I have gotten by the Word and by prayer and by the Ordinances can enable me to do that that you cannot do that 's something that when a man in times of Tribulation can carry himself above all so that men or devils are not able to put him in such a case as he cannot tell what to do It follows VER 6. For lo they are gone because of destruction But do you say to us What will we do in such a day Why we know well enough what to do we have a way to help us if all your threatnings should befall us yet we can have help why 't is not like that all this misery and disolation that you prophesie of it 's not like that it will come suddenly then surely we know what to do we will get to Egypt that 's not far off and if we cannot live here in our own Country we will go to Memphis that 's a brave City and there we may live well enough Many of us are Merchants and Memphis is as great a place for Mercandize as where we live and we will get thither Thus carnal hearts have alwaies some shifting thoughts and some plots in their heads thinking of waies to provide for themselves and indeed it 's this that takes off the hearts of men from humbling themselves before the Lord and making their peace with him because they think they may shift off Gods strokes thus and thus therefore they do not fall down with trembling hearts before the Lord and cry unto him Lord what wilt thou have us to do but they know what to do themselves and were it not for this that their hearts were thus taken off by shifts Oh! what humiliation would there be then before the Lord what subjecting to him what seeking of him Isa 57. 10. Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way yet saidest thou not There is no hope thou hast found the life of thine hand therefore thou wast not grieved Thou thoughtest thou couldst tell what to do therefore thou wert not grieved When God doth intend mercy to men he takes them off from their vain hopes from all their shifting reasonings and then mercy is at hand When the hearts of men are brought to this to cry Men and Brethren what shall we do and as Jehoshaphat We know not what to do but our eyes are towards thee I say when mens hearts are taken off from all their shifts and they come to this pass As for any thing in our selves we know not what to do but only our eyes are towards thee then is mercy at hand and never till then And therefore all the time that you are reasoning thus in your own imaginations all that while you are far from mercy For lo they are gone to Egypt because of destruction The Prophet speaks here of a thing as if it were done already Although they were in Samaria and in the Cities of Israel yet saith the Prophet Lo they are gone to Aegypt the wrath of God was too hot for them in their own Country and away they are gone and got to Aegypt for a refuge Carnal hearts in straits will rather make any thing to be their refuge than God And my brethren just these for all the world have been I fear and it may be yet are the thoughts of many among us Why think they Ministers of God they threaten Judgments that God hath a controversie against us and we see now some tokens of Gods wrath upon us Well let the worst come that can we hope to shift some way or other we may get into Holland or Germany or France or New-England if the worst come that can I hope we may have time enough to get one way or other to make shift to live and these back-doors that their eyes are upon have made them less solicitous about and less helpful in the great things that God calls all with a loud voice to joyn together with al their strength that they may deliver their own Land from that heavie wrath that hangs over you Well notwithstanding mens thoughts are for shifting it will prove that all will be vain Saith God You think to shift to this place and the other you may be disappointed for Egypt shall gather you and Memphis shall bury you my wrath and sore displeasure shall pursue you thither It 's a vain thing for men to seek to fly from the presence of God But certainly in some cases a man may fly from danger As in regard of mens Relations and Stations they see that their work is done in one place and God by providence opens them a door to another though not out of distrust but if when God calls for further work here and there is no door opened by providence but what 's broken open by themselves out of a distrust and slavish fear only to provide for the flesh I say such may expect wrath to pursue them wheresoever they go their safest places may prove to be their graves Egypt shall gather them that is taken from the gathering of dead bodies Memphis shall bury them Memphis was a principal city in Egypt that now is known by the name of Grand Caer your Merchants and Marriners they know that City that here the holy Ghost speaks of by that name and then it was call'd Memphis upon the name as some think of one of the King of Egypts Daughters A City very famous in Egypt for the Pyramides and the Kings Sepulchres that were there and the City that stood very commodious for trafick because it stood upon the River Nilus and there was multitudes of streets I am loth to name you the number for indeed it is incredible only this thing is remarkable that generally all the streets had at each end of them two gates so that they might be lockt up as a Tower and it may be the holy Ghost may allude the rather to that in saying Memphis shall bury you because every place was shut up and it 's the same City that you reade of in the 19. of Isaih Now say they We will go to Memphis a brave place for trafick and a very commodious City a very safe City that hath all the streets like so many Towers and we will go and help our selves there Yea but Memphis shall bury you saith God From thence the Note is That it 's a great affliction to be forced to leave ones own Country and never to return again but to lay our bones in a strange Land The Lord hath sent many of his servants into other Countries to live among strangers some there are that have gone among strangers yet through Gods mercy they have not so gone but God hath given them libertie to return again and though their going hath been as you know much aspersed of late yet when more weighty work may give leave I make no question but you will be fully satisfied
God would have but one Altar 74 Answ 1. These Altars did typifie two things 1 That Christ was to be the only sacrifice 74 2 That all our services are accepted only in him ib. 2. That it might be the bond of the Church Other Objections Answered 76 Obs 1 Mans inventions in Gods Worship are rejected of God 77 Obs 2 There is no stop in superstitious worship 78 Obs 3 We are ready to imitate our forefathers in what is evil but not in what is good 79 Obs 4. Take heed distance of time make us not to fear the threatning the less 80 Obs 5 Every age ads something to Idolatry and false worship 81 Obs 6 What ever names we give to things it may be God will give other names and titles 83 Obs 7 When mens hearts are set upon fals waies of worship it is just with God to let them have their desires to the full ib. VERSE XII Obs 1 Whatsoever is urged or practised in matter of worship it must have warrant out of the written Word of God 85 Obs 2 We should look upon the Scriptures as concerning our selves 92 Obs 3 The things of Gods Worship are to be looked upon as great things 96 1 Because they are from a great God ib. 2 The lustre of the great God shines in them ib. 3 They are the mysteries of Gods will 97 4 They are of great concernment 98 5 They have great power on the heart of man ib. 6 They make all those great that receive them 99 7 They are great in Gods account ib. Obs 4 The word is matter for the greatest spirits to exercise themselves about 101 Obs 5 It is a special means to obedience to have high thoughts of Gods Law 102 Obs 6. The worship of God is a great matter 103 The Word of God accounted strange 1 As not concerning them 105 2 Strange in their apprehensions 106 3 There is no sutableness between their hearts and the Doctrine 107 4 They use the Word as a stranger viz. for their own ends 108 Obs 7 Superstitious people that are very zealous in their own way of worship are very negligent in Gods way 108 Obs 8 It is a dangerous thing for men to have their hearts estranged from Gods Law 110 The Degrees of the hearts estrangement from God 1 His delight in God abates 111 2 They are less frequent together ib. 3 He hath hard thoughts of Gods Word ib 4 He wisheth the things in the Word were otherwise ib. 5 He begins to listen to things that are against the Word 112 6 He will not search throughly into truths ib. 7 An engagement in some unlawful practice ib. 8 Weighty arguments now become weak ib. 9 He violently rejects the Word ib. Obs 8 That which mens corrupt hearts will not close withal they put it upon Christ as if Christ had delivered them from it 113 VERS XIII Obs 1 Men may continue in outward profession and yet the great things of Gods Law may be strange to them 115 Obs 2 Most men offer up nothing to God in sacrifice but flesh 116 Obs 3 To aim at Self in serving God eats out true devotion 117 Obs 4 If Self be regarded all is rejected 119 Obs 5 Men may be much in holy services and yet their sins stand upon the score nevertheless 120 Obs 6 Howsoever God may forbear wicked men a time yet he hath a time to remember all ib. Obs 7 God remembers the sins of wicked people especially in the performance of holy duties 122 1 Because we come into Gods presence ib. 2 Holy Duties are aggravations of sin ib. Obs 8 God visits mens sins when they think he neglects them most 123 Obs 9 Carnal hearts when God visits their sins plot which way to shift for themselves 124 Obs 10 It is one of the most dreadful judgments of God upon a Nation when he hath delivered them from one bondage to deliver them into the same again 125 Obs 11 It is just with God that those that inherit their fathers sins should inherit their fathers judgments ib. Obs 12 All places are places of misery when God forsakes a People ib. VERSE XIV Obs 1 God punisheth for sin when men are most secure 126 Obs 2 It is Gods favor that makes a man 127 Obs 3 The greater excellency God raiseth a man to the viler is his sin to forget God 128 Obs 4 When mens hearts are farthest off from God then are they forwardest in superstition 128 Objections answered 129 Obs 5 Men are more subject to secure themselves from outward things than from Gods wrath 132 Obs 6 When men bless themselves in their own thoughts they should consider what are Gods thoughts 133 Obs 7 Brave things are subject to Gods devouring fire 134 CHAP. IX VERS I. Obs 1 That 's a sad war where the Conqueror hath cause to be sad at the Conquest 137 Vse for England ib. Obs 2 Leagues wherein we much rejoyce may prove occasions of sorrow 138 Use Be not greedy of peace before the time ib. Obs 3 Carnal hearts bless themselves in in outward prosperity 139 Obs 4 When men be jolly and merry they should consider whether it be from God or not 140 Obs 5 We may prosper and yet have no cause of joy ib. Obs 6 Carnal hearts are immoderate in joy 141 Exhortations 1 Be not taken with the worlds jollity 142 2 Imitate them not in their waies of rejoycing ib. 3 Do not rejoyce as a People 143 4 Rejoyce not profanely ib. 5 Rejoyce not as having so much cause as others 144 Obs 7 Many that scorn mean men may not be in so good a case as they ib. Obs 8 Although we enjoy the same blessings that othess do yet we may not have the same cause to rejoyce that they have 144 Obs 9 It is a great argument of mens misery that others rejoyce when they cannot 145 Obs 10 That which we call little matter in corrupting Gods Worship God calls a going a whoring from him 147 Obs 11 A People may be free from the gross evils of another people and yet be in a worse condition than they 147 Proved 148 Obs 12 To be constant to evil principles is not so great an evil as to be false in good principles ib. Obs 13 The sins of Gods People are the greatest sins of all 149 Obs 14 Idolaters love outward prosperity because it is a reward of their service to their Idols 153 VERSE II. Obs 1 God often lets wicked men come near a mercy and then cuts them off 154 Obs 2 God strikes wicked men in those things their hearts are mâ—st set upon ib. Obs 3. The promises of the creature will lye the promises of the world will not 155 Obs 4 Men shall fail at last in what they think they to get in a way of sin ib. VERSE III. Obs 1 It is a great judgment of God to drive men out of a Land for sin 159 Obs 2 The state of the Church of God
of God When a man is crying for an Alms but for a piece of bread to be rejected is something but when a man is crying for his soul then to be rejected and by God himself this is more grievous Secondly The bread for their soul that is The bread they have to maintain their lives withal if they would offer that to the Lord it should not come into the house of the Lord to be accepted for by bread for their souls may be meant the bread that they have to maintain their lives for so we find the Scripture cals the soul the life of a man in Mat. 6. 24. Is not the life more worth than meat the words in the original are Is not the Soul of man It is here the bread for the soul that is the very bread that they have to maintain their lives their necessary bread that they have to live on although they should be willing to offer that to the Lord it shall not come unto him Now this is as if the Prophet should say to them Now you cannot be brought to them to offer your superfluity to God but your condition shall be such as if you would offer the necessary bread you have to preserve your lives if you would offer that to God God will not accept of it As if a man were so poor that he were ready to starve and yet for all that such a man would say Wel though I starve yet I wil offer this I have to live on and I would offer this to God rather than have it my self now you would think this should be an argument of a great deal of devotion But the case shall be now that though you would seek God with such earnestness yet the heart of God shall be so hardened against you as they will not be accepted Those who in time of prosperity are loth to deny their ease and loth to lay out any thing of their superfluity for God but time may come that though they should be willing to bite off their very nails and pluck out their eyes and tear their very flesh in indignation for their sin in respect unto God any way yet this God shall not vouchsafe to have regard unto Therefore this learn by it to seek God while he may be found and not to stand upon your own terms with God in the day of your prosperity and to say I cannot spare this and that for him but if we deny God now what is his due though we would give to him hereafter that that our lives lay upon yet it shall not be accepted 3. Bread for their souls that is they shall have no more bread than will serve for their very life from hand to mouth they shall have nothing to bring to the House of the Lord they shall be so put to it when they are in captivity they shall be kept so strictly as to have nothing but bread and water nothing but from hand to mouth they shall be far enough from having any thing to offer to the Lord to be accepted of him if they should think of bringing any thing to the House of the Lord alas what have they nothing but a little bread for their soul From whence the Note is this To have no estate to offer to God in his service in the waies of his publick worship is a great affliction It follows VER 5. What will ye do in the solemn day and in the day of the feast of the Lord NOW they shall remember their solemn daies their feasts and see themselves cut off from any further enjoying of them it must needs be a great sadning unto their spirits to think what daies once they had Oh what solemn times and feasts that they did keep to God for any to sit down in times of affliction and say I remember what daies of joy in the service of God I once had but now they are gone Oh! the daies that I was wont to have how sweet were they but all is now past and we must sit down in sorrow and affliction There was a time saith God by the Prophet that you would not suffer any to go up to the feast but now you shall be far enough from Jerusalem or any other place of Worship and the very remembrance of those solemn daies shall be grievous to you Oh! what will you do in those solemn daies Those solemn daies were daies of joy in Numb 10. 10. Thus I think some carry it they make those feasts to be the feasts that they should have gone up to Jerusalem in but I take not this to be the scope of the holy Ghost here but rather thus by the solemn Daies and Feasts of the Lord is here meant the solemn day of Gods wrath and vengeance upon them now for the making out of that I shall shew first that in Scripture the day of Gods wrath is call'd the solemn day and the day of Gods feast is the day of his wrath a day wherein God feasts First The solemn day it is the day of Gods wrath in Lament 2. 22. Thou hast call'd as in a solemn day my terrors round about so that in the day of the Lords Anger none escaped So that the solemn day is the day of the Lords anger there And Secondly The day of Gods Feast that time when God doth execute his wrath upon wicked men is the day of a feast to God In Revel 19. 17 18. verses besides other texts An Angel cried with a loud voice to all the fowls that fly in the Heavens Come and gather your selves together to the supper of the great God that ye may eat the flesh of Kings and the flesh of Captains and the flesh of Mighty men and the flesh of Horses and of them that sit on them and the flesh of all men both free and bond both smal and great it is the day of the Lords feast Now 't is a solemn day a day of the execution of Gods wrath because now God executes wrath publickly and brings much wrath together Thou hast call'd as in a solemn day my terrors round about You know that in the day of a petty Sessions there may be some justice done but more privatly But in a day of solemn Assizes when there is a full Goal delivery then judgment is done publickly so God executes justice sometimes upon men particularly but God hath his solemn day to execute his judgments publickly before all and then the Lord feasts The day of execution of Gods wrath upon wicked men is a day of feast upon this ground First Because the day of their feasts were daies of slaying sacrifices so they should now be slain and God would account even their bodies that were slain to be as sacrifices for this great feast of his In Isa 34. 6. The Lord hath a sacrifice in Bozrah and a great slaughter in the Land of Idumea And in
Zeph. 1. 7. The day of the Lord is at hand the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice he hath bid his guests And then it shall come to pass in the day of the Lords sacrifice that I will punish the Princes and the Kings Children c. He hath bid his guests so here 's the feast of God and the slaughter of great men are here the dishes as it were of sacrifice that God would have at this his feast the Executioners of Gods wrath are now his Priests to kill his sacrifices Soldiers and Executioners they are turned the Priests of God for to kill his sacrifice for this his feast Hence in Jer. 6. 4. Prepare ye War against her it is in the Original Sanctifie the War and in another Scripture those that were the executioners of Gods wrath were call'd Gods Sanctified ones And then further A day of Feasting is a day of Rejoycing this day of the execution of Gods wrath upon sinners especially great sinners that do escape mens hands it is a day of Rejoycing to God as in a day of Feast And this word that is translated Feast it signifies Dancing it is a day wherein the Lords heart doth as it were leap within him because of joy God rejoyces in the execution of his righteous judgments upon them therefore Gods wrath in Scripture is call'd Wine They shall drink of the Wine of his wrath the Lord at length when sinners continue impenitent is as much delighted in the execution of his Justice as men can be in drinking of Wine In Deut. 28. 63. As the Lord rejoyced over you to do you good so the Lord will rejoyce over you for evil And in Ezek. 5. 13. Thus shall mine anger be accomplished and I will cause my fury to rest upon them and I will be comforted It 's a very strange expression Oh! let us my Brethren take heed how we rejoyce in sin God may rejoyce in the execution of his Judgments upon us due to our sin Men have their daies in joy and mirth in sin and God hath his daies of joy and mirth in the execution of his wrath Oh! how sad is the condition of a creature when the infinite merciful God shall rejoyce in his ruin Surely then if God doth so rejoyce in the exceution of his wrath upon wicked men then the Saints also may rejoyce in Psal 58. 10. The righteous shall rejoyce when he seeth the vengeance he shall wash his feet in the blood of the wicked Taken from the custom of those Countries that were wont after their travels to wash their feet with cold water and that did refesh them so the blood of the wicked should be refreshment to the righteous Now this is not an insulting joy over them but rejoycing in the honor that God hath and in the good that doth come to the Church by the execution of such men both unto God and to his people So that it follows in Psal 58. 11. Verily there is a reward for the righteous verily there is a God that Judgeth in the earth The Saints may look upon wicked men when they see them executed and pitty them as men but they may rejoyce in this because they see such a spectacle before them as makes this Scripture to be good Verily there a reward for the righteous verily there is a God that judgeth in the earth And in Psal 52. 6. The Righteous shall see and fear and laugh Mark though he may rejoyce yet he must have fear mixed with it he shall see and fear and laugh And note that Scripture is spoken of a great Courtier of Doeg one that was a most desperate enemy to Gods people one that watch'd all the waies he could to do mischief and especially to do mischief to David and he was the man that came and stir'd up the King against David this 52. Psalm is made concerning this Doeg and a Prophesie of his destruction saith the Spirit of God The Righteous shall see and fear and laugh If a man can keep his heart spiritiual sanctifying Gods Name in the beholding such an object those that are eminent wicked men brought to execution he may Lawfully according to the mind of God feast his eyes in the beholding of it such a day is call'd the Feast of the Lord. And the Lord doth not use to feast himself but he calls his Saints to feast with him in Prov. 11. 10. When it goeth well with the righteous the City rejoyceth and when the wicked perish there is shouting And this is according to Gods mind it should be so And therefore Christians above all men should be far from a proud insulting even over these men but yet when God laies an object before them wherein they may see the answer of so many prayers and the fruit of the cries of so many thousands that were oppressed yea of so many thousand conscience oppressed ones that have cried against such a one if at the stroke of God they with hearts lift up to him shall give a shout that shall come up to the Heavens this pleases God and the holy Angels and it is musick fit for the day of the feast of the Lord thus the Saints may do in the day of the feasts of the Lord. Yea but saith the holy Ghost here by the Prophet But what will you do the Saints may do thus when God makes this his feast in the execution of such eminent wicked men he calls you to it to rejoyce and bless his Name he bids you look here and see is it not good waiting upon me the Saints may do so and bless God But what will YOV do in the day of the feast of the Lord What will wicked men do in that day what will become of all your jolity what will become of all your stoutness and wilfulness of all your pride of all your scorning of all your vain hopes when this solemn day comes and when the feast of the Lord comes In Isa 10. 3. we have a Scripture paralel to this What will you do in the day of visitation what will you do and to whom will you fly for help and where will you leave your glory Can you tell what in the world to do You can tell what to do now you have your wills and pride it and stout it out now but what will you do in the day of visitation when Gods solemn day and this feast comes Oh! what can they do but as the great and mighty men Revelations 6. they cry to the hills to fall upon them and to the mountains to cover them for the great day of the Lambs wrath is come Those that are the most bold and presumptuous in their sins when this day of the Lord comes they shall be in the most miserable perplexity not knowing what to do they know not how to bear that which is
of such poor things as they have in the Creature should imbolden their hearts against the great God of Heaven and Earth yet thus it is men little consider but even those things that their hearts do so much rest upon they are absolutely at the dispose of this God whom their hearts do not fear But note let the Saints of God take this Note with them Shall creature confidence take mens hearts off from Gods fear Then let Gods fear take your hearts off from creature confidence Certainly there 's a great deal more reason Oh! 't is infinitely irrational that creature confidence should take the heart from Gods fear but it 's infinitely rational that Gods fear should take our hearts off from creature confidence Thirdly Now they shall say We feared not the Lord. The taking from a People the protection of and benefit they might have by Kingly Power is a punishment of the want of the fear of God in them We have no King we are deprived of the benefit of the good that we might have the protection that we might have by Kingly power it is because we feared not the Lord what evil we feel in this let us attribute it to the want of the fear of God in our selves and in the people of the Land We complain of those that are about the King and of Her that lies in the Bosom of the King and of the evil of his own heart in part but whence is it that God hath left him either to them or to any evil in his own spirit The Lord in this punishes the sins of the People 't is usual for God to punish the sins of the People in leaving Governors unto evil courses in 2 Sam. 24. 1. you have a remarkable Scripture for this saith the text there And the Anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel and what then And he moved David against them to say Go number Israel and Judah The Anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel and he moved David against them to what God lets temptations be before David for to fall into that sin that might bring evil upon the people It was because the anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel It 's because that a people fear not God therefore it is that the Lord leaves Kings leaves their Governors to those evil waies that they are left unto and therefore learn we when we hear of any evil that is done by countenance of Kings or any power learn we to lay our hands upon our own hearts and say even this is because we feared not the Lord how easie had it been with the Lord to have wrought upon his heart Oh! what prayers hath been sent up unto the Lord for the heart of one man never since the world began more prayers for the heart of one man but the Lord hath seem'd even to shut his ears against the prayers of his people now let us lay our hands upon our hearts God hath denied our prayers it is because we have not feared him now certainly there hath been but little fear of God amongst us and little fear of the great God is still to this day among us And that 's the third Observation We have no King because we feared not the Lord. And then the Fourth is this The times of Gods Wrath and Judgments forces acknowledgment from men that they did not fear God When God comes against them in waies of wrath now they can acknowledg that they feared not God should the Prophet have come to them before and told them Oh! you are a wretched vile people there is no fear of God among you Why wherein do not we fear God as in Malac. 1. they would not be convinced but Now shall they say c. Now when the wrath of God is upon men now they shall say we see now apparently we feared not the Lord. As it 's said of Cardinal Wolsie when he was in distress Oh saith he Had I but served God as well as I served the King it would have been otherwise with me than it is but I sought to please the King rather than God and now I am left in this distressed estate He would have scorned that any should have told him before that he pleased the King more than God but afflictions they will draw forth acknowledgment for in afflictions God appears dreadful to the soul it is no dallying and trifling and putting off then we see we have to deal with an infinite Glorious and dreadful God and in times of affliction now conscience will brave over men it will not be quieted and still'd so as in the times of prosperity but it will speak as we reade of Zebul in Judges 9. 38. saith Zebul Where now is thy mouth wherewith thou saidest Who is Abimelech So saith conscience in times of affliction to wretched creatures Where now is that bold and presumptuous heart of thine Thou scornest at fearing and trembling before God and slightest his Word but where now is that proud wretched heart of thine And in times of afflictions now are mens hearts abased and humbled and therefore now they are ready to say It is because they feared not the Lord. Mark here they do not when they are in afflictions and troubles say I we may thank these kind of people there were a company of factious people and they would not yield to any thing and we may thank them for all this you hear no such words Oh no but it is Because we feard not the Lord. When the heart is in any degree humbled it will not put off the cause of evils to other men or other things but will charge its self as the cause of the evils that are upon it Oh how much better my Brethren were it for us to see the want of the fear of God by his Word to us and his Spirit in us than by his wrath against us or his stroke upon us Let us every day examine our hearts How hath the fear of God been in me this day hath the fear of God acted and guided me in al my thoughts counsels and actions this day How happy were it when we ever lie down to rest to have such a short meditation Hath the fear of God been the thing that hath Acted and Governed and Guided me in my course this day But it follows What then shall a King do to us or for us Suppose we had him now he is gone but if we had him what good would he bring to us if we had him As if they should say we speak much concerning our King but now we have not the King with us as he was but if he were with us again what should he do for us what would our condition be better than it is And indeed what good had their Kings done for them The People of Israel they were very desirous of a King they must
these poor people should desire here should be dreadful enough to have the Mountains fall upon them and the Hils to cover them Oh! but 't is not so dreadful as Gods wrath take all the terrors in the world they are nothing to the wrath of the Almighty when that is apprehended sometimes the wrath of God lies more heavie upon a mans Conscience than a thousand Mountains And my brethren if it be so dreadful in outward judgments how dreadful is it like to be when it shal come to be fully powred out upon the wicked and ungodly In Revel 9. 6. They shall seek for death and shall not find it they shall desire to die and death shall flee from them saith the text Oh! when Gods wrath appears against the ungodly it will be dreadful especially when the full vials of it comes to be powred out And further To live in misery is worse than present dreadful death to live in a lingring way of misery is worse than present death even in this world I remember Suetonius tels of Tiberius Caesar that there was one that he had adjudged to death and he that was adjudged to die petitioned to him that he might have his dispatch He answers him thus Sir you and I are not friends yet you must not die you must be kept in misery It is worse than death many times to be kept in a lingring way of misery it is so even in regard of the miseries of this world Oh! how much worse than death is it then to be kept under the wrath of God to all eternity How fearful is it to live in misery for ever then and never to die Why it 's better certainly Sence would apprehend it better for a man to be dispacht presently than to live in lingring misery yet if we did know all it were better to live in the greatest misery in the world for a wicked man than to die the fairest death thou wert better to live as a Dog a Toad yea as a stock-log at the back of the fire if it were possible than to die if thou knewest all being a wicked man but however hereafter in Hell then it were better if it were possible to perish than to live so as thou hast yet then thou shalt not die though it would be the greatest happiness to thee if thou shouldest after a thousand yeers cry to God Oh Lord that Mountains might fall upon me The Lord would answer You and I are not friends yet and if after a thousand years more thou shouldest cry Oh Lord that I might be crush'd to pieces the Lord would answer you still You and I are not yet friends Saith Bernard Oh! I tremble to think of that that I should fall into the hands of living death and of dying life where men do not die that they might for ever die saith he they do die that they may for ever die they are alwaies dying but never die but are kept by the Almighty power of God on purpose that they might be fewel for his wrath and subjects for his revenging Justice to strike upon Oh! consider of this you that are so ready to desire death because you are in a lingering misery at any time Is a lingering misery so evil Then what will be the lingering evil of eternity Fifthly observe The wonderful misery of wicked men in their affliction they have no whither to go for help they have not God they have no refuge but to the mountains and hills and what 's their refuge there but that they may fall upon them Oh the difference between a Saint of God and a wicked man in times of affliction When in times of affliction thou if thou beest wicked shalt rage and be mad and know not whither to go and the uttermost help that thou canst think to have is from the Hills and Mountains to fall upon thee but then the Saints of God shall be able to look up to Heaven and Cry Heaven is open for us open to receive my soul Angels come and guide it and bear it in Oh Arms of Mercy Bowels of Mercy spread open your selves to imbrace me here 's a difference And is not this better than to cry to mountains to fall upon thee and hills to cover thee And yet such a difference in mens estates doth sin and godliness make And then the last is Oh the wonderful evil of despair what a dreadful thing is desperation It suggests nothing else the greatest benefit it doth suggest it is to be crush'd in pieces so the help that many have it is a halter to strangle them a knife to murder them the water to drown them Oh desperation is a dreadful thing Francis Spira feeling the dreadfulness of desperation Cries out Verily desperation is Hell its self Upon all this Luther concludes with this exhortation Oh let us stir up our selves to the fear of God let us fly Idolatry let us beautifie the Word by our holy lives and pray to Christ that we might escape such things as these are that God inflicts upon the contemners of his Word If you would not come into this wonderful despairing condition Oh learn to fall down before the Word fear God now that you may not despair you that contemn and slight and scorn the Word now this may prove to be your portion ere long that this desperate cry may be the greatest ease that your forsaken souls can have VER 9. O Israel thou hast sinned from the daies of Gibeah O ISRAEL I am speaking this to you it meerly concerns you you have sinned from the daies of Gibeah you think there is no great matter in your sin why there should be these dreadful threatnings that you should come to this desperate condition Why say the men of Isrrel what means the Prophet to be so terrible in his threatnings pray what 's our sin Yes you have sinned as in the daies of Gibeah From the daies of Gibeah so it is in your Books or it may be read Beyond the daies of Gibeah or more than in them as Ezek. 16. 52. From the daies of Gibeah From what time was that You may reade the story of Gibeah if you reade the 19. and 20. of Judges and their sin I shall not need to spend much time now in opening what Gibeah was or the sin of Gibeah was because that in the 9. Chapter of this Prophesie and the 9. Verse there I met with those words that they had corrupted themselves as in the daies of Gibeah But it is not only the 19. and 20. Chapters where we have the story of that horrible wickedness of the abusing of the Levites Concubine but likewise that that we have in the 18. touching their Idolatry that there was among the people there was Micahs Idol so that the Prophet hath reference to the 18 19 20. Chapters of the Book of Judges Now you have sinned as in the
Policy 2. Reason 3. Experience may be one way and yet 4. Religion and the written Word another Luther Exod. 39. 43. explained * Opinions of the Learned nor Custom nor Antiquity the Rule of Worsâ—ip but the written Word only †Nobis noÌ„ liceat saluâ honoriâ—â—centâ—a quae illis debitur aliquid in eorum Scriptis reprobare atque respuere talis ego sum in scriptis aliorum tabesque volo esse intellectores meorum August Ambrose Object Answ Luther The Scripture is both 1 the Rule 2 the exposi or to shew the meaning of the Rule How mens writings may help us to understand Scripture The written Word a singular blessing Theodores Physitian Luther Schoolmen Synodus pari pietatis affectu reverentia recipit ac reveratur Concil Trid. sess 4. decret prim Quest Answ 2 Pet. 1. 19. illustrated 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 more sure than revelation The danger of revelations beside the Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Obs 1. Psal 119. 105. illustrated Use And Vers 106. An apt simile Expâ—s Law what 1. the whol word of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 docuit Multiplices Leges Scribitur 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Legitur 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 70. Adoro plenitudinem scripturaruÌ„ Tertul. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 simile Ps 138. 2 illustrated Psal 119. 27. opened Deut. 4. 8. applyed Mat. 5. 18 explained Isa 42. 21 noted Contemners of the Law Antinomians Saints prize the Law Apoc. 6. 9. Obs 1. Deut. 17. 18. 19. illustrated Alphonsus King of Aragon Obs 2. Psa 119. 129. illustrated Isa 40. 6. illustrated Prov. 13. 13 enlightened Obs 3. Uzza a Levite Uzziah a King Nadab Abihu Ezek 7. 20. enlightened Ier. 17. 12 illustrated The Reprehension The Word accounted strange 1. As not concerning us 2. Strange in their apprehensions Luther 3. No sutableness between their hearts and the doctrine simile Prov. 6. 21. applied 4. Vse the Word as a stranger i.e. for our own ends only Obs 1. Confirmed from the late times in England Holy-daies Sabbaths Christmass God not to be imitated in his worship The Sabbath is for commemoration of al the particulars of our redemption Obj. 2. Us of Admonition The degrees of the hearts estrangment from God 1. Less frequent 2. His delight abats which is also the first degree 3. Takes up hard thoughts of spiritual truths 4. Wisheth the things in the word were otherâ—wise simile 5. Harkens to contrary doctrine simile 6. Will not search throughly into truths 7. An Engagement in som unlawful practice 8. Former weighty arguments now weak simile 9. Become open enemies Isa 5. 24. Psal 119. 18 19. Obs 3. Vs against Antinomians The Spirit of God forsaw this generation Mal. 4. 24. enterpreted Object Answ Obs 1. Aman may continue strict in duties and yet have committed the sin against the holy Ghost Expos Obs 2. Prayer Preaching Isa 40. 3. enterpreted Gifts and Parts Expol. 1. 2 The Authors Exp. Obs 3. Instance in Feastivals and Fasts Why Christmass is so zealously kept An apt simile 1 King 13 In the present War The Cause The Pay God expects Self-denial in temporal not in spiritual things Obs 4. Amos. 5. 22. Amos Hosea contemporaries consent in Doctrine Obs 5 How to exercise Faith for Pardon in holy Duties Obs 6. 1 Sam. 15 20. Sins of youth punished in age simile Use to young ones and others youth sins ages terror Ier. 2. 2. Heb. 10. 3 illustrated Obs 7. Reasons simile Gen. 21. Exod. 4. Obs 8. Exod. 32. 34. Micah 7. 4 Isa 10. 3. 1. It notes their sin 2. King 17. 4. Obs 9. 2. Their judgment Deut. 28. Obs 10. Applicat to Engl. Obs 11. Quest Answ Ier. 44. Obs 12. the answering our desires is the execution of Godswrath oftimes Obs 1. A sign of much wrath Eccles 12. 1. 1 Sam. 12. 6. To be imployed in publick service is the making of a man Obs 2 Isa 43. 7. Obs 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Church is Gods palace Obs 3. Obs 4. Instanced in the late times in England Quest Answ Their sin in building Temples Hag. 2. 2â— and 4. 9. How superstition in them to build Temples what made the Temple at Jerusalem Holy and Peculiar to it No argument therfore from thence for the holiness of Churches Praying in Churches no more accepted unless with the holy Congregation Chrysost Hom. 79. ad Populum Some Heathens against it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 dogm Zen The Persians Xerxes magi Josephus l. 15. c. 14. Paule-work Strong places to be dedicated by prayet and reformation A notable story Obs 1. Obs 2. Englands enemies should have considerrd this Expos 1. Expos 2. Obs 3. Obs 4. Gualt The time of this Prophesie Expos Observ Use for England A 3d time The time helps to understand the Prophesie Israels malignants Obs Leagues and peace wherin we much rejoyce may prove occasions of sorrow Us Be not greedy of peace before the time Obs 1. Seculi laetitia est impunita nequitia Aug. in John tract 12. Amos 6. 4. Obs 2 Obs 3. We may prosper yet have no cause of joy An apâ— simile Obs 1. Expos 1. 1. Be not taken with the worlds jolity 2. Imitate them not in waies of rejoycing * Preached in Christmass 3. Not as a people The Dolphin 4. Not prophanely 5. not having so much cause as others Obser Instanced in this Nation Obser An apt simile Luk 13. 28. A fit similitude Obs 1. Obs 2. Object Answ Object Answ No Nation but Israel forsook their gods Ier. 2. 10. explained Obs 3. A special note Obs 4. Amos 3. 2 Rom. 2. 9. Ier. 18. 13. expounded Ier. 32. 30. opened Act. 17. 1 Sam. 6. 7. with 2 Sam. 6. 3. noted Some Antinomians noted Saints should sorrow must for sin Quest Answ God hath liberty to damn one for a lesser sin and save one that is guilty of a greater Instanced in the examples of Saul and David Expicat Applicat Observ simile simile Explic. Obs 1. Obs 2 Obs 3. Obs 4 simile Levit. 18. 26. Levit. 25. 23. A meditation in our walking into the Fields Canaan the Lords Land in a special manner Reas 1. Psa 95. 7. Heb. 3. 7. c. 4. 1. 1 Chron. 16. 15. Obser England another Canaâ— Corruptors of Gods worship the ruin of the Land Obser Use 1. The happiness of Beleevers Use 2. Obs 1. Obs 2. Obs 3. Wine and Oyl in sacrifice what it signified Obs 1. Obs 2. Iudg. 9. 13 enlightned Duties of Religion a Saints recreation Delicatares est spiritm sanctus Tert. Num 19. 11. 14. The dead carcass of a beast did not somuch defile as the carcass of a dead man Numb 11. 31. What this signified Why a dead body defiled Funeral mournings Why if imoÌ„derate not pleasing to God Why they were to be so long unclean that mourned for the dead Levit. 10. 19. enlightned Deut. 12. 7. 18. Chap. 26. 13 14. illustrated Even sorrow for sin must