there is the preuenting an obiection which might thus be made by a Iew. Obiect Shall the Gentiles also become subiects of the kingdom of the Messias who were sometime execrable Sol. There is nothing impossible to God for seeing he is king and so ruleth among the heathen he is able to conuert the Gentiles also and of stones to raise vp children to Abraham This is the first distinction of the persons by their natiō The second distinction is that poore and rich also shall be thankefull and that is exprest v. 29. The rich who are called the fat men of the earth haue their actiō of thākfulnes assigned thē eating worshipping Poore or afflicted persons are of two sortes 1 Such as goe downe into the dust that is beggars and basse persons 2 Such as cannot quicken their owne soule that is persons condemned to die or persons sick of deadly diseases c. All these afflicted persons haue their thankfull actions assigned them which is that they shall bow before him signum pro signato Metonymia namely they shall worship him Thus the parentes which are the first sort of persons with their thankfull actions are propounded The children and posteritie also haue their thankful actiōs 〈◊〉 the reasō thereof assigned The thankfull actions of the posteritie are two 1 They shall serue the lord in the obedience of his lawe which is set out by the circūstance of time for euer they shall be reckened to him verse 30. 2 Action of thankfulnesse is that when they are come into the Church by effectuall vocation they shall declare his righteousnes The reason of these thankfull actions of the posteritie of the gentiles is for that God hath wrought righteousnes for a people to be borne that is either for their posteritie or some other straung people that as yet are vnborne by spirituall regeneration This thankfulnes is prophesied and so the whole psalme is resolued In the Complaint and the Supplication Christs priesthood is described both in his sacrifice and intercession In the promise of thankefulnesse Christs prophesie is comprised In the prophesie of thankfulnesse Christs kingdome is comprehended Finis ANNOTAtions and obseruations out of the 22. Psalme Of the Title of the Psalme A Psalme THis Psalme containeth a pittifull complaint a feruent praier a promise and prophesie of thankefulnesse and yet the Prophet penned it in the forme of a Psalme whence thus much may be noted that it is not vnlawefull to sing doctrine exhortation complaints supplication prophesies and such like matters as well as thankesgiuings briefly to sing any portion of holy Scripture so be that vnderstanding and edificatiō be not hindred and this collectiō ariseth out of this place by analogie The Prophet Dauid is here to be considered Of Dauid 1. in his owne person 2. sustaining the person of a godly man 3. as a type of Christ whose sufferings and glorie whose priesthood in his sacrifice and intercession with his propheticall office in teaching and kingdome in gathering and guiding his Church in all ages places and times are here not obscurely figured whēce we may note that kings and mightie men of the earth are not to scorne religious exercises as Dauid did not the whole booke of the Psalmes witnesseth but with the Prophet to acquaint themselues with holy meditatiōs of their owne estate howe the matter is betwixt God and their own soules of the condition of the Church which shall suffer with Christ before it be glorified with him and of the doctrine of the Gospell in the offices of Christ the summe of the Psalme to the cheif or master musition The Musitians Singers office principally consisted in setting singing the Psalmes of the Prophets for the instruction and edification of the church as also in keeping these holy writings safe for the vse of the Church in time to come in regard of which office the Church is called the pillar and ground of trueth wherefore when the Prophets had composed any Psalmes they sent them to the singers and musitians specially to the principal Musitian of any order who had the ouersight of the rest of his order that they might bring them in publike for the comfort and instruction of the whole church whence this collection might be made that if musicke were lawfull for the Iewes it is now for vs and if vocall musicke be lawefull by consent of all why not instrumentall also alwaies remembring that edification must not be hindered but furthered for musicke beeing one of the liberall arts why is there not vse of musicke in furthering vs in the worship of God as wel as of Grammar Rhetoricke or Logycke c and musicke is not a parcell of the ceremoniall lawe and the Lord commanded it in the Church and it was vsed by Christ and his Apostles Againe hence might be obserued that it is lawful to pray the prayers composed by other men which was customable to the Church of the Iewes who vsed to bring other mens psalmes which sometime were prayers into the publique assemblie as for example this psalme and if it be said that they were vsed only dogmatically the answer is that is not so for they praised God with the words of Dauid and Asaph and they bowed themselues and worshipped as it is euident 2. Chron. 29.30 where besides the meditation of the matter no doubt they had holy desire wishes sutable to the wordes of the prayers or thanksgiuings as the wordes of bowing and worshipping do plainly import in the place alleadged and therefore howsoeuer some think it seemeth to be very lawfull to pray accordingly to a set forme and so to say and pray the Lords prayer so be that we insinuate our vnderstanding affectiōs into the matter of that set prayer which we vse making it our owne when we pray it Concerning the morning starre To thinke these wordes aijeleth hasshachar to be the name of an instrument is neither warrantable nor reproueable but coniectural I know not what can be said for it or against it To think them the tune of a common song or the tune of some ciuill ballad seemeth to be to accuse the holy ghost for not keeping decorum which is when holy psalmes are song in the tunes of common and it may be prophane ballads also To translate with Tremellius and Iunius ad primordium aurorae is very good for the words may beare that reading and then they import the time of vsing the psalme the early morning the time of the morning sacrifice so that this psalme was an exposition and cōmentarie of the sacrifice the sacrifice was a type of Christ this Psalme teacheth the signification of the sacrifice so this Psalme annexed to the sacrifice did euery day traine vp the Church of the Iewes with a continuall meditation and expectation of the promised Messias whose sufferings and glorie are in psalme expressed Yet notwithstanding there is another exposition which may best befit the argument
must haue a sauiour if thou wilt haue a sauiour then saue me who am-appointed the Sauiour and so the sorites is concluded if thou wilt be praised saue me But thou wilt be praised c. ergo saue me Doctrine Gods gloly and praise is the ende of the worlde the Church and of Christ also For to this ende hath God created the world redeemed his Church and appointed Christ the Sauiour of the Church that he might be glorified as the wise man saith God made all things for his glorie Prou. 16.4 So saith the Apostle 1. Cor. 3.22.23 All things are yours you are Christs and Christ is Gods that is to say Christ hath redeemed all things for your vse that you may worship Christ and God through Christ may be glorified The vse of this doctrine is to teach vs to glorifie God which is attained by a godly life and two reasons may be alleadged for this purpose 1 Necessity for if we doe not glorifie God mercy by godlinesse and honestie in this life he will be glorified by vs in his iustice in our vtter destruction after this life for euery man shall be either an instrumēt of glorifying god in his mercy or seruing for matter of the glory of his iustice 2 Analogie and proportiō for we see all the creatures by naturall instinct without resistance and rebellion are caryed readily and speedily to there end there place and vse as the sunne c. Psal 19.4.5 and Psalme 104. toto so that if we degenerate from this end which God hath apointed vs we are the onely irregular persons of the world and indeed men and angels are so wherefore if gods loue Christs death euerlasting life will not yet lett feare shame mooue vs to obedience To conclud this verse seeing god sanctifieth his church and children and will surely sanctifie them that he may be praised by them hence doth arise matter of consolation thankfullnes 1 Of consolation thus if we be cast downe with the cōsideration of sinne committed and raigning in vs so as that though we pray and heare read and partake in the sacraments and discipline our own soules and watch our hart sences with all diligēce yet we cannot obtaine cōquest ouer our sins thē we may haue recourse vnto the Lord cōfort our selues with cōsideration of his holines that though we cannot ouermaster our own corruption yet the Lord can and will in due time for holines appertaineth to the Lord. 2 Of thankfulnes thus therefore doth the Lord deliuer vs from the bondage of our spirituall enemies therefore doth he redeeme purge and sanctifie his Church that he might be glorified by his Church so doth the prophet reason psal 103. v. 1.2.3.4 so doth Zachary Luk. 1.74 V. 4. Our father 's trusted in thee they called vpon thee and were deliuered and not confounded God is immutable and vnchangeable in his loue and he remaineth as firme in his faith to the Church as euer he was for he keepeth his fidelitie for euer and with him there is no variablenes nor shadowe of change and seeing therefore the fathers in the old testament were deliuered through the mercy and truth of God through the promised messias now also the posteritie namly Christ himselfe the promised seed must needs also be deliuered from perishing From this place then we learne diuers instructions First that Christ was the lāb slain frō the beginning of the world Apoc. 13.8 and he by his blood purged the sinnes of the former testament Heb 9.15 and therfore howsoeuer the Papists teach and deliuer that there was Limbus Patrum a certain skirt of hell where the fathers were reserued vntill Christ had ouercome death opened heauē yet we may confidently beleeue and constantly auouch by this consideration that there was no such thing for seeing the father 's trusted in God and called vpon him they were therefore deliuered and not confounded as the text saith but if they were in Limbo they were confounded and not deliuered for there as the Papists dreame is paena damni though not paena sensus it is a dungeon of darknes and a pit that wil hold no water as they will needs haue it V. 4. Our father 's trusted in thee and were deliuered Secondly that by analogie and proportion the efficacie of Christs death also must be stretcht to the worlds end as wel as to the world of beginning For as the Apostle saith Psal 110. out of the Prophet Christ is a priest for euer after the order of Melchizedech as well as he was a lamb slaine from the beginning of the world as his blood serued for the purgation of the sins of the former testamēt which liued before Christ was slain so also it serueth for the clensing of the Church which nowe standeth vp after his death for it is meere blasphemie to include the vertue of Christs sacrifice within the compasse of a fewe houres wherin he suffered his passiō whence another popish opiniō hath the neck brokē also which is that there needeth a daiely sacrificing of Christ in the masse after an vnbloodie manner which is as doltish a distinctiō as that other of a sacrifice applicatorie and not propitiatorie for so farre forth as the Eucharist applieth it is a Sacrament and not a sacrifice and so farre forth as the sacrifice is vnbloodie it is Eucharisticall and not propitiatory for without blood there is no propitiation Thirdly Faithfull praier is neuer disappointed but alwaies obtaineth V 5. They called vpon thee and were delivered as Christ saith Mat. 7.7 Aske and yee shall receiue but we must aske in faith for otherwise though we aske we shall not receiue because we aske amisse as Iames saith Therfore faith is the necessarie conditiō of obtaining and so of true praier but faith is grounded vpon Gods word which is his will and Gods word and will is that we aske nothing contrary to his glory the good of the church or our own soules health for when we aske any thing derogating from gods glorie our prayers are so many blasphemies and when we desire any thing hindring the saluation of our owne soules or the Churches good we curse our selues the church Wherefore we must alwaies remember to examine our petitions by gods word that finding them agreeable thereto we may be bold to present thē before God finding them otherwise we may learne to denie our selues our wits and wils and all we haue and so cast down our selues at Gods feete say as Christ said Thy will be done and not mine thus if we doe in praier we shall obtaine what we aske as Christ also did when he praied that praier Hebr. 5.7 Lastly V. 4. Our father c. it is profitable for vs to obserue the dealing of God with his children in time past and from thence to gather hope to our selues for seeing God is as able mercifull and true as euer he was
and in his graue and to doe this is al the difficultie And be satisfied Third property is ioy and peace and quietnes or conscience when a man is assured of the pardon of his sinnes through faith a man knoweth that God loueth him and doth accept of his person and watcheth ouer him to doe him good hee knoweth that he is freed from death and damnation through the redemption of Christ that life euerlasting appertaineth to him vnder hope whereof he reioyceth yea in the midst of affliction though somtime this peace bee disturbed thorough some sins wherin to the children of God fall through temptation this is termed here satisfying not for that a man that hath it neuer desireth grace more but because nothing in the world can satisfie him til he haue comfort in the assurāce of his sins pardoned when a man is once throughly humbled or because a man neuer is barren and drie and cleane void of grace and comfort after that once hath it Fourth propertie is desire of increase of grace Seeke after the Lord. which is obtained by seeking the Lord where and howe he is to be found that is in the word and the meanes of grace for he that wanteth grace can neuer desire it onely he that hath it and hath felt the sweetnes of it longeth for it still like vnto the man that finding the treasure hid in the field and the pearle neuer resteth till he get both by this also a man may knowe the trueth of grace in his soule for he that neuer regardeth the word neuer attēdeth vpon instruction nor watcheth to praier that man wanteth grace for the heauēly couetousnesse and dropsie of grace is insatiable and therefore the Church is sicke of loue vnto the Lord Iesus Christ in the Canticles A fifth propertie is the leading of a godly life according to gods commaundements Shall praise him with a constant profession confession of the trueth to the praise of God that others may see our good works and glorifie God also Also a thankefull heart whereby a man in himselfe blesseth God for all his goodnes saying with the Prophet All that is within me praise his holy name Euerlasting life is the last propertie Your 〈◊〉 shall liue for euer which is the reward of all the former and which is the complement of our happinesse and felicitie After the description of the subiects of Christs kingdome by their properties follow the seuerall sorts of them Gentiles as wel as Iews poore as well as rich malefactors condemned to die as well as guiltlesse persons the childrē as well as the parents Yea and the kingdome of Christ consisteth of all other sortes of persons that may be rehearsed as bond and free mā woman master and seruāt c. Generally hence may be noted two instructions First wherefore the church is called Catholike because it cōsisteth of al sorts of persons it is in al places it is at al times v. 27.29.30 31. V. 29. All that be fatt all that goe downe into the pitt Secondly that grace is vniuersall no sort or estate of men excluded form Christs kingdom ethe poore haue intrest to grace and Christ aswell as the rich the gentill aswell as the Iewe women aswell as men yet wee must knowe that the note of vniversality must not be stretcht to euery particular man but to euery estate and condition of man For it is more then grosse absurdity to say that all and euery particular rich mā and poore man shall bee a member of Christ shall eate and worship that is beleeue and serue God wherefore this doctrine serueth to admonish first the welthie and fatt men of the earth not to contemne and despise the poore and the leane needie soule and the poore not to enuie the rich and malice the wealthie but both to serue togither in their places and to preserue the communion of saints mutually remembering the Apostles rule Iam. 1.9.10 that the poore is exalted and the rich is made lowe in Iesus Christ that though the rich be the poore mans masters yet he is Christs seruant and though the poore man be the rich mans slaue yet he is the sonne of God and fellow heire with him and with Christ of the kingdome of grace and glory Besides these generall instructions certaine particular obseruations also are here to be noted which followe The Prophet saith Vers 27. The ends of the world The kindreds of the nations that the Gentiles shal become subiects to Christs kingdome which prophecie we see verified amongest vs at this day wherevpon we are to be stirred vp to glorifie the mercie truth of God who hath cast off his owne people and receiued vs that were wilde branches of the wilde oliue that were strangers and aliants from the common wealth of Israel without God in the world which must also teach vs not to be hie minded but to feare and looke to our selues that we stand fast Againe the conuersion of the Gentiles is here noted out vnto vs in the 3. parts thereof 1 They shall remember themselues Shall remember that is their sinfull and accursed estate they shall take notice of it by the powerfull preaching of the Gospell humiliation Turne to the Lord. 2 They shall turne to the lord forsaking their false way of Idolatry and other sinnes and turning their feet into the truth walking in obedience of Gods lawes obedience 3 They shall worship before God Worship before thee by partaking al the meanes of saluation as the word prayer sacraments c. publikely and priuately as good christians adoration Va◠Kingdome i◠the Lords Nowe because this may seeme a very staunge thing to the Iewes that the gentiles should be admitted into the fellowship of the Church the partition wall beeing broken downe one people beeing made of two the prophet rendreth a reason hereof designing out the principall worker of this conuersion of the gentiles and the meanes the workman is the Lord who is able to raise vp children vnto Abraham euen of the stones who is able to put life into the dead bones in the Church-yard and the meanes whereby God will effect and bring to passe this great worke is his rule and dominion which hee exerciseth among the nations He ruleth among the nation by his word and spirit which breatheth where it listeth whence that doctrine may be noted that was handled before v. 3. that conuersion is Gods worke Furthermore not only we that now liue Vers 10. Their seed shal serue him c. but euē our seed posterty that shal succeed vs in time to come shall serue the Lord for the Couenant of grace stretcheth not onely to vs but to our seede also euen to the thousand generation on of them that loue God doth the Lord promise mercie and the promise is made to vs and our children and to all that are afarre off euen to as many as