weeping for her and yet it is observable that the Jews write the letter 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that signifies to weep very small 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to intimate the practice of Abraham to have been sutable to what the Apostle Paul expresly wishes that beleevers in the like cases should be 1 Thes 4 13. a moderate mourning for their dead in the Lord as those that believing the doctrine of the resurrection are not without hope for them I might point you likewise to Jacobs buriall of his wife Rachel and his and Esaus buriall of their father Isaac Gen. 35.19 20 29. and to Joseph and his brethren with many of the Egyptians making a very great lamentation for old Israel when they buried him insomuch that the place where they staied lamenting him got from thence a new denomination being afterward called Abel Mizraim Gen. 50.10 11. or the Egyptians mourning because of the excessive mourning of the Egyptians by which it seems that the Egyptians though least akinne to him yet made the greatest lamentation surely not because they loved him better then his children but because they were not so well instructed and therefore had neither so much knowledge nor so much hope of the resurrection which should have put more bounds unto their mourning except we shall say that the whole company coming out of Egypt had the common name of Egyptians put upon them because so adjudged to be by the people thereabout inhabiting I might tell you too of the interring of Aaron Miriam and the lamentations made for them as also for Moses Joshua Samuel and many others but then as the Apostle sales in this Heb. 11. in another case the time would fail me or my strength would fail me by exceeding the time I shall therefore content my self with what is said to that and turn from this discourse to my text and see what it will afford for our observation and usefullnesse before we make further application of our discourse to the present occasion All these died in or according to faith The Apostle in this Epistle had most sweetly opened the doctrine of Christ to the Hebrews that were partakers of the heavenly call and thereby brought to beleeve and thence called holy brethren ch 3.1 and from his natures offices sufferings and from the dignity of them all he had abundantly evinced and cleared it that they had good ground to hold fast the faith and profession of him firm without wavering and not be moved therefrom by any cause or reason In the 10th Chapter he had laid down many other arguments also to presse them thereunto as from the danger of willing backsliding If we sin willfully after the knowledge of the truth there remains no more sacrifice for sin c. vers 25 26. and from the consideration of the excellency apprehended by them in Christ in their illumination and the effects of that apprehension in them c. vers 33 34. Remember the daies in which after ye were illuminated ye endured a great fight of affliction c. from the greatnesse of the reward promised and to be certainly enjoied by them in its season if they hold fast their faith and confidence and were not turned aside therefrom vers 35. Cast not away your confidence which hath great recompence of reward to which he adds an instruction about their need of patience ver 36. and usefullnesse and excellency of faith as that which most suiteth with the condition in which God useth to leade his and in which they should meet with preservation unto the enjoyment of the reward promised them vers 38. Now the just shall live by faith or the just by faith shall live without that the profession will be worthlesse the considence will vanish and patience will have no place but there will either be an open revolting or a secret withdrawing in a barren empty dead adhering to an outside profession Now in this Chapter he confirms what he had there said that faith is that in which God exerciseth his people and gives them life that God doth not use to keep them by sense in giving in an enjoyment of things promised so much as by faith in his word without sensible feelings and experiments but first of all he laies down a definition of this faith v. 1. It s the subsistance of things hoped for and the evidence or argument of things not seen that puts an end to vain empty disputations How do you know that God made the world or that the Scriptures are the word of God or are true c. Faith makes it evident to me God hath said thus and in his saying I am convinced and perswaded to believe though I see not the things of which he speaketh to me and in believing I am staied and satisfied about it and it s become to me as firm a principle as if I had seen It s an argument leaning upon Gods authority speaking and manifesting it self unto the conscience that gives a suâ—sistence to things hoped for as to my minde so that though we see not the things we hope for nor are they as yet in being yet they being beleeved have a kinde of subsistence in the heart and the soul acteth upon that subsistence towards them as really as if it saw them with the bodily sense as if they were already existent and had a being which also they shall have in their season From that the Apostle proceeds to give divers instances of the excellency usefullnesse and â—fficacy of this faith in the prime and choice Saints of God in all ages how they have lived by it and in the exercise of it without the enjoyment of the things set before them and beleeved and he begins at Abel v. 4. and so passes on to Enoch ver 5. Noah ver 7 aâ— thence to Abraham Isaac and Jacob ver 8 9. and Sarah ver 11. or whom he hâ—re saith in the text All these dieà in faith not having received the promises c. The words these all seem to referre to Abraham Isaac Jacob and Sarah both because of Enoch of whom its said vers 5. that he was translated that he should not see death who therefore cannot be here included except we take his change in his translation to be equivalent to death and also because that he tels us vers 15 of these forsaking their Countrey which we finde no where affirmed of those others mentioned before these But let us come to the words and note something from them that present themselves unto us for I shall not spend time about a curious supersluous cutting them in pieces Abraham Isaac and Jacob were worthy persons highly favoured of God chosen by him to peculiar dignity and priviledges Princes and Prophets and very famous in their proper seasons yet behold what the Apostle in the first words of the text affirmeth of them all These all died Whence let us note and I
these had faith and kept it to the death and yet as the Apostle here witnesseth they all notwithstanding that died how is it then that Christ saith If any man keep my sayings he shall never see death Oh how mysterious is the word of God Answ and what a riddle to fleshly wisedom and humane â—nse It 's to be believed and held for true by faith not to be judged of as true or false by the verdict of our sense certainly both Christ and his Apostles said the truth he that keeps his sayings shall not see death and yet these that kept his sayings for before Aâ—â—ahâ—m was Christ was and his sayings they were that he received did all die yea the Apostle here hints a solution to that doubt of the appearing contradiction in them when he saies these all dâ—d in faith for in this very thing that they died in faith they were so preseryed that they did not see death for this very faâ—h in which they died carried them above sense and took their eye off from death and set it upon life so that they saw souâ—d felt experimented life in death even when they dâ—ed according to the flâ—â—h yet the then lived in their spirits their bodies did but sleep in death while their spâ—its lived above death being made partakers of Jesus Christ as he word of God to be made flesh who is the resurrection and the life and the very death of death putting it to death they passed through the shadow of it but they saw not felt not found 〈…〉 of it they saw God in their death and the sight of him â—o â—ook up and filled their eye that they could not see death Or 2. they saw not that death that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for ever for indeed that is death and worthy the name of death the second death the other the first death Rom 3.12 the condemnation that came by the first man upon all men that spent it sell upon Christ being by the wise and mercifull God â—a slated upon him 2 Tim. 1.10 and he hath abolished it so in and by himself that nothing but the carcasse and shadow of it abideth for us to see or grapple with so that he that sees but it sees not death properly but only the shadow and shell of it Its life power and proper vigour is by the death of Christ swallowed up abolished and gone he then that never sees the second death sees not death for there is no other death by way of punishment of man for his sinne that 's propeâ—y death but it remaming and that hath no power upon Christ or any in him the just shall live by faith in the midst of the shadow of the other death and he shall live out of the way and danger of this second death he shall never be hurt of it either by the bearing it or fearing it his faith shall keep him from the first and being exercised carry him through and above the second and he shall never be overcome or over-powred by it thence blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection Rev. 20.6 that hath part in Christ the first begotten from the dead the resurrection and the life that in their spirits are raised with him and shall have their bodies raised with the just at his glorious appearing Seeing then that we must all needs die Appliâ— and that 's our portion in the flesh and there is a way by which we may so die as not to see death viz. to die in faith what wisedom is it to take that course that we may so die that we may see no death when we die feel no sting in death finde it but a shadow that hath no deadly substance in it nay rather finde it lighted with the glory of eternall life seen and tasted through it that we may see life in death a life beyond above and without death Oh how terrible is death to men when they see death in it when they experiment and feel a sting in it the sting of a self-condemning conscience and the pricks of the second death in the first death When they see death and nothing but death when life is hid from their eyes and so their hearts and thoughts die within them together with or before their bodies when they die full of despair strangers from and hopelesse of ever finding the life of God that will be a black griesly day to a soul that sees not life in it what need then to cry to God here so to teach us to number our daies that we may apply our hearts to Wisedom the wisedom of God in its sayings reproofs counsels cals that it powring out its spirit upon us and opening its precious words to us we may be filled with faith and courage and be in such a state as in which to see no death that we may so believe and live in and by faith in the power and exercise of it that in all our dying conditions yea when we come to breath out our souls we may die in faith die according to faith and not according to sense Even some believers not living and dying in an exercise of faith are many times filled with sorrow fears faintings especially in their dying cases because they judge not and so die not according to faith they judge according to sense they feeling pain and feeling temptations and seeing griesly things represented to them by Satan they are affrighted and rerrified at them though they be false illusions whereas exercising faith and so judging according to it they are carried above and get the victory over sense and temptation Let us therefore so follow on after wisedom that her words may dwell richly in us that her spirit may be a spirit of faith in us that we may live in faith and have a living exercise of faith in all conditions so shall we also dying have our hearts born up by faith and shall be enabled to lay down our tabernacle with peace and joy as that will leade us and not with trouble as sense would carry us and unbelief affright us while we judge of God and Christ life and death sinne and righteousnesse according to faith and not according to carnall sense and philosophicall speculations we shall be from seeing death when we die yea shall finde and feel life in the shadow of death according to that Joh. 5.24 He that heareth my Word and believeth on him that sent me hath eternall life and shall not come into judgement but is passed from death to life and that Joh. 11.25 26. I am the resurrection and the life he that believeth in me though he were dead yet shall he live and he that liveth and believeth shall never die Those all died in faith Faith Ay but what is faith and how may a man come by it Object The Apostle in this Chapter Heb. 11.1 tels us what it is Answ It 's 〈◊〉
to their own countrey which they came out of at Gods commandment as the former sort of men deny the word of faith and discover their defect of faith by opposition to the word so these by their works declare the vanity of their words neither of these faiths faith upon works and not grounded on and springing from the word nor faith or rather a saying a man hath faith without works inward operations and outward testimonies through the power of the word feeding it will suffice to make a man just or cause him to live nor will either of them be sufficient for dying to keep a man that he see not death But there 's one thing more yet they received not the promises though they beleeved and saw them afar off they died in faith but yet enjoyed them not how may we understand that and what shall we note from it The promises metonymically for the things promised which are either for this life or the life that is to come for this life such as these to be a shield to them to protect them provide for them give them children c. for the life to come such as the countrey or city that hath foundations the full enjoyment of himself and his glory and as the way to that the Messias to be born of their seed to die and rise c. as also to blesse all nations in him Again the word promise sometimes in Scripture signifies the word of promise or the promise it self made in words to us and by these distinctions and considerations we may resolve a doubt for whereas it 's said here these all died in faith not having received the promises it 's said as we reade it in ver 17. that Abraham had received the promise He that had received the promises offered up his only begotten Son and so chap. 6.15 after he had patiently endured he obtained the promise The solution that the word of a promise he had received from God God made his promise with and to him and that promise as a thing made in word he had received it he heard it and beleeved it but he had not received the things spoken of in that promise or in those promises as the word promises in the text signifies the things promised 2. He did before he died obtain and receive the promise in some things but not in all the promises for this life of having God a shield to him to protect him and be his God and own him and give him a Sonne these he had obtained and received before the died yea before he offered up his son Isaac but not all the promises nor the main things promised as neither the land of Canaan nor the multiplying his seed as the stars of heaven nor the Messias coming and blessing all nations nor which is the main the full thing aimed at the heavenly countrey or kingdome the enjoyment of God and Christ in glory with his seed and yet these they were heirs of these fell to them by lot from God Heb. 6.12 yea these they received in semine in Isaac and Isaac in Iacob c. they had them in pignore but not in plenitudine in the first fruits or pledge but not in the full enjoyment They all died in faith not having received the promises the greatest part the glory and the inheritance promised they received not and yet though they had them not till their death yet they left not off believing and hoping for them nay in their very death they held fast that faith and hope of them and that upheld them in death they knew themselves heirs of them and judged God faithfull not to deprive them But how could that be seeing now they died without them Sure then they looked for another day and time in which they should enjoy them and in which we also that now believe should enjoy them with them as is said ver 39 40. These all being Wiâ—nessed of by faith or having received a good report or testimony by saith received not the promises God having provided some better thing for us that they without us should not be made perfect God hath provided another time and day in which they and we together shall receive and enjoy them Mâ—nde we here then a little these dying beleeved still the receit of the promises though even at the time of their death they had not received them how did they then believe wrong or right was the thing they believed true or false Surely their faith was good for the holy Ghost here commends it and God therefore vouchsafed to be called their God having prepared a city for them vers 16. and if so then surely they must yet have the promises performed to them though now dead What shall we say then Verily we must needs hence further note That there shall be a resurrection from the dead Note 5. death shall not frustrate the promises of God and make void their faith There shall be a time when they shall be brought out of the power of death and grave and then shall receive the promises that they died short of then shall the word of God be performed to them and indeed here was the triumph of their faith that though God kill them and take their lives from them and they never see the fulfilling of the prime things promised yet they beleeved that they should receive them death it self wherein according to sense there was an end put to them and all further hope and expectation could not make their faith to fail them for they beleeve in God that raised the dead and calleth things that are not as if they were Rom. 4 17. and so above hope beleeved in hope according not to sense but to what was spoken of God so shall thy seed be O the power and vertue of divine faith supported by the power of God in the belief of the resurrection from the dead Surely if they believed not in vain as without doubt they did not then it undeniably follows that they shall have and so that there is a day of Resurrection when the promised countrey and glory shall be made good unto them Verily if this doctrine were not true our faith were vain and the Gospel preaching with its promises vain we could have no ground for faith in death but faith and hope and all must die with us but now they died all in faith though they had not yet received the promises verily there shall be a reward for the righteous for all their faith and patience verily there shall then be a resurrection of them that they may be rewarded the time of the resurrection of the just is the time of their remuneration as in Luk. 14.14 Thou shalt be rewarded in the resurrection of the just deny the resurrection of the just and thou takest away the hope of their reward and thou makest them of all men most miserable because here they have a time of deeper sufferings and sorrowings
〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or as the paraphrase hath it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the argument and demonstration of things not seen of invisible things that are not the objects of sense but that are declared in the word of God such is the vertue and power of faith that it gives as great a certainty of those unseen things to the soul or minde as can be made over by any scientificall demonstration for so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies a demonstration to the minde not a presentation to the bodily essence as the Greek Scholiast upon it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. Faith presents invisible things as visible how to the minde and hope which hope also springeth from it and is upheld by it as it there follows it 's 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 too the basis or subsistence of things hoped for It so presents divine things to the minde that it also draws in the soul to trust in God and hope for good from him and the good things it hopes for faith gives bottom to and enables the soul to act towards them as if they had a reall existence as was before noted Rom. 10.17 And for the way to come by this faith the Apostle tels us Fides ex auditu c. Faith is by hearing by that means God â—fiâ—ctâ—th it whence that in Isa 55.3 Hear and your souls shall live 〈◊〉 but it 's not every hearing that produces this faith but that which iâ— by the word of God the hearing of the Gospel or word of faith that 's both mother and nurse of it from that it springs and by that it 's nourished in listening to that God puts forth his mighty arm and enables the soul to believe as sometimes he did to the Israelites by the brazen Serpent and to Naaman in the waters of Jordan to heal them He that hears my Words and believes on him that sent me c. Joh. 5.24 Hearing the Word is the way to believe in God First God declareth the truth which is truth when declared by him not made truth by our believing this truth heard perswades the soul by the divine power and spirit which is therewith ministred to close with what it hears and closing with what it hears the same power and spirit doth therethrough further while therein are opened excellent things as the hatred and justice of God against sin and yet his love mercy and good will in Christ toward the sinfull soulâ— c. pâ—swade the soul to embrace and close with Christ himself of whom the truth witnesseth and unto whom as its proper body and fountain as God is in him and he is God it leadeth and so the soul is by thâ— Word heard and through the divine power of God therein brought unto Christ and in and through Christ unto God by the beam to the body of the Sun and in that to all that fountain fullnesse of glorious light that sils that body and makes it so glorious But indeed the nature of this saith in which these holy men of God died and which is of so glorious use in life and death is in the text it self by â—cts and operations notably laid forth and described I shall briesly and but briesly touch upon them These all died in faith not having received the promises faith stands not in mens having in possession oâ— actuall fruition the things promised for then faith and sense should be confounded but 1. they see them the promises afar off That 's the first act of this faith though alone of it self it is not faith for it 's said of some they have seen and hated Joh. 15.24 yet this is I say the first act of this faith or the first act tending to this faith through which the following acts are also generated where this is rightly seated and the abiding in this and of this is that in and through which the other acts are carried on too and perpetuated this act being the first product of the Word heard and that which most immediatly springeth from it for while God speaketh he presents in his speakings truth to the soul and the soul hearing and receiving in the word spoken findes therein and therewith a divine power illuminating and giving light to it and power of discerning that light as if the light of the Sun coming to a blinde man in a dungeon should both present light to him and in the same moment give him a faculty and power of seeing thus in Psa 119.130 the entrance of thy word giveth light and giveth understanding to the simple the soul receiving or looking upon divine word sees things set before it that it never so saw before as his own vilenesse and filthinesse and Gods goodnesse and compassions and the great and glorious things in his way his Son to be met with and enjoied But these are said to have seen them afarre of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Isa 46.10 God shews the end from the beginning things to be done never so long time hence yet being revealed in the word and there presented are by faith seen indeed men not hearkning to the word misse of much light and knowledge therein held forth and see not many things which in wist viewing or diligent attention they might come to see things afar off the things promised which were not of a long time to be performed whence neither had they so full and clear a sight of them as those that see them in nearer times as things seen afar off at a great distance are not so fully and clearly seen as when they are seen nearer hand Now they are brought near to us these being the last times yea some of these promises that they saw through the word at a distance are already in part performed and are become Gospel declarations to us as the coming and resurrection of Christ of the former whereof Mary could in her time say much more may we now He hath holpen his servant Israel in remembrance of his mercy as he spake to our forefathers to Abraham and to his seed for ever Luk. 1.25 And the Apostle Paul declares the latter as another step of the performance of these promises saying we declare unto you good tidings how that the promise that was made unto the fathers God hath fullfilled the same unto us their children in that he hath raised up Jesus from the dead We believing see them by faith as things already done and they are the grounds of our believing in him for those further things contained in those promises which are yet unfullfilled and which we are to expect the performance of in his season but then there must be with this seeing a further act even that that follows in the next place of them viz. 2. They were perswaded That 's the second act in this divine faith it 's not a bare speculation of truths in the proposition without a perswasion that they are truths and worthy to be heeded