true and God often lets his wrath fall heauily vpon his elect for their sinnes To that end heare the words of Gods Church speaking to the malignant company of her enemies that reioice at her trouble I will look vnto the Lord I will wait for God my Sauiour my God will heare me Reioice not against me O mine enemie though I fall I shall arise when I shall sit in darknes the Lord shall be alight vnto me I will beare the wrath of the Lord because I haue sinned against him vntill he plead my cause and execute iudgment for mee then will hee bring mee forth vnto the light I shall see his righteousnes The Church confesseth that she bare the wrath of God shee confesseth that that wrath fell vpon her for her sinnes and therefore promiseth to beare it patiently because she bare it iustly and she takes not that wrath of God for any euidence of reprobation neither ceaseth to esteeme her selfe the chosen of the Lord that shall inherit his fauour And therefore she exerciseth her faith in looking vp vnto the Lord and out of faith promiseth her selfe all gratious respect with God in her praiers shewes her selfe rich in hope that God himselfe will in due time plead her cause and bring her out of the darknes of her trouble into the light of ioy and so magnifie his loue and fauour to her that her aduersarie the malignant congregation shal be ashamed Therefore certainly God doeth often let his wrath fall vpon the elect for their sinnes and the manifest strokes of Gods wrath cannot bee said to be infallible euidences and signes of reprobation as our afflicted sinner affirmeth to his owne great hurt And if hapily vpon hearing of these things thus spoken his diseased mind should begin to cauill and to say that if other iudgements and strokes of Gods wrath be not euidences of reprobation yet that iudgement and stroke of wrath that is fallen vpon him is a plaine euidence of reprobation his iudgement being accusing thoughts a wounded conseience the most heauie of all Gods iudgements whereof Salomon saith A wounded spirit who can beare it For that stroke is the beginning of intolerable punishment it is the very gate of hâ—…ll iâ—… is that worme that shall liue euer in the bosome of the damned it is euen no other then hell vpon earth And why shold God set a mans sinnes against him in so terrible a manner as hee doeth in this temptation but because his meaning is to condemne vs for our sinnes aforehand to let vs see that hee shall doe it most iustly our sinnes being so many and solothsome against this cauill and for the remouing of this offence from his heart I will adde this vnto that that hath been already spoken that God doeth lay euen this particular stroke of his wrath namely a wounded conscience in the sight of sinnes vpon his elect and therefore that wrath is no euidence of reprobation The prophet Dauid bore this stroke of Gods wrath whereof he speaketh thus Thine arrowes haue light vpon 〈◊〉 and thine handlyeth vpon me there is nothing sound in my flesh because of thine anger neither is there rest in my bones by reason of my sinnes for mine iniquities are gone ouer my head and as a weighty burden they are too heauie for me Here was a stroke of the wrath of God fot he complaineth that Gods hand was heauie vpon him and that Gods arrowes had pierced him and it was not a weake stroke or slight touch but forcible and fearefull so that it made the whole man languish and for the anguish of his soule his body also was consumed and oppressed with paine and feeblenes so that neither in his flesh nor in his bones remained any soundnes And what stroke of Gods wrath was it but euen this particular stroke of accusing thoughts and of a wounded conscience by reason of sinnes that were so heauie a burdthen that the vexation of them was his consumption and was Dauid vpon whom this stroke of wrath fell was hee a reprobate if he were he was such a reprobate as the Lord Iesus Christ was and no other nor otherwise whom the builders refused cast aside as vnfit for the building but God made him the cheefe corner stone as Peter saith This is the stone cast aside of you builders which is become the head of the corner So in the kingdome of Israel Saul Doeg and other busie doers despised and cast aside the sonne os Ishai but God did chuse him to build the kingdome of Israel This therefore is most certaine that euen this stroke of Gods wrath when hee setteth our sinnes in order against vs is no more a signe of reprobation then any other stroke of Gods wrath whatsoeuer This part therefore of his obiection when he calleth himselfe a reprobate is a bold and desperate speech wherein he shews himselfe presumptuous against GOD and vncharitable against himselfe and whether he be a reprobate or not hee ought not to pronounce himselfe to be one the name of reprobation hauing reference vnto the vnknowne and secret counsell of God not vnto the knowne and manifest sinne of man And though our sinnes deserue reprobation Gods wrath falleth vpon them that are reprobate yet neither the sinne that wee are guiltie of nor the wrath that is fallen vpon vs for that sinne though it be this particular stroke of a wounded conscience can be said to be arguments of reprobation And whereas he saith that we deuise answers to his obiections that cary shew of strength among men but those his obictions are vnanswerable before God and our deuised answers before him will be of no vertue Let him know that the answers which wee haue made to his obiections are all grounded vpon the word of God by which word hee shall iudge all men and all the causes of all men As the Lord Iesus saith The word that I haue spoken it shall iudge in the last day And therefore our answers being grounded vpon that word shall stand as rules of trueth before the iudgement seat of God when all the obiections that he hath made growing onely from feare and from a weake heart distempered with a temptation of vnbeleefe shal be found to bee of no force And with this assurance of the sufficiencie of our answers wee waite to heare what he can further obiect why he may not hope for the forgiuenes of pardonable sins seeing Iesus Christ by his commandement hath giuen him leaue to aske forgiuenes of sinnes and God the father of our Lord Iesus hath promised to grant forgiuenes of sinnes as hath before out of the word of God beene truely declared CHAP. XXVII A Fresh assault this afflicted sinner maketh vpon vs and against himselfe for this fierie dart is not easily quenched And againe he obiecteth most vnkindly saying My sinne deserueth death and I must die I haue wronged the Lord of life
Lord to tell him of his fault that if hee be curable he may amend And because thou knowest not but that it may please God to ease thy burden of domesticall troubles making them of short continuance by reforming the troubler it is a speciall point of casting this burden vpon God to pray for the amendment of thy neighbour and to put thy helping hand thereto by gentle and neighbourly admonitions But this liberty of telling thy neighbour his fault giues no allowance of rayling and reproaching and publique disgracing of men by casting their infirmities and faults in their teeth A christian man must abhorre all such bitter courses remembring what the Apostle Peter saith Loue couereth a multitude of sinnes That is a right charitable man though hee seeke to reforme his neighbour by telling him of his sinne yet he will not disgrace or shame his neighbor by publishing his sinne It may please God to ease thee of the burden of thy domesticall trouble by weakening the power and crossing the malice and abating the pride of thy troubler that either hee shall not dare or shall not be able to proceede any further in thy vexation as he daunted the Pride of Laban when he pursued Iacob for hee meant euill to Iacob but by the way God came to Laban the Arnmiteâ—… a dreame by night and said vnto him take heede that thou speake not tâ—… Iacob aught saue good And by this threatning of the Lord Labans stomake was taken down as hee confessed to Iacob the next day saying I am able to doe you euill but the God of your Father spake vnto mee yester night saying Take heed that thou speake not to Iacob aught saue good And GOD crossed the fury and violence of Saul when hee thought to haue slaine Dauid Saul intended to sâ—…ite Dauid to the wâ—…ll with the speare but he turned asiâ—… out of Sauls presence and he â—…ote the speare against the wall but Dauid siâ—…d and escaped c. In this case it is not lawful foâ—… thee to pray vnto God for the death the sickenesse the impouerishing or any way the hurt of thine enemy leaue him to the iudgement of God and pray vnto God to forgiue him his wicked malice Yet is it lawfull for thee to pray vnto God that hee will be pleased to confound the deuices and to crosse the attempts and to scatter the prepared power of thine aduersaries So we reade that Dauid in the time of Absoloms treason when he vnderstood that Ahitophel that great politician tooke part with him he feared his counsell and first prayed vnto God saying O Lord I pray thee turne the councell of Ahitophel into foolishnesse And afterward sent his wise and faithful friend Hushai the Aâ—…chite to bee an opposite vnto Ahitophel by whose meanes indeede Ahitophels counsell was reiected to the danger of Absolom and safetie of Dauid and many like prayers wee haue in the Psalmes In one place Vp Lord let not man preuaile In another place Let not them that are mine enemie vniustly reioyc ouer mee neither let them winke with the eâ—…e that hate mee without a cause And in another place Let not the wicked haue his desire O Lord performe not his wicked thought lest they be prowd Thus wee see that the Saints haue made their prayer vnto God against the malice power and cunning of their aduersaries that God would be pleased to abate their pride to asswage their malice to confound their deuices and delude their cunning that they might not preuaile to doe the mischiefe that they intended And so far it is lawfull for thee to pray for their disappointing And because sometime the seruants of God haue made request vnto him against the persons of their enemies praying for their destruction as Eliâ—… did against the messengers of the King of Israel saying If that I be a man of God let fire come downe from heauen and deuoure thee and thy fifty As Dauid in diuers places of the psalmes let them bee confounded and put to shame that seeke after my soule let them be turned backe and brought to confusion that imagine mine hurt And in another place set thou the wicked ouer him and let the aduersarie stand at his right hand when he shal bee iudged let him be condemned and let hâ—… praier be turned into sinne As Peter tâ—…e Apostle praied against Simon Magus thy mony perish with thee that is both thou and thy mony perish And Paul the Apostle against Alexander the Copper-smith saying Alexander the Copper-smith hath done me much euill the Lord reward him according to his workes Let none of vs thinke that for the procuring our ease and deliuerance from our neare troubles it is lawfull for vs to bend the force of our pâ—…aiers against the persons of our aduersaries and to desire their destruction or hurt For those whose examples are before remembred were the Prophets of God and Apostles of the Lord Iesus Christ who knew the reprobation of those against whom they praied and so rather pronounced the knowen iudgements of God then the priuate affections of their owne hearts and if they pronounced their owne affections they were affections conformed to the known iudgements of God not contending to guide moue Gods iudgements So doth S. Austin affirme of all such praiers saying those things which are spoken in the forme of wishing are things opened by a spirit of prophecying and when they say let that be done and let that be done it is no other then if they had said such and such a thing shall come vnto them Noâ—… we haue no such knowledge of any mans reprobation he may prooue a sheep of Christ whom as yet by his fruits we find and therfore esteem a wolfe And we haue no such spirit of prophecy by which we can foretell what wrath from God shall fall vpon them And also our Sauiour hath giuen vnto vs this rule which we must follow Pray for them which hurt you and persecute you Therefore if God be pleased to ease vs of the burden of our troubles by weakning the power asswaging the pride and malice and by disappointing and scattering the purposes and counsel of out enemies we in seeking this grace at his hands may pray against their deuises but not a against their persons And therefore by this rule is no countenance giuen to the dire imprecations and bitter curses that many vncharitable men powre out against their troublers Perhaps it may please God to ease thee of this burden of domesticall troubles making them short either by remoouing thy troubler from thee or by remouing thee from thy troubler And this remoue all may be made either by death or by some other course And thereto some rules pertaine in the right obseruation whereof a wise man for his ease casteth his burden vpon God If the remoue be to be made by death this is a thing
Chapter we shall finde it to be not any particular transgression of any or of all the precepts of the law but a wil-full opposition of our heart against as I may call it the body of religion first rightly vnderstoode and certainely knowne to be the true religion of God and vpon no other cause but out of meere enuie The Pharises heard the doctrine of our Lord Iesus Christ and saw his miracles and knew him to bee that sonne of Dauid that Messias that was promised they knew his doctrine to be holy and heauenly and his workes to bee wrought by the finger of God Yet because the people honoured him and vpon the sight of his miracle when hee healed the man that was possessed of a diuell and was both blind and dumbe because they then cryed out saying Is not this that sonne of Dauid They therefore out of enuy and mallice without any other cause gaue it out concerning him saying He casteth out Diuels no otherwise but by Belzebub the prince of Diuels Indeuoring by these wordes to perswade the people that he was a wicked man risen vp out of Hell set vp by the Prince of diuels and assisted with his power to publish the doctrine of diuels and to vphold his kingdome so slaundering the person of Christ the workes of Christ and the doctrine of Christ all which many of them knew to be heauenly and of God If they had not knowne him to bee thee sonne of God they had not beene guilty of that great sinne As the Lord said vnto them If ye were blind ye should not haue sinne your ignorance would haue cleered you from this wiâ—…full mallice But they knew his person to be sent of God his workes to be done by the finger of God and in his doctrine that he taught truely the will of God The Lord himselfe said vnto them Yee both know me and know whence I am Yet did they out of enuy detract from the glory of his workes that they might by that meanes bring both his person and heauenly doctrine into contempt And they ceased not this course of slandering his person of disgracing his workes and obscuring the truth of his doctrine laying wait also for his life for God giueth not repentance for this sinne till they had bought him with money of the traytor iudged him to be worthy of death vpon the knowne false testimonie of suborned witnesses extorted with their clamours his condemnation from an vnwilling Iudge pronouncing him iust whom he condemned for their pleasure added vnto his vniust death what reproch they could and after his resurrection corrupted the souldiers with money so causing it to be by them divulged that his disciples stole away his body out of the graue and that he did not rise againe from the dead by that course labouring out of enuy to suppresse the Gospell and doctrine of Iesus Christ which yet they knew by the illumination of the holy Ghost to be the very truth of God This malitious opposition of theirs against religion knowne to be the religion of God was their vnpardonable sinne It was not their vncharitabe proceeding against an innocent man their hiering of a seruant to betray his master their suborning of false witnesses against a iust person their corrupting of a Iudge to giue sentence to their liking though vniust nor the hyâ—…ing of bold men to spred a lie among the credulious multitude nor yet the cruell and vniust murdering of the Lord of life Though all these were grieuous sinnes for many were pardoned both of the people and of their gouerners that had their handes in all this iniustice though they had not so deepe a reaâ—… so enuious a purpose of ouerthrowing by his ouerthrow the religion which they knew to be of God as most of the Priestes and Pharises had many I say were pardoned that had their handes in the iniustice done to our sauiour for he praied for them saying Father forgiue them for they know not what they doe and that praier of his could not be in vaine But in the cunning fellowes both among the people and their goueruors that knew him and whence he was and how he wrought and what he taught and that all was of God this was their vupardonable sin that they vsed al that falshood corruption and cruelty both during his life and in his death only to this end to hinder the course of his doctrine as they say plainely in their councell If we let him thus alone all men will beleeue in him When they knew that doctrine taught by him wherein they would not haue the people to beleeue to be the very truth of God This is the vnpardonable sinne called blasphemie against the Holy Gost because it flaundereth and disgraceth the truth of God which was made knowen vnto them so made to shine in their hearts by the Holy Ghost called the spirit of truth because it leadeth into all truth This sinne is a common sinne of diuels that know God and maliciously seeke his dishonor that know the groundes of true and holy religion and enuiously seeke to depraâ—…e them to corrupt them and if they could to abolish them out of the world desiring nothing more then to disgrace the truth of God among men This sin is sometime but rarely found amongst men and in examination thy sinne will bee found not to be this sinne and therefore not to be vnpardonable which is a great ground of hope to build vpon First the sinne of him that is pressed with the generall and confused accusation of an euill and hypocriticall heart cannot be this sinne that being naturally the estate of all men that come into the world they are borne with a heart deceitfull and wicked aboue all things But no man can be borne guilty of blasphemy against the holy-ghost because no man is in his birth enlightned with the knowledge of true religion which knowledge must necessarily goe before this fearefull opposition Neither can this sinne bee found in them that are distinctly charged with a particular sinne or sins that were committed in the days of ignorance it cannot be those sinnes For he that may fall into this vnpardonable sinne must first haue a full cleere knowledge of true religion with perswasion that it is the trueth But the ignorant man wanteth that cleere knowledge And hee is far enough from this sinne Neither can it be found in them that sinne against knowledge but out of weakenesse either surprised with a sudden temptation or led captiue with a strong and violent temptation for when these men are at libertie to consider what they haue done they haue no pleasure in it But that vnpardonable sinne is a voluntary wilfull and malicious opposition against the knowne truth out of their enuy not induring the glory of Christ in his Gospel Neither can any particular breach of any one Commandement nor all the breaches of all the
precept of our Prophet and adding a reason in his words and these are his words Cast all your care on him that is on God for he careth for you that is when afflictions lie heauy vpon you and carefull thoughts how to bee freed from those afflictions troble your harts quiet those thoughts in your selues because your wisedome is defectiue and your power is weake and you are vnable to bring enterprises to passe and doing that which in such case God commandeth and alloweth to bee done commend your businesse and the successe of it to God by faithfull prayer his wisedome is infinite his power is omnipotent and by him enterprises are brought to passe This is Peters aduice vsing our Prophets words and only changing the name of burden into the name of care because our burdens doe breed our care and this reason hee addeth in his owne words for hee careth for you that is he taketh vpon him and will dispose and effect all things for your ◅ase and safetie This exposition of casting our burden vpon the Lord is further warranted by the councell of Saint Paul saying thus Be nothing carefull but in all things let your requests be shewed to God in prayer and supplication with giuing of thankes that is whereas others wrestling with the burden of their businesse take much care how to accomplish what they desire and gaze vpon their strength their wealth their wit and friends to see what helpe these can affoord doe not you in such sort trouble and turmoile your selues but modestly considering and vsing such meanes as you haue a◅d giuing thankes vnto God whether your meanes bee great or small intreat him in your faithfull prayer to prosecute the businesse for your not betraying your owne businesse by sloth and negligence yet trusting only to God and depending only vpon his blessing for successe faile not continually to sollicite him with your prayers Dauid that is the speaker here doth in another place by another speech of his excellently interpret this saying Trust thou in the Lord and doe good dwell in the Land and thou shalt bee fed assuredly delight thy selfe in the Lord and he will giue thee thy hearts desire commit thy way vnto the Lord and trust in him and he shall bring it to passe and he shall bring forth thy righteousnesse as the light and thy iudgement as the noone day wait patiently on the Lord hope in him Here hee giueth many precepts and euery precept hath his annexed promise The precepts do follow one another in a most kindly order and together doe teach vs what is to cast our burden vpon the Lord. First he commandeth vs to trust in the Lord that is to cal to remembrance the couenant that God made with vs and the many promises that hee hath giuen vs and seeing hee is faithfull and true in all his promises to trust to that couenant and to ground our faith vpon those promises Secondly hee commandeth vs to delight our selues in the Lord that is to cheere vp our hearts in God and to reioice in him seeing wee haue a God both wise mighty mercisull and saithfull tied vnto vs by so large promises more worth then all friends fauourers and helpers in the world And this reioicing kindely followeth trust in God Thirdly he commandeth vs to commit our waies to the Lord that is after our trust is setled in the couenant and promises and our ioy conceiued in hauing God so tied vnto vs then to fall to prayer and to intreate God that he will take our cause into his hands that he will bee pleased to prosecute the businesse for vs and seeing hee is the gouerner and disposer of all the world and of all causes in the world that hee will vouchsafe among all other causes to haue care of ours Lastly he commandeth vs to wait patiently vpon God and hope in him that is when trust hath begotten reioycing and trust and reioycing haue together shewed our desires vnto God in prayer then to expect in quietnes of our minde such issue as he shall be pleased to giue not failing to hope for all goodnesse at his hands Among which degrees of our demenour to God-ward for the referring of our cause◅ to him hee forgetteth not to insert this aduise that wee doe good and dwell in the land that is that continuing in our place and standing we take no in direct courses that may offend God and pull a curse vpon vs in stead of a blessing but that wee doe the offices of our callings behauing our selues in all things as becommeth wise and honest men as in the sight of God that we may in all good conscience expect his blessing Thus doth he teach vs to cast our burdens vpon God These rules being obserued then he promiseth in all things ease of our burdens First he promiseth sufficient maintenance saying Thou shalt be fed assuredly Secondly hee promiseth content of heart saying He will giue thee thy hearts desire Thirdly he promiseth cōuenient dispatch of all thy businesse saying And hee shall bring it to passe Fourthly he promiseth iustification of all thy well doings against mis-construction and slander saying Hee shall bring forth thy righteousnesse as the light and thy iudgement as the noone day which all men cleerly discerne These promises pertaine to the second part of my text and they greatly commend the soundnesse of those rules of aduice whereto they are annexed And the rules of aduice doe interpret the casting of our burden vpon God That my text speaketh of and they shew vs that this is truely to cast our burden vpon God namely in our trouble to remember the couenant of God and the promises of help which as he gaue in mercy so hee will fulfill in truth and to trust vnto that couenant and vnto those promises that is vnto that God that made that couenant and gaue those promises and thereupon to take heart vnto vs and to cheere our selues in God which hee calleth delighting in God reioyeing that we haue so wise so mighty so mercifull and so faithfull a God so strongly tied vnto vs by so faithfull promises and then in this gladnesse of our hearts to commend our businesse vnto God by praier and to make him our aduocate our Atturny our solliciter our factor our agent putting ouer our cause wholy to him reseruing nothing to ourselues but to put him in remembrance from time to time by our praier and carefully shunning all vnlawfull shifts that flesh and bloud may perswade vnto doing that onely that hee by his word doth command vs. And hauing thus left the cause in the hands of God to wait patiently and quietly for such successe as God shall be pleased to giue thinking that alwaies best which hee shall bee pleased to doe This by Dauids owne interpretation is that casting of our burden vpon the Lord which in the words of our text hee aduiseth vnto For
cause vnquietnes Parents must be honoured and Children must be cared for though in some things they grieue vs and God may amend them at the last if wee in the meane while bearing patiently their infirmities continue our duety to them and our prayers for them If it be Masters or Seruants that cause vnquietnesse the Seruants in patience must bee subiect to their Maisters with all feare not only to the good and curteous but also to the froward they can not shake off their Maisters while the dayes of their seruitude continue and the maisters in patience must do vnto their seruants that which is iust not omitting any meanes whereby they may reforme them and in the end the master hath power to ease himselfe of an incurable euill seruāt by dismissing him If it be neighbour against neighbor that causeth vnquietnesse this rule teacheth not to render euill for euill nor rebuke for rebuke but contra◅iwise in patience to blesse and to doe all good offices in neede whereby thou shalt haue peace in thy heart howsoeuer thy neighbour bee disposed to contention And if thy home-trouble be painefull sickenesse either vpon thy selfe or vpon some of thy houshold or some other neare and deare vnto thee this rule teacheth thee whatsoeuer other meanes for recouerie of health be vsed to beare thy visitation meekely humbling thy selfe vnder the mighty hand of God in euery thing If thy trouble bee the death of any whose life thou didst desire this rule will teach thee knowing the death of the righteous to bee vnto them the beginning of true life to giue glorie to God with a quiet mind This patience in all things will giue thee ease of thy burden according to the saying of our Sauiour Take my yoake on you and learne of me that I am meeke and lowly in heart and ye shall finde rest vnto your soules This is one common rule A second common rule in all these troubles pertaining to the right casting of them vpon God is that we pray vnto God crauing his helpe who for ought wee know hath therefore layed these troubles vpon vs because we haue been negligent in prayer that now feeling sensibly in our sorrow our neede of his helpe wee might amend our old negligence and fall to praier And surely whether God did send our troubles for that cause or no yet this is most sure that prayer is a most profitable course for the easing of our trouble which God commandeth with promise of ease saying by the Prophet Call vpon me in the day of trouble so will I deliuer thee and thou shalt glorifie mee And the Saints haue alwayes vsed it with happy successe of ease As the Prophet testifieth saying These called vppon the Lord and hee heard them So did Iacob when returning from his vnckles hee heard that Esau was comming forth against him with foure hundred men hee said thus vnto God I pray thee deliuer me from the hand of my brother from the hand of Esau for I feare him lest hee will come and smite mee and the mother vppon the children And according to his desire God deliuered him from his feare for his brother and hee met in peace and departed one from another in peace so did Moses when the Aegiptians pursued the Israelites and the Israelites feared the Aegiptians before the red Sea The Lord fayd vnto Moses Wherefore criest thou vnto mee for Moses in his heart prayed earnestly vnto God and God did deliuer him from his feare opening a passage for the Israelites thorow the waters of the red Sea and drowning in the floud the Aegiptians that presumed to follow so that Israel sawe the Aegiptians dead vpon the Sea banke Wee neede not stand vpon particular examples hauing a generall rule that neuer fayleth the Prophet saying The Lord is neare vnto all that call vpon him yea to all that call vpon him in trueth hee will fulfill the esire of them that feare him he also will beare their crie and will helpe them Now seeing the saints doe thus in their troubles pray vnto God for ease and do thus at the hands of God obtaine ease when they pray in their troubles it is euident that to pray vnto God in our trouble is a worthy rule of casting our burden vpon God in all domesticall yea in al whatsoeuer troubles And let no man say there is no need in these troubles to trouble God with our praiers because he knoweth both what we suffer and what himselfe hath determined to do for these reasons thou oughtest the more gladly to pray because God doth vnderstand thy want before thou complaine and is determined to succour before thou intreate him thy labour with such a God cannot be in vaine And this know thou hast great imploiment for thy praiers in these and such like troubles First thou hast neede to offer vp praiers vnto God for thy selfe that he will giue thee patience and wisedome to demeane thy selfe aright vnder these troubls that thou maiest neither be a murmurer against God grudging at those troubles nor increase thy troubles by dealing indiscreetly and frowardly with them that are the causers and occasion of thy troubles nor maiest erre and be wanting in vsing good remedies to heale and reforme them that are the causers of thy troubles And if thy domesticall trouble be sicknesse in thine owne body how necessary it is to pray vnto God to giue thee patience to send thee health to forgiue thy sins and to prepare thee for death when Iames the Apostle exhorteth to reioice for temptations and to continue in patience till patience haue her perfect worke because these things require an extraordinary wisedome he further aduiseth vs to pray vnto God for that wisedome saying If any of ◅ou lack wisedome let him aske of God who giueth vnto all men liberally Giuing to vnderstand by that aduise how necessary it is in the time of trouble to vse pra◅er for thy selfe that thou maiest demeane thy selfe patiently and wisely to glorifie God in thy trouble to profit by the same trouble and not to increase the same but safely to grow out of it and to recouer peace and health Secondly thou hast need to offer vp praiers vnto God for them by whose meanes thou art troubled or for whose sake thou art grieued Sometime thou art vnkindly vsed either by thy husband or wife either by thy parents or children or such as haue stept into the roome of parents and children and haue those names by law giuen them not by nature due vnto them or else by thy master or seruant or by some friend or neighbour For these thou hast great cause to pray vnto God that he will giue them better minds and let them see their fault with mislike of it and see what becommeth them to doe and giue them a heart to doe it If they continue in their frowardnesse shall they not continue to be troublers vnto
thee then as thou desirest an end of the trouble that they put thee to so desire that God will giue them a better and wiser heart This rule is included within that more generall rule of our Sauiour Christ in the Gospell I say vnto you loue your enemies blesse them that curse you doe good to them that hate you and pray for them that hurt you and persecute you If we ought to pray vnto God for all that hurt vs then also for them of our owne house habitation and kindred that hurt vs and so much the rather for those at home and so neere vnto vs because they haue more opportunity to hurt vs then they that are farther of And what are we to begin praier for them Two things one that God would forgiue their fault which we also must forgiue Another that he will giue them a heart to see and to amend their fault God in his holy iustice doth therefore many times stir vp domesticall troubles to men because they are negligent in domesticall praier neuer commēding vnto God either husband or wife child seruant kinsman friend or neighbour neuer making any request for grace and wisedome to bee giuen vnto them When Dauid had brought the Arke of the Lord into the place that he had prepared for it vpon the hill of Sion and had offered burnt offerings and peace offerings it is said that he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hoasts that is he praied the Lord of hoasts to powre downe his blessings vpon them and hauing distributed flesh and bread and wine among them and they therewith being departed home it is said that then Dauid returned to blesse his house that is to pray vnto God for them of his house that they might prosper and that he might liue a comfortable life among them Also Isaack praied vnto the Lord for his wife And Iacob blessed all his sonnes euery one of them blessed he with a seuerall blessing And Booz the Bethlemite comming into the field among his seruants and reapers saluteth them with a praier vnto God for them saying the Lord be with you And Daniels custome was three times a day in his house to pray vnto God who praying in his family could not in his praiers be vnmindful of his family From so holy and worthy examples learne thou to pray for thine while thou enioyest peace with them pray that they may not proue a trouble vnto thee and when thy troble growes from thē pray that God will giue them a mind more agreeable to peace So fit for the ease of thy burden is praier for them by whom thou art troubled Sometime thou art not vnkindly vsed by them yet thy trouble groweth from them while thou art grieued for some calamity hapned vnto them and takest care for ◅he helping of them In this case there is speciall neede of praier to be made for them And it is a speciall point of casting thy burden vpon God God speaking to the Israelites saith of himselfe I am the Lord that healeth thee that is all the health and helpe both of thee and thine must come only from my hand And in another place I kil and giue life I wound and I make whole That is I send sicknesse danger and hurt to make men seeke vnto me and againe I restore health safety and peace when men doe seeke vnto mee And these things being the workes of Gods owne hand they should faile very much of casting their burden vpon God that being burdened with griefe for the sicknesse and calamities of their neighbours friends kinsfolke and family should forget and neglect to pray to God for them Dauid praied for his child in a most humble and earnest manner when it was sicke For Dauid besought God for the child and fasted and went in and lay all night vpon the earth The Centureon whose faith is commended in the Gospell praied vnto the Lord Iesus for his sicke seruant saying vnto him master my seruant lieth sick at home of the palsie and when Herod had cast Peter into prison with purpose after the feast to bring him forth to the people to be slaine earnest praier was made of the Church vnto God for him The saints of God haue alwaies obserued this as a most safe and sure rule of casting their burdens vpon God when they were troubled and grieued for the sicknesse and calamitie of others to pray vnto God for them to restore their health their peace their liberty and their comfort that in the recouered comfort of them that were afflicted they might recouer comfort that were afflicted for them There is therefore in these domestical troubles imploiment for thy praiers to be offered to God for them either by whose meanes thou art troubled or for whose sakes thou art grieued Thirdly thou hast need to offer vp praier vnto God for the rest of thy familie of thy kindred of thy friends and of thy neighbors whether thou be wronged by the vniust and vnkind dealing or else grieued for the calamity and sicknesse of some that neither the sinne of them that wrong thee nor the calamity of them for whom thou art grieued may spread any further to the corruption and damage of the rest If Esau grieue his father Isaack and his mother Rebecca by taking a wife of the daughters of Canaan haue not Isaack and Rebecca cause to pray to God for Iaacob their other sonne that he may not doe as his brother had done when certaine of the followers of the Lord Iesus Christ had left him taking offence at some words of his concerning the eating of his flesh and drinking of his blood which they vnderstood not Iesus said to the twelue will ye also goe away he was carefull that an euill example might not spread like a contagious sicknesse to corrupt the whole company of his disciples And more agreeable to the cause that wee haue in hand when Iudas one of his family the diuell entring into his hart had couenanted with the Priests and pharisies to betray his master into their hands the Lord Iesus heauily charged with a burden of trouble growing from his treason taketh occasion from his wickednesse to pray vnto his father for the rest saying Those thou gauest me haue I kept and none of them is lost but the child of perditiō that the scripture might be fulfilled And now come I to thee and these things speak I in the world that they might haue my ioy fulfilled in themselues c. The child of perdition Iudas the traitor being lost the Lord hath care of the rest and praieth for them that they might euer reioice in him Euen so euery louing man that can take pleasure in the health and honest cariage of his friends neighbours and family when one is ill at ease and when one doth giue offence he will heartily pray to God to preserue the rest that they may
masterly authoritie and wisedome to draw them back from iniquity In which godly attempt fathers and masters haue alowāce frō God yea they are not only warranted of God to do it but it is a charge laid vpon them children seruants being committed to them not onely to doe them seruice and to be at their cōmandemēt but rather to receiue education instruction from them And when parents and masters faile and become carelesse of the instruction of their children seruants and in the right gouernmēt of them God doth often in his iustice punish the fathers masters neg ligence with the childrens and seruants disorder And when parents masters are carefull to instruct gouerne aright their children seruants then God in his mercy requiteth that care and diligence with the obedience and faithfulnesse of children and seruants Salomon saith in the Prouerbs The rod and correction giue wisedome but a childe set at libertie makes his mother ashamed Here iustice repayeth with disorder in the child the neglect of instruction and gouernement in the parents The same Salomon saith a gaine Correct thy sonne he will giue thee rest and will giue pleasures to thy soule Here mercy repayeth with contenting obedience in the child the wise and careful gouernement of the parents To masters also that their seruants may not breede their vnrest Salomon in the same place giueth these Items by which hee might well suppose that wise men would take warning A seruant wil not be chastened with words though hee vnderstand yet hee will not answer This is plaine enough that for some seruants the right gouernment of them something more then words is sometime necessary And againe he saith Hee that delicately bringeth vp his seruant from his youth at length he wil be euen as his sonne This is plaine enough that a delicate life with liberty and pleasure is not to be allowed to seruants by any rule of good gouernement left to thy griefe he take vppon him to bee more then a seruant Yet these rules for parents to desire and helpe the reformation of disobedient children and for maisters to desire and help the reformation of disordered seruants giues no defence vnto vnnaturall parents that are tyrants to their owne children and to cruel masters that increase the proportion of worke and number of strip◅s but dimin◅sh the due allowance of meate and cloathes and sleepe and are neuer pleased but euer brawling Saint Paul saith vnto parents Fathers prouoke not your childrē to wrath Lenity must be vsed though not cockering and too much sufferance And to masters he saith Masters doe vnto your seruants that which is iust and equall Equity must be vsed toward them thogh not remissenesse To the same purpose may it bee saide for children and se◅uants if while they haue carried themselues duetifully and deserued well their parents or maisters out of their owne vnkindnesse and cruelty doe prooue a heauy burden vnto them because it may please God to ease them of that burden by chaunging the mindes of their parents and maisters it belongeth vnto them as a speciall point of the casting of their burden vppon the Lord to pray vnto God for their parents and maisters that hee will be pleased to open and amend their hearts that they may see their errour and may reforme the same learne to deale more kindly which belongeth to parents and to deale more iustly which belongs to maisters and whereas they haue no authoritie to admonish to teach to correct as their parents and maisters haue yet with due reuerēce they may be bold obseruing opportunitie and vsing decent and humble speeches somtimes to tell them what they think to be fit How reuerently when Saul wronged Dauid and had spoken to Ionathan his sonne and to all his seruants that they should kill Dauid which was Ionathans griefe because he loued Dauid how reuerently did Ionathan labour to make Saul his father see his errour saying vnto him Let not the King sinne against his seruant against Dauid for hee hath not sinned against thee but his workes haue beene to thee verie good for he did put his life in danger and slew the Philistim and the Lord wrought a great saluation for all Israel thou sawest it and thou reioycedst wherefore then wilt thou sinne against innocent bloud and slay Dauid without a cause And when Naamat the Syrian tooke great indignation at the Prophet Elisha because he came not out and laid his hands vpon his leprousie to heale it but commanded him to wash himselfe seauen times in the waters of Iordan which he iudged nothing so vertuous as the waters of Damascus which indignation of Naama◅ the Lord and master grieued all his seruants how reuerently did they say vnto him Father if the Prophet bad commanded thee a great thing wouldest thou not haue done it How much rather then when he saith vnto thee wash and be cleane Such words of mildnesse spoken in fit season and with reseruation of due reuerence may by seruants and children be vsed to their fathers and masters to induce them to see their former errour that it may be a meanes vnder God to change their mindes But this liberty can no way iustify the insolence and vnduetifulnesse of many children seruants that being restrained by the seueritie of their parents and masters grow into discontent speake contemptuously and raylingly without all reuerence and without all regarde either of the authoritie of their parents and masters or of the subiection and duety that they owe vnto them By the same rule is euery one whose domesticall trouble growes by the errour of his neighbour if hee would bee cased which may be the changing of his neighbours minde taught to pray vnto God for the bettering of his neighbour and to put his owne helping hand to so good a woorke by admonishing his neighbour neighbourly And hee hath precepts from GOD to warrant that course Moses saith Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thy heart but thou shalt plainely rebuke thy neighbour and not suffer him to sinne So that there wanteth charitie in him that will not louingly tell his neighbor of his errour And God doeth often in his iustice make thy bad neighbour to be a cause of trouble vnto thee because thou knowing his disorders hast not told him of them that he might amend A like commaundement giueth the Lord Iesus saying If thy brother trespasse against thee goe and tell him his fault betweene him and thee alone That is if his faul be bent against thee as the chosen obiect of his malice or directed another way it light vppon thee to the hurt or hazard of thy life thy peace thy profit or thy good name or if his misdeede were neither intended against thee nor did light vpon thee but onely thou art grieued in thine honest soule to behold so vngodly dealing in these cases thou art commāded of the
of his quiet and content and thereupon he comforted his heart and would not continue in heauines for that that could not be helped So that it is to a right vnderstanding man ground enough to build content and quietnesse of heart vpon that God hath done his worke which thy sorrow cannot reuoke But for the further quieting of thy minde know that thy dead shall liue againe as the Prophet Esay saith Thy deadmen shall liue with my body shall they rise There is a day appointed of GOD wherin they shall returne out of the dust againe and liue againe in their bodies then glorified Yea know that for thy comfort that thy dead doe now liue and howsoeuer their bodies lie without life in the graue yet their soules do liue and shall liue for euer with God And with these considerations of the present life of the soule and the future life of the bodies the Apostle would haue wise Christians comfort thēselues ouer their dead and not giue way to their affections to mourne without measure saying I would not brethren haue you ignorant concerning them which are asleepe that ye sorrow not as others which haue no hope For if wee beleeue that Iesus is dead and risen euen so them which sleepe in Iesus God shall bring with him For this say wee vnto you by the word of the Lord that wee which liue and are remayning in the comming of the Lord shall not preuent them which sleepe For the Lord himselfe shall descend from heauen with a showt and with the voyce of the Archangel and with the trumpet of God And the dead in Christ shall rise first Then shal we which liue and remaine be caught vp with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the aire and so shall wee euer bee with the Lord. Wherefore comfort your selues one another with these words Let them mourne for their dead that know not the hope of the dead and suppose them extinct that are departed but let them which in the schoole of Christ haue learned what is the condition and hope of the dead how their soules doe presently liue with Christ and that their bodies also shal be raised vp in glorie at the last day Let them reioyce in the behalf of their dead and throw off that burden of sorrow which is so heauy vnto them And thus much for the second branch of secular troubles namely for domesticall troubles and the casting of that burden vpon God CHAP. X. THe third branch is of troubles more remote hauing a beginning further of when those by whom thou art wrōged are not of thy family neither of thy kindred neere acquaintance nor neighbours but strangers of another kinred family or habitation yet hauing so much knowledge of thee acquaintance with thee as to make thee the marke of their malice and obiect for their enuy and euill hearts to worke vpon And those for whom thou art grieued are not of the same house stocke village or country with thee yet because they are men and haue fellowship with thee in common nature or because they are christians and haue fellowship with thee in the same common religiō thy hart is grieued by way of compassion to heare of the calamities that are hapned vnto them And these remote troubles and griefes may happen to him that hath peace in his own house liueth quietly with his neighbours and louingly with his friends and hath comfort and ioy in their health and prosperity The rules giuen for domesticke troubles are also very sitting for these first therfore arme thy selfe with patience quietly suffer till God send ease And for the confirming of thy patience consider that the harts of all mē being in the hands of God these should neuer haue had any will to offer the wrong if God for some holy cause had not stirred them vp as he is said to haue stirred vp troublers to Salomon when he fell to idolatry Then the Lord stirred vp an aduersary vnto Salomon euen Hadad the Edomite c. And therefore though thou grudge to beare at the hands of men yet beare with patience and humility the good pleasure of God who knoweth when and how to make thee amends Dauid with this consideration confirmeth himselfe in his patience saying I should haue bin dumbe and not haue opened my mouth because thou didst it Saint Ierome reades it I haue been dumbe and will not open my mouth Tremellius reades it I am dumbe and doe not open my mouth The meaning is that either he should haue kept silence or he had kept silence or he did keep silence or was resolued hereafter to keep silence or else altogether for time past present and to come he held himselfe bound as by way of duty in his trouble to be mute and dumbe from murmuring raging and all works of impatiencie vpon this only reason because thou didst it that is because he knew it to be the handy worke of God And vnto patience adde praier for though it becommeth a godly man in his trouble to shut his mouth against all words of murmuring yet it becommeth him not to shut his mouth in the time of trouble against words of humble praier For by silence from murmuring it is manifest that God is feared and his pleasure approued but by silence from praier it is manifest that God is neglected and his helpe little set by In these troubles therefore and in all troubles it is a principall point of casting our burden vpon God to seeke his helpe by praier And the same consideration of Gods deed in stirring vp the aduersary that serueth to shut our mouthes against words of murmuring serueth as strongly to open our mouthes for words of humble praier That childe that bearing the fathers displeasure in the fathers displeasure suffering want of some wonted case doth refuse to make request vnto his father for the withdrawing of his displeasure and the restoring of wonted liberty especially being by the father commanded to make request and assured by his fathers promise that when he doth make request all shal be forgiuen that childe plainly appeareth to beare too big a heart against his father And a wise father not willing to be contemned of his child wil not restore his child to his wonted grace and liberty till he humble himselfe and intreat his father Euen so that christian man that hath displeased God and who hath not iustly deserued his displeasure and feeleth vpon him the hand of his displeased God in troubles that these remote enemies stirred vp of God doe put him vnto and doth not humble himselfe and pray vnto God for his fauour and ease seeing God hath both commanded him to pray and hath also promised to heare him helpe him when he praieth that man shews a heart ouer swolne against his God and God in iustice can doe no lesse then denie to send him reliefe so long as he refuseth to intreate
edified and walked in the feare of the Lord and were multiplied by the comfort of the holy Ghost And this conuersion of Saul with the churches peace growing thereby some haue ascribed vnto Stephens prayer as an intermediate cause who while they stoned him kneeled downe and cryed with a lowd voyce Lord lay not this sinne to their charge Of which prayer of Stephen Austin in his fourth Sermon of the Saints hath this saying If Stephen had not thus prayed the Church should not haue had Paul but therfore was Paul being fallen from his horse raised from the earth because when Stephen with bowed knees was fallen to the ground hee was heard in his prayer Therfore thogh thou hast not oportunitie to admonish thy remote aduersary yet pray vnto God for his conuersion Thou knowest not whether God wil heare thy praier and shorten thy trouble by changing the mind of thy troubler If it be to bewrought by a remoue and that remoue to be made by death therein thou hast nothing to do before-hand but to maintaine that resolution that alwaies ought to be in all Christians namely to yeeld to the wil of God and to approue his worke as well in killing as in giuing life and as well in our selues as in others And if it please God to take away thine enemy then is it thy part to praise his name that suffereth thy peace to out-liue thine enemies fury but neither worke it nor desire it nor reioyce in it as a calamity happened to thine enemy or to his house much lesse offer violence to thy self that may free thee from short troubles but it will surely plunge thee into eternall troubles If God haue appointed to shorten thy troubles by remouing either thy troubler from thee or thee from thy troubler by distance of place that you may be yet further a sunder and the one out of the reach of another as opportunity is offered wisdome will aduise thee what to doe For the departure of an enemie a wise man said A bridge of gold should be made to further his speedy passage rather then to stay him with any impediment And it is at thy liberty flying from the swords point of persecution and malice to remooue from one City to another But if God be pleased to maintaine against thee the enemy that he hath stirred vp thy chiefe casting of thy burden vpon God is by patience to possesse thy soule bearing quietly what thou canst not shake off by hearty praier to sollicite the maiesty of the most high God to free thee from thine enemy when it pleaseth him and in the meane time to giue thee wisdome to suffer as thou oughtest to his pleasure Thus much how to cast the burden of remote troubles vpon God when thy troble groweth from the malice of remote enemies that offer wrong vnto thee Sometimes thou art not hurt by remote enemies but rather art greeued for remote frindes or strangers for whose calamity thou are affected with heauinesse Sometime in regard of common humane nature because they are men as thou art and it grieueth thee that any of thine owne kinde should suffer such calamity sometime in regard of common holy religion because they worship the same God and beleeue in the same Sauiour that thou doest and it greueth thee that any of thy faith and religion and any true worshipper of thy God should indure such misery For direction to cast this burden vpon God there needeth no long discourse because I feare there are not many that beare any such burden of sorrow for others misery or vpon whom it lieth heauy if they sorrow at all or vpon whom it abideth long if it be heauy Selfloue permitteth vs not to mourne for the calamity of other men when we are at case our selues The Butler in Pharaoes court when hee had once recouered his owne place and honour neuer regarded nor was moued with Iosephs imprisonment The chiefe Butlar did not remember Ioseph but forgat him And those wounds neuer enter deepe in our hearts which we only see or heare in others and feele not in our selues and the teares that fall from our eies for other mens miseries quickly drie vp If Amos liued in this selfe-delighting and neighbour contemning age wanton and excessiue one way but wanting and pitilesse another way he would surely crie out againe as before he did saying They drinke wine in bowles and annoint themselues with the chiefe ointments but no man is sorry for the afflictions of Ioseph that is euery man cherisheth himselfe delicately but no man regardeth how other men fare Yet because God hath alwaies his a mercifull father mercifull children because some there are of tender hearts that mourne with them that mourne and haue put on as the Apostle speaketh tender mercy and kindnesse to satisfie them I pray them to call to remembrance the three rules giuen before iâ—… the case of like griefe for frindes most neare First so farre as distance of place betweene thee and them the small acquaintance that thou hast with them and thy weake means will suffer afford them thy best helpe Egypt afforded food to Canaan when famine was sort in that land The King of Moab gaue entertainment to Dauids father and to his whole houshold when Sauls displesure was heauy to them in Israel Dauid had Ziklag giuen him to dwell in when he could not be safe in Iuda Mercy by hospitality succoureth many strangers that by famine warre and other calamities cannot remain in safety at home If thou be grieued for the calamity of them that dwell farre off affourd thy best helpe thou shalt make lesse thy sorrow for their calamity while thou makest lesse their calamity by thy mercy Therefore did the brethren among the belieuing Gentiles make collections to send to the poore Saints at Ierusalem Secondly vse patience in this case and till God put an end to their miseries glorifie thou God in his iudgments that so exerciseth truth humbleth correcteth and punisheth Lastly pray vnto God for them that in his iudgements he will be pleased to remember mercy and to spare the sheepe of his owne pasture if they be true worshippers or at least that he will spare the worke of his owne hands whatsoeuer they be and forgiuing their sinnes that he will giue them repentance that they may come to the knowledge of him and of his truth and in the end be deliuered from his fiery wrath In these three things iâ—… helping mercifully in bearing patiently and in praying fruently consisteth the right manner of casting our burden of griefe and sorrow for other mens calamities vpon God And so haue wee considered of this third secular burden of more remote troubles which hath great affinity with the burden of more nigh and domesticall troubles and differeth onely in respect of the persons by whom thou art wronged and for whom thou art grieued in that they are
the power of God to saue that is the instrument by which hee powerfully saueth Though therefore thou hast not power to settle thine own hart by giuing saith vnto thy selfe yet thou hast no cause to be discomforted for by praier vnto God and by study in the word of GOD it is obtained at his hands These are the conditions betweene God and man which God requireth where he forgiueth sins three in number One that concerneth most directly thy selfe that is repentance renewing thy heart to hate sinne and to loue vertue and reforming thy life to slie sinne and practise vertue A second that concerneth most directly thy brother that is charitie and compassion to forgiue vnto him the wrongs done vnto thee to comfort him and to doe good to him as thou wouldest that God should forgiue vnto thee the wrongs that thou hast done vnto him that God should comfort thee and doe good vnto thee A third that concerneth most directly God himselfe reuealed vnto vs in his sinne Iesus Christ namely our faith that wee neither thinke basely of the mercy of God nor of the merite of Iesus Christ as if there were some person that it could not releeue and thy selfe that person and some sinne that it could not do away and thy sinne that sinne And now maiest thou vnderstand what it is that causeth so many to perish in their sinnes and how it commeth to passe that so few are saued when yet without exception of any sinne the Lord Iesus commandeth and by commandement giueth leaue to aske and hope to obtaine forgiuenesse of sinne and likewise without exception of anie sinne God the â—…ather of our Lord Iesus Christ promiseth to forgiue sinne First they haue no caâ—…e of repentance to forsake sinne yea with delight they dwell in it liue in it and die in it and they will rather forsake God and renounce heauen then leaue their pleasant and gainfull sinnes Secondly they haue no care of charitie and compassion to their neighbour they regard not the rest the credit the prosperitie the peace and safetie of their neighbour and being full of pride of wrath and furie they prosecute the least wrong till they be reuenged Thirdly they regard not to know how ample the Lords mercie is and the death of Christ and doctrine of saluation are foolishnesse to them they pray not for faith and they stoppe their cares against the word of God And hereby it commeth to passe that they perish in their sinnes not that their sinnes are so great that they cannot bee pardoned or God so mercilesse that he will not pardon them or Iesus Christ so defectiue in his mediation that he hath not done and suffered enough to discharge them but themselues are so carelesse so prowd so contemptuous so desperate that they will not leaue to sinne they will not loue their neighbours they will not know God but they will goe on in their courses like them whom Ieremie complaineth of saying They are all adulterers and an assembly of rebels and they bend their tongues like their bowes for lies but they haue no courage for the trueth vppon the earth for they proceed from euill to worse they haue not known me saith the Lord. This is the cause why they perish And here maiest thou vnderstand how to reape the benefit of the leaue that Christ hath giuen thee by his commandement to aske forgiuenesse of thy sins how to reape the benefit of the promise that God hath giuen thee to grant forgiuenesse of sinnes First forsake the sinnes that haue been so chargeable vnto thee and hauing already found the reckoning to be so heauy vnto thee diet no more at the Ordinarie of fleshly lusts where the soule must pay for it in hell and the inheritance waste that God hath dearely bought for thee And finding how great need thou hast of mercie and forgiuenesse to keep thee from being eternally miserable Learne to bee tender hearted toward thy brother and afford him thy forgiuenesse that thou maist obtain the same measure of mercy at the hands of God And let it bee the chiefe of thy daily studies to vnderstand more cleerely then yet thou dost how infinite and boundlesse the mercie of God and the merit of Christ his bloud is In the word of God thou shalt finde these things And while thou are occupied with desire in these studies faith in the mercies of God will grow apace and in a short time bring thy conscience to that happy quietnesse that S. Paul speaketh of saying Being iustified by faith wee haue peace toward God through our Lord Iesus Christ. Thus is thy feare growing from the multitude of them that perish and from the small number of them that are saued notwithstanding the commaundement of Christ giuing leaue to aske forgiuenes and the promise of GOD offering forgiuenesse shewed to bee an idle feare if thou wilt haue care of these conditions vpon which God granteth forgiuenesse of sinnes CHAP. XXII BVT heare againe the afflicted conscience breaketh out into grieuous complaintes and faith If these be the conditions required where sinnes are to be forgiuen I must neuer looke to grow vnto any agreement with God for the forgiuenes of mine for I haue not one of these three things in me For first I want repentance sinne aboundeth in me and whether I hate it or no I cannot tell though I know I haue no cause to loue it that proueth now so grieuous vnto me And secondly I hold my selfe to be void of loue to my neighbour I feare least I shall enuie other men their happy peace of conscience and their happy hope of saluation and that standeth not with loue And sure I am that I haue hurt them oft with the vniust act of my sinne and haue grieued and offended them with the vngodly example of my sinne And these things haue no agreement with loue And as for faith of all three it is furthest off If dispaire could obtaine forgiuenes of sinne I should soone speed for I am not far from that but if saluation must be apprehended by saith I am most far from it for I haue litle or no faith the present feare that I am in is directly opposite to faith This is the miserable condition of this burden that they which are pressed with it doe quickly apprehend and too well remember any thing that may increase their feare but they are dull too apprehend and doe soone forget any thing that might giue them comfort If this troubled sinner could but remember while the three conditions were spoken of what was said vnto him why hee should not be discomforted at the hearing of these conditions as if they or any one of them did breed impossibilitie of obtaining forgiuenes of sinnes he would not now make this fâ—…uolous obiection But let vs helpe his memorie that when God shall be pleased to looke gratiously vpon him his feare may be remoued for the ease
from being lost in the first sence and meaning of that word And there is o◅e that will saue from destruction those that are ready to perish and thee among others that will deliuer from damnation those that are already iudged and thee as well as others and that wil pluck out of the iawes of death out of the snares of Satan and out from the gates of hell those that were ready to be swallowed vp and deuoured as a pray and thee assoone as others so to recouer thee from being lost in the sense and meaning of the word And this seeker is of that diligence wisdome that he cannot be disappointed of finding this sauiour is of that goodnes power that he will not and cannot be letted from sauing whom hee intendeth to deliuer of whom the Apostle to the Hebrewes saith He is able perfectly to saue them that come vnto God by him seeing hee euer liueth to make intercession for them And who is this diligent seeker that can and will so certainely finde who is this mightie Sauiour that can and will so certainely preserue it is the Lord Iesus Christ the sonne of God the sauiour of mankind of whom the Euangelist yea himselfe the Euangelist onely reporting his words saith The sonne of man is come to seeke and saue that which was lost So that if any man be gone astray if any man bee out of the knowledge and care of God his keeper Iesus came to seeke him And if any were worthy to perish and already by sentence giuen adiudged to perish such is the condition of all men Iesu◅ is come to saue him And it is worthy obseruation that he saith The sonne of man came to seeke the sonne of man came to saue as making this seeking and sauing of them that were lost to be the onely end as indeed it was of his comming into the world For this cause was he conceiued by the Holy Ghost for this purpose was he borne of the Virgin Mary to this end and for the effecting of this saluation was the sonne of God made the sonne of man yea for this and for this onely did he fulfill all righteousnes and yeelded obedience euen to the death of the crosse that he might seeke and find them that were gone astray and that he might recouer and saue them that were lost so that hee that shall deny these things to be truely intended and fully performed by Iesus Christ doeth make idle and fruitlesse the incarnation and passion of our Lord Iesus Christ and denieth the vertue of the death and bloudsheding of the sonne of God Let our afflicted sinner consider these things and set his heart on worke to meditate vpon them and it will come to passe that whereas before the remembrance of his lost estate was cause of heauines vnto him the same very condition shall giue him comfort and hope and saue him as an argument to proue him to be one of those for whom Iesus Christ died to saue them For if it be true that the lord Iesus came to seeke and to saue them that were lost and be also true that ◅e is lost then it must also be true that Iesus Chist came to seeke to saue him The Lord Iesus said to the woman of C◅naan I am not sent but vnto the lost ◅eepe of the house of Israel Vnto those lost sheepe hee was sent and to none other So that if our afflicted sinner see himselfe to be a lost sheepe there is hope that the Lord Iesus was ◅ent for yea it is most sure that he was sent for him sent to seeke him sent to saue him whereas if he had a proud opinion of himselfe as had the Pharises that he were not as other men for so gloried hee saying O God thanke thee that I am not as other men or if he nourished a careles opinion of himselfe as doe the contemners of the world that he were in no danger for so doe they flatter themselues saving Wee are deliuered though we haue done all these abominations Then Iesus indeed should not profit him for hee came for none such He saith of himselfe I am not come to call the righteous but the sinners to repentance In this very name therefore that he is a lost sinner a sinner worthy to perish he may comfort himselfe in Iesus Christ and hope to be saued by him that came to seeke and saue that which was lost Let me in a few words briefely and plainely open to this sinner his estate what it is in himselfe and what it is in Iesus Christ that as in himselfe hee seeth cause of griefe and feare so in Iesus Christ he may see cause of hope and reioicing if hee looke into himselfe and consider what he is by birth what he is by kind and what he hath manifested and declared himselfe to bee by his life and conuersation surely hee is and shall find himselfe to be a lost creature and a child of wrath for he shall find nothing in himselfe but sinne deseruing eternall dest◅uction he shall find that hee was conceiued in sinne that he was borne in iniquitie and that he liued in sinne not onely in the daies of his first ignorance whi◅e sinne reigned without resistance in his mortall body but also in the daies of knowledge sinne yet remaining and misleading him into many errors and it ◅ thus not onely in him but euen in all ◅en and among all others euen in the elect of God in Gods owne peculiar people euen they at home and in themselues are lost creatures dead in sinnes and by sinnes deseruing eternall death The Angell appearing to Ioseph said vnto him of the child conceiued in the wombe of the Virgin Mary Shee shall ◅ing forth a sonne and thou shalt call his ◅me Iesus for he shall saue his people from their sinnes Those whom his father gaue vnto him therefore called his people them he saueth he saueth them from their sinnes By which speech it is plainly intimated that euen they considered in themselues are lost by their sins And so is our afflicted sinner considered in himselfe with respect to his kind to his birth and to his life hee is lost hee is a child of perdition and therein hee hath cause to be humbled and to feare the iustice of God But let not the sinner gaze so long vpon this his naturall estate that his dazled eies should after be vnable to look any higher such a view of this our naturall condition as may serue to beate downe the pride of flesh and bloud and to bring vs vnto true humilitie and to the deniall of our selues before God is sufficient Let him therefore after consider him selfe in another and view his conditiō estate in Iesus Christ by vertue of his holy calling of his second birth namely his regeneration and hee shall find himselfe another man He shall find that God hath
but thou hast beene able in body to stand vnder thy burden and to performe many good seruices in thy calling and he hath not smitten thee in thy children friends and goods with the rod of patient Iob but thy estate remaineth safe thy friends are cheerefull about thee such mercies of God haue accompained thy affliction and ministred comfort vnto thee in the time of it And in these things one part of that promise deliuered in Gods name by the Apostle hath beene performed vnto thee God will not suffer you to be tempted aboue that you be able He himselfe that sent the temptation gaue thee strength to beare the temptation and vnto this day thou bearest it though not without griefe yet not without hope Why then shouldest not thou withall cheerefulnes hope and pray that God would performe vnto thee graciously the other part of that promise but will giue the issue with the temptation c Doth not the Apostle when he giues vs that promise in Gods name vse a preface to perswade our hearts to hope for it and pray for it commending God in whose name hee giues it by the title of faithfull saying God is faithfull that will not suffer you to be tempted aboue that yee be able Hope then in that faithfull God pray vnto that faithful God who hath already approued his faithfulnesse in performing vnto thee theone part of his promise and as he is true and faithful he will hauing freely bound himselfe performe his whole promise and giue an issue of thy temptation and thou shalt liue to ouercome it And heere I will acquaint thee with an holy rule which God obserueth in the temptations of his seruants which rule offereth hope of deliuerance from thy greeuous temptation before death The rule is found in Deuteronomie where Moses speaking to the people of Israel and remembring their wearie wandring through a roaring and terrible wildernesse and the many heauie accidents that in that wildernesse came vnto them saith that God led them that way to humble them and to prooue them that he might doe them good in the latter end Gods meaning was after a hard beginning to bring them to a comfortable end when they were first humbled and prooued And very meete it is that Gods seruants should bee humbled and it is right in God to prooue his servants whether they loue the Lord with all their heart and will indure with patience his good pleasure and whether they will cleaue vnto him in danger and put their trust in his mercies and this proofe is best made by crosses and troubles for this cause doth God send troubles to his seruāts whom he loueth but alwayes with a reseruation in his good purpose to do them good in the latter end Apply this vnto thy selfe It was fit that thou shouldest be humbled to acknowledge thy selfe before God to be dust and ashes and laden with iniquitie to humble thee in this sort God hath sent this crosse doe thou therefore humble thy selfe vnder the mightie hand of God that hee may exalt thee in due time It was fit that thou shouldest be prooued that thou mightest see thine owne strength to bee but rotten◅es and dust and that thou mightest shew thy loue thy patience thy faith in God that it might appeare whether God or thine owne case were dearer vnto thee and whether thou wilt glorifie him in aduersitie as thou ma◅ kest shew to doe in dayes of peace and prosperitie and thus to prooue thee he hath sent this temptation therefore now shew thy selfe a man shew thy selfe a Christian shrinke not from God murmure not at his visitation suffer with patience and pray in faith and be constant vnto the end And hee that hath brought thee into this temptation as it were into a roaring wildernesse to humble thee and to prooue thee will surely doe thee good in the latter end Surely this rule offereth vnto thee comfortable assurance that before the end of thy dayes thou shalt see an end of thy temptation and such an end as shall bring thee more ioy then thy affliction doth now breed thee griefe But say that death do take thee away before thou hast ouercome this temptation and thou fearest it may doe so grounding thy feare vpon two reasons one is the possibilitie of it thou maiest die presently the other is the danger of it thou thinkest that then thou shalt die in infidelitie and without faith if this danger were not the possibilitie of dying and death it selfe whensoeuer comming could bee no iust ground of thy feare for the Patriarks and Prophets yea Christ himselfe the Sonne of God and his holy Apostles died and all the Saints of God die And it can not bee hurtfull to any that is so common to all except there be some speciall danger annexed to it that makes it hurtfull to one that is not hurtfull to an other This danger thou saiest is thine infidelitie And thine infidelitie and want of faith thou proouest by the qualitie of thy temptation which thou takest to be directly opposite to faith and the banisher of all faith If therefore it shall appeare that though thou die before thou hast ouercome this temptation to thy liking yet thou wātest not faith in Christ euen faith vnto saluation then there is no cause of feare Indeede this temptation argueth a roote of infidelity to remaine in thee for seeing the Lord Iesus hath borne our sinnes in his body vpon the tree and in bearing them hath taken them away and hath washed and cleansed vs in his bloud and seeing God the father of our lord Iesus Christ receiuing satisfaction in the sacrifice of his Sonne hath by an irreuocable word promised to forgiue our sinnes and to remember our iniquities no more and these things both concerning the meritorious sacrifice of Christ and concerning the faithful promise of God are knowne and haue been made knowne vnto thee Surely this temptation of accusing thoughts would long since haue receiued an answere if there had not beene some roote of infidelitie remaining in thee to giue continuall nourishment vnto it But because there is some infidelitie in thee doth it therefore follow that there is no faith That is not so there may be both together either in his measure and degree Doth not Saint Paul tell vs that in himselfe at the same time there was one power which he calleth the Lawe of his minde leading him to God and to the loue of his lawe and an other power which hee calleth the lawe of his members leading him from God and leading him to sinne his words are I delight in the law of God concerning the innerman but I see another law in my members rebelling against the law of my mind and leading mee captiue vnto the lawe of sinne which is in my members Can anie things bee more opposite one to an other then these two lawes of the mind and of the members either striuing to draw