Prince to get nis House Establish'd is to take care of God's he is that good Master who provideth for those Servants of his who approve themselves to be Faithful in his Service But when they are more Solicitous for their own Concerns than for his he then leaves them to shift for themselves but former and later Experience shew how ill they speed that do so Now let us see what that King did which was Right in the Eyes of the Lord (a) v. 12. He took away the Sodomites out of the Land that abominable and unnatural Sin which God hath so highly declared against he punished but stopped not there he set himself against Idolatry too for (b) v. 13. He removed all the Idols that his Father had made and went farther for he spared not his Mother and also Maachah his Mother even her he Removed from being Queen because she had made an Idol in a Grove and Asa destroy'd her Idol and burnt it by the Brook Kidron No Relation nor Quality should be regarded when it causes the Dishonour of God through Idolatry Blasphemy or otherwise 'T is a great Brand put upon Rehoboam's Reign and a high aggravation to his other Sins (c) Chap. 14.24 There were also Sodomites in the Land which to his praise Asa his Grandson took away and removed the Monuments of Idolatry for (a) 2 Chro. 14.3 4 5. He took away the Altars of the strange Gods and the high Places and broke down the Images and cut down the Groves Yet he went farther for he commanded Judah to seek the Lord God of their Fathers and to do the Law and the Commandments Also he took away out of all the Cities of Judah the high Places and the Images All this is by the Spirit of God called (b) v. 2. that which was good and right in the Eyes of the Lord his God Pious Kings not only serve God themselves but also take care to see their Subjects do so And we find that when in Judah there was a good King the People was also good or at least restrain'd from doing evil so much were People influenced by Commands and Examples from the Throne Asa did not serve God in vain but found the fruits and effects of his Zeal for 't is added (c) v. 5. Therefore the Kingdom was quiet before him Whereby 't is declared that the Rest and Quietness of Kingdoms depends upon abolishing Idolatry setting up the true Worship of God and suppressing all that is contrary to Piety 't is further said of him (d) v. 6. He had no Wars in those Years because the Lord had given him hest And by the Prophet Agariah God told him and all fuâ—â—ah the cause of it (e) Chap. 15.2 The Lord is with you wouldst you be with him But if ye forsake him he will forsake you Thus the just and gracious God rewardeth those Princes who make use of the Authority he hath given them to promote his Honour and Glory This King went on further for after a great Victory (f) v. 9.10 c. He gathered all Judah and Benjamin and they entred into a Covenant to seek the Lord God of their Fathers with all their Heart and with all their Soul that whosoever would not seek the Lord God of Israel should be put to death whether small or great whether Man or Woman Whereupon they took an Oath for they sware unto the Lord c. and all Judah rejoyced at the Oath for they had Sworn withall their Hearts and sought him with their whole desire and he was found of them and the Lord gave them Rest round about after great disorders in matters of Religion what a happy Union of King and People towards a blessed Reformation O that we might Here see the like in Parliament where the King meets with his People in their Representatives Here among other great Sinners we have execrable Sodomites and Idolaters not only those who adore Riches Honours and Pleasures and in their hearts and practises make them their Gods but also Idolaters those who adore a piece of Bread as they do God and are not minded thô contrary to Divine Laws and to those of the Land Asa's Son Jehoshaphat continued the Reformation and carried it further on for (a) 1 Kin. 22.46 The Remnant of the Sodomites which remained in the days of his Father Asa he took out of the Land also (b) 2 Chr. 19.3.4 He took away the Groves out of the Land and prepared his Heart to seek God Also He went out again thorough the People from Beersheba to Mount Ephraim and brought them back unto the God of their Fathers He not only would serve God but also took great care that others should do so and 't is written of him (c) Chap. 17.7 8 9. He sent Men to teach in the Cities of Judah For he knew it to be in vain to profess Religion except such were appointed who would instruct the People in the same and had power to remove all that is contrary to Piety that is Men good in them-themselves and able to do others good I wish all Princes would by the Example of Jehoshaphat take notice how plentifully God rewardeth those who serve him in Truth and Sincerity Thus they might see how much it consists even with their worldly Interest to perform their Duty towards God this Character Scripture gives of him that (a) v. 4.5 He sought the Lord God of his Father and walked in his Commandments therefore the Lord Established the Kingdom in his hand and all Judah brought to Jehoshaphat Presents and he had Riches and Honour in abundance Furthermore (b) v. 10. the fear of the Lord fell upon all the Kingdoms of the Lands that were round about Judah so they made no War against Jehoshaphat The Reason is given and 't is this (c) v. 3. And the Lord was with Jehoshophat and why was God with him 't is in the same Verse because he walked in the First ways of his Father David So is any Prince desirous to be at Peace at home and abroad to have Riches and Honour in abundance Let him like Jehoshaphat walk in God's Commandments promote his Service and enlarge the Kingdom of Christ who is King of kings Lord of lords and by whom Kings Reign But as nothing is perfect in this World so those two Kings wanted not their flaws for not to speak fo their particular ones as that of Asa for relying on the King of Syria for which Hanani reproved and said to him (d) 2. Chr. 16.7 8 9. Herein thou hast done foolishly therefore from henceforth thou shalt have Wars as a Punishment and also because (e) v. 12. In his Disease he sought not to the Lord but to the Physicians That of Jehoshophat was for (f) Chap. 18.1 joyning Affinity with Ahab and for helping him which by a Prophet he was rebuked for who went to meet the King and
exercise loving-kindness judgment and righteousness in the Earth for in these things I delight saith the Lord and not in Sin which I abhor Once there were great outcry 's against the Sins of the late Reigns and there was cause for it as God's Judgments which are always just declared But are we now better in the least On the contrary we can observe those same Sins to increase and daily grow stronger and more frequent upon us Have any of the guilty and offenders against God and the Country been punished for their notorious Offences How can the Effect cease if we remove not the Cause and what signifies to find fault except we mend I look upon 't only as an aggravation We know yet act not according to knowledge neither do we improve the means and opportunities which God had put into our hands to assert his Honour and his Truth to reform Abuses redress Grievances promote the good of the Nation prevent Evil restrain Sin punish Sinners and with greparing our Hearts unto God to fit ourselves for further Mercies Rather with continuing as we do in our Sins and through our unthankfulness we provoke the Lord and are in a way to draw his vengeance upon us The most notorious Sins of the late Reigns were Whoredom and Adultery taking other Mens Wives and without Shame living with them in the sight of the Sun Also downright and open Idolatry yet such were Prayed for as our Religious Kings and Defenders of the Faith when they were about destroying it So was Hypocrisie in pretending to be Protestants tho' actually Papists yet 't was made Treason to say the King was a Papist or Popishly affected which I say to shew how any Society or Assembly of Men chiefly when guided by Interest and Passion is apt to Err and be mistaken and thereby Men were made guilty of Death for telling the Truth Well these Sins and many more in Church and State were under the late Reigns the cause of our Complaints and have been the grounds for our Deliverance But what are we the better for it Tho' God (a) Ezek. 16.50 hath taken away some of the Sinnners as he saw good if the same Sins in the same degree nay in a higher do still continue among us and are become our master Sins is not there Cause to put this Question after God hath so graciously and wonderfully wrought for us are these Distempers remedied and all the great Abuses we complained of Reform'd nay are we so much as in earnest about to do it Tho' we may say some few are in a small degree yet far from it as to others for specially those relating to God ' Honour and Service are increased and without restraint daily multiplied We have bad Examples whence we expected good ones How careful are Men to promote their worldly selfish Interest and how neglectful of God's as if it was not worth minding Hence it is that we see obscene blasphemous and impious Books publickly exposed to Sale in Shops Auctions c. without any Curb and when there hath been other Books in opposition to those how much unfaithfulness tricking and unfair dealings have been used to smother or mangle them about the time of the coming out nay after that for Love nor Money one could not get them put into the Gazzetts among the Advertisements tho' desir'd more than once So that Diana's Interest wants no Demetrius of several kinds among us Some think they may be of no Religion others of any and profess what they please some do vent and publish their Opinions whilst others cheat and revile their Neighbours and wrong them in their good Name Fortune Liberty and sometimes in their Life without little or no Curb at all which is a bringing in a-pace of Confusion and Anarchy and all this some would call the Liberty of the Subject which is with Impunity to abuse one another and to run into all manner of Licentiousness Some think themselves Priviledged to Defraud others of their own nay others go further to Strike those Persons whose Character ought to be Respected and that in such Places as require a special Punishment and upon such occasions as deserve Thanks and not Blows Thus in one kind or other (a) Judg. 17.6 Every one doth that which is Right in his own Eyes as we read it was when there was no King in Israel Thus God in his wise Providence suffereth Abuses to Creep in and sometimes to Prevail of which we may say what our Blessed Saviour speaks of Offences (a) Luke 17.4 It is impossible but that Offences will come but Wo unto him through whom they come by Right it should be so with those who commit Abuses but also he from time to time raiseth Instruments in his hand for his People's good and makes them as Paul would have us to be (b) Rom. 12.11 Acts 17.16 Fervent in Spirit Serving the Lord. As we read how his Spirit was stirred in him in Athens when he saw the City wholly given to Idolatry Not Lukewarm in his Service for such (c) Rev. 3.16 He speweth out of his Mouth Nor such as (d) Jer. 48.10 Do his Work deceitfully For such are Cursed But for his Honour and the benefit of his People he makes use of such as Love Fear and Serve him with their Heart such a one was Moses to deliver Israel out of Aegypt and Joshua to bring them into the promised Land After the Babylonian Captivity God chose Zerubbabel to carry them home Ezra to reform their Manners settle Religion and build the Temple then Nehemiah to build up the Walls of Jerusalem So he never wants Instruments to do his Work and if some Men ly as Blocks in his way he knows well how to Remove them Happy those whom he is pleased to make use of for so good a Work But as Rules back'd with Examples make a greater impression so I shall mention some whom Scripture hath proposed as Patterns in matters of Religion for after Ages to follow Asa I begin with for after the falling off of the Ten Tribes he was the first Reformer of the Kings of Judah To his commendation 't is Recorded of him that (e) 1 King 15.11.14 He did that which was Right in the Eyes of the Lord as did David his Father and that his Heart was perfect with the Lord all his days Whereof Instances are given to shew how he minded the true Worship of God and removed Abuses therein Committed 'T is with every collective Body whether Ecclesiastical Civil or Politick as with the Natural in this ill humours and destructive are sometimes Bred and Formed which 't is necessary to Purge away Thus often Corruptions which cause Distempers do creep into the sore-named Bodies which to preserve the whole ought to be taken away and Remedied This good King began his Reign with minding things of Religion 't is just that God should be served first The Right way for a
and quarrels selfish Men who would make God's Holy Name and Cause subservient to their own ends And if through their base way of Calumniating they gain their Point they are pleased with and applaud themselves in 't and as the Prophet saith they rejoice and are glad (d) Habak 1.15.16 therefore they Sacrifice unto their Net and burn Incense unto their Drag And like the Assyrian boast of the Mischief which through the Credulousness of others they have done and say by the strength of my hand I have done it and by my wisdom for I am prudent Therefore when you are about suppressing one evil have a great care not to make way for another Hot headed and fiery Men are not proper Instruments for the work of Reformation they are fitter to Destroy than to Build up and commonly they will use means not conducing to the true End But the manner of doing things is that which Men should be very Cautions in 't is not enough to do a good thing but it must be well done in a due manner the saying is true Prosunt verba parum prosunt adverbia multum Non bona tam pensat quam bene facta Deus Will you get rid of Slanderers then frown upon them for an angry Countenance driveth away a backbiting tongue or else who can be safe Si accusare sat est quis erit innocens A zeal for God's Glory is with some nothing but a pretence when it breaks the rules of Charity without which no true Piety 'T is highly Commendable when sincere and real but withal it must not be inconsiderate rather according to knowledge and managed with meekness and Christian prudence for (a) Prov. 25.23 the Servant of the Lord must be gentle to all Men. What such Men call Zeal is only an Effect of the violence and imperuosity of their Temper and not a real desire of God's Honour 't is more to please their passion than to serve God (c) 1 King 19.11.12 13. When God appeared to Elijah he was not in the (b) 2 Tim. 2.24 great and strong Wind nor in the Earthquake nor in the Fire but in the still small Voice God doth so when he comes in the way of Mercy if otherwise 't is in Judgment and as God is Merciful Just Men are commanded to be so one to another Peragit tranquilla potestas Quod violenta nequit Saith a Latin Poet which is true therefore gentle and fair means must be try'd before you come to hard and rough ones for they effectually work upon some Tempers when the contrary do not For this Reason I would have private Men that are willing to promote the work of Reformation the more to gain upon the Spirits of Men to make use only of perswasion and leave the way of compulsion for the Magistrates whose Office is to see the Laws executed against hardned and refractory Offenders but ever to avoid base and false ways But when all is said Reformation is properly God's work who turns the hearts disposes things and Persons and blesses means in order to 't But now to our Times for we are more nearly concerned The Nation is wholly overgrown with Sin in Soul and Body we are quite overspread with that Spiritual leprosie so that with the Leper we may well cry out (a) Levit. 13.45 unclean unclean And out of God's holy Word the experience of all Ages and of our own with a witness we may know the sad effects and consequences of Sin not only on the low Shrubs but also upon the talest Cedars I can remember so may many more how within this half Century God's Thunderbolt hath thô in some different degrees lighted upon the Heads of several Countrys I can name Six nay Seven whereof (a) Charles I. one lost his life and (b) James II. his Son his Kingdom (c) Frederic III. K. of Denmark another for a while lost his Kingdom and was a long time besieged in his Capital City (d) Christina Q. of Sweden died in Rome Two others left their Crowns and Country not so willingly as they would have had (e) John Casimir K. of Poland died Abbot of St. Germain in Paris seemed to be and went to Travel and died in Foreign parts (f) Alfonso K. of Portugal a Sixth one was Transported out of his Kingdom confin'd in a Prison and his Brother raised upon his Throne All these were Christians thô of different Perswasions the Seventh (g) Mahomet IV. the present Sultan's Father Emperor of the Turks Dethroned and his Brother made his Successor God forbid I should pretend to dive into God's Secrets and assign the particular Causes of these Judgments but I may boldly say Sin was the general One for except they had been Sinners they should have been no Sufferers but let this make us all adore and tremble at those Effects of God's wise and just Providence The great (a) Psal 76.12 God is terrible to the Kings of the Earth as well as to other Men When it seems good unto him he can drive (b) Dan. 4. Nebuchadnezzar from his Throne and make his dwelling among the Beasts of the Field till he had humbled himself before him for the most High Ruleth in the Kingdom of Men and giveth it to whomsoever he will herein the Psalmist concurs with the Prophet when he saith (c) Psal 75.7 God is the Judge he pulleth down one and setteth up another He hath Angels whereof (d) 2 King 19.35 one can in one Night destroy an Hundred fourscore and five thousand Men of Sennacharib's Army and send him home to be killed by his Sons The same God who then did doth now Govern the World and his Hand is not shortned but that he can still reach his Churches Enemies yea such ones as in Cruelty and Falsness have outdone all the Nebuchadnezzars and Sennacheribs in the World and some wait to see what in God's due time will be the end of such Pharaohs and Oppressors as now are alive When God chastiseth Men and his Arrows are fast in them they may and must own themselves to be the Cause of it and and with King David say (e) Psal 38.18 I will declare mine iniquity and will be sorry for my Sin It were well to say and do so before the Judgment hath overtaken us to prevent it therefore bring forth Fruits worthy of Repentance We know the Doom of the fig Tree that bare no fruit (f) Luke 13.7 cut it down why cumbreth it the Ground For Three years he had been looking for fruit but found none God hath been waiting for fruit from some of us not only Three but Thirty years and more yet we are barren still at the desire of the dresser of the Vineyard there is a reprieve granted for a year longer lord let it alone this year also till I shall dig about it and dung it and if it bear not fruit then after that