An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eleventh, twelfth, & thirteenth chapters of…

Fourthly, All Gods old mercies remain engagements unto duty, ¹and aggravations to our sin. I loved him when he was a child; 'tis brought to that end, to aggravate their sin, and further to engage them unto duty. Remember that the love and mercies of God unto you when you were children are engagements to duty when you are old. And they are aggravations of your sin, The sins of those men and women that are against old mercies they are the greatest sins: Oh! that you should sin against that love of ⟨p. 8⟩God unto you when you were children! God began with you then, and hath continued his love and mercy to you ever since; then, Oh! make this an aggravation of your sin, in the day of your humiliation, charge it upon your own souls, these and these sins have I committed, though God loved me, though Gods mercy and goodness was towards me when I was a child and hath gone along to me, yet I have walked unworthy of all that love and mercy, know that if you do forget the old love of God, yet the Lord remembers it, he remembers his old mercies, and he remembers your old sins.

1. 1Obser. 4.

But then fifthly, Let not our hearts sink in despairing thoughts, though we see that we are able to do but little for God, and though ¹we are unworthy of love; Though there be much vanity and folly in our hearts, and in our lives, yea, though there hath been much stubbornness, yet still let not our hearts sink in despairing thoughts, I loved them when they were a child, They could do little for me, and they knew little of me, and they were vain, and foolish, and stubborn, and yet I loved them. Certainly the ways of God towards ²Israel are as a type of his ways towards his Saints, as the afflictions of Israel are Typical to the Church; and we gather an argument to be patient in afflictions when we read how God dealt with the people of Israel in the wilderness; so we may gather an argument to help our faith when as we read how God dealt with them, though they were unworthy and were poor and weak, yet God loved them. Therefore you poor people that find your selves weak in understanding, alas! you know little, and can remember little of that which is good, and alas! you can do little for God, ea I find (perhaps saith one) much frowardness and stubbornness in my heart against God; but do you bewail it? if so, let not your hearts be discouraged, do not think that these are things that will hinder the love of