be large here yet I would â—ot that these things should be lightly past over â—or easily forgotten for doubtless God hath â—igh and glorious ends in them his signs are â—ot without their significations He that hath â—ot set the Rain-bow in the clouds for nought â—or one Star or Comet to appear in vain but â—ath ordained them for signs and for seasons Gen. 1.14 Matth. 10 29 30. â—o not so much as a sparrow or an hair of our â—eads shall fall to the ground without a Providence can we imagine that ever he would thus â—ill heaven and earth with his strange works of wonder on no higher design than to be meer â—azing-stocks and table-talk with unconcerned â—an nay be confident the dayes are at hand â—nd now are that God will interpret his own meaning and clearly unriddle all these his Papables to us 4. Is not Judgment already begun at the â—ouse of God I hope I need not run out into particulars here to tell you your own sorrows â—o pull those groans from your hearts and to bump those tears from your eyes I hope that every corner in your houses and every Angel in heaven can bear witness with your consciences that you are some of those whose foreheads God hath marked for such as sigh Ezek 9.4 and cry for all the abominations miseries and calamities of our poor Sion Lom 2.1 How hath the Lord covered the daughter of Zion with a cloud in his anger and cast down from heaven unto the earth the beauty of Israel and remembred not his footstool in the day of his anger 5. Hath not this been the joint-cry and unbelieved report of the Prophets and Watch men for several years together And now our Prophesie is accomplished both we and you all know feel what the voice meant are smaâ—ing under the burthen of the vision but when â— how it shall be removed we know not only the far in general we know When the Rod hat reach'd its ends either of obduration or ruiâ— or which the Lord grant of thorough Reformation Ier. 24. When the Figgs are pickt and separated when the harvest is ripe and the Lord people fit for the Mercies they look and loâ—â— for when the Lords time even the 〈◊〉 time is come then and not till then 〈◊〉 shall be 6. When was all manner of sin in a 〈◊〉 thriving way than now Drunkenness an Whoredom and Oppression and Deceit Swealing and Lying Debauchery and Prophanenâ— of all sorts and sizes is growing ripe apaâ— being established by the dormient connivant of wholsom Laws Mos 4.1.2 3. The Lord hath a contâ— versie with the Inhabitants of the Land becauâ—â— there is no truth nor mercy nor knowledge of God in the Land By swearing and lying and killing and stealing and committing adultery they break out and bloud toucheth bloud Therefore shall the Land mourn What 's become of Sabbaths and Sabbath-duties Institutions and Celebrations the beauty and power of them Are we not like Ezekiels pot Ezek. 24.6 whose scum is therein and whose scum is not gone out of it Nay if we look home on our selves we may find the Leprosie on our own walls how can we justifie our Pride and Worldliness our Wantonness our Censoriousness and self-endedness our Unbelief and Impatience Don't these things testifie against us 7. Is not the worship of God abused and that both practically and doctrinally But I must be silent here Curae leves loquuntur ingentes stupent 8. Is there not a great declining and losing of zeal for God How sad and general hath been the Apostacy of worldly-minded and worldly-ended Demas's Who would have thought that ever such hearts had been enkennel'd under such tongues 2 Cor. 11.14 that such Angels of light had been no other than transformed Devils Iohn 6.70 Who would have thought that Judas the Disciple had been the Traitor May not Christ shew the wounds with which he hath been wounded in the house of his friends Nay Zech. 13.6 let me ask you whose whose hearts and minds have been savingly inlightned and warmed with the quickning Beams of the Sun of Righteousness How have you flourished with your water and pulse Dan. 1.12 Are not your Graces and Hopes shivering within you what 's become of those divine sparks that have been begotten in you are they as quick and lively as forcible and serviceable as they were wont to be 9. Is not charity among brethren dying partly from the jarring of worldly Interests and partly from the disagreement of Judgment and Opinion How few are there that like brethren dwell together in unity Psal 133.1 This hath been a disease of a long time lamented and yet lamentations of this nature are as seasonable as ever Oh! when will God cure the wounds among brethren we have been licking our selves whole indeed but alas it hath been with a cankered tongue so that the Leprosie hath spread and gotten strength by the means of its Cure 10. Doth not Covenant-breaking yet lye unrepented of How many Oaths Protestations Leagues and Solemn Covenants have there been imposed and taken whereof the one hath necessarily and manifestly implyed the violation of the other O! the miserable and cursed prostitutions of Conscience Those that make so light of Oaths will not make so light of the Vengeance of that God unto whom they have sworn no Covenant hath on all sides been so faithfully kept as that with Satan and Self This is a lamentation and let it be for a lamentation Besides how many private personal and occasional vows and promises have there past between God and your own souls on several forlorn straits and emergencies and have they not all been as easily broken as they have been made Oh! let me lay up these things in the closets of your Consciences and when you are alone seriously a d sadly conne them over 11. Are those sins for which God hath taken up the Controversie removed Have we heard the rod and him who hath appointed it Have we answered Gods demands nay have we duely debated the business and examined the ground of the Quarrel Have we been in Parly with God and executed his VVrits of Inquiry by the Commission-Office of Conscience throughout the Liberties and Precincts both of the outer and inner man If not how can we rationally expect a comfortable issue Can a rotten Liver produce sound bloud Matth. 7 16. Gal. 6.7 Do men gather grapes of thorns or figs of thistles nay VVhatsoever a man soweth that shall he also reap as long as sin is the seed the harvest will be wrath if we sow the wind we must expect to reap the whirlwind Hos 8.9 Can you dry up the streams as long as the fountain is alwayes sending out fresh supplies though you may seem to bay it back a while yet sinner believe it the vengeance of God is all the while pending against thee and thy Bay will not hold
when Sabbath-daies were daies of sport and recreation and Pardons might be had through the hands of other Meditators and within the price of a lust But see what follows ver 21. The incense ye that burnt in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem ye and your fathers your Kings and your Princes and the people of the land did not the Lord remember them and came it not into his mind so that the Lord could no longer beâ—r because of the evil of your doings Because ye have burnt incense and because ye have sinned against the Lord c. therefore this evil is happened unto you as at this day Jer. 44.21 Is your return to the cause of your Pâ—â—gues the rational course to prevent them will a second draught of the same Poyson aâ—ido e the first The children of Israel have done evil in my sight saith the Lord they have set their abominations in the house which is called by my name to pollute it and they have built the high places of Tophet Their fear towards me is taught by the precepts of man while with the old Samaritans they fear the Lord and serve their Idols They are gon with the Dog to his vomit Therefore behold the daies come saith the Lord that it shall no more be called Tophet nor the valley of the Son of Hinnom but the valley of slaugter Jer. 7.31 32. When we turn Gods Bethel to a Bethaven his house of Prayer to a den of Thieves it will cause God to turn our Hephzibah into an Aceldama a land of delights to a field of Blood Till the true cause be discovered acknowledged and removed we are farr enough from the cure The nature of the cause might direct us to the means If it be sin that hath made the wound who shall heal it but he that hath authority to forgive sin and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness For thus saith the Lord thy bruise is uncurable and thy wound is grievous there is none to plead thy cause c. All thy lovers have forsaken thee they seek thee not Jer. 30.12 c. Thy wound is in curable with men for few there are that understand none that can remove it in its Cause or effects Thy Lovers thy Confederates whose Assistance thou cravest and dependest on will prove but Fig-leaves not Shields to thee For I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy Thou wilt find that these Beds are shorter than that thou canst stretch thy self on them and the Coverings narrower than that thou canst wrap thy self in them Isa 28.20 the Abomination of thy Prayers and Sacrifices will never reconcile that God that is in controversie wiâ—h these thy Abominations The multitude of thy Offerings will not removâ— but aggravate the sin of thine Oblations There 's nothing of thee nothing in thee nothing about thee nothing above thee but God that can help thee and if ever he do it be sure he will do it in his own way and on his own terms thou must first compound with him and submit to him Oh! take heed of running to thy own witts or righteousness of resting on thy own duties or innocency or goodness of thy cause for help These are not these will not be thy Saviours Sâ—ffer the word of Exhortation Vse 2 You have heard that the Rod hath a Voice and what this voice is God hath been now a long time with various Comments and glosses expounding it to you And now my B ethren I am come in the name of God to drive home the Nail to the head that I have bin all this while driving at Oh that these last blows might do the work on you that God may not take up the Hammer and drive a Jael's nail at your very heart that I may leave it at last as nails fastned by the Masters of Assemblies Eccl. 12.11 The spirit of God hath fram'd the exhortation in the text it self Hear ye the Rod and I shall say no more I can say no more but to urge you with this Dilemma Either you will hear or else you will not hear Now give me leave to tell you and take it as some of my parting words as those that are not like to be called upon much longer God is câ—ying to you Friends for his packing penny the eleventh hour is come and some of h s last messengers are sent for your last answer refuse but a little longer and you shall never have the â—ffer more Oh! that our words and wishes and tears might now at last prevail with you 1. If you will not hear the Rod in the voice of it you shall surely feel the Rod in the vengeance and curse of it Hear ye deaf and look ye blind that ye may see who is blind but my servant and who is deaf as my Messenger that I sent Isa 42.10 c. But this is a people robbed and spoyled they are all of them snared in holes and they are hid in prison-houses they are for a prey and none delivereth for a spoyl and none saith Restore Who among you will give ear to this Who will hearken and hear for the time to come ver 22.23 Therefore he hath poured upon him the fury of his anger and the Strength of Battel and it hath set him on fire round about yet he knew it not and it burned him yet he laid it not to heart ver 25. Sinner dost thou think that God will leave thee thus Hath he threatned thee and shaken the Rod at thee and shalt thou escape so Hath he made all these dreadful preparations of wrath onely in terrorem to affrighten thee wilt thou once more try whether he be in earnest or no To thy sorrow shalt thou try it and find it when the irreversible curse of God hath fastned on thee when the Fire and Brimstone of divine and unexpiable vengeance is smoaking about thine ears thou shalt know that he was in earnest When God shall dash the potts of thy highest Hopes and dearest Comforts in pieces when the bitter dreggs of the Cup of trembling are at thy nose and must pass through thee when thou shalt long for death and curse the day that ever thou wert born then shalt thou know in whose hand the Rod is If ye will not hear these words I swear by my self saith the Lord that this House shall become a desolation Jer. 22.5 O hear this and tremble thou that wilt not hear God hath sworn thy desolation and vow'd thy destruction What shall I say If thou art resolv'd to run the Risk with God thou mayest Rejoyce O young man in thy youth and let thy heart cheer thee in the daies of thy youth and walk in the waies of thine heart and in the sight of thine eyes but know that for all these things God will bring thee into Judgement Eccles 11.9 Thou may'st enjoy a merry day or two it may be a few merry years more but then resolve to
THE VOICE OF THE ROD OR GOD'S Controversie pleaded with MAN BEING A Plain and Brief Discourse on MICH. 6.9 By SAMVEL STODDON Minister of God's Word Vexatio dat Intellectum The Rod and Reproof give Wisdom Prov. 29.15 c. LONDON Printed for the Author and are to be sold by Robert Boulter at the sign of the Turks-head in Bishopsgate-street near Gresham Colledge 1668. THE DEDICATION TO THE finite Eternal and All wise God Father Son and Holy Spirit L. N. His unworthy Servant and Steward of the Sacred Mysteries of his Everlaâ—â—ing Gospel humbly devoteth these First-fruitâ— of his Small things Most Glorious and Dread Sovereign WHo or what am I whom thou hast chosen to plead â—hy Controversie and â—o go as an Herauld of War before the Lord of â—osts Alas I am a Child Jer. 1.6 and the Work iâ— too great for me But Lord if thy poor Stripling must go providâ— both the sling and thâ— stone the Word and the Spirit that this uncircumcised Goliah of Siâ— which hath defied the God of the Armies of Israeâ— may fall before it Out â— the Mouthes of Babes aâ—â— Sucklings Psal 8.4 hast thou ordaineâ— strength Even so Fatheâ— for so it seemed good in tâ—â— sight Match 11.26 O let it be according to thy Word Lord thou knowest Thou haâ— put me on hard yet happy work Thou hast â—et me in the place of Dragons Lions are in my way they are a stiff-necked though thy own People unto whom thou hast sent me Will they believe or hearken o thy Voice And now Exod. 4.1 Lord what wilt thou do or thy poor Servant that is willing to adventure to the utmost for thee Thou knowest my In. â—ufficiency and where â—â—y strength lyeth O withdraw not thy hand even thy Right Hand but deliver me out of the great vvaters Psal 144.7 8 from the hand of strangâ—â— children vvhose mouth speaketâ— vanity and their right hand â—â— a right hand of falshood theâ— vvill I sing a nevv song unâ—â— thee O God Be thou â—â— Mouth unto me and â—â— will be a Mouth for theâ— Prepare my heart guidâ— my pen open my understanding settle sanctifiâ—â— and enlarge my judgement inspire my Souâ—â— and set every Povver of â— in tune Fill my Quiveâ— guide my eye and prosper my hand Lord I have none to help me none to protect me no Mecoenas but thy blessed Self to fly for Patronage and Refuge to The Work is thine wilt not thou own it the Message is thine wilt not thou bear me out in it Thou hast sent me O send thine Angel thy Spirit thy Presence with me I do solemnly choose thee this day for my all sufficient Portion and Companion and the Shield of thy Grace for my defence Accept both the person and the offering of thy Servant Suffer me to imbovver it under that golden Wing from whence I desire to pluck my Quill O let Him defend it that at first inspir'd it and who alone can and will pardon the many faults of it and then the Glory of all which is his peculiar Deodand shall be humbly presented Him on the broken Censer of my Heart Prosper thy Work in my hands let me not return with my Net broken and empty let me go forth weeping bearing precious seed so that I may come again rejoicing bringing my Sheaves with me The happy success of my labour and travel is all the wages I look for in this world If thy Name may be glorified thy People awakened and reformed thy ends accomplished I have what I aim at O let me hit that mark though I break my bow let thy Pills work though thou burn the paper they were wrapt in Lord whatever become of me let it go well with thy Name thy Interest thy Church in the Earth Thou hast sent me as once thou sentest Jonas to Nineveh to proclaim the Lords Warr and to plead with thy People put words into my mouth and cause the Inhabitants of the Land to hear Thou hast stricken us Jer. 5.3 but we have not grieved thou hast consumed us but we have refused to receive correction Lam. 1.4 The wayes of Sion do mourn Her Adversaries are the chief her enemies prosper for the Lord hath afflicted her Jerusalem hath grievously sinned therefore is she removed all that honoured her despise her Her filthiness is in her skirts she remembreth not her last end therefore she came down wonderfully All her People sigh they seek bread they have given their pleasant things for meat to relieve the Soul Sion spreadeth forth her hands and there is none to comfort her the Lord hath commanded concerning Jacob that his Adversaries should be round about him Jerusalem is as a menstruous woman among them For these things I vveep mine eye mine eye runneth dovvn vvith vvater When shall the iniquity of Jacob be purged Isa 27.9 and this be all the fruit to take avvay sin Is 10.12 When will the Lord have performed his vvhole vvork upon mount Zion Turn again our captivity O Lord as the streams in the South O suffer thy poor children to wrestle with thee Say not unto us Let me alone We cannot we dare not we will not let thee thus alone Our hearts are breaking for thee we know not what to do we can do no less we can do no more than cry unto thee O remember thy Covenant and what there hath past and been mutually sworn and sealed to between thy blessed Self and us in the day of our Espousals Were we thine then and are we not thine still Hast thou repented of thy Choice Didst thou not know what we were and whence we were and how we would prove Lord have we deceived thee and is the Relation void unto which thou hadst adopted us in Christ Jesus The Lord forbid O suffer thy poor children to hold thee to thy word which thou canst not thou wilt not break Let us call thee Father stil vvhatever be either our Offence or our Affliction Hic ure tunde seca modò in aeternum parcas Bern. Chastise us so that thou vvilt but love us let Enemies rise vvithout so that Enemies may fall vvithin Righteous Father we complain not of thee though vve thus complain to thee Thou hast nourished Isa 1.2 and brought us up but we have rebelled against thee We are reaping our own harvest and drinking the wine of our own mingling Time was that we had the Bridegroom with us and then we knew not what Weeping meant We have been visited vvith our day a day of Peace but we knew not the things of our Peace in the day of our Visitation We heard thy Voice thy sweet thy pleasant Voice but then vve had other things to do The Flesh the World the Devil out-cryed thee the bonds of Iniquity the chains of the strong man were upon us But vvhen thou gavest thy parting knocks and turn dst the Key upon us our hearts melted like vvax and
for 1. For Gods Glory 2. For our own Salvation And in order to both these 1. For the Word of God 2. For the Spirit of God 1. The Teachings of it 2. The Quicknings of it 3. For all opportunities of doing or receiving good What we are to watch against 1. Against Sin 1. In the Fountain of it 2. In the Acts of it 3. In the Temptations to it 4. In the occasions of temptations 2. Against Satan 3. Against Self 1. Self-application 2. Self-relyance 3. Self-attribution 4. Against the world 1. The Fears of the world 2. The Flatteries of the World 3. The hopes of the world 4. The Scorns of the World 5. The Persecutions of the world 6. The Cares of the world 5. Against Death Reasons 1. Because they are Enemies 2. Mortal Enemies 3. Spiritual Enemies 4. Constant Enemies 5. Mighty Enemies 2. To the Enemies of God 1. It assures them that they are mistaken in God 1. In his Holiness 2. In his Justice 3. In his Mercy 4. In his Patience 5. In his delight in and care of his People 6. In his glorious Title of Hearing Prayer 7. In his Ends and designs 2. It calls on them to consider and on consideration to repent 3. It tells them that the Dregs of the Cup are like to come to their share 4. It assures them that God will be too hard for them 5. It fore-warns them that God is making short work with them Rules to discover the particular meaning of this or that particular Rod. Motives to the Duty 1. 'T is an excellent way to gain by the Rod. 2. 'T is a notable course to make the yoke easie 3. 'T is a special means to improve Experience 4. 'T is the only way to have the Affliction removed with ad-advantage The Rules 1. Consider what were thy last miscarriages 2. What are the eructations of Conscience 3. Sometimes the punishment bears some resemblance to the Sin 4. It may be God afflicts for prevention 5. What is thy patience under the rod 6. It may be God is but trying of thee 7. Go and ask it of God by Prayer Use 1. This informs of a threefold Mistake 1. Such as question Gods Providence 2. Such as transferr the Cause of the Rod from themselves 3. Such as apply themselves to indirect means Use 2. of Exhort Motiv 1. If you will not have the Rod you shall feel the Rod. 2. If you will thus hear it you shall be sure of strength to bear it Use 3. of Exam. 1. Your ends in desiring the removal the Rod. 2. What good the Rod hath wrought on you Use 4. Lament 1. That we should thus provoke God 2. That we are no more sensible of it 3. Lament your poor posterities THE VOICE OF THE ROD OR God's Controversie pleaded with Man BEING A Plain and Brief Discourse on MICH. 6.9 Hear ye the Rod and who hath appointed it I Shall not hold you here with any troublesome speculations by way of Introduction onely so farr as I humbly conceive necessary to help your Understandings in so plain and important a Concern It seems that God had then a great Controverâ—e with his People which he stirrs up the Prophet to plead in his name and behalf vers 1. Arise contend thou before the Mountains and let the Hills hear thy voice ver 2. For the Lord hath a Controversie with his People and will plead with Israel ver 3. O my People What have I done unto thee and wherein have I wearied thee Testifie against me With what melting Compassions doth God begin with them how doth his bowels yearn upon them O my People Though they be a sinful people yet they are my people And this is one distinguishing Priviledge Observ and singular Comfort of the people of God Though he do correct them yet he will not cast them off though he may distress them yet he will not divorce them What have I done unto thee and wherein have I wearied thee testifie against me O the wonderfull condescention of the great God! how pathetically familiarly convincingly doth he expostulate with his children What have I done unto thee wherein have I wearied thee What iniquity have your Fathers found in me Jer. 2.5 31. have I been a wilderness unto Israel a land of darkness what can you charge me with let us hear it testifie against me Ver. 4. I brought thee out of the land of Egypt and redeemed thee out of the house of servants and I sent before thee Moses Aaron and Miriam And is this the wrong you complain of hath my patience my goodness my mercy my wisdom my power which have ever stood engaged for you abused you ver 5. O my people remember now what Balaac King of Moab consulted and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim unto Gilgal Numb 22. that ye may know the righteousness of the Lord. Remember how I trod down your enemies before you and brake all their snares for you and owned you still in all your streights in all your wants in all your fears and under all your provoking unkindness and unthankfulness And is this my unrighteousness now and that wherein I have wearied you God having thus justified himself their own conscience and experience being witness In the next place we have their strange Reply ver 6. Wherewith shall I come before the Lord and bow my self before the high God See the frowardness and foolishness of their answer much like the language of that wicked and slothful servant Matth. 25.24 I knew thee that thou art an hard man reaping where thou hast not sown q. d. Why we know not how to please thee thou art alwaies â—hiding alwaies finding fault and seeking occasions against us every thing is naught that we do our very Incense is an abomination Why Isa 1.13 what wilt thou have of us ver 7. Will the Lord â—e pleased with thousands of rams or with ten thousand rivers of oyl shall I give my first-born for my transgression the fruit of my body for the â—n of my soul a flat impossibility on the one â—and and a foul impiety on the other Could they ever imagine that this should be a probable way to attone him The truth is it looks like an horrible imputation on the Just and Holy God but that Charity suggests it was not their professed but their interpretative language not of their â—ps but of their lives And hence we may observe Observ 1. That it is the course and the character of an hypocritical People or Person to think to make up that with the labour which is wanting of the life of Religion And farther That it is the subtilty and ambition of the Devil to mix his own Immolations and super-erogations with Gods Institutions But I must not insist here See now how mildly God replies again v. 8. He hath shewed thee O Man what is good and what doth the Lord require of thee but to do