God discharged him saying How long wilt thou mourn for Saul So that notwithstanding God did afterwards prohibit Samuel to mourn for Saul yet wee may safely conclude that till then hee did well to mourn for him Therefore in my discourse I shall look upon Samuel as performing a duty in so doing and shall propound him as a pattern for us that wee may go and do likewise Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul 1 Let us consider the Agent Samuel And wee may consider him under these notions 1 Samuel an holy gracious man a man full of the Spirit of God mourned Some new lights men pretending to a great Gospel-Spirit preach nothing but priviledges practise nothing but joy and spiritual rejoycing saying It is for low spirits weak puny Christians to lye mourning and weeping and filling their souls with heaviness But holy Samuel here was either yet below their spirits which I cannot think he was or beside their mind And so indeed hee was for hee mourned for Saul Hee was beside their mind and I doubt they besides themselves For I am sure our Saviour pronounces a blessing upon Gospel-mourners Mat. 5. 4. And I also know that the most gracious spirits have been ever the most tender and sympathizing and most mournful over the sins and sufferings of others Moses the familiar friend of God who was faithful in all his house though of a great and gracious spirit mourned over the stiff-necked hard-hearted and rebellious Israelites Josiah was a man of singular piety and yet of singular tenderness Elijah was a man full of the Spirit of the Lord and yet full of complaints for the Idolatry and backslidings of the people 1 King 19. 10. David was a man after Gods own heart and yet much in tears Psal 119. 28. 136 c. Jeremiah was a man that found grace in the eyes of God a man much of Gods mind and hee was one of a mournful spirit Hee wrings his hands and fqueezes his eyes nay and drains his very soul too for tears all up and down his Prophecie especially chap. 4. 19. 9. 1 2. 13. 17. Nay hee mourns bitterly for the desolation of Moab a rebellious uncircumcised people Jer. 48. 31 32. Paul a man of a Gospel-spirit and otherwise of a great and undaunted spirit thinks that mourning for the sinful and impenitent was a duty suitable enough to his spirit 2 Cor. 12. ult Wee may learn from the example of holy Samuel mourning for Saul that mourning is not an exercise unbecoming the most gracious spirits 2 Samuel a man mighty in prayer mourned for Saul Hee was so mighty in prayer with God that when God would express a man prevalent in prayer hee uses Samuels name to signifie him by Jer. 15. 1. Though Moses and Samuel stood before mee yet could not my mind bee towards this people Yet Samuel did not improve his interest at the Throne of grace against Saul did not implore God for his ruine but betook himself to his tears Samuel mourned for Saul Note It is observable That the servants of God who have been most strong in prayer have rarely improv'd their interest at the Throne of grace against any no not their enemies Moses when hee was sleighted and set at nought by the people and threatned also yet did not pray for their ruine but for their relief rather Exod. 17. 4. Such a spirit was holy David of as you may see in his behaviour upon occasion of Shimei's cursing 2 Sam. 16. 10. This was the spirit of holy Stephen who was so full of the Holy Ghost Act. 7. 60. Instead of putting up imprecations of wrath against them hee deprecates the wrath that might justly have fallen upon them saying Lord lay not this sin to their charge This spirit was in our blessed Saviour Mat. 26. 53 54. Luk. 23. 34. and 9. 54 55. And this spirit hee commends to all his Mat. 5. 44. True indeed sometimes wee finde the servants of God ready to pray against their enemies in Scripture But then it was either out of weakness as the two Disciples Luk. 9. 54. or being acted by an extraordinary prophetical spirit as Elijah 2 King 1. and David oft-times in the Psalms or in passion as Jer. 20. 15 16. But you shall never hear any such thing from them unless they were besides themselves in passion and so they must not bee imitated or above themselves extraordinarily acted and so wee cannot imitate them But alas how few such spirits how little such moderation is to be found amongst us If many hot spirits had as much strength with God and interest in the Throne of grace as Samuel had wee should quickly have fire upon our heads whereas Samuel who was greater in power and might improved not his might against Saul but mourned for him Nay it is most sad of all to hear Gods people groaning in prayer one against another Insomuch that if the wise God were not merciful to them in denying their prayers sometimes they would set the world on fire whereas they ought rather to mourn for one another as Samuel here who was otherwise strong in prayer even to a Proverb 3 Samuel a man as much hating Saul's manners as any man yet mourned for his condition It is a hard thing to bee displeased at a mans manners and yet nor to hate his person nor to rejoyce in the evil that befalls him Commonly when wee are displeased with a mans actings wee are proportionably pleased with his sufferings To distinguish between a mans conditions and his condition so as to abbor the one and yet to commiserate the other is a great art and such a one as David may seem sometimes not to have very well learnt when hee rejoyced in the death of churlish Nabal 1 Sam. 25. 39. Unless wee chuse rather to say that David rejoyced not that Nabal was dead but that hee did not kill him which yet doth not seem to bee all However at any other time hee shews himself an artist in this art to the life as may appear to him that reads Psal 35. 11 12 13 14. Oh admirable soul oh wonderful self-denying frame of spirit ready to dye for thine enemy that is sick go in sack-cloth for the affliction of an unkinde adversary Oh blessed soul every one will admire thee but who can imitate thee oh labour wee all to bee ashamed of our selves that one and the same hatred is so apt to comprehend the man with the manners and for the future to imitate holy David who although hee was offended at a persecuting Saul yet lamented a dying Saul and good Samuel who although hee rejected 2 Sam. 1. 17. a sinning Saul vers 26. yet mourned for a rejected Saul vers 35. Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul So much for the Agent Samuel and what may be gathered from him 2 The Action Mourned Samuel mourned for Saul 1 Wee may observe that hee did not rejoyce in Sauls rejection much less in his sin
Samuel in Sackcloth OR A SERMON Assaying to restrain Our Bitter Animosities And commending a Spirit of MODERATION and a Right Constitution of SOVL and Behaviour towards Our BRETHREN Upon 1 SAMUEL 15. 35. By S. S. If yee will not hear my soul shall weep in secret places for your Pride Jeremiah 13. 17. Hearken unto mee you men of England that God may hearken unto you Judges 9. 7. LONDON Printed by R. I. for Henry Mortlock at the Phoenix in St. Pauls Church-yard near the Little North-door 1660. HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE TO THE WORSHIPFULL AND HIS Honoured Friend John Swynfen of Swynfen in the COUNTY of STAFFORD Esq The Author wisheth all Grace and Peace SIR WHen I had long seen and sighed for that bitter and violent spirit which hath acted the body of our Nation and the several Members thereof according as their interest was advanced it pleased God to direct mee to the sight of gracious Samuel whose holy and sober spirit acting upon the greatest disadvantages did much affect mee And I could not but expresse to my Congregation how much And when I saw the whole Nation as much need healing as my own poor flock I did command my more timorous disposition to adventure my conceptions to the view of all that shall have leisure to peruse them knowing that the healing of one Ulcer in the heart of any man would abundantly recompence the wounds that I may probably have procured to my own Name not caring my self to undergo any censure if I might possibly cure the distemper of censoriousnesse in any Standing upon this bold resolution to offer this unworthy mite to the world your undeserved love to and care of mee your known worth shining out to all in the rayes of piety prudence and learning and above all that singular sobriety moderation and good composednesse of soul which I have alwaies admired in you challenged the Patronage of it I professe without the least mixture of flattery or falshood that I know not any man whose name might more justly bee prefixed to a Sermon of this nature And as I pray you to accept of this poor oblation so I heartily pray God to give us more such spirits as yours who may bee able not to comprize men and manners persons and opinions in one and the same detestation Sir I humbly beg your pardon not daring further save to professe my self Your most affectionate and obliged Servant S. S. Jan. 9. 1659. TO THE Christian Reader Reader I Have oft and sadly observed the strange fires and extravagant heats which have raged in this our Nation to the mutual incensing I had almost said consuming of one another Men are become Men-eaters 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Gal. 5. 15. if I may bee allowed to speak after the Apostles rate Is there any man of so few eyes any eyes of so little sight that have not observed that our many strange changes have been attended with as strange behaviours Hee that is above thinking it the just prerogative of his place to trample upon him that is under and the other when hee gets up thinking it but a peece of justice to do the like by him For my own part I do not wonder that God keeps our affairs from settling long to the contentment of any one interest when a man nay any man much more then hee that sees much more than all men sees the barbarous insultings unbounded animosities and unchristian behaviours which those that lay as great claim to civility manners moderation sobriety as any have been found guilty of Even those that pretend highly to an healing spirit themselves appear to have much of distempered affections in them and instead of mollifying have inflamed the wounds of their brethren Those that preach and pray for moderation when their interest begins to smart will not stick to revile them that have lanc'd it and when it begins to bee their turn will not boggle to magnifie their mouths as wide as Edom Obad. v. 12. Now if the most upright be thus sharp thus censorious supercilious bitter immoderate insolent actum est de spiritu verè Evangelico where shall wee hope to finde Christian Moderation If these heats proceed from the green Trees what fires may wee expect from the dry Can God no sooner have set us on horse back but wee must ride over all that is in our way no sooner have raised us out of the dirt but wee must throw our brethren into it and make stepping-stones of our fellow-creatures O Barbarism which there is not in the nature of a Lion to parallel Is it enough to make a man Corpora magnanimo satis est prostrasse leoni guilty that nature hath stopt his mouth so that hee cannot prove the contrary Enough to prove a tenent erronious because hee that holds it hath lost his best Argument Is that come to pass which Bathsheba feared that not to bee great must bee interpreted to bee an Offender 1 King 1. 21. I know wee have almost undone our selves by mutual wars and that those wars have been fomented if not created by mutual heats and burnings And I fear wee shall never soder together kindly unless the conqueror and the conquered agree mutually the one to lay aside his pride and petulancy and the other his malice and malignity which I wish they may do before fire come out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and from the men of Shechem and devour Abimelech Whilst I meditated to my great grief of these extravagancies providence put into my hands the Chronicle I might say the Miracle of Samuels Moderation which finding it to contain an excellent president I preached to them amongst whom I earnestly desire to propagate such a spirit And being prest with the sense of the great want of it elsewhere every where I have emboldened my self to adventure what I preach'd to publick view assuring my self to meet with that censoriousness about it which in it I have laboured to meet with Whether it may please any that read it or bee put in practice by any that are pleased with it I know not The former I am not solicitous about not much caring though that do displease some which was not studied to please any and wherein I have not alluded to any one interest which I sought to humour above other The latter I humbly commit to God whose honour I humbly desire mainly to design praying him to work a spirit like unto that which was in Christ Jesus in thee and mee and to give us fewer Sauls that shall need to bee mourned for and more Samuels to mourn for those that wee have in this our Israel Jan. 9. 1659. Samuel in Sackcloth OR A Sermon assaying to restrain our bitter Animosities and commending a spirit of Moderation and a right constitution of soul and behaviour towards our Brethren 1 SAMUEL 15. 35. And Samuel came no more to see Saul till the day
of his death nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul and the Lord repented that he had made Saul King over Israel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul THis Chapter presents us with the lively draught of a good Subject and a faithful Minister appearing both with an excellent lustre in one Samuel concerning whom I cannot but note and commend one thing by the way And that is his remarkable and indeed admirable humility in letting go the Scepter out of his hands and standing still whilst God stript him of the Political Government and afterwards hee behaved himself with as much quietness and faithfulness as though hee had lost nothing or did not at all resent his loss It appears that hee sate not in the Throne of Israel to keep himself warm to please his own ambitious spirit but to do the work of God and serve the necessities of the people for when God had provided himself otherwaies he willingly resigned and became as though hee had never sitten there In the Chapter wee have this Samuel the Prophet and Servant of the Lord sending Saul his anointed King of an Errand 2 Saul going upon this Errand but failing in the execution of it in sparing what God had determined to the sword 3 Samuel reproving and threatning Saul for his disobedience 4 Saul repenting and worshipping God 5 Samuel executing what Saul had left undone 6 Samuel and Saul parting in the two last verses Then Samuel went to Ramah and Saul went up to his house to Gibeah of Saul And Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul And the Lord repented that hee had made Saul King over Israel Samuel went no more to visit Saul until the day of his death i. e. hee went no more on purpose to instruct him counsel him or advise him for hee afterwards saw him accidentally at Naioth in Ramah chap. 19. 24. whilst hee lived Until the day of his death i e. never the day of his death being reckoned into the number of his daies Note I might here observe by the way That Gods Ministers may prudentially absent themselves from the houses of wicked and disobedient persons discountenance them and shew strangeness towards them that they may bee ashamed of their evil waies and repent and return to God Thus the Apostle exhorts the godly Thessalenians to estrange themselves from the disobedient that they might bee ashamed 2 Thes 3. 14. And Samuel here would not be familiar with him from whom God had estranged himself hee refused to turn again with him to worship vers 26. he visited him no more vers ult Samuel came no more to see Saul until the day of his death Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul In which words observe 1 An Action Mourned 2 The Agent Samuel 3 The Object Saul 4 The Modification of the Action exprest in the word Nevertheless Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul Before I discourse particularly of the parts of the Text I must necessarily answer a Question upon the Answer to which the whole following discourse must depend viz. Quest Whether Samuel did well or ill in mourning for Saul Answ To which I answer Hee did well in it Argum. But then will some say Why did God forbid him to do it as wee finde hee did chap. 16. 1. And the Lord said to Samuel how long wilt thou mourn for Saul Will God forbid the doing of that which is well done Answ 1 It is unquestionably lawful to mourn for others Nay it is a duty so to do Rom. 12. 15. Weep with them that weep God would not have his people walk by the Rule of the Stoicks who condemned all kind of affection and sympathy Hee who is a God of bowels would not have his people to bee without all bowels of compassion Nay it is lawful to mourn over the wicked the enemies of God as appears in the example of holy David Psal 35. 13 14. As for mee when they were sick meaning the wicked as appears by the 11 and 12 verses My cloathing was sack-cloth I humbled my soul with fasting I bowed down heavily as one that mourneth for his Mother And the Learned Ravanellus in voce Luctus saying that wee ought to mourn for the miseries of others commends this of Samuel for an example who mourned for Saul as it is in my Text Nevertheless Samuel mourned for Saul Answ 2 God doth not absolutely forbid Samuel's mourning for Saul but his immoderation his excess Hee doth not say why dost thou mourn for Saul but how long wilt thou mourn for him It appears by this that God had long suffered Samuel to mourn but now hee thought hee had mourned enough therefore hee takes him off How long wilt thou mourn for Saul God would not indeed have us exceed in our mourning so as thereby to make our spirits unfit for the duties of our callings Especially Samuel must take heed of this excess who was the Priest and Prophet of the Lord and a publick person upon the right frame of whose spirit much did depend And therefore if wee observe it God seems to take him off from mourning that hee might be fit to go about his work chap. 16. 1. Fill thine horn with Oyl go I will send thee c. And happily this might be one reason why God forbade the Priests especially the High Priests to make any mourning for the dead as some Annotators do hint upon Levit. 21. 1 2 3. Samuel is not forbidden here to mourn but to mourn long Hee went to his house and mourned But hee must not make his house an house of mourning hee must not dwell in sorrow How long wilt thou mourn for Saul Answ 3 God doth in some particular cases forbid the doing of things that are otherwise lawful the performance of things that are in themselves duties Hee doth not only forbid many things which are in themselves indifferent as 1 King 13. 17. Act. 15. 29. But it is also his prerogative to dispence with his own commands and to forbid upon occasion the performance of Moral duties As for example prayer is a duty nay the Apostle exhorts that prayer and intercession bee made for all men 1 Tim. 2. 1. And yet in a particular case God forbids the Prophet to pray for the people Jer. 7. 16. 11. 14. 14. 11. The like prohibition hee gives Moses Exod. 32. 10. To repay what is borrowed is a moral duty Rom. 13. 8. Owe no man any thing c. And yet upon occasion God dispenses with this duty and commands the Israelites to borrow Jewels of the Egyptians and not to restore them Exod. 3. 22. Not that wee may dispense with our duties at our own pleasure but God hath the prerogative to give dispensations And therefore Jeremiah did pray for the people till God forbade him The Israelites durst not to have spoiled the Egyptians but that God bade them And Samuel here mourned for Saul till