came in by nature in singulos but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Christi comes not but by speciall grace But now in respect of the number redeemed the benefit of Christ is lesse and so the gift is not so large as Adams fall for then all should be vessels of mercy which is most false Against which if that in Rom. 5. 18. be obiected As the offence of one came vpon all to condemnation so the benefit abounded to all to the iustification of life The answere is easie for the Apostle in the very next verse shewes who hee meanes by all namely many So by the obedience of one shall many be made righteous 2. That word all is not absolutely to be taken neither is by the Apostle but with reference vnto the limitation of the 17. verse immediately going before namely to all them which receiue the abundance of grace and the gift of righteousnes which words are an elegant Periphrasis of beleeuers who alone raigne in life through One who is Iesus Christ. 3. Whereas all is opposed to all as by the first all is meant all Adams seede by nature so by the second all must be meant all Christs seede by grace that is onely the Elect and thus the opposition is truely and aptly reconciled And thus farre haue I waded for your sakes in this deepe and graue question whom as in all other truths I wish firmely stablished against the foolish whisperings of vaine conceited and vnsettled persons who when they haue run thorow all their schismaticall Lutherane and Libertine opinions shall goe neere with many of their Leaders to end in plaine Atheisme To these I onely wish at this time humilitie and conscience The former would not permit them then onely to thinke themselues somewhat when they can cut out to their Teachers their taske as their worke to their Apprentises and define to them what doctrines are fit for them to teach and which because themselues cannot taste them are vnfit for them to meddle in The latter would fashion them to the practice of pietie according to wholsome doctrine and not suffer them to lose themselues in fond conceits farre aboue their owne apprehensions As for you who haue giuen your selues to God and vs your Ministers bee encouraged in your godly course as such who haue your hopes in your eye feare not the reproch of men or rather of Christ himselfe but stand fast and vnmoueable in the worke of the Lord as knowing your labour shall not be in vaine Walke wisely redeeming the time you haue many eyes watching for your falls especially the eye of God and your owne conscience obseruing you Account it your true honour to honour God and your honourable Profession by keeping the Doctrine receiued euen the Truth of Christ as it is in Christ and shewing your selues copies and patternes yea the very models of it by your good conuersation in Christ. Practise that great and new Commaundement the badge of Disciples by louing one another retaining those strong synewes of Christian societie Meekenesse and Mercy Consider the confusion comming vpon an house diuided against it selfe and how strong the consent of brethren is in things both of God and of men Be much and often in thankfulnesse to God for the libertie and peace of the Gospell and that you liue in the daies of such meanes and protection of them Reiect not wheat for some tares Pray to God which is all you haue to doe in things which might be better and praise him that they bee no worse Thinke the Churches peace next precious to the peace of your owne consciences And onely magnifie Truth aboue Peace because God hath magnified it aboue all things Frequent the Ministerie as Gods arme stretched out for your saluation Affect the Word not for persons but for truth not for knowledge but for conscience not for speech but for practice so as your holy obedience comming abroad you may set a Crowne vpon the heads of your Teachers who watch ouer you as they that must giue account Beware of this euill world let the holy couetousnesse after the best things eate out the hungry desires of it Account godlinesse the onely gaine the best wealth to be rich in God and the best reuenue to be abundant in good works As for the euils of the times O complaine of them to God as yee be sure the world be not the worse for you but the better as they that are going to a better world In which journey I wish you all good speed cheerefulnesse and constancie and in the end of it the hoped and happy rest of Gods people purchased by the bloud of the Lambe in whom I euer rest Yours in all Christian bands T. T. The method of the 32. Psalme followed in this Commentarie The parts of the Psalme are two 1. A generall doctrine 1. Propounded in vers 1. 2. 1. The matter of it Blessednesse 1. Cause 1. Whose wickednesse is forgiuen 2. Whose sinne is couered 3. Whose sinne the Lord imputeth not 2. Effect or fruit And in whose spirit is no guile 2. The man to whom it belongs described by the 2. Proued by the Prophets experience of two things 1. Of Gods wrath for his sinne in it vers 3. 4. 1. The touch of his conscience for sinne described by the 1. Cause While I kept close my sinne 2. Grieuousnesse by 1. Effects 1. Change in his body 1. Bones consumed 2. Moysture turned into drought of Summer 2. Roring of his voice 2. Continuance All the day long 2. The reason For night and day was thy hand on me 2. Of Gods mercy in pardoning it vers 5. where 1. The meanes Confession in which 1. The time Then 2. The ground of it I said I will confesse acknowledge not hide 3. The matter My sinne my iniquitie my wickednesse 4. The manner in respect of 1. God To thee 2. Himselfe Against my selfe 2. The end Remission And thou forgauest the iniquitie of my sinne 2. The generall vse fourefold concerning 1. Prayer in it 1. The practice where the 1. Inference Therefore by my example 2. Person praying Euery godly man shall make his prayer 3. Person to whom To thee 4. Time when In a time when thou mayest be found 2. The promise Surely in the flouds of great waters they shall not come neere him 2. Affiance in God 1. For the present Thou art my secret place 2. For time to come 1. Thou wilt preserue me in trouble 2. Thou wilt compasse me with songs of deliuerance 3. Obedience to God where three 1. A Preface to the instruction In it the 1. Person teaching I Dauid 2. Person instructed Thee euery Christian. 3. Matter in three particulars 1. I will instruct thee that is by precept 2. Teach thee the way to goe in namely by my example 3. I will guide thee with mine eye that is keepe thee in that way 2. A dehortation 1. From brutishnesse Be not like the Horse or Mule 2. Wherein 1. Vnteachablenesse Which
are very large And now hauing spoken of the person whose sinne is thus freely remitted wee come to speake of the blessednesse promised vnto him Blessed NOw we are to enquire First what is meant by the blessednesse pronounced on such a man as hath this ease couer and acquittance from his sinnes Secondly the instructions to be learned By blessednesse is meant an effect of iustification namely that happy state and condition of a man arising from all those heauenly blessings in Christ which are chained together Ro. 8. 29. 30. as from Gods prescience predestination vocation iustification sanctification and glorification This blessednesse of a man in Christ hath two degrees First in this life which may bee called a blessednesse of grace Secondly in the life to come which is a blessednesse of glorie The former is heere principally meant which may be reached in this life and necessarily draweth after it the other as he that draweth one linke of a chaine draweth the whole Pardon of sinne is such a gift as makes a man fully happy for the Text cleareth it thus First that which remoueth all miserie and burden maketh a man happy such as are the curse of God due to sinne in this life and the life to come the guiltinesse of conscience horrour of soule and expectation of vengeance which is hell before hell c. But this doth pardon of sinne it is the ease of our burden Secondly that which brings into fauour with GOD otherwise an enemie so as God and man can now walke together as friends God can looke with a cleare countenance on man and man looke vp with sweet comfort in his God This makes a man a happy man the light of Gods countenance is better then life But this doth pardon of sinne which couereth all our nakednesse and deformitie Thirdly that wherein we are iustified before God is our blessednesse but in not imputing of sinnes is our iustification as the Apostle from this place proueth Rom. 4. 6. 7. Hence is it that Zachary in his Song Luk. 1. 77. sayth that God by remission of sinne teacheth the knowledge of saluation Fourthly and lastly euen nature will draw this confession from the worst that the best to be happy need pardon that if God straitly mark what is done amisse none could abide and that euery man by the Law is accursed Secondly and much more doth the Scripture teach that before God haue begunne his grace with a man his whole life is hatefull his mind and conscience polluted yea and after euery thing is imperfect so as the best workes need pardon Thirdly and most of all the experience of the godly confirmeth this truth Neuer did any man feele the burden of sinne and Gods wrath in his soule for it but hee could say his happinesse was to be eased Neuer did any see the ougly face of his sinne and Gods angry face beholding it out of Heauen as a consuming fire but hee would proclaime him happy whose sinne is couered Neuer did any feele Gods Tribunall set vp in his conscience and God and his conscience casting him for his insufficiencie but he did place his peace and happinesse in Gods not imputing his sinne vnto him If blessednesse stand in the pardon of sinne and imputation of righteousnesse then not in merits and satisfactions This vse the Apostle draweth out of this place Rom. 4. If righteousnesse stand in the hiding of sin then not in meriting it Besides there are but two wayes of discharging debts eyther forgiuenesse or payment If I pay it is not forgiuen Popish doctrine standeth here against the light of the Scripture in the Campes of naturall reason which suggesteth that something must bee done by a man to his owne iustification as the young man What good thing shall I doe to be saued And the Papists neuer asking God what they should doe set themselues on workes satisfactorie which hee neuer enioyned as Donations to Churches Pilgrimages Fastings Pater-nosters Aueës Creeds Inuocations Visitations Oblations to Saints keeping and kissing yea praying to Reliques Merits of Saints Workes supererogatory Purgatory Vowes Vigils Masse-chantings Iubileës martes of pardon and a thousand such Symoniacall trickes to make a sale of remission of sinnes all which wage battell and warre to this learning of Dauid Of all these in generall will one day bee said Who required these things at your hands these things so derogatorie to the bloud of Iesus Christ which cleanseth vs from all sinne Secondly to the nature of iustification which is the full absolution of a sinner before God by reason of Christ who is made our righteousnesse by imputation Thirdly so derogatory to the truth of the doctrine concerning good Workes which are farre from iustifying or meriting I speake of good Workes euen of grace which first are imperfect in number secondly in degree not being done with all due intents nor the whole heart and strength neither can be because the heart is partly spirituall partly fleshly the best workes therefore haue flesh and corruption in them and whatsoeuer is defiled performeth not the Law needeth a couer and cannot in it selfe be accepted Thirdly they are imperfect in the person No good worke can proceede from any but a good worker and a iustified person first make the tree good and then the fruit will be good also therefore they cannot iustifie seeing the person is already iustified And the iustified person when he doth the best is vnprofitable he cannot answere one of a thousand and if the Lord should marke what is done amisse who could stand The best worke hath matter of humiliation which may exclude all our reioycing Paul knew nothing by himselfe but had practised workes of grace many yet saith he was not thereby iustified But they say God hath promised a reward of life eternall to good workes Let them shew a place where it is promised to the worke but to the worker being a beleeuer to whom Christs righteousnesse is imputed in which regards all such rewards are meere mercy But Christ hath merited that our good works should merit That is false for then Christ merited that our good workes should fulfill the iustice of the Law which they cannot being stayned with sinne and that they are dyed in the bloud of Christ maketh them not meritorious of eternall life but that they bring not eternall death Dauid prayeth Psal. 7. 3. to bee iudged according to his righteousnesse Righteousnesse is either of the cause or of the person Dauid here speaketh of the former for hee had a good cause and conscience though Saul pursued him to the death but he speaketh not of the righteousnesse of his person before God of which Iob speaketh when hee saith that if hee should iustifie himselfe namely before God his owne clothes would defile him The last iudgement is by workes and therefore iustification These are diuers workes of God in the first
namely in the iustification of a sinner he doth accept and make a sinner iust and this is onely by Christs righteousnesse in the latter hee declares him iust and this may bee by workes so Saint Iames Let me see thy faith by thy workes thus they iustifie before men not before God A man is condemned for euill workes and therefore saued for good workes If a good worke were as perfectly good as an euill is perfectly euill he should but not being so we are saued by Christs good workes which were perfect Let vs detest therefore that doctrine that misleadeth vs out of the plaine path to saluation and cast downe our selues at Gods feet confesse our sinne pray for pardon and plead not merit but mercy Let vs flie forth of our selues to Christ our head life and saluation hee is the carcasse whereunto we must resort let vs with Paul account our best workes but dung and much more all Popish deuices He hath nothing in Christ who hath any thing in himselfe and he that will not rest in that righteousnesse restored by Christ hath no part of blessednesse Secondly if it be a blessed estate to haue sinnes forgiuen then must a man certainely beleeue the pardon of his sinnes for this blessednesse is to bee enioyed in this life as we noted and no man can hold and enioy that he hath not The Church of Rome teacheth that to doubt is a vertue and so with-holdeth a man from the sense of this happinesse Their reasons are these We must worke out our saluation with feare and trembling This feare is not in regard of Gods mercy and our saluation but feare of sinne and his displeasure and this is not contrary but stands with assurance of forgiuenesse of sinnes Psal. 130. Mercy is with thee that thou mayest be feared It is presumption to beleeue so It is obedience to Gods Commandement 1. Ioh. 3. 23. This is his commandement that we beleeue in the name of his Sonne now to beleeue in his name is more then that he dyed for sinners else doe the Deuills beleeue as much as we but they cannot beleeue that Christ dyed for themselues None knowes Gods minde concerning him and so can haue no assurance but may only hope well No man knowes the secret will of God but his reuealed will he may know namely that whosoeuer beleeueth shall be saued the application of which draweth necessarily this conclusion Therefore I shall bee saued being a beleeuer which is infallible Experience sheweth that the most faithfull and best are full of doubtings therefore there is no certayne beliefe Doubting and Faith may stand and will dwell together else would not Christ haue said O thou of little faith why doubtedst thou euery Christian consists of Flesh and Spirit therefore Faith will bee assayled with doubtings and yet in the end triumph Hence we see as vve are to labour for pardon of sinne so also for assurance of pardon else can wee haue little peace in our selues and a comfortlesse happinesse Am I the richer because I know many other be or fuller because many eate I must take comfort in my own wealth strength by my owne foode and ioy in my owne pardon Thirdly vvee must euery one herein place our happinesse euen in Gods mercy pardoning sinne and accordingly set our hearts and affections vpon it longing after this assurance aboue all things in the world If a malefactor were condemned and at the place of execution what is it that would make him happy What wisheth hee aboue the vvorld onely a pardon from his Prince gold and siluer lands and honors can doe him no good only a pardon is the most welcome thing in the World This is euery mans case we are Traytors and Rebells to God our sins haue proclaymed vs Rebells through heauen and earth the Law hath condemned vs we are going on to execution and euery day neerer then other wherein then ought wee to place our happinesse if wee well weighed our estate but in a gracious and free pardon We would striue for pardon as for life and death Miserable men they be that place their felicitie in any thing else For consider that notwithstanding first the greatest part of men place their happinesse in wealth pleasure honor and these carry all their hearts yet this is an earthly and sensuall and farre from Christian happinesse which cannot leaue a man vnhappy in the end as all these doe Secondly the most wicked ones that the world hath had haue enioyed the greatest outward prosperitie Thirdly the most deare seruants of God haue beene strangers in the world and met with the strangest entertaynement Fourthly those whose portion hath beene outwardly most prosperous yet neuer thought themselues happy out of Gods mercy pardoning sinne an example in Dauid he had riches honor pleasu re a crowne kingdome subiects treasures but did he place his fclicitie in these things No but in the forgiuenesse and couering of sinnes in whose steps wee must tread Fifthly he that would build a firme house must lay a sure foundation and wilt thou lay the foundation of thy happinesse in the dust Lay it in wealth they haue wings and when they fly away so doth thy happinesse why doest thou trust a fugitiue seruant Lay it in pleasures it will end in sorrow and the Apostle saith It makes a man as a corps liuing dead while he liueth Lay it in honor what a vanishing thing is that like the footsteps of a ship in the Sea carried with a strong gale Yea lay it any where but in God and his assured mercies it will proue a tottering happinesse and the fall of such an happy man shall be great Secondly others thinke themselues most happy in the committing of sinne and practice of their iniquity and these are most miserable captiues to the Deuill so farre from thinking their happinesse to stand in the pardon of sinne as that they place it in the practice of it Hence is it that Monsters of men Deuills incarnate professe to sweare quarrell drinke riot whore and take them the greatest enemies to their happinesse that would helpe to pull them out of the snares of the Deuill I would know what other happinesse the Deuill hath then incessantly to sinne against God and draw so many as he can into his owne damnation which expresse image hee hath stamped on numbers marked to destruction Fourthly let vs checke our hearts that can find so much ioy in these earthly things and so little in these heauenly gifts of Gods loue such as are election vocation iustification adoption sanctification which are called the pleasures of Gods house and they blessed that enioy them and surely well may they suspect themselues to be as yet vnpurged that finde not a ioyfull sense of it Alas will the beleeuer say I finde little comfort of this doctrine I finde my heart much more affected to earthly things I finde
when hee lifted vp a loud voice and wept in the losse of the blessing but kept reuenge in his hart and could threaten his brothers death Hos. 7. 14. the Lord calles it the howling on their beds as Dogs and Wolues vse to doe in the sense of paine and threatens that when they call he will not heare as if he should say Let them semble neuer so much feruency it is but as the roaring of beasts out of the tumult of heart If this noise had a good rise or ground it were well the sorrow were deepe according to the greatnesse of the euill but it is onely the violence of affliction that mooues this vehemency of affections sense of paine not sense of sinne affecting of deliuerance not of repentance Now the reason why this sorrow is so helpelesse is because it stirres not the heart out to seeke for reconciliation with God in Christ and then the greatest pleasure must be in withdrawing themselues so farre as they can from God as Adam after his fall could not endure the presence of God but hid himselfe among the trees of the Garden How can this sorrow end in ioy which driues from the fountaine of ioy and when as much comfort is taken in God as a guilty felon taketh in the sight of the Iudge who is to pronounce the sentence of death vpon him This is a heauie and comfortlesse sorrow and the beginning of sorrows euerlasting which yet many content themselues withall as godly sorrow but it brings repentance to bee repented of and is a sorrow to be still sorrowed for if there were no hell nor iudgement a wicked man would neuer sorrow his sinne hath no place in his sorrow nor God offended Thirdly is not the sorrow of godly men alwaies godly sorrow out of which they can reape ioy and comfort how then can men reape any ioy out of carnall and contrary meanes as many being troubled with these grudgings of conscience get them to worldly comforts to thrust away the sight and memory of sinne they get them into merry company and suppose that by drinking dancing banketing and gaming they shall forget their griefe but so doth he that for a dropsie drinkes a cup of cold water he hath brewed his griefe and drinketh his sorrow his paine returnes and he roares for it and is worse then euer he was And if euery sorrow for sinne ease not the sinner then much lesse can the delight in sinne doe it Fourthly if euery sorrow for sinne will not remedie the sinne which is of all other the most likely meanes then let any thing in the world bee applied to the griefe of conscience besides the right remedie which afterwards Dauid findeth out and it doth but inlarge the sorrow Dauid had worne out much time in hiding his sinne and had drawne all the couers hee could deuise ouer his conscience but all in vaine his sinne returnes againe and all his meanes are so farre from easing his griefe that they increase it and bring matter of roaring So then carry thy sinne in a cloud as long as thou canst thy conscience will find it out and tell tales then finde out as many pretexts and couers as thou canst to defend or diminish it they are but figge-leaues too short and thinne a couer Nay couer all with an externall shew of Religion and obseruance of outward worship as Dauid did yet the gash of thy sinne remaines as his did it will at length bring such paine into thy soule as will make thee roare as though thy bones were broken In one word sinne cannot be couered nor the conscience eased but only by Christs righteousnesse obtained and put on by faith and repentance euery thing else increaseth matter of biting and accusation So much of the effects of hiding sinne in changing the body and roaring of the voice Now of the continuance of the trouble VERS 4. For night and day was thy hand vpon me HEre is another amplification of the Prophets miserie and sorrow It was no light sorrow which pearsed to the marrow of his bones and made him expresse it not in ordinarie cries and voices but made him roare out more like a Lyon then a man But this makes it sad and heauie indeede that it was continuall and without release or intermission And the reason of all his sorrow was the heauinesse of Gods hand Hand The hand being a member of mans body and the instrument of manifold actions is referred to God and signifies sometime first his effectuall purpose and counsell concerning things to be done so Act. 4. 28. c. to do whatsoeuer thy hand and counsell determined Secondly his actuall power working all things according to that counsel of his will so Act. 4. 30. so that thou stretch forth thy hand And thus God hath a twofold hand First of blessing and protection with which he filleth euery liuing thing Psal. 104. 28. Thou openest thy hand and they are filled Secondly a smiting or heauie hand and this is twofold First a reuenging hand and so it is a fearefull thing to fall into the hand of the Lord. Secondly a correcting hand meant in this place whereby he scourgeth buffeteth his owne children Now the sense of Gods power punishing or correcting is called Gods hand as 1. Sam. 5. 11. The hand of the Lord was sore at Ekron because of the Arke And an heauie hand in resemblance because when men smite they lay their hand heauier then ordinarie Hence we may note three points of doctrine first that all afflictions are Gods hand Secondly that God laies his hand heauily often vpon his deare children Thirdly that God often continues his heauie hand night and day on them First All afflictions are Gods hand Amos 3. 6. Shall there be euill in the Citie and the Lord hath not done it Isa. 28. 21. The Lord shall stand as in mount Perazin and bee wroth as in the valley of Gibeon that he may doe his worke his strange worke and bring to passe his act his strange act that is execute his iustice which wee inforce him vnto whereas shewing of mercy is familiar to his nature more proper and familiar to him he is loth to reuenge as in mount Perazin Dauid did vpon the Philistims when he smote them and called the place the Mount of diuision 1. Chron. 14. 11. or as in Gibeon when he slew the Canaanites with hailestones and made the Sunne and Moone stand still till Ioshua had slaine them all Iosh. 10. 12 13. 1. Cor. 11. 32. When wee are iudged wee are chastened of the Lord. The reasons hereof are these First they are from Gods hand purposing and ordaining them Rom. 8. 29. Wee are predestinate to be like the image of Christ that is in suffering 1. Thes. 3. 3. No man should be mooued by these afflictions for your selues know that we are appointed thereunto Secondly they are from Gods hand executing them as Isaiab 45. 7. I make
and neuer open thy mouth any more because of thy shame when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done c. Secondly if thou settest thy selfe before God in confession it will breed anguish and sorrow of spirit for that sinne which is confessed as the conuerts Act. 2. 37. were pricked in their hearts in conscience of their sinnes there will be inward griefe for offending a good God and grieuing his good Spirit Thirdly it will bring in a purpose to leaue and forsake that sinne which is confessed and all other Can a man setting himselfe before God confesse that sinne which he purposeth to liue in and hold and not forsake this is but to aske leaue to sinne Nay the setting of a mans selfe before God wil bring in a resolution to renounce all sinne as Hos. 14. 9. Ephraim shall say What haue I more to doe with Idols Fourthly it will bring in a secret but most earnest desire of forgiuenesse for it cannot but consider in God First the Maiestie offended Secondly the danger of his wrath which is a consuming fire and an execution of all the plagues written in the booke of the Law and thirdly the riches of his mercie in prouiding so precious a meanes of redemption which neither man nor Angell could once thinke of 1. Pet. 1. 18. Fiftly it breeds a reforming of that which is amisse and an healing of the error as Zacheus did Luke 19. 8. Lord halfe my goods I giue to the poore according to the counsell of Samuel 1. 7. 3. If ye be come againe to the Lord with all your heart put away the strange gods frō among you Sixtly it breeds an holy feare for time to come because it beholds Gods eye vpon euery sinne his anger on euery one till by the bloud of Christ he be appeased his mercie in forgiuing that he may be feared and this feare abates the rage of sinne nay it will feare the occasion and hate the appearance of euill 1. Thes. 5. 22. and the garment spotted with the flesh Iude 23. Seuenthly there is a mourning and complaining vnder the burden and bondage of sinne Oh who shall deliuer me from the body of this death saith Paul and Isa. 63. 17. O Lord why hast thou made vs to erre from thy wayes and hardned our heart from thy feare Eighthly there is great desire 2. Cor. 7. 11. namely a longing to satisfie Paul and the rest of the members of the Church with desire to be restored to their fauours and fellowship Ninthly Confession to men For duties of Pietie and Charitie must goe together or else all is abominable as appeares Ier. 7. 9. 10. Will ye steale murder and commit adultery and sweare falsely and burne incense vnto Baal and walke after other gods whom ye know not and come and stand before me in this house which is called by my name and say We are deliuered though we haue done all these abominations So Isay 1. 11. What haue I to do with your sacrifices c. for your hands are full of blood verse 15. Against my selfe This is the second branch of the manner of Dauids confession hee will confesse against himselfe Hence note that He that will truely and soundly confesse his sinne must become his owne vtter enemie he must set himselfe against himselfe as much as possibly he can So did DAVID here hee shamed himselfe to all posteritie and spared not his owne name though a King so GOD might haue the praise of his mercie and the Church the benefit of his example Iob 42. 6. When Iob was reproued for his inconsiderate words he brake out at last into this speech I abhor my selfe and repent my selfe in dust and ashes He is a great enemie that hates man but farre greater that abhors him yet so was Iob to himselfe Daniel in his prayer saith I am confounded and ashamed to looke vp to heauen shame and confusion of face belongs vnto vs this day Dan. 9. 5. c. So close doth he follow the matter against himselfe 1. Tim. 6. 13 15. Saint Paul rippeth vp his owne grieuous sinnes in such sort as his greatest enemy could not haue spoken more against him then he spake against himselfe Hee was not contented to call himselfe a vile person but as though he had said too little he adds that he is the chiefest of all sinners Who could more accuse the poore Publican then he did himselfe Oh I am not worthy to lift vp mine eyes to heauen Luc. 18. 13. and the Prodigall Son I am not worthy to be called thy Son Luc. 15. 18 19. And good reason it should be so for First sound confession is called a iudging of our selues 1. Cor. 11. 31. Now in the course of iudgement there are foure things all against the partie to be iudged First arraignement and this in confession is when wee present and summon our selues before the barre of Gods iustice Secondly examination and this is when wee narrowly inquire of our selues what wee haue done wherein as the Kings Atturney sifteth out and exaggerateth euery circumstance of the crime against a Traytor to make it seeme as odious as may be so should we sift out euery circumstance of our sinne to make it as vile to our owne eyes as may be so as our hearts may be conuinced Thirdly conuiction or pleading guiltie and confession that is when with the penitent Thiefe our soules can say We are righteously here and iustly laid vnder Gods indignation worthy to be cast into Hell And neuer was he truely humbled that is more ashamed to confesse sinne then to commit it Fourthly there is an execution and holy reuenge 2. Cor. 7. 11. and this is when we beate downe our bodies and mortifie our members and vndertake good duties that the like occasions may be preuented for afterward These parts of an enemy doth euery humbled soule take vp against it selfe when it iudgeth it selfe before God and who can be a greater enemie to himselfe then he that doth so Secondly it is an essentiall difference betweene the sound confessions of the godly and the slubberd confessions of the wicked the godly renounce themselues and their sinnes but hypocrites doe not they neuer learned the first lesson of Christianitie which is selfe-denial their mindes are set vpon euill workes and therefore how can they be against them They repent not but with a repentance to be repented of Thirdly all the accusers and enemies that the child of God hath if they be put together cannot obiect halfe so much against him as hee can against himselfe men may speake much but not so much as himselfe And therefore if he deale truely betweene God and himselfe he will so shame himselfe as all his enemies cannot And for this end God hath seated the conscience in the middle of the soule as a Iudge of the actions and hath giuen it an eye to pry into the secrets of the heart and cleared