.

of the eaves of the tree of life, the which Christian took and applied to the wounds that he had received in the battle, and was healed immediately. He also sat down in that place to eat bread, and to drink of that bottle that was given him a little before: so being refreshed, he addressed himself to his journey with his sword drawn in his hand; for he said, I know not but some other enemy may be at hand. But he met with no other affront from Apollyon quite through the valley.

Now at the end of this valley was another, called the valley* of the Shadow of Death,

:

he received in the conflict; pardoning his sins, rectifying his mistakes, and renewing his strength and comfort, through the mediation of Christ, and by the influences of the Holy Spir it so that the most distressing experiences are often suceceded by the sweetest confidence and serenity of mind, and the greatest alacrity in the ways of God. The leaves of the tree of life' (Rev. xxii. 2), represent the present benefits of the redemption of Christ: the hand' may be the emblem of those whom the Lord employs, as instruments in restoring to his discouraged servants the joy of his salvation.' The believer thus healed and refreshed, by meditation on the death of Christ, and other religious exercises, rests not in one victory, but presses forward, prepared for new conflicts; yet the enemy, once decidedly put to flight, seldom repeats the same assaults, at least for some time; because he will generally find the victor upon his guard on that side, though he may be surprised in some other way.

* The valley'—The valley of the Shadow of Death seems intended to represent a variation of inward distress, conflict, and alarm, which arise from prevailing darkness and insensi bility of mind, rendering a man reluctant to religious duties, and dull in the performance of them, which makes way for manifold apprehensions and temptations. The words, quoted from the prophet, describe the waste howling wilderness through which Israel journeyed to Canaan; which typified the believer's pilgrimage through this world to heaven. From this we inay infer, that the aubos meant in general, that such

and Christian must needs go through it, because the way to the Celestial City lay through

dreary seasons may be expected, as very few believers wholly escape them: but we must not suppose, that he intended to convey an idea, that all experience these trials in the same order or degree as Christian did. While men rest in forms and notions, they generally expect nothing in religious ordinances but to finish a task, and to enjoy the satisfaction of naving done their supposed duty; but the spiritual worshipper, at some times, finds his soul filled with clear light and holy affection; it is good for him to draw nigh to God;' and his soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness, while he praises his God with joyful lips' at other times, dulness and heaviness oppress him; he feels little exercise of faith, hope, desire, reverence, love, or gratitude; he seems to address an unknown or absent God, and rather to mock than to worship him; divine things appear obscure and almost unreal; and every returning season of devotion, or reiterated effort to lift up his heart to God, ends in disappointment; so that religion becomes his burthen instead of his delight. Evils before unnoticed are now perceived to mingle with his services; for his self-knowledge is advanced; his remedy seems to increase his disease; he suspects that all his former joy was a delusion, and is ready to conclude, that God had forgotten to be gracious, and hath shut up his loving-kindness in displeasure. These experiences, sufficiently painful in themselves, are often rendered more distressing, by erroneous expectations of uninterrupted comfort, or by reading books, or hearkening to instructions, which state things unscripturally; representing comfort as the evidence of acceptance, assurance as the essence of faith, impressions or visions as the witness of the Spirit; or perfection as attainable in this life, nay, actually attained by all the regenerate; as if this were the church triumphant, and not the church militant. The state of the body also, as disordered by nervous or hypochondriacal affections, gives energy to the distressing inferences which men often draw from their dark frame of unind; and indeed indisposition may often operate as a direct cause of it; though the influences of the Holy Spirit will overcome this, and all other impediments to comfort, when he sheds abroad the love of God in the heart.' Evil spirits never fail, when permitted, to take advantage of a disordered state, whether of body or mind, to mislead, entangle, perplex, or defile the soul. Persons of a melancholic

the midst of it Now this valley is a very solitary place. The prophet Jeremiah thus describes it: 'A wilderness, a land of deserts and of pits; a land of drought, and of the shadow of death; a land that no man,' but a Christian, passeth through, and where no man dwelt' (Jer. ii. 6).

6

Now here Christian was worse put to than in his fight with Apollyon; as by the sc quel you shall see.

I saw then in my dream, that when Christian was got on the borders of the Shadow of Death, there met him two men,* children of

temperature, when not aware of the particular causes whence their gloom originates, are apt to ascribe it wholly to desertion, which exceedingly enhances their distress; and, as our author had been greatly harassed in this way, he has given as a larger proportion of this shade than is generally met with by consistent believers, or than the Scriptures give us reason to expect and probably he meant to state the out lines of his own experience in the pilgrimage of Christian.

Two men'-These men were spies, not pilgrims: they related what they had observed at a distance, but had never experienced. They represent those who have been conver sant with godly people; and bring an evil report on the good land,' to prejudice the minds of numbers against the right ways of the Lord. Such men pretend to have made trial of religion, and found it to be a comfortless and dreary pursuit; they give a caricatured discription of the sighs, groans, terrors, and distresses of pious persons, and of all the dreadful things to be seen and heard among them: they avail themselves of every unguarded or hyperbolical expres sion, which escapes a tempted believer; of the enthusiastic representations which some people give of their experience; and even of the figurative language, which is often employed in speaking of inward conflicts under images taken from ex ternal things. Thus they endeavour to excuse their own apostacy, and to expose to contempt the cause which they have deserted. Nothing they can say, however, concerning une disorder or confusion to which religion may sometimes

them that brought up an evil report of the good land (Numb. xiii.), making haste to go back; to whom Christian spake as foliows :Whither are you going?

They said, Back! back! and we would have you to do so too, if either life or peace is prized by you.

Why, what's the matter? said Christian.

Matter! said they, we were going that way as you are going, and went as far as we durst; and indeed we were almost past coming back; for had we gone a little farther we had not been here to bring the news to thee.

But what have you met with? said Christian.

Men. Why we were almost in the valley of the Shadow of Death (Ps. xliv. 19), but that by good hap we looked before us, and saw the danger before we came to it.

But what have you seen? said Christian. Men. Seen! why the valley itself, which is as dark as pitch; we also saw there the hobgoblins, statyrs, and dragons of the pit; we heard also in that valley a continual howling and yelling, as of people under unutterable misery, who there sat bound in affliction and irons; and over that valley hang the discouraging clouds of confusion: death also doth always spread his wings over it (Job iii.

give occasion, can induce the believer to conclude that he bag mistaken his way, or that it would be advisable for him to turn back, or deviate into any bye-path: though they will excite him so vigilance and circumspection. As those spies do so much mischief by their misrepresentations, we should be careful to give them as little occasion as we possibly can

5; x. 22). In a word, it is every whit dreadful, being utterly without order.

Then said Christian, I perceive not yet, by what you have said, but that this is my way to the desired haven.

Men. Be it thy way; we will not choose it for ours.

So they parted; and Christian went on his way, but still with his sword drawn in his hand, for fear lest he should be assaulted.

I saw then in my dream, so far as this valley reached there was on the right hand a very deep ditch ;* that ditch is it into which the blind

* Deep ditch'-The fatal presumption, into which men are soothed, through ignorance and various kinds of false doctrine, so that they conclude themselves safe without any warrant from Scripture, is intended by the deep ditch,' into which the blind lead the blind and perish with them.' This is often done by men who reciprocally criminate and despise each other. The dangerous quag,' on the other side of the narrow way represents the opposite extreme-despair of God's mercy; and the mire of it agrees with that of the slough of Despond. In these opposite ways multitudes continually perish; some concluding that there is no fear, others that there is no hope. But the danger to which a real believer is exposed, of verging towards one of these extremes in times of inward darkness and disconsolation, is especially implied. They, who have had much opportunity of conversing with professors of the Gospel, have met with many persons who once were zealous and comfortable, but their religious affections have declined; their duties are comparatively scanty, formal, and joyless; their walk unsteady, and their hearts dark, cold, and barren; they call themselves backsliders and complain of desertion, yet they have no hearts to use proper means of revival but love to be soothed in their present condition; and quiet themselves by presuming that they are true be lievers, and abusing the doctrine of final perseverance. Many of this cast are wholly deceived; others partially, and will be recovered by severe but salutary rebukes and chastenings. Even the consistent well-instructed Christian,when greatly