us that God is Righteous in his Terrible dispensations at Sea O how Righteous was God in this grievous Tempest O may not Sea-men and Land-men and all sorts say as the poor Church did Thou hast Ps 65. 5 punished us less than our Iniquities deserved How righteous is God and doth answer us with Terrible things in Rightcousness And observe what follows O God of our Salvation who art the confidence of all the ends of At old Lynn the 11 12 of September 16â—1 the Earth and of them that are far off upon the Sea When God ariseth terribly to shake the Earth or terribly to shake the Sea it is always in Righteousness Was not the late great Tempest a shaking of both when the Sea overflowed its banks broke all before it Alas sin hath broke all bounds and banks and it is a Righteous thing that the Sea should do so Great floods of sin righteously bring great Floods of wrath 4. It informs us That the Cause of Gods Judgments may be hid from us These poor Sea-men understood not the Cause therefore they take this extraordinary course to find it out They cast Lots to this end that they may know it There was a guilty Malefactor gotten aboard and they knew it not There was an Achan in the Camp and Joshua knew it not Who had gotten the accursed thing and hid it among the stuff and upon this account God refuses to go up with Israel O it is good for us all to say in our distresses both at Sea and at Land Wherefore dost thou contend with me Lord for whose sakes are these terrible Dispensations come upon us 5ly It informs us what a great evil Sin and Guilt is Guilt is that which causeth the storm This this is that which will find you out wheresoever you go This Num. 32. 23. will be the Avenger of blood if at land if at Sea this will cause storms against you If you think to flee from the presence of God it will follow you this is that will make you meditate Terror where-ever you are O poor Sea-men what a terrible thing is it to have storms threaten you with Shipwrack every moment and at that time all your unpardoned Guilt looking you in the face The iniquities of your heels compassing you about the sorrows of Hell and Death to take hold of you at the same time 2. Use If extraordinary storms be not sent forth without cause it is then a word of Counsel and Exhortation to Sea-men in a more special manner O then give not the Lord cause to enter into a controversie with you You your Wives and Relations give not the Lord cause to bring forth his extraordinary storms upon you and then do not provoke him do not stir up his wrath If his wrath be kindled but a little happy are they that put their trust in him You cannot say when he brings Tempests upon you that he breaketh you with tempest and multiplieth Job 9. 17. Ezek. 14. ult your wounds either in your Relations or Estates without a cause it was said of Jerusalem They should know what God had done he had not done it without a cause 1. O give God no cause to take up a controversie with you if he once come forth against you there is no standing before him It is said of God He casteth forth his Ice like Ps 147 17. morsels and who can stand before his cold But it may be said in this case Who can stand before his storm his Tempests of Fury and Displeasure Who will provoke one that is his Superiour that can crush him Did ever any contend with the Lord and prosper Is not this to kick against the Pricks Can your hearts endure or your hands be made strong in that day that God shall deal with you O then why should you be so fool-hardy to put the Lord to it Are not you while sinning against him setting only Bryars and Thorns before him in Battel 2. O give not God cause to take up a controversie against you poor Sea-men and your Relations While you are under Gods controversie your own Consciences will condemn you and O how sad will this be God against you and Conscience against you Jonah's own Conscience at this time you see did fly in his face for my sake is this storm come upon you We say Conscience is a thousand witnesses Now it will be a storm within and this is sad while a strom is within to have another without 3. O give not God cause to take up a controversie against you No means will prove significant or available to the end they are used if a storm upon you in God's controversie be against you You see it was here so they used all means they lighten'd the Ship as Pauls Vessel was For saith the Text they cast the Tackling over-board and the Acts 17. 19. 38. Wheat All the means were used that could be here with these poor Mariners in Jonah's Vessel and they cry to their Gods but all will not calm the storm because it came for a controversie against Jonah nay when the guilty Person was discovered they were so ingenuous to seek by all means to save his life who had brought this storm upon them but all was to no purpose For the Sea wrought still and was tempestuous O it is no ver 15. wonder now if in such cases Sea-men be at their wits end when they see all means they can use insignificant to their intended purpose O now their hearts fail them O now they begin to think This is the Lords controversie against us and our families and therefore no means used are blest As it is with sick Persons when no means no Physick is blest to them they are given over for dead So it is in this case 4. O give God no cause to take up a controversie against you for if he have a controversie with you you cannot any where be safe from his presence Jonah here would flee to Tarshish but God you see sends after him with a Witness God hath his bloud-hounds to find out where-ever you go This was that Moses told them that took up their Inheritance on the other side Jordan that Num. 32. 23. Surely their Sin should find them out Surely the punishment of your sins shall hitt you so some read it as Jonah was hitt by lot being an expression taken from finding out by lots and as Achan was hitt by lot where-ever you go God will send after you Some say it is an allusion to blood-hounds that by Scent find out the Thief David sayes Where shall I fly from thy presence c. Psal 39. 7 8. God hath Pursevants at command to send after guilty Sinners where ever they are That very Voyage that you think poor Seamen shall be the safest that very Voyage shall be the most dangerous if God have a controversy with you Nay when you come home in your own
for you know not how short your time may be together A poor Sea-man knows not but the next Voyage he may be cut off and his Wife knows not but she may the next Voyage be a Widdow How many are so O then what cause have you to fear the Lord when you part no body can tell you of a certainty whether you will ever meet again or no. Nay sure the Lord would have Sea-men think Their time is short Therefore the word the Spirit of 1 Cor 7. 29. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 †God uses is in the Sea-mens dialect that it may be he might take the more notice of it †The time is short A Metaphor taken from Ship-Sayles that when they are furl'd-up lie in a little room 7. Of all men Sea-men and their Relations had need fear the Lord They have so many mercies and deliverances and all these poor Sea-men will be put upon account What so many Salvations from storms so many preservations from Rocks and Sands so many deliverances from Pirats will not this be sad when they shall come in Witness against you and aggravate your Condemnation What neither fear God for his greatness nor for his goodness neither for his Judgments nor mercies how sad is this O that this Scripture might be fulfilled upon poor Seamen and their Wives They shall fear the Hâ—s 3. last Lord and his goodness in the latter days O what abundance of the goodness of God do you see at Sea to raise your Hearts to fear him doth not his goodness pass before you every day every Voyage for every Port You at home O how much of Gods goodness do you see to Relations abroad to you and yours at home 8. Of all men Seamen should fear the Lord because the Lord is at the charge of a Decree for their sakes This is the Prophet's argument Fear you not me Jer. 5. 22. saies God Will you not tremble at my presence who have placed the Sands for the Pro. 8. 29. bound of the Sea by a perpetual Decree that they cannot pass it and though the Waves thereof toss them over yet they prevail not though they roar yet they cannot pass over it 4. If God do not send forth extraordinary storms without Cause then let poor Seamen be humbled for all the causes both they and their Relations give the Lord to contend with them God doth not contend without a cause God contends here with Jonah but Jonah had given him cause O what cause have you to say as he did Shew me Job 10. 2. wherefore thou contends with me Be humbled that you provoke the Lord to send such terrible Messengers and Pursevants after you 1. O be humbled for you begin the Controversie It begins not on God's side first You give the Provocation which should be a great motive to Humiliation There is somthing in the House or somthing in the Ship or somthing in the Heart or somthing in the Life either of thee or thine out of which this Controversie arises O search for the Accursed thing for the Jonah for the cause of the Controversie 2. O be humbled for the cause you give God to come forth against you for He is slow to Wrath. Had God been as quick in smiting as you have been in sinning what would have been become of your Souls long ere now He is not easily provoked easie to be entreated but not easie to be provoked Now to give a man a cause to be angry that is hardly provoked will grieve afterwards an ingenious disposition Alas poor Sea-men God is not a word and a blow Heb 10 31. Who have such experience of the Patience of God as you and your Relations have And will you give this God cause to be angry and not be humbled for it 3. O be humbled for the cause you give God to come forth against you For it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God viz. To take Vengeance on poor Sinners for their guilt you think it is a fearful thing to fall into hands of Pyrats into the hands of Turks and indeed so it is but what then is it to fall into the hands of an impartial Sin-Revenging God! O terrible thing now for God to send his Avengers of blood after you at Sea for God to reckon with guilty Sinners for all their aggravated Provocations against him To have the Lord laugh at your Calamity and mock when your fear comes Pro. 1. 27 28. when your fear comes as desolation and your destruction cometh as a Whirl-wind when distress and anguish comes upon you 4. O be humbled for the cause you give God to come forth against you God is willing the Controversie should be taken up O how willing is the Lord to accept you to terms of grace and mercy upon your submission and humiliation Doth not he call upon you to lay down your weapons to this end doth not he send out his Ambassadors of Peace to this end to entreate woe and beseech you to be Reconciled to him We are Ambassadors in Christs stead beseeching you as the Apostle saies to be reconciled unto God doth he not complain of your obstinacy of your obduracy under all the precious means you have to bring you upon your knees that you may lie at the mercy of God doth not he tell you His arms are open yea wide open ready to embrace all poor guilty Souls that flie thither for mercy 5. O be humbled for the cause you and your Relations give unto God to come forth against you If it be not taken up when ever you shipwrack at Sea or die at Land you perish yea you perish for ever Alas what is the perishing of a ship or the perishing of a State to the perishing of a Soul It may be said in this case as in that Were they greater sinners that were cast away in the late storm than you no but Except you Repent you shall all likewise perish O How had you need to cry as to your Souls as they did as to their bodies Carest thou not that we perish Is the perishing of thy mortal Soul become so light a matter with thee that thou art so little concerned whether thou sink or swim when thou launches into the vast Ocean of Eternity Hath not the very thoughts of it made many a poor Soul to tremble and is it so small a thing in thy eye as not worth falling upon thy knees and with crys and strong tears beseeching that there may not be any Controversie betwixt God and thy poor Soul either at Sea or Land 5. If God do not send forth extraordinary storms without a cause then O that poor Sea-men might not go on in a course of Provoking and giving God cause to come forth against them and their Relations This was Jonah's aggravation he goes on in a course running from God he doth not come to a stand with himself nor
a man a dead man and a damned man if not rescued from this snare O that poor Sea-men would read that Chapter often over she tells him She had deckt her bed c. O but yet it was the Chamber of Death Though the bed was perfumed and all in bravery yet it was the way to Hell well but after a while he is struck through the Liver being the seat of Lust saith one therefore the foul-disease as you call it is called Morbus Hepatarius The disease of the Liver Splen ridere facit cogit amare jecur Is it not good to say Is not this the cause of the Lords controversie many a time at Sea O how many Sea-mens Souls have been swallowed up of this Guloh 3. Consult to find out the cause the Word Preached A searching Ministry may be a great blessing to Sea-men upon that account The word Preached to you is to be your Spiritual Pilots to shew you where such a Rock lies such a Sand lies where such a Shelve lies we are to tell you from our Lord and Master that if you steer a course of sin you will run a course of Ruine It was the Lords Commission to his Prophets Lift up thy Voyce like a Trumpet cry aloud and spare not Shew unto my people their sins and the House of Jacob their Transgressions We are to shew your sins as the causes of Gods controversie with you We shew you your danger of such a Rock such a sin but do you bear off do you stand off from it if you do not at your peril if you miscarry your blood be upon your own heads O me-thinks of all men Sea-men should love a searching Ministry you enjoy so little of it go many months and hear not a Sermon you that run so many hazards and dangers you love Carpenters for the safety of the ship and Chirurgions for the health of your bodies and why should not you love Ministers for the good of your Souls Must ships must bodies be preferr'd before precious Souls 4. Would you find out the cause Be then often reading over your lives and Conversations You keep your Journals and is it not as necessary to keep Diaries The book of your lives you may read every day when you cannot have time to read other books nay it may be some of you cannot read at all O but this book you may read and may not you often read O Lord my wickedness now doth correct me doth pursue me doth as an Avenger of blood follow me This is thy Iniquity that testifies against thee this is thy sin that now hath found thee out this is thy drunkenness thy abominable uncleanness thy blaspheamous Oaths thy mocking at Prayer thy prophaining of Sabbaths May not you read all this in your lives men at Land that would know how it is with them as to their Estates will cast up their books and men at Sea that would know where they are and what course they run will keep their observations and watches So should you be often casting up your Books your Accounts your Observations if you would know where abouts you are for your Eternal Conditions It may be the Jonah is in thy Conversation that brings the storm then thou must look to Reform that 5. Would you find out the Cause Then you must set before you the danger of miscarrying Now they were in danger they cry out For whose cause is this evil come upon us Truly we are seldom either at Sea or Land led into our duty until danger drive us to it In your storms you are it may be saying to your selves What if the ship should miscarry but do you ever say to your Souls what if your Souls miscarry what if the ship be lost you say but if you said What if your Souls be lost this would help you in the inquiry after the cause of the Lords Controversie with you Set thy danger before thee poor Sea-man that thou may'st find out the cause 1. If thy Soul miscarry it is an eternal miscarriage thou art fixed in that miscarryed estate to all Eternity never to come out of it It is to go to the Pit from whence there is no Redemption There may be Redemption from Sally from Algier nay from Fez where poor Sea-men when they are taken by the Turks are so affraid of being sent O but poor Sea-men from Hell there is no Redemption The King of this Country never gives up his Slaves 2. If thy Soul miscarry poor Sea-man it will aggravate thy sin and misery that thou had'st so many warnings but refused them O what a fair way wast thou once in when convinced of such a sin would be thy Ruine if thou did'st not Repent of it such a Rock would split thy Soul for ever if thou came foul upon it and yet what a bold course did'st thou steer notwithstanding all these warnings Ministers called to thee Relations called to thee Conscience called to thee Godly Friends and Acquaintance that loved thy Soul called to thee O stand off the Rock of sinful Company O take heed of such a sin and such a Lust but alas all these signified nothing to thee O these refused-warnings will be as oyle to make Hells flames burn more vehemently 3. If thou miscarry poor Sea-man thou many times miscarryest on a sudden They go down in a moment to the grave O what little time have they to prepare for Death that little time they have is to provide for their lives that they seldom entertain a thought what will become of their Souls The Sea-mans destruction comes upon them as a whirl-wind suddenly and often inevitably suddenly destroyed and that without Remedy as that word you read and Are not all sudden things sad and full of astonishment Is it not a comfortable thing to have time to prepare for your change now The sense of your danger every Voyage you go should make you find out the cause of Gods Controversie with you The last Use is of Tryal How may we conclude what is the cause of Gods Controversie with us what sin is the Jonah We may pass a false Judgment then how may we find out the sin and Provocation to say This is the cause why God contends with me as David when Nathan said to him Thou art the man so we may say Thou art the sin and so single out the particular Provocation to God 1. That sin usually that lies uppermost on the Conscience is the cause of Gods Controversie with us when we are in any distress or under any Affliction When Jonah's Conscience was gotten cured of his Lethargy it was thus with him his guilt of fleeing from the presence of the Lord was uppermost why hast thou done this say the Ships Company to him For the men knew that he had fled from the presence Gen 4â— 21. of the Lord for he had told them Thus it was with Josephs Brethren And they said one to another in this wise
is to die and knows not whither it shall go but bespeaks it self as he did O poor wandring Soul whither art thou going thou must never sport it more 5. In storms they are distressed with thoughts of their dear Relations and one-while they think of their precious Souls and those thoughts cut them to the Heart Another-while they think of their dear pieces of themselves their Wives and Children and these thoughts as daggers go to their Souls And thus are they hurried and distressed in their Spirits Now God would not bring such distresses upon Sinners without a Cause 4. Because extraordinary storms are the sad effects of Gods displeasure against poor Sinners Was the Lord displeased against the Rivers Was thine Anger against the Hab. 3. 8. Rivers Was thy wrath against the Sea So may not we say of this like terrible Tempest Was not the Lords Anger against the Sea-men against their Relations against the whole Land God was Angry with Jonah when he sent this storm after him And had he not good cause 1. Did not he contradict his Commission and will a King bear it To have his Royal Commands contradicted by his Subjects nay especially Can he bear it by those that he had preferr'd to places of Eminency Jonah was a Prophet a person God had honoured to be sent out a Prophet in Israel It is no wonder if God was Angry As God is most angry when his own people sin against him so he is most angry when his Prophets do sin against him which made God complain of old He had seen folly in the Prophets of Samaria Ver. â—â— 13 14. and I have seen in the Prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing They commit Adulâ—ery and walk in Liâ—s c. O this raised Gods anger against them Now for a Prophet to walk thus contradictory to God This must needs cause God to be angry 2. God had good cause to be angry with Jonah he is secure under his guilt and this is a great Provocation unto the Lord. If a poor Soul fall into sin and quickly be sensible of it O then God is ready to forgive But when a poor Soul sleeps on and sins on which was Jonah's case this is a great Provocation unto the Lord. He was asleep 3. God had good cause to be angry in continuing as well as sending the storm for Jonah is exceeding disingenuous with God and his Conscience What Calls had he to awake The Master Reproves him one would have thought that might have set his Conscience on work The poor Heathen Mariner's cry Every one calling upon his God one would have thought might have brought him to consider how he had offended his God The very casting out their wares might have occasioned him to think what guilt he was under to endanger all the poor innocent mens lives But you see he puts all off to the last Until he is discovered by Lot nay when he is discovered he is not yet ingenuous but stands their Examination before he confess that it was for his sake that this storm came upon them Must not this needs be a gâ—eat Provocation to the Lord 4. For Jonah God had good cause to be angry with him that he being sent upon an Embassy for Souls should refuse it This was Jonah's Calling O how forward should he have been to prove an instrument of bringing so many thousands of Souls to Repentance that lived in such a City O how he should have rejoyced in such an employment to have saved Souls from death What an occasion was this for God to be angry to be a Preacher to Souls and not a lover of Souls 5. God had good Cause to be angry with Jonah because he mattered his own name more than God's This was his Temptation as hath been hinted before What for an Ambassador to a King to stand more upon his own name than his Master's that gave him his Commission What a Provocation is this What a Preacher and have so little Regard to the Glory of God and the good of Souls To regard our Reputation more than the honour of him that sent us and the Salvation of precious Souls must not this cause God to be angry This is the case poor Sea-men in extraordinary stormes You should say Now the Lord is Angry and God is displeased with us and is he ever angry without a cause now in such storms he is saying to you as the Lord to them Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee This is Jer. 4. 18 thy wickedness because it is bitter it reaches to the He art O that you would look into your Hearts and into your Lives and into your Houses and into your Shops and into the Trades you drive and tell then your own Consciences whether God hath not good cause to be angry Take a view of your Land-sins at home of your beyond-Seasins abroad of your Sea-sins and then ask your hearts the Question Hath not God cause to be Angry APPLICATION Is it so that extraordinary Storms are not sent out without Cause Then it informs us that Punishments follow Provocations sooner or later Though Sentence be not speedily Executed why should the Hearts of Sinners and Sea-men be hardned to conclude that it will never be Executed No Sinners Long forbearance is no forgiveness There will come a storm a stroak that will pay for all God will not let sin go unpunished If punishments escape you at Land they shall meet you at Sea and if they escape you at Sea they shall meet you at Land These poor Heathens had this Notion Some notorious guilt was among them that this storm came to punish And they had this Notion When the Viper came upon Pauls hand They said Vengeance followed him and would not suffer him to live Acts 28. 4. The Avengers of blood follow persons to Sea If Jonah be there the storm will follow him It was said to those that took up their Habitation beyond Jordan that if they worshipped not the God of their Fathers their Sins would find them out An Allusion to Blood-hounds that find out the Thief and fasten upon him 2. It informs us that the Lord is Soveraign at Sea He it is that commands the winds that sends them forth of his Treasury He it is can say to the storm Be calm that can say to the Raging Sea Peace and be Psal 147. 18. still That sets a bound to the proud waves and saies So far and no farther He it is that saies to his Servants the Winds Go and they go He causeth His Winds to blow and the Waters to flow When waters drown Countries Inundations break in upon us these are ordered by God When poor Seamen lie wind-bound it may be months together how should they consider they are God's Prisoners and God only can set them at liberty and instead of murmuring against God How should they look up to God for a wind 3. It informs
you were at peace with God then you are ready for whatsoever dispensations of God shall come upon you you go out poor Sea-men and you cannot tell what attends you a thousand dangers wait upon you and O how sad is it to be surprized by any affliction at Sea If a Ship be not lost by water and wind it may be by fire or thou mayest spring a leak in a calme if not miscarry in a storm or thou mayest be taken by Pyrats or thou mayest dye of the Country Diseases whither thou goest c. And O now what a mercy would it be to be ready for any danger that may befall thee O what care is taken in getting all things ready when you are to go to Sea but what little care is taken to be thus ready not knowing what you may meet with It is a sad thing to be surprized Fearfulness shall surprize the Hypocrite Second Word of Comfort to Sea-men Let them justify God in extraordinary storms How impatient many times are your Spirits are you not as the Prophet said of them Full of the fury of the Lord like a wild Bull in a Net Are not you in a greater storm then the Sea are not your Spirits like the troubled Sea that casts forth nothing but myre and dirt should not you say rather Lord thou art righteous and we are wicked should not you accept the punishment of your Iniquity as Jonah did Cast me into the Sea and it will be calme unto you For I know that for my sake this great Evil is come upon you Third Word of Counsel to Sea-men O then learn to fear God! when he sends forth extraordinary storms then learn to fear God He doth it not without a cause You see it is said of these poor Heathens Then they feared the Lord exceedingly and sacrificed and made Vowes The terrible dispensation of God either at Land or Sea should be improved to the begetting the fear of God in us So it was when the Lord sent Thunder and Rain in Samuels time in Harvest and sayes the Text The People feared the Lord yea 1 Sam. 1â— 18. greatly feared the Lord and Samuel What not fear him who made both Sea and Land and can shake both with a word of his mouth and vex them in his sere displeasure 1. Of all men you should fear the Lord that see the wonders of the Lord. Should not the sight of his wondrous works strike you with the fear of God as the Old Man that was asked by the Philosopher how he came to know so much of God and could not read saith he I have only one book and this book hath three leaves and I get my Learning here This book is the Creation sayes the Old Man the three leaves are the Earth the Heavens and the Sea and all Creatures in these are as so many words out of which I learn that of God I know And are not you turning over two of these leaves constantly The Heavens in your Observations and the Sea in your Navigation and can your Art of Navigation be learned without looking up to the Heavens O then why do not you of all men learn to fear the Lord 2. Of all men you should learn to fear the Lord because you see so much of the wickedness and ignorance and darkness of the world in other places the sight of other men's wickedness should make you more holy You go to the dark places of the Earth as the Psalmist says where their habitations are full of Cruelty where Turkes and Moors do exercise their Cruelty over poor Christians that are their slaves Where Parents will sell their own Children to be slaves where Satan hath his seat where he hath to this day in some places of India his sacrifices O how should these things promote the fear of the Lord in you That God hath been so good to you that you should have your Birth in a Goshen while others had theirs under Egyptian darkness look upon it as a mercy to draw you on to fear the Lord That you were born ENGLISH-MEN 3. Of all men you should fear the Lord because you go through more visible dangers then others It is true we are all at Land exposed to dangers but not so visibly as you at Sea so we are the less sensible of them What live amongst and converse with dangers daily and not learn to fear God You give Bills and your Relations give up Bills for you such an one going a dangerous Voyage and indeed it is true But do you by these dangers learn to fear the Lord 4. Of all men you should fear the Lord you see so many perish by the Judgments of the Lord and should not you be affraid of his righteous Judgments as David saies how many ships do you see Cast away how many lives do you see lost and all these should be Sermons to teach you the fear of the Lord. O How many wracks did Since the great Storm 11 12 of Sep 1671. you see lately at Sea to preach the fear of the Lord to you when you see so many guilty Jonahs miscarry how should you fear lest the Lord deal so with you God's Judgment upon Tyre which was a City of a vast Sea-Trade it is said God smote her power in the Sea He will smite her Power in the Sea and devour her with Fire Here is Judgment by Land and Sea and what then Ashkelon shall see it and fear Some Interpreters Zach 9. 5. understands by their Forts and strong holds their Navies but God's Judgments As Historians telis us Caâ—â—ius and others came upon their Navies abroad and Fire consumed them at home For Alexander burnt their Citties and accomplished this threatning of God upon them O now such as see God's Judgments so often before them should fear the Lord. They should fear and do no more presumptiously 5. Of all men Sea-men should fear the Lord and their Relations Because they are persons of so many temptations Need I tell you the Temptations you lie open to abroad your Temptations they are exposed to that stay at home hath not every Country its Temptations have not hot Countries their temptations to one sin and cold Countrys their temptations to another may not you soon fall into uncleanness in the one and into Drunkenness in the other Hath not long absence from Relations its temptation in it have not the sight of so much sin as you see committed Aboard and abroad a temptation in it Hath not your Trading and Commerce with men of secret sorts and ranks Heathens Papists and others Turks Jews are there no temptations here I say your Relations and Wives are exercised with great temptations by their fears by your long stays by somtimes Reports And they had need be armed with the fear of God against these things at home as well as you abroad 6. Of all men and women Seamen and their Relations should fear the Lord
smitten at At the Lord refused to go with the Camp What was the matter There was a secret cause an hidden cause Joshua he complains to God and sadly bewails the want of Gods presence and the Lord upon his Inquiry tells him There is a cause and the cause was this The Accursed thing was among them And this was the 13 21. cause O Israel thou cannot stand before thine Enemies until thou take away the accursed thing from among you Here are three things observable 1. The accursed thing was the hidden thing hid among the stuff The Babylonish garments was hid and the Silver under it O the accursed thing lies hid the cause is hid but it must be inquired into hid in your ships it may be in your shops hid in your Trade or Converse with men where ever the cause or accursed thing lies it must be inquired into 2. Achan was of the Tribe of Judah which was the Tribe so honourable that Christ came of it and yet one of this Tribe was the cause of the Lords thus withdrawing his presence after this the Tribe that kept close to the true worship of God Judah yet ruleth with God and is faithful with the Saints yet one of the Tribe of Judah taken as the guilty person 3. Achan was discovered taken by Lot Joshua 6. verse for this discovery fell down on his face before the Arke The Ark was to inquire in dark and doubtful cases all and now he was inquiring of the Lord the cause of this disappointment and God answered him in Judg. 20. 27. telling him what course to take for a discovery Hence it is that when Gods People are brought into straits and distresses he usually points all their sins and provocations as being the cause of his so dealing with them and tells them as he did by the Prophet Jeremiah Jer. 4. 18. your wayes and doings have procured these things unto your Souls c. Alas saith God you put me upon it it was your own doings and this is but to eat of the bitter fruit of your own evil wayes This is your Esay 50. 1. wickedness you see now what misery your sins have brought upon your heads thus in that great stroak of the Captivity God clears himself Behold for your Iniquities have you sold your selves and for your Transgressions is your Mother put away viz. It was your own Act and Deed And indeed thus inquiring into our selves for the cause of these evils when they are upon us is a sweet frame of heart then the Soul sayes as the Church did wherefore should a living man complain for the punishment of his sins why should we be complaining doth not God say to the complaining Soul as to Joshua Arise get thee Josh 7. 9. up wherefore lyest thou upon thy face Israel hath sinned and taken the accursed thing So poor Soul thou hast sinned sayes God The accursed thing is found in thy skirts in thy Tent in thy House in thy Heart Thy work is to be inquiring and Searching now after the cause therefore it follows Let us search Laâ— 3. 39 40 and try our wayes and turn again unto the Lord. 1. Reason why in a day of Distress and Affliction it is our duty to inquire into the cause not because that the cause of Gods controversie often is hid from us it lyes hid and we cannot find it out without a diligent inquiry it was so here in the Text They knew not what was the matter and to search â—â— out they were resolved And so they cast â—oâ—s to decide the case and to discover the guilty Person The cause of Gods not going up with Israel was hid from Joshua there was a guilty Achan there as well as a guilty Jonah here and both taken by Lots The accursed thing was the hidden thing we read of Heman under his affliction what course he took I communed with mine own heart and my Spirit made diligent search he Psa â—7 7. supposed There might be some hidden guilt that might occasion it to be thus with him therefore he would fall to searching The Septuagint reads it I digged my own heart The vulgar Latin I swept my own heart Both senses import that there might be some undiscerned guilt which God was angry with him for O how good is it in storms for Sea-men to say Lord is not the accursed thing among us is not the wedg of Gold aboard and the Babylonish garment and now hath not our sins found us out nay our secret sins which the Lord sets in the light of his countenance sin may be hid a long time but as is commonly said of Murder it will out so it may be said of other sins They will out Jonah's running away from God you see came out 2. Reason why we should be inquiring into the cause when under Distresses and Afflictions Because this frame of heart vindicates and honours the justice and righteousness of God Thus Jonah was brought to this at last For my sake is this storm come Ps 9. 13. upon us O now God sends his Agents his Pursevants to artest Delinquents we read therefore of God making Inquisition for blood then saith the Text he remembreth them he will seek out blood so it is read Now whether remembring refers to Bloods to Murders God is searching out or Remembring relates to the afflicted ones as a learned Expositer observes the Caldee to read it he that requires blood of the innocent remembers his just ones however this is true God remembers sin Now when he makes 2 Châ—â—n 2â— 22. Inquisition for it to punish it requiring and punishing the same therefore we read of the Lord looking upon Blood and requiring it viz. to punish and avenge it and so Josephs Brethren say Behold his blood is required O now the Lords searchers are abroad Gen. 42. 22. it is good to be inquiring our selves and so justify God You Sea-men have the Kings Searchers come abroad and they wait upon you O my friends God hath his searchers and his waiters too such as you cannot deceive O then inquire into the cause Lord thou art righteous in all thy proceedings against sinners at Sea and Land and there is some great cause that thou doth thus contend with us That which we know Job 31. 32. not teach thou us and if we have done iniquity we will do so no more 3. We should be inquiring into the cause because God will certainly discover it God will fetch it out let it lye never so latent and hid The Lord sees where the accursed thing lyes he knew the Babylonish garment was hid and the Silver under it Gods eye looks under the Babilonish garment you it may be think your sins are secret from the knowledg of Relations and so you are safe enough and upon the account of the secrecy of sin go on and are hardned but alas for you poor Sea-men God will bring all
out O what a place is that Thou hast Ps 90. 8. set our secret sins in the light of thy countenance that word you have had again and again your sin will find you out shall God make a discovery and we make no inquiry O never think that you can hide the accursed thing out of God's sight That is an observable place He will search Jerusalem with Zeph. 1. 12. Candles and punish the men that are setled upon their leese that say in their hearts The Lord will not do good neither will he do evil some carries it To search with Lant-horns exactly and narrowly and take it that the Caldeans shall be their searchers to seek out their wealth and treasures But others that God would make a diligent narrow search after their sins and his search should reach so deep as to a discovery of mens very hearts That say in their hearts c. Begin to draw up Atheistical conclusions against God that he never regards the government of the world The arguing of too many poor Seamens hearts I am afraid God will discover the very thoughts of your hearts and if the cause lye hid there either in heart or house he will find it out Therefore we should be upon inquiry But this will fall in under the next Doctrine And the Lot fell upon Jonah 4. We should be inquiring into the cause Because until this be discovered the judgment is not removed as Physicians say The cause of a disease known the disease is half cured So in this case this storm do what they could never calmes until Jonah was discovered Though they used all the means possible for men to use when at last they were so ingenious that they thought to save the life of the Delinquent yet the Sea wrought and was tempestuous and they could ver 15. not do it until the righteous sentence of God was executed upon him that they cast him over-board And then sayes the Text the Sea ceased from her raging we read that â—â—v â—6 42 43 44 45. such a time should come that God would Remember the Land of Israel when they were under sad tryals and distresses and God would Remember his Covenant now it is observable what time that was The Text tells When their uncircumcised hearts are humbled and they accept the punishment of their iniquities because even because they despised my Judgments and their Souls abhorred my Statutes You see now here is the cause of all discovered well they accept of the punishment of their iniquity here the cause of the Judgment is acknowledged and now it shall be remembred And yet for all that When they be in the Land of their Enemies I will not cast them away neither will I destroy them utterly nor abhor them nor break my Covenant with them For I am the Lord their God See here now is the controversie taken up betwixt God and Them 5. Reason We must inquire into the cause when under Distresses and Afflictions this speaks us truly humbled under the hand of God When we are digging into the cause of God's Judgments that lye upon us many poor sinners may be sensible of the sad effects of God's displeasure in taking away Relations from them by violent tempests in breaking their Estates in the loss of Ships but this is but to cry and complain of the smart of God's dispensations but what is this to the cause of them there your work lies Lord wherefore doest thou contend with us have you found out the Achan the Jonah all this while therefore you must in your Humiliations be more punctual and particular when under the hand of God than at other times When Israel was under the hand of the Philistines and lamented after the Lord Samuel in his exhortation to them upon a solemn Fast-day a Humiliation-day he leads them by the hand to the cause of their distress If you return to the Lord with all your heart and put away the strange Gods from among you and Ashtaroth then he will deliver you out of the hands of the Philistines 1 Sam â—â—â— 4. This Idol was the grand provocation to the Lord Nay this argued them deeply humbled that they would put the Idol away and so in the days of Ezra they came to this â—o find out the particular provocation viz. the marrying strange wives against the express mind of God they resolve to put them away and sayes the Text They sate trembling Ezâ—â— â—0 9. because of this matter O it is a hopeful case to be inquiring into the matter and cause of the Lords controversie When poor Sea-men and their Relations are saying to God under their distresses and tryalls Lord what is the matter what is the sin whereby Lord we have caused thee to send such terrible Messengers of thy displeasure after us When you say Is this sin it or that sin it Lord is it our drunkenness is it our neglect nay profanation of Sabbaths Is it our neglecting the worship of God aboard our Ships when at Sea or neglecting family-prayer when at home Is it our carnal confidence in our successes Is it our unrighteous dealings in the way of our Trade betwixt man and man Lord what sin is it find it out O the Lot will fall upon Jonah the Person and the crime too will be found out by God APPLICATION Is it so that it is our duty to inquire into the cause when under tryals and distresses 1. It is a word of Counsel and Exhortation to poor Sea-men and their Relations to set upon the work when under such dispensations of God The work that the doctrine calls for To say to the Lord shew us wherefore thou contendest with us why are these sad blows come upon us why are we broken in our Comforts in our Estates in our Relations Lord why are we thus Is it to try grace Is it to discover guilt Is it to wean from the uncertain comforts of this present life Is it to let us see where more durable Treasures are to be had then those perishing Treasures that come by the Sea nay what if God should give all the Families of the Tribe of Zebulun the performance of the word Thou shalt seek of the abundance of the Deut. 33. 19. Sea and of Treasures hid in the Land What would these things signifie if you have no Title to the other treasures of God above Heaven is the only treasure-house Lay up your treasures in Heaven these treasures never can suffer Ship-wrack 1. Motive to enquire into the cause this is the only way to have the controversie taken up betwixt God and You. And O what a mercy would this be How comfortably then might you go to Sea and look dangers and difficulties in the face How couragiously might you look Turks and Pyrats in the face when you have the controversie taken up betwixt You and God you need not then fear mans controversie If there should be War betwixt
Notion that some extraordinary guilt raised this Storm There was some Malefactor aboard and as they said when Paul came a shoar and the Viper came upon his Acts 28. 4. hand No doubt this man is a Murderer whom though he escaped the Sea yet vengeance suffereth not to live So these poor Pagans conclude Some great Malefactor was aboard this storm pursued to take Vengeance of 2. Here is this in it also that they gave up the discovery to the determination of the Lot That we may know for whose cause this Evil is come upon us We will be decided by the Lot whom the Lot will fall upon They attributed such a Divinity to Lots that they were willing the Controversie should be ended by them 4. We have the controversie devided and the Malefactor discovered And the Lot fell upon Jonah Before he was reproved and might have been vehemently suspected being asleep in such a storm But here he is plainly and openly discovered and discovered in an extraordinary way too His Conscience is not startled at the Mariners reproof though he be awake his Conscience is asleep still he doth not cry out I am the man for whose cause this Evil is come upon You. I am the Malefactor sent after by this storm O no so hard it is to acknowledg our guilt and take shame to our selves We go on and let God go onuntil we be discovered that there is no denyal of it 1. Observation is this Extraordinary Storms and Tempests are not sent out without a Cause This Doctrine these poor Pagans owned 2. In all Distresses and Afflictions it is our duty to be inquiring into the Cause This Doctrine the poor Heathen Sea-men own For whose Cause this Evil is come upon us 3. God will find out the Jonah that hath raised the storm And the Lot fell upon Jonah The hand of an especial determining Providence disposing and so ordering it that it fell upon Jonah 1. Observation Extraordinary storms and tempests are not sent out without a Cause That we may know for whose cause this Evil is come upon us is the consent of the whole Ships-company 1. We are to understand that these poor Heathens had in their dangers apprehensions above Chance and Fortune They thought that there was some cause given to their Gods by provoking them why these things should come upon them As they had why the Viper should come upon Paul's hand They thought there was some great cause that he was a Murderer and vengeance was pursuing him They thought their Gods were angry and so They cryed unto 1 Sam. 6 9. their Gods We read of the Philistines when they had taken the Ark Prisoner and had been Plagued for it with one Judgment after another to decide the Controversie whether these Judgments were from God or a chance that hapned to them they would put it upon this issue They would send it home and if it went by the way of the Coast of Bethshemesh then they concluded It was God's hand that smote them So here If the Lot fall upon Jonah then the Controversie is decided that he is the guilty Malefactor that hath caused this great storm 2. We are to understand that those poor Heathens had apprehensions of the Justice of their Gods while they say For whose cause is this come upon us They looked upon it as a punishment and that it was come as some righteous Sentence upon some great Malefactor So they in the Acts when they saw the Viper come upon Paul's hand presently conclude him a Malefactor of the highest ranck and that Vengeance would follow him at land if he escaped it at Sea They could not but believe there was some Cause given by some in the Vessel O that this may teach poor Sea-men every storm to say For whose cause is this storm come upon us shall Heathens out-strip Christians when they are in storms and dangers 3. We are to understand that these poor Heathen Sea-men did think that there was a Supream Power ordering and guiding this storm or tempest What needed they else cry to their Gods what needed they have cast Lotts But that they attributed a kind of Divinity to them to decide the Controversie and that the Winds had a Commission from their Gods to blow or else why should they say What should we doe unto thee that the Sea may be calm c. They thought If a righteous sentence was executed upon the now discover'd Malefactor that the storm would cease 4. We are to understand That these poor Heathen Sea-men thought that the Malefactor would be discovered Therefore they said every one to his Fellows Let us cast Lotts that we may know for whose cause this evil is come upon us Lots were not used but in doubtful and difficult Cases Therefore they by joint consent put it upon this issue that he whom the Lot fell upon was the Person 5. It is further observable They were all willing to find out the guilty Person And every one said to his fellows Come let us cast Lots This seems to argue their innocency all this while they were so willing to come to tryal Guilty Persons use to fear the sentence of the Judg. Their willingness to cast Lots was to come undâ—r the judgment and sentence of the Lord. Though they might not think absolutely of the sentence of God in the Lots but it may be used them superstitiously and unwarrantably Before we come to the Reasons of it let us a little enquire into this storm What kind of storm it was that they thought there must be some especial Cause or Provocation to procure it 1. It is said to be sent out It is a Messenger or Pursevant after a Mallefactor The Ver. 4. Lord sent out a great Wind into the Sea Winds are the Servants of God He sayes Go and they go blow and they blow 2. It was a wind of The Lords sending out The Lord sent out a great Wind. They blow as God gives them a Commission God's Soveraignty over the Winds is an useful doctrine to Sea-men to take notice of It is said God Psal 78. 26. caused an East-wind to blow in the Heaven and by his Power he brought in the South wind He is said to bring them out of his Ps 135. 7. Treasuries They are shut up and let out at his command The way of the Lord was in this Tempest 3. It seems to be a sudden storm The Lord sent out a Wind into the Sea Cast out a wind upon the Sea some read it noting the suddeness of it And this made the Mariners conclude there was something extraordinary in it beyond the course of Nature 4. It was suâ—â— a storm as threatned the breaking of the Vessel 5. It was such a storm as was not calmed though the Malefactor was discoverd until he was executed They rowed hard to save his life but the Sea wrought and was Tempestuous against them â—er 15. justice must be
done upon the Offender and then it calmed So they took up Jonah and cast him into the Sea and it ceased from Raging 1. God doth not send such storms without a cause because he is righteous in all his proceedings judicial proceedings Though somtimes he be severe yet he is alwayes righteous The righteous Judg doth not pass sentence without notorious evidence of the fact This was the Case of Jonah he had fled from the presence of the Lord his flight evidences his guilt And so God sends this Terrible Hue and Cry after him The storm Psa 148. 8. and hail fire and vapour and snow are all said to fulfil his word viz his word of Command and his word of Threatning which is a righteous Sentence upon guilty Sinners Here consider poor Sea-men Is it not a righteous thing with God that you who have sinned in many storms by raging impatience of your Spirits by being in as great a storm of discontent and murmuring as the Sea it self You that have been delivered so many a time in storms and sinned after such deliverances you that have made so many vows to God in your storms and distresses at Sea and have broken and forgotten them all at Land is it not I say a righteous thing with God that you should at one time or other perish by such storms Is it not a righteous thing that when the guilty Malefactor hath fled and the Hue and Cry sent out after him takes him that he should be tryed condemned and executed Alas poor Sea-men you are the Malefactors God is the Judg and your extraordinary Storms are the Hue and Cry sent out to Sea after you May not you say in this case as David in that Whither shall I go from thy presence If I take the Psal 139. 8. 10. wings of the morning and dwell in the utmost parts of the Sea even there shall thy hand lead me thy right hand shall hold me viz. lay hold on me apprehend me as a Malefactor is apprehended by Hue and Cry Have not you given God cause thus to send after you when you carry guilt to Sea with you every Voyage old guilt new guilt old Vows undischarged new debts unpaid You have cause to say and your Relations have cause to say God is Righteous in all that is come upon you He is the Judge of all the earth and he will do right he is Judg at Land and he will do right there and he is Judg of the Court of Admiralty and he will do right there 2 Extraordinary storms are not sent out without Cause Because God will stop the mouth of every poor guilty sinner in the day that he deals with them Jonah here pleads guilty for I know that for my sake is this vâ—â— 12. great Tempest upon you Now he Confesses all The Law of God is so Righteous that it stops every mouth Now we know Rom. 3. â—â— 19. what things soever the Law saith it saith to them who are under the Law that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God As when guilty persons have the fact proved plainly before them that they have nothing to say for themselves as the Judg saies when he passes Judgment What hast thou to say for thy self that the Sentence should not now be pronounced upon thee The poor wretch hath now nothing to say for himself stands as the man that had not on the Wedding Garment Speechless Now in these extraordinary storms poor Sea-men God is dealing with you It may be at home Ministers were dealing with you and God's Ordinances dealing with you and Relations dealing with you that you would look about you for your immortal Souls But all was rejected But now God is dealing with you and Conscience is dealing with you and now your mouths will be stopt All your objections then will be silent If you say any thing in this day It will be Lord thou art Righteous If thou pass Sentence upon me now if thou sink me if thou damn me if I never see Relations more Wife and Children more O poor Seamen how will you be then condemned in your own Consciences when God is passing Sentence upon you then Iniquity will stop its mouth Third Reason Extraordinary storms are not sent out without a Cause Because they bring Souls into great distresses Now God doth not Afflict or distress the Children of men willingly Alas it is with great regret he doth it As a Father Corrects his Child He fears he will be spoyled else not that he hath any delight in whipping-work It is said of poor Sea-men in their storms Their Psal 107. 25 26 27 28. Souls are melted because of Trouble they are at their wits end Then they cry unto the Lord in their trouble and he bringeth them out of their distresses Their Soul is melted their courage faileth because of Anxiety so some read it Now God doth not without a cause bring poor creatures into distresses 1. Now poor Sea-men in their storms are distressed with their sins compassing them about Now Psal 40. 12. their iniquities takes hold upon them that they cannot look up therefore their Heart faileth them as David saies Take hold upon them as the Hue and Cry takes hold on the guilty Malefactor as hath been hinted already O is not this a great distress when death and unpardoned guilt looks a poor Sinner in the face at the same time To have all your sins before you now when Death that King of Terrors comes forth against you this is to be in great distress 2. In storms fears make distress And God would not bring Sinners into fears without Cause The Mariners now were affraid as hath been noted before Fear is such a distress that we read a promise to be delivered from the fear of Evil not only from the Evil but the Fear of it Fears of death are as terrible to some as Death it self 3. In storms Job 9. 13. they are distressed under the sense of Gods displeasure O this is a storm in his Anger and if God withdraw not his Anger all the proud helpers stoop under him all the helpers of pride as the Dutch Annotators observe They that arrogantly presume they can help themselves out of the distress Alas the Stout-hearted Mariners the most couragious Sea-men in the world will stoop under Him God is not Angry without a Cause Is not this distress To be under the sense of divine displeasure Ask David and he will tell you he had no rest in his bones because of Gods Anger 4. In storms they are distressed under Terrors of Spirit about their Eternal Conditions No such distresses as Soul-distresses If it come to this once O what will become of my immortal Soul If I die and sink in this storm do not I go to Hell now I think the Soul is in distress enough It is no wonder if the Soul be in distress when it
Channel which is a great aggravation of your Affliction there you shall miscarry Nay Here in the River as some have done of late if God have a controversy with you 5ly O give not God cause to take up a Controversy against you for then you will have nothing to plead for your selves when God in his Providences is pleading against you O then poor Sea-men you will be Speechless you will have nothing to say for your selves Thus it was with Jonah He justifies God in his righteous Judgment and condemns himself For my sake is this storm come upon you Then you will in your Souls conclude the Lord is righteous but you are wicked and this storm is now the fruit of your wickedness Hast thou a word to say poor drunken Seaman poor profane Seaman why thou shouldst not perish this storm why thou shouldst not sink to the bottom this storm 6ly O give not God cause to take up a Controversy against you The Controversy will be against your Souls if you do Now this is the sadest Controversy in the world a Controversy against a Ship is not so sad a Controversy against Estates nay Lives is not so sad But for a Controversy to lie against precious Souls this is sadest of all This night thy Soul shall be taken away The Controversy lay against his Soul O for God to say to a poor Sea-man in a stormy night Thou fool this night will thy Soul be taken away this is a sad story thy soul is now to be cast away Few pity cast-away Souls Alas the body is but the Cabbinet the Soul is the Jewel And though the Cabbinet should be cast away if thou knew that thy Soul were safe the breaking or drowning of the Cabbinet would not be so Terrible to thee Second word of Counsel If extraordinary storms be not sent from God without a cause then be counselled poor Sea-men and your Relations to make your peace with God O venture not to Sea untill this work be done Dost thou know what a venture thou runnest every voyage that thou makest and thy Soul unreconciled to God O then you of the Tribe of Zebulun might Rejoyce in going out then you might leave your dear Relations with comfort if not to see them again in this world yet to see them in a better where you shall be ever with the Lord. O the Advantages of Sea-men and their Relations being at peace with God if they were seriously considered would stir you all up with might and main to this work 1. If you were at peace with God then you might lift up your face with confidence to God in all your dangers and distresses What is it that daunts and strikes Terror to the hearts of Seamen in their distresses but this They have not made their peace with God when Conscience asks the Question Is all Peace do not Pâ—aâ— 40. 12. they answer as he did What peace seeing the Witchcrafts and Whoredoms of Jezabel are so many now your iniquities take hold upon you that you cannot look up and what then O then Davids heart fail'd him But now poor Souls that are reconciled to God they know all things shall go well with the Righteous and this makes them look comfortably up to God in their distresses 2ly If you were at peace with God then you might expect all your disappointments and losses would be sanctified to you Many of you go to Sea and meet with Shipwracks though it is a great mercy to have your lives spared yet many of you have breaches made upon you as the Breaches of the Sea breaches upon your Estates it may be God gives an estate for one 7 years and takes it away the next and after that he hath lifted you up he casts you down Now O what a mercy would this be if your Souls and your Relations might prove gainers by these losses and peace made with God would bring on this mercy All things shall work together for the good of such all his dispensations are measured out in love to such No storm is in wrath to such O sayes God to such Fury is not in me 3ly If you were at peace with God then you might expect to carry the especial blessing of Gods protection out with you This was the blessing that Moses blessed the Tribe of Zebulun with Rejoyce O Zebulun in they going out whether it was to war or to trade as Interpreters hold it may be both it was a great blessing to go cut Rejoycing under their hopes of the protection of God O then his Banner over you would be love every Voyage and this the best Ancient or Ensigne that your Ship can carry forth with you This is your best colours to put forth in case you meet with an Enemy This Banner can cover your heads in the day of Battel This especial Protection of God is the Best Pilot to steer you You may talk of a Protection from Man but this is the only Protection that will do you good 4. If you were at peace with God you might then expect his comfortable Soul-reviving presence in all your storms and dangers And Is not his presence brave Company in distress O what a cordial was that word to their fainting Spirits when the Disciples were in that terrible storm at Sea Be of Mark 6. 50. good cheer It is I be not afraid they cry Lord save us and then Christ appears to them and calls to them O what a comfortable night had Paul though in that storm when the Angel stood by him and said Paul be of good cheer all that sayl with thee are given to thee For God to give you the comfort of that promise When thou goest through the water I will be with thee This raises wonderfully the heart of a poor Believer If you were at Peace with God then you would in some comfortable measure be lifted up above fears and can there be fear but there is torment in it O what a mercy would it be when in the Valley of the shaddow of Death then to fear no evil but to have your heart fixed trusting in the Lord. But this hath been hinted before 6. If you were at Peace with God then Death would not have that dread in it This would unsting Death Then your hearts would not so sadly meditate Terror when Death the King of Terrors shall look you in the Face Might not you then say O death where is thy sting O Grave or Sea where is thy Victory while others tremble at the thoughts of it you might tryumph in your comfortable expectations of it holding out your Hands and Arms saying Now Lord let thy Servant depart in Peace Then you may make ready to swim to the bosome of the Lord Jesus it is but thy Body thy Cabinet that is lost that is cast away The Jewel and Treasure is taken up by Christ that comes safe to shoar through all the storms and tempests that can blow 7. If
consider the way he was in until the Lord sent a Pursevant to Arrest him until he is in an extraordinary manner discovered O poor Souls did you never read that terrible word of the Lord God will wound the heads of his Enemies and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth still on Psal 68. 21. in his Trespasses The word for hairy scalp signifies an High-way-man an high-way Robber and is the same with that in Job and the Robber shall prevail against him As the Jâ—b 18. â— Dutch-Ambassadors observe Their hair makes them terrible to the Traveller Well but God will wound such if they walk in their guilts so it is to be read O how good is it poor Sea-men to stop your Course 1. The longer you continue to provoke God to come out against you the harder will it be to take up The longer that a disease runs or hangs upon a man the harder it is to cure The longer thou sleepest in thy sin and security the harder will it be to awaken thee Thus it was with Jonah He goes on in his guilt and security and then a whole storm at Sea awakens him not and you see he is glad to be called on Nay as it were haled out of his hole and all little enough Such a sound sleep doth guilt cast the Soul in The longer poor sinners you wear your Chains and Fetters the stronger will they be upon you The nearer you are to the bottom of the hill the harder you will be to stop O therefore in time consider your ways and turn your feet unto the Lords Testimonies 2. The longer you continue to give God cause to come forth against you the greater will the account and reckoning be And if you cannot Answer for one of a thousand how should you Answer for ten thousands nay ten thousand times ten thousand that is put upon your scoreâ— as that word in Job is â—f God will contend with him he cannot Answer him one of a Thousand some read it he shall be found guilty a thousand times over and O what a Terrible Reckoning will this be here is now double interest nay interest upon interest O it is dangerous running upon the score with God 3. The longer that you continue in giving God Cause to come forth against you the more dreadful will the blow be when it comes upon you O how heavy will that stroak be that is so long a fetching The longer that any Judgment of God is coming the more terrible it is when it comes I have a long time holden Esa 42. 14. my Peace and lain still and refrained my self now will I cry like a Travelling woman I will destroy and devour at once or swallow up as the words is altogether Long deferr'd Judgments are swallowing-up Judgments when they come 4. The longer you continue to give God cause to come forth against you the dearer it will cost your Souls when you come to be made sensible of it O how will you cry out of your selves that you should stand out against so many Calls that you should stout it out so many years against that God that exercised such infinite Patience and long-suffering towards you that he that was armed with so much Power should exercise so much Patience towards such Rebels Then you will say with cries and tears to God for mercy The time past of your 1 Pet. 4. 3. lives may suffice you To have wrought the wills of the Gentiles c. O how will it grieve your Souls that you kept up arms against that God who held out his golden Scepter to you to offer you tearms of Peace Reconciliation 5. The longer you continue to give God cause to come forth against you the more danger you run of being hardned in your course O poor Sea-men is not that Text a word that looks sadly upon you Because Eccles 8. 11. Sentence is not speedily Executed therefore the hearts of Sinners are hardned The words are very considerable Because Sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily viz. The righteous Judgment of God upon sin is delayed for the present therefore the hearts of the Sons of men is fully set in them to do evil O what an abuse is here of Gods Patience Their heart is full to do evil so the Hebrew reads it What if God poor Souls should let you alone strive no more with you but give you up to the hardness of your hearts and say sleep on and sin on until my Judgments meet you and my wrath arrest you and you reap of the fruit of your own evil ways Would not this be sad O therefore poor Sea-men no longer stand out against God but upon your knees and beg for mercy that the Controversie may no longer continue betwixt God your poor Souls Thus we have done with this first Observation That God doth not send forth extraordinary storms without a Cause Jonah 1. 7. And every one said to his fellow Come let us cast Lots That we may know for whose cause this evil is come upon us c. WE are now to discourse the end and aime that these poor Marriners had in casting Lots in this distress and danger which is here exprest That we may know for whose cause this evil is come upon us This evill of Punishment some cause there was that they concluded and that the guilty person would be discovered by casting Lots that they also concluded And you see they were unanimous and earnest in finding out the cause The Observation is In all distresses and afflictions it is our duty to be inquiring into the cause That we may know for whose cause this evil is come upon us There is a two-fold inquiry into the cauâ—e of distresses and afflictions 1. There is an Inquiry of discontented expostulation and reasoning the case with God in a way of un belief Thus Gideon when the Lord had told him that he was with him If the Lord be with us O my Lord why then is all this befallen Judg. 6 13. us and where be all his miracles which our Fathers told us of saying Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt But now the Lord hath forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites Here is an inquiry but it was with an unbelieving Reasoning against God And we read of eminent Saints falling into this Temptation why doth the way of the wicked prosper wherefore Jer 12. 1. are they happy that deal treacherously saies Jeremy 2. There is an inquiry of submission and humiliation when poor Souls would know wherefore the Lord doth contend with them â—â—b 10 â— that they may be humbled for giving God cause to come forth against them And this is the Inquiry ye are discoursing about That God doth not contend without a cause that we have heard already And That we are to inquire into the cause now we are to prove When Israel was
Nation and Nation what brave Sea-men will they be that have made their peace with God then they may Rejoyce in going out to War so some take that Jud. ◠18. Text of Zebulun for Zebulun is commended for jeoparding there lives unto the death they disdained their Souls to death as the Dutch Annotators observe upon it they fought so bravely for Israels deliverance that they seem to condemn their very lives no man will fight so bravely with an Enemy as he that is reconciled unto God Are not they fittest to fight that are fittest to dye 2. Motive to inquire into the cause of all Evils coming upon you this speaks you sensible of the hand of God There are some that whatsoever they meet with at Sea or at Land all their lives they never say for whose cause is this come upon us they are obdurate and hardned they are like Solomons drunk ard Thou shalt be as he that lyeth down in the midst Prov 23. 34 35. of the Sea or as he that lyeth upon the top of the Mast they have stricken me shal◠thou say and I was not sick They have beat en me and I felt it not when shall I awake I will take it yet again Are there not many such poor drunken Sea-men and O what danger are they in as one that lyeth asleep in the top of the Mast and is stricken and yet feels nothing is even hardned in his sin O these poor Souls never inquires into the cause of the evil and dangers they meet with all As God said of a People why should you be smitten any more you Revolt more and more 3. Motive to inquire into the cause of all evils you meet with this-will help you much to the knowledg of your hearts and lives and O how necessary are these to know both for Sea-men and Land-men You love to know how such a Rock lyes and such a Sand such a Port and such a Coast such a 〈◊〉 or Cape O it is as necessary to know your hearts to know where such a Rock of temptation lyes and such a Sand of a temptation lyes to know these that your precious Souls may never be split upon any of them O many of these Rocks of temptations lye hid in your hearts and you may be run upon them before you ever are aware if you do not know how they lie O how many a pretious Soul hath perished for want of knowing how the temptations of their own hearts lay they have thought they have run upon a bold Coast as you say and hath ventured upon temptations with their own carnal confidence and so have miscarried for ever did you know you had such proud hearts you were almost split upon the Rock of Pride did you know you had such worldly hearts until you were almost split upon the Rock of Covetuousness well now by inquiring into the cause of your evils you come to the knowledg of your hearts For sometimes the cause lyes there and your lives it somtimes lyes there O that poor Sea-men would see into their lives and see if the accursed thing be not there Is it not your loosness your profaneness your swearing your violation of the Sabboth your mocking at prayer your despiseing of ordinances your cruelty to the Souls of the men under your charge some of you Are not those things the causes of the Lords controversie with you It may be you go on and sin and never inquire into these matters until the fatall storm and dismal stroak over-take you and then perish you must when you have scarce time to say Lord for whose sake is this evil come upon us 4. Motive to inquire into the cause of the evils you meet withall This will argue you look higher then second causes in storms and distresses that none of these afflictions arise out of the dust the winds are his winds his servants the Seas his servants and you must look over from the servant to the Lord. These poor Mariners you see did look higher therefore they pray unto their Gods this is a Christian spirit this storme fulfills the will of God the word of God and good is the word of the Lord. 5. Motive to inquire into the cause of the evils you meet with This argues sincerity and integrity of soul that they all were so willing to cast lots and find out the Malefactor argued their uprightness and innocency as to that extraordinary guilt that they thought this storm came for When a poor Sea-man can say with holy David Lord search me and try me and know my heart and know my thoughts and see if there be any wicked way in me doth not this argue sincerity and uprightness can any Ps 139. 23 24. but a sound heart abide searching especially Gods searching Can any but upright hearts desire to know the plague of their own hearts to desire to know the worst by themselves to say is it I Lord is it I that have caused this storm am I the Jonah in the Vessel am I the guilty Person this storm is sent after if Lord I yeild to thy most righteous sentence do what thou wilt with me so that this storm may become a calm 2. Use Is it so that inquiry into the cause is our duty when in distress then it is a word of direction O but sayes poor Souls now we shall inquire into the cause of God's controversie with us 1. By Prayer This is the great inquiry shew me wherefore thou contendest with me this is the only way to find out the controversie Thus David did as you have heard Search me O God try me c. Joshua's prayer found out the Achan for God upon it bid him arise and search out the cursed thing He knew not of the accursed thing until he had been inquiring of God and then all comes out O Prayer brings all out As sometimes God sayes by Preaching Thou art the man as he did by Nathan unto David so he says somtimes by Prayer thou art the man and this is the sin the cause of such an evil and of such a tryal 2. Direction Would you find out the cause then you must look into your selves as well as look up to God looking inward is as necessary as looking upward you must make a diligent search you must commune with your own hearts You must find this if ever you find it upon search O it is not an easie thing to find out the cause of Gods contending with us And therefore we must be exact in the scrutiny 1. It is it may be some hidden thing the accursed thing was the hidden thing it was not in the open field no it was in Achans Tent yea and it was hid there therefore we must ransack every corner of our hearts they have many dark corners and we must if we will find out the cause go from corner to corner with the light of the Word You Sea-men search your Ships for the
accursed thing you Land-men search your Shops for it and every one search your hearts for it It is not many times visible there is it is true a visible cursed thing many times carried to Sea with you viz your drunkenness your neglect of the worship of God your swearing your Sabbath-breaking But is there not where these are not accursed covetuousness the accursed wedg of gold accursed defrauding and cheating in a more hidden way and accursed uncleanness in a more secret way that it may be few know of it 2. You must search your hearts for the cause of your evils For few know their own hearts who knows them it is a very hard thing to know them aright we may think we know them be very ignorant of them if they that search them somtimes be ignorant of them how ignorant are they then of them that never look into them Ps 19. 12 which made David say who can understand his error cleanse thou me from secret faults 3. You must be diligent in the searching out the causes of your evils for you may very easily overlook them you may easily over-look in the search the wedg of gold it may lye in a little room and the Babylonish garment may lye in a little room 4. You must be diligent in the searches for our Hearts are very prone to be partial We have a Peter within that often calls to us Master spare thy self We say of a beloved sin that usually is the cause of Gods contending with us as David did of his beloved Son deal gently with my Son Absolom for my sake We are very indulgent to our right hands and to our right eyes 5. You must be diligent in your Search for while you are upon it if it be possible Satan will blow out your Candle I mean your Conviction in the light of which you Search It may be God convinces you of your duty and you fall upon search but before you have made any thing of it you will have Satan blow your light out and so you will give over as the woman sought her lost groat lighted her Candle and swept her house so had you need to do in this inquiry after the cause of your distresses and Afflictions 3. If you would find out the cause of your Afflictions and tryals then make Inquiery by the word Then is the only Rule to find out the Jonah This way would these poor Heathen Mariners have taken but that they were ignorant of any such Rule therefore they cast Lots There can be no search made to any purpose without the word It is upon this account called a Lamp a Lanthorn If a sin we seek for evade discovery and run into the dark corners of our Hearts we are to follow the search still in the light of the word And if guilty Jonah had but been kept awake to have askt his Soul the Question O my Soul Is this according to the word of the Lord that came to thee was thy Commission to go to Tarshish or to Ninevie Is it according to Rule for thee to go one way when God bids thee go another he had then soon come to a discovery of the cause of this storm upon easie Inquiry We should in such a case say as Paul did in that controversie But what saies the Scripture 1. Make your Inquiry by reading the word O that Sea-men would Sail by this Compass and when you meet with a sin set out in the word and markt by the Lord that you would say Here is a Sea-marke for thee to avoyd here is a Rock that thou must be careful thou split not upon a Sand thou must be careful thou fall not foul upon Here is a Gulph thou must be careful thou be not swallowed up in You talk of the Gulph of Venice and the Gulph of Lyons but the Word tells you of the Gulph of Drunkenness and of the Gulph of uncleanness and of the Gulph of swearing and Sabbath-breaking And O how many are swallowed up precious Souls of poor Sea-men cast away in these Gulphs Do you in reading the word observe what marks God hath given such and such sins and how they have caused his displeasure As soon as ever the sin of drunkenness came into the world God set a brand upon it It came in by a sad hand indeed even â—en 19. â—6 37 â—8 by Lott But O what a punishment God set upon it suffering it to be fellowed with another sin the great sin of Uncleanness nay the highest even Incest O what sin came in at this door what Murders Quarrellings Passions Adulteries even the door of Drunkenness but see a further mark set upon it as the sad effects of it The first Daughter bare a Son and Judg 11 4 2â— called his name Moab the other bare a Son and called his name Ben-ammi the Father of the Children of Ammon unto this day Now this Posterity apostatized to Idolatry and became both of them as dwelling near Canaan great Enemies to poor Israel Some read Deut. 23. 3 4. and was not this a black mark upon that sin that such a Father should have such a Posterity begot in the sin that should in after Generations be inveterate Enemies to Gods people Take but another Instance because this is one of the sins of Seamen that is often a cause of the Lords controversie with you in storms at Sea Esa 23. 1 2 3. Wo to the crown of Pride and the Drunkards of Ephraim whose glorious beauty is as a fading flower c. Behold the Lord hath a mighty and stronge one which is a Tempest of haile and a Destroying storme as a flood of mighty waters overflowing shall cast down to the Earth with his hand The Drunkards of Ephraim shall be troden under feet This is a Prophesie of the wrath of God upon the Ten Tribes for their drunkenness did much abound and this mighty strong one as a destroying storm to come upon them which was made good in Salmaneser the King of Assyria's coming to beseige Samaria and carry them Captive when the Turks carry so many English Sea-men Captive into Sally into Argiers is it not good inquiring Is not our Drunkenness the cause of this Evil coming upon us mark well then consult the word what it saies of Drunkenness 2. Consult the word in your reading of it and observe what a mark God hath put upon uncleanness which I doubt is another Rock that many a poor Sea-mans Soul is split upon Saies Solomon I discerned among the simple ones among the youths a young-man voide of understanding Here is a brand upon him What was he one that fell in with the strange Woman what became of him Prâ— 7. â— 26. 27. He was led of her till a dart struck through his Liver as a bird hasteneth to the snare and knoweth not it is for his life her house is the way to Hell going down to the Chambers of death He is
rightoous for Ezra 9. 15 we remain yet escaped as it is this day behold we are before thee in our Trespasses for we cannot stand before thee because of this O how many poor Seamen may say we are yet escaped escaped such a storm such a fatal tempest unto others and yet we are before thee in our Trespasses and cannot stand with comfort and confidence before the Lord because they have again broken his Commandments after their eminent deliverances and salvations And that you may fall down before the Lord in humble confession consider these following Motives 1. This is usually the beginning of a kindly effectual touch of grace upon the heart The poor Prodigal upon his first return unto his Father says Father I have Luk. 15. Act. 19. 18 sinned against Heaven and before thee his first work upon his return is Confession We read of a great success the Gospel had in Paul's day and many believed and as soon as the Gospel touched kindly their Souls they confessed and shewed their deeds saith the Text viz. laying their hainous sins by way of humble confession as Ephraim did so it will be with a poor sinner As a Bullock unaccustomed to the yoke he confessed he had been Lord will the poor Soul say what a vile wretch have I been with Paul of sinners I am chief a Blasphemer a Persecuter an injurious person When Paul was humbled Oh how he confesses then what a wretch he had been 2. This puts poor Souls under a promise O now upon thy knees poor sinner while thou art confessing thy sin thou mayest put into plea and suit Gods promise and Oh what an excellent way is this of dealing with God to be bewailing your sin and at the same time be pleading Gods promise for pardon this is right Evangelical repentance to have one eye upon sin to humble you and another eye upon the promise to quicken you up to believe your pardon usually legal sorrow keeps an eye upon guilt but forgets to keep an eye upon the Promise Now poor Soul it is thy only way to confess under a Promise If we confess 1 Joh. 1. 9. our sins he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness Oh now he is engaged as a faithful God to pardon poor souls Oh Faithfulness is his name and he will not nay cannot deny his name and now he can be just in the pardoning as well as in the punishing of sin 3. Motive to Confession of sins you have comfortable presidents upon record of great sins and sinners pardoned upon confession nay upon the serious purpose of humble confession We read of Gods readiness to pardon even in a case of great guilt this we have in David I said I would confess my sin and thou forgavest me the iniquity of my sin which was a piece of guilt highly aggravated and circumstantiated Mary that was such a poor Penitent that we Luk. 7. 4. 47. read she washed the feet of Christ with her Tears and must not here be most eminent Confessions poured out with these Tears And it is said of her Her sins that are many are forgiven her for she loved much 4. Motive to Confession of sin if you deny it it will be proved against you and Oh what a folly is it for a Prisoner to deny the fact before the Judg when he knows it will be proved against him Thou hast set our iniquities before thee our secret sins in the light Psal 90. 8. of thy Countenance As it is the comfort of Gods people that he keeps a Book of Remembrance of their Sufferings So it is the terror of wicked men that he keeps a Book of Remembrance of their sins There is the Conscience of the poor sinner will be called in as Gods witness against the guilty Malefactor at the Barr that is an observable place in the Prophet We roar all like Bears and mourn sore like Doves we look Isa 59. 11 12. for Judgment but there is none for Salvation but it is far off from us For our Transgressions are multiplied before thee and our sins testifie against us They did bear Testimony against them Oh poor Seamen have not you many times in your extremities and distresses at Sea felt the terror of this Testimony have not the iniquities of your heels compassed you about 5. Motive to Confession of sin The King of Israel is a merciful King It is this merciful King thaâ— the Soul presents it self before in humble Confession This was the motive to the Servants of Benadad We have heard that the King of Israel is a merciful King and they came with Ropes about their necks Oh poor Souls if you come to this merciful King with ropes about your necks Confessing you deserve to be turned off the Ladder and to have a righteous sentence executed upon you he will meet you with a Pardon in his hand This King sits upon a Throne of Grace upon the Mercy-seat giving out his Pardon 's daily to humble Penitents Now we read that the Book of the Law which contains all in it all poor sinners Enditements it was put into the Ark and the Mercy-seat covering it was above it Oh this was shadowed out by it Mercy triumphs over Justice in the Lord Jesus Christ Oh then poor sinners bring your Confessions to the Mercy-seat Oh let all poor guilty Seamen and all other poor guilty sinners confess their sins over the head of the Lord Jesus Christ The Priest was to confess all the iniquities of Exod. 25 20 the people over the head of the Scape-Goat noting to us that we must take Christ into our Confessions all poor sinners Confessions should fall upon the head of Christ Now poor sinners and poor guilty Seamen ask your own Consciences Whether you had not better carry your Guilt before the Lord in humble Confessions than have the Lords just and righteous lot find it out either to the confusion or condemnation of your immortal precious Souls O let this Text never be forgotten by you when you come under Sea-temptations or Land-temptations Oh but the Lot fell upon Jonah FINIS Books sold by Dorman Newman at the King's Arms and Bible in the Poultry Folio THe History of King John King Henry the Second and the most Illustrious King Edward the First wherein the ancient Soveraign Dominion of the Kings of Great Britain over all persons in all causes is asserted and vindicated With an exact History of the Popes intolerable usurpation upon the Liberties of the Kings and Subjects of England and Ireland Collected out of the Ancient Records in the Tower of London By William Prinn Esq of Lincolns Inn and Keeper of his Majesties Records in the Tower of London A Description of the Four parts of the World taken from the Works of Monsieur Sanson Geographer to the French King and other eminent Travellers and Authors to which is added the Commodities Coynes