rule ouer all that not only those that are neerest vnto thee but the farthest also euen to the vttermost ends of the earth ought to yeeld their obedience to thee True it is that in David we found very good things and such as might well commend him to vs vnto the place that thou at the length didst call him vnto towards thee a speciall good regard to thy will and a delight in thee and thine and towards others a very good heart not only to his acquaintance and friends but euen to straungers and enemies also But whence had David these but from thee In him they were but in some measure and in comparison but in small portions neither in thee they are immeasurable and in greater aboundance than can be conceiued He was but a shepheard at the first though it pleased thee after to make him a King The basenes of his estate before might be no hinderance at all vnto him to his further aduancement when the time was come wherein thou diddest meane to bestowe it vpon him Thy Sonne our Lord hath been thou knowest a Shepheard alreadie he disdayned not to abase himselfe vnto it and he stucke not for any traueile or paines that did apperteyne to the full accomplishment of it And should he not haue as readie a way thence to the kingdome as David had Or could the sonne of Ishai bee so aduaunced and shall not the eternall Sonne of the Father the God of all power and glorie and to whom only al kingdom and maiestie doth only belong haue as readie a way vnto it Our selues we graunt by whom we would haue this kingdom of thine to be aduanced are farre short in al such graces as were meete for those that should bee vouchsafed that speciall fauour But neither is there any flesh and bloud in thy sight found worthie of any such fauour neither is it meete that for our vnworthines thy kingdome should not bee aduanced on earth in such sort as to thy glorie doth apperteyne and may stand with thy pleasure here on earth And seeing that it pleased thee in the face of thine annoynted to vouchsafe that fauour to David thy seruant notwithstanding that of himselfe he was no better then any others and notwithstanding those great infirmities of his that were found in him after his calling wee humbly beseech thee in those thy mercies so to couer whatsoeuer corruption is in vs as that for it thou suffer not the aduancement of thy kingdome to be hindred among vs. Israel thou seest for a great part of vs is yet in bondage vnto those Philistims of ours and by them kept vnder in miserable slauerie and grosse idolatrie and such as thou hast set vp among vs to proceede and go forward with this our deliuerance do for the most part so little remember that part of their duetie that therein they do but very little and many of them nothing at all Saul did somewhat and merueilous well in comparison of many of ours not only when his kingdome was better confirmed as agaynst the Philistims and Amalekites also but euen at his first enterance likewise when as he was but newly come to his kingdome and the same did hang but loosely vnto him as yet as in that valiant expedition of his agaynst the Ammonites at Iabesh-Gilead But the lesse O Lord that they haue done and are disposed as yet to do the more needfull is it for thée to take some further order for it both for the reliefe of thy distressed people and for the aduancement of thy kingdome among vs. The lesse likewise that our meane and base estate here in this life is capable of so great prosperitie and glorie as to thy kingdome of right apperteyneth the more we desire that it would please thee to hasten the time of the second comming of our Lord and Sauiour that he taking downe this Tabernacle on earth may set vp thy pallace for euer in heauen and there aduaunce thy glorious kingdome euen to the full The cause O Father wee knowe is thine and wee are thine and now hauing made our prayers to thee we humbly beseech thee to heare the same euen in the face of thine annoynted Iesus Christ thy Sonne our Lord to whom with thee and the holy Ghost be ascribed al power thanks kingdome and glorie for euer and euer Amen The exercise that David vsed more specially described Of the exercise of David in those Psalmes that he made in the time of trouble 19. IN what sort David exercised himselfe in those his troubles is alreadie declared so far as the course of the historie yéelded But then it was noted withall that it might be farther gathered out of the Psalmes those I meane that he made in those his troubles as occasion from time to time was giuen him Of which as then I promised to 〈◊〉 somewhat to the end of the treatise so now I meane by the greatnes of God héere to performe it that so we may with one 〈◊〉 the selfe-same labour see both how David in that case was occupied and how we also might in these daies of ours to good purpose imploy our selues And first the truth is that if we were of that good temper that David was of we néeded none other In whâ—â—â— they 〈◊〉 fit us likâ—â— but euen those Psalmes in order as they lye that then he made so oft as our occasion is none other then was that of his wherevpon they were made For then being in like sort exercised they would as fitly agree vnto vs as they did vnto him if we were of such disposition as that we could so fitly and redily apply them to our case as he at that time did apply them to his But then must we be of a quick and a nimble spirit and well experienced in such maner of exercise as it pleaseth the Lord to vse towards his children so that we may at once and as it were with one breath redily fall in with all sorts of passions and affections whatsoeuer that the spirit of God in such case stirreth vp in those whom it pleaseth him to exercise For so shall we find that David did in most of the Psalmes that euer he made not only in these that now we speake of but in most of the residue also sometime beginning with a praier and by and by falling into thanksgiuing sometime acknowledging his great feare of the enimie and streight way growing to inuincible boldnes sometime complaining of the great corruption of the world and forthwith reposing himselfe in the goodnes of God But the formes and examples hereof are so many and diuers that it were hard to reckon them vp and it is sufficient for vs vnto the purpose that now we haue in hand to be thus far warned before that we can hardly apply most of the Psalmes to our vse sauing only when we are in such sort exercised as David was at the time when he made them and vnlesse we
vexed by that euill spirit that from the Lord was sent vnto him The towardnes or likelihood that David was in to come to the Kingdom was first in that sentence of God that now it should be giuen to another then for that David was likeliest to be that other that God did speake of For the text doth not shew that he knew as yet of Davids annointing and because that he neuer said any thing to Samuel about it nor otherwise maketh any mention of it it is the most likely that he did not knowe of it Yet thus much he knew that d 13.14.15.23.26.28 Samuel had told him twise alreadie that the Lord had cast him away and now prouided himselfe of another and he might well see that David was likeliest to be that other both for that e 17.34.36.38.51 God had wrought such things by him and for the f 18.7 fauour that now he had gotten Concerning the maner of this his first persecution first he sought by secret meanes The maner of it First in secret to haue taken away the life of David and then he set in hand more openly with it Secretly he did attempt first by his owne hands to haue done it and then by the Philistims By his owne hands he would first haue done it at such time g 18.10 as he was in one of his fits as David was playing on his instrument to mitigate his passions euen on the morrow after that they came home from the slaughter of Goliath and the Philistims h 18.11 twise together he had in his mind for to haue executed this mischeuous purpose A wonderfull thing that he should be so minded though he had bin so minded but once not only in respect of the fact it selfe but also in respect of diuers circumstances thereunto apperteining The fact it selfe must néedes haue bin wilfull murther then the which there néeded no greater both to haue conuinced him of great iniquitie before men and vtterly to haue cast himselfe away before God The circumstances that are do chiefly appertaine vnto their persons but partly also vnto the time The persons are two Saul and David Saul being the King and so consequently being ordeined to be the mainteiner of equitie and a buckler and shield vnto the oppressed ought not to haue made such a fault himselfe besides that at that time being in one of his fits and sensibly féeling the hand of God vpon him for his former sinnes he should rather haue vsed it to his further amendment then so to take the aduantage of it to a further mischiefe David was not only innocent but also had in that verie matter for the which he should haue bin destroied deserued marueilous well both of all generally for that he had giuen so great an ouerthrowe vnto the common enimie of all and especially of Saul because they were by reason of the person that he susteined enemies to none so much as to him The time when he would haue done this mischiefe was the verie next day after that they were welcomed home from the victorie the people reioicing and singing vnto them that Saul had slaine his thousand and David his ten thousand as vnseasonable a time for such a purpose as could be deuised because that as yet the benefit that he had receiued was so fresh that it ought so to haue filled all the powers of his mind with all thankefull remembrāce as that there might haue bin no corner at all in his heart wherein so much as a little spark of so great vnthankfulnes might find any place In that he had this purpose twise it doth both argue his vnthankfulnes and ill dealing to be so much the greater and might be withall a warning to David not to thinke that because Saul had once failed when first he attempted to do him that mischiefe he would neuer for shame attempt it againe When this way failed he then thought good that it should be done by the Philistims his hand now should not be vpon him And that by the Philistims it might better be done he i 18.13 both gaue him the charge of a thousand men and would needes k 18.17.21 set him foorth one of his daughters in mariage also In giuing him charge ouer such a band of souldiers he would seeme not only to put him in trust but also to seeke his preferment and honour and yet in truth he sought nothing else but his ouerthrow hoping that by that occasion more boldly encountering with the enemie one time or other he should be ouerthrowne In setting him forth one of his daughters in mariage and in such sort as he did both l 18.22.25 earnestly labouring it by such meanes as he vsed and m 18.25 requiring of him no other dowry but an hundreth foreskins of the Philistims although in truth he sought n 18.17.21.25 nothing else in this also but only his ouerthrow yet herein did he séeke it more cunningly and therefore to David so much more dangerously for that hereby he would seeme both to beare a speciall fauour to David and in the ouerthrow of the enemy chiefly to respect the cause of religion The former of them is plaine inough in it selfe The latter also doth plainly appeare for that he doth not require their heads or other parts but only their foreskins which in those dayes was a speciall difference betwixt the people of God and the heathen When he had made some triall of those secret practises Then openly and found that they neuer came to any such proofe as he desired but on the other side o 18.27.28 that they were meanes to make David both much stronger and more renouned then he was before being able now to stay no longer he p 18.29.19.1 brake forth into open persecution and gaue speciall charge both vnto Jonathan and to all his seruants one way or other to make him away wherein it seemeth that he vsed Ionathan as one of whome he might be assured the others for the spedier dispatch of the matter It might séeme that he might make sure of Ionathan both because he was his sonne and especially because that the cause was his so néere as it was For being the Kings sonne and next to the Crowne by lineall descent it was likely in reason that he would haue bin as readie as Saul to haue taken David out of the way And his other seruants being many it was likely also that séeing he gaue the charge to them all it must needs be quickly dispatcht either for emulation among themselues who should first gratifie the King therein or for that some one or other among so manie was like to be found that would attempt any mischiefe whatsoeuer hauing once the Kings commandement for it Howbeit Ionathan héereupon so q 19.4.5 laboured the King after that r 19.2.3 first he had warned David to keepe himselfe close that he wrought a reconciliation betwixt
Psalme of the third sort The Argument In this likewise he doth more specially expresse his confidence yet not so directly of the enemies now but only on behalfe of himself and others of the godlier sort shewing that although their case bee hard yet shal they not miscarie but shall haue a readie helpe in their mightie and merciful God By direction whereof we likewise in the cause that we haue in hand and so farre as our selues are no hinderance vnto our selues are to rayse vp our faith vnto the fulnesse of this assurance that we finde in him The Psalme The 8. Psalme GReat are the troubles of the righteous but the Lord delivereth him out of them all 34.19 Surely the Lord will not fayle his people neither will he forsake his inheritance 94.14 The Angell of the Lord pitcheth round about them that feare him and delivereth them 34.7 The eyes of the Lord are upon the righteous his eares are open unto their cry 18. I know that the Lord will auenge the afflicted and judge the poore 140.12 Why art thou cast downe my soule and unquiet within me wayt on God for I will yet give him thanks for the helpe of his praesence 42.5 Surely the righteous shall praise thy name the just shall dwel in thy praesence 140.13 For judgemēt shal return to justice al the upright in heart shal follow after it 94.15 For the righteous Lord loveth righteousnes his countenāce doth behold the just 11.7 For he will stand at the right hand of the poore to save him from them that would condemne his soule 109.30 He keepeth al his bones not one of them is broken 34.20 The Lord will graunt his louing kindnesse in the day and in the night will I sing of him even a prayer unto the God of my life 42.8 I will say unto God which is my rock why hast thou forgotten me why go I mourning when the enemie oppresseth me 9. Blessed are they that dwell in thine house they will ever prayse thee 84.4 Blessed is the man whose strength is in thee and in whose heart is thy wayes 5. Blessed is the man whom thou chasticest ô Lord and teachest him in thy law 94.12 That thou mayst give him rest from the dayes of evill whilest the pit is digged for the wicked 13. The lions do lack and suffer hunger but they which seeke the Lord shall want nothing that is good 34.10 Why art thou then cast downe my soule and why art thou disquieted within me wayt on God for I wil yet give him thanks he is my praesent help my God 43.5 Behold God is mine helper the Lord is with them that uphold my soule 54.4 My defence is in God who praeserveth the upright in heart 7.10 The Lord is my refuge and my God is the rock of my hope 94.22 He will send from heaven and save me from the reproofe of him that would swallow me God will send his mercie and his trueth 57.3 The Lord shal judge his people judge thou me ô Lord according to my righteousnesse and according to mine innocencie that is in me 7.8 For thy louing kindnes is ever before mine eyes therefore have I walked in thy trueth 26.3 I will rejoyce in God because of his word I trust in God and will not feare what flesh can do unto me 56.4 Thou hast given me more joy of heart then they have had when their wheat and their wine did abound 4.7 Why art thou cast downe my soule and why art thou disquieted within me wayt on God for I will yet give him thanks he is my praesent help and my God 42.11 I will call upon God and the Lord will save me 55.16 Evening and morning and at noone day will I pray and make a noyse and he will heare me 17. He hath delivered my soule in peace from the battell that was agaynst me for many were with me 18. God shall heare and afflict them even he that reigneth of old 19. O Lord of hosts blessed is the man that trusteth in thee 84.12 Let Israel wayt on the Lord from hence-forth for ever 131.3 The Argument Fourthly he vpbraideth his enemies triumpheth ouer then charging them with great malice in heart and the same to breake forth of them plentifully in word and deede and withal that they shal certeynly come to confusion to the comfort of the godly and to the glorie of God himself A very good course for vs also to follow in these dayes of ours and such as we neede not to estraunge from our selues whensoeuer we can finde in our hearts to clense vs truely from our wonted sinnes and in the goodnesse of this our cause to cleaue to the Lord. The Psalme The 9. Psalme IS it true ô ye congregation I speake ye justly ô sonnes of men judge ye vprightly 58.1 Yea rather ye imagine mischief in your hearts your hands execute crueltie upon the earth 2. The wicked are straungers from the wombe even from the bellie have they erred and speake lyes 3. Their poison is even like the poison of a serpent like the deaffe adder that stoppeth his eare 4. Which heareth not the voyce of the inchanter though he bee most expert in charming 5. O ye sonnes of men how long will ye turne my glorie into shame loving vanitie and seeking lyes 4.2 For be ye sure that the Lord hath chosen to himself a godly man the Lord will heare when I call unto him 3. Tremble and sinne not examine your owne heart upon your bed and be still 4. What doth thy deceitfull tung bring unto thee or what doth it auayle thee 120.3 It is as the sharpe arrowes of a mightie man and as the coales of Iuniper 4. Why boastest thou thy self in thy wickednesse ô man of power the loving kindnesse of God endureth daylie 52.1 Thy tongue imagineth mischief and is like a sharpe rasour that cutteth deceitfully 2. Thou doest love evill more then good and lies more then to speake the trueth 3. Thou lovest all words that may destroy ô deceitfull tung 4. So shall God destroy thee forever he shall take thee and plucke thee out of thy tabernacle and roote thee out of the land of the living 5. The righteous also shall see it and feare and shall laugh at him saying 6. Behold the man that tooke not God for his strength but trusted in the multitude of his riches and put his strength in his malice 7. He hath made a pit and digged it and is falne into the pit that he made 57.6 Because he remembred not to shewe mercie but persecuted the afflicted and poore man and the sorowfull hearted to slay him 109.16 As he loved cursing so shall it come unto