The souls exaltation A treatiseThe soules exaltation A treatise

First, eye the promise daily, and keep it within view, within the ken of the soul (as we use to call it) be sure the promise of grace never go out of sight of the soul. Look as it is with a child that travels to a Fair with his father, or goeth into a crowd, his eye is always upon his father: he bids him do not gaze about and lose me, the child is careful to keep his father within sight and view, and then if he be weak and weary, his father can take him by the hand, and lead him, or take him into his arms and carry him; or if there be any thing he wants, or would have, his father can buy it for him, bestow it upon him; but if the child be careless and gazeth about this thing and that thing, and never looks after his father; he is gone one way, and his father another, he cannot tell where to find him: whose fault is it now? it is not because his father would ⟨p. 105⟩not be within his sight, or because he could not keep within the view of him, but because he out of carelessness lost the sight of his father: therefore he sure always to eye the promise; you know, as long as the game is within sight, the hounds run amain; so I would have the soul make a prey of the promise: for so the phrase is in the original, that we should seek the Lord, and hunt after Christ, and seek the game it self, the promise it self, from day to day. It is the advice of the Prophet Isaiah 50. Look up unto me, all ye ends of the earth, look up to me, and your sins shall be pardoned; look up to me, and your souls shall be saved; look up to me, and you shall be sanctified: It is not enough for a man to have a conduit full of water, and to have the streams run abundantly, continually, but he must put his vessel under the spout, and then he shall be sure to receive abundance of water: so it is with the promise, it is not enough to say, Christ is wisdom, and Christ is righteousness, but it is not thus with my soul: why, put thy vessel under the spout then, and look up unto Christ in the promise. This is that the Prophet David resolves of, I will lift up mine eyes to the mountains, from whence cometh my help: what is meant by mountains there? you know the Temple upon the mount of Moriah; now in the Temple in Gods ordinance is Gods presence:

First, eye the promise dayly, and keepe it within view, within the ken of the soule (as we use to call it) be sure the promise of grace never goe out of sight of the soule. Looke as it is with a childe that travels to a Faire with his father, or goeth into a crowd, his eye is alwayes upon his father: he bids him doe not gaze about and lose mee, the childe is carefull to keepe his father within sight and view, and then if hee bee weake and weary, his father can take him by the hand, and lead him, or take him into his armes and carry him; or if there be any thing hee wants, or would have, his father can buy it for him, bestow it upon him; but if the childe bee carelesse and gazeth about this thing and that thing, and never lookes after his father; hee is gone one way, and his father another, he cannot tell where to finde him: whose fault is it now? it is not because his father would