all cut off by Hannibal he not listening to what Envy or what Revenge might dictate to him came in to their reliefe presently and not only rescued them but by that courtesie reduced Minutius to his obedience again the man is as willing to resigne his command as ever he was ambitious to take it up Truly these glorious sparklings of something humano majus even in heathens of selfe-deniall of faithfulnesse of Zeale for a publike good swallowing up all other interests of Factiō Honour Priority Power These things even in heathens make me blush wonder tremble Si faciunt hoc Ethnici ut fama sua nomen extendant Dan. quid agendum est Christianis ut in coelesti sibi gloriâ sedes acquirant If Heathens will doe thus much for a Bubble of vaine-glory upon Earth what should Christians doe for a Crowne of Glory in Heaven Or were I to speake this day to the Ministry of England that are rightly affected to the glory of God and the Publike good I would intreat them to consider with me whether we may not feare that some of our former sins in the matter of Gods Day and Worship may at this time come in remembrance before the Lord especially seeing we have been no more humbled for them and whether our present divisions and dissentions and the undue managing of them may not have an influence into our present calamities I remember in the beginning of the first Reformation there fell an unhappy difference between Luther and Zuinglius and their followers which was managed with a great deale of bitternesse and remaines to this day uncomposed And both parties smarted under the sword of the common enemy the longer it is probable for their disagreement among themselves The Lord grant it fall not out so to us O that we could all of us both Ministers and people remember that vehement obtestation of the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 1.10 Now I beseech you brethren by the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ that ye all speake the same thing and that there be no divisions among you but that you be perfectly joyned together in the same mind and in the same judgement Oh that at least the advantage that redounds to our enemies and disadvantage to our selves from these our differences might compose them for us And that we would imitate Basil and Eusebius who perceiving the common adversary the Arrians to improve a difference which was between them to the prejudice of the Orthodox Churches were soon reconciled and imployed their united strengths against those enemies But I digresse too farre to returne therefore to my present Auditory You that stand here before the Lord this day Men and Brethren I beseech you every one aske your owne Consciences and say What have I done what sinne is it of mine that hath awakened this hand of God against us Is it my unsensiblenesse of the indignation of the Lord in this civill destructive warre Is it my pride my luxurie my eating flesh my drinking wine my clothing my selfe with scarlet my walking with an out-stretched neck at such a time as this when the Lord cals to weeping and mourning and baldnesse and girding with sackcloth every day Beleeve it brethren it is a great provocation in the eyes of our God to behold so much bravery and joviality as he sees every day in this great Citie at such a time as this when he is making his sword drunke with the bloud of our slaine There are three Texts of Scripture Oh that all the children of pride and vanity would but studie them Ezek. 21.9.10 A sword a sword it is sharpened and also fourbished It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter it is fourbished that it may glitter should we then make mirth Isai 22.12 13. And in that day did the Lord God of hosts call to weeping and to mourning and to baldnesse and to girding with sackcloth And behold joy and gladnesse slaying oxen and killing sheep eating flesh and dinking wine Isai 3 16-25 26. Moreover the Lord saith Because the daughters of Zion are haughtie and walke with stretched forth neckes and wanton eyes walking and mincing as they goe and making a tinkling with their feet Therefore thy men shall fall by the sword and thy mighty in the warre And her gates shall lament and mourne and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground Little doe our Ladies thinke that their Gallantry which that third of Isaiah gives an Inventory of may make our mighty men fall in the warre and our strongest Cities sit upon the ground But say againe Is it my trusting to an arme of flesh my putting confidence in the Gallantry of our Army and ah Lord in this thing the Lord be mercifull to us who almost can plead Not guilty that hath made this Arme of flesh to wither Is it my neglect of Prayer Am I the man that when I heard our Army was in streights nay when his Excellencie sent to desire Prayers my wretched heart would not lift up one Prayer Nay if it were to doe again if One Prayer would save the Army save the Kingdome I could not doe it Am I the man that have with those perverse Israelites despised the pleasant Land the Land of desires as it is Psal 106.24 When Israel was in Egypt there was nothing they desired more then the Land of Canaan when they were come out of Egypt and were upon the borders of that Land then they despised it and wished themselves in Egypt againe ô that it were not so with us It is not long since a Parliament an Assembly of Godly Divines the Reformation of the Church in Doctrine Worship and Discipline was the desire of all the well-affected in the Nation But now the Parliament the Assembly of Divines despised The Reformation which we are now even upon the borders of in Doctrine Worship Discipline despised Men wish themselves in Egypt againe And had rather be under Prelaticall Bondage then under a Government most conforme to the Word and to the Government of other Reformed Churches No Reformation of Religion now now nothing will satisfie some but a Toleration of all Religions and all Opinions Church Government Discipline is to some a fiction to others Tyranny and Persecution Ah Brethren this is a Provocation and will be a Provocation for this God may turne us into the wildernesse againe It were an endlesse taske to enumerate the rest of the particular sins that possibly the people of this City and this Kingdome may be guilty of and that God may have his Eye and Hand upon in this Rebuke that he hath given us And therefore I must not prosecute this any further Only againe I beseech you all Lords Gentlemen Souldiers Ministers Men Women Every one of you say to your selves Sure we have sinned Israel hath sinned and every one of you aske your owne Consciences saying What have I done And let us all in the feare of God make it one part of this dayes
once take up that song of praise Isai 12.1 O Lord I will praise thee though thou wast angry with me yet thine anger is turned away and thou comfortedst me This is the Prayer of Your Honours most unworthy yet faithfull and sincere Servant MATTH NEWCOMEN A Sermon preached before both Houses of Parliament at their extraordinary solemne Fast Sept. 12. 1644. JOSHUA 7.10 11. And the Lord said unto Joshua Get thee up wherefore liest thou thus upon thy face Israel hath sinned and hath also transgressed my Covenant which I commanded them The Introduction HOw well this Text suites this Day this Assembly and the Occasion of it I perswade my self there is none here but upon the first reading understands The Lord grant that the handling of these words may be as profitable as the Scripture it selfe is seasonable In the former verses of this Chapter you have a sad story to which ours is this day paralell I had almost said in too great a measure but I lay my hand upon my mouth because thou Lord hast done it who doth all things in measure But in the Story of this Chapter you may read our Calamity Dutie In the fifth verse you have a people Gods people Israel smitten scattered troden downe before their enemies Gods enemies That 's our Calamitie In the sixth seventh and eighth verses you have Joshua and the Elders expressing a pious sense of this breach that God had made upon them The Multitude possibly might miscarry under this hand of God they might fall into their accustomed discontents or sinke under discouragements as it is said ver 5. The hearts of the people melted and became as water But as for Joshua and the Elders Men of more Noble and Religious spirits their demeanour is gratious and humble and holy And Joshua rent his clothes and fell to the earth upon his face he and the Elders of Israel with him ver 6. and poures out his heart before the Lord in words expressing a sorrow too big for any words to expresse ver 8. Oh Lord what shall I say when Israel turneth their backes before their enemies as if he had said Lord this is the saddest thing the saddest Token of thy displeasure The thoughts of it amaze overwhelme me I know not what to say O Lord what shall I say O that we had such a grieved and burthened heart as Joshua had when he spake these words Surely this is our Dutie to have our hearts filled with the sence of that hand of God that is gone out against us and in the sense thereof to abase our selves before the Lord. To the performance of this Duty we are met this day the Lord help us in it yet that 's not all there is a further Duty God cals for at our hands and that the words of my Text lead us to The sense of the words And the Lord said unto Joshua Get thee up wherefore liest thou upon thy face Israel hath sinned c. Our English expression Get thee up sounds more harsh then either the Originall or other Translations 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Illud quid hoc tis prostratus jaces infaciem tuan non est objurgantis auâ— precandi Ritum illum reprehendentis quo ritu Christus ipse usus est sed jamdudum se paratum esse significantis ad opitulandum Maâ—us ad locum Non est ignorantis aut inquirentis aut arguentis vox ista sed insinuantis quod noÌ„ sufficit supplicare sed alio opus esse Remedio Cajetan ad locum q. d. Surge Noli te diutius affligere Scio quid velis faciamque ut scias quid facto sit opus ad cladem à tuis acceptam resarciendam Ego enim cor tuum contritum humiliatum despicere nequeo sed benignè aspicerè à meâ pietate quasi cogor C. à Lapide ad locum Which words are not words of Inquirie God doth not demand of Joshua the reason why he lay at his feet in this sad posture Joshua had given him an account of that already in his Prayer And God knew it even before he prayed Nor are they words of Rebuke and Increpation But rather words of Advice and Direction God doth here as it were with a hand of Grace and Mercy lift up Joshua from the earth where he lay groveling and saith thus Arise Joshua afflict thy selfe no longer I know what thy Desire is and I will let thee know what thy Dutie is there is somewhat to be done which yet thou thinkest not on Get thee up Joshua wherefore liest thou on thy face Israel hath sinned In the words you may please to observe something that God tooke notice of in Joshua The Division and something that God gave notice of to Joshua The thing that God tooke notice of in Joshua was the Deepe sence he had of the hand of God against Israel in the late disaster that befell their Army under which he lay confounded astonished at the feet of God This in the first words The Lord said unto Joshua Arise wherefore liest thou upon thy face The thing which God gave notice of to Joshua was the sinne that Israel had committed which was the Cause of this Disaster Israel hath sinned and hath also transgressed my Covenant which I commanded them Observ 1 with The Proofe From the first of these I commend this to your Observation That when a Disaster befals the Armies of Israel it well becomes a generous Gratious heart to be deeply affected with it I say when a Disaster befals the Armies of Israel for this here it was not a Discomfiture it was but a Disaster a Party of about three thousand beaten ver 4. and about six and thirty men slaine in the fight and in the Chase ver 5. What 's that in an Army of six hundred thousand men of warre That was Israels Number at their last Muster Numb 26.51 Some Nimrod some Cyclops would have thought this an inconsiderable losse a blow not worth the taking notice of But Joshua though as gallant and daring a spirit as any the Earth had he thinkes not so he thinks that this cals him and the rest of the Elders of Israel what ever others doe to rend their Clothes and put dust upon their heads and in the mournfullest plight that may be to poure out their Prayers and Teares before the Lord O Lord what shall I say So when the Children of Israel were smitten before Benjamin though that was not such a discomfiture but they were able to rally themselves againe and renew the fight a second and third time and at length got the victory by fine force yet All the people went up and wept before the Lord. Judg. 20. Once and a second time and the second time they wept and fasted untill Even and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings unto the Lord. ver 26. This a Disaster will worke But a Rout a Discomfiture what an Impression that will
make in a Gratious holy heart see in that mournfull Story 1 Sam. 4. where you shall see how the Tidings of Israels discomfiture and slaughter broke the heart of Reverend and Honourable Eli. There comes a Messenger from the Army with very sad Tidings ver 17. Israel is fled before the Philistims and there hath been also a great slaughter and thy two sons Hophni and Phineas are slaine and the Arke of God is taken Every Incisum of this Message gives a stab a wound to his gratious heart and no sooner is the story ended but his life is ended too Israel is fled before the Philistims there 's One wound And there hath beene a great slaughter among the people there 's a second wound And thy two sonnes Hophni and Phineas are slaine there 's a third wound And the Arke of the Lord is taken there 's a fourth a Deaths wound that dispatcheth him He can now live no longer It came to passe when he made mention of the Ark of God he fell from off the seat backward I could encline to think that the a Pramaereris magnitudine obtenebratus senior cecidit de sell iuxta JanuaÌ„ contriuÌ„ est dorsaÌ„cius Chrysos Inquiri po est utruÌ„ Nuntius de captivitate Arcae fuit adaequata Causa mortâ— Eli. ita ut illâ— audito repeniâ— inâ—â—riit postea cecidiâ— cervices fregâ—riâ— an potius c. â—rior modus mihi non videtur imprebabilis Mendoza ad locum â—â—dâ—lile est ipsum sic voluisse mori Maâ—â— Non crepta vita 〈◊〉 mori ei videtur Cicero fall of Israel had broke his heart before the fall from his seat brake his Neck and kill'd him as much or more then his owne fall Good man unhappy in his Government unhappy in his sons happy only in this that he died with griefe for the Israel and Ark of God so deeply was his tender gratious heart affected with the disaster of Israels Army Reasons First some proportion of such like affection might well become every tender and gratious heart in such occasions First Because every gratious heart and indeed every generous heart every man that hath not the heart of an Atheist in him knowes that when a disaster befals the Israel of God in their Armies it is a signe that God is displeased with his people Every disaster that befals their Armies is a check a frowne a rebuke from God a token of his displeasure and therefore a gratious heart cannot stand under it This is it perplexeth Joshua here Alas the death of 36. men it had been nothing The slaughter of 36000. it had been nothing had their Army yet had the favour of God upon them But God is angry Joshuah's tender heart can feele it in this lighter stroake as well as if the blow had been heavier God is angry therefore Israel cannot stand before their enemie therefore Joshua cannot stand before the Lord but falls at his feet saying ô Lord what shall I say unto thee And whom would not this become whom would not this become when God shewes himselfe angry with his people to shew themselves deepely sensible of it to cloath themselves with trembling and with mourning whom would it not become I am sure it would become us this day the Lord helpe us so to doe Secondly When any disaster befalls the Armies of Israel it well becomes a generous gratious heart to be deeply affected with it because disasters in the Armies of Israel are of very sad consequence This Joshua had his eye upon and this his heart was affected with as you may see ver 9. For the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the Land shall heare of it and shall inviron us round and cut off our name from the earth and what wilt thou doe to thy great Name There are two things mentioned as the sad consequence of this disaster First The increase of rage and courage against the Israel of God that this would occason to their enemies The Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the Land shall heare of it and shall environ us round and cut off our name from off the earth One disaster will make those to whom Israel was before terrible resume new courage and enter into new confederacies and nothing will now satisfie but utter extirpation cutting off the name of Israel from the earth In this respect it well becomes a generous gratious heart as he tenders the good and wellfare of the Israel of God to be deepely affected with such disasters Thirdly And as such disasters increase the rage of the enemies against the Israel of God so against the God of Israel himself this is intimated in the last words of the ninth verse and what wilt thou doe unto thy great Name as if Joshua had said Lord though our name were cut off from the earth for ever it were no matter But ô the reproach the scorne that these uncircumcised ones will cast upon thy great and dreadfull Name ô to heare the enemies insulting where is your God that brought you up out of the Land of Egypt where are all those mighty wonders which he wrought at the Red Sea and in the Land of Ham c. Joshuah knew that these would be the darings this the language of the enemies and his gratious heart cannot beare it ô what wilt thou doe to thy great Name If then in the disasters of an Army we may see that God is provoked and fore-see that the glory of God and the safety of his people is much endangered we may conclude It well becomes a generous gratious heart to be much affected with such disasters Application of it The Application of this Truth is easie It may let you see Right Honourable and Beloved how well this mourning praying posture into which you have cast your selves this day becomes you For Information and how fit it is that though the whole body of this people cannot upon so short a warning and some it may be will not yet that You who are to England as the * Senes Israel intelligit Iudices Magni Syne drii quibus praecrat eo tempore Iosua Deus ad difficil Loca Iosuae Elders were to Israel the Governours and Representers of the whole Nation should for your selves and for the Nation whom you represent in this solemne manner to testifie your humble and deepe sence of the hand of God upon his people in that disaster that hath befallen our Army in the West God hath smitten our Army shall not we smite our hearts our Army is broken will not a broken heart now become us Our Forces are brought low shall not we endeavour that our hearts may be so too If her father had spit in her face saith God to Moses concerning Miriam Num. 12.15 should she not be ashamed seven dayes ô how many dayes would it become us to beare the shame of that rebuke that God hath given us Thou hast cast off and put us to
shame and goest not forth with our Armies Thou makest us to turne our backe from the enemies and they that hate us spoile for themselves was the sorrowfull complaint of the Church of old Psal 44 9 10. and may be ours this day The Lord help us to beare this indignation in a right manner and to mourne aright under it So farre as my poore observation enables me to judge This is the saddest rebuke that God hath given us since the first beginning of this action and therefore calls for as sad hearts this day as ever we brought with us into the presence of our God Sure I am that what ever there was in this disaster which befell the Army of Israel that might be matter of greefe and consternation to Joshua and Israels Elders the same is in this disaster that hath befallen us and calls for the like affection in men of Noble generous gracious spirits such as you are 1. Did Joshua plainly see the anger of the Lord in their disaster we may if we be not blind see the same in ours much more The wound the breach that God hath made upon us by this disaster is deeper wider Theirs was but the losse of 36. Men Ours the dissipation of a Brave Gallant hopefull Army An Army that was sent out with solemne fasting and prayer and since they came to be in the streights wherein they unhappily mis-carried were solemnely againe sought of God by fasting and prayer And yet this Army lost and lost in a weeke of fasting and prayer that hath used to be a weeke of deliverances victorys mercies Can you thinke of this and not thinke God angry even with our prayers as well as with our Armies And can we thinke God angry and not fall at his feet every one of us with Joshua and cry ô Lord what shall I say unto thee 2. Were there any circumstances accompanying this disaster that might make it yet more grievous unto Joshua and the Elders and doe not the same circumstances accompany ours It was indeed * Omnia subita videntur majora Cicer. Praecogitati mali molliâ— ictus venit Senec. an unexpected blow a blow that Joshua did neither feare nor fore-see this made it the heavyer 1. Joshua knew the Cause he managed by the sword was good God owned it and warranted him in the prosecution of it 2. He had lately received a testimony of Gods favour towards it before the walls of Jericho 3. And this was the first time that ever the Armies of Israel under the conduct of Joshua turned their backs before their enemies This makes him amazed it is such a thing as never was before ô Lord what shall I say saith he when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies And that 4. A dispised enemy an enemy that upon good advice they thought not fit to engage their whole strength upon but only send out a partie ver 3. Let not all the people goe up but let about a two or three thousand men goe up and smite Ai but let not all the people labour thither for they are but few Now for Israel to fall in such a Cause at such a time before such an enemy all this concurres to make the measure of Joshuah's griefe and consternation the more full ô Lord what shall I say when Israel turneth their backs before their enemies And doe not all these circumstances meet in ours to make our disaster equall unto theirs ô that the senoe of it might be as equall was not this a blow unexpected Did not 1. The goodnesse of our Cause wherein we have not only the witnesse of our own consciences and the witnesse of Neighbour Churches Scotland Zealand Helvetia c. in their Letters to the Assembly of Divines but the witnesse of God himself with us Did not 2. That â—ccent and much to be remembred testimony of Gods favour towards us in it by that great and glorious victory given us before the walls of Yorke make us hope for a good issue of this Expedition into the West And 3. Is not this the first time that ever your Army under the Conduct of his Excellency turned their backs or became a spoile unto the Enemy And was not the Enemy I meane the adverse Army despised in our eyes It is not long since they did nothing but flitt and sculke their whole strength being shrunke up into some Numbers of Horse and now they had drawne together a Body of Foot did we not looke upon them all as an inconsiderable Rabble rather then an Army forced men raw Souldiers not worth the ingaging all your Powers upon I feare it was our fault Politically I doe not say our sin Theologically to undervalue the Powers of our Enemies so farre But all this makes our disaster the sadder and should make our sence of it the deeper for such an Army in such a Cause to be given up to such an Enemy and at such a time as this is when if God had blest us in all probability we might have seen a speedy and happy end of these calamitous wars ô Lord what shall I say Thirdly Were there any consequences that did fall in upon the thoughts of Joshua as aggravations of Israels disaster and his griefe Consider if the same consequences doe not fall in here Did Joshua feare not with a Pannick but with a rationall prudentiall feare a feare becomming a man of wisedome and resolution Did Joshua thus feare that the Nations who not long before trembled at the thoughts of Israel Josh 5.1 would now resume their courage and joyne their strengths together for the utter extirpation of the Israel of God And have not we cause to feare the like It is not long since the out-stretched Arme of God at Yorke strucke a trembling into the hearts of our enemies that they began to say as Exod. 13.25 Let us flee from the face of this people for the Lord fighteth for them And many of the malignant enemies of the Kingdome began to thinke of making their peace and made at least feined submission But now you are wise enough to think what flocking together there will be of Papists and Malignants what gathering together into bodies what an Army or rather how many armies you may quickly have against you of English Irish Popish and others if the over-ruling Providence of God prevent it not as here whose Rage will be satisfied with nothing lesse then the Cutting off our Name from the earth If not the Name of England yet the Name of Parliament the Name of Protestant Religion c. Possibly some may say What if they do strengthen themselves and multiply their Armies thankes be to God we have yet Armies as many and as considerable as any they have we have so many thousand in the North and so many thousand yet in the West and so many thousand advancing from the North into the West And what then might not Joshua have said as much as this he
had six hundred thousand fighting men in his Camp still and what if all the Inhabitants of the land come against them they are enough are they not to deale with them yea but Joshua saw that God was angry he went not forth with their Armies and Joshua knew that if his 600000 Men were 600000 Millions if God continue still angry with them they should all fall before their enemies we talke of thousands were our thousands multiplyed into Millions if God frowne still upon our Armies as he now begins to doe we are but bread for our enemies Beleeve it it is a signe of a carnall heart that would shift off this stroke of God and is loth to lie under the sence of it to comfort it selfe at such a time as this is in our remaining Armies If God will not withdraw his anger the proud helpers stoope under him Job 9.13 If we will not beleeve this God will make us feele it Joshua had men of warre enough to have comforted himselfe in but he could not durst not doe it Fourthly did Joshua feare that this Disaster would give occasion to the proud heathen to blaspheme the Name of the God of Israel therefore he saith What wilt thou doe to thy great Name And may not wee feare the same upon this of our Army Nay doe we not know it how have they heretofore how often have they as with a sword pierced the hearts of Gods people Witnesse Bristoll and Bolton c. while they say daily in their reproach Where is now your God Psal 42.10 Where is now your God your God to whom you have prayed before whom you have wept fasted of whom you have made your boast Where is now your God Encline thine eare O Lord and heare Open thine eyes O Lord and see and heare all the words of thine enemies whereby they reproach the living God Isai 37.13 〈…〉 But O Brethren shall not all this affect our hearts shall not all this cause us to lie in the dust before the Lord seriously and sincerely humbled under him and mourning before him Oh that I could find this disposition in my selfe O that I could behold it in you especially in you Parliament men O that I could see your Eyes speaking the sense which your hearts have of this sad hand of God upon us even in Teares Beleeve it Right Honourable it would become you nay it is your duty O that I might obtaine it from you or obtaine it at the hand of God for you O Parliamâ—nt Teares are pretious Teares would you drop but every man a Teare this day before the Lord for England O what a Balme might it be for this bleeding Kingdome I tell you Brethren it is more to that great God before whom you stand and whose face you desire to seek this day to see you Parliament men to see you unfeinedly judging your selves sitting in the dust at his feet giving him glorie in all his righteous dealings with you Mourning under this frowne that he hath cast upon you it is more to God to see you doing this then to see some thousands of others in such a Posture Are not you as all the Tribes of England is not all England epitomized contracted in you If you be humbled All England is humbled virtually eminently If Joshua and the Elders be humbled it is as if all Israel were humbled if Rehoboam and the Princes of Judah be humbled it is as if all Judah had been humbled God will grant some deliverance and things shall goe well in Judah 2 Chron. 12.6 7 12. It hath often been the Prayer of some of your Remembrancers at the throne of Grace upon our dayes of Humiliation that whatever God doe with private Congregations yet that in this place and upon your hearts there might be a mightie Presence and Effusion of the spirit of Humiliation the same is my desire and prayer this day O that God would humble us all every soule of us but if not all if there be any of us whom God for our personall sins will leave to the hardnesse and dedolency of our hearts this day yet the Lord be mercifull unto you and unto us all in you That your hearts may be as Gideons fleece moystened with a dew from Heaven though we round about you should be dry which yet to us would be exceeding sad But somewhat it would comfort us concerning England would the Lord please to humble you Now the Lord humble you The Lord affect your hearts with his dealing the Lord cast you downe at his feet with Joshua that with a hand of mercy he may lift you up as he did Joshua and say Arise wherefore liest thou upon thy face Thirdly for Reproofe But if there be any Man here especially any Parliament man to whom it were more fit to say as the Master of the ship did to Jonah Vp sleeper and call upon thy God if so be that God will thinke on us that we perish not then as here God to Joshua Arise wherefore liest thou upon thy face If there be any man here that upon such a Day and such an Occasion as this is hath an unstirred and unawakened heart within him And I feare there are too many such I seldome come in a Fast into any Congregation where it is discernable by the face and garbe of the Assembly that they are in a dutie of Fasting and Mourning Our monethly Fasts are degenerated into most lothsome Formalities into lesse then a formality lesse then an outside then an appearance of Fasting and Mourning But that Man that can be so this day hath a heart more Atheisticall then the very Heathens had Inops Senatus auxilii humani ad Deos populum vota convertit lussi cum conjugibus ac liberis supplicatum ire pacemque exposcere â—â—cûm omnia delubra impâ—ent Stratae passim Matres crinibâ— Templa verrentes veniam irarum coelestium exposcunt Liv. lib. 3. He that reads the Romane Story will finde how they upon such like occasions as is this day presented unto us kept solemne dayes of Supplications and with what throngs of men women and children their Temples were filled how sad and mournfull their demeanour was how their Ladies and Matrons rowled themselves in the dust and swept the very pavements of their Idoll-Temples with the haire of their heads ô how farre are many amongst us from any such affection consternation I cannot but feare that there is a great deale more Atheisme and a great deale lesse sence Irarum Coelestium of the Anger of a God against us in the Calamities now lying upon us then was in those very Heathens O that their Dayes of Supplication may never rise up in Judgement against ours to condemne them The Lord humble every Soule of us that hath not yet been humbled Even this alone is sufficient Cause why we should now be humbled because in all our Dayes of Humiliation we have been unhumbled hitherto many of
saith God both rendring the Reason why Israel was smitten and directing Joshua to what he would have done Israel hath sinned Whence observe Observ 5 That God would have his People in all the Disasters that befall their Armies take notice of their owne sinnes Vp Joshua wherefore lyest thou upon thy face What doest thou weeping and breaking thy heart There is other worke for thee to doe Israel hath sinned goe find out that You know this was that which God instructed his people in long before that nothing should ever cause their Armies to miscarry but their owne sinnes so Levit. 26.14 17. If you will not hearken unto me and will not doe all these Commandements I will set my face against you and you shall be slain before your enemies and ver 36. upon them that are left alive of you I will send a faintnesse into their hearts in the land of their enemies and the sound of a shaken leafe shall chase them c. so Deut. 28.15 25. If thou wilt not hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God to doe all that I command thee the Lord will cause thee to be smitten before thine enemies thou shalt goe out one way against them and flee seven wayes before them And in all experience the people of Israel found it so They never were worsted in their battles but when they had sinned against their God Israel from the time of their comming up out of Egypt had been but once put to the worse before their enemies till this Time and the Story of that you have Numb 14. ult The Amalekites came downe and the Canaanites which dwelt in the hill and smote them and discomfited them even unto Hormah But the reason of this you may collect from the former verses Israel had sinned And all along the whole Story of the Bible you shall constantly find it thus when Israel was faithfull with their God they ruled with their God and prospered in their warres whithersoever they went Nay even Balaam himselfe could tell that while Israel kept themselves from sin God would keep them from mischiefe in their Army The Divell himselfe should not hurt them Numb 23.21 23. He hath not beheld iniquity in Jacob nor hath he seene perversnesse in Israel Vide Drus ad diff loc Numer Ainsworth ad locum Weems upon the Morall Law part 1. The true meaning of which Scripture what ever sence the Antinomians would put upon it in favour of their opinion That God seeth no sinne in his people is this That at this time when Balaak hired Balaam to curse Jacob and defie Israel there was no Peccatum flagrans no sin lying upon the Congregation flaming in the eye of God or stinking in his Nostrils that might provoke his wrath against them or cause him to suffer any calamity to befall them therefore ver 23. saith he Surely there is no enchantment against Jacob neither is there any Divination against Israel No it is in vaine for men and divels to plot mischiefe against the Armies of Gods people when there is no sin among them to pull that mischiefe upon them All our Disasters of this kind they are the fruits of our owne sinnes and God would have us look upon them as so God would have his people in the Disasters that befall their Armies to take notice of their owne sinnes And that Reason 1 First that they may hereby be preserved from Atheisme and Apostacy from God from thinking either that there is no God or that the God whom they have commended their cause unto is a God that cannot will not succour them a thing that the Nature of man is very subject to you may remember what is said of King Ahaz 2 Chron. 28.23 Ahaz sacrificed to the Gods of Damascus which smote him and said because the Gods of the Kings of Syria help them therefore I will sacrifice unto their Gods that they may helpe me also There is a Root of this Atheisme and Impiety in the heart of every man And such as God doth not teach to reade the cause of their defeats in themselves are ready to thinke the enemies cause Religion God to be the better Now that his people may be preserved from this God will have them know that their sinne is the cause of their Disasters And secondly God will have them take notice of this that they may with the more quietnesse submit to these dispensations of God and say The Lord is righteous That they may not murmure repine nor be too querulous at such a time as this therefore the Lord saith to us as it is Ier. 4.18 Thy way and thy doings have procured this unto thee this is thy wickednesse and as it is againe Ezek. 14.23 Ye shall know that I have not done without cause all this that I have done saith the Lord. That our hearts and mouths may justifie God God will have us know that our sins are the cause of our Disasters It is not enough to Take notice of the stroke and Mourne for that But we must Take notice of the sin and mourne for that Vp Ioshua wherefore lyest thou upon thy face Israel hath sinned Application In the first place This may serve to fill our faces this day with shame before the Lord would our God have us in all the Disasters that befall our Armies take notice of our owne sinnes Ah Lord when did we doe thus Is this the first time that God hath frowned upon our Armies No no who hath not heard of the disappointment at the Vises where a glorious victory slipt out of our hands when we were almost possest of it The losse of Bristoll The raising of the Siege at Newarke I know the mention of these things may expose us to the scorne of our enemies And let them scorne us so we may give glory to our God But have we in these disasters taken notice of our sinnes as the Causes of them Nothing lesse Men that are not led by Principles of Judgement and Conscience but by successe that doe not owne the cause for it selfe they upon such Providences as these are ready to desert it and take over to the enemies And others are ready to impute it to Cowardize or carelesnesse or falshood or treachery to something or other in those who are the instruments of managing the businesse as if there were not those sinnes among us that might provoke the Lord to crosse the endeavours of the most able and faithfull Instruments as if we could all say with that Romane Emperour Antoninus Philosophus ut refert â—uâ—at Gallicâ—n Aâ—â—dro Gassio Non sic Deos coluimus aut sic vivimus ut ille nos vinceret We have not so served God nor doe we so live as that such an enemie should overcome us We still cry out of Treachery Treachery and accuse others But O how few are the men that upon such occasions as these enter into their Chambers and there between God and
man reflect upon himselfe and say Am I the man that have been cold and lukewarme in matters of Religion that have retarded businesses of Reformation That have said It is not yet time to Build the Lords house If we settle any thing in matters of Religion we shall be loosers by it Am I the man that am afraid to heare of Government or Discipline lest it should give checke to some lust or opinion of mine Am I the man that have made use of the Power and Interest God hath given me in Parliament to turne aside the right of a man to subvert a man in his cause to oppresse the righteous cause of an enemie or advance the unrighteous cause of a friend To obstruct or pervert that course of strict and impartiall Justice which God and man call for the execution of Am I the man that have driven my owne designes in publike service that have made it my worke to seeke great things for my selfe at such a time as this when God seemes to be taking down what he had built up and plucking up what he had planted and shouldest thou seek great things for thy selfe Jer. 45. Am I the man c Pardon me Beloved if I mention these particulars your very friends that Love you Honour you Pray for you that have it in their hearts to live and to dye with you cannot but mourn to see your proceedings in Religion and Iustice so fore-slowed though where the fault is we know not ô that you would enquire among your selves this day Again and againe in the bowels of Iesus Christ I humbly beseech you Search Search and try your wayes ô if there should be any corruption any perversnesse any rottennesse any selfe-end any ungodly designe in any of you God will search it out if you will not your sin will find out you if you will not find out it I say unto you from God as Moses did to those of Israel Numb 32.23 Be sure your sin will find you out And remember I beseech you what the Spirit of God saith Eccles 9.18 Wisedome is better then weapons of warre but one sinner destroyeth much good The Wisedome of a Parliament is better then the weapons of an Army and may doe much good but one sinner may destroy it all and may make the Counsels of a Parliament and the weapons of warre in the hand of the gallantest Army in the world miscarry Did not Achan the sonne of Zerah commit a trespasse in the accursed thing and wrath fell on all the Congregation of Israel and that man perished not alone in his iniquitie Josh 22.20 ô Better thou hadst never knowne Parliament then to sit in Parliament and by thy sin destroy all the good that a Poore Bleeding Kingdome that THREE Poore Bleeding Kingdomes might reape by it Were I to speake to our Souldiery this day I would be as earnest with them that they would search themselves I would turn them to that Scripture Deut. 23.9 When thine host goeth forth against thine enemy then keepe thee from every wicked thing For ver 14. the Lord thy God walketh in the midst of thy Camp to deliver thee and to give up thine enemies before thee therefore shall thy camp be holy that he see no uncleane thing in thee and turne away from thee I would aske our Souldiers how they have kept this Commandement of the Lord. I would say to them as the Prophet Oded did to the Army of Israel 2 Chron. 28.10 Are there not with you even with you sinnes against the Lord your God Nay I would dare to say There are And therfore in the Name of Jesus Christ would charge them every one to consult their own Consciences and say What have I done Is it my drunkennesse or my blasphemy my uncleannesse my rapine my violence my oppressing the Godly and well-affected party for whom I pretend to fight these Pests our Armies are too full of is it my c. that is the cause of this Displeasure this disuster Yea I would speake to our Commanders and bid them say to their owne hearts Is it my doing the worke of the Lord negligently Jer. 48.10 is it my height of spirit my ambition my standing upon Punctilio's my preferring my own interest and honour before the good of an Army of a Kingdome c. ô that men of brave Heroicke spirits Christians should not be able to deny themselves in point of honour or interest 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Herodot in Vran. or personall wrong or difference for a Publike good as much as heathens How memorable is that of Themistocles and Aristides who forgetting old grudges and injuries could in a time of common danger joyne their Counsels and forces together against the common enemy It is time now saith Aristides to lay by other contentions and contend now who should do most good to his Native Country But of all the spirit of that Romane Fabius justly called Maximus was most admirable who being advanced to a place of highest dignitie and command to be Dictator of the City of Rome an office of absolute and unlimited Power met with the most unworthy and undeserved affronts and discouragements and overcame them with the greatest constancy to his employments and counsels and faithfulnesse to his Cause and countrey that ever almost man did Liv li. 2◠c. 18. Minutius the master of the horse the next man in command to himselfe first clancularly traducing him in the army for a heavy slothfull man a man of no courage or activity only because he was not so precipitate and rash to put all to a push as he would have him Cap. 14. Then after daring publikely in the head of the Army to declaime against him and make a speech tending to no other end but to put the army into a mutiny In Rome the people are filled with prejudice against him by letters and rumours from the Army Metilius one of the Tribunes of the people makes a bitter invective against him in a solemne and publike audience Cap. 25. The Senate the Parliament as it were of Rome whereof himselfe was a member will scarce heare him with patience make his own defence In conclusion things are brought to that passe that the Dictator is tantùm non put out of office But contrary to all former President they make a Law that Minutius shall have equall command with him Cap. 27. and the supreme command to be equally shared between them both Accordingly the Legions are divided Fabius hath one halfe and Minutius the other horse and foot Some man nay almost any man would have flung downe his sword abandoned the service let such an indiscreet such an ingrate people sinke or swimme But saith the Historian qua animi gravitate criminantes se ad populum tulerat eadem populi in se saevientis injuriam tulit Nay within a little while after when Minutius and the party under his command had like to have been