were with a whisper and yet even those that are in the most distant places in the remotest corners of the earth shall obey the powerfull summons of his voice and presently come and make their appearances Here you have a description with no less elegancy of the most unsearchable ways and councils of the great God he made darkness his secret place his Pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the sky and the methods of his providence are very unaccountable and past our understanding his ways are extreamly private in the dark and in the deep waters and his footsteps are not known But because some have the most severe and rigid notions of God shall I give you a tast of the sweetness of his love and kindness Isai 49. 15. Can a woman says God forget her sucking child And the question is proposed to assure us 't is at least extreamly difficult though not impossible for a mother to break through the strongest ties and impressions of natural affection yet even then God himself assures us though a woman may be so very barbarous and so inhumane to the child of her womb yet that he himself had more Bowels more affection more tender compassions and could never be unmindfull of his children nay so great is his care his sollicitous concernment for them that in all their sufferings God cannot but have the same sence of Pain and misery and sympathize with them in all their afflictions says the Prophet He was afflicted Isai 47. 7. Nay to the very last degree of kindness and commiseration that no relation how near soever can have more for like as a father hath compassion on his children so the Lord hath pity on them that fear him And Psal 103. v. 13. if 't is yet possible to give a suller sense of his infinite love and affection to us he assures us that if his Church is under the least kind of suffering that he himself is extreamly sensible of it even as the most tender part resents the smallest injury They that touch you touch the apple of my eye Psalm 7. 11 12 13. God is there represented as a mighty man of war preparing to engage his enemy but yet he is so indulgent and merciful that he seems very unwilling to execute the fury of his wrath but is still in expectation of our conversion that we will at last sue for a peace and repent and obey him but if he will not turn says David He will whet his sword he hath bent his bow and made it ready he hath prepared for him the instruments of death And is there not a greatness of spirit and majesty in this short definition God gives of himself I am that I am hath sent me unto thee that is I am God unchangeable the same yesterday to day and for ever 't is I that send Moses And now perhaps these Texts of Scripture without any more are susficient to discover that the Scripture is not written in so very low and plain a strain as some ignorantly imagine and perhaps 't is not the least recommendation of the inspired Writings that no other book in all the world can furnish our minds with more distinct and clearer Revelations of his Being or his divine Attributes no other book can so excellently describe the power the majesty the infinte justice the mercy and goodness of Almighty God And now if you are desirous to take a view of his wonders in the deep how should man without an express revelation from heaven have been able in the least to discover the incomprehensible Mystery of the Trinity or how should he upon the fall of Adam have been ever capable to dive into the mysterious contrivance of our Redemption or acquaint himself with the reasons of Christ's Incarnation his Death and Passion Resurrection and Ascension And if you please to take into your serious consideration the Divinity of its Doctrines what a noble Scheme is the Christian Religion of all moral vertues such as a Seneca or a Plutarch never dreamt of and what are all their Systems of Morality in comparison of the Christian Institution what Charity what Forgiveness of Enemies what Provocations to mutual Love what tender Compassions to one another in distresses and miseries are we obliged to put in practice upon every occasion yea what Purity in all our thoughts what Innocence what Sincerity in all our Intentions these are all such mighty Perfections of moral Vertues as we can only learn from Scripture Perhaps others may recommend the practice of Vertue from common decency and convenience or from a temporal satisfaction attending the exercise of it but we derive our Obligations much higher for if we had only hopes of being happy in this life we were of all men the most miserable for how does the Christian Religion extend our Prospect beyond the grave and give us those comfortable hopes of a Resurrection and of eternal happiness hereafter which the heathens did but guess at But perhaps the spirit and the inimitable style of the Scripture may still more effectually recommend it to your perusal and has it not think you a mighty force power and efficacy when our Saviour began his Institution to the Christian Philosophy only with this very plain and naked Benediction Blessed are the poor in spirit and Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness sake Who can believe such kind of Blessings such Invitations to embrace the terms of the Gospel should be so very prevalent and bring in such a numerous company of Proselytes Jews and Gentiles Who can believe that Christianity should advance and make its way into the world against the opposition of so much wit and power from such sort of encouragements Thus the very difficulty of its moral Duties and the discouragement of the Proposals and the mighty plainness of its Principles are so far from being in the least disadvantageous to the Christian Religion that they are no small argument of its Divinity it being impossible it should ever make such a progress in the world unless it had been assisted by the power and the wisedom of God himself and thus the divine Authority of its Original commands our respect and reverence And after all the Simplicity of the Scriptural Style is not without Majesty How plain yet how magnificent is this expression I am that I am hath sent me Exod. 3. 14. And now as to the Translation of the Bible it self I will not deny but as very many places are not without a gracefull and elegant ornament of expression so there are some other parts less artificial neither is this so very strange since the original Languages sometimes carry in them a native Grace and Emphasis hardly expressible in a Translation at least with the very same beautify and significancy of speech And if our Translators here and there fall below the spirit and the dignity of the Original they are very excusable because they were
1 Cor. 4. 14. I write not these things to shame you but as my beloved sons I warn you And can there be any thing said more passionately What can be expressed with more kindness and more affection or more sensibly discover his infinite concernment for their Salvation See also 2 Cor. 2. 4. For out of much affection and anguish of heart I wrote unto you with many tears not that you should be grieved but that ye may know the love which I have more abundantly unto you This is a pastoral Care worthy our Apostle this ardency of love and affection is most incomparable how does St. Paul with an infinite tenderness insinuate to his dear Corinthians the reasons why he was so extreamly troubled for their sakes was not in the least to make them sorrowfull and to draw tears from their eyes but only to discover his most tender love and compassion for them not willing in the least that any should perish but that all should repent and be saved Prov. 31. 1. What my son and what the son of my womb and what O son of my desires Asif his mother Bathsheba was at a mighty loss what sort of instructions to give to her son Solomon or what precepts are most proper and convenient for him and the question implies the care the solicitousness and the fondness of a tender mother John 21. 15. Our blessed Saviour with a mighty passion seems to ask St. Peter no less than three times Simon Peter lovest thou me Insomuch that the Apostle himself was very much troubled that his Saviour should so very often question his affection to him and Peter was grieved because he said also the third time Lovest thou me Isai 49. 15. Can a woman forget her sucking child Yea they may forget yet will I not forget thee Thus God himself puts a question concerning the most unnatural thing for a mother to be unmindfull of the Child of her womb and yet tells us though this be extreamly difficult and the greatest violence to humane nature yet such inhumanity is possible yet nevertheless God assures his People that 't is not possible for himself to be so unkind or so unmindfull of them Something extreamly kind I feign would say But find my words can never force their way Jer. 31. 20. Is Ephraim my dear son is he a pleasant child for since I speake against him I do earnestly remember him still therefore my bowels are troubled for him And now can you persuade your self that such most tender thoughts as these can proceed from God if he was a cruel Being does such affectionate language declare that God takes any delight in the misery of his creatures or that he can in the least be accessary to their impenitency or to their eternal ruine and misery when he discovers himself so affectionately kind and tender that he languisheth when we are in the least unhappy or when any misfortune comes upon us If my Ephraim but complains I have sense of all his pains Rivers of water run down my eyes because men keep not thy Law This is an excessive passion of grief Can any sorrow be like to this kind of sorrow Can there be a greater demonstration of his love to God than to be so infinitely afflicted to see some so very disrespectfull so disobedient to God's Commands Greater love hath no man than this Let others then take delight to blaspheme his Name let others crucifie their Saviour again and once more put him to open shame while the godly Man is more happily employed and pours out his soul in weeping and lementations and with the Prophet crys out in the most passionate manner Oh that my head were waters and mine eyes a fountain of tears that I might weep day and night for the manifold sins and provocations of thy people Israel Jerem. 9. 1. Gal. 4. 19. My little children of whom Itravail in birth again until Christ be formed in you first he salutes them with the kindest and most affectionate Appellation My little children Then as if he suffered the greatest pains and anguish for them not unequal to those of a woman in labour Of whom I travail until the Image of Christ and his Righteousness be formed in your souls And the metaphor is very proper for the moral birth to be regenerate and to be born again is no less difficult no less painfull and laborious than the natural birth or our firâ—â— formation in the very womb FINIS
will your heart be also 2 Cor. 10. 18. St. Paul endeavouring to discourage the vanity of self-commendation leaves this sensible impression upon them as the best dissuasive from the practice of it for not he that commendeth himself is approved but whom the Lord commendeth Prov. 9. 17 18. Stolen waters are sweet and bread eaten in secret is pleasant This is the insinuation of the adulterous woman concerning the high relish of her unlawfull pleasures but then see the conclusion of such unhappy satisfactions but he knoweth not that the dead are there and that her guests are in the depths of hell Eccles 7. 31. Lo only this have I found that God hath made man upright but they have sought out many inventions The only thing I fully apprehend after all my enquiries is this That God at first endowed man with a principle of right reason for his certain guide and direction to happiness but he lost this noble talent through sin which is the cause of all his vain thoughts and imaginations When our Blessed Saviour had performed many wonderfull Cures how do the People with one voice conspire in this Acclamation He hath done all things well he maketh both the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak Mark 7. 37. EPANORTHOSIS Epanorthosis from a Greek word signifying to correct or amend When we are in a passion we are seldom satisfied with what we say or doe insomuch that we are apt to fansie our expressions are no ways equal to our thoughts and so we still add fresh and more words to correct as we think the insufficiency of the former Acts 26. 27. King Agrippa believest thou the Prophets I know that thou believest Does not our Apostle seem as it were to question the faith of King Agrippa as if he were not yet sufficiently convinced concerning the divine authority of the holy Scriptures but then St. Paul as if he was afraid of the incivility of the question does not scruple to say that there was the least reason to suspect the belief of King Agrippa and the insinuation of Saint Paul was very powerfull even almost to his very conversion Verse 28. then Agrippa said Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian And St. Paul said I would to God that not only thou but all that hear me this day were both almost and altogether such as I am except these bonds And what expression can be more Courtly more Genteel what more effectual to prevail upon their affections than thus to wish them in all respects like himself but not so miserable not so unhappy as to be under any confinement of Chains or imprisonment as he himself was at that time 1. Cor. 15. 10. I laboured more abundantly than they all yet not I but the grace of God which was with me Observe here with what care and caution St. Paul distrusts his own natural strength and abilities as very unsufficient to his conversion and so presently corrects himself and ascribes it more especially to the influence and the conduct of divine Grace As if he had said Though I was not wanting to the best of my power to become a true Disciple of Christ yet must I freely say that my conversion is principally to be ascribed to another Cause for the Incitations of the will and the power and the occasions and the means to make use of it is derived from the inspirations of the holy Spirit which animates and gives life and vigour to all our thoughts and so disposeth us to repentance and amendment of life See 2 Cor. 3. 5. and Phil. 2. 13. Mark 9. 24 Lord I believe help thou my unbelief How does he reprehend himself as if it was almost a presumption in him to speak with so much confidence of his strength of faith even to our Saviour himself and therefore as if he were now diffident again and that his belief was imperfect and had some degree of weakness and infirmity he at last humbly implores the divine assistance to encrease and fill up the measure of his faith Lord help thou my unbelief 1 Cor. 7. 10. And unto the married I command yet not I but the Lord. He presently recolleâ—ts himself and assures his Corinthians that he gave them not these directions as a mere man but as an Apostle and a person of divine Inspiration and so not I but the Lord commandeth and this he said to give the more force and efficacy to their obedience of the Precept Luke 11. 27 28. A certain woman said unto him Blessed is the womb that bare thee and the paps that gave thee suck But he said Yea rather blessed are all they that hear the word of God and keep it As if our Saviour was sensible some might through a mistaken principle ascribe too much honour and respect to the blessed Virgin being the mother of our dear Lord and Saviour and therefore how does Christ himself most industriously give the preference to those who live and obey the precepts of the Gospel Yea rather blessed are they so that the moral birth of Jesus Christ in the soul is a greater blessedness than the natural birth of him was to the Virgin Mary to believe and obey him than to be the natural Mother of our Saviour So that Christ himself lays no great matter of stress or privilege upon such a relation but assures them in another place to anticipate all mistake upon such an opinion That he that lives in obedience to his Commands is equally dear and related to him without any distinction the same is my sister and father and mother Matt. 12. 49 50. APOSIOPESIS Aposiopesis a Greek word and I have more manners than to pretend to give you the derivation of it This Figure through some violent passion either of sorrow fear shame or anger obligeth us to break off our discourse and though we seem to conceal some part of it yet through the excess of passion we do but the more sensibly discover our resentments 1 Kings 217. And Jezebel his wife said unto him Dost thou now govern the Kingdom of Israel The words are spoken with a mighty emphasis and signify much more than is there expressed dost thou or art thou worthy of the name of a King thou that art so mean spirited as to grieve thy self upon this refusal of Naboth's Vineyard and where is thy princely power and authority Dost thou now govern the Kingdom of Israel is this any mark of thy regal Office is this a sign of thy indispensible power thus tamely to sit down thus to submit to such a denial Dost thou now govern Gen. 3. 22. And now lest be put forth his hand and take also of the tree of life and eat and live for ever These words are spoken in a way of commination and punishment to Adam for his high disobedience to God's command and they imply thus much since thou hast been so rebellious against me I will now presently drive thee out of my