To one of the ancient line in lineal descent, of the covenant am in genealogy, to whom the holy commandment came line upon .me, and precept upon precept, line upon line, here a little and there a little for the believer, that the self-righteous might go and fall backward; in whose behalf judgment was laid to the line and righteousness to the plummet, that the hail might sweep away the refuges of lies, and that Zion's foundations might appear plain, and her refuge be brought to light; which line in the apostolic commission is stretched out to reach even to us, in preaching the gospel of Christ. Call it the scarlet line let down from the windows of heavenly light, to convey us safe aver the wall that is daubed with untempered mortar, that we may escape the city devoted to ruin, and embrace that which has salvation for walls and bulwarks. Oh! blessed foundation, which bore up under our weight, and bore away both the sting of death and sentence of death, as a tried stone; and having endured the worst, now delights in the best part of the work, and to all real adventurers appears a sure foundation, that sinks not under the weight, nor deceives, nor disappoints those, who drop with all their burthens at his feet, and trust in his faithfulness and truth, and in his finished work. I wish you both a happy Christmas, and that your holidays may be days of the Son of man, visiting days, good days, days of espousal, days of salvation, and days of the gladness of his heart; attended with the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of praise, and the voice of thanksgiving: " Praise the Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever." O that we had a little more of him, and of his presence; but how short are his visits; a wayfaring man lie is that turns aside and tarries but a night, and when he goes, seems to take all, heart and all with him, and leaves us like silly cloves without a heart, without a heart for any thing, unless for vanity.
But shall he turn away and not return? No, he will relive his work; "They shall revive as the corn." But when? Why, when unbelief, and slavish fear, and rebellion have almost barred him out for good and all, then he puts in his hand by the hole of the door; "Open to me, my sister, my spouse." And when we are almost starving through fasting, the Son of man being taken from us, and we left to fast in those days, then he comes; "Children have you any meat?" for he will not suffer the souls of the righteous to perish. Again, when the god of this world hath almost blinded our eyes, and we have lost all sight and sense of him, he walks in the midst of the candlesticks; "The Lord shall light my candle; the Lord shall enlighten my darkness." Psalm xviii. 28; for he is and shall be our everlasting light, our God and our glory.
But poor Zion must mourn for him, and bewail the loss of him, though he loves her, has chosen her, redeemed her, founded her, established her, and promised to make her his eternal dwelling and resting place. Yet he will no and come, to try love, provoke to jealousy, kindle desires, and excite to watchfulness, and to make his absence terrible, that his presence may be the more admirable, the heart more tender, and the fear of offending him the more strong in us. He often dandles one upon the knee, that the other may stand weeping behind the wall; and kisses another that the fourth may be fainting in love-sickness, to make it more Suspicious of a divided heart. You may see my pen runs on like the driving of Jehu, but I must pull up and pull in, and leave the chariot paved with love to the management of him who, or ever we are aware, makes the soul like the chariot of Aminadib.
Grace and peace be with thee,
W. H., S. S.
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