in consuming. This barrel, this cruise of hers had no bottom, the barrel of meal wasted not, the cruise of oil failed not: behold, not getting, not saving, is the way to abundance, but giving. The mercy of God crowns our beneficence with the blessing of store; who can fear want by a merciful liberality, when he sees the Sareptan had famished, if she had not given, and by giving, abounded? With what thankful devotion must this woman every day needs look upon her barrel and cruise, wherein she saw the mercy of God renewed to her continually! Doubtless her soul was no less fed by faith, than her body with this supernatural provision. How welcome a guest must Elijah needs be to this widow, that gave her life and her son's to her for this board! yea that, in that woeful famine, gave her and her son their board for his house-room.

The dearth thus overcome, the mother looks hopefully upon her only son, promising herself much joy in his life and prosperity, when an unexpected sickness surpriseth him, and doth that which the famine but threatened. When can we hold ourselves secure from evils? no sooner is one of these serjeants compounded withal, than we are arrested by another.

How ready are we to mistake the grounds of our afflictions, and to cast them upon false causes. The passionate mother cannot find whether to impute the death of her son, but to the presence of Elijah, to whom she comes distracted with perplexity, not without an unkind challenge of him, from whom she had received both that life she had lost, and that she had; "What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come to me to call my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?"

As if her son could not have died, if Elijah had not been her guest; whereas her son had died, but for him. Why should she think that the prophet had saved him from the famine, to kill him with sickness? as if God had not been free in his actions, and must needs strike by the same hands by which he preserved. She had the grace to know that her affliction was for her sin; yet was so unwise to imagine the arrearages of her iniquities had not been called for, if Elijah had not been the remembrancer; he, who had appeased God towards her, is suspected to have incensed him: this wrongful misconstruction was enough to move any patience. Elijah was of an hot

spirit; yet his holiness kept him from fury: this challenge rather increased the zeal of his prayer, than stirred his choler to the offendent. He takes the dead child out of his mother's bosom, and lays him upon his own bed, and cries unto the Lord, O Lord my God, hast thou brought evil also upon the widow, with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?" Instead of chiding the Sareptan, out of the fervency of his soul, he humbly expostulates with his God: his only remedy is in his prayer; that which shut heaven for rain, must open it for life. Every word enforceth; first, he pleads his interest in God, "O Lord my God;" then the quality of the patient, "a widow," and therefore both most distressed with the loss, and most peculiar to the charge of the Almighty. Then his interest, as in God, so in this patient, with whom I sojourn;" as if the stroke were given to himself, through her sides; and lastly, the quality of the punishment, "by slaying her son," the only comfort of her life: and in all these, implying the scandal that must needs arise from this event, whereever it should be noised, to the name of his God, to his own; when it should be said, Lo! how Elijah's entertainment is rewarded surely the prophet is either impotent, or unthankful.

Neither doth his tongue move thus only; thrice doth he stretch himself upon the dead body, as if he could wish to infuse of his own life into the child, and so often calls to his God for the restitution of that soul. What can Elijah ask to be denied the Lord heard the voice of the prophet, the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived. What miracle is impossible to faithful prayers? There cannot be more difference betwixt Elijah's devotion and ours, than betwixt supernatural and ordinary acts; if he therefore obtained miraculous favours by his prayers, do we doubt of those which are within the sphere of nature and use? What could we want, if we did not slack to ply heaven with our prayers?

Certainly Elijah had not been premonished of this sudden sickness and death of the child; he, who knew the remote affairs of the world, might not know what God would do within his own roof. The greatest prophet must content himself with so much of God's counsel, as he will please to reveal ; and he will sometimes reveal the greater secrets, and conceal the less, to make good both his own liberty, and man's humiliation. So much more unexpected as the stroke was, so much more welcome is the cure. How joyfully doth the man of

585 God take the revived child into his arms, and present him to his mother! How doth his heart leap within him, at this proof of God's favour to him, mercy to the widow, power to the 1 child.

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What life and joy did now show itself in the face of that amazed mother, when she saw again the eyes of her son fixed upon her's; when she felt his flesh warm, his motions vital! Now she can say to Elijah, By this I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in thy mouth is truth." Did she not till now know this? had she not said before, "What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God?" Were not her cruise and her barrel sufficient proofs of his divine commission? Doubtless, what her meal and oil had assured her of, the death of her son made her to doubt; and now the reviving did reascertain. Even the strongest faith sometimes staggereth, and necdeth new acts of heavenly supportation; the end of miracles is confirmation of truth. It seems, had this widow's son continued dead, her belief had been buried in his grave: notwithstanding her meal and her oil, her soul had languished. The mercy of God is fain to provide new helps for our infirmities, and graciously condescends to our own terms, that he may work out our faith and salvation.

CONTEMPLATION VII.

Elijah with the Baalites.

THREE years and an half did Israel lie gasping under a parching drought and miserable famine. No creature was so odious to them as Elijah, to whom they ascribed all their misery. Methinks I hear how they railed on, and cursed the prophet: how much envy must the servants of God undergo for their master! nothing but the tongue was Elijah's, the hand was God's; the prophet did but say what God would do. I do not see them fall out with their sins, that had deserved the judgment, but with the messenger that denounced it. Baal had no fewer servants, than if there had been both rain and plenty. Elijah safely spends this storm under the lee of Sarepta; some three years had he lain close in that obscure corner, and lived upon the barrel and cruise which he had multiplied: at last God calls him forth, "Go, shew thyself

to Ahab, and I will send rain upon the earth;" no rain must fall till Elijah was seen of Ahab; he carried away the clouds with him, he must bring them again. The king, the people of Israel, shall be witnesses that God will make good the word, the oath of his prophet. Should the rain have fallen in Elijah's absence, who could have known it was by his procurement? God holds the credit of his messengers precious, and neglects nothing that may grace them in the eyes of the world; not the necessity of seven thousand religious Israelites could crack the word of one Elijah. There is nothing wherein God is more tender, than in approving the veracity of himself in his ministers.

Lewd Ahab hath an holy steward; as his name was, so was he a servant of God, while his master was a slave to Baal. He, that reserved seven thousand in the kingdom of Israel, hath reserved an Obadiah in the court of Israel, and by him hath reserved them. Neither is it likely there had been so many free hearts in the country, if religion had not been secretly backed in the court: it is a great happiness when God gives favour and honour to the virtuous. Elijah did not lie more close in Sarepta, than Obadiah did in the court; he could not have done so much service to the church, if he had not been as secret as good. Policy and religion do as well together, as they do ill asunder. The dove, without the serpent, is easily caught; the serpent, without the dove, stings deadly. Religion, without policy, is too simple to be safe; policy, without religion, is too subtile to be good: their match makes themselves secure, and many happy.

O degenerated estate of Israel! any thing was now lawful there, saving piety. It is well if God's prophets can find an hole to hide their heads in; they must needs be hard driven, when fifty of them are fain to crowd together into one cave: there they had both shade and repast. Good Obadiah hazards his own life to preserve theirs, and spends himself in that extreme dearth, upon their necessary diet: bread and water was more now, than other whiles wine and delicates. Whether shall we wonder more at the mercy of God in reserving an hundred prophets, or in thus sustaining them, being reserved? When did God ever leave his Israel unfurnished of some prophets? when did he leave his prophets unprovided of some Obadiah? How worthy art thou, O Lord, to be trusted with thine own charge! While there are men upon earth, or birds

in the air, or angels in heaven, thy messengers cannot want provision.

Goodness carries away trust, where it cannot have imitation. Ahab divides with Obadiah the survey of the whole land; they two set their own eyes on work, for the search of water, of pasture, to preserve the horses and mules alive. O the poor and vain cares of Ahab! he casts to kill the prophet, to save the cattle; he never seeks to save his own soul, to destroy idolatry; he takes thought for grass, none for mercy. Carnal hearts are ever either grovelling on the earth, or delving into it; no more regarding God or their souls, than if they either were not, or were worthless.

Elijah hears of the progress, and offers himself to the view of them both. Here was wisdom in this courage; first, he presents himself to Obadiah, ere he will be seen of Ahab, that Ahab might, upon the report of so discreet an informer, digest the expectation of his meeting; then he takes the opportunity of Ahab's presence, when he might be sure Jezebel was

away.

Obadiah meets the prophet, knows him, and, as if he had seen God in him, falls on his face to him, whom he knew his master persecuted: though a great peer, he had learned to honour a prophet. No respect was too much for the president of that sacred college. To the poor boarder of the Sareptan, here was no less than a prostration, and my lord Elijah, from the great high steward of Israel. Those that are truly gracious cannot be niggardly of their observances to the messengers of God.

Elijah receives the reverence, returns a charge; "Go, tell thy lord, Behold Elijah is here.' Obadiah finds this load too heavy; neither is he more stricken with the boldness, than with the unkindness of this command; boldness in respect of Elijah, unkindness in respect of himself: for thus he thinks, If Elijah do come to Ahab, he dies; if he do not come, I die: if it be known that I met him, and brought him not, it is death; if I say that he will come voluntarily, and God shall alter his intentions, it is death. How unhappy a man am I, that must be either Elijah's executioner, or my own! Were Ahab's displeasure but smoaking, I might hope to quench it; but now that the flame of it hath broken forth to the notice, to the search of all the kingdoms and nations round about, it may consume me, I cannot extinguish it: this message was for an