sinceritie II. A great argument of Gods goodnesse and mercie is his forbearance and longanimitie he stretcheth out his hands all day long to a rebellious generation Why will you die O house of Israel As I live saith the Lord I will not the death of a sinner Many miracles did he work to turn Pharaohs heart sixscore yeares did he spend to bring the first world to repentance many Prophets did he send before he would destroy the Jewes he would have healed Babylon but she would not be healed he would have gathered Jerusalem as the hen gathereth her chickens under her wings but she would not be gathered How loath was he to cut down the fig-tree though fruitlesse how loath was he to destroy his Vineyard though grapelesse how loath to overthrow the Jewes though gracelesse O Lord I confesse that thy forbearance in punishing me so great a sinner proceeds not from any liking thou takest in my sinning for thou art most good nor for any neglect in correcting for thou art most just nor for any ignorance that can be in thee for thou art omniscient nor for any impotencie that can befall thee for thou art omnipotent but onely out of thy goodnesse and mercie towards me who delightest not in any mans destruction but patiently waitest for the sinners conversion Lord I am more bound to thee for thy long forbearance then the Angels who sinned in Heaven and Adam in Paradise they had no sooner offended thee but they were rejected by thee I have oftentimes sinned and yet I am spared O let me not abuse thy long animitie by presumption but let it work in me a true and speedie conversion III. God sheweth his great mercie towards us in using so many meanes to call us when we are wearie he bids us come to him and he will ease us when we are thirstie he bids us come and drink that with these waters of life he may refresh us when we are hungrie he bids us come and eat for with his own body he will feed us when we have fought and got the victorie he will bid us come to receive the Crown of glorie which he hath laid up for us He calls us by his Spirit inwardly and by his Word outwardly Every good motion is a call and an inward knocking every Preacher is a Messenger every Sermon is a Summons every Scripture is a Love-letter by which he invites and calls us Besides every benefit that we receive from him is a Messenger to invite us to him every morning the sun riseth not onely to give us light but to invite us unto him who is the fountain of light every night the moon or stars appeare not only to lessen the darknesse of the aire but also to drive away the darknesse of the minde to call us both out of corporall and spirituall obscuritie Every drop of rain every flower in the field every eare of corne every grape in thy Vineyard every increase of thy flock every addition to thy stock are so many trumpetters of Gods mercie to stirre up and call thee Again every crosse and affliction he layes upon us whether sicknesse povertie banishment imprisonment or infamie are so many Heraulds sent to summon and call us Besides all these the horrour of hell-darkness which shall never be illightened of that fire which shall never be extinguished of that thirst which shall never be quenched of that worm that shall never be consumed of that weeping and gnashing of teeth which shall never be ended are proposed to us as so many sad Apparitors to summon us But lastly if none of these will prevaile with us then the joyes of Heaven are painted out unto us the light that knowes no darknesse the joy that knowes no sorrow the life that knowes no death the comfort of Gods countenance the beautie of the new Jerusalem the societie of holy Angels the companie of Christ and of all the blessed Soules the rivers of delight fulnesse of joy and pleasures for evermore O God how wonderfull is thy goodnesse which thou hast shewed to me in profering so many baites to catch and draw me out of the turbulent sea of this world unto the shore of eternall happinesse But I have not obeyed thy outward invitations nor inward motions I have not taken notice of thy benefits nor of thy chastisements not of thy threatnings nor of thy promises Lord I am so backward thou must not only call me but compell me thou must not only warne me but thou must draw me and then I will cheerfully run after thee IIII. The mercy of God appeares also in this that after our relapses he is ready to receive us his mercies are those sweet oyntments which make the Virgins follow him He came to call sinners to repentance to save that which was lost he rejected not that sinfull Mary Magdalene nor Matthew though a Publican nor the Canaanitish woman though a dog nor the Thief upon the Crosse nor Peter that denied him nor the Jewes that crucified him nor Paul that persecuted him that loving Father in the Gospel did not receive his prodigall Son when he returned nor the shepherd that sheep which went astray nor the woman her groat which she had lost with so much joy and gladnesse as he will us if we return to him by repentance O Lord I have gone astray like a lost sheep from thee I have like a Prodigall spent that patrimonie of grace which thou gavest me I have gone a whoring after this vain world and have forsaken thee O thou that art a carefull Shepherd a pitifull Father a loving Husband reject not thy lost sheep thy prodigall sonne thy disloyall wife Shall I dispaire to come unto thee whose armes are stretched out on the crosse to embrace me whose head bendeth downward to kisse me whose heart is opened to receive and entertain me V. Gods mercie is to be considered either as it is in him or as it is from him as it is in him it is his act or habit as it is from him it is his effect as it is in him it is immutable as it is from him it is changeable as it is in him it is necessarie as it is from him it is voluntarie for he will have mercie on whom he will as it is in him it is his * power as it is from him it is his †operation as it is in God it is God for nothing is eternall except God but his mercy is eternall from generation to generation saith David it is not lawfull to trust in any but in God yet David trusteth in Gods mercy doubtlesse then his mercy is himself and being it is so his mercy and justice are all one though the effects of his justice and mercy are different Lord as thy justice is seen in punishing sinners so is thy mercy manifested in sparing them as thy justice was unspeakeable in punishing thy Son for my sin so is thy mercy incomprehensible in pardoning my
actions but on his own prescience his will may be Posterior to the foreseen sin of the creature but no wayes depending on the will of the creature In willing the death of sinners he shewes his justice in willing the death but of some sinners he shewes his goodnesse LXXVI All men may beleeve only some men will beleeve in all there is a possibilitie in some only a velleitie the possibilitie to beleeve is the gift of nature but the will to beleeve is the gift of grace the one we have by Creation the other by Regeneration Lord what is possibilitie without will and nature without grace As in Generation thou gavest me a reasonable soul that had a capabilitie to beleeve in thee so in my Regeneration give me a sanctified will that I may actually and constantly beleeve in thee LXXVII He that bestoweth Faith upon sinners bestoweth also Salvation upon repentant sinners by faith we are brought to repentance by repentance we are prepared for salvation Lord if thou hadst not bestowed faith upon Peter to beleeve in thee he had not repented for denying thee and if he had not repented he had not been saved lead me then by the hand of faith to the Iordan of repentance that being washed there from my spots I may see Heaven opened with Christ and with him injoy thy Spirit and light of thy Countenance LXXVIII There is in Gods will both a necessitie and a libertie he wills necessarily what concerns himself he wills freely what concerns other things besides himself he did necessarily will his own glorie he did freely will and decree my felicitie Lord thou couldst not but will thine own honour and goodnesse thou couldst not have willed my happinesse the more free thou wast from necessitie in willing my felicitie the more am I bound to praise the glorie of thy mercie LXXIX Gods will hath a two-fold consideration one as it is concealed another as it is revealed the former hath relation to his own actions the other to ours what he will doe himselfe is concealed what he will have us doe is revealed this will is not alwayes forcible the other is powerfull and irresistible Lord let me follow the directions of thy revealed will and not meddle with the hid secrets of thy concealed will I will not be too forward to know what thou hast not revealed nor will I be too backward to doe what thou hast commanded LXXX God hath decreed to bestow on man first grace then glory to the decree of giving grace preterition is opposite to the decree of giving glory reprobation no man is debarred from glory but he that was first deprived of grace preterition then is the antecedent to reprobation and the want of grace to the want of glory Thus they whom God doth here honour with the spirituall crown of grace shall be hereafter graced with the eternall crown of honour LXXXI That is a just law which is given by him that hath right to impose it and imposed on him who hath power to performe it such was the law that God gave to Adam the one had power to give the other power to keep it Lord thy law is just which thou hast given to me because thou hast power to impose it this law will not be the lesse just if thou wilt assist me and give me power to obey it LXXXII As Gods will hath relation to his own actions it is accompanied with omnipotencie as it hath relation to our actions it is regulated by justice for when he will doe what he hath determined he cannot be resisted so when he will have us doe what he hath commanded he cannot be unjust what he himself will doe is best known to him what he will have us do is not unknown to us Lord as it is thy will that I doe that which thou commandest wherein thou shewest thy justice so let it be thy will to command that which by thy help I can doe and therein shew thy goodnesse LXXXIII He that opposeth Gods revealed will which can be resisted deserveth to be hardned by Gods concealed will which cannot be resisted for that will of God which is not done by him shall be done on him Lord assist me to follow the direction of that will which is revealed that I may avoid the destruction which by that other will is decreed for although by the secret will of thy * pleasure thou hast determined death for obstinate sinners yet by the pleasure †of thy revealed will thou hast proposed life to penitent sinners LXXXIIII God in his goodnesse made man a vessell of mercy Satan in malice made him a vessell of miserie therefore God in his justice hath made him a vessell of his wrath and furie God made the vessell which whilst it staid in his hand remained sound falling from thence it hath received a crack therfore by this crack being made unserviceable it is rejected Lord the substance of the vessell is thine the crack is mine I have made my self unfit to serve thee therefore justly maist thou refuse to honour me LXXXV God hated Pharaoh not because he hardned him but because he obstinately resisted God therefore he hated him and consequently hardned him and that not by the force of his omnipotencie but by his patience and longanimitie Lord if I by thy goodnesse should take occasion to become obstinate in wickednesse why maist not thou take occasion by my perversenesse to obdurate me in my sins and to debarre me from grace and happinesse Therefore I pray thee keep me from obstinacie that thy patience by my sins may not be turned into fury LXXXVI There be two sorts of carnall men some are carnall in knowledge some in affections the former sort are children who are fed with milk and not yet with spirituall men able to judge of all things the other sort are wicked men who walk after the flesh not after the spirit and have not mortified the deeds of the flesh now God is a Spirit and will be worshipped in spirit Lord remove from me all fleshly understanding that I may conceive thee spiritually and remove from me all carnall affections that I may love thee spiritually Give me the love of knowledge that I may attain to the knowledge of thy love Make me by the spirit of understanding to come to the understanding of thy Spirit LXXXVII Goodnesse hath a two-fold residence one in the minde the other in the flesh when 't is there I will good when 't is here I doe good 't is good to have the knowledge of good and that is in the minde 't is good to subdue and mortifie sinfull lusts and that is in the flesh the former goodnesse is sometimes in wicked men the other is onely in good men Lord place in my minde the goodnesse of knowledge whereby I may see and understand thee and place in my flesh the goodnesse of holiness whereby I may love and injoy thee for what is knowledge without
goodnesse and sight without injoyment It is by knowledge I see it is by love I enjoy LXXXVIII 1. There is in us an inward man so there is an outward 2. There is a new man so there is an old man 3. There is a law of the minde so there is a law of the members and there is a law also of the spirit of life 4. There is a voluntarie dominion in sin and there is an involuntarie 5. There is an universall tyrannie of sin and there is a particular 6. There is a regeneration in the minde and will and there is a regeneration in the members and affections 7. There is a complete will or volition and there is an incomplete will or velleitie 8. There is a generall or confused judgement and there is a more particular or distinct judgement 1. The inward man is the minde the outward man is the body 2. The new man is grace the old man is sinne 3. The law of the minde is knowledge and conscience the law of the members is sin the law of the Spirit of life is saving grace 4. The wicked are under the voluntarie the godly under the involuntarie dominion of sin 5. Originall sin is an universall tyrant actuall sins are particular tyrants 6. Regeneration in the minde and will is knowledge and desire Regeneration in the members is action or working the will of God 7. Volition followes the last judgement of reason velleitie followes the antecedent or confused judgement 8. By a generall and confused judgement my will affects the good which is commanded by Gods law by a particular and distinct judgement my will affects the evil which is condemned by Gods Law Lord 1 as I praise thee for the inward and the outward man 2 so will I much more praise thee if thou wilt strengthen in me the new man of grace and weaken the old man of sin 3 if thou wilt give me the law of the spirit of life to illuminate the law of the minde and to debilitate the law of the members 4 Make my service of sin involuntarie 5 and though I cannot be free from that catholike tyrant of originall sin yet in thy mercy deliver me from the insolencie of these particular tyrants my actuall sinnes 6 And let not my Regeneration be only intellectuall but also operative and effectuall 7 Rectifie and cleere my judgement that it may direct my will 8 And make my will to affect the good which thou câ—mmandest and to dis-affect the evil which thou condemnest LXXXIX Though Predestination as it is an act or work of God can nothing be furthered or hindered by our good or wicked lives yet salvation which is the effect of Predestination may be furthered by prayers and holinesse hindered by our infidelitie and wickednesse for God who preordained Salvation preordained also the means which may help forward our Salvation Lord let not the conceit of my Election dull me with securitie or puffe me up with presumption but assist me that by good works I may make my Election sure and in feare and trembling I may work out my Salvation XC There are three books of life the one is Gods Register book the other is Gods book of Statutes the third is his book of Records In the first as in a Register are set down all the names of the predestinate in the second which is the Scripture are set out all the duties that are to be performed by the predestinate in the third are set down all the good actions and sufferings of the predestinate Out of the first we cannot be blotted for our names are written in Heaven and though an earthly mother may forget the fruit of her womb yet our heavenly Father cannot forget the fruit of his Spirit Out of the third book we may be blotted because our sinnes may occasion him to forget our good works and to slight our suffrings Lord I confesse that I have slighted thy sacred Book of divine Statutes therefore thou maist justly blot me out of the book of thy remembrance but in that thou hast not blotted my name out of thy first book I ascribe it to thy immutabilitie and if thou wilt not blot out my patience and suffrings out of thy other book I will admire and praise thy mercy XCI Though God loves all men yet he saves not all men he loves them because he made them he saves them not because he willed it not he could not in justice will all mens Salvation seeing man by his voluntary unjustice deprived himself of Salvation he loves his own image but hates that which defaced his image he loves the man but hates the sin and if it were not for sin he would not punish man Lord thy love to man is unspeakable in that thou savest some and thy justice is unsearchable in that thou savest not all I cannot blame thy justice but my sins that caused my miserie I cannot brag of my merits but of thy goodnesse that moved thee to mercie XCII God hates the sins of man because he loves his own justice with the love of †complacencie he hates the miseries of man because he loves mans welfare with the love of * amitie but by accident he loves the death of wicked men because he hates the works of iniquite Thus it is as naturall for God to hate evil as it is to love himself and as impossible for him to love evil as it is to hate himself XCIII Christ loved us when we were his enemies and he loves us being his friends when we were his foes he suffered death for us being his friends he hath purchased life to us that love was greater then this if we consider the object this love is greater then that if we consider the benefit O my God how am I bound to thee who when I was thine enemie didst weare the crown of thornes for me and being now thy friend hast bestowed a Crown of glory on me Let not the servant repine to beare the reproaches of so gracious a master who was content to beare the sins and shame of so ungracious a servant XCIIII God did first will his own glory 2. Mans existence 3. His righteousnesse 4. His own Promises 5. The execution or accomplishment of them concerning mans happinesse Gods glory is the great wheele of this clock which moves all the rest the finall cause which moves all other causes Had it not been for his glory I had neither had being nor well-being he gave me existence he made me to his image he promised me happinesse and he hath performed it to the end I might glorifie him Shall I then dishonour thee O God by whom I am what I am when I look on my creation and am by grace what I am not by nature when I look on my regeneration Therefore I will praise the glory of thy power for my existence the glory of thy goodnesse for my righteousnesse the glory of thy mercy in promising
and the glory of thy truth in performing what thou hast promised though thus I have not deserved XCV All the afflictions of Gods people are either punishments chastisements or probations punishments for sins past chastisements to prevent sinnes to come probations to make triall of our Christian vertues and though Christ was punished for our sinnes to free us from eternall torments yet we are not thereby exempted from temporarie punishments he died to save us from death eternall not from death temporall he both suffered and satisfied we suffer though we cannot satisfie our sufferings are to shew our conformitie with Christ but not to shew any insufficiencie in the death of Christ Thou O Lord hast paid a plenarie ransome for sin and thou that knewest no sin becamest sinne and didst suffer death as a punishment for us that we who are born in sin might be free from sin that death might not be a punishment but a chastisement to us XCVI As by one simple act God knowes his own Essence so by one simple act he wils his own goodnesse which will whether we take it for an act or for an habit is eternally in God and differs but in some respects from his essence and therefore is immutable infinite and holy as his Essence and though many things are willed by him yet there is but one will in him which cannot be moved by any efficient end or object different from himself Lord though my will cannot attain that simplicitie infinitenesse and immutabilitie that is in thee yet let it obtain some measure of holinesse that in desiring of that only which is good it may in some measure resemble thine XCVII All have not had the happinesse to heare of Christ and yet there is no happinesse without Christ in this God is not unjust for they who either in themselves or in their parents have rejected him are not worthy of him besides God hath not left himself without a witnesse for he hath left a law written in all mens hearts and so much light of his goodnesse and justice as may make all men excuselesse If therefore they shall be rejected that had not that light of knowledge which we have how can we think we are elected who have even spurned at the knowledge of that light which they have not XCVIII Regeneration which is the killing of the old man and quickning of the new hath for her ushers Sorrow and Contrition for her Attendants Faith and Hope for her followers the works of Charitie if any of these be defective Generation will be little effective neither is this the work of nature but of grace for nature by generation can give us a mortall essence but grace by regeneration gives us an immortall existence in our first birth we had a new nature from our corporall parents in our second birth nature is renewed by our spirituall parents So easie is the work of physicall generation that it 's performed in the instant of our conception so difficult is the work of hyperphysicall regeneration that we cannot be consummately reformed till the instant of our dissolution Lord the great world was with greater facilitie by thee created then the little world of man could by thee be re-created that was done only by uttering thy externall word this could not be done but by the suffering of thy internall Word therefore as I am bound to thee for the tempor all life which in my generation by thy spirit thou breathedst in me much more am I bound for that eternall life which in my regeneration by thy Sonnes death thou hast purchased for me XCIX In thy sight O Lord no flesh can be justified if we consider the puritie of thy nature the rigour of thy justice the infirmities of our flesh and the imperfections of our righteousnesse For the first the Angels are not pure in thy sight much lesse we who dwell in houses of clay For the second if thou shouldst marke Lord what is done amisse who could abide it For the third there is no man that doth good no not one we are all gone out of the way For the fourth the justest man falleth seven times a day and our righteousness is like a menstruous cloath Therefore we acknowledge Lord there is no righteousnesse inherent in us by which we can be saved but that righteousnesse which is inherent in thee and imputed to us and by that we are justified and there is in thee exuberance of mercies by which we may be pardoned C. We are justified by grace formally by faith instrumentally by the word ministerially by good works demonstratively by sorrow and repentance preparatively by Christs death and obedience meritoriously and by God himself principally if then God be the efficient cause if Christs active and passive obedience be the materiall if grace be the formall if Gods glory be the finall cause of our justification how can we claime any share in it We are only subjects and patients no wayes agents our good works are but fruits and effects no wayes causes our sorrow and repentance are effects of preventing grace not of free-will our faith is from above not from our selves Therefore O Lord I disclaime all merit of congruitie and condignitie all efficacie of Sacraments all suffrages of Saints all power of Romane Prelates all absolution of Priests all observation of humane tradition and all will-worship from my justification I acknowledge no other merits but thy mercies by thy grace thou preventedst my merits my merits are thy suffrings my holinesse is thy goodnesse my righteousnesse is but a sparkle of thy brightnesse a drop of that Ocean a grain of that heap a stone of that immense mountain of thy incomprehensible goodnesse for which I am indebted to thee not thou to me Therefore not unto us O Lord not unto us but to thy Name we glve the glory DIVINE MEDITATIONS UPON Gods Justice I. GOD will not pardon any sin except we repent of every sin for as he that breaks one command is guiltie of the breach of all so he that faileth in repenting of one sin repenteth of never a sin God loves not to doe things by halves he will pardon all or none and he will have us repent of all or none for as it stands not with his goodnesse and perfection to give an imperfect pardon so it consisteth not with the sinceritie of repentance to conceale any sin not repented as he ejected seven divels out of one and a legion out of another without leaving any behinde in the possessed so he will have us cast out all our sinnes without hiding of any unrepented What availes it to be freed from Satans power in casting us into the water of drunkennesse if he can when he pleaseth fling us into the fire of concupiscence O thou that art the great Physician of my soul to thee I open all my wounds and disclose all my maladies make me by the vomit of confession to cast up all my sinfull humours before