O, how should a poor soul do this? This is rare, indeed.

Answ. Why, truly thus—Doth Satan tell thee thou prayest but faintly, and with very cold devotion? Answer him, therefore, and say, I am glad you told me, for this will make me trust the more to Christ's prayers and the less to my own; also, I will endeavor henceforth to groan, to sigh, and to be so fervent in my crying at the Throne of Grace, that I will, if I can, make the heavens rattle again with the mighty groans thereof. And whereas thou sayest that I am so weak in believing, I am glad you mind me of it; I hope it will henceforward stir me up to cry the more heartily to God for strong faith, and make me the more restless till I have it. And seeing thou tellest me that I run so softly and that I shall go near to miss of glory, this also shall be, through grace, to my advantage, and cause me to press the more earnestly towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. And seeing thou dost tell me that my sins are wondrous great, hereby thou bringest the remembrance of the unsupportable vengeance of God into my mind, if I die out of Jesus Christ, and also the necessity of the blood, death, and merits of Christ to help me; I hope it will make me fly the faster, and press the harder after an interest in Him; and the rather, because, as thou tellest me, my state will be unspeakably miserable without Him. And so all along, if he tells thee of thy deadness, dullness, coldness, or unbelief, or the greatness of thy sins, answer him, and say, I am glad you told me, I hope it will be a means to make me run faster, seek earnestly, and to be the more restless after Jesus Christ. If thou didst but get this art as to outrun him in his own shoes, as I may say, and to make his own darts to pierce himself, then thou mightst also say, how doth Satan's temptations, as well as all other things, work together for my good, for my advantage (Rom 8:28).

Object. But I find many weaknesses in every duty, such as when I pray, read, hear, or do any other duty. It makes me out of conceit with myself, and it makes me think that my duties are worth nothing.

Answ. I answer it may be it is thy mercy that thou art sensible of infirmities in thy best things thou doest; ay, greater mercy than thou art aware of.

Quest. Can it be a mercy for me to be troubled with my corruption? Can it be a privilege to be annoyed with my infirmities and have my best duties infected with them? How could it be?

Answ. Verily, thy sins appearing in thy best duties, do work for thy advantage these ways—1. In that thou findest ground enough thereby to make thee humble; and when thou hast done all, yet to count thyself but an unprofitable servant. And, 2. Thou, by this means, art taken off from leaning on anything below a naked Jesus for eternal life. It is like, if thou wast not sensible of many by-thoughts and wickednesses in thy best performances, thou wouldst go near to be some proud, abominable hypocrite, or a silly, proud dissembling wretch at best, such a one as would send thy soul to the devil in a bundle of thy own righteousness. But now, through grace, seest that in all and everything thou doest, there is sin enough in it to condemn thee. This, in the first place, makes thee have care of trusting in thy own doings; and, secondly, showeth thee that there is nothing in thyself which will do thee any good by working in thee, as to the meritorious cause of thy salvation. No, but thou must have a share in the birth of Jesus, in the death of Jesus, in the blood, resurrection, ascension, and intercession of a crucified Jesus. And how sayest thou? Doth not thy finding of this in thee cause thee to fly from a depending on thy own doings? And doth it not also make thee more earnestly to groan after the Lord Jesus? Yea, and let me tell thee also, it will be a cause to make thee admire the freeness and tender-heartedness of Christ to thee when He shall lift up the light of His countenance upon thee because He hath regarded such a one as thou, sinful thou; and therefore, in this sense, it will be a mercy to the saints that they do find the relics of sin still struggling in their hearts. But this is not simply the nature of sin, but the mercy and wisdom of God, who causeth all things to work together for the good of those that love and fear God (Rom 8). And, therefore, whatever thou findest in thy soul, though it is the sin of never so black a soul-scarring nature, let it move thee to run the faster to the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt not be ashamed—that is, of thy running to Him.

But when thou dost apprehend that thou art defiled, and also thy best duties annoyed with many weaknesses, let that Scripture come into thy thoughts which saith, "Of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption"; and if thou shalt understand that, what thou canst not find in thyself thou shalt see in Christ. Art thou a fool in thyself? Then Christ is made of God thy wisdom. Art thou unrighteous in thyself? Christ is made of God thy righteousness. Dost thou find that there is but very little sanctifying grace in thy soul? Still here is Christ made thy sanctification; and all this in His own Person without thee, without thy wisdom, without thy righteousness, without thy sanctification, without in His own Person in thy Father's presence, appearing their perfect wisdom, righteousness, and sanctification in His own Person; I say, as a public Person for thee; so that thou mayest believe, and speak to thy soul, My soul, though dost find innumerable infirmities in thyself, and in thy actions, yet look upon thy Jesus, the Man Jesus; He is wisdom, and that for thee, to govern thee, to take care, and to order all things for the best for thee. He is also thy righteousness now at God's right hand, always shining before the eyes of His glory; so that there it is unmoveable, though thou art in never such a sad condition, yet thy righteousness, which is the Son of God, God-man, shines as bright as ever, and is as much accepted of God as ever. O this sometimes hath been life to me; and so, whatever thou, O my soul, findest wanting in thyself, through faith thou shalt see all laid up for thee in Jesus Christ, whether it be wisdom, righteousness, sanctification, or redemption. Nay, not only so, but, as I said before, He is all these in His own Person without thee in the presence of His Father for thee.

Works of John Bunyan: THE DOCTRINE OF THE LAW AND GRACE UNFOLDED. 577

 

Quest. But how should I do it? What course should I take to be delivered from this sad and troublesome condition?

Answ. Dost thou see in thee all manner of wickedness? The best way that I can direct a soul in such a case is to pitch a steadfast eye on Him that is full, and to look so steadfastly upon Him by faith, that thereby thou mayst even draw down of His fullness into thy heart; for that is the right way and the way that was typed out, before Christ came in the flesh, in the time of Moses, when the Lord said unto him, "Make thee a fiery serpent" of brass, which was a type of Christ "and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass" that when a serpent hath bitten any man, "when he looketh upon it, shall live" (Num 21:8). Even so now in Gospel times, when any soul is bitten with the fiery serpents—their sins—that then the following way to be healed is, for the soul to look upon the Son of Man, who, as the serpent was, was hanged on a pole, or tree, that whosoever shall indeed look on Him by faith may be healed of all their distempers whatever (John 3:14,15).

As now to an instance in some things. 1. Is thy heart hard? Why, behold how full of bowels and compassion is the heart of Christ towards thee, which may be seen in His coming down from Heaven to spill His heart-blood for thee. 2. Is thy heart slothful and idle? Then, we see how active the Lord Jesus is for thee in that He did not only die for thee but also in that He hath been ever since His ascension into Heaven, making intercession for thee (Heb 7:25). 3. Dost thou see and find in thee iniquity and unrighteousness? Then look up to Heaven, and see a righteous Person, even thy righteous Jesus Christ, now presenting thee in His own perfection before the throne of His Father's glory (1 Cor 1:30). 4. Dost thou see that thou art very much void of sanctification? Then look up, and thou shalt see that thy sanctification is complete in God's presence, representing all the saints as righteous, as sanctified ones in the presence of the great God of Heaven. And so whatsoever thou wantest, be sure to strive to pitch thy faith upon the Son of God, and behold Him steadfastly, and thou shalt, by so doing, find a mighty change in thy soul. For when we behold Him as in a glass, even the glory of the Lord, we are changed, namely, by beholding "from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Cor 3:18). This is the proper way to get both comfort to thy soul, and also sanctification and exemplary holiness into thy soul.

Poor souls that are under the distemper of a guilty conscience. Yet, under the workings of much corruption, do not go the nearest way to Heaven if they do not in the first place look upon themselves as cursed sinners by Law; and yet at that time, they are blessed, forever blessed saints by the merits of Jesus Christ. "O wretched man that I am," saith Paul; and yet, O blessed man that I am, through my Lord Jesus Christ; that is the scope of the Scripture (Rom 7:24,25).

Object. But, alas, I am blind and cannot see; what shall I do now?

Answ. Why, indeed, thou must go to Him that can make the eyes that are blind to see, even to our Lord Jesus, by prayer, saying, as the poor blind man did, "Lord, that I might receive my sight"; and so continue begging Him, till thou do receive sight, even a sight of Jesus Christ, His death, blood, resurrection, ascension, intercession, and that for thee, even for thee. And the rather, because, 1. He has invited you to come and buy such eye-salve of Him that may make you see (Rev 3:18). 2. Because thou shalt never have any true comfort till thou dost thus come to see and behold the Lamb of God that hath taken away thy sins (John 1:29). 3. Because that thereby thou wilt be able through grace, to step over and turn aside from the several stumbling blocks that Satan, together with his instruments, hath laid in our way, which otherwise thou wilt not be able to shun, but will undoubtedly fall when others stand, and grope and stumble when others go upright, to the great prejudice of thy poor soul.

Object. But, alas, I have nothing to carry with me; how then should I go?

Answ. Hast thou no sins? If thou hast, carry them, and exchange them for His righteousness; because He hath said, "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and He shall sustain thee" (Psa 54:22); and again, because He hath said, though thou be heavy laden, yet if thou do but come to Him, He will give thee rest (Matt 11:28).

Object. But, you will say, Satan telleth me that I am so cold in prayers, so weak in believing, so great a sinner, that I do go so slothfully on in the way of God, that I am so apt to slip at every temptation, and to be entangled therewith, together with other things, so that I shall never be able to attain those blessed things that are held forth to sinners by Jesus Christ. Therefore, my trouble is much upon this account also, and many times I fear that will come upon me which Satan suggested to me—that is, I shall miss eternal life.

Answ. 1. As to the latter part of the objection, that thou shalt never attain to everlasting life, that is obtained for thee already, without thy doing, either praying, striving, or wrestling against sin. If we speak correctly, Christ has abolished death on the Cross and brought us light, life, and glory through His thus doing. But this is the thing that thou aimest at, that thou shalt never have a share in this life already obtained for so many as do come by faith to Jesus Christ; and all because thou art so slothful, so cold, so weak, so great a sinner, so subject to slip and commit infirmities. 2. I answer, Didst thou never learn to outshoot the devil in his bow and cut off his head with his sword, as David served Goliath, a type of him.

Works of John Bunyan: THE DOCTRINE OF THE LAW AND GRACE UNFOLDED. 576

 

Object. But though I do wait, if I am not elected to eternal life, what good will all my waiting do me? "For it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy." Therefore, I say, if I should not be elected, all is in vain.

Answ. 1. Why, in the first place, to be sure thy backsliding from God will not prove thy election, neither thy growing weary of waiting upon God. But, 2. Thou art, it may be, troubled to know whether thou art elected; and, sayest thou, If I did but know that, that would encourage me in my waiting on God. Answ. I believe thee; but mark, thou shalt not know thy election in the first place, but in the second—that is to say, thou must first get acquaintance with God in Christ, which doth come by thy giving credit to His promises, and records which He hath given of Jesus Christ's blood and righteousness, together with the rest of His merits—that is, before thou canst know whether thou are elected, thou must believe in Jesus Christ so really, that thy faith laying hold of, and drinking and eating flesh and blood of Christ, even so, that there shall be life begotten in thy soul by the same; life from the condemning of the Law; life from the guilt of sin; life over the filth of the same; life also to walk with God in His Son and ways; the life of love to God the Father, and Jesus Christ His Son, saints and ways and that because they are holy, harmless, and such that are altogether contrary to iniquity.

For these things must be in thy soul as a forerunner of being made acquainted with the other; God hath these two ways to show His children their election—(1.) By the testimony of the Spirit—that is, the soul being under trouble of conscience and grieved for sin, the Spirit doth seal up the soul by its comfortable testimony persuading of the soul that God, for Christ's sake, hath forgiven all those sins that lie so heavy on the conscience, and that do so much perplex the soul, by showing it that Law, which doth utter such horrible curses against it, is by Christ's blood satisfied and fulfilled (Eph 1:13,14). (2.) By consequence—that is, the soul finding that God hath been pleasing unto it, in that He hath showed it its lost state and miserable condition, and also that He hath given it some comfortable hope that He will save it from the same; I say, the soul, from a right sight thereof, doth, or may, draw this conclusion, that if God had not been minded to have saved it, He would not have done for it such things as these. But for the more sure dealing with thy soul, it is not good to take any of these apart—that is, it is not good to take the testimony of the Spirit, as thou supposest thou hast, apart from the fruits thereof, to conclude the testimony thou hast received to be a sufficient ground without the other; not that it is not if it is the testimony of the Spirit, but because the devil doth also deceive souls by the workings of his spirit in them, pretending that it is the Spirit of God. And again; thou shouldst not satisfy thyself, though thou do find some seekings in thee after that which is good, without the testimony of the other—that is to say, of the Spirit—for it is the testimony of two that is to be taken for the truth; therefore, say I, as thou shouldst be much in praying for the Spirit to testify assurance to thee, so also thou shouldst look to the end of it when thou thinkest thou hast it; which is this, to show thee that it is alone for Christ's sake that thy sins are forgiven thee, and also thereby a constraining of thee to advance Him, both by words and works, in holiness and righteousness all the days of thy life. From hence thou mayst boldly conclude thy election—"Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father. Knowing, brethren," saith the Apostle, "beloved, your election of God." But how? why by this, "For our Gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance. And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Ghost: so that ye were ensamples to all that believe in Macedonia and Achaia. And to wait for His Son from Heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus, which" hath "delivered us from the wrath to come" (1 Thess 3:4-6, 10).

Object. But alas, for my part, instead of finding in me anything that is good, I see in me all manners of wickedness, hard-heartedness, hypocrisy, coldness of affection to Christ, very great unbelief, together with everything that is base and of an ill savior. What hope, therefore, can I have?

Answ. If thou wast not such a one, thou hadst no need of mercy. If thou wast whole, thou hadst no need of the physician. Dost thou, therefore, see thyself in such a sad condition as this? Thou hast the more need to come to Christ that thou mayst be not only cleansed from these evils but also that thou mayst be delivered from that wrath, they will bring upon thee, if thou dost not get rid of them, to all eternity.

Works of John Bunyan: THE DOCTRINE OF THE LAW AND GRACE UNFOLDED. 575

 

Object. O, but I am not sanctified.

Answ. He will sanctify thee, and be made thy sanctification (1 Cor 1:30; 6:10,11).

Object. Oh, but I cannot pray.

Answ. To pray is not for thee to down on thy knees and say over many Scripture words only; for that, thou mayest do, and yet do nothing but babble. But if thou from a sense of thy baseness canst groan out thy heart's desire before the Lord, He will hear thee, and grant thy desire; for He can tell what is the meaning of the groanings of the Spirit (Rom 8:26,27).

Object. O, but I am afraid to pray, for fear my prayers should be counted as sin in the sight of the great God.

Answ. That is a good sign that thy prayers are more than bare words and have some prevalence at the Throne of Grace through Christ Jesus, or else the devil would never seek to labor to beat thee off from prayer by undervaluing thy prayers, telling thee they are sin; for the best prayers he will call the worst, and the worst he will call the best, or else how should he be a liar?

Object. But I am afraid the day of grace is past, and if it should be so, what should I do then?

Answ. Truly, with some men indeed, it doth fare thus, that the day of grace is at an end before their lives are at the end. Or, therefore, the day of grace is passed before the day of death is come, as Christ saith, "If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace," that is, the word of grace or reconciliation, "but now they are hidden from thine eyes" (Luke 19:41,42). But for the better satisfying of thee as touching this thing, consider these following things—

First, Doth the Lord knock still at the door of thy heart by His Word and Spirit? If so, then the day of grace is not past with thy soul; for where He doth so knock, there He doth also proffer and promise to come in and sup, that is, to communicate of His things unto them, which he would not do was the day of grace past with his soul (Rev 3:20).

Object. But how should I know whether Christ does so knock at my heart as to be desirous to come in? May I also know whether the day of grace has passed with me?

Answ. Consider these things—1. Doth the Lord make thee sensible of thy miserable state without an interest in Jesus Christ, and that naturally, thou hast no share in Him, no faith in Him, no communion with Him, no delight in Him, or love in the least to Him? If He hath and is doing this, He hath and is knocking at thy heart. 2. Doth He, together with this, put into thy heart an earnest desire after communion with Him, together with holy resolutions not to be satisfied without real communion with Him. 3. Doth He sometimes gives thee some secret persuasions, though scarcely discernible, that thou mayest attain, and get an interest in Him? 4. Doth He now and then glance in some of the promises into thy heart, causing them to leave some heavenly savor, though but for a very short time, on thy spirit? 5. Dost thou at some time see some little excellency in Christ? And doth all this stir up in thy heart some breathing after Him? If so, then fear not, the day of grace is not past with thy poor soul; for if the day of grace should be past with such a soul as this, then that Scripture must be broken where Christ saith, "Him that cometh to Me, I will in nowise," for nothing, by no means, upon no terms whatsoever, "cast out." (John 6:37).

Object. But surely, if the day of grace was not past with me, I should not be so long without an answer of God's love to my soul; that therefore doth make me mistrust my state the more is, that I wait and wait, and yet am not delivered.

Answ. 1. Hast thou waited on the Lord so long as the Lord hath waited on thee? It may be the Lord hath waited on thee these twenty, or thirty, yes, forty years or more, and thou hath not waited on Him seven years. Cast this into thy mind, therefore, when Satan tells thee that God doth not love thee, because thou hast waited so long without an assurance, for it is his temptation, for God did wait longer upon thee, and was fain to send to thee by His ambassadors time after time; and, therefore, say thou, I will wait to see what the Lord will say unto me; and the rather, because He will speak peace, for He is the Lord thereof. But, 2. Know that it is not thy being under trouble a long time that will be an argument sufficiently to prove that thou art past hopes; nay, contrariwise, for Jesus Christ did take our nature upon Him, and also did undertake deliverance for those, and bring it in for them who "were all their LIFETIME subject to bondage" (Heb 2:14,15).

Object. But alas! I am not able to wait, all my strength is gone;
I have waited so long, I can wait no longer.

Answ. It may be thou hast concluded on this long ago, thinking thou shouldst not be able to hold out any longer; no, not a year, a month, or a week; nay, it may be, not so long. It may be in the morning thou hast thought thou shouldst not hold out till night; and at night, till morning again; yet the Lord hath supported thee, and kept thee in waiting upon Him many weeks and years; therefore that is but the temptation of the devil to make thee think so, that he might drive thee to despair of God's mercy, and so to leave off following the ways of God, and to close in with thy sins again. O therefore do not give way unto it, but believe that thou shalt "see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait on the Lord, be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord" (Psa 28:13,14). And that thou mayest so do, consider these things—(1.) If thou, after thou hast waited thus long, shouldst now give over, and wait no longer, thou wouldst lose all thy time and pains that thou hast taken in the way of God hitherto, and wilt be like to a man that, because he sought long for gold, and did not find it, therefore turned back from seeking after it. However, he was complicated by it, and had almost found it, and all because he was loath to look and seek a little further. (2.) Thou wilt not only lose thy time but also lose thy own soul, for salvation is nowhere else but in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). (3.) Thou wilt in the highest sin that ever thou didst sin before, in drawing finally back, insomuch that God may say, My soul shall have no pleasure in him (Heb 10:38). But, 2. Consider, thou sayest, all my strength is gone, and therefore how should I wait? Why, at that time when thou feelest, and findest thy strength is entirely gone, even that is the time when the Lord will renew and give thee fresh strength. "The youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: but they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength: they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk, and not faint" (Isa 40:30,31).