they can plot nothing but their owne mischiefe No weapon formed against Zion shall prosper God hitherto hath and we hope still will make that your portion that was a part of Josephs blessing Gen. 49.23 24. The Archers have sorely grieved you and shot at you and hated you but your bow hath yet abode in strength and the armes of your hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob from thence is the shepherd the stone of Israel Our second point is the Church of right is and in time shall be a praise in the earth The Church is called Psal 48.1 2. The City of God the place of Gods residence the Mountaine of Holinesse Beautifull for scituation the joy of the whole Earth And in Psal 50.2 She is tearmed the perfection of beauty a high expression and intended to the Church under the Gospel for in that Psalme God rejects Jewish worship So great shall be the happinesse of the Church that it is called Heaven and the Saints in the Church are said to dwell in Heaven Rev. 13.6 For the opening and proving of the point we shall First Shew what this glory is and wherein it consists Secondly Prove that this of right belongs to the Church Thirdly That this happinesse is yet to come Fourthly That upon probable conjecture we may hope that it is now a comming First For the opening of the first What this praise or beauty is It is not that whorish paint nor carnall pompe nor that stately Tyranny which adornes the man of sinne You may see great preparations of this in the two former Chapters but the consummation is exprest in the beginning of this Chapter This praise or beauty is expressed generally in Chap. 60. ver 1.19 The glory of the Lord is risen upon thee it is something that is divine God is the excellency of Jacob Amos 8.7 God conferres upon the Church spirituall blessings such as are heavenly and Divine in their Nature and he conferres temporall blessings upon his Church yet so as they have upon them the impresse of a Divine and Almighty hand The particulars of a Churches beauty and glory are First Cleare and shining light Chap. 60. verse 1 2.19 God hath promised a large increase of light The light of the Moone shall be as the light of the Sunne and the light of the Sunne sevenfold The Church shall have A Crowne of twelve stars be cloathed with the Sunne and the Moone under her feet she shall have light in all parts Secondly This light shall prevaile and spread abundance shall come unto it multitudes of converts Chap 60. ver 5 6.8 They are compared to the flowing of the Sea to droves to a cloud to Doves flying to the windes Thirdly Not onely many but great ones shall be converted to the Church Kings shall come to thy brightnesse Chap. 60. ver 3. And the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee ver 5. Thou shalt sucke the breasts of Kings ver 16. Kings shall contribute the life and sweetnesse of their royalties to the helpe of the Church Fourthly Upon these he will powre out hollnesse and that universally Thy people shall be all righteous Chap. 60. ver 21. her Exactors her very enemies shall be holy Chap. 60. ver 17. As universall so excellent holinesse compared to Robes Ornaments Jewels Chap. 61. ver 10. by these spirituall blessings she differs from the sinke and Synagogue of Rome Fifthly To these spirituall God will adde many outward and temporal blessings to the Church Abundance of peace Chap. 60. ver 11. Her gates shall be open continually Victory over Enemies The Nation and Kingdome that will not serve thee shall perish Yea those Nations shall be utterly wasted Chap. 60. ver 12. And All those that despised thee shall bow downe themselves at the sole of thy feet ver 14. Abundance of Riches The glory of Lebanon ver 13. for Brasse Gold for Iron Silver ver 17. and for griefe joy and rejoycing But all these are but as preparations the consummation of the Churches happinesse and deliverance is expressed in this Chapter ver 3. She shall be a Crowne of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royall Diadem in the hand of thy God ver 4. Thou shalt be called Hephzipah and thy Land Beulah for the Lord delighteth in thee and thy Land shall be marryed Which is not meant onely of a mysticall and spirituall union of the Church to Christ but of a visible outward and manifest declaration of this marriage Christ will take his Church by the hand and publickely owne his people She shall be a Crowne of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royall Diadem in the hand of thy God ver 3. Christ and his Church will stand openly hand in hand there shall be a publicke solemnization of the marriage of the Lambe Revel 19.7 When the Church shall say Loe this is our God we have waited for him Isa 25.9 and he will save us As his people shall see it Isa 54.5 so the world shall acknowledge it and say Thy Maker is thy Husband Men see it darkely now Rev. 20.2.3 and hate them but they shall see it clearely and honour them Satan shall be bound and cast into the bottomlesse pit and with him this Antichristian malignity whereby men oppose the wayes of God Wicked men shall be as much below the Saints in power as in desert they are dogs and as dogges shall they crouch and bow to the soles of the feet of Gods children and shall call them the City of the Lord chap. 60.14 the Zion of the holy one of Israel They shall be as honourable as Joseph was in Pharaohs Court they said Can we find such a man as this is Gen. 41.38 a man in whom the spirit of God is The righteous is more excellent then his neighbour now and will be much more when God shall powre out more of himselfe upon his servants and this desperate hatred of Gods people shall be taken out of the world Then shall ten men of all languages take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew Zach. 8.23 saying we will goe with you for we have heard that God is with you Men shall say Vercly Psal 58.11 there is a reward for the righteous there is a God that judgeth the earth This shall be the happy condition of the Church and this I conceive to be a PRAISE IN THE EARTH Secondly Our second thing is to prove that this inward and outward happinesse of right belongs to the Church and that in time she shall and must enjoy it First We will take the rise of our reasons from the last and greatest happinesse of the Church she is the Spouse of Christ and herefore the highest honour riches safety and all excellent priviledges are due to her She is the Kings wife dignified with the title of Queene and Christ will give her state and honor
ZIONS DELIVERANCE AND HER FRIENDS DVTY OR The Grounds of Expecting and Meanes of Procuring Jerusalems Restauration IN A SERMON PREACHED AT A PVBLICKE FAST Before the Honourable House of COMMONS By WILLIAM SEDGVVICKE Minister of FARNHAM in ESSEX LONDON Printed for John Bellamy Ralph Smith at the three Golden Lyons in Corne-hill 1642. To the Honourable the House of COMMONS now Assembled in PARLIAMENT THE day of Jacobs trouble yet continues Yea growes more gloomy and darke clouds of dangers increase therefore your faith needs all the props that prayer or Preaching Pulpit or Presse can afford If God by this Sermon dâ—d any whit kindle your Zeale I wish you had leasure to read it it may adde a mite more to our treasury Your faithfulnesse and constancy In this Wildernesse your Soules should be fed every day with a portion of spirituall Manna That you may be strengthened with all might according to his glorious power Colos 1.11 And God may be your arme every morning What is good Isa 33.2 let it dwell with you and by it you in God No place so fit for you in these great affaires and hard difficulties as the secret of the most High You have beene happy in conceiving just and good proposals be strong and faithfull in maintaining and producing of them and be not overborne Christ dyed under the sentence of a Judge that would have went right if the times had not beene bad that knew how to propose but not to prosecute justice and so left but this to posterity He would have beene just but was not That deserves not the name of a single vertue that will not indure multiplicity of trials I know your dangers are great Psal 119.109.110 and your condition as Davids My Soule is continually in my hand they have laid a snare for me Yet erred not I from thy precepts Your lives are in your hands and they are pretious A Diadem in the hand of God But they are indeed the least of those jewels that you are intrusted with There is in your hands Gods honour the Kingdome of Christ Churches Nations which you must defend and maintaine if you would have God defend You. You are yet possessed of a richer Jewell then life innocency and integrity Let nothing purchase it of You let no power wrest it from You Nec Caesar Iob 27.5 nec Populus Resolve with Job I will not leave mine innocency till I dye You are the onely hopefull meanes of our deliverance under heaven an instrument in the hand of God in the eye of faith in the wombe of Prayer and in the affections of Gods People my onely advise that I shall be bold to present unto you is That You be Faithfull to the death and God will Crowne your labours with a happy successe here and You with a Crowne of life eternally Thus advises prayes and beleeves he that if he could be lesse himselfe would be more Gods the Churches and Your Servant WILLIAM SEDGVVICKE A Sermon Preached at a Fast before the Honourable House of COMMONS ISAIAH 62.7 And give him no rest till he establish and till he make Ierusalem a praise in the earth THE Prophet in the two former Chapters foretels the happinesse and prosperity of the Church (a) chap. 60.1.2 Glorious light (b) ver 4 5 6. Seas floods droves of Converts and those not small but great ones (c) ver 3.5 The force of the Gentiles Kings shall come to her light Holinesse (d) ver 21. universall and glorious (e) chap. 61.10 robes of righteousnesse together with peace victory over enemies joy riches as you may see at large in those two Chapters So cleare was his faith and so strong his desires after these mercies for Zion that he resolves upon the meanes of obtaining them in the first verse of this Chapter For Zions sake I will not hold my peace c. Never cease Preaching Praying never rest Untill the righteousnesse thereof goe forth as brightnesse and the salvation therof as a lampe that burneth The more he did force Zion the more God let him see what he intended to doe for her In the 2 3 4. verses his expressions are higher A Crowne of glory in the hand of the Lord and a royall Diadem in the hand of thy God Hephzibah Beulah c. In the 6. verse the Prophet produces the meanes to effect this great worke by way of a promise And to render it the more certaine he utters it in the person of God I and in the preterperfect tense I have Set Watchmen Princes and Governours as well as Prophets and Teachers it is interpreted of both Upon thy walls O Jerusalem in authority and publique place Which shall never hold their peace consult labour pray use all meanes Night nor Day constantly in good and bad times And when this should be the Prophet cals in the helpe of All that make mention of the Lord all that have any interest in God or that make any profession of his wayes that they should not keepe silence should joyne hearts and hands doe what they could in their places and Give him no rest till he establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth I shall open the words first Give him no rest seeke him constantly importunately indeavour it earnestly You may read silence or rest First Isa 64.12 Hab. 1.13 Silence Gods not answering our prayers is in Scripture called silence as his answering and delivering is termed pleading or speaking Ier. 50.34 Ps 74.23 and it notes to us First the easinesse of delivering the Church by Gods mighty hand he can as easily helpe as we can speake Secondly the Justice of God in delivering his people it is as pleading shewing the right discovering the truth Thirdly the naturall and constant effect of Prayer we speake to God by Prayer he answers by saving us our language to him is Prayer his language to us is Salvation 2. But our translation reades it rest Give him no rest There is no passion in God properly neither rest nor motion but the Scripture holds forth God to us in these tropicall expressions for our understanding When God doth not presently save his people he is said to forget vers 6. Ps 44.23 and then his people are termed his remembrancers sometimes he is said to sleepe and then his people awaken him Sometimes to be slow or delay and then wee must quicken him make no tarrying Ps 40.17 Sometimes God seemes to lose his mercy and then his people must finde it for him Isa 63.15 Where is thy zeale and thy strength and the sounding of thy bowels And here he seemes to rest till he be disquieted by our prayers as if he were passive to our prayers as if he could not but helpe when we seeke The reason of this expression is to shew First the necessity of prayer God will give But for all these things I will be sought unto God
they that will deale with such must come armed with the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony Apoc. 12.11 And faith onely knowes how to use these You should carry the blood of the Lambe alwaies about you weare it in your hearts and thinke you have to doe with the enemies of that Christ that shed his blood for you against those that trample that blood under their feet by their superstition and prophanenesse such as are bloody enemies that thirst for the blood of Saints Faith will strengthen your hearts by the Word of God and assure you that in all your paines you worke in the belly of a promise and what you doe is to make God faithfull you are doing that which he hath promised to doe himselfe advance his Sonne and pull downe his enemies You want establishing mercies If you will not beleeve you shall not be established Isay 7.9 You want conquering mercies This is the victory that overcommeth the world even your Faith Nothing can stand against Faith Resist the devill stedfast in Faith and he will flye from you If God give more faith we need not feare more difficulties We may say as Paul I can doe all things through Christ that strengtheneth me Philip. 4.13 Dye under enemies or live to conquer them Therefore beleeve and you shall see the glory of God Joh. 11.40 and Jerasalem a praise in the earth Thirdly If you would give God no rest you must in praying and doing quit your selves and seeke the glory of God and the good of the Church First you must not seeke your selves Selfe is too base and low a thing to move a God with as at all times so now especially selfe must be below your thoughts and not worth your meanest considerations You especially I speake to whom God hath taken up into the mount as Moses to doe his businesse and to bring to us just and righteous lawes You must now doe as the Church is exhorted to doe Psal 45.10 11. Forget thy Fathers house thinke not of raising your estates advancing your selves or your posterity So shall the King greatly desire thy beauty The King of heaven will take pleasure in you and he will make the King on earth delight in you Would you overcome difficulties without labour first to overcome your selves You can doe nothing great and honourable so long as selfe hath any power in you Selfe and sinister ends would blast and undermine your consultations and divide you into as many wayes as you are men If every man should seeke his owne and not the things of Iesus Christ which would be a mischeife that hell it selfe could not parallel to speake our thoughts we feare no treason but selfe If you continue all to seeke the glory of God you will be too strong for any power either to divide or breake The first step of Israels deliverance was Moses stepping out of him selfe Heb. 11.24 25 26. He refused to be called the sonne of Pharaohs daughter God would not imploy him till he had learned to refuse Court offers Chusing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God then to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season A good patterne for publike persons rather be poore with honesty and a good cause then rise by Apostasy And had he not continued faithfull and constant in selfe-denyall Israel had beene lost Exod. 32.10 It was a hard pull God was angry and would have consumed Israel there was nothing lay in the way but Moses his sincerity and faithfulnesse to the cause If he could be wrought off the businesse was at an end God himselfe tries him Let me alone c. and I will make of thee a great Nation I will make thee great and raise thy house to a Nation But Moses is deafe to such offers he will not be taken off so he pursues his worke faithfully nothing will serve him but Israels deliverance such faithfulnesse to the cause of God had you need have The Apostle tels us 1 Tim. 6.9 They that will be rich fall into temptation and asnare and into many foolish and hurtfull lusts which drowne men in perdition and destruction If you will be rich or great you will have temptations and fall and drowne too in perdition You and Cause and Kingdome and all will drowne and perish if selfe-ends bias you Saul went right a while till faire Agag and the fat of Amaleh lay in his way till a rich booty turned him from his obedience see the story 1 Sam. 15. and the dangerous consequence of it What ever pretence he had for his sinne in sparing those wicked enemies of the Church that the people would have it and it was for sacrifice yet saith Samuel to him ver 26. Thou hast rejected the Word of the Lord and the Lord hath rejected thee from being King over Israel Neither people nor false piety nor pity can excuse neglect of Justice in Governours If you would doe great things for God Ier. 40.5 you must not now seeke great things for your selves Indeed you must be above the world and your selves You had need be more then men such as John Baptist was your worke is like his to pull downe mountaines and exalt vallies to make crooked things straight and rough things smooth And as he had so you have to deale with a generation of Vipers Now our Saviour shewes by way of question what he was not and what he was Matth. 11.7 8 9. What went you out to see a reed shaken with the wind No he was no light unstable man that would fluctuate and vacillate at every wind of threatning greatnesse What went you out to see A man cloathed in soft rayment No such they are in Kings houses John was no such man he could not suite Herods humour nor flatter his sinnes He would not alter his habit of Camels haire the Court could not change him What then went you out to see a Prophet Yea I say more then a Prophet Such should you be neither shaken with threatnings nor won by softnesse men stedfast in justice yea Counsellers and more then Counsellers As you may not seeke your selves so you must seeke the honour of God that 's the way to be more then men in our actions to be divine in our ends All other ends are too low for the meanest man much more for so great a Councell This is the way to prevaile with God â—he readily imbraces any proposition this way If any man have a designe to advance his name what ever be the impediments it must prosper for you cannot have a thought this way but God will second it He can as soone desert himselfe as those that worke for his glory If you find any thing that may exalt his Majesty and he give you a heart faithfully to desire it be it what or where it will you need not despaire though it lye under mountaines of Kingdomes you shall thresh them to dust Isa 41.15 though
Zion God will adde as much more he is resolved no Creature shall equall him in love to his Church Take heed of being low spirited for God of haltings and halvings in Reformation Wee have seene the mischiefes of such a way already yea many times we lose all because we would be contented with some The Prophet was angry with Joash that when he was to smite the Syrians he smote but thrice 2 King 13.18 19. God honours and prospers them that doe all his will Jehu did much was very zealous but the Text sayes He tooke not heed to walke in the Law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart For he departed not from the sinne of Jeroboam 2 King 10.31 And the evill effect it had is noted in the next vers 32. In those dayes the Lord began to cut Israel short The same measure that you mete to him he will mete to you as you sow in spirituals you shall reape in carnals if you cut Reformation short he will cut your priviledges and the Kingdomes peace short It is safe and successefull to aime at great matters for God We may thankefully imbrace what we can get but seeke no lesse than perfection Magna audent quoniam magni sunt qua audent obtinent Bern. They that are truely noble and magnanimous they will attempt great things for God and what they doe attempt they shall obtaine Thinke of no lesse then making Jerusalem a praise in the earth despaire not to see her in all her beauty and brightnesse In outward things use your discretion be as moderate as you see cause but in the cause of God Moses his resolution is worth imitation he would not leave a hoofe behinde him In this case Jehoshophat gives good Counsell to his Judges the Lord write it in your hearts 2 Chron. 19.6 Take heed what you doe for you judge not for man but for the Lord. Thirdly Wherein should this labour be imployed I shall be your remembranceâ— onely for two things Doe them and God will doe the rest To make Jerusalem a praise in the Earth First You must set up light This is as you have heard a chiefe pait of the Churches beauty advance the light of powerfull Preaching and that will advance the Truth Religion Peace Christ and all The Hieroglyphicke of life amongst the Egyptians was light a burning lampe and though ignorance be the Mother of Romish devotion such lampes are the life of Religion powerfull Preaching It was the worke of some to doe all they could to put out the light the most horrid hellish and unnaturall wickednesse that can be to deny men the joy and comfort of our soules the more malicious they were in suppressing of it the more paines must be taken in freeing of it You have done much this way and intend more our prayers shall joyne with your indevours That the Word may runne and be glorified 2 Thess 3.1 That it may be said of England as it was of Antioch Act. 13.49 The Word of the Lord was published throughout all the Region Nothing so excellent but 〈◊〉 are displeased with it The light is offensure to sore eyes Some complained of Prometheus for reaching the use of fire as the Poets say and many amongst us Preach against Preaching But they that quarrell with the light Act. 13.48 quarrell with Christ himselfe who is the Light of the Gentiles Men complaine against the Seers as Isay 30.10 11. See not prophesie not right things But their anger is against him that sent them let them speake out and they say Cause the holy One of Israel to cease from before us The light it selfe stands in the light of their wicked wayes as the Angell in Balâ—â—ms way to his sinne and that 's the reason They hate the light because their workes are evill Men father divisions upon the light when as the present distractions and mistakes are because it is but halfe day the mist is not quite dispelled Darkenesse causes divisions and those most dangerous as quarrels in the night The more â—â—stours and Teachers and the Worke of the Ministery the nearer we come to the unity of the Faith Let light scatter and it will pull downe the Kingdome of darknesse You and the Truth and Christ have no such enemy as ignorance Secondly Advance holinesse This is another winning and prevailing blessing Oh that Righteousnesse might be as waves of the Sea And then our Peace will be as a River Isay 48.18 Labor for holy Laws holy worship holy Sabbaths holy families For a holy Court and then holinesse will be in fashion For holy Universities and then they will be filled not with sonnes of Beliall but with sons of the Prophets But above all for a holy Ministry From the Prophets of Jerusalem is prophanenesse gone forth into all the Land Jer. 23.15 and from them must the people learne holinesse And a holy Magistracy if God would restore our Judges as at first Let us injoy faithfull Moseses Joshua's c. Then should we be called the City of righteousnesse the faithfull City Isay 1.26 Nothing but sinne can hurt us and sinne will not onely make all your good purposes of Reformation abortive but Gods too Jer. 18.9 10. At what instant I say concerning a Nation and Kingdome to build and plant it if it doe evill in my sight that it obey not my voyce then will I repent of the good wherewith I said I would benefit it Seeke first the Kingdome of God in light and helinesse and then all other things shall be administred unto you What ever difficulties hinder the execution let these be first in your intentions These directions God hath given you by me a weake creature I hope you need not much to quicken you Iudg. 5.9 We desire with Deborah to blesse the Lord that made the governours of Israel to offer themselves willingly Remember the place God hath called you to the Kingdome is in a broken and shatterd condition you are our watchmen we say to you as Moses to Hobab Num. 10.31 in the Wildernesse thou art to us instead of eyes you are our eyes to see our dangers and our hands to defend us from them We cannot better expresse that trust that lies upon you then God himselfe hath done concerning Moses Exod. 4.16 thou shalt be to him instead of a God Governours are stiled Gods in Scripture but those best deserve it that are delivering rulers such was Moses such to us instead of a God are you and then thinke you what Wisdome justice firmnesse and stability is required in you The trust is heavy our expectations great and the account will be dreadfull If you were alone in this worke you would sinke under it but God hath promised his presence and God is in you of a truth It is the sword of the Lord and the sword of Gideon Gods people see it with comfort his enemies shall feele it with shame What the people observed of Ionathan we may observe in you 1 Sam. 14.45 he hath wrought with God this day so you have and so you will we hope and then Gamaliels words will hold Act. 5.39 if it be of God you cannot overthrow it You labor with God and for God because you labour for Zion you travaile for her that travailed with you For the Church that must stand and prosper Christ hath promised the gates of hell shall not prevayle against her not the gateâ— in which was their strength in the gates the elders sat and so their polity as well as their strength was in the gates yet both shall not prevayle against the Church God is gone before you travailing in the greatnesse of his strength challenging countries Isa 63.1 and people he saith I will divide Shechem mete out the valley of Succoth Gilead is mine over Edom will I cast out my shooe c. Psal 60.6.7.8 And the prayers of Gods people are gone like the Arke before the campe of Israel three dayes journey to seeke out a resting place Num. 10.33 they are before you preparing your way hewing downe difficulties It is safe following such a conduct And God hath made the people willing in the day of his power Psal 1â—0 3 That of the Psalmist is considerable Psalm 47.9 The Princes of the people are gathered together the marginall lection is the voluntary of the people the generous of the people God hath the hearts of all men in his hand And the shields of the earth belong unto the Lord The Militia of the world is his And all these shall second them that seeke his glory and Zions Peace Therefore proceed chearefully to make use of this sweete opportunity to honour God and heale our breaches Heaven we hope is bigge with blessings The Tabernacle of God is comming downe to dwell with men what ever darke clouds appeare let us continue praying waiting labouring beleeving God will at last establish and make Jerusalem a praise in the earth FINIS Die Mercurii 29. Junii 1642. IT is this day Ordered by the Commons now Assembled in Parliament that Sir Thomas Barrington doe returne thankes to Mr. Sedgwicke for the great paines he tooke in the Sermon he Preacht this day at St. Margarets Church in Westminster at the intreaty of the Commons House of Parliament this being the day of the publicke Fast And that he be desired to Print his Sermon And that no man presume to Print it but such as he shall appoint till the House shall take further Order H. Elsynge Cler. Parl. D. Com. I appoint John Bellamy and Ralph Smith to Print my Sermon WILLIAM SEDGVVICKE