If the tree fall to the south or to the north, in what place soever it shall fall there shall it be (Eccles. 11:3).
I. Consider first, that you are this tree of the parable here spoken of. If when cut down you fall to the south, you shall keep to the south; if to the north, to the north you shall keep. You shall have no hope of ever changing your position. Either for ever a king upon a throne, or for ever a slave in a dungeon; either for ever in joy, or for ever in sorrow; either for ever glorious, or for ever infamous. Let this thought take firm hold of you.
II. Consider secondly, if you are at all anxious to know on which side you shall fall, you can easily ascertain. See to which side you are now leaning. When its trunk is sawed through, on which side does a tree fall? On the side to which it leans already. If it leans to the south, it falls to the south; if it leans to the north, it falls to the north. You are ever leaning to the north, and notwithstanding you do hope that, when they come to cut you down, you will be able to fall to the south; grievously you shall find yourself mistaken.
III. Consider thirdly, that if you do desire it, you are still in good time to bend yourself to the better side, at least by doing some violence to yourself. But do not delay, because you are likened to a tree, and who is not aware that, the older a tree becomes, the more unyielding it is? You can never sufficiently appreciate the enormous power which the force of habit, be it good or bad, exerts at the hour of death.