t: I was as a beast
before thee," Psal. lxxiii. 22. A great apostle must glorify God, and
humbly acknowledge his own shame; "For I am the least of the apostles
(saith he), that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted
the church of God," 1 Cor. xv. 9. And shall I add the example of a great
father? Augustine confesseth(1385) honestly, that for the space of nine
years he both was deceived, and did deceive others. Nature will whisper to
a man to look to his credit: but the text here calleth for another
thing,--to look to the honour of God, and to thine own shame; and yet in so
doing thou shalt be more highly esteemed both by God and by his children.
Now without this let a man seem to turn and reform never so well, all is
unsure work, and built upon a sandy foundation. And whosoever will not
acknowledge their iniquity, and be ashamed for it, God shall make them
bear their shame; according to that which is pronounced in the next
chapter, ver. 10-15, against the Levites, who had gone astray when Israel
went astray after their idols; and according to that, Mal. ii. 8, 9, "Ye
have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore
have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people."

The fourth and last application of this doctrine is for every Christian.
The text teacheth us a difference betwixt a presumptuous and a truly
humbled sinner; the one is ashamed of his sins, the other not. By this
mark let every one of us try himself this day. It is a saving grace to be
truly and really ashamed of sin. It is one of the promises of the covenant
of grace, "Then shall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that
were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your
iniquities, and for your abominations," Ezek. xxxvi. 31. Try, then, if
thou hast but thus much of the work of grace in thy soul; and if thou
hast, be assured of thy interest in Christ and in the new covenant. A
reprobate may have somewhat which is very like this grace: but I shall lay
open the difference betwixt the one and the other in these particulars:--

1. To be truly ashamed of sin, is to be ashamed of it as an act of
filthiness and uncleanness. The child of God, when he comes to the throne
of grace, is ashamed of an unclean heart, though the world cannot see it.
A natural man, at his best, looketh upon sin as it damneth and destroyeth
the soul, but he cannot look upon it as it defiles the soul. Sha