too he puts the Levites away from performing that service God had appointed them to in his worship and having instituted a new worship of his own devising he constitutes new Ministers and Priests to serve in that worship Quest If it be asked How I can say this is a resemblance of our times surely we have learned and high-minded Ministers that minde high things Answ If ever there were a time wherein the lowest of the people were made Ministers in the worship of God it 's now I confess it and that with joy there are many considered by themselves precious holy servants of the Lord true Ministers of the Gospel in this our Nation of England but by that time these great Kings whoredome drunkenness swearing lying covetousness eating the poors bread ignorance and pride have ranged their subjects under their banners from among the Ministers of England the remaining number will be so few that I fear God will hardly have his Tythe duely set out and if these be not of the lowest of the people I know not who are The truth of these things is so obvious to every man that I suppose it 's not required of me to prove this great charge Thirdly Another of Jeroboams sins that Iehu would not depart from was his devising new wayes of worship and that as like the true worship of God as his received worldly principles and interest would permit him whereby to take the hearts of the people and draw them after him the more Though he would have a worship as like Gods worship as possible might be yet Gods worship he would not have because he thought it contrary to his worldly interest O saith he now shall the kingdom return to the house of David if this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the Lord at Ierusalem then shall the hearts of this people return again unto their King even unto Rehoboam and they shall kill me But saith Ieroboam I will prevent that by my wisdom and policie I will have new Gods and new Worship and new Priests and suffer not the people to go up to Ierusalem to worship If the peoples worshipping the true God according to his own appointments will in his apprehension hinder his enjoyment of his outward worldly interest then farewel Priests worship and God too I will finde out new wayes of my own devising that shall be as bulwarks to secure my state and compel the people to walk in them and if any dare rebuke my doings I 'll venture the withering of mine arm by stretching it out against them But stay for all your hasty fury you may be glad to beg the Prophets prayers on your behalf for mercy Something appeares like this now in our dayes and it 's to be feared more will follow this I am sure of the people of God had gone a great way further then they have in destroying the remainders of Babylon and Antichrist among us and had ere this time taken away the antient political bounds that hindred the people from going up to Ierusalem to worship had not something hindered Cursed be those Achitophels whose pernicious counsels have hindered the Son of David from raigning but this is our comfort that whosoever they be they shall but hinder for a season when the appointed time comes will they nill they they shall be removed and Christ will take to himself his great power and raign in the midst of his people But Aggravations of Jehu's sin Secondly consider the aggravations of this mans Iehu's sin beyond those that went before him they are great and many 1. Iehu had the example of the wrath of God upon three Kings before him for the same sins Ieroboam first committed this sin but had no presidents of the warth of God to scare him it 's true he had presidents good and many of the wrath of God upon Idolaters but the temptation under which he lay the fear of losing his Kingdom made him to think that good and righteous end of securing his Kingdom and making good the word of the Lord in establishing it to himself would bear him out But Iehu had no excuse at all but the perverse unbelief of his own hard heart and the wicked tendency of his soul for he saw that notwithstanding the plausible and in some measure righteous pretence of Ieroboam the wrath of God consumed him and his house he had the presidents of the wrath of God upon Ieroboam the inventer and Baasha the follower of these sins in such a terrible manner as to cut them off from the face of the earth and he executes the severe vengeance of God upon the head of a third transgressor of the same kinde and yet to provoke this jealous God to more and greater wrath who but a Iehu a heart hardened by love and mercy could or durst do it Alas how little doth the by-past judgements of God move our hard and flinty hearts in these our dayes although the generation before us fresh in memory God hath made them as dung upon the face of the earth and scattered them that they are not found and brought them to nothing yet we will not be warned but we have made that which was but as a mote in their eye a beam in our own we have gotten into their places and are fallen to commit adultery with their sins and we will not depart from those sins that have made God so terrible to them and to do such wonders in our dayes to the dying his garments red in blood Who durst do thus but those whose hearts are made fat eyes blinde and ears deaf and that by mercy as if indeed we were a people fatted for slaughter and prepared for utter destruction 2. Another aggravation of this sin was this he had an enlightned conscience so much light as that he could bring the word of God to confirm every action of his And certainly he knew much of the minde of God he was much acquainted both with the promises and prophesies of God to and concerning his people as the story throughout sufficiently evidences he had so much light and knowledge that God did justly expect he should walk in his law with all his heart vers 31. but his heart his heart was faulty O that little thing within us hath more deceit in it then a whole world of other creatures have his light enabled him to make the most glorious profession that ever any King of Israel did that we read of since Solomons daies his light made him bold couragious and full of outward zeal yet against all this he sins when so much of the work was done as that he could sit down and taste the sweetness of present enjoyments though mutable and earthly his heart waxes fat presently and could go no further his light goes out and he becomes blinde at noon-day the sight of the glory of an earthly kingdom though none had more experience of the uncertainty vanity and vexation
he made Solomons prayer he should have had Solomons return and had been a ruler after Gods own heart as David was and so have been made partaker of Davids full enjoyments of God in his Ordinances But 2. To be a ruler over the Lords people it 's of great advantage for what was he not able to do by their mighty power and force in faith and prayer If we look into the Scripture and see what wonderful things have been done by the faith and prayers of the Lords people we cannot but say of a truth Iehu had as great an advantage to become a second Solomon for wisdom not State-policy a second David for valour and might in conquering enemies as ever man had It 's more to be ruler over the Lords people then to be Emperor of the whole world besides to be ruler over the Lords people that have the mighty and faithful God so neerly and strongly tied and bound to them by so many great irrevocable and infallible promises as he hath made to them in his word and hath so often sworn the certainty and truth of them with the highest and greatest oath a people that have done and are still able to do such mighty and wonderful things by faith and prayer yea had done such great wonders before this Iehu's eyes witness the acts of Elijah Elisha and many other of the Lords Prophets in those dayes to be ruler over such a people what greater thing could be done for a man on earth what greater advantage over the world could be given to him Yet against all this Jehu sins though God made him ruler over his people to these and these ends and purposes and thereby gives him so many and great advantages yet he steers a contrary course in stead of leading the people to Jerusalem to worship he leads them to his calves at Dan and Bethel instead of pulling down all those inventions of their own which provoked God to so great wrath he pulls down onely those new more gross inventions which he could with no credit nor any the least shadow of conscience keep up but the old ancient fundamental bounds and limits of an Idolatrous kingdom Jeroboam's sins they must stand still and keep the people of God from going up to Jerusalem to worship from behaving themselves like the Lords people when God had carried himself so like a gracious God towards them they must stand still for the same reason and upon the same account they were first invented All that God had done for Jehu did not convince his dark minde nor his hard Idolatrous heart of the folly of those things and the reason on which they were founded nor of the equity safety happiness honour and glory that there was in and to be found in obeying the will of the Lord in leading his people up to Jerusalem to worship in Gods own appointments Now truely we need not Diogenes lantern and candle to finde out that man whom God hath made taller by the head and shoulders then the rest of his brethren and made leader of his people in this our day who hath led the people of the Lord on prosperously to the destruction of our Ahabs c. on whom the eyes of the Lords people have been fixed even to high and great expectations of the performance of many vows and promises and when we have found him shall we not see him taking up his station among the calves those antient inventions that our fore-Fathers found out to maintain an Idolatrous-kingdom and making them his own and if so will he not make that great wrath and punishment God hath so often entail'd upon them his own too shall we not behold him leading the people back again into those wayes to redeem his people out of which God hath made bare such a mighty arm of power and providence and it 's my prayer that our eager marching back towards Egypt may not hurry us to the brink of the red-sea ere we make a stand A sixth aggravation of Jehu's sin was His deceiving Gods expectations But Jehu took no heed to walk in the way of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart Saith God I have done thus and thus for Jehu anointed him King over Israel honoured him in executing my judgements upon mine enemies by him and because he hath done all that was in my heart against the house of Ahab mine and my peoples enemies I have given him the kingdom and now I expected he should have brought forth fruit answerable to my kindness with all his heart But Jehu took no heed to that Will not the loving kindness of thy God work upon thee O Jehu what will then Love in its effects is like the Sun it either softens or hardens one of these two are the inseparable effects of its influences Whether wilt thou be hardened with Pharaoh and drowned in the Red-sea or softened with Hezekiah and have thy dayes prolonged canst thou remember the goodness of God to thee and bring forth no hearty fruit answerable to his expectations but deceive him totally Well Jehu thou wilt repent of this when it is too late I fear How have we in our dayes been guilty of this deceiving the expectations of our God in not in any measure answering the mercies of our God What returnes have we made to him for his mercy at Naseby Dunbar Worcester and many other places Yea such is the deceit and hypocrisie of our hearts that we cannot tell how to perform those LITTLE VOWES that the glory of those mercies extorted from us in the present ravishment of our hearts with their glorious beauty The Seventh and last aggravation of Jehu's sin is necessarily implied in the words that it was against all the faith and prayers of the people of God Can it be supposed that such a man as Jehu was so full of holy profession so outwardly zealous for God and the performance of his word who would not have one tittle of it fall to the ground should not such a man as this have a large-share in the hearts of Gods people and so in their faith and prayer and yet to deceive them and sin against these What mighty sins were these sins of Jehu's guilty of such aggravations surely the sins of Corah Dathan and Abiram were but Pigmies to these Giants if their sins opened the earth to the swallowing them up alive certainly the head of these reach heaven it self and cry aloud for veangeance and wrath And may not our Jehu's cry guilty here too what faith what confidence of Gods performing his promises now to the latter ages of the world what a spirit of prayer hath been amongst the people of God in these dayes by beholding the glorious out-goings of God in his providences and his beginning to execute his wrath upon Babylon the kingdom of the Beast and have not you sinned against these consider it have not you frustated and deceived the expectations of the people of
Christ himself lived their policy kept them from receiving Christ the true God caused them to reject him for say they If we receive him IF WE LET HIM THVS ALONE ALL MEN WILL BELIEVE ON HIM and the Romans will come and take away both our place and nation And what great afflictions and destructions it brought upon them we see in the story of the Macchabees yea what utter ruine at last overwhelmed them is evident have they not been as dung upon the face of the earth for more then 1200 yeers So that there 's nothing more clear then this That the ruine of States and Kingdomes is founded in and bottomed upon their State-policy at one time or other first or last their walking by the rules and maximes of this policy breaks them to pieces and brings them to their utter ruine Secondly consider The pernicious loathsome abomination of Jehonadabs counsel Hypocrisie is most odious to God most provoking yet Iehonadab counsels to that the righteousness of thy counsellors will not save thee ô Iehu although they have been exemplary for holiness and as a beacon upon a hill to shew men the way of life yet now they commit adultery with this grand strumpet State-policy God leaves them and they are become abominable by how much the more close and spiritual their iniquities are by so much the more wicked and abominable they are to God as the most excellent things once depraved are most vile base and abject most destructive so these men now going astray no counsel so destructive so contrary to God in the aggravations of it as theirs But now Iehu at parting I shall leave to your serious consideration some few of the words of God it may be you may get meat out of them 〈◊〉 15. â—3 28. And Samuel said Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord Behold â—o obey is better then sacrifice and to heaâ—ken then the sat of rams 〈◊〉 6.14 Because thou hast rejected the word of the Lord he hath rejected thee from being king The Lord hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day and hath given it to a neighbour of thine that is better then thou 〈◊〉 â—3 But the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit from the Lord troubled him So Saul died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord even against the word of the Lord which he kepâ— not And also by the hand of the Prophet Jehu the son of Hanâ—ni 2 Kin. 16.7 came the word of the Lord against Baasha and against his house even for all the evil that he did in the sight of the Loâ—d in provoking him to anger with the work of his hands in being like the house of Jeroboam AND BECAVSE HE KILL'D HIM And he said unto him 1 King 20.42 Thus saith the Lord Because thou hast let go out of thy hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction therefore thy life shall go for his life and thy people for his people Hosea 1.4 And the Lord said unto him Call his name Jezreel for yet a little while and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel Gal. 2.18 For if I build again the things which I destroyed I make my self a transgressor 1 Chron. 28.3 But God said unto me Thou shall not build an house for my name because thou hast been a man of war and hast shed blood 2 Chron. 19.2 And Jehu the son of Hanani the Seer went out to meet him and said unto King Jehosaphat Shalt thou help the ungodly and love them that hate the Lord therefore wrath is upon thee from before the Lord. 2 Chron. 26.16 But when he was strong his heart was lifted up to his destruction for he transgrest against the Lord his God ch 32.25 But Hezekiâ—h rendered not again according to the benefit done unto him for his heart was lifted up therefore was wrath upon him and upon Judah and Jerusalem ch 28.10 11. And now ye purpose to keep under the children of Judah and Jerusalem for bond-men and bond-women to you but are there not with you even with you sins against the Lord your God now hear me therefore and deliver the captives again which ye have taken captive of your brethren for the fierce wrath of God is upon you Wherefore it shall come to pass Isa 10.1 13. that when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon Mount Sion and on Jerusalem I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the King of Assyria and the glory of his high looks For he saith By the strength of my hand I have done it and by my wisdom for I am prudent and I have removed the bounds of the people and have robbed their treasuries and I have put down the inhabitant like a valiant man The Lord of hosts hath purposed it to stain the pride of all glory ch 23.9 and to bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth And it came to pass 2 Chron 25.16 as he talked with him that the King said unto him Art thou made of the Kings counsel forbear why shouldst thou be smitten then the Prophet forbare and said I know that God hath determined to destroy thee because thou hast done this and hast not hearkened to my counsel Now the good Lord help thee Iehu that upon reading this the maist understand the minde and will of God and repent and do tâ— first works lest c. A word to Jehonadab Jehu's counsellor In the second place I have a word to speak to Iehonadab hâ— excellent hast thou been how perspicuous hath thy glory shin'd the face of men insomuch that the Princes have taken notice of thâ— and have chosen thee for their counsellour thinking surely they shoâ— be happy and prosper if such counsellors as thou art teach theâ— Thou hast been counted worthy to ride in the chariots of the noâ— of the earth and thou hast been so far taken and ravished with tâ— sight of worldly glories from those mounts that thou hast fallen down and done worship to them notwithstanding all thy excellencies and perfections thou art overcome and fallen Repent and do thy first works or else saith the Lord I will come quickly and take that away that thou hast take away thy candlesticke Thou hast climed up the ascending steps to those Altars which are not of Gods appointment and your feet have slipt and you are fallen to the discovering of all your nakedness Remedies against this thou thy self O Jehonadab hast taught the people but now the disease hath overtaken thy self may we not justly say Physitian cure thy self but thy unskilful dealing with and carelesness towards thine own soul and thy being so slightly and so easily overcome makes it appear thou art really ignorant
after him go up the mount towards him he will lead us to his Father and make us partake of the same glory he possesses at his right hand Who would not follow such a leader and venture a little to seek him out if at any time we lose sight of him through the terrible and uncouth shakings of earth-quakes 3. We have set before us the sins and iniquities of Iehu with their aggravations and it 's evident how neer these our times are allied to them It 's worthy our serious consideration whether the differences between the times and the dispensations of God in the times or any other circumstance accompanying our deviations may give us any good and sound ground to hope that Iehu's punishment the consuming wrath of that age will not be the portion of this generation seeing they have so notoriously espoused his adulterous deviations and apostacy We finde what sudden sad effects Iehu's apostacy brought forth In those dayes in the dayes of Iehu's apostacy the Lord began to cut Israel short and Hazael smote them in all the coasts of Israel We finde already how our liberties begin to be cut short witness the persecution of the Lords people in Wales and other places In the margin it 's rendered to cut off the ends if the ends of the body the head and the feet be cut off what is the trunk able to do but roll in its own blood Come my people enter thou into thy chambers and shut thy doors about thee â—hide thy self as it were for a little moment Isa 26.20 and 63.4 until the indignation be overpast For the day of veangeance is in mine heart and the yeer of my redeemed is come 4 Again We here see the portion of those that joyn themselves to comply with Iehu in his abominable deviations RVâ—NE as soon as ever Iehu had accomplished his purposes and through Iehonadab's help kept the people within the ancient bounds and limits of the Idolatrous kingdom sad effects follow The Lord cuts Israel short Hazael smites Israel in all their coasts eastward and by that time there came to be a general compliance of the people and God had given them a little time to fill up the cup of their iniquity full then comes VTTER RVINE and behold they are not Is it not a great dispute among the learned what is become of them where the ten Tribes are the place of their abode is hid from the whole earth This is most certain That all those that cleave to comply with Iehu in his apostacies shall be partakers of that great wrath that God in due time will pour down from heaven upon the head of Jehu and all his companions in inquity Rev. 18.4 Come out of her my people that ye be not partakers of her sins and that ye receive not of her plagues 5. It 's worthy our observation That Jehu never afterward made use as we read of those Prophets of the Lord that anointed him that first did his work for him and help'd him to his power by which he got the throne When they had done so much as he could expect from them knowing their principles were not suitable to his design farewel then he had no more to say to them their hearts were too honest and brains too shallow for his deep politick designs they would walk answerable to their professions the glory of which affected the peoples hearts perform all their promises and engagements but these things stood not with Jehu's interest therefore no more of them adieu those half-witted fellows whose conscience cannot swallow a lye sealed with the highest asseverations that by such fine slights of State-wisdom we may clime the steps of honor But come thou Jehonadab thou art a righteous person and hast more wisdom then Myriads of those Idiots And indeed what can you expect more from a Jehu who sets up an interest contrary to God's never expect friendship or friendly dealing from him till God hath changed his heart and of a Jehu made him a David of a Saul a Paul Consider Jehonadab a little further then judge He was one that came to meet Jehu when he had made a sure progress in his work he was not at the beginning among the Prophets of the Lord to strengthen Jehu's hand in the work no but when he had slain the King and Jezebel and by a wile destroyed the Kings seventy sons and was going with power sufficient to make a full end of all his enemies Then comes good Iehonadab to congratulate Iehu to have a finger i' the pye before it 's put i' the oven And Iehu he strikes in with this holy man and engages him easily enough poor soul to be on his side Iehu knew full well that this wary wise man that knew the way to sleep in a whole skin till Iehu had almost made sure work and then comes and proffers his congratulatory service to his greatness would be a fitter instrument for his turn then those hardy simple-hearted fellows the Prophets of the Lord that to fulfil the minde of God would run through such hazards and dangers as they did to lift up Iehu into a capacity to do the will of God It 's this Iehonadab that Iehu is so eager to engage The text saith he lighted on him like a bird of prey and with his tallons he hoisted him up into the chariot a high place that diz'd poor Jehonadab's brains so as they could never get into their right posture again And what sweet complements past between them his whole discourse was about sincerity and uprightness of heart when God knows it was that he least cared for but Jehonadab understood him well enough and knew what counsel would please as appears in the matter of Baals Priests It 's this Jehonadab that Jehu loves and hugs in his bosome for you the Lords people who have not a Jehonadab's wisdom farewel he will have no more to do with you such fanatick silly fellows that are good for nothing but to ruine a State As we cannot finde it in the story that Jehu took any friendly notice of the Lords people to whom he was so much engaged after he came to the Throne so we shall never finde it in experience that a Jehu will be a friend indeed to those who in sincerity of heart look Sion-ward 6. From hence the Saints and people of God may see what their work is To bear the cross of Christ in bearing witness against those deviations and apostacies that are too too likely to over-run this generation of men to seek after the Lamb the Lord Jesus Christ for their Leader and follow him whithersoever he will lead them there 's no doubt nor Question to be made but his designes are right and adequate to the will of his Father who hath promised him the throne of his father David Much might be said to you the children of the most High of that full redemption and great glory
are many voices in the world we may soon be deceived It 's a special character of Christ's sheep That they now his own voice from a strangers voice and a stranger they will not follow Christ is raising his voice and calls aloud to his people to prepare for his coming and gives many signes of his nigh â—pproach And the devil raises his voice too and transforms himself into a glorious angel of light If Moses do strange and wonderful things the Magicians will do so too The cry and voice of the kingdom of Christ is up and begins to rise high and Satan raises many confused voices to stifle that cry that through the noise and din that he makes about the ears of mens souls they may not hear and believe and be saved Therefore now it behoves us to have a great care lest we be deceived to search and try every thing ere we receive it as truth but above all take heed of being offended lest we prove offended at the Truth and so perish for that is that at which we are most apt to be offended If there be one Truth incumbred about with through Antichristian fogs and mists a hundred Errours a thousand to one if we take not great heed we shall pass all those errours with a favourable construction at least and be offended at that one Truth and so stumble and fall foul on it and what follows then PERISHING Wo. As for this Treatise I shall onely say thus much It might have been enlarged and many things further proved and illustrated but I desired brevity for thy accommodation and knowing how well thou lovest thy money I was loth to intrench too much upon thy purse Read it over considerately and compare one thing with another and I suppose thou wilt see a line of truth going thorow it and something that may deserve laying up in our hearts and pondering If we do hearken to the truth in it we may possibly finde the way to get such a frame of heart as may free us from the bitterness of that Cup which the Author of this book fears may be the porton of this generation to drink the dregs of Onely I intreat thee again beware of offences they are the ready way to destruction there 's no hope in that path but that which is perishing And let me adde this That he that takes offence not given is both the giver and the taker of the offence and then what MILL-STONES OF WRATH may he expect to grinde him to powder Now the good Lord teach thee and me to know the voice of Christ the true Shepherd from a strangers voice and follow him alone and fully Farewel An Image of part of our Reforming Times OR JEHV in his proper colours displayed In some EXERCITATIONS on 2 Kings 9 and 10 Chapters 2 Kings 10.29 31. Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat who made Israel to sin Jehu departed not from after them to wit the golden calves that were in Bethel and that were in Dan. But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the Lord God of Israel with all his heart for he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam which made Israel to sin SOlomon the wisest of men upon his great experience tells us that there is no new thing under the sun Indeed every generation of men are but as new Editions of their forefathers one differs from the other onely in circumstantials Perhaps other faces and shapes but the same flesh and blood the same humours of the body the same faculties and passions of the soul Now there being such sameness and likeness in the fountain there must needs follow the like in the streams Mens actions and ways are as their hearts and affections are Likeness in sin and wickedness brings likeness in afflictions and publishments Times past seem to be a type or figure of the present and the present to be a re-acting or doing over again those things either more clearly or more obscurely that the former times brought forth Vicissitudes and changes are sutable to the mutable nature of Man What one Age doth or builds up another undoes or pulls down a third comes and would reform all if they could tell how yet still it 's but like the hand of a Dyal that goes from One to Twelve and then to One again There is no new thing under the sun Nothing can properly be said to be new but the new creature the works of God and of the Spirit of God are new but the works and ways of men are old at best but new images of old things and all old things must pass away nothing will be durable till all things become new new heavens new earth These three parts of time past present and to come are very nigh of kin they are so like each other that they may well be taken for brethren An indifferent Judgement studying the times past may cast the waters and give a true Judgement of the present and a prudent eye may by the same rule be able to give a shrewd ghess at the times to come especially times nigh or next at hand Those who make Cornelius Tacitus Titus Livius or other Romane Stories their Gospel will tell us that Julius Augustus and Tiberius Caesar's parts are acting over again in the world by other persons and under another Vizard and I could heartily wish that they had not so much ground as they have for their conjecture But the Saints and people of God have a more sure Word of prophecie The good and unerring Word of God and the promise of the Spirit to interpret it It was not for nought that our Lord so sharply reprehended the Scribes and Sadduces for not observing the signes of the times And the men of Issachar are characterized by the holy Ghost for their wisdom having understanding in the times What though they be counted the half-witted men the asses of the times it's no matter seeing they have the holy Spirit to stand by them and encourage them Christ our Lord rode to Hierusalem on an ass and he will again make use of the worlds asses the foolish things of this world when he goes up to his kingdom to the shaking of the earth and the heavens also I say yet not I but Solomon the wise-man saith That the present times are but an Image of times past there is nothing new under the sun Is there any thing whereof it may be said See this is new Eccles 1.9 10. It hath been already of old time which was before us and there is nothing new under the sun Ponder these things in your hearts and you will not wonder nor be prejudiced in your thoughts if I tell you that this story of Jehu is An exact description of part of our Reforming times or of a great part of our times Reformers Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat who made Israel to sin Iehu departed not from after
them to wit c. But before we come to the opening of these words which is our main intendment it 's necessary that we should see what help the whole history of Iehu will afford us to the clearing up of our work That which is requisite for us to observe as to our present business may be brought under these six Heads 1. The time that God took to have this work done in 2. The cause Iehu had committed to him to manage 3. His policy 4. His zeal 5. His profession 6. His hypocrisie First The time the opportunity or season God gave Iehu to do his work in It was as wicked a time as ever was in Israel wherein the poor people groaned under all sorts of Oppressions in their outward man as in the case of Naboth may be seen In things of a spiritual concernment in the Worship of God Baal and the Calves tell what a sad case the poor people of God were in then Prerogative and absolute Soveraignty advanc'd to the highest the Kings will and pleasure above Law as in the case of Naboth's vineyard and may be further seen in the complaint of good Obadiah What have I sinned that thou wouldst deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab to slay me The King's will was grown extreme boundless that a man so neer Ahab's person as Obadiah was Governour over his house so great and powerful a man should be so subject to the imperious fury of his Prince that he should incur the danger of death for a supposed telling of a lye that was the case if he should go and tell Ahab that Elijah was there and the Spirit of the Lord take him and carry him elsewhere and Ahab should not finde him he would slay Obadiah Surely Ahab was an absolute Soveraign had scru'd up Prerogative to the higest pin And this mans wife Iezebel was more absolute then he he rul'd the Kingdom but she rul'd the King for she made him more wicked then he was before that Ieroboam's sins could not serve his turn but he must have an Ahab's sins too She being a Sidonian brought him to worship her Idols and submit to her superstition to serve her gods and her Priests and who rul'd the King now think you Oppression and Superstition were brought up to the highest pitch and that by her means The times thus qualified gave Iehu an easie entrance into this work God order'd it so that the sense of the Oppressions and Superstitions of their Rulers wrought so upon the Souldiers hearts as made them of a willing minde to follow Iehu otherwise it would have been a difficult and hard matter for Iehu to have engaged them against their King * Who was a valiant man for he was wounded his wounds spake forth his valor which vertue is mighty ravishing and taking to the heart of a souldier He had a fit season to do his work in the harvest was ripe and he wisely thrust in his sickle How can he do amiss that hath God to direct him Now look back and behold the countenance of our late times consider our King and Queen the Prelates the Friers and Jesuitical Priests view the temper of the times the ways and courses were taken and you will presently be of my minde and say These two times though at so great a distance of time are complexion'd exceeding like each other and with Solomon thou wilt cry out There 's no new thing under the sun but the present age many times commits the same sins former ages have done and fall under the same punishment and possess the same ruine if they differ in any thing it 's but in the circumstantial aggravations of their sin and so may breed like difference in the effects Secondly for the Cause Jehu had in hand to manage It was as excellent as noble a Cause as ever man had the prosecution of What was it but the execution of God's wrath and vengeance upon his and his peoples enemies and the deliverance of his people from their bondage and oppressions that lay upon them both in matters of Worship and their outward concernments The people of Israel groan'd under the hand of their oppressors as you may read in the story of Naboth and they were compel'd to worship idols in stead of the true God the best whereof were Jeroboams calves characteristically called his sins and the more gross were Baal and other the gods of the heathens Now the Prophet gives Iehu full commission to execute the vengeance of God upon these Tyrants the enemies of God nad his people as you may read in 2 Kings 9.7 8 9 10. The other part of the Cause to wit deliverance and liberty for the people of God to worship the true God is plainly intimated in Chap. 10. vers 31. But Iehu took no heed c. God expected he should walk uprightly before him as David did wherefore did God give him commission to make the house of Ahab like to the house of Ieroboam but to let him know that he expected his turning from Ieroboam's sins as well as Ahab's and that he should take away the peoples oppressions and bondage in matters of Worship as well as in their outward estate Yea one reason why God would have Ahab thus dealt with is that he might avenge the blood of the prophets which blood was shed in defence of the true Worship of God And what was it that made God so wroth with Ieroboam and Baasha but because they made Israel to sin by compelling them to forsake the true God and his Worship 1 King 14.9 10. and 16.2.3 So that it 's clear that the cause Iehu had the managing of was the execution of God's wrath and deliverance of his people from all bondage and oppressions What a neer affinity there is between this Cause of God in these times of Israel and the Cause this present generation have had the managing of for these many yeers last past yea that it 's one and the same is so obvious to every serious eye that it would be but time lost to bring arguments to prove it Thirdly Let us consider the policie of the man view his intellectuals a little and we shall see that according to the received opinion of our times that grace is but a secondary qualification in Rulers and Magistrates natural gifts and accomplishments to be sought after in the first place he was as fit for the Magistracie as any man of that Judgement would fix upon A very embleme of our times This Policie of his discovers it self in divers particulars 1. By a faigned humility his companions without question read something in his countenance whereby they conceived that the matter which was communicated to him was of some importance upon which one of them demands Wherefore came this mad fellow to thee He answers The man you know and his communication you know As much as to say It 's no matter let it alone the thing shall die
and people of the Lord that mourned for the sins of the Land Yea so exemplary they were in their outward holiness and obedience This piece of â—olicie is one of â—he chief recreâ—tions of our â—ehu's that the Prophet takes up a parable from them to condemn the house of Israel in vers 14. Now Iehu engages these holy men and of what advantage is it to him Verily it 's of exceeding great advantage to him How acceptable is it to the people when the good men of their times are countenanced nourished and exalted Yea doth it not savour of much piety that he will have the good and holy men for his Counsellors Yea they must be the men that must plead for him in case he slip or discover his nakedneses they with the credit of their words with the people must cover all they must trumpet out his excellencies and pray for him and speak of him as if he were the onely Protector and Deliverer of the Lord's people from their great oppressions Yea he is not contented to have the Lords Prophets on his side from whom he had his Commission but good man he must have all good men satisfied or he will not be satisfied not so much as a Iehonadab shall be dissatisfied if he may have his will Iehu was a good and sweet-temper'd man now it 's true he was hot and furious in the field like a Lion in God's work there but is like a Lamb in his Chamber and Palace his words are smoothe as butter and oil he will maintain all good mens liberties though of different opinions and profession they are all alike dear to him O heavenly Iehu that hast such a large heart to hold all good men in it wherewithal shall we honour thee what service shâ—â—l we do thee We will joyn our selves to thee and make thy hands stâ—ong to do whatsoever thou deâ—â—est But stay good soule Iehu will turn separatist shortly and let you know when you proceed to the taking away his golden Calves his sins â—ounded on State-polâ—cy that he can tell how to separate and divide yâ—u and keep only those in his favour that will serve his turn although he turn from God 6. And lastly Iehu's policie appears in the matter of the worshippers of Baal Jehu was now at a stand he knew not what to do to root out all the Priests and worshippers of Baal he knew well enough that he could not be secure in his Throne if they continued in the Land and he forsake Baal they would remember their old friend Ahab and avenge his death if by any means they could accomplish it and he might think too that if he performed not the chief ends of God God would remove him himself and some sparks of light of conscience might tell him it was his duty and one chief end why God had anointed him King that he might destroy Baal out of Israel But it was his corrupt and deceitful heart that drew him to play the hypocrite and dissemble Now Jehu's chief motive that carried him on in all his work being his own outward glory and security in it he thought himself not safe unless Baal and his worshippers were destroyed To take courage to himself That this is an exact embleme of this present season a little time will discover and do it openly according to the command of the Lord by the voice of his Prophets his wisdom would not suffer him no that was too dangerous a course that would ruine all but he must deal wisely forsooth use policie and beat the devil with his own staff And what was this good piece of policie but to play the hypocritical dissembler In vers 18. Ahab served Baal a little but Iehu shall serve him much Jehu was acquainted with that Princely Maxime Qui nescit dissimulare nescit regnare He that knows not how to dissemble knows not how to reign Ahab served Baal a little he gave a little encouragement to his worship priests and worshippers small gifts and riches it may be to a favourite or here and there some eminent man he would give largely But I will serve him much I will have all to taste of my fatness and feel of my warmth enjoy the benefit of my good-will to Baal they shall all be the better for me those that could not live on the short commons of their Tythes and Oblations shall now have more In this shameful business Iehu had his Jehonadabs his outwardly-holy men to assist and counsel him but not one Prophet of the Lord appeared in it they were mourning I 'll warrant you for the sins of the Land for that black cloud that was coming over them which at best did foretel no likelihood of going up to Jerusalem to worship without more earthquakes first And now he proclaims a solemn assembly of all those idolatrous worshippers of Baal and he sends thorow all Israel that none might be wanting for he would make a great feast for Baal So that by this he set them on such work as fitted them for slaughter and destruction they must offer sacrifices to Baal put on their vestments be in all their gallantry They must take to themselves their full power not suffer one of the Lords people not one against their opâ—nion to be among them Oh how zealous a King have we Ahab was not to be compared to him for zeal for our God we shall have happie days we shall see no sorrow we shall never be removed long live Jehu let thy days be as the sand of the sea for number But stay Sir Priest make not your selves drunk in the conceit of your Elysian joys your joy shall be turned into mourning there 's death in the pot though the broth seem never so pleasant your sacrifices shall be dyed in your blood and your Baal shall be buâ—ied in your ruines But Jehu did it in subtilty to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal And thus he destroyed Baal out of Israel Good God! what vicissitudes and changes are here how mutable and uncertain is the heart of man This little world man ruling over the greater makes false deceitful reeling work Come Lord Iesus come quickly and take away this sinful wicked mouldering tottering world and give us new heavens and new earth that thy people may live to sing Hallelujahs to thee for evermore But in the Jehu's Zeal Fourth place Let us view Iehu this mighty man in his zeal O how gloriously zealous is he full of zeal and good works his heart seems on fire for God and his glory not one tittle of the word of the Lord shall fall to the ground he will slay all that belongs to the house of Ahab not leave a man to pass against the wall and as hath been before observed he will deliver the people of God fully from their oppressions and take off every heavie yoke But let us view the particulars wherein his zeal shews it self so
ominously First against the sins and wickedness of the times When he met Joram saith the King Is it peace Jehu Peace saith he What peace so long as the whoredoms witchcrafts of thy mother Jezebel are so many Peace belongs not to thee no peace with thy abominations I will not sheath my sword until I have destroyed all those Oppressions in the State and Innovations in the Church Was not this our practice in our first motions that have provoked God to wrath against the Land and hindered the people from worshipping the true God What peace with Ahab peace with Iezebel No you shall know I am raised up and inspired by God to avenge the blood of his servants upon your heads correct your tyrannies and destroy the cause of them out of the Land I will not withdraw my hand until I have purged the Land from all those things that pollute it and Cursed be he that withholdeth his hand from shedding of blood Well said Iehu thou art hot now but thou wilt be cool enough anon when thine own turn is serv'd when thou hast done as much as is needful for thy own designes then thou wilt let Gods work go whither it will for thee they are fools and asses that mind THEN any thing more then setling the State in peace and quiet that they may enjoy the fruits of their labours Secondly his zeal puts forth it self in this He would not have one to remain alive of Baals priests he would kill them all every mothers childe yea whosoever let one of them escape his life should go for it But have a care Iehu thou art not at last as furious against the Lords own Prophets as thou art now against Baals Thirdly his zeal appears in this These things have been done visibly before our eyes That he brake down all the images of Baal and brake down the house of Baal and made it a draught house How zealous was this man for God! one would have thought that surely this man liv'd in heaven and his thoughts were always upon Jerusalem and his heart thitherward Can it be imagined how glad the hearts of the unfeigned servants of the Lord were at the sight of this Will it be counted an errour to think that their hearts heads mouths were filled with the thoughts of their going up to Jerusalem to worship and behold the glory of God in his Ordinances But alas poor hearts you are mistaken in Iehu the golden Calves in Dan and Bethel will stop you there 's no passiâ—g those ancient bounds founded upon so much State-wisdom He departed not from the sins of Ieroboam the son of Nebat Jehu's Profession In the fifth place let us view him in his profession he profest himself to be one that studyed much the minde and will of God to regulate all his actions by that model he had received from God by his Prophets Thus saith the Lord This is the word of the Lord as you may observe all along the history When he met the King what was the profession he made but that his work was the rooting out all those abominations that had provoked the Lord to anger What peace so long as the whoredoms and witchcrafts are so many When he had slain Ioram he profest he did nothing but what he was commanded of the Lord Cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Iezreelite for remember how that when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father the Lord laid this burden upon him c. He would have a Word for all his actions and nothing would he seem to do This is a true and compleat Character of some in these our reforming times but what was consonant to the minde and will of the Lord. Again when he had slain Jezebel and she was eaten by the dogs what application did he make It was the will of the Lord This is the word of the Lord which he spake by his servant Elijah the Tishbite saying c. O heavenly man whose tongue is tipt with Scripture the experiences of the Saints and the Revelations of the Prophets When he had subtilly caused the seventy sons of Ahab to be slain what was the conclusion That the people should know that nothing of the word of the Lord should fall unto the earth which he had spoken by Elijah concerning Ahab And when he met with Iehonadab what was his profession but to be zealous for God What a profession of sincerity and plainness of heart in the cause of God did he make How curious was he of his associates and companions He would have none but such as were like himself holy men in appearance If thy heart be right as my heart come and see my zeal for the Lord be my companions otherwise not By the way observe how poor Iehu praises himself if thy heart be right as my heart he praises his own sincerity his zeal come and see my zeal there 's none like mine his grace his conformity to the will of God his performance of the Word of the Lord the effects of the Spirit upon his heart O none like his Surely he had forgot Solomon's counsel Let a stranger praise thee And did not that Pharisee write by this copie that said Lord I thank thee that I am not as that Publicane is c. And Iehu was a great Preacher too whether he were in the field or in the palace or in the gate of the city he was always preaching as the story mentions This is the word of the Lord Remember what the Lord said c. He seem'd as if he could speak no other language but the words of God Notwithstanding all this he walked not in the law of the Lord with all his heart Jehu's Hypocrisie Sixthly Let us view him in his hypocrisie How close a hypocrite was this seeming-heavenly Iehu Who could discern him to be counterfeit till he came to the touch He had as fair an outside as ever man had yet he was as a whited sepulchre full of dead mens bones within nothing but corruption and deceit lodging in his heart This man's hypocrisie appeared clearly in his dealing with Baal and his priests playing the counterfeit and dissembler with them Now what a case may we think the poor people of God were in in this time of temptation and trouble what could they do but make their complaints to their all-seeing God and Father who they knew would hear their sighs and groans Is not this the case now disputed in these our dissembling times and give an answer full of grace and love Well but when he had discovered himself but to dissemble with Baal and his Priests and to mean otherwise then he at that time pretended how could he shift off the guilt of hypocrisie before the people of God who knew by the experience they had of their own hearts that it could not stand with a sincere spirit with Water-men to look one way and
build upon and which were so notably built upon as had not an Almighty providence prevented the seed of the Serpent had utterly destroyed and devoured the seed of the woman in our Land these are the darlings these would some in our days have pull'd up by the roots and so have made thorow-work of it but they are not permitted and that upon strong reasons of State too You will then bring all into confusion presently we must go prudently and wisely to work and do things more gradually otherwise we shall lose all If you pull up the foundation will not the building necessarily fall to pieces But doth not this dilemma say You would not have the son of David to reign And is not this â—ur darling Secondly Iehu's sin was cleaving to rules of State-policie and he obeyed not the minde and will of God in his present generation It was policie of State that set up those golden Calves to secure the kingdom and he made it appear it was his opinion That all the Laws of God and men were to stoop to Reason of State and that Princes have a latitude beyond all men given them by God that as gods they may by the implicite Laws of their own brest do their will and pleasure and although they break all the Laws of God and Nature yet they are righteous still And why Why forsooth they will tell you it's reason of State to prevent an extraordinary unpresidented evil that hangs over our heads ready to fall upon us and such must have extraordinary and unusual remedies otherwise the Ant will be too hard for the Lion and his power majestie and great glory will be tumbled into the dust But what became of all this policie what was the fruit of it why it brought ruine upon him and his house as the story evidences He that seeks his life shall lose it by the very same evil ways that men take to secure themselves in their state their ruine shall inevitably come all their craft and cunning shall not be able to prevent it Iehu kept his kingdom for a while but he was not beholden one jot to his wicked policie for it but to the abundant mercy of God who would not let him go unrewarded for his so great service in destroying the house of Ahab and Baal out of Israel Because thou hast done that which is right in mine eyes c. he should have the kingdom to the fourth generation a little while and what comes then nothing but utter ruine and destruction And the Lord said unto him Hos 1.4 Call his name Jezreel for yet a little while and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu Consider this O England's Princes and tremble lest God make you a by-word and a hissing to the Nations round about you State-policie reason of State ruin'd this when time was Saint-like Iehu Give God your whole hearts and he will give you the whole possessions of the Lord Jesus purchased by his blood But Secondly more particularly to set down what those sins of Ieroboam are that Iehu would not depart from We have a full description of them in 1 King 12. vers 28. to the end of the Chapter and they were First Idolatry withdrawing the people from the true God telling them that the golden calves were their Gods that brought them out of the land of Egypt Secondly Putting the true Priests from their service and making Priests or Ministers of the lowest of the people Thirdly Devising a new worship for these calves their golden Gods For the first IDOLATRY A sin so provoking unto God as that it had cost the Israelites their utter ruine at their first commission of it had they not had a faithful Mediator to plead their cause with God Exod. 32.10 11. a sin that deprived them of the presence of God Exod. 33.3 a sin against which there is so much wrath of God pronounced by all the Prophets and of which God had much complained how it grieved his holy Spirit and provok'd him to anger yet nothing would warn Jeroboam nor Jehu but for the love of this world the honours vanities thereof they would stick by it no perswasion would move them to depart from it Behold saith Jeroboam thy Gods O Israel c. as if he had said and Jehu's actions spake the same language these Calves had wrought those wonderful revolutions as had then happened to Israel that there was no more of a deity manifested in them then was in these calves a prophane speech making it evident Ieroboam's God was the God of this world the Devil having shewn him the glory of this world he falls down worships him that so it may be his portion to enjoy it thus Ieroboam and so Iehu drew the people from their God by preaching to them when their expectations were raised high great after their going up to Jerusalem to worship and that upon apprehensions of an Almighty and extraordinary providence of God bringing things so marvelously about giving such extraordinary success to their proceedings that this apprehension of theirs was but a fancy as great things had been done for by others as these and as great revolutions had been made in the world in times of old and yet all things remain as you see as at the beginning and by such-like Arguments as these perswade the people from their belief of the Omnipotency and faithfulness of God in performing his promises and so bring them by this means to submit to their innovations and usurpations being thus blinded not being able to see by faith God's making bare his arm bending his bow sharpening his arrows and whetting his sword to fulfil his promises made to his chosen ones And surely it 's too too evident that we are after these mens example running to our old Idolatry onely new gilded over with specious pretences and under another form the serpent the old dragon having furnished us with a new mold to cast our Image in and helping us by his wisdom to bring our old calves into the new fashion If we have done all that God hath commanded what means this bleating of the sheep and lowing of the oxen no but in stead of pulling down and taking away the remainders of Idolatry we are setting up new Idols under other and more specious pretences every way of our own invention though it be never so good in it self to never so righteous an end yet if it be not of Gods appointment it 's Idolatry it 's superstition will-worship and it may justly be asked Who required this at your hands surely God did not but your Idolatrous calvish hearts that are full of many inventions Secondly Taking away the true Ministers of God in his worship and making other Priests of the lowest of the people this was another of Jeroboams heinous sins that Jehu departed not from having taken away the worship of God he takes away his Ministers