he had many weakenesses upon him yet he preached the Gospell And then it followes in the next verse My temptation which was in my flesh you despised not observe he calleth his bodily infirmity a temptation The afflictions of the body are great temptations to the soule It is very considerable to this purpose what the Apostle James saith when he speaks of the severall conditions of the Saints and their duties in them Chap. 5. v. 13 14. Is any man afflicted let him pray he speakes that in generall Is any man merry let him sing Psalmes Is any man sick Is he pained by sicknesse in his body What shall he doe then He doth not say Is any man sick let him pray but Is any man sick let him call for the Elders of the Church and let them pray over him As if he should say A sick man is very unfit to pray himselfe though for himselfe he hath need to call others to pray with him and for him he hath enough to doe to wrastle with his pain and conflict with that affliction In other afflictions let him pray but if he be sick let him send for the Elders of the Church and let them pray over him A diseased body unfits the mind for holy duties The prayer of sick Hezekiah is called chattering like a Crane or Swallow so did I chatter Isa 38. it was rather chattering then praying such a disquietnesse and uncomposednesse was upon his spirit thorough or by the infirmity of his flesh Paine is a piercing shaft in Satans quiver of temptations Though the spirit of a man will sustaine his infirmity yet oftentimes a wound in the body wounds the soule and the diseases of the flesh make the spirit sick A wounded spirit no man can beare and a wound in the body is a burden too heavy for many men And if it be so Then the pain and the weaknesse of the body is no advantage to repentance and returning unto God How pittifully are they mistaken who put off repentance till their bodies be in paine till they are sick and weake they doe it upon this ground because when they are in paine they thinke they shall repent with more ease Observe if Satan thinks to have such an advantage upon a holy man as to make him blaspheme when he is in paine doest thou thinke paine will be an advantage to thy repentance It is said that at the powring out of the fourth Viall Rev. 16.9 when God did smite the inhabitants of the earth and scorched them with great heat that they blasphemed the Name of God they did that which Satan presumed Job would doe and they repented not to give him glory It is a woefull thing to put off repentance to a pained body paine in its own nature fits us rather to blaspheme and turne from God then to returne to him Never thinke to have helpe for the cure of your soules by the diseases of your bodies usually we find that either sick persons repent not or theirs is but a sickly repentance At the most paine can but restraine your lusts it can never heale them The actings of some sins are quickned by diseases At the most a disease can but abate the acts of sin it can never destroy the life of it Death it selfe cannot kill sin The sins of wicked men live when they are dead the grave cannot consume them no nor the fire of Hell wast their strength the sins of unbeleevers shall remaine not only in their guilt but in their power to all eternity So much of Satans motion But put forth thy hand now and touch his bone and his flesh and he will curse thee to thy face Verse 6. And the Lord said unto Satan Behold he is in thy hand but save his life Here we have the Lords grant unto that motion of Satan He is in thy hand but save his life Thou mayest doe with his bone and his flesh what thou wilt He is in thine hand We have opened what it is to have a thing put into the hand in the former Chapter where the same expression is used therefore I shall passe those words here Note only this that the Lord saith here He is in thy hand to prevent Satans cavill as if he had said Thou movest me to touch his bone and his flesh well lest thou shouldest say that I have dealt too gently with him and have smitten him with favour I will put the rod or staffe into thine hand doe thou with 〈◊〉 bone and his flesh what thou canst spare him not We know the Lord is able to strike stronger stroakes and give deeper wounds infinitely then Satan can if he pleaseth yet the love of God to his children stops his hand and breakes the blow He corrects in judgement and debates in measure Isa 27.8 when he strikes his children he strikes them as children gently Thus 2 Sam. 7.14 speaking of Davids family If he commit iniquity saith God I will chasten him with the rod of men the word there used is Enosh which signifies a weake man I will chasten him with the rod of a weake man of one that hath but a weake arme or hand the hand of a sickly fraile man A weake a sickly man cannot strike very hard Thus saith God I will chasten thy children if they commit iniquity they shall rather see my care then feele my power in their corrections Now I say lest Satan should pretend partiality God puts Job into Satans hand and gives him liberty to lay on as hard as his hand acted with utmost malice could smite him thou hast liberty to smite him into the very valley of the shadow of death to bring him so neere death that he may looke into the graves mouth but no further Save his life Here is Satans chaine the limitation or restraint of his power When God puts any of his servants into Satans hand he keepes Satan in his owne hand And as all the Elect are in Gods hand to keepe them from taking hurt so the Devill is in Gods hand to keep him from doing hurt to his Elect. Save his life The word Nephesh here used signifieth properly the soule and the soule is in Scripture often put for the life because the soule is the spring the fountaine of life life is derived or diffused into the body from or by the soule and as soone as the soule is parted from the body life departs Hence both this Hebrew word and the Greeke word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 have their names from breathing or respiring For life goes out when breath goes out when we cease breathing we cease living Our life is but a blast a breath the Lord formed man out of the dust of the earth and breathed into his nostrills the breath of life and he became a living soule Gen. 2.7 This is that vitall spirit by which all quick things move therefore Beasts Birds Fish and creeping things are called living soules Gen. 1.20 24. And
Satan had said thus Though Job did blesse thee when he had a full estate and though he did blesse thee when thou diddest empty him of his estate and tooke all his goods from him yet if thou doe but touch his body and afflict his bones he will breake forth into cursed language both concerning thy person and concerning thy service I will only minde you further of that which is here secretly couched in this expression Touch his bone and his flesh and he will curse thee to thy face here is a secret imprecation involved he tacitly subjects himselfe to the curse of God if Job curse not God As if Satan should have said If he doe not curse thee to thy face then doe so and so to me or thinke thus and thus of me If you would have the meaning of Satan from the language of his children you may take the plaine English of it thus Touch but his bone and his flesh and damne me if he doe not curse thee send me to Hell presently Satan indeed kept this cursed imprecation close wrapt up in that forme of speaking But now his children speake it out If you will have Satans heart from the mouthes of the sonnes of Belial a cursed and cursing generation among us the plaine English of it is this God damne me send me to Hell presently if he curse thee not Satan we see was more modest then these sonnes of impudence and perdition who openly imprecate upon and devote themselves unto the wrath of God almost every word these doe not only imitate but exceed the copy which Satan sets them here by bold blasphemie and horrid execrations And he will curse thee to thy face We may from hence observe First Satan had tryed in vaine to make Job curse God Now he attempts a second time Note That When Satan cannot prevaile against us by one meanes he doth not despaire of prevailing by another He gives not his cause over for lost because he cannot carry it at first he will try and try againe As it was with Balak Numb 23. when he sent for Balaam to curse the people and saw the businesse did not prosper or succeed according to his malice Balaam could not curse them he brought him to another place Come saith he I pray thee I will bring thee to another place peradventure it will please God that thou mayest curse me them from thence though you could not doe it in one place you may in another So Satan if he cannot worke his will one way he will try a second or a third Satans unweariednesse in a bad cause when it succeeded not reproves those who are so soone weary of a good one if it succeed not Many are ready to give up if one meanes will not doe it they cast off hope and say the cause is desperate If one or two or three or many meanes we use faile we ought to try still never despaire of the end while the worke is good and the meanes are faire In the morning sow thy seed saith the Preacher and in the evening with-hold not thy hand for thou knowest not whether shall prosper this or that I may adde with-hold not thy hand in the evening though thou seest the morning seed doth not prosper this may have a blessing though that had not Secondly observe Satan tryeth another way and he tryeth a way more probable and efficacious for his ends then the former when a weaker will not doe it he provides stronger meanes As God in punishing or chastening sinners when a lesser judgement will not humble them he sends a greater God cometh not only with another but with sorer judgements If he will not yet for all this hearken unto me then I will punish you seven times more for your sinnes So Satan when by one temptation he cannot over-come prepares not only another but a stronger he assaults them more and more he not only musters new Forces but more compleate to foile the soule This should teach us when we cannot subdue a corruption in our own hearts by one meanes then to seeke a better And when by one prayer we cannot obtaine a blessing then to pray againe and to pray better to pray with more life with more faith with more humility then mix more fire with prayer more zeale and fervency of spirit mix more water with prayer As Iacob Hose 12. wept and made supplication above all mix more of Christ in prayer goe out in his Name and strength When Balacks first messengers could not obtaine Balaam to come with them Balack was not discourag'd or put off but saith the Text Balack sent yet againe Princes more and more Honourable Numb 22.15 Let not us be discouraged if our first prayers which are our messengers to God are not answered But let us send more and more honourable more strong cryes more spirituall desires which may take upon the heart of God Why should Satan doe more against us then we will doe for our selves Thirdly Note for our owne caution That we must not only expect continued or renewed afflictions and assaults from Satan but we must expect greater and greater afflictions and assaults from Satan He hath some assaults that are but as Foote-men he will bring out his Horse-men at the next bout And if having runne with Foote-men they have wearied thee how wilt thou contend with Horses Jer. 12.5 Be ready then not only to run with the Foote but to contend with Horses prepare your selves for other for more violent charges then you ever felt Satan will if he can lay a closer siege to thy soule then ever he hath done As that one evill spirit returned into the person out of whom he was gone Luk. 11.24 with seven Devils worse then himselfe so he often returnes with seven temptations worser stronger then before Fourthly observe what Satan picks out to be the matter of this second and stronger temptation it is to pinch Job in his flesh to pinch his body Note from hence That the paine of the body is very powerfull to disquiet and trouble the mind Satan is very confident to trouble and vex the mind of Job by casting darts and diseases into his body Physitians have a rule That the manners of the mind follow the temper of the body and it is a more certaine rule That the mind is much carried according to the distemper of the body when the body is distempered the mind is seldome at rest the body and soule are such neere neighbours that they cannot but sympathize in each others sufferings Some interpret that place of the Apostle Gal. 4.13 14. concerning the weakenesse and sicknesse of his body You know saith he how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the Gospell We may safely joyne it with those other troubles afflictions and reproaches which he endured and were so great a disadvantage to his acceptance in the world So the meaning is that though his body was infirme though
this life is called the blood because 〈◊〉 contained or carried in the blood Gen. 9.4 Further it is 〈◊〉 observable that the Hebrewes call the Body seperated from 〈◊〉 soule or a dead corps Nephesh Numb 5.2 c. 9.10 c. 19.11 Hag. 2.14 Though the life be quite gone out departed from the carkasse or body of a dead man yet that dead body is called life or soule to note that it shall live againe and that the soule shall returne unto it The mistery of the Resurrection from death was implied in the name of the dead Wee find also that the Heathens called a dead body a soule possibly from some glimpse of the resurection We lay up a soule in the grave saith the Poet. Animamque sepulchro condimus But how is this worke put into Satans hand The saving of his life What is Satan become a saviour what salvation can we expect from him whose name is Apollyon and Abaddon Rev. 9.11 both which signifie a destroyer Shall we send to the Wolfe to save the Sheepe or to the Vulture to save the Dove Destruction is the delight of Satan and it is his way as he hath no hope to be saved himselfe eternally so no will to save others temporally Observe then That here to save life notes only a sparing from death not a delivering from destruction but a forbearing to destroy Satan saved his life negatively that is he did not take it away he can not save positively or restore that which was ready to perish he doth not save as a deliverer but as a murtherer who would kill his brother but cannot He saves not for want of will but for want of power when he is forced to spare his nature is to devoure This devouring Lyon hunts for the pretious life even when God saith Save his life It may be questioned here Why Satan for that is implyed desired so to destroy the life of Job God would never have limited and chained him up but that Satan had a mind to suck his blood or afflict him unto death These two reasons may be given why Satan would have his life The one might be this Because it was a thing doubtfull with him though he bragged much of it whether he should attaine his end or no to make Job curse God when therefore he saw he could not overcome his spirituall life it would have bin some revenge to him to destroy his naturall life As some wicked ones his agents when by all their threats or flatteries they cannot make a 〈◊〉 sin which is to destroy his spirituall life their revenge breakes 〈◊〉 against his naturall life to destroy that This is the method of persecution first to attempt the death of the soule by drawing or terrifying unto sin and if they faile of that then death is inflicted on the body Or againe in the second place he being doubtfull in himselfe though he made no doubt in words whether his plot would be successefull to make Job curse God he I say doubting this designe might not draw him to sin resolved to take away his life that so Job might never have told tales of his victory or have reported his conquest to the world At least by his death he might obscure the businesse and bury it with some slander saying that Job died with discontent and griefe that he blasphemed God when he died that he wished for death and could not hold out any longer Much like that device of some Jesuits who have blowne it abroad that our most zealous opposers of Romish errours whom they could never move either by writing or disputing while they lived have yet recanted all when they dyed Wherefore least Satan should have drawen a curtain over the glory of Jobs victory by aspersing him after his death the Lord saith Save his life Job shall survive his troubles that matters may come to light and a true report be made and left upon record both of thy implacable malice and enmity and of his invincible patience and sincerity And this may lead us yet further to consider why God was so carefull of that precious part his life For some may say Had it not been glory to God and honour to Job like that of Martyrdome if he had died under the hand of Satan holding fast his own integrity blessing God even unto death I grant this but yet God knew that the saving of his life would be more advantagious both to himselfe and his Job for those ends wherefore he saith Save his life destroy him not First thus God intended to make Job a Monument of mercy as well as a Monument of suffering he intended to set him up to all the world as one in whom they might behold the goodnesse of God in raising up mixt with his wisdome in casting down that men might learn hope from Job as well as patience from Job Therefore saith God Save his life I have somewhat else to do with him I will raise him up again and in him an everlasting Monument both of his patience in suffering and of my own power in restoring Indeed if he had died in the conflict and left his bones in the field he had been a wonderfull example of constancy but he had not been such an example of mercy if his life had not been saved There may be this in it too Save his life saith God I will have him preserved in this combate his courage and carriage in it is my delight God loveth to see his people holding out tugging and continuing in such assaults and temptations If any thing in the world gives delight to God this is the thing that delighteth him The Heathen thought this the sport of their gods Seneca in his Book of Providence speaking of Cato and other gallant Romane spirits saith the gods delighted to look upon them in their conflicts with fortune To see them wrastle with some great calamity with some great danger was such a spectacle as would draw off Jupiter from his greatest businesse It is a most certain truth that the most true God doth love and delight to see his children wrastling with some great calamitie to see a poor man man who is but flesh and bloud wrastling with principalities and powers with the devill and powers of darknesse this is a sight that God himself as we may so speak rejoyceth in When Abraham had finished that great combate about sacrificing his sonne he calleth the place Jehovah-jireh the Lord will see or the Lord doth see the Lord doth behold as if that had been a sight which God himselfe came down to look upon As when some great man or strange shew passeth by we goe out to see it so God cometh down upon mount Moriah to see a sight And what was it To see Abraham in that great temptation assaulted and overcomming Here was a spectacle for the great Jehovah and therefore he cals the place Jehovah-jireh the Lord hath seen I doubt not but this place
also of Jobs triall might have born the same name As the Lord will be seen in the mount of our afflictions to provide for us so he will see us in the mount of our afflictions to please himself The Psalmist describeth God looking down from heaven upon the children of men to see if there were any that did understand that did seek God Psal 53.2 Surely then if any do seek God much more if they suffer from him or for him in a holy manner he will look downe from Heaven to see them Thirdly I will note that as another ground why God would have his life spared because he had much use of him when he was in that condition full of sores and scabs A godly man is never in such an estate but God hath some use of his life Therefore saith God Save his life though he be full of sores or rather from the crown of the head to the sole of the foot one continued sore though he be a most lamentable creature and cannot wag hand or foot in any service of man yet spare his life for he may thus stand me in great stead and do me more service then many thousands who as we speake are sound winde and limbe and have not one blemish upon the whole body A godly person is ever usefull to God though he cannot stirre a limbe yet his life may be usefull to God whereas a wicked man though strong and healthy though furnisht with outward comforts and accommodations is altogether unserviceable he will not doe God a stroake of worke though he have received great pay and wages afore-hand A godly man will serve God in and by his poverty in and by his sicknesse when diseased when distressed when nothing is to be seen upon him but scabs and boiles Grace will work through all the defects and decayes of nature And when the life of nature can scarce move one member of the outward man upon the earth the life of grace moves all the members of the inward man toward Heaven Though the outward man perish yet the inward man is renewed day by day 2 Cor. 4.16 Lastly God saved his life as a punishment and vexation upon Satan The Talmudists are vouched to affirme that it was not so grievous to Job to be afflicted in his body as it was to Satan when God restrained him from destroying his life As if a man should be permitted to crack the glasse but he must not spill the wine That his life must be kept whole in him was Satans wound It is a torture to malice not to do the utmost mischiefe So much for the clearing of these words Behold he is in thine hand but save his life From the Lords grant observe first That God doth oftentimes give up the bodies of his faithfull servants to be abused and tormented by Satan and his instruments He is in thine hand thou maiest do with him what thou wilt on this side death Touch his flesh and his bone or touch his flesh to the bone strike as hard wound as deep as thou canst It is said Revel 2.10 that Satan should cast some of them that is of the servants of God into prison God gave up their bodies to irons and fetters to the stocks and shackles He permits those bodies which are Temples of the holy Ghost to be thrust into dungeons and the chambers of death Therefore doe not thinke it strange to see the bodies of the children of God put into cruell and bloudy hands though they are vessels of honour and Temples of the holy Ghost yet God may give up those bodies to be defiled and polluted with the outrages of the most abominable wretches consider what the Apostle speakes of the Jewish Martyrs Heb. 11. How were their bodies abused and mangled They were stoned they were sawn asunder they were slaine with the sword they wandered about in sheep skins and goat skins being destitute afflicted tormented of whom the world was not worthy Their bodies had not a house to dwell in nor garments to put on in whose soules God himselfe dwelt and had put upon them the garment of Salvation Who is able to expresse yea to conceive what strange inventions of crueltie have been brought into the world to vex and torment the bodies of the Saints The stories of the Primitive times are full but the fathers of the Romish inquisition have exceeded them all Satan here invents a strange disease as an engine to torture Jobs body in that he mixt the rack and the wheel the sword and the saw the fiery gridiron and the boyling oil The pain of a thousand deaths was heightn'd in that malignant distemper Secondly he is in thine hand but save his life saith God The matter wherein Satan is limited is life then note That life and death are in the hand of God It is truth that all we have is in the hand of God but God keeps our life in his hand last of all and he hath that in his hand in a speciall manner So David expresses it Thou holdest my soul in life though the soul continue life may not continue there is the soul when there is not life life is that which is the union of soul and body Thou holdest my soul in life that is thou holdest soul and body together So Daniel describes God to Belshazzar Dan. 5.23 The God in whose hand thy breath is and whose are all thy wayes hast thou not glorified The breath of Princes is in the hand of God and the same hand holds the breath of the meanest subject This may be matter of comfort to us in such times as these are times of danger and times of death when the hand of man is lifted up to take thy life remember thy life is held in the hand of God And as God said here to Satan Afflict the body of Job but save his life so God saith still to bloudy wretches who are as the limbs of Satan The bodies of such and such are in your hands the estates of such and such are in your hands but save their lives The life of a man is never at the mercy of a creature though it be a common speech of men when they have a man under them Now I have you at my mercy though some brag as Laban did to Jacob It is in the power of my hand to do you hurt yet God often checks them as he did Laban from so much as speaking hurt Gen. 31.29 but the God of your father spake unto me yester-night saying Take thou heed that thou speak not to Jacob either good or bad Creatures though full of love cannot speak good and though full of malice they cannot speak bad if God forbid then much lesse can they do us hurt and least of all hurt our lives if God with-hold David triumphs in his interest in such a God Psal 68.20 Our God is the God of salvation that is of deliverance of outward deliverance for that is
Rhetorick can perswade death to depart all the gold and riches in the world cannot bribe death or stay its hand I saith Job should have found Kings and Counsellours and rich men even all these in the grave and we should have rested together Riches availe not in the day of wrath Prov. 11.4 but righteousnesse delivereth from death Righteousnesse delivereth from death why shall not righteous men die Surely Job might have said with righteous men with holy men should I have rested with Abraham with Isaac and with Jacob these are in the grave death seaz'd on them as well as other Princes and Kings and Counsellours How then doth Solomon say that righteousnesse delivereth from death Death is there either to be understood of some dangerous judgement for saith he riches availe not in a day of wrath that is in a day of publike calamity but righteousnesse delivereth from death that is from those troubles and dangers God hath respect to a righteous person and hideth him from that death Or righteousnesse doth deliver from death that is from the evill of death from the sting of death from the bitternesse of death the bitternesse and evill of death is past to a righteous man But riches they availe not at all they cannot at all as not deliver from death so not mitigate the paine or pull out the sting or sweeten the bitternesse of death yea rather riches encrease all these That is a truth O death how bitter is thy remembrance to a man that is at ease in his possession Men may put their riches with them into the grave but riches cannot keepe them a moment out of the grave This thought How bitter Secondly When Job speakes of Kings and Counsellours and Princes these great men of the world he sheweth us what their study and businesse for the most part is in the world it is about worldly things They build desolate places they have gold they fill their houses with treasure These are their employments the current of their cares and endeavours runs out this way Hence observe That the thoughts of the greatest and wisest of the world are usually but for and about the world The poore receive the gospell and the rich receive the world As a godly man is described by his faith Abraham beleeved God By feare by uprightnesse by justice as Job in the first chapter of this Booke by meeknesse as Moses c. by the heavenlinesse of their spirits and conversations Our conversation is in Heaven Phil. 3.20 So worldly men are described by their proper studies Kings Counsellours and Princes build Pallaces gather riches heape up gold They buy they sell they build they plant they eate they drinke as the worldly world is pictur'd Luk. 17.27 28. In the 17th Psalme great men are called the men of the world as if they were for nothing but the world or all for the world as if all their provisions were laid in for this world so it followes who have their portion in this life ver 14. It is a sad thing to have received our portion It is said of the rich man Sonne remember that thou in thy life time receivedst thy good things thou hast had thy portion In Psal 49.11 It is said concerning such men that their inward thought is that their houses shall continue for ever and their dwelling places to all generations and they call their lands after their own names Their inward thoughts are upon these things It is somewhat a strange kind of speaking to say their inward thoughts for there are no thoughts but inward thoughts are all wrought in the secret shop of the heart But there is an elegancy in it the Hebrew is their inwards their internalls Their inwards are how they may get themselves a name and riches not only are their thoughts about these things but the very inmost of their thoughts the most retired thoughts and recesses of the soule are about these things these lie neerest to their hearts As the story saith of Queen Mary when she died she had them open her and they should finde Calice at her heart It was a pitifull case that a rotten Towne should lie where Christ ought at the heart of such a Princesse The heart is the place where Christ and the thoughts of Heaven should lodge All below Heaven should be below our hearts But as a godly mans inward thoughts are for Heaven and the things of Heaven for grace and for holinesse he hath thoughts upon the world but if I may so speake they are his outward thoughts not his inward thoughts That which lies neerest his heart his inward thoughts are for Heaven So the inward thoughts of worldly men are for the world the Apostle might well say Not many wise nor many rich nor many noble are called the thoughts of wise Counsellours of potent Kings and rich Princes are legible in their actions Thirdly Having expounded these desolate places to be Tombes and these houses graves Observe That some take in their life time more care for their Sepulchers then they doe for their soules Here are great men what doe they They build desolate places they will be sure to have stately monuments And they had gold they will be sure to fill their graves with treasure they will be buried richly or they will have their riches buried with them But what care did these take for their poore soules in the meane time where they should lie Had they taken order what should become of their soules When all things are disposed of this choice peece for the most part is left undisposed of unprovided for Some will carefully provide for their children they will provide for their families they will provide for their dead bodies for their carcasses but for their immortall soules there is no provision made While their bodies are assured of a resting place they may say of and to their departing soules as that trembling Emperour bespake his O our poore fleeting wandring soules whether are you going where is the place of your rest As it is said of Absolom in the place before cited He in his life time had reared up a pillar a monument or a Tombe for himselfe in the Kings dale What a carefull Prince was this for his body But how carelesse was this Prince for his soule He will have a pillar to preserve his name and yet runs out in rebellion against his owne father to the destruction of his soule The great businesse of the Saints on earth is to get assurance of a place for their soules to lodge in when they die It troubles them not much what lodging their bodies have if they can put their spirits into the hand of Christ What though their bodies be cast upon a dung-hill or trodden upon like mire in the streetes by cruell men A Heathen said The losse of a Funerall or of a Sepulcher may easily be borne I am sure a Christian may That losse will never undoe any man
bitter in soule We may frame his argument thus out of his words as they are here couched There is no reason or if there be shew me a reason why his life should be prolonged who liveth miserably and would die willingly But I am the man who live miserably and I would die willingly wherefore then where is the reason or shew me a reason why my life is prolonged That is the force of his argument The maine Proposition of the argument is contained in the 20 21 22 23. verses namely that there is no reason why a man that liveth miserably should be denied to die wherefore is light given to a man that is in misery He endeavours to prove the Assumption at the 24th verse where he shewes that he lived in great misery which he doth amplifie in the two last verses of the Chapter This may serve for the summe and scope or intendment of this last Section To the words themselves Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery Wherefore There is a wherefore in Scripture first of doubting and secondly there is a wherefore of mourning and thirdly a wherefore of complaining In this wherefore in this question we may include all three Job doubteth and Job mourneth and Job complaineth Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery Wherefore is light Light Some take light here for knowledge Wherefore hath a miserable man so much knowledge to see himselfe and to know himselfe miserable It is some abatement to the sense of misery not to know that we are miserable Wherefore is light given If I did not understand the sadnesse of my condition it would be lesse to me There is a truth in that and it is the thing that will so much torment and vex the damned to all eternity that while they are in the darknesse of hellish misery they shall have so much light in Hell I meane the light of knowledge concerning their own condition whreby they shall fully and clearely discerne their unhappinesse If they were ignorant and did not know how miserable they were their estate were farre lesse miserable On earth the light of the knowledge of Gods will encreases the sin of men in Hell the light of the knowledge of their own woe will be an encrease of their punishment As Christ saith to the Jewes Joh. 9.41 If ye were blind ye should have no sin but now ye say we see therefore your sin remaineth So we may say of those who are seperated from Christ for ever if ye were blind ye should have no sorrow but now because in that estate of utter darknesse ye shall have both eyes and light to see your misery therefore your sorrow shall remaine When a wicked man goes to the generation of his fathers where he shall never see light sc of comfort Psal 49.19 even then he shall have light enough and more then he would have to see his sorrow And in Hell he shall be as much pained with and hate the light of his own condition as upon earth he hated and was pained with the light of divine revelation Joh. 3.20 c. So that the damned shall for ever cry out Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery Yet I take not this to be the sense here Wherefore is light by light here understand naturall light and then it is no more but this Why doe mine eyes yet behold the Sunne Wherefore doth the light shine upon me whenas I am under the clouds and in the darknesse of this condition Or by light we may understand life and so the sense is Wherefore is life continued which is expressed in the next clause to him that is in misery To be in misery is more then to be miserable As to be in the flesh notes a meere carnall man and to be in the spirit notes a very spirituall man so to be in misery notes a very miserable man The Hebrew word properly signifies labour At the tenth verse it was translated sorrow And it notes any toilesome melestation which either we our selves endure Psal 25.18 or cause others by guile or mischiefe done them to endure Hence it is translated guile Psal 55.11 and mischiefe Psal 94.20 because by these one man troubles and vexes another to the making of him miserable And life to the bitter in soule Life is the union of soule and body when life departeth soule and body take leave and part the Philosopher defines life to be the bond or colligation of soule and body together Now saith Job why is this life why is this bond continued to a man whose soule is in bitternesse while my life was pleasant it was pleasant to live while my soule was sweet it was sweet to have it knit to my body but now my soule is in bitternesse or I am bitter in soule and what sweetnesse or pleasure can I find in my body To be bitter in soule notes deep intrinsicall or inward sorrow the greatest sorrow makes the soule bitter As in Scripture when we find Soule added respecting the evill of an estate or the good of an estate evill and good are meant in the highest degree As when Christ saith Mat. 26.38 My soule is exceeding heavy or exceeding sorrowfull even unto death that is I am in the lowest deepes of sorrow Sorrow unto death is sorrow within one step or degree of death My soule is sorrowfull there can be no sorrow but in the soule the body take it as a distinct from the soule is not capable of sorrow sorrow is a passion or an affection of the soule an affection of the mind and therefore all sorrow is seated in the mind yet when our Lord Christ saith My soule is exceeding sorrowfull It is farre more then to have said there is sorrow or exceeding much sorrow in my soule So here this phrase To him that is bitter in soule or whose soule is bitter Notes the most bitter and grievous sorrow When the Psalmist would set forth the great sorrow of Joseph in prison Psal 105.18 One translation saith that the iron entred into his soule and the Hebrew word for word is this his soule came into iron We know the soule is so pure and spirituall that iron cannot enter it We know that only the body can be bound with chaines The soule could quickly slip from the most watchfull keeper and breake out from the strongest irons were it not to keepe company with the body Whereas then it is said his soule came into irons it is only to shew that Joseph was under very sore affliction even the sorest affliction of the body As on the other side when Mary said My soule doth magnifie the Lord my spirit rejoyceth in God my Saviour We know nothing properly can magnifie the Lord or rejoyce but the spirit or the soule yet when she saith my spirit doth rejoyce this notes a deepe pure internall spirituall joy with which she was ravish'd at that time And as
this O death how sweet art thou to a man that is bitter in his soule It often falls out that to die is but a short affliction but affliction many times is a long and a continued death a frequent death as the Apostle speakes of his afflictions in deaths often 2 Cor. 11.23 That there is a bitternesse in death the speech of Agag implies 1 Sam. 15. Surely the bitternesse of death is past Yet while a man as lamenting Jeremie complaines Lam. 3.19 Remembers his afflictions and his misery the wormewood and the gall that is his afflictions and misery more bitter then gall and wormewood his sense overcomes his judgement to conclude that there is a pleasantnesse in that bitter thing which wee call death Secondly observe That As death finds many before they looke for it so some looke for death and cannot find it How many are there whom death surprizes before they are aware and seizeth upon them when they thinke not of it when-as others are expecting and longing and gaping and gasping after death and they cannot meete with it it cometh not Indeed it is a great deale better for a man to expect death when it cometh not then to have death come upon him when he expects it not Some are calling for death crying out for death before they know how to die before they know how to live yea before they know why they lived It were well for such if they might loose their longing and long for death long enough before it cometh for upon the matter poore soules they long for Hell while they long for death and while they are hastning from that life and misery which will quickly have an end they are plunging into that death and misery which will never end Thirdly observe As death is a punishment to most so not to die is a punishment to some Job speakes of it as of an affliction upon such they long for death and it cometh not Death is an affliction to all it is a punishment to all unbeleevers a punishment with a sting And as all wicked men are punished with death so some of them are punished with this that they for the present cannot die Rev. 9.6 In those dayes men shall seeke death and shall not finde it and shall desire to die and death shall flee from them It is laid as their punishment that they should live and as an affliction beyond all their afflictions that then they could not die They are in a sad condition who can have no remedy or cure of their troubles but death but how sad is their condition who cannot obtaine that remedy It is like the punishment of the damned in Hell they shall long for death but it will not come and they shall ever seeke for death but shall never find it No wicked man did ever part so unwillingly with his soule when he died as he will unwillingly meet with it when he riseth againe And as the first death doth part soule and body unwillingly so the second death keepeth soule and body together unwillingly They have a tast of this misery in this life whose soules are truly said to be imprisoned in their bodies And O how desirous are they to dig down these mud-walls and make an escape but cannot Fourthly observe It is an affliction to nature to be debarred of any thing it desireth how destructive soever it be unto it It is in one sense a naturall desire to long for death and yet death is the destruction of nature A man under distempers of body in a disease a Fever c. is often troubled and grieved because he cannot have those things which will hurt him He longs for such meates and drinkes as given him would kill him and yet a deniall angers him The hope of death deferred will make the heart sick and when the desire death desired comes it is as a tree of life Griefe ariseth from the unsatisfaction of our desires and therefore though the thing had which we desire will undoe us yet the not having it doth afflict us Which long for death and it cometh not and they dig for it more then for hid treasures Take somewhat from this latter branch and they dig for it more then for hid treasure Assoone as ever Job had exprest their longing desire after death you see presently he tells us that they dig for death From this observe That where desires are true they presently produce endeavours He that longs for a thing will labour for it they are digging presently Prov. 18.1 Through desire a man having separated himselfe intermedleth with all wisedome If it be death a man desireth he will be endeavouring after it There are some velleities listlesse wishings and wouldings which produce no endeavours but true desires are ever active naturall desires are seconded with naturall endeavours and so spirituall desires with spirituall endeavours If a man desire death he will dig for it surely then he that desires Christ and longs for eternall life will be digging for the enjoyment of them Observe further That proportionably to the strength of our desires is the strength and earnestnesse of our endeavours As reall desire causeth reall indeavour so strong desires cause strong endeavours It was not a bare desire but an earnest longing as was cleared in opening the words And it is not a bare labour but hard labour digging is strong labour A meere naturall man whose desires after sin are strong and vehement acts sin with equall vehemency The holy Ghost saith he doth evill as he can that is to utmost his canning or ability He drawes iniquity with cords of vanity and sin as it were with cart-ropes He doth evill saith another Scripture Mich. 7.3 with both hands greedily To doe a thing with both hands notes the greatest endeavour As when the Pharisees are said not to touch the burdens which they laid on others with their little finger it notes their refusall of the least endeavour Math. 23.4 So a spirituall heart having his desires turned heaven-ward he diggs for heavenly treasure every day and gives diligence to make his calling and election sure They who have strong desires after Christ labour strongly after Christ So they are exprest Pro. 2.4 where Solomon speakes of wisedome which is Christ and all that is Christs If thou seekest her as silver and searchest for her as for hid treasures Such is the search and endeavour that ought to be after Christ and such it will be if there be true and great desires after Christ Thirdly In that he saith they dig for it as for hid treasure We may observe That the best things are hardest to come by If you will have treasures you must digge for them you may have pibble stones flints above ground but treasures lie deepe And in proportion the better every thing is the more digging it requireth And the best things ought to be most digg'd for They that will have the great blessing must
Iobs calamity Iobs trouble from that to the 7th verse of the 42. Chapter 3. Iobs restitution or restoring from thence to the end Take the Book in this division and it seemes to hold forth to us such a representation of Iob as is given us in the three first Chapters of Genesis concerning man In those 3. first Chapters we have man set forth 1. In the excellency and dignity of his Creation being Lord and Soveraigne of all adorn'd with that integrity and purity of nature which God had planted in and stamped upon him at his creation And in the beginning of this Book we have Iob like a man in innocencie shining in all his dignitie compass'd about with blessings of all sorts blessings of the body blessings of the soule blessings of this life and of that which is to come 2. There we find the Devill plotting the ruine of man and we find his plot taking for a while and in a great measure prevailing So here in this Booke we have the Devill begging Iobs ruine and having obtained leave so farre as concerned his outward estate and body quickly puts it in execution 3. There we have Adam by Gods free mercy and promise restored to a better estate in Christ through the grace of Redemption then he had before in himselfe by the goodnesse of Creation So here we have Iob through the mercy power and faithfulnesse of God restored to all he had and more we see him repaired and set up againe after his breaking not only with a new stock but a greater his estate being doubled and his very losses proving beneficiall to him This may suffice for the division or parts of the Booke which I conceive may shed some light into the whole Now for the third thing which I proposed which was the use or scope or intendment of this Book For that is a speciall thing we are to carry before us in our eye in the reading of Scripture It is possible for one to understand the subject and to know the parts and yet not to be attentive to find out or distinctly to find out what the mind of God is or whereat he specially drives and aimeth Therefore it will be very profitable to us likewise to consider what the tendency and intendment or as I may so speake the Uses of this Booke are First It aimes at our Instruction and that in divers things First Which much concernes every Christian to learne it instructeth us how to handle a Crosse How to behave our selves when we are in a conflict whether outward or inward What the Postures of the Spirituall Warre are and with what patience we ought to beare the hand of God and his dealings with us This I say is set forth by the Scripture in other places to be the maine and one of the principall ends or intendments or Uses of this Booke This the Apostle Iames speakes of You have heard of the patience of Job As if he should say doe you not know why the Book of Iob was written Why God in his providence did bring such a thing to passe concerning Iob It was that all men should take notice of his patience and might learne the wisedome of suffering that noble art of induring Iob was full of many other excellent graces and indeed he had all the graces of the Spirit of God in him But the Patience of Job was the principall grace As it is with naturall men they have every sinne in them but there are some sinnes which are the Master sinnes or some one sinne it may be doth denominate a wicked man sometimes he is a proud man sometimes he is covetous sometimes he is a deceiver sometimes he is an oppressor sometimes he is uncleane sometimes he hath a profane spirit and so the like some one great Master lust doth give the denomination to the man he hath all other sinnes in him and they are all raigning in him but one as it were raigneth above the rest and sits uppermost in his heart So it is with the Saints of God and here with Iob every Saint and servant of God hath all grace in him every grace in some degree or other for all the limbs and liniaments of the new man are formed together in the soule of those that are in Christ But there is some speciall grace which doth give as it were the denomination to a servant of God As that which gave the denomination to Abraham was faith and that which gave the denomination to Moses was meeknesse and so this which giveth the denomination to Iob is Patience and so the denomination too of this whole History as if that were the great lesson that were to be taken out the lesson of suffering and of patience So that what the Apostle makes to be the Use of all Scripture whatsoever things saith he were written afore-time were written for our learning that wee through patience and comfort of the Scriptures might have hope That I say which the Apostle there makes to be the end and scope of the whole Scripture doth seeme to be in speciall the principall and chiefe end of writing this Book of Iob. 2. Another Instruction which we are to take from the whole Book is this God would have us learne that afflictions come not by chance that they are all ordered by providence in the matter in the manner and the measure both for the kinds and for the degrees they are all ordered even the very least by the wisedome by the hand and providence of God 3. Another thing which we are to learne generally from this Book is this The Soveraignety of God that he hath power over us over our estates and over our bodies and over our families and over our spirits that he may use us as he pleaseth and we must be quiet under his hand when he commeth and will take all from us all our comforts we must give all glory to him This Book is written for this especially to teach us the Soveraignty of God and the submission of the creature 4. It teacheth us That God doth sometimes afflict his children out of prerogative that-though there be no sinne in them which he makes the occasion of afflicting them such was Iobs case yet for exercise of his graces in them for triall of their graces or to set them up for patternes to the world God may and doth afflict them Though no man be without sinne yet the afflictions of many are not for their sinnes 5. There is this generall Instruction which God would have us learne out of this Book namely that the best gotten and the best founded estate in outward things is uncertaine that there is no trusting to any creature-comforts God would unbottome us quite from the creature by holding forth this History of Iob unto us 6. God would also shew forth this for our learning viz. The strength the unmoveablenesse of faith how unconquerable it is what a kind of omnipotency there is in
single thred All his outward estate was kept without not a shred not a thread got into his spirit Take this for a third reason why the Holy Ghost doth thus exactly set forth the estate of Iob sc that he might appeare to be an exact holy man From the whole take these Observations First We see here Job a holy man very full of riches Then Observe That riches are the good blessings of God God would never have bestowed them upon his Job else Least we should thinke riches evill they are given to those who are good And least riches should be thought the chiefest good they are given to those that are evill It is a certaine truth that God never gives any thing in it selfe evill to those that are good nor doth he ever give the chiefest good to those that are evill Therefore it shewes that riches are good because the godly have them and it shewes that they are not the chiefest good because the wicked have them When the Gospell calls us to renounce the world to cast off the world it calls us to cast the world out of our affections not out of our possession To hold and possesse great riches is not evill it is evill to set our hearts upon them Secondly Iob was described before A just man an upright man that is a man just in his dealing a man that gave every one his owne He did not decline no not a haires bredth if possibly he could from the line of Justice Commutative or Distributive yet this Iob is exceeding rich Hence observe That Plaine and honest dealing is no hinderance to the gaining or preserving of an estate Honest dealing is no stop no barre to getting There is a cursed Proverbe amongst us which some use and it is to be feared some walke by it That he which useth plaine dealing shall die a Beggar You see Job that was a plaine man a just dealing man yet is full of riches the nighest and the safest way to riches is the way of justice Woe to those who by getting riches get a wound in their owne consciences What will it advantage any one to gather many goods when in the meane time his heart tells him that all have a bad Master What will it advantage any to load to fraight his Ship by trading on forbidden Coasts when by doing this he splits and makes shipwracke of his soul If you would goe the ready way to attaine the things of this life walke in the wayes of God Honesty and Justice Uprightnesse and truth will leade you to the highest and greatest estate with Gods blessing All other riches are poverty all other gaine is losse There is a fire in an estate ill gotten which will at last consume it A man builds with timber that hath a fire in it that layes the foundation of his estate by sinne he layes up iniquity for his children And so doth God Job 21.19 It is commonly said likewise Dives aut iniquus aut iniqui haeres A rich man is either an unjust man or the heyre of an unjust man In Psal 82. the wicked are put for the rich How long will you iudge uniustly and accept the persons of the wicked That is the persons Divitum aut Potentum of rich or great men so it is to be understood for Judges would never accept the persons of wicked men if they were poore if they be in equall ballance with others in regard of outward things and then the opposition that is made in the next words Defend the poore and fatherlesse shewes that the rich are there meant These great ones are called wicked because saith the Glosse they usually get and uphold their greatnesse by wickednesse Such is the course of the world and it is the shame of the world much more of Christians We see in Jobs practise that riches may be attained and maintained too by righteousnesse Job was rich and iust Thirdly In that Iob a man fearing God was thus rich thus great See here the truth of the promises God will make good his promise concerning outward things to his people Godlinesse hath the promises of this life as well as of that which is to come As it hath promises made to it so it hath promises performed to it Iob a man fearing God a godly man is very rich Indeed not many rich not many mighty not many honourable not many great ones are called and so not many of those that are called are mighty and rich and great and noble yet some such are that the truth of the promises may appeare somtime in the very letter to the eye of sence as it alwayes doth to the eye of faith Doe not feare that you shall be poore if you turne godly for godlinesse hath the promises of this life and there was a rich Iob a rich Abraham a rich Isaac a rich David and many other godly rich God will performe when it is good for them the promises of outward good things to his children outwardly Fourthly Here is another Observation from this place Iob was frequent in holy duties he was a man fearing God that is as we explained it in the first verse he was much verst in the wayes of holy worship he did not serve God by fits or at his leasure but continually yet he was very rich Note hence Time spent in holy duties is no losse no hinderance to our ordinary callings or to our thriving in them Iob serves God so frequently that it is called continually yet he grows in wealth abundantly The time that he spent in the service of God did not rob his purse impoverish his family or hinder him in his dealings and businesses of the world Iob maintained both his callings he maintained his generall calling in the wayes and service of God and his speciall or particular calling in his relations unto men both went on together and they were no hinderance one to another but a furtherance rather The time we spend in spirituall duties is time gain'd for secular The paines we take in prayer c. whets our tools and oyls our wheels promotes all we go about and getteth a blessing upon all This meets with another blasphemy very frequent in the world If a man professing godlinesse goe backward in his estate especially a man that is taken notice of for his extraordinary zeale and constancy in holy duties Then the clamour is O you see what hearing of Sermons hath brought him unto you see what comes of his praying and fasting he ha's followed these things you see till he is undone I say two things unto these men First Many are thought to goe backward in their outward estate because they doe so much in spirituall duties when indeed they are so farre from doing too much that they doe too little and that rather is the reason why they thrive not The body may be exercis'd often when the spirit workes but seldome if at all in holy things and this
hearts when you are praying and when you are hearing and when you are in holy duties but remember to keepe your hearts when you are feasting and refreshing your selves when you are in your callings when you are buying and selling c. Secondly Note That sinnes of the heart sinnefull thoughts are very dangerous sinnes Job could not accuse his sonnes of load blasphemies he only suspected the silent sinnes of the heart yet he offereth sacrifice for them Againe When Iob hath nothing to charge his sonnes with but onely sinnes of the heart you see it is with an It may be my sonnes have cursed God in their hearts he doth not speake directly or positively that they have done so Whence note That no man can positively conclude what is wrought in the heart of another The heart is Gods peculiar as he only hath the lock and key of the heart to shut or open it so he only hath a window to looke into it we may guesse at the heart we may say it may be further we cannot goe The hearts of men often come forth at their mouthes and appeare in their actions and then indeed we may conclude their hearts are naught For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh and the hand worketh but unlesse we have that testimony unlesse the heart give that witnesse against it selfe we can only suspect it It may be thus or thus God alone can tell when we curse him in our hearts and if we goe on impenitently in them irreverent thoughts will be interpreted a cursing of God Thus did Job continually This is the third thing to be opened in this verse to wit the constancy of Job We have seene the Acts of his spirituall care and the ground of it his feare least his sonnes had sinned Now we have the constancy of this duty Thus did Job continually Continually The Originall is all the days thus did Job Cunctis diebus all dayes that is all the dayes that this occasion did offer it selfe When his sonnes went to feasting then ever Job went to praying and to sacrificing Continually or all the dayes doth not import that Job did offer sacrifice every day This continually is to be understood in the renewed seasons All the dayes are those dayes wherein occasion was given We are then said to doe a thing continually when we doe it seasonably so those places of Scripture are to be understood Pray without ceasing not that a man should doe nothing else but pray but that he should labour to have his heart in a praying frame alwayes and should actually pray as often as duty requires such an one prayes alwayes So here Iobs offering sacrifice continually noteth only the constancy and perseverance of Iob in the duty that so often as there was an occasion renewed Iob renewed this service and holy care concerning his sonnes for reconciling them unto God Iob had many other things to doe in the world he had a calling yet he offered sacrifice continually It is an excellent point of spirituall wisedome to drive the two trades for Heaven and Earth so as that one shall not intrench upon another for a man to pray so as that it may be said he prayes continually and for a man to follow his calling so as that it may be said he followes his calling continually In that he offered sacrifice as oft as his sonnes did feast Observe this That the heart of man is continually evill Doe not thinke that one sacrifice will serve the heart of man when it hath failed once in a duty and thou hast humbled thy soule for that thinke not thus now my heart will forbeare when I come to such a duty or to such a businesse again now I have taken order with my heart I need not feare any more no the heart will sinne over the same sinne a thousand times it will sinne continually You see here Iob sacrificing every time his sonnes feasted he knew their hearts were apt to conceive those sinnes at any time therefore he seekes God for them at all times Further Observe That renewed sinnes must have renewed repentance Thus did Job continually Till you have done sinning you must never give over repenting If there be a leake in the Ship that lets in the water continually the Pumpe must worke continually to carry it out We are leaking vessels all of us sinne commeth in sin is renewed there must be the pump of repentance to cary it out againe Lastly We may note this Iob did it continually Job was not good by fits That which a man doth out of conscience he will doe with perseverance Nature will have good moods but grace is steady Thus did Job continually whatsoever his affaires or businesses were whatsoever was laid by he would not lay by this duty of sacrificing Let this suffice for the 5th verse containing the care of Job over the soules of his children And so in these five verses already opened we have First Seene the dignity and sincerity of Jobs person Secondly The fullnesse and prosperity of his condition Thirdly The holinesse and piety of his life Certainely a man thus raised thus glorious set up thus in temporalls and in spiritualls thus furnished with substantialls and adorn'd with circumstantials abounding in whatsoever could make a man great and happy both in the eye of God and man surely such a man as this a man thus compleate wanted nothing but some want to try his sincerity in this fulnesse And now behold this hastening upon him God having thus fitted and qualified him will now try him try him like gold in the fornace of affliction You may see matter gathering for this and the fire kindling in the next part of the Chapter Verse 6. Now there was a day when the sonnes of God came to present themselves before the Lord c. Take this in the generall from the connection of the two parts Vsually where God gives much grace he tryes grace much To whom God hath given strong shoulders on him for the most part he layeth heavy burthens As soon as Job is spoken of thus prepared the next thing that follows is an affliction Now there was a day c. And so we are come to the second maine division of the Chapter which is the affliction of Job and that is set forth from this 6th verse to the end of the 19th And least we should conceive it to have come upon him by chance it is punctually described foure wayes 1. By the causes of it ver 6 7 c 2. By the instruments of it ver 15 16. c. 3. By the manner of it ver 14 15 16 c. 4. By the time of it ver 13. First his afflictions are set forth in their causes and that is done from the sixth verse to the end of the twelfth And the causes are three-fold First The efficient causes and they were two 1. The supreame and principall efficient cause and that was God ordering
benefit profit and honour But often to put or to give into the hand is for evill to doe what you will with persons or things to punish or to afflict them Judg. 6.1 God delivered the Israelites into the hand of Midian that is he left them to the power of the Midianites to tyrannize over and vexe them And verse 7. God delivered Midian into the hand of Israel that is hee gave Israel power over them to destroy or afflict them So here he gave all into the hand of Satan that is he gave Satan leave to dispose of Jobs estate as he pleased As if God had said to Satan Thou hast leave to doe what thou wilt with Jobs outward estate spoile it plunder it destroy it consume it fire it thou hast free leave all that he hath is in thy hand We shall note a point or two from that You see as soone as ever Satan had made his motion God presently answereth all that he hath is in thy hand It is not alwayes an argument of Gods goodwill and love to have our motions granted Many are heard and answered out of anger not out of love The children of Israel required meat for their lusts and God gave it them he did not withhold from them their desire they were not shortned of their lusts they had it presently many times his owne servants call and call againe move and move againe and obtaine no grant For this thing I besought the Lord thrice saith Paul yet Paul could not have what he sought Satan did but move once and presently all that Job had was in his hand But further that which is chiefely here to be observed is That untill God gives commission Satan hath no power over the estates or persons of Gods people or over any thing that belongs unto them Neither our persons nor our estates are subject to the will either of men or Devills Christ must say All that he hath is in thy hand before Satan can touch a shoe-latchet As Christ said Joh. 19.11 unto Pilat when he spake so stoutly knowest thou not that I have power to crucifie thee and power to release thee He thought that he had all power in his hand but Christ tells him Thou couldest have no power at all against me unlesse it were given thee from above If the Devills could not goe into the swine much lesse can they meddle with a man made after Gods Image till God gives them leave Every soule that hath interest in Christ may suck comfort and consolation in the saddest in the sorrowfullest day from the breast of this truth If Satan and wicked men cannot move till Christ saith goe nor wound till Christ saith strike nor spoile nor kill till Christ saith their estates their lives are in your power surely Christ will not speake a word to their hurt whom he loâ—â— nor will he ever suffer his enemies to doe a reall dammage to his friends Besides it may fill the soule with unspeakeable joy to remember that while a man is suffering the will of Christ is a doing Thirdly Satan doth very wickedly according to his nature in moving that Job may be afflicted He moveth in malice and in spight God knew what his heart and intent was and yet grants it We may note from hence That which Satan and evill men desire sinnefully the Lord grants holily The will of God and the will of Satan joyned both in the same thing yet they were as different as light and darkenesse their ends were as different as their natures Though it were the same thing they both willed yet there was an infinite distance betweene them in willing it The will of Satan was sinfull but the power given Satan was just Why Because his will was from himselfe but his power was from the will of God Satan had no power to doe mischiefe but what God gave him but his will to doe mischiefe was from himselfe Therefore we find that the same spirit is said to be an evill spirit and to be a spirit from the Lord and yet the Lord doth not partake at all in the evill of the spirit as 1 Sam. 16.14 The Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evill spirit from the Lord troubled him An evill spirit from the Lord how was it an evill spirit if it were from the Lord can the Lord send forth any evill from himselfe who is only good In that he was evill that was from his own will but that he had power to trouble Saul that was from the Lord So here Satans will and intent were most wicked these were from himselfe his power to afflict Job was from God and that was good Satan willeth Job should be afflicted for his destruction God willeth it only for his tryall and probation Satan desireth it that God may be blasphemed but God willeth it that himselfe might be glorified Satan willeth it that so others in his example might be scandalized and disheartned from entring into the service of God seeing how ill he sped But God willeth it that others might be strengthned and incouraged to enter into his service beholding a man under such heavy pressures and yet not speaking ill of God or of his wayes Satan willeth it hoping thereby Job would discover his hypocrisie but God willeth it knowing that he would therein discover his integrity So then though the same thing was willed yet there was a vast disproportion in their ends and intentions and though the power by which Satan did afflict Job was from God yet the evill intent with which he afflicted him was from himselfe Thus we see how God without any staine or touch of evill grants this which Satan did most wickedly desire It followeth Onely upon himselfe thou shalt not put forth thy hand God gives a commission but it is with a limitation there is a restriction in it Onely upon himselfe c. that is not upon his person not his body thou shalt not afflict that with diseases not his soule thou shalt not afflict that with temptations Hence note That God himselfe sets bounds to the afflictions of his people he limits out how farre every affliction shall goe and how farre every instrument shall prevaile as he doth with the Sea Hitherto saith he thou shalt come and no further here thou shalt stop thy proud waves so he saith to all the afflictions of single persons or whole Nations hither you shall come and no further Onely upon himselfe thou shalt not put forth thine hand This limitation respects First The degree or measure thus farre you shall afflict that is in such a degree to such a height and no higher Secondly It respects the time thus farre that is thus long so many yeares or so many dayes you shall have power and no longer God leaves not either the measure or the time the degree or the continuance of any affliction in the hand of Satan or his adherents Wee reade Rev. 6.10 That
from the seat of life to save the skin of that member which is so neare the seat of life Secondly by skin in the former place some understand all the outward estate that Iob had It was usuall in those times to expresse all riches by the word Skin and the reason of it was this because as was observed before their substance was cattell and so from the skin of their cattell they did denominate their estates Or as others because their mony was made of skins and so they did expresse their wealth and riches under the word skin Answerable to which custome the Latin word for houshold-stuffe or household goods is derived from that word which properly signifies a skin because either they were wont to wrap up their goods in skins or because they did put a great value upon skins and so their whole outward personall estate was comprehended under that notion Hence that common Proverbe amongst the Ancients Thou spendest out of another mans skinne To be liberall out of another mans estate was called a being lavish upon another mans skinne And then skin in the second place doth signifie the man himselfe or the person of a man the thing containing or that which covereth being put for the whole by a Synecdoche the skin for the whole man And it is usuall in good Authours to put the skin for the whole man as to looke to the skin is to looke to the whole body Take it thus that skin in the first place is all outward things and skin in the second is taken for the skin that covereth the body and so the sense runs thus Skin for skin c. that is a man will give all his outward estate to save the flesh upon his backe that is to save his life As if Satan had said this act of Iob which is so cryed up and made a matter so considerable being examined will be found as ordinary as the High-way It being common to a Proverbe for a man to part with all that hee may preserve himself There is a third exposition much labour'd by a learned Interpreter who by skin in the first place understands not generally all his estate but more especially his apparrell his cloathing which at the first were made of skins and were used long after for cloathings by Princes and great men in divers Countries from which the sense of the Proverbe is thus given skin for skin c. A man will part with his cloathes cast them off willingly easily that he may save the skin of his body save his life And so he expounds it by that act of Iob in the former Chapter vers 20 where it is said that Job rent his mantle and cast it off as if Satan had alluded unto that and said no marvell if Iob humbled himselfe to the dust and renting his garment cast that away when he heard all was taken from him Iob parted with the skin his garment that he might move thee to compassion and so save his other skin the garment which cloathes his flesh which he feared thou wouldest rent by wounding and so let out his trembling soule his beloved life A fourth gives this interpretation of the words Skin for skin c. The Originall Preposition which we translate for is often in Scripture likewise translated upon as in 2 Kingâ— 5 The widdow went from Elisha and shut the doore upon her and upon her sonne So in other places then the sence is made out thus Skin upon skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life that is if a man had never so many skins if it could be supposed he had an hundred skins one upon another he would let all be taken oft to save his life That place is expounded as a paralell Iob. 1.16 where it is said That of Christs fullnesse we receive grace for grace that is grace upon grace or abundance of grace all the grace we have this grace and that grace faith and love and patience and humility every grace all grace you receive from Christ Thus some illustrate these two places one by another So Satan saith of Iob here Skin for skin that is skin upon skin a man will give all his skins suppose he had many he would part with all or take skin for never so much of his outward estate he will let all goe to save his life There is yet another interpretation given of this Skin for skin ye all that a man hath wil he give for his life take the words comparatively we translate it yea all he hath That copulative particle in the Hebrew is rendered sometime and sometime yea sometime so according to which last exception the sense standeth thus as a man will give skin for skin so a man will part with all he hath for his life We finde some Scriptures wherein this particle is taken in the very same sense To give you instance Prov. 25.3 there the Hebrew reades it thus The heavens for height the earth for depth and the heart of Kings is unsearchable Now this is cleare that the sense is comparative and it is thus to be given as the Heaven is unsearchable for height and the earth for depth so the heart of the King is unsearchable So verse 25. of the same Chapter it is thus read out of the Originall word for word Cold water to a thirsty soule and good newes from a farre country now we translate it according to the sense and make it a comparison thus As cold water to a thirsty soule so is good newes from a farre country Thus also we may interpret this place and it carries a good sense Skin for skin and all c. As a man would give skin for skin one outward thing for another for they take skin in both places for outward things for the goods of this life as a man would give or barter away one commodity for another So a man will give all outward things for his life life is more valuable to all outward things than any one particular thing is to another It is ordinary to a Proverbe among men in danger to say spare my life and take my goods How willingly doth the Mariner in a storme unlade his Ship and cast all his rich wares over-board that he may preserve that precious jewell his life As a godly man will give life upon life a thousand lives if he had them rather then loose his soule So a natural man will give skin upon skin gold upon gold treasure upon treasure that he may save his life Let life lie at the stake and a man will give all things he hath in the world for it and thinke he hath a good bargaine Here are 5. expositions you see offered The two latter to me seeme the most cleare howsoever every one of them hath a faire sense in it and so we are agreed upon the generall which is onely to set forth the excellency and preciousnesse
of life there cannot be any miscarriage in pitching upon either of these Interpretations I shall give you some notes from hence First observe what a blessing life is Skin for skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life Life is the most precious treasure the most excellent thing in nature And let me tell you life is the treasure that is now so much digged for there are many abroad that are digging for your precious lives Consider what lyes at stake and what will you give for the securing or reducing of it Have we not cause to say of some of our bloody brethren as Jacob did Gen. 32.12 when his brother Esau was marching towards him I feare him saith he least he will come and slay me and the mother with the children Losse of life was the thing Jacob feared And Hesters speech in her petition to the King imports that all other losses might have been borne but losse of life Cap. 7. ver 3 4. Let my life saith she be given at my Petition and my people at my request for we are sold I and my people to be destroyed to be slaine and to perish But if we had been sold for bond-men and for bond-women I had held my tongue See how she wrought for life for her own life and the life of her people and thought liberty not worth the asking for compared with life Moses made many demurrs and excuses I am not eloquent c. when God gave him Commission to goe into Aegypt but we heare of no delayes at all when once God had said Returne into Egypt for all the men are dead which sought thy life Exod. 4. ver 19. God had not spoken thus if he had not knowne there was such a scruple in his mind which would have galled him worse in his travels to Egypt then any peble in his shoe Secondly If life be the most precious thing the richest jewell in the world then in the next place learne to value your lives You see how Satan values life here out of an ill intent only to extenuate and undervalue all the sufferings of Job he sets his life at a very high rate that he might make all his losses of no rate not worth the speaking off Let our intent be good and then it is good for us to value our lives high and to sell them at as deare a rate as we can if we must sell them You know what Solomon saith in the person of a naturall man A living dog is better then a dead Lion Eccles 9.4 We reade what is said of the woman in the Gospell that had spent all she had upon Physitians What was it for Onely to restore her health which is a degree below life Certainly if she spent all that she had to obtaine health which is onely the comfort of life shall not we spend a part of that we have to save our lives As ships in danger to be wrack'd in a storme are often preserved by casting some of their rich lading into the Sea So it is possible yea probable that the casting away of some of your estates in this great storme may be a meanes to save both your ship and your lives your estates kept may sinke the vessell and then you must sinke with it and certainly die or swim from it and hardly live When Esau Gen. 25.32 was hungry and could not obtaine a messe of pottage from his brother but upon very hard tearmes the sale of his birth-right Sell me thy birth-right saith Jacob a precious jewell indeed which Esau should have valued more then his life but he comes to his price on this ground Behold I am at the point to die and what profit shall this birth-right doe to me He was prophane Esau for saying so that 's the Apostles stile Heb. 12.16 It was profanenesse to preferre one morsell of meat before his birth-right because the birth-right was a spirituall priviledge as well as a naturall but there is no meere naturall blessing but we may both in wisdome and conscience part with to keepe our lives when yee are ready to die yee may say what will this estate these riches doe us good If that your estates may be the price of your lives yee have reason and it is your duty to part with them willingly give some give all for what will these riches do you good when you are ready to die or already dead Further be ready to give more than your estates for your lives Give some of your bloud for your lives that 's more Skin for skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life and which is yet more give a limbe for your lives The whole is better then a part And which is highest of all venture your lives to save your lives That which I intend is only this doe not barter away your lives upon meane rates upon low tearmes If it comes to it as wee have great cause to feare it will we see many have been put to it already sell your lives as deare as you can Indeed there are none in so great danger to loose their lives as they that will not venture their lives That of Christ is true in this sense also he that will save his life shall loose it such saving tends to undoing yea it tends to death And whosoever will venture to loose his life shall most probably find it Math. 16.25 Let it not be said that you died to save charges let it not be said that you died to save your skins or to save your bloud yea let it not be said that you died to save your lives I meane that you feared to hazard your lives for the securing of your lives Give all that you have for your lives venture life and all your safety depends upon this hazard by such a noble liberality you are in the fairest way not only to save all you have but to gain more then you have Thirdly If your lives be so much worth what are your soules worth What is this life which is valued thus above all that a man hath The Apostle James makes the question and gives the answer It is even a vapour that appeareth for a little time and then vanisheth away Jam. 4.14 a mans breath it is but in his nostrils it is gone presently yet you see in a true value all the world is below that If you are to esteeme your lives so at what price will you set your soules To save your lives and save your soules are two things A man may save his life and yet loose his soule yea many labour to save their lives in doing that which will be the losse of their soules poore creatures Therefore looke to that set a high rate indeed upon your immortal soules when estates and liberties and lives are called for count them all as trash that you may save your soules hazard not your soules If life be more worth then all the world
the soule is more worth then a thousand lives What will it advantage a man to gaine the world and loose his soule Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soule The truth is a man should not gaine much to get the whole world and loose his life that losse is a losse irreparable irrecompensible from the creature Nature teacheth us to prize our lives above the world and grace teacheth us to value our soules above our lives Therefore how unnaturall are they that preferre a little profit before their lives but O how ungracious are they who preferre a little profit before their soules Some will sinne as we say for six-pence selling their owne soules as those false Prophets did the soules of their people for hand-fulls of barley and for peeces of bread Ezek. 13.19 And whereas a man should give all for his life they will give their soules for a thing of nought Know therefore the worth of your soules Jesus Christ thought soules worth his life and therefore dyed to save soules How much then doe our soules transcend our owne lives And if Christ laid downe his life to ransome soules doe you rather lay downe a thousand lives if you had them then indanger your soules either by acting sinne or by submitting unto errour In that case let estate goe let liberty goe let life let all goe for life hath not so much preheminence over all as the soule hath over life Fourthly If your lives are worth so much then what is the Gospell worth If a man would give all for his life what should he give for his Religion to maintaine and uphold that in the purity and power of it Life is a precious thing a thing of great value but when the Gospell comes in competition then life is a poore commodity and our breath but a perishing vapour Such was the judgement of that great Apostle Act. 20.24 when the Holy Ghost had witnessed in every City that bonds and afflictions did abide him in preaching the Gospell he thus resolves But none of these things move me neither count I my life deare unto my selfe so that I might finish my course with joy and the ministery which I have received to testifie the Gospell of the grace of God His life came to a low rate in his esteeme how cheape was life when the Gospell was spoken of I count not my life deare saith Paul as all other outward things are meane and low compared with life so life it selfe is a meane a low thing in comparison of the Gospell This life is but the life of the body but the Gospell is the life of the soule Many men live but no soule lives on this side or without the Gospell Now if you will offer much to save your lives will not you offer much more to save the Gospell In and about this we may make the best improvement of Satans argument Skin for skin and all that a man hath should he give for the Gospell for Gospell ordinances for Gospell priviledges for Gospell light Where or for what will you venture and bid high if not for the precious Gospell Lastly If life be worth all then hereby we may take measure of the love and bounty of Christ to poore sinners who not onely spent himselfe in all to his life but spent life and all that they might not perish the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ was exceeding great towards us That though he was rich yet for our sakes he became poore 2 Cor. 8.9 That though he was in the forme of God and thought it no robbery to be equall with God yet he made himselfe of no reputation Phil. 2.6 7. But how superabundant was his grace towards us that though he was the Prince of life Act. 3.15 Yet became obedient unto death even the death of the crosse Phil. 2.8 that we might live If a man loves his life so that he will give skin for skin and all that he hath to redeeme it then O how did Christ love his Church who gave not only his riches and his reputation but his life also for it's redemption JOB 2.5 6 7 8. But put forth thine hand now and touch his bone and his flesh and he will curse thee to thy face And the Lord said unto Satan Behold he is in thine hand but save his life So went Satan forth from the presence of the Lord and smote Job with sore boyles from the sole of his foote unto his crowne And he tooke him a pot-sheard to scrape himselfe withall and he sate downe among the ashes IN this fifth verse Satan goeth on and makes a motion unto God as we observed his method in the former Chapter but put forth thine hand now and touch his bone and his flesh and he will curse thee to thy face This is Satans motion In the sixth verse we have a grant of this motion bound up yet with a limitation as it was in the former Chapter For the motion But put forth thine hand now and touch c. What it importeth to put forth the hand that was opened in the former Chapter vers 11. where we have the same expression therefore we shall not stay upon it here Consider now only that which is differing a new object upon which the hand must be put forth and which Satan desireth might now be touched It is the laying of his hand not upon his Cattell or upon his estate or upon his children but upon his flesh and his bone Touch his bone and his flesh that is afflict his body The bone and the flesh are the two chiefe parts the materiall parts of the body of them the whole Fabrique doth consist the bone it is as the timber in this house and the flesh it is as the lime and morter filling of it up Touch this saith Satan And in that he saith touch his bone and his flesh he intends and requires a deepe and a sore affliction upon his body for if he had said only thus Touch his flesh that had beene an affliction upon his body For we know often in Scripture the flesh is put for the whole body and sometimes for the whole man therefore Satan is not satisfied with an expression generall but he putteth it in direct and expresse termes Touch his flesh and his bone that is touch him so as that the paine and the distemper may sinke into his very bones into his very Marrow touch him thus and then you shall see what he will doe The Bone it selfe is a part without feeling yet to touch the bone imports the greatest paine that can be felt Touch his bone and his flesh and then saith he He will curse thee to thy face What it is to curse to the face hath bin opened already in the former Chapter at the eleventh verse and I must referre you thither for the sence of this phrase only in a word take it thus Hee will curse thee to thy face is as if
often doth Job in this Booke breath forth patience humility faith love and stedfast trust in God whatsoever he should doe with him these ballance his complainings yea indeed they over-ballance them so much for the setling of our judgements about Jobs patience that they leave not so much as an opinion of the contrary Fifthly Take this into consideration that though he did complaine and complaine bitterly yet he recovered out of these complainings he was not overcome by impatience though some impatient speeches came from him he recalls what he had spoken and repents for what he had done See how he submitteth himself Cap. 42. how low he lies before God even in the dust and saith I will speake no more If I have been impatient I will use no more impatient speeches If I have been impatient I repent of it I repent of it in dust and ashes To repent of impatience takes away the imputation of impatience and to say I will doe evill no more gaines through the mercy of God in Christ an acceptance of us as if we had done no evill A man is a conquerour though in the battell he suffers many foiles and receiveth many wounds and looseth much blood though for a great while in the day a man be worsted yea though a whole Army be worsted yet if in the evening in the close of the day he and they keep the field and foile the enemy the day is wonne and victory goes on this side Job was in a great battell in a sore fight of afflictions though it be granted that he received some wounds and had some foyles and sometimes lookes as if he had been beaten and speakes as if he had been overcome yet in the close in the evening in the making up of all he went away a conquerour the conclusion was victory and glory Iob had the victory and God had the glory Therefore as the Apostle Iames Chap. 5.11 when he speakes of enduring with joy referres us to the end of Iobs day of trouble to the end which the Lord made yee have heard saith he of the patience of Job and have seene the end of the Lord. So looke to the end of Iob to the end which through the strength of the Lord Job made and there you shall see patience having a perfect worke or the perfect worke of patience Looke not alone upon all the actings of Iob when he was in the height and heate of the battell looke to the onset he was so very patient in the beginning though vehemently stirred that Satan had not a word to say looke to the end and you cannot say but Iob was a patient man full of patience a mirrour of patience if not a miracle of patience a man whose face shined with the glory of that grace above all the children of men So much for that Question I shall now adde two or three points of Observation The first thing then that we may observe from hence is this If we compare Iob in the two former Chapters with Iob in the third we shall find that the case is altered with him he scarce speakes like the same man Hence observe in the generall That the holiest person in this life doth not alwayes keepe in the same frame of holinesse There is a great deale of difference betweene what he spake in the former chapters when he heard of and felt these things first and what he speakes now The Lord gave and the Lord hath taken away blessed be the name of the Lord. Shall we receive good at the hand of God and shall we not receive evill This was the language we lately heard but now cursing certainely his spirit had been in a more holy frame more sedate and quiet then now it was At the best in this life we are but imperfect yet at some time we are more imperfect then we are at an other Faith is never very strong yet at some time faith is weaker then at an other Our love to Christ is never very hot but yet at some time it is colder then at another we cannot keepe it in the same degrees of heate A man at one time can both doe and suffer and a while after he can neither doe nor suffer as he could at that time he is out of frame and bungles in both Take the life of a Christian all together it is a progresse it is a continuall growing yet take his life apart consider him in every circumstance and stage of his life then there are many stops and stands in his life yea many declinings As it is with a child Take a child and his life from his birth to his full age is in a growing condition yet consider him at some particular time and the child may abate the child may not only not be stronger but much weaker then he was a yeare or a moneth before So it is with us from the first houre of our spirituall life till we attaine full stature of it in Christ Onely this is our comfort that in Heaven our soules shall be set up in such a frame of holinesse as shall never be moved nor abated in the least degree Looke in what frame the hand of God sets us up in that day we shall continue so to all eternity and that will be the highest and most exquisite frame both of holinesse and of delight But now wee are up and downe one day patient and another day impatient now beleeving and another day distrusting now the heart melts and is very tender anon it is very hard and relentlesse How meeke a man was Moses not such a man for meekenesse upon the face of the whole earth and yet at one time passionate and at another so angry that he spake unadvisedly with his lips How full of faith was Peter at one time how resolv'd to stick close to Christ yet shortly after how full of feare and for feare denying Christ We who receive good gifts and perfect guifts are subject to turnes and variations onely he from whom every good and perfect guift comes is without variablenesse or shadow of turning Secondly observe That great sufferings may fill the mouthes of holiest persons with great complainings Job was not only afflicted but afflicted greatly Job did not only complaine but he complained greatly You see what complainings David made in his great troubles Psal 77.2 In the day of my trouble I sought the Lord my sore ran in the night and ceased not my soule refused to be comforted So Heman Psal 88.3 My soule is full of troubles and my life draweth nigh unto the grave and verse 15. I am afflicted and ready to dye from my youth up while I suffer thy terrours I am distracted Hezekiah under the greatnesse of his affliction Isa 38.14 saith Like a Crane or Swallow so did I chatter I did mourne as a Dove c. Jeremie a holy Prophet speakes if not out-speakes Job in his complaint Chap. 20.14 Cursed be the day wherein I
upon the earth must needs lye out of the common course And what their condition is is such a secret as we cannot understand but by enjoying it Againe from that particular expression in that he saith I should have slept We may observe That as death it is the rest of the whole man so death it is the sleepe of the body So you find it often in the Scripture Our friend Lazarus sleepeth saith Christ when he was dead Joh. 11. And the Apostle 1 Thes 4.13 I would not have you ignorant concerning those which sleepe that is concerning those who are dead Lighten mine eyes saith David lâ—st I sleepe the sleepe of death or as the Hebrew Lest I sleepe death Psal 13.3 And hence the grave is called a bed Isa 57.2 The righteous are taken away c. they shall enter in to peace they shall rest in their beds When a righteous man dies or is taken away he is but gone to bed Therefore we call those places where the dead are laid up and buried dormitories or sleeping places Both the Greek and Latine words meete in the same signification Some of the Ancients were of opinion that this sleepe tooke hold of and seaz'd upon all man namely upon his soule as well as upon his body Asserting that the soule is in a sleepe or slumber that is that the soule from the time of its disunion from the body untill the resurrection lyes still without any motion or operation I giant that many operations of the soule doe cease when it parteth from the body There are some acts of the soule which are organicall and there are other acts that are inorganicall or immateriall The organicall acts that is whatsoever the soule acts by the members of the body those acts I say must needs cease but the soule can act of it selfe without the assistance of the body as we may collect by many experiments while our bodies and soules are joyned together How often doe we find our soules at worke when our bodies lie still and doe nothing when sleepe binds up all our sences and shuts up the windowes of the body so close that we can neither heare nor see yet then the soule frames to it selfe and beholds a thousand various shapes and heares all sorts of sounds and voices then the soule sees and the soule heares the soule deviseth and the soule discourseth the soule greeves and the soule rejoyceth the soule hopes and the soule feares the soule electeth and the soule refuseth All this the soule doth in dreames and visions of the night when deepe sleepe falls upon man So also in extasies and ravishments the body is as it were laid by as uselesse and uninstrumentall to the soule I knew a man in Christ about fourteene yeares agoe so the Apostle Paul saith whether in the body I cannot tell or out of the body I cannot tell God knoweth 2 Cor. 12.2 As if he had said I was lost as to my body I could not tell what I was I did not feele my selfe yet he had mighty operations in his soule his spirit wrought strangely and then tooke in such revelations of God and from God as his bodily organs could never fashion into words or represent by speech He heard unspeakeable words which it is not lawfull or possible for man to utter The soule hath an eare to heare such words as the body cannot find a tongue to expresse So the Apostle John in his divine ravishments I was in the Spirit upon the Lords day As for his body that was as to that businesse laid by and suspended as uselesse in that day and his spirit called up to that angelicall worke the receiving of visions and revelations from on high And among other things which John saw he saw under the Altar the soules of them that had beene slaine for the word of God and for the testimony which they held These soules were not asleepe though their bodies were for they cried with a loud voice saying How long O Lord Holy and true doest thou not judge and avenge our blood c. Rev. 6.9 10. From all these texts and experiences we may conclude that the soule wakes while the body sleepes that sleepe of death And the death of the body is called a sleepe First Because as sleepe so death brings the body to rest as was observed in the former point Secondly Naturall sleepe is not perpetuall we sleepe and wake againe so though the body lye in the grave yet death is but a sleepe the man shall awake and rise againe Thirdly As a body asleepe can easily be awaked and called up by the power of man so the body when it is dead can with infinitely more ease be raised by the power of God It is but a call from Heaven and we awaken out of the dust God can beyound all comparison more easily awaken us from that dead sleepe of death then we can awaken one another from the lightest slumber There are two questions which I shall propound and endeavour to resolve upon the whole matter of this context First We find Job complaining because things were not otherwise ordered about him he is troubled because he was borne or because he was not cast away in the birth for then it had been better with him he had beene asleepe and quiet he was troubled things were with him as they were Hence it may be questioned Whether it be lawfull for us to wish or to desire that had not come to passe which we see come to passe And are we not bound to rest satisfied with the present and fore-past dispensations of God and so be content with the things that are or with things as they are For this I say in generall such wishes or desires are not sinfull It is not absolutely sinfull to wish that not to be which is Nay some things which are ought to be wished they had not bin and it is a sin not to wish they had not been As those things that are displeasing to God provocations to the eyes of his glory things that are dishonourable to God we ought to wish that such things had never been God himselfe wisheth in that manner Psal 81.13 O that my people had hearkned unto me and Israel had walked in my wayes They did not walke in his wayes he wisheth they had he desireth they had been better more holy and more obedient then they were To wish that a thing had not been out of a tendernesse that God should be offended by sin is not only lawfull but very commendable But to wish things otherwise then they are as murmuring against and misliking Gods administration or out of a tendernesse because we suffer is not only sinfull but abominable When our wills rise up against the will of God when we cannot be contented to be what God will have us to be and to suffer what God would have us suffer when we who should learne to be content in every
troubles turne a Pallace into a desolate place so riches and plenty power and peace meeting together in Kings and great men turne desolate places into Pallaces Kings and Counsellours are of such wealth and power that they can alter the most desolate and ruinous places into delicate edifices and stately dwellings Or lastly Which doth best suite with the subject of Jobs discourse or curse in this Chapter He speaking so much of death by the desolate places we may understand Tombes and Sepulchers places of buriall which Kings and Counsellours build to or for themselves And so taken the sence may be given thus as if Job had said if I had died I should have lien in the grave with as much ease and quiet as those great Princes and Kings of the earth who build themselves stately monuments to lie in It would have been as well with me as with any of them though interr'd under stately tombes We know it was an ordinary thing for Kings and great men especially in ancient times to prepare for themselves costly monuments while they lived as houses for their bodies being dead Which grew to such excessive charge among the Romanes that they were forced to make a Law to restraine it The Egyptians bestowed more care and cost in building their tombes then their houses Even Abraham Gen. 23.16 bought him a burying place before he built himselfe a house though while he lived he dwelt in a moveable tent yet he would be as sure as he could of a certaine grave And good Joseph of Arimathea had made himselfe a sepulcher in a rock Math. 27.60 And it is said of Absolom 2 Sam. 18.18 That in his life time he had taken and reared up a pillar that is he had artificially raised a great pile of goodly stones in the Kings dale For he said I have no sonne to keepe my name in remembrance And he called the pillar after his own name Now as this pillar was to keepe his name so he intended it likewise to keepe his body when he should die For it being related in the verse before how as soone as he was slaine they made no more adoe with him but cast him into a great pit in the wood and layed a very great heape of stones upon him The holy Ghost to shew us the vanity of man in preparing for a dead body while he neglects an immortall soule and how God disappoints the vaine conceits of men in supposing to perpetuate their own name and greatnesse The holy Ghost I say to shew this presently subjoynes in the sacred story Now Absolom in his life time c. As if he had said Doe ye observe how this ambitious Prince was buried even tumbled into a pit with a rude heape of stones cast upon him This man had prepared himselfe another kind of monument even a sumptuous pillar c. So that under or by that pillar he had archt a curious vault for himselfe to be buried in called Absaloms place namely his burying place And the word which we have here for desolate places is in Scripture clearely applied to the grave or a place of buriall We have it in Ezek. 26.20 where the Prophet foreshewing the destruction of Tyre speakes from the Lord thus When I shall bring thee downe with them that descend into the pit and shall set thee in the low parts of the earth in places desolate of old There are three words in that verse and they are all Synonima's words of the same signification First The pit Secondly The low parts of the earth Thirdly The desolate places and all these are but severall expressions for the grave or for a place to bury in It is no more but this When I shall bring thee downe even with those that lie buried in the grave So that the word which we translate desolate places being also in other places used for the grave or a place of buriall we may very well expound it so here that desolate places are the graves or sepulchers of Kings and Princes and Counsellours of the earth which we may doe especially because Job treats in this place about death and the state of the dead Now Tombes and Monuments may be called desolate places in two respects First Because when the body is layed in there all company and all friends leave it you shall have a mighty traine following their friend to the grave but there they leave him Kings and Counsellours have stately Funerals but when their subjects or friends favourites or flatterers have brought them to the tombe and opened the doore of the grave they goe no further they will not goe in with them and dwell with their bodies in the dust of death as much as they honour'd or ador'd them when they lived so that they are in desolate places Secondly Graves may be called desolate places because Tombes and Sepulchres were in desolate places they were made in some high Mountaine or caved Valley in some place remote from the company and habitations of the living for in former times they did not bury in Cities or in Townes but in places where few came till they were carried and therefore properly called desolate places It is observed that among the Romans the first Emperour that was buried in Rome was Traian And the law of the twelve Tables did prohibit both the buriall and the burning of the dead within the City So then it is cleare that anciently Tombes and Monuments were erected in desolate places and that great cost was bestowed in building and beautifying of them both which favour and illustrate the exposition given It followes in the Text Or with Princes that had gold who fill their houses with treasure The word Sar a Prince in the Hebrew as in most other languages signifies the chiefe the head the first Some Criticks conceive that our English word Sir comes from it it is very neere in sound and so is the French word Mounsier to this Originall for a Prince or Chiefe Job describeth Princes thus they are such as had gold noting both what the study and indeavours of Princes are namely to lay up gold and likewise what is requisite for them Gold is of great use in a high estate Treasures are necessary for Princes Princes that had gold Therefore Solomon that wise Prince saith of himselfe Eccles 2.8 And he putteth it among his Princely workes I gathered me also silver and gold and the peculiar treasure of Kings When the Wise-men came to Christ the first thing they offered him was gold and they did wisely for he was a Prince gold being the chiefe and as it were the prince of Mettals is a very proper offering for Princes And howsoever wisedome and goodnesse justice and clemency are farre more necessary requisites in Princes then gold yet there is such a necessary conjunction of these two that we find him in the Prophet Isa 3.7 refusing the governement because he was poore Be thou our Ruler say
they who rejoyce in soule would even willingly be rid of their bodies they are above the body So they who are bitter in soule are desirous to be ridde of their bodies the body is a burden when the soule is bitter This bitternesse of soule caused those bitter complaints before and now this vehement expostulation Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery Wherefore We are apt to thinke there is no reason for that for which we can see no reason Job was in a darke condition and could not see the reason and therefore almost concludes there was none When we are posed we thinke all the world is posed too If we cannot interpret and expound the dealings of God we thinke none can nay in such cases some are ready to thinke at least to speake as if they thought that God himselfe can scarce give a good account of them This wherefore goes through the earth and reaches Heaven Tell me O my friends shew me O my God Wherefore is light given to him that is in misery Why Job there may be many reasons many answers given to this wherefore a man should be in light though he be in misery and why his life should be continued though his soule be in bitternesse What if God should appeare and tell thee It shall be thus and the reason of it is because I will have it so Is not that therefore answer enough to any mans wherefore The will of God is reason enough for man and ought to be the most satisfying reason If God say I will have life remaine in a man that is bitter in soule that man should say Lord it is reason I should because it is thy pleasure though it be to my own trouble Yet it is but seldome that God makes his will his reason and answers by his bare preâ—â—gative He hath often given weighty reasons to this quaerie First The life of nature is continued that the life of grace may be encreased Again Such live in sufferings That they may learne obedience by the things which they suffer God teaches us by his workes as well as by his word his dealings speake to us And It is as great an act of holinesse to submit our selves to the will of God in his workes as it is to the will of God in his word Another reason of this wherefore may be this God sets up some as patternes to posterity he therefore gives the light of life to some that are in misery to shew that it is no new nor strange thing for his Saints to be darkenesse And what if God doth it to magnifie the strength of his own power in supporting and the sweetnesse of his mercy when he delivers such bitter soules Further observe first That The best things in this world may come to be burthens to us See here a man weary of light and life light one of the most excellent creatures that God made the most excellent next to life yea life the best the most excellent thing in nature both these become burthensome How gladly would Job have bin rid of light how gladly rid of his life Consider then how burthensome other things which at the best are burdens may be unto you If you heare a soule complaining of light and life and why are these given me when I am in misery Then what comfort thinke you will honour give you or what comfort will riches give you or what comfort will beauty give you in such a condition as makes you weary of light and life What comfort will sin give you what ease will your lusts give you in such a condition as makes you weary of light and life I never heard of any of the Saints that were troubled at any time with their grace or weary of the favour of God I never heard any of them say why is grace given to one that is in misery or the light of Gods countenance to the bitter in soule I never heard any say wherefore is faith given to a man that is in misery or hope and patience to the bitter in soule grace was never a burden to any man under greatest burdens or unsavoury to the bitterest soule when you are weary of all other things in the world these will be your supports Therefore labour after those things which you shall never be weary of even after those things which will be more pleasant to us then ever light was when light shall be to others more troublesome then ever darknesse was to any let us labour after those things which will be more sweet to us then ever life was when life shall be to others â—ore bitter then ever death was to any Secondly observe It is a trouble to possesse good things when we cannot injoy them Would you know how Job spake here as one weary of light and life It was not under the notion of light and life as if he had been weary of these in themselves but it was because he could not enjoy these Solomon assures us Prov. 25.20 that As hee that taketh away a garment in cold weather and as vineger upon Nitre so is he that singeth songs to an heavy heart Musick to one that is in sorrow doubles his sorrow why because he cannot enjoy the musick a heavy heart can worse intend musick then a heavy eare only those things which we can injoy in the use of them please in the possessing of them Of all temporalls the possession and enjoyment may be separated but for spiritualls the very possession of them is joy therefore enjoyment their presence is a pleasure and therefore their presence shall ever please We may distinguish between their use and their comfort but we can never seperate them One thing further When Job saith Wherefore is light given and life given The meaning of it is wherefore is light continued and wherefore is life continued for he speakes of himselfe and others that had light and were alive and yet he saith wherefore is light given c. From this we may learne That Every act of continuance of good things to us is a new act or deed of gift to us Mercy is given every moment it is enjoyed not only is a new mercy and a renewed mercy a new gift but continued mercy is a gift and a new gift life is a new gift every houre of time we live on the earth and glory will be a new gift every minute of eternity we shall live in Heaven Which long for death and it cometh not and dig for it more then for hid treasures This 21. verse doth further explicate who are the bitter in soule even such as long for death when a soule from naturall principles finds a sweetnesse in death that soule is in bitternesse Our affliction and our misery is indeed worme-wood and gall as the Church complaines Lam. 2.19 when death is as honey and long'd for as the honey-combe There is bitternesse in the death of the body and yet some are so
bitter in soule that they account the very bitternesse of death sweetnesse They say not as Agag 1 Sam. 15.32 Surely the bitternesse of death is past but O that the sweetnesse of death would come To be rid of sin makes us long for death spiritually to be rid of paine makes us desire death naturally therefore he saith the bitter in soule long for death The word which we translate by longing signifieth a very vehement desire as you know in our tongue to long for a thing is the highest and hottest acting of desire after a thing It signifieth properly to gape or to breathe Hence by a Trope it signifieth strong desire because they who desire a thing much are said to gape or breath after it just as an hungry man gapes after meate wheresoever he sees it and his mind runnes upon it when he cannot see it that is the force of the word Hence also the word is used in Scripture to note the strong actings of faith and vehement expectations of hope in God when the soule is raised up mightily to beleeve the word of promise then it longs after and opens its mouth wide as it were to receive the thing promised As in Isa 8.17 I will waite upon the Lord who hides his face from the house of Jacob and I will looke for him The Prophet Hosea applies the word to robbers and theeves who stand watching and longing for the traveller and looking at every turning chap. 6.9 As troopes of robbers waite for a man Yet further to cleare this we may take notice that in the Hebrew there are two words which come from this roote whereof the one signifieth the Palate of the mouth because the palate is the part affected with the tast of such meates as we long for Hence we say the mouth waters after such or such a pleasing dish The other word signifies a Fish-hooke and the reason is double either because those hookes are pleasantly baited which when the fish sees he longeth after it and greedily swallowes it downe Or because when the angler hath cast in the hooke he is in great expectation waiting and looking earnestly when the fish will be enticed and bite By all these uses of the Originall word we may collect the exceeding intensivenes of that desire which is here exprest by longing for death They long for death even as a hungry man longeth for any meate or as a woman with child longeth for some speciall meate as a fish longs for the baite or as an angler longeth till the fish bites or as a beleever which as it is the most spirituall so the most ardent desire of all desires to have any promise fulfilled upon which he hath pitch'd his faith and anchors at by hope Which long for death and it cometh not that is it cometh not so soon as they would have it for death will come at one time or other but death doth not come at their time or their pace It cometh not in the Hebrew it is only thus which long for death and it is not we supply it cometh not And dig for it more then for hid treasures To illustrate the greatnesse of this desire after death he adds a similitude of those who seeke for treasures if there be any naturall desire more strong then that of a woman with-child or a longing woman it is the desire of a covetous man the desire of gaine or treasure covetousnesse is the strongest appetite Observe but what a gradation there is in this expression to set forth the greatnesse of their desire after death they doe not only long for it but they dig for it digging you know is no ordinary labour it is an extraordinary worke a hard labour As longing is a strong desire so digging is strong labour hard labour And then it is no ordinary digging neither but digging for a treasure men will dig hard for treasure you see men will dig hard for a stone for iron for coales how then will they dig for a mine of gold or silver A man will dig the earth for a little money but when a man diggeth hoping to find money in the earth that will make him worke indeed now they dig after such a manner And beyond that he saith they dig for it as for hidden treasure that 's a further degree of their endeavour after it That which we translate hidden treasure is but one word in the Hebrew It signifies any hidden thing especially treasures because treasures use to be hid or close layed up And there is a two-fold hiding of treasures There is a naturall hiding and there is an industrious and artificiall hiding There is a naturall hiding so treasures are hid that lie in the bowels of the earth they are naturally hid Then treasures are hid by industry and by art when we are afraid we shall be spoiled of our treasures or that they shall be taken away then there is a hiding them and often a digging to hide them in the earth As now in these times of spoile and violence if a rich man heare that those spoilers are nigh he presently hides his treasure Now either as robbers digge and search for treasures industriously hid or as miners dig and search for treasures naturally hid so saith Job with such earnestnes doe these dig for death There is one thing here to be resolved by way of question before we come to the Observations Namely whether it be lawfull to wish for or to desire death Job here proposeth such as long for death Is it lawfull to desire death doth he speake here only de facto of a thing which some doe or of that which may be done I answer first That death in it selfe is no way desireable and it is not an object of desire We cannot desire that for it selfe which is an enemy or destructive unto us If any should desire death as death or under the notion of death they should desire that which is destructive that which is their enemy so the Apostle calls death 1 Cor. 15. The last enemy which shall be destroyed is death Death is an enemy therefore as death no man can desire it Indeed many have desired death but still we find somewhat else at the bottome of that desire But what bottome or ground makes the desire of death lawfull I answer First It is a holy desire of death if we desire death to be free from sin when the soule saith thus because I see only the end of living will be the end of sinning therefore I long for death that I may sin no longer Secondly It is lawfull to desire death that we may have more full communion with Christ the Lord of life I desire to be dissolved saith Paul but why not that he desired dissolution but that he might be with Christ Phil. 1.23 Christ is life and Christ is our life It is better to enjoy life then to live How much better then is
wrestle for it or the Crowne they must strive for it We must dig for heavenly hidden treasure before we have it And yet both the treasure and the strength to dig for it are freely given Fourthly observe That Those things which we esteeme most we labour to secure most It is said that they digg'd for treasures and that the treasures were hid I told you in opening the words there is a naturall hiding of treasure and an industrious hiding Take it in the last sense men that have treasures will labour to preserve them why because treasures are much esteemed and the things we esteeme most we preserve most In the Hebrew the word that signifies treasure signifies the hiding of treasure or hidden treasure Among all treasures spirituall treasures are most hidden they are so hidden that they are called mysteries or secrets The knowledge of Christ was a hidden treasure for some thousands of yeares the Apostle in his time calls it the mysterie which was kept secret since the world began Rom. 16.25 Againe he calls it the wisedome of God in a mystery even the hidden wisedome which God ordained before the world unto our glory which none of the Princes of this world knew 1 Cor. 2.8 9. And as spirituall knowledge so our spirituall life is called a hidden life your life is hidden with God in Christ Col. 3.3 And as our life so our spirituall comforts are hidden therefore called Hidden Manna Rev. 2.17 All our spirituall estate is treasure and it is all hidden treasure so hidden that the Saints dig deepe to find it and when they have found it they hide it as Christ shewes us Mat. 13.44 speaking of the Kingdome of God which he compares to a treasure hid in the field the which when a man hath found he hideth He hideth it not to obscure it from the light but to secure it from danger Mary hid those pretious sayings of Christ her Son and her Saviour in her heart Luk. 2.51 And David having found the Commandements of God which he prized above any treasure above thousands of gold and silver he hid them in his heart Thy word saith he have I hid in my heart that I might not sinne against thee Psalm 119.11 Verse 22. Which rejoyce exceedingly and are glad when they can find the grave Having said that they long for death and dig for it as for hidden treasure Now supposing that they find death he shewes how it affects them they rejoyce exceedingly and are glad when they can find the grave There is little or no obscurity in these words only consider the emphasis of this expression the word which we translate rejoyce or rejoyce exceedingly noteth such a rejoycing as breakes forth in some outward gesture as when a man doth leape for joy And Mr. Broughton translates it thus which joy till they skip againe noting an extraordinary joy and gladnesse when they can find the grave that is when they die Yet some joyne the sense of this verse with the former to carry on or lengthen out the similitude thus Which long for death and digge for it as for hid treasures And finding death they are affected as they who seeking for treasures find a grave For if in digging they did but hit upon a grave then they thought themselves sure of treasure and great riches because treasure and riches was used to be put into graves as was shewed in opening the fifteenth verse of this Chapter The sense is faire and comes up to the same point from either of these expositions Observe hence first That What at one time we feare most in that at another time we may exceedingly rejoyce Death is dreadfull and the grave is a place of darkenesse yet here is joy and rejoycing yea exceeding joy and rejoycing when they find the grave Secondly They rejoyce in it but why It was that which they had longed for that which they had long sought for if at another time they had bin shewed the grave or commanded into the grave they would have taken little pleasure in it The same thing inflicted or threatned by another is dreadfull to us which desired by our selves is pleasant and delightfull It pleaseth us to have our desire satisfied though the thing desired be never so unpleasant And to be eased of present evill makes a future evill appeare in the likenesse of a persent good For Joy is an affection of the mind arising from the apprehension of some present good even as hope springs from the apprehension of some good that is to come Further We may consider the issue of all these acts after they had longed for death and digged for death and found death presently upon the finding of it they rejoyce and rejoyce exceedingly Hence observe That which any one truely desireth and endeavoureth to find causeth him to rejoyce when he hath found it If you desire death and seek for the grave the finding of these will be to you as life and as a house of mirth How much more then shall we rejoyce having found good things the best things after earnest longing and digging for them When the wise Merchant had found the treasure hid in the field the next words enforme us of his joy Matth. 13.44 When the man after long seeking on the mountaines had found his lost Sheepe and the woman after lighting her candle and sweeping her house and diligent search had found the lost groat they both rejoyced and called in their neighbours and friends to rejoyce with them Luk. 15. It troubles a man to be found of that or him whom he hates or feares Hast thou found me O mine enemy saith Ahab to Eliah 1 King 21.20 And it cannot but delight us to find that or him whom we love and long for Have I found thee O my friend will such an one say And if a miserable man rejoyces exceedingly when desiring he finds death and a grave how will the soule leape for joy when we shall find him who is the longing and desire of all Nations Jesus Christ. How exceeding exceedingly will the soule rejoyce when we shall find what we have so much longed for not death but life and life not only in Christ but with Christ when we shall find not the house of the grave but a house of glory and glory in the height an exceeding excelling superexcellent weight of glory And by this effect we may make proofe of grace here If thou hast found Christ in ordinances in duties in meditation in prayer in the promises for here in these things the longing soule diggs after Christ joy will at one time or other fill thy heart yea thy heart will leape for joy thou wilt rejoyce in Spirit as Christ did in his Father Luk. 10.21 For this joy is a fruit of the Spirit Gal. 5.22 and one of the first fruits And God seldome misses to give the soule a tast of this joy at the first or presently after conversion though afterwards clouds may
the workes of his providence argue the greatest folly p. 289. Sin the greatest folly p. 290. Friend unkindnesse from a friend troubles most p. 273 274. A friend who p. 301. It is an act of true friendship to mourne with and comfort our afflicted friends p. 305. G GArments Renting of garments in what cases used p. 179. Gaine will make some doe any thing p. 381. Ghost giving up the ghost what it imports p. 396. Giants and infants are expressed by a word coming from the same roote in the Hebrew p. 421. Gift what it is p. 203. Every outward as well as spirituall good thing is Gods gift p. 203 204. God gives no more then we get honestly p. 205. That God gives all destroyes 4 Monsters at once two in the rich two in the poore p. 205 206 c. That the Lord gives should make us willing to give to the Lord p. 207. A godly man the most considerable object in the world page 93 94. Such are most aimed at and assaulted by Satan p. 95. A godly man will not let nature worke alone p. 193. He acquits God in all his dealings with him p 202 A godly man can never be in so ill a condition but God hath use of his life p. 254. Godlinesse hath the promises of this life performed to it p. 45. Time spent in duties of godlinesse no hinderance to our calling p. 45. Gold and silver how proper and necessary for Princes p. 414 415. Good and evill how alike from the hand of God p. 292. Grace preserves it selfe pure among the impure p. 24. Grace the best blessing p. 29 c. where one grace is every grace is p. 30. Holy practise makes grace visible p. 52. It encreases by opposition p. 229 Grace and the favour of God are sweete to us when all other things are bitter and burdensome p. 444. Graves and Sepulchers called desolate places p. 412. Care and cost anciently bestowed in building of them p. 413. Why called desolate places p. 414. Grave called a house p. 416. Much treasure formerly put in graves p. 416 417. Some take more care for their graves and sepulchers then they doe for their soules p. 420. H HAnds worke of the hands may be applied to any businesse though a worke of the head p. 117 118. To put forth the Hand what it meanes p. 124. Hand of God what it signifies in Scripture p. 125. Either mediate or immediate p. 126. To put into the hand what it notes p. 137. Health a great blessing p. 266. Yet quickly blasted ibid. Heart must be especially looked to p. 74. Man can but guesse at the heart of another p. 75. The heart continually evill p. 76. Satan can but guesse at the heart p. 135. Hedge what it imports when God makes a hedge about a man p. 111 112. Job had a three-fold hedge p. 113. There is a hedge of affliction and a hedge of protection p. 460. Holinesse Holiest persons doe not alwayes keepe the same degree of holinesse p 342. Honesty what we get honestly we can loose patiently p. 205. Hope The want of that afflicts us most which we hope for most p. 385. A hopelesse condition is the worst condition p. 386 462. Honour God will honour them who honour him p. 225. What it is to honour God or man p. 327. Humiliation must encrease as afflictions either personall or publick doe encrease p. 268 c. I IGnorance How God is said to winke at times of ignorance p. 352 351. Impatience is a charging of God with folly p. 219. Infants weepe as soon as they are borne p. 393. They have the seed of death in them as soon as borne p. 398. Intentions It argues a malitious spirit when a mans actions are faire then to accuse his intentions p. 108. Integrity to hold integrity in evill times is not only good but admirable p. 229. The world would perswade that the holding of integrity and profession of holinesse are vaine p 276. Job when he lived p. 18. Joy Godly joy and sorrow mutually cause one another p. 305. What at one time is our feare at another time may be our joy p. 454. Justice in our dealings honours our profession of godlinesse p. 31. K KNowledge wicked men hate it and why p. 373. Knowledge of misery which we cannot be delivered from makes us more miserable p. 440. Keyes four keyes specially in the hand of God p. 390. L LEviathan why so called p 369. What it is to rayse up Leviathan ib p. 370 c. Two other significations of the word p. 378. The name of a song p. 380. Life Our life here is but a coming and a going p 201. Life is the most pretious treasure in nature p. 240. Not to be parted with for a trifle p. 241. The soule far more pretious then life p 243. So also is the Gospell ib. c. The love of Christ in parting with life for us p. 244. What life is in the naturall consideration of it p. 251 441. Life and death are in the hand of God p. 256. Mercy to have life though we loose all else p. 257. Likenesse of quality and of equality p. 100. All the Saints on earth like one another and like Christ in quality but unlike in equality ib. Light a great blessing the sorts of it p. 353. Light-haters who p. 373. Longing for a thing notes the strongest desire p. 447. M MAn the word man in Scripture signifies more then a reasonable creature or the nobler sex p. 20 c. 3 Hebrew words for Man their difference ib. Man taken 1. for any Eminent man 2. for a Magistrate p. 20 21. Mercies Some mercies received exceed our own praises as some troubles exceed our own mournings p. 381. In sad times small comforts passe for great mercies p. 384. Every step of our lives needes a step of mercy p. 399 445. Morning to doe a thing in the morning is to doe a thing diligently p. 59. Morning best praying-time p. 60. Mourne To mourne with those that are in affliction our duty p. 306. The report of others sufferings should cause us to mourne p. 307. Great troubles warrant solemne mournings p. 319. Mourning a profession p. 375 c. Mouth to open the mouth what p. 325. A foole doth not open his mouth and speake but his speech opens his mouth p. 326. N NAkednesse two-fold p. 197 c. Every man borne a naked helplesse creature p. 200. Name what it importeth when God knoweth a man by name p. 97 98. Name of God taken 4. wayes p. 212. What it is to blesse the Name of God p. 213. Nature Changes in the course of nature are full of terrour p. 360. Negative words in Scripture are not alwayes denialls p. 180. O OPpressors of three sorts p. 430. The words of oppressors are wounding words p. 432. They who will not heare the voice of the Preacher may justly be given up to heare the voice of the oppressor p. 433. P