Selected quad for the lemma: hand_n
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A56454
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Nehemiah, or, The excellent governour being a discourse delivered at the cathedrall of the Holy Trinity, Dublin, Aug. 1669, before the Right Honourable Thomas Earl of Ossory ... / by J.P. ...
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Parry, John, d. 1677.
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1670
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Wing P558; ESTC R33024
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13,453
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42
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Manna and the speaking ill of those who spend themselves for us is a sin of a deep dye and doth not usually go unpunished I have now done with the first part of Nebemiah's good deeds The second part of Nehemiahs good deeds for the Church his Acts of justice and kindnesse to the whole Nation in the settlement of their civil Rights I come now to the second his services to the Church and the Offices thereof He confines not himself to Acts of Civility and Tendernesse to the people he knows that something is to be done for God as well as Man and that whatever is performed for his service is the readiest way to advance their reputation abroad as well as their prosperity and peace at home He thinks himself obliged to provide for the welfare of their Souls as well as of their Estates and therefore this prudent Deputy carefully sets himself to the reestablishment of that Religion which was banisht long from Ierusalem and to discountenance and weed out those tares and corruptions which liberty and confusions had brought in This he performs with zeal and particularly mentions in my Text the good deeds that I have done for the house of my God and for the offices thereof These I shall reduce to the following particulars 1. In clensing the Temple Chap. 13. v. 8. 1. He took care for the cleansing and adorning God's house and for the unmingled purity of its Offices In his absence from Jerusalem being several times sent for to the King Tobiah had intruded into the Courts of the Temple and placed his own houshold-stuff in those chambers which were appropriated to a more holy use for the vessels of the Lord this good Nehemiah is much displeased at and upon his return tels us it grieved me sore therefore I cast forth all the houshold-stuff of Tobiah out of the chamber and thither brought again the vessels of the house of the Lord with the meat-offerings and Frankincense 2. 2. In deposing intruders into the Priesthood Chap. 7.64 Intruders into the Priesthood are deposed and made uncapable of that service they who could not make out their legal qualification and descent were as polluted put from the Priesthood 3. 3. In incouraging the Rulers Priests in exposition of the Law Nehemiah being happy in careful prudent Governours of the Church he with their help sets up a diligent preaching and exposition of the Law Chap. 8. Painful Ezra with his brethren are not idle they counsel and instruct the people and convince them of their Errors in a Language they understood he reads and they are attentive he expounds the difficulties and they modestly receive his exposition he makes a conveniency for audience a Pulpit of Wood and they hang upon the Priests lips which are to preserve knowledg The people do not pretend to be teachers themselves or that they know enough already but they are modestly attentive and promise all obedience to what they hear 4. In prescribing a Conformity in the matter and manner of their worship 4. To keep off Confusion and new fancies he obliges them to a Conformity in their worship of God as to the matter he prescribes all the Commands of Moses without partiality to be punctually obeyed by all as to the manner Chap. 8.6 they hearken to it unanimously in one general posture reverently and decently he opens the Book and they stand up he praises God and they openly proclaim Amen Amen they lift up their hands in sign of their consent they bow their heads and worship the Lord with their faces to the ground in token of their humility 5. In proclaiming a Fast Chap. 9. 5. To work the people to a true Sense of their former miscarriages and God's unexpected mercies he proclaims a solemn Fast and enjoins an open confession of sin 6. In sanctifying the Sabbath 6. He rectifies the abuse of the Sabbath and represses the prophanesse of those who made no distinction of dayes 7. Whereas the Dues of the Priests were wrested from them and the Revenues of the Church swallowed up by the great invaders of its Patrimony 7. In restoring their Patrimony to the Church Chap. 13.10 we find pious Nehemiah vigorously acting in the restoration of them he liberally contributes towards their maintenance himself and builds houses for the Prophets and contends with those Nobles who thought it no robbery to keep what they can he compels them to be just and to pay their Tithes and takes care that they shall not depend upon the Arbitrary benevolence of the people These were some of the many good deeds of this noble Lieutenant in his service both to the Nation and the Church in whom an excellent Magistrate may find a pattern for himself And truly Nehemiah's good deeds were of so noble and diffusive an influence as that some of the Antients have thought him a type of our blessed Saviour Christ Nehemiah whether a type of Christ which though uncertain whether intended by God's spirit yet it is most infallibly true that our Saviour did spiritually and substantially perform that which this Governour did outwardly effect He like Nehemiah came to his own in a time of extremity and need to comfort the broken-hearted and to raise up the ruins of decayed mankind Christ built up the walls of new Ierusalem his Church and hath appointed Pastors and Governours to feed his flock and his Gospel to sever the Wheat from the lesse useful Chaff He like this good man pull'd off the chains of the miserable and proclaim'd liberty to the Captives laden with debt Thus Christ did that spiritually which Nehemiah did outwardly and those virtues which were so bright in him were such as Christ both requires and rewards in Magistrates Lib. Antiq. 11. c. 5. and Josephus his character of him is not yet dead he was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. A just person of a most excellent disposition a great passionate lover of his Countrey 5 Inferences From all these put together I gain these following particulars 1. Chief magistrates may interpose in matters of Religion 1. That the chief Governour hath power to rectifie the abuse of God's service according to the establisht Laws of God and his Church he may lawfully do what Nehemiah did it is no encroachment upon Christian liberty to determine the use of things indifferent nor is it prejudicial to the Commands of Christ to obey the constitutions of Authority 2. 2. But not usurp the office of Priests Though the chief Magistrate may oversee the Priests and cause them to execute their duties yet they have no power to usurp their offices His being a Magistrate did not priviledge him to exercise the Priesthood that Calling is sacred and requires a due Mission as well as Abilities If Corah offer to take up the Censer the Earth may open and swallow him up If Vzziah though a King intrudes into the Priests
office God will meet him in the way and as he stretches out his hands with a Censer a Leprosie breaks out on his Forehead and he who would needs offer incense to God becomes loathsome to himself and he who was not satisfied to come in as a King is shut out as a Leper from approaching the Sanctuary 3. That the information of Iudgment is the most natural means of rectifying the disorders of our affections Information of Judgment a good means of gaining affections The preaching of the word and the instructing of the people is the best way to make them sensible of their sins Confession of sin to attend upon our knowledg of it 4. That a due confession and acknowledgment of our guilt must attend upon the sence and knowledg of our sins a solemn Fast is proclaimed after reading the Law To oppose sacriledg an argument of a pious soul 5. That a restoring unto God the things that are God's and the opposing of Sacriledge is usually an act of a pious and generous soul This overcomes very high temptations which many sink under Nehemiah will stand in the gap and hazard a contention with any and rebuke the Nobles rather than connive at the robbing of God He will honour the persons and keep sacred the possessions dedicated to his service and not suffer the Priesthood to be exposed to the arbitrary benevolence of the people Last part of Nehemiahs request of what to be remembred Thus I have done with the first part of my Text that Nehemiah mentioned and represented his good deeds for the Nation and for the Church I come now to the last part to that which he requests of God and that is a Remembrance of these Remember me O my God and wipe not out c. In two phrases he desires the same thing 1. a Remembrance 2. a not wiping out his good deeds The first is positive the second negative A twofold Remembrance both to the same purpose both mutually explain each other there is a remembrance Theoretical and there is a remembrance Practical the first is immanent the second transient that in affectu this in effectu and since Nehemiah enforces this request by a not wiping out we may conclude that his prayer to God is that he may be effectually remembred Here two things offer themselves 1. by whom he would be remembred 2. how he would have this Remembrance expressed 1. The Remembrancer desired is God The Remembrancer desired God Remember me O my God Though Nehemiah's Acts of kindnesse to the people be great and his sweet behaviour and care had extremely obliged all yet he makes not his addresse to them he minds not Ierusalem of her rebuilded wall nor the Rulers of their vindicated honors nor the Priests of their restored function prostituted before to the basest of the people he minds not the whole Nation of its settlement and peace as far as their intangled interests would permit he turns not to any of these but to his God Remember me O my God Most eminently especially before Man He turns to his God 1. most especially and eminently before man 2. exclusively he utterly excludes and rejects the remembrance of man Philip. 2. 1. He turns most especially to his God because his good deeds were performed in obedience to him 2. Because they were effected by God's grace and peculiar strength who worketh in all men to will and to doe and who actuates Princes and Magistrates with Spirits suitable to their Stations 3. Because God's glory was the great aime of what he did this the Gentiles scoff at and from the ruins of the City and the neglected defilements of the Temple took occasion to contemn the God of Israel who once owned himself their Protector and their mighty deliverer 4. Because God is pleased to accept of acts of Charity and love to man as done to himself and therefore for these and many more reasons he most especially hath recourse in the first place to God Remember me O my God 2. He turns to God exclusively Man's remembrance is not at all desired he is silent of that and onely begs this because 1. God was not at all obliged to him nor his Debtor for his good deeds but man was and therefore were men Candid and ingenuous and but tolerably Just Nehemiah might have very well expected that they would not easily forget him or if they did he knew it would be their own fault not his and consequently the ill would be theirs too for being so ungrateful and therefore this noble Governour is above their flattery and hunts not after their praise he seeks no monument in their remembrance he minded not himself in doing them good nor doth he court their applause for what he did perform reason Second 2. It is rationally probable that Nehemiah omits any desire of being remembred by man out of a real distrust of ever having it duely paid for if God be forgotten man cannot very well expect to be remembred and they who are too usually unmindful of the daily mercies of God will quickly be strangers to the kindnes of man Experience tels us that a little trouble or hardship of a few hours blots out the memory of mercies poured down the whole life before by God If Israel want a little water they will forget the wonders of Egypt a little bad news or a wanton desire of flesh or a few dayes absence of Moses makes them all dance after a Calf Well therefore may the Magistrate distrust a remembrance of man since man thus easily forgets his God Magistrates who move in an open Sphere though never so sweet and pleasing in their influence yet accidentally may attract some unquiet exhalations and if they displease but once that one ungrateful Action is the onely thing remembred And therefore as every pious prudent Christian secures to himself a more faithful repository for his treasure in Heaven because he finds the moth and the rust breaks through all on earth so good Nehemiah because he finds men grosly ignorant causlesly querulous unconstant in their affections and ungrateful for kindnesse and favours received therefore he thinks not fit to rely upon their memories nor court their applauses but looks onely upon his God who faithfully records all whose gifts and promotions are without repentance in whom there is no variablenesse or shadow of Change But some may question whether this may not be an Act of Presumption for any man Whether it be any presumption in Nehemiah to be remembred by God who at best is bad to present his good deeds to God for a remembrance for him in whose Eyes the Seraphims themselves are impure But it is certain 1. That Nehemiah did no more than what many good men before him did Thus Obadiah mentions his good pious service in hiding the Prophets in a Cave c. How far a man may reflect on his own good deeds 2. He did no more