scattered beside them,
hath that image any comeliness? Certainly no; but look upon these united,
and then they are perfect. Letters and syllables make no sense, till ye
conjoin them in words, and words in sentences. Even so is it here; if ye
look on the day alone, the light of it being perpetual would weary us, the
night alone would be more so; but the interchange of them is pleasant,--day
and night together make a distinct language of God's praise. So God hath
set prosperity and adversity the one over against the other. One of them,
it may be, seems imperfect; nay, but it is a perfect work that is made up
of both. Spots in the face commend the beauty of the rest of it.

If ye would then look upon God's work aright, look on it in the
sanctuary's light, and ye shall say, "He hath done all well." Join the end
with the beginning, and behold they agree very well. Many things among us
seem out of order, many things uncomplete, The reformation of England, how
great obstruction was in the way of it? Is that now a perfect work? Yes,
certainly; for if we knew his end and purpose, it is very well, and could
not be bettered by the art of all men; "his thoughts are far above our
thoughts." The prosperous and uninterrupted success of that party in
England, is it a perfect work? Yes, certainly; for if ye could behold
their end, ye would say so; "they are set in slippery places, their foot
shall slide in due time."(261)

Entertain this thought in your heart, that he hath done all well. Let not
your secret thoughts so much as call them in question. If once ye
question, ye will quickly censure them. Hold this persuasion, that
nothing can be better than what he doth, nothing can be added, and nothing
diminished from them, he doth all in number, weight, and measure. It is so
exactly correspondent to his purpose and design, as if it were weighed
out, and measured out for that end.

Let this secretly reprove your hearts. The perfection of his works stains
our works. O how imperfect are they! And which is worse, how impudent and
bold are we to censure his, and absolve our own? If he have a hand in our
work, these imperfect works are perfect in regard of him. As we have a
hand in his perfect works, his perfect works are imperfect in regard of
us.

Sermon II.

Deut. xxxii. 4, 5.--"He is the Rock, his work is perfect, for all
his ways are judgment, a God of truth, and without iniquity, just
and right is he. They hav