in all his outward actions which hee doth either immediatly by himselfe or mediatly by the ministery of his subordinate instruments and it also over-ruleth and disposeth things which are evill which are not done by God himselfe moving the doers of them but come to passe by the permission and sufferance of him wittingly and willingly suffering his creatures to abuse the power which they have from him This point is manifest by the Lords owne words Isa. 45. 7. where hee saith I forme the light and create darknesse I make peace and create evill I the Lord do all these things And by that speech of the Prophet Amos. Chap. 3. 6. Shall there be evill in a City and the Lord hath not done it The true sense and meaning of which words Saint Augustine doth notably expresse where he saith nothing is done unlesse God omnipotent doth will that it be done either by doing it himselfe or suffering it to be done for it could not be done if he did not suffer it neither verily doth he unwillingly without or against his will but willingly and with his will suffer every thing to be To which purpose hee hath divers other speeches as that God being good would not suffer any evill to be done unlesse as he is omnipotent he could bring good out of them neither is that done without Gods will which is done against his will that is his word and approbation In the second maine part there are divers speciall branches shewing the speciall things whereby Gods actuall providence is distinguished from his other outward actions The first is that it consists in Gods ruling ordering and governing the whole World and watching over his creatures with a carefull eye The second that it comprehends in it Gods doing of all good and his permission and suffering of all evill The third that by it God disposeth all things which are done in the World to the manifestation of his glory and the eternall salvation of his elect in Christ. The fourth and last is that it is no other exercise of wisedome power goodnesse mercy and justice but in executing things which hee hath decreed from all eternity even ruling ordering and disposing all things wisely after the counsell of his owne will For the first point to wit that God exerciseth his actuall providence in ruling ordering and disposing the whole World and all therein as supreme Lord King Iudge and Ruler thereof the Scriptures aboundantly testifie as Gen. 18. 25. and Psalm 50. 6. Psalm 82. 1. and 2. Chron. 19. 6. where God is said to bee the Iudge of all the Earth yea the Iudge both in Heaven and Earth who sitteth chiefe among all Iudges and is with them in the iudgement Also in those places where the Kingdome Dominion and Rule over all is said to belong to God and hee is said to bee the King which reigneth and ruleth all to the utmost ends of the Earth yea to be a great King above all Gods and the onely potentate King of Kings and Lord of Lords as I Chron. 29. 10. 11. Psalm 10. 16. and 29. 10. and 4. 27. and 95. 3. and his Kingdome is said to rule over all Psalm 103 19 and that not for a time but from generation to generation Psalm 145. 13. It is he who setteth bounds to the tumultuous Seas beyond which they cannot passe Iob 38. 8. Psalm 104. 9. and ruleth over the raging waves Psalm 89. 9. and stilleth thâ—â— when they arise And that hee hath a watchfull eye over all creatures even to preserve man and beast it appeares Psalm 36. 6. and that as his eyes are upon them that feare him and hope in his mercy to deliver their soule from death and to keepâ— them alive in famine Psalm 33. 18. 19 So his face is against them that do evill to cut off the remembrance of them Psalm 34. 16. The second point is that Gods providence is exercised both in the doing of all good and in permitting and suffering wittingly and willingly all evill which commeth to passe in the World and so it consists of two parts action and permission This also is fully proved and confirmed Isa. 41. 23. and 45. 7. where the Lord proves himselfe to bee the onely true God by disposing all things both forming the light and making peace by his active hand and power and also creating evill and darknesse by permitting and giving up the Divell and his wicked instruments to abuse his power which hee hath given them to doe evill and to worke wickednesse as wee see in Pharaoh whose heart hee is said to harden yea and to raise him up by giving him up to his owne lusts and into the hand of Satan who hardened him and made his heart obdurate so that the more God plagued him with great plagues which naturally tend to breake a stout heart and to pull downe pride the more did his corruption rise up and rebell and the more did Satan stirre him up against God and his people and made him run desperatly into the devouring gulfe of destruction Wee see this also in Gods permitting Satan to afflict Iob and to tempt him to blasphemy by stripping him naked of all that hee had tormenting his body and battering his soule with sore temptations of his wife and friends and with skaring dreames and terrible visions as wee read Iob 1. and 2. and 7. 14. Also the Apostle in expresse words affirmeth that God being provoked by mens wilfull sins doth in just wrath give them to uncleanesse through the lusts of their owne hearts and to vile affections and a reprobate minde to worke all iniquity with greedinesse Rom. 1. 24 26 28. and doth give them the Spirit of slumber eyes that they should not see and eares that they should not heare Rom. 11. 8. not by putting such a Spirit into them so as hee sheddeth his Spirit on men through Christ but by suffering Satan the Spirit of lying and of all blindnesse and wickednesse to enter into them which hee would doe into all men if God did not restraine him and by casting them out of his protection as wee see in the evill Spirit which vexed Saul and in the lying Spirit which deceived Ahab by entering into his Prophets and speaking lyes by their mouths 1 Sam. 16. 14. and 2 King 22. 22. And thus wee see that in all evils of sin Gods providence is exercised by way of voluntary permission But as for all good things which come to passe God hath in them an approving will and a working hand and worketh in men both to will and to doe yea every thought and purpose of good 2 Cor. 3. 5. Philip. 2. 13. and without him we can doe nothing Ioh. 15. 5. So that in all morall duties and in all good and godly workes God worketh in men by his Spirit immediatly and giveth them hearts will and power to doe them and they are but his instruments to performe these good things as
not encouraged me to this bold attempt Although I have in this Treatise propounded and assayed to proove out of the Text and other places of holy Scripture such a ground of the weekly Sabbath as the learned in their writings have not heretofore observed Yet because the end use and scope of this discovery is most pious and godly and it tends altogether to heape more honour on Christ to advance Redemption above Creation grace above nature the state of Regeneration above the state of Innocency and to shew a necessity of the change of the Sabbath from the seventh and last to the first day of the week after Christs performing and finishing of that great work of our Redemption in his resurrection for which he was promised on the seventh day next after the ending of the Creation I hope it will give no offence nor receive censure of novelty but rather find grace and acceptation in the eyes of your noble persons That great God who hath as I beleeve and here professe magnified his holy weekly Sabbath by grounding it in the first institution on Christ promised and hath made it more honourable by removing and carrying it along together with Christ the Redeemer from the day of the promise to the day of the full performance of the great work of Redemption magnifie your Honours and make your persons still more and more honourable by noble Acts undertaken and performed for the honour of his holy name the advancement of true Religion and the peace and prosperity of this Church and Kingdome under our most gracious Soveraigne Lord and King To whom next under God and the Lord Jesus Christ I most humbly devote my self and vow to remain ever a most loyall subject and next under him to your Honours A most dutifull servant and daily suppliant to God for your everlasting blessednesse GEO. WALKER OF The externall VVorks of GOD in generall PSALM 135. 6. Whatsoever the Lord pleased that did he in Heaven and in Earth in the sea and all deepe places THE externall outward workes of God which follow in the next pla 〈…〉 after his internall workes are indeed nothing but his actuall execution of his eternall counsell purpose and decree For the unfolding of which workes in generall and laying open of the nature use and severall kindes of them I have made choise of this Text. From the wordes and circumstances whereof we may easily gather all points of instruction necessary to be knowne concerning the generall nature use and kindes of them First here the words of the Psalmist shew that he speakes of Gods outward workes because he limits them to places and times to Heaven Earth Sea and all deep places Secondly he speakes of them all in generall none excepted so the Hebrew word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which signifies all in generall whatsoever doth plainly shew and also the perfect enumeration of all places which are in the world and wherin any outward sensible and visible work can be done to wit the Heaven the Earth the Seas and all deepe places Thirdly he sheweth that God is the author of these works as he is Jehovah that one eternall God in whom there are three persons Father Son and Holy Ghost for he saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Jehovah the Lord doth or hath done Fourthly he sheweth that the Lord doth all these workes of himselfe according to his owne will and pleasure and none of them all by compulsion unwittingly and unwillingly but even as hee pleased and after the counsell of his will and pleasure 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whatsoever the Lord pleased Fifthly he intimates that all these workes of God come necessarily infallibly inevitably and irresistably to passe and that none of them all can faile which God hath beene pleased to doe but so come to passe as he pleaseth in every respect even in the same time and place This hee intimates in that he saith every thing whatsoever the Lord pleased he hath done Sixtly he sheweth that these outward workes tend to make God knowne and are of use to bring us to the knowledge of the true God and in and by them God is knowne aright and his greatnesse also This is manifest by the dependance of this ver on the former For having said I know that the Lord is great and that our Lord is above all gods he brings in this text as an argument and proofe saying Whatsoever the Lord pleased that he hath done which is in effect all one as if he had said I know this by his doing of all his outward works for whatsoever the Lord pleased that he hath done Seventhly and lastly he shewes the severall kinds of Gods outward workes that they are not only creation but also actuall providence which concludes in it the government of the world the fall of man and the restauration of man-kind by the redemption of the world Workes of creation he expresseth vers 7. and workes of his actuall providence as ordering governing and saving of his people by Christ which was signified in the deliverance from Egypt he reckons up in the rest of the Psalme both before and after my text So then it is manifest that this text considered with the circumstances thereof serves abundantly for the opening of the nature use and kind of Gods outward works In the unfolding whereof â—irst let us note the order coherence and scope of it Secondly let us take a view of the wordes and sift out the true sence of them Thirdly let us observe out of them by way of doctrine a perfect description of Gods outward workes in generall and lastly apply for some use the doctrine to our selves The order and coherence is this First the Prophet in the 3. first verses exhorts all to praise the Lord and to laud his name more specially the Lords servants who are continuall professors in his Church Secondly in the 3 4 5. verses he gives some reasons drawne from the Attributes of God and the consideration of his nature to wit because the Lord is good and his name pleasant and because of his owne free grace he hath chosen Israel that is his elect and faithfull Church to be his owne peculiar people and because the Lord is great and is a God above all gods In testifying and affirming the Lords goodnesse and being above all gods he brings for proofe his owne knowledge and experience I know saith he that the Lord is great vers 5. Thirdly he doth proove God to be such a one even so good gracious and great by his outward workes and sheweth that by them he knowes God to be so â—or he saith here in this text Whatsoever the Lord pleased that he hath done in Heaven and in earth in the Sea and all deepe places So that it is plaine by the order dependence and scope of the text That here David extolls Gods outward workes in generall as things proceeding from his owne good pleasure and serving to proove him to
do with a wicked mind for an evill end God turns it to the contrary brings good out of it Iosephs bretheren intended his hurt destruction in selling him for a slave God turned it to his honour and to the saving of them and much people alive Gen. 50. 20. Pharoh rose to magnifie himselfe against God and his people God so ruled and directed his rage and furie that hee shewed his power in him and magnified his name in all the Earth by turning Pharaoh's fiercenesse to his owne praise and glory and to Pharaoh's destruction Exod. 9. 16. The Iewes out of malice and envie crucified and murdered Christ God out of his death raised life and made his death which they devised for his shame and ignominy a glorious triumph over the Divell and all the powers of darknesse and a way to exaltation Act. 2. 23. They hardened their hearts to persecute the Apostles and to drive the Preachers of the Gospell out of their land and to quench the light thereof God turned this their hardnesse and fall to the salvation of the Gentiles for by this meanes the Gospell came to bee preached in all nations Rom. 11. 11. Wicked heretiques raise up heresies to corrupt Gods Church and God so orders their doings that they who are approved are thereby made manifest and come to shine as lights in the midst of a perverse generation 1 Cor. 11. 19. Pauls troubles and persecutions were intended for the overthrow of the Gospell God made them fall out to the furtherance of it Phil. 1. 12. The Philistines invaded the land of Israel with purpose to doe mischiefe to Israel and to wast their land but God directed this motion of their hearts and by his providence appointed it as a meanes to recall Saul from pursuing David when hee had inclosed him on every side and so saved him to bee a Saviour of Israel and a destroyer of the Philistines 1 Sam. 23. 27 28. Secondly God governs the World and all things therein by cohibition that is restraining and hindering the actions and motions of creatures in his wisedome and by his power when hee thinks it fit Hee with-held Abimelech from touching Sarah Abrahams wife that hee might not sin and staine himselfe ignorantly Gen. 20. 6. Hee suffered not the destroyer of the first borne in Egypt to enter into the house of any of the Israelites Exod. 12. 23. Hee kept back the waters of Jordan from running downward so that it was dryed for Israel to passe over on foote Iosh. 3. Hee restraineth the influences of Heaven and the clouds from raine and makes the Heavens as brasse and the Earth as iron for the punishment of wicked transgressors and rebellious people Deut. 28. 13. Iob 26. 8. and 38. 31. Hee bringeth the counsell of the heathen to nought and maketh the devices of the people of none effect Psalme 33. 10. Hee withheld Laban from his evill purpose of hurting Iacob Gen. 31. 42. And his terrour restrained the Cities round about so that they pursued not after Iacobi Sons to take revenge on them for the slaying of the Shechemites Gen. 35. 5. And by his Spirit he forbad Paul and his companions to preach the Gospell in Asia Act. 16. 6. In a word as hee doth by a generall governing order all things universally and all events even the heavens the Earth the Seas Winter Summer and all seasons of the yeare men and beasts and makes an harmony and concord among things which are contrarie tempering moderating and keeping them in their proper places and doth set up and pull downe Kingdomes states Dan. 2. 37. and 4. 25. So hee rules every singular creature and every singular event turning harvest dayes into a tempestuous time of thunder and raine as when hee terrified Israel to shew them their sin in asking a King 1 Sam. 12. 16. So that wee need no further proofe of this point Let that which is before said and proved suffice to shew how God by a generall way of providence actually disposeth all things to the manifestation of his glory The speciall way by which God manifesteth his glory is by working things and by ordering ruling and disposing them to the revealing of his glory more specially in the salvation of his elect in Christ which divines doe call his speciall providence This providence God exerciseth by his Son Christ as hee is the Mediatour Redeemer Saviour King and Head of the Church universall and by his Spirit sent forth in the name of Christ and shed on the elect aboundantly through him in their regeneration This consists and sheweth it selfe in all the gracious benefits and blessings which God bestoweth upon men for salvation and in the judgements which hee executeth on his enemies the wicked by which hee delivereth his Church out of their cruell bloody persecuting and oppressing hands and doth magnifie and declare his justice and power and more fully reveale and communicate himselfe to them for their greater blessednesse The briefe Description of this speciall providence which I conceive to bee most plaine is That it is Gods exercise of his wisedome power iustice mercy and all his goodnesse in executing his speciall decree of predestination by which hee ordained all the elect both Angels and men to eternall blessednesse and all the rest to eternall distruction and withall did decree all the meanes which serve and tend to bring every one of them to their sevreall ends and by which in the time appointed they are all brought to their decreed end according to his eternall purpose and the counsell of his will In the large prosecution of this point of Gods speciall providence wee have just occasion offered to lay open all the rest of the great works of God which fall within the compasse of the Divine art of sacred Divinity For they all are contained under these two maine heads to wit 1 The meanes which serve for the effecting and obtaining of the utmost end of reasonable creatures unto which God hath ordained them 2. The end it selfe the manifestation of his glory more specially in the eternall blessednesse of his elect which blessednesse doth consist in the eternall fruition of God in all his glory and the sense thereof is exceedingly increased by their beholding of the eternall misery and destruction of the ungodly their escape and deliverance from which whole they consider and remember their joy and rejoycing shall bee doubled For in all wise providence there is a good end purposed intended and decreed and a provident ordaining ordering and actuall disposing of the meanes which are necessary for the obtaining and effecting of that end and therefore the speciall providence of God who is most wise and provident infinite in goodnesse and power must needs bee exercised in doing the most excellent workes and in ordering and disposing them according to his eternall counsell and decree to the best and most excellent end of all which is the fourth and last