Selected quad for the lemma: love_n
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A29370
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The righteous man's habitation in the time of plague and pestilence being a brief exposition of the XCI. Psalm / by William Bridge.
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Bridge, William, 1600?-1670.
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1665
(1665)
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Wing B4460; ESTC R34367
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31,468
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50
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hundreds fall on this side and on the other side and thousands may quickly then says he yet it shall not come nigh thee there shall no evil befall thee neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling ver 7 10. Will you say O but this same disease of the Plague 't is like a Lion and an Adder and as a young Lion and Dragon yet saith he Thou shalt tread upon the lion and adder and the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under thy feet in the 13. verse Will you say O but suppose the Plague should come all my friends would leave me I shall be left all alone and what shall become of me then why says he at the 15. verse He shall call upon me and I will answer him I will be with him in trouble spoken in regard of the Plague I am of Molerus his mind that the whole Psalm relates to the Plague Will you say O but I cannot believe this there is no likelihood that I should escape in a general Plague mark what he says in the last verse With long life will I satisfie him and shew him my salvation it shall be my salvation thou shalt not be saved by second causes but it shall be my salvation and in the 3d verse saith he Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler from the noisom pestilence do not doubt it surely he shall deliver thee The words of this Psalm are so said as to take off and to obviate all our objections and fears therefore why should we not trust in the Lord in the time of a Plague But you will say then how shall this work of faith and trusting in the Lord be carried on I shall say no more in it but only two or three things from this Psalm It must be carried on with love to God knowledge of his name and prayer In the 14. verse because he hath set his love upon me therefore will I deliver him As you must believe and trust in God so you must set your love on God and says he I will set him on high because he hath known my name He shall call upon me and I will answer him Here are three things Love to God knowledge of his name and prayer your faith and trust in such a day must go along with these three Some say they do believe and trust in God but they don't set their love upon God some say they love him but do not know his name that whereby God is distinguished and worshipped some say they know Gods name but they do not pray But now if you would carry on your faith and trust in the Lord as you ought to do your trusting in the Lord must be carried on with Love to God Knowledge of his Name and Prayer 2ly Go on in your way Christians do not start out of your way He shall give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways In all thy ways the ways of thy calling take heed you be not found out of your way that the Plague don't find you out of your way look that you do not start out of your way 3ly And so to end go to God and tell the Lord that you do trust in him and make him your Habitation He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty I will say of the Lord in the Hebrew I will say to the Lord my refuge my fortress my God in him will I trust 'T is not enough to trust in the Lord but you must go to God and tell him that you do trust in him that you make him your Habitation say Lord I make thee my Habitation I trust in thee thou art my refuge and my fortress in thee do I trust FINIS The 91. Psalm vers 11. 12. For he shall give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways They shall bear thee up in their hands lest thou dash thy foot against a stone FOr he shall give his angels charge over thee c. Having treated of this Psalm already I shall not spend much time in showing you the coherence of these words with the former you see they are brought in with a for For he shall give his angels charge over thee as giving an account and reason of that which was said before In the former part of the Psalm you read of the Saints protection in and their deliverance from the Plague and pestilence in the day thereof At the 10. verse There shall no evil befal thee neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling Why For he shall give his angels charge over thee to keep thee in all thy ways c. So that here still you have the promise of protection in the time of the Plague and pestilence the means whereby God will protect deliver The condition of this promise in these words keep thee in all thy ways So that though the danger of the Plague and pestilence be never so great yet if we be found in our ways Gods angels under him shall be our protection He shall give his angels charge over thee c. In which words you may read the special and singular care and providence of God over his people in the time of Plague and pestilence to be managed by the hands of Angels God will take special order with the angels for the safety of his people in the time of the Plague and pestilence For the clearing of which argument three things will fall under our consideration First that God hath singular care and providence over his children 2ly That this care and providence is managed by the hands of Angels 3ly That this and all this is and shall be excited and drawn out specially in the time of the Plague and pestilence As for the first it is so full and clear in the words that I shall need go no further He doth not say that God will provide for his people in the generall but there is a singular and special care and providence that God hath for his people For if you mind the words first he sayes he will give his angels charge over thee Charge charge is a strict command more than a bare command as when you would have a servant do a business certainly and fully you lay a charge upon him I charge you that you do not neglect that business you don 't barely tell him what he should do prescribe him his work but you charge him to do it So sayes the Lord unto the Angels my servants or children now they are in the Plague and Pestilence O my Angels I charge you stir not from their houses I charge you stir not from such a ones bed-side 't is a charge He shall give his angels charge 2ly He doth not only and will not only charge his Angel but his Angels not one Angel charged with the safety of his people but many Angels for their
more honourable the servants are the instruments are that a King or Prince doth use for the protecting of his people the more honourable is that King or Prince Now the angels they are honourable creatures frequently they are called Gods thou hast made him a little lower than the angels in the Hebrew 'tis a little lower then the Gods worship him all ye Gods in the Hebrew all ye Angels Well! but why are the Angels called into this protection into this Nursery into this Ministry God hath several creatures that he can use to protect and safe-guard his people why are the Angels in a special manner called into this work of protection of the Saints They are the fittest people in the world for this employment fittest in regard of themselves fittest in regard of the Saints They are fittest in regard of themselves for first they are an exceeding strong and potent people who more fit to look to and care for the concernments of the Saints and people of God than those that are strong and potent 'T is said of the Angels in the 103. Psalm that they excell in strength Bless the Lord ye his angels that excell in strength vers 20. They are called powers in the Host of God they are the chariots and the horse-men in the 68. Psalm verse 17. The chariots of God are twenty thousand even thousands of angels thousands of Angels they are the chariots and horsemen in the Host of God other foot-companies he hath but his Chariots and horsemen they are the Angels One Angel you know destroyed an hundred and fourscore thousand of the Host of Assyria in a night as one Constable will scare away twenty thieves so one good Angel invested with Gods authority is able to drive away a thousand evil Angels Devils they are an exceeding strong and potent people 2ly As they are an exceeding strong and potent people so they are a very knowing and a wise people and who so fit to manage the affairs and concerns of the Saints and people of God and to protect and defend them as a knowing and understanding people such are the Angels the devils indeed they are called knowing but the Angels good Angels they are called intelligencers you know what Joab said to David Thou art for wisdome as an angel of God sayes our Saviour no man knoweth that day and time no not the angels in heaven as if the Angels in heaven knew every secret and were acquainted with every hidden thing they are an exceeding knowing people very prudent and very wise 3ly As they are an exceeding knowing and wise people so they are also exceeding active and expeditious quick in dispatches who more fit to defend and protect the Saints and people of God than those that are active expedite and quick in their dispatches such are the Angels In the first of Ezekiel ye read that every one had four wings why because of their great activity and expedition and the quick dispatch they make in all their affairs Again as they are an active and expeditious people so they are a people very faithful both to God and man in the 103. Psalm they are ready to do Gods will and not only ready to fulfil Gods will but they do it Bless the Lord all ye his Angels that excel in strength 20. verse that do his commandments hearkning to the voyce of his word Blesse ye the Lord all ye his hosts ye ministers of his that do his pleasure They are very faithful and who so fit to do this work to attend and look to the concernments of the Saints and people of God as those that are faithful 3ly As they are an exceeding faithful people so they are a people that are very loving to the Saints and children of God very loving otherwise they were not fit to be their nurses what is a nurse without love they are loving to the Saints Do is not said the Angel unto John I am thy fellow servant don't give divine worship to me I am thy fellow servant fellow servants are loving to one another they are fellow servants with the Saints Are the Saints and people of God members of Christ and is Christ their head so is Christ the Lord of Angels he is the Lord of Angels and they follow him In the first of Zachary the 8. verse I saw by night and behold a man riding upon a red horse and he stood among the myrtle-trees that were in the bottom these Myrtle-trees in the bottom are Saints in a low condition And behold a man riding upon a red horse this is Christ and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom and behind him there were red horses speckled and white behind him mark who are those red horses speckled and white in the 9. verse Then said I oh my Lord what are these and the angel that talked with me said unto me I will shew thee what these be and the man that stood among the myrtle trees answered and said these are they whom the Lord hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth These are the Angels that stand behind Christ that are the followers of Christ they are his followers the more union there is betwixt persons the more they love and as the union is such is the love If there be a natural union betwixt persons their love will be natural if their union be civil political their love will be political civil if the union be spiritual ecclesiastical the love is spiritual ecclesiastical more than natural Now the union that is betwixt the Angels and the Saints it is a Church union Ye are come sayes the Apostle in the 12 of the Hebrews verse the 22. unto mount Sion and unto the city of the living God the heavenly Jerusalem and to an innumerable company of angels to the general assembly and Church of the first born so that they are of the same Church the general assembly and Church of the first born and therefore they must needs be an exceeding loving people to the Saints and people of God and therefore a people fit for this employment of all other the fittest for this employment to be employed under God for the protection of the Saints fittest in regard of themselves But then again 2ly fittest they are for this employment in regard of the Saints for who more fit to be employed in this protection under God the protection of the Saints than those that are in some respect above the Saints and in some respect beneath them if a nurse be above the child she may despise it if the child be altogether above the nurse the nurse cannot rule it Now the Angels they are in some respect beneath and in some respect above the Saints they are above the Saints in regard of their nature as you all know but in some respects they are beneath the Saints and below the Saints for the second person did not come into their nature as he did into the nature