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stood, 2 Peter i. 19, and not your own reason or opinion: nor yet the opinions or conceits of men; for these are false and crooked rules.

Cautions about the matter of meditation.

(4.) In seeking to know the secrets and mysteries of God and godliness, you must not pry into them further than God hath revealed; for if you wade therein further than you have sure footing in his holy word, you will presently lose yourself, and be swallowed up in a maze and whirlpool of errors and heresies. These deep things of God must be understood with sobriety, Psa. cxxxi. 1; Rom. xii. 3, according to that clear light which God has given you by his word.

(5.) When sin happens to be the matter of your meditation, take heed lest while your thoughts dwell upon it, though your intention be to bring yourself out of love with it, it steal into your affections, and work in you some secret liking to it, and so circumvent you. For the cunning devices of sin are undiscoverable, Eccles. vii. 24, 26, 28, and you know that your heart is deceitful above all things, Jer. xvii. 9. Wherefore, to prevent this mischief; (1.) As sin is not to be named, Eph. v. 3, but when there is just cause; so it is not to be thought upon, but upon special cause, namely, when it shows itself in its motions and evil effects, and when it concerns you to try and find out the wickedness of your heart and life. (2.) When there is cause to think of sin, represent it to your mind as an evil, the greatest evil, Gen. xxxix. 9, most loathsome and abominable to God, and most hateful and hurtful to yourself Whereupon you must raise your heart to a holy detestation of it, and resolution against it. (3.) Never stand reasoning or disputing with it, as Eve did with Satan, Gen. iii. 2, 3; but without any indulgence of it, you must do present execution upon it, by sheathing the word of God, Matt. iv. 4, 7, 10, the sword of the Spirit, into the heart of it; and by mortifying of it through the help of his Spirit, Rom. viii. 13. And if you would dwell long in meditating upon any subject, make choice of matter more pleasant and less infectious.