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A36271 A sermon preached before the king on Tuesday, June 20th. 1665 being the day of solemn thanksgiving for the late victory at sea / by J. Dolben ... Dolben, John, 1625-1686. 1665 (1665) Wing D1832; ESTC R32800 15,472 34

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so devout Applications and fastning of our Souls unto the hand of God we should start like broken bowes fall off again from the confessed Anchor of our hope When God says to the Destroying Angel It is enough that we should say so to our selves too If he strike or our enemies threaten no longer that we neither pray nor repent or praise any longer But as soon as ever the skie clears up and the light of Gods countenance breaks through and dispells the clouds which had begirt us the very thought of what hath past should in the same moment blow away likewise and we forget that ever we had need of Gods protection or that he interposed to deliver us David did not so he hid himself in the Wilderness the Ziphites bordering upon his retirement discover him to Saul who comes with an Army to seise him but is diverted and drawn back again by the invasion of the Philistines David could not let such a preservation pass without composing this Psalm before us in memory of it as he hath done divers other upon the like occasions that there may remain an Eternal Monument of his pious and dutiful resenting God Blessings an indelible Record and Character of a generous gratitude which is always paying and yet always owing and charging it self with what it payes All this hath been said because I doubt not but the great Deliverance we now celebrate had many Deliverances in it which we know not And I fear lest we forget ere long those which we do this day own and acknowledge as we have already too apparently done the stupendious occasions of former Thanksgivings Questionless some mischiefs were projected which have escaped the vigilance and sagacity of those who disquiet themselves to preserve our security And some have been penetrated by their wisdome which we of the many have no sense of From all these we are freed for a while at least and therefore they ought all to be put upon the account that our Thanksgiving may be compleat and commensurate to its Causes for otherwise there is enough in our open direct Deliverance to take up all our Affections and exercise all our Faculties in the best acknowledgments we can make To conceive it aright take this obvious Truth into your thoughts That the greatest Preparations imaginable may be defeated the most formidable strength may be disordered and broken by a thousand slight accidents Consider when two Armies meet in the Field how little inconsiderable things impossible to be prevented or foreseen oftentimes turn the Scale and cast the main issue and success of a Battel beyond all recovery And then contemplate the Fortunes of a Nation put into Planks of a few inches thick exposed to wind and weather to the mercy of the Sea and the danger of their own Provisions which one spark of 〈◊〉 fire may make more fatal then all the Enemies Cannon And suppose these various hazards avoided yet a Force equal to Themselves must be encountred upon so unfaithful footing as the face of the Ocean affords Then tell me whether to come off safe from so dreadfull an adventure be not a Deliverance for which we ought in the Psalmist's Phrase to rejoyce with trembling Psal 2. 11. If you say that every Ship is a distinct and several Castle a new Fort which will endure a Battery and Siege by it self and therefore those dismal Routs which upon the miscarriage of one Troop sometimes ruine Land Armies are not to be feared in a Navy which can dispute a Victory so often over I must return that we had so much of our Interest in one Bottome that we might have bin undone at a Blow I need not suppose such a shot as fired the Enemies Admiral That cruel Bullet which took off those brave Noble Persons and came so near a Royal one hath taught me that to be preserved from such a Danger to be delivered from all our Trouble eased of all our anxieties and pangs of soul in so deep a Concern and with no greater loss upon the whole account is a deliverance capable of no further addition to be heightned and advanced by no other accession but this That God hath compleated the abundance and riches of his Mercy by giving us together with our own safety a signal discomfiture of those we fought against Our eyes have seen their desires upon our enemies To the consideration whereof I am next to raise your Devotions ANd in this we have great advantage of David for though the Chaldie Paraphrase reads Mine eye hath seen revenge as We Mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies Yet neither doth the original which always expresseth things very concisely tell us what David saw upon his Enemies nor do we find in the History of the Fact that he saw much harm betide them The treacherous contrivance of the Ziphites was eluded Saul was called off by a suddain irruption of the Philistines and David had the pleasure to behold that Army which came to swallow him and his little company and had even opened their jaws upon them march away in hast to other more equall encounters this was a delightful Prospect to him but of no great damage to his Enemies They suffered a disappointment made considerable by their expectations and malicious Purposes but without any real detriment so far were they from suffering great havock or slaughter indeed the World was not then capable of such-Tragedies as we have seen the Arts and Engines of Destruction were but rude and imperfect in their first essayes and designes Mischief was not yet grown skilful enough to convey Death at the distance of miles to tear men and their strongest defences like raggs to break a floating Castle as easily as the thinnest bubble in that water where it swimms killing a competent Army at one blast nay almost annihilating them and all their furniture making a ship which a Province cannot set out in a year as invisible ●pdams Ship ●o part of it ●er seen after it was down up in one moment as the Atoms of the Aire Men had not yet inspired the Element of Fire with their malice and witty managery of mischief had not taught inanimate flames such a rational conduct of themselves as to assault and apply their fury to a cluster of ships sticking like Deianeira's Shirt to every one of them till they perfect the ruine enjoyn'd them and actuate all the wishes of those by whom they are employed There was not in Davids time means to effect nor could the world in those days furnish out an Armada considerable enough to suffer such an overthrow as we have seen But although David saw less then we yet perhaps his eyes saw as much as we ought to desire to see upon our enemies to behold their Designs frustrated their Preparations vainly spent their Forces disabled from hurting us What ought a Christian to desire more Far be it from a Follower of Christ a Disciple of his meekness
A SERMON Preached before the KING On Tuesday June 20th 1665. Being the Day of SOLEMN THANKSGIVING For the late VICTORY at SEA By J. DOLBEN D. D. Dean of WESTMINSTER and Clerk of the Closet Published by His Majesties Special Command London Printed by A. Maxwell for Timothy Garthwait 1665. PSAL. 54. Vers 6 7. 6. An offering of a free heart will I give thee and praise thy Name O Lord Because it is so comfortable 7. For he hath delivered me out of all my trouble and mine eye hath seen his desire upon mine enemies HAving the Honour to serve the Devotions of the King and the Court in their joynt Thanksgiving to God for a Victory I have taken the Theme of my Discourse from the mouth of a King who was the greatest Conqueror and withal the greatest Master and Example of Devotion recorded in holy Scripture A Prince who with the same spirit and affection led his People in their Battels and in all their Acts of Worship and Religion Went In and Out before the Congregation as constantly to the Tabernacle as the Camp And therefore as the Historical Books of the Old Testament a good part whereof are but Davids Commentaries short and summary Memorials of his glorious Atchievements afford matter enough for the admiration of Captains and Commanders in War So is his Book of Psalms a rich Treasure and Magazine of Heavenly Meditations where every Pious Soul may find somewhat suited to its condition fit to assist its infirmities and improve it's Graces If we can as S. Augustine adviseth form our souls In Psal 30. by the affection of the Psalm tune our hearts to the Aire and spirit of Davids raptures we shall meet in these Divine Compositions that which is able to kindle Zeal inflame Love mellow and impregnate holy Sorrow for sin to give Wings to our Prayers and carry our Petitions with speed and force into Heaven to animate and enliven our Praises and make our Hallelujahs like those of Angels and Beatified Spirits To actuate all the good Resolutions which any of these Affections our Love our Fear the sense of our own unworthiness or Gods abundant Mercies have begun in our hearts In such plenty and variety I could not be long to seek for words proper to our present occasion And such will this Psalm appear to be A Psalm of Instruction so the TITLE calls it teaching us in few words how we ought to demean our selves in a War for the procuring good success to our Armies and making that success happy to us when we have obtained it In the three first Verses David being sought for by his Enemies as we lately were by ours prayes against them That was his Course He always began his Conflict with God contending and wrestling with Him for a blessing and assistance He durst not lift up his hands even against the Enemies of God yet what durst not David do till he had first lifted them up in humble Supplication to the Lord his strength Who taught his hands to war and his fingers to fight Psal 144. 1. This being done his Courage breaks out like Lightning he doubts not of slaying his Thousands and Ten Thousands So in the 4th and 5th Verses he becomes his own Prophet promising himself Victory For who can resist him who hath Omnipotence for his Second Or how can any Enemy maintain a Fight against that Captain who hath before-hand defeated and broken their Forces by his Prayers assur'd his Conquest before he put on his Armor Then in the last Verses which are my Text David concludes where he began thankfully acknowledgeth Gods goodness in his Deliverance and the Dissipation of his Enemies obliging himself to a return of dutifull affectionate service in consideration of so great Mercies received and those as they are the essential parts of a Thanksgiving so shall they be of my Sermon I will begin with that which is first in the order of nature though last in the words The Acknowledgment which is double of the Benefit and the Author The Benefit is likewise two-fold consisting of a Deliverance and a Victory David is delivered from all his trouble all the treacherous plots and attempts of his Adversaries And his eye hath seen his desire upon those Adversaries and of all this God is confessed the sole Author He hath delivered me c. I Am to begin with the Benefit acknowledged and with that part of it which is here called Deliverance and that being in Davids case not a Rescue from actual mischief or distress but only a diversion of a Danger coming toward him is such a Negative mercy as we seldom trouble our selves to consider much less to acknowledge and give thanks for How many hundreds of Perils hath every one of us escaped in our Persons Fame and Fortunes which we never dreamt of The watchful Providence of God maintaining a continual guard over us waking and caring for our good while we sleep and perhaps neglect both our selves and him that keeps us Would we but meditate a little upon the infinite accidents occurring in the course of things the infirmities of our natural frame and temper with the nice and curious contexture of our parts the consequences of our Disorders the malice of our enemies and of the Devil all or any of which may easily shorten our days or make them miserable And from hence admit these two evident Deductions 1. That in this estate it is morally impossible for a man to continue one day were not the goodness of God particularly intent upon his Preservation 2. That it is a double mercy to be kept from danger and from the knowledge of it too Because had we a distinct apprehension of all the evils to which we are obnoxious our fear and sollicitude must needs be a continual rack and torment to our Souls This contemplation would I assure my self cause every Person here present to add in his private Closet-Devotions one new Laud and Thanksgiving to God for his Deliverance from the Dangers which he never thought of But how little soever we are affected with these unknown Perils and Escapes wherein our eye is not sharp enough to discern the small thred by which a Calamity hangs over us or the hand that holds it from falling on our heads Yet when a considerable Danger comes close and stares us in the face when the Clouds gather apace and the sky looks black about us then we apprehend a Storm and bethink us of a shelter and retreat When death surrounds us when the Pestilence walks in darkness and the sword destroyes at noon day casting down thousands besides us and Ten thousands at our right hand then Qui habitat in adjutorio is a seasonable Hymn Then 't is a valuable Priviledge to retain unto Providence and have an Interest in Gods favor that he may defend us under his wings and we may be safe under his feathers 'T is great pitty that after such convictions Psal 91.