wealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants
of promise ; they had chosen to themselves other
gods, and were joined to idols; they walked
according to the course of this world, according to
the Prince of the Power of the air, the spirit that
now worketh in the children of disobedience ; they

812



313



were polluted in their blood, cast out in the open
field to perish ; they were despisers of God, in
league with hell, and in covenant with Death ; hut
nevertheless they were chosen, were redeemed,
and have received the glorious title of Sons and
Daughters.

Now, Friend, if free grace has done thus with
one and another, why should it not accomplish the
same for thee ? Dost thou feel thy deep necessi
ties ? * Do thy bowels yearn for mercy ? Art thou
made willing to be saved in God s way ? Then be
of good cheer. The promise is thine, the blood
of Jesus was shed for thee, the Holy Spirit is at
work with thee, thy salvation draweth nigh. He
that calleth upon the name of the Lord shall ~be
saved. Thy cries shall yet* be heard, since they
come from a broken heart and a contrite spirit.
Remember, faith in Jesus alone can give thee
peace.

But art thou still hard and stolid, still brutish
and worldly ? Then, permit the writer to weep
over thee, and bring thy case before the Lord his
God. Oh that the Lord would melt thee by the
fire of his word ! Oh that he would break thee
with his hammer, and humble thee at his feet !
Alas for thee, unless this be done! Oh that omni
potent grace would snatch thee from the ruin of
the proud, and deliver thy feet from going down
into the pit ! Miserable man ! a brother s heart

U



314 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUR.

longeth after tliee, and fain would see thee saved.
Oh, why art thou so indifferent to thyself when
others can scarce refrain from tears on thy behalf !
By thy mother s prayers, thy sister s tears, and thy
father s anxieties, I beseech thee give a reason for
thy sottish indifference to thine eternal welfare.
Dost thou now come to thyself? Dost thou now
exclaim, " I will arise and go unto rny Father?"
Oh, be assured of a welcome reception, of glad
some entertainment, and loving acceptance.

" From the Mount of Calvary,
Where the Saviour deigned to die,
What melodious sounds I hear,
Bursting on my ravished ear!
Love s redeeming work is done !

COME, AND "WELCOME, SINNER, COME.

" Now behold the festal board,
With its richest dainties stored ;
To thy Father s bosom press d,
Once again a child confess d.
From his house no more to roam ;

COME, AND WELCOME, SINNER, COME. 1 *



IX.

JESUS IK THE HOUR OF TROUBLE.



" Who passing through the valley of Baca make it a well ; the
rain also filleth the pools." Ps. Ixxxir. 6.



PILGRIMAGE to an appointed shrine seems to be
an essential part of most religions. The tribes of
Israel made yearly journeys to Jerusalem, that at
one great altar they might sacrifice unto the Lord
their God. Borrowing the idea, probably, from
the Jews, we find false religions inculcating the
same. The disciples of Brahma are required to
undertake long and painful journeys to the temple
of Juggernaut, or to the banks of their sacred
river, the Ganges. The Mahometan has his Kebla
of worship ; and, if he be thoroughly a devout
follower of the false prophet, he must, once in his
life, offer his petitions at Mecca. And who has
not heard of the palmer plodding his weary way
to the Holy Sepulchre, or of the Canterbury pil
grim going to the tomb of Thomas a Becket ?

815



316 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUK.

But the religion of God, the revelation of our
most merciful Father, does not thus deal with man.
It prescribes no earthly pilgrimage. It knows
nothing of local restrictions. It declares that
" neither in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem
shall men worship the Father;" that "God is a
spirit," everywhere present, and as a spirit " must
be worshipped," not merely by outward acts, but
in spirit and in truth."

Yet " pilgrimage " is one of the leading ideas of
Christianity. Every Christian is mystically a pil
grim. His rest is not here. He is not a citizen
of earth. Here he has no abiding city. He jour
neys to a shrine unseen by mortal eye, whither his
fathers have arrived. This life-journey is his one
incessant occupation. He came into the world
that he might march through it in haste. He is
ever a pilgrim, in the fullest and truest sense.

Nothing can be more pleasing to a thoughtful
Christian than marking the footsteps of the flock,
and tracing the track they have left in the blood-
besprinkled way. Thus the geography of Christian
life becomes an interesting study. To enter the
wicket-gate, to sit in the arbour on the hill-side, to
lie in the chamber of peace in the House Beautiful,
to stand on the Delectable Mountains, or walk
among the spice beds of the land Beulah, yields
far sweeter pleasure than fairy dreams, or tales
coloured by fancy, whispered by the lips of music.



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 317

There are many fair and enchanting spots in the
highway of salvation spots which angels have
visited, and which the saints have sighed to behold
again and again. But some other parts of the way
are not so inviting; we love not to enter the Yalley
of the Shadow of Death, nor to approach the moun
tains of the leopards, nor the lions dens, yet must
all of them be passed.

It is a precious mercy that Jesus, the heavenly
Friend, is willing and able to accompany us in all
our journeyings, and is the consolation of our souls
in periods of blackest woe. After surveying the
Valley of Baca, noticing the toilsome effort of the
pilgrims in digging wells therein, and remarking
the heavenly supply with which the pools are filled,
we shall consider the grace of our Lord Jesus as
exhibited to his people in their sorrowful passage
through this Yale of Tears.

I. THE YALLEY OF BAG A. The best description
given of the Yalley of Baca seems to be, that it
was a defile through which a portion of the tribes
had to pass on their journey to the city of their
solemnities. It was a place noted for its dryness,
and therefore pits were digged therein for the pur
pose of holding rain-water for the thirsty wayfarers
as they passed through it. But, probably, the
Psalmist looked not so much at the place as at
its name, which signifies "Yalley of Sorrow, or



818 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUR.

Tears." The Septuagint translates it, " Yalley of
Lamentation," and the Latin Yulgate, "Yale of
Tears." We may therefore read the verse thus :
" Who passing through the vale of Tears make it a
well." &c. Of this valley we may observe, first,
It is much frequented. The way to Zion lies
through its glooms. Many of God s chosen ones
are carried from the breast to glory, and thus
escape this dreary place, but all the rest of God s
children irmst pass through it. Frequent are their
sojourning in this " house of mourning." Not once
nor twice, but many a time must they tread this
valley. As numerous as their days are the causes
of their griefs. The molestations of disease, the
disappointments of business, the losses of adversity,
and the havocs of death, combining with a thousand
other ills, furnish enough material for the much
tribulation through which we inherit the kingdom.
All men have their times of sadness, but some
seem to be always in the deep waters their lives,
like Ezekiel s roll, seem written within and with
out with lamentations. They can just dimly recol
lect happier days, but those are past long ago.
They have for some time been the children of
grief. They seldom eat a crust unmoistened by a
tear. Sorrow s wormwood is their daily salad.
Perhaps some sudden calamity has snatched away
the gourd which covered their head, arid, Jonah-
like, they think they do well to be angry even unto



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 319

death. A haze, dark and heavy, hangs like a pall
before their eyes, and clothes life s scenery with
sadness and gloom. Some are associated with
ungodly partners, by whose unkindness their days
are made bitter, and their Jives a burden. Yarious
are the causes of grief. The chains of melancholy
differ in their size and material. Bound in afflic
tion and iron, art thou saying, " He hath made my
chain heavy ?" Oh, child of grief, remember the
vale of tears is much frequented ; thou art not
alone in thy distress. Sorrow has a numerous
family. Say not, I am the man that has seen
affliction, for there be others in the furnace with
thee. Remember, moreover, the King of kings
once went through this valley, and here he
obtained his name, " the Man of sorrows," for it
was while passing through it he became "acquaint
ed with grief."

But, blessed be God, all his people are not thus
clad in sackcloth and filled with bitterness. Some
of them can sing for joy of heart, and, like the
lark, rise to heaven s gates, carolling notes of
praise. Yet, be it observed, there is not one who
has not had his valley of Baca. He of flashing eye
and cheerful countenance was once walking in its
dark and dreary paths. He who danced before
the ark had cried out of the depths unto the Lord.
He whom you heard in prayer, with free heart
blessing his Maker, was lately in his bed-chamber,
crying out with Job, " O that my grief were



320 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUR.

weighed !" and with Jeremiah, " He hath filled
me with bitterness, and made me drunken with
wormwood."

Oh, mourner, say not that thou art a target for
all the arrows of the Almignty ; take not to thyself
the pre-eminence of woe; for thy fellows have
trodden the valley too, and upon them are the
scars of the thorns and briars of the dreary path
way.

Secondly, this valley is exceedingly unpleasant
to flesh and blood. We love to ascend the moun
tains of myrrh and hills of frankincense, rather
than to descend into this dismal region. For tri
bulation is not joyous but grievous. Disguise sor
row as we may, it is sorrow still. ]STo pilgrim ever
wished to enter here for its own sake, though there
have been many who have rejoiced in the midst
of its darkest and most gloomy paths. Now, let
us briefly consider why this valley is so unpleasant
to heaven-bound travellers. It is so because we
can find no rivers of water in it. Earthly joys are
continually failing us ; and created cisterns, one
after another, are dried up. A hot, dry wind
steals away every drop of comfort, and, hungry and
thirsty, our soul fainteth in us. ISTo fruit of sweet
ness grows here. It well answers the description
of Watts :

" Its yields us no supply,
No cheering fruits, no wholesome trees,
Nor streams of living joy."



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 321

Many rich mercies are here received by pilgrims,
but these are not the fruits of the place itself, but
the gifts of heaven. It is, moreover, disagreeable
travelling in this valley, because the way is rough
and rugged. In some parts of the Christian jour
ney we are led into green pastures beside the still
waters ; but this valley is thorny, stony, and flinty,
and every way uncomfortable. True, there are
many labourers, called promises, ever at work
breaking the stones, and helping passengers over
its more difficult places ; but notwithstanding this
aid, journeying through it is very rough work for
all, but especially for those pilgrims who are weak,
and ready to halt. It is also frequently very dark.
The vale of tears is very low, and descends far be
neath the ordinary level ; some parts of it, indeed,
are tunnelled through rocks of anguish. A fre
quent cause of its darkness is that on either side
of the valley there are high mountains, called the
mountains of sin. These rise so high that they
obscure the light of the sun. Behind these Andes
of guilt God hides his face, and we are troubled.
Then how densely dark the pathway becomes !
Indeed, this is the very worst thing that can be
mentioned of this valley : for, if it were not so
dark, pilgrims would not so much dread passing
through it.

The soul of the traveller is also often discouraged
on account of the length of the way. Through the



322 THE SAINT AND KIS SAVIOUR.

darkness of the place it seems as though it had no
termination, for, although it is known that the dark
river of death flows across its extremity, but, in
the night season, the celestial city on the other
side cannot be seen. This is the Egyptian dark
ness which may be felt, and, like solid piles of
ebony, at such times it appears to have an ada
mantine hardness in it. Besides, this valley is
much haunted. Evil spirits are very common in
it. When a man is in the valley of Baca, Satan
will soon be at him with his fiery darts, cursed
insinuations, and blasphemous suggestions. Like
the bandit, he waylays us in the roughest and
darkest part of our way. This much deepens the
horror of the place.

Thirdly, this valley is very healthful. In all the
King s dominions, save alone the royal pavilion in
glory, there is no spot more conducive to the soul s
health than this. The air from the sea of affliction
is extremely beneficial to invalid Christians. Con-
tinned prosperity, like a warm atmosphere, has a
tendency to unbind the sinews and soften the
bones; but the cold winds of trouble make us
sturdy, hardy, and well braced in every part. Un
broken success often leads to an undervaluing of
mercies and forgetfulness of the giver; but the
withdrawal of the sunshine leads us to look for the
sun.

Fourthly, it is a very safe place. We are not so



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 323

likely to stumble in rough ways as in smooth and
slippery places. Better walk on rugged rocks than
on slippery ice. If we lose our roll it is in the
harbour of ease, not in the valley of Baca. Few
Christians backslide while under the rod ; it is
usually when on the lap of plenty that believers
sin.

Fifthly, it is, therefore, a profitable place. Stars
may be seen from the bottom of a deep well when
they cannot be discerned from the top of a moun
tain: so are many things learned in adversity
which the prosperous man dreams not of. We
need affliction as the trees need winter, that we
may collect sap and nourishment for future blos
soms and fruit. Sorrow is as necessary for the soul
as medicine is to the body :

" The path of sorrow, and that path alone,
Leads to the land where sorrow is unknown."

The benefits to be derived in the vale of tears are
greater than, its horrors, and far outnumber its dis
advantages. There was a fiction once of a golden
cup at the foot of the rainbow : it would have been
no fiction had they put the treasure in the dark
cloud. In this valley of Baca there are mines of
gold and of all manner of precious things ; and
sometimes, even in the thick darkness, one may
perceive the diamonds glitter. Full many a pil
grim has here been made rich to all the intents of



324 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUK.

bliss, and here have others had their heavenly
wealth most marvellously increased.
But we proceed to observe

II. THE TOILSOME EFFORT spoken of in the words
at the head of the chapter " They make it a
well," &c. When Eastern Shepherds travel, if
they find no water, they dig a well, and thus
obtain a plentiful supply of water for themselves
and for their cattle. So did Isaac, and so also did
the rulers for the people in the wilderness. When
we are thirsty and there is no water to be found in
the pools, we must dig deep for it. Calvin trans
lates it " They, travelling through the valley of
weeping, will dig a well," &c. This teaches us
that

1. Comfort may be obtained even in the deepest
trouble. We often look for it and fancy there is
none. Like Hagar, the child of our hope is given
up, and we lay down to die ; but why should we,
when there is water to be had, if we will but seek
for it ? Let no man say, My case is hopeless ; let
none say, I am in the valley, and can never again
know joy. There is hope. There is the water of
life to cheer our fainting souls. It certainly is not
possible for us to be in a position where Omnipo
tence cannot assist us. God hath servants every
where, and where we think he has none his word
can create a multitude. There are " treasures hid



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 325

in the sand,"* and the Lord s chosen shall eat
thereof. When the clouds hide the mountains they
are as real as in the sunshine ; so the promise and
the providence of God are unchanged by the
obscurity of our faith, or the difficulties of our posi
tion. There is hope, and hope at hand, therefore,
let us be of good cheer.

2. It teaches that comfort must be obtained by
exertion. Well-digging is hard labour : but better
dig for water than die of thirst. Much of the
misery Christians feel arises from inaction. Cold
numbs the hand if exercise be not used. We are
bound to use every scriptural means to obtain the
good we need. The sanctuary, the meeting for
prayer, the Bible, the company of the saints, pri
vate prayer and meditation these revive the soul.
We must dig the wells. If there be rocky granite
we must bore it; we must not be disturbed
from perseverance by the labour of our duties,
but continue to dig still : and what a mercy !

if the well has ever so small a bore the water will
flow.

3. It teaches us that the comfort obtained by
one is often of use to another ; j ust as wells opened
by former travellers would suffice for the company
which came after. When we read works full of
consolation, like Jonathan s rod, dropping with

* Deut. xxxiii. 19.



326 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUR.

honey, let us remember that our brother has been
here before us, and digged this well. " Songs in
the Night," could only have been written by that
nightingale in the thorns, Susanna Harrison.
Many a " Night of Weeping," " Midnight Harmo
nies," an " Eternal Day," " A Crook in the Lot,"
a " Comfort for Mourners," has been a well digged
by a pilgrim for himself, but has proved just as
useful to others. Specially we notice this in the
Psalms, which console us, although they were
mournful odes to David. Travellers have been
delighted to see the footprints of man on a barren
shore, and we love to see the way-marks of the pil
grimage while passing through the vale of tears.
Yea, the refuse and debris of the receding camp
often furnish food for the stragglers behind. We
may notice

III. THE HEAVENLY SUPPLY. The pilgrims dig
the well, but, strange enough, it fills from the top
instead of the bottom. We use the means, but the
blessing does not lie in the means, but in the God
of the means. We dig the well, but heaven fills it
with rain. The horse is prepared against the day
of battle, but salvation is of the Lord. The means
are divinely connected with the end, but the}^ do
not produce the blessing. " The rain filleth the
pools," so that ordinances and duties are rather
reservoirs than fountains, containing comfort, but



JESUS IN THE HOUR OF TROUBLE. 327

not creating it. In vain are all the ordinances
without the divine blessing ; as clouds without
rain, and pools without water, they yield us no
supplies. When heaven smiles and pours down
its showers of grace, then they are precious
things ; but without the celestial rain we might
as much expect water from the arid waste, as
a real blessing in the use of them. " All my
springs are in Thee," is the believer s daily con
fession to his Lord a confession which until death
must ever be upon his lips.

We now turn to Our legitimate subject, from
which the beauty of the text has for a while allured
us, and we hasten to answer the question, How
doth Jesus behave himself toward his people in the
hour of their distresses ? Does he leave them when
their friends are taken from them ! Does he
desert them in the hour of their poverty ? Is he
ashamed of them when sackcloth is on their
loins, and ashes upon their heads ? Do the pains
of Sickness affright him from the bed ? Can famine
and nakedness separate his brethren from his
love ? Is he the same yesterday, to-day, and
for ever? Our answer shall be one dictated by
the experience of the saints, and confirmed in the
life of the Christian reader. The Lord Jesus is
no fair-weather friend, but one who loveth at
all times a brother born for. adversitg. This he
proves to his beloved, not by mere words of pro-



328 THE SAINT AND HIS SAYIOUE.

mise, but by actual deeds of affection. As our
sufferings abound, so he makes our consolatons
to abound. This he does by divers choice acts
of love.

1. He affords the tried saint clearer manifesta
tions of himself than usual. When he draws the
curtain around the believer on the bed of sickness,
he usually withdraws the curtain wherewith he
conceals himself. He approaches nearer to the
soul in its tribulation, even as the sun is said to be
nearer to the earth in the time of winter. He
sheds a clear light on his promise when he robes
his providence in darkness ; and if both are alike
clouded, he reveals himself the more manifestly.
Affliction has often proved to be a presence-cham
ber, in which the King of Heaven gives audience
to his unworthy subjects. As Isaac met his bride
in the fields at eventide, so do true souls frequently
find their joy and consolation in the loneliness of
solitude, and at the sunset of their earthly plea
sures. He who would see the stars sparkling with
tenfold lustre must dwell in the cold regions of

O

snow ; and he who would know the full beauties
of Jesus, the bright and morning star, must see
him amid the frosts of trouble and adversity.
Affliction is often the hand of God, which he
places before our face to enable us, like Moses, to
see the train of his glory as he passes by. The
saint has had many a pleasant view of God s



JESUS IN THE HOUB OF TROUBLE. 329

loving kindness from the top of the hills of mercy ;
but tribulation is very frequently the Lord s
Pisgah, from which he gives them a view of the
land in all its length and breadth.

Mr. Renwick, the last of the Scottish martyrs,
speaking of his sufferings for conscience sake,
says : " Enemies think themselves satisfied that we
are put to wander in mosses, and upon mountains ;
but even amidst the storms of these last two
nights, I cannot express what sweet times I have
had, when I had no covering but the dark curtains
of night. Yea, in the silent watch, my mind was
led out to admire the deep and inexpressible
ocean of joy wherein the whole family of heaven
swim. Each star led me to wonder what He must
be who is the star of Jacob, of whom all stars
borrow their shining."

This one testimony is the type of many ; it is
an exhibition of the great rule of the kingdom
" When thou passest through the rivers, I will be
with thee."

Choice discoveries of the wondrous love and
grace of Jesus are most tenderly vouchsafed unto
believers in the times of grief. Then it is that he
lifts them up from his feet, where, like Mary, it is
their delight to sit, and exalts them to the position
of the favoured John, pressing them to his breast
and bidding them lean on his bosom. Then it is
that he doth fill the cup of salvation with the old



330 THE SAINT AND HIS SAVIOUR.

wine of the kingdom, and puts it to the mouth of
the Christian, that he may in some measure forget
the flavour of wormwood and grating of gravel-
stones which the draught of bitterness has placed
upon his palate and between his teeth. If Christ
is more excellent at one time than another it cer
tainly is in " the cloudy and dark day." We can
never so well see the true colour of Christ s love as
in the night of weeping. Christ in the dungeon,
Christ on the bed of sickness, Christ in poverty, is
Christ indeed to a sanctified man. No vision of
Christ Jesus is so truly a revelation as that which is
seen in the Patmos of suffering. As in time of war
the city doubles its guards, so does Jesus multiply
the displays of his affection when his chosen are
besieged by trials. When Habakuk s belly trem
bled, and his lips quivered, and rottenness entered
into his bones, when all his earthly hopes were
blasted, and his comforts removed, he had such an
overcoming sense of the presence of God that he
exclaimed in the midst of all his sorrows, " Yet
will I rejoice in the Lord, and joy in the God of
my salvation." Among the family of God none
are so well versed in the knowledge of Christ s
love as those who have been long in the chamber
of affliction. What marvellous things have these
seen, and what secrets have they heard? They
have kissed the lips which others have but heard
at a distance ; they have pressed their heads upon



JESUS IN THE HOUE OF TROUBLE. 331

the breast which others have but seen with their