them his sons Ishmael and Isaac Isaac was the chosen seed Ishmael was not Isaac belonged to the election Ishmael did not Isaac was the child in whom God would fulfill his promise Ishmael was not but Abraham respected both alike untill the Lord did cast out Ishmael hence we are to understand thus much That there is no manifest difference between Gods chosen and others Doctrine in regard of their spiritual estate untill God put a difference between them by his Word and the works of his Spirit I grant there is a difference between Gods chosen and others even from everlasting and before they have a being in the world but it is not known unto us and there is no difference between them touching their spiritual estate manifested known and discernable either by our selves or by others untill God do put and make a difference between them by calling and converting the one by his Word and the work of his Spirit and leaving the other uncalled effectually Before the effectual calling of Gods chosen they are in the same estate and condition with those that belong not unto Gods election they are prone unto evil as well as others they are as vile in the practise of sinne as any other unlesse God do restrain them No man can say this is one that belongeth to Gods election and this is not untill God do put a difference between them And this truth hath not onely ground here but also plentiful evidence in many places of Scripture in 1 Cor. 6.9 10. The Apostle having reckoned up many grosse sinners and given them their doom that they can never come to inherit Gods Kingdome as neither Fornicators nor Adulterers nor Wantons nor Buggerers nor Theeves nor Drunkards nor Raylers nor Extortioners shall never inherit Gods Kingdome living and dying so he subjoyneth vers 11. such were some of you you were no better but now you are washed and justified and sanctified now God hath put a difference between you and others by the work of his grace and power of his Spirit you were as vile as any debauched sinner untill you were cleansed and in Ephes 2.1 2 3. The Apostle saith of the believing Ephesians they were now believers but in times past they were dead in trespasses and in sinnes yea they walked before their calling and conversion after the fashion of the world and followed the Prince that ruled in the ayr that is the Devil that now worketh strongly in the children of disobedience you were dead and you walked how could that be you had the life of nature and you walked after the Fashions of the World yea I and other believing Jewes we had our conversation in the lusts of the flesh and were by nature children of wrath as well as others there was no difference untill God put a difference Thus the Apostle speaketh of the believing Romans Romans 6.17 That they had been servants of sinne and slaves thereunto but ye now God be thanked through grace have obtained a form of godlinesse whereunto you are delivered So likewise the Apostle speaketh of himself and other true believers in Titus 3.3 4 5. We our selves were in times past disobedient deceived servers of lusts and pleasures hateful and hating one another But when the bountifulnesse of God appeared through Christ Not by the works of righteousnesse that we have done but of his mercy he saved us by the washing of the new birth and by the renewing of the Holy Ghost now there is a difference but before there was none So that this doth manifest unto us that there is no known difference between Gods chosen and others in regard of their spiritual estate and condition untill God put a difference between them by the work of his grace and Spirit The Reason Reason is manifest because Gods Children have no priviledge above others in regard of their birth they are born and brought forth in sinne as well as others they are tainted and stained with the pollution of sin as well as others and Nature in them is as vile and corrupt as in the vilest sinner upon the face of the earth yea it is as predominant and powerful in them as in any so that we see that Gods Children have no manifest difference between them and others till God put a difference Vse 1 Upon this ground in the first place learn we to take heed that we take not upon us to determine of the Final estate of any man being yet in his natural estate and condition we may not be so bold as to say this man or that woman is a Reprobate and a cast-away it is bold presumption in any Abraham could not discern that his son Ishmael was one that had no right and title to the Covenant of grace till God saith I have cast him off And there is no manifest difference between Gods chosen and others touching their spiritual estate untill God do difference them by working upon the one and leaving the other unwrought upon and therefore judge not of the future and final estate of any man by his present condition we may lawfully judge a carnal man to be a carnal man and in the way that leadeth to hell and damnation and if he do hold on in that way and not repent he shall be damned but to go beyond this is to break into Gods several and secret counsel what a carnal man may be in after time leave that unto Gods determinate counsell Vse 2 In the second place the truth now delivered is to be thought upon by as many as find tnemselves to be effectually called by the Word and the holy Spirit of God the consideration of this ought to stirre them up to blesse God and magnifie the mercy of God for that great mercy and benefit bestowed upon them they are bound in this respect so to do what were they before they were so wrought upon they were in the same estate and condition even with others that belong not unto Gods election there was no manifest and known difference between them and others either in the eye of the world or the judgment of others neither could themselves judge themselves in a better estate it was not discernable unto them or unto others they were as prone to evil as others as vile in the practise of evil as others they were wallowing and tumbling in sin and had no more desire of good then the vilest miscreant upon the earth Now who hath put a difference between thee and them that remain uncalled surely onely the Lord and that of his mere goodnesse and mercy and if thou throughly consider it thou canst not be sufficiently thankful to God and therefore when thou seest them wallowing and tumbling in sin and taking much delight and pleasure therein passe it not by without consideration but consider of it not to insult over them but to pity them and thereby call to mind what thou wast before the Lord wrought upon thee by his Word and holy Spirit
and consider that thou seest in them that so go on in their sins a lively image picture and proportion of thine own former natural estate and miserable condition such a one was I once I took as much delight as they do posted as fast to damnation as they do how much then am I bound to magnifie the goodnesse and mercy of God to me who of his mere goodnesse and mercy hath turned my feet another way even the Lord of his rich and abundant mercy hath put a manifest difference between my self and many others he hath put now a new mind in me and hath given me a delight in good things what shall I render unto the Lord what thanks what glory what honour and obedience shall I render to my God This ought to be the meditation and consideration of thee whosoever thou art that findest thy self wrought upon by the holy Word of God when thou seest other run on in sin with delight and pleasure to post to destruction as if they meant to come thither with all speed hasting to damnation Oh then lift up thy heart in Serious contemplation upon the free grace and goodnesse of God in calling thee out of that number and electing thee to salvation Further in that God saith here unto Abraham in Isaac shall thy seed be called Isaac being one that belonged unto Gods eternal election I might here stand to shew that God doth effectually call none but such as belong unto Gods election but I stood upon that in the 30 verse of the eight Chapter onely one thing now that is this We are to mark that God here saith not unto Abraham in Isaac will I make good my Covenant in Isaac will I make good my promise but he saith in Isaac shall thy seed be called Isaac shall be called and his seed and so will I make good my Covenant in Isaacs calling The doctrine is this That Gods effectual calling of men out of the state of nature Doctr. into the state of grace by the Word and work of his Spirit Effectual calling is an evidence of a mans being in Covenant with God it is a sure evidence unto them that are so called that they are in Covenant with God and God with them that God is their good and gracious Father yea it doth infallibly evidence unto them that God hath loved them from everlasting God now hath set upon them a seal of his special love and that now they have right and title to the promises of God concerning righteousnesse life and salvation 2 Pet. 1.10 saith the Apostle Give all diligence to make your calling and election sure You see he putteth down calling before election not that it is so in the order of nature but if a man be called he is certainly elected if we be sure of our calling we may be sure of our election we may certainly and infallibly conclude that we are in Covenant with God and have right and title to the promises of God we may so conclude not doubtfully or conjecturally but certainly conclude I have right and title to the Promises of God Know then what an excellent and sweet comfort may this be to them Vse that find themselves effectually called hast thou good evidence of thy effectual calling hath the Word a kindly working hath it wrought upon thee a change and set thee out of the state of nature into the state of grace thou art certainly in a most blessed and happy condition this doth evidence that God did love thee before the world was before it had a being now thou art in Covenant with God and God hath now set his seal upon thee thou art one of his good Isaacs one of his beloved think upon it therefore the meditation of thy effectual calling is more comfortable unto thee then to think upon thy election or redemption by Christ these are matters of great comfort but thy effectual calling is more comfortable unto thee it sealeth up that thou art one of Gods chosen that thou art redeemed by the Blood of Christ look to thy effectual calling or else it appertaineth not unto thee but thou being called here is wonderful comfort for thee VERSE 8. That is they that are the children of the flesh are not the children of God but the children of the Promise are counted for the seed IN this Verse our Apostle doth deliver by way of Explication that which he put down in the verse foregoing and having in the seventh verse before affirmed that not all they that came of Abraham by the course of nature are the true seed of Abraham because Ishmael was the seed of Abraham but God said he should not inherit the promise but in Isaac should the seed be called he should participate in the promise now this being brought by the Apostle and set down in the verse foregoing In this verse the Apostle explaineth himself and layeth open his meaning a little further shewing what he meaneth by children and by the seed of Abraham here he explaineth his meaning Neither are they all children in the verse before because they are the seed of Abraham but in Isaac shall thy seed be called then he subjoyneth in this eighth verse That is they that are the children of the flesh are not the children of God but the children of the Promise are counted for the seed And in this eighth verse we have laid before us an opposition between the children of the flesh and the children of the promise First of all denying them to be the children of God who are the children of the flesh and secondly affirming that they onely are accounted the true seed who are the children of the Promise Now for the explication of this verse lesse need it to be stood upon and spoken of if so be some erring spirits did not wrest and pervert it and labour to draw it to a wrong sense I will therefore endeavour to lay open the true sense of it viz. That is my meaning is they which are the children of the flesh The Arminians and the Anabaptists joyn together hand in hand and do understand by children of the flesh those that seek for righteousnesse and salvation by the righteousnesse of the Law and so seek for it by a carnal and fleshly course after the law and the flesh and so such as are Justitiaries and seek to be justified by the Law this say they is meant by children of the flesh this is their conceit But this cannot be the true sense of the phrase flesh though I grant indeed by children of the flesh we note out such as are Justitiaries in some places of Scripture and such as seek for salvation by their own righteousnesse the righteousnesse of the Law and that in and by the Law yet here in this place the literal sense and the literal meaning is to be taken and by children of the flesh we are to understand those that discended of Abraham according to the course of
so much as is needful to be known unto salvation this being the very end of God as appeareth Joh. 20.31 saith the Evangelist Many other things Jesus did but these are written that you might believe that Iesus Christ is the Son of God and by believing might have life i. e faith and salvation through his name so that this is undoubtedly true that the pen-men of the Scripture have thus explained it Vse 1 Wickedly then deal the Papists in that they lay a hardnesse and obscurity on the Word of God and teach that though the Scriptures be delivered in our Mother tongue yet they are so hard to be understood not onely of the ignorant and common sort of people the laity but the learned among themselves they cannot tell when they have the true sense and meaning of the Word of God no not of the things that are fundamental unlesse the Church consent with them Nay the greatest Rabbins and Doctours amongst us cannot understand the Scriptures without consent of the Church Oh consider hath God sent unto us his Word as a Letter and Epistle to testifie his mind unto us and unto his Church and hath he shut it up in such doubtful terms that a man cannot tell when he hath the understanding of it he sendeth it to testifie his mind and will unto us and hath he so shut it up that we cannot tell when we have the sense of it Oh fearful blasphemy why It were better that we had no Scripture written at all far better then to have it so doubtful But there is no jot of it but serveth for the good of his people both in this life and the life to come God hath so ordered the tongues of the holy Writers and Pen-men of Scripture his Prophets and Apostles that the meaning is easie to be understood by such as come unto it with attentive minds that do read diligently mark attentively judge humbly and pray heartily Vse 2 But to make use of this to our selves Is it so that the holy Prophets and Pen-men of Scripture do deliver plainly in one place what is hard in another upon this ground it followeth that the best way of expounding Scripture is by Scripture it self we commonly give thus much to a man that he is the best expounder of himself so then learn we to apply and compare Scripture with Scripture and in that we do not apply Scripture with Scripture it is the reason why we do let slip other places that may help us in the true Application of Scripture it is a subtilty that Satan or the Divel and our hearts are ready to joyn with him that he maketh men to hale and draw unto themselves such places of Scripture as they think do favour them in their sin by their abuse of it they lay hands upon those places that so seem willingly and purposely forgetting other places that do draw them back from such conjecturing as the Usurer wil draw such places as may countenance his sin to his seeming and neglect those that draw him to the contrary Yea many men they turn Gods grace unto wantonnesse to go on in sin with an high hand and stiffe neck adding drunkennesse to thirst they are impenitent in their sins and will not be reformed and yet for all this they perswade themselves that they shall find mercy from the Lord And why whence cometh this The Devil is ready to suggest unto them and to furnish them with remembrance of a number of comfortable places of Scripture that set forth Gods mercy as that in Psal 103.8 The Lord is full of compassion and mercy slow to anger and of great kindnesse and in Psal 145.9 The mercy of the Lord is over all his works these the devil maketh to intitle to themselves yea with a Psalm of mercy to carry them up to the highest pitch of presumption and to lay violent hands upon those places of Scripture that are full of comfort and to say certainly God is merciful and forgivenesse is with the Lord and though I go on in sin yet I shall find mercy purposely forgetting many other places of Scripture that shew God is a revenging God and a consuming fire that punishes those that go on in sin Psal 25.10 that mercy and truth go together God is merciful but he is also true true in his threatnings as well as in his promises yea forgetting to apply these places full of comfort with the consideration of that which Moses saith Deut. 29.20 If any man go on in the stubbornnesse of his own heart and adde Drunkennesse to thirst one sin unto another the Lord will not be merciful to that man They never remember this the devil teacheth them to forget that God is just and full of judgment and that his jealousie shall smoke against those that go on in their sins surely the Lord will render vengeance upon them Oh therefore in the fear of God take notice of it of this manner of expounding and applying of Scripture therefore learn we to compare Scriture with Scripture and see what qualification thou hast before thou lay hold on the promise of God and learn to compare Scripture with Scripture that we may mitigate the comfort of it and draw us back from wresting and perverting of it else we shall make that which should be our life our death and that which should administer comfort and sweetnesse unto us to be a means to encourage us to sinne and to adde sinne to sinne and so to rush upon our own ruine and destruction In the fear of God therefore consider it and the Lord give you all understanding That is they that are the children of the flesh are not the children of God but the children of the Promise are accounted for the seed TOuching the Apostles Denyal that they that came of Abraham according to the flesh are not the true seed these words being an Exposition of the words foregoing the point hence offered is the same which hath been stood upon before which I think needlesse to stand upon the Doctrine being That the coming or descending of good and godly parents is not sufficient to intitle us to be heires of the promise and Gods children I say the point hence arising being the same therefore I will not here meddle with it But come to the Apostles affirmation leaving his negation That they onely are accounted the true seed of Abraham who are the children of the promise that is as we shewed you in opening the Text they only that are after the manner of Isaac children of the promise belonging unto Gods election by the special grace of God and made Gods children hy the vertue of Gods promise they onely are reckoned and accounted for the true seed of Abraham to whom grace and salvation belongeth Now from these words thus understood two things are offered unto our consideration to be stood upon in particular the first is the efficacy and force of the words of Gods promise
doth limit and restrain the mercy of God to them to whom the Lord vouchsafeth mercy and therefore mercy is not a natural property in God Answ To this I answer First of all this Cavil is grounded upon a mistaking and misconstruction of the words of the Apostle For the Apostle doth not here intend and mean the natural property and essential attribute of mercy in God but he meaneth the act exercise and work of that property which is extended and reached out unto man and that is ever guided by the holy will of God Again it is false and utterly untrue that this heretick affirmeth that all the natural properties of God are ever in use to us for justice mercy goodnesse and power and the like be essential and natural in God and yet God doth extend and reach them out to whom he pleaseth according to his own purpose when he will and where he will and how it pleaseth him so that it is false and blasphemous to say that mercy is not natural and essential in God for the testimony of Scripture contradicteth it in Exod. 34.6 the Lord there proclaimeth himself in this manner The Lord the Lord strong merciful gratious and abundant in goodnesse and in truth yea this might be illustrated by many testimonies of Scripture but I forbear it in so pregnant and plain a truth And come we then to that which may be truly concluded from these words I will have mercy upon whom I will And compassion upon whom I will These words being understood as heretofore I have explained them That the act the exercise and the work of Gods mercy and pity and compassion it is ever by God extended to them to whom he pleaseth Hence then we are given to understand thus much Doct. That Gods mercy reached out unto his chosen it is most free and voluntary it dependeth upon nothing out of God but cometh onely and merely out of his own good will and pleasure That the Lord is merciful unto any or that he sheweth any fruit of his love or mercy to any one it is merely from his own good will and pleasure and not depending upon any thing out of his holy and blessed Majestie the Lord being the author of mercy pity and compassion he extendeth his mercy pity and compassion to those to whom he will Or more briefly thus The reason why the Lord doth extend and reach out mercy unto any is his mere will and nothing else And to clear this a little further mark what the Apostle saith in 2 Cor. 1.3 the Apostle there calleth God Pater misericordiarum the Father of mercies shewing that God is the Father and begetter of mercy and that mercy and love are as it were his children coming from him and in Joh. 1.15 saith the Evangelist of him we receive grace for grace one grace to another And Christ Jesus saith Luke 10.12 Father I confesse Lord of heaven and earth thou hast hid these things even the things of thy Gospel from the wise and prudent and revealed them unto babes even so because it pleased thee It was so of thy good will and pleasure nothing moving thee thereunto so that the reason why the Lord doth vouchsafe mercy unto any it is the free will and favour of God nothing else moving him But haply then some may say to me It seemeth not to be true Object that God vouchsafeth mercy unto his chosen and pardon for their sins for the sake of Christ if he shew mercy of his own free will then not for the sufferings of Christ which were a grosse errour to conclude To this I answer that these two things are subordinate Answ as we speak in schooles they do and may well agree and stand together God vouchsafeth mercy to his chosen for the sake of Christ and merely out of his own will how can these two stand together yes very well for why God vouchsafeth mercy to his chosen for the sake of Christ the will of God is that his chosen should have the pardon of their sins through Jesus Christ and that pardon of sin should not come without Christ as Christ affirmeth John 6.40 for this is the will of him that sent me that every one that seeth the son and believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life Now if any do object that of the Prophet Esay 43.25 Object I am he that hath put away all thine iniquities for mine own sake therefore it seemeth it is not for Christs sake but for his own sake as the Lord professeth I answer Answ God doth therefore pardon the sins of his chosen for his own sake because he doth it for Christs sake for all the works of every person is the work of the whole Trinity that which the Son worketh the Father and Holy Ghost worketh in Unity of Godhead so that mercy cometh only from God the Father And the reason why God vouchsafeth mercy to any is nothing else but Gods free will This first meeteth with a false conclusion of Arminius and of the Arminians Vse 1 that say God may decree to shew mercy unto such as believe and repent and such as persevere in grace and sanctification Now this is to restrain Gods shewing of mercy to mens qualification And to make something in man to be the cause and reason of Gods shewing mercy Where as these two stand together never they can possibly agree being contraria contraria sine medio That Gods will is the cause of his mercy to man and that God sheweth mercy because of their faith vertue and qualification in good things they are two opposites but to leave them Farther this being so That Gods mere Will is the cause of his mercy Vse 2 unto us and nothing else hereby then we must learn to magnifie the mercy of God vouchsafed unto us in any kind whatsoever hath God vouchsafed mercy unto us in regard of our bodies but especially in respect of our soules hath he converted our sinful soules from wickednesse to himself hath he reached out his mercy so far as that he hath extended his saving grace unto our soules Oh then learn we to acknowledge that it is most free and that it hath been vouchsafed merely from God himself nothing in us as a reason or cause to move him why he should shew us the least mercy And thus meditate and think with thy self whosoever thou art that hast found Gods mercy and his saving grace reached out unto thy sinful soul Oh consider surely I was in the common estate and condition of all men I was guilty of damnation by reason of the sin committed by Adam I was begotten and brought forth in sin and lived therein in a miserable estate and condition and I had no feeling of my misery no desire to be saved and when God sought me I desired him not I closed mine eyes against him and would not see the light I stopped mine eares and would not hear his voyce But the
Lord at the last opened mine ears and eyes and enlightened my mind gave me understanding and made me see what I would not see he touched my heart with his grace and the power of his Spirit and changed my Affections whereas before I had no mind of heaven no desire of salvation untill he made me see what I have not he hath not dealt thus with all many thousands there be that go on without this touch of heart and remorse of conscience without this powerful work of grace they go on in their sins though they hear the Word from Sabbath to Sabbath what was I better then they surely nothing at all by Nature Oh then how am I bound unto God nothing moving the Lord to shew mercy unto me but onely his mere good will and pleasure how am I bound to magnifie the goodnesse of God And indeed this is that glory of the free mercy of God which the Lord would have us to yeeld unto him he would have us to yeeld unto him this glory of his free mercy and how pleasing this is to God and how the Lord esteemeth of this magnifying of his mercy may appear by that description Exod. 34 6 7. The Lord the Lord strong merciful gracious slow to anger and abundant in goodnesse and truth Reserving mercy for thousands forgiving iniquity transgression and sin c. Thus the Lord doth proclaim himself for this is that wherein the Lord doth take delight to have the glory of his free mercy given unto him And this is the name by which the Lord Jesus will be known to his Elect and chosen in all ages I am a merciful God this is the name by which I will be magnified and in which he delighteth that we should give him the glory of his mercy that we can say when the Lord vouchsafeth mercy unto us that it proceedeth onely from the Lords free will And know that it is not more vile pride in a Begger to attribute the almes that is given unto him unto his own deserts then it is for us to ascribe any the least mercy that God vouchsafeth unto us to our own worthinesse it is monstrous pride in a beggar to ascribe the almes that are given him to his own deservings But it is far more for thee to ascribe and attribute that to thy self which is freely given of God Let us therefore consider that every rag we have it is of the free mercy of God Oh did proud persons consider this they would not so gorgiously adorn themselves and disgrace the holy profession of God if they did consider they have nothing but from the free Fountain of Gods mercy nothing moving him they would not be such carelesse fellowes in their careless bands which sheweth their carelesnesse as they be Vse 3 Again Is Gods mercy reached out unto his chosen most free and depending upon nothing out of God himself surely then a child of God one to whom God hath reached out saving mercy may conclude and gather to his comfort that Gods saving mercy it shall never be removed from him but abide with him for ever for why it dependeth upon the free will of God and that is unchangeable even as God himself And I may say as Pilate saith in Joh. 19.32 when he had written a superscription over Christ and they demanded why he writ so he answered quod scripsi scripsi what I have written I have written so may the Lord say I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy Mal. 3.16 I am Jehovah I change not Mercy is mine and who shall take it from me shall the devil no nor all the powers in hell can hinder or frustrate the will of God Oh then consider to thy comfort God hath reached out his mercy to thee and he will never take it from thee for he hath said I will have mercy on whom I will VERSE 16. So then it is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth But God that sheweth mercy THe Apostle in this Verse determineth the point touching Gods Justice in his free choyce of some particulars amongst men to life and salvation In the Verse foregoing he proveth it by the speech of God unto Moses that God hath free liberty and absolute power to shew mercy unto whom he will and compassion to whom he will without respect had to any thing in them Now the Lord having thus described his shewing of mercy merely to depend upon his good will and pleasure hereupon our Apostle in this 16. verse doth bring in a consectarie and infer this conclusion that therefore Gods eternal election of some to life and salvation is not to be ascribed unto the will or unto the works of any man but unto Gods free grace in shewing of mercy So then it is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth but in God that sheweth mercy In this 16. verse the general things are two First a removal of that which is not the cause of Gods eternal election of some to life and salvation and what is that mans willing and mans running it is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth Secondly the describing and the assigning of the onely true and proper cause of Gods choosing of some to salvation and that is Gods shewing of mercy but in him that sheweth mercy Now I will lay forth the sense and meaning of the words of this verse So then or So therefore it is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 In the text Original these words it is are not to be found but they are necessarily to be supplyed So then it is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth what is that that is not in him that willeth nor in him that runneth surely that which the Apostle had spoken of Gods eternal election of some to life and salvation that is not in him that willeth nor runneth Some do here understand Jacobs willing and running particularly but by their favour that is too narrow and too strict for the purpose of the Apostle is more large and general these words being a conclusion of the verse foregoing I will have mercy on him on whom I will And this word him must have as large a sense as the words in the verses foregoing yet Jacob is not to be excluded but rather included and so the meaning is it is not in Jacob or in any other man that willeth or runneth in him that willeth That is in him that willeth and desireth good and endeavoureth after that which is good and that by the power and strength of his mind will and affections or any part or all the powers and faculties of his soul nor in him that runneth We are not to understand as some do Esau's runing onely no nor yet Jacobs running to the fold to fetch a Kid for his father Gen. 27. but the meaning is it is not in him that worketh as it is not in
1 a standing at the staves end with God as it is said of the Jewes Abusing the patience of God and not making a holy use of the meanes of grace is resisting of God Act. 7.51 that they being a people of hard hearts and not bettered by the Apostles preaching what are they he describeth them that they confront the Lord and resisted the Holy Ghost Oh you of uncircumcised hearts you have alwayes resisted the Holy Ghost and though the Lord be a God of long patience yet he will not suffer them long to resist he will have the better in the end he will shew himself to be a revenging God to those that abuse his patience Again continuance in sin without repentance and going on wilfully in sins Reason 2 is the onely thing that bringeth the just wrath of God upon the soules and bodies of men it is not one sin no nor many sins Not sinning but continuance in sin that brings the wrath of God upon the bodies and soules of men that bringeth the wrath of God though God may justly condemn for one sin yet it is not that but it is long continuing in sin without repentance that is the thing and the onely thing that bringeth the wrath of God when men abuse the patience of God and long-suffering of God and go on continuing in sin even then the wrath of the Lord falleth upon them so that though the Lord spare for a long time yet at the last he will punish them Therefore hence take we notice of the fearful estate of those that God suffereth to thrive in sin such persons as live in foul scandalous sins Vse The miserable estate of such as continue in sin and the Lord is patient toward them and doth not strike with a visible plague or outward punishment but they go on and are hardened in them surely they do treasure up the just wrath and vengeance of God upon them against the day of wrath they go on without rub or without disturbance they follow their sins with a full swing they heap up the vengeance of God against the day of wrath And know it for a certain truth that they are in the worst case of all others that do abound in the plenty of outward good things and withal God suffereth them to thrive by usury and by unlawful means unlesse they repent they are in the heaviest case of all men for they being not led by the long-suffering and patience of God to repentance surely they provoke God to inflict most heavy and fearful vengeance upon them Oh then consider it thou that art a most vile and grosse sinner an usurer or whatsoever thou art if thou art so far from being bettered by the outward blessings of God as that thou goest on in thy sin with an high hand thou art in a miserable estate and condition thou dost provoke God to most just anger and wrath And the longer the Lord doth forbear and suffer thee to go on in the practice of any sin the deeper will be thy condemnation and Judgment yea beloved to abuse the patience of God and turn it to a licence to sin what is it it is a mark of a Reprobate and it is more then a probable sign thou art in the state of Reprobation for it is the abuse of Gods long sufferance that bringeth us to destruction Vse 2 Again this teacheth us to take heed of abusing the long patience and long suffering of God Let us take heed how we abuse not Gods patience by wilfulnesse and obstinacy in sin he is a patient God he calleth and cryeth unto us Come out of your pride your drunkennesse and filthinesse come to the house of God receive the Word of God Oh take heed then of abusing the patience of God The Lord offereth unto us the means of grace for our reformation we must be bettered by every Sermon we hear and take heed of obstinacy and rebellion in sin it is the heaviest hand of God upon our soules that can befall us Take we heed of custome in sin And to this end take we heed of yeelding unto sin time after time many persons that are not hardened in sin if they yeeld unto them time after time grow hardened yea we shall find if we observe it that men harden their own hearts before God hardens them they live and continue in sin and care not for profiting by the meanes of grace and then the Lord giveth them over in his just Judgment to hardnesse of heart therefore take heed of wittingly and willingly continuing in any known sin whatsoever resisting the grace of God and make your selves lyable to the vengeance of God The phrase and form of speech observable Again mark we further the Apostle doth expresse Gods vengeance on Reprobates by this term to shew his wrath hence note we thus much That Gods punishing hand wheresoever he lets it fall it falleth heavy Gods punishment and Judgment lighting upon ungodly persons they are Doct. 4 most heavy and fearful God in shewing of wrath doth after the manner of men that are furious Anger and wrath are not properly in God but they are given unto him by way of Metaphor for our capacity the Lord will shew himself a God of rage and fury unto those that abuse his long-suffering and hence it is that the wrath and fury of God is compared to the breaking out of fire as we say fire and water have no mercy Psal 2.12 Kisse the Son lest he be angry and so his wrath be kindled and break out and burn suddenly so in Deut. 29.20 if you follow after the stubbornnesse of your heart and adde drunkennesse to thirst the wrath of the Lord shall burn against that man Vse This for the use of it discovereth unto us the folly of such persons that make light account and reckoning of just punishments of God threatened against them yea some make a mock at it when they are threatened with that fearful sentence at the last day Go ye cursed they say if they can scape so long let them alone In Prov. 19.12 it is said the anger of a King is like the roaring of a Lyon if it be so then the wrath of the Lord is more to be feared then hell it self Gods wrath more to be feared then hell it self yea it is Hell for the apprehension of Gods wrath is hell and we see it by experience that the Anger and wrath of God apprehended by a wounded Conscience it is a burthen unsupportable it maketh men to hang and drown themselves and to cut their own throats it maketh them mad to be eased of it a wounded conscience who can bear therefore learn to consider the wrath of Gods punishing hand in Nahum 1.5 6. verses saith the Prophet before his face when he is angry the Mountains flie away the rocks cleave in sunder and turn into dust and powder what hearts have we then Job
the meanes of our Lord Jesus Christ So then thus conceive we the meaning of the Apostle as if he had said And in like sort that God might make it known to all the world both to men and Angels his exceeding great and abundant grace and mercy toward and upon his Elect who are vessels as capable of mercy as any vessel to receive water the Lord having from everlasting ordained and appointed them to the Kingdom of glory Now the words being thus understood I will onely point at one thing briefly We see here the Apostle maketh it apparent and known that God sheweth his Justice and maketh his power known upon the Reprobates thereby to amplifie and to set forth the greatnesse of his mercy toward his chosen and make known the riches of his mercy upon the vessels of mercy This is the ground of the Observation And the Doctrine hence arising is this viz. Doctrine That Gods mercy vouchsafed to his Children in any kind whatsoever whether concerning soul or body it appeareth the greater and is felt the sweeter by considering Gods wrath and punishment in the same kind inflicted upon the wicked The riches and the greatnesse of Gods mercy toward any of his children is more evident more apparent and more conspicuous and the better discerned by comparing it with his just punishing hand that he layeth upon others And to this purpose we have many evidences of Scripture the mercy of God in saving Noah and his Family in the Ark when the flood was upon the earth being considered with the Lords wrath and vengeance upon the whole world besides it made the mercy of God to be more conspicuous and better discerned of Noah So the freedome that the people of Israel had in the Land of Goshen in Egypt from the plagues of Egypt when the heavy hand of God was upon the Egyptians being considered with those heavy plagues did exceedingly set forth the riches of Gods mercy to his Children that they should be saved and the other punished in the same land and in Exod. 14.30 31. the Text saith of the Israelites they saw the Egyptians dead upon the bank and saw their final overthrow and no doubt that Gods Justice in their overthrow made the mercy of the Lord in their deliverance appear the better and thereupon they were stirred up to praise God after an extraordinary manner for an extraordinary blessing in the 15. Chapter And to these places I might adde many more all expressing that the mercy of God vouchsafed to his Children feeleth sweeter and the more comfortable Considered together with Gods wrath in punishing the wicked and reprobate yea it doth ravish the soul of a Child of God and maketh it more comfortable The Reason Reason and ground of it is from that Logical rule Contra juxta se posita c. Contraries set in opposition maketh them the better to appear black and white set together it maketh white more resplendant and appear the clearer so Gods mercy opposed to Gods Justice maketh his mercy appear more conspicuous And for the Application Vse let this teach us to consider the mercy of God to us that are his Children in comparison of his Judgment to others as for example thou being a Child of God consider God hath given thee sanctification in thy heart and soul a feeling of thy sins and groaning under it then consider this thy Illumination and sanctification together with the Ignorance and obdurancy of others and it will make thee to praise and set forth the greatnesse of Gods mercy so again in outward mercies the Lord hath given thee abundance thou hast strength and ability of body thou hast liberty and freedom from imprisonment and thou seest others that are blind sick lame and under the heavy hand of God in some Affliction they are weak and poor And in this hard time that now is upon us thou seest others wanting firing wanting lodging wanting means to defend them from the injury of the weather surely the Lord setteth these before thee not onely that thou shouldest be pitifull unto them and help and relieve them but herein also to see the greatnesse and goodnesse of Gods mercy towards thee Lay not out so much upon thy pride in excesse of Apparel but extend some to the poor and praise the Lord for his greatnesse and goodnesse that hath made thee rich and healthfull and others lye up and down ready to be famished Oh consider this what the Lord hath done for thy body and soul he hath inlarged his hand to thee inlarge thou thy hand in giving to others and inlarge thy heart in praising of God and let it stirre thee up to great thankfulnesse unto God for this his mercy to thee And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy which he had before prepared unto glory ANd in the next place observe that the Apostle here saith not barely God will extend and reach out his abundant mercy toward his Children or that he might shew his mercy upon them abundantly but mark the manner of his speech he putteth down his mind and meaning in these tearms that God might declare the riches of his glorie upon his I hil dren every word is very emphatical and full of weight and the meaning is that God might make known to all the world to men and Angels his exceeding great and abundant grace and mercy upon his Elect and toward his Children Hence then we may easily gather this conclusion Doctrine That God will one day manifest his exceeding great and abundant mercy toward his chosen and he will one day make it appear to all the World to Men and Angels that he is a most wonderful and gracious God unto his Chosen indeed God is exceeding gracious and abundantly merciful unto his Chosen at all times especially after their effectual Calling and Conversion and turning from sinne unto him from the estate of Nature unto the estate of Grace then giving unto them the pardon of all their sinnes sealing his love unto them in Christ as it is in Romans 10.5 Then giving unto his Children libertie to approach and come near unto his holy presence with comfort and thankesgiving then beautifying their soules with many excellent gifts of his Spirit with Faith with Zeale and with Humilitie so that God is exceeding great and abundantly merciful unto his Chosen yet let me tell you that his abundant grace and mercie to his Elect is not so apparent to the eyes of men It lieth hid and obscured either under that excellent grace of Humilitie or under their afflictions so as that the world seeth it not yet the time shall come that howsoever it is now darkned it shall appear to men and Angels yea men and Angels shall admire at the wonderful mercie of God to his Chosen and to this purpose is that of the Apostle in the 2 Thessalonians 1.10 where the Apostle saith that Christ Jesus at the day of
judgement he will come to be glorified in his Saints and to be made marvelous and wonderful in all that believe He will invest his Saints then with heavenly glory and manifest his rich grace and abundant mercy upon them and that to the admiration and astonishment of all the world that shall looke upon him and be eye-witnesse of it in 1 John 3.2 Dearly beloved saith the Apostle We are now the Sonnes of God yet it doth not appear what we shall be is not now apparant nor evident to the eye of the world but the time shall come when it shall be apparant and manifest and that shall be when Christ shall come in glory unto judgement then the Saints of God then the true believers and the Chosen of God shall be made like unto him in fulnesse of grace and in fulnesse of glory not equal unto him but like unto him a plain Text evidencing and confirming this Truth That God will one day manifest his exceeding greatnesse and mercy to his chosen and make it appear to all the world to men and Angels that he is a merciful God to the confusion of the wicked and the admiration of the Angels Now beloved if so be we desire to be further enformed touching this what shall make men and Angels to admire the wonderful mercy of God to his Chosen Beloved it shall be not onely in respect of the abundant greatnesse of Gods mercy to his Chosen but also in respect of the freeness of Gods grace and of Gods glory that God bestoweth abundance of grace and of mercy and that freely for when as the wicked and reprobates shall at that day have justly according as they have deserved inflicted upon them even everlasting wrath and vengeance so on the other side God hath revealed the greatnesse of his mercy upon his chosen not for any merits or deserts of theirs and herein appeareth the wonderful admiration of Gods mercie in that he giveth it not in respect of any merit or desert of theirs for they have deserved the same wrath with the Reprobates but onely of his free mercy this shall make men and Angels to wonder at it that God vouchsafeth such a weight of glorie which they have not deserved freely out of his own mercie and it must needs be so for these Reasons Because the glorie of his mercie is as dear unto him as the glorie of his Reason 1 Justice and he will no more loose the glorie of his mercie then the glorie of his Justice Because God having promised grace unto his Chosen yea fulness of Reason 2 grace and fulness of mercy according to their measure The Lord will be justified in his Word and in his sayings and in his promise he will make it good yea the most wicked in the world shall one day justifie the goodness and the mercie of God to his Chosen and he will make them one day will they nill they to confess his goodness and this is not done in this world but in the world to come then he will wring a confession from them howsoever now they will not confess it yet then they shall manifest the riches of Gods grace to his Chosen The due consideration of this yieldeth matter of sweet and excellent comfort to Gods Children two waies First in respect of the cause and estate of Gods Children as it standeth with them when they are under some great and grievous affliction or under some strong temptation and violent assaults by Sathan in that he feels such a weight of sinne and such a burthen of corruptions lying and pressing down his heart and soul as for the present he hath no apprehension of the special love of God unto him nay he concludeth the Contrarie even against himself as that God hath forgotten him and left him though there be no such matter but God is pleased to exercise his Faith and to trie the soundness of his grace and he will have him to know that his faith and grace is even as pure gold tried in the furnace 1 Peter 1.7 That the trrial of your Faith is much more precious then gold Now in this case a Child of God may call to minde in this miserable estate he thinketh himselfe may call to minde what comfort and what mercie the Lord hath vouchsafed upon me and what pledges of his saving goodness the Lord hath vouchsafed and then he may consider that though the saving mercy of God be now hid from him for a time and that he can finde no comfort yet he having had experience of his saving grace formerly he may resolve that he will again return and manifest his mercie unto him for consider to reason thus Will God one day make it apparant to all the world that he is a merciful and gracious God to his Children and will not the same God make it manifest and apparant to thy soul here in this life at one time or other it cannot possibly be thou having had love tokens of his favour though they seem to be lost yet the Lord will come with abundance of grace and goodness Romans 15.13 Yea the Lord one day so exprest his grace as that the Child of God shall himselfe wonder and magnifie the grace of God unto his own soul yea he shall be ravished with the wonderful mercie of God unto his Chosen in general and to himselfe in particular For though when the Devil opposeth the godly by temptations they feele not the mercie of God to them yet the time shall come when it shall be manifest to all the world much more then to themselvess and to their own souls Again will God one day manifest his abundant mercie unto his Chosen Vse 2 making it to appear to the view of men and Angels it yieldeth a matter of comfort to Gods Children in respect of the censure and judgement that they pass upon Gods Children The men of the world seeing Gods Children walk humbly before the Lord and looking upon their humble and low carriage and behaviour which they account baseness they presently shoote out their fools bolt that they are the Reprobates they look upon the outside and see not what is within they are not able to see what mercy the Lord vouchsafeth unto his Children even in this world in that he giveth them assurance of his love unto them in Jesus Christ and a feeling of the sweetness of his grace and of mercie and the pardon of their sinnes this they are not able to see through the darkness of affliction and the cloud of their miserie Now this is to be remembred and to be thought upon for our comfort that are Gods Children in respect of this censure that howsoever the grace and the mercie of God be obscured and they cannot see it yet comfort thy self the time shall come that God-wil make it appear to men and Angels that he is a gracious God and that he is rich in mercy unto them and that the love of God is
spread abroad in thy heart yea the time shal come that men and Angels shal se thee Crowned with a Crown of glorie and a Crown of mercie that they shal be driven to an admiration of it and then they shal befool themselves and say we fools thought these mens lives to to be madness yea we accounted them contemptible and base fellows but now behold the riches of Gods mercie that he is wonderfully gracious and merciful unto his Children they shal befool themselves to see the greatness of Gods mercie unto his Chosen which shal be so great that they shal admire at it yea the verie Angels shal wonder at it Angels that are able to understand more then all the men in the world they shal be amazed and wonder at the riches of Gods mercie unto his chosen Therefore let the calumnie and the slander of the wicked pass by unregarded for the Lord wil one day manifest his mercie to the admiration of Men and Angels And that he might declare the riches of his glorie unto the vessels of mercy prepared unto glorie AGain observe we here the Apostle putteth glorie for mercie and maketh them both tending to one end from hence the Doctrin is this viz. Doctrine That God in shewing of mercie unto his Chosen intendeth the glory of his grace and the glorie of his mercie The Lord in shewing of mercie unto his Chosen doth it to this end that he might have his praise and glorie by it he aimeth at this end that it might be known and admired and spoken of and magnified and that he might have glorie by it as good Kings and Princes next after the things that concern Religion they doe esteem this above all the honour of their name that they might be respected of their Subjects for their Clemencie and bountie unto their Subjects so it is with the Lord the great King of Heaven and Earth all the graces and favour and mercy that he vouchsafeth unto his Chosen from the first mercie to the last from their Election to their glorification in Heaven it tendeth to this end that his grace and mercy unto his Chosen may be manifested and appear and that he may have the praise and the glorie of his grace and of his mercie In Ephesians 1.5 God saith the Apostle He hath Predestinated us to be Adopted through Jesus Christ in himself nothing moving him thereunto out of his own blessed Majestie according to the good pleasure of his Will to what end To the praise of the glory of his grace of his rich and abundant grace and mercie And as glorifying of the riches of his grace and mercy is that which the Lord delighteth in so he aimeth at it as the supream and highest end in shewing of mercy And the Lord may safely seek his own glory and praise without any danger of pride in it as it is in man for they looking at their own praise and estimation among men they are tainted with pride but it is not so with the Lord because indeed he is the highest and there is none above him And hence it was in Exod. 34.6 7. when the Lord shewed himself unto Moses he magnified his mercy above all other attributes and he proclaimeth his mercy by many several titles and passages The Lord the Lord strong merciful and gracious slow to anger abundant in goodnesse and in truth reserving mercy unto thousands forgiving iniquities transgressions and sins there is mention of Gods power in a word very sparingly but there is nothing sufficient to extol the glory of his mercy explicating that in variety of expressions and setting it out to the full Now this being a truth first of all this serveth to stir us up to give God Vse 1 the praise and glory of his mercy vouchsafed unto us in any kind whatsoever this is the main thing the Lord aymeth at in shewing of mercy unto his chosen that it might be known and glorified Oh then surely we ought never to let the grace and the mercy of God to be out of our mouthes this is that he delighteth in and therefore we must have his mercy in our mouthes especially we professing our selves to be his children and servants for consider I beseech you how will those servants that belong and appertain to bountiful Lords and Masters how will they be ever setting forth and extolling the bounty and beneficence of their Masters in what company soever they are commending their frank House-keeping and good hospitality in being beneficial to the poor and good to their followers And so indeed they are not the children of God that do not thus magnifie the riches of Gods mercy unto them and have them in their hearts and mouthes continually crying out Oh the mercy of God to us is large else they are bastards and not the children of God for such as belong unto Gods grace God giveth them grace unto this end that his grace and mercy might be known and magnified that they may say Oh what hath God done for my soul this is the practise of a holy servant of God therefore we are to be stirred up for any mercy the Lord hath vouchsafed in any kind not onely for health restored or for any such things that are temporal but also for things that are spiritual or for any mercy that he hath bestowed upon us we are to be thankful and especially we are to give praise and thanks unto God for his great and wonderful mercy bestowed upon us in Christ Jesus in that he gave Christ Jesus to be a Saviour for our soules this we ought to be thankful unto God for above all other mercies Again is this so that Gods shewing of mercy unto his chosen it tendeth Vse 2 to the glory of his mercy surely then it cannot be that life and glory is given unto Gods chosen from the hand of Justice as a thing due unto them by their meritorious deserts this cannot possibly be for mercy is given for the magnifying of his mercy for if it were so as the Papists teach given for their merit by the hand of Justice surely then God should aym at his Justice as the main and highest end of all in their glorification which is not so for he aymeth at the glory of his mercy for indeed as God intendeth and aymeth at the glory of his Justice and power as the highest end in the destruction of the Reprobate and wicked and so he aymeth at the glorification of his mercy as the highest end in the salvation of the Elect and godly And whereas the Papists say that life and glory is given as an act of mercy and of Justice and so they would make a hotch-potch and a compound of that which cannot be compounded for it is as possible that God should send a man to hell and condemn a man out of his revenging Justice and saving mercy at the same time as that God should give a man mercy and salvation out of his hand
the great Lord and King of heaven and earth and God hath promised to do good to them and to their posterity for many generations Exod. 20.6 To shew mercy unto thousands to them that love him Psal 112.2 The generation of the righteous shall be blessed yea they are his Jewels Mal. 3.16 Vse 1 See then for the Use of this in the first place see I say and take we notice of the great force of true piety of what account it is with the Lord it 's sufficient to get honour not onely to those that have it with all that are able to judge aright but also to their kindred and to their posterity and such as be of kindred or any way allied unto good and godly men may rejoyce in it and after an holy manner boast of it that they are the kinsmen of such worthy servants of God or that they are the children of such godly parents yet so as that by the example of their kindred they be stirred up to tread in their steps and to become holy and religious themselves otherwise that honour will turn to their shame as Solomon saith Prov. 16.31 Age is a crown of glory when it is found in the way of righteousnesse so to be descended of good and godly parents is a crown of glory if it be set on the head of such as are godly and religious otherwise it is a dishonour to them and without Gods mercy shall encrease their condemnation and on this ground let parents learn how they may estate their children in that which may be for their honour and best good namely thus they are to labour to bring themselves within the Covenant of grace and to become holy and religious themselves and then though they cannot derive their holinesse to their children because they beget them not as they be holy men but as men simply by the power and strength of nature yet by vertue of the Covenant God will be good to their children Gen. 26. we read of many blessings promised to Isaac and why because saith the text vers 5. Abraham his father obeyed the voyce of the Lord. Holinesse in the Parents seales up Gods favour not onely to themselves but to their children also This cannot raking and scraping together of wealth do it is a common saying but a wicked and cursed saying Happy is the child whose father goes to the Devil It is rather a comfort to the children when they can remember that their parents are or have been godly and in the favour of God they may then say as Jacob said Gen. 32.9 Lord thou hast been or thou art the God of my father good and gracious to him shew thou mercy to me his child according to thine own sweet promise Last of all Is it an honour and dignity to be of the race or kindred of Vse 2 such as have been holy servants of God and to be the children of good and godly Parents what an honour then is it to be the children of God and to be born of God and to be the adopted sons and daughters of God without question that is the highest degree of honour that can be vouchsafed to any worldly men esteem it a great honour to be of the race or kindred of Noble men and great men in the world but alas it is but a shadow or rather not so much as a shadow compared to the true honour of the least or meanest of Gods Saints They are the adopted sonnes and daughters of God the great Lord and King of heaven and earth they are brethren to Christ heires to the Kingdom of heaven they have Angels for their guard all things for their good and the whole world is theirs and this honour ought to affect our hearts and we are to be ambitious in seeking this honour above all things in the world Now further it is not to be passed by without noting that the Apostle here saith the Jewes who lived in his time at the time when he writ this Epistle were the posterity of the holy Patriarks and no doubt they were then able to fetch their pedegree from those holy Fathers and to prove themselves to be the seed and children of Abraham and to come of his line as they alledge for themselves and brag of it to Christ Joh. 8.33 VVe be Abrahams seed and verse 39. Abraham is our father yea doubtlesse they could then shew a perpetuall succession of their high Priests from Aaron to the time of Christ yet for all this they were rejected and were not the true Church of God the Jewes now rejecting Christ and refusing to imbrace the faith and doctrine of the Gospel are not the true Church of God though they be descended from Abraham and from the holy Patriarks and though they can derive their pedegree from them See then I note it to this purpose the vanity and weaknesse of that argument that is used by our adversaries the Papists that forsooth the continual succession of Bishops is an evident argument of the true visible Church and they will needs have their Romish Synagogue to be the onely true Church because as they say their Pope is the successour of Peter and they have had a continual ordinary succession of Bishops Pastours and Doctors from the time of the Apostles which indeed is a vain brag and can never be proved it is questionable whether Peter ever sate as Bishop at Rome And the Popish Church hath no succession from the Apostles for many hundred yeares after Christ at the least for five or six hundred years And admit they could shew a continued succession of their Bishops from the time of the Apostles without interruption yet that is but a sandy and a weak ground to build the truth of their Church on unlesse they can also shew a continual succession of true doctrine and that their Church hath succeeded the Apostles in truth of doctrine for indeed they cannot be said to succeed them whose doctrine they renounce An outward succession of persons in any place without succession of true doctrine from the Apostles which the Papists cannot shew is nothing worth It helpeth not the Bishop of Rome to have as they say Peter for their predecessour and that they are his successours so long as they swerve from the true Doctrine of Peter and are become such grosse Idolaters that personal succession if they could prove it can nothing avail them It followeth verse 5. and of whom concerning the flesh Christ came that is of which Jews Christ also descended concerning the flesh as touching his humane nature This is also added as further matter of honour and dignity to the Jewes that Christ came of them concerning the flesh as touching his humane nature that he that was the Sonne of God and that from all eternity should have the same Ancestors and Progenitors with them Whence we see then Doctr. That the Jewes are a very Honourable people having many excellent priviledges and prerogatives
all and have respect onely to his mercy and eternal love And take heed that in regard of thy unworthinesse thou do not conclude God will cast thee off no God doth it not for any thing foreseen or done by thee but onely of his free grace and mercy and he will freely save thee Again upon this ground of truth learn we to acknowledge and to magnifie the wonderful and unspeakable goodnesse of God if we be such as shall find our selves in the number of Gods chosen we must learn to extol and magnifie the mercy of God for why the Lord out of his mere good pleasure without respect had to any thing in us or done by us merely out of his free love hath fore-appointed us to life and salvation for which we cannot sufficiently magnifie the goodnesse of God consider it there was no difference between thee and others as thou diddest lye in the sight of God no difference between thee and such a one as is rejected and refused and if so be God had not severed thee by his eternal election from others thou hadst been in no better estate then Esau or Judas or Saul or Jezebel or the vilest Reprobate that liveth upon the face of the earth Oh then be stirred up to magnifie the Lord who out of his free mercy hath elected thee and rejected others In the 2 Sam. 6.21 we read that David danced and leaped and rejoyced in his spirit exceedingly before the Ark of God what was in Davids mind was he a mad-man as Michael his wife told him no he considered that God had chosen him and rejected the house of Saul so he saith to Michael the Lord hath chosen me and my fathers house and rejected thee and thy fathers house Oh then how should we rejoyce in Spirit and blesse and magnifie his mercy that he hath chosen us not to a Temporal Kingdom but to an eternal Kingdom in heaven this should make us rejoyce from which he hath rejected many thousands as good as thy self how can I be sufficiently thankful unto God if so be men of eminency and place should shew us a common kindnesse and courtesie we little regard it but if so be those eminent persons do admit us unto their special favour and do yeeld unto us such a kindnesse as they will not communicate to any but their dearest favourites and friends then we highly esteem of it Oh then consider the Lord hath done us that favour wherein the greatest part of the world and of mankind have no share no part nor portion how should this teach us to magnifie praise laud and blesse the holy name of God Oh holy holy holy Lord God ever praised and magnified be thy great name who hast set us apart to life and salvation and rejected many others in the world Yea beloved as God hath put a difference between us and others we belonging to his election so let us manifest and make it to appear that there is a difference between us and them in the course of our lives and conversations that we differ from the wicked manners of the world for they that follow the course and manners of the world they believe not that God hath set them apart to life and salvation if they had hearts to believe it they would manifest it and make it appear in their lives and conversations our life must be a visible disallowing and disavowing of their lives we must confront the wicked we must shine as lights in the world and carry our selves as children of the light and not follow the swaggering fashions of the world for as God hath made a separation between us and them and will make a final separation at the day of Judgement so now there should be a separation I mean not a separation from the Church but from the cursed courses of the world even as Lot did in Sodom Oh therefore in the fear of God let us ever magnifie and blesse the Name of God for choosing us to salvation and let us labour to be answerable in some measure by our obedience unto him For the Children being not yet born neither having done any good or evil that the purpose of God according to Election might stand not of works but of him that calleth It was said unto her The elder shall serve the younger THe next thing to be considered is the Apostles amplification of the speech of God unto Rebekah and it is amplified by the end of it It was said unto Rebekah by God himself The elder shall serve the younger to what end to this end that the whole matter might depend upon Gods election touching his free choyce not by works but by him that calleth So then the next words to be handled in order of the Text are these that the purpose of God touching or concerning election might remain or abide that is as I shewed you That the eternal purpose and decree of God touching his free choyce of electing some to life and salvation and his rejecting and refusing others might remain firm and stable immoveable and unshaken here then you see we have a ground of the infallible certainty and immutability of Gods decree before we shewed you the freenesse of it here we have a certain ground of the infallible certainty and immutability and unchangeablenesse of his decree in choosing some and rejecting others hence the observation is this That Gods eternal decree and purpose Doctrine touching his free choyce of some particular men to life and salvation and his fore-appointing of some to life and glory is most sure certain and unchangeable and remaineth firm and immoveable God hath from everlasting fore-appointed some particular men to an heavenly inheritance to the Kingdom of heaven and that certainly and infallibly so as that they cannot misse of coming to life and glory in heaven in Gods good time it is not possible that they should come short of it Indeed if we consider one that belongeth to Gods election apart from Gods decree then such a one may perish But if we consider him with Gods decree as we ought ever to do it is impossible that such a one should perish considering him as a chosen vessel of God in his eternal purpose it is not possible that he should misse of salvation And for the confirmation of it to this purpose is the speech of Christ himself in Matth 24.24 There shall arise false Christs and false prophets and they shall shew great signs and wonders so that saith Christ if it were possible they should deceive the very elect As if he had said False Christs and false Prophets arising in the Church of God shall come with such powerful working even with the working of Satan and with all power and lying wonders as the Apostle describeth Antichrist himself his followers 2 Thess 2.9 that they shall come with such a powerful working with the lying wonders of Satan that if it were possible they should deceive the very elect but that
matter of comfort to believing soules and particularly comfort those that are capable of comfort He telleth him that he believing in these promises shall certainly be saved For thus runneth the tenour of the Word and the Gospel Whosoever truly believeth in Christ Jesus shall certainly be saved hereupon the Minister standing in the room and place of Christ being his Ambassadour doth make this particular application and draw out this conclusion The text saith he that believeth shall be saved The Minister saith Believe thou Richard Thomas William or whatsoever thou art and thou shalt surely be saved And this is as much as if Christ himself did preach by his immediate voyce from heaven For why Christ hath committed to us Preachers the delivery of his Word as appeareth 2 Cor. 5.19 20. And therefore upon the ground of believing the general promises of the Gospel that such shall be saved they may assure themselves they shall be saved And a man finding faith in his heart and soul which he may prove by the fruits and works of faith may thereupon assure himself that he is in the number of Gods chosen and shall certainly be saved And thereupon we may see it is but a cavil that these enemies of God affirm That the Minister knoweth not whether a man belong to Gods election or no when the Minister assureth him not upon that ground but upon the ground of believing Is this so that the Minister of the Word must not onely make known Vse 2 general Doctrines but particularly apply them Surely then the hearers of the VVord must not onely hear the general truth of the VVord made known unto them but they must also be content to have those truths applied unto them particularly by way of instruction by way of exhortation and by way of just reproof as occasion is offered And beloved men must not start aside and fret and chafe and take on when that the truth of the word is brought home unto them and applied particularly unto their souls for the discovery of their particular sins as their pride and vanity of apparel or whatsoever it is no they must willingly chearfully and readily yield and submit themselves unto it and not begin to quarrel with the affection of the Preacher and say now he speaketh out of malice and spleen and distemper and now he speaketh against such a man as if the man and the sin were one substance the Minister cannot speak against pride garishness of apparel long shagged hair but he speaketh against the man as if the sin were the man and the man and the sin all one therefore take heed of being in a chafe when thy sins are reproved And know that if thou thus do fret and chafe it is not onely an Argument that thou art possessed with a spiritual pride and a spiritual frenzy and madness but it is a sign of Gods heavy wrath and judgment ready to break out upon the souls of those men that so fret and chafe and take on in impatiency It is an immediate fore-runner of Gods heavy wrath when men cannot abide to be touched or to have the word of God applied particularly they are impatient of reproof and must have the Preacher to speak pleasing things and to daube them up with untempered morter this bringeth upon them the hand of God unto remediless and easless Destruction Esay 30.13 14. of saith the Prophet this is a foul sin when men teach their Preachers what to say it is like the breaking of a high wall that is sodain or like a bump in a wall a swelling knob that upon a sodain falleth down to the ground and is broken all to pieces like a Potters Vessel that is broken in shivers and there is not so much left as to hold fire or water so it is with those that repine at the particular application of the word their destruction is sudden Again further consider we if so be we be willing and ready to hear the word of comfort applied unto us though it belongeth not unto us and we can accumulate the preaching of the Gospel and yet put away from us the word of reproof we cannot endure that surely the Lord will then punish us in the same kinde he will deal with us proportionably and accordingly he will make his word of comfort that we so eagerly take hold on an unprofitable word and a word that shall yield no comfort unto us when we lie on our sick beds and in the hour of death because we receive the word of comfort that appertaineth not unto us and put away the word of reproof therefore he will make the word of comfort comfortless Consider to this purpose the example of Herod Mark 6.20 Herod heard and did many things gladly that John Baptist taught and found much comfort in hearing of him but when John came to touch him and to hit him on the bare his beloved sore and pleasing Dalilah that it was unlawfull for him to have his Brothers Wife then Herod shewed what he was he carried then a splenative minde and a grudge in his heart and never left till he had his head what touch my beloved Sin And the Lord dealt with Herod accordingly for those comforts that he appropriated to himself from Johns preaching were fruitless he went on in his sin and perished fearfully in his folly Then learn we to hear the word not cunningly for our instruction and comfort but in matter of exhortation and just reproof to be taxed for our sins And when the Lord meeteth with us in his word for our particular sins to say it is his Mercy and his blessing and to thank God that we have Ministers which do not daube us with untempered morter and to say as David saith in Psal 141.5 let the righteous smite me it is a pretious balm this is the affection of the godly but if we do accumulate to our selves the comforts that are promulgated in the Gospel and cast away the reproofs denounced against our sins God will then make his comforts comfortless and they shall do us no good So then it is not of him that willeth nor of him that runneth but of God that sheweth mercy HAving formerly handled the reference this verse hath with precedent matter I now come to handle the matter of the verse it self And first of all we see the Apostle in the first place doth deny Gods eternal election of some to life and salvation to be in him that willeth good or worketh good And so the observation is briefly this That nothing in man or done by man coming from him Doctrine is the cause and ground of mans election or salvation Neither any mans willing of good or working of good no not the willing or working of good by a regenerate person by a person truly sanctified and in the estate of grace not his willing or working of good that is the cause and ground of his election or salvation And so to prevent an
first of all from the first act of God that God hath mercy on whom he will the words being understood of the extending and reaching out of Gods mercy Here again the same point is offered unto us which before we handled in the 15. verse namely Doctrine That Gods mercy reached out and extended to his chosen is most free and voluntary it dependeth upon the free will of God and upon nothing else it dependeth upon nothing out of God but upon his meer love yet this point is not to be passed over without some further use and applicacation then heretofore was made Vse And for the Application of it we are to consider it as a guide and rule unto us in our shewing of mercy to our brethren in our reaching and extending of mercy here is a rule and guide to direct us Doth God extend and reach out his mercy to his chosen freely and voluntarily nothing moving him but his own free will and good love surely then we must thus do we must be merciful as our heavenly Father is merciful Luke 6.36 Now how is he merciful freely out of his own free love and mere goodnesse nothing moving him thereunto but his own free love thus must we do we must shew mercy and exercise the works of mercy towards our brethren freely not respecting their merits nor their deservings yea beloved our mercy and doing of good and the comfort we administer and yeeld to any either in word or in deed must proceed from the inward movings of our hearts and the yearning and tendernesse of our bowels towards those to whom we do any good out of pity and compassion towards them even as God doth freely nothing moving us thereunto in Esay 5.10 the Prophet saith if thou pour out thy soul to the hungry mark this you that are fast fisted the Lord doth not onely require the pouring out of food but of our very hearts and soules to feed the poor with the Affections of thy heart And indeed it is not an act of mercy pleasing to God that the Lord delighteth in that cometh either from our abundance and superfluity or else the importunity of those that are in great want and need nor yet from the example of others inviting us thereunto or for the desire of praise and seeking of Commendations amongst men that we would be well thought on no these are not works of mercy pleasing unto the Lord nor yet a work of mercy that is forced from men by some torture and torment to stop the mouth of an accusing and guilty conscience as for example when wicked rich men that are guilty to themselves how they have gotten their goods by evil meanes and have hoarded up abundance of wealth by the damnable sin of Usury by griping and oppressing the poor and such unlawful means And when they lye upon their death-bed gasping for breath then they are forced to bestow something to religious uses they give nothing before they dye but when they lye upon their death-bed and their Consciences flye up in their faces then they will give to an Hospital or an Almes-house or to the poor or Church to stop the mouth of the Conscience But this is no better then Sauls sacrifice of which we read in 1 Sam. 15. when he had transgressed the Commandement of God in reserving the best sheep and oxen he thought he would stop the mouth of the Lord with a Sacrifice so when men have gotten their goods by oppression and usury then when they are upon their death-beds then they will give unto the poor But the shewing of mercy that is pleasing unto God must come out of a tender and free heart as God is free in mercy so we must be free in exercising the works of mercy the works of mercy must come from the tendernesse of our hearts and without that surely all our shewing of mercy and doing of good though we build Hospitals as it is 1 Cor. 13.3 If I feed the poor with all my goods it is nothing without the heart the Lord looketh rather at the inward affections of the heart then the outward actions and duties of love and mercy 2 Cor. 9.7 every one as he is able must give not grudgingly because he is compelled to do it but the Lord loveth a cheerful giver And consider what moved the Lord to have mercy upon me or upon thee or upon any nothing so must we have mercy upon others freely and out of the tendernesse of our bowels pitying and commiserating their estate then thou art like unto God and this will yeeld thee true comfort else thy shewing of mercy is no better then Sauls sacrifice 1 Sam. 13. Again in that the Apostle faith God will have mercy upon whom he will The Apostle sheweth plainly that Gods shewing of mercy is indeed limited and reached out unto some and not unto others even to whomsoever it pleaseth him he hath mercy upon whom he will and not upon all the Apostles speech implyeth a limitation the point hence lyeth plain before us viz. That Gods will it is to extend and reach out his saving mercy Doctrine not to all men generally without exception of any but onely unto some amongst men The Lord out of his own free will and good pleasure doth extend and reach out his saving mercy in the act and exercise of it onely unto some amongst men and not to all men generally without exception And this may appear to be a truth by considering the saving mercies of God the mercies of God that are extended and reached out from the hand of God to men As first of all the saving mercy of Election unto life and glory it is according to the good will and pleasure of God extended and reached out onely unto some the Text is clear Ephesians 1.4 5. where the Apostle saith God hath chosen us not all the world but us in in Christ and hath Elected and Adopted us through Christ himself how according to the good pleasure of his will so also the saving mercy of God touching effectual Vocation and Calling it is according to the good will and pleasure of God extended to some amongst men in Matth. 11.25 I thank thee saith Christ O Father God of heaven and earth I thank thee that thou hast hid these things what things the saving comforts of the Gospel to be called to know thee through me thou hast hid these things from the wise and revealed them unto babes thou hast hid them from some and revealed them unto others and he subjoyneth even so it is O Father because it so pleaseth thee and in 2 Tim. 1.9 God hath called in by an holy calling according to his purpose and grace Rom. 3.24 we are Justified freely by the free grace of God without respect had to any thing in us thus the Holy Ghost speaketh in James 1.18 of Sanctification out of his own free will we are begotten and sanctified and renewed And touching Glorification the
hath the Lord done this to bring us to this Land to fall upon the sword Is it not better for us to return into Egypt and to make a Captain over us the Lord hath mistook himself to bring us hither to fall by our enemies he hath took a wrong aym and so they thought themselves wiser then God And we shall find that Joshua calleth this rebellion in the ninth verse O my brethren saith he how long will ye rebel against the Lord And this sin of theirs made them hateful and odious to God so that we see that it is a thing odious monstrous and abominable for men to find fault with God touching his will in making and disposing of them and this is also proved by two Reasons Reason 1 Because this is a great dishonour to God it tendeth exceedingly to the dishonour of God thus to be found fault withal touching his will in framing of them this way or that way it is an impeachment to the wisdome or power of God or both as if the Lord were not wise enough to dispose of men or had not power enough to dispose of them As we know it tends to the disparagement of a Workman and his disgrace when men find fault with a piece of wood that the Artificer hath wrought for thereby men do argue the Workman to want wit or skill or to want ability and much more doth it tend to the disgrace of the Lord to quarrel with him Reason 2 Again it must needs be most odious for men to quarrel and find fault with God because God being most just his will is the highest and most perfect rule of all righteousnesse and the Lord performeth the act of his will most holily and most purely as Moses saith Deut. 32.4 Perfect is the work of the mighty God all his wayes and Judgments they are just and righteous God is righteous with him there is no unrighteousnesse and therefore it must needs be a great impudency for men to quarrel with the Lord. Vse 1 This being a truth confirmed by Scripture and averred by reason This first lets us see the danger they run into whatsoever they be that mislike the works and the will of God in disposing of them this way or that way they run upon the rock of Gods anger and vengeance and such persons do make themselves odious monstrous and abominable to God But you will say Is there any one so wicked to find fault with God in making of them this way or that way so wicked so shamelesse so impudent Yes there be many in the world what else do they but even find fault with God touching his will in making and framing of them to this or that fashion in that they take upon them to mend Gods work and to make themselves better then ever God did make them taking upon them to mend the work of God as they do that colour their hair and paint their faces and disguise themselves in antick disguised and new fangled attire they will make themselves peacock like in their top and top gallants that bring their hips up to their shoulders surely such persons they are monsters amongst men and such as are to be wondered at and as they are now so proud that they know not themselves they may justly fear that when the Lord cometh to Judgment the Lord will not know nor acknowledg them without speedy repentance but will say unto them Away hence who gave you this coloured hair this complexion on your painted cheeks this antick disguised body did I no you would mend my work and therefore away I 'le none of you begone into utter destruction depart from me ye workers of iniquity I know you not Matth. 7.22 Again in like sort is it not a common thing beloved with some to dislike the works of God upon themselves and to find fault with Gods disposing of them and a casting of them into this or that estate and condition of life as they being poor lame weak feeble and deformed in their bodies do not they sometimes utter these words Oh it were better for me that I had been made a rich Merchant a Noble man a strong man or a fair man and not as I am what is this but to flye in Gods face and to pick a quarrel with him that hath formed them this is for man a silly creature a worm lesse then a worm to turn against God and as a worm being trod upon doth turn again so doth man bring upon himself a curse and a woe pronounced in Esay 45.9 he that doth quarrel with his Creator doth even dash himself upon the rock of Gods heavy wrath and upon his furious vengeance and so runneth into a dangerous estate Again this being so learn we our duty to hold our selves contented in Vse 2 all estates and conditions of life it pleaseth the Lord to place us in learn we to submit our selves to the good will and pleasure of the Lord the Creator though it be a thing that goeth contrary to reason yet learn we to say with holy David 2 Sam. 15.26 Behold here am I thy poor creature the work of thy hands thou art my Maker and Creator And to help us herein consider first of all that the chiefest thing that the Devil aymeth at when we lye under distresse is to make us flye in Gods face and to quarrel with God and to find fault with him Job 1.11 saith Satan unto God Do but touch him and he will flye in thy face Again secondly consider we that the will of God is the rule of all his actions and his goodnesse is the rule of his will and his will is ever holy and just and good and we being in the number of his children he is most merciful in disposing of our estate and our present estate though it be harsh and hard it is the best estate to us whether it be poverty or prosperity because God our Father seeth it so to be and he is most holy wise just and good and we are to give him the glory of his goodnesse justice wisdom and mercy in what estate soever we be Oh learn we then to rest contented in all estates and conditions of life and to submit our selves to the good will of God the Creator in disposing of us remembring we are his creatures he the Creator we are the formed he the former he is our Maker and it is our duty to be contented VERSE 21. Hath not the Potter power over the clay of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour and another unto dishonour IN this Verse our Apostle goeth on in his personal Answer to the Caviller and Carnal Reasoner and having in the verse foregoing brought a general comparison to prove the grossenesse and absurdity of the Reasoners argument now here in this 21. verse the Apostle subjoyneth a particular instance adding weight and force to his former similitude as if he had said Doubtlesse it is a most