ss to the world, "but the world
through wisdom know not God." Alas! what then do they know? Is there any
besides God? And is there any knowledge besides the knowledge of God? You
have a poor petty wisdom among you to gather riches and manage your
business. Others have a poor imaginary wisdom that they call learning, and
generally people think, to pray to God is but a paper-skill, a little
book-craft, they think the knowledge of God is nothing else but to learn
to read the Bible. Alas! mistake not, it is another thing to know God. The
doctrine of Jesus Christ written on the heart is a deep profound learning
and the poor, simple, rudest people, may by the Spirit's teaching become
wiser than their ancients, than their ministers. O, it is an excellent
point of learning, to know how to be saved. What is it, I pray you to know
the course of the heavens,--to number the orbs, and the stars in them--to
measure their circumference,--to reckon their motions,--and yet not to know
him that sits on the circle of them, and not know how to inhabit and dwell
there? If you would seek unto God, and seek eyes opened to behold the
mystery of the word, you would become wiser than your pastors, you would
learn from the Spirit to pray better, you would find the way to heaven
better than they can teach you, or walk in it.

Then, it is "profitable for reproof and correction." It contains no
doctrine very pleasant to men's natural humours, but it is indeed most
pleasant to a right and ordered taste. You know, the distemper of the eye,
or the perverting of the taste, will misrepresent pleasant things, and
sweet things to the senses, and make them appear ill savoured and bitter.
But, I say, to a discerning spirit there is nothing so sweet, so comely.
"I have seen an end of all perfection," but none of thy law. "Thy word is
sweeter to me than the honey, or the honey comb." If a soul be
prepossessed with the love of the world, and the lusts of the world, it
cannot savour and taste of them, that vicious quality in the mind will
make the pleasant gospel unpleasant. "I piped unto you and ye have not
danced." But however, the scriptures are then most profitable when they
are least pleasant to our corruptions, and, therefore, it is an absolute
and entire piece. _Ut prodesse volunt et delectare. Omne tulit punctum,
qui miscuit utile dulci._ There are sharp reproofs, and sad corrections of
his holy law which must make way for the pleasant and sweet gospel. Th