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A29567
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Achitophel befool'd a sermon preached November V, 1678 at St. Sepulchres / by Aaron Baker ...
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Baker, Aaron, b. 1651 or 2.
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1678
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Wing B478; ESTC R5235
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15,256
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39
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141.2 A Sacrifice wherewith he is well-pleased Of that force that it a Jam. 5.17 18. opens and shuts Heaven has Command over the Sun b Josh 10.12 and Moon to make them stand still at Noon-day allayes the fury of the c Numb 11.2 Fire and the raging of the d Exod. 14.15 Sea Cures the e Acts 28.8 Body of Diseases and the f Job 42.8 10. Soul of Sin In a word that conquers g 1 Kings 17.20 21 22. Death and the h Mat. 17.21 Devil and in a manner if I may speak it with Modesty even i Exod. 32.10 God himself Let me alone saith he to Moses as if he could not do what he was about untill Moses ceas'd Praying But this is a trite Subject we meet with it often and therefore I pursue it not at present but proceed from the Means Prayer to the Form or Tenor of this Prayer or if you will to the Object of it the thing which David prays for which is next in order and craves your Patience yet a little longer O Lord I pray thee turn the Counsel of Achitophel into foolishmess The same God who makes Wise the Godly doth infatuate the Wicked Thou O Lord Psal 119.98 saith David hast made me wiser than mine Enemies That David was wise yea wiser than his Enemies he acknowledges to be God's doing Thou through thy Commandments through the Light of thy Word hast done it On the other side it is Gods work too to infatuate and befool the Ungodly such as conspire against his Church and Anointed As Absalom and Achitophel did in this Scripture and as the Popish Traitors whose Wickedness we commemorate this day with that Mark of Shame and brand of Infamy which is due unto them The summe of David's Prayer is here in the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which word imports a befooling an infatuating a bereaving of Understanding and Judgment or as 't is in our English Translation a turning into Foolishness God is that God of whom Job saith he makes the Judges Fools Job 12.17 and leads away the Counsellors spoyled so we render it In the Latine it is adducit Consiliarios in stultum finem makes Judges Fools and brings Counsellors to a foolish end The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is spoyled not only of Goods but of Reason and Understanding Thus it is translated Psal Verse 5. 76. The stout-hearted are spoyled or robbed which must not be understood so much of Goods as of Reason and Judgment of Courage and Animosity So here the Counsellors spoyled is as much as to say they are befooled He is that God that as Isaiah speaks Isa 19.3 destroyeth the Counsels of Egypt that challengeth all the Policy of men and bids defiance to it Verses 11 12. Where are thy wise men saith he to Pharaoh Who makes the Counsellors of Pharaoh brutish and the Princes of Zoan Fools Isa 44.25 Lastly he that God that maketh Diviners mad turneth Wise men backward and maketh their knowledge foolish and to whom the Wisdom of the World is Foolishness 1 Cor. 3.19 This was the summ of David's Prayer against that Wicked and Unnatural Conspiracy which at that Time was on foot against him Lord turn the Counsel of Achitophel into Foolishness A short Ejaculation the words few but so Powerful and Effectual with God that by them was overthrown all the Policy of Achitophel and his Complotters risen up in Rebellion against God's Anointed I shall shut up all in a brief Application wherein because I would not be too forward in speaking to this present Plot 'till it be fully discovered which we should all wish and earnestly pray to God for give me leave to draw before you a Parallel between the Defeating of Achitophel's Treason of old and those Popish Traitors in King James's days our Deliverance from whom we Commemorate yearly this day And first This may acquaint us with the variety of God's Methods and the many ways he hath to defeat and disappoint the Wicked who like Gebal and Ammon and Amalek knot themselves together against his Church and Anointed as those Papists did about Seventy three years since and do now again at this Time Who Wise than Achitophel whose Counsel for Authority you heard was held as the Oracle of God Yet let all the Achitophels Machiavels Judasses and Julians of the World let them all I say combine and joyn in weaving the most subtle and Artificial Web of Treason God is able to unravel it and take it asunder thred by thred that every Eye may look through the Folly of their Ungodly Designs I cannot tell you all the Means that God hath to turn the Counsel of Traitors into Foolishness for who can set bounds to the Infinite and Incomprehensible Wisdom of God Let it suffice that I point to some few notable ways observable by us by which God hath and doth still turn the Counsel of Wicked Rebels such as rose up against David at this Time into Foolishness The Means especially are Five First God turns their Counsel into Foolishness by Countermining and opposing their Counsels by weak and Improbable Means So he countermin'd Achitophel by Hushai 2 Sam. 17. a man not of that deep reach or Excellency that Achitophel was a man that had not that Estimation or Opinion yet his Counsel must be inclin'd unto and Achitophel's rejected How could Achitophel but think himself besotted and befooled scorned and neglected when the Counsel of an Upstart and Novice is preferr'd before his In the like manner God befooled Pharaoh and his Host by Unlikely Means Against all his Horses and Chariots he sent Armies of Frogs and Flies Exod. 8.2 21. So all the Policy of the Gentiles in upholding their Idol-Gods all their Learning and Wisdom he silenced and confounded by the Foolishness of Preaching 1 Cor. 1.21 as God is pleased to call it And so in this Powder-plot A small unlikely Means the sending of an obscure Letter which was hard to be construed befool'd all their Wisdom Traitors in all Ages have been betrayed by their own Folly That 's the first way how God turns the Counsels of Achitophel into Foolishness by Weak and Unlikely Means Secondly Job 5.13 By taking them in their own Craftiness God makes the Policy of all Wicked Machiavels a Snare to entangle their own Nets Chap. 20 4◠In the First of Kings we read of Benhadad King of Syria that he came up against Samaria and besieged it but God who called him Vir retis mei made him fall a Prey into the hands of Israel So was it with Achitophel he that would have taken his Sovereign was himself taken in his own Halter The common End of all Traitors their own Policies trip up their own heels A third way How God turns the Counsel of the Wicked into Foolishness is by Dividing them in their own Aims and Designs by raising Jealousies among
Achitophel Befool'd A SERMON PREACHED NOVEMBER V. 1678. AT St. SEPULCHRES By AARON BAKER M. A. and late of Wadham Colledge Oxon. QVISEQVITUR ME NON AMBULAT IN TENEBRIS LONDON Prunted for Rich. Royston Bookseller to His most Sacred MAJESTY An. Dom. MDCLXXVIII To the REVEREND Dr. J. TILLOTSON Dean of Canterbury and Chaplain in Ordinary to his MAJESTY Reverend Sir THE Importunity of Friends could never have prevailed with me to let this Discourse come abroad had not your better Judgment complyed with their desires This is enough to make it pass among those within And as for those without I must expect to become their Enemy because I tell them the Truth and though I have endeavoured to rebuke them with a spirit of Meekness I do not suppose they will receive it so They have a way of answering us by those Instruments of Cruelty that are in their habitations so that we shall never reply more unless by our blood that cryes for Vengeance But the Will of God be done If we must be sent as Sheep in the midst of Wolves and that too by the great Shepheard and Bishop of our Souls it behoves us all that are under-Shepheards by Patience and Innocence to become Examples to the Flock But I hope the Lord of David will snatch us out of the Jaws of these Lyons and Bears and Experience works that Hope that he who hath deliver'd will deliver us and he hath deliver'd us out of six troubles and out of seven But whatsoever becomes of such mean Lamps as my self my hearty Prayer to God is that such burning and shining Lights as You are in the Church may never be put out by these Extinguishers but continue to turn many unto Righteousness till in God's good time you shall be translated to shine as Stars in the Firmament of Glory Sir I earnestly recommend you and all your Pious and learned Labours in the Vineyard to the Blessings of him who is Lord of it and am From my Study this 16 Novemb. 1678. Your most obliged and humbly Devoted Servant Aaron Baker A SERMON Preached at St. SEPVLCHRES November V. 1678. 2 SAM XV. 31. And one told David saying Achitophel is among the Conspirators with Absalom and David said O Lord I pray thee turn the Counsel of Achitophel into foolishness NO Danger can appear more Dreadfull than that which is known to be plotted by Wickedness armed with Subtilty and Power Such is that Danger which is in this place represented to David being projected by Achitophel that State Machiavel in Israel at that time And this Danger must be the Subject of our present Discourse now we are met upon occasion of Thanksgiving at this Anniversary Commemoration The words are a Part of that History which records Absaloms Treason against the King his Father I shall divide them into these two Generals First A Discovery of Danger made to David Secondly David's Defensative against this Danger Concerning the First I shall enquire into three Things First What the Danger was Secondly Who it is that is noted as a chief Actor or Adviser in this Conspiracy Achitophel Thirdly By whom this Discovery was made And one told David The First General is an Advertisement given to David or a Discovery of Danger and therefore our first Enquiry must be What kind of Danger it was This is easily collected from the Text Achitophel among the Conspirators So that the Danger was a Conspiracy against David God's Anointed such as we Commemorate this day For the better understanding whereof we must reflect on the former Passages of this History where we shall find the Author of the Conspiracy to be Absalom 2 Sam. 3.2 David's Son by Maacha the daughter of Tahmai King of Geshur a man of that goodly Personage and Endowments that he was at once the Love and Beauty of Israel a man of that exquisite Frame and Composure of Body 2 Sam. 14 2â— that from the sole of his Foot to the Crown of his Head there was no blemish in him This Absalom not long since returned from Banishment after the Murther of his Brother Amnon and after some restraint in Jerusalem reconciled to his Father by the means of Joab who suborned the Woman of Tekoah to work on David by a Parable is again received into Grace and Favour of his Compassionate and Royal Father But Pride and Ambition not suffering his haughty Spirit to content it self with a moderate Prosperity are restless within him till they have wrought his aspiring Mind to aim and level at a Kingdom Hence it is that he runs into a desperate Rebellion and that he might the more easily pluck the Crown from the Royal head of his Indulgent Father he useth his utmost diligence to become Popular and by his seeming Affability to win the Affections of the heedless Multitude Ambition wants no Diligence Whence he riseth up early and standeth in the Gate 2 Sam. 15.2 where he complements all that pass by And when any man that had a Controversie came to the King for Judgement he would cast Aspersions on his Fathers Government as First An Imputation of Remisseness and Negligence Verse 3 Thy matters are good and right but the King deputes no man to hear Causes Secondly An Imputation of Injustice Vers 4 Absalom must be fain to do it David would not And Thirdly An Imputation of Pride too much Reservedness and Haughtiness David belike kept too much State while Absalom kissed those that came to him Vers 5 but as Judas's Treason was breath'd forth in a Kiss so this Popularity of Absalom was but the Veyl to his Unnatural Treachery For the End of all his Kindness was Stealing away the Hearts of Israel from the King Vers 6 and the last and ultimate end of that no less than Usurpation of the Crown The Theft of hearts from their Natural and lawful Sovereign came all to this upshot Vers 4 Quis me constituet Judicem O that I were made Judge in the Land And now having gain'd as he thought the Peoples hearts whose simplicity is easily abused with the desire of Novelty and fair speeches he puts on a Pretence of Religion as the Papists did in this their matchless Conspiracy and tells David Verse 7 that he had a Vow to be paid at Hebron Verse 9 but he had no sooner obtained leave to go thither Verse 10 but he sent Emissaries secret spies throughout all the Tribes of Israel to feel the Inclinations of the People and to draw a Party to meet him at Hebron where having gathered his Counsellors and Abettors Verse 12 he quickly made it appear that That which drew him to Hebron was his Devotion to the Crown not the Altar Absalom is proclaimed King Absalom reigneth in Hebron News of this is soon brought to David for a Messenger comes and tells him Verse 13 that the hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom to which David hath nothing to say but speaks to his servants and