seems to be expounded Psal. 103.3 and that which is called Healing in one place is called forgivenesse in another if we compare Mat. 13.15 with Mark 4.12 Secondly by a spirituall and effectuall Reformation purging the conscience from dead workes making it strong and able to serve God in new obedience for that which Health is to the body Holinesse is to the soul. Therefore the Sun of righteousnesse is said to aâ—ise with Healing in his wings Mal. 4.2 whereby we are to understand the gracious influence of the Holy Spirit conveying the vertue of the blood of Christ unto the conscience even as the beames of the Sunne doe the heat and influence thereof unto the earth thereby calling out the herbs and flowers and healing those deformities which winter had brought upon it Thirdly by removing and withdrawing of judgements which the sinnes of a people had brought like wounds or sicknesses upon them So Healing is opposed to smiting and wounding Deut. 32.39 Iob 5.18 Hos. 6.1 2. Ier. 33.5 6. Fourthly by comforting against the anguish and distresse which sinne is apt to bring upon the conscience For as in Physick there are Purgatives to cleanse away corrupt humours so there are Cordials likewise to strengthen refresh weak and dejected Patients and this is one of Christs principal workes to binde and heale the broken in heart to restore comforts unto mourners to set at liberty them that are bruised and to have mercy upon those whose bones are vexed Psal. 147 3. Isai. 57.18 19. Luke 4.18 Psal. 6.2 3. I am not willing to shut any of these out of the meaning of the Text. First because it is an answer to that rayer Take away All iniquity The All that is in it The Guilt the staine the power the punishment the anguish whatever evil it is apt to bring upon the conscience Let it not doe us any hurt at all Secondly because Gods works are perfect where he forgives sinne he removes it where he convinceth of righteousnesse unto pardon of sinne he convinceth also of judgement unto the casting out of the prince of this world and bringeth forth that judgement unto victory Matth. 12.20 Their Back-sliding Their praier was against All iniquity and God in his answer thereunto singleth out one kinde of iniquity but one of the greatest by name And that first to teach them and us when we pray against sinne not to content our selves with generalities but to bewaile our great and speciall sinnes by name those specially that have been most comprehensive and the Seminaries of many others Secondly to comfort them for if God pardon by name the greatest sinne then surely none of the rest will stand in the way of his mercy if he pardon the Talents we need not doubt but he will pardon the pence too Paul was guilty of many other sinnes but when he will magnifie the grace of Christ he makes mention of his great sinnes A blasphemer a persecutor injurious and comforts himselfe in the mercy which he had obtained against them 1 Tim. 1.13 Thirdly to intimate the great guilt of Apastacie and rebellion against God After we have known him and tasted of his mercy and given up our selves unto his service and come out of Egypt and Sodome then to looke back againe and to be false in his Covenant this God lookes on not as a single sinne but as a compound of all sinnes When a man turnes from God he doth as it were resume and take home upon his conscience All the sinnes of his life again Fourthly to proportion his answer to their repentance They confesse their Apostasie they had been in Covenant with God they confesse he was their first husband Hos. 2 7. and they forsooke him and sought to Horses to Men to Idols to vanitie and lies this is the sin they chiefly bewaile and therefore this is the sinne which God chiefly singles out to pardon and to heale them of This is the great goodnesse of God toward those that pray in sincerity that he fits his mercy ad Cardinem desiderii answers them in the maine of their desires lets it be unto them even as they will I will love them freely This is set downe as the fountaine of that Remission Sanctification and Comfort which is here promised It comes not from our Conversion unto God but from Gods free love and grace unto us And this is added first to Humble them that they should not ascribe any thing to themselves their Repentance their prayers their covenants and promises as if these had been the means to procure mercie for them or as if there were any objective grounds of lovelines in them to stirre up the love of God towards them It is not for their sake that he doth it but for his own The Lord sets his love upon them because he loved them Deut. 7.7 8. not for your sakes doe I this saith the Lord God be it known unto you Ezek. 36.22.32 He will have mercy because he will have mercy Rom. 9.15 Secondly To support them above the guilt of their greatest sinnes Men think nothing more easie while they live in sinne and are not affected with the weight and hainousnesse of it then to beleeve mercie and pardon But when the soule in conversion unto God feeles the heavie burden of some great sinnes when it considers its rebellion and Apostacie and backesliding from God It will then be very apt to think God will not forgive nor heale so great wickednesse as this There is a naturall Novatianisme in the timerous conscience of convinced sinners to doubt and question pardon for sinnes of Apostacie and falling after repentance Therefore in this case God takes a penitent off from the consideration of himself by his own thoughts unto the height and excellencie of his Thoughts who knowes how to pardon abundantly Isay. 55.7 8 9. Ier. 29.11 Ezek. 37.3 Nothing is too hard for love especially free-love that hath no foundation or inducement from without it self And because we reade before Hos. 8.5 That Gods Anger was kindled against them therefore he here adds that this also should be turned away from them Anger will consist with love we finde God Angrie with Moses and Aaron and Miriam and Asa and he doth sometimes visit with rodds and scourges where he doth not uâ—terly take away his loveing kindenesse from a people Psal. 89.32.33 A man may be angrie with his wife or childe or friend whom he yet dearly loveth And God is said to be thus Angry with his people when the effects of displeasure are discovered towards them Now upon their Repentance and Conversion God promiseth not onely to love them freely but to clear up his Countenance towards them to make them by the Removall of Judgements to see and know the ftuits of his free love and bounty unto them When David called Absolom home from banishment this was an effect of love but when he said let him not see my face this
Fathers verdict upon them Sordet in conspectu Iudicis quod fulget in conspectu operantis That which is fayr in thine eye is filthy in Gods Lastly this serveth for Exhortation unto these particular duties First unto Patience and meeknesse under any evill that God may bring upon us and that not barely because he doth us good in other things which was Iobs argument Shall we receive good from the Lord and not evill Job 2.10 But further because the very evils that come upon us are oftentimes by him intended for good as Ioseph told his brethren Gen. 50.20 We are not angry with the Physician when he launceth dieteth and restraineth us of our will he denieth us our will that we may have our will a sick man is many times most faithfully served when he is crossed I lop my trees bruise my grapes grinde my corn to fit it to the ends whereunto it tendeth Gods end is mercifull when his hand is heavy as Iohns Roll was sweet in the mouth but bitter in the belly so troubles may be bitter to the palate but profitable to the Conscience like hot spices that bite the tongue but comfort the stomack And as it dictateth patience in suffering evil so in doing our duties though we suffer contempt and reproaches for it If we were to receive our rewards from men their frowns might discourage us but when we have done Gods will God himself will be our reward and make his promises a comfort unto us Moses and Aaron though their whole imployments were for the good of Israel were yet repayed with murmuring discontent and the people like children qui cibum sumunt sed flentes to use the similitude of the Orator in Aristotle repined at the food which their prayers obtained for them yet nothing dismayed them from their duty Etiam post naufragium tentantur Maria. The woman of Canaan prays on when she is denied and Iacob holds with his hands when his thigh is lamed our first care must be to be in our way to be doing our duties then though as Solomon speaks we should meet a Lion in our way we must not be dismayed for Angels are stronger then Lions and he hath given his Angels charge over uâ— to bear us in our wayes psal 91.11 Yea Whilest we are with him he himself is with us 2 Chron. 15.2 so that the way of the Lord is the surest and safest walke that any man can have The way of the Lord is strength to the upright Prov. 10.29 Secondly unto Humility If thou be a Vessell of gold and thy brother but of wood be not high minded it is God that maketh thee to differ the more bounty God shewes the more humility he requires Those Mines that are richest are deepest those Stars that are highest seeme smallest the goodliest buildings have the lowest foundations the more God honoureth men the more they should humble themselves the more the fruit the lower the branch on which it grows pride is ever the companion of emptinesse O how full was the Apostle yet how low was his language of himselfe least of Saints last of Apostles chiefe of sinners no sufficiency to think no abilities to doe all that he is he is by grace thus Humility teacheth us in our Operations to draw strength from God not for our selves in our graces to ascribe their goodnesse to God and their weaknes to our selves Thirdly unto dependance and continuall recourse to God as the fountaine of all good to keep an open and an unobstructed passage between him and our soule say not I have light enough in my house I may now shut up my windowes for light within hath dependance upon immediate supplies from the Sun without and so hath grace upon continuall supplies from the Sun of righteousnesse God teacheth even the Husbandman to plow and thresh Isa. 28.26 In these things his direction is to be implored Meddle not then with great and high affairs without recourse unto him His name is Counsellor and his testimonies are Counsellors let them be the rule and square of all your debates It is recorded for the honour of Scipio that he went first to the Capitoll and then to the Senate But you have more noble examples David is put to flight he flyes and prayes Ezekiah is at a stand in all his Counsels he sends to the Prophet and prayes Iehosaphat is in great distresse and knowes not what in the world to doe but he prayes Nehemiah is sore afraid and hath a Petition to make to the King but first he makes one to God and prayes when ever the children are come to the birth and there is no strength to bring forth all the world cannot furnish you with such another Midwife as prayer and recourse to God it hath delivered even graves of their dead Therefore let me beseech you when ever you meet with such difficulties as put you to a stand that you know not what to advise or resolve upon goe to your Closets prostrate your selves at his Throne whose honour it is to be seene in the Mount beg counsell of him in whom are hid all the Treasures of wisedome and knowledge Let it appeare that you seek his face to direct you and his glory as the supreme end and designe of all your consultations and then â—ny whether he be not a present help in trouble and whether he will not magnifie the wisedome of his Counsell in the perplexitie of yours Fourthly unto fidelity in the use of any good which God bestowes upon uâ— for God gives not talents to men barely to enrich men but to imploy them therefore as the Vessell hath one passage to let the Wine into it selfe and another to poure it out into the Flaggoâ— so we should not only fill our selves by dependance upon God but should supply our selves by love and service unto our brethren Right Honourable This Nation hath put into your hands all that is outwardly deare unto them their persons posterities liberties estates In these sad and wofull distractions they look upon you as binders and healers and standers in the gap and repayrers of the wast-places God hath called you unto an high and a great trust and the sad distempers of the Church and State the distresses and desolations of Ireland the doubts and feares the shiverings and convulsions of England and in these two the interest of all the Protestant Churches call upon you like the man of Macedonia in Saint Pauls vision Acts 16.9 Come and help us Now in this great strait when the children are come to the birth and there is no strength to bring forth stir up the graces of God in you call together all that is within you to call upon his name improve the uttermost of your interests in him for the state of his Church mannage every one of his gifts to the closing of those miserable breaches which threaten an inundation
looke with selfe-abhorrency upon himselfe and full detestation upon his former courses And he now no longer considers the Silver or the Gold the profit or the pleasure of his wonted lusts though they be never so delectable or desirable in the eye of flesh he looks upon them as accursed things to be thrown away as the Converts did upon their costly and curious Books Acts 19.19 Isa. 30.22 31 7. Sin is like a plaited picture on the one side of it to the impenitent appeareth nothing but the beauty of pleasure whereby it bewitcheth and allureth them on the other side to the penitent appeareth nothing but the horrid and ugly face of guilt and shame whereby it amazeth and confoundeth them Thus the remembrance of sinne past which they are very carefull to keep alwayes in their sight Psal. 51.3 doth by godly sorrow worke speciall care of amendment of life for the time to come 2 Chron. 6.37 38. Psal. 119.59 Ezec. 16.61 63.20.43 2. By a present sense of the weight and burthen of remaining corruptions which work and move and put forth what strength they can to resist the grace of God in us As the time past wherein sinne raigned so the present burthen of sinne besetting us is esteemed sufficient and makes a man carefull not to load himself wilfully with more being ready to sinck and forced to cry out under the paine of those which hee unwillingly lieth under already A very glutton when he is in a fit of the gout or stone will forbeare those meats which feed so painfull diseases A penitent sinner is continually in paine under the body of sinne and therefore dares not feed so dangerous and tormenting a disease The more spirituall any man is the more painefull and burdensome is corruption to him Rom. 7.22 For sin to the new man is as sicknesse to the naturall man The more exquisite and delicate the naturall senses are the more are they sensible and affected with that which offends nature Contraries cannot bee together without combate The spirit will lust against the flesh and not suffer a man to fulfill the lusts of it Gal. 5 16 17. the seed of God will keep down the strength of sin 1 Iohn 3.9 3. By an holy jealousie and godly feare of the falsenesse and back-sliding of our corrupt heart lest like Lots wise it should look back towards Sodome and like Israel have a minde hankering after the flesh pots of Egypt the wonted profits and pleasures of forsaken lusts A godly heart prizeth the love of God and the feelings of spirituall comfort from thence arising above all other things and is afraid to lose them It hath felt the burnings of sinne the stingings of these fiery Serpents and hath often been forced to befoole it selfe and to beshrew its own ignorance and with Ephraim to smite upon the thigh And the burnt child dreads the fire and dares not meddle any more with it Considers the heavinesse of Gods frown the rigour of his Law the weaknesse and ficklenesse of the heart of man the difficulty of finding Christ out when he hath withdrawn himselfe and of recovering light and peace againe when the soule hath wilfully brought it selfe under a cloud and therefore will not venture to harden it selfe against God Thus godly feare keeps men from sin Iob 31.23 Psal. 119.120 Prov. 28.14 Eccles. 9.2 Ier. 32 40. Phil. 2.12 Psal. 4.4 4. By a love to Christ and a sweet recounting of the mercies of God in him The lesse a man loves sinne the more he shall love Christ. Now repentance works an hatred of sinne and thereupon a love of Christ which love is ever operative and putting forth it self towards holinesse of life As the Love of God in Christ towards us worketh forgivenesse of sinne so our reciprocall love wrought by the feeling and comfort of that forgivenesse worketh in us an hatred of sinne A direct love begets a Reflect love as the heat wrought in the earth strikes back a heat up into the aire againe The woman in the Gospel having much forgiven her loved much Luke 7.47 Wee love him because he loved us first and love will not suffer a man to wrong the thing which hee loves What man ever threw away Jewels or money when he might have kept them except when the predominant love of something better made these things comparatively hatefull Luke 14.26 What woman could bee perswaded to throw away her sucking child from her breast unto Swine or Dogs to devoure it Our love to Christ and his Law will not suffer us to cast him off or to throw his Law behind our backs New obedience is over joyned unto pardon of sinne and repentance for it by the method of Gods Decrees by the order and chaine of Salvation and ariseth out of the internall character and disposition of a childe of God We are not Sonnes only by Adoption appointed to a new inheritance but we are Sons by Regeneration also partakers of a new nature designed unto a new life joyned unto a new head descended from a new Adam unto whom therefore we are in the power of his Resurrection and in the fellowship of his suffrings to be made conformable Phil. 3.10 And the Apostle hath many excellent and weighty arguments to inforce this upon us Col. 3. 1 2 3 4. If then ye be risen with Christ seek those things that are above where Christ is sitting on the right hand of God Set your affection on things above not on things on the earth For ye are dead and your life is hid with Christ in God when Christ who is our life shall appeare then shall ye also appeare with him in glory 1. Our fellowship with Christ wee are risen with him what he did corporally for us hee doth the same spiritually in us As a Saviour and Mediatour he died and rose alone But as a Head and second Adam he never did anything but his mysticall Body and seed were so taken into the fellowship of it as to be made conformable unto it Therefore if he rose as a Saviour to justifie us we must as members be therein fashioned unto him and rise spiritually by heavenly-mindednesse and a new life to glorifie him 2. We must have our affections in Heaven because Christ is there The heart ever turns towards its treasure where the body is thither will the Eagles resort 3. He is there in glory at Gods right hand and grace should move to glory as a piece of earth to the whole And he is there in our businesse making intercession in our behalfe providing a place for us sending down gifts unto us And the Client cannot but have his heart on his own businesse when the Advocate is actually stirring about it 4. We are dead with Christ as to the life of sinne And a dead man takes no thought or care for the things of that life from whence he is departed A man naturally dead looks not after food or rayment
enough in the Apostles judgement why we should set our affections on things above Col. 3.2 3. The grace of God doth not onely serve to bring salvation but to teach us to deny ungodlinesse and worldly lusts and to live soberly righteously and godly in this present world Tâ—t 2.11 2. He who hath decreed salvation as the end hath decreed also all the antecedent meanes unto that end to be used in a manner suteable to the condition of reasonable and voluntary agents unto whom it belongs having their minds by grace illightned and their wills by grace prevented to cooperate with the same grace in the further pursuance of their salvation And if at any time corruption should in Gods children abuse his grace and efficacy unto such presumpâ—uous resolutions they would quickly rue so unreasonable and carnall a way of arguing by the wofull sense of Gods displeasure in withdrawing the comforts of his grace from them which would make them ever after take heed how they turned the grace of God into wâ—ntonnesse any more Certainly the more the servants of God are assured of his assistance the more carefull they are in using it unto his own service Who more sure of the grace of God then the Apostle Paul who gloried of it as that that made him what he was By the grace of God I am that I am who knew that Gods grace was sufficient for him and that nothing could separate him â—rom the love of Christ who knew whom he had beleeved and that the grace of the Lord was exceeding abundant towards him and yet who more tender and fearfull of sin who more set against corruption more abundant in duty more pressing unto pâ—rfection then he This is the nature of grace to ammate and actuate the faculties of the soul in Gods service to ratifie our Covenants and to enable us to perform them Fourthly As it is singular comfort to the servants of God That their own wills and purposes are in Gods keeping and so they cannot ruine themselves so is it also That all other mens wills and râ—solutions are in Gods keeping too so that they shall not be able to purpose or resolve on any evill against the Church without leave from him So then first when the rage and passions of men break out Tribe divided against Tribe brother against brother father against childe head against body when the band of Unitie which was wont to knit together this flourishing Kingdome is broken like the Prophets staffe and therewithall the Beauty of the Nation miserably withered and decaâ—ed for these two go still together Beauty and Bands Zach. 11.10 14. we must look on all this as Gods own work It was he that sent an evill spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem for the mutuall punishment of the sinnes of one another Iudg. 9.23 It was he who turned the heâ—rts of the Egyptians to hate his people and to deale subtilly with them Psal. 105.25 He sent the Assyrian against his people giving them a charge to take the spoil and the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets Isa. â—0 16.6 Hee appointed the sword of the King of Babylon by his over-ruling direction to go against Iudah and not against the Ammonites Ezek. 21.19.22 He by the secret command of his providence marked some for safety and gave commission to kill and slay others Ezek. 9. â— 5. It is he who giveth Iacob for a spoil and Israel to the robbers and powreth out upon them the strength of battell Isa. 42.24 25. If there be evill in a City in a Kingdome the Lord hath done it Amos 3.6 Isa. 45.7 This consâ—â—eration is very usefull both to humble us when we consider that God hath a controversie against the Land and that it is he whom wee have to do withall in these sad commotions that are in the Kingdomes and to quiet and silence us that we may not dare murmurre at the course of his wise and righteous proceedings with us and to dâ—rect us with prayer faith and patience to implore and in his good time to expect such an issue and close as we are sure shall be for his own glory and for the manifestation of his mercie towards his people and his Iustice towards all that are implacable enemies unto Sion 2. In the troubles of the Church this is matter of singular comfort that however enemies may say This and that we will do hither and thither wee will go though they may combine together and be mutually confederate Psal. 83.2 5. and gird themselves and take counsell and speak the word yet in all this God hath the casting voyce There is little heed to be given unto what Ephraim saith except God say the same without him whatsoever is counselled shall come to nought whatsoever is decreed or spoken shall not stand Es. 8.9 10. We have a lively Hypotyposis or description of the swift confident and furious march of the great Hoast of Senacharib towards Ierusalem with the great terrors and consternation of the Inhabitants in every place where they came weeping flying removing their habitations Esay 10.28 29 30 31. and when he is advanced unto Nob from which place the City Ierusalem might be seen he there shook his hand against Ierusalam threatning what he would doe unto it And then when the waters were come to the very neck and the Assirian was in the hight of pride and fury God sent forth a prohibition against all their resolutions and that huge Army which was for pride and number like the thick Trees of Lebanon were suddenly cut downe by a mighty one to wit by the Angel of the Lord vers 33.34 compared with Ezek. 31.3 10. Esay 17.12 13 14.37.36 therefore 3. Our greatst businesse is to apply our selves to God who alone is the Lord that healeth us who alone can joyne the two sticks of Ephraim and Iudah and make them one Exod. 15.26 Ezek. 27.19 that he would still the raging of the Sea and command a calme againe He can say Ephraim shall say thus and thus he hath the hearts of Kings and consequently of all other men in his hands Prov. 21.1 and he can turne them as rivers of water which way soever he will as men by art can derive waters and divert them from one course to another as they did in the Siege of Babylon as Historians tell us whereunto the Scripture seemeth to referre Esay 43.15 16. Esay 44.23 28. Ier. 50 23. Ier. 51.36 he can sway alter divert over-rule the purposes of men as it pleaseth him reconciling Lambs and Lions unto one another Esay 11.6 making Israel Egypt and Assyria agree together Esay 19.24 25. hee can say to Balaam Blesse when his mind was to Curse Iosh. 24.10 he can turne the wrath of Laban into a covenant of kindnesse with Iacob Gen. 31.24 44. and when Esaâ— had advantage to execute his threats against his brother he can then turne resolutions of cruelty