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B01752
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The sword of the Lord and of Gideon to this is subjoined a prayer for an armie going to battell, and a thanksgiving after the victorie. / By M. Zachary Boyd, preacher of Gods word at Glasgow.
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Boyd, Zacharie, 1585?-1653.
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1643
(1643)
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Wing B3911; ESTC R170739
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54,667
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189
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the lame 1 Sam. 5.6 might keepe them against all forces of men yet when the Lord is away are nothing but a lye Psal 20.8 Some trust in Charets and some in Horses But we will remember the LORD our GOD from him is our deliverance And therefore in dayes of danger Let every man here learne what to say to God O LORD deliver my soul from the wicked with thy Svvord The thing he desires GOD to deliver here it is his soule that is his life for the soul is the cause of our life Also by the soul here may be understood the soul properly and that the LORD would deliver it from danger either in doing or suffering for when a man doth evill he endangereth his soul or when a man is persecuted his soul also is not without danger If he live except God save and sanctifie him his soul will fret impatiently or will be enflamed with revenge 1 Sam. 25 13 as David was against Nabal for his churlishnesse Or if at the running out of his last sand he die in battell the bloudy sword in the hand except the Lord deliver his soul he cannot be but in great danger The 3 use The third use Let us make good use of these words Deliver my soul they are good for dayes of trouble either for life or for death when it like a ster ne Serjant shall come to arrest our bodyes in the grave By this prayer our life is guarded against the rage of men and by this prayer the Soule is fenced from the danger of damnation In these wordes is advantage both in life and death these words should at all times be in all mens mouthes both at our rysing and at our lying downe in sicknesse and in health But above all let all men of warre in their greatest dangers arme themselves with this ejaculatory prayer LORD delâ—ver my Soul these aâ—e words which every Christian must take with him while he goeth to the battell But because God heareth not the prayers of sinners and this time of trouble is a time of prayer let us endeavour by all meanes with all haste to bee reconciled unto God Truely the best of us may say that we have a huge bottome of sinne to unravell by repentance which we have beene many yeares winding up by our great disobedience the worke is great the time is short wee know not but this warre may make an end of us all Let us therefore no more hazard our salvation upon a may bee we live unto another yeare I confesse that no man should dispaire of GODS mercie at any time but this is as true that no man should presume of it at any time One hath observed this well There was one theese at his lives end saved to take away desparation and but one so saved to take away presumption These from whom David heere prayeth to be delivered are called the wicked Such were the enemies that sought his life The doctrine Observe here that it is no new thing that GODS servants are troubled by the wicked This controversie began very earely For Cain the wicked killed the righteous Abel Gen. 4.8 He had no quarrell against him but because he was more sincere in Gods service then he A thief hateth the light as Ahab hated Micaiah 1 King 22 8 because by the torch of the word he shined upon his workes of darknesse The use The use As long as wicked men are in the world let Gods children look for dangers to their souls There is nothing that will content wicked men but the souls or lives of Gods servants King Ahab was sick ay untill Naboth was dead but as soone as the poor man was dead the wicked King arose up in health 1 King 21 16 and went down to the poor mans vineyard to take possession of it it is health for the wicked to destroy the children of God They are like the Divel it is their meat and their drink to do evill Let this teach us to pray continually that God would deliver our soule from the vvicked Againe whereas the wicked heere according to some interpretation is called Gods Sword Let us learne here when the wicked persecute us not to look so much to them who are the rod Sword or stafe as unto the hand of God in which the rod sword or staffe are it is but for beasts as dogges to bite the staffe when they are stricken but Gods children must fixe their eye upon the hand When wicked Shimei railed upon David and cast stones at him calling him a bloody murderer David would not suffer Abishai to touch him for hee had his eye upon GOD. The LORD 2 Sam. 16 10 said hee hath said unto him curse David who then shall say wherefore hast thou done so This is a great argument of patience for Gods children when they are afflicted or persecuted by the wicked for all the wicked while thâ—y afflict us are but a rod or staffe in the hand of GOD Isa 10.15 If we can get Gods favour we need no more be afraid for the wicked then for a Staffe or Svvord lying upon the ground they should once see this our Captaine with his Sword in his hand they should all fall down as dead-men at his feet when Captaine Gideon went out against the Midianites hee cryed Judg. 7.20 THE SWORD OF THE LORD AND OF GIDEON After that not a man had either heart or hand to fight against Gods people The use The use Let us by all meanes endeavoure by a good life to please GOD that this great Captaine with his sword may be on our side in these dayes of warre the Papists idoll is nothing Hos 8.5 thy Calf O Samaria hath cast thee off But O the LORD will never cast us off If he bee with us wee need not fear who be against us Lappers of water Judg. 7.5 any bodie though both few and weak will prevail easily Luk. 12.32 if GODS Sword be in the Battell Feare not little flock said Christ stand still said Moses to his six hundreth thousand fighting men ye need not draw a Sword the Lord shall fight for you Exod. 14.13 Onely stand still and yee shall see what GOD can doe Yee shall see the Salvation of the LORD Psal 68.21 Who shall wound the head and breake the hairie scalp of all these that in their pride shall rise up against us We shall bee able to stand against all weathers and stormes whatsoever What ever our dangers be the LORD shall give us a riddance We shall be in Covenant with the Stones of the Earth and the Starres of Heaven who as in the day of Sisera shall fight in their courses against all our enemies Judg. 5.20 In the day of Battell the Lord shall breake the Horse hooves of our enemies Judg. 5.22 by the meanes of the pransings the pransings that is tramplings or plungings of
this For after that he had spoken of the great povver of God in breaking his most mighty enemies vvith a barre of yron as though they vvere the vessels of a potter he cryed out this notable vvatch-vvord Psal 2.10 Bee wise therefore O yee Kings c. Serve the LORD with feare Kisse the Son lest hee bee angry If ye doe it not yee shall all perish from the way by the sharpened keene edge of his justice when his wrath is kindled but a little All things would he say shall then turne enemies to you All the creatures both Angels and Men shall hate you the Divels shall accuse you and Christ shall judge you O then may be said Anselm Heu miser sic deprehensus quo fugias latere erit impossibile apparere in tolerabile O wretch whither wilt thou flee while thou art thus surprised for neither may thou lurke neither darre thou appeare This is said to thee who in great pompe marchest with thy traine a proude enemie of God and his Gospel For a time the LORD may suffer thee in thy caroch to be gloriously whirled through the streets but tarry a little and God at last shall make of thee a foot-boy to run before a promoted Mordâ—cai The 2 use The second use Let this serve for comfort to Gods children when they are threatned with death by mighty Monarches because like Shadrach and his fellowes they will not worship an idoll like that which was by King Nebuchadnezzar Dan. 3.1 set up in the field of Durah Let us remember well what these children Dan. 3.28 who changed the Kings word and yeelded their bodies said to that King threatning them with death if they would not worship his idoll Our God whom wee serve Dan. 3.17 said they is able to deliver us without his permission all the potentates of the earth can not make a haire to fall from our head though for a time they trouble us at last the Lord shall come and cast them downe Yea and drowne them in a whirle-poole of his wrath where no corke shall bee able to beare them aloft were they Kings if they persecute Gods Saints at last the Lord shall cast them downe So at last 1 Sam. 31 4. 1 King 22 35. Dan. 5.6 he cast downe King Saul upon Gilboah and he cast downe King Ahab in his bloody charet and he cast downe King Bellhazzar fitting among his whoores hee cast downe that great Alexander that vaine man Dan. 12.13 that could not with Daniel rest and stand in the lot content with his station but whined for lack of elbow roome because there was not another world The LORD made a short coffin to containe him whom a whole world could not content Behold all the Emperours in Nebuchadnezzars image which hee saw in his sleep Behold there the golden head of the Caldeans the silver breast of the Persians the brasen belly of the Grecians and the yron legs of the Romanes But O again behold a little stone cut out of the quarrey of heaven without hand even Christ Iesus the great Captaine of Salvation Heb. 2.10 who smote that image on the feet so that all these Emperoures with their Crownes and Scepters Dan. 1.22 became like the chaffe of the Summer threshing floores Neither their Scepters nor their Crownes nor their Guards nor their Armies can uphold them when the LORD commeth to cast them downe All their armies become like these keepers about Christs grave who for fear at his resurrection Mat. 28.4 became as dead men The Lord God is against them to justle with them in his wrath and therefore they cary hel even a trembling heart in their bosome and the brand of vengeance in their foreheads the shrewde wages of their wickednesse Let these observations stand for our comfort The third use The 3 use Seeing the Lord is so powerfull to cast downe Princes and Potentates let this serve for reproofe to these who can not trust in God but tremble like aspen leaves when they see the great forces of men or heare of them Such are not fit for Christs wars they gladly would dwell on Tabor with him sitting betweene Moses and Elias but forsake him at Calvarie hanging between two Thieves they like well his robbes of glory but abhorre his ragges of povertie Hosanna hath a sweet sound in their eares but anone they shrink back at these bitter bloody cryes of Crucifie Crucifie Israel had never conquered Canaan if they had been fearfully affraid of the sons of Anak Away with men that will not believe except they touch and see Such mens understandings are led by their senses they give more trust to their eyes Plus oculo quam oraculo then to the word of promise if we could rightly fear God if we had but the least graine of faith we would never fear things that have their breath in their nostrils Isa 2.22 What is man that he should be feared what can he do though he had permission to do all that is in his power he can but kill the body and so send us home to our Lord If men kill us not a fever or a fluxe or a Cancer as well as a Canon or one of a thousand diseases will come and take away our life If we did truely fear God the terrours of men would not trouble us much But because we are negligent in prayer and in prying into the heavens for to know what store of joy and contentments are there therefore when a word of death or danger is heard we are like that Pashur whom Jeremie called Magor-Missabib that is fear round about Jer. 20.3 ly upon us that any thing should be able to affright us unto whom the Lord hath made so fair promises that he will be unto us a shield and a shadow a Sconce a strong tower and a fortresse a hedge a wall of fire and of brasse Is any man stronger then God If any Prince can be found that can cast downe God let us tremble and shake If any other God can be found to whom a man may say in the words of may text Arise O LORD disappoint him cast him down then let us tremble and goe with Zedekiah from chamber to chamber for to hide our selves But this God of my text is the onely true GOD He is the God of gods when he is angry he casteth down the gods as he threw downe the Philistines Dagon 1 Sam. 5.13 and did execute judgement against all the gods of Egypt Exo. 12.12 this our Lord at last shall bring a black day upon all the wicked the enemies of his Church their groanes in hell shall honour his justice so well as the songs in Heaven shall glorifie his mercy Now their conscience is like a clocke when the poise is downe the wheeles are without motion all is quyet there is no noise in the heart but O as soone as the LORD