Now, brethren, it is to be known first of all concerning these women, who next, after the angels, were made witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, that they came not all to the grave in one company, but as it appears well of the History, there have been two companies of them, one company that came first to the grave, and went out of Jerusalem before sun-rising; another company that came out after this company, and came to the grave of the Lord before' the other company. If we mark not this difference, we will see well2 how the four Evangelists agree in that history of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As for the first company, there were two women especially named, Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James, not excluding the rest; but they are named, because, among all the rest, they were the most notable, and best known to the apostles. Mark notes three to be in the first company, these two and one Salome. Luke notes none, but calls them certain women, who followed Jesus out of Galilee, understanding these same women.3 John names none but one, Mary Magdalene, not excluding the rest; because she was best known for her love, for her zeal, for her faith, and for her affection to Christ, her name is registrate. Brethren, the last day we heard something of the first company, and the time when they came, " in the dawning of the day" before the Lord's day, which we call Sunday. Now, we heard, as they came out of Jerusalem, the angel of the Lord descended from heaven with a great earthquake. No question the women were afraid at this, but being strengthened with the Spirit, they came forward. As they were coming to the grave, they fell in question about the rolling away of the stone from the door of the grave; they foresaw not this impediment ere they came from home, but being carried with an earnest desire to anoint the Lord's dead body, they were not mindful of any impediments. We know when a man or a woman would fain have a thing done, they will not forecast for all perils; but it is better to provide and

1 This should be after.

2 This should be, we will not see well.

3 This is a mistake. According to our author, the women mentioned by Luke formed the second company. See 31st Lecture.

foresee in time the impediments, ere thou begin the work. Yet, a man or a woman, who hath the work of the Lord, should not cast for all perils, for if he put not his hand to the work of the Lord, except he see all impediments removed, he will never do anything to the glory of God, for, in performing of the Lord's work, we must not think that he will remove all impediments at the first, as these women found all impediments to be taken away.

Now, these women came forward, and as they came they perceived the stone to be rolled from the grave. Mary Magdalene seeing the stone away, she ran back and showed the matter to Peter and James in Jerusalem, where they lay lurking; she brings, in her conceit, evil tidings to them, and says, "The body of the Lord is stolen away out of the grave, and we know not where they have laid him." So, brethren, in this text that we have read, we have, first, a particular history of Mary Magdalene, registered by John, then we have the history of the rest of the women. As concerning Mary Magdalene, we note of her these four things out of the Gospel of John; first, her outcoming; next, what she sees when she is come, to wit, the stone rolled away; thirdly, what she does when she sees the stone removed; she returns to Peter; and, fourthly, what she says-she brings no good tidings to Peter and James, but she says, "They have stolen away the body of the Lord, and I know not where they have laid him." Touching the going out of Mary, I stay not on it, for she came out with the rest of the first company of women; only this, if any man would ask wherefore the women got this honour above men, yea, even the apostles, to be made first witnesses of this resurrection of Christ? I answer, so it pleased the Lord that directed them, and this only one cause makes their witnessing also to be authentic, that no man should except against it. Ye see, in civil things, women are not admitted to be witnesses, but here, ye see, in this spiritual matter, they are made witnesses before all the world, and their testimony is so authentic, that if John, or Peter, or any of the apostles, had refused this testimony, they had hazarded their part and portion in the resurrection of Jesus Christ;

and if thou reject their witnessing this day, thou shalt never have part of his resurrection. To come to the text. What sees she, and the rest, when they come to the grave? They see the stone rolled away, and so they are relieved of that care that troubled them by the way. Mary Magdalene and the rest came of a great zeal to the grave to anoint the Lord's dead body. Yet I will not commend this purpose, because they had no warrant of the word of the Lord, for he told he would rise the third day, and therefore they should not have come out to anoint him the third day. Yet, when they go out the third day to anoint him, ere they come to the grave, they find the impediment to be taken away, the stone to be removed.

Mark this well. If they that came to this action without any warrant got all impediments removed, how much more if any man or woman, of zeal to God and to his glory, have a good purpose, and have an express warrant of his word, shall they find all impediments to be taken away? God is the same to us now that he was to them then. Yet I see again, it is not to be too wise in the work of the Lord, but as soon as we know what is the Lord's will, we should address ourselves to perform the same, and commit the success to him who can remove all impediments, for, in so doing, thou honourest God, and givest him the glory that is due to him, “when, under hope against hope, thou believest," as Abraham did, Rom iv. 18. But ye will say, albeit Mary Magdalene found the stone rolled away, yet she found not the body of the Lord, which she meant to anoint with odours. I answer, she found not the thing she sought, but what lost she? She found a better thing than she sought, she seeks the Lord among the dead, and she finds him among the living. The faithful who seek the Lord shall never be disappointed; if thou missest that thing that thou seekest, thou shalt get a better thing, and if thou seekest this life, if thou be in the Lord, if thou lose it, what losest thou? thou shalt find a better life. Mary seeing the stone rolled away, she goes not forward, but returns home again. Now, certainly I cannot deny but this came of zeal, but I will not excuse her, but

she should have stayed with the rest, and have looked into the grave to hear the angel's information; but on a sudden she returns. Brethren, this falls out in the best and most godly; they will ofttimes be miscarried for a while, not that there is any fault to be found with their zeal, or with their affection to the Lord, but the hasty and sudden doing comes more of a blindness and ignorance than of zeal. And, therefore, mark the lesson; whoever would be zealous in a good cause, and would utter their affection toward the Lord, ere they begin, they should beware, and know well what they are doing; let knowledge go before, and let it be borne as a torch to show the way, and then let zeal follow, for if zeal follow not, I will not give a penny for thy knowledge. Zeal without knowledge is better than knowledge without zeal. A great zeal, with a sober measure of knowledge, is better than all the knowledge in the world without zeal. Knowledge without zeal serves for nothing but for damnation. If you understood, and could tell over the whole Bible, without zeal, that serves thee for nothing; I would rather have one that can speak two words with zeal, than have all thy knowledge. Little knowledge with zeal will save thee, but if thou hadst all the knowledge in the world, without zeal it will not save thee.

Now, the last thing concerning Mary, when she hath returned back to Peter and John, here she begins to make a sad narration, and complains and says, "Alas! they have stolen away the body of the Lord, and we know not where to seek it," speaking in the plural number; she makes a moan. And look to the affection of the woman toward the Lord; she could not be separate from him when he was dead in the grave; alas! she had another kind of love to him than we have now; but now, albeit he be now glorified in the heavens, we will suffer ourself easily to sunder from him without a complaint or moan; but if we found either the force of his death, or yet the force of his life and glory, we would never be glad until we were joined with him. Now, when she

says they had taken away the Lord, albeit she speaks not the truth, yet I will not say she made a lie, but she failed in ignorance;

she spake as she thought, but she knew not that the Lord was risen. Ignorance is a sore thing, for when once any man commits a sin through ignorance, he goes forward from one sin to another ;— so she makes an evil report to the apostles ;-strive, therefore, to get this misty cloud of ignorance removed from thee, for if thou takest pleasure to lie in it, the end of it shall be utter darkness. Brethren, mark the mercy of God; the Lord lays not this to her charge; it is said commonly, "Love hides a multitude of sins." The Lord, when he loves a person, he casts the mantle of his mercy over his sins, and hides them; he will be loath to revile them whom he loves; a man will not shame another whom he loves well, much less will the Lord do it; no, he will cast the cloak of his mercy upon them, that they appear not before the judgment-seat of his Father. Now, I see further, albeit those things were not true, yet by them the Lord brings good to the disciples, for they were lying in sluggishness, and so wakens them; so he works light out of darkness, yet that is no warrant for thee to do evil. "Let no man do evil that good may come of it," Rom. iii. 8. Mark last concerning this woman Mary, I see she comes to the knowledge of the resurrection of Jesus with great pain, for she waked the night before with care; she comes out early in the morning to the grave, and goes home with great care and heaviness. It is not a little thing to come to Christ in his glory; thinkest thou to step in at the first to see God in his glory? thou wilt not get leave to see the glory of a king at the first, and thinkest thou to come to Christ at the first? No, thou must come to Christ and the sight of his glory with many tears and great pain; but what if thou shouldst pain thyself all thy lifetime, if thou get a sight of this resurrection in glory, and if thou gettest a blink of that countenance, if it were at thy last end, it shall swallow up in a moment all thy displeasure and pain. If thou shouldst suffer martyrdom, yet that sight of his glory shall furnish such joy as shall swallow up all displeasure," the sight of that eternal weight of glory makes us to count all the afflictions of this present life to be but light and momentanean, when we look not to the things that are seen, but to