I reason thus The Iewes did lawfully obserue foure seuerall set daies euery yeere for daies of fasting And therefore it is not alwayes superstitious and sinfull to obserue set fasting dayes Some againe answere that these Fasts were appointed vpon occasion of their present calamities in Babylon and ceased at their deliuerance My reply is that I see no proofe that these Fasts did cease to be obserued after the Iewes were deliuered out of captiuity The contrary may seeme more probable because in the (a) Calendan Hebraeorum edito à Genebrardo praefixo CoÌ„ment in Psalmos Kalender of the Iewes wherein their Feasts and Fasts are noted these foure dayes remaine still as beeing in vse among the Iewes And b Haec sunt festa quatuor ista communissima quibus Iudaei tempore Prophetae Zachariae ieiunaruÌ„t adhuc annis singulis ordinariè summarieque ieiunant Buxd. Synagog Iudaic. cap. 25. Buxdorfius a man well acquainted with the manners and customes of the Iewes telleth vs that the Iewes to this day do keepe those fasting dayes which are there mentioned by the Prophet But say that they ceased vpon the peoples deliuerance yet it is not true that they were appointed vpon occasion of their present miseries in Babylon for other dayes might haue beene as fit for that purpose and perhaps more conuenient then these but as the learned obserue by occasion of some miserable accidents which befalling them but once did moue them to fast the same daies that those accidents happened for many yeeres after And if those Fasts did last no longer then the time of their captiuity because all that while they had iust cause to humble themselues in remembrance of these euils yet thus much will follow from thence that therefore vpon occasion of a sorrowfull accident which hath once befalne vs we may for euer after fast that set day so long as we haue cause to be humbled in remembrance of it And hence againe it will follow that therefore Good-Friday may euery yeere constantly be kept for a fasting day because it was occasioned by the death of Christ for our sinnes and we shall neuer want iust cause to bee humbled in remembrance hereof so long as the world lasteth because besides our old sinnes we doe euery yeere commit many moe new ones which helped to nayle our Sauiour to the Crosse The like might be said of some other the like dayes And therefore there is warrant in Scriptures for set and standing times of fasting II. My second proofe is from approued examples of Gods Church both in the time of the Law and in the time of the Gospell For in the time of the Law the Iewish Church kept their set dayes of abstinence as besides the Fasts now mentioned out of the Prophet may further appeare by the words of the Gospell For there it is said that the Disciples of Iohn and of the Pharises did fast often and more particularly of the Pharises that they fasted twise a weeke Now as (a) Caluin in Dan. 6.10 Caluin concludeth that Daniel had his set prefixed houres of praying because it is said that hee prayed three times a day So may I hence inferre that the Pharises kept set dayes of fasting because it is said of them that they fasted twise euery weeke And (b) ExaÌ„ part 4. de Tempore Ieiun nu 54. pa. 95.1 Kemnitius gathereth from the ninth of Saint Mathew that both the Pharises and the Disciples of Iohn had certa stata tempora ieiuniorum set and standing times for their Fasts Now that this practice of theirs is an approued example for vs appeareth first because our Lord when he reproueth their errours in their Fast yet findeth no fault with this And secondly because he excused his Disciples for not fasting as the Pharises and Iohns Disciples did from the vnseasonablenes of the time and promised that after-ward when the time was fitting they should then fast And this sheweth that our Lord was so farre from condemning the Pharises and Iohns Disciples that he excuseth his Disciples for not doing the like Againe in the time of the Gospell the Christian Church hath still had her standing and set dayes for fasting as the time of Lent euery yeere and the Friday euery weeke and some others as is so apparent that it cannot be denyed nor needs not to be proued And these set times haue beene commended by many holy and learned Fathers of the Church but were neuer disliked by any of them that euer I could finde And so in conclusion in the iudgement of Gods Church both before and since Christs appearing in the flesh which heerein was neuer blamed by Christ or his Apostles or the learned Fathers it is no sinne to keepe set dayes of fasting III. The third proofe is taken from reason grounded on the authority of Scriptures And my reasons in that kinde shall be these two 1. Nothing is sinfull but that which is forbidden by Gods Law for (a) 1 Ioh. 3.4 Sinne is the transgression of the Law as the Apostle defineth it But to keep set dayes of fasting is no where forbidden by any Lawe of God It followeth And therefore to keepe such dayes is no sinne Against this Argument nothing can be excepted vnlesse some Text of Gods Law can be shewed which condemneth or forbiddeth the obseruation of such standing times And for that purpose some obiect the place of Saint Paul (a) Gal. 4.10 Yee obserue dayes and moneths and times and yeeres I am afraid of you lest I haue bestowed on you labour in vaine But to this the reply is easie and may be borrowed out of Beza for he expounding a like place in Saint Paul One man esteemeth one day aboue another another esteemeth euery day alike the Apostle heere saith this learned man b Agit non do quouis dierum discrimine sed de eo demum quod in Lege Mosis pracipitur vt apparet ex eo quod scriptum eâ—â— Coloss 2.16 Beza in Rom. 14.6 doth not speake of euery difference of dayes but of that only which is prescribed in Moses his Law as is apparent by that which is written Coloss 2.16 Let no man iudge you in meate or in drinke or in respect of an holy day or of the new moone or of the Sabbath dayes which are a shaddow of things to come c. And so I say The Apostle in the place alledged doth not speake of euery obseruing of dayes and times but such onely as was prescribed by Moses and is abolished by Christ And this exposition of this place is as directly prooued by that other to the Colossians as that whereof Beza speaketh The place then alledged doth not proue that standing times of fasting are forbidden by Gods Law Arg. 2. The keeping of set times for the doing of holy duties is a thing found to be profitable and vsefull in the life of a Christian because it may serue for the more constant performance
beene vsed to gresse this duety with much earnestnesse in their Sermons to the people a Cui dabis quod tibi abstulisti Ita ieiuna vt alio manducante prandisse te gaudeas August in Psalm 42. in fine To whom wilt thou giue that which by fasting thou hast spaâ— d from thy selfe saith Saint Augustine So fast that by anothers eating thou mayest be glad that thou hast dyned And againe b Ieiunia nostra vt plena sint suffarta misericordiae pinguedine sageâ—â—ntur demus surientibus prandium nostrum De Temp. Serm. 65. pag. 232. C. That our Fasts may be full let them be fatted with Almes-deedes Let vs giue our dinner to them that be hungry And againe c Praecipuè sanè pauperum mementote vt quod vobis parcius viuendo suberahitis in coelosti Thesauro reponatis Accipiat esuriens Christus quod leiunans minùs accipit Christianus Castigatio volentis fiat sustentatio non habentis c. Augustin de diuers Serm. 74. cap. 10. Pag. 500. A. Especially saith he be mindfull of the poore that what you subtract from your selues yee may lay it vp in the Treasury of Heauen Let hungring Christ receiue that which the fasting Christian doth abate c. And so Leo d Jeiunijs nostris egentium refectio suffragetur Leo Serm. 10. de Quadrages Let the feeding of the poore giue testimony to our fasting And e Quod suis quisque delicijs subtrahit debilibus impendat egenis Leo de Quadrages Serm. 11. That which a man doth with-draw from his dainty fare let him bestow vpon the impotent and needy And to like purpose speake others also Dist 3. Religious fasts are of two sorts they are eyther publique or priuate fasts Publique I call those when a whole company as when a Citie Towne or Parish doe by publique order ioyne together in this seruice Such a fast was that of the Nineuites in the third Chapter of Ionas and that which was prescribed to the Iewes in the fourth of Ester Secondly the priuate fast is when men out of their owne deuotions and by their owne direction doe in their priuate houses vse abstinence in a religious manner Such a fast was that of Daniel mentioned in his tenth Chapter and that of Nehemiah in the first Chapter of his Booke And both these kindes both the priuat and publique fasts haue their approbation in Scriptures and are commendable if they be vsed aright as appeareth by the examples alledged already and will more fully appeare afterwards in the processe of this discourse Dist 4. Religious fasts whether priuate or publique may againe be diuided into two sorts For some are extraordinary and others are ordinary The extraordinary are such as are kept vpon some speciall and extraordinary occasion as eyther for remouing of some speciall iudgement then eyther felt or feared or for obtayning of some benefit or blessing whereof then there is especiall need and exigence Such was the fast of the Nineuites which they vndertooke vpon the feare of destruction threatned by the Prophet And such was the fast of Dauid which he vndertooke vpon occasion of his Childes sicknesse and danger of death in him The ordinary fasts are such as are kept for an vsuall exercise of the soule without any other cause than such as may befall euery one of vs at all times Now for the former of these kindes of fasting it is generally agreed that they are both lawfull and vsefull but concerning the later that is the ordinary there hath a question beene made by some later Diuines who dispute determine against the vse of them But as I take it the case is cleare enough to the contrary And my reasons are first because this kinde of fast hath approbation in the Scriptures and secondly because it hath the profitable vses for our soules for which religious fasts were ordayned First Reason first from Scriptures because it hath approbation from Scriptures For I reade that God himselfe commanded an ordinary fast to be obserued by the Iewes euery yeere Leuit. 16.29 This saith hee shall be a Statute for euer vnto you that in the seuenth moneth in the tenth day of the moneth yee shall afflict your soules c. Where that the afflicting spoken of was partly by inward sorrow for their sinnes and partly by outward abstinence from meat and other contentments of nature is agreed vpon by all sides And that this abstinence and humiliation was an ordinary exercise of pietie cannot bee doubted if we consider that it was appoynted euery yeere and in the same moneth and vpon the same day For it is not to bee imagined that extraordinary occasions of humiliation should happen euery yeere vnto the same people and at the same time and vpon the same day And if Almightie God himselfe saw it to be so vsefull for the Iewes to humble themselues by an ordinary fast for their ordinary sins and in the ordinary course of their liues why should it be thought sinfull in Christians to humble themselues in the same manner and vpon the same occasion Secondly we finde in Scriptures that the (a) Matt. 9.14 Pharises fasted often and for example sake that they (b) Luk. 18.12 fasted twice in the weeke and that concerning those fasts of theirs our Lord gaue his Disciples this warning (c) Matt. 6.16 When yee fast bee not as the hypocrites of a sad countenance for they disfigure their faces that they may appeare vnto men to fast Verily I say vnto you they haue their reward Out of which passages wee may gather two things First that these fasts of the Pharises were ordinary fasts and obserued by them in their ordinary course of life and for an ordinary exercise of religion For that these men should so often haue extraordinary occasions especially that euery weeke twice is a thing that cannot be conceiued with any probability or reason Secondly that these fasts such as they were were not vnlawfull in themselues That I proue first because our Sauiour where hee purposely taxeth their vices reproueth them for their purpose not for their practice of fasting or not because they did fast but because they did fast to gaine prayse of men for it Now had they offended in both out of doubt our Lord would haue reproued them for both and haue fore-warned his Disciples to beware of both Secondly because in saying of the Pharises that they fasting for vaine glory had their reward hee meant that they might not expect any reward from God seeing they did it for the applause of men and hee implyeth by necessary consequence that if they had not marred this good worke with so ill an end they might haue had a reward from God for it And if God reward ordinary fasts what man will dare to condemne them Luke 2.37 Thirdly wee reade againe of Anna the Prophetesse that shee departed not from the Temple but serued God with fastings and
may fast with full stomachs Saint Basil met with some such in his dayes whom he warneth and threatneth for it Praua est cogitatio c. It is a gracelesse thought saith he to say with our selues (b) Hom. 2. de Ieiun pag. 336. A. Now the fasting dayes are bidden 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Let vs therefore now drowne our selues in swilling excesse For will any man saith he when he is to marry a chaste Matrone make an introduction to such a marriage by bringing Strumpets into his house And in the places of Popish ignorance it is a most vsuall practice c Conamur per crapulam lasciuiam vlcisci dieâ—â—etunij quasique de ieiunioa enturo sumere poeâ—as â—â—lesa de Quaâ—â—â— cap. 12. 〈◊〉 70. to make way for Lent Fast by surfeting at Shrouetide But a religious Christian should consider that if he meane to fast rightly he must make his abstinence to be a chastening to nature which cannot be if his fasting be but a forbearing of meate till his former gluttonie be concocted II. Secondly there is required in a true Fast that our other carriage and behauiour be suteable to this of our fasting My meaning is that as wee chasten and afflict the body by abstinence from meate so we should doe by refraining from the other delights and comforts of nature For else the other pleasure would vndoe that which by fasting we seeke to effect because they will hinder our humiliation and repentance Nor is it seemely to ioyne gay clothes and sweet perfumes and pleasant musicke and frolike behauiour with this exercise of humiliation and sorrow no more then it is for him that weareth a mourning gowne for his friends death to flaunt it in a white hat and a gay feather and a coloured suite at the same time And for this cause it is that in Scriptures where fasting is spoken of there is mention also of sackcloth and ashes and hard lodging and forbearing of perfumes As for example (a) Dan. 10.3 Daniel forbore sweet oyntments And (b) 2. Sam. 12.16 Dauid lay all night vpon the earth And (c) Ester 4.1 Mordecai put on sackcloth and besprent himselfe with ashes And the (d) Ionas 3.6 King of Nineueh layed off his robe and couered himselfe with sack-cloth and sate in ashes And (e) Ioel 2.16 Ioel requireth Let the Bridegroome goe foorth of his Chamber and the Bride out of her Closet And our (f) Mar. 2.19 Luk. 5.34 Lord saith The children of the Bride-chamber cannot fast while the Bridegroome is with them The meaning is that Marriage-mirth is vnseasonable in a time of fasting And therefore if a Fast must be kept let the Bridegroome goe foorth of his wedding Chamber as Ioel speaketh or if Marriage-mirth bee necessary let the humiliation of fasting be deferred till an other time as our Sauiour implyeth And because of this disproportion between mirth and fasting God reiecteth the Fast of the Iewes for this cause among others because in the day of their Fast they found pleasure And from the consideration of these things it is that the Hebrewes were wont in their Fasts (a) Ainsw on Leu. 16.29 to abstaine from foure things that import mirth and reioycing from washing themselues from anoynting from fine apparell and from the vse of the marriage bed And so when wee fast all our behauiour must bee such as beseeme mourning the condition of a deiected suppliant b An putatis illuÌ„ ieiunare qui primo diluculo non ad Ecclesiam vigilat sed surgens congregat seruulos disponit retia cánes producit saltus syluasque per lustrat Ambros to 5. ser 4â— pag. 58. v. Aug. de Diuers Ser. 74. cap. 8. At least thus much is necessary that we abstaine from all delights of the world that be disproportionable to the state of a mournfull penitent III. Thirdly there is required in a true Fast that the inward affection of the heart be answerable to the outward behauiour of the body that is that as by abstaining from the comforts of this life we chasten the body so by a godly sorrow and vnfained repentance we humble our soules for our sinnes And because true repentance includeth or implyeth amendment of life and an heartie practice of all good duties therfore it is to be vnderstood that with a true Fast there is necessarily required an holy life And the reason hereof is plaine because God doth not care for the opus operatum the bare worke done nor doth fasting please him because it is an abstinence from meat but because it is a signe of repentance and an help to true deuotion and an holy life To this purpose we finde God speaking to the Iewes (a) Zach. 7.5 When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seuenth moneth did ye at all fast vnto mee euen to mee As if he should say Ye did it not for my sake and I owe you no thankes for it nor doe I take it as a part of my seruice But why was it not done for Gods sake and to his seruice The reason is intimated in the words following (b) vers 9 10.11 12. The Lord said Execute true iudgement and shew mercy and compassion euery man to his brother and oppresse not the widdow c. But they refused to hearken and pulled away the shoulder c. And to like purpose but more plainely in another place (c) Isa 58.4 Yee fast saith God for strife and debate and to smite with the fist of wickednes Ye shall not fast as ye doe this day to make your voyce to be heard on high Is it such a Fast that I haue chosen Wilt thou call this a Fast and an acceptable day to the Lord Hee meaneth that they fasted as if they repented for their sinne and meant to serue God but they while they kept their Fast continued in their sinnes and that this was not a true Fast that God euer did require or would accept But if this bee not the true Fast what then is Why It followeth in the next words (d) vers 6 7. Is not this the Fast that I haue chosen to loose the hands of wickednes to vndoe the heauie burdens and to let the oppressed goe free that ye breake euery yoke Is it not to deale thy bread to the hungry and that thou bring the poore that are cast out to thy house When thou seest the naked that thou couer him c The summe and intent of which words is that a true Fast such as God doth require and will requite is to be ioyned with the practice of good workes For the manner of speech is like to that of Saint Iames where he saith Iames 2.27 that pure religion and vndefiled is this to visit the fatherlesse and widdowes in their affliction and keepe himselfe vnspotted of the world Where hee meaneth not that religion which is a dutie toward GOD doth formally consist
and vaine-glory And so we may fast by outward abstinēce and receiue no good but hurt by it And therefore for preuenting of this euill we must doe in our humiliations as God requireth vs to doe when hee correcteth vs that is (c) 1 King 8.47 bethink our selues (d) Ezek. 18.28 Hagg. 1.5 7. consider our waies (e) Isa 42.25 57.1 lay them to heart And for this purpose that our fasting may profit vs in its season it will be requisite vpon our fasting-dayes to set apart some time for holy thoughts and good meditations and other exercises suteable to a time of humiliation and repentance And if more may not be spared by reason of other occasions yet so much time I presume euery man may allot to this worke as he spareth from his dinner and the refreshing of his body And the more any man is scanted of time to be wholly imployed on this worke the more he should striue to fasten his hart on these holy thoughts euen while he is about his worldly occasions And if men doe seriously and vnfeignedly bend their minds this way I nothing doubt but they will finde so much liberty for this worke as may make their fasting to bring good affections vnto their soules These be the conditions which as I conceiue are requisit in an holy East make vse of them and doubt not of the successe CHAP. V. In what cases and for what purposes Fasting serueth to obtaine helpe and fauour from God FAsting rightly vsed and with the conditions already mentioned is very auaileable and of great vse in the life of a Christian For beside the spirituall helps that wee may haue from it for furthering our deuotion whereof I spake before it is also a powerfull meanes to obtaine helpe and mercie from God in diuers necessary cases or rather vpon euery occasion wherein we doe stand in need of Gods speciall fauour and assistance For I. First and in generall it is auaileable to obtaine Gods fauour and goodwill toward vs and consequently to incline and moue him to helpe and protect vs and to prouide for vs all good things and to grant vs all our iust and lawfull desires And this it doth for diuers causes or in diuers respects 1. Because Fasting is an exercise of humiliation and subiection whereby we doe submit and cast our selues downe before Gods feete as vnworthy in respect of our many sinnes to vse any the least of his creatures And humiliation is a ready way to obtaine fauour By it (a) 1 King 20 31 c. Benhadad won the heart of the King of Israel not onely to spare his life but to intreate him with all kindnesse though he had found much hard measure from him immediately before And by it sinfull men who haue offended God by their sinnes may finde ready fauour at Gods hands For (a) Iam. 4.6 he resisteth the proud and giueth grace to the humble And if men (b) 1 Pet. 5.6 humble themselues vnder the mighty hand of God he will exalt them in due time And (c) Isa 66.2 All these things hath mine hand made saith the Lord but to this man will I looke euen to him that is poore and of a contrite spirit and trembleth at my words Which is as if he should say The heauens and the earth and the seas and all things within them all of them bee mine for I made them and I preserue them and I may command them and make vse of them at my pleasure but among them all my delight is and I make choyce to dwell and reside with him that humbleth himselfe before me It followeth And if humiliation be so welcome to God fasting must needs obtaine his fauour when it is rightly vsed 2. Because Fasting is an exercise of Repentance and a meanes to worke reformation and amendment of life And Repentance and amendment is the ready way to obtaine mercie and fauour For (d) Ioh. 9.31 We know saith the blinde man now restored to his sight that God heareth not sinners but if any man be a worshipper of God and doth his will him he heareth In which sentence there are two things considerable 1. The sentence it selfe God heareth not sinners that is God doth not respect the prayer of sinners which persist in any sinne without repenting and reforming themselues nor is it reason that he should care to fulfill their desires who haue no care to fulfill his Lawes But if any man be a worshipper of God and doth his will c. That is if any man endeuour to serue God by forsaking sinne and performing good duties GOD heareth that mans prayer and will not deny him any request that may be for his good Secondly we may consider in this saying the certainty and vndoubted truth of it We know saith he he saith not we thinke or we hope or we are perswaded of it but we know it as a thing that is cleere and out of question Againe Wee know he doth not say I know or you know or the learned Doctors know but Wee I and you and all doe agree in this principle That God reiecteth the prayers of sinners but (a) Psal 34.13 his eares are open to the cry of the righteous and (b) Ps 145.19 he will fulfill the desire of them that feare him he also will heare their cry and will saue them And if amendment of life and practice of righteousnes be so powerfull with God then fasting rightly vsed cannot want his effect 3. Because fasting rightly vsed is a meanes to eleuate the minde and to enflame a zeale and deuotion and to set an edge on our prayers as was formerly declared But (c) Iam. 5.10 the effectuall feruent prayer of a righteous man auaileth much saith the Apostle And consequently fasting is a good meanes to impetrate grace and fauour In these and such like respects fasting may steed vs with God to incline him to our prayers And therefore God himself reprouing the ill-gouern'd Fasts of the Iewes (a) Isa 58.4 Ye shall not saith he fast as yee doe this day to make your voyce to bee heard on high Where he signifieth that their ill handling of their Fasts was the cause that their prayers were not heard and implyeth withall that a right and well-ordered Fast would haue pierced the clouds and obtained audience in heauen II. Secondly and more particularly it may serue vs to obtaine fauour and mercy in these and such like speciall cases 1. If a man stand guiltie of sinne and lyable to Gods anger fasting may serue to appease Gods anger and to obtaine pardon of the sinne This end Ezrah had of his fasting For when the people had sinned in taking strange wiues first he confessed the sinne (b) Ezra 9.15 10.1 Behold O Lord God of Israel we are before thee in our trespasses for wee cannot stand before thee because of this And secondly hee betooke himselfe to abstinence and fasting
(e) Ezra 10.6 He did cate no bread nor drinke water for he mourned because of the transgression of them that had beene carried away And lastly (d) vers 19. he tooke order that they did both put away their wiues and being guiltie did offer a Ram of the flocke for their trespasse In which practice of this holy man it appeareth that fasting was one meanes by which he sought pardon for the sinne And to like purpose the Lord himselfe appointed the Iewes to ioyne fasting with repentance (e) Ioel 2.12 Turne ye vnto me with all your heart saith he and with fasting and with weeping and with mourning and rent your hearts c. For he is gracious and mercifull c. And for this cause some of the Learned say that (a) Act. 9. Paul did fast and pray for three dayes space that he might obtaine pardon for his former sinnes committed before his conuersion 2. If a man be lyable to Gods Iudgements and eyther be vnder the sense of some present crosse or in feare of some future euill fasting is a good meanes to preuent the one and to remoue the other Examples heereof wee haue in Scriptures For of the Nineuites we reade that when GOD had threatned (b) Ion. 3.4 Yet forty dayes and Nineueh shall be ouer throwne they beleeued God and proclaimed a Fast and put on sack-cloth and so they (c) vers vlt. preuented the iudgement And Ichosaphat when he and his people were in great danger by reason of a great Armie of Moabites and Ammonites that came against them (d) 2 Chro. 20.2 3. he feared and set himselfe to seeke the Lord and he proclaimed a Fast throughout all Iudah and by this meanes (e) v. 15 22 c hee escaped the danger And Dauid when his child was sicke and in danger of death (f) 2 Sam. 12.16 he fasted and prayed for his life And though God saw it not good at that time to spare the childs life yet by this it appeareth that Dauid knew fasting and prayer to be an ordinary and effectuall meanes to auert Iudgements or else hee would not haue vsed it Yea and so powerfull is fasting for this purpose that (g) 1. King 21.27 29. Ahab by his though no sound fasting did preuent a worldly iudgement And our Sauiour telleth vs (h) Mat. 17.21 that there are some such diuels as cannot be cast out of the possessed but by prayer fasting assuring vs heereby that when no other meanes can yet prayer and fasting may preuaile 3. If a man haue neede of some speciall blessing or merey from God fasting is a good meanes to obtaine it This may be declared by the example of Ezrah For he and his Country-men the men of Iudah were to goe vp to Ierusalem from Babylon the place of their captiuity and many lets they found in the way and little help for so great a iourney and heereupon (a) Ezra 8.21 I proclaimed a Fast saith he that we might afflict our selues before our God to seeke of him a right way for vs and for our little ones and for all our substance Where we may note that the thing which hee desired was that God would direct them and leade them in a right way in safety and without danger and the means that he vsed to obtaine this was fasting The successe whereof what it was is declared afterward where Ezrah saith (b) vers 23. So we fasted and besought our God for this and hee was entreated by vs. And to like purpose it is that the Church of Antioch when they were to send Paul and Barnabas about the worke of the Ministery and preaching of the Gospell (c) Act. 13.3 they fasted and prayed and layed their hands on them and so sent them about the worke Yea and our (d) Mar. 4.2 Lord himselfe being to enter vpon his Propheticall office began with fasting and thereby prepared himself for that glorious worke as may appeare hereafter more fully in the proper place By all which we may see what commodities and benefits we may reape by this exercise not onely for our soules our spirituall profit but for our bodies also and our welfare in the world And hence for conclusion of this poynt I deduce and inferre three Aduertisements for our further vse 1. We may hence obserue one speciall reason why we are many times afflicted and after long griefe finde little ease and it may be because we do not repent of our sinnes before we beg mercy or if we vse some kinde of repentance yet it is not with that sorrow such chastening of our selues as God doth expect and the case doth require For in Scriptures we finde that Gods people if eyther they felt any present scourge or feared any future danger then they betooke themselues presently to their prayers and fasting and sackcloth and by this meanes they haue gotten victory ouer enemies and reliefe in time of dearth and freedome from intended mischiefes and case and comfort in all cases of distresse And if wee should vse the same meanes why might wee not expect the same successe For the Apostle speaking of Abrahams faith (a) Rom. 4.23 24. that it was imputed to him for righteousnes addeth that it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him but for vs also to whom it shall be imputed if we beleeue on him that raised vp Iesus our Lord from the dead And elsewhere he saith of the many examples of Gods Iudgements vpon sinners that (b) 1 Cor. 10.6 11. these things happened to them for examples and are written for our admonition that we should not lust after euill things as they lusted And so seeing such things are recorded in Scriptures concerning Fasting wee may and must conclude that these things were not written for those ancient seruants of God onely that they by this meanes obtained such great blessings but for our sakes also and to admonish vs that if we vse the same meanes we shall attaine the same end And therefore if any of vs haue beene long afflicted and yet are not deliuered let vs consider whether we haue not beene defectiue in this dutie and for want of humiliation haue missed of the blessing Surely if we find not ease eyther we haue not humbled our selues as we should or the thing that we desire is no such blessing to vs as wee doe imagine 2. We may from hence learne how to make our prayers powerfull with God For God hath appointed vs to aske and hath tyed himselfe to giue but it is vpon condition that we (a) 1. Ioh. 5.14 aske according to his will and in such sort as we ought to aske For (b) Iam. 4.3 ye aske receiue not because ye aske amisse saith the Apostle But what is that condition that God requireth in our prayers And how may wee aske that we misse not of our requests Why surely one meanes
that may make all our prayers the more effectuall is if they be feruent and with feeling and one condition on which God doth grant some petitions is if they proceede from a soule humbled with fasting For as our Lord saith that there is a kinde of Diuels that cannot bee driuen out but by prayer and fasting so I may say that some sinnes may be pardoned and some iudgements auerted and some blessings obtained by prayer ioyned with ordinary humiliation and repentance for it cannot be expected that wee should fast so often as we may and ought to pray yet some sinnes there may be of so deepe a dye that ordinary sorrow may not be admitted for their expiation and some blessings there may be of that worth and of that importance that they may seeme too lightly esteemed if they were too easily obtayned And of such I may say these kinds of sinnes are not pardoned and these kinds of blessings are not obtayned but by prayer and fasting And if the pardon of greater sinnes and the purchase of greater gifts bee to be sought for by prayer and fasting then in the lesser of them we shall speede the sooner if we come in the same manner If then wee desire to make our prayers powerfull and to pierce the heauens we must help to list them vp with this wing of fasting as the Fathers call it 3. We may hence gather how necessary fasting is for all sorts and at all times and in speciall for our selues in these dayes For to say nothing of the spirituall helps that it hath for increase of grace and deuotion which alone consideration should moue any Christian if not to be in loue with it yet at least to giue way to it and to insist only in the further blessings now mentioned who is there that is not priuie to himselfe of some sinne which without pardon may be his ruine And who is there that either doth not now suffer or may not iustly feare some iudgement hereafter which hee would gladly preuent or auoyd And againe who is there that doth not want and desire some blessing gift of God that may greatly concerne his body or his soule or his estate But if any man be so happy as to haue need of none of these mercies or rather so vnhappy as not to feele know that he hath need of them all or at least many of them yet if wee looke abroad vpon the face of the Christian world wee may see many of our brethren that serue the same Lord robbed of their goods depriued of their liberty butchered in their own dwellings yea and many houses burned downe Townes laid waste fields left vntilled and streets and high-wayes swimming in bloud and enduring al other miseries which the cruelty of bloody warres and insolency of proud Conquerers doe vse to bring with them And beside all this who can tell whose turne is next and at whose doore the Trumpet may blow Quis talia fando temperet à lachrymis A compassionate Christian cannot thinke on this without watery eyes and a bleeding heart And therefore if wee should haue no present cause of our owne yet if there bee any bowels within vs we haue great cause to weepe and wish with Ieremie that our eyes were a fountaine of teares to bemone the miseries of our brethren and the distresse of Gods Church And how much greater cause then haue wee with Ezrah and Nehemiah Daniel to humble our selues before our God and with fasting and weeping and sorrow to intreate Gods fauour for his Church that he will be gracious to his people will spare his owne inheritance and will at length turne againe the captiuity of his Zion that wee may reioyce in his saluation and giue him thankes in the great Congregation Surely if in such cases any man can thinke that there is no neede of fasting I must needes say I cannot but thinke that hee hath no feeling CHAP. VI. Why Christ fasted at this time HItherto I haue spoken of Fasting in abstracto as it may be considered in by it selfe It followeth now to say something of it in subiecto as it was vsed by our Sauiour And hereof the Euangelist saith Hee fasted forty dayes and forty nights which words being ioyned with that which is said in the first verse that then hee was led into the wildernesse and fasted meaning after hee was baptized and as it were now consecrated for his publique ministery doe giue vs occasion to enquire into and to consider of these fiue poynts 1. Why Christ fasted at this time 2. Why hee fasted so long 3. When wee should or may lawfully fast 4. How long wee should continue our fasts 5. What wee are to thinke of the forty dayes Fast commonly called Lent-fast And first Why our Lord did fast at this time I finde nothing expresly said in the Text but by considering the circumstances of Christs fast and by comparing other Scriptures with this Text wee may conceiue diuers reasons of his so doing which will be profitable for vs to take notice of which so far as I do now apprehend may be these I. First wee may well thinke that he fasted that hereby he might performe a part of that humiliation and those sufferings which hee voluntarily vndertooke for our sakes For our Lord beeing equall with God and farre aboue the infirmities of our nature (a) Philip. 2.6 7 8. tooke vpon him the forme of a seruant and humbled himselfe euen vnto death In which his humiliation there be diuers steps and degrees For the last and greatest and that which is the perfection of all was his death and passion vpon the Crosse and yet his meane birth his poore estate his reproches in the world his want of things necessary his debilities of nature and other such infirmities and wants were all of them as preparatiues to his death and parts of those sufferings which hee sustained for our sinnes For which cause it is that the Apostle doth not onely say that (b) Rom. 5.8 hee dyed for vs but saith also that (c) 2 Cor. 8.9 hee beeing rich became poore for our sakes And so by the same reason wee may say that he being God became man for our sakes and being strong became weake for our sakes and being glorious became contemptible for our sakes and beeing Lord of all became destitute of all things for our sakes And so in like sort hee sweat and feared and fasted and thirsted and hungred and all for our sakes And therefore of his fasting the thing that is proper to this place the Church speaketh thus in her prayers (a) Collect on the first Sunday in Lent O Lord which for our sakes didst fast forty dayes and forty nights This then I take to be one reason He therefore fasted in this manner and the rather perhaps at this time when he was in more speciall manner to goe about the worke of our saluation because it