Joshua Redivivus, or Mr. Rutherford's Letters

I Must still provoke you to write by my lines, whereat ye need not wonder; for the cross is full of talk, & speak it must, either good or bad: Neither can grief be silent. I have no dittay nor indictment to bring against Christ's cross, seeing he hath made a friendly agreement betwixt me & it, & we are in terms of love together: If my former miscarriages, & my now silent sabbaths seem to me to speak wrath from the Lord, I dare say, it is but Satan borrowing the use & loan of my cowardly & feeble apprehensions, which start at straws: I know faith is not so saint & foolish, as to tremble at every false alarm; Yet I gather this out of it, Blessed are they who are graced of God […] guide a cross well, & that there is some art required herein. I pray God I may not be so ill friend-stead, as that Christ my Lord should leave me to be my own Tutor & my own Physician. Shall I not think but my Lord Jesus who deserveth his own place very well, will take his own place upon him, as it becometh him, & that he will fill his own chair? For in this is his office, to comfort us, & thes that are cast down in all their tribulations. 2 Cor. 1. 4. Alas I know I am a fool to seek an hole ⟨p. 325⟩or defect in Christ's way with my soul. If I have not a stock to pre sent to Christ at his appearance, yet I pray God I may be able with joy, faith & constancy, to show the Captain of my salvation in that day, a bloody head that I received in his service: howbeit my faith hang by a small tack & thread, I hope the tack shall not break: & howbeit my Lord get no service of me but broken wishes; yet I trust these shall be accepted upon Christ's account. I have nothing to comfort me, but that I say, Oh will the Lod disappoint an hungry on-waiter? The smell of Christ's wine & apples which surpass the uptaking of dull sense, bloweth upon my soul, & I get no more for the mean time: I am sure to let a famishing body see meat & give him none of it, is a double pain: Our Lord's love it not so cruel as to let a poor man see Christ & heaven & never give him more, for want of money to buy; nay, I rather think Christ such fair market-wares, as buyers may have •it out money & without price: And thus I know it shall not stand upon my want of money;

I Must still provoke you to write by my lines, whereat ye need not wonder; for the cross is full of talke, & speak it must, either good or bad: Neither can grief be silent. I have no dittay nor inditement to bring against Christ's cross, seeing he hath made a friendly agreement betwixt me & it, & we are in terms of love together: If my former miscarriages, & my nowsilent sabbaths seem to me to speak wrath from the Lord, I dare say, it is but Satan borrowing the use & loan of my cowardly & feeble apprehensions, which start at straws: I know faith is not so saint & foolish, as to tremble at every false alarm; Yet I gather this out of it, Blessed are they who are grac'd of God guide a cross well, & that there is some art required herein. I pray God I may not be so ill friend-stead, as that Christ my Lord should leave me to be my own Tutour & my own Physician. Shall I not think but my Lord Jesus who deserveth his own place very well, will take his own place upon him, as it becometh him, & that he will fill his own chair? For in this is his office, to comfort us, & thes that are casten down in all their tribulations.