through those Meatus terra that they speake of Thus they are deluded in their conceits But yet more generally In that place Whereas the place of my people was confined into a little and narrow roome hereafter it shall be inlarged and even among the Gentiles that shal be made spiritual Israel where I was not known among the Heathen even there shall I come to be known and I shall have a people there and not only people but sons the sons of the living God and that so apparently that it shall be said unto them Yee are the sonnes of the living God Thus Saint Peter seems to interpret this place in the 1 Pet. 2. 10. speaking of the Gentiles whom God would have a people among them saith the Apostle Which in times past were not a people but are now the people of God Generally Interpreters doe conclude that the Apostle had reference to this very place in Hosea And so we may build then upon this interpretation howsoever that it is the intention of the Spirit of God that God would call home the Gentiles to himself so they that were no people should become his people his sons It should be said in that place where before it was said that they knew him not that now they are his sons Yea the Heathen shal be brought in so as they shall be convinced of the vanity of their Idolatry We worshipped dead stocks our gods were dead stones stocks that we were vassals unto but now we see a people that is come in to the profession of this Christian Religion they worship the living God their God is the true God certainely here are the sons of the living God This is the scope of the holy Ghost For observation 1. It is a comfortable thing to consider that in those places where God hath not been known worshipped that afterward in those places God should be known worshipped That such nations such Countreys and Towns that have lived in darkness Idolatry should now have the knowledge of the true God that the true God should come to be worshipped amongst them this is a blessed thing England was once one of the most barbarons nations in the world and in that place where it was said you are not my people where there was nothing but a company of savage barbarous creatures that worshipped the Devill how in this place in England is it said even by the nations round about us surely they are the sonnes of the living God! And so many times in dark corners in the Countrey where they never had the knowledge of Jesus Christ but were nuzled up in Popery and in all kinde of supesticious vanity God is pleased to send some faithful Minister to carry the light of the knowledge of Christ unto them and efficaciously to work faith in their hearts and now oh what an alteration is there in that towne the like of a family It may be said of many a house and family in which nothing but blasphemy and atheisme and scorne of Religion and uncleannesse and all manner of wickednesse hath been now it is a family filled with the servants and sonnes of the living God As it is a grievous thing to think of a place wherein God hath been truely worshipped that afterward the Devil should come to be served there so it is a comfortable thing to think of other places wherein the Devil hath beene served that God is truly worshipped there Some stories report that the Turkes having possession of the Temple at Jerusalem there where was the Arke and the Cherubins and the Seraphims there now are Tygres and Beares and savage creatures But on the other side to consider that in places where there have been none but Tygres and Bears and savage creatures they should now be filled with Cherubins and Seraphims this is a comfortable thing Secondly It shall be said they are the sonnes of the living God It shall be said so God hath a time to convince the world of the excellency of his Saints They shall not onely be the sonnes of the living God but it shall come to passe that it shall be said they are the sonnes of the living God all about them shall see such a lustre of the glory of God shining upon them that they shall all say Verily whatsoever other people have said hertofore whatsoever the thoughts of men have beene these are not onely the servants but the sonnes of the living God We have an excellent prophefie of this in Zachar. 12. 5. The governours of Iudah shal say in their heart The inhabitants of Jerusalem shall be my strength in the Lord of hosts their God Not onely the people shall be convinced of this but the Governours of Judah they shall say in their hearts our strength is in the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the Lord of Hosts their God Howsoever they were heretofore scandalized as seditious and factious and as enemies of the State yet now the Governours of Judah shall acknowledge that their strength is in them and in the Lord their God that this Lord of Hosts is their God That time will be a blessed time when the Governours of Judah shall come to be convinced of this when God shall so manifest the excellencies of his Saints as that both great and smal shall confesse them to be the sonnes of the living God It is promised to the Church of Philadelphia Revel 3. 9. that the Lord would make them that said they were Jews and were not said they were the Church and were not but were of the Synagogue of Satan to come and how before their feete and to know saith he that I have loved them There is a time that ungodly men shall be forced to know that God doth love his people And one thing amongst the rest that will much convince the men of the world of the excellency of the Saints will be the beauty of Gods ordinances that shall be set up amongst them that shall even dazel the eyes of the beholders For this you have an excellent promise Ezek. 37. 28. The heathen shall know that I the Lord do sanctifie Israel How shall they know it when my sanctuary shall be in the middest of them for evermore then they shall know that I the Lord do sanctifie Israel when the beauty of my ordinances shall appeare in them then they shall know it And if God be not onely satisfied in doing good to his people but hee will have the world know it and be convinced of it Let the people of God then not be satisfied onely in having their hearts upon God but let the world know that they love God too You must do that that may make it appeare to all the world that you are the children of the living God Let your light so shine before men that they seeing your good works may glorifie your Father which is in heaven It is one thing to do a thing that may
be seene and another thing to do a thing that it may be seen And yet Gods people may do both not do good onely that may be seen but if they keepe still the glory of God above in their eye as the highest ayme they may desire and be willing too that it may be seene to the praise of God But this I confesse requireth some strength of grace to do it and yet to keep the heart upright The excellency of grace doth consist not in casting off the outward comforts of the world but to know how to enjoy them and to over-rule them unto God so the strength of grace doth consist not in forbearing of such actions as are taken notice of by men or not to dare to ayme at the publishing of those things that have excellency in them but the strength of grace consists in this in having the heart enabled to do this and yet to keepe it under too and to keep God above in his right place Thirdly It shall be said they are sonnes c. It is a great blessing unto Gods children that they shall be accounted so before others Not onely that they shall be so but that they shall be accounted so Blessed are the peace-makers for they shall be called the children of God This is a blessing not onely to be Gods children but to be called Gods children We must account it so and therefore we must walk so as may convince all with whom we do converse that we are the children of God and not thinke this sufficient well let me approve my heart to God and then what need I care what all the World thinks of me God doth promise it as a blessing to have his people called the children of God then this must not be slighted You shall find it often in the Gospel that Christ made a great businesse of this to make it manifest to the world that he was sent of God he would have them to know that his Father sent him and that hee came from him So the people of God should count it a blessing and walk so as they may obtaine such a blessing that the world may know that they are of God Further. In the place where it was said unto them Ye are not my people there it shall be said unto them Ye are the sonnes of the living God Marke It is not said thus that in the place where it was said they are not my people it shall be said to them they are my people No but further it shall be said they are sonnes and sonnes of the living God this goeth beyond being his people Hence then the observation is That The grace of God under the Gospell it is morefull and large and glorious then the grace of God under the Law For this is spoke of the estate of the Church under the Gospell They were Gods people indeed under the Law but the sonnes of the living God this is reserved for the times under the Gospel Sometime they under the Law are called by the name of sonnes but it appeareth by this Text that in comparison of that glorious son-ship that they shall have under the times of the Gospell that they in former times were rather servants then sonnes There is very little of our adoption in Christ revealed in the Old Testament No that was reserved for the Sonne of God to reveale for him that came out of the bosome of the Father and brought the treasures of his Fathers councel to the world the revelation of these things were reserved to the time of his comming both adoption and eternal life was very little made knowne in the time of the Law therefore Saint Paul saith that life and immortality were brought to light through the Gospel 2 Tim. 1. 10. 2. Sonnes Because in the time of the Gospell the spirits of the Saints are of son-like dispositions they are ingenuous not mercenarie In the time of the Law God carried on his people in offering rewards especially in outward things but in the time of the Gospell we have no such rewards in outwards but the Scripture speakes of afflictions most there is not spoken so much of afflictions in the time of the Law but much outward prosperity there was then but in the time of the Gospel more affliction because the dispositions of the hearts of people should not be so mercenary as they were before they should be an ingenuous a willing people in the day of Christs power 3. Sonnes Because of the son-like affection to be much for God their Father out of a naturall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that they should have more then in the times of the Law I suppose some of you have heard of the story of Craesus his sonne though he was dumb all his dayes when he perceived a souldier striking his father his affection brake the barres of his speech and he cryed out to the Souldier to spare his rather This is the affection of a sonne and these affections doth God looke for from his children especially in the time of the Gospel that they should heare no wrong done to him but though they could never speake in their own cause yet their should be sure to speake in their Fathers cause 4. Sonnes Because they have not such a spirit of servility upon them as they had in the time of the Law Christ is come to redeem us that we might serve the Lord in holinesse and righteousnesse before him without feare all the dayes of our life to take away the spirit of feare Hence the Apostle saith We have not received the spirit of feare but of love and of a sound minde And Heb. 2. 15. Christ is come to redeem those who through feare of death were all their life time subject to bondage The spirit of a sonne is not be spirit of feare We have not received the spirit of bondage to feare again but the spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father It is unbeseeming the children of God especially in the time of the Gospel to be of such servile spirits as to feare every little danger to be distracted with fear and presently to be amazed Hath not God revealed himselfe to us as a Father to his children that we must not feare He would not have us feare himselfe not with a servile sear as men do and therefore surely not to fear men be they what they will be We are sons Again Not only sons for so we might find in Scripture where the people of God under the Law perhaps are sometimes called so but elder sons sons come to yeares It is true they were before us and so in that respect we are not elder bnt sons that are come to our inheritance that is it I mean that we are such sons Not children under tutorage not under School-masters and governours as they were in the time under the Law You know what comparison the Scripture makes of the difference betweene
Ammi Ruhamah we have obtained mercy God hath dealt with us in abundance of grace This we must not discourse of when we meere as matter of newes onely but we must speake of it to the praise of God for the sanctifying of our hearts Our brethren in Ireland have another subject of their discourses at this day When a brother or a sister meet this is the subject of their discourse Oh my Father my mother taken such a day by the Rebels and cruelly masacred such a kinsman such a kinswoman taken such a day and fearfully murthered such houses were fired such Cities and Towns were taken and with what gaftly visages doe you think they look one upon another when they are thus relating these sad things The word of God came out against England but it hath lighted upon Ireland O unworthy are we of these mercies we enjoy if when we meete together our discourses be frothy and light about vain and trivial things when God hath given us such a subject of discourse as he hath done by such gracious and wonderfull and glorious wayes of his mercy towards us in this latter age Say to your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah The mercies of God are to be inculcated upon our spirits we should not onely tell them one to another but again and again inculcate them upon our hearts Indeed Gods mercies at first they seeme to take impression upon our spirits but the impression is soone vanished Say to your brethren This is according to some Let Judah to whom God shewed special mercy say to Israel to the ten Tribes that were more threatned then Judah for Judah was not so threatned as Israel was to be cast off from being the people of God Let Judah rejoyce in this that their brethren are received again to mercy A gracious heart should rejoyce in Gods mercies towards others Gods mercies are an infinite Ocean there needes no envying there no grieving for that which others have Indeed when one man is richer then another another is ready rather to envy him then to rejoyce A Courier is ready to envy the favour that another hath why because these are narrow things But when we come to Gods mercy there is roome enough there that soul that hath beene made partaker of mercy counts it a great happinesse that any way the mercy of God may be magnified Say to your brethren and sisters c. These whom God hath received unto mercy we should receive into brotherly affection Hath God shewed mercy to such and such well may wee account them our brethren and sisters then If God takes them to mercy we must be ready willingly to take them into brotherly society But now if we take these words as the beginning of the second Chapter then we shall see them carried in some different way And taking of them so as most doe I shall first shew you the scope of the Chapter in the parts of it and then shew in what sense the words may be carried as the beginning of this Chapter The scope of thiâ—â—â—ond Chapter is much according to that of the first viz. 〈◊〉 shew unto 〈◊〉 their sinne and their danger and secondly to promise Gods aboundant grace and mercy again The first is especially from the beginning to the 14. verse and the second from the 14. verse to the end of the Chapter Yet this is not an exact division neither can we give an exact division of this no more than we could give of the other Why Because things are so intermixed for they are the patheticall expressions of a loving and yet a provoked husband and therefore when he is comming to â—â—â—â—vince his spouse who hath dealt falsely with him and to shew her her sin and danger whilst he is manifesting of his displeasure the bowels of his compassion begin to yerne and he must have some expression of love in the middest of all then when he hath had some expressions of love he falls again to rebuke her and to shew her her sin again and then his bowels yerne again and he commeth to expressions of love again We have found it so in the former Chapter and shall find it so in this For though the beginning of this Chapter to the 14. verse is specially spent in convincing of sinne and threatning of Judgement yet in the sixth and seventh verses there is promise of mercy and favour and expressions of love and then in the eighth verse he goes to threatning againe and in the 14. ver begins to express mercy again As God doth in this case so should we When we rebuke others that are under us we should so rebuke them as yet to manifest love to them and when we manifest love to doe it so as yet to take notice what is amisse and to reprove them Many parents know not how to rebuke their children but they do it so as that there is nothing but bitternesse and they know not how to manifest their love but they do it so as that there is nothing but cockering and immoderate indulgency God mixeth both together Say to your brethren c. Take it for the beginning of the first part of this second Chapter for the shewing of them their sinne and rebuking them What then must be the sense and scope of the words Say to your brethren Ammâ— c. Then it is carried thus Some thing must be supplied for the making up of the full sense As if God should have said Oh Ammi you whom I have reserved to be my people you to whom I have shewed mercy there is yet remaining a handfull of you while you remaine to be may people and others cast off and you obtayning mercy and others rejected let it be your care to exhort perswade convince use all the meanes you can to bring your brethren and sisters on to that grace of God you have received Say to your brethren say it is not expressed what they should say but by that which followeth wee may understand what the meaning of God is when hee saith Plead with your mother c. that is you that have received mercy and are my people there is a remnant of you do not you think that so long as you scape and are well enough your selves no great matter what becomes of others oh no but let your hearts be much toward your brethren and sisters let your bowels yerne toward them oh seeke if it be possible to draw them unto God that they may receive mercy too labour to convince them say and speake to them that they may not yet stand out against God and be obstinate say to your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah you that are Ammi and you that have received mercy do you speake to your brethren and sisters And this affordeth unto us many excellent Observations As First That in the most corrupt times of all God doth use to reserve a people to deliver some
an Hittite at that time There are two most usefull Observations that flow from hence before we proceed any further in the explication of the words Israel though they had been 400. years in Egypt under grievous afflictions yet they continued exceeding abominable and wicked The fire of their affliction did seeme to harden their hearts as much as the fire of the furnace did harden the bricks Their hearts were clay foule dirty hearts and were hardned by their afflictions And secondly when God came to deliver Israel out of Egypt God found them to be in a very wicked condition then then their Father was an Amorite and their mother an Hittite then they were thus vile when God came to deliver them in the day wherein they were borne for their deliverance is their birth Oh the freenesse of Gods grace God often told them that his grace was free and so indeed it was if hee found them thus as he did for so you shall finde if you read the story of the people of Israel that when God sent Moses unto them they were a very wicked and stubborn people even at that very time when God came with his deliverance Let us then raise up our hearts and looke up to the free grace of God even toward us We are vile we are wicked mercies christisements have hardned us and yet all this hindreth not the free grace of God for the deliverance of a people God hath begun in a way of deliverance to us and when did he begin it Certainly England was never since it was borne since it was delivered out of spiritual Egypt out of the bondage of Popery it was never in a worse condition then when God came in with his mercies of late to us Then if ever it might be said of us that our father was an Amorite and our mother an Hittite we were then in the very high way towards Egypt again when God came with his free grace to deliver us As hee dealt with his own people so he hath dealt with us magnified be the free grace of God towards us an unworthy people Further Thy Navill was not cut That is the expression how he was in the day wherein he was borne First Thy Navill was not cut The loathsomenesse of their condition is set out by that Naturallists observe that the nourishment that the childe hath from the mother it is by the navill as afterward the childe sucks of the breasts and so is battned but all the while it is in the wombe it is nourished by a string in the navill that draws nourishment from the mother Now Israel even when God did deliver them from Egypt had not their navill cut that is they did even still seeme nay not only seeme but still they did draw their nourishment from Egypt they did batten themselves suck out the Egyptian manners and customes and superstitions and in their growth up they did seeme rather to have their nourishment from Egypt then from God so God himselfe chargeth them Ezek. 23. 8. Neither left she her whoredomes brought from Egypt saith the Text her navill was not cut shee drew she sucked still the Egyptian manners customes and superstitions It is not thus in part with us Let me a little speake of this by way of allusion at least Is our navill cut to this very day It is true God hath delivered us from Popery from Egypt as he did Israel but still do not we continue sucking drawing nourishment from our old superstitious wayes of Popery we seeme to live still upon them and to have our hearts delighting in them Oh how just were it with God to come in a violent way and cut our navill even by the sword it is mercy he commeth not thus to cut it and so to take from us all those secret hankerings that wee have after the old Egyptian customes Yet again seeing it is such a full allusion wee may apply it to those that seeme to have a new birth to be borne again those that seeme now to make very faire profession of Religion and to forsake many evill wayes that formerly they have delighted in but yet their navill is not cut neither they do secretly suck sweetnesse and battning from their former lusts the curse of the serpent is upon them upon their bellies they doe goe and dust they do eate their bellies do even cleave to the dust Neither wast thou washed in water This also sets forth the wofull condition of Israel when he was borne he was not washed The infant when it commeth first into the world cometh from blood and filth in which it was wrapped that as Plutarch saith it is rathâ—r 〈◊〉 a childe killed then a child born so bloody and polluted it is that were it not that there were a natural affection stirring in parents they would even loath the fruit of their wombes It is true parents may see that with their bodily eyes but there is more polution in their soules they are wrapped up in original sin and filth more then their bodyes are wrapped up in blood and filth in the wombe Therefore infants are washed but thou wast not washed thou wast let goe in thy filth I have read of the Lacedemonians that when their children were borne they used to throw them into the river to consolidate their members and parts of their bodies as they say to make them strong that was the custome of that barbarous people Thou wast cast out in the open field What is the meaning of this We cannot understand it fully without examining what the custome of the people was in those times We finde in Histories that the custome of divers of the Heathen was when their children were borne to observe by their countenance by the making of their members whether they were like to be usefull to the Commouwealth or not and if not like they threw them away and if they were like to be usefull they nourished them up They nourished up no other children but those that they judged by their countenance or making would do good to the Common-wealth We finde it in divers Histories Strabo tells us that the Indians and Brachmanes had certaine Judges appointed for that very end their Office was that when any childe was borne to judge by the countenance and parts of the body of the childe whether it were like to do any good in the Common-wealth so either to save it or cast it out So likewise AElian in his Various Histories telleth us of the Thebanes that there was an express Law made among them in these words That none of them should cast out their children noting thereby that it was wont to be the custome aâ—â—ngst them So Clemens Romanus telleth us that indeed the Jews as a thing peculiar to them amongst them the children are not cast out So that the holy Ghost alludeth to the way of the Gentiles and barbarous people and telleth Israel that
was but to believe in Jesus Christ Jesus Christ came to pardon sinners c. when he came upon his sick bed he was in great torment of conscience and grievous vexation and cryed out bitterly of his Apostacy there came some of his acquaintance to him and spake words of comfort and tells him that Christ came to save sinners and he must trust in Gods mercy c. At length he begins to close with this and to apply this to himself and to have a little ease upon which his companions began to be hardned in their ways because they saw after so ill a life it was so easie a matter to have comfort but not long before he dyed he brake out roaring in a most miserable anguish O! saith hee I have prepared a plaister but it will not sticke it will not sticke wee shall find though the grace of God be rich and the salve be a soveraign unlesse God be pleased to make it stick by speaking to our hearts nothing can be done From hence further learn this note As when God speaks comfortably to his people he speaks to their hearts so Gods Ministers when they come to speak in Gods name should labour to speak so as to do what they can to speak to hearts It is true indeed it is impossible that any man of himselfe can speake to the heart of another but yet he may endeavour and aime that way there is a kind of speaking that God doth assist so as to bring it to the heart of his people What speaking is that you will say That that cometh from the heart will most likely go to the heart though I know God can take that which comes but from the lips and carry it to the heart when he pleases yet ordinarily that that comes from the heart goes to the heart therefore Ministers when they come to speak the great things of the Gospel they should not seeke so much for brave words and enticing ways of mans wisdome but let them get their own hearts warmed with that grace of the Gospel and then they are most like to speak to the hearts of their Auditors It is a good note that I have met with from Ribera let Ministers remit saith he of their care of fine curious words of brave neate phrases and cadencies of their sentences but let them bend their studies to manifest humility and mortification and to shew love to the soules of people otherwise though they speake with the tongues of men and Angels they shall become but like the sounding brasse and the tinckling cymball this is an expression even of a Jesuite it were then a great shame that Gods Ministers should not labour to speak so as that they may speak to the hearts of people you must be desirous of such kind of preaching as you find speaks to your hearts not that that comes meerly to your eares how many men love to have the word jingle in their ears and in the mean time their hearts go away and not one word spoke to them but when you finde a Ministry speake to your hearts close with it bless God for it and count it a sadd day when you goe from a Sermon and there is not one word spoke to your hearts in that Sermon From the connection of these two I will bring them into the wildernesse speak unto their hearts if we should take the wildernesse for bringing into affliction because there are so many interpreters that are very godly men learned men go that way I dare not wholy reject it but that there may be some intention that way Hence the first note is Afflictions make way for Gods word to the hearts of sinners there are many obstructions at the hearts of men while they are in prosperity but when afflictions come God by them opens those obstructions and so gets his word to their hearts afflictions cannot convert the heart but they can take away some obstructions that did hinder the word from coming to the heart Many of you have heard thousands of Sermons and scarce know of any one that hath come to your hearts but when God casts you upon your sicke beds and you apprehend death then you feele the same truthes that you were not sensible of before they lie upon your hearts the threatning word of God that went but to the ear before now it is got to the heart now it terrifies now you cry out of your sins and rellish the sweet promises of the Gospel that afflictions make way for I remember an expression that I have read of Bernard he had once to a brother of his who was a Souldier but riotous and prophane Bernard gives him many good instructions wholsome admonitions and counsels his brother seemed to slight them he made nothing of them Bernard comes to him and puts his hand to his side one day saith he God will make way to this heart of yours by some speare or launce he meant God would wound him in the Wars and so hee would open a way to his heart and then his admonitions should get to his heart and as he said so it fell out for going into the Wars he was wounded and then he remembers his brothers admonitions they got to and lay upon his heart to purpose It God should let the enemy in upon us their swords or bullets may make way to our hearts that so Gods word may come to have entrance there the Lord rather pierce our hearts by his spirit then that way to our hearts should be made thus Secondly when we are brought to great affliction that is the time for Gods mercies This should make us not to be so afraid of afflictions how afraid are we how do we hang back when we see afflictions coming why art thou so loth O thou Christian to come to affliction the time of affliction is the time for God to speake to the heart of a sinner many sinners may say that their condition hath been like Jacobs he never had a more sweete vision of God then when he lay abroad in the fields with no other pillow under his head then a stone it may be God will take away all your outward comforts and when they are all gone then may be Gods time to speake comfortably to your heart Thirdly the words of mercy O how sweet are they when they come to the heart after an affliction Psam 141. 6. Thy Judges shall be overthrown in strong places they shall he are my words for they are sweet If the words be taken for bringing into the wildernesse that is for Gods wonderfull workings for the good of his people then the note is When God works great and wonderfull things amongst a people then God speaks to the heart of that people then surely God hath spoken to our hearts for he hath done great and wonderfull things amongst us he did not more wonderfull things amongst his people in the wildernesse
then he hath done omongst us here in England But from that meaning of bringing into the wildernesse as the custome of marriage of solemnizing of nuptials then the note is this When God is reconciled once to a people they may expect full manifestations of his love unto them one manifestation after another as alluring and carrying abroad into fields and nuptiall songs all kind of manifestations of Gods love A people a soule that was never 〈◊〉 sinfull before and is new reconciled may expect it Let all back-fliders then whom God is about to draw again to himself listen and hear what God saith unto their hearts if they come in and repent let them know that God is willing to manifest all expressions of love and goodnesse to them Againe there is yet one note more from this expression of bringing into the wildernesse and speaking to the heart yet because it is the most improbable I will onely but mention it to you there may be yet some good use made of it and therefore I will set it before you I finde divers going that way it is this say they by bringing into the wildernesse God meanes that he would take them off from their engagements in their own Country carrying them to a strange place and so take them off from their houses lands shops estates friends acquaintance from the pomp the glory and all the clutter of the world that they enjoyed and were snared by in their owne Countrey and so he will carry them aside into desolate places and there he will instruct them when he hath got them as it were alone That hath been Gods way in making himself known unto his people whom hee hath had a love unto to draw them aside from the clutter of the world from their engagements and there to speak to their hearts We have a famous place for that Mar. 8. 23. the poor blind man whose eyes Christ intended to open the Text saith Christ took e him by the hand and carryed him out of the City and there fell a working upon him and opened his eyes he carryed him from the clutter of people from his friends and acquaintance and there opens his eyes While we are in the midst of engagements here in our owne land while we have our estates and all well about us wee are scarce fit to hearken what God hath to say to us Many of Gods people have found it by experience that whereas there were many truths of God that they had some incklings 〈◊〉 while they were here and read books about them and heard much of them yet they could not be convinced of them and their consciences tell them while they were here they did not go against the light of their consciences but how ever it came to passe convinced they were not but when God took them aside from their engagements and from the pomp and glory of their land and carryed them into the wildernesse or into some remote places where the glory of their own Countrey did not so glister before their eyes they then could see into truths that they never saw before those things that could not get into their hearts before now when God drew them aside got in and it is not now their conceit but they knovv certainly that they do understand much of Gods minde that they did not understand before vvhen God hath taken them aside then God hath opened their eyes Vers 15. I will give her her vineyards from thence Vinatores so some translate the vvord her vine-dressers and indeed the Heb. vvord that is for vine-dressers vines or vine yards is the very same letters only the puncta are different but vve vvill read it as it is here from thence illinc ibi either from that time that they are in the vvildernesse or from that condition of their affliction in the wildernesse wherein I will speak comfortably to her thence I will give her her vineyards God threatned to destroy her vineyards now God saith he will give vineyards Observe God can as easily restore as he can destroy It is an easly thing for men to make havock to do mischief but it is not so easy a thing for them to restore all again they can easily spoile a Country but they cannot so easily raise a Country again Psal 52. 1. Why beastest thou thy selfe in mischiefe O mighty man There is no reason that a man should boast that he can do mischiefe we have some who make their boasts in nothing but this that they can go up and down the Country and plunder spoile and make havock but can they make all up againe that they undo Plut arch tells us of one commending the power and valour of Philip for that he had utterly destroyed Olynthus a City of Tracia a Lacedemonian standing by answered but he cannot build such a City A foole may breake a glasse and all the wise men in the Countrey are not able to make it up againe Men may do a great deale of hurt and mischiefe but it is not their lives nor the lives of a thousand such as they are can make up againe what hurt is done by them But it is Gods property he can destroy vineyards and he can restore them againe I will give them their vineyards againe when I am reconciled to them Suppose there be the greatest Pacification that can be yet all this while who shall make up the hurt is done if there be reconciliation with God he will make up all our hurts again Secondly I will give her her vineyards It is a note of Calvin God saith not I will give them their corne that is for necessity but I will give them their vineyards that is for delight the note is When God is reconciled to a people hee will not onely give them substance but abundance even for delight as well as for necessity Thirdly When God is reconciled to a pâ—â—ple he comes with present reall evidences of his love he reserveth indeed abundance of mercy afterwards but he is never reconciled but he comes presently with some reall evidences and demonstrations of love God saith not onely I will speake comfortably to them and there is an end and they shall expect mercy along time after No but I will speake comfortably to her I will give her her vineyards againe I will give unto them reall manifestations of my love so it should be with us when we come in to God to be reconciled to him we should come in with reall expressions of our repentance of our respects unto God Here is a deceit I beseech you confider of it many when they lye upon their sick beds will promise what they will doe for God if God restore them but they doe nothing for the present and so they are deceived When you therefore finde your hearts wrought upon broken and melting take heed of this deceit doe not satisfie your selves in promising what you will doe for God
well pleased with it Esay 53. 10. Why was God pleased with it Because the Lord saw this was the way for him to communicate himself in the fulnesse of his grace unto his Church and therefore though it cost him so deare as the death of his own Son yet he was well pleased with it And as for Christ he takes delight in letting out himself to his people after he had suffered the Text saith he was satisfied when he saw of the travell of his soul As if Christ had said O let me have a Church to communicate my self unto though I see it hath cost me my blood it hath cost me all these fearfull sufferings yet I am satisfied I thinke all is well bestowed so I may have a people to partake of my love and mercy for ever Cant. 4. 9. Thou hast ravished my heart my sister my spouse thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes Then for the Saints the delight they have in communicating themselves unto Christ is unutterable Stay me with flaeggons comfort me with apples for I am sick of love saith the Church Cantic 2. 5. Psal 63. 5. My soul shall be satisfied with marrow and fatnesse and my mouth shall praise thee with joyfull lips when I remember thee upon my bed and meditate of thee in the night watches Take this note the more fully you lay out your selves for Christ the more comfort you shall have in your lives Here is the great difference between hypocrites and others in the comfort of their lives It is impossible that any hypocrite can have that comfort in his life as a gracious heart can have upon this ground because a hypocrite reserveth somewhat of himself for something else there is not a full comunication of himself unto Christ he alwayes keepes somewhat back and thereby loseth his comfort But a gracious heart fully letting out himselfe into Christ from thence cometh the comfort sweetness that he hath in the ways of Christ above all hypocrites in the world Perhaps you thinke that the onely comfort you can have is by receiving some benefit some mercy from God you are much mistaken the comfort of letting your hearts out to God is a greater comfort then any comfort you have in receiving any thing from God And now Oh how happy are they unto whom Christ is thus espoused How comfortably may you live being made sure to Christ and how comfortably may you die It is our work to seeke to draw soules to Christ to allure soules to be in love with him Gen. 24. 35. You may see what course Abrahams servant took in drawing the love of Rebekah and her friends to his Masters son he begins wiâ—h telling them that he is the servant of Abraham and that the Lord had blessed his Master greatly so that he was become great and that the Lord had given him flocks and herds and silver gold and that he had an onely soone that was to be heire of all this This is the work of Ministers to tell people what riches of mercy there are in God and that all the treasures of those infinite riches of the infinite God are in JESUS CHRIST and to be let out in him this gaines the heart Yea it is not onely the work of Ministers but it should be worke of every gracious heart thus to seek to draw souls to Christ as Rev. 22. 17. not onely the Angels there say Come but the Bride saith Come and let him that hea eth say Come and let him that is a thirst come and whosoever will let him take the water of life freely VVere I not in such a way of explication as I am surely wee could not get off such a point as this but that which I shall say for the present is onely this Know that it is not want of any worth in you that can hinder communion with Jesus Christ doe not reason in that manner I am a poor wretched sinfull creature will ever Christ be married unto me It is not thy sinfulnesse it is not thy base condition that can hinder thee Christ never joynes himselfe to any because they are worthy but he joynes himself to them that they may be worthy hee makes them to be worthy in joyning himselfe unto them The woman is not married unto the King because she is a Queen but the King maryeth her to make her a Queene And further know if your hearts be not taken with Christ to joyne with him in his holy mariage if he be not your husband to enjoy conjugall communion with you he will be your judge to condemn you But besides this betrothing between Christ a soul there is a betrothing between Christ a visible Church especially the Church of the Jews when they shall be called God shal appeare in his glory when this maryage shall be between Christ and the Jewish Church the King will then be in his Robes if a man of estate have a sonne to marry and intends to solemnize the maryage according to his estate if he have any better cloathes then other he puts them on that day so at the calling of the Jewes the King of heaven will be in his robes God will appeare in a most glorious manner to the world then ehe did since the creation Yea and you know the Bridegroome too will be very fine upon the mariage day so Jesus Christ will then appeare whether personally or otherwise wee say not but certainly hee will gloriously appeare at that day Tit. 2. 15. We looke for the glorious appearance of the great God and our Saviour jesâ—s Christ And 2 Thes 1. 10. Christ shall come so as to be admired in all them that believe the Church likewise shall then be arrayed in her fine cloaths shee shall be then cloathed in white cleane and fine liâ—nen as it is Rev. 19. 8. all in the righteousness of Christ the great doctrine of justification by Christ shall be made out full and cleare Yea and the creatures her servants shall put on the best rayment as in a great marriage the servants in the house have new cloathes at that day there will be a change in all the creatures and another kind of face in the world then now there is Then will be the marriage supper and happy shall those be that shall then be found worthy to enter into the bed-chamber let us now love Christ let us now cleave to him let us now suffer for him we may perhaps be some of those who beside our eternal enjoyment of christ in heaven may enjoy him in this mariage upon the earth But we must leave this argument we spake something of it in the end of the first chapter And I will betroth thee unto me for ever For ever This adds to the mercy to make it glorious this for ever makes a misery though never so little an infinite misery and a mercy an infinite mercy This betrothing for ever shall be fulfilled
First they should be in a contemptible condition they should be valued but at halfe the price of a slave Secondly they should be fed but meanly and basely even as slaves or rather as beasts this homer and half of barley should be for their sustenance in which they should be used very hardly for along time And that you may see how this hath been fulfilled for it did not only refer to the time of their Captivity before Christ but to all the Captivity they have been in ever since Christs time to this day and shall be in untill their calling the mean condition they were in before in the time of their first Captivity you may see Lament 4. 5. Those that were clothed in scarlet embraced the dung-hill they either lay in filthy places that had dung in them like beasts or else they were imployed in carrying dung up and down And to this day Histories tell us that generally the Jews have a most stinking savour and we know that they are the vilest people in the esteeme of others that are upon the face of the earth An Historian tells us of an Emperour travelling into Egypt there meeting with some Jews he was so annoyed with the stink of them that he cryes out O Marco-mani O Quadi c. At length saith he I have met with worse with viler men then such and such reckoning up divers of the basest people that were upon the face of the earth And to this day the Turks will admit of no Jew to turne to the Mahumetan Religion unlesse he first turne Christian they have much more honorable esteeme of the Christians they think that Jesus Christ though he was not God yet he was a great Prophet but for the Jews they have such vile thoughts of them that they think it a dishonour to the Turkish Religion that any of them should turne Turk unlesse be first turned Christian And we reade of the Romanes that when they conquered other Nations they would permit them to call themselves Romanes after they had conquered them but they would never permit the Jews to call themselves Romanes though the Jews would comply never so much with them and be their servants Augustine hath it upon Psalme 58. lest there should be some blot stick to the glory of the Romanes by that odious people Thus we see what shame hath God cast upon that nation even unto this day that they are counted as the very off-scouring of all nations Suetonius tels us that in the exactions that the Romanes require of people they put upon the Jews more then upon all people This that we reade of in histories that which we finde by experience of the base condition these people are in is the fulfilling this Scripture that I am now opening unto you she shal be bought for fifteen pieces of silver and fed with barly she shall be in a very low base and meane condition untill Christ shall come and marry her to himself Notes from hence are First A people who have been high in outward glory when they depart from God make themselves vile and contemptible God casts contempt upon wicked men especially upon wicked men who corrupt his worship Do we not see it at this day Mal. 2. 9. It is threatned that the Priests who departed from the law corrupted their waies should be base and contemptible before the people Hath not the Lord done thus at this day even those that not long since gave themselves the title of the triumphant Clergy and the triumphant Church and went up and downe jetting as if they would out-face heaven it self They feared all men with the High Commission Court But what shame hath God cast upon this generation the people loath them and we hope in time the Lord will sweepe away the proud and haughty of them as the reffuse of the earth Yea our whole nation hath been a proud nation what vaunting hath there been of what a glorious Church we had never such a one upon the earth we sate as a Queen amongst the nations we have been a haughty people and God may justly cast contempt upon us The Jewes were so the Temple of the Lord the temple of the Lord but God hath now made them the vilest nation upon the earth And the truth is God hath begun to cast much shame upon this nation The time was when the Kingdom of England was a terror to other people of late they have been the scorne and contempt of other nations When Ephraius spake there was trembling he exalted himselfe in Israel but sinning it Baal he died he became as a dead poor vile contemptible people Hos 13. 1. The Lord loveth to name the pride of men How many have you known who have been proud and lofty and the Lord hath cast shame and contempt in their saces even before those whom they looked upon heretofore with contempt they have now been made objects of contempt Secondly Though a people be under contempt yet Gods heart may be towards them to doe them good at the latter end There is the love of Gods election still to this people God remembers them and intends good unto them for all this VVho knowes what contempt God may cast upon us Perhaps he may let our proud adversaries trample us under their feet but we hope he will not because he sees their hearts so proud as they are But if he should we should not despaire we must not conclude God hath quite cast off England though he should bring all his people under contempt so as to betrampled under the foot of pride And if there be any of you whom God hath so humbled as he hath made you contemptible doe you humble your selves before God but do not despaire the Lord may yet have a love to you though you are now under shame and contempt who knowes but that this was the only way that God had to humble your hearts God putteth his ovvn people under contempt and yet it is all out of love unto them and vvithan intent to do them good at last Thirdly which is the most especial note hence After many promises of Gods mercy and of a glorious condition which he intendeth his people he may yet hold a very hard hand over them a great while God having promised so much mercy in the former Chapter Israel might quickly grow vvanton and say it is no great matter though we be vile and wicked yet God will marry us to himself and we shall be a glorious people and what need we take care Nay saith God stay here though my heart be toward you yet this generation shall suffer and the next generation the next generation after that shall suffer hard things you shal be brought into the most vile condition that ever any people was brought into yet my promise shall be fulfilled at the last Here we see what care God taketh that people should not grow wanton
match as this The woman is the glory of the man How for so I desire not only to open the Scripture that I read here but as I go along and quote Scripture so far as may be for your edification and suteable to our argument to open there too In two respects she is so 1. because it is a glory to a man that he hath such an image for shee is from the man and as the man being the image of God sheweth the glory of God because he is the image of God and from him so the woman being from the man and as it were his image shee is the glory of the man 2. Because man hath such an excellent creature brought under subjection to him so the woman is the glory of the man Man is not only made glorious by God in that God hath put all other creatures under him but especially in this that God hath put such an excellent creature under him as the woman is so the woman is the glory of the man This could not be here in such a match as this 3. It could not be that it was a reall thing but a vision from the prophesie it selfe for then Hosea must have stayed almost a whole yeare before hee could have gone on in his prophesie For first he must take to him a wife of whoredomes and beget a child of whoredomes then he must have stayed till the child had been born before he could have come to the people and say My child is borne and his name is Iezreel and it is upon this ground that I have named him thus and then hee must have stayed almost a yeare more before he could have Locuhamah and then after that he must stay almost another yeare longer before Loammi could be born And lastly that which is noted by Polanus the expression that wee have here is that God spake in Hosea speaking and appearing to him by an inward vision as it were in an extasie saith Polanus therefore we must take it so that this wife of whoredomes that Hosea was to marry was in a way of vision it was to signifie that Israel was to God as a wife of whoredoms and as children of whoredomes should have been to the Prophet if he had been marryed to her From all these there is this result that the people of Israel were gone a whoring from God Idolatry it is as the sin of whoredome and I cannot open this Scripture except I shew you wherein idolatry is like the sin of whoredome The idolatry of the Church not the idolatry of Heathens is whoredome One that committeth adultery doth give her selfe to another The Heathens because they were never marryed to God their idolatry is not adultery but the people of GDO being marryed to the Lord their idolatry is adultery Adultery first because it breaks the marriage bond there is nothing breaks the marriage bond between God and his people but the sin of idolatry as not between man and wife Though a wife may be guilty of many faylings and be a grievous trouble and burthen to her Husband yet these doe not breake the marriage knot except she defile the marriage bed So though a people may be guilty of notorious and vile sins yet if they keep the worshp of God pure they are not guilty of whoredome but still God is marryed to them 2. Whoredome is a loath some thing though delightsome to men yet loathsome to God Idolatry is so therefore the Scripture calleth the Idols that men set up by a name that signifieth the very excrement that comes from creatures Ezek. 22. 3. Idolaters think their way of idol-worship to be very delightsome but that which they call delectable God calleth detestable so you shall find it if you compare these two Scriptures Isa 44. 9. they call their Idols delectable things but in Ezek. 5. 11. God calleth them detestable things Idolatry is a detestable loathsome thing 3. There is nothing wherein a man is so irreconcileable as in the point of the marriage bed the defiling of that by adultery causes an irreconcileable breach Jealousie is the rage of a man and he will take no ransome There is nothing wherein God is so reconcileable to a people as in the point of false worship 4. Adultery is a besotting sinne Whoredome and new wine take away the heart saith the Prophet and in that 44. Isa 19. there saith God he hath no understanding to consider and say What have I not taken one part and roasted flesh with it and with another part have baked bread upon the coales and warmed my selfe with another part and shall I make the residue thereof an abomination and fall downe to the stock of a tree Hee hath no understanding to consider this Idolatry is a besotting sin as well as adultery And therefore we need not marvail though-men of great parts and abilities continue in their superstitious way of worship for nothing besotteth mens hearts so much as that doth Againe 5. Whoredome is a most dangerous sinne Wee have a most dreadfull place for that Prov. 22. 14. The mouth of a strange woman is as a deep pit heth at is abhorred of the Lord shall fall therein Oh most dreadfull place to an Adulterer if there be any Adulterer in this place this day when thou goest home turn to that Scripture and let it be as a dart to to thy heart the mouth of a strange woman is as a deep pit he that is abhorred of the Lord shall fall therein A signe of a man abhorred of God and so is Idolatry for in 2 Thes 2. 11 12. God gave them over to believe a lye that they might be damned Those that follow the Idolatries of Antichrist are given over by God to beleive a lye That lye of Popery is altogether one lye Hence it is that the Popish party invent so many such strange lyes all to uphold that great lye What is this that they might be damned It is a dreadfull dangerous sin the sinne of Idolatry though they think they please God in and by such wayes of worship yet they are given over by God that they may be damned If this prove to be a place that concerns those that follow Antichrist if Rome proves to be so as by that place is described it is a dreadfull place to all Papists Again Whores use to deck themselves up in pompous attyre in dainty glorious rayment So idolaters use to deck up their Idols in bravery and lavish gold as the Scripture speaks upon their Idols whereas the Kings daughter is all glorious within and the simplicity of the Gospel will not permit such things And lastly as whores though they goe a whoring from their Husbands yet still they retain before the divorce the name of wives and their children though bastards retaine the name of children and beare the fathers name So Idolaters they will retain the name
for the bow was a great warlike instrument in these dayes therefore in Psal 46. 9. He makes wars to cease he breaks the bow and cutteth the spear in sunder c. But here by breaking the bow there is something more it is not onely mentioned because the bow is a warlike instrument but there is some particular reason why the bow is instanced here and that is this because whereas Jehu did many memorable things in his warlike affairs yet none more then that he did by his bow Mark that place 2 King 9. 24. And Iehu drew a bow with his full strength and smote Jeroboam between his arms and the arrow went out at his heart c. So that the victory that Jehu got ever the two Kings of Israel and Iudah was by the Bow especially What observe we from hence That wherein wicked men have been most prosperous and succesful even in this God will curse them and let out his wrath upon them Againe Breake the bow blast all the power of their Ammunition Carnal hearts trust much in their warlike weapons but they are nothing when God commeth to break a peoples strength God hath the power of all Ammunition the Lord is called The Lord of Hosts and he delighteth much in this title First because God hath not only the power over Ammunition and all Warlike weapons so as they cannot be used but by him But secondly because when they are used they can have no successe at all but by him and so the Lord is the Lord of Hosts in a peculiar sense Hee is the great Generall of all Armies more then all other Generalls for the successe of all dependeth upon him My brethren why then need the Church of God feare the strength of weapons the Bow the Cannon or all the Ammunition of the enemies of the Church seeing our Lord is the Lord of Hosts no weapon can be used or have successe but by this Lord of Hosts He can break the bow though of steele when pleaseth and can give his people strength to doe so too For this you have an admirable promise Esa 54. 17. Behold saith God I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire and bringeth forth an instrument for his worke and I have created the water to destroy No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper What need the Church fear then God breaks the bow when he pleaseth For as God hath a providence over all the things in the world so there is a specialty of providence of God to order Battels to give the victory not to the strong or to the multitude but sometimes to the weak and few even as hee pleaseth And therefore hee is the Lord of Hosts because though his providence is generall over all creatures yet there is a specialty of providence of God in warlike affairs But what was this valley of Jezreel It is worthy our time to enquire after this valley of Jezreel wherein God will break the bow of Israel There were two places called Jezreel the one belonging to Iudah Iosh 15. the other belonging to Israel Iosh 17. 16. Chap. 19. 18. Iezreel was a fruitfull valley ten miles long and by it there was a famous City built which was in Ahabs time the principall seate the Metropolis of the Kingdom and there was a glorious tower in it from thence they might see over Galilee and over Iordan Now there were two great Cities that belonged to the tenn Tribes Samarea and Iezreel as we in England have two principall Cities London and Yorke But this Iezreel was the most fortified in which they put a great deale of confidence yet God saith here He will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Iezreel That is there by that City in that place that they accounted the great strength of their Kingdom there he would break the bow of Israel Fortified Cities cannot help when God cometh out against a people If we can fortifie our Cities against sin we may soone fortifie them against an Enemie If sinne once get in the enemie will quickly follow Nah. 3. 12. All thy strong holds shall be like fig-trees with the first ripe figs if they be shaken they shall fall into the mouth of the eater You shall with the least wind like the first ripe figs sall off all your strong holds shall doe so Yea ver 13. Thy people in the midst of thee are women the gates of thy land shall be set wide open to thine enemies the fire shall devourthy bars You see what the valley of Iezreel is the meaning of it But why will God breake the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel There are these two reasons for it 1. Because God would deale with this people of Israel as Judges deale with Malefactors they will hang them up there where the fact was committed as wee see some hanged up in Chains neer to the City at or about the place where their villany was done So in Jezreel was shed the blood of Jezebel and the blood of the 70. sons of Ahab and the blood of Jehoram and there will God break the bow Hence it is that guilty consciences are many times afraid to goe neere to the places where they have committed wickedness because their consciences will fly in their faces for feare God should come upon them in the place where the fact was done But further He will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel that is in that fortified place in which they did so much glory this is specially observable Even in that place wherein a kingdom shall most glory seem to trust most in God many times doth come and break the kingdom in that very place and makes that the breaking of the kingdome most Nah. 3. 8. Art thou better then populous No that was scituate among the rivers that had the waters round about it whose rampant was the sea her wall was from the sea Mark a people just like England in this case what we overcome by the Enemie we that have the Seas for our Wall and such a multitude of people amongst us These have been are the two pleas that England hath for her selfe because our people are many and we have the seas for a wall But art thou better then populous No yet was she carryed away she went into captivity c. vers 10. Thus the Prophet pleadeth with them But further These trusted in Jezreel they seemed to scorn the Prophet What the kingdome of Israel cease what thinke you of Jezreel such a strong place as that just as we should say what an Enemy come to us what say you to London a brave City a strong City what say you to the Ammunition to the Militia to the strength that is there Are they not able to resist all that can come against it Have we cause to feare danger It is true the kingdom hath cause to bless
concern the outward man except God will come in with his owne institution But when it cometh to the ordering of the heart and there is a spirituall efficacy expected as in all Church ordinances there must be and that authority by which they are executed giveth a great influence into them now nothing can goe beyond its principle therefore it must have a divine institution to give it its efficacy It may here be demanded whether hat not God appointed over us a particular civill government as he did over the Jews That our government and all lawfull government of other Nations is appointed by God we must conclude is a certain truth But not so appointed by God as the government of the Jewes was And the reason is this because the Church and Common-wealth of the Jewes was involved in one and therefore the Apostle speaking of the Church hee saith they were Aliens and strangers from the Common-wealth of Israel It was meant of the Church state There was such a kind of Paedagogy under the Law that the Church and State were involved in one for Christ would be the head of the Church and Common-wealth too and appoint them lawes And so their government was imediately from heaven Now for us That we should have a government according to the rules of wisdome and justice that indeed is appointed by God God would have us have a government But he leaveth the ordering of that government to generall rules of prudence and justice So that now it is lawfull for any Kingdome or Country to agree together and according to the rules of wisdom and justice to appoint what government they wil as vvhether it shall be a Monarchy or an Aristocracy or a Democracy and to limit this according to Covenant of agreement as whether that the fundamentall povver shall be vvholly put out or any part reserved hovv farre this or that Man or society of Men shall have the Managing of it and the like then so farre as it is agreed upon vvee are bound in conscience to obey either actively or passively but no further are vvee bound to obey any Man though he be in authority yet vvee are not bound to obey him either actively or passively conscience is not tyed Though those men be in authority yet it is no resisting of authority at all not to do what they would have Yea though the thing be lawfull they would have yet if it be not according to the law of the kingdom to the first agreement I may be bound by the rules of prudence to save my selfe but it is not authority that binds me to obey out of conscience For we must of necessity distinguish between men in authority and the authority of those men Wherefore so long as wee seeke but to keepe authority in the right channell that it flows not over the banks we cannot be charged for resisting the government God hath set over us though we do not obey the wills of those who are set over us and therefore there is no cause that we should fear that God should say to England upon this ground Loruhamah hee will have no mercy To proceed But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah The people of Israel they might say Hosea thou art a Preacher indeed what preach nothing but judgment nothing but wrath to be utterly taken away Is there no mercy at all Is not God a mercifull God Yes saith the Prophet though you be taken away God knoweth how to glorifie his mercy he hath others that he can make to be objects of his mercy though you be destroyed From whence first you see that though God utterly reject some yet in the mean time he hath others to shew mercy unto Therefore it is no plea for any sinner to say thus well I have sinned indeed but God is mercifull What if God be mercifull so he may be though thou be damned and perish everlastingly Yea whole kingdoms nations may perish yet God may be mercifull God hath stil infinite ways to glorifie his mercy Many people in desperate moods lay violent hands upon themselves certainly there is a kind of spirit of revenge in it as if they thought there would be some trouble about it and so God should lose some honour But if you will have your will in this or in any thing else though you be dead and rotten and your souls perhaps in chains of darkness God will have wayes to be glorious in his mercy whatsoever come of you But 2. I will have mercy upon the house of Judah God will alwayes have a Church he will never destroy his Church at once the Lord loveth publique worship in the world Though he will utterly take away the house of Israel yet he will have mercy upon the house of Judah Again Israel might say what will not God be mercifull to us why I pray you what doth Judah get by her worshipping of God in that which you say is the only right way Judah indeed keepeth her selfe to Ierusalem keepeth her selfe to worship in the Temple but what doth she get by it for ought we see Iudah is in as hard an estate and in as low a condition as we nay as we shall see afterward Iudah was in a lower condition than Israel and certainly such kind of expressions as these they would be ready to have against the Prophet Well saith God let Iudah be what she will I will have mercy upon her Though carnal hearts when they look upon the low condition of the true worshippers of God think that there is no difference between those that are in a good way and themselves that are in the ways of sin yet God will make a difference I will have mercy upon Iudah but not upon Israel Many carnal men please themselves with this I see others that are strict that pray in their families that run to Sermons and wil not do thus and thus as others do yet they are as poor in as mean a condition as any others what do they get by their forwardness in religion Are not we in as good a condition as they Well friend though thy carnal heart think there is no difference between him that serveth God him that serveth him not God hath a time to manifest a difference There shall a time come saith God Mal. 3. 18. that you shall returne and discerne between the righteous and the wicked between him that feareth God and him that feareth him not I will not have mercy upon Israel but I will have mercy upon Iudah Fourthly Judah had at this time many grosse and fearful evils amongst them yea scarcely delivered from Sodomy it will aske a great deale of time to shew you the state of Judah in regard of the horrible wickednesse that was in it yet God saith I will have mercy upon the house of Iudah What is the reason of this Because though Iudah had many grosse evils yet Iudah kept
of my patience to be yours you shall not have my creatures to be yours you shall not have those fruites of my bounty to be yours No but I will not be yours I my selfe will not be yours This is the sorest threatning that posibly can be to a gracious heart It is a greater misery to lose God himself then to be deprived of whatsoever commeth from God And this indeed is one special difference between an hypocrite and a true gracious heart an hypocrite is satisfied with what cometh from God but a true gracious heart is satisfied with nothing but God himselfe though God lets out never so many fruits of his bounty and goodnesse to him yet he must have union with God himselfe or else he is unsatisfied It is a notable speech of Bernard Lord saith he As the good things that come from me please not thee without my selfe so the good things that come from thee please not me without thy selfe This is the expression of a gracious heart Let us tender up to God never so much never such duties with never so great strength except we tender up to God our selves they never please him So let God bestow never so many favours upon us except God give us himselfe they should never pleaseus I mean please us so as to satisfie us so as to quiet us if for our portion You know what God said to Abraham Fear not I am thy exceeding great reward But Lord what wilt thou give me seeing I goe childelesse What is all this to me so long as I have not the promise fulfilled that so I may come in Christ to enjoy thy selfe And Moses would not be contented though God told him his Angel should goe before them No saith hee Except thou goe with us thy selfe let us not depart hence It is the difference between the Strumpet and the loving wife the strumpet careth not so much for the person of her lover as for his gists for what she hath by him but the true lover cannot be satisfied with lovetokens but she must have the person himselfe So it is with a gracious heart It is very observable that of David in Psal 51. 9. Turne away thy angry face from my sins It seemes Gods face was angry and yet presently ver 11. Cast me not away a facie tua from thy face Gods face was an angry face yet David would not be cast away from this face of God Oh no rather let God be present with a gracious heart though he be angry though his anger continue yet let me have his countenance This is plainly gathered hence in that God saith not I will not give you these and these favours but I will not be your God that this is the sorest threatning that possibly can be to a gracious heart 5. This is the judgement for sin Gods not being their God It hence appeares that sin carryes along with it in it selfe its own punishment How is that Thus By sin we refuse to have God to be our God by it we depart from God we do not trust God nor love him nor fear him The very nature of sin hath this in it that it causeth a sinner to depart from God yea to reject God from being a God unto him and this is the punishment I will not be your God And this is the sorest punishment to a sinner that he shall not for ever have God to his God Lastly You are not my people and I will not be your God Hence learn this When any forsake God from being their God we should do as God doth reject them from being ours if they will not be Gods neither should they be ours will not such a man have acquaintance with God will he forsake him and his wayes then he shall not have our acquaintance we will forsake him How far we may withdraw from a Church that it shall not be ours we shal fully meet with all in the second Chap. somewhat will be said about it there Onely now thus much though it be true when a people forsake God we are to forsake them yet let them grow never so wicked our natural and civill relations cannot be broken because of their wickednesse but the relations of husband and wife father and childe master and servant must be acknowledged servants must be dutiful to their masters though never so wicked And the wife must be loving and dutiful to her husband though he be never so wicked a man But for any inward intimate familiarity with those not thus joyned in such Relations ought not to be if they reject God if they will not be Gods they should not be ours It is said Iob. 8 20. That God will not take the ungodly by the hand It should be true of us all wee should not take the ungodly by the hand Thus much for the name of this third childe Lo-ammi you are not my people and I will not be your God That which remaineth in the Chapter it is a promise of mercy both to Israel ver 10. and afterwards to Israel and Judah together ver 11. To Israel first and that is Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the Sea which cannot be measured or numbred c. And so he goeth on with wonderful gracious promises of mercy to Israel in future generations though for the present God had determined what to do with this Israel Here then we have first a promise of mercy to Israel in the middest of the sorest judgement that God threatneth he comes in with promises of mercy even unto Israel And Secondly this mercy to be in future generations And thirdly to consist in the multitudes that should be gathered to Israel These three things are observable in general First That there is such a gracious promise immediately after such a sore and dreadful threatning as this as indeed it is one of the most dreadful threatnings we have in all the Book of God yet here in the close of the Chapter we have as gracious a promise again as is in the whole Book of God From whence we may observe thus much That the Lord in Judgement remembreth Mercy It is a sore thing when God in mercy shall remember judgement but it is as comfortable when God in judgement remembers mercy When God threatneth most dreadfully yet he promiseth most graciously Wee should therefore when we most feare the threats of God yet looke up to the promises of God looke up to see when wrath is denounced in the most hideous and dreadfull way whether we cannot spie a Promise whether there be not yet a little cloud though but as big as a mans hand whether there be not yet a little crevis through which we may see whether God doth not break forth with a little light in a way of promise It is a usual thing when we are in prosperity to forget all threatnings and fo it is
and so terrible yet now behold the feete of him that bringeth good tydings that publisheth peace God abroad publisheth war yet he hath a messenger to publish life and peace to some Is it not so this day It is true the wrath of the Lord is kindled the wrath of the Lord burneth as an oven and it is hot but it is against the ungody but peace shall be upon Israel And let us sanctifie the name of God in this too for so it followes in this very Chap. of Nah. ver 15. Oh Iudah keepe thy solemne feasts performe thy vowes for the wicked shall no more passe through thee And because God revealeth such rich grace in the middest of judgement let this engage your hearts to the Lord for ever Yea a little further because it is an instraction of great use in these times and may be yet of further use in times we may live to see not onely when God threatneth judgements let us sanctifie Gods name in looking up to promises but when judgements are actually upon us Suppose we should live to have most fearful judgments of God upon us yet even then we must look up to promises and exercise our faith and have an eye to God in the way of his grace at that time this is harder then in threatnings You have an notable place for that in Esay 26. 8. In the way of thy judgements O Lord have we waited for thee the desire of our soule is to thy name Oh blessed be God my brethren the Lord calleth us to wait upon him in the wayes of mercy for the present It is true there was a time not long since that the Lord was in a way of judgement toward England and there were some of Gods people when he was in the wayes of his judgements amongst us yet would wait upon God and keepe his wayes though there were many because Gods judgements were abroad and they saw that they were like to suffer departed from God and declined his wayes Much cause of bitterness of spirit and of dread of humiliation have they that did so But others may have comfort to their soules that in the very wayes of Gods judgments they waited for him they can now with more comfort wait upon God when he is in the ways of his mercy But if God should ever come untous in the ways of his judgments let us learne even then to wait upon God keep his way And yet another Text that may seeme to be more notable than this for this purpose and that is Iere. 33. 24. Consider est thou not what this people have spoken saying the two families which the Lord hath chosen he hath even cast them off thus they have despised my people that they should be no more a nation Marke the low condition the people were in at this time Oh God hath cast them off they are despised contemptible not worthy to be accounted a nation This condition was very low but though they were brought low in a condition contemptible yet now God confirms his Covenant with them at this time For observe ver 25. Thus saith the Lord. If my Covenant be not with day night and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven earth then will I cast away the seed of Iacob ond David my servant As if God should say let them know that whatsoever their condition is now yet my love my mercy my faithfulness is toward them as sure as my covenant with day night and as the ordinances of heaven and earth An admirable Text to help not onely nations but particular persons when they are cast under contempt by wicked ungodly men yet at that time the Lord is most ready to confirm his covenant with them to be as sure as his covenant with day night and heaven earth This bringeth honour to God when at such times we can looke up to God and exercise our faith And indeed this is the glory and dignity and beauty of faith to exercise it then when Gods judgements are actually upon us But what promises are these They were not promises to any that then lived the promise that is here made was to be fulfilled in future Ages yet it is brought in by the Prophet as a comfort to the people of God living then in that time Hence this excellent note that nearly concerns us Gracious hearts are comforted with the promises of God made to the Church though not to be fulfilled in their dayes If the Church may prosper and receive mercies from God though I be dead and gone and rotten in the grave yet blessed be God When Jacob was to die saith he unto Joseph Behold I dye but God shall be with you and bring you again unto the land of your fathers he will fulfill his promises to you though I am dead Our fore-fathers that generation of the Saints that lived a while since how comfortably would they have dyed if God before their death had revealed to them that within 3. or 4. or 7. yeares so much mercy should come to England as we now have seen in these dayes Yea how comfortably should any of us have died I appeal to any gracious heart here suppose God should have taken thee away but this time two yeares and he should have said thus to thee Go and be gathered to thy fathers in peace within these two years such and such things shall be done for England as we now live to see would not we willingly have dyed would it not have been comfort enough against the fear of death but to have had revealed to us what should have been done in after time to our posterity what mercy then is it now that it is not onely revealed to us but enjoyed by us That is the second Note But thirdly What was this promise This promise was that Israel should be a multitude that the number of them shall be as the sand of the sea shore VVe shall examine the excellency of the mercy of God in this promise by and by Onely for the present enquire we a little why God would expresse himselfe in this that his grace should be manifested in this to multiply them as the sand of the sea shore If we compare Scripture with Scripture we shall finde that God therefore promiseth this because he would thereby shew that he did remember his old promise to Abraham for that was the promise made to Abraham that God would multiply his seed as the starres of heaven and as the sand which is upon the sea shore and now God along time after commeth in with renewing this promise Hence we are to observe this Note That the Lord remembers his promises though made a long time since God is ever mindful of his Covenant as it is Psal 111. 5. When we have some new and fresh manifestations of Gods mercy our hearts rejoyce in it but the impression of it is
Thes 2. 3. And Rev. 1. 3. 3. All the world wandred after the beast and ver 2. The dragon gave him his power and his seat and great authority and Rev. 17. 1. The whore sitteth upon many waters ver 15. these many waters are interpreted to be peoples and multitudes and nations and tongues The whore doth sit upon them that is doth use them vilely and basely sits upon the very consciences of them in a base manner as if a whore should sit upon you and keep you under And who doth she sit upon upon peoples and multitudes It is not an argument then of a true Church though they are multitudes though they be as the sand of the sea though they be gathered together for they must be gathered under one Head under Christ Secondly Neither is Unity a sufficient argument of the verity of the Church They shall be gathered together they shall be joyned together in one way with one consent yea but if it be not under one Head it is like Simeon Levi brethren in iniquity It is not enough that we be one unless we be one in Christ and that is a blessed union For a great deale of unity there shall be under Antichrist Revel 17. 13. These have one minde saith the Text and they shall give their strength power to the beast And Chap. 18. 5. Her sins reach unto heaven Their sins cleave together and so get up to heaven A union of persons and a union of sins there is amongst them The Turks have as little dissention in their Religion as any they are allunited in one But well may that garment have no seame that hath no shape And a notable place we have in Ps 83. 3. 4. 5. c. They have consulted together with one consent they are confederate against thee There are two or three things exceeding observable in this Scripture about the union of the wicked First you have ten Countreys joyn together against the Church there is the Edomites the Moabites c. And it was not by accident that they joyned but in a deliberate way They consulted together and not onely consulted together but consulted together with one consent or heartily for that which is translated there with one consent the word in the Hebrew is with heart together their very heart was in the consultation but mark it was against thy hidden ones so ver 3. Let them consult together let ten of them consult together and consult with their hearts yet the Saints are Gods hidden ones Esay 54. 15. They shall surely gather together but not my me whosoever shall gather together against thee shal fall forthy sake My brethren Peace though we should all desire it yet so as not to have it too chargeable Peace is then too chargeable when it costs us the losse of any truth Take heed of any such costly Peace There may hand joyn in hand together in wickednes yet they shal not be unpunished Pro. 16. 5. And Nah. 1. 10. While they are folded together as thorns they shal be devoured as stubble fully dry Wicked men they are as thorns to prick the people of God yea they are thorns â—â—lded together there is a peace amongst them yet though thâ—â— be folded â—â—gether they shall bedevoured they shal be 〈…〉 division that comes by truth is beter then the union that comes by 〈…〉 a noble speech of Luther Rather then any thing should fall of the Kingdome of Christ and his glory let not onely peace 〈◊〉 but let heaven and earth goe too so wee should love peace The Sixth Lecture HOSEA 1. the middle of the 11. verse And appoint themselves one head and they shall come up out of the land FRom the tenth verse to the end you have heard that God promiseth mercy to an Israel that he will in time raise up although for that Israel to whom the Prophet spake they shall go into captivity and shall not returne as Judah did Secondly Mercy to Israel and Judah both together and that first In the multitude that shall be gathered secondly In the excellency of the state of the Church at that time above that which was before before they were People but then they shall be Sons Thirdly In the unity of them Israel and Judah shall be both gathered together under one head Some time was spent in the last exercise about unity and the excellency of the unity of the Churches wherein we laboured to convince you that uniformity in judgement and practice is not necessary for unity in the Churches for unity of hearts It is a false principle that runnes in the world that all men must needs be brought to believe and doe the same thing or else there can be no peace If we would have light let in to us we must so prise it as to be willing that in the discussion of truths there should be some hazard of some differences in lesser things If a man have a house closed on every side with a thick brick-wall and he is so desirous to keepe his house safe and stronge that he will rather all his dayes sit in the darke then be at the trouble to have a hole digged or a few bricks broken to let in any light wee would accuse that man of folly It is true indeed we must not be so desirous of light as to break so much of the wall as to indanger the house we must keepe that safe but yet it is hard to let in light but there will be some bricks taken away and there must be some trouble A childe when he sees the work-man with his tooles breaking the wall and making a deale of rubbish hee thinks he is pulling down the house but a wise man knows it is but a little trouble for the present to let in light that shall be for the beauty of the house afterward Unity in the Churches is lovely But it must be under one head They shal be gathered together and appoint themselves one head Agreement in errour is farre worse then division for the sake of truth Better to be divided from men that are erroneous then to agree with them in the wayes of their arrour A company gathered without the covenant of peace without the observance of Gods law is a headlesse multitude saies Bernard it hath much of Babylon but little of Jerusalem What is this Head I finde both the Jewes and divers of the â—â—cyents Theodoret Cyrill and others that would make this head to be Zerubbabel and onely to have reference to the returne of the people from their Babylonish captivity But this certainly cannot be upon these two reasons to name no more First Because both Israel and Judah are here to joyne together and to returne out of the land there it was Judah and not the ten Tribes that were delivered from their captivity Secondly Compare this Scripture with others that are but a Comment upon it and we shall finde that
prepared to meet Christ their Bride-groom when he cometh Marke that place Ezek. 40. 4. It is spoken of the glorious times of the Gospel especially of these times I am speaking of where God saith to the Prophet Behold with thine eyes and heare with thine eares and set thine heart upon all that I shal shew thee And what did God shew him hee shewed him the measure of the Temple and all the glorious things that there should be in the Church in future times So I say to you my brethren concerning that I have spoken of the great day of Jezreel behold with your eyes look into Gods book and see what is said there for I have named but little and heare with your eares and set your hearts upon what hath been set before you So in Isa 41. 20. You have a place somewhat like this speaking of the mercies of God to his Church in latter times saith the Text That they may see know and consider and understand together that the hand of the Lord hath done this and the Holy One of Israel hath created it Mark how one word is heaped upon another that they may see know and consider understand what God would do for his people And when God came to reveale the glorious things he intended for his Churches in future times in the book of the Revelation which is the special book that declareth this unto us Mark how the Lord beginneth It is said that God gave this first to Christ secondly Christ to the Angel thirdly the Angel to Iohn and then there is pronounced a blessing to him that reads and hears the words of this prophesie and understands it What a solemne way of blessing is here There is not such an expression in all the book of God where have you a blessing so solemnly proclaimed to the reading and hearing of any of the bookes of God as to that book Therefore though they are things that seeme to be above us yet certainly God would have us to inquire into these things It is the fruit of the purchase of the blood of Christ to open these seales Rev. 5. 9. we reade that there was no man in heaven nor in earth that was able to open the book and to loose the seales thereof only the Lambe that was slaine and that hath redeemed us unto God by his blood he was onely worthy to open the seales It is a fruit I say of the slaughter of Christ of his blood and therefore cry to him for the opening these things to thee And though thou beest very weake in regard of parts and thinkest with thy self How can I understand such things as these know that it is Christ that through his blood comes to open these seales and seeing it is a fruite of his blood it is no matter whether thou art weake or strong if he come to open them to thee as Ier. 13. 2. saith God to the Prophet Call unto me and I will shew thee great and mighty things which thou knowest not so I say to you be a praying people call upon God and he will cause you to understand great and excellent things that you have not known And my brethren seeing these things shall be thus O what manner of persons ought wee to be how heavenly our hearts should rise up from the earth seeing God intendeth to do such great things for his people As it is Isa 60. Arise arise shake off thy dust for the light is come and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee So I may say to the Churches now Arise arise shake of the dust of your earthly affections for the light of God is now ready to arise upon you Now sur sum corda now lift up your hearts above the things of the world VVee reade in Rev. 4. of the foure living creatures that appeared unto John the first was like a Lyon and the second like an Oxe and the third had a face as a Man and the fourth was like a flying Eagle They are according to the interpretaâ—ion that reverend Brightman gives to set out unto us the foure states conditions of the Church The Primitive times were Lyon-like for their valour the second age like an Oxe to beare the burthens of Antichrist the third had a face as a man that stood for their liberties and would not be under such slavery and they are but times and then the fourth as an Eagle that sored aloft In the state of the Church hereafter they shall be like an Eagle have heavenly hearts no such drossy base earthly hearts as we have now Labour we even now to be so that we may be fit for that day And let us all prepare for the Bride groome against his comming How shall we prepare The cloathing that then shall be shall be white linnen which is the righteousnesse of the Saints That great Doctrine of our justification by the righteousnesse of Christ shall be the great businesse of that day in which the glory of the Saints shall much consist and they shall be clothed with that it shall be clearly understood of all men they shall be ashamed to rest upon duties and ordinances as now they do Let us study the Doctrine of the righteousnesse of Christ afore-hand for that is like to be our clothing at that day that is the white linnen of the Saints which shall be their glory Let us prepare our Lamps and keepe them all burning and shining the oyle not onely of juâ—â—â—cation but sanctification active stirring in our hearts that so we may 〈◊〉 to entertaine the Bride-groom whensoever 〈◊〉 〈…〉 And all of you labour now to instruct your children in the knowledge of God and of Christ bring them up in the feare of the Lord that they may be seed for that day Acquaint them with these things for though perhaps you may be dead and gone before this great day yet they may live to see it therefore catechize them and instruct them and drop into them those Principles that may fit them for the meeting of JESUS CHRIST their Bridegroome To conclude all Let us be all praying Christians It is that which is charged upon us in Isa 62. 6. All you that make mention of the Lord keep not silence and give him no rest till he establish till he make Jerusalem apraise in the earth God hath a day to set up Jerusalem as the praise of the whole earth Oh be praying praying Christians every one of you and give God no rest till he effect this And remember God of all his promises search the Prophets search the book of God and urge God with his promises to the Church in this way And you that are the weakest be not discouraged in your prayers and you may be a meanes to further and hasten this great day of Jezreel Psal 102. 17. The Psalmist had spoken before of Gods building up Zion and certainly that Psalme is a Prophesie of the glorious times
of the Church that shall be marke what the Text saith The Lord shall regard the prayer of the destitute and shall not despise their prayer speaking of those that shall live in those times a little before this day of Iezreel shall be The Lord shall regard the prayer of the destitute the word that is translated destitute it signifieth in the Hebrew a poor shrub in the wildernesse a poor shrub that the foot of every beast is ready to tread downe and that poore shrub that perhaps is despicable in the eyes of the world and despicable in his own eyes yet saith the Text the Lord shal regard the prayer of that poor shrub Is there ever a poor shrub though never so destitute so despicable in the eyes of the world or in thine owne eyes yet be thou a praying Christian a praying soul praying for those things and God will regard thy prayer he will not despise thy prayer Perhaps thou art ready to despise thy prayers thy self but God will not despise them let all our hearts be lifted up and let us all cry with the Church Come Lord Jesus Come quickly O let this day come for great shall be the day of Jezreel HOSEA CHAP. 2. The First Lecture CHAP. 2. VER 1. 2. Say 〈◊〉 your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah Pled with your mother plead for she is not my Wife neither am I her husband c. SOme joyne the first verse of this Chapter to the end of the former and according to a sense that may be given of the words agreeable to the scope of the latter part of the former Chapter it may seem more fit to be made the end of that then the beginning of this In the latter end of the former God was in a way of promising mercy to his people that those that were not his people should be his people and those that had not received mercy should receive mercy Now he calleth upon all whose hearts were with God to speake to one another of this great favour of God to his people foâ— their mutuall encouragement and for the praise of his Name As if he should say Well you have been under dreadfull threats of God your sins have called for dreadfull things but my grace is free and it is rich powerfull therefore you that were not my people and have deserved to be for ever cast off from being my people you that had not obtained mercy shall obtaine mercy Say to your brethren Ammi and to your sisters Ruhamah that is O you that are godly speak one to another and telâ— one another for the quickning of one anothers hearts of this great favour of God of his free grace Oh say Ammi Ammi the people of God Ruhamah Gods mercy We were not his people but now Ammi again God hath promised to make us to be his people we were rejected from mercy but mercy is come again now Ruhamah O the mercy of God O that free grace of our God that wee that have beene so vile so provoked the eyes of his glory we that have so sinned against mercy it self yet mercy should thus follow us to make us his people and to save us from his wrath It is a good thing to speake of the loving kindnesse of our God Psal 92. 1. It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord and to be telling of the goodnesse of God in the morning and his faithfulnesse every night That Psalme is appointed for the Sabbath It is a work of the Sabbath to be speaking one to another of the goodnesse of God Especially in this case when a people were afraid that they should have been for ever rejected that now God should call them againe Ammi my people and say now againe that he will have mercy upon them Psal 145. 4. 5. One generation shall praiss thy name to another and shall declare thy mighty acts I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty and of thy wondrous works Mark what the wayes of God are toward his Church when he commeth in the wayes of mercy they are wondrous works of God they are the mighty acts of God they are such wherein the honor of God appears yea they are the honour of his Maâ—esty yea they are the glorious honour of his Majestyâ— There is Majesty honour of Majesty glorious honour of Majesty mighty works of God wonderfull works of God When these appeare these are to be declared indeed And for them to be able to say to one another Ammi and Ruhamah it was to declare the wonderfull works of God and the glorious honour of his Majesty Yea it followeth further in that Psalme verse 6. Men shal speake of the might of thy terrible acts and I will declaâ—e thy greatnesse And verse 7. They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodnesse Eâ—uctaâ—uâ—t so Arias Mâ—ntanus renders it they shall not be able to keep it in but break â—orth in the memory of thy goodnesse Happy are those people that God gâ—ants such subjects of discourses unto that they may say one to another to their brethren and sisters Ammi and Ruhamah It was not long since that when we met with our brethren we could not have such a subject of discourse as this is but usually when Christians met together after their Salutations their first question was Oh! what shall we do what shall we doe what course shall we take All the Newes almost that was in the Kingdome and the subject of discourses specially among the Saints was this Such a Minister silenced in such a place such a one banished in another place such a one imprisoned in another place such a one High-Commissioned in another place such signes of the wrath of God upon us we are afraid that God is going if he be not quite gone already we are afraid that he will not onely reject us from being his people but reject us from being a people upon the facâ— of the earth But blessed be God he hath changed the subject of our dâ—scourses Now Gods wayes have begun to be towards us as if he intended to make us again to be his people Now we may when we meet together have plentifull subjects of discourses about Gods grace mercy to say Ammi Ruhamah O the Lord manifesteth goodnes to an unworthy Nation we have hope that yet he will owne us to be his people we have hope that yet he will shew mercy to us though never so unworthy Who would have thought ever to have seene and heard of such things as we have seene heard who would have thought ever to have seene the hearts of the adversaries so daunted their power so curbed their rage so quelled the wicked in their own workes so ensnared their hopes so disappointed who would ever have thought to have seene the Saints so rejoycing their liberties so inlarged their hearts and expectations so raised This is the free grace of God
admonitions will not doe we must strengthen our selves and falla pleading If there be any way more powerfull then exhortation and admonition we should take that way and not presently give over for though it is not said here Pleade with your brothers and sisters yet they are included in this when he saith Plead with your mother Thirdly It is a hard thing to convince Idolaters of their sin and of the Justice of God comming against them for their sinne Plead with your mother plead shee will not acknowledge it she will stand it out and say she hath not done so ill shee is not worthy to be cast off you had need pleade and plead hard with her she will stand out else Idolaters have so many distinctions so many evasions so many shifts and pretences that it is a thousand to one ever almost to prevaile with them When you deale with Papists about worshipping of Images they will have such distinctions of worship perse and worship per accidens of honouring the creature Propter se propter aliud Proprie improprie and a hundred of such kinde of distinctions and evasions till they distinguish out the truth and scarce understand themselves what they meane by their distinctions Hence Idolaters scorne at judgements threatned they thinke onely a company of foolish timorous people fear such things they cry out say they that we are Idolaters Idolaters and grievous judgements of God are comming â—â—on us a company of foolish melancholly people they feare their own 〈◊〉 Was it not so heretofore when we were going on in the wayes of Idolatry space Was it not the jeere and scorne of all such spirits If any did seeme but to make a question about Idolatry they would never be convinced of such a sinne nor never feare any judgements hanging over our heads Though God hath prevented it through his grace and hath shewed his preroâ—ation in the ways of his mercy yet certainly there was signe enough of dreadfull wrath hanging over us and what yet may be we know not Fourthly Plead with your mother pleade It is a 〈◊〉 of forensecall word and carrieth with it such a kinde of pleading as must be a convincing a powerfull pleading God loveth to have people dealt withall in a convincing way The Lord doth not cry out to the Prophet or to these other good people that were free from that Idolatry that the people of Israel were generally corrupted withall he doth not say I say bid them go and terrifie them and cry out of the◠〈◊〉 speake bitterly unto them but 〈◊〉 and pleadâ— the cause with them seeke to convince them doc not goe and 〈◊〉 upon 〈◊〉 〈…〉 them God loveth to have people dealt withall in a convincing way Let not therefore any thinke it enough either Minister or other that they can speak terribly to people and cry out of the sinnes of the people but let them labour to convince them to deale with them as rationall creatures and to take away their secret objections and their secret shifts and to make their sinnes plaine before their consciences A convincing Preacher and a convincing Christian is such a one as may be very usefull and doe aboundance of good to the Church of God Fifthly Pleade with your mother It is very fit that God should have some to pleade for him to pleade his cause as well as the devil hath to pleade his The devill never wants pleaders When was there ever such an ill cause came to a Bench or to any society in any publique way but found some that would pleade for it A shame that the worst cause in the world should have pleaders for it and many times the cause of God suffers by mens being mute that should pleade for it God will take this very ill at their hands It is true God saith hee will pleade his owne cause and wee are bound to pray according to that of the Psalmist that God would arise and pleade his owne cause And indeed if God had not risen and pleaded his owne cause better then we did his cause would have been in the dirt before this Though it is true God is raising up his own cause no thanke to us wee have cause to lay our hands upon our moâ—thes as guilty in that we did so basely and cowardly let the cause of God suffer and God appearing so immediately and gloriously is the rebuking of us because we did not wee would not before stand up to pleadâ— his cause Sixthly When any have found mercy from God the sweetnesse of that mercy so warmeth their hearts that they cannot endure to see that blessed God be dishonoured Pleade you Ammi Ruhamah what my people those to whom I have shewed mercy what though it be your mother what though it be any deare to you what though they be great ones though they be a multitude yet pleade plead for me against them this note is grounded upon the title that God giveth them who should plead Ammi and Ruhamah those that are Gods people those that have found mercy from God Gods mercy is so sweet it doth so inflame them that they must plead for God against any in the world Seventhly Pleade with your Mother That is with the Church called a Mother because as the Mother is as it were the roote from whence children come divideth her selfe into branches so the community of a Commonwealth or a Church any community is called in Scripture a Mother and the particulars they are as severall branches that growe from that roote they are as children Therefore you have such expressions in Scripture as the daughters of Jerusalem oftentimes and there is no great difference between calling Jerusalem that is the State Mother or Jerusalem that is the Church Mother for indeed the Church and State were mixed both together From this expression we learne that it is lawfull for children to plead with their parents Though it is true this aimeth at a higher thing then what is between natural children and their parents yet from the expression this is intimated and implied That it is lawfull for children to pleade with their parents If children see their parents in an ungodly way they may lawfully pleade with them and their parents are bound to hearken to their pleading Gods cause It is a speech of Tertullians the begetter is to be beloved and we may adde he is to be honoured but our Creator is to be preferred Children must give due respect to their parents yet so as preferring the Lord before them and if the parents goe against God even their children must plead against them As it is a great sinne for parents to prefer their children before God so it is a great sin for children to prefer their parents before God Do not think I come to set children against their parents in this be but content to heare to the end though I will not be long in this observation and you
people and call upon them and exhort them to turne unto him the condition of that people is not desperate Exhortations from God do argue that the condition of a people may be hopefull So long as the King is but speaking to a Traytor especially giving of him good counsel there may be hope If he turne his backe upon him and will speake no more then he looks upon himself as a gone man Many people are troubled that God doth so continue exhorting by his Ministers and others and they cannot be at quiet If thou hast such a quiet as God should leave exhorting and drawing thee from thy sinnes woe to thee thou art a lost creature Make much of exhortations and threatnings Come we now to the Exhortation it selfe Let her put away her whoredomes out of her sight and her adulteries from betweene her breasts It is in the plurall number her whoredomes and her adulteries They were many shee must put them away all If a wife that hath been naught shall be contented to forsake divers of her lovers and retain but one there is no reconciliation all her adulteries must be put away But the words are not onely in the plurall number but those that understand the Originall well know that there is somewhat in the words to extend the signification beyond the plurall number and that is the duplication of the radicall letter in the first word the second radicall letter which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is double in the second word the third radicall Letter 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is double It is the note of Tarnovius upon the place saith he the doubling of these radicall Letters shew the exceeding multitude of those whordomes and adulteries that Israel was guilty of at this time And indeed when once there is giving way to superstitious vanities there is growing to notorious whordomes and adulteries without measure without number ubi sistendum We never know where to stop if once our worship be corrupted Let her put away out of her sight The eye is the receiver of much uncleanness into the heart and by it the uncleanuess of the heart is much exprest The Scripture speakes of eies full of adulterie Let her put her adulteries out of her sight let them be abominable now in her eies those things that before were delectable let them now bee detestable Let them cast away their Idols as a filthy menstruous cloath and with indignation say get yee hence Or from before her face so it is in the Hebrew noting her impudency in her idolatry that it appeared in her very face Though men at first may be a little wary yet at length they grow to manifest outwardly their Idolatry in their very face But what we shall meet with afterward And because Israel did not according to the exhortation of those that pleaded with her put thus her whordomes out of her sight God did put Israel out of his sight for so we have it 2 King 17. 22. 23. The children of Israel walked in all the sinnes of Jeroboam which he did they departed not from them Promises could not draw them threatnings could not derer them Vntill the Lord removed Israel out of his sight They might have prevented this if they had put their whoredomes out of their sight God would never have put them out of his sight And from betweene her breasts Whores use to discover their filthyness much in their breasts either in the nakedness of their breasts or in those ornaments they hung about their breasts as they were wont to do in those Countreys for the intâ—sing of their lovers Her breasts Hypocrates sayes there are veins that goe from the belly to the breasts and that is the reason he gives of the temptation to lust that is in the breasts The whoredomes of the breasts in the nakednesse of them hath been condemned not onely in the Churches of God but amongst the heathen Terrulian in his book de habitu muliebri hath this expression Women adorne themselves immoderately with gold and silver and precious apparell this is saith hee crimen ambitionis the sin of ambition but for them to seek to adorne themselves solicitously carefull about their haire and their skin and those parts that draw the eyes this is crimen prostitutionis it is the sinnne of a prostituted whore so to doe Yea besides Tertullian in another book of his De velandis verginibus brings the Heathen rebuking Christian women in those times The very women of Arabia saith he shall judge you for they do not onely cover their faces but even their heads rather then they will have their nakedness appeare they will let the light but into one eye Now if the Heathen did so if they would not have their nakedness in any thing appeare much more should Christians cover those parts that are incitements to lusts That which is the Bedlams madness and the Beggars misery namely Nakedness that is the whores pride and the strumpets glory Let her put away her whordoms out of her sight and her adulteries from between her breasts That which is intended especially here is that they should not be content meerly with change of their hearts to say Well we will acknowledge the Lord to be the true God and our hearts shall wholly trust in him but for these externall things what great matter is there in them Oh no they must abstaine from all appearance of evill from the badges of Idolatry there must not be so much as the garbe and dresse of a whore upon them they must take away their adulteries from betweene their breasts The breasts of the Church are the Ordinances that are there for out of them do the Saints suck sweetness and spirituall nourishment So they are called in Isa 66. 11. That you may suck and be satisfied with the breasts of consolation Now certainly it is an evill thing for any thing that is whorish to be upon the breasts to be in the Ordinances of the Church to thinke to adorne them withall as whores do their breasts No the breasts are so neare the heart that it is pitty any thing should be upon them but Christ himselfe it is most fit that he should lye there Cant. 1. 13. A bundle of myrrhe is my wel-beloved unto me he shall lye all night between my breasts Myrrhe we know is a bitter thing but though Christ were as a bundle of myrrhe and brought many afflictions that adde bitternesse to the flesh yet the Church would have Christ to lye between her breasts and she would rejoyce in Christ Christ was sweet to the Church though with afflictions As a bundle of myrrhe is my wel-beloved So many faithfull Ministers of God have been contented yea joyfull to keep Christ between their breasts and in the Ordinances though as a bundle of myrrhe though hee hath brought some afflictions to them yet rather then they would endure any expression of that which is
every thing and prize every little mercie Oh the tenth the hundreth part of that will not serve your turne now you vvould have been glad of then and blessed God if you had had it But now you know not your selves your hearts are raised up as your estates are VVell it is good for you to looke to the condition that once you were in vvhen you were low As vve reade of Agathâ—cles that King that was a Potters sonne and after advanced to a kingdom he vvould alwayes be served at his table in earthen vessels to put him in mind of that condition he was in before certainly if in any place in England it be seasonable to speake of this it is here in London where many that have been Potters children and in a low degree have been raised up high and have gotten great estates Let them remember in what condition once they were that they may be humbled and so may prevent that danger of being brought thither again Many put others in mind of it in a taunting vvay I know vvhat you were not long agoe I know vvhat your father vvas c. But doe you put your own soules in mind of this in an humbling way This is the vvay to continue mercies But now apply vve it a little to our selves for the generall and then vve shal conclude all Let us vvork this upon our hearts Look vve back to vvhat we vvere lately and let us check our hearts for any discontent in our present estate Not long since vvould not many of us have beene willing to have laid dovvn our lives to have purchased that mercy we have had this yeer or two God hath granted to us our former mercies raised us from our low condition of free cost hitherto God hath been afore hand with us and what if those mercies that are to come will be at some vvhat a dearer rate then those vvee have had already Those mercies vve have had already have been very precious and sweet but surely they that are to come are more precious and sweet and therefore vve may be content though they cost us deare Yet hovv vile are the spirits of men in forgetting the condition the sad condition they lately were in forgetting the Taxes and Monopolies and uncertainty of enjoying an thing that was your own and now if there be but a little charge comming you presently fall a murmuring and repining Oh these are heavy burthens the Parliament burthens the kingdome and the Couutrey and as good have ship-money and other taxes as these burthens Oh unworthy unworthy are you to live to see the goodnesse of the Lord in these dayes unworthy to have thine eyes open to see what God hath done and thus to murmur Thou shouldest magnifie Gods mercies and not murmur at his proceedings VVe have a notable parallel to this Numb 16. in the story of Corah Dathan and Abiram those murmurers when they were but in a little strait they come to Moses and say ver 13. Why hast thou brought us up out of a land that floweth with milks and honey What land was that that Moses brought them up out of that they said flowed with milke and honey It was the land of Egypt the land of their bondageâ— indeed they were promised a land of Canaan that should flowe with milke and honey and they put that upon the land of Egypt though they had been in bondage and slavery in Egypt and were now going to Canaan yet when they did but indure some trouble in the vvay and had but some opposition and were put to some straits then Egypt was the Land that flowed vvith milke and honey and who would come out of Egypt So though God be bringing us to Canaan to a blessed Land that floweth with milke and honey yet because there are some straits in the way some difficulties some oppositions that may cost us somewhat now how doe men cry out we vvere better before you talke of Reformation and such and such things but for our parts would vve might have but vvhat we had before and be as quiet as vve were then why will you bring us out of a Land that floweth with milke and honey Oh base murmuring and discontented spirits that forget what once they vvere and rather prize the bondage they were in before then are thankfull for Gods present mercies For us not to look back to Gods former mercies it goeth to the very heart of God God hath an expression that it frets him to the very heart You have it in Ezek. 16. 43. Because thou hast not remembred the dayes of thy youth but hast fretâ—ed me in all these things It is a thing that frets God at his heart to see a people so unworthy of mercie when God commeth in such wayes of mercie to them as he doth My brethren God hath done great things for us whatsoever others say and thinke Let them murmure and repine and say what they will let us say God hath done great things for us Let us lay to heart the condition we lately vvere in that so we may be stirred up now to seeke after God that wee may never be brought into that condition any more if they would have it again much good may it do them but for us let it be our care to seeke God and to use all lawfull meanes to prevent our bringing back to it again For even the very straits we now are in are an aggravation of our former misery and present mercie it should not therefore make our former misery or present mercie seeme lesse but greater How is that you will say Thus If now wee have so much helpe and power to hinder a malignant party that seeke our ruine yet they have so much strength and resolution what would have become of us if this had been before when we had no way nor no meanes to help us If men complaine now what vvould they have done then Therefore whereas we make use of our straits to make us thinke that our former misery was lesse and we are now in a sadder condition then before rather let us make it an aggravation of Gods mercie towards us and if wee be in such straits now when God hath raised up such meanes beyond all our thought to resist the flowing in of misery upon us Lord whether were wee a going what would have become of us if the streame which hath been so long a swelling had broke in upon us when there was no meanes to have resisted it VVe may well see now that if their intentions and resolutions be so strong for mischiefe as will not be hindered notwithstanding the present strength God hath granted us to oppose them surely they had most vile intentions and dreadfull things were determined against us which would have brought us low indeed and have made us the most miserable people upon the earth if God had not come in so mira culously for our help as he hath done at this
day Therefore as we read of Jeremiah Chap. 37. 18. Let my supplication saith he to the King I pray thee be accept able before thee that thou cause me not to returne to the house of Jonathan the Scribe lest I dye there So let us present our supplications to the King of heaven that wee may not be sent back to that condition we were once in that God may not strip us and leave us naked Wee have many blessings Lord do not strip us doe not strip us of all the ornaments thou hast put upon us And would you not have God strip you of your ornaments be you willing to strip your selves of your ornaments Ezod 33. 5. God calleth upon the people there Put off your Ornaments from you that I may know what to doe unto you This is true and seasonable at this time in the literall sense you are called now to strip you of your Ornaments Strip from your fingers your gold-rings now when there is neede of them perhaps one gold-ring that you have upon your finger would serve to maintain a souldier a month or five weeks or more and yet you may have the benefit of it againe afterward Strip your Cup-boards from that pompous shew of plate that was wont to be upon them It is much if you should not be willing to have your fingers stripped naked when we are in danger to have the State stript naked of all our comforts and ornaments Is it such a great matter to have your cup-board naked of plate now what if a white cloath were upon it and all that glistering shew taken away were that such a great matter now when God is about to strip us naked and set us as in the day wherein wee were borue certainly all of you that shall keep your plate now for the pompous decking and adorning of your cup-boards you cannot but be ashamed of it in these times surely you must rather keep it up in your trunkes and hutches it cannot but be both a sin and a shame to see such glistering pomp and glory in such times as these are Strip your selves of your ornaments that God strip you not and not only outwardly but strip your selves of your ornaments by your humiliation for that is the meaning of that place in Exodus Oh come and humble your selves and come now with naked hearts before the Lord open your hearts before God bring them naked and sincere before him lest he strip you and the Kingdom naked Crie unto God for mercie O Lord thou knowest what a vile heart I have had a base time-serving heart yet Lord I desire to take away all those clokes now and to rend and bring this heart naked before thee though it be a filthy heart yet open it Lord thou knowest those vile things those innovasions those superstitions those horrible wickednesses that were in danger to be let into the Church and Comman-wealth yet they were things that could goe down very well with me I could make shifts to swallow them and I had distinctions to colour them but Lord it was my base heart that I could not trust thee but now here I open it naked before thoe O Lord for these Ordinances of thine in the purity and power of them that others spake so much of they have bin things unsavory to me I had no skill in such things Thou knowest I had a neutrelizing spirit I looked which way the wind blew how just were it for thee to give me upto be of a desperate malignant spirit Now Lord I come as a naked wretched creature before thee in the shame and guilt of my sin and here I acknowledge thou maiest justly strip me naked of all the comforts of my estate and leave me in the most miserable condition that ever poor creature was left in And now my heart is open before thee doe but shew me what I shall doe and if thou doest reserve any of my estate and comforts which I have forfeited in testimony of my humiliation for my former sinnes I bring it before thee and am willing to give it up for the publique good and to prevent that evill and mischiefe that I am sure my sinnes call for for my sins cry for wrath against the Land that thou shouldst strip it naked and if all had beene such base spirits as I have beene what would have become of the Land by this time In testimonie therefore of my humiliation for my sins here I bring in this of my estate though indeed if I had not been guilty of such sins yet out of common prudence and respect to my own security I might bring some part in but here is so much the more of my estate because my conscience tells me of my former guilt And Lord for the time to come I am resolved to doe the uttermost I can for Thee and thy Cause And those Worthies that carry their lives in their hands for me God forbid that I should have the least hand in betraying them in withdrawing my hand and assistance from them Lord here I give up my self to thee and my estate I surrender it to thee in an everlasting Covenant This is to come with a naked heart indeed before the Lord. Were it not better that we should be willing to strip our selves naked then that God should doe it by violenee that God should send Souldiers into our houses to strip us naked as they have dealt with our brethren in Ireland they took not away their estates onely but all their clothes and sent them in droves as naked as ever they were borne VVee know wee have deserved the like If you will not strip your selves of your super â—â—uities God may justly by them strip you naked as ever you were born and not onely bring you into the same condition you were in but into a far worse for so he threatneth in that 28. Deut. You shall not onely be carryed backe againe into Egypt but there you shall be sold for bondâ—men and no man shall buy you they should be in a worse condition the when they were first in Egypt So if there be any of you that are willing to sell your consciences in hope of preferment Oh the other side may get power and prevaile and so out of hope to be preferred to sell your consciences you may be disappointed not only be brought into as ill but into a far worse condition perhaps though you would have sold your selves yet no bodie will buy you if the Papists corne to have the power of your bodies and estates you may misse of that preferment that you thinke of So saith Ezra Chap. 9. 14. after he had spoken of Gods mercie in giving them liberty and remitting their captivitie Shall we saith he yet continue in sin break the commandements of the Lord would he not be angry with us till we were utterly destroyed And certainly if God do not awaken the hearts of people now if God do
not give the people throughout the Kingdom a heart to stick to the Cause of the Truth and to those whom they have intrusted with their estates liberties and lives in every good way it were the heaviest judgement of God that ever was upon a Nation since the beginning of the earth it would never be paralleld that ever a people should have such an opportunity put into their hands to help themselves aud to vindicaâ—e themselves from slavery and bondage yet out of I know not what respects to betray all those that have ventured their lives for them and to have their blood shed I say it were such an example as were not to be paralleld since the beginning of the world Therefore I beseech you my brethren let us lay this to heart and the Lord make known to us all what is to be done in such a time as this that we may not be stripped naked and set as in the day wherein we were borne The Third Lecture HOSEA part of the third verse and verse 4. And make her as a wildernesse and set her like a dry land and slay her with thirst And I will not have mercy upon her children for they be the children of whoredomes IN the first part of this second Chapter wee have already shewed part of Gods threatning even to strip his people naked as in the day wherein they were borne to bring them into as low and mean a condition as ever they were in Now that which was more generally exprest the last day we have in the latter end of this third Verse more particularly set forth unto us And make her as a wildernesse and set as a dry land God would bring this people that dwelt in the land of Canaan flowing with milke and honey that were in regard of the beauty that God had put upon them excellent for beauty now to be as a wildernesse In the former Chapter you heard that the state of the Ten Tribes vvas set out by Hoseas wife her name was Gomer ad this Gomer was the daughter of Diblaim Gomer signifieth perfection and what Diblaim signifieth I told you then But now there is another signification of this Diblaim that we are to refer unto this expression of the Lord in this place that he will make her as a wildernesse for you shall finde Ezek. 6. 14. that there is mention made of a desolate countrey and a wildernesse that was towards Diblath to which this that the Prophet speaks of the mother of Gomer may seem to have reference Diblath then it appeareth was a place where there was a very desolate waste wildernesse and Gomer was the daughter of this Diblath from whence Diblaim that is Though the ten Tribes were as Gomer in regard of their beauty perfect for so they were yet she was the doughter of Diblath or Diblaim that is she came forth out of a low and meane condition and was even brought out of a wildernesse now shee shall be brought again into the same estate wherein shee was for I will set her as a wildernesse As a wildernesse The Church of God is in it selfe Gods garden a garden inclosed and so it is called Cant. 4. 12. As a garden inclosed is my sister my Spouse It is the place of Gods delight not a place for beasts to come into but inclosed they are to be kept out of it a place where very precious fruits doe grow that are very pleasing to God a place that hath the dew the showers of Gods blessing the dew of Hermon the dew that descendeth upon the mountains of Zion there God commandeth his blessing even life for evermore But now she must come to be a wildernesse For first the hedge the pale the wall of Gods protection shall be taken away from her and she shall be laid open lyable for all wilde beasts to come in and to devoure her They loved liberty and were loth to be inclosed though it were in Gods garden though it was with the pale wall of Gods protection Well seeing you will have liverty you shall have liberty and this pale and wall of my garden shall be taken away and your condition shall be like the condition of the beasts in the wildernesse Againe you shall be as a wildernesse There shall no good grow among you There was no good grew amongst you that was your sin and there shall no good grow among you that shall be your plague and punishment The blessing of God shall be taken away from you you shall not have those showers of blessing as formerly you were wont to have but you shall be as a wildernesse Jer. 17. 5. 6. Cursed be that man that trusteth in man and maketh flesh his arme and departeth from the Lord Why For he shall be as the heath in the desart and shall not see when good commeth and he shall inherite the parched places of the wildernesse in a salt land Vatablus interprets this judgement upon the hearts of Idolaters they are dry unsavory they are destitute of all spirituall good And I will set her as a dry land So the Septuagint read it I will order you so Your sinnes bring you out of order but Gods plagues order that which sin doth disdorder At a dry land This is contrary to the blessing of a godly man for he is said to be as the tree planted by the river of water The graces and comforts of Gods Spirit are compared to waters in the Scripture Psal 87. 7. All my springs are in thee All my comforts all the gifts that I have all the graces that I have are in thee But now God will set them as a dry land he will take away his gifts and take away their comforts from them and so leave them wast and desolate The Observation then from hence is That sinne is of a wasting nature sinne layeth wast Countreyes and places that people live in VVee have a most remarkable place of Scripture for that Zach. 7. 14. They laid the pleasant land desolate They who are they you shall finde it ver 12. Those that made their hearts as an Adamant stone lest they should heare the law and the words which the Lord of Hosts had sent in his spirit by the former Prophets They made the pleasant land desolaâ—e VVe cry out of those that make stripe and waste and there are actions commenced against them O let not us lay waste this pleasant land this good laud of ours this garden of the Lord. It is indeed as an Eden as a Paradise our fore-fathers have left us this our land as Gods garden let not us through our sinnes leave it to our posterities as a wildernesse and a dry land Psal 107. 34. there is a threatning that God will make a fruitfull land barren for the wickednesse of them that dwell therein Sinne hath heretofore laid wast as pleasant and fruitfull Countreys as ours Those that travell in Germanie their hearts even bleed
will be so they that are of the deepest and politikest ferches and reaches if they thinke to secure themselves and preserve their peace out of that principle so as Religion must come under and must be serviceable it will appeare at last they doe shamefully God will make them ashamed of it one way or other it will be the onely way to undoe themselves and us I confesse in matters of Religion there are some commands that are affirmitive precepts These though they doe ligare semper yet not ad semper there is not a necessity that at every time and instant they should be urged so that it may be that a people may be in such a frame that men cannot but by degrees bring in a reformation to the height of it and then it is not carnall policie to bring in such wayes of God gradually as are commanded by affirmitive precepts but negative precepts binde semper and adsemper and the State must looke to that that they do nothing against Christ out of policie that they doe not hinder by any positive Law the way of Christ for though Christ may be willing to forbeare some Ordinances for a time and he doth it out of mercy to a people he saith he will have mercy and not sacrifice but Christ will never beare that there should be any thing done against him in that time If they should out of any State policie to preserve peace or to gratifie an evill party sacrifice any part of Religion or any godly person this will prove a shamefull thing Christ accounts it so and whosoever doth so will be ashamed of it at the last Now my brethren why should not God be trusted let us looke at Religion in the first place and so pray wee that those who are our reformers who have power in their hands may never prove to be guilty of this shamefull way of putting Religion under policie I will give you a notable example in Scripture about it It is Josh 5. When Joshua had brought the people of Israel over Jordan that you know was the very beginning of their entrance into Canaan now as soone as they were brought unto the borders of the Land they were to encounter with all their enemies and you may imagine that when Joshua had passed the river the people might thinke that all the Country would be about their eares one would thinke then that policy would have taught them to lay aside all thoughts of Religion and to look to their enemies that were at hand if ever they were outragious they would be then and therefore now let us minde nothing but arming our selves against them But mark now God goeth another way to worke as soone as they were gone over Jordan and were upon the borders of the Land of Canaan they must goe and circumcise themselves and you know when they were circumcised they were sore that they could not fight Simeon and Levi destroyed a whole City when they were circumcised they were not then in a posture of fighting or defending themselves but lay at the mercie of their enemies But this was Gods wisedome Nay further they must go and keepe the passeover too they must mind and tend Religion And mark you shall finde in the latter end of the Chapter that after they had been circumcised kept the Passeover then appeareth one to Ioshua with a drawn sword and saith he I am the Captain of the Lords Hosts Then the Captain of the Lords Host appeareth to fight for them when they had once obeyed whereas had they neglected Circumcision and the Passeover thought of fighting onely they might have missed of the Captaine of the Lords Hosts to have fought for them and what would have become of them then So you see God would have us minde Religion in the most dangerous times and though we thinke we must mind our peace and safety and lay our hands upon our swords â—or our defence yet let us be carefull of our Religion and then we shall have a Captain of the Lords host come and fight for us Marke 8. 15. we are charged to take heed of two sorts of leaven The leaven of the Scribes and Pharises and the leaven of Herod The leaven of the Scribes and Pharises is corruption in Church affairs the leaven of Herod is corruption in Religion too but in order of the Common-wealth in bringing under things of God to the affairs of the State for in this Herod was like Jeroboam he was affraid of his kingdome as Ieroboam was hee had many wayes and plots to keepe himselfe in that kingdom as Ieroboam had and many did cleave to Herod in his plots as Israel clave to Ieroboam in his therefore saith Christ take heed not onely of the leaven of the Scribes and Pharises but of the leaven of Herod And it may be the Lord saw us to prone of sinfull compliances even ready to have sacrificed much of his worship and many of his Saints for the obtaining peace in the State and so to have fallen off from that reformation that both God and his people expected hence hee hath taken the worke into his owne hands hee will bring about his owne worke though it may cost us deare who knowes how much blood The Fourth Lecture HOSEA 2. 5. Shee that conceived them hath done shamefully for she said I will goe after my lovers that give me my bread and my water my wooll and my flaxe mine oyle and my drinke GOds threats against Israel to make her as a wilderness and as a dry land to slay her with thirst in the 3. verse to shew no mercy to her children in the 4. ver The reason because her mother had played the harlot in the beginning of this 5. ver we finished the last day Onely in a word to give you one note from that title of Mother here that wee observed not before The Community of the Church and civill State is called Mother in way of distinction from private people and private people are as the children of that Mother so we opened it in the second ver The Observation is The Community of a State and Church should be to particular persons as a Mother They should have the affection of children to it they should take much to heart those things that concerne it the sufferings of State or Church should be the sufferings of all particulars There are children of Belial that are risen up among us that are even taring the bowels of our Mother a viperous generation that seeke to eate out the bowels of her Mother let our hearts breake for this as Psal 35. 14. I bowed down heavily as one that mourneth for his Mother Let not us lift up our heads and be jolly now but for the present bow down heavily as those that are called though in some respects to rejoyce yet in many others to mourne this day for our Mother Yea let our hearts rise against these vile monsters that
he went after Ashâ—oreth the goddesse of the Zidâ—nians and after Mileom the abomination of the Amorites and built a high place for Châ—mosh the abomination of Moaâ— in the hill that is before Jerusalem just there he built it too as if it had been in defiance to the Temple of God and his true worship and that for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammâ—â— and thus he did saith the Text ver 8. for all his strange wives which burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods This shamefulnesse he was grown unto And thus we see it in experience how faire are men in their wayes of superstition at first At first it is onely decency that is all they plead for well afterward it riseth from decency to significancy that is a little higher to put them in minde Thirdly from significancy it riseth to efficacy to stirre up the dull mind of man Fourthly from efficacy it riseth to necessity that now it must be done and the worship of God cannot be without it and there shall be no ordinance no administration at all without it Decency significancy efficacy and necessity thus it riseth to be shamefull at last So amongst the Papists in their traditions surely at first only they would come with this argument What will you not regard them as you would doe other bookes and other Histories they are the traditions of our fore-fathers but at length they came to this in the fourth Sexion of the Councell of Trent the Synod doth take honour the bookes of the old and new Testament and the traditions of the Fathers with equalâ— affection of piety and reverence as they doe them To this shamefulnesse they grew to at last And so for worshipping of Images why it is it for the decency of Churches to have them and they are but to put you in minde at the most but at length they came to this these are the very words the same honour is due to the Image and to the Exemplar Lastly from this amplification that she hath done shamefully VVhen men doe grow shamelesse impudent in evil there is little hope of them I will have no mercy upon them Why For they have done thus they are grown thus impudent It is a good thing to keepe the bridle of shame as long as we can upon our children and servants and any of our inferiours therefore take this one instruction with you be not too ready to rebuke and chastise your servants your children in reproachfull manner before others left you bring them to that that they shall see they have no honour to lose and then there is little hope of them Evermore keep such a hand over your children and servants as they may see they have some respect to lose that they may not be so ashamed by you as for them to thinke they cannot be worse they cannot be more disgraced there is no such way to bring them to grow desperate as that is It is very great wisedome in Governours to keepe the bridle of shame still and not to let those raines goe and this is the reason that your Bride-well or Goale-birds seldome or never come to good why because they have no bridle to keepe them in they have lost all their honour and they can lose no more and there is no rational creature but would have honour there is not the meanest servant you have but hath a kinde of respect to honour and that will doe more then blows except they be grown to be very beasts But how doth he prove that it is shamefull Thus For she hath said I will go after my lovers that give me my bread and my water my wooll and my flaze mine oyle and my drinke For she hath said Hence first Deliberate sins are most shamefull sinnes This is a proofe of her shamefulnesse because that which she hath done she hath done upon deliberation she said she would do thus and thus she considered before what she would doe and yet she would doe it Wickednesse committed de industria ex consilio of purpose resolved upon this is very shamefull Gal. 6. 1. It is said of Godly men that they may be overtaken with a fault If a man be overtaken with a fault It is one thing to be overtaken with a sinne and another thing to overtake a sinne a gracious heart may have sinne overtake it but it is a shamelesse heart that overtakes sinne Secondly She hath said I will goe Whoredome either bodily or spirituall is usually very wilfull as if she had said let all the Prophets say what they can let them talke out their hearts I will have my minde I will follow my lovers still Thus it is with bodily whoredome Those who are guilty of this usually grow extreame wilfull Prov. 2. 19. None that goe unto her return again neither take they hold of the paths of life It is a most dreadfull Scripture against all adulerers unclean ones There is none saith the Text make it out how you will there is none that goe unto her return a-again neither take they hold of the paths of life those are the words of the Holy Ghost I leave the words with you So Pro. 23. 27. A whore is a deepe ditch and astrange woman is a narrow pit they cannot easily get out nor will they easily get out they are so plunged in 2 Pet. 2. 14. Eyes full of adultery that cannot cease to sinne why cannot they cease to sinne it is not because they have a heart but no power but their wills is brought into that bondage and subjection that they cannot will otherwise therefore Ezek. 47. 11. wee finde that though the waters of the Sanctuary were very healing yet saith the Text the miry places and the maershes were not healed miry filthy uncleane hearts are very seldome healed by the waters of the Sanctuary I remember AElian reporteth that there was a whore that did boast that she could easily get scholars away from Socrates but Socrates could get no scholar from her none of her followers It is true that a whore is prevalent and when she hath once gotten them it is almost impossible to get them away from her Therefore that place Heb. 6. that speakes of that sinne that is impossible to have repent anoe Tertullian interprets it to be no other but the sinne of uncleannesse The Author of this Epistle saith hee knew no promise of second repentance to the adulterer and fornicator that is his expression shewing how ordinarily those that are guilty of that sinne and are given up to it grow wilfull in it And therefore in Ephes 4. 19 these two are put together being past feeling and having given themselves over to laciviousness and want onness wantons usually grow past feeling And for spirituall adultery that usually is very wilfull too for those that are left by God to that way of false worship to Superstition and Idolatry they seldome returne
againe but grow exceeding wilfull in that wickedness You have a notable Text for that Jer. 44. 16. 17. the people say there The word that thou hast spoken to us in the name of the Lord we will not heare but we well doe whatsoever commeth out of our own mouth to burn incense to the Queen of Heaven VVee will goe on in that way to burne Incense to the Queene of heaven talk as long as you will And so you have it Jerem. 20. 10. Goe saith God passe over the Isles of Chitrim and see and send unto Kedar and consider deligently and see of there be such athing Hath a nation changed their gods which yet are no gods Men are setled in the wayes of Idolatry and will never give over the worshipping of their gods but you have forsaken me therefore be astonished O ye heavens at this and be ye horribly afraid be ye very desolate saith the Lord. So Micah 4. 5. All people will walke every one in the name of his god Their hearts are set upon it they will doe it Spirituall whoredome doth mightily besot the heart I suppose you know the sext it is a very famous one Esay 44. 19. 20. None considereth in his heart neither is there knowledg nor understanding to say I have burnt part of iâ— in the fire yea also I have baked bread upon the coales thereof I have rosted flesh and eaten it and shall I make the residue thereof an abominaâ—â— shall I fall down to the stock of a tree He feedeth on ashes a seduced heart hath â—urned him aside that he cannot deliver his soul nor say Is there not a lie in my right hand And so Rev. 16. 11. where those that were given up to Antichrist though they were tormented they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores and they repented not of their deeds Thirdly wilfulnesse in any sinne but especially in these sinnes is a very great aggravation of it I will have no mercy upon them I will give them up why They have done shamefully and they have said I will goe after my lovers There are a great many who in their passion think it a brave spirit to say I will and I will and I will and I care not say what you can or whatsoever becommeth of it I will doe or I will have this and this Especially men in place and of estates are not able to endure the controlling of their will in any thing and therefore when their wills are but crost they burst out into outragious speeches and fall a blaspheeming and swearing and saying they will have their wills though it cost them their lives Thus we find it in the people of Israel 1 Sam. 8. 19 when Samuel from God came and told them in a long narration what hardship they should endure in having a King that was not them according to Gods minde they 〈◊〉 him all that he said and they doe not stand to answer any of Samuels arguments but presently they break out into this resolution Nay but we will have a King Those whom God leaveth to hardnesse of heart and intendeth ruine to he usually giveth them up to this wilfulnesse in their evill wayes The Scripture records Pharaoh for a famons example of one hardned and prepared for ruine He was of a most wilfull spirit Exod. 15. 9. you shall find his wilfulnesse expressed foure times there in that one verse I will pursue saith he and then again I will overtake and thirdly I will divide the spoile and then fourthly I will draw my sword and there are two other expressions that come to the same effect that are equivalent to the former even in the same verse My lust shall be satisfied my hand shall destroy them Put all these six expressions that you have in that one verse together and where have you such an expression of a wilfull creature as Pharaoh was and what became of him you all know Only one more example I find in Scripture paralleld to this and that is the King of Babylon Egypt and Babylon were two the most eminent for Idolatry and persecution of the Church that ever were in the world and these are the two most famous examples for wilfulnesse that ever were Esa 14. 13 14 you have in these two verses five times I will 1. I will ascend into heaven 2. I will exalt my throne above the stars of God 3. I will siâ— upon the mount 4. I will ascend above the heights 5. I will be like the most high And what became of him afterwards you all know yea the next woâ—ds tell you Yet thou shalt be brought down to hell c. These two little words I and Will doe a great deale of mischâ—efe in the world Luther I remember npon Psal 127. saith I am of that opinion saith he and verily perswaded Monarchies would longer time by farre endure if those that are high Monarchs and States would but omit this one Pronoun I this same Ego It is true in publique wayes they express themselves in the plurall number We but private resolutions are in the singular number I. This for that little word I. The second is Will I will that is a little word too But I may say of this little Will this little word as James saith concerning the Tongue It is indeed a little member in the body but it setteth the whole world on fire and it selfe is set on fire of hell So it is true that this same little Will it is but a little word but it setteth whole Kingdomes on fire it setteth whole Townes and Cities on fire and it is it selfe sâ—ton fire of hell Bernard hath an expression Take away Will once and there will be no hell O the mischiefe that it doth in the world I will only say these two things to those that keepe such ado with these two little words I Will. First That which thou dost so much pride thy selfe in and thinkest thy selfe such a man that canst say I will and I will know It may be as heavy a judgement of God upon thee as can befall thee in this world for God to give thee up to thy will There is nothing wherein God doth more let out his wrath upon the children of men here in this world then in this in giving them up to their will Therefore tremble at this when thou hast so many expressions I will and I will doe this I will give you a Scripture or two for it sutable to the businesse shevving the wilfulnesse of those that had their will in wayes of false worship perhaps some of you may be set upon this that you will have this and let men say what they can you will have this used The place is Ezek. 20. 39. Goe saith God serve yee every one his idols and hereafter also if you will not hearken unto me Goe saith hee you will not hearken to me you heare out of the word
what should be the way of my worship in the purity of it oh say you that is novelty a new thing and you will not have it thus you answer not any arguments but you cast it off and say you will not have it wel saith God go and serve your idols if you will not heare me if you beset upon your will go and serve your idols and take your fill of your own wayes And Psal 81. 11. My people would not hearken to my voyce Israel would have none of me they were all upon their will they would not and they would not Marke what followeth so I gave them up unto their owne hearts lusts and they walked in their owne counsels You will have your owne counsels and your own will and so God giveth you up to them and then woe to you you are undone Secondly you that are set upon your wils in that which is evil know God is and will be as wilful toward you as you can be toward him Marke that notable Text Jer. 44. 25. that setteth out the notorious height of wickednesse that was in the people of those times who were so wilfull You and your wives have both spoken with your mouths fulfilled with your hand that which is evill you vvill not say onely you will doe it but will doe it indeed Well saith God you have done so you have both spoken with your mouths and fulfilled with your hands saying We will surely perform the vowes wee have vowed we have vowed it and we will do it we have vowed to burne incen use to the Queen of heaven and to pour out drinke-offerings unto her you will surely accomplish your vowes and surely performe your vowes you will goe on in your false wayes of worship mark what followeth in vers 26. Therefore heare ye the word of the Lord I have sworn saith the Lord you have vowed and I have sworne I have sworne by my great Name that my Name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt and vers 27. Behold saith God I will watch over you for evill and not for good and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be confirmed by the sword and by the famine untill there be an end of them God will be as resolute as you for your hearts as the stoutest sinner that liveth you will and God will who shall have their will think you Answer to this you stout hearted that are farre from God answer to this you stout children and stout servants and stout wives you will and you will A wilfull man never wanteth woe If you will be resolute in any thing my brethren be resolute in that which is good be resolute in the work of repentance say with David Psal 32. I will confesse my sins indeed I had many thoughts to come and shame my selfe and open all unto God but I could not get it off at length I grew resolute and said I will and I have sworne to keepe thy righteous Precepts and as they Mic. 4. we will walke in the name of the Lord our God and as Joshua I and my Louse will serve the Lord doe you what you will wee are resolute that wee will serve the Lord. This is a blessed wilfulnesse indeed Oh that 〈◊〉 â—outnesse and wilfulnesse of many people might be turned to this resolution for God and for his truth especially carry this note home with you you that have had such often expressions of your will you will and you will and turn it unto the willing of that which is good I will follow my lovers sayes the Apostate from God I will follow my Beloved who is altogether lovely let every gracious soul say Fourthly For she said She profest what she would do Profest sinnes are shamefull sins It is an evill for sin to lye lurking in any ones heart but for sin to breake out into open profession this certainly is a great evil This is to prove that she had done shamefully because she said she would doe so and so There is a great deceite in the hearts of many men they are ready to say I were as good say so as thinke so I say so and perhaps others think so it were as good for me to speake it as to keepe it in my heart My bre thren there are two deceits in this kind of speaking First you suppose that when you speak so that therefore it is not in your heart and you make this comparison of what is in other mens hearts and in your mouthes as if the evil were in your mouthes onely and in their hearts onely as if the comparison lay thus they think and doe not speak and you speak and doe not thinke Here is the deceit for if you speake you have it in your hearts too you both speak and think for so the Scripture telleth us that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh if you speak maliciously you have a malicious heart if you speake uncleanly you have an uncleane heart if oathes be in your mouthes you have a profane heart Secondly here lyeth the deceit as if you should have lesse in your heart because you vent it as your passionate people will say I were as good vent my minde and then I shall be quiet Thou deceivest thy selfe the venting of the corruption that lyeth in thy heart will never lessen it but increase it It is not with the corruption of our hearts as it is with liquor in a vessell that the more is let out the lesse is within it but as it is with a fire in a house that when it is kindled within and burstech out there is not lesse within because it bursteth out no the more it bursteth out and flames the more still bâ—rneth within and as it is with water in a fountain when it bursteth out of the fountain there is never a whit the lesse water in the fountain it may rather have the lesse by stopping and fire may be lessened by smothering Know therefore that professed wickedness it is aggravated wickednesse It is true secret sins may be more dangerous in regard of the cure but they are more abominable to God in regard of the open dishonour that is done to him by them The aggravation of the blood that was shed by the people that God speakes of Ezek. 24. 7. it is set out thus The bloud that was shed saith the text it was not poured upon the ground to cover it with dust that it might not cause fury to come up to take vengeance you did not conceale the blood you did not cover it but set it upon the top of a rock what then Not being co vereâ— but being professed and lad open this did cause fury to come up with vengeaâ—â—â— against them Gods anger would have been against them if they had shed blood though they had covered it but to shed blood
not to cover it it causeth the fury of the Lord to come with vengeance So you know he saith in that place of Isa Chap. 3. 9. They declared their sin as Sodome and hid it not Woe unto her soul saith he woe unto them when they shall presume to declare their sin as Sodome And as I said before God will be as wilfull in punishing a sinner as a sinner is wilfull insinning so here God will be as professed in plauging as thou shalt be professed in sinning for thy heart That you shall see in that forenamed place of Ezek. they did not cover the blood well marke it saith the Text I have set her bloud upon the top of the rock that it should not be covered Woe therefore to the bloody City I will even make the pile for fire great c. I will be as profest in my plagues and punishments as you are profest in your sins My brethren if we will be profest in any thing let us be professed in that which is good let us do that as openly as we can 2 Cor. 9. 13. the text saith there that God is glorified for their professed subjection to the Gospel for their subjection of profession so the words are It is not enough for to subject to the Gospel but there must be a professed subjection to it therefore Rom. 10. 10. Confession with the mouth is there made as necessary to salvation as beleeving with the heart they are put together There may be times that confession may be called for as well as beleeving and as necessary to salvation I remember I have reade of one Gordius a martyr who when his friends came to him and would have him keepe his heart to himselfe only with his mouth to deny what in his heart he beleeved was true Oh no saith he it is fit for my mouth that was made for God should speake for God And Zwinglius is of the opinion that we may even as well worship the Altar of Jupiter or Venus as hide our faith and profession when we live uuder Antichrist such a speech he hath The way to honour Religion bring it into credit it is for those that are godly to professe what they doe I knew once one that was noble both in birth and grace and having to doe oftentimes with those of his ranke greatones that would be scorning at Religion under the name of putirrnisme he would usually take this course when he was to come into such company he would begin himselfe owne himselfe to be one of those that they called a Puritan and so he prevented them and by that meanes prevented much sin in them and much scorne of Religion by thus owning of it It is certain that the best way for the honoring of Religion it for every one to owne it though there be ignominous termes put upon it If ever we were called to profession of what we doe beleeve we are now called to it in these dayes Certainly God professeth for us God doth not onely respect us but he doth professedly he doth it openly in the eyes before the faces of our adversaries Let us not onely have God in our hearts but professe his name openly before the faces of our adversaries It is time now to do it It had beenewell if you had professed heretofore when Gods truth called for it It may be many of you may be found to be guilty in betraying the truth of God for professing no sooner then you did but however betray it not now for want of profession be willing now to professe of what party you are that as wee reade of Jonah Chapter 9. when he was in the storme and the marriners awaking he saith unto them I am an Hebrew that feare the God of heaven which made the sea and the dry land and so he goeth on in making an open profession of himselfe My brethren if we be not in a present storme yet the clouds grow black therefore awake you sluggards you that are secure awake out of your security and now professe what you are I am an Hebrew that feare God whatsoever they talke of such and such men under such ignominious terms and titles I am one of them and I am willing to appeare so Many times you will be like Nichodemus you will come to JESUS by night you are affraid to be seene You would give in money to the Parliment and help to forward that worke God hath in hand but onely you are affraid to be seene I know there may be possibly some occasion to keepe some men in from appearing but not many the cases are very rare Ordinarily certainly it is not enough to do it but to doe it professedly let it bee declared who you are and what side you take She said I will goe after my lovers If you say we live in wicked and evil times it is dangerous to appeare I may not onely keepe my heart right but I will doe as much as another but why should I appeare The worse the times are the more thou shouldest appeare Mark 8. 38 Whosoever shal be ashamed of me in this adulterous generation of him shal the Son of man be ashamed when he commeth in the glory of his Father with his holy Angels If the generation were holy it were nothing to appeare not to be ashamed or affraid but wee must not be either ashamed or affraid in the midst of an adulterous generation 2. Why should wickedness have this advantage that it dares appeare but godlinesse dares not 3. If all should reason as you doe what would become of the Cause why should others venture themselves more then you What is your flesh your estate your liberty more then theirs 4. You must appeare for examples sake to provoke others This is a duty as well as any 5. If the adversaries prevaile they will finde you out except you meane to give up your consciences to them and then you will escape no more then others to be sure you will not have so much peace as others who have most appeared Fifthly I will follow after my lovers Who are they Either first they who they were in association withall as the Egyptians and the Assyrians and so I finde some Interpreters carry it or thefâ— Idols and that is especially aymed at but the the other may beare an Observation and perhaps both may be included It is a dangerous thing very sinfull and vile for the people of God to joyne in affâ—â—ciation with Forraigners that are of a different Religion to think to have help from them The people of God Jer. 42. were set upon this to have their association with Egypt and they could not be brought from it and if you read that Story it will appear to be very vile and dangerous they seemed to yeeld unto God that they would doe what hee would have them and they would not goe into Egypt if he forbade it but in Chap. 43.
got this is basenesse in them But to subject Religion to such base ends as these this is the villany of all basenesse A generous spirit is far from this It is observed of the generous spirit of Luther that when a Papist was vexed at him for his preaching and writing faith a Bishop there is such a stir with this Luther why do you not stop his mouth with preferment As it hath been the speech of a Bishop here in this land that hearing that a Kinsman of his was a zealous Preacher well falth he let me alone I will silence him and indeed hee did How He gave him two livings and that silenced him presently So here why do you not stop this Luthers mouth with preferment He presently answered That Germane beast cares not for money he is above money He called him beast in his anger whereas he might have called him an Angel because his spirit was above these things his mouth would not be stopped with them Some mens lust of malice goes beyond their lust of covetousnesse like those Cockatrices Jer. 8. 17. that will not be charmed it is a shamefull thing then that our zeale for God should not goe beyond our lust for gaine to subject your Religion to flaxe and wool and oyle it commeth from a base diffidence in God as if he would not provide for us such outward things therefore Luther hath this expression in his Comment upon Hosea They followed their idols for bread and wool and flaxe and oyle as if God would not give bread to his Church or as if it were more safe to goe to the Devill for it as if we could not have wool enough and flaxe enough and oyle enough from God Oh let us trust God for all for our cloaths for our meate and drink for our estates for our children God certainely will feede his Church And yet those men that have hearts so base themselves they thinke it impossible for any man but to be taken with such arguments They may talke of Religion and conscience say they but I will warrant you they may be taken off with money and preferment places of profit and honour They think it impossible for men to stand against these arguments It putteth me in mind of that speech that Balaak used to Balaam Did not I earnestly send unto thee to call thee wherefore camest thou not unto me Am I not able to promote thee to honour As if he should have said Thou art a strange man indeed did not I send thee word that I would promote thee to great honour and give thee silver and gold or whatsoever thou wouldst have What will not preferment and money tempt you I thought this would have tempted any man in the world Thus many think that whatsoever mens Spirits are they may be taken off with promotion and money But let all such know that there are a generation of men in the world of true generous Spirits that are above all these things and take as much delight and have as much sweetnesse in denying these places of honour and preferment and gaine as those that offer them have in the enjoying of them It was a notable speech Plynie had concerning Cato It is in his Epistle Dedicatory to his naturall History speaking of what a notable spirit he was Cato saith he tooke as much glory in those dignities and honours that he denyed as he did in those he did enjoy Certainly it is so with the Saints the true generous spirit of Christians take as much content in those places of preferment they deny for Christ as in any gaine they enjoy There is no tempting of such men Let us pray therefore for those that are intrusted by us not onely for civill things but for matters of Religion that temptations for bread corne and wool and flaxe and wine and oilemay never tempt them that the preferment and gaine may never byasse their spirits may never sway them These meanes have been assayed certain it is totempt some of them with such wayes have not been left untryed by some and have prevailed but thorough Gods mercy he hath preserved others and he hath made the world to know that Christ hath a people to whom Religion and the publicke good is more deare then all the flaxe and wooll and wine and oyle in the world then all the estates and high places and great preferments that can be offered them And now the Lord our God keepe this in their and in our hearts for ever The Fifth Lecture HOSEA 2. 6. 7. Therefore behold I will hedge up thy way with thorns and make a wall that she shall not finde her paths And she shall follow after her lovers but she shall not overtake them and shall seeke them but shall not finde them them shall she say I will goe and returne to my first husband for then was it better with me then now THe last day you may remember wee spake of that reason that God giveth in the former verse why he would shew Israel no mercy because that she hath done shamefully and said she would go after her lovers that gave her her bread and her water her wool and her flaxe her oyle and her drinke There are yet one or two observations that time would not give us leave to speak of the last day in those words I will onely give you a hint of them and passe suddenly to these two verses The first is this Prosperity and successe in an evil way is a great hardning of the hearts of men in their evil I will follow after my lovers for they give me bread and water and wooll and flax and the like I remember Eusebius reports that Maximilian the Emperour in an Edict of his against the Christian crying out of Christian Religion as an excrable vanity seeking to confirme the Heathens in the worshipping of their idol gods Behold saith he how the earth bringeth forth fruit for the husbandman in abundance how our medows are adorned with flowes and hâ—rbs and moistned with the dews of heaven what health we have and what quiet and peaceable lives and thus he goeth on in seeking to conforme the hearts of Idolaters in their wicked wayes Prosperity in a wicked way is exceeding hardning That story of Dyonisius is famously known having committed sacrâ—ledge against their Idol-gods robbing their Temples yet his voyage being prospetous after he had ended his journey hee boasted himselfe that though he did not worship the gods as others did yet he prospered as much as they In that yeere when those Innovasions in Gods worship were principaly brought in amongst us especially in that Diocese of Norwich is proved to be a very fruitfull yeere and one Commissary among the rest in his Court after the harvest was taken in speakes to the Countrey-men in this way Doe you not see how God prospereth us What a plentifull harvest have we had this yeere This is since you
them Now this is a grievous judgement of God to cause the way of his feare to appeare so difficult and so scare them from it What should I medling with such such wayes I see I must suffer thus and thus there are these and these stumbling blocks that I must go over these and these troubles that I must meete withall I were better sit still and be quiet I shall never be able to goe through Such stumbling blocks God layes in the way of godlinesse before the wicked and they stumble at them fall and break their necks On the other side God in abundance of mercy casteth stumbling blocks in the way of sin before his people that they cannot get over if they stumble it is but to break their shins and to save their soules But when the wicked stumble they breake their necks and damn their soules But now the wayes of God are plaine to the righteous Prov. 8. 9. They are all plain to him that understandeth and right to him that findeth knowledge Gods wayes are very plain to the godly and sins wayes are very difficult but on the other side to the wicked Gods wayes are very difficult and the wayes of sin are very plain Oh unhappy men sayes Luther when God leaveth them to themselves and doth not resist them in their lusts woe woe to them at whose sinnes God doth wink when God lets the way to hell be a smooth and pleasant way That is a heavy judgement and a signe of Gods indignation against men a token of his rejection of them that he doth not intend good unto them You blesse your selves many times that in the way of sinne you finde no difficulty if a whore-master or a malicious man who would accomplish his owne ends find all things goe on as he desires so that he hath not any rub in his way no not so much as a prick he blesseth himselfe Blesse thy self If thou knewest all thou hast cause to howle and wring thy hands for the curse of God is upon thee a dreadfull curse to make the way of sinne pleasant On the other side perhaps many of Gods Saints when they find the wayes of sinne somewhat difficult to them they are troubled at it that they cannot have their will Troubled thou hast cause to blesse God who hath thus crossed thee for it is an argument of much love to thee There is a Behold put to this that God should be so mercifull to them to make their wayes of idolatry and supersition difficult to them From hence these three observations I will hedg up her way with thorns First there is much bruitishness in the hearts of Gods people Not onely slayishnesse that was before but bruitishness too That is thus they must not only be dealt withall as slaves hardly and so be brought home but as brute beasts they must have some present evill upon them or otherwise they will not return out of their evill way except their sin be for the present grievous and troublesome to them It is not enough you know to threaten brute beasts but they must have some present evill upon them if wee would keep them from such a place we would not have them goe unto A man that hath some understanding though he hath a slavish spirit yet he may be kept for feare of future evils but when a man comes to this that nothing but present evils will keep him off hee is worse then a slave in this he cannot be kept from sinne by the exercise of his reason God must also deale with him as a brute beast God must come and let some present evill be upon him to prick him or else he will goe on in an evill way This is brutishness even in the hearts of the Saints Secondly hence we may see the pronenesse of mens natures to Idolatry the way must be hedged up to keep men from it It is not enough to forewarn men of it but all means that can be used is little enough to keep off men How wicked then is the way of many amonst us who seeke to make the way of Idolatry too smooth and plain and open as they can yea in stead of stopping such as have inclinations to it they lay before them the inciting and intifing occasions which adde to their owne propension such delectation as putteth them on forward with a swift facility Thirdly Afflictions to the people of God are Gods hedges to keep them from sinne The command of God is one hedge and affliction is another Therefore sinne is called by the name of Transgression Transgression what is that That is going beyond their bounds going over the hedge a man that sinneth goes over the hedge And wee finde Eccles 10. 8. Hee that breaks the hedge a serpent shall bite him It is true in regard of the hedge of Gods command he that will venture to break that hedge must expect a serpent to bite him must expect the biting of Conscience the anguish and horrour of that But when that hedge is broke God cometh with another hedge to keep his people from sinne so you have it exprest in Job 33. 17 18. speaking of afflictions By them saith hee hee withdraweth man from his purpose and he keepeth back his soule from the pit As suppose a beast be running to such a pasture perhaps he doth not see the hedge and it may be if he should run a little further he would be plunged in a pit and there destroyed but now the husbandman setteth a hedge there and when the beast commeth just to the hedge to the thornes then it is withdrawn from what it was about and so the life of it preserved so it may be with a man that is running to such a place when hee meeteth with something that hinders him he is drawn from his purpose and his soul is kept back from death You use to deale thus with your children if you live in the Countrey neer ditches and pits of water you will hedge about the pits for feare your children should fall into them and so the hedge keepeth the Children aâ—ive As afflictions keep the Saints from sinne as a hedge to them so the difficulties in Gods wayes keepes the wicked from God VVhen difficulties therefore do fall out it should teach us to consider what way we are in why for God useth to compasse about sinfull wayes with difficulties on purpose to keep his people from them Well I am in a way going on in it I am sure I am compast about with difficulties it may be these difficulties are but Gods hedges to keepe me from sinne how shall I know that for sometimes difficulties are but tryals of our graces and they may be such as call for the stirring up of our graces to breake through the hedge so Pro. 8. 19. difficulties are said to be a hedge of thornes they lye in the wayes of Gods people that are blessed wayes then
and sinning against God by them Either take them away from those vanities or their vanities from them they should not so much as suffer those things to stand to be inticements and snares for the hearts of people though they be very brave and abundance of gold and excellent artificiall work be about such things yet Deut. 7. 25. Thou shalt not desire the silver or gold that is on them nor take it unto thee lest thou be snared therein but thou shalt utterly destroy it and thou shalt utterly abhor it for it is a cursed thing You shall not look upon the bravery of the worke of their Idols and upon the great cost that is bestowed upon them and therefore spare them because of that oh no but take them away that men may not be insnared by them So God will do Further in the fifth place They shall follow after their lovers but shall not overtake them Idolaters hearts are after their Idols when they cannot get them Though they cannot get them yet they will be following of them It is of an excellent use for us so it should be with us in the pursuing after Gods ordinances though perhaps for the present we cannot enjoy the Ordinances of God yet be sure to keep our hearts working after them Many deceive themselves in this they think we would have all the Ordinances of God but we see we cannot and so upon that we sit still mind no more seeking after them neither doe they labour to keepe their hearts in a burning desire after them and hence many times it is that the opportunities of enjoying them are let slip But now if thou canst not have the beauty of an ordinance if thou keepest thy heart in a burning desire after it in the use of all means for the attaining it know then that the want of an ordinance is an ordinance to thee You shall finde in the English Chronicle of Edward the first that he had a mighty desire to goe to the holy land and because he could not goe thither he gave charge to his sonne upon his death-bed that he should carry his heart thither and he appointed 32000. pound to defray the charges of carrying his heart to the holy land out of a superstitious respect he had to that place though hee could not attaine it his heart should Thus should our hearts worke after Ordinances And now we come to the close and that is the blessed fruit of all this she shall follow after her lovers but she shall not overtake them and shee shall seeke them but she shall not finde them VVhat followeth after all this Now commeth in the close of mercy for saith the Text Then shall shee say I will goe and returne to my first husband for then was it better with me then now Now they shall returne at length they shall bethinke themselves Hence we have likewise many sweet and excellent Observations As First In times of affliction the only rest of the soul is to return to God They keepe a rigling and a stirre and a shifting up and downe to provide for themselves yea but they could finde no rest in what they did but as a poor prisoner that is shakled keeps a stir with his chaines but instead of getting any freedom he galls his legs but when the poor soul after all shiftings and turnings and vexings comes to thinke of returning to the Lord and of humbling and repenting it selfe before him now it findes rest Returne to thy rest O my soâ—le so the words are Remember after all your afflictions here is your rest in returning to the Lord. Secondly Then they shall say that is when they are so stopped in their way that they cannot tell in the world what to do when they are hedged and walled and cannot overtake their lovers then they shall returne to the Lord. Hence the Observation is so long as men can have any thing in their sinfull way to satisfie themselves withall they will not returne to God There is that perversnesse of spirit in men Onely when men are stopped in the way oâ— sinne that they can have no satisfaction nor no hope then they begin to think of returning to God This is the vilenesse of the spirits of men they never or very rarely will come off to God till then As the Prodigall what shift did he make hee goes to the farmer to the swine to the huskes to fill his belly and it is likely if he had had his belly full of them he would never have thought of going to his father but when he came to the huskes and could not tell how to fill his belly there when he was in a desperate estate then he beginneth to thinke of returning to his father So you have it Isa 57. 10. Yet saidest thou not where is no hope thou hast found the life of thy hands therefore thou wast not grieved thou wast not brought to such a desperate stand as to say the is no hope that noteth that till men be brought to such a stand that they can say certainly there is no hope or helpe this way they will seldome thinke of returning to God Thus is God infinitely dishonoured by us It is very strange how the hearts of men will hanker after their sinne this way and that way till God take them quite off from hope of comfort by it they will never have a thought to returne unto God God is faine to be the last refuge we account our selves much dishonoured when we are the last refuge when no body will I must It seemes God is saine to yeeld to this when no body will give satisfaction to the soul then men come to God and God must But you will say will ever God accept of such a one Marke the next observation returning to God if it be in truth though it be thus after wee have sought out for all other helpes yet God is willing to accept of it This is an observation full of comfort the Lord grant it may not be abused but it is the word of the Lord and it is a certaine truth that returning after men have sought other meanes and can finde no help though they are driven to it by afflictions yet it may be accepted by God It is true man will not accept upon these termes but the thoughts of God are as sarre above the thoughts of men as the heaven is above the earth It is true indeed some time God will not nay God threatneth Pro. 1. 28. though they call upon him he will not answer though they seeâ—e him early yet shall not finde him God is not thus gracious to all therefore you must not presume upon it God some time at the very first affliction hardneth his heart against men that he will never regard them more for his mercy is his owne but those that are in covenant with him though they come to him upon such termes yet they may be
party utterly uncleane for the plague is in the head there is not that utter uncleannesse any where as when the plague is in the head So I may say here when a man falleth off from the wayes of God by some strong temptation or unruly affection this man is uncleane verily he is uncleane but when it commeth to the head that his judgement is against the wayes of God and so commeth to contemne them and those that follow them and to thinke his own wayes better this man is utterly unclean for the plague is in his head The Lord deliver you from that plague The Sixth Lecture HOSEA 2. 7. 8. For then it was better with me then it is now For she did not kâ—ow that I gave her corne and wine and oyle and multiplyed her silveâ— and gold which they prepared for Baal c. THere remaines onely one Observation from the 7. ver and the taking a hint of a meditation from thence concerning our present times of which briefly Upon returne unto God Apostates may have hope of attaining their former condition to be as well as ever they were I will return to my first husband for then was it better with me then now by returning I hope to recover to be as I was then that is the meaning In this Gods goodnesse goeth beyond mans abundantly Ier. 3. 1. Will a man when his wife hath committed adultery and he hath put her away will he return to her again But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers yet return againe to me saith the Lord Hence ver 22. the Holy Ghost exhorteth to return upon this very ground Returne ye back-sliding children and I will heale your back-slidings Is there any back-sliding soul before the Lord God now offereth to heale thy back-slidings thou knowest that it is not with thee now as heretofore it hath been loe God tendereth his grace to thee that thou maiest be in as good a condition as ever O that thou wouldest give the answer of the Church there Behold we come unto thee for thou art the Lord our God truly in vaine is Salvation hoped for from the hils or from the multitude of the mountain truely in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel It is true God might justly satisfie thee in those present wayes of Apostacy wherein thou art as sometimes he doth Apostates The back-slider in heart shall be filled with his own wayes he shall have enough of them and Pro. 1. 31. They shall eate the fruit of their own way and be filled with their own devicss But behold wisedom it selfe calleth thee now to returne again and makes this faire promise Pro. 1. 23. Turne ye at my reproofe behold I will poure out my spirit unto you There is not onely a possibility of being received into thy former condition but Christ doth wooe thee and calleth after thee hee promiseth to poure forth his spirit unto thee yea and there would be triumph in heaven upon thy returning But let me say thus much to thee though there be a possibility of comming again into as good a condition as thou wast in afore yet first there had need be a mighty work of Gods Spirit to raise thy heart to beleeve this It is not an easie thing for one who hath that fearfull sin of Apostacy setled upon him by God to beleeve that ever God should receive him and returne in the wayes of mercy and comfort as before Yea second Though there be a possibility to be recovered to mercy yet you must be contented to be in a meaner condition if God shall please you must come unto God with such a disposition as to be content to be in the lowest condition that can be onely that thou mayest have mercy at the last as the Prodigall Let me be saith he but as one of thy hired servants And know lastly that if you doe not return upon his gracious offer God may give thee up for ever take thy fill and there is an end of thee He that will be filthy let him be filthy still Yet further this expression doth strongly present occasion to digresse a little in the comparing our present times with former times to examine whether wee can say it was better with us heretofore then it is now In these dayes there is much comparing our present times with times past and divers judgements there are about present times some complayning and crying out of the hazards and dangers wee are in in these present times much better was it heretofore say they then it is now To such as these let me say first as the holy Ghost saith Eccles 7. 10. Say not thou what is the cause the former dayes were better then these thou dost uot enquire wisely concerning this thing Certainly those people who make such grievous complaints of present times comparing them with times past doe not wisely enquire after this thing It is true there are many sad things for the present amongst us things that our hearts have cause to bleed for such mis-understanding betweene King and Parliament some blood shed already and danger of shedding much more yet perhaps if we enquire wisely concerning this thing we shall find that notwithstanding all this we have little cause to complaine that it is worse with us now in comparison of what was before Consider first that which men do most complain of which makes the times hardest now it is but the breaking out of those mischievous designes that lay hid long before would have done us a great deale more mischiefe if they had been kept in Now they breake forth and breake forth as the desperatenesse of the hopes of those who had such designes because they could now goe no longer underhand but being brought into a desperate passe they are faine to see what they can doe in wayes of violence and this certainely is better then that mischiefe should work secretly under board Secondly by this we have a discovery of men which way they stand what was and is in their hearts and this is a great mercy Thirdly with the breaking forth of these things God grants that helpe now to England that it never yet had in the like way so fully and putteth such a faire price into the hands of the people of England that never yet was put into their hands Yea and consider farther that the more violent men are now the more doth it tell us what a lamentable time was before for if now when there is such means of resistance and yet the adversaries prevaile so much what would they have been by this time if this means of resistance had not been What a case were we in then when they might do what they would and we had no means to help our selves what a danger were we in then Certainely things then lay at more hazard then now Fifthly though there be many sad things amongst us yet God hath been before-hand with us we
and is able to set out the several parts distinctly to you in such a Climate in such a Countrey but yet when he hath done all he leaveth a great space for a Terra incognita for an unknown world and that unknowne world for ought we know may be five times bigger then the known world So they that have the most observant eye of Gods mercies and take the most notice of them that can best set out the mercies he bestoweth spiritual mercies temporall mercies preventing mercies past mercies present mercies delivering mercies c. yet when they have done all they must leave a great space for the Terra incognita for the unknowne mercies of God The truth is those mercies of God that are obvious to our knowledge every day one would thinke they were enough to melt our hearts to breake them in pieces but besides these mercies we take notice of there are thousands and thousands of mercies that we know not of As we daily commit many sins that we know not of so daily we receive many mercies that we know not of likewise And as in our confession of sins we should pray to God first to pardon our sins we know and so to name them in particular and when we have done then Lord forgive us our unknown our secret sins So in our thanksgiving first blesse God for the mercies before us and when we have done Lord blessed be thy name for all thy unknown mercies that I have little taken notice of We soone grow cold and dead if we doe good and men take no notice of us neither what we know nor what we doe is any thing to us except others know it too but this is the vanity and pride of mens hearts it is Gods prerogative above his creatures to doe all for himselfe for his owne glory and yet he doth much good in the world that none knows of we are bound to deny our selves in that we doe not to seeke our own glory The most excellent peece in the most excellent of our workes is our selfe-denyal in it why should we not then doe all the good we can doe cheerefully though it be not known we should doe good out of love to goodnesse it selfe and if we would doe so we should be encouraged in doing good secretly Fifthly and which commeth yet more fully up to the words They did not know c. In Gods account men know no more then they lay to heart and make good use of The Schooles distinguish of want of knowledge there is Nescientia and Ignoratia Nescience is of such things as we are not bound to know it is not our sinne not to know them but Ignorance is of such things as we are bound to know and that ignorance is two-fold there is an invincible ignorance let us take what paines we can wee can never know all we are bound to know and there is an affected ignorance when we do not know because out of carelesnesse we doe not minde what is before us and when we have minded it so farre as to conceive it yet if we lay it not to heart as we ought still in Gods account we know it not if we digest not what we know into practise God accepteth it not As God is said not to know when hee doth not approve I know yee not saith he so when any man hath a truth in notion and it doth not get into the heart when it is not imbraced there God accounts that that man knowes it not Therefore you have in Scripture such an expression as the Seer is blinde It is a strange expression it seemes to be a contradiction such a thing as we call a Bull The Seer is blinde But it is not so here because God accounts those that have never so much knowledge yet if it doe not sanctifie the heart so as to give him the glory they are blinde blinde as a Beetle The knowledge of the Saints is another kinde of knowledge then other men have We have saith Cyprian no such notions as many of your Phylosophers have but we are Phylosophers in our deeds we doe not speake great things but we doe great things in our lives 1 Thes 4. 9. You have an excellent expression for this you are taught of God to love one another what followeth And indeed so you do That is an evidence that you are taught of God when it pâ—evay leth with your hearts when it may be â—aid indeed so you doe VVho is there in the world but knowes that wee should love one another but men are not taught of God to love one another untill it may be said of them that indeed so they doe There is nothing more obvious to the understanding of a man then the notion of a Deity that there is a God we may as it were grope after him as the holy Ghost speakes but yet 1 Iohn 2. 4. He that saith he knowes him and keepes not his commandements is a lyar and the truth is not in him Any man who ever he be though the greatest Schollar in the world if he saith he knowes God and keepes not his commandements he hath the lie told him to his teeth hee doth not know God at all though this of God be the most obvious thing to be understood that possibly can be and yet Christ saith no man knoweth the Father but the Sonne and to whom the Sonne shall reveale him Hence it is when a soul is converted you shall heare these expressions I never knew before I never knew what an infinite Deity meant I never understood the infinite soveraignty and Majesty of the great God I never knew what sinne meant before yet if you had asked him afore he would say I know God is a Spirit that he is infinite and eternall I know that sinne is the transgression of the law I never knew that Christ was before yet before hee would have told you that Christ was the sonne of Mary and came into the world to dye for sinners I remember an expression of a Germane Divine when he was upon his sick bed In this disease saith he I have learned what sin is and how great the Majesty of God is This man though a Preacher and doubtlesse he could preach of sinne and of the Majesty of God yet hee professeth he knew not these things untill God came powerfully upon his heart to teach him what they were The Hebrews say words of sense carry with them the affections or else they be to no purpose when men have notionall knowledge onely that comes not down into the heart they are like men that have weak stomacks and weake heads when they drink wine all flyeth up to the head it makes them giddy but if the wine went to the heart it would cheare warme it so all this mans knowledg flyeth up to his head makes him giddy whereas if it were digested got to the heart
not God thou hast a good estate more then other men and all the use thou makest of thy estate is meerly that it might be but as fewell for thy lusts who gave thee this thy estate Is it not God God giveth thee cloathes and thou sacrificest them to thy pride thou hast more money then others and so canst vent thy malice more then others from whence hast thou this Thou hast more strength of body then others and thou ventest it in uncleannesse where hadst thou this consider this and let this meditation prevayle with thine heart to stop thee in thy sinful way let it be seconded with the next viz That is a most horrible wickedness and abominable ingratitude for any man to take Gods creatures and abuse them against God What I gave them corne and wine and multiplyed their silver and their gold and have they prepared these for Baal God speakes of this as of a monstrous sin as if God should say let all my people lament my condition that I should do so much for them and they doe nothing for me but all against me sacrifice all to Baal As perhaps many of you have beene kinde to some of your friends and have raised them and made them as we use to say they have wanted nothing but you have been bountifull to them if now these men should turne your enemies and that estate they have got by you they should use it to doe you a mischiefe would you not call in your neighbours and friends to joyne with you in lamenting your condition What did you ever heare of such an example that I should doe so much for such and they turne all against me you tell it as a most lamentable story to your friends God doth so here he makes this his grievous complaint This is as if a bird should be shot with an Arrow whose feathers came out of her own body we would even pity a bird in that case Many men make no other use of their estates but to turne them against God they are not as the slothfull servant that hid his talent in the napkin if it were but so it were not so much but they take their talents imploy them against God Would it not goe to your heart if one should sue you in law and beare the charges of the suit out of your owne estate VVe use to complaine such a man sueth me and it is my owne money hee goeth to law with So thou goest against God and hee is fayne as it were to beare all the charges It is not against the light of Nature the very heathens the publicanes and sinners will doe good to those that do good to them Thou art worse then a publicane and sinner wilt thou do hurt to God that doth thee good When Julius Caesar saw Brutus come to give him a stab in the Senate house he cryed out What thou my sonne wilt thou do it But suppose that Iulius Caesar had given him the dagger with which he stabbed him then O thou my sonne what stab me with that dagger I gave thee If when Jonathan gave David his sword and bow David should have turned against Jonathan and killed him with his own sword and bow would not the unkindnesse or rather the abominable wickedness have pierced deeper into his heart then any swords or arrows possibly could If you can finde any creature that is not GODS to fight against him withall you may doe it but if all you have is from him it is horrible wickednesse to take that and to sacrifice it to Baal Certainly God giveth it for other ends to goe crosse to Gods ends is an evill thing VVhen God aymeth at such a thing for us not to joyne with God in the same end he aymeth at is an evil but for us to ayme at a quite contrary end that is horrible wickednesse indeed They sacrificed to Baal When once superstition and Idolatry hath got into a place though there be much done against it yet it is not easie to get it out It is from hence that God doth so often complaine of Baal yet you shall finde in Iudg 2. I thinke that is the first place it is mentioned that they served Baal but it appeareth that they fell off from Baal yet they fell to him againe for in Iudg. 8. 33. After Gideons death it came to passe that the children of Israel turned againe and went a whoring after Baalim and made Baal-berith their god It speakes as if it were a new thing now that they should fall to worship Baal after they had left worshipping him After his death And 1 Sam. 7. 4. The children of Israel did put away Baalim and yet if you reade Chap 10. 22. they fall a confessing that they had sinned because they had forsaken the Lord and served Baalim though they had put him away before yet he had got up again So in that place before named 1 King 16. there Ahah would serve Baal it is brought in there as a new thing as a novelty because Baal had beene so much suppressed 2 King 10. you find that Iehu sought to destroy Baal all his Priests but yet Baal was not got out for all this but he got in againe for in 2 Kin. 23. 4. the Text saith that Josia who was long after that time caused the vessels that were made for Baal to be taken away and burnt This is a marvailous use and seasonable for our times If superstition be opposed though it be cast out as we thinke in a great degree yet if there be not a thorough Reformation it will winde in one way or other againe If we thinke it enough to cut things short and to take away their strength and their enormities we deceive our selves if there be nothing done but so they will grow up againe it is but cutting the weeds a little if branch and root be not taken away they will up again Baal will put up his head one way or other I remember Cluverus a late Historian yet much approved of bringeth in one that gave this councell concerning Rome because it was much annoyed with Wolves saith he there is no way to save Rome from Wolves but to cut down the woods wherein these Wolves breed and live for otherwise they might kill and kill but they would breed agaiue So sometimes when childrens heads are overrunne with vermine the way to destroy the vermine is to shave the haire quite of off So certainly this is the way to destroy superstition from amongst us to take away the places and revenews of those men that have beene maintainers and upholders of superstitious wayes of worship Let us by cutting down the woods and shaving off the hayre destroy these Wolves and if they will needs be Priests let them be Shavelings Which they sacrificed to Baal Lastly Idolaters are very liberall to their Idols they are willing to sacrifice gold ' silver corne wine and oyle
hand all their strength is but as tow and flaxe before the flame of fire If God be in a way of mercy none can take out of his hands Isa 43. 13. There is none can deliver out of my hand I will worke and who shall let it Wherefore it is a fearfull thing to fall into the hand of God when he is in a way of wrath and it is a blessed thing to be in his hand when he is in a way of mercy for none can deliver out of either Christ holds the stars not only Ministers but all his Elect in his hand and none can take them out I will give you a notable example in Gods preservation in times of danger In the time of the Massacre at Paris there was a poor man who for his deliverance crept into a hole and when he was there there comes a Spider and weaves a cobweb before the hole when the murtherers came to search for him saith one Certainly he is got into that hole No saith another he cannot be there for there is a cobweb over the place and by this meanes the poore man was preserved The hope of the wicked Job saith is as the Spiders Web yet if God please he can make a cobweb to deliver his people The least things shall deliver when he will and the greatest meanes of deliverance shall not deliver when he pleases The Eighth Lecture HOSEA 2. 11. I will also cause all her mirth to cease her feast dayes her New Moones and her Sabbaths and all her solemne feasts THe Lord proceeds still in his threats against Israel in this verse we have as sore a threat as any for it is in part spirituall Her mirth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so the Seventy reade it the word signifieth the right temper the right posture of the minde when the minde is in a right frame then it may be merry Whosoever is merry saith S. James let him sing there the word though not the same yet signifying the same thing who ever hath his minde in a right frame let him sing No man can be truly merry except his minde be in a right frame I will cause all her mirth God many times takes away from his Saints much of the matter of their mirth but never takes away all This is a dreadfull threat to cause all their mirth to cease I will cause it to cease I will turne it away so the Seventy I can soone have all their mirth down they shall never be able to rejoyce more if I please it is gone all with the turn of a hand It appeares that Israel though an apostatizing people though a people of Gods wrath designed to dreadfull judgements yet was a merry jocund people they went on still in their mirth and joviallity That which is here implyed is more fully exprest in Amos Chap. 6. 4. who was contemporary with Hosea and hee was the Prophet of the ten Tribes as Hosea was now see there how Amos setteth forth the mirth of this people They lye upon beds of Ivory and stretch themselves upon their couches and eate the Lambes out of the flock and the Calves out of the middst of the stall they chaunt to the sound of the Violl and invent to themselves instruments of musick like David they drinke wine in bowles and anoint themselves with the chiefe oyntment This was their condition when they were under such fearfull guilt and in such dreadfull danger Sensuall men while they prosper they looke upon themselves as above the word and blesse themselves in the satisfying of their own carnal desires as if it were but a poore low and meane thing for them to be under the power of the word to feare sin and threatnings it is too low for such brave spirits as they have But come let us sing away all care let us live merrily let us take our pleasure for the present and crowne our selves with rose-buds This is the disposition of carnall hearts under all their guilt and danger They swim delightfully in that River of Jordan and suddenly fall into the Dead Sea they spend their dayes in pleasure and in a moment go down into hell This is all the portion of their cup they receive from the Lord They have a little joy here this is all they are like to have and therefore they will take their fill of what they have But this will not hold I will cause this mirth to cease Sinne and mirth can never hold long together there must be a separation between them The union that there is betweene sinne and mirth at any time it is a forced union God never joynes them together and if you will joyne those things God never joyned your joyning cannot hold Sinne is of such a canker-fretting nature as it will soone fret out all the varnish of mirth and joy that is upon it If you will not take away sinne from your mirth God will take away mirth from your sin It is indeed the happinesse of the Saints that they shall have everlasting joy the pleasures at Gods right hand are for evermore but the pleasures of sin must cease Thirdly when afflictions come upon the wicked they are all Amort their joy their mirth is gone We say of fire it congregates things of the same kinde and separates things that are of diverse kinds So it is with the fire of affliction it congregateth things of the same nature as thus sinne and horror trouble anguish sorrow vexation accusation of conscience condemnation these are of the same kinde sin and these are Homogenall now when affliction commeth it congregateth all these Here is sinne yea but sorrow and anguish and horror of conscience seemeth now not to be together with your sinne but when the fire of affliction comes it joynes all these together On the other side sin and joy and prosperity and peace these are Heterogeneall things of another kinde now when the fire of affliction comes it separates these Heterogeneall things then the hearts of the wicked sinke as lead they lye down in sorrow the candle of the wicked is blown out all their mirth and joy it is but the light of a candle affliction makes all to be but as a stinking snuffe And indeed ungodly men when affliction comes are men of the poorest spirits of any men they quickly dye they succumb they fall downe under the least weight of affliction They seeme to have brave spirits to out-brave the word of God but they have poore meane and low spirits when they come to beare Gods hand upon them Affliction takes away all their good that they conceive and understand good There is nothing within them to support them there is nothing but darknesse and blacknesse within nothing but guilt and gnawings of the worme And they looke upon every suffering they indure but as the beginning of eternall suffering And there is the venome and curse of God goes together with their affliction
which drinks up their spirits Oh the happy advantage the Saints have in their afflictions over that the wicked have in theirs They have spirits indeed that well may be called brave spirits that can stand under the greatest weight of affliction and that with joy in the midst of them Paul can rejoyce in tribulation yea and glory in it too They have comfort in the creature but they are not beholding to the creature for comfort they depend not upon the creature for comfort their joy is a great deale higher That is precious light indeed that no storme can blow out See an example of a brave spirit that way that in the midst of affliction can have the light of joy Habak 3. 17. Although the Figtree shall not blosome neither shall fruit be in the Vines the labour of the Olive shall faile and the fields shall yeeld no meate the flocke shall be cut off from the fold and there shall be no herd in the stals What then Yet I will rejoyce in the Lord I will joy in the God of my salvation All their joy shall not cease perhaps in times of affliction in sad dismall times they may abate somewhat of their outward joy but all their mirth shall not cease there shall be joy within though none without Lastly I will cause all the mirth to cease All our mirth depends upon God he can take it away when he pleaseth God is called in Scripture The God of all consolation Joy is Gods propriâ—ty he gives it when he will and takes it away when he will Tou have an excellent Text for Gods hand in taking away joy from the hearts of men when he pleaseth it is Lamen 3. 65. Give them sorrow of heart thy curse upon them Marke it Now that word that is translated sorrow of heart I especially take the note from thence A word that comes from that that signifies a helmet or a shield to fence of any thing or to cover a thing as a thing is covered by a shield and helmet And it doth note to us that disease which Physitians call Cardiaca passio a kinde of disease whereby the heart is so opprest and there is such a stopping that it is as it were covered sicut scuto as with a shield there is a lid as it were put over the heart a shield to keepe out all things that should comfort and to fence off all things that may be taken to be any refreshments to the spirits let the most precious Cordials in the world be given to those that have that disease they cannot be refreshed by any of them and so the heart comes to be suffocated with sorrow This is the meaning of the word here Lord give them sorrow of heart Put them into such a condition as that their hearts may be so stopped and stifled with sorrow that what ever meanes shall be used to bring any comfort to them let it be kept off that no creature in the world may be able to afford the least refreshment to them They were wont to shield and fence off thy VVord when thy word was used to be delivered to them wherein the treasures of thy mercies were and they heard the sweet promises of the Gospel opened yet they fenced off thy word as with a shield Now when they are in affliction let their hearts be choaked so and let there be such a fence put upon their hearts that though there be never so many promises brought to them they may be fenced off by the secret curse As Doe we not finde many wretches who have lived under the Gospel and fenced off the treasures of mercies opened to them when they have beene in affliction they have beene in horrible desperation and whensoever any thing out of the Gospel hath been spoken to them for their comfort they have had strange kinde of fences to put off such things As those that reade the story of Spira may wonder what a cunning fencer he was to fence off all comfort that was brought to him This was from the Lord Lord give them sorrow of heart that is Lord put such a shield upon their hearts as all comfort may be fenced of from them We see my brethren how we depend upon God for comfort we all cry out for comfort let us know and take to heart our dependance upon God for it God can fence our hearts from comfort when he pleaseth let us take heed we doe not fence of his word form our hearts I will cause all her mirth to cease her feast dayes These two are put together for the hearts of men when they enjoy a more liberall use of the cheature then ordinary and are amongst cheerfull company are warmed raised and inflamed at such times If the heart of a man be gracious and hee feasts in a gracious way his heart is warmed and cheered and inlarged in things that are good so the heart of the wicked when they are at their feasts all their lusts are warmed and their spirits are raised strengthned in the things that are evil You have a notable example of the cheering and raising of the hearts of men in good things in the time of feasts 2 Chro. 30. 21. the feast that Hezekiah made for the people of Jerusalem in that great Passeover the Text saith that they kept the feast of unleavened bread seven dayes with great gladness and vers 23. the whole Assembly tooke counsell to keep other seven days they kept other 7 dayes with gladness Now mark how their hearts were raised and mightily up upon this Chap. 31. ver 1. When all was finished all Israel that were present went out to the cities of Iudah and brake the images in pieces and cut down the groves and threw downs the high places and the Altars out of all Iudah and Benjamine in Ephraim also and Manasseth untill they had utterly destroyed them all Their hearts being up and their feasts being in a gracious way they were so inflamed that now they tooke upon them a mighty courage in doing great things for God It were well if it were always so with us when God calleth us to feasting as sometimes he doth though not now that our hearts were alwayes up in our feasting warmed and inlarged to do much good It is that which hath been the honour of this Citie that in their Companies feasting yearly they were wont heretofore usually when they had rejoyced one with another when their hearts were up to consult together what good to do for their countries in which they were borne and then to resolve to send the preaching of the Word to such a great Town where most of them were bred and to such another Towne This was a gracious feasting and for this they were much envyed at And though these feasts were prohibited upon other pretences yet the hindering this good done at those times lay in the bottome of that prohibition Feasting also warms the lusts
this was to note their hasty going out of Egypt We should not when God offereth us mercy of deliverance goe forth slowly This is our misery at this day the Lord offereth deliverance and we lye slugging on our beds and are like that foolish child the Prophet speakes of that sticks in the birth We have stuck these two yeers in the birth whereas we might have beene delivered long before this It concerns us all to consider what the cause is and to lament it before the Lord that we may make our peace with him But further In thanksgiving for a mercy we are ever to remember what we were before that mercy They must eate unleavened bread at this Feast the bread of affliction they must remember the afflictions they were in before they had this mercy whereof this Feast was a Memoriall when wee blesse God for a deliverance we must really present before our souls the sad condition we were in before we were delivered Further The speciall thing that is aimed at in the Passeover was that it should be a type of Christ who was that paschall lamb that was to take away the sinnes of the world he that was rosted in the fire of Gods wrath for our sinnes as that Lambe that was to be eaten in the Passe-over was rosted in the fire And if ever the Angell of Gods vengeance do passe over us it is thorough the blood of that Lambe sprinkled upon our hearts which was signified by the sprinkling the blood of the Lambe upon the posts of their houses In the Lords Supper we celebrate in effect the same Feast of the Passe-over they did and by this we may learne this excellent note There is little comfort in the remembrance of outward deliverances except we can see them all in Christ They were in this Feast to remember their deliverance out of Egypt but withall they were in it to have a figure and type of Christ that sweetned their remembrance that made the Feast a joyfull Feast when they could see their deliverance out of Egypt as a fruit of Christs sufferings when this Lambe that was to put them in minde of it did put them in minde likewise of Christ the paschal Lambe In all deliverances from any kinde of affliction if you would have the remembrance of them sweet unto you you must looke upon them all in the blood of Christ and so remember them and then your hearts will be inlarged to blesse God This was the Ordinance of God in the Passe-over but besides Gods Ordinance the Jews added divers other things The first thing observable that they added was earnest prayer to God for the building of the Temple which many of them observe to this day Those who writ of the customes of the Jews tell us that because the Temple is destroyed where they were to goe up thrice in the yeere to solemnize these Feasts therefore they pray so earnestly and mightily for the Temple in this manner They cry altogether to God Lord build thy temple shortly very quickly very quickly most quickly in our dayes then they go over it again Mercifull God great God kind God high God sweet God with divers other epithets Now build thy Temple quickly very quickly c. Now now now five times together â—o Euxtorfius tells us They teach us how much the Temple doth concern us Here is onely their mistake they rested in the materiall Temple they did not consider that This Temple was a type of Christ therefore as earnestly as they prayed for the building of their materiall Temple so we are to pray for the building up of the mysticall body of Christ now Lord build quickly doe not defer it even in our dayes do it A second thing they added was the manner of casting out of unleavened bread in this they observed three things their inquisition their extermination their execration first with a candle they would narrowly search every corner of the house to see if they had the least crumme of leaven if any were found they cast it out with solemnity and then they used to wish a curse upon themselves if there were any left in their houses that was not cast out This morall Observation wee may be taught from it it should be our care when we are to receive the Sacrament to make narrow inquisition to get the candle of the word and to search every corner of our hearts every faculty of the soule to see if there be no leaven in it 2. Whatsover we see to cast it out of doores And 3. to be so much set against sinne as to be willing to take a curse upon our selves if we should willingly let any knowne sin be in our hearts and to acknowledge that God might justly curse us in his Ordinance if we be false in this Thirdly they used to shew forth all their brave rich things if they had any bravery in cloathes in furniture in any good thing they would shew all at this Feast By their superstition we may learne this note that in the time of our comming before God it is fit for us to manifest his graces to exercise all those beautifull graces that the Lord hath endowed us with by the work of his Spirit for there is the riches of a Christian there is his brave cloathes and his plate all his excellencies are his graces The fourth thing they did was after the Passe-over was at an end they would fast three dayes to humble themselves for their faylings in keeping that Feast This was not Gods Institution but it was their custome and we may learne this from it though not to binde our selves to that they did too looke back to our receiving the Sacrament and to bewayle all our miscarriages I beleeve if things were examined to the quick in our receiving the Sacrament you would finde matter enough to fast and pray for the humbling your soules from your miscarriages Lastly in the Passe-over they used to reade the book of the Canticles because that booke treats especially of the conjunction of the soule with the Messiah which is sealed up especially in the Passe-over And that indeed is a speciall meditation for us when we come to the Lords Supper to meditate of our conjunction with Christ The next is the Feast of Pentecost This Feast is called also the Feast of Weekes because there were seven weekes to be reckoned and then at the end of them it was solemnly to be kept you shall finde it Levit. 23. 15. There you have the Feast of the Passe-over and in that the first day of seven and the last day of seven was solemnly kept now they were to count from the morrow after the first Sabbath seven Sabbaths that is seven weekes compleate the first Sabbath of the Passe-over was the fifteenth day of the month Abib and then the next day from that they were to count seven weeks and at the end of seven weeks was the
Booke of Ecclesiastes principally because it speakes so much of the works of Gods providence All the while Gods people dwelt in boothes and Tabernacies God himselfe would dwell in a Tabernacle God would never have a house built unto him till he had brought his own people to be setled in houses of their owne and therefore when David began to thinke that he had a house of Cedar and therefore surely God must have one too God tells him Did ever I speake of a house for me as if he had said As long as my people went up and down in booths and Tabernacles I was content to have a Tabernacle and a booth for my dwelling thus God is willing to suite himselfe with the condition of his people Is the condition of his people in a fleeting way then I will be so too saith God If your conditions be afflicted and unsetled I will be so too In all their afflictions God was afflicted in all their unsetlednesse God seemed to be so too Indeed afterwards when Gods people came to be in a setled estate in Ierusalem then God would have a house built him God would hereby teach us That if himselfe be content to be in a condition like us then we must be content to be in a condition like him as thus when we are afflicted will God be afflicted with us when we are unsetled will God be as it were unsetled with us then let us not thinke it much if afterwards God be in an afflicted way his truth and his Gospell be in a suffering way let us be willing to suffer with God when God is magnified and praised then our hearts should be inlarged too and rejoyce in his praise we should consider the condition that God is in the world we must suite our selves with that Again would God have them once a yeare to celebrate the remembrance of their dwelling in boothes and Tabernacles and that after they came to Ierusalem From hence note It is good to remember our low estates to have a reall remembrance of our low mean conditions we had heretofore doth God now bring us into a more setled condition then heretofore Let us not forget in what an afflicted condition we were in how unsetled how ready we were to fleet up and down If God should grant his people that they should think themselves setled in their own kingdoms yet let them never forget the time when they were unsetled in this other countries there hath been a great part of the people of God whose thoughts have been what shall become of them whether shall they go and perhaps to this day many have such thougts unlesse there be some speciall mercies of God prevent it yet may be the condition of thousands in the land before a yeare go about If God should prevent you ever remember your fleeting condition once you were in It was Gods great care of the people of Israel that they should never forget their dwelling in Tabernacles Thirdly Note the time of their Feast of Tabernacles they were to dwell in booths upon the fifteenth day of their moneth it was but five dayes after their day of atonoment so that being so presently after the day of publique atonement this lesson may be learned After our humiliations for our sins and making up our peace with God it is good to keep our hearts low with the meditation of the uncertainty of all things in the world You have been humbling your selves and making your peace with God yet when your hearts are comforted with the hope of your alonement made keep your hearts low take heed of pride the feast of Tabernacles must be kept presently after the feast of Atonement this is one speciall means to keep your hearts low to have a reall remembrance of the uncertainties of the comforts of this world This lifteth up mens hearts to conceive some excellencies in things here therefore goe into your boothes and work your hearts down keep your feast of Tabernacles Fourthly God would have their hearts kept low by the actuall going into their booths and tabernacles though they had faire and sumptuous houses in the City yet they were to go out and live in their booths a while you might think were it not enough for the Priest to tell them and bid them remember their dwelling in Tabernacles but they must go forth from their houses and abide in booths It is a good way to keep those men humbled that are raised from a low condition to a high even actually to goe into those houses that are low and mean go into the houses of poor men look into the cupboards see what provision they have this will be a means to humble your hearts when you consider This was once my condition A second end of this feast was to blesse God for all the fruits of the earth they had received when they had received all in their Vintage and all As the feast of Pentecost was to blesse God for their first fruits and their harvest but now all the fruits of the earth Vintage and all were gathered in Now they were to joyn all together and to blesse God for all the fruits of the Earth That this is Gods end is cleare in Deut. 16. 13 14. Thou shalt observe the feast of Tabernacles after thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine and thou shalt rejoyce c. because the Lord thy God shall blesse thee in all thy encrease therefore thou shalt surely rejoyce From hence there is this lesson It is usefull to remember what a poor condition we were once in and the uncertainty of all things that we have even when we have got our riches into our houses when all things are in our possession it is not so much to think how uncertain they are when they are growing in the field but after the Vintage was gotten in then they were to keep the feast of Tabernacles to remember the uncertain condition of all things in the world this we are very loath to doe it is unsutable to our natures and therefore this feast of Tabernacles was much neglected among the Jewes untill such time as they 〈◊〉 been in captivity after God had carried them into Babylon and theâ—â— bâ—ought them back againe into their own Countrey then they kept the feast of Tabernacles more solemnly then ever they had done as we finde Nehem. 8. 17. Since the day of Ioshua the son of Nun they had not done so they never kept the feast of Tabernacles so solemnly from their first comming into Canaan as then they did now being come out of prison they could remember the uncertainty of all things in the world men forget the uncertainty of all things in the world but if they be driven from house and home and lose all then they remember what they have heard and confessed of the uncertainty of all worldly things some of our brethren who are plundered and
driven from their habitations if God should ever restore them to their habitations againe then their hearts would be enlarged in blessing God then they would be more sensible of the uncertainty of the comforts of the creature then ever before Thirdly The Feast of Tabernacles had an aime at Christ and the state of a Christian it was to typifie JESUS CHRIST to come into the world and to pitch his tents amongst us as John 1. 14. he dwelt amongst us he came and pitched his Tabernacle amongst us it is in the Greek and the state of a Christian likewise is an abiding Tabernacle 2 Cor. 5. 1. If our earthly house of this Tabernacle be dissolved till we goe where JESUS CHRIST is gone before us to prepare mansions for us Iohn 14. our dwelling is in Tabernacles In the offerings that God appointed to offer in this their feast Numb 29. 12. there are some things very observable but hard to finde the meaning of the feast was to be kept seven dayes the first day was a great day and the last day a great day the first day there were 13. bullocks to be offered and 14. lambes the second day there was but 12. bullocks and the third day but 11. and the fourth day but 10. and so every day one decreased as you may see there and the last day there was but one offered Now divers Expositors have sought to finde out the meaning of this I doe not finde any such thing in all the Scripture as this is but onely in this place Calvin confesses when he speakes of this that for his part he doth not understand the meaning of it and rather then to make guesses of it uncertainties I will saith he be silent in it yet he ventures upon a conjecture a very unlikely one therefore I shall not name it That which is most likely seems to be in two things The first is they must offer every day lesse and lesse that is saith another interpreter to shew their increase in sanctification that they should grow to more and more perfection every day of their feast and so have lesse need of Sacrifices then they had before and so it will afford a good note to us that when we come to keepe dayes to God every day we should grow more and more in sanctification and have lesse and lesse sin to answer for then we had before Another interpretation that is given is that it was to shew the cessation of the sacrifices of the Jewes that they were to decrease day by day and this I take rather to be the meaning because the last day is but one bullocke that was offered and yet the Text saith that that was the great day of the Feast when there was fewest sacrifices to be offered Ioh. 3. 37. The last and the great day of the feast Jesus cryed if any man thirst let him come unto me there is somwhat to be noted about Christ there though it is true it was the feast of dedication which was their own Feast from whence many would prove the lawfulnesse of holy daies yet the truth is upon examination you shall finde there is scarce strength enough from that place to prove it though it be lawfull to take the advantage of such times but it will appeare there that it was the Feast of Tabernacles as in 2 Chro. 8. 9. Their Feast of the dedication of the Temple was at that time that the Feast of Tabernacles was one thing is to be observed from Christs being there at the Feast the last and the great day Jesus cryed if any man thirst let him come unto me Why did Christ upon the great day of the Feast cry out thus If any man thirst let him come unto me to drinke one reason may be because when men are most strongly possessed with the uncertainties of all outward things in the world then they are fit to entertaine the gospell then fit to heare of JESUS CHRIST when their hearts are taken off from the world and they looke upon all things here as unsetled the conclusion of that feast is a speciall preparation to the Gospell Esay 40. 6. 7 c. The preparation to the good tidings of the Gospel is the Proclamation that All flesh is grasse and all the goodlinesse thereof as the flower of the field yea the withering of the grasse and the fading of the flower must be proclaimed again and againe And then seasonably and acceptably it followes ver 6. O Zion that bringest good tidings behold your God Tremelius thinkes that the reason of the expression of CHRIST at this time was from the custome of the Iews at this Feast at the feast of Tabernacles the Iews were wont with great joy to bring store of water out of the River of Shiloh to the Temple where being delivered to the Priest he powred it out upon the Altar together with wine and all the people sung that of Isaiah with joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation though it were their own invention Christ takes a hint upon it they accustomed themselves to draw water and powre it out Christ saith what do you stand upon this ceremony of yours this your custome will die and perish in the use of it but come to me and there you shall have water I am the well of salvation a spring of grace shall be continually in the heart of that man that beleeveth in me One note more is observable in this Feast we have a prophesie that in the times of the gospel the feast of Tabernacles should be kept then that is in the truth of it not in the ceremony In Zach. 14. 16. there is a Prophesy that when Christ cometh the very truth of the feast of tabernacles then all people shall worship the true God and keep the feast of Tabernacles Why is it there Prophesied that all people shall come and keep that feast the reason may be this this feast is named because in the times of the gospel men shall acknowledge their outward comforts to be from God 〈◊〉 â—ertainty of all things here and that they are strangers and pilgrims 〈◊〉 in the times of the gospell this shall be made more evident to the hearts of people then ever before the more JESUS CHRIST shall be known in the world the more shall the hearts of men be taken up with the knowledge of God in every creature and of the uncertainty of every creature and have their hearts taken of from the comforts of the world and never account any setled condition here but account themselves pilgrims and strangers that is a signe that the Gospel hath prevailed with your spirits if you have your hearts taken off from the creature and you looke upon your selves as strangers in the world and looke for an abiding City then do you keep in an Evangelicall sense this feast of Tabernacles Or secondly if it be meant of the glorious setled condition God in
the latter dayes shall bring his Saints unto yet then they shall remember with thankfulnesse what their poor unsetled condition once was Thus you have had a view of the chiefe of the Jewish Feasts which God threatens here shall cease There are onely these three Observations to be drawn from altogether First Even those things that are appointed by God himselfe if once they be abused God will not own them but then they are accounted ours rather then Gods her sabbaths why not my sabbaths why not Gods sabbaths God did appoint them but because they had abused them God would not own them her sabbaths and her solemn Feasts The Ordinances of God though never so good in themselves if you pollute them God rejects them they are your ordinances then and not Gods looke then that all ordinances be as God would have them Secondly It is a grievous and lamentable affliction upon any people for God to deprive them of his sabbaths and ordinances his ordinances are included in their solemne Feasts nay saith God you will goe on in your wickednesse and would put me off with your sabbaths and solemne meetings and with those things that were once my ordinances you will satisfie me with them though you continue in your wickedness no you shall be deprived of them you shall have no more sabbaths no more solemne Feast dayes it is a sad affliction for a people to have no more sabbaths How many of you neglect solemne meetings of Gods people time may come when God will rend these priviledges from you and then your conscience will grate upon you O the sabbaths that once we had O the solemn meetings that once we enjoyed but our hearts were vaine and slight we did not make use of them and now they are gone now perhaps thou art cast into a goale or into a dungeon and there thou keepest thy sabbaths thinkest upon thy solemne meetings O how unworthy is this land of sabbaths how did we set our selves to persecute those that kept sabbaths there was never any such a thing in any Christian nation other places though they are somewhat loose upon their sabbaths yet they never persecute them that will keep sabbath how justly might God have taken away our sabbaths let us acknowledge Gods free grace what reproach hath it been in England to assemble to heare Sermons how justly might God have taken away these solemne Assembles from us long before this let us pray that what ever judgement God sends upon us he will not take away our Sabbaths nor our solemne assemblies but that we may still enjoy those we have and enjoy them to better purpose then ever we have done 3. God hath no need of our services If God call upon us to worship him it is for our good not for any need he hath of what we doe What do I care saith God whether I have any Sabbaths kept or no I can provide for my glory what ever becomes of your duties I need them not I can be glorious without you But these threats are but to take away things that are spirituall carnall hearts thinke if they may live and prosper in the world what care they for Sabbaths and for solemn meetings Tell them of taking away Ordinances tell them of truth of Gods worship what is that to them Let us have our peace our trading and our outward blessings and truth will follow O no a gracious heart will rather reason thus O Lord let us have thy Ordinances let us have thy Gospel and then for our Vines and Fig-trees our tradings and our outward blessings we will leave them to thy dispose if thou will give us thy Sabbaths and thy Ordinances we will trust thee for our Vines and for our Fig-trees But if the Lord be so angry to deny us his Ordinances how can we ever thinke that he will be so mercifull to us to continue our peace or our civill liberties No sure if Truth be gone Vines and Fig-trees will not stay long The next words therefore are I will destroy her Vines and her Fig-trees The Lord may suffer those places that never had Sabbaths and Ordinances to prosper in their Civill â—eace a long time but where these have and the wrath of God be so incensed as to take away these it cannot be expected that outward peace and plenty can hold long there First seeke the kingdom of heaven saith Christ and all these things shall be added unto you No say they let us first seeke the kingdome of earth and the things of heaven will be added to us which shewes the sleightnesse of their account of heavenly things As the paper and the thred in a shop is given in to the commodity it is added if a man bargaine for the paper and thred and think the commodity will be given in what a folly were it Many men have their thoughts altogether upon the things of this life and they think the Gospel will be given into the bargaine as if they have peace they shall no question have truth as if the Gospel were the paper and thred and the things of the world were the commodities It is your wisdome if you would enjoy outward peace let your hearts be for Ordinances cry to God for Ordinances and then God will take care you shall sit under your Vines and under your Fig-trees peace The Eleventh Lecture HOSEA 2. 12. 13. And I will destroy her Vines and her Fig-trees whereof shee hath said These are my rewards that my lovers have given me and I will make them a forrest and the beasts of the field shall eate them And I will visit upon her the dayes of Baalim wherein she burnt incense to them and she decked her selfe with her eare-rings and her jewels and she went after her lovers and forgat me saith the Lord. GODS threatning Israel in taking away spirituall mercies their Sabbaths and Ordinances their solemne Feasts you have in the former verse but because they might not be much sensible of such a judgement to be deprived of Sabbaths and solemnities of worship would not be so grievous to many but the destroying of the fruit of the ground the spoiling of their land the losse of those things wherein their riches and outward comforts lay would be more grievous therefore God joynes this threat with the former And I will destroy her Vines and Fig-trees In these two Vines and Fig-trees there is a Synecdoche by these are meant all her outward prosperity I will not lop their Vines I will not cut downe some branches of their Fig-trees only but destroy them If God stayes long before a judgement comes hee comes fearfully indeed he comes with destroying judgments then he strikes at the very rooâ—e of all a peoples prosperity and leaves them hopelesse of ever recoveriug themselves It concerns us to humble our selves under Gods hand when he doth but cut off some branches of our vines and fig-trees of our outward
of God and hence are put to it so much to make a connection betweene that that went before and this therefore but wee need not go so farre the right knowledg of the fulnesse and the riches of the grace of the Covenant will help us out of this difficulty and tell us how these two the greatnesse of mans sin and the riches of Gods grace may have a connection one to another and that by an Illative therefore I confesse the Hebrew word is sometimes conjunctio ordinis rather then causalis a conjunction that only sets out the order of a thing one thing following another rather then any way implying any cause but the reading here by way of inference I take to be according unto the scope of the Spirit of God and it gives us this excellent note Such is the grace of God unto those who are in Covenant with him as to take occasion from the greatnesse of their sinns to shew the greatnesse of his mercy from the vilenesse of their sins to declare the riches of his grace And the Scripture hath divers such kind of expressions as these as Gen. 8. 21. The Lord said in his heart I will not again curse the ground any more for mans sake VVhy For the immagination of mans heart is evill from his youth A strange reasoning I will not curse the ground for mans sake for the imagination of mans heart is evill from his youth One would have thought it should have been rather I will therefore curse the ground for mans sake because the imagination of mans heart is evill from his youth but the grace of God knowes how to make another manner of inference then we could have imagined So likewise Isa 57. 17 18. For the iniquity of his covetousnesse was I wroth and smote him I hid me and was wroth and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart I have seen his wayes saith God Now one would have thought that the next word should have been I will therefore plague him I wil destroy him I will curse him but mark the words that follow I will heale him I will 〈◊〉 him also and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners I will create the fruit of the lips peace to him This is a consequence at least if not an inference David understood this reasoning to be indeed the true reasoning of the Covenant of grace and therefore he pleadeth thus with God Psal 25. 11. Pardon my iniquity for it is great Lord my iniquity is great therefore pardon it Hearken you Saints hearken I say this is the great blessing of God unto you who are in Covenant with him whereas otherwise your sins should have made you objects of Gods hatred your sins now render you objects of his pitty and compassion this is the glorious fruit of the covenant of grace I would only the Saints heard me in this thing but why doe I say so I will recall my word let all sinners heare me let the vilest the worst sinners in the world heare of the riches of the grace of God in this his Covenant that if they belong to Gods election they may see the fulnesse the glory of Gods grace to be inamoured with it their hearts ravished with it that they may never be at rest till they get evidence to their soules that God indeed hath actually received them into this his Covenant If then God be pleased in the riches of free grace to make such an inference therefore let us take heed that wee make not a quite crosse inference from the greatnesse of our sins nor on the other side from Gods grace As thus You have followed your lovers you have forgot me therefore will I allure you An unbelieving heart would make this inference I have followed my lovers I have followed after vanity and folly and therefore God hath rejected mee therefore God will have no mercy upon me therefore I am undone therefore the gates of mercy are shut against me unbelieving heart do not sin against the grace of God he saith you have forgotten me therefore will I allure and speake comfortably to you doe not you say I have forgot the Lord and therefore the Lord will for ever reject me these discouraging determining despairing therefores are very grievous to the Spirit of God God would have us have all good thoughts of him It is a maine thing that God intendeth through the whole Scripture that his people should have good thoughts of him and that they should not think him a hard master It is an excellent expression of Luther saith he the whole Scripure doth principally aime at this thing that we should not doubt but that wee should hope that we should trust that we should believe that God is a merciful a bountifull a gracious and a patient God to his people It is an excellent expression that I have read of Master Bradford in one of his Epistles saith he O Lord sometimes me thinks I feel it so with me as if there were no difference between my heart and the wicked a blind mind as they a stout stubborn rebellions spirit a hard heart as they and so he goes on shall I therefore conclude thou art my Father nay I will rather reason otherwise saith he because I do believe thou art my Father I will come unto thee that thou mightest enlighten this blind minde of mine that thou mightest soften this hard heart of mine that thou mightest sanctifie this unclean spirit of mine I this is a good reasoning indeed and is worthy of one that professes the gospel of Jesus Christ Again as the inference of this unbelieving heart is grievous to Gods spirit so the inference of a prophane heart an unbelieving heart makes his therefore from the greatnesse of sin against Gods mercy and the prophane heart makes his therefore from the greatnesse of Gods mercy to the hardening of his heart in his sins what shall God make his therefore from our sin to his mercy and shall we make our therefore from his mercy back again to our sins where sin abounds grace abounds but where grace abounds sin must not abound because God is mercifull to us who are very sinfull let not us be very sinfull against him who is so mercifull God takes occasion from the greatnesse of our sins to shew the greatnesse of his mercy let not us take occasion from the greatnesse of his mercy to be emboldened in greatnesse of our sins Therefore behold Behold Here is a wonder to take up the thoughts of men and Angels to all eternity even that that we have in this inference behold notwithstanding all this yet you men and Angels behold the fulnesse the riches of Gods grace I will allure her what will not God cast us away notwithstanding the greatnesse of our sins let not us reject Gods ways notwithstanding the greatnesse of any sufferings we meet with in them there is a great deale of reason in
that mercy of his therefore he gives these fields this title calls them by this name and this custome of the Jews seemes to have warrant from Scripture it self Canticles 8. 5. Who is this that commeth up from the wildernesse leaning upon her beloved That was the way of marriage they came out of the fields leaning upon their beloved and so were brought unto the Bridgegroomes Fathers house So Christ brings his Spouse through this world which is as the wildernesse and Christ is here solemnizing his espousals and hath his nuptiall songs in this world and the Church leanes upon Christ all the while she is in the world but Christ is carring her to his Fathers house and ere long we shal be with him there solemnizing the marriage of the Lambe in a more glorious way This expression goes on clearly thus I will allure her and bring her into the wildernesse As the Bridegroome speakes sweet and comfortable words to his Bride and carries her abroad into the fields and there solemnizes the nuptials and so comes back againe having his Spouse leaning upon him and bringing her to his Fathers house so I will deale with you in the fulnesse of my grace I will performe all the nuptiall rites with you I will be married againe unto you and looke what the most solemnity in your City of Jerusalem or any of your Cities there is in any nuptials I will make as great a solemnity in the nuptials betweene you and me It is true when a marriage is such as people are loath to make it known then there is no such solemnity but when it is a great marriage indeed and such as marry together with their friends would glory in it then there is the more full solemnity so saith God I will not be ashamed to take you againe but I will take you openly I wil have the solemnity of my marriage with you as publickly as may be I will carry you abroad into the fields and look what rights soever there are in the most solemne marriages amongst you those rights I will performe unto you that it may be a most glorious marriage solemnity between you and me again thus I will bring into the wildernesse and speake comfortably unto them And speake comfortably to her These words that are translated here speake comfortably in the Hebrew are loquar super cor or ad corejus I will speake to her heart I will speak to her either so as to prevaile with her heart or speake to her so as to do her good at the very heart Many Scriptures may be brought to shew that speaking kindly friendly or comfortably the Hebrews expresse by speaking to the heart I will give you two or three instances Genesis 34. 3. Shechem spake kindly to the Damosell the words are in the Hebrew Shechem spake to the heart of the Damosell So Ruth 2. 13. Thou hast comforted me for that thou hast spoken friendly to thy handmaid thou hast spoken to the very heart of thy handmaid there are two more remarkable places for this one is Esay 40. 2. Speak comfortably to Jerusalem the words are speak to the heart of Jerusalem What should be spoke to the heart of Jerusalem Cry unto her her warefare is accomplished her iniquity is pardoned These are the comfortable words that God required should be spoke to the heart of Jerusalem O that God would speak thus to England this would do good at the very heart if God would speake thus from heaven Her iniquity is pardoned and her warefare is accomplished But yet a place that is more suitable unto this expression in the text it is Iudges 19. 3. There you have the story of a Levite whose wife having played the harlot yet he was willing to be reconciled to her the text saith that he went spake friendly to her Now the words are in the Hebrew Hee went and spake to her heart And indeed it is a word to the heart of an adulterous spouse if her heart be humbled when she knows that her husband will be willing notwithstanding her playing the harlot to be reconciled to her this was the condition of Israel who had gone a whoring from God yet when God promises a renewall of the marriage rites he saith he will speake to her heart from whence we might observe this note That an Apostatizing people or an Apostate soul had need have words of comfort spoke to their hearts or else there can be little ease to their terrified consciences We read of Spira that famous Apostate he had words of comfort enough spoke to his eare but they did him little good God did not come in and speak to his heart therefore his conscience could not be quieted the throbs of it could not be eased How many lie under the troubles of an accusing conscience and have the throbs and bitings of a guilty spirit because they have been back-sliders from the truth and though they come to Sermons one after another hear the Covenant of grace opened to them in the fulnesse of it the riches of Gods goodnesse set before them in the beauty of it yet they goe away without comfort why the words come to the eare God all this time speaks not to the heart sometimes it pleases God to take but the hint of a truth and dart it upon the heart of a troubled sinner that he feeleth it at the heart and sayes Well this day God hath spoken to my heart so he goes away rejoycing eased comforted pacified when as perhaps such an one had heard a hundred Sermons before wherein there were blessed and glorious truths presented to him and it did no good untill Gods time and when the time of Gods love is come some little hint of a piece of a truth God darteth to the hearts and that doth the thing God shews hereby that it is not in the word of man to comfort an afflicted conscience Hence an expression Luther hath in his Comment upon Genesis It is far harder to comfort an afflicted conscience then to raise the dead you think it is nothing to Apostatize from the Lord you thinke it is easie to receive comfort you will find it is not so easie you will find it as easie to raise the dead as to comfort your afflicted consciences But you told us before how rich the grace of God was that God tooke advantage from the greatnesse of our sins to shew the riches and greatness of his mercy grant it let the grace of God be never so rich but till this grace be applyed to the heart till God be pleased to speak himself to the heart of a sinner it will not do I remember a story of one who had made profession of Religion and afterwards Apostatised and made little of it when his acquaintance told him that those things he now did he would smart for one day he thought because he had some knowledg in the Gospel that it
power going along with them so lately bringing them over Jordan so wonderfully and given them Jericho so miraculously yet now at the losse of 36. men their hearts begin even to faile Ioshua falls with his face upon the earth and Josephus in his hystory of the Jewish Antiquities sets down Ioshuahs prayer at large these are some expressions Beyond all expectation having received an overthrow being terrified by this accident and suspitious of thy promises to Moses we both abstaine from war and after so many enterprises we cannot hope for any successfull proceedings by thy mercy relieve our present sorrow and take from us the thought of despaire wherein we are too farre plunged Now God comes to him and askes him Why he lay upon his face and bad him get him up for Israel had sinned in the accursed thing upon search made Achan was found out whereupon Joshua tells him that he had troubled the Hoast of Israel and God would trouble him upon which they stoned him and from thence it was called the valley of Achor vers 26. that is Vaâ—â—is tribulation is the valley of trouble The third thing is the principall why this valley is called a doore of hope Herein two things First how it was a doore of hope to Israel then when they first came into Canaan Secondly how it is promised to be a doore of hope to repenting Israel in after-times For the first It was a doore of hope to them in two respects First because it was the first place wherein they tooke the possession of Canaan when they began to have outward means of substance to eate of the corne of the land all the while they were in the wilderness although God provided wonderfully for them by sending them Manna from Heaven yet because they had no way of substance by ordinary means they always feared lest they should want upon any strait they were brought into their hearts began to sinke Now in this valley God gives them outward means this raises hope in them that their danger was over and that they should do well enough This is our nature when ordinary means fayle our hearts fayle yea though in regard of Gods extraordinary workings we have never so many gracious encouragements and when God grants means againe then we hope Secondly God made their great trouble there a means of much good unto them for by that they were brought to purge their Campe they learned to feare the Lord and were prepared more then before for so great a mercy as the further possession of that good land The Septuagint instead of those words a doore of hope have these to open their understanding for there indeed they learned the dreadfulnesse of God who for one mans sin was so sorely displeased there they understood to purpose that the God that was amongst them was a holy God and that he would have them to be a holy people But how should this valley of Achor be a doone of hope to Israel in after times First the Jews think that Israel shall return into their own country againe yea and the same way they shall come again into Canaan by that valley which shall be a door of hope to them Secondly but rather by way of Analogy as God turned this valley of trouble to much good unto them so he would turn all the sore afflictions of Israel in after dayes to their great advantage grievous afflictions should make way for glorious mercies Thirdly But especially thus in this expression God followes the Allegory of marriage now it was the custome of the Jewes in their marriages that the Husband gave his Spouse according to his quality as a dowry some peece of ground rich as he was able and this he gave as a pledge of his love to her to assure her that whatsoever was his she should have the benefit of it so saith the Lord although you have gone a whoring from me and may justly expect that I should for ever reject you yet I will marry you to my selfe and I will fully perform all marriage rights for the expression of my love towards you to the uttermost you shall know that you are marryed to a Husband who is rich I will give you a rich and plentifull dovvry and this but as a token and pledg of further love mercy riches that you shall enjoy by me it shall be that valley of Achor that rich delightfull fruitfull valley By this he means he would bestow some speciall choise mercy upon them at his first taking them into his favour again and that should be a pledg of and making way to much more mercy that he intended for them a doore of hope to let in greater things as the first fruits of all those glorious things that he had treasured up for them From this valley of Achor as it concerned Israel before First Sometimes when God gives men their hearts desires when they think themselves happy as if all trouble were past then he comes in upon them with great and sore afflictions Secondly although God hath been humbling mens hearts with sore and long afflictions yet just before he bestows great mercies he afflicts againe to humble and break their hearts yet more Thirdly sin will make the pleasantest place in the world a place of trouble Fourthly the afflictions of the Saints do not only go before mercies but are doors of hope to let in to mercies means to further the way for mercies God commands light to shine not only after darknesse but out of darkness Josephs prison Davids persecution Daniels den made way for glorious mercy God had in store for them that which once The mistocles said to his children and friends the Saints may much more say to theirs I had beene undone if I had not been undone had it not been for such a grieyous affliction I had never come to the enjoyment of such a mercy Hence we must learn not only to be patient in tribulation but joyfull But the especiall thing intended in this expression is this When God is reconciled to his people then present mercies are doors of hope to let in future mercies the Saints may look upon all mercies received as in-lets to further mercies to be received Every mercy a door to another mercy and all mercies here put together are a door to eternall mercy When Rachel had a sonne she called his name Joseph Gen. 30. 24. saying The Lord shall add to me another sonn Every mercy the Saints have may well be called Ioseph it brings assurance of mercy to be added this is the high priviledge of the Saints every mercy that a wicked man hath he may look upon as his utmost as his all he may write a ne plus ultra upon it one misery one judgment upon a wicked man makes way toanother but not one mercy howsoever God in his bounty may lengthen out mercies to him
brethren are discontented at us frowne upon us speake against us 8. Alas we have rejected the right key that should have opened this our door no marvaile then though we stand blundring at it and it opens not unto us VVhat is that right key that would have opened it before this time had we made use of it That key of David that we reade of Apoc. 3. 7. That openeth and no man shutteth This key the Church of Philadelphia had therefore it followes ver 8. I have set before thee an open doore that no man can shut But what is this key of David It is the ruling power of Jesus Christ in his Church David in his government was a speciall type of Christ the first godly King over his people that ever was Government is emblematically set forth by a key Esay 22. 22 God promised Eliakim to commit the government to him by that expression The key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder Esay 9. 6 7. The government is said to be upon Christs shoulder and he sits upon the throne of David that is observable that to Eliakim there was promised but the key of the house of David but to Christ the key of David himselfe the one was to governe but as a steward the government of the other was to be Princely If we had been the Church of Philadelphia united in brotherly love and had had this key of David amongst us we might before this time had had a door set open amongst us that no man could have shut against us but woe unto us how many amongst us say of Christ We will not have this man to rule over us Mr. Brightman more then thirty years since paralelld this Church of Philadelphia with the Church of Scotland he made it in a typical way to set forth the wayes of God towards that Church in after times and indeed they have been very like one another divers wayes and God ways towards the one hath been the same with his ways towards the other in many things 1. They are both Philadelphians united so in a brotherly covenant as no Churches in any kingdome more 2. It was said of Philadelphia it had but a little strength and yet it kept Gods word VVhat Churches in any Nation have beene more contemptible then those in Scotland They have beene accounted a poore beggerly people despised of all and yet God hath enabled them to doe great things 3. God hath caused their enemies to come and bow before them and to know that he hath loved them even those who said they were lews and were not that they were the onely Church when indeed they were the Synagogue of Satan they have rejected false government and have received much of the government of Christ the key of David is more received among them then in any kingdome in the world no marvaile then though their doore be so opened that none could shut it thorow Gods mercy our Houses of Parliament have cast away the false key The Lord deliver them and us for ever medling with it any more whatsoever come of us They have further professed their desires to enquire after the true key This door of hope we hope will open to us in due time so as none shall shut it 9. We have lost many opportunities for the opening this door never had a people fairer opportunities for mercy then we have had we cannot looke back upon them without trembling hearts we may see cause to lament the losse of them with teares of blood even this hath cost much and is yet like to cost more blood 10. Yea woe unto us out father comes forth and seemes to be angry with us and bids shut the doore against us yea hee shuts us out himselfe is not that complaint of the Churches Psal 80 4. truly ours O Lord of Hoasts how long wilt thou be angry with the prayer of thy people If God be angry with out knocking what shall we doe 11. And well may God bid shut the doore against us for we have shut it upon our selves This our doore of hope hath a spring lock it is easily shut too but it cannot so easily be opened againe we have stood wrangling and strugling one with another and have clapt to the doore upon our selves before we were aware That Scripture Hos 7. 1 is as truly ours as ever it was Israels When I would have healed Israel then the iniquity of Ephraim was discovered and the wickednesse of Samariah VVhen the Lord would have healed England then the iniquity thereof hath been discovered more then ever There is the vilest spirit of malignity against godlinesse against the Saints against the way of Christ in his Ordinances that ever was upon the face of the earth Now men care not though they ruin themselves though they bring themselves and posterity to be bondslaves so they may but have their wills upon those that are godly to suppresse them The controversie now is almost grown to that height that the kingdome divides it selfe into those who have some shew of Religion and the haters of it Those times complained of in Micah are even ours Chap. 7. 5. Trust ye not in a friend put no confidence in a guide keepe the doores of thy mouth from her that lyeth in thy bosome Yea it is almost come to that in the fourth verse The best of them is a bryar the most upright is sharper then a thorny hedg There is much frowardnesse much perversnesse even in the best many contentions and grievous breaches even amongst them they cannot endure you should be jealous of them and they give cause of jealousie daily This generation for a great part of it shew themselves to have such sullied such puttid spirits so defiled with superstitious vanities so imbittered with a spirit of malignity that we may feare God hath no pleasure in the generality of it yea Moses and Aaron have sinned the best have so sullied themselves with Antichristian pollutions that just it were with God that this whole generation should be first taken away and that the young generation that is comming on who have not so defiled themselves should have this doore that lets into Canaan opened to them that they onely should goe into and possesse that good land but our carcasses should fall in the wildernesse You who are godly young ones whose hearts began betimes to yerne after Jesus Christ know the heart of Jesus Christ yernes after you and although some of you may fall in fighting for your brethren so be received to heaven yet you are of that generation God will open this door of mercy unto you shal go in possesse Canaan all this valley of Achor is but a door of hope to you continue you on in your sincerity God will reveale himselfe more fully to you then he hath done to us if we be cut off before those treasures of mercy that God has ready for
his people be opened we must accept of the punishment of our iniquity and even beare this indignation of the Lord because wee have sinned against him 12. Yea the Lord hath strucke us with blindnesse at the doore we grope up and down and we cannot finde it as Gen 19. 11. Never were a people at a greater losse in a greater confusion then now we are every man runs his owne way wee know not what to doe nay the truth is we know not what we doe 13. Yea many because they have found some difficulties at the right door they have gone away from it and have sought back doors to help themselves by even base false shifting treacherous ways seeking to comply for their own private ends as if their skins must needs be saved whatsoever becomes of the publique 14. This is yet a further misery that we are groping up and downe at the doore and night is come upon us stormes tempests are rising dangers are approaching and yet God opens not to us 15. Above all our misery this is yet the greatest that even our hearts are shut up too there lyes a stone rowled at the doore of our hearts and such a stone as is beyond the power of an Angel to rowle away were it that after all our hearts were but open our condition yet had comfort in it Oh now what shall we doâ— 1. Let us resolve to waite at this doore â—â—aite upon God in those wayes of helpe that yet in mercy he affords unto us Certainly we are at the right doore let us say with Shecaniah Ezra 10. 2. We have sinned against the Lord yet there is hope in Israel concerning this thing Let us resolve whatsoever becomes of us not to goe from our fathers door if we perish we will perish at his gates 2. Let us worship the Lord at this our doore though we be not entred in yet let our hearts bow before the Lord in the acknowledgement of his greatnesse power dominion that he hath over us to doe with us what he pleaseth as Ezek. 46. 2. it is said The Prince shall worship at the threshold of the gate and the people of the land shall woâ—ship at the doore 3. Let us look in at the key-hole or at any crevise that wee can to see something of the riches of mercy that this door opens into Within on the other side oâ— the door we may see what liberty of conscience what enjoyment of Ordinances the blessing of Gods worship in his own way we may see the wayes of God and his Saints would be made honorable in this kingdome yea in a higher degree then any where upon the face of the earth yea we may see many sweet outward liberties the free enjoyment of our estates peace plenty prosperity in abundance all these and more then we can think of if this door were but once opened to us howsoever it is good 〈◊〉 looke in to quicken our hearts and set on our desires and endeavours the more strongly in the meane time Oh how happy were we if we had these mercies 4. Let us yet knock lowder and cry lowder at our Fathers doore But did not you tell us our Father seemed to be angry at our knocking Mark what we have in that very Scripture where the Church complains that God is angry with her prayer Psal 80. 4. How long wilt thou be angry against the prayer of thy people Yet ver 7. Turne us againe O God of Hosts and cause thy face to shine And ver 14 Returne we beseech thee O God of Hâ—sts look down from heaven behold visit this vine ver 19. Turne us againe O Lord God of Hosts cause thy face to shine and we shall be saved 5. Let every one take away his sinnes that lye at this door let every one sweep his owne door Zech. 8. 15. 16. Again have I thought in these â—â—â—yes to doe well unto Jerusalem and to the house of Iudah feare not But yet mark what followes These are the things that ye shall doe Speake ye every man the truth to his neighbour execute the judgement of truth and peace in your gates Let none of you imagine evill in his heart against his neighbor Both private men and men in publick place must reforme How far are we from this Never more plottings more heart-burnings one against another those in publike place neglect the execution of judgement they would have their policies beyond Gods wisdome God puts these two together and commends one as a meanes to the other the execution of judgement and peace but they have a further reach they will not exe curâ—â—â—dgement for feare of a breach of peace It is just with God that we should never have peace till we can trust God for it in his own way 6. Let us seek to God againe and call to him for the right key Lord reveale the way of thy worship and thy government to us and we will yeeld our selves unto it 7. Stir we up our selves against all difficulties Things are not yet so bad but we may help our selves if we have hearts Our Father heares us he can command many Angels to come to help to rowle away the stone yea he hath opened divers doores to us already We are indeed come to the â—ron gate the Lord can make that at length flye open of its own accord as Acts 20. 10. The Church was praying and after the prâ—â—on dooâ—es were opened to Peter and he had passed the first and second gate he came unto the iron gate that led into the City and there he found as easie passage as any where else In the mount will the Lord be scene 8. Let us exercise Faith in the blood of Christ let us as it were besprinkle this our door with the blood of the Lambe yea looke we up to Christ as the true doore to let into all mercy let Faith act as well as Prayer 9. Let us now especially watch all opportunities of mercy and take heed we neglect no more as we have done many very foulely lest hereafter wee knock and cry Lord open to us and it proves too late 10. Let us open to God who knocks at our doores it wee would have him open to us God knocks at the doore of every one of our hearts open we to him fully set all wide open for him Openye gates stand open ye everlasting doores let the King of glory come in These who doe thus are the true generation of those that seek the Lord let England open for God yet stands at the doore and knockes and if we will yet open to him he will yet come in and suppe withus and we shall suppe with him It is true God rebukes and chastens severely so he did Laodicea at that time when he stood at her doore and knocked Apoc. 3. 19. 20. if any Church be or ever was like to that of Laodicea we have been luke-warm as that was a mixture of Gods
as if he should say thus O Lord thou hast indeed granted unto us a great mercy in delivering us out of Egypt but herein we prize thy mercie that it is in order to the bringing us to thy habitation and it will bring us at length to the mountain of thy holinesse it is not so much that were are delivered from bondage as that wee expect to bee brought to thy holy habitation Now saith the Lord you shall sing as you did then look what causes you had then to sing you shall have the same causes to sing again when I am reconciled to you The last thing for the explication is when this was fulfilled or to what time this is to be referred There are four times that this prophesie aims at and refers unto First It began in some degree to be fulfilled at their returne out of their captivity from Babylon though it is true few of the ten tribes returned yet it is clear in Scripture that many of them did then return and had the beginning of this mercy and there was joy and singing Isa 12. the whole chap. is a song blessing God for their return from the captivity Jehovah is my strength and my song he also is become my salvation c. 2. This prophecie aims at spiritual Israel so in Rom. 9. it is applied to the calling of Jew Gentile together when the Gospel was first preached Jewes and Gentiles being called home became the spiritual Israel of God then there was singing Rom. 15. 20. Again he saith rejoyce ye Gentiles with his people The third time that it refers unto is the delivery of Gods people from under the tiranny of Antichrist typified by the tiranay of the Egyptians for that the former place is very full Rev. 15. 2. there you shall observe Those that had gotten the victory over the beast and over his image and over his marke and over the number of his name stood upon a sea of glass mingled with fire having the harps of God in their hands and they sang the song of Moses the song of the Lamb saying Great marvellous are thy works Lord God almighty just and true are thy ways thou King of Saints c. In this song which I make no question but this Scripture hath reference unto there are divers things observable To take them up briefly by the way 1. That they that sung were those that had gotten victory over the beast over his image and over his mark that is a full victory not only abominating Antichrist himself but any image any character of him any thing whereby they might seem to allow of him to be owned by him 2. They stood upon a sea of glasse mingled with fire The sea of glasse I find interpreted Christian doctrine so called for the clearness of it though not so clear as afterward it should be for there is some darknes even in glass but clear in comparison of what it was before for 2 K. 25. 13. The sea was of brasse which is far thicker and darker But there was fire mingled with this sea of glass that is though they had a clearer doctrine then before yet there were many contentions in the Church through many different opinions and much division there was even amongst the godly It was a sadde condition indeed yet it is ordinary especially when Doctrines come to be first cleared to have great contentions grow in the Church among godly men It is no wonder though good men should be of different opinions yea and have some heat of spirit one against another when the light first breaks forth When men are in the dark they sit together and walk not at such a distance but when light comes it cannot be expected but there will be differences But yet mark the godly then they did not reject the doctrine because there was fire mingled with it because there was heate of contention but the Text saith they were there with their harps in their hands they were professing this doctrine and rejoycing that ever they lived to that time to have the Gospel so clearly revealed unto them And they sang the song of Moses and not only of Moses but the song of the Lamb too What was that First great and marvellous are thy works in that we see we are delivered from Antichristian bondage as the people of Israel were delivered from Egyptian bondage with a mighty hand of thine Oh it is a marvellous worke of God that wee are thus at liberty Therefore know this that whensoever the Church shall be delivered from Antichristian bondage it shall be a marvellous work of God therefore we may not be discouraged because wee meet with some difficulties by the way for wee shal never be delivered but so as it shal appear to be a wonder if we should be delivered without difficulties we should not see the marvellousness of the worke Further Iust and true are thy wayes God in that deliverance will shew the fulfilling of all his promises and he will fully satisfie the hearts of his people who have been a long time seeking him and suffering for him Whereas the adversaries because God did forbear a while in his patience and let them prosper thought there was no God in heaven that looked upon them they scorned at the fastings and prayers and faith of the Saints But though the hearts of the Saints were ready to faile yet at last they shall say Iust true are thy wayes Lord we now see all thy good word fulfilled all thy promises made good now we see it is not in vaine to seek thee it is not in vain to wait upon thee for just and true are thy wayes O thou King of Saints God will appear then to be a King of Saints He is indeed the King of the world now and the King of his Saints but he doth not appear so clearly the kingdome of Jesus Christ as King of Saints hath been much darkned in the world We have some what indeed of the Priestly and Propheticall office of Christ made known to us but very little of his kingly office but when God shall fully deliver his people then they shall magnifie Jesus Christ as the king of Saints in an especiall manner Lastly they shall say Who will not feare thee thou King of Nations As if they should say wee see now it is good to feare God wee see now God hath made a difference between him that feareth him and him that feareth him not The Angel that John saw Apoc. 14. 6 7. Flying in heaven having the everlasting Gospel to preach cryes with a loud voyce Feare God and give glory to him The feare of God will be mighty upon the hearts of the Saints in those times This shall be the song of Moses that this Scripture aymeth at they shall thus sing as they did in the dayes of their youth when they came up out of the land of Egypt yea and the truth is their song
condition that God hath brought us to to have these liberties and ordinances according to his own way but within a while we may say as the Apostle to the Galatians Where is the blessednesse you spake of They would have pulled out their eyes for Paul What is become of all now All their beauty glory is quite damped let us take heed that when our hearts seem to be raised and mightily affected with mercies we do not soon loose our vigour heat It hath been so with England when they have had fresh mercies at first they rejoyced in them exceedingly I have read of the City of Berne when they were first delivered from Antichrist they wrote the day of their deliverance upon pillars with letters of gold Was it not so with us here in England I will only instance in that deliverance upon the fifth of November how mightily was both King and Parliament affected with it their hearts were exceedingly up then there was blessing God for their deliverance from Papists then there were prayers and thanksgivings set forth and in them this expression against Popery Whose faith is faction whose Religion is rebellion whose practice is murthering of soules and bodyes When the mercy was fresh how did their spirits worke then they profest against all kinde of Popery Reade but the Proclamation about the solemnity of that time and the expressions of the prayers then set forth and one would have thought verily then that Popery should never have prevailed in England again who would ever have thought it possible that a Popish Army should ever have had any countenance in England more Certainly if a Popish Army had been raised at that time when mens hearts were so up all the people of the land if it had been but with clubs would have risen and beaten them to pieces It is so with many young people when God first beginneth to worke upon their hearts O how are they for God! then their spirts are mightily up for Christ Psal 90. 14. O satisfie us early with thy mercies and then we shall be glad and rejoyce all the dayes of our lives It is a sweet thing when the latter part of that prayer followeth when God satisfieth young people with his mercy and that satisfaction abideth so as they rejoyce all the dayes of their lives afterward The Lord doth many times satisfie young ones with his mercy but they quickly grow dead and cold and their hearts are soone hardned and polluted and they doe not rejoyce all the dayes of their lives Another Observation that restored and recovered mercies are very sweet and precious mercies They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth They were once in a blessed sweet singing condition they had lost it but now God promiseth to recover them Iob 29. 2. O that I were as in months past as in the dayes when God preserved me when his candle shined upon my head and when by his light I warlked thorough darknesse as I was in the dayes of my youth when the secret of God was upon my Tabernacle Iob desireth this earnestly that he might have restored recovered mercies What a happy condition should I be in then saith he if it were now with me as in the dayes of my youth May not many in this place say so God hath been gracious to them in former dayes he hath given many sweet manifestations of his love many soule-ravishing communications of himself unto them but how have they lost them They may well say O that it were with us as in the dayes of our youth Oh that God would restore to us what mercy we once had what a blessed condition should we be in then But God here giveth a gracious promise that he will restore them that he will give them that which is the petition of David Psa 51. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation Lord I have lost it O that I might have it againe How happy should I be So Ps 132. 1. By the Rivers of Babylon there we sat down yea we wept there when we remembred Zion we hanged our harps upon the willowes They were in this sad condition but if one should have come to them and have said what will you say if you shall be restored againe and goe to Zion to Jerusalem againe and have songs there as much and as delightfull as before their hearts could not have held in them This mercy would be like that wine mentioned Cant. 7. 9. that is so sweet that it causeth the lips of those that are asleepe to speake If there be any life left such a mercy will raise and actuate it Psal 126. 1. 2. When the Lord turned againe the captivity of Zion our mouthes were filled with laughter and our tongues with singing when God granted them a recovered mercy As a poore prodigal that hath left his fathers house and afterward is come to beggery and misery and is under bondage is almost starved he sitteth down under a hedg wringing his hands falleth a lamenting the losse of his Fathers house and considering what comfort he had in his Fathers presence cryeth out of his folly and madnesse but if one should come and say to him what will you say if your Father should be reconciled to you and send for you home and promise to put you in as comfortable a condition as ever O how would this cause singing in his heart Thus God promiseth to his people that he would restore them to that singing condition they had lost They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth That which made this mercy so sweet was because it was a promised mercy Hence this Note Promised mercies are sweet mercies Luke 16. 61. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his people and hath raised up a home of salvation to us in the house of his servant David as he spake by the mouth of all his Prophets And ver 77. To performe the mercy promised there is the cause of singing Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that hath performed the mercy promised Giving out of a promise is sweet to a gracious heart it can sing then much more sweet is the promise when it cometh to be fulfilled 2 Chron. 20. 17. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord there is the promise Mark now how Jehosaphat and the people were affected with the promise And Jehosaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground and all Iudah and the Inhabitants of Ierusalem fell before the Lord worshipped the Lord. And the Levites and the child en of the Koathites the children of the Korhites shall stand up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voyce on high And ver 21. He appointed singers unto the Lord that should praise the beauty of holinesse and to say Praise the Lord for his mercy endureth for ever Jehosâ—phat had not got the promise fulfilled it was only
between Gods wrath and your former sins Further They shal not so much as be remembred by their name they shal not thinke of them The note from hence is all superstitious vanities though they may seem for the present never so glorious yet in time they will vanish and come to nothing God hath a time to make them so to vanish as they shall not so much as be thought off Col. 2. 22. it is said of the rudiments of the world that are according to the Doctrine of men they perish in the use in the present use that is they effect nothing that they seeme to be appointed for there is no good cometh of them for the present but in the very use they come to nothing but time shall be that God will cause them all to perish utterly and the very remembrance of them shall be taken away It is true for the present while mens hearts are set upon superstitious wayes O how glorious are they in their eyes but these glorious things will come to nothing whereas those Ordinances of God that seeme to be but meane things wherein the simplicity of the Gospel appeareth they shall appeare full of beauty though for the present they seeme to be darkened they shall be glorious in the eyes of the Saints to the end of the world Not long since what a stirre was there about the more then decent even superstitious adorning of Temples and building of Altars and brave Canopies what sumptuous things and fine knacks had they and all to set out a pompous superstitious way of worship this altogether prevailed as for the purity and simplicity of Gods wayes and worship how was it trampled under feet as an unworthy contemptible thing but these things that for a while seemed so glorious begin to vanish and wee hope ere long will come to nothing the very memory of them shall perish the purity of Gods worship and the simplicity of the Gospell in Gods Ordinances shall recover their beauty and glory when those braveries shall be no more 7. A true penitent cannot remember former sinnes without indignation for so is the meaning of the phrase they shall not remember Some of us may remember how we have beene intangled with wayes of false worship and how we have fullyed and wrung our consciences that way we said we would yeeld as far as we could but indeed we yeelded further then wee could for id possumus qnod jure possumus we have cause to remember it with shame and confusion of face Ye old men may remember the sins of your youth but how can you remember them and speake of them with joy and meryment that is an evil yea almost a desperate signe do you so remember the sinnes of your youth as to tell tales of the pranckes of your younger dayes with joy you are in a high degree left of God and given up to hardnesse you shall remember them with shame and indignation the sweet morsells of former sinnes coming up into remembrance should be bitter and sower unto you The last note is the taking off mens hearts from Idolatrous wayes is a speciall worke of God I will do it saith God I will take away the names of Baalim out of their mouthes Certainly the people in these times hung much upon their false ways of worship they had many arguments for their way no question but they had many distinctions to uphold it but there shall come a day saith the Lord when I will take away the names out of their mouths I will stop your mouthes I will take off your hearts from all those Objections and reasonings you have had to maintaine such ways as those were I will silence all then you shal see evidently convincingly to your shame that you have been gulled by such vaine false distinctions I will take off all those ingagements your hearts were bound in those being taken off I will soon take you off from all What a deale of stir hath God that we may speake with holy reverence to take mens hearts from wayes of false worship What a company of distinctions and objections have men their hearts clinging to them being very unwilling to be taken off now then their consciences are wrung yet they hold fast and then conscience hath another wring and then they another objection and another distinction and yet perhaps true grace lyes at the bottome after all this But God having a love unto them by some way or other takes off their hearts if he doth it not by settling truths upon the heart by his Spirit he will doe it by some notable works oâ— providence we finde it by experience so long as mens engagements hold that they cannot enjoy their estates liberties and comforts without yeelding to such wayes of superstition they will not be taken off from them they please themselves in this and perhaps they speake what they thinke that they doe nothing against the light of their consciences for why their ingagements keepe off the strength of truth that it comes not to a full conviction of conscience But when God shall by any worke of his providence take off their hearts from ingagements and then come and set before them the same truths that formerly he did they come to see now a convincing evidence in those truths they stand admiring that they saw it not before wonder what the matter was they read such bookes before that had the same arguments against their wayes and for the truth but they could not see the strength of them before now they see it apparently and they are ashamed of themselves every time they goe into the presence of God they are confounded in their owne thoughts to thinke that though truths were so clear before they did not see them now they see them with such cleareness as they thinke they could lay downe their lives for them whatsoever they suffer for time to come they can never yield to what they have yeilded to heretofore What is the matter God hath come in with power God hath taken off their hearts God attributeth this to himself I will take the names of Baalim out of their mouthes whatsoever they have to say for the keeping of such names and reliques of Idolatry yet I will come with power upon their hearts and take them out of their mouths Then indeed when God thus commeth the thing will be done And let us take heed we doe not stand out too long lest God come to take off our hearts by some dreadfull way of judgement or other It were better our mouths were stopped our objections silenced and so all the reliques and remainders of false worship were taken from us thorough the word and Spirit of God If that will not doe God will come in some other way and take the name of Baalim out of our mouths And if wee will keepe the memory of superstitious wayes God may extirpate the memory of them by such
his father and his friends But how mean and sinfull soever we are in our selves when once we are betrothed unto Christ he will not thinke it any dishonour no not before his Father that he hath such a Spouse but he will account it his glory before him and the blessed Angels that he hath betrothed her unto himself And again this communion makes the Afflictions of Christ the Churches afflictions and the afflictions of the Church the afflictions of Christ There is a communion in evill things as well as in good The very sins of the Church come to be charged upon Christ as a woman that was in debt before maryage and so subject to arrests if she be once maryed she is no more troubled with the Serjeants none can arrest her but all the debts are charged upon the man so though we be in debt owing a debt of punishment because we have not payed the debt of obedience and while we are out of Christ before this blessed marriage we may feare every moment to have some sergeant of the Lord upon us to arrest us to hale us to prison there to lye untill we have paid the uttermost farthing but when the soul is married unto Christ all debts all sinnes are all transacted upon Christ all charged upon him if the law come now and require satisfaction if justice comes you may send them unto your husband to answer all and he will not take it ill A husband perhaps may take it ill and thinke he hath brought himself to misery when arrests come upon him for his wives debts it may take off his heart from her but Christ will never love you the worse for all your debts when they are charged upon him he will willingly satisfie them and he will rejoyce in the satisfaction of them before his Father And if there be any affliction befall you Christ is afflicted with you Esay 63. 9. In all their afflictions be was afflicted So on the other side all the afflictions of Christ are the afflictions of the Church doth Christ suffer you take it unto heart as if it were your own suffering Christ takes your sufferings unto heart as if 〈…〉 his own 〈◊〉 And you take the sufferings of Christ unto heart as if they were your owne Thirdly In a married condition there is a mutuall intire love That is First loving the person more then what cometh from him True conjugall love is pitched upon the persons mutually rather then upon the estates or any thing they enjoy by the person So on Christs part his love is pitched upon the persons of the Saints Christ loves your persons more then al your actions It is true all these gracious actions you doe are lovely before Christ for they ate the fruits of his spirit but know the pitch of Christs love is upon your persons chiefly So the pitch of your love if it be a right conjugall love is upon the person of Christ rather then upon any thing that comes from him thou seest him altogether lovely in himselfe besides those riches of pardon of sin and precious promises that thou enjoyest by him his person is that which satisfies thy soule Secondly In prising the love each of other true love can be satisfied witht nothing else but love love villifies every thing that is tendered except it comes as a fruit of love and if there be love a little is highly prized if it be but a cup of cold water it is more then a kingdome without it the giving the body to be burned is nothing without it I will give you two Scriptures one wherein the Saints prize Gods love the other wherein God prizes the Saints love Psal 36. 7. How excellent is thy loving kindnesse O God Psal 91. 14. Because he hath set his love upon me therefore will I deliâ—er him I will set him on high Thirdly This intire love is a love in all conditions Christ loves his Church in their afflictions as intirely as he doth out of their afflictions Deut. 32. 10. He found him in a desart land and in the wast howling wildernesse he led him about he instructed him hee kept him as the apple of his eye Marke they were in the wildernesse in the wast howling wildernesse yet even there they were deare unto Christ they were kept as the apple of his eye The Church on the other side looks upon Christ in his afflictions as lovely still as ever Cant. 1. 12. A bundle of myrrhe is my well beloved unto me he shal lie all night betwixt my breasts Myrrhe is a bitter thing yet the Church professeth that Christ though bitter in his afflictions should lie as lovely betweene her breasts as a bundle of myrrhe I remember Herodotus reports of one Artemesia Queen of Halicarnaffus and Plinie speaks something of her too when her husband was dead she took his ashes drank it in wine out of respect to him though dead The Church loveth a crucified Christ as well as a glorified Christ A most notable example of the love of a Spouse to her husband wee have in our English Chronicle Elenor the wife of Edward the first the King having got a wound by a poysoned dagger she to shew the intire love she bare to her husband because she thought if the poyson did stay a while in the wound there would be no cure therefore with her own mouth she sucked out the poyson that was in the wound so ventured the losse of her own life to preserve her husbands Here was love in a Spouse to her husband There is the like love of the Church unto Christ if Christ be wounded with the poysonous tongues of ungodly men in reproaches and blasphemies let him be never so persecuted in the world they that are truly gracious are willing to suck in that very poyson to themselves so they may take it from him Let the reproaches of Christ fall upon me O let me suffer rather then Christ It was Ambrose his wish Oh that God would turne all the adversaries of the Church upon me that they might turne all their weapons upon me and satisfie their thirst with my blood this is the disposition of a true spouse of Christ The fourth is unspeakable delight communion hath delight the greatest communion the greatest delight the greatest delight that God hath is to communicate himselfe to his Son firstly and next in letting out himselfe to his Saints If there be delight in God in letting out himself to the Saints in reason one would thinke there must needs be delight in the Saints in letting themselves out into God in flowing into God God takes such delight in letting out his mercy to his Saints as that he was well pleased with the death of his own Son as a meanes conducing thereunto One would thinke that the death of Christ should be the most abhorring to the heart of God of any thing in the world yet the Scripture saith God was
entreated Jam. 3. 17. Peaceable gentle and easie to be intreated Thus in Christ he is easie to be intreated by his Church and the Church should easily be intreated and indeed is when the hearts of the Saints are right there is an ingenuity in them they are soone moved to any service Christ calleth for Lastly kindnesse is compassionate sensible of all sufferings so Christ and his Saints mutually Such loving kindnes as this should be in all maryage-communion where there is this loving kindness there is a sweet conjugall communion indeed and so far as any of this is wanting so farre the blessing of a maryage estate is wanting one reason amongst others why God makes so much use of this Allegory of marryage to expresse so great a mystery of godliness as the union betweene Christ and his Church is to teach those that are married to live so together as they may express all that excellency of communion that is between Christ and his Saints Now I put it to you who are in a marryed condition is there this loving-kindnes in you as may hold forth the loving kindnes that is between Christ and his Spouse so far as you want in your endeavours after this so far there is an evil when you goe home take this lesson with you labour to walke so in that way of loving kindnes one to another as that you may expresse how the loving kindness of Christ is unto your soules There are many frailties in the man in the wife but not so many frailties as there are in you in reference to Christ Christ beareth with more frailties in you then you can beare with in your wife Christ is not morose to you he is not a bitter husband to you I have read of Monicha Austins Mother who lived neare a Heathen and she had a very ill husband of a very crosse and perverse disposition this Heathen comes to her one time and asked her how cometh it to passe that you and your husband live so well together as you doe We know your husband is of a very crosse and perverse disposition yet we see nothing but there is a great deale of sweetness and love between you it is not so with us we cannot doe so for our lives Monicha gives her this answer It may be saith she when your husband is untoward perverse you are perverse again and you give crosse answers but Christian Religion teacheth me otherwise when my husband cometh home and is in passion Christian Religion teacheth me to be as loving and dutifull amiable to him as I can and so I have gained the heart of my husband It were a happy thing if all women would take this home with them and learne this of Monicha Austins Mother And so on the other side the man in reference to his wife this loving kindness is between Christ his Spouse let it appeare between man wise who professe their interest in Christ And this loving kindness of Christ Oh how should it draw our hearts unto him What more prevalent meanes to draw then loving kindnesse Marke that Scripture to shew the power of loving kidndnes 2 Chron. 10. 7. If thou be kinde unto this people they will be thy servants for ever say those ancient Counsellors of Rehoboam who gave him wise counsell If this be the way to draw the heart surely Christ must need have our hearts he is not a bloody husband but a kind husband to us let us then be his servants for ever It were a good lesson for all Governors to consider of that it is kindness that drawes the hearts of people they rule not over beasts but men therefore if they would rule over them with comfort and safety to themselves they should rule with kindness Hence Cant. 4. 10. it is said that the Charet of Solomon was paved with love for the daughters of Jerusalem it is an expression of Solomons gentleness toward the people of Jerusalem I have read of Alexander Severus when his Mother and his wife would put him upon harsh wayes objected to him his mildness yeildablenesse to his subjects saying you have made your power more contemptible by your kindnes yeelding so much to your people his answer was At securiorem but more secure and lasting Certainly it would be so if Magistrates had not the evill councell of young Gallants if they would follow the counsel of the ancient Counsellors to be kind to the people they would be their servants for ever their peace and safety would be more then now it is Christ expects loving kindnesse from you unto himselfe loloving kindnes likewise one unto another First Christ expects you should be full of loving kindnes unto him O blessed Redeemer what is that we should do that we should be kind to the The very phrase seems to be too low for Christ that Christ should look for our kindnesse Yes Christ lookes for our kindnesse and he prizeth it dearely nothing in the world is prized by Christ more then your kindness as a kinde husband prizeth nothing in the world more in his wife then kindness But how kind to Christ Thus you are kinde to him first when you cleave to him when he standeth in most need of you 2 Sam. 16. 17. saith 〈…〉 Hoshi is this thy kindnesse to thy friend that is what is thy friend in danger and hath now need of thee and doest thou now come from him Is this thy kindnes to thy friend thou shouldst now be with thy friend in time of his danger and need and that is kindnesse So I say there are some times wherein Christ standeth in more need of us then at other in suffering times in times wherein his cause hath many enemies and our help is called for if we should now forsake him in times of suffering may not Christ nay may not the holy Angels and Saints say Is this your kindnesse to your friend To come to Christ when you have need of him is not so much kindness but to come to him when he hath need of you this is kindnesse Secondly It is kindnes when we serve Christ in the midst of difficulties You have a notable place for this Jer. 2. 2. I remember the kindnesse of thy youth the love of thine espousals when thou wentest after me in the wildernesse To be willing to follow Christ in the wilderness that is kindness Christ doth not account it kindnes for us to serve him when we may prosper in his service when serving of Christ may stand with our own ends when we may keepe our shops our lands and possessions when there is no difficulty at all in his service what great kindnes is this but when for love to the Ordinances the truths of Christ you are willing to follow Christ even in the wildernes this is kindnes Christ will account it so however some men have thought that they have shewen great kindness unto Christ in that they
have staid born the brunt but how have they born it by yeilding to superstitious vanities being ceremoniall and Prelaticall it will be found that those who have been willing to follow Christ in the wilderness our of love to him his truth and ordinances that Christ will remember that for kindnes Thirdly For young people to give up their young yeares to Christ that is kindnes by way of allusion at least we may make use of that Scripture I remember the kindnesse of thy youth when thy bones are full of marrow and when the world seekes to draw thy heart after the vanities of it when thou mayest have thy delights and pleasures in the flesh to the full if then thou beest willing to deny all and to give up thy selfe to Christ this is loving kindnesse one that is old may possibly come to heaven upon repentance but what kindness is that for him who hath nigh worn out all his dayes and strength in wayes of sinne in the pleasures of the flesh and now when he is going out of the world and can have no more pleasure in his sin he comes to Christ for mercy what kindnes is here here is selfe-love indeed but little kindness Secondly loving kindnes one to another I wil bet roth thee unto me in loving kindness I will put such a spirit into you of loving kindnes unto your brethren as I have towards you The word that is here used for loving kindness you shall finde it often in Scripture used for Saints those who are called godly and Saints in your bookes in the Hebrew are called kinde ones it may be as well translated kinde ones as thus Psal 4. 3. Know ye that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself It is a most admirable text as if he should say there are multitudes in the world and all the world is mine but I looke upon all the world as refuse in comparison of some few onely here is a godly man a godly woman I set them apart they are for my self but the note I observe is That that word which in your books is godly in the Hebrew is the kind one the Lord hath set apart those that are kinde those that are of sweet gentle kinde dispositions And Psal 16 10. Not suffer thy holy one to see corruption the Hebrew is not suffer thy kinde one to see corruption it comes from the same roote with that that here is translated loving kindnesse So Psal 149. 1. Sing his praise in the congregation of the Saints of the kind ones and the same word againe is verse 5. Let the Saints be so full in glory the Saints that is the kind ones noting what an ingredient loving kindness is to Saint-ship unto godlinesse therefore it is not enough for Christians to be godly but they must be kinde one unto another too 2 Pet. 1. 3. And to godlinesse adde brotherly kindeness You thinke you are godly but you are of a rugged rough-hewen disposition surly cruell rigid severe froward perverse know here is the exhortation unto you this day from God if you will approve your selves to be godly Adde to your godlinesse brotherly kindnesse except you adde that you can have little comfort in your godlines It is impossible indeed for one that hath the power of godliness and hath the true comfort and sweetnes of it to be of a rugged and rigid disposition the reason is because there is that infinite satisfaction as I may so say that such a heart hath in God that there is nothing that can come from without that can make such a heart bitter there is so much sweetnes in that satisfaction that it hath in God as the Scripture saith A good man is satisfied from himselfe that it is not all the bitterness from without that can sowre such a heart It is true indeed if you have a vessel of honey a little gall will make all that bitter but if you have a vessel of gall a little honey will not make that sweet But in grace it is thus though there be a great deale of bitterness in a man or womans nature though they be of rugged natures yet a drop of true saving grace will sweeten all that gall and if they be once gracious a great deale of gall bitternes that cometh from without will not imbitter that sweetnes I beseech you take notice of this one note when God hath left men they grow more passionate and froward then they were before And I verily beleeve this is one ground of the frowardnesse and passionateness that is in professors they have made breaches between God and their soules their peace between God and them is broken and nothing then can give them content As usually it is when a man hath been abroad and others have angred him when his inward comfort and joy is gone then every thing angreth him he is pleased with nothing his countenance is lowring and he is unto ward to every one and why because he hath lost the sweetnesse of his own spirit and now nothing from without can content him all seems bitter unto him but let this man goe abroad and things fall out well it may be he gets a good bargaine hears of excellent good newes that his goods are come home safely hee can now beare a hundred times as much as before and you can scarce anger him why because his heart is filled with sweetness So it is here let a Christian walke close with God keepe his peace with him he will have so much sweetnes in his heart that it is not easie to put him into any passion of frowardnes why he hath enough within perhaps his friend his wife his neighbour is crosse but his Christ is loving though there be little comfort in my maryage with one who is so peevish perverse yet in my marryage with Christ there is satisfaction enough But when the heart hath made breaches between Christ and it self when it hath lost the sweetness in that marryage communion no marvaile if there be no sweetnes in the other maryage communion I will give you a notable example of this a man who before his breach with God was of a sweet disposition was very milde and loving but after he was of a perverse and cruell froward disposition The example is Saul When he was first chosen King how humble was he hee acknowledges himself to be of the least of the tribes of Israel and the least in his fathers house and when some raysed npon him and said shal this man raigne over us the text saith he held his peace and when others would have had them killed no by no means they must not be slain because God had shewen him mercy in a late victory given him But after Saul had fallen from God O the rugged perverse cruell disposition of his spirit then even to Jonathan his son a gracious loving sweet natured son then Thou
of God VVould you be so Learne then to exercise faith much about the infinite riches of the mercy of God in Christ this will fill you with all the fulness of God you complain of barrennes and emptines in your hearts and lives it is because you exercise so little Faith in these mercies of God in Christ God betrotheth his Church unto himselfe in mercies in bowels Let us learne to pleade these mercies before the Lord to pleade them when we are in any strait to pleade with God for bowels Esay 63. 15. Looke downe from heaven and behold from the habitation of thy holi esse and thy glory where is thy zeale and thy strength the sounding of the bowels and of thy mercies towards us are they restrained Lord hast thou not said that thou wilt betroth thy Church unto thy self in bowels Where is the sounding of thy bowels Lord let us have these bowels of thine in which thou hast betrothed us through Christ Oh what confusion will there be one day unto those that shall misse of all these mercies of God in which the Lord hath betrothed himselfe unto his Church VVhat will you content your selves now with crums that God casteth to dogs with the fruits of Gods generall bounty and patience when you heare of such glorious mercies as are in Jesus Christ These things should so raise our hearts that wee should protest as Luther did I protest saith hee God shall not put mee off with these things of the world with my portion here Oh no the Lord hath shewed me greater riches though I be unworthy of any yet I know his mercy is free why then should not I have my portion in these glorious things Come in then come in oh sinfull soule be in love with Jesus Christ the ways of godlinesse know that all these mercies are tendred unto thy soule this day to break thy heart even that hard heart of thine and they are as free for thee as for any There is nothing more pleasing unto God then for thee to be taken with the glory of the riches of his mercy Thou canst perform no duty so acceptable unto God as this to have thy heart break upon the codsideration of his bowels to have thy bowels yern again and to come in and close with this infinite rich and glorious grace of his Which if thou dost know that the first moment thou art united to Christ thou dost lanch into the infinite Ocean of mercy now thou breathest in the element of mercy now thou livest upon nothing but mercy Is it so Then know God expects a mercifull disposition from thee too God betrotheth thee in righteousnesse and putteth righteousnesse into thee in judgment and gives thee judgment too in loving kindnesse and makes thee loving and kind likewise in mercies and putteth mercies into thee bowels into thee also First toward himself Why can we be mercifull unto God what good can wee doe to God God expects you should have bowels toward him How Thus Dost thou see the name of this blessed God thy husband to be dishonoured in the world Oh thy bowels should yern thou shouldst have bowels working now What doth God look upon thee in thy blood in thy misery and doth his bowels yern toward thee Canst thou look upon God in his dishonour and his cause trampled under foot and do not thy bowels yern toward him It should pitie thy soule to see this blessed God to be so much dishonoured in the world as he is to see that there are so few in the world that love and feare this God who is thy God and hath done thee so much good VVhat is there any good cause up wherein the name of God should be honoured Thy bowels should work presently toward it Cant. 5. 4. My beloved put his hand by the hole of the doore and my bowels were moved for him VVhen Christ did but begin to open a door put but in his hand when there was any good but beginning to be done Oh my bowels were moved saith the Church and I could never be at quiet untill I had enquired after yea and found my beloved Is there any beginning to let in Christ into the Kingdome in his government amongst us Dowe feele him putting in his hand at the door certainly if we be skilled in the way of Christ we may seele him putting his hand in at the door Oh that our bowels would yern and cause our hearts to flow to the boâ—ntisulnesse of the Lord and joyn with Christ in that blessed work of his that he is about Our bowels must also be toward the Saints It is extreamely against the spirit of Christ for a Christian to be hard-hearted toward his brethren Christ expects bowels And as you would account it â—grievous misery to have your bowels rotten to have diseases in your bowels know it is as great an evill to have your hearts unmercifull that is to have a disease in your bowels so the Scripture phrase is Amos 1. 11. He cast off all pitie his anger did tear perpetually so it is in your bookes but the words in the Originall are And corrupted his bowels their bowels were corrupted when they were not pittiful toward their brethren in misery It was a grievous condition that Iehoram was in 2 Chron. 21. 15. when his bowels came forth by reason of his disease An unmercifull heart is a worse disease then this What are wee and who are we that Gods mercies should be shewen towards us why not our mercies toward our brethren then The Scripture calleth exceedingly for mercy in the Saints toward one another Col. 3. 17. Put on as the Elect of God bowels of mercy and kindness VVould you have an argument unto your selves that you are Gods Elect put on bowels then Never was there time since you lived or your forefathers lived wherein God called for bowels more then now Do you hear of the miseries of your brethren their goods spoiled houses burnt wives children ravished themselves imprisoned their bodies wounded and yet no bowels all this while what you hard-hearted in the meane time Are you the elect of God why I pray you what is your flesh more then the flesh of others what are your comforts more then the comforts of others why should you lie soft and safe more then others Is there any such difference betwixt you and your brethren that they should be in misery and you must be pampered and scarce feele the very wind to blow on you and yet in the meane time your hearts hardned towards them It is true God it is that hath made the difference you will say and God may make a difference where he pleaseth I grant it and it would not grieve God to make such a difference betweene you and them if he saw your bowels yern towards them But if God layes such afflictions upon your brethren who are better then you and have done more for him then
must not onely feare God but trust in his faithfulness Mat. 13. 58. Christ did no mighty works there because of their unbelief And Maâ—k 6 5. He could not doe no works because of their unbelief One says he did not and the other sayes he could not When we have a promise let us put on to get the goodnesse of God to work which is by believing For that I will give you as notable an example as any I know you have in the book of God of a believing heart catching hold upon a promise upon Gods faithfulnesse to work it out 1 Chron. 17. 23. and so on In the former part of the Chapter you shall finde God had promised David to establish his house to build him a sure house Well as soone as David had got the word mark how hee improves it how hee works upon Gods word As if he had said Seeing I have got his word I will hold to it he shall not goe from it saith he Therefore O Lord let the things thou hast spoken concerning thy servant and concerning his house be established for ever and doe as thou hast said Thou hast spoken do as thou hast said Ver. 24. Let it even be established I expect it seeing thou hast been pleased in such a gracious way to promise me thus I will relye upon it let it be even established that thy name may be magnifyed for ever I will plead thy name in it if there be any thing to be pleaded more then other I will plead it before thee but is not this enough Vers 25. Thou O Lord God hast told thy servant that thou wilt build him an house therefore thy servant hath found in his heart to pray before thee He had said before that God had spoken it here he goes over it again as making much of Gods word thou hast told me and I pray for nothing but what thou hast told me Nay yet still David encroacheth more upon God Ver. 26. Now O Lord thou art God thou hast promised this goodnesse unto thy servant I have not to deal with a man that will be fickle and inconstant wavering and unfaithfull but thou art God and I will trust in thee as a God thou art God and thou hast promised this goodnesse it is thine owne goodnesse now therefore do it See how he followeth God upon his promise And mark what admirable effects followed upon this Chap. 18. ver 1. After this saith the Text he prospered when his enemies came against him he took a thousand charets and seven thousand horsemen and twenty thousand footmen from Hadarezer and when the Syrians came to help that Hadarezer he slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men After this mark the connexion of that Chapter and this after David had improved the promise hee might have what he would thus the loving kindnesse of God was laid up in a promise but wrought out by Davids faith This is our evill that we do not improve this faithfulnesse of God wee lose abundance by it It is an argument that wee have base spirits It is a great evill between man and wife when they cannot confide one in another but are jealous how can such live comfortably together So we are jealous of God we lose our comfort in him Jealousie comes oftentimes from much basenesse of spirit and selfe-guiltinesse because we are of such base hearts our selves that is the reason we are so jealous of God Where there is much love between man and wife there cannot be much jealousie and if there were intire love in the Spouse of Christ there would not be jealousie You have an excellent passage for that John 5. 40. You will not come unto me that you might have life you will not believe in me that is the meaning then ver 42. I know you have not the love of God in you Is there any thing in the world more tedious to a Husband then that the Wife should be jealous of him think of it the same tediousnesse it is unto the Spirit of Jesus Christ that thou shouldst be jealous of him and not confide in his faithfulnesse Surely if we did trust in Gods faithfulnesse wee would not think to compound with him so as we do but wee would improve his promise to the utter most As you that are Merchants and have much owing you all the while you confide in your debtors you will not compound with them for less then your debt if you should come to one that ows you money and say I pray Sir pay in my money and I shall be content to take ten or fifteen in the hundred the party would think himselfe disgâ—aced what do you distrust me Do you think I will break No I will pay you every penny he stands upon his credit The truth is we poor wretches because we have not Gods promises presently fulfilled we would compound with God that is if God would give us any little comfort for the present we would be satisfied rather then waite for that which is to come though it be infinitely more this is a great dishonour to God and an argument of our unfaithfulnesse It is an argument of little faith if thou canst be satisued should God give thee tenne thousand worlds for the present if God should say what will yon have would you have your enemies destroyed would you have your peace and your trading in the world your ease and quietnesse Is this all This is to compound with God for twelve pence in the pound as it were No saith a gracious heart Lord thou hast promised mercy I expect it to the full I wil not abate the least farthing of it God loveth we should stand with him for his promise unto the uttermost farthing No but I hope God give me Heaven at last yet I doubt hee will leave mee here in the world This is to compound with God another way there are some who perhaps will pay eighteene or fifteen shillings in the pound but it is a dishonour to God to abate one shilling in the pound therefore we must not onely believe in God for heaven but for earth and for safety and comfort and that in times of greatest trouble God is well pleased with such kind of holy impudence as we may say that is to follow him for the uttermost and to urge him upon his word again and again to pay what he is ingaged for Again had we faith in God we would set upon great things though we see but little meanes Many of you who have but little stockes yet if you have rich friends that have given you encouragement and that you know will be faithfull to you you will trade for great things with your little stock because you know you have those friends will stand by you So though we have but little strength if God call us we should be willing to set upon great things because God hath stock enough and he hath
ingaged himself to stand by us I will bearoth thee unto me in faithfulness As I will be faithfull to you and you shall conside in my faithfulnesse so you shall be faithfull to me that I may confide in your faithfulnesse as I fulfill all my promises covenant vvith you so you shall be faithfull to make good all the promises and covenant with me The Spouse of Christ is such a one as the Spirit of Christ can confide in It is said of the vertuous woman Pro. 31. 11. Her husband trusteth in her Let him be abroad or at home in what company soever yet his heart trusteth in her he can leave all his businesse his writing or any thing that concerns him with such a wife VVhere there is want of this trusting of the heart of the husband in the wife there is want of comfort in their lives thus God saith of his people Esay 63. 8. They are children that will not lye I can confide in them I can turne them unto any businesse as I will for they are children who will not lye They are faithfull to God first in the great Covenant in the surrendring themselves to God as they doe at their first closing with Christ In the first act of beleeving every gracious soul enters into solemn covenant with God it will be faithfull in that covenant And they will be faithfull likewise in all their under promises vowes that they make to God in days of fasting and thansgiving and at other times As Gods promises are Gods gifts unto us so should our promises be as gifts unto God 2 Tim. 1. 9. According to his purpose and grace which was given unto us in Christ Iesus before the world began not onely promised but given unto us in Christ Jesus Gods eternall purpose is called Gods gift so our purposes and our promises ought to be as sure as gifts unto God So in thy conversation thou must be faithfull to Christ not prostitute thy selfe unto another but keep thy selfe for Christ Indeed the spouse of Christ may be ravished by open violence but she will not prostitute her self to any other she keepes her self onely for Christ Thus the Saints are described Ephe. 1. 1. faithfull in Christ Jesus There is a kinde of natural faithfulnes as I may so speak as in that place Esay 8. 2. I took unto me faithfull witnesses Calvin saith it is meant of Vrijah that base temporizing Vrijah who made the Altar according to the patterne that Ahaz sent from Damascus he is said to be faithfull that is he was a faire honest dealing man his word was as good as his bond so many civill men will be faithfull of their words But mark here in the Ephesians it is faithfull in Christ Jesus it is nnt onely faithfulnesse between man and man for many Heathens were so they would rather dye then cozen and cheate one another but this is a higher degree of faithfulness it is a faithfulnesse in Christ Jesus so the Saints must be faithfull faithfull to Christ Jesus and faithfull in Christ Jesus They who are thus faithfull are fit for the service of Christ Christ hath a great deale of work to do they are only fit for it Rev. 17. 14. The Lamb shal overcome why for they that are with him are chosen and called and faithfull not called faithfull but called and faithfull and therefore the Lambe shall overcome It were happy that all that are in this publicke service in the kingdom that are with the Lambe with Christ in this cause were called and faithfull the work would soon be at an end It is faithfulness we shall be hereafter reâ—â—rded for Well done good faithfull servant not well done good and rich servant or servant who had great imployment in publicke works but well done good and faithfull servant Every one of us cannot be eminent every one cannot be employed in publicke services but you may every one bee faithfull you that are poore servants you may be faithfull as well as a Magistrate as well as a Minister you that are poore labouring men porters and water-men the meanest you may be faithfull as well as the Nobles of a kingdom God regardeth faithfulnes rather then service hee hath no need of the services of men great or small it is all one unto him but he looks upon the faithfulnesse of their hearts And as you must be faithfull unto God and his cause so you must be faithfull one to another You who are servants if you be godly be sure you be faithfull to your Masters that there may be no occasion of any such scandoll as often there is concerning those who are professors such a servant is forward he must goe to sermons and he is set against ceremonies c. But I never had any so unfaithfull if mine eye be but off him hee is from his businesse presently God forbid there should be such scandols given So VVives who professe godliness be you sure you be faithful to your husbands and tradesmen who professe more then ordinary strictness in Religion be you faithfull in your dealings Hath Christ married himselfe unto thee in faithfulnesse he expects that his faithfulnesse to thee should have that reflection upon thy heart as to make thee faithful to others There is one note that is to be taken from all together As if God should say O Israel you have dealt unrighteously with me you have broken your covenant you have gone a whoring from me but I will betroth you to me in righteousnesse You have done foolishly in departing from me but I will betroth you unto me in judgement You have been unkind to me but I will betroth you unto me in loving kindness It hath not pittied your souls to see me dishonored but I will betroth my selfe in bowels of mercy to you You have been unfaithfull to me but I will even betroth you unto me in faithfulnesse The note from thence is this God dealeth not with those in Covenant with him as they deale with him It is a note of admirable use and comfort Marke the difference betweene Gods dealing with others and those that are in covenant with him Let others deale with God in a froward and perverse way God will deale with them so too Psal 18. 26. With the froward thou wilt shew thy selfe froward Will you be froward with God God will shew himselfe froward with you Will you be proud with God In the thing you are proud God wil be above you Will you be subtil and contriving mischiefe against God and his truth God will meet with the wicked and insnare them in the work of their own hands Are you resolute in wickednesse God will be as resolute as you for your hearts as Jer. 44 25. 26. But when God comes to deale with his Saints in covenant though they deale frowardly with him hee will deale gently with them though they deale proudly with him hee dealeth in a way
coming in at a grate others have somewhat more light they have common gifts which is like the light in the next story somewhat more clear but the light of the Saints is higher then all these they know God as their God great is the excellency of his knowledge the soul hath blessed satisfaction in it let us see the Father and it sufficeth us the fulnesse of glory that is let out into the soul the sanctification of the heart by the presence of the beams of the glory of God being transformed into the same Image it is the very beginning of eternall life Take onely this note about our knowledge of God by Christ what a different way have we to know God by from that which Heathens had If you reade the Hystories of the Romanes you shal find the poor mean ways of those wise men had to know God as thus they would look into the intrails of beasts thereby to finde out the mind of their gods they would observe how the beasts came to the slaughter whether willingly or not willingly whether haled or not haled they guessed somewhat at the minde of their Gods by that then they would looke into the colour of the bowels of the beasts then observe whether the entrals were sound or not then they would observe the fire of their sacrifices whether the flame ascended right or not thus they came to know the mind of their Gods What poor wayes are these we have JESUS CHRIST God blessed for ever the eternal Son of the Father who is come from the bosome of the Father to make all known to us the mind of God his and our Father We know the truth as it is in Jesus not onely as it is in the works of nature some know much of God in the works of creation and providence wee may know much of God in those great things the Lord hath of late done amongst us but to know the truth as it is in Jesus to know God in Christ this is another manner of knowledge then to know God in the way of his works here we see the truth really indeed when wee see it in CHRIST JESUS Certainly then none united unto Christ in a conjugall union can be an ignorant sot for Christ ingageth himselfe in his faithfulnesse upon this marryage of a soul with himselfe to reveale himselfe and the Father unto it Joh 8. 54. Of whom ye say he is your God but mark the next words yet ye have not knowne him A likely matter that he should be your God and you not know him a likely matter that Christ should be your Saviour and you not know him seeing he hath ingaged himselfe in his faithfulnesse that if you bee married to him you shall know him and his Father Ver. 21. And it shall come to passe in that day I will heare saith the Lord I will heare the heavens c. Now come in temporall promises after the assurance of mercy in the Covenant then come promises for corn and wine and oyle God would teach us this lesson by it that all our outward things at the least the sweetness and comfort of them depend upon the covenant in Christ I will heare The word is Respondebo I will answer so it may be rendred as well God will so hear as that he will answer Many times a poor man cryes to the rich he hears him but he will not answer but saith God I will hear so as I wil answer This is a most elegant expression I wil hear the heavens and they shall heare the earth and the earth shall hear the corne and the wine and the oyle and they shal heare Iezreel Miraorationis sublimit as a wonderfull sublimity of speech saith one Expositor of it hyperbolica metaphora a hyperbolica metaphor saith another pulcherrima prosopopoeia a most beautifull and delightful prosopopoeia saith another these creatures being put as it were in the person of a man as if they understood what they did As if the Lord should say thus My people you indeed through your sinnes have been brought into great straits you have wanted corne and wine and oyle you have been scattered in your banishment but when I shall betroth my self unto you and enter into a covenant with you then when you shall cry O that we might have these outward comforts presently the corne and the wine and the oyle as if they heard your complaints shall say Oh Lord we would help Jezreel and satisfie these thy servants the corne shall cry to the earth O earth let me come into your bowels I will rot there that so I may bring forth fruit for this people the vines and the olive shall desire the earth to receive them to give juice and nourishment to them that they may refresh these reconciled ones to God the earth shall say O that I could entertaine the corne and wine and oyle that I may be fruitfull in my kinde but O heavens I can doe nothing except I have your influences and the shine of the sun to warme mee to make mee fructifie therefore O heavens come in and assist me that I may fructifie for Jezreel and the heavens they shall cry Lord we would faine help the earth that the earth may helpe the corne and wine and oyle that they may supply Jezreel but we can doe nothing without thine hand therefore doe thou heare us do thou give us leave to raine upon the earth that it may be fruitfull Thus the creatures are brought in crying to help Jezreel Take these Observations First See our condition in this world though reconciled to God yet while we are here we must be beholden to the corne and wine to the earth and heavens we know not how to doe without them Secondly VVhen we are reconciled to God then the creatures will be serviceable to us yea they will be greedy to do us good they will cry for it Let us take heed of provoking God the creatures then will be against us I have read of Cordius a martyr giving this answer to those who would have had him deny the truth if deny it saith he the Sun Moon starres will deny me light If we serve God the creatures will account it their happines to serve us Thirdly God useth to work good for his people by second causes He doth not send these things immediately from heaven but the heavens heare the earth and the earth hears the corne and the wine We must looke to second causes but take heed of resting upon second causes It hath been Gods work amongst us of late in finding out treacheries giving successes to manifest himself very strangly when the means have been very poor Nay indeed God hath made as much use of mens weaknesse as of their strength but let not us therefore be slack in the use of means let us do the best we can though God sometimes work beyond means and contrary to means
yet ordinarily he makes use of second causes not only to work ad praesent iam as Biel the Schoolman and others say that is only together with the creature but there is say they no efficacie at all of them issuing into the effect but the truth is God doth make use of second causes otherwise so that there is some vertue and efficacy in them to work the thing that God intends Fourthly there is a concatenation of second causes not onely an use of them but every one in their order supplyes the other the heavens heare the earth and the earth hears the corne one after another If we could see the comely order of the creatures wee should see them all hang together in a golden chaine as it is in the joynts of the body one bone supplyeth another one place is hollow to take in another so one cause in nature supplyeth and cometh in to the other As in our salvation there is a golden chain which we have Rom. 8. So in the creatures there is a golden chain of comely order and mutuall supplyance Fiftly God is at the higher end of the chaine and nothing can be done by any link of the chaine of second causes but by Gods being at the uppermost link Jezreel must cry to the corn and wine and oyle and they must cry to the earth and the earth must cry to the heavens he must be the highest cause Sixtly It is most comely and a great blessing when the right order and chaine of second causes hold As it is in Nature so in any Society in a Common-wealth in a City when all keep their due subordination as when the Trades-man works in his way the Magistrate in his way the Minister in his way and every Officer in his place every one keeping his order But when it is otherwise when they are out of order it is a great misery upon a City or Kingdom As it was once among the Athenians Themistocles saith of his son a bolâ— youth This boy can do more then any man in all Greece Why For saith he the Athenians command the Grecians and I command the Athenians and my wife commands me and my son commands my wife here was the concatenation of that government God deliver all societies from such a concatenation that the beginning of any publick work I meane the lower link of the chain should be perhaps in a whoremaster he should command one and that one another and so one after another This is a fearfull judgment where soever it is 7. God is the giver of all plenty hee accounts it his glory to give raine Ier. 5. 24. God there wonders that men will not feare him because of that Neither saith he doe they say in their hearts Let us feare God that giveth raine As if hee should say It is a strange impudence in men what will they not say in their hearts Let us feare God seeing he gives us raine Thus God gloryeth in this great work when hee heareth the heavens and the heavens heare the earth the heavens will be as brasse over us and the earth as iron unlesse GOD heare them and send raine Therefore let God be acknowledged in that rain we have had of late the creatures wanted grasse and the grasse cryed to the heavens and the heavens cryed unto God and God hath heard the heavens and sent downe raine and so we see the earth hath been refreshed abundance of good hath come to us by those showers Give God the glory of this 8. All plenty is given for the sake of the Saints How God heares the heavens and the heavens hear the earth and the earth hears the corn and the wine and the oyle and they hear Jezreel It is for Jezreels sake that the earth heares the corne and the heavens hear the earth and God hears the heavens Were it not for the Saints the earth wauld soon come to a confusion They are the blessing of the earth Isa 18. 24. 9. If the creatures work so graciously for us how should wee then worke for God and one for another What shall the creatures cry one to another and heare one another for our good and shall God cry to us and wee not heare God The senseless corn cries to the earth O earth help me that I may help Iezreel and the earth cryes to the heavens O heavens send down your influences and the heavens say We will heare and the earth saith I will heare Shall the earth heare and the heavens heare for our good and shall not we hear when God cryes for help God cries to you many times to helpe in his cause and wilt not thou hear to work for him O vile creature how unreasonable are thy ways before the Lord Again how should we hear the cries of the poor When wee are in want the corn cries to the earth and the earth cries to the heavens and the heavens cry to God for us VVhen the poore I mean Gods poore whom Gods hand hath made poore cry will not you heare VVill you be more hard-hearted then the earth and the heavens are seeing they heare you doe you hear the cry of your poor brethren Further if God will hear the creatures when they cry for us how much more will he hear Jesus Christ when hee cries for us It is our happinesse in part that we have all the creatures cry to God for our good but the top of our happinesse is this that wee have Iesus Christ the Mediatour of the new Covenant making intercession at the right hand of God continually for us Lastly Gods mercies go through when they work for the Saints the corn beginneth to cry to the earth that stays not here but the earth goes on and cryes to the heavens the heavens go on and cry to God Gods mercies to his Saints never leave till the thing be done And I will sow her unto me in the earth VVhat great mercy is this for God to grant plenty if he destroy his people Our Country is plentifull but if God should consume us out of the land what good wouâ—d our plenty do us Therefore saith God I will sow her unto me in the earth Indeed she is now a poor contemptible people there are but few of them remaining upon the earth but I will make them a seede and a seed that the Lord hath blessed I will sow her Here the Lord alludeth to the name Iezreel which signifies the seed of the Lord the sowen of the Lord. It was used in the first Chapter in an opprobtious way and in the latter end of that Chapter in a way of mercy I speak of it there therefore I shall not need say much now only this God makes use of the word here to put her in mind of what shee deserved as if he should say though thou beest a Jezreel and deservest to be scattered yet I will be mercifull to thee out of free grace
I will sow thee there shall come a blessing upon thee and though thou beest scattered up and down in the earth yet in all places thou shalt be as seed from whence my Church shall spring Hence the notes are First that Gods people are the seed of the earth But of that before in the latter end of the first Chapter onely I will adde a note of Ribera about it The seed saith he lies under the clods and at length fructifies so should the Saints be content to lie under the clods and though they may seem in regard of their afflicted condition to be dead to be rotten yet they shall be glorious and fructifie afterward Before the time of the Churches glory times of great calamity and distresse come which this rotting of the seed before the fructifying sets out unto us Secondly every godly man should so live as either in life or death hee should be as a seed from whence many may spring he should be a meanes that many should be begotten to God It is reported of Cicilia in the history of the Church a poore Virgin that by her gracious behaviour in her mattyrdome she was the means of converting four hundred to Christ As in the Indies one corn bringeth forth divers hundreds so we should labour to convert as many as wee can that some that live after may continue to beare up the name of Christ and the profession of his truth Especially be carefull of your children leave them as seed to hold up the name of God in thy family when thou art dead and gone And further I will sow her to my selfe The Saints are sowen unto Christ they are seed for Christ therefore all their fruit must be given up unto Christ Christ must have all the fruit we bear who should have the fruit but he that soweth it Therefore Cant. 7. 13. All manner of pleasant fruits new old which I have laid up for thee O my beloved Are we able to bear any fruit Let us lay it up all for Jesus Christ for it is he that soweth us unto himselfe we must not sow to our selves not to the flesh for then wee shall reap corruption but all for Christ And I will shew mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy Divers things about Gods shewing mercy after rejection were spoken of in the first Chap. Only these notes for the present There are none so rejected as that they can conclude that they shall never have mercy those that have committed the sinne against the holy Ghost excepted though Israel had not obtained mercy though they were cast out yea cast out to the beasts to be devoured yea saith God I will shew mercy upon her 2. Children of wicked parents may at length obtain mercy from God Though Israel be cast off yet her children shall have mercy A comfort to us in regard of the Idolatry of our fore fathers yea a comfort in the regard of the children that are to come Our fore fathers have broken the Covenant why may not we obtaine mercy But suppose we should be the generation of Gods wrath and not obtaine mercy yet we may have hope that the posterity following shall have mercy Thirdly Mercy after it is thought to be past if then it come Oh it is sweet mercy indeed when she seemed to be utterly rejected then to have mercy shewed this is sweet Fourthly Mercy is the cause of all the good the Saints have One Scripture for it Psal 57. 3. Send from heaven saith David David was in the Cave in a poor condition hunted for his life persecuted by Saul I see little hope from earth saith he therefore O Lord send from heaven What shall God send Angels from heaven to deliver thee David No but mark what followeth God shal send forth his mercy his truth as if he should say Lord though I have no help in earth though I see no Angels from heaven to helpe me yet let me have thy mercy and truth and that is enough This satisfies a gracous heart if he may have Gods mercy and his truth that is Gods mercy revealed in a promise Lastly God hath a speciall day of mercy for his people for his Churches I will have mercy upon her that hath not obtained mercy Let us cry to God for the hastening of this day let us open the miseries of our own Kingdome and of Ireland Oh when shall this day come that thou wilt shew mercy to thy owne people which thou hast told us of Oh that that day may hasten Come Lord Jesus come quickly And I will say to them which were not my people This is that we had in the first Chapter onely with some differences there it is In the place where it was said yee are not my people And I shewed you when I opened that place both out of the Romanes and out of Peter how the Apostle makes use both of that in the first Chapter and this here in the second onely take a hint of the truths in it First God hath a special interest in his people they are his people they are called his peculiar people Tit. 2. 14. The word hath this emphasis in it God lookes upon all other things as accidents in comparison and his substance is his people they are his very portion as Deut. 33. 19. and Exod. 19. 5. they are his peculiar treasure above all people in the world and Esay 19. 25. Assyria the worke of my hands and Israel mine inheritance I have made all people but Israel is mine inheritance This is the happines of the Saints therefore they are not as other people are Num. 23. 9. This people shall dwell alone and shall not be reckoned among the Nations this is a great ground of prayer Lord leave us not we are thy people called by thy name we have an interest in thee Againe This is an argument to walke so as God may not be dishonored by us for we are his people If those in a mans family walke disorderly it is a dishonour to the Master of the family it is no dishonour to him for a stranger or one who hath little reference to him to walke disorderly It is not so much dishonour to God for the wicked to walke disorderly as for the Saints in regard of their neerenesse to God And besides their light is as I told you three story high and if they sin they sin against a greater light then others doe their sin is greater then the sinne of the wicked in that regard Further I will say to them which were not my people thou art my people I will own them before all the world It is a great mercy for God to make it knowne to the world that his people are his people The world will not beleeve it they think they are a poor contemptible people but there shall come a day that I will make it knowne they are
he should sinne against them this aggravateth the sinne exceedingly To wrong love is a very great sin Delicata res est amor love is a most delicate thing and it must not be wronged it is tender a precious thing A man who is of an ingenuous spirit had rather a great deale be wronged in his estate then in his love he cannot beare the injury that is done unto his love when his love is abused that goes to his very heart So it goes to the heart of God for his people to sin against his love therefore it is said of the Saints when they sinne that they grieve the Spirit of God he never saith so of wicked men they anger God but the Saints grieve him because they sinne so much against Gods love Charge this aggravation of your sinne upon your hearts and be humbled collect together all the expressions of Gods love to you and let them lye glowing at your hearts and melt them But in that God bids him take an Adulteresse beloved of her friend and calls not this friend Husband I thinke those who goe another way expresse the minde of the Holy Ghost in this more fully thus This friend is not meant of one who is fully married but rather one in a way of marriage Amongst the Jewes it was usuall for all women to be under the protection of some men or other Esay 4. 1. Seven women came and tooke hold of one man and said Let us be named by your name we will eate our own bread and weare our own cloathes onely let us be named by your name let us be under your protection Even whores were wont though they had many lovers yet to have some one speciall man under whose protection and care they would be who was to see them not to have wrong and to make provision for them and such a one they were wont to call their friend And many times these friends would so provide for them that if they would be reclaymed forsaking all their other lovers they would give them good hopes of marrying with them at length Arias Montanus refers us to one Propertius in his first Book and second Elegie to reade about the charge and care of such a friend The Grecians had that custome likewise they called him under whose protection they put themselves 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the whore was called from it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 It is said of Plato that he had a whore one Archenassa who was called Plato's 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Here the Lord would have the Prophet take an Adulteresse beloved of her friend that is one that was a common Adulteresse and yet under the protection of some speciall friend so as if he might come in place of that friend and gain the love and affection of this Adulteresse to himself and in time getting her to be reclaimed he might marry her unto himselfe This is according to the love of God to his people that is as if God should say This people is a going a whoring but I will be content to take them unto my selfe I will be as their friend and so love them as a friend to protect them to have care over them untill such a time that there may be some experience of their being reclaimed and then I will marry this Adulteresse fully unto my selfe for God is not now fully marryed unto the Jews neither will that marryage be untill that glorious time of their calling comes but yet God is as a friend to them to this day that is God takes this people yet under his protection though they seeme to be in a rejected condition and so as he gives hope yea makes many promises that upon their return unto him he will marry them unto himselfe yea there shal be a more glorious marriage between the Jews the Lord Christ then ever yet there was between him and any people upon the face of the earth This I thinke to be the very scope and meaning of the words Beloved of her friend Somewhat sutable is that we have Deut. 21. 12. 13. when one of the Jews took a captive woman he might not marry her presently to himself but if he had a love to her she was to continue a certaine time and to be so and so purified and then he was to take her The Jewes are for the present as that captive woman they are in bondage yet God hath a love to them unto this day but so as they must abide a while untill God be maryed to them they are beloved of God but yet with the love of a friend The Seventy reade these words Beloved of her friend One that loveth evill things upon the mistake of the Hebrew word for indead a friend and evill are the same letters only differing in the points so there might easily be a mistake Who looke to other gods Their eyes are upon other gods Where the heart is there the eyes is Timor figit oculum so Amor Feare fastens the eyes and so doth Love The workings of the soule appeares as much in the eye as in any member the workings of love of trust and confidence appeare much in the eye They looke to other gods that is they have confidence in other gods Looking up to a thing in Scripture phrase is to have some confidence in it Psal 121. 1. I lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence commeth my help That is I look for help I have confidence and expect help But how here to the hills then What doth Davids help come from the hills Some thinke this to be the place where afterward the Temple was built and was then the place of the Sanctuary but for that it is said that usually in Scripture is but in the singular number the hill of God not the hils therefore I finde Calvin Mollerus and others thinke that David here speakes of confidence in the creature because he presently retracts him selfe in the second verse My helpe is in Jehovah As if he should say I lift up mine eyes unto the creature for help this is the frailty of my nature and of the nature of man to look for auxiliary Forces from Jerusalem which was a hilly place I looke for Forces to come from Jerusalem but they doe not come well I will not rest any longer upon them Jehovah is my help so they carry it But now I would rather if it may be free the Prophet from vaine confidence in the creature and so the words being rightly understood may free him if you reade them thus doe I lift up mine eyes unto the hils doe I expect help from the creature God forbid I should doe it for my help is in God Further sometimes the Hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is used for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and so it would bee translated above the hils other men look to the hils I look above the hils But rather thus I lift up mine eyes to the hils
the meaning of that First in their captivity saith God though you shal be long in captivity and in a low condition be content do not take any other god to be marryed unto as your husband I will be content I will stay I will have no other people upon the earth but you all the while you are in captiviâ—y But how doth God abide for Israel now God hath chosen the Gentiles how theâ— doth he stay for them Yes certainly God stayes for Israel to this day thus First all the Gentiles that are called they come into God as being joyned to the people of the Jews God honoured the Jews so farre as that all the Gentiles that doe come in are to be made the Israel of God But rather further thus God abides for the people of the Iews to this day in this sense God never hath taken nor never will take to himselfe any Nation upon the earth to be a nationall Church as the Jewes were and as it is probable the Jews shall be at their calling again though God takes the Gentiles that are converted and severall Congregations to be Churches but to marry himselfe to a whole Nation in that way as the Iews were that is if a man be born of that Nation it shall be sufficient to make him a member of the Church this God did never do since the Iews rejection and never will do it till the Iews be called again though God takes Kingdomes and so in some figurative sense a Nation perhaps may be called a Church but to speak properly and strictly to be a Church so as the Iews were there is no such nationall Church nor never will be till the calling in of the Iews again then God will be marryed to that Nation in a more glorious manner then ever God abideth to this day for that glory which hee intendeth for Iesus Christ untill they come in And this I take to be a great reason why God for the present suffers his Churches to bee persecuted so much as they are herein God suffers himselfe as well as they the Church ever since Christs time hath been in a low and persecuted condition the wicked have prevailed What is the reason God abideth for this people of the Iews and hee is pleased himself to undergoe many sufferings in the mean time do you abide for me I will be content to suffer much dishonour my selfe many shall come in to Christ but yet they shal be a poor contemptible people the wicked of the world shall prevail against them shall scorn them shall contemne them so that I shall not appear to the world to be their Husband untill you be called again I shall be as it were without a wife but when the time shall come that you shall return to me then I wiâ— manifest my selfe indeed you shall be a most glorious Church and then there shall be such a full marriage between us that all the world shall acknowledge it then they shall all come and say Come behold the Bride the Lambs wife This is the scope of this Scripture from whence these Observations First Husbands should not require of their wives any thing but what they will answerably do for them God doth so here Abide for me saith hee and I will abide for you there shall be parpari like for like Many husbands will require hard things from their wives but will doe little themselves and on the other side wives expect great things from their husbands but do little themselves There must be a proportion betweene what the wife expects from the husband and what shee doth to or for her husband and so mutually 2. In our sadde condition God suffereth as well as wee This may helpe us in our sufferings we should thinke though wee suffer much God suffereth as much as we why then â—â—ould we think much the people of the Iews if they had hearts might see it now God stayes for his honour till they come in So in all the persecutions of the Church doth not Christ suffer in that the great work of Reformation doth not go on It is true we are grieved 〈◊〉 Spirit of God is grieved as well as we and suffereth as much as we God â—oth as it were abide for us and stays for his glory Wee desire it is true â—hat God would come in and manifest himselfe then we shall be happy and â—ejoyce but so long as God stays our happinesse he stays his own glory What abundance of glory doth God lose in those praises hee should have if the Reformation were presently perfected but God hath other ends God is content to stay for his prayses let us be content to stay for what we desire to have it concerns God to hasten the work as much yea farre more then it concerns us to desire it we suffer something for want of it but God suffers more 3. That people or that soul that endureth hardship a long time for God and resolveth to reserve it self for him so as if it cannot have comfort in God it will have none elsewhere may assure it selfe that God reserveth himselfe for it Certainly nothing shall take off the heart of God but there will be a blessed marriage between that soule that people and him Is there ever a poor creature here is in a sad condition God seemeth to deal hardly with it yet hee findeth in himselfe this frame of spirit well though God seem to leave me and I am thus desolate yet if I can have no comfort here I will have none elsewhere I wil be content to stay and wait no creature shal have my heart It is true I am not able to guide my selfe but I am resolved the Devil shal never guide me I am not able to do the will of God but I will never do the wil of the Devil and if God should leave me never so long nay leave me eternally I wil never have any other husband I wil rather dye a widow I wil never let out my self to any if he doe not come in and marry himself to me I wil be without comfort as long as I live Is thy heart in this frame Peace be unto thee certainly God intends thoughts of mercy to thy soule there wil certainly be a marriage betweene God and thy soule And this frame of heart where it is oh how wil it help against temptation when a poor soul is in distresse and it may be God seemeth to go off further further I have prayed long and long and yet God seems not to heare afflictions they prevail why do you pray any more why do you come and heare any more you were as good leave off at first God wil never come you were as good take your pleasure for a while you can but perish at the last This temptation many times comes very sorely upon poor distressed soules But now when the heart can answer it is true the Lord indeed seemeth to be
the Teraphim You may understand it as a threatning by this similitude It is as if God would threaten to bring Israel into such a desolate condition as a strumpet is brought into not only when all her friends leave her which were her kindred her true friends but when all her lovers leave her too even those who were filthy with her those who pretended the most love to her in whom she took abundance of comfort and from whom she expected protection yet now she is brought into such a condition as she sitteth desolate for lorne and helplesse So shall ye be saith God your Sacrifice and your Ephod yea and Teraphim shall leave you Or rather thus Howsoever it is a mercy for God to take away false worship from a people Images and Teraphim yet in this regard it comes in a way of threatning because it would crosse and vex them to bee deprived of these Images and Teraphim it would bee a Judgement in their apprehension As for instance what a deal of stir have we with people when they conceive that any false worship shall be taken away from them they think they are undone in it when the inventions of men in Gods worship are but questioned what a do is there men think their gods are taken away as Judges 18. when the children of Dan came to the house of Micah and took away his Ephod and his Teraphim he cryed out after them Yee have taken away the gods that I have made and what have I more what worse thing could you have done more I had rather you should have taken away all I had and yet you say unto me What aileth thee Is it not so at this day What is it that now breedeth such disturbance in England at this time but that people thinke their Teraphim shall bee taken from them whereas they have heretofore worshipped God in a false way after the inventions of men and now God is pleased to discover light and thereis an enquiring after the government of the Church in the right way and the true manner of worshipping God they are even mad upon this and would rather lose their lives and their estates then their Teraphim should be taken away let that be taken away and how shall they be able to pray what will you take away their Religion This is the language of men in many ignorant places in this Kingdome yea the very language of many even amongst us here they are verily perswaded that the Parliament are intended to take away all Religion in the Kingdome and such principles the adversaries go about to infuse into men that the Parliament are a company of Brownists meerly because they goe about to enquire after the true way of worshipping God and would have the Land purged of all superstitious vanities Thus people cry out for their Teraphim Great is Diana of the Ephesians You may read the like in the history of the life of king Edward the sixth when he had but banished the Masse there was an Army rose in Devonshire and they sent severall Articles unto the King about their grievances as causes of their rising First they said that their children were denyed to be baptized as now they cry out that none but a company of Anabaptists doe all this the Popish Priests did then infuse into the people that were in those remote Countryes that they were to have no more children baptized thinking this would exasperate the people then against King and Parliament And then they complained that their Service was taken from them meaning the Masse King Edward was fain to write to them to tell them that they were exceedingly abused that they should still enjoy what was according to the word of God that their children should be baptized and for the Masse saith he the Common-prayer Book is that Masse the same that it was before only whereas it was in Latin before now it is turned into English and so he quieted the people of that Countrey Thus it comes to be a threatning that God will take away their Image and Teraphim because the hearts of people are so vexed when their superstitious ways are taken away Now upon this confusion when they are without King Prince Sacrifice Ephod Image and Teraphim when all is come to this confusion then comes the time that they shal return and seeke tho Lord their God and David their King When Gods time is come to raise the most glorious Church that ever was in the world a little before that there is like to be the greatest confusion that ever was in the world Lactantius I have made use of before in speaking of the first Chap. Great shall be the day of Jezreel tels us that just before the glorious Church he speaks of it at large in lib. 7. c. 15. 24. 28. all right shall be confounded Laws shall perish men shall possesse all things by force good men shall be scorned contemned and though these times saith he wherein we live be naught so that one would thinke that wickednesse were grown up to the height yet in comparison of those evill dayes that shall be a little before this glorious time these days may be called the golden age God will bring all into a Chaos first as he did in the first Creation then bring a glorious building out of that Chaos We know the raising of that glorious Church that is so much prophesied of is called a creation a creating a new heaven and a new earth and it is probable enough that as the heavens and the earth were first made out of a Chaos so those new heavens and new earth that God is about to make will be raised out of a Chaos out of that which seemeth to us to be but confusion VVhat do people cry out of at this day but of confusion all things they say are brought into confusion It is true confusion is an evill thing and we are to grieve for it and to seek to prevent it yet let us not be too much troubled for you see when the greatest confusion comes upon the people of the Jewes then follows the greatest mercy then they shall return and seeke the Lord their God never return before that time Indeed till men be taken off from all they will not return to God if they have any thing to go unto they will never return to God VVhen Saul had but a witch to go to he would rather go to her then seek the face of God in way of repentance Let not this be our way because God seems to leave us for the present and letteth us be in a confusion and we know not what to do let not our hearts fiet and vex let us not go to unlawful means For mark it was just a little before Sanl was to be destroyed that he was growne to that height of evill There was a time that Saul did enquire after Gods mind and God refused to answer him but yet
frame it is laborious and industrious to know the mind of God Whereas the heart of a sinner heretofore lay dead dull never stirred after God now it is in a stirting in an inquiring in a seeking way this is a signe of much good though thou hast not what thou seekest for yet be comforted in this that thou art in a seeking way Their hearts shal reâ—oyce that seeke the Lord. If thou beest seeking God in his ways though thou complainest I have beene seeking a long time but I know not the minde of God I cannot apprehend the love of God the pardon of my sins yea but the hearts of those shall rejoyce that seek the Lord if thou beest in a seeking way thou art in a saving way there is cause thou shouldst rejoyce in this that God hath brought thee into such a way They shall seeke the Lord and that not saintly but to purpose auxiously Jer. 50. 4. 5. They the children of Israel and the children of Judah when they shall be both together shall goe weeping and seeke the Lord their God and they shall aske the way to Zion with their faces thitherward Many of you come to aske questions but your hearts are not right your faces the strength of your spirits are not set to yeeld to the will of God when it is revealed to you And mark how it appeares that their faces are thitherward Come say they let us joyne our selves to the Lord in a perpetual Covenant that shall not be forgotten This is to seeke God it is not meerly to goe to a Minister and aske him a question but it is to goe with our faces with the strength of our spirits set to know the minde of God above any thing in the world and so to resolve to obey what shall be revealed to be Gods mind as to be willing to enter into a perpetual Covenant to binde our selves to yeeld to whatsoever God shal reveale When you come to a Sermon you must not come to get a little notional knowledge but come with your faces towards Christ and his truth before you come you should get alone if you be a true seeker and enter into Covenant with God that whatsoever God revealeth to be his minde you will yeeld to it obey it though you have heretofore gone against many truths revealed to be the minde of God but Lord no more now here I am ready and willing to enter into an everlasting covenant to be under the command of every truth Here is the right seeking of God They shall seeke the Lord their God their God this hath two references either to what is past or to what is to come To what is past their God that is the God who was once the God of the Jews the God of their forefathers the God of Abraham of Isaac and of Jacob. And secondly their God that is that God that is yet ready and willing to be reconciled to them not withstanding all their sinnes Thus they shal seek the Lord their God These two references afford two excellent Observations First This prevailes much with the heart of an Apostate when he can but think what God was once unto him before he did Apostatize and what he was unto his godly parents and predecessors There was a time that I enjoyed God sweetly when I went to prayer I had blessed communion with him it is otherwise with me now I have apostatized Let this consideration catch hâ—ld upon thy heart and turn it this day Oh turne turn thou apostate soul God who was once thy God in a gracious manner is that God that thou hast vilely forsaken yea thy fathers God also Thou hast a godly father a godly grand-father remember what a blessed God he was unto them and return Secondly Their God that God that yet they may have hope to enjoy notvvithstanding all their departings from him Hence the note is this The apprehension oâ— a possibilty to obtaine mercie from the Lord is a strong means to draw the heart to returne to him when they look upon God as a God in covenant with them yet and there is nothing to the contrary but he may be their God Let this be an argument to catch hold upon the spirits of all sinners who are departed from God thou hast departed from God in a soule and vile manner but Men and Angels know nothing to the contrary but that he may be thy God for all this Let me speake to the vilest sinner that is in this place before the Lord this day thou hast indeed most desperately and wickedly sinned against God the Jews have done so Hast thou crucified Christ they have done so hast thou denied the truth and followed false waies they have done so Notwithstanding all thy wicked and evil waies seeing thou art yet alive I doe this day yet once more pronounce thee in the name of the great God that there is nothing to the contrary that either Angels or Men can possibly know but that God may be thy God and that this day God may enter into covenant with thee thou with him this night he may come in and sup with thee and thou with him there may be a blessed reconciliation between God and thee return return thou sinful soul The Third Lecture HOSEA 3. 5. And David their King and shall feare the Lord and his goodnesse in the latter dayes THat the Jews shall returne and believe in Christ is most ordinary and famous both in the words and hearts of those that are faithfull saies Augustine In this their returne and seeking God they shall seek David their King For the opening this there are these five things to be inquired into 1. Who this David was 2. Why David is rather named then any other 3. Why he is mentioned in this place 4. Why joyned with seeking Jehovah 5. Why this Epithet is added to David here David their King For the first David clearly is meant JESUS CHRIST Nothing is more manifest then that Christ is meant by the name of David sayes Augustine The Scripture is cleare in this it is usuall in the Gospel to call Christ by the name of David Compare Esay 55. 3. with Acts 13. 34. Esay 55. I will give you the sure mercies of David what are those Act. 13. that place in Isaiah is quoted and there the word is Sancta Davidis the holy things of David the holy Ghost there going according to the Translation of the Septuagint as it is usuall in the New Testament And that Psalm 16. 9. 10. where David seemes to speake in his owne person Thou wilt not leave my soul in grave nor suffer thy holy One to see corruption this is interpreted of Christ Act. 13. 36. 37. Act. 15. 16. In the Assembly the Church of Jerusalem together with messengers of the Church of Antioch James makes a speech to the Assembly tels them of a prophesie that God would raise the
this that I speak you may as well beare with sufferings in Gods wayes and yet embrace them as God doth beare with sinns in your hearts and yet embrace you but it follows therefore I will allure the Heb. word translated allure signifies to entice and is used many times in the ill part blandiendo decipere to deceive by subtle enticing the Seventy in their translation thus Therefore also I will deceive them and the old Latine lactabo and others seducam therefore also I will seduce them so sometimes the word is God makes use of this word to expresse a very gracious affection to them the sweete and gracious wayes that God intendeth to deale with them in What God means by alluring of his people when once he is reconciled unto them may be expressed in these three things First I will open the beauty and excellency of the infiniteness of my grace and goodnesse and I will set it before them to allure them I will spread before their soules the beauty the glory of the riches of my grace Secondly I will out-bid all temptations of their lovers whereas before they went a whoring from me because their hearts were allured by their lovers their lovers proffering unto them such and such contentments and so did subtilly draw their hearts from me I will now deal with them in a more powerfull way then their lovers possibly could and I will out-bid them all Did their lovers proffer to them comfort I will bid more then they did their lovers proffer gaine I will bid more gaine did they proffer more honour and respect I will out-bid them in this too I will bid more honour and more respect so as I will perswade their hearts that they shall come to enjoy more in me then possibly they could comâ—â— enjoy in whatsoever their lovers could doe for them And indeed then hath the Gospell the true full gracious worke upon the heart of a man or woman when it yeelds to the profers of the Gospel as finding that all that the world can bid is now out-bidden I have a better bargaine here in Christ then the world proffers to me You know when one comes to offer so much for a commodity and another out-bids him he carries it away so when the world and lust and sin proffers to the soul such and such contents then comes God and out-bids all and so the bargaine is made up God carries away the heart Againe further I will allure that is I will come upon them even unawares and as it were steale away their hearts by a holy guile as S. Paul tells us that he caught the Corinthians as it were by guile I will secretly insinuate my selfe unto them and I will draw their hearts in such a sweet way in such a secret hidden way that I will take them before they are aware So it is with many a soule God takes it before it is aware though it is true that afterward the soul comes to understand things more clearely about Gods grace but at the first God hath taken the heart even almost before it thinks of him Indeed the sinner sees himselfe he is not where he was before surely there hath been here something working upon my heart I finde it otherwise with me now then it hath beene but how this comes to passe I scarce understand for the present but shall understand more like that expression we have in the 6. of Canticles ver 12. Ore ever I was aware my soule made me as the chariot of Aminadib That is the chariots of a willing people so the word Aminadib signifies My heart was caught and run amaine to God and this was before ever I was aware there came such wayes of Gods grace into my heart more then I thought of and caught my soul that my soul run mighty freely swiftly after the Lord and this is a blessed deceit when the heart is so deceived so allured so enticed As sometimes it is with an Adulterer he doth but give a glance of his adulterous eye and catcheth the Adulteresse before she is aware it may be she never thought of any such thing but there is a glance of an uncleane eye that catcheth the heart secretly Thus with Christ hee sometimes gives such a glance of his eye upon the heart of a sinner as takes the sinner before he is aware the sinner is brought in love with the wayes of God and with the truths of God even before he thinks of it We are to know that the grace of God hath a subtilty in it as well as the Serpent The Scripture Pro. 1. 4. attributes a subtilty to Gods grace It is a blessed thing to be thus out-subtilled as I may so speake for the grace of God to be too subtile for our sins As I remember Luther when he was charged for Apostacy he acknowledged it saith he I confesse I am an Apostate but how an Apostate from the devil falling off from the devill returning unto God such an Apostate I am So many a mans heart may be deceived but if he can say Blessed be God I am deceived indeed but so deceived that my sin is beguiled I am seduced but it is out of the wayes of sin into the wayes of God Many are easily allured by temptations they are presently taken by the devills allurements but they are very subtile in objecting against all the allurements of Gods grace but he is subtile enough to put off the allurements of sin and of the devill Therefore behold I will allure her and bring her into the wildernesse Here is some difficulty in this how comes this in Therefore I will allure her and bring her into the wildernesse and speake comfortably to her How can this to bring into the wildernesse be between alluring and speaking comfortably I told you that this second part of the Chapter was altogether mercy what can be meant then by bringing into the wilderness Some for the shewing that yet it is a way of grace that God intendeth in this phrase I will bring them into the wildernesse translate the words After I have brought them into the wildernesse Postquam per duxero eam so Tâ—emelius he was a Jew and therefore could well understand the Hebrew tongue he tels us that Vau that is translated and is as much as postquam after I have brought them into the wildernesse and then the meaning is thus After I have humbled them throughly as I did their fore-fathers in the wildernesse then will I speake comfortably unto them God humbled their forefathers in Egypt yet that was not enough hee humbled them afterwards in the wildernesse and then he brought them into Canaan many times God brings one affliction after another upon his own people to break their hearts to humble them throughly and at last he speaks comfortably to them It hath been so with us the Lord not many yeares since brought us into bondage it might have
of God This is to be wanton not to fear the goodnes of God The goodnes of God in the gospell telleth us that the grace of God is strong that the Saints shall persevere that those that are once in Christ shall never fall away therefore let us take liberty to our selves what need we be carefull of our wayes seeing the grace of God will carry us through Oh to abuse this goodnes of God thus is wicked the heavens may blush to behold it and the earth tremble under it But we have not so learned Christ the more of the goodnes of God in Christ is made known to us the more should we fear him The goodnesse of God in the Gospel is so rich that the truth is because the hearts of men are so vile and so ready to abuse it we are almost afraid to preach it Oh is this the fruit of the preaching of the Gospel Never was the Gospel so cleare as in England and in no Age so as in this Age and is this the fruit of all that men should draw such absurd consequences from this goodnesse of God that men should goe away harder from that which is the softning word VVhen we come to preach the Gospell the goodnesse of it we come I say with feare with what feare trembling lest it should cost the damnation of some soule The preaching the goodnes of God in the Gospel doth certainly cause ex accidente the damnation of many a soul Therefore in the mean time you who are Gods Saints know how dearly God tendereth you God will have the goodnesse of the Gospell preache◠to you though it cost the damnation of 〈◊〉 a soul you had need it therefore make a good use of it Let this meditation cause you to improve to the uttermost what you hear of all the goodness of the Lord. That which I hear is costly to some it costs the perishing of many a soule that I may have it though God sees that many souls will be hardned by it well saith God let them be hardned these my servants shall not want it though they perish for ever When a man hath a thing in his house and he hears that it cost dear even the lives of many men he hath other thoughts of it then before David had a reverent respect to the water of the well of Bethlem because it cost the hazard of the mens lives learne then to feare God and his goodnesse 4. Fearing God and his goodnesse is this in all rejoycing in and praysing God for his goodnesse there shall be a mixture of feare They shall be well skilled in this mystery of godlinesse when they enjoy so much of Gods goodness and are called upon to sing and rejoyce they shal sing with a mixture of feare Their hearts shall be very serious and spirituall in all their joy It is very hard for us to rejoyce in Gods goodness and not to have our hearts grow slight and vain it is a hard thing to keepe a day of thankesgiving with a serious spirit joy commonly causeth vanity in the hearts of men But now the goodnesse of God shall be so strong in their hearts that though they shall seek Gods goodness and rejoyce abundantly in it yet with a mixture of abundance of feare their hearts shall be kept very serious holy and spirituall in the service of God I will give you a text or two for this Exod. 15. 11. when Moses was blessing God for that goodness in delivering his people out of Egypt which was a typicall song as appeareth in the Revelation that bondage typifying Antichristian bondage mark the expression Who is like unto thee O Lord among the gods who is like unto thee glorious in holiness fearful in praises God is to be praysed but so praysed as his name must be fearfull in prayses Consider this in all your joyfull celebrating the memoriall of Gods goodness you must so rejoyce and blesse God as you must hold forth this before all you converse with that the name of God is fearfull in these praises you tender to him this a slight heart cannot doe So Psal 52. 6. The righteous also shall see and feare and shall langh at him Mark what a mixture here is the righteous shall see and feare and laugh he shall rejoyce but with trembling Psalm 2. 11. God much delights to have the glory of his goodnesse thus We have much goodnesse of God at this day and God calleth us to feare him and his goodnesse if we give him not his glory in this God may soone call us to feare him and his greatnesse to feare him and his justice to feare him and his wrath This is the argument now there is forgivenesse with thee that thou maist be feared But how soon may God justly turn this argument there is wrath with thee vengeance with thee there is sword fire blood storm an horrible tempest with thee therefore shalt thou be feared Our consciences are ready to misgive us when wee have any evill tidings for wee have much guilt upon our spirits we 〈◊〉 had much goodnesse indeed from God who ever thought to have lived to see that goodnesse you have seen but because you have not feared God and his goodnesse here is the reason of those misgiving thoughts when you heare of any ill newes oh now God is coming against us with his wrath that he may be feared Something might be said to open a little the difference betweene fearing God and his goodnesse and fearing God and his wrath and justice in a legall way Only thus in a word The fearing God and his goodnesse is such a feare as enlargeth the heart Other feare contracts the heart We have an excellent text for this Isa 60. 1. compared with ver 5. Arise shine for thy light is come the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee and so he goeth on describing Gods goodnesse that referreth to these times that we are speaking of then vers 5. Thou shalt see and flow together and thy heart shall feare upon that and be inlarged When the heart so feareth as it is inlarged unto God this is the fearing God and his goodnesse aright Again It is such a feare as yet the heart clings to God for ever It drives not from God but makes the heart cleave closer to him that is the phrase in the Text in the Hebrew They shall feare to God and to his goodnesse I will put my fear in their hearts that they shal not depart from me This keeps the heart to God Further This fearing God and his goodnesse workes the heart to a high degree of sanctification 2 Cor. 7. 1. Seeing we have such precious promises let us perfect holiness in the feare of God And Heb. 12. 28. Wherefore we receiving a Kingdome that cannot be moved let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverent and godly feare Lastly It is a feare that is joyned with love whereas the
other fear makes the heart to have hard thoughts of God take heed for ever of that feare of God that makes you to have hard thoughts of him In times of danger many begin to feare then presently they wish they had never ingaged themselves so much in these wayes that have such ill successe they now cry out of others you would needs do thus you see what is become of it But feare of God and his goodnesse is joyned with blessing God that ever you knew his waâ—es and were ingaged in them This shall be in the latter dayes God is content to stay for his glory untill the latter dayes that which is indeed his chiefe glory for though in these former dayes God hath had glory yet hee hath had but very little God is content to stay for that which is his chief glory untill the latter dayes Let this be an argument for our patience though we have sufferings now let us wait as God waiteth But the latter dayes when are these The times of the Gospell are generally called the latter dayes but this though it referreth indeed to the whole time of the Gospel yet especially unto the latter times of those latter dayes If you would know what these latter dayes are though I will not take upon me to give you the day or 〈…〉 I will shew you that it is like these latter dayes are at hand For giving light unto this that is a good help to us that we have in Daniel concerning the four Kingdoms there we have a propheticall Chronologie from the Captivity of the Jews unto the time when the counsell of God shall be fulfilled You have a description there of four severall Monarchies the Babylonian Assyrian Grecian and Roman Now in the last of these Daniel saith Chap. 2. 44. The God of heaven shall set up a Kingdome which shall never be destroyed but it shall breake in pieces and consume all the other Kingdomes and it shall stand for ever In this latter namely the Roman hath the Kingdom of Christ begun to appear already but God telleth Daniel chap. 12. 13. Thou shalt stand in thy lot at the end of the dayes Now observe the chiefe Prophesies wee have about the time of these latter dayes when they shall be set out in that expression of time and times and halfe a time 1260. dayes or 42. months all comes to the same three years and a halfe reckoning every day in those yeares for a yeare compare these prophesies Dan. 7. 25. And they shall be given into his hand untill a time and times and dividing of time Rev. 11. 2. The holy City shall they tread under foote forty and two moneths Vers 3. The witnesses shall prophesie 1260. dayes Now 1260. days are the days of three years and a halfe so the dayes of 42. moneths Then the woman in the wildernesse Rev. 12. 6. She shall be fed there 1260. dayes still the same number the witnesses shall prophesie 1260. dayes the holy Citie that shall be trodden under foote 42. months and the woman in the wildernesse shall be there 1260. dayes And againe Dan. 12. 11. From the time of the abomination that making desolate there shall be 1290. days there are a few days more not many but about this time you see the Scripture prophesieth of some great things to be done at the end of this time are these latter dayes But all the difficulty is to know the beginning when the three years and a halfe or 42. moneths or 1260. dayes begun then we may know when these latter dayes shall be Brightman makes the beginning of the 1290. days from Julians time when he would have set up the abomination that is set up the Jewish worship again by re-edifying the Temple that is sayes he the abomination of desolation reckoning 1290. dayes for 1290. years hiâ— time by computation will come out about the year 1650. The other wee have in the Revelation and that in Daniel likewise refers to the same notes the time that the Churches shall be under the persecution of Antichrist for a thousand two hundred and sixty years so long the Beast shall prevail and the witnesses shall so long prophesie in sackcloath and the woman shall be in the wildernesse for so long a time But when did Antichrist begin to reign For that take this rule It must be at that time when the Roman Emperour was broken and when the Dragon giveth up his power to the Beast when the power of the Dragon that persecuted the Christians under the Roman Empire is given to Antichrist so that now they come to be persecuted under him here is the beginning of the 1260. dayes That the Roman Empire must be given up first appeareth 2 Thes 2. 7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already worke only he who now letteth will let untill he be taken out of the way that is as generally Expositors carry it the power of the Roman Empire when that is taken out of the way then shall that wicked one be revealed theâ—e were many Antichrists before but then that wicked one that shall exalt himselfe above all that is called God shall have power to persecure the Church Hence it is observable that the custome of the Church was to pray for the continuing the Roman Empire upon this ground because they knew when that was broken Antichrist would come Now the breaking of the Roman Empire was at the raising up of those ten severall sorts of governmens called in the Revel tenn Kings and the raising up of those Kings was 400. yeares and something more after Christ as Chronologers tell us between the 400. and 500. years It is hard to reckon to a year there is so much difference in Chronologers computations after that time there must be 1260. days that is 1260. years Make this computation and compare all these Scriptures one with another it cannot be long but in this century that is now currant these latter dayes are here meant when the people of God and the Jews shal return to Jehovah and Davidâ— heir King and fear the Lord his goodnesse The nearer the time comes the more will these things be cleared Dan. 12. 9. Goe thy way Daniel for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the end and none of the wicked shall understand but the wise shall understand Take but one note and we have done why the Scripture sets â—â—is out rather by many dayes then by so many yeares The reason is because God would have his people think that time untill his goodnes should be revealed but a short time if he had said they should be 1260. years under Antichrists persecution this founds harder No saith he it shall be but so many dayes though flesh and blood may think this time long yet look upon it as dayes it is but a short time to me it will be but a short time to you within 1260. days you shall be delivered from his tyranny