my feet d my feet as Asa being troubled as it is probable with the gout One complayneth of a Palsie another of a burning Feaver another of the Stone or Strangury and they that are not troubled with any of these yet they are still under this King of Feare lest hee should enlarge his quarters and take in them too But is there no Balme in Gilead Yes there be God be blessed for it Cordials and Scripture-Comforts appliable to such as are cast on their Sick-bed their Death-bed their Grave-bed for so e Isaiah calleth it they shallâ—… rest in their beds that is their graves every one walking in his uprightnes where they shall securely sleepe in a bed of ease till the morning of the Resurrrection SECT. I. Comforts for the Sickebed COnsider with thy self dear Patient and fellow-labourer under the Crosse of Christ that God hath a speciall hand in thy visitation even thy God the Father of Mercy which chastiseth thee for thy good and then thou wilt kisse bothâ—… the Rod and hand that correcteth thee For as Job sayth f Affliction comes not out of the duft Sicknes and Affliction that alights upon men comes not either by casualty or of it selfe or meerely from the second causes whether of men or other creatures or by distem pers of body onely but it comes from above and is inflicted by the divine hand of supreame and infinite Justice so as thou mayst say with the Psalmist g I know o Lord that thy judgements are right and that of very faithfulnesse thou hast afflicted me It were not well with us if these maladies came by chance or were let loose to alight where theyâ—… list it is our comfort they are swayed by the provident hand of a loving Father who like a skilfull Physitian tempers the Dose and Receit according to the neede and strength of his Patient h God is faithfull who will not suffer us to be tempted above that we are able but will with the temptation also make a way to escape that we may be able to beare it He will give a happy issue out of it and enable us to go through with it He corrects his children not out of measure i but in discretion with the Rod of men k that is moderately and with compassion in a fatherly tendernesse and love for their good and amendment Heâ—… knowes their strength is not the strength of stones l nor their flesh as brasse his anger endures but for a moment m Look theÌ„ upon the Author of thy sicknesse and how it is stinted and under Commission and this will worke thee an unmooved patience and humble submission And thus Ely when God foretold by Samuel the ruine of his house quiets himselfe n It is the Lord let him doe what seemeth him good And thus the people of God when Paul was resolved to goe to Hierusalem submitted saying o the will of the Lord be done a speech fit to proceed out of the heart and mouth of a Christian It is true indeed sicknesse and affliction simply considered and in their owne nature are not good but consequents of sin their use and fruit is a blessing of God giving us thereby a sight and sense of our sinnes but that good it is not wrought out of the nature of misery but comes from them by accident only No chastning for the present seemes to be joyous but grievous p Neverthelesse afterward it yeelds the peaceable fruit of righteousnesse unto them which are exercised thereby As it is in these humane corrections those chastisements which were grievous unto us in our childhood are afterwards allowed of us asâ—… profitable unto us So is it in these afflictions from the hand of God none of them are for the time pleasing but grievous and irksome yet afterwards we find them to be exceeding beneficiall by taming disciplining and fitting us to an holy life which bringeth peace of conscience after all the unquiet broiles and â—…mults of triall and temptation Now blessed is that sicknesse that prooves the cure of the soule Oh welcome Feavers that may quit our soule from everlasting burnings Thou complainest that now thou art sick now thou art grievously pained I apprehend it as such and pity thee with all my soule Butâ—… tell me wert thou not before a long time healthfull Canst thou not be content to take thy turnes and let God have his intercourse of favours and crosses health and sicknesse Can we looke for faire weather every day As well may the day be without succession of night as a mortall body of so fraile and britle consistence without fits of distemper It was the answer q where with that patterne of patience Job stopt the clamorous mouth of his tempting wife shall we receive good at the hands of God and shall wee not receive evill It was a memorable example r of a worthy Christian who had lived to his middle age inâ—… much health and prosperity and was now for his last two yeeres miserably afflicted with the Sâ—…gury who in the midst of his torments could say Oh my Lord God! how gracious hast thou beene unto me Thou hast given me eight and forty yeeres of health and now but two yeeres of pain thou migâ—…st have caused me to â—…e in this torture all the daies of my life and now thou hast carried me comfortably through the rest and hast merciâ—…lly taken up with this last parcell of my â—…ment blâ—…d by thy name for thy mercy in foâ—…ng mee and for thy justice in afflicting me Yea but thou complainest of these fits and changes that they interrupt thee and breake off the workes of thy calling it is that erstwhile thou hadst so much respite and breathing as to follow thy vocation This cessation and intermission will upon thy recovery make thee fall more freshly to thy taske If the Lord be pleased to send thee a Writ of ease a 〈◊〉 est to take thee off thy businesse by sicknesse yet even then thou hast time to serve God another way to wit by a selfe-resignation and patient submitting to his will If he meane to use thy service any further hee will restore thee to thy health strength to doe the work heâ—… sets thee about For health is at his command and sicknesse stayes at his rebuke In the interim and meane this time of sicknesse is a purging from that desilement wee gathered in time of health till wee come purer out which should move us the rather willingly to abide Gods good ley sure The Lord seeth that if the body bee not sicke the soule would Blessed is that sicknesse of the body which procures the health of the 〈◊〉 Wee are best for the most part when we are weakest when we are Gods pâ—…iioners and cast on our sick-bed then it appeares wâ—… good proficients wee have beene in the time of health â—… If there wee learned any good lesson
long I looke for an habeas corpus to remoove me out of this place to the Grave the Land of darkenesse as Job q calleth it But God who hath all times in his hand will in his good time send me my writ of ease and give me my liberate and thereby free both this body of mine from these outward prison-walls my soule from the prison of this body and both body and soule from the r bondage of corruption and restore me to the glorious liberty of the Sons of God There is yet a terrible and fearfull prison whence there is no redemption no goaledelivery without baile or mainprise but this is ourâ—… comfort the Lord hath the keyes of Hâ—…ll s so as he hath an absolute power over it to deliver and discharge the penitent from the feare and danger thereof He hath the keyes of death to unlock the graves and the keyes of Hell t to locke up the old Dragon and his crew into the bottomlesse pit When I was an Embryo in the daâ—…ke Cell of the wombe I was pen't up there as a close Reserve and yet there I had a kinde and loving keeper my mother my midwife and afterwards my nurse But in that other pâ—…ison the keeper there is our u Adversary the Devill who walkes about as a roaring Lyon seeking whom heâ—… may devoure In other prisons men have fouâ—…d some favour and mitigation Joseph was put in fetters w but the Lord was with him and gave him favour in the sight of the keeper of the prison but never any in that prison Jeremie was in the dungeon x yet he had Ebedmelech a Courtier to interceede for him to the King But ther 's none to solicit for the prisoners there as being extrà statum merendi without all capacity of favours and acts of grace y Peter was put into a darke prison but the light shoone round about him his fetters fell off from him and the Angel led him foorth and set him free But in that otherâ—… prison ther 's nothing but utter dâ—…knes no Angels there but such as kept not their first estates z reserved in everlasting chaines under darkenesse unto the Judgoment of the great day Now then as Jeremie prayed unto the King Z-dechias a that he would not canse him to retuâ—…ne to the house of Jonathan the Scribe which was the prison lest he dyed there So let us put up our supplications to the Lord that he would not send us into that eternall prison to die for ever SECT. IIII. Comforts against Banishment THou complainest that thou art banish'c out of thy Country why who is not Wee are all of us Pilgrims and Strangers b our conversation is in Heaven c Zanchius translates it our Burges-ship our societie is in Heaven we looke higher then the earth wee set our affections upon the things that are above wee carry our selves like feâ—…low-Citizens of Saints there wee live according to theâ—… Lawes of Heaven and heere on earth in part enjoyes the priviledges of that heavenly Corporation the new Hierusalem that is above It was a gracious speech of a worthy Divine d upon his Death-bed that he should change his place not his company His conversation was now before-hand with his God and his holy Angels and now he was going to a more free and full fruition of the Lord of life in that Region of glory above Whil'st wee are at home in the body wee are absent from the Lord as St. Paul saith e This is not our true home wee seeke for a better countrey f that is an Heavenly There is our trueâ—… home and were wee as it is thought Sâ—… John was banish'c into the Isle Patmos g or the Archipelago for the word of God and the Testâ—…mony of Jesus Christ even there wee should find as ready a passage to Heaven in our addresses to God as in our native soile This Center of earth is equidistant alike distant from the glorious circumference of Heaven as Hierom said of old to his Paulinus De Hierosolymis de Britanniâ aequaliter patet aul a caelestis Heaven is as open in Britaine as in Hierusalem It is Cyril's observation that Abraham whil'st he was in his owne Countrey had never God appearing toâ—… him save only to bid him go forth of his Countrey h his Kindred and his Fathers house but afterwards when he was gone forth he had frequent visions of his Maker Had Joseph beene ever so great or had such trust in Potiphar's House or Pharaoh's Kingdome if he had not beene sold into Aegypt Had Daniel and his three companions of the captivity ever attained to that honour in their native Land Themistocles i being banished from Athens grew into great favour with the King of Persia so as he was wont to say my sonnes we should have been undone if we had not beene undone Art thou banish'c out of thy Countrey Why what other thing hath befallen thee then it pleased God to enjoyne Abraham the father of the faithfull Saying to him k get thee out of thy Countrey and from thy kindred and from thy fathers house to a Land that I will shew thee He must goe from the place of his birth and wonted abode but he knoweth not whether l to a place he knew not and to men that knew not him He must sojourne m in a strange Countrey where he is constrained either to buy or hire or borrow both a place for his dwelling as also a plot of ground for the biâ—…iall of his dead n What though wee be strangers at home The Lord can provide us an home amongst strangers Aegypt the slaughter-house of Gods people the furnace of Israel's affliction hath neverthelesse three severall times beene the Sanctuary and Harbour to preserve Gods Church as namely in Abraham in Joseph and in Christ God oftentimes makes use of the world for the behoofe of his owne The earth is the Lords and all places are alike to the wise and â—…hfull God that is every where the same makes all places alike to his In a word am I banish't from home I meet with many of whom the worldâ—… was not worthy o wandâ—…ing about in sheeps-skins in goats-skins in Dasarts and in mountaios and in Dens and in Caves of the earth Why am I then discouraged or disheartned There hath no temptation taken mee p but such as is common to man Ther 's nothing hath befallen mee heerein but what is incident to other men holier then my selfe such as usually hath been incident to Gods dearest children such as may be borne by man in this life specially assisted by Gods grace which is alwaies sufficiâ—…nt for his children Bâ—…sides if I be east upon a forrein Coast I shall have good company For heâ—… hath said q who cannot faile I will never leave thee nor forsake
off sooner but then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 fall off alone The Lord willâ—… heare thee but it may be thou art not yet fit for the mercy not because he doth not heare thy prayer and tender thee in that case thou art in but thou art not yet fit Herein God deales with us as the Physitian with his Patient The Patient earnestly desires such and such things the Physitian wants not will to give them him but he resolves to give them as soone as he is fit and therefore he makes him stay till he have purged him and made him fit for it till he be fit for such a Cordiall for such a Medicine God heares the complaints of this our distressed Church and State it may be God staies us for this end wee are not yetâ—… haply in that capacity of mercy as is fit Twice was the Israelits the better part foiled by the men of Benjamin the lesse in number and such as had the worse cause The Israelits f they wept and fasted once or twice and adventured upon the Benjamits but prevailed not till the third time They were fitted and prepared when they fasted and wept and prayed three times T is to be feared wee are not yet fit there is somewhat more that must be done wee are not yet humbled enough Some Colts are so untamed they must needs be broken so some corruptions are so unruly that they will not beâ—… wrought out without great afflictions Wee shall have neede of Patience as the Apostle saith g to endure these penall and painfull evils Fulgentius a godly Father was often divers dayes before his death heard to cry out Domine da mihi modò patientiam postea indulgentiam Lord grant me patience heer and case heereafter Lord give us patience to bear and constancy to endure whatsoever it shall please thee to inflict And since this evill of paine this painfull evill must come heere or elsewhere say we with S. Austin Domine hic ure hic seca ut in aeternum parcas Lord feare us lance us heere let us smart heere so thou spare us hereafter And yet since wee must suffer for our sins have so deserved 't is our comfort that wee are under the protection of the highest and guided by such a providence as stoupeth to the lowest and wisely disposeth of whatsoever can befall us Let us then lay our hands upon our mouthes and command our soules an holy silence not daring to yeeld to the least rising of our hearts against God I was dumbe and opened not my mouth because thou did'st it saith David i That which Iâ—… could not attaine to by reason while I looked on the second causes now I have obtained by grace looking up to thee now I keepe silence Thus Aaron when he had lost his two sonnes both at once and that by fire and by fire from Heaven which carried an evidence of Gods great displeasure with it yet held his peace k In this silence and hope is our strength Flesh and bloud is proane to expostulate with God and to question his dealing as Gedeon l did If the Lord be with us why then is all this befallen us But after some struggling betweene the flesh and the spirit the conclusion will be â—… yet howsoever matters goe God is good to Israel m Truely God is good to Israel saith David though God may seeme to favour bad men because they prosper and to hate good men because they are crossed yet he assures himselfe that God in the end would blesse the godly and such as were not hypocrites Hold out faith and patience then and our worke will speedily be at an end and wee shall receive the end of our faith n even the salvation of our soules and through faith and patience o inherit the promise If wee strive but a little wee shall be happy for ever Here it will haply be expected that I should goe on to make up other Cordials for severall maladies but this is done to my hand by a rare Confectioner in his Balme of Gilead to whose store-house I referre the Patient SECT. VII Directions for the recovered Patient VVHen thou art cased of the Crosse be thankfull for thy recovery bee not like the unthankfull Lepers p or Pharaoh's cup-bearer q who admired Joseph in the jayle but forgat him in the Court Forget not God in thine health and prosperity whom thou pliedst with suites and promises in thine adversity even the wicked can be somwhatâ—… good whiles they are under the crosse and with Ahab hang downe the head like a bul-rush and bee humbled but take them off the rack case their paine and they run to their old Byas againe these are like Iron which is soft and will bow as the workeman will when it is in the fire but soone after it is drawne out it returns to the old hardnesse like hoggs that seldome looke towards heaven but when they are cast to ground and overturned which if they be let goe they begin to pore on the ground and roote in the earth Try thy selfe how the Crosse hath wrought with thee whether it hath bettered thee or no Thou callest it a visitation a correction how is it so if thou bee not corrected by it If the mettle bee put into the furnace and not refined it is but refuse If after thou hast been humbled under God's hand thou grow more faithfull and Conscionable in thy calling than before 't is a good token this is like Triacle out of the Viper and with Sampson to taste sweet honey out of the sowre carkasse of a dead Lion r now that thou art recovered and the Lord added to thy daies â—… as he did to Ezekiah s doe thou add Repentance and Amendement of life to thy daies as the Lord hath made thee young and lustie like an Eagle t renuing thy youth and strength like an Eagles beake doe thou likewise renue thy Repentance and pay u that now in thy health which thou vowedst on thy sick-bed to wit newnesse of life Sin no more w lest a worse thing come to thee to wit death naturall or spirituall Returne not with the Dogge to his vomit x or the Hogge that was washt to wallow in the puddle of thy former uncleannesse Fall not to thine old diet lest thou fall toâ—… thine old disease beware of a down-cast and be more precisely cautionate against spirituall Relapses Take heede of a Relapse Relapses are dangerous when I fell sick it was some comfort to me that I was but in the common condition of mankind now in my relapse I am barred hereof I charge the fault and that juftly vpon mine owne selfe mine owne carelesnesse and disorder I have pull'd downe a falling house on mine owne head I have marred what Physitians and friends under God had amended At the first grudging of myâ—… maladie I had some strength and