of the Church that shall be marke what the Text saith The Lord shall regard the prayer of the destitute and shall not despise their prayer speaking of those that shall live in those times a little before this day of Iezreel shall be The Lord shall regard the prayer of the destitute the word that is translated destitute it signifieth in the Hebrew a poor shrub in the wildernesse a poor shrub that the foot of every beast is ready to tread downe and that poore shrub that perhaps is despicable in the eyes of the world and despicable in his own eyes yet saith the Text the Lord shal regard the prayer of that poor shrub Is there ever a poor shrub though never so destitute so despicable in the eyes of the world or in thine owne eyes yet be thou a praying Christian a praying soul praying for those things and God will regard thy prayer he will not despise thy prayer Perhaps thou art ready to despise thy prayers thy self but God will not despise them let all our hearts be lifted up and let us all cry with the Church Come Lord Jesus Come quickly O let this day come for great shall be the day of Jezreel HOSEA CHAP. 2. The First Lecture CHAP. 2. VER 1. 2. Say 〈◊〉 your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah Pled with your mother plead for she is not my Wife neither am I her husband c. SOme joyne the first verse of this Chapter to the end of the former and according to a sense that may be given of the words agreeable to the scope of the latter part of the former Chapter it may seem more fit to be made the end of that then the beginning of this In the latter end of the former God was in a way of promising mercy to his people that those that were not his people should be his people and those that had not received mercy should receive mercy Now he calleth upon all whose hearts were with God to speake to one another of this great favour of God to his people foâ— their mutuall encouragement and for the praise of his Name As if he should say Well you have been under dreadfull threats of God your sins have called for dreadfull things but my grace is free and it is rich powerfull therefore you that were not my people and have deserved to be for ever cast off from being my people you that had not obtained mercy shall obtaine mercy Say to your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah that is O you that are godly speak one to another and telâ— one another for the quickning of one anothers hearts of this great favour of God of his free grace Oh say Ammi Ammi the people of God Ruhamah Gods mercy We were not his people but now Ammi again God hath promised to make us to be his people we were rejected from mercy but mercy is come again now Ruhamah O the mercy of God O that free grace of our God that wee that have beene so vile so provoked the eyes of his glory we that have so sinned against mercy it self yet mercy should thus follow us to make us his people and to save us from his wrath It is a good thing to speake of the loving kindnesse of our God Psal 92. 1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord and to be telling of the goodnesse of God in the morning and his faithfulnesse every night That Psalme is appointed for the Sabbath It is a work of the Sabbath to be speaking one to another of the goodnesse of God Especially in this case when a people were afraid that they should have been for ever rejected that now God should call them againe Ammi my people and say now againe that he will have mercy upon them Psal 145. 4. 5. One generation shall praiss thy name to another and shall declare thy mighty acts I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty and of thy wondrous works Mark what the wayes of God are toward his Church when he commeth in the wayes of mercy they are wondrous works of God they are the mighty acts of God they are such wherein the honor of God appears yea they are the honour of his Maâ—esty yea they are the glorious honour of his Majestyâ— There is Majesty honour of Majesty glorious honour of Majesty mighty works of God wonderfull works of God When these appeare these are to be declared indeed And for them to be able to say to one another Ammi and Ruhamah it was to declare the wonderfull works of God and the glorious honour of his Majesty Yea it followeth further in that Psalme verse 6. Men shal speake of the might of thy terrible acts and I will declaâ—e thy greatnesse And verse 7. They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodnesse Eâ—uctaâ—uâ—t so Arias Mâ—ntanus renders it they shall not be able to keep it in but break â—orth in the memory of thy goodnesse Happy are those people that God gâ—ants such subjects of discourses unto that they may say one to another to their brethren and sisters Ammi and Ruhamah It was not long since that when we met with our brethren we could not have such a subject of discourse as this is but usually when Christians met together after their Salutations their first question was Oh! what shall we do what shall we doe what course shall we take All the Newes almost that was in the Kingdome and the subject of discourses specially among the Saints was this Such a Minister silenced in such a place such a one banished in another place such a one imprisoned in another place such a one High-Commissioned in another place such signes of the wrath of God upon us we are afraid that God is going if he be not quite gone already we are afraid that he will not onely reject us from being his people but reject us from being a people upon the facâ— of the earth But blessed be God he hath changed the subject of our dâ—scourses Now Gods wayes have begun to be towards us as if he intended to make us again to be his people Now we may when we meet together have plentifull subjects of discourses about Gods grace mercy to say Ammi Ruhamah O the Lord manifesteth goodnes to an unworthy Nation we have hope that yet he will owne us to be his people we have hope that yet he will shew mercy to us though never so unworthy Who would have thought ever to have seene and heard of such things as we have seene heard who would have thought ever to have seene the hearts of the adversaries so daunted their power so curbed their rage so quelled the wicked in their own workes so ensnared their hopes so disappointed who would ever have thought to have seene the Saints so rejoycing their liberties so inlarged their hearts and expectations so raised This is the free grace of God
made they had not got the victory over their enemies but onely a promise that God would be with them presently Jehosaphat all the people fell a singing A gracious heart seeth cause enough to sing if he have got but a promise but much more when he hath got the performance If the promise of a mercy hath such sweetnesse in it what sweetnesse then hath the mercy of the promise But the promise was not only barely fulfilled but fulfilled with a high hand and that made them sing This may be another Observation When God appeareth remarkably with a high hand in delivering his people then the mercy is to be accounted a precious mercy indeed and all the people of the Lord should sing and praise him Esay 43. 19. 20. mark there when God had told of an extraordinary hand of his in a way of mercy saith he I will plant them in the wildernesse and so goeth on Then saith he shal this be that they may see and know understand consider that the hand of the Lord hath done this and the Holy One of Israel hath created it When Gods imediate hand doth a thing when it helps a people in an extraordinary way he expects that they should see and know and consider and understand together All these expressions are heaped one upon another And if any people be called to this we are at this day God hath appeared extraordinarily to us Oh that we had eyes to see Oh that we had hearts to consider and understand that we might give God the glory that is due to him The Fifteenth Lecture HOSEA 2. 15. 16. And she shall sing there as in the dayes of her youth and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt And it shall be at that day saith the Lord that thou shalt call me Ishi and shalt call me no more Baali SOme few Observations are to be added to the 15. verse Mercies that have been much sought for that have had many cryes sent up to God to obtaine when once they are granted should cause singing forth the praises of God The people of Israel cryed much before God granted them deliverance from Egypt Exodus 3. 7. I have heard their cryes saith God And God sayes here They shall sing as they did when they came out of Egypt Psal 22. 26. They shall praise the Lord that seek him The more we seek God for any mercy the more we shall praise God when we have obtained that mercy Psal 28. 6. 7. Blessed be the Lord because he hath heard the voyce of my supplication my heart trusted in him and I am helped What followeth Therefore my heart greatly rejoyceth and with my song will I praise him Because God had heard the voyce of his supplication therefore with his song he would praise him Those mercies that we get by crying unto God those are singing mercies indeed Such mercies as come to us only through a generall providence without seeking to God they are not such sweet mercies as Hannah said to Eli concerning her son whom she had got by prayer and therefore named him Samuel Sought of God As thy soul liveth this is the son this is the child that I was here praying for and the Lord hath given me my petition which I asked of him This she spake triumphing in Gods goodnesse Mercies got by prayer may be triumphed in When you want a mercy pray much for it the more you pray for it the more you will sing when you have it and the lesse prayer went before the lesse singing will follow after Further Mercies that make way for the enjoyment of Ordinances are very sweet mercies singing mercies They shall sing as they did when they came up out of the land of Egypt Why did they sing when they came up out of the land of Egypt Because that mercy that deliverance from Egypt made way to that rich mercy of the injoyment of Gods worship in his Ordinances How doth that appear Thus Exod. 15. where they sung when they came out of Egypt ver 2. I will build him an habitation saith Moses together with the people they rejoyced in that that now they were going on in the way to build God an habitation but more ver 13. Thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation as if Moses and the Israeliâ—es should say this indeed is a great deliverance that we are delivered out of bondage but what is this but in order to a higher mercy that we looke at yet further that is guiding of thy people in thy strength to thy habitation we looke upon this present mercy of our deliverance for which we doe now sing and give thee praise but in order to the guiding of thy people to thy habitation and that in thy strength as if Moses should say Lord there will be a great many difficulties between this and our comming to enjoy thy habitation but thou wilt guide us in thy strength thy strength shall carry thy people along till it bring them to thy habitation this was that which made them sing so chearfully as they did And again v. 17. Thou shalt bring them in and plant them in the mountaine of thine inheritance in the place O Lord which thou hast made for thee to dwell in in the sanctuary O Lord which thy hands have established This was that that made them so sing So David Psa 27. 4. One thing have I desired of the Lord that I will seeke after that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the dayes of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord to enquire in his Temple That is a choice mercy therefore all mercies that make way for that mercy are indeed sweet mercies So we should looke upon all our deliverances from outward troubles and whatsoever peace God giveth us to enjoy as sweet and comfortable in order to this mercy of enjoying Gods mountaine of living in Godâ— habitation that we may dwell there all the dayes of our life A third Observation is New mercies should renew the memory of old They shall sing as in the day when they came up out of the land of Egypt that is I will grant to them yet further mercies and that mercy that I shall grant shall renew the memory of all the former mercies they have enjoyed from me As new guilt renews the memory of former guilt so new mercies the memory of former Hath God delivered you from any danger now were you never delivered before if but when you were a childe those deliverances you now have should bring into your memory what then were So in a nation doth God grant to a nation any new mercy this new mercy should bring into the memory of that nation all the former mercies that ever that nation hath received Psal 68. 26. Blesse ye God in the congregatations even the Lord from the fountaine of Israel Not only
heart is a Scripture-frame The holy Ghost tells you Isa 66. 1. God looks at him that trembleth at his word come with hearts trembling at the word of God come not to be Iudges of the Law but doers of it You may judge of your profiting in grace by the delight you finde in Scripture as Quintilian was wont to say of profiting in eloquence a man may know that saies hee by the delight hee findes in reading Cicero much more may this be said of the Scriptures it is a true signe of profiting in Religion to whom the Scriptures are sweeter then the honey and the honey-combe And now I shall onely tell you what the work is we have to doe and then we shall fall upon it and that is to open Scripture unto you not onely difficulties but to shew unto you what divine truths are contained in them what may come fresh and spring up from the fountain it selfe to present them unto you with adding some quickness This is our worke not to enlarge any thing with long Explication Probation or Application There are these five things to be enquired concerning this our Prophet whose Prophesie I have now pitched upon to open 1 Who he was 2 To whom he was sent 3 What his errant was 4 His Commission 5 The time of his prophesie All these you have either in the first verse where most of them are or you shall find them in the Chapter For the first then who this Prophet was I will tell you no more of him then what you have in the first verse Hosea the son of Beeri His name signifieth a Saviour one that brings salvation It is the same root that Ioshua had his name from and many saving and savory truths wee shall finde this Prophet bringing to us He was the sonne of Beeri This Beeri we doe not find who hee was in Scripture only in that he is here named as the father of the Prophet in the entrance into this Prophesie Surely it is honor is gratia to the Prophet and from it we may note thus much That so should parents live and walke as it may be an honour to their children to be called by their names that their children may neither be afraid nor ashamed to be named by them The Iews have a tradition that is generally received among them that whensoever a Prophets Father is named that Father was likewise a Prophet as well as the Son If that were so then surely it is no dishonor for any man to be the Son of a Prophet Let those that are the children of godly gracious Ministers be no dishonour to their Parents their Parents are an honour unto them But we find it by experience that many of their children are farr from being honours to their godly parents How many ancient godly Ministers who heretofore hated superstitious vanities whose sonns of late have been the greatest zealots for such things It puts me in mind of what the Scripture notes concerning Iehoiakim the sonne of Iosiah the difference betweene his father and him Iosiah when he heard the Law read his heart melted and he humbled himselfe before the Lord. But now Iehoiakim his sonne when hee came to heare the Law of God read he tooke a pen-knife and cut the roll in which it was written in peices and threw it into the fire that was on the hearth untill all the roll was consumed A great deale of difference there was between the Son and the Father and thus it is between the sons of many ancient godly Ministers and them their Fathers indeed might be an honour unto them but they are dishonour to their Fathers The sonne of Beeri This word Beeri hath its signification from a Wel that hath springing water in it freely and cleerly running So Ministers should be the children of Beeri That that they have should be springing water and not the mud and dirt and filth of their own conceits mingled with the word This only by way of allusion To whom was this Prophet Hosea sent He was sent especially to the Ten Tribes I suppose you all know the division that there was of the people of Israel in Rehoboams time tenn of the Tribes went from the house of David only Iudah and Benjamine remained with it Now these tenne Tribes renting themselves from the house of David did rent themselves likewise from the true worship of God there grew up horrible wickednesses and all manner of abominations amongst them To these ten Tribes God sent this Prophet He sent Isaiah Micah to Iudah Amos and Hosea he sent to Israel all these were contemporary If you would know what state Israel was in in Hoseas time read but 2 K. 15. 19. you shall find what their condition was Ieroboam did that which was eâ—ill but he fight of the Lord he departed not from all the sins of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat which made Israel to sinne But notwithstanding Israel was thus notoriously wicked and given up to all Idolatry yet the Lord sendeth his Prophets Hosea and Amos to Prophesie to them even at this time O the goodnesse of the Lord to follow an apostatizing people an apostatizing soule It was mercy yet while God was speaking but woe to that people to that soul to whom the Lord shall give in charge to his Prophets prophesie no more to them But what was Hosea his errand to Israel His errand was to convince them clearly oâ— this their abominable Idolatry and those other abominable wickednesses that they lived in and severely to denounce threatnings yea most fearfull destruction This was not done before by the other Prophets as wee shall afterward make it appeare but it was Hosea his errand to threaten an utter desolation to Israel more than ever was before and yet withall to promise mercy to a remnant to draw them to repentance and to Prophesie of the great things that God intended to doe for his Church and children in the latter dayes What was his Commission The words tells us plainly The word of the Lord came to Hosea It was the word of Iehovah It is a great argument to obedience to know it is the word of the Lord that is spoken When men set reason against reason and judgment against judgment and opinion against opinion it prevails not but vvhen they see the authority of God in the Word then the heart and conscience yeeldeth Therefore hovvever you may look upon the instruments that bring it or open it to you as your equalls or inferiours yet knovv there is an authority in the Word that is above you al It is the word of the Lord. And this word of the Lord it came to Hosea Mark the phrase Hosea did not goe for the word of the Lord but the word of the Lord came to him he sought it not but it came to him factum fuit verbum so are the words the word of the Lord came or
satisfied yeeld to them gratifie them in what you will this is the first temptation what will you be so strict and rugged and yeeld to them in nothing but if they prevaile with you to begin to yeeld they will never have done they will still encroach upon you Hezekiah yeelded to Senacherib even to take away the gold of the Temple doores yea a little while after he cometh againe with a great host so that Hezekiah said it was a day of trouble and rebuke Chap. 19. Nothing will quiet them but the ruine of the Church they must needs have that Downe with it downe with it even to the ground nothing else will satisfie them To this low estate and sad condition was Iudah brought not long after Israel was taken away and yet God promiseth mercy to Iudah for all this VVhat shall we learne from this This profitable lesson for our present condition God may intend much mercy yea God may be in a way of mercy to a people yet may bring that people into very great straits difficulties The promises of Gods mercies are alwayes to be understood with condition of the crosse If we thinke that upon the promise of mercy we shall be delivered from all trouble affliction we lay more upon the promise then the promise will or can beare It is a great evil that proceedeth from much weaknes of spirit and distemper of heart for people though God hath done great things for them yet if there come any rub in the way and difficulty any trouble Oh now we are gone now vve are all lost now God hath left us we hoped that there would have come mercy we looked for light and behold darkness now the heart sinketh and all is presently given for gone Know my brethren this is an evil and an unbeleeving heart an evil and an unthankful heart God hath indeed done great things for us yet how ready are wee though God be in such a way a glorious way of mercy if we hear of any difficulty of any little rub any combining of the adversaries together we must expect nothing now but blood and bid farwel and adue to all our peace we thought to have had happy dayes but now the Lord is coming out against us and all that is done must be undone againe Why why are you so full of unbeleefe Surely this is unworthy of Christians that professe an interest in God unworthy of all the good that God hath done for us Peter though before he had walked upon the seas through the power of Christ yet when the waves came now Master save me or else I perish Hath not God made us walk upon the waves of the sea all this while wrought as great a Miracle for us in England as he did for Peter Yet when a wave doth but rise a little higher then before we are so distressed in our spirits that we can scarcely cry Oh Master save us but we look one upon another and discourage one another hearts and in stead of crying unto God wee cry out one to another in a discouraging way and so pine away in our iniquities Certainly God is exceedingly angry at such a demeanour as this and yet this is ordinary both in regard of nations and particular persons Of nations It was so high with Judah for I desire to keep as close as I can to the work I am about though God had made this promise to Judah here yet if we look into the 7. Isa Isaiah was contemporary with Hosea it was not much after the making of this promise wee shall see how they were troubled with fear saith the Text When it was told the house of David saying Syria is confederate with Ephraim the heart of the King of Judah and the heart of his people were moved as the trees of the wood were moved with the winde they were afraid and shook as the very leaves of the tree shake both the king of Judah and all the people Well but God speaks to the Prophet in the 8. Chap ver 11. and it was at this time when they were so troubled because of the enemies coming against them God I say in that Chapter speaks to the Prophet saith the text he speakes with a strong hand saying say not ye a Confederacy a confederacy Oh the King of Israel the king of Syria are confederate together what shal we do we are undone we are lost for ever say not ye A confederacy neither fear ye this fear nor be afraid but sanctifie the Lord of hosts himself and let him be your fear Thus God would have his Saints do not when you hear of confederate enemies or any ill tidings abroad Oh the papists are linked together A confederacy a confederacy do not say a confederacy fear not their fear but sanctifie the Lord of hosts himself let him be your fear and let him be your dread he shal be for a sanctuary to you and mark the resolution of the Prophet afterward ver 17. I will wait upon the Lord that hideth his face from the house of Jacob and I will looke for him Oh that this were the disposition of our hearts Take that note away wiâ—h you amongst many though you cannot remember all when you hear so many rumors of fears and troubles as if all were gone and there were now no more hope Let this be your answer I will wait upon the Lord that hideth his facè from the house of Jacob for God is in a way of mercy and mercy certainly we shall have let us look for it And for particular persons how ordinary is it though God be in a wonderful gracious way of mercy towards them yet if they do but feel their corruptions stirring never so little all is gone presently I was indeed in a good way but God is gone Christ is gone and Mercie is gone all is gone surely God intendeth no thoughts of good to me Oh be not unbeleeving but beleeving For this is the way of God though he promiseth great mercie yet in the meane time he may bring into great afflictions I will not have mercy upon Israel but I will have mercy upon Judah and will save them For a people to be saved when others neare them are destroyed this is a great setting out of Gods goodnes to them as to stand upon the shore safely see others suffer shipwrack before us is a great augmentation of Gods mercy towards us When the people of Israel could stand upon the banks and see the Egyptians tumbling in the Red-sea and their dead bodies cast upon the shoare then saith the Text sang Moses and the children of Israel unto the Lord. And this kinde of mercie the Lord hath granted to us in England for while our neighbouring nations have been in a combustion and many of them spoiled we have sate under our own vines under our own fig-trees and our greatest afflictions have
Gods patience when their sins are grosse and vile afterwards upon some lesser sins they are utterly undone VVhat is the name of his son The name of this son is Lo-ammi and the word signifieth as it is interpreted here by God himselfe You are not my people and I will not be your God The people to whom Hosea prophesied they might have objected against him thus What Hosea doe you say that God will not have any more mercy upon us what will not God have mercy upon his own people Is not God our God What doe you threaten such-things as these are The Prophet answers It is true God hath been your God and you have been his people but there is an end of those dayes God now degradeth you from those glorious priviledges that formerly you had he willowne you no more to be his and you shall have no further right to own him to be yours From whence First this A people that have been once a people dear to God may be so rejected as never to become a people of God more For so these did not though afterwards wee shall bear of the promise for others in other Ages God hath no need of men God is able to raise up a people what wayes he pleases even from the very stones in the street to raise up children unto Abraham Though Rome may boast that they have been a glorious Church True there hath been heretofore a glorious Church in Rome what then Those that were his people are now no more his people VVe shall meet further with this in the next Chapter Only in this Note observe but this thing The great difference betweene the estate of a Christian in communion with Christ by grace and a Church estate Men and women may loose their Church estate and that for ever but their estate in communion with Jesus Christ by grace they can never lose that And this is a great difference and affordeth abundance of comfort True our Church state I mean in regard of an instituted Church in Congregations it is a great priviledge a great mercy but our Communion with Jesus Christ is a higher priviledge and that priviledge gan never be lost we may be cut off from the one but never cut off from the other Secondly yet it is a most heavy judgemenâ— for any to have been heretofore the people of God now to be unpeopled for God to be no more theirs and for them to be no more the Lords A heavy judgement for the Lord to say Well I will be no more a God to you whatsoever I am to others no more yours in my goodnesse in my mercy in my power or whatsoever I am in my selfe The being cast off from God First takes us off from that high honour that was before upon a people for so in Esay 4. 4. Since thou wast precious in my sight thou host beene honourable The people of God gathered together in Church Communion certainly are in an honourable condition when they are dispeopled they are cast off from this their priviledge from their honour Secondly They have not the presence of God with them as before not the care of God towards them nor the protection of God over them not the delight of God in them nor the communication of God to them What should I speake of all these particulars But among other priviledges they want this namely that great priviledge of pleading with God for mercy upon this relation which was the usuall way of the Prophets to pleade with God because they were the people of God So Esay 64. 9. Be not wroth very sore O Lord neither remember iniquity for ever upon what ground Behold see we beseech thee we are all thy people This is a good Argument Againe Jer. 14. 9. Why doest thou stand as a man astonished amongst us as a mighty man that cannot save Yet thou O Lord art in the middest of us and we are called by thy name leave us not This Text is ours this day and well may we say O Lord why doest thou stand as a man astonished Oh yet if we can but take up the second part and say We are called by thy name we may make more comfortable use of the former Why doest thou stand as a man astonished How doth a man astonished stand He stands still in a place as if he knew not which way to goe he is in a kinde of destraction first he goes one way and by and by he returns again The Lord we know knoweth his purpose from eternity but the Scriptures are pleased to expresse Gods wayes towards us in the similitude Hath not God stood amongst us as a man astonished God hath beene in a way of mercy and then stood still and then gone forward a little and afterward gone back again and yet back and back still and we have prayed and cryed and God hath stood as a man astonished as if he were not yet resolved which way to goe Let us pray earnestly to God that he would not stand as a man astonished but that the way of the Lords mercy may be made cleare before him and cleare before us But this I bring in to shew that the relation that people have to God is the ground of their encouragement to pray to God and when a people is rejected they lose this priviledge Our relations to God are very sweet things though ordinarily they are exceedingly abused yea they are glorious things As it is said of other relations Relations are of the least entity but of the greatest efficacy so it is here Our relations to God are of very great efficacy whatsoever the entity be and therefore to lose our relations to God especially this relation of Gods being ours and we being his is a sore and he avy curse Again You are not my people and I will not be your God Marke here the first is you are not my people before the second commeth I will not be your God VVe first begin with God in our apostacy before God begins with us in his rejection I would not have withdrawn my self from being your God if you had not first rejected me and would not be my people When God loveth he begins first we love not him but he loveth us first But when it comes to departing it then begins on our side wee first depart before the Lord doth and this is that which will be a dreadful aggravation to wicked men another day to think with themselves This evil is come upon us God is gone mercy is gone but who began this first where is the root and principle Thy perdition is of thy selfe I begin first and therefore all the losse of that grace and mercy which is in God I may thanke this proud this distempered this base passionate wretched heart of mine owne for it Again I will not be your God He doth not say you shall not have the fruite
as usual when we are in adversity to forget all promises When wee hear of mercy to Gods people we are taken up and never thinke of Gods wrath and on the other side when we heare of his wrath on unbeleeving hearts are taken up as wel and never think of his grace and mercy We ought to sanctifie the name of God in both when God is in away of justice look up to his grace and when he is in a way of grace look upon his justice and sanctifie that name of his likewise And for that end I shall give you two notable Texts of Scripture there are many of this kinde but two I shall give you that are as famous as any I know in the book of God the one that declareth to you that when God expresseth the greatest mercy yet then hee doth expresse greatest wrath and the other when God expresseth greatest wrath he then expresseth greatest mercy And I shall shew you the name of God oughto be sanctified in both The first is in that 34. of Exod. 6. 7. The Lord there when he passed by before Moses proclaimed The Lord the Lord God merciful and gracious long suffering and abundant in goodnesse and truth keeping mercy for thousands for giving iniquity transgression and sinne What abundance of mercy is here exprest Now it followes And that will by no meanes cleare the guilty visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children and upon the childrens children unto the third and fourth generation Here is an expression of great wrath And then for our sanctifying of Gods name in this it followes ver 8. And when Moses heard this he made hast and bowed his head toward the earth and worshipped before the Lord. Thus we must bow and worship before God in our sanctifying his Name in both together both his mercy and justice On the other side Nahum 1. 2. and soon God is jealous and the Lâ—rd revengeth the Lord revengeth and is furious the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries and he reserveth wrath for his enemies dreadful expressions yet ver 8. The Lord is slow to anger there is a mittigation at first Then he goeth on still in expressions of wrath But he is great in power and will not at all acquit the wicked and ver 5. The mountains quake at him and the hills melt and the earth is burnt at his presence yea the world and all that dwel therein who can stand before his indignation and who can abide the feircenesse of his anger his fury is powred out like fire and the Rocks are throwne downe by him What more terrible expressions of wrath then these that come from God here Now marke ver 7. The Lord is good and a strong hold in the day of trouble and he knoweth those that trust in him What a strong expression of grace is here observe it my brethren that in the middest of Gods anger yet God is good still a gracious heart must acknowledge God though he be provoked to anger yet to be a good God still and it is a good signe for the soul to fall downe before God when he is in the way of his wrath and to say the Lord is good As that good old man Eli did after the denuntiation of that dreadful sentence against him and his house by Samuel The word of the Lord is good let him doe what seemes him best All of you will say when God bestoweth avours upon you The Lord is good oh blessed be God he is a good God but when God revealeth his greatest wrath truely then the Lord is good Luther saith he will acknowledge God to be a good God though he should destroy all men in the world much more then is he to be acknowledged in a day of trouble when indeed he appears most graciously to his Saints The Lord is good and a strong hold in the day of trouble Is God a strong hold now when such wrath is revealed yea and specially now a strong hold to his Saints in the day of trouble and he knoweth those that trust in him for all his wrath is abroad in the world he knoweth those that trust in him Many men when they are angry they scarce know the difference betweene their foes and their friends Many when they go abroad if any displease them they come home and are angry with their wives with their servants with their children with their friends with every one about them they know not then who is a friend and who is not when they are in their passion their wives and children and servants wonder what the matter is with them Sure some body or other hath displeased my master abroad to day he is so touchie so angry upon every little thing My brethren It is a dishonour to you in the eyes of your servants and it layes low your authority in your families for them to see you come home in such a per that you know not how to be pleased though they have done nothing to displease you God doth not so though he be never so angry yet hee knowes those that trust in him Let Gods anger be never so publick and general abroad in the world if there be but a poor soul in the world that lies in a poor cottage in a hole that is gracious the Lord knowes it and takes notice of it and that soul shal know too that God doth know it It is true when the wrath of God is revealed abroad in the world seemes as if it would swallow up all those of the Saints whose spirits are weake and fearfull they are then afraid of Gods wrath that they shall be swallowed up in the common calamity be of good comfort God knowes those that trust in him even when his wrath is never so dreadful and general abroad in the world It is in this case with Gods children as it is with a childe in the mothers Armes if the father violently layes hold upon his servant and beates him and thrust him out of doores for his demerits there is such a terrible reflection from the fathers anger against the servant upon the childe that the poor childe falls a crying So it is with the children of God when they see God in a terrible way â—aying hold upon wicked men to execute wrath upon them they cry out they are afraid lest some evil should befall them too Oh no be of good comfort The Lord is good and a strong hold in the day of trouble and knoweth them that trust in him when his anger is never so great and general So it is here though this Israel be not my people yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the Sea for all that so you shall find it in the 15. ver of that first of Nahum Behold saith the Text upon the mountains the feete of him that bringeth good tidings What at this time though Gods way be in the whirl-winde
every thing and prize every little mercie Oh the tenth the hundreth part of that will not serve your turne now you vvould have been glad of then and blessed God if you had had it But now you know not your selves your hearts are raised up as your estates are VVell it is good for you to looke to the condition that once you were in vvhen you were low As vve reade of Agathâ—cles that King that was a Potters sonne and after advanced to a kingdom he vvould alwayes be served at his table in earthen vessels to put him in mind of that condition he was in before certainly if in any place in England it be seasonable to speake of this it is here in London where many that have been Potters children and in a low degree have been raised up high and have gotten great estates Let them remember in what condition once they were that they may be humbled and so may prevent that danger of being brought thither again Many put others in mind of it in a taunting vvay I know vvhat you were not long agoe I know vvhat your father vvas c. But doe you put your own soules in mind of this in an humbling way This is the vvay to continue mercies But now apply vve it a little to our selves for the generall and then vve shal conclude all Let us vvork this upon our hearts Look vve back to vvhat we vvere lately and let us check our hearts for any discontent in our present estate Not long since vvould not many of us have beene willing to have laid dovvn our lives to have purchased that mercy we have had this yeer or two God hath granted to us our former mercies raised us from our low condition of free cost hitherto God hath been afore hand with us and what if those mercies that are to come will be at some vvhat a dearer rate then those vvee have had already Those mercies vve have had already have been very precious and sweet but surely they that are to come are more precious and sweet and therefore vve may be content though they cost us deare Yet hovv vile are the spirits of men in forgetting the condition the sad condition they lately were in forgetting the Taxes and Monopolies and uncertainty of enjoying an thing that was your own and now if there be but a little charge comming you presently fall a murmuring and repining Oh these are heavy burthens the Parliament burthens the kingdome and the Couutrey and as good have ship-money and other taxes as these burthens Oh unworthy unworthy are you to live to see the goodnesse of the Lord in these dayes unworthy to have thine eyes open to see what God hath done and thus to murmur Thou shouldest magnifie Gods mercies and not murmur at his proceedings VVe have a notable parallel to this Numb 16. in the story of Corah Dathan and Abiram those murmurers when they were but in a little strait they come to Moses and say ver 13. Why hast thou brought us up out of a land that floweth with milks and honey What land was that that Moses brought them up out of that they said flowed with milke and honey It was the land of Egypt the land of their bondageâ— indeed they were promised a land of Canaan that should flowe with milke and honey and they put that upon the land of Egypt though they had been in bondage and slavery in Egypt and were now going to Canaan yet when they did but indure some trouble in the vvay and had but some opposition and were put to some straits then Egypt was the Land that flowed vvith milke and honey and who would come out of Egypt So though God be bringing us to Canaan to a blessed Land that floweth with milke and honey yet because there are some straits in the way some difficulties some oppositions that may cost us somewhat now how doe men cry out we vvere better before you talke of Reformation and such and such things but for our parts would vve might have but vvhat we had before and be as quiet as vve were then why will you bring us out of a Land that floweth with milke and honey Oh base murmuring and discontented spirits that forget what once they vvere and rather prize the bondage they were in before then are thankfull for Gods present mercies For us not to look back to Gods former mercies it goeth to the very heart of God God hath an expression that it frets him to the very heart You have it in Ezek. 16. 43. Because thou hast not remembred the dayes of thy youth but hast fretâ—ed me in all these things It is a thing that frets God at his heart to see a people so unworthy of mercie when God commeth in such wayes of mercie to them as he doth My brethren God hath done great things for us whatsoever others say and thinke Let them murmure and repine and say what they will let us say God hath done great things for us Let us lay to heart the condition we lately vvere in that so we may be stirred up now to seeke after God that wee may never be brought into that condition any more if they would have it again much good may it do them but for us let it be our care to seeke God and to use all lawfull meanes to prevent our bringing back to it again For even the very straits we now are in are an aggravation of our former misery and present mercie it should not therefore make our former misery or present mercie seeme lesse but greater How is that you will say Thus If now wee have so much helpe and power to hinder a malignant party that seeke our ruine yet they have so much strength and resolution what would have become of us if this had been before when we had no way nor no meanes to help us If men complaine now what vvould they have done then Therefore whereas we make use of our straits to make us thinke that our former misery was lesse and we are now in a sadder condition then before rather let us make it an aggravation of Gods mercie towards us and if wee be in such straits now when God hath raised up such meanes beyond all our thought to resist the flowing in of misery upon us Lord whether were wee a going what would have become of us if the streame which hath been so long a swelling had broke in upon us when there was no meanes to have resisted it VVe may well see now that if their intentions and resolutions be so strong for mischiefe as will not be hindered notwithstanding the present strength God hath granted us to oppose them surely they had most vile intentions and dreadfull things were determined against us which would have brought us low indeed and have made us the most miserable people upon the earth if God had not come in so mira culously for our help as he hath done at this
is the fruit of this This is set as the reason of the words immediately before Then shall the lame man leap as an Hart and the tongue of the dumb sing Because the Lord shall make the parched ground become a poole and the thirsty land springs of water this shall make the lame to leap as an Hart the tongue of the dumb to sing Though our tongues be dumb yet it should make us sing when we see God working good out of contraries when wee see things that of themselves tend to our ruin and would bring us to misery that are as the valley of Achor yet God working good out of them if wee have the hearts of men in us much more the hearts of Christians though we were dumb before this should make us sing Yea all this is brought in as an argument to strengthen the weak hands and the feeble knees and as a reason why those that have weake hearts should not feare because God workes good out of that which seemeth the greatest evill vers 4. Say to them that are of a fearefull heart be strong feare not and then followeth this in the 6. verse Are we in the valley of Achor a place of trouble and straits wee have cause to sing even in this valley of Achor for we have not yet been brought into any straits but God hath brought good out of them he hath turned the parched ground into a pool and the thirsty land into springs of water It is our great sin that when God calleth us to singing we are yet concluding of rejecting we are ready to think if we be brought into the valley of Achor we are presently cast off Oh no God calleth you to singing nothwithstanding you meet with difficulties Isa 49. 13. Sing O heavens saith the Text there he joyfull O earth breake forth into singing O mountaines for God hath comforted his people and will have mercy upon his afflicted But mark now the next words But Zion said the Lord hath forsaken me my God hath forgotten mee At that very time when the Lord was calling for singing even then they were concluding of rejecting Take we heed this be not our condition But take the words as then I told you as I conceived them to be the meaning of the spirit of God that this valley of Achor was some speciall mercy that God gave at first as a door of hope to further mercies he would give afterward and there they shall sing Then the observation is When the Lord is beginning with his Saints in the ways of mercy though they have not all that they would have yet it is a singing condition Though you be but yet brought into the valley of Achor and be but at the doore of hope and not entred into the door though you have not yet got the possession of all the mercy God intendeth for you yet God expects you should sing You must not stand grumbling whining complaining and murmuring at the door because you have not what you would have though God makes you wait at the door you must stand singing there It may be said of Gods mercy as of his word in Psal 119. 130. The entrance into thy word giveth light so the entrance of Gods works of mercy giveth light Psal 138. 5. Yea they shall sing in the wayes of the Lord for great is the glory of the Lord. In the ways of the Lord they shall sing though God be but in the wayes of his mercy and they have not what they would have yet they shall sing This is certainly one great reason why our doore of hope is not yet opened to us as we desire or at least that we have not that entrance that we would have at that door because we stand murmuring yea we stand quarrelling one with another at the doore whereas God expects that we should stand singing and praising his name there Though wee have not what wee desire yet let us blesse God that ever we lived to this day to see so much of God as we have done though we should never see more though the mercy we look for should be reserved for the generation that shall follow yet we have cause to blesse God while we live that we have seene and do see so much of God as we have done daily do Let us stand at our Fathers door singing and if we must sing at the foot of Zion what song shall we sing when we come to the height Ier. 31. 12. They shall come and sing in the height of Zion they shall flow to the bountifulnesse of the Lord. If there be any one with whom God is dealing in a way of mercy though you can see but a little light thorough the key-hole yet you should sing there There are many poor souls with vvhom God is beginning in very gracious ways yet because they have not their minds inlightned their hearts humbled as they desire power over corruptions abilities to performe duties as they expect they are presently ready to conclude against themselves surely the Lord will not have mercy we are rejected They think they have nothing because they have not what they vvould O unthankfull heart This is the very thing that keepeth thee under bondage because when the Lord is setting open a door of hope unto thee thou wilt not take notice of it but art presently murmuring and repining because thou hast not all that thou wouldest Wouldest thou enter in at this door and have God perfect the mercy he hath begun take notice of the beginnings and blesse God for what thou hast This would be an observation of marvey lous use to many a drooping soul if they would learne by this dayes coming hither to sing hereafter at the doore of hope Yet further They shall sing there as in the dayes of their youth It is the condition of Gods own people many times when first they enjoy liberty then to be in a singing condition but afterward to lose their joy At first indeed when Gods mercies were fresh to them in the dayes of their youth O how their hearts were taken how then they sung merrily and chearfully Moses and all the people but in processe of time it appeareth they had not kept up this singing this harmonious this melodious heart of theirs therefore God promiseth they should sing as in the dayes of their youth We finde it so in people when they first come to enjoy liberty out of bondage Church liberties Oh how they rejoyce in them how do they blesse God for them O how sweet are these mercies at their very hearts they rejoice that ever they lived to this time but within a while the flower of their youth is gone and they soone have the teats of their virginity bruised At first indeed O the sweetnesse but stay a while and you shall finde contention or scandoll arising amongst them or deadnesse of heart befalling them Oh the blessed
condition that God hath brought us to to have these liberties and ordinances according to his own way but within a while we may say as the Apostle to the Galatians Where is the blessednesse you spake of They would have pulled out their eyes for Paul What is become of all now All their beauty glory is quite damped let us take heed that when our hearts seem to be raised and mightily affected with mercies we do not soon loose our vigour heat It hath been so with England when they have had fresh mercies at first they rejoyced in them exceedingly I have read of the City of Berne when they were first delivered from Antichrist they wrote the day of their deliverance upon pillars with letters of gold Was it not so with us here in England I will only instance in that deliverance upon the fifth of November how mightily was both King and Parliament affected with it their hearts were exceedingly up then there was blessing God for their deliverance from Papists then there were prayers and thanksgivings set forth and in them this expression against Popery Whose faith is faction whose Religion is rebellion whose practice is murthering of soules and bodyes When the mercy was fresh how did their spirits worke then they profest against all kinde of Popery Reade but the Proclamation about the solemnity of that time and the expressions of the prayers then set forth and one would have thought verily then that Popery should never have prevailed in England again who would ever have thought it possible that a Popish Army should ever have had any countenance in England more Certainly if a Popish Army had been raised at that time when mens hearts were so up all the people of the land if it had been but with clubs would have risen and beaten them to pieces It is so with many young people when God first beginneth to worke upon their hearts O how are they for God! then their spirts are mightily up for Christ Psal 90. 14. O satisfie us early with thy mercies and then we shall be glad and rejoyce all the dayes of our lives It is a sweet thing when the latter part of that prayer followeth when God satisfieth young people with his mercy and that satisfaction abideth so as they rejoyce all the dayes of their lives afterward The Lord doth many times satisfie young ones with his mercy but they quickly grow dead and cold and their hearts are soone hardned and polluted and they doe not rejoyce all the dayes of their lives Another Observation that restored and recovered mercies are very sweet and precious mercies They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth They were once in a blessed sweet singing condition they had lost it but now God promiseth to recover them Iob 29. 2. O that I were as in months past as in the dayes when God preserved me when his candle shined upon my head and when by his light I warlked thorough darknesse as I was in the dayes of my youth when the secret of God was upon my Tabernacle Iob desireth this earnestly that he might have restored recovered mercies What a happy condition should I be in then saith he if it were now with me as in the dayes of my youth May not many in this place say so God hath been gracious to them in former dayes he hath given many sweet manifestations of his love many soule-ravishing communications of himself unto them but how have they lost them They may well say O that it were with us as in the dayes of our youth Oh that God would restore to us what mercy we once had what a blessed condition should we be in then But God here giveth a gracious promise that he will restore them that he will give them that which is the petition of David Psa 51. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation Lord I have lost it O that I might have it againe How happy should I be So Ps 132. 1. By the Rivers of Babylon there we sat down yea we wept there when we remembred Zion we hanged our harps upon the willowes They were in this sad condition but if one should have come to them and have said what will you say if you shall be restored againe and goe to Zion to Jerusalem againe and have songs there as much and as delightfull as before their hearts could not have held in them This mercy would be like that wine mentioned Cant. 7. 9. that is so sweet that it causeth the lips of those that are asleepe to speake If there be any life left such a mercy will raise and actuate it Psal 126. 1. 2. When the Lord turned againe the captivity of Zion our mouthes were filled with laughter and our tongues with singing when God granted them a recovered mercy As a poore prodigal that hath left his fathers house and afterward is come to beggery and misery and is under bondage is almost starved he sitteth down under a hedg wringing his hands falleth a lamenting the losse of his Fathers house and considering what comfort he had in his Fathers presence cryeth out of his folly and madnesse but if one should come and say to him what will you say if your Father should be reconciled to you and send for you home and promise to put you in as comfortable a condition as ever O how would this cause singing in his heart Thus God promiseth to his people that he would restore them to that singing condition they had lost They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth That which made this mercy so sweet was because it was a promised mercy Hence this Note Promised mercies are sweet mercies Luke 16. 61. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his people and hath raised up a home of salvation to us in the house of his servant David as he spake by the mouth of all his Prophets And ver 77. To performe the mercy promised there is the cause of singing Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that hath performed the mercy promised Giving out of a promise is sweet to a gracious heart it can sing then much more sweet is the promise when it cometh to be fulfilled 2 Chron. 20. 17. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord there is the promise Mark now how Jehosaphat and the people were affected with the promise And Jehosaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground and all Iudah and the Inhabitants of Ierusalem fell before the Lord worshipped the Lord. And the Levites and the child en of the Koathites the children of the Korhites shall stand up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voyce on high And ver 21. He appointed singers unto the Lord that should praise the beauty of holinesse and to say Praise the Lord for his mercy endureth for ever Jehosâ—phat had not got the promise fulfilled it was only
you who are true Israelites but in your blessing God now let present mercies be to you but as streames to bring you to the fountaine Consider of all the mercies along till you come to the fountaine even that Covenant that God hath made with Israel A fourth is All former mercies to Gods people should help Faith in beleeving future mercies That is raised from hence Why doth the Prophet tell them or comming out of the land of Egypt He speaks of some mercy that was to come to Israel now hee names this coming out of the land of Egypt that he might helpe and strengthen their Faith in the beleeving of what mercy was to come As if he should say That God that hath wrought so wonderfully for you in delivering you out of the land of Egypt is able and willing to make good his word in granting to you deliverance for time to come We have excellent Scriptures for this as Psal 66. 6. He turned the sea into dry land they went thorough the flood on foot there did we rejoyce in him Marke they went thorough the flood and there did we rejoyce in him How did we rejoyce in him it was many hundred yeares after that we came to rejoyce But upon the manifestation of Gods great goodnesse to his people in former dayes our faith commeth to be strengthened in Gods mercies for our times and there did we rejoyce in him we did rejoice in the worke of God when they went thorough the Red-sea upon dry land for it is an argument of Gods mercy to us of the power goodnesse and faithfulnesse of God to us Another temarkable Text is Hos 12. 4. Hee had power over the Angel he found him in Bethel and there he spake with us Marke he had power over the Angel he found him in Bethel VVho was that It was Jacob who many years before but there he spake with us hee did not speake with Jacob onely but there hee spake with us that is whatsoever goodnesse the Lord did shew to Jacob in Bethel it concerned us for the strengthening of our faith Mat. 22. 31. 32. Have ye not read that which was spoken unto you saying I am the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Iacob This was spoken to Moses many hundred yeares before but that expression of Gods grace then was a strengthening the faith of the godly when Christ spake and is the same to us now A fifth is where there is a proportion of mercies there ought to be a proportion of thankfulnesse They shall sing as they did in the day when they came out of Egypt I will grant unto you as great mercies as they had and I expect as great thankfulnesse from you as I had from them as they sung to my praise so must you sing too God sheweth as much mercy to you now as he hath done heretofore I appeale now to you nay God appeales to your consciences Is there a proportion of thankfulnesse as of mercies There hath been a time when you have sung to the praise of God when your hearts have been inlarged to give God praise why should it not be so now A sixt observation is deliverance out of Egypt is an ascending condition That ariseth from the words as they are in the Originall They shal ascend out of the land of Egypt so I told you the words were in the Hebrew as then God would never rest till he brought them up to Mount Zion so when God beginneth to deliver his people from Antichristian bondage they should never rest in their spirits untill they be got to the height of Reformation to the height of their deliverance that is to come to enjoy Gods Ordinances in his own wayes in the purity and the power of them This is our misery and our bâ—senesse that upon some little deliverance we presently are ready to rest whereas we should rise yet higher and higher and expect that God should goe on still with us and raise us in the wayes of mercy untill he hath brought us even to the top of Mount Zion Seventhly From the connection of these words with what followes They shall sing as in the day when they came up out of the land of Egypt and they shall call me Ishi and shall call me no more Baali for I will take even the very names of Baalim out of their mouths and they shall remember them no more that is there shall be a most glorious reformation they shal be delivered from all the remainders of their Idolatrous worship they shall not so much as remember their very names the Reformation shall be so perfect From thence the Observation is When God raiseth the spirits of people to rejoyce in his mercy then is the time for them if ever to set up a through Reformation then when their hearts are warmed inflamed and inlarged with the goodnesse of God unto them then is the time to cast out all the remainders of all superstition of all kinde of false worship I will give you two excellent Scriptures for this the one is Esay 30. 19. Thou shalt weep no more saith he he will be very gracious unto thee at the voyce of thy cry The Lord promiseth abundance of mercy he tells them that they shall weep no more he will be very gracious now marke what followeth in the 22. verse Ye shall defile the covering of thy graven Images of silver the ornaments of thy molten Images of gold thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth thou shalt say unto it Get thee hence The other Scripture is 2 Chron. 30. 26. there you finde that there was great joy in Jerusalem such joy as the text saith was not since the dayes of Solomon it was upon the celebration of their Passe-over there had not beene the like Marke then in the beginning of the next Chapter saith the text when all this was finished that is when they had celebrated a Passeover so full and had such abundance of joy such a joy as had not beene in Jerusalem since the time of Solomon Now all Israel went out to the Cities of Iudah and brake the Images in pieces and cut down the groves and threw down the high places and the Altars out of all Iudah Benjamin Their hearts were inflamed with the joy they had they went with resolution and brake down 〈◊〉 â—â—ages c. And marke it the Text saith it was 〈…〉 that did this 〈◊〉 went out into the Cities of Iudah and brake the the Images in pieces and threw down the high places the Altars out of all Iudah What had Israel to doe with Iudah Iudah and Israel were divided But now their hearts were so inflamed for God that they were not able to abide any false worship amongst their brethren though it belonged to Judah yet they would goe help their brethren to cast down all their Images and to cut down their Groves and
with them that sweetnesse and makes firme the mercy when they goe up and down the field and the beasts come not upon them to destroy them they can looke upon their present safety as enjoying it in the Covenant You will say the wicked can walke up and down in the fields and the beasts not destroy them Though they doe yet a godly man hath more sweetnesse in this then he in that he can see this his safety from the Covenant when he rides a journey his beast is not made an instrument of Gods wrath to dash out his braines perhaps it is so with his wicked neighbour that rides with him but that from whence the preservation is is different it is a mercy to the godly man form the Covenant that God hath made with him to preserve him in all his wayes it is but generall providence to the other wicked men may have the same mercies for the matter of them that the godly have yet there is a kernell in the mercy which onely the Saints enjoy There are two things observable in a mercy comming by Covenant 1. It is more sweet 2. More firme More sweet Psal 25. 10. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth to such as keepe his covenant This is a sweet promise a soule-satisfying promise more worth then all the riches of your City even that one promise all the passages of Gods ordinary providence are mercy and truth to those that keepe his Covenant Marke perhaps they are mercies to you there is a generall bounty you have in your ordinary preservation but they are not Mercy and truth to you there is the addition they are Mercy and truth to the godly that is they are such mercies as are bound to them by Covenant Therein David rejoyceth therefore saith he in the beginning of the Psalme I will lift up my heart unto God as amongst other reasons so for this that all the paths of God are not onely mercy but mercy and truth You have beene preserved and have had many mercies from God Well they are Gods mercies unto you but are they mercies and truth to you that is Doe they come to you in a way of promise Looke to that there is the sweetnesse of a mercy and it is a good signe of a gracious heart to looke more to the Originall whence mercy commeth then to the outward part of the mercy Secondly They are more firme Esay 54. 10. The mountaines shal depart the hills be removed but my kindnesse shall not depart from thee Why For the Covenant of my peace shall not be removed That mercy that you have I give it in a way of Covenant and the hills and mountaines shall depart rather then that kindnesse of mine shall depart 5. Is it such a blessed thing for God to make a Covenant with the beasts for us VVhat a mercy is it then for God to make a Covenant with our soules the Covenant that God makes with his people is a Covenant in Christ there is mercy It is a very observable place we have Gen. 17. concerning Abraham you shal find there that in ten verses of that Chap. God repeateth his Covenant which he made with Abraham thirteen times to note thus much that that was the mercy indeed that must satisfie Abraham in all his troubles sorrowes and afflictions as if God should say be satisfied with this Abraham that I have entred into Covenant with thee and thy seed I am a God in Covenant with thee And 2 Sam. 23. 5. there is a notable Text Although saith David my house be not so with God as I desire as I expect yet the Lord hath made me an everlasting Covenant ordered in all things and sure for this is all my salvation all my desire although he make it not to growe Take this Scripture Christians take it I say and make use of it in these times of trouble though things doe not go as you desire yet say as David did yet the Lord hath made a Covenant with us ordered and sure in all things ands all our this isalvation and all our desire 6. Is this a mercy for God to make a Covenant with the beasts for his people what a mercy is it then for God to make a Covenant with his Son for his people It is that we are to blesse god for that he will make a Covenant with brute beasts for our good but that God will make a Covenant with his owne son for our good for our eternall good That God should bring the second person in Trinity to be the head of the Covenant for us what a mercy is this Tit. 2. 1. the Apostle speaks there of eternall life that was promised before the world began Why what promise was there ever made before the world began to whom was this promise made who was there before the world began for God to make any promise unto It was onely the Son of God the second person in Trinity and there was a most blessed transaction between God the Father and God the Son for our everlasting good before the world began and upon that dependeth all our salvation and our hope When we reade the promises of the Gospel that the Lord hath given to us as branches of the Covenant of grace made with us we are ready to think we are poore weake creatures we cannot keepe Covenant with God we cannot performe the conditions of the Covenant But Christians know this thy peace the salvation of thy soul doth not depend so much upon a Covenant God hath made with thee as upon the Covenant he hath made with his Son there is the firmenesse the original the foundation of all thy good thy salvation and though thou art a poore weake creature that doth not keepe Covenant with the Lord yet the Son of God hath kept Covenant with the Father and hath perfectly performed all conditions the Father required of him the worke hath been perfected by the Son and here is our comfort Raise your drooping hearts by this meditation The second part of this peace and that is a promise of deliverance from hoftility from the enemy I will breake the bow and the sword and the battell out of the earth First Peace is a great blessing it is a great mercy to have the bow and the sword broke It is a part of the Covenant that God makes with his people to take away the instruments of hostility Esay 2. 4. God promiseth the breaking of swords into plough-shares and spears in pruning hooks You finde the contrary when God threatneth judgement to a people Joel 3. 10. he threatneth thus to beate their plongh-shares into swords and their pruning hooks into spears then they are in a sad condition It is a great deale better that their swords should be beaten into plow-shares then that the plow-shares should be beaten into swords that the speares should be made pruning hooks then that pruning
Gods care saith Bernard which is beyond providence such as is out of faithfulnes as well as out of love Christ here condescends to his Spouse as a man is willing to give satisfaction to his wife her friends though the truth is he would doe any thing in the world out of love to his wife yet in regard of her weaknesse and to satisfie some friends he is content to enter into bond to do any thing that is fitting it is good to make all things sure before-hand say her friends he presently yeilds for it is no other but what he is willing to doe without bonds onely to satisfie her and their minds Thus it is between Christ and his Spouse The truth is the love of Christ is enough to make a supply of any of our wants but wee are weake and would faine have things made sure therefore saith Christ to helpe our weakeness I will even enter into bond and you may be sure I will be faithfull then I will binde my faithfulnes to you for all the good you would have And this faithfulnesse of Christ is either in regard of the great Marriage-Covenant there hee will be sure to be faithfull to his Spouse Or in regard of all particular promises that are under things as it were There is the great marriage-covenant about reconciling God and paying all debts that are owing and satisfying Gods justice and bringing to eternall life but there are many under-promises and Christ will be faithfull in them all Ps 25. 10. you have a promise worth a kingdome All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth not onely mercy but mercy and truth mercy ingaged VVicked men may have mercy from God from the generall bounty and goodnesse and mercifull disposition of God but what the Saints have is from â—ruth as well as from mercy it is bound to them God stands much upon this that the hearts of his Saints should confide in him He accounts not himselfe honoured except we confide in him therefore marke how Christ suiteth himselfe unto our weaknesse that wee may confide in his faithfulnesse What is it saith he that you poore creatures do one to another when you would make things sure betweene you Wee answer thus Lord we ingage our selves by promise one to another I will do so saith Christ you shall have my promise my faithfull promise Acts 2. 39. Peter invites to Baptisme upon this ground because the promise is made to you and to your children and to as many as the Lord our God shal call The first he speakes to the Jews the other to the Gentiles As if he should say Come in and receive Baptisme for to you and to your children the promise is made to you that are Jews and to your children and to the Gentiles they have the promise that you have they come under the same Covenant for the maine the promise is to them and to their children too And this promise that Christ hatâ—ing aged himself in is no other then a draught of that which was before the world began from all eternity and therefore it is so much the more sure Tit. 1. 2. the Gospell is called a promise before the world began All promises in the Scripture are but a draught of that grand promise that God the Father made to his Son before the world began As if Christ should say Will you have engagement by promise This is past long agoe my Father hath engaged himself to me from all eternity if you have any promise it is but a draught of that first copie of that great promise my Father hath made me from all eternity VVhat doe you doe more when you would make things sure one to another VVe answer we doe not onely make a verball promise by word of mouth but we write it God hath therefore given us his Scripture and the chiefe thing in Scripture is the promise God hath set to his hand to his promise in Scripture Hence Luther hath a notable expression The whole Scripture doth especially aim at this that we should not doubt but believe confide hope that God is mercifull kind patient VVhat do you more Here you have my promise and my hand is there any thing else you use to do to make things sure VVe answer Lord wee take witnesses I will do so too saith God VVhen we would make things sure indeed we take not only two but three or four but half a dozen witnesses sometimes You shall have witnesses saith God as many as you will witnesses of all sorts witnesses in heaven witnesses in earth In heaven I Iohn 5. 7. The Father the Word and the holy Ghost witnesses authenticall of credit enough the three Persons in the Trinity upon earth the spirit the water and the blood What do you more to make a thing sure Lord we set to our seales too you shall have that too saith God you shall have seals of all sorts you shall have the broad seale of Heaven the Sacraments the seals of the Covenant and you shall have my privie seale I will take my Ring off my finger I will give you even the seale of the spirit and do but shew this seale it is authenticall enough Is there any thing more Yes we answer there is one thing more we take an oath I will do that too saith God that you may be sure and confide in my faithfulnesse Heb. 6. 17. God willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his councell consirmed it by his oath As if he should say there is no such need of an oath but I will be abundant to you because I would have you trust mee And mark this is for the sake of the heirs of promise God would never have done this for other men it is for your sakes onely who are the heirs of promise in regard of your weaknesse he conrfims all with an oath And if wee would have things sure wee will not have the oath of such as are of no great credit Mark therefore it is that God sweareth and that by the greatest oath ver 13. Because he could sweare by no greater saith the text he sware by himselfe Is there any thing more saith God that you use to do among your selves to make things sure Yes Lord we use to take a pawn too You shall have that too saith he I will give you a pawn and such a pawn as if you never had any thing more you would be happie what is that 2 Cor. 1. 22. Who hath sealed us and given us the earnest of his spirit in our hearts I will send my spirit to be an earnest of all the good that I intend to do for you everlastingly Is there any thing else you would require of me that you may confide in me Yes if God would doe some great notable work as a beginning as an ingagement of that which is to come after this is yet more then a
I will sow thee there shall come a blessing upon thee and though thou beest scattered up and down in the earth yet in all places thou shalt be as seed from whence my Church shall spring Hence the notes are First that Gods people are the seed of the earth But of that before in the latter end of the first Chapter onely I will adde a note of Ribera about it The seed saith he lies under the clods and at length fructifies so should the Saints be content to lie under the clods and though they may seem in regard of their afflicted condition to be dead to be rotten yet they shall be glorious and fructifie afterward Before the time of the Churches glory times of great calamity and distresse come which this rotting of the seed before the fructifying sets out unto us Secondly every godly man should so live as either in life or death hee should be as a seed from whence many may spring he should be a meanes that many should be begotten to God It is reported of Cicilia in the history of the Church a poore Virgin that by her gracious behaviour in her mattyrdome she was the means of converting four hundred to Christ As in the Indies one corn bringeth forth divers hundreds so we should labour to convert as many as wee can that some that live after may continue to beare up the name of Christ and the profession of his truth Especially be carefull of your children leave them as seed to hold up the name of God in thy family when thou art dead and gone And further I will sow her to my selfe The Saints are sowen unto Christ they are seed for Christ therefore all their fruit must be given up unto Christ Christ must have all the fruit we bear who should have the fruit but he that soweth it Therefore Cant. 7. 13. All manner of pleasant fruits new old which I have laid up for thee O my beloved Are we able to bear any fruit Let us lay it up all for Jesus Christ for it is he that soweth us unto himselfe we must not sow to our selves not to the flesh for then wee shall reap corruption but all for Christ And I will shew mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy Divers things about Gods shewing mercy after rejection were spoken of in the first Chap. Only these notes for the present There are none so rejected as that they can conclude that they shall never have mercy those that have committed the sinne against the holy Ghost excepted though Israel had not obtained mercy though they were cast out yea cast out to the beasts to be devoured yea saith God I will shew mercy upon her 2. Children of wicked parents may at length obtain mercy from God Though Israel be cast off yet her children shall have mercy A comfort to us in regard of the Idolatry of our fore fathers yea a comfort in the regard of the children that are to come Our fore fathers have broken the Covenant why may not we obtaine mercy But suppose we should be the generation of Gods wrath and not obtaine mercy yet we may have hope that the posterity following shall have mercy Thirdly Mercy after it is thought to be past if then it come Oh it is sweet mercy indeed when she seemed to be utterly rejected then to have mercy shewed this is sweet Fourthly Mercy is the cause of all the good the Saints have One Scripture for it Psal 57. 3. Send from heaven saith David David was in the Cave in a poor condition hunted for his life persecuted by Saul I see little hope from earth saith he therefore O Lord send from heaven What shall God send Angels from heaven to deliver thee David No but mark what followeth God shal send forth his mercy his truth as if he should say Lord though I have no help in earth though I see no Angels from heaven to helpe me yet let me have thy mercy and truth and that is enough This satisfies a gracous heart if he may have Gods mercy and his truth that is Gods mercy revealed in a promise Lastly God hath a speciall day of mercy for his people for his Churches I will have mercy upon her that hath not obtained mercy Let us cry to God for the hastening of this day let us open the miseries of our own Kingdome and of Ireland Oh when shall this day come that thou wilt shew mercy to thy owne people which thou hast told us of Oh that that day may hasten Come Lord Jesus come quickly And I will say to them which were not my people This is that we had in the first Chapter onely with some differences there it is In the place where it was said yee are not my people And I shewed you when I opened that place both out of the Romanes and out of Peter how the Apostle makes use both of that in the first Chapter and this here in the second onely take a hint of the truths in it First God hath a special interest in his people they are his people they are called his peculiar people Tit. 2. 14. The word hath this emphasis in it God lookes upon all other things as accidents in comparison and his substance is his people they are his very portion as Deut. 33. 19. and Exod. 19. 5. they are his peculiar treasure above all people in the world and Esay 19. 25. Assyria the worke of my hands and Israel mine inheritance I have made all people but Israel is mine inheritance This is the happines of the Saints therefore they are not as other people are Num. 23. 9. This people shall dwell alone and shall not be reckoned among the Nations this is a great ground of prayer Lord leave us not we are thy people called by thy name we have an interest in thee Againe This is an argument to walke so as God may not be dishonored by us for we are his people If those in a mans family walke disorderly it is a dishonour to the Master of the family it is no dishonour to him for a stranger or one who hath little reference to him to walke disorderly It is not so much dishonour to God for the wicked to walke disorderly as for the Saints in regard of their neerenesse to God And besides their light is as I told you three story high and if they sin they sin against a greater light then others doe their sin is greater then the sinne of the wicked in that regard Further I will say to them which were not my people thou art my people I will own them before all the world It is a great mercy for God to make it knowne to the world that his people are his people The world will not beleeve it they think they are a poor contemptible people but there shall come a day that I will make it knowne they are
expression of much love also to Israel but yet withall God tells them of that meane and low estate they are like to be in before that time comes for the fulfilling of all that good that God intends to them God purposes great mercy for them his heart is much set upon them but they must for a long time beare their iniquity they must be brought into a vile and desolate condition in their captivity even untill a second appearing of Christ But in all this time the heart of God would be toward them his intentions would be strong for good to that people above all the people upon the face of the earth though they might seeme to be utterly rejected of the Lord and that for many yeers yet hee would look toward them as a people that he intended yet to marry unto himself in time mercy should breake forth gloriously upon them and his name should be magnified in their returning unto him so as their hearts should melt toward his goodnesse they should not abuse it any more as formerly they had done but they should returne and seeke the Lord their God and David their King and feare the Lord and his goodnesse in the latter dayes This is the scope of the Chapter In which you have three things 1. Gods love continued unto an adulteresse Israel 2. The low and mean condition of this adulteresse for a long time 3. The returne of God in infinite mercy toward them at the latter day together with their returne unto him And the Lord said unto me goe yet love a woman beloved of her friend yet an adulter esse We have here a new injunction to the Prophet and that somewhat harder then his former In the first Chapter God commanded him to goe and take awife of whoredomes but here God commanded him to love an adulteresse which is somewhat more then to take her unto himself What that was of taking a wife of whoredomes hath been opened in the former Chapter and may spare some labour in this It is here a vision as it was there As if God should say unto Hosea Hosea it is just with me as it would be with thee if thou shouldst goe and have a wife an Adulteresse notwithstanding all the love she hath found yet still an Adulteresse thine heart should be upon her so as thou couldest not take thy heart from her but thou must needs love this Adulteresse still This people whom I have loved for whom I have done so much good yet they have gone a whoring from me they are an Adulteresse yet for all that my heart cannot be taken off from them but is still toward them yet I love them This is through the strength of the Covenant that Gods love is so permanent Others who are not in covenant with him God casts out for lesser sins for any sins but as for his people who are in Covenant with him no not their adulteries their idolatries takes not the heart of God wholly from them Surely then if thou canst appeale to God O Lord thou knowest all things knowest that there is nothing of thy mind revealed to me but my heart is ready to do it and if I faile in any thing thou knowest it is the greatest burden of my soul O that I knew more of thy minde and that I had power to doe more surely God will love thee you heare he loves his people though an adulteresse as before so now take this lesson thy sinnes cannot over come Gods goodnesse let Gods goodnesse overcome thy sinfulnesse An adulteresse beloved of her friend This is as some carry it Calvin Vatablus and many others beloved of her husband as if God should say had they any such excuse for their departings from me that I have been a bitter husband to them that I have used them hardly and rigidly then indeed they might have some plea but I have loved them dearly I have done much for them they were beloved of me I have carried my selfe to them in the most friendly way that possibly could be yet they are gone a whoring from me The wife that followes other lovers thinks if she have but this to say her husband is hard to her hee cares not for her he loves her not it excuses in part her adulteries and so the husband a company keeper an adulterer if he can say what will you have me to doe I never come home but my wife is alwayes bâ—awling and she loves other men he thinks this is plea enough for him But Israel could not have this excuse for her selfe for she was an Adulteresse yet beloved of the Lord. If we take the words thus the notes briefly would be these First The husband should be a friend to his wife There should be nothing but friendly carriage betweene man and wife Yea the love of the husband to the wife should farr surmount the love of any friend in the world but a friend at least to comfort her to cherrish her in time of sorrowes to beare the burthen of affliction with her and so the wife towards the husband Secondly A base heart will be base against all bonds of love beloved of her friend yet an adultoresse if you should ask who is he or where is he that is so base Lay thy hand upon thine owne heart and consider what the love of God hath been towards thee all the dayes of thy life and how thou hast carried thy selfe toward him what love thou hast had from God that might breake the heart of a devill yet when any temptation comes to draw thee from God thy base heart listens to it Thirdly It is a great aggravation of sin to sinne against much love We ought to doe our duties to those that we stand in relation unto though they doe not their duty to us if a wife hath a froward husband a bitter churlish rugged wicked ungodly husband yet she is bound to doe her duty to him she is bound to love him to obey him to be observant of him in what may give him all lawfull content So if servants have froward churlish cruel Masters or Mastresses yet they are bound to be obedient to them 1 Pet. 2. 18. Be subject to your masters not onely to those that rae good and gentle but to the froward It is no sufficient excuse for the wife to say My husband is froward and unquiet and therefore what shall I doe Nor for the servant to say My Master or Mistresse are unreasonable they are cruell what can I doe You must doe your duty to them though they doe not theirs to you But if you have a loving husband tender over you then love is required much more Love above all things should draw the heart the knowledge that it is duty may force obedience but it is love that draws the heart most kindly So if a servant have a godly Master and Mistresse who respects and tenders his good if
hee would not take such an unlawfull course then but he searched to see whatsin was amongst the people that caused God to refuse to give him an answer so you have it in the case of Jonathan 1 Sam. 14. 33. when he took the honey he enquired of God and God answered not and Saul said draw neere and see wherein this sin hath beene this day But afterward he grew to a greate◠height of evill when he was in a strait and God answered him not presently he goeth to the witch but it was when he was near destruction The note from thence is VVicked men neare destruction as Saul was finding things in a confusion and God not shewing them what is to be done presently are in a rage against God then they frer and seeke after unlawfull means to help them The Lord forbid that this should b◠our condition Let not us say things are now in such a confusion that we know not how to find out the mind of God we consult with Ministers and they know not what to say they have cast out such a government and they know not what to bring in and therefore it were better we were as before If this should be our teasoning it is a signe we are like Saul nigh to destruction Let us be content to wayte they shall be many dayes without a King c. and then they shal return this shall be the fruite of being without a King and Prince Ephod and Sacrifice not vexing and raging but returning to God and repenting It things be worse we be brought into greater straits then ever we thought of let us not murmur but let us repent Every one is complaining but who is repenting If there were as much repenting as there is murmuring then we should soone know the minde of God Then they shall returne Here is the use of sanctified affliction it is to cause returning to God Jerome expresses the life of an impenitent sinner by a line stretched out he goes saith he from the center in a right line and so goes in infinitum from it but a penitent sinner is like a line bent and turning back to the center though by sin he goes from it yet by repentance he turnes to it again they are gone from me a great way saith God but I will give them a turne they shal bend back again and return to me They shall returne Repentance is set out by this vvord to note the folly of sinne In sin thou goest out of the way and the truth is though you thinke you choose a good way for your self yet you must either come back again or perish It is just like a man travelling in a rode and he sees a dirty lane before him which he is told is the way he must goe there but on the other side of the hedg he seeth a green and pleasant vvay and he gets over into that way and so perhaps rides on a mile or two at length he is compast about with ditches and rivers so that he must either return back or else lie there starve he returnes back with shame and if any one that before told him of the other way see him he tells him now of his folly I told you that the other was the way and that if you went over the hedge you must come back again So it is with sinners there are wayes of God that go directly to heaven but because those wayes are rugged and they meet with trouble and persecution in them they see by-ways that leade to hell that are more plaine smooth they get over they will transgresse for that is the word for sinne they are got over now they are merry sriske up and down for a while in this fine way but friend you must come backe again and if ever you mean to be saved you must goe in the way that you have refused Further they shal return and seeke the Lord their God Here is an encouragement for old sinners The Jews have been above 1600. years in this wofull condition for saking God but in their latter dayes they shall returne and seeke the Lord and God shall be mercifull to them Hast thou been forty fifty sixty years going from God there is hope for thy soul Oh returne return you old sinners But further 〈◊〉 shall return to Jehovah and seeke him Jer. 4. 1. If thou wilt returne O Israel saith the Lord return unto me They shal not return from one false way of worship to another but from the false way to the true they shall return to God It is that we had now need look unto We must not think it enough to cast one false way of government out of the Church and turn to another though not so ill yet not Gods if out of any politicke pretence we reject the way of God it will prove a sore evil unto us it is one thing not to be able to bring in the way of Christ and another to reject it They shall seek Jehovah not their Idols but God himself The word signifies conatu ac studio quaerere to seek with endeavouring with study rather then meerly to ask and enquire they shall be studious in asking after God They shall seek the Lord that is First They shall seeke his face and favour for the pardon of all their evill wayes they shall come and acknowledge their false wayes and their doings which have not been good and seek mercy for pardon Secondly They shall seek the Lord that is they shall seeke the true worship of the Lord. Calvin in a Sermon upon that place Seeke ye my face interprets it to be seeking the Ordinances of God the true worship of God so Psal 105. 4. Seeke the Lord his strength what is meant by the strength of God there It is the Arke for that Psalme was made at the bringing in of the Arke into the place that David had prepared as you may see by comparing that Psalme with the 1 Chron 16. the Arke of God is called the strength of God Psal 78. 61. He gave his strength into captivity Surely if the true worship of God be the strength of God it is our strength too a people are then strong when they entertaine the Arke of God the true worship of God and then indeed we seeke God aright when we seeke to know the way of his worship Lastly They shal seek the Lord that is they shall seeke to know his will in all their wayes and to do it It is not enough for them to be content to do just that which shall be put upon them but they shall seek to know what his minde his worship is Some yeeld thus far to God if any come to them and convince them that this is to be done then they will do it they dare not then but yeeld to it but when the heart is in a true repenting frame it is then in a seeking
people but the powers of Kings and Emperours the highest powers in the world whatsoever is lofty in the world shall be shaken when Christ comes to take the kingdom to himself the Father will set him King upon his holy hill Though the Kings of the earth set themselves and the Rulers take counsell together against the Lord against his Anoynted saying Let us break their bonds asunder and cast away their cords from us he that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh the Lord shall have them in derision then shall he speake to them in his wrath and vex them in his sore displeasure Yet have I set my King upon my holy hill of Zion yet have I done it though the kings of the earth and great ones of the world fret vex and rage and gather power together though they blaspheme and say he shall not raigne the Lord sitteth in heaven and laugheth at them let them do what they can and gather what strength they can oppose to the uttermost they can Yet will I set my King upon my holy hill This is acceptable news it is the joyfull voyce of the Gospel to tell you of Christs comming to raigne in the world Esay 52. 7. How beautifull upon the mountaines are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings What are those good tidings this tidings that saith unto Zion Thy Godraigneth This is the triumph of the Church Esay 33. 22. The Lord is our judge the Lord is our law-giver the Lord is our King for then shall the Churches be delivered from the oppression of all Tyrants in the world And this Kingdom of Christs shall indeed be like Davids kingdome Christ shal be David the King I might shew you the parallels in many things but I will only parallel the kingdome of Christ and of David in these two particulars First David of all the Princes that ever were was one of the most gentle he was exceeding loving and sweet unto his subjects that you shal finde 1 Chron. 28. 2. Then David the King stood up upon his feet said he are me my brethren and my people Marke how a King speaks speaking to his people he stood upon his feet and said heare me my brethren and my people Thus the kingdome of Christ is set out to us Psal 45. 4. In thy Majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meeknesse Christ shall be a most meeke King hee shall not be a bloody King to his people he shall not be a King â—â—â—ing in viòlence and harshness so as not to care for the love of his people his singer shall not be heavier then the loynes of others but he shall rule his people with all gentleness Therefore the government of Christ is set out 〈◊〉 a sheâ—he 〈…〉 leading those that are with young 〈◊〉 â—his David David and CHRIST are parallel Psal 78. 70. 71. He chose David his servant tooke him from the sheep-folds from following the ewes great with young he brought him to feed Jacob his people and Israel his inheritance So the Kingdome of Christ Esay 40. having spoken ver 9. of the glad tidings of the Kingdome it followeth He shall feed his flocke like a shepheard he shall gather the lambs with his arme and carry them in his bosome and shall gently leade those that are with young When Christ shal raigne he shal have great respect to the good and comfort of his people over whom heraigneth he shall not raigne over them without regard to their liberties and what may be for the comfort of their lives the good of his people and his own glory shall be put both in one Secondly David their King in regard of faithfulnesse David was exceeding faithfull to his people and therefore the mercies of God in Christ are called the sure mercies of David because David was found faithfull before the Lord. Psal 45. 4. is the Prophesie of Christs Kingdom the Text saith In thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth and meekness and righteousnesse there shall be righteousness in the Kingdome of Christ This is a blessed thing when we may confide and fully venture our estates liberties and our lives upon the promises of those who are above us VVe know how many there are about great personages to take them off from those things that they have promised though never so seriously and with never such solemne protestations to performe them I will give you a story or two remarkable for this to shew what danger people have been in when they have confided upon the promises of Princes when there have beene those about them that endeavoured to take of their hearts from performing what they had ingaged themselves to You shall finde in the life of Edward the sixth this story The King sends his Letters to London in the behalfe of the Duke of Somerset the then Protector there were divers of the Lords rose up against him thinking he did oppresse the people and they sent the same time their Letters to London for their aide and assistance hereupon there was a Common Counsell called in the City and amongst them there was one that the story saith was a wise and an honest man one George Stadlowe and he speakes thus to the Counsell I remember saith he a story written in Fabians Chronicle of the wars between Henry the third and his Barons at which time the Baronsdemanded aide of the City of London as our Lords do now and that in a rightfull cause for the good of the Common-wealth for the execution of divers good lawes against the King who would not suffer those lawes to be put in execution and the City did aide them and it came unto an open bartell and the Lords prevailed against the King and tooke the King and his sonne prisoners and upon certaine conditions the Lords restored the King his son again to their liberties amongst other conditions this was one that the King should not only grant his pardon to the Lords but also to the Citizens of London which was granted and the condition of their accommodation of peace were ratifâ—ed by act of Parliament but saith the story what followed of it was it forgotten no surely nor forgiven neither during the Kingslife the libeties of the Cities were taken away strangers were appointed to be our head governours the Citizens their bodies and goods were given away and so from one persecution to another they were most miserably afflicted Again in the history of Queen Maries time we find that Qeene Mary because there was some dispute about her comming to the Crowne at that time she went down into Suffolke to the place where the Duke that then rose up for another was most hated and she being at Framingham Castle the Suffolke men came to her and promised their â—ide upon condition that she would not attemp the alteration of Religion which her brother King Edward before had established she promised them there should be no innovation of
have no time nor no ability to recompence him but he must suffer and suffer for ever it would be a shame to you to owne him So God is pleased to speake here because I have prepared for them such a City though they be in present persecution I am not ashamed to own them for my people and I doe not account it any dishonour to me for there is a time coming that will answer all objections whatsoever This is the goodness of God They shall feare his goodnesse Feare it how In these severall regards First They shall admire at his goodnesse and in their admirations even stand amazed at it the feare of amazement 2 Thes 1. 10. When Christ shall come he shall come to be admired of his Saints Luke 5. 26. The text saith they were all amazed and glorified God and were filled with feare saying We have seene strange things to day VVhen this goodnesse of God shall come all the Saints shall stand admiring it with amazement say one unto another we did heretofore heare of Prophesies and promises and we thought when they were opened to us our hearts did burn within us O they were blessed things but now here is goodness we never thought of this is higher and more glorious then ever we imagined Thus they shall feare the Lord his goodness You have such a place Jer. 23. 9. It shal be to me a name of joy apraise and an honour before all the Nations of the earth When people shal heare of all the good that I do unto them they shal fear tremble for all the goodnes for all the prosperity that I procure unto it Secondly Feare this goodness they shall upon this fall down and worship this God with feare Oh how shall their hearts adore this God because of this his goodnesse As we reade of Moses Exod. 34. 8. God had told him that he would make all his goodnesse passe before him now when God came and passed by before him and proclaimed his goodness The Lord the Lord God mercifull and gracious long-suffering and abundant in goodnesse and truth keeping mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity and transgression and sinne The Text saith When Moses heard this he made haste and bowed his head and worshipped before the Lord. There is nothing will cause a gracious heart to make more haste to worship God then the beholding the glory and lustre of Gods grace and goodnesse then the heart will not stand dallying and triffling any longer but will make haste to worship before the Lord. Many times God shews his greatness unto you and that convinceth your consciences a little and you think you must leave your sinfull wayes then temptation prevailes over you againe but when God comes and makes known his goodnes then the heart stands out against the Lord no more but it gives up it selfe to the Lord in an everlasting covenant Thirdly They shall feare his goodness they shall feare to offend this goodness of God It shal be a mighty ingagement upon their hearts to walke close with God because of his goodness This is a sweet disposition indeed Then it is a sweet disposition when the heart hath been likewise humbled before God and his justice and now feares God and his goodness Mark a note in this by the way Whereas many will say O the goodnes of God will breake our hearts if Ministers did preach onely his goodnes◠but when they preach the Law when we heare of terrour that hardneth our hearts Take heed of this there is more evil in this then you are aware A heart that is truly gracious will fall down before the Lord any way and it is not a good signe to be wrought upon only by the goodness of God it may come through much stubbornness of heart for one to be of such a disposition to be onely wrought upon by kindness Did you never know a stour servant or a stout child that so long as you are dispeased with him he would stand out against you still but perhaps if you yeeld to him a little he would yeeld to you Is this a good disposition is not this stoutness and pride in a child or in a servant or in a neighbour that will never yeeld to you till you yeeld to him This is just for all the world the disposition of many people so long as they heare of Gods greatness and terrours of the Law and Gods justice they are hardned what is that that is they stand it out stoutly against God notwithstanding his wrath is revealed from heaven But say they when Gods goodnes is preached then they yeeld that is as much as to say except God yeeld to them they will not yeeld to God But when I can yeeld hoth ways fear his goodnes his justice then it is as a signe of a gracious disposion indeed They shal feare his goodness so as they shall be no longer wanton upon the goodnes of God they shal not slight Gods goodness they shal not do evil because God is good but they shall fear his goodness We have a generation of men who doe extreamely abuse the goodness of God at this day even Gods goodness in the Gospell in those blessed things revealed to us in JESUS CHRIST As thus VVe finde this revealed in the Gospel that it is God that must worke the will and the deed the Covenant of grace is such as that God doth not only require but work all for us how is this goodness mis-interpreted and abused Therefore say they what need we do any thing Why doe Ministers urge people to duties Your principle is good the truth is good that it is God that works all in the Covenant of grace but this distinction is very absurd and vile and an abuse of Gods goodnesse and therefore you must not work together with the Lord as rational creatures Again The Gospel reveales to us the righteousness of God in Christ that we must not stand before God in our own righteousnesse but it must be in the righteousness of Christ this principle is good O but what abuse of this goodness is there 〈◊〉 false doctrines and absurd consequences drawn from it therefore to make conscience of duties what is it but legall they are but duty whore-mongers such kinde of bold and absurd expressions come from them Oh wanton wanton spirits who do not feare God and his goodness but abuse God his goodness Agaiu The Scripture tells us in the Gospel that all sins unto believers are pardoned in Christ all sins both great and smal there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ no not one moment of an houre after they are once justified this is Gods goodnesse and thou shouldest feare it here is the principle right but the deductions consequences are vile therefore to preach that we must be humbled for sin this is legall preaching neither will these men ever confesse their sins because of this goodness
Abraham and subject themselves to the God of Abraham they shall be the seed of Abraham and so they shall be the children of Israel as well as you and thus God will make good his word And so the Apostle Rom. 9. doth quote this Scripture about Gods casting off of the people of Israel threatned here by Hosea ver 25. As he saith also in Hosea I will call them my people that were not my people This is the very Text that the Apostle there quoteth though all the words are not quoted and it is a very good thing to acquaint your selves with the Scripture and to see how one Scripture lookes towards another and specially in the new Testament to see how the old Testament is quoted This I say the Apostle applyeth to the Gentiles and the holy Ghost who is the best interpreter of Scriptures there shewes that it is at least in part fulfilled in so many of the Gentiles comming in and being converted to the faith of the true Messia There are this and many other excellent Prophesies concerning the glory of Israel that were made good in part in the first times of the Gospel but that was but as the first fruites of the fulfilling of those promises Prophesies the accomplishment of them is yet certainly to come when the fulnesse of the Gentiles shall come in and the Jews be converted then not onely the spiritual seed but the very carnal seed of Abraham shall have this promise made good and shall be multiplyed and come into the faith too Rom. 11. 26. The Apostle speakes there of a general salvation of Israel that was yet to come after the fulnesse of the Gentiles So it appears plainly that those Prophesies concerning the glory of Israel though they were in part made good in the first times of the Gospel yet there was a further accomplishment of them after when there should be a fulnesse of the Gentiles come in and then Israel should be saved too I might spend a great deale of time in shewing how many promises concerning the excellency of the Church were made good in part in the first times of the Gospel and yet that but as the first fruites and to be fully made good afterwards And certainly this promise as we shall afterward come to know it is not yet throughly fulfilled though it was in part made good at the calling of the Gentiles there is a further degree of it to be accomplished another day of which hereafter From hence the words being thus opened to you take these observations as they do immediately spring from them First that all beleevers though of the Gentiles are of the seed of Abraham they are of Israel and therefore have the same priviledges with Israel the same in effect yea as we shall see afterward better They are all the heirs of Abraham who in Rom. 4. is said to be the heir of the world they have the dignity of Israel to be the peculiar people of the Lord to be the treasure to be Gods portion Whatsoever you reade of Israel of excellent titles and appellations about Israel they belong now to all beleevers though they be the children of the Gentiles A comfortable sweet point to us of the Gentiles Secondly God hath a time to bring in abundance of people to the profession of the faith to bring in multitudes even as the sand of the sea-shore He will do it and he hath wayes enough to accomplish it Though there is for the present this reproach upon the way and people of God that they are but a few a company of poore mean kinde of people a handful and what are they in comparison of the rest This reproach my brethren will be wiped away we may yet expect that before the world be come to an end that the greatest part shall come in imbrace the faith of Christ and come to be godly too ful vision in which he saw a man of Macedonia appearing to him and praying him to come over to Macedonia help them one would have thought that when Paul had gone to preach there all should have come flocking in and there should have beene a glorious worke done that hee should have brought in a great number to the faith But when he came to Macedonia he was faine to go into the fields by a rivers side to preach and onely a few women came there to heare him there was all the Auditory he had and amongst them there was but one poor woman wrought upon God opened the heart of Lydia Here was all the great do that was upon such a mighty call and yet we know how gloriously God went on with Paul This I note to confirm you in this that though the beginnings be very small yet we may expect a glorious increase afterward As it was with the Church at the beginning so it will be here That which Bildad said of Job Chap. 8. 7. may well be applyed to the Church Though the beginning of it be small yet the latter end of it shall greatly increase But thirdly As God hath a time to multiply his Church so it is a great blessing to the Church of God when it is multiplyed It is a fruite of Gods great grace and mercy to make the Church to be a numerous people As the multitude of Subjects is the glory of a Prince so it is the glory of Jesus Christ and therefore it was prophesied of him that the Church should come in as the dew of the morning Psal 110. 3. Thus it began in the Primitive times in the Apostles dayes and presently after multitudes came into the Church I remember Jerome Writing to Cromatius saith that there might be computed for every day in the yeere except in the first of January five thousand Martyrs therfore the Church was grown to a numerous multitude And Tertullian speakes in his time that they were become so numerous then that in his Apologetiques he tells the Heathen that they had filled their Cities and that if they would they had strength enough to make their party good against them but they were patient and submitted themselves to their Tyranny I know many make this of Tertullian an argument that men must lay down their necks and suffer their throats to be cut if those that are above them will it and if they cannot obey actively they must obey passively any thing that is acording to the will of such as are over them Why say they did not the Christians so in the Primitive times Yes the Christians did so they though they were under Idolaters and were commanded to deny Christ which was utterly unlawful yet though they could not obey actively they obeyed passively they did subject and submit themselves to all their rage and though they had strength yet they would not resist Why should not Christians do so now You are exceedingly gulled with this argument many times true we are bound to obey
young ones upon her wings that if any shoot at you to hurt you they must shoote through me first before they can come at you This was Gods mercy to them when they were in the wast howling wildernesse here is not such an And they were in a wildernesse yet God had much mercy upon them Thirdly milestone God brought them into a dry Land in this wildernesse they wanted water yet though they were ready to murmure he made them sucke honey out of the rocke and oile out of the flinty rocke Deut. 32. 13. You will say when did God make them suck honey out of the rock wee read indeed that water gushed out of the rocke in a dry land but here the Scripture speaks that he made them suck honey oile out of the flinty rock It is a note of Chrysostome speaking upon this very thing of Gods making them sucke honey and oile out of the rocke Not saith he that there was indeed honey or oyle came out of the rock but because they being in the wildernesse and in such great want the water that came out of the rock was to them as sweet and delightfull as if it had beene honey or oyle Thence he gathered that note that want and necessity will make every thing very sweet and comfortable water will be as honey and oile to them that want When you are at your full tables This wine pleaseth you not and that beere pleaseth you not but if you were in necessitie water would be as wine it would be as honey and oile to you Yea but what say you to the fourth And He will slay them with thirst Can you shew us any place wherein God did slay his people yet shew mercie to them Yes I can There is a place where it is said God slew his people yet for all that at that very time he shewed abundance of mercie to his people when God did come with his sword in his hand yet with abundance of compassion in his heart The Scripture is in Psal 78. 34. Marke what the Text saith there When he slew them then they sought him and they returned and enquired early after God and they remembred that God was their Rocke Well they sought him and they remembred this that God was their Redeemer but did God redeeme them at that time Yes verse 38. He being full of compassion for gave their iniquity and destroyed them not yea many a time he turned his anger away and did not stir up all his wrath Or as the old Translation hath it He called backe his anger which here he will not doe He was full of compassion and forgave their iniquity and called back his anger though he did slay them at that time He denieth to doe it here he letteth out his anger here to the full and will not call it back I will have no mercy upon them And it is observable in this Scripture that yet the Text saith before that they did but flatter God with their mouth though they did but flatter God with their mouth yet such was Gods mercie toward them that he calleth back his anger My brethren God hath a high esteeme of his worship in a Nation though it should be but externall but we must not rest in that yet many times externall humilliation and worshipping of God in a Nation hath beene effectuall to deliver them from externall judgements Therefore we have much cause to be incouraged in that God doth stirre up our Nation at this day yea and those particularly that are going in that expedition and service for the Kingdome that God doth stirre them up to goe forth worshipping of him Our adversaries come against them with Oathes and curses and they goe against them with fasting and prayer not externally onely but we hope internally many of them and thousands that joine with them in our Nation And if God will shew so much mercy to them when they did but flatter him with their mouth surely then when as there are so many true worshippers of him yea those that are the instruments of the work we have much cause to think that God will shew mercy to us and that if anger were come out against us yet God will call it backe Thus then we see that so long as Gods people be Gods people though they may be brought to great troubles we cannot be secured from troubles yet still there is mercie for them so long as they are his people so long as the knot is between God and them and they are in Covenant there is mercie for them But now when they are cast off now there commeth an and I will doe thus and thus bring them into these extremities and I will shew no mercy to them there shall be judgement without mercie The observation then from hence is when God commeth upon the wicked with wrath hee cometh with pure wrath Wrath without mixture of mercie and this is intolerable We have a remarkable place for this Isa 7. 5. An evil saith the Text an onely evil behold it is comming Marke there may come an evil to the people of God that which materially is evill but it can never be said of Gods people that an evill an only evill is comming If an evil come there cometh a great good together with that evil but now it is upon the wicked an evil an onely evil is coming God threatneth Psal 75. 8. that he hath a cup in his hand full of mixture the mixture of that is an aggravation of the wrath that is in it but here there is a cup in Gods hand without mixture and the want of mixture is the aggravation of the evil of this cup. VVhen wrath is pure then it is grown beyond anger and grown to hatred so long as it is but meere anger it admitteth of mixture of love but when once it is as we may speak grown to that height of sowerness that all the mixture of love is gone then it is turned to hatred There was a time when Israel spake in a murmuring way that God brought them into the wildernesse because he hated them Deut. 1. 27. But now God threatneth to bring them into the wildernesse and to hate them indeed according to that Hosea 9. 15. All their wickednesse is in Gilgal for there I hated them David prayeth Psal 6. 1. that God would not rebuke him in his wrath neither chasten him in his hot displeasure but what then Have mercy upon me O Lord So long as God sheweth mercie he doth not chasten in his sore displeasure but when God commeth with afflictions denyeth mercie then he commeth in sore displeasure indeed it is hatred Secondly When God commeth without mercie he commeth upon the wicked in the most unseasonable time for them that can be That is the difference betwixt the evills that come upon the godly and the wicked There may be evills that materially are so upon the godly but yet they shall come
the Pagans were here in England they had their Flamins and their Archflamins London was one and Yorke was another and when they were converted to the Christian Religion yet still keeping some of their Heathenish customes instead of their Arch-flamins they made Arch-bishops and of their Flamins Bishops and that in their very places as London and Yorke and some say Chester they kept their Bishopricks still This is the very â—â—und of the antiquity of them therefore my brethren let not us be put off with such arguments as these men delude you they baffle you by these arguments The Tenth Lecture HOSEA 2. 11. And all her solemne Feasts c. WEE began the last day to speake something of the Feast of Trumpets you shall finde the institution of it in Leviticus 23. 24. You shall have a Sabbath a memorial of blowing of Trumpets Now there were divers ends of Gods institution of this Feast I have spoken of one the second reason of that Feast the Hebrews thinke was a remembrance of Isaacs deliverance when he should have been sacrificed and the Ram caught by the hornes to be sacrificed in his stead they drew it from this argument because that Feast is called A memoriall say they to remember the deliverance of Isaac and it must be by the Trumpets of Rams hornes to call this to remembrance the deliverance of Isaac and a Ram sacrificed in his stead this is the Iews opinion of it but it seemes to be farre from the meaning of the holy Ghost A third reason of the Feast of Trumpets some say Cajetan amongst others was instituted for a memoriall of Gods giving the lay by sound of the trumpet that is not likely neither because this Feast was not kept at the time of Gods giving the law if there were any time for the celebration of giving the law it must be at the Feast of Pentecost A fourth it was for a celebration of a memoriall of Gods goodness to them in the time of war for all the mercies of God unto them in their wars which was declared by the blowing of the trumpets But I rather take another reason to be a maine and principall reason of Gods institution of this Feast to be a preparation to the Feast of atonement and expiation and therefore saith Calvin it is called a memoriall Levit. 23 for this reason to put them in minde to humble themselves before God to afflict their hearts in the day of atonement and secondly a memoriall before God that God may remember them for mercy so the Iews observe from the seventh day of the first moneth unto the tenth day there was more then ordinary exercises in giving of almes in praying in going to their synagogues they were very devout for those ten dayes in way of preparation for the day of Atonement of Expiation From whence note It is of this use to us to prepare for the day of Fasting Ministers should blow their trumpets to the people to prepare them for that day God hath accepted of those poore kinde of fasts that we have kept abundance of mercies we have received on them there is scarce any one Fast day that is kept but we presently hear good news after it if we had kept Fast dayes as we ought if we had been prepared as we should O what might we have obtained of God by this time if God accepts such poor things as we do as God knowes they are poore and meane if we had every time a trumpet blown before us to prepare us for the day of atonement what atonements might England have made with God before this time to reade understandingly those things you reade about the Feast of Trumpets The next Feast was the feast of Expiation in the tenth day I thought not to have spoken of that because the Feast of Expiation is a Fast rather then a Feast but that is meant here as well as any of the other for this reason though it were a Fast yet the Hebrew word here that is translated solemne Feasts signifies onely a setled stated solemn time And Secondly It was a great mercy to them to have such a day of Fast though the day of atonement be a day of afflicting themselves yet it is the cause of rejoycing to a nation that God grants them such a day of atonement it is the speciall meanes to make way to the joy of a nation and therefore this is included amongst the other now the history of that you have in these two famous Scriptures Levit. 16. and Levit. 23. In this day of atonement the tenth day of the seventh month there are divers things very observeable and usefull for these times The first is The solemn charge that God gave for the afflicting mens souls upon that day you shall finde in a few verses three severall times a solemn charge to afflict their soules to humble their souls Levit. 23. 27. 29. 32. God appointed one day in the year for all the Jews to afflict their souls to make an atonement between God and them in a day of Fast and they were charged to be sure to afflict their souls then and that soul that did not God threatened to cut it off The second thing observeable is that the Priest was to goe into the Holy of Holies where he was to go but once a year Levit. 16. the beginning and the latter end compared together you shall finde it This may teach us thus much If ever we are to looke upon JESUS CHRIST in the presence of God to go into the Holy of Holies making intercession for us it is in the day of atonement in the day of publick Fast of the Kingdome then are we to exercise our Faith upon Christ as entring before God into the Holy of Holies for us after we have charged upon our souls our sins and afflicted our souls we must likewise cast up an eye of Faith beholding Jesus Christ our high Priest at that day before the Father making intercession for us The third thing observeable is at that day the Priest was to make an atonement for all the holy things in Lev. 16. 20. When he hath made an end of reconciling the holy place the Tabernacle and the altar c. the Priest was not only to seeke to make reconciliation between God and the people but to reconcile the holy places even the Holy of Holies had a kind of pollution in it and must be reconciled then and the Tabernacle and the Altar all of them had a kind of pollution upon them so infectious is the sin of man and all these were to be 〈…〉 a day of atonement 〈◊〉 teacheth us That in a day of Atonement of Fâ—sting we are then 〈…〉 speciall care to scâ—â—â— mercy from God to be â—â—conciled to us in regard of all our holy things our holy duties and offerings we are to seek then to get the best services that ever we performed in all our lives to be
his people be opened we must accept of the punishment of our iniquity and even beare this indignation of the Lord because wee have sinned against him 12. Yea the Lord hath strucke us with blindnesse at the doore we grope up and down and we cannot finde it as Gen 19. 11. Never were a people at a greater losse in a greater confusion then now we are every man runs his owne way wee know not what to doe nay the truth is we know not what we doe 13. Yea many because they have found some difficulties at the right door they have gone away from it and have sought back doors to help themselves by even base false shifting treacherous ways seeking to comply for their own private ends as if their skins must needs be saved whatsoever becomes of the publique 14. This is yet a further misery that we are groping up and downe at the doore and night is come upon us stormes tempests are rising dangers are approaching and yet God opens not to us 15. Above all our misery this is yet the greatest that even our hearts are shut up too there lyes a stone rowled at the doore of our hearts and such a stone as is beyond the power of an Angel to rowle away were it that after all our hearts were but open our condition yet had comfort in it Oh now what shall we doâ— 1. Let us resolve to waite at this doore â—â—aite upon God in those wayes of helpe that yet in mercy he affords unto us Certainly we are at the right doore let us say with Shecaniah Ezra 10. 2. We have sinned against the Lord yet there is hope in Israel concerning this thing Let us resolve whatsoever becomes of us not to goe from our fathers door if we perish we will perish at his gates 2. Let us worship the Lord at this our doore though we be not entred in yet let our hearts bow before the Lord in the acknowledgement of his greatnesse power dominion that he hath over us to doe with us what he pleaseth as Ezek. 46. 2. it is said The Prince shall worship at the threshold of the gate and the people of the land shall woâ—ship at the doore 3. Let us look in at the key-hole or at any crevise that wee can to see something of the riches of mercy that this door opens into Within on the other side oâ— the door we may see what liberty of conscience what enjoyment of Ordinances the blessing of Gods worship in his own way we may see the wayes of God and his Saints would be made honorable in this kingdome yea in a higher degree then any where upon the face of the earth yea we may see many sweet outward liberties the free enjoyment of our estates peace plenty prosperity in abundance all these and more then we can think of if this door were but once opened to us howsoever it is good 〈◊〉 looke in to quicken our hearts and set on our desires and endeavours the more strongly in the meane time Oh how happy were we if we had these mercies 4. Let us yet knock lowder and cry lowder at our Fathers doore But did not you tell us our Father seemed to be angry at our knocking Mark what we have in that very Scripture where the Church complains that God is angry with her prayer Psal 80. 4. How long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people Yet ver 7. Turne us againe O God of Hosts and cause thy face to shine And ver 14 Returne we beseech thee O God of Hâ—sts look down from heaven behold visit this vine ver 19. Turne us againe O Lord God of Hosts cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved 5. Let every one take away his sinnes that lye at this door let every one sweep his owne door Zech. 8. 15. 16. Again have I thought in these â—â—â—yes to doe well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Iudah feare not But yet mark what followes These are the things that ye shall doe Speake ye every man the truth to his neighbour execute the judgement of truth and peace in your gates Let none of you imagine evill in his heart against his neighbor Both private men and men in publick place must reforme How far are we from this Never more plottings more heart-burnings one against another those in publike place neglect the execution of judgement they would have their policies beyond Gods wisdome God puts these two together and commends one as a meanes to the other the execution of judgement and peace but they have a further reach they will not exe curâ—â—â—dgement for feare of a breach of peace It is just with God that we should never have peace till we can trust God for it in his own way 6. Let us seek to God againe and call to him for the right key Lord reveale the way of thy worship and thy government to us and we will yeeld our selves unto it 7. Stir we up our selves against all difficulties Things are not yet so bad but we may help our selves if we have hearts Our Father heares us he can command many Angels to come to help to rowle away the stone yea he hath opened divers doores to us already We are indeed come to the â—ron gate the Lord can make that at length flye open of its own accord as Acts 20. 10. The Church was praying and after the prâ—â—on dooâ—es were opened to Peter and he had passed the first and second gate he came unto the iron gate that led into the City and there he found as easie passage as any where else In the mount will the Lord be scene 8. Let us exercise Faith in the blood of Christ let us as it were besprinkle this our door with the blood of the Lambe yea looke we up to Christ as the true doore to let into all mercy let Faith act as well as Prayer 9. Let us now especially watch all opportunities of mercy and take heed we neglect no more as we have done many very foulely lest hereafter wee knock and cry Lord open to us and it proves too late 10. Let us open to God who knocks at our doores it wee would have him open to us God knocks at the doore of every one of our hearts open we to him fully set all wide open for him Openye gates stand open ye everlasting doores let the King of glory come in These who doe thus are the true generation of those that seek the Lord let England open for God yet stands at the doore and knockes and if we will yet open to him he will yet come in and suppe withus and we shall suppe with him It is true God rebukes and chastens severely so he did Laodicea at that time when he stood at her doore and knocked Apoc. 3. 19. 20. if any Church be or ever was like to that of Laodicea we have been luke-warm as that was a mixture of Gods
are a dishonor unto him before Men and Angels what you the Spouse of Christ where is this ornament this bracelet of righteousnesse then whosoever Christ maryeth he putteth upon them this Jewel of righteousnesse Hee blasphems Religion which he seems to honour sayes Cyprian who makes not good in his life what he professes The Eighteenth Lecture HOSEA 2. 19. And in judgement and in loving kindnesse and in mercies IN Judgement Some Interpreters we finde make this and righteousnesse to be all one according to that Psal 33. 6. He loveth righteousnesse and judgement and so passe it over but we must not do so for wee shall finde much of Gods minde in this Others take judgement as divers times it is taken in Scripture for sanctification so they would make this promise sutable to that of Christ John 16. 10. 11. I will send the Comforter and he shall convince the world of sin of righteousnesse and of judgement that righteousnesse there is the same with that here judgement there by many Interpreters is understood of sanctification because the Prince of this world is judged the power of Satan is already broken he is already cast out of your hearts And they thinke to strengthen that by that place in Mat. 12. 20. He will not quench the smoaking flaxe nor breake the bruised reed till he send forth judgement unto victory that is untill he perfect the work of sanctification that it shall overcome corruption This text in Matthew is quoted out of Esay 42. 3. but there we have the words somewhat different there it is He shall bring forth judgement unto truth Now if that should be the meaning that by judgement is meant sanctification then we may learne an excellent note from the comparing these two Texts together that it is all one to bring judgement sanctification unto truth and to bring it unto victory when it is in truth it will certainly be in victory But we shall a little more examine this interpretation of Judgement presently for my part I do not think that it is meant either in this Text or in any of the Texts named Thirdly I finde others make this in judgement to be Gods judgement against the adversaries of the Church I will betroth thee unto me in righteousnesse I will deale with you in a way of righteousnesse and for your adversaries I will deale with them in a way of judgement you shall have judgement against them So I finde Luther carries it and he saith that judgement here is the second pearle of the Husbands ring he gives to his Spouse God promiseth to exercise judgement vengeance against the adversaries of the Church and so he applyeth it unto those times wherein he lived in Germany saith he for these many years wicked Magistrates have oppressed the Church and prophane Doctors have corrupted the doctrine of it but Germany hath seene God judging his adversaries And if we should understand it in this sense we have a sutable place Esay 54. 5. where God telleth his Church that He that is her maker is her husband even the Lord of hosts and her Redeemer the God of the whole earth the word there is Vindex the avenger he that will avenge thee of thine enemies is the God of the whole earth he is thy husband This might afford a sweet meditation that the Lord will defend his Church from the rage of adversaries as the husband will defend his Spouse being betrothed unto her the Lord certainly will take a valuable consideration at the hands of the adversaries who wrong his Church But this I thinke not to be the scope of the place Another is In Judgement Though things be now out of order all things seeme to be in confusion yet the time is coming when all things shal be ordered in the Church according to equity and right These two I thinke are meant in the former Texts I will convince the world of judgement that is the world shall be convinced that Christ hath all judgement committed unto him and he shews it in this that the Prince of this world is judged so that place before in Matthew I will cause judgment to returne unto victory that is though the adversaries of the Church be many yet he will cause them all to be vanquished judgement shal conquer over them all though there be much opposition and confusion in the Church yet I will bring all things in the Church to be ordered composed in a right way according unto equity That place likewise Esay 4. 4. where the Lord saith he will purge his Church by the spirit of judgeâ—ent and by the spirit of burning I know some carry it as if it were meant of the spirit of sanctification that is as fire to consume lusts but rather thus whereas there were such as did oppresse the Church by false judgement the Lord would cleanse the Church from wrong and oppression by giving a spirit of judgement unto those that should be the Officers of it and consuming the adversaries But yet I thinke we have not the full scope of this place I rather would pitch upon this as that which is more principally intended though the other may be in some degree included viz. I will betroth thee unto me in judgment that is there shall be a good reason for what I doe that which I will now do in betrothing thee unto my selfe shall not be out of rashnesse it shal not be done unadvisedly but with understanding with good deliberation I know what I do in it and I know what glory I shall have by it I will do it in judgement So I finde the word judgement taken in scripture Jer. 4. 2. Thou shalt sweare in truth in judgement and in righteousnesse In judgement that is when you sweare know it is a worship of God and you must doe it in judgement you must not only sweare in truth that is sweare to that which is true and in righteousnesse that is not to the wrong or prejudice of your neighbour for you may sinne in swearing though you sweare in truth if you have an intent to wrong any but thirdly you must sweare in judgment too you must understand what you doe that is when you take an oath you must know that it is not as the Ex Officio was to sweare to answer to every thing that shall be asked you but you must understand beforehand what you are to sweare to and so sweare out of judgement So saith God I will betroth thee unto me in judgement that is I have considered what I am to doe in this thing and I doe it out of judgement And for your parts when you shal come and close with me in this blessed conjugall union and communion you shall doe it out of jndgement too I will betroth you in judgement so as to make it appeare before the world that I had good reason so to do and you shall likewise close with me as you shall be able
depth swallowing up the greatest evill of sin or affliction If you should poure a paile of water upon the planchers in your chamber it seems a great deale of water like a little sea but take a paile of water and poure it into the deep Ocean and it is there swallowed up and appears nothing Our afflictions that are upon us and our sinnes in themselves appear great but when they come to be swallowed up in these bowels in these depths of Gods mercies in which he betrotheth himself unto us they are as nothing in comparison Therefore the Scripture hath such strange expressions of the wonderfulness of Gods mercies to his people in Christ The Scripture hath three notable words to expresse the fulnesse of Gods mercies in Christ The first is Ephes 2. 7. the abundant riches of his grace the riches that are cast in over and above The second word is in Rom. 5. 20. The grace of God hath been more then exceeding there is a second 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And a third is 1 Tim. 1. 14. The grace of God was exceeding abundant it had a pleonasme asore yea but here is a super-pleonasme Here are three 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 put upon Gods mercy to note the riches of the glory and depth of the mercy of God in Christ Secondly consider these mercies in the effects They set on worke all that is in God for the good of his people If there be any thing that Gods wisedome or power that all that blessednesse that is in GOD can doe for the bowels of mercy yerne toward thee and they will set all on worke for thy good if thou beest in Christ Yea further know that it is such mercy as it is the great designe yea the greatest designe that ever God had from all eternity to honour this his mercy to set out the infinite glory and the riches of this his mercy in Christ Certainly God had great designs in doing such great things as he hath done but above all the designs that ever God had in all his works that is the chief to glorifie the riches of his mercy in Christ They are indeed bowels of mercy when they are such as in the glory of which God attaineth his great designe in making the world he would never have made the world had it not been for that Fourthly They are the heart-blood mercies of JESUS CHRIST they are such mercies as are worth all the blood of Christ and his blood was certainely most precious blood when Christ sees any converted and brought home to him to be made a subject of Gods mercy hee thinks his blood well bestowed The text saith he shall see his seed and his soule shall be satisfied I have enough for all the blood I shedde Indeed I came from my Father and was made a servant a curse I suffered the wrath of my Father my blood was shed but if this be the fruit of it that such and such a soule shall have this mercy I have enough for all my blood I am glad that ever I shed it Yea God the Father is well pleased with it he thinks the blood of Christ but a valuable price to purchase such mercies as these As for all the glory of the world God can give that unto men that he hates to reprobates as Luther saith of the whole Turkish Empire it is but a crum of bread that the Master of the house throws to his dogs but when it cometh to his mercies in Christ they are such as are worth the blood of his Sonne that must goe to be the price for the purchasing of them 6. They are such mercies as God bestows on purpose that hee may declare to all eternity before Angels and all his Saints what God is able to doe for a creature to what a height of excellency and glory these infinite mercies are able to raise a poor creature unto These must needs be great Yea they are such as must be the object for Angels and Saints to admire at adore and magnifie the name of God for everlastingly What shall I say more in naming any fruits of these mercies Such mercies as whereas before sin made thee to be the object of Gods hatred it makes thee now to be an object of his pity God takes the rise from thy sin to shew his mercy Take heed of abusing it it is childrens bread that which I now speak let us not sinne that grace may abound God sorbid seeing thy sin cannot overcome Gods goodnesse let Gods goodness overcome thy sin Only let us learn to admire at these riches of mercy in Christ and let us exercise much faith about them Certainely wee should thrive in godlinesse much more if we did exercise faith in the bowels of God in Christ Those kind of fruits as your Apricocks and your May-cherries that grow up by a wall in the open sun-shine and have the hot reflection of the sun come to be sooner ripe have more sweetness then those that grow in shady places your grasse you know that is shaded by the trees in Orchards is sowre So that fruit that Christians bring forth under discouragements and dispairing thoughts is very sowre some things they do conscience hales them to duties but alas it is sowre fruit though it be better to doe what conscience requires then not for we must not go against conscience but to doe it meerly because conscience hales to it it is but sowre grasse But when a Christian can by Faith set himselfe before the Sun-shine of these mercies of God in Christ and continually live in the midst of the lustre of the grace of God in Christ he groweth ripe sooner and his fruit is sweeter You may know whether it be the Sun of righteousnesse or no that you are set in Doth your fruit grow ripe and is it sweet fruit Those who talke of mercy and of Christ who have the name of Christ in their mouths but is their fruit sowr does nothing come from them but crabbed fruit these men are not in the Sun they are blinde they cannot see the Sun they are but in a light of their own fancy and in a heat of their own making Ephes 3. 18. 19. The Apostle prayes for the Ephesians that they may be able to comprehend what is the bredth and length and depth height of the riches of God in Christ Marke the Phylosophers tells us but of three demensions but here are foure but what is the fruit of this And that you may know the love of Christ that passeth knowledge that ye might be filled with all the fulnesse of God Here is the effect of it when we come to know the bredth and length and depth and height of Gods love and have that knowledge by the Spirit of God that passeth all naturall knowledg then we come to be filled with all the fulnesse of God Here now is a glorious Christian a Christian filled with all the fulnesse
appeare bright in the very faces and conversations of the Saints that shal strike great feare Holy reverent is thy nâ—me you know it is said of God and so it shall be said of the Saints in that day their graces shall be much raised they shall sparkle with abundance of the graces of Gods Spirit in them their wisdome holiness shall make their faces shine holy and reverent shall be their names Psal 89. 7. God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the Saints those Saints of his who walke close with him have a daunting power in their appearance I appeale to guilty consciences to apostates to professors who have secret haunts of wickedness sometime when you come but into the presence of one who is a truly gracious godly man or woman whom your conscience tels you walkes close with God doth not even the very sight of such a one terrifie you the very lustre of that holiness you see in such a one strikes upon your conscience then you thinke such an one walkes close with God indeed but I have basely forsaken the Lord and have had such a haunt of wickednesse I have brought dreadfull guilt upon my soul since I saw him last Ecclesiasticall stories tell us of Basil when the officers came to apprehend him he being then exercised in holy duties that there was such a majesty lustre came from his countenance that the officers fell down backward as they did who came to apprehend Christ they were not able to lay hold of him Surely when the Saints shall be raised in their holiness when every one of them shall have their hearts filled with holinesse it will cause abundance of fear even in all the hearts of those that converse with them But wicked ones shall feare too as well as the Saints Luke 21. 26. Mens hearts shall faile them for feare it shal be true in these dayes as it was in the destruction of Jerusalem The Saints shall feare the Lord and his goodness the words in the original are they shall feare ad Dominum to the Lord ad bonum to his good It is all one in effect that good that God shall manifest shall cause this feare to be in their hearts You will say what goodnesse what shall that goodness of God be that shall move the hearts of this people with so much feare I will tell you briefly I need not spend much time in it for I have spent a whole Sermon about it when I spake of the last words of the first Chapter of this Prophesiâ— great shall be the day of Jezreel I shal now adde to what I had then This shall be the goodness of God in that day that they shall feare First The goodnesse of God that ever he should regard such a wretched people as we are and pardon all our sins What Israel the ten Tribes who had most wretchedly forsaken God who had crucified Jesus Christ crucified David their King yet that blood they have shed is applyed to them for the pardon of their sin Oh the goodness of God! they shall feare this goodness in being mercifull to such a hard-hearted such a stubborne such a stiffe-necked people as they have been this goodnes of God will break their hearts Secondly then God shal make the difference between him that feareth God and him that feareth him not Then shall God take away all the reproach of his Saints What bitter reproach hath been upon the Saints since the beginning of the world especially since the times of the Gospelâ— Reproach first because they are meane people of the lower sort 2. Reproach because they suffer much and God lets his adversaries prevaile over them 3 Reproach because they waite upon God and God seems not to come the adversaries say where is your God No marvaile you pray and Fast what is become of all Here will be the goodness of God at that day to wipe off all this reproach They shall have so much mercy so much honour from God that it shall appeare before all the world that it was good to waite upon him so much as shall countervaile abundantly all their sufferings they shall blesse God that ever it was put into their hearts to suffer for him to waite upon him And because God foreseeth this what goodness he hath laid up for his people that they shall enjoy ere long and we know a thousand years with him are as one day that is the reason why he suffereth his people to be so under for the present he knows he hath that goodness for them hereafter yea in this world that all the world shal say that God hath dealt well with them that he was not a hard Master to them to make them waite so long and to let them suffer so much as they do I will give you for this one excellent Scripture perhaps you have not considered of the emphasis of the argument that is in it It is Heb 11. 16. They desired a better Countrey that is an heavenly wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God for he hath prepared for them a City The poor persecuted Saints wandred up down they were content to leave their own Country their estates here and sought another Country an heavenly but they had it not their enemies prevailed over them as if God had forsaken them but God is not ashamed to be called their God what is the argument For he hath prepared for them a City Marke the force of the argument for he hath prepared for them 〈◊〉 City This City is this text I am now speaking of sometimes it is described as a Tabernacle The Tabernacle of God shall come downe from Heaven sometime a City sometime a Countrey sometime a Kingdome sometime an Inheritance Here God hath prepared for them a City that is there is a glorious time for Gods people when they shall have the new Jerusalem come down from heaven unto them Now then saith God though my people be in a suffering condition I am not ashamed to be called their God I am not ashamed to own this people for I have glory enough for them as if God should be ashamed that he should ever professe such an interest in his people and this people professe such an interest in him if there were nothing to come for them if there were not a time to recompence all their suffering As if a Master should own a servant or a Prince a subject if this servant or subject suffer extreamely and hath no help but still when he expects help there comes none and when he thinketh surely now it will come still it fayls him yet if you know that at such a day you shall recompence all this you shall advance him and bring him to such honour that he will blesse God that ever he was in your service you will not be ashamed to owne this servant But if this servant shall suffer in your cause and you
have heard of that Palladium of the Heathens in Troy they imagined that so long as that Idol was kept safe they were unconquerable all the strength in Greece was not able to prevaile against it wherefore the Greecians sought by all means they could to get it from them I have read of the men of Tyrus that they were afraid their god Apollo should forsake them they therfore chained and nailed that Idol to a post that they might be sure of it because they thought their safety was in it Let us fasten our selves to God in an everlasting covenant and certainly God will be fast to us then we are safe enough I will save them but how what shall Judah be saved by and not Israel Judah a poor contemptible people how saved I will not save them by bow nor by sword nor by battel by horses nor by horsemen It shall not be by any outward meanes but by the immediate hand of God This promise that God would save them not by bow nor by sword c. it was performed two several times and there is a third time for the fulfilling of it which is yet to come It was done first when the Angel of the Lord went out and smote in one night in the Camp of the Assyrians an hundred fourscore five thousand 1 kings 11. 35. and God tells them that the King of Assyria should not shoote an arrow there nor come before the Citie with a shield so God saved them without bow for they had no need to use the bow then because the Angel of the Lord destroyed them The second time was when he saved Judah in their returne from captivity then as it is Zach. 4. 6 he saved them not by might nor by power but by my spirit saith the Lord of Hosts Marke the phrase as if God should say I have strength for I am the Lord of hosts I can command Armies if I would to save you No though I be the Lord of hosts yet I will not save you by might nor by power but by my spirit Therefore Isa 43. 7. their strength is said to be in sitting still and ver 15. in quietnesse and confidence shall be your strength Thus they were saved not by bow nor by sword Then the third time which is yet to come that is in the wonderful work of God in calling the Jewes when God shall raise up out of them a glorious people to himselfe and save Judah once again and it shall not be by sword nor by bow but by the Lord their God For as it is said Dan. 2. 34. the stone that smote the Image was cut out without hands so there shall be a power that is not visible from whence it comes but Jesus Christ shal come from heaven to do his great workes As the lightning from the East to the West so shal the comming of the sonne of man be What learne we from hence First God ties not himself to the use of outward means in procuring of good to his people Though all outward means fail yet there may be wayes of salvation for the Saints Wicked mens hearts presently sinke if outward means fail And indeed so much as our hearts faile when outward meanes faile it is a signe that we did before rest upon the means and if we had had the means we should have robbed God of his honour We must use means but not rely upon the means I might shew you excellent Texts of Scripture for this as Psal 33. 16. There is no King saved by the multitude of an host a mighty man is not delivered by much strength c. And Psal 44. 5. 6. Through thee will we push downe our enemies through thy name we will tread them under that rise up against us for I will not trust in my bowe neither shal my sword save me c. But secondly Not by bow nor by sword c. Deliverance of a people without bow and without sword is a great mercy For such are the wofull miseries that a people doe suffer when warre commeth that usually the victory will scarce pay the charges of the battel though we be sure to be saved at last yet if we must be saved by bow and by sword I say the misery that we may suffer in our salvation may be more then the salvation It was the height of that mercy promised Isa 9. 5. that it should be without confused noise and garments rolled in blood Such a mercy we have had and had Christ come to have raigned amongst us though he had come with his garments rolled in blood we should willingly have entetrayned him If he had come ryding upon his red horse But behold he comes ryding upon his white horse in peace and mercy all this while and the mercies we have had have been very cheap they have not been by bow nor by sword And if God should come at length by the sword and bring perfect salvation to us by blood which God forbid but if he should we have had already more mercy without blood than our bloods are worth should we now have our bloods shed God hath paied us beforehand who almost in this congregation but two or three yeers agoe would have lost his blood to procure so much mercy to England as England hath had already Further. Such is the love of God to his people that he is pleased to worke for them beyond meanes The other point was that he can save his people without means This that he will do it beyond means For the grace and love of God to his people is so high glorious that it is beyond that which can be conveyed by means therefore it must be done more imediatly Exod. 15. 6. Thy right hand O Lord is become glorious in power in the greatnesse of thine excellency thou hast overthrowne them that rose up against thee First it is the hand of God Secondly it is the right hand of God Thirdly it is the right hand of God in power Fourthly this is glorious in power Fiftly there is excellency and Sixthly there is the greatnesse of Excellency It is an high expression Magnitudine excellentiae or magnitudine elationis in the greatnesse of thy lifting up for the same word signifieth pride that is here translated excellency and if God he lifted up in any thing it is when hee shewes himself for his people Now take all these six expressions Gods hand Gods right hand his right hand in power a right hand that is become glorious in power his excellency the greatnesse of his excellency and all this for his Saints surely this is more then can be conveyed by means God must borne imediately and save them by himselfe But lastly the more imediate the hand of God appeareth in his mercy to his people the more sweet and precious ought that mercy to be then this were an excellent argument to follow to the full and so
neerly concerning us you see the scriptures were made for other times then for the times in which they were first revealed a most excellent place of Scripture you have for this Psal 21. 13. Be thou exalted O Lord in thine own strength so will we sing and praise thy power When God cometh in his own strength and not in the strength of the creature and by meanes then do the Saints sing and praise the power of God Dulcious ex ipso fonte wee use to say that which cometh imediately cometh exceeding sweetly Then the Saints may boast in God when God cometh immediately with his salvation so you have it Psal 44. 7. 8. Thou hast saved us from our enemies and hast put them to shame that hated us What followeth in God will we boast all the day long and praise thy name for ever So that the Saints of God then praise God nay they may lawfully give up themselves to boast when God works imediately When God works by means then they must take heed of ascribing to the means but when God cometh imediately then they may boast It is the blessednesse of Heaven that Gods mercy cometh imediately created mercies are the most perfect mercies Suppose God had bin with them by bow and by sword when Senacherib came against them could they have been saved as they were Gods hooke that he put in his nose and bridle that he put in his lipps for so God saith he would doe with him use him as a beast were better then their sword or bow Surely if ever any nation knew what it was to have imediate mercies come down from heaven England doth If ever Nation saw God exalting himselfe in his own power England hath we have lived and blessed be God we have lived to see the Lord exalting himselfe in his own power Oh let us cry out with the Psalmist and with that I shall end Be thou exalted O Lord in thy own strength amongst us so will we still and still and still sing and praise thy power The Fourth Lecture HOSEA 1. 8. c. 8. Now when she had weaned Lo-ruhamah shee coâ—ceived and bare a sonne 9. Then said God call his name Lyâ—ammi for you are not my people and I will not be your God 10. Yet the number of the children of Israel shal be as the sand of the sea which cannot be measured nor numbred c. THe last day was finished the signification of the name of the second childe of Hosea Lo-ruhamah We now come unto the weaning of it and the begetting of the third Lo-ammi When shee had weaned Loruhamah We doe not reade of the first child Jezreel that it was weaned but the second childe Loruhamah that was weaned before the third child Loammi was conceived What is the meaning of this There is much of Gods minde shewed unto us even in this very thing that we ordinarily let slip and passe over The reason is because this second childe Loruhamah was to signifie unto the people of Israel their carrying out of their own Countrey into captivity into Assyria It was to signifie to them that they should be weaned from the comforts and delights that there were in their owne Countrey they should be taken away from their milke and honey that they had there and be carryed into Assyria and be there fed with hard meate even with the water of affliction and the bread of affliction The first childe did but signifie their scattering especially in regard of their seditions amongst themselves But the second childe signified the carrying away all of them wholly into captivity from their own Land Therefore the second childe is weaned Cibis sustent abitur immundis So. Jerome hath it They should be carried amongst the Gentiles and be fed with unclean meat they should be deprived of prophesie and of the milke of the word and of the ordinances that they enjoyed So Vatablus Ordinances are as the breasts of consolation out of which the people of God suck soul-satisfying comforts So you have it Esay 66. 11. That you may suck and be satisfied with the breasts of her consolations that you may milke out and be delighted with the aboundance of her glory And Cant. 1. 4. We will remember thy loves more than wine The old latine hath it Wee will remember thy dugs above wine and so the words will beare These people should be deprived of those dugs and breasts out of which they had sucked much sweetnesse before even deprived of all comfort in God Gods people hang upon God and suck comfort from him even as the infant upon the mothers brest and sucks sweetnesse and comfort and nourishment from thence This expression then of weaning the childe implies these two things First That the enjoyment of the comforts of a sweet native soile specially where there are any ordinances together with it is a very great blessing of God and the being deprived of it is a great affliction yea to some it comes as a curse The very sucking of the ayr of a sweet native soile and especially such a comfortable soile as we have here in England is certainly a great blessing from the Lord. Those that have been deprived of it and banished away have been more sensible of it than any of you who alwayes have enjoyed it Many have laine sucking at the sweetnesse of this our English ayr and at the comforts that there have been in their accommodations so long till they have sucked in that which if Gods mercy had not prevented would have proved to have been poyson to them to have baned their soules But I speak not of all I make no question but there have beene many of Gods dear servants that have tarried in their native soile and kept the uprightnesse of their hearts and consciences as cleare as others that went away It is true the comforts of a native soile are sweet but except we may enjoy them with the breasts of these consolations or Ordinances of the Church they are notable to satisfie the soul yea except we may suck out such milke of these breasts as is sincere milke and not soiled nor sowred by the inventions of men better a great deale that we were weaned from all the sweetnesse and accommodation we have in our native soile by the mortifying of our affections to them then that God should weane us from them by sending of us into captivity or by giving the adversary power over us or by making the Land too hot for us But that for the first Again in that this childe was weaned and by the weaning was to signify their being carried away out of their own into a strange Countrey this expression implies thus much That it is an evil thing for a childe to be taken from the mothers brest too soone and sent away to be nursed by others The expression doth fully imply this for it is to tell us the evill condition of the people
power going along with them so lately bringing them over Jordan so wonderfully and given them Jericho so miraculously yet now at the losse of 36. men their hearts begin even to faile Ioshua falls with his face upon the earth and Josephus in his hystory of the Jewish Antiquities sets down Ioshuahs prayer at large these are some expressions Beyond all expectation having received an overthrow being terrified by this accident and suspitious of thy promises to Moses we both abstaine from war and after so many enterprises we cannot hope for any successfull proceedings by thy mercy relieve our present sorrow and take from us the thought of despaire wherein we are too farre plunged Now God comes to him and askes him Why he lay upon his face and bad him get him up for Israel had sinned in the accursed thing upon search made Achan was found out whereupon Joshua tells him that he had troubled the Hoast of Israel and God would trouble him upon which they stoned him and from thence it was called the valley of Achor vers 26. that is Vaâ—â—is tribulation is the valley of trouble The third thing is the principall why this valley is called a doore of hope Herein two things First how it was a doore of hope to Israel then when they first came into Canaan Secondly how it is promised to be a doore of hope to repenting Israel in after-times For the first It was a doore of hope to them in two respects First because it was the first place wherein they tooke the possession of Canaan when they began to have outward means of substance to eate of the corne of the land all the while they were in the wilderness although God provided wonderfully for them by sending them Manna from Heaven yet because they had no way of substance by ordinary means they always feared lest they should want upon any strait they were brought into their hearts began to sinke Now in this valley God gives them outward means this raises hope in them that their danger was over and that they should do well enough This is our nature when ordinary means fayle our hearts fayle yea though in regard of Gods extraordinary workings we have never so many gracious encouragements and when God grants means againe then we hope Secondly God made their great trouble there a means of much good unto them for by that they were brought to purge their Campe they learned to feare the Lord and were prepared more then before for so great a mercy as the further possession of that good land The Septuagint instead of those words a doore of hope have these to open their understanding for there indeed they learned the dreadfulnesse of God who for one mans sin was so sorely displeased there they understood to purpose that the God that was amongst them was a holy God and that he would have them to be a holy people But how should this valley of Achor be a doone of hope to Israel in after times First the Jews think that Israel shall return into their own country againe yea and the same way they shall come again into Canaan by that valley which shall be a door of hope to them Secondly but rather by way of Analogy as God turned this valley of trouble to much good unto them so he would turn all the sore afflictions of Israel in after dayes to their great advantage grievous afflictions should make way for glorious mercies Thirdly But especially thus in this expression God followes the Allegory of marriage now it was the custome of the Jewes in their marriages that the Husband gave his Spouse according to his quality as a dowry some peece of ground rich as he was able and this he gave as a pledge of his love to her to assure her that whatsoever was his she should have the benefit of it so saith the Lord although you have gone a whoring from me and may justly expect that I should for ever reject you yet I will marry you to my selfe and I will fully perform all marriage rights for the expression of my love towards you to the uttermost you shall know that you are marryed to a Husband who is rich I will give you a rich and plentifull dovvry and this but as a token and pledg of further love mercy riches that you shall enjoy by me it shall be that valley of Achor that rich delightfull fruitfull valley By this he means he would bestow some speciall choise mercy upon them at his first taking them into his favour again and that should be a pledg of and making way to much more mercy that he intended for them a doore of hope to let in greater things as the first fruits of all those glorious things that he had treasured up for them From this valley of Achor as it concerned Israel before First Sometimes when God gives men their hearts desires when they think themselves happy as if all trouble were past then he comes in upon them with great and sore afflictions Secondly although God hath been humbling mens hearts with sore and long afflictions yet just before he bestows great mercies he afflicts againe to humble and break their hearts yet more Thirdly sin will make the pleasantest place in the world a place of trouble Fourthly the afflictions of the Saints do not only go before mercies but are doors of hope to let in to mercies means to further the way for mercies God commands light to shine not only after darknesse but out of darkness Josephs prison Davids persecution Daniels den made way for glorious mercy God had in store for them that which once The mistocles said to his children and friends the Saints may much more say to theirs I had beene undone if I had not been undone had it not been for such a grieyous affliction I had never come to the enjoyment of such a mercy Hence we must learn not only to be patient in tribulation but joyfull But the especiall thing intended in this expression is this When God is reconciled to his people then present mercies are doors of hope to let in future mercies the Saints may look upon all mercies received as in-lets to further mercies to be received Every mercy a door to another mercy and all mercies here put together are a door to eternall mercy When Rachel had a sonne she called his name Joseph Gen. 30. 24. saying The Lord shall add to me another sonn Every mercy the Saints have may well be called Ioseph it brings assurance of mercy to be added this is the high priviledge of the Saints every mercy that a wicked man hath he may look upon as his utmost as his all he may write a ne plus ultra upon it one misery one judgment upon a wicked man makes way toanother but not one mercy howsoever God in his bounty may lengthen out mercies to him
yet it is more then he can expect he rather hath cause to wonder he hath so much then expect more but God ever draws out his loving kindnesse to his Saints Psal 36. 10. Draw out thy loving kindnesse unto them that know thee and thy righteousnesse to the upright in heart First the good that others have from God is bounty patience but that which the Saints have is loving kindnesse Secondly that which others have is no ways tied to them by promise but that which the Saints have they have by promise it is righteousness Ps 23. Thou makest me lye down in green pasture thou anointest my head with fresh oyle my cup runneth over Here is a great deal but is here all no ver 6. surely mercy goodnesse shall follow me all the dayes of my life That we read of David 2 Sam. 5. 12. is very observable from Gods prospering him in his present way he draws an argment to confirm him in the assurance for the future that his Kingdome was established to him why did not Saul prosper at the beginning of his raign as well as David yet it was no evidence of his establishment but David could see Gods mercy coming to him after another manner then Saul could all mercies the Saints have come from the covenant in which there is a rich treasure of mercies a blessed connexion of the mercies The covenant between David Ionathan was 1 Sam. 20. 15. That loving kindnes must not be cut off from the house of Ionathan The covenant between God and the Saints is that loving kindnesse shall never be cut off from them but the links of mercies shall be fastned one to another so as they shall reach eternity Mercies to the Saints come from love amor nescit nimium love knows no such thing as excesse The Saints understanding this mistery in the way of Gods grace towards them hence they follow God in seeking his face then especially when he is most in the way of mercy whereas the men of the world who know not this seldome seek after mercy but in times of affliction when God is in a way of justice and wrath this is their folly Infinite reason there is O ye Saints of the Lord that one duty should for ever make way for another seeing on mercy makes way for another here lyes a great difference between doing duties from the strength of common grace and from sanctifying grace in the one the spirit by doing some things is wearied and thinkes now it may rest but in the other the very doing still encreaseth strength and puts the heart upon doing more But may not security promise continuance of mercy Yes but if so then when affliction comes the heart will sinke for feares of continuance in misery as well as before it hoped for continuance of mercy When then may we assure our selves that our mercies are doores of hope to further mercies First When they are created mercies wrought by a more imediate hand of God generation may be imperfect but creation never omne creatum est perfectum Esay 26. 12. Lord thou wilt ordaine peace for us What is the argument for thou hast wrought all our workes in us Secondly When they are spirituall mercies Ezek. 39. 29. Neither will I hide my face any more from them VVhat is the argument For I have powred forth my spirit upon the house of Israel but is not this your private opinion that this argument will hold No the words following are Thus saith the Lord God Thirdly When mercies carry us to the God of mercy and are turned duties as if we can turne our duties into mercies that is account every duty a mercy that is a good argument that we shall hold out in duty when wee can turne mercies into duties that is make every mercy an engagement to duty that is a good argument that mercy will hold out But are there not interruptions many times in the wayes of Gods mercy to his own people VVe sometimes think there is an interruption when if we knew all we should see a blessed concatenation but it must be granted that there may sometimes be some kinde of enterruption in such a particular After Israels returne from captivity and beginning to build the temple there were such enterruptions as it was seventy years before it was finished but though there may be enterruptions for a time yet not a quite breaking off there is yet a strength in the grace of the covenant that carries the work on and perfects it at last by ceasing in one way of mercy God prepares for another the very ceasing in such a way may be a mercy we our selves at this day are a sad spectacle of the interruption of the wayes of Gods mercies towards a nation Mercy that ere while shined in her beauty upon us hath now seemed in a great measure to have withdrawn the beames of her glory our doore of hope that we thought to be so wide open seems almost shut against us I dare not say that it is shut lest I should wrong the present grace of God yet continuing to us But First Sinne yea our many and fearfull sins lyes at this our door Gen. 4. 7. Secondly And now a crowd of difficulties seeme even to stop up the door they come thronging still to it as if they would certainly stop it up against us Thirdly As the Prophet Ezek. 11. 1. 2. saw at the door of the gate five and twenty men amongst whom there were some chiefe ones who devised mischiefe and gave wicked councell in the city so may we at this day see many even of the chiefe ones devising mischiefe and giving wicked counsel by which they labour to shut yea to lock and bolt up this our doore of hope Fourthly VVe hoped that this our door of hope would have been like the doors that entred into the oracle of which we read 1 Kings 6. 31. made of the olive tree yea the side-posts and lintels were of olive tree carvings of palm trees cherubims all overlaid with gold but now our door seems to be of Iron the way to our help and mercy must be through the Iron gate we must get to it by suftering hard things 5. Our door that was wide whereat mercy began to come flowing in apace freely now it seemes to be straitened it is now the strait gate we must be content to strip our selves of a great part of our estates of many of our outward comforts yea we must venture them all and well if possibly at length we may crowd in 6. Yea our door-posts are like the Israelites in Egypt besprinkled with blood the keeping up of our meanes of mercy hath cost much blood and may cost more 7. Now when we knock when we would step in the dogs bark at us and are ready to flye upon us yea it may be the servants yea some of our