rottennesse of his spirit blisters upon his tongue in unsavoury speeches so those passions and affections of the heart joy and sorrow anger and heavinesse appear in the face and we may read the distempers of the heart in the disguisednesse of a look Cordis index vultus totusque homo est in facie Nomen faciei in Scriptura sâ—gnificat exteriorem hâ—bitum sicut facies terrae coeli reip Bold Latina vox facies significat non solum os ocutos genas sed formam omnem modum facturam totius corporis à faciendo dictaâ— Aul. Gel. The face is the Index of the heart that tels you how things goe within Therefore Job saith If I leave off my face meaning as we translate If I leave off heavinesse which is so evident in my face or which is as easie to be seen as my face If I resolve to appear chearfull and merry and will not let clouds darken my countenance any longer yet c. The face is put generally for the appearance or out-side of any thing as we say the face of the earth the face of the heavens the face of the Church or Common-wealth So that To leave off heavinesse or the face is to leave off all shew of heavinesse As Joseph left off his tears of joy Gen. 43.30 31. who having eased his heart of his joyfull sorrows by weeping secretly in his chamber Washed his face went out and refrained himself Thus Iob would have washed his mournfull tears from his face he attempted to refrain himself but he could not his sorrows were too strong for him and as he could not remove so he could not dissemble them For this leaving off is to be taken as the precedent act of forgetting for an affected resolved laying aside If I make it my businesse to be chearfull and leave off my heavinesse yet c. Observe hence Sorrow is not easily shaken off Sorrow sticks close It is very hard for a man to play the hypocrite with his sorrow or dissemble the sadnesse of his heart but it is farre harder to be really delivered of it Sorrow is a companion that will not be cast off with a word A man may more easily cover his sinne then his sorrow Many can put a visour of holinesse upon their faces when nothing but wickednesse is in their hearts but it is not easie to make a shew of comfort when nothing but sorrow is in the heart Grief will out Heavinesse in the heart is like the ointment in the right hand of vvhich Solomon speaks Prov. 27.16 that it bewraieth it self One said of a merry Atheist He laugheth to thee and to me that is he seems to laugh but he mourns to himself the mans heart is heavy If it be not so yet it may be so with all wicked men when they are merriest in the face they have reason to have sorrow even unto death in their hearts it is a hard thing I say to put sorrow out of the face much more to get it out of the heart when it is lodged there once it will not soon be dispossess'd The Apostle Heb. 12.1 exhorts To lay aside every weight and to cast off the sinne that doth so easily beset us he means it of the sinne of nature which we bear about us this sinne saith he doth easily beset us but let us cast it off that is let us study and strive to lay aside this heavinesse of sinne which is the truest cause of the heavinesse of sorrow One would thinke that a man needs not much perswasion when he hath an heavy burthen upon his shoulders to lay it aside yet so it is man can hardly be perswaded to lay aside this burthen and it is the businesse we have with your souls every day to perswade you to lay it aside It is a weight that easily besets us Now as we need much exhortation to cast off the weight of this sinne which is so pleasing so also of sorrow though it be unpleasant When sorrow besets us it leaves us without ease but sorrow easily besets us Iob found it a hard task to lay aside his burden Because his friends thought he fed too much upon his afflictions therefore he tried what he could doe but it would not doe If I say I will leave off my heavinesse I well comfort my self c. See the issue by and by I will comfort my self Comfort is the very life of our lives the spring of our year the light of our day the Sunne in our firmament the complement of mercy and therefore Christ gives his Church the summe of all mercy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in that one promise of sending the Comforter The Hebrew word signifies to strengthen Roboravit confortavit vires collegit Sept. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 because when a man is cast down with sorrows his spirit is weakned Comfort is the repair of strength If I say I will comfort that is corroborate and strengthen my self Psal 39.13 O spare me saith David that I may recover my strength or that I may a little comfort my self The Septuagint renders it That I may get my life again that I may be enlivened and re-insouled or fetch back my soul again Here if I say I will comfort my self Take heart at grasse as we say and play the man then my sorrows renew upon me But some may object How is it that Job takes upon him to comfort himself Is it any wonder if Job came short of comfort when he went to himself for comfort Comfort is not a commodity to be found in the hand or power of any creature the great God hath all that in his own hand if any man will have comfort he must trade to heaven for it It is the honour of God to be called The God of all comfort 2 Cor. 1.3 that is the God who hath all comfort at his dispose As some Kings have a denomination from the great staple commodities of their Kingdoms Our King is called The King of the wooll because wooll is the chief commodity and more plentifull here then in any Countrey of the world Another is called King of the wines and another of the flax Comfort is the staple commodity of heaven and God is called The God of all comfort not only because the chiefest and best comforts are in his hand but because there is not the least imaginable comfort to be had out of his hand He hath the monopoly of comfort or rather the solegift of comfort We can trouble and perplex our selves but God only can comfort us And he is the God of all comfort of all sorts and of all degrees of comfort the God not only of spirituall but of worldly comfort of temporall comfort as well as of eternall As the joyes of the holy Ghost are in his hand so are the joyes of civil relations the joy of meat and drinke the joy of riches and honour are in his hand also How then saith Job I
standeth fast for ever The righteousnesse of God is compared to a great mountain Psal 36.6 because his righteousnesse is firm and unmoveable Thy righteousnesse is like the great mountains or the mountains of God And Psal 46.2 the doing of the greatest things Isa 54.10 the mountains and the making of the greatest changes that possibly can happen in any Nation or in the whole world are exprest by the removing of mountains Though the earth be removed and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the Sea yet will we not fear c. That is things which carry the greatest impossibility to be done or which are seldomest done shall be done before we will doe this As men when they would shew how farre they are from submitting to such a thing say We will die first c. So here Who we fear No mountains shall be removed first He breaths out the highest confidence of the Church in the lowest not only of her present but possible dangers As faith can represent to us better things then any we enjoy to raise our joy so it can represent to us worse things and put us harder cases then any we feel and yet carry us above fear A faith removing mountains is put for the strongest faith Though I had all faith so that I could remove mountains 1 Cor. 13.2 that is though I had the strongest faith the faith of miracles When Christ Mat. 21.21 would shew to the utmost what faith can doe he faith If ye have faith and doubt not ye shall not only doe this which is done to the fig-tree but also if ye shall say to this mountain be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea and it shall be done As if he had said if you have faith ye may doe the greatest things imaginable or desirable ye shall remove mountains A mountain is immovable by the meer power of a creature Faith takes that in hand because faith acts in the power of the Creatour And as the faith of man removing mountains notes a faith of miracles so the power of God removing mountains notes a miraculous power So then taking this speech either for the removing of naturall mountains or taking it proverbially as it noteth the doing of the greatest things and putting forth of the greatest power it proveth the point which Job hath here in hand viz. That God is mighty in strength Why He is able to remove mountains Observe from hence First That the Lord if he pleaseth can alter and remove the parts of the earth and change the frame and fabrique of nature He that made the mountains unmoveable to us can himself remove them The Histories and Records of former times tell us how God hath miraculously tossed mountains out of their places Josephus in his ninth book of Antiquities Mons in Burgundia a proximo monte dehiâ—cens vallesque proximas coâ—rctaâ—s multa agricolarum millia oppressit c. Vvernerus in fasciculo Josephus Ant. l 9. c 12. Vide Senâ—cam l. 5. c 15 l. l. â— 15. Natur. Quest Plinium Nat. Hist l. 8. c 38. Cum in agro Mutinensi montes duo inter se concurrehaÌ„t crepâ—tu maximo ossultantes c. Eo concursau villae omnes â—lisae sunt c. cap. 11. mentions the removing of a mountain and Pliny in the eighth book of his naturall History Cap. 30. A later writer reports that in Burgundy in the year 1230. there were mountains seen moving which overthrew many houses to the great terrour of all the inhabitants of those countries Josephus also reports the like done by an earthquake And another tels us of Mount Ossa joyned to Olympus by an earth-quake So that take it in the letter the Lord is able to remove mountains It should make us fear before the Lord and give him glory while we remember that even the outward frame of the world is subject to sudden changes there is no mountain no rock but the little finger of God can move or pull it down As David spake of his metaphoricall mountain his great outward estate Lord thou hadst made it stand strong yet thou didst hide away thy face and I was troubled Psal 30.6 his mountain began to shake and became a very mole-hill uselesse to him when God was displeased If the Lord with-draw himself from our civill mountains we are troubled and if he touch the naturall mountains they are troubled Our mountains will skip like Rams and the little hils like Lambs Psal 114.4 when he is displeased Secondly observe That the power of God is made visible to us in the changes which he works in the creature as well as in the constitution of the creature The power of God made the mountains and created the hils the same power removes mountains and turns them upside down It argues as great a power to destroy the world as to settle the world As the Apostle shews what divinity the Gentiles might have learned in that great book of the worlds creation Rom. 1.20 The invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen being understood by the things which are made even his eternall power and Godhead So we may say on the other side The invisible things of him from the confusions which are in the world are clearly seen or they may be understood by the things which are removed and changed in these you may read his eternall power and God-head When God breaks the laws and course of nature he shews his power as well as when he setled the laws and course of nature He shews his power when he lets the sea out of it's place to overflow the earth as well as when he bounded the sea that it shall not overflow the earth Some things are with farre lesse power destroied then made removed then setled but no power can destroy the world but that which made it or suddenly remove a mountain but that which setled it The power of God must be acknowledged in altering as well as in ordering the naturall course or constitution of the creature And if we look to the change of Metaphoricall mountains it is a truth an illustrious truth that the Lord displaies his mighty power in removing and over-turning the great estates and establishments of men or kingdoms When God removes the mountain of our peace of our riches the mountain of outward prosperity and of civill power it becomes us to say He is mighty in power who doth all these things God hath given us great tokens and testimonies of his power in this How many mountains great mountains men who were mountains and things which stood like mountains in our way how many I say of these hath the Lord removed Our eies have seen mountains removing and mighty hils melting the power of God and the faith of his people have wrought such miracles in our daies He removeth the mountains And they know it not They who who or what is the antecedent to
made a Covenant with death and an agreement with hell were very full of faith such as it was Isa 28.15 When the over-flowing scourge shall passe thorow it shall not come unto us An over-flowing scourge 'T is an elegant metaphor taken from waters is a common spreading sweeping judgement which like an over-flowing river encompasses circles about and fetches in all Slay suddenly Every scourge doth not slay 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Subito statim ita ut non sentiatur donec res fiat and many which slay doe not slay suddenly We usually hear the clashing of the scourge before we feel the smart of it The Lord shews the scourge and threatens it before he smites with it he lets judgement hang like a black cloud over the heads of some long before it fals upon them But others He slaies suddenly Some take this suddennesse of the scourge in slaying for a mittigation of the judgement and others for the heightning of it In the former sense suddennesse doth not imply the sudden comming of it but the sudden killing of it a scourge which doth it's work quickly so that a man doth not hang long as it were upon the rack of an affliction The Church of the Jews Lam. 4.6 complains of their afflictions as if the judgement of Sodome and Gomorrah had been more easie and eligible then that which the Lord brought upon Jerusalem not that they thought God had dealt worse with them then with Sodome and Gomorrah but as to this particular because Sodom was overthrown in a moment but Jerusalem was pined away by degrees with famine A sudden scourge is a kinde of mercy Better die once then die alwaies Or as the Apostle speaks concerning the afflictions of the Saints Rom. 8.36 To be killed all the day long When one under torture petitioned Tiberius the Roman Emperour a bloudy cruell tyrant that he might be quickly dispatcht he desired not life or pardon but a speedy death the Emperour sent him word Nondum tecum in gratiaÌ„ redij That as yet he was not reconciled to him or become his friend His cruelty would neither suffer the man to live longer nor to die speedily And some observe that as the Prophet expresses his trouble at the prosperity of the wicked in their lives so at this kinde of prosperity in their deaths There are no bands in their death Non sunt nodi in morte eorum but they are lusty and strong Psal 73.4 that is when they die they die in their strength they are not pined away with long and tedious sicknesses They live in pleasure and die with ease They are not bound to their beds and tied down with the cords of chronicall lingring diseases It is some favour if the scourge must slay to be slain in this sense suddenly But here the scourge slaying suddenly is a judgement comming unexpectedly They who sleep in security seldom dream of scourges Observe hence God can send death and affliction in a moment When they shall say Peace and safety then sudden destruction commeth upon them as travel upon a woman with childe and they shall not escape 1 Thess 5.3 Wicked men are never so neer destruction as when they are most secure And that by the way is the reason why we have least cause to fear those men who fear God least Security springs from infidelity and both from sleighting if not contemning the Word of God no marvell then if the Lord hasten his wrath to justifie his truth and slay them on a sudden who would not believe no not at leisure But to the point The Prophet describes it elegantly Isa 30.13 This iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall that is this iniquity shall produce a judgement which shall be to you as a breach ready to fall Swelling out in an high wall whose breaking commeth suddenly at an instant If once a high built wall doe but swell down it comes Such a swelling wall fell upon and slew twenty and seven thousand of Benhadads scattered Army 1 King 20.30 And such a tower in Siloe fell upon eighteen and slew them Luk. 13.4 The Prophet Jeremy at once imprecates and fore-tels a speedy scourge upon the gain-saying Jews Let a cry be heard from their houses when thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them Jer. 18.22 This hath been the case of many among us who thinking of no danger have been surprized by a troop themselves made prisoners and their houses spoil'd in one hour Such was the condition of our Brethren in Ireland it is almost incredible how suddenly that scourge slew them there was scarce a Protestant that had so much as a suspition of the danger nay some would not believe it when a great part of the countrey was on a flame and the enemy had butchered thousands That scourge if ever any slew suddenly the perfect and the wicked As mercies may come so suddenly to our senses that they overcome our faith so may judgements Some have been surprized with mercy Psal 126.4 When the Lord turned our captivity as the streams in the South that is gave us sudden deliverance rivers in the South rise not from a constant spring but from accidentall raines which make violent land-floods on a sudden At the approach of this sudden mercy the Jews were like to them that dream So when the Lord sends sudden judgements rivers of calamity rivers of bloud as rivers in the South when he brings in captivity as rivers in the South then are we in a dream too and are not only destroied but distracted and amazed But how fast soever judgements come tâ—â—y come not suddenly upon them who are awake much lesse on them who are watching for them when they come If the scourge slay suddenly what then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Vel à radice 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dissolvit Vel à 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 tentavit He will laugh at the triall of the innocent M. Broughton reads it thus He scorneth at the melting away of the innocent The reason of the different reading is because the Hebrew word may spring either from a root signifying to tempt and try or from another To melt and dissolve He scorneth at the melting away of the innocent Afflictions are meltings They dissolve our comforts yea our very hearts in the same sense that godly sorrow breaks our hearts Pity should be shewen to him that is melted Cha. 6. but ye forsake the fear of the Almighty so M. Broughton translates there The Lord tempted Abraham Gen. 22.1 that is the Lord tried his faith to finde out of what strength it was and how much he could trust him in that great businesse of sacrificing his son He will laugh at the triall of the innocent At their melting or trying by afflictions The difficulty is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Ridere est irredere subsannare ut fit ab hostibus cum eos quos captivos detinent diuturnis
they cannot come alike to judgement A poor man cannot grapple with a rich man nor a mean man with the honourable Now if they who are of the same nature cannot come alike in judgment because of a disparity in their condition How shall they who differ not only in condition but in nature Can God and man Can poor wretched and miserable man come alike in judgement with the great and glorious God And so the meaning of Job may be thus conceived If I had only a man like my self to deal with then I would venture a triall with him at any seat of judgement or Court of Justice but he is not a man as I am much lesse such a man as I am How shall I set my self with him to be judged when as himself is the Judge of all and is himself judged of none Hence observe Man is not able to contend with God in judgement Who is like me and who will appoint me the time or nearer the letter who will convent me in judgement Who is that shepherd that will stand before me Isa 49.19 Man must come before God in judgement We must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ 2 Cor. 5.10 None shall escape his tribunall But man cannot stand before God in judgement The wicked cannot stand at all before him in judgement because they stand upon their own bottom The righteous dare not stand before him in judgement upon their own bottom if they should themselves and their cause would quickly fall together There are seven considerations which tell us that we cannot come together much lesse alike together with God in judgment 1. He is of such strength that none can wrest themselves out of his hand No power can daunt him 2. He is of such sincerity that bribes cannot corrupt him nor can gifts put out his eies 3. He is of such wisdom that none can over-reach him nor can our wit entangle him 4. He is so knowing that none of our sins and failings no not the least of them are secrets to or hidden from him 5. He is so holy that he cannot bear with the least sin and so just that he cannot but punish it unlesse he receive satisfaction for it 6. He cannot be a party in judgement for he is the supreme Judge and there is no appealing from his sentence 7. He is the last yea an everlasting Judge and therefore there is no repealing of his sentence Who is able to contend with him whom no power can daunt no bribes corrupt no wit over-reach who knows all our sins and will spare none of them from whose sentence there is no appealing and whose sentence cannot be repealed There is no Judge above God therefore we cannot appeal from him there is none to come after God therefore what he hath judged cannot be repealed Job having thus waved and professed against contending with God in judgement proceedeth in the thirty third verse to shew that there is none to whom his case might be referred for arbitration There are two waies by which controversies are ended First By the legall sentence of the publike Judge Secondly By the moderation of a private friend This later Job means when he saith Verse 33. Neither is there any Daies-man betwixt us that can lay his hand upon us both The Septuagint render these words as a wish or as a prayer * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sept. O that there were a Daies-man or a Mediatour betwixt God and me that might lay his hand upon us both But the originall bears it clearly in the negative Neither is there any Daies-man betwixt us The word which we translate Daies-man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 à 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Arguere Heb. Non est arguens inter nos vel increpans commeth from a root which signifieth to argue or reprove and so some render it here Neither is there any Arguer or Reprover none to set the matter right between God and me none to state the question between us none to reprove the Lord if I should say or if by the common rules of justice it should appear he hath done me wrong The word is used in that sense Gen. 31.24 where Jacob tels his uncle Laban The Lord rebuked thee yesternight the Lord himself came as an umpire as a Daies-man betwixt Jacob and Laban and rebuked Laban for his hard and unjust thoughts of and intentions concerning Jacob Take heed saith God thou speak not unto Jacob either good or bad that is doe not threaten or perswade him to return thou wilt repent it if thou doest Thus also the Lord appeared as a Daies-man between his people of old and the great ones of the world Psal 105.14 He suffered no man to doe them wrong yea he rebuked Kings for their sakes God is alwaies able to and often doth interpose for and vindicate his people from the oppressions of men 'T is costly medling with the Saints Kings may get a rebuke for it Yea Kings may smart and Kingdoms shake for it Fere omnes interpretes hunc versum de Mediatore seu arbitro quem jurisconsulti vocant sequestrem intelligunt quasi Iob optasset ordinarium Iudicem praecedenti versiculo mediatorem vero seu arbi trum hoc versu What a Daies-man is is so plain and well known by the custom and usage of most places that it needs little explication We in our language sometimes call him an umpire sometimes an Arbitratour sometimes a Mediatour sometimes a Referree and in some Countreys with us when a question arises between neighbours concerning which they are unwilling to spend money and time in sutes of Law they say We will referre it unto men which kinde of speaking seems to allude to the title of Magistrates and Judges whom the Scripture calleth gods and when a businesse is brought before them it may be said to be referr'd or put to God In opposition to which when it is taken up by the umpiridge of friends it is said To be referred or put to men We in our English tongue call such Daies-men either because they bestowed a daies pains upon the ending of a businesse or because they were obliged to end it by a set day whereas Judges may take more liberty to themselves Yet some of the Greeks expresse all mans judgement by this word Ideo sequester appellatur quod ejus qui electus sit utraque pars fidem sequatur Gel. l. 20. c. 10. Sequester est qui errantibus medius intervenit qui aâ—ud Graecos 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 d citur apud quem pignota deponi solent à sequendo dictas quod ejus fidem utraque pars sequatur Isidor l 10. Etymol Mans-day because certain daies were appointed for judicature The Apostle Paul uses the same phrase 1 Cor. 4.3 in opposition to the Lords-day the great day of judgment to which he there appeals from all the daies set for mans judgement in this world The Latins call