exceedingly for the comfort of those that are Mourners in Sion they are in favour with God and out of the reach of all danger so that nothing can befall them for hurt Blessed are they that mourne saith Christ for they shall be comforted Matth. 5.4 More happy is the poor man that weeps for his sinne then the greatest Potentate that rejoyceth in abundance And though we have cause enough of sorrow if we should flay to looke into the Calendar of these dayes and see and find the sinnes of this Land to be aspiring sinnes to see Drinking Cheating Whoring Swearing as common as Breathing which though they may be wincked at by the Eyes of Men yet are they crying in the Eares of God But to passe by these and likewise Covetousnesse Oppression whose Houses filled by cruelty and deceit Extortion of the Rich Wantonnesse of some and Prophanesse of all enough to sit every Pious soule in Mourning for the miseries of England And to look onely upon the woefull divisions amongst us touching matters of Religion not medling at all with that remnant of Baal I meane our Papists though me thinks its strange that after so long Preaching of the Gospel there should be still such as inundation of Popery nor with our hollow hearted bypoerites nor with the Atheists of our times who neither seek the Lord nor enquire after him Let us onely look upon our new Apostates and see what numberlesse numbers are carried away from true Religion to Fancies yet I reckon these Separists to be ours however they may be somewhat Sun-burnt Tand and Tackt with private Opinions though I hope the cloth is sound they yet hold fast the Foundation but runne through the Streets of every Towne and you shall scarce meet with two of one Opinion and yet all would be thought Religions and admired for Holinesse by which meanes the seamelesse Coat of Christ is miserably rent and torne and too many God grant they prove not irreparable divisions are in this poor Reuben O how should thoughts of these things open the very sluces of sorrow and cause Teares to trickle downe all cheekes that the Children should take delight in the Mothers ruine and Rayes of the glorious Gospel should suffer such dismall Eclipses by the strange and unheard of interpositions of those that would be deemed the onely Professours and lovers of it For surely there can be no greater cause of lamentation then the miseries and calamities of Gods poor distressed Church and People Hence the Point shall be this That the greatest affliction that should touch the Hearts of Gods People should be the affliction of his Church and People this of all others goes neerest the Hearts of the Saints For this see Ieremies Lamentation for the judgements of God on his Church and on Ierusalem his owne City and for the misery and calamity that lay upon the whole State see them thus bewayling their heavy ease Lament 3.48 49. c. Mine Eye casteth out Rivers of Water for the destruction of the Daughter of my People Mine Eye droppeth without stay and ceaseth not Mine Eye breaketh my Heart because of all the Daughters of my City For when Gods Inheritance was spoyled some put to the Sword others led Captive the Temple of God rized and the exercises of Religion abolished this was it that wrought upon Ieremiah and made him to grieve and breake forth into these wishes O that my Head were full of Water and mine Eyes a Fountaine of Teares that I might weep Day and Night for the Slaine of the Daughter of my People Ierem. 9.1 as if he could not have his fill nor weep enough for the desolations of Zion and the miserable overthrow thereof which he fore-saw And this was it that went neer the Heart of good Nehemiah who being in great prosperity Nehe. 1 4. Cup-hearer to the mightiest Monarch in the World and in speciall favour with him yet for the affliction and reproach wherein the Church of God was he conceived such inward sorrow Nehem. 2.1.2 That be was sad in the Kings preserce which was a thing that he must and would have forborne if possibly he could Moses goes further He doth not onely Mourne but is content to lay downe his prosperity and to expose his Estate to a manifest overthrow so that he might help forward the deliverance of the afflicted Israelites and save them from the hands of their Oppressours Hâ—b 11.24.25 For he knew he could not be in favour with Pharaoh if he should joyne with them whom he so cruelly handled But he chose rather to suffer affliction with the People of God then to be called the Sonne of Pharaohs Daughter Esther seems to goe somewhat beyond him for she resolves with her selfe for the cause of the Jewes who were all appointed to slaughter to adventure her life in going to the King in their behalfe I will goe saith she though it be contrary to the Law and if I perish I perish Esther 4.16 and God blessed her boldnesse with an happy successe she saw the deliverance of her People and the confusion of her Enemies But our Lord Jesus Christ goes beyond them all for when he was in supreame excellency he was so affected with the woefull case of his Elect into which they had brought themselves by their owne rebellions against him that he humbled himselfe Phil. 2.6.7 and tooks on him the forme of a Servant and submitted himselfe to many sorrowes disgraces and sufferings not onely while he lived but principally at his Death that so he might deliver his People from the wrath to come and from Eternall Death which they had deserved and must have otherwise endured But for proofe enough if you will have Reasons take these three First There is great Reason why the affliction of the Church and People of God should so affect us In regard of the Communion that is betwixt God and them For they are called the Lords Flocke his chiefe Treasure under Heaven his First-borne yea the very Apple of his Eye and therefore being so deare unto the Lord they should be deare unto us and we should have a tender care over them and mourne in our hearts for any evill that befalls them as Jeremy did That the Lords Flocke should goe into Captivity Secondly There is great Reason why the affection of the Church should so affect us In regard of the Communion that is betwixt them and us for we are their members and neerer then bodily members And surely we should have greater care of the whole Church then of our selves because it more concernes Gods glory and yet in caring for them we care for our selves too and in labouring to prevent their afflictions we prevent our owne and in weeping for others miseries we get Armour of proofe that will keep off misery from our selves And that there is no danger in thus doing for the servants of God may appeare in Exodus one would have thought that
Body but also dismember it in the Common-weale making so many Factions as there are Functions in the Church so many fancies as men and as many opinions as fancies and to that height of impiety some are arrived as that being Christs Free-men they ought not to be subject to any but are set free by Christ from the observation of Fasts or Feasts appointed by the Prince or Governour and not submitting to the Government under which they live will hold fast their liberty purchased by Christ though the appointment of them by the Governour be onely for the assembly of Gods people and that upon speciall occasions for the exercises of the Word and Prayer without placing the worship of God or any force of Religion in the observation of them or without any opinion of holinesse in those dayes more then other dayes And thus the Church of England did ever observe Holy-dayes Fasts or Feasts and no otherwise and yet did not fore goe their liberty purchased by Christ I might give way to my Discourse in this and enlarge it to a Volume but I had rather mourn for this kind of people the onely troublers of our English Israel then meddle with them But to you that are peaceable in Israel willingly submitting your selves to the Government under which God hath placed you and that for Conscience sake know you that it is lawfull for the Dominator or Governour to appoint a Fast or day of Hamillation and you are bound to obey For the lawfulnesse of their Edicts I need not stand at all upon it it hath ever been used by Princes of all Ages for which I might produce clouds of witnesses but search you the Scriptures and trace all the Kings For our obedience to their commands know that we are bound to obey them in their absolute commands so far forth as they are warranted by the Word of God And for this let that praecept of St. Paul serve for all Rom. 13.1 1 Pet. 2.13.14 Let every soule be subject to the higher Powers and if every soule then no man is free And again Submit your selves to all manner of Ordinance of man for the Lord sake whother it be unto the King as unto the Superiour or unto Governors as unto them that are sent of him So that people that obey not the wholesom Laws of the Magistrate sin greatly and if any refuse to be ordered by them Rom. 13.2 they resist the Ordinance of God and are specially threatned that they shall receive to themselves damnation And thus have I showed you That Princes or Governours may in the time of War or other Judgement enjoyne us a Fast and Proclaime a solemne assembly to the end we may testifie our Humiliation and better attend on the exercises of the Word and Prayer and that we are to obey them but withall in keeping of a Fast let these cautions be observed 1. That our Fasting be voyd of superstition and that we place no worship of God in it but hold it onely as an help to further us in the duties of Religion 2. That we have no opinion of merit by it that thereby we merit forgivenesse of sins increase of grace or the like 3. That we hold it not of absolute necessity 4. Lastly That it be without breach of the rule of charity either hurting our selves or making us thereby unfit for good duties or giving offence to others such as are weak in knowledge causing them to call our Christian liberty into question rather Informing them that the Magistrate hath power to enjoyn and we are bound to obey who by his Authority doth not take away the use of the things we abstain from but onely orders and moderates the same The like may be said for Feasts dayes of Thanksgiving or holy dayes but I passe them onely I could wish That every one of you would keep every day a Christian Feast even every day holy day which you may doe by purposing every day to avoyd all and every sin and by setting your selves every houre of the day in the sight of God and walking as before him carefully and conscionably in all good duties and so doing you shall keep a good Conscience and that the wife man tels us Prev 15 15. is a continuall feast even every day holy day And now being fully resolved That the King or Governour may Lawfully enjoyn us a Publick Fast in the time of extremity or any common calamity whereby we may testifie our Humiliation with out the least opinion of meriting forgivenesse of our sins the causes of all our miseries and that he may Proclaim a solemn assembly and that we are to obey not with any opinion of holinesse in the time but that the appointed day is for the assembly and holy convocation of Gods people for the exercise of the Word and Prayer Let us all then as at all times so especially upon these dayes of Humiliation set a part turne unto the Lord our God with fasting weeping and mourning and cry unto the Lord to spare this Nation and command his destroying Angel to sheath his Sword and cease from punishing that there may be no more complaining no more leading into captivity Let us implore Gods gracious power to withdraw his angry moved hand against us and let us beg of the God of mercy to stay his further dreadfull vengeance and threatned punishments from any further displaying horrour throughout all our Nation And for that purpose Let us run to our place of refuge the House of the Lord upon the feet of Prayer and there cry unto the Lord to spare this Land to spare this People to spare us from the Sword c. The occaâ—ion or cause of the fast The next is the occasion or cause of this Fast and that if you please to look into the verses foregoing the Text you will find to be a great Plague of Famine for the space of no lesse thou foure years Ver. 20.11.12.13 Their field wasted theâ—◠〈◊〉 mourning their corne destroyed their vines dryed up their oyle 〈◊〉 their harvest perished all the trees of the field withered and joy withered away from the Sons of Men So that just cause had they to lament and howle and lye in sackcâ—oâ—h and ashes nay in dust and ashes But should I prosecute my weak apprehensions in this I should but draw the Treatise beyond a just extent Let it suffice That their Land was russeted with a bloodlesse Famine a dreary punishment Heavens curse and the engine of destruction which doth bring terrour to mortals death to all things and therefore good cause had they to call a solemne assembly to sanctifie a Fast to gather the Elders and all the Inhabitants of the Land into the house of the Lord their God and there cry unto the Lord. And as theirs was Famine so the cause of our solemne assemblies or dayes of Humiliation for some years by-past hath been Warre and the worst of Wars a civill
crying for the abominations weeping and mourning for the wickednesse that is committed there you shall find a publick Notary sent to take the list of mourners their sorrow is their safety their lamentation the cause of their preservation for for our comforts mercy hath her lodgings taken up in every Town in every City in every Country be Gods judgements never so great mercy cannot mercy will not be excluded the Saints are alwayes priviledged men they have speciall in munities an Arke a Goshen a Zoar a City of Refuge shall be ever prepared Mat. 5. to the 12. The meek the mercifull the Peace-maker the persecuted the poor in spirit the pure in heart and those that hunger annd thirst for righteousnesse all these shall be blessed and not onely these but mourners shall have a part Psal 125.5 The godly may sow in tears but shall reape in joy thousands shall fall before them and ten thousands at their right hand but the plague shall not come nigh them Our English Sion while those unhappy differences and wofull divisions continued amongst us was like Ierusalem the very map of misery the Sword devoured the people perished our sons butcherd our young men slain our Goods plunderd our Lands sequestred and our bodies Catived our plagues then grew mighty because our sins were waxen many the most committing them few mourning for them and it is still to be feared though we have thus sinned and have thus been punished that there was never more sinning nor never lesse remorse for sin and if againe the Lord should still be incensed and up in arms against us what strength were there in us who are but stubble to stand before such a consuming Fire And therefore to prevent Gods further revenge and threatned punishments since you have seen in Ezekiel that tears are the preservatives of the living for not a sigh is sent out but is heard in Heaven not a teare but is kept nor a groane but it coms before God let us sigh and cry for all the abominations of the times let us weep for the sins of the Nation let us lament for out sins the cause of all our sufferings and wee let sorrow now cloath us and mourning cloud us let our Foreheads be marked with a down-right solemne mourning the Assembly called must be solemne Call a solemne Assembly The word solemne which is as much as serious sad and heavy me thinks may well contain furniture for the times of mourning and having never more cause I wish I might robe you with the garment of heavinesse The Text Proclaims a solemne assembly and wills you to mourn for the sins of the Land the word solemn me thinks wills us all to lay aside our wanton superfluous and supercilious sales of Pride and put on sables mourning habiliments I mean heavy sad and solemn countenances outwardly to testifie our sorrow inwardly because the Lord hath turn'd his favours into frowns He that formerly cloathed us with Beauty did again cloath us with Leprosie He that formerly cloathed us with Health and Happinesse did again in stead of a Garment give us a Rent and plagued us with the Sword and other deadly poysonous and Infectious Diseases Will you look a little into the rifling of a Wardrobe in Isaiah the Inventory you will find taken in the third chapter from the 18. ver to the end of the 23. The bravery of their ornaments and chains and bracelets and mufflers and bonnets and tablets and eare-rings and rings and ornaments of the legs and changeable sults of apparell and mantles and wimples and crisping pins and glasses and boods c. But the destruction of all this Foeminine Furniture you shall find in the next verses from the 24. to the end It shall come to passe that in stead of a sweet smell there shall be a stinke in stead of a girdle a rent in stead of well set haire baldnesse and in stead of a stomacher a girding with sackcloth and burning in stead of beauty The gates shall lament and mourne The story sheweth what our state was God grant we have not cause again to say is for so we sinned so we were plagued and me thinks should be sufficient to stir up all the powers and passions of sorrow in every one of us this me thinks should be sufficient to set open those ciâ—terns of our souls that rivers of tears may flow from our heart-breaking yet well-pleasing pensivenesse for the nature of griefe doth utterly exile all objects of pleasure and when true sorrow sits her down in a stupid and a stupendious manner and calls for Heaven above to weep with her the Earth beneath to lament the Rocks to cleave the Mountains to Eccho forth groans and the Rivers to run with tears of griefe the Israelites did not more loath then such sorrow as this doth delight to sit down on the banks of Babylon her Musick is Lachrymae or Doloroso she is as Rachel in her hard labour she no sooner conceives but is delivered and no sooner delivered but conceives againe her throbs and throws almost divide her soule from her selfe but that her solace being in division that which killeth others keepeth her alive emptinesse in the bowels blacknesse on the back round about spectacles of misery all circumstances to make sorrow greater then her selfe Surely our cause was and is great sinne being the cause of our misery Let then our tears be many let us put on the garments of lamentation let mourning be the marke of our Foreheads let our hearts be heavy our bodies faint our looks sad and our countenance solemne and especially upon our Fast dayes or dayes of Humiliation let us all goe mourning to the House of the Lord our God with garments rent and with sackcloth cloathed Let the Bride goe forth of her chamber Let the Priests weep between the Porch and the Altar Nay howle ye poor Firr-trees and let the House of David mourne and let all the Inhabitants of the land mourne and weep and lament and let our lamentation be as the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the Valley of Megiddo And let the land bewayle every Family apart Let weeping be in all the ends of our Nation and complaining in the streess of every City Towne and Country crying in the chambers of every house Woe and alas Woe unto us that we have sinned Nay let all the Orders and Companies of every severall holy convocation throughout this Land of England from the Ruler to the Subject from the Priest to the People from the Honourable Councellour to him that draweth Water from the Men of gray years to the yong Child and Suckling all plentifully water their Cheeks with Tears Let sighs be their ordinary Language to our offended God and cry unto the Lord to spare us from the Sword c. Our occasion is just our cause is good for our sins are great and our God is incensed and therefore solemnity expects it Call a solemne Assembly Obj.
in the time of Famine fly unto God in this their woefull wretched and miserable estate when all outward and worldly comforts fayle them and lay their burthen upon him because they knew that he was able to feed and help them though the cisternes of the world were growne dry being the Lord and as willing as able being their God For the majesty of God is so glorious that it would make them fly from him and his essence is so incomprehensible that it is a light that none can have accesse unto and an huge Sea that will drowne such as will adventure to wade into it but the Knowledge of Gods sufficiency and power to help and of his mercy and free favour whereby he is ready and willing to help that 's it that encourageth them to come before the Lord and call upon his Name with strong cryes and earnest requests with sighs and sobs and groanes and cry unto the Lord. Whence the point is this That the knowledge of Gods power and mercy is the onely cause that brings Christians into Gods presence and makes them call upon him in trouble When they are plunged in misery in distresse then God shall be sure of their custome and company like these people here who when all their hopes were perished then they run to God and cast all upon him whom they knew was able to bring Water out of the Flint as well as out of the River and Bread out of the Clouds as well as out of the Barne Canaan they knew could not maintain them without Gods blessing and with it a barren Wildernesse could and therefore to him they fly and cry They cry unto the Lord. For this look onely upon Psalme the ninth and tenth Verse where the Prophet sheweth how they come to seek unto God They that know thy name will trust in thee for thou never faylest them that seek thee How come they to seek God They first trust in God by the Knowledge of Gods Name which name is the Lord strong gracious and mercifull and till men come to know this Name they can never come to trust in God nor to seek God but by the right understanding and applying of the Name of God Nothing in distresse can hinder them from crying unto the Lord because they know that there is no evill but in his name they may have an Antidote against it no fore but there they shall have a salve to cure it no disease but there they shall have a remedy to help it no wound but there they shall have a Playster to heale it no sicknesse but there they shall have a cordiall to comfort it and Physicke to recover it no doubt but there they shall find a refolution for it nor no good thing but there they may get a certainty of obtaining it And therefore to hearten you in all assayes in all distresses miseries and calamities whatsoever to fly to this Name which will be like an Oyntment poured forth to fill and delight the hearts of the Faithfull with the odour of it And though I cannot give you a definition of the Lord your God yet take that description of the name of God notably and comfortably set downe to my hand in Exodus where you may heare the Lord himselfe Proclayming his Name in these ten severall properties Exod. 34.6.7 The Lord the Lord strong mercifull and gracious slow to anger and abundant in goodnesse and truth reserving mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgression and sins and not making the wicked innocent visiting the iniquity of the Fathers upon the Children and upon the Childrens Children unto the third and fourth Generation Then what misery what trouble what distresse what affliction what calamity can hindâ—r us from comming to the Lord upon the Feet of Faith and Prayer to cry unto the Lord. 1. Are you layd in the low Dungeon of misery as Ionaâ— was in the Dungeon of Hell in the bottome of the Sea in the belly of the Whale Are your Enemies mighty your sufferings many and your oppressions and pressures heavy then cry unto the Lord for he is the Lord strong all power is in him and from him and for him he is the mighty God and he doth not onely use his might for our Salvation but for our Enemies destruction If then your troubles be great and your Enemies mighty be not dismayed your God is greater and mightier to help you out of them then they are to hold you still in them and he rides upon the Heavens full of Majesty and full of ability to deliver you and to set you free from the strongest bonds of affliction Come but once to know Gods all-sufficient Power then no affliction or tryall shall make you faint The least affliction if God support us not in it will be too strong for us but the greatest nay the rushing in of all at once upon us if this strong God be on our side shall not be able to hurt uâ— or daunt us and therefore when our Hands cannot help us nor our Tongues prevaile with unreasonable men let us fly unto this strong Tower the Lord our God And cry unto the Lord. 2 And now least any poor afflicted soule hearing of Gods Power should say I know that God is strong and powerfull but what is that to me it may be he may use his power to my overthrow Nay saith the Lord God is mercifull as well as powerfull and therefore why should any be discouraged by misery since misery is the very object of mercy and the Eye of Divine pitty is ever fixed upon it For the God whom we serve hath no other riches then the riches of his mercy And this was the argument that David so often used Psal 6.2.3.4 Have mercy on me O Lord for I am weake â— O Lord heale me for my bones are vexed my soule is also sore troubled but Lord how long wilt thou delay Returns O Lord deliver my soule save me for thy mercies sake And in anâ—ther Psalme Psal 86.1 Incline thine Eare O Lord and heare me for I am poor and needy And if we come but crying unto him our very misery will be sufficient to work upon him for mercy so that he will be ready to entertaine us like the Father of the Prodigall with an Vnde plangis why weepest thou my Sonne â—â—k 15.20 I will clothe thee with the best Rayment and put my Gold Ring upon thy finger and thy Fare shall be the daintiest morsell nay he will like that Father of the Prodigall stand ready to receive us with his armes uâ—foulded to â—mbrace us with his hands open to invite us with gifts with his head inclined to afford us the kisse of peace and shew forth his love unto us upon every occasion as the Prophet Hosea testifieth Hos 14.4 saying In thee the Fatherlesse shall find mercy Let us then lift up our soules and cry continually in all straits and troubles to this God of