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<DATE>2012-06-13</DATE>
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<NAME>Geremy Carnes</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>Publick Sorrovv A Remedy for ENGLANDS MALADY.</P>
<P>Being an Explanation of the four|teenth ver&s;e of the fir&s;t Chapter of the Prophet <HI>Joel.</HI></P>
<P>By <HI>Ellis Weycoe,</HI> M. A.</P>
<Q>Weep for your &s;elves, <BIBL><HI>Luke 23.28.</HI></BIBL></Q>
<Q>Be Afflicted, and Mourne, and Weepe, let your Laughter be turned into Mourning, and your Joy into Heavine&s;&s;e, <BIBL><HI>James 4.9.</HI></BIBL></Q>
<Q>Ble&s;&s;ed are they that Mourne, for they &s;hall be Comforted, <BIBL><HI>Matth. 5.4.</HI></BIBL></Q>
<P>GATESHEAD. Printed by <HI>Stephen Bulkley,</HI> 1657.</P>
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</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="dedication">
<PB REF="3" MS="y">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>To his very much beloved Friends and Neigh|bours, the Inhabitants of the Towne of <HI>Brid|lington,</HI> and the <HI>Key;</HI> and to all the Pari&s;hioners there|unto belonging, <HI>Grace, Mercy, and Peace from God the Father, &amp;c.</HI></HEAD>
<OPENER><SALUTE>Chri&s;tian and endeared Friends,</SALUTE></OPENER>
<P>VPon that Edict of the fir&s;t of <HI>January 1655.</HI> pro|hibiting Seque&s;tred and Ejected Mini&s;ters from Pulpit, and all other imployments (though I verily beleeve, that his Highne&s;&s;e and Councill chiefly aymed at the muzling of the Mouthes of &s;uch turbulent Spirits, and Martiall Mini&s;ters, as are no &s;ooner cla&s;pt in their Pulpits, but pre&s;ently Proclaym War, in &s;tead of Preaching Peace; Sedition, in &s;tead of Obedience; and Confu&s;ion in &s;tead of Order; without the lea&s;t intent of prejudice to &s;uch as were quiet and peaceable in <HI>I&s;rael;</HI> and not hearing as yet of any limitation) being (among&s;t many others) by force thereof, not onely di&s;u&s;ed from officiating in Publick, but likewi&s;e de|barred of all wayes and means, through which, by my co&s;tly Education, I might have procured &s;ome rea&s;onable compe|tency for my &s;elfe, and the many depending wholly upon me; I have had lei&s;ure enough to bewayle both mine own and others mi&s;eries. And after not a few melancholy Cogitati|ons, finding my &s;elfe an <HI>Achan,</HI> a great troubler of this poor Church and People; and &s;eeing mine, as much (if not far more) then others &s;ins to be the onely cau&s;e of all our woes; I &s;et my &s;elfe to find out &s;ome Remedy for di&s;tre&s;&s;ed
<PB REF="4"><HI>Englands</HI> Malady: Hereupon I &s;ometimes Mournfully, yet willingly, &s;ate downe by the Banks of <HI>Babylon,</HI> there making Sorrow my Soules Solace, finding indeed no greater joy in my heavine&s;&s;e, then in <HI>Sorrow for &s;in:</HI> Sometimes I walked abroad into the plea&s;ant Meadows, greene Fields, and fre&s;h Pa&s;tures of holy Scriptures, there to &s;eek and &s;inde &s;ome &s;oure Hearbes, and of the tarte&s;t reli&s;h, and &s;ome Flowers of the darke&s;t hew, and &s;tronge&s;t &s;cent, that their &s;ad complexion might be&s;t plea&s;e the weeping Eyes of a pen&s;ive Heart, and their bitter &s;mell might be&s;t affect the di&s;ta&s;ted Pallat of a &s;in &s;ick-&s;orrowfull Soule. Of both which &s;orts, I found the <HI>P&s;almes, Ezekiel, Ho&s;ea, Joel, Neho|miah,</HI> and the <HI>Lamentaions</HI> of <HI>Jeremy</HI> well &s;tored, and thick Planted; and gathering &s;ome of them, &s;uch as I thought for my purpo&s;e. I then took a turne into the delight&s;ome Gardens of holy Writ, to &s;eek out &s;ome &s;weet flowers of com|fort; and finding plenty, I cropt &s;ome few, to mix with the other, that the ones &s;weetne&s;&s;e, might &s;omething alay the others tartne&s;&s;e. And though thus full furni&s;ht, yet di&s;tru&s;ting my own Skill and Judgement in &s;o great a Cure of &s;uch a dangerous and deadly Di&s;ea&s;e; I went to View the Receipts of far more Able, Wi&s;e, and Learned &s;pirituall Phy&s;itians, and from them extracted the be&s;t directions; which together, with my own weake Meditations, I mixt with all the other In|gredients; and having fir&s;t wa&s;hed them well in the waters of <HI>Marah,</HI> have of all the&s;e &s;everals or &s;imples, made up &s;uch a Compound, as I hope will be a good Pre&s;ervative again&s;t <HI>the Infectious poy&s;on of &s;in,</HI> and a good Salve <HI>for Englands pre&s;ent Sore.</HI> And upon &s;ome thoughts, that if this Medicine were good for my &s;elfe, it might, by Gods ble&s;sing, be comfortable to others al&s;o: Con&s;idering al&s;o, that a <HI>Book</HI> perhaps may &s;peake, when an <HI>Author</HI> may not; not
<PB REF="4">harbouring the lea&s;t thoughts of Vain-glory, or Popular Ap|plau&s;e; I re&s;olved with my &s;elfe to make my Meditations <HI>Publick,</HI> like our <HI>Sorrows.</HI> And not knowing how to doe it any other way, I took this occa&s;ion of manife&s;ting my deare&s;t affections, and be&s;t wi&s;hes, to you, among&s;t whom I had my fir&s;t Breathing, and have lived &s;o long, as that none, better then your &s;elves, are able to give evidence both of my former con|ver&s;ation, and pre&s;ent condition. It may be (meane and plain as it is) it may conduce to the benefit of many; but my prin|cipall intent in it, was the zeale I have to your Soules, the &s;alvation of which, <HI>I</HI> &s;hall ever mo&s;t heartily pray for. Accept therefore <HI>I</HI> be&s;eech you of the&s;e my poor Endeavours, and make u&s;e of this Phy&s;ick <HI>I</HI> have prepared for you: But give me leave to give you &s;ome Directions in the taking of it; You mu&s;t Chew it, Swallow it, and Dige&s;t it, not throwing it up &s;o &s;oon as you have received it, for then it will doe you no good; but if you can keep it <HI>in the Stomack of your Souls,</HI> you will find it to be &s;uch a <HI>Violent Purge, and working Vomit,</HI> as will force you to Ca&s;t or Spue up all the <HI>Poy&s;on of Sin.</HI> If you think it be toe much to &s;wallowow all at once, you may divide it, at you plea&s;e, into &s;everall Potions; yet, <HI>I</HI> think, the whole will be but three ea&s;ie Mornings Draughts for your Soules; however, leave it not in the halfe, though you take longer time to Drink and Dige&s;t it all, and then <HI>I</HI> doubt not, but as it bath been to me, &s;o it may be to you that takes it, &s;omewhat u&s;efull and helpfull; And if any of you find ea&s;e, or get help by this <HI>Publick Sorrow,</HI> the onely Phy|&s;ick for a &s;in burthened Soule; then Pray&s;e God, and Pray for,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>The unworthy Servant of the Lord,</HI> Ellis Weycoe.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="author to the reader">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>To the Sin-&s;ick Reader.</HEAD>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 9 12.</NOTE><HI>THey that be whole,</HI> &s;aith our Saviour, <HI>need not a Phy|&s;itian, but they that are &s;icke.</HI> This Phy&s;ick I have here prepared for thee, is made up of bitter Poti|ons, and &s;owre Druggs; which, taken according to the Direction in the <HI>Epi&s;tle Dedicatory,</HI> will Purge corrupt Humours, &s;coure away the <HI>filthine&s;&s;e of &s;in,</HI> and bring health and happine&s;&s;e to <HI>thy &s;in-&s;ick &s;oule.</HI> The &s;everall Ingredients, at the fir&s;t, I intermixed and framed into this Compound, onely for my own u&s;e, and have had from them the Opera|tion I de&s;ired; namely, they have made many irk&s;ome houres the le&s;&s;e tedious to me, and much heavine&s;&s;e to &s;it a great deale the lighter upon me: It was far from my thoughts ever to trouble the too much oppre&s;&s;ed Pre&s;&s;e, I am &s;o con&s;cious of my owne weakne&s;&s;e, as I cannot but blu&s;h in &s;ecret, that ever I was prevailed with to make my &s;elfe thus open. I know not how my &s;cribled Papers chanced to come to the view of &s;ome <HI>Per&s;ons of Judgement,</HI> by whom I have been not intreated onely, but very much importuned al&s;o, to make this <HI>Treati&s;e</HI> like the title of it, <HI>Publick.</HI> They &s;et up|on me with &s;ome Arguments which I could not gain-&s;ay; truth is, they have overcome me, and made me at la&s;t (though mo&s;t unwillingly) willing to expo&s;e my &s;elfe to the Inter|pretation of this Cen&s;orious Age. Good Reader, my <HI>Pub|lick Sorrow</HI> hath long layd hid by me in the wombe of ob|&s;curity, but is now after nine Moneths delivered to the Light; if it prove fruitfull or u&s;efull to thee or any other it will be an ample compen&s;ation to my poore Labours. That great and good Phy&s;itian of our Soules, <HI>Chri&s;t Je&s;us</HI> ble&s;&s;e it to thee, is the humble reque&s;t of his, and in him,</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED><HI>Thy Servant,</HI> Ellis Weycoe.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="table of contents">
<PB REF="5">
<HEAD>The Contents.</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM>HOw the Church of <HI>England</HI> ever ob&s;erved Fa&s;ts, and Holy-dayes, <HI>Fol. 3.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Prince or Governour, may appoint a Fa&s;t, <HI>Fol. 3.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Princes or Governours are to be Obeyed in their Com|mands, <HI>Fol. 3.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Foure Cautions to be ob&s;erved in keeping a Fa&s;t, <HI>Fol. 4.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>How to keep every day holy-day, <HI>Fol. 4.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>God is never angry but for &s;in, <HI>Fol. 6.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Sin is the cau&s;e of all mi&s;ery, <HI>Fol. 7. 8. 9. 10.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Mourners marked, and thereby pre&s;erved, <HI>Fol. 12.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Soules &s;orrow, <HI>Fol. 16.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Better to deale with God by Teares then Words, <HI>Fol. 17.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Antiquity of Fa&s;ting, <HI>Fol. 20.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Foure Rules to be ob&s;erved in Fa&s;ting, <HI>Fol. 22.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Who mu&s;t give to the Poor, how much, in what manner, and to whom they mu&s;t give, <HI>Fol. 28.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Chri&s;ts Schoole, a Schoole for all &s;orts, <HI>Fol. 31.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Kingdom of Chri&s;t admits of no di&s;tinction, <HI>Fol. 36.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The be&s;t place of Refuge to fly unto in time of warre, or any Calamity, <HI>Fol. 39.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Five Rules to be ob&s;erved in Gods publick wor<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> and &s;ervice, <HI>Fol. 44.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Three Rules that &s;it us for a right behaviour in Gods Hou&s;e, <HI>Fol. 46.</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="6" MS="y">
<ITEM>Three Rules to binde us to the good-behaviour; before we come to Heare, at the time of Hearing, and after we have Heard the Word, <HI>Fol. 47.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Our Hearing of the Word mu&s;t be accompanied with foure concurring Circum&s;tances, <HI>Fol. 54.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Prayer the Art of Arts that adornes a Chri&s;tian, <HI>Fol. 56.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Godly &s;orrow and affliction, the be&s;t remedy in any &s;or|row and affliction, <HI>Fol. 59.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The greate&s;t affliction which &s;hould touch our Hearts, is the Churches affliction, <HI>Fol. 66.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>We mu&s;t never make an end of Mourning, till God make an end of Afflicting, <HI>Fol. 71. 72.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>No di&s;tre&s;&s;e what&s;oever can hinder Gods people from praying, <HI>Fol. 78.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>The Knowledge of Gods power and mercy, is the onely cau&s;e of bringing Chri&s;tians into his pre&s;ence, and of moving them to call upon him in their mi&s;eries. <HI>Fol. 83.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Men can never truely &s;eek God by Prayer, till they know, under&s;tand, and apply his Name, <HI>Fol. 83. 84.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>We mu&s;t not onely Pray, but Cry, <HI>Fol. 94.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Good Suiters alwayes good Speeders, <HI>Fol. 44. 95.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Three Rules to be ob&s;erved if we expect help from God in di&s;tre&s;&s;e, <HI>Fol. 96. 97.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB N="1" REF="6" MS="y">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Joel 1. Chap. 14. Ver&s;e.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Sanctifie a Fa&s;t, call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly, gather the Elders, and all the Inhabitants of the Land into the Hou&s;e of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_THe wi&s;e&s;t Preacher of a mortall Man, and of immor|tall memory that ever was, or &s;hall be in&s;pired with the &s;pirit of God, &s;aith, <HI>That there is a time to Weep as well as to Laugh, a time to Mourn as well as to Dance:</HI> And &s;urely, &s;eeing every Man and Woman under their own Vines and Figtrees, have a long time &s;atiated them&s;elves with Laughing and Dancing, or making merry with their Friends; doubtle&s;&s;e now, the&s;e &s;ad and cloudy times are the times that call for <HI>Weeping and Mourning, for Baldne&s;&s;e and girding with &s;ackcloth,</HI> For hath not God &s;hot divers of his Arrows, and have not &s;ome Bullers fallen from his Warning peeces? which Arrows and Bullets, poy&s;oned with the Pe&s;tilence, have not many years agoe hit and &s;lain &s;ome People, not onely in and about out Mother Cities, but el&s;e-where in the &s;patious Countries. Who perceiveth not how the de&s;troying Angell hath of late un&s;heathed his Sword, and brandi&s;hed it over us of this Nation of <HI>England?</HI> Who knows not, how in re&s;pect of tho&s;e unhappy differences among&s;t us, Warr thundred in our trembling Countries lap, the Sword devoured the <HI>Grace of England,</HI> and became drunk with the Bloud of Natives;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rovel.</HI> 6.4.</NOTE> The <HI>red Hor&s;e, with him that &s;ate thereon, to whom was given power to take Peace from the Earth, and a great Sword,</HI> &s;till prancing and trampling in our &s;treets, both at Noon|day and at Midnight? Now though the &s;infull Sons and Daughters of men have and &s;till doe lye neverthele&s;&s;e &s;leeping in their &s;en&s;u|alities, yet, the vigilant Watchmen of our <HI>Engli&s;h I&s;rael,</HI> our late
<PB N="2" REF="7" MS="y">Royall <HI>Kings</HI> in their &s;everall Reignes and Governments, ob&s;erving Gods begun Jadgements, and further threatned Puni&s;hments, u&s;u|ally Proclaimed <HI>Ea&s;ts</HI> in the times of common calamity. And his Highne&s;&s;e, (under who&s;e protection and government we now live) hath &s;et a part many dayes of Humiliation, appointing us a place of refuge, or &s;acred Sanctuary to fly unto,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Prov.</HI> 18.10.</NOTE> that &s;trong <HI>Tower,</HI> that right <HI>Arke,</HI> or little <HI>Zoar,</HI> unto which the righteous run, and are pre&s;erved, even unto the Hou&s;e of the Lord our God, carried thi|ther with the feet of Prayer; there, with all fervency, to Pray for the preventing and diverting of Gods further furious hand again&s;t us, crying unto the Lord to &s;pare this Land, to &s;pare this People, to &s;pare us from the Sword, to &s;pare us from the Famine, and from all his &s;ore Judgements which our &s;ins mo&s;t ju&s;tly have de&s;erved; for which purpo&s;e the Trumpet hath been often blown in this our <HI>Sion,</HI> the Fa&s;t Proclaimed and the A&s;&s;embly gathered, according to this of <HI>Joel, Sanctifie a Fa&s;t, call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly, gather the Elders, and all the Inhabitants of the Land into the Hou&s;e of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>This Fountain might divide it &s;elfe into &s;everall Streames; but waving unnece&s;&s;ary Fractions, I &s;hall confine my Di&s;cour&s;e to the&s;e two Heads:
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. <HI>A duty enjoyned,</HI> Sactifie a Fa&s;t.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. <HI>A method, or order pre&s;cribed for the &s;olemne performance of it,</HI> Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly, gather the Elders, &amp;c.</ITEM>
</LIST></P>
<P N="1"><NOTE PLACE="marg">Duty en|joyned.</NOTE>1. The <HI>duty enjoyned,</HI> A duty no le&s;&s;e nece&s;&s;ary then &s;ea&s;onable, For, as S^t. <HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> ob&s;erves, Before the fall there needed but one glorifying of God, that was, <HI>by giving of thanks;</HI> But now &s;ince the fall, by rea&s;on of our many back&s;lidings, there mu&s;t be al&s;o, <HI>Sa|crificium tribulati cordis,</HI> the Sacrifice of a troubled Spirit, for the mortifying of this fle&s;h of ours, which by being too much pam|perd by us, hath been &s;o rebellious again&s;t God.</P>
<P>I &s;hall pa&s;&s;e by the fir&s;t, <HI>the duty enjoyned, or Fa&s;t proclaimed;</HI> my meditations intending to fix upon nothing but that which &s;hall af|ford &s;it matter for mourning, though the Proclamation it &s;elf being alwayes occa&s;ioned either upon begun Judgements, or threatned Puni&s;hments, might give ju&s;t cau&s;e to hoi&s;e up &s;aile in a Sea of &s;orrows, but delighting onely in that heart-breaking, and yet wel plea&s;ing pen&s;ivene&s;&s;e; and therefore ha&s;tening to that Ocean o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">
<PB N="3" REF="7">&s;orrow in the <HI>exit,</HI> or end of the ver&s;e, <HI>&s;ighing, &s;obbing, crying;</HI> I will but &s;alute the <HI>Fa&s;t enjoyned,</HI> and &s;tay but a while to bewayle the&s;e mi&s;erable times into which we are fallen, which being the la&s;t, mu&s;t needs be the wor&s;t, wherein &s;o many are carried away with the &s;everall bla&s;ts of vain Doctrine, from Gods true Religion, to the&s;e follies and fancies, whereby they doe not onely wound Chri&s;ts my&s;tieall Body, but al&s;o di&s;member it in the Common|weale, making &s;o many Factions as there are Functions in the Church, &s;o many fancies as men, and as many opinions as fancies; and to that height of impiety &s;ome are arrived, as that being Chri&s;ts Free-men, they ought not to be &s;ubject to any, but are &s;et free by Chri&s;t from the ob&s;ervation of Fa&s;ts or Fea&s;ts appointed by the Prince or Governour, and not &s;ubmitting to the Government un|der which they live, will hold fa&s;t their liberty purcha&s;ed by Chri&s;t, though the appointment of them by the Governour be onely for the a&s;&s;embly of Gods people, and that upon &s;peciall occa&s;ions, for the exerci&s;es of the Word and Prayer, without placing the wor&s;hip of God, or any force of Religion in the ob&s;ervation of them, or without any opinion of holine&s;&s;e, in tho&s;e dayes, more then other dayes. And thus the Church of <HI>England</HI> did ever ob&s;erve Holy|dayes, Fa&s;ts, or Fea&s;ts, and no otherwi&s;e; and yet did not fore goe their liberty purcha&s;ed by Chri&s;t. I might give way to my Di&s;|cour&s;e in this, and enlarge it to a Volume, but I had rather mourn for this kind of people (the onely troublers of our <HI>Engli&s;h I&s;rael</HI>) then meddle with them: But to you that are peaceable in <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> willingly &s;ubmitting your &s;elves to the Government under which God hath placed you, <HI>and that for Con&s;cience &s;ake;</HI> know you, that it is lawfull for the Dominator or Governour to appoint a Fa&s;t, or day of Hamillation, and you are bound to obey.</P>
<P>For the lawfulne&s;&s;e of their Edicts, I need not &s;tand at all upon it; it hath ever been u&s;ed by Princes of all Ages, for which I might produce clouds of witne&s;&s;es, but &s;earch you the Scriptures, and trace all the Kings.</P>
<P>For our obedience to their commands, know, that we are bound to obey them in their ab&s;olute commands &s;o far forth as they are warranted by the Word of God: And for this, let that praecept of St. <HI>Paul</HI> &s;erve for all;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 13.1. 1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.13.14.</NOTE> <HI>Let every &s;oule be &s;ubject to the higher Pow|ers;</HI> and if every &s;oule, then no man is free. And again, <HI>Submit
<PB N="4" REF="8">your &s;elves to all manner of Ordinance of man, for the Lord &s;ake, who|ther it be unto the King, as unto the Superiour; or unto Governors, as unto them that are &s;ent of him:</HI> So that people that obey not the whole&s;om Laws of the Magi&s;trate, &s;in greatly; and if any refu&s;e to be ordered by them,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 13.2</NOTE> <HI>they re&s;i&s;t the Ordinance of God,</HI> and are &s;peci|ally threatned, <HI>that they &s;hall receive to them&s;elves damnation.</HI></P>
<P>And thus have I &s;howed you, That Princes, or Governours may in the time of War, or other Judgement, <HI>enjoyne us a Fa&s;t, and Proclaime a &s;olemne a&s;&s;embly,</HI> to the end we may te&s;tifie our Hu|miliation, and better attend on the exerci&s;es of the Word and Prayer, and that we are to obey them; but withall, in keeping of a Fa&s;t, let the&s;e cautions be ob&s;erved.</P>
<P N="1">1. That our Fa&s;ting be voyd of &s;uper&s;tition, and that we place no wor&s;hip of God in it, but hold it onely as an help to further us in the duties of Religion.</P>
<P N="2">2. That we have no opinion of merit by it, that thereby we merit forgivene&s;&s;e of &s;ins, increa&s;e of grace, or the like.</P>
<P N="3">3. That we hold it not of ab&s;olute nece&s;&s;ity.</P>
<P N="4">4. La&s;tly, That it be without, breach of the rule of charity, ei|ther hurting our &s;elves, or making us thereby unfit for good duties, or giving offence to others, &s;uch as are weak in knowledge, cau&s;ing them to call our Chri&s;tian liberty into que&s;tion; rather Informing them, that the Magi&s;trate hath power to enjoyn, and we are bound to obey, who by his Authority doth not take away the u&s;e of the things we ab&s;tain from, but onely orders and moderates the &s;ame.</P>
<P>The like may be &s;aid for Fea&s;ts, dayes of Thank&s;giving, or holy dayes; but I pa&s;&s;e them: onely I could wi&s;h, That every one of you would keep every day a Chri&s;tian Fea&s;t, even every day holy day, which you may doe, by purpo&s;ing every day to avoyd all and every &s;in, and by &s;etting your &s;elves every houre of the day in the &s;ight of God, and walking, as before him, carefully and con&s;cionably, in all good duties; and &s;o doing you &s;hall keep a good Con&s;cience, and that the wife man tels us,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Prev.</HI> 15, 15.</NOTE> <HI>is a continuall fea&s;t,</HI> even every day holy day.</P>
<P>And now being fully re&s;olved. That the King or Governour may Lawfully enjoyn us a Publick Fa&s;t in the time of extremity, or any common calamity whereby we may te&s;tifie our Humiliation with out the lea&s;t opinion of meriting forgivene&s;&s;e of our &s;ins (the cau|&s;es of all our mi&s;eries) and that he may Proclaim a &s;olemn a&s;&s;em|bly;
<PB N="5" REF="8">and that we are to obey, not with any opinion of holine&s;&s;e in the time; but that the appointed day is for the a&s;&s;embly and holy convocation of Gods people, for the exerci&s;e of the Word and Prayer. Let us all then, as at all times, &s;o e&s;pecially upon the&s;e dayes of Humiliation &s;et a part, <HI>turne unto the Lord our God, with fa&s;ting, weeping, and mourning, and cry unto the Lord to &s;pare this Nation, and command his de&s;troying Angel to &s;heath his Sword, and cea&s;e from puni&s;hing, that there may be no more complaining, no more leading into captivity. Let us implore Gods gracious power, to with|draw his angry moved hand again&s;t us; and let us beg of the God of mercy, to &s;tay his further dreadfull vengeance, and threatned puni&s;h|ments, from any further di&s;playing horrour throughout all our Nation.</HI> And for that purpo&s;e&punc; Let us run to our place of refuge, <HI>the Hou&s;e of the Lord, upon the feet of Prayer, and there cry unto the Lord to &s;pare this Land, to &s;pare this People, to &s;pare, us from the Sword, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">The occa|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ion, or cau&s;e of the fa&s;t.</NOTE>The next is, <HI>the occa&s;ion, or cau&s;e of this Fa&s;t,</HI> and that, if you plea&s;e to look into the ver&s;es foregoing the Text, you will find to be a great Plague of Famine for the &s;pace of no le&s;&s;e thou foure years;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ver. 20.11.12.13.</NOTE> <HI>Their field wa&s;ted, the<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> mourning, their corne de&s;troyed, their vines dryed up, their oyle <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> their harve&s;t peri&s;hed, all the trees of the field withered, and joy withered away from the Sons of Men</HI> So that ju&s;t cau&s;e had they to lament, and howle, and lye in &s;ackc<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">h and a&s;hes; nay, in du&s;t and a&s;hes. But &s;hould I pro&s;e|cute my weak apprehen&s;ions in this, I &s;hould but draw the Trea|ti&s;e beyond a ju&s;t extent: Let it &s;uffice, That their Land was ru&s;|&s;eted with a bloodle&s;&s;e Famine, a dreary puni&s;hment, Heavens cur&s;e, and the engine of de&s;truction; which doth bring terrour to mortals, death to all things; and therefore good cau&s;e had they, <HI>to call a &s;olemne a&s;&s;embly, to &s;anctifie a Fa&s;t, to gather the Elders, and all the Inhabitants of the Land into the hou&s;e of the Lord their God, and there cry unto the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P>And as theirs was <HI>Famine;</HI> &s;o, the cau&s;e of our &s;olemne a&s;&s;em|blies, or dayes of Humiliation (for &s;ome years by-pa&s;t) hath been <HI>Warre,</HI> and the wor&s;t of Wars, a civill War, our Land unnaturally embroyled in her own blood, and not long agoe, could have pre|&s;ented you even in the midde&s;t of her own bowels, with whole heaps of &s;lain: This Land of <HI>England,</HI> that for many Ages conti|nued the happie&s;t Nation on the habitable Earth, under the graci|ous
<PB N="6" REF="9">our Government of many famous Princes; and we of our times cannot deny, but we have enjoyed the highe&s;t ble&s;&s;ings that either Heaven could give, or the Earth receive, <HI>the fruition of the Go&s;pel,</HI> which then &s;etled a firme Peace, and which Peace occa&s;ioned a full plenty to us, a then thriving, and I think, a well-contented people; in&s;omuch, that this Land then became the <HI>Earths Paradi&s;e,</HI> and the <HI>Worlds Wonder,</HI> or rather, <HI>Envy;</HI> Now alas! the Nurcery of all <HI>Sects,</HI> and of late years, <HI>the Stage of Blood, the Theatre of Warre,</HI> having had her Peace violated, her Plenty wa&s;ted, and her People di&s;contented; and though now (thanks be to God) we heare not the ratling of Drums the cla&s;hing of Armour, the neighing of Hor|&s;es, the &s;ounding of Trumpets, the thundring of Guns, or the roaring of Cannons; yet it is to be feared, the Lord is &s;till up in Armes again&s;t us, his hand is &s;tretched out &s;till; el&s;e, what means the&s;e reports of Wars va&s;t &s;laughters, and murders on the Seas? our Merchants and Traders &s;poyled their Goods Plundered, their Ships burnt, &s;unk, or taken; and them&s;elves in their own defence, either flain, or carried away Captives: So that all this little while, or few years we &s;eemed to enjoy a Pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ce, every man again &s;atiating him&s;elf under his own vine and firtree, was &s;o far from a true Peace with God; as that rather, it forms it was but a Truce for a time, (God expecting our amendment) which being expired, and we &s;till continuing in our &s;ins, the Lord is again up in Arms for further revenge again&s;t us. And what is the rea&s;on that the Lord is &s;till thus incen&s;ed again&s;t this Land, and people of <HI>England?</HI> Surely it is again&s;t the nature of God to be continually chiding, and &s;courg|ing, and whipping, and wounding; for the Lord our God hath no other Bowels, then the Bowels of compa&s;&s;ion; no other Riches, then the riches of his mercy; nay, the unlimited extent of Gods gracious mercy and goodne&s;&s;e, is beyond all imaginable proporti|ons. How coms then his favours to be turned into frownes, his mercies into di&s;plea&s;ures? Why? Surely if you will but trace the Seriptures, you &s;hall never find God angry, but for fin; nor grie|vou&s;ly angry, but for grievous fin; &s;o that the fins of this Nation mu&s;t needs be mounting, towring fins, &s;ins of the highe&s;t elevati|on; and its the height of our &s;ins that hath alwayes brought down the weight of his judgements upon us; and the eart ropes of our &s;ins, have hurried down his vengeance: So that if we will but reflect
<PB N="7" REF="9">upon our &s;elves, we &s;hall find within our &s;elves the cau&s;e of all our &s;ufferings, Plagues, puni&s;hments, and Woes; our &s;ins being the occa&s;ion of all our evils, and the cau&s;e of all our mi&s;eries, under|mining our &s;ouls, and drawing de&s;truction after them, and of all things el&s;e mo&s;t hurtfull unto us. S^t. <HI>Paul</HI> confirms this, &s;aying,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11.30.</NOTE> <HI>For this cau&s;e many are weak and &s;ick among&s;t you, and many &s;leep.</HI> And this was the rea&s;on, why the Di&s;ciples que&s;tioned their Ma&s;ter, &s;aying,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Iohn</HI> 9.2.</NOTE> <HI>Quis peccavit?</HI> Who did &s;in, this man, or his Parents? <HI>Celidonius</HI> was born blind, and our Saviour Chri&s;t going out of the Temple, &s;eeking to &s;hun tho&s;e &s;tones which they intended to throw at him; he ca&s;t his eye upon this poor blind man: for the eye of divine pitty is ever fixed upon poverty; and it is the privi|ledge of humane mi&s;ery, to have the eye of divine pitty to look down upon it, and to favour the &s;ame; &s;o that he healed him at once both in body and &s;oule: The Hi&s;tory is no le&s;&s;e large, then plea&s;ing; you may reade it at your lei&s;ures. Now the Di&s;ciples having whi&s;pered among&s;t them&s;elves touching this mans misfor|tune (well knowing that &s;in what the occa&s;ion of all evill) they askt our Saviour, <HI>Quis peccavit?</HI> what &s;in and? wherein they went wi&s;e|ly to work, in attributing puni&s;hment in the generall to &s;in. One treating of tho&s;e tears which our Saviour &s;hed at <HI>Lazarus</HI> his death &s;aith, <HI>That he did not bewayle his Buriall, for he know how happy he was in being out of the World; but the occa&s;ion,</HI> &s;inne; <HI>He thought upon</HI> Adams <HI>Apple, that had been the cau&s;e of &s;o much hurt; and this was it that made him to weep; and this his weeping was, as if he &s;hould have &s;aid, What a deale of &s;orrow hath this one act of di&s;|obedience in him brought upon all Mankind, and con&s;equently upon me, who mu&s;t bear the burthen of his, and their offence: O &s;in, how dear wilt thou co&s;t both men, and me!</HI> Trace but the Scripture, and you &s;hall not find any one thing &s;o often repeated there as, <HI>That &s;in is the cau&s;e of our mi&s;eries.</HI> How often doth the word of God paint out the foulne&s;&s;e, and grievou&s;ne&s;&s;e of &s;in, and the hurt that coms thereby? making fin the very center of all po&s;&s;ible infelicity and misfortune that can befall a man. Sin was it that made our Savi|our, <HI>a Man full of &s;orrow,</HI> when he took upon him the Per&s;on of an Offender, turning the mo&s;t favourable countenance of the mo&s;t pittifull Father, into frowns and florce di&s;plea&s;ure again&s;t his onely begotten, and dearly beloved Sonne, di&s;charging upon him the
<PB N="8" REF="10">tempe&s;t of his wrath, and made him, of all other men, the mo&s;t mi|&s;erable. So that we may conclude, Sin to be the cau&s;e of all our harm, and that all po&s;&s;ible ill that can be imagined, is to be reduced un|to it, as to its Center. Make a mu&s;ter of all the enemies of man, as <HI>Death, the Devill, the World, and the Fle&s;h,</HI> and not any one of them; nay, not all of them together, have the lea&s;t power to hurt us, without &s;in; And therefore in our Lords Prayer &s;ilencing all other our enemies; onely we beg of God, <HI>that he would free us from &s;in. But deliver us from evill;</HI> which, although &s;ome doe un|der&s;tand it to be &s;poken of the Devill; yet (as S^t. <HI>Aug.</HI> &s;aith) <HI>He can but barke, he cannot bite, onely Sin is able to doe both.</HI> And <HI>An&s;elme</HI> &s;aith, <HI>That he had rather fry without &s;in in the flames of Hell, then with &s;in enjoy Heaven.</HI> He might well &s;ay &s;o in regard of Hell; for although that one drop of the water of Paradi&s;e might be &s;ufficient to quench the &s;lames of Hell; yet &s;hall it not be able to wa&s;h away the foulne&s;&s;e of &s;in. The Prophet de&s;ired of God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Kings</HI> 19.4.</NOTE> <HI>that he might dye under the Juniper tree,</HI> and yet he would not be rid of his life by <HI>Jezabel,</HI> in regard of the &s;inne that tyraunicall Queen &s;hould have committed; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> that, even in his mortall ene|my, &s;o great an ill &s;eemeth intollerable to him. And though &s;in be &s;o great an evill; yet to this &s;o great an hurt, may be added ano|ther that is far greater; and that is, Ob&s;tinacy in &s;in, never to be cured. <HI>Job</HI> painting out this evill, &s;aith. <HI>That the &s;inner taketh plea&s;ure therein, and that it &s;eemeth &s;weet unto him;</HI> it is as pel|lets of &s;ugar under his tongue; he fir&s;t delights in the company of &s;in; then he marries him&s;elfe unto &s;in, and leaves her not, till death them depart. Thus &s;in creepeth into the heart by &s;teps and degrees, till at la&s;t, it &s;inks him down to the bottom of Hell: But woe is pronovnced to that &s;infull Nation, to that people that are laden with iniquity;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 5.18.</NOTE> <HI>Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cord of vanity, and &s;in, as with cart ropes.</HI> For God is a &s;evere puni&s;he<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> of &s;in and his wrath fails not to come and &s;eize on tho&s;e that &s;o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> pillows underneath their &s;ins.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 5.6</NOTE> So S^t. <HI>Paul, Let no man deceive y<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> with vain words, for, for &s;uch things commeth the wrath of God upo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> the children of di&s;obedience.</HI> Was it not &s;in that brought the cur&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> upon <HI>Adam,</HI> and all his Po&s;terity? his Apple proves his poy&s;on<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 23, 28.</NOTE> Saul <HI>for his di&s;obedience, was turned out of his Kingdom.</HI> What <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> the ruine and de&s;truction of Countres, and Cities, but the &s;ins <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">
<PB N="9" REF="10">the People?<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Sam</HI> 24, 15.</NOTE> <HI>Davids &s;ins, and his Pride,</HI> was the death <HI>of &s;eventy thou&s;and</HI> in an in&s;tant; there the people peri&s;heth for the &s;in of the Prince. I could tell you of a Prince that peri&s;hed for the &s;ins of the people, who&s;e like was no King before him, neither after him aro&s;e there any like him: You may find him your &s;elves.<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>King.</HI> 23 25, 26.</NOTE> <HI>Like unto him was there no King before him, that turned to the Lord with all his heart, and with all his &s;oule, and with all his might, according to all the Law of</HI> Mo&s;es, <HI>neither after him aro&s;e there any like him Not|with&s;tanding the Lord turned not from the fiercene&s;&s;e of his wrath, wherewith he was angry again&s;t</HI> Judah <HI>&amp;c.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Kings</HI> 22, 2.</NOTE> Jo&s;iah <HI>a good King, one, who&s;e like was not before him;</HI> Jo&s;iah <HI>who did that which was right in the &s;ight of the Lord; yet</HI> Jo&s;iah <HI>mu&s;t be &s;lain.</HI> Thus you &s;ee when iniquity hath playd her part, vengeance will leape upon the &s;tage. What was the rea&s;on why Gods hand was &s;tretched over this Land, why the Sword devoured, and the people peri&s;hed; but the <HI>&s;ins</HI> of the Nation? And was there ever more &s;inning, or ever le&s;&s;e re|mor&s;e for &s;in? What is this world but the region of <HI>&s;in,</HI> a Sea of filthine&s;ie; and whil&s;t men are bewitched with the delight thereof, how, like Swine doe they wallow in the filthy mire and puddle of their &s;ins? It may be their bodies are curiou&s;ly deckt, and &s;hining; but alas they have na&s;ty and abominable &s;oules. Is not our Land &s;till full of <HI>Achans, looking upon the Wedge of Gold,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Io&s;.</HI> 7, 21.</NOTE> <HI>or Babyloni&s;h Garment?</HI> How is the beauty of <HI>Bath&s;heba</HI> able to entice the great|e&s;t number? <HI>Gehazi</HI> will &s;till po&s;t after <HI>Naaman</HI> for rich pre&s;ents;<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 11, 12.</NOTE> <HI>but the lepro&s;ie follows him clo&s;e at his heels,</HI> vengeance attends him neer. Was there ever more Drinking, Swearing, Stealing, Lying, Envying &amp;c. and &s;ince our <HI>&s;ins</HI> thus cry for vengeance, what won|der is it that the Lord is &s;til up in arms again&s;t us? O then put away your &s;wini&s;h drunkenne&s;&s;e, your prophane &s;wearing, your bruti&s;h fle&s;hline&s;&s;e, your devili&s;h lying and deceiving, your helli&s;h cove|tou&s;ne&s;&s;e, your &s;avage eruelty, and all your other notorieties; and frame the whole cour&s;e of your lives according to the rules of Temperance, Cha&s;tity, Truth, Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and holine&s;&s;e; and &s;o though our &s;ouls be yet all &s;taind with <HI>&s;inue,</HI> they may in time become cleerer and whiter then <HI>&s;now.</HI> Let as all, with a &s;pirituall eye, behold the things of the world &s;eparate from their &s;eeming beauty, and &s;o we &s;hall not be bewitcht therewith. Let us con&s;ider Gold and Silver, not as gli&s;tring and &s;hining, but as dro&s;&s;e and
<PB N="10" REF="11">dung; yea, as poy&s;onous, through a cur&s;e incorporated herewith-all, if our hearts be in&s;ected with the love thereof, or by any un|lawfull means we doe &s;eek after it; Let us con&s;ider the beauty of the faire&s;t woman, as vanity; or as a piece of painted clay; or as a &s;tale &s;et for the taking of &s;illy fooles: And la&s;tly, Let us con&s;ider all other plea&s;ing things, as Drinking, Banqueting, Gaming, Play|ing &amp;c. as the very &s;tinging of a Scorpion, which giveth incredi|ble delight for the pre&s;ent, but is by and by turned into tormenting and deadly pangs, till the man thus &s;tung, peri&s;heth. And there|fore &s;ince <HI>&s;inne</HI> is thus hurtfull, let it be as hatefull unto us, and let us hereafter &s;trive as re&s;olutely again&s;t <HI>&s;in,</HI> as we have formerly &s;erved cheerfully under it. Let us hate all <HI>&s;ins,</HI> of all &s;uits, and keep our &s;elves from all &s;pot of <HI>&s;in;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5, 22.</NOTE> And with S^t. <HI>Paul, Ab&s;taine from all appearance of evill.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Iude, ver. <HI>23.</HI></NOTE> And with <HI>Iude, Hate the very garment &s;potted with the fle&s;h.</HI> In a word, Let us avoyd all <HI>&s;ins,</HI> and have no|thing to doe with the&s;e filthy inmates, that are dayly plotting and contriving to &s;et the whole tenement on fire, and are good for no|thing, but to bring rottenne&s;&s;e into our bones and bowels. And let us not defer to turn from <HI>&s;in,</HI> nor delay till the Morning, but take warning by the fooli&s;h Virgins, <HI>for to morrow</HI> (for ought we know) <HI>may be the midnight of Chri&s;ts call,</HI> when if we be found wallowing in the mire of our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> and &s;tinking puddles of our iniquities, how can we hope or expect to be taken as a&s;&s;ociates to &s;o glorious a Bridegroom? And thus having found the cau&s;e of our &s;ufferings to be in our &s;elves, let us lament for our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> that have brought upon us a burthen &s;o heavy, the onely way to re-infavour us again with our ju&s;tly offended God: And for that purpo&s;e, I &s;hall endeavour my &s;elfe to the utmo&s;t of my skill, to clothe every one of you with a livery of &s;orrow, which is the next in the Text, <HI>the a&s;&s;embly called mu&s;t be &s;olemne; Call an a&s;&s;embly.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Fir&s;t part of the me|thod, or order.</NOTE><HI>Ieru&s;alem</HI> the large&s;t map of mi&s;ery that ever eye beheld, ha|ving been often threatned, often battered, and her vi&s;itation grow|ing neerer and greater then before; Salem <HI>being to become a tribu|tary City,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lam.</HI> 1.4.</NOTE> Jeru&s;alem <HI>a &s;olitary widow, the wayes of</HI> Sion <HI>to mourne, her &s;treets to be empty, her gates de&s;olate, her fea&s;ts unfrequented, her Prie&s;ts to &s;igh, and her Virgins to be afflicted,</HI> &s;he her &s;elfe the object of this &s;ight, and &s;ubject of this &s;orrow,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lam.</HI> 1.2.</NOTE> <HI>to weep day and night, and the tears to run down her cheeks continually,</HI> her plagues
<PB N="11" REF="11" MS="y">growing mighty, becau&s;e her <HI>&s;ins</HI> were waxen many; many com|mitting them, few mourning for them.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ezek. 9.2.5.6.</NOTE> The Lord now &s;endeth <HI>&s;ix</HI> to de&s;troy this City, <HI>commanding them to &s;pare none, nor take no pitty, but to de&s;troy young and old, Maids, Children, and Women; yet to touch none that had the Marke:</HI> and what this marke is, you may &s;ee in the fourth ver&s;e, <HI>Sighing, &s;obbing, crying for the abominati|ons, weeping and mourning for the wickedne&s;&s;e that is committed:</HI> there you &s;hall find a publick Notary &s;ent to take the li&s;t of mourners, their &s;orrow is their &s;afety their lamentation the cau&s;e of their pre&s;ervation; for, for our comforts, mercy hath her lodg|ings taken up in every Town, in every City, in every Country; be Gods judgements never &s;o great, mercy cannot, mercy will not be excluded; the Saints are alwayes priviledged men, they have &s;peciall in munities, <HI>an Arke a Go&s;hen, a Zoar, a City of Refuge</HI> &s;hall be ever prepared.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mat. <HI>5.</HI> to the <HI>12.</HI></NOTE> <HI>The meek, the mercifull, the Peace-maker, the per&s;ecuted the poor in &s;pirit, the pure in heart, and tho&s;e that hunger annd thir&s;t for righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> all the&s;e &s;hall be ble&s;&s;ed; and not onely the&s;e, but <HI>mourners</HI> &s;hall have a part.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 125.5.</NOTE> <HI>The godly may &s;ow in tears but &s;hall reape in joy; thou&s;ands &s;hall fall before them, and ten thou&s;ands at their right hand, but the plague &s;hall not come nigh them.</HI></P>
<P>Our <HI>Engli&s;h Sion</HI> (while tho&s;e unhappy differences, and wofull divi&s;ions continued among&s;t us) was like <HI>Ieru&s;alem,</HI> the very map of mi&s;ery; the Sword devoured, the people peri&s;hed, our &s;ons butcherd, our young men &s;lain, our Goods plunderd, our Lands &s;eque&s;tred, and our bodies Catived; our plagues then grew migh|ty, becau&s;e our &s;ins were waxen many; the mo&s;t committing them, few mourning for them: and it is &s;till to be feared, though we have thus &s;inned, and have thus been puni&s;hed, that there was ne|ver more &s;inning, nor never le&s;&s;e remor&s;e for &s;in; and if againe the Lord &s;hould &s;till be incen&s;ed, and up in arms again&s;t us; what &s;trength were there in us (who are but &s;tubble) to &s;tand before &s;uch a con&s;uming Fire: And therefore to prevent Gods further revenge, and threatned puni&s;hments, &s;ince you have &s;een in <HI>Eze|kiel,</HI> that tears are the pre&s;ervatives of the living (for not a &s;igh is &s;ent out, but is heard in Heaven, not a teare but is kept nor a groane, but it coms before God) let us &s;igh and cry for all the abominations of the times let us weep for the &s;ins of the Nation,
<PB N="12" REF="12">let us lament for out &s;ins, the cau&s;e of all our &s;ufferings, and wee; let &s;orrow now cloath us, and mourning cloud us; let our Fore|heads be marked with a down-right &s;olemne mourning; the A&s;|&s;embly called mu&s;t be &s;olemne, <HI>Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</HI></P>
<P>The word <HI>&s;olemne,</HI> which is as much as <HI>&s;erious, &s;ad, and heavy,</HI> me thinks may well contain furniture for the times of mourning, and having never more cau&s;e, I wi&s;h I might robe you with the garment of heavine&s;&s;e: The Text Proclaims <HI>a &s;olemne a&s;&s;embly,</HI> and wills you to mourn for the &s;ins of the Land; the word <HI>&s;olemn,</HI> me thinks, wills us all to lay a&s;ide our wanton, &s;uperfluous, and &s;upercilious &s;ales of Pride, and put on &s;ables, mourning habili|ments, I mean, heavy, &s;ad, and &s;olemn countenances outwardly, to te&s;tifie our &s;orrow inwardly; becau&s;e the Lord hath turn'd his favours into frowns; He that formerly cloathed us with Beauty, did again cloath us with Lepro&s;ie; He that formerly cloathed us with Health and Happine&s;&s;e, did again, in &s;tead of a Garment, give us a Rent, and plagued us with the Sword, and other deadly poy|&s;onous, and Infectious Di&s;ea&s;es.</P>
<P>Will you look a little into the rifling of a Wardrobe in <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> the Inventory you will find taken in the third chapter, from the 18. ver. to the end of the 23. <HI>The bravery of their ornaments, and chains, and bracelets, and mufflers, and bonnets, and tablets, and eare|rings, and rings, and ornaments of the legs; and changeable &s;ults of apparell, and mantles, and wimples, and cri&s;ping pins, and gla&s;&s;es, and boods, &amp;c.</HI> But the de&s;truction of all this Foeminine Furniture, you &s;hall find in the next ver&s;es, from the 24. to the end. <HI>It &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e that in &s;tead of a &s;weet &s;mell, there &s;hall be a &s;tinke; in &s;tead of a girdle, a rent: in &s;tead of well &s;et haire, baldne&s;&s;e; and in &s;tead of a &s;tomacher, a girding with &s;ackcloth; and burning in &s;tead of beauty. The gates &s;hall lament and mourne.</HI></P>
<P>The &s;tory &s;heweth what our &s;tate was (God grant we have not cau&s;e again to &s;ay, is) for, &s;o we &s;inned, &s;o we were plagued; and, me thinks, &s;hould be &s;ufficient to &s;tir up all the powers, and pa&s;&s;ions of &s;orrow in every one of us; this, me thinks, &s;hould be &s;ufficient to &s;et open tho&s;e ci<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">terns of our &s;ouls, that rivers of tears may flow from our heart-breaking, yet well-plea&s;ing pen&s;ivene&s;&s;e; for the nature of griefe doth utterly exile all objects of plea&s;ure; and when true &s;orrow &s;its her down in a &s;tupid, and a &s;tupendious
<PB N="13" REF="12">manner, and calls for Heaven above to weep with her, the Earth beneath to lament, the Rocks to cleave, the Mountains to Eccho forth groans, and the Rivers to run with tears of griefe, the <HI>I&s;rae|lites</HI> did not more loath, then &s;uch &s;orrow as this doth delight to &s;it down on the banks of <HI>Babylon;</HI> her Mu&s;ick is <HI>Lachrymae,</HI> or <HI>Dolo|ro&s;o;</HI> &s;he is as <HI>Rachel</HI> in her hard labour, &s;he no &s;ooner conceives, but is delivered; and no &s;ooner delivered, but conceives againe; her throbs and throws almo&s;t divide her &s;oule from her &s;elfe, but that her &s;olace being in divi&s;ion, that which killeth others, keepeth her alive; emptine&s;&s;e in the bowels, blackne&s;&s;e on the back, round about &s;pectacles of mi&s;ery, all circum&s;tances to make &s;orrow greater then her &s;elfe. Surely our cau&s;e was, and is great, <HI>&s;inne</HI> being the cau&s;e of our mi&s;ery, Let then our tears be many; let us put on the garments of lamentation; let mourning be the marke of our Foreheads; let our hearts be heavy, our bodies faint, our looks &s;ad, and our countenance &s;olemne; and e&s;pecially upon our Fa&s;t dayes, or dayes of Humiliation; let us all goe mourning to the Hou&s;e of the Lord our God, with garments rent, and with &s;ackcloth cloathed; <HI>Let the Bride goe forth of her chamber; Let the Prie&s;ts weep between the Porch and the Altar; Nay, howle ye poor Firr-trees, and let the Hou&s;e of</HI> David <HI>mourne; and let all the Inhabitants of the land mourne, and weep, and lament; and let our lamentation be as the mourning of</HI> Hadadrimmon <HI>in the Valley of</HI> Megiddo: <HI>And let the land bewayle every Family apart; Let weep|ing be in all the ends of our Nation, and complaining in the &s;treess of every City; Towne, and Country, crying in the chambers of every hou&s;e, Woe, and alas, Woe unto us that we have &s;inned.</HI> Nay, let all the Orders and Companies of every &s;everall holy convocation throughout this Land of <HI>England,</HI> from the Ruler to the Subject, from the Prie&s;t to the People, from the Honourable Councellour to him that draweth Water, from the Men of gray years to the yong Child and Suckling, all plentifully water their Cheeks with Tears. Let &s;ighs be their ordinary Language to our offended God, and cry unto the Lord to &s;pare us from the Sword &amp;c. Our occa|&s;ion is ju&s;t, our cau&s;e is good, for our <HI>&s;ins</HI> are great, and our God is incen&s;ed, and therefore &s;olemnity expects it, <HI>Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</HI></P>
<P>Obj. <HI>But perhaps &s;ome will &s;ay, What needs all this adoe? what
<PB N="14" REF="13">needs this &s;ad behaviour, or &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly? Doth not God &s;ea the heart? and if our bearts can but bleed in &s;orrow for &s;in, What need our eyes weep, our tongues lament, our countenances be &s;ad, or our whole behaviour &s;olemne?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;.</HI> The rea&s;on is, (though I might give you &s;everall, yet being in ha&s;t, take this one for all, as the maine) Becau&s;e the Lord our God, is Lord as well of Body, as of Soule; and as well of Soule, as of Body: And therefore in performing any &s;ervice unto him, he expects-both in his Service and Wor&s;hip, as in Prayer, our Knees mu&s;t be bended to him, in &s;igne of our humility; our Eyes, our Hands, our Hearts, and all mu&s;t be li&s;ted up unto him, in &s;igne of our confidence. So in lamenting our <HI>&s;ins.</HI> Let our Eyes weep, our Brea&s;ts &s;igh, our Tongues complain, our whole Body faint, and our Soule langui&s;h: &s;ee <HI>Mary</HI> weeping, <HI>Peter</HI> weeping, and <HI>Jeremy</HI> never making an end of weeping for the <HI>&s;ins</HI> of his people. Be&s;ides the&s;e outward circum&s;tanees doe mo&s;t lively ex|pre&s;&s;e our inward &s;orrows: Down, down then with all the &s;ignes and &s;ales of Vanity, and in true &s;orrow and humility, humble your &s;elves before God, and cry unto the Lord &s;aying, praying, <HI>Enter not O Lord into judgement with thy &s;ervants, for in thy &s;ight no fle&s;h &s;hall be ju&s;tified. Keep us O God from the cur&s;ed cu&s;tome of &s;inning, and from the direfull executioners of vengeance; e&s;pecially from the Sword,</HI> Good Lord deliver us.</P>
<Q>Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</Q>
<P>It was an ordinary cu&s;tome in any common calamity, <HI>to rent their garments, put on &s;ackcloth, and mourne in a&s;hes.</HI> When the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> found want of the favour of God, they put off their wonted Garments; as in <HI>Gene&s;is,</HI> in <HI>Amos,</HI> in <HI>Iob,</HI> in <HI>Ionah</HI> may be found: But not to &s;tay at all upon the renting of garments, and cloathing with &s;ackeloth, nor to dwell any longer upon &s;ad be|haviours, heavy countenances, or &s;olemne A&s;&s;emblies; Ile onely wi&s;h you ob&s;erve, how that the &s;orrow and &s;adne&s;&s;e of &s;pirit, draws the Body, and all the abiliments of the Body, into the participation, and manife&s;tation of griefe; and indeed, how is it po&s;&s;ible, that our countenance &s;hould te&s;tifie gladne&s;&s;e, when our hearts are heavy. And though I grant, that it is not needfull now to u&s;e &s;uch &s;hadows in the light of the Go&s;pel, which hath brought us greater liberty: So that when&s;oever you reade, or heare of
<PB N="15" REF="13"><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 22.12.</NOTE><HI>Weeping, Mourning, Baldne&s;&s;e, or girding with Sackcloth,</HI> repen|tance by the&s;e &s;ignes, are but thereby noted out unto us; for Re|pentance neither con&s;i&s;ts in &s;ackcloth, nor a&s;hes, nor in any ex|ternall thing, but onely in the heart: Tho&s;e who doe in good ear|ne&s;t Repent, and are di&s;plea&s;ed with them&s;elves, they hate their <HI>&s;ins,</HI> and are touched to the quick with &s;uch a &s;en&s;e and feeling of &s;orrow, that they abhor and dete&s;t them&s;elves, and their life pa&s;t; and by the&s;e outward &s;ignes, they give te&s;timony of their inward &s;orrow; &s;o that humbling them&s;elves before God, they therewith|all &s;hew te&s;timony of that di&s;plea&s;ure they had conceived in them&s;elves before men; &s;o that indeed, the &s;ignes alone are no|thing, and the Ceremonies are indifferent; neither have we any Commandement to put on &s;ackcloth, or to pluck off our haire; but the occa&s;ion of this Di&s;cour&s;e, and naming of the&s;e Signes and Ceremonies, is, That I might the better prevaile with you all, willingly, and in good earne&s;t, to put the truth of the&s;e &s;ignes in practice; namely, to have an un&s;aigned di&s;plea&s;ure with your &s;elves, that you have &s;o di&s;plea&s;ed your God; confe&s;&s;e your <HI>&s;ins,</HI> your rebellions, your offences, and that with a broken heart, and &s;orrowfull &s;oule, with an intent to leade a new life; and here|after, as re&s;olutely to &s;trive again&s;t <HI>&s;in,</HI> as we have formerly &s;er|ved cheerfully under it; for if we judge not our &s;elves worthy of puni&s;hment, we cannot come into favour with God: And there|fore, as the poor Malefactor bows down his face, and cloaths him|&s;elfe in vile and ba&s;e rayment, to move the heart of the Judge; &s;o ought we, to run in all humility to Gods mercy, in our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, with unfaigned te&s;timonies of our inward Repen|tance; for conver&s;ion begins at the heart: So the Prophet <HI>Joel. Rent your hearts, and not your garments;</HI> And therefore to leave the &s;ignes, to pa&s;&s;e by the ceremonies, and clo&s;e up all in our mourning weeds, our heavy countenances, &s;ad behaviours, and &s;olemne a&s;&s;emblies; let us be &s;ure to cloath mourning minds, and truely &s;orrowfull &s;oules. <HI>Augu&s;tine</HI> is &s;aid <HI>to weep a &s;hower of teares.</HI> Ambro&s;e, <HI>a flood of tears.</HI> And I am &s;ure <HI>Jeremy wi&s;ht for a Fountain of tears.</HI> Certain it is, that none of us can condole &s;o much as we ought, for our <HI>&s;ins</HI> are many, and Gods plagues are mighty: and therefore a deluge of tears were little enough to bear the Ark of our &s;orrow for our <HI>&s;ins.</HI> I have thus far brought
<PB N="16" REF="14" MS="y">you &s;orrowing towards this deluge, this &s;ea, this fountaine of &s;orrow; let us &s;till follow on with paces of lamentation, and &s;or|rowfull remembrances of our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> which have forced the Lord to his Armoury, and to put on the garments of Vengeance again&s;t us. And for that purpo&s;e, I &s;hall endeavour to robe your &s;elves with mourning garments, and cloath them with the inward &s;ack|cloth of &s;orrow, that your hearts thus rent, and torne to pieces with godly griefe, you may cry more earne&s;tly to the God of mercy, to &s;pare this Land, and not adde to our afflictions, lea&s;t tho&s;e that have evill will at our <HI>Engli&s;h Sion,</HI> rejoyce and tri|umph at our pre&s;ent mi&s;eries.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Souls &s;orrow, outward griefe.</NOTE>The word <HI>Solemne,</HI> &s;hews that our outward &s;orrow &s;hould te|&s;tifie our inward griefe; &s;o that, that which went before, was but the Signe; we now come to the Truth. For our part, we pro|nounce not renting of cloaths onely, without the putting on of other robes; not &s;o much wi&s;hing you to put on &s;ackcloth, as to put on Chri&s;t. <HI>Ind<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">e,</HI> is the voyce of Scripture; not <HI>Scindite; Put on, not Rent off;</HI> the Originall being from that of S^t. <HI>Paul, Put on the Lord Ie&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> which will be the better performed, if you plea&s;e to acquaint your &s;elves with this inward mourning; not <HI>Scindite Ve&s;timenta;</HI> but <HI>Scindite Corda: Rent not your cloathes but rent your hearts.</HI> And it was not without much rea&s;on. that <HI>Solomon</HI> gives councell, <HI>To goe to the hou&s;e of mourn|ing; E&s;t enim illie benedictio,</HI> there is performed that ble&s;&s;ing which Chri&s;t promi&s;eth:<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 5.4.</NOTE> A ble&s;&s;ing is promi&s;ed no where to <HI>mirth,</HI> but to <HI>Mourning:</HI> our Saviour hath annexed this reward. And &s;urely, the keeping under of the &s;oule, is much available to all religious and devout offices: and I am &s;ure, there ought to be &s;or|row in every &s;oul. The whole cour&s;e of our Saviours life, was &s;pent in &s;olitary &s;orrow; and doubtle&s;&s;e, the cau&s;e of his &s;ufferings be|ing in us, <HI>our Sins;</HI> we had need, all the dayes of our Pilgrimage, lament for our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> that brought upon our Ie&s;us a burthen &s;o heavy; in&s;omuch, that not <HI>Ieremy</HI> onely, but all Man-kind, may Write lamentations: So that, <HI>Non finire, &s;ed &s;emper re&s;ervare la|chrymas debemus;</HI> We had need never make an end of mourning never end our &s;orrows for <HI>Sin;</HI> intermit them we may, but &s;til<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> let us keep our acquaintance with them. That of <HI>Hierome,</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> confe&s;&s;e is true, <HI>Dete&s;tandae &s;unt illae lachrymae, quae non habe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">
<PB N="17" REF="14" MS="y">modum;</HI> Mourning without mea&s;ure is a Hell upon Earth: Yet again, <HI>Dete&s;tandi &s;unt qui carent lachrymis;</HI> they are to be dete|&s;ted that have no mea&s;ure of this heavenly Manna; but happy were we, if we could for ever continue our mourning for <HI>Sinne,</HI> and for the abominations of the Land. God hath already given us the cup of his wrath to drink off, and we have ta&s;ted deeply of the cup of his di&s;plea&s;ure; we have &s;een affliction in the rod of indignation: this Land hath pre&s;ented us with &s;ad &s;pactacles, whole heaps of &s;lain. O how &s;hould the remembrance of our late &s;ufferings, &s;et open again the Fountains and Floodgates of &s;orrow that rivers of tears might flow from our pen&s;ive hearts! And if the Lord &s;hall again be incen&s;ed, by rea&s;on of our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> which are as many, and great as ever; what can we expect, but having already begun to ta&s;te of the bitter cup of his wrath and di&s;plea&s;ure, he will force us the next time, to drink it down to the dregs? But &s;ince that groans and &s;orrow for <HI>Sin,</HI> is the onely way to appea&s;e Gods wrath, being far better to deale with him by tears, then by words; and &s;eeing there is no &s;orrow to that of the &s;oule, though the eyes of the body &s;hould wax blind with weeping, Let us &s;hower down rivers of tears, let us plentifully water our cheeks with tears, and &s;igh, and &s;ob, and weep, and howle, and cry unto the Lord to &s;pare us from the Sword; and let this our lamentation and mourning be <HI>coram,</HI> not <HI>clam,</HI> not onely privately, but openly, e&s;pecially upon our Fa&s;t dayes, or dayes of Humiliation; for as &s;olemnity expects it, &s;o antiquity pre&s;cribes it, the A&s;&s;embly called mu&s;t be &s;olemne, <HI>Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</HI></P>
<P>Obj. <HI>But perhaps &s;ome will &s;ay, God expects not this inward and outward &s;orrow in his &s;ervice, this heart-breaking, and body-faint|ing, our eyes weeping, and our &s;ouls langui&s;hing; for God wills, that we &s;hew our &s;elves glad and cheerfull when we &s;erve him.</HI> Aaron <HI>was &s;ad for the death of his Sonnes; and</HI> Mo&s;es <HI>reprehending him, becau&s;e he had not eaten that day of the Sacriifice; he told him,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Levit.</HI> 10.19.20.</NOTE> Quomodo potui comedere, aut placere Deo in ceremoniis mente lugubri? <HI>How could I eat, or plea&s;e God in the ceremo|nies with a mourufull mind? and the text &s;aith, that</HI> Mo&s;es <HI>re&s;ted &s;atisfied. The Starrs being called by their Creator to give their light, they are &s;aid to doe it,</HI> Cum judicate, <HI>with delight, or cheer|fully.
<PB N="18" REF="15">When we &s;erve the Lord, we are bidden to &s;erve him with alacrity:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 6.17</NOTE> <HI>When we fa&s;t, the Word bids us, Anoynt our heads, that we &s;eem not to men to fa&s;t;</HI> Unge Caput tunm. <HI>But the fa&s;t here enjoyned, and the A&s;&s;embly called, mu&s;t be &s;olemne. How &s;tands this together, the Scripture bids us both be merry and mourn in the Service of God?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;.</HI> The an&s;wer may well be this, That all our felicity con|&s;i&s;ting in &s;orrow for <HI>&s;inne,</HI> we may very well be merry to &s;ee our &s;elves &s;ad: Green Wood being put upon the Fire, both weeps and burns; a deep Valley is cleare on the one &s;ide, and cloudy on the other; and mans brea&s;t is &s;ad in one part, and joyfull in another.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">. 7. <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span"></NOTE> S^t. <HI>Paul</HI> &s;pecifies two &s;orts of &s;orrow; one which grows from God; the other from the World: that gives life, this death. And furely that &s;oule that &s;orrows for his <HI>Sins,</HI> gives glory un|to God. It was commanded in <HI>Leviticus,</HI> that they &s;hould cele|brate with great &s;olemnity a day of expiation;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> <HI>23.27.</HI> &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Et affligetis ani|mas ve&s;tras;</HI> and ye &s;hall afflict your &s;oules. It &s;eems not to &s;ound well, that men &s;hould make a great Fea&s;t, with afflicting their &s;oules: but for Gods Friend, no Fea&s;t ought to be accoun|ted &s;o great, as to offer unto him a &s;orrowfull and a contrite heart; for as there is nothing more &s;ad then <HI>Sin,</HI> &s;o is there no|thing &s;o cheerfull, as to bewayle it. All our di&s;hone&s;t actions are but carne&s;ts layd down for griefe; for Vice is ever an infallible forerunner of wretchedne&s;&s;e; and all our unwarrantable aberra|tions end at la&s;t, either in angui&s;h, or confu&s;ion: for <HI>Sin,</HI> on the be&s;t condition, brings but &s;orrow with it; and for <HI>Sinne</HI> without &s;orrow, is provided Hell. Then down to your Knees, and de&s;ire of God that he would give you a ta&s;t of the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of tears, and your &s;oules once ta&s;ting the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of tears, will not leave them for a world; for tears are the delight of a penitent; and there is no true joy, but in &s;orrow for <HI>Sin.</HI> So that all our feli|city con&s;i&s;ting in &s;orrow for our <HI>&s;ins,</HI> we may very well be mer|ry, to &s;ee our &s;elves &s;ad; and if our &s;orrow cannot move men to godline&s;&s;e, yet it is forcible to move God to mercy: The broken heart, for griefe of <HI>&s;inne,</HI> and love of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, (however the world de&s;pi&s;e it) the Lord will not de&s;pi&s;e it; yea, it is the &s;acrifice of God, acceptable to him in Chri&s;t Je&s;us. Therefore &s;aith one,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Augu&s;t.</NOTE> <HI>Lachrymae &s;unt cordis &s;anguis;</HI> Tears are
<PB N="19" REF="15" MS="y">the hearts blood: And, <HI>Lachrymarum preces utiliores &s;unt quam &s;ermonum;</HI> The prayers of teares are far more profitable then tho&s;e of words. Saint <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome</HI> &s;ayes, <HI>That our &s;ins are &s;et downe in the table-book of Gods memory, but teares are the &s;punge which blot them out againe.</HI> In a word, tho&s;e teares that &s;low from a broken heart, are that &s;alt brine that will eure your wounds, cheere your &s;ouls, ea&s;e your con&s;ciences, and plea&s;e your God; they take away all raw humors, and make us &s;avoury meat for the Lord: nay more, they &s;ubdue the Invincible, and binds the Omnipotent; &s;o S^t. <HI>Hierome, Oratio Deum leuit, lachryma cogit;</HI> who would not then mourn for <HI>&s;in,</HI> and grieve, becau&s;e they cannot grieve enough? and be earne&s;t with God, in S^t. <HI>Au|gu&s;tins</HI> expre&s;&s;ion, <HI>Domine da mihi gratiam lachrymarum,</HI> Lord give me the grace of tears. Then weep for your &s;elves, and weep for others, weep for the &s;ins of the times, for the abominations of the Land, <HI>and cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>The text I took up for your u&s;e of purpo&s;e in the&s;e &s;ad times and God grant it may be as profitable unto you, as I'me &s;ure its fit for the&s;e &s;orrowfull &s;ea&s;ons; and though I wi&s;h no end to your mourning, yet having led you thus far, &s;orrowing for your &s;ins, and the &s;ins of the times; let us look back a little upon the Fa&s;t enjoyned; which having done, I &s;hall again take you by the hand, and leade you into the hou&s;e of mourning, the place appointed, <HI>the Hou&s;e of the Lord your God,</HI> and &s;o goe along by the banks of <HI>Babylon,</HI> to the end or <HI>exit</HI> of the ver&s;e, where we &s;hall meet with nothing but <HI>lachryma,</HI> and <HI>&s;u&s;picia,</HI> Tears, &s;ighs, &s;obs, &s;orrows, deploration, lamentation, fit meditations for our &s;orrowfull &s;ouls; for the end doth hold a corre&s;pondency with the begin|ning, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Sanctifie a fa&s;t.</NOTE>Again&s;t &s;ome Vertues, &s;ome Emulators have not &s;tuck to &s;peak; but again&s;t Fa&s;ting, no man ever opened his mouth. <HI>Ma|homet</HI> him&s;elfe, never denyed the noblene&s;&s;e of Fa&s;ting; but ra|ther &s;o much commended it, that our Fa&s;tings &s;hould be a&s;hamed to &s;tand in competition with theirs. And I find &s;uch forcible Arguments upon this point, that, me thinks, its but a &s;uperfluous labour to advi&s;e whether it be to be done, or no. Its but &s;u|perfluous to advi&s;e a man that is &s;ick, to ob&s;erve a dyet; &s;o its as
<PB N="20" REF="16">needle&s;&s;e a thing, to command a man to Fa&s;t, who from the be|ginning of the world took a &s;urfet of eating. <HI>Ninive</HI> was &s;aved by Fa&s;ting. And <HI>Joel,</HI> me thinks, propo&s;eth the like means, when he cryes unto the people, <HI>Convertimini ad me in jejunio,</HI> Turne unto me in Fa&s;ting, &amp;c.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">The anti|quity of fa&s;ting.</NOTE>For the antiquity of Fa&s;ting, we find, That when the Law of Grace was fir&s;t publi&s;hed through the world, Fa&s;ting was Pro|claimed. John <HI>came neither eating nor drinking.</HI> And the fir&s;t &s;tep of our Saviours pennance for our &s;ins, was <HI>Fa&s;ting;</HI> in token that our fir&s;t hurt came by <HI>Eating.</HI> The fir&s;t Law that God gave man after that he had Created him, was,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gen.</HI> 2.17.</NOTE> <HI>That he &s;hould not Eat of the tree of Knowledge of good and evill:</HI> wherein two things were to be noted; the one, That man in this &s;o great an happi|ne&s;&s;e, &s;hould not forget that he had a Lord and Ma&s;ter. The other had an eye to the repairing of his future fault, and that man might under&s;tand that he &s;hould in Fa&s;ting find a remedy for that hurt which came unto him by Eating. And as a wi&s;e Phy&s;itian feeling the &s;ick mans Pul&s;e, finds out his ill di&s;po&s;ition, and per|ceiving that his &s;ickne&s;&s;e grew from that ill ripened Fruit, which even to this day is not yet fully dige&s;ted, did pre&s;cribe this <HI>Recipe,</HI> as a Medicine to cure this our Malady; to the end, that as a man did Eat to &s;ickne&s;&s;e, &s;o he might Fa&s;t to health: And as Gluttony did bani&s;h us from Paradi&s;e, &s;o Fa&s;ting might recall us thither again. So that not Fa&s;ting was the cau&s;e of all evills, &s;in, as you have it before, was the cau&s;e of all our mi&s;ery. Now, out not Fa&s;ting, I meane not ab&s;taining from the <HI>forbidden Fruit,</HI> was the &s;in; &s;o that all tho&s;e evills that are now in the world, are in recompence of that wrong which was done in Paradi&s;e unto Fa&s;ting. And not onely our fir&s;t Parents &s;marted for it, but all their Po&s;terity even to this day; and if any thing help this &s;ur|feit, it mu&s;t be Fa&s;ting. The Prodigall cryes out, <HI>Fame perco,</HI> I dye by hunger; whereupon this pre&s;ently followeth, <HI>Surgam, ibo ad Patrem meum,</HI> I will ari&s;e, and goe to my Father; It was Fa&s;t|ing and Hunger there you &s;ee, that re&s;tored him pre&s;ently to his former e&s;tate. So that if our ancient lo&s;t liberty could po&s;&s;ibly be repayred, it were no wayes better to be recovered, then by Fa&s;ting; and if by Fa&s;ting, the &s;hip of this our life takes in no
<PB N="21" REF="16">water; and without it, is overwhelmed and drowned. Let us lay the whole lading of all our ill, or good, upon our Fa&s;ting. Saint <HI>Ambro&s;e</HI> proveth, That while Fa&s;ting continued in the World, God did &s;till better, and enrich it with new things: <HI>The fir&s;t day he Created the Light; the &s;econd, Heaven; the third, Earth; the fourth, Sunne, Moone, and Starrs; the fifth, the Fi&s;hes of the Sea, and the fowles of the Ayre;</HI> and though he gave them his ble&s;&s;ing, yet he did not &s;ay unto them that they &s;hould Eat. <HI>The &s;ixth, Bea&s;ts of the field, and Man,</HI> and giving them licence to Eat, the Works of God, and the perfections of the World, were ended; wherein God gave man, as it were, a Watch-word, that <HI>Eating</HI> would be his undoing. And as St. <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome</HI> hath it, <HI>If in that &s;o happy an e&s;tate, Fa&s;ting was &s;o nece&s;&s;ary, what &s;hall it be in this mi&s;erable condition of ours?</HI> Saint <HI>Johns</HI> Di&s;ciples &s;aid unto Chri&s;t, <HI>Ma&s;ter, Why doe we and the Phari&s;ees Fa&s;t, and thy Di&s;ciples Fa&s;t not?</HI> He an&s;wered, <HI>While the Bridegroome is pre&s;ent, the Children are not to weep; but the time &s;hall come wherein they &s;hall not have him with them, and then they &s;hall Fa&s;t and Mourne:</HI> The pre|&s;ence of our Saviour, and the enjoying of his mo&s;t &s;weet com|pany, did bridle their appetites, and keep their &s;oules in &s;ubje|ction; but in his ab&s;ence, he inferreth, that this mu&s;t he done by Fa&s;ting. I might &s;tay to tell you of miraculous effects by Fa&s;ting, in <HI>Niniveh,</HI> in <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> in <HI>Elias,</HI> in <HI>Daniel,</HI> in <HI>Ea&s;ter,</HI> in the Mothers of <HI>Samp&s;on,</HI> and <HI>Samuel,</HI> in <HI>Judith</HI> in others: and how <HI>David</HI> with Fa&s;ting, covered the faults of his whole life. <HI>Sola gula peccavit</HI> (&s;aith Saint-Bernard) <HI>&s;ola jeju<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">et, &amp; &s;ufficit:</HI> Onely Gluttony offended, let Grutteny onely Fa&s;t, and it &s;uffi|ceth; not that the Vertue con&s;i&s;teth wholly in ab&s;taining from Meat, for our Saviour Fa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">ed, but when he was oppre&s;&s;ed, with Hunger, he did Eat. And the like may every good Chri&s;tian doe; yet a man may deny that to de&s;ire, which he may grant to ne|ce&s;&s;ity. So that, <HI>Carnis curam n&egrave; feceritis in de&s;ider<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">is:</HI> Let the cockering of your Fle&s;h be no part of your de&s;ire: but the maine, or principall Fa&s;ting is, to Fa&s;t from &s;in, to which the other Fa&s;ting is but onely a preparative. So that all this Di&s;|cour&s;e touching Fa&s;ting, is but &s;uperfluous, having &s;uch forcible Arguments to move us thereunto. I rather therefore think bet|ter
<PB N="22" REF="17">to advi&s;e you how it ought to be done, and that without tre&s;pa&s;&s;ing at all again&s;t my own ea&s;e, you your &s;elves may &s;uffi|ciently &s;ee, in that of Saint <HI>Paul</HI> to the <HI>Corinthians, Sive come|datis, &s;ive bibatis, &s;ive quid aliud facitis, omnia in gloriam Dei facite:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.31.</NOTE> Whether ye eat, or drink, doe all to the glory of God. Which that ye may the better doe, in your Fa&s;ting ob&s;erve the&s;e foure particulars.</P>
<P N="1">1. That we mu&s;t not onely doe good, but &s;hun evill: let us not be like tho&s;e Hypocrites, whom the wind of vain glory rob'd of all the good they did: we are but du&s;t; and the Go&s;pel bids us beware of Winde,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 6.16.</NOTE> that we be not carried away therewith; this vain o&s;tentation of man, hanging our Con&s;ciences upon other mens lips: but for our parts, we mu&s;t not onely doe good, but &s;hun evill.</P>
<P N="2">2. We mu&s;t acknowledge, That our Fa&s;tings and good works, are more from God, then our &s;elves; <HI>Non po&s;&s;umns cogitare ali|quid ex nobis:</HI> Of our &s;elves we cannot &s;o much as think a good thought. Mans poverty is &s;o great, that he cannot &s;o much as come to a good thought, and therefore may not make Merchan|di&s;e of that wealth which is none of his own: but God is &s;o free in the works of Vertue, and &s;o bountifull, That being at all the charge him&s;elfe, he gives thee all the gaine; onely he wills, that thou give the glory unto him, and take the profit to thy &s;elfe. That workman &s;hall doe ill, who having built a hou&s;e with ano|ther mans pur&s;e, &s;hould goe about to &s;et up his own Arms upon the Fronti&s;piece. <HI>Ju&s;tinian</HI> made a Law, <HI>That no Ma&s;ter worke|man &s;hould &s;et up his name within the body of that Building which he made out of anothers co&s;t.</HI> Chri&s;t &s;ets thee on work, and wills thee <HI>to Fa&s;t, to Pray, to give Almes;</HI> but who is at the co&s;t of this &s;o good and great a worke? God: thou ha&s;t all thy materi|alls from him, the building is his, it is his Pur&s;e that payes for all; give then the Glory and the Honour to him: <HI>Gloriam meam alteri non dabo:</HI> I will not give my Glory to another; content thou thy &s;elfe with Heaven, which is promi&s;ed unto thee, if thou do&s;t well, which is a &s;ufficient reward for any &s;ervice thou cau&s;t doe.</P>
<P N="3">3. Beware of Hypocri&s;ie in Fa&s;ting. <HI>Fa&s;ting, Praying, and
<PB N="23" REF="17">giving of Almes,</HI> done onely for Gods &s;ake, is of that great price and e&s;timation, that it is ill imployed on any other then God; and for that, God weighes all things in his hand, as in a ballance, and knows the weight of every good work, and the true value thereof; it grieves him that they &s;hould doe the&s;e good things for &s;o vile and ba&s;e a price, and is &s;orry to &s;ee thee &s;o fooli&s;h, and poor a Merchant, that thou wilt part with that which is as much worth as Heaven to thee, for that which is le&s;&s;e then Earth; namely, that the World &s;hould onely &s;ay, <HI>thou ha&s;t Fa&s;ted.</HI> Why doe&s;t thou thus crucifie thy fle&s;h? why debarre thy belly of food? why being ready to dye for hunger, do&s;t thou not eat? why lifte&s;t thou up thine eyes to Heaven, for &s;o poor a thing, as to win applau&s;e upon Earth? Tho&s;e works &s;aith <HI>Iob,</HI> that are done for God, are <HI>Gold;</HI> but done for the World, are <HI>Dirt;</HI> they lay up this their trea&s;ure in the Tongues and Eyes of men, which is a Che&s;t that hath neither Lock nor Key unto it.</P>
<P N="4">4. <HI>Fa&s;ting</HI> is a Plai&s;ter for our wounds, a Medicine for our Griefes, a Salve for our Sins, and a Defence again&s;t Gods Wrath; but you mu&s;t take heed that you doe not make this Plai&s;ter, Poy|&s;on; this medicine, &s;ickne&s;&s;e; this &s;alve, a &s;ore; and this defence, your de&s;truction: for where God hath a Church, there the Devill will have a Chappell; and where he throws in Seed, there the other will &s;ow Tares.<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 King. 21</NOTE> <HI>Naboth,</HI> a Subject of King <HI>Ahabs</HI> had a Vineyard in <HI>Samaria,</HI> neer unto the Kings Pallace; the King had a mind unto it: <HI>Naboth</HI> will not part with it; the King grows &s;ad, refu&s;es his meat: <HI>Ie&s;ubel</HI> comes to &s;ee him, makes a je&s;t of it; takes Pen in Hand, di&s;patches a Ticket to the Governours of that City, &s;ealed with the Kings Seale, to Proclaime a Fa&s;t, &s;ubornes two Witne&s;&s;es to &s;weare, <HI>That they heard</HI> Naboth <HI>bla&s;|pheme God and the King:</HI> innocent <HI>Naboth</HI> is &s;toned to death, and his goods confi&s;cated. In which action, there are two things worthy our con&s;ideration; The one, That the circum&s;tance of bla&s;pheming God and the King upon a &s;olemne day of Fa&s;t, was &s;o grievous, that of force he mu&s;t be condemned to dye for it, in &s;o great veneration was Fa&s;ting in tho&s;e dayes. The other, That it &s;erved as a cloak for the taking away of the Vineyard, and for the fal&s;ifying of Witne&s;&s;es, and inju&s;tice in the Judges: Who
<PB N="24" REF="18">&s;hould have then &s;een the people to Fa&s;t, would have thought it had been done out of Zeale, Gods Honour, and a de&s;ire to doe him &s;ervice: but it was meerly a trick of the Devils, which he had plotted with him&s;elfe; he threw poy&s;on upon vertue, &s;eeking to draw evill out of good. We mu&s;t therefore beware, lea&s;t the&s;e our good actions receive not hurt by evill intentions, And therefore, farre be it from among any of you, that upon the&s;e &s;olemne dayes of Fa&s;ting, there &s;hould lurk under the &s;able habit of a monrner, any fal&s;e hearted, or hypocriticall masker; for it is to be feared, that among many in this Land of ours, even upon our &s;olemne dayes of Humiliation, masking might be found in mourning. But the Fa&s;t that God requires, you may &s;ee in <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> 58.5.6.7. <HI>Is it &s;uch a Fa&s;t that I have cho&s;en? that a man &s;hould afflict his &s;oule for a day, and hang downe his head like a bulru&s;h, and lye downe in &s;ackcloth and a&s;hes. Wilt thou call this a Fa&s;ting or an acceptable day unto the Lord?</HI> Here the Prophet &s;hewes, That God neither approves, nor condemnes Fa&s;ting in it &s;elfe, further then when it is applyed to the right end. So that here is the abu&s;e in Fa&s;ting, when men put holine&s;&s;e in it, and in either, de&s;pi&s;ing or neglecting true godline&s;&s;e, they think that the bodily exerci&s;e alone fu&s;&s;iceth; but he prote&s;ts, That this is not acceptable to him, to &s;ee one continue a day without meat, and to go &s;orrowfully with his head hanging down <HI>like</HI> a bulru&s;h, and lying downe in <HI>&s;ackcloth and a&s;hes:</HI> he taxes the&s;e &s;uper&s;titious ge&s;tures, wherein Hypocrites are wont to place a <HI>kinde</HI> of holine&s;&s;e; not that he condemnes the&s;e exter|nall rites, but <HI>rebukes</HI> the&s;e Hypocrites for &s;eparating the truth from the &s;ignes. And in the next Ver&s;es, he tells you what <HI>kind<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI> of Fa&s;t it is that God <HI>likes</HI> and allowes of, <HI>Is not this the Fa&s;t that I have cho&s;en? to loo&s;e the bands of wickedne&s;&s;e, to take off the heavy burdens, and to let the oppre&s;&s;ed goe free, and that ye breake every yoke? Is it not to deale thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that wander into thy hou&s;e? When thou &s;ee&s;t the naked, that thou cover him, and hide not thy &s;elfe from thine own fle&s;h?</HI> Here the Prophet &s;hews fir&s;t, what the Lord chiefly and principally requires in our Fa&s;t. Secondly, by what means our &s;ervices may be acceptable before him. And thirdly&punc;
<PB N="25" REF="18">How tho&s;e ought to be fitted and prepared that meane to Fa&s;t: In a word, you may &s;ee here wherein the true offices of Piety, (which are principally commanded of God) con&s;i&s;t; namely, in com&s;orting the poor, and oppre&s;&s;ed. We may likewi&s;e &s;ee here the duties God allows of in Fa&s;ting, what makes our fa&s;ts al|lowed of, approved, and acceptable unto God: namely when together with Fa&s;ting, Charity is joyned with it: The <HI>Fa&s;t that God hath cho&s;en, is to loo&s;e the bands of wickedne&s;&s;e:</HI> Some ex|pound it, the wicked thoughts wherewith men are bound and intangled. And it may pa&s;&s;e for currant; for the principall <HI>Fa&s;ting,</HI> is to <HI>Fa&s;t from &s;inne.</HI> But it &s;eems <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> meant other|wi&s;e; namely, That Hypocrites are very cruell and mercile&s;&s;e towards the poor, and lay very heavie yokes upon them; he calls that Knots, or Bands, which we commonly tearme Oppre&s;&s;ions; to which that agrees which is added, <HI>to take off the heavy bur|thens,</HI> under the weight whereof, the poor and needy groane, and are in a manner overwhelmed therewith. The Prophet, me thinks, would bring us to this principle, namely, That our Con|&s;ciences may be pure and &s;ound, and that we exerci&s;e our &s;elves in &s;hewing brotherly kindne&s;&s;e one to another; for if this order be duely ob&s;erved, then <HI>Fa&s;ting</HI> added thereto, will be plea&s;ing and acceptable to the Lord. The Fa&s;t that God hath cho&s;en is, <HI>To deale thy bread to the hungry, to cloth the naked, &amp;c.</HI> For as in the ob&s;erving of a <HI>Fa&s;t</HI> (as you had before) we mu&s;t not onely doe good, but &s;hun evill; &s;o we mu&s;t not onely ab&s;tain from do|ing wrong to the poor, from laying heavy yokes and knots upon them; but we mu&s;t &s;hew our &s;elves liberall and lowly towards the afflicted, and &s;uch as &s;tand in need of our help. For there are two parts of equity and ju&s;tice; fir&s;t, That we offer no man any wrong. Secondly, That we imploy our riches and goods towards the maintenance of them that are in want and nece&s;&s;ity, and the&s;e two parts mu&s;t be joyned together; for it is not enough to ab&s;taine from violent cour&s;es, unle&s;&s;e therewithall we &s;hew mercy in releeving our poor brethrens wants: Neither is it &s;uf|ficient to &s;uccour one, if you rob from &s;ome to be&s;tow upon others; for we mu&s;t not releeve our neighbours wants by Thefts and Pillages; and if thou ha&s;t committed any inju&s;tice, cruelty,
<PB N="26" REF="19" MS="y">or extortion, though oughte&s;t not to make amends by calling, in God to thee, as if thou woulde&s;t make him partner with thee of thy &s;poyles: It is nece&s;&s;ary then you &s;ee, that the&s;e two parts of equity and ju&s;tice by joyned together, if we would have God to approve and allow of our Charity. Fir&s;t, We mu&s;t offer no man wrong. Secondly, We mu&s;t imploy our riches and goods towards the maintena<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">e of them that are in want; we mu&s;t, together with ab&s;tain<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ng from violent cour&s;es, &s;hew mercy, in releeving our poor brethrens wants. Do&s;t thou fa&s;t? then deale thy bread to the hungry, for this the fa&s;t that God hath cho&s;en; and indeed, true Religion &s;tandeth chiefly in Charity to the poor.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>James</HI> 1.27.</NOTE> <HI>To vi&s;it the Fatherle&s;&s;e and Widow;</HI> for love is &s;et forth in &s;undry places, as the chie&s;e of all graces; e&s;pecially in the fir&s;t of the <HI>Corintians,</HI> the thirteenth, to the end of the Chapter. Now where there are no acts of Charity, no giving of Almes to the poor, there can be no love,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Iohn</HI> 3.17.</NOTE> as Saint <HI>John</HI> largely proveth, Alme&s;deeds therefore, <HI>to feed the hungry, to cloth the naked;</HI> to di&s;tribute and give of our goods to the poor, is greatly required both in the Old and New Te&s;tament.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Deut.</HI> 15.7.8.</NOTE> <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> chargeth the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> often, <HI>To give, and to lend freely to their poor brethren.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al</HI> 112.5.</NOTE> <HI>David</HI> de&s;cribeth the righteous man by this, <HI>That he is mereifull, and di&s;tributeth, and &s;cattereth abroad.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ov.</HI> 19.17.</NOTE> Solomon</HI> makes the Lord his Debtor that giveth to the poor, &s;aying, <HI>He that giveth to the poor, lendeth to the Lord.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.7.</NOTE> And <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> bids, <HI>to bring the poor wandring into thine hou&s;e, and to break thy bread to the hungry.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 5.7, &amp;c.</NOTE> See Chri&s;t ble&s;&s;ing the mereifull and commanding to give to him that asketh, and not to turn away from the pool that would borrow, and acknowledgeth the receipt of what&s;oevel is given to the poor, as if it were given unto him&s;elf;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 25.35.</NOTE> <HI>For I was hungry, and ye gave me meat: naked, and ye clothed me, &amp;c.</HI> And to move us hereunto; fir&s;t, Let us con&s;ider, that it is Gods com|mand, of who&s;e gift it is that we enjoy any thing. Secondly, The poor be our brethren; yea, our own fle&s;h:<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 58.7.</NOTE> then <HI>hido not thy face from thine own fle&s;h.</HI> Its inhumanity, me thinks, to di&s;daine and de&s;pi&s;e tho&s;e in whom we are forced to acknowledge our own Image; for how&s;oever the rich may account of the poor, the poor by nature is as good as the rich, the rich are no better then they&punc;
<PB N="27" REF="19">they are all alike by nature. So <HI>Nehemiah,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Nehem.</HI> 5.5.</NOTE> <HI>Our fle&s;h is as the fle&s;h of our brethren, and our &s;ons as their &s;ons, and though they be brought in &s;ubjection, they and their children, their lands and their vineyards;</HI> yet here is their happine&s;&s;e, <HI>the Lord is their portion, and Heaven their Inheritance. Lazarus</HI> &s;hall pa&s;&s;e from the Paws of Dogs, to the Hands of Angels; from the Porch of a Tyrant, to the Bo&s;ome of <HI>Abraham.</HI> Thirdly. Let the rich help the poor, and the poor will help the rich. But perhaps &s;ome will &s;ay, We &s;tand no need of Beggars help; yes &s;ure, thou &s;tand|e&s;t in need of their Prayers, and pitty hath ever a Prayer for him that &s;tands in need of it. Let the rich then releeve the poor, and the poor will pray for the rich; for this is the rea&s;on why God made &s;ome men rich, and &s;ome men poor; he made the rich men his &s;ons and heires here upon Earth, to the end, that their younger brethren, the poor, might have their &s;ecure &s;u&s;te|nance; and he made the poor men heires of Heaven, that the rich might have there their &s;ecure happine&s;&s;e: So that the rich by re|l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">eving the poor, and the poor by praying for the rich, might both, by Gods favour, have equall portions in Heaven. God made &s;ome rich, and &s;ome poor, that the abundance of the rich might &s;upply the wants of the poor, and the abundance of the poor &s;upply the wants of the rich, and &s;o their for might be alike. Take it in the Apo&s;tles words,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 8.14.</NOTE> <HI>&V;t ve&s;tra abandantia,</HI> that your abundance may &s;upply their want, and their abun|dance may be for your want, that there way be equallity. Saint <HI>Chry&s;o&s;tome</HI> &s;aith, <HI>That God did not create the rich to re|lieve the poor, but the poor, that the rich might not be barren of good works; and if the Clouds be full, they will poure forth raine upon the Earth: the rich man mu&s;t be like a Cloud, if he have abundance, let him di&s;tribute it liberally.</HI> Fourthly, To give to the poor, is a means to thrive the better, becau&s;e thus we obtain Gods ble&s;&s;ing to the doubling and multiplying of what we give; for pitty was ever profitable to them that u&s;ed it. <HI>Ca&s;t thy bread upon the Waters, after a few dayes thou &s;hal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> find it:</HI> Give to the poor, and though it &s;eem to be as a thing ventured at Sea, yet it &s;hall bring the profit, even &s;uch profit as is beyond e&s;teem, un&s;peakable joy, and a Kingdom without a change.</P>
<PB N="28" REF="20">
<P>And here it may be enquired, &s;ince we mu&s;t give to the poor, fir&s;t, Who ought to give. Secondly, How much. Thirdly, To whom. And fourthly, In what manner.</P>
<P>For the fir&s;t, Who ought to give; My an&s;wer is, That every one who is not a receiver of Almes, ought to be a giver of Almes. It is true indeed, That this duty is fir&s;t, and chiefly commended to the rich, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.17.18. 1 <HI>John</HI> 3.17. <HI>Luke</HI> 12.33. 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 8.14. But our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t goeth further, and commandeth, <HI>That if a man have two Coats, to give to him that hath none, and he that hath meat, to doe likewi&s;e,</HI> Luke 3.11.</P>
<P>Touching the &s;econd. How much we mu&s;t give; and for this, I find no certain direction any where &s;et down, but onely,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 9.6</NOTE> <HI>That we &s;hould give liberally;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Eccle&s;.</HI> 11.2</NOTE> and give a portion to &s;ix and to &s;even;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 5, 42 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 16.2.</NOTE> and to give to him that aske<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">h; and every man as God hath ble&s;&s;ed him.</HI></P>
<P>Touching the third, To whom we mu&s;t give; Lu&s;ty rogues of either Sex onely excepted, who either mu&s;t work,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 3, 10.</NOTE> <HI>or el&s;e let them not eat:</HI> due Correction is more nece&s;&s;ary to give to &s;uch (if they ask) then Bread.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Eccle&s;ia&s;ti|cus</HI> 12. <HI>Gal.</HI> 6, 10.</NOTE> But the&s;e per&s;ons excepted, the an&s;wer &s;hall be, <HI>Give to him that asketh; Doe good to all, but e&s;pecially to tho&s;e that be of the hou&s;hold of faith;</HI> The Fatherle&s;&s;e, the Wid|dows, the helple&s;&s;e per&s;ons, the Aged, Halt, and Blind, and all that are in want, or needfull, are commended to your Charity.</P>
<P>Obj. <HI>But perhaps &s;ome will object and &s;ay, Would you have us to give to all that aske? we know, that the poor neer us are &s;o bad, and w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">cked; and ill-condition'd, that it is no Almes to give to them. And as for wanderers, the Statute, prohibits it; and be&s;ides, being &s;trangers to us, we cannot tell whether it be Charity or no to give unto them?</HI></P>
<P><HI>A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;.</HI> The&s;e excu&s;es of thine, are no better then fig-leaves. I tell thee, thou mu&s;t doe good to all; and if any be &s;o bad, together with your Alme&s;-giving, give them admonition, and exhort them to reforme. And as for &s;trange Beggars, in whom indeed you may be deceived, yet your Almes &s;hall be no whit the le&s;&s;e acceptable that you give them, &s;eeing they aske as Chri&s;ts poor Members, and in the name of poor and helple&s;&s;e
<PB N="29" REF="20">per&s;ons; <HI>And he that gives to a Prophet in the name of a Pro|phet, &s;hall not lo&s;e a Prophets reward:</HI> but they &s;hall be &s;ure to beare the burthen of their di&s;&s;imulation, whereby they invade the Inheritance of the poor, to the robbing and de&s;poyling them of a great part thereof.</P>
<P>Touching the fourth, In what manner Almes ought to be given. The an&s;wer is, They mu&s;t be given cheerfully, and with|out all vain-glory, and opinion of merit, and onely of that which is our own, and that in due &s;ea&s;on, or due time. Fir&s;t, cheerfully, <HI>For God loveth a cheerfull giver;</HI> He that giveth grudgingly, as it were out of con&s;traint, doth indeed the thing commanded; but becau&s;e he doth it not with an heart, it is no more accepted of, then Prayer made with the Lips, when the Heart is away. Secondly, without Vain glory, We mu&s;t give, not de&s;iring to have our Charity taken notice of by others; for &s;o <HI>the Phari&s;ees gave Almes to be &s;een, and pray&s;ed of men;</HI> of whom it was &s;aid, <HI>That they had their reward.</HI> Thirdly, With|out all opinion of Merit; Almes mu&s;t be given in humility, we acknowledging this to be our duty, as a Steward is bound in duty to give to every one his Portion; for we are but Stewards under God of that which we have; our Goods are a Portion committed to our tru&s;t, to u&s;e according to his will, as the Talents in the Patable. Now God, by who&s;e allowance we have the&s;e Portions, appointeth us to u&s;e them &s;o, as the poor, may have com&s;ort of them: and thus, in the per&s;ons of the poor, we render unto God &s;ome part of his own again, for Chri&s;t accepts it as done unto him. Pourthly, We mu&s;t give of that which is our own onely, not of what we have unju&s;tly gotten; for, as is &s;hewed in the Example of <HI>Z<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">cheus, things unju&s;tly gotten, mu&s;t fir&s;t be re&s;tored,</HI> and then Almes are to be given; for in giving &s;tolen goods, or &s;uch as be gotten by oppre&s;&s;ion, or deceit, man maketh God a party in the theft, or wrong, which he hath committed; when as indeed he is &s;o far from this, that he expo&s;tulateth with &s;uch for comming into his Hou&s;e; &s;aying, <HI>Will you lye, &s;teale, commit adultery, and come and wor&s;hip in this Hou&s;e, &amp;c.</HI> The ju&s;t God will not, in the per&s;on of the poor, accept of any thing unju&s;tly gotten. Fift|ly
<PB N="30" REF="21">and la&s;tly, We mu&s;t give in due time, or due &s;ea&s;on; <HI>For the ble&s;&s;ed man is like to a</HI> Tree,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.3.</NOTE> <HI>that bringeth forth fruit in due &s;ea&s;on.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gal.</HI> 6.10.</NOTE> And, <HI>while&s;t we have time,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, <HI>let us doe good to all.</HI> Some rely upon a la&s;t Will and Te&s;tament, thinking to be accepted in their giving then, when they mu&s;t needs depart with all that they have. To give, when a man can keep his goods no longer, is no better, then to break off from any &s;in, when he can no more commit it. But for &s;uch as have neglocted this duty in their life, let them humble them&s;elves; and rather then not at all, give liberally at their Death; and &s;o happily, as the Lord &s;hall &s;ee the heart truely affected with peni|tency, they may be accepted in their giving then. Thus you &s;ee, how Charity is a principall point of true Religion. And if any &s;hall alledge, <HI>That their goods are their own, and therefore &s;ee no rea&s;on</HI> (<HI>like churli&s;h</HI> Nabal) <HI>to make that common, which God hath given to their particular u&s;e?</HI> I an&s;wer, That thy goods doe indeed appertaine unto thee; but upon condition, that thou deale&s;t one part thereof to the hungry and thir&s;ty; for thou art but a Steward: and &s;ure, the hungry are defrauded of their right, unle&s;&s;e their wants be &s;upplyed. And this is one thing that &s;anctifieth the <HI>Fa&s;t.</HI> Another thing is <HI>Prayer;</HI> for <HI>Fa&s;ting</HI> is but the hand-maid of <HI>Prayer;</HI> but of this when we come to the period of the Text, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Thus having upon &s;econd thoughts, (though contrary to the Rules of Art) lookt a little back upon the <HI>duty enjoyned,</HI> the fir&s;t part of my Text. I now come to the &s;econd circum&s;tance of the &s;econd part, which I called; <HI>The Method, or Order pre|&s;cribed;</HI> of which the fir&s;t being this, <HI>Call a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</HI> The next is, <HI>Gather the Elders, and all the Inhabitants of the Land.</HI></P>
<P>Wherein is to be ob&s;erved, The <HI>generality of this Fa&s;t.</HI> In the Ver&s;e fore-going the Text, you &s;ee a command layd onely upon &s;ome private per&s;ons, <HI>the Prie&s;ts, and the Mini&s;ters,</HI> they are to howle and lament: but private mournings is not &s;uffi|cing for <HI>Publick Sorrows;</HI> there mu&s;t be an epidemicall lamen|tation by <HI>a &s;olemne A&s;&s;embly.</HI> And this A&s;&s;embly mu&s;t not be thin, <HI>vel duo, vel nemo,</HI> as the &s;aying is, a &s;mall Congregation
<PB N="31" REF="21">to &s;erve God; but it mu&s;t be populous, and full, made up of a multitude, <HI>Gather the Elders, and all the Inhabitants of the Land.</HI> Hence, let this be the point; Chri&s;ts Schoole, is a Schoole for all &s;orts; not onely the <HI>Elders,</HI> but <HI>all the Inhabitants.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 13.29.30.</NOTE> <HI>Let the tares</HI> (&s;aith our Saviour) <HI>grow with the wheat,</HI> it may be they may wither and dye ere Harve&s;t: the meaning is, That it may be they may dye to &s;in. Witne&s;&s;e the Jayler, who over night was <HI>&s;courging;</HI> ere morning, <HI>wi&s;hing and anointing</HI> the wounds of the Apo&s;tles. Witne&s;&s;e <HI>Zacheus,</HI> who of a pilling and powling Publican, and a grinder of the faces of the poor, pre&s;ently became a mercifull refre&s;her of their bowels. Wit|ne&s;&s;e many others, &amp;c.</P>
<P>Every mans life is a Way, wherein, without intermi&s;&s;ion, he walkes from the Wombe to the Grave; <HI>Ab utero ad Sepul|chrum ambulamus omnes;</HI> and this is the way which <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> calls, <HI>the way of all fle&s;h.</HI> But in this way there is a great difference, for &s;ome are upright in it, and tho&s;e are declared to be &s;uch, as walk in the way of godline&s;&s;e to glorification. Others turn a&s;ide after the crooked wayes of &s;in, and tho&s;e walk on unto perdition; they goe &s;inging, and in a moment tumble into Hell. Now the Lord our God, <HI>that would not the death of a &s;inner,</HI> calls all to Repentance, while&s;t we, not feeling tho&s;e privy nips, and perillous wounds, that &s;in impaires our &s;oules withall, doe &s;wim in the fulle&s;t delights, that invention can procure us, and our &s;ouls cleaving to the mid&s;t of our mirth, our way but beguyles us; and for not minding our Voyage, in &s;tead of arriving at our wi&s;hed for Haven, we are suckt into the gulfe ere ever we are aw re; &s;o that we had need labour for a Reformation, by the whole&s;ome Information of the Word; and Chri&s;ts Schoole, being a Schoole for all &s;orts, we had need all become Schollars in the Schoole of Chri&s;t, both young and old, and old as well as young.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, young men; for the age of youth is indeed the age of right reformation; Bend a tree while it is but a twig, and it will ply which way you will have it; but let it alone untill it be a &s;turdy Oke, there is then no dealing with it. Even &s;o, &s;ettle the &s;oule once upon the lees of &s;infull lu&s;t, and cu&s;tome
<PB N="32" REF="22">in &s;inning proves another nature, and in the end becomes in|flexible, incorrigible. Let a man through his youth &s;et his face again&s;t Heaven, and bla&s;pheme Gods Religion; it &s;hall be as ea&s;ie for the <HI>Blackamoore to change his hue, or the Leopard his &s;pots,</HI> as for that man that hath been alwayes accu&s;tomed to evill, ever to learn to doe well: I doe not &s;ay imp<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;ible, for I know that it is the ea&s;ie&s;t thing in the world with God to enrich a &s;inner with his grace; and therefore we di&s;pute not his power, nor his mercy. Not his power, for God can in an in&s;tant make of a &s;inner a Saint. Not his mercy, for Gods mercy knows no bounds nor limits. But it is not ea&s;ie for that &s;inner that hath been alwayes accu&s;tomed to doe evill, ever to learn to doe well; for, you know, the cur&s;e is commonly pa&s;&s;ed out again&s;t tho&s;e who have been &s;o long fruitle&s;&s;e;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 21.19.</NOTE> <HI>Never fruit grow on thee hence|forth</HI> neither in this World, nor in the World to come; reape they &s;hall, bring forth they &s;hall not; but they &s;hall reape the fruit of Judgement, the fruit of puni&s;hment; other fruit they &s;hall never bring forth, dead Trees, cut off from the land of the living; dead Branches, cut off from the Tree of Life. And in|deed, what can that ground expect that brings forth nothing but thorns and bryars,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 6.8.</NOTE> but that the end of it &s;hould be to be burned? So that though ye rejoyce in your youth, O ye young men, yet remember you mu&s;t come to Judgement. And &s;ure it is but an evill and wofull divi&s;ion, when young years are given to Sathan, and old age to the Lord. Its the fir&s;t fruits that God requires; And you may find Saint <HI>John</HI> writing to <HI>Young men, as well as to Elders;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Iohn</HI> 2.12 13.</NOTE> <HI>to Children, as well as to Fathers.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"> And <HI>Solomon</HI> ad|vi&s;eth the young man,<HI>Eccle&s;</HI> 12.1</NOTE> <HI>To remember his Creator in the dayes of his youth.</HI> And <HI>David,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119 9</NOTE> to redre&s;&s;e his wayes:</HI> For indeed, the age of youth is the very Harve&s;t and Summer, in which who|&s;oever &s;leepeth, is the &s;on of confu&s;ion; but he that gathereth is the child of wi&s;edome.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Pro.</HI> 10.5.</NOTE> It is with grace, as it is with grafts, there mu&s;t be a time of in-&s;etting, and a time of out-growing, and both the&s;e mu&s;t be &s;ea&s;onable before fruit can be expe|cted; &s;o that &s;eed mu&s;t be &s;own in youth, which mu&s;t come up in age; For nip a blo&s;&s;ome in the Spring, and where is the hope of its Autumne? And indeed, where Sathan can make youth
<PB N="33" REF="22">unprofitable, little good nay, much &s;pirituall beggery may be expected in all the other ages of that mans life. Again, Call thy wayes to remembrance while thou art young, that thy Con&s;cience may be at peace when thou art aged; for a&s;&s;ure thy &s;elfe that the vanitles of youth will vex the heart for many yeares after.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.7.</NOTE> See <HI>David</HI> Praying again&s;t <HI>the &s;ins of his youth,</HI> and not without a bitter &s;en&s;e and &s;ting of them.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.7. <HI>Ie<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI> 13.16.</NOTE> <HI>It was the voyce of</HI> Ephraim, <HI>I was a&s;hamed yea, confounded, becau&s;e I did beare the roproach of my youth;</HI> for though for the pre&s;ent a man may be &s;encele&s;&s;e of his gro&s;&s;e&s;t &s;ins; yet God will waken his Con&s;cience at la&s;t, and make the very thought of his ini|quities as bitter, as ever the practice of them was plea&s;ant; the thought of them will fill him with trouble of Con&s;cience, and bring him not onely to doubt of his effectuall calling to Grace, but almo&s;t to a de&s;paire of his &s;alvation. And if he would be fenced again&s;t all the&s;e afterclaps, the time is now wherein he may prevent &s;uch afflictions, by bearing Gods yoke in his youth: Now is the time wherein he &s;hould take notice of that great bundle of folly which is naturally bound up in his heart. But alas! No age &s;o much &s;tops its eares, as this age of youth, charme the charmer never &s;o wi&s;ely: For whereas young men &s;hould live as <HI>Nazarites, con&s;ecrated to the Lord;</HI> they ra|ther live like men that have vowed, and dedicated them&s;elves to the &s;ervice of Sathan, loathing or &s;eorning to become Schol|lars in the Schoole of Chri&s;t, which indeed is mo&s;t effectuall to cure the di&s;ordered affections of youth: But tho&s;e that would be Trees of Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and known to be of the Lords own Planting, laden e&s;pecially in their age with the fruits of the Spirit, mu&s;t in their youth, timely bud, timely blo&s;&s;ome, and timely beare; that &s;o their whole lives may be a fruitfull cour&s;e, whereby God may be glorified, others edified, and them&s;elves receive in the end a more full con&s;olation.</P>
<P>Secondly, as young men, &s;o old as well as young, mu&s;t be Schollars in the Schoole of Chri&s;t; for though its true, that the age of youth, of all ages, is mo&s;t &s;ubject to the dangerous di&s;ea&s;es of inordinate lu&s;ts: yet there is no age without its blemi&s;hes, not the hoary haire without its errors, <HI>David,</HI> &s;o
<PB N="34" REF="23">often as he con&s;idered his wayes, found alwayes &s;omething that needed redre&s;&s;e; and there is none &s;o well renewed in this life, but they may find &s;omthing in them&s;elves that needs further reformation. Who can &s;ay, he hath in &s;uch &s;ort clean&s;ed his Heart, as that he need not make it more cleane? Certainely, when &s;ins are lopt, they grow againe; when they are cha&s;ed away, they may turne againe, and the fire of &s;in being quench|ed, it kindles againe; &s;o that we had need often lop our &s;u|perfluous affections; if it be po&s;&s;ible, alwayes. For let a man tell the truth as he finds it, and I dare &s;ay, he finds alwayes &s;omething in him&s;elfe needing reformation. So that Old, as well as Young, &s;hould come to this Schoole. For &s;urely, its a double &s;hame and &s;in for an old man to be of an uncleane life, or to be ignorant of the Word, having lived till his head be gray, without making any progre&s;&s;e at all in the knowledge of godline&s;&s;e. The neerer we draw unto the Land of <HI>Canaan,</HI> the further off &s;hould we be from the delights of <HI>Egypt;</HI> otherwi&s;e it will come to pa&s;&s;e, in Gods righteous Judgement, that when in regard of our long journey, we are come to the very borders of that good Land, we &s;hall be put back again, with tho&s;e ear|nall <HI>I&s;raelites,</HI> and never &s;uffred to enter into it. O mi&s;erable condition of that man, who&s;e body is declining to the Grave, but his &s;pirit hath never learned to a&s;cend to him that gave it: he come (as I &s;aid) to the very borders of <HI>Canaan,</HI> I meane, to the very point of time wherein Gods Children make their hap|py tran&s;migration; but by rea&s;on of his &s;ins, he is thru&s;t back againe, and never &s;uffered to enter, when he &s;hould dye and a&s;cend to the ble&s;&s;ed fellow&s;hip of God, the Father of Lights: he dyes indeed, but de&s;cends to the pit of utter darkene&s;&s;e, <HI>where is weeping and gna&s;hing of teeth.</HI> What a woefull ca&s;e then is it, that men &s;hould be thus &s;ould under &s;in; nay, even &s;pend and weare out them&s;elves in plotting and contriving who &s;hould get them&s;elves &s;ure&s;t and deepe&s;t in? How are even the hearts of the Ancient, who&s;e Faces Age hath wrick|led, carried away, to &s;eek abundance, de&s;iring onely to become Heires of the World, never &s;eeking God, nor his Kingdom, for their Portion? And though this &s;ervice of profit &s;een &s;ome|what
<PB N="35" REF="23">more &s;weet and ea&s;ie then the &s;ervice of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e; yet when this Ma&s;ter comes with his wages, then tell me what becoms of the lovers of the World, more then of the lovers of God?<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.13.</NOTE> &s;urely they <HI>&s;hall not fayle to receive the wages of un|righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e.</HI> O mi&s;erable &s;ervice! nay, it is to be feared, that many of our gli&s;tering &s;aints, our glorious profe&s;&s;ors, who would be admired for their holine&s;&s;e, are too much be|witched with the &s;orcery of this &s;inne: But let them know, who&s;oever they be, that for all their outward varni&s;h, and faire flouri&s;hes of devotion, and &s;hews of &s;eeming holine&s;&s;e; who, as if &s;anctity were ingaged onely to their &s;ervice; being &s;ick of a <HI>Noli me tangere,</HI> touch me not, I am more holy then thou, that their &s;ins of hypocri&s;ie, and covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, will ble|mi&s;h even the be&s;t things they have received, and darken the be&s;t duties they attempt: For indeed, a rare profe&s;&s;our is that man, that can avoyd an Earthly mind in Earthly matters; and while he layes up on Earth, hath a free mind to trea&s;ure in Heaven. O that we could con&s;ider how the&s;e hatefull poy|&s;onous &s;ins make us even ju&s;tly odious to our God; and therefore let us labour to &s;ee the poy&s;on of our own nature; and &s;eeing it, &s;trive to bewayle it: And for that purpo&s;e, let Young and Old, and Old at well as Young, all become Stu|dents in the Schoole of Chri&s;t; for true Knowledge is that which works Godline&s;&s;e. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> him&s;elfe, <HI>who was learned in all the learning of the Egyptians,</HI> mu&s;t &s;tudy to &s;eek the Lord with an inward affection. And though <HI>David</HI> had more un|der&s;tanding <HI>then his teachers;</HI> yet he earne&s;tly de&s;ires, to be further taught of the Lord his God; for the trea&s;ures of ma|nifold wi&s;edome locked up in the Word, are &s;o rich; that no man can attaine to &s;uch mea&s;ure of Knowledge, but &s;till he hath need to learne more: The Angels them&s;elves are but Schollars in this Schoole; and becau&s;e thou art Old, wilt thou &s;corne to learne with Angels? The very be&s;t, con&s;ide|ring his wayes, may finde &s;omething in him to be amended. The Doctors and Ma&s;ters of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> were but Fools in Chri&s;ts e&s;teeme. The young man that thought &s;o goodly of him&s;elfe, was ignorant of the way to Heaven, and would learne of our
<PB N="36" REF="24">Saviour, how, or what to doe, to inherit Eternall Life. The Wi&s;e&s;t of Men, <HI>&s;eeks for Wi&s;edome.</HI> And the Princely Prophet, <HI>begs &V;nder&s;tanding.</HI> Let then high and low, rich and poor, old and young, all, run to that Fountaine from whence tho&s;e Waters of Knowledge flow in abundance; for Chri&s;ts Schoole is a Schoole for all &s;orts; <HI>Not onely the Elders, but all the In|habitants of the Land.</HI></P>
<P>From the generality of this Convocation, another Point may be this, That the Kingdome of Chri&s;t admits of no di|&s;tinction, neither Prince, nor Pea&s;ant, for they are both his Subjects, both the worke of his hands. His Vineyard admits of all &s;orts of Labourers, from the Morning till the Evening; nay, to the very la&s;t Houre, the gates of mercy &s;tand open for all; and Gods call is generall, <HI>Come unto me all you that tra|vell, and are heavy laden, &amp;c.</HI> He calls not onely the King, but the Subject; not onely the Lord, but the Slave; He calls the Poor, the Servant,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 9.13</NOTE> <HI>and they receive the Go&s;pel:</HI> Nay, <HI>Chri&s;t came to call &s;inners to repentance,</HI> without exception, <HI>even Publicans and Sinners.</HI> The God whom we &s;erve, is no excepter of per&s;ons; and the Kingdome of Chri&s;t admits of no di|&s;tinction. Its true indeed, there was a difference held, and a wall of partition was &s;et up between Jew and Gentile, between People and People. Before the Flood were the Sons of God, and the Sons of Men: After the Flood, before the Law, there was the Promi&s;ed Seed, and the Seed of the Fle&s;h: after the Law, before Chri&s;t, was held the di&s;tinction of Jew and Gentile: With the former, God made his Covenant, them he took into his teaching, and pa&s;&s;ed by the other: To them pertained the Adoption, the Glory, the Covenant, the giving of the Law, the Service of God, the Oracles, the Promi&s;es; The&s;e had his Tempe, his Prophets, ordinary and extraordi|nary. This difference <HI>David</HI> meants of, in tho&s;e words, <HI>He &s;hewed his Word unto</HI> Jacob, <HI>his Statutes and Judgements unto</HI> I&s;rael: <HI>But he dealt not &s;o with every Nation, neither have they known his wayes,</HI> P&s;al. 147.19.20. But now in this la&s;t Age of the World, this Covenant of <HI>Grace and Life,</HI> is made common to all People; every man is now called to Repen|tance,
<PB N="73" REF="24">and invited to come and drinke of Chri&s;ts blood by Faith; the partition wall is now broken downe, the Vaile is rent, the gates of mercy wide opened, and that My&s;tery which was kept &s;eeret from the beginning of the World, is Publi|&s;hed to all. The con&s;ideration whereof, &s;hould &s;tir us up to an exceeding rejoycing, in that,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 54.1.2.</NOTE> <HI>The barren and de&s;olate hath now more children then the Married Wife: that the place of the tents of the Church is thus enlarged, and the Curtains of her habitation thus &s;pread out;</HI> &s;o that the Dogs and Whelps may now clap their hands for joy that they are received into pit|ty, and that the wings of Gods mercy are &s;tretched out over them: The poor beleever, the thrall, the &s;ervant, the ba&s;e in the world, may cheere up their hearts, that even they whom men &s;o de&s;pi&s;ed, are now &s;o effectually called, to &s;ee the Grace and Salvation of God. He that parhaps is but a &s;er|vant to &s;ome meane man here upon Earth, is a free Citizen in the Heavenly <HI>Jeru&s;alem;</HI> he that hath never a foot here below, is become a great purcha&s;er above. Here is no com|plaint that the Prodigall Son is entertain'd, and the &s;ervice|able Son neglected. The <HI>Eunuch</HI> need not now complaine and &s;ay, <HI>I am a dry tree.</HI> Nor the Son of the &s;tranger.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 56.3.</NOTE> The Lord hath &s;urely &s;eparated me from his people: but who&s;o|ever cleave<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">h unto the Lord to love the Lord, and &s;erve him, <HI>to them he will give a name better then of Sons and Daugh|ters, even an everla&s;ting name, that &s;hall never be put out:</HI> Thus you &s;ee. That the generall promi&s;es of the Go&s;pel, are Publi&s;hed and offered to all, without exception, bond and free, Publican and &s;inner, &s;trangers and forreighners, are now <HI>Comites Sanctorum,</HI> fellow Citizens with the Saints, and of the hou&s;hold of God: &s;o that our &s;ins need not hinder us from approching to the Throns of Grace, if we can but come to the Lord Je&s;us upon the Feet of Faith and Repen|tance, heavens gates are as wide as ever, and the call as univer|&s;all as ever; <HI>Not onely the Elders, but all the Inhabitants of the Land.</HI> So we &s;tep on to the third Circum&s;tance, in the <HI>Method or Order of keeping this Fa&s;t; the place of refuge, or Sacred Sanctuary, the Hou&s;e of the Lord your God.</HI></P>
<PB N="38" REF="25">
<P>I mu&s;t now, like a faithfull Steward in my Ma&s;ters hou&s;e, take by the hand all you the weary Sons and Daughters of the everliving God, and leade you into the Kings Wine-&s;el|lers, there to refre&s;h and &s;tay you <HI>with the Flagons of his Wine, to comfort you with his Apples, to &s;trengthen you with his hidden Manna, and to make you merry with that Milke and Honey which our &s;o dearely loving Husband Chri&s;t Je&s;us hath provided for us, to &s;u&s;taine us that we faint not through tho&s;e manifold temptations which encumpa&s;&s;e us in this barren Wil|derne&s;&s;e,</HI> namely, <HI>into this right Arke, or little Zoar, The Hou&s;e of the Lord your God.</HI></P>
<P>The whole Colledge of the bodily Phy&s;itians, and the Prince of them, that Wi&s;e and Learned <HI>Galen</HI> pre&s;cribes for the time of Plague, that of all Remedies to prevent the contagion, the be&s;t is, <HI>To fly, and &s;hun the infected and corrupted Ayre, and to depart unto a whole&s;ome and purer Ayre;</HI> and that with the&s;e three Rales, <HI>Cit&ograve;, Long&egrave;, Tard&egrave;;</HI> To depart &s;peedi|ly, farre off, and returne &s;lowly. And as this is Phy&s;ically pre&s;cribed, &s;o it hath been as diligently practi&s;ed by all &s;orts of men: But becau&s;e by the corruption of our Nature (which is more then the corruption of the Ayre) we &s;uffer our &s;elves as with maine &s;ale to be carried away from the Creator to the Creatures, fixing all our &s;en&s;es more upon the Aeriall corruption, then upon the inward cau&s;e of the contagion, the Plague of our &s;ins, and rottenne&s;&s;e of our bones and bow|els, which we carry within our &s;elves, and are more carefull to depart into the Country then unto the Lord, as if by the &s;wiftne&s;&s;e of our Feet, we could out-run him who <HI>Rideth upon the Wings of the Cherubims,</HI> which often cau&s;eth, that the Lords Pur&s;uivant doth often Arre&s;t us in the purer Ayre, as well in the Country, as in the City.</P>
<P>In the time of Famine, the be&s;t Remedy is, To fly from places of &s;carcity, to places of more plenty. And this was practi&s;ed by <HI>Jo&s;ephs</HI> Brethren,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gen.</HI> 42.5.</NOTE> <HI>who went into Egypt to buy Food;</HI> but becau&s;e of their &s;ins, trouble came upon them in their very fir&s;t journey thither; and though after that they were nouri&s;hed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Ver.</HI> 21.</NOTE> <HI>and had Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions in the be&s;t of the Land;</HI> yet were
<PB N="39" REF="25">they at la&s;t kept under <HI>with burthens,</HI> and by cruelty <HI>cau&s;ed to &s;erve;</HI> in&s;omuch,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 1.11.</NOTE> <HI>that the Egyptians made them weary of their lives by &s;ore labour in Clay and Bricke, and in all worke of the Field with all manner of Bondage which they cruelly layd upon them.</HI></P>
<P>In the time of Warre, The be&s;t way to pre&s;erve our goods from &s;poyle, and our &s;elves from Captivity is, To fly to the be&s;t and &s;tronge&s;t Garri&s;ons; and this was as diligently pra|cti&s;ed by us in the time of the late Warrs in this unhappy Land; but that proved &s;o poor a &s;afegard, as that which was there pre&s;erved for a time, quickly became a Prey to others. And &s;ince in the &s;torms of mi&s;ery all the&s;e are &s;uch poor &s;helters; I will therefore pre&s;cribe you a better flight in the time of Plague, or Famine, or Warre, or any other common calamity, then that of <HI>Galen,</HI> or that of <HI>Iacobs</HI> Sonne, or that of our <HI>Engli&s;h;</HI> namely. To the name <HI>Jehovah,</HI> that Tower Royall; or as <HI>Solomon</HI> calls it, &s;trong Tower,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Prov.</HI> 18.10.</NOTE> <HI>The Name of the Lord is a &s;trong Tower, the Righteous runneth unto it, and is pre&s;erved; even the Hou&s;e of the Lord our God.</HI> And this was <HI>Davids</HI> practice in the time of Plague.<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 24.25</NOTE> <HI>Hezekiahs</HI> pra|ctice in the time of Warre: And here, the Prophets directi|on in the time of Famine,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Kings</HI> 19.1.</NOTE> <HI>Gather the Elders, and all the In|habitants of the Land into the Hon&s;e of the Lord your God.</HI></P>
<P>And now, that I may the better in&s;truct you in this jour|ney to this Hou&s;e, I will branch the de&s;cription of this Hou&s;e into the&s;e three &s;everall parts, which will &s;tore us with clu|&s;ters of &s;ingular Meditations. Fir&s;t, the Name of this Place, <HI>its an Hou&s;e,</HI> and therefore a &s;helter again&s;t all &s;tormes and tempe&s;ts. Secondly, The property of this Place, <HI>its the Hou&s;e of the Lord,</HI> and therefore able to defend us again&s;t all a&s;|&s;aults and violence. Thirdly, the &s;afene&s;&s;e of this Place, the owner <HI>is our God,</HI> God is our Father, and &s;uch a Father as will not &s;hut the doore again&s;t his children, that in time of ex|tremity fly to him for &s;ecurity. So that in comming to this place,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 24.6. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103.3.</NOTE> <HI>we come to the Lord our God, &s;trong, mercifull, and gra|cious, flow to anger, and abundant in goodne&s;&s;e and truth. We come to the Lord our God, the &s;upream Phy&s;itian of our &s;oules,
<PB N="40" REF="26">who healeth all our iniquities.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 62 1.2.</NOTE> <HI>We come to the Lord our God, to whom power belongeth, and who&s;e alone is &s;alvation. Who would not then run to this Place, this Hou&s;e, this Tower Royal in the time of Warre, Plague, Famine, Sickne&s;&s;es, Di&s;ea&s;es, or any Calamity, or Mi&s;ery?</HI> O ye Righteous &s;ouls that thir&s;t, or may thir&s;t, by rea&s;on of the heate of the Plague, or at lea&s;t by rea&s;on of the heate of the Plague of &s;inne, fly unto this place; Here be the waters of comfort, here are wells enough to be drawne off to coole the heate of a thir&s;ting &s;oule: This is the Place which God hath Proclaimed to the World, <HI>That if the heavy laden will but come he will ea&s;e them; if the thir&s;ty will but come, he will refre&s;h them.</HI> O ye Righteous &s;ouls, who in the time of Warre, are in continuall feare and danger of your bodies impri&s;oning, of your goods plundering, of your &s;ons butchering, of your daughters deflouring, and of the pouring forth of your blood like water upon the ground; and not onely the perpetuall en&s;laving of you, and your po|&s;terity, but that which is wor&s;t of all, the violating of your Con&s;ciences by Oaths and Ingagements, at the will of the Conquerour, <HI>fly unto this Hou&s;e;</HI> here be the Armes and Ar|mory of the &s;trong men, and when you cry, your Enemies &s;hall turne backe. O ye Righteous &s;ouls, who in the time of Famine are ready to dye for hunger, having pale and blood|le&s;&s;e Faces, lanke and leane bodies, hunger-&s;tarved carka&s;&s;es, and in this extremity know not what to doe; run to this <HI>Flace, this Hou&s;e,</HI> the Ma&s;ter whereof <HI>can feed an</HI> Elias <HI>by Ravens;</HI> A <HI>Daniell in Dungeons; And the Widow and her Son with a Cru&s;e of Oyle that never wa&s;teth:</HI> and here &s;hall ye be &s;ure to finde &s;atning food for your &s;oules. In a word, In any ca|lamity, in all &s;traights and mi&s;eries what&s;oever, fly to <HI>this Place, this Hou&s;e of the Lord your God.</HI> And in all kinds of di&s;tre&s;&s;e, let us approach this Throne of Grace; let us enter the&s;e Gates and Courts with joy; let our Prayers come unto him in his holy Temple; and let us all, like <HI>David, be glad when men &s;ay, Come lot us goe to the Hou&s;e of the Lord;</HI> for there is &s;alve for every &s;ore, there is medicine for every di&s;e a&s;e, and there is comfort at all a&s;&s;ayes. In this world we are as Pil|grims,
<PB N="41" REF="26">having here no continuing City; and while we are at home in the body, we are ab&s;ent from the Lord; in which Pilgrimage, <HI>many are the troubles of the Righteous;</HI> and if they fly to this &s;acred Sanctuary, <HI>and there cry unto the Lord, the</HI> Lord <HI>delivers them out of all.</HI> And to hearren you here|unto, know for your comforts, That the Lord whom you &s;erve, is not like to the Princes and Rulers of the Earth, who de|&s;ire not to be mole&s;ted with reque&s;ts from their di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Subjects; but its joy to the Almighty, and he takes plea|&s;ure to heare their &s;upplications, and is mo&s;t glad when they aske, or beg of him the be&s;t things. What a comfort is this then to all afflicted &s;ouls, in the heat and height of their af|flictions, and depth of their mi&s;eries, to have a place of refuge, and a place of refre&s;hment, and pre&s;ervation to run unto, and there refre&s;h their wearied members, and &s;upplicate the God of Glory, and the God of all Con&s;olation.</P>
<P>But now, though we have a place of &s;afety to fly unto in the time of trouble and danger; yet a man may mi&s;take his way thither and then, never a whit the neerer: And there|fore, lea&s;t we &s;hould erre in our way to this place, the Lord him&s;elfe hath given us a con&s;tant guide, and card of directi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">n to leade us thereunto, even the witne&s;&s;e of his holy Word, W<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">itten, and Sealed, that can never deceive us, but is as a fiery pillar unto us in the darke de&s;ert of this World, to &s;hew us the way to that Heavenly <HI>Canaan; It is a lanthorne to our feet, and a light to our paths:</HI> let then our loynes be girded, and let us beare in our hands this &s;hining light. But yet, though we have a place to <HI>fly to in trouble,</HI> and likewi&s;e, a <HI>guide to direct us the way;</HI> yet a man (e&s;pecially in mi&s;ery) would not willingly goe to a place, where he hath neither title, nor right, nor intere&s;t, nor friend, nor acquaintance, where he may expect, if not &s;hutting the doore upon him, yet, at lea&s;t, poor entertainment, and mi&s;erable comforters. Now to hearten us again&s;t the&s;e feares, the Text tells us, <HI>That we are of the &s;ame Family, or Hou&s;hold,</HI> for the Ma&s;ter, or Lord of this hou&s;e, <HI>is our God,</HI> &s;o that it is, as it were, our own; for it is u&s;uall for Children, or &s;ervants, to call
<PB N="42" REF="27">their Fathers or Ma&s;ters hou&s;e wherein they live, our Hou&s;e, and there we &s;hall finde our be&s;t acquaintance, and our choi|ce&s;t friends, <HI>even God, our Father; Chri&s;t, our Brother; and the holy Gho&s;t, our Comforter.</HI> But &s;till, though we have a &s;ecure place of refuge to <HI>fly unto in danger,</HI> and a <HI>guide to direct us that we erre not in our way, and good right and In|tere&s;t thereunto, being of the &s;ame Family, and Friends, and acquaintance there al&s;o;</HI> yet being infected with the Plague of &s;inne, and laden with iniquity, we may feare that we &s;hall not be received; for tho&s;e in who&s;e &s;oules the Plague of &s;in doth reigne, however they may come into the &s;ociety of the Church yet cannot be admitted to the Throne of Grace; And therefore to the end our &s;ins &s;hould neither di&s;hearten, nor hinder us; know, That the Lord our God hath given us Chri&s;t the Righteous, to cover our unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;o, &s;o that as pure and cleane we might come unto him; He hath put on us <HI>the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 13.14.</NOTE> that being adorned with his righ|teou&s;ne&s;&s;e and holine&s;&s;e, as <HI>lacob</HI> was with the goodly gar|ments of his elder Brother <HI>E&s;au,</HI> we might with confidence betake our &s;elves to this <HI>A&s;ylum,</HI> and in the name of Chri&s;t, might goe to the name of <HI>Iohovah;</HI> and in his name, the Sub|ject hath as much right to goe, as the King; the People, as the Prie&s;t; the Slave, as the Lord; the Servant, as the Ma|&s;ter; and the infected, as the &s;ound; for Chri&s;t prayeth with us all as our Brother; he prayes for us all as our High Prie&s;t; and he is prayd unto by us all, as our Lord; he alone is the Eye wherewith we &s;ee the Father, the Hand to offer up our Prayers unto him, the Mouth to &s;peake unto him; and therefore let us goe unto him, by vertue of this right, that he is the Lord our God, and we of his Family and Hou&s;hold.</P>
<P>But for all this, <HI>though we have a Hou&s;e to goe unto, and want not a guide, and be of the &s;ame Family, and &s;tored with Acquaintance, and adorned with our Elder Brothers Righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e;</HI> yet, if we be lame, or have not Feet to carry us thi|ther, we are but like the Creeple at the Poole, obnoxious to all hindrances. And therefore, though the Feet of the Fle&s;h be &s;ufficient to carry us to the Church; yet we mu&s;t have
<PB N="43" REF="27">other Feet, even &s;pirituall Legs, before we can come to this Hou&s;e; namely, the Feet of Faith and Prayer: Faith is the fir&s;t Foot;<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.24.</NOTE> <HI>for if by Faith we &s;tand,</HI> by Faith we may al&s;o goe to the Lord, who is faithfull; and how could we goe unto him by the Foot of Prayer, if we did not beleeve in him?<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 10.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"></NOTE> <HI>For how &s;hall they call on him, in whom they have not belce|ved?</HI></P>
<P>The &s;econd Foot is <HI>Prayer,</HI> which is &s;o &s;wift a Foot, as that it di&s;patcheth in an in&s;tant all the way betwixt Heaven and Earth, and as a fiery Chariot mounts into the pre&s;ence of the Almighty to implore his a&s;&s;i&s;tance; and though we live here in this vale of mi&s;ery, &s;o farre off from our Fathers Hou&s;e; yet being furni&s;hed with the&s;e two &s;pirituall Feet, we may in a moment a&s;cend up thither, and there recreate our wearied &s;pirits; though we live in this world, as in a wa&s;t de|&s;art, if we be in want of any thing, with the&s;e &s;pirituall Fees we may runne to our Fathers Hou&s;e, and there provide our &s;elves. If the Lord hath ea&s;t us down upon our bed of &s;ick|ne&s;&s;e, that we cannot u&s;e the Feet of our bodies; yet he hath given us tho&s;e other Feet of <HI>Faith and Prayer</HI> to u&s;e in flead of them. <HI>Hezekiah</HI> being &s;ick of the Plague,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Kings</HI> 20.2.</NOTE> could not u&s;e the <HI>Feet of his Body;</HI> but with the <HI>Feet of the Spirit,</HI> he went unto this place. <HI>Ionah</HI> was lockt up in Pri&s;on <HI>in the belly of the Whale,</HI> yet by the vertue of the&s;e Feet, <HI>out of the depth</HI> he a&s;cended to the holy Temple of <HI>Iehovah.</HI> But notwith|&s;tanding all this <HI>though we know we have a Hou&s;e to goe un|to, and no hinderance in the way, nor difficulty in the pa&s;&s;age, nor want a guide to direct us, and have good right to the place, and friends and acquaintance to entertaine us, and robes to adorne us, and feet to carry us thither;</HI> yet if we know not how to behave our &s;elves when we come there, though we come as &s;uiters, we &s;hall be but bad &s;peeders. And there|fore the next &s;hall be, <HI>to teach you how to demeanc your &s;elves in this Hou&s;e of the Lord your God.</HI> And for this purpo&s;e, I &s;hall for your &s;akes, endeavour my &s;elfe to binde you all to &s;uch good behaviour in Gods Hou&s;e, as becomes the glory of his publick &s;ervice and pre&s;ence; for the godly Chri&s;tian
<PB N="44" REF="28">ought with all care to lay before him the rules that tye him to a comely compo&s;ure and carryage in the Hou&s;e of God; and to &s;trive to fa&s;hion his nature and practice &s;o, as may become the Maje&s;ty of his Publick Wor&s;hip: for there be di|vers things which in a &s;peciall manner mu&s;t be lookt unto in performing the&s;e publick duties: And to this end, I &s;hall give you &s;ome few Rules, which if you plea&s;e to ob&s;erve, you &s;hall not onely be good <HI>Suiters,</HI> but good <HI>Speeders</HI> al&s;o.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, All, of all &s;orts, mu&s;t come and appear publikely be|fore the Lord, to doe him homage and &s;ervice, <HI>Vi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> unita fortior,</HI> the more, the better; <HI>not onely the Elders, but all the Iuhabitants of the Land.</HI> This you may &s;ee in <HI>Deutoronomy</HI> 31.11.12.13. where you &s;hall find, <HI>That all</HI> I&s;rael <HI>were to come to appeare before the Lord their God in the place which he &s;hould chu&s;e, men women, and children, and the &s;tranger within their gates, that they might heare, and learne, and feare the Lord their God, and keep and ob&s;erve the words of his Law:</HI> none exempted, all mu&s;t come.</P>
<P>Secondly, We mu&s;t come with all po&s;&s;ible reverence, and look to our feet when we enter into the Hou&s;e of God, and &s;trive to &s;hew before all men our mo&s;t carefull re&s;pect to God &amp; his holy Ordinances; <HI>for God will be &s;anctified by them that come neer him,</HI> and he looks for it at our hands, by our reverent behaviour, to be glorified before all the people. See it your &s;elves, in the tenth of <HI>Leviticus,</HI> and the third: And <HI>Eccle&s;ia&s;tes</HI> the fifth, and fir&s;t; and be per&s;waded to &s;hew a mo&s;t holy and reverent feare of Gods name, and pre&s;ence; So that Princely Prophet. <HI>I will come into thine Hou&s;e in the multitude of thy mercies: and in thy feare will I wor&s;hip towards thy holy temple,</HI> P&s;al. 5.7.</P>
<P>Thirdly, We mu&s;t come with a great deale of Zeale: In all publick duties that of <HI>David</HI> &s;hould be true of us, <HI>The Zeale of Gods Hou&s;e &s;hould eat us up</HI> P&s;al 69.9. And this &s;ingular Zeale we &s;hould &s;hew the&s;e &s;ix wayes.</P>
<P N="1">1. By loving Gods Hou&s;e above all other places in the world, our heart, &s;hould be fired in us in that re&s;pect; that we may true|ly &s;ay with the P&s;almi&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 26.8</NOTE> <HI>O how I love thy hou&s;e! I have loved the habitation of thine hou&s;e, and the place where thine honour-dwelleth.</HI></P>
<PB N="45" REF="28">
<P N="2">2. By re&s;olutely purpo&s;ing to re&s;ort to Gods Hou&s;e with joy and gladne&s;&s;e, notwith&s;tanding the &s;cornes and oppo&s;itions of worldly men. O that we were of <HI>Davids</HI> mind, <HI>glad, when men &s;ay, Come, let us goe into the Hou&s;e of the Lord,</HI> P&s;al. 122.1.</P>
<P N="3">3. By &s;tirring up others with all importunity to goe with us to wor&s;hip God in <HI>Sion. The mountaine of the Hou&s;e of the Lord &s;hall be prepared in the top of the mountaines, and &s;hall be exalted above the hils; and all Nations &s;hall flow un|to it:</HI> (the word <HI>flow,</HI> declaring the zeale of the Children of God when they are called.) <HI>And many people &s;hall goe and &s;ay, Come, let us goe up to the mountaine of the Lord, to the Hou&s;e of the God of</HI> Jacob, <HI>and he will teach us his wayes, and we will walke in his paths; for the Law &s;hall goe forth of</HI> Zion, <HI>and the Word of the Lord from</HI> Jeru&s;alem, <HI>I&s;ay</HI> 2.2.3.</P>
<P N="4">4. By making ha&s;t to Gods wor&s;hip, going to the Hou&s;e of the Lord with the fir&s;t, and with willing hearts, with an holy thir&s;t after the means, flocking and flying thither as the Cloudes, or as &s;o many Doves to their Windows. Up, <HI>let us goe and pray before the Lord, and &s;eek the Lord of Ho&s;ts,</HI> Zachar. 8.21. And the P&s;almi&s;t, <HI>Thy people &s;hall come wil|lingly at the time of a&s;&s;embling thine army in holy beauty; from the wombe of the morning, thou ha&s;t the dew of thy youth,</HI> P&s;al. 110.3.</P>
<P N="5">5. By forwardne&s;&s;e and cheerefulne&s;&s;e in contributing to|wards the maintenance of Gods Hou&s;e and &s;ervice in the means thereof.</P>
<P N="6">6. By grieving heartily, becau&s;e other men neglect and contemne the Hou&s;e of God: The Zeale of Gods Children ought to be &s;uch, when they &s;ee his Word &s;leighted, as that they &s;hould be like <HI>David, who&s;e Eyes gu&s;ht out with Rivers of Water, becau&s;e men keep not thy Law,</HI> P&s;al. 119.136.</P>
<P>Fourthly, We &s;hould in all publick Duties, &s;erve God with one con&s;ent, and one heart; There &s;hould appeare in Gods &s;ervants a wonderfull de&s;ire of unanimity and concord, that when they &s;peake to God, it may be as the voyce of one man; when the Lord &s;peaks to them, they &s;hould heare with one Eare: It is a marvellous glory in Religion, when people can come
<PB N="46" REF="29">to this, to &s;erve the Lord with one &s;houlder; Let us all <HI>call upon the name of the Lord,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Zeph.</HI> 3.9.</NOTE> <HI>and &s;erve him with one con&s;ent,</HI> or as it were with one &s;houlder.</P>
<P>Fiftly, and la&s;tly, look upon the fifty &s;econd <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> eighth and ninth ver&s;es; and from thence we may gather three other Rules which in a &s;peciall manner fit us for a decent behaviour in Gods Hou&s;e.</P>
<P N="1">1. We &s;hould alwayes be as green Olive-trees in the Hou&s;e of the Lord; <HI>But I &s;hall be like a green Olive tree in the Hou&s;e of God:</HI> For how&s;oever it goe with men in the world, yet when we come before the Lord, our hearts &s;hould rejoyce and revive, and our &s;pirits be fre&s;h and cheerfull, and our affe|ctions &s;hould be healed of all the cares and di&s;tempers that were in them before. Gods Ordinances &s;hould have &s;uch a power over us as to make a &s;uddaine fre&s;h &s;pring of de&s;ires and holy thoughts in us; there is that power in the Ordinan|ces of God to effect this, if the fault be not in us, I meane, when the&s;e Ordinances are exerci&s;ed in the power and life of them. Let us then rejoyce to have a place among the &s;ervants of God, that we may grow in the knowledge of godline&s;&s;e, and be like green Olive-trees in the Hou&s;e of God.</P>
<P N="2">2. We mu&s;t tru&s;t in the mercy of God, <HI>For I tru&s;ted in the mercy of God for ever and ever,</HI> bringing an heart ready to beleev<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> every good Word of God; and re&s;olving, that if the Lord will &s;peak comfortably to his &s;ervants, we will not di&s;honour his con&s;olations through carele&s;ne&s;&s;e and unbeleefe, but receive them with all our hearts, and e&s;tabli&s;h our &s;elves in the &s;afe keeping of his good word; Let us tru&s;t in the mercy of God for ever and ever.</P>
<P N="3">3. We mu&s;t re&s;olve to be thankfull, <HI>I will alwayes pray&s;e thee for that thou ha&s;t done.</HI> Let us be thankfull with all earne&s;tne&s;&s;e for all experiences of Gods pre&s;ence and good|ne&s;&s;e towards us in the means, vowing with <HI>David, to pray&s;e him for ever for them;</HI> and if the Lord doe with-hold hi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> power and pre&s;ence for a time, &s;o as we feele not the effe|ctualne&s;&s;e of his Ordinances, yet we &s;hould re&s;olve, withou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> di&s;temper, to wait upon the Lord, and ob&s;erve him, according
<PB N="47" REF="29">to the &s;ea&s;ons of his grace, and alwayes pray&s;e him for that he hath done.</P>
<P>Thus having hitherto endevoured to tye you all to &s;uch good behaviour in the Hou&s;e of the Lord in all your publick &s;ervice and wor&s;hip of God, as &s;hall become the glory of his pre&s;ence, wi&s;hing that the&s;e my weak and unskilfull labours might wooe &s;ome more excellent Wits and more skilfull Pens, to better this Di&s;cour&s;e, &s;o needfull to be &s;ounded in our Ears in the&s;e unhappy and unmannerly times, wherein &s;o many come &s;o &s;aweily, and irreverently into the pre&s;ence of the God of glory, never once con&s;idering with <HI>Jacob, How dread|full is this Place, and that this is no other but the Hou&s;e of God.</HI> I &s;hall now likewi&s;e endeavour to tye you all to the good-behaviour in your hearing of the Word of God; for which, the&s;e three directions will order you aright; whereof &s;ome will bind us to the good-behaviour before we come to heare, &s;ome at the time of hearing, and &s;ome after we have heard.</P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>Before we come to heare,</HI> We mu&s;t bring with us two things. Fir&s;t, A re&s;olution to deny our own wits, rea&s;ons, opinions, and conceits, and empty our heads of all per&s;wa|&s;ion of our own skill, to judge of the things of God, being ready to beleeve and think in all things, as God &s;hall teach us out of his Word;<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.18.</NOTE> <HI>We mu&s;t be fools, that we may be wi&s;e,</HI> humbling our &s;elves at his very feet to receive his law.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Deut.</HI> 33.3.</NOTE> <HI>They are humbled at thy feet to receive thy words.</HI> Secondly, We mu&s;t bring with us a meek and quiet &s;pirit, a mind quieted from pa&s;&s;ions and perturbations, and at re&s;t from the tur|moiling cares of this world. The Word is able to doe great things in us, if we receive it with meekne&s;&s;e; <HI>Wherefore lay apart all filthine&s;&s;e, and &s;uperfluity of naughtine&s;&s;e, and receive with meekene&s;&s;e the ingrafted Word, which is able to &s;ave your &s;oules,</HI> James 1.21.</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>At the time of hearing,</HI> two things are to be ob&s;erved. Fir&s;t, We mu&s;t hearken without di&s;traction, we mu&s;t heare as it were for our lives; we mu&s;t incline our Ears, and &s;hake off all impediments ari&s;ing from our own drow&s;ine&s;&s;e, or vain thoughts,
<PB N="48" REF="30">or di&s;tracting objects; <HI>Encline your Eares, and come unto me: heare, and your &s;oule &s;hall live,</HI> I&s;ay 53.3. For indeed, the Preaching of the Word &s;aveth the &s;oule; it is able to make the &s;oule immortall, if it be once ingrafted in us. For this cau&s;e, the Word is called,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Pet</HI> 1.23.</NOTE> <HI>Incorruptible Seed, that endureth for ever,</HI> becau&s;e it maketh us incorruptible and happy for ever; for he that hath his &s;oule &s;aved, liveth for evermore. Now would you be &s;harers in this un&s;peakable ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e? the Word mu&s;t then be ingrafted in your hearts, this heavenly plant of the Word mu&s;t be &s;et into your under&s;tandings and affections; for when a man heareth the VVord with under&s;tanding, it entreth into the heart, as the impe into the &s;tocke; and when with love and affection he imbraceth it, it is clo&s;ed about, that it may grow and pro&s;per therein; but this Word cannot be ingrafted in our hearts, except the heart fir&s;t be clean&s;ed; &s;in mu&s;t be put out, that the VVord may be ingrafted in; the filthine&s;&s;e of &s;in, and all the &s;prouts of malice, mu&s;t be put away: of har&s;h, ha&s;ty, and churli&s;h; we mu&s;t become meek, milde,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 18.2.3.</NOTE> and gentle. The Di&s;ciples mu&s;t become <HI>like little Children;</HI> that is, they mu&s;t put away tho&s;e evill affections of Envy, Pride, deceit &amp;c. which grow upon them with yeares; otherwi&s;e, they &s;hould but follow, and heare their Ma&s;ter in vaine, the VVord could not be ingrafted in them to &s;ave their &s;oules. You may &s;ee the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> reproving the <HI>Jewes,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.16.</NOTE> <HI>That they came to holy duties in their &s;ins.</HI> So that fir&s;t of all, there mu&s;t be a putting away the evill of their doings; and then, a comming together to heare the Lord to their comfort. No wi&s;e man will &s;ow his Corne, or plant his delicate Fruit-trees, but will have the bryars and thornes fir&s;t taken away, and what&s;oever filthy &s;tuffe may hinder the pro&s;pering of his &s;eed, and thriving of his plants: He will not poure Wine or Milke into filthy Ve&s;&s;els; Every man cleares his Table books of the old writing, when he intends to put in any new matter. Now the VVord of God is &s;eed, the Preaching of it is a Planting, it is VVine and Milke, and a writing in the table of mens hearts; all filthine&s;&s;e of &s;in therefore mu&s;t be removed, this ground mu&s;t be cleared
<PB N="49" REF="30">from the bryars of Anger, Hatred, &amp;c. that the VVord may be Planted in; we mu&s;t, like the Di&s;ciples, and the fir&s;t Chri|&s;tians, leave off all, that we may attend the VVord of God; we mu&s;t put away worldly things, which cau&s;e pollution in the heart; we mu&s;t be like <HI>Zacheus,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 19.8.</NOTE> who that he might heare Chri&s;t to his &s;alvation, put away <HI>Extortion, Bribery, and Op|pre&s;&s;ion;</HI> Or like the beleeving <HI>Ephe&s;ians,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Acts</HI> 19.19</NOTE> who put away their curious Arts;</HI> Or like <HI>Saul,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Acts</HI> 9.4.</NOTE> who cea&s;ed from going on in his per&s;ecuting cour&s;e, that he might heare Chri&s;t &s;peaking unto him.</HI> And thus the Word is able to make our &s;oules Immor|tall; for tis a great deceit, to think to retaine our &s;ins &s;till, and yet to heare the Word unto &s;alvation: And if &s;o, then what &s;hall become of tho&s;e men, that &s;et down their re&s;olution to con|tinue in their&s;ins for a &s;ea&s;on, &amp; are re&s;olved to trade in Drunk|enne&s;&s;e, Whoredom, Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, &amp;c? &s;urely there can be no ground in &s;uch mens hearts for the Word of God to grow up to the &s;aving of their &s;oules; the &s;eed may happily be &s;own among&s;t them, but it cannot po&s;&s;ibly enter to doe them good.</P>
<P>Obj. <HI>But it may be objected, That if the Word cannot profit any, but &s;uch as put away all &s;in, it cannot then profit any man that heareth, &s;eeing no man can &s;o put away his &s;ins as that his ground may be cleare?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;.</HI> The An&s;wer is this, That every godly per&s;on doth cleere the ground of his heart from all &s;in, &s;o as that he is not plea&s;ed with any &s;in, but he hates it, and him&s;elfe for commit|ting it: he &s;trives again&s;t it, and he is dayly grieved, and poures forth his &s;upplications for the pardon of it? You may look for this at your lei&s;ures upon the fir&s;t of Saint <HI>John,</HI> the third and third, and fifth, and eighteenth; and he that will not once put his helping hand to the removing of his &s;ins, that he may make roome for the Word of God to be grafted in him, need never look for any comfortable event of his hear|ing; but having thus &s;haken off all impediments, all di&s;tracting objects, and hearkning unto the Word without di&s;turbance, hearing, as it were, for our lives; thus heare, and your &s;oules &s;hall live.</P>
<P>Secondly, VVe mu&s;t prove all things, and keep that which
<PB N="50" REF="31">is good, we mu&s;t heate with judgement, and hearken for our &s;elves; its ordinary with mo&s;t men to heare for others, and not for them&s;elves: but we mu&s;t have a &s;peciall care to look to that Doctrine which in particular concerns us, to lay that up in our hearts, and apply it effectually; and this is a rule of &s;ingular thrift in godline&s;&s;e, if we doe marke what &s;in in us the Lord reproveth, or what comfort is e&s;pecially fitted to our hearts, or what direction doth chiefly concerne us; and he hath an hone&s;t memory that will be &s;ure to keep the&s;e things, though he forget all the re&s;t; but he hath a wretched memory, and heart too, that forgets the&s;e things, though he could re|peat all the Sermon <HI>verbatim.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. <HI>After we have heard,</HI> two things likewi&s;e mu&s;t be done; Fir&s;t, we mu&s;t by Meditation labour to make tho&s;e things we have heard, and which concerns us, fa&s;t, that they &s;lip not out of our minds; and we mu&s;t take heed, that neither the Devill &s;teale away the good &s;eed, nor our own hearts, through neg|ligence, lo&s;e it, the VVord being let into the heart, mu&s;t &s;etledly continue, and not be broken off by the wild bea&s;ts of vain &s;peeches and cogitations, nor blowne out by the gu&s;ts of &s;trong winds of Sathans temptations, or of his In&s;tru|ments, that will immediately after we have heard the word, be offering other objects, for our minds to be taken up with|all.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.2.</NOTE> <HI>The ble&s;&s;ed man doth not onely Reade, but Meditates upon the Word; David</HI> hid the word in his heart, even as he that hath bought a Pearle of incomparable worth hideth it: And as the Husbandman, having ca&s;t his Seed into the ground, harrowes it in; &s;o this Heavenly Plant of the word mu&s;t be &s;et into the under&s;tanding and affections, it mu&s;t enter into the heart (as before is &s;aid) like the Impe into the Stocke, and being imbraced, and clo&s;ed about with love and affecti|ons, it then thrives, and grows, and pro&s;pers. <HI>David</HI> is a notable example for this, how often doth he expre&s;&s;e his affe|ctions to the word, in his 119. <HI>P&s;alme?</HI> And Saint <HI>Paul</HI> profe&s;&s;ed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 7.22</NOTE> <HI>the Law to have been his delight,</HI> as it is indeed o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> every ble&s;&s;ed man; for the hearing of the word is not &s;uffi|cient; neither is it &s;ufficient to keep tho&s;e things we hav<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">
<PB N="51" REF="31">heard for an houre, but it ought to be our delight, and our dayly worke; we &s;hould alwayes be thinking and rumina|ting of what we have heard, till there be a &s;ure impre&s;&s;ion of the word in our hearts. Let then every one of us gage our &s;oules, and try, and &s;ee whether we finde our &s;elves to be &s;uch, as to whom the word is thus powerfull to &s;ave our &s;oules, that we goe not on upon fal&s;e grounds in our hopes, about this un&s;peakable ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Doth thy heart cleave before the word Preached, through trembling and terrour, in re&s;pect of thy &s;ins, and the &s;ins of others? Is it ingrafted in thee? Doth it enter into thy un|der&s;tanding? and is it clo&s;ed about with a mo&s;t earne&s;t love and affection? Doth it remaine with thee, after the hearing of it, by &s;erious Meditation? and doth it grow? and is it vigorous in thy life, over-topping all &s;uperfluous branches of &s;in? then thou maye&s;t truely comfort thy &s;elfe, it &s;hall un|doubtedly be thy &s;alvation. But if thine heart be hardened, and not to be moved before the word; if thy under&s;tanding be &s;o blinded, as that thou ha&s;t no apprehen&s;ion of that which is taught; if thy affections be &s;o benummed, as that thou art without all love unto it; if thou give way to world|ly and vaine di&s;cour&s;es, works, or &s;ports, after thou ha&s;t heard, in&s;omuch, that all departeth out of thy memory againe &s;o &s;oon as thou ha&s;t received it; if all teaching be neglected, and thou &s;wimme&s;t in the &s;treame of thine owne corrupti|ons; then look not up to the joyes of Heaven, for no part of them belongs unto thee: for though Food being eaten is able to &s;ave the life; and Apparell put on, to keep the body warme; and a Trea&s;ure po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed, to enrich a man; yet he that Feedeth not, &s;hall be Fami&s;ht with Hunger; he that goeth Naked, &s;hall be pinched with Cold; and he that hath wealth, and will not u&s;e it, is but a poor mi&s;erable man: &s;o he that maketh no better u&s;e of the word, which is the onely &s;atning Food of his Soule, his Soule &s;hall be hunger-&s;tarved, and peri&s;h, notwith&s;tanding all his hearing. And this is the ca&s;e of mo&s;t men in the&s;e times, wherein &s;in, and the neglect of Ordi|nances, hath gotten &s;uch an head, through a long continued
<PB N="52" REF="32">cu&s;tome, that though the hearde&s;t Oke is cloven with wedges, and the flintie&s;t Stone made hollow with continuall dropping of water; yet there is not one heart, among&s;t many, penetrated by the VVord: and if there be any trembling &s;ometime, as it was with <HI>Felix,</HI> when <HI>Paul Preached,</HI> it is but for the pre|&s;ent, the word is not retained, but flown from, as it was by him; &s;o that there can be no growth of this Heavenly &s;uckle in the&s;e mens lives; but branches of &s;inne will be &s;o luxuriant, that the word will be farre over-topt by them, and kept perpetually at under. And therefore, who&s;oever doth de&s;ire the word to be &s;aved thereby, let him tremble at it, and yet embrace it; let him prepare his heart better to en|tertaine it; let him &s;tirre up the &s;pirit of his mind to un|der&s;tand it; let him not lo&s;e &s;uch precious &s;eed, for want of harrowing in, by due Meditation; and let him cheri&s;h it in his inward thoughts continually, that it may grow, and pro&s;per, and more &s;hew it &s;elfe in his &s;peeches, actions, and company, then tho&s;e bryar-like &s;prouts of his owne naturall corruptions.</P>
<P>Secondly, we mu&s;t &s;ee to it, that we be doers of the word, as well as hearers; we mu&s;t not onely know, but ob&s;erve and doe; for Knowledge without Practice, will availe nothing; and &s;o much of the truth as is put into practice, is &s;ure for ever, the re&s;t may be lo&s;t; and it is a &s;ingular help to a Chri|&s;tian, to &s;et upon his obedience while the Doctrine is yet fre&s;h in his mind; for delay will compa&s;&s;e him about with many difficulties, and he will want tho&s;e inward incitations that might &s;tirre up his heart with power and &s;trength to obey: And that this is the duty of every man, as well to doe, as to heare;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>James</HI> 1.22. <HI>Rom.</HI> 2.6.</NOTE> &s;ee that in Saint <HI>James, Now ye heare the&s;e things, ble&s;|&s;ed are ye if ye doe them.</HI> And Saint <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, <HI>That every man &s;hall be judged, not by his hearing, but by his doing, by his works;</HI> Then up and be doing, every one of you, whil&s;t time and &s;trength permits; for not onely that Fig-tree which had no Fruit, was accur&s;ed; but that Tree likewi&s;e which brought not forth <HI>good Fruit, was to be hewen downe, and ca&s;t into the Fire,</HI> Luke 3.9. And tho&s;e who have not <HI>fed the poor,
<PB N="53" REF="32">and clothed the naked, &amp;c.</HI> will be bidden, <HI>Depart ye our&s;ed in|to everla&s;ting fire,</HI> (Mat. 25.41.) Then what &s;hall become of tho&s;e &s;hadows and Ciphers among Chri&s;tians, who place their Religion onely in hearing? &s;urely they want all &s;ub&s;tance of grace, and <HI>being put into the Ballance,</HI> as <HI>Bel&s;hazzar</HI> was, <HI>they &s;hall certainly be found too light,</HI> when the <HI>rewarding of every one &s;hall be according to his works;</HI> then can they expect no|thing but <HI>tribulation and angui&s;h, which &s;hall be to every &s;oule that doth evill.</HI> And it is to be feared, if inqui&s;ition were made, more then our common &s;ort might be taxed for this neglect in doing, even &s;ome of tho&s;e, who pretend a great deale of Zeale to the Word, and are frequent and attentive hearers, and will runne to Meetings, and make glorious &s;hewes of Devotion, giving Religion a thou&s;and good words; but for this duty of doing, <HI>procul ab&s;it</HI> they have no heart unto it, Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e &s;till prevailes in them; and &s;ome of them, who would be thought, rare Profe&s;&s;ors, can perhaps &s;ometimes be content to <HI>drinke a draught of &s;tollen Waters,</HI> as well as others, making Religion a pretext onely, the more covertly to wallow in the mire of their &s;ins; but &s;uch Kind of Profe&s;&s;ors, what Zeale &s;oever they may &s;hew to the world, are but Painted Chri&s;ti|ans, beautifull onely outward; and woe unto them that are &s;uch, for notwith&s;tanding all their gli&s;tering &s;hewes, <HI>they are but whited Sepulchers, and comely out &s;ides; not like unto Chri&s;ts Spou&s;e, all glorious within, but full of rottenne&s;&s;e, and corruption.</HI> But as for you, be you both hearers, and doers; alter you the cour&s;e of your lives, breake off your &s;ins, &s;hake off the bands of Sathan, di&s;&s;olve the Cloudes of your iniqui|ties, fly wickedne&s;&s;e, &s;hun evill, doe well, doe good, and a&s;pire to &s;uch perfection in doing the will of your God, as that you may not onely cea&s;e from evill, but fill your lives with <HI>good workes;</HI> and thus &s;hall you be ble&s;&s;ed, <HI>ip&s;o facto,</HI> in the very deed; for he that doth the Word, is ble&s;&s;ed; he is no lon|ger under the Cur&s;e, a Va&s;&s;all of wrath, and a Child of per|dition; but ble&s;&s;ed with Gods favour and love, and in the cer|taine way to that un&s;peakable happine&s;&s;e that &s;hall hereafter be revealed: But he that heateth the Word, and doth it not,
<PB N="54" REF="33">deceives him&s;elfe, cheats and cou&s;ens his own &s;oule, and is but a forgetfull Foole, a very Childe, and no Man; he dal|lieth with the Word, as a Babe with a Looking gla&s;&s;e, behold|ing it not for any end, but to &s;port it &s;elfe therewith, never intending any thing about the Face to rectifie it, or to &s;et it in order. Saint <HI>John</HI> doth divide the whole world into two &s;orts of Per&s;ons; <HI>Qui ex Deo e&s;t non peccat; Qui peccat ex Diabolo e&s;t:</HI> The Children of God, and the Children of the Devill; the one hears Gods Word, the other heares it not: He that is of God, heareth Gods Word;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>John</HI> 8.47.</NOTE> <HI>Ye therefore heare it not, becau&s;e ye are not of God:</HI> And to be hearers of the Word of God, is a great pledge or te&s;tification that we are the Children of God; e&s;pecially our hearing of Gods word, being accompanied with the&s;e foure concurring Circum&s;tan|ces.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t is, <HI>Audire,</HI> to heare the word; <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they that heare the Word of God:</HI> this is the fir&s;t &s;tep; and he that doth not put a Foot forward to this, he is not to be accounted a Child of God.</P>
<P>The &s;econd is, <HI>Audire cum frequentia,</HI> to heare the word fre|quently, and often: The Earth that is extraordinary dry, and &s;corched with heat; the drops of water which it receiveth, it turneth into Toads. So he that &s;eldome frequents Sermons, it is to be &s;cared, they <HI>worke</HI> little good upon him, if not turne to his hurt. For the word of God is the Soules &s;u|&s;tenance, and being Mini&s;tred &s;lowly, it is no marvaile if the Soule not onely grow leane, but fall into a Con&s;um|ption.</P>
<P>The third is, <HI>Audire cum attentione,</HI> to heare diligently, and with attention, freeing the Soule from all worldly in|cumbrances; for as the Eye cannot joyntly, and at once, be|hold both Heaven and Earth; &s;o the Soule cannot attentive|ly at one and the &s;ame time, behold the things of the world, and of God. <HI>If any Man love the World, the love of the Fa|ther abideth not in him.</HI> When a great and principall River is divided into many rivolets, or little &s;treames, &s;o much the le&s;le water will every one of them have: The like &s;ucceed|eth
<PB N="55" REF="33">with that Heart, which is divided into many cares and de&s;ires; <HI>Fooli&s;h and noy&s;ime lu&s;ts, drowne men in de&s;tructi|on and perdition,</HI> 1 Tim. 6.9. And <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith, <HI>When thou &s;itte&s;t with a Prince, ob&s;erve what is before thee: And put a Knife to thy throat, if thou bee&s;t a man given to appetite,</HI> Prov. 23.1.2. A Chri&s;tian &s;itting at the King of Heavens Table, is, the hearing of his Word, this is that board to which wi&s;e|dome inviteth us, where the Bread of whole&s;ome Doctrine is &s;et before us, which &s;trengthneth our hearts; and the wine of Grace, which cheereth and comforteth our Soules; at which Table, who&s;oever &s;hall come to &s;it, mu&s;t con&s;ider with attention that which is &s;et before him, ca&s;ting out of his minde all other worldly things. Tho&s;e Mini&s;ters that were employed for the apprehending of our Saviour Chri&s;t, find|ing him Preaching to the People, they hearkned unto him with that earne&s;t and diligent attention, that they had quite forgot to put in execution, that which was given them in charge by the Phari&s;ees: And being demanded by them, why did ye not bring him along with you? they returned this An&s;wer, <HI>Never man &s;pake like this man.</HI> The glorious Doctor Saint <HI>Augu&s;tine,</HI> before that he had unwinded him|&s;elfe out of the error of the <HI>Manichees,</HI> he went on purpo&s;e to heare Saint <HI>Ambro&s;e,</HI> but not with any intention to give any credit to his Doctrine, but onely to plea&s;e his Eares with the Elegancy of his Phra&s;e; and being ravi&s;hed with the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of his expre&s;&s;ions, had his Heart taken as well as his Eare, his attention &s;upplyed the fault of his intenti|on; this was that putting of a Knife to the throat. The Apo&s;tle Saint <HI>Paul</HI> goes a little further, and calls Gods word not onely <HI>Cultrum,</HI> but <HI>Gladium,</HI> not a <HI>Knife,</HI> but a <HI>Sword, Take unto thee the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God,</HI> that thy Soule be not di&s;tracted with the trouble&s;ome bu&s;ine&s;&s;es of this world, freeing it from all worldly cares and mole&s;tations.</P>
<P>The fourth is, <HI>Audire cum con&s;ervatione,</HI> to heare with a retention, and to lay up the Word in our Hearts, to locke it up in the clo&s;et of our Soules; and &s;o, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they
<PB N="56" REF="34">that heare the Word of God, and keep it.</HI> The Phy&s;itian de|&s;paires of that Patients Stomacke, that cannot keep its meat, but throwes it up, as &s;oon as it receives it. So he that hears a Sermon, &s;hould retire him&s;elfe into his Chamber, and there imprint it in his memory. Many take no plea&s;ure in Flow|ers, or care any further for them, then to look upon them, to &s;mell at them, and to have them in their Hands while they are &s;weet and fre&s;h, and lovely, and then throw them by; but the Bee drawes from them both honey and was: So, many heares Sermons for plea&s;ure, for delicacy of words, for gravity of Sentences, and for gracefulne&s;&s;e in the deli|very; but this is but to make a No&s;egay to &s;mell at for a while, and pre&s;ently to ca&s;t it away; but we mu&s;t heare with retention, we mu&s;t &s;eale it up in the coffers of our Remem|brance; <HI>For ble&s;&s;ed are they that heare the Word of God, and keep it.</HI></P>
<P>And now, <HI>having learnt how to behave our &s;elves in the Hou&s;e of the Lord our God, in his Publick Service and Wor|&s;hip,</HI> and particularly <HI>how to comport our &s;elves in the Hearing of the Word, both to our Comfort, and Profit;</HI> We come now to the greate&s;t, and the mo&s;t excellent &s;ervice that God re|quires of us, and that is <HI>Prayer,</HI> which is that very Art of Arts that adornes a Chri&s;tian. And <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>That the holine&s;&s;e of the Temple, con&s;i&s;ted in the Prayers, which then had their force there.</HI> And here you &s;ee, <HI>That the A&s;&s;embly gathered into the Hou&s;e of the Lord,</HI> (their exerci&s;e there) is, <HI>Sighing, Sobbing, Praying, Crying; Cry unto the Lord.</HI> And to this, the Angels whet on our diligence; and the Lord him|&s;elfe, by <HI>Prayer,</HI> permits us familiarly to poure out our hearts before him; for <HI>Prayer</HI> is nothing el&s;e but an opening of our hearts in the pre&s;ence of God, and the be&s;t remedy we have to releeve our cares, angui&s;hes, mi&s;eries, oppre&s;&s;ions, and troubles, is, to lay them all up in his bo&s;ome; <HI>Ca&s;t thy burthen upon the Lord,</HI> &s;aith <HI>David, and he &s;hall nouri&s;h thee:</HI> And therefore, when&s;oever we feele our &s;elves deprived o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> Gods benefits towards us, when&s;oever we finde a want, or <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> with holding of Gods wonted favour and mercy from us, by
<PB N="57" REF="34">rea&s;on of our &s;ins; when&s;oever the height of our &s;innes, brings downe the weight of Gods Judgement upon us, whether it be by Plague, Famine, Warre, or any other ca|lamity, let us run <HI>to this Hou&s;e,</HI> and importune the God of glory, and compa&s;&s;ion, for this is the onely bu&s;ine&s;&s;e of this <HI>Fa&s;t, and of this Solemne Meeting;</HI> which brings us to the la&s;t Circum&s;tance in the Method, or Order, <HI>And cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Good cau&s;e had all this People to figh, and weep, and cry continually, for their Land was ru&s;&s;eted with a blood|le&s;&s;e Famine: And for us of this Land,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Lamen. <HI>2.1.</HI> &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>How hath the Lord darkened the Daughter of Zion in his wrath and hath ca&s;t downe the beauty of I&s;rael and remembred not his foot-&s;toole in the day of his wrath! He hath cut off in his fierce wrath all the herne of I&s;rael; he hath drawne backe his right hand, and a Fire was kindled in</HI> Jacob, <HI>which devoured round about; he hath bent his Bow like an Enemy, his right kand was &s;tretched out as an Adver&s;ary; He hath de&s;pi&s;ed in the in|dignation of his wrath, the King and the Prie&s;t.</HI> So that well may we take up a lamentation, &s;uch as was not in the dayes of our Fathers; for alas, no lamentation can proportion our affliction, &s;o that a Deluge of Teares, is little enough for the Ocean of our mi&s;eries. Let then &s;or|row be our individuall companion, with this we begun, with this let us end; nay, never let us make an end of mourning for the abominations of this Land; and let us all learne that la&s;t le&s;&s;on of our Saviour, to weep for our &s;elves, to weep for our &s;ins. And for this cau&s;e, I &s;hall &s;till leade you on with paces of lamentation to the Hou&s;e of mourning, where we are <HI>to cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>We will &s;tay no longer to look upon the behaviour of this People, <HI>who&s;e teares did not onely runne downe like a River Day and Night; but their very Hearts cryed unto the Lord They poured forth their Hearts like Water before the face of the Lord; they lifted up their Hands towards him for the lives of their young Children, that fainted for hunger in the Corners of all their Streets; the &s;ervices they brought
<PB N="58" REF="35">unto the Lord were not onely Prayers, but Teares; they did not onely Pray, but Cry.</HI> And &s;ince we have &s;o &s;inned, and have been &s;o puni&s;hed, doth it not now concern us? and is it not now high time for us to betake our &s;elves unto this Sanctuary of Prayer? nay, what manner of Prayers &s;hould we now &s;end up to Heaven? &s;urely not &s;uch, as mo&s;t what we u&s;e to make, &s;uch cold, and frigid ones, as if they were onely for fa&s;hion &s;ake, and as if there were an indiffe|rency in us, whether or no they found acceptation from the Lord; and People that are in the fiery Furnace of affliction, under the torrid Zone of Heauens indignation, to be &s;o luke-warme; nay, &s;o very cold in their Devoti|ons; what doth this argue, but either de&s;peration, that their praying is to no purpo&s;e; or el&s;e mindle&s;ne&s;&s;e under the heavy hand of God? whereas there is no better meanes for the removing of this Hand, then <HI>Prayer:</HI> For what &s;in doeth, <HI>Prayer</HI> undoeth, e&s;pecially <HI>fervent Prayer.</HI> There|fore the &s;ins of our Nation being &s;o great, and loud, as that the cry of them hath brought downe &s;uch horrible Vengeance upon us; who can tell whether the cry of hum|ble Prayer unto God for mercy, may not yet enter into his Eates; For this rea&s;on, <HI>Let us cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>And as we mu&s;t thus imitate their behaviour in mi&s;ery; &s;o the next is, their Remedy, which likewi&s;e mu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> be ours; <HI>They ca&s;t their burthen upon the Lord,</HI> knowing full well, <HI>that he was able to help them, being the Lord;</HI> and as wil|ling, as able, <HI>becau&s;e their God.</HI> In treating of which, the utmo&s;t of my intent &s;hall be, to divide &s;uch &s;hares of &s;or|row among you, as that your very &s;oules may be even cut a&s;under w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">thin you; being indeed, <HI>your onely remedy in trou|ble,</HI> and the onely way to appea&s;e your angry God; <HI>for the broken and contrite heart, he will not di&s;pi&s;e.</HI> And therefore, let us &s;igh, and weep, <HI>and cry unto the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P>As the cau&s;e of this Peoples mi&s;ery, was <HI>Famine;</HI> &s;o their ca&s;e, in regard of any Earthly &s;uccour that could be expected, was helple&s;&s;e, and remedile&s;&s;e; <HI>For the Heavens were become as Bra&s;&s;e, and the Earth as Iron unto them,</HI> the
<PB N="59" REF="35">Lord their God, who comprehends all in his Fi&s;t, had with|held from them the bottles of Heaven, and &s;topped the &s;pouts of Raine; now being ready to dye with hunger, they mingle their Bread with weeping, &s;eeking to relieve them|&s;elves by tears and groans; <HI>And cry unto the Lord.</HI> Hence the Point is this.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ob&s;.</NOTE><HI>That godly &s;orrow, and holy affliction, is the be&s;t remedy in any &s;orrow and affliction, whether it be from Men, from Sathan, or from God him&s;elfe; whether it be in Body, E&s;tate, Name, Mind, or &s;oule of a Man; whether it be on parti|cular Per&s;ons, or on our Selves, or on our Friends, or tho&s;e that are about us, or on the whole Land, as on Church, or Common wealth;</HI> This is the mo&s;t &s;overaigne Remedy in all di&s;tre&s;&s;e, and extremity what&s;oever; this inward godly griefe, is a &s;alve for every &s;ore, and a play&s;ter for every wound: To Weep, and Cry, and poure out our Hearts before God, is the cour&s;e that this people here took, and that which we mu&s;t take in the like, or any other ealamity: and according to the mea&s;ure of the affliction, and as it is more publick, or private, &s;o mu&s;t be the mea&s;ure of our lamentation. To this, there is a promi&s;e made in <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a</HI> 61.1.2.3.</NOTE> That when our Hands cannot help our &s;elves, nor our Tongues prevaile with others; yet then we may relieve our &s;elves by our Prayers unto God; for in that place the Lord undertaketh, <HI>that Mourners &s;hall be comforted.</HI></P>
<P>And there is great cau&s;e why God &s;hould &s;o deale with &s;uch kind of Per&s;ons. For fir&s;t, He is full of pitty and compa&s;&s;ion; and therefore the Prophet <HI>Joel,</HI> bids us,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Joel</HI> 2.13.</NOTE> <HI>Rent our Hearts, and not our Garments:</HI> that is, bring inward &s;orrow, that may cru&s;h and breake the Heart, and then turne unto the Lord; which if we doe, we &s;hall be &s;ure of reliefe; <HI>becau&s;e the Lord is mercifull</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>and our God is ready to forgive.</HI> When we &s;ee our Children weep|ing, mourning, and con&s;e&s;&s;ing their faults, we cannot but have our bowels of compa&s;&s;ion carning towards them; what &s;hall we then thinke of God? He is our Father, we are his Children, and be is farre more mercifull then we can be,
<PB N="60" REF="36">for he hath no other bowels, then the bowels of compa&s;&s;i|on; and therefore when we Mourne in an holy manner, certainly he will ari&s;e, and have mercy upon us; he can|not &s;lay, when he &s;ees our Eyes full of Teares, and our Hearts full of &s;orrow, for the &s;ighs and groanes of his people will not let him have re&s;t in Heaven.</P>
<P>Secondly, This godly mourning mu&s;t needs be a &s;peciall remedy in all manner of afflictions, becau&s;e it makes our Prayers very forcible; it &s;ets an edge upon our Petitions, and makes us pray heartily, &s;ervently, and &s;trongly <HI>When</HI> Jacob <HI>wept in his Prayer,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 12 4.</NOTE> it was &s;o effectuall, <HI>that he pre|vayled.</HI> When Gods people joyned together to poure forth buckets full of Teares drawne from the bottome of their Hearts before the Lord,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Sam</HI> 7.6.</NOTE> they were marvellou&s;ly helped; for the great mea&s;ure of their Teares, made their &s;upplication more &s;ervent. And therefore when our Saviour was about the principall point of his Mediator&s;hip: then did he gather &s;trength unto him&s;elfe by this means, <HI>He did offer up Pray|ers with &s;trong crying and tears unto him that was able to &s;ave him from death,</HI> Heb. 5.7.</P>
<P>Thirdly, This godly &s;orrow mu&s;t needs be very effectu|all, becau&s;e it is exceeding forcible again&s;t &s;in; for when &s;orrow comes into the Heart, &s;in goes out, it will not lodge there, unle&s;&s;e it be cockered, and much made of. When every one laments his iniquity, and mourns over Chri&s;t Je|&s;us, whom by his &s;innes he hath pierced, then there is a Fountaine opened to wa&s;h us all from our &s;ins, that have made a wicked &s;eparation betwixt us and our God. And &s;eeing then that this godly &s;orrow is a means to make God pitty us and to make us call earne&s;tly upon him, and to expell &s;in, which might hinder us from prevayling with him, it mu&s;t needs follow That of all remedies in time of di&s;tre&s;&s;e, this is the be&s;t and &s;ure&s;t.</P>
<P>Since &s;orrow is our onely &s;afery, and the be&s;t and &s;ure&s;t remedy in di&s;tre&s;&s;e; Let us a little reflect upon our &s;elves and mi&s;eries and apply this &s;overaigne Balme to all our wounds. There are many afflictions abroad at Sea, Ships
<PB N="61" REF="36">taken, Merchants &s;poyled, goods &s;eized, Marriners impri|&s;oned; many at home, in our Townes, nay, in our owne Families, as lo&s;&s;es, ero&s;&s;es, &s;ickne&s;&s;es, di&s;ea&s;es, parting with friends, di&s;contents; nay, there are many things ami&s;&s;e in our owne Hearts, and here is medicine for every one of our maladies. Let us then get it, and u&s;e it, and all argu|ments and helps that may continue and increa&s;e it. Thus the <HI>Ninevites,</HI> when <HI>Jonah</HI> threatned di&s;truction again&s;t their City within <HI>forty dayes;</HI> they humbled, and aba&s;ed them&s;elves and fell to mourning, and u&s;ed Fa&s;ting to help it forward; and to further them to this remor&s;e and griefe for their great and hainous tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions: they had grieved the Lord by their iniquities, and therefore now they would grieve them&s;elves with contrition for them, and neglect no means to further them in the worke of humiliation;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Jonah</HI> 3.5, 6, 7, 8.</NOTE> <HI>They Proclaime a Fa&s;t, they put on Sackcloth from the greate&s;t to the lea&s;t; they neither eat nor drinke; they cry mightily unto God, and every man turnes from his evill way and from the wickedne&s;&s;e that is in their hands: And when God &s;aw that they turned from their evill wayes, than God repented of the evill that he &s;aid he would doe unto them, and he did it not.</HI> And &s;ince we of this Nation have &s;een and felt affliction, and ju&s;tly may feare danger to be neer us &s;till; let us betake our &s;elves to this mourning: if we refu&s;e to doe it, and &s;hall continue to be hard-hearted; &s;uppo&s;e the devouring, bloud-letting Sword &s;hould come againe into our Land; &s;uppo&s;e the Plague like a loaden &s;punge &s;hould come fly|ing through our Townes and Countries, &s;prinkling poy&s;on where&s;oever &s;he comes; &s;uppo&s;e pale, meager Famine &s;hould come, which is the very Engine of de&s;truction, and brings terrour to mortalls, death to all things: Are not we likely to he taken away with any of the&s;e, and to have, not our bodies onely, but our &s;oules in danger al&s;o, and that, of Gods wrath and everla&s;ting di&s;plea&s;ure? Let us therefore &s;eek to have our hearts mollified by this excellent meanes, and for this end the better to move us; let us con&s;ider of the ble&s;&s;ings which God hath been plea&s;ed plentifully to
<PB N="62" REF="37">poure downe upon this people, as they did in the day of their humiliation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nehem. <HI>9.</HI></NOTE> of whom <HI>Nehemiah</HI> makes mention. Let us likewi&s;e &s;eriou&s;ly recount how many mercies we have enjoyed, and how much they have been abu&s;ed; how many afflictions we have felt, and how little we have been bet|terd; how many deliverances we have had, and yet how carele&s;&s;e, nay, how rebellious we have been, notwith&s;tanding them all. Let us weigh with our &s;elves, what hurt our &s;ins have done unto us; how many good things they have turned from us, and how many evills they have pull'd upon us; and above all, let us remember what a huge weight, and multitude of mi&s;eries, they have brought up|on our Saviour; namely, deba&s;ement, and humiliation, ex|change of the greate&s;t glory, for the greate&s;t infamy, &s;or|rows and &s;ufferings, a&s;&s;aults and temptations, the heavy burthen of our guiltine&s;&s;e, and the grievous puni&s;hment due for our de&s;erts, the rage and violence of mo&s;t malici|ous men, and the wrath and di&s;plea&s;ure of the mo&s;t righte|ous God, torments of Body and terrours of &s;oule, and death it &s;elfe, a painefull death, a &s;hamefull death, and a cur&s;ed death. And becau&s;e commonly &s;ad &s;pectacles call &s;orrow before it come; let us look back againe upon that &s;evere whip of Gods Ju&s;tice, the late Scourge of the&s;e three Lands; and imagine you &s;ee your Children flame before your Eyes, ones Head off, anothers Arme, a third crying unto you, and the little one hanging upon you, and then tell me, if it be not hgh time to weep and mourne with them of <HI>Ziglag,</HI> who&s;e foules were grieved, <HI>and they wept, till they could weep no more, every man for his Sons, and for his Daughters,</HI> 1 Sam. 30.4.6. But e&s;pecially to lament for our &s;ins of all things el&s;e mo&s;t hurtfull to man, un|dermining our &s;oules, and drawing de&s;truction after them, un&s;heathing Gods Sword, and violently forcing him to his Armory, <HI>to put on the Garments of vengeance,</HI> as <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> &s;peaketh. And as thus the Ca<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">tropes of our &s;ins have hur|ried downe Gods Judgements upon us, and have cryed to God for vengeance; &s;o now, let our mi&s;eries cry unto him
<PB N="63" REF="37">for mercy; and let us implore Gods gracious power, and that with an howling lamentation, to &s;tay his further threat|ned (and ju&s;tly merited) puni&s;hments, from any more di&s;|playing horrour throughout our Nation: And for this pur|po&s;e, let us weep, and &s;ob, and &s;igh, <HI>and cry mightily unto the Lord our God:</HI> And the more &s;orrow, the better for us, for &s;uch moy&s;ture will di&s;&s;olve the clouds of our iniqui|ties; and the more &s;howers of griefe fall from our Eyes and Hearts, the cleerer and fairer will the wayes of our Hearts be for the feet of the Lord to walke in. Let us then &s;ollow the Apo&s;tles councell,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>James</HI> 4.9</NOTE> <HI>Suffer affliction, &s;orrow, and weep:</HI> And if any thing keep us from this mourning, away with it; Let our laughter be turned into mourning, and our joy into heavine&s;&s;e; for we cannot ca&s;t downe our &s;elves &s;o low, but God will rai&s;e us up againe. Seeing then &s;or|row is the onely Antidote and Soveraigne Remedy for all our poy&s;onous Di&s;ea&s;es; let there be weeping, and crying in every Towne, in every Street, in every Hou&s;e, in every Chamber, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Obj. <HI>But perhaps &s;ome will &s;ay, Is Godly griefe a Salve for all So<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">es a Remedy for all Di&s;ea&s;es: Suppo&s;e Warre, as lately it did, &s;hould againe thunder in this Land? Surely, to weep, and lament in the time of Warre, is no &s;igne of Man|hood; it rather argues that Men are faint-hearted, want cou|rage and fortitude; &s;o that this wringing and wayling, is al|together unbe&s;eeming the per&s;on of a Man of Valour: let us therefore tru&s;t in God, and be &s;tout, and of a good courage, and never mourne for the matter?</HI></P>
<P><HI>An&s;.</HI> Do<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">h it argue want of Courage, to lament for &s;inne? It r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ther argues want of Faith, not to lament for &s;inne. What doe you thinke of <HI>Jacob,</HI> was he a Coward? you cannot &s;ay &s;o of him; for the holy Gho&s;t gives him this commendation, <HI>That he had &s;trength and courage not onely to prevayle again&s;t men, but with the Angel of the Co|venant.</HI> (Gen 32.28.) And his conflict was, <HI>he Wept, and Prayed.</HI> So that that which we thinke weakne&s;&s;e, the Scri|pture calls &s;trength; <HI>For by his &s;trength he had power with
<PB N="64" REF="38">God,</HI> (Ho&s;ea 12.2.4) What doe you thinke of <HI>David,</HI> was he a Coward? there is none, I thinke, will &s;o di&s;|grace that worthy and renowned Captaine of the Lord of Ho&s;ts: And yet he him&s;elfe in his <HI>P&s;almes,</HI> often makes mention of his Teares, and &s;ayes,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 6.6.</NOTE> <HI>That he watered his couch with his teares: And that his Eyes did gu&s;h out with Rivers of teares.</HI> What will ye &s;ay to all Gods People, of whom it is &s;aid,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Zach.</HI> 12.11.</NOTE> <HI>That they &s;hould mourne as they did for</HI> Jo&s;iah, <HI>in the Valley of Hadadrimmon?</HI> and as one mourneth for his Fir&s;t-borne, the onely Heyre and hope of the Family, Will you condemne all Gods people for a generation of Cowards? nay, this is &s;o farre from bewraying any want of Courage, that we may boldly &s;ay, That when men are fulle&s;t of &s;uch Teares, then are they fulle&s;t of Fortitude. What &s;hall we thinke of the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, had he no Heart? was he de&s;titute of Courage? that could not po&s;&s;ibly be: And yet, when he was to exerci&s;e the fulne&s;&s;e of his Power, to un|dertake &s;uch a worke, as no creature dur&s;t attempt; when he was to offer up him&s;elfe to his Father, as a Sacrifice for the fins of the World; when he was to encounter the Lords wrath, and his ju&s;tice; the Devill, Death, Hell, and Damnation, and all the Powers of Darkene&s;&s;e, that &s;ame time,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 5.7.</NOTE> <HI>he Wept, and that abundantly:</HI> And I hope none will &s;ay, that then our Saviours &s;trength fayled him, notwith|&s;tanding his bitter Tears and Cryes. Surely tho&s;e that doe not weep when there is cau&s;e, they are without Heart, and utterly voyd of true Valour, and &s;ubject to marvellous fears, and violent di&s;tempers, which ari&s;e from a ba&s;e mind. For what is the rea&s;on they are &s;o afraid of Death? but be|cau&s;e they have not mourned for their &s;innes, and &s;o re|moved the &s;ting of Death, which if they had done, they would then triumph over Death; and &s;ay with Saint <HI>Paul O Death where is thy &s;ting?</HI> (1 Cor. 15.55.) their heart<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> would then &s;tand fa&s;t, as the &s;trong mountains, and not b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> afraid of any evill tidings, <HI>No not of the Pe&s;tilence th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters"> walketh in the darke; nor of the Plague that de&s;troyeth <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 word"> noon-day,</HI> P&s;al. 91.6.</P>
<PB N="65" REF="38">
<P>Againe, Since &s;orrow is our onely &s;afety. This makes exceedingly for the comfort of tho&s;e that are Mourners in <HI>Sion;</HI> they are in favour with God, and out of the reach of all danger, &s;o that nothing can befall them for hurt. <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they that mourne,</HI> &s;aith Chri&s;t, <HI>for they &s;hall be comforted,</HI> Matth. 5.4. More happy is the poor man that weeps for his &s;inne, then the greate&s;t Potentate that rejoyceth in abundance.</P>
<P>And though we have cau&s;e enough of &s;orrow, if we &s;hould flay to looke into the Calendar of the&s;e dayes, and &s;ee and find the &s;innes of this Land to be a&s;piring &s;innes; to &s;ee Drinking, Cheating, Whoring, Swearing, as common as Breathing; which though they may be wincked at by the Eyes of Men; yet are they crying in the Eares of God. But to pa&s;&s;e by the&s;e, and likewi&s;e Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, Oppre&s;&s;ion, who&s;e Hou&s;es filled by cruelty and deceit, Ex|tortion of the Rich, Wantonne&s;&s;e of &s;ome, and Prophane&s;&s;e of all, enough to &s;it every Pious &s;oule in Mourning, for the mi&s;eries of <HI>England:</HI> And to look onely upon the woe|full divi&s;ions among&s;t us touching matters of Religion, not medling at all with that remnant of <HI>Baal,</HI> I meane, our Pa|pi&s;ts; though me thinks, its &s;trange, that after &s;o long Preaching of the Go&s;pel, there &s;hould be &s;till &s;uch as in|undation of Popery; nor with our hollow hearted bypo|erites; nor with the Athei&s;ts of our times, who neither &s;eek the Lord, nor enquire after him. Let us onely look upon our new Apo&s;tates, and &s;ee what numberle&s;&s;e num|bers are carried away from true Religion to Fancies: yet I reckon the&s;e Separi&s;ts to be ours, however they may be &s;omewhat Sun-burnt, Tand, and Tackt with private Opini|ons, (though I hope the cloth is &s;ound, they yet hold fa&s;t the Foundation;) but runne through the Streets of every Towne, and you &s;hall &s;carce meet with two of one Opi|nion, and yet all would be thought Religions, and admi|red for Holine&s;&s;e; by which meanes, the &s;eamele&s;&s;e Coat of Chri&s;t is mi&s;erably rent and torne, and too many (God grant they prove not irreparable) divi&s;ions are in this poor
<PB N="66" REF="39"><HI>Reuben.</HI> O how &s;hould thoughts of the&s;e things open the very &s;luces of &s;orrow, and cau&s;e Teares to trickle downe all cheekes, that the Children &s;hould take delight in the Mothers ruine, and Rayes of the glorious Go&s;pel &s;hould &s;uffer &s;uch di&s;mall Eclip&s;es by the &s;trange and unheard of interpo&s;itions of tho&s;e that would be deemed the onely Pro|fe&s;&s;ours and lovers of it: For &s;urely there can be no greater cau&s;e of lamentation, then the mi&s;eries and calamities of Gods poor di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Church and People. Hence the Point &s;hall be this.</P>
<P><HI>That the greate&s;t affliction that &s;hould touch the Hearts of Gods People, &s;hould be the affliction of his Church and Peo|ple;</HI> this of all others goes neere&s;t the Hearts of the Saints. For this, &s;ee <HI>Ieremies Lamentation,</HI> for the judgements of God on his Church, and on <HI>Ieru&s;alem</HI> his owne City, and for the mi&s;ery and calamity that lay upon the whole State; &s;ee them thus bewayling their heavy ea&s;e;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lament.</HI> 3.48 49. &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Mine Eye ca&s;t|eth out Rivers of Water, for the de&s;truction of the Daughter of my People: Mine Eye droppeth without &s;tay and cea&s;eth not; Mine Eye breaketh my Heart, becau&s;e of all the Daugh|ters of my City.</HI> For when Gods Inheritance was &s;poyled, &s;ome put to the Sword others led Captive, the Temple of God rized, and the exerci&s;es of Religion aboli&s;hed; this was it that wrought upon <HI>Ieremiah,</HI> and made him to grieve, and breake forth into the&s;e wi&s;hes, <HI>O that my Head were full of Water, and mine Eyes a Fountaine of Teares, that I might weep Day and Night, for the Slaine of the Daugh|ter of my People.</HI> (Ierem. 9.1.) as if he could not have his fill, nor weep enough for the de&s;olations of <HI>Zion</HI> and the mi&s;erable overthrow thereof, which he fore-&s;aw. And this was it that went neer the Heart of good <HI>Nehemiah,</HI> who being in great pro&s;perity,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Nehe.</HI> 1 4.</NOTE> <HI>Cup-hearer</HI> to the mightie&s;t Mo|narch in the World, and in &s;peciall favour with him; yet for the <HI>affliction and reproach</HI> wherein the Church of God was, he conceived &s;uch inward &s;orrow,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Nehem.</HI> 2.1.2.</NOTE> <HI>That be was &s;ad in the Kings pre&s;erce.</HI> which was a thing, that he mu&s;t, and would have forborne, if po&s;&s;ibly he could. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> goes fur|ther,
<PB N="67" REF="39">He doth not onely Mourne, but is content to lay downe his pro&s;perity, and to expo&s;e his E&s;tate to a mani|fe&s;t overthrow &s;o that he might help forward the delive|rance <HI>of the afflicted I&s;raelites, and &s;ave them from the hands of their Oppre&s;&s;ours:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>H<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">b.</HI> 11.24.25.</NOTE> For he knew he could not be in fa|vour with <HI>Pharaoh,</HI> if he &s;hould joyne with them, whom he &s;o cruelly handled; <HI>But he cho&s;e rather to &s;uffer affliction with the People of God, then to be called the Sonne of</HI> Pha|raohs <HI>Daughter. E&s;ther</HI> &s;eems to goe &s;omewhat beyond him, for &s;he re&s;olves with her &s;elfe (for the cau&s;e of the <HI>Jewes,</HI> who were all appointed to &s;laughter) to adventure her life in going to the King in their behalfe; <HI>I will goe,</HI> &s;aith &s;he, <HI>though it be contrary to the Law, and if I peri&s;h, I peri&s;h,</HI> E&s;ther 4.16. and God ble&s;&s;ed her boldne&s;&s;e with an happy &s;ucce&s;&s;e; &s;he &s;aw the deliverance of her People, and the confu&s;ion of her Enemies. But our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t goes beyond them all, for when he was in &s;upreame excellency, he was &s;o affected with the woefull ca&s;e of his Elect, into which they had brought them&s;elves by their owne rebellions again&s;t him; that he humbled him&s;elfe,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Phil.</HI> 2.6.7.</NOTE> <HI>and tooks on him the forme of a Servant,</HI> and &s;ubmitted him&s;elfe to many &s;orrowes, di&s;graces, and &s;ufferings; not onely while he lived, but principally at his Death, that &s;o he might deliver his People from the wrath to come, and from Eternall Death, which they had de&s;erved and mu&s;t have otherwi&s;e endured: But for proofe, enough; if you will have Rea&s;ons, take the&s;e three.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, There is great Rea&s;on why the <HI>affliction of the Church, and People of God</HI> &s;hould &s;o affect us; In regard of the Communion that is betwixt God and them: For they are called the Lords Flocke, his chiefe Trea&s;ure un|der Heaven, his Fir&s;t-borne, yea, the very Apple of his Eye; and therefore being &s;o deare unto the Lord, they &s;hould be deare unto us; and we &s;hould have a tender care over them, and mourne in our hearts for any evill that be|falls them, as <HI>Jeremy</HI> did, <HI>That the Lords Flocke &s;hould goe into Captivity.</HI></P>
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<P>Secondly, There is great Rea&s;on <HI>why the affection of the Church &s;hould &s;o affect us.</HI> In regard of the Communion that is betwixt them and us; for we are their members, and neerer then bodily members: And &s;urely we &s;hould have greater care of the whole Church, then of our &s;elves, becau&s;e it more concernes Gods glory; and yet in caring for them, we care for our &s;elves too, and in labouring to prevent their afflictions, we prevent our owne, and in weeping for others mi&s;eries, we get Armour of proofe that will keep off mi&s;ery from our &s;elves. And that there is no danger in thus doing for the &s;ervants of God, may appeare in <HI>Exodus;</HI> one would have thought that there had been &s;ome great mi&s;chiefe toward <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> and <HI>Aaron,</HI> when they mu&s;t fetch out of <HI>Egypt</HI> &s;uch a People, from &s;uch a King, not onely by Petition, but by command, and threatning, <HI>If he would not let them goe;</HI> one would have imagined that <HI>Pharah,</HI> a proud man, would never have en|dured this at their hands; and yet, if ye will trace them, though you may find them in perill, yet you &s;hall find them of all others the mo&s;t &s;afe.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There is great Rea&s;on, <HI>why the affliction of the Church &s;hould &s;o affect us,</HI> and mu&s;t needs &s;o worke upon our Hearts, becau&s;e of the in&s;ultations and triumphs of the wicked again&s;t them, when they cry out, <HI>Where is now their God?</HI> And this was it which <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> did urge to move God to &s;pare his People, when he threatned to de|&s;troy them for their Idolatry,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 32.11.12.</NOTE> <HI>He intreats God to remember his great name, and to &s;pare them, lea&s;t the</HI> Egyptians <HI>&s;hould &s;ay That he had brought them out maliciou&s;ly to flay them in the Mountaines, and to con&s;ume them from the Earth, or that he was not able to bring them into the Land of</HI> Ca|naan. This is it that goe, to the Heart of the Faithfull, when they heare prophane Per&s;ons reviling the Ho&s;t of the Living God: O the&s;e are they (&s;ay they) that &s;tand &s;o much for the exerci&s;es of Religion; and for comeline&s;&s;e of Order in the Church, doe we not &s;ee that their exer|ci&s;es of Religion are aboli&s;ht? and that they them&s;elves,
<PB N="69" REF="40">&s;ome out off by the Sword, &s;ome Exiled, and the mo&s;t of them pittifully pinched with poverty and nece&s;&s;ity? The&s;e, and the like do&s;pightfull and bitter &s;peeches, doe wound the very Hearts of &s;uch as love Gods glory, and de&s;ire the pro&s;perity of his Saints, and &s;o cau&s;e them much to bewayle the tribulation of the Church.</P>
<P>Seeing that the greate&s;t Afflictions which &s;hould touch the Hearts of Gods People, <HI>is the affliction of the Church.</HI> Fir&s;t, Then all carele&s;&s;e Per&s;ons are to be reproved, who, &s;o it goe well with them&s;elves, regard not the Church at all, let it &s;inke or &s;wim, all is one to them, &s;o they may be free from danger, and &s;it quiet in their owne Hou&s;es, what&s;oever becomes of others, they regard not; <HI>They Drinke Wine in Bowles; but no Man is &s;orry for the affli|ctions of</HI> Jo&s;eph (Amos 6.6.) This was a great fault in the late times of our unhappy Warres, when the Sword devoured, and many Chri&s;tians were taken away, and &s;mit|ten downe on every &s;ide; yet the mo&s;t of us did Eat, and Drink, and were Merry, as if all things then went well with us: The fault is little amended in the&s;e dayes; for though we know that many of our Brethren are in Exile, &s;ome Impri&s;oned, others in Di&s;grace, many in Penury and want, and perhaps men of farre better Parts then our &s;elves; yet if we can but &s;atiate our &s;elves under out owne Vines and Fig-trees, it matters not what becomes of others, never once troubled at other Mens mi&s;eries; but this argues &s;trange in&s;idelity, and is &s;uch a &s;inne, as the Lord will pur&s;ue even unto Death, if it be not reformed. See the threatning of the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah, In that day,</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>did the Lord God of Ho&s;ts call unto weeping, and Mourning to Baldne&s;&s;e, and girding with Sackcloth. But behold Ioy and Gladne&s;&s;e, &s;laying Oxen, and killing Sheep, Eating Fle&s;h, and Drinking Wine; Eating and Drink|ing, for to morrow we &s;hall dye. And it was declared in the Eares of the Lord of Ho&s;ts.</HI> (but what followes thereup|on?) <HI>&s;urely this iniquity &s;hall not be purged from you ti&s;t ye dye, &s;aith the Lord of Ho&s;ts,</HI> I&s;a. 22.12.13.14. We had
<PB N="70" REF="41">need then redre&s;&s;e &s;uch things as are &s;o dangerous to the whole Land.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a greater fault then this; For many doe not onely walke &s;ecurely in the affliction of their Brethren, but de&s;ire the continuance and increa&s;e of it, in hope that they &s;hall enlarge their Po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions, and better their E&s;tates by other mens harmes; but &s;urely tho&s;e who have but a glimp&s;e of Chri&s;tianity in them, would rather wi&s;h the well-fare of others, then de&s;ire and thir&s;t to live upon their &s;poyles.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There are a &s;ort which are wor&s;e then the&s;e, who come ju&s;tly under this reproofe; and &s;uch are they as long for &s;tirres, and mutinies, and in&s;urrections; of this &s;ort are they, who under any Government of Church or State, Cry, Downe with Magi&s;trates, and downe with Preachers. Of this &s;ort likewi&s;e are tho&s;e who cry ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> of too much P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">enty, as a &s;top to their greedy de&s;ire of Gaine; and of this &s;ort al&s;o are they that murmur and repine at the Rich, and multiply &s;peeches of di&s;contentment, becau&s;e Wealth (&s;ay they) is unequally &s;hi&s;ted, and therefore de|&s;ire that Tumults may ari&s;e, that they may get provi&s;ion from &s;uch as fall into their Hands; but the&s;e have bloody Hearts.</P>
<P>Fourthly, There are yet wor&s;e then the&s;e, who doe not onely wi&s;h for &s;uch troubles on Church and Common|wealth before they come; but rejoyce at them when they are come: and when others Eyes are full of Tears, their Mouthes are full of Laughter. As <HI>Jeremy</HI> chargeth the <HI>Moabites,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Jer.</HI> 48.26.27.</NOTE> <HI>He magnified him&s;elfe again&s;t the Lord:</HI> Moab <HI>&s;hall wallow in his vomit, and he al&s;o &s;hall be in deri&s;ion. For didde&s;t not thou deride.</HI> I&s;rael, <HI>as though be had been found among theeves? for when thou &s;peake&s;t of him, thou art mooved</HI> This was there manner of dealing, and this is the property of all &s;uch wicked <HI>Moabites,</HI> they cannot &s;peake of the calamities of the Faithfull, but they are wonderfull affected with joy; the&s;e have cruell hearts, and &s;hall be met withall as <HI>Moab</HI> was.</P>
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<P>Fifthly, There are a fort that are &s;till wor&s;e then the&s;e, who not onely rejoyee at the troubles, but at the fins of tho&s;e &s;hat are religion&s;ly affected; and if they &s;lip, through infirmity, and fall into any &s;in, they are as glad, as if they had go ten a Kingdome, and came home in triumph.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, There is a &s;ixth &s;ort that are wor&s;e then all the&s;e, one higher degree then any I named yet; which is, When men are &s;o &s;arre from grieving, that it goes ill with Gods &s;ervants, that if they be &s;omewhat ami&s;&s;e, they will make them wor&s;e, and help forward their mi&s;ery; and for this end, incen&s;e and mi&s;-informe &s;uch again&s;t them, as they know will inflict puni&s;hments upon them; and all the&s;e &s;everall &s;orts have of late been, and &s;till are, Thornes in our Eyes, and Pricks in our &s;ides, billowes and brands of Sedition; and few there are but have &s;hared in &s;ome of the&s;e common calamities. O that all the&s;e &s;everall &s;orts and companies, were become &s;trangers to our Land; but I pa&s;&s;e them, as fellowes not worth any longer &s;aluting.</P>
<P>The &s;econd is an U&s;e of Comfort; <HI>For if the afflictions of the Church, of all other afflictions, goe n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ere&s;t the Hearts of Gods Children;</HI> Then &s;urely this is for great comfort unto them that can mourne for the Calamities of the Church; For this is a notable te&s;timony, that they are feel|ing members, and have in them the life of Chri&s;tianity, when others troubles are theirs, others lo&s;&s;es theirs, others reproaches theirs, others &s;ufferings theirs, and when any di&s;tre&s;&s;es, and &s;traits of others are made theirs. And they that thus lament for <HI>Sion,</HI> &s;hall be comforted with <HI>Sion;</HI> God hath promi&s;ed them &s;ingular con&s;olation, it is their Portion and they may confidently expect it.</P>
<P>But it may be demanded, <HI>If Sorrow be our onely &s;afe|ly, and be&s;t Remedy in mi&s;ery and trouble; How long mu&s;t we continue our humiliation, our &s;orrow, our mourning, our crying?</HI></P>
<P>The An&s;wer &s;hall be this, Never cea&s;e mourning, till God cea&s;e afflicting; never make an end of crying, till God make an end of puni&s;hing; never cea&s;e Humiliati|on,
<PB N="72" REF="42">till God give Con&s;olation VVhen the Lord mini|&s;treth unto us occa&s;ion of Griefe, let us never cea&s;e un|till he againe revive our Hearts; we mu&s;t not begin in the Spirit, and end in the Fle&s;h; but having a good en|trance, we mu&s;t goe on with our worke, and bring it to perfection; and if God give us an heart to mourne, &s;et to it, and never give over, till he &s;et us free. Hence the Point &s;hall he this.</P>
<P><HI>That we &s;hould never make an end of Mourning and Weep|ing, till God make an end of afflicting and &s;courging.</HI> For this, Looke upon <HI>Ieremy,</HI> and &s;ee him never making an end of Weeping; <HI>Mine Eye</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>droppeth without &s;tay, and cea&s;eth not, till the Lord looke downe and behold from Heaven. Mine Eye breaketh my heart,</HI> Lam. 3.49 &amp;c. And &s;o he exhorteth the People; <HI>Let teares runne downe like a River Day and Night, take thee no re&s;t, neither let the Apple of thine Eye cea&s;e. Ari&s;e, Cry in the Night, in the beginning of the Watches, poure out thine Heare like Water before the Face of the Lord,</HI> Lam. 2.18.19. But for Proofe, enough.</P>
<P>If you will have Examples for this continued forrow and mourning, Then fir&s;t take theirs who are mentioned in <HI>Nehemiah, Who Wept at the Hearing of the Law, till they were bid to rejoyce.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Neh.</HI> 8 9.</NOTE> It was a notable commendation of that People, that they would not leave off, till they had war|rant to leave off. The next &s;hall be <HI>Mordecai,</HI> who when Queene <HI>E&s;ther</HI> &s;ent him Garments to Clothe him, and would have his Sackcloth to be taken from him, <HI>he would not receive them,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>E&s;ther</HI> 4.4</NOTE> but humbled him&s;elfe &s;o long, till he was a&s;&s;ured of deliverance. The third &s;hall be <HI>Iacob, Who would never let goe his hold,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Gen.</HI> 32.26. <HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 11.4.</NOTE> <HI>but &s;till wra&s;tled with the Angel, and continued weeping and praying, till he obtained a ble&s;&s;ing.</HI> The la&s;t &s;hall be the Weman of <HI>Canaan, who &s;tuck &s;o clo&s;e to her bu&s;ine&s;&s;e and was &s;o importunate with Chri&s;t for her Daughter,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Matth. <HI>15.22.</HI> &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>and would never de&s;i&s;t, nor let her Suit fall, till &s;he had prevailed with our Saviour.</HI> I might produce you a cloud of witne&s;&s;es; but the&s;e &s;hall &s;erve. <GAP DESC="missing" EXTENT="9 pages">
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<PB N="81" REF="46">worldly helps, the deeper di&s;tre&s;&s;es we be in, the lea&s;t com|fort they will afford us: &s;o in Spirituall helps, the greater extremities we be in, the more comfort will they mini&s;ter unto us; when we are helple&s;&s;e and hopele&s;&s;e, then Faith works wonders, and never &s;hewes forth it &s;elfe &s;o mighti|ly, and powerfully, as when it workes alone. Wealth, Strength, Friends, and all other outward things, and world|ly comforts, (when mi&s;eries lye heavy upon us, and we be|gin to ca&s;t an Eye to them, expecting &s;ome reliefe and comfort from them) will but deale with us, as the High Prie&s;ts did with <HI>Judas;</HI> when all went well with him, then they hug'd him, and who but <HI>Judas,</HI> they then made &s;hew of all favour and friend&s;hip towards him; but when in the horrour and angui&s;h of his &s;oule, he makes his moane unto them,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 27.45.</NOTE> <HI>Crying out, that be had &s;inned, betraying Innocent bloud;</HI> they then &s;et him packing with a cutting, and uncomfortable an&s;wer, <HI>What is that to us?</HI> And &s;uch cold comfort &s;hall we receive from any Earthly props and &s;upports whereon we re&s;t, and &s;tay our Hearts; when we have mo&s;t need of them, they will &s;tand us lea&s;t in &s;tead: So that we may truely &s;ay of them, as <HI>Job</HI> did of his Friends, <HI>Mi&s;erable comforters are ye all,</HI> Job 16.2. But as for tho&s;e that live by Faith in Chri&s;t Je&s;us, they are underlayed with better props and &s;upporters then the world can afford; for when they have none other to deli|ver them, they can deliver them&s;elves by Prayers, by tears, by &s;ighs, by cryes, and by calling upon Gods name, <HI>out of the lowe&s;t Dungeon.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And if no di&s;tre&s;&s;e, no breaking, no cru&s;hing can hinder Gods People from Praying and Crying?</HI> Then fir&s;t, This may &s;erve to &s;hew us the difference betwixt the wicked, and the godly, in times of outward or inward affliction, when they drinke both of the &s;ame Cup, and are plunged into the &s;ame mi&s;cries. Ca&s;t a wicked man into a Dungeon, and lay him full low, where he can meet with no worldly help; and what cour&s;e will he <HI>take?</HI> You &s;hall &s;ee, that either he will bla&s;pheme God, and bite his Tongue for
<PB N="82" REF="47">madne&s;&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rev.</HI> 18.15.</NOTE> as they that are &s;poken of in the <HI>Revelations;</HI> or, el&s;e he will grow de&s;perate, and make away with him|&s;elfe, as <HI>Judas, Achitophel,</HI> and other mon&s;ters have done: But let a godly man be layd as fa&s;t and low in the &s;ame Dungeon, and he will be full of joy, when the other is full of de&s;perate griefe, and &s;ing <HI>P&s;almes,</HI> and poure forth many Prayers and mighty Cryes in &s;tead of the others im|precation; and bla&s;phemous &s;peeches. Take one example for all, <HI>Peter</HI> and <HI>Judas</HI> had both dealt unfaithfully (though in a farre different degree and manner) with their Lord and Ma&s;ter, and were both brought into great perplexity; but <HI>Peter</HI> goes out, confe&s;&s;eth his fault, weeps bitterly, and gaines exceedingly by it: <HI>Iudas</HI> on the other &s;ide, &s;orrow|eth de&s;perately, and &s;peedily di&s;patcheth him&s;elfe; where|by doth manife&s;tly appeare the different carriage of the Faithfull, and of In&s;idels when they are both overbarthened with &s;orrowes and mi&s;eries.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Can no di&s;tre&s;&s;e, no cru&s;hing, nor breaking, hinder Gods People from Praying and Crying?</HI> This is for &s;ingular comfort unto the Children and &s;ervants of God, that no cro&s;&s;e can befall them to hinder their Prayers, or &s;top the pa&s;&s;age of their cryes from the Eares of the Almighty, but all &s;hall quicken and inflame the &s;pirit of Prayer in them: &s;urely the i&s;&s;ue of their trouble mu&s;t needs be good, when it is watered with Teares, and &s;anctified with reque&s;ts; if they can wait till their harve&s;t come, &s;uch a &s;eed-time mu&s;t needs bring them a plentifull and ble&s;&s;ed crop of comfort. And therefore, if you have the holy Gho&s;t in your Soules, and Prayer in your Hearts; if you have Teares in your Eyes, and &s;ighs in your Brea&s;ts, then ble&s;&s;e God for &s;o good an in&s;ide, for its your pre&s;ent help in trouble, its your meat in Famine, your pre&s;ervative in Plague, your &s;trength in Warre, your help in Affliction, and your comfort at all a&s;&s;ayes; therefore in all di&s;tre&s;&s;e, fly unto God, end in Prayer, <HI>and cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>And no wonder if the&s;e people in the time of Famine, <HI>fly unto God,</HI> in this their woefull, wretched, and mi&s;erable
<PB N="83" REF="47">e&s;tate, when all outward and worldly comforts fayle them, and lay their burthen upon him, becau&s;e they knew that he was able to feed and help them (though the ci&s;ternes of the world were growne dry) being the Lord; and as willing, as able, being their God. For the maje&s;ty of God is &s;o glorious, that it would make them fly from him, and his e&s;&s;ence is &s;o incomprehen&s;ible, that it is a light that none can have acce&s;&s;e unto, and an huge Sea, that will drowne &s;uch as will adventure to wade into it; but the Knowledge of Gods &s;ufficiency and power to help, and of his mercy and free favour, whereby he is ready and wil|ling to help, thats it that encourageth them to come before the Lord, and call upon his Name with &s;trong cryes, and earne&s;t reque&s;ts, with &s;ighs, and &s;obs, and groanes, <HI>and cry unto the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P>Whence the point is this, <HI>That the knowledge of Gods power and mercy, is the onely cau&s;e that brings Chri&s;tians in|to Gods pre&s;ence, and makes them call upon him in trouble.</HI> When they are plunged in mi&s;ery, in di&s;tre&s;&s;e, then God &s;hall be &s;ure of their cu&s;tome and company, like the&s;e people here, who when all their hopes were peri&s;hed, then they run to God, and ca&s;t all upon him, whom they knew was able to bring Water out of the Flint, as well as out of the River; and Bread out of the Clouds, as well as out of the Barne. <HI>Canaan</HI> they knew could not maintain them without Gods ble&s;&s;ing; and with it, a barren Wilderne&s;&s;e could; and therefore to him they fly, and cry, <HI>They cry un|to the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P>For this, look onely upon <HI>P&s;alme</HI> the ninth, and tenth Ver&s;e, where the Prophet &s;heweth how they come to &s;eek unto God: <HI>They that know thy name will tru&s;t in thee, for thou never fayle&s;t them that &s;eek thee.</HI> How come they to &s;eek God? They fir&s;t tru&s;t in God, by the Knowledge of Gods Name; which name is, <HI>the Lord, &s;trong, gracious, and mercifull,</HI> and till men come to know this Name, they can never come to tru&s;t in God, nor to &s;eek God, but by the right under&s;tanding and applying of the Name of God.
<PB N="84" REF="48">Nothing in di&s;tre&s;&s;e can hinder them from crying unto the Lord, becau&s;e they <HI>know</HI> that there is no evill; but in his name they may have an Antidote again&s;t it; no fore, but there they &s;hall have a &s;alve to cure it; no di&s;ea&s;e, but there they &s;hall have a remedy to help it; no wound, but there they &s;hall have a Play&s;ter to heale it; no &s;ickne&s;&s;e, but there they &s;hall have a cordiall to comfort it, and Phy|&s;icke to recover it; no doubt, but there they &s;hall find a refolution for it, nor no good thing, but there they may get a certainty of obtaining it. And therefore to hearten you in all a&s;&s;ayes, in all di&s;tre&s;&s;es, mi&s;eries, and calamities what&s;oever, to <HI>fly to this Name,</HI> which will be like an Oyntment poured forth to fill and delight the hearts of the Faithfull with the odour of it. And though I cannot give you a definition of the Lord your God, yet take that de&s;cription of the name of God, notably and comfortably &s;et downe to my hand in <HI>Exodus,</HI> where you may heare the Lord him&s;elfe Proclayming his Name in the&s;e ten &s;e|verall properties,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 34.6.7.</NOTE> <HI>The Lord, the Lord, &s;trong, mercifull, and gracious, &s;low to anger, and abundant in goodne&s;&s;e and truth, re&s;erving mercy for thou&s;ands, forgiving iniquity, tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion and &s;ins, and not making the wicked innocent, vi&s;iting the ini|quity of the Fathers upon the Children, and upon the Childrens Children, unto the third and fourth Generation.</HI> Then what mi&s;ery, what trouble, what di&s;tre&s;&s;e, what affliction, what calamity can hind<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">r us from comming to the Lord upon the Feet of Faith and Prayer, <HI>to cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="1">1. Are you layd in the low Dungeon of mi&s;ery, as <HI>Iona<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"></HI> was, <HI>in the Dungeon of Hell, in the bottome of the Sea, in the belly of the Whale?</HI> Are your Enemies mighty, your &s;ufferings many, and your oppre&s;&s;ions and pre&s;&s;ures heavy? <HI>then cry unto the</HI> Lord, <HI>for he is the</HI> Lord, <HI>&s;trong, all power is in him, and from him, and for him: he is the mighty God, and he doth not onely u&s;e his might for our Salvation, but for our Enemies de&s;truction.</HI> If then your troubles be great, and your Enemies mighty? be not di&s;mayed, your God is greater and mightier to help you out of them, then they
<PB N="85" REF="48">are to hold you &s;till in them; and he rides upon the Hea|vens, full of Maje&s;ty, and full of ability to deliver you, and to &s;et you free from the &s;tronge&s;t bonds <HI>of affliction.</HI> Come but once to know Gods all-&s;ufficient Power, then no affliction or tryall &s;hall make you faint; The lea&s;t <HI>affliction,</HI> if God &s;upport us not in it. will be too &s;trong for us; but the greate&s;t, nay, the ru&s;hing in of all at once upon us, if this &s;trong God be on our &s;ide, &s;hall not be able to hurt u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> or daunt us; and therefore, when our Hands cannot help us, nor our Tongues prevaile with unrea&s;onable men, let us fly unto this &s;trong Tower, the Lord our God, <HI>And cry unto the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P N="2">2 And now lea&s;t any poor <HI>afflicted</HI> &s;oule, hearing of Gods Power, &s;hould &s;ay, <HI>I know that God is &s;trong and powerfull, but what is that to me? it may be, he may u&s;e his power to my overthrow. Nay,</HI> &s;aith the Lord, <HI>God is merci|full, as well as powerfull:</HI> and therefore why &s;hould any be di&s;couraged by mi&s;ery, &s;ince mi&s;ery is the very object of mercy, and the Eye of Divine pitty is ever fixed upon it? For the God whom we &s;erve hath no other riches then the riches of his mercy. And this was the argument that <HI>David</HI> &s;o often u&s;ed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 6.2.3.4.</NOTE> <HI>Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I am weake <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> O Lord heale me, for my bones are vexed; my &s;oule is al&s;o &s;ore troubled; but</HI> Lord <HI>how long wilt thou delay? Returns,</HI> O Lord, <HI>deliver my &s;oule, &s;ave me for thy mercies &s;ake.</HI> And in an<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">ther <HI>P&s;alme,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 86.1.</NOTE> Incline thine Eare, O</HI> Lord, <HI>and heare me, for I am poor and needy.</HI> And if we come but crying unto him, our very mi&s;ery will be &s;ufficient to work upon him for mercy: &s;o that he will be ready to enter|taine us, like the Father of the Prodigall, with an <HI>&V;nde plangis?</HI> why weepe&s;t thou my Sonne?<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="2 letters">k.</HI> 15.20</NOTE> <HI>I will clothe thee with the be&s;t Rayment, and put my Gold Ring upon thy finger, and thy Fare &s;hall be the daintie&s;t mor&s;ell:</HI> nay, he will <HI>like</HI> that Father of the Prodigall, <HI>&s;tand ready to receive us with his armes u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">foulded to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">mbrace us; with his hands open, to invite us with gifts with his head inclined to afford us the ki&s;&s;e of peace, and &s;hew forth his love unto us upon every oc|ca&s;ion,</HI>
<PB N="86" REF="49">as the Prophet <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> te&s;tifieth,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 14.4.</NOTE> &s;aying, <HI>In thee the Fatherle&s;&s;e &s;hall find mercy.</HI> Let us then lift up our &s;oules, and cry continually in all &s;traits, and troubles to this God of mercy, for the Lord our God is good, and gracious, and mercifull, and of great <HI>kindne&s;&s;e</HI> unto all them that call up|on him, <HI>Then cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. But lea&s;t that any poor &s;oule &s;hould be di&s;heartened, as unworthy to cry for mercy, by rea&s;on of his owne cor|ruptions, and &s;pots, and &s;taines, and lepro&s;ie of &s;in; The next, to hearten and encourage him is, <HI>That the Lord, as he is &s;trong and mercifull, &s;o he is gracious, that is, loving, and &s;hewing mercy without any merit.</HI> Art thou not worthy of mercy? Ha&s;t thou not de&s;erved the lea&s;t favour at Gods hand? what of that? God tells thee for thy comfort, <HI>that he is gracious.</HI> The Lord our God is &s;o gracious, as that he will not tarry till we de&s;erve favour, nor till we be worthy of mercy; but even while we are unworthy, will freely &s;hew forth his goodne&s;&s;e and mercy towards us. How worthy was <HI>Saul,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Acts 9 1.</NOTE> <HI>when he was even breathing ou<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> threatning and &s;laughter again&s;t the Di&s;ciples of the Lord!</HI> And therefore it is &s;aid of <HI>Abraham,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Rom.</HI> 4.5.</NOTE> That he beleeved in him that ju&s;tifieth the ungodly;</HI> noting thereby, that &s;inne cannot hinder Gods favour from offenders, but that through Faith they &s;hall be ju&s;tified, and made as innocent in Gods account, as if they had never offended at all: Then let us not, when we are in di&s;tre&s;&s;e, be di&s;couraged, or di&s;mayed; by rea&s;on of the &s;oulene&s;&s;e of our &s;innes; but let us go<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter"> to the Lord, and come but penitently, and he will &s;hew him&s;elfe gracious, notwith&s;tanding them all; <HI>Then cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="4">4. But &s;till the wounded &s;oule perhaps may &s;ay, <HI>Alas, I have provoked God to wrath, I have incen&s;ed him, and ju&s;tly drawne his heavy hand upon me by my &s;ins; and there|fore, though the Lord be gracious, with what comfort or hope can &s;uch a &s;infull wretch as I goe to cry to that God I have &s;o hainou&s;ly offended?</HI> Ha&s;t thou provoked and offended thy God? yet let not that di&s;may nor hinder the<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">, but goe, <HI>cry
<PB N="87" REF="49">unto the</HI> Lord, for he tells thee him&s;elfe, <HI>That he is &s;low to anger,</HI> that is, long ere he be provoked. Witne&s;&s;e the cryes of <HI>Sodome,</HI> which pierced the Eares of the Almighty; yet &s;o loath was <HI>God</HI> to &s;howre downe <HI>Fire and Brim&s;tone;</HI> as that he expo&s;tulates the matter, as if he had bin jealous of his owne Eares, and an&s;wers with an <HI>Ego vadam, &amp; videbo; I will goe downe and &s;ee whether they have done altogether according to the cry that is come unto me.</HI> And thus, as he is hard to be provoked, making as though he &s;aw not our &s;ins, becau&s;e he would have us to amend; &s;o, when he is provoked, he is as ea&s;ie to be appea&s;ed. And this is &s;een in <HI>Mary Magdalene</HI> (a notorious &s;inner) in the City of <HI>Iern|&s;alem,</HI> who was grown &s;o &s;hamele&s;&s;e, as that the whole City &s;uffered in regard of the bad report that went of her; yet &s;he no &s;ooner &s;tands at his Feet behind him <HI>weeping;</HI> but Chri&s;t pre&s;ently tells <HI>Simon,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Luk. 7.38.</NOTE> <HI>that many &s;ins are forgiven her.</HI> For we can no &s;ooner fall out with our &s;ins, but <HI>God</HI> falls in with us. An Earthly Father will not take every advan|tage again&s;t his Child; and when the Child is grieved that he hath committed a great fault, good Parents are ea&s;ily &s;atisfied. The Lord our God pi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">tieth us, as a Father his Children; and when&s;oever we kindle his wrath again&s;t us, one Teare of true Repentance, will quench all the Flame thereof. And to this <HI>David</HI> giveth &s;ufficient te&s;timony, &s;ay|ing,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103.8.9.</NOTE> <HI>The</HI> Lord <HI>is &s;low to anger, and of great kindne&s;&s;e, he will not alwayes chide, nor keep his anger for ever.</HI> And this he him&s;elf found by good experience, for when after many mercies received he had grievou&s;ly provoked the Lord in that matter of <HI>&V;riah,</HI> and did not repent, but &s;till lay in his &s;in; in&s;omuch, as God was angry with him: <HI>David</HI> no &s;ooner begins to make confe&s;&s;ion of his &s;in, but God forth|with tells him by the Prophet,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 12.13.</NOTE> <HI>That he had put away his &s;in:</HI> &s;o that the Lord was more ready to offer him pardon, then he was to aske it. And therefore, &s;ince the Lord is &s;low to anger, and ea&s;ie to be intreated; let not our &s;ins (though never &s;o many) hinder us from Crying to the Lord.</P>
<PB N="88" REF="50">
<P N="5">5. But &s;till &s;ome poor &s;oule perhaps may &s;ay, <HI>Tis true indeed, I know there is no fault on Gods part, he is &s;low to anger, and ea&s;ie to be intreated; But what am I the better, when I cannot fit my &s;elfe to &s;eek for mercy as I ought to doe? Alas, I am weake, and full of infirmities, I come farre &s;hort every way, I cannot Pray as I ought, my Prayers are few, and cold, and weake; I cannot keep Gods Word, my memory is fraile and &s;lippery, &amp;c.</HI> What of all this? let no weakne&s;&s;e nor infirmities di&s;may thee, for the Lord him&s;elfe tells thee in the next place, <HI>that he is abundant in goodne&s;&s;e,</HI> or <HI>abun|dant in kindne&s;&s;e;</HI> and it is the property of <HI>kindne&s;&s;e</HI> to take &s;mall things in good worth, and to pa&s;&s;e by infirmities and weakne&s;&s;e, and to be ea&s;ie to be intreated; <HI>he will not break the brui&s;ed Reed, nor quench the &s;moaking Flax;</HI> if we can but once come to be humble in heart, though we cannot attaine to that mea&s;ure of &s;anctification, as others have; nor poure out our Soules in Prayer as we &s;hould: yet God will take all in good part; he that will reward a Cup of cold Wate<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">, he will reward a cold Prayer, for God looks not for perfection from poor weak creatures, that are full of imperfection; And therefore &s;ince he is abundant in kind|ne&s;&s;e, let not our infirmities and weakne&s;&s;e hinder us from <HI>crying unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="6">6. But the poor <HI>afflicted</HI> &s;oule may perhaps &s;till &s;ay, <HI>Though the Lord be abundant in goodne&s;&s;e and kindne&s;&s;e; yet how &s;hall I know that this goodne&s;&s;e and kindne&s;&s;e of God &s;hall be performed unto me; for I have Prayed, and Cryed and waited long <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">nd yet am never the neerer: &s;o that though he be good, and yet not good to me; kind, and yet not kind to me, what am I the better?</HI> Ha&s;t thou Prayed; and Cryed, and wayted and hath not God &s;eemed to regard, nor an|&s;wered thy reque&s;ts, in releeving thy wants, ea&s;ing thy tor|ments, removing thy pre&s;&s;ures? &amp;c. yet Cry &s;till, and in the Lords due time thou &s;halt be &s;ure of reliefe; for he never promi&s;eth, but he performeth, if we per&s;evere with|out fainting; And &s;o he him&s;elfe tells thee in the next place, <HI>that he is abundant in truth;</HI> As he never threatens
<PB N="89" REF="50">any thing, but he executes it; &s;o he never promi&s;eth any thing, but he performes it. You may beleeve him without an Oath: <HI>But I have &s;worne by my holine&s;&s;e,</HI> &s;aith God, <HI>that I will not for&s;ake</HI> David; And never any yet could charge him with breach of promi&s;e; hath he promi&s;ed, and &s;hall he not performe? Then cheare up your hearts, and pluck up your &s;pirits, your God hath promi&s;ed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 34.10.</NOTE> <HI>that tho&s;e that feare him, &s;hall want nothing that is good.</HI> Againe, he hath promi&s;ed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.15.</NOTE> That <HI>if we call upon him in the day of trouble, he will not onely heare, but deliver.</HI> And who ever did &s;o, and found not according to his expectation? Then why &s;hould not we re&s;t upon his promi&s;e? hath the Mouth of the Lord &s;poken it and &s;hall he not doe it? for take away his Truth, and take away his God head. What then? though in the&s;e hard times, our money is gone our goods gone, our lands and po&s;|&s;e&s;&s;ions gone, our liberty gone, our Friends gone, and all our outward &s;layes be gone: But is Gods truth gone? Hath he not promi&s;ed to provide for us when we are poor, as well as when we are rich; when we are in &s;ickne&s;&s;e, as well as when we are in health? Hath not he &s;aid,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 13.5.</NOTE> <HI>I will not leave thee, nor for&s;ake thee?</HI> Did not he provide for us in our Infancy? and &s;hall we not tru&s;t him in our Age? Let every man in all trouble and di&s;tre&s;&s;e, confidently, and humbly &s;ay,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Heb.</HI> 13.6.</NOTE> <HI>The</HI> Lord <HI>is my helper, I will not feare what Man can doe unto me.</HI> We have his promi&s;e to heare, and help, and not to leave and for&s;ake; but to deliver, when we call upon him: And &s;ince his promi&s;e is pa&s;&s;ed, he will performe it; <HI>for he is abundant in truth.</HI> And therefore, <HI>let us cry unto the</HI> Lord.</P>
<P N="7">7. But the poor &s;in burthened &s;oule, may perhaps &s;till &s;ay, <HI>What though the</HI> Lord <HI>be abundant in truth, and never promi&s;eth, but doth performe? Whats all this to me, who&s;e &s;oule mu&s;t needs be loath&s;ome unto him, being all &s;potted with &s;in, wallowing in the puddle of iniquity, and that with con&s;ent, and delight to?</HI> For this, goe look upon <HI>Mary Magdalen,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Luke 7.</NOTE> and others, who&s;e &s;oules thou &s;halt find as filthy and loath&s;ome as thine; but when once they fell to bathe, and wa&s;h them
<PB N="90" REF="51" MS="y">in the River of Repentance, and to &s;well and rin&s;e them in a <HI>Iordan</HI> of &s;orrow; then &s;ee how <HI>God</HI> dealt with them, and be not di&s;mayed, though thy &s;ins be of the deepe&s;t tincture, for there is mercy in &s;tore for thee: And &s;o he him&s;elfe tells thee in the next place, <HI>That he is a God re&s;erving mercy for thou&s;ands;</HI> giving us to under&s;tand thereby, that he hath Flouds of mercy for all that &s;tand in need of it. Never went any to God for mercy, but he found mercy, if he &s;ought in Faith, as God bids him; for he hath mercy in &s;tore for thou|&s;ands. With Earthly Kings, he that coms not fir&s;t, &s;peeds wor&s;t: but it is not &s;o with the King of Heaven, he hath &s;ufficient for tho&s;e that come to him la&s;t, as well as for tho&s;e that come to him fir&s;t; his Fountain is never dry, the well-&s;pring of his mercy continually Flowes, he can comfort thou&s;ands, as well as one per&s;on, and yet his &s;tore not be le&s;&s;ened one whit. Surely there are many thou&s;ands in Heaven, that were once as bad as we are; and yet now they are in a Para|di&s;e of re&s;t; they are now gone from mi&s;ery, to mercy; from a wretched life, to a far better being, and quite out of the reach of all &s;in, and &s;orrow. Then who would not come to &s;uch a Phy&s;itian as hath wrought &s;o perfect a cure upon &s;o many, and that of free co&s;t, and never &s;uffered any one to mi&s;carry that was willing to be his Patient? Men did lye at the Poole of <HI>Bethe&s;da</HI> many Yeares, expecting to be healed; we need not lye &s;o long at the gates of Heaven for the outing of our &s;oules; but we are &s;ure to be perfectly helped, when we are truely humbled, and fitted for help. And there|fore, let not our &s;ins di&s;courage us, &s;eeing there is mercy in &s;tore, our God being a God <HI>re&s;erving mercy for thou&s;ands,</HI> nor hinder us from comming to that God of mercy, who&s;e mercy knows no limits, <HI>And cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="8">8. But &s;till the poor <HI>afflicted &s;oule</HI> over-laden with &s;in, perhaps may &s;ay, <HI>I know that God is a God of mercy, and hath mercy in &s;tore for thou&s;ands; But alas, my &s;ins &s;inke me, my mi&s;eries doe not &s;o much trouble me, as my &s;ins, which are many and grievous, and &s;ins of the large&s;t magnitude, and of long continuance: With what face then, or hopes, dare I
<PB N="91" REF="51">come, and cry unto the</HI> Lord? For that, courage Chri&s;tian, thou who&s;e &s;oule is thus wounded with &s;in; for had&s;t thou all the &s;ins and &s;ores that might be, thou neede&s;t not be di&s;|heartned from comming unto the Lord, &s;eeing he him&s;elfe tells thee in the next place, <HI>that he is a God forgiving iniqui|ty, tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, and &s;in;</HI> and if he &s;hould not &s;hew him&s;elfe to be &s;uch a God towards the militant Church, he &s;hould lo&s;e both his name, and his people at once; but he pardons all the&s;e kinds of &s;in, he pardons iniquity, that is, originall &s;in, and the perver&s;ne&s;&s;e of our nature, that cleaves &s;o fa&s;t un|to us; he pardons tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, that is, &s;ins of rebellion and pre&s;umption; and he pardons &s;in, that is, &s;ins of cu&s;tome, and &s;uch as are grown to an habit; and if any one be weary of this burthen, God will give him a &s;peedy di&s;patch, <HI>the heavy laden,</HI> if they come unto him, <HI>le will ea&s;e them.</HI> And this a man may boldly claime at Gods hand, and intreat him to be God, for that he could not be, unle&s;&s;e he &s;hould performe this for us: And therefore, though nothing trouble thee &s;o much as thy &s;ins, and though they be never &s;o many, great, and grievous, and of long continuance; nay, though thou wert more leprous then <HI>Gehezi,</HI> more uncleane then <HI>Magda|leue,</HI> and more blind in &s;oule then ever <HI>Bartimcus</HI> was in body; yet courage &s;inner, and remember that thy God, <HI>is a God forgiving iniquity, tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion and &s;in,</HI> and therefore down on thy Knees, and &s;all to thy Prayers, <HI>And cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P N="9">9. But for all this that hath been &s;aid of Gods goodne&s;&s;e towards his cho&s;en; the poor <HI>afflicted &s;oule</HI> may perhaps ob|ject (as unbeliefe is full of objections) and &s;ay, <HI>Alas, we &s;ee how wicked men pro&s;per, hold up their heads, and flouri&s;h in the world; they have their Barues full, and Cubbords full, and Che&s;ts full, and all things goe with them according to their hearts de|&s;ire: whereas Gods Children &s;inke, and are trampled under foot, the Righteous are wrouged, and the Church over-run by the un|godly of the World?</HI> Nay, &s;aith God, in the next place, let not that trouble nor di&s;hearten thee, <HI>For I am a God that holds not the wicked innocent;</HI> let them take their &s;wing, and
<PB N="92" REF="52">make havock for a time, God may &s;pare them long, yet will vi&s;it them at the la&s;t;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Nahum</HI> 1.2.3.</NOTE> <HI>For God is jealous, and the Lord re|vengeth,</HI> even the Lord of anger; <HI>the Lord will take vengeance on his adver&s;aries, and he re&s;erveth wrath for his enemies: The Lord is &s;low to anger, but he is great in power, and will not &s;urely cleare the wicked.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Hab.</HI> 1.12.</NOTE> And as <HI>Habakkuk</HI> &s;aith, <HI>He hath ordained them for judgement, and e&s;tabli&s;hed them for correcti|on.</HI> Whereas tho&s;e that are his, he corrects but for a time; but his anger never a&s;&s;wageth towards the reprobate, though for a long time he deferre. And therefore grudge not to &s;ee the wicked flouri&s;h <HI>like a green Bay-tree,</HI> for a time; pa&s;&s;e but by a little and upon your return, <HI>his place will not be found,</HI> for God holds not the wicked innocent. But for you, though you be afflicted here, you &s;hall be comforted hereafter; for, <HI>through many afflictions we mu&s;t enter into the Kingdome of Hea|ven:</HI> This is the Kings high-way to happine&s;&s;e and there is not a Saint in Heaven, but hath led this way, and beaten this path before us; For Stones cannot be &s;quared for Pallace|worke, without the &s;troke of the Hammar; and we mu&s;t be content to endure the &s;troaks of Gods Hammar of afflictions, that we may be poli&s;hed, and &s;quared, and made lively Stones fit to be layd in the Heavenly <HI>Jeru&s;alem.</HI> What matters it then, to &s;ee <HI>Dives</HI> here <HI>flant it in Purple, and fare deliciou&s;ly every day</HI> when at la&s;t, <HI>he mu&s;t be tormented in flames;</HI> while <HI>hunger-&s;tarved</HI> Lazarus, <HI>though afflicted here, yet his comfort is hereafter, and is tran&s;ported from the Porch of a Tyrant, to the Bo&s;ome of</HI> Abraham. Be&s;ides, though God u&s;eth many wayes to bring us home unto him, yet none more then <HI>afflicti|on.</HI> It was <HI>Hunger</HI> that drove the Prodigall home to his Father; And &s;urely nothing &s;o opens the Eyes of the &s;oule, as mi&s;ery and trouble. O how correction opens tho&s;e Eyes, which pro|&s;perity kept &s;hut! O how often doth the paining of the Bo|dy, work the &s;aving of the Soule! O how often doe mi&s;&s;or|tunes like the Rungs in <HI>Jacobs</HI> Ladder, &s;erve to mount out &s;oules up to Heaven! Let God then wound us, &s;o he will but heale us; let him &s;trik our Bodies with &s;ickne&s;&s;e, with &s;ores, with re&s;traint, &s;o he will but with the&s;e wounds heale out
<PB N="93" REF="52">Soules. Let come what will come &s;o it but cha&s;e us to God, drive us home to his Hou&s;e, end in Prayer, and make us cry unto the Lord.</P>
<P N="10">10. But &s;till the <HI>afflicted &s;oule</HI> goeth on, and &s;ayeth, <HI>Though God tell us that he holds not the wicked iunocent, and will not &s;urely cleare them, but ordains them for judgement, and re&s;erves them for correction; yet we dayly &s;ee, that they doe not onely flouri&s;h here in this world, but goe to their graves in peace, and are not (to any outward appearance) in trouble like other men.</HI> Well, &s;aith God, in the tenth, or la&s;t place, Say they doe, yet will I meet with them in their Children, and puni&s;h their &s;ins in their po&s;terity, <HI>Vi&s;iting the iniquities of the Fa|thers upon the Children, and upon their Childrens Children, un|to the third and fourth Generation;</HI> they &s;hall be &s;ure to ta&s;t of the bitter Cup of Gods wrath here, as their Fathers doe in Hell. Thus, if this name of God, in the&s;e ten &s;everall pro|perties, were but rightly under&s;tood and applyed, were it but as oyntment poured out and &s;pread upon our hearts, there is nothing in di&s;tre&s;&s;e, nothing in trouble, nothing in mi&s;ery could hinder us from crying to the Lord, con&s;idering he is &s;trong mereifull, gracious, abundant in goodne&s;&s;e and truth, and forgiving iniquity, tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, and &s;in, &amp;c. But with|out any further enlargement, upon the&s;e proparties, in their &s;everall particulars, I will onely clap them altogether, and make Application, and &s;o ha&s;ten you again to the Hou&s;e of Mourning, <HI>to cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Is the Lord thus &s;trong, and mercifull, and gracious? &amp;c. then why &s;hould a Chri&s;tian trouble him&s;elfe at any thing that befals him here? Hath he crafty enemies? let him goe cry to the Lord for direction, his wi&s;edome is infinitely beyond their policy. Hath he &s;trong enemies? let him goe cry to the Lord, he is mightier and &s;tronger then they all. In a word, hath he any outward <HI>affliction,</HI> or inward <HI>corruption</HI> that doth annoy or trouble him? let him goe cry to the Lord, and have recour&s;e to his God and there he &s;hall find remedy for all; nay, what|&s;oever mans ea&s;e be, if he hut &s;eek the Lord, he &s;hall have help.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 145.18.19.</NOTE> So &s;ayes that Princely Prophet. <HI>God is neer to all that call upon
<PB N="94" REF="53">him, yea, to all that call upon him in truth. He will fulfill the de&s;ire of them that feare him; he al&s;o will heare their cry, and will &s;ave them.</HI> And though their hearts be &s;o oppre&s;&s;ed, that they can utter no words, thats no matter. God will have re|&s;pect to their very de&s;ires; and &s;urely their teares &s;peak high|e&s;t, and their &s;ighs cry loude&s;t in the Ears of God. Let us then groane for a broken heart, and &s;igh, and fob, and weep, and cry, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Thus having done with this peoples behaviour <HI>in the time of Famine;</HI> and likewi&s;e with the <HI>Remedy they u&s;ed, they ea&s;t their burthen upon the Lord:</HI> as al&s;o with the <HI>Motives</HI> inducing them thereunto, <HI>becau&s;e he is able, being the Lord, and willing becau&s;e their God.</HI> Let us now clo&s;e up all in our mourning garments, and robing our &s;oules with the inward &s;ackcloth of &s;orrow, not onely Pray, but Weep; nor Weep alone, but Cry, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI> From whence the Point is this.</P>
<P><HI>They who would not have God to &s;hut his eares again&s;t their Prayers, mu&s;t be &s;ure that they not onely Pray, but Cry; and that their Petitions proceed from a broken heart, and an hum|ble &s;pirit.</HI> For till the heart be even pulled in pieces by godly &s;orrow, and rent in &s;under with godly griefe, &s;in and lu&s;t will not out, and then there can be no acceptance looked for from God, either of us, or of our &s;ervices. The <HI>&s;acrifice of God</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David</HI>)<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 51.17.</NOTE> <HI>is a &s;orrowfull &s;pirit, a broken, and a contrite heart, O God thou wilt not de&s;pi&s;e.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mar.</HI> 7.35</NOTE> And therefore did Chri&s;t <HI>groane in his Spirit,</HI> when he Prayed for that poor man in the Go&s;pel. So did <HI>Hannah,</HI> &s;igh and weep &s;ore,<NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.15.</NOTE> <HI>and poured out her &s;oule before God.</HI> And there is good rea&s;on to move us to labour thus to be inwardly touched; for till we have a &s;en&s;e and feel|ing of our wants, we may well &s;peak, but we can never Pray; till the heart be pained with &s;in, its impo&s;&s;ible it &s;hould be fervent for the pardon of it. He that hath no feeling of poverty, cannot earne&s;tly intreat for a &s;upply of his nece&s;&s;ities. He that hath no feeling of his &s;ickne&s;&s;e, can never be an in&s;tant &s;uiter for the means of health. So he that hath no feeling of his &s;pirituall poverty, can never covetou&s;ly hunt after tho&s;e true trea&s;ures, which onely enrich his &s;oule to all eternity
<PB N="97" REF="53">And he that hath no &s;en&s;e of his &s;in-&s;ick &s;oule, can never &s;eek to that true Phy&s;itian, who onely can apply Phy&s;icke to his bleeding heart, and &s;in-&s;ick burthened &s;oule.</P>
<P>This &s;erves for the reproofe of tho&s;e, that come with drow|&s;ie verball Prayers, tho&s;e that come with words of cour&s;e to intreat God to pardon their &s;ins, and &s;trengthen their Faith; but never poure out their &s;oules before God, but onely &s;pend a little breath, and they &s;peed accordingly; for their cold Prayers, bring but cold &s;ucce&s;&s;e: And this is true, not onely of the wicked, but even of the godly.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 32.3.4.5.</NOTE> <HI>David roared and cryed,</HI> but was never the better, <HI>till he confe&s;&s;ed his &s;in, and was in|wardly grieved for the &s;ame;</HI> and then, both &s;in and puni&s;h|ment were removed at once. Therefore let us &s;trive with the Lord in our Prayers, and Supplications, labouring for this fighing and crying, this inward &s;orrow which is &s;o needfull; that doing as this people did in the time of Famine, we may &s;peed, as they did, in this time of our calamity. <HI>For thus &s;aith he that is high and excellent, he that inhabiteth eternity,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57.15.</NOTE> <HI>who&s;e name is, the Holy one; I dwell with him that is of a contrite and humble &s;pirit, to revive the &s;pirit of the humble, and to give life to them that are of a contrite heart.</HI> And the longer we wayt and cry, the greater mea&s;ure of comfort we &s;hall have, and the longer it &s;hall tarry with us: And therefore, &s;ince &s;ervency in Prayer is &s;o requi&s;ite, let us not onely Pray, but Cry, <HI>Cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>And for our comforts, we &s;hall find God as ready to heare, as we are to cry; and if we &s;end up our Petitions unto him, with &s;ighs and groans, he will &s;end down &s;peedy, and comfor|table help unto us, and we &s;hall be &s;ure of good &s;ucce&s;&s;e, even above that we can ask or think: As it is in the <HI>Lamentations,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Lamt. <HI>3.5.</HI> &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Thou ha&s;t heard my Voyce, thou drewe&s;t neer in the day that I called upon thee.</HI> Whether we de&s;ire the &s;uppre&s;&s;ion of our enemies, or &s;ubduing of our own corruptions, or what&s;oever el&s;e, we &s;hall be &s;ure to &s;peed well; God will draw neer unto us by his mercifull pre&s;ence, and with gracious deliverance, if we draw neer unto him in our mi&s;eries and afflictions. So &s;aith our Saviour,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Mat.</HI> 7.8.</NOTE> <HI>Who&s;oever asketh, receiveth; and he that
<PB N="96" REF="54">&s;eeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it &s;hall be opened.</HI> Let us then <HI>knocke</HI> at Gods pre&s;ence Chamber-doore, and though we be never &s;o mean, never &s;o contemptible, we &s;hall have no repul&s;e; <HI>For he will fulfill the de&s;ires of tho&s;e that feare him, he will al&s;o heare their cry:</HI> their &s;ins, though never &s;o many in number, or gro&s;&s;e in nature, cannot hinder Gods favour: Witne&s;&s;e the <HI>I&s;raelites,</HI> who lived many years without the true God:<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 13.</NOTE> <HI>yet who&s;oever returned in his mi&s;ery, and &s;ought God, he was found of him.</HI> Another ex|ample of Gods goodne&s;&s;e in this regard, we have in <HI>Jonah,</HI> who though, for his Rebellion, <HI>he was ca&s;t into the Sea; yet God heard him out of the belly of the fi&s;h, and &s;et him upon the dry land again.</HI> A third &s;hall be that notorious Theefe, who had &s;pent all his life in the Devils &s;ervice; yet no &s;ooner cryes, Lord <HI>remember me;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Luke</HI> 22.42.43.</NOTE> but Chri&s;t, (not once ca&s;ting him in the teeth with his &s;ins) gives him this good, and quick, and com|fortable di&s;patch. <HI>To day &s;halt thou be with me in Paradi&s;e.</HI> The la&s;t for this, &s;hall be <HI>Mana&s;&s;es,</HI> who had been a mo&s;t wee|full and mi&s;erable &s;inner;<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 33.</NOTE> yet, <HI>When he cryed to the</HI> Lord <HI>in his di&s;tre&s;&s;e, he heard him, &s;et him free, and re&s;tored him to his Kingdome.</HI> Here then is comfort for every di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;oule, let us but call upon the name of our God, and then help and comfort is at hand; <HI>for God is neer to all that call upon him in truth,</HI> though it be not with &s;uch &s;trength of Faith as we &s;hould; yet if we &s;eek him, he will be found of us, and he limits us not to time, conditions, or things; but we may look for help at all times, in all &s;traits, and in all things; and when we have mo&s;t need, then we &s;hall be &s;ure of the be&s;t help: But now, if we would be certain of this com&s;ort, we mu&s;t ob|&s;erve the&s;e three Rules.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Job</HI> 11.14.</NOTE>Fir&s;t, We mu&s;t put all wickedne&s;&s;e out of our hearts, and out of our hands; we mu&s;t humble our &s;elves, and turn from our wicked wayes; we mu&s;t remove our &s;ins, and then God will remove our cro&s;&s;es.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>James</HI> 4.8</NOTE> So Saint <HI>James</HI> exhorts, <HI>Purge your hands ye &s;inners, and purifie your hearts ye double minded:</HI> And this is it we mu&s;t doe, if we will have God to draw neer unto us: for God will not dwell in an heart defiled with &s;in, he will
<PB N="97" REF="54">turn both eyes and ears from us, if we continue in our evill wayes; becau&s;e that when our Tongues cry for mercy, then our Sins cry for vengeance: and though we cannot come to him without iniquity, yet we may come to him without the love and liking of iniquity, we may come with &s;hame and &s;orrow for our iniquity, and then our &s;ins neither hinder our Pray|ers, nor &s;top, or keep back Gods favour from us.</P>
<P>Secondly, We mu&s;t &s;eek God according to all his means, as we find in the <HI>Canticles,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Cant.</HI> 3.1.2. &amp;c.</NOTE> <HI>Who when the Church had lo&s;t Chri&s;t,</HI> that is, the feeling of his love, and the &s;en&s;e of that Communi|on which formerly &s;he had with him; &s;he then u&s;eth all pri|vate and publick means, and at length commeth to con&s;erence with Gods &s;ervants (which few will doe, till they be driven to it of nece&s;&s;ity) and then having wayted a while, <HI>&s;he finds him whom her &s;oule loveth.</HI> The &s;ame mu&s;t be our practice; if one medicine will not &s;erve the turn, u&s;e another; Pray, Fa&s;t, Meditate, Confer, and then at la&s;t the Lord will be found in mercy; but as we are &s;lack in u&s;ing any of the means, &s;o &s;hall we fayle in our comfortable expectation of favour from God.</P>
<P>Thirdly, We mu&s;t u&s;e the means diligently, and in good earne&s;t; for if we have a ba&s;e account of Gods mercies, its ju&s;t that we &s;hould goe without them.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>James.</HI> 5.16.</NOTE> <HI>The Prayer of the righ|teous avayleth much;</HI> but upon this condition,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>P&s;al.</HI> 72.12.</NOTE> <HI>if it be fervent. God delivereth the poor when he cryeth;</HI> but if they would have hearing, there mu&s;t be crying. God poures forth Floods of grace, but upon whom? The Prophet tells us,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;ay</HI> 44.3.</NOTE> <HI>Onely on the thir&s;ty ground. God filleth the hungry with good things;</HI> but they mu&s;t be hungry; they mu&s;t be &s;uch as feel them&s;elves pincht and &s;tarved with &s;pirituall famine.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Luke.</HI> 1.53.</NOTE> Chri&s;t <HI>was &s;ent to Preach the acceptable yeare,</HI> but not to the mighty and States of the world. To whom then? even to <HI>Pri&s;oners, and Captives,</HI> that is, to &s;uch as could grieve and mourn for their Captivity. Hence is it, that a number reade, and heare, and pray, and yet prevaile not; becau&s;e they doe it &s;o drow&s;ily, and carele&s;ly, the Lord de&s;ers to help them, becau&s;e they are not fit for help; becau&s;e they doe not &s;trive and wra&s;tle in their Prayers. Let us therefore u&s;e all the means with con&s;tancy and careful|ne&s;&s;e,
<PB N="98" REF="55">and then we &s;hall obtain our hearts de&s;ire, even above that we can ask or think; for if we would not have God to &s;hut his ears to our Prayers, we mu&s;t not onely Pray, but Cry. Let us then (having fir&s;t wa&s;hed our hearts and hands from unrepented &s;ins) goe unto the Lord, and cry unto him to give us the a&s;&s;urance of eternall life, and the joy of the holy Gho&s;t, and then come life or death, it matters not much; for though our name, and liberty, and riches, and all, be taken away from us, yet we &s;hall be &s;etled in the a&s;&s;urance of an happy i&s;&s;ue out of all our &s;traits and difficulties, for the Lord our God will maintain our cau&s;e again&s;t all tho&s;e that &s;trive with us, and will &s;tand on our part, and fight again&s;t tho&s;e that fight again&s;t us; according to that of the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah, He watcheth over them night and day and waters them every moment; and he will contend with them,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>I&s;a.</HI> 27.3.</NOTE> <HI>that contend again&s;t his people;</HI> and &s;o ei|ther free them from their oppre&s;&s;ions and mi&s;eries; or el&s;e, (which is be&s;t of all) take them to him&s;elfe; where they &s;hall be &s;ure to have joy without &s;adne&s;&s;e, plea&s;ure without paine, wealth without want, health without &s;ickne&s;&s;e, life without death, and a Kingdom without a change. The con&s;ideration whereof, me thinks, &s;hould &s;trike terrour into the hearts of tho&s;e that are injurious unto the &s;ervants of God: they may be bold where the hedge is low; every Dwarfe will adventure to leape over there; but let them know, that God is a wall of fire about tho&s;e that are his, and he will maintain the right of his children; and therfore it mu&s;t needs at la&s;t goe ill with &s;uch, as li&s;t up them&s;elves again&s;t them.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lam.</HI> 3.58</NOTE> <HI>O Lord thou ha&s;t maintained the cau&s;e of my &s;oule;</HI> there is our &s;tay: Let us be &s;ure we have a good cau&s;e, and lay it before Gods judgement &s;eat; and then, though we be overborne, God will not be overborne, but he will &s;tand on our &s;ide even he that loves goodne&s;&s;e, and hates wickedne&s;&s;e, and will be avenged on tho&s;e that bend them&s;elves and their endeavours to doe mi&s;chiefe unto his people.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Lam.</HI> 3.59</NOTE> Again, all our wrongs are known unto God; <HI>O Lord thou ha&s;t &s;een my wrong;</HI> nothing is done, &s;poken or imagi|ned again&s;t any of Gods Children, but God takes knowledge of it; there is not one practice, &s;lander, or devi&s;e of cruell
<PB N="99" REF="55">wolves again&s;t the &s;heep of Chri&s;t; but God &s;ees it, and markes it, and it belongs unto him to judge the cau&s;e of his &s;ervants,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Reuel.</HI> 20.12.</NOTE> <HI>and to reward every one according to their works;</HI> He mu&s;t and will give them full pay, and for that end keeps all upon ju&s;t and due record; &s;o that as the works of the righteous &s;hall &s;tand for them, &s;o &s;hall the works of the wicked he written in great Capitall Letters again&s;t them, that all the world may take notice of them at the la&s;t day. How may we then cheare up our hearts in all di&s;tre&s;&s;e? for how&s;oever our Adver&s;aries be bu&s;ie and watchfull to plot and procure our hurt; yet they cannot be &s;o vigilent for our hurt, as God is watchfull for our good; and therefore we may be &s;ure to have an happy i&s;&s;ue out of all our troubles if &s;o be we can but make our moan to God, and wait patiently for his mercy. And though God knows our griefes and oppre&s;&s;ions before hand, and purpo&s;eth to de&s;troy our enemies; yet would he have us to prefer our Bill of complaint, and goe on in our &s;uite again&s;t them, <HI>and &s;till cry unto the Lord.</HI> Neither is this to be re&s;trained onely to corporall adver&s;aries, but it holds much more &s;trongly for &s;pirituall enemies. Say a man be &s;ur|charged with &s;in and Sathan, who play the Tyrants over him, his &s;oule being even &s;corched with the flames of Hell; let him but bemoane his Ca&s;e before the Lord, and it will be a marvellovs ea&s;e unto him: Therefore in all &s;uch extremities likewi&s;e, let God be our refuge and Tower-Royall, let us ca&s;t all our cares and &s;orrows upon him, who is both able and wil|ling to beare them, and in due &s;ea&s;on will both free us from them, and in the end make us gainers by them, if we <HI>cry unto the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>To come to the clo&s;e. In the fir&s;t of the <HI>Chronicles,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">1 <HI>Chron.</HI> 4.9.10.</NOTE> Jabez <HI>the &s;on of</HI> A&s;hur, <HI>is &s;aid to be more honourable then all his brethren;</HI> the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e his Mother <HI>bare him in &s;orrow,</HI> and his name is a name of &s;orrow; and it is there &s;aid, That <HI>Jabez called upon the God of I&s;rael to be delivered from evill,</HI> and the Lord (&s;aith the Text) <HI>heard him, and granted the thing that he asked.</HI> And is the Lord &s;o ready to hear, and willing to grant? how then comes it to pa&s;&s;e, that we who have been &s;o
<PB N="100" REF="56">&s;everely &s;courged with the whip of Gods indignation, after all the&s;e years of &s;ufferings, of puni&s;hments, and of divi&s;ions among&s;t us, the hand of the Lord &s;hould be &s;tretched out &s;till? for though, thanks be to God, we are no way di&s;quieted with any &s;ound of war, nor alarmes to Battell in our Nation; yet, the reformation of Religion, which was one main thing in|tended at the beginning of our unhappy differences, and as hopefully expected, and prayed, and &s;ought for, hath been hi|therto &s;o eclip&s;ed, as that whereas before there were different opinions among&s;t us, (as indeed there was never Church with|out the wrinkles of divi&s;ion) &s;o now men are grown to &s;uch variety of conceits about Gods &s;ervice, as that we have almo&s;t as many religions as men; in&s;omuch, that we who &s;hould have all one God to our Father, all one Church to our Mother all one Chri&s;t Je&s;us to our elder Brother, are &s;o far from unity, amity; and unanimity among&s;t our &s;elves, in re&s;pect of the&s;e woefull divi&s;ions, as that opinions mu&s;t either be &s;uffered to take wall of Scripture, and &s;ub&s;tance give way to circum&s;tance, which God &s;orbid; or el&s;e, as branches, we cannot grow together; nor, as members, agree together; nor, as brethren, love and live together; nor, as Chri&s;ts Sheep, Feed and Fold together. And what is the rea&s;on that after all this while we are not yet helped, but Religion, in &s;tead of being reformed, mu&s;t &s;till re|ceive new and more wounds then before? Surely the cau&s;e is this, Becau&s;e we have not &s;o mourned as we ought in the&s;e our common calamities, for the &s;ins of the times and for the abo|minations of the Land; becau&s;e we have not &s;ighed and groaned heartily for the &s;ins that cleave to our &s;oules; other|wi&s;e God would have been as ready to heare, as we to cry; for good &s;uiters are alwayes good &s;peeders: but it &s;eems we have howled upon our Beds, as the Lord him&s;elfe complains in <HI>Ho&s;ea,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 7.14.</NOTE> And though the&s;e rents in our Church be &s;ufficient of them&s;elves to open the floud-gates of &s;orrow, and clothe all our dejected &s;oules with the garments of heavine&s;&s;e, and live|ries of mourning; yet there are other mi&s;eries and troubles, (though not fit to &s;tand in competition with the&s;e) that lye &s;o
<PB N="101" REF="56">&s;adly upon us, as might well fill our eyes with tears, our brea&s;ts with &s;ighs. To name them were &s;uperfluous; what eare heart not of troubles, and lo&s;&s;es, and cro&s;&s;es on Land, and on Sea, at home, and abroad? and where is any mourning <HI>for the affli|ctions of</HI> Jo&s;eph? where are our tears that &s;hould cry aloud, and pierce the ears of the Almighty? &s;urely we have not &s;o mourned as we ought to have done. It is a Prodigy to &s;ee Fountains dryed up in Winter, but far more prodigious mu&s;t it needs be, to &s;ee our eyes, hearts, brea&s;ts, and all, dry, in the&s;e &s;o many winters of our common mi&s;eries, and the&s;e long con|tinued &s;tormes of our afflictions. I know there is few or none of us, but will &s;igh at the lo&s;&s;e of his goods by enemies, at the parting with his e&s;tate, at the Impri&s;oning of his Per&s;on, at the bani&s;hing of him&s;elfe and friends from their native homes, there is none of the&s;e but &s;eems to take away the very life of our &s;oules from us; and yet few of us &s;igh for our own, or other mens &s;ins, the cau&s;e of all our woe. But &s;urely all cau&s;es, ra|ther then effects, are to be lamented; &s;in is the cau&s;e, lo&s;&s;e, but the effect: And though tis true, that rea&s;on doth informe, and affection doth inforce a kind of lamentation, weeping, and mourning for the lo&s;&s;e of goods, liberty, or friends, &amp;c. yet grace doth commend, and God doth command another fighing, &s;obbing, crying, both for our own, and nationall &s;ins; for nature doth teach us to weep for naturall cau&s;es; but grace for &s;pirituall: and if the lea&s;t of our bo&s;ome &s;ins be fire in the hand, and a &s;erpent in the heart; how much more then are common &s;ins to be lamented, being the unfruitfull thornes that choke the good &s;eed of vertue and grace? And yet it is to be feared, if inquiry were made, that many would be &s;ound in this great and &s;till continued mi&s;ery, who&s;e mouthes, in &s;tead of prayers and cryes, belch and breath out nothing but the un&s;avoury &s;peeches of the &s;oule, corrupting not the com|pany onely, but the very Ayre in which they breathe; who&s;e eyes, in &s;tead of tears, are the open windows to let in whole loads of &s;in into their minds; who&s;e ears, in &s;tead of recei|ving and conveying the good Word of God to their &s;oules, are the doores of their own de&s;truction; who&s;e brea&s;ts, in &s;tead
<PB N="102" REF="57">of &s;ighs, are the very &s;tore-hou&s;e of corruption; nay, were in|qui&s;ition made, it is to be feared, that many of us would be found in the&s;e our publick maladies (though the times have long called to mourning) &s;carce to have layd a&s;ide our pub|lick &s;ins, not parting with our ordinary impieties in the&s;e ex|traordinary judgements. Good <HI>&V;riah</HI> refu&s;ed to take his ho|ne&s;t ea&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 11.11.</NOTE> <HI>while the Arke, and I&s;rael, and Iudah abode in tents.</HI> I pray God none of us have pre&s;umed to take unhone&s;t cour|&s;es, &s;ince our mi&s;eries have bin &s;o great, our plagues &s;o mighty, Gods judgements &s;o weighty, and our danger &s;o eminent. Let then all of us &s;hew our &s;elves by an holy mourning, that we are &s;o far from participating in &s;uch mens &s;ins, and in the wickedne&s;&s;e of the world, as that in con&s;ideration hereof we may be found not onely &s;ighing, but weeping, and bemoan|ing the increa&s;e of iniquity, and deploring the &s;ins of our Na|tion. And no doubt but many might be found among&s;t us, who &s;ometimes &s;end out a naturall &s;igh or &s;ob, in regard of &s;ome outward thing; as in regard of &s;hame, and puni&s;hment, in regard of wants and di&s;tre&s;&s;es, or in regard of the hand of God upon them by &s;ickne&s;&s;e, paine, &s;ores, or the like;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exod. 8.8</NOTE> as <HI>Pha|raoh</HI> did, when the hand of God was on him, then he cryed, <HI>I have &s;inned, and take away this plague;</HI> but he never cryed, take away the hardne&s;&s;e of mine heart, and the cur&s;edne&s;&s;e of my nature. Nay more, perhaps &s;ome may be found who &s;ometimes &s;igh and groane for &s;ome actuall &s;in, when they feel it pre&s;&s;ing and lying heavy upon their Con&s;ciences; yet the&s;e men but groane as the bruit bea&s;t doth, that is pre&s;&s;ed with &s;ome heavy burthen; but they fetch not their &s;ighs from under that corruption that cleaves to their Hearts; &s;o they groane not with their Hearts &s;oundly, when they &s;igh for their Sins. But if we would have true comfort in &s;ighing and groaning for Sin, we mu&s;t down to the root of all Sins in our &s;elves, and fetch our &s;ighs from under that corruption that cleaves inwardly to our &s;oules, and thats the &s;ighing of a Child of God; and &s;uch loud-tongued &s;calding Sighs, and &s;alt brini&s;h tears, flowing from the Heart-breaking of a Sin-burthened &s;oule, will be both plea&s;ing to God, and yeild
<PB N="103" REF="57">comfort to us. Let us then &s;igh and groane heartily for tho&s;e Sins which are &s;o deeply ingrafted in us; let us weep for our &s;elves, let us weep for others; let every remembrance of Sin, both our own and others, make fre&s;h bleeding wounds in our Hearts: Let &s;orrow clothe us, let mourning cloud us, let weeping be in every corner; let nothing be heard in our &s;treets but the Voyce of wayling, and while our mi&s;eries are &s;marting, and our calamities la&s;ting, let nothing remaine to the godly but &s;orrow and weeping, that &s;o we may e&s;cape unhurt, in the deva&s;tation of the wicked; for the Saints are alwayes priviledged men, their &s;orrow is their &s;afety, their lamentation the cau&s;e of their pre&s;ervation: So in <HI>Ezekiel,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ezek. 9.4 &amp;c.</NOTE> mourners &s;hall be marked, <HI>Set a Marke, &s;aith God upon the Fore-heads of them that Mourne and Cry for all the abomi|nations of the Land, and by this Marke &s;hall be pre&s;erved.</HI> Examples to all Po&s;terity, and Saints hereafter in Eternall Glory</P>
<P>And thus having clothed you in <HI>the Garments of heavi|ne&s;&s;e, and robed your &s;oules with the &s;able livery of Mourn|ing;</HI> I cannot, I &s;uppo&s;e, leave you in a better habit, <HI>then that of Sorrow;</HI> nor in a better Po&s;ture, <HI>then that of Hu|miliation;</HI> nor in a better Place, <HI>then the Hou&s;e of the Lord your God;</HI> where if you Cry earne&s;tly, no doubt but he will heare graciou&s;ly. And &s;o let Lamentation Seale up our Di&s;cour&s;e.</P>
<P><HI>Lord Heare our Prayer, and let our Cry come unto thee:</HI> AMEN.</P>
</DIV1>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</BODY>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
