represent the exceeding sinfulness that is in sin the stain and spot whereof could be washt out with no other element but the blood of the Son of God for as it was purchasing blood so it was expiating blood He hath loved us and washed us with his own blood Rev. 1 6. But though this be the purest glass yet God doth make frequent and great use of the third glass also sc afflictions and chastisements for sin to discover to the Children of promise the greatness of that evil which is in sin It is very notable how God brings the Israelites this glass in their affliction and bids them as it were see their face in it Jer. 2. Know therefore and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God and that my feare is not in thee saith the Lord God of Hosts verse 19. In this glass he discovers to them a fourfold evil in sin 1. As it is cause of all other evils of punishment verse 17. Hast thou not procured this unto thy self in that thou hast forsaken me c. he bids them read all their sins in their punishments he bids them look upon sin as a Mother-evil that hath all other evils in the womb of it q. d. Thank thy self for all the affliction that is upon thee thou hast procured this unto thy self art thou in captivity in prison in distress c. Thank thy Idolatry and thy Adulteries whereby thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God Thank thy self for all the misery that is upon thee every mans heart may say to him as Apollodorus his heart cryed to him out of the boyling Chaldron 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Plut I have bin the cause of all this As Lust when it hath conceived brings forth sin so sin when it is finished when it is perfected Iames 1.15 will bring forth death sin is the Child of Lust and the Mother of Death 2. In this glass God represents sin to their view as an evil in it self know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and a bitter that sin doth not only bring evil but is evil it is an evil thing not only that it works bitterness but is bitterness it is a bitter thing it hath a bitter root as well as it brings forth bitter fruits God leads the sinner by affliction to take notice not only what sin doth but what sin is It is evil Yea 3. That it is a pure unmixt evil It is an evil thing the whole being of sin is evil In the evil of affliction there is some good for it hath God for the Author Is there an evil in the City and the Lord hath not done it Amos 3 6 Rom. 8 28. Psal 119.71 And it hath good for its end all things shall work together for good to them that love God It is good for me saith David that I have been afflicted But now sin is a simple uncompounded evil 1 Iohn 3.8 Rom. 6.23 for it hath the Devil for the Author he that committeth sin is of the Devil and death for its end the wages of sin is death death in its vastest comprehension sin is evil all over 4. The glass represents it yet worse that is as it is an evil against God It is a departure from God thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God verse 17. and so again v. 19. Sin is averstâ—a deo conversio ad creaturam Ier. 2.13 thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God my fear is not in thee Sin as the Schools define it is an aversion from God and a conversion or turning to the Creature My people have committed two evils they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters and shewed them out Cisterns broken Cisterns that can hold no water Sin is not only an unmixt evil but a twisted multiplyed evil It is a departure from the fountain of life and glory and a turning to a scanty and a broken Vessel which leaks out as fast as it is poured in Now here is the exceeding sinfulness of sin that it is an evil against God punishment is but an evil against the Creature thou hast procured this unto thy self affliction is but a contradiction to the will of the Creature but sin is a contradiction to the will of God whence we may safely conclude that there is more evil in the least sin then there is in the greatest punishment even Hell it self the Hell that is in sin is worse then the Hell that is prepared for sin Yea and behold one evil more in this glass the aggravation of all the rest and that is 5ly that sin is a causless evil a causless departure thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God when he led thee by the way v. 17. when he led thee as a Guide to direct thee lead thee as a stay to support thee he put underneath thee his everlasting arms he led thee as a Convoy to guard thee led thee as a Father to provide for thee Thou wantedst nothing and yet thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God This is the aggravation verse 31. O generation Generation of what why of what you will God leaves a space as it were that they may write down what they please Generation of Vipers Generation of Monsters any thing rather then the Generation of his children O Generation see the word of the Lord still he holds the Glass before their eyes and what are they to behold there why their causeless Apostacy and rebellions for so it follows have I been a barren Wilderness a Land of darkness have ye wanted any thing wherefore then say my people we will come no more unto thee oh this departure is causeless and wilful God saith to the sinner as Pharaoh said to Jeroboam when he would be gone from him 1 Kings 11.22 But what hast thou lacked with me that behold thou seekest to be gone from me and the sinner seemeth to answer God as Jeroboam there answered Pharaoh nothing howbeit let me go in any wise Jeroboam could come to Pharaoh when he was in distress but when the storm was over at home he will be gone again though he cannot tell why and so deals the treacherous heart with God and this causeless departure from God is an high aggravation of sin God is often upon it as Isa 1.2 and Amos 6.3 4 5 c. The soul sinneth only because it will sin In a word Affliction is one of Gods tribunals where the sinner is arraigned evicted and condemned As many as I love I rebuke and chasten the Greek words signifie to convince and correct Rev. 3 19 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. by correction to convince of sin truly in affliction sin is laid open before a mans eyes in such sort as he is inforced to plead guilty God sits as Judg Conscience is witness a thousand witnesses sin the inditement affliction both evidence and execution Hence it is that sooner or
affliction yet divine teaching could antidote that poyson and turn it into a cup of blessing unto him Thy rod and thy staff comfort me Psa 23 4. O that the children of God in affliction or entering upon sufferings would sit down and dwell upon this Consideration The fruit and advantage which God knoweth how to bring out of all their sorrows even the peaceable fruits of righteousness This would keep them from uncomely despondencies and dejections of spirit For this cause we faint not saith the Apostle for what cause 2 Cor. 4.16.18 while we look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen that is to say not at the visible sufferings but at the invisible fruit and advantage of our sufferings This holds up head and keeps up heart and maketh the Soul not onely to be patient but to glory in tribulation Knowing that tribulation worketh patience Rom. 5 3 4 5 Pericula non respicit Mar. yr coronas respicit Basil ad 40 Martyr and patience experience and experience hope and hope maketh not ashamed because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which dwelleth in us This is the way to counterpoise the temptation and in the conflict between the flesh and the spirit to come in to the succor of the better part Eightly 8 Branch Inform. Why we stay so long under affliction It shews us the reason why God doth keep some of his people so long under the Discipline of the Rod. Truly God doth not onely bring his children into the School of affliction but many times keeps them long there Psa 125.3 The rod of the wicked indeed shall not ALWAYS rest on the back of the righteous I but it may lie long for months for years for many years together seventy years were the Jews in the house of Correction at Babylon four hundred years in the brick-kils of Egypt Story and experience will serve in instances without number Hence you have the people of God so often at their How-longs in Scripture Psal 6.3 But thou O Lord HOVV LONG Psal 13.1 2. HOVV LONG wilt thou forget me O Lord for ever HOVV LONG wilt thou hide thy face from me HOVV LONG shall I take counsel in my Soul HOVV LONG shall mine Enemy be exalted over me In this Psalm where my Text is HOVV LONG shall the wicked HOVV LONG shall the wicked triumph twice How long before he can vent his complaint and yet again the third time HOVV LONG shall they utter and speak hard things HOVV LONG cries Jeremiah Ier. 4.21 shall I see the standard and hear the sound of the trumpet and Zechariah Zech. 1.12 O Lord of Hoasts HOVV LONG wilt thou not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the Cities of Judah The Souls under the Altar Revel 6.10 cry with a loud voyce i. e. in much anguish and agony HOVV LONG O Lord holy and true dost thou not avenge our blood on them that dwell on the Earth Verily God doth keep his people sometimes so long under their pressures that they begin at length even to give themselves up to despair and to conclude they shal never see deliverance Thus you finde not onely the common multitude of the Jews in the Babylonian captivity concluding desperately Our bones are dryed Lam. 3.53 our hope is lost we are cut off for our parts dry bones may as well live as our captitivity have an end but even the Prophet Jeremiah himself whether in his own person or in the name of the whole Church I know not possibly both They have cut off my life in the dungeon and cast a stone upon me He seems to himself to be in the condition of a man that is dead and buried and the grave-stone rould to the mouth of the Sepulchre a Metaphor expressing an hopeless and desperate condition yea hence it is that when deliverance is nigh they cannot believe it though a Prophet of God or an Angel from Heaven should report it Thou shalt arise and have mercy upon Zion for the time to favor her yea the set-time is come sings the Prophet Daniel or some other that lived neer the expiration of the seventy years captivity and yet in the mean time the Jews reply as before Our bones are dryed our hope is lost we are cut off for our parts q. d. tell not us of Gods arising c. we shall never see Sion again we are but dead men Observe it by the way They that would not believe the captivity while it was in the threatening Hab. 1.5 would not believe deliverance when it was in the promise A just judgment upon them that that they that would not beleeve God threatening should not beleeve God promising But that 's not all Deliverance was so incredible after so long a captivity that they could not bleeve it when they saw it When the Lord turned again the captivity of Zion Psa 126.1 we were like them that dream They knew not as it fared with Peter half awake and half asleep Acts 12.9 whether it was true or whether they saw a vision onely Is this a real deliverance or are we in a dream onely Our Saviour tells us that when the Son of man shall come Luk. 18.8 i. e. with particular deliverances to his Church he shall not find faith on the earth there will not be faith enough in the people of God to beleeve it by reason of the long pressures and persecutions that have been upon them Now I say what is the reason that God suffers affliction to lie so long upon the backs of his children Truly one Reason is because they have lived long in sin they have been long a sinning and therefore God is long a correcting God puts them to THEIR How-longs because they have put God to HIS How-longs Exod. 6.28 HOVV LONG refuse ye to keep my Commandments and my Laws HOVV LONG will this people provoke me and HOVV LONG will it be ere they believe Jerem. 4.14 HOVV LONG shall thy vain thoughts lodg within thee Hosea 8.5 HOVV LONG will it be ere they attain to innocency c. And truly if they have made God complain of THEIR How-longs no wonder if God make them complain of HIS How-longs But then again another and the main reason is because the work is not yet done they do not receive Instruction by their Correction else affliction would quickly cease God giveth not a blow he draws not a drop of blood more then needs For a season 1 Pet. 1.6 if NEED be ye are in heaviness if there be heaviness there is need of it and if heaviness continue long there is need of it It is not to gratifie their Enemies that God keeps them so long under their lash but to teach them not that God afflicts willingly Lam. 3.33 c. but that he may do them good in their latter end that by the rod
James 1.4 there is a work of patience and there is a perfect work Verse 3 The tryal of Faith worketh patience i. e. the sufferings whereby our Faith is tryed as gold is tried in the furnace it worketh or as the word signifieth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it perfecteth The Cross exerciseth and exercise perfecteth the grace of patience as sufferings arise so patience ariseth also Be patient Iames 5.7 brethren till the coming of the Lord i. e. do you bear the affliction till Christ come and take it off let your patience be of the same extent with your sufferings As Patience so Faith is not acted only but perfected by temptations Sometimes the Soul findes that Faith lively in a suffering condition which before it questioned whether it were alive or if affliction do not finde it lively it makes it lively the same furnace of affliction wherein God tryeth our Faith he doth refine it and purifieth it more and more from the dross of infidelity They are the purest acts of faith which the Soul puts forth in the dark Faith never beleeves more then when it cannot see Isai 50.10 because then the Soul hath nothing to stay it self upon but God Hence while it seems to help difficultates the work of faith by doubting of it a man must first beleeve the insufficiency of what he seeth before he can beleeve the Alsufficiency of him that is invisible We look not at the things which are seen 2 Cor. 4.18 but at the things which are not seen It is harder to live by Faith in abundance then in want The Soul is a step neerer living upon God when it hath nothing to live upon but God yea and when God is not seen he is most beleeved Psal 22.1 My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Observe and thou shalt find a great deal more of precious faith in that desertion then of complaint For first Faith like Pharez breaks forth first My God before forsaken And again you have two words of Faith for one of despair My God my God why hast thou forsaken me Faith speaks twice before Sense can speak once And thirdly Faith speaks confidently and positively Thou art my God Sense speaks dubiously why hast thou as if Sense durst not call it a forsaking while Faith dares say my God Surely Faith is never so much Faith as in desertion Faiths triumphs lie in the midst of despair and even in this sence also Having not seen yet beleeving 1 Pet. 1.8 we rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory Godly sorrow how is it enlarged by sanctified affliction while that stream which was wont to run in the channel of worldly crosses now is diverted into the channel of sin I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I HAVE SINNED Micâ—h 7.9 c. Any burden is light in comparison of sin the very indignation of God The Soul that God teacheth by his chastisements can stand under the burden of Gods indignation for sin when it cannot stand under sin which hath kindled that indignation Ah cryeth Job upon the dunghill I have sinned what shall I do unto thee O thou preserver of men He forgetteth his suffering in his sin he saith not I have lost all my substance I am now upon the dunghill as naked as ever I was born save that I am clothed with scabs my friends reproach me my wife curseth me or that which is worse she bids me curse God Satan persecutes me and God himself is become mine Enemy c. all this is befallen me what wilt thou do unto me O thou preserver of men but I have sined what shall I do unto thee c. Sufferings lead to sin and sense of sin swalloweth up sense of sufferings And what shall I say more the time would fail to instance in other Graces Love Fear Holiness c. By this shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged Isai 27.9 and this is all the fruit to take away his sin Hâ—b 12 10 He for our profit that we might be partakers of his holiness Grace is never more Grace then when besieged with temptations The battel draws forth that fortitude and prowess which in time of peace lay chill'd in the veins for want of opposition and exercise A twelfth Lesson 12 Lesson A life of Faith which they learn in the School of Affliction is The necessity and excellency of the life of Faith 1. The necessity of living by faith 1 The Necessity of it Hab. 2.3 4 where Sense endeth Faith beginneth The vision is for an appointed time I but what shall we do in the mean time why the just shall live by Faith live by Faith or dye in despair when God pulls away the bulrushes of Creature-supports the Soul must either swim or sink God teacheth this Lesson Partly by the uncertainty of second causes the vicessitudes that are in creature-expectations a little hope to day to morrow reduc'd to despair good news to day Pharaoh says Israel shall go bad news to morrow he rageth and swears that if Moses see his face any more he shall dye c. O the ebbs flows of sublunary hopes one speaks a word of comfort another speaks words of soul-wounding terror now a promise anon a threatening The sick man is in hopes of reviving to day to morrow at the gates of death What a woful heart-dividing life is a life of Sense a life which is worse then death it self to be thus bandied up and down between hopes and fears to be baffled to and fro between the may-be's of second Causes to be like Mariners upon the billows and surges of the tempestuous sea Psalm 107 26 27 They mount up to Heaven they go down again to the depths their Soul is melted because of trouble they reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits end Heb. all their wisdom is swallowed up And partly God teacheth the necessity of a life of Faith by the disappointment of the Creature How often doth the Creature totally fail and abuse our expectation Iob 6.15 16 like the deceitful brook to which Job most elegantly compares his brethren which mocks the traveller and when he comes for a draught of water to quench his thirst Verse 20 sends him away with confusion and shame Surely men of low degree are vanity Psal 62.9 and men of high degree are a lye Men of low degree would help but cannot there is vanity and men of high degree can help many times but will not no not when they have promis'd and sworn there is a lye both disappoint the one by the necessity the other by deceit and disappointment is one of the great torments that a rational creature is capable of Trust defeated causeth sorrow of heart Isai 20.5 and confusion of face and the stronger the confidence Ier. 14.3 the more shameful is the disappointment Agag
be none to deliver A fifth branch of Information may be to teach us thus much sc 5 Branch Informat They may be blessed whom the world judgeth miserable That they may be blessed whom the world accounts miserabl The World judgeth meerly by outward appearances and therefore may easily be mistaken They see the chastisement which is upon the flesh and thence conclude a man miserable but they cannot discover that divine teaching which is upon the spirit which truly rendereth him incomparably blessed The men of the world are incompetent judges of the estate and condition of Gods Children The godly mans happiness or misery is not to be judged by the worlds sense and feeling Nemo aliorum sensu misâ—r est sâ—a suo Salv. de gub Dei lib. 1. but by his own it lieth inward save onely so far as by the fruits it is discernable and the worlds faculty of judging is onely outward made up of sense and reason therefore said the Apostle The spiritual man judgeth all things yet he himself is judged of no man that is he is able to judg of the condition of the men of the world but the men of the world are not able to judg of his condition because it is above their faculty the natural man thinks the spiritual man under affliction to be miserable but the spiritual man knows the natural man in the midst of his greatest abundance and bravery to be miserable indeed Therefore may the Saints in their troubles think it with Saint Paul 1 Cor. 4 3 a very small thing to be judged of mans judgment This is but * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of mans day mans day of judging so the word signifieth Gods day is coming when things and persons shall be valued by another census or rate Christ in his day shall judg not after the sight of the eyes i.e. not as things appear to sense and reason nor after the hearing of the ears i. e. according to the report of the world but with righteousness shall he judg i. e. He shall judg of things and persons as they are and not as they appear Interim this is also another comfort We have the mind of Christ 1 Cor. 2. last 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the judgment of Christ by vertue whereof we are enabled in our measure to judg of things and persons as Christ himself judgeth A sixth branch of Information 6 Branch Insoâ—m To shew the wisdom power and goodness of God Is Chastisement a blessing when accompanyed with Instruction See then and admire the Wisdom Power and Goodness of God who can make his people better by their sufferings Who knows how to ferch oyl out of the scorpion to extract gold out of clay to draw the â—ichest wine out of gall and wormwood that can turn the greatest evil of the body to the greatest good of the Soul the Curse it self into a Blessing that can make the withered rod of affliction to bad Isai 27.9 yea to bring forth the peaceable fruits of righteousness to them that are exercised thereby Behold I shew you a mystery Sin brought Affliction INTO the world and God makes * By this shal the iniquity of Iacob be purged and this is all the fruit to take away his sin Affliction to carry sin OUT of the world Persecution is but the pruning Christs Vine c. The Almond tree is made fruitful by driving nails into it Iust Martyr in Apol. letting out a noxious gum that hindereth the fruitfulness thereof God never intendeth more good to his children then when he seems to deal most severely with them Patrium habet Deus adversus bonos viros animum illos fortiter amat Sen. Our tonis viris mala accidant The very Heathen hath observed it to us God doth not love his children with a weak womanish affection but with a strong masculine love and had rather they suffer hardship then perish Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth God will rather fetch blood then lose a Soul break Ephraims bones then suffer him to go on in the frowardness of his heart Destroy the flesh that the spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus 1 Cor. 11 32 Vâ—ribus res disposita est lugea mus itaque dum Ethnici gaudent ut cumlagere caeperint gaudeamus c. Terr l. de spectic c. 28 7 Branch Inform. Sufferings not dreadful as Nature apprehends We are chastened of the Lord that we should not be condemned with the world His Discipline is made up of severity and love he doth chastise but he will teach also that so his children may inherit the blessing the discipline is sharp but the end is sweet Bless the Lord O my Soul and all that is within me bless his holy Name Bless the Lord O my Soul and forget not all his benefits Seventhly It shews us That a suffering condition is not so formidable a thing as flesh and blood doth represent it It is ignorance and unbelief which slandereth the Dispensations of God and casteth reproach upon the Cross of Christ He that heard the words of God which saw the vision of the Almighty having his eyes opened could by way of holy triumph ask this quâ—stion Why should I fear in the days of evil Psal 49.5 q. d. what is there in an afflicted estate so much to be dreaded let any man shew me a reason and I will give way to fear and despondency And that is more observable which follows When the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about This is an addition of the greatest weight and wonder imaginable the meaning is when my transgressions pursue me so close that they even tread upon my heels as it were when sin it self hath brought me into the snare when God is correcting me for my iniquities why truly Christians that 's the thing which a child of God doth most of all tremble at to consider that he hath sin'd himself into a suffering condition In sufferings purely Evangelical viz. persecution for righteousness sake a gracious heart can see many times more cause of rejoycing then of perplexity 1 Pet. 4.13 16 Phil. 1.29 and look upon them as a gift rather then an imposition but afflictions and miseries which sin brings upon a man seem to be judicial and penal and carry a face of wrath rather then of love I but observe it even in these the Psalmâ—st can see no just cause of fear Wherefore should I fear in the days of evil when the iniquity of my heels shall compass me about See when sin and sorrows besiege him on every side he is fearless and knows no reason to the contrary unless any one can tell him what it is How so surely upon the same account in my Text because David had a God that could teach as well as chastise and therefore though sin were as poyson in his cup of