have had already even of free-cost as much mercy as these troubles come to Sixtly these troubles that we are in are making way for glorious mercies to come though there be some pangs yet they are not the pangs of death they are but the pangs of a travelling woman that is bringing forth a man-child And certainly any Prince would think that though his Queen should be put to some paine in travaile yet her condition is better then when shee had nopaine and was barren or then that she should lye upon her sick bed and her senses benummed and she ready to dye The pains of a travelling woman are better then a sensless dying And yet further if you thinke that you had better times heretofore then now what times will you refer your selves unto in making the comparison I suppose you will instance in the time of the first Reformation then things were in a good way when those worthy Lights of the Church and blessed Martyrs had such a hand in the Reformation Many there are that do magnifie the â—â—nes of the beginning of Reformation for their owne ends that they may thereby hinder Reformation now This you know is the great argument that prevaileth with most What were not those Prayers composed by learned godly men as Cranmer Latimer Ridley and others and can we be wiser then they did not they seale their profession with their blood My brethren we need goe no further to shew the weaknesse of this argument but only to shew how it was in the Church in those times and you wilâ— find that you have cause to blesse God that it is not so with you now as it was then and if that will appeare then the argument you will see can no further prevail with rationall men Certainly those first Reformers were worthy Lights and blessed instruments for God I would not darken their excellency but weaken the argument that is abusively raised from their worth It is reported of Mr. Greneham that famous practicall Divine who refusing subscription in a Letter of his to the Bishop of Ely gives his reasons and answers that Prelates objection against him namely that Luther thought such Ceremonies might be retained in the Church his Answer is this I reverence more the revealed wisdome of God in teaching Mr. Luther so many necessary things to salvation then I search his seeret judgements in keeping back from his knowledg other things of lesse importance The same do I say of those worthy instruments of Gods glory in the first Reformation that it may be cleare to you that God kept back his mind from them in some things Consider whether you would be willing that should be done now that was then As in the administration of baptisme we find that in the book of Lyturgy in King Edwards time which was composed by those worthy men first the child was to be croft in the fore-head and then on the breast after a prayer used then the Priest was to say over the child at the Font I command thee thou unclean spirit in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost that thou comest out of this infant thou cursed spirit remember thy sentence remember thy judgment remember the day is at hand wherein thou shalt bee burnt with everlasting fire prepared for thee and thy Angels presume not hereafter to exercise any tyranny over this infant whom Christ hath bought with his precious blood Then they dipped the childe thrice in the water the Godfathers and the Godmothers laid their hands upon the child and the Priest putteth a white vestment over it called a Crysome saying Take this white vesture for a token of thine innocency which by Gods grace in this holy Sacrament of baptisme is given to thee for a signe whereby thou art admonished as long as thou livest to give thy selfe to innocency Then the Priest must anoint the Infant upon the head saying Almighty God c. who hath regenerated thee by water the holy Ghost who hath given thee remission of all thy sins vouchsafe to anoint thee with the unction of his holy Spirit Would you now have your children baptized after this manner yet these learned holy men thought that to be a good way So at the buriall of the dead the Priest casting earth upon the corps shall say I commend thy soule to God the Father Almighty and body to the ground and in another prayer Grant to this thy servant that the sinnes he committed in this world be not imputed to him but that he escaping the gates of hell and pains of eternall darknesse may ever dwell in the region of light You will say things are otherwise now True therefore I say there is no strength in that argument that those men that composed that liturgy were worthy lights in the Church for they were but newly come out of Popery and had the scent of Popery upon them therefore it is too unreasonable to make that which they did the rule of our Reformation now as if we were to goe no further then they did The like may be said of the Primitive times which many plead for the justification of their superstitious vanities for the Christians then came but newly out of heathenisme and lived amongst Heathens and therfore could not so soon be delivered from their heathenish customes I could relate to you sad things there were in Qu. Elizabeths dayes in K. James his dayes but I must not take too much liberty in this digression onely let us hereby learn not so to cry out of evill times that we are faln into as to be unthankfull for present mercies let us blesse God for what wee have had and looke unto the rule for further reformation For shee did not know that I gave her corn and wine and oyle and multiplyed her silver and gold which they prepared for Baal c. The Spirit of God returneth here again to convincing upbraiding accusing threatning Israel The sin of Israel went very near to the heart of God and God speaks here as a man troubled in spirit for the unkindenesse unfaithfulness unreasonableness of the dealings of his Spouse with him it runneth in his thoughts his heart is grieved at it and he must vent himselfe and when he hath told his grief and aggravated his wrong he is upon it again again still convincing upbraiding charging Israel for dealing so unfaithfully and treacherously with him all shewing the trouble of his spirit For she did not know c. These words depend upon the 5. ver for the 6. 7. they are as a parenthesis She hath done shamefully for she said I will goe after my lovers that give me my bread my water my wool my flaeâ—â—e c. For she did not know c. She did thus and thus for she did not know that I gave her corn and wine c. What was Israel worse then the Oxe or the Asse that knows
it would warme and refresh yea 〈…〉 The Text saith of Elies sonnes 1 Sam. 2. 12. that they knew not the Lord they were Priests of God yet they were sonnes of Belial and know not the Lord. Be not offended at great Schollars who have skill in the tongues Arts and Sciences do not you say these men that are great and knowing men would they do thus and thus if things were so as you speake they are not knowing men God saith that Elies sonnes did not know the Lord the things of God are hid from them I thanke thee O Father Lord of heaven and earth that thou hast hid thess things from the wise and prudent c. Sixthly They did not know that I gave them c. Affected ignorance comming thorough distemper of heart is no excuse but rather an aggravation It is a high degree of ingratitude not to prize Gods mercy but not to take notice of Gods mercies Oh what a high ingratitude is this That which shall be part of Gods charge against sinners can be no excuse of their sinne it is a part of Gods charge that they did not know therefore their ignorance cannot be their excuse God threatneth to cut people off to have no mercy upon them for want of knowing as well as for not doing They are a people of no understanding therefore he that made them will have no mercy upon them and he that formed them will shew them no favour Esay 27. 11. Ambrose hath this expression Thou doest sinne greatly if thou doest contemne the riches of Gods long suffering but thou sinnest most of all if thou doest not know it From the word for as depending upon the 5. ver for so it doth The Observation is The not taking notice and considering of Gods mercies and laying them to heart is the cause of vile and shamefull evils in mens lives Therefore they did shamefully therefore they went after their lovers because they did not know the cause of almost all the evill in the world it is from hence They that know thy name will trust in thee those who know the Lord will feare him and his goodnesse Esay 1. 4. Ah sinfull nation saith God God fetcheth a sigh under the burthen of it his spirit is laden and troubled with it Ah sinfull people c What was the matter The Oxe knoweth his owner and the Asse his masters crib but Israel doth not know my people doth not consider they were more stupid then the brute creatures Oh sinfull soul this is the cause of all thy inordinate walking of all thy profanenesse of all the ungodliness in thy wayes because thou dost not know thou dost not consider thou dost not lay to heart the wayes of God towards thee Ier. 2. 5. God chargeth his people that they were gone from him and ver 7. that they had made his heritage an abomination What is the reason that is given of both these It is in the 6. ver They did not say Where is the Lord that brought us up out of the land of Egypt c. They did not take notice of what the Lord had done for them therefore they were gone far from him c. If thou hadst but a heart to lay to heart what God hath done for thee it is impossible that thou shouldst goe so farre off from God as thou dost For these deductions are easie and obvious to any from such a principle 1. Justice common equity requires living to God seeing we live by and upon God 2. Common ingenuity calls for requiring good with good the Publicans and Heathens will do good to those that do good to them 3. If all be from God then all still depends upon God 4. How much good is there in God from whence all this good and mercy comes when God shall shew another day to men and Angels how hee was the fountaine of all good it will confound those who have not laid it to heart 8. She did not know that I gave her corne and wine and oyle and multiplyed her silver and her gold God is more bountifull to his people then the Idols can be The Idols by their owne confession gave them but their bread water and flax and oyle c. but God giveth them wine silver gold God gives them better pay a great deale then the Devill doth yet the Devill usually hath more servants to follow him then God hath though his wages bee lesse and worse It is usuall for men to get souldiers from adversaries by givâ—ng them more pay This is the way God takes he offereth a great deale better pay to those that will follow him then they have that follow the Devill yet God can get few to follow him This shews the vilenesse of mans heart against God 9. She did not know that I gave her c. which she prepared for Baal When men get abundance then they soon grow wanton When I gave them corn and wine and oyle and multiplyed their silver and their gold then they followed Baal This is the reason of so many solemne charges of God Take heed when thou art full that thou dost not forget the Lord. As they that are neerest the sun are the blackest so those to whom God is neerest in regard of outward mercies are many times blacker then others It is observed that the fatter mens bodies are the lesse blood and the fewer spirits they have so the fatter mens estates are many times the lesse spirit they have to any thing that is good God hath lesse spirit from them sinne hath much more We read of the sunne melting the Manna that fell downe but the same Manna was able to bear the fire so many a mans heart is able to beare affliction and the affliction doth good prepareth for much good as Manna was prepared to be eaten by fire but prosperity melteth them makes them useless Many men when they were poor and in a low condition were very usefull but when they grow high and rich they are of very little use in the places where they dwell Trajan the Emperour was wont to liken a man growing to a great estate to the Spleene in the body for as the Sâ—leene grows big the body growes lesse so when mens estates grow bigger they grow lesse usefull Euagrius noteth it as a speciall commendation of Mauritius the Emperor but notwithstanding his prosperity he retained his ancyent piety it is a very rare thing to see men advanced to high places do so 10. I gave her corne and wine and oyle and I multiplyed her silver and gold which they sacrificed to Baal Even those creatures that wicked men abuse to their lusts God gives them Though he doth not give them for that end yet those creatures that they use for such an end are given of God If thou beest a drunkard that wine or drinke that thou dost sacrifice to that lust of thine who giveth it thee Is it
the Church set out by the Jewish way of Feasts though there be mention of the Passeover and new moones and Sabbaths and of the Feast of Tabernacles yet there is no mention of the Feast of Pentecost no mention of keeping a Feast for blessing God for these things Not but that they should doe so but that their hearts should be so carryed up with abundance of spirituall mercies that then all for Christ and for heaven and for eternity their hearts should be wholly set upon spirituall things 7. It was a great ingagement to them to use the creatures when in the first beginning they had dedicated them unto God and in the conclusion of harvest they had solemnized his mercy in giving them the creatures For God did thereby teach them that they might be further engaged to use all creatures for his service As it is a mighty engagement to any man if God give him a heart to dedicate the beginning of a mercy unto God and when he hath got the mercy fulfilled then in a solemne manner he blesseth God for it to make use of this mercy for Gods honour Certainly the reason why many are so loose in their conversations and doe not employ the creatures of God to his glory is because they do not in a solemn manner blesse God for that they enjoy As in your trading suppose you have some comfortable Incomes perhaps you take these comforts and thanke God in a slight manner for them how doe you use them afterwards onely for your selves and for the flesh But when you heare of Incomes of riches flowing in upon you if you can then presently take the first Fruits and give some part to Gods service as a testimony of thankfulnesse and in your families and closets in a solemne manner give God the glory for the good successe you have had in your estate this will be a mighty ingagement to you to use your estates for his service 8. Mark at the first in their preparation they were to bring but a sheafe but afterward Levit. 23. 17. they were to bring two loaves in the first they were to offer one he-lambe without blemish but afterward seven lambes a young bullocke and two Rams c. both burnt-offerings and sinne-offerings and peace-offerings when they had received the full harvest Thence learne though you be forward to give God glory when you are young the first fruit of your years yet when you come to be old you should flourish in the Courts of Gods house First they offered but a little unto God afterward abundance Doe you so I appeale to all old men that are here this day if God did give you any heart to give up your young years to him blesse God for it but now when you are old are you as forward as ever you were You ought to be not onely so but much more abundant in the work of the Lord. Nay cannot others witnesse against you that there was such a time wherein you were more forward and that now you begin rather to temporize The LORD forbid this should be spoke of any old men God expects more afterward then at the first fruits and though nature may decay yet their is a promise that in their old age they shall flourish in the Courts of Gods house and shall manifest the graces of his Spirit much more VVe are ready at the first Fruits to offer unto God some what when his mercy commeth first but when mercy comes afterward more fully we should be more in our offerings You will say what is the meaning of this that there is a burnt offering a sin-offering and a peace-offering in the Feast of Pentecost what is the difference of these three offerings The difference is this The burnt offering was in testimony of their high respect to God they wholly had respect to God in the burnt offering that is they tendred up something to God as a testimony of the high honoraable esteem they had of his Majesty it was wholly to be given up to him Now in the other they had respect to themselves the sin-offering was not to offer a sacrifice meerly to testifie respect to God but to be a typicall signification of Christs sacrifice for sins they were to looke through their sacrifice to Christ and their sin-offering was to be an atonement for their sin The Peace-offering was in thanksgiving for a mercy or when they would petition to God for a further mercy All this must be done in the day of Pentecost But besides this end of Pentecost to solemnize the mercies of God in their harvest there is an other that is constantly affirmed by the Jewes and I finde many Divines making no question of it but I finde it not so clearly laid down in the word They say God in this feast did solemnize the giving of the law and this is their ground because fifty dais after their coming out of Egypt was the time of Gods giving the Law and so they say Pentecost was appointed to blesse God for giving the law The Iews say that God dealt with them as a King should deale with a poor man in prison first hee releaseth him of his bondage and withall tells him that after such a time he will marry him to his daughter now say they will not this man count every day long untill this time come So when God did deliver us out of AEgypt he told us that after such a time he would give us his law and marry us to his daughter which is the law and this is the reason why wee count so disigently the very weeks nay the days as longing for that time when we are to be marryed to the law when the Lord shall grant to us such a mercy From whence we may note that we are not only to keep Gods law but to rejoyce in Gods law not only to look at what is commanded as a duty but as a high priviledg and so blesse God for the law It is a higher thing to love Gods law and rejoyce in it then to obey it Great peace shall they have that love thy law David profest that he loved the law of God more then silver and gold that it was sweeter to him then the honey and the honey combe The Iews at this day do much reioyce when the law of God is read and in their Synagogues when the law of God is brought out they lift up their bodies in a kind of exlatation reioycing that God gave this law unto them Further the time of their Pentecost was the time of the descending of the holy Ghost upon the Apostles as God at that time gave the law by Moses so the Spirit at that time came by Christ to shew that we are in the Gospel to receive the Spirit of God to inable us to fulfill the law They had the letter of the law but in comparison of what we have they had not the Spirit
only blesse God but the Text saith They lifted up their hands and they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground Why because the book of the Law was read to them and expounded How comes it to passe that their hearts were so taken with it now to hear the book of the Law expounded to them Surely it was because they were newly returned out of their Captivity and now they came into their owne Land and heard the Law of God opened to them they blessed his great Name bowed their faces to the ground worshipping him This day my brethren witnesseth to us our great deliverance and returne from our bondage It was not long since that wee could have either Ordinances or Truths or Religious exercises but onely according to the humors of vile men But now through Gods mercy a great deliverance is granted to us as this day witnesseth that wee may come and have free liberty to exercise our selves in the Law of our God O doe you blesse the Lord and bow your faces to the ground worshipping of him In the 12. vers of that Chap. we read that after they had heard the Law read and expounded to them they went their way to eate and to drink and to send portions and to make great mirth Why Because saith the Text they had understood the words that were declared unto them I hope if God shall please to give in assistance unto this work many of you shall goe away hereafter from this Assembly rejoycing because you will come to know more of Gods mind revealed in his word then formerly And this will be the comfort of your meat and drink and of your trading and the very spirits of all the joyes of your lives As the sweetnesse of the fruit comes from the graft rather then from the stock so your comforts and the blessings of grace in you must come from the word ingrafted in your soules rather then from any thing you have in your selves In the first vers the Text saith that all the people gathered themselves together as one man into the street that was before the water-gate to desire Ezra to bring the book of the law and to read it and to open it unto them Behold it is thus this day in this place here are a great company met together perhaps some to know what the businesse will be some for novelty and some for other ends howsoever come unto us you are and we hope many for this end that you might have the booke of the Law read opened unto you Now we expect that from you which is said of them ver 3. And the ears of all the people were attentiâ—e unto the book of the law when it was read opened to them And truly that attention that you now begin withal doth promise unto us that we shall have an attentive auditory But that is not all let us have further a reverential demeanor and carriage in the hearing of the Law as it becomes those that have to deale with God in it The Text saith vers 5. that when Ezra opened the book of the Law all the people stood up We doe not expect the same gesture from you but by way of Analogie we expect a reverentiall demea nour in the carriage of he whole worke as knowing we are to sanctifie Gods Name in it And as those people after the first dayes exercise were so encouraged that they came again the second day for so the Text saith vers 13. On the second day were gathered together the cheife of the fathers of all the people the Priests and the Leviâ—es unto Ezra to understand the words of the Law so I hope God will so carry on this worke that you shall find encouragement too to come again and again that you may know more of the mind of God and that this work shall not be only profitable to the younger and weaker sort but to the Fathers to the Priests and Levites too Let it be with you as it was with them according as you have any truth made known unto you submit to it yeeld to it obey it presently and then you shall know more of Gods mind He that will doe my will shall know my doctrine to be of God Thus did they for vers 14. when they found it vvritten in the book of the Law that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh moneth This was one passage of the Law that was expounded how they should keep the feast of Tabernacles and what booths they should make the people went forth presently unto the mount and fetched Olive branches and Palm branches and branches of thick trees and made themselves booths every one upon the roofe of his house In this Prophesie of Hosea you shall find many sutable truths to the times wherein we live the Lord grant you obedient hearts to what shall be delivered I must not retard the work nor your expectations any longer with large prefacing to it only somewhat have been said about the rules for interpretation of Scripture I will say no more of that but this to interpretation of Scripture a Scripture frame of heart is necessary a heart holy heavenly sutable to the holinesse heavenlinesse that is in the word as it was said of Tullies eloquence that nothing but the eloquence of Tully could set out the excellency of it So it may be said of the Scriptures spiritualness nothing but a heart filled with Scripture spiritualness can set forth the excellencies of it and because the authority of Scripture is dreadfull wee desire the prayers of you all to God for us that his feare might fall upon our hearts that seeing we are menfull of errour and full of evill yet howsoever wee may not bring any Scripture to the maintenance of any erroneous conceit of our own heads nor any evill of our own hearts This wee know to be a dreadfull evill It was a fearfull evill for Lucifer to say I will goe and ascend up be like the Highest it is as great an evill for any to seek to make the Highest to become like Lucifer for so do they that make the Scripture come down to justifie any erroneous opinion or any way of evill they goe about to make the blessed God and the holy Ghost to be the fathers of lies It is counted a great evill in a Common-wealth to put the Kings stamp upon false coine and to put the stamp of the Spirit of God upon an error upon a conceit of a mans owne is certainly a great evill before the Lord and it was for this that God did make the Priests vile and contemptible before the people because they were paâ—tiall in the Law Mal. 2. 9. And for you my brethren our prayer shall be that the feare of God may fall upon you likewise that you may come to these Exercises with Scripture-frames of heart What frame of
was good and the land that it was pleasant and he bowed his shoulders to bear became a servant unto tribuâ—e And when mens spirits are effeminate in regard of the civill state they quickly grow so in regard of their consciences and religion too Purity of religion in the Church cannot stand long with slavery admitted in the State We read Rev. 4. 7. of 4. Ages of the Church set out by four living-creatures the 3. living-creature the Text saith had the face of a man and that was to note the state of the Church in the time of reformation they began then to be of manly spirits to cast off that yoke of bondage that was before upon them to enquire after what liberty God had granted to them Not then like those we read of Isa 51. 23. that would bow down to such as would say to their soules Bow downe that we may goe over them This my brethren hath been the condition of many of us there hath bin that effeminateness of spirit in us that we have bowed down our necks yea our souls to those that would go over us yea as it is there in 51. Isa they made themselves the very street to them that went over them their very consciences were trampled upon by the foot of pride and all for the enjoyment of a little outward accomodation in their estates in their shops and in their trading Oh they must not venture these rather yeeld to any thing in the world And truly we were afraid not long since that God was calling us by the name of this daughter Loruhamah in regard of our effeminateness of spirit that the Lord was departing from our nation But blessed be God that now here hath begun to be a rising of spirit among us especially among our worthies in Parliament and their warmth vigour life hath put warmth vigour spirit and life into the whole Kingdome Now our Kingdom will never bow downe and submit their Consciences nor Estates nor liberties to that bondage and oppression that heretofore hath been No they had rather die honorably then live basely But why do I make such a disjunction dy honorably or live basely Had we spirits we might free our selves and posterity from living basely and we need not dye at all for the malignant party hath neither spirit to act nor power to prevail if we keep up our spirits and be strong in the Lord we are safe enough yet we shall not have our name Loruhamah but Ruhamah the Lord will have mercy upon us 1 King 14. 15. God threatens to smite Israel that they shall be as a reed shaken with the wind and then mark what followeth and then he would root them out of this good land which hee gave to their Fathers If this judgement be upon England that our spirits be shaken as a reed with the winde that wee bow and yeeld to any thing in a base way the next may justly follow that the Lord may root us out of this good Land As it was with Israel before their destruction they grew effeminate so it was with Judah too before theirs Isa 3. 3. when God intended judgment against them you may observe there that He took away the mighty man the man of war the prudent and the ancient the Captain the honourable man the Counseller men of truly noble spirits were taken away their Nobles became to be vile and sordid to yeeld to any humors and lusts then they were neer the ruine and ver 12. the Text saith women rule over them for women that have many spirits to rule is no judgment at all but for women of revengeful spirits to rule over a nation is a most fearful judgment But so much of the first that it is a daughter that is here born to Hosea What is this daughters name Call her name Loruhamah Non dilecta so some Non misericordiam consecuta so others both come to one either not beloved or one that hath not obtained mercy for Gods mercy proceedeth from his love I will no more have mercy I will add no more mercy Nothing that God had shewed abundance of mercy to Israel before but now he saith I will not adde any more I will shew no further mercy to them But I will utterly take them away Tollendo tollam so turned by some In taking them away I will take them away Levaho levando so others I will lift them up that I may cast them down so much the more dreadfully The old Latin hath it thus Obliviscendo obliviscor forgetting I will forget And this was upon a mistake of the Hebrew word because there is little difference in the Hebrew between the word that signifieth to to forget and that which signifieth to take away The 70. setting my selfe against them I will set my selfe against them Well the name of the child must bear this upon it that God will have no more mercy upon them Hence then first Sometimes the very children of families and in a kingdom do bear this impression upon them that God will have no mercy upon this family upon this kingdome One may my brethren read such an impression upon the children of many great families in this Kingdome when wee looke upon that horrible wickedness of the young ones that are coming up how different from their former religious Ancestors we may see with trembling hearts such an impression of wrath as if God had said I have done with this family I intend no further mercy to this family As sometimes when we see in a family gracious children gracious young gentlemen noble men we may see the impression of Gods mercy to that family Ruhaniah I intend mercy to it It was not long since that we might and we thought indeed wee did see such an impression upon the young ones of this kingdome the young ones in the City the yong ones in the chief families in the Country that we vvere afraid that Lornhamah to England was written upon them for oh the rudenes and wickednes of the young ones But blessed be God that we see it otherwise now now in regard of that graciousnesse that forwardnesse of so many young ones amongst us we may see written upon them Ruhamah to England mercy to England God hath taken away his Lo and writeth only Ruhamah mercy to you this great change God hath made For the great ground of the hope we have for mercy to England is the impression of God upon the young ones When God hath tender plants growing up in his Orchard certainly he will not break down the hedg or dig it up Secondly Call her name Loruhamah for I will no more have mercy upon the house of Israel There is a time when God will not have mercy upon a kingdome or upon a particular people Gather your seves together oh nation not worthy to be beloved before the decree come forth There is a
concern the outward man except God will come in with his owne institution But when it cometh to the ordering of the heart and there is a spirituall efficacy expected as in all Church ordinances there must be and that authority by which they are executed giveth a great influence into them now nothing can goe beyond its principle therefore it must have a divine institution to give it its efficacy It may here be demanded whether hat not God appointed over us a particular civill government as he did over the Jews That our government and all lawfull government of other Nations is appointed by God we must conclude is a certain truth But not so appointed by God as the government of the Jewes was And the reason is this because the Church and Common-wealth of the Jewes was involved in one and therefore the Apostle speaking of the Church hee saith they were Aliens and strangers from the Common-wealth of Israel It was meant of the Church state There was such a kind of Paedagogy under the Law that the Church and State were involved in one for Christ would be the head of the Church and Common-wealth too and appoint them lawes And so their government was imediately from heaven Now for us That we should have a government according to the rules of wisdome and justice that indeed is appointed by God God would have us have a government But he leaveth the ordering of that government to generall rules of prudence and justice So that now it is lawfull for any Kingdome or Country to agree together and according to the rules of wisdom and justice to appoint what government they wil as vvhether it shall be a Monarchy or an Aristocracy or a Democracy and to limit this according to Covenant of agreement as whether that the fundamentall povver shall be vvholly put out or any part reserved hovv farre this or that Man or society of Men shall have the Managing of it and the like then so farre as it is agreed upon vvee are bound in conscience to obey either actively or passively but no further are vvee bound to obey any Man though he be in authority yet vvee are not bound to obey him either actively or passively conscience is not tyed Though those men be in authority yet it is no resisting of authority at all not to do what they would have Yea though the thing be lawfull they would have yet if it be not according to the law of the kingdom to the first agreement I may be bound by the rules of prudence to save my selfe but it is not authority that binds me to obey out of conscience For we must of necessity distinguish between men in authority and the authority of those men Wherefore so long as wee seeke but to keepe authority in the right channell that it flows not over the banks we cannot be charged for resisting the government God hath set over us though we do not obey the wills of those who are set over us and therefore there is no cause that we should fear that God should say to England upon this ground Loruhamah hee will have no mercy To proceed But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah The people of Israel they might say Hosea thou art a Preacher indeed what preach nothing but judgment nothing but wrath to be utterly taken away Is there no mercy at all Is not God a mercifull God Yes saith the Prophet though you be taken away God knoweth how to glorifie his mercy he hath others that he can make to be objects of his mercy though you be destroyed From whence first you see that though God utterly reject some yet in the mean time he hath others to shew mercy unto Therefore it is no plea for any sinner to say thus well I have sinned indeed but God is mercifull What if God be mercifull so he may be though thou be damned and perish everlastingly Yea whole kingdoms nations may perish yet God may be mercifull God hath stil infinite ways to glorifie his mercy Many people in desperate moods lay violent hands upon themselves certainly there is a kind of spirit of revenge in it as if they thought there would be some trouble about it and so God should lose some honour But if you will have your will in this or in any thing else though you be dead and rotten and your souls perhaps in chains of darkness God will have wayes to be glorious in his mercy whatsoever come of you But 2. I will have mercy upon the house of Judah God will alwayes have a Church he will never destroy his Church at once the Lord loveth publique worship in the world Though he will utterly take away the house of Israel yet he will have mercy upon the house of Judah Again Israel might say what will not God be mercifull to us why I pray you what doth Judah get by her worshipping of God in that which you say is the only right way Judah indeed keepeth her selfe to Ierusalem keepeth her selfe to worship in the Temple but what doth she get by it for ought we see Iudah is in as hard an estate and in as low a condition as we nay as we shall see afterward Iudah was in a lower condition than Israel and certainly such kind of expressions as these they would be ready to have against the Prophet Well saith God let Iudah be what she will I will have mercy upon her Though carnal hearts when they look upon the low condition of the true worshippers of God think that there is no difference between those that are in a good way and themselves that are in the ways of sin yet God will make a difference I will have mercy upon Iudah but not upon Israel Many carnal men please themselves with this I see others that are strict that pray in their families that run to Sermons and wil not do thus and thus as others do yet they are as poor in as mean a condition as any others what do they get by their forwardness in religion Are not we in as good a condition as they Well friend though thy carnal heart think there is no difference between him that serveth God him that serveth him not God hath a time to manifest a difference There shall a time come saith God Mal. 3. 18. that you shall returne and discerne between the righteous and the wicked between him that feareth God and him that feareth him not I will not have mercy upon Israel but I will have mercy upon Iudah Fourthly Judah had at this time many grosse and fearful evils amongst them yea scarcely delivered from Sodomy it will aske a great deale of time to shew you the state of Judah in regard of the horrible wickednesse that was in it yet God saith I will have mercy upon the house of Iudah What is the reason of this Because though Iudah had many grosse evils yet Iudah kept
and so terrible yet now behold the feete of him that bringeth good tydings that publisheth peace God abroad publisheth war yet he hath a messenger to publish life and peace to some Is it not so this day It is true the wrath of the Lord is kindled the wrath of the Lord burneth as an oven and it is hot but it is against the ungody but peace shall be upon Israel And let us sanctifie the name of God in this too for so it followes in this very Chap. of Nah. ver 15. Oh Iudah keepe thy solemne feasts performe thy vowes for the wicked shall no more passe through thee And because God revealeth such rich grace in the middest of judgement let this engage your hearts to the Lord for ever Yea a little further because it is an instraction of great use in these times and may be yet of further use in times we may live to see not onely when God threatneth judgements let us sanctifie Gods name in looking up to promises but when judgements are actually upon us Suppose we should live to have most fearful judgments of God upon us yet even then we must look up to promises and exercise our faith and have an eye to God in the way of his grace at that time this is harder then in threatnings You have an notable place for that in Esay 26. 8. In the way of thy judgements O Lord have we waited for thee the desire of our soule is to thy name Oh blessed be God my brethren the Lord calleth us to wait upon him in the wayes of mercy for the present It is true there was a time not long since that the Lord was in a way of judgement toward England and there were some of Gods people when he was in the wayes of his judgements amongst us yet would wait upon God and keepe his wayes though there were many because Gods judgements were abroad and they saw that they were like to suffer departed from God and declined his wayes Much cause of bitterness of spirit and of dread of humiliation have they that did so But others may have comfort to their soules that in the very wayes of Gods judgments they waited for him they can now with more comfort wait upon God when he is in the ways of his mercy But if God should ever come untous in the ways of his judgments let us learne even then to wait upon God keep his way And yet another Text that may seeme to be more notable than this for this purpose and that is Iere. 33. 24. Consider est thou not what this people have spoken saying the two families which the Lord hath chosen he hath even cast them off thus they have despised my people that they should be no more a nation Marke the low condition the people were in at this time Oh God hath cast them off they are despised contemptible not worthy to be accounted a nation This condition was very low but though they were brought low in a condition contemptible yet now God confirms his Covenant with them at this time For observe ver 25. Thus saith the Lord. If my Covenant be not with day night and if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven earth then will I cast away the seed of Iacob ond David my servant As if God should say let them know that whatsoever their condition is now yet my love my mercy my faithfulness is toward them as sure as my covenant with day night and as the ordinances of heaven and earth An admirable Text to help not onely nations but particular persons when they are cast under contempt by wicked ungodly men yet at that time the Lord is most ready to confirm his covenant with them to be as sure as his covenant with day night and heaven earth This bringeth honour to God when at such times we can looke up to God and exercise our faith And indeed this is the glory and dignity and beauty of faith to exercise it then when Gods judgements are actually upon us But what promises are these They were not promises to any that then lived the promise that is here made was to be fulfilled in future Ages yet it is brought in by the Prophet as a comfort to the people of God living then in that time Hence this excellent note that nearly concerns us Gracious hearts are comforted with the promises of God made to the Church though not to be fulfilled in their dayes If the Church may prosper and receive mercies from God though I be dead and gone and rotten in the grave yet blessed be God When Jacob was to die saith he unto Joseph Behold I dye but God shall be with you and bring you again unto the land of your fathers he will fulfill his promises to you though I am dead Our fore-fathers that generation of the Saints that lived a while since how comfortably would they have dyed if God before their death had revealed to them that within 3. or 4. or 7. yeares so much mercy should come to England as we now have seen in these dayes Yea how comfortably should any of us have died I appeal to any gracious heart here suppose God should have taken thee away but this time two yeares and he should have said thus to thee Go and be gathered to thy fathers in peace within these two years such and such things shall be done for England as we now live to see would not we willingly have dyed would it not have been comfort enough against the fear of death but to have had revealed to us what should have been done in after time to our posterity what mercy then is it now that it is not onely revealed to us but enjoyed by us That is the second Note But thirdly What was this promise This promise was that Israel should be a multitude that the number of them shall be as the sand of the sea shore VVe shall examine the excellency of the mercy of God in this promise by and by Onely for the present enquire we a little why God would expresse himselfe in this that his grace should be manifested in this to multiply them as the sand of the sea shore If we compare Scripture with Scripture we shall finde that God therefore promiseth this because he would thereby shew that he did remember his old promise to Abraham for that was the promise made to Abraham that God would multiply his seed as the starres of heaven and as the sand which is upon the sea shore and now God along time after commeth in with renewing this promise Hence we are to observe this Note That the Lord remembers his promises though made a long time since God is ever mindful of his Covenant as it is Psal 111. 5. When we have some new and fresh manifestations of Gods mercy our hearts rejoyce in it but the impression of it is
he manifested since the world begun Therefore when God would set out the state of the Church of the gospel mark how he takes that title to himselfe Revel 4. 9. The 4. living creatures mentioned in the verses before by which is meant the state of the Church under the gospel they give glory and honour thanks to him that sate on the throne who liveth for ever and ever and ver 10. The 24. Elders fell downe before Him that sate on the Throne and worshipped Him that liveth for ever and ever and Chap. 5. 14. both joyne together The 4. living creatures and the 24. Elders fell downe and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever And Chap. 10. 5 6. The Angell which stood upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever Thus the attribute of Gods life is made use of for the state of the Church in the gospell to shew how active God will be for them Thence Heb. 12. 22. the Church is called The Cities of the living God Now then if we expect that God should be a living God unto us it becomes not us to have dead hearts in his service If God be active for our good let us be active for his honour A living and a lively Christian is beautifull in the eyes of God and man Let us labour not onely to be liviing but to be lively for God and his cause Abundance of service and good may living and lively Christians do in the places where they live specially in these times But oh what a few are there who are active and stirring and are carryed on by the spirit of wisdome and zeale for God and his cause Away now with out cold and dead wishes and luskish desires let us up and be doing and the Lord will be with us The adversaries are lively so saith the Psalmift mine tnemies are lively and they are strong Psal 38. 19. We may well make use of that expression too our enemies they are lively and strong shall they be more lively and active for the Devill and for their lusts then we for the living God As God is the object of our happinesse as he is the living God so wee are the objects of Gods delight as we are living too God is not the God of the dead but he is the God of the living We should be lively and active for we live upon the bread of life and drink the water of life we have lively Oracles lively ordinances therefore life and activity is required of us Rom. 12. 11. Be fervent in spirit serving the Lord be burning boyling up in your spirits for you are serving the Lord the living God be boyling up in your spirits dead spirits become not the services of the living God Grace is called the Divine nature and God wee know is a pure act and it is called the very life of God It is impossible then but a Christian must needs be active seeing his grace is the very life of God in him By being lively and active we shall prevent abundance of temptations that otherwise will befallus a dead luskish spirit is lyable to a thousand temptations as when the honey is scalding hot and boyling the flies will not come to it when it is set in the window and grows cold then the flies come to it so when the spirits of men are boyling hot for God Belzebub the god of flies with his temptations comes not then upon them but when their spirits begin to cool and grow dull and heavy then comes Belzebub then comes all manner of temptation upon the soule The breath that comes from life we know it is warme breath but artificiall breath that is cold the breath that comes from the body of a man that 's hot but the breath that cometh from a paire of Bellows that is cold because it is artificiall breath so when men are cold in the services of God it is to be feared that their breath in praying and other duties it is but artificiall breath it is not the breath of life if it were living it would be warm That was the reason why God would not have an asse offered him in the Law in sacrifice but his neck must be broken because the asse is a dull creature God loves not dull creatures in his service I remember I have heard of a people that worshipped the sunne for their god they sacrificed to the sun a flying horse the reason was this because they would offer to the sun somewhat sutable to it they honoured the sun for the swiftness of his motion and a horse you know is a swift creature and therefore somewhat sutable especially having that emble me upon him with wings They that would honour the sun as a god for swiftnes would not offer a snayle but a flying horse so if wee do honour God for a living God an active God let us not offer snayles to him dull heavy sluggish services but quick and lively services That which the Courtiers of Nebuchadnezzar flatteringly said to him that in the name of God say I to you Live for ever Joh. 6. 57. saith Christ there As the living Father hath sent me and I live by the Father so he that eateth me even he shall live by me Christ was active exceeding active in his way in the work he was sent about Why because the living Father sent him so letus consider that in all our services and employments it is a living God that sets us about them and we shall be active as Christ was I am willing a little to inlarge this because of the necessity of it in regard of our present times and give me leave to do it by telling you what this activeness is that I would put you upon in these three things First stay not for company in any good cause An active spirit will not stay till he see others to accompany him but if he must go rather then the cause should fall he will goe alone Mark that saying Isa 51. 2. I called Abraham alone and blessed him Be not discouraged if God give thee an active spirit and others will not appear God calls thee alone and he will blesset hee Secondly when you have company do not lag behind but he willing to be formost rather then any cause of God should suffer by your lagging do not stay to have others go before you Hence in Pro. 30. 31. amongst the comely goings of many things there the going of the he-goat is said to be very comely why because the he-goat useth to go before the flock Those that out of love to the cause of God are willing if they be called to it to goe before the flock they goe comely in the eyes of God Thirdly do not forbear the work till all difficulties about it be first over That is a sluggish spirit that wil not set about the work till they
fallen from God as they have discharged those that plead against them Well but if a member a particular may plead with a Church a whole Church with their mother Certainly then there is no one Member of a Church so high but he may be pleaded withall even by private people in that Church Colos 4. 17. Say to Archippus look to thy Ministry It is an Exhortation to all the Church to say to Archippus and admonish him to looke to his Ministry For though the officer of a Church be nearer to Christ the head of which you heard before then other members are as the Arme is nearer the head then the hand yet if the arme shall send forth any thing to the hand that it hath not from the head as in a flux of putrid humours that resteth in the arme then it would be the strength of the hand to resist those ill humours that the arme sends forth So if any Officer of the Church shall send forth that which he did not receive from the head to any Member but some putrid humour of his own It is the virtue of that Member to resist the receiving of any such humour Certainly it is the pride of many that thinke it scorne for any private people any way to have to do with them It is I say a pride in men which thorough want of that right order that should be in all Churches is growen to that height that those that take to themselves as proper the name of Clergy they think it such a dishonor to them for any other that is not a Clergy-man as they speak to speak to them or admonish them of any thing or to reason with them about any thing or when they have preached to come to them for further satisfaction in somewhat that they have delivered or if they be negligent in their duty to tell them of it though never so submissively meekly their pride makes them rise so high And for that observe because they do it upon that ground that they are the Clergie which signifies Gods inheritance and Gods lot and so contemning others as inferiour You shall find in Scripture the people are called Clergy in distinction from the Ministers and never the Ministers in the New Testament from the people the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is not attributed to them to my remembrance but I am sure it is attributed to the Congregation to the private members by way of distinction from them That you shall see in 1 Pet. 5. 3. Be not Lords over Gods inheritance Doe not Lord it over Gods Clergy over Gods Lot so the words are Now in that he saith do not Lord it certainly that is spoken to the Officers of the Church and they must not Lord it over Gods inheritance that is over Gods Clergy for so I say the words are The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 therefore from whence Clergy commeth is you see attributed to the people And we shall find in Scripture Acts 18. 25. that Apollos an Eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures and a man of a fervent spirit yet the Text saith that Aquila and Priscilla that were private people tooke him unto them and expounded to him the way of God more perfectly Where have you an Apollos now an Eloquent man a Scholler a great Clergy man but would scorne and contemne that a poore man and his wife should take him home instruct him in the way of God more perfectly Yet Apollos an Eloquent man mighty in the Scriptures tooke it well and was willing to receive further instruction from these people And we finde Cant. 5. that in the time of reformation of the Church the Church went to the watch-men the watch-men beate her shee had more reliefe from the daughters of Jerusalem then from them But we must not leave this so neither It is true there may be a notorious abuse of both these and it is exceeding hard for a people to understand their liberty without abusing of it either against the Church or against the Officers of a Church This power may be abused in people very much in too much pride arrogancy mallapertness a spirit of contention in some taking a delight in contradiction There are many people I say that are of such a humor that it is their very delight to be in a way of contradiction they think they are no body except they have somewhat to say against their officers or against what is delivered and upon that very ground will go quarrelling not out of meere conscience but that it may appear to others that for their parts they have a further reach than other men It is true such things are delivered generally they are received yea but men must know that they look into things further then others doe And if they be in a community they conceive that every one would think them no body if they stand still and say nothing therefore that they may appeare to be some-body they will speake they will have somewhat to finde fault withall though they scarce understand what they say or whereof they affirme and shew it they will in a virulent spirit in a domineering way and brave it to the faces of those that God hath set over them Certainly this is a grosse and abominable thing giving it may be reproachfull tearmes to such Whereas the Rule of Christ is Rehuke not an Elder 1 Tim. 5. 1. but intreate him as a Father do not you think presently that because you may pleade with them that Gods cause may not suffer by your silence that therefore you may rebuke them in an undecent and unseemly manner You may indeed in an humble way goe as acknowledging the distance betwixt you and him hee being an Officer and so inEreat him as a Father Doe many of you so when you go and reason the case with a Minister whom you your selves will acknowledge to be Officers of Christ yet it may be sometime through bitternesse of spirit you will be casting them off from being Officers of Christ before you have sufficient warrant for it and therefore the Apostle saith in the same Chapter ver 19. Against an Elder receive not an accusation but before two or three witnesses Marke you must not receive an accusation much lesse a condemnation for the credit and honour of the Ministers of Christ are very deare and precious unto him therefore take heed how through a violent and turbulent spirit you cast any dishonour upon those that Christ hath set over you Thus I have indeavoured to discover the truth unto you and so limited as I hope it may be for edification and not for hurt at all to any Pleade with your Mother But what is this pleading She is not my wife neither am I her Husband It hath much bitternesse in it indeed if it be considered of yet it is in as faire termes as can be set out Shee is not my wife He doth not
the infinite mercy of God ever to regard such a wretch as I. If they do thus take shame to themselves and acknowledg their folly this were something We read in the Primitive times of one Ecebolius who when he had revolted from the Truth he cometh to the congregation and falling down upon the threshold cryeth out Calcate Calcate insipidum salem tread upon me unsavory salt I confesse I have made my selfe unsavory salt by departing from the Truth let all tread upon me This was a signe of true returning when this went before we have done foolishly it was better with us then now Againe I will goe and returne for it was better with mee then it is now Hence Though acknowledgement must goe before yet returning must follow that It is not enough to see and acknowledg but there must be a returning For as reformation without humiliation is not enough so humiliation without reformation suffices not And I speak this the rather because these are times wherein there is a great deale of seeming humiliation and wee hope true humiliation but you shall have many in their fasting days will acknowledge how finfull how vile how passionate they have been in their families how worldly what base selfe-ends they have had and they will make such catalogues of their sins in those dayes of their humiliation as causes admiration the thing itselfe is good but I speak to this end to shew the horrible wickednesse of mens hearts that after they have ripped up all their sinnes with all aggravations acknowledged all their folly of their evill ways against God yet no returning after all this as passionate in their famâ—lies as froward as peevish as perverse as ever as earthly as ever as light and vaine in their carriage as ever They will acknowledge what they have done but they will not returne Remember humiliation must goe before reformation but Reformation must follow after Humiliation But the chiefe point of all is behind that is The sight of this how much better it was when the heart did cleave to Christ over it is now since departure from Christ it is an effectuall meanes to cause the heart to returne to him This is the way that Christ himselfe prescribed Rev. 2. 5. Remember whence thou art falne and repent Thou wert in a better condition once then now thou art oh come in and return and that thou maist returne remember whence thou art falne I will give but a little glimpse of what might be said in this point more largely The reasonings of the heart in the sight of this may briefely bee hinted thus Heretofore I was able through Gods mercy to look upon the face of God with joy When my heart did cleave to him when I did walke close with God then the glory of God shined upon mee and caused my heart to spring within me every time I thought of him But now now God knows though the world takes little notice of it the very thoughts of God are a terrour to mee the most terrible object in the world is to behold the face of God Oh it was better with me then it is now Before this my apostasie I had free accesse to the Throne of Gods grace I could come with humble and holy boldnesse unto God and poure out my soule before him such a chamber such a closet can witnesse it But now I have no heart to pray yea I must be haled to it meerely conscience pulleth me to it yea every time I goe by that very closet where I was wont to have that accesse to the throne of grace it strikes a terrour to my heart I can never come into Gods presence but it is out of slavish feare Oh it was better with me then then it is now Before Oh the sweet communion my soule enjoyed with Jesus Christ one dayes communion with him how much better was it then the enjoyment of all the world But now Jesus Christ is a stranger to mee and I a stranger to him Before oh those sweet enlargements that my soule had in the ordinances of God! when I came to the word my soule was refreshed was warmed my heart was inlightned when I came to the Sacrament oh the sweetness that was there and to prayer with the people of God it was even a heaven upon earth unto me but it is otherwise now the Ordinances of God are dead and empty things to me Oh it was better with mee then then it is now Before oh the gracious visitations of Gods Spirit that I was wont to have Yea when I awaked in the night season oh the glimpses of Gods face that were upon my soule what quicknings and refreshings and inlivenings did I finde in them I would give a world for one nights comfort I sometimes have had by the visitations of Gods Spirit but now they are gone Oh it was better then then it is now Before oh what peace of conscience had I within whatsoever the world said though they rayled and accused yet my conscience spake peace to me and was a thousand witnesses for me but now I have a grating conscience within me oh the black bosome that is in me it flieth in my face every day after I come from such and such company I could come before from the society of the Saints and my conscience smiled upon me Now I go to wicked company and when I come home and in the night Oh the gnawings of that worm it was better with me then then it is now Before the graces of Gods Spirit how were they sparkling in me active and lively I could exercise faith humility patience and the like Now I am as one bereft of all unfit for any thing even as a dead logg Before God made use of me and imployed me in honorable services now I am unfit for any service at all Oh it was better with me then then it is now Before I could take hold upon promises I could claim them as mine own I could looke up to all those blessed sweet promises that God had made in his word and look upon them as mine inheritance But now alas the promises are very little to me before I could look upon the face of all troubles and the face of death I could look upon them with joy but now the thought of affliction and of death God knows how terrible they are to me It was better with me then then it is now Before in all creatures I could enjoy God I tasted the sweetnesse and love of God even in my meat and drinke I could sit with my wife and children and see God in them and looke upon the mercies of God through them as a fruit of the Covenant of grace Oh how sweet was it with mee then But now the creature is an empty thing unto mee whether it come in love or hatred I do not know It was better with me before then now Before I was under the protection of
lewdnes the Greek word translated there lewdness doth elegantly set forth the disposition of a lewd man namely such a one as is easily drawn to any wicked way I will discover her lewdnesse in the sight of her lovers In the sight this is a great aggravation of their shame God will cast filth on them not before those that are strangers but those before whom they would be honoured It is a note of Calvin upon this that seemes to reach the meaning of the holy Ghost alluding to the way of whores who having great men for their lovers favourites with Princes at the Court they rest on their power and confide in their greatness they care not what their husbands can doe against them and so grow proud against their husbands because their lovers have great power There was a remarkable example of this here in England that you may remember it were but to â—ake in a filthy dunghill to mention it I will take away their confidence though their lovers be never so great the Assyrians and Aegyptians whosoever they be they shall have no power to help you but I will discover their lewdnesse before their face From hence take these observations First all wickednesse and especially Idolatry hath many covers for it except we looke very narrowly to those that are superstitious and idolatrous we shall not see the evill of that sin Some covers are subtilly woven but it may be said of them all as Isa 28. 20. The bed is shorter then that a man can stretch himselfe on it and the covering narrower then that he can wrap himselfe in it Secondly Prosperity in a sinfull way is a great cover though it be a very vile and sinfull way yet prosperity is a cover to it This glisters so in many mens eyes that the filth of sin is hid many a foule hand is under a faire perfumed glove an ill complexion may have a painted face and prosperity is no other to wicked men then a painted face to a foul woman As a painted face is no argument of a faire complexion so neither is prosperity of a good condition Crooked diseased bodies halfe rotten may have fine cloths Green leaves on a tree may hide the rifts the mossiness and blackness of the body which appears in winter Many men are abominable false in all their wayes cruell and bloody in their hearts against God and good men their spirits are invenomed and they have given up themselves to most horrible sins yet so long as they have power about them all is covered were all their prosperity taken from them and all their glory and greatness and nothing but their falshood and hatred of the wayes of God appeared what dreadfull creatures would they bee There is many a man that is taken with a strumpet when shee hath painted her selfe bravely like Iezebel but if he should see this whore whipped up down the streets and full of botches how odious would this strumpet be in his eyes take away her bravery and she is to him the Ioathsomest creature upon earth Thirdly Retaining some truths in the way of worship is a great cover to much falsenes When some of you are to pay a great sum you can shuffle in a brasse six pence or shilling or a light piece of gold so some though they retaine many errors yet because they keep some truths they think to cover much superstition False wares will be holpen off amongst good and a man that useth to lie will sometimes tell some truths to put off a lie A man that is a base selfe-secker will many times deny himselfe many times you shall have the proudest spirits that are to bee as crowching and subject to those that are their superiours as any and so by seeming humility cover a great deale of pride So the evill of ceremonies and false discipline passe without much contradiction you must not trouble your selves about these things and why have not we as wholsome soule-saving doctrine as in any Church in the world because of this the corruption of the other is covered much hypocrisie is covered under excellent gifts the gifts are gifts of Gods Spirit but they oftentimes cover much vileness Further observe Outward pompous devotion in Gods worship is a great colour of notorious Idolatry as gilded Crosses painted Churches pompous Ceremonies how hath it covered the most desperate hatred to the power of godlinesse that ever was I will discover thy lewdnesse God hath a time to discover wickednesse it shall appeare one day in its colours vile and abominable wickednesse shall not always goe uncovered God will not discover her infirmities neither should we wee should doe as God doth discover the lewdnesse of men but not their infirmities Love covers a multitude of faults if they be but infirmities And when you discover the lewdnesse of others take heed you do not discover your owne lewdnesse in the mean time Many when they go about to discover the lewdnesse of other men do it with such bitternesse of spirit and with rejoycing that they have got any advantage against those that are religious if they heare any reports against such whether true or false they care not they relate it confidently something will stick This is for men to discover their own lewdnesse when they cry out against the lewdnesse of others Those who are wise and understanding are able easily to see it but if wee would not have God discover our lewdnesse let us get such a cover as shall never be uncovered You may have many shifts to cover your sinnes that are not large enough but I wil tell you of a cover that is large enough to cover all What is that The righteousnesse of Jesus Christ Psal 32. 1. Blessed is he whose transgresison is forgiven whose sin is â—overed There is a cover that covers from the eyes of God and man for ever I will discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers I will take such a way to manifest her vile lewdness before her lovers that she shall neither prevail with them nor be upheld by them Whence observe When God discovers mens lewdness they shal do little hurt 2 Tim. 3. 6. But they shall proceed no farther for their folly shall bee made manifest to all men There are many who have secretly gained on the spirits of other men by faire pretences that they will doe nothing but thus and thus and they seek nothing but the publicke good and they desire the furtherance of the Gospel but when opertunity shall serve there shall be a ciscovering that their intentions goe another way then their words seemed to import and then they shall proceed no further for they shal be vile and contemptible in the eyes of those with whom they prevailed before Againe further I will doe it in the sight of their lovers When God sets himself against his enemies he will goe through his work in
liberty they have now more then servants had in former times It was so likewise with the Romans the word servant cometh à Servando because the Romans used to have such for servants as were preserved in time of war that should otherwise have bin put to death whether they were those or others yet the condition of all was very servile both amongst Iews and Romans which may justly rebuke the pride of servants now if they be but crost in their minds in the least thing they make such a complaint as if they were exceedingly wronged Let servants rather bless God for their condition then murmur at a little hardship they indure for the hardship of servants in former times was another manner of hardship then any you can indure who have the hardest masters Hence it is that in the day of Iubile the servants did so rejoyce Iewish antiquities tell us that nine days before their release the servants feasted and made merry and wore garlands because of their freedom approaching The second thing extraordinary in the day of Jubile was that not onely debts but lands were released Lev. 25. 22. The land shall not be sold for ever And there were divers reasons for this why the land must not be sold for ever but must return to the first possessors in the year of Jubile One reason is in the Text Lev. 25. 23. For the land is mine saith God for yee were strangers and sojourners with me God would hereby teach them that they must not account themselves absolute lords of the land the land is mine and you that are the greatest land-lords of all are but as strangers and sojourners with God the land is still Gods And vers 28. If a man bee not able to redeeme his land nor his kinsman for him it shall remain unto the yeer of Iubile and in the Iubile it shall goe out and hee shall return unto his possession If he could redeem his land himself or a kinsman for him he was to redeeme it before but if a man should be so poor as he could not give any thing to redeem it yet in the year of Iubile it should return unto him God would not have his people too greedy to bring the possession of the Countrey in to themselves to have a perpetuall inheritance to themselves and their posterity This is the greediness of many covetous and ambitious men oh that we could lay land to land and house to house to get a perpetuall inheritance for our selves and posterity God would not have his people be of so greedy dispositions for a few of them to get the whole Countrey into their own possession therefore he would have no man that ever had any possession but once in fifty years that possession must return to that familie again The land was to return to the first owner that the distinction of Tribes might be continued which was known much by the continuance of their possessions that belonged to every tribe family God had great care before Christs time to keep the distinction of tribes that so it might be cleare out of which tribe Christ came But further this year of Iubile aymed at a higher thing it was a type of Christ to set out the blessed redemption that we have by Christ The trumpet of the Gospel which the Ministers blow is a trumpet of Iubile That place Isa 61. 1 2. seems to have reference to a Iubile there the Text saith that Christ was appointed to proclaim liberty to the captives the opening of the prison to them that are bound to proclaim the acceptable yeer of the Lord now that acceptable year was the year of Iubile there was the opening of the prison and the releasing of them that were bound Psal 89. 15. saith the text Blessed are the people that heare the joyfull sound that hear the Jubile Oh blessed are our ears who live to such a time as we do to heare the trumpet of Iubile blowing in one congregation or other almost every day now we have a release of our debts bondage this is the joyfull sound We are all by nature in debt sins you know are called debts in the Lords prayer every soul is bound over to Gods eternall justice to answer to the law for not obeying the law now cometh this Iubile and releaseth all debts And we are all bond-slaves in bondage to sin to the law and to the devil now cometh the Gospel this Iubile and releaseth our bondage sets us at liberty 3. We have forfeited our right to the crea ure yea to heaven it self now the Gospel comes and restores all we have right now to the comforts of this world and to heaven Canaan was a type of heaven and the loss of their inheritance there was a type of the loss of heaven and the bringing them again to the possession of it a type of the restoring of right to heaven Oh happy are they then who hear this joyfull sound not only with the eares of the body but who have it sounding in their hearts and that by the work of the spirit of God in them In this year of Iubile there is one thing further very remarkable and that is the time when this trumpet that was to proclaim this yeer was to blow Lev. 25. 9. the trumpet was to blow upon the tenth day of the seventh moneth What remarkable thing is there in this that the trumpet must be blown the tenth day of the seventh month yes there is this remarkable in it the tenth day of the seventh month was their day of expiation the day of their atonement their publique fast This day appointed every year for all Israel to afflict their souls before God to humble themselves for their sins and to seek for mercy from God as we shal shew you more largely when we come to open the solemnity of that day I only mention it now to shew that the trumpet of Iubile was to be sounded upon that day It is a strange thing that upon that day wherein they were to afflict their soules before God and to mourn for their sins the trumpet of Iubile was to sound that was to proclaim joy and mirth things of a contrary nature to humbling and mourning Yea but this affords us divers excellent instructions As First God would have his people so to mourn as to know their joy is coming In the darkest day they had wherein they were bound to afflict their souls most yet they were so to mourn as to know there was a Iubile at hand We are not to mourn as those without hope in our most grievous sorest mournings we must have our hearts sink in desperation wee must so mourne as to expect a Iubile Yea further the Saints mourning is a preparation to a Iubile o◠joy Ioy then is neer at hand when the Saints must mourn in a godly manner Did not the Lord deal graciously with us the last fast day when
we were mourning before him There was amongst our brethren in other parts a kind of trumpet of Iubile blown the Lord was then working for us what great deliverance did God grant that very day at Chichester God shews that the mourning of his people doth make way for joy Yea further then indeed is the sound of the trumpet of Iubile sweetest when we are most afflicted for our sins When we are most apprehensive and sensible of the evill of sin then the joy of God the comforts of the Gospel are sweetest to the soul When the trumpet of Iubile is blown in congregations if it meets not with hearts afflicted sensible of sinne they are not delighted with the sweet sound of this trumpet it is not melody in their ears it rejoy ceth not their hearts But let a poore soul be brought down and made sensible of the evill of sinne and Gods wrath then let but one promise of the Gospel be sounded forth how sweet how joyfull is it Again pardon of sin is the only foundation of all Jubiles For this tenth day of the seventh month wherein the trumpet of Jubile was to be sounded was a day of Atonement What is that A day of covering for so the word is of pardon of sin to the people of God Many men keep a continuall Jubile live merrily and bravely doe nothing but eate and drink and play and dance and laugh and cannot endure these fadde melancholy people What is the foundation of this thy Jubile Art thou sure there is an Atonement made between God and thy soule Art thou sure thy sin is pardoned Is this the foundation of thy rejoycing Know it will not last it is not Gods but the Devils Jubile except there be an atonement made between God and thee as the foundation of it Yet further in that the sound of the Jubile was at that time when the day of Atonement was Note this When God hath pardoned us then our hearts are in a fit frame to pardon others Now comes the Jubile and now you must release your lands your debts and forgive those that owe you any thing This is the day wherein God testifieth his mercy in pardoning your sinnes and they might well say Now Lord command us what thou wilt in shewing mercy to our brethren we are ready to pardon to release them to extend the bowels of our compassion towards them for thou hast pardoned our sins The reason of the rigidnesse of the cruelty the hardness of the hearts of men and straitnesse of their spirits to their brethren is this because God hath not witnessed to their souls the pardon of their own sinns an atonement between God and them Their solemn feasts Among their feasts they had three that were especially very solemn feasts more then others And they were The Feast of The Passeover Pentecost Tabernacles These three were very solemn especially in this one regard wherein they are all three united in one thing that is upon these three Feasts all the Males were to ascend up to Jerusalem to worship to the place which God did choose and so you have it Deut. 16. 16. Three times in a yeere shall all thy males appear before the Lord thy God in the place which he shal choose in the feast of unleavened bread that was the Passeover and in the feast weeks that was Pentecost and in the feast of Tabernacles But how could the ten Tribes then keep these Feasts for they went not to the Temple You may as well say how had they an Ephod of which Chap. 3. Jeroboam was wise enough to keep the feasts though not in that way God appointed he could tell them the going to the Temple was but circumstance of place From this connection of these three together in this solemnity upon which these three were especially called their solemn feasts there are divers things to be noted First we may see a reason why there were sometimes so many beleevers at Ierusalem An argument is brought by some from that place Acts 21. 20. to prove that there may be in one Church more then can possibly assemble together in one Congregation for the Text saith there Thou seest how many thousands of Iews there are which beleeve how many millions it is in the Originall now say they there could not be so many millions to joyn in one Congregation The answer to this is cleare that the time of which this place speaketh was when the people of the Jews were all assembled together at Jerusalem to keep the feast of Pentecost for Chap. 20. vers 16. the Text saith that the Apostle hastned if it were possible for him to be at Ierusalem the day of Pentecost now reading the story on it plainely appears that in that journey in which he did so hasten he did get to Ierusalem at the day of Pentecost and being there at that time no marvail that they said Dost thou not see how many thousands of Iews there are that beleeve For all the males of the people of the Iewes were got together at Ierusalem according to the institution so that they were there by reason of that Law that as yet they submitted to they were not in a Church state at Ierusalem therefore there is no strength in that objection against congregationall Churches Secondly where there is a nationall Church there must be an uniting of them in some way of Nationall worship There is this Nationall worship that the Iews by institution from God were united in three times in a yeare to go up to the Temple to worship And except there shonld be some such kind of individuall worship not in the same species that is as others are praying so are we and as others are hearing so are we for so all the Churches in the world may be joyned but to joyne in one act of worship together as that was of going up to the Temple there must be such a thing And that made the Iews a Nationall Church because we have no such institution now no Nation in the world can in a proper sense be said to be a Nationall Church as theirs was in some figurative sense we may so call it but not in that proper sense as it was among the Iews Thirdly there are some Ordinances that cannot be enjoyed but in the way of Church-fellowship The Iews could not enjoy these feasts as they ought indeed it may be Israel the ten Tribes would make a kind of patched up feast but they could not feast so as they ought unlesse they went to Ierusalem in that way God appointed As among the Iews there were some Ordinances they might enjoy in their Synagogues and private houses but some which they could not enjoy but in the Temple so there are some Ordinances we may enjoy in our families but others wee cannot enjoy but in Church-communion which Ierusalem is a type of A fourth thing observable is these three times wherein they were to go up to Ierusalem
condition that God hath brought us to to have these liberties and ordinances according to his own way but within a while we may say as the Apostle to the Galatians Where is the blessednesse you spake of They would have pulled out their eyes for Paul What is become of all now All their beauty glory is quite damped let us take heed that when our hearts seem to be raised and mightily affected with mercies we do not soon loose our vigour heat It hath been so with England when they have had fresh mercies at first they rejoyced in them exceedingly I have read of the City of Berne when they were first delivered from Antichrist they wrote the day of their deliverance upon pillars with letters of gold Was it not so with us here in England I will only instance in that deliverance upon the fifth of November how mightily was both King and Parliament affected with it their hearts were exceedingly up then there was blessing God for their deliverance from Papists then there were prayers and thanksgivings set forth and in them this expression against Popery Whose faith is faction whose Religion is rebellion whose practice is murthering of soules and bodyes When the mercy was fresh how did their spirits worke then they profest against all kinde of Popery Reade but the Proclamation about the solemnity of that time and the expressions of the prayers then set forth and one would have thought verily then that Popery should never have prevailed in England again who would ever have thought it possible that a Popish Army should ever have had any countenance in England more Certainly if a Popish Army had been raised at that time when mens hearts were so up all the people of the land if it had been but with clubs would have risen and beaten them to pieces It is so with many young people when God first beginneth to worke upon their hearts O how are they for God! then their spirts are mightily up for Christ Psal 90. 14. O satisfie us early with thy mercies and then we shall be glad and rejoyce all the dayes of our lives It is a sweet thing when the latter part of that prayer followeth when God satisfieth young people with his mercy and that satisfaction abideth so as they rejoyce all the dayes of their lives afterward The Lord doth many times satisfie young ones with his mercy but they quickly grow dead and cold and their hearts are soone hardned and polluted and they doe not rejoyce all the dayes of their lives Another Observation that restored and recovered mercies are very sweet and precious mercies They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth They were once in a blessed sweet singing condition they had lost it but now God promiseth to recover them Iob 29. 2. O that I were as in months past as in the dayes when God preserved me when his candle shined upon my head and when by his light I warlked thorough darknesse as I was in the dayes of my youth when the secret of God was upon my Tabernacle Iob desireth this earnestly that he might have restored recovered mercies What a happy condition should I be in then saith he if it were now with me as in the dayes of my youth May not many in this place say so God hath been gracious to them in former dayes he hath given many sweet manifestations of his love many soule-ravishing communications of himself unto them but how have they lost them They may well say O that it were with us as in the dayes of our youth Oh that God would restore to us what mercy we once had what a blessed condition should we be in then But God here giveth a gracious promise that he will restore them that he will give them that which is the petition of David Psa 51. Restore to me the joy of thy salvation Lord I have lost it O that I might have it againe How happy should I be So Ps 132. 1. By the Rivers of Babylon there we sat down yea we wept there when we remembred Zion we hanged our harps upon the willowes They were in this sad condition but if one should have come to them and have said what will you say if you shall be restored againe and goe to Zion to Jerusalem againe and have songs there as much and as delightfull as before their hearts could not have held in them This mercy would be like that wine mentioned Cant. 7. 9. that is so sweet that it causeth the lips of those that are asleepe to speake If there be any life left such a mercy will raise and actuate it Psal 126. 1. 2. When the Lord turned againe the captivity of Zion our mouthes were filled with laughter and our tongues with singing when God granted them a recovered mercy As a poore prodigal that hath left his fathers house and afterward is come to beggery and misery and is under bondage is almost starved he sitteth down under a hedg wringing his hands falleth a lamenting the losse of his Fathers house and considering what comfort he had in his Fathers presence cryeth out of his folly and madnesse but if one should come and say to him what will you say if your Father should be reconciled to you and send for you home and promise to put you in as comfortable a condition as ever O how would this cause singing in his heart Thus God promiseth to his people that he would restore them to that singing condition they had lost They shall sing as in the dayes of their youth That which made this mercy so sweet was because it was a promised mercy Hence this Note Promised mercies are sweet mercies Luke 16. 61. Blessed be the Lord God of Israel for he hath visited and redeemed his people and hath raised up a home of salvation to us in the house of his servant David as he spake by the mouth of all his Prophets And ver 77. To performe the mercy promised there is the cause of singing Blessed be the Lord God of Israel that hath performed the mercy promised Giving out of a promise is sweet to a gracious heart it can sing then much more sweet is the promise when it cometh to be fulfilled 2 Chron. 20. 17. Stand still and see the salvation of the Lord there is the promise Mark now how Jehosaphat and the people were affected with the promise And Jehosaphat bowed his head with his face to the ground and all Iudah and the Inhabitants of Ierusalem fell before the Lord worshipped the Lord. And the Levites and the child en of the Koathites the children of the Korhites shall stand up to praise the Lord God of Israel with a loud voyce on high And ver 21. He appointed singers unto the Lord that should praise the beauty of holinesse and to say Praise the Lord for his mercy endureth for ever Jehosâ—phat had not got the promise fulfilled it was only
in a visible church communion to the Jewes and in the spirituall communion of Christ with the soule for the present Of the visible form first Isa 60. 15. I will make thee an eternall excellency a joy of many generations I thinke this is not onely meant concerning the spiritual happines of the Saints but that God hath a time to make his visible church to be an eternall excellency and a joy of many generations an excellency that shall never have an end And this their perpetuall condition their enduring happinesse shall arise from three grounds First from the precious foundation that shall be laid upon that Church when it shall be Isa 54. 8. With everlasting kindnesse will I have mercy on thee saith the Lord but mark the ground vers 11. Behold I lay the foundation with Saphires all the rubbish shal be taken away it shal not be raised upon a rubbish foundation God will lay the foundations of it with Saphires and then with everlasting mercy he will embrace that Church Secondly that Church shall be in a peaceable condition no rent no division there therefore in a perpetuall condition Esay 33. 20. A Tabernacle that shall not be taken down not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed Why the very words before shew the reason Jerusalem shall be a quiet habitation Thirdly this Church shall look wholly at Christ as their Judge and their Law-giver and their King Isa 33. 22. The Lord is our Judge the Lord is our Law-giver the Lord is our King Churches are ready to change while they mixe other things with the worship of Christ and the lawes of men with his laws but when they can look to him I mean in that which is spirituall as their Law-giver as their Judge and as their King then the happinesse of it shall be perpetuall never to cease in this world the Lord Christ will betroth this Church unto him for ever Though I verily think the holy Ghost aymeth at this in great part yet we are to understand this betrothing for ever further of the spirituall communion the soul hath with Christ When Christ betroths himselfe unto a soule it is for ever the conjugall love of Christ with a gracious soule shal never be broken At the first mans condition was such as man laid hold upon God and let goe his hold but now God lays hold upon man and hee will never let goe his The bond of union in a believer runs through Jesus Christ it is fastned upon God and the spirit of God holds the other end of it and so it can never be broken This union is in the Father who hath laid a sure foundation 2 Tim. 2. 19. Rom. 9. 11. In the Son who loves his to the end Iohn 13. 1. In the Spirit who abides in the elect for ever John 14. 16 17. Esay 54. 10. The mountains shall depart and the hills be removed but my kindnesse shall not depart from thee neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee My loving kindnesse shall be more stable with thee and endure longer then the mountains themselves It is as sure as the ordinances of heaven Jer. 31. 35 36. Thus saith the Lord which giveth the Sun for a light by day and the ordinances of the Moon and of the Stars for a light by night if those ordinances dopart from before mee then the seed of Israel shall cease c. And Jer. 33. 20 21. Thus saith the Lord if you can break my covenant of the day and my covenant of the night that there should not be day and night in their season then may also my covenant be broken with David my servant You have these three expressions of the abiding of Gods love to his people 1. The continuance of the mountains 2. The continuance of the ordinances of heaven and earth 3. Gods covenant with night and day Here is the bottome of consolation to the Saints They shall be kept by the power of God 1 Pet. 1. 5. As if God should say the speciall power that I meane to put forth in this world shall be to uphold the spirits of my Saints to bring them to salvation certainly it is so The speciall work that God hath in this world to exercise his power about is to keep Christ and the Saints together Though it be through Gods power that the heavens and the earth be kept up yet if God must withdraw his power from one hee would rather withdraw it from upholding heaven and earth then from upholding one gracious soule that hath union with his Son The union that is between Christ and his people it is too neere an union ever to be broken I remember Luther hath a notable expression about this As it is impossible for the leaven that is in the dough to be separated from the dough after it is once mixed for it turneth the nature of the dough into it selfe so it is impossible saith he for the Saints ever to be separated from Christ For Christ is in the Saints as neerly as the leaven in the very dough so incorporated as that Christ and they are as it were one lump Christ who came to save that which was lost will never lose that which he hath saved Heb. 7. 16. it is said that Christ was made a Priest not after the law of a carnall commandement That is he was not made a Priest as the Priests in the law after a ceremonial way but after the power of a indissoluble life Coeli virture by a celestiall vertue so Calvin upon the place The argument why Christs life is indissoluble rather then the Priests in the law is because they were made by the power of a carnall commandement not by a Celestiall power So those who professe godlinesse according to a carnall comandement in a ceremoniall way may faile vanish and come to nothing in their way of worship as many have done but such as are professors of Religion by the vertue of Gods Spirit in them they have the power of a life indissoluble There are two soul-staying and soul-satisfying grounds to assure of Christs betrothing himselfe for ever First when any soul is taken in to Christ it hath not onely all the sinnes that it hath committed heretofore pardoned but there is a pardon laid in for all sin that is to come There is forgivenesse with thee Psal 130. 4. There lyes pardon with God before hand for all that is to come as well as for that which is past There is no condemnation unto them which are in Christ Jesus Rom. 8. 1. That is there is no instant of time after they are once in Christ Jesus wherein it can be said they are under the sentence of condemnation Now were it not that there were a pardon laid before-hand for all sin that is to come there might upon commission of a new sinne be said at that time that now they
gone and I have cause to fear lest he should reject me but become of mee what wil yet I wil never have any other husband never any other comfort but God comfort no other peace but the peace of God and I am resolved that if I 〈◊〉 I wil perish crying for it if thou beest in this frame waiting for GOD GOD is waiting for thee in wayâ—â— of his mercy and at 〈…〉 bowels of GODS mercy will yerne towards that as the bowels of Joseph yerned towards his brethren so that he could hold no longer You know Joseph for a long time used his brethren hardly but his brethren yet behaved themseves humbly and submissively toward him and at length he could not refraine so it may be God useth thee some what hardly for a while yet do thou keep in an humble and submissive frame of spirit unto him do that which beseemeth a creature to do whatsoever God doth to thee it is fit God should exercise his absolute power over me and that I should do my duty to him do this and be sure thou art a soul that God will marry himself unto in the end Fourthly So farre as we are willing to be for God God is willing to be for us God requires that you should seek him with your whole heart Jer. 29. 13. Mark how God answereth I will rejoyce over them to doe them good yea I will plant them in this land assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soule Will you seeke God with your whole heart I will do you good saith God with my whole heart God is as willing to doe for you as you are to do for him if all the faculties of your souls work toward God all the attributes in God shall worke for your good If thy estate be wholly given up for God Gods riches shall be wholly for thee VVouldest thou know how Gods heart works toward thee do but lay thine hand upon thy own heart according to the beatings of thine heart towards God so are the workings of the heart of God toward thee thou mayest determine it thus thou canst not goe up to heaven to know it but go into thine owne heart and there thou mayest know As a man may know by the working of an engine within how the workings are abroad That is the reason that the Saints when they have had their hearts enlarged in prayer they have come to be resolved what God will do for them or for his Church as it is said of Luther when he was in prayer one time more then ordinarily earnest with God he comes down to his frinds and saith well it shall goe well with Germany all my dayes look ye to it afterward he knew what was done in heaven by what was done in his own heart We may know in a great measure what God meaneth to doe with his Churches according to the inward beatings of our own hearts Further See here the happy advantage of the Saints beyond the men of the world thus Be you for me saith God I will be for you The men of the world can say I am for the world the world is for me I am for my honour and my honor is for me I am for my whore and my whore is for me this is all their happines but now a Saint can say I am for God and God is for me Oh the goodness of God toward us that he is willing to be for us as we are for him for him alas what can we be for him we are poor worms vile creatures in our selves what can we do he hath no need of us we are bound to do all that we do It is all one as if a king should come to a poor beggar say thus poor man thou hast but little yet do what you can for me I will do what I can for you this were a mighty disproportion Alas what can the beggar do for the King If you will but use your staffe or what you have for me I will use my riches glory and all for your good saith the King to the beggar So saith God to a poore creature Be you for me and I will be for you stand for me and I will stand for you use any thing you have forme and I will use what I have for you Oh the blessed condition of the Saints who would not be for God Do not now say alas I am a poore vile and unworthy creature so were the Jews do not say I am gone a whoring from God and dealt falsely with him the Jews did so yet saith God whensoever you will be for me I will be for you It is now the great question amongst us who are you for I will put the question to you all who are you for Are your hearts wholly given up to God or are you for your lusts for the creature certainly the creature will deceive you ere long you will have no good from the creature that now you are so much for if you be not for God now hee will send you to the creature in the time of your distresse There is a time comming that every one of us shall see the need we have that God be for us let us be for God now that God may be for us then when we come to cry to him and say Oh Lord let thy mercy and goodnesse be for us he will say who were you for you were for your lusts now goe to your lusts you would have none of me before I will have none of you now Pro. 1. 26. 27. You would have none of my reproofe I also will laugh at your calamity and mock when your feare commeth Marke They would have none of Gods reproofe hee doth not say they would have none of my mercy they would have none of my grace therefore I will laugh at their destruction but they would have none of my reproofe why the reproofes of God are the bitterest the harshest things of all yet because they would have none of Gods reproofes he laughes at their destruction What shall become of them then who will have none of the riches of Gods grace offered to them in Christ The Second Lecture HOSEA 3. 4. 5. For the children of Israel shal abide many dayes without a King and without a Prince and without a sacrifice and without an image and without an Ephod and without a Teraphim Afterward shall the children of Israel returne and seek the Lord their God HEre is much privation six withouts 1. without a King 2. without a Prince 3. without a sacrifice 4. without an image 5. without an Ephod 6. without a Teraphim but the last verse makes all up They shall return and seeke the Lord their God and David their King These withouts shew the wofull confused estate that Israel was to be in for many dayes many years both in regard of their Civill and of their Church state The Civill State without a
two hundred years before he wrote his Antiquities that was an hundred and five years before Christ but it appears that they had no Vrim and Thummim long before that time for at their return from captivity Ezra 2. 63. the Tirshatha that is the Ruler said unto them that they should not eate of the most holy things till there stood up a Priest with Vrim and Thummim therefore they had not then a Priest with Urim and Thummim they expected to have one but whether ever they had one after it is not know This was the reason of that complaint of Asaph Psa 74. 9. We see not our signes there is no more any Prophet neither is there any among us that knoweth how long that is a grievous complaint Now it is like that Psalme was made about the very time of their return from captivity for Ezra 2. 41. Asaph is named among those that came to Jerusalem from the captivity The singers the children of Asaph an hundred twenty and eight But let it be then or after by this Psalme wee may finde that it was a very lamentable complaint to be without Urim and Thummim The result of all is that it is a grievous thing to the Saints that in the time of their strait they donoâ— know Gods mind At any time when God brings his people into straits yet if they can know the mind of their God they are refreshed and encouraged but when they shall seeke to know Gods minde and the Lord resuseth to discover it to them this is a sad condition indeed I find one note more of Jeroms about their being without an Ephod We may observe saith he the hardness of the hearts of the Jews that they should be so many hundred years without sacrifice and without Ephod without the true worship of God among them and ways to know Gods mind and yet they are not guilty of any greater sin then the sin of Idolatry except it be of the killing of JESUS CHRIST that they should not reason thus what sin is it that thus provokes God against us more then ever he was provoked Surely there is some greater sinne then ever yet we have committed but saith he they can never finde any other offence beside the killing of Christ to be a greater offence then Idolatry and yet they have a greater judgement upon them then ever they had though they are not guilty of that sinne as they were formerly surely were they not extreamly hardned they would be convinced that all this is because of our rejecting crucifying Christ the Son of God As they had the Ordinances of God so they had wayes of false worship of their owne Images and Teraphim I must shew you what those were and then how it is a threatning that they should be without those Image That seemeth to refer to the two calves they had set up in Dan Bethel which they so much gloryed and rejoyced in they should be taken away Teraephim that likewise should be taken away Now if you aske what this Teraphim was in the general Taraph is a divining image as the Ephod was Gods Ordinance to know the minde of God by so the Teraphim was a way of the Devil an idolatrous way to know things that were to come It was an Image made after this fashion so I finde those that write of it tell us The Teraphim was the image of the head of a man wrung off his body salted and bespiced with precious spices and then upon this head there was a plate of gold with the name of that spirit they would divine by or as some the name of the uncleane spirit was to be put un der the tongue of this head and this being set upon a wall there were burning candles and incense offered to it and that under the constellation of some star and so enquiring to know something that was to come by it the devill was used to answer and to tell them of such things as were to come it was an oracle of the devil that told them what successe they should have in this or the other businesse sometimes it hit right See the superstition of the Jewes they desired much to know the minde of God now because they were afraid they should not know all by the Ephod which was the ordinance of God they would joyne with the Ephod the Teraphim From hence there is this profitable note It is a very great and fearfull evil for men in searching to know any thing of Gods mind not to keep themselves to Gods ways of knowledg to Gods own Ordinances It concerneth us much now at this day We are about enquiring the mind of God that wee may know it about matters concerning the Common-wealth but more especially about Religion I suppose there is none of us but will acknowledge that way that God hath appointed for the revealing of his will in the Scripture that we must look into the Scripture and seek to know Gods minde there that is good but let us not joyne Teraphim with it then do we joyne Teraphim when we rest not upon Scripture alone but search after rules of mans devising and what will stand with our own carnal ends The Lord may justly meet with us in wrath if we presume to joyne our Teraphim with his Ephod Pray that at this day where there is so much searching after Gods mind that those who are employed in it may keepe themselves to the Ephod to the Scriptures to that which is Gods Ordinance for the revealing his minde that they may not joyne the Teraphim their own fancies and inventions of men with the Scriptures so long as we keepe to that rule we may hope to do well enough but if the Teraphim be joyned with the Ephod if any thing be joyned with the Scriptures though it may seeme to be never so rationall we have cause to feare God will leave us We finde this word Teraphim used sometime in Scripture for the image of any man as 1 Sam. 19. 13. when Michael took an image and laid it in the bed instead of David the word in the Hebrew is Teraphim so when Rachel stole away her fathers images the word is she stole away her fathers Teraphim and some thinke they were her fathers Divining Images that she did rather steale those then any others because she would not have her father Divine which way they were gone Zachar. 10. 2. it is said the Idols have spoken vanity the word is the Teraphim By which we may see they were wont to aske of their Idols about their successes And sometime wee find in Scripture that Idolatry is called by this name as 1. Sam. 15. 23. stubbornnesse is as Idolatry the word is is as Teraphim But here comes in the question God threatneth to take away the Sacrifice and the Ephod that plainly is a threatning but how is this a part of the threatning to take away the Image
frame it is laborious and industrious to know the mind of God Whereas the heart of a sinner heretofore lay dead dull never stirred after God now it is in a stirting in an inquiring in a seeking way this is a signe of much good though thou hast not what thou seekest for yet be comforted in this that thou art in a seeking way Their hearts shal reâ—oyce that seeke the Lord. If thou beest seeking God in his ways though thou complainest I have beene seeking a long time but I know not the minde of God I cannot apprehend the love of God the pardon of my sins yea but the hearts of those shall rejoyce that seek the Lord if thou beest in a seeking way thou art in a saving way there is cause thou shouldst rejoyce in this that God hath brought thee into such a way They shall seeke the Lord and that not saintly but to purpose auxiously Jer. 50. 4. 5. They the children of Israel and the children of Judah when they shall be both together shall goe weeping and seeke the Lord their God and they shall aske the way to Zion with their faces thitherward Many of you come to aske questions but your hearts are not right your faces the strength of your spirits are not set to yeeld to the will of God when it is revealed to you And mark how it appeares that their faces are thitherward Come say they let us joyne our selves to the Lord in a perpetual Covenant that shall not be forgotten This is to seeke God it is not meerly to goe to a Minister and aske him a question but it is to goe with our faces with the strength of our spirits set to know the minde of God above any thing in the world and so to resolve to obey what shall be revealed to be Gods mind as to be willing to enter into a perpetual Covenant to binde our selves to yeeld to whatsoever God shal reveale When you come to a Sermon you must not come to get a little notional knowledge but come with your faces towards Christ and his truth before you come you should get alone if you be a true seeker and enter into Covenant with God that whatsoever God revealeth to be his minde you will yeeld to it obey it though you have heretofore gone against many truths revealed to be the minde of God but Lord no more now here I am ready and willing to enter into an everlasting covenant to be under the command of every truth Here is the right seeking of God They shall seeke the Lord their God their God this hath two references either to what is past or to what is to come To what is past their God that is the God who was once the God of the Jews the God of their forefathers the God of Abraham of Isaac and of Jacob. And secondly their God that is that God that is yet ready and willing to be reconciled to them not withstanding all their sinnes Thus they shal seek the Lord their God These two references afford two excellent Observations First This prevailes much with the heart of an Apostate when he can but think what God was once unto him before he did Apostatize and what he was unto his godly parents and predecessors There was a time that I enjoyed God sweetly when I went to prayer I had blessed communion with him it is otherwise with me now I have apostatized Let this consideration catch hâ—ld upon thy heart and turn it this day Oh turne turn thou apostate soul God who was once thy God in a gracious manner is that God that thou hast vilely forsaken yea thy fathers God also Thou hast a godly father a godly grand-father remember what a blessed God he was unto them and return Secondly Their God that God that yet they may have hope to enjoy notvvithstanding all their departings from him Hence the note is this The apprehension oâ— a possibilty to obtaine mercie from the Lord is a strong means to draw the heart to returne to him when they look upon God as a God in covenant with them yet and there is nothing to the contrary but he may be their God Let this be an argument to catch hold upon the spirits of all sinners who are departed from God thou hast departed from God in a soule and vile manner but Men and Angels know nothing to the contrary but that he may be thy God for all this Let me speake to the vilest sinner that is in this place before the Lord this day thou hast indeed most desperately and wickedly sinned against God the Jews have done so Hast thou crucified Christ they have done so hast thou denied the truth and followed false waies they have done so Notwithstanding all thy wicked and evil waies seeing thou art yet alive I doe this day yet once more pronounce thee in the name of the great God that there is nothing to the contrary that either Angels or Men can possibly know but that God may be thy God and that this day God may enter into covenant with thee thou with him this night he may come in and sup with thee and thou with him there may be a blessed reconciliation between God and thee return return thou sinful soul The Third Lecture HOSEA 3. 5. And David their King and shall feare the Lord and his goodnesse in the latter dayes THat the Jews shall returne and believe in Christ is most ordinary and famous both in the words and hearts of those that are faithfull saies Augustine In this their returne and seeking God they shall seek David their King For the opening this there are these five things to be inquired into 1. Who this David was 2. Why David is rather named then any other 3. Why he is mentioned in this place 4. Why joyned with seeking Jehovah 5. Why this Epithet is added to David here David their King For the first David clearly is meant JESUS CHRIST Nothing is more manifest then that Christ is meant by the name of David sayes Augustine The Scripture is cleare in this it is usuall in the Gospel to call Christ by the name of David Compare Esay 55. 3. with Acts 13. 34. Esay 55. I will give you the sure mercies of David what are those Act. 13. that place in Isaiah is quoted and there the word is Sancta Davidis the holy things of David the holy Ghost there going according to the Translation of the Septuagint as it is usuall in the New Testament And that Psalm 16. 9. 10. where David seemes to speake in his owne person Thou wilt not leave my soul in grave nor suffer thy holy One to see corruption this is interpreted of Christ Act. 13. 36. 37. Act. 15. 16. In the Assembly the Church of Jerusalem together with messengers of the Church of Antioch James makes a speech to the Assembly tels them of a prophesie that God would raise the
but now the holy Ghost is come in a full measure as hee then came upon the Disciples so he comes now in the time of the Gospel in a fuller way then formerly there is a continuall Pentecost But the works of God do not of themselves sanctifie any time except we take that note with us we may run into a thousand absurdities if we argue thus because the Iews had such a time vve may have such a time or because there vvere such blessings at that time therefore vve may sanctifie that day No the vvorks of God do not sanctifie any time of themselves it must be the Word some institution or other either the VVord vvritten or some immediate dictate of the Spirit that must sanctifie any day Certainly the vvork of our redemption it self is not enough to change the Sabbath if vve had not sâ— me footing for a nevv institution VVee usually give this ground for a change of the day because of the greatnesse of the worke but though the works of God be great though never so great it is not for us to sanctifie a day it must be an institution of God or else wee sinne in sanctifying any set and stated time for any such work for Christs resurrection or sending of the Spirit except there come an institution though the work be as great as any thing God ever did for the Iewes it will be but will-worship in us and God will not be put off with this What is not this as great a worke as that the Iewes had and may not we celebrate the memory of it as they did but God will say Who required these things at your hands Thus far you may do that is blesse God for those works all the dayes of your lives but to sanctifie any particular day for them certainly that cannot be done without sin we have our warrant for the Lords day as well as the greatnesse of the work because of the practise of the Apostles who were inspired by the holy Ghost The next is the feast of Trumpets onely one particular about it at this time because providence makes it so seasonable In the seventh moneth which was the first moneth of their Annus Civilis there were three feasts Festum Tubarum Expiationis Tabernaculorum The first was the feast of Trumpets now there was a three-fold use of Trumpets among the Iewes 1. For the calling of the congregation together as we use to doe with bells 2. The calling of them to warre 3. For the solemnizing of their feasts This feast of trumpets you have Numb 17. There are four ends given by Divines of the feast of Trumpets some I confesse are very improbable but there are two very probable The one is this feast was to celebrate the New-yeer with them as upon every new moneth that was called the feast of the new Moon to celebrate the beginning of the moneth so in the beginning of the yeare they had a feast to celebrate the beginning of the year that was this feast for it was on the first day of their civill yeare so that it is very probable that feast was appointed to blesse God for the new yeere as well as they had one to celebrate the new moneth It was Gods instiâ—ution for that time to have the New-year consecrated by that feast yet this can be no ground for us now to consecrate the beginning of every new yeer unto God that was Iewish and it is ceast if we will have any consecration of a new yeer it must be by vertue of some institution or other let who can shew the institution we must not thinke because it hath a shew of wisdome and it seemes to bee reasonable to us therefore it may be this is not enough in matter of worship you must strictly tye your selves to an institution in matters of worship in consecrating of times As it is Iewish so it is Heathenish the Heathens consecrated their new yeer to the honour of their god Ianus and we read in Concilium Antisiodorense in France in the yeer 614. it was the judgement of that Councell that it is not lawfull to observe the festivities of the Gentiles to keep their worship and observation of their Calends that is the beginning of their months to adorn houses with lawrel bayes for all these practises saith the Councell savour of paganisme And likewise an ancient writer saith that the Kalends of Ianuary are rather to be taken heed of then to be accounted Kalends and so to be sanctified And further hee saith the Church hath appointed a solemn feast to be upon that very day because oâ— the notorious abuses there were wont to be upon that day And Polydore Virgil saith that these solemnities of Lawrell and Bayes and masques and mummings and such vanities they all come from the Heathens Bachanalia and Saturnalia that were wont to be at that time of the year However therefore we put them upon Christ and think we honour him and call it the Circumcision day of Christ yet by those customes we dishonour him for they are rather Heathenish then Christian To doe it I say because we think to consecrate â—ine though there may be some naturall reason of rejoycing yet no ground for consecration Let no man object and say these solemnities have beene a long time in the Church It is true these are ancient but from whence comes the antiquity It comes from hence because Christians being newly converted out of Paganisme they would keepe as much as possibly they might of the Pagan customes only they would give them a turn turn them to Christian solemnities but the rise was from their Pagan customes therefore all the argument of antiquity either for these or Ceremonies or Prelaticall government it comes from this ground because their pagan customes were so and they lived among pagans and having been lately pagans they savored and smelt of Heathenisme still So now many plead that such things were in the first Reformation no marvail they retained them for they were but newly come out of popery and they savoured and smelt of popery Indeed to plead the antiquity of these things which men must shew when they are put to it is one of the greatest arguments against them Thus was they Feast of All-Saints turned from the Feast Pantheon and so the Feast of the Virgin Mary which they call Candlemas the Heathens had the festivity of their goddesse Febru who was the Mother of Mars upon that day from whence the name of our moneth February cometh they did then celebrate that time with Candles and such things as papists doe now This antiquity have you for celebrating of Candlemas The like may be said for the argument of antiquity for the Prelates O say some such a kind of government hath been ever since Christian Religion hath been in England Grant that there hath been some kind of Bishops ever since but from whence came they We find in Histories that when