Good spell that is the good speak or say the good tidings the word of good news Under which name it was revealed by the Angel to the Shepherds who were watching their flock in the fields the night our Saviour was born Behold saith the Angel I bring you good tidings of great joy which shall be to all people For unto you is born this day a Saviour which is Christ the Lord Luk. 2. 10 11. I call it the glad tidings of Salvation to be attained by Christ for so much the name of Saviour implies And saith S. Paul 1 Tim. 1. 15. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation That Iesus Christ came into the world to save sinners Neither is there saith S. Peter Acts 4. 12. Salvation in any other for there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved The next words I used shew the way and manner how and whereby Christ purchased this Salvation unto men and the means whereby it is attained through him namely by cancelling of sin by his alonement made he reconciles us to his Father that we through him might turn unto God and perform works of obedience acceptable unto eternal life All which was foretold by Daniel chap. 9. 24. where prophesying of the time of Messiah's coming he said Seventy weeks were determined upon the people and upon the holy city to finish transgression and to make an end of sin and to make reconciliation for iniquity and to bring in everlasting righteousness To prove in particular that Christ dyed for sin I shall not need No man that ever read the Gospel but knows it That by the atonement he made for sin by death he hath reconciled us to his Father is as evident by what S. Paul tells us 2 Cor. 5. 19. That God was in Christ reconciling the world unto himself not imputing their trespasses to them That the ministery of the Gospel is the Ministery of reconciliation v. 18. whose Ministers as Embassadors for Christ beseech men in Christ's stead to be reconciled unto God v. 20. For by reason of Sin all mankind is at enmity with God and liable to eternal wrath Christ by taking our sins upon him abolished this enmity and set us at peace with God his Father according to that the Quire of Angels sang at his blessed Birth Glory be to God on high and on earth Peace Good-will towards men that is Glory be ascribed to God forasmuch as Peace was come upon earth and Good-will towards men All this is plain But that which the greatest part of men as may be guessed by their practice seem to make question of is that last parcel of my Description That therefore Christ took away sin and reconciled us to his Father that we might through him whose righteousness is imputed to us perform works of piety and obedience which God should accept and crown with eternal life But that this is also a part of the Gospel as well as the former is plain and evident First by that of S. Peter 1 Ep. ch 2. ver 24. where he tells us That Christ his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sin might live unto righteousness Secondly by that of the Apostle Paul to Titus ch 2. 11 c. The grace of God saith he that bringeth Salvation hath appeared unto all men Wherefore Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present world Looking for that blessed hope the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Iesus Christ Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works Is not this plain Thirdly by that of the same Apostle Eph. 2. 10. where the Apostle having told us v. 8 9. that we are saved by grace through faith and not of works that is not according to the Covenant of works wherein the exact performance was required lest any man should boast namely that he was not beholden to God for grace and favour in rewarding him he adds presently lest his meaning might be mistaken That we are God's workmanship created in Christ Iesus unto good works which God hath before ordained 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that we should walk in them As if he should say Though of our selves we are no ways able to perform those works of obedience ordained by God aforetime in his Law for us to walk in yet now God hath as it were new created us in Christ that we might perform them in him namely by way of acceptation though they come short of that exactness which the Law requireth And thus to be saved is to be saved by grace and favour and not by the merit of works because the foundation whereby our selves and services are approved in the eyes of God and have promise of reward is the mere favour of God in Iesus Christ and not any thing in us or them Agreeable to these Scriptures is that in the Revelation where glory is ascribed to Iesus Christ who loved us and washed us from our sins in his own bloud and hath made us Kings and Priests unto God his Father that is that he might make us kings and Priests unto God his Father For and is here to be taken 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for that Kings to subdue the world the flesh and the Devil Priests to offer Sacrifices of prayer thanksgiving works of mercy and other acceptable services to our heavenly Father Moreover and besides these express Scriptures this Truth may be yet further confirmed by Demonstration and Reason Repentance is a forsaking of sin to serve God in newness of life Now the Gospel includes Repentance as the subject wherein it worketh as the Body which it enliveneth as a Soul Or to use a similitude from weaving Repentance is the warp of the Gospel and the Gospel the woof of Repentance Repentance is as the warp which the Gospel by the shuttle of Faith runs through as the woof whence proceeds the web of Regeneration Therefore is Repentance everywhere joyned with the Gospel Both Iohn Baptist and our Saviour so published it Repent for the Kingdom of heaven is at hand Repent and believe the Gospel Our Saviour in his last words or commission to his Disciples tells them Luk. 24. 47. that Repentance and Remission of sins which is the Gospel should be preached in his Name among all Nations beginning at Ierusalem All which is elsewhere comprised in the sole name of preaching the Gospel which argues that the Gospel of Christ and consequently our Faith in the same supposeth Repentance as the ground to do its work upon So S. Peter in his first Sermon Acts 2. 38. conjoyns them Repent saith he and be baptized in the name of Iesus Christ for the remission of sins as if he had said Repent and that thy Repentance may be available betake
is and nothing more true That no works of ours in this life can abide the Touch-stone of God's Law and therefore not able to justifie us in the presence of God but to condemn us But it is true also That we are therefore justified through Faith in the bloud and righteousness of Christ that in him we might do works pleasing and acceptable to Almighty God which out of him we could not do For as the bloud and sufferings of Iesus Christ imputed to us through Faith cleanseth and acquitteth us of all the sins whereof we stood guilty afore we believed so the imputation of his righteousness when we believe makes our works though of themselves far short of what they should be yet to be acceptable and just in the eyes of the Almighty Christ supplying out of his Riches our poverty and by communication of his obedience continually perfecting ours where we fail that so we might receive the reward of the righteous of him that shall reward every man according to his works Being therefore in Christ we are so much the more bound to frame our lives in holy obedience unto God's Commandments in that before we were justified we could not but now henceforth we are enabled to do that which for Christ's sake will be acceptable and pleasing to Almighty God our Father This is that which S. Peter tells us 1 Epist. 2. 24. That Christ his own self bare our â—â—s in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sin should live unto righteousness So S. Paul Tit. 2. 11 c. The grace of God saith he that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men wherefore Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly righteously and godly in this present world Looking for that blessed hope the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Iesus Christ ver 14. Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works Here you may see that Christ is therefore given us to be a propitiation for our sins and to justifie us that in him we might walk before God in newness of life so to obtain a crown of righteousness in the world to come But if this be not enough to perswade us to take on this yoke of Christ yet I hope this consideration will do it when I shall shew you that That Faith can never be true which is not attended with these fruits Nor is there any other mean to assure us we are truly come to Christ and ingraffed in him but this If we have taken up this yoke of Christ we may know then we have put on him If we have never put our necks to his yoke we never put on him It is S. Iohn's express assertion 1 Epist. 1. 6. If we say we have fellowship with him and walk in darkness we lye and do not the the truth Ch. 2. 3. Hereby we know that we know him viz. to be our Advocate with his Father and the propitiation for our sins if we keep his commandments The Reason is plain Because the one follows the other as the heat doth the Fire or the light the Sun Which I thus demonstrate both on Christ's part and ours On ours thus He that sincerely sues to and seriously relies upon another for a Favour which nearly concerneth him and no other can do for him will by all means endeavour to avoid whatsoever he knows may distaste his Patron and do his best to approve himself in whatsoever he can learn is most pleasing unto him If you should see a man having a Suit to some great Courtier for a pardon of his life and yet shewing no care of doing in his presence what he knew would deeply offend him and wilfully neglecting that he knew would give him the best content would you think such a man in earnest and sufficiently perplext with fear of death and seriously relying upon that man to save it I know you would not If therefore out of a true affrightment and sense of the wrath of God for sin with a sincere and serious Faith thou suest unto and reliest upon Christ for mercy and redemption as the only name under heaven whereby thou canst be saved how canst thou but love him with all the Powers of thy Soul and therefore do thy best to please him upon whom thou dependest for so great and unvaluable a benefit If thou dost not surely thou hast not yet weighed thy misery sufficiently thy Faith is insufficient and counterfeit it never yet came home to Christ that he might ease thee The same appears on Christ's part For unto whomsoever Christ is given for Iustification through the imputation of his merits and righteousness in him God creates a new heart and reneweth a right spirit as the Psalmist speaketh Psal. 51. 10. that is by virtue of this union he conferreth upon him the grace of his Spirit for the abolishing of the body of sin and enabling the Soul in some measure against the assaults thereof to abandon at least the more eminent notorious enormous and mortal sins though sins of ordinary infirmity shall not be quite subdued in this life If therefore I see a man run still without restraint into gross and open sins and walk not blameless in the eyes of men I conclude he hath not this Spirit of grace within him and therefore was never ingraffed into Christ by a true and lively Faith Wheresoever therefore is a true faith and unfeigned 1 Tim. 1. 5. there follows a new life He that cometh to Christ sincerely takes his yoke upon him too Labour therefore as S. Iames saith to shew your Faith by your works For not every one that saith Lord Lord but he that doth the will of my Father saith Christ shall inherit the kingdom of heaven DISCOURSE XXXII S. MATTHEW 11. 29. Learn of me for I am meek and lowly in heart and ye shall find rest unto your Souls THese Words are a continuing of the former Exhortation to take upon us the yoke of Christ First in general That we follow his Example Learn of me Then in particular wherein we should follow him In Meekness and Lowliness For I am saith he Meek and Lowly in heart Then the Profit we shall reap thereby Do this And ye shall find rest unto your souls For the first Learn of me Observe That Christ is given unto us not only for a Sacrifice for sin but for an Example of life They are the words of one of our Collects For he is our Lord and King and Subjects we know will naturally conform and fashion themselves unto the manners of their Princes Regis ad exemplum totus componitur orbis And those which do so are accounted the most devoted to them and are the best accepted of them If Christ then be our Lord and King we must acknowledg him to be such by conforming to his Example
unto Christ is I will farther make plain thus He that believeth that Christ is an atonement to God for the sins of all repentant sinners and surely he is an atonement for none else must repent and turn from all his sins that so Christ may be an atonement for him else he embraceth not what he believeth He that believes that God in Christ will accept and reward our obedience and works of Piety though short of perfection and of no worth in themselves must apply himself accordingly to do works of Religion and Charity that God in Christ may accept and reward them For our Belief is not that saving Belief until we apply our selves to what we believe To believe to attain Salvation through Christ without works of obedience to be accepted in him is as I have already said a false Faith whereof there is no Gospel no Promise To believe the contrary That Christ is given of God to such only as shall receive him to perform acceptable obedience to God through him and yet not to apply and buckle our selves thereto were indeed to believe what is true but yet no saving Faith because we embraced not the thing we believed as we believed it Thou sayest then thou hast Faith and believest that Christ is the atonement to God for the sins of all such as leave and forsake their sins by Repentance why then repent thee of thy sins that Christ may be an atonement for thee Thou sayest thou hast this Faith That God in Iesus Christ will accept thy undeserving works and services unto eternal life why then embrace thou Christ and rely upon him for this end that thou mayest do works of Piety towards God and Charity towards men that so God in Christ may accept thee and them unto eternal life Now if this be the Faith which is Saving and unites us unto Christ and no other then it is plain That a saving Faith cannot be severed from good works because no man can embrace Christ as he is promised but he must apply himself to do them For out of that which hath been spoken three Reasons may be gathered for the necessity of them First It is the end of our Faith and Iustification by Christ yea the end why he shed his bloud for us that we being reconciled to God in him might bring forth fruits of righteousness which else we could never have done This is no Speculation but plain Scripture S. Peter 1 Ep. 2. 24. telleth us that Christ his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree that we being dead to sin should live unto righteousness S. Paul Tit. 2. 11 12 13 14. The grace of God saith he that bringeth salvation hath appeared unto all men wherefore Teaching us that denying ungodliness and worldly lusts we should live soberly and righteously and godly in this present world Looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Iesus Christ Who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purifie unto himself a peculiar people zealous of good works These words contain the Summe of all I have hitherto told you That Christ is therefore given us to be a Propitiation for our sins and to justifie us that in him we might walk before God in newness of life so to obtain a Crown of righteousness in the world to come Answerable is that place Ephes. 2. 10. where the Apostle having told us v. 8 9. we are saved by grace through saith and not of works lest any man should boast he adds presently lest his meaning might be mistaken as it is of too many That we are God's workmanship created in Christ Iesus unto good works which God hath before ordained 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that we should walk in them as if he should say Those works of obedience ordained by God aforetime in his Law for us to walk in which we could not perform of our selves now God hath as it were new moulded us in Iesus Christ that we might perform them in him namely by way of acceptation though they come short of that exactness the Law requireth And thus to be saved is to be saved by Grace and Favour and not by the Merit of works because the Foundation whereby our selves and our services are approved in the eyes of God and acquitted of guilt which the Scripture calleth to be justified is the mere Favour of God in Iesus Christ and not any thing in us And this way of Salvation excludes all boasting for what have we to boast of when all the righteousness of our works is none of ours but Christ's imputed to us whereby only and not for any merit in themselves they become acceptable and have promise of Reward But that men should be saved by Christ though they be idle and do nothing I know no such Grace of God revealed in Scripture Now that in Christ we may perform works of righteousness which God will accept and crown is plain by the tenour of Scripture S. Paul Phil. 1. 11. desires that the Philippians might be filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Iesus Christ unto the glory and praise of God And the same Apostle tells the Romans Rom. 6. 22. That being made free from sin and become servants to God they have their fruit unto holiness and the end everlasting life that is as the Syriack turns it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they have holy fruits whose end is life eternal And if we would seriously consider it we should find That the more we believe this righteousness of Faith in Christ the more reason we have to perform works of service and obedience unto God than if we believed it not For if our works would not be acceptable with God unless they were compleat in every point as the Law required if there were no reward to be looked for at the hands of God unless we could merit it by the worthiness of our deeds who that considers his own weakness and insufficiency would not sooner despair than go about to please God by works He would think it better to do nothing at all than to endeavour what he could never hope to attain and so lose his labour But we who believe that those who serve God in Christ have their failings and wants covered with his righteousness and so their works accepted as if they were in every point as they should be why should not we of all men fall to work being sure by Christ's means and merit we shall not lose our labour A second Motive why we should do good works is Because they are the Way and Means ordained by God to obtain the Reward of eternal life without which we shall never attain it Without holiness no man shall see God Heb. 12. 14. Look to your selves saith S. Iohn Ep. 2. ver 8. that ye lose not those things ye have wrought but that ye may receive a full reward The
of the world be blessed What was here acted else but the Mystery of Christ's Passion to wit That the promised seed should make all the Nations of the world blessed by becoming a sacrifice for sin which that it might be the more evident the Place is also designed the region of Mount Moriah there Abraham was bid to offer his â—on Isaac even where Messiah who was then in the loins of Isaac was one day to be offered upon the Cross. The Second prediction in the Law of Messiah's suffering death was by the slaying of Beasts for atonement of sin in their Sacrifices which were nothing else but shadows and representations of that Offering upon the Cross which Messiah was one day to make of himself for the sins of the world Which Mystery of the end of those Legal sacrifices was shewed in the former story of Abraham's offering Isaac For when he had now brought his son to the place appointed and had built an Altar and was now ready to stay him as he was commanded the Angel of the Lord stayed his hand and shewed him a Ram caught in a thicket by the horns which Ram Abraham took and offered for a burnt-offering in stead of his son to signifie that the offering of the Blessed seed was yet to be suspended and that God in the mean while would accept the offerings of Bulls and Rams as a pledge of that expiation which the Blessed seed of Abraham in the loins of Isaac should one day make And thus much for the Law Now I come to the Prophets wherein I find Three evident Prophecies That Messiah should suffer death The first is that famous one the 53. of Esay the whole Chapter through I will not repeat it all but some two or three passages thereof Verse 5. He was wounded saith the Prophet for our transgressions he was bruised for our iniquities the chastisement of our peace was upon him and with his stripes we are healed Ver. 7. He was oppressed he was afflicted yet he opened not his mouth he was brought as a Lamb to the slaughter and as a Sheep before her Shearers is dumb so he opened not his mouth Ver. 8. He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people was he stricken Now that this Prophecy was one of those by which the Apostles used to prove this Verity appears by the stroy of the conversion of the Eunuch Acts 8. unto whom Philip coming whilst he was in his Chariot reading this place of Scripture and he thereupon asking Philip of whom the Prophet spake these words the Text tells us that Philip began at the same Scripture and preached unto him Iesus The Second place in the Prophets which foretells That Christ should suffer is that in the ninth of Daniel who pointing out the time of Messiah's coming by Seventy weeks limits his count not at his Birth but at his Suffering as the most principal moment of his story From the going out of the commandment saith he to restore and build Ierusalem unto Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks and sixty two weeks And after sixty two weeks shall Messiah be cut off What can be more plain than this A Third place in the Prophets is to be found Zachary 12. 10. where at the time when the Iews shall be converted Christ is brought in speaking in this manner I will pour out saith he upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Ierusalem the spirit of grace and supplication and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced Hence it follows that the Iews should have pierced Messiah before they received him to be their Redeemer And that this place also was one of those applied by the Apostles to this purpose appears by S. Iohn's twice alledging it Once in his Gospel when a Souldier with a Spear pierced our Saviours side Then saith he was fulfilled that Scripture which saith They shall look upon him whom they pierced Again in the beginning of his Revelation Behold saith he he cometh in the clouds and every eye shall see him and they also which pierced him Now for the Third division of Scripture the Psalms the chief at least and principal place there which I dare warrant is that of the 16. Psalm v. 9 10. quoted both by S. Peter and S. Paul in the Acts of the Apostles My â—lesh shall rest in hope For thou wilt not leave my soul in the grave neither suffer thine Holy One to see corruption For David as S. Peter and S. Paul say was buried and his body saw corruption therefore it cannot be spoken of him but of Messiah in the person of David as a Type in whose loyns Messiah was Now then if Messiah's body were to be laid in the grave it follows he was to die and to be in the state of the dead AND thus I have done the First part of my task and proved That Messiah was to suffer death according to the Scriptures namely foretold in that Threefold division of Scripture mentioned here by our Saviour the Law the Prophets and the Psalms Now I come to prove the other part That it behoved him also to rise again the third day according to the Scriptures And this was first foreshewn in the same story of Isaac wherein his sacrifice or suffering was actedâ— For from the time that God commanded Isaac to be offered for a burnt-offering Isaac was a dead man but the third day he was released from death This the Text tells us expresly that it was the third day when Abraham came to Mount Moriah and had his son as it were restored to him again which circumstance there was no need nor use at all to have noted had it not been for some Mystery For had there been nothing intended but the naked story what did it concern us to know whether it were the third or the fifth day that Abraham came to Moriah where he received his son from death Now that I have not misapplied this figure S. Paul is my witness who expresly makes this release of Isaac from slaughter a figure of the Resurrection For thus he speaks of this whole story Hebrews 11. 17 18 19. By faith Abraham when he was tried offered up Isaac and he that had received the promises offered up his only-begotten Son Of whom it was said That in Isaac shall thy seed be called Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead from whence also he received him in a figure The same was foreshewed by the Law of Sacrifices which were to be eaten before the third day some Sacrifices were to be eaten the same day they were offered but those which were deferred longest as the Peace-offerings were to be eaten before the third day The third day no sacrifice might be eaten but was to be burnt If it were eaten it was not accepted for an atonement but counted an abomination namely to shew that
Canticles I am wounded with love God's love hath wounded me and the wound of God makes me love him it begins in his love to me and aims at and ends in my love to him For we must remember in this case that which S. Austin well observes That when the godly and the wicked suffer the very same things to outward appearance yet there is a great unlikeness of the sufferers even in the likeness of suffering the one are punished out of God's just displeasure and wrathful vengeance the other are disciplin'd out of mercy that God might fit them and keep them for himself because he loves them And that we may the better understand this let us consider what Effects Afflictions work and what fruits they bring forth in those whom God loveth 1. Afflictions to them whom God loves are Medicinal and thereby they recover their health by repentance from some spiritual disease they are sick of For howsoever the Lord gives the rein loose to the children of wrath and lets them enjoy their hearts desire yet will he hedge with Thorns the ways of those he loveth and will awaken them by some sharp rod or other out of the sleep of security So he taught Miriam by a leprosie to leave her murmuring he wakened Ionah out of his sleep by casting him into the Sea Zacharias his unbelief was cured with dumbness and Blessed is the man whom the Lord this way chastens and corrects Psal. 94. 2. Afflictions are Preservatives to keep them whom God loveth from sin Thus an Angel of Satan must buffet Paul lest he should be exalted above measure 2 Cor. 12. 7. The Earth which is not tilled and broken up bears nothing but thorns and briers Vines wax wild in time unless we prune and cut them Our hearts would be overgrown with evil affections and dispositions as with so many noisome weeds if God by his loving chastisements should not Till and Manure them My Father saith Christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is the Husbandman Iohn 15. 1. 3. Afflictions make the fruitless bring forth fruit beget many Vertues and make God's Graces in us to bloom and bring forth works pleasing unto our Heavenly Father The Prodigal Son in Luke 15. never thought of returning to his Father till he was brought low by affliction Hagar was proud in the house of Abraham but humble in the Wilderness Gen. 21. Ionah sleepeth in the ship but watches and prayes in the Whales belly Sicut Aromata odorem non nisi cum accenduntur expandunt saith Gregory as sweet spices send not forth nor spread abroad their sweet smell untill they be burnt or beaten so neither do the Graces of God's children send forth so sweet so rich a fragrancy as when they are exercised by Afflictions 4. Lastly Afflictions draw men nearer unto God Manasses who lived in Ierusalem as a Libertine when he was bound with chains in Babylon when he was in affliction he besought the Lord and humbled himself greatly before the God of his Fathers 2 Chron. 33. 11 12. In the Gospel we read that Corporal diseases brought many to Christ whereas many who had their health neither regarded nor acknowledged him And thus I have let you see according to Sampson's Riddle Iudg. 14. how that out of the eater comes meat and out of the sowr or sharp comes sweet Out of sowr and sharp or bitter afflictions out of troubles and calamities that sometimes threaten to devour us comes sweetness comfort and refreshment The main use of all is for comfort in all our sufferings and crosses whensoever God sends them For they are Signs of our Son-ship and Tokens of his love So the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews tells us expressly chap. 12. 6. c. Whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth and scourgeth every Son whom he receiveth If ye endure chastening God dealeth with you as with Sons But if ye be without chastisement then are ye bastards and not Sons Let us then learn to bless God in our afflictions and say with David Psal. 94. 12. Blessed is the man whom thou chastenest O Lord and teachest him out of thy Law It is good for me that I have been afflicted for before I was afflicted I went astray but now have I kept thy Word Psal. 119. 67 71. My Second Observation is this That if God spares not those whom he loveth much less shall his Enemies escape punishment Surely if God chastises those whom he loves he will break in pieces those whom he hates If thou art God's Enemy as thou canst not expect any of that Favour he shews unto his Friends and children so much less hast thou reason to hope that he will not revenge himself on thee when thou feest him so severe unto his own Let them think on this who live in enmity against God and never yet made their peace with him by casting off the old man and putting on the new but continue still to walk after the flesh in all the ways of sin and cast God's Law behind them Let them not rejoyce at the afflictions of God's children nor laugh at their sufferings but fear and tremble For every lash that the Children of God feel is a Warning-piece to ungodly men and should make them dread those sorer punishments those many and worse stripes Luke 12. 47. the indignation and wrath tribulation and anguish which shall be to every one that doth evil Rom. 2. To conclude consider that in 1 Pet. 4. 17. If judgment must first begin at the house of God what shall be the end of them that obey not the Gospel of God AND now I come to the last thing to be observed out of these words viz. That God rebukes before he chastens 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 As many as I love I rebuke and chasten first 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I rebuke and then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I chasten first admonish and reprove them and convince them of their Sin and then chastise them his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 hath an 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 his disciplining goes with admonition It is a part of God's style whereby he proclaims himself The Lord The Lord God merciful and gracious and long-suffering And this appears in that he strikes not a sinner without frequent forewarnings reproofs and convincing him of sin His Word is always the harbinger of his Sword he rebukes and then chastens for he desireth not our misery but our amendment As I live saith the Lord I desire not the death of a sinner but rather that he would turn from his way and live And so in Prov. 1. Wisdom first cries out in the streets How long will ye Scorners delight in scorning and ye fools hate knowledge First she calls before she laughs at their calamity before destruction comes upon them as a whirlwind or distress and anguish fall upon them Before the Floud came and overwhelmed the Earth for sin man had given