head of sinne That we were all in Adam in the day of his creation needeth no proofe for out of him was the woman created and of them made one flesh by marriage was all mankinde propagated So that these first parents of our flesh did stand or fall to the benefit or losse of all their posteritie But man stood but a while in honour and by his fall he not onely corrupted his own person but his nature whereby there remained an infection of sinne to the pollution of the whole nature of mankinde This the Apostle hath affirmed disertly In Adam all dye that is all are subject to the law of mortality and all are under the curse of the law for the second death God concluded all under sinne that is both the infection of sinne and the punishment thereof David speaketh here of his originall sinne in the pollution thereof and confesseth that from that root of bitternesse this and all his other sinnes derived Therefore he confesseth the beginning of it not onely at his shaping and formation in the wombe when God gave his body a composition in the wombe and set every member and part of his body in the proper place but he goeth higher to his first conception In peccato fovit me in sin she nourisht me his first warmth which put the first natural heat to the radicall moisture of which we are created This appeares in the difference between the first man created and the first generated for â—f Adam it is said In the image of God made he him But de primo generato of the first begotten for in the account of the Genealogie he reckoneth not Cain who was gone from the presence of God nor Abel who was by Cain murthered But the Genealogie begins at Seth of whom we reade And Adam begat a sonne in his own likenesse after his image and called his name Seth. For Cain he needed not to say so for the corruption of his foule heart shewed him borne of corrupt seed But Seth was one of the holy Fathers of the Church yet begotten in the image of Adam now corrupt and not in the image of God as Adam was created How could it be otherwise for our first parents being defiled who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean Not one The Fathers with full consent referre that speech of Iob to our originall sinne as Pineda upon that place recounteth and quoteth them I should not need to prove this point of originall sinne having so cleare evidence for it as my Text in hand But that the Pelagians long ago denyed any such sinne or naturall corruption affirming Verba Pelagii Ut sine virtutâ— ita sine vitio procreamur atque ante actionem propriae voluntatis id solum in homine est quod Deus condidit The words of Pelagius That as we are begotten without vertue so without vice and before the acting of our own wils that onely is in man which God made Saint Augustine long ago took this heresie to â—ask and learnedly confuted it But of late Ann. 1620. there was a Pamphlet stolne out in print and vented from pocket to pocket by some Anabaptists at home who yet refuse to be so called In this the heresie of Pelagius is revived and originall sinne denyed and peremptorily it is affirmed that no sinne is derived from our parents We take say they from Adam vanity corruption and death This vanity is onely a weaknesse and impotencie in nature to know and do the duties of the Law of God But they deny it to be sinne Their reason is Adam was made of the earth we were made of Adam Adam was made of the earth onely in respect of â—iâ— body for God first made the body and then infused the soul in it The body was free from sinne the soul a spirituall substance infused by God was also free from sinne so Adam was created without sinne But we were no otherwise made of Adam then Adam was made of the earth and we were no more in Adam when he sinned then Adam was in the earth before his creation First according to the body Adam had no commandment given him till he had understanding to embrace it and will to receive or refuse it Adam sinned not till he departed from the commandment They conclude hence that we receiving nothing but our flesh from Adam cannot sinne till we have understanding to know what is commanded us ergo no originall sinne To all which we answer That the flesh which Adam took from the earth was pure for so was the earth But the flesh that we take from Adam is tainted with sinne And true it is that no actuall sinne can be committed without the Law But we may be guilty of originall impuritie without prevarication of the Law Adam had onely the matter of his body from the earth we derive more from Adam For whereas as God breathed into the body of Adam all at once the breath of lives We live three lives The life of plants in our vegetative The life of bruits in our sensitive The life of Angels in our rationall soul Philosophers and Phisitians and the learned Scholars of nature do resolve that we traduce two of these lives from our parents the third is immediately both created and infused by God The proper seat of originall sinne is in the sensitive part of man and that corrupteth our reason and as it groweth faster then our rationall doth so it over-groweth it and keepeth it down untill our new birth doth cut it and keep it short and the good Spirit of God give us strength to resist it and to subdue it This God himself hath in both Testaments fully detected in two holy Sacraments first Circumcision This was to be administred so soone as an infant was capable of it even after the first criticall day and that part of the body was chosen for this Sacrament which might best shew our generation unclean it was a Sacrament of purgation the impuritie of our naturall generation In the new â—estament the Sacrament of Baptisme was instituted to the same purpose And where our Anabaptists do charge us that by our doctrine of originall sinne we bring upon infants a danger of eternall death and thereby we revive that wicked Proverbe The fathers have eaten fowre grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge We regest this calumny upon them in just imputation For when they confesse that we traduce from our parents vanity corruption and death these are the punishments of sinne and if we have no sinne of our own it is our parents sinne and so our teeth are on edge for their sowre grapes The doctrine of originall sinne was ever taught in the Church and when Saint Augustine did meet with the Pelagian heresie denying it he opposed it strongly and because the adversary urged the faith and doctrine of certaine Hereticks denying originall sinne S. Augustine produceth the constant contrary asseverations of the
the latter end it will not be a luxation of our bones putting them out of joynt but a breaking literally this must not be understood of the breaking of bones neither the contrary spoken also by David Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivereth him our of them all He keepeth all his bones so that not one of them is broken for wee know that not onely alive but dead the bones of the Lords servants have beene violated their dead bones lye scattered like chippes of wood at the mouth of the grave By bones the strength of the body the inward strength and vigour of the soule is meant And the conscience of sinne and the terrour of judgement doth breake the heart of a true penitent so long as he beholdeth his sinne deserving his death his judge ready to pronounce the sentence of it hell open to receive him for it and the evill Angels Gods executioners at hand to hurry him to it Here is extremity of anguish even anima doloris dolor animae the soule of sorrow the sorrow of the soule enough to make a man goe weeping all the day long I beseech you lay this example to heart David that walked with an upright heart and the holy Ghost hath testified him unblameable save onely in this matter of Vriah the Hittite Yet see how he afflicteth himselfe for all his other transgressions which were not laid to his charge his conscience forgiveth him nothing No question but David had many infirmities and many other aberrations some upon record yet they were all by his repentance and the favour of God past over yet they upbrayd him now all of them come upon him like a breach of waters with so fierce irruption and so deluging inundation that they steepe him in deepe waters and cover him all over with affliction The reason is as in sinne the fault he that breaketh the least Commandement and repaireth not himselfe by repentance is guilty of the whole law so in transgressions he that repenteth of all the sinnes he hath done and hath his pardon under seale by the next offence is lyable to all the evidence againe of his former sinnes he cancelleth and forfeiteth his pardon for pardon ever bindeth to good behaviour This breakes the bones of David to have all this weight upon him 2 The author of this Thou hast broken God in favour to his children doth afflict them for sinne and the very phrase of breaking his bones though it expresse extremity of misery and paine yet it hath hope in it for broken bones by acunning hand may be set againe and returne to their former use and strength so that a conscience distrest for sinnes is not out of hope yet upon that hope no wise man will adventure upon sinne saying though I am wounded yet I may be healed againe though I am broken I may be repaired for let him consider 1 Who breakes his bones Thou he that made us our bones and put them in their severall places and tyed them together with ligaments and covered them with flesh he that keepeth all our bones from breaking it must be a great matter that must move him to breake the bones of any of us The God of all consolation that comforteth us in all our distresses when he commeth to distresse us this makes affliction weigh heavy It was Iobs vexation The arrowes of the Almighty are within me the poyson whereof drinketh up my spirit the terrors of God doe set themselves in array against mee He will not suffer me to take my breath but filleth mee with bitternesse What greater sorrow can be then to have God in opposition 2 The paine of the affliction exprest so feelingly in the breaking of bones which as is said is the anguish of the soule for sinne and feare of the consuming fire of Gods wrath and the tempest as Iob cals it of anger 3. The paine of setting these bones againe for though bones dislocate may be put in joynt and though bones broken may be set againe yet this is not done without paine and great extremity to the Patient Repentance setteth all our broken pained bones it recovereth the soule from the anguish thereof but hee that once feeleth the smart of a true repentance will say the pleasures of sinne which are but for a season are as hard a bargaine as ever he made and as deare bought they cost teares which are sanguis vulner aticordis the bloud of a wounded heart they cost sighes and grones which cannot be exprest they cost watching fasting taming of the body to bring it in subjection even to the crucifying of the flesh with the lusts thereof Therefore let no man adventure his bones in hope of setting them againe But how did God breake the bones of David here 1 Outwardly by his word sent in the ministerie of Nathan the Prophet for the word and voyce of God is a two edged sword This was all the strength by which Jeremie was sent forth by God on that great businesse over nations and over kingdomes to root out to pull downe and to destroy and to throw downe Behold I have put my words in thy mouth This is the sword of the spirit and though our doctrine drop as the raine gently and easily if we drinke it in and become fruitfull by it yet when our sinnes doe overgrow we shall finde it a sharpe Conlter to rend the fallow grounds of our hearts we shall finde it a rod of iron to breake our soules in pieces and this word runneth very swiftly it is gladius versatilis a sword that turneth every way 2 But it is a dead letter and draweth no bloud till it come to the conscience for so long as it beateth the eare and ayre onely and worketh no further than the understanding there is no great cumber with it as wee see in those who daily heare their swearing and drunkennesse reproved in the house of God and threatned with losse and deprivation of the kingdome of God it worketh not upon them but when Nathan comes home to their consciences tu es homo thou art the man God hath sent mee to thee to charge thee with this sinne and to tell thee hee is angry and is whetting his sword to cut thee off for it this breaketh and shattereth the bones and though our publike ministery doe not descend to such particulars as tu es homo thou art the man and our private reproofes are subject to ill constructiou yet a plaine dealing death bed will roare it in our eares of our inward man Tu es homo thou art the man thou hast lived a blasphemer of the name of God a glutton a drunkard c. This fils the soules of many dying persons with so much bitternesse that when the sorrowes of death are upon them and the judgement of their whole life in sight the conscience of their sinnes doth make their soules much sicker then their bodies One of
effect ut ossa exultent that the bones may rejoyce David had sensuall joy he had the full desire of his heart yet that proved the breaking of his bones and the wounding of his conscience his faith is that God will heale all with his saving grace There is no such joy here below as the forgivenesse of our sinnes and the Ministers of the Gospell in no part of their Ministery doe bring fuller tidings of peace then in absolution of penitents O quà m speciosi pedes c. O how beautifull are the feet c. The wicked man hath none of this peace Blessed is hee whose unrighteousnesse is forgiven c. Let the children of peace comfort themselves all their teares are botteled all their sighes and grones numbred all their bones set and healed the storme of Gods threatnings the tempest of the conscience calmed But none but God can doe this VERSE 9. Hide thy face from my sinnes and blot out all mine iniquities 3. HE sueth for pardon he doubleth his request and varieth the phrase still importunate with God 1 He desireth that God in mercy would not see his sinnes but hide his face as Sem and Japhet looked another way when they came to cover their fathers nakednesse which phrase of hiding the face of God cannot bee literally understood 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hee speaketh after the manner of men for men hide their faces from that which they would not see But the face of God cannot be hid and it is impossible to conceale our sinnes from him impossible for him to put our sinnes out of his sight his eye seeth all things yet David in this phrase doth shew that desiring to be washt and purged hee would have his sinnes now forgotten and no more laid to his charge for as Saint Augustine saith Vnde se Deus non avertit advertit si advertit animadvertit From whom God turnes not away he turnes unto if he turne unto he observes he would have God looke upon him still but not upon his sinnes for that is his suit ne averte faciem tâ—am â—â— me turne not thy face away from me God is said then to hide his face from sinnes when hee pardoneth them and that is Davids suit 1 I observe here that the face of God and our sinnes are incompatible his face is all holinesse and it cannot endure to behold sinne for his soule loatheth it Our sinnes are all workes of darkenesse and cannot endure the light of his face We are very carefull to keepe our grosse sinnes out of the sight of men whose power extendeth no further then our goods our reputation or our life here Christ saith Feare not them that kill the body and can doe no more feare his face who hath power of soule and body to cast them both into hell The face of God is fearefull to a sinner for God threatneth the disobedient to his Commandements I will set my face against you then followeth yee shall be slaine before your enemies Qui odeâ—unt vos regnabunt super vos fugietis nemine persequente they that hate you shall raigne over you ye shall flye no man pursuing you How dare we tempt that face and provoke it against us nothing is hid from the light of it and there is no suggestion more foolish or that declareth us more shallow and simple then Dominus non videbit the Lord shall not see Wee are sure that all our sinnes are seene numbred recorded before his face 2 This phrase to my understanding importeth that as David before prayed to be washt purged and cleansed from his sinnes that they might no more annoy him so he desireth God to turne his face from them that they may no more offend him For a true penitent is more grieved at his offence given to God than at the shame or feare or paine that sinne putteth him to therefore Averte faciem tuam turne thy face away amounteth to a request that God would no more take offence at his sinnes 3 The phrase importeth an absolute and full pardon desired for so long as there is any sinne the face of God must be against it but when he desireth averte faciem turne away thy face he desireth a remove of his sinne which cannot be cleare from his countenance any way but by his gratious pardon for Gods pardon doth extinguish all iniquities so it is equivalent to our petition Dimitte debita nostra Forgiveus our trespasses 2 He resumeth the same Petition and re-enforceth his suit for Gods pardon in a phrase before used verse 1. Blot out mine iniquities which hath reference to the two bookes one of our conscience the other of Gods remembrance in which all our sinnes are recorded ut antè as before Onely here he addeth a request for pardon of all his iniquities that he may have a cleare conscience within himselfe and an even reckoning with God If any shall wonder why David urgeth Gods pardon so earnestly and with such importunity of strong supplications let him know that such offences as provoke God are not easily pardoned we must pray heartily and ply him continually with our requests to have our sinnes remitted for though God be very ready to forgive in respect of his mercy yet he is wise to see some cause for it And a sinner is not capable of mercy presently till his soule hath beene in bitternesse for his trespasse and is humbled before God It is our fault and it corrupteth us much our over-weening of the mercy of God to us for though hee be full of tendernesseâ— yet is he full of holinesse and nothing provoketh him more then our bearing our selves too bold upon his mercies Master Calvine Ubi quis defunctoriè pro remissione vota concipit nondum didicit quam horribilis sit Dei offensâ—o He that slightly prayes for pardon of sinnes hath not yet learned how horrible the offending of God is Saint Augustine commendeth this Petition of David hee saith Bene rogas thou well askest for 1 He opened his owne face and then he desireth God to hide his face his face was opened to behold his sinne For I acknowledge my wickednesse and my sinne is ever before me Si tu peccatum â—uâ—â—â—â— derso ponis dens ibâ— facsem ponit Tu peccatum eâ—â—m ante facioÌ„ pone sivis ut deus auertat faciem suam ab eâ— Sie securur rogas exandiâ— If thou settest thy sinnes behinde thy backe God sets them before his face set thy sinne before thy face if thou wilt have God turne away his face from it So thou safely askest and hee heareth thee 2 He desireth God to blot out all his iniquities out of the booke of his remembrance But he putteth them into this Psalme and commendeth this Psalme to the Master of Musicke and so depositeth the record of it in the perpetuall use of the Church so the greatnesse of the fault is kept in fresh memory of all ages Wee have no
such way to blot our misdeeds out of Gods booke of remembrance as this to publish our owne faults and our repentance of them as David here doth From the whole petition we gather one substance of request which is that God would forgive him all his sinnes which petition is grounded upon an Article of faith the tenth in our Apostles Creed Forgivenesse of sinnes It is also the fifth Petition in the Lords Prayer dimitte nobis debita nostra Forgive us our trespasses David saith Credidi proptereà locâ—tâ—â— sum I beleeved and therefore I spake If we beleeve the Article we may move God in the Petition It is as great an honour to God to be a forgiver as to be a giver Amongst our selves we know that it is one of the hardest taskes of our religion to forgive an injurie Our hearts rise against them that doe it our bloud boyles our countenance falleth it is much more easie to winne us to give gifts to our brethren then to forgive injuries yet we are never out of that Petition to God and in our daily prayer as we aske bread for the day so we aske forgivenesse because our soule needeth pardon as much as our body needeth food I may say much more for wee may goe in the strength of one meale some houres but there is no moment of our life which doth not need to cry God mercy and to aske his pardon for our sinne The necessitie whereof is such that our Saviour taketh advantage of it to establish our charity to our brethren that way That wee might begge no pardon for our selves but with a Sicut â—os dimittimus As we forgive The phrases used in Scripture in petition of Gods pardon are much varied Christ biddeth us say 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 put them away which Isay doth render thus Thou hast cast all my sinnes behinde thy backe Micah is more full in this expressure He will turne again he will have compassion upon us he will subdue our iniquities and thou wilt cast all our sinnes into the depths of the sea This David doth call washing cleansing purging hiding Gods face from them and blotting out All meete in one full point of gratious pardon for all these phrases desire an absolute totall and finall remove of our sinnes both from the displeasure of God and from both the annoyance and the punishment of our selves And we can have no peace in our conscience till we be comfortably perswaded hereof Sinnes are called debts Agree with thine adversarie for feare of the Prison thou shalt not come out thence till thou hast paid the utmost farthing blessed is the man whose unrighteousnesse is forgiven I his text teacheth that we must strive and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 contend with God by our prayers for the forgivenes of our sinnes Observe the contents of the Lords Prayer in which would all our lawfull petitions are cast and by which modell the whole building of our supplications is erected The three first Petitions respect the glory of God The latter regardeth our good in two things 1 In our esse our being Give us bread that is let us live we pray for supportation of our being 2 Our bene esse our well being and that consisteth in these three things mainly 1 In the pardon of our sinnes past Et dimitte and forgive 2 In the prevention of temptations to come et ne nos inducas and leade us not 3 In deliverance from punishment and from the power of Sathan Which three Petitions have respect to our sinne so important is our suit for pardon that Christ beginnes our bene esse well being at dimitte forgive Doe but observe your selves how importunate you are with God for ease and health when you are sicke your mouth is full of miserere mei Deus have mercy on mee O God You call upon all that visite you to comfort you with their prayers you send to Church to crave ayde of the congregation you give God no rest How is it that in your sinnes the mortall diseases of your soules you are not thus earnest with God for his pardon which is the onely physicke for a diseased soule David saith God healeth all our infirmities and he sheweth how hee pardoneth all our sinnes therefore the way of cure in all griefes of the body is to heale the soule first so David Sana animam meam c. Heale my soule c. How came it sicke quia peccavi contrate because I have sinned against thee Christ usually in his cures began his healing there fili dimittuntur tibi peccata tua sonne thy sinnes are forgiven thee But the reason why we are so importunate for our body so slight and negligent for our soule is this wee feele the aking and smart the convulsions and crampes the cold shakings the fiery inflammations the trembling palsies the griping and grating collickes and other afflicting diseases which cruciate the body we are not so sensible of the spirituall disease of sinne till we come to remove it by repentance then all other griefes fall short of the griefe of sinne that is a breaking of the bones as before it is exprest Surely if I were limited to one petition and no more for my selfe I would choose this before any Dele omnes iniquitates meas blot out all mine iniquities for there is nothing can be ill with him that hath no iniquity to answer for his soule shall dwell at ease I therefore presse the doctrinall example of David Let us never leave begging of God the pardon of our sinne I will not streine my selfe to multiply reasons of this doctrine that were to follow the new fashion of preaching for we also are at our fashions One maine reason hereof may serve There is nothing so much displeaseth God nothing so much endangereth this life and that which is to come as sinne This I thinke no man will refuse to put for granted Then I say there is no way to be found out of this danger of our sinne but by Gods pardon Come to the Court of justice the law condemneth us Cursed is every one that confirmeth not all the words of the law to doe them Come to the judgement of most voyces all the people shall say Amen for who will blesse where God curseth Come to the Court of Conscience our owne heart condemneth and smiteth us for our sinne is ever before us What have poore sinners then to say for themselves why death should not be the wages of sinne The fault is capitall here is no escape from the justice of the Law but by the Kings gratious pardon In our Ecclesiasticall Courts we have power in the discretion of the Iudge in causes criminall commutare poenam to change the punishment to let offendors buy out a shame of publique disgrace with some pecuniary mulct to be employed in pios usus in religious uses If in causes capitall there have beene Commutatio paenae change of punishment and
for his works were evill The foolish Israelites did offer their sonnes and daughters unto Devils Many of the Heathen were so transported with superstition and reverence of their false gods that they spared not to offer up their children in burnt Sacrifices to them They have burned their sonnes and daughters with fire to their gods Israel hath warning not to do so Yet they took no warning For not onelâ— the King of Moab did this For hee offered his sonne the heire of his kingdome for a burnt-offering upon the wall But Ahaz King of Judah made his sonne to passe through the fire And wee finds it one of the provocations which incensed the Lord against Israel to give them into deportation Some thinke that this evill custome grew out of the Commandement given to Abraham to offer his Sonne From whence was concluded that the greatest expressure of obedience put upon him did teach it the exaltation and fulnesse of zeale in them that could find in their hearts to offer up their beloved children in sacrifice Therfore in the consultation before urged in Micah for the means of reconciliation to God this was one Shall I give the fruit of my body for the sin of my soule But Abraham did not kill his sonne hee would have done it by vertue of Gods speciall Commandement and God approved his willing obedience but held his hand from the act For he will have mercy and not sacrifice I denâ— not but there is a strong demonstration of servent zeale in those that can afford to God such Sacrifices But that which he requireth is more excellent and toucheth us much more neer the quick as S. Austine In to habes quod occidas noli extrà thura quâ—rere Thou hast what thou mayst kill in thy selfe seeke not Frankincenâ—e without thy selfe This breaking of the heart and contrition of the spirit is a sacrifice for God Have wee not heard of some whom the conscience of sinne hath so afflicted as they have not thought themselves worthy of any more life but have died by their own hand These courses are desperate and damnable that is not it which God requireth of them hee doth not desire our bodies a dead sacrifice I beseech you brethren that you give up your bodies a living Sacrifice This is his will Ut perâ—ant crimina non homines that the faults perish not the men We shall find that a work of more sorrow and af-fliction then to kill the body Wee have full examples in the books of time of many that have made nothing of it to die by their own hand But it is a Sacrifice onely for God to destroy the body of sin in our selves and to preserve life for Gods better service For our sinnes be deerer to us then our children then our life then our good name which should be valued more then life then our precious soules Doth not the drunkard preferre his drunkennesse before his health who knoweth that drunkennesse destroyeth health Doth not the covetous man love his wedge and heape more then Heaven Doth not the Wanton undo his body his posterity his very soule for the fulfilling of his lust Do not all sinners â—ell Heaven and eternall life for the feeding and fewelling of their darling sinnes Of all the lessons that wee are taught in the house of God none is so hard to learn none so uneasie to practise as the doctrine of Repentance Men are either transported with gluttony and drunkennesse and all they can get goeth that way their bellie is their God and they make all these means Sacrifices to that devouring Idoll If they feed the hungry and quench the thirst of their brethren their meats and drinks are sacrifices to God Especially when wee deny them to our selves to relieve such or we are transported with pride and our back is our god and Fashion is our Idoll and wee consume all in vain adornings of our houses of clay hanging them with the costly garish trappings of vanity If wee give one of our coâ—â—â— to cover the nakednesse of our brethren and spare our wooll to keep them warm that their souls may blesse us for it this garment so bestowed is a sacrifice to God Or we are transported with ambition and all our study is how to rise higher our cares and desires and our wealth are all sacrifices to that Idoll of Ambition but if we raise the poor out of the dust take him up from the ground it is sacrificium Deo a sacrifice to God Was Sauls a sacrifice to God when against Gods Commandement he spared the best of the spoile of Amalek to offer it to God Is not obedience better then sacrifice Doth the Church of Rome offer God a sacrifice when she presenteth the Shrines of the dead and the Images of our Lady and the Saints with rich gifts They did so who kneaded their dough and made cakes to offer them to the Queen of Heaven and powred out drink-offerings to other gods Be there not many that sacrifice to their not and burne incense to their drag because by them their portion is fat and their â—eâ—â— plenteous These make themselves their owne Idols and kisse their owne hands and thank their owne wits for all the good that commeth to them they never look up so high as God to give him thanks for any thing But when all is done this onely is a sacrifice to God when wee break our hearts and spirits and grinde them with sincere contrition for sin destroying the nest wherin lust teemeth her brood of iniquity This putteth away the leaven which sowreth all our actions and devotions and turneth our very prayers into sin The excellency of this sacrifice will more cleerly appeare in the following portion of my text These broken-hearted persons are such as God delighteth to dwell with that he may revive the spirit of contrite ones To such onely is the Gospel sent Hee hath sent me to binde up the broken-hearted These be mourners they not onely bewaile their own sins but their eyes do run rivers of waters for those that â—â—ep not the Law They are grieved for transgressours One of these is health to a City all fare the better for him Loâ—s righteous soule was vexed with the ungodlinesse of Sodome God warned him out his Angell pulled him out and he desiring a place to retire to the Angell hastned him thither saying Haste thee escape thither for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither These mourners are priviledged from the fury of Gods destroying Angell his marke is upon them they must be spared in the day of Gods visitation Come not neere any man upon whom is the mark They have eyes pickled in their teares they have voyces hoarse with crying upon God for mercy they have soules cloven to the pavement they have soules heavy unto death their countenance is cast down Their Harps are turned into mourning and their organs into
shutting up of Davids penitentiall supplication in a broken and contrite heart I conclude 1 That in an arraignement for sinne there is no plea of good workes David had the conscience within him and the testimony without him of God and the Church that he had served the Lord and had walked in all the wayes of the Lord with all his heart save onely in this matter Yet this one matter cannot be answered without the exact fulnesse of repentance Here is no setting off of any sinne for some singular good worke before done The sinne that he hath committed doth extinguish the light of all his former righteousnesse as if it had never beene But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousnesse and committeth iniquitie all his righteousnesse that he hath done shall not be mentioned The Pharisâ—e might have past with us for a devout and an holy man if Christ had not detested him 1 He went up to the Temple to pray which was an exercise of devotion 2 I here he prayed with himselfe though in a publike place he had a private prayer here was no vaine ostentation in sight 3 He rejoyced in two things which have reference to the two duties of Repentance 1 Cease to do evill for he saith I am not as other men extortioners unjust adulterers nor as this Publicane not like them in their sinnes But I thanke thee for it 2 Learne to do well I fast twice I give tythes c but we referre this also to I thanke thee The Publicane had another bearing which became humble repentance well But the Pharisee for any thing I can discerne might have past for an holy man if Christ himselfe had not detected him I tell you this man went downe to his house Yet observe the Text He went justified more then the other the other not altogether unjustified 2 This directeth me in the deduction of a second conclusion that a broken and a contrite heart for sinne is as safe rest for the soule as the conscience of a good life This appeareth in the direction betweene the state of our innocent creation and our costly redemption For our creation set us in a way of happinesse rather in possession and fruition of happinesse but such as might be lost but our redemption bought us a never-withering crowne of glory Our holinesse of life may be corrupted as Davids was but our contrite and broken spirit none can heale but God onely and because it is his sacrifice he will not despise it In all the examples of repentance above-mentioned we see how firmly the Penitents stood upon that ground for that put away all their former sinnes and established them in the good favour of God Therefore David having this sacrifice ready and now tendring the same to his God doth cease further solliciting of God for himselfe and beginneth as one fully reconciled to God to sollicite him in the behalfe of his Church as followeth From whence we draw this exhortation Let us all labour our repentance as the most needfull worke of all We must charge all our afflictions upon our sinnes and we have but this one way left to repaire us to redeeme the favour of our God to us even our repentance One joynt sacrifice of broken hearts and whole hecatombes of contrite spirits would mend all that 's amisse Let us therefore commence a just warre against our owne corruptions and sinnes it is not enough to conquer the weake Island to destroy the vines the fewell of our drunkennesse to possesse the towns and villages the habitations of sinne in the outward members of the body There is in every one of us a strong Fort an hard and stonie heart fortified against all piety and holinesse where Sathan as a strong armed man holdeth possession this Fort and strong hold this propugnacle of sinne this heart must be broken Let us bend all our batterie against that and see to it that the world the flesh the devill may not supply it and then the day is ours and to him that overcometh shall be given a crowne of life Nothing overcometh this Fort of sinne in our hearts nothing breaketh them so soone as 1 A good watch kept that they may take no rest 2 Fasting to sterve the body of sinne 3 Weeping to open the sluces and drowne it with our teares 4 Praying for our Amaleth within us cannot stand if our soules like Moses hold up their hands in prayer to the God of our lives 5 An holy implacable furie against it never to give over the assault till we have brought it to subjection This fort thus conquered the Island is ours VERSE 18. Do good in thy good pleasure unto Sion build thou the walls of Ierusalem HEre beginneth the second part of this Psalme containing the prayer of David for the Church From the sequence of this prayer observe When we have by true repentance made our peace with God for our selves we have accesse with boldnesse to the throne of grace to put up petitions to God The Reason is Our sinnes do separate our God and us So Isaiah But your iniquities have separated between you and your God and your sinnes have hid his face from you that he will not heare David confesseth If I regard wickednesse in my heart the Lord will not heare me God treating with a sinfull Nation a people laden with iniquitie sheweth them the way into his favour 1 Wash you make you cleane 2 Come now let us reason together saith the Lord. David confesseth because of his iniquities which are an heavy burthen to him I am troubled I am bowed down greatly When we should lift up our heads our eyes our hands to God our sins confound us with shame wee â—ile from the presence of God they shake us with feare wee are afraid of his judgements But true Repentance doth wash us so clean and reconcileth us so perfectly to our God that wee dare come in fight we dare present God with our requests We sâ—cke the face of God when we ayle any thing every griefe of our persons or of the state in which wee live sendeth us presently to God for remedy In affliction wee seeks God early We secke him but we finde him not alwayes we aske of him but hee granteth not our requests wee cry lowd to him but he heareth us not and we take it ill to be denied to be delayed Saint James gives us the reason Ye aske and receive not because you aske amisse There is mors in olla death in the pot there is sinne in the heart our fountain is impoysoned the waters of it are corrupt Hose directeth a speeding way ô Israel returne to the Lord thy God for thou hast fallen by thy iniquitie Take with you words and turn to the Lord say unto him Take away all inquity and give good so will we render the calves of our lips In this course of removing our sin first we
ponderant Elements in their places are not heavy But take him from his sinne a little and set them within an optique distance that he may see them he will both see the in numberablenesse and feel the heavinesse of them We beleeve a day of judgement designed and ordained of God for a severe audit of all our sinnes We are in that day judged by both these books of Gods remembrance and of our own conscience For so we shall be our own judges and there can be no hope for such as have these books opened against them God cannot forget Our conscience cannot but accuse so that we are all children of wrath and in a state of condemnation The judge may say Quid opus est testibus What need of witnesses for the least one of these legions of sinnes that we are guilty of hath weight enough to weigh us down to the bottome of hell All these will make the pit shut her mouth upon us 2. But against this David doth shew comfort when he prayeth to have his transgressions blotted out of Gods book For this sheweth that there is a way out of the danger of the vengeance to come The book wherein all our debts are recorded may be crost and the offences may be blotted out The way is 1. The justice of God must be satisfied our debt paied for God can neither falsifie his truth who hath threatned sinne with vengeance nor satisfie and silence his justice without it So that we must finde Iesus Christ in this prayer without whom there is no acceptance to God for a sinner for our life is hid with God in Christ we appeare in our selves no other but dead in trespasses and sinnes But Christ is our life and the loving kindnesse that David prayeth for here is that wherewith God so loved the world that he gave his onely begotten Sonne that we might not perish but have everlasting life And the tender mercies which he craveth are those of which Zachary doth speak Through the tender mercie of our God whereby the day spring from on high hath visited us To give light to them that sit in darknesse and in the shadow of death and to guide our feet into the way of peace Here is Via lactea the milkie way the very way of salvation for the tender mercies of God give not onely light of comfort to cheare our hearts but light of direction also to guide our wayes and that is the blotting away our repented sinnes 2. Another phrase followeth which sheweth how this foule record may be blotted out of Gods Tables VERSE 2. Wash me throughly from mine Iniquitie THis shews that Iniquitie is a foule and defiling blemish and needeth washing So foule as no washing will do it but Lava tu wash thou So foule as it will need his washing throughly 1. Lava Wash His calling for so much mercy sheweth his fear of iniquitie his calling for all this washing sheweth his shame of it He doth not desire to have it hidden from sight but quite removed Not removed onely from the book of Gods remembrance but washt out of the book of his own conscience also Sinne is of that foule nature that it defileth the conscience of a man and maketh him uncleane I think no man will denie but David notwithstanding this sinne was a regenerate man For even this Psalme which confesseth this uncleannesâ—e in him is part of holy Scripture and the penne-men of Scripture were all holy and wrote as they were guided by the Spirit of God He seeth and confesseth a pollution and would faine be quit of it Yet some of late have so cleared a regenerate man from all sinne that they say God can finde no sinne at all in them It is true that God seeth no iniquitie in his elect to condemne them for it for there is no condemnation to them that are in Christ Iesus But then they walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit But if any of the elect turn out of the way for a time to walk after the flesh as David here did he seeth that sinne he hateth it he punisheth them for it and till he hath washt them from it they remain defiled with it Therefore they pray to be washt Naaman for a leprosie in the body must wash in Iordane Sinne is the leprosie of the soul and as the bodily leprosie did defile the person that had it the clothes that he wore the bed that he lay upon the very wals of the house where he remained that all must be purged and it cast him that had it out of the camp So the leprosie of sinne maketh all things unclean within and without us that we do but touch Whatsoever the unclean person toucheth shall be unclean This is the cause of the groning of the creature for though it hath gone the way of the creation from the beginning yet it is become subject to vanitie by the pollution of our sinnes and our iniquitie reacheth to the heavens it defileth the celestiall bodies above us and the earth beneath us because these have been aiding and assisting to us in our sinnes not of any evill disposition in themselues but by our abuse of them to Gods dishonour All this presseth a necessitie of our continuall washing both for the defiling which is within us and for the pollution that cometh from us We must hate the garment that is spotted with the flesh This made David desire to be washt throughly Multiplica lavare multiply to wash some do render it others Amplius lava wash me more as Peter Not my feet onely but my hands and my head Naaman must wash seven times in Iordane to put off his bodily leprosie Sinne which is the leprosie of the soul cleaveth so close to us that we had need of an often and a scouring lather to rinse our defiled souls For as to the pure all things are pure So to them that are defiled is nothing pure but even their minde and conscience is defiled There is nothing that nourisheth sinne more in us then an opinion of an easinesse to repent when we will to put it off Beloved diseases are never so painfull to us as when we are put to it to take much physick for them For for the time the physick is more painfull then the disease violent purgings strong vomits languishing sweats bleeding bitter pils and potions unpleasing dyet yet great diseases ask a suffering of all these for health But in a dangerous disease we call upon our Physitian not to spare us so he recover us Ths is it in the state of our diseased souls we must take strong physick to remove violent and dangerous diseases David describing his sinne saith My wounds stink and are corrupt Do you know the pain of washing such wounds Do you not perceive the necessity of it There is no dallying in such cases lest our negligence make the maladie gangren and prove immedicable It will ask sharp
delight and expiate it at short warning But such pardons were not afoot in Davids time he confesseth to Nathan and undergoeth a sore penance after Nathan had absolved him Good use might be made of this in the Church If a true Penitent revealing his wounded conscience to some learned and godly Physitian of his soul and declaring his true griefe did establish his repentant heart with the comfort of the Word and receive the benefit of Gods gracious pardon in the way of Gods holy ordinance In businesses of our estate we may heare wise men speak out of experience and reading and observation but it is safest to trust such whose profession and practise in the laws may give us more full satisfaction in all our doubts In diseases of the body reading experience and observation may accommodate men unprofessed to speak rationally and to advise wisely but health is a deare commoditie they do most safely that consult the learned studied and practised Physitian he is the likeliest to direct for our good In the occasions of the soul although many great Scholars have profited to ability to informe the judgement in the truth to convince errour to instruct and comfort yet seeing God hath ordained some in his Church to do this ex officio and hath sent them to teach to baptise to commend the prayers of the Church to him to absolve penitents our using of their ministery in these things is strengthened with warrant and in this case Nathans absolution is as good as on Angels 2 We finde David confessing here to God his wickednesse Nathan hath used all the good and discreet wayes that may be to bring David to a sight and sense of his sinne 1 He shewed him his sinne in a parable borrowing another person to represent to him his sinne 2 He shewed it in the commemoration of Gods manifold favours to him which cannot but shew that God had better deserved of him then to be answered with transgression of his commandments For he might plead Do you thus unkindly requite my love 2 He came to the point and opened his wounds and shewed him the rottennesse and stench of them in an hoc fecisti Thus hast thou done and I held my peace all this while 3 He revealeth to him the purpose of God for his correction by a severe punishment of his faults divers wayes as you have heard This made him cry God mercie and crave aid of Gods tender compassions to wash him For I acknowledge my wickednesse Which teacheth That true repentance ariseth from a knowing and beginneth at confessing our sinne They pray but faintly and weakly for mercy to wash them that do not well discerne and confesse their wickednesse The woman of Canaan that came to Christ for her daughter cries loud for his help the disciples cannot still her Blinde Bartimeus runnes hard and cryes lowd for his sight The woman with the issue of bloud pressed through the crowd as neare as she could to Christ to touch the hemme of his vesture David sometimes cryed till his throat was hoarse Moses prayed till his hands fell All that feele need of help from God and know it no where else to be had will ply him heartily and give him no rest So forceable is the knowledge of our sinnes to put us upon God in importunate eâ—â—lagitations of mercy Such know that there is no state here on earth so unhappy as the state of a sinner Let us never hope for peace in our conscience or favour with God till we come to see and confesse our wickednesse Oh that there were such an heart of piety and holy zeale as to search and try our own wayes and to detect our own sinnes as we have hearts of malice and curiousitie to dive into the transgressions of others I would we could discerne our own beams as clearly as we see the motes in our brothers eye I acknowledge my wickednesse I search no further Let me now turn your eyes upon your own hearts and put you to the search of them to the bottome that you may confesse your wickednesse to God betweene you and him alone For wounds must be searched before they can be cured And then shall you be prepared to heare the story of Christs bitter passions that he susteined for you which shall shortly be recounted to you out of the Gospell by appointment of the Church There you shall see the loving kindnes of God and the multitude of his tender compassions you shal see what need your wounds had of his stripes what need your voluptuous lives had of his dolorous throws and pangs what need your crown of pride had of his crown of thornes what need your crying sinnes had of his strong prayers and supplications what need your deserved curse had of his undeserved crosse If all tears were wiped from our eyes for our selves and that our mouthes were filled with laughter and our tongues with joy yet if we did consider in what liquour we were washt the precious bloud of a Lambe without spot Pilates Ecce homo Behold the man shewing us our Redeemer newly come from his cruell whipping his pretious body the glory of humanity ploughed up with scourges into deep furrows to save our skinnes whole Uox sanguinis the voyce of bloud speaking better things then the bloud of Abel crying for our purification and his dying plea even for his enemies Father forgive them for they know not what they do These and a thousand more considerable passages in his dolorous passion were enough to turn all our harps into mourning and all our organs into the voice of them that weep to make our heads fountains of tears to melt us into passion to distill us into spirit of compassion for him that payed so deare for our souls Sic Deus dilexit mundum misit filium suum dedit unigenitum as August dedit unicum ut non esset unicus So God loved the world He sent his Sonne He gave his onely begotten Sonne He gave his onely Sonne that he might not be his onely Sonne And in the manner of giving Non pepercit filio suo he spared not his sonne he layd upon him the iniquitie of us all Will you finde the cause of all this the roote of bitternesse the gall and wormwood that made his potion so corroding Search your heart for sinne and wash the bloudy wounds of your Redeemer in a bath of compassionate tears your own putrified soars in a bath of penitentiall tears And as Israel brought forth Achan and put him in sight who had trespassed in the accursed thing so let our confession put our transgressions in sight saying with David I acknowledge my wickednesse And with Achan I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel and thus and thus have I done That which undoes Religion and destroyes the fear and service of God and hindereth our repentance and evacuateth all our acts of piety that which maketh the word to us a dead
against himself for it Personall considerations do much aggravate or extenuate sinnes Sinnes of ignorant persons are nothing so defiling them and provoking God as sinnes of knowledge Sinnes of yonger persons in whom the passions of youth are more unruly and understanding and reason as yet but in the blade offend not so much as sinnes of aged persons whom time and experience should both informe and confirme in better wayes they have felt more comfort of the favour of God and seen more examples of the justice of God and have been longer taught in the word of God and where God soweth liberally he expecteth to reape plentifully Sinnes in poore persons who have received little at the hands of God displease him not so much as theirs whose cup doth overflow whose pathes are anointed with butter and their bellies filled with the treasures of his plenty Sinnes in inferiour persons not so offensive as in Magistrates and Princes and eminent persons whose examples may prove infectious to corrupt many Generally the same sinnes in the people are lesse then in the Minister Cujus in ore verbum vitae cujus in more should be vitaverbi In whose mouth is the Word of life in whose conversation the life of the word Therefore when David remembred his own person a King and an holy Prophet so much beholding to God for his high favours his heart did the more smite him for his trespasse And thus should the example work with us upon any temptation to sinne to consider with Joseph How should I do this great wickednesse and there take occasion to recount the favours of God to us the fruits of the earth the fruits of the wombe of our cattel our peace our health our daily bread our friends and all the comforts of life concluding thus God hath deserved better at my hands then so that I should give way to this temptation and so sinne against him whose loving kindnesse hath followed me all the daies of my life Should I blaspheme his Name by swearing in whose name is my help Should I prophane his Sabbath who hath allowed me six dayes for my work and this one for my rest and relaxation of all cares of life to attend his service Should I offend my neighbour whom God made in his own image for whom Christ shed his pretious bloud and for whom he taketh care as he doth for me that he may live in peace by me And as this in early consideration may prevent sinne so in a later consideration it may serve to hasten our repentance and to make it more serious when not withstanding so many reasons against it I have yeelded to a temptation and committed a sinne The more cause I had not to do it the more must my repentance be 2 The Commission Have done evill Sinnes of omission wherein God is neglected or our neighbour in duties of pietie or charitie give great offence You may see it in the sentence I was hungrie Et non pavistis me Ite maledicti and ye fed me not Go you cursed Sinnes of desire though not effected and perpetrated do more offend for as our good desires do stand for acts and receive rewards so our evill and unlawfull desires expresse the malignity of our corrupt dispositions and merit just vengeance Sathan doth corrupt the heart first and then out of the foule treasure of the heart proceed all kinds of evils Peccatum animae the sinne of the soul is the pollution of the soul and God seeth it David was an adulterer when his desire was first enflamed with lust but now it is done Vriahs wife is defiled Uriah is slain here is a sinne of commission Sinnes of this kinde which corrupt us and do hurt abroad cannot be recalled so long as sinne is but in desire it defileth at home onely but when it comes abroad into action it is a complete and full unrighteousnesse Therefore in repentance we must especially have care of such evils as are done by us which we cannot recall to repent them heartily and to wash them clean from our consciences for they cleavefast to us they scatter their poyson abroad And if sinnes of omission do smart so upon offenders and sinnes of desire how deep is the scarlet dye of sinnes of commission 3 The trespasse I have done evill Evill is a creation of our own for all that God made was exceeding good This we can do of our selves yet Sathan puts us on by his temptations Yet not under the name or shew of evill the delight and pleasure of the flesh seemed in the temptation like the forbidden fruit faire to the eye and pleasant in taste The evill we commit if we think of it will soon appeare like it self to our understanding and reason but especially to the Spirit of God in us But our appetite hath not the leasure to advise with these in general delight is good pleasure is the gift of God But if this be not regulated by the Canon of manners which is the holy law of God there may be a latent evill which we are loath to see for feare of depriving our selves of our desired delight But when lust hath conceived we see the birth of sinne quickly succeeding Then the pleasure is gone and nothing remaineth but the evill the guilt of sinne and the burthen of the conscience That is done and there remaineth behinde the sting of it anguishing the conscience or the custome of it searing the conscience Every evill we do is an injury to God and a contempt of his Law If God should for his pleasure scourge and torment us and make it his sport to heare our groanings and to see our teares who could challenge him for using his own creatures according to his own will but as a father he loveth us our paine his smart How is it then that we take pleasure in evill which God hateth and which so offendeth him that his soul abhorreth all them that work wickednesse It is a better way to be before hand with quid faciemus What shall we do good Master what good thing may I do to obtain everlasting life then to cry Quid feci what have I done Oh what evill have I done to deserve death Or as Job Peccavi quid faciam tibi I have sinned what shall I do unto thee The name of evill should loath us it is so foule and it should feare us it is so dangerous Therefore in all temptations to it it will be our wisedome and holinesse to abstract the pleasure of evill from the evill To part them and weigh them by themselves We shall finde the pleasures of sinne in weight lighter then vanity and in such firme conjunction with vexation of the spirit and for their lasting so short lived and so soone gone and leaving such a bitternesse in the soul behinde them that the very thought thereof in sad consideration will call such mirth madnesse and say to such pleasure What meanest thou Again evill weighed by
our fault is that we do not husband our talent of Gods grace and of Christs merits to our amendment of nature and to the expurgation of our sinne Yet for Infants that have no sinne but that to answer for in the ordinary way of Gods favour I make no question of their salvation by Baptisme for so the Apostle Baptisme saveth us Yet the want of the outward Sacrament which cannot be charged upon little Infants doth not deprive them of the favour of God because the covenant is not limited by the signe of it The promise which is the soul and life of the Sacrament is past to you and to your children The Church of Rome denyeth unbaptised infants a place in heaven and they have built them a Limbus an upper-roome above hell where they place them but they cannot agree upon their estate there Some of their learned depriving them of the fruition of heaven but allowing them life everlasting without paine and with some measure of happinesse Others allow them an earthly paradise of naturall felicity for ever Thomas and others that they are deprived of the sight of God and have no poenam sensus paine of sense inward or outward Driedo and others affirme both poenam damni sensus paine of losse and sense But Saint Augustine saith he could never reade in Scripture of more then two places heaven for the saved and hell from that distanced very farre off for the damned Locum tertium non reperio I finde no third place We confesse that originall sinne without Christ is mortall but Christ became man and was born of a Virgin and became an Infant for Infants to preserve them from hell and we beleeve charitably and comfortably of them that he receiveth such to himself The conclusion of this point is that seeing we are thus born filii ira the children of wrath we should make it the exercise of our whole life to strive against this naturall corruption and to weaken the force of the flesh all we can by mortifying the deeds thereof and to grow daily in wisedome and knowledge and faith and obedience perfect throughly perfect to all good works making our election and calling sure in our owne consciences to the establishing of our hearts till we grow up to be perfect men in Christ Iesus for if we mortifie the deedes of the flesh by the spirit we shall live VERSE 6. Behold thou desirest truth in the inward parts and in the hidden part thou shalt make mee to know wisedome 5. TO aggravate his owne digression hee compareth himselfe in this state of transgression with that condition which God exacteth of us and which he will hereafter worke in him In which words we have 1 Davids feare 2 Davids faith 1 Davids feare He confesseth his transgressions and iniquities and sinnes and would very faine be quit of them because he findeth them so contrary to the holinesse and pure perfection of the divine nature for David had lived in the open profession and practise of religion he had established both religion and Courts of Iustice in Ierusalem yet secretly his corrupt heart had embraced a temptation to sinne and he had effected it whereby he had displeased God for God is not pleased with an out-side and semblance of religion which may passe currant with men who see no deeper than the shew he is a searcher of hearts and desireth not a seeming and shew but truth and that not in a face of holinesse in an outward profession but in the inward parts 2 Davids faith that notwithstanding this his grievous declination from the wayes of God yet God in his mercy will repaire him againe and make him to know wisedome in his hidden part that is in his understanding and in his heart Thus we must understand this text following our new translation but former translations doe alter the sense and change the matter of this verse The vulgar Latine the Spanish the Italian the French the old English the Geneva reading Junius Pagnine Calvine and generally all the translations that I have read and Comments Saint Augustine Lâ—dolphus Saint Ambrose Saint Gregory Cardinall Bellarmine c. doe all reade one way Thou hast made me to understand wisedome secretly Which doth also adde weight to the burthen of his sinne for seeing God requireth truth in the inward parts and had secretly informed him with wisedome to know so much and to direct him in the way of obedience This maketh Davids sinne greater who not onely transgressed Gods Commandement but sinned against the knowledge and wisedome which God gave him against it onely Montanus his interlineare readeth it in the future whom our translators of the Kings Bible have followed the originall doth beare it well and I choose rather to see David in faith then in feare and therefore I embrace our reading wherein David beleeves that God will make him wiser hereafter 1 Concerning his feare he had cause to mistrust himselfe when his conscience accused him of hypocrisie for having maintained an outward expressure of religion his heart proved false to God and his eye walked in wrong waies and misguided his heart God who looketh not onely upon our outward man but upon the heart soone found him out and saw the abhominations there for he is searcher of hearts and reines There is not a better rule to manage either our conversation or our faith or our repentance by then this to consider what God requireth of us and wherein he delighteth Micah the Lords Prophet saith He hath shewed thee O man what is good and what the Lord doth require of thee Hee is our Lord and it is fit that we take notice of his will and what he requireth he will shew us nothing but good the old way the good way that walking in it we may finde rest for our soules He desireth our eares to his word Let him that hath eares to heare heare what the spirit speaketh c. He desireth the eyes of our body that we keepe them from beholding vanity that we liâ—t them up to the hils unde auxilium whence commeth our helpe He requireth the lifting up of our hands in prayer the stretching out of our hands in almes in good workes in labour in our callings in subvention and supportation of the weake in taking up such as are fallen He requireth our tongues in voce laudiâ— in the voyce of thankesgiving wee must make his praise to be heard In prayers and supplications with strong cries He requireth our feete to tread in his Courts to stand in the gates of Ierusalem and cave pedi take heed to thy foot He requireth our knee for he hath sworne in holinesse â—gressum est verbum c. the word is gone forth Every knee shall bow to me O come let us worship and fall downe and kneele before the Lord but all these are formes which an hypocrite may put on and personate and act and who can say but he is religious and feareth
that the purse hath saved the life yet that is but the price of intercession But the Kings pardon onely saveth life It is so in the state of our soules sinne is a capitall fault and the wages of it death and no way of escape from this just judgement but by Gods gratious and free pardon We cannot purchase a mediation at any rate to availe us without true and unfained repentance and then we have but one Mediatour to the Father and he must purchase our pardon with his bloud he must be wounded for our transgressions and we must be healed by his stripes and hee must dye for us that we may live in and by him Let Papists seeke heaven by their righteousnesse at their owne perill For my selfe I am so farre from trusting to any merits of our owne workes that I dare resolve that if the salvation of all mankinde had beene put to the plunge that Sodome was at with the other Cities to finde tenne righteous from Adam to the last man that shall stand upon the earth all mankinde must have perished for want of tenne such I dare adventure further in resolution that if the bringing one good worke before God done in all the generations of men performed without any tast or taint of sinne might save all mankinde I except none but Iesus Christ I doe beleeve that he that searched Jerusalem with candle and lanterne even his seven eyes which tunne to and fro through the whole earth cannot finde out one such good and perfect worke the caske distasteth the liquour who is he that doth good and sinneth not who doth good and sinneth not in the very good he hath done To make a worke perfectly holy is one thing to make it meritorious is another If no good work we doe can come from us holy it is not possible it should aske wages Our corruption of nature sprinckles every word worke and thought of ours with some graines more or lesse of our old Adam for as we consist of flesh and spirit ever conflicting there is of both in all we are or have it cannot bee otherwise for the imaginations of the thoughts of our heart are onely evill continually and from that neast these birds doe flye Adultery Fornication Strife c. But if wee could doe any worke holy and pure â—â—oâ—n blame yet there goeth more to it then holinesse to make it meritorious 1 It is required that we be able to doe it of our selves for no thankes to us for any good we doe if he land us the faculties and abilities of doing it 2 It is required that hee which deserveth should doe something for the benefit of him of whom he deserveth but our well-doing extendeth not to God 3 It is required that hee which meriteth doe his good worke out of his owne free will ex mero motu non ex debito meerely by his owne mooving not as of due debt For what we doe of duty we pay we doe not give 4 It is required that the reward bee proportionable to the worke for else whatsoever is more is gift not wages They that wrought all day deserved their penny they that came late had more gift then wages eternall life is too much reward for any service wee doe This putteth workes of supererogation quite out of countenance to name them is to shame them Micah 6. 6. Where withall shall I come before the Lord burnt offerings Calves of a yeare old Will the Lord bee pleased with thousands of rammes or with tenne thousand rivers of oyle shall I give my first borne for my transgressions the fruit of my body for the sinne of my soule Hee hath shewed thee c. To doe justly to love mercy to walke humbly before thy God The way of repentance and crying God mercy is the way of humility we cannot pay our debt we cannot buy out our fault we have nothing to give our plea is miserere have mercy we can finde no way out of our sinnes but by Gods gratious and free pardon This is not so easie a favour obtained as many thinke for suppose the pardon were obtained and sealed for God have mercy yet there is no moment of our life in which we doe not forfeit it and therefore we must renew it continually When you pray say Pater noster dimitte nobis Our Father forgive us and semper orate pray alwayes Be sure to renew your pardon by repentance and prayer continually especially at such times when we come to the house of God to the Table of God now wash us throughly O Lord now O Lord have mercy upon us now purge us with hysope now hide thy face from our sinnes and blot on t all our iniquities Now make us heare joy and gladnesse which thou impartest to us in the Sacrament of thy sons passion Our Church service is holily accommodated to this for we beginne at the words wherein God maketh us heare of joy and we humble our selves to God in a contrite deploration of our sins O Lord heare us from heaven and when thou hearest shew mercy VERSE 10. Create in me a cleane heart O God and renew a right spirit within me 4. HE prayeth for newnesse of life Here also he doubleth his petition and changeth the phrase 1 For his heart the seat of his affections 2 For the holy Ghost to sanctifie him throughout in his body soule and minde In the first observe 1 His suit is for the heart 2 He desireth that cleane 3 He wisheth it so by creation In the second 1 His suit is for the spirit 2 He would have that right 3 He would have it by renovation 1 For the heart there breed adulteries murthers and all other sinnes as Christ hath taught us and that was the neast of all his sinnes The message of God by Nathan descended into the secrets of his heart there he hid the word he saith before Thou requirest truth in the inward parts he found his heart no fit habitation for truth as it was It is our chiefest care to looke to the heart because Christ asketh that of us for himselfe My sonne give me thy heart The Church of the Iewes in tender care for the Church of the Gentiles complaineth We have a little sister and she hath no breasts what shall we doe for our sister in the day when she shall be spoken for that is how shall wee doe for her when Christ shall be speake her for a Spouse for himselfe That should be our care every one for his heart wee have a foule and uncleane heart what shall we doe for it or how shall we answer when Christ saith My sonne give me thy heart Our care therefore must be for it to prepare it so that we may neither be ashamed nor afraid when Christ calleth for it to present him with it Here Salomon adviseth well Keep thy heart above all keeping for out of it are the issues of life This heart of ours hath many
enemies etiaÌ„ domestici ejus inimiciejus the enemies be homebred Iob amongst many other aberrations of men wherof he acquitteth himselfe saith if mine heart walked after mine eyes for when our eyes behold beauty as David did to lust we lose our heart by it Dinah is deflowred if she gad If our heart walk after our eare we may entertain wanton lascivious words which corrupt good manners calumnious and slandercus reports which deprave our neighbours dicterious and satanicall invectives which hurt their good name prophane and blasphemous words which dishonour the name of God If our heart walke after ouâ— tast wee may defile our bodies and soules with surfetting and drunkennesse to the distemper of our bodies the corruption of our soules the displeasing of God the defiling of our consciences the abuse of Gods good creatures unthankfully and the corrupting of others by our evill example So when Christ shall say to thee My sonne give me thy heart thou hast no heart to give him for whoredome wine and new wine take away the heart It is good for us to take into our consideration what is good and what the Lord requireth of us We see the fruit of it in David for having before considered that God requireth truth in the inward part he now becomes carefull of his inward parts and is an humble suter to God for his heart they that meditate not on these things lose their hearts 2 He desireth a cleane heart so he interpreteth his former petitions wash me cleanse me purge me with hysop me that is my heart there is a deepe steine in it of originall sinne there is a foule issue from thence of all other sins these make the conscience sicke of an infectious leprosie even to the second death these make our words and workes and our whole conversation noxious to our brethren obnoxious to the wrath of God The purging of the heart is the cleansing of the whole man for out of the abundance of the heart the tongue speaketh the eare heareth the eye seeth the foot walketh The heart ruleth and guideth all the rest of the man if the fountaine be cleare the streames that flow thence will bee pure and the waters sweet else they will be like the waters of Marab bitter waters Saint Augustine wonders at the folly of man be desireth every thing for himselfe good and of the best he loves cleane cloathing upon him he loves cleane feeding cleane lodging he is next to a bruit beast that is a sloven and yet few desire to have cleane hearts Cleane garners for your graine cleane warehouses for your commodities are desired Your heart is the granary for the pure seed of the word the warehouse for the rich commodity of Gods spirituall favours and graces if that be nastie and noysome stenched with our abominable sinnes tenanted by uncleane spirits Non est loâ—us in diversorio there is no roome in the Inne Though the Saviour of the world was borne in a Stable for want of a fitter roome his good spirit will not house it selfe in hearts that like Stables are fitter for bruit beasts than for the Sonne of God to be entertained there Beati mundi corde blessed are the pure in heart saith Christ S. Gr. upon that saith Si illum qui ab omni peccato mundus est in cordis nostri hospitio habere volumus oportet primò ut cor ab omni vitiorum sorde purgemus If we will have him in the Inne of our hearts which is pure from all sinne wee must first purge our hearts from the foulenesse of vices Our bodies be the temples of the holy Ghost our hearts the Chancell of the Church the Sanctum Sanctorum where the Arke of God is to be placed and where God should sit betweene the Cherubins He that defileth the house of God him will God destroy David asketh the question who shall ascend to the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in his holy place he answereth He that hath cleane hands and a pure heart for no uncleane thing shall bee admitted to enter that holy place They that thinke well of this as much as they desire salvation with God in heaven so much will they strive with God by prayers to obtaine of him a cleane heart and an unstumbling conscience 3 He desireth this of God by way of creation crea in me create in me 1 He desireth this of God for hee onely is the purger of hearts who is the creator of them he takes it upon himselfe I will save you from all your uncleannesses we must goe out of our selves for this for so Ieremie confesseth O Lord I know that the way of man is not in himselfe it is not in man that walketh to direct his steppes therefore helpe O God as before doe thou wash and cleanse and purge me with thy hysope and I shall be cleane if wee be of his washing we shall be whiter than snow 2 He requesteth this by way of creation to create is to make something of nothing Our hearts are so foule and corrupt that there is no repairing of them we must have nâ—w ones made of purpose to serve God with which God in wisedome knowing and in mercy pittying saith A new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh and I will give you an heart of flesh 2 Petition 1 He desireth of God his spirit this is the spirit of sanctification This Saint Paul praied for the Thessalonians And the very God of peace sanctifie you wholly or throughout The spirit of naturall life doth animate the body and maketh it fit for actions of life The spirit of God doth quicken us to actions thoughts and words which belong to holy life We are by nature dead in trespasses sins it is the good spirit of God by which we are new borne and without this we are the children of death for except ye be borne againe of water and the holy Ghost ye cannot enter into the kingdome of heaven he that is so borne of this spirit hath a seed remaining in him 2 He desireth a right spirit the margent of the K. B. doth more naturally expresse the originall calling it a constant spirit For David had received the good spirit of God which so enlightened his understanding and so sanctified his affections and governed his whole conversation that he was a man after the heart of God But when he embraced that mischievous temptation which carried him away from the Word and Commandement of God and opened his eare to the perswasions of flesh and bloud then that good spirit forsooke him for a time and hee lay like a dead man insensible of his fault of his danger Therefore now returning to God by repentance he petitioneth God for a constant spirit that may abide ever with him to guide him that he may never
thing it is to live in the displeasure of God and to be deprived of the comfort of the holy Ghost He feeles how the conscience is oppressed with sinne and how wee are made to remember all our evill wayes from the first sinne We see all this in David for the filthinesse of his sinne he doth earnestly desire to be washed and washed cleane washed with hysope that he may be whiter than snow For the burthen of sinne it lay so heavy upon him that he desireth to be made to heare of joy and gladnesse for his sinne and the feare of Gods judgements had broken his bones For the departure of God from him he was so sensible of it that he prayeth the spirit of God not to depart from him For his former sinnes they all lay upon his oppressed conscience that he remembred them from his conception and birth and he saw the danger of temptations and therefore desireth the confirming spirit of God to keep him from falling into new or relapsing into old sinnes 2 A true Convert knoweth the bitternesse of true repentance he that hath kept an ill dyet and thereby lost his health and is put to it to sweate to purge to bleed to abstaine from all toothsome and pleasing eates and is kept to a dyet and enforced to live medicé miseré in physicke in misery for the time till his health be repaired such a one will give warning to others to abstaine from such things as hazard our health He can tell how deare it doth cost the purse how much it restraineth a mans liberty what paines he suffereth in his body how much his minde is disquieted in his bodily distemperatures and all to repaire what some ill dyet hath corrupted in his body So is it with the true Convert he can relate the bitternesse of repentance which is the soules physicke for sinne there is nothing in the world so smarting and a king as true repentance is In the generality of men the most presume upon this remedy they sinne on and flatter themselves that a miserere have mercy at last will set all to rights It is true that repentance doth amend all it purgeth us and restoreth us to the favour of God but they consider not the bitternesse thereof for the soules of the penitent are heavy within them even to death their eyes runne rivers of waters their throats are hoarse with roring and crying for mercy their teares are their drinke day and night they have sighes and grones which cannot be exprest The sorrowes of hell so David doth call them doe compasse them round about they call upon God and he will not heare them they doe seeke him and he will not presently be found like Mariners in a storme their cunning is gone they are at their wits end Sometimes they cry quid feci what have I done and remember all their sinnes Sathan then comes in to helpe their memory upbrayding them with those very sinnes to which he enticed them with a non est salus tiâ—i in Deo tuâ— there is no safety for thee in thy God God saith but I will reprove thee and set them in order before thee The word of God scourgeth us that when wee heare it preached and finde our owne sinnes detected and threatned we thinke the Sermon intended against us The contrary good life of others walking in good wayes reprovesth us and cryeth shame on us that we have not done as they doe that we might have had peace but especially our conscience within us is a thousand witnesses against us and is a record written within and without like Ezekiels scrowle with lamentations mourning and woe sometimes we cry like Saint Peters auditours quid faciemus what shall wee doe or as Iob quid faciam tibi what shall I doe unto thee hide our selves from God wee cannot we cannot goe out of the reach of that right hand which findeth out all his enemies excuse our selves we cannot for who can answer God one for a thousand his spirit searcheth hearts and reines nothing is hid from the eye of his jealousie He is wise to discerne holy to hate just to punish A soule thus anguished and embittered with remorse of sinne is emblemed in Prometheus his Vulture ever feeding upon the heart wretched man that I am who shall deliver me David hath many very excellent expressures of penitentiall fits which doe lively set forth the paine that true repentance doth put a man to but one amongst the rest to my opinion doth render it in the heighth of bitternesse and makes it a non ficut no such I remembred God and was troubled for what refuge hath a sinner but God and what comfort can a sorrowfull soule have but in him yet sinne is so contrary to him that a guilty soule cannot thinke upon him but as an enemy You see it in the first sinners the first thing they did after they had sinned was to flye away from the presence of God Let a true Convert tell sinners all this and see what joy they can take in sinne when it is like to cost them all this breaking of the heart confusion of face confession of mouth confession of soule A true penitent must keepe a session within himselfe he must give in evidence against himselfe his conscience must accuse him his memory must beare witnesse against him he must judge himselfe that he be not judged of the Lord he must after sentence be avenged on himselfe by a voluntary penance afflicting his soule chastening his body restraining it from pleasures humbling it with fasting wearying it with labour weakening it with watching and by all means bringing it into subjection Beloved sit downe and cast up the cost and paine of this spirituall physicke for a sinne-sicke soule and if there be any of you that hath past this course of physicke and kept you to it without shrinking or shifting from it I dare say such a one can say Nocet empta dolore voluptas Pleasure hurts that 's bought with pain and docet teaches too he will scarce eate of the forbidden fruit it is faire to the eye it is delicious in taste But it is the dearest bargaine that ever we bought a momentany short delight with many weary dayes nights of penitential remorse anguish of soule 3 None so fit as true Converts to teach transgressors the sweet benefit of reconciliation to God the comfort of the holy Ghost and the peace of conscience Such perceive the difference betweene the bondage of sinne and the freedome of the spirit They know what it is to lose the cheerfull light of Gods gratious countenance they can say that in his favour is life light and delight As their longing desire was great to come and appeare before God and as they thirsted after the full river of his pleasures so the recovery of that joy over-joyeth them When thou turnedst againe the captivity of Sion wee were like those that dreame Our mouthes
griefe so inward as in anima in the soule yet so sensible as nos vidimus we saw it How were the rivers of their bloud which runne in the channels of their veines to water the earth of which they are made frozen and congealed that they had neither mercy to pitty their fathers sonne nor so much tendernesse as to looke another way nos vidimus we saw Seeing malice and envy had taken away their hearts why had it left the eyes open to let in so unpleasing a sight Thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother Thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity oculi augâ—â—â— dolorâ—m commonly that the eye sees not the heart grieves not here the mercies of the brethren were all turned eruell 4 I but perchance Ioseph might thanke his owne stout heart for their cruell usage of him for many times our own untemperate carriage in afflictions brings fewell to the fire that scorcheth us and blowes more breath into the tempest of winde that bestormeth us But Iosephs brethren have not this excuse they confesse their brother resisted them not but with humble entreaties they confesse he besought us The petition of a soule in anguish faire-spoken and humble hath pierced hard hearts and relented cruell intentions of evill but it wrought not here for 5 They confesse we would not heare They did heare the request of their brethren but they would not heare for they will not heare that doe not heare to doe what they are requested I have prest this example the more to declare how troubles awake the conscience from a dead sleepe and turn our eyes into our owne bosomes that if there lye a notoriouâ— unrepented sinne in the heart stoned as low as Jonah who lay asleepe in the bottome of the shippes Hold affliction will romage the ship and will cry as the Mariners to Ionah Awake thou sleeper and bring it above hatches Therefore it is wisedome by confession by repentance and prayer to quit our consciences so soone as we can of such sinnes Here is a sinne of bloud almost a full yeare old and though Nathan hath pronounced Gods pardon of it the conscience of David is not yet at rest his thoughts are upon it and his prayers be concerning it 2 Another of Sathans seasons to call such speciall sinnes to remembrance is when we are neare our end that is a season wherein many of the faithfull servants of God have dangerous and fearefull conflicts with Sathan After his 40. daies temptation of Christ in the wildernesse it is said that he departed from him for a season Once he borrowed the heart and tongue of an Apostle even of Peter to tempt him but Christ resented him and said Get thee behinde me Sathan but he confesseth a little before his passion The Prince of this world commeth but he hath nothing in me There is his advantage against us when any speciall sinnes lye upon the conscience unrepented then he hath something of his in us This makes many an aking heart upon death-beds for then judgement is at hand and the old flatterie of sinne Dominus tardabit the Lord will delay is removed by the sensible decay of the body and the evident symptomes of approaching death The widdow of Sarepta when her onely sonne was dead was in a storme at Eliah and said unto him What have I to doe with thee O thou man of God art thou come to call my sinne to remembrance and to slay my sonne Did the death of her sonne call her sinne to remembrance bethinke you then how our owne death in sight and sense will call all our sinnes to remembrance that we have done And in this Inventorie if there be any capitall sinne texted and recorded by the conscience in great and capitall letters not yet blotted out by our repentance and Gods gracious pardon how will that sin present it selfe to present remembrance how will it cruciate and torment the inward man even the hid man of the heart Judas his last words gushed out the bowels of his despaire as his last passion did the bowels of his body I have sinned in betraying innocent bloud he had not the heart to breath one miserere have mercy to comfort the agony of his despairing end The penitent convert thiefe on the Crosse was in a better minde he glorified God and his Sonne Christ by a free confession for he rebuked his blasphemous fellow thiefe saying Dost not thou feare God seeing we are in the same condemnation and we indeed justly for wee receive the reward of our deeds but this man hath done nothing amisse This had beene the Crosse of his soule as that he hung on was of his body if his faith had not nailed his sinnes as fast to Christ as Christ was nailed for them to his Crosse which he declared in the next words And he said unto Iesus Lord remember me when thou commest into thy kingdome which was answered with bodie mecum cris to day thou shalt be with me It is worthy our observing that Iesus Christ did institute the holy Sacrament of his Passion the evening before his suffering as it were acting his death in visible demonstration before he under-went it To teach how effectuall the death of Christ is against our sinnes and for preparation of the soule for her remove hence And from hence it is that the holy Church hath not only offered this Sacrament as the bread of our spirituall life to nourish it but hath commended it also to sicke persons upon their death beds as viaticum animae the provision of the soule so the Councell of Nice calleth it That the conscience being then purged from all sinne may receive Iesus Christ inâ—o it And in this holy action our search of our hearts will soone finde out any eminent and notorious sinne to confesse and repent it that the conscience may be disburthened and that the soule of man may be domus pacis the house of peace for otherwise we receive that Sacrament unworthily to our condemnation Our Saviour is precise in this If thou bring thy gift to the Altar and there remembrest that thy brother hath ought against thee More if God have ought against thee leave there thy gift Goe and be reconciled et offer and then bring it This is a Sacrament from God to us it is a sacrifice from us to God If any great extraordinary sinne lye upon the conscience we had best exonerate us thereof for we and our gift will else be unacceptable to him If God receive our gift he will not refuse us for he looketh first upon Abel then on his sacrifice we make our offering acceptable not that us Now because our sinnes lye so heavy especially our notorious sinne this or that particular transgression upon our conscience in the agonie of death Christ hath ordained a gracious remedy that upon our repentance the faithfull Minister of the Word should
offering So soon as sin is removed wee are presently fit for prayse It is the generall part of our service of God and it makes our prayers and prayses miscarry when we come to God charged with sins without repentance wash you make you clean c. Then come and let us reason together 2 Quid promittit What hee promises Here observe 1 What instrument he will use for Gods service lingua the tongue 2 Lingua mea my tongue 3 Cantabit shall sing The manner of his service 4 Aloud the intention 5 The argument of his song justitiam righteousnes 6 Tuam Thine 1 Lingua the tongue This is tuba animae the soules trumpet The best member that we have for this service So our old English Church Psalmes doe reade I will sing give prayse with the best member that I have The K. B. readeth I will sing give prayse even with my glory So Awake up my glory awake Psaltery Calvin readeth Exurge lingua arise ô tongue For that is the glorious instrument of Gods prayse The tongue hath an ill name in Scripture because it is the instrument of Gods dishonour and our neighbours great hurt oftentimes The tongue of David had lasciviously courted Uriah's wife and had spoken him faire to his hurt The tongue often blasphemeth God the common crying sinne of the time lying swearing flattering slandering false witnes multiloquium much-speaking turpiloquium filthy-speaking cursing boasting c. There are so many sins of the tongue that Saint Iames saith If any man offend not in word the same is a perfect man and able also to bridle the wholebody But if any man seeme to be religious and bridleth not his tongue this mans religion is vain It is Davids first note of the tenants of Gods house aloft He that speaketh the truth in his heart and backbiteth not with his tongue And it is the first rule for him that desireth life and loveth many dayes that hee may see good Keepe thy tongue from evill and thy lips from speaking guile No lesson so hard to be learned of us here as the wise and â—â—â—creet government of the tongue David promised a singular care of this I said I will take heed to my wayes that I sin not in my tongue Socrates reports of one Pambâ— an honest wel-meaning man who came to his friend desiring him to teach him one of Davids Psalmes he read to him this Verse He answered This one Verse is enough if I learn it well Nineteen yeers after he said In all that time he had hardly learned that one Verse David is now in a good way to employ his tongue in the service of God For they are out which say with our tongue will we prevaile our lips are our owne who is Lord over us he that distinguished man by this excellent gift from all other his creatures meant it not to him for a rod to scourge himself for a Scorpion to sting his neighbour nor for mans own self punishment There is better use to be made of it as here 2 Lingua mea my tongue God cannot want prayse and glory from his creatures for Coeli eâ—arrant gloriam Dei the Heavens declare the glory of God and one generation prayseth him to another But that is no thanke to thee Lingua mea tua sua thy tongue mine his As David Let every thing that hath breath prayse the Lord. So let every thing that hath a tongue sing aloude c. Thou God of my salvation let it be lingua mea my tongue that sings To say the truth why is it lingua mea my tongue but to serve mine own turn in offices of piety charity it hath not a better employment then the prayse of the Lord. When any thing of ours doth omit or slight duty to our maker our interest in it ceaseth For our bodies are temples of the Holy Ghost and our tongue is the Organ of the Church hee that made it tuned it to his prayse Christ cured the dumbe as well as the blinde deafe and lame c. 3 Shall sing This is the voice of joy and gladnesse in the tabernacles of the righteous These carry forth their seed with teares they sowe in teares their dwelling is in convalle laeâ—rymarum in the vale of teares Though they sit by the rivers of Babel they never hang up their Harps they can and do sing the song of the Lord in a strange Land For whatsoever their outward calamities are which often wash their faces with their teares they have upright hearts to God My soule doth magnifie the Lord and my spirit rejoyceth in God my Saviour There is in every one of the Elect an outward man which negotiateth in outward things and hee hath his hande full There is also an inward man and he is willing but weak The calamities of life the dishonours done to Gods name and glory by others the failings on our own part in duty our fallings from it doall work our grief and turn our organs into the voice of them that weep Yet in the midst of these sorrowes wee may rejoyce in the Lord like Musique in the cabin when the ship is in a storm My song shall be alwayes of the loving kindnesse of the Lord. Amongst all the favours of God none tasteth stronger of his divine nature none happieth us more in the peace of conscience and joy in the Holy Ghost then his pardon of our sin and deliverance from it Fils dimittuntur tibi peccata tua Sonne thy sinnes are forgiven thee answereth Davids suite Sana animam meam heale my soule for donation the Lord doth not magnifie himself so much in it seeing he hath power over all But to pardon sinnes which do so violate his Majesty and are so contrary to his holinesse and doe so abuse his bounty and free favour this may make us sing I never read that any thing which God gave away grieved him but the sins of men grieve him at the heart and make him repent his making of them Therefore no such provocation to sing as deliverance from sin by pardon Songs were in fashion of old the Church was full of Musique the old Testament full of songs Some of our curious Zelotes cry it down in Churches it did well when time was â— but every particular person receiving Gods gracious pardon of his sin in the spirituall comfort of his conscience shall doe well to declare his thankfull recognition of it and his singular delight in it the cheerfullest way he can Is any merry let him sing 4 Alowd This â— for God for himselfe for the Church 1 For God That his honour may be proclaimed therfore they borrowed the voice of still and lowd instruments David make the voice of his prayse to be heard Dicitâ— in gentibus tell it among the nations Sicut in Câ—lo as in Heaven there the quire of the new IerusaleÌ„ cease not day and night to voice
not sacrifices or burnt offerings he delighted not in them true it is he commanded them but not for themselves but as outward expressures of inward affection and zeale and devotion faith and repentance Therfore it is said by faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice then Cain by which he obtained witnesse of God that he was righteous By which faith or by which sacrifice filled by faith he had that witnesse David having so heinously offended God as you have heard declareth that outward service by sacrifices is not the way of reconciliation The Jews put too much confidence in this kind of worship and wee had need to rectifie Religion in this point Outward duties are severely exacted by the ordinance of God But the desire of God is not to them nor his delight in them his Commandement and his desire his precept and his delight are a full sacrifice outward and inward When these are parted it is not religion but formall and ceremoniall profession onely The outward service of God is but the body and carcasse of the service the inward is the soule and as a body without a soule is dead so is the outward without the inward The Jews were very peccant in this kinde and placed their Religion much in these outward Ceremonies The Pharisies who were the Puritans of those times did affect outward appearances praying and giving almes and fasting and disfiguring their faces to be seene of men and all their austerity of life was in sight to breed opinion of holinesse which Christ detecteth and detesteth This was the leaven of the Pharisies that sowred all the masse of their Religion And David would teach us here that God never desired these outward things alone or for themselves but for the better advancement of his service for the further and clearer remonstrance of our loving duty to him For what careth God for any thing of ours who have all that we possesse of his free gift And why may not an Hypocrite have as full an hand though not as free an heart to offer sacrifice to God as the most holy and devout servant of God hath You see the lesson here read to you that you must not think to please God with outward things alone For except your righteousnesse exceed the righteousnesse of Scribes and Pharisees you cannot enter into the Kingdome of heaven Scribes and Pharisees were for externall worship the most precise observers of the Law that ever made profession of Religion They did strive to over-doe the law in many things therfore S. Paul calleth them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the most exquisite Sect of all The Law saith six dayes shalt thou labour the seventh rest They divided their working dayes into three parts One for Prayer A second for reading the Law The third for Work Two thirds they gave to God In oblations to God and in tithes they exceeded the Law and gave more then was exacted Two dayes in the week they fasted wholly from from all food for almes they gave beyond their ability generally in outward things they spared neither cost noâ— pains to seeme religious Yet Christ putteth us to it to exceed not their outward shew and performances but their righteousnesse Here was hasty running but it was out of the way all this that they did might be done without any true righteousnesse It is but so much more paine taken to go to hell There is somewhat else in it that wee must looke to and that is delivered by David in the next Verse Here is Dâ—â—issâ—m I had given put off with non desideraâ— non delectaris thou desirest not thou art not delighted with which teacheth us to apply our service to the desire of God to his delight 1 To the desire to that which he requireth of us 2 We must not stay there but affect to delight God which makes this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a fuller sacrifice If God should say he hath no delight in us where were we then As we must delight in the Lord so wee must compose our selves in such sort as he may delight in us The just are the jewels of the Lord precious stones and they must be well set that in the day when hee maketh up his jewels we may be called his Then shall wee be as the apple of his eye as the signeâ— on his right hand If but two or three of these meet in the Name of God God is in medio in the middest If they offer him a sacrifice hee smelleth a sweet favour of rest These are Vines of his plantation the wine which they yeeld doth please God and man Let his desire and delight be the rule of our service of him that his delight may be to be with the sonnes of men Observe how holily proud God was of Iob to Satan Hast thou not considered my servant Iob and of David 〈◊〉 Davidem servum meum I have â—ound David my servant And to Cornelius the Angell of the Lord said Thy prayers and thine alâ—â—s are come up for a 〈◊〉 before God Come up before God he taketh notice of them delights in them Come up for a memoriall God will not forget them to receive to reward them Comming to Church for fashion without devotion hearing without desire to profit by it entreating earnestly and saying good Master what shall I do c. And when wee know and God hath shewed what is good and what hee requireth at our hands and with what he is delighted to go away sorrowing as the young rich man in the Gospel did is the marke of an Hypocrite It is the Apostles argument of perswasion To do good and to distribute forget not for with such Sacrifices God is well pleased Saint Paul speaking of their Fathers saith They were all under the cloud they passed through the Sea They were baptized unto Moses in the Cloud and in the Sea They did all eat the same spirituall meat and dranke c. But with many of them God was not well pleased What are all the benefits which we receive from God or all the services that we perform to God if God be not pleased with them and us his favours turn to rods and our services turne to injuries to him O let us labour to please and delight our God for in his favour is life If the light of his countenance shine on us we are well Happy are we that God will vouchsafe to receive us or to take delight in any thing that we say or think or purpose or desire or endevour or performe Such dead dogs as wee are so laden with iniquities so weak by our infirmities so dark in our understandings so cold in our zeale and in all goodthings so imperfect onely for our desire to give him delight acceptable to him VERSE 17. The Sacrifices of God are a broken spirit a broken and a contrite heart ô God thou wilt not despise IN the affirmation here David sheweth what
break our spirits from these plausible and delightfull streins of wit though wee know that it was the fall and ruine of man he sought many inventions The taste that hath bin long used to the Onions and Garlick of Aegypt cannot like Manna the food of Angels a long time But as Physicians for the body finding their intemperate patients disease do forbid them all kinde of meats that fewell their disease and limit them to a diet with which they thrive well and recover health so must our soules for cure of these diseases be strongly kept from such studies and knowledge as do but encrease vanity and restrained to the Manna of Gods holy Word the most wholsome bread and sincere milke and strong meate of the inward man Custome will wean us and the sweet wholsomnesse of this better diet and the experienced vegetation and spirituall battening of the soule by it will in the end approove vaine studies to be no better then the husks of the swine in a farre Country But the Word of God to be the bread of our own fathers house even the bread wher with he feedeth his owne family sufficiently the bread that strengtheneth mans heart And when we have once fed of this heartily that wee desire some drink to it hee will bring us to his house of wine for whom he admitteth to eat of his bread he inviteth also to drinke of the wine that hee hath mingled Yong stomacks affect raw and unripe fruits do charge their bodies with diseases therby It is a breaking and extreme pain to them to be restrained from them So doe yong wits exercise themselves and consume time in the raw fruits of green heads and feed the appetite of their yet undiscerning spirit All this must be unlearnt and forgotten to make room for saving knowledge though wee part with this as Hannibal did from Italie or Lots wife from Sodome 2 A broken heart The heart is the first-born in us Natures eldest sonne in the production of man It is soveraigne in the body it rules and commands all the rest In the Creation of it in Adam it was Cormundum cor perfectum A clean heart a perfect heart for all that hee made was exceeding good Since the fall of man it hath gotten an ill name The heart is deceitfull above all things and desperatly wicked who can know it I the Lord search the heart And you shall see how he found it generally in men God saw that the wickednesse of man was great in the earth and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart were onely evill continually the margent of the Kings Bible rendreth the word in full signification Every desire and purpose of the heart 1 God promiseth his people to take the stony heart out of their flesh Here iâ— cor durum an hard heart Our hearts are hardned by the custome of sin 2 There is cor pravum an evill heart Take heed that there be not in any of you an evill heart of unbelief to depart away from the living God This is an heart infected with the corrupt love either of falshood to forsake the truth of God as Hereticks or of vanity to preferre the pleasures of this life before the good old way This is the sin of filii saeâ—uli the children of this world 3 Cor perversum a froward heart hee that hath a froward heart findeth no good This is a peevish and contradictory evill nature that cannot live under awe and rule but resisteth the good motions of the Spirit You have alwayes resisted the Holy Ghost 4 Cor laquâ—us the heart which is a snare as the adulterous womans Salomon saith Her heart is snares and nets Such hearts have all flatterers that gloze with us and break our heads with their oile Such have all impostors and deceitfull fair-spoken pretenders of love who secretly lie in wait to undermine us and do us hurt Such as face it for shew to be religious and have seven abominations in their hearts 5 There is also a plaguy heart So Salomon What prayer or supplication shall be made by any man or by all thy people Israel which shall know every man the plague of his own heart In the diseases of the body the venome and malignity of the disease hasteth all it can to the heart to destroy that and there it endeth But in spirituall diseases the heart hatcheth and spawneth sin the issue of concupisence and seminateth it in the affections and desires For out of the heart come adulteries murthers c. These be those painfull swellings and ulcerous sores which sin breedeth in the heart of man a very plague in the heart Yet for all this our God saith to us My sonne give me thy heart being so bad as it is it is not worth the giving or receiving Therefore to make it a sacrifice to God we must break it A broken and a contrite heart God will not despise Wee must thresh and breake and melt and grinde our hearts to make them a present for him Two wayes may the heart of man be thus broken 1 By outward afflictions 2 By inward compunction 1 For outward afflictions These are of great force to break an hard heart to melt an iron heart to humble a proud heart to tame a rebellious heart to recover a stray heart God often worketh upon the hearts of sinners this way And David found this physick very healthfull to him Before I was afflicted I went astray but now I keep thy Word It was good for me that I was afflicted Saint Paul being to part with his friends and seeing them all teares for the grief therof saith What meane you to weep and to break my heart The heart of man is easily broken with griefe Elijah grew weary of his life So did Jonah both desire of God that they may die Job and Jeremy had their hearts so broken with sorrows that they abhorred life and never did any more earnestly desire to live then they did to be cut off from the land of the living Many of these fits and sharpe agonies come upon us wee find the Romane stories full of examples of those whom the outward crosses of life have so wearied that they have preferred to die by their own hand rather then to live out the furious assault of temporall disgrace or pain Wee have losses in our goods grief for our friends heavinesse for the losse of children or their unthriving courses in the world manifold sicknesses molestation by suites and such like grievances store God is pleased to use these as meanes to breake our hearts and they doe worke with some for in the day of their affliction they will seeke God diligently And when the judgements of God are upon the earth the inhabiters of the world will learne righteousnesse But an heart thus broken onely with outward tribulations is not alwayes a sacrifice for sinne For murmurers and male-contents and
omnia sanguinem filii ejus His food apparell the use of his time above all the bloud of his Sonne Would these severall seeds of grace yeild him no harvest 2 Our sins our folly trespassing his wisdome our vanity offending his holinesse our falshood his truth our unrighteousnesse his justice our presumption his mercy and our rebellion his power Saint Bernard in meditation of the account for this is all broken heart and all Paveo gehennam paveo judicis vultum ipsis angelicis potestatibus tremendum horreo vermâ—m rodentem ignem torrentem fumum sulphur tenebras exteriores Quis dabit capiti meo aquam oculis meis fontem laâ—hrymarum ut praeveniam fletibus meis fletum stridorem dentium c. Heu me mater mea ut quid genuisti me filium doloris amaritudinis indignationis plorationis aeternae natum in combustionem cibum ignis I feare hell I feare the countenance of the judge to be feared by angelicall powers I feare the worme gnawing the fire broyling the smoke the brimstone the outer darknesse Who will give water to my head and a fountaine of teares to my eyes that I may prevent by my weeping the weeping and gnashing of teeth O my mother why hast thou begotten me a sonne of sorrow of bitternesse of wrath of eternall wayling born to be burnt and to be meat for the fire We are here convicted in two tryals and receive sentence of condemnation in both 1 In the judgement of the Law which wee have broken 2 Of our conscience which pronounceth us children of darknesse and heires of condemnation When the sad consideration of these things hath broken our hearts and ground them to dust then the nest of sinne will be destroyed and concupiscence shall not have where to lay her yong Observe the difference of true Religion from false The gods of the Heathen doe never exact such breaking of hearts of their worshippers Let them have your eye your tongue your knee your gifts and keep your hearts to your selves For they know not whether you give them hearts or no. But our God will have our hearts and hee will have them thus broken and there is no delaying or dallying with him hee searcheth us to the bottome and tryeth hearts and reins We cannot deceive him with unreall semblances The way to heaven is not so easie as most men deem it We must suffer with Christ if we will reigne with him his soule was heavy and he was broken for our sins when the 〈…〉 of our peace lay upon him And we must rent our hearâ—◠〈…〉 not our garments when wee turne to the Lord if we will have mercy and forgivenesse There is nothing that flattereth sin more in us then an opinion of the easinesse of repentance But if we observe David in this Psalme we shall discern that there is no such tribulation as true repentance it is a washing throughly a rubbing and scowring with hysop it will cost hote and scalding water to purge the stains and blemishes of our life It will cost the breaking of our bones strong cryes and supplications that wee may heare of joy and gladnesse It will cost us a breaking first then a new making of our hearts to fill them a present for him who saith My sonne give me thy heart And now what shall I say and what shall I doe unto thee thou preserver of men My heart is not worth the giving to thee If we should search Ierusalem with candles should we finde such a heart O that there were such a heart saith our God in them that they would feare me and keep my Commandements alwayes that it might go well with them and with their children for ever Our broken heart is such an heart when our stubborne will is corrected and made pliant and obedient to the wil of God when our love is taken away from the world and the things therof and fixed on the Lord. When our vast desires are limited to the seeking of the Kingdom of God and the righteousnesse therof When our flattering hopes are taken off from things temporall which profit not and reach out to the promises of God which concern better things When our â—uscious delights are no longer grazed on the green pastures of vain pleasure which saginate them to slaughter but our delight is in the law of God and in that law we do exercise our selves day and night When our strong endevours and labours are not for bread that perisheth but for that which feedeth to everlasting life When our high flowne ambition ceaseth to affect the false and unconstant honors of the world and reacheth forth an hand to the never-withering crown of glory When our feare is not of them that can kill the body and there an end but of him who can deliver soule and body to death eternall When our griefe is not for the punishments we suffer but for the sins that deserve them These be broken and contrite hearts You see to what all that I have said driveth even to stirre up my selfe and you to a true repentance which the Prophet calleth the breaking up of the fallow ground of our hearts Why should our hearts lye fallow and receive no seed and bring forth nothing but weeds It asketh culture digging and ploughing to make it capable of good seed No man casteth away seed upon fallow ground If we would bring forth fruit to God we must suffer the plow the renting and tearing of the share this is repentance John began his preaching at repentance So did Christ And he sent forth his Disciples admonishing men every where to repent If destruction were within forty dayes of us repentance would stand in the gap and keep it out If the Decree were ready for birth repentance would make an aborcement If wee be nailed to the crosse of shame and pain wheron we suffer justly repentance will open Paradise to us If our sins were grained in crimson or scarlet repentance would wash us whiter then snow If our iniquities had hid the face of God from us repentance would uneclipse it and our eies should see our salvation Our sins breake the hearts of others David weepeth for transgressors here is sanguis vulnerati cordis the bloud of a wounded heart O weepe for your selves and your children 2 Sacrifices of God This title given to these Sacrifices called Sacrificia Dei the Sacrifices of God doth shew 1 The necessity 2 The excellency of them 1 The necessity No Nation was ever so irreligious but it acknowledged and worshipped some God Nemo simpliciter atheos No man is simply an Atheist And they thought him that they worshipped worthy of some oblations and gifts It is one of the honors that inferiors do to their superiours to present them with gifts It is recorded of Israel that when God had set Saul over them for their King that the children of Belial said How shall this man save us And they despised him
and brought him no presents They are called men of Belial i. sine jugo without a yoke But of Moab it is said when David had subdued them and they came under his yoke The Moabites became Davids servants an◠brought gifts In the short story of the old World little is recorded of the acts of those persons who lived then Yet this is of the two first brethren before any Law exprest for it In processe of time it came to passe that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering to the Lord. And Abel also brought of the first-lings of his flocke and of the fat therof No question instructed by Adam and by him exampled to it and seasoned with that axiome of nature that God must have gifts from us Aristotle that great Naturalist doth maintaine that gifts are of good use for conservation of friendship Every good and perfect gift commeth to us from God Thankfull gifts returned from us to him conserve his friendship The Athenians who worshipped an unknowne God yet had an altar in the street for oblations and sacrifices to be offered to him Not David onely saith Quid retribuam Domino What shall I render unto the Lord But the people who had perverted their wayes by many revolts from God do bethink themselves Wherwith shall I come before the Lord and bow my selfe before the high God Here is not care taken how to shift the charge and to doe it as cheape as may be Shall I come before him with burnt-offerings with calves of a yeare old Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of Rams or with ten thousands of rivers of oile Shall I give my first-born for my transgression the fruit of my body for the sin of my soule Here are gratulatory and propitiatory and expiatory sacrifices studied to remunerate and to reconcile God It is true that God hath no need of us or our gifts If he were hungry hee would not make his moan to us Yet these tenders of our thankfull duty to him doe acknowledge our love and humble subjection to his government and confesse him Lord of all that we possesse and stoop all that we have to his power and will How glad are wee when our Prince will receive graciously any such present as wee are able to bring him More should it concern us in duty to present our God with our gifts and more cause have we of joy if hee doe accept our persons in them And seeing wee cannot adde any thing to him by any present that we can tender to him for our wel-doing extendeth not to him yet wee may at second hand do him honour in his house by adorning that in his Saints by feeding their hunger clothing their nakednesse healing their sicknesse And with such sacrifices God is well pleased Now that wee have seen in Davids overture what is the most acceptable tender wee can make to God and that a broken spirit and a contrite heart are called the sacrifices of God Wee behold the absolute necessity of these Sacrifices For God must have his due And they be no better then sonnes of Belial that deny him his due herein If wee fall short herein God will lay Felony to our charge You have robbed mee Will a man rob God but ye say wherin have wee robbed thee in tithes and offerings Ye are cursed with a curse for yee have robbed me even this whole Nation God requireth of you broken spirits and contrite hearts and you with-hold them from him You will not endure the smart and paine of contrition The losse of your vain fancies and imaginations The crossing of your sensuall and carnall delights and desires the disquieting of the body of sinne your separation from the World The mortification of your earthly mēhers the crucifying of your old man The bringing of your body into subjection Caro sanguis flesh and bloud cry Durus est hic sermo It is an hard saying And when God demandeth all we have of us as Benhadad of Aram did of Ahab King of Israel wee put him off with this answer This thing I may not do But remember the necessity of this Sacrifice of a broken spirit and a contrite heart For these are Sacrifices to God such as God exacteth of all and without which there is no appearing in his presence Let no man appeare before me empty is his Law and we have no fulnesse but in this Sacrifice How unkindly doe wee take it at the hands of God when we cry unto him and he heareth us not at least as one that did not vouchsafe us the hearing hee doth not grant our requests Yet hee may say of every one of us of some twenty of some forty of others sixty yeers long and more have I been grieved with this generation That is the shame and it threatneth to be the sorrow of our unthankfull Land God hath not his due amongst us though he give us rain and fruitfull seasons Corne and Wine and Oile all the necessaries of life Wee give him not the sacrifices of our broken spirits and contrite hearts which are the sacrifices of God We come off liberally to men to purchase their favour and mediation in our suits and bribes given to men have robbed God of the Sacrifices due to him Let us lay it to heart I reade of the Sybarites a people effeminate and vaine in their sensuall delights that they had a prophecy that their City should subsist till their gods were in lesse estimation then men It fell out that a slave obtaining no mercy at the hands of his Master for the gods take fled to the monument of his Masters Ancestors and for their sakes implored and obtained pardon When Amyris a Philosopher living there heard of this that men were more regarded then their gods hee looked for a ruine to come upon the City fled away from it Shortly after the Crotonians their adversaries subdued them and fulfilled that Prophecy Wee may take home this example to our times and apply it to those with whom God is neglected and men regarded more then God Their voluptuous and Sybariticall life hath opened a way to the indignation of God And they have no way to helpe it but with a full Sacrifice of broken spirits and contrite hearts We need not with the fearfull Philosopher quit our Country forsake our habitations let us remove our crying sins by which God is dishonoured and there will be peace within our walls and prosperity within our Palaces And the eyes of them that desire to see us in the dust shall faile and the ruines of our hearts shall repaire the ruines of our temporall Felicitie 2 This title expresseth the excellency of these Sacrifices they be Sacrifices of God For there be Sacrificia stultorum the Sacrifices of Fooles Be more neere to heare then to offer the Sacrifice of fools they know not that they do evill Cains was not the Sacrifice of God
the voice of them that weep Their whole bodies and mindes and soules are living sacrifices holy unto God and therefore acceptable for so it followeth God will not despise them Here ariseth a Quaere Now wee have seene the excellency and necessity of these sacrifices What hindereth that wee doe not offer them up to God continually We do bear about us a body of sin and in it these hinderances of this excellent and holy service 1 An over-bold presumption of the favour and remisnesse of God in putting us to this pain 2 An over-delight in our works of darknesse and the forbidden pleasures of life 3 A naturall slothfulnesse in doing such things as carry with them painfulnesse in the doing of them 4 A naturall tendernesse of our selves whereby wee do favour our own flesh and cannot put it to griefe 5 The cares of life I Presumption on the favour of God to us We think the word more severe and the killing letter of it more cutting then it need to be and the minister of this word more harsh then is cause We confesse that for terrour these things are set down and the Ministers must threaten us with heavy judgement if our hearts be not broken But it is God who is veiled in the parable of that Master to whom his servant deep in his debt came and besought him for favour and hee forgave him all the debt So we confesse that this sacrifice of broken hearts is a due debt but our Master is so gracious and pitifull to forgive it all There be many fair spoken texts that seem to nourish this presumption in us As a father hath compassion of his children so hath the Lord compassion but it is on them that fear him not on them that presume on him And the parable of that father of the prodigall who did not so much as chide his unthrifty son but met him afarre off fell on his neck welcomed him with a kisse and feasted and clothed him doth expresse a great tendernesse But let no man presume upon that for that sonne came home with a broken hart Father I have sinned against heaven and against thee Non sumdignus vocari fac me unum ex mercenariis tuis I am not worthy to be called and make me one of thy hyred servants His father was sensible of his contrition hee was lost by his sin and found in his repentance he was dead by the wound of his own conscience and made alive by his fathers favourable pardon receiving him againe to his grace And the servant to whom his master forgave all his debt was put to his miserere have mercy his master saw his heart broken with the grief of his debt and heard his willing protestation to pay all and received his humble supplication for mercie God is a loving Father but not indulgent he loveth not so but that he chasteneth and scourgeth every sonne whom hee receiveth for â—ods are for the backs of fools Iudgment beginneth at the house of God and the righteous are hardly saved Saint Peter would put any man out of heart to presume too much upon the favour of God for by three great examples he declareth the severe justice of God against sin For if God spared not the Angels that sinned but cast them down to Hell and delivered them into chains of darknesse to be reserved unto judgment And spared not the old world bringing in the floud upon the world of the ungodly â—urning the Cities of Sodome and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow making them an example unto those that after should live ungodly The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished 2. Peter 2. 4. Presumption doth make an Idole of God for it advanceth the mercy of God against his holinesse which hateth sinne against his truth which threatneth sinne against his justice which punisheth sinne Presumption crucifieth againe the Lord Iesus and layeth on more stripes upon him Presumption resisteth grieveth quencheth the holy Ghost by whom wee are sealed to the day of Redemption and so boldly trespasseth the whole Trinity I need not urge any other evidence against presumption on the favour of God then his severity against his own Son Misit dedit non pepercit non fuit dolor sicut He sent he gave he spared him not there was no sorrow like unto his And was this to quite us from all passion No if wee suffer with him wee shall also reigne with him hee did not drinke of a sponge of vineger and gall Transeat calix Let this cup passe from me Hee began the health of his Spouse the Church all the faithfull must doe him right they owe him a pledge Some are put to it to suffer for him none are exempt from suffering with him This is the least and easiest plunge wee can be put to to break our hearts with contrition for our own sins ò mihi tum quà m molliter ossa quiescent ô then my bones shall take their sweet repose When I can tender to my God a broken heart no laceration no dissipation of it can so unfashion it but that he can put it together again like the dry bones in Ezech. Vision and say unto it live In our mortification it dieth a naturall heart in our first resurrection it riseth againe a spirituall heart I conclude with Davids suite O keepe thy servant from presumptuous sins that they have no dominion over me so shall I be innocent from the great offence 2 A second impediment to the sacrifice of a broken heart is an over-delight that we take in the vain pleasures of life God was pleased to make a singular triall of two men in two contrary wayes for example of others 1 Hee made tryall of his servant Job by afflictions they came upon him suddenly and they came thick In all the things wherin he had blessed Job above most men he afflicted him beyond example In his honor autority he tryed him with disgrace and contempt In a fair posterity he tried him with orbitie In his abundance of riches he tryed him with poverty In his friends with paucity he had few left and they proved grievous to him In his health he afflicted his body with painfull and lothsome diseases and sores Yet you have heard of the patience of Job saith the Apostle hee came off faire In all this Iob sinned not neither did hee charge God foolishly 2 His servant Solomon he tryed with honour riches and power with victory over his enemies and the cup of temporall pleasures of life he made to over-flow never did any man on earth drinke so deep of that cup. In this tryall Solomon miscarried pleasures stole away his heart Solomon lost his integrity his wisdome wherin he excelled all that were before him was benighted in him the salt in him was infatuate Such power have worldly pleasures against wisdome See his Ecclesiastes
his recantation you shall see how hee declareth himself against them pronouncing them all vanity and vexation of spirit It is an old Proverbe Fortis in bello sapiens in ira amicus in adversis Strong in warre wise in anger a friend in adversity This is the Purgatory in which these are tryed If they comefairly off in these probations we esteeme them approved I may adde hereunto that a true Christian is tryed also in temptatioÌ„s of pleasure Ioseph was not so put to it either in the pit wherinto his brethren let him down or in the hands of the stranger Merchants into which he was sold not in the prison where his feet were in the stocks and the irons entred into his soule as in the hand of his Mistris when she laid hold of him and said lie with me Pleasures corrupt our understanding and cast our reason and judgment into a dead sleep They steale away the heart There is none that understandeth and seeketh after God Non est Deus in viis corum God is not in their wayes God sends Ezech. to Ierusalem on this errand Sonne of man cause Ierusalem to know her abominations For as Eliphas saith in Iob Man beleeveth not that hee erreth in vanitie therefore vanitie shall be his change His branch shall not be green but shall be cut off before his day Epaminondas is recorded a rare example of stayednesse that was able to walk sadly and gravely nothing moved with the vain delights of the people whose hearts were all set upon a merry pin on their wanton holyday It is a great example of Israel being in pursuit of the Philistines when Saul had cursed him with a curse that should eat any food till night that hee might be avenged on his enemies The story saith The men of Israel were pressed with hunger And all they of the Land came to a wood where honie lay upon the ground And the people came into the wood and behold the hony dropped and no man moved his hand to his mouth for the people feared the oath Wee are in pursuite of three dangerous enemies the Flesh the World and the Devill We have taken an oath in our Baptisme to fight strongly and constantly against these Fasting is one of our weapons we shall not want the sweet temptation of hony that is of pleasure dropping before us entisements to break our fast Let us remember our early oath sworne to God in our Baptisme Let us keep a devout fast from all sinfull delights what though it cost us a pinching and pressing bunger This is the way to get victory of our enemies before night for when night commeth we can no longer work Pleasant to the eye and delectable to the taste was the forbidden fruit But nakednesse and the losse of Paradise the sweat of the face and the multiplyed sorrows of Child-birth followed eating our first parents were no longer happy then whilest they were fasting It will be a very hard matter to perswade a man in the vanitie of his pleasure to offer God a sacrifice of a broken heart For in our full dishes and overflowing cups wee cannot remember Ioseph's affliction we shall hardly then arise from our banquet to visit him and suffer with him There is nothing in the world that so dimmeth the sight to behold the course of Gods judgments in the World nothing so deafeth the eare against the Word that runneth very swiftly nothing that fatteth the heart to slaughter so much as pleasure doth If Iobsâ—onnes â—onnes feast Iob feareth and sacrificeth least they should offend God in their mirth It is a spirituall kinde of martyrdome to absteine from pleasures when they are in our power as Bernard Inter epulas esurire To be hungry amidst banquetâ— as Israel did when the hony dropped and lay on the ground to tread upon it and passe over it Naturall death doth not spare us for our businesse for our delights and Iobs children were surprized with a violent death when they were feasting Mortification which iâ— the breaking of our hearts the thrashing grinding of our spirits should be so willing so 〈◊〉 so peremptorie as to do execution even upon the body and soule at a short warning not regarding the present delights of the world lâ—st another giâ—d us and carry us whither wee would net least like Haman wee be harried from the Queenes Banquet to the tree of execution A third impediment of this Sacrifice is a natural slothfulnesse in us to do those things that have any painfulnesse in them S. Pauls precept is Not slothfull to doe service The slothfull will not plough because of Winter therfore he shall beg in â—ummer but have nothing Ever since our first parents tasted the forbidden fruit that sweet meate had sowre-sawce Man was made for travaile and hee that would not labour might not eat So when we pray panem nostrum our bread wee mean not the bread of idlenesse for there is no â—read ours but what wee labour for so they go together in the sentence Insuâ—ore vultus tui vescêris pane tuo In the sweat of thy race shalt thou eat thy bread And we must labour for the bread that endureth for ever We must work out our salvation It is an idle prâ—tense to cry out Leâ— est in vsae There is a Lion in the way We know that our adversary the Devill goeth about like a roring Lion there is no way out of his walk Hee compasseth the earth to and fro we must resist him The Apostle hath fitted a Panoply to arme us against him We must fight a good fight Vincenâ—i dabitur To him that overcommeth shall be given If we be so idle that we will not stirre or so faint-hearted that we dare not see our own bloud or so pitifull that wee cannot finde in our hearts to destroy such an enemie our own idlenesse is our ruine It is one of the greatest tasks that ever thou undertookest by thy repentance to breake thine owne heart Thou hast armies against thee within thy selfe to preserve it from contrition and breaking 1 All thy imaginations of thy thoughts for they are onely evill these are an innumerous armie the miâ—â—tia warfare of the brain 2 All thy affections and passions which proceed from the heart these are all Cardiacall 3 All thy sins which Concupiscence hath brooded in thy heart the nest of them all These are the militia warfare of the heart Nate Deo potes hoc sub casu ducere somnos ô born of God in troubles deep and midst of anguish canst thou sleep The man of God that fighteth these battailes must not be idle The true cause of this spirituall idlenes in us is the reluctation of our corrupt nature to the work of our own salvation for our progression of our nature is easie the way lieth all down-hil our sayling is with winde and tyde and he that maketh his voyage for Hell may ship his oares and never needeth
cut saile But to stemme the tyde of nature asketh more it comes to Hic labor hoc opus est This is pains-taking with a witnesse and requireth Multa tulit fecitque even to sudavit alsit Hee suffered much and sweat endured cold and heat Me thinks I heare the Master of the Vineyard say to us Quid statis hîc otiosi Why stand you here idle How easily did God make man and a paradise for man But for his Vineyard we read of digging and fencing and building and weeding 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thinke on it A fourth impediment our tendernesse of our selves Every man is his own Satan and saith parce tibi spare thy selfe No man ever hated his own flesh All the work of mortification which belongeth to the breaking of the heart is very grievous to flesh and bloud For behold this thing that ye have been godly sorrie 1 What carefulnesse it hath wrought in you 2 Yea what cleering of your selves 3 Yea what indignation 4 Yea what feare 5 What vehement desire 6 What zeale 7 What revenge Here is a great burthen to be born and here is a crosse that flesh and bloud hath no heart to take up 1 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 study this word doth comprehend 1 Great inward carefulnesse to please God in absteining from sin 2 Earnest endevour to doe that which may be acceptable in Gods sight 3 Speed and cheerfull expedition to accomplish this We need go no further in this duty then that care that we take for our temporali good let our soules be as precious in our sight as our bodies are and let us do as much for God as for the World So the Apostle As you have given your members servants to unrighteousnesse c. 2 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 this signifieth defence to plead our cause with God not in the Court of justice for our merits will not justifie us but in the Court of mercy for our true Repentance will exonerate us 3 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sorrow of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 valdè greatly and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 onus We must groan under the burthen of sin for Repentance doth not satisfie of it self and our excuse and defence of our selves doth not take away our just vexation of our selves for our sins Considering 1 Who we are 2 Against whom we sin 3 How much and long 4 For how small gain 4 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 feare this extendeth both to 1 The judgment following our sins committed 2 The conscience of our fraile condition and propension to sin which must make us fearful of Relapses and temptations to new sins 5 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vehement desire the indignation before mentioned and the feare serve to pluck us back this desire is a spur to put us on Lord all my desire is before thee and my groaning is not hid from thee Here sin beginneth at a vehement desire of evill and this must be changed the same earnestnesse reteined onely the object therof better chosen 6. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 zeale this is that fire from heaven which consumeth the light crash of our vanities and enflameth the desire before named this carries up our prayers and almes and all our good affections and operations as high as heaven This breedeth in us an holy emulation of our brethren whereby we strive to exceed one another in the duties of Religion The Apostle would have us servent in spirit 7 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 selfe-revenge this is judging and punishing our selves that we may escape the hand of God Castâ—gâ— corpus â—ncum I chasten my body This is done by watching fasting and depriving our selves of the pleasures of sinne God who cannot endure us to revenge our owne quarrell against others likes our revenge taken against our selves The true penitent doth afflict his soule and is all bitternesse of heart for sinne he taketh up his crosse and followeth Christ This amounteth to a great deale more then Lord have mercy upon us And it is so much that when we come to examine whether our hearts be truly broken we shall very few of us finde this worke done for feare of the griefe and paine that are in true repentance For it is truth that there is no such affliction in the world as a true breaking of the heart is 5 Impediment the cares of life These breake the heart the wrong way for we have many feares which much disquieâ—us 1 From our selves lest our own improvidence should undo us if we should take so much time from our necessarie businesses as the duties of Religion do exact this makes many keepe home when they should be at Church and the world will not give them leave to serve God 2. From our brethren for every man commonly is so much for himselfe as abateth the help we should have one from another And so many lye in secret await to mend their owne heaps by lessening and impairing their neighbours that a curious warmesse is necessarie And this it is that maketh our life a continuall watch to save our owne from the injury of men of Christians There is a contentious sort of men that are ever vexing their brethren with molestation of suits There be base people that are prying what they may pilfer And there are cunning cheaters that practise upon their brethren by frauds The truth is here is enough for us all for the earth God hath given to the children of men If they that have most of it would know that their full cups should overflow to the use of their brethren and would so dispose the over-measure there could be no want God is much displeased 1. Because we generally do want the faith of his providence not caring for him onely and casting all our other cares upon him 2. Because we walk inordinately for we should first seeke the kingdome of God and then all these things 3 Because we distract our hearts with immoderate care as if God had set us here to feed our selves Christ disswadeth and forbiddeth this 4. Because often enough doth not content us we do love to have to look upon 5 Because in the use of these outward things many take more then their share wasting and consuming more then needs There may be found for use enough which waste will soone consume Christ chose a poore condition of life such as required other mens charitie to relieve it The bagge that Judas bore was not of rents but of almes he sent to a fish in the sea for money to pay tribute He fed many by his miraculous power he shewed his power upon himselfe rather in fasting then in feasting himselfe Yet having nothing his followers could confesse they wanted nothing 1 I confesse that too much love of the world and the iches thereof 2 And too many wayes for expense pride gluttonie drunkennesse ambition contention luxurie spend apace 3 But the poore do harden the hearts of the rich against them 1 By their
that I should sinne against the Lord in ceasing to pray for you God to Abimelech Now therefore restore the man his wife for he is a Prophet and he shall pray for thee So when the Lord had reproved the unkinde friends of Iob who had not spoken of God the things that are right he biddeth them to prepare a sacrifice for themselves and saith My servant Iob shall pray for you for him I will accept We must not conceive that God is an accepter of the persons of men to regard one man more then another in regard of his person neither is one place for it selfe more esteemed then another But by speciall priviledge there is difference put betweene persons and places in regard of the ordinance of God The Priestand the Prophet hath an office imposed on him to pray for others The Church is Domus oratioâ—is the House of Prayer by speciall consecration therefore both such men and such places are a readier way to God 3 Consider him as King Kings under God are heads of the Churches under their dominions and God hath committed the care of his Churches to them David was anointed by God to this supremacie the chiefe Priest in those dayes did not Lord it over Gods heritage as the Bishop of Rome now doth in all those Nations over whom he claimes the primacie As by all other possible wayes so especially by holy and devout prayers good Kings ought to seeke and procure the peace and welfare of the Church The Common-wealth is the body the Church is the soule of the State Kings that wish their Realmes well do discerne that there is a power above theirs For the Lord is King the earth may be glad thereof That King of kings before whose throne all the kings of the earth must cast their crownes he must be sued to By him Princes reigne And God having committed his Church to their government for him how can they better acquite themselves of that dutie and exonerate themselves of that great care then by devolving the same againe upon Gods protection by their holy and humble prayer David did commend his Church to the prayer of all the faithfull O pray for the peace of Jerusalem He propounded a forme of blessing 4 Consider David as a penitent newly converted to God after a great defection from him and Gods spirituall desertion of him Now having offered to God a sacrifice of a broken and contrite heart now his prayer is againe in season For now God rejoyceth in him he delighteth in God and the prayers of such are welcome to the throne of grace God heareth not sinners 1 Such as continue in their sinne without repentance But if with all our hearts we turne to him he will turne to us repentance hath removed the sinnes that separated betweene God and us And what should a true penitent rather desire of God then the well-fare of his Church for in the peace thereof he shall have peace This is a good remonstrance of our sincere conversion to God when we seeke to do good to his Jerusalem Here is piety to God for the house of Gods sake for Religion and the worship of God Here is charity to our neighbours for our brethren and companions sakes And these be the fruits of repentance and newnesse of life here is that love which is the fulfilling of the Law of God even the love of God and the love of our neighbour 2 For whom he petitioneth 1 For Sion 2 For Jerusalem 1 For Sion This was an high mountaine then within Ierusalem and here was that strong peace which the lebusites did fortifie against David He reigned seven yeares in Hebron before he could recover the Fort of Sion and before he could expell the Iebusites thence They were so confident in the naturall strength of this place and in their militarie fortification of it that they ieâ—red David when he came against it saying to him Except thou take away the blinde and lame Non intrabis thou shalt not enter Thinking David cannot come in hither The meaning is they were so confident in the strength of Sion that they thought their blinde and lame able to deâ—â—nd it against all the force of David But David tooke it and possessed it and seated his owne royall house there and it was after called the Citie of David It was the highest of those hills that compassed Ierusalem of which David As the mountaines are round about Jerusalem so is the Lord round about his people And this mountaine semi-circled Ierusalem on the South part of the same But not the naturall or artificiall strength of the place did so much honour it as the holinesse thereof for it was famous in the Prophets that way For out of Sion shall go forth the Law and the Word of the Lord out of Ierusalem This prophecie was fulfilled in the Messiah for the promulgation of the Gospell came thence So Christ himselfe said that Repentance and remission of sinnes should be preached in his name beginning at Ierusalem Sion is first named as being the chiefe ornament and strength of the Citie and the seat of the Kings royall palace 2 Ierusalem called the Citie of the great King of which many excellent things are spoken and especially it is honoured with the right and just title to be the mother Church and all other Churches in the world are the daughters of Sion And it is named often in holy Scripture and is to be here understood as the representatorie body of the whole Church And it is also a figure of the full Church of the glorified Saints which is called the new Ierusalem the mother of us all So it is cleare for whom David here prayeth even for the whole â—ody of the militant Church This example of David doth teach that we ought not to pray onely for our selves charitie begins at home but it endeth not it ceâ—â—eâ—h not there Christ in his forme of prayer directeth us to seeke further then for our selves Pâ—ter noster â—a noâ—â—â— diâ—â—itte nobis â—e nos inâ—â—cas libera nos Our Father give us forgive us leade not us deliver us Saint Ambrose Si proâ—e â—olâ— prote soluâ—â—raâ—is Si pro â—â— nibus â—â—g as 〈…〉 pro is â—â—g â—â—unt If thou pray for thy selfe onely thou alone shalt pray for thy sefe if thou pray for all all shall pray for thee In things concerning this life we are loath to pray too earnestly for our brethren 1 Out of a naturall distrust that we have in God we feare that he hath not enough for us all 2 Out of a naturall covetouâ—â—esse that wee have to have all 3 Out of a pride which putteth us into an ambition to exceed and out-shine others 4 Out of naturall envy that we have at the well-being of others These â—e grosse and sinfull corruptions in us and they do trespasse both piety and charitie Our Saviour hath directed us better for he teacheth us to pray