but to change their cloathes you have the expression in that place concerning Jacob be cleane saith he and change your garments It might be a changing by washing but I rather conceive that it was a change by putting on of other cloathes There was also another externall requisâ—te to the preparing and sanctifying of themselves and that was by abstaining for a time from the lawfull use of the marriage bed you have the command expresly in that 19th Exod. 15. Be ready against the third day come not at your wives and there are other the like places 1 Sam. 21.4 The Priest said There is no common bread under mine hand but there is hallowed bread if the young men have kept themselves at least from women if they have but that outward preparation the meaning is if they had kept themselves from their Wives David affirmes it was so in the words following The Apostle giveth the same rule in 1 Cor. 7.5 speaking of that point Defraud not one another saith he except it be with consent for a time that you may give your selves to fasting and prayer So that the Holy Ghost therein intimates such an abstaining as was preparatory to solemne duties that you may give your selves to fasting and prayer extraordinary duties call for extraordinary preparations These outward preparations were so necessary that when the people failed in them Hezekiah prayed for pardon 2 Chron. 30.18 19. The good Lord pardon every one that prepareth his heart to seeke God the Lord God of his Fathers though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the Sanctuary though their hearts were upright though they had hearts rightly prepared yet he prayeth that God would pardon the want of those outward preparations The principall preparation is of the heart and the washing of our wayes therefore we find how the Lord contendeth with them in Isa 1.10 11 c. where he speakes of those oblations and great services of the Jewes I hate your solemne feasts bring no more vaine oblations c. Why your hands sc your lives are full of blood wash yee make you cleane put away the evill of your doings from before mine eyes cease to doe evill learne to doe well c. As if he should say What doe you come to me in these holy duties except you prepare and fit your selves accordingly I cannot abide that unholy persons should come about holy things The very Heathen had this Notion they would not admit any to come to their religious services unlesse they were prepared That saying of Aeneas in the Poet to his Father when he came from the Warre is a cleare proofe Tu genitor c. Father doe you meddle with the sacrifices but as for me it is a sinnefull thing to touch them till I have washed my selfe in the fountaine This was an outward externall right amongst them for cleansing themselves The very Heathen saw they must not meddle with their holy things till they were cleansed therefore they had one that cryed out to the people when they came to sacrifice All you that are uncleane and prophane goe farre away from these sacrifices Not only the word of God but the very light of nature taught them not to meddle with holy things till they were sanctified Therefore specially looke to this when you have any sacrifice any duty to performe be prepared and sanctified within and without before you come to the duty It is true that the duty sanctifies but it is seldome that the duty sanctifies us unlesse we be sanctified for the duty They get most holinesse from the duty who are most holy before they come to the duty besides the great danger of comming unprepared Take heed how you heare not only heare but take heed to prepare your selves for hearing So looke to thy feete it hath the same sence when thou comest into the house of God prepare thy selfe be not hasty least thine be counted but the sacrifice of fooles So much of the first act of Jobs holy care He sent and sanctified them JOB 1. part of verse 5. and verse 6. And rose up early in the morning and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all For Job said It may be that my sonnes have sinned and cursed God in their hearts Thus did Job continually Now there was a day when the sonnes of God came to present themselves before the Lord and Satan came also among them NOw followes the second Act of Jobs holy care He rose up early in the morning and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all It is ill to performe a holy duty with neglect of preparation It is as bad to make preparation and then neglect the duty We see both joyned in Job he is carefull to prepare and he is as diligent to performe He rose up early This notes the extraordinary diligence and zeale of Job toward God in this duty He was so zealous that he riseth not only in the morning but early in the morning In Scripture to doe a thing in the morning and to doe a thing diligently are the same Psal 101.8 I will early destroy the wicked of the Land the word is I will destroy the wicked of the Land in the morning and the meaning is only this I will with all diligence and all care roote out of the Land all wicked persons So there is an expression Prov. 7.15 which illustrates this where the wicked woman the harlot tells the young man that shee came forth to meete him and diligently to seek his face the originall word there is to seek thy face in the morning and yet we know that in verse 9. it was in the twi-light in the evening that she met him But the Hebrew phrase is I came forth in the morning to seeke thy face that is as it is rendred I came forth diligently to seeke thy face So this comming forth of Job in the morning be-besides the time that it was at such an houre the beginning of the day notes the great diligence and exceeding care of Job about this worke Yet more exactly it is not only said he rose in the morning for there is a great latitude in the morning there are divers houres which all are called morning but it is said he rose early in the morning in the very beginning or first of the morning As it is commanded Exod 23 19· The first of the first fruits of the Land thou shalt bring into the house of the Lord. God would not only have the first fruits but the first of the first fruits if there were any ripe sooner then others God would have them some fruits that ripen'd after were first fruits but God would have the very first of them So here Job gave God not only the first fruits of the day but the earliest time in the morning which is the first of the first fruits of the day Early in the morning Then Observe 1. That
Job as constantly and as vehemently maintaineth both those questions in the contrary sense He acknowledged himself to be a sinner yet he stiffely denied that he was a hypocrite he disclaimed his own righteousnes in point of Justification yet he justified himselfe in point of uprightnesse And as for the sinfulnesse of his nature and of his life he was willing except knowne or wilfull insincerity to own both and charge himselfe faster then his friends could appealing to and triumphing in free-Grace for full pardon This one Syllogisme I say is the summe of all the dispute between Job and his three friends This is as it were the hinge upon which the whole matter turned But besides these there are many discourses falling in collaterally which concurre to make up the subject of this book For as it is with those that studie the Philosophers-stone the great thing they aime at is to make gold c. that 's the principall the chiefe end yet collaterally they find out many excellent things many profitable experiments have beene made many rare secrets have beene discovered in prosecuting of that great designe So although this be the principall subject of the booke yet collaterally for the carrying on of these disputes many other rare and excellent heavenly spirituall and usefull truths are handled and discovered As to give you some particular instances First We have the Character of a discreet and faithfull Master and Father in a family and the speciall duties which concern those relations The doctrine of the Oeconomicks is often touched in this Booke Secondly We have here the Character of a faithfull zealous and just Magistrate in the Common-wealth how he ought to behave himselfe and what his duty is set downe also plainly and clearly by occasion of this dispute Thirdly We have a great discovery made in the secrets of nature The bowels of nature are as it were ript open and the great works of Creation are here displayed In this you have discourses of the Heavens of the Earth of the Sunne Moone and Starres of those Meteors the Haile the Snow the Frost the Yce the Lightning and the thunder In this you have discourses of Jewels of Minerals and of Metalls In this of Beasts and Birds and creeping things So that by occasion of this dispute a discourse is carried about all the world in the whole circuit of naturall knowledge or Philosophy Fourthly Here are discourses of Christian Moralls of the duties of equity from man to man Of the duties of piety which man oweth to God of the duties of sobriety and temperance towards a mans own selfe Yea here we find the great duty of Faith the matter of beleeving in the Redeemer of the world our Lord Jesus Christ Lastly Here are many discoveries made of God in Himselfe and in his Attributes in his Power Wisdome Justice Goodnesse and Faithfulnesse yea whatsoever may be known of God in any of these is some way or other here discovered So then all being summed up together it may well be said concerning this Booke that it is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Book containing all excellencies of wisedom and holinesse and what as some of the Jews and Rabbins say of it in other Books is here a little and there a little is all plentifully gathered together in this In a word it is a Summary a Compendium of all knowledg both humane and divine both concerning our selves and concerning God So much of the subject of this Book both principall and Collaterall The second generall to be considered is the division of this Booke We may consider it in reference to the division First as it is a Dialogue for so some call the whole Booke which is an interchangeable discourse concerning any subject or matter whatsoever And taking it in that notion wee may divide it by the Collocutors or Speakers and by the severall speeches which they made The Collocutors or Speakers in this Booke are Eight 1. God 2. Sathan 3. Job 4. Jobs wife Jobs three friends 5. Eliphaz 6. Bildad 7. Zophar 8. Elihu Who commeth in as a Moderatour of that dispute Their Speeches which they make are in the whole compasse of of the Booke 32. distinctions There are two Dialogues betweene God and Sathan One betweene Iob and his wife Three between Iob and Eliphaz Three betweene Iob and Bildad Two betweene Iob and Zophar Two betweene God and Iob. And then we have Elihu making foure distinct Speeches or Orations which have no Answer And lastly two severall Speeches or Parables as they are called of Iob one in Chapt. 27.1 and the other in Chapt. 29.1 So that summe up all these together and you may divide the whole Booke into 32. distinct or severall Speeches either by way of position or answer or reply or determination God speakes foure times Satan twice Iobs wife once Iob thirteene times Eliphaz thrice Bildad thrice Zophar twice Elihu foure times Or if we should consider the Booke as a Disputation which is higher then a Dialogue so you may distinguish it by the Opponents by the Respondent and by the Moderators The Opponents are three Iobs three friends Iob himselfe is Respondent The Moderators are First Elihu he commeth in first as an Vmpire betweene them Secondly God himselfe at last out of the whirle-winde giveth the decisive determinative voice and sentence He states the question fully for Iob and reproveth Iobs friends as not having disputed and argued aright concerning him Yet further Wee may divide the Booke into five Sections whereof The first doth set forth the happinesse and fullnesse of Iobs outward estate and the integrity and perfection of his spirituall estate And that is conteined in the first 5 verses The second presents Iobs affliction Iobs fall the great and sore calamity which in a moment did overtake him with the occasion of it And this you have set forth from that 5th verse exclusively to the 9th verse of the second Chapter Thirdly We have the questions the debates and disputes which did arise upon and about the fall of Iob into that sad condition which are contained from that 9th verse of the second Chapter to the end of the 31. Chapter Fourthly We have the Moderation or determination of this dispute and of this argument first by Elihu and then by God himselfe from the beginning of the 32. Chapter to the 7th verse of the 42. All which is but as a determination or stating of the Question Fifthly and lastly Wee have the restitution of Iob his restoring and setting up againe and the repairing of his estate and making of it double to what formerly it had bin And that is begun and continued from the 7th verse of the 42. Chapter to the end of the Book So here you have a five-fold division of the Book Once more We may divide the Book into theee parts And so it sets forth 1. Iobs happy condition both in regard of externalls and internalls in the first 5. verses 2. Iobs fall
translated perfect in other Texts is rendered upright But when we have both the expressions together as here we must distinguish the sense It is not a tautologie Then the former being taken for inward soundnesse plainenesse and sincerity This latter to be upright may be taken for outward justice righteousnesse and equity respecting all his dealings in the world He was a perfect man that is he was plaine hearted and he was plaine dealing too which is the meaning of He was upright So the one referres to the integrity of his spirit the other to the honesty of his wayes His heart was plaine and his dealings were square This he expresseth fully in the 29. and 31. Chapters of this Booke which are as it were a Comment upon this word upright There you may reade what is meant by uprightnesse his fairenesse in all parts both of Commutative and Distributive Justice In those things that concerned Commutative Justice when Iob bought or sould traded or bargained promised or covenanted hee stood to all uprightly Take him as he was a Magistrate when Iob sate in Judgement or had any businesse brought before him he gave every one his due he did not spare or smite upon ends he did neither at any time justifie the wicked or condemne the godly but was upright in Judgement He was not byast by affection or interests he was not carried away by hopes or feares but kept the path of Justice in all his dispensations towards that people among whom he lived This is to be an upright man and so the Prophet tells us Isa 26.7 The way of the Iust is uprightnesse that is they are upright in their wayes and more uprightnesse in the abstract We have a like expression Prov. 29.27 Those that are upright in the way are an abomination to the wicked Uprightnesse doth referre to the way wherein a man goes in his outward dealings and dispensations towards men There is a two-fold uprightnesse of our wayes 1. Uprightnesse of words 2. Of works so upright walking is expounded and branched forth Psal 15.2 3. He that walketh uprightly and worketh righteousnesse and speaketh the truth in his heart He that back-biteth not with his tongue This is the second part of Iobs description He was perfect and upright Thirdly He was One that feared God Fearing God The feare of God is taken two wayes Either for that naturall and inward worship of God and so the feare of God is a holy filiall affection awing the whole man to obey the whole will of God That is feare as it is an affection Or the feare of God is put for the externall or instituted worship of God So that a man fearing God is as much as this A man worshipping God according to his owne will or according to his mind and direction Now when as Iob is said to be a man fearing God you must take it both these wayes He had that holy affection of feare with which we must worship God as we are taught Heb. 12.28 Let us have grace whereby wee may serve God with reverence and godly feare And serve the Lord with feare and rejoyce before him with trembling Psal 2. Feare is that affection with which we must worship and serve God And Iob likewise did performe that worship to God which he required this is called Feare and the exercise of it fearing God Fearing God is worshipping God As you may see clearely by two Texts of Scripture compared together In the fourth of Math. v. 10. Christ saith to the Devill It is written thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only thou shalt serve Compare this with Deut. 6.13 and there you shall have it thus exprest Thou shalt feare the Lord thy God That which in the one place is worship in the other is feare Againe Mat. 15.9 In vaine saith Christ doe they worship mee teaching for doctrine the commandements of men Now the Prophet Isaiah from whence that is taken Chapt. 29.14 expresseth it thus Forasmuch as their feare toward mee is taught by the precepts of men They worship me according to the precepts of men saith Christ Their feare is taught by the precepts of men saith the Prophet So that feare and worship are the same Fearing God doth include both the affection of a worshipper and the duty or act of worshipping The fourth part or line of Iobs character is his Eschewing evill Evill is here taken for the evill of sinne before sinne came into the world there was no evill in the world God saw every thing that he had made and behold it was very good But when sinne came which was the first and is the chiefest evill it brought in with it all other evills Sinne hath in it the whole nature of evill and all the degrees of evill and from it proceed all evill effects Hence is eminently called evill Sicknesse and death and Hell are called evill how much rather that but for which these evills had never bin how much rather that with which these compared may be called good Further evill is put here indefinitely He was one that eschewed evill not this or that evill but evill that is all evill this indefinite is universall And then further we are to take evill here as himselfe afterward expoâ—nds it in his practise not only for the acts of evill but all the occasions the appearances the provocations and incentives of or unto evill for whatsoever might leade him into evill for thus he instanceth in one particular I made a covenant with mine eyes why then should I thinke upon a maide Chap. 31.1 Eschewed In this word the prudence of Iob shines as bright as his holinesse who having received a great stock and treasure of grace now watches to preserve it and opposes whatsoever was destructive to the life or growth of the inner man That man shewes he hath both money and his wits about him who suspects and provides against Theeves Job eschewed evill There is much in that expression It is more to say a man doth eschew evill then to say a man doth not commit evill It had bin too bare an expression to say Iob did not commit evill but when it is said Job eschewed evill this shews that not only the hand and tongue of Iob did not medle with evill but that his heart was turned from evill For eschewing is a turning aside with reluctancy and abhorrency so the Hebrew Sar imports Iob did abhorre evill as well as not commit evill As there is a great deale of difference betweene these two the doing of good and a delight in doing good betweene being at peace and following of peace A man may doe good and not be a lover of good a lover of the Commandements of God a delighter in them he may be at peace and not be a lover and follower of peace So a man may be one that commits not such and such sinnes he may doe no hurt and yet in the meane time he may be one
borne such a devised worship God doth never trust man with the making of holy Institutions There is nothing doth please him in any act of worship unlesse he sees himselfe obeyed Obedience is better then Sacrifice and therfore a Sacrifice which is not out of obedience cannot be accepted he that sacrificeth doth but offer up a beast but he that obeyeth offereth up himselfe sacrificeth his owne will It could not be therfore but that Job had a word a word as all the world had at that time a word given by God and so carried downe from one to another by tradition as it was for more then 2000. yeares All the will that God would reveale or had revealed to them was carried from hand to hand or from heart to heart from the Fathers to the children till at the last the Law was written and the Scripture penned by Moses So then Job offered Sacrifice according to an Institution though it was not an Institution written yet it was an Institution sent foorth and given by God Himselfe Yet there is a third Quere upon it Suppose that there was an Institution of God for sacrificing why did God call for Sacrifices What is his meaning Doth God delight in the bloud of Bulls and Goats Thou delightest not in sacrifices saith David thou desirest not burnt offerings And what was the Sacrifice unto Job or unto his sonnes Could the killing of a Beast take away sinne Why then doth Job when he feareth that his sons had sinned goe presently and offer Sacrifice For answer It is true that the Sacrifices in themselves were nothing either to God or man they could doe no good they had no power in them either to pacifie God or to purge the soules of men But looke upon the Sacrifice as it was an Institution and then God saw his Sonne Jesus Christ in it and was well-pleased and likewise man beheld and believed Christ in it and was purged When the Sacrifice was offering man saw Christ suffering this tooke away his sin and pacified his conscience A Sacrifice in it self as it was the killing or burning of a Beast had no vertue in it but as it had respect unto Christ so God saw the death of his son and that satisfied him and man saw the death of his Saviour and that justified him Againe it was not the bare Sacrifice that was effectuall but the faith of Job and the faith of his sons carried up in prayer these mingled with the Sacrifice wrought the cure Therfore we find in the time of the Sacrifice still the people were at prayer they knew the Sacrifice the Incense could doe nothing but as joyned with the faith of the Sacrificer in prayer We reade Luk. 1.10 when Zacharias the Priest was offering the Incense within in the Temple the Text saith that the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of Incense The Incense might burne long enough and yet the anger of God burne too the Incense might burne and yet the people not purified but consumed But while the Incense was burning while the Sacrifice was offering the people were praying and beleeving These actings of faith and powrings out of prayer made the Sacrifice as effectuall for man so acceptable unto God Then in that he offered burnt-offerings which burnt-offerings were made when he feared that his sons had sinned these offerings typing out and leading them to Christ and his death We may note this That Christ was ever the only remedy and cure of sin As soone as ever there vvas any feare of sinne presently they had recourse to a sacrifice and what was that They went to Christ Christ hath been the helpe against sin in all the generations of the world from the first and will be to the last If any man sin saith the Apostle John we have an Advocate with the Father Jesus Christ the righteous and he is the propitiation for our sinnes He is the Propitiatory Sacrifice for our sins It follows According to the number of them all That is he offered for each of his sonnes a Sacrifice There were some Sacrifices which did serve for the whole Congregation as we may see in Levit. 4.13 14. and in divers other Chapters of that booke Besides these there were personall Sacrifices Levit. 1. where the Lawes about Sacrifices are set forth If any soule had sinned that particular soule must come to the Priest and bring a Sacrifice for his sin So here Job doth not offer only one generall family sacrifice for them all but he offereth up a distinct particular sacrifice for every particular son This teacheth us First That every one is saved and pardoned by the speciall and particular actings of his owne faith Every soule must beleeve for it selfe Every one must have a sacrifice We have Congregationall prayers and we have personall prayers now it is not enough for people to pray in publike with the Minister or for the Minister who is the mouth of the Congregation to God to offer up a prayer for the pardon of the people But every one must apart and by himselfe sue out his own pardon which is as it were his owne sacrifice by offering up and tendering of Jesus Christ unto God for the pardon of his sins Then againe you may note in that Job offered a Sacrifice for every one of his sons That it is not enough for Parents to pray in generall for their children but they ought to pray particularly for them As Parents who have many children provide portions according to the number of them all and proportion out their care personally according to the number of them all and in the Family they provide meat and cloathing according to the particular number of them all So likewise they ought to be at a proportionable expence in spirituals to lay out and lay up prayers and intercessions according to the number of them all not only to pray in generall that God would blesse their children and their family but even to set them one by one before God and so beg and sue out a speciall blessing upon the head of every one of them as without all question Job did when the Sacrifice for every son was made he sent up a prayer to God for the pardon and acceptance of every son That for the opening of the second act in the Text first he sent and sanctified them and secondly he offered burnt-offerings according to the number of them all Now follows the ground or the reason of this act of Job both in sanctifying them and in offering Sacrifices for them For Job said it may be my sonnes have sinned and cursed God in their hearts Holy duties must be grounded upon reason There must be a reason why we pray before we pray we must see cause for it and great cause too To pray out of custome and formality to offer sacrifice onely because it is a day of Sacrifice is not praying nor sacrificing Job had a speciall