in this world wherein he attended to his active obedience to the Law of God yet he was alwayes in a dark obscure low suffering condition The Instances of his sufferings which follow are more conspicuous in the course of his publick Ministry such was this point in this Section touched on viz. his bodily Infirmityes mentioned by Mathew which words are recited out of Isai 53.4 surely he hath born our griefs and carried our sorrows and this Text he bringeth to prove that Jesus Christ did heal all manner of diseases and sicknesses not as a Physitian but as a Mediator by divine power and Authority as God and man He did bear all the sinless punishment of our sins in his body 1 Pet. 2.21 himself bare our sins in his own body that is the punishment of our sins viz. sinless punishment whereof our bodily infirmityes weaknesses pains and sicknesses are a great and eminent part And by this part of his sufferings he so far satisfied divine Justice and thereby hath taken out the sting and curse out of our bodily infirmityes and hath rendred them only medicinal to our Souls and hereby he hath obtained power over all diseases to send them and to recall them as he pleaseth and to improve them as he will for the good of his Church and believing Servants he hath such absolute power over all our sicknesses that he saith to one goe and it goeth and to another come and it cometh c. This Text in Math. doth hold forth that part of the Humiliation of Jesus Christ in submitting himself to bodily infirmityes and diseases which he took and bare he took our griefs and pains for our sakes and bare them in our stead It is an eminent part of his sufferings clearly held forth in the Prophesies and testified in the Gospel History of him it is a point of great use and comfort to the Church that this sharp Rod is managed in the hand of a merciful tender hearted yea and experienced Mediator Jesus Christ his body was mortal which is evident by this that he dyed yea he came into the world to dye and therefore took a mortal body capable to perform that great service which he came to do The body of Adam in Innocency was capable of Immortality but by sin he became mortal Rom. 5.12 as by one man sin entered into the world and death by sin so death passed upon all men for that all have sinned Though the person of Jesus Christ was without sin yet he took a mortal body that it might be a fit sacrifice for our sin which was laid upon him by imputation being our Mediator his body was made as Adams body was out of preexisting matter and was therefore mortal After his Resurrection his body is Immortal His mortal hath put on Immortality his glorious immortal body is set down at the right hand of God And he will change our vile bodyes after the Resurrection and make them like to his glorious body Phil. 3.21 After the Resurrection the bodyes of all mankind shall be Immortal both good bad The power of mercy will preserve the bodies of the Elect to be eternal monuments objects of mercy and Subjects wherein mercy shall shine forth unto all Eternity The bodyes of the wicked shall be preserved in Immortality to be Vessels of wrath in which the justice of God will shine forth to all Eternity Thus all humane bodyes are capable of Immortality and shall be made so to be by the power of mercy and justice which Attributes of God are to be glorified in mankind for ever This Immortality of the body of Jesus Christ was a great and fundamental infirmity of his humane nature and a fruit of our sin imputed to him as our Mediator and this made him capable of such other infirmityes as might accomplish his death So that it was through the infirmity of a mortal body that he dyed 2 Cor. 13.4 for though he was crucified through weakness yet he liveth in the power of God his humane nature subject to our infirmityes made him mortal Divine power maketh him Immortal Though Jesus Christ took many infirmityes sicknesses weaknesses incident to a mortal body yet he dyed not by any sickness he dyed a violent death being in his full strength Their cruelty and harsh usage of his mortal body forced with his voluntary consent Joh. 10.18 a separation of his Soul from his body by much and cruel whippings they made deep and long Furrows in his back by piercing his head with Crowns of thorns knocked on with a staff by abusing him all night they gave him no rest The Rulers had him to do till after Cocks crowing then they went to their rest if their malitious minds would suffer them to sleep but they committed our blessed Lord Jesus to Souldiers and the rude Rabble who abused him all the night in the morning they committed him to Pilate who finally condemned him and delivered him to be crucified They oppressed his spent mortal body by bearing his cross they nailed his hands stretched his body till all his joints were loosed At that stretch they nailed his feet they pierced his side with a Spear and let out his life blood All these and sundry more of the last sufferings of our Lord shall hereafter the Lord assisting in their place and order be opened this may suffice at present to shew that the body of Jesus Christ had the infirmity of mortality and dyed with grief and pain a violent death he dyed not of any sickness Furthermore in this state of his mortal body when he was in the flesh he took many other infirmityes of a mortal body which are sinless punishments of the sin of man which may be gathered from Gen. 3.17 18 19. where the commination and infliction of them is expressed as the product of our sin To eat in sorrow to labour with disappointment and to labour with sweat until these painful labours sorrows sweatings and disappointments have brought us to the dust out of which we were made These infirmityes of humane nature may comprehend all those infirmityes usually instanced in by Divines as hunger thirst weariness sleepyness c. The mortal body of Jesus Christ was susteined as our bodyes be by eating drinking motion labour and rest in all which respects our fallen estate feeleth much punishment and the matter of sicknesses is usually contracted by eating and drinkâ—â— by heats and colds As these natural passions and infirmityes have in them a â— less punishment of sin which Jesus Christ suffered So why may not we say at the animal passions and infirmityes have in them a sinless punishment of sin as anger grief love Mark 3.5 he looked on them with anger but without the least touch of sin and was grieved Joh. 12.36 Jesus did hide himself from them Math. 14.13 when Jesus heard that Iohn was beheaded he departed thence into a desert place Ioh. 20.2 the Disciple whom Iesus loved Joh.
as pure as we can and may be capable to doe in this our state militant and to be filled with holy spiritual and heavenly conference after it 4. While Jesus and his Disciples were thus exercised in these holy services conferences and Prayers Iudas was among the chief Priests and Pharisees who by that time of night were at home and soon ready to attend the motion of their traiterous Companion Yet Iudas found difficultyes and delayes in getting all things ready to get a Company of men and Officers their Commission arms clubs staves and other weapons lanthorns torches c. Judas found that he had thrust himself into a troublesome employment And however he intended to have dispatched quickly according to that discovering word which Jesus Christ spake to him at his going out what thou doest doe quickly intimating that it was in the plot and purpose of his heart to surprize him there in the place where they kept the passover But he found so many difficultyes and delayes that it was near about midnight ere he could get all things ready as will appear in the Sequel 5. After this holy communion Conference and prayer Jesus with his Disciples went forth and entered into the suffering garden Ioh. 18.1 When Jesus had spoken these words he went forth with his Disciples over the brook Kedron there was a Garden into which he entered with his Disciples where first he placed his Disciples where they might be within sight and hearing of what should come upon him but out of the way of Judas and his Company for their safety so carefull was our Lord of his poor Lambs when a company of wolves were to come amongst them That which he commanded them was Sit here till I go pray yonder Luk. 22.40 pray that ye enter not into Temptation Then he took Peter James and John and went a little further And now did he enter into his Soul-agony with wonderfull horror and distress even to death 1. His body was not under any immediate suffering as yet only as it did co-suffer and sympathise with his Soul in its terrible Agony so deep and terrible were the horrors of his Soul as that his body was ready to faint away and dye Math. 26. â—7 38. he began to be sorrowful and very heavy then saith he unto them my soul is â—xceeding sorrowful even unto the death tarry here and watch with me Mark 1â— â—3 34. he began to be sore amazed and to be very heavy and saith unto them my Soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death tarry ye here and watch Luk. 22.43 44. there appeared an Angel unto him from Heaven strengthening and being in an Agony he prayed more earnestly and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground The extremity of his Soul sorrow did wring and torture the whole wheel of nature And that this Agony was firstly upon his Soul is expresly testified by Mathew and Mark such a load of sorrow lay upon his Soul that he could scarce live under it The same is evident in the Prophesy Isai 53.10 Thou shalt make his Soul an offering for sin which Text shews that the cause of this sorrow was the load of our sin which lay upon him being our Surety Luke calleth it an Agony ver 44. 2. This Soul Agony is expressed by Jesus Christ himself who felt it in such significant words as do make it appear to be a very extream torment that he was in Sorrowful or so beset round with sorrows and he was ready to faint and dy away he felt the greatest terror consternation and distress of mind that a mans Soul was capable to be in yea his terror was greater then any one was able to bear except himself who is God-man 3. This distress of Soul was begun five dayes before the Pasover as appeareth Ioh. 12.27 now is my Soul troubled what shall I say Father save me from this hour but for this cause came I unto this hour That this was spoken five dayes before the Passover appears Ioh. 12.1 six days before the Pasover Iesus came to Bethany v. 12. on the next day much people were come to the Feast and then Jesus went up to Jerusalem and then was this word spoken by him so that he had been long in some degrees of this Agony yea long before his Soul was distressed about it Luke 12.50 but I have a Baptisme to be baptized with and how am I streightned pressed pained till it be accomplished so that that Prophesy is herein in part accomplished Isai 53.3 a man of sorrows acquainted with griefs his Soul was in continual sorrow distress 4. This Soul Agony was not inflicted upon him by man nor by Devils no creature was able to put his blessed Soul into such a condition Quest Who was it that put his Soul into this distress I answer it was his Father that gave him this Cup to drink Joh. 18.11 the Cup which my heavenly Father hath given me shall I not drink it Isai 53.6 the Lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all he suffered the wrath and curse of God the punishment due to the sin of man he is our surety he stood in our stead and divine justice inflicted upon him all the punishment due to our sins And he spared not to lay upon him till he was fully satisfied Rom. 8.32 He spared not his own Son here he drank the first deep draught of the wrath of God due to our sin on the Cross he drank the last draught and then he dyed 5. He turned the Innocent reluctancies of humane nature into prayers unto his Father who laid this load upon him and subdued and suppressed them with humble holy submission to his will and then drank and this he did three times he made three draughts of this bitter cup which he drank in the garden And it pleased the Father to give him interims of some ease so that after his first submission he went unto his Disciples and awaked them poor watch men and then returned to his dreadful work again and submitted the second time and drank then went he again to his Disciples and did the same with a check to Peter by Name and returned again and prayed and submitted and drank the third draught and then he had an interim again And by that time the Traitor Judas and his Companions were come into the Garden 6. In all this bitter conflict he had no humane help for every time he came to his Disciples he found them sleeping he fulfilled that Prophesy Isai 63.3 I have trodden the wine press alone and of the people there was none with me Yet to inform and convince us of the greatness of this work and bitter suffering it pleased God to send an Angel to strengthen him as Luke testifieth Luke 22.43 and there appeared an Angel unto him from Heaven strengthning him The Cup was so bitter that it was as much as life could
of life it is the most solid sustenance therefore nature spent with pain grief and torment and such like punishments doth also greedily hunger and vehemently desire and crave for solid sustenance as well as for moisture to cool and moisten so did Jesus Christ in this his last Agony express his hunger as well as his thirst and both together do express the fulness of his extream sense of torment which he felt in this last finishing Agony hunger is a sinless punishment which Jesus Christ suffered to the uttermost extremity until it killed him His expression of his sense of hunger is not recorded in the History but it is in the Prophesy Psal 69.21 they also gave me gall for meat and in my thirst they gave me vinegar for drink He cryed for and needed both kinds of relief in the sense of the want whereof he was ready to dye and quickly did dye extremity of hunger and thirst are among the greatest of torments when he had no other relief to spent nature then gall and vinegar he presently dyed Prop. 4. It would set forth his extream sense of pain and torment which his body felt for the space of about twenty hours to gather up a few Instances of the suâ—fering of Soul mind and body that he passed through from his entrance into the garden until he dyed on the Cross they were tormenting him both in body and mind all that time without ministring unto him that we know off either food or rest He suffered both loss of blood and great pain by their twice cruel whippings and twice crowning him with thorns and being withal parched and burnt with heat which made him complain Psal 69.3 my throat is dried he sweat in the garden but now his moisture is turned into the drought of Summer Psal 22.15 my strength is dried up likâ— a potsheard and my tongue cleaveth to my jaws And thou hast brought me to the dust of death All these and such like expressions seâ— forth his extream sense of misery through want of relief especially his want of supply of moisture as being a chief sustenance he is therefore pleased in the history to express all by that one word I thirst all these pains are sinless punishments which he suffered unto the uttermost extremity until they killed him A painful violent death he suffered Prop. 5 Grief is exceedingly drying and expensive to nature Psal 31 9 10. Isaâ— 6.7 73.21 Iob. 30.25 Grief wasteth the body pierceth the heart woundeth the soul and many such effects there be of grief and now Iesus Christ had a juncture of the greatest griefs in the world all met together upon him like mountains of sorrow and terror All these are sinless punishments of sin which he suffered to the uttermost extremity until they killed him Prop. 6. All this pain grief horror which his humane adversaryes did inflict upon him were infinitely sharpned by the power of vindictive justice and laid upon him as our Surety so that his punishment of sense was to the uttermost extremity until they killed him The effect of these two words upon the by-standers was twofold First they gave him gall and vinegar in the extremity of his pain to adde unto his torment not to relieve him which act is thus expressed 1. One run to doe it that he might be sure to make him taste it before he was quite dead 2. He took a Spunge there ready for that purpose after the Romane manner of tormenting Malefactors 3. He bound the spunge upon a reed with a branch of hysope which were all ready for that purpose 4. He dipt it in the vessel of galled vinegar that was ready there 5. He lifted it to his mouth and caused him to taste and he tasted it The second effect was a mistake in some of his word Eli Eli saying he calleth for Elias to come and deliver him Whether this were a real mistake of ignorance or whether it was done in mockery as some think I say not but this is sure Luk. 23.36 37. The Souldiers also mocked him coming to him and offering him vinegar and saying if thou be the King of the Iews save thy self The end and intent of this giving him gall and vinegar was to afflict him because Jesus Christ so complained of it Psal 69.21 The complaint was in the Prophesie but the thing was done in the History Sect. 5. The third word which Iesus Christ spake upon the Cross about the 9th hour JOh. 19.30 When Jesus had received the vinegar he said It is finished Quest What is finished his Sufferings were not yet finished for he had yet to dye the great sacrifice was not yet fully offered the Lamb of God was not yet quite slain But the bitter punishment of loss was finished vindictive justice is satisfied in that part of his Sufferings Gods desertion of him which he so bitterly roared out under was released His bitter cry Eli Eli lamasabachtani was the last distressing act of that suffering upon this last and most bitter exclamation he felt a cessation of the rigor of justice God turned his face with favour toward him he felt a cessation of his Soul agony under the punishment of loss But the punishment of sence continued upon him and did so till he dyed that part of the punishment of sin did finally kill him His death was more quiet and Lamb-like because the punishment of loss was finished the great test brunt of the suffering for sin was finished And that this is the true right interpretation of the word It is finished appeareth by Iohn who recordeth this Speech v. 30. doth also say v. 28. Iesus knowing that all things were accomplished viz. In his soul agony under divine desertion that the Scripture might be fullfilled said I thirst shewing us that Jesus Christ who felt the punishment and therfore best knew he felt the punishment of Loss finished before he expressed his sense of the continuance of the punishment of sense and when he had expressed his the continuance of the punishment of sense by that word I thirst now that Scripture was fullfilled Psal 69 21. viz. that the sense of pain hunger and thirst were still upon him and when the only relief that man did afford him was gall and vinegar then he uttered that word It is finished viz. the punishment of loss is finished and that Scripture is fullfilled that saith the punishment of sense doth still lye upon him and will do so untill it kill him Mortal pains were upon him under the punishment of sense when he spake that word and those pains quickly after the fullfilling the Scripture about the gall and vinegar did kill him Sect. 6. The last Words which our dear Lord Jesus spake in this World his dying words LVk 23.46 And when Jesus had cryed with a loud voice he said Father into thy hands I commend my Spirit and having said thus he gave up the Ghost 1. He cried with a loud voice
which never yet had any man been buryed there they did at present lay up the body the approaching of the Sabbath permitting them to do no more they rowled a great stone to the dore of the Vault which shut it close up And so they departed Lo here we find the dead body of Jesus Christ separated from his Soul laid up among those that are gone down to the pit under the power of death and the grave in the very bottom of his humiliation His Soul was in his Fathers bosome in Paradice far out of the reach of the Enemy though in a suffering condition because in a state of seperation from his body there was he pleading and interceding for the Church The good women observed diligently where he was buryed purposing after the Sabbath to perfect his embalming for which purpose they brought and prepared sweet Spices Luk. 2â— 56 and 24.1 Mark 16.1 Surely they meant to have emboweled the Corps and to have filled the body with sweet Spices c. for so was the manner of embalming of dead bodyes they did not understand nor believe nor expect his Resurrection though he had often foretold it But here behold the wonderful Providence of God for ever to be admired that by reason of the shortness of the time to the beginning of the Sabbath which prohibited them from doing any more at present unto the body and the interposition of the Sabbath prevented them all that day But they intended after the Sabbath to have perfected his embalming for which purpose the godly women came very early and brought their Spices And when they came there he was risen before they came Here also we may behold and admire at the power of the Cross of Christ according to that word of Ioh. 12.32 and I when I am lifted up will draw all men unto me one would have thought in reason that these timorous noble Professors would now have been more timorous then ever they had been But behold the contrary for now they are more bold then ever they were Again one in reason would have thought that the Centurion and all that were on the guard with him and all the spectators would now have no regard or good perswasion towards Jesus Christ whom they had conquered and kissed But behold the contrary the sovereign grace of Jesus Christ is poured forth from the Cross and draweth hearts to believe and this power of grace is exercised by the sweet savour of the Cross of Christ unto this day yea and will be so to the worlds end Sect. 3. The sufferings of Christ after he was dead and buryed AS the first part of the sufferings of Christ was before he was born so the last part of his sufferings was after he was dead and buryed he lay in the grave as Jonas in the whales belly in a suffering condition until his Resurrection After the Incarnation and birth of Jesus Christ the whole conspiracy of Devils and wicked men was to kill him and to conquer him by death to remove him out of their way after they had conquered and killed him by death all their conspiracy was to keep him dead to seal him up in his grave that he should not rise again we may see what the Jews by Satans instigation no doubt did this way Math. 27.62 ad 67. where see the time of this act the morning after the preparation or celebration of the Passover which was upon the very Sabbath day yea though it was an high day Ioh. 19.31 being the morrow after the Passover They pretended to be very zealous for the Sabbrth to pick up matter against Christ when he did good works of charity upon the Sabbath day But now they can go to Pilate and transact their envyous business against Christ upon this high Sabbath day The actors of this business were the chief Priests and Pharisâ—es who pretended to be most zealous for the Sabbath but here we may see their hypocrisy What did they upon this Sabbath they came to Pilate and first see the term they give to Christ that deceiver or impostor we see here that his blood and death could not quench their rancor of heart against him They inform Pilate that he had said that he would rise again the third day which they desired to prevent using this Argument to perswade Pilate to assist them least his Disciples should come in the night and steal away his body and then tell the people that he was risen again according as he hath said he would do And the Effect of that would be worst of all our last error would be worse then the first if we let him rise again it will make us more odious to the people then our putting him to death hath done Pilate impowereth them to make his grave as fast and sure as they can or desire to do by a watch or any other means Whereupon they went upon the same Sabbath day they set a watch strong enough you may be sure at the grave and sealed up the great stone that lay upon the graves mouth and now let him rise if he can But herein we may behold the admirable wisdome of God and folly of man that the very way which they took to prevent his Resurrection was a means to make his Resurrection most evident and manifest unto all the Watchmen were witnesses of it Though they did afterwards corrupt them with large money to make a foolish lye which is current among the Jews unto this day and hereby their last error is indeed as bad if not worse then the first When Jesus Christ breathed out his blessed Soul into his Fathers bosome it waâ— in a state of separation from his body and that was a state of suffering He went into Heaven into Paradice into his Fathers bosome in a seperate in a suffering Estate O how welcome was that blessed suffering Soul hypostatically united to the Deity when he came in Heaven This blessed Soul was not long in this seperate state about forty hours though part of three dayes and three nights God suffered not his holy body hypostatically united to the Deity that lay dead in the grave to see the least touch of corruption Yet hereby he sanctified this seperate state of the Soul from the body unto and for his Elect whose bodyes do see corruption and whose duration and abiding in that seperatâ— estate is of a far longer continuance even until the day of Resurrection and last Judgement But Jesus Christ hath made it to be unto us an entrance into glory The Soul of Jesus Christ presented himself before the holy Tribunal of divine Justice where he pleaded his full satisfaction that he had made unto all the demands of the holy Law both by his active and passive obedience He saith I have fulfilled all Righteousness I have suffered and finished the sufferings of the punishment of loss I have suffered the punishment of sense unto the uttermost ever until it forced a separation betwixt my body and Soul and brought me into the state of death and behold here I stand before the Tribunal of Justice in a state of seperation of Soul from my body and thus have I answered the Law and finished the work of Redemption I have purchased a pardon I have purchased the Inheritance the Kingdome that by the right hand of divine power I may gather in all Gods Elect whose salvation I have undertaken that I may manage the world for the glory of God and that I may subdue all their Enemies And now O Father glorifie me with thy self and these thine Elect with me for my sake that they may behold my glory for which I appeal unto mercy Likewise also our appearance in Heaven when we dye must be before the Tribunal of Justice but we appear in the Name of Jesus Christ we are converted united unto him we are members of his mystical body cloathed with his Righteousness and for his sake we are accepted pardoned and welcomed to glory so far as we are capable in that seperate estate And for this we appeal unto mercy Now Jesus Christ took out a pardon now he took possession of his purchased Inheritance according to the capacity of his seperate estate Now he took the keys of hell and death now was he ready to tread down all Enemies Hell Devil Sin Death and Grave by his triumphant Resurrection But these meditations do appertain unto the Exaltation of Jesus Christ him God hath exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour for to give Repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins Amen FINIS