A Gracious Reproof TO PHARASAICAL SAINTS Causlesly murmuring at GODS MERCIES TOWARD PENITENT SINNERS In Explication of Luc. 15.30 31. Written by JOHN HORNE sometimes Minister of Lin Allhallows Psal 119.1 2 3. Blessed are the undefil'd in the way who walk in the Law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his Testimonies and seek him with the whole heart They also do no iniquity they walk in his ways Bat As for transgressors wo to them for destruction shall be to the workers of iniquity Psal 37.38 Prov. 20.29 Is thine eye evil because mine is good Matth 20.15 London Printed for Tho. Passenger at the three Bibles on London bridge 1668. TO THE READER Reader WHither thou beest Saint or Sinner and one of them assuredly thou art thou maist through Gods blessing find something useful for thee I hope worthy thy perusall and serious consideration in this insuing Treatise If thou beest one that knowlest the grace of God in truth and thereby art sanctifyed to God and followest after holiness here is that that may perswade thee and shew thee causâ— to be holy still and to go on in denying all ungodliness and worldly lusts to live soberly righteously and godlily in this present world abiding in Christ and walking with God Both as it sets before thee the good and blessed state of those that so do and as it shews the miserable and sad state of those that do otherwise and especially of such as having tasted the graciousness of the Lord withdraw from him again and after they have begun to be good turn to do badly forsaking the way of uprightness to walk in the ways of darkness Prov. 2.13 of which therefore also it doth admonish thee However strongly thou think thou standest that thou take heed of falling of which there is need enough to be admonished in this back sliding and truly and too shamefully adulterous and sinful generation Wherein they that depart from iniquity make themselves a prey and wherein men being frighted from or scoffed and derided at for nothing so much as truth and plety there is too general a temptation upon men be afraid or ashamed to be or however to confess and shew themselves to be seriously holy and religious Atheisme Prophanesâ— Popery and all manner of debauchery growing into fashion and nothing scarce looked upon as more obsolete and antick than soundness and sincerity with true zeal and fervency in the exercise and practise of the truth of Religion And yet it also admonisheth thee to beware of the leaven Pharasees which is hypocrisie of being too rash and censorious in judging those that having been prophane and evil livers or abusers of God's grace and truth return therefrom to a better mind or of judging God's and Christ's or his Servants dealings with such when by the profession of such persons he or evidently and apparently they are more gracious and ready to receive sinners than thou wouldst have them There is nothing more eminently discovered in God than love and charity to the souls of men whereof the whole Gospel and all the holy men in the Scriptures bear their testimony especially in his receiving repentant sinners And therefore nothing should be more desired by us and rejoyced in on their behalf than their conversion to him and finding his gracious acceptance God's children should be and are in some measure like to God himself who is their Father and therefore as his elect holy and beloved put on bowels of mercy kindness lowliness of mind long-suffering and above all charity which is the bond of all perfection as the Apostle exhorteth Col. 3.12.14 Nor doth any thing scarce make men liker the Devil than to endeavour to hinder or to repine at the conversion of sinners or God's mercy to them as that was one concomitant or product rather of the Pharasees zeal and religion their opposing Christ and grudging at him for his charity to sinners so I suppose it was none of the least of the ingredients of that evil frame which occasioned his stiling them the children of the Devil Joh. 8.44 Well may we be glad indeed when we find any such thing as a sincere convert in these evil days and God gracious to sinners therein When there are so many Apostates from God so few Converts to him Converts there may be some to this or that opinion or practise from some open prophanness sometimes to thriftiness and worldliness and yet even such conversions are not so frequent in these days as from thriftiness to prodagality and rudeness sometimes possibly to some opinionative profession or zealous endeavour after righteousness that is not Gods but mens own but few that when they return return to the Lord Jer. 4.1 to mind and receive and walk in the knowledg and faith of him and his great goodness to mankind in Jesus Christ our Lord and so to behold his glory as thereby to be changed into his image by the operation of his power and spirit and so to worship God in the spirit as testifying of his grace in his Son Phil. 3.3 Rejoyce in Jesus Christ have no confidence in the flesh When we see any turning to this we have cause to be glad and rejoyce for them for they turn from death to life from misery to salvation and unspeakable felicity But alas more play the Prodigals in going from Christ and God and the living in the faith and knowledge of him as the fountain of life and righteousness to live upon either their outward or inward receits from him their riches friends wit parts or their righteous frames and endeavours receits and attainments which lived upon will soon with the Prodigals patrimony be spent and leave them to losse and beggary or â— servile drudgery and desire of husks then do imitate him in returning to God and Christ to live in his house and upon him and his provision therein the grace not in us but in Christ Jesus 2 Tim. 2.1 which is and may be matter of great lamentation Yet if thou beest a sinner walking in thy self thine own will wisdom righteousness lusts affections or appetites and so not in Christ Jesus not in the way of understanding not in the spirit but in the flesh and so in a state of sin as such there be great store both of persons in a sort zealous and of prophane here is that that may move thee to repent and to turn to God therefrom Both the evil and dangerousness of the state of sin and sinners and the acceptableness to God of true and unfeined repentance in returning to Christ and so to God in and by him is here toucht upon and it s largely evidenced that God is ready to embrace such as so do return and to give them the most sure signs and pledges of his mercy toward them as having joy in their salvation And indeed this is the main scope of the Parable herein paraphrastically explicated and of the Text opened and applyed and by
that after some time taking and attributing the Gifts and Graces of God to themselves and considering and growing full in themselves through them depart from God and run into by-paths and sinful courses tending to the destruction of their souls wasting and consuming Gods gift and talents upon their own and other mens lusts The other sort compared to the elder Son such as after grace received and their call and birth as it were into or in Gods house abide therein and cleave to God and his word and the commands and councels thereof walking justly and holily with God in the main and not departing from him as open sinners do for unto such it may be said as is here said by the Father more fully and proproperly Son thou art ever with me and all that I have is thine as David saith of such Blessed are the undefiled in the way that walk in the Law of the Lord. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies and seek him with the whole heart they also do no iniquity that walk in thy wayes Psal 119.1 2 3. Men that are truly righteous and accepted of God and turn not aside to crooked paths as others do Only here it might be questioned whether such persons may be guilty of such pride and frowardness as is here set forth in the elder Son and his carriage such disdain at erring and repenting Sinners such quarrelling at God and his dealings And it seems to me they may and sometimes have been found and yet are guilty of such like distempers through their over-weaning their own righteousness and walkings and dislike as they apprehend of others wickedness Yea we have divers instances of such like frowardness befalling and exerting it self in such more close-walking Believers and righteous persons upon divers accounts as to say 1. Sometimes because they see and perceive and with a carnal eye which yet may be in true and right Disciples else Christ would not have said to such If thy right eye offend thee pluck it out and cast it from thee do behold and look upon the outward prosperity riches honours and welfare of loose ungodly persons that are and continue to be so and on the other hand reflect upon their own sufferings and troubles Thus we finde that good man Asaph confessing to us that such a view of things had like to have turn'd him aside and made him slip yea it brought him to such a pass as that he was actually envious at the foolish when he saw the prosperity of the wicked and came to this conclusion Verily in vain have I cleansed my heart and washed my hands in innocency for all the day long have I been plagued and chastned every morning Psal 73.13 14. Whence also so frequent warnings and councels given to such by the Holy Ghost Not to envy sinners nor fret themselves because of such as prosper in wickedness and that bring evil devices to pass as is to be seen in Psal 37. Prov. 3.29 31. and 23.17 18. and 24.1.19 20. and the same carnal eye that leads to envy and be discontented at God for the outward prosperity of the openly wicked may lead them to stumble and be displeased at God for giving such upon their repentance more gracious testimonies of his love and ravishing satisfactions and assurance of Salvation then they have proved or felt in their more sober and zealous walking 2. Sometimes because God doth heavily try and exercise them with inward and outward troubles and afflictions therefore over-weaning their own integrity righteousness and good doings they are ready to expostulate with God and condemn and fault him as much as this elder Brother his righteous Father and this was Jobs case and weakness sure it is that he was no Pharisee as that word is used to signifie a seemingly righteous man only and a real Hypocrite for he hath testimony from God that he was a perfect man and upright above any in the Land one fearing God and eschewing evil and he could in truth and did say a great deal of his uprightness and integrity his holy blameless and good demeanor in chap. 29. and 31. more then any man scarce can say I believe and so much as put to silence the jealous and false surmises and groundless charges of his deceitful friends that would have fastned upon him the blame of hypocrisie and wickedness and yet he over-valuing his righteousness and looking and standing too much upon it fell into this distemper to murmur against and fault the Almighty condemning him and disannulling his judgement that he might be righteous as this froward Son did faulting God in vindication of his own integrity as if God punished him without cause and did more to him then he could answer and if a perfect upright man through temptation may fall into such a proud and froward distemper in one case it may be possible also in another 3. But we have instances too of righteous and good men charging God foolishly and murmuring against men for his and their respect to penitent sinners and for his equalizing or seeming to prefer them in his kindness who were below them in their works of righteousness and over estimated goodness A three-fold instance at the least we have of this 1. The believing Jews when they heard that Peter had gone in to Cornelius Acts 11.1 and eaten and drunk with them that were professed Gentiles that is uncircumcised persons murmured at him for it and took him to task till by repeating the whole matter with its grounds and reasons to them he gave them satisfaction and then they indeed acquiesced and glorified God for giving unto them also repentance unto life but before they contended with and accused him and that 's all that we finde this Son did to his Father and as they after St. Peter had opened the matter to them acquiesced so might this Son after this defence made by his Father for-we finde no reply thereto made by him nor further mention of him as we do of the zealous Jews afterward that were Christians Acts 21. â—0 2. The labourers first hired into the Vineyard Matth. 20.1 11. when they came to receive their pay because they that were hired at the eleventh hour of the day receiving their pay first received as much as they who had been hired early in the morning murmured against the Master of the house as if he had done them wrong in making them who had laboured but a little while equal in their pay with them who had born the burden and heat of the day saying These have wrought but one hour and thou hast made them equal with us ver 12. and yet these appear to have been righteous persons for in his answer he excepts not against their saying they had born the burthen and heat of the day as accusing them of falshood in their plea and as if they had been unrighteous loyterers and not labourers and they were rewarded for their work according to agreement
with them they could not stand before him their being nigh or with him would be as the nighness of straw to a consuming fire but therefore God hath interposed his blessed Son in his blessed Body and the vertues of his perfect obedience and righteousness between him and them and his blood alwayes cleansing their spots 〈◊〉 off preserveth them that they enjoy fellowship with him and may as the Children of Israel Exod. 24 10 11. See the God of Israel behold his glory with open face as in a glass though it he in their sight as devouring fire in the top of the Mount ver 17. Yet they may eat and drink in his presence and he not lay his hand upon any of those noble free and ingenuous children in the least to harm them but only as he did upon Moses while he passed by him Exod. 33.21 22 23. To cover and hide them from any harm that might be sustained from him Use 2. And seeing this is so excellent a concondition how should it press 1. All to seek the Lord and not to rest in any enjoyments of the world nor in any gifts or attainments from the Lord without and apart from the Lord himself but seek that they may be born to him of the knowledge of him in Jesus Christ and be brought back in their spirit to him and be with him and not love to live far from him in a poor worldly sensual perishing condition but alas none understand nor will believe the graciousness of the Lord and the goodness of being with him of dwelling in his House and Courts in the knowledge and faith of his Son and in unity with those that fear him but generally through the lyes and deceits of Sin and Satan harbour strange uncouth and hard thoughts of him as if he was such a devouring fire and so barren of any comfort content or satisfactions because not allowing but reproving those dirty pleasures of this world and sin that they desire not the knowledge of him nor care how little they come near him or he to them so strangely are mens fancies mindes and hearts possessed of evil prejudices against him and thoughts of him as if he and his company presence and wayes were the worst in the world no delight no goodness in them because too holy and strict we think for us sinful men So that while men are seeking after worldly good things riches honours friends pleasures any thing they neglect God as the only evil thing Job 35.9 10. Say not where is God our maker that gave us songs in the night Yea while they cry out of oppressions and injuries they will every one seek the rulers face and run hither and thither any whither for shelter but to God or Christ they will not come for there is none that understandeth and that 's the reason that as follows there is none seeketh after God Rom. 3.12 Men carry towards him and his presence as the Jews did towards Christ who was God manifested in the flesh They see no form nor beauty wherefore they should desire him Isa 53.2 Therefore they thrust him as a poor despicable infant into the stable afforded him no room in the Inne nay because they suspected He would lay claim to their Power Kingdom and enjoyments and deprive them of the pleasures honours and sweetnesses of them they sought betimes to kill him and as he grew up and was made more manifest amongst them the more they hated him and the worse they used him thrust him out of their Synagogues all to reviled and asperst him hated and rejected him as the worst of enemies to them and desired not to come to him to have life by him they would rather perish then have it there even so do men do to God and the knowledge and Spirit of him they take no pleasure therein but hate and thrust it from them as most destructive to their welfare and happiness as if the knowing and serving him and being alwayes as before him in his fear and presence could not consist with rest peace mirth gladness pleasure and satisfaction but would rob us of them all Oh filthy creature man that drinks in iniquity like water like some foolish naughty Childe that loves to rake in the dunghils and wallow with dogs in the dust and with swine in the mire and so loves them as that because the being with his Father in the house though in his best dining rooms would draw him off from those dirty sports and enjoyments therefore hates to come home or abide in the house with him nay kicks and flings and cryes and scratches and bites and fights with any body that would pull him out of a mudge pit which would soon choke him to bring him to be in the house with his Father that loves him and would give him of the best Wine and sweetest Cates in his house Such the carriage of the world toward Christ and God But as the Disciples of Christ being taught of God came to him and converst with him Saw his glory as the glory of the only begotten of the Father full of grace and truth and counted all things loss and dung for him and the excellency of the knowledge of him and would rather part with all things then with him they found such preciousness in him even so they that know God in and through him and are acquainted in their hearts and spirits with him they finde him in a measure the immeasurable fountain of light and delight and sweetest content and satisfaction A fountain of living waters in comparison of whom all other enjoyments are but muddy pits and broken Cisterns and they call to all Oh taste and see that the Lord is gracious blessed is the man that trusteth in him He that hath an ear let him listen to this call 2. All that do believe in Christ and do follow after righteousness and seek or know the Lord to abide with him and not run from him to follow after any other sight object or allurement that sin or Satan may make use of to allure them from him seeing its so blessed a thing to be with him Oh love the Lord all ye his Saints for he preserveth the faithful and plentifully rewards the proud doer Even rewards them with anger the bitter fruits of their folly who proudly slight or depart from him or hate and persecute him and them that love and cleave to him Blessed are they that dwell in his house and enjoy nighness to him and are with him for they are and will be still continually praising him and blessed are they that minde the way thereto for they shall go from strength to strength till every of them appear before God in Sion O how beautiful and amiable his Tabernacles What sight of his fair beauty is to be seen therein what sweetness to be tasted what safety and peace to be enjoyed Sure its better to be One day in the courts of the Lord then a
our meat and drink our drink that our heavenly Father hath provided for us we shall never be merry Fasting and mirth are not meet concomitants but feasting and mirth Our Father hath killed for us the fatted calf indeed he bid his Servants do it and so they do in a sort in their ministerial holding forth Christ crucified for us Yea all are his servants they that crucified Christ did but therein what his hand and counsel had determined to be done Act. 4.28 But the Son puts it upon the Father Thou hast killed for him the fatted calf God hath prepared him for us delivered him up for our sins and raised him again for our justification Sets him forth in the Gospel as a sacrifice offered up for our sins and gives him to us as the bread of life to eye and believe in exercise faith in and so feed upon him We are not put upon it or called upon in this feast to bring any dish with us but only to eat what he hath prepared and made ready for us It will make our Father's heart glad to see us accept his love and eat heartily of his meat and eat together like brethren lovingly He will not think his fatted calf ill bestowed on us if we will but eat heartily on it Yea therein he hath delighted its meat and drink to him his Sons obedience and righteousnesse and in and through him its as meat and drink to him to see us eat heartily on him too Do not look upon our meat only though its good to look on it too for it s so lovely and altogether pleasing to an enlightned eye that it will allure us to eat but also eat of it feed on it put it in our mouths let it go down into our bellies or hearts Cause our bellies to eat and fill our bowels with it Ezek. 3.3 If thou confesse with thy mouth Jesus the Lord and in thine heart believe that God hath raised him from the dead thou shalt be saved Rom. 10.10 But what have we no drink to our meat yes yes I warrant you our Father keeps a good bountiful house he hath a cup of good wine for us spiced wine the most choise wine the blood of the grape and yet it s but the fatted calf still For his flesh is meat indeed his being incarnate and made flesh for us his being delivered up to death for our ransome and redemption He as therein the way for us to God the mediator of God and us the receptacle for us and convayer of the grace and blessing of God to us This is our meat and its meat indeed And his blood is drink indeed his abasement and sufferings as obtaining for us and confirming to us the New Testament and its precious promises which are all in him by vertue of this his most pretious blood obtaining for us the continual pardon of our sins yea and Amen Affirmed and confirmed or ratified for and to us This this and the love herein testified is drink indeed Joh. 6.55 His love is better than wine will cause the lips of those that are asleep to speak Cant. 2.2 and 7.9 come then let us eat together of this meat this is better than to feed on the flesh of our own arms Isa 9.20 That 's pittiful stuff that is what we can do and gather up to and for our selves by our own strength our fastings prayers whinings pinings works of righteousnesse of our own doings our humblings and self abasements as reflected on by us The flesh and blood of this fatted calf is ten thousand times better it will make us strong to labour and work what is good and make us thankful to him that gives it to us and to acknowledge our selves infinitely unworthy such a dish to have been prepared for us but these things are the fruits and effects of it fed on not the meat we are to eat much lesse what is but the issue of our own power and strength Come then Brethren let us sit at it here and eat and drink heartily if we will be merry and glad and make our Father merry and glad and our Brethren merry and glad Let 's eat and drink and be merry here This will never make us Epicures nor drunkards nor riotous eaters of flesh Here is no excesse in this feast eat and drink of it what we can Eat we that that is good and let our souls delight themselves in fatnesse Hereto we are invited and called upon Isa 55.2 3. And here call we upon one another too as our Lord doth upon us all Eat oh friends yea drink yea drink abundantly of my love as some translate that Cant. 5.1 Our Father will never chide us or tax us for it as gluttonous eaters of flesh or drunkards I say for eating our fills here nor shall we need to spare this fatted calf is a living dish that will grow upon us in the eating it the more we eat the more we may eat and the more we eat of it the more welcome And the wine here will do like the oil in the miracle increase as we empty it or drink of it Here 's a Princely feast no law to limit us how much to eat or drink Oh! that all the Epicures drunkards and gluttons in the world would lay aside their epicurism in which they spend and wast God's creatures and break his laws and bring upon themselves misery and destruction and turn gluttons and drunkards here if they can Yea here its lawful and a priviledge to be drunken for so some read that in Cant. 5.1 Drink and be ye drunken oh my beloved or with my love And to be sure if Christ make men drunk he will never fault them for it if men drink here till they loose their own understanding reason senses it will never harm them for they loose them not for the worse as in bodily and sinful drunkennesse to be made like beasts but for the better to be made like Angels or conformable to Christ To be drunk into his Spirit his will mind judgment and to be carried above not beneath our selves Here we may call for cups and flagons too Stay me with flagons Cant. 2.5 be not drunk with wine then wherein is excesse but be filled with the spirit of love and of Christ there 's no excesse in that Eph. 5.18 19. This wine will exhilarate or chear us while it assures us of God's love in Christ and ascertains us of the injoyment of his promises yea and convays them to us This wine will indeed make glad our hearts Let 's eat drink and be merry then here not for tomorrow we shall dye but and we shall never dye We shall never drink our selves dead here as the drunkards of this world do but we shall drink our selves alive we shall drink death away and drink our selves into eternal life For whoso eateth my flesh saith our Lord and drinketh my blood hath eternal life Joh 6.56 And this will
beget mirth and as it begets mirth let us make it or be given up to it For it makes us 4. Sing Let us sing the songs of Sion not of fools that know not of this feast but of those that are instructed into Christ by his Spirit a new song even praises to the Lord Psal 40.2 3. Lauding and magnifying and blessing the Lord yea and blessing and commending the Lamb we eat of or this fatted calf and the cup we drink for its a cup of blessing such as it both yields blessing to us and is to be blessed and magnified by us 1 Cor. 10.16 Take a Psalm then Psal 81.2 But how shall we come by it why drink but off our cups of the wine forementioned and we shall have Psalms spring up in us as the spirit thereof also hath composed some by his servants the Prophets for us and take we of them Be we filled with the Spirit in eating this meat and drinking this drink forespoke of the love of God in Christ speaking to our selves as implying that then we shall speak for it will make the lips of them that are asleep to speak as was noted before in Cant. 7.9 but not as drunkards often do in a sinful way but Psalms and Hymns and Spiritual Songs singing and making melody in our hearts to the Lord that is to the praising commending and glorifying him Ephes 5.18.19 Col. 3.16 Yea and to help that 5. Bring hither the Timbrel and the pleasant Harp and the Psaltery Psal 81.2 We have musick at this feast too to help our mirth so we read ver 25. When the elder Son came out of the field and drew nigh to the house he heard musick Here was musick it seems then God allows his children musick to their meat So in Rev. 14.2 I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps and they sung as it were a new song before the throne and all meat and songs and musick of our Fathers providing He gives us songs in the night too Job 36.10 and he gives gifts to men the instruments of musick we are bid only to bring them hither bring them all to provoke this spiritual joy and mirth to be expressed at this feast use all our gifts to further God's praise and the joy of one another in the Lord. Musick was used to stir them up and help them in their songs to sing the more tunably and merrily as there were in the sanctuary The singers going before and the players on instruments following after in the midst the Virgins or Damsels playing on Timbrels Psal 68.26 Such a one was the Prophet Ezekiel As one that could play well upon an instrument and had a pleasant voice Ezek. 33.32 or rather like the lovely song of such a one of the good musitian Christ himself the Master of the musick he that excelleth in skil and tunes all the instruments and plays upon them with his hand or breaths in them whose eares and hearts being bored are made as wind instruments to receive his divine breath inspirations and to whom namely Christ all the Psalms and Songs of Sion are dedicated Such musitians and instruments of musick also subordinately too are Gospel-Preachers skillful in the praises of the Lord and to direct others in their acknowledgments and confessions of him Blowing up the Trumpets as in the new Moon and playing upon the Tabret the merry harp and Lute To whose musick diligently attending our hearts will be composed for the accesses and impressions of the holy Spirit upon us as the Prophet Elishas in 2 King 3.15 and we shall be framed both to sing and as pleasant instruments to make melody to the Lord. Primely the Prophets and Apostles and those that are endewed with and exercise their heavenly and spiritual gifts as helpers of our joy 2 Cor. 1.24 To their found to their joyful found attending Sing we merrily to God our strength and make a chearful noise to the God of Jacob as the Vulgar reads it Psal 81.1 2. with 89.15 And to make our mirth compleat 6. Dance That was here too ver 25. Musick and dancing A regular motion of the body is dancing but here of the heart as in Psal 28.7 The Lord is my strength and my shield my heart hath trusted in him and I was helped therefore my heart danceth 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so some render the Hebrew and with my song will I praise him according to the modulations of the musick the heavenly musick made by the musitian musitians and in struments before mentioned to the glory of God not such as tends to beget unclean lusts as in bodily dancing of men and women promiscuously together is often found but to the provoking to heavenly divine and spiritual love to Christ and of one another and of Christ again to them all in which if they be moved to a spiritual conjunction in the bed of divine love as a chast Virgin all of them to Christ yea and if also they give and receive the immortal seed of the Word of God betwixt themselves promiscuously either men with men or any man with any women or men though indeed there are neither male nor female in Christ Jesus but all are one there is herein no turpitude or uncleannesse nor will Christ ever reckon them therefore Adulterers or Harlots but his chast Spouse all of them and own all the spiritual fruit or children so begot and born as his and holy to him nor shall they ever be endited by him or by any law of his or agreeing with his or be brought to suffer death for it upon the gallows as for bodily and fleshly uncleannesses they justly may But Injoying love in this Bridegrooms armes They shall be above all the fleshes charmes And all this mirth and spiritual jollity singing dancing proceeds from the spirit of this heavenly meat they feed on about which therefore they may play and sing and dance For though it was idolatry and heavily punished of God when Israel made a Golden Calf and danced about it and so it is yet to make a calf of mens own ear-rings jewels or any gifts parts or works of righteousnesse and sacrifice to and worship it Eating and drinking and rising up to play Yet it is no idolatry or sin at all to worship this fatted calf so understood and interpreted for Christ sacrificing sacrifices and songs of praise to it eating and drinking of it and rising up to play and dance about it for this is none of our making This is God's image in which he will be worshipped of us and which he will allow us to worship sing to and rejoyce in as one with himself And indeed the God that gives us this mirth and makes us able to play and sing and dance For it s he that confirmes and strengthens our feeble knees that were ready to knock together and puts strength into our ancle bones by his Name as he did to the lame mans that lay