depth swallowing up the greatest evill of sin or affliction If you should poure a paile of water upon the planchers in your chamber it seems a great deale of water like a little sea but take a paile of water and poure it into the deep Ocean and it is there swallowed up and appears nothing Our afflictions that are upon us and our sinnes in themselves appear great but when they come to be swallowed up in these bowels in these depths of Gods mercies in which he betrotheth himself unto us they are as nothing in comparison Therefore the Scripture hath such strange expressions of the wonderfulness of Gods mercies to his people in Christ The Scripture hath three notable words to expresse the fulnesse of Gods mercies in Christ The first is Ephes 2. 7. the abundant riches of his grace the riches that are cast in over and above The second word is in Rom. 5. 20. The grace of God hath been more then exceeding there is a second 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And a third is 1 Tim. 1. 14. The grace of God was exceeding abundant it had a pleonasme asore yea but here is a super-pleonasme Here are three 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 put upon Gods mercy to note the riches of the glory and depth of the mercy of God in Christ Secondly consider these mercies in the effects They set on worke all that is in God for the good of his people If there be any thing that Gods wisedome or power that all that blessednesse that is in GOD can doe for the bowels of mercy yerne toward thee and they will set all on worke for thy good if thou beest in Christ Yea further know that it is such mercy as it is the great designe yea the greatest designe that ever God had from all eternity to honour this his mercy to set out the infinite glory and the riches of this his mercy in Christ Certainly God had great designs in doing such great things as he hath done but above all the designs that ever God had in all his works that is the chief to glorifie the riches of his mercy in Christ They are indeed bowels of mercy when they are such as in the glory of which God attaineth his great designe in making the world he would never have made the world had it not been for that Fourthly They are the heart-blood mercies of JESUS CHRIST they are such mercies as are worth all the blood of Christ and his blood was certainely most precious blood when Christ sees any converted and brought home to him to be made a subject of Gods mercy hee thinks his blood well bestowed The text saith he shall see his seed and his soule shall be satisfied I have enough for all the blood I shedde Indeed I came from my Father and was made a servant a curse I suffered the wrath of my Father my blood was shed but if this be the fruit of it that such and such a soule shall have this mercy I have enough for all my blood I am glad that ever I shed it Yea God the Father is well pleased with it he thinks the blood of Christ but a valuable price to purchase such mercies as these As for all the glory of the world God can give that unto men that he hates to reprobates as Luther saith of the whole Turkish Empire it is but a crum of bread that the Master of the house throws to his dogs but when it cometh to his mercies in Christ they are such as are worth the blood of his Sonne that must goe to be the price for the purchasing of them 6. They are such mercies as God bestows on purpose that hee may declare to all eternity before Angels and all his Saints what God is able to doe for a creature to what a height of excellency and glory these infinite mercies are able to raise a poor creature unto These must needs be great Yea they are such as must be the object for Angels and Saints to admire at adore and magnifie the name of God for everlastingly What shall I say more in naming any fruits of these mercies Such mercies as whereas before sin made thee to be the object of Gods hatred it makes thee now to be an object of his pity God takes the rise from thy sin to shew his mercy Take heed of abusing it it is childrens bread that which I now speak let us not sinne that grace may abound God sorbid seeing thy sin cannot overcome Gods goodnesse let Gods goodness overcome thy sin Only let us learn to admire at these riches of mercy in Christ and let us exercise much faith about them Certainely wee should thrive in godlinesse much more if we did exercise faith in the bowels of God in Christ Those kind of fruits as your Apricocks and your May-cherries that grow up by a wall in the open sun-shine and have the hot reflection of the sun come to be sooner ripe have more sweetness then those that grow in shady places your grasse you know that is shaded by the trees in Orchards is sowre So that fruit that Christians bring forth under discouragements and dispairing thoughts is very sowre some things they do conscience hales them to duties but alas it is sowre fruit though it be better to doe what conscience requires then not for we must not go against conscience but to doe it meerly because conscience hales to it it is but sowre grasse But when a Christian can by Faith set himselfe before the Sun-shine of these mercies of God in Christ and continually live in the midst of the lustre of the grace of God in Christ he groweth ripe sooner and his fruit is sweeter You may know whether it be the Sun of righteousnesse or no that you are set in Doth your fruit grow ripe and is it sweet fruit Those who talke of mercy and of Christ who have the name of Christ in their mouths but is their fruit sowr does nothing come from them but crabbed fruit these men are not in the Sun they are blinde they cannot see the Sun they are but in a light of their own fancy and in a heat of their own making Ephes 3. 18. 19. The Apostle prayes for the Ephesians that they may be able to comprehend what is the bredth and length and depth height of the riches of God in Christ Marke the Phylosophers tells us but of three demensions but here are foure but what is the fruit of this And that you may know the love of Christ that passeth knowledge that ye might be filled with all the fulnesse of God Here is the effect of it when we come to know the bredth and length and depth and height of Gods love and have that knowledge by the Spirit of God that passeth all naturall knowledg then we come to be filled with all the fulnesse of God Here now is a glorious Christian a Christian filled with all the fulnesse
your peace with God for them Though you were then young and did not fear the wrath of God to come upon you yet now you are old the wrath of God may come upon you for sinnes committed in your Apprentiship A sinner of a hundred years old shall be accursed Yet a little while In reference to the house of Israel Yet a little while and I will cease the Kingdome of the house of Israel This Nation had continued a pompous successfull Nation thoughidolatrous for about 260. years before the wrath of God came upon it that was here threatned God may come a long time after the flourishing of a Nation upon it in wayes of judgement Which may make us look back to the sins committed in Henry the 8 his time and in Queen Maries time Let us not plead for our fore-fathers for the maintenance of superstitious worship but let us look to the sins of our fore-fathers and bewaile them before the Lord for God may come upon a Nation for former sins after it hath flourished a long time But at length it will prove but a little while What was it but a little while from the beginning of this Prophesie till the ceasing of the Kingdome of the house of Israel Yes my brethren it was many yeares and it is very observable that from the beginning of this Prophesie which was in the end of the raign of Jeroboam to the rulfilling of what was here threatned to the ceasing of the Kingdome of the house of Israel it was 76. years For as I reckoned the last day to shew the time of Hoseas Prophesie from the end of Jeroboam here spoken of ver 1. unto the time of Hezekiah was 70. yeares and in the 6. yeare of Hezekiah Israel was destroyed by the King of Assyria and yet God saith here by Hosea which was in the time of Jeroboam for then was the beginning of Hoseas Prophesie as ver 1. Yet a little while Seventy six years is but a little while in Gods account Sinners thinke either in wayes of judgement or mercy a little while to be a great while If God do but defer mercy seven yeares it is a great while in our account We think our Parliament hath sate a long time How long almost two yeares A great while Wee think every day a great while for that wee would faint have but 76. years yea a hundred a thousand years are but as one day unto God So for judgement a sinner if hee hath committed a sinne seven years agoe he thinketh it is a great while and he hath not heard of it thereforre surely it is forgotten But what if it be seventy years agoe you that are sinners of seventy yeares old all is but a little while in regard of God Againe Yet a little while The apprehension of a judgement just at hand is that which will stir the heart and worke upon it most Yet a little while and God will cause the kingdome to cease therefore if ever you repent repent now for it is but a little while ere God will cause the kingdome to cease The apprehension of a sinner to be upon the brink of judgment when a poore soule shall see him selfe ready to lanch into the infinit ocean of eternall destruction to lie under the scalding drops of the wrath of the Almighty this works upon the heart indeed It is the way of the flesh and the divell to put far from us the evill day to make us believe the day of death is a great way off But it is the way of God to present things present and reall and in this consisteth the efficacy and power of faith to make things that are to come as if present Wee say in nature there must be a contiguity and neernesse between things that must work So wee must apprehend a neernesse between the evill that is to come upon us and our selves that so it may work upon our hearts An excellent place you have to this purpose in 1 King 14. 14. where the Lord threatneth to stir up a King over Israel who should cut off the house of Ieroboam that day but what saith he he presently calleth back his word even now you may think the day a great way off but it is even now and therefore now come in return and repent Oh sinners consider that your danger is now not only in that day of Christ but what even now it may be at hand Lastly Yet a little while Jeroboam had continued above forty yeeres in his sin but now Zachariah his son upon whom this threatning was fulfilled continued but six moneths perhaps he thought to escape as long as his father No God suffereth some sinners to continue long others he cutteth off presently though the father continue old in his sins if the son presume to follow his steps he may be cut off presently And I will cause to cease the Kingdome of Israel Kingdomes great Kingdomes and Monarchies are subject to change What is become of all the glorious Monarchies in the world how hath the Lord tossed them up and downe as a man would tosse a ball Idolatry is enough to destroy the greatest Monarchy the greatest Kingdome in the world But here is some instruction in the elegancy of the word It is in the Originall I will cause to cease It is a Metaphor according to some taken from instruments that a man makes use of for a while and when hee hath done with them either hangs them up against a wall and regards them no more or else bringeth them to the fire to be burned So saith God yet a little while and I will cause to cease c. As if he should say Indeed there was a time wherein I had some use of this way of the rent between Judah and Israel and of this Kingdome but I have done with that use there is an end of it now the use is over I intended now I will cause to cease the Kingdome I will take them away they shall be to mee as an instrument not to be used any more or for the Fire When the Lord hath any use of a people or of any particular men to do him service he will preserve them though they be wicked and when he hath done with them he either layes them aside or else brings them to the fire A Husband-man so long as he hath use of thornes to stop a gap with them he lets them alone but when there shall be no further use of them he then bring them to the fire so God here I will cause to cease the Kingdome of the house of Israel But how and where will God cause to cease the Kingdome of Israel Vers 5. I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel By breaking the bow is here meant the blasting and bringing to nothing all the strength of their warlike power all their Armes and Ammunition
soone gone Many of you when you have beene seeking God have had many manifestations of his love and God hath entred into Covenant with you for a while you have been comforted but you lose all your comfort againe within a short time Oh remember God is ever mindefull of his Covenant though made 20. 40. years agoe he remains the same still be you the same still be you ever mindful of your Covenants When men are brought into the bond of the Covenant their consciences are awed with it and they walke very strictly and they clare not in the least thing goe from the Covenant at first But after a few moneths or weekes are over their heads they forget their engagement their Covenant they made with God there is not such a strong bond upon their spirits as there was before Oh my brethren know that this is a great and sore evil in you God is ever mindfull of his Covenant so you should be And as of his Covenant so of his threats too by way of proportion God remembreth his threats that were made many years agoe we are affected with Gods threats for the present but within a while the impression is gone But let us know time altereth not God as it doth us But yet we must enquire a little further because it is often in Scripture that the children of Israel should be like the stars of the heaven and as the sand upon the Sea shore Why did God expresse this covenant to Abraham what was the matter Thus First Abraham hee left his fathers house and all his kindred at Gods command and upon that first God made this covenant wiâ—h him that he would make his seed as the stars of heaven and as the sand of the Sea As if God should have said to Abraham Abraham be willing to leave your fathers house I will make a great house of you a great family of yours Secondly you shall observe that afterwards God confirmed this covenant to Abraham and that with an oath It is very observable when he came first out of his countrey and left his fathers house God made this promise of the encreasing of his seed but not with an oath but afterwards in Gen. 22 16. God renews this promise of multiplying his seed and that by an Oath for saith he By my selfe have I sworne for because thou hast done this thing and hast not witheld thy sonne thine onely son that in blessing I will blesse thee and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heavens and as the sand which is upon the Sea shore Marke here It was upon Abrahams being willing to offer up his son Isaac his onely son Isaac Abraham was willing at Gods command to offer â— ship own son and upon that God promiseth to multiply his seed as the stats of heaven and as the sand of the sea Yea he comes in with an oath By my selfe I sweare saith the Lord that I will do it because thou hast done this We have two most excellent notes from hence First there is nothing lost in being willing to lose for God Abraham was willing to lose his fathers house the comfort of his family for God I will make thee a glorious family as the stars of heaven saith God Againe Abraham was willing to lose one son his onely son for God Art thou willing to lose one son for me thou shalt have ten thousand sons for this one thou losest yea though it be lost but in thy intention Thou shalt have thy own son and yet have ten thousand sons besides Oh let us not be afraid to part with any thing for God Gods people they know how to make up in God what ever they lose for God But God will not onely make it up in himselfe but will make it up even in the very thing it selfe the creature it selfe thou losest for God Art thou willing to lose a little of thy estate Thou mayst with comfort expect so far as if thou knewest all thou thy selfe wouldst desire to have it made up in abundance even in that very way You know the promise He that forsaketh father or mother or wife or children or lands or houses for my sake shal have an hundred fold in this world and in the world to come life everlasting How hath God fulfilled this this day in many of our eyes and too many of our experiences how many have you known who have beene willing to part with that they had and to put it out as it were to the wide world God hath made it up not onely in himselfe but in the very thing it selfe and thereby taught them and all the world to be willing to venture for God to part with any thing for him and his cause Secondly When we are willing to lose for God then is the time when God will renew and confirm his Covenant with us Then God confirmed his covenant with Abraham when he was willing to part with his sonne to be deprived of all his seed The way to be made sure of what we have is to be willing to part with it You all desire to be sure of your estates oh that we could in these times wherein we see nothing sure make our estates sure this is the desire of every one Would you make sure of your estates sure illing to imploy your estates for God for a good cause This is the way to have God to renew his covenant to you for an assurance of that way Here is the best assurance office in the world But how comes this in at this time to his people in Hosea his Prophesie Thus it comes in now because the Lord by the Prophet would answer an objection of the people They might have said thus What Hosea doe you thus threaten judgement the destruction of Israel why you promise mercy to Judah and Judah is but a handful to us we are the ten Tribes with us are the chiefe the greatest part almost all the seed of Abraham and yet you threaten our destruction it can never possibly be What will become of Gods promise then Did not God promise Abraham that his seed should be as the stars of heaven as the sand on the sea shore you seeme to goe crosse to God God saith that he would multiply that seed and you take a course to make men beleeve that the seed of Abraham should bee brought into a narrow compasse and be nothing Thus doubtless they were ready to pleade against the Prophet The Prophet answereth thus What doe you say what will become of Abrahams seed Know that God can tell how to provide for his Church and fulfill his promise made to Abraham whatsoever becomes of you for you are mistaken in thinking you alone are the seed of Abraham for you shall know that Abraham hath not onely a carnal but a spiritual seed all those that shal come to joyne in the faith of
be seene and another thing to do a thing that it may be seen And yet Gods people may do both not do good onely that may be seen but if they keepe still the glory of God above in their eye as the highest ayme they may desire and be willing too that it may be seene to the praise of God But this I confesse requireth some strength of grace to do it and yet to keep the heart upright The excellency of grace doth consist not in casting off the outward comforts of the world but to know how to enjoy them and to over-rule them unto God so the strength of grace doth consist not in forbearing of such actions as are taken notice of by men or not to dare to ayme at the publishing of those things that have excellency in them but the strength of grace consists in this in having the heart enabled to do this and yet to keepe it under too and to keep God above in his right place Thirdly It shall be said they are sonnes c. It is a great blessing unto Gods children that they shall be accounted so before others Not onely that they shall be so but that they shall be accounted so Blessed are the peace-makers for they shall be called the children of God This is a blessing not onely to be Gods children but to be called Gods children We must account it so and therefore we must walk so as may convince all with whom we do converse that we are the children of God and not thinke this sufficient well let me approve my heart to God and then what need I care what all the World thinks of me God doth promise it as a blessing to have his people called the children of God then this must not be slighted You shall find it often in the Gospel that Christ made a great businesse of this to make it manifest to the world that he was sent of God he would have them to know that his Father sent him and that hee came from him So the people of God should count it a blessing and walk so as they may obtaine such a blessing that the world may know that they are of God Further. In the place where it was said unto them Ye are not my people there it shall be said unto them Ye are the sonnes of the living God Marke It is not said thus that in the place where it was said they are not my people it shall be said to them they are my people No but further it shall be said they are sonnes and sonnes of the living God this goeth beyond being his people Hence then the observation is That The grace of God under the Gospell it is morefull and large and glorious then the grace of God under the Law For this is spoke of the estate of the Church under the Gospell They were Gods people indeed under the Law but the sonnes of the living God this is reserved for the times under the Gospel Sometime they under the Law are called by the name of sonnes but it appeareth by this Text that in comparison of that glorious son-ship that they shall have under the times of the Gospell that they in former times were rather servants then sonnes There is very little of our adoption in Christ revealed in the Old Testament No that was reserved for the Sonne of God to reveale for him that came out of the bosome of the Father and brought the treasures of his Fathers councel to the world the revelation of these things were reserved to the time of his comming both adoption and eternal life was very little made knowne in the time of the Law therefore Saint Paul saith that life and immortality were brought to light through the Gospel 2 Tim. 1. 10. 2. Sonnes Because in the time of the Gospell the spirits of the Saints are of son-like dispositions they are ingenuous not mercenarie In the time of the Law God carried on his people in offering rewards especially in outward things but in the time of the Gospell we have no such rewards in outwards but the Scripture speakes of afflictions most there is not spoken so much of afflictions in the time of the Law but much outward prosperity there was then but in the time of the Gospel more affliction because the dispositions of the hearts of people should not be so mercenary as they were before they should be an ingenuous a willing people in the day of Christs power 3. Sonnes Because of the son-like affection to be much for God their Father out of a naturall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that they should have more then in the times of the Law I suppose some of you have heard of the story of Craesus his sonne though he was dumb all his dayes when he perceived a souldier striking his father his affection brake the barres of his speech and he cryed out to the Souldier to spare his rather This is the affection of a sonne and these affections doth God looke for from his children especially in the time of the Gospel that they should heare no wrong done to him but though they could never speake in their own cause yet their should be sure to speake in their Fathers cause 4. Sonnes Because they have not such a spirit of servility upon them as they had in the time of the Law Christ is come to redeem us that we might serve the Lord in holinesse and righteousnesse before him without feare all the dayes of our life to take away the spirit of feare Hence the Apostle saith We have not received the spirit of feare but of love and of a sound minde And Heb. 2. 15. Christ is come to redeem those who through feare of death were all their life time subject to bondage The spirit of a sonne is not be spirit of feare We have not received the spirit of bondage to feare again but the spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father It is unbeseeming the children of God especially in the time of the Gospel to be of such servile spirits as to feare every little danger to be distracted with fear and presently to be amazed Hath not God revealed himselfe to us as a Father to his children that we must not feare He would not have us feare himselfe not with a servile sear as men do and therefore surely not to fear men be they what they will be We are sons Again Not only sons for so we might find in Scripture where the people of God under the Law perhaps are sometimes called so but elder sons sons come to yeares It is true they were before us and so in that respect we are not elder bnt sons that are come to our inheritance that is it I mean that we are such sons Not children under tutorage not under School-masters and governours as they were in the time under the Law You know what comparison the Scripture makes of the difference betweene
Zerubbabel cannot be meant Ezeck 34 and 37. you may reade the Chapters at your leasure In those Chapters wee have expressions such as plainly appeares they are but Comments to this Text of Hosea for Ezekiel prophesied after Hosea did and especially in the 37. Chap. we have a prophesie of the union of all the Tribes together Judah and Israel and ver 24. David my servant shall be King over them and ver 25. My servant David shall be their Prince for ever That one head that they shall have when they come together shall be David And so in Chap. 34. ver 23. I will set one shepheard over them and he shall feed them even my servant David and ver 24 I the Lord will be their God and my servant David not Zerubbabel Now by David we are to understand Christ cleerly for so in other palaces as Esay 55. 3. I will give unto you the sure mercies of David they can onely be meant of the sure mercies of Christ and so it is interpreted by S. Paul Acts 13. 34. Therefore then we conclude certainly this is meant of Christ and they shall appoint Christ to be their Head This is then the first great point that we have in this Text a head-point of Divinity indeed that JESUS CHRIST is the head of the Church And secondly he shall be so appointed We shall shew you what the meaning of that is when we come unto it JESUS CHRIST It is he that is the head for the Church and shal appear so hereafter further then now he doth The Church is not a headlesse multitude it is a community of Saints that hath a glorious Head That body cannot be contemptible that hath a Head so honourable It is he that is the brightnesse of the glory of his Father in whom all fulnesse dwelleth yea the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily It is he by whom all things consists that is the beginning of all things he that is the head of Angels themselves Col. 2. 10. You are compleat in him which is the head of all principality power The Head of Angels how First because the Angels are joyned together with the Church and are part of the Church triumphant and so Christ is their Head Secondly Yea the Angels have influence from him That Grace which they have from God which is beyond naturals it is from Christ for Christ is canalis gratiae the channel of grace from God Their establishment in their condition it is from Christ for it is not due to them in a natural way yea the glorâ— they 〈…〉 with the Church it is above that which is due to their naturals and 〈…〉 from Christ 2. Hâ—â— the head of all men 1 Cor. 11. 3. The head of every man is Christ The head of every man how What are all men in the world the body of Christ if he be the head then it seemes they are all the members No though Christ be the head of Angels yet Angels are not said to be members of him yea in the same place of the Corinths God is said to be the Head of Christ and yet Christ is not a member of God So that he may be the head of every man and yet every man not a member of Christ The head of every man in regard of that superiority that Christ hath over every man and some kinde of influence even from Christ commeth to every man he inlightneth every man that comes into the world Thirdly Yea hee that is the head of his people of his Church is the head of al things Ephe. 1. 22. God hath given him to be head of all things to the Church Mark it it is a most admirable place that Christ is the head of all things But how To the Church for the sake of the Church as ayming at the good of the Church especially Sure it is the honour of the Church to have such a head that is thus the brightenesse of his Fathers glory the head of Angels the head of every man the head of all things for the good of his Church And as their honour consisteth in it so secondly it is their strength Christ is the head of the Church in regard of the strength that the Church hath by him An oppressed multitude cannot help it selfe if they have no head but if God shall please to give them strength and a head and that in a legall way if they have hearts they may deliver themselves from oppression this God hath done for us if therefore God doth not vote us to misery and slavery if we be not a people given up of God to ruine we may have help The Church is a communion of Saints oppressed here in the world their strength is in heaven it is in their Head that hath received all power to exercise for them in him is their strength to him do they cleave for him they blesse God even the Father because he is their strength Thirdly He is their head because the Saints do hold all upon Christ all that they have they hold in Capite as the best tenure of all the Tenure upon which the Saints hold all their comfort all their good in this world it is in another way then other men hold it other men have what they have through the bounty and patience of God but the Saints hold all in Capite in their head in Christ in the right they have in him Fourthly Their head because their safety is in him though the Church all the members be under water yet all is safe when the head is above water our head is in Heaven It is a speech of Luthers He saith he was even as a Devil to them they did so accuse him but let Christ live and raign Christ is above the head is above water Fifthly Their head in regard of his compassion to his Church and people The meanest member here below if wronged Christ is sensible of it When but the toe is trodden upon the head cryes why doe you hurt me Christ the head cryes Saul Saul why persecutest thou me And observe the meaner and poorer the Members of Christ are here in the Church the more is Christ sensible of their sorrowes and afflictions and the more will he appeare for them when he shall appear a head yet more gloriously then ever he hath done For this that forenamed place Ezek. 34. from the 16. ver to the 26. is very notable You shall finde there Christ is said to be one shepheard to his people and a Prince to them but mark what is promised That he will binde up the broken and bring back again that which was driven away and strengthen that which was sick but as for the fat of the flock and the strong he well destroy them and feed them with judgement and he will judge between cattell and cattell between the rams and the hee-goats he will judge between the fat and the
Yea Thirdly Great shall be this day for it shall be as a day of resurrection from death to life so Dan. 12. 2. Many of them that sleepe in the dust shall awake c. It is not spoken of the great resurrection at the last day of judgement for First It is spoken but of some that shall arise Secondly The greatest glory that is here put upon the just is but to shine as the stars in the firmament but at the last day the Saints shall shine as the sunne in the firmament more and above the starres Yea Thirdly This that is here revealed to Daniel must be sealed up as a great secret till the appointed time come but for the Resurrection at the last day that is no great secret that they knew well enough it is not as a secret to be shut up and sealed from men till the time appointed come But this Resurrection here spoken of it is to be sealed up as a great secret that was not knowne in the world nor should be much knowne till the appointed time should come And then Lastly It was promised to Daniel in the 13. ver that he should stand up in his lot as a peculiar and speciall favour that God stould bestow upon him Now it is not such a peculiar and special favour for a Saint to stand up at the great day at the last day this was a favour to Daniel as an eminent Saint that he should stand up thus in his lot Therefore this Resurrection is the same with this great day of Jezreel wherein there shall be such a glorious work of God in calling Israel and Judah together the fulness of the Gentiles that it shall be as the Resurrection from death to life so the Apostle calls it likewise in that Rom. 11. 15. What shall the receiving of them be but life from the dead 4. Great shall be the day of Iezreel for this shall bring refreshing to all the Saints this is the time of the refreshing Act. 3. 19. There shall be such things then as will refresh and revive the spirits of all the Saints Yea 5. It shall be the day of restitution of all things Acts 3. 21. Vntill the times of rest it 〈◊〉 of all things come which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his Propâ—â— since the world began I know it is ordinary carryed by many another way concerning the last day but that it cannot be so it appears because that then there shall not be the restitution of all things but the annihilation of many things Further this speakes of a restitution of all things that was spoken of by the mouth of all the holy Prophets Now the holy Prophets spake but very little concerning the day of Judgment of another life to come we reade but little of it in the Prophets and therefore the Apostle in 2 Tim. 1. 10. saith that life and immortality was brought to light through the Gospel Not but that it was known somewhat before but it was very darkly known there was very little spoken of life and immortality in the Prophets But this speaks of a time that all the holy Prophets spake of as an argument that was the general theame of them all And indeed there is no argument whatsoever that is more general among the Prophets then this great argument of this great day of Jezreel Again 6. A great day for it shall be a new creation a new heaven and a new earth shall be made when this great day of Iezreel shall come Esay 66. 17. Behold I create new heavens and a new earth And in ver 18. if you observe it you shall see what this new heaven and this new earth is But be glad and rejoyce for ever in that which I create for behold I create Ierusalem are joycing and her people a joy Those are the new heavens the new earth that are to be created and this is meant of the Church plainly for the Text ver 21. speakes of building houses and inhabiting them and of planting vineyards and eating the fruit of them upon these new heavens this new earths creation And 2 Pet. 3. 13. Neverthelesse according to this promise we looke for new heavens and a new earth wherein dwelleth righteousnesse Now where is this promise This is usually taken for the Kingdom of heaven hereafter But where is this promise We do not finde it any where but in that place I named before Esay 65. Now it is apparent that promise doth speak of an estate of the Church here in this world and there is spoken of a new earth as well as of a new heaven if it were onely spoken of new heavens it had bin another matter but it speaks of a new earth likewise therefore meant of an estate in this world a new creation of a new heaven and earth that is there shall be such glorious things done by God as shall manifest a creating power as if God did now make new heavens and a new earth 7. Great shal be the day of Iezreel for it shall be as another world when this day cometh Heb. 2. 5. 6. 7. 8. Vnto the Angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come whereof we speak But one in a certain place testified this certain place is in Psa 104. saying What is man that thou art mindful of him or the son of man that thou visitest him Thou hast made him little lower then the Angels thou crownedst him with glory and honour and didst set him over the works of thy hands thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet This is clearly interpreted of Christ as vers 9. and so on that all things must be subjected to hiâ—â— man What is man that thou shouldst regard him That is that thou 〈◊〉 advance the nature of man so far as to unite it even to thy Son and piâ—â— things in subjection under his feet This the Apostle interpreteth of Christ But saith he wee see not yet all things put under him that time is yet to come for saith he We speak of things that concerne the world to come Therefore mark my brethren there must be such a time wherein all things all creatures must be put under subjection to Christ and this is in the world to come Not in that world to come where the Saints shall raign gloriously in heaven it cannot be meant of that for the heavens must depart as a scroll and many things shall then rather be annihilated and the Kingdome must then be given up by Christ to God the Father so the Apostle saith 1 Cor 15. that is when the Saints shall reigne gloriously with Christ in heaven But here this place speaks of a time when all creatures must come under subjection to Christ and it is called the world to come why because of the great change there shall be of things it shall be as it were a new world As we call this world from Noahs
will not see it they shall not see it because God intendeth to destroy them though judgments are out against them yet they will not repent You shall finde it divers times in the book of the Revelation that those that followed Antichrist though they were tormented all the judgments of God were against them yet they repented not This I say is the curse of God upon such God will not give them repentance unto life for they are the children of whoredoms whom God intendeth to have no mercy upon therefore the higher their rage riseth the higher your hearts should rise against them But we must go on to the 5. verse For their mother hath played the harlot Their mother that is the State and the Church for they were both involved in one hath played the harlot This For hath reference two ways either it may have reference to those words I will not have mercy upon them for not only they are but their mother is defiled with whoredomes she hath played the harlot or secondly it hath reference onely to the latter part they are the children of whoredomes for their mother hath played the harlot either it referreth to the reason why God will not have mercy upon them because their mother hath played the harlot or secondly to the reason why they are the children of whoredomes for their mother hath played the harlot And from both these references we have very usefull observations for us The first God cannot endure a succession in wickednesse I will not have mercy upon them their mother hath played the harlot they are children of whoredoms themselves and their mother hath plaid the harlot there is a succession of wickednesse among them and that I cannot beare The ground is because those that keep up a succession of wickednesse from the mother to the children and so goe on downeward they are guilty of all the wickednesses that went before them in that line Else how can that be understood where Christ saith he will require all the blood from Abel to Zacharias upon that generation but because they continuing in that way of sin kept up the succession of that sin and so that generation was guilty of all the sins of that kind that went before even unto Abel So the father is a whore-master and the child he proveth to be one too and so goeth on the child is not only guilty of that sinne of his owne but of his fathers and of his grandfathers and hee is guilty of all that kind of sinne that is gone before even up to the beginning of the world why because hee keepeth up the succession of that sinne in the world This is a most terrible thing to consider of enough to wound the strongest heart in the world especially of those that know they have had wicked Parents Again For their mother hath plaid the harlot consider this word For as having reference to the reason why they are children of whoredomes for their mother hath plaid the harlot The observation is Children usually goe according to their parents which way their parents goe commonly the children goe It is a usuall thing where there are prophane parents to have prophane children if the parents sweare to have swearing children if the parents be superstitious to have superstitious children if parents be scorners of Religion to have children scorners too we find it true in experience in that new nick-name that is brought up on the godly in roome of the former it is as frequent in the mouths of children as in others because children go according to what their fathers formerly did I will give you one notable Text of Scripture for this it is 2 King 2. 23. When Elisha the Prophet was going up to Bethel there came forth little children out of the City and said unto him Goe up thou bald-head goe up thou bald-head The thing that I note it for is this that not only the children did it and so were destroyed for two she-beares came out of the wildernesse and tare 42. of them but what children were they that did this If you observe the Text you shall finde that they were the children of Bethel and what place was that That was one of the places where the calves were set up and it was a place of much superstition and the children were as superstitious as their parents A place that had the name the house of God but a place exceedingly abused and no place did more degenerate from the name then it it was a Bethaven a house of vanity and wickednesse It was the place that was most superstitious and those were the children that scorned at the Prophet But we need no other proof but only experience yet there is one notable Scripture further for it Jer. 7. 18. The children saith the Text gather wood their fathers kindle the fire and their mothers kneaded the dough the children joyned you see Pelagius thought that there was no sinne came into the world but only by imitation children imitating their parents Certainly imitation is of great power and force to prevaile with the hearts of children You that are wicked parents had need to looke to it what you doe before your children He that sinneth before a child specially a parent sinneth doubly for a child will be ready to imitate it What will you not only sin against God and be enemies unto him but will you leave a succession that when you are dead and gone some must out of your loynes and from your bowels blaspheme God after you are rotten in your graves Suppose you that are parents had a plague sore upon you would you goe among your children and breath upon them this cruelty is much worse will you goe into your families and breath infection into your children and so make them like you and guilty of your sins and of the plagues of God together with you oh cruell parents On the otherside as therefore children of whoredomes because their mother hath plaid the harlot why then should not children be gracious and godly who have gracious and godly parents Why should it not be said This childe is a godly childe for his mother was a gracious woman and his father a godly man You that have godly parents let this be your Encomium You are godly and gracious children and you had godly and gracious parents this will be your honour before the Saints But how vile is it when it may be said Here is a wicked wretch yet he had a godly father and a godly mother here is an uncleane and filthy liver yet hee had gracious parents It is no wonder to say thus This man is filthy for his father was filthy and his mother was a harlot but to look upon one and say Here is a whoremaster yet his father was a godly gracious man Here is a harlot yet her mother was a holy woman O how vile is that I remember a speech of that reverend Master
have had already even of free-cost as much mercy as these troubles come to Sixtly these troubles that we are in are making way for glorious mercies to come though there be some pangs yet they are not the pangs of death they are but the pangs of a travelling woman that is bringing forth a man-child And certainly any Prince would think that though his Queen should be put to some paine in travaile yet her condition is better then when shee had nopaine and was barren or then that she should lye upon her sick bed and her senses benummed and she ready to dye The pains of a travelling woman are better then a sensless dying And yet further if you thinke that you had better times heretofore then now what times will you refer your selves unto in making the comparison I suppose you will instance in the time of the first Reformation then things were in a good way when those worthy Lights of the Church and blessed Martyrs had such a hand in the Reformation Many there are that do magnifie the â—â—nes of the beginning of Reformation for their owne ends that they may thereby hinder Reformation now This you know is the great argument that prevaileth with most What were not those Prayers composed by learned godly men as Cranmer Latimer Ridley and others and can we be wiser then they did not they seale their profession with their blood My brethren we need goe no further to shew the weaknesse of this argument but only to shew how it was in the Church in those times and you wilâ— find that you have cause to blesse God that it is not so with you now as it was then and if that will appeare then the argument you will see can no further prevail with rationall men Certainly those first Reformers were worthy Lights and blessed instruments for God I would not darken their excellency but weaken the argument that is abusively raised from their worth It is reported of Mr. Greneham that famous practicall Divine who refusing subscription in a Letter of his to the Bishop of Ely gives his reasons and answers that Prelates objection against him namely that Luther thought such Ceremonies might be retained in the Church his Answer is this I reverence more the revealed wisdome of God in teaching Mr. Luther so many necessary things to salvation then I search his seeret judgements in keeping back from his knowledg other things of lesse importance The same do I say of those worthy instruments of Gods glory in the first Reformation that it may be cleare to you that God kept back his mind from them in some things Consider whether you would be willing that should be done now that was then As in the administration of baptisme we find that in the book of Lyturgy in King Edwards time which was composed by those worthy men first the child was to be croft in the fore-head and then on the breast after a prayer used then the Priest was to say over the child at the Font I command thee thou unclean spirit in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy Ghost that thou comest out of this infant thou cursed spirit remember thy sentence remember thy judgment remember the day is at hand wherein thou shalt bee burnt with everlasting fire prepared for thee and thy Angels presume not hereafter to exercise any tyranny over this infant whom Christ hath bought with his precious blood Then they dipped the childe thrice in the water the Godfathers and the Godmothers laid their hands upon the child and the Priest putteth a white vestment over it called a Crysome saying Take this white vesture for a token of thine innocency which by Gods grace in this holy Sacrament of baptisme is given to thee for a signe whereby thou art admonished as long as thou livest to give thy selfe to innocency Then the Priest must anoint the Infant upon the head saying Almighty God c. who hath regenerated thee by water the holy Ghost who hath given thee remission of all thy sins vouchsafe to anoint thee with the unction of his holy Spirit Would you now have your children baptized after this manner yet these learned holy men thought that to be a good way So at the buriall of the dead the Priest casting earth upon the corps shall say I commend thy soule to God the Father Almighty and body to the ground and in another prayer Grant to this thy servant that the sinnes he committed in this world be not imputed to him but that he escaping the gates of hell and pains of eternall darknesse may ever dwell in the region of light You will say things are otherwise now True therefore I say there is no strength in that argument that those men that composed that liturgy were worthy lights in the Church for they were but newly come out of Popery and had the scent of Popery upon them therefore it is too unreasonable to make that which they did the rule of our Reformation now as if we were to goe no further then they did The like may be said of the Primitive times which many plead for the justification of their superstitious vanities for the Christians then came but newly out of heathenisme and lived amongst Heathens and therfore could not so soon be delivered from their heathenish customes I could relate to you sad things there were in Qu. Elizabeths dayes in K. James his dayes but I must not take too much liberty in this digression onely let us hereby learn not so to cry out of evill times that we are faln into as to be unthankfull for present mercies let us blesse God for what wee have had and looke unto the rule for further reformation For shee did not know that I gave her corn and wine and oyle and multiplyed her silver and gold which they prepared for Baal c. The Spirit of God returneth here again to convincing upbraiding accusing threatning Israel The sin of Israel went very near to the heart of God and God speaks here as a man troubled in spirit for the unkindenesse unfaithfulness unreasonableness of the dealings of his Spouse with him it runneth in his thoughts his heart is grieved at it and he must vent himselfe and when he hath told his grief and aggravated his wrong he is upon it again again still convincing upbraiding charging Israel for dealing so unfaithfully and treacherously with him all shewing the trouble of his spirit For she did not know c. These words depend upon the 5. ver for the 6. 7. they are as a parenthesis She hath done shamefully for she said I will goe after my lovers that give me my bread my water my wool my flaeâ—â—e c. For she did not know c. She did thus and thus for she did not know that I gave her corn and wine c. What was Israel worse then the Oxe or the Asse that knows
and is able to set out the several parts distinctly to you in such a Climate in such a Countrey but yet when he hath done all he leaveth a great space for a Terra incognita for an unknown world and that unknowne world for ought we know may be five times bigger then the known world So they that have the most observant eye of Gods mercies and take the most notice of them that can best set out the mercies he bestoweth spiritual mercies temporall mercies preventing mercies past mercies present mercies delivering mercies c. yet when they have done all they must leave a great space for the Terra incognita for the unknowne mercies of God The truth is those mercies of God that are obvious to our knowledge every day one would thinke they were enough to melt our hearts to breake them in pieces but besides these mercies we take notice of there are thousands and thousands of mercies that we know not of As we daily commit many sins that we know not of so daily we receive many mercies that we know not of likewise And as in our confession of sins we should pray to God first to pardon our sins we know and so to name them in particular and when we have done then Lord forgive us our unknown our secret sins So in our thanksgiving first blesse God for the mercies before us and when we have done Lord blessed be thy name for all thy unknown mercies that I have little taken notice of We soone grow cold and dead if we doe good and men take no notice of us neither what we know nor what we doe is any thing to us except others know it too but this is the vanity and pride of mens hearts it is Gods prerogative above his creatures to doe all for himselfe for his owne glory and yet he doth much good in the world that none knows of we are bound to deny our selves in that we doe not to seeke our own glory The most excellent peece in the most excellent of our workes is our selfe-denyal in it why should we not then doe all the good we can doe cheerefully though it be not known we should doe good out of love to goodnesse it selfe and if we would doe so we should be encouraged in doing good secretly Fifthly and which commeth yet more fully up to the words They did not know c. In Gods account men know no more then they lay to heart and make good use of The Schooles distinguish of want of knowledge there is Nescientia and Ignoratia Nescience is of such things as we are not bound to know it is not our sinne not to know them but Ignorance is of such things as we are bound to know and that ignorance is two-fold there is an invincible ignorance let us take what paines we can wee can never know all we are bound to know and there is an affected ignorance when we do not know because out of carelesnesse we doe not minde what is before us and when we have minded it so farre as to conceive it yet if we lay it not to heart as we ought still in Gods account we know it not if we digest not what we know into practise God accepteth it not As God is said not to know when hee doth not approve I know yee not saith he so when any man hath a truth in notion and it doth not get into the heart when it is not imbraced there God accounts that that man knowes it not Therefore you have in Scripture such an expression as the Seer is blinde It is a strange expression it seemes to be a contradiction such a thing as we call a Bull The Seer is blinde But it is not so here because God accounts those that have never so much knowledge yet if it doe not sanctifie the heart so as to give him the glory they are blinde blinde as a Beetle The knowledge of the Saints is another kinde of knowledge then other men have We have saith Cyprian no such notions as many of your Phylosophers have but we are Phylosophers in our deeds we doe not speake great things but we doe great things in our lives 1 Thes 4. 9. You have an excellent expression for this you are taught of God to love one another what followeth And indeed so you do That is an evidence that you are taught of God when it pâ—evay leth with your hearts when it may be â—aid indeed so you doe VVho is there in the world but knowes that wee should love one another but men are not taught of God to love one another untill it may be said of them that indeed so they doe There is nothing more obvious to the understanding of a man then the notion of a Deity that there is a God we may as it were grope after him as the holy Ghost speakes but yet 1 Iohn 2. 4. He that saith he knowes him and keepes not his commandements is a lyar and the truth is not in him Any man who ever he be though the greatest Schollar in the world if he saith he knowes God and keepes not his commandements he hath the lie told him to his teeth hee doth not know God at all though this of God be the most obvious thing to be understood that possibly can be and yet Christ saith no man knoweth the Father but the Sonne and to whom the Sonne shall reveale him Hence it is when a soul is converted you shall heare these expressions I never knew before I never knew what an infinite Deity meant I never understood the infinite soveraignty and Majesty of the great God I never knew what sinne meant before yet if you had asked him afore he would say I know God is a Spirit that he is infinite and eternall I know that sinne is the transgression of the law I never knew that Christ was before yet before hee would have told you that Christ was the sonne of Mary and came into the world to dye for sinners I remember an expression of a Germane Divine when he was upon his sick bed In this disease saith he I have learned what sin is and how great the Majesty of God is This man though a Preacher and doubtlesse he could preach of sinne and of the Majesty of God yet hee professeth he knew not these things untill God came powerfully upon his heart to teach him what they were The Hebrews say words of sense carry with them the affections or else they be to no purpose when men have notionall knowledge onely that comes not down into the heart they are like men that have weak stomacks and weake heads when they drink wine all flyeth up to the head it makes them giddy but if the wine went to the heart it would cheare warme it so all this mans knowledg flyeth up to his head makes him giddy whereas if it were digested got to the heart
comforts lest ere long there followes a destroying judgement a cutting to the very roote Doth God come in your families and cut off a branch or two a childe or two Humble your souls before him he may cut downe the tree stub up the root ere long he may come to the Mother or the Father and so roote out the family So in a Nation it is a very remarkable place that you have Ezekiel 21. 27. I will overturne overturne overturn when was this spoken and to whom It was spoken unto Israel and to Israel when they were in captivity and yet God threatens them thus even there I will overturne overturne overturne Whereof she hath said these are the rewards that my lovers have given mee The word that is translated reward signifies Merces meretricia it comes of the Hebrew word that signifies hired with wages but such wages as are given to harlots and yet she is so impudent as to make use of that very word these are my rewards the word she useth here might upbraid her but so impudent doth Idolatry make men to bee If we be guilty of whoredome we have our rewards of whoredome then say they Whoremasters use to give rewards unto their whores whoredome is a costly sin to many a man Many men secretly wast and consume in their estates and their neighbours wonder how they come to be so low Uncleannesse is as a Gangrene as it will consume the body so the purse it beggars many men when the world little thinks of the cause Secondly These are my rewards these that you call Idols give mee liberall rewards I have what I served them for God may suffer men in wickednesse to prosper to gaine their hearts desire Thirdly It is a dangerous thing for sinners to look back to their sins committed and then to blesse themselves as if they had gotten by them Indeed before a sin is committed the sinner by temptation may be perswaded there is much gaine to be had in that way and in the very act of comission the sinner may find some flashie false contentment and delight but usually after the act is over when the sinner looks back he sees nothing but shame guilt and horrour Sinners scarce dare look back to their sinnes after they are committed except such as are most desperately hardned in their sins they dare not think of what they have done but here you see they look at what they have done and blesse themselves as if they had got a goodly reward by it As the sight of the evil consequences of sin is a means to humble so the apprehending of gayning by sin is a speciall meanes to harden in sin Judas thought it a brave thing to get the thirty pieces yet when hee saw the evill fruit that his sin produced he looked with horrour upon his sin his soule sunk under the burden of it If a Judas looking after sinn hath his spirit filled with horrour what hope is there then of such a one as looking after it blesseth himselfe as a gainer by it If a man either prospers at that time he sins or prospers more a little after he hath committed a sin then he did before or so prospers as that he conceives his sin to be some way instrumentall to bring in that gain that was got this hardens exceedingly Fourthly These are the rewards that my lovers have given me It is a provoking sin to attribute the blessings of God to our own wicked sinfull ways and thereby to harden our hearts in those ways It is too much to attribute any of Gods blessings to second causes to our lawfull endeavors to our industry to our care to any instruments but to attribute them to our wickednesse this is abominable God expects glory in the acknowledgement of every mercy and improvement of it unto him where then there is not only a deniall of this to him but a giving it to his enemy to wickednesse to the Devill whom he hates this goes exceeding neer to the heart of God It is a great part of our sanctifying of Gods name in the use of all the creatures to acknowledge him in all that all depends upon him and thereby to be quickned in his service but to thinke all depends upon that which is contrary to God and therefore if we want what we would have to begin to think we have not served our lust enough and to be put on to serve them more this exceedingly provokes I le give you one notable example of this wretchednesse of mans heart and indeed it is a very dreadfull one I had very credible relation from a Minister who being at Hamburgh hee was told this story There was a consultation of many of the Ministers of Germany at that Town in the time of the sorest distresses and calamities that were in Germanie the Ministers were Lutherans they consulted to find out what might be the cause why the hand of God was so heavy upon Germany in those parts where they lived that so they might reform what was amisse and make their peace with God the isse of their consultations came to this that the reason of their calamities and troubles that were upon them was because the Images of their Churches were not adorned enough because there was not cost enough bestowed upon them they were not decked as they thought they should have been and therefore for the preventing of the continuance of those calamities in those parts of Germany they unanimously consented to improve all the strength they had to beautifie and adorn the Images in their Churches more this was a sad thing for Ministers who professing against Popery as the Lutherans do they indeed keep Images in Churches But could it be thought that they should be thus vaine yea wicked as to attribute the want of their Vines and fig-trees to the want of their superstitious vanities and to bring up their consultations to this conclusion that if they were more zealous of the one they should the more prosper in the other was not this a sore and grievous evill going neare to the heart of God Many attribute the increase of their estates to their lying to their over-reaching their swearing and rejoyce in this this I have got by these wayes Zeph. 1. 9. God threatens to punish those that leape on the threshold and fill their masters houses with violence and deceit That is the servants of great men who by oppression and by fraud bring in gain to their Masters houses and then they leap upon the threshold for joy applauding themselves in the successe they have had in their wicked wayes It is usuall in whatsoever ways men are if they meet with any prosperous success to bless themselves as if this success came in the rather because of those ways let the ways be never so wicked Of late have not some made the world believe they have had great success have made an argument that their ways
that mercy of his therefore he gives these fields this title calls them by this name and this custome of the Jews seemes to have warrant from Scripture it self Canticles 8. 5. Who is this that commeth up from the wildernesse leaning upon her beloved That was the way of marriage they came out of the fields leaning upon their beloved and so were brought unto the Bridgegroomes Fathers house So Christ brings his Spouse through this world which is as the wildernesse and Christ is here solemnizing his espousals and hath his nuptiall songs in this world and the Church leanes upon Christ all the while she is in the world but Christ is carring her to his Fathers house and ere long we shal be with him there solemnizing the marriage of the Lambe in a more glorious way This expression goes on clearly thus I will allure her and bring her into the wildernesse As the Bridegroome speakes sweet and comfortable words to his Bride and carries her abroad into the fields and there solemnizes the nuptials and so comes back againe having his Spouse leaning upon him and bringing her to his Fathers house so I will deale with you in the fulnesse of my grace I will performe all the nuptiall rites with you I will be married againe unto you and looke what the most solemnity in your City of Jerusalem or any of your Cities there is in any nuptials I will make as great a solemnity in the nuptials betweene you and me It is true when a marriage is such as people are loath to make it known then there is no such solemnity but when it is a great marriage indeed and such as marry together with their friends would glory in it then there is the more full solemnity so saith God I will not be ashamed to take you againe but I will take you openly I wil have the solemnity of my marriage with you as publickly as may be I will carry you abroad into the fields and look what rights soever there are in the most solemne marriages amongst you those rights I will performe unto you that it may be a most glorious marriage solemnity between you and me again thus I will bring into the wildernesse and speake comfortably unto them And speake comfortably to her These words that are translated here speake comfortably in the Hebrew are loquar super cor or ad corejus I will speake to her heart I will speak to her either so as to prevaile with her heart or speake to her so as to do her good at the very heart Many Scriptures may be brought to shew that speaking kindly friendly or comfortably the Hebrews expresse by speaking to the heart I will give you two or three instances Genesis 34. 3. Shechem spake kindly to the Damosell the words are in the Hebrew Shechem spake to the heart of the Damosell So Ruth 2. 13. Thou hast comforted me for that thou hast spoken friendly to thy handmaid thou hast spoken to the very heart of thy handmaid there are two more remarkable places for this one is Esay 40. 2. Speak comfortably to Jerusalem the words are speak to the heart of Jerusalem What should be spoke to the heart of Jerusalem Cry unto her her warefare is accomplished her iniquity is pardoned These are the comfortable words that God required should be spoke to the heart of Jerusalem O that God would speak thus to England this would do good at the very heart if God would speake thus from heaven Her iniquity is pardoned and her warefare is accomplished But yet a place that is more suitable unto this expression in the text it is Iudges 19. 3. There you have the story of a Levite whose wife having played the harlot yet he was willing to be reconciled to her the text saith that he went spake friendly to her Now the words are in the Hebrew Hee went and spake to her heart And indeed it is a word to the heart of an adulterous spouse if her heart be humbled when she knows that her husband will be willing notwithstanding her playing the harlot to be reconciled to her this was the condition of Israel who had gone a whoring from God yet when God promises a renewall of the marriage rites he saith he will speake to her heart from whence we might observe this note That an Apostatizing people or an Apostate soul had need have words of comfort spoke to their hearts or else there can be little ease to their terrified consciences We read of Spira that famous Apostate he had words of comfort enough spoke to his eare but they did him little good God did not come in and speak to his heart therefore his conscience could not be quieted the throbs of it could not be eased How many lie under the troubles of an accusing conscience and have the throbs and bitings of a guilty spirit because they have been back-sliders from the truth and though they come to Sermons one after another hear the Covenant of grace opened to them in the fulnesse of it the riches of Gods goodnesse set before them in the beauty of it yet they goe away without comfort why the words come to the eare God all this time speaks not to the heart sometimes it pleases God to take but the hint of a truth and dart it upon the heart of a troubled sinner that he feeleth it at the heart and sayes Well this day God hath spoken to my heart so he goes away rejoycing eased comforted pacified when as perhaps such an one had heard a hundred Sermons before wherein there were blessed and glorious truths presented to him and it did no good untill Gods time and when the time of Gods love is come some little hint of a piece of a truth God darteth to the hearts and that doth the thing God shews hereby that it is not in the word of man to comfort an afflicted conscience Hence an expression Luther hath in his Comment upon Genesis It is far harder to comfort an afflicted conscience then to raise the dead you think it is nothing to Apostatize from the Lord you thinke it is easie to receive comfort you will find it is not so easie you will find it as easie to raise the dead as to comfort your afflicted consciences But you told us before how rich the grace of God was that God tooke advantage from the greatnesse of our sins to shew the riches and greatness of his mercy grant it let the grace of God be never so rich but till this grace be applyed to the heart till God be pleased to speak himself to the heart of a sinner it will not do I remember a story of one who had made profession of Religion and afterwards Apostatised and made little of it when his acquaintance told him that those things he now did he would smart for one day he thought because he had some knowledg in the Gospel that it
with them that sweetnesse and makes firme the mercy when they goe up and down the field and the beasts come not upon them to destroy them they can looke upon their present safety as enjoying it in the Covenant You will say the wicked can walke up and down in the fields and the beasts not destroy them Though they doe yet a godly man hath more sweetnesse in this then he in that he can see this his safety from the Covenant when he rides a journey his beast is not made an instrument of Gods wrath to dash out his braines perhaps it is so with his wicked neighbour that rides with him but that from whence the preservation is is different it is a mercy to the godly man form the Covenant that God hath made with him to preserve him in all his wayes it is but generall providence to the other wicked men may have the same mercies for the matter of them that the godly have yet there is a kernell in the mercy which onely the Saints enjoy There are two things observable in a mercy comming by Covenant 1. It is more sweet 2. More firme More sweet Psal 25. 10. All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth to such as keepe his covenant This is a sweet promise a soule-satisfying promise more worth then all the riches of your City even that one promise all the passages of Gods ordinary providence are mercy and truth to those that keepe his Covenant Marke perhaps they are mercies to you there is a generall bounty you have in your ordinary preservation but they are not Mercy and truth to you there is the addition they are Mercy and truth to the godly that is they are such mercies as are bound to them by Covenant Therein David rejoyceth therefore saith he in the beginning of the Psalme I will lift up my heart unto God as amongst other reasons so for this that all the paths of God are not onely mercy but mercy and truth You have beene preserved and have had many mercies from God Well they are Gods mercies unto you but are they mercies and truth to you that is Doe they come to you in a way of promise Looke to that there is the sweetnesse of a mercy and it is a good signe of a gracious heart to looke more to the Originall whence mercy commeth then to the outward part of the mercy Secondly They are more firme Esay 54. 10. The mountaines shal depart the hills be removed but my kindnesse shall not depart from thee Why For the Covenant of my peace shall not be removed That mercy that you have I give it in a way of Covenant and the hills and mountaines shall depart rather then that kindnesse of mine shall depart 5. Is it such a blessed thing for God to make a Covenant with the beasts for us VVhat a mercy is it then for God to make a Covenant with our soules the Covenant that God makes with his people is a Covenant in Christ there is mercy It is a very observable place we have Gen. 17. concerning Abraham you shal find there that in ten verses of that Chap. God repeateth his Covenant which he made with Abraham thirteen times to note thus much that that was the mercy indeed that must satisfie Abraham in all his troubles sorrowes and afflictions as if God should say be satisfied with this Abraham that I have entred into Covenant with thee and thy seed I am a God in Covenant with thee And 2 Sam. 23. 5. there is a notable Text Although saith David my house be not so with God as I desire as I expect yet the Lord hath made me an everlasting Covenant ordered in all things and sure for this is all my salvation all my desire although he make it not to growe Take this Scripture Christians take it I say and make use of it in these times of trouble though things doe not go as you desire yet say as David did yet the Lord hath made a Covenant with us ordered and sure in all things ands all our this isalvation and all our desire 6. Is this a mercy for God to make a Covenant with the beasts for his people what a mercy is it then for God to make a Covenant with his Son for his people It is that we are to blesse god for that he will make a Covenant with brute beasts for our good but that God will make a Covenant with his owne son for our good for our eternall good That God should bring the second person in Trinity to be the head of the Covenant for us what a mercy is this Tit. 2. 1. the Apostle speaks there of eternall life that was promised before the world began Why what promise was there ever made before the world began to whom was this promise made who was there before the world began for God to make any promise unto It was onely the Son of God the second person in Trinity and there was a most blessed transaction between God the Father and God the Son for our everlasting good before the world began and upon that dependeth all our salvation and our hope When we reade the promises of the Gospel that the Lord hath given to us as branches of the Covenant of grace made with us we are ready to think we are poore weake creatures we cannot keepe Covenant with God we cannot performe the conditions of the Covenant But Christians know this thy peace the salvation of thy soul doth not depend so much upon a Covenant God hath made with thee as upon the Covenant he hath made with his Son there is the firmenesse the original the foundation of all thy good thy salvation and though thou art a poore weake creature that doth not keepe Covenant with the Lord yet the Son of God hath kept Covenant with the Father and hath perfectly performed all conditions the Father required of him the worke hath been perfected by the Son and here is our comfort Raise your drooping hearts by this meditation The second part of this peace and that is a promise of deliverance from hoftility from the enemy I will breake the bow and the sword and the battell out of the earth First Peace is a great blessing it is a great mercy to have the bow and the sword broke It is a part of the Covenant that God makes with his people to take away the instruments of hostility Esay 2. 4. God promiseth the breaking of swords into plough-shares and spears in pruning hooks You finde the contrary when God threatneth judgement to a people Joel 3. 10. he threatneth thus to beate their plongh-shares into swords and their pruning hooks into spears then they are in a sad condition It is a great deale better that their swords should be beaten into plow-shares then that the plow-shares should be beaten into swords that the speares should be made pruning hooks then that pruning
Gods mercy by their own they think thus if any had offended us so as we have offended God though we might say wee would be reconciled to him yet wee could not bring our hearts fully to come off to it something would remain in our hearts they therefore think so of God they suspect God that he doth not mean really in his expressions of love and mercy to them But take heed of this doe not judge of God by your selves though you have a base and cruell heart and cannot be reconciled to those that provoke you it is not therefore so with God There are these two evils in sin first in the nature of it there is a departing from God secondly it causeth jealousies and suspitions of God and so hinders the soul from coming unto God again Secondly God is very carefull to prevent all these suspitions in the hearts of his people God desires that you should have good thoughts of him and this is that we plead with you for and do often open the riches of Gods grace to this end that you may have good thoughts of God and to take off your jealousies and suspitions of him as if there were no reall intention in all the proffers of mercy he makes to you doe not thinke that all those riches of Gods grace are meer words they are certaine intentions of Gods heart towards you I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness And for your parts I will give you a heart you shall return to mee bona fide you shal do it in the plainnesse of your hearts There was a time indeed as Psal 78. 34 35 36. God complained of his people that they sought him and returned unto him neverthelesse they did flatter with their mouth and lyed unto him with their tongues there was no reality in their returning unto him they made great promises that whatsoever God should say unto them they would do it but there was no reality in it yea but saith God there shall come a time that you shall have righteous hearts and that which you promise to me you shall promise really there shall not be that falsenesse in your hearts those shews and overtures that were heretofore but you shall return to me with all your hearts in righteousness God hath made adoe at first with us to make us believe that he is in good earnest with us in his proffers oâ— mercy and much adoe there is before our hearts can be gotten to work towards God in good earnest Further note this is one reason why God doth betroth for ever because he doth it in the plainnesse of his heart and this is also a good reason why the Saints continue for ever because what they do to God is in the plainness of their hearts Those who return to God in an hypocriticall way will fall off but they that return in uprightenesse will hold constant with him Prov. 8. 18. it is said of Wisdome that with her are durable riches and righteousnesse they are put together where there is true righteousnesse in the heart there is durable riches But yet there is another thing in this betrothing in righteousnesse and that I thinke hath more in it then the former God will be so reconciled to his Church as yet he will manifest himself to be a righteous God In the works of the riches of his grace he will manifest the glory of his justice too I will doe it in righteousnesse though indeed the Lord intendeth to glorifie rich grace yet so as he will declare his righteousnesse to men and Angels that in this very work of his he shall be acknowledged by them unto all eternity to bee a righteous God GOD will make such a way for this his love and goodnesse as that hee will have satisfaction to his justice in it That place Rom. 3. 25 26. is remarkable for our purpose Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood How To declare his righteousness for the remission of sinnes Marke it it is not that he had set forth Christ to be a propitiation to declare his mercy in the forgivenesse of sins you will say What is there in the forgivenesse of sins but only the mercy of God Yes there is somewhat else there is righteousnesse too and the Lord doth declare his righteousnesse in the forgivenesse of sins and therefore it is that he hath set forth Christ to be a propitiation that hee might declare his righteousnesse If the Lord should have said but thus Well you are great and grievous sinners I will be content freely to forgive you all your sins this would have declared Gods mercy but not his righteousnesse but now when the Lord hath set forth Christ as a propitiation and forgiveth sins through the blood of his Son in this God declareth as much righteousnesse as grace This text Luther had a great deale of do to understand and he prayed much before he could get the right meaning of it yea it is repeated again To declare I say his righteousnesse that he might be just the justifier of him that believeth in Jesus not that he might be mercifull in justifying him that believeth in Jesus but that he might be just in justifying him that believeth in Jesus And this is the great mystery of the Gospel this is that which the Angels pry into the Saints and Angels shal admire blesse God to all eternity for the reconciling riches of mercy and infinite justice both in one This was that which set the infinite wisdome of God on worke from all eternity how to find a way to save sinners and to be infinitely righteous notwithstanding If all the Angels in heaven and all the men in the world had been put to it to find out a way to answer this question How shall sin be pardoned the sinner reconciled unto God and God glorifie his justice they could never have done it but God in his infinite wisdome hath found out a way to doe it This cost God dear it cost him the heart blood of his own Son and that was a sign that Gods heart was much in it and indeed we are not Christians untill in some measure we see and have our hearts taken with the glory of God in this mystery We must looke at righteousnesse in our reconciliation as well as to loving kindnesse and mercy When God is reconciled unto a sinner there is not only his mercy glorified but in that way that God hath found out to save a sinner hee hath the glory of his justice as much yea more then if the sinner were eternally damned in hell How is that you will say I make that good three ways First when God appointed a surety his Son and charged his debt upon him to satisfie his justice in that God would not spare this Sonne of his the least farthing token I mean not the least degree of punishment he would not remit any thing to
his Son the Lord did hereby shew a stronger intense love unto justice then if he had damned tenne thousand thousand creatures Suppose a malefactor comes before a Judg the Judg will not spare the malefactor but requireth satisfaction to the law this shews that the Judg loves justice but if the Iudges own son be a delinquent and it appears before all the Country that the Iudg will not spare him but he must satisfie the law to the uttermost you will say the Iudge doth honour unto justice more in this then in condemning many other malefactors So when the Lord shall cast many thousands into hell there to be tormented for ever this sheweth that God loveth justice but when his own Son shall take our sins upon him but by imputation God will not spare him that is the very word of the Scripture He spared not his own Sonn saith the Text this declareth Gods love to righteousness more then if all the world had been damned Secondly suppose the sinner that is reconciled had been damned then the justice of God had been but in satisfying and never had fully been satisfied but in that way that God hath found out to save a sinner his justice is not only satisfying but it comes to be fully satisfied to have enough Now it is a greater honour to justice to be fully satisfied then to be in satisfying As for instance suppose a man be a Creditor to one who owes him five thousand pounds this man is poore and the utmost he can pay is but sixe pence or twelve pence a weeke suppose the Creditor should lay him in the Jayle untill he had payed all this man would be paying but would never be payed so long as the Debtor liveth but if another rich man should come and lay downe five thousand pound at once the man is presently satisfied Here is the difference between Gods satisfying his justice upon sinners and upon Jesus Christ God cometh upon the sinner he requireth the debt of punishment because he did not pay the debt of obedience God cast him into prison the uttermost he can pay is but twelve pence a week as it were that is but a little and thereforefore he must be still paying and paying eternally which is the very ground of their eternall punishment in hell because they cannot pay enough in any finite time Now commeth Christ and he fully payes the debt so that justice saith it hath enough it is satisfied this is the greater glory to the justice of God Thirdly If the sinner had been sent down to hell God had had the glory of his justice passively upon him hee should be for ever under the power and stroke of justice but in the mean time the sinner would have hated God for his justice and hated justice but when justice is honoured actively the sinner falleth down and acknowledgeth himselfe guilty putteth himselfe under the stroake of Gods justice and accepteth of the punishment of his iniquity now God is delighted more abundantly in this active way of glorifying his justice then if the sinner should have beene eternally in hell to have satisfied And now Devils and all wicked men must needs have their mouths stâ—pped for ever they cannot cry out of God becanse he will marry himselfe to such sinners this is mercy but where is his righteousness where is the glory of his justice here is an answer to them all though the Lord setteth his love upon vile sinners yet so as hee doth it in righteousnesse And this is a great encouragement to come in and believe as thus if the sinner be terrified with the apprehension of his sinne I see by them the wrath of God is incensed and infinite justice comes upon mee and I heare that crying for satisfaction this bids the sinner know likewise that God hath a way to satisfie infinite justice and yet to save thy soul he will marry thee unto himself and yet he will do it in righteousnesse And this is a mighty helpe unto a sinner against all faylings afterward a mighty establishment against a thousand objections the sinner may make against himself Thus we must seek to God when wee seek for reconciliation to be received againe when wee have departed from him whatsoever GOD doth for us hee must doe it in the way of righteousnesse as well as in the way of mercy Take this with you sinners if ever you have a pardon sealed unto you it must be sealed in the Court of justice as well as in the Court of mercy therefore thou needest not appeale from the Court of justice to the Mercy-seat for in that way of the mystery of godliness that there is in God reconciling himselfe unto a sinner there may be as much comfort in standing before the bar of justice as at the Mercy-seat that is by standing there in and through Christ for he hath made justice propitious to us and now it pleadeth to mercy for us And indeed this is the very work of Faith to go unto God this way when by Faith the sinner shall tender up unto God the Father the righteousness of JESUS CHRIST for an atonement and satisfaction for sins It brings the comfort of justification this way When you come to God in any other way but this it is but in a natural way not in a true evangelicall way A man by nature may know thus much that when he hath sinned he must seek unto God for mercy to pardon his sin or else he is miserable but to seek unto God for pardon with a price in our hand to tender up the merits of Christ for a satisfaction to Divine justice here is the mystery of faith faith is not onely to rely upon Gods mercy for pardon but this I see riches of grace in Christ and Christ my surety hath made an atonement hath laid down a price now by faith I tender up this unto God the Father and by this way I believe my soul shall be accepted in him What a mighty ingagement is this for us to be righteous with God the Lord betrotheth us unto himself in righteousnesse we should give up our selves to him in righteousnesse too O my brethren take this away with you what ever you forget If the Lord hath thus ingaged himselfe unto us in a way of righteousnesse and if it hath cost him so deare to shew himself righteous unto us what an infinite ingagement is this unto us to be righteous before him to glorifie Gods righteousnesse in our conversations I will doe it in righteousnesse and you shall have such a righteous heart as you shall never be a dishonour unto me before the people neither devils nor wicked men shal ever be able to upbraid me that I set my love upon such creatures as you because whatsoever you were you shall be now righteous When ever we expresse our selves to be the Spouse of Christ and be unrighteous in our conversations we upbraid Jesus Christ wee
Gods care saith Bernard which is beyond providence such as is out of faithfulnes as well as out of love Christ here condescends to his Spouse as a man is willing to give satisfaction to his wife her friends though the truth is he would doe any thing in the world out of love to his wife yet in regard of her weaknesse and to satisfie some friends he is content to enter into bond to do any thing that is fitting it is good to make all things sure before-hand say her friends he presently yeilds for it is no other but what he is willing to doe without bonds onely to satisfie her and their minds Thus it is between Christ and his Spouse The truth is the love of Christ is enough to make a supply of any of our wants but wee are weake and would faine have things made sure therefore saith Christ to helpe our weakeness I will even enter into bond and you may be sure I will be faithfull then I will binde my faithfulnes to you for all the good you would have And this faithfulnesse of Christ is either in regard of the great Marriage-Covenant there hee will be sure to be faithfull to his Spouse Or in regard of all particular promises that are under things as it were There is the great marriage-covenant about reconciling God and paying all debts that are owing and satisfying Gods justice and bringing to eternall life but there are many under-promises and Christ will be faithfull in them all Ps 25. 10. you have a promise worth a kingdome All the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth not onely mercy but mercy and truth mercy ingaged VVicked men may have mercy from God from the generall bounty and goodnesse and mercifull disposition of God but what the Saints have is from â—ruth as well as from mercy it is bound to them God stands much upon this that the hearts of his Saints should confide in him He accounts not himselfe honoured except we confide in him therefore marke how Christ suiteth himselfe unto our weaknesse that wee may confide in his faithfulnesse What is it saith he that you poore creatures do one to another when you would make things sure betweene you Wee answer thus Lord we ingage our selves by promise one to another I will do so saith Christ you shall have my promise my faithfull promise Acts 2. 39. Peter invites to Baptisme upon this ground because the promise is made to you and to your children and to as many as the Lord our God shal call The first he speakes to the Jews the other to the Gentiles As if he should say Come in and receive Baptisme for to you and to your children the promise is made to you that are Jews and to your children and to the Gentiles they have the promise that you have they come under the same Covenant for the maine the promise is to them and to their children too And this promise that Christ hatâ—ing aged himself in is no other then a draught of that which was before the world began from all eternity and therefore it is so much the more sure Tit. 1. 2. the Gospell is called a promise before the world began All promises in the Scripture are but a draught of that grand promise that God the Father made to his Son before the world began As if Christ should say Will you have engagement by promise This is past long agoe my Father hath engaged himself to me from all eternity if you have any promise it is but a draught of that first copie of that great promise my Father hath made me from all eternity VVhat doe you doe more when you would make things sure one to another VVe answer we doe not onely make a verball promise by word of mouth but we write it God hath therefore given us his Scripture and the chiefe thing in Scripture is the promise God hath set to his hand to his promise in Scripture Hence Luther hath a notable expression The whole Scripture doth especially aim at this that we should not doubt but believe confide hope that God is mercifull kind patient VVhat do you more Here you have my promise and my hand is there any thing else you use to do to make things sure VVe answer Lord wee take witnesses I will do so too saith God VVhen we would make things sure indeed we take not only two but three or four but half a dozen witnesses sometimes You shall have witnesses saith God as many as you will witnesses of all sorts witnesses in heaven witnesses in earth In heaven I Iohn 5. 7. The Father the Word and the holy Ghost witnesses authenticall of credit enough the three Persons in the Trinity upon earth the spirit the water and the blood What do you more to make a thing sure Lord we set to our seales too you shall have that too saith God you shall have seals of all sorts you shall have the broad seale of Heaven the Sacraments the seals of the Covenant and you shall have my privie seale I will take my Ring off my finger I will give you even the seale of the spirit and do but shew this seale it is authenticall enough Is there any thing more Yes we answer there is one thing more we take an oath I will do that too saith God that you may be sure and confide in my faithfulnesse Heb. 6. 17. God willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his councell consirmed it by his oath As if he should say there is no such need of an oath but I will be abundant to you because I would have you trust mee And mark this is for the sake of the heirs of promise God would never have done this for other men it is for your sakes onely who are the heirs of promise in regard of your weaknesse he conrfims all with an oath And if wee would have things sure wee will not have the oath of such as are of no great credit Mark therefore it is that God sweareth and that by the greatest oath ver 13. Because he could sweare by no greater saith the text he sware by himselfe Is there any thing more saith God that you use to do among your selves to make things sure Yes Lord we use to take a pawn too You shall have that too saith he I will give you a pawn and such a pawn as if you never had any thing more you would be happie what is that 2 Cor. 1. 22. Who hath sealed us and given us the earnest of his spirit in our hearts I will send my spirit to be an earnest of all the good that I intend to do for you everlastingly Is there any thing else you would require of me that you may confide in me Yes if God would doe some great notable work as a beginning as an ingagement of that which is to come after this is yet more then a
with his mercy and think Oh we are in covenant with God and God hath pardoned our sins what need we care take heed of growing want on thou maist suffer fearfull things in this world Though God may save your souls yet you may be brought into as wofull a condition in your ovvn apprehensions as ever any creature was upon the earth And for England though it is true we have as many arguments of the love of God to 〈◊〉 as ever any nation had but yet who knows what this generation may suffer that hath so sullied it self with superstitious vanities We may be brought into vvefullslavery and then God may raise up unto himself another generation upon whom he will be stow the mercy intended Fourthly Those who will take their fill of delight to the flesh in a sensual use of the creature it is just with God they should be cut short be made to live meanly and basely to be made to feed with course fare with barley The Jews had their delicates before they fared deliciously now they must be sed worse then their servants and eare that which was meate for beasts How many hath God thus dealt withall who not long since had their tables furnished with the choysest sare with variety of dishes now perhaps are glad of a harley loafe for themselves and their children Again If God will not utterly destroy a people as he might but reserve mercy for them at last though they have never such a meane subsistence for the present yet they have cause to blesse God Though this here be a threatning yet there is a promise in it The people of Israel if they knew all had no cause to murmur at Gods dealing but to admire at his mercy though they had but a little barley to sustaine them And suppose God should bring us in England into a low condition so as we may be glad of a barley loafe we know famine commonly followes warre it was wont to be a phrase browne bread and the gospell is good fare and God may bring that upon us in another way then ever yet we or our fore-fathers were acquainted with but yet if the Lord do not cast us off utterly from being his people though he feed us with brown bread though we have never so mean a subsistance for the present we shall have cause to blesse his name Lastly It is the way of God to humble those he intendeth good unto to prepare them for mercy by cutting them short of these outward comforts If the Lord hath dealt so with any of you you have lived full-handed perhaps wives have brought good portions to their husbands and now they are broke and all is lost perhaps you had good friends in the Countrey many of them are plundered in their estates now you are faine to fare meanly and if you have bread for your children you think it well but consider this Is not God now humbling me and thereby preparing my heart for himself Oh blessed be God for this my condition this bread is sweeter to me then all the dishes I have had in my life VVhen you sit in your houses with your wives and children and have nothing but barley bread to feed upon have these thoughts I hope God doth this in love mercy he is making this my condition the best condition I was ever in the greatest blessing to me Verse 3. And I said unto her thou halt abide for me many dayes thou shalt not play the harlot and thou shalt not be for another man so will I also be for thee You shall not only be in such a low condition as a slave and worse then a maid servant and be sed with barley but you shall abide thus abide thus many dayes Thus they have abode these sixteene hundred yeares since Christs time besides their former captivity The Lord would have a full experience of Israel that their hearts were throroughly humbled before he would take them to mercy again There was never any people dealt more falsely with God in their humiliations then they had done before How often when they were in misery did they come with their seeming humiliation cryed for mercy and God â—â—â—wed them mercy and assoone as they were delivered they fell off againe and went after their Idols and then being in misery again they cryed to God and he delivered them and then presently to their Idols again Well saith God I will not deale so with you hereafter I will not trust you so as I have done you have beene in misery and I have delivered you when you cryed to me and then you have fallen to your sins againe but now you shall be humbled to purpose you shâ—l be â—ow many yeers in this low and meane condition and then your hearts â—â—ll be thâ—rowly broken so that when you shall returne to me againe you shall never fall from me God hath dealt so with many of you you have been in affliction God hath delivered you you have gone to your sinnes again you have been in affliction againe and he hath delivered you you have fell to your sins again and thus you have dallyed with the great God God may bring a fore long affliction upon you that you shall be so thorowly humbled that you shall never goe back againe to your sins as you have done This is the meaning abide many dayes When we would scoure purge a filthy garment thorowly we do not onely wash it but wee lay it a soaking a great while and a frosting many nights the Jews have lyne a soaking frostning many hundred yeeres this is the hardnesse of mans heart afflictions wil not work presently though many wedges be put into many blows struck upon knotty wood it stirs not some metals are long in melting yea though the fire be very hot Againe Here we see it is Gods ordinary way when he promiseth mercy to seeme to goe quite contrary to a people to seem as if he would quite destory them I will marry my self unto them in loving kindness and in mercies but yet I will let this people be above sixteen hundred yeers in this forlorne condition And so it hath been in all Gods administrations since the beginning of the world When God comes to humble sinners they must be content to be humbled Gods own time they must not out of a sudden furious humor say Lord how long I have been thus long in a sad condition I have prayed thus long Is your sadness affliction eternal Oh no a yeer or two perhaps but you have deserved eternity of misery Thou shalt abide for me many dayes thou shalt not play the harlot thou shalt not be for another man so will I also be for thee That is in all this time you must have a care of your self that you do not seek after other lovers let me have experience that you will now worship the
this is the first time we read that David in his VVars and Battells called for the Ephod when he went to Achish then he did not enquire when he invaded the Geshurites and Amalekites before he did not enquire but now when he was brought into straits when his heart was broken when he was in a weeping condition now he calleth for the Ephod VVhen God brings men into straits and humbles them then they will enquire of God to purpose VVe are now about to enquire of God to know his mind but we are not humbled enough our straits have not broken our hearts and perhaps we shall not so readily know Gods mind God may yet humble us more and then when we come to enquire Gods mind it may be to further purpose But to open this garment a little The word Ephod is that Hebrew word which signifies to close in and to compasse about to gird about because of the fitting garment to the Priests and the girding of it about them There were divers sorts of these Ephods one peculiar to the high Priest that you have Exod. 28. 6. Others that the ordinary Priests had that you have in the former places I named about the fourscore and five Priests slain by Doeg A third was common for the ordinary Levites thus Samuel 1 Sam. 2. 18. ministred before the Lord girded with a linnen Ephod And there was a fourth that other people did we are in their holy actions especially before Kings David danced before the Lord girded with a linnen Ephod 2 Sam. 6. 14. And to this day the Jewes have a kind of linnen garment but not of the fashion of our Ephod but some little kind of resemblance to it they wear it upon their heads and so downward VVhen Alexander came to Jerusalem I addus the high Priest came with all his Priestly garments to meet him which caused him to fall down prostrating himselfe before him out of reverence to him Iosephus tels us in that story that the people came with white garments garments that had some kind of resemblance to this Ephod Iosephus saith that this Ephod was a garment but of a cubite long only covering the shoulders and the breast open above and on either side and girt about the breasts others make it a longrobe reaching down to the very feet But there was a robe beside the Ephod the Ephod was over another robe so Christ appeared unto John Rev. 1. 13. Cloathed with a garment downe to the foot and girt about the paps with a golden girdle like the Priests for so they were wont to be arrayed And Revel 15. 6. the Ministers of the Churches called by the name of Angels are described cloathed in white linnen having their breasts girded with golden girdles not girt about their loynes but about their breasts near their hearts That which makes Ministers of the Gospel ready prepared for the work is the girdle of truth and this must be about their hearts if their owne plottings and self-ends shall gird them that is put them on to a readiness to do what may serve for those ends this girdle is not the golden girdle but like that rotten girdle of Jeremiahs Chap. 31. 7. that was profitable for nothing This garment of the Ephod was a holy garment then and others must take heed of medling with such garments or of seeking to imitate to make the like garments We read of Gideon Judges 8. when God had given him a great victory over the Midianites he would imitate this Ephod of the spoil he had gotten of the Midianites he made a rich and glorious Ephod but the Text observeth that thing proved to be the destruction of Gideons house for the people went a whoring after it he made it with a good intention to testifie his thankfulnesse to God for his victory not thinking that ever it should be worshipped It is a dangerous thing for governours to imitate Gods ordinances in garments or the like and to preserve them amongst people though it be with never so good an intention their good intention will not excuse them Gideons presumption in making an Ephod in imitation of the Ephod appointed by God proved to be the destruction of his house yet this was Gideon who a little before had destroyed the altar of Baal though he was so much against Idolatry before yet now he doth that which furthereth Idolatry so many Governours if they take not heed they may pull down one kind of false worship and set up another The Iewes have many mysteries about this garment it would weary you to hear them I shall only observe that which is most usefull for you wee must not read the books of the old Testament as if they concerned us not First upon the shoulders of the Ephod there were set ranks of precious stones upon them were in graven the names of the twelve Tribes according to their generations And in the middle of the Ephod upon the breast-plate which was to be four-sqâ—are there were four rowes of precious stones upon those likewise were ingraven all the names of the Tribes of Israel he bore them upon his heart There is much to be observed in this First Let the Tribes be what they will be in themselves though never so mean yet upon the Ephod they were precious stones The Priest wearing the Ephod was a type of Christ let those who are godly be never so meane in themselves yet in Christ God looks upon them as precious stones Secondly These precious stones that were upon the shoulders of the Ephod are called a memoriall Exod. 28. 12. that was to signifie Christ bearing the names of all the Saints before his Father for a memorial those 12 tribes presenting all the Churches that should be unto the end of the world When God remembers his Church it is thorow Christ God never remembers his Church but it is by Christ carrying it before him that is the comfort of the Saints therefore he can never remember them to revenge himself upon them for he never thinketh of them but only as Christ presenteth them unto him And further A memoriall say the Jewes not onely because the Priests were to beare the names of the twelve Tribes ingraven in those stones for a memoriall before the Lord but to signifie that the Priests themselves were to remember to pray for the Tribes And thirdly A memoriall to signifie that both the Priests and all the people were to remember their godly Ancestors and Predecessors and to follow their vertues and not to be any dishonour unto them But the first is the chiefe these precious stones with the names of the tribes were first upon the shoulder and then upon the heart upon the shoulder this notes that Christ carryes his Church upon his shoulder hee beares the burthen of his Church all their weight all their afflictions upon his shoulder the shoulder of Christ standeth under the Churcher certainly therefore they shall