their Hearts were swelled up with Grief their Souls were inwardly pierced with excessive Sorrow which abundantly appeared by all the ways by which People use to express their sorrowful Thoughts and sad Apprehensions smiting their Breasts and rending their Garments which the Greek word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifieth howling and mourning with the Voice which is the signification of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Now it will be worth the while and very proper for the Day to consider what it was that moved them to all this Indeed the Hearts of Women by Nature are soft and tender and their Passions are sooner and more easily moved than those of Men but if we view the Object of their Grief we will not think it strange that these Women did thus bewail and lament it will be much more strange if we can restrain our Passions and refrain from weeping at the account of it and yet all know that the sight of a thing toucheth more sensibly than the hearing of it doth These Women had seen all which our Lord had hitherto suffered at the hands of wicked and sinful Men and had lively Apprehensions of what he was yet to suffer for the Death he was going to was known and ordinary but known only to be a vile shameful and most painful Death as upon other accounts so upon this that it was not a speedy but a lingering Death If they themselves were not Witnesses yet they well enough understood how he was seiz'd in the Garden as a Thief when he was most serious in Devotion and Prayer and dragged from thence to the High-Priest's Palace which ought to have been a Refuge to Innocence and a Safeguard against Indiscretions and an Unmerciful Threatment But alas even there they saw him unjustly used and most indiscreetly Handled falsely Accused illegally convicted of Blasphemy and other Crimes and all the rules of Discretion Civility and Good Manners broken in treating him He was Spit upon and Buffetted Blindfolded and smitten on the Cheek with a Prophesie who it was that smote thee By the break of Day he was hurried away to Pilate from him to Herod and back again to Pilate every one making their Sport of him After some Mock-Formalities of Law and Justice these Women saw him delivered to the Roman Soldiers a sort of Men who took Pleasure in Blood and Cruelty and then they beheld him dressed like a Fool with a Crown of Thorns a Purple Robe and a Reed instead of a Scepter because he was said to be the King of the Iews They saw him strip'd of these Ornaments of mocked Majesty and unmercifully Whipt and Scourged by the same Soldiers with Cords till Furrows were made in his Back and the Blood ran down his innocent Body And when all this would not satisfie the Malice of his Enemies they saw him given in exchange for a Villain and Notorious Robber and against all Law and Reason meerly upon the importunity of an unreasonable Multitude condemned to a Violent and Cruel Death and contrary to all Equity denied any respite or breathing time but instantly forced away to the place of Execution and made to bear that Cross on which he was to hang and pine away his Life in Pain and Torment Represent all this to your selves and consider if it be not sad and doleful who would not shed Tears at such a Sight May not this force Tears either from Man or Woman Suppose Jesus had been as bad and criminal as his Enemies would have made him yet such cruel and unmerciful Usage called for Compassion Quod non homini detur humanitati Even when it is necessary to satisfie the Law and to execute Justice Pity should be shewn to the Offender But if Pity and Compassion be due to Calamity and Misery even when there is guilt to deserve it what should be shewn when there is no Guilt at all If it should touch our hearts to see any of our Fellow-Creatures suffer though it be no more than the just Punishment of their Sins how should we be affected How should our Passions be stirred when unspotted Innocence and Vertue suffer These good Women knew that Jesus had no Crime they saw his very Enemies could not fix any upon him and that they were baffled when they undertook to prove any against him Nay he was not only innocent but also perfectly righteous he not only was guilty of no Ill but also he was one who went up and down doing good and had done many great and good and wonderful Works The Malice of his Enemies was not occasioned by any Fault of his but only by the Truth and Purity and Powerfulness of his Doctrine and by the Holiness and Integrity of his Life both which reproved their Errors their false Teaching their Hypocrisie and their Covetousness Add to all this his Quality which was the greatest in the World For tho' these Women were not yet instructed fully about his eternal Generation nor yet perhaps believed him to be the true Son of God equal with the Father as the Catholick Church doth teach and hath always taught and which must be believed if the Scriptures be true and genuine yet they believed him a Prophet and knew him to be a good Man mighty in Word and Deed they were perswaded that he was the Messiah and trusted that it was he who should have redeemed Israel Judge I pray you then what cause of Grief was here The greatest Dignity trampled upon and affronted The greatest Innocence condemned The greatest Righteousness punished The greatest Meekness reviled The greatest Charity and Beneficence persecuted The Man who preached the Word of God with Authority who shewed them the true way to Life who comforted them in their Affliction who cured their Diseases who restored their Children and Friends to Life who fed them with Miracles and from whom they expected the Salvation promised by all the Prophets to see this Man mocked scourged and put to Death before their Eyes Lord what matter of Grief was this What Occasion for Weeping Mourning and great Lamentation But though all this was more than sufficient to afflict and grieve the minds of these Women yet there was something more than all this which Jesus suffered which they knew not he suffered in his Soul and Spirit by the immediate Hand of God which none was sensible of save himself Inward Trouble and Disturbance of the Soul is much more sad and weighty than Pains and Torments in the Body The spirit of a man may sustain his Infirmity but a wounded spirit who can bear Jesus was at this time drinking the Cup of his Father's Wrath and Displeasure against Sin and the Sin not of one or two but of all Mankind What it was that he suffered in his Soul on this Account we do not know but that he did suffer in that part is certain and that he suffered heavily appears from his sweating Blood in the Garden in a cold Night from his praying three
is it to be like Jesus for he is the brightness of the Father's Glory and the express Image of his Person so that to be like him is to be like God By the Imitation of Jesus we recover what our First Parents lost and forfeited to themselves and us even the Image of God Therefore the Imitation of Jesus brings more Honour and Glory than any or all earthly Dignities Likeness to God is the highest degree a Creature is capable of therefore if we understood our selves and our interest we should be more ambitious of this than of all the Titles and Dignities which either Kings or People can bestow If the Imitation of Christ were impossible it would not have been enjoined us but neither is it so difficult as some at first may imagine besides that the Difficulties may be surmounted through the Grace of God the thing will become both easie and pleasant if we will but converse with Christ contemplate and meditate on him frequently They who converse much together we see use to slide insensibly into the Manners Fashion and Behaviour of one another Even so if we take this Method we shall soon find our selves changed into a resemblance with Jesus Christ. But we all saith the Apostle with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord are changed into the same image from glory to glory even as by the spirit of the Lord 2 Cor. iij. 18. But now as it is our Duty our Honour our Interest to follow Christ and to labour to be like him So it is fit to consider wherein we should follow him Some Imitations are indiscreet unreasonable and so far from obliging that they provoke A King loves to be imitated by his Subjects because it is a Testimony of their Love and Respect and the greatest Honour they can put upon him But he would not have them to imitate the Peculiarities of Royalty and Sovereignty Imitation should not be in things peculiar but in these things which are common which may agree to and suit with both So we must not attempt to follow Christ in what was peculiar to him as the Son of God and the Saviour of the World we must not imitate the Acts of his Almighty Power or what was proper to his Mediatory Office It is no part of our Duty to imitate him in his Miracles in his walking on the Water commanding the Winds and Seas casting out Devils fasting Forty Days and the like What we ought to imitate is the Divine Vertues which shined forth in his holy Life and which appeared in all his Actions Wherefore he saith learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart These Words may also be considered as an Encouragement for coming to Christ taking up his Yoke and learning of him because he is a meek and lowly Person gentle and easy no wise rigid and severe therefore Men may come to him readily and ought to come willingly for they need not fear hard Usage he will not treat them roughly nor impose grievous Tasks upon them He is a kind and loving Master who consults the Good and Ease of his Disciples and who will not exact any Service which is not both reasonable and also for their Interest as is clearly insinuated in the last Words my yoke is easy and my burden is light But seeing Jesus requires us to imitate him and is frequently proposed as an Example to us and seeing in this very place in which he bids us come and learn of him he recommends himself as a meek and lowly Person therefore we ought to consider those Vertues of Humility and Meekness as particularly proposed for our Imitation Jesus Christ had all other Vertues as well as these he was a true Pattern of Love to God of Zeal Submission Obedience and heavenly Mindedness of Charity Mercifulness and good Will towards Men of Chastity Purity Sobriety Patience and Contentment and in a Word of every thing which is Praise worthy in the Sight of God or good Men. By his Life as well as Doctrine we may learn how to behave our selves in all Circumstances and Conditions in Poverty and Affliction under Contempt and Disgrace when we are hated and persecuted And though he possessed not outward Plenty and Grandeur yet several of his Actions shew the true end and use of these and do teach those who possess them to imploy them more for the Glory of God and the Good and Comfort of others than for their own private Satisfaction From his Practice and Example we may learn our Duty to Superiours Inferiours and Equals But tho' he be a Pattern of all Vertue and Goodness yet he instanceth only in Meekness and Humility either because these comprehend all other or are the chief and first to be learned and which if they be learned will draw all other after them All Vertue and Religion either respects Man or God and without Meekness and Humility it is impossible to carry our selves aright towards either of them But he that is truly humble and meek will certainly endeavour to please both Nay the very Exercise of these two comprehends all our Duty to God and Man as we may learn from Micah vi He hath shewed thee O man what is good and what doth the Lord thy God require of thee but that thou shouldest do justly and love mercy and walk humbly with thy God Meekness cannot be either better or more briefly described than in the Characters of Charity given by St. Paul It suffereth long is kind envieth not vaunteth not it self is not puffed up doth not behave it self unseemly seeketh not her own is not easily provoked thinketh no evil beareth all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things For these Characters belong to Charity because it softneth our Natures and rendreth us meek Meekness is a Branch of Charity and naturally flows from it These two are inseparable and we may certainly conclude the one is not where the other is wanting Love smooths our Natures and carries off all Ruggedness of Temper it disposeth us both to please others and also to be well pleased with what they do it maketh the Persons and Actions of others acceptable and even when any thing is amiss in either it excuseth or censureth gently If Christian Love did abound more there would be more of Meekness and good Nature in common Conversation But because that is very much wanting therefore there is so little generous Complaisance to be seen The most are very selfish and have but very little Concernment for others and this is the Cause why they are so surly and morose so peevish and wrathful why their Temper is so stiff and uneasie and their Behaviour so rough and blustering they love themselves too much and others too little and therefore they can hardly condescend to gratify others and are but seldom satisfied with what is done to themselves As Meekness proceeds from Love so from Humility and therefore they are
times Father if it be thy will let this Cup pass from me and from these disconsolate Words which his inward Sorrow and Anguish extorted while he hanged upon the Cross My God my God why hast thou forsaken me The Sufferings of Jesus cannot be reckoned up no Man can describe no Tongue can express all the Particulars of his bitter Agony and bloody Passion and cruel Death The Words of the Prophet are applicable to him and as they were spoken prophetically of him so in him only they were fully accomplished Is it nothing to you all ye that pass by Behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto my sorrow which is done unto me wherewith the Lord hath afflicted me in the day of his fierce anger From above he hath sent fire into my bones and it prevaileth against them he hath spread a net for my feet he hath turned my back he hath made me desolate and faint all the day Who then that beheld this could Or who that hears and lays it to heart can refrain from weeping Tears indeed are due to the Memory of Christ's Death and Passion But yet our Lamentation and Weeping must not be as that in Rama spoken of by the Prophet Like Rachel weeping for her children who would not be comforted because they are not We may and should weep at the Remembrance of what Christ suffered but our Sorrow should not run to an Excess meerly on his Account Wherefore you see that our Lord turned about and checked the excessive Sorrowfulness of these Women saying Daughters of Ierusalem weep not for me which was the Second thing I promised to speak to This is not a total Prohibition of weeping for Christ the Negative Particle Not is not always to be taken so peremptorily for frequently it imports only Rather or not so much as when it is said I will have mercy and not sacrifice the Meaning is Mercy rather than Sacrifice or not so much Sacrifice as Mercy So here weep not for me but for your selves is only as much as to say weep for your selves rather than for me or not so much for me as for your selves Thus all Weeping is not forbidden And as I have shewn it to be very just proper and suitable so we find it made both a necessary and an acceptable Duty Zach. xii 10. And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Ierusalem the spirit of Grace and of Supplications and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced and they shall mourn for him as one mourneth for his only Son and shall be in bitterness for him as one that is in bitterness for his first born However we should so bewail his Death as to keep within a certain Measure Not as those good Women in the Text who apprehended that all their Hope and all their Comfort would have perished in his Death The Death of Christ is not to be lamented like the Tragical end of Pompey Caesar and other Heroes of the World whether Ancient or Modern whose Deaths were sad and convincing Instances of the Changeableness of Fortune of the Vanity of the World and of the Uncertainty of humane Affairs When they died their vast Designs and Projects were defeated and the Expectation of their Friends frustrated in that very Day all their Thoughts perished they instantly ceased to be either the Hope of their Friends or the Dread and Terrour of their Enemies and left nothing behind them save a faint Memory and uncertain Conjectures But the Death of Jesus Christ is quite another thing As our Lord still liveth so he reigneth and it was by his Death that he advanced and secured his Kingdom His Death was glorious and the Issue of it was eternal Praise to God and himself and everlasting Advantage to all the World Never any Triumph was so illustrious as the Death of Christ The greatest triumph in the World was only over Beasts and weak Men and set forth with the Spoils of earthly Kingdoms But Jesus at his Death triumphed over Devils he conquered Hell and the Grave made Spoils of Principalities and all the Powers of Darkness By his Death he quenched the Fire of God's Wrath blunted the Edge of the Law weakned the Strength of Sin loosned the Bands of the Grave ransomed Sinners and opened the Kingdom of Heaven to Penitents and Believers His Death gave Life to the World and renewed Nature so that the Face of things is altered ever since Thus as upon one Account there is Reason to lament the Death of Jesus Christ so upon another there is no less Reason to rejoice for by it God is glorified Jesus exalted and Mankind saved But when we leave off to mourn for Christ we should continue to mourn for our selves So you see here that our Lord biddeth the Women moderate their Grief upon his Account but still requireth it for themselves which was the third thing proposed Weep not for me but for your selves And very good Reason alas There is more than sufficient Cause for this Mourning For tho' Jesus Christ has merited Salvation for us yet our natural Wretchedness our Original and Actual Guilt is no less than it was both which are deplorable and neither of them can ever be enough lamented And if we are not sensible of the heinous Nature of these let us look upon the persecuted reviled mocked buffetted scourged and crucified Jesus let us call to mind his bitter Death and Sufferings and these will instruct us For all these things befell him for our sake and upon our Account The Jews who crucified him and put him to so vile and shameful a Death were only the Instruments But otherwise every one of us as well as they were the Cause and Occasion of all that evil which befell him They are to be considered only as the common Executioner who executeth the Law and the Will of the Judge and consequently our Rage and Indignation should not be against them but against the Crimes which caused and required so heavy a Punishment Now they were not his own Crimes for which he suffered for he knew no Sin neither was Guile found in his Mouth he was a Lamb without Spot and Blemish But he was made Sin for us Surely as the Prophet speaks he hath born our griefs and carried our sorrows he was wounded for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was laid upon him and he received stripes that we might be healed Let us not go about to clear our selves of all Accession to the Death of this good and righteous Person because we are come to the World so long after it fell out and are not of the Race of those who laid wicked and violent hands on him For though Jesus died but once yet he did bear the Sins of all and was charged with the Sins of all that went before or shall come after From the time that he
he tempted our Saviour quoted Scripture but we ought to look to the nature and tendency of the Doctrine and consider whether it agree to the Scope of the Scipture in its particular Precepts for that is the true Standard and Measure Ye shall know saith our Saviour the tree by its fruit Now the sum of what the Spirit saith to the Churches and to us by the Churches in the Scripture is what we have in the Text viz. To him that overcometh c. In handling of which words we shall first explain what is meant by overcoming Then Secondly what is the Reward here promised to him that overcometh As to the First seeing there is mention here of overcoming that necessarily supposeth Fighting for there can be no Victory without Fighting and if there must be a Fight there must also be Enemies for we cannot fight but against Enemies And by this it appears that the Life of a Christian is a Warfare and that by coming to Christ we become Soldiers who are engaged to fight Idleness and Ease is not the End of our Calling nor are we listed merely for shew and ostentation for we are called to Wrestle and Fight and that so stoutly and valiantly so constantly and stedfastly until we overcome It is not enough to begin to make ready and present our selves to the Battel nor yet to Fight a while to hold out against two or three Onsets but we must never turn back never yield or give over but must hold out to the end and so too as to carry away the Victory for the Promise is here only to him that overcometh As in the Olympick Games none got the Prize until he had first got the Mastery over his Antagonists and as among the Romans a Triumph was granted not to him that had essayed the War but to him who had come off Victorious So Christians are not to expect these glorious things here proposed unless they have not only enterprized the good Fight but gained a Victory therein If any man turn back saith God my soul shall have no pleasure in him But blessed is he who endureth to the end for the same shall be saved Heb. x. 22. But then you 'll ask whom we are to fight with and after what manner In the first place our Text speaks not of Carnal Fighting we are not to understand it of Mustering Human Forces of Encamping Armies setting of Battels laying of Sieges making Assaults upon Cities to take them nor of using these or any other Stratagems of War where there is occasion of shewing Military Art and Valour and where only Carnal and Material Weapons are used The Rewards of these Earthly Victories are Conquests of new Dominions the Submissions of the Conquered acquirements of great Power and Riches the erection of Trophies in the places of Victory Publick Triumphs and the result of all Vain-glory and false Renown which reach not further than this lower World But the Manna the white Stone and new Name and the Glories signified by them are true substantial and eternal and regard the life to come which is Everlasting And tho' doubtless some great Warriors are in Heaven some great Conquerours will triumph with the Lord Jesus at the last Day yet most of those who acquired Kingdoms in any Ages here below will lose that above and be condemned at the last Judgment as Thieves Robbers and Murtherers for Plunder and Rapine and shedding of Blood But as for those few warlike Princes who have gone to Heaven they have not got thither by their mighty feats of Arms but by the Justice and Equity of their respective Causes for which they took up Arms and by using of them with Mercy and Tenderness and with a sincere intention for Peace or else if their Wars were Unjust by true and serious Repentance for all the Violence committed in them and by making Restitution and Satisfaction for all Injuries to their utmost power But the Spiritual Conquerours cannot fail of Heaven their very Conquest entitles them to it and all the Glories of it because it is a Spiritual Conquest and the Weapons of their Warfare are not Carnal but Spiritual and the World the Flesh and the Devil the Enemies which they conquer are Spiritual Enemies against which they Arm themselves with the whole Armour of God with the Girdle of Truth the Brest-plate of Righteousness the Shield of Faith the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God because as the Apostle saith we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against Principalities against Powers against the Rulers of the darkness of this World against spiritual wickedness in High places Eph. vi 12. More particularly if we do well consider these Letters to the Seven Churches which our Lord shuts up with these words to him that overcometh we shall find the Enemies he proposeth to be encountered are such as go about to destroy our Faith to defile our Worship to extinguish our Charity and to stain the Purity of our Christian Life and Conversation Persecutions and Trouble for the sake of the Gospel or any part of it Idolatry and Superstition Heresie and false Doctrine the Corruption and inordinate Lusts within us and the Pollution and wicked Practises of the World without us are the things we have to struggle and wrestle with And the word overcome in our Text hath a reference to a perpetual War which ought to be maintained against all and every one of them For it is not enough to attack or resist stoutly any one of them if we do not withstand all He doth not overcome according to the Text nor can he claim the Reward promised therein who strikes in with any one of these or meanly yields to it though he stand never so stiffly out against the rest As for Example He cannot be said to overcome who resists Errour and false Doctrine and yet suffers himself to be captivated by Vice or Sin nor is he to be accounted Victorious who meets Trouble and Persecution with Courage and Undauntedness and in the mean time is not careful to keep a sound Faith and a good Conscience it is Treachery and Cowardice to yield to or make an Agreement with any Enemy whatsoever But wherein will you say doth this Victory properly consist Doth Christ require us to destroy the Superstitions and Idolatries of the World to amend the Corruption of the Age we live in and to stop Persecution and Trouble which come upon the Church For according to the usual way of speaking he overcometh that gets the upper hand of his Enemies and ruins them Truly the Church of God should not suffer Idolatry and Superstition to creep into its Worship and should guard its Discipline and Constitutions from being vitiated and if it were in her power to deliver her self from Persecution by ways just and lawful the Motions of Nature would induce thereto and Nature in this is not contrary to the
which touch them but are not so soon sensible of the Cause and Occasion which make them groan longer under the Distemper Ephraim perceived his Sickness Iudah felt his Wound their Senses taught them both these but they had not Understanding enough to discover whence these things came they had no Sense of their Sins and Transgressions and were slow in considering that the Reason they were so pinched and infested was because they sinned and would not frame their Doings to turn unto their God And it is just so with the Generality of the World at this time Men have sense enough to perceive the outward Evils that are upon them but scarce any to discover the Hand which inflicts them or the Cause which procures it Touch a Man in his Body in his Fortune or in any thing dear unto him he will be quickly sensible of it and ready enough to complain But there be few so wise as to acknowledge that the Root of the Matter is in themselves People ordinarily throw all the Blame of their Trouble from off themselves upon other external things he that is sick finds fault with his Diet or his riding and travelling unseasonably and in unwholsome Weather he that is wronged and oppressed chargeth and accuseth such and such Persons as perhaps are the immediate Instruments thereof in times of publick Calamity and Disasters all the Talk is how they began and after what manner they proceeded if the Plague enter a Place the Inhabitants curiously enquire about the first Person who brought it in if Fire take hold of a City the Discourse is about the small Occasion of its beginning and the Unwariness of the Servant who kindled it Statesmen and Politicians resolve Wars civil Broils and Factions Oppressions and other things of the like Nature into Political Causes Philosophical Heads exercise their Wits in finding out natural Reasons of Famine Pestilence immoderate Drought excessive Rains and other such Judgments according to the uncertain Hypothesis of some vain System they have imbib'd And thus Mens Thoughts are carried off from the serious Consideration of the true that is the moral and meritorious Cause of all the Evils that are upon them They reflect not upon their own Sins nor the Sins of the Land they live in They say not with David Thine arrows stick fast in me and thy hand presseth me sore there is no soundness in my flesh because of thine anger neither is there any rest in my bones because of my sin For mine iniquities are gone over mine head as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me It 's long before People come to lay to Heart that the Evils which are upon them are because the Lord hath a controversie with the Inhabitants of the land because there is no truth nor mercy nor knowledge of God in the land that it is by reason of swearing and lying and killing and stealing and committing adultery and other abominations that the land is made to mourn To take only Notice of the immediate Instruments of our Trouble without enquiring into this chief Cause thereof is just but to act like Children and to do what the common Rabble do at publick Executions who only consider how the condemned Person is led to the Scaffold and after what manner the Executioner proceeds to put him to Death never reflecting upon the Sentence of the Judge nor the Transgression of the Law which yet ought chiefly to be considered Hear ye therefore the Rod and him who hath appointed it as ye feel the Evils which are laid upon you so call to mind from whom they come and for what Cause they are sent otherways Ease and Relief is not to be expected It 's necessary in order to the removing of bodily Distempers that there be first a Knowledge of the Nature and Cause of the Disease without this there can be no Cure all Applications are ineffectual even so the first step to remove the Wrath of God and the sad Effects of it is to find out those Sins and Transgressions which have occasioned it till this be done it 's in vain to struggle and to use Endeavours for the saving our selves it is but as the common Proverb is a striving against a stream which is too strong for us And thus I am brought to a third Observation and it is this That when God is visiting with his Iudgments people are seldom so wise as to address themselves first to God but they ordinarily in the first Place have recourse to second Causes and humane Endeavours which tends but to their greater ruine and mischief Ephraim and Iudah here instead of making Application to God sent to the King of Assyria and addressed to King Iareb So when Sickness comes upon Men the Physician is sent for and he is required to use his Skill and to apply his Remedies and with the Woman in the Gospel who had the bloody Issue they seek not out for Christ till they have spent much upon the Physicians to no purpose and that their Art and Skill hath been quite baffled When Men are opprest and born down all their Thoughts are how to get an Interest in some great Personage and ingage him to espouse their Cause and thereby counter-balance the Power of the Person that oppresses them In a word every one considers the nearest and likeliest Method and Means of procuring to themselves Ease and Relief and when they have discovered the same they are wholly bent on it and the Eagerness of Men to be saved by those means which their own Prudence has suggested keeps them from exercising that Trust and Dependance on God which is necessary Men have not Faith enough ordinarily to commit their cause entirely to God and they walk so much by Sight that they can put little Trust where they see no visible Means and because ordinarily God works by rational means and has established in the World a settled Order and a Series of Causes for producing certain Effects they too much imagine that these things work necessarily and that they cannot be disappointed of the Effects while they make use of the Means and Causes which ordinarily produce them Whereas all things depend upon the Blessing of God and only work and take effect as he is pleased to give the Word unto them I do not say that prudent Means and Methods should be neglected or that Men should expect Deliverances miraculously when these other may take Place But that in seeking to save our selves from any Danger or Judgment we ought to apply our selves to God and as we ought never to use any means for our safety but what is lawful so in the Use of the most lawful and most proper means we ought to depend entirely upon God for the Success else we may expect these Means to be blasted or what is worse to turn to our Hurt and greater Damage As we see here befel the Israelites for the King of Assyria whom they sent to
not only could not heal them and cure them but he brought upon them more Trouble and Mischief than what they sought him to prevent Cursed is the Man that trusteth in Man maketh Flesh his Arm and whose heart departeth from the Lord for he shall be like the Heath in the desart and shall not see when good cometh All humane Helps without the Lord's Assistance are but as the Staff of Egypt a broken Reed whereon if a Man lean it will go into his hand and pierce it Winds Rains and Storms the Malice of Men and Devils and whatever infests Mankind are all at God's Command and under his Power They break not out till he give the word they are his Officers sent forth to execute his Pleasure And as they go when they are sent so they will not retire till he call them back It 's both Folly and Treachery to tamper with the Officers and Soldiers of the King without seeking to satisfie the King himself If People be at War with some mighty King they cannot expect to be freed from the Invasion of his Armies by Land or from the pilfering and robbing of his Pirates by Sea Peace should be first sought with the King himself and then these other Molestations will cease of their own accord It was wisely as well as devoutly done by Hezekiah when he received the threatning Letter of Rabshakeh he went to the House of the Lord and spread it before the Lord and prayed he first tried to secure God's Favour knowing that if he found Acceptance with him Rabshakeh could not hurt him and that all his Brags and Boasts would prove but empty puffs which made a great noise but could do him no harm There is certainly no Security but in the Favour of God And let none Pride themselves that whatever fall out they have this and the other thing to lean to and upon this account think themselves safe enough for if they lean not to God and make not him their Friend all their other props will fail and they shall receive but the surer and the greater fall the more they have trusted to them Hear the Word of the Lord ye scornful Men who say we have made a covenant with death and with hell we are at agreement when the overflowing scourge shall pass through it shall not come unto us for we have made lyes our refuge and under falshood have we hid our selves Behold saith the Lord judgment will I lay to the line and righteousness to the plummet and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies and the waters shall overflow the hiding place and your covenant with death shall be disannulled and your agreement with hell shall not stand when the overflowing scourge shall pass through then shall ye be trodden down by it When a man's ways please the Lord then and then only he maketh his enemies to be at peace with him Which leads me to A Fourth Observation from the Text concerning the Terms and Condition on which we may make our Peace with God to wit the acknowledging our Offences and the seeking his Face By this means we may both prevent Evils threatned and remove them when they are inflicted As Sin brings on the Rod and as it is continued to make Men sensible of their Sins so it is laid aside when they have learned a due sense of them and do unfeignedly repent of them For God taketh no pleasure in the death and destruction of sinners he doth not grieve willingly nor afflict the children of men He would spare the Rod if Men would be Dutiful without it and even when he is provoked to lay it on he still retains the natural bowels of affection which a Father hath towards his Children and would be glad of the occasion of treating them more gently How shall I give thee up Ephraim How shall I deliver thee Israel How shall I make thee as Admah How shall I set thee as Zeboim Mine heart is turned within me my repentings are kindled together And when he is here in our Text threatning to withdraw himself you see he limits it to the time they should acknowledge their offence and seek his face thereby declaring that whenever they did that he would return to them and with his Presence bring along all those comforts and good things they had been deprived of The Men of Nineveh when they were threatned with an utter overthrow and that within Forty Days too they nevertheless builded themselves hope upon this merciful Nature of God and his readiness to be reconciled to Men when they are reconciled to their Duty and therefore having proclaimed a Fast and enjoined Repentance they comforted themselves with these words saying to one another Who can tell if God will turn and repent and turn from his fierce anger that we perish not And that any Nation may take Courage tho' never so much threatned that there is no reason to despair but certain ground of hope if we forsake our Sins and turn to the Lord is clear from Ier. xviii 7. where God saith At what instant I shall speak concerning a Nation and concerning a Kingdom to pluck up and to pull down and to destroy it if that Nation against whom I have pronounced turn from their evil I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them From which he makes this Inference now therefore go to speak to the men of Iudah and to the inhabitants of Ierusalem saying thus saith the Lord behold I frame evil against you and devise a device against you return ye now every one from his evil way and make your ways and your doings good In Levit. xxvi God saith there to his People if when these Plagues there mentioned are upon them they shall confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers with their trespasses which they trespassed against me and that also they have walked contrary unto me if then their uncircumcised hearts be humbled and they then accept of the Punishment of their iniquity then will I remember my Covenant with Iacob and also my Covenant with Isaac and also my Covenant with Abraham will I remember and I will remember the Land But he saith also in the same Chapter If ye will not be reformed by me by these things but will walk contrary unto me then will I also walk contrary unto you and will Punish you yet seven times more for your sins Vers. 23 24. Now to draw to a close let us make an Application of all We have discovered the Cause of all our Maladies and Diseases and the true proper way of curing them what remains then but that we presently with all possible care and speed look to our selves and take that course which is absolutely necessary for our safety If there be any particular Persons here groaning under the weight of any trouble diseased in Body or distressed in Fortune or any other ways afflicted Let me beseech them
who receiveth it are to be understood VIII The Application What the Name of Lord doth import What is meant by the things which Christ saith The Profession and Practice of Christianity ought to go together I. The Text considered as a Question II. The true Motives to believe in Christ or to profess him do also oblige to pay Obedience to him III. The Custom of the Country is not sufficient to wise and reasonable Men. IV. The first great Motive to profess Christ is his being sent from God Phil. 2. 9. Which requireth absolute and universal Obedience Mal. 1. 6. Joh. 13. 13. 1 Thes. 1. 8. V. A second Motive to profess Christ is Love No Love without Observance John 14. 15 21 23 24. VI. A third Motive is the Hope of Reward Joh. 6. 68 Which the Disobedient cannot expect Mat. 21. 22 23. Heb. 5. 9. Rom. 2. 6. Nor are they capable of it Heb. 12 14. VII The Text may be considered as an Expostulation or Reproof VIII The Disobedience of Christians very provoking IX It doth dishonour Iesus Christ. Gen. 34. 30. 2 Sam. 12. 14. X. It is prejudicial to the Interest of Iesus Christ. XI The Application of all Joh. 10. 27. 2 Tim. 2. 19. Jos. 24. 16. Psal. 19. The Scope of the Text. I. The Exhortation Let us draw near Lam. 2. 24. * O anima rationalis miserabilis creatura quo te dejicis terram diligis melior es coelum contemplaris altior es solo tuo creatore tu inferior Saith St. Augustine II. Of the Qualifications of those who would draw near to God 1. A true Heart Mat. 15. 8. 2. Full assurance of Faith A Belief of the Mysteries of the Gospel A Belief of our own particular acceptance with God 13. 58. 6. Mat. 21. 22. III. The Heart sprinkled from an evil Conscience IV. The Body washed with pure water Application The Scope of the Text in reference to the Jews It is applicable to other People The Expressions are borrowed from Husbandry * As Varro Cato Virgil c. I. What is meant by Sowing II. What is implied by Righteousness The Reasonableness and Advantage of sowing Righteousness III. Of reaping Mercy IV. Of breaking up the fallow Ground Gen. 6. 5. 1 Cor. 2. 14. Jer. 4. 3. Zach. 7. 11. V. Of seeking the Lord. Isa. 55. 6. Ezek. 18. 21. Isa. 55. 7. Isa. 1. 15. Jer. 11. 11. Heb. 3. 13. VI. He will come and rain Righteousness Isa. 45. 19. Heb. 11. 6. Heb. 10. 36. John 15. Mat. 5. 6. Isa. 54. 17. Scougall's Life of God pag. 75. Jer. 23. 6. VII An Application to the Publick Prov. 14. 34. Judith 5 17. An Explication of the Text. I. Sin is the Cause and Occasion of all the Evils which befall either private Persons or publick States Ps. 34. 16. Ps. 73. 27. Amos 3. 2. II. People commonly are insensible of the Cause of their Evils Psal. 38. 2. III. The common Custom of Mankind is to run to second Causes before they address to God Jer. 17. 5. Isai. 28. 14 IV. How Peace with God may be obtained V. The Application To private Persons To the publick state of the Nation The Occasion Scope and Meaning of the Text. Observations from the Text. I. To rejoice at the Afflictions and Calamities of others is both the Sign and Effect of a Prophane Ungodly Spirit Job 31. 29 30. Psal. 52. 7. Hab. 3. 16. Eccl. 7. 11. Prov. 17. 5. Seneca II. The Church and People of God are often visited with the Rod of Afflictions III. When God is provoked to punish he doth not lay aside his Kindness and good Will Isai. 30. 18. IV. The Right uses which people ought to make of Calamities and Afflictions 1. To acknowledge God the Author of them 2. To own Sin to be the Cause and Occasion of them 3. To suffer them Patiently 4. To repent of Sin and to sorsake it V. The Iudgments of God when rightly understood do declare his Righteousness See Enquiry into the Nature c. of Faith Essay 5th VI. Application I. An Enquiry into the Coherence of this Verse with the Context The Opinions of some proposed and rejected The true Reason why St. Paul gives this Advice in this place II. Inferences from the Occasion of delivering this advice The first to caution against the Abuse of Doctrines The second the true expressions of Friendship The third a Concernment for useful and eminent Persons III. The Advice of not drinking water considered 1. It only regards Timothy's Case and Practice 2. A Reproof of the Luxury of this Age. 3. Cautions to be used in Abstinence and Mortification See amongst others Tavernier's Travels IV. of Drinking Wine The use of it lawful The Excess Unlawful Prov. 31. 6. Eph. 5. 6. Isai. 5. 11. The Evil of Drunkenness 1 Pet. 5. 8. V. The Reason of S. Paul's Advice to Timothy considered 1. It sheweth the true Ends and Rules of Eating and Drinking 2. The Lawfulness of the Use of Means to remove Afflictions 3. The Gift of Healing not always used VI. An Enquiry into the Reasons why God suffereth eminent and useful Persons to labour under bodily Infirmities and Diseases First Reason Second Reason Third Reason Fourth Reason Fifth Reason Sixth Reason Seventh Reason Eighth Reason Conclusion