Jeremy did not desire the evil day to come on others yet when the evil day was come upon himself we find him venting strange and strong desires of that kind Chap. 9.2 O that my head were a fountain and mine eyes rivers of tears that I might weep night and day for the slain of the daughter of my People He had visions of slaughter and he did even beg a head melted into water for abundant mourning over that day But what were his other what were his further wishes with respect to himself at that time we have them in the next verse O that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of a wayfaring man that I might leave my people and go from them for they be all adulterers a company of treacherous men What uncomfortable desires had Jeremiah as to that day of distress O how did he covet to have a retiring place any hole in the wilderness like a wayfaring man that he might leave his people and see them no more because they were so wicked and their wickedness he foresaw would bring down such dreadful evils upon them And as he wisht this sad retirement upon the foresight of evils to come so we find him in another place Chap. 20.14 15 16 c. wishing that he had never been born to see such presnet evils We have the like plain wish of David in the day of his trouble Psal 55.2 Attend unto me O God and hear me I mourn in my complaint and make a noise because of the voice of the enemy because of the â—ppression of the wicked for they cast iniquity upon me and in wrath they hate me they charged him with evils that he had not done my heart is sore pained within me the terrors of death are fallen upon me fearfulness and trouble are come upon me and horror hath overwhelmed or covered me David was at that time in a very sad day you see and what was his wish that day we have it at the 6th verse And I said O that I had wings like a dove for then would I flee away and be at rest lo then would I wander far off and remain in the wilderness Holy David could not keep his heart in those distresses from extravagant wishes David had the integrity of a dove as he often pleaded before the Lord and being distrest he wished also for the wings of a dove that he might flee away and get out of the reach of all those impendent calamities How usual is it for good men in bad dayes to breath out such wishes one wishes that he had never been born rather than to see such a day another wishes he may die presently rather than live in such a day When the Apostle John had given the prophesie of dreadful judgments to come upon the wicked world or the world of wicked men he presently tells us what their wishes or desires will be Rev. 9.6 And in those dayes shall men seek death and shall not find it and shall desire to die and death shall flee from them Most men flee death that 's a misery but death sleeth from some men and that 's a greater misery They are in the worst of conditions who would have death when death will not be had Their lives are worse than death who only wish to die What non-sense wishes and desires had they also in the day of the Lords anger mentioned in the same book Chap. 6.16 Who said to the mountaines and to the rocks fall on us and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. It is possible for good men sometimes to have strange wishes but O how lamentable are the wishes of wicked men and unbelievers who have no part nor interest in Jesus Christ in those times when Conscience is wounded and awakened or when a day of the Lords wrath or judgment from the Lord appeareth When Christ the Lamb shall sit upon the throne and call them to give an account O then they will wish for rocks and mountaines to fall upon them that they might not appear how glad will they then be to be hidden with an everlasting night They cannot but desire the night who have sinned against light Holy Job could not forbear to desire the night of death in the day of his distress what desires then must the wicked have who have no hope beyond this life Again as to the vanity of that design of some in desiring the night for shelter Note There is nothing can cover us from the eye or secure us from the hand of God What is darkness to God who is light and in whom there is no darkness at all 1 John 1.5 Desire not the night As gold and silver cannot ransom sinners as great forces all the Armies on earth forces of strength cannot help sinners so the night cannot hide them they that are in the grossest darkness are never the more out of Gods sight The darkness is not darkness to him the darkness and the light to him are both alike Psal 139.11 12. and therefore he said before vers 7. Whither shall I go from thy spirit or whither shall I flee from thy presence If I ascend up to heaven thou art there c. Wheresoever we are God is who is every where nothing can keep us off from or keep us out of the eye of God Lastly as the night is taken for death Desire not the night Hence note It is a vain wish to desire death for our rescue or escape from the evils of this life Death is it self an evil the worst of natural evils How can that help us out of our evils of trouble which is it self the most troublesom evil The Lord promiseth some of his people that they should die before the evil day Josiah and Hezekiah had such promiâ—es 'T is a favour to die as they did in the assurance of eternal life before we feel the evils of this life But death considered in it self is no relief against evil and as it is the worst of natural evils in it self so it carrieth those who are unprepared and unprovided for it to worser evils than any they can meet with in this life Some desire death to escape the evils of this life when as soon as they die they go to the evils of another life which are the second death such a death as hath no second and descend not only to the grave but to hell And what hath any one got by leaving the troubles of this life to fall into the dolors of that second secondless death They only dream of security by death who are unprepared go die Death is good for none but those who are fitted for and have by faith laid hold upon eternal life JOB Chap. 36. Vers 21. Verse 21. Take heed regard not iniquity for this thou hast chosen rather than affliction IN this verse Elihu gives Job another serious admonition or re-enforceth the former warning
their life nor their death is precious in the Lords sight as both of the meanest Saints are Psal 116.15 The special Promises of preservation are made to the godly the common Providences of preservation extend to the wicked God preserves many wicked men but not one of them can plead a Promise for his preservation or say Lord thou hast undertaken to preserve me I have thy Word or Warrant for my preservation So then the Lord doth not preserve the life of any wicked man upon a word of Promise Secondly I answer When the lives of the wicked are preserved they are not preserved for any love which God bears to their persons as such but either First to bring them into a better state that is to turn them from their wickedness that being converted they may be saved at last according to his purpose Or Secondly they are preserved to serve some ends and purposes of his in this World For though God hath no pleasure in them yet he makes some use of them and doth his pleasure by them Or I may say they are preserved to be Executioners of his displeasure in chastening and correcting his own people The King of Assyria was preserved in great Power and to what end I will send him against an hypocritical Nation Isa 10.6 He must go on my Errand though he meaneth not so nor doth his heart think so as the Lord spake vers 7. He hath other matters and designs in his head but I have this use of him and of his power even to punish the people of my wrath The Lord made use also of Nebuchadnezar and his Army to serve him in the destroying of Tyrus and of him and his Army he saith They wrought for me Ezek. 29.20 Thus the Lord doth some of his work his strange work especially his work of Judgment by the hands of wicked men and therefore he preserves their lives Yea he preserves them many a time to be a help and a defence to his people A Thorn Hedge keeps the Pasture that strange Cattle break not in and eat it up Wicked men are as Bryars and Thorns and they are suffered to live because the Lord can make use of them as a Fence to his people When the Serpent cast out of his mouth water as a Flood after the woman the Church that he might cause her to be carryed away of the Flood then the Earth that is earthly carnal men helped the Woman Rev. 12.15 16 The Lord used bad men to do that good work the preservation of his distressed and persecuted Church Thirdly As the Lord suffers many wicked men to live that they may be brought out of their sins so he suffers others to live that they may fill up the measure of their sins Why did the Lord preserve the Amorites was it because he loved or liked them no but because they were not then ripe for Judgment Gen. 15.16 The Iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full Some wicked men are to fill up their dayes that they may fill up the measure of their Fathers sins by their own as Christ threatned the Scribes and Pharisees Math. 23.32 Such a grant of life though for a thousand years is worse than a thousand Deaths Fourthly we may answer The wicked are not so much preserved from as reserved unto further wrath 2 Pet. 2.9 The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations and to reserve the unjust unto the day of Judgment to be punished God doth not presently punish all the wicked nor take away their lives there is a day of Judgment coming and till that day come their lives are preserved as persons reserved unto Judgment Fifthly VVhen wicked men are said to be out of the Lords Protection consider There is a twofold Protection First ordinary Secondly extraordinary The Lord doth preserve and protect wicked men in an ordinary not in an extraordinary way he doth not work wonders much less miracles to preserve them as he often doth for the preservation of his own people God will not be at such cost in preserving of wicked men as he is at in the preserving the lives and liberties of his eminent Servants rather than they shall perish or not be preserved he will somtimes work a miracle and put Nature out of its course to save their lives VVhen those three VVorthies were cast into the midst of the burning fiery Furnace God stopt the rage of that furious Element that the Fire had no power upon their bodyes nor was an hair of their head singed neither were their Coats changed nor the smel of fire had passed on them Dan. 3.27 Did we ever hear that the Lord restrained the power of the fire to preserve wicked men When Daniel a man precious in the sight of God was cast into the Lions Den the Lord preserved his life also by stopping the Mouths of the Lyons Dan. 6.22 Did we ever hear that God preserved the lives of wicked men in such a way No sooner were Daniels accusers cast into the Lyons Den but the Lyons had the Mastery of them and brake all their bones in pieces e're ever they came to the bottome of the Den v. 24. The Lord doth not preserve the lives of the wicked by miraculous manifestations of his Power and Glory Sixthly I answer Though some wicked men are commonly preserved as other men yet many by their wickedness hasten their ruine and shorten the number of their dayes We may distinguish of wicked men First wicked men may be taken in a General notion for all that are unconverted and unregenerate Many persons pass for honest and good men in the world who yet are wicked being carnal and abiding in a state of nature wicked men of this sort are ordinarily preserved Secondly Take wicked men and such I conceive the Text especially intends for notorious wicked men such as are murderers blasphemers c. the Lord doth not preserve the lives of such but lets mans Justice seize upon them or divine vengeance overtake them Psal 55.23 The blood-thirsty and deceitful man shall not live out half his dayes that is he shall not live half so long as he might according to the course of Nature because of his nefarious sinful courses Histories are full of dreadful Tragedies sealing to this Truth with the blood and untimely death of gross offenders How often have we seen or heard of the Veâ—geance of God following and falling upon those that were signanter notoriously wicked and of â—â—ese we are especially to understand the Poynt and Text He preserveth not the life of the wicked Take this Inference from all that hath been said about this awakening Observation How sad is the life of a wicked man indeed of any man on this side the Line of grace but especially of any very wicked man He can scarce be said to live whose life is not preferved by God a wicked man is alwayes in death seeing God doth not preserve his life The Apostle
rains cause or produce plentifull fruits ordinarily from the Earth and little rains little fruits Sixthly and lastly man is nourished and hath his outward Comforts encreased or lessened in proportion to the fruits which the Earth bringeth forth or to the fruitfulness of the Earth All these things attend and depend upon one another They pour down according to the vapour thereof and God draws up in proportion to what himself purposeth they shall pour down Thus we see how God by the Sun draws out the moisture and sap of the Earth to return it back with advantage Drawing up the moisture makes the Earth languish and her fruits wither sending it down again makes the Earth green flourishing and fruitful They pour down rain c. And what more Elihu answers Vers 28. Which the Clouds do drop 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 nunc Coelum nunc nubes denotâ—t a tenuissimâ— earum Substantia Drus Here he speaks more expresly and tells us more clearly than before what the vapours are made up into According to the vapour thereof which the Clouds do drop As Clouds are made of vapours so they are the receptacles or vessels of rain which they hold as was shewed before as long as God pleaseth and when he gives the word then they drop And distill upon man abundantly That 's another elegant word implying the manner in which the rain comes or falls it is as by a distillation Here also 't is expressed for whose use or sake principally the rain is sent The Clouds saith the Text drop and distill upon man yet we know men get themselves out of the rain as soon and as fast as they can The rain falls upon the earth and abides there yet 't is said to distil upon man because the rain distils at mans request and for mans sake That other creatures are cherished by the rain is not for themselves but for man as man is not cherished and maintained by those creatures for himself but for God As the rain distills chiefly for the glory of God so nextly for the relief and comfort of man and for man it distills Abundantly 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Super hominem multum vel super homines affluentèr ut 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sit adverbium quod eù minùs se probaâ— mihi quia Rab. hic scrilitur eum Cametz Drus There is a double reading of this word Some take it as an Adjective to the Substanâ—ive man rendring thus it distills upon many men we take it adverbially Which distill upon man plentifully that is in great plenty upon man We may take in both readings without strain to the Text or departure from the matter in hand For as the rain all 's or distills upon man abundantly so upon abundance of men the rain we know falls sometimes very plentifully and at times or one time or other all the world over watering every mans ground and serving every mans turn or occasions Therefore Elihu expresseth the blessing fully when he saith The Clouds distill upon man abundantly or upon abundance of men Hence Note First The Lord haih rain enough in store He hath vessels plentifully filled for the watering of the Earth and The Lord is so free in his dispensation of the rain that as he gives it to many in number so to many in kind he maketh his rain to fall as well as his Sun to shine upon the just and on the unjust Math. 5.45 It shews the exceeding goodness as well as the bounty of God that the evill partake of his benefits as well as the good And for our further improvement of this bounty of God remember that if God be so abundant and liberall in blessings to us we ought in proportion to abound in duty towards him or as the Apostle exhorts 1 Cor. 15.58 we should be stedfast and immoveable alwayes abounding in the work of the Lord. Some do only a little I may say only here a stitch and there a stitch of work for God but we should abound in it and that not only now and then by fits but be alwayes fixed in it especially we should do so with respect to that which the rain is a Symbol of the word of God When God drops and distills the rain of Gospel tâ—uths and holy soul-saving instructions abundantly upon us how should we abound in every good word and work It was prophesied of Christ Psal 72.6 He shall come down as rain upon the mown grass as showers that water the earth Some of the Ancients expound that place of the coming down of Christ in his Incarnation then indeed he came down like rain upon the mown grass he came down sweetly and powerfully 'T is true also that Christ who is God the Word the substantial Word comes down as rain in and with the declarative word of God preached and faithfully dispenced to the souls of men and when Christ comes down thus to us we should rise up to him and return fruits of grace according to the showres of grace which we have received The Prophet gives us an elegant comparison of the natural and spiritual rain in their effects and issues Isa 55.10 11. For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven and returneth not thither but watereth the earth and maketh it bring forth and bud that it may give feed to the sower and bread to the eater so shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth it shall not return unto me voyd but it shall accomplish that which I please and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I send it Now what is the pleasure of God in giving his Word what is the arrand upon which he sends it 'T is I grant sometimes to harden deafen and blind a people Isa 6.9 10. 't is sometimes to be a savour of death unto death 2 Cor. 2.16 These are dreadfull judiciary purposes of God in sending his Word nor doth it ever please the Lord to send his Word upon this arrand but when he is sorely displeased by a peoples slighting and contempt of his Word The thing which primaâ—ily pleaseth him the purpose which he chiefly puâ—sueth in sending his Word is that his people may have as the Apostle speaks Their fruit unto holiness in this life and in the end everlasting life For these ends the Lord is daily distilling upon us the rain of his Word both in commands and promises and in both abundantly Therefore let us labour to abound in returns of faith of love of hope of self-deniall of zeal for God and of fruit-bearing unto God If when God distills the natural rain that should provoke us to fruitfulness in spiritualls how much more when he pours down so much spiritual rain upon us For the close of this meditation consider That As the natural rain First softens the earth and mollifies it Secondly cleanseth the earth and washeth it Thirdly enricheth the earth and makes it fruitfull Fourthly comforts the earth and makes every
the waters of the Sea by the heat of the Sun become Clouds and these Clouds cover both Earth and Sea far and near Thus 't is matter of wonder to see such great and sudden changes in the air that the same Sun with its beames should exhale those vapours which are condensed into Clouds and that soon after those Sun-beams should scatter and dissolve those Clouds or thaâ— now the heavens should be so masked with Clouds as to make all dark and in a little space all return to its former brightness and bâ—â—uty He spreadeâ—h hiâ— Light Wha is there in the world that is not Gods â—â—re he calleâ—h Light his Hence note God loves to entitle himself to Light in an especial manner Mat. 5.44 He causeth his Sun to shine c. The Moon is his as well as the Sun and the Stars are his as much as either but because the Sun is the greater Vessel and conveigher oâ— Lighâ— therefore saith Christ He causeth his Sun to shine on the evil and the good c. God himself is Light and the Father of Lights Jam. 1.17 which is true not only of spiritual Light by which the things of God are discovered to us but also of natural Light the light of the Sun that 's Gods Light too he is the Father of it Secondly note The changes which we see in the air from fair to fowl weather from calms to tempests are from God It is not in the creature to make one day or hour fair or foul As Christ gives the reason why no man should swear by his head because he cannot make an hair white or black he cannot change the colour of an hair nor make a hair of any colour So it is not in the power of any man to make one day fair or foul that 's Gods peculiar He spreadeth his Light upon the Clouds and covereth the bottom of the Sea Vers 31. For by them he judgeth the People he giveth meat in abundance This 31th Verse gives us the effect of all that which Elihu had spoken before of the rain of storms and tempests and we may add of lightening and of thunder By them he judgeth the people and giveth meat in abundance Here are two effects First an effect grievous Secondly an effect gracious The former proceeds from the justice the latter from the mercy and goodness of God By them that is by the rain by the winds c. he judgeth the people To judge is taken three wayes in Scripture First To judge is to rule or govern When it is said such a man judged Israel the meaning is he ruled and governed Israel That 's the language of the book of Judges every where when their Governours are spoken of Secondly To Judge is to determine or give sentence in a special case Deut. 25.1 Thirdly To judge is to punish or afflict and thus often in Scripture when God punisheth any person or people he is said to judge them Psal 51.4 That thou mayest be cleared when thou judgest that is when thou afflictest or layest thine hand upon me saith David as God had threatened by Nathan that the sword should not depart from his house this moved David to make confession Against thee thee only have I sinned that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest and cleared when thou judgest As if he had said my confession O Lord will be thy justification all may see I have given thee abundant cause to lay thy chastening hand upon me Heb. 13.4 Whoremongers and adulterers God will judge though men let them pass yet God will not he will punish them Again in that notable place 1 Cor. 11.31 32. If we would judge our selves we should not be judged of the Lord. What it is to be judged the Apostle sheweth in the next words But when we are judged we are chastened of the Lord. The Apostle warns the Church to take heed how they came to the solemn assemblies lest coming rashly and unpreparedly the hand of God should fall heavy upon them by weakness sickness and death When Elihu saith By them he judgeth the People We are to take judging in this third sence He judgeth that is he afflicteth and punisheth men by these things Thus the Allusion is elegantly followed The Lord from his tabernacle or throne in the Clouds sends forth Edicts and signes his Warrants for the punishment both of nations and persons windy stormes rain and thunder going forth as executioners of his orders and appointments By them he judgeth the people Hence observe First God can make a scourge of any of the creatures By them that is by the rain and by the wind he judgeth the people He can use what instrument he pleaseth to afflict and chasten us with Read the holy Scriptures read the Histories of the Church and you will find all sorts of creatures summoned one time or other and sent forth as Gods messengers to punish the pride and stubbornness the impenitency and perversness of mens hearts and wayes How many creatures did God make use of to punish Pharaoh with and many of them veâ—y contemptible ones among the rest the hail rain and thunder spoken of in this place were his instruments of vengeance in plaguing that hardned King Whensoever God afflicts a people by the creatures he judgeth them by the creatures Let us take heed that we provoke not God to turn those things which were given for our good to our hurt that he make not what was made our servant our punishment God made all creatures serviceable and useful to man but through sin they become grievous and destructive to man By them he judgeth the people He giveth meat in abundance Escam ad copium Heb. i. e. copiosum Here is the second effect wrought or produced by these creatures He giveth that is God giveth meat that is all kind of food and provision for the life both of man and beast and he giveth it in abundance He doth not give it scantly or nigardly in small portions and piâ—tances but in full measure pressed down heaped up and running over By them that is Dat escam multis mortalibus Hieron by the rain and by the wind c. God gives us our meat in abundance One translation saith He giveth meat to many that is to all Hence note First Our daily food is the gift of God He giveth meat No man gets his own bread unless God giveth it God must give it before we can get it Secondly note God is a free bountiful and liberal house-keeper He giveth meat in abundance he giveth to very many yea to all and he giveth very much he giveth meat to all the fowles of the Air and to all the fishes of the Sea to all men and beasts living on the earth they all receive food from God he giveth food to all flesh Psal 136.25 He filleth every living thing Psal 147.9 He giveth to the beast his food and feedeth the young ravens when they cry
that man be swallowed up who over-boldly speaks to God about the great mysteries of providence or about any matter too high for him And therefore O Job thou hast not done well to speak so often of pleading with God and surely if any man after thy example speak complainingly of what God hath done or himself hath suffered at the hand of God he is sure to be undone He shall be swallowed up Hence observe Man is not able to bear the Glory and Majesty of God God dwels in the light which no man can approach unto 1 Tim. 6.16 Mans darkness is not able to comprehend Gods light if he venture too near it he will soon be swallowed up The vulgar Latine renders that place Proverbs 25.27 He that is a searcher of Majesty shall be oppressed by the Glory Qui perscâ—utator est â—â—â—â—statis â—â—â—â—metura giâ—â—iâ— Vulg. that is whosoever searcheth boldly into the Majesty of God shall be swallowed up by the Glory of God We translate that text in the Proverbs thus For men to search their own glory is no glory There is a truth in the former translation though it be not a true translation for a man that searcheth into the Majesty of God shall be overpowered with his Glory And as man is soon overpowered or swallowed up by the Majesty of God so also by and in the Mysteries of God Ch â—â—â— told his disciples John 16.12 That he had many things to say unto them which they were not able to bear If they who had received so much grace could not bear the deeper mysteries of the Gospel spoken to them by Christ cloathed with frail flesh how much lesse can any man bear the Majesty oâ— God in speaking to him or God speaking to him in his Majesty And so some translate and read the words of Elihu in the text under hand For if he speak man shall be devoured or swallowed up that is if God speak man who before thought himself Some-body or that he was able to reason with him will be quite confounded in himself by the infinite wisdom of God his tongue will faulter or cleave to the roof of his mouth and he rendered unable to speak one word in his own defence Moses Exod. 19.12 was commanded to set bounds about Mount Horeb that the people might not come too neer the reason was that the people might by those bounds be warned not to be curious or over-bold in their approaches to the Majesty of God nor over-busie in prying into his Secrets As if it had been said if you come to near you will be even swallowed up Moses repeating to the Israelites the terrible Majesty of God in giving the Law at Mount Horeb minds them in what a trembling frame they then were Deut. 5.24 25 26. And ye said behold the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his greatness and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire we have seen this day that God doth talk with man and he liveth which implieth that man in this life cannot bear the fuller manifestation of God and live Now therefore why should we die for this great fire will consume us if we hear the voice of God any more then we shall die What was this great fire It was God himself that is an extraordinary appearance of God who is several times in Scripture exprest by fire As if they had said We acknowledge that we have had wonderful condescention and mercy from God that we have heard him speak and live but that we live is not only a mercy but a miracle therefore we poor wormes dare not run the hazzard a second time if we hear him speak any more we shall die Therefore they desired Moses who in that was a type of Christ Gal. 3.19 to go near and be as a Mediator between them and God that they might not have to do with God immediately but receive the Law by his hand Such is the infinite Majesty of God though it will be our blessednesse in the next life for ever to enjoy it that here in this Life we are not able to receive it The Glory of God is so pure that man cloathed with corruptible flesh blood cannot sta d before it the very glimpses of it astonish and leave us for dead Rev. 1.16 17. Man must dye before he can see God and live his body must be glorified before he can bear that weight of glory which consists in beholding the face of God or in knowing him in our proportion as we are known 1 Cor. 13.12 But though as the Israelites there said of themselves we cannot hear God speak and live yet cannot we speak to God and live or and not be swallowed up I answer it in these three things First If a man speak to God as questioning his dealings with him or as calling God to an accâ—â—nt â—hich in somâ—â—ence Job did and therein went beyond â—i liâ—e 〈◊〉 shâ—ll be â—allowed up Secondly 〈…〉 â—k to God as presuming that he can câ—â—◠〈…〉 â—nd Goâ— oâ— all â—he dealings of God with 〈…〉 suâ—â—ly be swallowed up The thoughts of 〈…〉 â—hâ—â—ghâ—s and his wayes aâ—â—ve our wayes as h gh â—s the 〈…〉 â—bâ—ve the earth Isa 55.9 Thi â—ly 〈…〉 speak to God in our own name or in a self-right 〈…〉 â—â—n also we shall surely be swallowed up Job aâ— we hâ—vâ—â—â—â—uiâ—â—eâ— him before never attempted to speak to God in his own rigâ—â—eousnesse though he often magnified his own righteousnesse both befo e and towards men Woe to all the righteousnesse of man before the most righteous God But Job was too bold according to the first answer in asking an account or a reason of God concerning his sufferings there was his failing and for that he received this check by Elihu If a man speak he shall be swallowed up The meanest the poorest believing soul may come and speak and speak boldly to God in the name of J sus Christ Heb. 4.16 Thus we may come and welcome coâ—ing thus we sâ—all noâ— be â— allowed up with the Mâ—jâ—sty much lâ—sse â—ith the wrath or displeasure of God If coming thus we aâ—e swallowed up it will be only wiâ—h the love and favouâ— of God â—ith the gâ—odnâ—sse and kindnesse of God And to be swallâ—wed â—p thus will be the sweetest morsel that ever we swallowed even perfect blessednesse and life for evermore Whâ—n once death is swallowed up in victoâ—y and mortality of liâ—e thâ—n shall we be swallowed up in gloâ—y And theâ—efore whatsoever the Lord doth with us or ours in this world let us be silent befoâ—e him humbly adoring his Soveraignty and Wisdom not in the least questioning either his Righteousnesse or his Goodnesse for if a man speak so Surâ—ely he shall be dreadfully swallowed up JOB Chap. 37. Vers 21 22. 21. And now men see not the bright light which is in the Clouds but the wind passeth and cleanseth them 22. Fair weather cometh out of the