"It is written." Thy case, be it what it will, has a promise, either of support or deliverance. If thou art not delivered, yet if Christ support thee, so that thy faith and patience fail not, does not this shew his infinite goodness to thee? He will have thy faith tried, and he will put it into the fire, not to consume it, but that it may come like gold out of the furnace purer and brighter. And what if thou art in the fire a great while, thou wilt see more of his tender mercies in keeping thee there, and wilt thereby learn to live in a more simple dependance upon him. Cast not away therefore thy confidence in the written word. The promises in it stand faster than the strong mountains. If all the powers in earth and hell should join, they cannot defeat one single tittle of them. When the world and all the works therein shall be burnt up, and the place of them shall be no more found, then the promises shall stand fast as the throne of God, and shall receive their full and perfect accomplishment through the ages of eternity.

These are some of Satan's temptations. against the young men in Christ, who are

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strong, because the word of God abideth in them. His design is to weaken their dependance upon it. Till he can do this, he despairs of success; and therefore he tries every method, which his wicked cunning and rage can invent. His busy active spirit is night and day plotting against the word of God. See a lively picture of his utter hatred to it in the parable of the sower. While the good seed is sowing, the devil is indefatigable in picking it up. He exercises all his wiles to keep it out of the hearers' hearts, and he prevails with the greater part to reject it. Among those who seemingly receive it he cheats three out of four, so that the word does not take root, nor bear fruit to perfection. Since Satan is thus successful, is it not absolutely necessary, reader, that thou shouldst be well acquainted with his devices? And the word abiding in thee, the ingrafted word, will both make thee acquainted with them, and also strong to resist them because then thou wilt be taught by Christ's wisdom, and strengthened by his almighty power. As thou growest in the sense of thy want of him; and livest in a closer dependance upon

him, thou wilt understand more of his word, and experience more of his power. By which means the enemy's continual attacks, driving thee to Christ for the fulfilling of his promises, will make thee continually safe. Let the roaring lion rage, what hast thou to fear? Let him go about seeking whom he may devour, the Lord is thy shield and thy defence: in him is thy trust. He will preserve thee from all evil, and will make all things, even Satan's spite and rage against thee, work together for thy good! How dear and precious then should the word of God be to thee. If thou art weak, because it is the means of thy growing, and being nourished up; and if thou art strong, because by its abiding in thee, thou wilt be established. May it be thy study and thy delight, and may every reading of it bring thee to a better acquaintance with, and a greater dependance upon the adorable Jesus. And if thou desirest thus to profit from the scriptures, I would advise thee, reader, to observe too things, which will be much for Christ's glory and for thy edification.

First, in thy freque sal of the Bible (and n read it too much) tice of the promises, ed to thy state, age an because these God has thy use, and about th be most busy with the up then in thy memo ready against the tim up,

Secondly, to Christ them. All the promise and made good by hin fore, in an humble de faithfulness and power, ver thou wantest, and Trust him, and he will ger not at any of his pro seeming impossibility of good; but depend upon er, and thou wilt find h mise-keeping God, who fast for ever and ever.

Thus thou shalt not shalt also overcome the w the apostle John makes

Lord. They overcome him by the strength of their faith. They hold fast their confidence in the Lord's promised strength, and he fights for them. That mighty arm, which bruised the serpent's head, brings them victory, as it is written of that noble army, mentioned Rev. xii. 11. "They overcame [the accuser of the bre

thren] by the blood of the lamb, and by "the word of their testimony." Through faith in his blood they were pardoned and justified freely, and they knew that in him they had righteousness and strength, therefore they were at peace with God, and the accuser of the brethren could not lay any thing to their charge. Thus they were delivered from his power, and translated into the kingdom of God's dear Son; and they testified this by adhering to the word of truth. They believed that whatever Christ had therein promised, he would fulfill to them, and they bore their testimony to their being safe in depending upon his word, in the most trying circumstances. They would not give it up, whatever they lost for trusting to it; nay, they stuck stedfastly to its truth, although it cost them their lives for maintaining