ears to receive the word and then sealeth instruction upon them The Apostle speaking of some persons converted who were the fruit of his ministry saith Ye are the seale of mine Apostleship 1 Cor 9.2 3. that is ye confirme and ratifie my ministry that it is of God and that God is in it Now as the conversion of sinners and the building up of Saints is the seale of our ministry so the sealing of instruction upon the soule is the conversion of sinners and the edification of Saints When a sinner is converted his instruction is sealed upon him and when a Saint is built up and edified and increaseth in the things of God then instruction is sealed upon him also And untill we thus profit by the word we have the word as I may say without a seale nothing fastens upon us Thus much of the first designe of God in sending dreams and visions in those times it was to open the ears of men and to seale their Instruction This being only a generall benefit aymed at by those meanes we have those which are more speciall set downe in the words which follow Vers 17. That he may withdraw man from his purpose and hide pride from man This 17th verse containes two of those blessed ends or designes of God in revealing himselfe to man by dreams and visions or by visions in a dream of which Elihu spake in the two former verses as then he takes an opportunity to open the ears of men and seale their Instruction to fasten and fix his word upon them to make it stick and stay by them so in all this his purpose is That he may withdraw man from his purpose 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 auferre erit vel mutare in melius The word rendred to withdraw signifies to take off or put away to remove or change for the better Isa 1.16 Put away the evill of your doings that is doe no more evill or as the Lord speakes by another Prophet Jer 44.4 O doe not this abominable thing that I hate we render the word in the other sense Job 27.2 He hath removed my Judgement farre from me There is in man a kind of settledness and resolvedness upon his purpose he will on but saith Elihu the Lord withdrawes him he stretcheth forth his hand and pull's him back He withdraweth Man Adam the earthly man The proper name of the first man is the common name of all men Man is earthly by nature and so are all his naturall purposes To draw an earthly man from that which is earthly is no easie matter only the power of God can doe it He withdraweth man From his purpose The word which we render purpose properly signifies a worke 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 fecit and so it is translated not only elsewhere but here by severall Interpreters Mr. Broughton is expresse That the earthly man leave off to work and then by work he means an evill work as by purpose an evill purpose The word work set alone usually signifies an evill work as the word wife put alone is taken for a good wife Prov. 8.22 He that findeth a wife findeth good every one that findeth a wife doth not find good there are many bad wives only he that findeth a good wife findeth good Vt a mâ—vâ—aâ— homo opus scâ— suum et animuâ— malum Iun So on the contrary the word worke standing here alone implyeth a bad work And to withdraw man from his work or from his purpose is to withdraw him from his evill work or purpose The Septuagint gives it clearly so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Sept that he may withdraw man from unrighteousnesse And Mr. Broughton glossing his own translation saith that he leave off mans work and do the work of God Againe This terme work seemes opposed to the thought or concupiscence of the inner man he withdraweth man from his work that his hand may not effect what his heart hath contrived that the bitter root may not bring forth evill and bitter fruit Or if we follow our translation the sence will be the same He withdraweth man from his purpose that is he checks and stops the inward motions and workings of mans heart and so keeps him from bringing it to perfection by an outward evill work Jam. 1.15 Then when lust hath conceived it bringeth forth sin and sin when it is finished brings forth death God in great mercy takes man off from his purpose when he finds him upon an evill device or purpose he crusheth the Cockatrice's egge that it may not be hatched and destroyeth the conception of those Babylonish brats that they may never come to the birth Mic. 2.1 Woe to them that devise mischief on their beds when the morning is light they practice it because it is in the power of their hand The work begins at the heart there 't is plotted and contrived the heart is the work house of sin now the Lord withdraws man from his purpose and will not suffer the inward work to be accomplished by the outward work Further we may refer these words either to what is past or to what is to come some translate referring it to what is past that he may turn Vt avertat hominem ab iis quâ— fecit Vulg. or withdraw man from those things which he hath done that is from those evills to which he hath already set his hand this is done by giving man repentance which is our being humbled for and turning away from any evill already committed Our translation refers it to what is intended to be done for that 's a purpose So the meaning is God doth these things that he may keep man from doing that evill or mischief which he hath resolved upon or at least is forming and hammering in his thoughts Abimelech had an evill purpose for the matter though possibly the purpose of his heart was not evill for he said to God and God said he spake true in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this Gen. 20.5 6. he was I say about an evill purpose for the matter when he thought to take Abrams wife from him but the Lord came to him in a dream and withdrew him from the evill of his purpose Laban intended evill or hard dealing to Jacob but the Lord met him also in a dreame and withdrew him from his purpose saying Gen. 31.24 Take heed thou speak not to Jacob neither good nor bad that is hinder him not in his journey either by threathings or by promises Thus man is taken off or withdrawn from evill purposes by preventing grace and from evill workes by repenting grace I shall prosecute the words according to our reading only which imports that when man hath some evill purpose upon his heart the Lord visits him in dreames and visions of the night to withdraw him from that purpose Hence observe First Man is very forward and eager upon
price I have found a ransome I am well paid saith God for mans deliverance This ransome every poor soul may plead before the Lord for his deliverance both from sickness death and hell He that hath nothing to offer to the Lord as indeed the best have nothing of their own worth the offering and if they offer any thing of their own of how much worth soever it may seem to be it will not passe nor be accepted he I say that hath nothing of his own to offer yet may tell him he shall be well paid he may tell God he shall have more by saving him then by damning him If he damne him he shall have but his own blood the blood of a creature for satisfaction but if he save him he shall have the blood of his Son the blood of God as a ransome for his salvation Thirdly Observe Though the Gospel was not clearly and fully revealed in those elder times yet it was then savingly revealed How doth the grace of God shine forth in mans deliverance by a ransome in this Scripture Here is nothing said of deliverance from sickness by medicines but by a ransome and if they knew that deliverance from a disease must come in by a ransome how much more that deliverance from damnation must come in that way The old Patriarkes had the knowledge of Christ to come and not only was there a knowledge of him to come in that nation and Church of the Jewes but the light scattered abroad the Land of Vz had it Job had it as hath appeared from severall passages of this Booke Elihu had it as appeareth by this Fourthly Observe Not only our eternall deliverances but even our temporall deliverances and mercies are purchased by the blood of Christ A beleever doth not eate a bit of bread but he hath it by vertue of the purchase of Christ Christ hath bought all good for us and Christ hath bought us out of all evill Christ hath not only purchast deliverance from hell and salvation in heaven for us but he hath purchast deliverance from a sick bed and freedome from bondage to men for us Zech. 9.11 As for thee also saith the Lord by the blood of thy Covenant that is the Covenant which I have made with thee I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein was no water that is from the Babylonish captivity The Jewes were delivered from corporall slavery as well as spirituall by the blood of Jesus Christ and so are the Covenant people of God to this day The blood of the Covenant serves to all purposes for the good things of this life as well as of that which is to come Nothing else can do us good to purpose or deliver us from evill but the blood of Christ Ps 49.7 8. They that trust in their wealth boast themselves in the multitude of their riches none of them can by any meanes redeeme his brother nor give to God a ransome for him In some cases as Solomon saith Prov. 13.8 The ransome of a mans life are his riches As a mans riches doe often endanger his life all the fault of some men for which they have suffered as deep as death hath been only this they were rich so a man by his riches may redeeme his forfeited or endangered life he may buy off the wrath of man and so ransome his life by his riches But all the riches in the world cannot buy his life out of the hand of sickness though a man would lay out all his substance and spend all that he hath upon Physitians as the poor woman in the Gospel did yet that could not doe it We need the blood of Jesus Christ to help us out of a sick bed and from temporall sufferings as well as from hell and everlasting sufferings And the more spirituall any are the more they have recourse to the blood of Christ for all they would have whether it be freedome from this or that evill or enjoyment of this or that good Therefore First When we hear of a ransome let us remember that we are all naturally captives Here is a ransome for our souls and a ransome for our bodies we are ransomed from hell and ransomed from death surely then we are through sin made captives to all these Secondly In that the ransome is exprest by a word that notes hiding or covering it should mind us that Jesus Christ by his blood which is our ransome hath covered all our bloody sins and surely the blood of our sins will appeare not only to our shame but to our confusion unlesse the blood of Christ cover them Thirdly We may hence infer The Lord shall be no looser by saving the worst of sinners His Son hath taken care for that he hath undertaken to see his Honour saved and his Justice satisfied Fourthly In all your outward afflictions and sicknesses apply to the blood of Christ for healing for helpe and deliverance Fifthly Being delivered from going down to the pit from death by sickness blesse Christ for his blood We are rescued from the arrest of death from Deaths Sergeant sicknesse by the blood of Christ And remember that as Christ ransomes us from going downe to the grave when we are sick so Christ will ransome us from the power of the grave when we are dead Hosea 13.14 I will ransome them from the power of the grave Which though it were primarily meant of the deliverance of the Jewes out of Babylon where they seemed to be not only dead but buryed yet the Apostle applyeth it clearly to the ransoming of the body dead indeed and laid in the grave by the power of Christ at the generall resurrection 1 Cor. 15.54 For then shall be brought to passe that saying that is written Death is swallowed up of victory O death where is thy sting O grave where is thy Victory Yea Christ hath ransomed all those from going down to the pit of hell who take hold of his ransome by believing See that you have an interest in this ransome else you will never have deliverance from going downe to that pit We read not all the Scripture over of any ransome to deliver those who are once gone downe to that bottomlesse pit They that are in the grave shall be ransomed and recovered by the power of Christ but they that goe into hell shall never be ransomed from thence Take hold of this ransome that ye may have full deliverance both from sickness leading to death here and from hell which is the second death hereafter JOB Chap. 33. Vers 25 26. His flesh shall be fresher then a childes he shall returne to the dayes of his youth He shall pray unto God and be will be favourable unto him and he shall see his face with joy for he will render unto man his righteousness IN these two verses Elihu proceeds to shew the perfecting of the sick mans recovery the foundation of which was layd in the Lords graciousness
soule or body he gives him a new life he brings him in one respect back from the grave and in another from hell As a sick man he is brought from the grave and as a sinner he is brought from hell Great deliverances are a kind of new creation And fresh blessings are to us as fresh beings Take these two inferences from it First How should they who have been under great outward afflictions praise the Lord when they are delivered They who having had the sentence of death in themselves should look upon themselves when restored as men raised from the dead And how should sinners praise the Lord when he hath reconciled them to himselfe and pardoned their sins In doing this for them he delivereth them from wrath from hell and from eternall death Let such praise the name of the Lord and say as in the text He hath delivered our soules from the pit Secondly Let such live unto God having received a new life from God They that have received a new temporall life from God ought to dedicate it unto God how much more they that have received new spirituall life They that have received it indeed cannot but dedicate it unto God This negative mercy calls aloud for all that we are or have to be given up to God but that positive mercy which followeth calleth yet lowder for it And to be enlightned with the light of the living Nomen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 non sumitur pro quibuslibet hominibus hac vita fruentibus sed pro diviâ—ibus potentibuâ— vivere est vigere valere Sunt qui ad futuram vitaÌ„ referunt sed id sâ—nam quidem Allegoricè intelligi postquam ad literam de hac vita intellecteru Merc Take it for temporall spirituall or eternall life all these ends are accomplished in those mercifull workes of God to poore sinners some restraine the text to the light of this temporall life others enlarge it to the light of spirituall and eternall life We are enlightned with the light of the living When the comforts of this life are restored much more are they who are restored to the comforts of their spirituall life and so to the hope of eternall life By the living we are not to understand those who are barely on this side the grave and yet breath in the ayre or who have only a weake shadowed spirituall life which they scarce know of or perceive The living here are they that live comfortably and prosperously both as to soule and body Thus 't is sayd in that Prophecy of Christ Psal 72.13 He shall live and to him shall be given of the gold of Sheba prayer also shall be made for him continually and dayly shall he be praised Christ lives to purpose he lives as a Prince in power and dignity yea he is the Prince of life It was more then a sensitive or rationall life which Davids faith was assured of when he sayd Psal 118.17 I shall not dye but live his meaning was I shall live honourably and triumphantly declaring with joy the workes of the Lord. Thus here To be enlightned with the light of the living is to enjoy a comfortable life or to live happily Hence note A troubled state is a dark state sickness and sorrow whether inward or outward are darkness They are darkned with the darkness of the dead whose life is wrapped up in anguish and sorrow Secondly Note The designe and purpose of God in all his ordinances and providences towards his people is for their good All that hath been sayd before emptieth it selfe into these sayings To keep back his soule from the pit and to be enlightned with the light of the living The Lord hath no eye in these workes to his owne gaine but mans good The Lord doth not willingly grieve nor afflict the children of men Lam 3.35 He taketh no pleasure in it abstractly considered nor doth he look for any profit by it Much lesse doth he it as it follows v. 36. meerely to crush under his feete all the prisoners of the earth All that he expects by it as to himselfe is to be glorified by all for himselfe is above all and therefore designeth himselfe in all yet the glory which God hath by man is only the manifestation of his glory not any addition to it The benefit which God aymes at in afflicting man returnes to man He would have man bettered by affliction and as soone as man is bettered by affliction every thing shall goe better with him and he shall be delivered from affliction Rom 8.28 All things worke together for the good of them that love God to them who are the called according to his purpose And as all things worke together for the good of them who are the called according to his purpose so it is the purpose of God that all things should worke together for their good and that is not a successless purpose Indeed every rod upon the backs of the wicked hath a voyce in it to call them from the pit of death and destruction and to be enlightned with the light of the living but God makes this call effectuall to all his elect none of whom shall perish with the world So that a godly man should be so farre from judging himselfe dealt with as an enemy as Job in his extremity did when he is most sorely afflicted that indeed he may see the love and fatherly care of God in it All the providentiall dispensations of God worke to glorious ends Sometimes for the outward good of his people in this life alwayes for good as to their spirituall and eternall life Therefore lay aside hard thoughts of God whatsoever hard things he is a doing or you are suffering The wayes in which God leads us may possibly be very darke yet they run to this poynt to keep us from the pit of darkness and that we may be enlightned with the light of the living Thirdly Note Man would undoe himselfe both for here and for ever if God did not worke wonderfully for him and powerfully keep him from destruction All these things God worketh twice and thrice to keep our soules from the pit man left to himselfe would run head-long upon mischiefe in this world upon eternall misery in the world to come Nothing but the hand of God can hold man from ruining himselfe The heart of man is so set upon sin that he will rather loose his soule then leave his lust and will rather dye then that shall 'T is as easie to stay the motion of the Sun or to turne back the course of nature as to stay or turne back the naturall motion or course of the heart in sinning An almighty power must doe the latter as well as the former So that if the Lord did not put forth more then mercy even mercy clothed with power no man could be saved should God wish us never so well and tell us what good he hath layd up for us if we
upon as evill doers when we have done nothing for the matter but our duty and that in the manner according to rule Thus when Paul had justified himselfe by denying the evill which Tertullus accused him of Acts 24.12 13. he presently justified himselfe also in what he had done well though his enemies judged it evill ver 14. But this I confesse that after the way which they call heresie so worship I the God of my fathers beleeving all things which are written in the Law and the Prophets This selfe-justification is often very needfull For as there are some who call evill good so there are others who call good evill and make that a mans fault which is his commendation It was accounted a crime by some of old to be lesse vitious then others and it is accounted a crime by some at this day to be more vertuous then others to be more holy more exact more wisely precise and circumspect in our wayes then others many interpret folly and stamp with madnesse 2 Corinth 5.13 Paul was thought beside himselfe a meere Fanatick in his high actings for Jesus Christ when our actions are thus mis-represented and put under such disguises every good man is obliged to doe himselfe right For as we may honestly accuse others and declare the evill that we know they have done when called to it so we may speak out and declare the good we have done maintaine that to be good if it be good which we have done though many call it evill when called to it Thus a man may stand upon his termes with all men and yet be humble and deeply sensible of his owne sinfullnesse and vilenesse before God Paul saw nothing upon the matter but sin in himselfe Rom. 7.14 24. When I would doe good evill is present with me O wretched man that I am who shall deliver me from the body of this death That is of sin as 't is called Rom. 6.6 Thus he spake when he had to doe with God But when he had to doe with men when he saw himselfe called to answer the accusations and wipe off the aspersions which the enemies of the Gospel cast upon him 1 Corinth 4.4 then he saith I know nothing that is no evill by my selfe Paul was very conscious of his naturall infirmity yet very confident of his spirituall integrity And therefore when he saw the Glory of God was like to be obscured through his abasement and to be ecclipsed by the shadowes and darknesse which men cast upon his Ministery then he tooke due honour to himselfe and made the most of himselfe according to truth in the eyes of all the world Thus I have shewed what justifying of our selves is lawfull and I have done it that we may more clearely discerne what I am to shew next or Secondly Namely what that justifying of our selves is which indeed is unlawfull reprovable and blame-worthy I shall instance it in a few particulars First They justifie themselves sinfully who doe good with a desire to be seene and applauded of men for it thus Christ charged the Pharisees Math 6.5 They pray standing in the Synagogues and in the corners of the streets that they may be seene of men and ver 16. They disfigure their faces that they may appeare unto men to fast It is not a sin to be seene of men in doing good but to doe good to be seene of men is sinfull and the patching up of a selfe-justification Secondly They justifie themselves sinfully who would pretend or seeme to have done that good which indeed they have not There is as much of this hypocrisie lodging and working now in the hearts of the children of men as was of old in the heart of Saul 1 Sam 15.13 14. to the 22d verse who professed highly to have fulfilled the will of God to a haires breadth Blessed be thou of the Lord said he to Samuel I have performed the commandment of the Lord Thus he insisted upon his integrity and justified himselfe to the face of Samuel who quickly convinced him that he had done the Lords worke to halves Thirdly They justifie themselves sinfully who either totally deny or extenuate and lessen the evill that they have done this kinde of sinfull selfe-justification was opened largely at the 33d verse of the former Chapter upon that imprecation made by Job If I covered my transgression as Adam by hiding mine iniquity in my bosome I referre the Reader thither for a fuller discovery of it Fourthly They justifie themselves sinfully who mingle their owne workes with the workes or righteousnesse of Jesus Christ for justification for though such pretend to Christ and say they take up Christ and his righteousnesse for justification yet it will be found a selfe-justification only seeing unlesse Christ justifie us wholly he justifieth us not at all As the Apostle concludes Galat 5.4 Christ is become of no effect unto you whosoever of you are justified by the Law ye are fallen from grace That is yee who mingle your workes with Grace are not justified by Grace but which will be unlesse repented of your condemnation by your workes Lastly They justifie themselves sinfully who say they are justified by Christ from their sins while they continue in their sins and hold fast their iniquities For as they that mingle their owne good workes with the righteousnesse of Christ are selfe-justifiers so also are they that take hold of the righteousnesse of Christ while they will not let goe nor part with their evill workes To looke for justification while we continue in the love and practise of any knowne sin and unrighteousnesse is as sinfull as to expect justification by our owne righteousnesse Object But doth not the Scripture say that God justifieth the ungodly Rom. 4.5 I answer Though God justifieth the ungodly yet the justified are not ungodly God justifieth the ungodly and makes them holy by the grace of sanctification as well as righteous by the grace of justification righteousnesse of life is alwayes the fruit of righteousnesse by faith Therefore if any man continuing in any knowne sin saith he is justified he hath justified himselfe for none doe so who are justified of God O how deeply are they condemned by God who thus justifie themselves Nothing is more desirable then to be justified by God and nothing is more dangerous then to justifie our selves either by our owne righteousnesse or in our unrighteousnesse Now as to justifie our selves any of these wayes is exceeding sinfull before God so to justifie our selves any way layeth us open or obnoxious to the censures of men And that 's the reason why this holy man Job was so deeply censured For though he justified not himselfe in any of those sences which are are sinfull yet he did some way justifie himselfe and while he justified himselfe only as he might he was condemned as having justified himselfe in a way which he might not We had need be very cautious how we any way or
word is found in me So here He giveth not account of any of his words or matters Againe The originall saith He giveth not account of all his matters We translate full and right to the sence when we say He giveth not account of any of his matters For the meaning of Elihu is not that God giveth an account of some though that be a truth but not indeed of all his matters he hath some reserved cases and counsels but his meaning is that he is not oblidg'd to give any man an account of so much as of any of his matters And then that universall is to be taken distributively Aâ—l for any So we render it Psal 147.20 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 where the Psalmist shewing the speciall priviledges of Gods people saith He hath not dealt so with all nations We translate more emphatically He hath not dealt so with any nation God was so far from giving the same priviledge to all nations which he gave to his Israel that he gave not the same to any nation As if he had sayd God hath honoured his peculiar people with peculiar favours goe enquire and search all the nations of the world and ye shall not picke out a people upon whom God hath bestowed such rich and precious mercies as he hath upon his Israel And to this day the Israel of God in every nation enjoy such spirituall priviledges and mercies as the Nations with whom they are civilly mingled know not of But to the poynt Thus here He giveth not account of all that is not of any of his matters Most of the Greeke translaters render according to the strictnesse of the letter not matters but words Quid igitur ipsum vocas in judicium omnes enim sermones ejus sunt ejusmodi quibus contradici non possit Theod Graeci in prima persona 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 verbis meis non in tertia ut nos legimus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 verbis suis quasi Elihu mimicâ—s verba Jobi referat cur cum eo ausus es contendere dicens quia omnibus verbis meis non respondet c. Bold Why dost thou strive with him for his words are such as to whâ—ch none can answer As if the meaning of Elihu were when God speakes no man is able to reply upon him or contradict him His sayings are indeed irrefragable Thus they glosse their translation Why dost thou call him into Judgement or strive with him for all his speeches are such as cannot be contradicted If God oppose who can answer and if God answer who can oppose him That 's a good sence though not a good translation Some others interpret the latter part of the verse as containing Job's answer to the question put by Elihu in the first part of it Why dost thou strive with God saith Elihu To which Job is supposed replying Because he gives me not an account of my matters God doth not answer to my words and therefore pardon me if I complaine or strive with him I hope while I am thus unanswered you will hold me excused if I move againe and againe yea even strive for an answer But the Grammar of the text is against this reading the words being plainly in the third person his matters not in the first my matters and 't is too great a boldnesse with the text to make such a change in the translation Besides 't is more agreeable to the scope of the place to take the latter part of the verse as a reason given by Elihu why Job should not strive with God then to take it as a reason given by Job why he did I find a learned translater among the Modernes who taking the latter part of the verse as a reason given by Job of his striving with God spoken of in the first Quare adversus eum litigas quod de omnibus rebus suis non respondeat Jun yet keepes to the third person Why dost thou strive with him Because he will not give an answer or an account of all his matters As if Elihu had sayd I plainly perceive the cause why thou O Job art so unquiet and still persistest striving with God 'T is even because he doth not answer thy so often repeated desire to summon thy appearance before him and then to give thee an account of his proceedings with thee But consider man art thou well in thy wits knowest thou what thou dost or sayest wilt thou a poore narrow-hearted creature take it ill at the hands of the great God and as it were strive with him btcause he doth not render a reason of all his matters and expound all his doings unto thee The argument may be formed thus He is not just or right who striveth with God because God doth not give him a reason of all his actions and administrations But thou seemest to strive with God because he hath not given thee an account or reason of his administrations towards thee therefore thou art not just This is a faire and proper sence yet I shall keepe to our reading and make this latter part of the verse as a ground or reason given by Elihu why Job ought not to strive with God as those two other readings make it a reason why he did As if Elihu had sayd Why dost thou strive against him Consider as God is greater then man so he is absolute in his greatnesse or his is a soveraigne Greatnesse For he giveth not account of any of his matters This I conceive the best and clearest rendring of these words which thus understood yeilds us severall usefull observations First upon the whole matter thus Gracious men doe not alwayes hold out the same gracious frame of spirit There was a time when Job was far from striving with God far from doing or speaking any thing which had the least shadow or savour of it Time was when Job was altogether for and in submitting to God Let God doe what he will with him he had not a word to say against him After all the sad reports and messages which were brought to him of the devastation of his whole estate in the field yea of the disasterous death of all his children in one day and at once did Job strive with God did he utter one word of complaint or so much as of any dissatisfaction No not one but gave Glory by this confession The Lord hath given and the Lord hath taken blessed be the name of the Lord. Was not here a cleare yeilding of himselfe up to God to doe what he would with him Did he not freely lay himselfe low when God had layed him at the lowest who ever heard or read of a more perfect worke of patience in a meere mortall man Yet in the process of the business Job did not only speak such words as carried a shadow of striving with God but were reall strivings and uncomely pleadings with him His heart did not retaine that first sweet submissive frame throughout the
arcanum Further the Hebrew is as we put in the Margin He revealeth or uncovereth the eares of men This revealing or uncovering of the eare say some noteth only private speaking and is a similitude taken from a common custome among men who when they would convey their mind secretly to a friend that stands by put their head near to his eare and take up the brim of his hat or put by his haire if long that they may whisper in his eare Thus in a dreame God whispers and speaks silently unto men This seems to have a sutablenesse with that Chap. 4.12 13. where Eliphaz spake of a thing brought secretly to him or that was whispered or stoln into him But I conceive there is more in this place then the intendment of a secret and private conveyance of the mind of God unto man in a vision or dreame And therefore this opening of the eare imports the removing or taking away of that whatsoever it is which hinders the effectuall hearing or obeying of those messages which God sends to men When God spake in a dream he did more then speak aliquid in illorum aures in susussirare vellet deducebat defluentes copillos et in apertes aures tacito â—â—â—mure aliquid instillabat Sanct Cinthius aurem vellit et admonuit c. Horat. Loquitur et audire facit Aurem revelare vel aperire est insinuare aliquid auribus animisque quod intimis sensibus reponendum sit Clariorem et penetrantiorem insinuationem voluntatis divinae denotat Coc he open'd the ear yea he gave an eare to hear This powerfull work of God upon the heart is elegantly expressed by opening the eare because when the ears are stopt we cannot hear till that which stops them is pluckt out or taken away so that here we have speaking with effect or the cleare and penetrating power of the Spirit of God sweetly and prevailingly insinuating his mind to man God speaks so as he will be heard Hence Observe First The eare of man is naturally stopt against the teachings of God There are many things which stop the eares of man or man hath many eare stoppers I will name seven all which God removes and takes away when he effectually reveals his mind to man First the eare of man is stopt with ignorance that 's a thick vaile or covering upon the eare and keeps out the mind of God till it be removed And Secondly Unbelief is another ear-stopper till the Lord removeth that we cannot hear Thirdly Impenitency or hardnesse of heart stops the eare there are a number of Scriptures I might give for each of these Fourthly the love of any particular sin is an eare-shutter or an eare-stopper and the Lord removes that when he opens the eare Fifthly Prejudices stop the eare prejudices somtimes against the person speaking somtime against the word spoken That man will never hear a word to purpose who hath a prejudice against the person or a prejudice against the word either a prejudice against the man or against the matter Sixthly Pride stops the eare too the proud man will not hearken therefore God humhles and brings down the spirit that the word may be heard Seventhly and lastly the World is a great ear-stopper that locks up the eare against the word the world in the profits of it and the world in the pleasures of it and the world in the cares of it and the world in the fears of it the world by or in every one of these stops the eare and by these the ears of all men naturally are stopped so that they are as it is said Psal 58.4 like the deafe adder that stops her eare and will not hear the voyce of the charmer charme he never so wisely Till all these stoppers are removed and the eare opened there is no receiving of the word Secondly Observe God is able to open and unlock the eare of man Though it hath never so many stopples in it he can pull them out never so many locks upon it though all the seven spoken of and seven more obstruct the ear yet he can open them all and make a free and uncontroulable passage for his word into the remotest and closest chambers of the soul God can speak loud enough not only to make the deafe but the dead hear his voyce Verily verily I say unto you saith Christ Joh. 5.25 the hour is coming and now is when the dead shall hear the voyce of the Son of God and they that hear shall live By the dead he means not those who are corporally but spiritually dead that is dead in sins and trespasses and in danger of eternall death for their sins and trespasses even these heard the voyce of the Son of God then speaking personally and heard it afterwards ministerially in the dispensation of the Gospell and that voyce revived them not only by giving them the comfort of that naturall life which they had before but by bringing in a new spirituall life which before they had not Then the internall eare is opened to purpose when those internall or mystically darke graves of sin are opened and the soul comes forth into the light of life Yet more distinctly God may be said to uncover or open the eares of men when he doth these four things First When he makes us not only to heare but to attend not only to heare but to hearken or not only to heare but to give eare Many give the word of God the hearing but they doe not give eare to the word of God Secondly God opens the ear when he makes us not only attend but understand or when he takes the vaile off from our minds The Apostle saith of the Jewes 2 Cor 3.14 The vaile remaineth upon them untaken away to this day in the reading of the old Testament and it doth so still so that as they could not so yet they cannot Looke to the end of that which is abolished that is to Christ who was the end or scope at which the whole Ceremoniall Law now abolished did then ayme When once the eâ—re is divinely opened then the vaile of ignorance and spirituall blindnesse is taken off from the mind both as to that greatest truth and all other necessary truths The opened eare is an understanding eare Thirdly God openeth the eare when he causeth us to believe what we perceive and understand As faith sets the whole soule aworke for God so faith is the great worke of God upon the soule When the eare is opened truth is not only knowne but savingly believed Fourthly This opening of the eare maketh the soule obedient Jesus Christ in that great prophecy of him Psal 40.6 to shew his ready obedience to his fathers command saith Mine eare hast thou opened or digged The eare of Christ was never shut in the least either through ignorance or unbeliefe but he is sayd to have his eare opened only to shew his constant preparedness and readiness for obedience
purpose Lastly consider God withdraweth man from his sinfull purpose all or any of these wayes by putting forth his mighty power with them For his word alone his works alone his patience alone the counsell of man alone would not doe it if God did not stretch forth his own arme in and with these meanes for the doing of it Nothing is any further efficacious then as God is with it Numb 22. Balaam was going on in his wicked purpose being sent for by Balak to curse the people of God And though the Lord sent his Angell to be an adversary to him in his way vers 22. so that his Asse turned out of the way into the field yet Balaam went on in his purpose yea though the Angell standing between two walls caused his Asse to turne so suddenly that she crusht Balaams foot against the wall vers 25. yet Balaam went on in his purpose Once more though the Angell went further and stood in a narrow way where there was no way to turne to the right hand nor to the left so that the poor Asse fell down under him v. 27. and speaking as the Apostle Peter expresseth it 2 Epist 2. with mans voyce rebuked the madnesse of the Prophet Yet so mad he was that all these checks and warnings could not withdraw him from his purpose And what the Lord did at that time to Balaam by an Angell that he doth by some other means and providences to stop many from their evill purposes who yet will not be stopt He speaks to them in the ministry of his word he speaks to them in his works he spreads their way with roses he hedgeth up their way with thorns he bestoweth sweet mercies upon them he sends sharp afflictions upon them to withdraw them from their evill projects and purposes yet on they goe like Balaam unlesse he send more then an Angell even his holy Spirit to withdraw them Lastly Elihu reports it as a speciall favour of God to withdraw man from his purpose Whence note It is a great mercy to be hinder'd in sinfull purposes and intendments Disappointments are acts of grace when we are acting against grace If God stop us from doing evill not onely by his word but by blowes or by a hedge of thorns yea if he stop us by a drawn sword it is a great mercy Though God throw us to the ground as he did Saul afterwards Paul when he went with a bloody purpose to vex and persecute the Saints Acts 9. let us count our selves exalted and rejoyce in it more then in any worldly exaltation 'T is a rich mercy to be kept from executing an evill purpose though by our owne poverty and outward misery The doing of that which is sinfull is worse then any thing that can be done to us or endured by us as a stop against sin Sin hath death in it sin hath wrath in it sin hath hell in it sin hath Devill and all in it therefore to be kept from sin let it be by what means it will if by paines and pining sicknesses if by reproaches and disgraces yea if by death we have cause to blesse God The greatest and sorest Judgement which God powres upon sinfull men is to let them alone in or not to withdraw them from their sins To be suffered to goe on and prosper in sin is the worst of sufferings the last of Judgements the next Judgement to hell it selfe and an infallible signe of an heire of hell Thus the wrath of God waxed hot against Israel when he gave them up to their owne hearts lusts and they walked in their owne Councel Psal 81.11 This was the highest revenge that God could take upon that sinfull people He sayd a little before Israel would none of me when God wooed them they were so coy they would have none of him and then said he goe on take your fill of sin I give you up to your owne hearts lusts The Lord did not say I gave them up to the sword to the famine or to the pestilence but to their owne hearts lusts and to walke on in their own way That person or people may be sure God hath purposed evill against them whom he will not withdraw from their evill purposes The severity of the wrath of God against the Gentiles is exprest and summ'd up in this Rom 1.26 28. He gave them up to vile affections he gave them up to a reprobate mind to doe things which were not convenient A naturall man left to himselfe will soone doe such things as nature it selfe abhorreth and blusheth at The same dreadfull doome is denounced Rev 22.11 He that is unjust let him be unjust still and he that is filthy let him be filthy still I will not withdraw him from his way let him goe on and perish let him goe on and sink downe to the pit of perdition for ever As St. John in the Revelation foretelling the Church given up or left to not in great sufferings of all sorts Here is the patience of the Saints So when we see the world given up and left in great sinnings of any sort especially if to sinnings of all sorts we may truely and sadly say Here is the wrath of God 'T is therefore a great mercy if God will any way withdraw man from his sinfull wayes and purposes especially when he taketh such gentle wayes as dreams and visions counsels and instructions to withdraw man from his purpose and as it followeth in this verse to hide pride from man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 texit operuit imponendo aliquid quo tegas The word which we render to hide is to hide by casting a covering a vayle a garment or any other thing over what we desire should be hid Prov 12.23 A prudent man concealeth knowledge it is this word he doth not pretend to know so much as he knoweth he puts a vayle upon his own abilities as Moses upon his face when there was such a shining beauty imprinted there rather then reveales them unnecessarily or uncalled 'T is the foolish man or he that hath but a shew of wisdome who loves and affects to be shewing it But to the text The word is used also to note that gracious act of God his pardoning the sin of man Psal 32.1 Blessed is the man whose transgression is forgiven and whose sin is covered God covers our sins in the riches of his grace by the perfect righteousnesse of Jesus Christ Now there are two wayes by which God hideth pride from man First by pardoning it Secondly preventing it Here to hide pride from man properly is not to pardon it when acted but to prevent or keep man from the acting of it God indeed hides the pride of man by pardoning it and that 's a high act of grace and he hideth pride from man by keeping man from doing proudly or from shewing his pride in his doings 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 superbia excellentia The word rendred pride
it is that God delivereth man while 't is said by Elihu he keepeth back His soul from the pit Some expound the word soul in this former part of the verse in opposition to life in the latter part of it and his life from perishing by the sword Soul and life are sometimes taken promiscuously or indifferently for the same thing yet there is a very great difference between soul and life the life is nothing else but the union between soul and body but the soul is a spirituall substance distinct from the body while remaining in it and subsisting it self alone when separate from it That bond or knot which ties soul and body together is properly that which Elihu speaks of in the next words And his life As God keeps back his soul from everlasting destruction so his life from temporall destruction Though the soul be most precioua yet life is very precious skin for skin yea all that a man hath will he give for his life Chap. 2.5 'T is therefore no small mercy for God to keep back a mans life From perishing by the sword The sword is put sometime for warre that being the principal instrument of warre some insist much on that sence here as if the words contained a promise of being kept from perishing by the sword of an open enemy But the sword is here rather put for any kind or for all kinds of hurtfull evills what ever doth afflict vex or destroy may be called the sword Nomen gladii hoc in loco generalitèr denotare puto quicquid pungit percutit torquet cruciat vel affilgit Bold The text strictly in the letter is thus rendred and his life from passing by or through the sword we say from perishing by the sword which passing by the sword is not to escape the sword but to fall by the sword Thus 't is said of that idolatrous King Ahaz 2 Kings 16.3 He caused his sons to passe through the fire the meaning is not that he delivered them out of the fire but consumed them in the fire for he made them passe through the fire to Molech which was a sacrificing of them to that abominable idoll It is also said 2 Sam. â—2 31 when David took Rabba and destroyed the Ammonites he made them passe through the brick-kilne not to save them but to consume them Some conceive that this brick-kilne through which David made those captive Ammonites to passe was the fire or furnace of Molech that infamous Idoll of the Ammonites with whose bloody and most cruell devotions the apostatizing Jewes or people of God were in after times ensnared And if so then they might see God turning their sin into their punishment and declaring his fiery wrath against them in that by which they had declared their foolish and abominable zeale But that which I quote their punishment for is only the forme of its expression He made them pass through the brick-kilne Transire in gladium est idem quod incidere in manus et tela hostium et cadere in bello Gladius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vocatur quasi missite telum Drus that is perish in it Thus here and his soul from passing by the sword is rightly translated from perishing by the sword The word rendred sword signifies also any missive weapon or weapon cast with the hand especially a dart so Mr. Broughton translates and his life from going on the dart The generall sence of this verse is plainly this The Lord withdraweth man from his purpose and hides pride from man that so he may in mercy preserve him from perishing both in body and soul or that he may keep him not only from the first but from the second death which is the separation of the whole man from the blessed presence of God for ever 'T is a great favour to be kept from the pit where the body corrupts or from the sword that wounds the flesh but to be kept from that everlasting woe which shall overwhelme the wicked in that bottomlesse pit or lake of fire and brimstone this is the highest favour of God to lost man This is the pit this the perishing from which saith Elihu the Lord keepeth back the soul and life of man First from the emphasis of the word he keepeth back importing that God as it were by strong hand or absolute authority and command keepeth the soul of man from the pit Note Man is very forward to run upon his own ruine even to run upon eternall ruine if the Lord did not hold stay and stop him Man would tumble into the pit at the very next step if God did not keep him The way of man naturally is downe to the pit and all that he doth of his own self is for his own undoing And as he is kept back from the pit so as the Apostle Peter hath it 1 Epist 1.5 he is kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation Secondly considering the season signified in the former verse that when man is going upon an evill work or walking in the pride of his heart God is keeping him from the pit Note While man hath sinfull purposes and pride in his heart all that while he is going on to destruction both temporall and eternall Every step in sin is a step to misery and the further any man proceedeth on in sin the further he wanders from God and the further he wanders from God the neerer he comes to misery As the further we goe from the Sun the neerer we are to the cold and the further we go from the fountaine the nearer we are to drought so they that hast to sin hast to sorrow yea to hell Solomon saith of such they love death There is no man loves death under the notion of death there is no beauty no amiableness in death but all they may be said to love death who love sin and live in it Every motion towards sin is a hasting into the armes and embraces of death sinners wooe and invite death and the grave yea hell and destruction Thirdly note The warnings and admonitions which God gives to sinfull man whether waking or sleeping are to keep him from perishing to keep him from temporall to keep him from eternall perishing This is the great end of preaching the Gospel the end also of pressing the terrors of the Law both have this aime to keep man from perishing When man is prest to holinesse and when he is represt from the wayes of sin 't is that he may not perish for ever God hath set up many ordinances he hath imployed many instruments to administer them many thousands goe up and downe preaching to the world and crying out to the sons of men repent and beleeve beleeve and repent and why all this cry but to keep souls from the pit and their life from perishing by the sword The Apostle Jude exhorts to save some with fear and of others to have compassion that is terrifie some that
or corruptions How often is the flesh in a morall sence that is the outward profession of a hypocrite consumed in sickness and no more seen will the hypocrite alwayes call upon God Job 27.10 He will not He that doth all to be seen that 's the character of a hypocrite Math. 6.5 will in a little time doe such a little or rather such a nothing in Religion that it cannot be seen at all His profession is sick when he is fick and then also that which was not seen sticks out the hypocrite covereth many of his corruptions his impatiency murmuring and unbelief in a day of prosperity with the skin at left or fair shew of faith but in a day of trouble those dead bones appear and stick out A day of sorrow sicknesse and trouble is a great discoverer it occasions the appearance and sticking out of many base lusts that were not seen before 'T is so also in the better way with godly men their corruptions that appeared upon them before are abated wasted and consumed by affliction and many of their graces which lay hid and unseen stick out and appear gloriously in a day of trouble or upon a sick bed Their patience submission of spirit under the hand of God their long-sufferance and sweet self-resignation to the will of God which lay hid shew themselves Sicknesse and affliction make wonderfull changes and discoveries both as to the outward and inward man 't is seldome seen or known either how good or how bad any man is till he is in paine or reduced to some extreamity till his very bones are vexed or till as Elihu further describes the sick man in the next verse Vers 22. His soul draweth nigh to the grave and his life to the destroyer When the disease is at the height as Physitians speak then the sick mans soul draweth nigh unto and is ready to goe downe into the grave But doth the soul goe to the grave I answer the soul here as frequently in Scripture is put for the person as if he had said the man draweth nigh to his grave The soul being the noblest and most princely part of man is honoured with the denomination of the whole man or because all the world is nothing to us as Christ told his Disciples Math. 16.26 if we lose our souls therefore man is spoken of as if he were nothing but a soul Gen. 14.21 The King of Sodom said unto Abram give me the souls and take the goods to thy self we translate give me the persons and put in the Margin give me the souls Thus 't is said Gen. 46.27 All the souls of the house of Jacob that came into Egypt were threescore and ten The Apostles rule of obedience to Magistrates runs in this straine Let every soul that is let every man be subject to the higher Powers Rom. 13. And I conceive the Apostle expresseth it so because there ought to be an inward subjection to that as to any other Ordinance of God the soul must be subject as well as the body to the powers of this world that is there must be though no subjection of conscience yet a conscientious subjection unto Magistrates Thus here his soul that is himself the man draweth neer Vnto the grave to corruption say some to the pit say others 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Corruptioni sepulchrum a graecis vocatur Sarcophagus Both are joyned or meete in the grave for that is the pit of corruption The Greeks call the grave Flesh-eater to draw nigh to the grave imports such a prevalency of diseases as bring a man to the graves mouth to the very poynt of death and then as we say he is drawing on Whither is a sick man drawing on surely to his grave David Psal 107.18 having described the condition of sick men adds they draw nigh unto the gates of death Here which is the same Elihu saith his soul draweth near to the grave Hence note Diseases and death are near one another A sick bed and a grave are not far distant David speaking of himself and others in extreame danger of death by the cruell plots and cunning snares of the enemy hath a like expression Psal 141.7 Our bones are scattered at the graves mouth as when one cutteth and cleaveth wood upon the earth as if he had said we are so near death that 't is a miracle if we escape it Though we are yet alive yet we have the sentence of death in our selves and are within sight of our graves What David spake there of himself in consort with others Heman spake personally of himself Psal 88.3 My life draweth nigh unto the grave We are alwayes in our health drawing towards the grave but in sickness we are drawing near unto it There is but a little distance between any man and the grave there is scarcely any distance at all between a man that is very sick and the grave Now if the sick man be drawing near unto the grave then First Let them that are sick remember the grave 't is our duty to be alwayes remembring and meditating upon the grave in our health much more should that be our remembrance meditation when we are sick most of all when we are sick unto death or ready to dye and drop into the grave Secondly If the sick are drawing neare unto the grave then let sick men draw near unto God if ever you will draw near unto God the living God be sure to doe it upon the borders of death 't is good yea best to draw nigh unto God when we are well and all is well with us even at best in the world Psal 73.25 But when we are in danger or drawing nigh unto death O how earnestly should we draw nigh unto God in the actings of faith and love To whom should we goe as Peter said to Christ Joh. 6.68 in the appearances and approaches of temporall death but unto him who hath the words of eternall life It is high time for us to draw nigh unto God when any of the comforts of this life are withdrawing from us is it not more then high time therefore to draw nigh to him when life it selfe is withdrawing from us and we drawing nigh to the grave How miserable is their condition who have death near them and God far from them Though we walke through the valley of the shadow of death yet as David professed he would not Psal 23.4 we need not feare any evill while God is with us but how will the very shadowes of death put us in feare if God be not with us and what confidence can we have of his being with us if we are not acquainted with him if we use not to draw neare to him Thirdly If they that are sick draw near unto the grave then it is good for such as come to visit their sick friends wisely to mind them of the grave when will a discourse with our friends of death and the grave
or the pains of his body he looked upon himself as one free among the dead that is as a dead man his life drew near to the destroyers And hence Fourthly Others read the words not in an active sence as we Destroyers but in a passive His life draweth nigh to those who are destroyed or dead Dying men are so neere to that they may be reckoned as dead men That word of encouragement in the Prophet Isa 41.14 Which we render Feare not thou worme Jacob and ye men or as we put in the Margin Few men of Israel is rendred by some others Feare not thou worme Jacob and ye that are dead of Israel that is who are in your owne fearefull apprehensions or in the opinion of your proud and prepotent enemies as dead men or nigh unto death or as we may expound it by that of Paul concerning himselfe and his Fellow-Apostles with respect to the continuall hazzard of their lives 1 Cor 4.9 men as it were appoynted unto death yea as the learned in the Hebrew language tell us 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 haec vox ex eo nata videter quod simus morti subjecti Ita et a Graecis 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 et à latinù mortalu usurpatus Martyn the word translated in the Prophet men with the change but of one poynt and that only in the position of it signifieth properly dead men We find the word applyed specially to wicked worldly men Psal 17.14 who are there called the hand of God to afflict or take away the lives of Godly men and are sayd to have their portion in this life the word I say is applyed to them as implying that how much soever they rejoyce either in the present enjoyments of this naturall life or in the hopes of a long naturall life in this world yet they alwayes are within one poynt or pricke with a pen which is the shortest imaginable space of death In which sense also St Paul speaking of the different state of the body now in this life and after the resurrection from the dead saith 1 Cor 15.54 When this mortall shall have put on immortality that is when we who now live in dying bodyes or in bodyes bearing the markes or tokens of death and looking like dead men shall have put on the beautifull and glorious robes of immortality Then shall be brought to passe the saying that is written Death shall be swallowed up in victory Whereas now death which is ready enough to get the victory over healthy and strong men is so ready to get the victory over weake and sicke men that their life may very well be sayd according to this fourth and last interpretation to draw nigh to the destroyed or those that are already dead Thus if in stead of Death-Bringers or destroyers we read Destroyed or those that have been brought to death the meaning of Elihu in this passage is plaine and easie importing the sicke man so sicke that there is scarce a step or but a poynt between him and those who are actually dead But whether we take the word in this passive sence and translate The Destroyed or in the active as we and translate destroyers thereby understanding either Angels in speciall or diseases in Generall sent by God to destroy or take away the life of the sicke man which way soever of these I say we expound the word it yeilds a cleare sence as to the scope of the text and as to the truth of it upon the matter the very same His life draweth nigh to the destroyers Hence note First Diseases are destroyers Either they themselves destroy when they come or the destroyer comes with them Psal 90.3 Thou turnest man to destruction and sayest returne ye children of men 'T is a Psalme penned by Moses lamenting the frailety of mankinde He lived to see all Israel whom under his hand and conduct God brought out of Egypt dye â—â—cept that renowned two Caleb and Joshua And therefore he having seene the great destruction of that people for their murmurings and unbeliefe for their ten-fold provocations in the wilderness might say from his owne experience more then most men to that poynt of mans mortality And as God turned that people to destruction and sayd according to that irrevocable sentence Gen 3.19 Returne ye children of men to your originall and first materiall dust so he saith the same to men every day who as they are dust so we see them returning to their dust Every disease if so commission'd by God is death and every paine if he say it the period of our lives Againe Elihu is here speaking of a man whom the Lord is but trying teaching and instructing upon his sick bed yet he saith His soule is drawing neere to the grave and his life to the destroyers Hence observe Those afflictions which are but for instruction may looke like those which are for destruction When the Lord hath a purpose only to try a man he often acts towards him as if he would kill him If any shall say this is hard I answer A ruffe horse must have a ruffe rider Ruffe wood will not cleave without a beetle and wedges We put God to use extremities that he may bring us to a moderation Our spirits are often so ruffe and head-strong that they must be kept in with bit and bridle they are so tough and knotty that there 's no working no cleaving of them till the Lord sets his wedges to us and layes on with his beetle of heaviest and hardest afflictions In a word we even compell him to bring us to deaths-doore that he may teach us to live Now seeing paines and sicknesses of which Elihu speakes as the way and meanes by which God speakes to sinfull man are accompanied with such dreadfull symptomes and effects loathing and losse of appetite consumption of the flesh and the breaking of the very bones the soule drawing neere to the grave and life to the destroyers seeing I say there are such sad effects of sicknesse remember First Health is worth the praying to God for Secondly Health is worth the praising of God for and that considered either first as continued or secondly as restored 'T is a mercy not to be pained not to be sicke 't is a more sencible though not a greater mercy to be freed from paine and recovered out of sickness While we are kept free from paines and sicknesses how thankfull should we be and when we are freed from and brought out of the bonds of bodily paine and sicknesses how soule-sicke yea how dead are we if we are not thankfull Thirdly Seeing paines and sicknesses are such sad afflictions be wise and carefull for the preservation of your health doe not throw away your health upon a lust doe not expose your selves to lasting paines and pining sicknesses for the satisfying of a wanton sensuall appetite The health and strength of this frayle body are of more value
Christ to declare to man this righteousness for his uprightness And that hence it is as Elihu proceeds in the next verse to assure the sick man that God is and will be gracious to him Vers 24. Then he is gracious unto him and saith Deliver him from going downe into the pit I have found a ransome These words hold out the generall issue and fruit of the labours and good counsell of that messenger or Interpreter dealing with the sick man and shewing him his uprightness There are three distinct interpretations which run quite through this verse and they arise from a different apprehension about the antecedent in this pronoune He then he is gracious unto him He who is that All the Popish interpreters refer it to the Guardian-Angel sent to attend on this sick man Then he the Angel will be gracious and he will say deliver him But as I then layd by that opinion that the messenger was an Angel properly taken so I shall not stay upon that which is a consequent of it here Secondly Severall of our Protestant interpreters referre this he to the Messenger or Interpreter to the Prophet or any spiritually wise and holy man sent of God to assist and help the sick man in his distresse Some are so positive in this opinion that they deny the text any other reference Hoc de nuncio dicitur non de deo aptè enim tribuitur nuncio etinterpreti voluntatis dei ut miscreatur hominis in summo vitae discrimine constituti Merl Et de gratia eum alloquutus dixerit redime cum nec desceÌ„dat in soveam expiatione quam inveni Jun Summa orationis quae apud deum pro afflictis habenda est Jun This is to be understood of the Messenger saith one and not of God And I grant 't is sutable to the business of the messenger who comes to comfort and instruct the sick man that he should pitty and compassionate him in that disconsolate condition and likewise pray for him according to the tenour of these words in the text or to the same effect O Lord God be gracious to him and deliver him let him not goe downe to the pit for the ransome sake which I have found As if Elihu had sayd When that faithfull messenger shall have declared the benefits and grace of God to the afflicted man then pittying his afflicted soule he shall pray for him O God deliver him from death and condemnation from the pit and from destruction for I have found and shewed him a ransome by which his soule may be delivered and his sins pardoned In the 19th Chapter of this Booke at the 27th verse Job useth this word in his application to his friends for their pitty to him and more favourable dealing with him Have pitty upon me have pitty upon me O my friends for the hand of God hath touched me As if he had sayd The hand of God presseth me sore O let not your hand be heavie upon me too This exposition carrieth a great truth in it and is not at all inconsistent with the letter of the text yet I shall not insist upon it but adhere rather to a third which makes the antecedent to this He to be God himselfe Then he is gracious That is when the messenger hath dealt with the sick man when he hath opened his condition to him and shewed him his uprightness or how he may stand upright before God or what his righteousnesse is before God and hath brought his heart to an unfeigned sorrow for his sin and to the actings of faith upon the promise then God is gracious and then he gives out the word for his restoring and orders it to be presently dispatcht away to him saying deliver him unloose him unbind him let him not goe downe into the pit I have found a ransome Taking this for the generall sence of the Text I shall proceed to open the particulars Then he will be gracious or then he will have mercy upon him as Mr Broughton translates Then and not before till then the Lord lets his bones ake and his heart tremble till then he suffers him to be brought so low that he is reckoned among the dead but then though not before he sheweth himself gracious unto him When a poor man is reduced to the utmost extreamity then is Gods opportunity then is the season of mercy and the Lord therefore lets us be at the lowest that we may be the more sencible of his goodness in raising and lifting us up The Lord suffers many as Paul spake of himself 2 Cor. 1.9 to have the sentence of death in themselves that they may learn not to trust in themselves but in him who raiseth the dead We seldome give God either the glory of his power by trusting him or of his goodnesse by thanking him for our deliverances till we are brought to the last cast as we say or to such an exigent as leaves no visible meanes in probabillity no nor of possibility to escape And when 't is thus with us then he is gracious Secondly Then he is gracious that is when the man is doubly humbled when the mans heart is graciously broken when the man is growne into an abhorrence of himself and of his sin or loathes himself for his sin as much as he loathed his meat as 't is said in the former verse when his heart is thus taken quire off from all that is below in the world and gathered up beleevingly to Jesus Christ in the word of promise Then he is gracious 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Misertus gratificatus gratia prosecutus fuit ex gratia donavit benesecit The Originall word hath many comfortable significations in it yet all resolvable into this one he is gracious It signifies to pity to have compassion tenderly to regard to bestow grace to doe good there is enough in the bowells of this word to bear up the spirit of the sickest body or of the most troubled soul It is said Gen. 6.8 Noah found grace or favour in the eyes of the Lord. Noah was the only man that held out the grace of God in that age him only did God find perfect or upright in his Generations Gen. 6.9 and Noah only was the man that found grace or favour in the eyes of the Lord in that generation Gen. 6.8 God was gracious to him and his when the whole world periâ—hed by water That proper name John is derived from this word when God gave Zachary and Elizabeth a Son in their old age he also directed how he would have him called ye shall call his name John which name as we may well conceive was assigned him either because God did very graciously and favourably bestow that gift upon his Parents in their old age and so shewed them much favour a child at any time is a great favour from God especially in old age or secondly because John was to open the Kingdome of Grace to preach the
eternall death or going downe to the pit of hell Fourthly In that this word deliver him is given to the messenger Observe God conveighs deliverance and mercy to us by men like our selves He will have the creature beholding to the creature for his mercy though mercy come freely and only from himselfe God delivereth the sick and the sinner in such a method that we may owne though not stay in his messengers as the instruments of his favour God who can doe all things by himselfe will not doe many things but by meanes He saith to the messenger Deliver him from going downe to the pit You will say How can a Minister or a Messenger deliver the sick from going downe to the pit I answer as was touched before he delivers him by declaring to him the minde of God by acquainting the sick with the promises of deliverance and by pressing him to believe and rest upon them by assuring him that as God is able to performe the promise so he is faithfull and willing to performe it yea that he hath given some tokens for good that he will deliver him from going downe to the pit Thus the worke of Gods free grace mercy and power is oftentimes attributed to instruments and second causes because they have their place and use in the bringing about the purposes of God for the good of his people Hence some men are called Saviours And Saviours shall come up on mount Zion Obad v. 21. No man can save either from temporall or eternall destruction He that is our God is the God of salvation and unto God the Lord belong the issues from death Ps 68.20 yet saith the Prophet there shall come Saviours that is God will rayse up worthy men principall men as another Prophet cals them Mic 5.5 who shall destroy Zions enemies Thus Paul admonisheth Timothy Take heed to thy selfe and to thy doctrine continue in them for in so doing thou shalt save thy selfe and them that heare thee 1 Tim 4.16 The Apostle James Chap 5.20 speakes the same thing He which converteth a sinner from the errour of his way shall save a soule from death and shall hide a multitude of sins And the same Apostle faith as to the case in the text at the 15th verse of the same Chapter The prayer of faith shall save the sicke Though none can save yet many are means of our salvation And the Lord is pleased to honour those who are the meanes of any salvation so farre as to say They save It is indeed the duty of all to ascribe the all of every worke and piece of salvation and deliverance to God only When the people stood wondering at Peter and John after they had healed the lame man Peter answered Acts 3.12 Ye men of Israel why marvel ye at this or why looke ye so earnestly on us as if we by our own power or holiness had made this man to walke The God of Abraham c. hath glorified his Son Jesus As if they had said Therefore doe ye also glorifie him not us for delivering this lame man Though God is pleased to put much honour upon man by speaking of what himselfe doth as if man had done it yet he will not give the glory of what he doth to any man nor may any take it God saith to the messenger deliver him from going downe to the pit but woe to that messenger who saith when he is delivered I have delivered him from going downe to the pit Thus we see the spring of the sick mans recovery it is from the graciousness of God and we see the meanes of it God gives a warrant to his messenger saying Deliver him from going down to the pit But what is the procuring or meritorious cause of this deliverance As the Text hath shewed us the first moving cause The grace of God so it shewes us the meritorious cause by which his deliverance is procured Things are so ordered in the Covenant of grace that though the Lord acts with infinite freeness yet he hath appointed and ordered a way in which alone he will doe what he freely doth This is expressed in the last clause of the verse Fer I have found a ransome But where did God find it certainly in his own bosome in his own heart Jesus Christ came out of the bosome of the Father there he was God found him in and with himself God did not find the ransome by chance nor did he find it by advice and consultation with others but he found it in himself in his own infinite wisdome and goodness that is he contrived it he invented i◠there This rare this most excellent thing a ransome is the Lords own invention I have found it I know how to doe this man good I know how to save him and doe my own honour and Justice no hurt no wrong my honour is saved Verbum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 denotet expiationem aut redemptionem tum etiam pretium quod pro redemptione offertur Significat etiam cooperire linire aut operire bitumine quasi pristinam faciē rei alicujus aut immunditiem abscondere quod elegantèr refertur ad ab stertionem peccati Pined my Justice is satisfied in doing it I have found a ransome The word here rendred a ransome signifies in the Verb to cover or to hide that which before lay open that it appeare no more Grace brings another face upon things a new face I may say upon our souls The covering of sin elegantly denotes the pardon of sin And what reason have we to be thankfull and rejoyce when sin our soul durt and deformity is covered We have very foul faces I meane outward conversations and more foul souls or inward inclinations till the Lord is graciously pleased to put a covering upon them If we cover our own sins we shall have no mercy but if the Lord once cover our sins he cannot deny us mercy that being it self our greatest mercy and the fruit of his great mercy The Mercy-seat so famous in the Mosaicall Poedogogy is exprest by this word which properly signifieth a Covering The Mercy-seat was it self a Covering of pure gold laid over the Arke in which Arke the Law was put Exod. 25.17.21 Thou shalt put the Mercy-seat above upon the Arke and in the Ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee And as the dimensions of the Arke were two Cubits and a halfe in length and a Cubit and a half in breadth so the same were the dimensions of the Mercy-seat Vers 10.17 which figured that as the Mercy-seat fully covered the Arke wherein the Law was so Christ should fully cover all our sins which are transgressions of the Law The righteousness of Christ is as long and as broad as the Law and so our sins being covered with that shall never appeare against us Therefore also from above this Mercy-seat between the two Cherubims the Lord said vers 22. I will meete thee and I will
those who are true fruit-bearing branches more and more that they may bring forth more fruit And the means by which he purgeth them that is mortifieth their corruptions seldome reach this blessed effect at once or twice working and therefore the Lord is even constrained to worke these things twice thrice or oftentimes else the worke would not be brought to the intended issue Thirdly In that it is sayd All these things worketh God oftentimes not alwayes Observe Man should make hast to answer the call of God and come up to what he requireth of him For though God worke these things oftentimes yet no man knowes how often he will worke and we may all know he will not worke alwayes 'T is a high and dangerous presumption to deferre at any time upon hopes that God will work at another time because in some cases he workes oftentimes Remember as was shewed before in opening the words this thrice is the least number of often as twice is the least number of any two or three are the least number that makes a Church-assembly Math 18.20 The Prophet saith Amos 2.4 For three transgressions of Judah and for four I will not turne away the punishment thereof Implying that if men multiply their transgressions God will not alwayes give them meanes of repentance but powre out wrath upon them So Elihu saith God worketh twice and thrice but if men will sin three or foure times where is their warrant that God will pardon or passe by their sins The Prophet did not binde up the mercy of God precisely to two or three transgressions Rabbi Solom colligit tertantum homini ignoscere deum at quarto si ad peccandum redierit esse quod sibiâ—Ã gehenna timeat et id esse putat quod hoc loco ab Elihu dicatur but if men sin without bounds he shewes they have no ground to expect God should be mercifull One of the Jewish Rabbins as some expound him concludes peremptorily If man sin twice or thrice God will spare but if foure times God will punish We doe not circumscribe the grace of God to a speciall number and possibly that Rabbin did not intend it so but only that all should take heed they doe not abuse the grace of God That God multiplyeth to pardon or as we render Isa 55.7 Pardoneth aboundantly is no security for any man to sin aboundantly or to multiply transgressions My spirit shall not alwayes strive with man saith the Lord Gen 6.3 I have striven long already and I will yet strive longer even an hundred and twenty yeares but I will not strive alwayes God gave Jezebel a space to repent Rev 2.21 but when she repented not he did not promise her a new space to repent in but threatned her with wrath to the utmost if she repented not There is a frequency in the worke of God to reduce sinners but not a perpetuity And as in this verse Elihu reports this frequency of his worke so in the next he reports that to be the designe of it Vers 30. To bring back his soule from the pit to be enlightned with the light of the living This verse I say sheweth the purpose of God in working twice thrice or oftentimes with man This purpose as was touched before is two-fold First to free and deliver him from evill the worst of evills a horrible pit Secondly to estate him in and give him possession of not only that which is good but best of all the light of the living Not is this purpose of God a bare desire that 's often fruitless and successless but a strong or setled resolution to bring back the sick mans soule from the pit And Elihu we may suppose spake thus as to presse Job to hasten the worke of his repentance so to put him in hope upon consideration of this designe of God in afflicting him that he should be delivered from his afflictions and have not only his life continued but the comforts of it restored to him As if he had sayd Be not afraid doe not look upon thy condition as hopeless or that the humiliation of thy selfe will be fruitlesse for I dare assure thee God hath gracious purposes and intendments towards thee in working these things And here we have a two-fold gracious purpose of God expressed First to deliver him from evill to bring back his soule from the pit Secondly to doe him good or to bestow positive blessings upon him as was shewed at the 28th verse even to be enlightned with the light of the living As if he had sayd God in all this aymes only at mans good that his sin unrepented of be not his death and destruction and that under a sence of Divine favour towards him he may lead a comfortable life here and be happy for ever To bring back his soule from the pit It is sayd at the 28th verse He will deliver his soule from going into the pit in both places the pit is the same But seeing the Lord there promised to deliver his soule from going into the pit how is he sayd here to bring back his soule from the pit A man being delivered from going to the pit cannot be sayd to be brought back from the pit I answer in two things the words rendred to bring back his soule from the pit may be read thus to turne away his soule from the pit that is to preserve him from death So the Hebrew word is used Chap 15.13 as also Mal 2.6 He walked with me in peace and equity and did turne away many from iniquity If we take that rendring of the word then the expressions in both places beare the same sence But taking it according to our reading in which to bring back his soule from the pit sounds as if the man had been in the pit already and it may well be sayd so because a man in great affliction whether of soule or body is as it were dead or buried alive For as when God converts a sinner he upon the matter brings him back from hell so when he delivers him from any grievous sickness he doth upon the matter bring him back from the grave Heman in spirituall afflictions and soule-desertions the terrours of the Lord being upon him called himselfe free among the dead like the slaine that lye in the grave whom God remembreth no more and they are cut off from thy hand Psal 88.5 They that are neere the pit of death are not much improperly called dead and they that being in such a desperate case are kept from going downe to the pit are not much improperly sayd to be brought back from the pit or pulled out of it In which sence we may keep to our owne reading and so to bring back his soule from the pit notes only the extreame danger wherein he was whether spirituall or temporall and Gods graciousness in delivering him from it Hence note When God restores a man out of any desperate condition whether of
turnest man to destruction and sayest Return ye children of men Here 's man turning and returning upon the saying of God man turneth to death he returneth to dust and shall at last return from the dust and all this when God saith he must Our life is a very frail thing and it is in the hand of God to continue or take it away to let us hold it or gather it home to himself Thirdly From the manner of speaking If he gather to himself his spirit and his breath Note When man dieth he is gathered to God When as Solomon allegorizeth the death of man Eccl. 12.6 7. The silver cord is loosed and the golden bowl broken c. Then shall the dust that is the body return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return to God who gave it that is each part of man when he departeth this world shall go its proper way and return to that which is most congenial to it his body to the earth from whence it is his soul to God of whom it is God is a Spirit the creating Spirit and our created spirits are gathered to God when they are separated from the body yet remember there is a two-fold gathering or returning of the spirit to God First To abide and be blessed with him for ever thus the spirits of believers or saints only are gathered to God when they depart out of this world Secondly There is a gathering of the spirit to God to be judged and disposed of by him to receive a sentence of life or death from him And thus the spirit of every man or woman that dieth is gathered to God be they good or bad believers or unbelievers Heb. 9.27 It is appointed for men once to die but after this the judgement 'T is the Statute Law of God man must die and the sound of Judgement is at the heels of death That Text saith but after this the Judgement The general day of judgement shall not be till the resurrection of man from the dead But there is a personal judgement or a determining of every mans state when he dieth and for that end every mans spirit is gathered to God to receive his sentence The spirits of wicked men are gathered to him and condemned the spirits of the righteous are gathered to him and acquitted We are come saith the Apostle Heb. 12.23 to God the Judge of all and to the spirits of just men made perfect David knew he must be gathered to God but he earnestly deprecated such a gathering as most shall have Psal 26.9 Gather not my soul with sinners nor my life with bloody men It is this word when sinners die they are gathered but David would not be gathered as they are gathered They are gathered to God but it is that they may be for ever separated from him they are gathered to a day of vengeance and wrath Therefore David prayed Gather not my soul with sinners Death is called a gathering in a threefold reference First A gathering to our people Thus it is said of Aaron Num. 20.24 Aaron shall be gathered unto his people for he shall not enter into the land c. Death separates the people of God from their people that is from those that are like them on earth but it will be a means of bringing them into the society of their people or fellow believers who are gone before them into heaven Secondly Death is called a gathering to our Fathers 2 Chron. 34 28. Behold I will gather thee to thy Fathers and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace There 's a gathering to a more special company and that with other like Scriptures are an argument that we shall know our relations in heaven For to be gathered to our Fathers spoken of in the first part of the verse is more then to be gathered to the grave spoken of in the latter and by our fathers we are to understand more of our fathers then the grave hath in its keeping which is but their bodies even their souls which are kept in heaven Thirdly According to the phrase of this Text death is called a gathering to God If he gather unto himself his spirit and his breath Whence Note Fourthly The spirit or soul of man hath its original from God It is of him to whom it returneth The soul or spirit of man is of God in a more special way then his body is for though God giveth both yet the Scripture in the place before named speaks of the soul as the gift of God but passeth by the body Eccles 12.7 The dust shall return to the earth as it was and the spirit shall return to God who gave it 'T is God not man alone who hath given us these bodies but 't is not man but God alone who hath given us these spirits therefore men are called the fathers of our flesh that is of the body in way of distinction from God who is the father of spirits Heb. 12.9 We have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us and we gave them reverence shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits and live that is shall we not rather be subject to God then to man Father of spirits is an Attribute or Title too high and honourable for any but God One of the Ancients in his gracious breathing after God brake out into this holy Passion My soul O God came from thee and my heart is unquiet or restless until it return to thee again God is our center and our rest He gathereth to himself mans spirit and when he doth so what then what 's the issue of it Elihu tells us what in the next verse Vers 15. All flesh shall perish together and man shall turn again to his dust As if he had said As soon as ever the spirit is gathered the flesh is consumed or as we render perisheth All flesh may be taken in the largest sence not only for all men that live but for all living creatures Thus largely Moses extendeth it Gen. 6.17 Behold saith the Lord I will bring a flood of water to destroy all flesh that is all the Beasts of the earth and Fowls of the ayre together with Mankinde except a few of each in the Ark so Psal 136.25 Who giveth food to all flesh that is to man and beast for his mercy endureth for ever Yet some understand this first part more narrowly for all flesh except man because he addeth in the latter part of the verse and man shall return again to his dust But I conceive we are to take all flesh here for all men and only for men it being usual in Scripture to put the same thing twice under different expressions So then All flesh that is every man be he who he will shall perish Thus as all flesh is restrained to man so it extendeth over all men yea over all things of man Isa 40.6 All flesh is grass and all the
goodliness thereof as the flower of the field that is all men are perishing and all that man hath meerly as a man is as fading and perishing as himself is Some take notice that man was not called flesh till after his fall It 's said before when God set him up in that primitive purity of his Creation Man became a living soul He was not spoken of at first as flesh but as a living soul Gen. 2.7 but as soon as man had sinned he was called flesh as if he had no soul There may two other reasons be given why man is called flesh both following from the former First Because man since his fall doth most for his flesh and neglects his soul altogether till being planted into the second Adam he is brought out of that wretched condition into which he fell by and with the first Adam Secondly He is called flesh because since the fall man is become weak and frail both as to Naturals and Morals Gen. 6.3 My spirit shall not alwaies strive with man for that he also is flesh As if the Lord had said Now man declareth himself to be flesh indeed he acts like an impotent sorry creature he acts as if he scarce had a soul in him as if he were no more then the beasts of the earth My spirit shall not alwaies strive with man for that he also is flesh and therefore v. 30. God told Noah The end of all flesh is come before me that is Man and all his worldly glory shall all be swept away with a deluge of water as here All flesh shall perish together There is a two-fold perishing First By way of annihilation Secondly By way of transmutation When Elihu saith all flesh shall perish we are not to understand it of annihilating all flesh God can do that he can turn man back into that nothing out of which he was made but the perishing in the Text importeth only a change Death is called a change a change to perishing as that good great woman said I will go in unto the King and if I perish I perish Hest 4.16 that is If I die I die The Prophet laments Isa 57.1 The righteous perisheth and no man layeth it to heart All flesh shall perish 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Together That is without exception one as well as another rich and poor high and low strong and weak all are alike in the hand of God Psal 33.13.15 The Lord looketh from heaven he beholdeth all the sons of men c. he fashioneth their hearts alike or together that is he fashioneth the hearts of all men God doth not so fashion mens hearts alike as to make them all alike faces do not differ so much as hearts but as he fashions one mans heart so anothers he fashions the heart of a King as well as the heart of a begger All flesh shall perish together none either by power or policy can stand against a displeased God Again We may take the word together for all at once God can make a total devastation in the earth and sweep all away as filth with the besome of destruction He can destroy all the world of all men who are the chiefe part of the world together or at one blow so that as the Prophet Nahum speaks Chap 1.9 Affliction shall not rise up a second time All flesh shall perish together And man shall returne againe unto dust Or he shall goe backe unto dust that is he shall dye that 's the sentence which God gave upon man when he had sinned Gen 3.19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread till thou returne unto the ground for out of it wast thou taken for dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou returne Man was dust before he sinned yet he had not returned to dust if he had not turned from God by sin Sin brought in death and death brings us to the dust All flesh shall perish together and man shall returne againe unto dust Hence observe There is no one man hath more priviledge then another against the sentence of death The Greatest Prince dyeth as soone as the meanest peasant Death can as soone and as easily breake into the strongest fort or tower of stone as into the meanest cottage of reeds High and low shall perish together Let none hope to secure themselves by any thing of this world from going out of this world Riches availe not in the day of death Pro 11.4 High Titles and honours availe not strength availeth not beauty availeth not none of these can be a protection if God send out a writ or summons to the grave Happy are they who get an assurance of life after death for none have an assurance of life against death Againe In that death is here expressed under this notion of perishing Observe Man is but in a perishing condition while he is in this world As all the things of the world are so is man while he abideth if I may say he abideth in this world Christ earnestly exhorts John 6.27 Labour not for the meat that perisheth Why should we labour that is set our selves with our whole strength and might to pursue perishing things seeing we our selves are perishing The more perishing we are the more reason we have to looke after and labour for those things which doe not which cannot perish When the Apostle saith 1 Pet 1.18 We are not redeemed with corruptible things from our vaine conversation c. He doth not instance in flowers or fruits of the earth which quickly rot but in gold and silver which are the most durable and lasting metalls even these are corruptible but we our selves as to this bodyly life are corruptible not only as gold and silver but as the most fading flowers and summer fruits of the earth Further From that other description of death as 't is called a returning againe unto dust We learne Man is of the dust Unlesse man as to his body were of the dust when he began to live he could not be sayd to returne unto dust when he dyeth or departs this life Many men pore upon their pedegree and heir minds swel with pride because they are of such or such a noble descent but let them remember man is of the dust The soule or spirit of man is indeed from above as was shewed before and the body of man is I grant a compound of all the foure Elements Our bodyly spirits say Naturalists are of the fire our breath of the ayre our blood of the water and our flesh and bones are most properly of the dust of the earth yet the whole body of man is denominated dust or earth or as the Apostle stileth it 2 Cor 5.1 'T is an earthly house If our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved For though we may truely say there is water and ayre and fire in this house yet because earth is the predominant Element the whole body beares the denomination of
that God is not sayd to forme man of the water or ayre or fire but of the dust of the ground Gen 2.7 though all those as well as earth were ingredients in the composition and formation of mans body As man with respect to his spiritualls and moralls is denominated from that which is chief in him so with respect to his naturalls Every man hath the seeds and principles of all sin in him yet many men are knowne and expressed by some speciall sin Thus one is called a covetous man another a malicious man c. because covetousnesse and malice are their predominant sins in practice though the principles of all other sins are in them So for grace one is sayd to be a patient man and another an humble man and a third a self-denying man Though where any grace is all graces are yet a godly man is knowne by that grace which acts most eminently and vigorously in him In this notion man is sayd to be of the dust and to returne to dust as if he were nothing but dust because dust is the predominant Element in the naturall constitution of man And if so then this is an humbling consideration Some walke as if they thought the ground or earth not good enough for them to goe upon Moses setting forth the dreadfullness of famine as a punishment threatned the Jewish nation in case of disobedience tells us it shall fall on all sorts both of men and women Deut 28.56 The tender and delicate woman among you which would not adventure to set the sole of her foot upon the ground for delicateness and tenderness c. Some are loth to put their feet to the ground whereas the best foote that ever trod upon the ground is dust as wel as the ground trodden on and 't is but dust to dust when they are in the dust and dirt to dirt if they fall into the dirt The Apostle among other reasons for this also calleth the body of man a vile body Phil 3.21 Who shall change our vile body that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body Our bodies are vile chiefly from the contagion of sin that hath made them most vile But they are comparatively vile with respect to the very matter out of which they were all representatively made when the first man was made without the least taint or touch of sin Man at best as to the body is but a little breathing dust or moving clay And did we spiritually look upon the matter of our bodyes it would exceedingly humble our spirits and keep them low even when like Jordan they are ready to over-flow all the banks of modesty and moderation We heare of a bird who priding himselfe in spreading and perusing his fine feathers is presently as it were ashamed by looking down upon his owne black feete Surely did man often consider that his whole body is of the earth it would be an excellent meanes to keepe his heart in a lowly frame how highly soever himselfe is exalted in the earth And as man while he lives is from the dust so when he dyeth that 's another humbling consideration his body not only returneth unto dust but turneth into dust David as the figure of Christ cryed out Psal 22.15 Thou hast brought me into the dust of death Dust and death are neere acquaintance and all that dy grow quickly into neerer acquaintance with the dust It is sayd Psal 103.14 The Lord knoweth our frame he remembreth that we are but dust But what advantage is that to us that the Lord knoweth the one and remembreth the other I may answer as the Apostle doth to another question Rom 3.2 much every way chiefly because he will pitty us and spare us and deale tenderly with us as considering how frayle we are Now as it may be our comfort that God remembreth we are but dust so 't is our duty to remember that we are but dust and that we must to the dust Shall God remember that we are dust and shall not we remember it our selves Did we more remember that we are dust we should more prepare for our return to the dust Yea I may say we should be more in heaven if we were more in our dust that is the gracious and serious meditation of our naturall vilenes and infirmities would provoke us to looke heaven-wards and prepare for heaven where these our naturall bodyes shall become spirituall 1 Cor 15.44 that is they shall be like spirits though not turned into spirits living without food or sleep living free from weariness and sickness from paines and languishments yea free from the remotest feare of ever dying or returning againe into dust Such as these and many more would be our soules advantages did we often as becomes us remember that our bodyes are of the earth and must shortly be earth againe Thus to be earthly minded is the way to be heavenly minded Many are earthly minded that is they mind earthly things but few mind that themselves are earth In what holy heights and elevations of spirit should we be if we could spiritually remember how low we once were and how low as to our bodyes we within a few dayes shall be Lastly This truth should take us off from all creature-confidence from trusting in man Cursed is the man saith the Lord Jer 17.5 that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arme 'T is a cursed thing for man to trust in man becausâ— trust is an honour proper to God he alone is to be trusted And as it is a cursed so it is also a foolish thing to trust in man David a Great Prince giveth us this counsel from God Psal 146.3 4. Put not your trust in Princes nor in the son of man in whom there is no help his breath goeth forth he returneth to his earth or to his dust in that day all his thoughts perish happy is the man that hath the God of Jacob for his help What can dust do for dust what can dust get by dust that which is weake may become strong by trusting to or leaning upon that which is strong the weakest man is strong enough while he trusteth upon the strong God but if weake trust upon weake how shall it be made strong Therefore let all flesh hearken to the words of the holy Prophet Isa 2.21 Cease ye from man whose breath is in his nostrills for wherein is he to be accounted of Man himselfe is a soone-ceasing creature David useth the noune of this verbe to expresse himselfe so Psal 39.4 and therefore we have reason to cease from man to cease from any high estimation of the highest men much more from any confidence in them What can we assure our selves of from any man living seeing he hath no assurance of his owne life The Prophet would have us understand that while he saith his breath is in his nostrills Mans life is gone as soone as his breath is gone and how soone may that be
out to use ill words to Magistrates though as Paul's case was we are ill used by them Shimei taking the advantage of David's affliction rose up to this height of impudence against him mentioned with indignation by Elihu in the Text he openly and to his face called him Belial 2 Sam. 16.5.7 Come out thou bloody man and thou man of Belial But we know what the issue was he paid dear for it at last though David forgave him at present and did not suffer Abishai to take a sudden revenge yet upon his death-bed he delivered him over to his son Solomon to deal with him as he should see good And so great is the offensiveness and unfitness of speaking thus unto a King that the Jewes joyned it with blasphemy against God himself We read 1 Kings 21.13 how two false Witnesses came against Naboth saying Naboth blaspemed God and the King as much as to say we heard Naboth say of the King Belial And as soon as these two had brought in their evidence against him that he had blasphemed God and the King they drew him out and stoned him Blasphemy against God was death by the express letter of the Law Lev. 24.15 16. It was also death by the same Law for any man to curse his Father or his Mother Exod. 21.17 And because the King is Pater Patriae the father of his Country it seems the cursing or blaspheming of him was also punishable by death The Apostle Jude useth an equivalent word in the Greek Ep. of Jude v. 8. reproving a wicked Sect in those times They fear not to blaspheme or speak evil of Dignities There is blasphemy against Princes who are titular Gods as well as against the only true God Kings are to be feared to be submitted to they are to be prayed for therefore not to be reviled Is it fit to say unto a King Belial Yet this doth not stop the mouths of all men from telling Kings and Princes their faults nor doth it justifie a silent dissembling of them much less doth it open the mouthes of any to dawb Kings and Princes with the untempered morter of flatteries Kings are no more to be flattered then they are to be reproached Dignities must not be spoken evil of yet they may be prudently and humbly told of their evils and informed of their failings plainly When Eliah met Ahab who said Art thou he that troubleth Israel Eliah answered 1 Kings 18.18 I have not troubled Israel but thou and thy fathers house in that ye have forsaken the Commandments of the Lord and thou hast followed Baal And we read how boldly Elisha carried it to the King of Israel 2 Kings 3.13 14. What have I to do with thee Get thee to the Prophets of thy father and to the Prophets of thy mother And Elisha said as the Lord of Hosts liveth before whom I stand Surely were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the King of Judah I would not look toward thee nor see thee Thus the Prophets dealt with much gracious severity towards mighty Princes The Prophet Isaiah feared not to say Isa 1.10 Hear the word of the Lord ye Rulers of Sodome Give ear unto the Law of our God ye people of Gomorrah implying that the Rulers of Jerusalem were then but such as the Rulers of Sodome once were and that the people were no better then the people of Gomorrah and it is conceived that for this plainness and liberty of speech which the Prophet Isaiah used toward the Princes and Rulers of Judah he was put to death being cut or mangled asunder with a wooden Sawe One might think that Ezekiel did much forget himself when he gave those opprobrious terms to Zedekiah King of Judah Ezek. 21.25 And thou prophane wicked Prince of Israel whose day is come when iniquity shall have an end yet he sinned not in this harsh reproof of his sin because commanded of God to do it and specially directed by the holy Spirit The Prophets might not diminish a word but must give out what God gave in John the Baptist reproved Herod for Herodias his brother Philips wife and for all the evils which he had done Luke 3.19 And Jesus Christ himself called Herod Fox Luke 13.32 The Prophets were often Instructed and Commissioned to prophesie against the mountains that is against the Princes and Powers of the world and therefore take the state of the point and of our duty about it in these few conclusions that we may not run upon the rocks either way neither upon the rock of blasphemy against Kings and Princes on the one side nor upon the rock of flattery on the other First The Power or State of Princes must never be reviled nor evill spoken of kingly Power and Authority is alwayes to be reverenced and honoured though the Prince be wicked yet his Power is to be reverenced and that 's the purest reverence Regia per se dignitas nunquam non est colenda etiam cum princeps iniquus est For to reverence the power of Princes only because or when they are good and do us good and rule every way according to our mind this is but a piece of selfishness but when Princes are evill and bring evills upon us yet to bear respect to the Power and Authority which they Exercise this is to honour God and to give true submission to his ordinance Whatsoever the person is the power must be reverentially submitted to Secondly It is high wickednesse to speak evill of the persons of just and righteous Princes that every man will acknowledge Thirdly Kings and Princes must not be reproved for personall or private faults publickly To doe so is against the rule in any mans case much more in the case of Kings and Princes Fourthly Kings are not to be reproved for any of their faults but by those who have a Call to it that was the reason of the liberty which the old Prophets used towards Kings they were specially commanded and Commissioned by God for it and the peril was upon their own heads if they did it not it is not for every one to reprove Princes but for those that are called to it Lastly Even those that are called to it must doe it with much submission though they must not doe it to halves and deceitfully yet they are to doe it respectfully It is not fit to say to a King Belial such rough and unhewne language is not for Princes their faults must only be insinuated if that may serve as Nathan dealt with David who though he knew what his sin was yet he did not say to him Thou murtherer thou Adulterer but intimated the matter by a parable and made him covertly or in a third person charge himselfe before he charged him or applyed the parable personally to him with Thou art the man When Miriam the Sister and Aaron the Brother of Moses spake against him because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married
spiritual state may be under great spiritual evils great soul afflictions and troubles may fall upon him which I conceive David intended while he shewed such high confidence Psal 23.4 Though I walk through the valley of the shaddow of death I will fear none evil as if he had said Though I were in the worst of soul-afflictions having no light of the favour of God shining upon me nor any comfort in my spirit though as Heman bemoans his deserted condition Psal 88.3 My soul is full of troubles and my life draweth nigh unto the grave though I am laid in the lowest pit in darkness in the deep yet I will fear no evil for thou art with me thy rod and thy staffe they comfort me Again the shaddow of death is often put in Scripture for the worst of outward worldly evils Jer. 13.16 Give glory to the Lord your God before he cause darkness c. and while ye look for light he turn it into the shaddow of death that is while ye expect good times and things ye fall into the worst or the worst befal you Now as these words the shaddow of death signifie the worst of both in spirituals and temporals so here they signifie the closest concealment of moral evils some sinners think themselves as much out of sight as a buried carcass and they vail their wickedness with such darkness as is like the very shaddow of death Sin is it self a shaddow of death yea death it self and they who are dead in sins and trespasses will do their best that their sins may be no more seen then the dead are But there is no darkness nor shaddow of death Where the workers of iniquity may hide themselves What it is to be a worker of iniquity was opened at the 8th verse of this chapter and thither I refer the reader Only in general know Workers of iniquity are more then ordinary sinners they are cunning at the committing and cunning at the hiding of sin Some are but bunglers at sin they cannot sin with such an hellish skill as others do and when they have sinned they have not the art of hiding it but others are as we say their crafts-masters both wayes and they are properly called workers of iniquity Yet saith Elihu the very workers of iniquity they that make it their profession their study and their business to do evil and to hide the evil they have done to work mischief in the dark and to keep their works in the dark even they cannot be hid in any darkness And when the Text saith there is no darkness c. wherein the workers of iniquity may hide themselves the meaning of it is they stand naked and in the open light before the eyes of God For though Elihu doth not say from what they cannot hide themselves yet we may take it two wayes they cannot hide themselves first from the sight of God he will discern them The Prophet saith of God Isa 45.15 Thou art a God that hidest thy self it is the word of the Text in another construction that is as I conceive it may be expounded Thou art an invisible God God hides himself naturally or in his own nature for that is invisible likewise God somtimes hideth himself voluntarily as somtimes he manifesteth or sheweth himself voluntarily but he is a God alwayes hid as to his nature because he is invisible and so he is called a God that hideth himself in opposition to Idols or false gods who are obvious to the eyes of men Idols have eyes and see not but themselves are seen by every eye Jehovah the true God seeth but hath no eye neither can any eye see him Thus he is a God hiding himself in the spirituality of his own being which gross Idols cannot the following words in that Text in the Prophet seem to make out this sence vers 16. They shall be ashamed and confounded all of them that is all Idol-makers and Idol-worshippers shall be ashamed and confounded they shall go to confusion together that are makers of Idols Now as God hideth himself both these wayes somtimes voluntarily or in his will he resolves to hide himself from his people as David complain'd Psal 13.1 How long wilt thou hide thy face from me alwayes in the spirituality of his own nature so sinful men would be hidden too though they cannot be hidden as to their nature that being corporeal yet they would hide themselves in their will their wits are bent upon it to make covers and shaddows for themselves that they may keep out of the sight of God or that they may not be seen of him who cannot be seen but is in that sence a God that hideth himself And as men cannot hide themselves from the sight of God so not secondly from the revenging power of God This followeth the former for he that would keep out of the sight of another doth it usually that he may be hid from that danger and evil which he fears that other might bring upon him Thus it is with the sinner he hath his hiding places he would withdraw himself from the revenging power of God like a malefactor who is unwilling to appear and come to the Bar before his Judge but all in vain Meer natural or unregenerate men are much hidden from themselves that is they see little what themselves are they know not their own condition nor upon what terms they stand even a godly man is much hidden from himself his life is hid with Christ in God Col. 3.3 his life is not only hidden from the world but in a great measure from himself the excellency of his spiritual state surpasseth his present sight but a wicked man is much more hid from himself he doth not see the wickedness of his own heart nor the danger the desperate danger he is in he seeth not that he is within a step of the pit or that there is as it were but a wainscot between him and hell fire he seeth none of these things Thus a wicked man is hidden from himself and 't is his work to prepare darkness and shaddows of death to cover his dead works from God But there is no darkness will serve his purpose nor shaddow of death wherein he may hide himself Hence Note First It is usual for and natural to sinners to seek hiding places When Elihu saith There is no darkness c. he plainly intimates that it is the designe and business of sinners to make darkness to hide themselves it is as much their business to hide themselves when they have done evil as it is their business to do evil while the workers of iniquity confess in general the eyes of God behold their ways they deny not in word that God is All-seeing yet as they often blear the eye of man so they are not out of hope to put darkness and raise a mist between themselves and the eye of God Or if they rise not to this vain thought that they can
that man is apt to nourish himself in those vain hopes that he can hide himself from God or that he shall be hid from God I may cast the foolish presumptions of men about this thing into four sorts First Some hope to be hid in the croud or that they shall not be taken notice of among so many Secondly The eyes of others are so darkned that their sins are hid from themselves yea they take their vices for vertues their evil acts for good and because they see no evil in what they do they are perswaded or presume God doth not Thirdly Many are never so well pleased as when they are flattered or when others not only hide the sinfulness of their wayes from them but commend and extol them as vertuous and praise worthy And because their evil ways appear good to some men they cannot be convinced that there is any evil in them appearing to God Lastly As all impenitent sinners put their sins out of their own sight so nothing pleaseth them more then this imagination that they shall never come into the sight of God Surely the Lord would never urge this matter so often upon the children of men if it were not so But let sinners consider what they will do and what will become of them seeing as it is impossible that they should be hid so it will be most intollerable for them them to appear and stand before God in the day of judgement Psal 1.5 All must come to judgment and appear at the Bar but it will be an inexpressible grief to appear and not be approved or to appear and then be condemned Therefore be wise and hide your selves where you may be hid do not attempt to hide your selves which is the attempt of most sinners where you cannot be hid They who will needs hide themselves in that darkness and shaddow of death here spoken of shall be cast into utter darkness and abide for ever in that infernal valley of the shaddow of death in which there is no ease to be had and from which there is no release to be got Darkness and death will be the portion of those sinners in the next world who have studied to shaddow their sins with any kinde of darkness in this JOB Chap. 34. Vers 23 24 25. For he will not lay upon man more then right that he should enter into judgement with God He shall break in pieces mighty men without number and set others in their stead Therefore he knoweth their workes and he over-turneth them in the night so that they are destroyed IN the 23d verse being the first of this context Elihu further justifyeth the severest proceedings of God with man He that layeth upon man no more then is right may be justified in whatsoever he layeth upon him But God layeth upon man no more then is right Therefore c. The Assumption is expresse in the text Vers 23. For he will not lay upon man more then is right The text strictly rendred is He will not lay upon man more Our translaters supply the words then is right to determine what that more is which God will not lay upon man The words have a two-fold sence First Some interpreters render them as a direct deniall of any power seated in or liberty given unto man to plead capitulate or to come in judgement with God Elihu charging it upon Job that he had not done well in taking or using such a liberty to complaine about his condition addeth here according to this interpretation God neither hath nor will indulge man a liberty as he hath not given him a just cause to complain as if he had don him wrong Quia non ultra unquam ponet deus super virum i. e. potestatem homini nunquam faciet ut de se ille queri possir Merc Neque enim ultra in hominis potestate est ut veniat cum deo in Judicio Vulg And if man when God hath once declared his mind and published his sentence should make his defence or offer to produce his reasonings against it the Lord will not suffer it he will not permit man to proceed in such a way seeing the sentence of God and what he doth upon it is alwayes just and the right stands ever on his side as well as the soveraignty is ever vested in him Master Broughton translates the whole verse to this sense Therefore it is not for man ever to purpose to enter into judgement before the Omnipotent there is no appeale from God nor will he admit sinners by any artifices or delayes to interrupt the progresse of his justice Secondly The words as we render them carry both an assertion that God is just and a demonstration of it For he will not lay upon man more then is right that he should enter into judgement with God that is man hath no cause to enter into judgement with God if God should give him leave and let him be at his liberty in that poynt for God will not lay upon man more then is right There is another supply of a word which also beareth a good sense and suites wel with this exposition thus Non imponet ei amplius quam ferro possit Drus God will not lay upon man more then he can beare or hath strength to beare that he should enter into judgement with him if we reade the text so then that of the Apostle 1 Cor 10.13 is a cleare exposition of it There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man but God is faithfull who will not suffer you to be tempted above that you are able but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that ye may be able to beare it A temptation or affliction common to man is but such as man may beare God will not overburden his people he knoweth what flesh and blood as also what Grace can beare As a man would not lay such a weight upon a childe as would burthen a man we lay a childs burthen upon a child and a mans burthen upon a man so the Lord measures and weighs out his judgements in proportion to every mans strength he will not lay upon him more then he is able to beare That 's a good sense and hath a cleare reason in it why man should not complaine of what God layeth upon him it being only proportionate to his strength But I shall rather prosecute the text according to the supply given in our translation which makes the reason why all such complaints should be forborne and silenced to be this because the sufferings of man are never proportion'd beyond his desert He will not lay upon man more then right That is more then he hath deserved or is equitable in his case whatsoever is layd or imposed upon man beyond right he hath cause to complaine of and may traverse the Judgement or desire another hearing yea he may appeale to some higher Judge if there be any
But if what is awarded against him be right according to Law and sutable to Justice let the sentence be what it will let him be able to beare it or no much more if he be able also to beare it as in this case it is he hath no cause at all to desire a review of it Thus it is saith Elihu in all the dealings of God with man He will not lay upon man more then is right that he should enter into judgement with God To enter or goe into judgement as the word is is either to begin or renew a sute and to desire the hearing of the cause againe God makes no faulty Judgements why then should any cause determin'd by him come to a second hearing there may be reason enough among men to heare a cause againe but what God resolves needs not be reviewed much lesse reversed Here then Elihu meets with those frequent complaints of Job under his afflictions and likewise with those his severall motions and earnest petitions to have his cause heard afresh as if God had prest him too sore or at least had not done him right in suffering him to be so sorely prest by men Thus Elihu seemes to say God never gave any man any just cause to plead his cause over againe with him nor hath he given thee O Job any cause to desire it of him 'T is true carnall men yea and sometimes godly men when as Job here they are greatly afflicted are ready to thinke and say they are over-severely dealt with But the reason of Elihu stands good and firme against all these thoughts and sayings For he will not lay upon man more then is right Hence note God never wronged nor will wrong any man There are two speciall cases in which God never did nor ever will wrong man First he will not wrong man by denying him that reward which he hath freely promised no man shall serve God for naught he shall not say God hath promised but he hath not performed The experience of his people seale to the truth of his promises as wel as their faith imbraceth it That hope of man which is anchored in a promise of God never miscarried not made any man ashamed Secondly God will not wrong man by laying upon him a greater punishment then he hath threatned The Magistrate cannot be charged with laying more punishment upon an offender then is right if he punisheth him not more then the Law alloweth There may be a great deale of severity I grant in punishing up to the rigor of the Law but there is no unrighteousness in it The Mosaical law allowed of forty stripes now if they had layd forty-one upon any offender they had layd upon him more then was right because they exceeded the Law and to have layd full forty stripes which was the utmost they could by Law had been severe therefore they usually abated one stripe at least Hence the Apostle Paul saith 2 Cor 11.24 Of the Jewes five times received I forty stripes save one if they had given Paul forty stripes they had done no wrong as to the Law though one had been too many for and a wrong to him who had not broken their law Seeing the Lord lays no more upon the worst of sinners then the law alloweth he doth not lay upon man more then right Yea not only the chastisements which the Lord layeth upon his owne servants but the greatest punishments which he layeth upon the worst of the wicked in this world are much lesse then might with Justice be inflicted This was Ezra's humble acknowledgement before the Lord Ezra 9.13 And after all that is come upon us for our evill deeds and for our great trespasse seeing that thou our God hast punished us lesse then our iniquities deserve The punishment that was upon the people of Israel was exceeding great in so much that Daniel saith in his prayer Chap 9.11 12. Vnder the whole heavens hath not been done as hath been done upon Jerusalem yet Ezra speaking of that very dispensation saith Thou hast punished us lesse then our iniquities deserve In this life the greatest of our punishments are lesse then the least of our sins Every sin or transgression of the Law deserves eternall death therefore in this life the greatest punishments that fall upon sinners are lesse then their sins As the least mercies which God bestoweth upon them are greater then the greatest of their deservings That was Jacobs free confession Gen 32.10 I am not worthy of the least of or I am lesse then all the mercies and of all the truth which thou hast shewed unto thy servant So the greatest punishments that fall upon them in this life are lesse then the least of their sins And in the next life where sinners shall have full measure heaped up pressed downe running over and that for ever yet then they shall not have one graine more either of weight or measure then they have deserved The Lord layeth upon no man in this life so much nor in that to come more then is right Hence it followeth Secondly Man hath no cause to complaine of God or God hath not given any man any cause to complaine whatsoever his sufferings are Why should he complaine who hath but his right As God hath not given any man a liberty to complaine so he hath not given any man just occasion or a true reason to complaine If the burden of punishment be heavy upon any man let him thanke his own sin or selfe for it he hath but his due from God We are often cruel to and wrong our selves God is usually mercifull and never but just to us yea how great soever any affliction is 't is a mercy that 't is no greater and God can quickly make it greater how great soever it is and still be just As he never doth more then he may so he never doth so much as he can in punishing us The Lord hath more in the treasures of his wrath then yet he hath powred upon the worst of sinners Nor indeed can the most capacious vessels of wrath hold all his wrath 't is as himselfe is infinite Cain sayd My punishment is greater then I can beare Gen 4.13 yet God could have made his punishment greater then it was Therefore Jeremy confessed Lam 3.22 It is of the Lords mercies that we are not consumed because his compassions faile not Whatsoever is lesse then utter consumption hath some mixture of compassion in it every punishment hath somewhat of compassion in it except that of everlasting damnation O then let all flesh feare and tremble to enter into Judgement with God to complaine or take offence at any of his proceedings with them There are foure things considerable in God which should stop all mens mouths from daring to doe so First He is most powerfull there is no escaping out of his hands Secondly He is most wise and seeth quite through all that man hath done with his hand
they that are really wicked shall be dealt with as wicked men though they make a high profession of godliness in the Church even them will God strike also as wicked men Christ speakes of some Math 7.22 who made a lâ—â—d profession of religion with whom yet he dealt as with wicked men Depart from me saith he I know ye not ye workers of iniquity Though God doth not deal alike with all wicked men yet he deales with them all like wicked men There is not one wicked man in the world but he shall be dealt with according to his kind that is as a wicked man and shall have that for his portion which is the portion of their Cup who are wicked As the Godly so the wicked whether prophane or false and hypocriticall shall be esteemed and handled by God like themselves or as they are Secondly From the first word as it is taken causally upon which many insist Note The reason why wicked men â—ne stricken is because they are wicked Were not men wicked they should never feele such stroakes from the hand or rather iron rod of God If any smart and are ruin'd they may thank themselves for it that is their sins for it their sufferings are the fruits of their sin The Prophet told the sinfull Jewes so Jer 4.18 they had an affliction upon them which did reach even to the heart God made their hearts ake he struck them to the heart but why did he so the answer is Thy sin and thy doings have procured those things to thee c. He striketh them as wicked men In the open sight of others Locus videntium locus patens frequens celebris omnium oculis expositus Par Importat visionem paradigmaticam et exemplarem Merc These words are a further description of the manner how God strikes the wicked he doth it openly or as we put in the margin In the place of beholders that is in such a place and in such a manner that all may behold it we say He strikes them in the open sight of others that is he punisheth them in an exemplary way or that they may be an example of warning unto others For The place of seers or of beholders is some open and eminent place oppos'd to a Corner as Paul sayd pleading his cause before king Agrippa Acts 26.26 This thing was not done in a Corner no it was done as upon the house-top even in the place of beholders The Lord will not have to doe with wicked men only in a Corner He will have witnesses of his doings with them There shall be enow to take notice how he handles them therefore he often takes open vengeance on them in the frequent assembly and concourse of many beholders both approving and reverencing yea adoring the impartiall equity of the supreame Judge and his care of humane affaires So then the words are an allusion to the execution of Common malefactors who dye by the Judgement of the Magistrate such being condemned and sentenced by the Judge are not put to death in the prison or in a hole but are taken out and carried to some noted place of execution or a Scaffold is purposely erected where a multitude of spectators are admitted to come and behold the Tragedy When our Lord Jesus Christ who to deliver us from our transgressions was numbred with transgressors when he I say was crucified The Evangelist saith Luke 23.35 The people stood beholding and the Rulers also with them derided him Christ himselfe was strucken as a wicked man in the place of Beholders And so have many thousands of his faithfull witnesses The wicked deale with them often as the Lord dealeth sometimes with wicked men they are brought forth from prison to death and executed in the open sight of others All things in this world come alike to all no man knoweth love or hatred by all that is before them Eccl 9.1 2. The Apostle Paul speaking of himselfe and his fellow-Apostles to shew the publick disgrace which they were put to saith We are made a spectacle to the world to Angels and to men 1 Cor 4 9. The Greeke is we are a Theater to the world c. As if he had sayd all see how we are used And as bloody persecuters make the faithfull servants of Christ a spectacle so Christ will at last make wicked men a spectacle to the world to Angels and to men Thus it is prophecied Isa 66.24 that all flesh who come to worship before the Lord shall goe forth and looke upon the carcasses of the men that have transgressed against him c. They shall be stricken in the place of Beholders or Seers Some expound that word Seers Videre saepe significat cum voluptate aliquid spectare Scult as implying more then ordinary seers or more then barely such as see what is done namely such as are delighted and pleased with what is done yet not as it is a suffering of paine by man but as it is an act of Justice from God Hence note God oftentimes doth Justice upon sinners openly The Judgements of God are of two sorts Some are secret others are manifest he can doe execution upon men when none see it nay he doth the severest executions upon some men when they themselves doe not see it that 's the sting and severity of the Judgement that they have not so much as any sence of the wrath of God when the full vialls of his wrath are powring out upon them But many of the Judgements of God are open As he striketh some so secretly that none can see it so others so visibly that all may see it Thus the Lord commanded Moses Numb 25.4 when Israel had joyned themselves unto Baal-peor Take all the heads of the people and hang them up before the Lord against the Sun By the heads of the people we may understand either the capitall offenders those who were most active and ready in that wickednesse or their principall Rulers who in stead of stopping them from or punishing them for those offences gave way to them or at least wincked at them These must be hanged against the Sun that is as Elihu speakes here in the open sight of others or in the place of seers Thus they were made an example of caution that all might see and feare and doe no more presumptuously Read the like executions of divine Judgement threatned 2 Sam 12.11 12. Isa 26.11 John in the Revelation Chap 15.4 prophecyeth of the Saints triumphing at the fall of Babylon and singing the song of Moses and the song of the Lambe saying Great and marvellous are thy workes c. for thy Judgements are made manifest God hath now stricken Babylon his great enemy in the open sight of others his Judgements were right before they are alwayes right but till then not manifest David saith Psal 9.16 The Lord is knowne by the Judgement which he executeth now if the Lord be knowne by the Judgement which
have performed the commandement of the Lord he was his owne trumpeter and would needs tell the story of his doings himselfe though he had done his businesse to halves Come thou blessed of the Lord I have performed the commandement of the Lord as if it would not serve him to doe his duty unlesse Samuel had seene and taken notice of him Abraham gave proofe of the highest act of faith that ever was in the world yet did Abraham say Come see my faith Moses led the people of Israel forty yeares in the wildernesse through a series of wonderfull tryalls and temptations to the very borders of Canaan which was one of the highest services that ever man undertook and was faithfull in all his house Heb 4.2 yet did he say Come see my fidelity Joshua victoriously expelled the Cananites and divided their land by lot among the tribes of Israel yet did he say Come see my fortitude We heare not a word of any of their doings from those who were sincere When we see men forward to invite the approbation of others by making reports of their good deeds it gives a strong argument of suspicion that they have done what they have done with a bad heart or that as it is sayd of Jehu they have not sought God with all their hearts But some may object Did not Samuel proclaime his own integrity before all the people 1 Sam 12.3 Whose oxe have I taken or whose asse have I taken or whom have I defrauded whom have I oppressed or of whose hand have I received any bribe to blind mine eyes therewith I answer Samuel spake this to upbraid their ingratitude and discontent not to extoll his owne justice yea some conceive that he made this challenge to give Saul a patterne how he ought to governe rather then to commend his owne government I find the Apostle Paul making large reports of his owne both doings and sufferings 2 Cor 11. But if we peruse that Chapter we shall find him hovering in a suspence of doubts and feares whether or no it were convenient or comely for him to doe so How many preambles and Apologyes did he make before he fell directly upon that unpleasing subject Would to God ye could beare with me in my folly saith he and indeed beare with me And againe I speake as it were foolishly in this confidence of boasting And yet all that he spake was not to make a boast of himselfe but to vindicate his Apostleship from unjust and envious calumniations 'T is most certaine He that is sincere desires not to be open but silently satisfieth his soule with the conscience of doing his duty and takes more content in knowing his own integrity then in knowing that others know it Vertue looseth nothing of her value in his esteeme no nor of her lustre in his eye because she is hidden from the eyes of men Like the earth in this poynt he keepes his richest mineralls and most precious gems of grace and goodness below in his bowells or at the center of his heart and will not let them be seene till a kind of necessity diggs them out When Moses after his forty dayes neere accesse to and communion with God in the Mount perceived that his face did shine Exod 34.33 he put a vayle upon it every true Moses whose acquaintance and fiduciall familiarity with God hath stampt upon him the impressions of divine light is so farre from affecting to dazzle the eyes of others with it that he rather puts a vayle of gracious modesty upon it and will not let so much as the light of his good workes be seene but as thereby in which case Christ commands it Math 5.16 He may glorifie his father which is in heaven And herein a Christian followeth the example of Christ in whom though the Godhead dwelt bodily yet he rarely shewed his divine power And when once by a miracle he had made the blind see he also by command made them dumbe concerning that miracle Math 9.30 See that no man know it It was our Saviours counsel to all his followers Mat 6.5 Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doth and it was his consolation to them in the next words Your father which seeth in secret himselfe shall reward you openly yea which is a higher consolation then that Himselfe will be your reward Secondly As the designing hypocrite desires to be seene in doing good or to have the good which he hath done seene so he is exceeding censorious and rigid towards those whom he sees falling into evill Christ gives this discovery also Math 7.3 Why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye but considerest not the beame that is in thine owne eye concluding at the 5th verse Thou hypocrite why doth Christ call him hypocrite surely because he was so quick-sighted to see a mote that is a smaller fault in his brothers eye but tooke no notice of the beame that was in his owne eye a spot upon his brothers coate was censured more by him then his owne wallowing in the mire I doe not say that the Patriarke Judah was an hypocrite but as those two other Patriacks so he acted one very grosse part of hypocrisie Gen. 38.24 For he no sooner heard that Tamor was with childe but he censured yea condemn'd her presently to death Bring her forth sayd he and let her be burnt and yet himselfe was more faulty then she How hard a Judge was he of that crime in another which was principally his owne Saul had sinned greatly 1 Sam 13.9 in offering sacrifice before Samuel came which was an usurpation of the Priests office and so great a sin that Samuel told him presently God would therefore rend the Kingdome from him yet he thought to put it off with a slight excuse But in the 14th Chapter when Jonathan only offended against a rash command of his putting a Curse upon that people if any did eate before the going downe of the Sun he sentenced him to death for it In the 8th of John How severe were the Pharisees to the woman taken in Adultery they haled her before Christ and pressed the Law that she should be stoned to death yet when Christ sayd v. 7. He that is without sin among you let him first cast a stone at her they being convicted by their owne conscience went out one by one We ought to reprove and not flatter sin in others yet they who are extreamely severe against a sin in others usually favour either the same or a worse in themselves He that is sincere piâ—tieth others as much as reproves them and he reproves them though wiâ—h sharpness yet with meekness at once considering himselfe lest he also be tempted Gal 6.1 and blessing God who hath kept him in or from these temptations Thirdly The designing hypocrite discovers himselfe by laying downe or departing from the profession of religion when his worldly ends are attained Feined zeale cooles or abates is lesse and
destruction Every mouth must be stopped and all the world become guilty before God upon that account Rom. 3.19 yet God doth not destroy And that he hath no content in destroying he bindes it with an Oath Ezek. 33.11 As I live saith the Lord I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked c. as if he had said I am not bent upon your destruction I had rather be taken off and save you I pardon I will not destroy If any shall say Hath God no pleasure in destruction Hath he not a will to destroy as well as to save I answer God hath pleasure in destroying but it is in the destruction of those who obstinately resist his Will who refuse both his counsel and his Covenant to such indeed he saith Prov. 1.26 I will laugh at your calamity and mock when your fear that is the thing you feared cometh as desolation c. That the men in whose calamity God laugheth are such is evident by the character given of them at the 25th verse Ye have set at nought all my counsel and would none of my reproof As if God had said you have laughed at my counsel therefore I will laugh at your calamity The Lord will declare himself delighted in their destruction who have despised instruction and he will glorifie himself in the actings of his Justice upon them who have slighted and put by the tenders and entreaties of his mercy Yet still God declareth himself more pleased in acting and putting forth his saving power then his destroying power The Prophet Hos 11.8 9. most pathetically represents as it were a debate in the breast of God himself between his Justice and his Mercy How shall I give thee up Ephraim How shall I deliver thee Israel How shall I make thee as Admah How shall I set thee as Zeboim Mine heart is turned within me my repentings are kindled together v. 9. I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger I will not return to destroy Ephraim We see after the debate the Lord determines for sparing not for destroying So then though he can and will not only destroy but laugh at the destruction of obstinate sinners yet he loves to spare rather then to destroy Thirdly From the connexion of these two pardoning and sparing mercy God saith first I pardon and then secondly I will not destroy who are they whom God will not destroy they are are such as he pardons Hence Note Pardoned persons shall never be destroyed As soon as Nathan had said to David the Lord hath put away thy sin the very next word is this thou shalt not dye 2 Sam. 12.13 if Davids sin had not been pardoned Daved must have dyed for it 'T is a Logical Maxime When the Cause is taken away Sublata causa collitur effectus the Effect is taken away Sin is the cause of destruction therefore when God takes away sin which is the cause destruction the effect must needs be taken away too pardon destroyeth sin therefore how can they that are pardoned be destroyed Pardon swallows up sin As the Apostle speaks of life 2 Cor. 5.4 That mortality might be swallowed up of life Here mortality swallows up our lives by degrees but hereafter mortality shall be swallowed up at once of life Now as life shall then swallow up mortality so pardon at present swalloweth up sin for as in our glorified state there shall never any thing of mortality appear so in a pardon'd estate nothing of sin shall appear as to hurt us Sin pardoned cannot be found Jer. 50.20 In those dayes and in that time saith the Lord the iniquity of Jacob shall be sought for and there shall be none and the sins of Judah and they shall not be found why not The Lord answers for I will pardon them whom I reserve And if their sins shall not be found surely they shall not be found guilty and therefore not destroyed God may chasten them whom he hath pardoned but he will not destroy those whom he hath pardon'd pardoned persons may smart and smart greatly for sin but they shall not dye eternally for it they shall not be destroyed for it David was pardoned yet God told him the sword shall never depart from thy house and the Lord told him particularly of a sore destruction upon a part of his house presently because by this deed thou hast given great occasion to the enemies of God to blaspheme thou being a Professor hast opened the mouths of the wicked against profession therefore though thou shalt not dye yet the childe also that is born unto thee shall surely dye There are two things which the pardon of sin takes away First the power or reigne of sin where-ever sin is pardoned the strength of it is subdued God doth not pardon sin as Princes do they may pardon an evil doer and yet he still remain as evil and as ready to do evil as ever they may pardon a thief and yet he continue to be a thief still but if God pardons a drunkard an adulterer or a thief he doth not remain a drunkard or an adulterer or a thief still God takes away the power of that sin which he pardoneth Secondly The pardon of sin takes away the punishment of sin it may leave some chastisement but it wholly takes away the punishment The Popish doctrine saith the fault is taken away by pardon but there is a commutation of the punishment eternal punishment is changed into temporal either in this life or that to come hence their doctrines of Purgatory and of Prayer for the dead c. all which stuffe comes in upon this account They cast all men into three sorts some are Apostles and Martyrs men very eminently godly and they go immediately to heaven there are another sort and these are Apostates from or persecuters of the faith notorious sinners these go immediately to hell there are a third or middle sort of ordinary sinners and they go immediately after death neither to heaven nor hell but to Purgatory where they must bear the punishment of their sins till they can be prayed out Christ hath only got so much favour for them say they to change their eternal punishment into a temporal The grace of the Gospel knows nothing of this Doctrine that tells us when sin is pardoned all is pardoned both guilt and punishment both temporal and eternal nothing remains but only chastisement how sorely soever a believer suffers in this life yet strictly taken it is but a chastisement and there remaineth nothing for him to suffer in the life which is to come And if so then Pardon of sin is a precious mercy 'T is so First Because it proceeds from the precious mercies of God Secondly Because it comes thorow the precious blood of Christ Col. 1.14 Thirdly Because it opens a door to all precious mercies as sin unpardoned with-holds all good things from us Jer. 5.25 so sin pardoned opens the door for all mercy
to flow in upon us Christ said to the sick man Matth. 9.2 Be of good cheer thy sins are forgiven thee Fourthly It is a precious mercy because it stops and keeps off all evils and judgements strictly so called I forgive I will not destroy Our comforts cannot stand before the guilt of sin and our troubles cannot stand long before the pardon of sin Isa 33.24 The highest wtath of God appears in this when he will not pardon and it argues the greatest displeasure of man against man when he prayeth that he may not be pardoned That was a most dreadful prayer of the Prophet Isa 2.9 The mean man is bowed down and the mighty man humbles himself therefore forgive them not here was a prayer that they might not be forgiven and the ground why he prayed so seems to be as strange as the matter of it was dreadful Is it a sin to be excepted from pardon to see a mean man bow down and a mighty man humble himself The meaning is they bowed themselves not to God but to idols all bowing and humbling our selves either to worship an idol or in idol worship is rebelling against God We have a like prayer Jer. 18.23 the Prophet having spoken of the plots and devisings of the people against him turns himself thus to God Thou knowest all their counsel to slay me forgive not their iniquity neither blot their sin from thy sight Nothing can be wisht worse to any man then this that his sin may never be pardoned And here it may be questioned how the Prophet could make such a prayer which seems to have the height of all uncharitableness in it I answer first The Prophet was led by an extraordinary Spirit to do this Secondly We are not to conceive that the Prophet prayed for their eternal condemnation but that God would call them to a reckoning and make them feel the evil of their own doings There is a sin unto death for the pardon of which we are not to pray 1 John 5.16 yet there is no sin about which we are to pray that it may never be pardoned The worst prayer that can be made against any man is that he may not be pardoned and there is nothing better to be prayed for then pardon It shewed the height of Christs love when hanging on the Cross he prayed thus for his enemies Luke 23.34 Father forgive them they know not what they do And the Protomartyr Stephen breathed out a like spirit of charity while he was breathing out his life in a shower of stones powred upon him from more stony hearts Acts 7.60 with this prayer Lord lay not this sin to their charge Thus I have finished this 31th verse both according to our own Translation and that other insisted upon by many of the learned only from the connexion of this verse with the next according to the latter reading To God who saith I pardon I will not destroy it should be said that which I see not teach thou me if I have done iniquity I will do no more Observe The very consideration that God is ready to pardon sin should make us resolved against the committing of sin The sin-pardoning mercy of God is one of the highest and most spiritual arguments by which the soul is kept from sin There is forgiveness with thee saith David Psal 130.4 that thou mayst be feared that is because thou art so merciful as to forgive sinners therefore they ought to fear thee in doing what thy will is and in avoiding whatsoever is contrary to thy will 'T is prophesied that frame of spirit shall dwell upon the people of God in the latter dayes Hos 3.5 They shall fear the Lord and his goodness that is Si scirem homines ignoraturos Deos ignoscituros tamen non facerem Sen◠they shall fear to offend the Lord because he is so good and ready to pardon It was said by a Heathen and it may shame many who profess themselves Christians that a heathen said so if I did know that men should never know the evil which I do and that the gods so he speaks in their language would pardon and forgive the evil which I do yet I would not do it Surely the spirit of a true believer must needs rise thus high and higher upon the clear grounds of Gospel grace and discoveries of the free love of God Cannot a true believer say though I know that God will pardon my sin though he hath declared that my sin is pardoned and though I could be assured that men should never know of this sin if I commit it yet I will not do it To God who saith I pardon it should be said I will sin no more I shall now proceed to the 32d verse which stands fair to either reading Vers 32. That which I see not teach thou me if I have done iniquity I will do no more Some carry the general sence of these words as if spoken by God himself to Job and spoken by an irony or in scorn as if he had thus bespoken him If I have afflicted thee beyond thy desert or have overthrown thy judgement that Job had more then once complained of Si quid me fugit in te affligendo vel si quid errarem tu me doceas Si te venando perperam egi vel injustè me habui non ultra id fecero 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Merc. if I have not kept to the true rules of reason and righteousness in chastening thee if in my dealings with thee I have done amiss or have not done thee right Shew me wherein O Job and I will afflict thee so no more I shall not stay upon this but take the words according to our Translation as the whole verse intends a further description of a person deeply humbled under and sensible of the hand the chastening the afflicting hand of God who having said with respect to all known sins in the former verse I will offend no more saith here in this verse concerning all unknown sins That which I see not teach thou me and if I have done iniquity I will do no more That which I see not There is a two-sold sight First Corporal the sight of the bodily eye Secondly Intellectual the sight of the eye of the minde or of the understanding when Elihu represents the penitent afflicted person speaking thus What I see not c. he intends not a corporal sight but an intellectual Seeing is here as often elsewhere in Scripture put for knowing the understanding is the eye of the soul How blinde and dark are those men who have no understanding in the things of God! Eph. 4.18 When Christ had sayd For judgement am I come into the world that they which see not might see and that they which see might be made blinde some of the Pharisees said unto him John 9.41 are we blinde also have we no eyes Jesus said unto them If ye were blinde ye should have
they might sin against God he knew no sin they had run into nor could charge them with any excess but he was jealous they had sinned nor did Job speak thus as if his meaning were that possibly in their feasting some corruption might work in them he knew there is no man in the best duties of his life wholly freed from the workings of sin but he had this jealousie that they might have fallen into some great sin and so provoked God greatly against them therefore he did as it were way-lay such guilt and early sought reconciliation with God As Job was thus jealous of his children so a gracious heart though he cannot charge himselfe with this or that evill yet he is apt to suspect his owne heart and feares it may be worse with him then possibly it is Secondly When he saith If I have done iniquity This humble man though he doth suppose that he might have done iniquity yet he doth but suppose it Hence note A godly man may live free from the doing of any grosse sin He doth not put an if upon it whether he had sinned or no but whether he had done iniquity Zachariah and Elizabeth were not without sin but they did no iniquity for saith the text Luke 1.6 They were both righteous before God walking in all the commandements and ordinances of the Lord blamelesse It cannot be imagined but that the people of Israel sinned yet Num 23.21 God saw no iniquity in Jacob nor perversenesse in Israel There may be such a time in the Church when the people of God have no iniquity no provocation to be seene or found among them Though a Godly man cannot deny but he hath sinned yet he can affirme that he hath not indulged himselfe in any sin If I have done iniquity I will doe no more The Hebrew is I will not adde We render I will doe no more As if he had sayd If upon tryall it be found that I have done iniquity yet I will not adde iniquity to iniquity I will not goe on I will not persist nor proceed in iniquity I will not take a step more in any way which God shall discover to me to be an evill way If I am out of the way I will not goe on in my way Hence observe First A godly penitent person is resolute against sin His will is set against it I will doe no more I shewed in opening the former verse It is meere to be sayd unto God I have borne chastisement I will offend no more in what sence a godly man may make such a promise or say I will sin no more here I say A godly man is resolute against sin especially against great sins As a carnall man hath but very weake resolves for the doing of good he hath as some expresse it but a velleity somewhat like a will to doe that which is good so a carnall man makes but weake resolves against evill he hath not a setled will but a kind of noleity against it He makes some flourishes of profession against it but he is not resolvedly ingaged against it whereas a godly man is resolute both as to the doing of good and the not doing of evill If a godly man might have his will he would never sin more And as a Godly man waiteth joyfully for that state of glory wherein he shall sin no more so a resolution to sin no more hath as I may say somewhat of glory in it In glory we shall sin no more and where grace is in truth that soule would gladly be rid of sin and sin no more A godly man is resolved against all ungodlinesse and this is a kind of entrance into glory Againe Whereas the penitent man saith I will doe no more Note Continuance in any knowne sin for saith he what I know not teach thou me or in that which is made knowne to us to be sinfull is inconsistent with true repentance Repentance for and continuance in sin cannot consist in the same subject This is the voyce of every gracious soule I would not sin any more or I would not continue any longer in sin To sin is common to man but to continue in sin is proper to a wicked man To erre and faile that 's humane but to persevere in error is diabolicall Sin will continue in us while we continue in this world but they that are not of the world doe not will not continue in sin how long so ever they are in the world Sin may be considered three wayes First as remaining in us Secondly as reserved Thirdly as preserved by us There is sin remaining in the best of Saints on this side heaven Rom 7.20 21 22 23 24. Sin is reserved only in carnall men they save their sins and would be saved not from but in their sins Sin is preserved or maintained and defended in the worst of wicked men Sin is heightned to the utmost where 't is not only retained but maintained and preserved The Apostle having closed the fifth Chapter of his Epistle to the Romanes in the triumph of Gospel grace That as sin hath reigned unto death so grace might reigne through righteousnesse unto eternall life by Jesus Christ our Lord begins the next with a prevention of the abuse of this Grace What shall we say then shall we continue in sin that grace may abound God forbid How shall we that are dead to sin live any longer therein How can we continue in sin that are partakers of Gospel grace Sin will continue in us but we cannot continue in it The question implyeth a kind of impossibility We were once dead in sin but now we are dead to sin how then can we live or continue in it Perseverance is either our best or our worst To persevere is best when we persevere in good and to persevere is worst when we persevere in evill It is bad to be or doe evill but it is worse to abide in evill The first best is not to sin the next best is not to continue nor lodge in sin no not for an houre Paul sayd in another case Gal 2.5 To whom we gave place by subjection no not for an houre We should not give place to sin no not for a minute but resist it to the utmost and totally displace it if we can Lastly From the Hebrew elegancy which saith I will not adde Note A godly man may commit sin after sin but he doth not adde sin to sin When he hath committed any one sin he breaks it off and dedestroyeth it by repentance He doth not adde sin to sin because the sin formerly committed is destroyed by repentance His former sin is taken off the file before he acts a second who heartily repenteth of the first and as heartily resolveth not to commit a second Such a man doth not run a round of sinning and repenting though he sinneth after â—he hath repented Daniel gave that advice to Nebuchadnezzar Dan 4.27 Break off thy sins by
a sinfull way this is rebellion this is sin in the very height of it This was the rebellion of Ahaz 2 Chron 28.22 Who in the time of his distresse trespassed yet more against the Lord. And this was the rebellion of Judah Isa 1.5 Why should ye be strieken any more ye will revolt more and more Take heed of this 't is too much that we sin at all let us not be found adding rebellion to our sin I may say these two things concerning the habit or any act of sin First It is a burthen to a Godly man O wretched man that I am sayd Paul who shall deliver me from this body of death Secondly As it is a Godly mans burthen when he sins so it is his care and study not to sin he would not sin at all he watcheth himselfe that he may not sin in the least degree That was the Apostle Johns desire and care for all the Churches 1 John 2.1 My little children these things I write unto you that ye sin not I would have you watch over your hearts and wayes so narrowly that no sin might slip you that ye might not have a wrong thought nor speake an idle word how much more should we take heed that we adde not rebellion to our sin There is somewhat of rebellion in every sin even in the sins of good men but 't is sad when they adde rebellion to their sin Samuel gives a dreadfull description of that sin which is rebellion 1 Sam 15.23 Rebellion is as the sin of witch-craft and stubbornness is as Iniquity and Idolatry Witch-craft is that sin wherein men have much converse and compliance with the devill The devill and the witch or the devill and the Diviner as our Margin hath it act as loving companions they have mutual converse yea commerse they trade together Rebellion is that sin or we sin rebelliously when we declare our selves most averse to God The witch declares himselfe a friend to the devill the rebellious soule defieth and despiseth God now those sins that have most compliance with the devill and most defiance against God are put together if a man doth much set himselfe to oppose God by sinning against light against reproofes and against providences whether the gracious or afflicting providences of God If a man I say rebell thus against God it is like the sin of witch-craft which is compliance and converse with the devill Here is an extreame on the one side and an extreame on the other side yet both meete rebellion is as the sin of witch-craft and stubbornness is as Iniquity and Idolatry These latter words are exegaticall stubbornness that is when a man is stout and will goe on his way is as Iniquity and Idolatry We may consider a great elegancy in those words Stubbornness is as Idolatry What is Idolatry it is worshipping or giving honour to a false god which is indeed worshipping the devill all Idolatry is devill-worship the witch worshippeth the devill intentionally and so doth the Idolater though he intend it not 1 Cor 10.20 The things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to devills and not to God I doe not say every error or fayling in worship is devill-worship but that which is Idolatry indeed or the setting up of a worship of our owne devising is Idolatry and devill-worship Thus stubbornness is as Idolatry and rebellion is as witch-craft What is witch-craft compliance with the devill What is Idolatry devill-worship a falling downe to the devill Let the wicked consider what they doe when they rebell and let the people of God take heed of any sin or way of sinning which may be accounted rebellion To sin with much will against much light against many reproofs from men and against the reproving or against the inviting providences of God hath rebellion in it He addeth rebellion to his sin Secondly Taking the words in the mildest sence Note Sometimes a good man may goe backward he may be worse and worse and doe worse and worse We should be alwayes growing in grace that 's the condition of believers and their duty yet under some dispensations they may decline for a time and grow worse and worse adding that which is like rebellion to their sin Thirdly If we consider these words in connection with the former Elihu having prayed for further tryall upon Job as fearing that else he might adde rebellion to his sin Note He that is not throughly convinced and chastned may quickly grow worse and worse He may or he will adde rebellion to his sin I doe not know where a mans sin will end if the Lord should let him alone 'T is a mercy that any man especially that God hath a continuall inspection over us if some mens wayes were not tryed and questioned they might adde rebellion to their sin who knows where they would stop it is a mercy to have both words and actions examined by brethren and Churches how sadly else would many wander yea it is a mercy to be tryed by affliction When God keeps us from a foule way by building a wall against us it is a mercy else we might adde rebellion to sin No man knowes the measure of his owne evill heart or what it would doe for though believers have a generall promise to be kept by the power of God to salvation yet how lamentably have good men â—â—llen though kept from falling away Elihu aggravates this yet further by the example of Job in the latter and last part of the verse He clappeth his hands amongst us and multiplieth his words against God He clappeth his hands or maketh a noyse amongst us as Mr Broughton reads it clapping of the hands in Scripture hath a three-fold signification First It implyeth passion or sorrow A man under affliction claps or wrings his hands for griefe Both those gestures are of the same significancy Secondly There is a clapping of the hands with indignation when we are very angry then we clap our hands Thirdly There is a clapping of the hands for joy or in a way of triumph when a man thinks he has conquered and got the day he claps his hands and so doe they who are on his side Psal 47.1 O clap your hands all ye people shout unto God with the voyce of triumph Explosurus esset nos ut qui vicisset nos disputando Pisc I conceive Elihu intends Job clapping his hands in this third sense he clappeth his hands amongst us or insults over us as if he had conquered and wonne the Garland and therefore Elihu prayed that he might be further tryed This is another aggravation of that ill frame which Elihu conceived Job to be in And indeed to clap our hands when we have done or spoken evill is worse then the evill which we have either done or spoken He clappeth his hands And multiplieth his words or may multiply words against God Solomon saith Pro 10.19 in the multitude of words there doth not want sin that is
Thirdly Such strivings with God are the exercisings of our lusts and corruptions Then is the time for anger and discontent or any evill affection to come forth and act their part Fourthly Striving with God is an argument that sin hath much strength in us and that corruption hath got a mighty hand over us Fifthly Striving with God layeth us open to all the temptations of Satan to all the fiery darts of the Devill Our shield is gone when once we strive with God who is our shield in all Satans strivings and assaults against us And then we stand naked before that armed enemy Sixthly Striving with God doth at once unfit us for every good duty and putteth us further off from every desired mercy Seventhly and lastly Striving against God makes man most like the Devill who is the most unquiet and discontented creature in the world and is alwayes both striving with God and vexing at his owne condition The devill 's sin at first was striving with God and 't is the summe of all his actings and workings against man ever since None resemble the devill more lively then male-contents and who are they but such as strive and struggle against the afflictive providences of God Now for the preserving and keeping of our hearts from this great this complicated sin a sin containing many sins in it and disposing us to all sin Lay these things to heart First let us consider our own nothingness in comparison of God God is all and what are we we are nothing and shall we strive with God shall folly strive against wisdome and weaknesse against strength When the Prophet would comfort the people of God against the strivings of the nations with them he doth it upon this consideration Isa 40 17. All nations before him are as nothing and they are counted to him lesse then nothing and vanity To whom will ye compare him And surely we may by the same argument much more deterre all men from striving with God Shall single persons strive against him to whom not only they but whole nations are nothing yea and lesse then nothing Secondly Doe we find our selves under a crosse or in a hard condition remember we have deserved no better As we are nothing so we have deserved nothing Jacob to keepe his spirit quiet in a time of great distresse confessed Gen 32.10 Lord I am unworthy of the least of thy mercies As if he had sayd I have no reason to complaine or be angry to fret or vex at this dispensation yea though thou shouldst let the cloud of my brothers wrath breake upon me and swallow me up for what am I If we consider we have deserved no good we shall never strive with God about any evill that befalls us especially if we consider Thirdly That we are ill-deserving or such as deserve the greatest evills None of us suffer but what our owne sin hath procured yea sin might have procured us soarer sufferings Every sin hath a crosse in the belly of it And shall we strive with God because of our crosses when our sins have made them Fourthly Why should we strive with God about these things are they worth the striving with God about surely they are not wotth the striving with men about much lesse with God If we were in the best outward estate that ever any man enjoyed in this world yet we were not then got a step beyond vanity Psal 39.5 Every man in his best estate is altogether vanity Suppose God should give you a blank and bid you sit downe and write what you would have as to your outward state and then bestow it upon you yet in this best estate you and your all are altogether vanity And will ye strive with God for taking a vaine thing from you Will you be so much dissatisfied for the taking away or want of that which could not satisfie you when you had it nor can when you have it againe If a man had all these comforts which he strives for they could not make him happy why then should he strive because they are removed from him But as they are vanity because unable to satisfie when we have them so they are vanity because of our uncertainty to hold them Yea suppose we hold them as long as we can have them it is but a while And shall we strive with God about loosing that which at longest we cannot keepe long To be sure these things are not necessary for us Christ sayd to Martha There is one thing necessary Luke 10.42 But a worldly comfort of any kind is not the neceâ—â—â—â—y thing which Christ there intends And shall we strive with God about unnecessaries Fifthly Know afflictions are the portion of the people of God in this life They are the corrections of a father and there is no son but hath his correction or may have it And shall we strive with God for sending us our portion our son-like child-like portion Sixthly I would say this to believers Why will ye strive with God about any of your afflictions they are for your good and benefit And will ye strive with God because he is doing you good let your afflictions be never so sad never so sore and to sence never so bad yet God is doing you good by them be not angry with your owne good Lastly Why doe we strive with God under our afflictions He loveth us as much under affliction as in a prosperous condition God is tender to his in their troubles and shall they be harsh to him when he is so tender towards them A parent that hath but nature will tender his child most when sick and weak and will not God Let us take heed we be not found striving with or having hard thoughts of God while the bowels of his most tender compassions are moving towards us To shut up this whole poynt As Christ when he saw his Disciples in danger to be carried away with the feare of man saith to them Luke 12.4 5. Be not afraid of them that can kill the body and after that have no more that they can doe But I will forewarne you whom you shall feare feare him which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell yea I say unto you feare him Now as because men are apt to feare yea mostly to feare that which they should not Christ sheweth them whom to feare So as hath been shewed because men are very apt to strive but they commonly strive with those and about those things which they should not Therefore I will tell you with whom and with what ye should strive If ye will needs be striving pray First Strive with the sin in your owne bosomes strive with your owne lusts and corruptions One of the great Gospel duties which we are called to is to mortifie our earthly members To strive with all inordinate affections with pride with envie with love of the world and with uncharitablenesse to the death is our duty if ye will
needs strive strive with these Secondly If you will needs be striving then strive with the sins of others in a gracious and zealous manner as Nehemiah did who contended with the Nobles for their prophanation of the Sabbath and their unlawfull marriages Neh 13.17 25. we should strive with onâ— anoâ—her to hinder that which is evill Gideon broke downe Baals altar he stâ—ove with Baal and was therefore sirnamed Jerubbaal Judg 6.32 So let us strive with the corrupt practices courses and customes of the times we live in not dâ—lly and comply with them as many doe The Apostle saith Heb 12.4 Ye have not yet resisted unto blood striving against sin That is either the sin of others or the sin which others would force you to Though we should strive against our owne sins especially yet 't is good to strive against sin in whomsoever we see it Thirdly If you will be striving then strive with Satan The Adversary Submit to God and resist the Devill containe the whole duty of man James 4.7 Our businesse is not to strive with God but to submit to him And our businesse is not to submit to the Devill but to strive with him How doe most run a contrary course They resist God and submit to the Devill O sad Here 's a threefold blessed strife First Strive with the lusts and corruptions of your owne hearts Secondly Strive with the sins of others and their sollicitations of you to sin Thirdly Strive with the Devill and his temptations Doe not strive with God why should we strive with God at any time or in any thing whom at all times and in all things we ought to serve honour and obey So much of this chideing question in which Elihu reproves Job and he had given but too much occasion for it Why dost thou strive with him he giveth not account of any of his matters JOB Chap. 33. Vers 14. For God speaketh once yea twice yet man perceiveth it not IN this verse and the context following Elihu begins his second answer to Job which is also continued to the end of the Chapter His answer is layd downe First In generall at the 14th verse Secondly In particulars by way of instance from the 15 verse to the 29th Thirdly He summes up or recapitulates the whole of his discourse in the 29th and 30th verses Fourthly Concludes seriously inviting Job to answer what he had sayd as also what he had yet to say vers 31 32 33. This 14th verse hath some difficulty in it And though the crosse and various thoughts of Interpreters about it have made it more difficult yet there is one thing wherein all Center and agree That Elihu in this 14th verse and so forward propounds certaine wayes by which God is pleased to reveale and manifest himselfe unto man First to humble and bring man to a true sence of himselfe Secondly to worke in him an acknowledgement of his great goodnesse and righteousnesse in all his dealings with the children of men For having sayd at the 13th verse God gives not account of any of his matters He is above all reckonings and dayes of Audit having thus I say asserted the absolute soveraignty of God over man he adds to mittigate and allay the seeming severity of this assertion That although God be so high and great Deus nomini rationem reddere tenetur Tanto tamen amore nos complectitur ut saepius judicioruÌ„ suorum rationes aperire dignetur etsi id non semper observamus Lavat that he is not at all obliged to give any account of himselfe or of his wayes to the creature nor will allow any man to be so bold as to strive with him about or question any of his matters yet he is pleased freely and graciously to condescend unto man many wayes and not only once but often not only often in one way but by severall wayes to give him cleare intimations what his will is what he requires of him and calls unto him for if man had but will and understanding to perceive it for he speaketh once yea twice yet man perceiveth it not So then man hath no reason to complaine as Job sometimes had done and many others in like distresses doe that he is in the darke and doth not perceive the minde of God towards him why he is so afflicted and why God contendeth with him for God doth give touches hints and admonitions sometimes more privately sometimes more openly and if man doth not perceive them it is his owne fault Vers 14. For he speaketh once yea twice yet man perceiveth it not We render the first word of this verse by that causall particle For yet because the text doth not strictly carry a reason in it of what was sayd before but is rather an explication or an accommodation of it therefore some begin the verse not with that causall particle For but with an adverb of time When. So Mr Broughton When the omnipotent speaketh once c. And the reason of it is because we find another adverb of time answering this at the 16th verse When God speaketh once or twice and man perceiveth it not c. then he openeth the ears of men and sealeth their instruction As if Elihu had sayd If speaking will not doe it somewhat else shall or when God having spoken once or twice yet findes man unattentive and unsencible he takes another course then he openeth the ears of men and sealeth up their instruction If they understand not his meaning by dreams and visions he will awaken them to purpose We say For God speaketh As if here a reason were given why God should not be called at all as being so great he ought not to give man an account of any of his matters for he speaketh once or twice he is aforehand with man For God speaketh To speake in strict sence as speaking is the forming up of words by an articulate voyce is proper to man yet in Scripture God is sayd to speake when or howsoever he maketh knowne his mind to man Which he alwayes doth in such a way as is most suitable to his owne greatnesse with respect to mans weaknesse When God giveth us any intimation of his owne will and of our duty of what he will doe for us or of what he would have us doe then he is sayd to speake to us Heb 1.1 God who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the Prophets hath in these last dayes spoken to us by his Son God spake to the old fathers as at many times or by many parts so in divers wayes and manners he delivered his mind unto the people usually by the Prophets Dei admonitio vocu et sermonis saepe loco est etsi non semper ipse et loquatur ut saepo veteribus patribus loqui solebat quocunque tandem modo admonear Merc and to the Prophets in dreames and visions The speaking of God was