Selected quad for the lemma: enemy_n
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A02492
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A sermon preached at Barstaple vpon occasion of the late happy success of Gods Church in forraine parts. By G.H. D.D.
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Hakewill, George, 1578-1649.
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1632
(1632)
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STC 12620; ESTC S117907
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16,704
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39
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A SERMON PREACHED AT BARSTAPLE Vpon occasion of the late happy success of Gods Church in forraine parts By G. H. D. D. LONDON Printed for R. Allot and are to be sold at the signe of the Beare in Pauls Church-yard 1632. A SERMON PREACHED AT BARSTAPLE VPON OCCASION OF THE LATE HAPPY SVCCESSE OF GODS CHVRCH IN FORRAINE PARTS Iudges Cap. 5. Ver. 31. So let all thine enemies perish O Lord But let them that love him be as the Sunne when he goeth forth in his might THere are few I presume that heare me this day but some what they haue heard of the great victories which it hath pleased Almighty God lately to give to those of the reformed Churches in forraigne parts professing our religion in which regard that we might in some sort expresse our mindfulnesse of them our well-wishing to them our thankfulnesse for them and our rejoycing with them I haue made choice of these words at this time by Gods gracious assistance to bee opened vnto you In the Chapter going before we read of a wonderfull great defeate by Barak the sonne of Abinoam and Deborah the Prophetesse who at that time judged Israel though a woman given to the forces of Iabin King of Canaan which were utterly routed pursued put to the sword by the Israelites not so much as a man left alive all the way from the river Kishon even to Harosheth of the Gentiles being sprinkled with bloud and bestrewed with dead carkases and for Sisera the Generall of the Armie under Iabin the day being thus lost he forsakes his chariot and flies for his life and in his flight at the motion of Iael the wife of Heber the Kenite turnes aside into her tent where being curteously entertained and tyred with wearinesse giving himselfe to his rest he fell so soundly asleepe that Iael taking the opportunity stole upon him and with a hammer in her hand fastened a naile in his temples so fully home that hee never rose againe from the place Hereupon Deborah and Barak and by their example all the people take up a song of triumph a sacred and solemne hymne to the Lord of Hosts the Author of the victorie which takes up this whole Chapter in imitation of Moses and the men of Israel on the one side and Miriam the sister of Moses with the women on the other who after their deliverance from the cruell oppression of the Aegyptians and the overwhelming of Pharaoh and his horsmen in the red Sea thus sing unto the Lord which it should seeme was the burden of their song For he hath triumphed gloriously the horse and the rider hath he throwne into the Sea And such a song was that which the daughters of Israel tooke up perchance in imitation of this after the vanquishing of the Philistines they goe forth to meete Saul and David in their returne from that slaughter with tabrets and instruments of musicke singing and dancing and as they played they answered one another and said Saul hath slain his thousands and David his ten-thousands Nay the very Gentiles after victorie obtained they had their 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 too or songs of triumph which they called a Poean Poeana canamus and againe dicite Io Poean Io bis dicite Poean and if they did thus to their heathenish gods which indeede were no gods but Idoles how much more should wee doe the like to the true and everliving God This Song as it is thought was composed by Deborah which I am the rather induced to beleeve not only because shee was a woman of singular gifts and graces and above all indued with a propheticall Spirit because shee stirred up and spurred forward Barak assisting and encouraging him with her presence and counsel in the whole action but chiefely because in the 12 ver shee thus rouzeth up her selfe Awake awake Deborah awake awake utter a song but by whom-soever it is composed it is certainly a most excellent divine hymne and of a marvellous loftie high straine as will easily appeare to any man that reads it with attention and judgement The words of my Text they are the very upshot and close of the song and in that respect no doubt the more considerable They containe in them a prayer a double prayer spreading it selfe into two branches whereof the one is an Imprecation against Gods enemies so let all thine enemies perish O Lord the other a Petition but let them that love him be as the sunne when he goeth forth in his might the Imprecation is for the perishing of Gods enemies the Petition for the flourishing of his friends because first his enemies must perish before his friends can flourish as darknesse must first be dispelled before light come in place and sicknesse expelled before health be recovered these two being like the two buckets of a well or the two scales of a ballance the falling of the one is the rising of the other as the house of David grew stronger by the weakning of Sauls house and Rome erected her trophies in the ruines of Alba. Now the Imprecation being thus delivered by a Prophetesse containes a Prediction as the Petition doth likewise a position and in some translations is so rendred In the Imprecation we are first to consider whether or no it be lawfull and how farre to pray against others Secondly what these enemies of God are Thirdly by whose hand they are to fall and to perish and lastly the manner of their perishing out of this word So so let all thine enemies perish O Lord. That which gives occasion to this doubt in the first place is the words of our Saviour Love your enemies blesse them that curse you doe good to them that hate you and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you Wee are to know then that we must pray for our enemies but against Gods enemies this was the practice of the Prophet David when he speakes of his owne enemies when they were sicke saith he my clothing was sackcloth I humbled my soule with fasting I behaued my selfe as though he had beene my friend or brother I bowed downe heavily as one that mourneth for his mother but when he speakes of Gods enemies who had taken to themselves the houses of God in possession then he changes his note O my God make them like a wheele as the stubble before the wind as the fire burneth a wood and as the flame setteth the mountaines on fire so persecute them with thy tempest and make them afraide with thy storme It was the usual forme of the Priests at the removing of the Arke specially in time of warre and wee have it taken up by the Psalmist Let God arise and let his enemies be scattered let them also that hate him flee before him let his not our enemies be scattered or if they bee both ours and his wee are to pray for them as they are ours but against them as they are his We
here of is apparent the Church is the spouse and he the husband of this spouse the Church the body and he the head of this body the Church the family and he the father of this family the Church the armie and he the Generall of this armie the Church the kingdome and he the Soveraigne of this kingdome and if the spouse suffer can the husband be insensible of it if the body suffer can the head be insensible of it if the family suffer can the father of the family be insensible of it if the armie suffer can the generall be insensible of it if the kingdome suffer can the soveraigne be insensible of it nay a far neereunion there is betwixt Christ and his Church than betwixt the husband and the spouse for this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave to his wife and they two shall be one flesh one flesh they are but the wife liues not by the soule of the husband as the Church doth by the spirit of Christ the wife feeds not upon the flesh of the husband as the Church doth upon the flesh of Christ the wife is not bought with the bloud of the husband as the Church is redeemed by the bloud of Christ and by this meanes becomes neerer unto him than his owne right hand dearer than the apple of his eye Here is our comfort then there being so many obligatory relations and mutuall ingagements betweene God and his Church the enemies of the Church are therby made his enemies and if God be on our side who shall be against us To fight against God is as if a man should spit against the winde which carries it backe in his owne face the furie of Gods enemies against his Church is but as the ratling of a violent haile-storm upon the tiles which makes a great noise for the time as if it would beate down the house but is cast off as soone as it comes on and then lies on the ground and within a while melts away or as the proud surges of the sea which come swelling and roaring towards the rocke as if they would rend it in peeces and carrie all before them but the issue is that they dash themselves against the rock and so turne into froth but the rock being onely washed remaines where it was so is it with the Church which is built upon the rock the windes may blow and the flouds arise and the raine beate upon it but it falls not because t is built upon a rocke and the gates of hell shall never be able to prevaile against it The third considerable point in this Imprecation is the hand by whose power the enemies of God shall perish that is by the hand and power of him whose enemies they are and therefore doth Deborah as we see by an apostrophe turne her to the Lord and directs her speech to him So let or so shall all thine enemies perish O Lord that is they shall thus perish by thy hand and hence it is that in so many passages shee ascribes the victorie wholy to the Lord Deborah said unto Barak Vp for this day wherein the Lord hath delivered Sisera into thine hand is not the Lord gone out before thee and in the next verse immediately following The Lord discomfited Sisera and all his charriots and all his host with the edge of the sword before Barak it is not said that Barak discomfited them before the Lord but the Lord before Barak and againe in the 23. of the same Chapter So God subdued on that day Iabin the King of Canaan before the children of Israel Though Barak signifie lightning yet was hee but as a thunder-bolt in the hand of God against Sisera and though Deborah signifie a Be yet no doubt but her diligence and providence in assisting Barak was overruled and guided by the providence of God and so much her selfe upon the matter confesseth in this very song they fought from heaven the starres in their courses or paths fought against Sisera they fought from heaven who was that but he Lord of heaven and earth which Iosephus thut expresseth There suddenly fell a storme saith hee of raine mixed with haile which the wind drove against the faces of the Canaonites and tooke away their sight making those that carried darts and such as served with the sling unprofitable in their service the Targetiers likewise having their hands benummed with cold could scarcely weild their swords but the tempest beating on the backes of the Israelites not onely wrought them lesse offence but made them also more forward being whetted thereunto by the manifest signe of Gods favour and presence whereupon disarraying and breaking through their enemies battel they made a great slaughter of them so as a part of them fell by the weapons of the Israelites the rest were overrunne by their owne horsemen and chariots Hitherto Iosephus much like wherunto is that storie which Eusebius out of Apollinarius and Tertullian reports that the armie of Marcus Aurelius warring upon the Marcomannians being in sore distresse for want of water and having at that time in his pay a legion of Christians which served under him they all with one consent the signe being given fell upon their knees and earnestly praied God for reliefe who instantly thereupon sent such a storme of thunder and lightning and raine and haile as it amazed their enemies driving full in their faces but refreshed them to the utter discomfiture of the one and victorious triumph of the other and thus the Emperour himselfe though by religion a Pagan by his letters signified to the Senate and thereupon gave not onely that legion the name of fulminatrix but strait charge that none should be put to death or punished for being Christians All which considered great reason had Gideon in the crie of his souldiers to preferre the sword of the Lord before his owne as t is in the seventh Chapter of this booke The sword of the Lord and of Gideon not the sword of Gideon without the sword of the Lord nor the sword of Gideon in the first place and then the sword of the Lord but first the sword of the Lord and then the sword of Gideon the sword of the Lord to direct and the sword of Gideon to execute the sword of the Lord as the primarie esficient and the sword of Gideon as the subordinate instrument the sword of the Lord without the sword of Gideon in the ordinary course will doe nothing and the sword of Gideon without the sword of the LORD at all can doe nothing Navies of ships troopes of horse regiments of foote fortresses ramparts artillerie munition and all military provision without him availes nothing hee it is who directs the bullet and the arrow to the marke who sharpens the sword that it may enter in to glut it selfe with flesh and make it selfe drunke with bloud who gives wisdome to the captaine and courage to the