which is unclean Therefore the Spirit of God working faith in us doth set our eyes upon the quarry out of which we were digged and pointeth us to this first corruption 1. There is great use of this looking back that we who think our selves brave creatures to whom God hath put so many of our fellow witnesses into service may know that we are but men so it serveth to humble us under the mighty hand of God It is Augustines saying Magna pars humilitatis tuae est notitia tui 2. I find it also urged by the Prophet Isay Hearken to me ye that follow righteousnesse Isa 51.1 ye that seek the Lord look to the rock whence you were hewen and to the pit whence ye are digged This to consider the small beginnings of the Church for God called Abraham being one and from him is the house of Israel 3. I find it urged to remember our unworthinesse and to establish the Faith of Gods free grace Ezch 16.3 Thus saith the Lord unto Jerusalem thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan thy father was an Amorite and thy mother was an Hittite c. To chide the rebellion of Israel to whom God had shewed mercy being so unworthy Three good uses of this point if these vertues do follow 1. Humility 2. Thankfulnesse 3. Repentance This Doctrine of Originall sin hath found some haeretical opposition though the voice of Scripture and Reason doth speak out loud and clear for it The Pelagians long agoe denied propagation of sin and ascribed all to imitation The Romanists deny it to be peccatum mortale a mortal sinne But the Anabaptists of our times have revived both the Pelagian and the Popish haeresie For in their last book printed 1620. they do deny that Infants traduce sin from their parents and therefore are not borne in sinne I only admonish you if any such corrupt suggestions shall obtrude themselves to your judgments that you wave them as contrary to the expresse word of holy Scripture that you never forget the pit out of which you were digged 2. Sinnes of omission This is another corruption of nature for our originall imperfection doth so incline us to evil that we are ready to leave the duties undone which the law of God requireth to be done The Spirit of God working faith in us doth shew us that whatsoever holy duty we omit we transgresse the Law which in every precept doth bind the conscience to obedience and leaveth them guilty before God who do not those things which the Law commandeth Note it that in the processe of the last judgment it is said non pavistis me non amicivistis me non visitastis ye fed me not c. And in the parabolical example of the rich man and Lazarus it is declared that the rich man went to hell for not feeding Lazarus Consider this ye that forget God How often have you neglected publike prayers when you have had no just occasion to detaine you how often have you neglected to heare to come to the Sacrament when the Table of the Lord hath been prepared for you you have turned your back and gone away To such the Master of the feast saith Non sunt digni non gustabunt coenam meam they are not worthy they shall not taste of my supper God doth offer occasions every moment to praise him or to pray to him it is part of mans misery that he is negligent and taketh not the benefit of these occasions to serve God He was adjudged to utter darknesse who hid the talent of his master in the ground Take that uprofitable servant and cast him into utter darknesse yet was this but a sin of omission The Law saith Hoc fac vives do this and live and not only they that do Contrarium huic contrary to this but they that do not Hoc facere are prevaricatours of the Law To do good and to distribute forget not he doth not say forbear to do evill or omit not to do good but forget not it is a sin to forget our duty more to omit it willingly but most horrible to do the contrary 3. Sins of evil motion These are against the tenth Commandement non concupisces thou shalt not covet for there is a conception of sinne a vegetation and a putting forth The Conception of sin is the first motion thereof the first titillation of the sense as Galasius Quamvis non planè assentiamur desiderio si tamen nos titillat sufficit ad nos reos peragendos So Chrysost Aliud est concupiscere aliud velle Saint Bern. doth distinguish our Cogitations thus 1. Sunt Cogitationes otiosae idle thoughts ad rem non pertinentes these he calleth Lutum simplex that is a thinne clay which cleaveth not yet it coloureth 2. Sunt Cogitationes violentae fortius adhaerentes violent and faster cleaving thoughts These he calleth Lutum viscosum a viscous clay stick-fast 3. Sunt Cogitationes faetidae Filthy thoughts quae ad luxuriam invidiam avaritiam c. pertinet which belong to luxury c. Coelum immundum foul mud The first of these cogitationes motus primi may be either in phantasie only so they defile not or in voluntate in the will a little infecting that so they break the law St. Chrysost Si concupiscentiae non consentit voluntas sola concupiscentia non condemnat if the Will consenteth not the Concupiscence condemns not I dare not embrace his judgement Saint Paul found by the law and he could find it by no law but this of the tenth Commandement that Concupiscentia est peccatum Concupiscence is sin This is part of the misery of our fall from God we cannot think a good thought of our selves 4. Sins of evil-affection The spirit doth detect this further misery when the consent of the will and the bent of desire doth affect evil in which kind our Saviour the best interpreter of the Law doth call anger murther and unchast desires adultery and desires of our neighbours goods theft These are not only sins in proventu ex corde but in corde as Christ saith out of the heart cometh murther adultery theft 5. Sins of evil action These are evil praevarications and actual transgressions of the law such as the erecting of another God against the true God worshipping of idols Swearing and blasphemy Breach of the Sabbath in the first table of the law Disobedience to authority murther adultery theft false witnesse in the second Table They that do these things have not God in their ways Haec sunt quae polluunt hominem saith Jesus Christ It is a principal work of the Spirit of God in man to make him sensible of the pollution of sin it is a thing natural to fear punishment and to decline it but the perfect hatred of sin is in respect of the pollution so that if there were no further danger yet because it fouls my soule and defiles my body I
to some persons left behind to the wo she was made an example of present calamity and turned into a pillar of salt Therefore remember Lots wife for terrour to strike fear in thee that thou sin not least thou be smitten so soon as thou hast offended this to prevent sin 2. That such as sin and find not the present wrath of God avenging sin may make use of that patience of God to repent least a lingring judgment be but the whetting of a sword to a sharper cutting when it cometh For the remissenesse of God doth not proceed from any respect of Persons nor from a liking of any kind of sin but out of free and undeserved favour and for the glory of his own mercy that he may be feared Who knoweth the mind of the Lord Vse or who hath been of his Counsel who can tell when he is tempted to any sin and embraceth the temptation and committeth the sin whether God will make him an example of his patience and mercy long-suffering by giving him both the time and grace of repentance and open to him the fountain for sin and for uncleannesse to wash him and cleanse himself from his sin or whether he will make him an example of his severe justice in chastening his trespasse with some speedy vengeance as he did the rebellion of Corah or the lying of Ananias and Saphirah Therfore our care must be to keep our heart with all diligence from conceiving sin to take heed to our ways that we offend not in our tongue to take heed to our foot to our hand that they act not sin ever remembring that God is a jealous God and that loveth not iniquity and that he hath pure eyes which cannot behold evil to allow thereof Herein the example of Christ is good Ps 16 8s I have set the Lord always before me for godly feare doth put God always in sight of us and of all our ways Let us set our selves always in the sight of God and answer every temptation to sin with this answer Thou O Lord art of purer eyes then to behold evil For therefore hath God so clearly revealed his Majesty Power and Justice to the sons of men Ex. 20.20 That his feare may be before your eyes that you sin not The King on earth chaseth away all evil with his eye because men feare the wrath of a King as the roaring of a lion and shall the pure eyes of God seeing all our ways being about our path and about our bed understanding our thoughts long before nothing awe us Christ saith Fear not them that can kill the body and can do nothing more but feare him that can cast both body and soul into hell fire This God that hath this power over the work of his own hands as he hath pure eyes from whose sight nothing can hide or conceal it self so he hath a right hand inveniet dextra ejus inimicos ejus his right hand will find out his enemies yea strong is his arme and the sword that he wieldeth is sharp for David saith he hath whetted it of purpose to cut off from the earth the ungodly thereof he hath also a bowe and that is bent he hath a quiver and that is full of deadly arrows and howsoever we shall slight him our God is a consuming fire to the Elect he is ignis in rubo a fire in the bush burning but not consuming but to the ungodly that make no conscience of sin he is ignis devorans a fire devouring as David saith The flame shall burn up the ungodly The crying sins of our times injustice in the Courts of judgement contempt of Religion oppression of the poore breach of the Sabbath profane swearing beastly drunkennesse abomâ—nable wantonnesse contentions and such like do give evidence against us that there is no fear of God before our eyes that we fear not the Presence of God we regard not his pure eyes We would have cured Babel of those diseases and she is not healed the Word which is the proper Physick for these maladies is either not heard with attention or not kept with retention we mingle it not with faith when we hear it so that we heap up wrath against the day of wrath my brethren do not so wickedly sin not against God sin not against your own souls for so Moses cals Korah his company Num. 16.38 he cals them sinners against their own souls that are ensamples recorded for the perpetual use of the Church even for them upon whom the ends of the world shall come When the judgement of Korah and his company was in sight it is said All Israel that were round about them fled at the cry of them Num. 16.34 for they said least the earth swallow us up also These Records of former times are kept for us that we might always have them in sight that we might make it our own case and feare before the Lord and fly from the tents of such wicked persons who make no conscience of the pure eyes of God beholding all their ways least we perish with them 2. Upon this ground he doth dispute for seeing he resolveth that God is most just and there can be no shadow of changing in him he enquireth of him how it comes to passe that so many evils be suffered in the world in the eye and sight of God From whence we are taught that in all our considerations of the carriage of things under the government of Gods Providence Doct. howsoever strange the effects may seem to us yet we must take heed that we never question either the Wisedome Justice or Goodnesse of God Let us resolve on that and we may safely sit down and wonder at the effects of his will for David saith Tu facis mirabilia solus Thou alone dost wonders And Augustine saith that God doth manage things Judicio saepe arcano sed semper justo often by secret but always by just judgment And upon this holy resolution of the Prophet which giveth God his due and no way doth tax him but pronounceth him to be himself I dare not receive the judgment of Mr. Calvin upon this passage because I am perswaded that he is too harsh in his censure of this Prophet and yet I find it so much against his will to find fault that he doth what he can again when he hath wounded him to heal him again I honour the memory of Mr. Calvin as of a clear light set up in the Church of God and am as unwilling to tax him as I find him unwilling to tax the Prophet and therefore I wish his Reader to read him out upon this place and he shall find that it is not motus violentus but trepidationis not a violent but a trembling motion that carries him For 1. He saith descendit ad humanos affect us he descendeth to humane affections so he may do and yet not offend 2. He addeth ostendit se
3 Doct. that set prayers are both lawfull and necessary to be used by the faithfull both in their private and publique meetings And this is proved by these examples in holy Scripture God himselfe prescribed to the Priests a set form of blessing the people which they constantly used for God said to them Thus shall ye blesse the children of Israel numb 6.23 c. and say unto them The Lord blesse thee and keep thee The Lord make his face shine upon thee and be mercifull unto thee The Lord lift up his Countenance upon thee and give thee peace The 92. Psal is called a Psalm for the Sabbath The 102. Psal is a prayer for the afflicted when he is overwhelmed and poureth out his complaint before the Lord. Hezekiah the King and the Princes commanded the Levites to praise the Lord with the words of David 2 Chron. 29 3â— and of Asaph the Seer which is the 136. Psal This was also used by Jehoshapht 2 Chron. 20.21 And in the Gospel the Disciples came to Christ and told him that John had taught his Disciples to pray and desired him to teach them and he taught them the Lords Prayer which doth imply in the judgment of the best learned that John had taught his Disciples a set form The reasons are first for hlep of the infirmities of such as have good affections in them but cannot so well express them that they may be directed lest they should utter any thing rashly of themselves For thus the spirit helpeth their infirmities by those who can direct them and in themselves using these set formes This much advanceth the service of God when men before hand have their petitions drawn and shall need nothing but zeal and faith in the delivering thereof to God Herein we are like to poore petitioners that come to the King who not trusting themselves with their own suites do get some wiser than themselves to set down their mindes and then they have nothing to do but to importune the Soverreign Majesty of the King to hear them and to grant their requests This serveth for the maintenance of Unanimity the Congregation knowing before they meet what they shall aske at the hands of God it resteth that they bring affections fit to joyn one with another in supplications This maintaineth outward Uniformity when the whole Congregation joyn together in an outward worship and service of God This admonisheth us 1 To take it for a great blessing of God that he hath provided these helps for our weaknesse Vse 2 It sheweth us that God for our good doth so labour to fit us to his service as that he is pleased that one of us be helpfull to another therein 3 It reproveth those who out of a presumption and overweening of the graces of God in themselves do not onely despise those helps themselves but disgrace them in others in which number we may reckon all the depravers of our Church prayers 4 Here the prayer of the Prophet is used This teacheth that the fittest persons to be used for direction of devotion are the Prophets and Apostles 4 Doct. and Ministers of the word The reason is because they are the most fit to speak to God for us and to teach us how to speak to him who are set apart to speak to us for God and to instruct us from him These are the Phisitians of our souls and should best know our diseases and defects and therefore best able to direct us to the remedy for as in the state of bodily health many superficially in-sighted in some empericall Physick do hurt themselves by being their own Physitians So in the state of the spirituall man many do overthrow their spirituall health by presuming to be their own Divines and trusting too much to their own skill Therefore it is wisedome for the flock to be directed Vse especially in the service of God by their Pastours and to hear his voyce let Habbakuk teach Israel how to pray And for us howsoever the spirit of contradiction which likes nothing long have laboured long to disgrace our publique Service yet because many faithfull and godly Pastours of the Church have zealously joyned their united forces of piety and charity to compose this book and the approbation and authority both of Church and Common-wealth hath commanded it to the use of our Congregations and the malignity of all the times since hath not been able to remove it let us embrace it and use it as Gods ordinance sealed with the seal the double seal both of prescription of time and good successe in the use of this Church of England 2 He putteth this prayer into verse and maketh a song of it and fitteth it to be sung by the Church with an instrument of Musick for so the last verse of the Chapter directeth it to the chief Singer on my stringed instruments This manner of praising God is ancient and of much use in the Church Mr. Beza hath taken the paines to collect fourteen songs eleven out of the old Testament and three out of the new which he hath interpreted by way of Paraphrase and hath annexed them to his Paraphrase of the book of Davids Psalmes and they are translated into English I shall not lose my labour nor you your time to shew you where you may finde them Exod. 1.15 The song that Moses taught Israel to sing to the praise of God for their deliverance from Pharoah and his armies which is of such excellency being a type of the deliverance of the Church from the adversary power of the world and the tyranny of the beast that there is mention of it in the Revelation Rev. 15 3. And they sung the song of Moses the servant of God Deut. 2.32 When Moses drew neer his end he maketh a Propheticall song for the use of the people both to commemorate Gods mercies to them to lay open the judgements of God against them to chide their rebellions and to comfort them with types of grace in the revelation of the Messiah And promising them the gift of the spirit of repentance to returne them into the favour of their God 3 The triumphant song of Deborah and Barak Judg. 5. after the victory of Jabin King of the Cananites 4 1 Sam. 2.1 the song of Hannah the Mother of Samuel in thanksgiving for the blessing of her fruitfulnesse conteining in it both thanksgiving doctrine and prophecy 5 2 Sam. 1.19 the elegie of David bewailing the death of Saul and Jonathan 6 2 Sam. 7.18 A song of David in thanksgiving to God after Nathan the Prophet had from God told him that the Messiah should be the Sonne of David 7 Isaiah 5. Conteining the rebuke of the people which is a Satyricall Psalme 8 Isaiah 26.1 the song of the Church conteining consolation and prophecy 9 The song of Hezekiah when God comforted his sickness with promise of recovery Isaiah 38. 10 The song of Jonah in the belly
And the Ministers of the Gospel do speak even as if Christ himself spake in us 2 Cor. 5.10 we speak in Christs stead But as in the time of the Law God sent his Prophets sometimes to such as would not give them the hearing so doth he now in the time of the Gospel but that must not discourage our Ministry at their peril be it Gods Word will ever be Gods wisdom though the prophane count it foolishness and it will be Gods truth though heresie and schisme pick quarrels Therefore if you would learn to pray and be prepared for that holy worship hear Gods speech first and that will teach you what to ask as you ou ought Hear the word from us as the Thessalonians did 1 Thes 2.13 When ye received the word of God which ye heard of us ye received it not as the word of men but as it is in truth the Word of God which effectually worketh also in you that believe 2 Here is metus I was afraid the Seventy read 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I was in an extasie as St. John saith when he saw the vision of the Son of man Rev. 1.17 I fell at his feet as dead There were two things to strike the Prophet vvith astonishment 1 The Majestie of the Speaker 2 The matter of the speech And both these must both meet in our understandings and in our affections to enlighten and to move them that vve may know what vve have to do and vvith vvhom vvhen vve pray that vve may come before him vvith fear and holy reverence 1 The great glory and Majesty of God to vvhom vve resort in prayer is such as no creature can endure the sight thereof The Angels standing before him Isa 6.2 cover their faces with their wings 2 The matter of his speech conteined in his vvord to the Prophet is the summe of the Bible Justice punishing sin in his Church Vengeance destroying the enemies of his Church and Grace redeeming his Church from the povver of Satan by the glorious Kingdom of Jesus Christ Quae. Why should the Prophet be afraid at this here vvas matter of comfort the heaviness of the night is promised the joy of the morning The Church though it must suffer for a time for sin hath here a promise of tvvo main consolations 1 Their ovvn deliverance from dangers into a restitution of them into Gods favour 2 Their eye shall have their desire also upon their enemies they shall see the vvheel of vvrath go over them and the Lord shall let out of their throats the bloud of his people vvith vvhich they have made themselves drunk all this is matter of joy and vvhat needeth this fear Sol. Who can come without fear before him that can and will do all this for if he be angry yea but a little they are blessed that trust in him fear is a proper passion of a true believer and is inseparably joyned with saving faith For seeing the bond of our union with Christ by faith whereby he dwelleth in us is Partly the hold that he hath of us by his Spirit Partly the hold that we have of him by faith The first is firme Joh. 10.27 There shall not any one pluck them out of my hand he giveth a strong reason for it for my Father who gave them me is greater then all and none is able to take them out of my Fathers hand we are his gifts and his gifts and calling are without repentance But the flesh doth put the Spirit to it so hard some times even in the elect of God that the hold on our part is weak which breedeth fear and that fear makes us hold so much the faster From hence it comes that all the intelligence between God and man doth begin at fear in us This is not the fear of an evill conscience as it was in Adam when he hid himself from God but the fear of reverence of God and the good conscience of our unworthinesse being fallen from our originall righteousnesse The Shepheards that were keeping watch by night because of their flocks were sore afraid when they saw the light shining at that time of night that the Angel began with Nolite timere fear not yet were they in the lawfull businesse of their calling The blessed Virgin no doubt wel and holily employed Zecharie the Priest in the Church about the occasions of his office yet all afraid This is the seasoning and preparing of the heart for God to be cast down before him it is humbling our selves under the mighty hand of God and we cannot pray as we ought without it When the Apostle saith we cannot pray as we ought and that the spirit helpeth our infirmities he sheweth that such as he have infirmities and they feel them when they come to appear before God and where infirmities are there must needs be fear if they that have them be sensible of them Yea I dare say that they that come to prayer without fear come without faith and all their prayers are turned into sin Ob. We read of comming with boldnesse to God Because we have an high Priest which is touched with the feeling of our infirmities Heb. 4.15 16. in all points tempted like as wee are yet without sin Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that wee may obtein mercy and finde grace to help in time of need Sol. this is cleered by the same Authour in the same Epistle declaring how many considerations must concurre as ingrediences in this our spirituall boldness 1 Let us draw neer with a true heart Heb. 10.22 2 In full assurance of Faith 3 Having our hearts sprinkled from an evill Consciences 4 Our bodies washed with pure water 5 Let us hold fast the profession of our Faith without wavering 6 Let us consider one another to provoke to love and good works 7 Not forsaking the assembling of our selves together c. 8 Exhorting one another Let a man before he pray try his vvayes and examine his soul upon those interrogatories and I dare say the best of us if we sin not also in presumption vvill finde himself short in every one of these perticulars of that perfection that should accomplish boldnesse But having those things in some measure and more in desire and endeavour our boldness must needs be as much shaken with fear as these graces in us are shaken with infirmity And upon this fear our Church teacheth us to pray to God in these words Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid 12 Dom. post Trinit and giving unto us that which our prayers dare not presume to ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. And this some of our brethren have quarrelled as a contradiction in our prayers because we say we pray for tha we dare not pray for To whom I answer in these words of my Text O Lord I heard thy voice
mercies Psal 5.7 The Church knoweth that God is more glorious in his mercy 3 Reas then in all his other attributes for his mercy is above all his works the justice of God is against us because we are unrighteous the wisedom of God is against us because we have walked as fools and not as wise men The holiness of God is against us because we are unclean conceived in sin and born in iniquity The truth of God is against us for omnis homo mendax every man is a lyer The power of God is against us because we have forsaken him the fountain of living water c. The Patience of God is against us because he is a God that loveth not iniquity neither shall evill dwell vvith him he hateth all those that work wickedness Onely Mercy is our friend that maketh Christ our justice our wisedom our sanctification and redemption that maketh truth perform gratious promises and his power becometh our protection his patience our peace Divitiae misericordiae riches of mercy This seemeth to excellent use 1 To assure to us the favour of God 1 Vse because it is built upon the foundation of Gods mercies of which Dauid saith The mercy of God endureth for ever his mercy is euerlasting The knowledge of salvation given by the remission of our sins is Through the tender mercy of our God Luk. 1.77 78. whereby the day-spring from on high hath visited us So that if God be angry with us for our sin yet his vvrath doth not burn like fire but as he sayd of Solomon I will chasten him with the rods of men but my mercy will I not take utterly from him 2 It seemeth to rebuke those that put their trust in humane merits or works of the Law they that come to God for wages forsake their own mercy nothing so contrary to Divine mercy as humane condignity 3 Because here is anger and mercy together 2 Cor. 1.3 Naâ—u 1 2. this killeth all presumption for he that is called The God of mercies is called a jealous God and a furious Avenger And the rods of men well laid on will smart and draw bloud 4 This inviteth to new life because The goodness and mercy of God leadeth to repentance and the Crown of it Rom. 2.6 5 Seing we have so much need of mercy our selvs let us shew mercy unto others Estote misericordes ut pater vester coelestis be ye mercifull as your heavenly father for there shall be judgement vvithout mercy to him that sheweth no mercy Christ abideth yet naked and sick and imprisoned and hungry and thirsty in our poor brethren as his mercy embraceth us so let our mercy embrace him that he may say esurivi pavistis I was hungry and ye fed me Ver. 3. God came from Teman and the holy one from mount Paran Selah His glorie covered the Heavens and the Earth was full of his praise 4 And his brightness was as the light he had horus coming out of his hand and there was the hiding of his power 5 Before him went the pestilence and burning coals went forth at his feet THe second part of this Psalm doth contein a celebration of the prayses of God Vid. divis p. 23. which also doth declare upon what grounds the Church in affliction and captivity doth put trust in God The whole Section is a commemoration of the great power and glory and power and mercy of God shewed in behalf of his own people v. 3 4 5. ad finem v. 15. 1 In his coming to them from Paran and Teman 2 Of the same power and glory declared in giving of the possession of the land of Canaan to Israel 3 In the dismay of the Nations v. 7. 4 In the marvellous Water-works 8 9 10. 5 In their great victories within the Land I begin at the first God came from Teman and the holy one from Mount Paran The best exposition that I do finde amongst many of these words is that here is remembred the coming of God to Israel when he gave them the Law written in two Tables of stone with his own hand For God came then from Teman and Paran Paran was a great mountain neer to mount Sinai but Teman signified the South so God came from the South thence came God to give Israel his Law wherein he did express himself the King of this people by coming so neer to them by shewing himself so openly and by revealing his wil to them so plainly This was so great a favour done to them that he addeth Selah which word is onely used in Davids Psalmes and in this Psalme and the word in the judgments of the learned is sometime vox optantis the voice of one that wisheth aequivalent to Amen or vox admirantis the voice of one admiring shewing some speciall matter or vox affirmantis of one affirming avouching what is said or vox meditantis of one meditating requiring consideration of what is said But withall it is a rest in Musique Jerome saith it is commutatio metri or vicissitudo canendi his glory covered the heavens and the earth was full of his praise And His Brightnesse was as the Light he meaneth the brightnesse of that glory wherein he appeared when he gave the Law set forth Exod. 19.16 For there were Thunders and Lightnings He had Horns comming out of his hands by Horns in Scripture strength is signified the horne of salvation is the strength of salvation the exalting of the horne is the advancing of power and these are said to be in his hands because the hands and arms are called the strong men in the body they are the instruments of power And there was the hiding of his power there in that apparition God did hide his power from the rest of the world and declared it perticularly to his Church as David saith He hath not dealt so with any nation and as for his judgments Psal 147.20 they have not known them Before him went the Pestilence and burning coals went forth at his feet His meaning is that God then declared himself mighty in the punishment of his enemies and the enemies of his Church for under these tvvo kinds of punishments by pestilence and fire he shevveth that God hath the command of all the instruments of vvrath of vvhich these tvvo by plague and fire are the most licking and devouring putting no difference where they go And this hath reference to the many plagues wherevvith he punished the Aegyptians vvhen he brought his people from the land of Aegypt from the house of bondage The summe of all is this that God hath declared himself glorious 1 In his speciall favour to his people 2 In his just vengeance From vvhence these points of doctrine issue 1 That the consideration of Gods former mercies doth strengthen faith in present tribulations 2 That the Church of God hath a speciall interest in the povver and protection of God 3 That
obedience 63. 77. so are all God's promises to his children page 78 God can make good use of the vices of men and make wicked men serve for instruments of his will page 66 God is author of all actions but not of the evill of them page 73 God fore-knoweth the sins of men page 86 Gods certain knowledge of our evils will bring forth a certain judgment to punish them page 89 Gods love to his Church is eternal as himself is page 95 God is sooner stirred to mercy then provoked to anger page 100 God loves to be sollicited for mercy page 101 God is eternal in himself in his Essence and eternal in Providence in respect of his Creatures page 104 Ged is holy therefore the punishments of his Church are for its correction only page 105 Gods children in afflictions are not discouraged in their faith of Gods mercy page 107 God is author of punishment page 108 Gods eyes are pure page 110 God is a sincere searcher and punisher of sin and his justice and truth cannot fail page 113 God will have his Church taught his ways in all ages thereof page 154 Gods promises run in semine page 154 God signifieth his will in divers ways p. 167. and his will is twofold page 169 God taketh offence at such as are lifted up page 188 God is the author of faith page 208 Gods care and providence stoopeth so low as to the regard of our cattel page 325 God is to be worshipped outwardly as well as inwardly p. 335. 344 God is glorified in the shame of the proud page 280 God bringeth all the labours of the ungodly to losse and vanity yet the ungodly perceive it not page 289 God walketh with the righteous and contrary to the unrighteous page 291 God is glorious and jealous of his glory page 296 Gods creatures and his word are two books wherein his wisdome is set forth to the soul page 301 God punisheth sin by sin page 321 Godlinesse hath the promises of this life and of the life to come page 42 Good covetousnesse 263. Evil covetousnesse is joyned with ambition page 264 Greatnesse and power are fearful to the common man yet he will search into the actions of the highest page 262 Grief mingled with faith is no sin page 49 H. HAbakkuk signifieth an embracer a wrastler 2. The time of his prophecie is not exprest pag. 2. Hatred a cause of contention pag 26 Hearing the word profiteth nought without faith pag 209 Hearing and understanding the word is a means to increase faith pag 209 Hearers ought to pray for their teachers pag 144 Heathens gods not jealous of their glory pag 299 He that willeth the same thing as God willeth and doth the same thing God would have done sinneth unlesse he doth it in the same manner and for the same end which God projecteth pag 76 How far we may complain to God against our brethren pag 15 How God is said to have eyes and other parts of a mans body pag 111 and how he is said to see hear c. pag 73. ch 3 How God is said to repent pag 165 How Gods righteousnesse is revealed in the Gospel pag 237 How drunken folks are said to discover their nakednesse pag 314 How man ought to carry himself in his dominion over beasts I. IDolatry defined and described pag. 328 Idolatry a grievous sin pag 329 Idolatry amongst Christians pag 330 Idolatry in the Church of Rome in worshipping the consecrated Host pag 333 If to omit a duty be a sin the committing of a contrary evil must needs be abominable pag 312 Ill-gotten goods bring such a sin upon a man as cannot be purged but by repentance and restitution pag 293 If we find in our selves an elevation above our pitch it is a certain Symptome of a diseased soul pag 191 Image-worship crept into the Church of Rome by little and little pag 332 Imprecations forbidden pag 17 Infirmities of Gods servants twofold pag. 48 Inordinate zeal what it is pag. 53 Iniquity knoweth no measure pag. 84 In all our considerations of the carriage of things under the Government of Gods Providence howsoever the effects may seem strange to us we must not question either the Wisedom Justice or Goodnesse of God pag. 117 In the Church of God there will always be some will argue against God pag. 147 Inconveniences of Rapine pag. 277 Ingredients of a saving faith by a dissection of the word Fides pag. 187 It was no small part of Christs Passion to be scorned and derided of his enemies pag. 258 It is a singular wisedome to use the fulnesse of prosperity well 83. and a great measure of grace is required thereto pag. 84 Judgment beginneth at the house of God pag. 65. and 179. ch 3 Just man defined pag. 185 Justification by faith only pag. 237 K. KEeping silence a signe of reverence and submission pag. 327 Knowledge of Gods glory an excellent knowledge 300. and the pursuit of this knowledge is a labour which well rewardeth it self pag. 301 M MAlice may be in looking into the vices of brethren though it pretended desire of Reformation pag. 21 Man is mutable God unchangably just pag. 78 Man in mercy cometh neerest Gods image pag. 99 Mans state in his innocency pag. 213 Man is but earth and gold but clay pag. 248 Men and Angels have their Eternity from God pag. 103 Means to get an upright soul pag. 192 Mercy the soul of the world pag. 100 Ministers may in general reprove sin but not particularize any man pag. 54 Ministers ought to be first Seers and then Speakers pag. 139 Ministers must not only watch but also give warning pag. 142 Ministers must maintain Gods cause against all contradictions pag. 143 Ministers ought to open to the Church of God the whole Councell of God pag. 156 Ministers have a necessity laid upon them to preach the word pag. 211 N. NO man simpliciter Atheos but acknowledgeth some divine ruling power pag. 89. and 328 and 80. ch 3 No man would do service where nothing is to be gained by it pag. 329 No inherent holinesse in Churches pag. 339 Not that as we have but what we dispose of maketh us friends in the day of the Lord. Nothing ought to be so dear to us as the glory of God pag. 300 O. OCcasion of offence to be avoided pag. 33 Oracles ceased at Christs coming pag. 175 Original sin what it is pag. 216 Outward things unsanctified to the Owner have no power to establish the heart pag. 84 Out of natural and moral ways of life there is a wisedome of God to be learned pag. 123 Overcharge of the heart with drink is drunkennesse pag. 306 P. PApists idolaters pag. 331 People without a Ruler are unhappy pag. 114 and 124 Prayer ought to be fervent and continual 18. as well in zeal of Gods glory as for our own necessities pag. 19 Prayer what it is pag. 31 Prayer is a help to him that
against crying sinnes of the time is discreet and necessary pag. 52 The Contents of the third Chapter A Double plainnesse of Scripture Rationall and Spirituall pag. 77 Afflictions of this life cannot separate the society of the Faithfull pag. 5 Afflictions of the Church are such a deading to it that unlesse it were quickened with souâ—â— beams of grace it would be a burthen to it more then it could beare pag. 41 Affection of love most vehement in a woman pag. 94 All Gods favours to men proceed from his love towards such as are thankfull for them pag. 69 As God brought Israel into the land of Canaan by the sword so by the sword he driveth them out pag. 144 C CAtesbie's speech concerning the Gun-powder treason pag. 89 Christ descended into hell pag. 78 Christ was alwayes before the Gospel and even from the beginning of the world the hope of all the ends of the world pag. 150 Church musick ancient and of holy use pag. 22 Comfort in afflictions groweth out of a right understanding of the Will and purpose of God therein pag. 43 Commination of Gods judgments makes the Church of God to fear pag. 174 Consideration of former mercies strengthens faith in present troubles pag. 50. 68 Cushan is Aethiopia so called from Cush the son of Cham. pag. 80 Cyrus angrie with the River Gyndes pag. 103 D. DAvids Psalmes a common store-house of good learning pag. 195 Description of Repentance pag. 1â—5 Distressing of the poor a greivous and provoking sin pag. 159 E EVery childe of God and member of the Church ought to pray for the whole body of the Church pag. 34 F. FAith in Christ takes away the horrour of the terrour of the Lord pag. 82 Faithfull men who worship God with fear and trembling how they ought to be taught pag. 33 Fear is a proper passion of a true Believer and is inseperably joyned with saving Faith pag. 28 Figurative speeches are in use in Scripture pag. 72 G. GOD is not so glorious in any thing that he hath wrought as in his Church pag. 38 God will not suffer us to be tempted further then he thinks fit pag. 41 God is armed with instruments of vengeance to punish sin pag. 57 God never had mercy enough to swallow or consume either his justice or his truth pag. 60 God is glorious in Heaven and in Earth pag. 61 God never layeth his rod upon those creatures which he hath ordained for the service of man but to punish man 102. For he hath no quarrell to them pag. 103 God must have the glory of his own great works pag. 104 God is without variablenesse or alteration pag. 113 God sometimes declareth his power openly to the comfort of his Church and terrour of its enemies pag. 115 God is above all second causes pag. 133 God hath taken upon himself the care of the preservation of his Church 151. Therefore we need seek no further for it pag. 153 God in his judgment maketh the ungodly rods to punish one another pag. 155 God in Christ is the rest of his Church pag. 158 God never forsaketh us till we forsake him pag. 185 God punisheth one evil nation by another pag. 87 God is the strength of his Church 214. both in that we are and in that we do and in that we suffer pag. 215 God is the restorer of his Church wil renew the face glory of it pag. 222 Gods word must minister matter to our prayers pag. 25 Gods Church is Gods work both in respect of its calling 37. and of his perpetuall presence in it pag. 38 Gods mercie and our obedience are motives of re-establishing his protection upon his Church pag. 55 God's secrets revealed only to them that fear him pag. 75 God's power shewed in the terror of the wicked proves that there is a God pag. 80 God's promises are either for this life or for the life to come pag. 124 God's extraordinary mercies must be often remembred pag. 166 God's mercie in giving must not destroy his justice in punishing of evill doers pag. 186 Good use is to be made of some temptations H. HOrnes in Scripture signifie strength page 49 How God was said to have divided the Land of Canaan amongst the children of Israel page 63 73 How many ways spiritual enemies assault the Church page 205 How many ways men abuse their strength page 216 I. JErusalem and the Temple shall lye desolate untill the second coming of Christ page 68 Jewish Feasts were instituted for remembrances of favours received from God page 166 In the last calling of the Jews their Common-wealth shall be restored page 66 In reading of holy Scripture we ought carefully to observe what is spoken literally and what figuratively 74. and not to make figures where none are 77. Nor understand that literally which is figurative page 79 In all wars God is Lord of Hosts and General of the armies that fight his quarrels 143. and he ordereth all wars page 144 Jotham's Parable page 188 Joy dilateth the heart page 195 Joyes of the ungodly compared to a candle page 205 Israel a type of Gods Church on earth page 99. L. LAnd of Canaan not above 300 miles in length and 100 in bredth 173. The fruitfulnesse of it shewn ibid. Logick and Rethorick requisite and necessary in a Minister page 76 M. MAnna and Water out of the Rock were types of our Lords Supper and the children of Israels passage through the red Sea a type of Baptisme page 168 Matter of thankesgiving is an acknowledgment of all benefits page 68 Mercy is the most glorious attribute that God hath page 46 Miseries of afflicted men make them forget comforts page 44 Monarchie of the Assyrians lasted 1300 yeers page 250 Moses charged by Heathens to be a Magician page 97 105 Motives inducing us to blesse those that persecute us and pray for those that hate us page 70 N. NO lesson so hard for a child of God to take out as to take up Christ's Crosse page 41 No counsel or strength can prevaile against God 65. nor any prescription ibid. No Oratory nor eloquence comparable to the holy elocution of Scripture page 75 O. OBjections against Church musick answered page 13 Obedience to God assures and gains all good things to us page 180 Over-weening of our fellow creatures is and hath been a cause of Idolatry page 134 P. POetry ancient and of use in the Church page 10 Polygamy unlawfull page 108 Prayer a faithful messenger page 43 Prayer hath the same force now as it had in former times page 141 Praysing of God in Hymns and Songs ancient and much used in the Church Prophane mens hearts are hardned with custome of sinning page 31 Prophane and carnal men how they ought to be taught page 30 Prophets Apostles and Ministers of the Word are the fittest Persons to be used for direction of devotion page 7 R. REading of Scripture good to make us understand what the Lord hath
1. For his Godhead that none other but he should be called God or esteemed 2. For his Worship not to be given to creatures 3. For his name not to be taken in vain 4. For his Sabbath to be kept holy And it is our first petition sanctificetur nomen Hallowed be thy name and for our conformity with him For I am the Lord your God ye shall therfore sanctifie your selvs Levit. 11.44 and yee shall be holy for I am holy So there is 1. Sanctitas increata an increate holinesse in God 2. Creata Created in man as a beam of that heavenly light a stream of that full fountain in our God This uncreated holinesse which is the attribute of God is the absolute perfection of Gods nature and attributes his full goodnesse not only that wherein he is good in himself but in his operations also 2. The Consequent From hence the Prophet concludeth that God cannot do more to his Church then correct it he cannot utterly destroy it because he is holy so is his Church his correction of the Elect is only a fire to purge out their drosse which will go out of it selfe when the combustible matter is spent Hear God himselfe I am the Lord the Holy One the Creator of Israel your King Isa 43.15 This People have I formed for my self Vers 21. they shall shew forth my praise I but our sinnes spoile all He addeth I Vers 25. even I am he that blotteth out thy transgressions for mine own sake and will not remember thy sins The Church of God is semen sanctum an holy seed God cannot forsake it he is Sanctus Creator an holy Creator and he is Sanctus Redemptor an holy Redeemer of it as the holy text stileth him You see here Applicat that as Christ saith This is life eternal to know thee Let us study God and his attributes for from thence we derive whatsoever we are or have they are our light of direction our staffe of supportation From the wisedome of God we have all intellectual illumination From the Iustice of God all our integrity From the Holinesse of God all our Sanctification From the Eternity of God our immortality From the Omnipotency of God our strength And as by our faith we cleave to him so we are made Partakers of the divine nature The juice of this text is the Prophets faith which from the Holinesse and Eternity of God doth resolve That this judgement of God Doct. threatned against the Jews is no more then a temporal chastisement according to the doctrine taught out of Obadiah Though God afflicteth his Church yet he loveth her still This perswasion of deliverance from evils is found in natural men but either it is grounded upon an opinion that they have of fortune such make chance their God or it is built upon the consideration of the vicissitude of things which maketh sundry mutations Informes hyems reducit Jupiter Hor. Car. 2. Od. 10. idem Summovet non se malè nunc olim sic erit God sendeth fowl weather and faire if it be ill now with us it will not be so hereafter This is but cold comfort to hope only in the change of times and so to look for better days Some acknowledge a Deity and ascribe all alterations to that not knowing the true God as Aeneas comforted his company Durate vesmet rebus servate secundis Continue and reserve your selves for better times Dabit Deus his quoque finem God will put an end to these your sufferings But that which comforteth the Saints of God in afflictions is their faith in the Eternity and Holinesse of God from whence they gather assurance that they shall not miscarry under the rod of God he is eternal therefore they shall not perish he is holy therefore he will but correct not destroy and hereof they make this use 1. They do not limit God to a set time when he shall deliver them so Daniel waited for the deliverance of Israel from Babylon seventy years The Church waited till the fulnesse of time for the promised Messiah 2. They do not limit God to any set means of deliverance Mordecai did see that the preferment of Hester was a likely means to save the Iews from the fury of the decree which Haman had procured against them and he putteth her to it to use her mediation with the King for it but he builded not his hopes in that means for he said to her If thou altogether hold thy Peace at this time Esth 4.14 then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Iews from another place The promise made to Abraham concerning his seed was in nature despaired by the old age of Abraham Sarah yet was not Abraham out of hope but when Isaac the sonne of Promise was come God afterward commanded him to be offered in sacrifice yet did not that weaken the faith of Abraham for he built upon the word of the promise and not upon the possibility of the means For he that promised was faithful 3. They do not limit God to the measure of affliction for they know that whatsoever the judgement be which God inflicteth upon his Church it cannot exceed a fatherly correction So Job Though he kill me yet will I trust in him Job 13.15 4. They are not discouraged in the faith of Gods mercy though they feel the contrary and therefore being in one contrary they do believe another Thus even when they feel the burthen of their sinnes they believe their justification for the heavy-laden seeke Christ for case When they feel misery they believe blessedneesse for they know Blessed are they that mourne When they feel correction they believe for he chasteneth every sonne whom he receiveth When they feel themselves forsaken of God they believe themselves interested in his favour as David and Christ My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Both forsaken in respect of their feeling neither in respect of their faith 5. They by faith are ever in the Presence of God Ps 16.8 so David I have set God always before me for he is at my right hand therefore I shall not be moved So it is said of Moses being in danger in Aegypt Heb. 1◠27 By faith he forsook Aegypt not fearing the wrath of the King for he endured as seeing him who is invisible Thus strongly do they build whose foundation is not laid it any possibility of their own merits to deserve deliverance and of their own wit and cunning to decline evils or of their own strength and power to resist them or evade them or the vicissitude of things to change them but trust in the living God and make him their hiding place Whereas the Prophet saith Doct. 2 that God had ordained the Chaldeans for judgement that is for the execution of his judgement and hath established them for correction Docemur we are taught That God is the Author of
me out of his belly shall flow rivers of the water of life John 7.38 These be sure proofs of sincere faith which though it be weak yet it will gather strength and being able to fight will in the end be made able to overcome all our enemies 3. How faith may be preserved This seemeth a needlesse question because we have cleare evidence of Scripture that sincere faith cannot be lost True it cannot finally be lost it is assured to God but we must preserve it so as that in temptations and afflictions we may not be cast down with fear that it is lost Neither that we do bear our selves too bold upon it so farre as to presume Therefore we are bound to the use of all those means ordained by God to preserve faith If it be an hypocritical or a temporary Faith it may be lost if it be a true Faith this is one certain sign of it The same means that breede Faith in us the same means do nourish it therefore If thou standest by Faith be not high minded but fear It is a Tenet of the Church of Rome Rom. 11.20 and it is now revived of late by the Anabaptists in a book of the last yeer that a man may finally fall away from saving grace And many false shewes are made out of Scriptures not rightly understood to maintain this heresie I say no more but as the Apostle doth Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall He that is once assured of his standing 1 Cor. 10.11 cannot fall because the same Spirit which witnesseth to our spirits that we are the sonnes of God doth also teach us all things and bring all things to our remembrance which Christ hath taught us The means are The Word the Sacraments Prayer 1. The Word for as we are born anew by the immortal seed of the Word so we must as new born babes desire the sincere milk of the Word that we may grow thereby 2. The Sacraments of Baptisme and the Lords Supper for these also serve to strengthen Faith 1. By visible representations to the sense of the inward graces of Gods spirit that walking here by Faith and not by sight we may have something to fasten our eye upon which may be to us as the brazen serpent lifted up 2. By the vertue of consignation because these Sacraments are the Seals of Gods Covenant of grace obliging God the giver to continue his love to us and reciprocally binding us to return duty and love and obedience to him 3. By the efficacy of mediation because they be the means in the Ordinance of God whereby he doth convey his spiritual graces to us so that Baptism is called the cover of regeneration and by Baptism Christ is put on The Supper of Christ presenteth Christ to us our spiritual food and therein we do eat and drink his body and blood This admonisheth us to be swift to hear and to neglect no opportunity for the same To renew our Baptism by often repentance to frequent the Table of the Lord as the feast of our souls This advanceth our ministry of these by which this Serpent is lifted up on high and set on a pole for all that desire health to look upon it They that are carelesse and negligent in these things will soon make shipwrack of that temporary faith that they seem to have for they that live in the neglect of these things do forsake their own mercy and declare plainly that their Faith is not sound and sincere but their whole righteousnesse is like the morning dew soon dried up 3. Prayer 1. for that shewes of whom we hold not of our selves but of God 2. That bringeth us into Gods acquaintance and familiar conversation whereby we do more perceive Gods love to us and declare our love to God 4. How Faith must be used The handling of this point draweth in the third word of my text which is life The just shall live by Faith The right use of Faith is to live by it as I have shewed in the exposition of the words 1. There is use of it in the natural life 2. In the spiritual life 3. For the eternal life 1. In the natural life for 1. In prosperity 2. In adversity there is use of it 1. In prosperity 1. Faith is a shield to bear off all the flattering temptations of the flesh Heb. 11.24 the world the Devil so it is said of Moses By Faith Moses when he was come to yeers refused to be called the sonne of Pharaohs daughter And by Faith Joseph when he was tempted by his unchaste mistris whose offer tendered him all sensual delight refused her and would not sin against God 2. Faith is the contentment of the righteous in those things that they possesse they beleeve them to be the gifts of God and they are satisfied with his allowance so by Faith Daniel was content with his pulse and refused the Kings meat they that do beleeve that God knows better then they what is good and sufficient for them are content with what they have 3. Faith is the acknowledgment of all our good from God for thanksgiving is a work of Faith and giveth God his due 4. Faith dependeth upon God for the time to come Psal 16.5 as David saith thou maintainest my lot I have set the Lord alwayes before me Psal 16.8 he is at my right hand I shall not be moved Upon which ground the faithful do build things hoped for and commit their wayes to the Lord. They cast all their care upon God for he careth for them And surely it is for want of Faith that the filii saeculi hujus the men of this world do rise so early and go so late to bed and eate the bread of carefulnesse robbing God of his service and breaking the Sabbath and often doing wrong to their brother to build up themselves it is a signe that they dare not trust God A strange inference 1. For we beought nothing with us into the world 2. We cannot deny but that whatsoever we have or possesse in the world it is the gift of God for aperiente manum de implet omnia we have no interest in any thing being born in sin the right is in him the gift from him 3. We must confesse that very little will serve our necessities whilest we do live in the world 4. We shall carry nothing away with us and why should we discruciate our selves with cares for others seeing that is the care of God our children also are his inheritance I know and beleeve that our children are under the Covehant and Promise of grace Ero Deus tuus seminis tui Let us study to breed them to the love and service of God let us not waste unthriftly what we may spare from our own necessities and for the charge of their education Let us use all honest and lawfull means to provide for them Thus are we discharged
of our duty permitte Deo Caetera leave the rest to God Faith now doth all that remains to be done By Faith Isaak blessed Jacob Heb. 11.20 21. and Esau concerning things to come By Faith Jacob when hee was dying blessed both the sonnes of Joseph 2. In adversity Thus it serveth to furnish us with 1. Patience 2. Hope 1. With Patience to bear the present distresse without murmuring at God David is a notable and a full example of this Faith I shall shew you him in distresse For when the Amalekites had burnt Ziklag 1 Sam. 30. and had carried away captives all the people therein and amongst them Davids two wives Abinoam and Abigael David was greatly distrest so were all the people They lift up their voice and wept untill they had no more power to weep David beside this sorrow of his losse and compassion of the losse of his people c. Feared For the people speak of stoning him because the souls of all the people were greived every man for his sons and his daughters No remedy against all this sorrow but Faith 1 Sam. 32.6 But David encouraged himself in the Lord his God 2 Chor. 20. The like example of Jehoshaphat When some came and told the King of an army coming against him to invade him instead of mustering his men surveying his armour sending out for oxciliaries to resist this armie Or instead of sending a messenger to treat of peace to divert the enemy and to prevent war Jehoshaphat lets the enemy come on Vers 3. Jehoshaphat feared and set himself to seek the Lord and proclaimed a fast throughout all Juda he goes to Church and prayes O our God wilt thou not judge them for we have no might against this great company that cometh against us Vers 12. neither know we what to do but our eyes are upon thee In the very distresse to which this remedy is applied God hath threatned the Jews with an invasion by the Chaldeans he hath declared the enemy insolent and violent what shall the Jews do in the misery Observe God takes no care of the wicked let him sin let the Chaldeans do his worst to him but The just man shall live by his Faith For he shall possesse his soul in patience Beloved we hear of distresses abroad if we do but crosse the water the sword is drawen against the professours of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and they that have armes put them on to save their lives and stand upon their guard The bloody Iesuits cry to the French King of our Religion Rase it Rase it We know not how God may visit us hereafter when the light of Israel shall be quenched although there go over neitheir men nor mony to relieve the distresses of our own mothers children filios ecclesiae children of the Church such consultations are far above us yet let us pray for them to God that God would give them Faith to depend upon him and the just amongst them shall live by that Faith There is an example nearer kinne to this land the daughter of great Britaine and her root and branches for whom many a loyall heart in this Kingdom aketh in whose quarrel the honourable house of Parliament have in the name of the Commons offered to unlock all the treasures to put on armes and to adventure the lives of all faithful Patriots in the just cause of restoring them to their rightful inheritance and all such honours as their just claime shall challenge In their distresse I know no other comfort but my Text. The just shall live by Faith In a word where these three great and crying sins do raigne which in this Prophecy are threatned That is corruption of conversation when there is no honesty nor truth left amongst men but that every man studyeth the building of his own house he cares not where he hath the brick and the morter Corruption of Religion that schisme and heresie do carrie it from peace and truth Corruption of justice that honours places of service in the Common wealth and justice it self are sold for mony good men punished evil men rewarded Comfort Justus ex fide sua vivet the just shall live by his Faith 2. Faith furnisheth us with Hope That also 1. In Prosperity 2. In Adversity We have hope through Faith that God will continue his loving kindnâ—sse to us and not take away from us the light of his countenance So David Surely goodnesse and mercy shall follow me all the dayes of my life Psal 23.6 and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever Observe in Davids hope two things 1. The ground of it Faith in Gods protection for that is the part of the whole Psalme The Lord is my shepheard he shall feed me he restoreth my soul In the valley of the shadow of death thou art with me Thou preparest my table thou anoyntest my head with oyle my cup runneth over 2. The means by him used to continue the assurance thereof even by dwelling in the house of God continually that is by consecrating his whole life to Gods service and worship 2. In adversities We have hope that either God will strengthen us to bear it or give issue out of it This is grounded upon that promise of God to his Church I will not leave thee nor forsake thee And if we hope for that we see not Rom. 8.25 we do with patience waite for it There is no such comfort in the sorrows and distresses of life as reading the holy Scriptures for the support of our hope For They are written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope Rom. 15.4 This hope keeps the heart from breaking for building upon the truth of God it cannot be shaken 2. How Faith must be used in the Spirituall life 1. For this the Apostle doth call it the sheild of Faith and it serveth for defence against the fiery darts of Sathan to keep off the evil that is yet without us either in temptation or provocation 2. It serveth also to purify our hearts from that evil which we do bear about us in the infection thereof 3. It serveth for a provocation to stirre us up to resist the power of the enemy 1 Pet. 5.8 For so Saint Peter saith Though Sathan go about like a roaring lyon seeking whom he may devour Whom resist stedfast in the faith Vers 9. 4. It serveth for victory This is the victory by which we overcome the world even our Faith 5. Many that returne out of the field victorious yet may bring home some dangerous wound that they have received in the battaile and there is another good use of Faith to cure and heal all the wounds For our Faith maketh us whole 6. It serveth for the effectuating the means 1. Hearing 2. Sacraments 3. Prayer 3. For our eternall life Faith is profitable unto all things which hath the Promise of
fidem proficientem For as Clemens saith Apostolus unicam tantum fidem annunciat quae crescendo proficit Till it grow up to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a fulnesse of faith Heb. 10.22 And so this text is well cited for the just man who is made just by faith doth live in it and by it For how can the Gospel be the power of God to salvation except it revealeth to us the life of saith seeing it is so only to such as do believe This first place cleareth the point that the Apostle doth understand Gods word in my text so as that the means of life is faith and faith only for so it is further urged by Saint Paul who saith But that no man is justified by the works of the law in the sight of God Gal. 3.11 is evident for the just shall live by faith Here these words are brought in to prove that faith only doth justifie in the sight of God which is thus proved Life eternal comes only by faith therefore righteousnesse comes only by faith The antecedent is Gods own word in my text The consequence is thus proved for Righteousnesse is the foundation of life eternall They which receive the abundance of grace Rom. 5.17 and of the gift of righteousnesse shall reign in life And in the next verse it is called Justification of life Vers 18. And this sequence doth the Apostle make in his own comfortable perswasion of himself I have fought a good fight this is the great fight with Principalities and Powers 1 Tim. 4.8 And I have kept the faith this is the shield which beareth off the fiery darts discharged against him in this fight his comfort is From henceforth is laid up for me a Crown of righteousnesse This righteousnesse is not of the law which he hath fulfilled but the righteousnesse of the faith which he hath kept It is not the brest-plate of righteousnesse but it is the shield of faith that beareth off all the fiery darts of Satan and therefore the just man doth not live and come out of this battail victorious by righteousnesse but by faith This place thus applied by our Apostle is the ground of our Church tenet against which the gates of hell cannot prevaile namely that sola fides justificat faith alone doth justifie That which the Romanists do lay to our charge is that we exclude good works and upon that slanderous imputation both Dr. Stapleton Harding Bellarmine Campiane Bishop and indeed generally all Popish writers do proclaim us Hereticks and they will not hear us saying that the justifying faith which we preach must be such as worketh by love They like the Pharisee trust in themselves that they are perfect we with the Publican cry out in faith of Christ's sufficient satisfaction Domine miserere Lord have mercy upon whose example Saint Augustine saith Videte fratres magis placuit humilitas in malis factis quam superbia in bonis factis The cause is in sight the humility of the one was with faith the pride of the other was in presumption And God resisteth the proud but giveth grace to the humble I conclude this point wherein I have held you long I know with how much comfort and profit to my self I hope without your losse of time What man is he that desireth life who would live as a man as a good man and as an happy man I answer in the words of the Sonne of God As thou believest so shall it be unto thee Or in the Words of the Father of that Son in my text The just man shall live by his faith Vers 5. Yea also because he transgresseth by wine he is a proud man neither keepeth at home who enlargeth his desire as hell and is as death and cannot be satisfied but gathereth unto him all Nations and heapeth unto him all People NOw that God hath declared what rest and comfort his Church hath in the manifold oppressions of the enemies thereof they shall live by their faith In all the rest of this chapter he declareth his own just Providence in the Government of the world and in the severe execution of his judgments upon impenitent offenders that the Prophet may inform himself and others that God hath not forgotten to be just The last verse of the chapter is the total of the chapter The Lord is in his holy Temple let all the earth keep silence before him That he sitteth not there idle but is awake that his eyes do see and his eye-lids do try the sonnes of men that we shall hear from his own mouth Concerning the words of this fifth verse Yea also because he transgresseth by wine he is a proud man neither keepeth at home These words are read diversly both by Translators and by Expositors Our first English Church-bibles read thus Like as the wine deceiveth the drunkard even so the proud shall faile and not endure The Geneva followeth the same sense Yea indeed the proud man is as he that transgresseth by wine therefore shall he not endure Arias Montanus Et quo modo vinum potantem decipit sic erit superbus non decorabitur In his Interlineary he followeth the text in the original but in his Commentary he followeth the vulgar Latin authorized for the Canon by the Councel of Trent Pagnine Quanto magis patator vini qui praevaricatr qui est vir superbus non permanebit So Mr. Calvin Etiam certè vino transgrediens vir superbus non habitabit The 70 have no mention of wine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Here be three words to expresse pride fully 1. To think too well of our selves 2. To think contemptibly of others 3. To boast and glory in vain ostentation It seemeth to me that the purpose of this place is to expresse the insolency and pride of the king of Babel proud Nebuchadnezzar and generally of the enemy of the Jew the Chaldaean and that the scope of the place is to resemble them big swoln in their own self-opinion to a man that is drunk with wine This hath good coherence with the former words for shewing how the just man and the proud man do stand in opposition His soule which is lifted up is not upright in him but the just shall live by faith faith shall establish the just man But the proud man who is drunk with the vain over-weening of himself he shall not continue non habitabit he shall not be established And here I forsake the Kings Bible for I cannot find either sense or coherence in it The words following are plain enough for God therein doth expresse that he taketh notice of the insatiable desire of the Chaldaean who incouraged by his victories doth covet to be Monarch of all the world And this is now the partition of the rest of this chapter 1. Faults 2. Punishments The first fault here named infatiablenesse The punishment v. 6 7 8. 1. The ground and note of this disease of
canit By singing prayed and by praying sung So the 70 read 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But Tremelius and Junius read Oratio Habak Prophetae secundum odas mixtas That is not accommodated to any set kind of verse but mixt of sundry kinds And so they do not understand the word Sigionoth to be the the name of the instrument upon which it was sung but the name of the verse into which their prayer is digested As the Greeks and Latines had their severall kinds of verses Heroick Iambick Asclepediake Phaluciake and such like I cannot better expresse this to the understanding of the weakest judgment then by referring you to the varieties of verse in our English Psalmes that we sing in the Church for if they were all composed in one kind of verse they might all be sung to one tune Some have their set tunes and admit no other because they are of a severall kind of verse So I take it that this Sigionoth was the name of that kind of verse in which this Psalme was written Thus much of the words of the title The things which we may make profit of in this title are these 1 That the Prophet composeth a prayer for his own use and for the use of the people in captivity 2 That he putteth this prayer into a song or psalme Concerning the first The contemplation of the Justice of God in punishing the sins of his Church Doct. of the vengeance of God revenging the quarrels of his Church and of the mercy of God in healing the wounds of his Church and restoring it again to health doth give the Faithfull occasion to resort to God by prayer The reason is because these things well considered that God is just and mercifull do breed in us Fear and Faith which being well mingled in us cannot chuse but break forth into prayer Fear discerning the danger of his power wisely and Faith laying hold on the hand of his mercy strongly For howsoever Fear be an effect of weaknesse yet doth it serve to good use in the fitting of us to prayer because 1 Fear breedeth humility which is necessary in prayer as St. James adresseth Cast down your selves before the Lord and St. Peter Jam. 4.10 1 Pet. 5.6 Humble your selves under the mighty hand of God And howsoever the proud despise humility as too base a vertue for heroick and generous spirits St. Peter commendeth it for a speciall ornament Deck your selves inwardly in lowlinesse of mind 1 Pet. 5.5 That feare which is in the reprobate doth drive them quite away from God but the fear of the elect brings them to his hand and casteth them at his feet the Publican full of fear yet it had not power to keep him from the Temple nor from prayer rather because he feared he came to Church to pray 2 Fear breedeth in us a desire to approve our selves to God and keepeth us in awe setting both our sins always in our own sight and our selves in the sight of God which sheweth what need we have to fly to him 3 Fear doth serve for a spur to put us on and to mend our pace that we may 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 run the way of Gods Commandements For men run for fear With this fear is joyned faith which layeth hold on the comfortable promises of God and so filleth us with the love of him that we resolve under the shadow of his wings we shall be safe This also doth break forth into prayer as the Prophet saith I believed therefore did I speake Fear directed by Faith will soon finde the face of God For fear humbleth us faith directeth this humiliation to the mighty hand of God Fear makes us ful of desire faith directeth our desire to God Fear makes us runne faith sheweth us the face of God and biddeth us runne thither and thus the contemplation of Gods justice and mercy doth fill the heart with zeale and the spirit of supplications as in this present example The Church seeth God remisse in forbearing them it feeleth God sharp in punishing them it discerneth him just in avenging them and it is promised mercy and favour in delivering them therefore the Prophet teacheth them to pray We are taught to think on these things 1 Vse which may move us to seek the face of our God and that is a work for the soul when it keepeth a Sabbath of rest unto the service of God as appeareth in the Psalme Psal 92. for the day wherein the Church doth consider the justice and mercie of God Our idle and wandring thoughts runne all the world over in vain imaginations we could not bestow them better then in sweet contemplation of the works of God here in the government of the World We are taught also when we behold these things to pray to God for prayer being a conference with God we cannot offend him in any thing that we shall say out of fear and faith This duty is by God commanded he hath directed it he hath promised his Spirit to helpe us in it hee hath made many promises to them that use it aright and it is here prescribed as a sovereign remedy against affliction to use it for it is fitted for the use of the Church in captivity in Babylon This prayer being made for the use of the Church 2 Doct. as we have said we are taught That the afflictions of this life cannot separate the society of the faithful but that even in exile they will assemble together to do service to their God and therein also to comfort one another 1 The reason is in respect of themselves the faithfull are one body and the ligaments and bonds of their communion are love and peace therefore much water cannot put out this fire of charity neither can the flouds drown it so afflictions are in Scripture resembled in flouds and waters 2 In regard of the service they know it to be a debt from them an honour to God and though each of them in severall may do it yet when a Congregation meeteth together their conjoyned zeal is like a bonefire for every ones zeal enflameth another What needed the faithful else to seek out corners and private places to assemble in in the times of persecution for their devotion if single and severall persons had been either so fervent in it self or so acceptable with God so that before persecution ceased they began to build Oratories for their meetings Therefore Vse though some do separate from our society others tarry with us to disturbe our peace some cry out against the use of our Churches let us thank God that we have liberty of Religion and places to meet in to serve our God and let us not neglect the society of the Church Ecce quà m bonum quà m jucundum Behold how good and pleasant a thing it is to see one holy congregation set upon God by prayer This prayer made for the use of the Church doth teach
an holy nation a purchased people it is that we should shew forth the praises of him 1 Pet. 2.9 who hath called us out of darknesse into his marvellous light Survey thy soul peruse thy vvhole conversation vvithout search thy heart vvithin suffer not the Work of the Lord in thee to be defaced and defouled vvith the uncleannesse of grosse and foul sins If Satan have been too strong for thee that he holdeth thee captive and bindeth thee and maketh thee go vvhere thou vvouldest not and do vvhat thou abhorrest yet declare it by thy resisting of him that he hath usurped thou hast not yielded him possession let not sin set up a stool of vvickednesse vvithin thee let it not reign in thy mortall body Do thy Maker so much right to preserve and keep his vvork as clean as thou canst from the defiling of the vvorld 2 Gather boldnesse from this consideration to solicite God in prayers for so it is used as an effectuall argument Vivifica opus tuum revive thy Work as David I am thine O save So Solomon enforceth his suit to God for Israel for thou didst seperate them from all the people of the earth to be thine inheritance Therefore 1 Reg. 8.52 53. he prayeth that the eyes of God would be open to their supplications and that he would hearken to them in all that they pray for 2 In the petition that God vvould revive and quicken his Church in the mean time that is during the affliction and vexation of it vve are taught That afflictions and the withdrawing of the light of Gods countenance from his Church for a time 2 Doct. is such a deading of it that except it be quickened with some beams of grace and light and have some lucida intervalla it is a burthen more then they can bear Satan is a cunning Serpent a roaring Lion when he can get leave to assault he putteth his whole strength to it as in the sifting of Peter and in the buffering of Paul and in the afflicting of Job If Peter had not he had Christs ego oravi pro te I have prayed for thee and Paul had not heard his sufficit tibi gratia mea thy grace is sufficient for me and Job had not had the preserver of men to friend how had it gone with them And great reason there is for this why the Church should faint under the crosse if it were not strongly supported by grace For there is no lesson so hard for a child of God to take out as to take up the crosse of Christ and to follow him to suffer the smart of affliction with patience and thanksgiving For in the very regenerate man the flesh is both strong and unruly and nothing so contrary to the flesh as affliction and tribulation is Therefore doth God measure to his Children their portion and draught of this cup because he knowes whereof we be made So the Psalmist saith Psal 125.3 The rod of the wicked shall not rest upon the lot of the righteous lest the righteous put forth their hand unto iniquity And for this St. Paul saith God is faithfull 1 Cor. 10.13 who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able but will with the temptation also make away to escape that ye may be able to bear it Wherein note for comfort in tribulation 1 That though Satan have no stay of his fury and malice in our temptations yet God will not suffer us to be tempted further than he thinks fit For there is good use to be made of some temptations as St. James saith My brethren Jam. 1.2 count it all joy when you fall into divers temptations he meaneth temptations of tryall by which we do approve our faith and our patience St. Peter saith That the triall of your faith being much more precious than gold that perisheth though it be tried with fire might be found unto praise 1 Pet. 1.7 and honour and glory at the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ 2 We see that all the elect children of God have a measure of strength to bear temptation and he that gave them their measure and knoweth what it contains will not suffer them to be tempted further then they are able Herein many mistake themselves and think their ability to bear affliction lesse then it is for indeed till God put us to it we do not know how much we are able to suffer and many great examples in Church story we finde of those Christians young men and aged tender Virgines that have feared their own weaknesse much who have filled the catalogue of Gods confessours and martyrs with invincible constancy 3 We see that when God openeth a way out of tribulation that the faithfull see an issue though for the time the temptation be more then our strength yet the issue in-sight doth put mettle into us to bear it Howsoever the flesh will be more then a looker on in this conflict Heb. 12.11 because no chastning for the time seemeth to be joyous but grievous For many fears arise in the hearts of the afflicted and Satan is still suggesting that God hath forsaken him that is afflicted Especially such a great affliction as this that was now threatned to the Church the sword of the Chaldaeans depopulation of their Cities and Towns destruction of the temple deportation into the land of their enemies and seventy years captivity this shaketh their faith in the promise of God made to his Church and maketh them to doubt that God hath forgotten to be gratious and will shew no more mercy Let us learne of the Prophet what use we must make of afflictions in this kind even prayer O Lord revive thy work let us comfort our selves in all tribulations that we are the work of Gods hand and let us commend our selves to his fatherly love Prayer is fidelis nuncius a faithfull messenger we may dispatch away this messenger from Babylon from the Lions den from the belly of the whale from the fiery furnace of heaven and it will do our errand to God faithfully and effectually It is St. Augustines comfort In Psal 65. Cum videris non à te amotam deprecationem tuam securus esto quia non est amota misrecordia ejus 2 Petition In the midst of the years make known That is in the mean time whilst thy Church is in captivity reveal to thē thy gratious purpose of restoring avenging them The true comfort in afflictions groweth out of a right understanding of the will and purpose of God therein that is Doctr. that he beareth a constant love to his Church however he punish them 1 This maketh them able to bear affliction Reas 1 1 Cor. 10.13 when we see that God maketh a way to escape as you heard from St. Paul And this is very cleer in this people for God made known to them his purpose concerning their bondage in Aegypt his vvill vvas thus
revealed to Abraham Gen. 15.13 Know that thy seed of a surety shall be a stranger in a Land that is not theirs and shall serve them and they shall afflict them four hundred Years And also that nation whom they shall serve will I judg Vers 14. and afterward shall they come out with great substance This as St. Augustine vvell understandeth doth include all the time that passed between the birth of Isaac and the entring of the people of Israel into the land of promise during vvhich time they had no land of their ovvn and in a dis-junct reading they vvere either strangers as during their first abode in Canaan and after in Aegypt or they served as after Josephs death and vvere afflicted Four hundred years are a long time yet they savv an end of their travails and afflictions and they knevv that their posterity should have rest at last and they knevv that God vvould judg their oppressours this made them able to bear the affliction Here is a picture dravvn to the life of a christian mans life here on earth for he must be a stranger and pilgrime here and must serve and suffer before he can come to Jerusalem which is visio pacis the vision of peace before he can come to rest from his labours This captivity in Babylon was a great punishment to this people but God made his vvill known to them as the Prophet here teacheth them to pray for he gave them vvarning of it long before 2 Reg. 20.17 but somwhat obscurely he came to a more cleer discovery of his purpose to Hezechiah All shall be carried into Babylon nothing shall be left The Lord also by Jeremie his Prophet gave them warning of it Jer. 16.13 I will cast you out of this land into a land that ye know not He threateneth to send Fishers to fish them compare that with Habakkuks prophecy Thou makest them as the fishes of the Sea Hab. 1.14 there you heard of their angle net and dragge Jeremy is yet more plain in this prediction Jer. 20.6 I will deliver all the strength of the city and all the labours thereof and all the pretious things thereof Jer. 25.11 c. to be carried into Babylon But most fully begin at the 9 verse And this whole Land shall bee a Desolation Vers 12. and an Astonishment and these Nations shall serve the King of Babylon 70 years And it shall come to passe when 70 years are accomplished that I will punish the King of Babylon Jer. 30.2 and that nation saith the Lord. There is some better news sic dicit Dominus The days come faith the Lord that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel and Judah saith the Lord and I will cause them to returne to the land that I gave to their Fathers and they shall possess it The miseries that smart upon afflicted men do make them forget the comforts that should heal their wounded spirits David expresseth his vexation so My soul refused comfort therefore O Lord make it known Make thy people sensible of that comfort which thou hast gratiously reserved for them And indeed the people were not quite out of heart all the time that they lived in that captivity they stil remembred Jerusalem and thought upon Sion and expected their deliverance But the dispersion of the Jews that hath now continued almost 1600 years that hath lasted long and the time of their restitution is not perticularly revealed this maketh them hang the head God in justice for the cruelty which they did execute upon his Son would not let them know the time of their deliverance as in their former afflictions he did which no doubt is a great signe of Gods heavy indignation Seeing then that the knowledge of the will of God and his purpose revealed in his Word 1 Vse is so great a comfort in afflictions we are taught to study and search the Book of Gods Will and therein to exercise our selves for he is the same God that he was and his wil is the same the just have the same promises that they had the unjust shall have the same judgments hear read the Book of God and apply it as thou goest for there thou shalt have thy portion Labour for newnesse of life and that shall bring thee to the proof and tryal to the discerning and experience of the will of God as the Apostle saith And be not conformed to the World but be you transformed by the renewing of your mind Rom. 12.2 that you may prove what is that good that acceptable and perfect will of God For God will not reveale himself to the ungodly but the secrets of the Lord are with them that fear him and he will shew them his Covenant We must rest in this wil of God with a fiat voluntas tua thy will be done we must not resist it we must not murmure at it we must not make haste but we must live by faith and tarry the Lords leasure and in the mean time gather strength from his promise to establish our hearts that they faint not and fail us in our tribulations 3 Petition In wrath remember mercy The plea of the true Church in afflictions is mercy Doct. 1 Reas God taught us this himself for when our first Parents had sinned they were afraid and ashamed and hid themselves from God there was no mercy yet revealed Hovv vvould they solicite God Jesus Christ vvas not yet known to them therefore they fled from God for there is no drawing neer to God for sinners without Christ then God came and sought out Adam he arraigned the offenders and finding the Serpent guilty of the temptation he cursed him and there he promised Christ When mercy was revealed to man then he called the man first and then the woman And ever since that mercy was made known to the Church the true Church hath had no other plea but mercy There is misericordia condonans a pardoning mercy he forgiveth all our iniquities an article of faith remissio peccatorum remission of sins there is misericordia donans a giving mercy he giveth medicine to heal all our infirmities The Church knoweth that they have given God cause to be angry 2 Reas they know that if his wrath be kindled but a little he is a consuming fire and it is a fearfull thing to fall into his hands they know that in his favour is life and at his right hand there are pleasures for evermore We have nothing to keep us from the anger to come but mercy Lam. 3.22 Psal 51.1 It is of the Lords mercies that we are not all consumed for his compassions fail not Have mercy upon me O Lord according to thy loving kindnesse c. We have nothing to bring us again in favour with God whom we provoke every day but his mercy But as for me I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy
us at the doore vvhen vve are going forth to act it he may overtake us vvhen we are upon the vvay he may cut us off in the act of sin and bring us from the fact to judgement And how soever his mercy hath the name above his other works and his patience and long suffering be the fruits of his mercy yet he never had mercy enough to swallow or consume either his justice or his truth He hath diverted his plague often he hath sometimes called it in and long he keepeth it in for that he expecteth repentance but he hath never turned it out of his service but hath it always before him he hath also turned his fire another way that it might not come neer the Tabernacles of the righteous but he hath never quenched it it is always at his feet if he moveth that moveth with him the Rain-bow about his head is the joy of his Church the coals of terrour at his fire are the terrour of the wicked 2. We have also our lesson herein Vse 2 2 Cor. 5.11 for the Apostle saith Knowing therfore the terror of the Lord we perswade men but we are made manifest unto God and I trust are made manifest also in your consciences We find this danger in sin and this severity in judgement thereupon we perswade men to a conscionable course of life such as may keep them unspotted of the world If we do not acquaint you with the terrour of the Lord and shew you the pestilence that walketh before him and the burning coals at his feet God will right himself upon us for as he told his Prophet Ezekiel so he will deal with us Son of man I have made thee a watchman to the house of Israel therefore hear the word from my mouth Ezc. 3.17 and give them warning from me When I say to the wicked thou shalt surely dye and thou givest him not warning nor speakest to warn the wicked from his evill way to save his life the same wicked man shall dye in his iniquity but his bloud will I require at thy hand This excuseth us to you when we preach the rod of God even pestilence and coales of fire that this is not our furie and railing as some call it but it is the wrath of the Lord against sin and if we temper a bitter potion for you to drink it is not poison but medicine and it is ministred to you as God himself saith to save your lives that you may not dye in your sins it is the therapentique physick to heal your souls it is prophilactique to us to prevent disease that we perish not for your unreproved sins The arrows of vengeance are aimed at your sins that you may kill sin and save the sinner alive Cry therefore Spare us good Lord. 4. Doct. God is glorious in heaven and in earth for this Heaven is covered with his glory and the Earth is full of his praise This is the confession of David O Lord how excellent is thy name in all the Earth Psa 8.1 who hast set thy glory above the heavens What need we any more reason to think this his due Reas 1 then these two 1 His name onely is excellent his glory is above the Earth and Heaven Here we are sure we cannot over-doe in matter of praise and glory the Angels and Saints do him that service and cover the heaven with the praises of God Psa 148.13 for his love shineth to his Church and we pray Sicut in Coelo as in heaven He also exalteth the horne of his people Psa 14.3 the praise of all his Saints Let not us sit out vvhen all joyn to glorifie God Vse let not any of us like the fleece of Gideon be dry vvhen all the floore is watered vvith the joys and jubilations of the Church David is not content vvith a bare praising of the name of God as they that say alway The Lord be praised but he requireth both a song Ps 149.1 Canticum novum a nevv song and that in the congregation of the Saints He also requireth a dance Verse 3. he requireth also instruments of musique he gives reason He vvould have us delight in the service that we do to God therefore he addeth The Lord taketh pleasure in his people Verse 4. he will beautifie the meek with Salvation Let the Saints be joyfull in glory Verse 5. let them sing aloud upon their beds Let the high praises of God be in their mouth Verse 6. This is that vvhich this example requireth not to be shallovv and sleight in the promises of God but to strein our selves to the uttermost the inward man of the heart the voice the hand playing the feet dancing till vve cover the heaven and fill the earth vvith his glory Verse 6. He stood and measured the earth he beheld and drove in sunder the Nations and the everlasting Mountains were scattered the perpetuall hils did bow his ways are everlasting 2 HEre is a commemoration of the power and glory of God in giving to his Israel the Land of Canaan for their possession Diverse judgments have made diverse constructions of these words Mr. Calvine is of opinion that they declare God in his glorious Lordship over all the world for as David when he should come to be absolute Monarch of Judah and Israel said I will rejoyce therefore and divide Shechem and mete out the valley of Succoth c. So God is here declared absolute Monarch in this phrase of measuring of the earth as David would cast his shooe over the Philistines would rejoyce So God is here declared Conquerour of all by dividing in sunder the nations c. St. Augustine turnes all into Allegory and applieth it to Christ You remember how before I found that the Church doth comfort their present miseries with remembrance of Gods former mercies therefore I choose to keep pace with the story of Gods former mercies to his Israel And as before he spake of the comming of God from Teman and Paran when he appeared glorious to them in giving the law so now he comes to another powerfull mercy that is when he gave them the promised Land for then he that went before them all the vvay of their journey in their removes now stood still as declaring that novv they vvere come to the land of their rest as he had promised it And there He measured the Earth it is ascribed here to God that he divided the land amongst the Tribes because it vvas done by lot vvherein not chance but God answered This hath reference to that story vvhich vve read Joshua 5. for when the people vvere entred into the land of Canaan and vvere come so far in to it as Gilgall that the Ark of God was setled in Gilgall Then God commanded the Sacrament of Circumcision to be revived vvhich in the vvhole journey between their comming out of Aegypt to this place had been omitted
serpent for Christ calleth the vvicked genimina viperarum generation of vipers and to such he saith Vos estis ex patre vestro Diabolo you are of your father the Devill John 8.44 For this Rupertus saith that the Bible is called the Book of the battails of the Lord Num. 21.14 because it conteineth the story of the vvars betvveen these tvvo the Church and the vvorld From this enmity vvhich God put betvveen the Church and the vvorld ariseth this hatred and opposition so that the prosperity of the vvicked is Davids grief the miseries of David be the vvorlds joy the joy of the Church is the affliction of the vvorld God left the Devill in his fall and took him not up again thereby forsaking him he put enmity into him and he for the hatred that he beareth to God hath ever since persecuted him in his Church because his malice cannot extend to hurt him And herein he is the more cruel because he knovvs his time is but short Satan is but Gods instrument in the afflicting of the Church so it is said to the Angell of the Church of Smyrna Reas 2 Behold the Devil shall cast some of you into prison Revel 2.10 that ye may be tryed and ye shall have tribulation ten days He goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour If he be kept from devouring he biteth and rendeth and doth vvhat hurt he can for he is a murtherer but if God shevv the light of his countenance to them vvhom he pursueth he is sick of that mercie and so are all the tents of Cushan the vvhole brood of vipers have this venome from the old serpent to be afflicted at the prosperity of the Church For instance I vvill prevent the time David saith one day telleth another and one night certifieth another To morrovvs memoriall teacheth this day this vvas the vigill of that popish holy day vvhich the same Papists here at home and many beyond the seas hoped to have made festivall to all posterity The children of darkness had provided to put out our light to quench the light of our Israel it was an affliction to the Papists to behold religion and peace setled under the government of a learned King who knew what he believed and why and who had discovered himself an enemy to their Antichristian and hereticall synagogue They saw a fair issue ready for timely succession so gratiously seasoned with the salt of heavenly wisedom from the first of their capacity and apprehension that there remained no hope for their politique religion to finde footing in these Churches Their flourishing state of Church and Common-welth was such an affliction to them that some Zealots of their Religion the sons of thunder could no longer contein themselves but their study was how to put their grief upon us and to transfer our joy upon themselves They shewed us the vvay of their rejoycing their mercies vvere cruel nothing could remove their grief at our vvelfare but the destruction of the head and body root and tree and all in a day And they that vvould have destroyed us thought and the Jesuites and Priests of the Roman Faith taught them to believe that they should do God good service We see the mercies of that religion so clearly in this horrible Treason that all that knovv and serve the God of peace have just cause to esteem Papists disloyall subjects secret enemies to the State bloudy persecutors of the Gospell of peace Our stories are full of their malice vvrackings imprisonments starvings burnings hangings and many exquisite torments executed upon innocent and holy Martyrs But vvhen vve remember the Povvder-Treason that calleth all the tormentors of the Church before them mercifull the Devill did never roar so loud before the Buls of Rome never bellovv'd such terrour to the Church as in that damnable and desperate attempt The provocation vvas their affliction at our prosperity and griefe at our vvelfare again this venome of the generation of vipers boiled over and they that bore evill vvill to our Sion sayd one unto another Catosby to his confederates I have bethought me of a way at one instant to deliver us from all our bonds and without any forriegn help to replant the Catholique Religion which is to blow asp the Parliament house with Gunpowder for in that place have they dohe us all the mischief and perchance God hath designed that place for their punishment for this striketh at the root and will breed a confusion fit to beget new alterations What alterations could be here meant but those that Job felt that our Land and Church might complain Thou hast turned my Harp into mourning and my Organs into the voice of them that weep How did they swallow up the joy of this change in hopeful expectation of successe but the children came to the birth and there was no strength to bring forth Their own fear came upon them For it was Catesbyes own Lenvoy to his revealed Treason But saith he If this take not effect as most of this nature miscarry the scandal will be so great to the Catholick Religion as not onely our enemies but our friends will with good reason condemn us Thus did their minds mis-give and abodements of evil did secretly call upon them to fly from the anger to come This diverted them a while from this execution and put them into a new project Thomas Winter was sent as his confession under his own hand reporteth to inform the Constable of Spaine then coming in Ambassy from the King of Spain to our Sovereigne of the state of the Catholicks in England and to entreat his mediation to solicite our King for the revocation of some penall laws and the admittance of the English Catholicks into the ranke of his other Subjects Winter met with him at Bergen neer Dunkirk and by the meanes of Owen an apostate Traitor he had accesse to him mooved him in his suite and had a fair promise from him to do all good offices in that errand But Owen discouraged that hope saying that he believed nothing lesse and that they sought onely their own ends meaning the state of Spaine holding small accompt of Catholiques Owen animated the Treason and promised to send Faux over to help to set it forward From thence Winter went to another of our fugitives Sir William Stanley to Ostend where he asked his opinion whether if the Catholiques of England should do any thing in England to help themselves the Arch-Duke would second them he answered no for all those parts desired peace with England After all these despairs they had no remedy to cure their disease of envy at the gratious peace of this State but their powder-plot in which none but profest Papists within the land had any hand None that we can discover but Priests and Jesuites here or abroad did blow the fire No forreign Prince hath the dishonorable name of privacy with it or abetment of it onely the
to keep him from attaining the perfection thereof So Eve deceived her self for when God gave her Issachar her fift son Ge 30.18 she said God hath given me my hire because I have given my maiden to my husband Wherein she deceived her self for by adding one wife more to the number of Jacobs Wives she did violate the state of matrimony vvhich in the institution vvas in these words I will make him a help meet for him not helps and so Adam understood it Gen. 2.24 for he said A man shall forsake Father and Mother and cleave to his wife not wives and they shall be one flesh Which lest the friends of Poligamie might understand of many wives Christ citing this place addeth by vvay of interpretation And they twaine shall be one flesh Mat. 10.8 So Saint Paul understood it Mat. 19.5 1 Cor. 6.16 two shall be one flesh So the Prophet Malachy understood it for charging his people with this sin of breach of Wedlock he speaketh as to one man Thou hast dealt treacherously against the Wife of thy youth Mal. 2.14 yet is she thy companion and the wife of thy Covenant And did not he make one yet had he the excellency of spirit and wherefore one that he might seek a godly seed So that this giving of her maid to her husband was no good service done to God that she should expect wages it was rather a trespass of vvedlock hovvsoever it pleased God to dispense vvith it in the fathers of former ages but our rule is quomodo fuit in principio hovv vvas it at the beginning for vve knovv that he vvho had abundance of spirit could have created many Wives for Adam if he had thought it fit and then for the encrease of the seed of man and the speedy peopling of the vvorld there vvas more need of Poligamy then vvas ever since I urge the fallacy here Non causa pro causa So Micah vvhen he had made him gods and gotten a Priest into his house flattered himself Now I know that the Lord will do me good Judg. 17.13 seeing I have a Levite to my Priest This vvas Idolatry one of the greatest provocations of God to anger that could be yet he vvould flatter himself that this vvould turn a cause of his vvel-doing These three examples do sufficiently open our sense to perceive the cunning of this fallacious suggestion in ourselves The Doctrine of merit vvhich the Church of Rome teacheth is a naturall Doctrine as God said to Cain If thou do well shalt thou not be accepted it is true that God accepteth even vveak services from us but as vve say it is more of his courtesie then our deserving if vve call it vvages that he giveth us in revvard vve over-ween our ovvn vvorks And this is a special sin vvhervvith God doth punish the sins of the ungodly in the Church of Rome the seat of Antichrist as the Apostle plainly describeth it God shall send them strong delusions 2 Thes 2.11 that they should believe a lye They believe that to be the cause of their salvation that is not The reason of this Doctrine Reason Why vve must fasten upon the true cause of Gods favour to us is Because faith not rightly grounded is not faith but presumption True faith can find no rest but in the assurance of Gods goodnesse to us God doth many favours to the vvicked here in this life vvhich he doth not for any love that he beareth to them but for the use that he maketh of them to vvhip and scourge others by them as for example God to Ezekiel Son of man Eze 29.18 Nebuchadnezzar King of Babel caused his Army to serve a great service against Tyrus every head was made bald and every shoulder was peeled yet had he no wages nor his Army for Tyrus for the service that he had served against it Therefore thus saith the Lord God Behold I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadnezzar King of Babylon and he shall take her multitude and take her spoile and take her prey and it shall be the wages for his Army Because they wrought for me 1â— saith the Lord God Here is the King of Babylon doubly rewarded with successe and victory against Tyrus with the possession and spoile of Egypt not for any favour that God did bear to the King of Babylon but to punish the iniquity of Tyrus and of Egypt Let not Nebuchaduezzar boast of the favor of the Lord that he set him a work and paid him his wages the sins of these ungodly people not the goodness of God to the King of Babylon did all this We see daily that the vvicked do compasse about the righteous the poor Church of God bleedeth in many places of Christendome the enemy proscribeth imprisoneth beheadeth hangeth cutteth out the tongues smiteth off the hands of Gods faithfull Servants and deviseth nevv tortures to make death more terrible and more painfull This svvelleth the enemies of God vvith pride and they impute all this successe against the Church of God to the love of God tovvard them and the justice of their cause is mainteined by the Jesuits abetments and acclamations But thus did Babylon prevail against Gods ovvn Israel for a time the distressed part of the Church vvhich groaneth under these burthens doth not hang the head for this They knovv that their sins have deserved these rods they have had the light and have not vvalked vvorthy of that light therefore is this evill come upon them yet let them take courage and say Why beastest thou thy self in mischief thou mighty man Psal 52. â— the goodnesse of God endureth continually there is our Selah the rest of our musique this is the joy of the Churches harvest And great is the profit of this point Vse 1 1 When vve have found the true cause of Gods favours to be in himself and not in us we may assure our selves that his mercy endureth for ever for his gifts and calling are without repentance 2 A greater comfort then this is that godlinesse hath not onely the promise of this life but of the life to come also 3 We may rise in comfort a degree higher to assure our selves that this favour of God will give us our fruit unto holinesse for these go together Gods love to us and our comfort and hope in him for this fruit Rom. 6.22 as the Apostle joyneth them Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God even our Father 2 Thes 2.16.17 which hath loved us and given us everlasting consolation and good help through grace Comfort your hearts and stablish you in every good word and work This blessing of the Apostle doth shew that when the love of God is setled there followeth grace and expressure of his favour that bringeth forth inward consolation of the spirit present good hope for the time to come an establishing of the heart in holinesse This I name as the
highest step of our exaltation because this repairs in us the image of God which is his holinesse and the true children of God do value this above their eternall life For let us see wherein the weight of the blessing and cursing of sheep and goats doth lye It is not the gift of eternall life that is our happinesse in heauen but as David saith in his favour is life if a damned soul should be admitted to the fruition of all the pleasures of eternall life without the favour of God heaven would be hell to him It is not the dark and horrid house of woe that maketh a soul miserable in hell but Gods displeasure ite maledicti if an elect soul could be cast thither and retein the favour of God hell would be an heaven to him and his joy could not all the Devils of hell take from him his night would be turned into day The Angels sinned in heaven and in the place of joy lost Gods favour The soul of the Son of God was in hell and hell was an heaven to it because God was with him in the valley of the shadow of death and left not his soul in hell he took him from the nethermost hell 3 Doctrine The truth of God is a good ground For faith gathered from Gods oath to the tribes even his word he addeth Selah to shevv that vve may safely rest there The reason is because The Word of God is a sure word and those things wherein men fail are not incident to him 1 Whereas men do promise or swear rashly and without consideration as David did when he swore that he would not leave one of the house of Nahall to make water against a wall God cannot fail that way because he doth all things with stable truth and according to the counsail of his will 2 Men do sometimes vow and swear things utterly unlawfull and most wicked as Herod did to Herodias daughter to give her whatsoever she demanded of him which included the life of John Baptist So there were many that swore they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul our God cannot fail so far he loveth righteousnesse neither shall any evill dwell with him 3 Whereas many promise and swear what they mean not ever to perform as Jacobs Sons in the Covenant that they made of confederacy with Hamor the Son of Shechem the Apostle saith Our God cannot lie 4 Whereas many amongst men do swear and promise that vvhich they are never able to perform therein like the Devil who said to Christ Omnia hac tibi dabo all these will I give thee God herein cannot faile for hee is omnipotent and he doth whatsoever he wil in heaven and earth in abyssis So then if the Word of God be gone out of his mouth we may build faith upon it for heaven and earth may and shall passe away so shal not one jod of the Word of God 5 Times may change with men and he that was rich and able to make good his word may suddenly be poor and break and fail but God is without variablenesse or shadow of alteration all times are in his hand and power This serveth for confirmation of faith Vse 1 for such use the Apostle doth make of it who speaking of the Decree and Oath of God saith That by two immutable things in which it was impossible for God to lye Hâ—b 6.18 we might have a strong consolation who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us By this faith the just liveth in Babylon and in the weakness of their temporall estate they have 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and thus they lay hand upon the hope set before them in the word Jonah saith They that follow lying vanities do forsake their own mercie Vana salus hominis vain is the help of man they that go down to Egypt for help have their woe threatned An horse is but a vain thing to help a man Princes are the sons of men there is no help in them the word of God faileth none At that Word Abraham will leave his own Country and go he cares not he enquires not whether At that Word Abraham will go three days journy to kill Isaac with his own hands and will never dispute how the promise of God shall be performed That in Isaac his seed should be blessed At that Word Peter will let fall his net against all rules of fishing and he will forsake the Ship to come to Christ upon the Sea by the warrant of that Word The promises of God to his Church and his threatnings of sin recorded in the living Book of his word are not antiquate no age shall ever superannate them or put them out of full force and vertue What if good persons and good causes do suffer oppression the Poet is a Divine in that case Non si male noster olim sic erit informes hyenes reducit Jupiter idem summovit after foul weather comes fair though it be ill with us now it will not be always What if enemies of Religion and Moaths of Common-wealths do flourish and prosper and have all things at will let it not trouble David and Job both of them saw as fair a Sun-shine shut up in a dark cloud and a world of foul weather following 2 This tendernesse in God of his word and oath 2 Vse doth serve for example to teach us to make conscience of our promises and oaths and we may urge the Argument as the Apostle doth If God so loved us we ought also to love one another So If God be carefull to keep his promise and oath with us we ought also to do the like with our brethren Here arise two Quaeries 1 Whether it be lawfull to swear at all 2 Whether all oaths must be kept 1 An liciat jurare is it lawfull to swear An oath is a calling of God to witnesse in such things as cannot otherwise be assured and it is of tvvo sorts 1 Assertorie when we do call God to witnesse against our souls if we affirm not the truth in this case the awe of Gods Majestie is thought to be such a rule of the conscience that no man will dare to violate the religion of an oath 2 Promissary When vve do engage the honour of God for the truth of our purpose to performe vvhat vve promise and vve cast our selves upon his just judgement if vve be either deceitful in our promise or unfaithful in our performance This may ansvver the first Quaere for this doth declare that an oath doth serve 1 For the glory of God 2 For the good of our Brethren 1 The glory of God for it shevveth him 1 To be present amongst us and privy to our ways 2 To be a God of Truth 3 To be a God of justice to punish unfaithfulnesse 2 It sheweth that we by sin have lost our credit and therefore God doth engage himself for such as swear aright
judgments they are For Reas 2 1 he is so quick sighted to discerne our sins that he seeth all nothing can be hidden from him but all lyeth open and naked to his sight 2 Hee is so wise to weigh the sins that we commit putting into the scales the incitements and temptations the circumstances of time person place number even the very affection wherewith sin is committed 3 He is so just as not to impute more sin to us then we have committed not to abate any of that we have mis-done 4 He is so holy as not to abide or appear the least evill for he is a God that hateth iniquity 5 He is so powerfull as to avenge it with his judgment and he hath all sorts of instruments of vengeance to punish sinne 6 He is Ubiquitarie as that no remove can avoyd him his presence filleth all places 7 He is so true of his word that heaven and earth shall passe but no part of his Word shall fail till all be fulfilled 8 He is one that cannot repent of any thing that he peremptorily decreeth All these things do declare that there is great cause to fear when he threatneth The Apostle teacheth us the use of this point Vse Româ— 3.3 wilt thou not then be afraid of the power do that which is good then shall thou have praise of the same This is the way to make us seek the face of God the first sinners fled from the presence of God behind the trees in the garden Adam confessed to God Gen. 3.10 I heard thy voice in the garden and I was afraid A good life is a good fence against fear Solomon saith the righhteous is bold as a lyon Perfect love casteth out fear for perfect love is â—â—e fâ—â—filling of the law where our love falleth short there fear filleth the empty and void room The voyce of the Lord is comfortable and his words are sweet to those that fear him he will speak peace unto his people and to his Saints Psal 85.8 But let them not turn again to folly So David resolves there I will hear what the Lord will speak It is a plain sign that all is not well with us when the voyce of God doth cast us into fear when we are afraid to hear the Word preached when just reproofs of our sins are unwelcome to us and anger us and make us think the worse of our Minister that chideth and threatneth us A good life and a well governed conversation doth not fear the voyce of God the Word of God is the light which God hath set up in his Church to guide her feet in the wayes of peace they that do evill hate the light and will not come neer it lest their-works should be reproved the children of the light resort to it and call upon God search my reins and my heart and see if there be any way of wickednesse in me This fear of the Church is not joyned either with obstinacy against God or murmuring at his judgments or despair of his mercy it is that fear which is one of the effects of a godly sorrow and it is one of the documents to true repentance it is the hammer and mallet of God wherewith he bruiseth us and breaketh us that we may be truly humbled under his almighty hand it is that fear which the spirit of bondage suggesteth which is not a grace of God in us Rom. 8.15 but a punishment of God upon us and we would fain be without it it is the fear of servants and not of sons yet God useth it as a means to bring us home to him again when we like sheep have gone astray and therefore the prodigall to re-enter himself into his fathers house prayed fac me unum ex mercenariis make me as one of thy hired servants it may be that fear which in the school is called Initialis which re-entreth us into the service of God and keepeth us in awe it is ut ilis but not sufficiens and we would be glad to be delivered out of it that we might serve God without fear in holinesse and righteousnesse For so the Apostle doth recompt it a favour to the Romans Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear but the spirit of adoption 2 The fear it self This fear was great both in the inward man and in the outward it was that fear of which David spake to God saying of the heathen put them in fear O Lord that they may know themselves to be but men And David himself was soundly shaken with it as his complaint sheweth My flesh trembleth for fear of thee and I am afraid of thy judgments Psal 119.120 And we finde the best of the faithfull servants of God subject to this fear and it is cleer in my text that it may be joyned with faith For after this cold fit of fear you shall see the faith of the Church to quicken it again The elect of God are shaken with fear 1 Because they are great Students in the Law of God Doct. Reas 1 for that is a speciall mark of a righteous man he doth exercise himself in the Law of God day and night And wheresoever the law is wisely understood and applyed rightly there fear doth arise for so long as we are under the Law we are under a School-master and as the Apostle doth say a child differeth very little from a servant you know when a young man came to Christ to ask him the way to heaven Christ referred him to the Law and the keeping thereof That is our first lesson it follows so in the mission of our Redeemer he was made of a woman made subject to the Law The law sheweth us how much we are in Gods debt and you may note it in the parable of the good Mr. in the gospel 1 He called his servant to accompt and cast up the debt 2 Then he put him to it to pay it 3 When he saw him willing but unable then he forgave it God calleth us by the light of the Law by the sight of our sins our sins are debts when we see them how can we choose but together vvith them behold the danger of them and the vvrath due to them this cannot be done vvithout fear even great horrour and dejection The thief that vvas converted upon the crosse when he had but a little time he made an example of great mercy the onely example in all the Book of God of so late a conversion yet in that short time he began at the Lavv of God and said to his fellovv We indeed are justly punished for we receive the due rewards of our deeds Lu. 2341. And after that he sought grace this Lavv vvas the Schoolmaster that brought him to Christ saying Lord remember me when thou commest into thy Kingdome for Until we compare our selves with the law of righteousness we cannot know how unjust wee are and what need we
desire the release of us hence which is rest from all labours 4 They that take this fear to be contrary to faith and assurance of the favour of God do mistake it for it is true that a doubtfull and despairing fear doth destroy faith but the faithfull cannot fall into that fear because God presseth not his temptations above that which his children are able to bear And fear in them is but contrary to presumption it is not contrary to faith which thus appears because this fear doth not make the servants of God give over the work of their salvation rather it makes them double their endevours and redeem the time But in the reprobate their fear doth make them give heaven gone from them and professe it lost labour to serve God Ye have said it is in vain to serve God and what profit is it that we have kept his Ordinances Mal. 3.14 and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of hoasts But they that feared the Lord spake often one to another that is encouraged one another and it is said the Lord hearkned and heard it c. 3 The effect of this fear That I might rest in the day of trouble This also sheweth that this fear of the Church was not separated from faith for it is entertained of purpose to settle the heart and to give it rest in the day of trouble I cannot but often remember that sweet saying of Austine Medicina est quod pateris thy suffering is the Physick for the Physick that we take to purg the ill humours of the body doth make the body more sick for the time and so do the chastisements of God The fear of judgment threatned is more pain to the children of God then the sense of the judgment inflicted It is a note of the just that they rejoyce in tribulations yet you see they fear tribulations before they come which shews that the bitternesse of that cup is more in the cause then in the effect The righteous in these threatnings do behold God in displeasure themselves in the guilt of provocation and nothing goeth so neer the heart of a godly man as that his God should take any unkindnesse at him for in his favour is life To help this when God threatneth the just man feareth and that fear doth both remember him of the occasion of this judgment and composeth him to repentance of his sin and to prayer to divert it or to patience in it Fear joyned with faith prepareth us for peace and rest in the day of trouble Doct. An admirable work it is of wisedome and mercy to extract rest out of fear but to him that brought light out of darkness nothing is impossible more to give rest in the day of trouble when the soul refuseth comfort and even begins to take a kind of pride in the fulnesse of miserie and saith videte si dolor sicut deloâ—â—â—us 1 Because these inward convulsions of the hid man of the heart are joyned evermore in the godly Reas 1 with an hatred of the sin that deserved them for from hence ariseth this confession Peccavi Observe it in Job he did not ask Reas 2 Quid patior but Quid faciam tibi so it worketh in us a care and conscience of obedience hereafter It also discerneth an issue out of trouble Reas 3 for where fear doth not overgrow there is a sweet apprehension of joy in the end as the Apostle saith afterward it yieldeth Heb. 12.11 The peaceable fruit of righteousnesse unto them which are exercized thereby Wherefore lift up the hands that hang down and the feeble knees Vse 1 Make streight paths for your feet lest that which is lame be turned out of the way but let it rather be healed The way is there described Follow peace with all men and holinesse without which no man shall see the Lord. Look diligently lest any man fall from the grace of God lest any root of bitternesse springing up in you trouble you Out of this whole passage you may observe a sweet description of a full repentance 1 Here is the law of God revealing both sinne and the judgment due to it called here the hearing of the voyce of God 2 Here is the conscience agonized with the fear of Gods judgments 3 Here is the fruit and benefit thereof even peace and rest â—n the day of trouble Here is sowing in tears and reaping in joy rather it is Sun-shine in a tempest for the outward man is shaken and the flesh suffereth but the just do say with the ever blessed Virgin My spirit rejoyceth in God my Saviour Impii non sic not so with the wicked for God hath said it that there shall be no peace at the last to them but as the raging of the angry sea which casteth up nothing but foam and dirt 2 The miseries of the land This is described fully 1 In the agent 2 In the patient In the agent two wayes 1 The Primus motor the supream agent God 2 The instruments of action his troops these are the Chaldaeans In the patient the land of Canaan distrest as you have heard 1 In the trees bearing fruit 1 The figtree 2 The vine 3 The olive 2 In the field or arable 3 In their Cattell 1 Such as feed abroad 2 Such as are stalled 1 Concerning the agent Supream God The same hand that gave them possession of that good land Doct. doth now remove them thence here is Mutatio dextrae It is a thing notable that God is ever in Scripture described to us constant yesterday and to day and the same for ever without variablenesse or so much as a shadow of alteration yet in his government of the world he sometimes giveth and sometimes he taketh away sometimes he filleth and sometimes he emptieth The reason hereof is partly in our selves Reas 1 for as our obedience and service of him doth both gain and assure to us all good things Isa 1.19 20. as himself telleth us If you consent and obey you shall eat the good things of the land So our disobedience and transgression doth lose us all these things as he addeth If you refuse and rebell you shall be devoured with the sword for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it Partly it is in God for his mercy in giving must not destroy his justice in punishing of evill doers Reas 2 for if it be a righteous thing with God to recompence tribulation to them that trouble us 2 Thes 1.6 it must needs be as righteous to recompence tribulation to them that trouble him It is an heavy complaint that God made of this people I have nourished and brought up children Isal 1.2 and they have rebelled against me It is well observed in God that he is primus in amere postremus in odio he loveth us before we can seek his face and we are tender in sight before we know the right hand from the left as in the
my salvation 19. The Lord God is my strength and he will make my feet like Hinds feet and he will make me to walk upon my high places To the chief singer upon my stringed Instruments THis is the last part of this Psalme it endeth in consolation notwithstanding all these afflictions of the Church threatned though they shall fall upon it and it must needs suffer this sharp Visitation Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord. It is the Apostles counsell Phil. 4.4 Rejoyce in the Lord alwayes and here the Church doth so the Apostle resumeth it again I say rejoyce and the Church here resumeth it I will joy in the God of my salvation shewing the reason and ground of her joy Psal 13.5 which is Gods salvation My heart shall rejoyce in thy salvation The Lord God is my strength they are the words of David and he is more full and Rhetoricall in the expressure thereof I will love thee Psal 18.1 2. O Lord my strength The Lord is my rock and my fortresse my deliverer my God my strength in whom I will trust my buckler and the horn of my salvation my high tower David speaks like one in love with God for he doth adorn him with confession of praise and his mouth is filled with the praise of the Lord which he expresseth in this exuberancy and redundance of holy Oratory the Church addeth He will make my feet like hinds feet this also is borrowed of David in the same Psalme He maketh my feet like hinds feet and setteth me upon my high places Psal 18.33 that is he doth give swiftnesse and speed to his Church as St. Augustine interpreteth it transcendendo spinosa ambrosa implicamenta hujus saeculi passing lightly through the thornie and shadie incumberances of this world He will make me walk upon my high places David saith he setteth me upon my high places For consider David as he then was when he composed this Psalm it was at the time when God had delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul For then God set his feet on high places setting his Kingdome and establishing him in the place of Saul The Church here hoping to obtein of God the like deliverance by faith apprehendeth the same mercy and favour of God that God will again restore them to their high places and establish them in the same that is in the free and undisturbed possession of their own land and the liberties thereof Isaiah 58.14 Those are called high places Deut. 32.13 because God was exalted in them in the profession of Religion and God exalted them above all other places of the world by his speciall favour as it is said Non fecit taliter St. Augustine goeth higher in the mysticall surveigh of these words and looketh up to the future glory of the Church saying Super Coelestem habitationem figet intentionem meam ut impleat in omnem plenitudinem Dei The last words of the Psalm are a dedication thereof to the use of the Church dedicating it to the chief singer to be fitted to the Church musique that it may be sung in the congregation The words are taken from Davids Psalmes Doct. 1 and applyed to this perticular occasion of the Church From whence we are taught what use we may make of Davids Psalms in our frequent reading and meditation of them Our Church hath divided the Psalms into so many equall portions for our reading that in every thirty days such as can read may read over the whole book of Davids Psalmes and it is no great task for every one of us so to read them over privately in our houses the benefit is great that will redound to them that shall do this for this will our experience finde that St. Augustine long ago hath testified of the book of Psalms that it is Communis quidam bonae doctrinae thesaurus a common store-house of good learning it will instruct the ignorant it will draw on forward those that are incipients it will perfect those that are proficients it will comfort all sorts of afflictions veteribus animarum vulneribus novit mederi recentibus remedium applicare it knows how c. He that would pray to God may make choice here of fit forms dictated by the Spirit of God to petition God upon all occasions whatsoever he would desire of God either to give him or to forgive him He that would make confession of his sins to God is here furnished accommodated with the manner of searching and ripping up of the conscience and laying the hid man of the heart open before God He that would make confession of praise hath his mouth filled with forms of praise to set forth the goodness of God either in perticular to himself or in general to the whole Church He that is merry and rejoyceth in the Lord may finde here the musique of true joy and may from hence gather both matter and manner of Jubilation you see that the Church in my text resorteth to this store house of comfort He that findeth himself dul and heavy in the duties of Gods service may here finde cheerfull strains of musique to quicken his dead affections and to put life into them Many are too well conceited of their own sufficiency for those holy services of God so that in confession of sins in prayer or in praysing God they over-ween their own measure of the spirit of God and are too much wedded to their own forms of addresse to God But let no man despise these helps the best of us all need them the most able amongst us shal abate nothing from his own sufficiency to borrow of them we are sure that the Holy Ghost hath indited them and if a wise judgment do make choice and fit application of them to our severall purposes and occasions we cannot more holily or more effectually expresse our selves then in them the sweet singer of Israel hath furnished us plentifully by them 2 Before I come to handle the text in the parts thereof let me return your thoughts to the former verse where the Church putteth her own case in great affliction supposing the good land flowing with milk and hony touched and accursed for their sakes so that neither their best fruit trees nor their common fields nor their fruits nor their flocks and herds shal yield encrease yet saith she Yet will I rejoyce in the Lord I will joy in the God of my salvation Teaching us that where there is the true joy of the Holy Ghost no temporall affliction whatsoever Doct. 2 though it extend even to deprivation of the necessaries of life can either extinguish or so much as eclipse that joy but that as a light it will shine in darknesse The Book of God is thick sown with examples and promises with doctrine and use with assertions and experience of this truth and it is so sealed to the perpetuall consolation of the
Church of God that when Christ left his sheep among Wolves saying In the world you shall have affliction He left the Holy Ghost in his Church in the office and under the name and title of a comforter to assure this David gives a good reason hereof Reas 1 for he knoweth whereof we be made he remembreth we are but dust Indeed we are made of such stuffe and by our sin we have so marred our own first making that if God did not support us in afflictions with a strong supply of faith wee should soon sink under the burthen of our own infirmities David confesseth as much I have fainted unlesse I had believed to see the goodnesse of the Lord in the land of the living Psal 27.13 Blessed be God that ministreth ever some comfort to sweeten the calamities of life and to keep the soul from fainting to keep the head above water that the deep waters swallow us not up The true Church of God when the ambition of the Bishop of Rome to be universall Bishop began to sway Religion to the service of humane policy then began to lose of her full numbers many of them most of them defecting to popery and superstition the true professors of the Gospel were pursued with all kinds of bloudy persecution and in many years the true Church of God lived in concealment yet God did never suffer this little remaining spark to be quite put out and when the Pope thought himself absolute Lord of all then arose Martin Luther an arrow out of their own quiver and in the low ebbe of the true Church he opposed the Pope and put a new life into the true Christian Church which ever since his time hath grown to a cleerer light and the man of sin is more and more revealed and the mystery of ungodlinesse detected and in many parts of Christendome the Pope ejected as an usurper both in Ecclesiasticall Hierarchy and temporall Sovereignty At this time this poor Church doth suffer persecution in France and is threatned with utter extirpation In Bohemia the Protestants feel the uttermost of extremity the Prince Palatine and the Kings Children remain under proscription and in exile from their inheritance and their country invaded and depopulated doth groan under the fury of war Religion is oppressed the fig-tree and the vine and olive fail the earth is not husbanded to profit to feed the inhabitants In this extremity what comfort surviveth but this that our God the husband of his Church will not chide continually nor reserve his anger from generation to generation but even in this extremity of distresse we have joy in his favour and love to his Church This holy care of Religion now assaulted and the naturall care that our loyall allegiance to our Sovereign and his children doth lay upon us inciteth us to joyn as one man with united strength to work for God and his truth to the uttermost of our best abilities and who knoweth whether God having crowned our land so many years with peace and truth doth now try us what we will do for Religion and peace and how forward we will be in his cause and how charitably compassionate of the afflictions of our brethren abroad wherein if we shall acquite our selves like the children of light and the sons of peace we may prevent a further tryall of us neerer hand in our own land Blessed be the God of mercy and of all consolation who hath revealed to us this comfort and joy in him in all our afflictions that we may be able to comfort the distresses of our brethren as we our selves are comforted of our God His Majesty by his letters gratiously inviteth all his loyall subjects to this commiseration of his children to this religious compassion of Gods afflicted Church he requireth us your Ministers to lay this as neer as we can to your hearts to stir up your willing and forward affections to a tendernesse and encrease of zealous love of this cause and he believeth that our labour in the Lord will not be in vain If it be heavy to us to part with some small portion of our estates to this assistance what is it to his children to lose all Impius haec tam culta novalia miles habebit Barbarus has segetes shall we look on whilst Papists possesse the inheritance of Protestants while superstition and Idolatry usurpeth the temples where the holy worship of God and the gospell of truth and peace have been so many years gloriously mainteined Hia Majestie hath well acquited himself to us to be a Prince of peace who hath with unmeasurable expence assaid by mediation and treaties to compose the bloudy wars in Christendome with fair conditions of peace he hath shewed himself tender in the case of Christian bloud and he would have all the Christian world bear him witnesse that if he could recover the inheritance of his children in peace he would not draw a sword nor hazard a life in that cause He is now put to it to seek peace by the way of wars and his children being shut out of their own in the way of inheritance must wade in again by way of conquest or sit out altogether If that part of the afflicted Church have hope in this disconsolate extremity and trust in God for deliverance and restitution they shal sing Carmen in nocte and let God strengthen their faith and trust in him and let them not think it long to await his leasure till he have mercy upon them Worse was the condition of Jerusalem and the people of Judah Gods own inheritance yet when they had summed up their miseries and cast them into one totall of full calamity they have both faith to assure both deliverance and restitution and hope to expect it and joy to recreate and refresh their present droopings And truly to our understanding it is time for the Lord to put to his hand for the cause is his The strife was for a kingdome but Religion is such a party in the quarrell that it cannot but share in the sufferings of those who fare the worse for Religions sake Be we comforted in the Lord. Rome and Roman Idolatry can neither spread further nor gather more strength then her elder sister Babylon did her armies are called here the troops of God God employed them and God prospered thē they prevail'd against Gods inheritance But the same Prophets who are sent to tell Judah of their deportation into Babylon do also foretell the ruine of Babylon for this read at your leasure Isaiah 46.47 Chap. Jerem. 50 51. and when you have read them compare them with Revel 17.18 Chap. and you shall see that Babylon in Chaldaea was but a type of the present Babylon in Rome a double type of sin and punishment Therefore comfort your selves in the Lord God worketh as we see against the usurper of Rome by his own domestiques and they tell tales of him and discover the nakednesse of that
in their deportation and return 3 Under the title of Hindes feet I contein the mercy of expedition whereby they are delivered from their captivity in Babylon 4 Under the title of walking upon high places the mercy of restitution to their own land and of constitution and establishing of them in their land The just live and are supported by faith apprehending these full mercies 1 Of Salvation The Church of God hath need of salvation and therefore great cause to rejoyce in it 1 In respect of her spirituall enemies for your adversary the Devill goeth about like a roaring lyon seeking to devour saith the Apostle These spirituall enemies do assault the Church 1 Out of their own malignity and envy to man and to this purpose the powers and principalities of darknesse do go always armed both with temptations to corrupt them and with fiery darts of provocations to destroy them for this it is that Satan goeth and cometh to survey the earth and to pry and search where he may fasten any hold where he may gripe so St. Bernard saith Hostes indefessi nos assiduè oppugnant modò apertè modò fraudulentèr he gives this reason Invidet humano generi quia praevidet horum Deum futurum 2 By way of commission for God doth employ Devils in the Church amongst his holy ones both for probation of their faith for exercise of their patience for preservation of them in humility for punishment of their sin for sweetning to them the hopes and quickening their desires of a better life and for the polishing and burnishing of their example that others that be lookers on may know before hand that this life to a just man is militia a warfare and they that will joyn with the Church must know before they put their hand to the plough what hazards they must run lest they look back and make their sin more then it was by apostasie departing away from the living God It is cleer in Jobs example that Satan had commission from God himself to try the faith and love and patience and humility of Job and to make him an example And as clear it is which the Psalmist saith of Isratl when they started aside from God Psal 78.21 that a fire was kindled in Jacob and anger came up against Israel and in these executions God doth uphold the ministery and service of evill angels as he did against his enemies the Egyptians of whom it is so said He cast upon them the fiercenesse of his wrath Verse 49. anger and indignation and trouble by sending evill angels amongst them St. Paul confesseth that least he should be too much exalted with that Metaphysicall rapture above measure 2 Cor. 12.7 There was given me a thorn in the flesh the messenger of Satan to buffet me lest I should be exalted above measure Thus in respect of spirituall enemies without us we have need of a salvation the rather because our own corruptions within us are false to us and ready to joyn with Satan against us 2 In respect of humane opposition for the regiment and Kingdom of Christ is thus assigned to him Be thou ruler in the midst of thine enemies David doth well expresse this For they have consulted together with one consent Psal 83.5 they are confederate against thee The tabernacles of Edom and the Ishmaelites of Moab and the Hagarenes Gebal and Ammon and Amalek the Philistines with the inhabitants of Tyre Ashur also is joyned with them they have hâ—lpen the children of Lot Here is no mention of this sweeping broom of Babylon that comes in the Reer of this march and carrieth them clean away Christendom hath for many years suffered from the Turke whose invasions encroach upon the bounds thereof and gain ground of it daily And even within our selves the Pope and all the friends of his Hierarchie do hate and persecute so much of the true Protestant Church as they either can or dare attempt and the earth hath nothing to shew more bloudy and cruell then the Spanish Inquisition nothing more cunning and dangerously plotting then the society of Jesuits so that in respect of humane opposition there is great need of a salvation 3 In respect of the punishments deserved for sin for what Nation hath so kept in their sins to themselves that wee have not found means to impart them even into the Church Solomon could not take a wife out of Egypt but his wisdom proved too weak a fence against the temptation to Idolatry Nehemiah presseth this example Did not Solomon King of Israel sin by these things yet among many Nations was there not a King like him who was beloved of his God and God made him King over all Israel nevertheless even him did out-landish women cause to sin The children of Israel could not eat of the fat and fruits of the land of Goshen to relieve their famine but they were mingled with the Egyptians and learned their works and worshipped their gods Therefore in regard of their many and great sins they needed salvation These sins endangered their heavenly hopes for the wages thereof is death This Doctrine may turn to great profit to us 1 If wee apply our selves to the means Vsâ— by which wee may apprehend this salvation For this generall apprehension of Gods mercy in Christ which the most part of common professors trust to will never justifie any man in the sight of God except 1 He be by the law of God brought to a sight and sense to a confession and acknowledgment of all his sins 2 To a true sorrow and mortification of the flesh for them 3 To a serious deprecation of the wrath of God due to them in the justice of God 4 To amendment of life ruled and governed by the holy Word of God rightly understood 5 To a faithfull application of the sufficient merits of Jesus Christ to our selves which faith doth so root and ground us in Christ that wee become one with him so that wee may lay the burthen of our sins upon him and put the robe of his holy righteousness upon us For so doing we may rejoyce in our salvation as his free gift to us and as our full acquitall and discharge from all our sins before God So that the ignorant person that liveth in darkness not knowing the mystery of his salvation And the blinded Papist who trusteth either to the power of his own free will or to the merit of his own works or righteousnesse or to the mediation of Saints and Angels or the mother of our Lord to propitiate on his behalf or that trusteth to the Popes indulgence and pardon of all his sins Or that believeth to have salvation by the dispensation of the Church treasure the supererogate works of over-doers that have done more then the Law of God hath required of them Also the unconscionably prophane that go on in their sins without check of the inward man their hearts never smiting them for that
serveth to reprove the doctrine and faith of the Church of Rome Vse 3 who teach that God hath committed to his Son the dispensation of Justice but to his sons mother the dispensation of mercy which opinion was no sooner afoot but they turned Domine into Domina Lord into Lady and so in the Church of Rome the Virgin Mary hath more Devotoes vowed to her service then Christ hath she hath more temples dedicated to her honour then Christ and far more miracles ascribed to her then to Christ Yea they shame not in print to tell the world that she hath saved some from hell whom her son had condemned thether and she hath released many from hell whom her son had already sent thither I onely alleage against them the plain words of our Saviour Thou hast given him power over all flesh Joh. 17.2 that he should give eternall life to as many as thou hast gived him Therefore beware of the leaven of the Scribes and Pharisees the poisonous doctrines of the Church of Rome which take salvation out of the hands of God and ascribe the donation thereof to creatures This was wont to be called Idolatry in the sermons and writings of the learned to invocate the Virgin Mary as they do in their Rosaries and Letanies of the holy Virgin Mother of mercy Gate of heaven our salvation she that hath bruised the head of the serpent They make their vulgar Latine Bible say so Ipsa conteret caput tuum There be two Psalters both printed in Paris in French and set forth with the approbation of the Sorbonne one called St. Bonaventures Psalter in which wheresoever God is named for Dominus they have put Domina printed in Anno 1601. The other Psalter is digested into fifteen demands printed the same year with the same approbation wherein the Virgin Mary is called the first cause of our salvation the finder out of grace and putteth her before Christ even in gloria Gloria Virgini Maria Jesu Christo What think you doth that Church wish the salvation of of any man in good earnest that swerveth us from the God of our salvation and directeth us to seek it from a creature Yet this is the religion which is now grown in fashion with many in these doubtfull and giddy times which as it robs God of one of his highest prerogatives and doth divest him of his power of salvation so the professours thereof will finde it a thief in their things temporall for in ordine ad Deum the Church will engrosse all the Apostles of that Church wil not be content till all be laid at their feet Let me commend to you the Kings Majesties confession of his faith published in Latine and in English directed to all Christian Kings in this perticular his words are For the blessed Virgine Mary I yield her that which the Angel Gabriel pronounced of her that she is blessed amongst women and that which she prophecyed of her self in her Canticum that all generations shall call her blessed I remember her as the mother of Christ whom of our Saviour took his flesh and so the mother of God since the divinity and humanity of Christ are inseparable and I freely confesse that she is in glory both above Angels and men her own Son that is both God and man onely excepted But I dare not mock her and blaspheme God calling her not onely Diva but Dea praying her to commend and controul her Son who is her God and her Saviour You see what opinion his Majesty hath of the Doctrine and practise of Rome in this point he doth call it mocking of her and blaspheming of God to ascribe salvation to her or to seek it from her I hope you have lived too long in the light of the Gospel to be taken with any of these baits and to be befooled with any of these inchantments of palpable heresie I hope if an Angel from heaven should come and teach you this doctrine to seek your salvation any where else but from God you would answer him 〈…〉 as Nehemiah did answer Sanballat There is nothing as thou saiest but thou feignest it out of thine own heart Beloved let all that love Jesus Christ and his holy truth joyn as one man against popery and seek to the light of the Word whil'st it shineth upon us that we may not lose the way of salvation which that Word revealeth Popery robbeth the Church of this Word and putteth this candle under a bushell it sendeth us the wrong way for salvation and like the blind Aramites it leadeth them into the midst of Samaria even putteth them into the hands of their enemies God did much for this land when he gave us this light let not our unthankfulnesse to him or our peevish waiwardnesse amongst our selves or our evill and unworthy conversations forfeit this light or remove our candlestick So long as we know where our salvation is setled and who hath it in keeping for us so long as we look that way and direct all our obedience and worship our thanks and prayse that way we are safe for Blessed is the people that be in such a case blessed is the people whose God is the Lord for ipse est qui dat salutem 2 Ground of their hope The Lord is my strength This comfort supporterh in afflictions and this is that which is our ability of which the Apostle saith But God is faithfull 1 Cor. 10.13 who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able for what are we able surely of our selves to nothing that is good for us the name of man ever since the fall of man hath been a name of impotency and weaknesse Cease ye from man Isai 2.22 whose breath is in his nostrils for wherein is he to be accompted of Christ hath told us sine me nihil potestis facere For by strength shall no man prevail 1 Sam. 2.9 Psal 71.10 I will go in the strength of the Lord God and I will maeke mention of thy righteousesse even of thine onely The words of my text are Doctrinall Doct. The Lord is the strength of his Church Consider this which way you will 1 In eo quod sumus in that we are In him we live 2 In eo quod facimus in that we do the good that we do he doth it himself O Lord thou hast wrought all our works in us Isai 26.12 The skill that we have in our severall professions and trades and mysteries it is his spirit that giveth it the strength that we have to labour in our severall callings is his strength and that blessing was included in the curse of man Gen. 3.19 Thou shalt eat thy bread in the sweat of thy face that God would give man strength to earn his bread and his labour should be his physick it should make him breath out evill and noxious vapours in his body which might offend health in sweat And if
we have done these things and therefore unlesse we redeem the time and amend our ways our consciences will tell us that his servants we are whom we obey and the servants of sin must look for the wages of sin that is death But let us do no more so seeing the Lord is our strength let our strength be the Lords let it serve him for himself our brethren for his sake Another use of this point I learn from the song of Moses Vse 2 the man of God and of the children of Israel after they came out of the red sea The Lord is my strength and song let him that is our strength Exod. 15 ◠be our song also that is let us praise him with joy and thanksgiving it is the honour that David giveth to the Lord as his strength is always from him so he promiseth My song shall be always of him he desireth that his mouth may be fil'd with his prayse all the day long these be called the calves of the lips of them that confesse his name they are sacrifices of righteousnesse and they please God better then bullocks that have horns and hoofs this is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 reasonable service It followeth there and it is another use of this point Vse 3 The Lord is my strength I will prepare him an habitation In which words though literally there be a propheticall reference to the Tabernacle of God which God did after appoint to be erected and consecrated to his speciall worship and further yet to the building of the Temple at Jerusalem the joy of all the earth yet in thankfull retribution to God for the strength that we have from him every faithfull soul must within it self erect an habitation for God and his anointed Know you not that your bodies are the temples of the holy ghost doth not Christ dwell in us by faith is not the soul the body of the Church is not the understanding and intellectuall part the holy of holies the chancell of the Church where the glory of God dwelleth and where the memorials of his mercies are kept is not the heart the altar wherupon all our sacrifices of thanksgiving the incense of our praiers are burnt Is not the mouth of them that confesse his name the beautiful porch of this Temple Doth not Christ stand at our doors and knock and desire our entertainment O let us receive him he is our strength there is not a stronger man to come in and bind him and cast him out that day we receive him that day is salvation come home to our house Let him not come in as a guest and sojourner to tarry a night and be gone let him have the rule of the house Christ will then tell us that the Kingdome of God is within us and where he ruleth there is peace which passeth all understanding 3 The next ground of their hope is a strong faith that he will make my feet like hynds feet That is he will give me a swift escape out of all my affliction and I shall come again out of captivity The Lord will loose the bonds of his Church and give her deliverance out of all her troubles Doct. This is a good ground of hope Because it is one of Gods honourable titles to be a deliverer so is he called in this 18 Ps v. 2. Reas 1 From whence these words are taken so Thou art my help and my deliverer Psal 70.5 Thus David honoureth God with that great title for it includeth a confession of prayse both of the power of God able to deliver and of his wisedome and love applying that power to the comfort of his afflicted Church Because it was the office of his anointed the Son in whom he was well pleased Reas 2 to deliver his people from the hands of all their enemies He gave redemption to his people He shall save his people from all their sins he confesseth it his errand hither He hath sent me to bind up the broken hearted Isai 6.11 to proclaim liberty to the Captives and the opening of the prison to them that are bound Because God knoweth the weaknesse of his Church Reas 3 and though he chasten them with the rods of men yet will he not take his mercy utterly from them Psal 125.3 lest the righteous should put forth their hand unto wickednesse This hath speciall vertue to comfort us both Vse 1 Generally in our whole life and 2 especially in the severall crosses and distresses incident to the body of the Church or any member of the body 3 And individually to each perticular person in their personall vexations and unrest 1 For the generall calamities incident to life Job saith Man that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live and is full of misery If a man have no time of respiration from sorrow if his body be in sicknesse his mind in grief his estate in poverty his person in prison suppose him as much afflicted as his time and strength can bear yet death determineth all and setteth the oppressed and the prisoner free as Job saith 2 The Church or any part of it be it afflicted and driven into corners persecuted as in the time of the ten bloudy persecutions and as at this day the Protestants are cruelly pursued both in our neighbour France and in the Palatinate and in Bohemia Ministers banished as raisers and strivers of sedition which was laid to the charge of Jesus Christ and after of St. Paul The Lord hath ever heretofore been a deliverer of his Church and his hand is not shortned our hope is that he will also make his Saints hearts glad by a timely deliverance and will give them hinds feet to escape from the arrow that fleeth after them by day and from the dogs that hunt and pursue them with open mouth 3 In the case of personall grievances how can we either in dangers feared or in oppressing griefs and pains receive any peace to our souls but in the faith of deliverance believing that no miseries can so environ us but that there may be found an open way out of them so David saith Many are the troubles of the righteous Dominus ex omnibus liberet This admonisheth the afflicted to Vse 2 call upon God for this deliverance and to seek it no where but in his hand wo be to them that go to Egypt for help it was the undoing of Israel their trust in the broken staffe and reed of Egypt And they that trust to Idolatrous nations to help them in their distresses and wants thrust thorns into their own eyes and goads into their own sides and their trust shall be their ruine Israel did finde it so and smarted sharply for it This also as all other favours of God either possessed or expected doth awake us to a duty of service of our God Vse 3 for we are servi quasi servati and we must serve him that we may be
God is armed vvith povver to punish evill doers 4 That in all this God vvas glorified First the consideration of former mercies doth strengthen faith in present troubles Therefore do they commemorate the manner of Gods glorious comming from Teman and of Paran vvherein he had glory in the heavens and prayse upon the earth David did make good use of this point often For vvhen my distresse came he found comfort in this remembrance Novv thou art farre of and goest not forth with our armies Thou makest us turn back from the adversary Psal 44.9.10 and they which hate us spoile for themselves c. To comfort this affliction he beginneth that Psalme We have heard with our ears O God and our fathers have told us what thou didst in their days and in the times of old How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand and planted them c. So Psal 74 9. again complaining of great afflictions We see not our signes there is no more any Prophet this is his comfort God is my King of old working Salvation in the midst of the Earth Thou didst divide ehe Sea by thy power c. So again Psal 77.2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord my soar ran and ceased not and in the night my soul refused comfort Then I considered the days of old Verse 5. Psal 4.1 and the years of ancient times Thou hast enlarged me when I was distrest The reason why this doth minister comfort to the Church 1 Reas is because we have learned that our God is constant in his love whom he once loved he ever loveth for he is without variablenesse and shadow of changing as the Apostle and the Psalmist saith But thou art the same thy years shall have no end Ps 102.27.28 The children of the servants shall continue and their seed shall be established before thee The goodness of God endureth continually Psal 52.1 Reas 2. Because the commemoration of former benefits is a work of thanksgiving and prayse and that is the highest service that we can perform to God in his worship this is Sicut in coelo it is heaven upon earth For it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord and to sing prayses to the Name of the most High Psal 92.1 Ps 50.23 It is good for God for He that offereth me praise glorifieth me and for that he made us It it good for us for with such Sacrifices God is well pleased there is our happiness for in his favor is light Reas 3 Again the thankfull commemoration of former mercies of God to us doth draw on new benefits for thanksgiving as it is Gods crop which he gathereth from us of the seed of his many favours so it is our seed which we cast into the ground of Gods kindness and it bringeth us an harvest of new blessings Every man thinks his seed well bestowed in good ground that yeeldeth an encrease and God hath said Them that honour me I will honour 1 Sam. 2.30 This point is of excellent use Vse to stir us up to a wise consideration of the constant love of God to such as fear serve him Benefits are soon forgotten therefore as David saith I called upon the Lord in my trouble so he stirreth up himself to thankfulness My soul praise thou the Lord and forget not all his benefits He found great comfort in this looking back When he undertook Goliah and Saul discouraged him as unable for it he looked back to the time past and remembred how God had delivered him from a Lion and a Bear and from that experience of Gods good help he resolved to attempt the uncircumcised Philistine And in his declining years when age grew upon him he comforted his drooping spirits thus Thou art my hope O Lord God Psa 71.5 even my trust from my youth Vpon thee have I been stayed from the womb thou art he that took me from my mothers bowels Cast me not off in the time of age forsake me not when my strength faileth There be three sorts of men that do even run themselves upon the edge and point of reprehension we cannot here forgive them a chiding 1 Those that tanquam prona pecora as groveling beasts do look onely upon the time incumbent mistaking St. Paul who saith I forget that which is behind Lyranus understandeth him legalia terrena Theophilact better Praeteritarum virtutum nihil reminiscor nec memoria repeto Phil. 3.13 sed ea omnia post tergum relinquo So we must forget all the good we have done as being short of perfection that we may mend our pace in the ways of Gods Commandements But the Apostle did look back to times past to see what Christ had done for us how he loved us when vve vvere his enemies how he washed us in his bloud how he forgave him his sins and how he obteined mercy of him because vvhat he did he did it ignorantly through unbelief 2 Those also are here reproved vvho look only to the time past and see therein nothing but Gods temporall favours but regard not the times present and consider not Gods spirituall graces Some that lived in the time of Popery do prayse those dais then vvas good house-keeping easie rents a constant fashion of apparrel that many Gentlemen had the lands of their grandfathers in possession and their cloaths on their backs then vvas no seeking of reversions or buying of offices no market of Church-livings Israel did so Remember the fish that we are in Aegypt for nought the Cucumbers and the Melons and the Leeks and the Onions num â—1 5 and the Garlick I deny not but when the people of this Land vvere fewer and the vanity of the pride of other Nations and many of their foul sins kept home and were not imported hither there were better times for the belly then these are But let us see the state of souls at that time they were then in the house of bondage under Pharaoh of Rome Beef and Mutton Wheat and Barly were cheap but the two Testaments the two breasts of the Church vvere like a Fountain sealed up and like a Garden enclosed But when Queen Elizabeth began to rest in this Hemisphere like the Sun to run her race she turned that night into day and maintained this light till she vvas taken up into heaven and she that vvas a shining star on earth and blest the Church of God here vvith benigne aspect and influence vvas made a glorious ever blessed Saint in heaven In the beginning of her raign God came from Teman The Holy one from mount Paran God revealed himself in the glorious Sun-shine of his Gospel of peace 3 They are also reproved vvho out of too much fore-casting fear of the times to come do quite forget both the former and the present mercies of God and astonish themselves vvith representations of hideous formes of ensuing