First, It is unsearchable. Jer. 17. 9, 10. Who can know the heart? I the Lord search it. The heart of man is pervious to God only; hence he takes the honour of searching the heart to be as peculiar to himself, and as fully declaring him to be God, as any other glorious Attribute of his Nature. We know not the hearts of one another, we know not our own hearts as we ought. Many there are that know not their hearts as to their general bent and disposition, whether it be good or bad, sincere and sound, or corrupt and naught; but no one knoweth all the secret intrigues, the windings and turnings, the actings and aversations of his own heart. Hath any one the perfect measure of his own light and darkness? Can any one know what actings of choosing or aversation his Will will bring forth, upon the proposal of that endless variety of objects that it is to be exercised with? Can any one traverse the various mutability of his affections? Do the secret springs of acting and refusing in the soul, lie before the eyes of any man? Doth any one know what will be the motions of the mind or will, in such and such conjunctions of things? Such a suiting of objects, such a pretension of reasonings, such an appearance of things desirable? All in heaven and earth but the Infinite All-seeing God, are utterly ignorant of these things. In this unsearchable heart dwells the Law of sin, and much of its security, and consequently of its strength, lies in this, that it is past our finding ⟨p. 28⟩out. We fight with an enemy whose secret strength we cannot discover, whom we cannot follow into its retirements. Hence oftentimes, when we are ready to think sin quite ruined, after a while we find it was but out of fight. It hath coverts and retreats in an unsearchable heart, whither we cannot pursue it. The soul may persuade it self all is well, when sin may be safe in the hidden darkness of the mind, which 'tis impossible that he should look into, for what ever makes manifest is light. It may suppose the will of sinning is utterly taken away, when yet there is an unsearchable reserve for a more suitable object, a more vigorous temptation than at present it is tried withal. Hath a man had a contest with any lust, and a blessed victory over it by the holy Ghost, as to that present trial; when he thinks it is utterly expelled, he ere long finds that it was but retired out of fight.
First, It is unsearchahle. Jer. 17. 9, 10. Who can know the heart? I the Lord search it. The heart of man is pervious to God only; hence he takes the honour of searching the heart to be as peculiar to himself, and as fully declaring him to be God, as any other glorious Attribute of his Nature. We know not the hearts of one another, we know not our own hearts as we ought. Many there are that know not their hearts as to their general bent and disposition, whether it be good or bad, sincere and sound, or corrupt and naught; but no one knoweth all the secret intrigues, the windings and turnings, the actings and aversations of his own heart. Hath any one the perfect measure of his own light and darkness? Can any one know what actings of chusing or aversation his Will will bring forth, upon the proposal of that endless variety of objects that it is to be exercised with? Can any one traverse the various mutability of his affections? Do the secret springs of acting and refusing in the soul, lie before the eyes of any man? Doth any one know what will be the motions of the mind or will, in such and such conjunctions of things? Such a suiting of objects, such a pretension of reasonings, such an appearance of things desirable? All in heaven and earth but the Infinite All-seeing God, are utterly ignorant of these things. In this unsearchable heart dwells the Law of sin, and much of its security, and consequently of its strength, lies in this, that it is past our finding ⟨p. 28⟩out. We fight with an enemy whose secret strength we cannot discover, whom we cannot follow into its retirements. Hence oftentimes, when we are ready to think sin quite ruined, after a while we find it was but out of fight. It hath coverts and retreats in an unsearchable heart, whither we cannot pursue it. The soul may perswade it self all is well, when sin may be safe in the hidden darkness of the mind, which 'tis impossible that he should look into, for what ever makes manifest is light. It may suppose the will of sinning is utterly taken away, when yet there is an unsearchable reserve for a more suitable object, a more vigorous temptation than at present it is tried withal. Hath a man had a contest with any lust, and a blessed victory over it by the holy Ghost, as to that present trial; when he thinks it is utterly expelled, he ere long finds that it was but retired out of fight.
