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<NAME>Lauren Proux</NAME>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>AN EXPOSITION WITH Practicall Ob&s;ervations CONTINUED UPON The Twenty-&s;econd, Twenty-third, Twenty-fourth, Twenty-fifth, and Twen|ty-&s;ixth Chapters of the Book of JOB: BEING The Summe of Thirty-&s;even Lectures, delivered at <HI>Magnus</HI> near LONDON Bridge.</P>
<P>By <HI>JOSEPH CARYL,</HI> Preacher of the Word, and Pastour of the Congregation there.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>ISAYAH 40.8.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The Gra&s;&s;e withereth, the flower fadeth: But the word of Our God &s;hall &s;tand for ever.</P></Q>
<P><HI>LONDON:</HI> Printed by <HI>M. Simmons,</HI> and are to be &s;ould at her hou&s;e in <HI>Alder&s;gate-&s;treete</HI> the next dore to the <HI>Gilded Lyon.</HI> 1655.</P>
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<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="3">
<PB REF="3">
<HEAD>TO THE CHRISTIAN READER. TO Tho&s;e e&s;pecially of this CITIE, who yet continue to promote this WORKE.</HEAD>
<P>_AS the Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> (writ|ing to all the Saints) &s;ayd, <HI>This &s;econd Epi|&s;tle,</HI> &s;o I may &s;ay (and have learned, I hope, to &s;ay it without boa&s;ting or comparing) <HI>This &s;e|venth Epi&s;tle Beloved) I now write unto you, in all which my de&s;ire is to &s;tirre up your pure minds by way of re|membrance, that ye may be mindfull of the words which were &s;poken, and of the troubles
<PB REF="4"> which were endured before, by this (Great Ex|ample of &s;uffering) Holy and patient Job.</HI> And though <HI>&s;even,</HI> being a perfect number, might hint me a fayre pretence to &s;it downe and doe no more, yet I am further from thinking what I have done <HI>perfect,</HI> then I am from de&s;i&s;ting (in reference to my owne intention) to perfect (ac|cording to that mea&s;ure of light which &s;hall be given in) what is yet to doe. 'Tis A General mercy, that in an Age wherein the <HI>&s;word</HI> hath been called out to doe and hath done <HI>&s;o much,</HI> there hath been not only ley&s;ure, but encourage|ment for <HI>The pen</HI> to doe <HI>this litle.</HI> And 'tis <HI>your &s;peciall honour,</HI> who &s;till promote this, or any worke of this kinde, that while ye have been en|gaged in &s;o great a charge for the maintaining of a Warre, and the pre&s;erving of peace, ye have not excu&s;ed your &s;elves in this poynt of charge. And (po&s;&s;ibly) it will be no di&s;honour to this Age in future Ages, nor to This Nation in For|raine Nations, to &s;ee or heare, that our &s;pirits have neyther been hurried nor skarred by warres and changes into an indi&s;po&s;ition or incompo&s;ed|nes for workes of &s;uch &s;eriou&s;nes and retirement. What <HI>Daniel</HI> prophecyed of the building of the Wall of <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> whether literal or my&s;ticall) is true of this <HI>Paper-wall</HI> (which is no &s;tranger
<PB REF="4"> to <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI>) it hath been built <HI>in Troublous Times.</HI> Eccept the Lord build both hou&s;e and wall, they labour in vaine that build in calme&s;t times; and where the Lord buildeth (though by weake and unskillfull hands) labour &s;hall not be vaine in &s;tormy times; it &s;hall neyther be la|bour in vaine, becau&s;e unfini&s;ht for u&s;e; nor &s;hall it be labour in vaine, becau&s;e unv&s;efull when 'tis fini&s;ht. The ble&s;&s;ing of God (and without that nothing can) delivereth all our hone&s;t labours from the&s;e two vanities, and his bounty delivereth them from a Third. For while we are &s;tedfa&s;t and unmoveable, alwayes aboun|ding in the worke of the Lord, as we may have a &s;trong confidence that our labour &s;hall not be in vaine to others, &s;o a full a&s;&s;urance that it &s;hall not be in vaine to our &s;elves. Plaine-hearted <HI>Ja|cob</HI> labouring in the integrity of his &s;oule for <HI>Laban,</HI> onely in keeping &s;heepe, though his wa|ges (as envying that he thrived &s;o fa&s;t) was changed ten times, yet he thrived the fa&s;ter, and he <HI>who came over Jordan with his &s;taffe, be|came two bands. To be &s;ure we can never want eyther pay or reward for that worke which is a reward and can pay it &s;elfe.</HI> And though, I know (and cannot but thankefully acknowledge Honored Sirs) that this long con|tinued
<PB REF="5"> worke hath been an occa&s;ion of Con&s;idera|ble expence to you; yet I much beleeve that it will not prove any thing of lo&s;&s;e to any of you. <HI>There is</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon) that &s;cattereth and yet increa&s;eth, and there is that withholdeth more then is meete and it tendeth to poverty.</HI> They that &s;catter to doe good, &s;ow what they &s;catter; and that which is &s;owne in a right &s;oyle increa&s;eth to a harve&s;t. They that withhold what they have, more then is meete, &s;hall not hold what they have, but meete with poverty. As that which is given in charity, for the releife of the poore, &s;o that which is given in a due tempered liberality for the u&s;e of the publicke, is lent to the Lord, and he will &s;urely repay all that he hath borrowed. <HI>Therefore give a porti|on to &s;even and al&s;o to eight</HI> (whether indi|gent per&s;ons, or pious u&s;es) <HI>for ye know not what evill &s;hall be upon the earth.</HI> If evill come upon the earth, they will be found the be&s;t hu&s;|bands of their goods, who have layd up mo&s;t in heaven; and if good continue upon the earth, they will not finde any mi&s;&s;e of what is &s;o layd up. I write this, not as eyther fearing an abate|ment of my owne private intere&s;t, nor as hoping or looking after an increa&s;e of it: but only as a gratefull te&s;timony of what ye have freely done
<PB REF="5"> for the carrying on of this worke, and as an ar|gument that in &s;o doing ye have not done eyther unwi&s;ely or unprofitably for your &s;elves.</P>
<P>As for this peice of the worke now given in to your hands, and publi&s;hed to the view of o|thers, I &s;hall only &s;ay, That herein ye have an end of the Controver&s;all or di&s;putative part of this Booke. <HI>Jobs</HI> friends have now fini&s;ht their la&s;t reply upon him, and <HI>Job</HI> hath fini&s;ht his la&s;t an&s;wer to them. For though he continueth &s;peaking five whole Chapters longer, yet he &s;peaketh, rather to the generall &s;tate of the Que|&s;tion, then to any of their particular objections, as may appeare hereafter (if God give leave) in the Explication of that large and patheticall di&s;cour&s;e. And it was well, that his Opponents would make an End &s;omewhere, and leave what they had offered to the judgement of equall and indifferent moderators. Which may be a just rebuke upon many in this Age, who will di&s;pute and draw the &s;aw of contention ever|la&s;tingly; as if they thought it a di&s;honour, when they have &s;ayd all, to &s;ay no more, or were re&s;olved never to be &s;atisfyed, how much or how often &s;o ever they have been an&s;wered. <HI>Moderate and mode&s;t di&s;puting tends to heal|ing, but the itch of di&s;puting</HI> (which an Ho|nourable
<PB REF="6"> and learned Knight, decea&s;ed, would have engraven upon his Tombe-&s;tone) <HI>leaves nothing but a &s;cabby &s;oarenes upon the minds of men, and doth rather widen differences then compo&s;e them. Abner</HI> (eyther grieved or wea|ryed with the tedious protraction of a civill warre) <HI>called to</HI> Joab (Captaine Generall of <HI>Davids</HI> Army) <HI>&s;hall the &s;word devoure for e|ver? knowe&s;t thou not, that it will be bitter|nes in the end, how long &s;hall it be ere thou bid the people returne from following their brethren?</HI> We have but too much cau&s;e to call and cry upon &s;ome <HI>Leaders in the Schola&s;ticall Warre, Shall your tongues and pens devoure for ever? know ye not that it is unplea&s;ant to many in the way, and is like to be bitternes to more in the end? When will ye returne from following your Brethren? Eliphaz, Bildad,</HI> and <HI>Zophar</HI> followed their Brother <HI>Job</HI> long, but they gave it over at la&s;t, and returned from fol|lowing him. Though, I confe&s;&s;e, there is a ne|ce&s;&s;ity of <HI>contending,</HI> and that (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Jude</HI> exhorts) <HI>earne&s;tly,</HI> both by &s;peech and pen, <HI>for the faith once delivered to the Saints;</HI> Yet there are many contentions, which it had been well if they had never been begun, or at lea&s;t quickly ended. And when men revile and bla&s;|pheme
<PB REF="6"> rather then argue, It is be&s;t to take up that Coun&s;el which good <HI>Hezekiah</HI> gave in com|mandement concerning <HI>Rayling Rab&s;akeh, An|&s;wer them not. Solomon</HI> hath given us the full &s;tate of this duty in a &s;eeming contradicti|on, while in one ver&s;e he forbids us to an&s;wer a Foole, and in the next bids us an&s;wer him. <HI>The foole mu&s;t be an&s;wered according to his folly,</HI> but the an&s;wer mu&s;t be framed and drawne up by the &s;trength of rea&s;on and wi&s;edome; that is, the foole mu&s;t be made to &s;ee his folly, le&s;t he grow up and be confirmed in his opinion, that what he &s;aith is true, becau&s;e he is not &s;hewed the error of it; yet, <HI>The foole mu&s;t not be an|&s;wered according to his folly,</HI> that is, if he &s;peake or write vainely and revilingly, &s;hewing rather the frothynes of his wit, or the over-flow|ing of his gall, then the &s;obriety and &s;oundne&s;&s;e of his Judgement, he that an&s;wers him mu&s;t not conforme eyther &s;peech or &s;tile to his, <HI>le&s;t he be like unto him;</HI> The an&s;wer which we give to another, beareth the image and is the mea&s;ure of our &s;elver; And our ill-mannaging of a mat|ter renders us as bad as others, though our opini|on be better. <HI>Our Ma&s;ter Chri&s;t being reviled reviled not againe,</HI> we his Di&s;ciples and fol|lowers ought to imitate him, and <HI>not to render
<PB REF="7"> evill for evill, or rayling for rayling, but con|trariwi&s;e to ble&s;&s;e.</HI> While we are called to con|tending, let us doe it fayrely and candidly; Chri&s;t would have us &s;hew love and tendernes to our brethren, as wel as zeale for Him and his Truth. They cannot but doe &s;o, who &s;tand up for truth purely as 'tis the truth of Chri&s;t, rather then as it is their owne opinion. And (though I am loath to be &s;u&s;pitious, yet) I greatly &s;u&s;pect, that the rea&s;on why many ca&s;t &s;o much dirt and di&s;honour upon the per&s;ons of their Brethren, while they appeare as Champions for the Truth, proceeds from a &s;ecret de&s;ire to procure honour to their owne per&s;ons rather then the advance|ment of Truth. Peace and truth are a ble&s;&s;ed payre, and were we more for peace we &s;hould &s;ooner find out the truth; But &s;o long as men contend rather for a party or an opinion then for truth, rather for victory and the Ma&s;tery then for truth, rather for honour (I had almo&s;t &s;ayd humour) and intere&s;t then for truth, as we are &s;ure not to meete with peace, &s;o we are extreame|ly hindred and puzzl'd in &s;eeking out the truth. The most probable way to keepe downe &s;ome <HI>ill-&s;ented opinions,</HI> is to lay downe all di&s;putes a|bout them; e&s;pecially, now, when mo&s;t if not all Controver&s;ies on foote, have been &s;ifted to the
<PB REF="7"> branne. What therefore remaines but that we waite for light and conviction from heaven, looking how the holy Spirit of truth and peace, will &s;tate and determine tho&s;e poynts upon the con&s;ciences of men; And I am fully &s;atisfyed that if all would &s;uffer their con&s;ciences to an|&s;wer and reply rather then their conceits and parts, mo&s;t of our di&s;puters in this age would (like <HI>Jobs</HI> friends) di&s;pute no more. O That we could a while leave arguing with and an|&s;wering one another (e&s;pecially rayling upon and &s;coffing at one another) and fall to praying for &amp; loving one another, according to the utmo&s;t ted|der of Go&s;pel-love. For as love is the comple|ment or fullfilling of the whole Law of God, the &s;cope or intentional end of the Commandement, &s;o it would be the conclu&s;ion or fini&s;hing and de|termining end of all the Controver&s;ies which a|ri&s;e or are &s;tarted among men. And I conceave that (in mo&s;t poynts of difference) <HI>a &s;evere and Magi&s;teriall impo&s;ing of an opinion upon o|thers in way of di&s;pute, is as bad and as un Go|&s;pel-like, as to impo&s;e it upon any by way of power.</HI></P>
<P>Beloved and Honored Friends, ye may per|ceave how farre my joy, for being arrived at the end of this di&s;pute between <HI>Job</HI> and his friends,
<PB REF="8"> hath tran&s;ported me to pre&s;&s;e for at lea&s;t an ami|cable carrying onne, if not an end of all our di&s;|putes; and that (as the Apo&s;tle advi&s;eth) <HI>&s;peaking the truth</HI> (and for the truth or <HI>Truth|ing it) in love, we may grow up into him in all things, which is the head even Chri&s;t; From whom the whole body fitly joyned together and compacted by that which every joynt &s;up|plyeth, according to the effectuall working of every part, maketh encrea&s;e of the body to the edifying of it &s;elfe in love.</HI> Love is a knitting, and therefore an increa&s;ing grace. That which u|niteth many in one, mu&s;t needs <HI>edifie That One,</HI> which is the re&s;ult of &s;uch a union. As faith is that Grace by which we receave all from God, &s;o love is that Grace by which we conveigh and divide good among our &s;elves. There is not the lea&s;t joynt in the my&s;ticall body of Christ, but gi|veth &s;ome &s;upply to the whole, becau&s;e love is the ligament of it. As we can want nothing while (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Jude</HI> exhorts) we <HI>keepe our &s;elves in the love of God,</HI> (whether we un|der&s;tand him of the love of God to us, or of our love to God, makes no difference as to this mat|ter) &s;o we can hardly want any thing, while we keepe our &s;elves in the love of one another. That all who love the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t in &s;incerity,
<PB REF="8"> may, by the pre&s;ence and influence of the Spirit of love, not only keepe them&s;elves, but increa&s;e in the love of God, and in the love of one ano|ther, till we are fully growne up in him in all things, which is the head even Chri&s;t, is the wi&s;h and prayer, as it ought to be the endeavour of all and of him who would</P>
<CLOSER><SALUTE>SIRS</SALUTE>
<DATELINE><DATE><HI>The 18^t^h of the Third Moneth commonly cal|led</HI> May. <HI>1655.</HI></DATE></DATELINE>
<SIGNED>Serve you Faithfully in love JOSEPH CARYL.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="errata">
<PB REF="9">
<HEAD>ERRATA.</HEAD>
<P>PAge 51. l. 5. for 34. r. 24. p. 72. l. 30. for <HI>Armes</HI> r. <HI>Arme.</HI> p. 75. for <HI>turpa,</HI> r. <HI>te<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ra.</HI> p. 245. for <HI>hone&s;tes,</HI> r. <HI>ho&s;tes.</HI> p. 422. l. 11. &s;upple, <HI>but.</HI> p. 447. l. 36. &s;upple, <HI>life.</HI> p. 480. l. 5. &s;upple, <HI>or.</HI> p. 498. l. 7. for <HI>man,</HI> r. <HI>mans</HI> p. 672. l 36. for 6. r. 8. p. 784. l. 29. for <HI>Zeph:</HI> r. <HI>Zech.</HI></P>
</DIV1>
</FRONT>
<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="commentary">
<PB N="1" REF="9">
<HEAD>AN EXPOSITION WITH Practicall Ob&s;ervations UPON The Twenty-two, Twenty-three, Twenty-foure, Twenty-five, and Twenty-&s;ixe Chap|ters of the Booke of JOB.</HEAD>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB,</HI> Chap. <HI>22.</HI> Ver&s;. <HI>1, 2, 3, 4.</HI></BIBL>
<P><BIBL><HI>1.</HI></BIBL> Then <HI>Eliphaz</HI> the Temanite an&s;wered and &s;aid,</P>
<P><BIBL><HI>2.</HI></BIBL> Can a man be profitable unto God, as hee that is wi&s;e may be profitable unto him&s;elfe?</P>
<P><BIBL><HI>3.</HI></BIBL> Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righ|ous? or is it gain to him that thou make&s;t thy ways perfect?</P>
<P><BIBL><HI>4.</HI></BIBL> Will he reprove thee for feare of thee? or will he enter with thee into judgement?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="1" TYPE="verse">
<P><HI>_ELIPHAZ</HI> now enters his third and la&s;t conte&s;t with <HI>Job;</HI> in which &s;ome tell us that he behaveth him&s;elfe like a man who &s;eekes Victory rather then Truth: who though he hath been &s;ufficiently an&s;wered, yet will not &s;eem to be overcome; yea that he takes up the &s;ame weapons to maintain this third, with which hee maintain'd his two former Encounters; The fir&s;t in the fourth and fifth <HI>Chap|ters,</HI> and the &s;econd in the 15^t^h. as if he were re&s;olved to con|tradict,
<PB N="2" REF="10"> though he could not confute the rea&s;ons wherewith <HI>Job</HI> had made his defence.</P>
<P>But as &s;uch a carriage as this in Di&s;putation is altogether vaine in it &s;elfe, &s;o it is mo&s;t uncomely in a wi&s;e and godly man; who ought not to refu&s;e truth and rea&s;on though &s;po|ken by an Adver&s;ary, but rather mode&s;tly to &s;it downe and confe&s;&s;e his own errour and mi&s;taking: And therefore though <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in this an&s;wer or triplication doth but roule the &s;ame &s;tone, and move upon the &s;ame hinge in generall; &s;till adjudg|ing <HI>Job</HI> to &s;uffer for his &s;inne, and to be puni&s;ht as an evill do|er; yet he puts all into a new method, and varies the &s;ceane or manner of his argumentation, which may be reduced to this forme; as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid: <HI>O</HI> Job! <HI>if thou &s;uffere&s;t all the&s;e evills for &s;ome cau&s;e (as certainely thou do&s;t, for the&s;e things could not come by chance, but by the wi&s;e di&s;po&s;ure and providence of God) then that cau&s;e or rea&s;on for which thou &s;uffere&s;t, mu&s;t either be found in God or in thy &s;elfe: If thou &s;aye&s;t the rea&s;on is in God, and that he doth it by his prerogative, thou do&s;t ra&s;hly intrude thy &s;elfe into his &s;ecrets, and art over-bold or curious in &s;earching into his hid|den coun&s;ells; and when thou ha&s;t made out thy conjectures, we may as ea&s;ily denie as thou do&s;t affirm: but if thou ha&s;t recour&s;e to, and re|fl<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">cte&s;t upon thy owne &s;elfe for the cau&s;e of thy &s;orrows and &s;ufferings, &s;urely thou can&s;t finde out or pitch upon nothing el&s;e but thy &s;infulne&s;&s;e and abounding tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, which while thou refu&s;e&s;t to acknowledg, thou do&s;t but harden thy heart again&s;t God, and growe&s;t impatient un|der the rebukes of his afflicting hand, therefore I admoni&s;h thee to re|pent,</HI> &amp;c. This &s;eems to be the &s;umme of that whole di&s;cour&s;e which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> gives in this Chapter, as will further appear in the explication of the parts.</P>
<P>Againe we may contract his &s;cope and give it in this briefe; Job <HI>having con&s;tantly affirmed again&s;t his friends, that God equally afflicts the righteous and the wicked: and having &s;aid (which might have gained re&s;pect to what he was about to &s;ay) that hee pleaded for God</HI> (Chap. 21.4. <HI>As for me, is my complaint to man, or for man, no, it is to God, or in Gods behalf.) Hereupon</HI> Eliphaz <HI>taxes him with this pre&s;umption, as if he would needs undertake to be a patron for God, and &s;o to bring him in &s;ome advantage, or to &s;tand him in &s;tead, for the maintaining of his cau&s;e; therefore he begins his &s;peech with this chiding expo&s;tulation; Can man be profitable unto God? or (&s;uppo&s;e
<PB N="3" REF="10"> thou wert (which I &s;hall pre&s;ently di&s;prove) as thou ha&s;t often boa&s;ted, righteous, yet) is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?</HI></P>
<P>This &s;eems to be the intent of the whole Chapter, in which we may further take notice of two di&s;tinct parts. The fir&s;t is reprehen&s;ory, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> reproves and rebukes <HI>Job</HI> &s;orely, to the end of the 20. ver&s;e.</P>
<P>The &s;econd is hortatory; <HI>Eliphaz</HI> moveth <HI>Job</HI> earne&s;tly to repentance, in which he coucheth many Promi&s;es, and gives A&s;&s;urance that it &s;hall not be in vaine, from the 20^t^h <HI>ver.</HI> to the end of the Chapter; <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace, thereby good &s;hall come unto thee,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t part, his reprehen&s;ion begins at the &s;econd <HI>ver&s;.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="2" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL>V. 2.</BIBL> <HI>Can a man be profitable unto God?</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There are three readings of the&s;e words. Fir&s;t thus, <HI>Can a man be compared to God?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Numquid Deo comparari pote&s;t homo etiam cum perfectae fuerit &s;cientiae. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> Some labour much in the defence of this reading, but I &s;hall not &s;tay upon it. For though it be a truth that man cannot be compa|red to God, how wi&s;e or how good &s;oever he is. What's the wi&s;dome or the goodne&s;&s;e of man to God? Yet the Originall Text doth not freely yeeld it &s;elfe up to that tran&s;lation which bears this truth.</P>
<P N="2">2. Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> renders thus. <HI>Can the humane wight teach the Omnipotent?</HI> that word which we render <HI>to be profitable,</HI> he,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quidam verb|um <GAP DESC="foreign"> pro docere expo|nunt in utroque hami&s;tichio. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> to <HI>Teach;</HI> The Chaldee Paraphra&s;e favours this tran&s;lation, and &s;ome render it &s;o in both parts of the ver&s;e; <HI>Can a man teach God, As he that is wi&s;e may teach him&s;elfe?</HI> If a man &s;hould be &s;o bold to take upon him to teach God, would God regard his teachings? but I &s;hall pa&s;&s;e by this al&s;o, e&s;pecially con&s;i|dering that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had no rea&s;on to tax <HI>Job</HI> with &s;uch a Pre|&s;umption, as if he had taken upon him to direct God how to order his affaires; when as <HI>Job</HI> him&s;elfe (<HI>Chap.</HI> 21. <HI>v.</HI> 22.) had &s;trongly repre&s;&s;ed and condemned &s;uch a boldne&s;&s;e. <HI>Shall any teach God knowledge? Job</HI> having &s;o lately exalted God a|bove mans teaching (as was &s;hewed in opening that ver&s;e) it is not probable that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;hould reprove him, as conceit|ing him&s;elfe wi&s;e enough to teach God: Or that he thought <HI>Job</HI> either had done, or was about to doe that which with his la&s;t breath almo&s;t, he confe&s;&s;ed no man could do.</P>
<P>The third is our reading, <HI>Can a man be profitable unto God?</HI> Can a man? he doth not mean an ordinary weak, &s;ickly, frail man; but a man, yea any man at his be&s;t: the word here u&s;ed
<PB N="4" REF="11"> notes a man in his health, &s;trength, and glory; a man in the flower and perfection not only of his naturall abilities, but in the riche&s;t furniture and array of his acquired, yea in&s;pired a|bilities. Take this man, a man of the&s;e atttainments, a man thus accompli&s;ht, and <HI>Can he be profitable to God?</HI> For as when the P&s;almi&s;t &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 33.17.) <HI>A hor&s;e is a vaine thing to &s;ave a man;</HI> By the hor&s;e there, wee are not to under&s;tand a leane, poor, weak, &s;low-pac'd hor&s;e, or a &s;trong, &s;wift hor&s;e un|man'd; Such a hor&s;e indeed is a very vain thing to &s;ave a man by; Such a hor&s;e may do a man more hurt then help when hee comes into danger; but the P&s;almi&s;t means a hor&s;e of the grea|te&s;t &s;trength, courage, and &s;wiftne&s;&s;e: A hor&s;e exactly man'd, and taught all his po&s;tures, even &s;uch a <HI>hor&s;e is a vaine thing to &s;ave a man.</HI> Againe, when the Scripture &s;aith, <HI>Chri&s;t came to &s;ave &s;inners,</HI> we mu&s;t not under&s;tand it of le&s;&s;er, lower, or of the ordinary &s;ort of &s;inners only, but even of the highe&s;t and the greate&s;t, for &s;uch Je&s;us Chri&s;t came to &s;ave as well as the lea&s;t of &s;inners. So here when 'tis &s;aid, <HI>Can a man be pro|fitable to God?</HI> we mu&s;t expound it of the highe&s;t, of the learn|ed&s;t, of the holie&s;t, of the be&s;t of men; <HI>Can a man be profitable un|to God?</HI> The word is <HI>El, The &s;trong God;</HI> Can the &s;tronge&s;t man be profitable unto the &s;trong, the mighty, the omnipotent, the Al|mighty God? <HI>Can he be profitable?</HI> Can he bring any advantage, gaine, or profit to God? <HI>Should he rea&s;on with unprofitable talke</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Eliphaz.</HI> Chap. 15.3.) or with words that bring in no Profit? A word of the &s;ame root, &s;ignifies a <HI>Trea&s;urer,</HI> who is a keeper of publique Profits (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 22.15.) <HI>Goe, get thee unto this Trea&s;urer, even unto Shebna. Can a man be profitable?</HI> Thus <HI>E|liphaz</HI> reproves <HI>Job</HI> for in&s;i&s;ting &s;o often upon his own inno|cency, as if that were an Advantage to God? As if he had &s;aid, how holy or righteous &s;oever any man is, the Lord receives no advantage by him. So that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> (it &s;eems) apprehended <HI>Job</HI> tru&s;ting or boa&s;ting of &s;omewhat in him&s;elfe, as if he had thought God his debtor, or that hee had done &s;omewhat for which God was beholding to him. And upon this ground, that God is debtor, or beholding to no man; <HI>Eliphaz</HI> under|takes <HI>Job:</HI> And though his &s;uppo&s;ition was fal&s;e, yet his po&s;i|tion was true, and gives us this profitable ob&s;ervation,
<Q>That the be&s;t of men cannot oblige God, or merit any thing at his hand.</Q></P>
<PB N="5" REF="11">
<P>That which is our duty to doe, cannot merit when we have done it. We cannot oblige either God or man by perfor|ming our owne obligation. Thus Chri&s;t argues, <HI>Luk.</HI> 17.7. <HI>Which of you having a &s;ervant ploughing or feeding Cattell, will &s;ay unto him by and by when he is come from the field, goe and &s;it downe to meate? And will not &s;ay unto him, make ready wherewith I may &s;up, and gird thy &s;elfe, and &s;erve me, till I have eaten and drunken, and afterward thou &s;halt eate and drinke. Doth he thanke that &s;er|vant becau&s;e he did the things that were commanded him? I trow not. So likewi&s;e yee, when yee have done all the&s;e things which are com|manded you, &s;ay, wee are unprofitable &s;ervants, we have done that which was our duty to doe.</HI> Where Chri&s;t proves, that becau&s;e the &s;ervant had done no more then was his duty to doe, therefore he did not merit in doing it. <HI>When you have done all that is com|manded you, &s;ay yee are unprofitable &s;ervants.</HI> He that doth all tho&s;e things that are commanded him, is <HI>a man indeed, a man of worth, a man of men,</HI> yet (let that be granted that he reacheth to the utmo&s;t line of the Command) he is an unprofitable &s;ervant, he hath but done his duty.</P>
<P>There is another Parable in this Go&s;pel of <HI>Luke</HI> that &s;eems to be &s;omewhat oppo&s;ite to this (<HI>Chap.</HI> 12. <HI>v.</HI> 36, 37.) <HI>And ye your &s;elves be like unto men that waite for their Lord when he will re|turn from the wedding, that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open to him immediately. Ble&s;&s;ed are tho&s;e &s;ervants, w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">om when the Lord cometh, he &s;hall finde &s;o watching,</HI> that is, at their worke. Watching is not meant here of a bare waking, or not being a|&s;leep, for a man may watch, in that &s;en&s;e, and yet be as bad as a &s;leeper: To be found awake, and yet idle, to be found awake yet doing nothing, is as blameable as to be found a&s;leep: So that to be found watching, is to be found intent upon, and la|bouring in the work of the Lord. <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed be tho&s;e &s;ervants whom when their Lord cometh he &s;hall find &s;o watching</HI>) what wil he do? <HI>Verily I &s;ay unto you, that he &s;hall gird him&s;elfe, and make them to &s;it down to meate, and will come forth to &s;erve them.</HI> In the 17^t^h <HI>Chap.</HI> Chri&s;t &s;aith; If a &s;ervant have been hard at worke in the &s;er|vice of his Lord, even as a man that is come from Plow, or from feeding his Cattell, yet his Ma&s;ter doth not &s;ay to him, &s;it downe to meate, but fir&s;t bids him gird him &s;elf and &s;erve him, and afterward goe to meat. But here 'tis &s;aid, the Lord pre|&s;ently
<PB N="6" REF="12"> girds him&s;elf, and makes his &s;ervants &s;it down to meat, and will come and &s;erve them: &s;o that here he &s;peaks, as if the Lord were much beholding to the&s;e &s;ervants, whereas before hee &s;peaks of them as unprofitable &s;ervants, to whom he was not at all beholding.</P>
<P>For the clearing of the&s;e two Parables, we are to di&s;tingui&s;h them by their &s;copes. The &s;cope of the Parable in the 12^t^h <HI>Chapter</HI> is to &s;hew, that the diligent &s;ervant &s;hall receive much from the hands of the Lord, or that the labour of the diligent &s;ervant &s;hall not be in vaine, or unprofitable to him.</P>
<P>But the &s;cope of the Parable in the 17^t^h Cha. is to &s;hew, that the mo&s;t diligent &s;ervant cannot doe any thing that is profita|ble unto his Lord. He may do that which may be profitable to him&s;elfe, but he can do nothing that can be profitable to his Lord, that's the &s;cope of the 17^t^h Chapter, which falls in fully with the Text, and Ob&s;ervation that I am now upon. There is a wide difference between the&s;e two parables. To &s;hew what a diligent &s;ervant may expect, is one thing, and what the mo&s;t diligent &s;ervant can challenge or require is another. For in|deed tho&s;e &s;ervants in the 12^t^h Chapter, to whom the Lord admini&s;ters the Supper, or to whom he mini&s;ters at Supper, mu&s;t &s;ay that they are unprofitable &s;ervants to the Lord; though they are to acknowledg (to the prai&s;e of their Lord) that his &s;ervice hath not been unprofitable unto them, and they mu&s;t &s;ay &s;o upon the&s;e Con&s;iderations.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t he is their Lord, they his &s;ervants, not their owne (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.20.) <HI>Yee are bought with a price, yee are not your owne, therefore glorifie God in your bodies &amp; in your &s;pirits which are Gods.</HI> God is the owner of our bodies and &s;pirits, our &s;elves are the Lords. Now if we our &s;elves, our bodies, and our &s;pirits are the Lords, then much more are our &s;ervices his. If the per&s;on be anothers, all the work done by him mu&s;t be his too.</P>
<P>Secondly, the hou&s;e wherein the&s;e &s;ervants are fea&s;ted is the Lords. The whole fabrick of heaven and earth is his hou&s;e, He hath &s;et it up to entertain and fea&s;t his people in.</P>
<P>Thirdly, All the cheere and good things with which the Lord fea&s;teth his &s;ervants (all the comforts which grace holds out in this life, or glory in the next life) are of his owne pro|vi&s;ion, the whole furniture of the Table is of his co&s;t and
<PB N="7" REF="12"> charge, therefore they are obliged to their Lord, not their Lord to them; he is indeed profitable unto them, but they are not profitable unto him: They by their &s;loath and idlene&s;&s;e might de&s;erve to be &s;ent &s;upperle&s;&s;e and hungry to bed, but by all their pains and diligence they could not de&s;erve their Sup|per; <HI>Can a man be profitable unto God?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve,
<Q>That God is ab&s;olutely Independent and Perfect in him &s;elfe.</Q></P>
<P>If there be an impo&s;&s;ibility that man &s;hould be profitable unto God, then he is Self-&s;ufficient, and altogether Independ|ent, in reference to man: He that cannot receive any addition is perfect in him&s;elfe, and he that is &s;elf-&s;ufficient, needs not: to receive any addition from another, is an argument of im|perfection. And &s;eing God neither receives, nor can receive any thing from another, he mu&s;t needs be perfect in him&s;elf. <HI>David (P&s;al.</HI> 16.2.) &s;peaking of him&s;elfe (as the type of Chri&s;t) &s;aith, <HI>O my &s;oule, thou ha&s;t &s;aid unto the Lord, thou art my Lord</HI> (that is, thou art my Portion and my All) but <HI>my goodne&s;&s;e extendeth not to thee,</HI> I am not able to doe any good which rea|cheth to thy benefit, or encrea&s;eth thy happine&s;s, for thou art mine. In the 50^t^h <HI>P&s;alm</HI> the Lord a&s;&s;erts this his own indepen|dency; <HI>If I were hungry, I would not tel thee, for the world is mine &amp; the fulne&s;&s;e thereof.</HI> If I had any hunger (that is, any defect up|on me) I need not go to the creature to aske a &s;upply, I could &s;upply my &s;elfe if there were any need, but there's none: The Lord is infinitely above all hunger, above all wants and de|fects what&s;oever. He indeed threatens Idolaters, that he <HI>will fami&s;h all their gods</HI> (Zeph. 2.11.) Idols &s;hall be hungry, they &s;hal be fami&s;ht, and have none to admini&s;ter any thing to them. This the Lord doth, when hee with-draws their re&s;pect and wor&s;hip, that name and reputation which once they had in the world from them; wor&s;hip is the food of Idols, that keeps livele&s;&s;e Idols (as it were) alive, and therefore fal&s; gods are fa|mi&s;hed, when their fal&s;e wor&s;hip is ca&s;t downe; but who can fami&s;h the Lord? If I were hungry, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> I would not tell you; <HI>Can man be profitable unto God?</HI></P>
<P>But it may be objected; Cannot a man be profitable to God? is man no advantage, no help to him? why then (<HI>Judg.</HI> 5.23.) Sings <HI>Deborah, Cur&s;e ye Meroz, &s;aid the Angel of the Lord,
<PB N="8" REF="13"> cur&s;e yee bitterly the inhabitants thereof, becau&s;e they came not to the help of the Lord, to the help of the Lord again&s;t the mighty.</HI> It &s;hould &s;eem then that the Lord had need of the help of the&s;e inhabitants of <HI>Meroz,</HI> and if they had come forth, it had been an advantage to him, why el&s;e were they cur&s;ed for not co|ming forth to the help of the Lord?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, man is &s;aid to help the Lord, when he helps in the Lords cau&s;e. Per&s;onally the Lord needeth not my helpe, but the Lord may be helped relatively, in his Cau&s;e, and in his people. Thus we help the Lord, when we help man, when we help the Church, and people of God; It is our honour as well as our duty, to help his People, and give a&s;&s;i&s;tance in his Cau&s;e; This the Lord takes &s;o well at our hands, that he rec|kons it as help given to him&s;elf.</P>
<P>Againe, if wee con&s;ider the help as given to the Lords peo|ple, we are not to conceive that the Lord needed the helpe of the&s;e men of <HI>Meroz,</HI> as if hee could not helpe them him&s;elfe without the a&s;&s;i&s;tance or ayd of man. For when he &s;eeth <HI>that there is no man, then his owne arme brings &s;alvation,</HI> I&s;a. 59.16. 'Tis the duty of man to come forth and draw his &s;word in the Lords quarrell again&s;t the mighty, but the Lord needeth not the &s;word of man to &s;ubdue the mightie&s;t.</P>
<P>Secondly, It may be objected; <HI>Cannot man be profitable unto God?</HI> he &s;peaks of the Church of the <HI>Jewes,</HI> in &s;uch language as implies them a profit to him. <HI>Exod.</HI> 19.5. <HI>Now if yee will o|bey my voyce indeed, and keep my Covenant, then &s;hall ye be a peculi|ar trea&s;ure unto me above all people.</HI> And is there no profit in a trea&s;ure? Again, <HI>Deut.</HI> 32.9. <HI>The Lords portion is his people, Ja|cob is the lot of his inheritance.</HI> Hath a man no profit by his por|tion? no advantage by his Inheritance? Now if the Lords People be his Portion, his Inheritance, his Trea&s;ure, his pecu|liar &s;pecial trea&s;ure, how then can it be &s;aid, they are no pro|fit, no advantage to him?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, the Lords people are his trea&s;ure, not becau&s;e they enrich him, but becau&s;e he hath a high e&s;teem of them. The Lords People are his trea&s;ure, not becau&s;e they profit him, but becau&s;e he protects them: If I &s;ay to a man, you &s;hal be a trea&s;ure to me; I may do it, not becau&s;e I expect any pro|fit from him, but becau&s;e I have a high e&s;teem of him, and re|&s;olve
<PB N="9" REF="13"> to protect and defend him as I do my own portion and trea&s;ure; In this &s;en&s;e doth the Lord &s;ay of his People, <HI>Yee are my trea&s;ure.</HI> We e&s;teem trea&s;ure, and trea&s;ures are under pro|tection, le&s;t any take them from us. Thus the Lord &s;peaks of his People, not that he hath any profit or gaine by them, as men who ordinarily have Portions and Inheritances in Fields or Hou&s;es which are their &s;tock and livelihood. Indeed there is a Revenue which the Lord hath by his People as they are his portion; that is, a Revenue of glory and honour, not a reve|nue of profit. But if you &s;ay glory and honour is profit, and an advantage to man, is it not then an advantage to God to be glorified by man?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, It is no advantage to God when he is glorified by man. Our glorifying of God doth not add any glory to him that he had not, but it is only the &s;etting forth of that glory which he had; there is no encrea&s;e of his fullne&s;&s;e by all the ho|nour and glory that the creature gives him. We are comman|ded to glorifie God. (<HI>Matth.</HI> 5.16. <HI>Let your light &s;o &s;hine before men, that they may &s;ee your good works and glorifie your Father which is in heaven.</HI>) But God doth not receive any additionall glory by us, how much or how clearly &s;oever our light &s;hineth be|fore men. A candle adds more light to the Sun, then all the creatures in the world can adde to the glory of God, when they have &s;tudied his glory, and laboured to glorifie him to the utmo&s;t all their dayes.</P>
<P>Thirdly, that of <HI>David</HI> may be yet objected, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 4.3. <HI>The Lord hath &s;et apart for him&s;elfe the man that is godly.</HI> And is &s;o, then it &s;eems he intends to make &s;ome profit of him; it is an allu&s;ion unto tho&s;e that vend wares: A Merchant looks upon this and that commodity, and then &s;aith this is for my turn, this I like, <HI>&s;et it apart for me.</HI> Seeing then the Lo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d &s;ets the god|ly apart for him&s;elfe, it &s;ounds as if he meant to make &s;ome gaine or advantage by him.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, the meaning of that Scripture is not, that God &s;ets a godly man apart as one that he gets profit by, but as one that he intends to be&s;tow mercy upon; or he &s;ets him a|part for &s;ervice, not for gaine; The Lord &s;erves his own ends by the &s;ervice of man every day, and &s;ets apart the godly man for his &s;peciall &s;ervice.</P>
<PB N="10" REF="14">
<P>Yet a little further, I &s;hall demon&s;trate that a man cannot be profitable to God.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, God had all perfection before man was, therefore man cannot profit God. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 90.2. <HI>From everla&s;ting, and to everla|&s;ting thou art God,</HI> shat is, thou art infinite in glory and excel|lency from everla&s;ting. God was God as much before there was a creature, as he hath been ever &s;ince the creatures were; therefore creatures adde nothing at all to him.</P>
<P N="2">2. All the goodne&s;&s;e and profitablene&s;s of man comes from God, therefore no profit goes unto God from man: that's the Apo&s;tles argument, <HI>Acts</HI> 17.25. where he &s;hews that man can|not advantage God, no not by wor&s;hip. <HI>He is not wor&s;hipped with mens hands as though he needed any thing.</HI> What, doe you think God calleth for your wor&s;hip, becau&s;e he needs your wor&s;hip? or as if hee could not tell how to be without your wor&s;hip? Nothing le&s;&s;e; <HI>Seeing he giveth to all life and breath &amp; all things.</HI> He that gives all things to all men, needs nothing of any man: heres the Apo&s;tles argument, the Lord giveth out all things, life, breath, and all comforts what&s;oever to all men, therefore he needs nothing of any man, no not the wor|&s;hip of any man. 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.7. The Apo&s;tle a&s;&s;igns that rea&s;on again&s;t boa&s;ting: <HI>What ha&s;t thou that thou ha&s;t not received, where|fore then do&s;t thou boa&s;t?</HI> When do men boa&s;t? even when they think they have done God a good turn. <HI>What ha&s;t thou that thou ha&s;t not received? therefore why do&s;t thou boa&s;t as if thou had&s;t not received it.</HI> What can he receive of us from whom we re|ceive our all? And <HI>though wee mu&s;t returne all to him in a way of thankefulne&s;&s;e and duty, yet God needs not that we &s;hould return any thing to him in a way of large&s;&s;e or &s;upply.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. Take this demon&s;tration of it; they who live much in God, even they (upon the matter) need little or nothing of the creature; they (upon the matter) are Independent as to the creature who depend fully upon the Creator. The good or e|vill of this world is not much to them, who are much with God. They have but little to do with the creature, and can do well enough without the creature. (<HI>Hab.</HI> 3.17.) <HI>Al|though the figtree &s;hall not blo&s;&s;ome, neither &s;hall fruit be in the vines, the labour of the Olive &s;hall faile, and the fields &s;hall yeeld no meate; the flock &s;hall be cut off from the fold, and there &s;hall be no herd in
<PB N="11" REF="14"> the &s;talls; yet I will rejoyce in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my &s;alvation.</HI> As if he had &s;aid, what if all creature comforts are taken away from me, I can live upon God alone. The life of a Believer is much above the creature, how much more is the life of the Creator? The Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.10.) &s;peaking of him&s;elf, &s;aith, <HI>as having nothing, &amp; yet po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ing all things.</HI> If <HI>Paul</HI> by the high actings of his faith &amp; dependencies upon God could &s;ay he po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed all things, while he was as having nothing in the creature. Surely God hath all, when he hath nothing of or from the creature; He may &s;ay in the &s;tricte&s;t &s;en&s;e, <HI>having nothing (of the&s;e things) and yet po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ing all things.</HI> Lay the&s;e two ob&s;ervations together.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That the Creature cannot oblige God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>That God is Independent, ab&s;olute, perfect without the creature,</HI> and the re&s;ult of both will ri&s;e up in the&s;e eight con|clu&s;ions.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, this will follow, <HI>That we &s;hould not murmure, nor be di&s;|contented with our E&s;tate</HI> what&s;oever it is, why? we are not pro|fitable unto God, we have de&s;erved nothing at his hand. Di&s;|content ari&s;eth from pride, from an opinion that we are not an&s;wered according to our worth; we &s;hould never be di&s;con|tented, were we convinced that we are altogether worthle&s;&s;e. Do but &s;it down in this thought that man cannot be profita|ble unto God in any &s;tate, and then be di&s;contented with your &s;tate if you can.</P>
<P>Secondly, If the creature cannot be profitable unto God, Then, <HI>all that God doth for man, yea for Angells, proceedeth from his free grace.</HI> We give him nothing afore-hand, nor any thing afterward, therefore it is grace before, and grace after grace in all. We receive grace when we have no grace, and we re|ceive more grace when we have it; yet by the grace we have we do not de&s;erve to receive more; As we received the fir&s;t grace, meerly of gracc, &s;o we doe the &s;econd. No man is aforehand with God; if any think they are, let them &s;hew their Bills, what they have brought in, and it &s;hall be acknowledged. <HI>Rom.</HI> 11.35, 36. <HI>Who hath fir&s;t given, and it &s;hall be recompen&s;ed to him again?</HI> For, <HI>of him, and through him, and to him are all things, to whom be glory for ever, Amen.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, If man cannot be profitable unto God, then as
<PB N="12" REF="15"> none &s;hould dare to come to God in their owne worthine&s;&s;e, &s;o none &s;hould feare to come to God becau&s;e of their unwor|thine&s;s. We &s;hould not be di&s;couraged, though as yet dead and fruitle&s;s, though vain and unbelieving; The wor&s;t of men &s;hould not keep off from God, becau&s;e they are unprofitable, &s;eing the be&s;t cannot profit him. <HI>If we have don much it is nothing to the Lord: and if we have done nothing, it is no barr to the Lords do|ing much for us.</HI> God will not turn us back becau&s;e we bring him nothing, nay he invites us to come without any thing (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 55.1.) <HI>Ho every one that thir&s;teth come to the waters, buy, &amp;c.</HI> Here is buying, but for what? for profit? no, but <HI>come buy wine &amp; milk without money and without price.</HI> God doth not expect any profit; there is a kind of buying, but its not for money, nor for money worth. As the Lord &s;ometimes &s;ells his people, &s;o he alwayes &s;els his graces and comforts, <HI>for nought</HI> (P&s;al. 44.12.) <HI>Thou &s;elle&s;t thy people for nought, and do&s;t not encrea&s;e thy wealth by their price.</HI> That is, thou leave&s;t thy people under mi&s;eries and afflictions, by which it doth not appeare that thou gette&s;t any honour. Now as the Lord doth &s;ometimes &s;ell his people, &s;o he al&s;o &s;ells his mercy and grace to his people (as to any de|&s;ert of theirs) <HI>for nought;</HI> hee &s;ells without money and with|out price, therefore be not di&s;courag'd if you have nothing of your own of any worth to pre&s;ent unto him. Say not, <HI>Where|with &s;hall we come before the Lord?</HI> The poorer you come in your owne thoughts, the richer you &s;hall returne; For <HI>he filleth the hungry with good things, but the rich he &s;endeth empty away.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, If man cannot be profitable unto God, then our gifts and parts, yea our holine&s;&s;e and graces do not make us nece&s;&s;ary unto God. God may &s;ay unto the great Ones of the Earth, I have no need of you, and to the rich I have no need of you, and to the wi&s;e, I have no need of you; yea he may &s;ay unto the godly and to the holy, I have no need of you neither. There is no creature nece&s;&s;ary to God, &s;eeing he cannot only (as we &s;ay) live, but live in the heights of happine&s;&s;e without the Creature.</P>
<P>Fiftly, <HI>If no man can be profitable unto God,</HI> then what&s;oever God requires of us, he aims at our profit, and not at his own; all is for us, or for our good, which will appear more fully in the
<PB N="13" REF="15"> opening the n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">xt clau&s;e; <HI>He that is wi&s;e may he profitable to him|&s;elf.</HI> The Lord hath de&s;igned all our wi&s;dom and obedience to our own benefit: So <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;pake to the people of <HI>I&s;rael (Deu.</HI> 6.24.) <HI>The Lord commanded us to doe all the&s;e &s;tatutes, to feare the Lord our God for our good alwayes, that he might pre&s;erve us alive, as it is at this day.</HI> It is not for the Lords good, but it is for our good that he commands, and we obey. And as the Lord com|manded all things in the Law for our good, not for his own: &s;o he commands us to believe the Go&s;pel not for his good, but for our own; he is not to be &s;aved by it, it is we that are to be &s;aved by it. He doth not call us to work as men do their &s;er|vants, that he might play the good husband, and get &s;ome profit by keeping us hard at labour. Indeed the Lord keepeth his &s;ervants hard at labour night and day, they mu&s;t be conti|nually upon duty: But he doth it not (as I may &s;ay) to play the good husband, to encrea&s;e his &s;tock by it, but it is for our profit. That which Chri&s;t &s;peaks (<HI>Mar.</HI> 2.27.) about the Sabboth, is true of all other the commands of God, we are apt to think, that God requires a &s;eaventh day, becau&s;e it is for his profit and advantage; no &s;aith Chri&s;t, the Lord hath not an eye to him&s;elfe, but to man; <HI>The Sabboth was made for man;</HI> that is, for mans advantage, that he might look heaven ward, that he might worke in the things which concern his owne ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e, therefore hath the Lord appointed him a re&s;ting day. <HI>The Sabboth was made for man, and not man for the Sabboth.</HI></P>
<P>Sixtly, Then our di&s;obedience cannot hurt God, our &s;inn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> cannot di&s;advantage him, impaire his ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e, o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> dimi|ni&s;h his glory. As mans obedience is no profit, &s;o his di&s;obe|dience is no di&s;profit to God. Sinners &s;hall be puni&s;hed, as they who have wronged and di&s;honoured God, they &s;hall be dealt with as &s;uch: But really, all the &s;innes of the world doe not bring any damage or di&s;advantage to God; <HI>Elihu</HI> is ex|pre&s;&s;e to this point, in the 35. Chap. of this Book, <HI>ver&s;.</HI> 6, 7. <HI>If thou &s;inne&s;t, what do&s;t thou again&s;t him?</HI> (Every &s;in is again&s;t the mind of God, but no &s;inn is again&s;t the happine&s;&s;e of God) <HI>or if thy tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions be multiplyed, what do&s;t thou unto him?</HI> is God impair'd by it? Surely no, God doth not loo&s;e a pinn from his &s;leeve (as I may &s;ay) by all the &s;innes committed in
<PB N="14" REF="16"> the world; He hath no dependance at all upon our obedience for his ble&s;&s;edne&s;s; our &s;ins cannot hurt him, as our obedience cannot help him, which <HI>Elihu</HI> &s;hews in the next ver&s;e; <HI>If thou be righteous, what give&s;t thou him? or what receiveth he of thine hand?</HI></P>
<P>Seventhly, hence &s;ee the honour of God, that hath made &s;o many creatures, and man e&s;pecially of whom him&s;elfe hath no need, that hath &s;o many to &s;erve him, and yet needs none of their &s;ervices. Give God this glory: Wee think tho&s;e men are very glorious and honouurable who have but as much of the creature as will &s;erve thier turn; all creatures are the Lords, yet he is not nece&s;&s;itated to &s;erve his turn by any of them.</P>
<P>Eightly, then, &s;ee what an obligation lyeth upon us conti|nually to ble&s;&s;e God, to be thankfull to him, to walk humbly with him, who gives us &s;o many profits, when as we doe not profit him at all. God prizeth that highly by which him&s;elf hath no benefit; hee prizes the actings of faith and holine&s;&s;e highly, but he hath no advantage by them: God gives us profit by the&s;e, though him&s;elfe be not profited, though he is not the better by any thing we do, yet we are the better; The Lord binds him&s;elf by promi&s;e, that the lea&s;t good we do in &s;inceri|ty &s;hall have a good reward; <HI>He that gives but a cup of cold water to a Di&s;ciple in the name of a Di&s;ciple, &s;hall not lo&s;e his reward.</HI> But if we give thou&s;ands of Gold and Silver to poore Di&s;ciples, what profit hath God by it? And yet though none of the pro|fit comes to his hand, yet he reckons it as if all were put into his hand. All the charity and compa&s;&s;ion &s;hewed to his peo|ple, Chri&s;t taketh to him&s;elf (<HI>Matth.</HI> 25.) <HI>In that yee have done it unto the&s;e, ye have done it unto me.</HI> Chri&s;t had no need of alms, of vi&s;iting or cloathing, yet he counts it as done to him&s;elfe, when we do it to any of his.</P>
<Q>Can a man be profitable to God? as he that is wi&s;e may be profita|ble to him&s;elfe?</Q>
<P>Some give the meaning of the words thus: Doth it follow, that a man can be profitable unto God, becau&s;e a wi&s;e man may be profitable to him&s;elfe? our reading reaches the &s;ame &s;en&s;e. <HI>Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wi&s;e may be profitable to him&s;elf?</HI> It doth not follow, becau&s;e <HI>A man may
<PB N="15" REF="16"> profit another man, or profit him&s;elfe, that therefore he may profit God.</HI> That's the &s;umme of the argument.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Intellexit pru|dens fuit, per Metonymiam faelix pro&s;per fuit, quod pru|dentibus omnia feliciter cedant; prudentiam fae|licitas fere &s;e|quitur.</NOTE></P>
<Q>As he that is wi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e.</Q>
<P>The word in the root of it &s;ignifies to Under&s;tand, to be Prudent; and by a Metonymie to be happy, or to pro&s;per, becau&s;e u&s;ually affaires &s;ucceed well and pro&s;per in the hands of wi&s;e men; and happine&s;&s;e u&s;ually followes wi&s;edome; therefore to be wi&s;e, and to be profitable, are &s;ignified by one and the &s;ame word in the Hebrew. So in this Text, <HI>He that is wi&s;e is profitable to him&s;elfe,</HI> that is, his affaires &s;hall pro|&s;per. We finde this Title prefixt to divers P&s;alms, <HI>Ma&s;chil,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ma&s;chil, intel|ligens prudens, carmen erudiens ode dida&s;calica. In titulis P&s;al|morum ter &amp; decies legitur.</NOTE> which is as much as <HI>A teaching P&s;alme, a P&s;alm making wi&s;e, a P&s;alm for In&s;truction.</HI> This Title is given tho&s;e P&s;alms, which as they have &s;ome extraordinary matter, &s;o u&s;ually they are P&s;almes of complaint under affliction; and the rea&s;on of that is, becau&s;e there is much in&s;truction in correction, much light of holy knowledge is to be had in the School of the Cro&s;&s;e: therefore u&s;ually tho&s;e P&s;alms that de&s;cribe the afflictions of the Church, are called <HI>Ma&s;chil, P&s;alms of In&s;truction.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Schola crucis, Schola lucis. <HI>Luth.</HI></NOTE></P>
<P><HI>He that is wi&s;e,</HI> and in&s;tructs: or he that is wi&s;e as having re|ceived in&s;truction, may be profitable to him&s;elfe. All wi&s;e|dome is not profitable to man, for there is a wi&s;edome of which the Scripture &s;aith, that <HI>God will de&s;troy it;</HI> a man can|not profit him&s;elfe by that; and there is a wi&s;edome which is <HI>earthly &s;en&s;uall and devilli&s;h</HI> (Jam. 3.15.) A man (be he ne|ver &s;o wi&s;e according to this wi&s;edome) &s;hall not profit him|&s;elfe by it. There are a &s;ort of wi&s;e men <HI>whom the Lord will take in their craftine&s;&s;e</HI> (1 Cor. 3.19.) and how can &s;uch profit them&s;elves by their wi&s;edome? There are wi&s;e men who&s;e thoughts <HI>the Lord knoweth to be but vaine,</HI> that is, unprofitable, therefore the&s;e cannot profit them&s;elves: Then what is that wi&s;edome which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> means when he &s;aith, <HI>He that is wi&s;e may be profitable to him&s;elfe?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, The wi&s;e man here intended is not the man that is politickly wi&s;e, worldly wi&s;e, carnally or craftily wi&s;e, but the man &s;piritually wi&s;e, his wi&s;edome will bring him in profit. He that is guided by holy and godly wi&s;edome, &s;hall reap the benefit and eat the fruit of it. We have &s;uch wi&s;dome
<PB N="16" REF="17"> de&s;cribed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 111.10.) <HI>The feare of the Lord is the begin|ning of wi&s;edome, a good under&s;tanding have all they that keep his Commandements;</HI> he doth not &s;ay, a good under&s;tanding have all they that know his Commandements, for many may know the Commandements, and yet not have a good under|&s;tanding; but they have a good under&s;tanding indeed that do his Commandements. And when the P&s;almi&s;t &s;aith, <HI>The feare of the Lord is the beginning of wi&s;edome,</HI> the word <HI>Beginning</HI> &s;ig|nifies not on<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ly the fir&s;t &s;tep or entrance into a thing, but the <HI>head</HI> or hight of it; &s;o that <HI>Beginning</HI> is as much as <HI>chief,</HI> or <HI>principall,</HI> the be&s;t wi&s;edome, the chief, the top wi&s;dome, the head wi&s;dome, or the head of wi&s;dome, is the fear of the Lord. <HI>Job</HI> gives the &s;ame de&s;cription of wi&s;dome, in the la&s;t words of the twenty-eighth Chapter, <HI>Behold the fear of the Lord that is wi&s;edome, and to depart from evill that is under&s;tanding.</HI> Would you know what is true wi&s;edome, 'tis the fear of the Lord: would ye know who is wi&s;e? The godly man is the truly wi&s;e man, yea he is the onely wi&s;e man.</P>
<P>But then it may be que&s;tioned, <HI>May a wi&s;e man be profitable to him&s;elfe?</HI> Doth not the Apo&s;tle &s;ay (<HI>Rom.</HI> 14.7.) <HI>None of us liveth to him&s;elfe,</HI> &amp;c. Then how can a man be wi&s;e to him|&s;elfe? And doth not the Apo&s;tle give the rule (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.15.) <HI>Chri&s;t dyed for all, that they which live &s;hould not henceforth live unto them&s;elves:</HI> If we may not live to our &s;elves, how then doth he &s;ay here, that the wi&s;e man is profitable to him&s;elf? He that is profitable to him&s;elf, lives to him&s;elf, doth he not?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, Fir&s;t, the wi&s;e man mu&s;t not make his own profit the end or the de&s;igne of his wi&s;edome, but he may look upon his own profit as that which will be the i&s;&s;ue, frui<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, and con|&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">quent of his wi&s;edome. A carnall man looks to and loves his work for the rewards &s;ake: A godly man may look to and love his reward for the works &s;ake. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 9.12.) <HI>If thou be wi&s;e thou &s;halt be wi&s;e for thy &s;elf,</HI> that is, the fruit or the good of thy wi&s;edome will drop into thy owne bo&s;ome. <HI>A wi&s;e man may look for his advantage in the end of his worke, though he is not to make his own advantage the end of his work.</HI> We are not to make either temporal or eternal advantages, the end of our wi&s;edome; but we may look upon them as fruits and effects that God leads us to by the exerci&s;e of wi&s;edome.</P>
<PB N="17" REF="17">
<P>Secondly, I an&s;wer, a wi&s;e man cannot be profitable to him|&s;elfe as the founder of his own happine&s;&s;e, or as having a &s;uf|ficiency in him&s;elfe to make him&s;elf happy; but a wi&s;e man may be a means or an in&s;trument of his owne happine&s;&s;e; and walking in the way of wi&s;edome, he walks in the way to his own happine&s;&s;e. Thus he that is godly wi&s;e, or that feareth God, may be profitable to him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve,
<Q>He that is truly wi&s;e, godly and holy, &s;hall find fruit and benefit by it.</Q></P>
<P>The Apo&s;tle (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.8.) a&s;&s;ureth us that <HI>Godline&s;&s;e is profitable for all things.</HI> The greate&s;t gain in the world is God|line&s;&s;e, <HI>It hath the promi&s;es of this life and of that which is to come.</HI> What&s;oever drops out of any promi&s;e of the Go&s;pel, fals into the lap of a goly man; the promi&s;es are his, and therefore the good of the promi&s;e is his. When the promi&s;es open at any time, and give forth their vertue, they mu&s;t needs give it forth to him that is wi&s;e, to him that is godly, for godline&s;&s;e hath the promi&s;es. When the Apo&s;tle had rebuk'd a &s;ort of men that made godline&s;&s;e onely a &s;talking-hor&s; to get gain, he pre|&s;ently adds, <HI>But Godline&s;&s;e is great gaine, if a man be content with what he hath.</HI> Godline&s;&s;e it &s;elfe is great gaine, if we have no more, but godline&s;&s;e brings in gaine, abundance of gaine, be|&s;ides it &s;elfe. (<HI>Matth.</HI> 6.35.) <HI>Seeke fir&s;t the Kingdome of God, and the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e thereof, and all the&s;e things &s;hall be added</HI> (or ca&s;t in as an advantage) <HI>to you.</HI> The Apo&s;tle (<HI>Rom.</HI> 6.21.) puts a kind of holy &s;corne upon &s;inners, come, tell me, <HI>What fruit had you of tho&s;e things whereof you are now a&s;hamed?</HI> What fruit have you by your folly, pride, worldline&s;&s;e, envy, what fruit have you found in the&s;e things? Bring me in an account of your gaine by trading in any &s;in. <HI>The end of the&s;e things is death;</HI> there is no great profit in that. <HI>But now being made free from &s;in, and become &s;ervants to God, ye have your fruit unto holine&s;s, and the end everla&s;ting life.</HI> Here are fruits good &s;tore, and all good fruits both for here and hereafter. We can never want fruit our &s;elves, while we are bringing forth fruit unto God: All obedience is attended with a ble&s;&s;ing, and though as was toucht before, we cannot be the founders of our own ble&s;&s;ed|ne&s;&s;e, nor mu&s;t we meerly de&s;igne our own happine&s;&s;e, or aime
<PB N="18" REF="18"> at our owne pro<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> that is mercenary &s;ervice) yet we may look at our owne happine&s;&s;e and profit, yea and <HI>Lay up for our &s;elves a good foundation,</HI> as <HI>Paul</HI> advi&s;eth rich men (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.) We then make the be&s;t of our riches, when we lay up for our &s;elves a good foundation. But can a man lay a foun|dation of his happine&s;&s;e in his riches? what a rotten foun|dation will that be? what hay and &s;tubble (in this &s;en&s;e) will gold and &s;ilver be? What's the meaning of it then when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>Laying up for your &s;elves a good foundation?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, we do it by the right improvement of riches (for he &s;peaks there to rich men) not that we can lay any foun|dation to build upon be&s;ide Je&s;us Chri&s;t, for other foundation can no man lay then that which is laid, even <HI>Je&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> but when our hearts are not glued to the creature, but we u&s;e them in a holy manner, here's our laying up a good founda|tion. A godly wi&s;e man may look upon his right improve|ment of worldly riches, as an effect of the grace and love of Chri&s;t dwelling in his heart; and thus he may be &s;aid to lay up for him&s;elfe a good foundation. And further, a beleever may looke upon his worldly profits as a fruit of the &s;ame grace, the Lord having promi&s;ed that he will ble&s;&s;e and pro|vide for him, &s;o that every way a wi&s;e man may be profitable to him&s;elfe. Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> hath at once a&s;&s;erted a po&s;&s;ibility for a man to be profitable to him&s;elfe, and denyed any po&s;&s;i|bility that a man can be profitable unto God, which he fur|ther explaines in the next words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 3.</HI></BIBL> Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righte|ous? Or is it any gaine to him that thou make&s;t thy way perfect?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In the former Ver&s;e <HI>Eliphaz</HI> denyed in generall that God receiveth any benefit from man: In this third Ver&s;e he &s;peaks the &s;ame thing, but &s;omewhat more di&s;tinctly, denying fir&s;t that he receives any plea&s;ure which might add to his ble&s;&s;ed|ne&s;&s;e, or &s;econdly any gaine which might add to his abun|dance. <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righteous? Is it any gaine to him that thou make&s;t thy way perfect?</HI> As if he had &s;aid. <HI>Is the ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e of God encrea&s;ed by thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e?
<PB N="19" REF="18"> Or doth the perfection of thy wayes augment his trea&s;ure? Is he ei|ther the happier or the richer by any thing thou art or can&s;t doe?</HI> That's the &s;cope and &s;ence of the words in generall.</P>
<Q>Is it any plea&s;ure?</Q>
<P>The word which we Tran&s;late <HI>Plea&s;ure,</HI> &s;ignifies the <HI>will,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Notat voluntatem cum complacentia, vel acquie&s;cen|tia.</NOTE> and becau&s;e it is &s;o great a plea&s;ure unto man to have his wil, therefore the &s;ame w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">rd &s;ignifieth both plea&s;ure and the will. So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.2.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man who&s;e de|light is in the Law of God;</HI> that is, who&s;e will is there, or who takes plea&s;ure in the Law of God, his will being re&s;olved into the will of God. Then we take plea&s;ure and delight in a thing when we conforme to it, or clo&s;e with it. The judgment of God is &s;o expre&s;&s;ed upon <HI>Coniah (Jer.</HI> 22.28.) <HI>Is this man Coniah a de&s;pi&s;ed broken Idol?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Vas in quo non e&s;t voluntas.</NOTE> <HI>Is he a ve&s;&s;el wherein there is no plea|&s;ure?</HI> A Ve&s;&s;el for the lowe&s;t u&s;e, as 'tis interpreted, <HI>ver.</HI> 21. A ve&s;&s;el in which there is no complacency, it is onely for ne|ce&s;&s;ity. So the word is taken al&s;o (<HI>Prov.</HI> 3.15.) <HI>He is more precious then Rubies, all the things thou can&s;t de&s;ire</HI> (or have plea|&s;ure in) <HI>are not to be compared to him.</HI> And againe, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.13.) <HI>If thou forbeare to do thy plea&s;ure upon mine holy day.</HI> What is the plea&s;ure of a carnal man upon the Sabboth, upon the holy day of God? It is to doe his own will, and not the will of God. <HI>If thou forbear to doe thine own plea&s;ure,</HI> that is, thine own will upon my holy day. Thus here, <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almigh|ty that thou art righteous?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">, &amp;c. <HI>Sept.</HI></NOTE> The Septuagint Tran&s;late &s;omewhat differently, <HI>What cares the Almighty if thou art unblameable in thy wayes?</HI> Thus a man u&s;ually &s;peaks of that wherein he hath no plea&s;ure, <HI>What care I for it? Is it any plea&s;ure, &amp;c.</HI></P>
<Q>That thou art righteous.</Q>
<P>Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is two-fold: Fir&s;t of Ju&s;tification (&s;o &s;ome under&s;tand it here) <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art ju&s;tified?</HI> Or &s;econdly there is a righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in Conver|&s;ation, &s;o mo&s;t under&s;tand it here; <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Al|mighty that thou art holy?</HI> Which is the &s;ame with the latter clau&s;e of the Text, <HI>That thou make&s;t thy way perfect.</HI></P>
<P>Further, the word &s;ignifies to plead our own ju&s;tice, as wel as to have a ju&s;tice or righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our own. And thus it
<PB N="20" REF="19"> may be Expounded in this place.<NOTE PLACE="marg">An oblectationi e&s;t omnipotenti quod ju&s;tificas te? <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Al|mighty that thou art righteous,</HI> that is, that <HI>Thou do&s;t ju&s;tifie thy &s;elf</HI> or (as Mr. <HI>Broughton) pleade&s;t ju&s;tice.</HI> Do&s;t thou ju&s;tifie thy &s;elfe, or &s;tand upon thine owne integrity, and then think to plea&s;e God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Se ju&s;tificare non tam e&s;t ju|&s;tum e&s;&s;e quam contendere &amp; conari adver&s;us calumnias &amp; &s;celera &s;ibi ob|jecta &amp; ex ra|tione coram ju|dice re&s;pondere.</NOTE> or to carry the day again&s;t man, upon tho&s;e tearms? <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty?</HI> That word fully hits the de&s;ign of <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> it &s;ignifies both <HI>Almighty</HI> and <HI>All-&s;uffici|ent,</HI> one that hath all in his own compa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">, that needs not goe out of him&s;elfe to fetch in any &s;upplies or aid from abroad. He is &s;elf-&s;ufficient, and he hath a &s;ufficiency for all others. <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to this Almighty one, that thou do&s;t thus ju&s;tifie thy &s;elfe?</HI></P>
<Q>Or is it any gaine to him that thou make&s;t thy way perfect?</Q>
<P>As it is <HI>no plea&s;ure,</HI> &s;o <HI>no gaine.</HI> The &s;econd Ver&s;e before o|pened clears the mind of this clau&s;e. What there he calleth <HI>profit,</HI> is here called <HI>gaine,</HI> in different words: And the word here u&s;ed is rendred indifferently both gaine and profit. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 37.26.) When <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> was ca&s;t into the pit, <HI>Judah</HI> &s;aid, <HI>What pro|fit is it to &s;lay our Brother, let us &s;ell him;</HI> let us make gaine of him that way, &s;laying him wil be no profit to us. And as it &s;ignifies gain, &s;o covetou&s;nes, &amp; the rea&s;on is becau&s;e covetou&s;nes hath gaine for its object, covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e provokes men to &s;eek gain. <HI>Jethro (Exod.</HI> 18.21.) gives councel that Magi&s;trates &s;hould be <HI>Men fearing God and hating covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> or hating <HI>gaine,</HI> that is not onely all covetous practices, but inordinate de&s;ires of gaine, for the&s;e lead into unlawful wayes of gaine, even to the perverting of Ju&s;tice.</P>
<P><HI>Is it any gaine to him that thou make&s;t [thy way] perfect?</HI> That is, thy life, thy conver&s;ation, thy cour&s;e; what though thou &s;trive&s;t after the highe&s;t attainments of grace, the pure&s;t purity of life, is this any gaine to the Lord? The Septuagint render, <HI>That thou make&s;t thy way &s;imple.</HI> The &s;imple, &s;incere, plain way is the perfect way. The perfection of our way is the &s;implici|ty, &s;incerity, and uprightne&s;&s;e of it.</P>
<P>Another reads, <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thy way is undefiled,</HI> Or cleane, that thou doe&s;t &s;weep and wa&s;h thy way, &s;o that there is no &s;pot to be &s;een upon it. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.1.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are the undefiled or perfect in the way.</HI> The &s;everall
<PB N="21" REF="19"> parts of this P&s;alm begin with a new Letter,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Alphabetarius e&s;t hic P&s;almus, o&s;tendens par|vulos ab ip&s;is &s;tatim elemen|tis &amp; pueritia, infarmandos e&s;&s;e ad pieta|tem. <HI>Hilar.</HI></NOTE> according to the order of the Hebrew Alphabet, intimating that it ought to be learned even of Children, as one of the Ancients infers from it. The undefiled in the way are &s;uch (properly) as have been holy or pure from their youth, &s;uch as did never corrupt their wayes. <HI>Timothy</HI> is &s;aid <HI>from a Child to learn the Scriptures.</HI> Suppo&s;e thy way thus perfect, that none could tax thee with any gro&s;&s;e &s;in, even from thy Child-hood, could this be any gaine to the Almighty?</P>
<P>There is yet another Tran&s;lation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Aut an lucro quod integras a&s;&s;eris vias tu|as. <HI>Iun.</HI></NOTE> which implyeth not on|ly the &s;tudy of holine&s;&s;e, but a boa&s;ting in holine&s;&s;e, <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou doe&s;t ju&s;tifie thy &s;elfe? Or is it a|ny gaine to him that thou do&s;t affirm thy wayes are perfect?</HI> So it fals in with the third rendring of the former clau&s;e.</P>
<P>For the under&s;tanding and further clearing of the&s;e words, I &s;hall draw them forth into di&s;tinct Propo&s;itions, which will be as &s;o many Ob&s;ervations from the Text. It may &s;eem a ve|ry Paradox to a&s;&s;ert that it is no plea&s;ure to the Almighty that a man makes his way perfect, therefore take the &s;en&s;e fir&s;t in three Affirmative Propo&s;itions, and then in three that are Negative.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>The Lord hath plea&s;ure in us as we are righteous in Chri&s;t.</HI> Yea he loves to hear us boa&s;t of this righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and glo|ry in it; and the more we doe &s;o, the more plea&s;ure he taketh in it. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45.25.) <HI>Surely &s;hall one &s;ay, in the Lord have I righ|teou&s;nes, even to him &s;hall men come,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>In the Lord &s;hall all the &s;eed of I&s;rael be ju&s;tified and &s;hall glory.</HI> The &s;eed of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> are righte|ous in the Lord, and glory in that righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e; yea the Lord is plea&s;ed to hear them glorying in that righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, for that's the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of his Son, <HI>in whom he is well plea|&s;ed,</HI> (Mat. 3.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">7.) And becau&s;e the Church is cloathed with this righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, therefore &s;he is called <HI>The Lords delight, (I&s;ai.</HI> 62.4.) <HI>Thou &s;halt no more be called for&s;aken, neither &s;hall thy Land any more be termed de&s;olate, but thou &s;halt be called Heph|zibah, &amp; thy land Beulah, for the Lord delighteth in thee.</HI> Thou &s;halt be called <HI>my delight, or my plea&s;ure is in her.</HI> The word of the Text, the Lords plea&s;ure is in the Church, and therefore the Lords plea&s;ure is in the Church, becau&s; the Church is adorned and beautified with the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of Je&s;us Chri&s;t; this is
<PB N="22" REF="20"> it which cau&s;eth the Lord to call his Church <HI>Hephzibah, My plea&s;ure is in her.</HI> When <HI>Eliphaz</HI> enquireth, <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?</HI> We may an&s;wer, the Lord hath plea&s;ure in this righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and as he tels the Church, &s;o every perticular Believer, his delight and plea&s;ure is in him.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>God takes plea&s;ure al&s;o in us as we are righteous in Conver&s;ation. David</HI> (P&s;al. 147.10, 11.) gives a clear proof of it both in the negative and in the affirmative. <HI>The Lord de|lighteth not in the &s;trength of a Hor&s;e, he taketh not plea&s;ure in the leggs of a man.</HI> The Lords delight is neither in Hor&s;es nor in men, neither in their &s;trength, nor in their beauty: wherein is the Lords plea&s;ure then? The next words &s;hew us where, <HI>He takes plea&s;ure in them that feare him and hope in his mercy.</HI> This Scripture &s;eems to &s;peak directly contrary to <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in <HI>Job,</HI> he &s;aith, <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?</HI> But <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>The Lord takes plea&s;ure in tho&s;e that feare him;</HI> therefore we mu&s;t not under&s;tand <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in this &s;en&s;e, as if the Lord had no delight or contentment at all in the holine&s;&s;e of his people, as if it were all one to him whether they are holy or unholy: There is a Generation who &s;ay, that all a|ctions are alike, and that it is all one before God, whether men be righteous or unrighteous, whether they doe good or evil: wo to them that under&s;tand this Scripture in &s;uch a cor|rupt &s;en&s;e, for the Lord doth not onely hate iniquity, but he is <HI>Of purer eyes then to behold any iniquity.</HI> He hath no plea&s;ure either in unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, or in the unrighteous, but both righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and the righteous are his plea&s;ure. There are three things which I &s;hall touch for the confirmation of it.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, the Lord cannot but take plea&s;ure in his own Image: Now that righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e which is implanted in us, and put forth by us, the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our natures and of our acti|ons, as we are regenerate, is nothing el&s;e but the Image of God renewed upon us. Seeing then God cannot but take plea&s;ure in his own Image, therefore it is a wickedne&s;&s;e to think that God takes no plea&s;ure in a righteous man or in his righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Secondly, as this righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is the image of God in us, &s;o it is the very workman&s;hip of God upon us (<HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 2.10.)
<PB N="23" REF="20"> <HI>For we are his workman&s;hip;</HI> we are &s;o not only fir&s;t in our na|turall capacity, as we are men, and &s;econdly in our civil ca|pacity as &s;uch or &s;uch men, high or low, rich or poor, but al|&s;o (which is the thing intended by the Apo&s;tle) in our &s;pi|ritual capacity as Saints. Thus we are <HI>the workman&s;hip of God, created in Chri&s;t Je&s;us unto good works, which God hath before or|dained that we &s;hould walk in them.</HI> The &s;ame Apo&s;tle &s;aith a|gaine, <HI>He that hath wrought us for this &s;elfe &s;ame thing is God,</HI> (2 Cor. 5.5.) Is it po&s;&s;ible that God &s;hould have no plea|&s;ure in his own works? We read in the fir&s;t of <HI>Gene&s;is,</HI> that when he had made the world, the Lord <HI>&s;aw all that he had made, and behold it was very good.</HI> God hath an All-&s;eeing eye, he al|wayes beholdeth all things, but when 'tis &s;aid, he &s;aw all that he had made, this imports a &s;pecial act of God, after the man|ner of men, who &s;trictly view and behold what they have done, delighting in it; Thus the Lord &s;aw all that he had made, he (as it were) came to view his own work, he &s;aw and behold it was very good, he took plea&s;ure in it. Now if God took plea&s;ure in that &s;tructure and fabrick of the world, the fir&s;t Creation, how much more doth he take plea&s;ure in that ho|line&s;&s;e which he hath wrought in the hearts of his people, which is a &s;econd creation? and that's a more curious and noble &s;tructure then this vi&s;ible world is. <HI>The new Creation is more excellent then the old.</HI> Therfore the Lord cannot but delight in a righteous per&s;on for he is his workman&s;hip. What <HI>Job (Ch.</HI> 14.15.) a&s;sures him&s;elfe of, is mo&s;t true in this re&s;pect. <HI>Thou wilt have a de&s;ire to the worke of thine hands. Job</HI> &s;peaks there of his outward man: my body (he means) was made by thee, 'tis the work of thy hands and thou wilt fetch it back again, thou wilt redeem it from the du&s;t. What&s;oever hath the work|man&s;hip of God upon it, he hath plea&s;ure in it as it is his work, and a &s;peciall plea&s;ure in that, which (as any work of Grace is) is his &s;peciall work.</P>
<P>Thirdly, this Con&s;ideration &s;hews that the Lord mu&s;t take plea&s;ure in a righteous per&s;on, becau&s;e he bears the form of his will revealed in his word. Holine&s;&s;e is our conformity to the will of God: Now the Lord cannot but take plea&s;ure in tho&s;e who conforme to his will. <HI>Samuel</HI> tels <HI>Saul</HI> (1 Sam. 15.22. and there he u&s;eth this word in the Text) <HI>Hath the Lord
<PB N="24" REF="21"> as great delight in Burnt-offrings and &s;acrifices, as in obeying the voyce of the Lord?</HI> God gave thee a word, a Command, to which he expected thy conformity, but thou ha&s;t thought to plea&s;e the Lord with Sacrifices, which he commanded thee not, this was thy mi&s;take and thy folly. We honour God when we do his will, &s;urely then he mu&s;t needs take plea&s;ure in tho&s;e that doe it. Man takes plea&s;ure when he can have his will (though it be a corrupt and &s;infull will) fulfilled: It cannot but be a plea&s;ure to God when his holy will is fulfilled, or done on earth as it is in Heaven. Thus we &s;ee the &s;econd Propn&s;ition cleared, for the under&s;tanding of the&s;e words, That as the Lord takes plea&s;ure in tho&s;e who are righteous by the impu|ted righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of his Son, &s;o even in tho&s;e al&s;o who are reghteous by the Implanted righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e or holine&s;&s;e of his &s;pirit.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>God takes plea&s;ure to &s;ee a &s;incere and upright per&s;on ju&s;tifie him&s;elfe, or plead his owne ju&s;tice again&s;t all the fal&s;e accu&s;a|tions and &s;u&s;pitions of men.</HI> The Lord likes it well to hear a man who is fal&s;ly accu&s;ed, to &s;tand up and maintaine his own innocency, yea it is our duty, and we are bound in con&s;cience to maintain our own innocency. So <HI>David</HI> in the &s;eventh P&s;alm and in the eighteenth P&s;alm ju&s;tified him&s;elfe again&s;t <HI>Saul.</HI> And thus <HI>Job</HI> all along in this Book ju&s;tified him&s;elfe again&s;t the opinion of his friends; in this &s;en&s;e God takes plea&s;ure, when we are &s;o righteous in all our dealings, and perfect in all our wayes, that we dare encounter who&s;oever &s;peaks the contrary, and can wa&s;h off all the a&s;per&s;ions which either mi&s;guided and mi&s;taken friends, or profe&s;&s;ed Enemies ca&s;t upon us. You have now had tho&s;e three affirmative Pro|po&s;itions for the under&s;tanding of the Text. Take three more in the Negative.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>God hath no plea&s;ure to &s;ee us ju&s;tifie our &s;elves before him, or to plead our own righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e with him, yea he is extreamly di&s;|plea&s;ed at it.</HI> This &s;ome conceive the chief thing which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> aimed at. <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou doe&s;t ju&s;tifie thy &s;elfe?</HI> No, thou do&s;t highly provoke him in doing &s;o, to plead with or to ju&s;tifie our &s;elves before God that we are righteous, is wor&s;e then all our unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, for this o|verthrowes the whole de&s;ign of the Go&s;pel, which is (1 <HI>Cor.</HI>
<PB N="25" REF="21"> 1.29.) <HI>That no fle&s;h &s;hould glory in his pre&s;ence, but be that glori|eth, let him glory in the Lord.</HI> And (<HI>Rom.</HI> 3.19, 20.) The Law convinceth all, <HI>That all the world may become guilty before God, therefore by the deeds of the Law there &s;hall be no fle&s;h ju&s;tified in his &s;ight.</HI> God will have every mouth &s;topped, or cry guilty, and therefore for any one to open his mouth and ju&s;tifie him&s;elfe before God, is to overthrow the Go&s;pel. They are <HI>ignorant of the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God, who goe about to e&s;tabli&s;h their own righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e</HI> (Rom. 10.3.) And as God hath no plea&s;ure in them who boa&s;t of their righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to ju&s;tifie them&s;elves before him, &s;o</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>God hath no plea&s;ure in them who boa&s;t of their owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and contemne others.</HI> Though a man may a&s;&s;ert the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of his Conver&s;ation again&s;t all them who que|&s;tion it; yet God re&s;ents it highly when any proclaim their own righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to the de&s;pi&s;ing of others. Chri&s;t &s;peaks a Parable again&s;t tho&s;e (in the 18^t^h of <HI>Luke,</HI> v. 9, 10, 11.) who <HI>tru&s;ted in them&s;elves that they were righteous, and de&s;pi&s;ed others. Two men went up into the Temple to pray, the one a Phari&s;ee, the o|ther a Publican: The Phari&s;ee &s;tood and prayed thus with him&s;elfe, God I thank thee that I am not as other men are, extortioners, adul|terers, unju&s;t, or even as this Publican.</HI> Here was one that advan|ced his owne active righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and he did it with the con|tempt of another, <HI>I am not as this Publican.</HI> The Lord takes no plea&s;ure in this, yea the Lord is highly di&s;plea&s;ed with this. And (<HI>I&s;a</HI> 65.5.) the Prophet repre&s;ents the Lords indig|nation again&s;t this phari&s;aicall &s;pirit in dreadful eloquence, <HI>Stand by thy &s;elfe, come not near to me, for I am holier then thou.</HI> Thus they pleaded their righteou&s;nes in contempt of others. <HI>The&s;e</HI> (&s;aith the Lord) <HI>are a &s;moak in my no&s;e</HI> (that is, gree|vous, and di&s;plea&s;ing) <HI>a fire that burneth all the day.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>God hath no plea&s;ure at all in any of our righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, either in the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our Ju&s;tification, or the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our Sanctification, as the lea&s;t addition to his owne happine&s;s.</HI> The rea&s;on of it is, becau&s;e (as was &s;hewed from the former Ver&s;e) God is &s;elf-&s;ufficient, and hath no dependance at all upon the Creature: So that what plea&s;ure &s;oever the Lord hath in the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of our Ju&s;tification, or of our Sanctification, we cannot put it to this account, that we add any thing to his happines.</P>
<Q><PB N="26" REF="22">All the plea&s;ure which God taketh is in him&s;elfe, or in the fulfil|ling of his owne good plea&s;ure in Chri&s;t.</Q>
<P>And therefore the work which Je&s;us was to doe on Earth, is called <HI>the plea&s;ure of God</HI> (I&s;a. 53.10.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deus nullis re|bus quae extra ip&s;um &s;unt tan|gitur aut mu|tatur.</NOTE>) <HI>It plea&s;ed the Lord to brui&s;e him, he hath put him to grief, when thou &s;halt make his &s;oule an offering for &s;in, he &s;hall &s;ee his &s;eed, he &s;hall prolong his dayes, and the plea&s;ure of the Lord &s;hall pro&s;per in his hand.</HI> That plea&s;ure of the Lord was the work which the Lord put into his hand, or which he gave him to doe, even the bringing about his eter|nal purpo&s;e, for the recovery of lo&s;t man; that's a work in which the Lord takes plea&s;ure, &s;o much plea&s;ure, that the Pro|phet calleth it <HI>His plea&s;ure.</HI> And thus the Apo&s;tle &s;peaks (<HI>Eph.</HI> 1.5, 6.) <HI>Having prede&s;tinated us to the adoption of Children, by Je&s;us Chri&s;t, according to the good plea&s;ure of his owne will,</HI> &amp;c. The good plea&s;ure of God is onely in his owne will, that's his plea&s;ure. The Lord delights to &s;ee his will accompli&s;ht in the &s;aving of &s;inners, as well as in the obedience of Saints, that's a part of the good will of God: why doth he take plea&s;ure in the obedience of Saints, even becau&s;e his own will is done. It's not any thing in us that doth it. So when he &s;aves us, the plea&s;ure which he takes is in the fulfilling of his owne will, rather then in our &s;alvation. <HI>Is it any plea&s;ure to the Almighty that thou art righteous?</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="4" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 4.</HI></BIBL> Will he reprove thee for fear of thee? Or will he en|ter with thee into judgement?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The Que&s;tion is to be re&s;olved into this negative, <HI>He will not reprove thee for fear of thee,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<Q>Will he reprove thee?</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> arguit redarguit, cor|ripuit, judica|vit.</NOTE>The word &s;ignifies fir&s;t to argue or di&s;pute, and &s;o to con|vince by the authority of rea&s;on.</P>
<P>Secondly, to plead, &s;o to convince by evidence of the Law and fact (<HI>Mich.</HI> 6.2.) <HI>Hear yee O Mountaines the Lords Con|trover&s;ie, and ye &s;trong foundations of the Earth, for the Lord hath a controver&s;ie with his people, and he will plead with I&s;rael.</HI> The Mountaines and the &s;trong foundations of the earth, are the great men of the earth, or Magi&s;tratical powers, with the&s;e
<PB N="27" REF="22"> the Lord threatens a Controver&s;ie, and that he will plead or argue his cau&s;e with them.</P>
<P>Thirdly, it &s;ignifies to argue or plead not with words one|ly, but with blowes, to reprove with correction. <HI>Job</HI> 5.17. <HI>Happy is the man whom thou correcte&s;t.</HI> The word which here we render <HI>reprove,</HI> is there rendred to <HI>correct,</HI> which is reproving by blowes.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Some tran&s;late it to evidence, <HI>to evince,</HI> and de|termine: Thus it is &s;aid (<HI>Gen.</HI> 20.16.) that <HI>Abimilech repro|ved Sarah,</HI> that is, gave evidence that &s;he had a husband: And <HI>Abrahams</HI> Servant &s;aid (<HI>Gen.</HI> 24.44.) She that &s;aith to me, <HI>both drink thou, and I will al&s;o draw for thy Camels, let her be the woman whom the Lord hath appointed for my Ma&s;ters Son.</HI> That is, let this token be an evidence to me, that it is &s;he whom thou ha&s;t appointed for his wife. Some here take it &s;o, <HI>Will God evi|dence</HI> or determine <HI>concerning thee, by thy feare, or the wor&s;hip which thou give&s;t him, That thou art righteous.</HI> We expre&s;&s;e it ful|ly enough, <HI>Will he reprove thee for fear of thee?</HI></P>
<Q>Or will he enter with thee into judgement?</Q>
<P>Both the&s;e expre&s;&s;ions are of the &s;ame &s;ence; and the&s;e words <HI>[for fear of thee]</HI> may be read in the clo&s;e of the Ver&s;e, <HI>Will he reprove thee, or will he enter with thee into judgment for fear of thee?</HI></P>
<P><HI>Feare</HI> may be taken here two wayes: Either fir&s;t Actively, or &s;econdly Pa&s;&s;ively.</P>
<P>Take it Actively, and &s;o it notes the Fear of <HI>Job,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Puta&s;ne te ple|cti ob religione~ tuam.</NOTE> <HI>Will he re|prove thee becau&s;e of thy Feare?</HI> And then by his Fear we are to under&s;tand his Religiou&s;ne&s;&s;e or Holine&s;&s;e; &s;o Mr. <HI>Broughton, Would he reprove thee for thy Religion?</HI></P>
<P>Take this Fear Pa&s;&s;ively,<NOTE PLACE="marg">An de religione tua argueret te? <HI>Iun.</HI></NOTE> and then it implyeth a Fear which God him&s;elfe might be thought to have of him; as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid, <HI>God is not afraid of thee.</HI> The Prophet &s;aith (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 51.12.) <HI>Who art thou that thou &s;houlde&s;t be afraid of a man,</HI> &amp;c.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quis vel hoc de&s;ipiens &s;enti|at, quod Domi|nus ex timore nos arguat &amp; ex metu judici|um &s;uum contra nos proponat. <HI>Greg.</HI></NOTE> Much more may we &s;ay, who or what is man that God &s;hould be a|fraid of him? One of the Ancients following this Interpreta|tion, profe&s;&s;eth that no fit or comely &s;en&s;e can be given of the&s;e words, but concludes that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake very fooli&s;hly and gro&s;ly, or as a man for&s;aken &amp; left of God: <HI>For</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>can any one imagine &s;uch a thing as this, that</HI> Job <HI>&s;hould have a thought
<PB N="28" REF="23"> that God was afraid of him?</HI> But we may very well accommo|date the &s;en&s;e in either of the&s;e Con&s;iderations of Fear, whe|ther Actively, or Pa&s;&s;ively, and judicious Interpreters carry it both wayes. Let us weigh it a little in both.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ta&s;ne, quod ille te affligat, quia<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> religi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;us &s;is &amp; Dei ti|meus ac integer ut d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> te ip&s;e pre|dicas, minime vero, quiu po|tius quod &s;is irreligio&s;us. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t Actively, as Fear is taken for the Fear which <HI>Joh</HI> fear|ed, that is, for his religion and wor&s;hip, or the exerci&s;e of it, then the meaning is this, <HI>Do&s;t thou think that God doth puni&s;h thee for thy goodne&s;&s;e, or becau&s;e thou art righteous? No, it is becau&s;e thou art irreligious: Is not thine iniquity great, and thy &s;in infinite?</HI> As he &s;peaks out in the n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">xt words, Doe&s;t thou think that God puni&s;hes thee for thy holine&s;&s;e? No, he can find &s;ins enow to doe it for. And <HI>Eliphaz</HI> might &s;peak to &s;uch a &s;en&s;e (I con|ceive) becau&s;e <HI>Job</HI> pleaded his integrity &s;o much; as if he &s;hould &s;ay, <HI>Never think that God afflicts thee for thy holine&s;&s;e, or righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, but rather acknowledge thy &s;ins and thy wickedne&s;&s;e to be the cau&s;e of thy afflictions, Are not thine iniquities manife&s;t?</HI></P>
<P>There is a tru<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h in this, <HI>God doth correct many who fear him, but he doth not correct <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ny one for fearing of him; many holy per&s;ons are afflicted, but no man was ever afflicted for his holine&s;&s;e.</HI> God hath made many promi&s;es to the godly man, that he will reward him, and doe him good. <HI>Say to the righteous it &s;hall be well with him. Godline&s;&s;e is profitable for all things, having <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">he promi&s;es of this life, and of that which is to come.</HI> Therefore no man needs feare that God will hurt him for his holine&s;&s;e: though a holy man may receive many rods and &s;courges from God, yet holine&s;&s;e never received the lea&s;t &s;courge from God.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Numquid ex ti|more tuo judi|cabit te? Deus quando te judicabit, non re&s;piciet ad ti|morem tuum tantum &amp; con|nivebit ad mala quae feceris. Hoc fine &s;ubijcit, <HI>nonne malum tuum amplum e&s;t?</HI> o&s;tendit autem nullam pietatem homi|nis e&s;&s;e perfect|am, ut mae ju|&s;tus judicari a deo po&s;&s;it. <HI>Coc.</HI></NOTE>Againe, as fear is taken Actively for Religion, or for holi|ne&s;&s;e, the &s;en&s;e may be given thus, in pur&s;uance of the fourth &s;ignification of the word <HI>Reprove,</HI> before <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">xplained, When God comes to judge thee, or when he declares what thou art, he will not look to thy fear onely, to thy profe&s;&s;ion of Reli|gion, and holine&s;&s;e, and over-look or wink at thy &s;ins; and therefore he pre&s;ently &s;ubjoynes, <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> Hereby arguing, that no mans piety is &s;o perfect, that thereby he can be accounted ju&s;t or righteous in the &s;ight of God, or that a mans profe&s;&s;ion, yea and practice of Religion is of no value, either to e&s;cape the puni&s;hment of his &s;in, or to de&s;erve a reward at the hands of God. Some expound that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.8.) in a paralel &s;en&s;e to this, the Original word being the
<PB N="29" REF="23"> &s;ame. <HI>I will not reprove thee for thy Sacrifices</HI> (which is the &s;ame with <HI>Fear</HI> in the Text, according to this Interpretation, being put for all outward wor&s;hip or religiou&s;ne&s;&s;e) <HI>or for thy burnt-offrings continually before me;</HI> For tho&s;e words, <HI>to have been,</HI> which our Tran&s;lators &s;upply, may be left out, and the &s;en&s;e remain perfect: Or if tho&s;e words be continued, then the ne|gative particle <HI>not,</HI> is (as in many Scriptures it is) to be re|a&s;&s;umed out of the fir&s;t part of the Ver&s;e, and the whole read thus, <HI>I wil not reprove thee for thy &s;acrifices, or for thy Burnt-offrings not to have been continually before me.</HI> That is, I will not charge thee with a neglect of outward duty or wor&s;hip, the inward and &s;piritual (of which he &s;peaks, <HI>ver.</HI> 14.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Eliphazo propo|&s;itum e&s;t o&s;ten|dere quod reli|gio hominis non pro&s;it ad deme|rendum deum, vel peccati pae|nam evadenda~. <HI>Coc.</HI></NOTE>) being that which is mo&s;t plea&s;ing unto me. Now as to the paraleling of this place in the P&s;alms, with the &s;ence of <HI>Job's</HI> Text now under hand, we mu&s;t read them thus, <HI>I will not judge thee for thy Sa|crifices,</HI> that is, when I determine concerning thy righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e, I will not doe it by having an eye to or re&s;pecting thy Sacrifices, thy religious cour&s;e and exerci&s;e of holines, though thou ha&s;t bin much yea even continually conver&s;ant in them; I &s;hall only argue and declare thee righteous as thou tru&s;te&s;t in me and by Faith take&s;t hold of my Covenant. Thus as the Lord is conceived &s;aying in the P&s;alm, I will not judge or de|clare thee righteous for thy Sacrifices, &s;o here <HI>Eliphaz, will he</HI> (that is certainly he will not) <HI>judge or declare thee righte|ous for thy feare?</HI> And &s;o the latter part of the Ver&s;e may re|ceive the &s;ame Expo&s;ition, <HI>Will he enter with thee into judgment,</HI> namely <HI>for thy feare?</HI> Will God deale with thee upon the ac|count of thy piety? And when he comes to ju&s;tifie thee, will he impute that to thee? Or when God enters into judgement with thee, will he &s;uffer thee to pre&s;ent thy fear, thy piety, or goodne&s;&s;e to him, and &s;o thereby an&s;wer his plea, or take a|way the action which he brings again&s;t thee? When God en|ters with us into judgement, we may boldly plead our inte|re&s;t or Faith in the Mediator, but we mu&s;t not plead our fear, the Grace or Holine&s;&s;e either of our per&s;ons, or of our &s;er|vices.</P>
<P>Thus we &s;ee the Doctrine of the Text according to this Ex|po&s;ition, and the Active &s;ignification of the word <HI>Feare,</HI> car|rieth in it the very life and &s;pirit of the Go&s;pel. All the worth
<PB N="30" REF="24"> and merit of our works as to righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, is nul'd and laid pro&s;trate, and we taught to glory in nothing but the free gift and grace of God by our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>Secondly, As <HI>Fear</HI> is taken pa&s;&s;ively, <HI>Will he reprove thee for feare of thee?</HI> That is, is God afraid of thee, doth he pick quar|rels with thee for fear of thee? Or &s;eek occa&s;ions again&s;t thee when there is none? only le&s;t thou &s;houlde&s;t &s;tand in his way, or be a detriment to him. This appears plainly to be the &s;en&s;e of our Tran&s;lators.</P>
<P>Whence Ob&s;erve,
<Q>God is above the feare of the Creature.</Q></P>
<P>As in the former Ver&s;e God is above any advantages or hopes that the Creature can give him, &s;o he is above the feare of any hurt that the creature can doe him. As the goodne&s;&s;e or righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of man cannot benefit the Lord, &s;o the wick|edne&s;&s;e and &s;infulne&s;&s;e of man cannot at all impaire the eter|nall glory and happine&s;&s;e of the Lord. Though the wicked|ne&s;&s;e of man be a darkening to the manife&s;tations of his glo|ry (and for that wicked men &s;hall be judged) yet as to his e&s;&s;ential glory all the wickedne&s;&s;e in the world cannot dar|ken that, nor be the lea&s;t abatement to it. <HI>Will he reprove thee for feare of thee?</HI> No, man cannot hurt the Lord by all his wickedne&s;&s;e, and therefore</P>
<P>The puni&s;hment which God layeth upon wicked men is not after the manner of men. God doth not puni&s;h as man pu|ni&s;heth.</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> here &s;peaks of that w^c^h is often indeed a true ground among men why they reprove or puni&s;h other men. Some reprove others upon a vaine fear of them, and &s;ome upon a ju&s;t fear of them. Why did the <HI>Jews</HI> accu&s;e and reprove Chri&s;t? Was it not for fear of him? at lea&s;t they pretended a fear, why el&s;e were they &s;o ha&s;ty to have Je&s;us Chri&s;t brought to judge|ment? (<HI>John</HI> 12.47, 48.) <HI>Then gathered the chief Prie&s;ts and Phari&s;ees a Councel, and &s;aid, what doe we? for this man doth many Miracles, if we let him thus alone, all men will beleeve on him, and the Romanes &s;hall come and take away both our place and Nati|on.</HI> They Crucified Chri&s;t for fear (though it was but a vain fear) that he would be the ruine of their &s;tate; the <HI>Ro|manes</HI> mu&s;t needs come and de&s;troy them if they let him alone.
<PB N="31" REF="24"> <HI>Feare makes men cruell,</HI> and they are mo&s;t ready to hurt others, who continually &s;u&s;pect hurt from others. It hath been an ancient Ob&s;ervation, that <HI>Cowards are murtherous and revenge|full;</HI> while a man fears that &s;uch a man will be his ruine, he ruines him if he can, and removes that out of his way which he &s;uppo&s;eth &s;tanding in the way of his owne &s;afety. Why did <HI>Pharaoh</HI> give Command to &s;lay the Male-Children of the <HI>Jews,</HI> and oppre&s;&s;e that people? It was upon a vaine or cowardly fear, <HI>Come let us deale wi&s;ely with them, le&s;t they multiply, and it come to pa&s;&s;e that when there falleth out any warre, they joyne al&s;o with our enemyes, and fight again&s;t us, and &s;o get them up out of the Land,</HI> (Ex. 1.10) It is &s;ayd at the 7^t^h ver&s;e of that Chap. that <HI>the children of I&s;rael were fruitfull and</HI> (God fullfilling herein his promi&s;e made to <HI>Abraham) encrea&s;ed aboundantly, and multiplyed and waxed exceeding mighty, and the Land was filled with them.</HI> When God thus ca&s;t a gratious eye upon them, <HI>Pha|roah</HI> and his Councellers ca&s;t a jelous eye upon them; and be|gan to &s;u&s;pect their multiplying might at la&s;t dimini&s;h him, that their ri&s;ing might prove his ruine. Therefore upon <HI>rea&s;on of &s;tate</HI> he mu&s;t find out a way to &s;uppre&s;s and keepe them un|der as &s;laves and bondmen, whom his Ance&s;tors received as welcom gue&s;ts, and had to that day, enjoyed as faithful friends. <HI>Pharoah</HI> being captivated with this feare, &s;aw no way to free him&s;elfe, but by taking away the freedome of that whole Peo|ple. As &s;ome through the prevalency of their owne feares dare not doe ju&s;tice, &s;o others through the prevalency of feare doe that which is unju&s;t. Take one in&s;tance more, why did <HI>He|rod (Matth.</HI> 2.) &s;end out to &s;lay all the Children? It was for fear of the King of the <HI>Jewes,</HI> he was afraid of Chri&s;t, and therefore that he might murther him, he gave that horrible &s;entence to &s;lay all the Infants. Again, &s;ome reprove and judge upon a due fear, for as Tirants and wicked men are full of fear becau&s;e full of cruelty, and have &s;u&s;pitious thoughts that o|thers will wrong them, becau&s;e they have a mind to wrong every man: &s;o ju&s;t and righteous Magi&s;trates when they &s;ee e|vil working, they mu&s;t reprove and puni&s;h it le&s;t it &s;pread to the endangering of the publick Peace. This is a ju&s;t fear, and &s;uch as becomes a man, even a man of courage and integrity;
<PB N="32" REF="25"> &s;uch may feare that if &s;editious &s;pirits be let alone,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Veri&s;&s;imum e&s;t illud, quod in|ter argumenta~|dum a&s;&s;umit <HI>E|liphaz,</HI> ex ti|more frequenter na&s;ci aut vehe|mentius accen|di &s;olere &s;everi|tatem in irro|gando &s;upplicio <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> they will undermine a whole Nation, and de&s;troy thou&s;ands. A Magi|&s;trate reproves and Judges Theeves and Murtherers out of fear that if they encrea&s;e no man &s;hall live quietly. Such as either openly or &s;ecretly contrive evil again&s;t a Nation, the Magi|&s;trate from a ju&s;t ground of fear deals with them &amp; reproves lea&s;t they &s;hould di&s;turb or infect the whole.</P>
<P>But the Lord doth not reprove any man for fear of him, he is of &s;uch infinite &s;trength and &s;tability, &s;o far out of the reach of all the plots and contrivances of the wicked, that he needs not call them to account le&s;t they &s;hould hurt his &s;tate, pull him out of his Throne, &s;poile his Kingdome, or get his Do|minion from him; the Lord is not afraid of any of the&s;e things, but the true rea&s;on why the Lord reproves wicked men, is, becau&s;e he hates their iniquities, and is a God of truth and judgment. Though Magi&s;trates may puni&s;h not only out of the love of Righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and Judgment, but becau&s;e they fear a State may be ruin'd if they do it not, yet the Lord hath none of this fear, in regard of his State, but he doth it meerly out of love to ju&s;tice, and as a hater of wickedne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>He reproves man becau&s;e he hath &s;inned again&s;t him, not be|cau&s;e he is afraid of him, as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;hews in the words which follow.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="33" REF="25">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquity infi|nite?</P>
<P>For thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy Brother for nought, and &s;tripped the naked of their clothing.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t not given water to the weary to drinke, and thou hast with holden bread from the hungry.</P>
<P>But as for the mighty man he had the earth, and the ho|nourable man dwelt in it.</P>
<P>Thou hast &s;ent widdows away empty, and the arms of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN this Context <HI>Eliphaz</HI> intends to &s;hew the true rea&s;on why God reproved <HI>Job,</HI> and entred into judgment with him; it was not (as was &s;ayd at the 4^t^h Ver&s;e) either becau&s;e God was afraid of him, or becau&s;e he feared God, but it was for his wickedne&s;&s;e, as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> (though mi&s;taken) concluded again&s;t him; as if he had &s;aid, <HI>God doth not puni&s;h thee becau&s;e he is a|fraid of thee, but becau&s;e he loveth ju&s;tice, and hateth iniquity, Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquity infinite?</HI> That's the &s;cope of the&s;e words, which we may fitly call <HI>Job's Indictment,</HI> and this Indictment is laid down fir&s;t in general words, <HI>ver&s;.</HI> 5. <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquity infinite?</HI> And here <HI>Job</HI> is not charged with wickedne&s;&s;e and iniquity barely, but un|der a two-fold aggravation.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. <HI>Great.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>2. <HI>Infinite.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>Secondly, We have his Indictment drawn ont into particu|lar Charges, or a &s;pefication of &s;ome notorious &s;ins given again&s;t him in the Ver&s;es following.</P>
<P>This particular Charge con&s;i&s;ts of two heads.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Sinnes again&s;t man; Secondly, Sinnes again&s;t God; His &s;uppo&s;ed &s;innes again&s;t man, contained in the words now read, are of two &s;orts; Fir&s;t, Sinnes of commi&s;&s;ion, or of the evill which he had done; Secondly, Sinnes of omi&s;&s;ion, or of the good that he had not done. The evill which he chargeth
<PB N="34" REF="26"> him to have done, is twofold; fir&s;t, an act of inju&s;tice, <HI>taking a pledge,</HI> in the &s;ixt ver&s;e; &s;econdly, an act of uncharitablene&s;&s;e, <HI>&s;tripping the naked,</HI> in the &s;ame ver&s;e.</P>
<P>Both which evills, or mi&s;carriages towards the hone&s;t poore are aggravated (<HI>ver.</HI> 8^t^h) by his undue connivence at the wic|ked rich; as he was too &s;evere again&s;t the poore, &s;o he was o|ver-favourable towards the great, and mighty; <HI>But as for the mighty man he had the earth, and the honourable man be dwelt in it;</HI> as if he had &s;aid; <HI>Thou did&s;t never &s;et thy &s;elfe to doe ju&s;tice upon the great ones, be they and doe they what they will, they have the earth, thou did&s;t never put forth or exerci&s;e thy power to &s;uppre&s;&s;e and oppo&s;e their in&s;olencies, thy edge was turned only again&s;t inferior ones; Thou tooke&s;t a pledge from the poore, and ha&s;t &s;tripped the naked of their cloathing.</HI></P>
<P>His &s;innes of omi&s;&s;ion are expre&s;&s;ed in the 7^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>Thou ha&s;t not given water to the weary, thou ha&s;t withholden bread from the hungry;</HI> and in the 9^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widdows away empty, and the armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken:</HI> Which may be either taken thus; Thou ha&s;t broken their armes, or thou ha&s;t not given thy helpe, and a&s;&s;i&s;tance to re&s;tore, and re|leive them when broken. Thus we have a light into the mean|ing of the&s;e five ver&s;es, as they are a charge of &s;inne upon <HI>Job.</HI></P>
<DIV3 N="5" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 5.</HI></BIBL> Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The que&s;tion may be taken two wayes; either conjectural|ly, and doubtingly, or a&s;&s;ertively, and affirmingly. U&s;ually in Scripture &s;uch que&s;tions are re&s;olved into a&s;&s;ertions and &s;o divers Interpreters re&s;olve this here; <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> That is, I conclude again&s;t thee, <HI>that thy wickedne&s;&s;e is great, and that thy iniquities are infinite;</HI> &s;o M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders; <HI>Doubtle&s;&s;e thy evill is great.</HI> Others conceive it more cleare to the minde of the Text, that this que&s;tion &s;hould be inter|preted conjecturally;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non tam haec ei ex profe&s;&s;o obij|cit, quam cogi|tandum ei relin|quit, num haec fecerit. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> That is, may we not &s;uppo&s;e, that thy wickedne&s;&s;e is great? may we not from (at lea&s;t) probable grounds thinke thus of thee? And that, Fir&s;t, from the generall &s;tate of man by nature, mans heart being &s;infull he may &s;inne, and &s;inne (as it were) with|out bounds, greatly. <HI>There is no man</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>Solomon,</HI> 1 Kings 8.
<PB N="35" REF="26"> 46.) <HI>that liveth, and &s;inneth not; Solomon</HI> puts it as a parenthe|&s;is in his prayer, but it is &s;uch a parenthe&s;is, as hoocks in all man kinde, it takes all in, <HI>Who is there that &s;inneth not?</HI> &s;o (<HI>Pro.</HI> 20.9.) <HI>Who can &s;ay I am cleane from my &s;inne?</HI> Now upon this generall ground <HI>Eliphaz</HI> might &s;uppo&s;e, <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> All men have this in their nature, and ha&s;t not thou made improvement of it in thy life? All men being &s;infull by nature, art not thou extreamely &s;infull in practi&s;e?</P>
<P>Againe, He might make the &s;uppo&s;ition upon this ground, his pre&s;ent condition, or his affliction; thou art greatly af|flicted, thy afflictions are not of an ordinary &s;i&s;e, or mea&s;ure, therefore is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great? and thine iniquity be|yond the ordinary mea&s;ure? Upon this common rule he might &s;uppo&s;e his &s;in very great; for u&s;ually God doth proportion, and mea&s;ure out puni&s;hments by our &s;innes. Thy &s;ufferings are very great, therefore are not thy &s;innes great too? Thus he might &s;peake conjecturally upon both the&s;e con&s;iderations; And yet if we con&s;ider how po&s;itively he &s;peaks of particulars at the 6^t^h and 7^t^h ver&s;es, &amp;c: <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy bro|ther for nought, and &s;tripped the naked of their cloathing,</HI> &amp;c. He gives us but too much ground to thinke, that he did more then bare|ly conjecture, while he &s;ayd;
<Q>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</Q></P>
<P>The word which we render <HI>wickedne&s;&s;e,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> malum tuu~ vox Hebraea pertinet ad im|probitate~ quan|dam &amp; impu|dentiam, contra jus &amp; aequum omnia concul|cantem.</NOTE> is by &s;ome &s;pecially expounded of that wickedne&s;&s;e which hath a kinde of impu|dence in it, and which doth not onely breake, tran&s;gre&s;&s;e, or &s;tep over the Law, but &s;purns again&s;t it; every man that &s;inneth &s;teppeth over the Law, over the line, but there are &s;ome that kicke at it, &s;ome who trample upon it, yea they would de|&s;troy it; &s;o &s;ome highten the empha&s;is of the word.</P>
<P>Againe, the word is rendred by others as &s;ignifying the evill of puni&s;hment in this part of the ver&s;e, and not the evill of &s;inne; <HI>Is not thy affliction great, therefore thy iniquity is infinite.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Malitia in &s;a|cris interdu~ e&s;t afflictio, aerum|na, vexatio, pro malo paenae non culpae acci|pit. <HI>Rab: Lev:</HI></NOTE> The Greeke word (<HI>Matth.</HI> 6.34.) an&s;wers this, <HI>Sufficient to the day is the evill thereof,</HI> that is, the trouble, and the &s;orrow of it: (<HI>Amos</HI> 3.6.) <HI>Is there any evill in the Citie which the Lord hath not done?</HI> So here, <HI>Is not thy evill great,</HI> thy evill of puni&s;hment? therefore thy iniquity is infinite. But I rather fix it upon the
<PB N="36" REF="27"> former: though the word &s;ometimes &s;ignifies the evill of afflic|tion, yet here I &s;hall take it for the evill of &s;inne, or as we tran&s;late, <HI>wickedne&s;&s;e,</HI> which denotes not ordinary but great &s;inne; for though every wicked man be a &s;inner, yet every &s;in|ner is not properly a wicked man.</P>
<P>Further, wickedne&s;&s;e in the former, and iniquity in the lat|ter part of the ver&s;e, may be thus di&s;tingui&s;hed; <HI>wickedne&s;&s;e</HI> &s;pe|cially re&s;pects tho&s;e acts by which we hurt, and wrong others, <HI>iniquitie,</HI> tho&s;e in which we pa&s;&s;e by or neglect the duty which we owe to others;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Malitiam dicit plurimam, &s;ed iniquitates infi|nitas, quia in pluribus peccat homo omittendo quam commit|tendo. <HI>Aquin.</HI></NOTE> and therefore <HI>Eliphaz</HI> calls his wickedne&s;&s;e <HI>great,</HI> but his iniquities <HI>infinite;</HI> becau&s;e &s;innes of omi&s;&s;ion are more in number then &s;innes of commi&s;&s;ion; Man fayles oft|ner by not doing the good required, then by doing the evill forbidden. Nature can ea&s;ier forbeare that which it likes, or plea&s;eth it, then be conver&s;ant in that which it likes not, or with which it is di&s;plea&s;ed.</P>
<Q>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</Q>
<P>The word &s;ignifies both magnitude and multitude, and it may be taken both wayes here, for great in bulke, and great in number.</P>
<P>But it may be &s;aid, who&s;e wickedne&s;&s;e is not great? or is any &s;inne little? Why then doth <HI>Eliphaz</HI> fa&s;ten this upon <HI>Job, Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, fir&s;t, that it is unbecoming any man, to &s;ay his finnes are little; we &s;hould not little, or le&s;&s;en our &s;innes, or have low thoughts of them; as wee ought not to have low thoughts of any of the mercies of God, but to thinke them all great to us, yea too great for us; &s;o we &s;hould not have light thoughts of any of our &s;innes, but judge the lea&s;t of them great, and the lighte&s;t of them heavy; yea even too great and too heavy for us to beare. Nor doth any thing more greaten a mans &s;inne, then his opinion that it is little.</P>
<P>Secondly, I an&s;wer, that indeed no &s;inne is little; in the lea&s;t &s;inne that ever was committed, there is a greatne&s;&s;e, as committed again&s;t the great God, as it is a breach of the Law, and an abu&s;e of the love of the Great God. Neverthele&s;&s;e, though every &s;inne, thus con&s;idered, is great, yet comparative|ly &s;ome &s;innes are but little, and &s;innes being weighed one
<PB N="37" REF="27"> with the other, we may give this di&s;tinction of them into lit|tle and great, light and heavy. And as &s;ome Godly men are faithfull and feare God above many, &s;o &s;ome wicked men are &s;infull and di&s;honour God above many. <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>'Tis our duty not onely to take notice of our &s;innes, but of the great|ne&s;&s;e and degree of our &s;innes.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth well to put <HI>Job</HI> upon that enquirie, <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e Great?</HI> Though he did ill &s;o groundle&s;ly to &s;u&s;|pect, much more to conclude that it was &s;o. When <HI>Mo&s;es (Exod.</HI> 32.31.) interceded for the people, after they had made the golden Calfe, he makes report of their &s;in to God in the fulle&s;t aggravation of it; <HI>O, this people have &s;inned a great &s;inne, and have made them Gods of Gold;</HI> he doth not onely confe&s;&s;e in their behalfe, that they had &s;inned, but they had &s;inned great|ly, <HI>They have</HI> (&s;ayth he) <HI>&s;inned a &s;in,</HI> that's more then to doe a thing that is &s;infull, and which is yet more, They have <HI>&s;in|ned a great &s;in,</HI> and which is mo&s;t of all, <HI>they</HI> (though they have been taught and have profe&s;&s;ed that God made them) <HI>have made them gods of Gold. David</HI> makes this the ground why he did beg pardon of his &s;in (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.11.) <HI>Pardon mine iniquitie for it is great.</HI> As we are to looke upon the greatne&s;&s;e of &s;inne, to hum|ble our &s;oules with godly &s;orrow, &s;o we are to looke upon the greatne&s;&s;e of &s;inne when wee &s;ue to the Lord for pardon; pardon my &s;inne for it is great; our very &s;enciblene&s;&s;e that our &s;inne is great, is a prevayling argument with God to par|don it; and our in&s;enciblene&s;&s;e that our &s;innes are great, gives the greate&s;t &s;top to the pardon of them. And as every &s;inne hath the more need of pardon, by how much the greater it is, &s;o God will have the more glory in pardoning it, by how much the greater it is. The great wounds, and &s;ickne&s;&s;es of the Patient have the more need of curing, and if a Phycitian cure a great wound, or &s;ickne&s;&s;e, he hath the more honour by the cure. Now that we may take the true&s;t mea&s;ure of our &s;innes, we mu&s;t looke upon them, fir&s;t in their nature and kinde, of what &s;ort they are, and to what they relate in their commi&s;|&s;ion; &s;econdly, in their circum&s;tances, when, how, and in
<PB N="38" REF="28"> what manner they have been committed. That &s;inne which is but little in the nature of it, may be a very great one in the circum&s;tances of it. As there are &s;ome mercies which we re|ceive from God, little in their kinde, yet great in their circum|&s;tances, and very obligeing; &s;o are our &s;innes. Some finnes are very horrid in their owne nature, they lay the con&s;cience wa&s;t, and eate out the very principles of Godline&s;&s;e, &s;uch are Athei&s;me, Bla&s;phemy, and Idolatry. The &s;inne of the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> in making Gods of Gold, how dete&s;table was it? a golden God, what an ugly &s;ight is that? and indeed there are many &s;innes which by how much they have the more externall beauty and glory upon them, the more ugly and filthy they are. Other &s;innes are &s;mall in their kinde, yet by additionall con&s;iderations they &s;well into an immen&s;e va&s;tne&s;&s;e, and be|come out of mea&s;ure finfull.</P>
<P>For In&s;tance, fir&s;t to &s;inne again&s;t light, that is, not onely to commit a knowne &s;inne, but to commit it knowingly. (Tis po&s;&s;ible, that while we know &s;uch a thing to be a &s;inne, yet to doe it unknowingly, or not to know that we have done it; He that knoweth it is a &s;inne to tell any untruth, may yet tell one and not know it: But) when we doe that which is a knowne &s;in, and likewi&s;e know that we doe it, then we have no cloake for our &s;inne.</P>
<P>Secondly, To &s;inne again&s;t many received mercies, greatens it exceedingly; Thus the Lord aggravates the &s;inne of <HI>David,</HI> I have done thus, and thus, for thee, and if this had been to lit|tle, I would moreover have given thee &s;uch and &s;uch things; <HI>Wherefore ha&s;t thou de&s;pi&s;ed the commandement of the Lord to doe evill in his &s;ight,</HI> 2 Sam. 12.8, 9.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It greatens &s;inne when continued in after warn|ings, and renewed admonitions; <HI>He that being often reproved hardneth his necke, &s;hall &s;uddenly be de&s;troyed, and that without re|medy,</HI> (Prov. 29.1.) The Greatne&s;&s;e of his puni&s;hment, (he &s;hall be (not afflicted, but) <HI>de&s;troyed</HI>) the quicknes of it (he &s;hall <HI>&s;uddenly be de&s;troyed</HI>) the irrecoverablenes of it (and that without remedy) all the&s;e with one con&s;ent vote the greatnes of that &s;in, what&s;oever it be in its kinde, which is per&s;i&s;ted in after per&s;wa&s;ion to de&s;i&s;t and depart from it. The Church is commanded to pa&s;&s;e her extreame&s;t cen&s;ure upon
<PB N="39" REF="28"> that offending brother, who having been told his fault; fir&s;t, by that brother alone whom he hath offended; &s;econdly, by him and two more a&s;&s;ociated as witne&s;&s;es; thirdly, then, by the Church gathered in the name of Chri&s;t. (<HI>Matth.</HI> 18.16, 17.) <HI>But if be will not heare thee, then take one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witne&s;&s;es, every word may be e&s;tabli&s;hed: and if he &s;hall neglect to heare them, tell it to the Church: but if he neglect to heare the Church, let him be unto thee as a heathen man and a pub|licane. It is dangerous enough to &s;in again&s;t a rule, but tis more dan|gerous to &s;in again&s;t a reproofe; e&s;pecially again&s;t the reproofe of a whole Church.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, When we &s;inne in the &s;ight of judgements upon our &s;elves, or others, whether for the &s;ame, or other &s;innes: This is as if a theife &s;hould &s;teale before the Judge, or under the gibbet, while he &s;eeth others arraigned or executed for &s;tealing. It is very evill to &s;in again&s;t judgements threatned, but it is far wor&s;e to &s;in again&s;t Judgements executed. That wrath which is revealed from heaven again&s;t all unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to the eare in the word of God, &s;hould &s;top us from &s;in, much more that which is revealed to the eye in the workes of God.</P>
<P>Fiftly, When we &s;inne again&s;t our owne promi&s;es not to &s;inne, when our owne words condemne us, as well as the word of God, this &s;taynes every &s;inne with a double guilt.</P>
<P>Sixtly, The greatening of a &s;inne is from the repeating of it after it hath been repented of. To fall into any &s;inne out of which we have ri&s;en, makes our fall the more grievous; when a &s;inner lickes up his owne vomit, when he builds againe the things which he had de&s;troyed, he makes him&s;elfe a tran&s;gre&s;|&s;or indeed. They who repent not cannot expect mercy, what remaines then for them but a certain fearefull expectation of Judgement, who repent of their repentings?</P>
<P>Seventhly, Sin is greatly encrea&s;ed when acted with deli|beration; to be hurried into a &s;inne though great, is not &s;o great as to doe a le&s;&s;e evill con&s;ultively, or to advi&s;e upon it and doe it; &s;ome &s;inne for want of advice, many &s;inne again&s;t advice, and not a few &s;in with advice, that is, advi&s;edly. <HI>Tis hard to finde out a way to give them comfort, who &s;inne with coun&s;ell.</HI> They who are wi&s;e to doe evill, or who doe evill as a piece of their wi&s;dome (&s;uch every deliberate action is e&s;teemed to
<PB N="40" REF="29"> be) will be found the greate&s;t fooles. <HI>All &s;in is folly, but tho&s;e &s;ins have mo&s;t of the foole in them, which we thinke, we doe wi&s;ely.</HI> In all the&s;e ca&s;es, we may well &s;ay to any man, as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here to <HI>Job; Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI></P>
<Q>And thine iniquitie infinite.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> perver&s;i|tas &amp; non finis iniquitatibus tuis. <HI>Heb.</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign">. <HI>70.</HI> Rebellio ae+terna. <HI>Vatabl.</HI></NOTE>The word which we tran&s;late <HI>iniquitie,</HI> implyeth perver&s;e|ne&s;&s;e, or frowardne&s;&s;e in &s;inning; <HI>Is not thine iniquity infinite.</HI> The Hebrew is, <HI>There is no end to thy iniquity,</HI> or thou do&s;t com|mit iniquity without end. The Septuagint render it thus; <HI>Are not thy iniquities &s;o many that they cannot be numbred? are they not innumerable?</HI> Another thus; <HI>Is not thy rebellion eternall?</HI> And &s;o the &s;ence reacheth eyther the multiplication of acts, or the continuation of time. Our reading is comprehen&s;ive of both; <HI>Is not thine iniquity infinite?</HI></P>
<P>But how could <HI>Eliphaz</HI> make &s;uch a &s;uppo&s;ition as this? &s;eeing there is nothing infinite but God, and it is altogether impo&s;&s;ible that there &s;hould be <HI>two infinites. The heavens cannot hold two Sunnes, much le&s;&s;e can the world hold two infinites.</HI> God is The onely Infinite; therefore &s;inne is not infinite as God is in|finite; Fir&s;t, that is infinite which is without end; &s;econdly, that is infinite which is without bound, in both God is infi|nite; As he had no beginning, &s;o he &s;hall have no end or pe|riod of his being; He is infinite in reference to duration or time; and he is infinite in reference to place or extent; He fills heaven and earth; and the heaven of heavens cannot containe him. The Hebrew phra&s;e in the Text, <HI>without end,</HI> an&s;wers our tran&s;lation, <HI>infinite;</HI> for infinite is that which hath no bounds or end. So then in a &s;trict and proper &s;ence, there is nothing infinite but God. And infinity runneth through all the titles of God, he is infinite in power, infinite in wi&s;dome, ju&s;tice, righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and mercy; It remaines then to be further con|&s;idered, how we may under&s;tand this que&s;tion, <HI>Is not thine ini|quitie infinite?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, &s;in is not infinite properly, yet in a vulgar &s;ence, &s;inne may be called infinite, for according to common accep|tion, we call that infinite which is very great, or which ex|ceeds all ordinary bounds, though not all bounds; onely that is properly infinite which exceeds all bounds, but we u&s;ually
<PB N="41" REF="29"> &s;ay, that is infinite which exceeds ordinary bounds. Thus &s;ome mens &s;ins onely are infinite. For though every &s;in be a break|ing of the bounds which God hath &s;et us, eyther in exce&s;&s;e or in defect; yet they who &s;in after a common rate or proporti|on of &s;inning, may be &s;aid to keepe their bounds in &s;inning. For what the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes of &s;ome tryalls and Temptati|ons (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.13.) the &s;ame may be &s;aid of &s;ome &s;innes and tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, that <HI>they are common to man.</HI> But they who &s;in (as the Prophet &s;peakes) with a high hand, or with both hands greedily, they who draw iniquitie with coards of vani|tie, and &s;in as i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> were with cart-ropes, the&s;e doe not onely breake the everla&s;ting bounds of the Law, but the ordinary bounds of &s;in. Their &s;ins are not common (in the act, though the principle be) to man; They &s;in as few men ever &s;inned, they &s;in like devills rather then like men, and therefore (un|der this notion) their &s;in is de&s;ervedly called infinite.</P>
<P>Secondly, We may &s;ay, that &s;in hath an infinitene&s;&s;e in it in reference to the object, God, and &s;o not onely a great &s;in, and many &s;ins, but &s;mall &s;innes, or any one &s;inne may be &s;aid to have an infinitene&s;&s;e in it, becau&s;e it is committed again&s;t an infinite God. And hence it is that nothing can expiate &s;inne but what hath an infinitene&s;&s;e in it; the lea&s;t &s;in, calls for the bloud of Chri&s;t to take it away, which bloud hath a kinde of infinity in it; for though the &s;ufferings and bloud of Chri&s;t were not properly infinite, becau&s;e they were the &s;ufferings of the humane nature, yet the divine nature &s;hed forth an infinite worth and value upon his &s;ufferings; and therefore we are &s;ayd to be <HI>redeemed</HI> (or purcha&s;ed) <HI>by the bloud of God</HI> (Act. 20.28.) that is, by the bloud of that per&s;on who is God, though the humane nature onely was capable of having bloud &s;hed. Thus we may &s;ay, that the lea&s;t &s;in, with re&s;pect to the object is infinite, God him&s;elfe being offended and wronged by eve|ry &s;in.</P>
<P>Thirdly, As this infinitene&s;&s;e may be con&s;idered in refe|rence to the extent of any one &s;inne (that reaching as high as God) &s;o to the number, or rather to the numberle&s;s of our &s;ins. There is an Arithmeticall as well as a Geometricall in|finity in &s;in. Thus the Septuagint (as was &s;ayd before) ren|der the Text; <HI>Are not thine iniquities innumerable?</HI> That hath a
<PB N="42" REF="30"> kinde of infinity which cannot be numbred; but cannot our &s;innes be numbred? are they infinite in number?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, &s;innes may be con&s;idered two wayes: fir&s;t, in their &s;pecies and kinds; &s;econdly, in their acts, if we con&s;ider &s;innes in their &s;pecies and kinds, &s;o they are not innumerable, for it is po&s;&s;ible to number up all the &s;everall heads, divi&s;ions, and kinds of &s;inne; but if we con&s;ider &s;in in reference to acts, &s;o every mans &s;ins are innumerable; yet this innumerablenes of &s;ins in reference to acts, may be con&s;idered either ab&s;olutely, or as to us. The acts of &s;in, are not ab&s;olutely or in them|&s;elves innumerable, but as to us they are innumerable: they are more then any man can number. <HI>John</HI> &s;ayth, (<HI>Rev.</HI> 7.9.) <HI>After this I beheld, and lo a great multitude, which no man could number</HI> (be&s;ides tho&s;e that were &s;ealed of every Tribe,) <HI>of all Nations, and kindreds,</HI> &amp;c.) This great multitude was not in it &s;elfe without number, but as to mans arithmeticke it was, no man could number it. The haires of our head, and the &s;ands of the Sea, are numerable to God, but to us innumera|ble. <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 40.12.) &s;peakes fir&s;t of <HI>innumerable evills,</HI> and then of <HI>innumerable &s;innes; innumerable evills compa&s;&s;e me a|bout, mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, &s;o that I am not able to looke up: they are more then the haires of my head, therefore my heart faileth me;</HI> when he &s;ayth, <HI>they are more then the haires of my head,</HI> his meaning is, they are innumerable; I can no more tell the &s;umme of my &s;innes, then the &s;umme of my hayres. Chri&s;t to a&s;&s;ure his Di&s;ciples in time of their afflictions and &s;ufferings, that he will take care of them, tells them; <HI>The very hayres of your head are all numbred,</HI> (Mat. 10.30.) As if he had &s;ayd, &s;eing God taketh care of tho&s;e incon&s;iderable (not parts, but) excrements of the body, &s;urely then he will take care of tho&s;e more noble parts of your bodies, and mo&s;t of all of that mo&s;t noble part of you, (which is your all) your &s;oules. The hayres of our heads are innumerable to us, but God numbers them. The &s;ins of our hearts and lives are all numbred by God. <HI>Thou telle&s;t my wandrings,</HI> (&s;ayth holy <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 56.8.) he meanes it of his wandrings by per&s;ecution, and 'tis as true of his wandrings by tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion. But what man knowes the errors or wandrings eyther of his heart or life (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 19.12.) He that hath fewe&s;t &s;ins, hath more then he can number; and
<PB N="43" REF="30"> therefore every mans &s;ins are to him, in number infinite.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Iniquities may he called infinite in reference to the will, or the &s;pirit of him that committeth tho&s;e iniquities: tho&s;e &s;innes are without bounds, to which man would never &s;et a bound. The natural man would never end &s;inning, there|fore his &s;ins are without end, or infinite. The Prophet (<HI>Jer.</HI> 13.27.) &s;peakes reproveingly to that people in the name of the Lord; <HI>I have &s;eene thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdne&s;&s;e of thy whoredome, and thine abominations on the hills in the feilds; wo unto thee, O Jeru&s;alem, wilt thou not be made cleane, when &s;hall it once be?</HI> As if be had &s;aid; O <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> thou ha&s;t no will to be made cleane, or thou woulde&s;t never be cleane, if thou mighte&s;t have thy will; <HI>When &s;hall it once be?</HI> The time is yet to come when thou woulde&s;t have it to be &s;o; thou ha&s;t a mind to pollute thy &s;elfe &s;till, but no minde to wa&s;h thy &s;elfe from thy pollution. The &s;ins of a per&s;on or people are then infinite, or without end, when they di&s;cover that they have no minde to leave &s;inning. A godly mans de&s;ires to doe good are infinite, and &s;o are the de&s;ires of a wicked man to doe evill. This Pro|phet had &s;poken to <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> in the &s;ame language (<HI>Chap.</HI> 4.14.) <HI>How long &s;hall vaine thoughts lodge in thee?</HI> when wilt thou be weary of the&s;e lodgers, when wilt thou bid the&s;e gue&s;ts be gone, whom thou ha&s;t thus long bid welcome? The Church of God doth &s;ometimes &s;uffer evill to lodge very long in her, even in the midde&s;t of her, as it were, at her very heart; but <HI>the world</HI> lodgeth <HI>or lieth</HI> (continually) <HI>in evill</HI> (1 Joh. 5.19.) and there (as it is the world) it will lie for ever, &s;oakt and &s;teept in evill. Some give this as one rea&s;on to ju&s;tifie the in|finitne&s;&s;e or everla&s;tingne&s;&s;e of the puni&s;hment that is laid up|on impenitent &s;inners in hell. The damned are under endle&s;&s;e &s;ufferings, becau&s;e they would have &s;inned without end;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vellet &s;ine fine vivere ut po&s;&s;et &s;ine fine pecca|re. <HI>Greg.</HI></NOTE> A wicked man would live long, yea he would have no end of his life here, he would live ever, that he might &s;inne ever; there|fore the Lord giveth him a life, not &s;uch a one as he would have, but &s;uch a one as he de&s;erves to have, which is indeed a death for ever. They dye eternally for &s;in, who would have lived eternally in &s;in. Take a Scripture or two more to illu|&s;trate this way of the infinity of mans &s;inne, (<HI>Jer.</HI> 8.5.) <HI>Why is this people of Jeru&s;alem &s;lidden back, by a perpetuall back-&s;liding;
<PB N="44" REF="31"> they hold fa&s;t deceite, they refu&s;e to returne;</HI> Here are three phra|&s;es noting this one thing. Fir&s;t, <HI>They hold fa&s;t deceit;</HI> &s;econdly, <HI>They refu&s;ed to returne;</HI> thirdly, <HI>Their's was a perpetuall back-&s;li|ding,</HI> or as &s;ome reade it, <HI>an eternall rebellion, an ob&s;tinate rebellion, a &s;trong and mighty rebellion;</HI> the Seventy call it, <HI>an impudent &s;hamele&s;&s;e rebellion:</HI> all the&s;e are proper Epithites of that ob&s;ti|nacy, and &s;etledne&s;&s;e of re&s;olution, which is in the heart of man by nature to continue in &s;inne; yet there is a further ren|dering of the words, which as the Originall will beare, &s;o it hath an elegancy in it, <HI>Why is this people of Jeru&s;alem &s;lidden backe by a conquering, or a prevailing back-&s;liding?</HI> A perpetuall back-&s;liding hath conque&s;t or triumph attributed to it upon a twofold con&s;ideration; fir&s;t, in reference to other &s;innes; finall ob&s;tinacy, or impenitency lifts up its head above all other &s;innes, and &s;its as King among them; impenitency un|der any &s;in committed, is greater then the &s;in committed; not to repent of the evill we have done, is wor&s;e then the evill which we doe. Impenitency &s;eales the &s;oule under condem|nation. Repentance conquers &s;in, but impenitency is the con|quering &s;in. Secondly, 'tis called a triumphing or conquering &s;inne, becau&s;e it &s;eemes (as it were) to carry the day again&s;t the mercy and goodne&s;&s;e of God, that's a &s;ad conque&s;t indeed; not that any &s;inne, no nor impenitency for &s;inne, exceeds the mercy and goodne&s;&s;e of God; for his thoughts of mercy are as high above our acts of &s;in, as they are above our thoughts of his mercy, &amp; that is as high as the heaven is in compari&s;on of the earth. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 55.9.) But the mercy of the Lord is &s;aid to be overcome by perpetuall back&s;lidings, becau&s;e the Lord will not be mercifull to &s;uch; thus final impenitency may be cal|led a triumphing or conquering &s;in, &s;eing the mercy of God &s;eemes to yeeld unto it; They will not humble them&s;elves to &s;eeke mercy, yea they &s;light and de&s;pi&s;e mercy, therefore they &s;hall not finde mercy. The Prophet <HI>Jeremie</HI> repre&s;ents the LORD thus expo&s;tulating againe with the Jewi&s;h Nation (<HI>Chap.</HI> 5.22, 23.) <HI>Feare ye not me, &s;ayth the Lord, will yee not tremble at my pre&s;ence, which have placed the &s;and for the bound of the Sea by a perpetuall decree that it cannot pa&s;&s;e it, and though the waves thereof to&s;&s;e them&s;elves, yet can they not prevaile, and though they roare, yet can they not pa&s;&s;e over it; but this people hath a revol|ting
<PB N="45" REF="31"> and rebellious heart, they are revolted and gone.</HI> The words, as I conceive, have the&s;e two things in them; fir&s;t, that the Lord is to be feared who doth &s;uch things, who &s;ets bounds to the Sea, &amp;c. Secondly, that the wickedne&s;&s;e of mans heart is ad|mirable, or rather that we are to be a&s;toni&s;hed at the wick|edne&s;&s;e of mans heart, which is more boy&s;terous and di&s;obe|dient, then the raging waves of the Sea. The Lord &s;ets bounds to the waves of the Sea, which waves in their owne nature are altogether boundle&s;&s;e; liquid waves have no bounds of their owne, yet the Lord having put bounds to them, they are kept in bounds; <HI>The &s;and bounds the Sea, &s;o that though the waves thereof to&s;&s;e, they cannot prevaile, though they roare they cannot pa&s;&s;e over; but this people have revolted, and are gone;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, I the Lord have put a bound to the Sea, I have al&s;o &s;et a bound to the wickedne&s;&s;e of mans heart; what is that? my Word, my Law. The Law of God is a moral bound to &s;top and keepe in compa&s;&s;e the raging waves of mans corruption. God doth not alwayes put an externall bound by &s;word and judgement to &s;top men whether they will or no from &s;inne, but he al|wayes puts a morall bound to &s;top them; this is &s;uppo&s;ed in the Text, I put a bound to the Sea, to the Sea al&s;o of mans heart, to the wickedne&s;&s;e that is there, but this people are re|volted and gone, they have broken all my bounds, even that perpetuall decree of my righteous Law. Now as when the Sea breaks its bounds, the waters flow infinitely, there is no &s;top|ping them; &s;o when the heart of man breaks bounds, revolts and is gone, he &s;innes infinitely, he makes no end of &s;inning. By the&s;e Scriptures we may under&s;tand in what &s;en&s;e the ini|quities of wicked men may be &s;ayd to be infinite; though no|thing is infinite in a &s;trict and proper &s;ence, but God him|&s;elfe.</P>
<Q>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquitie infinite?</Q>
<P>But hath <HI>Job</HI> given <HI>Eliphaz</HI> any ju&s;t occa&s;ion of this &s;urmi&s;e, that his &s;in was in this &s;ence infinite? Did he ever ob&s;erve ey|ther wickedne&s;&s;e in generall, or tho&s;e particular wickedne&s;&s;es which he pre&s;ently enumerates, taking a pledge, denying re|liefe of the poore, &s;tripping the naked, &amp;c? had he &s;eene any of the&s;e evills acted by <HI>Job?</HI> certainly he had not; <HI>Job</HI> was a
<PB N="46" REF="32"> man of another frame of life then the&s;e things import; the&s;e blacke lines and colours would never make the picture of <HI>Jobs</HI> heart or life; this is as ill a draught of a man as could be made; yet <HI>Eliphaz</HI> puts all this upon <HI>Job,</HI> at lea&s;t by &s;uppo&s;i|tion; is it not thus? but what rea&s;on had he for this &s;uppo|&s;ition? none but this, the greatne&s;&s;e of his affliction; the infi|nite troubles that were upon him; God &s;et no bounds to <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;orrows, therefore he thought <HI>Job</HI> had &s;inned beyond all bounds.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>Wee are ready to judge their &s;innes great, who are the greate&s;t &s;ufferers.</Q></P>
<P>Though we know nothing by them, though we can charge nothing upon them, yet this thought ri&s;eth naturally in us, when we &s;ee any under great and extraordinary &s;ufferings, &s;urely they are great, and extraordinary &s;inners. The wor&s;t of &s;inners never &s;uffered more in this world, then the be&s;t of Saints; Witnes tho&s;e Jewi&s;h Worthyes, who&s;e torments are reported by the Author to the <HI>Hebrewes</HI> (Chap. 11.37.) and as the&s;e were adjudged to &s;uffer, becau&s;e they were thought the wor&s;t of &s;inners, &s;o, doubtle&s;&s;e, many who &s;aw them &s;uffer thought them &s;uch, though they knew nothing done by them to make them &s;uch. Read al&s;o this Spirit (<HI>Luk.</HI> 13.2. <HI>Act.</HI> 28.4.) This hath been formerly ob&s;erved from other pa&s;&s;ages in this booke, and therefore I onely touch it, and pa&s;&s;e away.</P>
<P>Againe, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes to take <HI>Job</HI> off from the wrong ground of his &s;ufferings, and tells him, though he looked to other rea&s;ons, yet the true rea&s;on was the greatne&s;&s;e of his wickedne&s;&s;e, and the numberle&s;nes of his iniquities.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That few thinke of, or hitt upon any other cau&s;e of &s;uffering but &s;inne.</Q></P>
<P>Sin is &s;o much and &s;o often the cau&s;e of &s;uffering, that we doe it no wrong to &s;u&s;pect it as the cau&s;e of all &s;ufferings; and it is indeed one kinds of cau&s;e <HI>(cau&s;a &s;ine qua non)</HI> of all our &s;ufferings; &s;o that we can hardly wrong &s;in by this &s;u&s;pi|tion, but we may ea&s;ily wrong both God and man by it. When the blind man came before Chri&s;t, his Di&s;ciples asked him, &s;aying; <HI>Ma&s;ter, who did &s;in, this man or his parents, that he
<PB N="47" REF="32"> was borne blind;</HI> they could hit upon nothing but &s;in, why the man was borne blind, (<HI>Joh.</HI> 9.2.) But at the third ver&s;e, Chri&s;t an&s;wered, <HI>Neither hath this man &s;inned, nor his parents;</HI> he vindicates both from this &s;u&s;pition. What man was this? and who were his parents, that they &s;inned not? were they cleane from &s;inne? not &s;o neyther, but the meaning of Chri&s;t is this, neither hath this man &s;inned, nor his parents, &s;o, as that eyther his &s;in or theirs &s;hould be reckoned the &s;peciall cau&s;e why he was borne blind. There was &s;omewhat el&s;e in it, which the Di&s;ciples tooke no notice of, nor did they under|&s;tand. Chri&s;t doth not deny but that a mans owne &s;inne, and the &s;in of his parents may be a cau&s;e of blindne&s;&s;e; but neither the one nor the other was the cau&s;e in that mans ca&s;e; as if Chri&s;t had &s;ayd; Can you thinke of nothing el&s;e why a man is afflicted but onely his &s;inne? There are many other cau&s;es of &s;uffering be&s;ides that. The cau&s;e why &s;ome &s;uffer, is the try|all of their graces. The cau&s;e why many &s;uffer, is to beare witne&s;&s;e to the truth, and to encourage others both in the pro|fe&s;&s;ion of it, and in per&s;ecutions for it. And Chri&s;t particu|larly a&s;&s;ignes another cau&s;e of the &s;ufferings of the blind man, <HI>That the worke of God might be made manife&s;t in him:</HI> That the worke of God in his power and mercy might be &s;eene in re|&s;toring this man to his fight, therefore was he borne without the power of &s;eing. The blindnes of that man was an occa&s;ion to make a very glorious di&s;covery of God. Much of God had not been &s;o eminently &s;eene at that time, if that man had al|wayes &s;eene. Many are ca&s;t downe upon beds of &s;ickne&s;&s;e, or into a &s;tate of poverty, that the worke of God in ray&s;ing them up to health and plenty may be made manife&s;t. The de&s;igne of God lookes beyond the &s;in of man in the afflictions of mo&s;t men, yet man &s;eldome lookes beyond it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Note from the whole ver&s;e;
<Q>That we are more ready to judge the &s;innes of others great, then our owne.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquities infinite? Eliphaz</HI> might have &s;ayd as much of him&s;elfe and his owne &s;inne; and it had been but a duty to have done &s;o; we &s;hould not aggra|vate the &s;ins of others, nor extenuate or le&s;&s;en our owne, we
<PB N="48" REF="33"> &s;hould not &s;et the &s;innes of others in open light, nor provide coverings for our owne, yet mo&s;t commonly we run the con|trary cour&s;e: we have a favourable opinion, and excu&s;es rea|dy for what we have done, while we have hard thoughts of, and give har&s;h cen&s;ures upon what others doe; our owne &s;ins we can call moats, and the &s;ins of others beames. The better any man is, the better he judges others, and the wor&s;e of him|&s;elfe; <HI>Paul</HI> &s;pake no complement, while he &s;ayd, that <HI>he was le&s;&s;e then the lea&s;t of all Saints, and the chiefe of &s;inners;</HI> u&s;ually they who are the &s;evere&s;t ob&s;ervers and cen&s;urers of others, eyther flatter, or have not well ob&s;erved them&s;elves.</P>
<P>Fourthly.</P>
<P>Fora&s;much as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eing <HI>Job</HI> under great &s;ufferings, &s;ayth to him; <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> The coun&s;ell in it &s;elfe was &s;ea&s;onable.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That in time of &s;uffering, it is good both to put our &s;elves and o|thers upon inquiry about our &s;innes.</Q></P>
<P>So the Prophet (<HI>Lam.</HI> 3.39, 40.) <HI>Why doth a living man complaine, a man for the puni&s;hment of his &s;ins? Let us &s;earch and try our wayes, and turne againe to the Lord;</HI> times of afflictions &s;hould be times of inqui&s;ition, when the Lord is &s;miting, we &s;hould be &s;earching; when we have received many wounds, it is time for us to be &s;u&s;pecting our &s;elves of many &s;innes; and the coun&s;ell of others is not to be rejected, when &s;eing us in &s;orrow, they advi&s;e us to con&s;ider what our &s;innes are, how great, and how many. For though we &s;hould be tender in pre&s;&s;ing tho&s;e who are under the load and burden of afflicti|on, with the burden of their &s;innes, yet they who are &s;o, &s;hall doe well and wi&s;ely to pre&s;&s;e it upon them&s;elves.</P>
<P>Fiftly, Whereas <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;ayth; <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great, and thine iniquitie infinite?</HI> and in the next ver&s;e, concludes upon it; <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother for nought,</HI> &amp;c. All which were but conjectures and &s;u&s;pitions.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That &s;uppo&s;itions and conjectures are no fit grounds, upon which to build a judgement concerning the faultines of others.</Q></P>
<P>We mu&s;t not Cen&s;ure upon, <HI>I heare &s;o, I &s;uppo&s;e &s;o, I thinke &s;o,</HI> but upon, <HI>I know it is &s;o;</HI> many have run into great &s;inne by
<PB N="49" REF="33"> judging the &s;ins of others Great. <HI>Judge not</HI> (&s;aith our Saviour, <HI>Matth.</HI> 7.1.) <HI>that ye be not judged.</HI> He &s;peakes not again&s;t all judgement, but eyther, fir&s;t, again&s;t &s;evere and har&s;h judging, or &s;econdly, again&s;t fal&s;e judging, or thirdly, again&s;t incon&s;i|derate and ra&s;h judging. When we judge without due ground, <HI>not knowing the why or wherefore</HI> of our Judgement, take heed of &s;uch judging, <HI>that ye be not judged,</HI> that is, le&s;t having judged others unduely, ye receive your due in Judgement. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had nothing upon knowledge to charge <HI>Job</HI> for, yet while he que&s;tions, <HI>Is not thy wickedne&s;&s;e great?</HI> He doth more then &s;eem|ingly conclude that his &s;in was very great, and his iniquities infinite. And in the next ver&s;e in &s;tead of querying, he comes to peremptory concluding;</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="6" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 6.</HI></BIBL> For thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and &s;tripped the naked of their cloathing.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Now begins the &s;peciall charge, or inditement, now he in|numerates &s;everall &s;innes; As if he had &s;aid; <HI>What doe&s;t thou &s;tand looking for matter, or rea&s;ons why thou art thus afflicted, here are the rea&s;ons, I will name them to thee; Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge fram thy brother for nought.</HI> Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> powreth upon him, and di&s;chargeth whole volyes of deadly &s;hot, but all at ran|dome, and be&s;ides the marke. Before, he &s;pake in the third per|&s;on, he &s;peaks now in the &s;econd, <HI>thou, thou, thou art the man, thou ha&s;t taken a pledge.</HI> Againe, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had formerly dealt with <HI>Job</HI> as an hypocrite; he then granted that he had &s;ome &s;hews of holine&s;&s;e, and &s;ome appearance or counterfeit of goodne&s;&s;e at lea&s;t, now he denieth that; now he pulls off his vi&s;our or maske, and objects again&s;t him barefaced. Before he charged him with fal&s;ene&s;&s;e of heart, while he profe&s;&s;ed and practi&s;ed Religion; but now he objects &s;uch practi&s;es again&s;t him, as no man doth who hath but a profe&s;&s;ion of Religion. He objects tho&s;e crimes again&s;t him which are proper to prophane open &s;inners, to common oppre&s;&s;ors, who rai&s;e them&s;elves upon the ruins, and inrich them&s;elves by the &s;poyls of their weaker bre|thren; The&s;e are &s;inners not onely again&s;t the Law of God, but light of nature; the&s;e are acts not onely of impiety, but of cru|elty, inhumanity, and tyranny.</P>
<Q><PB N="50" REF="34">Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother for nought.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> was a Magi&s;trate, and this would have aggravated his &s;in exceedingly, if it had been true; for any man to oppre&s;&s;e another is very wickedne&s;&s;e; but for a Magi&s;trate who is &s;et up to be a protector, a releiver of others, a helper of the freindle&s;&s;e, and a Judge of the widdow, for him to carry him|&s;elfe thus, for him to oppre&s;&s;e and grind the faces of the poore, is mo&s;t tyrannicall.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tyrannus e&s;t, qui ita domina|tur, ut ad pro|prium commo|dum &amp; utilita|tem omnia con|ferat. <HI>Ari&s;t. lib. 4. polit. &amp; 1. Ethic.</HI></NOTE> Thus <HI>Ari&s;totle</HI> defines a Tyrant; <HI>He is one that rules &s;o as to turne all to his owne private benefit or profit;</HI> he that governs &s;o, governs for him&s;elfe; Whereas true govern|ment &s;eekes and re&s;pects the good of others. Ju&s;t governours are a generall ble&s;&s;ing, and their ayme is the <HI>common,</HI> not their <HI>private wealth.</HI> Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> renders <HI>Job</HI> a very tyrant, who when he &s;hould be a nur&s;ing-father to his Country, proves a devourer of it, and when he &s;hould provide bread for tho&s;e about him, he takes their bread, yea their blood from them, and gives them a &s;tone.</P>
<Q>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother for nought.</Q>
<P>There are three aggravations of his &s;uppo&s;ed &s;inne in the&s;e words.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That he tooke a pledge.</P>
<P>Secondly, That he tooke it of a brother.</P>
<P>Thirdly, That he tooke it for nought.</P>
<P><HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge]</HI> The Hebrew is no more then this, <HI>Thou ha&s;t pledged.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">In Hebraeo &s;im|plex e&s;t verbum <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod e&s;t pignorare aut pignus accipere idem e&s;t obliga|re.</NOTE> The word &s;ignifies al&s;o to bind, or fa&s;ten a thing as with a coard, and the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e a pledge gi|ven is an obligation, a ty or bond to performe the promi&s;e made, or pay the debt contracted. A promi&s;e is an audible bond, but a pledge is a vi&s;ible bond. It is no &s;inne in it &s;elfe to take a pledge, no more then it is a &s;inne to buy, &s;ell, or to in|gage a man any other way, to performe a bargaine, or repay a debt. The Law of God publi&s;hed by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> allowed the ta|king of a pledge, what is it then which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> chargeth upon <HI>Job</HI> as &s;infull in taking a pledge? I conceive there are two things which &s;hew &s;infulne&s;s in taking a pledge, and that both are implyed here.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He intimates that <HI>Job</HI> did not waite to receive a pledge
<PB N="51" REF="34"> at the hand of his brother, but he did as it were ru&s;h in upon him, and tooke the pledge; for &s;o tender was the Lord in re|ference to the poore of his People, or to tho&s;e that &s;hould be in need to borrow of their brethren, and &s;o give a pledge for &s;ecurity; that he giveth this &s;peciall order (<HI>Deut.</HI> 34.10.) <HI>When thou do&s;t lend thy brother any thing, thou &s;halt not goe into his hou&s;e to fetch his pledge</HI> (it was not unlawful to receive a pledge from his brother, but to goe into his hou&s;e was again&s;t the Law) <HI>but thou &s;halt &s;tand abroad, and the man &s;hall bring it out to thee.</HI> Some conceive that this was the &s;inne charged upon <HI>Job; Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother, thou ha&s;t not according to this expre&s;&s;e Law of God tarried for it;</HI> and &s;uppo&s;ing that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> and <HI>Job</HI> lived before the giving of that Law, yet the light of nature teacheth, that we &s;hould not pre&s;&s;e a man, or pull his pledge from him, but that the borrower &s;hould goe into his hou&s;e, and bringing his pledge, deliver it up freely with his owne hand into the hand of the lender. It is an affliction to have need to borrow,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ip&s;a pignoris e|tymologia, do|cere hominem videtur pignus non tam propria manu auferen|dum ab invito &amp; mi&s;ero debi|tore, quam ac|cipiendum non ni&s;i ip&s;ius debi|toris manu ob|latum: pignus e|nim appellatum e&s;t a <HI>pugno,</HI> quia res quae pignori dantur, manu tradun|tur. <HI>Cajus</HI></NOTE> and therefore the borrower &s;hould be &s;o tenderly dealt with by the lender as not to adde affliction to him. It is a curte&s;ie to lend to him that is in need, but as &s;ome in giving, &s;o mo&s;t in lending &s;poyle all the curte&s;ie of it; while they lend their money, they &s;natch or gripe at their &s;e|curity; whereas the old Law &s;ayd (the equity whereof, though not the formality, remaines to this day) <HI>Thou &s;halt not goe into thy brothers hou&s;e to fetch his pledge, but thou &s;halt &s;tand abroad and the man &s;hall bring it out to thee.</HI> Some Critticks tells us that this is &s;ignified in the Etymologie of the Latine word, which &s;ig|nifies a <HI>pledge.</HI> Namely, that the lender &s;hould not take but re|ceive it from the hand of the borrower. It is the duty of bor|rowers to pay: <HI>The wicked borroweth and payeth not againe, (P&s;al.</HI> 37.21.) The Apo&s;tles rule to the Godly is; <HI>Owe no man any thing but to love one another,</HI> (Rom. 13.8.) Now, as it is the duty of the borrower to pay, &s;o of the lender to be mode|rate, and not to exact or impo&s;e heavily upon him, for the a&s;|&s;uring of his payments. As he that buyeth &s;hould be as if he bought not, &s;o he that lends &s;hould be (in this re&s;pect) as if he lent not; He &s;hould lend with &s;o much mildne&s;&s;e and meeknes of &s;pirit, as if he gave, rather then lent; or as if (the contrary whereof <HI>Solomon</HI> found in his experience, <HI>Pro.</HI> 22.7.) him&s;elfe
<PB N="52" REF="35"> the lender, were &s;ervant to the borrower. <HI>Job</HI> is charged fir&s;t with fayling in this; As if he had over eagerly pre&s;&s;ed upon his brother for a pledge; <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy bro|ther.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, The taking a pledge from a brother, may be ex|pounded of withholding a pledge when it is called for, or of the not re&s;toring it, when the Covenants are performed. This is not onely to take it, but to take it away; &s;uppo&s;e the pledge hath been given into a mans hand, yet if he will not re&s;tore it, or give it backe out of his hand when called for, but make ex|cu&s;es, or delayes, <HI>This is to take away the pledge.</HI> And thus &s;ome make out the &s;in of the Text; <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge;</HI> that is, thou ha&s;t &s;wept it quite away, thou ha&s;t refu&s;ed to re&s;tore the pledge, when that which was borrowed upon it, hath been in due time tendered to be payed or re&s;tored. The Prophet <HI>Eze|kiel</HI> (Chap. 18.14, 15, 16.) numbers the contrary practices among tho&s;e Negatives, for which the Lord declares him&s;elfe much plea&s;ed with the &s;on of a wicked father; <HI>A &s;on that &s;eeth all his fathers &s;innes, that he hath done, and doth not &s;uch like; that hath not eaten upon the mountaines, neither hath lift up his eyes to the idolls of the hou&s;e of I&s;raell; that hath not defiled his neighbours wife, neither hath oppre&s;&s;ed any; that hath not withholden the pledge, ney|ther hath &s;poyled by violence,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>he &s;hall not dye for the iniquitie of his father, he &s;hall &s;urely live.</HI> Here &s;inning in the matter of a pledge, is pitcht upon with-holding it, not upon taking it. For though a man have a pledge fayrely delivered up to him, though he doe not ru&s;h into the borrowers hou&s;e, and there be his owne carver, taking what him&s;elfe li&s;teth to &s;ecure that which he hath lent, yet if he withhold the pledge when it is re|quired, and de&s;ired to be returned upon promi&s;ed &s;atisfaction made, this is very &s;infull and oppre&s;&s;ive. Some when they get a good thing in their hands, they are loth to part with it, and will have a device to prove it forfeited by the borrower, when indeed, 'tis onely coveted by the lender.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That violently to take or unju&s;tly to detaine the pledge committed to us, is to act the part of the oppre&s;&s;or.</Q></P>
<P>That Law which &s;aith; <HI>Thou &s;halt not &s;teale,</HI> doth as much for|bid
<PB N="53" REF="35"> the detaining in our hands, as the laying of our hands up|on that which is our neighbours. And he that withholds the pledge when the debtor is ready and offers to redeem it, is like him that withholdes the debt when the lender de&s;ires him, and he is able to repay it. Thou ha&s;t taken or withholden <HI>a pledge.</HI> That's thy &s;inne.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a further aggravation of &s;inne in the words re&s;pecting the per&s;on from which the pledge was taken; A <HI>Brother: Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother.</HI> This addeth to the &s;inne; we &s;hould be kinde to all, but e&s;pecially to a bro|ther. A brother, may be taken either &s;trictly for one next or neere by birth or bloud, a brother by con&s;anguinity: &s;uch are in the mo&s;t proper &s;ence, our brethren and our owne fle&s;h. Or the word <HI>brother</HI> may be taken in a large &s;en&s;e, for any that are neere to us, as being eyther of the &s;ame profe&s;&s;ion of Reli|gion with us, or living in the &s;ame Cit<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">, &s;ociety, or under the &s;ame Government with us. The&s;e are our brethren and our owne fle&s;h too. And &s;o the Prophet calleth them even when pinched with hunger and nakedne&s;s, the more to move the bowels of our compa&s;&s;ion towards them, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.7.) <HI>When thou &s;ee&s;t the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thy &s;elfe from thy owne fle&s;h;</HI> As richly cloathed as thou art, and as naked as they are, thine owne fle&s;h they are. When <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> &s;aith, <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother,</HI> he takes in brethren under all di&s;tinctions. This he adds to highten <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;in; <HI>Thou tooke&s;t a pledge from thy brother.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That as it is unju&s;t and uncharitable to wrong any man, &s;o mo&s;t of all tho&s;e that are neere to us.</Q></P>
<P>To wrong a brother of any latitude or degree is &s;infull, and &s;till the neerer the brother is, the more &s;infull it is to wrong him: the &s;inne which a man commits again&s;t him&s;elfe is therefore greate&s;t of all, becau&s;e a man is neere&s;t to him&s;elfe; &s;o in proportion the neerer any one is to us in any relation, the more we &s;inne in wronging him. The Apo&s;tle puts it un|der that notion; <HI>If a brother or a &s;i&s;ter be naked, and de&s;titute of dayly food,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Jam.</HI> 2.15. And againe, 1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.17. <HI>Who&s;oever hath this worlds good, and &s;eeth his brother have need and &s;hutteth up
<PB N="54" REF="36"> his bowels of compa&s;&s;ion from him, how dwelleth the love of God in him?</HI> That is, the love of God doth not at all dwell in him, or at be&s;t it dwelleth very poorly and undi&s;cernably in him. To &s;ee &s;trangers yea enemies de&s;titute and not relieve them, is uncharitable; but to &s;ee a brother or a &s;i&s;ter, and chiefly a bro|ther or a &s;i&s;ter in &s;pirituall relation (for of &s;uch I conceive the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes particularly, in tho&s;e places, I &s;ay, to &s;ee &s;uch) de&s;titute and not to releive them, this is highe&s;t uncha|ritablene&s;s.</P>
<P>Againe, Some render thus, (not <HI>thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother,</HI> but) <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken thy brother for a pledge.</HI> This &s;peakes yet louder, and is a &s;in of a blacker colour then the former; thou ha&s;t not onely taken thy brothers pledge, but him&s;elfe, his very per&s;on for &s;ecurity or for payment. But what is it to take a mans brother for a pledge?<NOTE PLACE="marg">In pignus acce|pi&s;ti fratres tuos. <HI>Sept.</HI></NOTE> or how was that done? The&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">wo things may be in it, either fir&s;t more generally thou ha&s;t impri&s;oned him. As (<HI>Mat.</HI> 1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.28.) 'tis &s;ayd of the cruell Creditour that he took his brother, <HI>and ca&s;t him into pri&s;on till he &s;hould pay the utmo&s;t farthing:</HI> now though all kinde of impri&s;onment be not &s;infull, not onely as to the law of Nations, but as to the Law of God; yet cruell impri&s;onment is very &s;infull; <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken thy brother for a pledge:</HI> Thou ha&s;t not &s;pared his per&s;on when he had not a pur&s;e to pay thee; <HI>Thou hast</HI> (as it hath been &s;ayd among us) <HI>made dice of his bones.</HI> Some would never pay, were it not for feare of a pri&s;on; but to put and detaine a poore man in pri&s;on when he hath no|thing to pay, is not onely unchri&s;tian, but barbarous and in|humane. Or &s;econdly (which was u&s;ed in ancient times) <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken thy brother for a pledge,</HI> that is, thou ha&s;t made him thy &s;lave: To be ca&s;t into pri&s;on is a &s;lavery, and a man may be made a &s;lave, yet not impri&s;oned. And though it may be a duty (when we have nothing el&s;e to &s;atisfie it with) to worke out a debt, yet it is a very high &s;everity to force a deb|ter to pay with his worke. We reade how the poore widdow came to <HI>Eli&s;ha</HI> the Prophet, and bemoaned her ca&s;e to him, (2 <HI>King.</HI> 4.1.) <HI>Thy &s;ervant my husband is dead, and thou knowe&s;t that thy &s;ervant did feare the Lord, and the creditour is come to take unto him my two &s;onnes to be bondmen;</HI> This is to take a brother for a pledge; The Prophet &s;eemes to ayme at this while he de|&s;cribes
<PB N="55" REF="36"> tho&s;e hypocriticall fa&s;ts among the Jewes (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.6.) <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 undoe the heavie burdens, and to let the oppre&s;&s;ed goe free, and that yee breake every yoake;</HI> To fa&s;t and not to reforme, is to mocke God rath<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">r then to humble our &s;elves. Here are the true fruits of fa&s;ting. And they all run into the poynt in hand, the avoy|ding and turning from all injurious and vexatious dealings with our Brethren. Fir&s;t, <HI>the bands of wickedne&s;&s;e,</HI> that is, of oppre&s;&s;ing Laws or pinching Contracts. Secondly, <HI>heavie bur|dens,</HI> eyther of &s;ervices or taxes; From the&s;e the oppre&s;&s;ed &s;hould be freed, and every yoake impo&s;ed, by the&s;e or any o|ther way of grievance, broken from off the neckes of our bre|thren.</P>
<P>There is yet one word more, very con&s;iderable in the Text, for the hightning of this &s;inne.</P>
<P><HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy brother for nought;</HI> or without cau&s;e; This word was opened (<HI>Chap.</HI> 1.9.) where Satan &s;ug|ge&s;ts again&s;t <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;incerity, <HI>doth Job &s;erve God for nought.</HI> And againe (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.3.) where the Lord a&s;&s;erts and vindicates the &s;incerity of <HI>Job</HI> again&s;t Satans calumniations; <HI>Thou moved&s;t me again&s;t him to de&s;troy him without cau&s;e;</HI> That is, thou had&s;t no cau&s;e to move me &s;o again&s;t him; he is no &s;uch mercenary &s;er|vant as thou ha&s;t maliciou&s;ly pretended. Thus here; <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy brother for nought, or without cau&s;e;</HI> that is, without any nece&s;&s;ary cau&s;e, there was no rea&s;on thou &s;houlde&s;t take a pledge from thy brother when thou tooke&s;t it; thou mighte&s;t have tru&s;ted him, but thou woulde&s;t not any further then thou had&s;t full &s;ecurity put into thy hand, or ra|ther then thou did&s;t take it into thy hand, whether he would or no. As if he had &s;ayd; Thou woulde&s;t not releive thy bro|thers poverty, upon the promi&s;es which God makes to tho&s;e who charitably releive the poore; thou woulde&s;t neyther take Gods word, nor tru&s;t thy brother in any ca&s;e, further then thou did&s;t &s;ee him; unle&s;&s;e he would put into thy hand, thou woulde&s;t not put into his. True charity mu&s;t and will make &s;ome ventures; <HI>Ca&s;t thy bread upon the waters</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon Eccl.</HI> 11.1.) A good man is a Merchant and will tru&s;t his bread where he hath no more a&s;&s;urance of a &s;afe returne, then the Merchant hath of his Ship and Lading from the winds and waters.</P>
<Q><PB N="56" REF="37">Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy brother.</Q>
<P>Againe, <HI>Without cau&s;e or for nought,</HI> may have this meaning, thou did&s;t oblidge thy brother to re&s;tore that which really and indeed he never received from thee; thou did&s;t put a debt to thy brothers account which he never made by borrowing.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Solent divites fingere &s;e cre|ditores &amp; alioe debitores.</NOTE> <HI>David</HI> complaines of &s;uch kinde of unkinde u&s;age (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 69.4.) <HI>They that hate me without cau&s;e, are moe then the hayres of my head: They that would de&s;troy me, being mine enemies wrongfully, are migh|ty: then I re&s;tored that which I tooke not away;</HI> That is, which I tooke not away, eyther as borrowed of them, or as &s;tolne from them. I was neyther a debter, nor a theife, I had nothing of theirs in my hands, yet I was forced to re&s;tore. This is the wor&s;t &s;ort of <HI>taking a pledge for nought.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>For nought;</HI> That is, when there was no rea&s;on to take &s;o great a pledge of thy brother, the thing which thou did&s;t lend him was but &s;ome trifle, yet thou woulde&s;t have a pledge of thy brother for it; thou woulde&s;t have great &s;ecu|rity for an incon&s;iderable debt; that's the cour&s;e of many op|pre&s;&s;ors, by lending a little they will have much to &s;ecure it. And this is to take a pledge from a brother for nought, there &s;hould be &s;ome equality between the debt and the &s;ecurity, he that lends a trifle, a &s;mall matter, and requires great a&s;&s;urance, takes a pledge of his brother for nought. So that all unrea&s;o|nable and unequall demands for &s;ecurity, eyther taking (where charity bids us tru&s;t) from the poore, or taking it (where in ju&s;tice we &s;hould not take any thing) when nothing was lent, or when there is no rea&s;on we &s;hould take &s;o much; any of the&s;e har&s;h and injurious practices, is the <HI>taking a pledge of our brother for nought.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That the le&s;&s;e cau&s;e we have to doe any evill, the greater is the evill which we doe.</Q></P>
<P>But hath any man a cau&s;e to doe any evill; he hath not; by cau&s;e I meane a provocation; there is no cau&s;e for which we &s;hould doe any evill, but there may be many provocations or temptations to doe evill; <HI>Peninah</HI> provoked <HI>Hannah</HI> &s;ore to make her fret (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.6.) It was not for nought or with|out cau&s;e that <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> his pa&s;&s;ion was &s;tirr'd, and that he &s;pake
<PB N="57" REF="37"> unadvi&s;edly with his lips, the murmuring and complainings of that un&s;teady people <HI>provoked his Spirit.</HI> (P&s;al. 106.33.) Now the le&s;&s;e provocation, the greater alwayes is the &s;inne; as to &s;inne again&s;t admonition, or again&s;t any of tho&s;e meanes that might keepe us from &s;inne, makes the &s;in greater, &s;o when there is no occa&s;ion leading us unto &s;inne. This was one rea|&s;on of greatening the &s;in of our fir&s;t parents in eating the for|bidden fruit; why did they eate? were they ready to &s;tarve? were they in any &s;treights? had they not the whole garden before them? did they not <HI>eate the forbidden fruit without cau&s;e, or for nought? Solomon</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Pro.</HI> 6.30.) <HI>Men doe not de&s;pi&s;e a theife, if he &s;teale to &s;atisfie his &s;oule when he is hungry;</HI> for though to &s;teale for meere hunger doth not take away the &s;infullnes of the fact, yet it doth much abate it; becau&s;e the man is provo|ked to doe it for the &s;upply of his pre&s;ent and pre&s;&s;ing need; But for a rich man (who hath no need) to &s;teale, for a man to &s;teale who is not hungry, how &s;infull is it! Our greate&s;t ne|ce&s;&s;ities cannot wholly excu&s;e our &s;in, but to &s;in where there is no nece&s;&s;ity, doth greatly encrea&s;e our &s;inne. <HI>Saul</HI> thought he &s;hould come off without blame, when he had &s;o much to &s;ay for his ra&s;h &s;acrifice (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 13.12.) <HI>I &s;aid the Phili&s;tines will come downe upon me to Gilgal, and I have not made &s;upplication unto the Lord; I forced my &s;elfe therefore, and offered a burnt offering.</HI> But doth <HI>Samuel</HI> approve this plea? We have his re&s;olution in the next ver&s;e; <HI>Thou ha&s;t done fooli&s;hly, thou ha&s;t not kept the Com|mandement of the Lord thy God.</HI> Though <HI>Saul</HI> found him&s;elfe un|der a moral force to doe what he did, yet that did not free him eyther from guilt or puni&s;hment when he ventured to doe it. <HI>David</HI> &s;marted for numbring <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> though <HI>Satan &s;tood up again&s;t I&s;rael, and provoked David to number them</HI> (1 <HI>Chron.</HI> 21.1.) What &s;hall we &s;ay then of tho&s;e, who doe more then <HI>David</HI> altoge|ther unprovoked by Satan, who rather tempt them&s;elves, then are tempted unto evill? As the Good we doe is &s;o much the better, &s;o the evill we doe is by &s;o much the wor&s;e, by how much we doe it the more freely and uncon&s;trained. Thus <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> aggravates the fir&s;t In&s;tance of <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;uppo&s;ed wickedne&s;s. To take a pledge from a man in the manner expounded, is not onely illiberal, but &s;infull; To take a pledge from a brother in di&s;tre&s;&s;e is more &s;infull, but to take a pledge of a brother for
<PB N="58" REF="38"> nought, is a degree of &s;in, which hath many degrees of &s;infull|nes beyond both the former. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> hath yet but begun <HI>Jobs</HI> Inditement, this is the fir&s;t Crime objected; A &s;econd, and a third, and more are following. <HI>Thou ha&s;t taken a pledge of thy brother for nought,</HI>
<Q>And &s;tript the naked of their Clothing.</Q></P>
<P>It may be que&s;tioned; If they were naked, how could they be &s;tript of their clothing? he that is naked hath no cloaths to be &s;tript of.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nudus nec a centum viris &s;poliatur.</NOTE> 'Tis gon into a Proverb, <HI>A naked man cannot be &s;tript by a hundred men;</HI> hee that hath nothing, can loo&s;e nothing. How then is it &s;aid here; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their cloa|thing?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer; <HI>The naked,</HI> are not here to be taken &s;trictly for &s;uch as have no cloaths at all, but for tho&s;e who have but few cloaths, or for &s;uch as are but meanly and thinly clothed; any that are poore and low, any who are in want, may be numbred among the naked. 'Tis frequent, as in Scripture, &s;o in Common &s;peech to expre&s;&s;e tho&s;e as beeing quite without that of which they have but little.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quaedam etia~&s;i vera non &s;int propter &s;imilitu|dinem eodem vocabulo com|prehenja &s;unt; &s;ic qui male ve|&s;titum &amp; pan|no&s;u~ videt nu|dum &s;e vidi&s;&s;e dicit <HI>Sen. l. 5. Ben: cap. 13.</HI></NOTE> Wee &s;ay of a man that hath but a little knowledge, he is an Ignorant man; and of a man who hath but a little learning, that he is an Illiterate, or an unlearned man. Thus we may &s;ay of a man that hath but lit|tle &s;tore of cloaths, little &s;tore of the world about him, that he is naked, that he hath nothing. The Apo&s;tle u&s;eth this Lan|guage (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.11.) <HI>Even to this pre&s;ent houre, wee both hunger, and thir&s;t, and are naked,</HI> &amp;c. not that the Apo&s;tles went about without cloaths, but they were but mean in their Apparrell, poore in their Appearances, and that he calls nakednes. So the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> in the &s;econd Chapter of that Epi&s;tle, <HI>ver&s;.</HI> 15. <HI>If a Brother or a Si&s;ter be naked,</HI> &amp;c. Hee doth not mean it onely of &s;uch as have never a ragg to cover their nakedne&s;s, but of &s;uch as are ill furni&s;hed with cloaths. The Lord threatens his owne People (<HI>Deut.</HI> 28^t^h from the 4^t^h <HI>ver.</HI> to the 48^t^h) in ca&s;e of their di&s;obedience, with this affliction; <HI>Becau&s;e thou &s;erved&s;t not the Lord with gladne&s;s of heart in the abundance of all things, therefore thou &s;halt &s;erve thine enemies in hunger, and in thir&s;t, and in nakednes,</HI> &amp;c. That is, thou &s;halt not have thy Wardrobes &s;to|red and filled with change of rayment, but thou &s;halt feele
<PB N="59" REF="38"> and be pincht with want and poverty. So here; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their clothing;</HI> That is, tho&s;e that were ill clothed, thou ha&s;t uncloathed, and in &s;tead of releiving their wants, thou ha&s;t encrea&s;ed them.</P>
<P>And thus the words may allude to the taking of a Pledge, about which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake before; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their cloathing;</HI> That is, thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy neigh|bour, and &s;tript him quite of it. Therefore the Law provided again&s;t this oppre&s;&s;ion (<HI>Exod.</HI> 22.26.) <HI>If thou at all take thy neighbours rayment to pledge, thou &s;halt deliver it to him before the Sunne goe downe, for it is his Covering.</HI> The breach of which Law is di&s;covered and reproved (<HI>Amos</HI> 2.8.) <HI>And they lay them&s;elves downe upon cloathes layd to pledge;</HI> That is, they detained them all night, whereas they &s;hould have delivered them before the going downe of the Sunne. And thus their &s;in is aggravated in that it is &s;ayd in the next words, that they did this <HI>by every Altar.</HI> It was their &s;in to make many Altars. And this encrea|&s;ed their &s;in, that they dur&s;t doe acts of wrong to men, where they pretended to wor&s;hip God.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Chaldeus legit lectulos oppig|neratos Vel certe pro illo ip&s;o ve&s;ti|mento quo &amp; &s;e operit inter|diu, at&abque; noctu etiam jacons &s;e contegit.</NOTE> The like Law is given about the Pledge, <HI>Deut.</HI> 24.6. <HI>No man &s;hall take the upper, or the nether mil|&s;tone to pledge, for he taketh a mans life to pledge;</HI> That is, he takes the thing away without which he cannot live; If his mil&s;tone be taken away from the Mill, how &s;hall he grinde his Corne, to make bread, which is the Staff of life? And againe at the 13^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter, the Law is renewed in refe|rence to rayment; <HI>In any ca&s;e thou &s;halt deliver the pledge againe before the Sun goeth downe, that he may &s;leepe in his owne Rayment and Ble&s;s thee, and it &s;hall be Righteou&s;ne&s;s unto thee before the Lord thy God.</HI> Thus wee may conceive <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;peaking here, though not eying that expre&s;s Law, yet from the Common light of nature, which teacheth that the poore and naked &s;hould not be &s;tript of that little provi&s;ion and &s;mall pittance which &s;erves onely to protect them from cold and &s;tarving.</P>
<P>Further, By the&s;e words; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their Cloathing]</HI> Wee may under&s;tand not cloathing onely, but all the nece&s;&s;aries of this life, any thing which is of &s;uch concern|ment to our lives as our Cloaths are; for as bread in Scrip|ture is put for all the nece&s;&s;aries of this life; So is Cloathing. <HI>E&s;a.</HI> 3.6. <HI>When a man &s;hall take hold of his Brother, &s;aying; Thou
<PB N="60" REF="39"> ha&s;t Cloathing; Be thou Ruler over us,</HI> &amp;c. Thou ha&s;t cloathing, that is, thou ha&s;t goods, thou ha&s;t an E&s;tate, thou can&s;t make provi&s;ion for us; there <HI>Cloathing</HI> is put for all outward Con|veniencies, as in other Scriptures <HI>Bread</HI> is. So that according to the extent of this interpretation, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their Cloathing,</HI> takes in all &s;orts of bodily grievances put up|on the poore.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That to oppre&s;s the poore is the highe&s;t and greate&s;t oppre&s;&s;ion.</Q>
<P>It is our duty to Cloath the naked, how great then is their &s;in who &s;trip the naked of their cloathing? it is &s;infull &amp; unju&s;t violently to take cloaths from him that hath greate&s;t variety of cloathing, wee may not rob the rich, what is it then to take from them who have not? <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">oe (as we &s;ay) <HI>to rob the Ho&s;pitall. Solomon</HI> (Prov. 28.3.) tels us of an oppre&s;&s;ion which is very grievous, and that is the oppre&s;&s;ion of a poore man, which is true both actively and pa&s;&s;ively, when the poore man is the oppre&s;&s;or, 'tis &s;o, 'tis &s;o al&s;o when the poore man is the op|pre&s;&s;ed. <HI>Solomon</HI> intends both, for he makes the poore to be the oppre&s;&s;ed, and a poore man the oppre&s;&s;or. <HI>The poore man that oppre&s;&s;eth the poore is as a &s;weeping raine, which leaveth no food.</HI> 'Tis wor&s;e with the poore when the poore oppre&s;&s;e them, then when the rich oppre&s;s them, the rich may oppre&s;s them much, but they come not &s;o neere, as when a poore man oppre&s;&s;eth; for as the imbecilitie of the oppre&s;&s;ed poore man can give him no helpe, &s;o the nece&s;&s;ity of the oppre&s;&s;ing poore man will &s;hew him no mercy. Nothing doth more harden the heart of a man then his owne want, and he hath little feeling of anothers mi&s;ery, who is under the feeling of his own: He that hath no|thing takes what he can get, and his owne hunger devoureth all. The rich man oppre&s;&s;ing the poore is <HI>a da&s;hing raine,</HI> the great man oppre&s;&s;ing the poore is <HI>a thundering raine,</HI> but the poore man oppre&s;&s;ing the poore <HI>is a &s;weeping raine.</HI> As they who never knew poverty, &s;o they who know it mo&s;t, have the lea&s;t &s;tocke of pitie for the poore. Such are a &s;weeping raine indeed. There is a refre&s;hing, a fatning, a filling raine, which the Lord &s;ends upon the thir&s;ty Earth, this produceth &s;tore of food. It raines corne and wine, milke and butter; There is al&s;o a
<PB N="61" REF="39"> &s;weeping raine that takes away food, and de&s;troyes the fruits of the Earth. Such a raine is a poore man oppre&s;&s;ing the poore. <HI>Want is the greate&s;t &s;poyler.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Wee may expound the Text thus; <HI>And &s;tript the naked of their Cloathing;</HI> That is, Thou ha&s;t &s;tript them till they are naked; for in Scripture wee finde the denomination to be taken from the End of the action, or that which the action tends to. As to Illu&s;trate it a little (<HI>E&s;a.</HI> 47.2.) <HI>Take the mil|&s;tones, and grinde meale.</HI> Now wee doe not grinde meale, but whole Corne to make meale. So (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 44.15.) <HI>Hee baketh Bread;</HI> Now we doe not bake bread, but dough, that it may come to be bread, when it is bread once it needs no more bake|ing. So (<HI>Dan.</HI> 2.21.) <HI>He giveth wi&s;dome to the wi&s;e;</HI> that is, he giveth wi&s;dome to tho&s;e who before were rude, and &s;o makes them wi&s;e. Thus here, the denomination of the act is gi|ven from that to which the act hath a tendency, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked,</HI> not that they who are naked indeed can be &s;tript, but thou ha&s;t &s;tript them, &amp; &s;o made them naked. This very phra&s;e is u&s;ed (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>Le&s;t I &s;trip thee naked,</HI> &s;aith the Lord to the Church, that is, le&s;t in &s;tripping thee I leave thee naked, le&s;t I take away all the good things with which thou art Encom|pa&s;&s;ed. So here, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tript the naked of their Cloathing;</HI> That is, thou ha&s;t &s;tript them till thou ha&s;t made them naked.</P>
<P>From this learne;
<Q>That there is &s;uch a Principle of unnaturalne&s;&s;e in the nature of man, as to take away all, and leave nothing.</Q></P>
<P>Wee finde more then Cloaths taken away by &s;ome, they goe clo&s;er then to the cloathing (as the Lord complaines, <HI>Mic.</HI> 3.3.) <HI>Who eate the fle&s;h of a People, and flay their skin from off their backs;</HI> There's oppre&s;&s;ion and cruelty in blacke&s;t colours, they will not leave them &s;o much as their skin upon their backes. Skin is naturall Cloathing, as Garments are Artificiall Cloa|thing. The&s;e tooke away not onely the cloathing which art, but that which nature had provided and put upon them, they flayed their skin from off their backes. Yet we are not to con|ceive that they were &s;o cruel to pull off their skin, but becau&s;e they would have all to their very skin, therefore they are &s;ayd to take skin and all. They who are &s;o unmercifull, that they
<PB N="62" REF="40"> will not leave a ragge to cover the skin, are ju&s;tly charged with that unmercifullne&s;s, which will not leave &s;o much as their skin to cover their fle&s;h, yea, (as it followes in the &s;ame place) <HI>that they would gnaw their bones,</HI> they will have all, Cloaths, skin and bones, from another, rather then not have enough for them&s;elves. <HI>Cruelty joyned with Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, knows no bounds.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus &s;hewed &s;ome of tho&s;e particular evills, which he &s;uppo&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> had done, proceeds to &s;hew what Good he had not don. <HI>Sins of omi&s;&s;ion render a man as foule and vile, as &s;ins of commi&s;&s;ion doe.</HI> He that doth not the good which he ought and can, doth evill.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="7" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 7.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Thou ha&s;t not given water to the weary to drinke, thou ha&s;t withheld bread from the hungry.</P>
<P>Thou ha&s;t not given water to the weary.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Water is a very Common thing, and the word which is here u&s;ed takes in all naturall waters, the whole Element of water. Seing then water is not under lock &amp; key, but lyes open to all commers, how comes it to be any mans gift? I an&s;wer, fir&s;t, If we under&s;tand the words literally &amp; &s;trictly, yet &s;omtimes &amp; e&s;pe|cially in &s;ome places to give a cup of water to drinke, or a buc|ket of water to wa&s;h in, is no &s;mall charity to a wearied tra|veller. But &s;econdly (I conceive) <HI>Job</HI> is taxed with <HI>not giving water,</HI> to &s;hew his refu&s;ing to doe the &s;malle&s;t charity. So wee finde it expre&s;&s;ed (<HI>Matth.</HI> 10.42.) when Je&s;us Chri&s;t would a&s;&s;ure us that the lea&s;t office of love or re&s;pect which we doe to a di&s;tre&s;&s;ed Saint, to a Beleever upon that account as he is a Be|leever,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non inania in eos etiam levia quae &s;ub frigidae aquae nomine de&s;ignat officia e&s;&s;e decerint. <HI>Hilar.</HI></NOTE> &s;hall be rewarded, hee gives it in this language; <HI>Who&s;o|ever &s;hall give to drinke to one of the&s;e little ones a Cup of Cold water onely in the name of a Di&s;ciple, verily I &s;ay unto you, hee &s;hall not lo&s;e his reward.</HI> As by one of the&s;e <HI>little ones,</HI> he meanes any, the lea&s;t of Beleevers, or righteous Per&s;ons; &s;o by the gift that he &s;peaks of, <HI>water,</HI> or <HI>Cold water, a Cup of Cold water,</HI> he meanes the lea&s;t of favours. Cold water is a cheape commodity, and a little cold water, onely a cup of it, cannot (as &s;ome things cannot becau&s;e they are worth &s;o much) be prized, becau&s;e it is worth &s;o little, yet he that gives but this little thing, this (almo&s;t) nothing in the name of a Di&s;ciple, <HI>hee &s;hall not lo&s;e his reward.</HI>
<PB N="63" REF="40"> So here to &s;et forth the hardne&s;s of <HI>Jobs</HI> heart (as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> con|ceived) he puts it in the&s;e termes, <HI>Thou ha&s;t not given water,</HI> (no not cold water) <HI>to tho&s;e that are weary;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, thou ha&s;t not onely denyed a fea&s;t, or a banquet of wine, which might put thee to &s;ome co&s;t and charges, but thou ha&s;t denyed then, water, cold water, which is not chargeable at all, which doth not &s;o much as put thee to the co&s;t of a little fire to heat it, or of any ingredient to mix with it, thou ha&s;t denyed them this cheape&s;t charity.<NOTE PLACE="marg">&mdash;venit vili&s;&s;i|ma rerum H&icirc;c aqua, <HI>Ho|rat. Sat: 1.</HI></NOTE> An old Poet (&s;peaking of a place where water was &s;old) &s;aith; <HI>That which is lowe&s;t prized, a thing of no price, water, is &s;old here.</HI> Thus farre ha&s;t thou, <HI>O Job,</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Eli|phaz</HI>) fallen below the Law of love; <HI>Thou ha&s;t not given water;</HI> And to whom did he not give it. The next word an&s;wers that Querie,
<Q>To the weary.</Q></P>
<P>That is, thou ha&s;t not given water to them to whom it doth mo&s;t properly belong, or who had perfect need of it, <HI>the wea|ry, the thir&s;ty.</HI> There are &s;ome to whom wee may very well re|fu&s;e to give water, or any other refre&s;hment of nature; they have enough, if not too much already, not onely in po&s;&s;e&s;|&s;ion, as the rich, but in u&s;e or abu&s;e rather, as the intemperate and the drunken; To give water to &s;uch is to powre water into the Sea; but thou ha&s;t not given it to the weary, not to tho&s;e who are like the dry and parched ground.</P>
<P>In that the matter of charity is placed in water, ob&s;erve;
<Q>That charity is accepted, and uncharitablenes condemned in the &s;malle&s;t matter.</Q></P>
<P>It is not the quantity of the gift, but the affection of the gi|ver, it is not the quantity of that which is denyed to be given, but the heart of him that denyes it, which the Lord takes no|tice of: be it much or be it little that is given, if it be given with an hone&s;t and willing minde, the Lord accepts it, and be it much or be it little that is denyed, if it be denyed with a churli&s;h and uncharitable &s;pirit, the Lord is di&s;plea&s;ed with it: and the le&s;&s;e that is which is denyed, the more &s;infull is the de|nyal, &amp; the more is the Lord di&s;plea&s;ed with it. When cru&s;ts or crums of bread, which fall from our Table, are denyed, when a cup of cold water is denyed, how cold is charity? and is it not
<PB N="64" REF="41"> crumbled into a le&s;&s;er nothing then tho&s;e crums? Wee &s;hould honour the Lord with our &s;ub&s;tance, and our charity &s;hould not onely have co&s;t in it, but liberality in it, how doe they honor God with their &s;ub&s;tance, who will hardly give to him (that is, to his poor) the &s;hadow of their &s;ub&s;tance? If the Lord &s;hould command us to give &s;ome great thing, to te&s;tifie our charity, &s;hould we not doe it? how much more when he &s;aith give but water to the weary for my &s;ake, and I account you charitable.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>That Churli&s;h and hard hearted Per&s;ons &s;tick at &s;mall matters as well as at great.</Q></P>
<P>It is &s;uppo&s;ed (<HI>Acts</HI> 5.15.) that the very &s;hadow of <HI>Peter</HI> was healing to the &s;icke. There are &s;ome &s;o hard-hearted, that they would hardly be&s;tow their &s;hadow upon the poore to doe them good. It troubles them to part with the lea&s;t Ima|ginable Benefit, or to doe the lea&s;t Imaginable courte&s;ie, not onely great things, but &s;mall things, even the &s;malle&s;t things, the chippings of their loafe, the parings of their apple, yea the very huskes which their &s;wine eate (as the letter of the Para|ble concerning the prodigal intimates, <HI>Luk.</HI> 15.16.) are &s;tuck at as too much for them who have nothing. And thus the heart of a wicked man is &s;tated to the whole bu&s;ine&s;&s;e of obedience; his heart is as much again&s;t obedience in a &s;mall matter, as in a great, he is &s;o farre from &s;wallowing the camell of holy du|ty, that he &s;traines at the very gnats of it; and if a mans &s;pirit be again&s;t obedience it &s;elfe in its owne nature, if his &s;pirit be un&s;utable to it, let it be a duty of the lea&s;t or lowe&s;t degree, he cannot but &s;ticke at it. The &s;ervants of <HI>Naaman</HI> the <HI>A&s;&s;yrian</HI> &s;ayd to him; <HI>Had the Prophet bid thee doe &s;ome great matter, woul|de&s;t thou not have done it? how much more when he &s;aith unto thee, Wa&s;h in Jordan and be cleane.</HI> There is a rea&s;on why wee &s;hould rather doe &s;mall things then great as to the outward act, but, I &s;ay, if the &s;pirit of a man be cro&s;&s;e-grayn'd and lie again&s;t the duty, he is as unfit and as back-ward to doe a little as to doe a great deale; he will not &s;o much as give water to God or man, or if he doe give it, he doth not give it with a heart let out in love to God, or in compa&s;&s;ion to the mo&s;t needy man. It is a hard matter with him to give or doe at all, but it is an
<PB N="65" REF="41"> impo&s;&s;ible matter for him to give or doe with a ready or chearefull minde. Thus the Covetous man, the hard-hearted worldling cannot give &s;o much as water: a worldly man ne|ver thinks that him&s;elfe hath enough of the world, and he ne|ver thinks that others have too little, when he is full he thinks all others are full enough too. Such narrow-hearted crea|tures the Prophet <HI>I&s;ayah</HI> de&s;cribes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 32.6, 7.) who as they <HI>practi&s;e hypocri&s;ie and utter error again&s;t the Lord,</HI> &s;o they pra|cti&s;e oppre&s;&s;ion and utter cruelty again&s;t man, <HI>to make empty the &s;oule of the hungry, and to cau&s;e the drinke of the thir&s;ty to fayle. The In&s;truments al&s;o of the Churle are evill.</HI> What In&s;truments doth he meane? Some &s;ay, the in&s;truments of his commerce, his weights and mea&s;ures, he pincheth the poore there, that's true, tho&s;e in&s;truments of the churli&s;h Merchant or Trad&s;man are evill. Yet wee may rather expound it more largely for all the meanes, whether per&s;ons or things, whether agents &amp; under-officers, or cour&s;es and devices, which the churli&s;h man u&s;eth as in&s;truments to compa&s;&s;e and bring about his purpo&s;es; all the&s;e &s;avour of him&s;elfe, they are evill, that is, fal&s;e, treache|rous, and lying in waite to deceive. For (as it followe) <HI>He devi&s;eth wicked devices to de&s;troy the poore with lying words, even when the needy &s;peaketh right,</HI> or (as wee put in the margin) <HI>when he &s;peaketh again&s;t the poore in Judgement.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Note;
<Q>That a little is much reckoned upon by tho&s;e that are in need, or have nothing.</Q></P>
<P>Water is a welcome mercy to the thir&s;ty, to the weary, to tho&s;e who are ready to dye with heate and travell. The rich man in hell would have been glad of a drop of water to coole his tongue. <HI>Sicera</HI> the General of <HI>Jabins</HI> Army, beggs of <HI>Jael,</HI> to give him a little water, for (&s;aith he) <HI>I am thir&s;ty.</HI> (Judg. 4.19.) The full &s;oule loathes the hony-Combe, that which is &s;weet and delicious the full &s;tomack loathes it, but they that are weary, hungry and thir&s;ty, a piece of bread, a Cup of wa|ter, how plea&s;ant! how &s;weet! Such are glad of any thing, who are in want of all things. Much is little to them who have much, a little is much to them who have but little. The weary will thanke you more for water, then the wanton will for
<PB N="66" REF="42"> wine. The weary asked but for water to drinke, and could not get it, thou woulde&s;t not give it.</P>
<P>Fourthly, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> de&s;cribing a wicked man, fixes mo&s;t up|on this &s;inne, his unmercifulne&s;&s;e to the poore. And there is a generall truth in it.</P>
<Q>That to be without Compa&s;&s;ion to the poore, is the marke of a wic|ked man.</Q>
<P>They who have found the compa&s;&s;ion of God to their own &s;oules (as every godly man hath) cannot &s;hut up the bowels of their compa&s;&s;ion towards the pined body of man. The Apo|&s;tle <HI>John</HI> puts the que&s;tion (1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 3.17.) <HI>How dwelleth the love of God in him,</HI> that doth &s;o? The love of God, eyther as taken for the love of God to us, or for our love to God, dwelleth not in him, in whom there dwells no love to man. Now, if the love of God dwell not in a man, God dwelleth not in him, and if God dwell not in him, Satan doth; and what can he be called but <HI>wicked,</HI> in whom <HI>the wicked,</HI> or <HI>the evill one</HI> dwelleth? Thus the wicked <HI>Edomites</HI> dealt with the people of God, when they were wearied in their March thorow the Wilderne&s;&s;e. Wee read the children of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> thus be&s;peaking the <HI>Edomites (Numb.</HI> 20.17, 18, 19.) <HI>Let us pa&s;s I pray thee thorow thy Coun|try, wee will not pa&s;s thorow the fields, or thorow the vineyards, nei|ther will wee drinke of the water of the wells,</HI> &amp;c. wee will put you to no trouble, no charge, wee will be content with the com|mon waters which we finde abroad, this is all that wee de&s;ire when wee &s;hall be weary and thir&s;ty in our travells. And <HI>E|dom</HI> &s;aid unto him, <HI>Thou &s;halt not pa&s;s by mee, lea&s;t I Cutt thee off with the &s;word: And the Children of I&s;rael &s;ayd unto him, wee will goe by the high way, and if I and my Cattell drinke of thy water, I will pay thee for it, I will onely</HI> (without doeing any thing el&s;e) <HI>goe thorow on my feet.</HI> See what a &s;pirit <HI>Edom</HI> was of; when <HI>I&s;rael</HI> put it to the lowe&s;t, wee will drinke none of the water of your wells, or if we doe we will pay for it; No, <HI>Edom</HI> was &s;o hard-hearted, that he would neyther give, nor &s;ell them water; they &s;hall not have it eyther of free co&s;t, or for money; thus uncompa&s;&s;ionate was hee towards a People that were travel|ling, that were weary and thir&s;ty. The Inhabitants of <HI>Tema</HI> are commended for their tendernes to men in di&s;tre&s;&s;e (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 21.
<PB N="67" REF="42"> 14.) <HI>They brought water to him that was thir&s;ty, they prevented with their bread him that fled;</HI> They gave water and bread unasked; The wants of the di&s;tre&s;&s;ed moved them, though they made no motion for the &s;upply of their wants. They act mo&s;t like God who prevent us with their favours. Even the light of nature leads to it. How unnatural then are they who deny water to them who being weary and thir&s;ty begge for it! The mercy of God by Je&s;us Chri&s;t is highly Commended to us upon this Con&s;ideration, that he gives it not onely in bounty, but in Compa&s;&s;ion, there is not onely liberality, but there is a pity in it: therefore he &s;aith (<HI>Matth.</HI> 11.28.) <HI>Come unto me all yee that are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you re&s;t.</HI> To give ea&s;e and refre&s;hment to tho&s;e that are weary and heavy laden, hath not onely bounty &amp; liberality, but Pity and Compa&s;&s;ion in it. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 136.23.) <HI>Thanks to God who hath remembred us in our low E&s;tate.</HI> It is an act of grace for God to remember us in our highe&s;t E&s;tate, in our mo&s;t flouri&s;hing E&s;tate, but to remember us in our low E&s;tate, then to give us in refre&s;hings and Com|forts, this is a clearer act of Grace. As it is &s;aid (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 68.9.) <HI>Thou O God, did&s;t &s;end a plentifull raine, whereby thou did&s;t confirme thine inheritance when it was weary.</HI> As the goodne&s;&s;e of God is mo&s;t &s;eene in giving water to the weary, &s;o is the wickedne&s;&s;e of man in denying it. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> urgeth <HI>Job</HI> further with this un|charitablene&s;&s;e.</P>
<Q>And thou ha&s;t withholdden bread from the hungry.</Q>
<P>He gave no water, and he <HI>withheld bread.</HI> The word is &s;ome|times rendred <HI>to hide, to deny,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Verbum <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignificat, ab|&s;condere, nega|re, fraudare. Subtrahebas ei &s;i habebat, &amp; prohibebas &s;i non habebat, <HI>i. e.</HI> nolebas ei panem dare. <HI>D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">us.</HI> E&s;urientium &s;ub&s;traxi&s;ti fructum panis. <HI>Ambr.</HI></NOTE> and &s;ometimes to <HI>deceive</HI> a man of that which is due to him. Our tran&s;lation <HI>(Thou ha&s;t with|holden)</HI> carries that &s;ence in it; Properly we are &s;ayd to with|hold onely that from a man which he hath a right to; <HI>Thou ha&s;t withholden Bread from the hungry.</HI> As hunger and thir&s;t are put for all manner of Extreamity; &s;o bread and water are put for all manner of &s;upplyes generally. The Greekes and &s;ome Latines Interpret this &s;trictly of a mor&s;ell of bread, <HI>Thou ha&s;t withholden a mor&s;ell of bread,</HI> as the rich man in the Go&s;pel did, <HI>Lazarus</HI> de&s;ired but the crummes that fell from his Table, but could not get them. So here, thou ha&s;t withholdden not one|ly a full Table, but a mor&s;ell of Bread; This latter clau&s;e and
<PB N="68" REF="43"> the former are of the &s;ame &s;ence, yet from that word <HI>with|holden,</HI> which Implyeth a wrong done to the poore, note fir&s;t;
<Q>That the poore have a right in what rich men have.</Q></P>
<P>And if they withhold all from them, they &s;hall be condem|ned, not onely as uncharitable and illiberall, but as oppre&s;&s;ors and unju&s;t; not onely as not having given them reliefe, but as not having done them right. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 3.27.) <HI>Withhold not good from them to whom it is due, when it is in the Power of thy hand to doe it.</HI> A thing is due upon a double account; fir&s;t, by the Law of Ju&s;tice; &s;econdly, by the Law of Love: I conceive here that the Proverb is to be under&s;tood of a duene&s;s, not by the Lawes of Common Ju&s;tice (as if a man have his brothers E&s;tate in his hand, he cannot withhold it from him without tran&s;gre&s;&s;ing the Law of Ju&s;tice) but of a duene&s;s by the Law of Love, or more &s;trictly by the Law of Charity: thus 'tis a duty to doe good to tho&s;e that are in want; it is not onely a favour that wee &s;hew to them when wee releive them, but there is a duty in it which wee owe to God, who hath commanded that their poverty &s;hould be &s;upplyed by the plenty &amp; abundance which he hath given to others. If therefore it be demanded, who are they to whom this doing of good is due? I an&s;wer, not onely they to whom thou art endebted in Ju&s;tice, <HI>witnes thy hand and &s;eale;</HI> but even they to whom thou art endebted in charity, <HI>witnes their want and need.</HI> The poore have a right to what we are able to give, and can conveniently &s;pare; yea &s;ometimes their right may lye &s;omewhat beyond the line of our conve|niency. So then there is a poynt of Ju&s;tice in it, as well as of charity in releiving the poore; and if (as the next words in <HI>Solomon</HI> imply) it be &s;infull to delay them till to morrow, it mu&s;t needes be a wickednes to deny them for ever. Therefore the &s;ame <HI>Solomon (Prov.</HI> 22.2.) &s;peaking of the poore and the rich puts them together; <HI>The rich and poore meet together, the Lord is the maker of them all;</HI> Now the Lord is the maker of the poore and of the rich, not only in their naturall con&s;titution, as they are men con&s;i&s;ting of body and &s;oule, (&s;o indeed he hath made the poor as well as the rich, and they are both alike the worke of his hands) but the Lord is the maker of them in
<PB N="69" REF="43"> that capacity or &s;tate wherein they are, he makes the rich man and the poore man, that is, hee makes the one rich, and the o|ther poore, he <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> the maker of them both, and <HI>Solomon</HI> (I con|ceive) puts that in to &s;hew fir&s;t, that poore men &s;hould not en|vy the rich man, why? for the Lord hath made him rich; why &s;hould thine Eye be Evill, becau&s;e the Lords Eye is good?</P>
<P>And againe, that the rich man &s;hould not de&s;pi&s;e the poore, or withdraw the bowells of his Compa&s;&s;ion from them, the Lord could have made thee poore too if hee had plea&s;ed, there|fore be Compa&s;&s;ionate towards them, for the Lord is the ma|ker of you both. And this an&s;wers that objection commonly given by &s;ome, why, are not my goods my owne, may I not do with them as I plea&s;e? I have not &s;tolne them, I have wron|ged no man in the obtaining them; it is well when men can &s;ay thus, that they have done no wrong in getting riches: but this is no argument (how ju&s;tly &s;oever any man hath got his E&s;tate) that he &s;hould keepe it all to him&s;elfe, and not give a portion to tho&s;e that are in want. The rich man withholds what is due to the poor, when he withholds releife from them. It is true your E&s;tate is your owne, it is yours, no man can challenge or claime it from you; I, but God can claime it from you; you are po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ors and ma&s;ters of your E&s;tate in reference unto men, but you are but Stewards and Servants of your E|&s;tate in reference unto God. Now a Stewards bui&s;ine&s;&s;e (you know) is not only to receive and lay up the E&s;tate of his Lord or Ma&s;ter, but 'tis his bui&s;ines al&s;o to pay or lay out according as he receives command or order from his Lord; thus it is in this Ca&s;e; Rich men are but Stewards to the Lord in reference to all that they have; Therefore as they receive from him, and partake of the fullnes of the Earth which is his (for the Earth is the Lords and the fullnes thereof) &s;o they mu&s;t i&s;&s;ue it ac|cording to his order and command: Now he hath left a &s;tand|ing order for all times, that the rich &s;hould di&s;tribute to the nece&s;&s;ities of the poore and hungry. Rich men mu&s;t not thinke them&s;elves Stewards onely to receive in, but al&s;o to pay out what their Lord calls for, and therefore as they would give a good account of their Steward&s;hip at the great Audit day, let them take heed how they <HI>withhold bread from the hungry.</HI> I might &s;hew further, that the rich are not onely obliged to give, or
<PB N="70" REF="44"> that it is their duty to give, but that they ought to give chear|fully and readily, not upon con&s;traint (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 9.7.) that they ought to give liberally and bountifully, no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> with re&s;traint, and that they ought to give &s;incerely, not thinking thereby eyther to merit at the hand of God, or to get the prai&s;e of men.</P>
<P>Secondly, From the matter of this charge, <HI>Thou ha&s;t with|holden bread from the hungry,</HI> we may ob&s;erve, That
<Q>Not to doe good, or the omi&s;&s;ion of doing good to the poore, renders us culpable as well as the doing or Commi&s;&s;ion of that which is evill or injurious to them.</Q></P>
<P>Not to releive the poore is a &s;in as well at to injure or op|pre&s;&s;e the poore, yea not to releive hath injurie and oppre&s;|&s;ion in it. The rea&s;on of it is cleare from the former poynt, becau&s;e the poore have a right to &s;o much of a rich mans e|&s;tate as is a releife of their pre&s;&s;ing nece&s;&s;ities, to pre&s;erve them from peri&s;hing. And every man mu&s;t acknowledge that to de|ny any man his right (by what title &s;oever that right ari&s;eth) is to oppre&s;&s;e him. Nor is it enough to give them good words (which yet is more then &s;ome will give) unle&s;&s;e we doe them good. (<HI>Jam.</HI> 2.15, 16.) <HI>If a Brother or a Si&s;ter be naked, and de|&s;titute of dayly food, and one of you &s;ay unto them depart in peace, be warmed and filled, yet notwith&s;tanding yee give them not tho&s;e things which are needfull to the body, what doth it profit?</HI> Though you give them good words, yet if you give them no &s;upply, what doth it profit? Wee may under&s;tand it two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, What doth it profit the poore? Can they feed upon your good words? or will your good words cloath them? what doth it profit them if yee &s;ay be fed and be cloathed, if you give them neyther food nor rayment.</P>
<P>Secondly, What profit is it to you who &s;ay &s;o? will God take it well at your hands, that you have &s;poken kindly to the poore, when you did them no kindne&s;&s;e? therefore withhold not thy hand, &amp;c. And if it be &s;o great a &s;in to withhold our bread from the hungry, what is it to take their bread from them? <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus taxed <HI>Job</HI> with neglect of the poore, he proceeds in the next ver&s;e to taxe him with an undue and partiall re&s;pect to the rich. As he was rigid to to them who
<PB N="71" REF="44"> had nothing, &s;o he was indulgent to tho&s;e who had enough, if not more then enough, before.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="8" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 8.</HI></BIBL> But as for the mighty man he had the Earth, and the ho|nourable man dwelt in it.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There is a twofold Interpretation of the&s;e words: Some under&s;tand them &s;o, as if <HI>this mighty man here meant had been Job him&s;elfe,</HI> and then the &s;ence is thus rendred; <HI>All the&s;e evills were done by thee, and the&s;e good things not done, when thou wa&s;t a man in power, and &s;o had&s;t no need to doe any &s;uch evill, and had&s;t power e|nough in thy hand to doe good.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Infortitudine brachij tui po&s;|&s;idebas terram et potenti&s;&s;imus obtinebas eam. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> The Vulgar tran&s;lation reads it (according to this Expo&s;ition) per&s;onally of <HI>Job; In thy might thou did&s;t po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e the Earth, and beeing mo&s;t powerfull thou did&s;t dwell in it.</HI> That is, thou wa&s;t a man in power, thou had&s;t all in thy hand, thou had&s;t water and bread enough when the poor wan|ted it, thou can&s;t not &s;ay that thou wa&s;t nece&s;&s;itated to keepe the pledge, or &s;trip the naked, but thou in thy greatne&s;&s;e and might did&s;t oppre&s;&s;e them; this interpretation (though I a&s;|&s;ent not to it) aggravates his &s;in exceedingly, for <HI>the more power any one hath in his hand, the greater is his &s;in, as in the Evill which he doth, &s;o in the good which he doth not, or leaves undone;</HI> yea it may be &s;ayd that wee doe evill more then they who doe it, when wee have power in our hand to hinder them from doing it, and doe not.</P>
<P>But &s;econdly, take the words as they import the partiality of <HI>Job; The mighty man had the Earth;</HI> thou ha&s;t been over-kinde and favourable to him, how hard or churli&s;h &s;oever thou ha&s;t been to others.</P>
<Q>The mighty man.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>The man of arme;</HI> and it is u&s;uall in Scrip|ture to call a &s;trong man, a mighty man,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vir brachij, e&s;t vir dignilate, opibus authori|tate potens. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> or a man in Autho|rity, <HI>a man of arme. (Ezek.</HI> 22.6.) <HI>Behold the Princes of I&s;rael Every one of them were in thee to their power to &s;hed bloud;</HI> The He|brew is, <HI>they were to their arme;</HI> that is, as farre as they could reach forth their arme, or to the utmo&s;t of their power to &s;hed bloud, that is, to doe mi&s;chiefe and wrong, to afflict and vexe others even unto death, or the &s;hedding of their bloud. They who are evill know not how to bound them&s;elves in doing
<PB N="72" REF="45"> evill; if they want not power, they &s;eldome want will to doe it more and more. Thus the Prophet reproves that perver&s;e ge|neration; <HI>Behold thou ha&s;t &s;poken and done evill as thou coulde&s;t (Jer.</HI> 3.5.) That is, to the utmo&s;t Exten&s;ion of thy ability and opportunit<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">. As tho&s;e Princes <HI>&s;hed bloud to their arme,</HI> or as farre as they could reach out their power; So did this peo|ple; And as the power of man, &s;o the power of God is Expre&s;t by his arme (<HI>Job</HI> 40.9.) <HI>Ha&s;t thou an arme like God? Can&s;t thou thunder like him?</HI> That is, ha&s;t thou power like God? (<HI>E&s;a.</HI> 30.30.) <HI>The Lord &s;hall cau&s;e his glorious voyce to be heard, and &s;hall &s;hew the lighting downe of his arme, with the Indignation of his anger, and with the flame of a devouring fire;</HI> The revenging power of God, like a bird of prey, hovers over the heads of wicked men, but at l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;t it lights downe, and (as the word rather &s;ignifies) re&s;ts upon them.</P>
<P>Againe, Some under&s;tand here by the <HI>arme</HI> of the wicked man, tho&s;e who are his In&s;truments, tho&s;e who &s;erve him, or whom he u&s;es to &s;upplant or &s;uppre&s;s others, and reach his owne ends by; Such may well be called the armes of mighty men, the armes of the men of the Earth. Evill men have their &s;econds or In&s;truments to doe evill. Upon this Con&s;iderati|on it was &s;aid anciently;<NOTE PLACE="marg">An ne&s;cis longas regibus e&s;&s;e inanus?</NOTE> <HI>Doe not you know that Princes have long armes;</HI> the meaning is, they have Agents and Servants in the &s;everall parts of their Dominions, who are their hands or armes, both for protection of tho&s;e who are peaceable, and to take revenge upon the rebellious. Wee commonly &s;ay of a Servant that is di&s;creet and faithfull, hee is his <HI>Ma&s;ters right hand.</HI> The mighty have many helpers, many armes and hands to carry on their de&s;ignes, and to doe their wills.</P>
<Q>As for the mighty man, or the man of armes, he had the Earth.</Q>
<P>This &s;tands in oppo&s;ition to what was &s;poken before, the poore man could not get a drop of water, nor a cru&s;t of bread, but the mighty man he had the Earth; As if he had &s;aid; <HI>O Job, thou being in power did&s;t pa&s;&s;e away great po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions to the migh|ty, thou gave&s;t both thy &s;entence and a&s;&s;i&s;tance, that they &s;hould have the Earth, but thou woulde&s;t not helpe the poore &s;o much as to a piece of bread, or a cup of water; The mighty man had the Earth;</HI> hee &s;peakes Indefinitely, as if all the Earth were his. Wicked men
<PB N="73" REF="45"> are called <HI>men of the Earth (P&s;al.</HI> 10.18.) <HI>To judge the father|le&s;s, and the oppre&s;&s;ed, that the men of the Earth may no more op|pre&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>But it may be objected, Is not every man a man of the Earth? As <HI>Adam the fir&s;t man was of the Earth, Earthy;</HI> &s;o all men are of the Earth, Earthy; why then is it then &s;ayd of a wicked man, that he is a man of the Earth, as if any man were of ano|ther Pedigree or extraction?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; A man of the Earth is put in oppo&s;ition to a man of Heaven, to a man that hath his E&s;tate, or hope, or portion in Heaven; the Saints have their Conver&s;ation in Heaven, and though they live upon the Earth, yet they are not men of the Earth; Carnall men are Earthly-minded, they minde the Earth, and thats both their hope and bui&s;ines; they are not onely Earth in their Con&s;titution, but Earth in their affecti|ons, therefore they are called men of the Earth; the&s;e men had much of the Earth in their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, as well as they had all of it in their affections &amp; de&s;ires. <HI>The mighty man he had the Earth.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve hence;
<Q>That Evill Magi&s;trates in Power are more ready to favour great men, then to releive poore men.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> knew that <HI>Job</HI> was a Magi&s;trate, a man in Power, and he &s;uppo&s;eth that under his government, the poore got no bread, but the mighty men had the Earth, they had favour to have and doe what they lift. It is very Common with the men of the world to be very free to tho&s;e that are of the world; they are like tho&s;e Clouds which we may ob&s;erve &s;ometimes blowne over the dry Land, and emptying them&s;elves into the Sea. The mighty that had &s;tore before, have more, and the poore, who had nothing, have nothing at all; Men love to be&s;tow kindne&s;&s;es upon them onely to whom they are like, or whom they love. A good man helps tho&s;e that are good, and wicked men care for none but &s;uch as them&s;elves. Wicked men are called <HI>Oakes (Zech.</HI> 11.2.) <HI>Howle yee firr trees for the Cedar is fallen,</HI> (that is, the great man is fallen) <HI>becau&s;e all the migh|ty are &s;poyled; howle O yee Oakes of Ba&s;han, for the forre&s;t of the vintage is come downe.</HI> The Chaldee Paraphra&s;e &s;aith, <HI>Howle yee Governors of Provinces:</HI> And hee calls the&s;e Governers, Oakes;
<PB N="74" REF="46"> fir&s;t, becau&s;e of their &s;trength; and, &s;econdly, becau&s;e of their fruit. What fruit doe Oakes beare? onely acornes; and who are fed with acornes? onely &s;wine; Acornes are but hogg<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> meate; hee gives the allu&s;ion thus; wicked men in power, beare fruit, but it is onely for &s;wine, that is, for wicked men, they be&s;tow the tokens of their bounty, the overplus of their plenty, upon hoggs and &s;wine, that is, upon carnal and &s;en|&s;ual men,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Parietes ve&s;ti|tes auro, homi|nes ve&s;te nuda|tis? panem po|&s;tulat homo, &amp; equus tuus au|rum &s;ub denti|bus mandit. <HI>Ambro&s;.</HI></NOTE> they have nothing for the People of God, for tho&s;e that are the true objects of charity; they make their hor&s;es fatt, their doggs fatt, none are leane but Gods poore. Thus one of the Ancients reprehends tho&s;e great ones of his time; <HI>Ye cloath the walles of your hou&s;es with gold, with Arras hangings, and ye let the poore goe naked; the poore aske bread, and ye give it them not; it may be your hor&s;e chewes a golden Bitt, and the poore man hath not a Bitt of Bread.</HI> The &s;pirits of carnall men are carried out from that which is their duty, they care not how profu&s;e and lavi&s;h they are to tho&s;e who &s;uits with their own hearts; the poore have nothing, while the mighty man hath the Earth. Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> reproved <HI>Job,</HI> though indeed it was otherwi&s;e with him, as appeares in the defence which he after|wards made for him&s;elfe again&s;t the&s;e gro&s;&s;e in&s;inuations. And as to this particular he an&s;wers (<HI>Chap.</HI> 29.17.) <HI>I brake the Jawes of the wicked, and pluckt the &s;poyle from between his teeth;</HI> he indeed puld the earth from the mighty, or the mighty from the earth; though <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here &s;ayd, <HI>The mighty had the earth,</HI> and
<Q>The honourable man dwelt in it.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Acceptus vel elevatus facie habitabat in ea. <HI>Hebr.</HI></NOTE>The Hebrew is, <HI>The man who&s;e face is lifted up;</HI> which phra&s;e is Interpreted two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Pa&s;&s;ively; Secondly, Actively. Pa&s;&s;ively thus, the man who is lifted up by others, that is, who is re&s;pected, who is re|verenced according to his place or worth;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hebraei princi|pem vocant <HI>Na|&s;i</HI> qua&s;i elevatu~ facie &amp; ab alijs acceptum.</NOTE> All which agree with our rendering, <HI>the honourable man;</HI> And in the Hebrew, Princes and great ones are expre&s;t by that word which &s;igni|fies to <HI>lift up the face,</HI> becau&s;e &s;uch are lifted up above others, and are much re&s;pected by others. So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 19.21.) <HI>See</HI> (&s;aith the Angel to <HI>Lot) I have accepted thee;</HI> The He|brew is, <HI>I have lifted up thy face,</HI> that is, I have re&s;pected and honoured thee by granting thy reque&s;t.</P>
<PB N="75" REF="46">
<P>Secondly, It may be taken actively, <HI>The man that lifts up the face dwells in the Earth;</HI> What is it to lift up the face?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Acceptor per&s;o|narum habita|bat in ea. <HI>Pagn.</HI></NOTE> it is to Accept Per&s;ons in Judgement, to accept him that hath the wor&s;t cau&s;e, and to reject him that hath the be&s;t cau&s;e for pri|vate ends. As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;ayd; <HI>Hee that re&s;pects per&s;ons, that is, who perverts ju&s;tice, hee hath the Earth;</HI> and &s;o here &s;eemes to be a de&s;cription of all &s;orts of wicked men flouri&s;hing in <HI>Jobs</HI> time and under his wing. Some oppre&s;&s;e openly; the mighty man;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t habere re&s;pectum per|&s;onarum <HI>&s;c:</HI> quod pauper &s;it aut dives aut nobi|lis aut honora|tus. <GAP DESC="foreign"> Habitare &s;ede|re.</NOTE> the man of armes comes by main force and obtaines the earth, or the riches and fatnes of the earth; Others oppre&s;&s;e &s;ecretly and cunningly, they accept per&s;ons, and are bya&s;&s;ed in Judgement by their own intere&s;t and advantages; The man of this &s;traine <HI>dwelt in it.</HI></P>
<P>The word notes two things. Fir&s;t, to <HI>continue,</HI> he dwelt there, thou let'&s;t him abide, whereas if he had come into the Land thou &s;hould'&s;t quickly have rooted him out. Secondly, The word &s;ignifies not onely to dwell but to &s;it, and to &s;it, in Scripture Language notes authority or dominion, he <HI>dwelt or &s;ate in it,</HI> that is, hee was the man in authority, hee had the power, and the great places of government were entru&s;ted in his hand. From both the&s;e ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That evill Magi&s;trates are apt to pervert Ju&s;tice, in favour of tho&s;e who are great in power.</Q></P>
<P>Favour &s;hould be &s;hewed according to the Ju&s;tnes of mens cau&s;es, and not according to the greatne&s;&s;e of their per&s;ons. But u&s;ually the mighty men have the Earth, all goes on their &s;ide, and the honourable man dwels there, be &s;its &s;afe &amp; quiet, well and warme. This is &s;o commonly &s;eene, that 'tis be|come a Proverb,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Potentis e&s;t turpa; pauper ubi&abque; jacet.</NOTE> <HI>The mighty man hath the whole earth for his hou&s;e to dwell in; the poore man lyes every where, but &s;eldome dwels any where.</HI> The wicked are &s;aid to have their portion in this life, they would have the Earth to them&s;elves, and they &s;hall have nothing but Earth. So the Prophet de&s;cribes them (<HI>E|&s;ay</HI> 5.8.) <HI>Woe unto them that joyne hou&s;e to hou&s;e, that lay field to field, that there may be no place, that they may be placed alone in the mid&s;t of the Earth.</HI> Man is naturally a &s;ociable Creature, and it may &s;eem &s;trange that he &s;hould de&s;ire to be alone in the mid&s;t of the Earth: Therefore by his de&s;ire to be alone, we mu&s;t not
<PB N="76" REF="47"> under&s;tand a &s;trict lonenes, or &s;olitarines, as if rich men had a minde to live alone, &s;o as to have none about them or with them, but the meaning is, they would have none in power but them&s;elves, none in po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion but them&s;elves; they are unwil|ling that any &s;hould have an e&s;tate but them&s;elves, they would have all others to be their underlings and tenants, their &s;er|vants and villaines to till their ground and gather in their re|venewes, they onely would be Freeholders, all others mu&s;t hold by their Copy, and doe them homage. If the greate&s;t man in the world were turned alone into the world, he would have but an ill being of it, therefore the meaning of the Pro|phet is, that they would be placed alone in the mid&s;t of the Earth to command and rule, all others mu&s;t &s;erve them. And they who&s;e pride, ambition, or covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e provokes them to dwell thus alone in the earth, &s;hall finde nothing, beyond this earth, but fire to dwell in.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve this;
<Q>That for a Magi&s;trate to favour men becau&s;e of their greatne&s;&s;e and power, is an utter departure from his duty.</Q></P>
<P>The poore man &s;hould have the Earth, that belongs to him, as well as the rich. The meane mans right to his little is as good, as the mighty mans to his great deale. Ju&s;tice gives e|very man his owne, without re&s;pect to the Owner.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Con&s;ider the words as a charge brought again&s;t <HI>Job,</HI> hee being a man in Authority, and in place.</P>
<P>Then, Note;
<Q>He that lets wicked men oppre&s;&s;e or wrong others, when he is in|ve&s;ted and entru&s;ted with power to hinder them, betrayeth his tru&s;t, and loo&s;eth the ends of his inve&s;titure.</Q></P>
<P>The Lord chargeth <HI>Eli</HI> (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 3.13.) becau&s;e of the great Iniquitie which his Sonnes committed; but it might be &s;aid, What was their &s;in to him? Yes; it lay in his power to hin|der them; for <HI>Eli</HI> was the chiefe Magi&s;trate in <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> and there|fore the Lord concluded; <HI>I will judge his hou&s;e for ever, for the Iniquity which he knoweth, becau&s;e his Sonnes made them&s;elves vile, and he re&s;trained them not;</HI> But did not <HI>Eli</HI> re&s;traine them? there is a re&s;training:</P>
<PB N="77" REF="47">
<P>Fir&s;t, By way of Councell and advice; and in this &s;en&s;e <HI>Eli</HI> did re&s;traine them (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.23, 24.) <HI>Hee &s;aid unto them, why doe yee &s;uch things, for I heare of your evill dealings with all the peo|ple; nay my Sonnes; for it is no good report that I heare, yee make the Lords people to tran&s;gre&s;&s;e.</HI> Thus he put a morall &s;topp in their way, &s;hewing the hainou&s;ne&s;&s;e of their &s;inne, and dehorting them from it; but <HI>Eli</HI> being a man in Power and Authori|tie, might have gone another way to worke with them, hee might have puni&s;hed them for their &s;inne. And becau&s;e hee did not, here was <HI>Elies</HI> &s;inne; and this is &s;ugge&s;ted as <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;inne, Hee was a man in Power, yet he winked at tho&s;e violent ones, and let them carry all in the Earth, when as hee might have mended the matter, by checking their in&s;olencies, &amp; doing the poor right. This is charged on <HI>Thiatira</HI> in reference to the neglect of u&s;ing their Church-power, (<HI>Revel.</HI> 2.20.) <HI>Notwith&s;tanding I have a few things again&s;t thee, becau&s;e thou &s;uffere&s;t that woman Jezabell, that Cals her &s;elfe a Prophete&s;s, to teach, and to &s;educe my Servants to commit fornication,</HI> &amp;c. That Angel &s;uf|ferd her; how did he &s;uffer her? hee did not u&s;e that Power that Chri&s;t had Committed to the Church, to admoni&s;h, to re|prove, to ca&s;t out, he did not &s;topp that &s;educing Prophete&s;&s;e by a due Exerci&s;e of Spirituall Power, but &s;ufferd her to &s;educe uncontrol'd. The more Power wee have to prevent or remove eyther Spirituall or civill Evills, the greater is our &s;inne when it is not done: if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had not &s;uppo&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> a Magi&s;trate, hee could not have layd this burden upon him, or have repre|&s;ented him in fault, becau&s;e the mighty man had the Earth, and the honourable man dwelt in it, oppre&s;&s;ing the weake, and vexing tho&s;e of low degree.</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> goes yet one &s;tep further in the pro&s;ecution of this charge, and Arraignes him for another Crime, and that a very great one; <HI>The mighty man had the Earth, the honourable man dwells in it;</HI> But</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="9" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 9.</HI></BIBL> The widdow thou ha&s;t &s;ent empty away, and the armes of the fatherle&s;s have been broken.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>As if he had &s;aid; Thou did&s;t fill the full with good things, but the hungry thou ha&s;t &s;ent empty away; The honourable have been provided for, but they who were de&s;titute of all
<PB N="78" REF="48"> friends, found no friend&s;hip at thy hands, unle&s;&s;e the breaking of their owne armes.</P>
<Q>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away empty.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> verbum dimittendi vio|lentiam quan|dam affert, ut &s;it idem quod eij|cere extrudere, expellere?</NOTE>There is &s;omewhat con&s;iderable in the nature of the word, which wee render <HI>&s;ent;</HI> for it implyes a putting away with a kinde of violence; thou ha&s;t ca&s;t them out, or bid them be pack|ing; thou ha&s;t put them off with rigour and di&s;ta&s;t. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Thou ha&s;t not onely let them goe from thy hou&s;e unrelee|ved, but thou ha&s;t reviled them and thru&s;t them away becau&s;e they a&s;|ked releife.</HI> So we may expound it by that (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.23, 24.) <HI>And the Lord God &s;ent him</HI> (that is, <HI>Adam) forth, from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.</HI> What this &s;ending forth was, is expre&s;&s;ed in the next ver&s;e, <HI>So hee drove out the man.</HI> Such a &s;ending away is here intended, thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away (as we &s;peake) with a witne&s;s; thou ha&s;t chide or rated them out of thy pre&s;ence. As it is &s;aid of <HI>Gallio (Acts</HI> 18.16, 17.) <HI>That he cared for none of tho&s;e things, and hee drave them from the Judgement-&s;eate.</HI> Thus thou ha&s;t &s;ent wid|dows away.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Compluten&s;es</NOTE>Further, In the Chaldee Language; the word &s;ignifies to &s;tripe, or to pluck off the very skinne. This is yet more tyran|nical, Thou ha&s;t &s;ent them away &s;poyled and &s;tript, or as it followeth in the Text, <HI>empty. Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widowes away</HI> &amp;c. It was not the <HI>mighty man,</HI> nor the <HI>great ones</HI> of the earth, that he is charged to deale thus unkindly or rather cruelly with, but the <HI>widow;</HI> that hightens the &s;infullnes of his tyranny. This very word by which a widow is expre&s;&s;ed in the Hebrew,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a verbo <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod e&s;t colliga|re, ergo ligata dicitur per con|trarium intelle|ctum quia jam &s;oluta viro. Sig|nificat etia~ ha|bere linguam colligatam, <HI>i. e.</HI> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">bmute&s;cere aut mutu~ e&s;&s;e, qu&ograve;d mortuo viro non valeat loqui &amp; litigare, quam|vis contra aequu~ &amp; jus rapinam bonorum &s;uorum patiatur. <HI>Rab: Mord.</HI></NOTE> as well as her condition, calls for helpe and pitty. It comes from a roote that &s;ignifies; either to <HI>binde,</HI> or to <HI>be &s;ilent;</HI> taking it, in the fir&s;t &s;ignification, <HI>to binde,</HI> the widdow may be &s;o called for two rea&s;ons. Fir&s;t, becau&s;e the widow is (as it were) bound about with afflictions, and &s;orrowes, &s;hee hath many troubles about her, as &s;o many bonds, from which &s;hee cannot free her &s;elfe without running into many other troubles. Se|condly, The widow is &s;o called, by the rule of contrary &s;peak|ing; bound, that is, <HI>not at all bound,</HI> but free or loo&s;ed from her husband. Thus the Apo&s;tle &s;peaks (<HI>Rom.</HI> 7.1, 2, 3. 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 7.39.) her marriage knot is un<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">yed by death; <HI>If her husband be dead,
<PB N="79" REF="48"> &s;hee is loo&s;ed from the law of her husband,</HI> &s;hee is left to her &s;elfe, and her owne di&s;po&s;e alone. Take the word in the &s;econd fig|nification, <HI>to be &s;ilent;</HI> A widow is &s;o called becau&s;e &s;hee &s;el|dome hath that natural, and never hath that civil liberty or freedome of &s;peech, which her husband had, and therefore &s;hee needs others to &s;peake for her, or mu&s;t &s;peake her minde by others; her &s;elfe being eyther unable, or di&s;abled to &s;peake in her owne ca&s;e, or to &s;peake for her &s;elfe. This being the widows &s;tate, he hath the greater &s;inne who deales unkindly with her. What? Thru&s;t away the widow, who&s;e heart is bound about, yea and thru&s;t thorough with many &s;orrowes; What? thru&s;t away the widow, who is unable to mannage her owne cau&s;e, and defend her &s;elfe in her right? yet this thou ha&s;t done. <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away</HI>
<Q>Empty.</Q></P>
<P>That is, without any helpe or comfort.<NOTE PLACE="marg">A radice <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod e&s;t effun|dere vel eva|cuare.</NOTE> The word is u&s;ed to &s;ignifie the emptines of a ve&s;&s;ell (2 <HI>King.</HI> 4.4.) It is u&s;ed al&s;o concerning the Dreamer; who thinks that he hath eaten, but when he awakes <HI>his &s;oule,</HI> (that is, his &s;tomacke) <HI>is empty (I&s;ai.</HI> 29.8.) So we may expound the word <HI>Racha (Mat.</HI> 5.22.) <HI>He that &s;aith to his brother Racha;</HI> which &s;ome under&s;tand, not of a man that wants wit or hone&s;ty only, but wealth or plen|ty. And then to call a man <HI>Racha,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Erat ergo con|tumelio&s;u~ ver|bum di&s;cere fra|tri Raka <HI>i. e.</HI> Vocare pauper|culum &amp; bonis omnibus exhau|&s;tum.</NOTE> is to upbraid him both with poverty and &s;implicity. As if it &s;hould (in di&s;grace) be &s;ayd to him; <HI>Thou poore &s;nake, thou &s;illy fellow, what do&s;t thou talke, thou who ha&s;t &s;o little wit, thou that art not worth a groate?</HI> In the Story of <HI>Jephtah (Judg.</HI> 11.3.) &s;uch a &s;ort of men are &s;poken of as his ayders and a&s;&s;i&s;tants; <HI>Then Jephthah fled from his bre|thren, and there were gathered together vaine men to Jeptah, and went out with him.</HI> Some tran&s;late,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Heb: <HI>Vacui.</HI> non ut putat Va|tablus, <HI>Otio&s;i</HI> &s;ed, ut alij ino|pes &amp; bonis ex|hau&s;ti.</NOTE> <HI>poore men were gathered toge|ther, and went out with him. Vaine men,</HI> are u&s;ually idle fel|lowes, and vagabonds; and we may conceive his company or followers to have con&s;i&s;ted of poore men rather then of vaine men. And in that &s;en&s;e the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Neh.</HI> 5.13.) <HI>Even thus be he &s;haken out and emptied;</HI> That is, impoveri&s;h'd and reduced to nothing. And thus al&s;o the low e&s;tate of Je&s;us Chri&s;t is ex|pre&s;&s;ed (<HI>Phil.</HI> 2.) <HI>Hee empted him&s;elfe,</HI> namely, of his divine glory and &s;plendour; that is, he &s;hew'd not his Maje&s;ty while&s;t hee was in the fle&s;h, but covered and vailed it, and was in ap|pearance
<PB N="80" REF="49"> as a poore empty man, having voluntarily made him&s;elfe of no reputation, though he were Lord over all. Such was the emptines, in which the&s;e widows were &s;ent away by <HI>Job,</HI> as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> accu&s;eth him. And this act may have a threefold interpretation. Fir&s;t, they were &s;ent away <HI>empty;</HI> that is, not filled or releived by thy charity; thou did&s;t not open, eyther thy heart or thy hand to &s;upply their nece&s;&s;ities, or to make them up in what they wanted, and humbly de&s;ired.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows empty away;</HI> That is, thou ha&s;t given them no reliefe by thy Ju&s;tice; &s;ome widows beg meerly for our Almes, others bring their ca&s;e and cau&s;e to the Magi&s;trate or man in Authority, for helpe again&s;t their op|pre&s;&s;ing adver&s;aries. In the 18^t^h of <HI>Luke,</HI> the importunate widow, &s;aith to the Judge, <HI>Releive mee again&s;t my Adver&s;ary;</HI> I beg not your charity, but your Ju&s;tice; The widow is &s;ent away empty, when her &s;uite is not heard. Wee may under|&s;tand <HI>Eliphaz</HI> eyther way, that when the widow &s;ued for her right, &s;hee found no Ju&s;tice; and when &s;hee came for an almes, &s;hee found no charity.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Wee may interpret it yet higher; <HI>Thou hast &s;ent widows away empty;</HI> That is, widows came to thee full or in a good condition, but thou ha&s;t emptyed them by oppre&s;&s;ion, and taken away what they had. Covetous Magi&s;trates care not how or of whom they get it, &s;o they can get it; They empty the widows pur&s;e, yea widows hou&s;es to fill their owne. Chri&s;t reproved the Phari&s;ees for this (<HI>Mat.</HI> 23.14.) <HI>Woe un|to you Scribes and Phari&s;ees, for yee devoure widows hou&s;es;</HI> yee eate them out of hou&s;e and home,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tradunt &s;e ad tuendum majo|ribus, deditias &s;e divitum fa|ciunt. Illud gra|ve e&s;t, quod hac lege tueri pau|peres videntur ut &s;poliant; hac lege defendunt mi&s;eros ut mi|&s;eriores faciant defendendo. <HI>Salvian. Lib. 5^t^o de pro|vid.</HI></NOTE> eyther by living upon them, or by taking away their livings. Wee may under&s;tand <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in this &s;en&s;e al&s;o; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away empty;</HI> that is, wid|dows came to thee for protection, and thou did&s;t promi&s;e it, but then to make thy owne market upon them and &s;erve thy &s;elfe, thou ha&s;t oppre&s;&s;ed them, they came to thee to doe them right, and thou ha&s;t undone them by unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e. It is ill enough to deny widows charity, it is wor&s;e to deny them Ju&s;tice, but it is wor&s;t of all to undoe them by unju&s;tice; yet tho&s;e two Hor&s;e-leaches, pride and covetou&s;ne&s;s will not for|beare to draw from the widow. Some rich men undertake the widows cau&s;e, onely to enrich them&s;elves by the &s;poyles of
<PB N="81" REF="49"> the widow; and for this rea&s;on they promi&s;e helpe to tho&s;e who are in mi&s;ery, that they may make them more mi&s;erable, in &s;tead of helping them, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away empty.</HI> Thus <HI>Job</HI> was &s;uppo&s;ed to have dealt with widows.</P>
<P>See next how <HI>Eliphaz</HI> chargeth him for his dealings with the fatherle&s;&s;e.</P>
<Q>And the Armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken.</Q>
<P>The&s;e two de&s;olate names are often found alone,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Duo i&s;ta nomi|na in quantum, de&s;pectui huma|no in tantum mi&s;erecordiae di|vinae expo&s;ita. <HI>Tertull. l. 1. ad uxor. c. 8.</HI> Per viduam &amp; pupillum omne genus mi&s;eroru~ hominum &s;igni|ficatur. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> but of|tener as one in Scripture; the widow who is disjoyn'd from her husband, and the fatherle&s;&s;e, who are bereaved of their pa|rents, are commonly joyned together. And the&s;e two names are taken in Scripture, eyther &s;trictly, or more largely; &s;trict|ly to &s;ignifie onely &s;uch per&s;ons as have eyther l<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;t their hu&s;|bands or parents; Largely, and &s;o the widow and fatherle&s;&s;e, &s;ignifie any that are in di&s;tre&s;&s;e, or need our charity: Becau&s;e the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e &s;tand often in need of charity, therefore the&s;e names in Scripture, &s;ignifie any that need our charity. While the Prophet &s;aith (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 14.3.) <HI>With thee the fatherle&s;s findeth mercy;</HI> Wee are not to &s;traighten his &s;en&s;e onely to Orphans, but to any that are in di&s;tre&s;&s;e; hee that is a father may be called fatherle&s;&s;e, and the childe that hath a father may be called fatherle&s;&s;e, when extreamely needing the helpe eyther of God or man. And &s;o the word <HI>widow</HI> mu&s;t be under&s;tood (<HI>Rev.</HI> 18.7.) where <HI>Babylon</HI> boa&s;teth, <HI>I &s;it as a Queene, and am no widow;</HI> that is, I am neither friendle&s;&s;e nor helple&s;&s;e; or as the next words &s;eeme to expound it; <HI>I &s;hall &s;ee no &s;orrow;</HI> which is u&s;ually the widows portion. Thus in the Text by the <HI>widow</HI> and the <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e,</HI> wee mu&s;t under&s;tand not onely tho&s;e who are formally &s;o, but all in affliction, who are equi|valently &s;o.</P>
<Q>The armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken.</Q>
<P>In the former part of the ver&s;e, he &s;aith; <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;ent the widow away empty;</HI> charging the &s;inne per&s;onally upon <HI>Job;</HI> here he onely &s;ayth; <HI>The armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been bro|ken;</HI> As if he did not place the fault directly upon him; yet &s;ome tran&s;late it &s;o; <HI>Thou ha&s;t broken the armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e;</HI> making it <HI>Jobs</HI> act; However our rendring layes fault enough
<PB N="82" REF="50"> upon him, and leaves him in particular without excu&s;e, while it &s;peaks onely in g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">nerall; <HI>The armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken.</HI> For it is as if he had &s;aid; thou ha&s;t permitted their armes to be broken; And if he &s;hould object; what if the armes of the fatherle&s;s have been broken? what is that to mee? Yes; you being in place and power, and having &s;trength in your owne hands to pre&s;erve the fatherle&s;&s;e, if the armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e have been broken, the &s;inne mu&s;t lye at your doore: <HI>Every man is guiltie of all the evill, which he hath power and a call to hinder, and doth not hinder.</HI></P>
<Q>The armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e.</Q>
<P>Armes may be taken either properly, or figuratively; The arme properly is a noble and mo&s;t u&s;efull Limbe of the body, we are not to under&s;tand it &s;o here, as if he had broken the na|turall armes of their bodyes; A mans arme is broken when his power is broken, though his skin be not &s;o much as toucht. So then,</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Per brachia ro|bur divitiae, fa|cultates quae Orphano pro brachijs &amp; ma|nibus e&s;&s;e po&s;|&s;unt, intelligun|tur.</NOTE>By the armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e, wee are to under&s;tand what&s;oever is the &s;trength, or makes for the defence of the fatherle&s;&s;e. <HI>The arme</HI> (as was toucht in the former ver&s;e) is put for &s;trength, becau&s;e the arme hath much &s;trength and activity in it for the defence and u&s;e of the whole body. The e&s;tate, the friends, the kindred, all the meanes, helpes, and ayds which are &s;ub&s;ervient to the good and protection of the fatherle&s;&s;e, are by a figure called the <HI>Armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e;</HI> The&s;e armes, &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz,</HI>
<Q>Have been broken.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> confrin|gere contundere.</NOTE>The word notes an utter breaking, a breaking to pieces; To break, as a thing is broken in a Morter with a pe&s;tle. This breaking may be al&s;o con&s;idered two wayes;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>1</HI> Non &s;ubveni|endo. <HI>2</HI> Detinendo &s;ub&s;tantiam ip|&s;is a parentibus relictam.</NOTE> either as done by a po&s;itive act, or by a negative act; that is, by withhold|ing that helpe which might pre&s;erve them from breaking. The armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e are broken by denying them protecti|on as well as by exerci&s;ing oppre&s;&s;ion upon them. Thus wee &s;ee what a bill of inditement is here drawne up again&s;t <HI>J<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">b,</HI> how he is charged with crimes, which are not onely again&s;t the light of Scripture, but even again&s;t the very light of na|ture,
<PB N="83" REF="50"> even with tho&s;e crimes which his hand was farre from, and his heart further from, with tho&s;e crimes which he did not onely forbeare to practice, but which his &s;oule did ab|horre.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That the mo&s;t innocent per&s;ons, are often charged with the foule&s;t and &s;infulle&s;t crimes.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> was &s;o cleare in his owne con&s;cience from this accu&s;a|tion, that he not onely profe&s;&s;eth openly that he never did, but imprecates a like vengeance upon him&s;elfe if ever he had done it (<HI>Chap.</HI> 31.21.) <HI>If I have lift up my hands again&s;t the fa|therle&s;&s;e, when I &s;aw my helpe in the gate,</HI> (that is, when by rea&s;on of my great power and authority in the place of judgement I could ea&s;ily enough have done it, no man daring to oppo&s;e or hinder mee, but all rather being ready to countenance and a&s;&s;i&s;t me in it, if (I &s;ay) when I had the&s;e advantages over the fatherle&s;&s;e, I did ever breake their armes) <HI>then let mine arme fall from my &s;houlder blade, and mine arme be broken from the bone;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, if I have done this thing, let a divine and vi&s;ible retaliation poynt me out for the man, let all the world &s;ee and reade my &s;inne in my puni&s;hment, and my inju&s;tice again&s;t man in the mo&s;t di&s;cernable judgements of God upon my &s;elfe. Thus free and innocent was <HI>Job,</HI> and yet thus accu&s;ed. And indeed if to accu&s;e were enough, there is no man in the world could be innocent or free. Who is there of &s;o un&s;pot|ted a conver&s;ation, that may not be &s;potted with accu&s;ation? who while his con&s;cience is pure, may not have much dirt ca&s;t in his face?</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> accu&s;es <HI>Job</HI> of all this, not becau&s;e he knew it to be &s;o, but becau&s;e he thought it was &s;o. Whence note (which hath formerly been toucht at)
<Q>That to charge any man upon &s;urmi&s;e with things that wee cannot prove, is a high breach not onely of charity but of ju&s;tice.</Q></P>
<P>The <HI>Lord</HI> reproves <HI>Jobs</HI> three friends in the la&s;t Chapter of this Booke, becau&s;e they <HI>had not &s;poken of him the thing that was right;</HI> and as they had not &s;poken the thing that was right of God, &s;o not of <HI>Job.</HI> They pitcht upon no rea&s;on why they
<PB N="84" REF="51"> condemned him &s;o much, but onely becau&s;e he indured &s;o much. They concluded him a man of &s;inne, becau&s;e he was a man of &s;orrow. The Apo&s;tle gives us the true genius of chari|ty (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 13.3, 4.) <HI>Charity beleeveth all things;</HI> not that cha|rity is &s;o credulous as to take up every thing for truth which is &s;cattered by any common and ungrounded report; that's no commendation in any man, much le&s;&s;e is it the commen|dation of a godly man; therefore when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>Charity beleeveth all things,</HI> the meaning is, Charity interprets every thing in the be&s;t &s;ence which it will beare; and makes the fayre&s;t con&s;truction which every mans ca&s;e and condition will admit. And againe at the 5^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>Charity thinkes no e|vill;</HI> that is, it thinkes no evill of others; As a godly man will not maintaine evill thoughts, or &s;uffer them to lodge within him, in reference to any &s;inne which him&s;elfe is tempted to commit. So a charitable man, will not maintaine or Iodge evill thoughts of others, in reference to any &s;inne which he can onely &s;uppo&s;e that they have committed. Againe, as charity <HI>thinkes no evill,</HI> that is, it doth not plot evill again&s;t others; &s;o thinkes no evill, by a ra&s;h &s;urmi&s;ing it of others. Thus, <HI>charity beleeves all's well, and thinkes no evill.</HI> How uncharita|ble then are they, yea, how unju&s;t who beleeve all's ill, where they know of none, and thinke the wor&s;t of them in whom they never &s;aw any thing, but what was good? It is not e|nough for a man to &s;ay he doth not judge his brother malici|ou&s;ly, he ought not to judge him ignorantly. Though to &s;peake or judge ill of another, becau&s;e wee wi&s;h him ill, be the greater &s;inne, yet barely to &s;peake or judge ill of another, by whom we know no ill, is very &s;infull: And then 'tis mo&s;t &s;infull, when wee doe it not onely as not knowing any evill they have done, but becau&s;e we know, heare, or &s;ee the evills which they &s;uffer. 'Tis dangerous as well as improper to make the harde&s;t and har&s;he&s;t dealings of God with any man, the ground of our hard and har&s;h thoughts of him.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Con&s;ider who they were whom <HI>Job</HI> is &s;uppo&s;ed to have oppre&s;&s;ed; they were not the great ones, not the migh|ty men of the earth, but the fatherle&s;&s;e, and the widow.</P>
<P>Whence note;
<Q><HI>That</HI> the poore are u&s;ually the &s;ubject of oppre&s;&s;ion.</Q></P>
<PB N="85" REF="51">
<P>The greater fi&s;h in the &s;ea of this world devoure and live upon the le&s;&s;er; The &s;trong &s;hould &s;upport the weake, and they who are upper-mo&s;t &s;hould uphold tho&s;e who are under them. But becau&s;e the weake and the underlings may mo&s;t ea|&s;ily be oppre&s;t, therefore they are mo&s;t u&s;ually oppre&s;t. As Co|vetou&s;ne&s;&s;e is cruell, &s;o 'tis cowardly, and dares not meddle with its match. God in reference to Spiritualls, <HI>filleth the hun|gry with good things, and the rich he &s;endeth empty away,</HI> (Luk. 1.53.) Ungodly men, in reference to temporals, would &s;end the rich away empty, if they could, but they are &s;o farre from filling the hungry with good things, that they take away all the good things they can from the hungry, they care not if they &s;tarve the hungry, if they make the poore poorer, and take all from them who have but little.</P>
<P>Fourthly, <HI>Job</HI> having been a Magi&s;trate, and &s;o (by his place) a Mini&s;ter of Ju&s;tice, is &s;trongly pre&s;&s;ed with the doing of inju&s;tice.</P>
<P>Whence note;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That they who have power, may ea&s;ily, though not alwayes ju&s;tly, be &s;u&s;pected for the abu&s;e of it.</Q></P>
<P>To have a power in our hands whereby we may doe good, is a temptation to doe evill. 'Tis hard to keepe power with|in its bounds, and to rule that, by which others are ruled. The Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.10.) calls the rulers of <HI>Sion, rulers of Sodome,</HI> becau&s;e they ruled like them, or rather wor&s;e then they, eating up the people, under their charge, rather then feeding them, and vexing tho&s;e whom they undertooke to governe, and to be a Shield unto again&s;t the vexations of others.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>That as oppre&s;&s;ion is a &s;inne in any man, &s;o it is mo&s;t &s;infull in tho&s;e who have power in their hands to releeve the oppre&s;&s;ed.</Q></P>
<P>Such act not onely contrary to a common rule, but con|trary to their &s;peciall duty; by how much we have the more obligation not to doe a thing, by &s;o much we &s;in the more if we doe it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Note;
<Q>That as it is very &s;infull in Magi&s;trates to wrong any man, &s;o it is mo&s;t &s;infull to wrong them, or to deny them right, who have mo&s;t need of it, the widow, and the fatherle&s;&s;e.</Q></P>
<PB N="86" REF="52">
<P>Magi&s;trates are called Gods; And God who hath honoured them by putting his name upon them, expects that they &s;hould honour him, by imitating or acting like unto him. What a Magi&s;trate doth he &s;hould doe like God, he &s;hould doe it &s;o that every one may be convinced that God is in him and with him of a truth. As God takes care of the widow, and of the fatherle&s;&s;e, &s;o &s;hould he. God is knowne by this Title; <HI>A fa|ther of the fatherle&s;&s;e, and a Judge of the widow, is God in his holy habitation</HI> (P&s;al. 68.5.) That is, in Heaven; for that's the ha|bitation of his holines, and of his glory, there he dwells, <HI>Judging for the widow, and the fatherle&s;&s;e;</HI> And as that is the &s;pe|ciall bu&s;ine&s;&s;e (as it were) of God in Heaven, &s;o they who are Gods on earth, ought to make it their &s;peciall bu&s;ine&s;&s;e to judge for the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e. Hence wee finde the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e commended by name to the care of the Magi&s;trate; The fatherle&s;&s;e have no naturall parents li|ving, or none neere of kinne remaining to maintaine and de|fend them, therefore the Magi&s;trate, who is <HI>(pater patriae)</HI> the common father of his Country, &s;hould be their Fo&s;ter-Father. They who want power are the charge, &amp; &s;hould be the &s;peciall care of tho&s;e in power. Thus they are commanded (<HI>P&s;a.</HI> 82.3, 4.) <HI>Defend the poore &amp; fatherle&s;s, doe ju&s;tice to the afflicted &amp; needy, deliver the poore and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked.</HI> Here's their worke; and the neglect of this worke (how bu&s;ie &s;o ever Magi&s;trates are about other worke) is often complai|ned of aloud in Scripture, as a crying &s;inne, as a &s;inne that ruines Nations, and drawes downe publicke Judgements up|on a people. (<HI>I&s;aiah</HI> 1.17.) <HI>Cea&s;e to doe evill, learne to doe well, &s;eeke Judgement, relieve the oppre&s;&s;ed, Judge the fatherle&s;&s;e, plead for the widow:</HI> And at the 23 ver&s;e; <HI>They judge not the father|le&s;&s;e, neither doth the Cau&s;e of the widow come unto them.</HI> Againe (<HI>Jer.</HI> 5.28.) <HI>They judge not the Cau&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI> It is a &s;in not to judge any mans Cau&s;e, not to judge the Cau&s;e of the riche&s;t, of the greate&s;t; yet it is more &s;infull not to judge the Cau&s;e of the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e. And when he &s;aith; <HI>They judge not the Cau&s;e,</HI> &amp;c. the meaning is, they judge not the Cau&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e impartially and righteou&s;ly. And in|deed, he that doth not judge righteou&s;ly, doth not judge at all; and when the Prophet &s;aith, <HI>They judge not the Cau&s;e of the fa|therle&s;&s;e,</HI>
<PB N="87" REF="52"> it is as if he had &s;aid; <HI>Among all the Cau&s;es that lye un|judged, this is the Cau&s;e, that God takes mo&s;t notice of, and is mo&s;t di&s;|plea&s;ed with the neglect of it, even when the Cau&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e is not pleaded, or judged.</HI> All are forward enough to plead the Cau&s;e of the rich; but when the Client is poore, and appeares <HI>(in forma pauperis)</HI> his cau&s;e &s;eld me finds any but a poore and formal pleading. We read (<HI>Acts</HI> 6.1.) That <HI>there was a great murmuring of the Grecians again&s;t the Hebrew<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s, becau&s;e their wid|dowes were neglected in the daily Admini&s;tration.</HI> Church-Officers (in their capacity) as well as State-Officers (in theirs) ought to have a carefull eye upon widows that are in want. And the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> (Cha. 1.27.) &s;ummes up (as it were) all Re|ligion into this one duty; <HI>Pure religion and undefiled before God, and the Father is this, to vi&s;it the fatherle&s;&s;e and the widow;</HI> Not as if this were indeed all religion, or the <HI>all</HI> of religion: but as when the Spirit in Scripture, hath to doe with prophane per|&s;ons, or meere moral hone&s;t men, who place all religion in civill righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and workes of charity, then he calls them to fir&s;t Table duties, or to the &s;incere wor&s;hip of God, &s;o when the Spirit is &s;peaking to tho&s;e who place all their religion in wor&s;hip, or in fir&s;t Table duties, neglecting the duties of cha|rity and righteou&s;nes, then we finde all religion placed in &s;e|cond Table worke, in giving every man his due, in compa&s;|&s;ion to the poore, in helping the helple&s;&s;e, in feeding the hun|gry, in cloathing the naked, in comforting the &s;orrowfull, and by name the fatherle&s;&s;e and the widow. <HI>This is pure religi|on to vi&s;it the fatherle&s;&s;e and the widow;</HI> That is, this is the prac|ticall part, or the true practice of religion, without which all religion is vaine; Therefore when the Apo&s;tle had &s;ayd (<HI>v</HI> 21.) <HI>Receive with meeknes the engraffed word:</HI> Le&s;t any man &s;hould &s;tay there, and think he had done enough when he had been a bear|er, he adds, <HI>Be doers of the word;</HI> That is, looke to the practicall part of religion, be diligent in the duties of love to men, as wel as in tho&s;e of the wor&s;hip of God.</P>
<P>Take the&s;e two inferences from the whole ver&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Seeing God taketh &s;o much care of the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e, <HI>Let the widow, let the fatherle&s;&s;e tru&s;t in God.</HI> They who receive peculiar promi&s;es from God, &s;hould put forth &s;uitable acts of faith towards God. Faith cannot worke with|out
<PB N="88" REF="53"> a word, and where it hath a word it ought to worke. Wee have both put together in the pre&s;ent ca&s;e (<HI>Jer.</HI> 49.11.) <HI>Leave thy fatherle&s;&s;e children I will pre&s;erve them alive, and let the widows tru&s;t in mee:</HI> As if God had &s;ayd, if none will take care of them, I will, I will take care of them, I will be a father of the fatherle&s;&s;e, a husband to the widow, leave that care to me. Therefore let the widow and fatherle&s;&s;e tru&s;t in God; A word from God is a better &amp; a bigger portion, then all the wealth of this world.</P>
<P>Secondly, Seeing the Lord is &s;o jealous over them, and &s;o ready to take their part again&s;t all their adver&s;aries, this &s;hould provoke them to be full of zeale for God; God &s;tands up for their protection, therfore they &s;hould &s;tand up for God their protector and patron. How carefull &s;hould they be to plea&s;e him, who is &s;o watchfull to pre&s;erve them? Speciall promi&s;es call for &s;peciall obedience, as well as for &s;peciall faith; The more God engageth him&s;elfe to doe for us, the more &s;hould we engage our &s;elves (in his &s;trength) to doe for him; <HI>None have more rea&s;on to be rich in faith and love to God, then the poore and fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>Thus farre wee have examined the Inditement, or Charge which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> brought again&s;t <HI>Job;</HI> now &s;ee, what he inferres upon it, here is thy &s;inne, and there's thy puni&s;hment.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="89" REF="53">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 10, 11.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Therefore &s;nares are round about thee, and &s;udden feare troubleth thee;</P>
<P>Or darkne&s;&s;e, that thou canst not &s;ee, and abundance of waters cover thee.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="10" TYPE="verse">
<P>THe&s;e two ver&s;es have variety of expre&s;&s;ions, but the in|tendment of all is one and the &s;ame, <HI>Snares and feares, and darkne&s;&s;e, and abundance of waters,</HI> &s;ignifie all manner of evills; All the&s;e are upon thee, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away empty, and ha&s;t &s;uffered the Armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e to be bro|ken; becau&s;e thou ha&s;t done the&s;e things, therefore
<Q>Snares are round about thee.</Q></P>
<P>Some render the Originall Text to another &s;ence,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> non &s;ignificat illati|onem aut conve|nientiam con&s;o|quentis ad ante|cedens &s;ed con|venientiam ap|titudinemque antecedentis ad con&s;equens. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> not as bearing an effect of the former words, not as if hee had been puni&s;hed with the&s;e evills for tho&s;e &s;innes, but as if the&s;e evills had cau&s;ed him to &s;inne; and &s;o the words are expounded, as a kinde of &s;corne; as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;ayd, <HI>When thou did&s;t tho&s;e things, no doubt &s;nares, or feares, or darknes, or waters came upon thee, thou was forc't by &s;uffering the&s;e evills, to doe all this evill, wast thou not? was it not becau&s;e thou wa&s;t pre&s;t with &s;nares and feares and darknes and waters, that thou did&s;t oppre&s;&s;e the widow and the fatherle&s;&s;e?</HI> All which Que&s;tions are reducible to the&s;e plaine Negations. <HI>Thou wa&s;t not pre&s;&s;ed with any of the&s;e perplexi|ties upon thy &s;elfe, to oppre&s;&s;e the poore; there was no &s;nare, no nor any feare neere thee, darkne&s;&s;e did not hinder thy &s;ight, nor did the waters of affliction cover thee; Thou ha&s;t not been thru&s;t upon &s;inne by the&s;e temptations, nor con&s;trained by the moral violence of any incum|bent nece&s;&s;ity, but ha&s;t done it freely: to &s;in even in this manner and at this hight, hath not been thy refuge, but thy choyce; Thou ha&s;t not acted the&s;e iniquities by any in&s;tigation eyther from per&s;ons or provi|dences, but upon thine owne election.</HI> This is a fayre &s;ence and a mighty reproofe; &s;eeing (as was lately noted) every evill we doe is by &s;o much the wor&s;e, by how much wee have had the le&s;&s;e provocation, or &s;olicitation to doe it.</P>
<PB N="90" REF="54">
<P>But I rather take the words as wee render them to expre&s;&s;e the &s;ad effects and fruits of his &s;inne; As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid; <HI>Becau&s;e thou ha&s;t taken a Pledge of thy brother for nought,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>be|cau&s;e thou ha&s;t &s;ent widows away empty, and the armes of the father|le&s;&s;e have been broken,</HI> therefore <HI>&s;nares are round about thee,</HI> &amp;c. The words may have a threefold Allu&s;ion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To the be&s;iedging of a City, &s;nares are round about thee,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ho&s;tile aliquid &amp; ob&s;idionale &s;ignificat.</NOTE> thou art now hemde in on every &s;ide with-troubles; as Chri&s;t threatens <HI>Jeru&s;alem; Thine enemies &s;hall ca&s;t a trench about thee,</HI> &amp;c. A trench is but a great &s;nare to catch men, as men catch birds and vermine in &s;nares. Or</P>
<P>Secondly, The Allu&s;ion may be to Impri&s;onment, thou art compa&s;&s;ed with &s;trong walles, and &s;hut in with gates, thou art &s;hackel'd with iron &s;nares.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The words may allude to hunting and fowling, in &s;uch di&s;ports nets and &s;nares are &s;et to take the intended game. Snares are often &s;poken of in Scripture, to intimate or &s;et forth the afflictions and &s;orrowes that entrap and hold the &s;ons of men. So that to &s;ay, <HI>Snares are round about thee,</HI> is no more but thus, troubles are round about thee; and the&s;e &s;nares are &s;ometimes &s;et by the hand of man, &s;ometimes by the immediate hand of God. Good things are often made a &s;nare to the undoing of evill men, and evill things are often made a &s;nare to the troubling, though not to the undoing of good men. But I &s;hall not pro&s;ecute this allu&s;ion, having &s;poken of it at the 18^t^h Chap: <HI>v.</HI> 6, 7, 8. where <HI>Job</HI> complaines that God had taken him in his &s;nare; as al&s;o in the 19^t^h Chapter at the 5^t^h ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>And &s;udden feare troubleth thee.</Q>
<P>Wee may under&s;tand this feare; fir&s;t, for the pa&s;&s;ion of feare, or for feare within: Secondly, for the occa&s;ion of feare, which is feare without. <HI>Sudden feare troubleth thee,</HI> that is, the appea|rance or apprehen&s;ion of &s;ome terrible thing cau&s;eth thee to feare.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pa&s;&s;io pro ob|jecto &amp; mate|ria &s;uni in omni idiomate fami|liare. <HI>Sanct.</HI></NOTE> Feare is often put in Scripture for the thing feared, for the object of feare, or for that which cau&s;eth feare. Thus al&s;o hope is put for the thing hoped for, and <HI>vi&s;ion</HI> for the thing &s;eene, or the object of the vi&s;ion.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Some expound feare in the Text, for that &s;peci|all
<PB N="91" REF="54"> feare which ri&s;eth from guilt, or for terror of con&s;cience. <HI>Sudden feare troubleth thee;</HI> That is, thy con&s;cience flyes in thy face and affrights thee; thy feare flows not from any outward troubles that threaten thee, or from wants that afflict thee, but from tho&s;e wickedne&s;&s;es which have been committed by thee; thy con&s;cience vexeth and tormenteth thee, not onely with feare, but with &s;udden feare; feare ru&s;heth upon thee unexpectedly, violently, like an armed man. <HI>Sudden feare trou|bleth thee.</HI> Taking feare in all or any one of the&s;e interpreta|tions.</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Sudden feare &s;urprizeth &s;ecure&s;t &s;inners.</Q>
<P>When they &s;hall &s;ay peace and quietne&s;&s;e, then &s;orrow and angui&s;h come upon them as paine upon a woman in travell, and they &s;hall not e&s;cape. The Prophet in vi&s;ion (<HI>Zech.</HI> 5.1.) <HI>Saw a flying roll;</HI> That flying roll was the Cur&s;e; And it was called <HI>a flying roll,</HI> to note the &s;peedy and &s;udden coming of tho&s;e judgements that were written in it; They came not one|ly upon the &s;purre, but upon the winge. They came flying; Flying is a &s;wift motion, and that motion is applyd to judge|ment, when once God giveth it a Commi&s;&s;ion to come. Hence al&s;o (<HI>Deut.</HI> 32.41.) the &s;word is called a lightning &s;word, or a &s;word that hath lightning in it; <HI>If I</HI> (&s;ayth the Lord) <HI>whet my glittering</HI> (or lightning) <HI>&s;word.</HI> The &s;word of the Lord is as Lightning; it hath burning and &s;wiftne&s;s in it; divine vengeance cometh as Lightning. It is called al&s;o the over|flowing &s;courge (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 28.15.) 'Tis a &s;courge becau&s;e the la|&s;hes of it cau&s;e much &s;mar<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> and paine, and 'tis <HI>an over-flowing &s;courge,</HI> to note the &s;uddennes of it; The &s;courge comes in like a mighty flood.</P>
<P>Againe, This &s;uddennes of feare, or of things feared, may have reference unto the &s;ecurity of wicked men, who though they have often heard of dangers, and judgements have been threatned upon them, yet they alwayes come &s;uddenly upon them, becau&s;e they never prepare for them. To &s;uch as are un|prepared, evills are alwayes &s;udden, how often &s;oever they have been warned of them. As to him that is prepared, death is never &s;udden, though he dye (as we vulgarly phra&s;e it) a &s;ud|den
<PB N="92" REF="55"> death. So he that is unprepared for death, dyeth &s;udden|ly, though he dye that which wee commonly call a lingring death. Thus death and judgement &s;hall come &s;uddenly upon all ungodly men. <HI>It &s;hall be</HI> (&s;ayth Chri&s;t, <HI>Matth.</HI> 24.37.) <HI>as in the dayes of Noah, they were eating and drinking, they were mar|rying, and giving in marriage, till the day that Noah entred into the Arke, and knew not till the floud came, and tooke them all away.</HI> But did they not know of the floud, till the floud came; a&s;&s;u|redly they did, for <HI>Noah</HI> foretold them of and preached the coming of the floud, a hundred and twenty yeares before it came. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 6.3.) <HI>My &s;pirit &s;hall not alwayes &s;trive (I will not al|wayes be contending) yet his dayes &s;hall be an hundred and twenty yeares;</HI> That is, he &s;hall have an hundred and twenty yeares warning, all that time the old world had warning of the flould, and <HI>Noah</HI> preached upon that Text all that time; yet the floud came upon them (&s;aith the Text) and <HI>they knew it not;</HI> that is, they regarded not what <HI>Noah</HI> &s;aid; they tooke no thought neyther to prevent the floud, nor to prepare for it. The Author to the <HI>Hebrews</HI> tels us, that <HI>Noah by faith being war|ned of God of things not &s;een as yet, moved with feare, prepared an Ark to the &s;aving of his hou&s;e, by which he condemned the world</HI> (that is, the then world, of unbeleefe and hardnes of heart) <HI>and became heyre of the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e which is by faith</HI> (Heb. 11.7.) Hee had a holy feare in him, and a faith al&s;o; a faith that the thing &s;hould be done, and a feare of God who threatned to doe that thing. <HI>Thus by faith being moved with feare, he prepared an Arke for the &s;afety of him&s;elfe and of his hou&s;ehold.</HI> Why did not the re&s;t al&s;o make preparation? they did not beleeve, nor did they feare. Chri&s;t rebuked hi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">. Di&s;ciples in the &s;torme at Sea (<HI>Matth.</HI> 8.) with, <HI>why are ye fearefull, O ye of little faith;</HI> The old world might have been rebuked, with, why are ye fearele&s;&s;e, even be|cau&s;e ye are of little, or rather of no faith at all. <HI>&V;nle&s;&s;e dan|gers threatned be beleeved, they are never feared, and unle&s;&s;e they be both beleeved and feared, they are never avoyded. When&s;oever the Lord of &s;uch &s;ervants &s;hall come, he cometh in a day, when they looke not for him, and in an houre that they are not aware of</HI> (Matth. 24.50.) that is, he cometh &s;uddenly. What can come more &s;uddenly upon any man, then that which he looked not for, nor was at all aware of. Thus he &s;hall come <HI>to cut them a&s;un|der,
<PB N="93" REF="55"> and to appoint them their portion with hypocrites; There &s;hall be weeping and gna&s;hing of teeth. Sudden feare troubleth thee;</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="11" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 11.</HI></BIBL> Or darkne&s;s, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee, and abundance of waters cover thee.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Some render this ver&s;e by way of interrogation;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Aut autu &s;olus tenebras non vi|deres &amp; tanta &s;celera impun&egrave; ferres?</NOTE> <HI>Shalt thou not &s;ee darkne&s;s? and &s;hall not the abundance of waters cover thee?</HI> &s;halt thou onely not &s;ee darkne&s;s, and pa&s;&s;e unpuni&s;hed for &s;uch mon&s;trous wickedne&s;&s;es? As if he had &s;ayd; thou &s;eeme&s;t to wonder, that darkne&s;s is upon thee, thou make&s;t &s;trange of it, that flouds or abundance of waters cover thee. But ha&s;t thou not de&s;erved and called forth the&s;e Judgements, by ma|ny &s;infull provocations?</P>
<P>Others render this Text, not as a Que&s;tion, but as a direct A&s;&s;ertion; <HI>Thou thoughte&s;t, that thou &s;houlde&s;t, or thou had&s;t a con|ceit, that thou &s;houlde&s;t never &s;ee darkne&s;s, nor any trouble coming upon thee, thy heart was lift up in hope of Impunty; thou did&s;t per&s;wade thy &s;elfe, that God had as high an opinion of thee, as thou had&s;t of thy &s;elfe, or thou ha&s;t flattered thy &s;elfe in thy &s;infull way, and thou thoughte&s;t that God would have flattered thee al&s;o.</HI></P>
<P>But I &s;hall rather (as we) connect it with the former ver&s;e, carrying on the &s;ame intention;
<Q>Or darkne&s;s, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee.</Q></P>
<P>Darkne&s;s may be taken, eyther properly, or improperly; darkne&s;s properly taken is that of the ayre by the withdraw|ing of the Sunne; This is not here intended. Darkne&s;s impro|perly taken is that of our &s;tate; and it is twofold. Fir&s;t, Inter|nall, which is indeed ignorance, or the darknes of the minde; As if he had &s;ayd, Darkne&s;s veyles the eye of thy under&s;tand|ing, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee, eyther the hand of God upon thee for thy &s;innes, or tho&s;e thy &s;innes which have cau&s;ed God to lay his heavy hand upon thee. Thy under&s;tanding is darkned, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee; This intellectuall or internall dark|ne&s;&s;e is twofold.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Naturall or inbred, every man hath naturally &s;o much darkne&s;s in him, that as he cannot &s;ee the truths that are in the word of God, &s;o he cannot &s;ee the intendment of the works of God.</P>
<PB N="94" REF="56">
<P>Secondly, Judiciary, or inflicted (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 6.9.) <HI>Goe and tell this people,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Stupidus espla|n&egrave; ni&s;i tua &s;cele|ra harum tua|rum calamitatu~ aquae more in|undantium &amp; obruentium cau|&s;am e&s;&s;e vides. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>heare ye indeed, but under&s;tand not: and &s;ee ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their eares heavy, and &s;hut their eyes.</HI> What were the&s;e eyes and eares that were to be made heavy and &s;hut? Surely, they are to be under&s;tood, not of Organicall, but of intellectuall eares and eyes. But who was to &s;hut the&s;e eyes? A holy Prophet. And how was hee to &s;hut them? By prophecying or &s;peaking to them in the Name of the Lord. The proper worke of the Word is to open the eyes, and enlighten the minde. But when a peo|ple have long &s;hut their owne eyes again&s;t, or onely dallyed with (that tran&s;cendent mercy) the light, then God (which is the &s;evere&s;t judgement) &s;huts their eyes, and darkens them with light. Of this Judiciary darkne&s;s, &s;ome interpre<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> the pre&s;ent Text, as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;ayd; there is a wor&s;e plague upon thee, then all tho&s;e &s;poken of, even blindne&s;s and con|fu&s;ion of minde, &s;o that thou can&s;t neyther &s;ee what brought thee into them, nor how to finde thy way out, but art as a man under water, or in the darke, amuzed in the&s;e thy afflictions, not knowing what to doe, or which way to turne thy &s;elfe.</P>
<P>Secondly, Darkne&s;s taken improperly is Externall, &s;o a &s;tate of &s;orrow and affliction, is a &s;tate of darkne&s;s. As before <HI>&s;nares,</HI> &s;o here <HI>darkne&s;s,</HI> notes any trouble&s;ome condition, or the trouble of any mans condition. And when to darkne&s;s, this is added, <HI>Darkne&s;s, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee,</HI> it may import the greate&s;t degree of darkne&s;s, even darkne&s;s in perfection, or as the Scripture &s;peaks, <HI>thick darkne&s;s,</HI> yea, <HI>outer darkne&s;s.</HI> There is a darknes in which wee may &s;ee, a darknes which hath &s;ome kinde of light in it, but when darknes is &s;o thicke that we can|not &s;ee, that is, that we cannot &s;ee any thing in it, (as we com|monly &s;ay of extreame darkne&s;s, 'tis &s;o darke, that a man can|not &s;ee his hand) then 'tis perfect darkne&s;s. Light is not (properly) &s;eene, but 'tis the medium or meanes by which wee &s;ee; much le&s;&s;e is darknes &s;eene, it being properly that which intercepts and hinders &s;ight; yet 'tis rare to meete with dark|nes which hath not &s;ome mixture or tinctures of light, or with &s;uch darknes as in which nothing at all can be &s;eene: yet &s;uch was this metaphoricall darknes, with which he &s;up|po&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> was muffled up. I have more then once in other
<PB N="95" REF="56"> pa&s;&s;ages of this Booke, met with and explained this terme, &s;hewing how and why afflictions and troubles are expre&s;&s;ed by it, and therefore I &s;hall not now &s;tay upon it. Onely here take notice,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Gentiles idem &s;entire gu&s;tie|bant dum, non eo&s;dem in pro|&s;peris, quos in adver&s;is adibant deos. In pro&s;pe|ris quidem &s;ole~, Jovem opulen|tu~ Minervam, Mercurium, A|pollinem, hos omnes qua&s;i lu|cis &amp; &s;ecunda|rum rerum lar|gitores: at in ad|ver&s;is tellurem, Neptunum &amp; alios malorum depul&s;ores, nocte multum poten|tes, qua&s;i tene|brarum ip&s;i do|mini e&s;&s;ent. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> That the old Heathens had &s;uch conceptions of darkne&s;s; And therefore being in a pro&s;perous &s;tate they had recour&s;e to the <HI>Sunne,</HI> to <HI>Jupiter, Minerva, Mercury,</HI> their Idol-Deities, as the di&s;pen&s;ers of light and comfort; but be|ing under &s;ufferings and &s;orrows, they made their applicati|ons to the <HI>Earth,</HI> to <HI>Neptune,</HI> and others, whom they vainely be|leeved, were Rulers of the Night and Lords of darkne&s;s, as if the&s;e could command and cha&s;e away all evills from them. Scripture Language is full of &s;uch De&s;criptions about men in &s;orrow. <HI>Darkne&s;s, that thou can&s;t not &s;ee;</HI>
<Q>And abundance of waters cover thee.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE N="*" PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> quam|vis multitudine~ aut inundatione~ &s;ignificat cum celeretate qua|dam &amp; &s;trepi|tu.</NOTE>The word rendred <HI>abundance,</HI> &s;ignifies a company or troope of waters, which meete and march together, even as hor&s;es prepared for battell, and ready to give the charge. So the word is tran&s;lated (2 <HI>Kings</HI> 9.17.) <HI>A Watchman from the Tower &s;ayd, I &s;ee a company.</HI> And that was <HI>Jehu</HI> with his troopes, who came marching furiou&s;ly with the revenge of God in his hand upon the hou&s;e of <HI>Ahab.</HI> And &s;o <HI>Ezek.</HI> 26.10. <HI>By rea&s;on of the abundance of their hor&s;es, their du&s;t &s;hall cover thee; thy walls &s;hall &s;hake at the noy&s;e of the Hor&s;emen, and of the Wheeles, and of the Chariots.</HI> Reade the &s;ame u&s;e of the word (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60.6.) <HI>The multitude</HI> (&s;ome read the inundation) <HI>of Camels &s;hall cover thee;</HI> They &s;hall come in &s;uch abundance, that they &s;hall come like a floud, and &s;hall be as the gathering of many waters. Troopes of Hor&s;es and Camels ru&s;h together as many waters; And wa|ters ru&s;h and throng together, even as many hor&s;es. Thus, here abundance, or an Army of waters come in upon thee and cover thee. Waters in Scripture frequently &s;ignifie afflic|tions, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 43.2.) <HI>When thou pa&s;&s;est thorow the waters</HI> (that is, thorow great afflictions) <HI>I will be with thee.</HI> (P&s;al. 18.16.) <HI>Hee drew me out of many waters;</HI> That is, out of many afflictions. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 66.12.) <HI>Wee went through fire and water, but thou brough|te&s;t us forth into a wealthy place.</HI> Fire and water, note all &s;orts of afflictions, hot and cold, moy&s;t and dry. And &s;ome con|ceive that water in a metaphoricall &s;ence is &s;o often u&s;ed in Scripture to &s;ignifie affliction; becau&s;e water in a proper &s;ence
<PB N="96" REF="57"> did once afflict the whole world. As the generall Judgement upon the world at the la&s;t day &s;hall be by fire, &s;o the fir&s;t gene|rall Judgement upon the world, was by water; it was a floud of waters, by which the Lord de&s;troyed the old world. Like|wi&s;e <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and his Ho&s;t of <HI>Aegyptians</HI> (which was the &s;econd mo&s;t Eminent Judgement, that ever was in the world) were overwhelmed by the waters of the red Sea. Thus <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ang (<HI>Exo.</HI> 15.4, 5.) <HI>Pharaohs Chariot &amp; his ho&s;t hath he ca&s;t into the Sea, his cho&s;en Captaines al&s;o are drowned in the red Sea; The depths have covered them, they &s;anke into the bottome as a &s;tone.</HI> And againe, (<HI>v.</HI> 10.) <HI>The Sea covered them, they &s;anke as Lead in the mighty waters.</HI> Water being the Element and the In&s;trument, which God hath &s;o often u&s;ed in his angry di&s;pen&s;ations towards &s;infull men, it may emphatically expre&s;&s;e any di&s;pen&s;ation of his anger. Yet if we con&s;ider the very nature of the thing it &s;elfe, it carrieth &s;ignificancy enough to be the Embleme of &s;ad|de&s;t and &s;oare&s;t affliction.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, There is in water a &s;wallowing power; as water is ea&s;ily &s;wallowed, &s;o it &s;wallowes all up. Man cannot &s;ub&s;i&s;t in it when it is mo&s;t peaceable, and he can hardly e&s;cape out of it when 'tis enraged. Sorrow and affliction are &s;wallowers al&s;o; unle&s;&s;e mercy appeare and moderate them, they drowne and overthrow all. The Apo&s;tle u&s;eth that expre&s;&s;ion when he advi&s;eth the <HI>Corinthians</HI> (2 <HI>Ep:</HI> 2.7.) <HI>To forgive and comfort the ince&s;tuous per&s;on,</HI> whom, according to his advice, they had for|merly Excommunicated or ca&s;t out from fellow&s;hip in the Church; <HI>Le&s;t</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>&s;uch a one &s;hould be &s;wallowed up with over-much &s;orrow.</HI> Sorrow of any &s;ort, even &s;orrow for &s;inne may po&s;&s;ibly have an exce&s;&s;e, or an over-muchnes in it; and when ever it hath &s;o (beyond the end for which it &s;erves, for &s;orrow is not of any worth in it &s;elfe, but as it &s;erves to a &s;pi|rituall end, When (I &s;ay) &s;orrow hath &s;uch an exce&s;&s;e, then) not onely the comforts, but the gifts and u&s;efullnes of the per|&s;on &s;orrowing, are in danger to be &s;wallowed up by it.</P>
<P>Secondly, Water doth not onely &s;wallow up, but enter in; while it covereth the body, it fills the bowells. Thus afflicti|on like water, fills within as well as covers without. <HI>David</HI> complaines that his affl<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ctions did &s;o (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 69.1.) <HI>Save</HI> me <HI>O God, for the waters are come in unto my &s;oule.</HI> Not onely have
<PB N="97" REF="57"> the&s;e waters &s;weld over mee, but they are &s;oakt into mee. In|ward or &s;oule-afflictions, as well as outward, and bodyly af|flictions, are &s;et forth by waters. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 109.18.) <HI>As he cloa|thed him&s;elfe with cur&s;ing, like as with his garment, &s;o let it come into his bowells (or within him) like water, and like oyle into his bones.</HI> Liquids penetrate, &s;o doe afflictions.</P>
<P>Thirdly, As the water is not mans proper Element, hee lives and breathe in the ayre, not in the water; So affliction is not our proper Element, though it be due to our &s;inne, yet it is not proper to our nature. Man was not made to live in affliction, as the fi&s;h was made to live in the water; and there|fore as it is &s;aid; <HI>The Lord doth not willingly afflict nor grieve the Children of men, (Lam.</HI> 3.33.) 'Tis (as it were) be&s;ides the na|ture of God, when he afflicts the children of men. So it is &s;ayd (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.11.) <HI>No cha&s;tning for the pre&s;ent &s;eemeth to be joyous, but grievous.</HI> Man is out of his Element when he is under cha&s;t|nings. Hee was made at fir&s;t to live in the light of Gods coun|tenance, in the &s;miles and embraces of divine love. As man is out of his way when he &s;ins, &s;o he is off from his end when he &s;uffers; He was not de&s;igned for the overwhelming choaking waters of &s;orrow and judgement, but for the &s;weete refre&s;hing ayre of joy and mercy. It often proves a mercy in the event to be covered with the&s;e waters; To be covered with them, that we may be wa&s;hed by them is a mercy, but onely to be cove|red with them, e&s;pecially (as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here &s;aith <HI>Job</HI> was) to be deeply covered with them, is a deepe and &s;oare affliction. <HI>Abundance of waters cover thee.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That as God hath trea&s;ures of mercy, and abounds in goodne&s;s, &s;o hee hath trea&s;ures of affliction, and abundance of wrath.</Q></P>
<P>As God hath abundance of waters &s;ealed up in the Clouds, as in a trea&s;ury, and hee can unlocke his trea&s;ury and let them out when&s;oever he plea&s;eth, eyther to refre&s;h or overflow the Earth; &s;o hee hath abundance of afflictions, and hee can let them forth, as out of a trea&s;ury, when he plea&s;eth. And as wee read (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 47.) that the waters of the Sanctuary, tho&s;e ho|ly waters were of &s;everal degrees; fir&s;t, to the Ankles, &s;econd|ly, to the knees, then to the Loines, and then a river that could
<PB N="98" REF="58"> not be pa&s;&s;ed over, abundance of waters. Thus al&s;o the bitter waters, the waters of affliction are of &s;everall degrees: &s;ome waters of afflictions are but Ancle-deepe, they onely make us a little wet-&s;hod, there are other waters up to the knees; and others to the Loynes, and others wee may rightly call abun|dance of waters, a Sea of waters; <HI>I am come into deepe waters</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David, P&s;al.</HI> 69.2.) or <HI>into depth of waters, where the floods overflow mee;</HI> And having &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 42.6.) <HI>O my God, my &s;oule is ca&s;t downe within mee;</HI> He adds in the next words (<HI>v.</HI> 7.) <HI>Deepe calleth unto deepe at the noy&s;e of thy water-&s;pouts: All thy waves and thy billowes are gone over me.</HI> Where, by deepe to deepe, by water&s;pouts, by waves and billowes, he elegantly &s;ets forth his di&s;tre&s;&s;e, in allu&s;ion to a Ship at Sea in a vehe|ment &s;torme and &s;tre&s;&s;e of weather; when the &s;ame wave upon who&s;e back the ve&s;&s;el rides out of one deep, plungeth it downe into another; Thus the afflicted are to&s;&s;ed and overwhelmed in a Sea of trouble, till they are at their wits end, if not at their faiths end.</P>
<P>Take two or three Deductions from all the&s;e words layd together. Wee &s;ee, by how many metaphors, the &s;orrows of this life are &s;et forth, even by <HI>&s;nares, and feares, and darknes, and waters.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That as God hath abundance of afflictions in his power, &s;o hee hath variety of wayes and meanes to afflict the &s;onnes of men; eyther for the puni&s;hment of their &s;inne, or for the tryall of their graces.</Q></P>
<P>If one will not doe it another &s;hall; if the &s;nare will not, feare &s;hall, if feare will not, darknes &s;hall; and if darknes will not, the waters &s;hall, and if waters of one hight will not doe it, hee will have waters deepe enough to doe it; abundance of waters &s;hall doe it; hee hath variety of wayes to deale both with &s;inners and with Saints</P>
<P>Secondly, Con&s;ider the inference which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> makes, <HI>Therefore &s;nares</HI> &amp;c. <HI>are upon thee;</HI> That Is, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t done wickedly in not releeving and in oppre&s;&s;ing the poore, <HI>therefore</HI> &s;nares have entangled thee. This (though fal&s;e in <HI>Jobs</HI> particular ca&s;e, yet) is a truth in General. And it teach|eth
<PB N="99" REF="58"> us, That, <HI>There is an unavoydable &s;equell between &s;inne and &s;orrow.</HI> Looke upon &s;inne in its owne nature, and &s;o the &s;e|quell is unavoydable, &s;inne is bigge with &s;orrow; as affliction burdens the &s;inner, &s;o &s;inne is burdend with affliction. Sinne hath all &s;orts of affliction in its bowells; and wee may &s;ay of all the evills that afflict us, <HI>they are our &s;innes.</HI> Sinne is formal|ly the tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion of the Law, and &s;inne is virtually the pu|ni&s;hment of tran&s;gre&s;&s;ors. Many (I grant) are afflicted for tryall of their graces (as hath been &s;hewed before) but grace had never been thus tryed if man had not &s;inned. Sinne is the remote cau&s;e of all afflictions, and it is the next or immediate procuring cau&s;e of mo&s;t afflictions. Would any man avoyde the &s;nare, let him feare to &s;inne; would he avoyd feare, let him feare to doe evill; would he keepe out of darkne&s;s, and not be covered with abundance of waters, let him take heed hee drinke not iniquity like water, let him have no fellow&s;hip with the unfruitfull workes of darkne&s;s. God tells the &s;inner plainely what portion he is to expect; <HI>Say woe to the wicked, it &s;hall be ill with him; for the reward of his hands &s;hall be given him, (I&s;a.</HI> 3.11.) Wee may as well hope to avoyd burning when we run into the fire, or dirtying when we run into the mire, as to e&s;cape &s;marting when we run into &s;inne.</P>
<P>Yet more di&s;tinctly, wee may con&s;ider all tho&s;e evills com|prehended under tho&s;e words in the Text, <HI>Snares, darknes,</HI> &amp;c. eyther in reference to wicked men, or to the Saints. Snares and darknes upon the wicked, are the i&s;&s;ues of divine wrath. While the&s;e &s;ad di&s;pen&s;ations are &s;ent out and meete with Saints, they are the i&s;&s;ues of divine love. For though a godly man may provoke God to anger, and finde by many evidences that God (as to his actings) is angry with him, yet as to his per&s;on he alwayes loves him. And therefore (as a wicked mans Table is made his &s;nare, &s;o) he is a&s;&s;ured that his &s;nare &s;hall be made to him a Table, that his darkne&s;s &s;hall worke light, his evills good to him. He is al&s;o a&s;&s;ured that the Lord will d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">li|ver him out of the&s;e &s;nares, and cut the coards of the wicked. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 129.4.) That hee will deliver him from feare, from darknes, and bring him up out of the abundance of waters which cover him, as <HI>David</HI> &s;peaks (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 32.6.) <HI>For this</HI> (that is, becau&s;e thou art &s;o gracious) <HI>&s;hall every one that is godly pray
<PB N="100" REF="59"> unto thee in a time when thou may&s;t be found</HI> (The Hebrew is, <HI>in a finding time,</HI> which according to our tran&s;lation, notes the &s;ea|&s;on when God may be found, as the Prophet &s;peaks (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 55.6.) Yet it may be well expounded for the time when trouble finds, that is, takes hold of the godly man. And &s;o the word is u&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 116.3.) <HI>The paines of hell gat hold of me</HI> (we put in the Margin) <HI>found me.</HI> In which &s;ence the word is u&s;ed al|&s;o, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 21.8. <HI>Thine hand &s;hall finde out,</HI> (that is, take hold of, and apprehend) <HI>all thine enemies, thy right hand &s;hall finde out tho&s;e that hate thee.</HI> Now in <HI>this finding time,</HI> eyther when God may be found, or when trouble finds a godly man, he (&s;etting him&s;elfe to pray) hath this promi&s;e, <HI>&s;urely in the floods of great waters, they</HI> (that is, the floods of great waters, by which are meant, great dangers) <HI>&s;hall not come nigh him,</HI> (that is, the God|ly man) to hurt or drowne him. Sometimes prayer keeps the flood off, and alwayes prayer delivers the Godly man out of the flood. Wicked men have no minde to come nigh God with their hearts (and &s;o &s;ome enterpret the latter part of this ver&s;e in the P&s;alme) nor will God admitt them nigh unto him&s;elfe, in the floods of great waters. And the floods of great waters &s;hall not (which is the &s;cope of our reading) come nigh the Godly man for his hurt, when he drawes nigh to God in prayer with his heart.</P>
<P>Thus wee have &s;eene the &s;innes of <HI>Job</HI> drawne out into a Charge, and the Judgement of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> upon it, what the event, the &s;equell, or I&s;&s;ue of tho&s;e &s;innes, was <HI>&s;nares and feares, and waters and darkne&s;s.</HI></P>
<P>There is yet one thing further, that I &s;hall here take notice of from the con&s;tant cour&s;e of <HI>Jobs</HI> friends in dealing with him. Wee &s;ee that &s;till they charge him with &s;inne, and &s;till in&s;i&s;t upon it, that all his afflictions &amp; mi&s;eries were the fruits of his &s;inne. <HI>Job</HI> (as hath appeared in opening &s;everall pa&s;&s;a|ges of this Booke) hath as often di&s;proved their inference, and denied that his &s;ufferings were cau&s;ed by his &s;inne, at lea&s;t not by any &s;uch way of &s;inning, as they charged him with. Labouring al&s;o much to enforme them that God hath many other rea&s;ons why he afflicts his people, and that God might take libertie to afflict him, though he were no &s;uch kinde of creature as they rendred him; yet notwith&s;tanding all hee
<PB N="101" REF="59"> could &s;ay, eyther to purge him&s;elfe or better conforme them, they per&s;evered in the &s;ame opinion, both concerning his per|&s;on, and the cau&s;e of his afflictions.</P>
<P>Whence Note;
<Q>It is hard to convince tho&s;e who are under a mi&s;take, whether about per&s;ons, or doctrines.</Q></P>
<P>Error is as binding upon the con&s;cience, and as &s;trongly embraced by the affections, as truth is; For it binds and is embraced, not in the name of an error, but in the name of truth. And men are therefore wedded to, and in love with their owne conceptions, becau&s;e (how mon&s;trous and hard-favoured &s;oever in them&s;elves, yet) nothing is more beauti|full in their eye then they. <HI>No man</HI> (fayth the Apo&s;tle) <HI>ever hated his owne fle&s;h, but loved and cheri&s;hed it.</HI> The fle&s;h of our minds (&s;uch are all fal&s;e principles and po&s;itions) is more loved and cheri&s;hed by us, then the fle&s;h of our bodies. Be|&s;ides, when men have once taken up an opinion, they thinke it a di&s;honour to lay it downe againe. 'Tis rare to finde a man that will yeeld up his Judgement, though it be a mi&s;guided one, or acknowledge that he is in an error, though he begins to take &s;ome knowledge, or at lea&s;t &s;ome &s;u&s;pition of it. A light intimation or onely the Appearance of a probability will amount to a proofe again&s;t eyther per&s;ons or doctrines which we like not; but the cleare&s;t demon&s;trations will hard|ly rai&s;e a Jealou&s;ie again&s;t what we like. Let <HI>Job</HI> &s;ay what he will in his owne ca&s;e, he cannot be beleeved by his friends, and his friends will &s;ay againe what once they had &s;ayd, though it had been more then once before fully an&s;wered. The pre&s;ent age hath given us &s;ad experiences of this thing. For, as many have been un&s;table and to&s;&s;ed to and fro with every winde of (fal&s;e) doctrine, &s;o others have been &s;tub|borne and unmoved from their errors, though the &s;tronge&s;t winds of truth have breathed, yea blowne hard upon them. And tho&s;e prejudices which have (with &s;o much &s;everity) been taken up by brethren again&s;t brethren; how doe they re|maine, in many minds, as mountaines, unmoved to this very day?</P>
<PB N="102" REF="60">
<P>I know not which is wor&s;e, un&s;etlednes in the truth, and an ea&s;ine&s;s to let it goe, or tenaciou&s;ne&s;&s;e in an error, and a hardnes to let it goe. Nor doe I well know which is wor&s;e, a readine&s;s to take up hard thoughts of our brethren, or an un-readines to lay them downe. Were the lawes of love to man, and zeale for God ob&s;erved, the&s;e extreames would al|wayes be avoyded. Pure zeale for God would fixe us in the truth, and make us more ea&s;ie to be brought off from our mo&s;t applauded errors. True love to man, would cau&s;e us to examine every ground of &s;u&s;picion again&s;t a brother twice, before we doe indeed &s;u&s;pect him once; And it would cau&s;e us to rejoyce in any appearance of his innocence, whereby we might di&s;charge our owne Spirits of all &s;u&s;picions concer|ning him. Our <HI>love</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle prayes, <HI>Phil.</HI> 1.9.) <HI>ought to abound in knowledge and in all Judgement.</HI> That is, wee ought to love Judiciou&s;ly as well as affectionately or &s;incerely. So that, true love will not over-looke the faults of another, nor will it approve again&s;t light. Yet true love is ready to enter|taine any light offered, that grounds of &s;u&s;pition may be re|moved, and we re&s;tored to a right under&s;tanding of our bre|thren.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="103" REF="60">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 12, 13, 14.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Is not God in the height of heaven? and beholds the height of the Starres how high they are.</P>
<P>And thou &s;aye&s;t, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud?</P>
<P>Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he &s;eeth not, and he walketh in the circuit of heaven.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the former part of this Chapter, wee have found <HI>Eliphaz</HI> charging <HI>Job</HI> with tho&s;e hainous crimes, inju&s;tice and un|charitablene&s;&s;e towards man; in the&s;e three ver&s;es he pro|ceeds to charge him with a higher crime, even irreligiou&s;ne&s;&s;e and impiety again&s;t God; as if (at lea&s;t) <HI>Job</HI> doubted, if not denied the providence of God about what is done here below, or affirmed that he neither rewarded the righteous according to their good, nor puni&s;heth the wicked according to the evill which they have done. That's the &s;cope of this context, in which wee may ob&s;erve.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A twofold truth held forth.</P>
<P>Secondly, A wrong &s;ugge&s;tion of two errors, as ari&s;ing from tho&s;e truths.</P>
<P>Thirdly, An indeavour to prove and make good, what he had wrongfully &s;ugge&s;ted.</P>
<P>The two truths are contained in the 12^t^h ver&s;e; fir&s;t, <HI>God is in the height of heaven;</HI> &s;econdly, <HI>The Stars are very high;</HI> the&s;e are cleare truths; from the&s;e <HI>Eliphaz</HI> makes a wrong &s;ugge&s;ti|on, as if <HI>Job</HI> upon tho&s;e grounds of Gods being in the height of heaven, &amp;c. had plea&s;ed him&s;elfe with this conceit, that God could not (at &s;uch a di&s;tance) take notice of what pa&s;&s;eth among, or is acted by men in this inferior world.</P>
<P>(Ver. 13.) <HI>And thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, God being in the height of heaven, cannot know, much le&s;&s;e judge concerning the &s;tate of things here below; Why what &s;hould hinder? Hee tells us what in the 14^t^h ver&s;e, where (which was the third thing) he endeavours to prove his &s;ugge&s;tion; <HI>Thick clouds are
<PB N="104" REF="61"> a covering to him that he &s;eeth not,</HI> that's the fir&s;t proofe: and then we have a &s;econd, in the latter end of that ver&s;e, God hath o|ther things to doe then to minde what is done here, he hath higher bu&s;ine&s;&s;es and imployments then to look upon us who are creeping upon mole-hills, and engaged about a heape of earth; for, <HI>he walketh in the circuit of heaven;</HI> that is, there lieth his great worke, he hath enough in a nobler Spheare to imploy him&s;elfe in; and therefore &s;urely, thou thinke&s;t, that God takes no care at all, or not &s;uch &s;peciall care about the affayres and wayes of men. This is the &s;umme and &s;cope of the&s;e three ver&s;es. They are a new charge of impiety upon <HI>Job,</HI> as &s;hutting up or re&s;training the providence of God to the things of heaven alone; and we &s;ee how <HI>Eliphaz</HI> frames argu|ments and proofes of the point for <HI>Job,</HI> which (as will appeare afterwards) never came into his heart.</P>
<P>Now though <HI>Eliphaz</HI> mi&s;applyed all this to <HI>Job,</HI> yet here|in he fully characters &amp; clearly paints out the &s;pirit of carnal men, for &s;uch &s;ecure them&s;elves in their evill wayes upon this pre&s;umption, that God takes no notice of them, or that he hath &s;omething el&s;e to do then to trouble him&s;elfe with what they are doing.</P>
<DIV3 N="12" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver. 12.</HI></BIBL> Is not God in the height of heaven?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Nonne deus &s;ub|limior e&s;t coelo? <HI>Pagni:</HI> Nonne deus coe|lum alium te|net? <HI>Tygur:</HI> Nonne deus in &s;ublimitate coe|lorum? <HI>Mont:</HI> Deus &s;ublimi|tas coelorum. <HI>Hebr:</HI></NOTE>There are divers readings of the&s;e words; fir&s;t, thus; <HI>Is not God higher then the heavens?</HI> A &s;econd thus; <HI>Doth not God po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e the high heaven?</HI> The Originall may &s;trictly be renderd; <HI>God the height of heaven;</HI> that is, <HI>God is above all heavens:</HI> we render well; <HI>God is in the height</HI> or <HI>&s;ublimitie of heaven.</HI></P>
<P>This Que&s;tion; <HI>Is not God in the height of heaven?</HI> is taken three wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some read it as an Exhortation given by <HI>Eliphaz</HI> to <HI>Job,</HI> to draw off the motion of his thoughts, &amp; mo&s;t of all the &s;etled bent of his heart from tho&s;e inferior things, his lo&s;&s;es &amp; troubles, his &s;orrows, paines, and &s;ickne&s;&s;es; he would divert his minde from the&s;e worldly &s;orrows, and rai&s;e it up to hea|venly enjoyments, <HI>Is not God in heaven?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Why &s;tande&s;t thou poring upon things below? Why dwelle&s;t thou &s;o much upon thy dunghill, and thy pre&s;ent poverty, God is in the height of heaven, con&s;ider him there.</HI> This is both a &s;afe and a very &s;piri|tuall
<PB N="105" REF="61"> way to ea&s;e our minds of all the troubles and &s;orrowes which we meete with in this world; could we but a&s;cend in Spirit to the height where God is, could we by an eye of faith looke to him, live upon him, and in him, all burdens would be light, and pre&s;&s;ures ea&s;ie to us.</P>
<P>Secondly, This que&s;tion may be taken as a plaine a&s;&s;ertion or affirmation, and it is of the &s;ame value &amp; &s;ignification with this, <HI>God is in the height of heaven, there he is, and from thence he beholds all the children of men, their wayes and workes.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Is not God in the height of heaven?</HI> May be under|&s;tood not as the que&s;tion of <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> and &s;o his affirmation, but as the que&s;tion of <HI>Job,</HI> and &s;o his &s;uppo&s;ition. As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> apprehended <HI>Job</HI> thus &s;peaking in his heart;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Annon deus e&s;t (inquis) in al|titudine coeli? <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Is not God</HI> (&s;aye&s;t thou) <HI>in the height of heaven?</HI> or, doe&s;t not thou, O <HI>Job,</HI> &s;ay thus; <HI>God is in the height of heaven;</HI> I grant that he is there, but I deny that he is there in thy &s;ence, or according to thy opinion. He is not concluded, or &s;hut up there, he is not &s;o in the height of heaven, but that he mindeth what is done upon the earth, yea in the very depths of hell. As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>Thy thoughts and conceptions of God are too &s;trait and narrow; Thou &s;peake&s;t much be|low God, while thou &s;aye&s;t he is in the hight of heaven. While thou confine&s;t God to heaven, thou make&s;t him like thy &s;elfe on earth.</HI></P>
<P>From the&s;e words in the two former Expo&s;itions, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That the hight of heaven, or heaven above, is the place of Gods &s;pe|ciall re&s;idence.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Heaven is my throne</HI> (&s;ayth the Lord, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 66.1.) the throne is the &s;eate of a Prince, there he declares his power, and his &s;tate; his glory &s;hines from his throne. A Prince looks like a common man when he is abroad in the world, but when up|on his throne, then the rayes of Maje&s;ty break forth, and he appeares as he is. Thus the holy Prophet begs a gratious look of the Lord from heaven (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 63.15.) <HI>Looke downe from hea|ven, the habitation of thy holine&s;&s;e, and of thy glory.</HI> Heaven is cal|led the habitation of Gods holine&s;&s;e, and of his glory, becau&s;e his holine&s;&s;e and glory &s;hine forth more in heaven, then upon the earth; little of the holine&s;&s;e of God is di&s;covered to us here, though &s;o much of it breaks forth here as cau&s;eth the
<PB N="106" REF="62"> heart of carnal men to quarrell with it continually. Nor are any able with the&s;e eyes, or rather with the&s;e hearts to beare the glory of God, or endure his holines. When but &s;ome ex|traordinary glimp&s;es of the&s;e appeared to <HI>E&s;ayah,</HI> he cryed out, <HI>Wo is me, I am undone</HI> (or <HI>cut off) becau&s;e I am a man of un|cleane lips, and I dwell in the mid&s;t of a people of uncleane lips, for mine eyes have &s;eene the King, the Lord of H<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ts,</HI> (I&s;a. 6.5.) As God is of purer eyes then to behold iniquity, &s;o man is of im|purer eyes then to behold the glory and holine&s;s of God in cleare manife&s;tations of it, and therefore heaven is the &s;eate, the habitation of his holine&s;&s;e, and of his glory. Hence we may take two further inferences.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That <HI>our hearts, and our eyes &s;hould be lifted upwards;</HI> the whole currunt of Scripture &s;peaks of God as above in heaven. And that's the rea&s;on why the Apo&s;tle (<HI>Col.</HI> 3.1.) exhorts, <HI>Sett you affections on things above, and not on things here below;</HI> And as on things above, &s;o mo&s;t of all upon God who is above.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Sur&s;um corda.</NOTE> The old word was, <HI>Lift up your hearts;</HI> and <HI>David</HI> &s;ayth in prayer, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.1.) <HI>I lift up my &s;oule to thee.</HI> And againe, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 123.1.) <HI>&V;nto thee lift I up mine eyes, O thou that dwelle&s;t in the heavens.</HI> Yea our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t him&s;elfe when he prayed (<HI>Joh.</HI> 17.1.) <HI>Lift up his eyes to heaven, and &s;aid, Fa|ther the houre is come, glorifie thy Sonne,</HI> &amp;c. The eye lift up to heaven is a &s;igne of the heart lift up to heaven, and that cor|poreall vi&s;ible action, &s;erves to fix our mo&s;t &s;pirituall affecti|ons upon the invi&s;ible God. 'Tis indeed an ea&s;ie thing to lift the eyes up to heaven, but it is very hard, yea impo&s;&s;ible, with|out a divine a&s;&s;i&s;tance to lift up the heart to heaven; the heart of a prophane worldling mudds &s;o much in the earth, that he &s;eldome lifts up &s;o much as his eyes to heaven; and how much or how often &s;oever a hypocrite lifts up his eyes to heaven, yet &s;till his heart muds in the earth. The eye lookes upward naturally, but if ever the heart looke upward, 'tis a worke of Grace.</P>
<P>Secondly, Then <HI>&s;erve the Lord with reverence and holy feare, in in all your addre&s;&s;es to him, and appearings before him.</HI> Wee reve|rence tho&s;e who are on high on earth, and &s;hall wee not reve|rence him who is higher then the highe&s;t? him who is in the hight of heaven? While Chri&s;t bids us &s;ay, <HI>Our Father which art
<PB N="107" REF="62"> in heaven,</HI> he teacheth us, as to pray with confidence, becau&s;e God is our father, &s;o to pray with reverence, becau&s;e he is a father in heaven, (<HI>Matth.</HI> 6.9.) The Preacher (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 5.2.) makes this an argument why wee &s;hould be taken up in high thoughts of God, why we &s;hould &s;peak in a reverentiall man|ner both of him, and to him; <HI>Be not ra&s;h with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be ha&s;ty to utter any thing before God.</HI> He puts (as it were) a double bridle upon man in his drawing neere to God; fir&s;t, upon his mouth, <HI>Let not thy mouth be ra&s;h;</HI> and &s;e|condly, upon his heart (for the heart will talke at random as well as the mouth, yea the heart will talke more at random then the mouth can; and there is praying with the heart alone as well as with the heart and mouth together, therefore &s;ayth he) <HI>Let not thy heart be ha&s;ty to utter any thing before God;</HI> Why? <HI>for God is in heaven, and thou art upon the earth, therefore let thy words be few.</HI> Here are indeed two arguments to enforce this compo&s;ure of &s;pirit; fir&s;t, the highnes and Greatnes of God; &s;econdly, the lownes and vilenes of man. Con&s;ider God is a|bove, and thou art below, not onely in regard of place, but of &s;tate and dignitie, of power and maje&s;ty. The being of God in heaven, notes not onely a power of &s;overaignty to com|mand us, but a power of ability both to puni&s;h and to provide for us, to puni&s;h our ra&s;hnes, and to &s;upply all our wants wherewith we acquaint him, and humbly mention before him; therefore <HI>Be not ra&s;h with thy mouth, and let not thy heart be ha&s;ty,</HI> &amp;c. The &s;ame <HI>Solomon</HI> in the &s;ame booke, allegori|cally de&s;cribing the declined decrepid condition of man, &s;aith of the old man, that he is <HI>afraid of that which is high (Eccl.</HI> 12.5.) Young men will be clambering and a&s;cending, but old men are <HI>afraid of that which is high,</HI> they dare not goe up a high &s;teepe place, lea&s;t their &s;trength or breath &s;hould fayle, or lea&s;t their braine &s;hould turne, and they through giddines tumble downe. Old men love to keepe upon levell or even ground, and are afraid of that which is high. Surely both young and old, have rea&s;on to be afraid of <HI>him that is high,</HI> to have reve|rentiall thoughts of God, who is in the high<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> of heaven, high|er then the heavens. The di&s;tance of man from God, as God is in heaven and man on earth, is great, and the di&s;&s;imilitude of man to God, as God is holy and man corrupt, is farre
<PB N="108" REF="63"> greater; eyther of the&s;e Con&s;iderations &s;ingle is enough, but both the&s;e layd together, is aboundantly enough to keepe the heart in an humble &s;elfe-aba&s;ing frame before the Lord.</P>
<P N="2">2^l^y, Taking the&s;e words, <HI>Is not God in the hight of heaven?</HI> As the &s;uppo&s;ed &s;peech of <HI>Job,</HI> thou &s;aye&s;t God is in the hight of hea|ven; that is, confined to heaven, &s;o, that he looks no further, but thou art deceived, God is not lockt up in heaven, he looks to all things here on earth. As the earth is the Lords, and the fullnes of it, as to right &amp; propriety, &s;o the earth is the Lords with all the fullnes of it, as to care and providence. Though there be a di&s;tinctnes in the manner or manife&s;tation of his being in heaven and on earth; yet he is as truly and as much on earth as he is in heaven.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>God is omnipre&s;ent, or every where.</Q></P>
<P>Though we are to adore and wor&s;hip God as in heaven, yet we mu&s;t not &s;hutt up God in heaven; as he is in heaven, &s;o he is upon the earth al&s;o, he is with us, yea he is in us, he is in all places, not circum&s;cribed by any, nor limited to any place. God is pre&s;ent in all places, and fills all places with his pre|&s;ence, onely he doth not declare his pre&s;ence alike in all pla|ces. The Lord appeares where and as he plea&s;eth, but he can|not be otherwi&s;e or otherwhere then he is, and that is every where. While the P&s;almi&s;t queryed, <HI>Whether &s;hall I goe from thy pre&s;ence?</HI> He was &s;o farre from imagining that any &s;uch place could be found, that in the very next words he concludeth God to be every where, by an enumeration of all places, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.7, 8.) <HI>If I a&s;cend up to heaven, thou art there; if I make my bed in Hel, behold thou are there.</HI> (Hel &s;tandeth in utmo&s;t op|po&s;ition to heaven, as heaven in Scripture-language is the highe&s;t, &s;o hell is the lowe&s;t place; now &s;ayth <HI>David, If I make my bed in hell, thou art there) If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the utmo&s;t parts of the &s;ea, even there &s;hall thy hand leade me, and thy right hand &s;hall hold me;</HI> That is, there I &s;hall find<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> thee efficaciou&s;ly pre&s;ent with me. The Lord having &s;aid (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 66.1.) <HI>Heaven is my throne,</HI> pre&s;ently adds, <HI>and the earth is my foot&s;toole;</HI> So the earth is called, becau&s;e its &s;cituation in na|ture is below the heavens, his throne is there, his foot&s;toole is
<PB N="109" REF="63"> here. (<HI>Jer.</HI> 23.23, 24.) <HI>Am I a God at hand, &s;aith the Lord, and not afarre off? Can any hide him&s;elfe in &s;ecret places, that I &s;hall not &s;ee him, &s;aith the Lord? doe not I fill heaven and earth, &s;aith the Lord?</HI> All the&s;e expo&s;tulating que&s;tions, are re&s;olved into this one po&s;ition. God is every where; And though &s;ome reade the fir&s;t, not as a Q<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;tion, but as an A&s;&s;ertion, Thus; <HI>I am a God at hand, and not a God afarre off,</HI> yet the &s;ence is the &s;ame; God therein affirming, that he is ever neere us, and never afarre off from us where&s;oever we are. Though God be in tho&s;e places which are furthe&s;t off from us, as well as in tho&s;e that are neere at hand, yet God him&s;elfe is never afarre off from us, but alwayes at hand. When <HI>Solomon</HI> had &s;et up the Temple, (1 <HI>King.</HI> 8.27.) He was &s;ure of the pre&s;ence of God in it; and therefore did not &s;peake doubtingly, but admiringly, when he asked, <HI>But, will God indeed dwell on earth?</HI> (that is, will God manife&s;t him&s;elfe gloriou&s;ly on the earth?) <HI>behold the heaven, and heaven of heavens cannot conteine thee, how much le&s;&s;e this hou&s;e that I have builded? Solomon</HI> knew that heaven could not con|teine, that is, limit God, much le&s;&s;e could the hou&s;e which he had builded. Yet the Lord made the Temple another heaven to him&s;elfe, it was as his &s;econd heaven, there the Lord had a kinde of glorious re&s;idence, beyond what he had in any other part of the world; Now the A&s;&s;emblyes and Congregations of the Saints are in a &s;peciall manner the dwelling place of God, and his &s;econd heaven; He dwells &s;o much in the Churches that he &s;eemes not to dwell at all in any part of the world be&s;ide (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.16, 17.) <HI>I will dwell in them, and walke in them. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye &s;eparate &s;aith the Lord, and touch not the uncleane thing, and I will receive you.</HI> God who is in all the world, dwels onely in and with his people. They who &s;eparate from what&s;oever is unholy, have him neere&s;t them who is altogether Holy. To conclude this poynt, we may make u&s;e of that di&s;tinction of the Schooles to cleare the difference how a corporall &s;ub&s;tance, and a &s;pirituall, as as al&s;o how a &s;pirituall created and uncreated &s;ub&s;tance, may be &s;ayd to be in a place. All bodyes are in place <HI>circum&s;criptive|ly,</HI> &s;pirituall &s;ub&s;tances created, Angels and &s;oules of men are in place <HI>definitively:</HI> Wee cannot draw a line about an An|gell, as about the body of a man, yet the Angel is &s;o in this
<PB N="110" REF="64"> place, as not in another: but God who is a &s;pirit, and uncrea|ted, is in place <HI>repletively,</HI> that is, he filleth all places where he is, but is not limited by any place where he is, He is (as &s;ome have not unfitly &s;poken) <HI>a Spheare who&s;e center is every where, and who&s;e circumference is no where.</HI> This is a my&s;tery which in|deed we are not able to comprehend by rea&s;on, but we mu&s;t take it downe by faith. The Lord is in the height of heaven, yet &s;o there, as he is not &s;hut up there.</P>
<P>But if any &s;hall yet querie, <HI>How is the Lord every where?</HI> how is he in heaven, and in earth? is it &s;o as the Sunne may be &s;aid to be every where? the Sunne is &s;eated in heaven, yet is by way of communication on earth, the Sunne by light, heate, or influence is all the world over, in &s;ome degree or other, yet the Sunne moves onely in his Orbe. Or is God &s;o every where as a Soveraigne Prince, who though in per&s;on he re&s;ide here or there, yet in power and Authority he is every where within his own Dominion? I an&s;wer, No; The&s;e allu&s;ions are farre below this truth. God is every where, not onely as the Sunne by light, heate, and influence, not onely as a Prince, by his power and Authority, but (as we &s;peake) in per&s;on, and in his E&s;&s;ence. Further, the Lords pre&s;ence in all places is not as that of the aire, which is more every where then the Sunne; the aire is every where filling all places, and &s;o encom|pa&s;&s;ing all bodies, as if it made them all but one Great body; yet that part of the aire that is in one place is not in another, for the aire is divi&s;ible.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Divina e&s;&s;entia e&s;t tota intra omnia &amp; tota extra omnia, nu&s;quam inclu&s;a aut exclu&s;a om|nia contineus, a nullo contenta, nec propterea immi&s;tu rebus aut rerum &s;or|dibus inquinata. <HI>Augu&s;t: Epi&s;t. 55. ad Dard:</HI></NOTE> But we mu&s;t not take up any &s;uch ap|prehen&s;ions of God, for as he is every where, &s;o he is wholly every where; God cannot be divided or parted as the ayre is &amp; may. <HI>The Divine E&s;&s;ence</HI> (as one of the Ancients hath expre&s;|&s;ed this a&s;toni&s;hing my&s;terie) <HI>is whole within all things, and whole without all things, no where included, no where excluded, con|teining all things, conteined of nothing, yet not at all mingled with the nature of the&s;e things, nor defiled with their pollutions.</HI> That which the Philo&s;opher &s;peaks of the &s;oule of man, <HI>(That it is all in the whole body, and whole in every part of the body)</HI> comes neere&s;t this my&s;tery. Some quarrell at that expre&s;&s;ion about the &s;oule, yet there is a truth in it. The &s;oule is indivi&s;i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">le, much more God, where&s;oever he is, he is all and altogether; he is every where, and every where all. So he is in the height of heaven, and &s;o he is on earth below.</P>
<PB N="111" REF="64">
<P>But if God be every where, why doth Chri&s;t teach us to pray, <HI>Our father which art in heaven, (Mat.</HI> 6.13.) And when the Heathen made that &s;coffing demand, <HI>Where is now their God?</HI> Why did <HI>David</HI> An&s;wer, <HI>Our God is in heaven,</HI> (P&s;al. 115.2, 3.) To the&s;e and all other Texts of like import, wee may an&s;wer; heaven is not there &s;poken of as bounding the pre&s;ence of God, but as guiding the faith and hope of man. <HI>In the mor|ning</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David, P&s;al.</HI> 5.3.) <HI>will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will looke up.</HI> When the eye hath no &s;ight of any helpe on earth, then faith may have the cleare&s;t vi&s;ions of it in heaven. And while God appeares &s;o little in any Gratious di&s;pen&s;ati|on for his people on earth, that the enemy begins to &s;coffe, <HI>Where is now your God?</HI> Then his people have recour&s;e by faith to heaven, where the Lord not onely is, but is glorious in his appearings. From whence as he &s;eeth how it is with us, &s;o he &s;eemes to have a kinde of advantage to relieve us.</P>
<P>But as &s;ome Scriptures &s;eeme to confine God to heaven, &s;o other Scriptures &s;eem to deny that he is every where on earth. Thus <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayd to the people of <HI>I&s;rael (Numb.</HI> 14.42.) <HI>Goe not up for the Lord is not among you.</HI> And againe (<HI>Deut.</HI> 7.21.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not be affrighted at them, for the Lord thy God is among you;</HI> with &s;ome the Lord is, with others the Lord is not; and he is with the &s;ame per&s;ons at one time, not at another; How then can it be &s;ayd, that the Lord is every where pre&s;ent? I an|&s;wer, when <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayth (and many other Texts which &s;peake in the &s;ame forme) that God was &s;ometimes with his people, and &s;omtimes not; we are not to under&s;tand it at all of a local pre&s;ence, or ab&s;ence, but of a favourable pre&s;ence or ab&s;ence. Thus God is with &s;ome per&s;ons, and not with others; thus he is &s;ometime pre&s;ent with, &s;ometime ab&s;ent from the &s;ame per&s;on. It was this favourable pre&s;ence for which <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> did &s;o earne&s;tly entreate the Lord (<HI>Exod.</HI> 33.15.) <HI>If thy pre&s;ence goe not with us, carry us no further;</HI> That is, unle&s;&s;e thou plea&s;e to be with us, to pro&s;per our way, and protect us in it, let us &s;tay where we are. This pre&s;ence of God is a high favour indeed, and God is thus pre&s;ent but in few places (comparatively) of the whole earth.</P>
<P>Once more, tho&s;e Scriptures may &s;eeme to imply that God is &s;o in heaven, that he is not al&s;o upon the earth, which &s;peak
<PB N="112" REF="65"> of his coming downe from heaven to earth, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 11.5.) <HI>And the Lord came downe to &s;ee the City and the Tower which the Children of men builded.</HI> Whence &s;ome may inferre, if he came downe to &s;ee the City, then he was not there before, and if &s;o, then he is not univer&s;ally pre&s;ent in all places. Againe, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 18.20, 21.) <HI>And the Lord &s;aid, becau&s;e the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and becau&s;e their &s;inne is very grievous, I will goe downe now, and &s;ee whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it which is come unto me, and if not, I will know.</HI> This pa&s;&s;age yeelds the &s;ame difficulty and objection; To both which we may adde that of <HI>David (P&s;al.</HI> 14.2.) <HI>The Lord look|ed downe from heaven upon the children of men, to &s;ee if there were any that did under&s;tand;</HI> He doth not &s;ay, God was among the children of men here below, but being in heaven (as a man &s;tanding upon a high place or Tower) he looked downe.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, The&s;e Texts &s;peake of God after the manner of men, or they &s;peake thus, not to teach us, how God knowes what is done on earth, but to confirme, and a&s;&s;ure us that the Lord doth clearely and certainly know what&s;oever is done by or among men on earth, even as clearely &amp; certainly as a man knoweth any thing by his view upon the place. God know|eth all things pre&s;ently, without &s;earching, though never &s;o &s;ecret, and all things certainly without enquiring, though never &s;o doubtfull. God neyther a&s;cends, nor de&s;cends; He doth not come downe by any motion, but he comes downe to our apprehen&s;ion. He &s;hewes us after our way, that he knoweth, becau&s;e we cannot conceave his way of knowledge. If I would a&s;&s;ure another man that I certainly know &s;uch a thing, I tell him, I came from the place, I &s;aw it, or I beheld it with my own eyes; now that's all that is intended, when 'tis &s;ayd, The Lord came downe from heaven to behold, and &s;ee the Tower of <HI>Babell,</HI> and the condition of <HI>Sodom;</HI> Or it is, to admoni&s;h all Magi&s;trates and Judges, that they pa&s;&s;e no &s;en|tence of puni&s;hment eyther upon places or per&s;ons, upon bare heare&s;ay and reports, but that they fir&s;t enforme them&s;elves fully of the matter of fact, as <HI>Job</HI> profe&s;&s;ed his cour&s;e was in all legal proceedings (<HI>Chap.</HI> 29.16.) <HI>The cau&s;e which I knew not I &s;earched out.</HI> Thus wee &s;ee notwith&s;tanding all the&s;e ap|parances from Texts of Scripture to the contrary, That this
<PB N="113" REF="65"> Scripture-truth &s;tandeth firme, The Lord is &s;o in the height of heaven, that he is every where al&s;o here upon the earth.</P>
<P>From which take the&s;e two Deductions.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Seeing the Lord is every where pre&s;ent, we &s;hould be eve|ry where holy.</Q>
<P>For where &s;oever he is, he is the holy Lord; That was the charge which God gave to <HI>Abraham; Walke before me, and be upright;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, Where&s;oever thou walke&s;t, walke as having me pre&s;ent with thee, and be upright in my pre&s;ence. <HI>I</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> a type of Chri&s;t, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 16.8.) <HI>have &s;et the Lord alwayes before me, he is at my right hand, I &s;hall not be moved.</HI> He that by fa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">th eyes God continually as his protector in trou|ble, &s;hall not be moved with any evill that he &s;uffers, and he that eyes God by faith as his patterne in holine&s;&s;e, &s;hall not be moved from doing that which is good. This thought, <HI>The Lord is at our right hand,</HI> keepes us from turning eyther to the right hand or to the left. It is &s;aid of <HI>Enoch,</HI> that he <HI>walked with God, (Gen.</HI> 5.22.) and though the Hi&s;torie of his life be very &s;hort, yet 'tis &s;ayd of him a &s;econd time (<HI>ver.</HI> 24.) That he <HI>walked with God.</HI> He walked &s;o much with God, that he walked as God, he did not walke (which kinde of walking the Apo&s;tle reproves, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.3.) <HI>as men.</HI> He walked &s;o little, like the world, that his &s;tay was little in the world. <HI>He was not</HI> (&s;aith the Text) <HI>for God tooke him.</HI> He tooke him from the world to him&s;elfe, or (as the Author to the <HI>Hebrewes</HI> reports it) <HI>he was tran&s;lated that he &s;hould not &s;ee death, for he received this te&s;timony that he plea&s;ed God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, It followeth; if God be every where pre&s;ent,
<Q>That the godly are never out of the reach of God to helpe them, and that the wicked are never out of the reach of God to puni&s;h them.</Q></P>
<P>(<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 43.2.) <HI>When thou pa&s;&s;e&s;t through the waters I will be with thee, and when thou walke&s;t through the fire, thou &s;halt not be burnt.</HI> The pre&s;ence of God is the protection of Saints in the evill which they &s;uffer; and they who doe evill cannot be hid from his puni&s;hing pre&s;ence. There is no running from God. It is &s;aid of <HI>Jonah</HI> (Chap. 1.3.) <HI>That he fled from the pre&s;ence of God.</HI>
<PB N="114" REF="66"> Whether fled he? The Text &s;aith he fled to Sea, but did not God finde him there? He fled from the commanding pre&s;ence of God, but he fell into the angry pre&s;ence of God. We have a large de&s;cription in the 9^t^h of <HI>Amos,</HI> how carnall men hope to &s;hift out of the hand of God. <HI>I</HI> (&s;ayth the Lord) <HI>will &s;lay the la&s;t of them with the &s;word, though they dig to hell, thence &s;hall my hand take them.</HI> We read what wi&s;e coun&s;ell the &s;ervants of the King of <HI>Benhadad</HI> gave him after he had been defeated by the King of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (1 <HI>King.</HI> 20.23, 24, 25.) <HI>Their Gods are Gods of the hils, therefore they were &s;tronger then we, but let us fight again&s;t them in the plaines, and &s;urely we &s;hall be &s;tronger then they. Make thee an Army like the Army that thou ha&s;t lo&s;t, hor&s;e for hor&s;e, and Chariot for Chariot, and we will fight again&s;t them in the plaine, and &s;urely we &s;hall be &s;tronger then they, and he hearkened to their voice and did &s;o.</HI> Why did they de&s;ire to fight them upon the plaine? they thought God was a God of the hills and not of the val|leys, but (<HI>ver.</HI> 28.) <HI>A man of God &s;ayd to the King of I&s;rael, thus &s;aith the Lord, becau&s;e the A&s;&s;yrians have &s;aid, the Lord is God of the hills and not of the valleys, therefore will I deliver this great multitude into thy hand.</HI> As if he had &s;aid, however you de&s;erve not in the lea&s;t, that I &s;hould owne you, or a&s;&s;i&s;t your cau&s;e, yet that I may confute the bla&s;phemous and derogatory principles of the&s;e <HI>Syrians,</HI> I will give you a &s;econd victory again&s;t them, even in the valleys, where they &s;uppo&s;e they have you at an advantage, and &s;hall deale with you beyond the extent of my power and Territory. Though God had no cau&s;e to re&s;pect the honour of the <HI>I&s;raelites,</HI> yet he could not forget the ho|nour of his owne name, which was ob&s;cured by tho&s;e &s;uper|&s;titious <HI>Syrians.</HI> The mo&s;t received Doctrine &amp; Divinity of the Heathens confined their Gods to certaine places, &s;ome to this City, &amp; &s;ome to that, &s;ome to the hills, &amp; &s;ome to the plaines, &s;ome to the Sea, others to the Land. 'Tis &s;ayd that the &s;ame night in w^c^h <HI>Alexander</HI> the Great (of who&s;e Conque&s;ts <HI>Daniel</HI> Prophe&s;ied) was borne, that the Temple of <HI>Diana</HI> at <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> was burnt to the ground. And the Heathens gave this as the rea&s;on of it, becau&s;e <HI>Diana</HI> was ab&s;ent from hir Temple, being gone to a&s;&s;i&s;t at the birth of <HI>Alexander;</HI> implying that their Godde&s;s was &s;o in one place as &s;he could not attend what was done el&s;ewhere. Such were the gro&s;&s;e conceits which they had
<PB N="115" REF="66"> of their Gods, and they imagined the God of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> to be &s;uch a one as their owne. The verie&s;t Idolater in the world pre|&s;umes his God as good as any is. But Jehova the living God hath taught us to &s;ay, <HI>Who is a God like unto thee?</HI> and our ex|periences have &s;ealed to it, that <HI>there is none like the God of Je&s;u|run, who rideth on the heavens for thy helpe, and in his excellency on the skyes (Deut.</HI> 33.26.) And wee have learned to comfort our &s;elves in all places and &s;treights, in this a&s;&s;urance that he is the <HI>God of the hills as well as of the valleys, of the Sea, as well as the dry Land, and that he is as truely pre&s;ent in the lowe&s;t depths as in the highe&s;t heavens. Is not God in the height of heaven?</HI></P>
<Q>And behold the height of the Starres how high they are.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>Behold the head of the Starres;</HI> The head of a man is the highe&s;t part of him, and the head of any thing is the top of it. <HI>Behold the head or height of the Starres how high they are;</HI> Starres are high, but God is higher; many creatures are high, but God is high above all creatures. The creature is &s;trong, but God is &s;tronger, the creature is wi&s;e, but God is wi&s;er, the creature is glorious, but God is infinitely more glorious; The glory, wi&s;dome, &s;trength, and highe&s;t height of the creature, is but a glimp&s;e of what God is. <HI>The Starres are high.</HI> I &s;hall not enter into an A&s;tronomicall Di&s;cour&s;e about the Starres, or the height of Starres. I &s;hall not meddle with a <HI>Jacobs &s;taffe,</HI> to take the elevation of the Starres, no need of &s;uch Di&s;cour&s;e here, all that is intended by <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> is a proofe that God is in|finitely exalted in his highnes and maje&s;ty above the Starres.</P>
<Q>Behold the height of the Starres how high they are.</Q>
<P>This word <HI>behold</HI> in Scripture is often applied to things of <HI>wonder;</HI> To &s;ay, <HI>behold,</HI> is not a calling for the bare act of the eye to &s;ee the height of the Starres, but it calls for a worke of the minde, duly to con&s;ider of, and to wonder at their height. Some creatures, e&s;pecially the heavenly, are not onely u&s;efull, but wonderfull; and 'tis as hard to under&s;tand them, as it is comfortable to enjoy them. The Hebrew word for <HI>Heaven</HI> cometh from a roote which &s;ignifies to amaze and a&s;toni&s;h; And indeed there are naturall wonders and my&s;teries enow in the heavens to a&s;toni&s;h any con&s;idering man. And the true rea|&s;on
<PB N="116" REF="67"> why we are no more a&s;toni&s;ht at them, or doe no more ad|mire them, is becau&s;e we doe &s;o little con&s;ider them. We of|ten <HI>&s;ee</HI> or <HI>looke</HI> upon the Starres, but we &s;eldome <HI>behold</HI> them. And therefore <HI>David</HI> &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 8.3.) <HI>When I con&s;ider the hea|vens, the worke of thy fingers, the Moone and the Starres which thou ha&s;t ordained; what is man that thou art mindfull of him?</HI> As the be|holding and con&s;ideration of our owne workes will make us a&s;hamed, becau&s;e they appeare &s;o bad, &s;o the con&s;ideration and beholding of the works of God will make us a&s;toni&s;ht, becau&s;e they appeare both &s;o good and great. <HI>Behold</HI> (&s;aith the Apo|&s;tle, 1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.1.) what manner of Love the father hath be&s;tow|ed upon us, that we &s;hould be called the Sons of God; even this tran&s;cendent Love of God in our Adoption is pa&s;&s;ed by as a &s;mall matter by tho&s;e who will not take the paines (or ra|ther the plea&s;ure) and ley&s;ure to behold and con&s;ider the man|ner of it. No mervaile if the power of God in making the high|e&s;t Starres be pa&s;&s;ed by as a low thing, by tho&s;e who doe not behold, that is, diligently con&s;ider them.</P>
<Q>Behold the height of the Starres how high they are.</Q>
<P>Wee are called to con&s;ider this.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That it is our duty to contemplate the excellency of the creature.</Q></P>
<P>God hath not onely given us the booke of the Scripture, but of the creature, and we mu&s;t attend to the reading of this as well as of that, even to the reading of every lea&s;e and line of it. There are foure great leaves of this booke. Fir&s;t, the hea|vens; &s;econdly, the earth; thirdly, the Sea; fourthly, the aire. The&s;e are the foure great leaves of this booke of the creature; in every one of which we &s;hould labour to be expert Scholars, and &s;pel out the name and minde of God in them. For though (as I &s;aid before) beholding notes wondering, yet wee mu&s;t not behold them to wonder at them, like children; but we mu&s;t behold them to learne &s;omewhat from them, or to be in&s;truc|ted by them as men.</P>
<Q>Behold the Starres.</Q>
<P>Fir&s;t, In their number; As God &s;aid to <HI>Abraham (Gen.</HI> 15.
<PB N="117" REF="67"> 5.) <HI>Looke now towards Heaven, and tell the Starres if thou be able to number them; and he &s;aid unto him, &s;o &s;hall thy &s;eed be.</HI> 'Tis mat|ter of wonder that God &s;hould make &s;o many of tho&s;e emi|nent Lights, that he &s;hould &s;et up &s;o many flaming torches in heaven for man to &s;ee his way, and worke by on earth. That God who hath &s;pread this Canopie over our heads, &s;hould al|&s;o embroyder it with &s;uch a multitude of Golden &s;pangles, which render it as much our delight, as it is our duty, to be|hold them.</P>
<P>Secondly, Behold the Starres in their order, they move by rule, they keepe their rankes, none of them goe out of their place, or for&s;ake their &s;tation. They who are skilled in the motion of the Starres, know where to have them a hundred yeare hence. In the 5^t^h of <HI>Judges,</HI> it is &s;aid, <HI>The Starres in their cour&s;es fought again&s;t Si&s;&s;era.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, We &s;hould con&s;ider the Starres in their magni|tude, what va&s;t bodyes they are; Some of them are bigger then the whole body of the earth (as Philo&s;ophy teacheth us) though, to appearance not bigger then the bla&s;e of a Candle, nor broader then the palme of a hand.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Con&s;ider al&s;o the difference of the Starres in their greatne&s;&s;e, and magnitude, they are all great, but not all of a greatne&s;&s;e, not all of one &s;ize. A&s;tronomers divide the Starres into &s;ixe magnitudes. We &s;hould likewi&s;e ob&s;erve, and wonder at their light, which is their glory: the light of the Starres is the glory of the Starres, and &s;o the more light any Starre hath, the more glory it hath. Thus <HI>one Starre differeth from another Starre in glory</HI> (1 Cor. 15.41.) But I &s;hall not &s;tay upon the&s;e things, having in&s;i&s;ted &s;omwhat largely upon them at the 9^t^h Chapter, <HI>v.</HI> 9. Whether I referre the Reader. Onely note here that as the Starres of heaven are of &s;everal degrees; God hath not levell'd them, eyther in light or magnitude: &s;o he hath diver&s;ly di&s;tributed the light of parts, and gifts, of un|der&s;tanding, and knowledge, of e&s;tate and power, to and a|mong the children of men here on earth. 'Tis good for all, that all are not alike; The univer&s;e could not be eyther &s;o beautiful, or &s;o orderly, if every particular had the &s;ame beau|ty, or were of the &s;ame order. And he that cannot be content to have le&s;&s;e, and to be le&s;&s;er then another, is altogether unfit,
<PB N="118" REF="68"> not onely to be as great, or to have as much as another, but to be or have any thing at all. Nor is any man more fit to be more then he is, then he that can rejoyce while another is more then he.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>The creature leads us to God.</Q></P>
<P>That's the tendency and &s;cope of all that is here a&s;&s;erted. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> calls not <HI>Job</HI> to the meditation, or contemplation of the Starres to leave him there. Some &s;tudy the heavens much, but their lives are earthly; they &s;tudy the Starres, yet there is nothing but dirt in their hearts, and the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e they &s;tudy the Starres, for the Starres &s;ake, and not for Gods &s;ake, and make the Starres their end, not their way, or as Starres, to lead them to God. This is the rea&s;on why many A&s;tronomers and Philo&s;ophers, who bu&s;ie their heads and minds much in &s;peculation about the nature of the heavenly bodyes, know not at all what it is to have their conver&s;ati|ons in heaven, or to minde the things that are above. Wee &s;hould &s;o behold the glory of the Starres, as from thence to inferre, that God is much more glorious, yea, that, the&s;e things which were made glorious, have no glory in compari|&s;on of that Glory which made them. <HI>Plato</HI> taught his Scollers to &s;ay; <HI>The earth is beautifull, the heavens are more beautifull, but God who made the earth, and the heavens, is more beautifull then both.</HI> The vi&s;ible creature &s;hewes the invi&s;ible God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 19.1, 2.) <HI>The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament &s;heweth his handy worke.</HI> But O how glorious is the invi&s;ible God, who hath made &s;uch vi&s;ible creatures? and what a work-Ma&s;ter is he who hath &s;et up &s;uch a work? (<HI>Rom.</HI> 1.20.) <HI>The invi&s;ible things of him from the creation of the world, are clearely &s;eene, being under&s;tood by the things that are made, even his eternall power and godhead.</HI> The things that are made, carry us to the maker of them, and they tell us, that none but he who hath an eternall power and godhead, could po&s;&s;ibly make them. The Heathen thought the Sunne, Moone, and Starres, to be Gods, therefore certainly there is very much of God, much of the glory and power of God to be &s;eene in them. And <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith (which doth plainly &s;hew that in nature it is &s;o, <HI>Chap.</HI> 31.26.)
<PB N="119" REF="68"> <HI>If I beheld the Sunne when it &s;hined, or the Moone walking in bright|ne&s;&s;e, and my heart hath been &s;ecretly inticed, or my mouth hath ki&s;|&s;ed my hand, this al&s;o were an iniquity to be puni&s;hed by the Judge, for I &s;hould have denyed the God that is above.</HI> That is, if I have been inticed to wor&s;hip the Sunne, or Moone, as ravi&s;ht with their beauty (for 'tis &s;o farre from being a &s;in, that 'tis a duty to behold the Sunne when it &s;hineth, and the Moone walking in brightnes, but &s;o to behold them as to adore them, or doe obey&s;ance to them, (which was the cu&s;tome of the Heathen, expre&s;&s;ed it &s;eemes among them by ki&s;&s;ing their hand, as we doe at this day in token of re&s;pect and reverence to men above us) this is an iniquity even that gro&s;&s;e iniquity of Idolatry, or <HI>wor&s;hipping the creature in &s;tead of or more then the Creator, who is ble&s;&s;ed for evermore.</HI> Now (I &s;ay) ina&s;much as the&s;e crea|tures have &s;o much of God in them, that many Heathens have mi&s;taken them for God, how will it condemne us of dulne&s;s and &s;tupidity, if we be be not led to God in the knowledge and beholding of them? For as to make the&s;e creatures Gods, &s;o not to &s;ee God in the&s;e creatures, is to deny the God that is a|bove.</P>
<P>Thirdly, While we behold the Starres of heaven, it &s;hould exceedingly both humble us and make us thankful, for who&s;e u&s;e, comfort, and accommodation in this life, God &s;et up tho&s;e Glorious Lights. God did not make them for his owne u&s;e, he had no need of them, he was from everla&s;ting without any of the&s;e creatures. The Starres are nothing to him; The Sunne is nothing to him; yea in that &s;tate of glory where we &s;hall injoy God for ever, we &s;hall have light without Sunne; &s;o that the&s;e lights were made for our u&s;e, and for ours onely while we are walking in the darke vale of this pre&s;ent world. Now, while we <HI>behold the height of the Starres how high they are,</HI> and con&s;ider for whom as well as by whom they were made; even for us, for poore us, who are but du&s;t and a&s;hes: This &s;hould at once lay us low in humblenes (looking upon them as an honour to great for us) and ray&s;e us up in thankfullnes, becau&s;e the benefit and comfort of them is &s;o great to us. Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes in that excellent prophecy of Chri&s;t (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 8.3.) <HI>When I con&s;ider thy heavens the worke of thy fingers, the Moone, and the Starres, which thou ha&s;t ordained, what is man that thou art mind|full
<PB N="118" REF="69">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
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<PB N="120" REF="70"> of him, and the &s;onne of man that thou vi&s;ite&s;t him?</HI> As if he had &s;aid, thou ha&s;t made all the&s;e creatures for man; &s;ee what a heaven, what &s;tarrs God hath framed, and &s;et up for man. <HI>Lord, what is man that thou art mindfull of him?</HI> Thus <HI>behold the height of the &s;tarres, how high they are;</HI> as to lead thee unto God, and to admire his highnes, &s;o to be humbled at thy own ba&s;e|nes, and to be thankfull for his benefits.</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> having laid downe the&s;e two Propo&s;itions, <HI>God is on high, and the Starres are high,</HI> proceeds to make an inference from both, which he formeth up (by way of &s;uppo&s;ition) from <HI>Jobs</HI> owne mouth.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="13" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 13.</HI></BIBL> And thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid, thou art &s;o farre from making that right improvement which thou oughte&s;t of the&s;e truths, that the Lord is in the height of heaven, and that he hath made tho&s;e high and glorious lights in heaven, that indeed thou doe&s;t quite pervert his meaning in making them; <HI>Thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know?</HI> In &s;tead of honouring God who formed the&s;e lights, thou art darkning his honour, and ecclip&s;ing the light of his omni&s;cience. For whereas thou &s;houlde&s;t have &s;ayd, &s;eeing God is on high, and hath made the Starres, which are &s;o high, &s;urely nothing can be hid from his knowledge, Thou &s;aye&s;t, <HI>How doth God know?</HI> And there is a twofold &s;ay|ing of this; fir&s;t, a &s;aying with the tongue; &s;econdly, with the heart; The vaine heart of man hath many &s;ayings, and this among the re&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dicis <HI>1</HI> verbis prolatis <HI>2</HI> men|tis cogitatione &amp; fal&s;a per&s;ua|&s;ione.</NOTE> <HI>How doth God know? (P&s;al.</HI> 14.1.) <HI>The foole hath &s;aid in his heart, there is no God.</HI> And he that &s;aith in his heart, <HI>How doth God know?</HI> &s;peakes as fooli&s;hly as that foole doth, who &s;aith, <HI>There is no God.</HI> To deny that or doubt whe|ther God knoweth all things, is not onely to doubt but to deny that God is at all; He is not God who knoweth not all things.</P>
<P><HI>And thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know?</HI> The conjunctive particle <HI>And,</HI> is here put as a cau&s;al, <HI>And thou &s;aye&s;t;</HI> that is, <HI>therefore thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know?</HI> So the &s;en&s;e is more cleare, <HI>Is not God in the height of heaven,</HI> &amp;c. He is. And what then? The u&s;e thou make&s;t of it is this; <HI>Thou &s;aye&s;t, how doth God know?</HI> &s;o the
<PB N="121" REF="70"> particle is u&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 49.16.) <HI>He &s;aw that re&s;t was good, and he gave his &s;houlders to the burthen,</HI> &amp;c. that is, <HI>therefore he gave his &s;houlders to the burthen.</HI></P>
<Q>Thou &s;aye&s;t, How doth God know?</Q>
<P>Wee may an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, Negatively, Not by &s;ence, as wee; eyes and eares are a&s;cribed to God improperly in Scripture; nor doth God know by di&s;cour&s;e, drawing one thing from another; but in the Affirmative, he knowes intuitively, he knowes every thing nakedly in it &s;elfe.</P>
<P>Againe, Some read, <HI>What doth God know?</HI> how farre doth his eye extend? what are the objects of his knowledge? To this we may an&s;wer, God knoweth all things; even the hearts of all the children of men; There are no &s;ecrets to God. But whether wee expound it of the manner or matter of divine knowledge, the &s;ence is the &s;ame, eyther an affirmation that God did not know all things, or at lea&s;t a doubt whether he did or no. <HI>Thou &s;aye&s;t, How doth God know?</HI> But where, and when did <HI>Job</HI> &s;ay this? <HI>Job</HI> might challenge <HI>Eliphaz;</HI> bring your proofes and witne&s;&s;es again&s;t me; why doe you impute &s;uch thoughts to me, and frame &s;uch imaginations in my brea&s;t? certainly <HI>Job</HI> never &s;pake this, and as &s;urely <HI>Job</HI> never thought this; yet <HI>Eliphaz</HI> puts it directly upon him. What was his ground?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exi&s;timabet haec con&s;equi ex Jobi dictis, qua&s;i nece&s;&s;e &s;it eum qui dicat impro|bos pro&s;pere a|gere, exi&s;timare etiam deum res humanas non|curare. <HI>Merl.</HI></NOTE> onely as the former crimes of uncharitablene&s;&s;e and inju&s;tice, his breaking the armes of the fatherle&s;&s;e, &amp;c. were fa&s;tned upon him, becau&s;e of the feares, &s;nares, and dark|ne&s;&s;e, in which he was; as if he mu&s;t needs have done tho&s;e evills, becau&s;e he endured &s;o much evill. <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;ufferings were great, and therefore according to the Logicke of <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> his &s;innes mu&s;t needs be very great. So here, he hath onely this to prove his &s;uppo&s;ition, that <HI>Job</HI> &s;aid, <HI>How doth God know?</HI> be|cau&s;e <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, that God doth &s;ometime pro&s;per wicked men, and afflicts the righteous. As if he who &s;ayth, that God &s;uffers wicked men to pro&s;per in this life, mu&s;t needs al&s;o &s;ay, that God regards not the things of this life; &s;o that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes to &s;peake thus; <HI>We have heard thee &s;aying, that the wicked pro&s;per, and that the godly are afflicted;</HI> what need we any further witnes, that thy opinion is, <HI>God neyther takes notice nor care of the things here below.</HI> Out of thine owne mouth we condemne
<PB N="122" REF="71"> thee as Guilty of this bla&s;phemy, That, <HI>Thou &s;aye&s;t, How doth God know?</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That good men are &s;ometimes charged with &s;aying and do|ing the wor&s;t and vile&s;t things.</Q></P>
<P>Thus (1 <HI>King.</HI> 21.13.) <HI>Naboth</HI> was accu&s;ed of <HI>bla&s;pheming God and the King.</HI> Chri&s;t him&s;elfe was taxed with bla&s;phemy more then once, (<HI>Matth.</HI> 9.3.) <HI>And behold certaine of the Scribes &s;aid within them&s;elves, this man bla&s;phems.</HI> There they did not openly averre it, but they &s;aid it within them&s;elves. At other times they &s;pake it openly, (<HI>Joh.</HI> 10.33.) <HI>The Jewes an&s;wered and &s;ayd, for a good deed we &s;tone thee not, but for bla&s;phemy, becau&s;e thou being a man make&s;t thy &s;elfe God.</HI> And againe (<HI>Matth.</HI> 26.65.) <HI>He hath &s;poken bla&s;phemy, ye have heard his bla&s;phemy.</HI> To &s;peak or doe well and heare ill was the portion of Chri&s;t, and may be the portion of the holye&s;t of tho&s;e who are Chri&s;ts.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>That when men are heated in di&s;pute, they are apt to make fal&s;e inferences from the tenets and &s;ayings of their oppo&s;ers.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>Job</HI> denied providence, whereas <HI>Job</HI> adored it; that he denyed Gods knowledge of the good and evil done in the world, becau&s;e he maintained, that good men receive evill, and evill men good in the world. When we deny tran|&s;ub&s;tantiation, or that the bread is changed into the very &s;ub|&s;tance of the body of Chri&s;t; Papi&s;ts inferre, that we deny, that Chri&s;t &s;pake truely, when at his La&s;t Supper he &s;aid, <HI>This is my body;</HI> and they will hence force it upon us, that we &s;ay, <HI>God is not omnipotent,</HI> becau&s;e we affirme that it is incon&s;i&s;tent with the nature of a true humane body (&s;uch as Chri&s;t hath now in heaven, though glorified and &s;pirituall) to be in many places at once. For as &s;ome deny the omnipre&s;ence of the divine na|ture, &s;o Papi&s;ts affirme the omni-pre&s;ence of the humane na|ture, And (&s;ay they) while we deny this, we deny the omni|potency of God. Others charge us that we make God the au|thor of &s;inne, and that, according to our tenet, all the impie|ty and wickedne&s;&s;e that is in the world, lyeth at his doore; becau&s;e we affirme, That God hath pa&s;&s;ed an Eternal ab&s;olute
<PB N="123" REF="71"> and unchangeable decree concerning all the &s;onnes of men. When all other arguments fayle, how u&s;uall is it to make the divine&s;t truths guilty of the mo&s;t uncomely and ugly con&s;e|quences that are imaginable.</P>
<P>Further, Thou &s;aye&s;t, <HI>How doth God know?</HI> Take it eyther of the inward or of the outward &s;aying, eyther of the tongue or of the heart, &s;aying &s;o; <HI>Eliphaz</HI> would prove from it, that certainly <HI>Job</HI> was a wicked man. And his inference had been true, if he could have proved it true, that <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd &s;o.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That to have evill thoughts, or to &s;peake evill of God, is the charac|ter of a wicked man.</Q></P>
<P>He that is good, mu&s;t needs both thinke, and &s;peake good of God. <HI>David</HI> doth often aggravate the wickedne&s;&s;e of his enemies, from the language of their hearts and tongues, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 10.11.) <HI>He hath &s;aid in his heart, God hath forgotten, he hides his face, he will never &s;ee.</HI> And againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 144.7, 8, 11.) <HI>Send thy hand from above, rid me and deliver me out of great waters, from the hands of &s;trange children, who&s;e mouth &s;peaketh vanity, and their right hand, is a right hand of fal&s;ehood.</HI> If the mouth &s;peak|eth vanity, the hand is full of fal&s;ehood; we may even feele deceite in their hands, who&s;e mouthes &s;peake any kinde of vanity, but e&s;pecially this, which is the vaine&s;t vanity of all, <HI>How doth God know?</HI> or &s;urely God doth not know. Such the P&s;almi&s;t rebukes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 94.4, 5.7.) <HI>How long &s;hall they utter and &s;peake hard things?</HI> What things were tho&s;e? The next words &s;hew us; <HI>They breake in peeces thy people,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>yet they &s;ay, the Lord &s;hall not &s;ee,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>under&s;tand ye bruti&s;h, among the people, he that formed the eye, &s;hall he not &s;ee?</HI> There is no greater argu|ment of bruti&s;hnes and ignorance, then to que&s;tion the know|ledge of God; or to &s;ay, <HI>How doth God know?</HI></P>
<Q>And <HI>(which is the &s;ame in other words)</HI> can he judge through the dark cloud?</Q>
<P>As if <HI>Job</HI> had further argued thus; I am &s;afe enough from the knowledge of God, for as he is high above me, &s;o there are dark clouds between him and me; <HI>Can he judge through the dark cloud?</HI> My opinion is he cannot. For knowledge goeth be|fore
<PB N="124" REF="72"> judgement;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Si non novit er|go nec judicare pote&s;t, ad rectu~ enim judicium requiritur cog|nitio cau&s;ae.</NOTE> He that knoweth not certainly, can never judge rightly. Ju&s;tice is pictured blind, in reference to per|&s;ons, but not in reference to things or cau&s;es; Ju&s;tice mu&s;t take no notice of this or that man, whether he be great or lit|tle, high or low, a neere friend or a &s;tranger; Ju&s;tice is blinde as to all the&s;e con&s;iderations, and knoweth no man; but Ju|&s;tice mu&s;t know every mans ca&s;e and cau&s;e; unle&s;&s;e man know that, how can be judge? and if God know not that, how can he judge? He mu&s;t have light to &s;ee what is done, be|fore he pa&s;&s;e Sentence upon what is done; therefore, <HI>Can he judge through the darke cloud?</HI> Surely he cannot. Thus the A|thei&s;t concludeth indeed; and thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> repre&s;ents <HI>Job</HI> con|cluding in his owne heart; there is not onely a great di&s;tance between God and me, not onely is he in the height of heaven, and I below on earth, but there are many gloomy clouds be|tween him and me; As he is high above me, &s;o there are &s;uch impediments in the way that he cannot &s;ee me. The Vulgar reads,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Et qua&s;i per caliginum judi|cat. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> <HI>He judgeth as through darknes.</HI> Now the be&s;t of Saints <HI>&s;ee God through a Gla&s;&s;e darkly, or in a ridle</HI> (1 Cor. 13.12.) And &s;ecure &s;inners thinke that God &s;eeth them onely through a cloud darkly, or (as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;peaketh) <HI>through a dark cloud;</HI> he knoweth not clearly, but dimly. To judge through a cloud, is to judge of things confu&s;edly, not di&s;tinctly, by gue&s;&s;e or conjecturally, not exactly or face to face. This is all the &s;ight which an evill heart alloweth God (if he allow him any) concerning his wayes and actions. They who doe things which cannot abide the light, are willing to beleeve that all they doe is in the darke. Theirs are works of moral darknes, and therefore they plea&s;e them&s;elves with thinking that their works are hid eyther in natural or artificiall darkne&s;s. It is &s;ayd of the Lord in Scripture (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 97.2.) <HI>Clouds and darknes are round about him, while judgement and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e are the ha|bitation of his throne;</HI> but the&s;e imagine that God cannot pro|ceed in judgement and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, becau&s;e clouds and darkne&s;s are round about him. It is &s;ayd (1 <HI>King.</HI> 8.10, 11, 12.) <HI>The cloud filled the hou&s;e of the Lord, &s;o that the Prie&s;ts could not &s;tand to mini&s;ter becau&s;e of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord fil|led the hou&s;e of the Lord. Then &s;pake Solomon, the Lord &s;aid that he will dwell in the thick darkne&s;s.</HI> Reade <HI>Exod.</HI> 20.21. <HI>Deut.</HI> 5.22.
<PB N="125" REF="72"> <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.11. <HI>God is light</HI> (&s;aith the Apo&s;tle, <HI>John</HI> 1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 1.) <HI>and he dwelleth in light which no man can approach unto</HI> (1 Tim. 6.16.) How then can he be &s;aid to dwell in thick darknes? I an&s;wer; tho&s;e Scriptures which &s;ay that God dwells in darknes, that clouds and darkne&s;&s;e are round about him, teach us, that God and his wayes are much hid from us; we are not able to look up to him, or &s;ee clearely what he doth, much le&s;&s;e can we &s;ee what his coun&s;ells are. The clouds and darkne&s;&s;e which are about him, doe not hinder his &s;ight of us, but our &s;ight of him. Our darknes is no darknes to him, but his darknes, yea his light is darknes to us. Againe, God is &s;ayd to dwel in a cloud, to reprove our boldnes and curio&s;ity, who are too apt to pry into what is not to be knowne, and to neglect our duty in what we know, or to neglect the knowledge of our duty. God hath &s;ome re&s;erves in coun&s;ells; &s;ome of his providences are wrapt up in clouds. Hee will be tru&s;ted and honored in what he is not &s;eene or knowne. Not to know the&s;e things is indeed our ne&s;cience, but not our ignorance, and not to &s;eeke after the knowledg of the&s;e things, is our duty not our &s;loath. Thus God who dwels in light, dwels al&s;o in a cloud; for he <HI>dwells in light that no man can</HI> (no nor ought to) <HI>approach unto.</HI> Wee may come neere his light by faith, but wee cannot come neere his light by knowledge. There is &s;uch an infinite, &s;uch an overcomming light in God, that it is a darknes to us; the mo&s;t Eagle-like eyes of a humane under&s;tanding are not onely dazzel'd, but quite blinded with his brightne&s;s. Now as no man can judge through this light of God, &s;o &s;ome men are ready to &s;ay (and thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> brings in <HI>Job</HI> &s;aying) that God cannot judge through dark clouds, through clouds and dark|nes. Nor doth <HI>Eliphaz</HI> bring in <HI>Job</HI> &s;aying thus only by way of doubt or que&s;tion, but by way of averrement and re&s;olution in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="14" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 14.</HI></BIBL> Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he &s;eeth it not.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>This ver&s;e is but an explication of the 13^t^h, <HI>Can he &s;ee through the dark cloud?</HI> There he puts the que&s;tion, here he gives a peremptory an&s;wer, he cannot certainly; for, <HI>Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he cannot &s;ee.</HI> The Hebrew for <HI>thick
<PB N="126" REF="73"> clouds</HI> is but one word,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> nubes dictae &s;unt a den&s;itate a ra|dice <GAP DESC="foreign"> den&s;um e&s;&s;e. <HI>q d.</HI> &s;icut nos latet deus, ita deum latent no|&s;tra, coele&s;tia, illi tantum pa|tent.</NOTE> which in the roote, &s;ignifies <HI>Thickne&s;s,</HI> or, <HI>to be thicke.</HI> Some clouds have a kinde of thinnes in them, and are as it were tran&s;parent. Others are more gro&s;&s;e and opacous, quite hindering and intercepting our &s;ight of all that is beyond them, with the&s;e (&s;aith <HI>Eliphaz</HI>) thou O <HI>Job,</HI> vainely conceite&s;t, that the &s;ight of God al&s;o is intercepted, &s;o that, as we cannot &s;ee God, &s;o God cannot &s;ee us; A vayle of thick clouds &s;eclude his &s;ight. Nor is this the onely rea&s;on why thou art overcome with this ignorant per&s;wa&s;ion. Thou ha&s;t a &s;econd, which though po&s;&s;ibly thou woulde&s;t conceale, yet will not I, and this is it Thou al&s;o &s;aye&s;t,</P>
<P><HI>He walketh in the circuit of heaven.]</HI> As if thou had&s;t &s;ayd, &s;up|po&s;e God can &s;ee through the thick cloud; and &s;o my former rea&s;on &s;hould fayle, yet I know well enough that the Great God of heaven hath other matters to meddle with, other af|faires to bu&s;ie him&s;elfe about, then to trouble him&s;elfe with me. <HI>He walketh in the circuit of heaven;</HI> we are not to take <HI>walk|ing</HI> as a meere motion, but as <HI>walking</HI> notes imployment, <HI>he walkes in the circuit of heaven,</HI> that is, he is wholly taken up there. When the Lord asked of Satan, <HI>Whence come&s;t thou?</HI> he an&s;wered,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hoc verbo vi|detur connotari &s;tudium inqui|rendi <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE> <HI>From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and downe in it.</HI> Now what doth Satan when he walks up and downe the world, doth he walke like an idle vagrant that hath nothing to doe? doth he walke with his hands in his pockets, as having no bu&s;ine&s;&s;e? doth he walke meerly to take the aire, or to take his plea&s;ure, to &s;ee, and be &s;eene? no, when Satan walks about the world, <HI>his walking is working,</HI> he goeth about to tempt, to try, to lay &s;nares and baits, to catch and captivate the &s;oules of men. So here when it is &s;ayd, <HI>God walk|eth in the circuit of heaven,</HI> the meaning is, his bu&s;ine&s;&s;e, yea even his whole bu&s;ines lyes there; He hath enough to doe in heaven, and therefore hath no ley&s;ure to attend what is done on earth. That's the &s;cope and tendency of the&s;e words which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> fa&s;tens upon <HI>Job; He walketh in the circuit of heaven.</HI> We are &s;ure enough of him. The words carry the &s;ame &s;ence, with that &s;peech of the whori&s;h woman (<HI>Pro.</HI> 7.18, 19, 20.) <HI>Come</HI> (&s;aith &s;hee) <HI>let us take our fill of love till the morning, let us &s;olace our &s;elves with loves.</HI> But the young man might po&s;&s;ibly object, your husband will come home, and that will &s;poyle
<PB N="127" REF="73"> all. No, (&s;aith &s;he) never feare it, he is farre enough out of the way; <HI>The good man is not at home, he is gone a long journey; He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed;</HI> That is, he will not come home till the day ap|pointed, he hath great bu&s;ines abroad, and he hath carried money enough with him to beare his charges till he hath don his bu&s;ines. He is riding and running in a farre Country and minds not home, nor hath he the lea&s;t &s;u&s;pition of what we doe at home. Thus when the &s;inner is about to depart farre from his duty, he puts or conceives God farre from him. <HI>He walketh in the Circuit of heaven.</HI> From the Generall &s;cope of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in the 13^t^h and 14^t^h ver&s;es, Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Carnal men frame conceptions of God like them&s;elves.</Q></P>
<P>Thus the hypocrite is de&s;cribed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.21.) <HI>Thou though|te&s;t that I was altogether &s;uch a one as thy &s;elfe.</HI> Not that he thought God was a man, but that God had &s;uch thoughts of good and evill, as man hath. As if what is right in mans eyes, were &s;o in the eyes of God al&s;o; or as if what did not di&s;|plea&s;e man, were plea&s;ing, or not much di&s;plea&s;ing unto God. When the Lord &s;ayth (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 55.8.) <HI>My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor your wayes my wayes;</HI> he doth plainly intimate, that they did begin to frame thoughts of God like their owne: but &s;aith God, <HI>as the heavens are higher then the earth, &s;o are my thoughts then your thoughts, and my wayes then your wayes;</HI> That is, as my thoughts have a va&s;tnes in them to all things beyond yours, &s;o e&s;pecially in this thing, the performance of my pro|mi&s;e for the pardon of &s;inne. O how unlike is God to man in this? God is not more unlike man in his ab&s;olute freedome from the lea&s;t inclination to commit any the lea&s;t &s;in, then he is in the admirable freenes of his inclination to pardon any even the greate&s;t &s;inne. Men are commonly not onely un|mercifull to tho&s;e who wrong them, but revengefull, and when once offended are hardly drawne to a reconcilement, and &s;eldome &s;o fully reconciled, but that &s;omwhat of offence &s;tayeth behinde. But the thoughts of God are not &s;o. He is &s;low to wrath, and ready to forgive. He quickly pardons the offence, and receives the offender into favour; no more retain|ing the memory of his offence (as to his hurt) then if he had
<PB N="128" REF="74"> never offended. Thus the Lord would a&s;&s;ure &s;inners, that his thoughts in pardoning &s;inne are not as theirs. And it is but need he &s;hould doe &s;o; For when &s;inners begin to be awake|ned, they frame &s;uch thoughts of God, as to pardon of &s;in, as they have in them&s;elves: when they looke upon their &s;innes as too bigg to be pardoned by man, they conclude pre&s;ently the Lord cannot or will not pardon them. And as many under temptation, frame thoughts of God like their owne about the pardon of &s;inne; &s;o it is the con&s;tant cour&s;e of wicked men (which is indeed the wor&s;t of their &s;innes) to frame thoughts of God like unto them&s;elves, while they commit and conti|nue in &s;inne. Man &s;hould not dare to Imagine any thing of God in reference eyther to his ju&s;tice or mercy, eyther about the puni&s;hing or pardoning of &s;inne, but what he hath decla|red of him&s;elfe, all that wee Imagine be&s;ide that, is the ma|king of another God. There are many fal&s;e gods made with mens hands, but the hearts of men make many more. The heart of man makes thou&s;ands of fal&s;e or &s;trange gods. Every undue, every wrong Imagination of God, is the forming up of a &s;trange, of a new god. When we a&s;cribe to God &s;uch a kinde of power, &s;uch a kinde of knowledge, &s;uch a kinde of holines, &s;uch a kinde of ju&s;tice, &s;uch a kinde of mercy, as is common to the creature, in all this wee frame up a new god to our &s;elves. And thus tho&s;e Gentiles of whom the Apo&s;tle &s;peaks (<HI>Rom.</HI> 1.21. &amp; 25.) <HI>Became vaine in their Imaginations, and their fooli&s;h heart was darkened;</HI> in what was their fooli&s;h heart darkened? in fal&s;e notions of God; therefore they are &s;aid (<HI>ver.</HI> 29.) <HI>to change the glory of the Incorruptible God into an Image made like to Corruptible man, and to birds, foure-footed bea&s;ts, and creeping things.</HI> Now as there is the changing of the glory of the Incorruptible God into the Image of a Corruptible man, that is, into the Externall Image of a Corruptible man, (for &s;ome &s;et up fal&s;e gods in the likenes of men;) So there is a Changing of the glory of the Incorruptible God, into the Internall Image of a Corruptible man, that is, into &s;uch thoughts and Conceptions as are ordinarily in men. Let &s;uch con&s;ider, that, if to make a wor&s;hip of our owne for the true God, be indeed to &s;et up a fal&s;e god; (all they wor&s;hip fal&s;e gods who &s;et up a &s;trange wor&s;hip for the true God, now, I
<PB N="129" REF="74"> &s;ay, if they who do but &s;et up a new wor&s;hip for the true God make a &s;trange God) what then doe they who in their hearts &s;et up a new God, that is, who frame Conceptions of God which him&s;elfe never gave ground for in his word? Such was the Conceit which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had of <HI>Job,</HI> when he pre&s;umes him &s;aying, <HI>How doth God know? Can he judge through the dark cloud?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, From the particular mi&s;apprehen&s;ion of God, impo&s;ed by <HI>Eliphaz</HI> upon <HI>Job; And thou &s;aye&s;t, How doth God know?</HI> &amp;c. Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Sinfull men fancie to them&s;elves that God eyther doth not or can|not take notice of them in their &s;infull wayes.</Q>
<P>Thus they rea&s;on; <HI>Can he &s;ee thorow the dark Cloud?</HI> and con|clude, <HI>Thick Clouds are a Covering to him that he &s;eeth not, and he walketh in the Circuit of heaven?</HI> What <HI>Eliphaz</HI> layes to <HI>Jobes</HI> charge fal&s;ely; is often charged by the Holy Gho&s;t upon wick|ed men truely. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 10.11.) <HI>Hee hath &s;aid in his heart God hath forgotten, he hides his face, he will never &s;ee it.</HI> Who this <HI>He</HI> is, who&s;e heart &s;peakes this language, appeares clearely in the former part of the P&s;alme, where he is more then once called <HI>The wicked (ver.</HI> 2, 3.) and where more then one of his wic|kedne&s;&s;es are de&s;cribed, (<HI>ver.</HI> 7, 8, 9, 10.) <HI>His mouth is full of cur&s;ing and deceit, and fraud, under his tongue is mi&s;chiefe and vani|ty, he &s;itteth in the lurking places of the villages: in the &s;ecret places doth he murder the innocent</HI> &amp;c. After all this, he <HI>&s;ayth in his heart God hath forgotten,</HI> that is, he hath forgotten the poore whom I have under my power, therefore I may &s;afely oppre&s;&s;e them. <HI>He hideth his face, he will never &s;ee it;</HI> that is, God will never take any knowledge, either of my doings or of their &s;ufferings. We have a &s;ample of the &s;ame impiety (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.11.) <HI>And they &s;ay how doth God know? and is there knowledge in the mo&s;t high? behold, the&s;e are the ungodly in the world,</HI> &amp;c. And againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 94.6 <HI>ver.) They &s;lay the widdow, and &s;tranger, and murther the father|le&s;&s;e</HI> (here are their workes of darkne&s;&s;e) <HI>yet they &s;ay, the Lord &s;hall not &s;ee, neither &s;hall the God of Jacob regard.</HI> Not onely did they pre&s;ume that the Lord did not &s;ee, but that he &s;hould not; <HI>The Lord &s;hall not &s;ee!</HI> As if they could &s;top or blinde the eyes of God as ea&s;ily as they had blinded their owne Con&s;ci|ences. Take one In&s;tance further (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 8.12.) <HI>Then &s;aid he
<PB N="130" REF="75"> unto mee Sonne of man, See&s;t thou what they doe? ha&s;t thou &s;eene what the Ancients of the hou&s;e of I&s;raell doe in the darke, Every man in the Chambers of his Imagery, for they &s;ay the Lord &s;eeth us not, he hath for&s;aken the Earth.</HI> Much like the language here, <HI>He walketh in the Circuit of heaven;</HI> hee hath other bu&s;ines to doe then to minde us. As God is &s;ometimes &s;ayd to for&s;ake the Earth in wrath, to puni&s;h the &s;in of Man, &s;o wicked men &s;ay he alwayes for&s;akes the Earth in neglect both of their &s;in and puni&s;hment. And as Idolaters who have a minde to other gods, are willing to beleeve that God hath for&s;aken the earth, as to the protection of them; Wee (&s;ay they) are in danger, God takes no care of us, therefore blame us not if we betake our &s;elves to other Gods for protection; <HI>If he had not for&s;aken us, we had not for&s;aken him:</HI> So all &s;orts of re&s;olved tran&s;gre&s;|&s;ors, who have a minde to any &s;infull way, are willing to be|leeve that God hath for&s;aken the earth, as to any ob&s;ervation of them. Wee may doe what we li&s;t, for God doth not minde or regard what we are doing. If we thought he did indeed &s;ee us, we dur&s;t not thus &s;inne again&s;t him. But &s;eeing he doth not trouble him&s;elfe with any care about us, why &s;hould we trou|ble our &s;elves with any feare about him? Now, this <HI>Pre&s;ump|tion that God doth not &s;ee us in what we are doing, opens a doore to the doing of all Evill.</HI> Security from danger is the great encourage|ment unto &s;in. Though wicked men would not be le&s;&s;e &s;infull, yet they would not &s;in &s;o much, or be &s;o full of &s;in, did they not vainely flatter them&s;elves out of the &s;ight of God. Every Man would faine beleeve that God doth not &s;ee him when he is doing that which he would not have &s;eene or be &s;eene in doing it. And how do men plea&s;e them&s;elves in this fal&s;e hope that God doth not &s;ee them, when they doe that which is di&s;plea&s;ing unto God!</P>
<P>From the Intendment of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> to Convince <HI>Job,</HI> that the Clouds are no Covering to God, and that the Circuit of hea|ven doth not Confine him.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Thirdly,</HI> God is omni&s;cient, hee knowes all things.</Q></P>
<P>Thou &s;aye&s;t thus; <HI>How doth God know?</HI> I tell thee God doth know; And thou ha&s;t an argument upon thy backe, if thou ha&s;t
<PB N="131" REF="75"> none in thy heart to prove it, thy &s;ence or feeling may teach thee, if thy rea&s;on or under&s;tanding doe not, and by thy &s;uf|fering thou maye&s;t &s;ee that God &s;eeth what thou ha&s;t been do|ing. This great truth, <HI>That God is omni&s;cient, or knowes all,</HI> may ea&s;ily be knowne, and ought to be beleeved by all. When the Lord had made the world in &s;ix dayes (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.31.) <HI>He &s;aw all that he had made;</HI> All was in view at once, hee had a Pro&s;pect of the whole Creation in his eye. And as all his own Creatures, &s;o all our Creatures are &s;eene by God; hee &s;eeth all that him&s;elfe hath made, and hee &s;eeth all that wee have made, or are making day by day. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 6.5.) <HI>God &s;aw that the wickednes of man was great in the earth, and that every thought of the Imagination of the thoughts of his heart was onely evill Continually, or every day. The Lord &s;aw,</HI> that is, the Lord knew fully (infi|nitely more fully then we know tho&s;e things which wee &s;ee) every Imagination or figment of the thoughts of mans heart. The figment of our thoughts, is what the minde fa&s;hioneth or maketh up within it &s;elfe by thinking: corrupt nature keepes a con&s;tant mint of evill imaginations in the head, as it hath a &s;inke of filthy affections in the heart. The minde of man hath a formative faculty in it. And the &s;ame word which the Ho|ly Gho&s;t u&s;eth to &s;ignifie the worke of God in making man, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 2.7.) <HI>The Lord God formed man out of the du&s;t of the earth, or du&s;t out of the earth</HI> (the &s;ame word, I &s;ay) is u&s;ed in the Noune (<HI>Gen.</HI> 6.5.) to &s;ignifie, <HI>the imagination of man,</HI> becau&s;e that is alwayes &s;haping moulding or forming one &s;ort of thoughts or other, &amp;, naturally, none but ugly evill thoughts. The&s;e are the creatures which man (as fallen) is the maker of; and he maketh (as I may &s;ay) infinite creatures, he is forming them continually in his imagination, that's the &s;hop wherein there's a dayly Creation (&s;uch as it is) of mon&s;trous wicked|ne&s;&s;es, till God by his new Creation changeth the frame and nature of it. Now (I &s;ay) as God &s;eeth his owne creatures; &s;o he &s;eeth all our Creatures, though wee make them in the &s;hop of our darke&s;t imaginations. And much more doth hee &s;ee all the Creatures which wee make without, that is, all our bodily and externall actions. (<HI>Jere.</HI> 17.10.) <HI>I the Lord &s;earch the heart, I try the reynes;</HI> if he &s;earch our hearts, then &s;urely he &s;earcheth all our wayes, if he &s;eeth our thinkings, then &s;urely
<PB N="132" REF="76"> he &s;eeth our walkings.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deus &s;cientia|rum, phurale, perfectam &s;ci|entiam &amp; re|rum omnium cogno&s;ibilium cognitionem in|dicat.</NOTE> Therefore 'tis &s;ayd (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>The Lord is a God of knowledge;</HI> the Hebrew is, <HI>The Lord is a God of knowledges;</HI> that is, all things fall under his knowledge; he is perfect in all knowledges, there is nothing knowable, but the Lord knowes it; <HI>and by him actions are weighed:</HI> now the weigh|ing of actions is more then the &s;eeing of actions; many &s;ee that which they cannot weigh. <HI>Hee weigheth actions,</HI> that is, he takes not onely the action it &s;elfe, but every circum&s;tance of it into Con&s;ideration; he takes his Ballances, and tryes fully, how much each ingredient weighs, and what it comes to. Hee weighs whole States, Kingdomes, and Nations. So it was &s;ayd to the Babylonian Monarch <HI>Belte&s;hazzar (Dan.</HI> 5.26.27.) Mene, <HI>God hath numbred thy Kingdome, and fini&s;hed it,</HI> Tekel, <HI>Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.</HI> Thy councels, thy policies, thy undertakings, the whole compa&s;&s;e, all the contrivances of thy Government are weighed and found too light. And as God weigheth the actions of Princes, &s;o of pri|vate per&s;ons. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 5.21.) <HI>The wayes of a man</HI> (that is, of e|very man, even of the meane&s;t man) <HI>are before the Lord, and he pondereth all his pathes;</HI> he puts them into a Ballance, and doth not onely &s;ee them, but ponder or weigh them. <HI>David</HI> &s;ayth of &s;ome wicked men that they weigh the violence of their hands in the earth (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 58.2.) though they doe violence, yet they doe it not violently, but with a kinde of skill and deliberation. They doe wrong and oppre&s;&s;e with a &s;hew of Ju&s;tice, whereof weights are the common Embleme. Now as &s;ome men doe evill, not ha&s;tily, ra&s;hly, or all at once, but give it out by weight, and with a &s;eeming gravity and zeale for ju&s;tice. So the Lord doth never looke over the wayes of men ra&s;hly or ha&s;tily, but weighs them out even to a graine, yea to the du&s;t of the balance he pondereth all their paths. That is, he knowes them throughout. Therefore <HI>David (P&s;al.</HI> 139.) ha|ving &s;poken much to this poynt of the Exactnes of Gods knowledge, concludes at the 6^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>Such knowledge is too wonderfull for mee, it is high I cannot attaine unto it.</HI> Some expound this Text, not of the knowledge of God concerning us, but of our knowledge concerning God. <HI>Thy knowledge or the know|ledge of thee is too wonderfull for mee, I cannot attaine unto it.</HI> Others thus; <HI>This thy knowledge</HI> (namely that which he had
<PB N="133" REF="76"> before de&s;cribed) <HI>is more wonderfull</HI> (or more exact) <HI>then that I &s;hould be able to deceive it.</HI> We may impo&s;e upon and deceive the mo&s;t knowing man, but wee cannot impo&s;e upon or de|ceive God. I conceave our reading to be mo&s;t &s;utable both to the Text and context. <HI>Such knowledge,</HI> that is, Such know|ledge as thou ha&s;t of mee, of the lea&s;t and greate&s;t things, even of all things that I or any man doth, is too wonderfull for mee. For though we may know &s;ome actions of men, yet wee cannot know them all, and wee can hardly weigh any of them to the utmo&s;t. And in this acknowledgement wee may take notice of the P&s;almi&s;t mode&s;ty, who though he had the immediate a&s;&s;i&s;tance of a Propheticall Spirit, yet confe&s;&s;ed, that he was not only not able to know God, but not to know him|&s;elfe, his thoughts, words, and wayes, as God knew them. Such knowledge of my &s;elfe as thou O Lord ha&s;t of me, is <HI>too won|derfull for me, I cannot attaine unio it.</HI></P>
<P>Some perhaps may querie upon this, if the Lord knoweth all the wayes of men, and pondereth all their actions, is not this a trouble to God? is not this a di&s;turbance of his peace, and a di&s;traction to him?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer (as I &s;aid before) this is to frame a God like our &s;elves, for to him that is omni&s;cient, it is all one to know all, and to know but one thing: it is no more di&s;traction, no more trouble to God to know all that we doe &s;peak, or thinke, then to know any thing. If two or three &s;peake to a man together, he is not able to take in their &s;ence, the variety of their di&s;|cour&s;e makes &s;uch a hurry and trouble in his &s;pirits, that he loo&s;eth all that is &s;poken. But the application of thou&s;ands or of Millions at the &s;ame time in &s;peaking to the eare of God, is no more trouble, then if but one did &s;peake; an infinite eare heares all, and an infinite eye &s;ees all, without any the lea&s;t di&s;traction; the infinite knowledge of God takes in all the actions of all men, as ea&s;ily as the &s;ingle action of any one man.</P>
<P>Againe, Others may &s;ay, Surely the Lord will not take &s;uch exact knowledge of all the actions of men, e&s;pecially of mean men, or &s;urely not of the meane actions of meane&s;t men; po&s;&s;ibly of &s;ome per&s;ons in great place, &amp; of &s;ome great things done by tho&s;e per&s;ons hee may take notice, but to &s;toope to
<PB N="134" REF="77"> &s;mall things, if it be not a trouble, yet it cannot but be a di&s;|honour to, and too great a Conde&s;cention for the great God. The Heathens &s;ayd their <HI>Jupiter</HI> had no ley&s;ure to deale in &s;mall matters;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non vacat exi|guis rebus <HI>&amp;c.</HI></NOTE> And may not we Chri&s;tians &s;ay, It is not ho|norable enough for our God, to have to doe with &s;mall mat|ters.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; This al&s;o is to frame a God like our &s;elves; as it doth not weary God to behold, to try and ponder all the wayes of all men (which was the feare concerning <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> that hee &s;hould be tyred out with the various ca&s;es and affaires of that great People; and was therefore advi&s;ed by <HI>Jethro</HI> to make more Judges, that &s;o the weightier matters onely might be brought before and Judged by him) So it is no di&s;honour at all to God, no, it is his honour that he takes cogni&s;ance of the &s;malle&s;t matters as well as of the greate&s;t, of the lowe&s;t as well as of the highe&s;t concernments of the children of men. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 113.5, 6.) <HI>Who is like unto the Lord our God, who dwelleth on high? who humbleth him&s;elfe to behold the things which are in Heaven, and in the Earth.</HI> Who is like to God in this? this is the honour of the high God that he will humble him&s;elfe to behold the lowe&s;t things, the things which are in the Earth, as well as things in Heaven, and the le&s;&s;er, the lea&s;t things in earth, as well as the greater or the greate&s;t. <HI>Though the Lord be high, yet he humbleth him&s;elfe unto the lowly</HI> (P&s;al. 138.6.) and as to <HI>lowly per&s;ons,</HI> &s;o to the <HI>lowe&s;t things.</HI> Indeed the Lord doth humble him&s;elfe to behold the things which are in Heaven, it is a Conde&s;cention in him to take notice of any creature; yet he doth not onely humble him&s;elfe to behold things in Heaven, but things in the Earth, and in this who is like unto the Lord our God? this is his glory, and for this he is to be glorified, yea to be cryed up with this admiring Elogium, <HI>Who is like unto the Lord our God?</HI> None among the &s;ons of men are like him in this, yea there is no God like unto the Lord our God in this. Wee have cau&s;e to &s;ay (con&s;idering our vile|nes) <HI>What is man that thou &s;hould&s;t take notice of him?</HI> 'Tis too Great an honour for man, but it is no di&s;honour to God to take notice of the meane&s;t man. The greatnes of God appeares as in the making, &s;o in the governing and di&s;po&s;ing of the &s;malle&s;t things. The power of God is &s;eene in making a fly
<PB N="135" REF="77"> or a worme, as well as in making an Elephant or the va&s;t Le|viathan; So al&s;o is his wi&s;dome and providence &s;eene in the ob&s;erving and ordering of tho&s;e bu&s;ine&s;&s;es and motions of the creature, which compared to others are but as a fly to an Ele|phant, or but as a worme to <HI>Leviathan.</HI> There is nothing doth more detract from the greatnes of God, then the denyall or di&s;-beleefe of his cogni&s;ance of and care about little things. And as it &s;hewes the exacte&s;t perfection of holynes attaynable by man in this life, when he taketh an account of and re|proves him&s;elfe for the lea&s;t &s;ins, whether they be omi&s;&s;ions of that good which he is commanded to doe, or commi&s;&s;ions of that evill which he is forbidden to doe. So it is an undenya|ble argument of the exactly and ab&s;olutely perfect holynes, ju&s;tice, goodnes and faithfulnes of God, that he taketh an ac|count of, and will certainly reward or puni&s;h every man for the lea&s;t good or evill which he hath done. This is the glory of him who walketh in the circuit of heaven, that he &s;ees all to the center of the earth. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus detected and re|proved (as he thought) tho&s;e thoughts and a&s;&s;ertions of <HI>Job</HI> which detracted &s;o much from God, as if he did not marke the wayes of men; proceeds to put the que&s;tion to him, whether him&s;elfe had well marked the wayes of wicked men.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="136" REF="78">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 15, 16.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way which wicked men have troden?</P>
<P>Which were cut downe out of time, who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="15" TYPE="verse">
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE>THe word tran&s;lated <HI>to marke,</HI> notes a diligent ob&s;ervation; So it is u&s;ed (<HI>Chap.</HI> 10.14.) <HI>If I &s;in then thou marke&s;t me,</HI> (that is, thou take&s;t exact or &s;trict notice of mee) <HI>and thou wilt not acquitt mee from mine Iniquity. (P&s;al.</HI> 37.37.) <HI>marke the per|fect man,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ob&s;ervare dei actiones impri|mis ip&s;ius judi|cia, magna pars &s;cinentiae e&s;t.</NOTE> <HI>and behold the upright,</HI> that is, take &s;peciall knowledge of him, <HI>for the end of that man is peace. (P&s;al.</HI> 107.43.) <HI>who &s;o is wi&s;e will ob&s;erve,</HI> or marke, <HI>the&s;e things, hee &s;hall under&s;tand the loving kindnes of the Lord.</HI> So here, <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked?</HI> ha&s;t thou with diligence and &s;eriou&s;nes of &s;pirit ob&s;erved, <HI>the old way which wicked men have troden.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Senitam &s;aeculo|rum vel &s;eculi; aeternam aut aeternitatis, nam ea omnia deno|tat vox <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>Rab:</HI> Kimchi.</NOTE> The Hebrew is, <HI>The way of age, the way of ages,</HI> or as &s;ome read, <HI>the Eternall way, the way of E|ternity. David</HI> prayeth (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.23, 24.) <HI>Lead me in the way everla&s;ting;</HI> that is, Lead me in the way of holines and righte|ou&s;nes, which leads to eternity. Which yet one of the Rab|bins expounds, as a periphra&s;is of death; for death is called, <HI>the way of all the earth</HI> (1 King. 2.2.) <HI>the way of all fle&s;h</HI> (Jo&s;h. 23.14.) As if <HI>David</HI> had &s;ayd, Lord, if upon &s;earch thou find|e&s;t that I walke in any way of wickednes, that is, of willfull &s;inning, then de&s;troy me, lead me to my grave, yea ca&s;t mee with the wicked to hell, or to everla&s;ting condemnation. Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> thus; <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the way of the old world?</HI></P>
<P>But what was this way of the old world, about which <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> que&s;tions <HI>Job,</HI> whether he had taken notice of it yea or no? The way of the old world may be taken two wayes.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>Fir&s;t, For the way of their &s;innes.</ITEM>
<ITEM>Secondly, For the way of their puni&s;hment.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way</HI> of their &s;inne? and the old way of their &s;inne may be Con&s;idered under a twofold notion.</P>
<PB N="137" REF="78">
<P>Fir&s;t, As it was the way of their opinion. Secondly, as it was the way of their practice: Some re&s;traine it here to the way of their opinion, and Interpret <HI>Eliphaz</HI> as chiefly intend|ding that; <HI>Ha&s;t thou ob&s;erved the old way;</HI> that is, the old Erro|neous opinions which were in the fir&s;t ages of the world? In tho&s;e times there were not a few like thy &s;elfe, who eyther flatly denyed or belyed the providence of God, who &s;ayd (as thou doe&s;t) <HI>How doth God know?</HI> Surely he hath for&s;aken the earth, and intermeddles not with what is done here below. Thus a learned Interpreter expounds the Text,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ad eos opini<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> haec referenda e&s;t, qui vixeru~t tempore diluvij cen&s;ebant&abque; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ol|lendam provi|dentiam. <HI>Vatabl:</HI> Gigantes reli|gionis contemp|tores <HI>Bero&s;us.</HI></NOTE> with reference to their ungodly opinion; <HI>They</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>who lived in the time of the floud denyed Providence;</HI> Ha&s;t thou (O <HI>Job</HI>) marked their opinion and Con&s;ider'd it? And that this wicked Error did prevaile in tho&s;e times, may be Collected from what is re|ported by <HI>Bero&s;us</HI> of the Giants (of whom wee read in the 6^t^h of <HI>Gene&s;is</HI> ver. 4^t^h, <HI>There were Giants in the earth in tho&s;e dayes</HI>) Among other of their abominations, this (&s;aith he) was one, or this was a Chiefe one, the roote, or &s;ource of them all, they bla&s;phemed God, and contemned Religion, they thought there was no Supream Power, none to whom man was ac|countable for any of his actions. <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked this old way</HI> of Error?</P>
<P>In pur&s;uance of which Interpretation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cu&s;todiendi verbum pro &s;e|qui exponitur. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> the words which we render, <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked,</HI> may be Expounded thus; <HI>Ha&s;t thou taken up the old way?</HI> art thou a follower of that Sect, of that Tribe who have gone in that wicked way? doe&s;t thou al&s;o maintaine their bla&s;phemy, that God takes no notice of man? This notion holds faire with what he had &s;aid before.</P>
<P>Secondly, As it may be referred to tho&s;e abominable A|thei&s;ticall opinions which raigned in tho&s;e times, &s;o to the wicked Practices, to the old Cu&s;tomes and &s;infull Cour&s;es which were followed in tho&s;e times; for where a wicked opi|nion is lodged in the heart, what kinde of wickednes is there that they may not breake forth in the life? And &s;o here <HI>the old way</HI> is the way of &s;inne, the corrupt Cour&s;e and practices of that debauched generation, e&s;pecially the way of pride and ambition, which appeared much in the titles given them, <HI>Mighty men, men of name,</HI> or as we render, <HI>Men of renowne.</HI> They were men of honour and name with men, but we read not of
<PB N="138" REF="79"> any honour they did to or received from God. It is the high|e&s;t di&s;grace, to be memorable for actings again&s;t grace, or for ungracious actings.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Num ob&s;ervas perpetuum, or|dinem, quem in puniendis tali|bus impijs te|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">uit deus, po&s;t natos homines. <HI>Merc:</HI> Putat hunc e&s;&s;e perpetuum ordi|nem domini ut impios hic puni|at, &s;ed fallitur. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE>Againe, The old way may be taken for the way of puni&s;h|ment, or for that cour&s;e of divine Ju&s;tice which was Execu|ted upon wicked men in tho&s;e elder times. There is away of Judgement which God takes, as there is a way of Sinne which man takes. Sinfull ways lead into trouble&s;ome ways, &amp; end in death. Ha&s;t thou con&s;idered the way of ju&s;tice which the Lord went in towards tho&s;e old Sinners? powring out his wrath, and emptying the vialls of his Indignation upon them, till hee had con&s;umed and &s;wept them off as rubbi&s;h from the face of the earth. <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way,</HI> which eyther the lu&s;ts of wicked men have led them into, or which the ju&s;tice of the Lord hath brought them into. <HI>Ha&s;t thou ob&s;erved the old way?</HI></P>
<Q>Which wicked men have troden?</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>Men of Iniquity;</HI> Which phra&s;e plainly im|ports, that he doth not &s;peake of the ordinary race, or ranke of &s;inners, but of the Extreame&s;t &s;inners, men &s;o full of ini|quity, that they de&s;erved this blacke Title, <HI>men of Iniquity.</HI> Antichri&s;t is called not onely <HI>a man of &s;in,</HI> or <HI>the man of &s;in,</HI> but (which implyeth a &s;inner of a higher forme, then both the former) <HI>That man of &s;in</HI> (2 The&s;. 2.3.) He being indeed not onely among the chiefe&s;t &s;inners, but the chiefe of &s;inners. The phra&s;e in the Text is a degree lower then that, yet it notes a very great degreee. And therefore when the Prophet would a&s;&s;ure the greate&s;t &s;inners repenting and returning to God, of the readines of God to pardon, he expre&s;&s;eth them in this &s;tile (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 55.7.) <HI>Let the wicked for&s;ake his way, and the unrigh|teous man,</HI> or (as the Original Text hath it) <HI>the man of iniqui|ty, his thoughts and</HI> &amp;c. As <HI>a man of Bloods</HI> notes a very bloody man, a man given up to that particular &s;in of cruelty. So <HI>a man of iniquity,</HI> is one given up to &s;in in Generall. Ha&s;t thou marked the old way which wicked men, men of iniquity, have
<Q>Trodden.</Q></P>
<P>This word, <HI>trodden,</HI> referred both to a &s;infull and a &s;uffer|ing way, notes the frequency of their going or being in tho&s;e
<PB N="139" REF="79"> wayes. And as it is referred to their &s;infull way alone, it notes fir&s;t their boldne&s;&s;e in &s;inning; &s;econdly, their re&s;olvedne&s;&s;e to &s;in: A trodden way, is &s;uch a way as a man hath often gone, and in which he is not afraid to goe. <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note. Fir&s;t,
<Q>The way of Sin and Error is an old way.</Q></P>
<P>The Devill &s;inned from the beginning, and men have &s;inned from their beginning, not onely have there been &s;innings, but great &s;innings from the begining; the old way is the way of &s;in, though the olde&s;t way be not. There was holines before there was &s;inne, and truth before there was Error; So that the way of &s;inne is the old way, but not the olde&s;t way. God, all who&s;e wayes are holy, was from everla&s;ting. The Angels who have been holy as long as they have been, were from the be|ginning. And the fir&s;t beginning of man in his conver&s;ation, was, no doubt, like his con&s;titution, holy. He quickly went out of the way, but &s;urely his fir&s;t &s;tep was not out of the way, he went right before he went wrong, and &s;tood before he fell. Againe, if you take the way for the way of puni&s;hment.</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>That God in all ages hath puni&s;hed &s;inners in their &s;infull wayes.</Q>
<P>God hath every where and every when left the tract and print of his anger and di&s;plea&s;ure upon &s;inners; though &s;ome particular &s;inners, have gone unpuni&s;hed in &s;ome age, yet there was never any age wherein &s;inne was not puni&s;hed in &s;ome. The Lord gives a morall &s;topp to &s;inne perpetually, that is, by his Lawes he declares again&s;t it, his word is expre&s;&s;e again&s;t all ungodlynes, both the word of his Command, and the word of his threatning. Now as the Lord doth alwayes put this morall &s;topp in the way of &s;inne, &s;o, he often puts a Judiciary &s;topp, or a &s;top by way of Judgement. And as in the 3^d of <HI>Gene&s;is,</HI> he &s;et a flaming &s;word in the way of the tree of life, &s;o he continually &s;ets a flaming word, that is, a threat|ning to keepe the way of the tree of death, that is, of &s;inne. Thus he alwayes meetes &s;infull men in the way of their lu&s;ts (as the Angel met <HI>Balaam</HI> when he went to cur&s;e the <HI>I&s;rael</HI> of
<PB N="140" REF="80"> God) with a drawne &s;word to &s;topp them in their way; the Lord hath &s;et many drawne &s;words in the way of every &s;inne; and he hath left the prints of his wrath upon the backs of ma|ny &s;inners, that wee &s;hould take heed of &s;inning. The Lord hath left many &s;ad examples upon record again&s;t &s;inne, nor hath he at any time favoured it, or done any thing which might indeed encourage &s;inners; for though &s;ometimes wic|ked men have pro&s;per'd, yet, &s;hould wee looke into all times, wee cannot finde that wicked men were ever ble&s;&s;ed; Judgement hath overtaken them &s;ooner or later. And if it hath at any time come too late to overtake them in this world, yet it will come &s;oone enough to overtake theirs in this, or them&s;elves in the world which is to come. No man is ble&s;&s;ed, at any time, who comes at la&s;t to be mi&s;erable.</P>
<P>Thirdly, In that he &s;aith; <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way?</HI></P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>It is our duty to ob&s;erve and marke, as the way of &s;infull men, &s;o the way in which God puni&s;heth their &s;inne.</Q>
<P>All the wayes of God are to be marked; as wee are to ob|&s;erve what the Lord &s;peakes, &s;o what he doth; his works as well as his word, are remarkeable. <HI>Who &s;o is wi&s;e</HI> (&s;aith the P&s;almi&s;t, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 107.43.) <HI>and will ob&s;erve the&s;e things, even they &s;hall under&s;tand the loving kindnes of the Lord.</HI> I may &s;ay al&s;o, that they &s;hall under&s;tand the judgements of the Lord. And againe, the Prophet confirmes it (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 14.9.) <HI>Who is wi&s;e and he &s;hall under&s;tand the&s;e things prudent and he &s;hall know them; for the wayes of the Lord are right, and the Ju&s;t &s;hall walke in them, but the tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ors &s;hall fall therein.</HI> The wicked fall in the way of his commandements, and therefore &s;urely they &s;hall fall in the way of his judgements. And as the Lord hath given us Exam|ples of this, &s;o he hath given this as the u&s;e of tho&s;e Examples that wee &s;hould marke and ob&s;erve them. The Apo&s;tle (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.) &s;hewes that all the dealings of God with that his anci|ent People the <HI>Jewes,</HI> are written and recorded as our Exam|ples (<HI>ver.</HI> 5, 6, 7.) <HI>With many of them God was not well plea&s;ed, but they were overthrowne in the wilderne&s;s. Now the&s;e things were our Examples, to the Intent that wee &s;hould not lu&s;t after evill things as they lu&s;ted, neither be Idolaters, as &s;ome of them were, nor fornica|tors,
<PB N="141" REF="80"> nor tempt Chri&s;t, nor murmure,</HI> &amp;c. He &s;huts up all with the &s;ame doctrine (<HI>ver.</HI> 11.) <HI>Now all the&s;e things happened unto them for En&s;amples, and are written for our admonition, upon whom the Ends of the Earth are come, therefore let him that &s;tandeth take heed lea&s;t hee fall.</HI> The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> al&s;o (2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.) brings in; fir&s;t, the in&s;tance of the Angells that fell; &s;econdly, of the old world; thi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">dly, of <HI>Sodome</HI> and <HI>Gomorrah, Whom God condemned with an overthrow, making them an en&s;ample unto tho&s;e that af<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">er &s;hould live ungodly.</HI> The Scripture &s;peakes of two &s;orts of En|&s;amples. F<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">r&s;t, for imitation; &s;econdly, for caution; The lap&s;ed Angels, the old world, the&s;e Cities <HI>Sodom</HI> and <HI>Gomorrah,</HI> are all left as En&s;amples for caution, that all after ages mark|ing the old way of their &s;inne and puni&s;hment, might feare to &s;inne and &s;uffer as they have done.</P>
<P>Fourthly, From the manner of this Expre&s;&s;ion <HI>(which wicked men have troden)</HI> taking the way conjunctively for the way both of &s;inne and puni&s;hment, this troddennes of it notes the frequent pa&s;&s;age which many have made through it; They have not gone it once onely but often. Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>As wicked men offend often, &s;o the Lord hath puni&s;hed often, as they have made pathes in &s;inne, &s;o God hath made pathes in Judge|ment.</Q>
<P>It is ea&s;ie to follow &s;inners (as it were) by the print and tract of tho&s;e evills which have overtaken them. But I pa&s;&s;e it here, becau&s;e <HI>Eliphaz</HI> proceeds more directly to de&s;cribe the puni&s;hment of wicked men in the next words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="16" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 16.</HI></BIBL> Which were cut downe out of time, and who&s;e founda|tion was overflowne with a flood.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>At this ver&s;e the Original hath a very con&s;picuous note of di&s;tinction. The <HI>Jewes</HI> are very exact in ob&s;erving the letters and the ver&s;es of every booke in the Bible, and between the&s;e two ver&s;es is the middle of the booke:<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> there being exact|ly the &s;ame number of ver&s;es behinde as we have had before in this whole book of <HI>Job</HI> (taking the 16^t^h ver&s;e Inclu&s;ively) So that now wee are halfe the booke over according to the number of ver&s;es. The whole containing 1070. The
<PB N="142" REF="81"> former part hath had 535. and as many remaine for the lat|ter part. This I touch onely by the way.</P>
<Q>Which were cut downe.</Q>
<P>The words carry an alu&s;ion to the felling of trees; as if hee had &s;ayd;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pleri&abque; reddunt &s;ucci&s;i &s;unt; &s;ed ver|bum hoc nunqua~ occurrit in ea &s;ignificatione in &s;acris literis &s;ed tantu~ apud doc|tores Hebraeoru~ id&abque; per meta&mdash; the&s;in literarum a verbo <GAP DESC="foreign"> cum enim tan|tum occurrat in libro Job, ibi vertitur rugare aut corrugare aut rugas con|trahere.</NOTE> The&s;e men were like great Oakes and tall Cedars, but the Lord cut them downe. The word is Conceived more properly &s;ignifying to wrinckle, or to make furrowes in the face; for this word is u&s;ed but once more in all the Bible, &amp; it is in the 16^t^h Chapter of this Book, <HI>ver.</HI> 8^t^h, and there wee tran|&s;late, <HI>wrinckles; Thou ha&s;t filled mee with wrinckles, which is a wit|nes again&s;t me.</HI> So &s;ome render it here; <HI>Who were wrinckled out of time.</HI> Now what are wrinckles? they are the markes of old age, and they &s;hew that weaknes is coming upon us, or that wee are in our declining Condition; &s;o that it is a very Ele|gant Expre&s;&s;ion to &s;ay, <HI>They were wrinckled out of time;</HI> that is, <HI>they were old afore they were old,</HI> before they were old according to the nature of man, they were made old by the Judgements of God; They lookt as if they were worne, &s;pent, and eaten out by time, whereas indeed they were &s;pent, eaten, and worne out with the wrath and indignation of God which fell upon them. Thus <HI>they were wrinckled out of time,</HI> or <HI>before their time.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ine tempore, vel non tempus, <HI>i. e.</HI> an|tequam exple|rent vitae annos, &s;ecundam com|munem naturae legem.</NOTE><HI>They were cut downe, and no time,</HI> as &s;ome render: But it may be &s;ayd as <HI>Solomon</HI> did (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 3.1.) <HI>There is a time for every thing;</HI> how then could they be cut downe in no time? There may be a twofold interpretation given of this Hebrai&s;me.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t this, to &s;hew that they dyed a violent not a naturall death, that eyther God by his immediate Judgements did cut them off, or that he gave them up to the Ju&s;tice of man, who cut them off before their time. Man hath a &s;et time, an or|dinary time of dying (the dayes of man are three&s;core yeares and ten, this is the ordinary time of dying) they that dye be|fore, are in Scripture &s;ence, <HI>Cut downe out of time,</HI> or <HI>not in time,</HI> that is, not in that time at which men u&s;ually dye according to the cour&s;e and cu&s;tome of nature.</P>
<P>Secondly, when 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>They were cut downe without time,</HI> the meaning is, they were cut downe very &s;uddenly, as if it were done without any time at all; God was &s;o farre from lingring or taking up long time to de&s;troy the&s;e men, that he
<PB N="143" REF="81"> cut them downe (as it were) without any time at all,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ine tempore, verti pote&s;t, &s;ine mora.</NOTE> even in a moment, in an In&s;tant, as &s;peedily as a man can thinke it, farre more &s;peedily then any man can do it. He did it without delay. As u&s;ually the grace of God, &s;o often the wrath of God makes no demurres.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve from the manner of Expre&s;&s;ion, <HI>Cut downe.</HI></P>
<P>That, <HI>God brings ruining Judgements on the &s;toute&s;t of &s;inners.</HI></P>
<P>Hee doth not onely pull off &s;ome of their fruit, and leaves, or lopp off their branches, but he cuts them downe, yea hee &s;tubs them up by the roots, till there is nothing left, they are cut downe <HI>root and branch.</HI> Thus the Lord threatned the hou&s;e of <HI>Jeroboam</HI> (1 <HI>King.</HI> 14.10.) <HI>Behold I will bring evill upon the hou&s;e of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam, him that pi&s;&s;eth again&s;t the wall</HI> (that is, every man of his hou&s;e) <HI>and him that is &s;hut up and left in I&s;rael</HI> (that is, him that is mo&s;t e&s;teemed, as things &s;hut up are, and him that is lea&s;t e&s;teemed, as things left abroad are; or tho&s;e who are &s;ecured or have &s;ecured them|&s;elves in &s;tronge&s;t holds, as men &s;hut up are, as well as tho&s;e who are left naked and expo&s;ed to the ea&s;ie&s;t dangers, as men left at large are) <HI>and will take away the remnant of the hou&s;e of Jeroboam</HI> (that is, all who have e&s;caped or &s;urvived the for|mer troubles) <HI>as a man taketh away dounge till it be all gone;</HI> that is, till his hou&s;e be utterly exterminated: for dounge being a filthy and noy&s;ome thing, men never leave taking it away, from places where it is an annoyance, till they have taken it all away. <HI>That which is offen&s;ive in the whole nature of it, is offen|&s;ive in the lea&s;t degree of it.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, When 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>Hee cuts them downe without time, or before their time,</HI> we may ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Wicked men are often ripe for Judgement, before they are ripe in yeares.</Q>
<P>It is &s;aid in the 15^t^h of <HI>Gene&s;is,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum potui&s;&s;ent diutive per&s;i&s;te|re. <HI>Tygur.</HI> Capti &s;unt im|maturi. <HI>Sep.</HI></NOTE> <HI>The Iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full,</HI> their &s;in is not come to a full &s;tature; for as there is a fullnes of &s;tature in holynes unto which Saints at la&s;t ar|rive in Chri&s;t, &s;o there is a fullnes of &s;tature in wickednes to which the Lord &s;uffers &s;inners to arrive; and as when Saints have attained their full &s;tature in holynes, they are received
<PB N="144" REF="82"> into glory; &s;o when wicked men have attained a full &s;tature in wickednes, they are cut off and turned downe to de&s;tructi|on. Though the Lord &s;uffer long, yet he will not alwayes &s;uf|fer. And as &s;ome are but young men, yet old Saints, and have had much Experience of God, and of the wayes of grace, though but little of the world (that di&s;tinction which the A|po&s;tle gives of Saints into little children, young men, and fa|thers (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 2.13, 14.) is not to be under&s;tood in reference to naturall yeares, but to &s;tanding in grace, or to a growth and progre&s;s in holynes) &s;o &s;ome wicked men, are but of few yeares, or but young in reference to their naturall age, who yet are old in &s;inne, aged in wickednes they are fathers in abomination, while but children in time, and &s;o are cut downe before time: <HI>Wicked men are never cut downe till they are ripe in &s;inne, but they are often cut downe before they are ripe in nature.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Which were cut downe out of time;</HI> namely, in little time, or without delay.</P>
<P>Hence Note;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> God can quickly make an End of wicked men.</Q></P>
<P>Hee needs not take any long time to doe it; hee tooke but very little time to make the world, it was made in &s;ix dayes, which in reference to the greatne&s;s of the worke is no time: when a great thing is done in a little time, wee may &s;ay it was done without any time at all. Now if the Lord could frame a world without time, &s;urely he can cut downe the world, or the inhabitants of it in a little time? <HI>Ruining worke, is ea&s;ier then building worke.</HI> He that built (in this &s;ence) without time, can pull downe without time; wee need not trouble our &s;elves with &s;uch thoughts as the&s;e, when wee &s;ee wicked men, Enemies of God and his people in their height and &s;trength, O what a length of time will it require? O how many yeares mu&s;t be &s;pent in cutting downe the&s;e &s;trong Oakes, tho&s;e tall Cedars? the Lord can cut them downe in a moment. Our late experinces have &s;hewed us wicked men cut downe without time; before they thought they could be &s;ha|ken, yea toucht, they have be<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n cut downe; when they con|cluded they could not be reached, they have been ruined. The
<PB N="145" REF="82"> Je&s;uites and other Matchavillian politicians have a received Maxime of State among them; <HI>Take time and you may doe any thing.</HI> If you are di&s;appointed in a project this yeare, waite a few yeares longer (&s;ay they) and you &s;hall eyther finde or make a way to accompli&s;h it. But the Lord can doe any thing he hath a minde to at any time, or without taking time. The Apo&s;tle prophecying of the Antichri&s;t &s;aith (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 2.6, 7.) <HI>Now ye know what withholdeth, that he may he revealed in his time; for the my&s;tery of iniquity doth already worke, onely he who now let|teth will let, till he be taken out of the way.</HI> The power and &s;plen|dour of the Romane Empire &s;tood in Antichri&s;ts way, and he could not cut it downe without time; He was hacking and hewing, heaving and thru&s;ting many yeares, yea &s;ome ages before he could remove that blocke out of his way, and &s;o make way for his owne Greatnes. The wi&s;e&s;t of men mu&s;t have time to bring about their ends. Onely God, the onely wi&s;e God, can cut downe and remove what&s;oever &s;tands in his way (though it &s;tand like a great mountaine) without time or without taking time, if once his time be come in which he would have it removed. The wicked of tho&s;e elder times were cut downe &s;uddenly, without time. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> confirmes it fur|ther in the next words.</P>
<Q>Who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood.</Q>
<P>In this latter clau&s;e <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes more clearly to hint at &s;ome particular wicked men, or to &s;hew who tho&s;e wicked men were that hee Intends as the object of his ob&s;ervation, namely, tho&s;e, <HI>who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood.</HI> It is u&s;uall in Scripture, by &s;ome one word to alude to great acti|ons and changes pa&s;t. Take two or three In&s;tances for Illu|&s;tration of this; (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 55.15.) <HI>David</HI> Imprecates vengeance upon his enemies in this Language; <HI>Let them goe downe quick into hell.</HI> Which expre&s;&s;ion carrieth a plaine allu&s;ion unto that dreadfull judgement. (<HI>Numb.</HI> 16.31, 32.) <HI>It came to pa&s;&s;e as hee</HI> (that is, <HI>Mo&s;es) had made an End of &s;peaking all the&s;e words, the ground clave a&s;under that was under them; and the earth opened her mouth and &s;wallowed them up and their hou&s;es, and all the men which appertained unto Corah, and all their goods. They and all that apper|tained to them went downe alive into the pit,</HI> &amp;c. This hi&s;toricall
<PB N="146" REF="83"> Narration the P&s;almi&s;t hints at in his imprecation, as is plaine by that word <HI>quick</HI> or <HI>alive; Let them goe downe quick</HI> (or alive) <HI>into hell;</HI> that is, let &s;uch wrath &s;eaze upon them, as &s;eazed up|on <HI>Corah, Dathan</HI> and <HI>Abiram,</HI> on whom <HI>the earth clo&s;ed and they peri&s;hed from among the Congregation.</HI> Againe, when the Apo&s;tle makes promi&s;e to Saints in the behalfe of Chri&s;t what a&s;&s;i&s;tance they might expect from him in time of temptation, and what i&s;&s;ue from it, he thus a&s;&s;ures them; <HI>The God of peace &s;hall tread Satan under your feete &s;hortly,</HI> (Rom. 16.20.) Which plainly beares upon that fir&s;t grand Promi&s;e, that <HI>(Chri&s;t) the &s;eede of the Woman &s;hould breake the Serpents head</HI> (Gen. 3.15.) for it is by vertue of that act of Je&s;us Chri&s;t brui&s;ing the head of Satan, that Satan is troden under our feet. As Chri&s;t brui&s;ed him un|der his owne feete, &s;o hee will brui&s;e, or tread him under out feete; the &s;eede of the woman in per&s;on, as well as in their repre&s;entative, &s;hall breake the Serpents head. La&s;tly, tho&s;e words (<HI>Rom.</HI> 9.16.) hold a cleare corre&s;pondence with that Story (<HI>Gen.</HI> 27.) concerning <HI>Jacob</HI> and <HI>E&s;au, So then it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that &s;heweth mercy.</HI> Hee had &s;ayd before that <HI>God loved Jacob and hated E&s;au;</HI> and concludes upon it, <HI>So then, it is not of him that willeth,</HI> &amp;c. Wee may take notice in that famous peice of the divine Hi&s;to|ry, that much meanes was u&s;ed that <HI>Jacob</HI> might obtaine the Ble&s;&s;ing; <HI>Rebecca</HI> her heart was &s;et upon it; &s;hee did what &s;hee could to procure the Ble&s;&s;ing for her younger Sonne, her will was wholy in it; and <HI>Jacob,</HI> hee run for it too; for as &s;oone as Ever his mother had given him coun&s;ell, he ran pre&s;ently to the flock and brought in a Kid to make the &s;avoury meat for <HI>I&s;aac;</HI> Now, the Apo&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> to advance the freenes of grace, doth not only in&s;tance in tho&s;e two per&s;ons, but u&s;eth a phra&s;e of &s;peech which &s;avours &s;o much of that pa&s;&s;age, that though he had not named the men, yet every man who knew the Scriptures mu&s;t needs under&s;tand both of whom and of what he meant it; <HI>It is not of him that willeth,</HI> &amp;c. that is, it was neyther <HI>Rebeckaes</HI> will to have it &s;o, nor <HI>Jacobs</HI> ha&s;t (which ap|peared in his running to the flock) to have it &s;o, that gave him the Ble&s;&s;ing, but it was of God that &s;hewed mercy. And as it was then, &s;o it is now, though a man be as willing as <HI>Rebec|kah,</HI> or though he make as much &s;peed as <HI>Jacob</HI> for his ble&s;&s;ing,
<PB N="147" REF="83"> yet all comes freely by the grace of God. Thus the frequent u&s;age of Scripture &s;hewes us how much the Spirit of God de|lights to lead our thoughts (by the light of &s;ome one word) a great way back into the con&s;ideration of what hath been done and written of old for our in&s;truction. The words of the text now under di&s;cu&s;&s;ion, <HI>(Who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood)</HI> are &s;urely an allu&s;ion to &s;ome particular per&s;ons or acti|on in the dayes of old, and they may be applyed three wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To the drowning of the whole world in the time of <HI>Noah</HI> by a flood, when the Lord opened the windowes of hea|ven, and overwhelmed both man and bea&s;t in tho&s;e mighty waters; which univer&s;al judgement is (by way of eminence) called, <HI>The Deluge,</HI> or, <HI>The Flood,</HI> unto this very day.</P>
<P>Secondly, They may have re&s;pect to the overthrow of <HI>So|dome</HI> and <HI>Gomorrah,</HI> which Cities, though they were de&s;troyed by fire, yet it was with a flood of fire. The Text &s;aith expre&s;|ly (<HI>Gen.</HI> 19.24.) <HI>Then the Lord rayned upon Sodome and upon Ge|morrah brim&s;tone and fire from the Lord out of heaven, and he over|threw the Cities &amp; all the plaine,</HI> &amp;c. They were overflowne with a flood of fire.</P>
<P>Thirdly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hunc locum a v. <HI>15.</HI> ad v <HI>20.</HI> omnino re&s;picere ad dimer&s;ionem Pharaones &amp; Egyptiorum non levibus &s;uadeor conjecturis. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> The allu&s;ion may be carried to the de&s;truction of <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and the <HI>Egyptians</HI> in the red Sea; They al&s;o <HI>were over|flowne with a flood.</HI> The waters of the red Sea which &s;tood up as a wall for <HI>I&s;raell</HI> to pa&s;&s;e thorow, at the Command of God re|turning upon the <HI>Egyptians,</HI> &s;wallowed them up, them and their Chariots and their hor&s;es. <HI>The enemy &s;ayd</HI> (thus <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> de|&s;cribes that fatal overthrow (<HI>Exod.</HI> 15.9, 10.) <HI>I will pur&s;ue, I will overtake, I will divide the &s;poyle: my lu&s;t &s;hall be &s;atisfied upon them, I will draw my &s;word, my hand &s;hall de&s;troy them.</HI> Thus the enemy raged &amp; foamed with revenge, like a tempe&s;tuous Sea, and had opened all the &s;luces of his will to overflow them. And when the enemy had thus breathed out his wrath in a foure times repeated, <HI>I will;</HI> Then the <HI>Lord did blow with his wind, the Sea covered them, They &s;anke as lead in the mighty wa|ters.</HI> So then the words may relate to any of tho&s;e three &s;ig|nall Judgements, to the drowning of the old world with a flood of water, to the de&s;truction of <HI>Sodome</HI> and <HI>Gomorrah</HI> with a flood of fire, or to the overthrow of <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and his <HI>Egyptian</HI> ho&s;t in the red Sea.</P>
<PB N="148" REF="84">
<P>But more particularly, for the explication of the&s;e words; <HI>who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood.</HI></P>
<Q>Who&s;e foundation.</Q>
<P>This word <HI>foundation</HI> taken in a proper &s;ence, referres to a materiall building. And the foundation of any building is the &s;tability and &s;trength of it; by <HI>foundation,</HI> in a metaphorical &s;ence,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ea omnia quae illis velur fun|damenti loco e|rant, in quibus &s;pem &amp; prae&s;i|dium ponebant, &amp;c. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> wee are to under&s;tand all tho&s;e things by which the &s;tate of per&s;ons or things is upheld; and here what&s;oever wicked men &s;upport &amp; beare up them&s;elves by, as a building is borne up by the foundation, is to be under&s;tood as their foundati|on. So their power, their riches, their councell, their wi&s;|dome, their friends and confederates; what&s;oever, I &s;ay, is the &s;upport of their worldly State, that's their foundation. And thus it is here &s;aid, <HI>their foundation was overflowne</HI>
<Q>With a flood.</Q></P>
<P>In two of the former In&s;tances, to which the allu&s;ion was made, their foundation was overflowne by a flood properly taken. If wee take it more generally for all wicked men, who at any time have been overthrowne, wee may &s;ay, that they have all been overflowne by a flood metaphorically. For &s;o</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The di&s;plea&s;ure of God, by what meanes or in&s;tru|ment &s;oever put forth is called a flood; whether is be by &s;word, or by famine, or by pe&s;tilence, it is a flood. (<HI>E&s;a.</HI> 8.7.) Wee read warre Compared to a flood; <HI>Now therefore behold the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, &s;trong and many</HI> (what were the&s;e waters?) <HI>Even the King of A&s;&s;yria, and all his glory;</HI> the King of <HI>A&s;&s;yria</HI> with his Armyes, in which he glori|ed, or which he counted his glory, were the waters of the ri|ver, &s;trong and many) <HI>and hee &s;hall come up over all his channells, and goe over all his hands</HI> (that is, the former Limits of his Do|minion) <HI>And he &s;hall pa&s;&s;e thorow Judah, hee &s;hall overflow and goe over.</HI> There The Sword is Compared to a flood, or to a migh|ty river, which beares downe all before it. The &s;ame Prophet &s;peakes againe in the &s;ame Language (<HI>E&s;a.</HI> 59.19.) <HI>When the enemy &s;hall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord &s;hall lift up a Standard again&s;t him;</HI> as if it had been &s;aid, <HI>The enemy &s;hall come ru&s;hing in like a mighty torrent but the Spirit of God, like a more migh|ty
<PB N="149" REF="84"> winde, &s;hall blow and ru&s;h upon him,</HI> cau&s;ing him to recoile and give back, or (as our Margent hath it) <HI>put him to flight.</HI> Againe (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 13.) The Prophet fore&s;hewes the approaching cala|mity upon tho&s;e who had &s;educed the <HI>Jewes</HI> into a vaine &s;e|curity; which is there called, <HI>the building of a wall with untem|pered morter.</HI> A wall he calls that prophecy, becau&s;e it pro|mi&s;ed &s;afety, and defence; but he calls it al&s;o a wall built with untempered morter, becau&s;e that fal&s;e prophecy was a weake prophecy, and &s;hould &s;hortly fall. The manner how, he gives us in the notion of the Text (<HI>ver&s;.</HI> 13.) <HI>Wherefore thus &s;aith the Lord God, I will even rent it with a &s;tormy winde in my fury, and there &s;hall be as an overflowing &s;hower in mine anger,</HI> &amp;c. that is, wrath &s;hall be upon it (the Babylonian Army was the &s;pecial judgement in which that wrath was expre&s;&s;ed) and that <HI>&s;hall be as an overflowing &s;hower.</HI> Great and continuall &s;howers will try the &s;tronge&s;t buildings, and quickly overthrow the weake. A wall of untempered morter is no match for a &s;torme. As our Saviour al&s;o a&s;&s;ures us in the clo&s;e of his Sermon on the Mount, (<HI>Matth.</HI> 7.27.) where all tho&s;e evills, troubles, af|flictions, &s;orrowes, and per&s;ecutions, whether &s;ent upon &s;uch as are really godly, or onely in name and outward profe&s;&s;ion, are called <HI>raine, floods, winds.</HI> So &s;aith the Text, <HI>The raine de&s;|cended, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon the hou&s;e and it fell, and great was the fall of it.</HI> While it &s;tood, it &s;tood to no purpo&s;e but for a &s;hew, but when it fell, it fell to pur|po&s;e, <HI>The fall thereof was great.</HI> Thus it is more then evident from Scripture phra&s;e, that raines and floods &s;ignifie all &s;orts of afflicting evils, and therefore we need not re&s;traine the word <HI>flood</HI> in the Text to a Deluge of Elementary water, or of water in a proper &s;ence, but wee may Enlarge it to any kinde of af|flicting Evill or trouble what&s;oever that falls upon man. And the Scripture is (I conceave) &s;o frequent in the u&s;e of this me|taphor of a flood, and of waters, where great calamities are &s;et forth, for the&s;e two rea&s;ons.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To note the &s;wiftnes and &s;uddennes of the judge|ments of God. Floods come often very &s;uddenly, and ri&s;e not onely beyond expectation, but before there is any the lea&s;t expectation of them. <HI>Noahs</HI> flood was long foretold before it came, but when the time came, wherein it &s;hould come, it came
<PB N="150" REF="85"> at once. Though God give long warning of his judgements, yet mo&s;t men are &s;urpriz<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d with them, they come like a flood.</P>
<P>Secondly, To note the Irre&s;i&s;tablenes of the Judgements of God; who or what can &s;tand before mighty waters? Great floods doe not onely wa&s;h and overflow all, but ruine and o|verthrow all, there's no re&s;i&s;ting. Such are the Judgements of God, they are a flood both for their &s;uddain ri&s;ing and breaking in upon &s;inners, and likewi&s;e for their Irre&s;i&s;tible violence in breaking and ruining them.</P>
<P>Further, It is not to be pa&s;&s;ed by, That <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not onely &s;ay, They were <HI>overflowne,</HI> but, <HI>Their foundation was over|flowne with a flood.</HI> He calls it the overflowing of their founda|tion, to note, that they were totally or utterly ruined &amp; over|throwne: for when the foundation is de&s;troyed, all is de&s;troy|ed; de&s;truction to the foundation is the wor&s;t of de&s;tructions. The cruel enemies of the <HI>Jewes</HI> cryed, <HI>Ra&s;e it, ra&s;e it even to the foundation thereof</HI> (P&s;. 137.7.) but to ra&s;e the foundation it &s;elfe is more cruel then ra&s;ing to the foundation. When the Lord threatned a full and final de&s;truction of tho&s;e fooli&s;h Prophets who had &s;eene vaine vi&s;ions for his people, he &s;ayd (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 13.14) <HI>I will breake downe the wall that ye have daubed with untempe|red morter, and bring it downe to the ground, &s;o that the foundation thereof &s;hall be di&s;covered,</HI> &amp;c. That is, I will de&s;troy it as farre as de&s;truction it &s;elfe can goe. There &s;hall not only not a &s;tone be left upon a &s;tone of this building above ground, but even the under-ground &s;tones &s;hall not be left. The very foundati|on &s;hall be opened and di&s;covered. That which lyeth at the bottome, or the bottome it &s;elfe of tho&s;e flattering prophecies, all the wiles &amp; &s;ecret way<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> of them &s;halbe revealed. <HI>David</HI> com|plaines of tho&s;e irreparable breaches made upon the civill &s;tate in this &s;tile (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 11.3.) <HI>If the foundations be de&s;troyed, what can the righteous doe?</HI> The civill foundation of a Nation or people, is their Lawes, and Con&s;titutions, the order and power that is among them, that's the foundation of a People, and when once this foundation is de&s;troyed, <HI>what can the righteous doe?</HI> what can the be&s;t, the wi&s;e&s;t in the world doe in &s;uch a ca&s;e? what can any man doe, if there be not a foundation of Government left among men? There is no helpe nor an&s;wer in &s;uch a ca&s;e, but that which followes in the 4^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame P&s;alme;
<PB N="151" REF="85"> <HI>The Lord is in his holy Temple, the Lords throane is in heaven, his eyes behold, his eyelids try the children of men.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; in the mid&s;t of the&s;e confu&s;ions, when as it is &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 82.5.) <HI>All the foundations of the earth are out of cour&s;e;</HI> yet God keepes his cour&s;e &s;till, he is where he was and as he was, without va|riablenes or &s;hadow of turning. Wee read in the vi&s;ion of the fower Monarchyes (<HI>Dan.</HI> 2.34.) That <HI>The &s;tone Cut out with|out hands &s;mote the Image upon his feete that were of Iron and Clay, and brake them to peeces:</HI> The &s;tone did not &s;trike the Image up|on the head, or upon the brea&s;t, the golden head, the &s;ilver brea&s;t, &amp;c. but upon the feete that were of Iron and Clay. Now the feete are to a naturall body, as the foundation is to an Artificiall body; A mans feete are the foundation of his body; if the feete be &s;mitten and broken to pieces, the body mu&s;t needs fall. And therefore as &s;oone as ever it was &s;ayd, That the Stone <HI>brake the feete to peices,</HI> The ruine of the whole Image is de&s;cribed in the immediately following words of the vi&s;ion (<HI>ver.</HI> 35.) <HI>Then was the Iron, the Clay, the bra&s;s, the &s;ilver, and the gold broken to peices together, and became like the chaffe of the Summer thre&s;hing floore, and the winde carried them away, that no place was found for them.</HI> The breaking of the feete, was the breaking up of the foundation, and &s;o the <HI>breaking downe of all. Who&s;e foundation was overflowne with a flood.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Wicked men thinke them&s;elves very &s;ure, they have foun|dations, they lay foundations.</Q></P>
<P>The people of God are &s;ometimes over-conceited about the &s;trength and &s;tability of their worldly foundations. Holy <HI>Da|vid</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>In his pro&s;perity, I &s;hall never be moved, Lord by thy favour thou ha&s;t made my mountaine to &s;tand &s;trong,</HI> (P&s;al. 30.6, 7.) And if a godly man may, by the &s;trength of temptation, thus over|reckon the &s;trength of an Earthly &s;tate, what may they doe who&s;e &s;tate, yea who&s;e minds are altogether earthly? How of|ten doe they judge them&s;elves wi&s;e and politique enough to lay for them&s;elves an everla&s;ting foundation in things which cannot la&s;t? and that they are &s;o &s;urely bottom'd in the fa|vour of men, that they <HI>&s;hall never be removed. Babylon</HI> thinks her &s;elfe &s;etled at this day upon &s;uch everla&s;ting mountaines,
<PB N="152" REF="86"> upon &s;uch perpetuall hills of power and policy, that certain|ly her foundation &s;hall never be overflowne. Thus &s;hee &s;pake her heart out, while <HI>&s;hee &s;ayd in her heart</HI> (Rev. 18.7.) <HI>I &s;it a Queene, and am no widdow, and &s;hall &s;ee no &s;orrow.</HI> Babylon is bot|tom'd &amp; foundation'd upo~ &s;o many hils, that is, upon &s;o many Intere&s;ts &amp; advantages of &s;trength, as render her (to her &s;elfe) impregnable and unremoveable. And as this vaine confidence beares up the Spirit of that Man of &s;in, &s;o of very many &s;infull men, who pre&s;ume they are upon a &s;ure foundation, when in|deed none but the godly mans foundation is &s;ure. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 10.25.) <HI>As the whirlewinde pa&s;&s;eth, &s;o is the wicked no more, but the righteous is an everla&s;ting foundation.</HI> The wicked man &s;uppo&s;eth him&s;elfe founded as on a Rock of ages an everla&s;ting &s;trength, &s;uch as the righteous man hath in God, or &s;uch as God is to a righteous man. (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 26.3.) <HI>Yet as the whirlewinde bee pa&s;&s;eth away but the righteous is an everla&s;ting foundation.</HI> Wee finde not the Copulative word, <HI>is,</HI> expre&s;&s;ed in the Hebrew, there 'tis onely, <HI>but the righteous an Everla&s;ting foundation;</HI> So that I &s;hould rather read it thus; <HI>But the righteous have an everla&s;ting foundation:</HI> wicked men &s;eeme to have, but the righteous man indeed <HI>hath an Everla&s;ting foundation.</HI> There is no earthly foun|dation everla&s;ting; For all earthly things pa&s;&s;e away, and are fo farre from la&s;ting for ever, that they la&s;t but (as it were) for a little, for a moment. What then is this everla&s;ting foun|dation? It is a foundation layd in heavenly things; The foun|dation which is layd in things above &s;hall abide; The things which are not &s;eene, and they onely, are eternal (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.18.) but the &s;tronge&s;t foundation layd in things below, endures but for a <HI>&s;ea&s;on; The things which are &s;eene, are temporal,</HI> as the Apo|&s;tle &s;peakes in the &s;ame place. Such foundations are &s;oone o|verflowne with a flood. As will appeare yet further in the next ob&s;ervation; Which take thus;
<Q>The flood and &s;torme of Gods anger will overflow all the foundati|ons, the &s;tronge&s;t foundations of wicked men.</Q></P>
<P>Their riches, their power, their wi&s;dome, their Councels, what&s;oever they have imagined, layd and made for a foundati|on to them&s;elves, eyther of honour or &s;afety, &s;hall be over|flowne and &s;wept quite away; yea all their refuges layd toge|ther
<PB N="153" REF="86"> will prove <HI>but a refuge of lyes, (I&s;a.</HI> 28.17.) <HI>Judgement al&s;o will I</HI> (&s;ayth the Lord) <HI>lay to the line, and righteou&s;nes to the plummet, and the hayle &s;hall &s;weepe away the refuge of lyes, and the waters &s;hall overflow the hiding place.</HI> That is, tho&s;e places where|in they thought to hide &amp; &s;ecure them&s;elves again&s;t the over|flowing &s;courge. A wicked man is in greate&s;t danger when he thinkes him&s;elfe in greate&s;t &s;afety, and then mo&s;t ready to fall when he &s;ayth in his owne heart, or boa&s;teth it out to others, that he is upon a &s;ure foundation; For what&s;oe|ver opinion he hath of it; yet the truth is, his foundation is but &s;and; and (which makes his ca&s;e more mi&s;erable) though he be told &s;o, and others have found it &s;o, yet he will not be|leeve it. While (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 44.20.) <HI>He feed|eth of a&s;hes, a deceaved heart hath turned him a&s;ide, that be cannot de|liver his &s;oule, nor &s;ay is there not a lye, or</HI> (as the former Scrip|ture hath it.) <HI>a refuge of lyes in my right hand.</HI> Only <HI>the righteous is, or hath</HI> (as <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peakes) <HI>an everla&s;ting foundation.</HI> A righ|teous man hath two foundations which &s;hall never be &s;haken, much le&s;&s;e overthrowne; who &s;o are &s;etled on tho&s;e founda|tions may be as confident as confidence it &s;elfe.</P>
<P>The fir&s;t of the&s;e two foundations is Gods Eternall Decree, his Decree of Election, that's an unmoveable foundation, and that is the foundation upon which beleevers build their hopes. The Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.19, 20.) is proving that even in the hou&s;e of God, that is, among the outward profe&s;&s;ors of the name of God, there are of all &s;orts, ve&s;&s;ells of gold and &s;ilver, ve&s;&s;ells al&s;o of wood and of Earth; <HI>Some to honour, and &s;ome to di&s;ho|nour;</HI> and when he had &s;aid of <HI>Himeneus and Philetus, that they had erred concerning the truth, &s;aying that the re&s;urrection is pa&s;t al|ready, and &s;o had overthrowne the faith of &s;ome,</HI> ver&s;. 18. Hee pre|&s;ently adds, What though it be thus, what though &s;ome men have fallen from their foundation, <HI>yet the foundation of God &s;tandeth &s;ure, having this Seale, The Lord knoweth who are his,</HI> ver&s;. 19. Where we have fir&s;t the foundation of God, namely, his decree of Election; Secondly, the Seale or a&s;&s;urance of it, as to him, even his owne certain knowledge of the Elect, <HI>The Lord knoweth who are his.</HI> So that while hypocrites or meere verbal formal profe&s;&s;ors back-&s;lide and Apo&s;tatize from the faith, yet the Elect are &s;afe and &s;tand fa&s;t in the purpo&s;e of
<PB N="154" REF="87"> God; and while many di&s;cover them&s;elves to be ve&s;&s;els of di&s;|honour in the hou&s;e of God, wood and Earth, of ba&s;e and britle materials; yet Saints, indeed, who are ve&s;&s;els of honour made of pure&s;t metal, of Gold and Silver, the&s;e &s;hall abide for ever. He that is once a ve&s;&s;el of honour, &s;hall alwayes be &s;o; <HI>For the foundation of God &s;tandeth &s;ure, having this Seale, The Lord knoweth who are his.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, As there is this more hidden foundation, upon which Saints are &s;ure, and which no flood can overflow; &s;o there is another &s;ure foundation, and that is <HI>Je&s;us Chri&s;t,</HI> upon which Saints are built, and therefore the holy Prophet having di&s;covered that refuge of lyes which he threatens &s;hould be &s;wept away by the overflowing &s;courge, &s;ubjoynes by way of Oppo&s;ition in the next ver&s;e (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 28.16.) <HI>Therefore thus &s;ayth the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Sion for a foundation a &s;tone, a tryed &s;tone, a precious corner &s;tone, a &s;ure foundation, and he that beleeveth &s;hall not make ha&s;t.</HI> Whom the Prophet means by this &s;ure foun|dation, the Apo&s;tle tells us expre&s;&s;ely and by name (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.11.) <HI>Other foundation can no man lay then that which is laid, which is Je&s;us Chri&s;t;</HI> and they that are built on him the living Rock (as all Beleevers are) have eternal life, and &s;hall never peri&s;h. This Chri&s;t him&s;elfe teacheth us (<HI>Matth.</HI> 7.24, 25.) <HI>Who &s;oe|ver beareth the&s;e &s;ayings of mine and doth them, I will liken him to a wi&s;e man that built his hou&s;e upon a Rock.</HI> And what's the Rock that the&s;e wife men build upon? This rock is Je&s;us Chri&s;t, hee is the rock of Ages; Hee fayles not, nor can they fall who are in him; as it followeth; <HI>Then the raine de&s;cended, the floods came, the winds blew and beat upon the hou&s;e, and it fell not, for it was foun|ded on a rock.</HI> Saints are <HI>lively &s;tones,</HI> and they <HI>comming to Chri&s;t</HI> (by faith) <HI>who is a living &s;tone, di&s;&s;alowed indeed of men, but cho&s;en of God and precious, are built up a &s;pirituall hou&s;e</HI> (1 Pet. 2.4, 5.) If this hou&s;e &s;hould fall, Chri&s;t mu&s;t fall too, for though Chri&s;t and this hou&s;e are di&s;tingui&s;hed, yet they are not divided; Chri&s;t and this hou&s;e are one; So then though the floods of an|gry men, &amp; of enraged Devils beate upon it, yet they &s;hall re|turne foaming out their owne &s;hame, &amp; when they have done their wor&s;t, they &s;hall but wa&s;h this hou&s;e, leaving it &s;ome|what more cleane, but no whit un&s;etled. This is the glory and priviledge of Beleevers, that while the &s;tronge&s;t foundati|ons
<PB N="155" REF="87"> of the Earth are overflowne with a flood, They have a twofold foundation, That of Election in the Love of God, and that of Redemption in the bloud of Chri&s;t, which can|not be overflowne by any the mo&s;t violent and impetuous flood.</P>
<P>So then, ungodly men are mi&s;erable, when they appeare mo&s;t happy, and at their be&s;t e&s;tate are altogether vanity; for eyther their e&s;tate hath no foundation, or but &s;uch a foun|dation as cannot &s;tand, and that is as bad or rather wor&s;e then none at all; It is better to have no appearance of &s;trength, then to have nothing but an appearance of it.</P>
<P>Further, may we not from the oppo&s;ite &s;tate of Godly men (at lea&s;t intimated in this, and toucht before) conclude, that they are happy when they appeare mo&s;t mi&s;erable? and that at their wor&s;t e&s;tate, they are altogether above uncertainty? For as they have a foundation, &s;o &s;uch a foundation as will &s;tand all &s;tormes and weathers; What can be added to their felicity, who are in an e&s;tate &s;o good (in the nature of it) that they need not de&s;ire a change, and &s;o &s;ure (in the foundation of it) that they need not feare a change, much le&s;&s;e an overflowing flood?</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> proceeds to de&s;cribe the particular wickednes of tho&s;e men, or how they did Expre&s;&s;e their wickedne&s;&s;e; <HI>Who&s;e foundation was thus overflowne; They &s;ay unto God depart from us,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="156" REF="88">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 17, 18.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Which &s;aid unto God, Depart from us, and what can the Almighty doe for them?</P>
<P>Yet he filled their hou&s;es with good things: but the coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the former context <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had charged <HI>Job</HI> with impie|ty again&s;t God, and called him to con&s;ider the di&s;pen&s;ati|ons of God in former times towards impious men, here he &s;hewes us what their impiety was, It was impiety hightned into bla&s;phemy; The &s;even abominations which were in their hearts, brake out at their lips, and were vomited out of their mouths in blacke choler, in choler as blacke as hell.</P>
<DIV3 N="17" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 17.</HI></BIBL> Which &s;aid unto God, depart from us, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The&s;e words are filled with the very &s;pirit of malice again&s;t God him&s;elfe; And we have the &s;ame breathed out in the &s;ame language in the former Chapter at the 14^t^h ver&s;e, there the reader may finde them explicated, and I &s;hall add &s;omewhat for a further explication here.</P>
<Q>Which &s;aid to God, depart from us.</Q>
<P>To this hight of madnes doe &s;ome wicked men ari&s;e, their &s;pirits being bigge with &s;inne, they bring forth or belch out this mon&s;ter of words; <HI>They &s;ay to God, depart from us.</HI> They (as it were) &s;end God a writ of Ejectment, they doe not pray or entreate God to depart from them, but with as much rude|nes and incivillity as unholynes and prophanenes, <HI>Say unto God, depart from us.</HI> 'Tis a word of command, from man, but &s;uch a one as breakes all the commandements of God. <HI>Mo&s;es (Numb.</HI> 16.26.) be&s;eeches the people, &s;aying, <HI>Depart I pray you from the tents of the&s;e wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs;</HI> but here we have wicked men not praying God to depart, but bidding him, <HI>they &s;ay depart from us. David</HI> &s;peakes to the wick|ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.115.) <HI>Depart from me ye evill doers, for I will keepe the commandements of my God;</HI> he bids them begone, He would
<PB N="157" REF="88"> not give them the lea&s;t wellcome or entertainment. And &s;o Je&s;us Chri&s;t is de&s;cribed &s;peaking to the wicked in the day of Judgement, (<HI>Matth.</HI> 7.23.) <HI>Depart from me,</HI> away, get you out of my pre&s;ence, I will not have to doe with you, I will doe nothing for you; <HI>Depart.</HI> His is a word of command, in|deed, which though they have no will to obey, yet they &s;hall obey it whether they will or no. Thus in the pre&s;ent text wicked men pre&s;ume to &s;ay to God him&s;elfe, <HI>depart from us,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That wicked or meere carnall men, have &s;ome appearances and impre&s;&s;es of the pre&s;ence of God upon their &s;pirits.</Q>
<P>They could not &s;ay to God, <HI>depart from us,</HI> had they not &s;ome impre&s;&s;ions and notions of God, of the will and Law of God, of the truth and power of God upon them. They who are a|lienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, doe yet feele a pre&s;ence of God with them (<HI>Act.</HI> 17.27) <HI>That they &s;hould &s;eeke the Lord, if haply they might feele after him and finde him, though he be not farre from every one of us.</HI> Take mankind in generall, good and bad, beleevers and infidels, there is a neerene&s;&s;e of God unto them, unto them all: and that not onely a neerene&s;&s;e of God in what the Apo&s;tle there &s;peakes of, common pre&s;ervation (<HI>ver&s;.</HI> 28.) <HI>In him we live, and move, and have our being,</HI> or of naturall communications, of which the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes there al&s;o, <HI>From him we receave life, and breath, and all things (ver&s;.</HI> 25.) But further God is with them, by a twofold light; fir&s;t, by a light of Direction; &s;econd|ly, by a light of Conviction. All have a Light of direction, 1. by the Law written in their hearts. The Apo&s;tle is expre&s;&s;e for this (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.14.) <HI>For when the Gentiles</HI> (he meanes it of Gen|tiles unconverted) <HI>which have not the Law, doe by nature the things contained in the Law, the&s;e having not the Law</HI> (that is formally publi&s;hed and preached to them) <HI>are a Law unto them &s;elves: Which &s;hew the worke of the Law written in their hearts, their con|&s;cience al&s;o bearing witnes,</HI> &amp;c. And as all have a light of directi|on from the Law written in their hearts, or in the booke of Con&s;cience; &s;o al&s;o 2. they have a light of direction from the Law of the creation, or from that which is written of God in
<PB N="158" REF="89"> the Booke of the creature. The &s;ame Apo&s;tle makes this the ground of the righteou&s;nes of God in that dreadfull <HI>Revelati|on of his wrath again&s;t all ungodlynes and unrighteou&s;nes of men</HI> (be they who they will) <HI>who hold the truth in unrighteou&s;nes, becau&s;e that which may be knowne of God is manifest in them</HI> (or to them) <HI>for God hath &s;hewed it to them.</HI> But how or where hath God &s;hewed them this? The Apo&s;tle an&s;wers in the next ver&s;e (<HI>Rom.</HI> 1.20.) <HI>For the invi&s;ible things of him from the creation of the world are clearely &s;eene, being under&s;tood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead, &s;o that they are without excu&s;e.</HI> So that, though all men have not a light of direction from God &s;o powerfull as to change them and make them ho|ly, yet they have a light &s;o cleare and full as is enough to make them guilty. And when they refu&s;e to follow this light of direction in doing what is right, then followes that other light of convictio~, their con&s;ciences troubling them, or (as the Apo&s;tles phra&s;e is, <HI>Rom.</HI> 2.15.) their thoughts accu&s;ing them, becau&s;e they have done that which is not right. This pre&s;ence of God is common to all men, to the wor&s;t of men, and this is it which provokes them to <HI>&s;ay to God, depart from us.</HI> And this is argume~t enough to &s;top the mouth of the Athei&s;t, who &s;aith in his heart, <HI>there is no God;</HI> when as yet he cannot &s;top the mouth of his owne con&s;cience from &s;aying <HI>there is a God,</HI> while hee &s;ayth (and this he alwayes &s;ayth, eyther in plaine termes, or in that which is equivalent) <HI>to God depart from me.</HI> And from hence wee may ob&s;erve;</P>
<P>Secondly;
<Q>That the pre&s;ence, and manife&s;tations of God to wicked men, are a trouble to them.</Q></P>
<P>None are troubled with the neerenes of God to them, but they who are farre from him: all naturall men are farre from God in &s;tate and in heart, and God is neere all naturall men eyther in his word or in his works, eyther &s;peaking his minde to their eares, or &s;ending it in to their con&s;ciences. This light of God is not onely not plea&s;ing but vexing. They who love darknes cannot abide the light of direction, much le&s;&s;e the light of conviction; So that if ever God be <HI>neere in their mouth,</HI> neere in their eare, or neere in their con&s;cience, yet as the Pro|phet
<PB N="159" REF="89"> &s;peakes (<HI>Jer.</HI> 12.2.) <HI>He is farre from their reines;</HI> that is, though they &s;peake, heare or thinke of God, yet they delight not in him, they have no de&s;irings, no breathings after him, yea the more he offers him&s;elfe to them, the more weary are they of him. What <HI>David</HI> &s;pake in a temptation, they &s;peake from their di&s;po&s;ition (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.3.) <HI>I remembred God and was troubled.</HI> It troubles them when they are put in minde of God, it troubles them when God comes into their minde. God is holy, and they are unholy, The holy God mu&s;t needs be a bur|den to an unholy heart. The Prophet puts the Que&s;tion (<HI>A|mos</HI> 3.3.) <HI>Can two walke together except they be agreed?</HI> they can|not. That company is alwayes unplea&s;ant to us, which is un|&s;uitable to us; They who are not at one, are be&s;t plea&s;ed when they are furthe&s;t a&s;under. <HI>The wayes of God are grievous to wick|ed men, much more is God him&s;elfe;</HI> They &s;ay what a weari&s;om+ne&s;&s;e is it to &s;erve the Lord, they &s;ay his yoake is heavy, and his burden in&s;upportable, the very out&s;ide of heavenly and &s;pirituall worke is burden&s;ome to them, how then can they maintaine communion with God (in truth of &s;pirit) <HI>Who is a Spirit and will be wor&s;hipped in Spirit and in truth.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Note;
<Q>Naturall men are blind and fooli&s;h, they know not wherein their owne happine&s;&s;e doth con&s;i&s;t, they for&s;ake and throw away the mercies offered them, for lying vanities.</Q></P>
<P>They who are not taught of God are full of mi&s;taken and fal&s;e principles, among which, this is a principal one; <HI>They &s;uppo&s;e they can doe well enough without God, whereas indeed there is nothing can doe us good without him who is the chiefe good.</HI> Now, that the natural man beleeves he can doe well enough with|out God, is plaine from this abominable and hatefull motion which &s;uch make to God in the Text, <HI>Depart from us.</HI> No man would de&s;ire God to depart from him, if this per&s;wa&s;ion did abide upon his heart, <HI>That he could not &s;ub&s;i&s;t without him; or that he depended upon God for his &s;ub&s;i&s;tence.</HI> Therefore this is their opinion (though po&s;&s;ibly they are as farre from acknowledg|ing it, as they are from the true knowledge and love of God) <HI>That they can do well enough alone, that they can &s;tand upon their own bottome without God, yea that they are &s;elfe-&s;ufficient, as God is;</HI> for
<PB N="160" REF="90"> who&s;oever doth not &s;ee an emptine&s;&s;e and in&s;ufficiency in him&s;elfe, and &s;o place his all in God, makes him&s;elfe a God. This is the way of wicked men, and this their way is <HI>their folly,</HI> (as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peakes, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 49.13.) <HI>Though their po&s;terity approve their &s;ayings.</HI> Who but they? they can maintaine their being, yea their well-being without God; they can live, and live happily whether he will or no. Sure|ly if they thought they were beholding to him, eyther for being or well-being, eyther for life, or a happy life, they had never been heard <HI>&s;aying to God, depart from us.</HI> And if this be a truth that they have &s;ayd &s;o, and &s;ay &s;o &s;till every day, wee need not &s;tay to prove this a truth, that they &s;hew their blind|nes and fooli&s;hnes in &s;aying &s;o. Is not he fooli&s;h who would have the Sunne depart from him, which enlightens him? or who would have the Sheild depart from him, which protects him? or who bids the fountaine be gone which gives him drinke; God is all this to all men in &s;ome degree or other, and he promi&s;eth him&s;elfe &s;uch in the highe&s;t and be&s;t degree to all &s;uch as walke uprightly, even to be their Sunne, their Sheild, their fountaine, their &s;pring. Then, can folly it &s;elfe utter more fooli&s;hnes then this, <HI>To &s;ay to God, depart from us?</HI> Further, how fooli&s;h are they to refu&s;e that, as if it were a hurt to them, which Saints who have the true wi&s;dome, have prayed for, and &s;till doe pray for, as the greate&s;t ble&s;&s;ing and priviledge, The pre&s;ence of God with them. How fooli&s;h are they who aske and de&s;ire that as a ble&s;&s;ing, which God the onely wi&s;e God threatens as the &s;oare&s;t cur&s;e. (<HI>Jer.</HI> 6.8.) <HI>Be in&s;tructed O Jeru&s;alem, le&s;t my &s;oule depart from thee, le&s;t I make thee a Land de&s;olate, not inhabited:</HI> Utter de&s;olation is the con&s;e|quent, yea the effect of the Lords departure from a Land; and when he cea&s;eth in regard of his favourable pre&s;ence to inha|bit a Land, eyther none &s;hall inhabit it, or none &s;hall have a comfortable habitation in it. The Lord threatens this depar|ture as the la&s;t and &s;oare&s;t, or as the &s;umme of all his judge|ments, and wicked men de&s;ire this, as if to be without God were the chiefe or &s;umme of their enjoyments. See another in|&s;tance of this folly; among all the threatenings of God again&s;t &s;infull men, this is one of the greate&s;t, that he will take away his Go&s;pel, and the light of his Word from them, yet this a
<PB N="161" REF="90"> wicked man de&s;ireth, let the Go&s;pel goe, let the light of the word goe; He wi&s;heth it gone, 'tis but a trouble to him, he is &s;icke of it, it is a death to him. The be&s;t of good things is re|fu&s;ed, and the wor&s;t of evills cho&s;en by tho&s;e that are evill. As their under&s;tanding is &s;o blinded and di&s;tempered, <HI>that they call evill good, and good evill, that they put darknes for light, and light for darknes, that they put bitter for &s;weete, and &s;weete for bitter (I&s;a.</HI> 5.20.) So their will and affections are &s;o perverted, that they choo&s;e &amp; embrace darknes for light, evill for good, and that which is mo&s;t bitter, for that which is &s;weeter then the honey and the honey-combe.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve. Fourthly.</P>
<Q>Wicked men are not onely fooli&s;h, but wild and furious.</Q>
<P>See at what a rate they &s;peake, even as if they had God at their command, <HI>They &s;ay to God depart;</HI> As if God could not be where he plea&s;ed, as if God were at their limiting, and di&s;po|&s;ing. Here's madne&s;&s;e, like madne&s;&s;e it &s;elfe. As there is mad|ne&s;&s;e in the heart of man in the enjoyment of the creature (<HI>I &s;aid of laughter it is mad</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>Solomon</HI>) Some are &s;o over-acted with joy, and laughter, in their creature-enjoyments, that whereas laughter is the proper pa&s;&s;ion of a rational creature, there is nothing more irrational then their laughter, 'Tis plaine down-right madne&s;&s;e, Now (I &s;ay) as &s;ome carnal men are mad in their manner of enjoying the creature) &s;o they are more mad, in refu&s;ing the enjoyments of God the Creator. Who can tell how mad they are who de&s;ire God to depart from them? <HI>They are mad to purpo&s;e who would put God from them, yet they more who thinke they can.</HI></P>
<P>Fiftly; Note.</P>
<Q>That the godly and the wicked have quite contrary both de&s;ires and fears.</Q>
<P>What are the de&s;ires and feares of a wicked man, he de&s;ires to have God depart, he is afraid of the pre&s;ence of God: what are the de&s;ires of a godly man, he de&s;ires nothing more then the pre&s;ence of God, he &s;ayes as <HI>Mo&s;es (Exod.</HI> 33.15.) <HI>If thy pre&s;ence goe not with mee, carry me no further,</HI> I de&s;ire to be no where, but where God manife&s;ts him&s;elfe to be; let me &s;ee the
<PB N="162" REF="91"> day of my departure out of the world, rather then the day of Gods departure from me in the world; Let riches goe, let li|berty goe, let friends and relations goe, &s;o God &s;tay with me. All company is &s;olitarines to me, all fullne&s;&s;e is emptine&s;&s;e to me, and the mo&s;t populous City wor&s;e then a de&s;olate wilder|nes to me, where I finde not the pre&s;ence of God with me. I feare nothing like this, The departure of God from me. I read indeed (<HI>Luke</HI> 5.8.) that <HI>Peter</HI> once &s;ayd to Chri&s;t, <HI>Depart from mee, for I am a &s;infull man O Lord.</HI> But the rea&s;on was not be|cau&s;e he was weary of the pre&s;ence of Chri&s;t, but becau&s;e he thought him&s;elfe altogether unworthy of the pre&s;ence of Chri&s;t. And therefore at another time <HI>when many of Chri&s;ts Di&s;|ciples went back &amp; walked no more with him,</HI> and hereupon <HI>Chri&s;t &s;ayd to the twelve, Will ye al&s;o goe away? Then Simon Peter an&s;we|red him, Lord to whom &s;hall we goe, thou ha&s;t the words of Eternall Life</HI> (Joh. 6.68.) He who would not go from Chri&s;t, could not indeed de&s;ire that Chri&s;t &s;hould goe or depart from him. They who have ta&s;ted how gratious the Lord is, can never totally depart from God, nor can they at all beare it, that God &s;hould depart from them. Thus the Church complaines (<HI>Jer.</HI> 14.9.) <HI>Why &s;houlde&s;t thou be as a &s;tranger in the Land, and as a way fayring man that turneth a&s;ide to tarry for a night. Why &s;houlde&s;t thou be as a man a&s;toni&s;hed, as a mighty man that cannot &s;ave, yet thou O Lord, art in the mid&s;t of us, and we are called by thy name, leave us not;</HI> What&s;oever thou doe&s;t to us, doe not leave us; let any evill come, but doe not thou goe: let &s;word come, let famine come, let plague come, but doe not thou depart; <HI>leave us not.</HI> Thus the Saints cling about a departing God, while wicked men are willing he &s;hould depart. And co~&s;idering the opinion which the&s;e wicked men had of God, 'tis no wonder though they pre&s;&s;e him to depart; for what &s;hould God do with them, if he can doe nothing for them, or doe them no good: Such was their apprehen&s;ion of God, as appeares in the next clau&s;e.</P>
<Q>And what can the Almighty doe for them?</Q>
<P>They &s;hould rather have &s;aid; <HI>What cannot the Almighty doe for them?</HI> If the que&s;tion be put, what the Allmighty can doe? The an&s;wer is at hand, he that is Allmighty, can do any thing;
<PB N="163" REF="91"> yet the&s;e wretches &s;ay, <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Et quid opera|bitur omnipotens eis. <HI>Heb.</HI></NOTE> Allmightine&s;&s;e it &s;elfe is que&s;tioned as weakne&s;&s;e, and omni|potency as impotency by unbeleevers.</P>
<P>From the generall &s;en&s;e of this infidel que&s;tion.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That worldly wicked men have low, and &s;light thoughts of God.</Q>
<P>It is &s;ayd of a wicked man (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 10.4.) <HI>God is not in all his thoughts;</HI> that is, he is in none of his thoughts, or God is not at all in his thoughts. But is any man &s;o voyd of God, that God is not in all his Thoughts? can any man utterly extin|gui&s;h or blot the thoughts of God out of his heart? is not the notion of a God, written with indelible characters upon the heart of man by nature? if not, how is the Law written there by nature? I an&s;wer, wicked men have thoughts, and cannot but have thoughts of God. But, fir&s;t, <HI>They like not to retaine God in their thoughts,</HI> or (which is the &s;ame) <HI>in their knowledge (Rom.</HI> 1.28.) Secondly, The thoughts which they have of God, are unworthy of God; while they thinke of God, they thinke below God, and &s;o indeed their thoughts are not at all the thoughts of God. While we thinke of God otherwi&s;e then he is, and hath revealed him&s;elfe to be, we doe not thinke of the God that made us, but we make an Idol-God in our own thoughts. Now wicked men thinke either that God hath no &s;trength, power, goodne&s;&s;e and wi&s;dome, or can do little with what he hath; <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI> They who are afarre off from God by unbeliefe, are not able to di&s;cerne his power, his goodnes, his wi&s;dome, his faithfullne&s;&s;e, his All&s;ufficiency; They neyther under&s;tand what God affirmes of him&s;elfe, nor give credit to what he hath promi&s;ed unto us. We &s;ay of tho&s;e things, <HI>which appeare more then they are, that they affect more afarre off then neere at hand; but tho&s;e things which are more then they appeare, affect more when they are nigh, then when they are afarre off.</HI> God is infinitely more, then he appeares; And he being neere to tho&s;e who beleeve, affects them wonderfully. But God is farre from unbeleevers, and they are farre off or in a &s;tate of farthe&s;t di&s;tance from God, therefore they are not affected with him; But &s;ay, who is God? what is Gods power?
<PB N="164" REF="92"> what is his allmightine&s;&s;e? Wee have heard much of him, but wee &s;ee little in him. They looke upon God, as if he were like the Idolls (de&s;cribed, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 115.4, 5, 6, 7.) <HI>Who have eyes, and &s;ee not, eares, and beare not, hands and handle not</HI> &amp;c. All the attributes of God, that he is allmighty, unchangeable, &amp;c. are but a &s;ound of words or empty titles in their eares. A beleever can make a living out of any attribute of God; for when the Scripture &s;aith he lives by faith, the meaning is, he lives upon the goodnes, mercy and power of God, revealed in the promi&s;e, and layd hold on by faith. Thus the ju&s;t live by faith upon God, but the wicked and unbeleevers cannot live upon tho&s;e termes; They &s;ee little or nothing in God to make a Living of, and therefore they &s;ay; <HI>What can the All|mighty doe for them?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>That carnall men count the &s;ervice of God unprofitable.</Q></P>
<P>What can God do for them? if they &s;erve him what profit is it? His is a leane &s;ervice, they &s;hall but &s;tarve them&s;elves by at|tending upon him, and undoe them&s;elves by doing his worke. Thus they &s;ayd in the former Chapter, and &s;o they &s;ay againe in this. The carnal man accounts nothing good but that which is outwardly good: <HI>Who will &s;hew us any good?</HI> (P&s;al. 4.6.) they know not that all good cometh through the hand of God, that it cometh in at the doore of the promi&s;e; They can looke no further then they &s;ee, and therfore becu&s;e they &s;ee no pro|fit, they looke for none; They doe not &s;ee that God doth any thing for them, and therefore they conclude he cannot: <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Note;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> The &s;pirits of worldly men, are meerely mercenary.</Q></P>
<P>If they doe any thing for God, or at the command of God, they doe it only upon hopes of reward, they never obey com|mandements for the holines that is in them, but for the bene|fit that comes by them. <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI> As when <HI>Judas</HI> betrayed Je&s;us Chri&s;t, he went out with a mer|cinary &s;pirit to doe that wickedne&s;&s;e; <HI>What will you give mee, and I will betray him?</HI> So when a carnal man &s;erves Je&s;us Chri&s;t, he &s;ayth, What will he give me? what can he doe for me? he
<PB N="165" REF="92"> cannot <HI>&s;erve God for nought,</HI> that is, freely, as Satan charged <HI>Job</HI> in the beginning of this booke; <HI>Job</HI> &s;erveth thee, &s;ayd Satan, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t done &s;o much for him, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t &s;erved his turne, and made a hedge about him; this was Satans &s;launder upon that good man; but 'tis no &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">under to &s;ay &s;o of carnal men, <HI>Doe they &s;erve God for nought?</HI> They doe not, they cannot; if they may gaine by godline&s;&s;e, they will doe &s;omewhat, which &s;hall have a &s;hew of godline&s;&s;e; profit will make any thing pa&s;&s;e with and plea&s;ing to a carnall minde, though in it &s;elfe it be never &s;o di&s;plea&s;ing. Such is the noble|ne&s;&s;e of the people of God, that though there be a reward in &s;erving of him, yet they are ready to &s;erve him without re|ward, they can &s;erve him upon a bare command, ab&s;tract from promi&s;es and profits; They can obey God as a creator, though he &s;hould not be a rewarder. Godline&s;&s;e is profitable for all things, and hath the promi&s;e both of this life, and of that which is to come, yet a gratious heart loves Godline&s;&s;e more then profitablenes, and eyes the worke of God more then his reward.</P>
<P>Further for the opening of the&s;e words; Some read thus, <HI>What can the allmighty doe again&s;t them?</HI> The Hebrew particle &s;tands indifferently to both, and may be tran&s;lated <HI>for,</HI> or <HI>a|gain&s;t,</HI> in which &s;en&s;e we finde it in the 35^t^h of this Booke,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Si peccaveris quid ei noce|bis, <HI>propri&egrave;,</HI> quid ei facies.</NOTE> <HI>ver.</HI> 6, 7. <HI>If thou &s;inne&s;t what do&s;t thou again&s;t him?</HI> That is, what hurt do&s;t thou to God? thy &s;inne cannot reach, or wound him, what do&s;t thou again&s;t him? Thus here; <HI>They &s;ay to the allmigh|ty depart from us, and what can the allmighty doe again&s;t them?</HI> Surely the allmighty is not able to hurt us; from him we ex|pect no good, and from him we feare no evill. Were not the&s;e mighty men, thinke you, who thought the Allmighty could not match them? The&s;e were mighty men indeed, Giants &s;ons of <HI>Anak</HI> no doubt they were, but Giants in wickednes. And &s;o this reading gives us a further character or di&s;covery of a wicked mans Spirit.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Some wicked men have this pre&s;umption, that let God doe his wor&s;t, he cannot hurt them.</Q>
<P>I finde in Scripture a threefold fal&s;e and pre&s;umptuous ap|prehen&s;ion,
<PB N="166" REF="93"> which evill men have of God while they are do|ing evill.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some pre&s;ume that God will protect them from evill while they doe evill. (<HI>Mich.</HI> 3.11.) <HI>The beads there|of judge for reward, and the Prie&s;ts thereof teach for hire, and the Prophets thereof divine for money, yet will they leane upon the Lord and &s;ay, Is not the Lord among us? none evill can come upon us.</HI> The&s;e were &s;uch as made it their bu&s;ines to breake the Law of God, yet they thought God would not &s;uffer any trouble to breake in upon them.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others pre&s;ume that, at lea&s;t, God will not be &s;o &s;evere as to inflict tho&s;e evills which he hath threatned. The old world was threatned with a Deluge, but they could not beleeve God would make good his word, they even mockt at the credulity and &s;implicity of <HI>Noah,</HI> to &s;ee him build that great Ship or Arke upon the dry Land, as if he meant to &s;ayle his ve&s;&s;el without water. As for them, they neither bel<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ved nor feared a flood. So they (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 5.19.) will put the Lord to a triall, <HI>Let him ha&s;ten his worke that we may &s;ee it;</HI> let us &s;ee what he will doe; as if they had &s;aid to the Prophet, you told us what he would doe, how &s;evere he would be, what mean|eth all your talke, we would &s;ee &s;omething done. What will the Allmighty doe again&s;t us? Surely nothing; he is not &s;o &s;trict as you make him. The Prophet de&s;cribes the wor&s;t of men, the <HI>men &s;etled on their lees,</HI> &s;peaking thus (<HI>Zeph.</HI> 1.12.) <HI>They &s;ay in their heart, the Lord will not doe good, neither will he doe evill;</HI> that is, he will neyther reward nor puni&s;h, he will ney|ther helpe nor hurt. To &s;ay eyther of the&s;e is alike di&s;honou|rable unto God; To &s;ay eyther much more both (though in|deed to &s;ay eyther is to &s;ay both) is to &s;ay, not only that God is neyther to be loved nor feared, but that he is not at all. It is the glory of God to doe the one as well as to doe the other, and unle&s;&s;e he could doe both, he could doe neyther. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45.7.) <HI>I forme the light, and create darkne&s;&s;e,</HI> (the darkne&s;&s;e of trou|ble is of God as much as the light of comfort) <HI>I make peace and create evill;</HI> the evill of puni&s;hment is as much the creature of God as peace is, and God doth as much appeare a creator in the one as in the other; the doing of this kinde of evill doth as much &s;hew the power, and providence of God, as the do|ing
<PB N="167" REF="93"> of good; yet tho&s;e in the Prophet &s;ayd the Lord will doe neither; <HI>He will neither doe good, neyther will be doe evill.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Tho&s;e in the Text were ray&s;ed to a higher pitch of pre&s;umption then both the former; For they &s;ayd, what can the Allmighty doe again&s;t us? As if they had &s;ayd, Let him doe his wor&s;t, wee feare him not; To thinke that God will &s;heild us from the evill which others threaten, or that he will not bring that evill upon us which him&s;elfe hath threatned, when we doe evill, are very high actings of pre&s;umption; But to thinke that God can doe nothing again&s;t us, to thinke that the Arme of God is &s;horter then that it can reach us, or weaker then that it can over-power us; to thinke that we have out-growne divine ju&s;tice, and are too big or too &s;trong to be dealt with by the Allmighty is pre&s;umption to madnes; woe to tho&s;e &s;inners who &s;ecure them&s;elves in the goodnes of God to them, more woe to tho&s;e who &s;ecure them&s;elves in Gods neglect of them, but above all, woe is their portion who &s;e|cure them&s;elves as it were in the weaknes of God, even while in words they acknowledge his power; &s;aying, What can the Allmighty doe again&s;t us?</P>
<P>Thirdly, Others read the words thus; <HI>They &s;ay to the all|mighty depart from us, and what hath the allmighty done again&s;t them?</HI> That is, what hurt hath God done them? They are troubled at the pre&s;ence of God; But what cau&s;e hath God given them to be troubled at his pre&s;ence? And then we may connect the&s;e words with the words of the 18^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>What hath God done again&s;t them? yea he filled their hou&s;es with good things;</HI> that's all the dammage he did them? This is a fayre &s;ence, and con&s;i|&s;tent with the Original Text: leaving the reader to his choyce; I &s;hall only give the ob&s;ervation which ri&s;eth clearely from this.</P>
<Q>God never giveth wicked men any ju&s;t cau&s;e to be weary of him.</Q>
<P>He never doth them any wrong, and he often gives them many a ble&s;&s;ing; and have they any rea&s;on to bid him depart? he is u&s;ually very patient towards them, and doth never bring any evill upon them till they have doubly de&s;erved it; and have they any rea&s;on to be di&s;plea&s;ed at that? yea when&s;oever he puni&s;heth them in this world, he puni&s;heth them then
<PB N="168" REF="94"> their &s;innes de&s;erve; indeed there is a puni&s;hment behinde adaequate and commen&s;urate to their &s;inne, but they &s;hall ne|ver be puni&s;hed beyond what or more then their &s;in de&s;erves. Seeing then their puni&s;hment in the next life, though it will be great beyond imagining, yet &s;hall not be great beyond de|&s;erving; and all their puni&s;hments in this life are le&s;&s;e then the demerit of their &s;inne) As was paenitentially confe&s;&s;ed by <HI>Ezra</HI> in the name of the <HI>Jewes</HI> after they had been broken by the &s;word, and brought into captivity for their &s;inne, <HI>Chap.</HI> 9.13 Seeing (I &s;ay) 'tis but thus with them when 'tis wor&s;t with them) What hath the Allmighty done again&s;t them? is not all their de&s;truction (meritoriou&s;ly) from them&s;elves?</P>
<P>Againe, How much &s;oever God puni&s;heth them in this life, they have no rea&s;on to complaine, or <HI>&s;ay to God depart from us;</HI> for even tho&s;e puni&s;hments are me&s;&s;ages from God to awaken them out of their &s;innes, and &s;o to prevent wor&s;er puni&s;h|ments; therefore when God perceived that &s;tubborne people going on in their &s;innes, telleth them he will &s;mite there no more, as implying that it was his favour to &s;mite them. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.5.) <HI>Why &s;hould ye be &s;mitten any more, ye will revolt more and more.</HI> Surely then &s;uch have no rea&s;on to <HI>&s;ay to God, depart from us,</HI> when he &s;mites them, as if he did them ey ther hurt or wrong, &s;eing he &s;mites them, that they might returne unto him; Tho&s;e judgements of God are a mercy, which are &s;ent to teach man his duty. Now if the judgements of God have &s;om|time mercy in them, and never have any injury in them, what hurt or injury can there be to man in the &s;ervice of God? Hath the Allmighty done any thing again&s;t them, whom he lovingly invites to the doing of his will? And yet &s;ome com|plaine of wrong when they are onely called to doe what is right, and cry out as if God hurt them, when he doth but go|verne them. The Lord calls his murmuring people to account about this thing, (<HI>Mich.</HI> 6.3.) <HI>O my people, what have I done to thee</HI> (that is, what hurt, what wrong have I done unto thee) <HI>and wherein have I wearied thee, te&s;tifie again&s;t mee;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd? thou ha&s;t nothing to bring again&s;t me in evidence, un|le&s;&s;e it be my kindnes, as it follows (<HI>ver.</HI> 4.) <HI>For I brought thee up out of the Lord of Egypt, and redeemed thee our of the hou&s;e of &s;ervants, and I &s;ent before thee, Mo&s;es, Aaran, and Miriam. O my
<PB N="169" REF="94"> people, remember</HI> &amp;c. Con&s;ider all my dealings with thee, all the deliverances I have wrought for thee, all the Statutes and Ordinances, all the Lawes and Commandements which I have given thee, and then let thy Con&s;cience &s;peake; What have I done unto thee, which is an evill to thee? or wherein have I wearied thee, in the things which I have required thee to doe? I have done many good workes for thee, and I have comman|ded thee to doe many workes, &s;uch workes as are not onely good in them&s;elves, but good for them who doe them; for which of the&s;e is it that thou art weary of me? <HI>There is not that wicked man in the world but God may &s;ay to him, what have I done to thee, or what have I called thee to doe, that thou &s;houlde&s;t be weary of mee?</HI> that thou &s;houlde&s;t de&s;ire me to depart from thee? Thus if we reade the words in this latter &s;ence; <HI>What hath the All|mighty done again&s;t them?</HI> They carry a reproofe of their ingr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|titude again&s;t God, who had not hurt them, yea who had done them good. If we reade the words in the &s;econd &s;ence; <HI>What can the Allmighty doe again&s;t them?</HI> They carry a high con|tempt and &s;light of his power, as if God could doe them no hurt. If we reade the words in the fir&s;t &s;ence according to our tran&s;lation (which I rather pitch upon) they carry (upon contrary termes) a like contempt of the power of God, as if he could doe them no Good; <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="18" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 18.</HI></BIBL> Yet bee filled their hou&s;es with good things.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>And be filled their hou&s;es with good things;</HI> wee tran&s;late <HI>yet,</HI> which better cleares the meaning and &s;cope of the Text, according to our reading of the former ver&s;e; <HI>They &s;ay to God, depart from us, and what can the Allmighty doe for them? yet he filled their hou&s;es with good things;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, they thought God could doe nothing for them,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Horum quidem domos ip&s;e im|pleaver at bonis. <HI>Jun: q. d.</HI> Dei benificijs abu&s;i &s;unt turpit&egrave;r &amp; tanquam de &s;po|lijs dei ip&s;ius triumphaverunt. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> whereas indeed he did all for them: all the good they had, they had it from God, <HI>He filled their hou&s;es;</HI> that is, he gave them abundance; he did not onely put &s;ome good things into their hou&s;es, but he fil|led their hou&s;es with good things, they had a plentifull &s;tate, God gave them a rich portion in the good things of this world; his corne, his wine, his oyle, his flax, his gold, his &s;il|ver,
<PB N="170" REF="95"> were their portion. He filled them, and they rebelled a|gain&s;t him; He be&s;towed many benefits upon them, which they abu&s;ed to &s;erve their lu&s;ts, and vainely triumphed in what he freely gave them, as if they had been &s;poyles forcibly taken from him.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve; fir&s;t,
<Q>That God doth them good that are evill.</Q></P>
<P>Chri&s;t per&s;waded his hearers (and us in them) upon this account to love their enemies, <HI>That they and we might be the children of our father which is in heaven; For he maketh his Sunne to ri&s;e on the evill and on the Good, and &s;endeth raine on the ju&s;t, and on the unju&s;t</HI> (Matth. 5.45.) As God hath &s;ome peculiar peo|ple, &s;o he hath &s;ome peculiar ble&s;&s;ings, and good things, which the world in common &s;hares not in; but he hath a &s;ort of ble&s;|&s;ings, and good things, which are the common &s;hare of the world; raine and Sun, fat and &s;weet, Gold and &s;ilver are &s;uch good things as their hearts and hou&s;es are often filled with, who&s;e hearts and hou&s;e are empty of goodnes. The&s;e good things God gives them, who know no more why he gives them, then they did, why he did not &s;uddenly bring evill up|on them, of whom the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.4.) <HI>De&s;pi&s;e&s;t thou the riches of his goodne&s;&s;e, and forbearance, and long-&s;uffering, not knowing that the goodne&s;&s;e of God leadeth thee to repentance;</HI> when God doth good to tho&s;e that are evill, whether it be by be&s;towing good upon them, or by withholding evill, He doth it u&s;ually for one of or both the&s;e rea&s;ons.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That they might repent, and live; knowe&s;t thou not what Me&s;&s;age the goodne&s;&s;e of God brings? Speakes it not thus? <HI>Repent, repent;</HI> yea doth not divine goodne&s;&s;e (taking thee by the hand) leade thee to repentance?</P>
<P>Secondly, The Lord doth them good who continue in the evill of &s;inne, that they might be left inexcu&s;eable when the evill of wrath and puni&s;hment falls upon them; every mouth &s;hall be &s;topped, &amp; all the world of wicked ones become guil|tie before God, when they remember that they &s;inned, and went on to &s;inne again&s;t the God that &s;ed them, again&s;t the God that cloathed them, again&s;t the God <HI>that filled their hou&s;es with good things,</HI> and protected them in the u&s;e and enjoyment
<PB N="171" REF="95"> of tho&s;e good things, with which he had filled their hou&s;es.</P>
<P>Secondly, In that he doth not only give them good things, but filled their hou&s;es with good.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<P><HI>God giveth great portions of good things to wicked men.</HI></P>
<P>They have not only enough to live upon, but they have e|nough to live comfortably upon, they have not only enough to live upon them&s;elves, but they have enough to lay up for their children after them; the Lord is not only good, but he is liberall and bountifull (in its kinde) to the wor&s;t of men: they who&s;e hearts are &s;hut to him, his hand is open to them; he is inlarged towards them who are &s;treightned towards him; And this is added not only to render the goodne&s;&s;e of God more glorious, but the &s;inne of man more &s;infull and odious in our eyes.</P>
<P>Whence ob&s;erve; Thirdly.</P>
<Q>Sin hath by &s;o much the greater evill in it, by how much it is com|mitted again&s;t the greater goodne&s;&s;e.</Q>
<P>It is a horrible wickednes to <HI>&s;ay to God, depart from us,</HI> though he empty our hou&s;es of all good things, but it is much more horrible wickednes, to &s;ay &s;o when he filleth our hou&s;es with good things. What? When God hath filled our hou&s;es, &s;hall wee kicke him out of doores? This was the &s;in of <HI>Je&s;urun, that when he waxed fat he kicked,</HI> as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayth (<HI>Deut.</HI> 32.15.) <HI>Thou art waxen fat, thou art growne thicke, thou art covered with fatnes; Then he for&s;ooke God which made him, and lightly e&s;teemed the rocke of his Salvation.</HI> Their fin is great who lightly e&s;teeme God while he makes them leane, but how &s;infull is their &s;in, who &s;light God that hath made them fat. As good things received binde us &s;tronger unto duty, &s;o good things abu&s;ed, binde us &s;tronger under guilt.</P>
<P>Fourthly, As wee connect the&s;e words with the latter branch of the former ver&s;e; <HI>What can the allmighty doe for them? yet he filled their hou&s;es with good things.</HI> Wee may take this ob|&s;ervation.</P>
<Q>Though Carnal men receive many good things from God, yet then know him not as the fountaine of them.</Q>
<P>They who are evill cannot own God purely eyther in good
<PB N="172" REF="96"> or evill. It is but &s;eldom that they &s;ay, with that wicked King, <HI>This evill is of the Lord</HI> (2 Kings 6.33.) And it is &s;eldomer that they &s;ay, this good is of the Lord They &s;ay, what good doth God for us? eve~ whil he filleth their hou&s;es with good things. Indeed the be&s;t of Saints receive many good things from God which they know not of; they receive many &s;ecret mercies, &s;ecret I meane not only to others, but to them&s;elves; and &s;o they are not able to give God the glory of them di&s;tinctly, becau&s;e they have not a di&s;tinct knowledge of them. But all the good things which the wicked have are to them of an unknowne original. Though they know what they have, yet they know not from whence or from whom they have what they have; they know not who feeds them, who cloaths them, who provids for them: yea though they make many formal acknowledgements of this, and will tell you of Gods goodnes to them, yet really they know it not, nor doe they cordially acknowledge it. The Lord complaines of his peo|ple about this (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.3.) <HI>The Ox knoweth his owner, and the A&s;&s;e his Ma&s;ters cribb,</HI> (he upbraids them not onely as below other men, but a below the bea&s;ts, as if the rea&s;onle&s;&s;e crea|tures had acted more rationally then they) <HI>but I&s;raell doth not know, my people doe not con&s;ider:</HI> What was it they did not know, nor con&s;ider? they knew not nor con&s;idered what the Ox and the A&s;&s;e knew and con&s;ider<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d; <HI>The Ox knoweth his owner,</HI> he knoweth that his Ma&s;ter &s;eeds him, as wel as works him. Thus al&s;o <HI>the a&s;&s;e knoweth his Ma&s;ters crib,</HI> as he knoweth that his Ma|&s;ter imployeth him, &s;o he knoweth that his Ma&s;ter provideth for him. The dull A&s;&s;e takes notice of the cribb, and knowes where and by whom he receiveth Good; but yee my people know not me, ye doe not con&s;ider him that &s;eeds you; For I <HI>have nouri&s;hed and brought up children, and they have rebelled again&s;t mee,</HI> they never honoured me as the fountaine and founder of their felicity. The Prophet <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> reproves the &s;ame &s;otti&s;h|nes and blindnes in that people (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.8, 9.) <HI>For &s;he did not know that I gave her come, and wine, and oyle, and multiplyed her &s;il|ver and gold, which they prepared for Baal. Therefore I will returne and take away her come in the time thereof;</HI> As If the Lord had &s;ayd, I will make them know that I can take the&s;e things a|way, &s;eing they would not know, or at lea&s;t not acknow|ledge
<PB N="173" REF="96"> that I am he who gave them. Carnal men attribute their good things, and the filling of their hou&s;es with them to any thing rather then to God. They thanke their friends or their good fortune; they thanke them&s;elves, their policy, their in|du&s;try, for what they have. They a&s;cend not up to God in thankfulnes for what they have. They who &s;ay, <HI>What can the Allmighty doe for them?</HI> How &s;hould they acknowledge, that the Allmighty hath done any thing for them? The Prophet (<HI>Hab:</HI> 1.16.) &s;peaks of men <HI>tho&s;e portion was fatt, and their meate plenteous;</HI> but to whom did they referre all this? whom did they acknowledge for their benefactor, or as the cau&s;e of tho&s;e great &s;ucce&s;&s;es? The Prophet tells us, <HI>They &s;acrificed to their nets, and burnt incen&s;e to their drags.</HI> The words carry an allu&s;ion to fi&s;hing, in which worke or art netts and drags are the in&s;truments of the fi&s;herman; &s;o that to &s;acrifice to the net or to the dragge, is to give the honour and thanks of all our attainements to &s;econd cau&s;es, and creature helps, to our own wit, power, and indu&s;try, &amp;c. To the&s;e &s;ayth the Prophet <HI>they &s;acrificed;</HI> That is, they honoured them in the place or &s;tead of God; <HI>Sacrifice it proper and peculiar to God,</HI> and therefore he that offers &s;acrifice to any thing, makes it his God, or puts it in the place of God; They who thanke them&s;elves for the good they have, are a God to them&s;elves. And thus wee finde The <HI>A&s;&s;yrian</HI> a&s;cribing all to his owne power (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 10.14) <HI>By the &s;trength of my hand I have done it, and by my wi&s;dome, for I am prudent, and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have robbed their trea&s;ures, and I have put downe the inhabitants like a valiant man;</HI> he did not thinke that the Lord did it by his hand, <HI>but</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>by the &s;trength of my hand I have done it:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Dextera mihi deus.</HI> Virg: 1.10. Sanct:</NOTE> <HI>my right hand, is my God, my wi&s;dome is my God.</HI> The&s;e, the&s;e, <HI>have removed the bounds of the people, and robbed their trea&s;ures.</HI> See how the Lord checks this in&s;olency (<HI>v.</HI> 15.) <HI>Shall the axe boa&s;t it &s;elfe again&s;t him that heweth therewith, or &s;hall the &s;aw magnifie it &s;elfe again&s;t him that &s;haketh it?</HI> Men (I grant) are living in&s;tru|ments, yet they can doe no more then in&s;truments without life (the axe and the &s;aw) unle&s;&s;e God act them, or act by them. An axe or a &s;aw can doe as much without man, as man can doe without God; yet vaine proud man is as full of boa&s;t|ing, as if he could doe, or had done all alone.</P>
<PB N="174" REF="97">
<P>Fifthly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the portion of wicked men lyeth all on this &s;ide heaven, and heavenly things.</Q>
<P>God filleth their hou&s;es with good things, but they are the good things of this life; they have nothing that reacheth to eternal life. They have nothing that concernes pardon of &s;in, or grace, much le&s;&s;e have they glory for their portion. (<HI>Acts</HI> 14.16, 17.) <HI>God did not leave him&s;elfe without witne&s;&s;e</HI> (among the Heathen Nations) <HI>in that he did good, and gave raine from hea|ven, and fruitfull &s;ea&s;ons, filling their hearts with food; and glad|ne&s;&s;e;</HI> &s;o much they received from God, as filled them with food for their bodyes, and made their lives comfortable; but no more, that was all they had. As <HI>Abraham</HI> in the parable tells the rich man in hel (<HI>Luk.</HI> 16.25.) <HI>Son remember that thou in thy life time ha&s;t had thy good things.</HI> And what were the good things which he formerly had? We have an an&s;wer at the 19^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>He was cloathed in purple and fine linnen, and fared deliciou&s;|ly every day.</HI> As the P&s;almi&s;t is expre&s;&s;e (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 17.14.) that <HI>the men of this world have their portion in this life,</HI> &s;o, his purpo&s;e is to &s;hew, that they have their portion in the things of this life; for he adds, <HI>Who&s;e bellyes thou fillest with thy hid trea&s;ures,</HI> that is, with tho&s;e trea&s;ures of corne, wine, and oyle, which are virtually hidden in the earth, and brought forth by the earth; God fills the bellyes of the wicked, but he fills the Spirits of the Godly; he fills the former with the hidden trea&s;ures of the earth, he fills none but the latter with the hidden trea&s;ures of heaven.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Note.</P>
<Q>That the gifts of God even in temporall things are free and unde|&s;erved.</Q>
<P>Not onely are &s;pirituall gifts and graces, together with eternall life unde&s;erved, but even temporalls, and the things of this life. The Lord gives them unto his enemies, to tho&s;e that &s;ay to him, <HI>depart from us;</HI> and what doe the&s;e de&s;erve at his hands, but &s;tripes and death? He gave Chri&s;t to us while we were mo&s;t unworthy of him; when we were yet enemies Chri&s;t dyed for us; &s;inners doe no more de&s;erve bread then they de|&s;erve
<PB N="175" REF="97"> Chri&s;t; wee no more de&s;erve the comforts of this life then eternall life; The one is of free Grace to the Elect, and the other is of bounty and goodne&s;&s;e to the wicked.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quoniam moris erat in Egypto, ut men&s;ura a&s;|cendentis Ni<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i fluminis ad tem|plum Serapidis deferretur velat ad incrementi aquarum &amp; in|undationis auc|torem &s;ubver&s;o ejus &s;imulachro, ulna ip&s;a id e&s;t, aquae men&s;ura, ad aquarum do|minum coepta e&s;t in Eccle&s;ias de|ferri. <HI>Ca&s;&s;iod lib. 2. ad Eu|&s;eb: Hi&s;tor:</HI></NOTE> The old <HI>Egyptians</HI> (as &s;ome writers report them) were carefull to con|fe&s;&s;e the unde&s;ervedne&s;&s;e of tho&s;e outward favours, the plenty and abundance of corne and cattel, with which <HI>Egypt</HI> was &s;to|red; in te&s;tification whereof they every yeare brought into the Temple of their Idol <HI>Serapis</HI> a mea&s;ure &s;hewing how high the river <HI>Nilus</HI> ro&s;e and overflowed its bankes (for <HI>Egypt</HI> being a flatt Country, is watered by the overflowings of <HI>Nilus)</HI> and by the ri&s;ing of tho&s;e waters they could (very probably) prog|no&s;ticate the plenty or &s;car&s;ity of the yeare en&s;uing. And they therefore tooke an exact account how many cubits high the river &s;well'd, leaving it in the Temple of <HI>Serapis,</HI> thereby ac|knowledging (as &s;ome conceive) that their Idol God was the be&s;tower of all that plenty, or (as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here &s;peakes) that he <HI>had filled their hou&s;es with Good things.</HI></P>
<Q>But the coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from mee.</Q>
<P>Wee had the&s;e words before (<HI>Chap</HI> 21.16.) <HI>Job</HI> made u&s;e of them there, and here <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> therefore I &s;hall adde but lit|tle for explication in this place. In generall know, they are a <HI>proverbiall &s;peech,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Puto Vulgarem e&s;&s;e dicendi mo|dum, quo homi|nes aliquid exe|crantur &amp; a &s;e arceri longi&s;&s;ime Jubent. Qualia|&s;unt, a page a|vertat. Deus. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> by which the abhorrence of our &s;pirits con|cerning either things or per&s;ons is &s;et forth to the utmo&s;t; as when we &s;ay to any man, <HI>be gone, depart from me,</HI> or as Chri&s;t to Satan, <HI>Get thee behinde me,</HI> wee &s;hew our vehement dete&s;ta|tion of his per&s;on. So when a man &s;ayth, &s;uch or &s;uch a thing <HI>is farre from me,</HI> his meaning is he utterly dete&s;ts it, or that the thing is the very abomination of his &s;oule. Therefore while <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;ayth; <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me,</HI> it is, as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>I cannot indure to have any thing to doe eyther with the wicked, or with their coun&s;el. O my &s;oule come not thou into their &s;ecret, unto their a&s;&s;embly O mine honour be not thou united</HI> (as dy|ing <HI>Jacob</HI> be&s;pake his &s;ons <HI>Simeon</HI> and <HI>Levi,</HI> Gen. 49.6.)</P>
<P>But what is the coun&s;ell of the wicked? their coun&s;ell may be taken; fir&s;t, for that di&s;honorable opinion which they held of God, that he could doe nothing eyther for them or again&s;t them. I (&s;aith <HI>Eliphaz</HI>) am of another minde, of another faith and per&s;wa&s;ion. Their Coun&s;el is farre from me who
<PB N="176" REF="98"> eyther deny the providence of God, or thinke they can hide them&s;elves from the eye of his providence; I beleeve that his eye beholdeth all, and that his hand worketh what&s;oever plea&s;eth him.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others by <HI>Coun&s;ell</HI> under&s;tand the &s;cope of wic|ked men; &s;o <HI>Calvin</HI> reades, <HI>the intent of the wicked is farre from me;</HI> I have other purpo&s;es and de&s;ignes then they have; <HI>The ploughing of the wicked</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon,</HI> Pro. 21.4.) <HI>is &s;in;</HI> that is, the &s;tirring and plotting of his minde to get his de&s;ires &s;a|tisfied is &s;infull; I de&s;ire not (&s;aith <HI>Eliphaz</HI>) to put my hand to their plough. <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, As the de&s;igne and plot, &s;o the cour&s;e and way of the wicked <HI>is farre from me.</HI> The coun&s;el of a man is put for the meanes by which he acteth his de&s;ignes, as wel as for the method in which he layeth them. Wee &s;hall not wrong the drift of the Text in which &s;oever of the&s;e three &s;ences we un|der&s;tand this prote&s;tation, <HI>The coun&s;el of the wicked is farre from mee.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, There is a threefold difference about the reading and relation of the&s;e words, which put together will give us yet a further light and under&s;tanding about them.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quae con&s;ilia illi ineunt longe &s;unt a deo.</NOTE>Fir&s;t, The Septuagint reade thus; <HI>The coun&s;el of the wicked is farre from him;</HI> and the antecedent, <HI>to him</HI> (according to their &s;ence) is God him&s;elfe. As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;ayd, the coun&s;ells and re&s;olutions which the wicked take up, God cannot abide, <HI>they are farre from him. His are holy, theirs are unholy coun&s;els.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Others apprehend, that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake thus in the per&s;on of <HI>Job,</HI> and onely rea&s;&s;umed what he had &s;aid (<HI>Chap</HI> 21.16.) <HI>O this is the man that &s;ayd even now the coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from mee; Pray con&s;ider, This is the man that profe&s;&s;ed he would not &s;o much as come neere a wicked man, he would have nothing to doe with their coun&s;ells,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Qua&s;i Job ore tenus non reip&s;a impiorum con&s;i|lium improba+ret, <HI>q. d.</HI> Num poteris dicere, te non &s;entire eum improbis, eum tu, ut ip&s;i providentiam dei tollas.</NOTE> <HI>not be; He would be taken for a man of another &s;pirit, of another frame then they; but &s;ee what he is, &s;ee how he joynes with them, how be walkes in their wayes, how he follows their coun&s;ells; though be denies them with his lips, and makes &s;trange as if he knew them not, yet indeed he is of the &s;ame peece and &s;pirit with them: and while he &s;ayth, the coun&s;el of the wicked is farre from me (behold his hypocri&s;ie) the coun&s;ell of the wicked lieth in his bo&s;ome, and is embraced by him.</HI></P>
<PB N="177" REF="98">
<P>Thirdly, Which is more plaine and cleare, wee may ex|pound the&s;e words not onely as &s;poken by <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> but as therein &s;peaking of him&s;elfe; <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me;</HI> that is, I am a man of another &s;traine, of another graine then they, I am a man of another mould and make then they. Therefore O <HI>Job,</HI> what you &s;pake before I &s;peake againe, and I &s;peake it upon better grounds, with a better heart then you; you &s;pake with your lips,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec &s;unt ip&s;ius Elipha&s;i verba, quibus &s;eip&s;um commendat; ut qui potiori jure quam Job, &amp; multo verius po&s;&s;it a&s;&s;erere &s;e toto coelo ab im|piorum &s;ententia di&s;&s;idare. <HI>Jun: Pi&s;c.</HI> Eliphaz vult ex uno cum Jo|bo principio ij&s;|dem&abque; praemi&s;|&s;is, contrariam elicere conclu|&s;ionem. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> or from the teeth outward, that <HI>the coun&s;ell of the wicked was farre from you,</HI> but I have proved that you approach too neere them both in cour&s;e and councel. I &s;ay, what you &s;ayd, but I &s;ay it (which you did not) in &s;incerity, I profe&s;&s;e, and what I profe&s;&s;e is true, that <HI>the coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me. The &s;ame truth may be profe&s;&s;ed by different per&s;ons, upon different grounds and to diffe|rent ends:</HI> the &s;ame premi&s;es doe not alwayes yeeld the &s;ame conclu&s;ions in the minds of mens, though in them&s;elves they doe. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> thought his coun&s;el as farre from <HI>Jobs,</HI> as <HI>Job</HI> had profe&s;&s;ed him&s;elfe to be from the councel of the wicked. When <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>The coun&s;el of the wicked is farre from me;</HI> his purpo&s;e was to &s;hew that though he was afflicted like wicked men, yea, that though he was afflicted while many wicked men were pro&s;pered, that yet he was not at all &s;pirited or princi|pl'd like wicked men. And that therefore his friends a&s;&s;ertion mu&s;t needs be fal&s;e, who numbred him with the wicked be|cau&s;e he was afflicted. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes to retort this upon <HI>Job,</HI> and to &s;ay, if this be &s;o, as thou affirme&s;t, &s;urely then God hath layd a&s;ide the care of this world, and lets all things run at &s;ix and &s;evens; for &s;urely if he tooke notice of men, eyther what they were, or what they were doing, he would never &s;uffer the wicked to pro&s;per, no nor to e&s;cape unpuni&s;hed. And &s;eing thou continue&s;t &s;o &s;tiffe in thy opinion, that thou doe&s;t not &s;uffer the&s;e grievous calamities for thy &s;inne, thou &s;eeme&s;t to me plainly to comply with their bla&s;phemy, who querie, <HI>how doth God know? can be judge through the darke cloud?</HI> This coun&s;el of the wicked is farre from me. And &s;eeing as <HI>Job</HI> before, &s;o <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here a&s;cribes coun&s;el (which is the mo&s;t deliberate act) to the wicked. We may ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That wicked men &s;inne advi&s;edly, or that many of their &s;in|full wayes, are &s;tudied wayes.</Q>
<PB N="178" REF="99">
<P>And as the more &s;tudied they are, the more &s;infull they are; &s;o they &s;tudy mo&s;t for tho&s;e which are mo&s;t &s;infull. They are not hurried into &s;inne by pa&s;&s;ions or thru&s;t on upon &s;inne meerely by the violence of temptation; they &s;it downe and goe to coun&s;ell how they may compa&s;&s;e their ungodly pu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|po&s;es. A godly man doth not con&s;ent unto &s;inne, much le&s;&s;e doth he con&s;ult about it; <HI>The ev<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ll which I doe I allow not; I</HI> (faith the Apo&s;tle) <HI>con&s;ent to the law of God that it is good</HI> (Rom. 7.) A godly man &s;ins dayly, but &s;in hath not his con&s;ent, or allowance when he hath done it, much le&s;&s;e doth he con&s;ult or advi&s;e how to doe it. Sin doth not plea&s;e him con&s;equent|ly, much le&s;&s;e doth he project it antecedently. 'Tis the cha|racter of a wicked man, that his &s;inne is his coun&s;el, and that his art is in it as much as his nature; <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not &s;ay how farre the coun&s;el of the wicked was from him, but that it was farre from him, and <HI>by farre,</HI> he meanes <HI>furthe&s;t;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, it is as farre from me as farre may be, I have no complyance with their coun&s;els.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the &s;pirit and way of the godly, and the wicked are as diffe|rent as their end and conclu&s;ion &s;hall be.</Q>
<P>They are at furthe&s;t di&s;tance; They are like two paralel lines, which how farre &s;oever they run together, they never meete together, nor touch in a poynt. The conclu&s;ion of a wicked man or his end is farre from that of the upright; the end of the one is light, the end of the other is darkne&s;&s;e; the one ends in &s;orrow, the other in joy, the end of the one is peace, of the other trouble. And &s;o the way of the one is &s;in, the way of the other is holines; the way of the one is oppe&s;&s;ion and covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, the way of the other is ju&s;tice and righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e; the way of the one is faith, the way of the other is unbeliefe. Now as darknes and light, joy and &s;orrow, peace and trouble, can never comply or be united; &s;o neyther can &s;in and holines, oppre&s;&s;ion and ju&s;tice, faith and unbeliefe. There's no communion between the&s;e contraries, between the&s;e wayes and ends, coun&s;el and conclu&s;ions. And unle&s;&s;e wee keepe farre from the coun&s;els of the wicked, wee cannot
<PB N="179" REF="99"> goe farre from their conclu&s;ion; nor can we avoyd their end, but by avoyding their way. The &s;ame way brings the &s;ame end, whether we re&s;pect good or evill. And hence it is that the Spirit of God by <HI>Solomon</HI> gives &s;uch a vehement admoniti|on, to beware of the way of wicked men (<HI>Pro.</HI> 4.14, 15.) <HI>En|ter not into the path of the wicked, and goe not in the way of evill men; avoyd it, pa&s;&s;e not by it, turne from it and pa&s;&s;e away.</HI> As in the former context, <HI>he, as a carefull father,</HI> had pre&s;&s;ed his Sonne to the clo&s;e&s;t pur&s;uit of wi&s;domes way, &s;o here, he as earne&s;tly pre&s;&s;eth him, to depart from the path of wickednes; He would have his &s;onne not only not goe into it, but not &s;o much <HI>as pa&s;&s;e by it,</HI> that is, not goe neere it; as the next words intimate, <HI>turne from it,</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, keepe at a di&s;tance, keepe aloo&s;e off; doe not &s;tay &s;o long within &s;ight of it as to looke upon it, that's his la&s;t coun&s;el, <HI>pa&s;&s;e away,</HI> not to returne or come neere it any more. And while we con&s;ider whither that way leads, we &s;hall ea&s;ily grant that when all is &s;ayd, little enough is &s;ayd to lead us away from it. Where the way is &s;inne, the wages is death. Therefore let him who de&s;ires to avoyd the conclu&s;ion of the wicked, &s;ay, <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="180" REF="100">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Job, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 19, 20.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The righteous &s;ee it, and are glad, and the innocent laugh them to &s;corne.</P>
<P>Whereas our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe, but the remnant of them the fire con&s;umeth.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>ELiphas</HI> &s;till pur&s;ues the ruine, and extirpation of wicked men; he &s;hewd us before the &s;infullnes of their practi&s;es towards man, and the folly of their opinion, <HI>in &s;aying to God depart from us,</HI> who had never hurt them nor given them any cau&s;e to be weary of his pre&s;ence; unle&s;&s;e this di&s;plea&s;ed them, that <HI>he filled their hou&s;es with good things.</HI> And becau&s;e they de|clared them&s;elves thus vaine, therefore. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> rejected both them and their way; <HI>The coun&s;ell of the wicked is farre from me.</HI> Now, in this ver&s;e he acquaints us wi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h the event or i&s;&s;ue of their coun&s;ells, and how the righteous carry them&s;elves, when God calls the wicked to an account and reckons with them for their prophanenes and irreligion.</P>
<DIV3 N="19" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 19.</HI></BIBL> The righteous &s;ee it, and are glad.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Who the righteous man is, and what denominates a man righteous, hath been &s;hewed b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">fore. <HI>The righteous &s;ee it;</HI> what do they &s;ee? That which they beleeved &amp; looked for; the fall of wicked men. This act of &s;eeing may be referr'd eyther to the <HI>per&s;on &s;eeing,</HI> or to the <HI>object &s;eene:</HI> as 'tis referr'd to the per|&s;on of the righteous; &s;o <HI>&s;eeing</HI> notes both their priviledge and their plea&s;ure. They are admitted to &s;ee this &s;pectacle of divine Ju&s;tice, and it is their happines to &s;ee it. This <HI>David</HI> in|timates (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.34.) <HI>Wait on the Lord, and keepe his way, and he &s;hall exalt thee to inherit the Land, when the wicked are cut off thou &s;halt &s;ee it.</HI> The righteous &s;hall be honoured with this fight, yea and plea&s;ed with it, the cutting off of wicked men by the hand of God. The righteous man hath a promi&s;e to &s;ee this (and promi&s;es are the conveyances of mercies (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 91.8.) <HI>A thou&s;and &s;hall fall at thy &s;ide, and ten thou&s;and at thy right hand, but it &s;hall not come nigh thee, onely with thine eyes &s;halt
<PB N="181" REF="100"> thou behold and &s;ee the reward of the wicked.</HI> Thou &s;halt be a &s;pectator, not a partaker in that calamity. Wicked men &s;ome|times glutt their eyes with <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">eholding the troubles of the Saints, and they account it a happy day, when they can have &s;uch a &s;ight. They &s;igne that day with a white &s;tone, when the black &s;tone of the mo&s;t unju&s;t and cruell condemnation proves the pre&s;ent lot of the righteous. <HI>David</HI> di&s;covered &s;uch a &s;pirit in his enemies (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.21.) <HI>They opened their mouth wide again&s;t me, and &s;aid, aha, aha, our eyes have &s;eene it.</HI> What had they &s;eene? The former ver&s;e tells us; <HI>They &s;peake not peace, but they devi&s;e deceitfull matters again&s;t them that are quiet in the Land.</HI> When the&s;e devi&s;es tooke, and had &s;ucce&s;&s;e, then they were plea&s;ed, then they had what they would, and &s;aw what they de&s;ired. And thus the enemies of the Church are de&s;cri|bed (<HI>Mi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">:</HI> 4.11.) <HI>Now al&s;o many Nations are gathered again&s;t thee, and &s;ay, let her be defiled</HI> (there is a twofold defiling, a defiling with &s;inne, and a defiling with bloud and mi&s;ery, the latter is meant by the Prophet, <HI>let her be defiled) and let our eyes looke up|on Sion.</HI> They counted it a ble&s;&s;ed &s;ight to &s;ee <HI>Sion</HI> bleed; The wicked would have &s;uch &s;ights often, though u&s;ually their eyes fayle with waiting, and their hope is as the giving up of the Gho&s;t; But righteous men &s;hall &s;ee (the righteous God hath &s;ayd it) vengeance powred upon the wicked.</P>
<P>Againe we may expound this act of &s;eing with reference to the object &s;eene; and &s;o it imports 2 things; fir&s;t, the certain|ly of their fall: wicked men &s;hall undoubtedly be de&s;troyed, and there &s;hall be eye-witne&s;&s;es, hone&s;t and faithfull witne&s;|&s;es, te&s;tifying their de&s;truction; <HI>The righteous &s;hall &s;ee it,</HI> and report it to after generations.</P>
<P>Secondly, As &s;eeing notes the certainty of their fall, or the evidence and clearene&s;&s;e of it, &s;o the publiquene&s;&s;e of it; That which is done to the eye, is done openly. What the ju&s;tice of God doth again&s;t the wicked &s;hall not be done in a corner, but as upon the hou&s;e-top. The reading of the <HI>Septuagint</HI> is full to this &s;ence; <HI>They &s;hall be made publicke examples.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. Denotat rem omnibus con&s;picuam &amp; in publicum ex|emplum propo&s;i|tam.</NOTE> It is the care of ju&s;t and wi&s;e Magi&s;trates, not onely to puni&s;h male|factors, but to puni&s;h them openly, That &s;o all may &s;ee and feare and doe no more pre&s;umptuou&s;ly. There are three &s;pe|ciall rea&s;ons why offences are puni&s;hed; and the Greekes ex|pre&s;&s;e
<PB N="182" REF="101"> each puni&s;hment by &s;uch a word as carryeth a di&s;tinct &s;ignification of tho&s;e rea&s;ons. Fir&s;t, Some are puni&s;hed, that them&s;elves may amend and better their manners; This they called <GAP DESC="foreign">. Secondly, Others are puni&s;hed, to repayre the honour or maintaine the dignity of tho&s;e again&s;t whom they have offended, le&s;t if &s;uch &s;hould e&s;cape without con|digne puni&s;hment, authoritie &s;hould be contemned, grow cheape, or be lightly valued; This they called <GAP DESC="foreign">. A third &s;ort were puni&s;hed for example,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><LIST>
<ITEM>1 <GAP DESC="foreign">.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2 <GAP DESC="foreign">.</ITEM>
<ITEM>3 <GAP DESC="foreign"></ITEM>
</LIST> <HI>Acerbitas ulci&s;|cendi maleficij, bene at&abque; cante vivendi di&s;ci|plina e&s;t.</HI> Caeci|lius apud Gel. l. 2. c. 1.</NOTE> that others might be de|terred from doing the &s;ame things, le&s;t they al&s;o incurre the &s;ame &s;ufferings; This was called <GAP DESC="foreign">, As much as to &s;ay, the holding of a man forth in his &s;ufferings to the open view, that he may be &s;eene of all men, and that all may be warned to avoyd his error. And thus the Lord who is the righteous Judge of all the world puni&s;heth wicked men. The &s;ame word is u&s;ed by the Evangeli&s;t <HI>Matthew</HI> (Chap. 1.19.) <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> being troubled that <HI>Mary</HI> was with childe (for he knew not the my&s;tery of hir over-&s;hadowing by the Holy Gho&s;t) <HI>was minded to put her away &s;ecretly, and would not make her a pub|lique example;</HI> He was unwilling to bring her to ju&s;tice, or that others &s;hould &s;ee eyther her (&s;uppo&s;ed) &s;in or puni&s;hment. But as God doth worke many glorious &s;alvations for his people, that the wicked may &s;ee it, and be a&s;hamed; &s;o he brings many vi&s;ible de&s;tructions upon the wicked, not onely that the righteous may &s;ee it and <HI>rejoyce,</HI> or be glad (which act follows next to be opened) but that the wicked may &s;ee it and tremble to doe wickedly.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That the Lord &s;ets up wicked men many times as exam|ples of his wrathfull ju&s;tice.</Q>
<P>Not onely doe they feele wrath upon them&s;elves, but o|thers &s;ee it; The Lord &s;ometimes cha&s;tens his owne people in the view of the world, and &s;ets them up as examples of his fa|therly di&s;plea&s;ure. Thus <HI>Nathan</HI> &s;peakes in the name of the Lord to <HI>David</HI> (2 <HI>Sam</HI> 12.12.) <HI>Thou did&s;t it &s;ecretly, but I will doe this thing,</HI> (what thing? I will afflict and cha&s;ten thee for this great offence) <HI>before all I&s;rael, and before the S<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">nne;</HI> that is, in plaine and cleare light; Though thou ha&s;t done this e|vill
<PB N="183" REF="101"> in the darknes ot many clo&s;e contrivances, yet I will draw the curtaine and make the poenall effects of thy &s;inne as con|&s;picuous as the actings of thy &s;in have been clo&s;e and covert. Againe (<HI>Numb.</HI> 25.4.) when the people began to commit whoredome with the daughters of <HI>Moab,</HI> and <HI>I&s;rael</HI> had joyn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d him&s;elfe unto <HI>Baal peor,</HI> &s;o that the Anger of the Lord was kindled again&s;t <HI>I&s;rael; Then the Lord &s;aid to Mo&s;es, take all the heads of the people,</HI> (that is, the capital offenders, or chiefe ru|lers, who gave way, or at be&s;t gave no &s;top to &s;uch wicked|nes) <HI>and hang them up before the Lord again&s;t the Sunne, that the feirce anger of the Lord may be turned away from I&s;rael.</HI> To hang them up before the Sunne, is a phra&s;e of &s;peech importing the publicknes of their puni&s;hment (as it is &s;ayd of the &s;even Sons of <HI>Saul,</HI> that they were <HI>hanged on the hill before the Lord,</HI> 2 Sam. 21.9.) for caution unto all; what&s;oever is done in the fight of all, or &s;o that all may &s;ee, is &s;ayd (in the Language of the <HI>Jewes</HI>) to be done before the Sunne. To which &s;ence al&s;o we may interpret that vi&s;ion of the Prophet <HI>Zechariah</HI> (Chap. 5, 6. 9, 10, 11.) at the 6^t^h ver&s;e we reade of an <HI>Ephah,</HI> and this <HI>lift up</HI> (ver. 9^t^h) <HI>between earth and heaven;</HI> the <HI>Ephah</HI> was a mea|&s;ure of dry things among the <HI>Jewes:</HI> and in that vi&s;ion it &s;ig|nified that the &s;inne and puni&s;hment of the <HI>Jewes</HI> were mea|&s;ured and proportioned; This <HI>Ephah</HI> being lifted up and car|ried, <HI>I</HI> (&s;ayth the Prophet) <HI>&s;aid whether doe the&s;e beare the Ephah,</HI> (ver. 10.) <HI>And he &s;aid unto me, to build it an hou&s;e in the land of Shinar, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed and &s;et there upon her owne ba&s;e;</HI> The building it a hou&s;e in the land of <HI>Shinar</HI> (that is, in <HI>Ba|bylon</HI>) &s;ignified the la&s;tingnes or continuance of their &s;inne in the &s;ad con&s;equents of it, their puni&s;hment and bani&s;hment in &s;trange lands, not for the &s;pace of &s;eventy yeares onely, as by the <HI>Babylonians,</HI> but (as &s;ome of the Learned expound the vi|&s;ion) for many &s;eventyes by the <HI>Romanes:</HI> and as this <HI>Ephah</HI> had a hou&s;e built for it, noting the &s;etlednes and dur<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">tion of the Judgement which &s;hould come upon them for their &s;inne; &s;o al&s;o it was &s;et upon its own ba&s;e, to &s;ignifie the notoriou&s;|nes or con&s;picuou&s;nes of the Judgement, it being as a hou&s;e &s;et upon pillars for all to behold and take notice of: as we &s;ee fullfilled to this day, &s;ince the fir&s;t overthrow of their e&s;tate by <HI>Titus Ve&s;patianus,</HI> and their final di&s;per&s;ion by <HI>Aelius Adrianus.</HI>
<PB N="184" REF="102"> There are, I grant, other conceptions about that vi&s;ion, but as this &s;uits wel with the poynt in hand, &s;o with the calamitous &s;tate of that people to this day.</P>
<P>And thus the Lord threatned the King of <HI>Tyrus (Ezek.</HI> 28.17.) <HI>Who&s;e heart was lifted up becau&s;e of his beauty, and who had corrupted his wi&s;dome by rea&s;on of his brightne&s;&s;e.</HI> Now what will the Lord doe? what cour&s;e will he take with him? The next words enforme us; <HI>I will ca&s;t thee to the ground, and I will lay thee before Kings, that they may behold thee;</HI> He doth not &s;ay, <HI>I will ca&s;t thee into the ground,</HI> but <HI>to the ground, and lay thee before Kings;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt he a &s;pectacle for all the Kings of the Earth, that they may behold as what thy pride and &s;elfe-confidence have brought thee to, &s;o what their owne (if they tread thy path) eyther will or ju&s;tly may bring them unto. Thus al&s;o in the 7^t^h ver&s;e of <HI>Jude,</HI> Epi&s;tle, the Apo&s;tle &s;ayth, <HI>that Sodome and Gomorrha, and the Cities about them in like manner, giving them&s;elves over to fornication, and going after &s;trange fle&s;h, are &s;et forth for an example, &s;uffering the vengeance of Eternal fire.</HI> The Judgements of God are not onely puni&s;hments to them who went before, but premonotions to them who come after.</P>
<Q>The righteous &s;ee it, and are glad.</Q>
<P>Here is the effect which that &s;ight wrought upon the righ|teous; <HI>The eye affects the heart,</HI> and the heart is affected &s;utably to the object, eyther with joy or with &s;orrow. The de&s;tructi|on of men is a &s;orrowfull object, and therefore we might ra|ther expect that the righteous beholding it &s;hould be affected with &s;orrow but the Text affirmes a direct contrary effect of this fight; <HI>The righteous &s;ee it, and are glad.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The judgements of God upon the wicked are matter of joy to the righteous.</Q>
<P>It is the duty of the Saints <HI>to mourne with them that mourne, and to rejoyce with them that rejoyce</HI> (Rom. 12.15&punc;) But then we mu&s;t under&s;tand the&s;e mourners and rejoycers to be &s;uch as them&s;elves are. Saints mu&s;t mourne with mourning Saints, and rejoyce with rejoycing Saint. The godly are not bound
<PB N="185" REF="102"> eyther to joy the joyes, or &s;orrow the &s;orrowes of the wicked. The judgements of God upon the wicked have a twofold ef|fect eminently noted in Scripture. Fir&s;t, they cau&s;e feare; and &s;econdly, they cau&s;e joy. When exemplary ju&s;tice was to be done (according to the law of <HI>Mo&s;es)</HI> upon pre&s;umptuous tran&s;gre&s;&s;ours, it is &s;ayd, (<HI>Deut.</HI> 13.11.) <HI>All I&s;rael &s;hall heare, and feare, and &s;hall doe no more any &s;uch wickednes. David</HI> (P&s;al. 64.) having complained to God in prayer of the cruelty of his ene|mies, and begged protection from their malicious practi&s;es, growes up to much a&s;&s;urance, that downe they mu&s;t (<HI>v.</HI> 7, 8.) <HI>But God &s;hall &s;hoot at them with an arrow, &s;uddenly &s;hall they be wounded;</HI> and then (<HI>ver.</HI> 9.) <HI>All men &s;hall feare, and &s;hall declare the worke of God, for they &s;hall wi&s;ely con&s;ider of his doings.</HI> Thus feare is the i&s;&s;ue of divine judgement; And yet joy is the i&s;&s;ue of them at the 10^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame P&s;alme; <HI>The righteous &s;hall be glad in the Lord, and tru&s;t in him, and all the upright in heart &s;hall glory.</HI> Feare is a common effect; <HI>All men &s;hall feare;</HI> Glad|nes, faith and glorying, (which is faith triumphant) are pe|culiar to the upright, when the arrow of God wounds the wicked. Wee have this double effect againe expre&s;t upon the &s;ame occa&s;ion (P&s;al. 107.42.) <HI>He powreth contempt upon Prin|ces, and cau&s;eth them to wander in the wilderne&s;&s;e where there is no way; but he &s;ets the poore oh high; the righteous &s;hall it and rejoyce.</HI> What &s;hall they &s;ee? not only the Godly poore &s;et on high, but ungodly Princes filled with contempt, that's part of the &s;pec|tacle which the righteous &s;hall behold and beholding rejoyce; yet this is not all, for it follows; <HI>And all iniquity &s;hall &s;top her mouth;</HI> The ab&s;tract is put for the concrete, iniquity for men of iniquity: And &s;o the meaning is men of iniquity, or wick|ed men &s;hall &s;top their mouths; their mouths &s;hall be &s;topt With &s;hame and feare, they &s;hall have nothing to &s;ay when the Lord doth this; They &s;hall not mutter a word again&s;t the workes of God; but as <HI>Hannah</HI> &s;peakes in her Song (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 2.9.) <HI>&s;hall be &s;ilent in darknes.</HI> A like report ray&s;eth the hearts of the people of God into a holy merriment (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 97.8.) <HI>Sion heard, and was glad, the daughters of Judah rejoyced.</HI> What was the matter? what good newes came to <HI>Judah?</HI> what to <HI>Sion?</HI> the Text re&s;olves us; <HI>Becau&s;e of thy judgements O Lord:</HI> The an&s;wer is not, <HI>becau&s;e of thy mercies,</HI> or becau&s;e of thy goodnes O Lord,
<PB N="186" REF="103"> but becau&s;e of thy judgements, and tho&s;e were dreadfull ones (<HI>ver.</HI> 3.) <HI>A fire goeth before him and burneth up his enemies round about. Confounded be all they that &s;erve graven Images,</HI> &amp;c. ver. 7. <HI>Sion heard of it, and was glad.</HI> Once more (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 58.10.) <HI>The righteous &s;hall rejoyce when he &s;eeth the vengeance, he &s;hall wa&s;h his feete in the bloud of the ungodly.</HI> Not that the righteous delight in bloud, or proudly in&s;ult over the wor&s;t of enemies; The P&s;almi&s;t doth only in hyperbolical &s;traines of Eloquence, bor|rowed from the language of triumphant conquerers, expre&s;&s;e a compleate and glorious victory. The &s;tile is of the &s;ame &s;ig|nification with that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 68.23.) <HI>That thy foote may be dipped in the bloud of thine enemies, and the tongue of the doggs in the &s;ame.</HI> When &s;o much bloud is &s;hed that the foote may be dipt and wa&s;hed in it, that doggs may lap it up like water, this argues a great de&s;truction, and when the wicked are thus de&s;troyed, the righteous &s;hall rejoyce.</P>
<P>But here it may be queried, What matter of joy is this? why &s;hould the righteous rejoyce in the &s;orrowes of the wicked? is it not alike &s;inful to be troubled at the joyes, and to rejoyce at the troubles of our brethren? The light of nature con|demns rejoycing over tho&s;e who are in mi&s;ery; and we have an expre&s;&s;e Scripture again&s;t it (<HI>Pro.</HI> 24.17.) <HI>Rejoyce not when thine enemy falleth, let not thy heart be glad when he &s;tumbleth.</HI> And <HI>David</HI> puts it among the &s;ins of his enemies (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.15.) <HI>In my adver&s;ity they rejoyced.</HI> And he profe&s;&s;ed (<HI>ver.</HI> 13.) <HI>that when they were &s;icke his cloathing was &s;acke cloath, and that he humbled his &s;oule with fa&s;ting. David</HI> was &s;o farre from rejoycing when his enemies were ruined, or dead, that he mourned when they were but &s;icke, and would not eate, when they could not. And as <HI>Davids</HI> holy practice denyed it, &s;o doth <HI>Solomons</HI> divine pre|cept; <HI>Rejoyce not when thine enemy falleth.</HI> How then &s;hall wee reconcile the&s;e Texts?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, there may be a rejoycing at the afflictions and troubles of others, which is not onely unbecoming and un|&s;eemely for the righteous; but very &s;infull. As</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To rejoyce, and be glad, meerely becau&s;e an enemy is fallen into mi&s;ery, is both un&s;eemly and &s;infull. And &s;o we are to under&s;tand <HI>Solomons</HI> Proverbe; <HI>Rejoyce not when thine ene|my falleth.</HI> Some under&s;tand this of falling into &s;inne. Hee
<PB N="187" REF="103"> makes him&s;elfe a &s;inner indeed, who rejoyceth becau&s;e ano|ther hath &s;inned. He that rejoyceth becau&s;e another hath &s;in|ned, rejoyceth (upon the matter) becau&s;e God is di&s;honoured. Such joy is a kinde of thank&s;giving for Satans victory. But as to rejoyce becau&s;e another falls into &s;in, is the wor&s;t fall into &s;inne; &s;o to rejoyce meerely becau&s;e an enemy falls into mi&s;e|ry, is wor&s;e then our owne falling into mi&s;ery. He &s;hewes that he hath not the heart of a man in him, who is glad at the mi|&s;ery of any man, And he who rejoyceth thus when his enemy falleth, doth him&s;elfe fall much wor&s;e. The ruine and down|fall of an enemy (&s;uppo&s;e him the vile&s;t enemy) con&s;idered in it &s;elfe, is meate and drinke to none but revengefull and envi|ous &s;pirits. <HI>David</HI> was much troubled and chargeth it as an extreame peece of folly upon him&s;elfe, <HI>Becau&s;e he was envious at the fooli&s;h when he &s;aw the pro&s;perity of the wicked</HI> (P&s;al. 73.3.) Now it is an i&s;&s;ue flowing from the &s;ame principle, purely to envy the pro&s;perity and purely to rejoyce in the adver&s;ity of the wicked. <HI>Nero</HI> was ju&s;tly reckoned a mon&s;ter among men, who could &s;ing when him&s;elfe had &s;et <HI>Rome</HI> a fire: And they have &s;ome-what of a Neronian &s;pirit in them, who can &s;ing when they &s;ee their enemies con&s;uming in the fire. God de|lights not in the mi&s;ery of man (as it is mi&s;ery upon man) nor doe they, who are taught of God.</P>
<P>Secondly, As to rejoyce or be glad at the de&s;truction of enemies, meerely becau&s;e they are de&s;troyed; &s;o to rejoyce up|on private ends or re&s;pects, becau&s;e they being taken out of the way and removed out of the world we hope to have more &s;cope and roome in the world for our &s;elves; or becau&s;e we hope to &s;tep into their places, to fit downe in their &s;eates, to po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e our &s;elves of their lands and riches, to fill our &s;elves with their &s;poyles; upon this account to rejoyce when wick|ed men fall, when the Lord powres out contempt upon Prin|ces, (becau&s;e (I &s;ay) we hope to be gainers by it) is alltoge|ther uncomely for the righteous. Let the righteous take heed to them&s;elves, that they be not found thus rejoycing in the calamities of the wicked. They who doe &s;o are eyther but pre|tenders to godline&s;s, men who are onely of the faction of the righteous (for though they who are righteous indeed are farre from a faction, yes there are a &s;or<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> of men, who profe&s;&s;e righ|teou&s;ne&s;&s;e
<PB N="188" REF="104"> as if it were nothing but a faction, now (I &s;ay) they who thus rejoyce are but eyther of the faction of the righte|ous) while they are really of the number of the wicked, or if they are really righteous who doe &s;o, (and I confe&s;&s;e that a righteous man may doe &s;o, <HI>David</HI> (which was acting the coun|ter-part) envied their pro&s;perity, and by the &s;ame rea&s;on any godly man may be acted out in joy at their adver&s;ity, but now (I &s;ay) if they who are really righteous doe &s;o) we mu&s;t con|clude them under a &s;ore temptation, and they will at la&s;t con|clude of them&s;elves as <HI>David</HI> did in the counter-ca&s;e, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.22.) <HI>&s;o fooli&s;h have we been and ignorant, even as a bea&s;t before thee.</HI></P>
<P>You will &s;ay then, how may or doe the righteous rejoyce when the ungodly fall, and not fall into &s;in them&s;elves.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, Fir&s;t, The righteous rejoyce at the fall of the wicked, as ble&s;&s;ing God who hath kept their feete from tho&s;e wayes in which the wicked have fallen; As 'tis a great mercy to be kept out of tho&s;e ill wayes, to be kept from fiding with tho&s;e corrupt intere&s;ts, in the pur&s;uit of which we &s;ee many broken; &s;o 'tis a duty to rejoyce that we have not walked in their way who&s;e end we &s;ee to be nothing els but de&s;truction.</P>
<P>Secondly, The righteous have cau&s;e to rejoyce &amp; ble&s;&s;e God when they &s;ee the wicked fall, becau&s;e them&s;elves are &s;aved, &amp; keepe their &s;tanding; becau&s;e them&s;elves have e&s;caped the danger, and the Lord hath been a banner of protection over them in the day when the wicked fell. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> after the de|&s;truction of <HI>Amaleck built an Altar, and called the name of it Je|hova-Ni&s;&s;i (Exod.</HI> 17.15.) that is to &s;ay, <HI>The Lord is my ban|ner.</HI> And in like ca&s;es the joy of the Saints is not properly in the de&s;truction of the wicked, but in their owne deliverance, through the mighty power &amp; good hand of God with them. It is the pre&s;ence of God with them, the appearance of God for them, which is the gladnes of their hearts.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The righteous then rejoyce, becau&s;e the Church and people of God are in a fayre way to peace; when the Ly|ons are de&s;troyed, the &s;heepe are in &s;afety; when the Wolves and the Beares are cut off, the flock re&s;ts quietly; &s;o in this ca&s;e when men of devouring cruell &s;pirits, wicked and ungodly ones, are removed, the flocke of God, the &s;heepe of his pa&s;ture
<PB N="189" REF="104"> feed quietly, none making them afrayd. The fall of the ene|mies of <HI>Sion,</HI> is the e&s;tabli&s;hment of <HI>Sion;</HI> yea in a great mea|&s;ure of mankinde. As the Prophet mo&s;t elegantly &s;ets it forth (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 14.6, 7, 8.) <HI>He who &s;mote the people in wrath with a conti|nuall &s;troke, he that ruled the Nations in anger, is per&s;ecuted and none hindereth; The whole earth is at re&s;t, and is quiet: they breake forth into &s;inging, yea the firre-trees rejoyce at thee, and the Cedars of Le|banon, &s;aying, &s;ince thou art layd downe no feller is come up again&s;t us.</HI> How often have wicked men in power felled not onely the Firre-trees and Cedars of the world, but the goodly trees of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in the Lords plantations; have they not there|fore rea&s;on to &s;ing when &s;uch fall, &s;eing the Fellers them&s;elves are then felled and fallen.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Joy ari&s;eth to the righteous, becau&s;e God is honoured in the fall of wicked men; And that's their chie|fe&s;t joy. That God is honoured is more joy to the righteous, then that them&s;elves are &s;aved, how much more then, then that the wicked are de&s;troyed. There is a threefold honour ari&s;ing to God when the wicked fall.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, God is honoured in his ju&s;tice; &s;uch a day <HI>is the day of the declaration of the righteous judgement of God;</HI> as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes of the great day of Judgement (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.5.) <HI>Thou after thy hardne&s;&s;e and impenitent heart, trea&s;ure&s;t up to thy &s;elfe wrath again&s;t the day of wrath, and revelation of the righteous judgement of God.</HI> Some doe even que&s;tion the ju&s;tice of God when wicked men pro&s;per, but he is vindicated in his ju&s;tice when wicked men fall; It cannot but plea&s;e righteous men, to &s;ee the righ|teous God exalted, or God exalted in his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e. They know and beleeve that God is righteous, when the wicked pro&s;per (<HI>Jer.</HI> 12.1.) But when the wicked are puni&s;hed, they proclaime his righteou&s;nes, Then <HI>they &s;ing the &s;ong of Mo&s;es the &s;ervant of God, and the &s;ong of the Lambe, &s;aying, Great and marvai|lous are thy workes Lord God Almighty, ju&s;t and true are thy wayes thou King of Saints. Who &s;hall not feare thee O Lord, and glorifie thy Name,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>for thy Judgements are made manife&s;t,</HI> (Rev. 15.3, 4.) The Lord is alwayes alike Ju&s;t, but it doth not alwayes alike appeare how ju&s;t he it. And as, that God is ju&s;t is the faith and &s;tay of the Saints, &s;o the appearances of his ju&s;tice are their joy and triumph.</P>
<PB N="190" REF="105">
<P>Secondly, God is honoured much in the attribute of his truth; in the truth of his word, in the truth of his threaten|ings, when the wicked are puni&s;hed. God hath &s;poken bloudy words concerning wicked men; not onely in reference to their future e&s;tate in the next life, but to their pre&s;ent e&s;tate in this. <HI>Say to the wicked it &s;hall be ill with him, the reward of his hands &s;hall be given him.</HI> But what is this reward? There are two &s;orts of rewards; Fir&s;t, rewards of love and favour according to the good which we have done; Secondly, rewards of wrath and anger, poenal rewards, according to the evill which we have done. Now when the Lord puts the&s;e poenal rewards in|to the hands of the wicked, or powres them upon their heads, he is honoured in his truth as well as his ju&s;tice, for the mouth of the Lord hath &s;poken it. As <HI>the promi&s;es are yea and Amen</HI> (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.20.) &s;o al&s;o are the threatnings, <HI>unto the glory of God by us.</HI> But as when <HI>David</HI> &s;aw his life in danger every day, he began to que&s;tion the truth of God, in the promi&s;e, that he &s;hould live to reigne and fit upon the throne of <HI>I&s;rael;</HI> for &s;aith he (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 116.11. when things went thus with him) <HI>I &s;aid in my ha&s;t all men are lyars,</HI> even <HI>Samuel</HI> among the re&s;t, who a&s;|&s;ured me of the Kingdome by expre&s;&s;e me&s;&s;age from God, but &s;urely he al&s;o is deceived, and hath fed me with vaine hopes. Now as the&s;e words of <HI>David</HI> according to our tran&s;lation of them, and the truth of the thing in frequent experiences, &s;hew, that Godly men are apt to que&s;tion the truth of the pro|mi&s;e, when them&s;elves are by &s;eemingly contradicting provi|dences much afflicted; &s;o they are apt to que&s;tion the truth of the threatnings when they &s;ee outward providences pro&s;pe|ring the wicked; Therefore when the threatnings have their actuall <HI>yea and Amen,</HI> that is, when they are executed upon the ungodly, this al&s;o is <HI>to the glory of God by us,</HI> that is, God is glo|rified by all his people, who heare of it in the truth of what he hath &s;poken. Againe, as God is magnified in the truth of his threatnings, when any particular wicked man is puni&s;hed; &s;o when common calamities come upon the wicked, the truth of God or God in his truth is magnified two wayes. Fir&s;t, As &s;uch calamities are a fullfilling of many Prophecies; &s;econd|ly, As they are the an&s;wer or returne of many prayers. The vengeance which falls upon the Enemies of the Church of
<PB N="191" REF="105"> God is drawne out by prayer, <HI>Luke</HI> 18.7, 8. And there is no|thing wherein God is more honoured, then when prayer is an&s;wered; For as therein he fullfills our wants, &s;o his owne word; <HI>Who hath not &s;aid to the &s;eed of Jacob, &s;eeke ye mee in vaine.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, When the wicked fall the Lord is honoured in the attribute of his power; How great is his power, who puls downe great power? It argues the Almightines of God, when he puts the mighty from their &s;eates: when the Oaks and the Cedars, when the high walls and mountaines are &s;haken and removed by his blowes and batteries. When <HI>Pharoah</HI> and his Egyptian hoa&s;t were drowned in the red Sea; Then <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> mag|nified God in his power (<HI>Exod.</HI> 15.2.) <HI>The Lord is my &s;trength and &s;ong</HI> (that is, I will &s;ing of the &s;trength of the Lord, not of the &s;trength of man) <HI>he is my God, and I will prepare him an habi|tation; my fathers God and I will exalt him.</HI></P>
<P>In the&s;e three attributes, Ju&s;tice, truth, and power, God is ho|noured, when the wicked are de&s;troyed, and therfore it cannot be uncomly for the Saints to rejoyce when they are de&s;troyed. The Lord by his Prophet a&s;&s;ures the Church his <HI>Jacob</HI> that all the enemies thereof &s;hall be &s;cattered. (<HI>I&s;.</HI> 41.15.) <HI>Behold, I will make thee a new &s;harpe thre&s;hing in&s;trument, having teeth, thou &s;halt thre&s;h the Nations &amp; beat them &s;mal, &amp; &s;halt make the hills as chaffe,</HI> &amp;c. The mountains &amp; th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">lls to be thre&s;hed, were the mighty ones of the earth, &s;etting them&s;elves again&s;t the wayes and de|&s;ignes of heaven. The In&s;trument or flayle wherewith they were to be thre&s;hed was the <HI>worme Jacob (ver.</HI> 14.) God did not &s;o much make an In&s;trument for the <HI>worme Jacob,</HI> as he made the <HI>worme Jacob</HI> his In&s;trument. <HI>Behold, I will make thee,</HI> (not for thee) <HI>a new thre&s;hing In&s;trument;</HI> But when the worme hath done this great worke, when he hath thre&s;hed the moun|taines, and made the hills as chaffe; What mu&s;t he doe then? The 16^t^h ver&s;e tells, <HI>Thou &s;halt rejoyce in the Lord,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Gaudebunt de eorum exitio, non vindictae cupiditate, &s;ed zelo dei accen&s;i qui hoc modo declarabit &s;ibi curae e&s;&s;e res humanas. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE> <HI>and &s;halt glory in the holy One of I&s;rael.</HI> Glorying is more then rejoycing: Glorying is a kinde of rapture or exta&s;ie of the &s;oule. As there is an exta&s;ie of Infatuation, &s;o there is an exta&s;ie of Gratious admiration. Fooles and madmen are be&s;ides them&s;elves for want of rea&s;on; the wi&s;e&s;t and be&s;t of men, are be&s;ides them|&s;elves through the aboundance of the Grace of God in them,
<PB N="192" REF="106"> and the aboundance of the goodne&s;s of God towards them. When the goodne&s;s of God acted mightily towards us, meetes with the Grace of God acting mightily in us, we are lifted up &s;o farre out of our &s;elves, that we can &s;ee nothing in our &s;elves, and then in whom or in what can our rejoycing be, <HI>but in the Lord the holy one of I&s;rael.</HI></P>
<P>This joy is not, Fir&s;t, the joy of the Epicure; A &s;en&s;uall joy, in wine and belly-cheare, in eating the fat, and drinking the &s;weete, in carnal merriments &amp; mu&s;icke; nor is this, &s;econd|ly, a cruel joy in the ruine and de&s;truction of men, which the Prophet rebukes (<HI>Obad. v.</HI> 12.) <HI>Thou &s;houldest not have rejoyced over the children of Judah in the day of their de&s;truction.</HI> Nor is this, thirdly, a proud joy, or a joy of o&s;tentation, when men &s;pread their plumes, and publi&s;h their owne wi&s;dome, greatnes and power; nor is it, fourthly, a covetous joy, &s;uch as theirs is who are glad becau&s;e they have fill'd their pur&s;es, enriched their familyes, and their hand hath gotten much; Nor is it la&s;tly, a &s;ecure joy, becau&s;e when evill men are ca&s;t downe we hope to fit warme and well, &s;afe and quiet upon their ruines; But this joy con&s;i&s;ts; fir&s;t, in high thoughts and valuations of God; <HI>Whom have I in heaven but thee,</HI> &amp;c. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.25.) <HI>Who is like unto thee O Lord among the Gods (Exod.</HI> 15.11.) It con|&s;i&s;ts, &s;econdly, in a &s;weete re&s;t or complacency in God. <HI>Returne unto thy re&s;t O my &s;oule;</HI> that is, tur<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n to God, live neerer him &s;aith a Godly man (to his &s;oule) a &s;uch a ca&s;e (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 116.7.) This joy is the re&s;t of the &s;oule in God; He who is re&s;t to him|&s;elfe (as God is) may be &s;o infinitely more to us. Thus, <HI>The righteous &s;ee it, and are Glad.</HI></P>
<Q>And the innocent laugh them to &s;corne.</Q>
<P>This heightens the &s;ence of the former part of the ver&s;e, not onely are the righteous glad when the wicked are de&s;troy|ed, but they <HI>laugh them to &s;corne. The righteous,</HI> in the former part of the ver&s;e are the &s;ame <HI>with the innocent</HI> here; yet we may di&s;tingui&s;h them. The innocent are taken two wayes in Scrip|ture; fir&s;t, the innocent are they who are pure from &s;inne; &s;econdly, the innocent are they who are pure or free from puni&s;hment.</P>
<PB N="193" REF="106">
<P>or from trouble; freedome from &s;in, and freedome from trouble are &s;o dependent upon one another, that one word may well ex|pre&s;&s;e both. Thus the word is u&s;ed (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 14.9.) <HI>The woman of Tekoah &s;aid to the king; My Lord O king, the iniquity be on me,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Innocens in Scriptura &s;umi|tur, non &s;ol&ugrave;m activ&egrave;, pro eo, qui nemini no|cet, &s;ed etiam pa&s;&s;iv&egrave;, pro eo cu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> nemo nocet.</NOTE> <HI>and my fathers hou&s;e, and the king and his throne be guiltle&s;&s;e or in|nocent,</HI> that is, free from all evill and trouble; While &s;he &s;aith, <HI>The iniquity be upon me,</HI> her meaning is, <HI>let the puni&s;hment of the iniqui|ty be upon me, let the king, and his throne be guiltle&s;&s;e;</HI> let no puni&s;h|ment of iniquity fall eyther upon the king in per&s;on, or upon his government. In the &s;ame &s;en&s;e the word is read (<HI>Exod.</HI> 19.21.) <HI>If he</HI> (that hath been &s;mitten) <HI>ri&s;e againe and walke abroad upon a &s;taffe, then he that &s;mote him &s;hall be quitt;</HI> the Hebrew is, <HI>then &s;hall he be innocent,</HI> that is, free from puni&s;hment, he &s;hall not have any cen&s;ure, or judgement for it. We have the like u&s;e of the word (<HI>Numb.</HI> 5.19.) in the ca&s;e of the woman &s;u&s;pected by her hu&s;|band for di&s;loyalty in breaking her marriage vow; &s;he being for her purgation to drinke the <HI>bitter water,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Innocens eris ab aquis i&s;tis amari&s;&s;imis. <HI>Heb.</HI></NOTE> the Prie&s;t was to be&s;peake her in this manner; <HI>If no man hath lien with thee, and if thou ha&s;t not gone a&s;ide to uncleanenes with another in &s;tead of thy husband, be thou free</HI> (or innocent) <HI>from this bitter water that cau&s;eth the cur&s;e,</HI> that is, let the water doe thee no harme; as if he had &s;ayd; <HI>thou &s;halt feele no evill of paine by it, if thou art not guilty of the e|vill of &s;inne.</HI> Thus &s;ome expound the word here. <HI>The innocent &s;hall laugh them to &s;corne,</HI> that is, they who are free from tho&s;e troubles with which the wicked are over-taken and undone, tho&s;e particu|lar righteous men who e&s;cape the &s;torme untouched, <HI>laugh the wicked to &s;corne.</HI> Many of the Hebrew writers fix upon a &s;peciall per&s;on; and by the <HI>Innocent,</HI> under&s;tand <HI>Noah,</HI> as if it were a re|port of what was done upon the old world; Then <HI>the righteous,</HI> that is (as the Chaldee Paraphra&s;e explaines it) the &s;onnes of righ|teous <HI>Noah &s;aw</HI> (the flood) <HI>and were glad,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Videbant filij No&euml; ju&s;ti et lae|tabuntur, &amp; Noe innocens &s;ub&s;a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">nabit ees. <HI>Targ:</HI></NOTE> and innocent <HI>Noah</HI> laught the prophane old world to &s;corne. When <HI>Noah,</HI> and his &s;onnes were building the Arke, the old world in &s;tead of beleeving and fearing the report or prophecy of a deluge, laught them to &s;corne, and in deri&s;ion, doubtle&s;&s;e, ask't them what voyage they intended, and whether they meant to &s;ayle their Ship over the dry Land; as for them they never dreamt of a Sea hanging in the clouds, and ready to drop downe upon their heads. Now as the ungodly world derided <HI>Noah</HI> and his Sons for their credulity be|fore
<PB N="194" REF="107"> the flood came, &s;o 'tis probable enough that when the flood came upon that world of the ungodly, <HI>Noah</HI> and his Sons laught at and derided their incredulity. <HI>They who laugh at divine threat|nings, de&s;erve to be laughed at under divine &s;ufferings.</HI></P>
<P>Others apply this particularly to the Tragedy of <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and his Egyptians overwhelmed and drowned in the red &s;ea; of which it is &s;aid, (<HI>Exod.</HI> 14.30, 31.) <HI>Thus the Lord &s;aved I&s;rael that day out of the hand of the Egyptians, and I&s;rael &s;aw the Egyptians dead upon the &s;hoare, and I&s;rael &s;aw that Great worke, which the Lord did upon the Egyptians.</HI> The effect of this &s;ight is two wayes de&s;cribed in that holy Hi&s;torie; Fir&s;t, by the acting of feare and faith; <HI>And the people feared the Lord, and beleeved the Lord and his &s;ervant Mo&s;es:</HI> Secondly, by the acting of their joy in the Lord, and their holy in&s;ultation over the drowned Egyptians (<HI>Chap.</HI> 15. <HI>v.</HI> 1.) <HI>Then &s;ang Mo&s;es and the children of I&s;rael this &s;ong unto the Lord, and &s;pake, &s;aying; I will &s;ing unto the Lord, for he hath triumphed gloriou&s;ly, the hor&s;e &amp; his rider hath he throwne into the Sea.</HI> Thus al&s;o that innocent people &s;aw the ruine of their wicked enemies, <HI>and laughed them to &s;corne.</HI></P>
<P>Yet I conceive <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;peaking here rather upon a generally experienced and po&s;itive truth, then &s;trictly and particularly aym|ing at tho&s;e ancient Examples. <HI>The innocent,</HI> that is, any innocent per&s;on, whether innocent in reference to the doing of evill, or ha|ving e&s;caped the &s;ufferance of evill, <HI>laugh them to &s;corne.</HI></P>
<P>Before, he &s;ayd, <HI>the righteous &s;ee it and are glad,</HI> now he &s;ayth, <HI>the innocent laugh them to &s;corne:</HI> it is one thing for a man to be glad in him&s;elfe, and another thing to laugh other men to &s;corne; for though to <HI>be innocent</HI> carries in it &s;omewhat le&s;&s;e, or at the mo&s;t but &s;o much as to be righteous, yet to laugh the unrighteous and wicked to &s;corne when they fall, carries in it much more then to be glad when they fall.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> denotat ge&s;tum qui fit ore, labijs, &amp; ficta balbutie, five quod balbu|tientes irrideri &s;olea~t, &s;ive quod irri&s;ores balbu|tiant, per con|temptum et ma|lignam imitati|onem.</NOTE> And be&s;ides, the word in the Hebrew, &s;igni|fies, the mo&s;t &s;cornefull laughter, &s;uch a laughter as is expre&s;&s;ed, by a di&s;tortion of the mouth, and lips, or by a kinde of fained li&s;p|ing with the tongue, and artificiall faultring in &s;peech; For as they that li&s;pe and faulter in &s;peech are u&s;ually derided and laught at, &s;o they that deride and laugh at others will purpo&s;ely li&s;pe, or faul|ter in &s;peech. Stammerers are contemptible, and many &s;tammer at others in contempt; <HI>This imitation of a defect in nature &s;hewes the exce&s;&s;e of malice.</HI> Such is the force of this expre&s;&s;ion, <HI>The innocent laugh them to &s;corne.</HI></P>
<PB N="195" REF="107">
<P>Here it may be que&s;tioned, how a good man, an innocent per|&s;on, can doe &s;uch a thing; can he thus laugh the wicked to &s;corne? it is difficult enough to &s;alve it as con&s;i&s;tent with Grace, for a righ|teous man to rejoyce at the fall of the wicked, but it is farre more difficult to &s;alve it, how a righteous man may laugh them to &s;corne; &s;corning and deriding are the practices of lewd per&s;ons, of &s;ons of <HI>Beliall;</HI> &s;uch indeed are u&s;ually &s;corners and jeerers. The enemies of Je&s;us Chri&s;t are &s;o de&s;cribed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 22.7.) <HI>All they that &s;ee me</HI> (that is, all the wicked that &s;ee me, for many Di&s;ciples &s;aw Chri&s;t in his &s;ufferings, and did not onely pity him, but honour and be|leeve on him, but (&s;aith he) <HI>all they</HI> (who are mine enemies) <HI>that &s;ee me) laugh me to &s;corne, they &s;hoot out the lip, and &s;hake the head.</HI> And <HI>David</HI> tells us (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.1.) that to <HI>fit in the &s;eate of the &s;cornefull,</HI> is the conclu&s;ion of tho&s;e who have fir&s;t <HI>walked in the way of the ungodly,</HI> and &s;econdly, <HI>&s;tood in the way of &s;inners.</HI> The common Latine tran&s;later renders that in the <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> not the &s;eate of &s;corners, but the &s;eate of the pe&s;tilence. And indeed they have &s;pirituall plague-&s;pots upon them, and the &s;ure&s;t tokens of eternall death, who are given up to be &s;corners. Therefore que&s;tion it againe, how are the Innocent &s;corners?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, That as when humane affections, which are below the divine nature, are attributed to God, (&s;uch are <HI>to repent, to be grie|ved at the wickednes, and to laugh at the calamity of the wicked</HI>) we &s;ay the&s;e note onely an effect upon the creature, not a change of affection in God (for, in him there is no variablenes nor &s;ha|dow of change) &s;o when tho&s;e actions,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Irri&s;io, &amp; <GAP DESC="foreign"> &amp; &s;imilia quae af|fectum huma|num &s;ignificant, uti a deo longe ab&s;unt, ita quae mali moris &s;unt ab eccle&s;ia. <HI>Coc:</HI> &V;t haec de de&eacute; <GAP DESC="foreign"> i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a de &s;anctis <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;unt intell genda.</NOTE> which are below or un|&s;uteable to a renewed regenerate nature in man, are attributed to the Saints (&s;uch as the&s;e, <HI>to wa&s;h their feete in the bloud of the un|godly, to laugh them to &s;corne in their &s;adde&s;t mi&s;eries</HI>) we mu&s;t &s;ay, that the&s;e note rather what the wicked de&s;erve, then what the god|ly doe. The godly are no &s;corners, but there is that in wicked men which is worthy to be laughed to &s;corne, or wicked men doe that, for which they de&s;erve to be laughed at; what&s;oever is evill in &s;uch like actions, is farre from the heart and &s;pirit of the godly. And therefore as Scriptures of &s;uch a tenour are to be interpreted and under&s;tood in &s;uch a manner as becomes and is con&s;i&s;tent with the holines of God, &s;o al&s;o (in their proportion) to the holines of the Saints. The laughter of the Saints in the&s;e di&s;pen&s;ations is &s;eri|ous, and their &s;corning, the acting of their graces, not of their
<PB N="196" REF="108"> corruptions. And thus it is &s;aid of God him&s;elfe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 2.4.) <HI>He that &s;itteth in heaven &s;hall laugh, the Lord &s;hall have them in deri|&s;ion.</HI> And (<HI>Prov.</HI> 1.26.) <HI>I will mocke at your calamity, and laugh when your feare commeth: when your feare commeth as de&s;olation, and your de&s;truction commeth as a whirlewind</HI> &amp;c. that is, I will car|ry my &s;elfe &s;o towards you, I will pity you (who have been &s;cor|ners of my word, <HI>and have &s;et at nought my coun&s;el</HI>) no more then men pity tho&s;e, whom they laugh to &s;corne; &s;uch is the laughter of the Saints at the calamity of the wicked. And thus <HI>Eliah</HI> derided <HI>Baals</HI> Prie&s;ts, while they wearied them&s;elves in their fooli&s;h &s;uper|&s;tition (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 18.27.) <HI>And it came to pa&s;&s;e at noone that Eliah mockt them, and &s;aid cry aloud, for he is a God, eyther he is talking,</HI> &amp;c. Thus <HI>Hieru&s;alem</HI> is expre&s;&s;ed (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 37.22.) when <HI>Senache|rib</HI> &s;ent up that proud threatning me&s;&s;age, the Lord &s;ent a com|fortable me&s;&s;age to his people by <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> the Prophet; <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord God of I&s;rael, whereas thou ha&s;t prayed to me again&s;t Sena|cherib the king of A&s;&s;yria, this is the word which the Lord hath &s;po|ken concerning him; the virgin the daughter of Zion hath de&s;pi&s;ed thee, and laughed thee to &s;corne, the daughter of Jeru&s;alem hath &s;ha|ken her head at thee.</HI> The daughter of <HI>Zion,</HI> and the daughter of <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> are but one and the &s;ame; &s;hee was called a virgin, not (as &s;ome have conceived) becau&s;e &s;he was never taken or forced by any enemy; nor was &s;he &s;o called, becau&s;e he had pre&s;erved her &s;elfe pure and cha&s;t in the wor&s;hip of the true God (For &s;he had her faylings and Idolatrous dalliances before that day) but &s;he was &s;o called becau&s;e of that &s;peciall care which God had of her to protect and &s;ave her again&s;t the in&s;ultations of the enemy then ready to a&s;&s;ault her, even as a virgin is protected from violence in her fathers hou&s;e. And the Prophet to a&s;&s;ure them that it &s;hould be &s;o, &s;peakes of the ruine of <HI>Senacheribs</HI> Army, and <HI>Jeru&s;alems</HI> laughter, as accompli&s;ht and come to pa&s;&s;e already; <HI>The virgin daughter</HI> &amp;c. <HI>hath de&s;pi&s;ed thee, and laughed thee to &s;corne, and &s;ha|ken her head at thee.</HI> What God &s;aith &s;hall be done, is as good as done already. The <HI>A&s;&s;yrians</HI> were yet in their Jollity, laughing at <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> and promi&s;ing them&s;elves the &s;poyle of the people of God, yet (&s;aith the Lord) <HI>Jeru&s;alem hath laughed thee to &s;corne;</HI> that is, a&s;&s;uredly &s;he &s;hall. And as the people of God doe &s;ome|times formally and explicitly laugh at the downfall and whitherings of the wicked, &s;o they alwayes virtually and &s;ecretly laugh them to
<PB N="197" REF="108"> &s;corne, even when they &s;tand and flouri&s;h in their greenenes and pro&s;perity; For while the Godly are not daunted with the power and &s;plendour, while they are not terrified with the threats and high lookes of the wicked, but in the &s;inglenes and &s;implicity of their hearts, keepe clo&s;e to God, his wayes and truths; even this, though they u&s;e the due&s;t re&s;pect to them in regard of their au|thority, both in word and ge&s;ture, is a laughing them to &s;corne; For this is as a thorne in the &s;ides of evill men, and as a pricke in their eyes, when they &s;ee they will not &s;toope to their greatnes in any &s;infull complyance with their commands. This is a truth, but the former is the truth intended in this Text.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That wicked men are not onely mi&s;erable but ridiculous.</Q></P>
<P>They are the laughter of the innocent, upon more accounts then one.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, becau&s;e they doe &s;uch childi&s;h, and ridiculous things, &s;uch things as can never reach the ends they de&s;ire and purpo&s;e: they are ju&s;tly laughed at, who&s;e coun&s;ells and cour&s;es are un&s;uitable, much more, when contrary to their de&s;ignes.</P>
<P>Secondly, Wicked men become ridiculous, while the Lord fru|&s;trates their wi&s;e&s;t coun&s;els, and bla&s;ts tho&s;e hopes which were bot|tom'd upon the mo&s;t probable principles and foundations, while he takes them in their own craft, and entraps them in the &s;nare which they layd for others.</P>
<P>Thirdly, While he over-rules all that they plot or act to &s;erve his owne ends, and fullfill his owne holy coun&s;els. Hence the ene|mies of God are &s;aid <HI>to pine away; this &s;hall be the plague where|with the Lord will &s;mite all the people, that have fought again&s;t Je|ru&s;alem, their fle&s;h &s;hall con&s;ume away while they &s;tand upon their feete</HI> (he doth not &s;ay, that they &s;hall all be &s;laine, but their fle&s;h &s;hall con&s;ume away while they &s;tand upon their feete) <HI>and their eyes &s;hall con&s;ume away in their holes, and their tongue &s;hall con&s;ume away in their mouth</HI> (Zech. 14.12.) which as &s;ome interpret of their bodily langui&s;hment, that they &s;hall live dying continually, or that their life &s;hall be a continuall death, &s;o all interpret the cau&s;e of <HI>this con&s;umption</HI> to ari&s;e from vexation of &s;pirit, becau&s;e they &s;hall &s;ee them&s;elves &s;corn'd and laughed at, or that they are become ridiculous to all the world, but chiefly to <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI>
<PB N="198" REF="109"> the Church and people of God, whom they &s;hall behold in good condition, notwith&s;tanding all the oppo&s;ition which they have made again&s;t them; which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> al&s;o clearely expre&s;&s;eth in the next words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="20" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 20.</HI></BIBL> Whereas our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe, but the rem|nant of them the fire con&s;umes.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There are divers readings and renderings of this ver&s;e; fir&s;t, &s;ome with an affirmative interrogation; <HI>is not their &s;ub&s;tance cut downe?</HI> that is, it is cut downe; And then this ver&s;e is a continuation of the former di&s;cour&s;e concerning the utter extirpation of the wick|ed; <HI>The righteous are glad, they laugh them to &s;corne; is not their &s;ub&s;tance cut downe? and doth not the fire con&s;ume the remnant of them?</HI> As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid, What&s;oever they had of any &s;ub|&s;tance or moment is cut downe, and if po&s;&s;ibly there be any &s;mall incon&s;iderable remainder of them, fire (that is, &s;ome devouring Judgement) will meete with it, and make an utter end of it.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Innocens &s;ub&s;ar|nabit eos, quia non fuit &s;ucci&s;a &s;ub&s;tantia no&s;t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a <HI>&amp;c. q. d.</HI> ut qui &s;e &amp; res &s;uas &s;alvas, illos au+tem penit&ugrave;s ig|ne illo divino videant jure ab&s;umptos. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE>Secondly, Another under&s;tands this 20^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e as a rea&s;on of the former; <HI>the righteous are glad</HI> (when the wicked fall) <HI>the in|nocent &s;hall laugh them to &s;corne, becau&s;e our &s;ub&s;tance was not cut downe;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, our &s;afety will be matter as of prai&s;e to God, who hath pre&s;erved us, &s;o of holy &s;corne and in&s;ultation o|ver ungodly men, who longed to &s;ee our de&s;truction, and &s;ayd in their hearts, that &s;urely our day was not onely comming, but ha&s;t|ning; whereas indeed we &s;ee the day come upon them which burneth as an oven, and them&s;elves as &s;tubble. Wicked men are for the mo&s;t part doubly di&s;appointed; fir&s;t, by their owne fall, when they looked to &s;tand; &s;econdly, by the &s;tanding of the righte|ous when they looke, yea, and long for their fall; This double di&s;|appointment doth at once double their &s;orrow, and the joy of the Innocent, who laugh them to &s;corne, becau&s;e <HI>their owne &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe, but the remnant of them the fire con&s;umeth.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Innocens &s;ub&s;an|nabiteos dicens, et&s;i non e&s;t &s;uc|ci&s;a &s;ub&s;tantia no&s;tra, tamen excellentiam il|lorum con&s;ump|&s;it ignis. <HI>P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;c:</HI></NOTE>There is a third tran&s;lation which makes the&s;e words the forme in which the innocent expre&s;&s;e their laughter at the wicked. When <HI>The innocent laugh them to &s;corne,</HI> they will thus be&s;peake them; <HI>Whereas</HI> or <HI>Although our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe, yet the rem|nant of them, or the be&s;t, the excellency of them the fire hath con|&s;umed.</HI></P>
<P>There is a fourth reading, which makes the &s;econd part of the
<PB N="199" REF="109"> Chapter begin with this ver&s;e. For hitherto <HI>Eliphaz</HI> hath been de&s;cribing the &s;infulne&s;&s;e of wicked men, and the wrath of God upon them for their wickednes.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum nondum ab&s;cinditur &s;ub|&s;tantia no&s;tra, &amp; re&s;iduum il|lorum ab&s;umit ignis, a&s;&s;ue&s;ce quae&s;o cum illo. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> But here he is &s;uppo&s;ed entring upon a very &s;erious exhortation to repentance, after this manner, or to this effect; <HI>O Job, now while our &s;ub&s;tance is not quite out downe, and the fire con&s;umeth the re&s;idue or the remnant of the wic|ked, acquaint thy &s;elfe with God;</HI> or apply thy &s;elfe to God, as if he &s;hould &s;ay, <HI>before thou art cleane cut downe, before thou art utterly ruined as many wicked men have been heretofore, and now are, hum|ble thy &s;elfe and &s;eeke to God, that thy &s;in may be forgiven, and thy wound healed.</HI> Some paralel this in &s;en&s;e with that of the Preacher, <HI>Eccle.</HI> 12.1. <HI>Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth, while the evill dayes come not, nor the yeares draw nigh wherein thou &s;halt &s;ay, I have no plea&s;ure in them.</HI> Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> is conceived exhorting <HI>Job, While our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe, while we are not totally undone,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quum &s;ub&s;i&s;te~|tia no&s;tra non &s;it exci&s;a, reliquias autem i&s;torum ignis a&s;&s;ump&s;e|rit. <HI>Tygur:</HI> Ita bene ut ni|hil melius. <HI>Bold:</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign">, ex|tant<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a vel potius <GAP DESC="foreign"> quo &s;ub&s;i&s;timus duramus, vel &s;ub&s;i&s;tantia no|&s;tra <HI>i. e.</HI> vita qua &s;ub&s;i&s;timus, nam &s;tare valet interdum &s;uper|&s;titem e&s;&s;e. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> <HI>while the fire of Gods wrath is con&s;uming the re|mainder of wicked men, doe thou acquaint thy &s;elfe with God, and re|pent.</HI> And though our tran&s;lation makes not this connection, yet it joynes fully in the &s;en&s;e of the Originall.</P>
<Q>Whereas our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe.</Q>
<P>So this ver&s;e is an elegant conclu&s;ion of the whole matter hi|therto in&s;i&s;ted upon by <HI>Eliphaz;</HI> and he &s;huts it up in two parts; fir&s;t, &s;hewing the &s;tate of the innocent, who are brought in &s;peak|ing thus; <HI>Our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe.</HI> &s;trictly, That by which we &s;tand or &s;ub&s;i&s;t, our &s;ub&s;tance or &s;ub&s;i&s;tence; which &s;ome expound not by goods, but by life; we may take it both wayes, our life, and that by which our life is maintained, or by which we and our fami|lies &s;ub&s;i&s;t, <HI>is not cut downe.</HI></P>
<P>There is yet a difficulty in regard of the grammaticall &s;en&s;e of the&s;e words. For <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having &s;poken before in the third per|&s;on plural, <HI>The righteous are glad, and the innocent laugh them to &s;corne,</HI> &s;hould (as it may be thought) rather have continued his &s;peech in the &s;ame forme, and have &s;ayd; <HI>Whereas Their &s;ub&s;tance is not downe,</HI> but he puts it in the fir&s;t per&s;on plural, <HI>Whereas our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>We may an&s;wer two wayes; Fir&s;t, that it is u&s;uall in Scripture to vary the number, while the &s;ame per&s;on or per&s;ons is or are &s;poken of; take onely one In&s;tance, <HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 12.4. <HI>He</HI> (that is the Angel
<PB N="200" REF="110"> of the Covenant) <HI>found him in Bethel,</HI> that is, <HI>Jacob. And there he &s;pake with us.</HI> It &s;hould according to Grammar be read thus; <HI>And there he &s;pake with him.</HI> Having found <HI>Jacob</HI> in <HI>Bethel,</HI> he &s;pake with him in <HI>Bethel.</HI> But we &s;ee both the per&s;on and number are varied, the former words running in the third per&s;on &s;ingular (being meant particularly of <HI>Jacob,</HI>) the latter in the fir&s;t per&s;on plural, <HI>There he &s;pake with us;</HI> The Spirit of God thereby &s;igni|fying, that, what God &s;pake at that time to <HI>Jacob</HI> per&s;onally, he &s;pake to all the &s;pirituall &s;eed of <HI>Jacob,</HI> whether of the Circumci|&s;ion or Uncircumci&s;ion, virtually; He &s;o &s;pake to <HI>Jacob</HI> as that the &s;ub&s;tance and effect of his &s;peech reacheth downe to and hath an influence upon <HI>us,</HI> beleevers, who are his po&s;terity according to the Spirit. Be&s;ides this, other Scriptures hold out the like variati|on of the number, as in the Text, which is the fir&s;t an&s;wer.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> might purpo&s;ely vary the number, that him|&s;elfe might put in for a &s;hare, and be numbred among tho&s;e, who had obtained that &s;paring mercy, not to be cut downe while others were con&s;umed. And &s;o this rea&s;on of the change is purely &s;piri|tuall, much like that la&s;t opened out of <HI>Ho&s;ea.</HI></P>
<P>Whence note;
<Q>That the righteous are often pre&s;erved in common calamities.</Q></P>
<P>(<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 20.8.) <HI>They are brought downe, and are fallen, but we are ri&s;en and &s;tand upright, our &s;ub&s;tance is not cut downe;</HI> God takes &s;peciall care of his owne people; they are under a promi&s;e; there can be no greater &s;afety, no better &s;ecurity then to be under a promi&s;e; the promi&s;e is the be&s;t &s;helter in a &s;torme, and the be&s;t &s;hield again&s;t the dart. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> gives us two famous examples of this, (2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.5, 6.) <HI>God &s;pared not the old world, but &s;aved Noah</HI> &amp;c. <HI>bringing in the flood upon the world of the un|godly. And having turned the Cities of Sodome and Gomorrha into a&s;hes, condemned them with an overthrow</HI> &amp;c. <HI>and delivered just Lot</HI> &amp;c. From both which examples he concludeth (<HI>v.</HI> 9.) <HI>The Lord knoweth how to deliver the Godly out of temptation, and to re|&s;erve the unju&s;t unto the day of Judgement to be puni&s;hed. When judgement begins at the hou&s;e of God, what &s;hall the end of them be that obey not the Go&s;pel of God?</HI> as the &s;ame Apo&s;tle &s;peaks (1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 4.17.) It is a &s;ure argument to the wicked that they &s;hall be judged, when they &s;ee God bringing judgements upon his owne
<PB N="201" REF="110"> hou&s;e and people; but the wicked are many times judged while the hou&s;e and people of God are pre&s;erved and untoucht; and when both good and bad, both the innocent, and the wicked are wrapt up in the &s;ame calamity, when they are (as it were) thru&s;t together into the &s;ame furnace, the Lord makes a difference, they are not cut downe as the wicked are cut downe, nor con&s;umed as they are con&s;umed. When the righteous are ca&s;t into the fire they are purged but not con&s;umed, but (as it follows in the &s;econd part of this conclu&s;ion, &s;hewing the &s;tate of the wicked)
<Q>The remnant of them the fire con&s;umeth.</Q></P>
<P>Fire in this place is not taken &s;trictly, as oppo&s;ed to water; God indeed hath often made fire in kinde his &s;courge. And the Apo&s;tle <HI>Jude</HI> &s;aith of <HI>Sodome,</HI> That it &s;uffered the vengeance of eternall fire. But all the judgements of God are in Scripture compared to fire (<HI>Mala.</HI> 4.1.) <HI>Behold the day cometh that &s;hall burne like an Oven, and all the proud, yea all that doe wickedly &s;hall be &s;tubble, and the day that cometh &s;hall burne them up, &s;aith the Lord of ho&s;ts, that it &s;hall leave them neither fruit nor branch.</HI> There is a burn|ing, and not by fire; There is &s;o great a judgement and terror in fire let loo&s;e and breaking its bounds, that it may well &s;ignifie all judgements, or any thing that is terrible. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 52.4.) <HI>As the fire devoureth the &s;tubble, and the flame con&s;umeth the chaffe, &s;o their roote &s;hall be rottenne&s;&s;e, and their blo&s;&s;ome &s;hall goe up as du&s;t.</HI> Thus here, <HI>the remnant of them the fire con&s;umeth,</HI> that is, the wrath of God appearing in &s;ome vi&s;ible judgement con&s;umeth the remnant.</P>
<P>But what is this <HI>remnant</HI> which the fire con&s;umeth?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer. Fir&s;t, we may expound it of per&s;ons. The remnant of per&s;ons, all that are left of their family, their children and po&s;te|rity, their kindred and relations are taken away and con&s;umed from off the face of the earth.</P>
<P>Secondly, We may expound it of things, the remnant of goods, what&s;oever remaines of their e&s;tate, the odd ends, the very glean|ings and leavings of their great riches and worldly &s;ub&s;tance, are all eaten up and brought to an end, &s;o that nothing of them or theirs remaineth.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The remnant of them may be <HI>the remembrance</HI> of them. A fire &s;hall con&s;ume their name and memoriall, they &s;hall neve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> be thought of nor &s;poken of any more with honour.</P>
<PB N="202" REF="111">
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignificat illud quo quis a|lium excellit, i|deo reliquiarum nomine impio|rum excellentem &amp; &s;upra cu~ctos mortales ingen+tem foelicitatem intelligo. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE>Fourthly, The word <HI>remnant,</HI> as it &s;ignifieth in the Original any thing which remaineth, &s;o e&s;pecially that which remaineth in way of excellency, or eminency; not (as we &s;ay) the fagge end of a thing, but even the uppermo&s;t and be&s;t of it. So that (after this tran&s;lation) <HI>the remnant of them,</HI> is <HI>the excellency of them,</HI> that which they thought mo&s;t durable, and honourable, that which they looked upon as mo&s;t &s;ub&s;tantiall and intrin&s;ecall to their greatnes, that very thing <HI>the fire &s;hall con&s;ume.</HI> So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 17.14.) <HI>Deliver my &s;oule from men which are thy hand, O Lord, from men of the world</HI> &amp;c. <HI>who&s;e belly thou fille&s;t with thy hid trea|&s;ures, they are full of children, and leave the re&s;t</HI> (or as we &s;upply, <HI>the re&s;t of their &s;ub&s;tance) to their babes;</HI> the re&s;t, that is, <HI>the be&s;t;</HI> their bellies are full of hid trea&s;ures while they live, that is, they have and u&s;e abundance of the things of this life them&s;elves; and they <HI>leave the re&s;t;</HI> he doth not meane the &s;craps or parings after they had filled their owne bellies, but <HI>by the re&s;t</HI> or the <HI>remnant,</HI> (tis the word of the text) he meaneth the choice&s;t of what they had; even that they leave to their babes or children, when them|&s;elves mu&s;t be gone and leave the world. Thus we may under&s;tand the word <HI>remnant</HI> in this place, not for a poore pittance, but for the be&s;t, the choi&s;e&s;t things, for the flower and creame of all they had, even the&s;e things <HI>the fire &s;hall con&s;ume,</HI> vengeance &s;hall pur&s;ue and follow, till all be turned into &s;moake and a&s;hes.</P>
<P>I have in divers other pa&s;&s;ages of this booke met with Texts &s;hewing the utter con&s;umption of wicked men, therefore I &s;hall not &s;tay upon it here; onely take this briefe note.</P>
<Q>That the Lord hath a different fire for the righteous and the wicked.</Q>
<P>He hath a fire for his owne people, but it is <HI>a purging fire, a clean&s;ing, a refining fire.</HI> Like that (<HI>Mal.</HI> 3.3.) <HI>He &s;hall &s;it as a refiner and purifier of &s;ilver.</HI> The Lord al&s;o hath a fire for the wicked, but it is a con&s;uming fire. He kindles many fires upon them, and him&s;elfe is a con&s;uming fire to them. But it may be &s;aid, that God is a con&s;uming fire al&s;o to his owne people; for the Apo&s;tle &s;peaking of him&s;elfe and other beleevers, &s;aith (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.29.) <HI>Our God is a con&s;uming fire.</HI> I an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, Tis true, the God of Beleevers is a con&s;uming fire, but he is not a con&s;uming fire to beleevers; even the hearts of beleevers ought to be over|awed
<PB N="203" REF="111"> with a holy feare of that in God, which they &s;hall never feele from God. Secondly, God is &s;ometimes a con&s;uming fire to be|leevers; but it is onely to con&s;ume their corruptions, or their cor|ruptible comforts; He will never con&s;ume eyther their Graces or &s;pirituall intere&s;ts. The&s;e he will not con&s;ume what&s;oever he con|&s;umes. But the whole of a wicked man is as combu&s;tible matter before him. <HI>There went up a &s;moake out of his no&s;trills, fire out of mouth devoured</HI> (P&s;al. 18.8.) That is, God powred out wrath, which devoured them like a fire. Fire (I meane naturall fire) is a great devourer, it hath a &s;trong &s;tomacke, there's nothing but pure Gold too hard for its dige&s;tion; but my&s;ticall fire, the fire of divine wrath is infinitely a greater devourer. Wrath kindles ma<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">y devouring fires, but wrath it &s;elfe is the mo&s;t devouring fire; who can &s;tand before it? who can abide the heate and flames of it? This is the <HI>Tophet</HI> prepared of old for the wicked; This fire is able to con&s;ume branch and ru&s;h, the roote and top of the wicked in one day, and yet it will continue con&s;uming them to eternity. <HI>The remnant of them the fire con&s;umeth.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus farre pro&s;ecuted a de&s;cription both of the unrighteou&s;nes and of the ruine, both of the &s;in and puni&s;hment of wicked men, clo&s;ely in&s;inuating that <HI>Job</HI> was the man concern'd in all this large Di&s;cour&s;e, he, in the latter part of this Chapter, turnes his &s;peech into a &s;erious Exhortation to move <HI>Job</HI> to repent, and &s;eeke God, giving him many a&s;&s;urances and promi&s;es, that (in ca&s;e he did &s;o) it &s;hould not be in vaine,</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="204" REF="112">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 21, 22. &amp;c.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace: there|by good &s;hall come unto thee.</P>
<P>Receive, I pray thee, the Law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.</P>
<P>If though returne to the Almighty, thou &s;halt be built up, thou &s;halt-put away iniquity from thy Tabernacles <HI>&amp;c.</HI></P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="21" TYPE="verse">
<P><HI>ELiphaz</HI> having reproved <HI>Job</HI> for &s;in, and pre&s;t him with the remembrance of the Judgements of God again&s;t &s;inners: now turnes his &s;peech into a &s;erious Exhortation, mooving him to &s;eeke the favour of God, and humble him&s;elfe, <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace.</HI> From this cour&s;e and method in which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> deales with <HI>Job,</HI> take this note.</P>
<Q>That in dealing with &s;inners wee are not onely to threaten, but to per&s;wade and propo&s;e the promi&s;es of peace to them.</Q>
<P><HI>Daniel</HI> dealt &s;o with <HI>Nebuchadnezzer,</HI> yea though he had told him of a decree in heaven pa&s;t again&s;t him (<HI>Dan.</HI> 4.22.27.) yet he gives him faithfull coun&s;ell, and exhorts him <HI>to breake off his &s;ins by righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and his iniquities by &s;hewing mercy to the poore, if it might be a lengthning of his tranquillity,</HI> or (as we put in the Margin) <HI>a healing of his errour.</HI> Hopes of mercy prevaile with many more then feare of wrath, and they are &s;ooner led then driven unto Chri&s;t. Thus <HI>Eliphaz; Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace.</HI></P>
<P>This 21 ver&s;e containes two generall Propo&s;itions. Fir&s;t, a Pro|po&s;ition concerning duty, in the former part of the ver&s;e; <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe</HI> &amp;c. Secondly, Concerning mercy in the latter, <HI>there|by good &s;hall come unto thee.</HI> This duty of acquainting him&s;elfe with God,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Promi&s;&s;ionibus invitat ampli&s;|&s;imis, quae &amp; in &s;e verae &s;unt &amp; cum lege con|&s;entiunt, non ta|men perpetuae ut Eliphaz pu|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> and being at peace with him is explained in the 22 ver&s;e. <HI>Receive, I pray thee, the Law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.</HI> That's a good Comment upon, <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace.</HI> The Propo&s;ition of mercy, or the promi&s;es laid downe in the clo&s;e of that ver&s;e, are drawne out in all the following part of this Chapter, in which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> by mo&s;t ample Propo&s;alls of good things, doth provoke <HI>Job</HI> to turne from
<PB N="205" REF="112"> tho&s;e &s;innes of which he &s;uppo&s;ed him guilty, and to returne to God.</P>
<Q>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him.</Q>
<P>The Originall word which we render <HI>to acquaint,</HI> hath &s;ome variety of &s;ignifications; As fir&s;t to be familiar with another. And &s;o it is u&s;ed by <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 139.3.) to &s;hew the Intimacie which God hath with all our wayes, workes, and thoughts; <HI>O Lord</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David) thou ha&s;t &s;earched mee and knowne mee,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>thou art acquainted with all my wayes;</HI> As if he had &s;aid; <HI>Lord, thou knowe&s;t my wayes infinitely more clearely and di&s;tinctly, then any of my neere&s;t acquaintance, who conver&s;e with me every day.</HI> It is u&s;ed 2^d^l^y to expre&s;&s;e the cu&s;tomary doing of a thing. (<HI>Numb.</HI> 22.30.) <HI>Balaams</HI> A&s;&s;e &s;pake thus by a miracle, <HI>Was I ever wont to doe thus unto thee?</HI> Hath it been my cu&s;tome, or have I familiarly &s;erved thee thus, &s;aid the A&s;&s;e, when he thru&s;t <HI>Balaam</HI> again&s;t the wall.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>To profit;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> profuit, commodus, ap|tus fuit. Profice cum deo. <HI>Rab. Mo&s;.</HI></NOTE> one of the Rabbines tran&s;lates the Text thus; <HI>Profit with God,</HI> as who &s;hould &s;ay, thou ha&s;t been an un|profitable &s;ervant to God all this while, be thou now profitable unto him, &s;erve him and his Providences, advance his name and glory; or thus rather, Thou ha&s;t but played the truant hitherto, be thou now a good proficient in the &s;choole of Divine doctrine and di&s;cipline under the holy precepts and various providences of God. We finde it applyed to that fence at the &s;econd ver&s;e of this Chapter; <HI>Can a man be profitable unto God, as he that is wi&s;e may be profitable to him&s;elfe?</HI> Man cannot be profitable unto God, or adde any advantage to him by what he doth, but man may be pro|fitable unto him&s;elfe, or doe him&s;elfe good in doing the good will of God; yea God reckons it and rewards man for it, as if he had been profitable to him, when he acts as becomes a faithfull &s;ervant to him. So &s;ome expound it here, <HI>be profitable unto God,</HI> be a faith|full and indu&s;trious &s;ervant unto him: having received his talents, doe not lay them up in a napkin, hide them not in the earth.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> read's thus, <HI>Reconcile thee now un|to him.</HI> That's Go&s;pel language, like that of <HI>Paul</HI> (2 Cor. 5.20.) <HI>Now then we are Amba&s;&s;adors for Chri&s;t, as though God did be&s;eech you by us, wee pray you in Chri&s;ts &s;tead, be ye reconciled to God.</HI> So he conceives <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;peaking here, <HI>I pray thee now re|concile
<PB N="206" REF="113"> thy &s;elfe unto God.</HI> Ma&s;ter <HI>Beza</HI> reaches that &s;ence fully, <HI>Returne into his favour,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Redi cum ip&s;o in gratiam. <HI>Bez:</HI> Accommoda te illi. <HI>Tygur:</HI></NOTE> get into his heart againe; God hath as it were lockt thee out of his heart, and &s;hut the doore upon thee, now get in againe; and the Tygurine reads very aptly, <HI>Accommo|date thy &s;elfe to him,</HI> that is every way &s;uite thy &s;elfe go <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">, thou ha&s;t heretofore been humorous, or ha&s;t followed thine owne &s;pirit, and ha&s;t labour'd to plea&s;e thy &s;elfe, now Accomodate thy &s;elfe to him, or comply with him in every thing, be no more at thine owne but at his di&s;po&s;e. All the&s;e renderings comply well both with the words and the generall &s;cope of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in this part of his di&s;cour&s;e. Our tran&s;lation fully joynes with the fir&s;t of them.</P>
<Q><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>A&s;&s;ue&s;ce cum eo.</HI> Pagn. Reg. Vatabl.</NOTE>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him.</Q>
<P>Get into a familiarity with God. The word implyeth a likenes, or a &s;uitablenes between two in their wills and affections, in their wayes and coun&s;ells; for from likene&s;&s;e in the&s;e familiarity or ac|quaintance doth ari&s;e. So that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here &s;peaketh to <HI>Job</HI> as one that had e&s;tranged him&s;elfe and departed from God, as one who had broken off Communion with God; and &s;o he mu&s;t needs have done, had he run &s;uch a cour&s;e of wickednes as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> char|ged him with, in the former part of this Chapter. Therefore upon that &s;uppo&s;ition he gives <HI>Job</HI> whole&s;ome advice, <HI>Acquaint not thy &s;elfe with him.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That as man by nature is a &s;tranger from God, &s;o every act of &s;in, e&s;pecially great and continued actings of &s;in breed a further e&s;trangement from God.</Q></P>
<P>We act the part of nature every time we &s;in, and that in a pro|portion brings us back in &s;ome degree to what we were by nature, <HI>&s;trangers unto God.</HI> A godly man (who hath had acquaintance with God) &s;inning puts back his acquaintance, &amp; a di&s;tance grows between God and him. Beleevers after great &s;ins and follyes com|mitted, are not forward to come into the pre&s;ence of God, they have a kinde of li&s;tle&s;nes to duty, a li&s;tle&s;nes to prayer, and to all acts of communion with God. And God him&s;elfe appeares as if he did not much care for them when they come, they have not tho&s;e Communications from God which he u&s;ually vouch&s;afeth his, God doth not give them the meeting as formerly; they doe not
<PB N="207" REF="113"> finde the Lord pre&s;ently, though they &s;eeke him earne&s;tly. So that both wayes there is an E&s;trangement; &s;in &s;eparates between God and the &s;oule, not onely judicially but naturally. If God &s;hould not depart from &s;inners, or command them to depart from him, yet they would of them&s;elves depart from him. It is not po&s;sible for one, who willingly lives in &s;in, to live willingly in the pre&s;ence of God; For as to be ca&s;t out of the pre&s;ence of God, is the ex|treame&s;t puni&s;hment of wicked men, &s;o al&s;o is their being in his pre&s;ence. The &s;ame thing is both their de&s;ire and their puni&s;hment. They are puni&s;hed with a departure from God, and they de&s;ire nothing more then to be out of his pre&s;ence.</P>
<Q>Acquaint thy &s;elfe now with God.</Q>
<P>Secondly, Whereas <HI>Eliphaz</HI> exhorting <HI>Job</HI> to repentance, coun&s;ells him to acquiant him&s;elfe with God.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That Repentance is the renewing of our Communion or acquain|tance with God.</Q></P>
<P>As &s;in is a turning from God, &s;o repentance is a returning to God; 'tis a change fir&s;t of our minde, and then of our way. Im|paenitency brings the &s;oule into an acquaintance and unholy fami|liarity with Satan; Repentance brings backe the &s;oule into its for|mer acquaintance, and holy familiarity with God. As the fir&s;t con|ver&s;ion (which is from a &s;tate of &s;in) &s;o the &s;econd and every re|newed conver&s;ion (which is from our falls into &s;in) renewes our conver&s;e with the mo&s;t high.</P>
<P>Thirdly, take this generall ob&s;ervation;
<Q>A godly man is (as we may &s;ay) one of Gods Acquaintants or familiars.</Q></P>
<P>God calleth <HI>Abraham</HI> his friend; friend&s;hip cannot be without familiarity, there mu&s;t be acquaintance before there can be love, if therefore there be friend&s;hip and love between God and man, there mu&s;t be Acquaintance; we cannot love eyther per&s;ons or things, while unknowne.</P>
<P>But it may be &s;aid, how can wee, who are at &s;uch a di&s;tance, Ac|quaint our &s;elves with God?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, wee (who of our &s;elves are a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 span">
<PB N="208" REF="114"> by the bloud of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and being thus made nigh in our &s;tate, wee draw nigh or acquaint our &s;elves with him by &s;everall Acts. As fir&s;t, To thinke or meditate of God, is to acquaint our &s;elves with and draw nigh to God; meditation is an inward di&s;|cour&s;e and conver&s;e with God, it is a Soliloquie between God and the &s;oule; acquaintance is got by Conference: when friends meet and confer, that doth not onely begin, but confirme, &s;trengthen, and highten their acquaintance. Saints have many thoughts of God, and that's their acquaintance with God. <HI>How precious are thy thoughts to mee, O God!</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 139.17.) <HI>how great is the &s;umme of them! when I awake I am &s;till with thee.</HI> How was <HI>David</HI> &s;till or ever with God? He was &s;o in his thoughts, and meditations, in the actings &amp; goings forth of his &s;oule to him. Now he that is &s;till or ever with a per&s;on, mu&s;t needs be acquain|ted with him, <HI>I am &s;till with thee,</HI> alwayes meditating upon thee. We finde him againe in the &s;ame holy frame (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 63.5, 6.) <HI>My &s;oule &s;hall be &s;atisfied as with marrow and fatnes, and my mouth &s;hall prai&s;e thee with joyfull lips; while I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches.</HI> As the Lord is ever thinking upon his people, they are written upon his heart, and gra|ven upon the palmes of his hand, and when his outward actings towards them are &s;uch, as may &s;eeme to intimate that his heart is withrawne from all intimacy with them, yet even then he thinks mo&s;t of them. This he acknowledgeth concerning <HI>Ephraim</HI> (Jer. 31.20.) <HI>Since I &s;pake again&s;t him I doe earne&s;tly remember him &s;till.</HI> Since I &s;pake again&s;t him, that is, &s;ince I &s;pake again&s;t him by words of rebuke and correction, &s;ince I &s;pake again&s;t him by rods of cha&s;ti&s;ement and correction, (as <HI>Ephraim</HI> found and confe&s;&s;ed he had <HI>Thou did&s;t cha&s;ti&s;e mee and I was cha&s;ti&s;ed</HI>) &s;ince I &s;pake thus again&s;t him, <HI>I do earne&s;tly remember him &s;till.</HI> I remember him, and I remember him &s;trongly, my heart is much upon him. And when the Lord &s;aith thus, wee are not to under&s;tand it, as a man will remember an Enemy, when he &s;peaks again&s;t him; hee'le re|member him indeed, and that earne&s;tly to plot mi&s;chiefe again&s;t him, and to execute his revenge; but the meaning is, I remem|ber him in mercy, my affections goe out to him, my bowels are moved towards him. Such is the remembrance which God had of <HI>Ephraim,</HI> even when he was &s;peaking again&s;t him and &s;miting him. Now as the Lord doth remember his people at all times, and ear|ne&s;tly
<PB N="209" REF="114"> remember them at &s;ometimes. So his people in their pro|portion doe earne&s;tly remember the Lord, they minde him often, they would minde him alwayes, they like to retaine God (which the natural man liketh not, <HI>Rom.</HI> 1.28.) in their knowledge, or to acknowledge God; They have not &s;ome flitting tran&s;ient thoughts and acknowledgements of God (as a carnall man may have) but they fix and retaine God in their thoughts &amp; acknowledgements, they thinke of God, what he is in his nature, they thinke what God is in all his perfections, they meditate of all his glory, of his ju&s;tice, of his mercy, of his faithfulnes, of his power, of his truth, of his un|changeablenes, of his all-&s;ufficiency, they acquaint them&s;elves with God in all the&s;e; for indeed we are never acquainted with God, till we come to a di&s;tinct knowledge of him in all the&s;e parts of his glory, which yet are all but one and the &s;ame glorious God. To know onely in generall that there is a God, is not to acquaint our &s;elves with God; our acquaintance with him con&s;i&s;ts in a &s;pi|rituall and fiduciall knowledge of all his revealed perfections, &s;o farre as it is po&s;&s;ible or lawfull for man to &s;earch and know. To be acquainted with any man, notes more than a generall know|ledge of him, how much more to be acquainted with God.</P>
<P>Secondly, Wee acquaint our &s;elves with God, not onely when wee &s;tudy his nature, or what he is, but when we &s;tudy his workes, or what he hath done, God is vi&s;ible in his workes. <HI>That his name is neare, his wondrous workes declare</HI> (P&s;al. 75.1.) Wee may ac|quaint our &s;elves much with God in the workes of Creation, but more in the workes of Providence, in tho&s;e wee may mo&s;t legibly read his name, that is, his greatnes and power, as al&s;o his goodnes and mercy.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Wee acquaint our &s;elves with God in the &s;tudy of his word; there he hath made a full di&s;covery of him&s;elfe and of his will; <HI>O how I love thy Law</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David) my meditation is in it might and day.</HI> The word of God is the demon&s;tration of the ho|lines of God. There he hath &s;et forth him&s;elfe, how ju&s;t, how pure, and how gracious he is. The word is a gla&s;&s;e in which God is &s;eene, therefore acquaint thy &s;elfe with the word of God, and thou &s;halt be acquainted with God; reading and hearing the word of God is our going to God for Coun&s;ell, as wee acquaint our &s;elves with a man when we goe to him, and aske his advice and coun&s;el in any matter, or con&s;ult his bookes; &s;o every time we ey|ther
<PB N="210" REF="115"> read or heare the word of God in faith, we are asking coun|&s;el of God, and &s;o acquainting our &s;elves with him.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Wee, e&s;pecially, acquaint our &s;elves with God in pray|er. That is nothing el&s;e but the opening of our hearts to God, a declaring of our wants to him, <HI>Prayer is the a&s;cending, the lifting up of the &s;oule to God,</HI> therefore in prayer wee acquaint our &s;elves with God.</P>
<P>Fifthly, Our daily holy walking, is a daily acquainting our &s;elves with God, every &s;tep of a holy life is both towards and with God; the life of <HI>Enoch</HI> (who was too holy for a life here on earth, and therefore he <HI>was tran&s;lated that he &s;hould not &s;ee death,</HI> his life I &s;ay) is de&s;cribed thus, <HI>Enoch walked with God</HI> (Gen. 5.24.) God and <HI>Enoch</HI> were like two familiars or intimate friends walking toge|ther; And becau&s;e he took &s;o much delight in Gods acquaintance, God took him from all acquaintance with men; &s;o &s;aith that text; <HI>Enoch walked with God, and was not, for God tooke him.</HI> He was &s;o taken with God, that God took him, or as the Authour to the <HI>He|brews</HI> &s;aith, <HI>tran&s;lated him</HI> (ch. 11.5.) He was before tran&s;lated from nature to Grace, &amp; he proved &s;o great a proficient in that &s;choole, that he was tran&s;lated from Grace to Glory (as it were <HI>per &s;al|tum,</HI>) by a leape over the grave; for he &s;aw not death; From which &s;ad vi&s;ion, but one more (that I read of in all the Scrip|ture, <HI>Elias</HI> by name) was excu&s;ed before he was admitted to the beatificall vi&s;ion. <HI>Holy walking is the &s;umme of all our acquain|tance with God; and our fulle&s;t acquaintance with God is but the i&s;|&s;ue of our holy walkings.</HI></P>
<P>To draw towards a clo&s;e of this poynt; wee may take notice, That there is a twofold acquaintance with God; Fir&s;t, from nece&s;|&s;ity, when wee come to him and de&s;ire to have to doe with him, pre&s;t with our owne wants, feares, or afflictions; of this the Pro|phet &s;peaketh (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 26.16.) <HI>Lord in trouble have they vi&s;ited thee, they have poured out a prayer when thy cha&s;tening was upon them.</HI> And of this the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peake (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 78.34.) <HI>When he &s;lew them they &s;ought him, and they returned and enquired early after God: neverthele&s;&s;e, they did but flatter him with their mouth,</HI> &amp;c. The&s;e make God their refuge not their choice; They, I grant, who have made God their choice in good times, may comfortably make him their refuge in evill times. But to neglect God while it is well with <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">, and onely to run to him when it is ill with us, or to have our
<PB N="211" REF="115"> evills and burdens removed, is to acquaint our &s;elves with God, becau&s;e we cannot choo&s;e, or becau&s;e we cannot be without him, not becau&s;e we have cho&s;en him, or de&s;ire to be with him. As there is a patience, &s;o there is an acquaintance, perforce. Though God doth not refu&s;e acquaintance with many poore &s;oules, when their nece&s;&s;ities drive them to him, yet it is be&s;t to acquaint our &s;elves with him for the love we beare to him, or the de&s;ire we have to enjoy him, rather then (though we all have need of him, and are bound to come to him becau&s;e we have) for the need we have of him. And therefore, &s;econdly, there is an acquaintance with God from pure love. As when we come to a friend, having nothing to do but to &s;ee him, &amp; to renew or &s;trengthe~ our acquaintance with him. Wee doe not come to load him with our cares, or advi&s;e with him about our bu&s;ine&s;&s;es, or de&s;ire a curte&s;ie of him, but, meerly &amp; pure|ly to &s;hew our love to him. Thus to come to God when we are not pre&s;t with feares, nor pincht with wants, nor clouded with doubts, nor vexed with troubles, is the mo&s;t noble &amp; ingenuous way of ac|quainting our &s;elves with him. When we (as it were) make a Jour|ney to God, having nothing to doe with him, but to vi&s;it him and to de&s;ire further communion with him, nothing to do with him but to behold his excellency and his glory, nothing to do with him, but to tell him what our hearts are towards him, how we love him, how we depend upon him, how we de&s;ire to plea&s;e him, and to com|mit our wayes to him, to acquaint God with tho&s;e things which onely concerne our holy walking with him, this is to &s;eeke pure acquaintance with him. The Lord &s;aith of <HI>Abraham</HI> his acquain|tant or friend (<HI>Gen.</HI> 18.17.) <HI>Shall I hide from Abraham the thing that I am about to doe?</HI> I &s;hould not deale with him as with my friend, if I did &s;o. A friend who is as our owne &s;oule (<HI>Deut.</HI> 13.6.) &s;hould know all that is in our &s;oules. Now as God (whether we will or no) is acquainted with all that is in our &s;oules; So a &s;oule acquainted with God, will let him know all; &s;hall I hide from God the thing that I am about to doe? &s;hall I not tell him how it is with me? To acquaint our &s;elves thus with God is a &s;weete and precious duty. Much might be &s;aid about it; I &s;hall onely adde the&s;e two things; Fir&s;t, That all our acquaintance with God mu&s;t be had through the mediator; There is no getting neere the Fa|ther but by the Son. Secondly, That the more we are acquainted with God, the more we are tran&s;formed into his likenes. Some
<PB N="212" REF="116"> have altered the habit of their bodyes, yea, the di&s;po&s;itions of their mindes by long acquaintance with others; and have looked or ap|peared like them, by often looking upon or being with them. When <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> had been forty dayes in the Mount talking with God, his face &s;hone, &s;ome rayes of a divine glory darted out from him, &s;o that <HI>Aaron and the children of I&s;rael were afraid to come nigh him</HI> (Exod. 34.30.) And thus every one who gets up into the Mount by faith, and acquaints him&s;elfe with God, gets &s;ome|what of God, which will draw a reverence upon him among men. As when Chri&s;t &s;hall appeare hereafter to us in glory, <HI>we &s;hall be like him</HI> (&s;aith the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> 1 Ep: 3.2.) for we &s;hall &s;ee him as he is; &s;o according to the &s;ight which we have of and our ac|quaintance with Chri&s;t in the wayes of grace here, will our likenes be unto him. <HI>The more we are with God, the more we have of God. Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him,</HI>
<Q>and be at peace.</Q></P>
<P>There is a threefold Interpretation of this clau&s;e.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Inperativum p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o futuro pa&s;|&s;im in hac lin|gua. <HI>Merc:</HI> Quando Hebraei dicunt pax tibi, &s;ignificant id quod Graeci tri|bus verbis e|nunciant, <GAP DESC="foreign"> quorum primum ad animum re|fertur, &s;ecundu~ ad corpus, terti|um ad actiones externas. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t, it may be taken as an Effect of what was &s;aid before, <HI>Ac|quaint thy &s;elfe with God, and be at peace,</HI> that is, <HI>If thou acquaint thy &s;elfe with God, thou &s;halt have peace.</HI> So in the Hebrew often the Imperative mood is put for the future ten&s;e, as, <HI>Doe this and live,</HI> (according to the tenure of the Covenant of works) that is, <HI>Doe this, and thou &s;halt live,</HI> So <HI>acquaint thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace,</HI> that is, thou &s;halt have peace. Peace comprehends all good; good of the minde, good of the body, good of the e|&s;tate. When the Hebrewes &s;ay, <HI>Peace be unto you,</HI> they &s;ay as much in that one word as the Greeks &s;ay in three; whereof the fir&s;t re|&s;pects the welfare of the minde; the &s;econd, the welfare or health of the body; and the third the &s;ucce&s;&s;e of all our affaires and un|dertakings. So that while <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;aith to <HI>Job</HI> according to this reading, <HI>Thou &s;halt be at peace,</HI> it is a promi&s;e of all manner of good flowing in upon the renewing of his acquaintance with, and his re|turning to a reverentiall conver&s;e with God. But becu&s;e this pro|mi&s;e followes in the next words, <HI>thereby good &s;hall come unto thee,</HI> therefore I under&s;tand this clau&s;e as a duty, and not as a promi&s;e <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace.</HI> To be <HI>at peace,</HI> is a di&s;tinct duty from that of acquainting our &s;elves with God, yet nece&s;&s;arily following upon it; The words may have the&s;e two things in them.</P>
<PB N="213" REF="116">
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Be at peace,</HI> rhat is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Sedatiore animo e&s;to. <HI>Bez:</HI> Acquie&s;ce in ca|&s;tigationibus dei &s;atis repugn&acirc;&s;ti; &s;atis proterv&egrave; reluctatus es, ergo mite&s;ce.</NOTE> be quiet and content under the cha&s;t|ning hand of God, doe not murmure, doe not repine. Thou ha&s;t &s;trugled enough already, now lay a&s;ide all impatiency and pa&s;&s;ion, all di&s;contents and animo&s;ities, as doe not rage and rave, doe not di&s;temper and di&s;compo&s;e thy &s;elfe as thou ha&s;t done; There is a &s;torme upon thee, but be thou of a calme and quiet &s;pirit, ki&s;&s;e the rod, be not angry with it; wee may expre&s;&s;e this frame by that which the Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> makes the chiefe adorning, or ornament of a woman, that &s;he be of <HI>a meek and a quiet &s;pirit, which with God is of great price;</HI> As meeknes is a Jewell of the greate&s;t price that women can weare; &s;o it is a mo&s;t rich and precious Jewell for a man to weare; and as at all times, &s;o then e&s;pecially meeknes and peaceablenes of &s;pirit becomes man, when God &s;eemes to come in anger and to be at warre with him. <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;ayd of <HI>Job (Chap.</HI> 18. <HI>v.</HI> 4.) <HI>He teareth him&s;elfe in his anger;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, the man's mad or di&s;tracted; now <HI>Eliphaz</HI> advi&s;eth him, Be at peace, be quiet; This is a good interpretation, and wee may note from it,
<Q>That it is our Duty to &s;it downe quiet and &s;atisfied under the &s;adde&s;t di&s;pen&s;ations of God.</Q></P>
<P>A &s;ubmitting &s;pirit under an afflicting hand, how comely is it! To be at peace in our &s;elves, when all is unquiet about us, how ble&s;&s;ed a &s;ight is it! there are &s;ome who trouble them&s;elves a great deale more than all the troubles that are upon them can. Man is naturally a very unquiet creature, <HI>an angry peece of fle&s;h,</HI> when God is angry, he is apt to &s;torme: <HI>till his heart is &s;ubdued to God, he can|not beare the hand of God.</HI> Wicked men naturally (as the Prophet <HI>E&s;ay</HI> found them, Chap. 51.20.) <HI>are like a wilde Bull in a net<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, full of the fury of God;</HI> and not onely &s;o, but full of fury again&s;t God, throwing up the du&s;t, and moyling them&s;elves when the nett of God hath caught them, or when God hath caught them in his net. God catcheth his owne people in his net many times as well as the wicked. His owne people are like a dove in a net, but the wicked are like a wild Bul in a net. I grant, the Doves will flutter a while when the net hath caught them. Impatiency doth often breake out in the be&s;t of Saints: it is a hard thing to keep the heart quiet within while our e&s;tate is unquiet without, and to be at peace in our &s;elves, when God &s;eemes to be at warre with us. It is hard for us to hold our peace, much more to be at peace in an afflicted
<PB N="214" REF="117"> condition; yet this le&s;&s;on, though very hard, Saints have learned. <HI>David</HI> &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 39.9.) <HI>I was dumbe, I opened not my mouth, becau&s;e thou did&s;t it.</HI> His was not a &s;ullen &s;ilence, but a patient &s;i|lence. He had not a word to &s;ay again&s;t God, when God &s;peake hard words again&s;t him, yea, when God was at blowes at &s;harpes with him. <HI>Paul</HI> al&s;o had learned in every e&s;tate to be content (<HI>Phil.</HI> 4.11.) how ever the world went with him, <HI>he was at peace.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> pacem habe, in gratiam redi qui nunc alienatus es, &amp; velut ho&s;tis.</NOTE>Secondly, <HI>Be at peace,</HI> may refer unto God, and &s;o it is but the heightening of our acquaintance with him; for, fir&s;t there mu&s;t be an acquainting, and then a making up of peace; when friends fall out, they mu&s;t fir&s;t &s;peake with one another, before the breach can be healed, if they doe not treate, there can be no reconciliation. After treating comes peace; As peace is <HI>the fruit of the lips</HI> (I&s;a. 57.19.) when God treates with man by man, &s;o when man treats with man, and when man treats with God. <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him,</HI> call for a treaty, and therein make thy peace, <HI>Be at peace with him,</HI> do not any longer continue thy unholy warre with God. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;uppo&s;ing <HI>Job</HI> as a man &s;etting him&s;elfe again&s;t God, had rea&s;on to be&s;peake him thus.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>That till wee doe acquaint our &s;elves with God, wee can have no peace with him.</Q>
<P>The wicked are like the troubled Sea, who&s;e waves ca&s;t up mire and dirt; there is no peace to the wicked, &s;aith my God (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57.21.) why no peace to the wicked? the wicked have no acquain|tance with God, they are &s;trangers, they are afarre off from God, and God beholds them afarre off, therefore there is no peace to them: if they have any peace, it is a fal&s;e peace, a deceitfull peace, or it is but a &s;hort peace, which will quickly break out into a warre againe when once Con&s;cience is awakened, when that &s;leeping Lyon is rouzed, what will become of all their peace? they will then <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">d, indeed, that their &s;oule is among Lions; and that they have been onely &s;ecure, not &s;afe, or that theirs hath been at be&s;t, a tr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">e onely, not a peace; no peace till acquinted with God, and no ac|quaintance with God can produce peace, but that which is by Je|&s;us Chri&s;t; He is the Peace-maker, who is al&s;o the Mediatour; &s;inners cannot have peace by any immediate acquain<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="4 letters">e with God, for he is a con&s;uming fire, and &s;inners &s;tanding alone are but as dry &s;tubble before him. When wee are made nigh to
<PB N="215" REF="117"> or acquainted with God by the blood of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, then (and not till then) are we at peace with him. <HI>Acquaint thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace:</HI> no peace without acquaintance with God, no acquaintance with God but by Chri&s;t, therefore no peace but by Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That God is ready to give peace to or to be at peace with tho&s;e that acquaint them&s;elves with him.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Acquaint thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace;</HI> as if he &s;hould &s;ay, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ou &s;halt certainly be at peace with him, if thou doe&s;t but ac|quaint thy &s;elfe with him; for the Lord will not <HI>alwayes chide;</HI> his love is everla&s;ting, but his anger towards his c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="5 letters">es but fo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> a moment; As the wi&s;dome of God in man, &s;o much more the mo&s;t wi&s;e God, is <HI>Gentle, and ea&s;ie to be entreated. The Lord is found of tho&s;e who &s;eeke him not</HI> (I&s;a. 65.1.) Surely then he will be found of tho&s;e that &s;eeke him; he is not implacable, no nor inexo|rable. The Lord hath declared him&s;elfe full of Compa&s;&s;ion to re|turning &s;inners, &s;o full of compa&s;&s;ion that he &s;eeks the acquain|tance of &s;inners, and be&s;eeches them to be reconciled to him, much more will he be acquainted with them who be&s;eech him that they may be reconciled to him. <HI>Fury is not in me</HI> (&s;aith the Lord, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 27.4, 5.) <HI>who would &s;et the bryars and thornes in battel again&s;t me?</HI> that is, who would be &s;o fooli&s;h as to encourage &s;infull men to be &s;o foole-hardy as to &s;tand out again&s;t me, or contend with me, for alas, (as it followes in the text) <HI>I would goe through them, I would burne them together.</HI> There's no dealing with me upon tho&s;e termes; but I will tell you upon what termes a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> may deale with me; <HI>Let him lay hold of my &s;trength, that he <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">y make peace with me, and he &s;hall make peace with me,</HI> that is, he &s;hall n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> loo&s;e his labour, he &s;hall find peace, if he take hold of my &s;tr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">gth. One would thinke he &s;hould rather have &s;ayd, let him take hold of my mercy and goodnes, but he &s;aith, <HI>Let him take hold of my &s;trength.</HI> To oppo&s;e the &s;trength of God is mo&s;t dangerous, but by faith to take hold of it, that's both the duty and the priviledge of an humbled &s;inner. Proud &s;inners oppo&s;e the &s;trength of God, humbled &s;inners take hold of it, as their &s;trength. As a man &s;eing another whom he hath offended, but is unable to re&s;i&s;t, or make his party good with him, with much &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion takes hold of his
<PB N="216" REF="118"> arme or weapon, endeavouring by earne&s;t &s;uit to &s;tay him from &s;miting. And indeed to take hold of the &s;trength of God, is to take hold on his mercy; The &s;trength of God to &s;ave &s;inners lyes in his mercy, and that mercy is in his Son, who is his &s;trength to &s;ave &s;in|ners; if a &s;inner lay hold of this &s;trength, the mercy of God in his Son, <HI>that he may make-peace</HI> with God, if this be his de&s;igne <HI>he &s;hall make peace,</HI> there &s;hall not be a treaty with God in Chri&s;t for peace in vaine; if a &s;inner &s;hould take hold of the &s;trength of his owne righteou&s;nes &amp; performances, if he &s;hould take hold of the &s;trength of all the Angels in heaven, he could not make peace with God, nor would God agree with him upon tho&s;e termes. Such a &s;oule mu&s;t returne <HI>(re infecta)</HI> without his errand. God is ready to be at peace with <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word">, but we mu&s;t have our peace in his way, not in our owne. <HI>Acquaint now thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace.</HI> And this peace, whether in our &s;elves or with God, is no light or unprofita|ble thing, as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> to provoke <HI>Job</HI> to pur&s;ue and &s;eeke after it, tells him in the la&s;t words of this ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>Thereby good &s;hall come unto thee.</Q>
<P>Thereby; whereby? or by what? what is it that &s;hall procure, or produce this good? The an&s;wer is at hand. Thy acquaintance with God, thy being at peace will procure all good things for thee <HI>Acquaint thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace:</HI> be at peace in thy own &s;pirit, be quiet; be at peace with God, be reconciled, every way <HI>good &s;hall come unto thee.</HI> M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders, <HI>Pro&s;perity &s;hall come unto thee,</HI> the &s;ence is the &s;ame. Others read, in &s;tead of, <HI>good &s;hall come unto thee, thy comings in &s;hall be good,</HI> thou &s;halt have a good reven<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ood income:<NOTE PLACE="marg">Proventus tuus erit bonus. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE> whereas before evill came upon thee, now thy co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters">gs in &s;hall be good. This al&s;o is of the &s;ame meaning with our tran&s;lation. I &s;hall not need to &s;tay upon the opening of the words, there is no difficulty in them.</P>
<P>From their dependance, in that he &s;aith, <HI>Acquaint thy &s;elfe with him, and be at peace, &s;o &s;hall good come unto thee,</HI> The&s;e words are brought in by way of inference upon the former, whence</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That when wee are e&s;tranged from God, good is e&s;tranged from us.</Q>
<P>God can &s;top the Influences of all our mercies from us, he can lay an embargo upon all Creatures from bringing any good to us, the
<PB N="217" REF="118"> there be &s;tore of trea&s;ure and rich Commodity in the place, yet he can barre up all, that no good can come unto us; yea, the Lord in &s;uch ca&s;es doth often lay a &s;top upon the &s;pirit of prayer in his own people, and when the heart is &s;topt that we cannot pray, then u&s;u|ally good is &s;topt and kept back from coming to us; Prayer is that which fetches in mercy and good things through the love of God in Je&s;us Chri&s;t. Prayer may have a twofold &s;top. Fir&s;t, prayer may have a &s;top in the heart; &s;econdly, Prayer which comes forth of the heart may have a &s;top in heaven, the Lord doth even &s;hut out-pray|er &s;ometimes, and when prayer is &s;hut out, no good can get out to us. Prayer is &s;ent upon a me&s;&s;age to heaven, and if our me&s;&s;enger be &s;hut out of doores and not admitted in, what an&s;wer can we ex|pect by his me&s;&s;age. And the Lord as he doth &s;top &s;uch from the receiving of further good, &s;o from the receiving of good by what they have already. Wee may have that which in the nature of it is good, and yet have no good by it; God can &s;top the creature in our hands, that it &s;hall not at all give us any Comfort, as well as he can &s;top any creature-comfort from comming into our hands. Un|le&s;&s;e the Lord (in one &s;ence) &s;top the creature, it quickly leakes out all the Comfort which he hath put into it, and proves to us indeed, what &s;in hath made it, <HI>a broken Ci&s;tern;</HI> And unle&s;&s;e the Lord open the creature, the creature cannot give forth that good w^c^h it hath; It will be to us as a Ci&s;terne without a vent to pa&s;&s;e out the water for our u&s;e. There's many a one who hath enough in his hand (take it in any kinde) but he enjoyes nothing of it, becau&s;e the Lord locks up the conduit, or the ci&s;terne, and then how much good &s;o|ever there is in it, there's none for him. It is all one to us, whether we have onely a broken Ci&s;terne for our portion, or a Ci&s;terne al|wayes lockt up; for as the one lets all the water run out, &s;o the o|ther holds all the water in; we are as farre from good, if our Ci|&s;terne hold all, as if it held nothing at all. It is then not onely our duty and our holines to acquaint our &s;elves and be at peace with God, but our wi&s;dome and our intere&s;t; For it is as he plea&s;eth, al|wayes, and u&s;ually as we plea&s;e him, that eyther we have any thing that is good comming to us, or that any good commeth to us by that which we have.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note (which is a Corallary from the former ob&s;er|vation)
<PB N="216" REF="119">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="217" REF="119">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<Q><PB N="218" REF="120">That the renewing of our Communion with God, and making peace with him, is followed with all manner of mercies and good things.</Q></P>
<P><HI>So &s;hall good come unto thee.</HI> There was never any man a loo&s;er by acquaintance with God; Gods acquaintance is a gainfull ac|quaintance; Our acquaintance with God, &s;hould we con&s;ider it ab&s;tractly and &s;eparate from all benefit but his very acquaintance, yet that is benefit enough; God is the chiefe&s;t Good, and there|fore when we enjoy him, we enjoy all Good. The enjoyment of God him&s;elfe is infinitely more then the enjoyment of all created good things that come from God. Friends are &s;ometimes in tho&s;e heights of friend&s;hip and noblenes of &s;pirit one to another, that they count the enjoyment of one another to be more then all the benefits they can heape upon or reape by one another; it is your good Company, &s;aith &s;uch a friend, and your acquaintance that delights me more then all the good you can be&s;tow upon mee. And is not God much more &s;o to us? Thus (I &s;ay) acquaintance with God alone is all good; but be&s;ides (as the poynt leads us to con&s;ider) God gives out good things from him&s;elfe, to all his holy acquaintants, temporall or bodily, good comes to us by his ac|quaintance, and &s;o al&s;o (and that chiefly) doth &s;pirituall or &s;oule good. Acquaint thy &s;elfe with God, and the dewes of grace, &s;howers of the Spirit &s;hall fall into thy bo&s;ome. Acquaint thy &s;elfe with God, and &s;pirituall Comfort &s;hall flow in unto thee, &s;pirituall &s;trength &s;hall flow in unto thee, thy &s;oule &s;hall be filled as with marrow and fatnes. And as good &s;hall come to thee in per&s;on, &s;o to thine; to thy family and po&s;terity good &s;hall come. And as God will cau&s;e good to come to &s;uch, &s;o to &s;tay and abide with them. As good comes, &s;o good continues according to the command and commi&s;&s;ion which it hath from God. Thus he pro|mi&s;ed in the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 48.18.) in ca&s;e his people had hark|ned to his commandements; <HI>Then had thy peace been as a River, and thy pro&s;perity as the waves of the Sea.</HI> Thy peace and pro&s;pe|rity had not been as a Land flood or Brooks of water which faile in &s;ummer when we have mo&s;t need of them, (all worldly things are apt to doe &s;o) but they &s;hould have flowed perpetually as a river doth, which is fed by a con&s;tant Spring, or as the Sea doth which is the feeder of all Springs. A godly man gets not one|ly a large portion of good things, but a la&s;ting portion, yea a por|tion
<PB N="219" REF="120"> of tho&s;e good things which are everla&s;ting, by acquainting him&s;elfe with God. And becau&s;e by acquaintance with God &s;o much good comes to us, Therefore <HI>Eliphaz</HI> pre&s;&s;eth <HI>Job</HI> further to it in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="22" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 22.</HI></BIBL> Receive, I pray thee, the Law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thine heart.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>Receive,</HI> that is, learne from his mouth; he that teaches gives,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dat Magi&s;ter quando docet, capit di&s;cipulus quando di&s;cit. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE> and he that learnes receives; and the Hebrew word which we ren|der here to <HI>Receive,</HI> &s;ignifies not ordinary receiving, but receiving with an earne&s;t de&s;ire; yea, it implyeth a kinde of violence in de|&s;ire, &s;uch as they have who take &s;poyles in warre. They fly upon the &s;poyle,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> verbum hoc ad praedam quae cum violen|tia tollitur re|ferri pote&s;t.</NOTE> and catch it with as much eargernes as they wonne it with courage. So <HI>Receive the Law from his mouth. David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>I have rejoyced in thy word, more then they that finde great &s;poyles, (P&s;al.</HI> 119.162.) O how &s;trongly did his heart run out to the word? And there is an Elegancy al&s;o in it, that this word which &s;ignifies to receive the Law,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ex hac radice dicitur doctri|na. <GAP DESC="foreign"> qua&s;e accepta vel ac|cipienda, quia &s;c: lex debet ac|cipi grato &amp; lubenti animo.</NOTE> doth al&s;o &s;ignifie the Law or doctrine to be received. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 4.2.) <HI>I give you good doctrine, for&s;ake you not my Law.</HI> The word which is there u&s;ed for doctrine is the &s;ame that <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s here rendred <HI>to receive,</HI> the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e whol&s;ome doctrine <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s worthy to be received, and ought to be received wil|lingly, chearfully, and gladly, and therefore the Go&s;pel which is the highe&s;t and mo&s;t precious doctrine is called an Acceptable doctrine; <HI>This is a faithfull &s;aying, and worthy of all Acceptation</HI> (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 1.11.) The Go&s;pel is worthy not onely of Acceptati|on, or of great, but of all Acceptation, and that from all men, even from the Greate&s;t; And &s;o al&s;o is the Law; for, as &s;hall be opened further afterwards; the Law in this place comprehends the Go&s;pel al&s;o. <HI>Receive the Law at his mouth.</HI></P>
<P>Further, The word which we expre&s;&s;e <HI>Receive,</HI> is rendred by &s;ome to <HI>buy;</HI> we may connect both &s;ences here, Receive the Law as a thing bought and carry it home with thee. That of <HI>Solomon (Prov.</HI> 23.23.) &s;uites it well; <HI>Buy the truth, and &s;ell it not;</HI> Truth is a Commodity the trade whereof goes but one way; all Civill Trades and Merchandizes are continued by buying and &s;el|ling, but this &s;pirituall trade is continued by buying onely, without &s;elling; it will be our profit to have this Commodity alwayes up|on our hands, or rather alwayes in our hands. Thus here; <HI>Receive
<PB N="220" REF="121"> the Law</HI> at a price, buy it, and keepe it; not that the Lord doth expect any price from us, or that vve can bring any thing to him valuable for it. We buy it, when vve take paines for it, vvhen vve doe our utmo&s;t endeavour to receive the truth, vvhen vve receive the truth, not onely as it is offered and brought home to us, but vvhen we goe out for it, and &s;eeke after it in all the meanes vvhich God hath appoynted as conveyances of it, that's buying the Law of truth.</P>
<Q>Receive the Law.</Q>
<P>Againe, We may profitably con&s;ider a double derivation of that word vvhich vve tren&s;late,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a ra|dice <GAP DESC="foreign"> explorare aut circumqua&abque; lu&s;trare, quia lex univer&s;a e&s;t diligent&egrave;r ob&s;er|vanda, ne q<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">is in uno offendat.</NOTE> <HI>Law.</HI> Some &s;ay it is from a roote that &s;ignifies <HI>to behold or Contemplate, to Con&s;ider, to looke about;</HI> and the Lavv is vvell expre&s;t by a word of that &s;ence, becau&s;e the vvhole Law is diligently to be ob&s;erved and con&s;idered, looked into, and meditated upon, vvee are alwayes to behold it, and that in every part. For the vvhole Lavv is copulative, and he that of|fends in one part offends in all. <HI>David</HI> &s;peaking of the righteous man, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.2.) &s;aith, <HI>hee meditates in the law of the Lord day and night.</HI> What's meditation? but the Inward view of a thing, or the beholding it with an Intellectuall eye; meditation is the continuall turning of things over in the minde, to behold the ex|cellencies and perfections that are in them.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">A radice <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod e&s;t p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">uere irrigare; quare commune &amp; fere idem e&s;t nomen, <HI>pluviae Doctoris &amp; le|gi&s;latoris.</HI></NOTE>Secondly, Say others, it proceeds from another radicall vvord, that &s;ignifies <HI>to raine,</HI> and that not onely &s;ome &s;mall dri&s;sling dew|ing raine, but full &s;howers, or as we &s;ay to powre downe; and in the Hebrew, the &s;ame vvord &s;ignifies, <HI>to raine, and to teach,</HI> becau&s;e teaching by the vvord is like raining, or the &s;ending dovvne of raine. The Apo&s;tle (<HI>Heb.</HI> 6.7.) alludes to it. <HI>For the earth which drinketh in the raine that commeth oft upon it,</HI> &amp;c. by the earth he meanes tho&s;e vvho heare the vvord or doctrine, vvhich comes dovvne upon them like raine to &s;often their hearts and make them fruitfull. There are tvvo other Texts of Scripture very &s;uitable to this Expo&s;ition (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 30.20.) <HI>Though the Lord give you the bread of adver&s;ity, and the water of affliction, yet &s;hall not thy tea|chers be removed into Corners any more, but thine eye &s;hall &s;ee thy teachers. Thy teachers &s;hall not be removed,</HI> &s;o wee render: but &s;trictly from the letter of the Hebrew we may read it thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> elongabit <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">viam.</NOTE> <HI>Though the Lord give thee the bread of adver&s;itie</HI> &amp;c. <HI>yet &s;hall not thy raine
<PB N="221" REF="121"> be removed from thee.</HI> It may &s;eeme &s;trange that they &s;hould have the bread of adver&s;ity, and the vvater of Affliction, and yet have al&s;o raine, vvhich naturally cau&s;eth the earth to bring forth bread, and fills the pooles vvith vvater. But the Prophet vvho &s;peakes of corporall bread and vvater in the former part of the ver&s;e, &s;peakes of &s;pirituall raine in the latter, making this &s;o full a compen&s;ation to the people of God, for the want of other tvvo, that they &s;hould have no cau&s;e to complain of it. As if the Prophet had &s;aid, <HI>Though you are cut &s;hort in outward things, yet you &s;hall not be &s;hortned in &s;piritualls, the raine of holy doctrine &s;hall not be removed from you,</HI> or as vve tran&s;late, <HI>thy teachers &s;hall not be removed</HI> &amp;c. Some among&s;t us vvould have the teachers of holy doctrine removed, le&s;t by feeding them the bread &amp; vvater of the Land &s;hould fayle, as if the charge of publick preaching the riches of the Grace of Chri&s;t would be an undoing, or at lea&s;t an impoveri&s;hing of the Nation. Whereas (I touch it onely by the way) the Prophet com|forts the people of God in the mid&s;t of all their wants &amp; outward afflictions, that they &s;hould not want the pre&s;ence of their tea|chers, nor the &s;howers of holy in&s;truction by them. Againe (<HI>Joel</HI> 2.23.) <HI>Be glad O Zion, and rejoyce in the Lord your God, for he hath given you the former raine moderately, and he will cau&s;e to come downe the raine, the former raine and the latter raine in the fir&s;t month.</HI> That vvhich vve render, <HI>(The former raine moderately)</HI> others tran&s;late, <HI>a Teacher of righteou&s;nes,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Sanct&egrave; colludit propheta nomi|nibus doctoris &s;eu legi&s;latoris &amp; pluv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ae, &s;eu imbris maturini &amp; &s;erotini.</NOTE> or <HI>according to righte|ou&s;nes;</HI> &s;o you may finde in the Margin of your larger Bibles. And that's the great mercy vvhich <HI>Zion</HI> is to rejoyce in; for can vve thinke that <HI>Zion,</HI> the children of <HI>Zion</HI> &s;hould be called &s;o ear|ne&s;tly to rejoyce meerly in natural raine, or the effects of it; be|cau&s;e of the abundance of Corne and Wine and Oyle, which the earth vvell vvatered u&s;ually produceth? This is too poore a thing (con&s;idered alone) for <HI>Zion</HI> to rejoyce in! <HI>Zion</HI> or the people of God doe and mu&s;t confe&s;&s;e them&s;elves unvvorthy of the lea&s;t outward mercy, even of a &s;hovver of raine, or of a &s;heafe of corne, and they ought to prai&s;e God, and be very thankfull for the&s;e; But the&s;e are not properly, the matter of <HI>Zions</HI> gladne&s;&s;e and re|joycing. In the&s;e the vvorld rejoyceth, <HI>Who will &s;hew us any good (P&s;al.</HI> 4.7.) they are for Corne, and Wine, and Oyle, but <HI>Lord</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David) lift up the light of thy Countenance upon me; Thou ha&s;t put gladnes in mine heart, more then in the time that their corne
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<PB N="222" REF="123"> and their wine encrea&s;ed;</HI> As if he had &s;aid; Worldly men rejoyce in corne and vvine; but I rejoyce more in the light of thy counte|nance. The light of the favour of God, and the light of the know|ledge of God, are the chiefe matters of a beleevers joy. And this light of holy joy comes in u&s;ually vvith and by the raine of that doctrine, which falls upon us from the mouth of God in the teach|ings of his divine Lavv. <HI>Receive the Law from his mouth.</HI></P>
<P>But you vvill &s;ay, What is this Lavv vvhich comes dovvne like raine from heaven? and vvhich vve are to receive from the mouth of God.</P>
<P>I an&s;vver; The Lavv may be taken tvvo vvayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Strictly for the ten Commandements, or the five Bookes of <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> vvhich are called the Lavv.</P>
<P>Secondly, More largely, and &s;o the vvhole vvord of God is the Lavv. Chri&s;t him&s;elfe calls the Booke of <HI>P&s;almes</HI> the Lavv tvvo or three times in the nevv Te&s;tament (<HI>Joh.</HI> 10.34.) <HI>Je&s;us an&s;we|red them, is it not written in your Law, I have &s;aid yee are Gods?</HI> vvhere vvas that vvritten? in the 82^d <HI>P&s;al. v.</HI> 6. And &s;o againe (<HI>Joh.</HI> 15.25.) <HI>But this cometh to pa&s;&s;e, that the word might be fullfilled that is written in their Law, they hated me without a cau&s;e.</HI> What Lavv doth he meane? tho&s;e vvords vve finde (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.19.) Take one text further (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 14.21.) <HI>In the Law it is written, With men of other tongues, and other lips, will I &s;peake unto this Peo|ple.</HI> Where is that vvritten? (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 28.11.) So that the <HI>Law,</HI> in a large &s;en&s;e, is taken for the vvhole body of the vvord of God, or for the general Revelation of the my&s;terie of his vvill; in vvhich &s;en&s;e vvee may &s;ay the Go&s;pel is the Lavv; And the Go&s;pel is ex|pre&s;&s;ely called the <HI>Law</HI> (or rule) <HI>of faith</HI> (Rom. 3.27.) So that by <HI>Law</HI> here vve may under&s;tand vvhat&s;oever the Lord hath given us, eyther as a rule of life, or as a rule of faith. The Seaventy tran|&s;late <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;peaking in that latitude,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> <HI>Receive what&s;oever God delivers, declares, or puts forth. Receive, I pray thee, the Law</HI>
<Q>from his mouth.</Q></P>
<P>From vvho&s;e mouth? from the mouth of God; how can that be? Indeed <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> vvent up into the Mount, and vvas vvith God fourty dayes, and there received the Lavv from his mouth; but could <HI>Job</HI> Receive the Lavv from his mouth as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> did? I an|&s;vver; If God had called him to it, as he did <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> he might. But
<PB N="223" REF="123"> that's not the purpo&s;e of <HI>Eliphaz.</HI> Neither are wee (I conceive) to under&s;tand him of &s;uch a <HI>Receiving from the mouth of God,</HI> as the old Prophets had vvho received the minde of God by Immediate In&s;piration, &amp; dictates from God him&s;elfe: for though they vvere not called up &s;olemnly into a Mount (as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI>) to receive the Lavv, yet the Spirit was &s;ent to make knowne the minde of God to them. And in that &s;ence the Prophet <HI>Jeremiah</HI> is &s;aid to warne King <HI>Zedekiah from the mouth of the Lord</HI> (2 Chron. 36.12.) <HI>And he did that which was evill in the &s;ight of the Lord his God, and humbled not him&s;elfe before Jeremiah the Prophet &s;peaking from the mouth of the Lord;</HI> that is, he received a vvord from God by an Extraordinary Revelation to carry unto the King, vvho yet humbled not him&s;elfe. And &s;o (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 30.2.) the Lord complaines of his people <HI>that walked to goe downe to Aegypt to &s;trengthen them&s;elves with the &s;trength of Pharaoh</HI> &amp;c. <HI>and yet had not asked at his mouth,</HI> that is, had not asked direction in the thing according to the vvayes of Revelation then in u&s;e, by enquiring of the Prophets, or of the high Prie&s;t; And the Lord tels the Prophet <HI>Jeremy</HI> (Ch. 15.19.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Prophetae &s;unt qua&s;i os dei quia per ip&s;os loquutus e&s;t.</NOTE>) <HI>that he &s;hould be as his mouth if he would take forth the precious from the vile,</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, if thou art faith|full in my vvork, I will reveale my &s;elfe to thee, &amp; thou &s;halt &s;peak even as if I my &s;elfe &s;poke, thou &s;halt be as my mouth. Now, I conceive, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not goe thus high when he bids <HI>Job Re|ceive the Law from the mouth of God,</HI> as if he vvere to expect Im|mediate direction and advice from him. For then, we may be &s;ayd to receive a rule or a law from the mouth of God, when vve re|ceive that which God hath manife&s;ted at any time as a rule and lavv for us vvith the re&s;t of his people to walke by: they vvho re|ceive that law once delivered from the mouth of God, may be &s;aid to receive the lavv from his mouth, though they are not the Im|mediate receivers of it, yea, though it were publi&s;hed &s;ome thou|&s;ands of yeares before they vvere borne. Some from the&s;e words, collect that the books of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> vvere written before this time, and that <HI>Eliphaz</HI> did referre <HI>Job</HI> to tho&s;e, bidding him receive that lavv which the mouth of God had &s;poken to <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> but, though whether the law vvere then formally &s;poken or no is a di&s;pute, yet it is vvithout all di&s;pute, that the mouth of God had then given a lavv or rule of life to his people: and &s;o <HI>Eliphaz</HI> might &s;afely and truely &s;ay, <HI>Receive, I pray thee, the law from his mouth,</HI> there ha|ving
<PB N="224" REF="124"> been a Revelation of the minde of God among the faithfull in all ages and times. God never left his people to their own will, nor them to be their own Guide and Coun&s;eller. For when the A|po&s;tle &s;ayth (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.14.) that <HI>the Gentiles having not the law are a law unto them&s;elves;</HI> his meaning is not that they had no law but one of their own devi&s;ing. They indeed had not the law of God formally &s;poken to their eares, and pre&s;erved in tables of &s;tone, but they had the &s;ub&s;tance of the law of God naturally vvritten in their hearts. So then, there hath alwayes been a lavv from his mouth formally in the Church, &amp; naturally in the world. Therefore &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz, Receive the law from his mouth,</HI> and when he &s;aith, <HI>Receive the law from his mouth,</HI> it may have a double Op|po&s;ition.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To the vvill and vvi&s;dome of <HI>Job;</HI> As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;aid, <HI>Thou ha&s;t been hitherto a law to thy &s;elfe,</HI> that is, thou ha&s;t follow|ed thy own advice,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ex ore ejus notanter dicit, <HI>i. e.</HI> non ex ore aut arbitrio tuo. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> run on upon thy own head, now Receive the lavv from his mouth. Man, naturally hath high thoughts of him|&s;elfe, and vvould be a law to him&s;elfe. Not as (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.14. which place vvas touched before) <HI>The Gentiles not having a law, w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">re a law to them&s;elves;</HI> that is, they had the law of God written in their hearts by nature; but be&s;ides that, there is a lavv which man vvould be to him&s;elfe again&s;t that law of nature vvritten in his heart, and again&s;t the light of nature &s;hining in his con&s;cience, he would &s;et up a law, even his own Lu&s;t, in oppo&s;ition to the law of God. Thus he vvould be a law to him&s;elfe, and not <HI>Receive a law from the mouth of God.</HI> Therefore &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz;</HI> Now, <HI>receive the law from his mouth.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, (from his mouth) may be oppo&s;ed to the mouthes of others; as if he &s;hould &s;ay, if thou wilt not tru&s;t us, nor take our vvord, then tru&s;t God, vve vvould not have thee depend upon us, nor upon any man living, not on the Judgement or Authority of any Creature, but receive the lavv from his mouth; there is a law and a truth come from God, let thy faith be guided, and thy life ordered by that.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>It is our duty to receive the rule from God.</Q>
<P>The Lord hath povver to give us the law, and vve mu&s;t receive the lavv from him. None have povver to Impo&s;e a lavv upon us but God him&s;elfe, nor may we devi&s;e a lavv for our &s;elves; <HI>God is
<PB N="225" REF="124"> the onely Ma&s;ter of the Con&s;cience,</HI> he alone can &s;ay, <HI>Receive the law at my mouth.</HI> If you aske, vvhat is it to receive the law? I an&s;vver, it is more then to give it the hearing. To receive, is, fir&s;t, to beleeve the lavv; &s;econdly, to receive, is to honour and reverence the law; thirdly, to receive the lavv, is to yeeld up our &s;elves to the obedi|ence of it, to be ca&s;t into the mould of it, to &s;ubject our &s;elves vvholly to the minde of God in it; Then vve receive the lavv vvhen vve take the Impre&s;&s;ions of it, &amp; have as it vvere the Image and &s;tampe of it upon our &s;pirits, and in our lives; fourthly, then we receive it vvhen as it followes in the Text, <HI>we lay up his word in our hearts;</HI> barely to receive it is not enough, you mu&s;t lay it up, trea&s;ure it up.</P>
<Q>And lay up his word in thy heart.</Q>
<P>This is oppo&s;ed,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To forgetfullnes of the vvord,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Praecedentis partis ex po&s;itio &amp; amplificatio. Ita legem &s;u&s;ci|pe ut <HI>ponas</HI> proprie, <HI>di&s;po|nas</HI> arte cura &s;ollicitudine ob&s;ervandi.</NOTE> Receive the lavv and let it not &s;lip out of thy memory.</P>
<P>Secondly, It is oppo&s;'d to negligence in the practice of the law; lay it up that it may be forth comming to direct thee in every duty. In Conver&s;ion the law is vvritten in the heart; every godly man hath a Copie of the lavv in his heart; That's the de|&s;cription of a godly man, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.31.) <HI>The law of God is in his heart, none of his &s;teps &s;hall &s;lide;</HI> vvhich is not an univer&s;all exclu|&s;ion of all fayling &amp; &s;lipping, as if every godly man were as much pa&s;t &s;inning, as he is pa&s;t peri&s;hing: but vvhen 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>none of his &s;teps,</HI> the meaning is, few of his &s;teps &s;hall &s;lide, or he &s;hall never &s;lide &s;o in any of his &s;teps as not to recover his feete and get up againe. He &s;hall vvalke very holily, &s;o holily as if all his vvalkings vvere but one continued act of holines. But, to the text, None of his &s;teps &s;hall &s;lide quite and for ever out of the vvay, becau&s;e the law of God is in his heart. What <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes in that propheti|call P&s;alme of Chri&s;t (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 40.8.) <HI>Thy law is within my heart,</HI> is true in its degree of every Chri&s;tian, all the lawes of God are in his heart. That Character is againe given of them (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 84.5.) <HI>In who&s;e heart are thy wayes;</HI> there is a &s;uiting of the minde of God and the heart of man together in regeneration. But novv the duty &s;poken of in the Text is another thing; for a man that hath the lavv vvritten in his heart, may yet po&s;&s;ibly forget to lay up the vvord and law of God in his heart, he may (under temptation and
<PB N="226" REF="125"> the pre&s;&s;ures of corruption) be negligent in that; it is the worke of a godly man, who hath the lavv of God in his heart already, continually to lay up the law in his heart; and &s;o vve are to under|&s;tand &s;uch Scriptures as the&s;e (<HI>Pro.</HI> 7.3.) <HI>Keepe my Commande|ments and live, and my law as the apple of thine eye, binde them on thy fingers, write them on the table of thine heart</HI> &amp;c. The fir&s;t wri|ting of the law in the heart is by the finger of the Spirit, by Gods own finger. As it was God that fir&s;t wrote the lavv in ta|bles of &s;tone vvith his own finger, &s;o it is he that writes the law in the&s;e fle&s;hy Tables of the heart by the finger of the Spirit: yet <HI>Solomon</HI> per&s;wades his &s;on to vvrite the law upon the Table of his heart: vvhen grace is received, and the law once written in our hearts, vve doe as it vvere put in &s;everall fre&s;h Copies of the law, vve are continually writing divine notions and In&s;tructions upon our hearts; this renewed act is a&s;cribed to us, becau&s;e we through grace joyne in it. We have an Expre&s;&s;ion of like import (<HI>Pro.</HI> 4.21.) <HI>My Son attend to my words, encline thine eare to my &s;ayings; let them not depart from thine eyes, keep them in the mid&s;t of thine heart.</HI> The heart is &s;aid to be the mid&s;t or Center of the body, now, &s;aith he, <HI>keep the law in the very mid&s;t of thine heart,</HI> in the &s;afe&s;t place; as the heart is the &s;afe&s;t place the middle of the bo|dy, &s;o the middle of the heart is the &s;afe&s;t place of the heart. So vve may under&s;tand that of <HI>David, I have hid thy Commande|ments in my heart</HI> (P&s;al. 119.11.) And (<HI>Deut.</HI> 6.6.) <HI>The&s;e words which I command thee this day, &s;hall be in thine heart;</HI> that is, <HI>thou &s;halt lay them up there.</HI> Of this laying up the law in the heart vve are to under&s;tand <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here; as if he had &s;ayd; <HI>O Job, thou ha&s;t often heard of the law, but thou ha&s;t been a forgetfull hearer; now heare it, and hold it, now</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle exhorts the <HI>Hebrewes, Heb.</HI> 2.1.) <HI>give the more earne&s;t heed to the things, which thou hast heard, or &s;halt hereafter heare, le&s;t at any time thou &s;houlde&s;t let them &s;lip, or thou &s;houlde&s;t run out</HI> (as we there put in the margin) <HI>as a leaking ve&s;&s;el.</HI></P>
<P>Further, This laying up the vvord in the heart, is oppo&s;d unto a bare barren knowledge; it is not enough to have the vvord of God in our heads, that is, to know it: it is not enough to have the word of God upon our tongues, that is, to &s;peake of it, but we mu&s;t lay it up in the heart; For though the heart, in Scripture, takes in the under&s;tanding, and the whole &s;oule, yet chiefly it re&s;pects the
<PB N="227" REF="125"> affections; <HI>lay up the word in thine heart,</HI> that is, let thy affections be vvarm'd with it, vvhile thy memory retaines and keepes it, and thy under&s;tanding is enlightened vvith a true notion of it.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>The word of God is a precious thing.</HI></P>
<P>We doe not lay up trifles and tra&s;h, but precious things, and trea&s;ure; vve lay up our Plate and Jewells, our Gold and Silver; the vvord of God &s;hould be more to us than thou&s;ands of gold and &s;ilver, it is the mo&s;t precious Jewell, 'tis trea&s;ure, and there|fore it mu&s;t be laid up.</P>
<Q><HI>Secondly,</HI> The heart is the Arke or Cabinet, in which the word mu&s;t be laid up.</Q>
<P>There was an Arke or Che&s;t provided for the law (<HI>Exod.</HI> 25.21.) and that Arke was Chri&s;t, he was typified by it, and indeed the law would be too hot for our hearts, too hot to lye there if it had not fir&s;t layne in the heart of Chri&s;t; wee (&s;ince fallen) could never have been an Arke for it, if he had not been. The tables of the law were laid in the Arke, and the Arke (in which the lavv vvas put) had a mercy-&s;eat vvhich did cover it all over (The di|men&s;ions of the Arke and of the mercy-&s;eate were exactly the &s;ame, two cubits and a halfe in length, and a cubit and a halfe in breadth, (<HI>Exod.</HI> 25.10.17.) &s;o that nothing of the law could ap|peare or ri&s;e up in Judgement again&s;t poore &s;inners. The propi|tiatory or mercy-&s;eate covered all. Now as Chri&s;t hath been the Arke of the law to protect and cover us from the condemning power of it; &s;o the hearts of beleevers mu&s;t be the Arke of the law, where it mu&s;t be layd up with a readines of minde to yeeld our &s;elves up to the commanding power of it. <HI>David</HI> prophecying of Chri&s;t &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 40.10.) <HI>I have not hid thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e within my heart,</HI> yet he had &s;aid before, <HI>I delight to doe thy will, thy law is within my heart.</HI> To cleare which Scripture take notice that there is a twofold hiding of the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e or vvord of God in the heart. Fir&s;t, &s;o as to ob&s;cure or conceale it from others, in that &s;ence <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>I have not hid thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in mine heart, I have declared thy faithfullnes and thy &s;alvation, and not concealed thy loving kindne&s;&s;e and truth from the great Congregati|on.</HI> And thus no man ought to lay up the truths, the law, the pro|mi&s;es of God in his heart to conceale and &s;tifle them there. Se|condly,
<PB N="228" REF="126"> There is a hiding of the law in our hearts, fir&s;t, that it may be &s;afe, le&s;t Satan or the world &s;hould &s;natch it from us. Secondly, That we may further con&s;ider of it; when a man hath got an ex|cellent truth, or Scripture, he &s;hould lay it up in his heart to pon|der and meditate more upon it, to draw out the &s;weetnes, and to experience the power of it. Thirdly, That vve may have it ready at hand for our u&s;e; and &s;o the Scribe in&s;tructed for the kingdome of heaven is de&s;cribed by bringing forth out of his trea&s;ury things both new and old. How &s;ad is the condition of many that have heard much, but laid up little or nothing at all of all that vvord which they have heard. Some having laid it up in their note books, are &s;atisfied with that; 'tis good and u&s;efull to doe &s;o; but doe not let it lye there, get a Copie of it in your hearts; a few truths in your hearts are better to you then many truths in your bookes; no man was ever &s;aved by the vvord in his booke; unle&s;&s;e that vvord were al&s;o written in his heart. God commanded the <HI>Jewes</HI> (Deut. 6.8, 9.) to vvrite the law upon the <HI>po&s;t of their hou|&s;es, and on their gates, to bind them as a &s;igne upon their hand, and as frontlets between their eyes.</HI> They were commanded al&s;o to put fringes upon the borders of their garments (<HI>Numb.</HI> 15.38.) vvhich our Saviour calls <HI>Phylacteries</HI> (Math. 23.5.) the&s;e were ribands of blue &s;ilke, or as &s;ome &s;ay, &s;croles of parchment upon which the law being fir&s;t wrought or written, and then bound up|on their garments, <HI>they were to looke upon it, and remember all the commandements of the Lord</HI> (Num. 15.39.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vani&s;&s;imi pro|fecto phari&s;aei illi, qui cum ip|&s;i non &s;ervarent in corde manda|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a, at membra|nulas decalogi complicantes &amp; qua&s;i corona~ ca|piri facientes. phylacterium eoc &s;ua propric|tate, Cu&s;todit<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|rium e&s;t. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE>) <HI>Now,</HI> &s;aith Chri&s;t, <HI>they make broad their Phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their Garments;</HI> as much of the lavv as you vvill upon thei<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> Clothes, but none of it in their hearts. Thus the proud Scribes and Phari|&s;ees went about as it were Clothed with the vvord of God, but his vvord was farre from their hearts, nor did it appeare in their lives; it is a meere vanity to have much of the law in our bookes, while vve neglect to keepe it in our hearts, and act it in our wayes. The former is good, but it doth no good without the latter. The want of this, the laying up the vvord in the heart, cau&s;eth the great want of Saints in the things of God; and as many loo&s;e that Grace which they &s;eemed to have, &s;o many are at a lo&s;&s;e in the u&s;e of that Grace which they have, becau&s;e they have not laid up the vvord of God in their hearts &s;o carefully as they ought. We &s;ay prover|bially, <HI>Sure bind and &s;ure find; They who would &s;urely finde the
<PB N="229" REF="126"> comfort of the word of God when they need it, had need to bind it &s;ure, when they receive it.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 23, 24.25.</HI></BIBL>
<P>If thou returne to the Almighty, thou &s;halt be built up, thou &s;halt put away iniquity farre from thy Tabernacles.</P>
<P>Then &s;halt thou lay up gold as du&s;t, and the gold of Ophir as the &s;tones of the brookes.</P>
<P>Yea, the Allmighty &s;hall be thy defence, and thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>ELiphaz</HI> having invited <HI>Job</HI> (at the 21 ver&s;e) to renew his ac|quaintance with God, and now againe pre&s;&s;ing him to returne to God, he reckons up tho&s;e advantages which might move, and incourage him <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> it; he tells <HI>Job</HI> what will follow his returne to, and acquaintance with God, and the&s;e advantages are of two &s;orts.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Temporall, and outward; &s;econdly, &s;pirituall, and inward; the temporall good things which he a&s;&s;ures him of in ca&s;e he re|pent, and turne to God, are &s;et downe fir&s;t more generally in the 23 ver&s;e, <HI>Thou &s;halt be built up;</HI> &s;econdly, They are &s;et downe par|ticularly; fir&s;t, He &s;hould then have riches, gold and &s;ilver in the 24^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e; &s;econdly, protection, <HI>The Allmighty &s;hall be thy de|fence,</HI> (v. 25.) as he will fill thy hou&s;e; &s;o he will guard thy hou&s;e and keepe all &s;afe.</P>
<P>In the following parts of the Chapter, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> a&s;&s;ures him of eight ble&s;&s;ings &s;pirituall.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Joy in God, <HI>ver.</HI> 26^t^h; <HI>Thou &s;halt have thy delight in the Allmighty.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Confidence, or holy boldne&s;&s;e before God; <HI>Thou &s;halt lift up thy face unto God;</HI> thou &s;halt not hide thy head, and run into <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">orners, but <HI>lift up thy face.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, (which is an effect or part of the former) freedome in prayer; <HI>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer to him,</HI> (v. 27^t^h)</P>
<P>Fourthly, He a&s;&s;ures him of audience, or of an an&s;wer to his prayer in the &s;ame ver&s;e; <HI>He &s;hall heare thee, and thou &s;halt pay thy
<PB N="228" REF="127">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="229" REF="127">
<GAP DESC="duplicate" EXTENT="1 page">
<PB N="230" REF="128"> vowes;</HI> that is, thou in thy prayer having made vowes to God, God &s;hall heare thy prayer, and &s;o give thee occa&s;ion to pay thy vowes.</P>
<P>Fifthly, He promi&s;eth him not onely that his prayer &s;hall be heard, but that his very purpo&s;es and de&s;ignes &s;hall be fullfilled; <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed to thee,</HI> v. 28. When thou re&s;olve&s;t upon &s;uch a way, or cour&s;e in thy affaires, thou &s;halt have this priviledge, <HI>thy decree &s;hall &s;tand.</HI></P>
<P>Sixthly, He promi&s;eth him direction and coun&s;ell, what way he &s;hould take, what cour&s;e to run in the clo&s;e of the &s;ame ver&s;e; <HI>And the light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt &s;ee what to doe, the Lord will give thee coun&s;ell.</P>
<P>Seaventhly, He gives him hope of ri&s;ing out of any trouble, or that vvhen others are overtaken with calamities, he &s;hould be pre&s;erved, at the 29^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>When men are ca&s;t downe then thou &s;halt &s;ay, there is a lifting up, for God will &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</HI></P>
<P>Eighthly, He promi&s;eth, that he &s;hall not onely have ble&s;&s;ings per&s;onall, and family ble&s;&s;ings, but he &s;hall be a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">blique ble&s;&s;ing, (<HI>v.</HI> 30.) <HI>He &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the innocent, and it is delivered by the purene&s;&s;e of thy hand.</HI> Thus you have both the generall &s;cope of this latter part of the Chapter; which is to &s;tirre up <HI>Job</HI> to re|turne to God, and likewi&s;e the particular ble&s;&s;ings and mercies which are held forth as arguments moving him to returne.</P>
<DIV3 N="23" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 23.</HI></BIBL> If thou returne unto the Allmighty.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>To Returne is u&s;ed frequently in Scripture in a metaphoricall &s;en&s;e, and &s;ignifies as much as to repent; &s;in is a going away from God, great &s;inning is a going farre from God, a going, as it were, into a farre Country, &s;uch &s;inners would goe out of Gods &s;ight, and fall out of his memory. <HI>Eliphas</HI> had charged <HI>Job</HI> deeply with &s;uch departures; and now he &s;peakes to him of returning.</P>
<P>And here wee may con&s;ider the condition or &s;tate of <HI>Job,</HI> and the &s;ea&s;on in vvhich <HI>Eliphaz</HI> pre&s;&s;eth him to this duty, he was in an afflicted condition, the hand of God was upon him. Novv <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> advi&s;eth him to returne; Intimating at lea&s;t, that the pre&s;ent di&s;pen&s;ation of God towards him, vvas a &s;peciall opportunity for the duty he moved him unto.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>When God afflicts us, when his hand is upon us, he &s;peaks to us, re|pent, or be&s;peaks our repentance.</Q>
<PB N="231" REF="128">
<P>How often in Scripture doth the Lord complaine as if he were vvholy fru&s;trated of his de&s;igne, vvhen either nations or per&s;ons being &s;mitten by his judgements did not returne unto him, or re|pented not. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 9.13.) <HI>They turne not to him that &s;miteth them;</HI> that is, they turne not to me the Lord: I have &s;mitten them, and I alone can heale them, <HI>yet they turne not to me;</HI> as if the Lord had &s;aid, I therefore &s;mote them that they might bethinke them&s;elves of returning, but they turned not to me. As they turned not at my vvord, or to me &s;peaking, &s;o they turned not at my &s;word, or to me &s;miting. I &s;ee they are not onely <HI>Sermon-proofe,</HI> my Prophets &s;pake to them in vaine, but they are <HI>judgement-proofe</HI> al&s;o, my hand is upon them in vaine, they returne not. And as it was then, &s;o at this day, for may vve not ob&s;erve, &s;ome mouldering in their e|&s;tates, cru&s;hed in their hopes, cro&s;&s;ed in their children, blotted and bla&s;ted in their credit, weake and &s;icke in their bodies, even tired and vvorne out under &s;everall afflictions, yet no thought of re|turning to the Lord, or of making their vvay perfect before him. So that the Lord may &s;ay to them, as he once did to his ancient people the <HI>Jewes</HI> (I&s;a. 1.6.) <HI>Why &s;hould ye be &s;mitten any more, ye will revolt more and more.</HI> The returning of many is like that vvhich <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peaks of (<HI>Pro.</HI> 26.11.) <HI>As a dog returneth to his vomit, &s;o a foole returneth to his folly; As Je&s;urun waxed fat, and kicked,</HI> &s;o &s;ome vvill be kicking while they waxe leane.</P>
<P>Further, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not &s;peake barely to <HI>Job</HI> of returning, but he directs him to the object; <HI>If thou returne</HI>
<Q>To the Allmighty.</Q></P>
<P>And that is expre&s;&s;ed in &s;ome tran&s;lations very emphatically,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> re|vertere u&s;&abque; ad dominum, vide|tur idem e&s;&s;e cum <GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> <HI>Returne home to the Allmighty,</HI> returne till thou come&s;t to or reach|e&s;t God, <HI>be thou &s;ure to repent home;</HI> &s;o the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 14.2. <HI>Joel</HI> 2.12. <HI>Amos</HI> 4.6. returne home to God, &s;tay not &s;hort of him in your repentance, that is, repent fully, &s;eriou&s;ly; And the intendment of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in &s;peaking thus, might be to reprove <HI>Job</HI> for his former (by him &s;uppo&s;ed) hypocri&s;ie:<NOTE PLACE="marg">Si plane &amp; &s;e|rio, toto corde, no~ ut ante hypo|crita fui&s;ti <HI>&amp;c. Merc:</HI></NOTE> thou ha&s;t returned before, but not to the Allmighty, &s;urely thou did&s;t repent onely as an hypocrite in former times when thou made&s;t the greate&s;t &s;hews of repentance. Therefore now repent as a &s;incere convert. Thy former repentunce was to thee a fruitle&s;&s;e repentance, and there|fore doubtle&s;&s;e but a fained and fal&s;e repentance. Thou could&s;t ne|ver
<PB N="232" REF="129"> after it recover out of thine afflicted, thy ruinous condition, and therefore &s;urely thou did&s;t never by it recover out of thy &s;in|full condition, or from thy &s;ins. But now, I promi&s;e thee, <HI>if thou returne to the Allmighty, thou &s;halt be built.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>That, <HI>True repentance is a full, a home returning to God.</HI></P>
<P>Much of the progre&s;&s;e of a Chri&s;tian is to goe backward, back|ward (I meane) from tho&s;e &s;ins and evills to which he hath (by temptation) been carried forth; nor (having &s;inned) can any man goe forward till he returne to God. We reade in Scripture, of God returning to us, as well as of our returning unto God; in both there is repentance; when God returnes to us, he repents of the evill of puni&s;hment, that he hath brought upon us; and when we returne to God, we repent of the evill of &s;in which we have com|mitted again&s;t him: onely be &s;ure (as the points directs) that ye returne home to God. The Prophet found <HI>I&s;raels</HI> repentance de|fective in this (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 7.16.) <HI>They returne</HI> (that is, they make a &s;hew of repentance) <HI>but not to the mo&s;t high.</HI> There is a repentance which brings the &s;oule never the neerer unto God. And that's a repentance (as we &s;peake) <HI>never the neere,</HI> or to no purpo&s;e. Thus another Prophet taxeth their fa&s;ting (<HI>Zech.</HI> 7.5.) <HI>When ye fa&s;ted and mourned in the fifth and &s;eaventh month, even tho&s;e &s;e|venty yeares, did ye at all fa&s;t unto me, even to me?</HI> Ob&s;erve how he doubles it upon that poynt, as if the whole empha&s;is of repen|tance lay upon that poynt; <HI>To me, even to me.</HI> As <HI>David</HI> in con|fe&s;&s;ing his &s;in (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 51.4.) <HI>Again&s;t thee, thee, thee onely have I &s;inned</HI> &amp;c. Many fa&s;t, but not at all to God, they returne, but not at all to God. They fa&s;t to them&s;elves, and returne to them&s;elves, that is, their own intere&s;t, not the honour of God is the motive and end of their fa&s;ting and repenting. And hence the Prophet is plaine and downeright with <HI>I&s;rael</HI> in this ca&s;e (<HI>Jer.</HI> 4.1.) <HI>If thou wilt returne, O I&s;rael, &s;aith the Lord, returne unto me;</HI> as if <HI>I&s;rael</HI> had u&s;ed to returne, but alwayes &s;hort of God, or not to God, <HI>I&s;rael</HI> made &s;ome &s;top in the worke of repentance before he came at God. Now then (&s;aith the Lord by his Prophet) <HI>O I&s;rael, if thou wilt returne, returne to me.</HI> If thou ha&s;t any further purpo&s;e to returne, be per&s;waded to returne to &s;ome purpo&s;e. Let not thy repentance be any longer &s;uch as is to be repented of. All our re|turnings are but wanderings, unle&s;&s;e we returne to God.</P>
<PB N="233" REF="129">
<P>But when may we be &s;aid to returne to God?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; fir&s;t, when we returne out of a &s;en&s;e of &s;in again&s;t God, as well as of &s;mart upon our &s;elves; for when we returne only becau&s;e of &s;mart, we returne to our &s;elves rather then to God; as when it is &s;aid in <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> (Chap. 7.16.) <HI>They returned, but not to the mo&s;t high;</HI> we may &s;ee the rea&s;on of this charge at the 14^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>They have not cryed unto me with their heart, when they howled upon their beds: they a&s;&s;emble them&s;elves for corne and for wine, and they rebel again&s;t me.</HI> As if he had &s;aid, all their crying and howling, is not becau&s;e they have &s;inned again&s;t me, but be|cau&s;e their &s;ins have pincht them, they doe not mourne becau&s;e of their wickednes, but becau&s;e of their wants. 'Tis famine that mo|veth them, not my feare. They would faine be at their full tables againe, they are all for corne and wine, nothing for grace and ho|line&s;&s;e. We may &s;ay of &s;ome per&s;ons repenting, as <HI>Job</HI> (Chap. 6.6.) of the wild A&s;&s;e braying, <HI>Doth the wild A&s;&s;e bray when he hath gra&s;&s;e, or loweth the Ox over his fodder;</HI> he applyed it to his owne ca&s;e, that he did not cry out without cau&s;e, he was, nor complaine when he felt no paine; but (I &s;ay) we may apply it to &s;ome per&s;ons repenting. <HI>They would never bray if they had but gra&s;&s;e enough, nor low if they had foddar enough;</HI> that is, if they had but outward comfort enough, corne and wine, health and &s;trength enough, did they but abound in the&s;e, you &s;hould never heare them complaine nor &s;hed a teare, how much &s;oever they abound in &s;in; All the vvorld cannot &s;atisfie the &s;oule of a godly man, till (after &s;inning) he be reconciled to God; His &s;oule is hungry and thir&s;ty, notwith&s;tanding all his corne and wine, till he be filled with the favour of God. And, this is indeed <HI>to returne to the Allmighty.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Then al&s;o we returne to the Almighty, when vve turne &s;pecially from and mourne for that &s;inne whereby vve have mo&s;t provoked the Allmighty; when that which hath mo&s;t offen|ded God, is mo&s;t offen&s;ive and burden&s;ome unto us. For though in repentance, every &s;in is to be repented of, yet &s;ome more; As <HI>Samuel</HI> &s;aid to the hou&s;e of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (1 Sam. 7.3.) <HI>if you doe returne to the Lord with all your hearts, then put away the &s;trange Gods and A&s;taroth.</HI> But why doth he exhort them to put away that &s;trange God <HI>A&s;taroth,</HI> by name, more then any other of their &s;trange gods? I an&s;wer; it was becau&s;e they had mo&s;t provoked the true God by wor&s;hipping that &s;trange God, and therefore he coun&s;els
<PB N="234" REF="130"> them as ever they would approve them&s;elves to have returned to God in their repentance, to looke to it, that they turned from <HI>that Idol.</HI> If every &s;trange God mu&s;t be put away when we returne to God, how can we returne to God, if we put not away <HI>our A&s;ta|roth.</HI> Thus the rule was given by the king of <HI>Niniveh,</HI> in proclaim|ing a fa&s;t (<HI>Jon.</HI> 3.8.) <HI>Let them turne every one from his evill way</HI> (that is, from his beloved &s;in) <HI>and from the violence that is in their hands,</HI> that is, from the &s;in of oppre&s;&s;ion, by which they got much into their hands. But why doth he in&s;tance in that &s;inne? Surely becau&s;e that was the common &s;in of that City, they were an oppre&s;&s;ing people, and loved the gaine of oppre&s;&s;ion, or to get by violence; They lived more by the bloud of others, then by their owne &s;weate, more by the violence, then the labour of their hands, therefore they mu&s;t particularly repent of that &s;inne. If the covetous man returne to God, he mu&s;t turne from every &s;inne, and from his covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e. If the proud man returne to God, he mu&s;t turne from every &s;inne, and from his pride, this is the nature of returning to the Allmighty, yet</P>
<P>Thirdly, Unle&s;&s;e we doe all this with the whole heart, we doe not returne to the Allmighty (2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 6.38.) <HI>Jere.</HI> 3.10. <HI>Jere.</HI> 24.7. The wicked are &s;erious and cordiall in &s;inning, they mu&s;t be &s;o in repenting. But &s;ome &s;inner po&s;&s;ibly may &s;ay, I have gone away too farre to returne; No, <HI>Jer.</HI> 3.1. <HI>Thou ha&s;t played the harlot with many lovers, yet returne unto me, &s;aith the Lord.</HI> Another will &s;ay, I have &s;liden back and relap&s;ed, I have as it were, repented of my repentance. The Prophet an&s;wers this doubt (<HI>Jer.</HI> 3.12.) <HI>Returne thou back-&s;liding I&s;rael, &s;aith the Lord.</HI> And againe (<HI>v.</HI> 14.) <HI>Turne O back-&s;liding children, &s;aith the Lord, for I marryed unto you</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P><HI>If thou returne</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus &s;hewed him that it is his duty to <HI>returne to the Allmighty,</HI> now proceeds to &s;hew that it will be his happines, and this he doth by an enumeration of tho&s;e manifold ble&s;&s;ings which follow our returning to him. Whereof the fir&s;t is,
<Q>Thou &s;halt be built up.</Q></P>
<P>Affliction and trouble, which are the fruit of &s;in, pull downe, and lay us wa&s;t, godly &s;orrow and repentance, which are our turn|ing from &s;in, have a promi&s;e of this good fruit, <HI>That we &s;hall be built up againe.</HI></P>
<PB N="235" REF="130">
<P>This building up, may be taken two wayes; fir&s;t, more gene|rally for an encrea&s;e in all good things; &s;econdly, more &s;pecially for an encrea&s;e in children. In the Hebrew the &s;ame word,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> filius inde dictus, quod ae|difictum &s;it &amp; &s;tructura paren|tium. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> which &s;ignifies <HI>a &s;onne,</HI> &s;ignifies, <HI>to build,</HI> becau&s;e children build up their fathers hou&s;e, or are their fathers building; in that &s;en&s;e the word is often u&s;ed, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 16.2. <HI>Gen.</HI> 30.3. <HI>Ruth</HI> 4.11.) It is &s;ayd (<HI>Exod.</HI> 1.21.) that <HI>God built the midwives hou&s;es;</HI> which &s;ome interpret, he gave them children,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Prolem dedit. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> or made them more fruitfull in child-bearing. We read in rhe law how that man was to be dealt vvith, who refu&s;ed to take his brothers wife, according to the com|mandement of God in tho&s;e times, and the conclu&s;ion of all is (<HI>Deut.</HI> 25.9.) <HI>So it &s;hall be done to the man that &s;hall not build up his brothers hou&s;e,</HI> that is, who refu&s;eth to marry his brothers wid|dow, and (through the ble&s;&s;ing of God) to have children by her, which would be as the building up of his hou&s;e, or the continuance of his name and family. Thus &s;ome under&s;tand the phra&s;e here; <HI>Thou &s;halt be built up,</HI> that is, thou, who ha&s;t lo&s;t all thy children; Thou, vvho&s;e hou&s;e hath been pul'd downe by the fall of a hou&s;e (<HI>Ch.</HI> 1.19.) &s;halt have more children, and &s;o thy hou&s;e built up againe. But I rather take the phra&s;e here in that larger &s;ence, and &s;o <HI>to be built up,</HI> implyeth all kinde of pro&s;perity in outward things. (<HI>Mal.</HI> 3.15.) <HI>Now ye call the proud happy, yea they that worke wickedne&s;&s;e are &s;et up,</HI> we put in the Margin, <HI>are built up,</HI> that is, they are very pro&s;perous, they may have what they will in this vvorld, or (as we &s;ay) <HI>the world at will.</HI> And (note that by the way) 'tis the vvor&s;t character of an age, <HI>when they that worke wic|kedne&s;&s;e</HI> (which ruines the be&s;t built State) <HI>are built up.</HI> The Lord makes a promi&s;e in the language of this Metaphor to the Church, (<HI>Jer.</HI> 31.4.) <HI>I will build thee, and thou &s;halt be built, O virgin of I&s;rael;</HI> As if he had &s;aid plainly, I will ble&s;&s;e thee, and rai&s;e thee up out of the du&s;t of thy pre&s;ent de&s;olate condition, into a glorious fabricke of pro&s;perity and honour; &s;o it follows in the &s;ame text; <HI>Thou &s;halt againe be adorned with thy tabrets, and goe forth in the dances of them that make merry.</HI> This &s;ence of the word is cleare in that oppo&s;ition u&s;ed in the P&s;alme (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 28.5.) <HI>Therefore &s;aith the Lord, I will de&s;troy thee, and not build thee up,</HI> that is, thou &s;halt be de&s;troyed for ever, I will never repayre any of thy ruines, thine &s;hall be as <HI>A&s;aph</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 74.3.) <HI>Perpetuall de&s;olations.</HI> So that, when <HI>Eliphaz</HI> promi&s;eth <HI>Job, Thou &s;halt be built up;</HI> his
<PB N="236" REF="131"> meaning is, thy ruin'd &s;tate &s;hall be repayred, and thou &s;halt have not onely a beautifull, but a wel foundation'd felicity.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>It is no vaine nor unprofitable thing to repent and turne to the Allmighty.</Q></P>
<P>If we by repentance pull downe the &s;trong holds of &s;inne, if we for&s;ake and lay wa&s;t our lu&s;ts, the Lord will build us up, he will build us up with all manner of ble&s;&s;ings; repentance is fruitfull; There are many who profe&s;&s;e they repent, but they doe not bring forth fruits meete for repentance; but as true repentance is accom|panyed with our fruits of holines and obedience towards God, &s;o with Gods fruits, the fruits of his love and mercy towards us. Ther<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> is a kinde of repentance in hell, there's weeping, wailing, and gna&s;hing of teeth, but that's a fruitle&s;&s;e repentance, as well as a faithle&s;&s;e repentance; the damned are under chaines of everla&s;ting darkne&s;&s;e. Un&s;ound repentance, or the repentance of hypocrites in this life, is like the repentance of the damned in the next life, but true repentance is fruitfull. If we as the Bapti&s;t exhorted the <HI>Jewes (Math.</HI> 3.) <HI>Bring forth fruit meete for repentance,</HI> our re|pentance will bring forth fruit meete for us; we &s;hall have good things of all &s;orts, if we &s;orrow (as the Apo&s;tle &s;aith the <HI>Corin|thians</HI> did) after a godly &s;ort; godly &s;orrow is rewarded with joy; if we humble our &s;elves, God will lift us up. The &s;orrows of Go|&s;pel repentance, are like the &s;orrows of a woman in travaile, who (as Chri&s;t &s;peakes <HI>Joh.</HI> 16.21.) <HI>&s;traight way forgets her paine for joy that a man is borne into the world.</HI> The pangs and throws of godly &s;orrow are therefore &s;ayd by the Apo&s;tle to cau&s;e repen|tance not to be repented of, becau&s;e that repentance brings forth joy to be rejoyced in, a ma&s;culine joy, joy that a man-childe of Grace to build up our &s;pirituall hou&s;e is brought into the world. <HI>If thou returne to the Allmighty, thou &s;halt be build up.</HI> And
<Q>Thou &s;halt put iniquity farre from thy tabernacles.</Q></P>
<P>The word imports, fir&s;t, putting away with indignation; &s;e|condly, putting away to the utmo&s;t di&s;tance; therefore we tran|&s;late, <HI>put away farre;</HI> 'tis but two words in the Originall; <HI>Thou &s;halt put iniquity farre</HI> &amp;c. Iniquity may be taken either for &s;inne, or for the effects of &s;inne, that is, puni&s;hment; if we take it in the
<PB N="237" REF="131"> fir&s;t &s;en&s;e for &s;in it &s;elfe; and then, this latter clau&s;e mu&s;t be under|&s;tood as a duty; <HI>If thou returne to the Allmighty, thou &s;halt be built up, thou &s;halt put away iniquity farre from thee,</HI> that is, It is thy du|ty to <HI>put away iniquity farre from thee;</HI> as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> here did &s;et forth more fully what repentance is; <HI>thou &s;halt be built up if thou returne to the Allmighty;</HI> that is, if thou returne &s;o as to put thy iniquity farre from thee; if we take iniquity in the &s;econd &s;ence, for the puni&s;hment of iniquity, then the words are a promi&s;e, as if he had &s;aid, <HI>if thou returne</HI> &amp;c. then thou &s;halt rid and di&s;charge thy &s;elfe and thy hou&s;e of all the trouble&s;ome effects of &s;in; Thou &s;halt <HI>put iniquity,</HI> or all the &s;ad i&s;&s;ues and con&s;equents of iniqui|ty, farre from thee, none of them &s;hall touch thee to annoy thee.</P>
<P>M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> pitcheth upon the former &s;ence in his tran&s;lation; <HI>If thou ca&s;t farre off unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e from thy tents.</HI> That gives a perfect &s;ence to the whole &s;entence, and from thence we may</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> in true repentance &s;in mu&s;t be utterly ca&s;t off and put away.</Q></P>
<P>We returne not at all to the Allmighty, till we wholy turne from &s;inne, nor will the Allmighty build up our hou&s;e, till we put iniquity quite out of our hou&s;e; till we turne it out of hou&s;e and home; out of the hou&s;e of our family, out of the home of our hearts; nor is it enough to put &s;inne away a little, or a little way, but it mu&s;t be put farre away. There are &s;everall degrees of put|ting away &s;in; fir&s;t, There is a putting it away out of our practice, or conver&s;ation, &s;o that it hath no vi&s;ible being or abode in us or with us. This is a putting of &s;in away, but this is not a putting of &s;in farre away. Secondly, There is a putting of it out of our affections, or out of our hearts; not as if we could keepe it (while we are in the body) from having a place or dwelling there, but as keeping it from having a throane or reigning there. This is to put &s;in very farre away from us; it is no great thing to put &s;inne out of our hands, but 'tis hard to get it out of our hearts; hypocrites will (po&s;&s;ibly) lay downe the practice of it, but &s;till their &s;pirits cleave to it, they are not at all alienated from the love of it, but onely re&s;trained from the acting of it; &s;uch are oftentimes kept from doing iniquity, but they do not at all put away their iniquity, much le&s;&s;e put it far away. As it is with a naturall man in reference to his doing of Good, &s;o to his not doing of evill; If good be at
<PB N="238" REF="132"> any time in his practice, yet it is farre from his &s;pirit, he hath no minde to it, he cannot &s;ay the law of God is in his heart, or that he delights to doe it; &s;o if evill be at any time put out of his pra|ctice, yet it is &s;till in his &s;pirit, his minde is toward it, he cannot &s;ay that his heart is withdrawne from it, or that he hates it. No, but as the Prophet <HI>Ezekiel</HI> &s;peakes of the &s;tubborne <HI>Jewes</HI> (Ezek. 11.21.) <HI>Their heart walketh after the heart of their dete&s;table things.</HI> As every Godly man is (in the maine) like <HI>David,</HI> A man after Gods owne heart, and walketh after the heart of God; &s;o every ungodly man is a man after the heart of the devill, and eve|ry Idolater or wor&s;hipper of fal&s;e Gods (who is one of the wor&s;t of ungodly men) is after the heart of his fal&s;e gods, and he walk|eth after the heart of his fal&s;e Gods, which the Prophet calls <HI>de|te&s;table things.</HI> What&s;oever is mo&s;t after the heart or according to the de&s;ires and commands of an Idol, that the Idolatrous heart walketh after; that is, he loves it, he delights in it, and thus doth every naturall mans heart walke after the heart of his lu&s;t, though &s;ometime his feete walke not after it, or he may &s;eeme to lay it out of his hand. But he that turnes indeed from &s;in, deales with it, when he is repenting of it, as the Lord doth when he is pardoning it. How is that? The Lord in pardoning &s;in, puts it farre from us (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103.12.) <HI>As farre as the Ea&s;t is from the We&s;t, &s;o farre hath he removed our tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions from us;</HI> That is, he hath remo|ved them from us to the utmo&s;t imaginable di&s;tance; for &s;uch is that of the Ea&s;t from the We&s;t: they and we &s;hall no more meete together againe, then the Ea&s;t and We&s;t &s;hall or can meete at all. And thus in repenting a godly man de&s;ires to put his &s;in as farre from him as the Ea&s;t is from the We&s;t, that he and they may ne|ver meete together in the practice of them, as he is a&s;&s;ured that God hath &s;o pardoned them that they and he &s;hall never meete together in the puni&s;hment of them.</P>
<Q>Thou &s;halt put away iniquity farre from thy Tabernacles.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Innuit ante hac <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ec Jobum nec e us filios culpa vaca&s;&s;e, ideocum ever&s;um &amp; fili|os extinctos. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE>In which words he includes more then his owne per&s;onall re|pentance; for by the <HI>Tabernacles,</HI> we are to under&s;tand the whole family or hou&s;ehold, the tabernacle conteining, is put for the per|&s;ons contein'd; in this <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes to &s;trike at <HI>Job</HI> for his for|mer cour&s;e, as if he &s;aid, <HI>Wickedne&s;&s;e hath lodged not onely in thy
<PB N="239" REF="132"> heart, but in thy hou&s;e, in thy family, children and &s;ervants. And this &s;urely was it which provoked the Lord to cru&s;h thy family of children and their &s;ervants with the fall of a hou&s;e; now therefore I coun&s;el thee to put away iniquity from thy tabernacle, that is, from all that belong to thee, from all that are under thy &s;hadow, and are committed to thy tru&s;t and charge.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That they who repent truly &s;hould indeavour to purge &s;inne not onely from them&s;elves, but from all that belong to them.</Q></P>
<P>They &s;hould clean&s;e not their per&s;ons onely, but their families, they &s;hould &s;weep their hou&s;es, as well as their hearts from &s;in. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 35.2.) <HI>Then Jacob &s;aid to his hou&s;ehold, and to all that were with him, put away the &s;trange Gods</HI> (or, the <HI>e&s;tranging Gods</HI> (&s;uch are Idols, they are not onely <HI>&s;trange,</HI> becau&s;e new Gods, and <HI>&s;trange,</HI> becau&s;e 'tis a &s;trange or wonderfull thing that man &s;hould be &s;o be&s;otted as to wor&s;hip &s;uch things for Gods, but they are e&s;tranging Gods) becau&s;e they withdraw or &s;teale away the heart from the true God; therefore &s;ayd <HI>Jacob put away the &s;trange Gods) that are among you, and be cleane, and change your garments.</HI> This outward changing of their garments &s;ignified the changing or clean&s;ing of their &s;oules. God principally lookes at that, and the outward ceremony hath no acceptance at all without the in|ward &s;incerity; In compari&s;on of which, as the Lord &s;aid in <HI>Joel, Rent your hearts, and not your garments,</HI> &s;o he would &s;ay here, <HI>change your hearts, and not your Garments.</HI> Now <HI>Jacob</HI> was very carefull, that this ble&s;&s;ed <HI>change of Garments,</HI> betokening the change and clean&s;ing both of heart and life, &s;hould be the livery of all his family and hou&s;ehold. Family &s;innes bring family judge|ments as well as per&s;onall: and they that have the charge of a fa|mily, have (in a great degree) a charge of &s;oules as well as of bo|dies; every Ma&s;ter of a family hath <HI>cure of &s;oules;</HI> And he is to &s;ee &s;o farre as lieth in him, that no &s;inne nor wickedne&s;&s;e remaine or be harboured in his family, that his children and &s;ervants live not in ignorance, nor in any evill. In the 6^t^h of <HI>Numbers, Mo&s;es</HI> gives charge to the Congregation, <HI>That they &s;hould depart from the tents of tho&s;e wicked men, Corah, Dathan, and Abiram;</HI> it is dan|gerous to be neere the families of the wicked, but it is more dan|gerous to have wickedne&s;&s;e remaining in our family, in our &s;er|vants,
<PB N="240" REF="133"> or in our children. And if Ma&s;ters endeavour not by all due meanes, to remove &s;in out of their family, that in a little time may remove them out of their family, or (as we &s;ay) eate them out of hou&s;e and home. <HI>Thou &s;halt put away iniquity farre from thy Tabernacle.</HI> Thus much of this part of the ver&s;e, in the fir&s;t &s;ence, as <HI>iniquity</HI> is taken for &s;in; yet,</P>
<P>Further, as the word <HI>iniquity</HI> is taken for <HI>puni&s;hment, thou &s;halt put away iniquity</HI> (or the effects of iniquity) <HI>farre from thy Ta|bernacle;</HI> and then the words are both a new promi&s;e and a further explication of what is meant by being <HI>built up,</HI> which was the for|mer promi&s;e; <HI>Thou &s;halt be built up, and all evill &s;hall depart away from thy Tabernacle. Iniquity,</HI> which properly &s;ignifies the evill of &s;in, is often put in Scripture, for the evills of trouble and &s;uffer|ing; and as all acknowledge this to be a truth, &s;o &s;ome judge it the truth &s;pecially intended in this place. I &s;hall therefore briefely, note from it,
<Q><HI>That,</HI> when we truely returne to God from &s;in, then &s;uffering evills depart from us and ours.</Q></P>
<P>For though the Lord be plea&s;ed to di&s;pence variou&s;ly for triall of his people, and often &s;uffers the evill of affliction to hang about their Tabernacles, who de&s;ire &s;incerely, and endeavour faithfully to <HI>put all iniquity farre from their Tabernacles,</HI> yet this is the pro|mi&s;e of God, and this hath been often experienced by Godly men; That God hath turned trouble out of their doores, when they have humbly and zealou&s;ly laboured to turne &s;in out of their hearts.</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> having incouraged <HI>Job</HI> by this generall promi&s;e, he draweth it forth into particulars. And that, fir&s;t, in reference to outward things.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="24" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 24.</HI></BIBL> Then, &s;halt thou lay up gold as du&s;t, and the gold of Ophir as the &s;tones of the brookes.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> munire. Aurum lecti&s;&s;i|mum qua&s;i ab igne munitum, aut quod &s;it h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|mini munimen|tum.</NOTE><HI>Then,</HI> that is, when thou ha&s;t acquainted thy &s;elfe with God; then, when thou ha&s;t laid up his law in thy heart; then, when thou ha&s;t returned to the Almighty thy &s;elfe, and put away iniquity farre from thy Tabernacle; <HI>Then thou &s;halt lay up gold as du&s;t,</HI> &amp;c. The word which we render <HI>Gold,</HI> &s;ignifies to fortifie, or to defend,
<PB N="241" REF="133"> and it is tran&s;lated <HI>a defence</HI> at the 25^t^h ver&s;e <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 7.12.) not onely, That wi&s;dome is a defence, but that <HI>money is a defence,</HI> (that is, it procures defence) and Gold is the chiefe of money. Though Gold be not a defence <HI>formally,</HI> yet <HI>virtually</HI> it is; Gold defends it &s;elfe again&s;t all the forces of fire, and it is a principall meanes of defending us again&s;t the fire and fury of the Greate&s;t dangers. <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up Gold as du&s;t,</HI> &amp;c. But Chri&s;t &s;ayth (<HI>Math.</HI> 6.19,) <HI>Lay not up trea&s;ures for your &s;elves on earth.</HI> And it was a rule given concerning the King of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> in the Levi|ticall Law, long before <HI>I&s;rael</HI> had a King, (<HI>Deut.</HI> 17.17.) <HI>He &s;hall not greatly multiply to him&s;elfe &s;ilver and gold.</HI> How then, doth <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;ay, that he who repents, <HI>&s;hall lay up gold as the du&s;t?</HI> is that fit worke for him? I an&s;wer, the words are not to be under|&s;tood as an exhortation to bend his endeavours to the gathering of riches; but as a promi&s;e from God that he &s;hall, by a ble&s;&s;ing from above, gather &s;tore of riches here below. <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold as the du&s;t.</HI> By gold here, and &s;ilver in the next ver&s;e, we are to un|der&s;tand all manner of riches; becau&s;e gold and &s;ilver are the chiefe riches, therefore all is contained under them. And when he &s;ayth, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold as the du&s;t,</HI> the words receive variety of ren|derings; &s;ome thus, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold above the du&s;t;</HI> as if he &s;hould &s;ay; thou &s;halt have more gold than du&s;t, which is a &s;traine of rhetoricke, expre&s;&s;ing aboundance; Others read, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay vp gold upon the du&s;t;</HI> As (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 24.2.) <HI>He hath founded it upon the Seas;</HI> A third renders, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold by the du&s;t;</HI> Like that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.3.) <HI>A tree planted by the river &s;ide:</HI> A fourth thus,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Et pone in pul|vere Aurum. <HI>Coc:</HI> Noli animum auro apponere, nimi&s;&abque; illud diligere, &s;ed ni|hili ae&s;tima, de|ijce in terram unde ortum e&s;t ae&s;tima ut ter|ram &amp; lapides petrae. <HI>Scull.</HI> Pone ubi deus &amp; Natura po|&s;uit. <HI>Coc.</HI></NOTE> by way of coun&s;ell; <HI>And lay gold in the du&s;t.</HI> Which two latter readings, are expounded as a direction given to <HI>Job,</HI> how he &s;hould lay up gold, he mu&s;t not lay up gold in his heart and &s;pirit, but in the du&s;t, or by the du&s;t; As if he had &s;aid; <HI>Put that purer du&s;t, that better concocted, and refined du&s;t, in the common du&s;t; put the du&s;t to du&s;t; put thy gold in its proper place, where God and nature put it. 'Tis but du&s;t, and &s;o a fit companion for the du&s;t;</HI> yea (&s;ay &s;ome) 'tis as if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had &s;ayd; <HI>Doe not &s;o much as make roome for it in thy hou&s;e, provide not che&s;ts for it, let it lie where it had its originall; It came from the du&s;t, there leave it, returne it backe to its owne Country, to the place of its nativity.</HI> A Heathen hath this notion concerning gold and &s;ilver, &amp;c. And he labours much to &s;hew that the &s;ite &amp; po&s;ition of the&s;e things in nature, holds forth
<PB N="242" REF="134"> how we ought to receive and e&s;timate them;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nulli nos vitio natura conciliat, nihil quide~ quod avaritiam no|&s;tram irritaret po&s;uit in aperto: pedibus aurum &amp; argentu~ &s;ub jecit, calcandum ac premendum dedit, &amp; quic|quid e&s;t propter quod calcamur &amp; premimur. <HI>Sen: ep: 94.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Even nature</HI> (by which he meanes the ordinary cour&s;e &s;et in nature) <HI>draws us off from coveting Gold and &s;ilver; there is nothing which may provoke or &s;tirre up covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, which God hath advanced or &s;et up high in the order of nature; Gold and &s;ilver are the chiefe objects of Cove|tou&s;ne&s;&s;e, now both the&s;e, as al&s;o what&s;oever el&s;e man is pre&s;&s;ed about, and as it were trodden underfoote in the dirt for, by burden&s;ome or covetous cares, God hath thru&s;t or trodden under our feete; Gold doth not fall out of the clouds of heaven, hut lieth under the clods of the earth;</HI> there God hath put them to be trampled and trodden under our feete, that we might &s;corne to have our affections trampled upon and trodden underfoote by them, or &s;uch things as they. So then, All that this interpretation or tran&s;lation aymes at in &s;ay|ing <HI>Gold mu&s;t be put in the du&s;t,</HI> is onely to &s;hew us, that our e&s;ti|mations &s;hould be taken off from it, or that we &s;hould place it as low in our thoughts, as God hath placed it in the order of nature. And this is a &s;pirituall &s;en&s;e, &s;uiting that of our Saviour; <HI>Lay not up for your &s;elves trea&s;ures on earth,</HI> make not great preparations to keepe your earthly trea&s;ures, e&s;pecially let them not be kept in your heart, or lie there where Chri&s;t onely and the trea&s;ures of heaven ought to be layd up. Put your gold in the du&s;t, or let it be e&s;teemed as du&s;t, &s;eing at be&s;t it is but wel concocted du&s;t. So Gold and &s;ilver are called <HI>Amos</HI> 2.7. <HI>That pa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t after the du&s;t of the earth upon the head of the poore.</HI> So the Prophet de&s;cribes their ex|treame covetou&s;nes, who will be rich, though it be by empoveri&s;h|ing tho&s;e who are poore&s;t.</P>
<P>Yet I conceive in this place <HI>Eliphaz</HI> hath another ayme; And that where be &s;aith; <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up Gold as the du&s;t,</HI> his mean|ing onely is, <HI>thou &s;halt lay up plenty of Gold,</HI> or <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ou &s;halt gather much riches; for the du&s;t of the earth or &s;and of the Sea are u&s;ed frequently to &s;ignifie abundance, or the exceeding numerou&s;ne&s;&s;e of things, or per&s;ons; <HI>Who can count the du&s;t of Jacob? and the number of the fourth part of I&s;rael</HI> (Numb. 23.10.) that is, they are as the du&s;t that cannot be counted, or numbred; that was the promi&s;e made to <HI>Abraham</HI> (Gen. 13.16.) <HI>I will make thy &s;eed as the du&s;t of the earth.</HI> So here, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold as the du&s;t,</HI> that is, gold more then thou can&s;t tell, or ca&s;t up; Thou &s;halt have not onely enough, but even more then enough. <HI>Job</HI> was very rich before, now &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz, Thou &s;halt have gold as the du&s;t,</HI> thy
<PB N="243" REF="134"> riches &s;hall be encrea&s;ed, thou &s;halt have a greater &s;tore and &s;tocke then ever. <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold as the du&s;t. And</HI> as it followeth
<Q>The Gold of Ophir as the &s;tones of the brooke.</Q></P>
<P>'Tis the &s;ame thing in another tenour of words; the Hebrew is, <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up Ophir as the &s;tones of the brooke.</HI> The word <HI>gold</HI> is not expre&s;&s;ed in the Originall; yet it may wel be under&s;tood;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ophir Nomen in&s;ula unde au|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> primae no|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ae adferebatur; quod inde Ophir appellatum hoc e&s;t, ut quidam opinantur Obry|&s;um qua&s;i Ophi|ri&s;um. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Ophir</HI> is put for the Gold of <HI>Ophir,</HI> becau&s;e <HI>Ophir</HI> was the place of Gold, yea of the riche&s;t Gold (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 9.27, 28.) <HI>They came to Ophir and fet from thence gold foure hundred and twenty tallents, and brought it to king Solomon. Ophir</HI> was a noted place in tho&s;e times for gold, both in reference to the plenty and purity of it. 'Tis a que&s;tion much controverted, where <HI>Ophir</HI> is; &s;ome ma|king it to be an Iland in <HI>Africa;</HI> others place it in <HI>India;</HI> &s;ince the di&s;covery of <HI>America</HI> or the <HI>We&s;t Indyes,</HI> many contend, that <HI>Ophir</HI> is now called <HI>Peru;</HI> and they have (as they conceive) a probable ground for this opinion from that place in the Holy Sto|ry (2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 3.6.) Where 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>He</HI> (that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vid: <HI>Bold.</HI> in hunc locum Jobi.</NOTE> <HI>Solomon) gar|ni&s;hed the hou&s;e with pretious &s;tones for beauty, and the gold was gold of Paruaim,</HI> which is neere in &s;ound to the name of that Gold-abounding Country in <HI>America</HI> called <HI>Peru.</HI> I &s;hall not undertake to decide this Geographicall Controver&s;ie about <HI>Ophir;</HI> That w^c^h is agreed on all hands is enough for my purpo&s;e, and the explicati|on of this Text, that <HI>Ophir</HI> was a Country famous in ancient times, both for the plenty and excellency of the Gold found there and brought from thence. Therefore &s;ayd <HI>Eliphaz, Thou &s;halt lay up Ophir,</HI> that is, <HI>the Gold of Ophir,</HI> pure and pretious Gold.</P>
<Q>As the &s;tones of the brooke.</Q>
<P>That is, thou &s;halt have abundance of gold; to lay up gold <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> <HI>the du&s;t,</HI> and to lay it up <HI>as the &s;tones of the brooke,</HI> or as the &s;tones of the valley, are paralel expre&s;&s;ions for plenty of Gold, &s;uteable to tho&s;e hyperbole's (2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 1.15.) <HI>The king made &s;ilver and gold at Jeru&s;alem as plenteous as &s;tones</HI> &amp;c. And <HI>Chap.</HI> 9 of the &s;ame booke (<HI>v.</HI> 27.) <HI>The king made &s;ilver in Jeru&s;alem as &s;tones, and Cedar trees made he as the Siccamore trees that are in the low plaine in abundance.</HI> Thus in the text <HI>Job</HI> is promi&s;ed to lay up the Gold of <HI>Ophir,</HI> as the &s;tones of the brooke.</P>
<P>The Vulgar tran&s;lation reads differently; <HI>He &s;hall giv<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> Thee for
<PB N="244" REF="135"> earth a Rocke,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Dabit pro terra &s;ilicem &amp; pro &s;ilice torrentes aureos. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> <HI>and for a Rocke &s;treames of Gold;</HI> which is a prover|biall &s;peech, implying a change for the better; as if he &s;aid, thou before who had&s;t a &s;andy foundation, &s;hall now build upon a rock, as (<HI>Math.</HI> 7.27.) And we finde &s;uch language in the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60.17.) where the Lord promi&s;eth, <HI>for bra&s;&s;e I will bring gold, for Iron &s;ilver, for wood bra&s;&s;e,</HI> &amp;c. So here, <HI>For earth I will give thee &s;tone, and for &s;tone Golden brookes, or brookes of Gold,</HI> that is, <HI>tho&s;e brookes where gold is,</HI> or, <HI>I will give thee much Gold out of tho&s;e brookes.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Id&abque; ponendo pro pulvere lecti&s;&s;i|mum aurum, &amp; pro rupe Ophi|rin<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">m &s;tuviati|le. <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE><HI>Junius</HI> &s;eemes to favour this tran&s;lation mo&s;t of all, rendring the whole ver&s;e thus, connexing it with the former; <HI>Thou &s;halt be built up</HI> &amp;c. <HI>and that by giving thee for du&s;t the choice&s;t gold, and for the rocke the river gold of Ophir.</HI> By all a&s;&s;uring <HI>Job</HI> of a happi|nes in his civil &s;tate in ca&s;e he did change or mend in his &s;pirituall &s;tate. Then he who had &s;o great a change in his worldly e&s;tate for the wor&s;e, &s;hould have a greater change in his worldly &s;tate for the better. The next ver&s;e is a continuation of the promi&s;e, much to the &s;ame intent, and almo&s;t in the &s;ame words, and therefore I &s;hall open that al&s;o before I give any ob&s;ervations.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="25" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 25.</HI></BIBL> Yea the Allmighty &s;hall be thy defence, and thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There is &s;ome difference in the reading of this ver&s;e, for the word which we tran&s;late <HI>defence,</HI> is the &s;ame which we tran&s;late <HI>gold</HI> in the former ver&s;e. And hence &s;ome tran&s;late thus; <HI>thy gold &s;hall be mighty;</HI> Making the word <HI>Shaddai</HI> (which is one of the names of God, and u&s;ually rendred Almighty) to be as an Epi|thite to the word <HI>Gold, Thy Gold &s;hall be &s;trong or mighty.</HI> And thus &s;ome tran&s;lations render the word <HI>Shaddai</HI> (Ezek. 1.24.) where the Prophet &s;aith, <HI>I heard the noi&s;e of their wings like the noi&s;e of great waters, as the voice of the Allmighty;</HI> &s;o we render; but o|thers thus; <HI>As a mighty voice;</HI> So in the pre&s;ent text, whereas we &s;ay, <HI>The Almighty &s;hall be thy defence,</HI> or according to the &s;trict|nes of the word; <HI>The Almighty &s;hall be thy Gold;</HI> others give it thus; <HI>Thy Gold &s;hall be mighty.</HI> And this an&s;wers the latter clau&s;e of the ver&s;e, where we reade; <HI>Thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver;</HI> yet put in the Margin, <HI>Thou &s;halt have &s;ilver of &s;trength,</HI> or, <HI>&s;trong &s;ilver.</HI> The&s;e readings have an elegancy in them.</P>
<PB N="245" REF="135">
<P>But I &s;hall keepe to our owne, which is profitable to us and &s;u|table to the text; <HI>Yea the Almighty &s;hall be thy defence;</HI> the par|ticle <HI>(yea)</HI> &s;hewth that this is a h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">gher &s;tep of mercy then the former; as if he had &s;aid, <HI>Thou &s;halt not onely have gold which is a defence, but better then gold, even the Almighty for thy defence,</HI> or, <HI>God who is better then Gold, will be thy defence, and the defence of thy Gold.</HI> The Hebrew word is plural, <HI>Defences,</HI> which intimates; fir&s;t, all &s;orts of defence; &s;econdly, &s;trong defence; <HI>The Almigh|ty &s;hall be thy defences;</HI> All manner of defence, and a &s;trong de|fence unto thee.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>God him&s;elfe is plea&s;ed to be the Lord protector of his people (who repent and turne to him) both in their per&s;ons and e&s;tates.</Q></P>
<P>There are many in the world who have gold, but there are few who have this defence for it. The Prophet <HI>Haggai</HI> &s;peakes of tho&s;e who earned money, but put it <HI>into a bag with holes;</HI> that is, they could not hold or keepe what they had gotten. It is the Lord that e&s;tabli&s;heth the creature to us, and defends it for us. The be&s;t things in the world take wings and are gone, unle&s;&s;e the Lord &s;tay them with us; and unle&s;&s;e the Lord defend and keepe them for us, they will &s;oone be puld out of our po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion. Some mens e&s;tates wa&s;t away they know not how, there is a hole in the bottome of the bagge they thought not of. Others have their e&s;tates violently taken away from them, becau&s;e the Lord is not their defence. The Lord is The protector of his people, the Lord is a Ca&s;tle, a &s;trong Tower, all manner of fortifications about his people, to defend their e&s;tates and per&s;ons, much more their &s;oules. And <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eems to mind <HI>Job</HI> that he once had, but now had lo&s;t this defence; God once made ahedg about him, or rather was a hedg about him, but he opened a gap or withdrew, and then in came the <HI>Sabeans</HI> and <HI>Caldeans</HI> and &s;poyled all. Now then (&s;aith he) returne to the Lord, and he will once againe be thy defence. <HI>How &s;afe are they that have God for their defence, who live under the &s;haddow, and co|vert of the Almighty! How &s;afe are they</HI> (I &s;ay) <HI>and all that they have.</HI></P>
<P>The vulgar latine is &s;o full of this &s;en&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Erit&abque; omnipo|tens contra ho|ne&s;tes tuos. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> that he leaves out the word <HI>defence,</HI> and o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">l &s;aith; <HI>The Almighty &s;hall be (or &s;hall &s;tand up for thee) again&s;t thine enemies;</HI> and in this perfect outward hap|pine&s;&s;e
<PB N="246" REF="136"> con&s;i&s;teth. For to have much, and that &s;ecured, is all we can de&s;ire for the things of this world. Many have gold, and ri|ches &s;tore, but the thing that troubles them is this, how to make all &s;ure; <HI>Returne to the Lord, and he &s;hall be thy defence;</HI> he &s;hall be an <HI>a&s;&s;urance Office to thee,</HI> he &s;hall protect thee again&s;t all windes and weathers, again&s;t all enemies and pirates; The Almighty &s;hall be thy defence and the defence of thy gold.</P>
<P>Further, Becau&s;e the word which we render <HI>defence,</HI> &s;ignifieth gold al&s;o, as was &s;hewed; therefore &s;ome keepe to that reading, and thus tran&s;late this 25 ver&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Erit&abque; omnipo|tens lecti&s;&s;imum aurum tuum &amp; argentu~ vire&s;&abque; tibi. <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE> <HI>And the Almighty &s;hall be thy choice gold, and &s;ilver, and &s;trength unto thee.</HI> Which reading is likewi&s;e followed by Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton; And the Almighty will be thy plentifull gold and &s;ilver of &s;trength to thee.</HI> This &s;en&s;e of the word is comfortable indeed; for to have told <HI>Job</HI> onely this; <HI>Thou &s;halt lay up gold as the du&s;t, and gold of Ophir as the &s;tones of the brooke;</HI> this had been though a great mercy, yet but a common mercy, &s;uch as the men of the world have and enjoy. <HI>Many that know not God lay up gold as the du&s;t, and they who &s;erve him not, have often &s;tore of &s;ilver.</HI> But when God him&s;elfe &s;aith, <HI>I will be your Gold and &s;ilver,</HI> This is not onely the riche&s;t of temporall, but the riches of all &s;pirituall mercies. For when 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>the Lord &s;hall be thy choice gold and &s;ilver of &s;trength to thee,</HI> the mean|ing is, he will be better to thee then the choice&s;t Gold, and a grea|ter &s;trength then &s;ilver unto thee. This is a rare and a di&s;tingui&s;h|ing mercy. <HI>Wicked men may have gold from God, but no wicked man hath God for his gold.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>That God him&s;elfe is the riches, and fullnes, the gold and &s;ilver of his people.</Q></P>
<P><HI>The Lord is my portion, &s;aith my &s;oule;</HI> who&s;e &s;oule &s;ayd this? It was the &s;oule of a mourning <HI>Jeremie.</HI> And when &s;ayd he this? even then, when their lands and hou&s;es were po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed by the ene|my, even then, when their Gold and &s;ilver with all their goodly things were carryed captive into <HI>Babylon;</HI> Then <HI>Jeremy</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>The Lord is my portion</HI> (Lam. 3.24.) the Gold and &s;ilver which I had in my hou&s;e are gone, but my Gold &amp; &s;ilver in heaven is not gone into captivity, he is my portion &s;till and for ever. <HI>They who have God for their gold and &s;ilver, are happier and richer then gold and
<PB N="247" REF="136"> &s;ilver can make them: What can be &s;aid more to draw our hearts to God, then this promi&s;e, that God will not onely give us riches, but that him&s;elfe will be our riches?</HI> What can be &s;ayd more to take a covetous mans heart off from the love of his gold then this? take thy heart off from thy Gold, and God will be thy gold. And &s;o what can be &s;poken more prevailingly to the voluptuous man, who delights to &s;wim in rivers of &s;en&s;ual plea&s;ures; O take off thy heart from the&s;e plea&s;ures of &s;in, which are but for a &s;ea&s;on, and God will be thy plea&s;ure for evermore. What &s;tronger argument to take downe the ambition of man, who hunts after high places and dignities in the world? then to tell him, withdraw from this pur&s;uite, and <HI>God will be thy honour, and thy high place.</HI> Wee may &s;ay to the ambitious, to the covetous, to the voluptuous, and in a word to all &s;orts of &s;inners, Ye &s;hall finde all that your &s;ins can of|fer you, and infinitely more in God; your honours, and plea&s;ures, your gold and &s;ilver, you &s;hall have altogether in him. One of the antients &s;peaks well and truly to the point; <HI>That man is too,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Nimis e&s;t ava|rus cui deus non &s;ufficit. <HI>Bern.</HI> Deus meus &amp; omnia.</NOTE> <HI>too covetous whom God doth not &s;uffice,</HI> or, <HI>who is not &s;atisfied with God.</HI> The onely true rea&s;on why any man is not &s;atisfied with God is, becau&s;e he <HI>knoweth not God;</HI> He that can &s;ay knowingly, <HI>the Lord is my God,</HI> cannot but &s;ay, <HI>I am &s;atisfied. When God is ours, all is ours.</HI> And the poore&s;t who are rich in faith, have as great a &s;hare in this riches, as the riche&s;t. <HI>God is the poore mans gold,</HI> they that have neyther gold nor &s;ilver in their pur&s;e (as <HI>Peter</HI> &s;ayd to the impotent man) may have God in their hearts. The Almighty is their gold, and &s;ilver too, as it followeth in the text.</P>
<Q>And thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a radi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e <GAP DESC="foreign"> la&s;&s;us fatigatus fuit. A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">gentum la&s;&s;i|tudinum; quod prae copia la&s;&s;os reddit homines numerando illud vel cer<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&egrave; appen|dendo. Nam o|lim appendebant argentum, unde <HI>pen&s;ionis</HI> vo|cabulum in &s;er|mone latino. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI></NOTE></Q>
<P>Some render, <HI>Thou &s;halt have &s;ilver of wearine&s;&s;e;</HI> He meanes it not of &s;ilver, as it wearies a man in the getting of it, but he meanes it of &s;o great a quantity or &s;umme of &s;ilver, as &s;hall weary a man to tell it, or trouble him to weigh it. The manner of ac|counting &s;ilver was anciently by weight; hence what is payd in mo|ney is called a <HI>pen&s;ion.</HI> We tran&s;late fully to that &s;en&s;e, <HI>thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver;</HI> for they that have &s;o much as tires and wea|ries them to tell or weigh it, have &s;tore enough. We put <HI>&s;ilver of &s;trength</HI> in the Margen. Silver is a &s;trong metall, and it is &s;trength, great &s;trength to Man. This rendring &s;uites be&s;t with the begin|ning of the ver&s;e. <HI>The Almighty &s;hall be thy defence, and thou &s;halt
<PB N="248" REF="137"> have &s;ilver of &s;trengths,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Nihil tam &s;an|ctum quod vio|lari, nihil tam munitum, quod non expugnari pecunia po&s;&s;it. <HI>C<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">c.</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> <HI>or &s;ilver to &s;trengthen thee.</HI> As for plenty, that was fully &s;et forth in the former ver&s;e, where he is promi&s;ed <HI>Gold as the du&s;t, and the gold of Ophir as the &s;tones of the Brooke.</HI> Be&s;ides, the word is divers times applyed to expre&s;&s;e &s;trength by, but rarely if at all in Scripture to expre&s;&s;e plenty by, and here our tran&s;laters render it &s;o, not properly but tropically, as appeares be|fore; for properly it expre&s;&s;eth the greate&s;t &s;trength, as fir&s;t, <HI>The &s;trength of the &V;nicorne</HI> (Num. 23.22.) <HI>God brought him out of Egypt, he hath as it were the &s;trength of an &V;nicorne;</HI> Secondly, <HI>The &s;trength of Mountaines</HI> (P&s;al. 95.4.) therefore I conceive it is be&s;t rendred <HI>&s;ilver of &s;trength;</HI> as gold is cloathed with a word which &s;ignifies <HI>defence,</HI> &s;o &s;ilver is joyned with a word that &s;igni|fies <HI>&s;trength,</HI> becau&s;e there is much &s;trength and defence in both, money being the &s;inews or &s;trength of warre; So that to &s;ay, <HI>Thou &s;halt have &s;ilver of &s;trength,</HI> is as if he had &s;aid, <HI>thy &s;ilver &s;hall be a &s;trength, or a ble&s;&s;ing to thee;</HI> Some have &s;ilver and it is no &s;trength to them; or he calleth it, <HI>&s;ilver of &s;trength,</HI> becau&s;e it &s;hould be confirmed, and e&s;tabli&s;hed for his u&s;e and in his po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion. He &s;hould finde, by experience, that there was tacke in it, that it was &s;olid &s;ilver, or &s;ilver that had &s;trength in it. So then, the&s;e are but &s;everall expre&s;&s;ions of the &s;ame thing, all which gathered together heighten up the promi&s;e of this outward mercy; he &s;hould have gold, and God would be his defence, yea his gold, and he &s;hould have &s;ilver plenty, enough of it to make a man weary to tell it, or he &s;hould have &s;ilver of &s;trength, his &s;ilver &s;hould be a &s;trength to him, and all this is a&s;&s;ured him upon his repentance and returne to the Almighty.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That godline&s;&s;e is the be&s;t and neere&s;t way, even to worldly gaine.</Q></P>
<P>Godlines is gainfull, though a godly man &s;hould die a beggar; but be&s;ides there is worldly gaine in it, the&s;e promi&s;es are not made in vaine. Chri&s;t &s;peaks as much (<HI>Math.</HI> 6.33.) <HI>Seeke fir&s;t the kingdome of God, and the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e thereof, and all other things</HI> (even gold and &s;ilver) <HI>&s;hall be added to you.</HI> And the Apo&s;tle is full for it (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.8.) <HI>Godline&s;&s;e is profitable for all things,</HI> 'tis good to make men rich, it will bring in worldly profits; God|lines hath the promi&s;e of gold as well as of grace, of &s;ilver, as well as of pardon and peace, doe not thinke that godline&s;s is barren of
<PB N="249" REF="137"> outward ble&s;&s;ings, or that we mu&s;t needs loo&s;e all gaine in this world, by getting that which fits us for the Glory of the next world. Know, that as the Lord makes his wayes &s;weet to his peo|ple by inward communications of him&s;elfe, revealing his love and grace to them, yea in them, &s;o he makes his wayes &s;weete to his people by giving them outward good things, ble&s;&s;ing their basket and their &s;tore, filling their hearts with food and gladnes.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> The godly man may lawfully po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e earthly riches, gold and &s;ilver.</Q></P>
<P>It is no &s;in to be rich, but when riches are got by &s;in; Poore <HI>Lazarus</HI> lay in the bo&s;ome of rich <HI>Abraham;</HI> As many poore men may be called the Devills poore, &s;o &s;ome that are rich may be cal|led Gods rich men. Againe, if Godlines have a promi&s;e (as it hath) of riches, then the godly may lawfully po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e riches; which al&s;o may be in&s;truments in their hands of glorifying God, and doing good among men. Nor can it be denyed, that they know be&s;t how to u&s;e the things of the world, and how to be the be&s;t Stewards of earthly trea&s;ures, who are in&s;tructed for the kingdome of heaven, and are (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> exhorts Saints to be (1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 4.10.) <HI>Good Stewards of the manifold grace of God.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Note;
<Q>That riches, gold and &s;ilver are at Gods di&s;po&s;e.</Q></P>
<P>He be&s;tows them where, and upon whom he plea&s;eth. This pro|mi&s;e of plenty of gold, upon repentance and returning to the Al|mighty, mu&s;t needs proceed from this &s;uppo&s;ition, that the Al|mighty hath gold and &s;ilver in his power. <HI>The world is the Lords, and the fullnes of it</HI> (P&s;al. 50.12.) <HI>God is the be&s;t Indies for gold.</HI> If any would trade for gold pro&s;perou&s;ly, let them trade heaven|ward; for God is every where Lord of the &s;oyle, and he &s;aith of all the pretious <HI>mines</HI> hidden in the bowels of the earth, They are <HI>mine.</HI> See how the Lord &s;peaks as the great proprietour of all the gold, and &s;ilver, of all the good things of this world; (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 2.8, 9.) <HI>Shee did not know that I gave her corne, and wine, and oyle, and multiplyed her &s;ilver and gold, which they prepared for Baal, therefore I will returne, and take away my corne in the time thereof, and my wine in the &s;ea&s;on thereof, and will recover my wool and my
<PB N="250" REF="138"> flaxe</HI> &amp;c. <HI>All's mine.</HI> Thus the Lord voucheth him&s;elfe the great owner of all the&s;e things, all the gold &amp; &s;ilver, all the wool and the flaxe, all the corne and wine are his. When the people and Princes of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> with <HI>David</HI> their king offered &s;o willingly and &s;o liberally Gold and &s;ilver &amp;c. for the building of the Temple. <HI>David</HI> makes this confe&s;&s;ion for them all (1 <HI>Chro.</HI> 29.14.) <HI>All things come of thee, and of thine owne have we given thee.</HI> And may he not doe what he will with his owne? Men thinke they may, &s;urely God both may and will.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> the plenty and &s;tability of the creature, is from God as well as the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of it.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> promi&s;eth <HI>Job</HI> from the Lord <HI>gold as the du&s;t, and as the &s;tones of the brooke, with &s;ilver of &s;trength,</HI> that we have it in &s;uch or &s;uch a proportion is from the Lord, as much as that we have any thing at all; he can give much as well as little, &amp; that our proporti|on hath a defence and &s;trength in it is from the Lord; therefore we &s;hould honour the Almighty for every portion and proportion of worldly riches, and for the e&s;tabli&s;hment of our portion what&s;oe|ver it is. Silver and gold have no &s;trength in them unle&s;&s;e the Lord who giveth the&s;e give them &s;trength, and bid them &s;tay with us to doe us good. La&s;tly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>We may lawfully po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e abundance of outward things.</Q></P>
<P>'Tis &s;infull to make abundance our aime, or to contend for much in temporals; to doe &s;o in and about &s;piritualls is our duty, and our contention for the highe&s;t degree our commendation. We &s;hould de&s;igne it, to lay up the Gold of Grace, as the du&s;t, and the &s;ilver of &s;anctification as the &s;tones of the brooke; We &s;hould forget all that we have, that we might get what we have not. Our de&s;ire|ings while pitcht upon an eternall object cannot be immoderate, but in temperals they quickly may: and therefore as to them, our moderation &s;hould be known to all men. Yet if God give in abun|dance of temporals in the lawfull exerci&s;e of our callings, we may warra~tably enjoy it as a ble&s;&s;ing from him. The providence of God doth often bound us to a little, and we ought to be contented with the lea&s;t portion of outward things, with bare food &amp; rayment; but the word of God doth not bound us to a little, nor doth it &s;ay it is
<PB N="251" REF="138"> unlawfull to have much. And as it is not unlawfull to have much of the world, &s;o it is a great exerci&s;e and tryall of our Graces to have much; As there are &s;ome Graces of a Chri&s;tian which come not to tryall till we are in want, &s;o there are other Graces which come not to tryall unle&s;&s;e we have aboundance. Want tryeth our pati|ence, and our dependance upon God for a &s;upply of what we have not; and aboundance tryeth our temperance, our humility, our liberality, yea and our dependance upon and faith in God, for the &s;anctifying, ble&s;&s;ing, and making of that comfortable to us which we have. When a rich man &s;eeth an emptines in his aboundance without the enjoyments of God in it, he exerci&s;eth as high a grace, and &s;heweth as heavenly a frame of mind, as that poore man doth who &s;eeth and enjoyeth a fullnes in God, in the mid&s;t of all his emptines. And therefore <HI>Paul</HI> puts both the&s;e alike upon a divine teaching, (<HI>Phil.</HI> 4.12.) <HI>In all things I am in&s;tructed, both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to &s;uffer need.</HI> And had it been unlawfull to enjoy plenty, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had never pre&s;&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> to repentance by this motive, <HI>The Almighty &s;hall be thy defence, and thou &s;halt have plenty of &s;ilver.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="252" REF="139">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB. CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 26, 27.</HI></BIBL>
<P>For then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, and &s;halt lift up thy face unto God.</P>
<P>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer unto him, and <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e &s;hall heare thee, and thou &s;hall pay thy Vowes.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IT hath been &s;hewed from the former context, how <HI>Eliphaz</HI> en|couraged yea provoked <HI>Job</HI> to repentance, and returning to God by the propo&s;all of many promi&s;es, by promi&s;es of outward, and temporall mercies, gold, &s;ilver, and protection. He might have what he plea&s;ed of God for the comforts of this life, if his life were once plea&s;ing unto God. In this latter part of the Chap|ter he ri&s;eth higher and propo&s;eth &s;pirituall promi&s;es; And he begins with the be&s;t of &s;pirituall promi&s;es, <HI>the free injoyment of God him&s;elfe.</HI></P>
<DIV3 N="26" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 26.</HI></BIBL> For then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Almighty, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>As if <HI>Eliphas</HI> had &s;aid; <HI>If thou do&s;t indeed repent and turne from &s;in, thy con&s;cience which now troubles, yea torments thee, &s;hall have &s;weete peace in God, and thou who now grovelle&s;t with thy eyes downe to the ground, by rea&s;on of thy pre&s;&s;ing guilt, and mi&s;ery, &s;halt then with confidence lift up thy face unto God in prayer, and thou &s;halt finde God &s;o ready at hand with an an&s;wer, that thou &s;halt &s;ee cau&s;e chearefully to performe thy Vowes, which thou made&s;t to him in the day of trouble;</HI> That's the generall &s;cope of this latter part of the Chapter. I &s;hall now proceed to explicate the particu|lars.</P>
<Q>For then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Allmighty.</Q>
<P>The fir&s;t word implyeth a rea&s;on of what he had &s;aid before. Having &s;poken of temporall promi&s;es, he confirmes his intere&s;t in them by a&s;&s;uring him of &s;pirituall; <HI>for then &s;halt thou have thy de|light in the Almighty.</HI> As if he had &s;aid, <HI>God will not deny thee out|ward comforts in the creature, &s;eing he intends to give thee the high|e&s;t
<PB N="253" REF="139"> comforts, even delight in him&s;elfe.</HI> 'Tis an argument like that of the Apo&s;tle (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.32.) <HI>He that &s;pared not his owne Sonne but delivered him up for us all, how &s;hall he not with him freely give us all things?</HI> Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;eemes to argue, &s;eeing God will give thee him&s;elfe to rejoyce in, or to rejoyce in him&s;elfe, how can he deny thee gold and &s;ilver with tho&s;e other conveniencies which concerne this life? the&s;e being indeed as <HI>nothing</HI> in compari&s;on of <HI>him&s;elfe.</HI></P>
<Q>Then &s;halt thou delight, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
<P><HI>Then,</HI> that is, when thou returne&s;t to God, and not till then, then thou maye&s;t expect to receive much &s;weetne&s;&s;e from him, &s;uch &s;weetne&s;&s;e as thy &s;oule never ta&s;ted or experienced to this day.</P>
<Q>Then &s;halt thou have thy delight.</Q>
<P>The word &s;ignifies to delight, or take contentment,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> delectatus fuit co<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">pore vel animo. Sonai etiam aliqu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d delicatum &amp; <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">e.</NOTE> whether it be outward contentment, or inward contentment, the delight of the body, or the delight of the minde; And &s;o an univer&s;all de|light, thy whole delight &s;hall be in the Lord. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> (Deut. 28.56.) de&s;cribes tho&s;e women by this word, who were made up of delight; <HI>Thy tender and delicate woman,</HI> that is, &s;uch as are &s;o de|licate that they are the delight of all who behold them, or who are them&s;elves altogether devoted to their delights, who (as the Apo|&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> &s;peaks of the wanton widdow (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.) <HI>live in plea|&s;ure;</HI> The&s;e are threatned with &s;uch calamities as &s;hould render their very lives a paine to them. The word is u&s;ed againe (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.13, 14.) where the Prophet &s;peaks of keeping the Sabboth; <HI>If thou turne away thy foote from the Sabbath from doing thy plea&s;ure on my holy day, and call the Sabbath a delight;</HI> what then? <HI>then &s;halt thou delight thy &s;elfe in the Lord;</HI> thou &s;halt have curious de|light, all manner of delight in the Lord, <HI>if thou call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable, and &s;halt honour him;</HI> if thou ha&s;t a delight in duty, thou &s;halt have the delight of re|ward.</P>
<P>Thus <HI>Eliphaz, then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Almighty.</HI> And 'tis con&s;iderable that he doth not &s;ay, thou &s;halt have thy de|light in the mercifull, or gracious God, but in the Allmighty; in him thou &s;halt have thy delight, who&s;e power is over all, and who
<PB N="254" REF="140"> is able to doe what&s;oever plea&s;eth him. Even the power and all|mightine&s;&s;e of the Lord &s;hall be as plea&s;ant to thee as his mercy and loving kindne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Further, <HI>delight</HI> in the generall nature of it, con&s;i&s;ts in the&s;e two things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In the &s;uitablene&s;&s;e and conveniency of the object, and the faculty, whether &s;en&s;itive or intellective.</P>
<P>Secondly, It con&s;i&s;ts in the reflection and application of the fa|culty upon the object. So that to delight our &s;elves in the All|mighty, hath the&s;e two things in it.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A &s;uitablene&s;&s;e in our &s;oules to the Lord.</P>
<P>Secondly, The &s;oules reflecting upon the Lord as good and gratious unto us. This reflect act breeds and brings in delight, and works the heart to an un&s;peakeable joy in God. By this la&s;t and highe&s;t act of faith, we take in the &s;weetne&s;&s;e of the Almigh|ty, and delight our &s;elves in him mightily. This faith doth not one|ly &s;uck the promi&s;es, wherein the love of God is evidenced to us, but is it &s;elfe an evidence of the love of God to us. <HI>We &s;ucke and are &s;atisfied with the brea&s;ts of con&s;olation</HI> by beleeving (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 66.11.) that is, we beleeving draw forth that &s;weetne&s;&s;e of the promi&s;e which the word declares to be the portion of Beleevers. Thus &s;pirituall delight is made up; and therefore Saints are &s;ayd <HI>to re|joyce in beleeving, with joy un&s;peakeable and full of glory</HI> (1 Pet. 1.8.) that is, having as much and as cleare a manife&s;tation, yea parti|cipation and ta&s;t of that Glory in beleeving, which is prepared and re&s;erved for them again&s;t the next life, as they are capable to re|ceive, and more then they are able to expre&s;s, in this life. <HI>Then &s;halt thou delight thy &s;elfe in the Allmighty,</HI> We may looke upon the words fir&s;t as a command; and then ob&s;erve,
<Q><HI>That,</HI> it is our duty to delight our &s;elves in God.</Q></P>
<P>Delight in God, is both a priviledge and a duty, it is command|ed in the Law, and it is promi&s;ed in the Go&s;pel. God is plea&s;ed to give us many things in the world, not onely for nece&s;&s;ity, but for delight, A heathen looking upon the various provi&s;ions which the Great Creator hath made not onely for the maintenance of man in his being, but for his comfortable and plea&s;urable being. Some of which affect the &s;ences, the eye, the eare, the ta&s;t &amp;c. others are &s;weetly contentfull to the under&s;tanding, with all the
<PB N="255" REF="140"> faculties of the &s;oule, He (I &s;ay) concludes this from it;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ne&abque; enim ne|ce&s;&s;itatibus tan|tu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> no&s;tris pro|vi&s;um e&s;t, u&s;&abque; in delicijs am<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|mur. <HI>Sen l. 4. de Benif. c. 5.</HI></NOTE> <HI>The bountifull Creator hath provided for more then our nece&s;&s;ity, or he hath provided more then will barely &s;erve our turne to live upon, we are loved even up to our delights.</HI> Now I &s;ay, though the Lord hath provided delights for us in the creature, yet it is our duty, our greate&s;t, our highe&s;t duty to delight chiefly in the Lord, to delight in him fir&s;t, and to delight in nothing but in reference unto him; nothing &s;hould be plea&s;ing to us, but as there is an impre&s;&s;e or &s;tampe of the love of God upon it, or as it ta&s;ts of his goodne&s;&s;e. And indeed what can delight us long but <HI>this thought?</HI> that God delighteth in us, or that we are a delight to God; that God is Good, and that God is good to us; having ta&s;ted his goodnes, we &s;hould love and delight in him, above all our delights. The P&s;almi&s;t (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 137.6.) preferred <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> above his chiefe&s;t joy; how much more &s;hould we preferre the God of <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> above our chiefe&s;t joy. God delighteth in man whom he hath made, and who is his &s;on by Grace, next to Je&s;us Chri&s;t who is his &s;on by nature, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t delighteth in man whom he hath redeemed, and &s;hould not man delight in his maker, in his father, in his redeemer? We have a mo&s;t divine de&s;cription of the delight which the Father takes in Chri&s;t his Son, and which Chri&s;t taketh in his redeemed ones, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 8.30, 31.) <HI>Then was I by him as one brought up with him, and I was daily his delight</HI> (Chri&s;t was the de|light of his father, and he delighted in his father) <HI>rejoycing alwayes before him; rejoycing in the habitable parts of his earth, and my de|light was with the &s;ons of men.</HI> Je&s;us Chri&s;t him&s;elfe takes up many of his delights with the &s;onnes of men, whom he calls <HI>the habitable parts of the earth,</HI> even tho&s;e of the &s;onnes of men that are a habi|tation of God through the Spirit.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hae &s;unt piorum delicia &amp; &s;u|v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;imae volup|ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">es, deo placa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> to f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ui, cujus eliam deliciae &s;unt habitare intereos qui ip|&s;um animo re|verentur &amp; colunt.</NOTE> Now (I &s;ay) as the delight of the Father is in the Sonne, and the delight of the Sonne in the Fa|ther, and the delight both of Father and Sonne in the Saints, <HI>in the habitable parts of the earth,</HI> or <HI>with the &s;onnes of men;</HI> &s;o the de|light of the &s;onnes of men &s;hould be in the Father, and in the Sonne; there &s;hould our delight be, there &s;hould we take our highe&s;t contentment.</P>
<P>Secondly, The words are rather to be taken for a promi&s;e; <HI>Then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Lord; Then,</HI> that is, when thou turne&s;t from &s;infull delights, or delight in &s;in, I a&s;&s;ure thee of &s;pirituall delight.</P>
<PB N="256" REF="141">
<P>Whence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That they who mourne for, and turne from &s;inne, &s;hall have de|lights in the Lord.</Q></P>
<P>When once &s;inne is bitter to us, the Lord will be &s;weete to us; and untill &s;in be bitter to us, the Lord is not &s;weete to us; &s;inne hinders our delightfull enjoyment of the creature, it puts gall and wormwood into our di&s;h, and cup, it is that which makes all rela|tions grievous and burthen&s;ome to us; yet this is but a &s;mall mat|ter, that it hinders us from the contentment, and &s;weetne&s;&s;es which are to be had in the creature; &s;inne takes us off from delighting in God. That &s;oule cannot delight in the Almighty, who loveth and continueth in the love of &s;inne. If &s;uch profe&s;&s;e delight in God, it is but a fal&s;e boa&s;t, and a high pre&s;umption; it is impo&s;&s;ible for &s;uch to delight in the Lord indeed. <HI>Job</HI> (Chap. 27.10.) &s;aith of the hypocrite; <HI>Will he delight him&s;elfe in the Allmighty? will he alwayes call upon God?</HI> He may pretend to a delight in the All|mighty, he may have &s;ome fla&s;hes, &s;ome raptures, but his joyes and delights are not in the Allmighty, what joyes &s;oever he hath they are in &s;omewhat below God; the hypocrite may delight him|&s;elfe in &s;omewhat received from the Almighty, in &s;ome pre&s;ent benefit, or future expectation that he hath from the Almighty; he cannot delight in the Allmighty him&s;elfe, or in God as God.</P>
<P>As it is impo&s;&s;ible in the nature of the thing, for a man to de|light in &s;in, and in God too; &s;o God hath &s;ayd that he who hath a delight in &s;in, &s;hall not finde any delight in him. God hath &s;ayd, <HI>Delight thy &s;elfe in me, and I will give thee the de&s;ires of thy heart, (P&s;al.</HI> 37.4.) But if any man will follow the de&s;ires of his owne heart, he &s;hall not delight him&s;elfe in God. <HI>Sinne &s;eparateth be|tween God and us</HI> (I&s;a. 59.2.) that is, it &s;eparates between the comforts and mercies which are in God, and us; &s;in doth not, can|not &s;eparate us from the power, or pre&s;ence, from the eye, or ju|&s;tice of God, &s;o &s;inne doth not &s;eparate (for God is nigh to &s;in|ners both to &s;ee what they are doing, and to puni&s;h them for what they <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ve done &s;infully) but &s;in &s;eparates from all tho&s;e delights that flow from God, from tho&s;e joyes which his people take in him; yea &s;in breeds a &s;trangene&s;&s;e between God and the &s;oule, &s;o that the &s;oule that loveth &s;inne, cannot have any holy famili|arity or conver&s;e with God. The Lord &s;aith to tho&s;e who repent
<PB N="257" REF="141"> (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.18.) <HI>Come let us rea&s;on together,</HI> &amp;c. As if he had &s;ayd, I am now ready to debate the matter with you that repent, and how great &s;oever your &s;innes have been, they &s;hall be blotted out. Whereas before the Lord tells them that he was weary of them, and that they were a burthen to him in all their &s;ervices; Now when we are a burthen to God, God is never plea&s;ant to us; if the Lord &s;ay he is weary of us, we cannot &s;ay we delight our &s;elves in him. Our delight and plea&s;ure in God is the fruit of his delight in and wel-plea&s;ednes with us.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> propo&s;eth this delight in the Lord, as the mo&s;t winning promi&s;e.</P>
<P>Hence note;
<Q>Delight in the Lord is the highe&s;t and choice&s;t mercy.</Q></P>
<P>There is nothing better, nothing &s;weeter then to delight in the Lord; delight in the Lord hath all true delights in it. <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes this out fully in that place lately quoted to another occa|&s;ion (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.4.) <HI>Delight thy &s;elfe in the Lord, and he &s;hall give thee the de&s;ires of thy heart;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt have all thy de&s;ires fullfilled in this thing; delight in the Lord will be the fullfilling of all thy de&s;ires; not only &s;hall they who delight them&s;elves in the Lord; have all their de&s;ires filled up, but their very delight in the Lord is the fullfilling of all their de&s;ires. What is the glory of heaven, but delighting in the Lord? And he who delights in the Lord, feeles not the want or ab&s;ence of any earthly Good. <HI>In thy pre&s;ence is fullne&s;&s;e of joy, and at thy right hand are plea&s;ures for evermore</HI> (P&s;al. 16 11.) Heavenly glory is nothing but delight in God, and all earthly good is nothing without delight in God. We may affirme foure things of this delight, in oppo&s;ition to all worldly delights.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, This is a reall delight, worldly delights are but &s;had|dows, or pageant-like &s;hewes of delight. The joyes of a hypocrite, are like his holines, meere appearances of joy; he hath no reall, no true joy, as he hath no true, no reall holine&s;&s;e. That man doth but faine a ta&s;te of joy, who&s;oever he is, that doth but faine the practice of holine&s;&s;e. Thus who wickedly hold out a holines which they feele not, &s;hall talke of joyes which they finde not.</P>
<P>Secondly, Delight in the Lord is a &s;trong delight, yea it is a &s;trengthening delight; That mu&s;t needs be &s;trong joy, which is
<PB N="258" REF="142"> &s;trengthening joy; &s;uch is the joy of the Lord, as <HI>Nehemiah</HI> told that people (<HI>Neh:</HI> 8.10.) <HI>The joy of the Lord, is the &s;trength of the &s;oule, the &s;trength of the inward man, it makes us mighty, it makes us giants to run our race, the race of holine&s;&s;e.</HI> The giant re|joyceth to run his race, becau&s;e he is &s;trong, and knowes he can doe it. The joy of the Lord is our &s;trength, and is both an evidence tha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> wee are &s;trong, and a meanes to make us &s;o. Worldly de|lights are weake, and they weaken us, Delight in the Lord is &s;trong, and it &s;trengthens.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It is a la&s;ting delight; not like the <HI>crackling of thornes under a pott,</HI> (to which <HI>Solomon</HI> elegantly compares the <HI>laughter of the foole,</HI> Eccl. 7.6.) that make a noi&s;e, and a blaze for a while, but are pre&s;ently extinct. Now <HI>Solomons</HI> foole may be eyther, fir&s;t, the prophane man in the world, or, &s;econdly, the hypocrite in the Church; All the joyes of this payre of fooles, the prophane worldling, and the formal hypocrite are &s;oone in and &s;oone out, like crackling thornes. But joy or delight in the Almighty is a la&s;ting delight, it is not for a fitt, or a pang, but for continuance, yea it continueth in the midde&s;t of all worldly &s;orrows, for it over|comes and conquers them. There is a laughter in which (&s;aith <HI>Solomon,</HI> Pro. 14.13.) the heart is &s;orrowfull, and there is a &s;or|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ow in which the heart laughs; <HI>As &s;orrowfull, yet alwayes rejoy|cing,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.10.) Spiritual joy, or joy in the Lord is not extingui&s;hed, though &s;urrounded with worldly &s;or|rowes; <HI>Many waters cannot quench this vehement flame, this flame of God</HI> (as <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peakes of love, <HI>Cant.</HI> 8.) <HI>neyther can the floods drowne it.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, Delight in the Allmighty is a holy delight, a delight which makes us more holy; the delights of the world are impure, and they defile us, we &s;eldome take in worldly plea&s;ures, but they leave &s;ome &s;pot and taint upon our &s;pirits or conver&s;ations; but the delights we have in the Lord are all pure, yea purifying delights, they make the &s;oule more cleare, more holy, more heavenly, they make us like unto the Almighty, in whom our delight is. For look what the object is in which we delight, &s;uch is the &s;pirit of him that takes that delight; now the Lord in whom this delight is, being al|together holy, they that take delight in him, mu&s;t needs be made or kept holy by it. As delight in worldly things makes the heart worldly, ba&s;e and dreggi&s;h, &s;o this refines and purifies it. The more
<PB N="259" REF="142"> we drinke of the rivers of this plea&s;ure, the more &s;ober we are, <HI>to be an epicure</HI> (as it were) <HI>in the&s;e delights,</HI> is the highe&s;t tempe|rance. Our feeding cannot be too full, nor our drafts too large upon the&s;e delights. <HI>Solomon</HI> (Eccle. 2.2.) who had run a cour&s;e through all worldly delights, and tryed them to the utmo&s;t, &s;aid <HI>of laughter it is mad, and of mirth what doth it?</HI> there is a madne&s;&s;e in the mirth of the world, what doth it? that is, what good doth it to any man? many things it doth, it makes men vaine, fooli&s;h, di&s;&s;olute, di&s;pirited for any goodne&s;&s;e; but what good doth it? doth it make any man better, more holy, more wi&s;e or fit for du|ty, no, it can doe none of the&s;e things. But delight in the Lord, is all this, and can doe all this, it is true, &s;trong, &s;trengthening,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quum unus qui&s;q, licenter re&s;picit id, in quo delectatur, &s;ubd<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t, ver<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;eq: <HI>Aq<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">in.</HI></NOTE> la&s;ting, holy, a delight that makes us more holy. This is the por|tion of Saints at all times, though payd them in more or &s;pecially at &s;ome times, and that eyther, fir&s;t, re&s;pecting the &s;tate and di&s;|po&s;ition of their owne &s;oules, as in the re&s;t, or &s;econdly, the &s;tate of and promi&s;ed di&s;pen&s;ations of God to the Church. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 65.14.18. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 66.11.) <HI>Then</HI> (al&s;o in a &s;peciall manner) <HI>&s;halt thou have thy delight in the Lord.</HI> And becau&s;e every man doth freely or willingly looke to that in which he is delighted. Therefore <HI>Eliphaz</HI> addeth,
<Q>And &s;halt lift up thy face to God.</Q></P>
<P>But &s;ome may &s;ay, is that &s;uch a great matter, is it any &s;peciall favour to lift up the face to God? &s;eing to doe &s;o is common to mankinde. The Naturali&s;t &s;aith,<NOTE PLACE="marg">O<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> homini &s;ub|lime dedit. <HI>Ovid.</HI></NOTE> <HI>That whereas other creatures looke groveling downeward, God gave man an erect countenance, and bid him looke heavenwards.</HI> How then doth <HI>Eliphaz</HI> promi&s;e, <HI>Thou &s;halt lift up thy face to God?</HI> We had the like expre&s;&s;ion (<HI>Ch.</HI> 10.15.) <HI>If I be righteous, yet I will not lift up my head.</HI> And (<HI>Ch.</HI> 11.15.) <HI>Then &s;halt thou lift up thy face without &s;pott.</HI> The lifting up of the head, and the lifting up of the face are the &s;ame; implying confidence, or a wel-grounded boldnes in him that doth &s;o; For all the&s;e phra&s;es of &s;peech imply a lifting up of the minde or Spirit to God. As <HI>David</HI> &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.1.) <HI>&V;nto thee O Lord doe I lift up my &s;oule.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Equiparantia &s;un<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> caput vel oculos vel faci|em vel animam ad deum leva|re. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Eliphaz</HI> meanes not the lifting up of a heart-le&s;&s;e face or head, &s;uch as the hypocrite or formali&s;t lifts up to God in wor&s;hip, nor the lifting up of a meere living head or face, &s;uch as all men lift up to God according to the forme or frame of their
<PB N="260" REF="143"> natural con&s;titution,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Fiduciam habe|bis recurrendi ad deum. <HI>Aquin.</HI></NOTE> but the courage and confidence of the &s;oule, and that a holy courage and confidence, is here intended. And there are not many, who can thus lift up their face to God, as is promi&s;ed here to <HI>Job</HI> by way of priviledge.</P>
<Q>And &s;halt lift up thy face to God.</Q>
<P><HI>To lift up the face,</HI> is taken under a twofold notion in Scripture, fir&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Faciei elevatio orantis habitus e&s;t. <HI>Pinec.</HI></NOTE> as a ge&s;ture or bodily po&s;ition in prayer; He that prayeth doth u&s;ually lift up his face to God, and &s;o to lift up the face to God, is to pray unto God. A corporal po&s;ture being put often in Scripture to &s;ignifie a &s;pirituall duty. Thus &s;ome under&s;tand it here; <HI>Thou &s;halt lift up thy face to God,</HI> that is, thou &s;halt pray; &s;econdly (which further complyes with the duty of prayer. To lift up the face,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vultum attollit qui &s;ibi bene con&s;cius e&s;t ani|mo&abque; fidenti. <HI>Dru&s;.</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign">. <HI>Sept.</HI></NOTE> notes (as was touched before) confidence of &s;pi|rit, and boldne&s;&s;e, courage, and a&s;&s;urance towards him, before whom the face is lifted up, whether God or man.</P>
<P>The Septuagint who rather paraphra&s;e then tran&s;late this text, give this &s;en&s;e fully; <HI>Thou &s;halt be confident before the Lord (or thou &s;halt act fiducially and boldly before him) and behold heaven chearefully.</HI> This lifting up the face is oppo&s;ed to ca&s;ting downe the face, &amp; that is a phra&s;e u&s;ed in Scripture to &s;ignifie &s;hame and fayling of &s;pirit. When courage is downe, the countenance is down too; as we &s;ay, &s;uch a man <HI>hath a downe looke,</HI> that is, there is an appearance of guilt upon him. The face is ca&s;t downe three wayes; Fir&s;t, by feare; &s;econdly, by &s;orrow; thirdly, by &s;hame. <HI>Ezra.</HI> 9.6. <HI>O my God I am a&s;hamed and blu&s;h, to lift up my face unto thee; for our iniquities are increa&s;ed over our heads.</HI> So (<HI>Luk.</HI> 18.13.) the <HI>Publican dur&s;t not lift up his eyes to heaven,</HI> and po&s;&s;ibly there was a complication of all the&s;e three cau&s;es why he dur&s;t not, feare, &s;orrow, &s;hame; he was &s;o much terrified, &s;o much grieved, &s;o much a&s;hamed of him&s;elfe, that he dur&s;t not lift up his eyes to heaven. It was the &s;peech of <HI>Abner</HI> to <HI>A&s;ahel</HI> (2 Sam. 2.22.) <HI>Turne thee a&s;ide from following me, why &s;hould I &s;mite thee to the ground, how then &s;hould I hold up my face to Joab thy brother;</HI> that is, if I &s;lay thee I &s;hall be afraid to looke him in the face, nor can I have any confidence of his favour; and it is well conceived, that he &s;pake thus (for it is indeed a very unu&s;uall thing for the Ge|nerall of an Army in the very heate of warre to looke after the fa|vour of the Generall of the oppo&s;ite Army, but (I &s;ay) 'tis con|ceived
<PB N="261" REF="143"> he &s;pake thus) as being convinced that he had undertaken a bad cau&s;e in upholding the hou&s;e of <HI>Saul</HI> again&s;t <HI>David,</HI> and therefore had mi&s;givings that he might &s;hortly fall into the hands of <HI>Joab Davids</HI> Generall, and was therefore unwilling to provoke him by killing his brother. This made him &s;ay, <HI>How &s;hall I hold up my face to thy brother Joab?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I &s;hall ob&s;truct the way of my owne reconciliation to thy brother, (in ca&s;e The turne of things in this warre ca&s;t me into his hands) by killing thee. Againe we may looke backe to <HI>Gen.</HI> 4.5. where it is repor|ted of <HI>Caine,</HI> That he was wrath, <HI>and his countenance fell;</HI> anger, and &s;orrow, and &s;hame, falling at once upon him (becau&s;e the Lord had re&s;pect to <HI>Abel</HI> and his offering, but had no re&s;pect to him or his) cau&s;ed his countenance to fall; which phra&s;e &s;tands in direct oppo&s;ition to lifting up the face in all the three occa&s;ions of it. For it implyeth fir&s;t feare, which is oppo&s;ed to boldnes; &s;econdly, &s;orrow or anger, which are oppo&s;ed to content and joy; thirdly, &s;hame which is oppo&s;ed both to freedome of approach, and liberty of &s;peech. We have an expre&s;&s;ion which paralels much with this, in that Prophecy of Chri&s;t (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 110.7.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Q<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">od legitur Exod. <HI><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">4.8.</HI> eg<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;&s;os filios I&s;rael in manu excel&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, Chal|da<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">&egrave; dicitur, capite di&s;coo|perto. <HI>i. e.</HI> pa|lam, confident&egrave;r &s;ine metu.</NOTE>) <HI>He &s;hall drinke of the brooke in the way, therefore &s;hall he lift up his head,</HI> that is, he &s;hall ri&s;e and appeare like a mighty Conquerour with boldne&s;&s;e, honour, and triumph. So Chri&s;t him&s;elfe prophecying of the troubles which &s;hall be in the latter dayes, comforts the &s;urviving Saints in this language; <HI>When the&s;e things begin to come to pa&s;&s;e, then looke up and lift up your heads</HI> (that is, then take heart and boldne&s;&s;e) <HI>for the day of your redemption draweth nigh,</HI> (Luke 21.28.) that is, the day is at hand wherein you &s;hall be freed from all feares and &s;orrowes.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>Holine&s;&s;e hath boldne&s;&s;e and freedome of &s;pirit with God.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Then &s;halt thou lift up thy face unto God.</HI> As &s;oone as <HI>Adam</HI> &s;inned, he hid him&s;elfe from the pre&s;ence of the Lord among&s;t the trees of the Garden, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.8.) He ran into the thickets for &s;helter, he dur&s;t not appeare or &s;hew his face. But when once we are reconciled to God, and &s;inne is taken off, when we are freed from the bonds of guilt, then we have boldne&s;&s;e, reconciliation is accompanied with the &s;pirit of adoption, <HI>whereby we cry abba fa|ther;</HI> we can then &s;peake to God as a childe to his father; the
<PB N="262" REF="144"> childe dares lift up his face to his father, and &s;peakes freely to him. <HI>Where the &s;pirit of the Lord is, there is liberty</HI> (faith the Apo&s;tle, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.17.) and that a threefold liberty. Fir&s;t, a liberty from &s;inne; &s;econdly, a liberty unto righteou&s;nes, or a freenes and rea|dines of &s;pirit to doe good; thirdly, where the &s;pirit of the Lord is, there is a liberty of &s;peech or acce&s;&s;e, with boldne&s;&s;e in all our holy Addre&s;&s;es unto God. As the Apo&s;tle clearely &s;heweth at the 12^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter. <HI>Seing then that we have &s;uch hope, we u&s;e great plainne&s;&s;e (or boldne&s;&s;e) of &s;peech,</HI> as wee put in the Margin of our Bibles to expre&s;&s;e the &s;ignificancy of the Greeke word in the full compa&s;&s;e of it. For as becau&s;e we have &s;uch hope we ought to u&s;e great plainne&s;&s;e of &s;peech towards men in preach|ing and di&s;pen&s;ing the Go&s;pel to them, &s;o great boldne&s;&s;e towards God in receiving the offers and promi&s;es of the Go&s;pel, for our &s;elves. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having thus &s;hewed what freedome <HI>Job,</HI> truely re|penting, might have with God in prayer, proceeds in the next ver&s;e to &s;hew what &s;ucce&s;&s;e with God, or what fruit he &s;hould have in prayer.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="27" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;e 27.</HI></BIBL> Thou &s;halt make thy prayer to him, and he &s;hall heare thee, and thou &s;halt pay thy Vowes.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In the&s;e words we have a further promi&s;e, leading to a further duty; as befor<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> the duty of returning to the Almighty, had a pro|mi&s;e annexed to it of lifting up the face to God, or boldne&s;&s;e in prayer. So now the promi&s;e of being heard in prayer, is followed with a duty, The payment of vowes.</P>
<Q>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer to him <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> multi|plicavit, propri&egrave; verba fortia f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t in Ora|tione.</NOTE>The word notes the powring out of many prayers, or of a mul|titude of words in prayer, yet not of bare w<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">rds, but of words cloathed with power, &s;trong prayers as well as many prayers. For as the Go&s;pel comes from God to us, <HI>not in word onely, but in power and in the holy Gho&s;t, and in much a&s;&s;urance,</HI> (1 The&s;. 1.5.) &s;o prayer &s;hould goe from us to God, not in word onely, but in power, and in the holy Gho&s;t, &amp;c. Thus, &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz, Thou &s;halt make many, and mighty prayers, &s;trong prayers, prevailing, con|quering prayers;</HI> &s;o the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 25.21.) <HI>T<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">en I&s;ack intreated the Lord for his wife becau&s;e &s;he was barren;</HI> that is, he
<PB N="263" REF="144"> made many prayers to God, he made a bu&s;ine&s;&s;e of praying that he might have a &s;onne, though there was a &s;ure promi&s;e made to <HI>Abraham</HI> that he &s;hould have a &s;onne, and that in him, and from him &s;hould come the promi&s;ed &s;eed; yet <HI>I&s;ack</HI> was long without a &s;onne, and he leaves it not carele&s;ly in the decree of God, re&s;olving Idly, <HI>God hath &s;aid I &s;hall have a &s;onne at lea&s;t, if not many &s;onnes, why &s;hould I trouble my &s;elfe in the thing.</HI> No, <HI>I&s;ack</HI> had not &s;o learned the minde of God, he was better skill'd in Divinity then &s;o, to &s;eparate the meanes from the end, or to conclude that wee need not pray for that which God hath purpo&s;ed and promi&s;ed. He I &s;ay, was better in&s;tructed then &s;o, and therefore though he (doubtle&s;&s;e) did fully beleeve that God would fullfill the promi&s;e made to <HI>Abraham</HI> in giving him a &s;onne, yet <HI>he entreated the Lord for his wife becau&s;e &s;he was barren:</HI> and <HI>he intreated the Lord ear|ne&s;tly,</HI> he made plenty, abundance of prayers; for it cannot be &s;up|po&s;ed but that he had prayed for that mercy long before (for it was neere twenty yeares &s;ince his marriage to <HI>Rebeccah,</HI> as appeares plainely by comparing the 20 ver&s;e of that Chapter with the 26^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h, the former telling us, that he was forty yeares old when he marryed <HI>Rebeccah,</HI> and the latter that he was three&s;core when <HI>Re|beccah</HI> bare <HI>Jacob</HI> and <HI>E&s;au.</HI> So that I &s;ay, we cannot &s;uppo&s;e but &s;o holy a man as <HI>I&s;ack</HI> had been &s;uing out the good of the promi&s;e before) but when he perceived it &s;ticking &s;o long in the birth, then his &s;oule fell in travel about it, then he was very fervent in prayer, and would give the Lord no re&s;t; <HI>Then he entreated the Lord</HI> &amp;c. The &s;ame is &s;ayd of <HI>Manoah</HI> (Judges 13.8.) <HI>Then Manoah in|treated the Lord, and &s;aid, oh my Lord, let the man of God which thou did&s;t &s;end come againe unto us, and teach us what we &s;hould doe unto the childe that &s;hall be borne;</HI> he prayed then with much earne&s;tnes, or made prayers for direction in that thing. The word is often u&s;ed to &s;ignifie abundance, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 35.2.) <HI>It &s;hall blo&s;&s;ome abundantly. (Jere.</HI> 33.6.) <HI>Behold, I will bring in health, and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveale unto them the abundance of peace, and truth.</HI> Not onely &s;hall they have peace, and truth, but abundance of them. So here, thou &s;halt not onely pray, but a &s;pirit of prayer &s;hall be powred out upon thee aboundantly. <HI>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer unto him.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note;</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Prayer is a dutie.</HI></P>
<PB N="264" REF="145">
<P>We owe prayer to God as his creatures, or in regard of our na|turall dependance upon him, much more as new creatures, or in re|gard of our &s;pirituall dependance upon him.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>It is our duty not onely to pray, but to pray much, or to pray with much fervency.</Q></P>
<P>The empha&s;is of the Originall word here u&s;ed, leades us to this as well as many Scripture Authorities. Cold asking invites a de|nyall, 'tis effectuall or working fervent prayer that prevailes much, (<HI>Jam.</HI> 5.16.)</P>
<P>Note, thirdly.</P>
<Q>Prayer is due onely to God.</Q>
<P>Prayer is a part of holy wor&s;hip, and all &s;uch wor&s;hip is proper to God alone; <HI>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer unto him.</HI> Saints and Angels wor&s;hip God with us; we mu&s;t not wor&s;hip eyther Saint or Angel with God, no nor God by the helpe and mediation of Saints or Angels. We know no mediator of interce&s;&s;ion, but he who is the mediator of redemption, the Lord Je&s;ur Chri&s;t.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Taking in the con&s;ideration of the time, as before in the former part; <HI>Then &s;halt thou have thy delight in the Lord, then &s;halt thou make thy prayer to him.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>That,</HI> we are never in a fit frame for prayer, till wee turne from every &s;in by repentance.</Q>
<P>As the Lord will not heare us when we pray, <HI>if we regard ini|quity in our heart</HI> (P&s;al. 68.18.) &s;o neyther are we in a fitnes to &s;peake to God in prayer, if we regard any iniquity in our hearts. Repenting and praying mu&s;t be of the &s;ame length; unle&s;&s;e we re|pent continually, we cannot pray continually, becau&s;e we &s;in con|tinually. <HI>The more holy we are, the more free we are to pray.</HI> Sinne clogs and checks the &s;pirit in this great duty, ca&s;t off that weight, and <HI>then, &s;halt thou make thy prayer to him,</HI>
<Q>And he &s;hall heare thee.</Q></P>
<P>To heare prayer, is more then to take notice of the matter or words &s;poken; to heare prayer, is to grant what we pray for; as
<PB N="265" REF="145"> our hearing the word of God is more then to take in the &s;ound or &s;ence of what is &s;poken; it is to &s;ubmit to and obey what is &s;poken; Now as we heare no more of the word of God, then we beleeve and practice, &s;o the Lord heareth no more of what we pray (in a Scripture &s;ence) then what he granteth. There are two expre&s;&s;i|ons in Scripture which note this.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To have regard to a per&s;on, or to a prayer (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 8.28, 29.) when <HI>Solomon</HI> prayed at the dedication of the Temple, the Lords hearing of prayer, which he then beggd, is thus de&s;cribed, <HI>Have thou re&s;pect unto the prayer of thy &s;ervant, and to his &s;upplica|tion,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>that thine eyes may be open toward this hou&s;e night and day.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Re&s;picere e&s;t audire.</NOTE> So it is &s;aid of <HI>Abel</HI> (Gen. 4.4.) <HI>that the Lord had re&s;pect to his offering,</HI> the Lord looked towards him, and accepted of him; to accept a prayer, is to heare a prayer.</P>
<P>Secondly, The hearing of prayer is de&s;cribed by the pre&s;ence of God with tho&s;e that pray. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.9.) <HI>Then &s;halt thou call, and the Lord &s;hall an&s;wer, thou &s;halt cry, and he &s;hall &s;ay, here I am.</HI> This is a wonderfull conde&s;cen&s;ion, 'tis even as when a Ma&s;ter cal|ling to his &s;ervant, he an&s;wereth, <HI>here, Sir, here I am;</HI> and that is as much as to &s;ay, <HI>I am ready to your command, I am ready to doe what you will have me, here I am;</HI> &s;o &s;aith that promi&s;e in the Pro|phet, <HI>Thou &s;halt cry, and the Lord &s;hall &s;ay, here I am,</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ade&s;&s;e e&s;t a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|dire.</NOTE> <HI>I am ready to doe what you aske, I am even ready</HI> (O un&s;peakeable Good|nes) <HI>at your command</HI> (as our tran&s;lation of the 11^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e of the 45^t^h Chapter of <HI>I&s;ayah,</HI> &s;peakes out in plaine termes,) or <HI>I am willing to doe what you will have me to doe.</HI> All which is in effect and vertually contained in the word of the Text. <HI>He &s;hall heare thee.</HI> This teacheth us,
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That God is the hearer of prayer.</Q></P>
<P>It is the Lords title, <HI>O thou that heare&s;t prayer, unto thee &s;hall all fle&s;h come</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 65.2.) God is not onely <HI>A hearer of prayer,</HI> but he is <HI>The Hearer of prayer;</HI> to heare prayer is his pe|culiar prerogative and priviledge as wel as his goodnes and mercy; none in heaven or earth have a will to heare prayer as God doth, nor have any a power to doe it. No creatures eare is long enough to reach the complaints, nor his &s;tocke large enough to &s;upply the wants of all his fellow creatures. The crowne of this honour fits none but God him&s;elfe. <HI>He &s;hall heare thee.</HI></P>
<PB N="266" REF="146">
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>It is a great mercy, a mercy comprehending all mercy, to be heard in prayer.</Q></P>
<P><HI>He &s;hall heare thee; Man cannot de&s;ire a richer favour then to be heard of God.</HI> To have audience in the Court of Princes, and a|mong the great men of the earth is a great favour. What greater worldly priviledge can a man have then this, that he hath the eare of tho&s;e who are greate&s;t in the world? When a man &s;aith, I have the Princes eare, I can be heard when I &s;peake, we thinke he hath &s;poken enough to make him a man. How great a mercy is it then to have the eare of God? to have ready audience in the Court of heaven? that as &s;oone as we call, the Lord is ready to an&s;wer, <HI>here I am, what's the matter? what would you have? it &s;hall be done, your reque&s;t is granted.</HI> And to &s;hew that to be heard by God is the &s;umme of all mercies, or all our mercies wrapt up in one, the Scripture te&s;tifies that not to be heard of God is the &s;umme of all judgements, or all judgements wrapt up in one. When the Lord refu&s;eth to heare, or &s;ayth he will not heare tho&s;e that pray, then wrath is comming upon them to the uttermo&s;t. Thus the Lord threatned the <HI>Jewes</HI> (I&s;a. 1.15.) <HI>When ye &s;pread forth your hands, I will hide my eyes from you, yea when ye make many prayers I will not heare, your hands are full of bloud;</HI> As it is an argument of the greate&s;t &s;infullne&s;&s;e of man again&s;t God not to pray; <HI>Powre out thy fury upon the Heathen that know thee not, and upon the families that call not on thy name,</HI> (Jere. 10.25.) So it it an argument of the greate&s;t wrath of God upon man not to be heard in prayer. He that is not heard receives nothing, and he that is heard receives all. And this is the Saints priviledge by Je&s;us Chri&s;t, their prayers are heard, they have welcome audience at the throane of Grace con|tinually. And hence by way of Corallary from the former ob&s;er|vation, we learne, that
<Q>Holy prayers are fruitfull and gainefull prayers.</Q></P>
<P><HI>God hath not &s;aid to the &s;eed of Jacob, &s;eeke ye me in vaine; Hee that goeth forth and weepeth bearing pretious fruit,</HI> (this pretious fruit faith and prayer, or the prayer of faith) <HI>&s;hall doubtle&s;&s;e</HI> (there's no hazard nor peradventure in the ca&s;e) <HI>come againe re|joycing, bringing his &s;heaves with him.</HI> His &s;howry &s;eed-time &s;hall
<PB N="267" REF="146"> be ble&s;&s;ed with a fruitfull and plentifull harve&s;t. The wicked make many adventures, many voyages by prayer, &s;uch as it is, heaven|wards, yet come home without ladeing, without any fraight at all. Their prayers are all lo&s;t, and turne to no profit; and indeed theirs are not prayers but words, or babling rather. But holy prayer, the prayer of the holy is prevailing;<NOTE PLACE="marg">At quibus cum que tande~ mo|dis peccator o|ret, verum eti|am e&s;t nunquam exaudiri pecca|torem ex digni|tate &s;uae per&s;o|nae aut meriti &s;ed ex dei gra|tia &amp; mi&s;eri|cordia. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> Tho&s;e &s;howers of prayers and teares which beleevers &s;end up to heaven, are like <HI>the raine</HI> (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 55.10.) <HI>which commeth downe, and the &s;now from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give &s;eed to the &s;ower, and bread to the eater.</HI> Even thus the word of prayer which goeth out of the mouthes, or hearts rather of beleevers, returnes not to them voyd, but pro&s;pers in the thing whereto they &s;end it. As ap|peares yet more fully in the next words of this ver&s;e &s;poken by <HI>Eliphaz; He &s;hall heare thee;</HI> What then?</P>
<Q>And thou &s;halt pay thy Vowes.</Q>
<P>That is, God will give thee the mercies which thou did&s;t pray for, and thereby give thee occa&s;ion to pay the vowes which thou did&s;t make to him in ca&s;e he performed thy de&s;ire in prayer. <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> is not exhorting <HI>Job</HI> (directly) to pay vowes; but he is a&s;&s;u|ring him that his prayer &s;hall be heard, and &s;o fully an&s;wered, that he &s;hall &s;ee rea&s;on and have aboundant cau&s;e to pay them, and to pay them both fully and chearefully.</P>
<Q>Thou &s;halt pay thy Vowes.</Q>
<P>The word &s;ignifies <HI>free votive promi&s;es made to God,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ig|nificat votivas promi&s;&s;iones deo factas quae obli|gant, nec retra|ctari nec &s;olvi propria autho|ritate po&s;&s;unt. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> <HI>yet obligatory upon man;</HI> for how&s;oever as the word implyeth, there ought to be the greate&s;t freedome and voluntarines in making a vow, yet a vow being made, there is an obligation, a bond or tye upon him that made it to performe or pay it; He that voweth binds him&s;elfe, but he cannot unbind or ab&s;olve him&s;elfe from his vow, nor can he retract or call in his lawfull vow.</P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz,</HI> I &s;uppo&s;e, here mentions the payment of Vowes, be|cau&s;e the godly in tho&s;e times did often make Vowes. When <HI>Jacob</HI> (Gen. 28.20.) fled from his brother <HI>E&s;au,</HI> he in ca&s;e of his &s;afe returne, <HI>vowed a vow, &s;aying, If God will be with me, and will keepe me in this way that I goe, and will give me bread to eate and rayment to putt on, &s;o that I come to my fathers hou&s;e againe in peace, then
<PB N="268" REF="147"> &s;hall the Lord be my God,</HI> (that is, I will owne and honour him, love and depend upon him more then ever) <HI>And this &s;tone which I have &s;et up &s;hall be Gods hou&s;e, and of all that thou &s;halt give me I &s;hall &s;urely give the tenth to thee.</HI> Here's the tenour and forme of the mo&s;t ancient and famous vow that ever was made. Likewi&s;e <HI>Hauna</HI> (1 Sam. 1.11.) <HI>vowed a vow, and &s;aid, O Lord of hoa&s;ts, if thou wilt indeed looke on the affliction of thy handmaid, and remem|ber me, and not forget thy handmaid, but wilt give to thy handmaid a man-childe, then will I give him unto the Lord.</HI> We reade often in the <HI>P&s;almes</HI> of paying of Vowes, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 66.13, 14. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.14. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 76.11. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 116.14. And we have the command for it (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 5.4.) <HI>Pay that which thou ha&s;t Vowed.</HI></P>
<P>Further, To explicate this Text, It may be inquired what a Vow is?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, <HI>A Vow is a &s;olemne, free, and voluntary promi&s;e made to God, of things lawful, weighty, &amp; po&s;&s;ible, to further &amp; help us to glo|rifie God in our obedience.</HI> In which de&s;cription we have, fir&s;t, the na|ture of a Vow, <HI>It is a &s;olemne promi&s;e, not a bare promi&s;e.</HI> Second|ly, the object; <HI>It mu&s;t be made to God;</HI> Thirdly, the manner of it, <HI>It is a free and a voluntary promi&s;e;</HI> for though a lawfull vow lay|eth a nece&s;&s;ity upon us to keepe it, when once wee have made it, yet there is not an antecedent nece&s;&s;ity of compul&s;ion upon us to make it; &s;o that, a vow ought to be a mo&s;t free, and voluntary act. Fourthly, in this de&s;cription of a vow, we have the generall matter of it. As fir&s;t, it mu&s;t be of things lawfull, wee may not vow that which we may not doe, eyther expre&s;&s;ely, as they did (<HI>Act.</HI> 23.12, 13.) who vowed to kill <HI>Paul,</HI> or implicitly, as <HI>Herod</HI> did who promi&s;ed to give the daughter of <HI>Herodias</HI> what&s;oever &s;he &s;hould aske, limiting her onely as to the quantitie of her demand, &s;he mu&s;t not aske above halfe the kingdome, but leaving her without limits as to the quality of her demand, whether good or evill, lawfull or unlawfull made no matter. And thus many conceive <HI>Jephtah</HI> fay|led, implicitly vowing to doe that, which was unlawfull for him to doe, (<HI>Judg.</HI> 11.30, 31.) Secondly, a vow mu&s;t be of things weighty and &s;erious, wee mu&s;t not vow about trifles. Thirdly, it mu&s;t be of things po&s;&s;ible, through grace, though we mu&s;t vow weighty things, yet we mu&s;t not vow things impo&s;&s;ible, eyther in their own nature, or without extraordinary a&s;&s;i&s;tance and &s;trength from God. Fifthly, we have here the ends of a vow; fir&s;t, to Glo|rifie
<PB N="269" REF="147"> God; &s;econdly, to oblidge us more &s;trictly to obedience.</P>
<P>Hence Note;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> It is lawfull to make a Vow.</Q></P>
<P>All the Scripture te&s;timonies before alledged confirme that propo&s;ition.</P>
<Q><HI>Secondly,</HI> Vowes lawfully made, ought to be kept.</Q>
<P><HI>Thou &s;halt pay thy vowes,</HI> hath in it the nature both of a pro|mi&s;e and of a command; Vowes are bonds, we mu&s;t take heed of breaking them; if wee breake our vowes, God will breake our peace. The word which we tran&s;late <HI>to pay a vow,</HI> &s;ignifies al&s;o to give peace and quietne&s;&s;e, implying that till the vow be payd wee cannot have peace. A man that is in bonds to men hath no peace till he di&s;chargeth or hath prepared to di&s;charge his debt, and therefore an acquittance or a di&s;charge for a debt, is commonly called, <HI>A quietus e&s;t,</HI> implying that till a man hath got a di&s;charge, he is not at quiet. We are at our liberty whether we will vow or no, but we are not at our liberty whether we will pay our vowes or no. And therefore <HI>Solomon</HI> doth not onely exhort to the pay|ment of vowes, but to the &s;peedy payment of them (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 5.4.) <HI>When thou vowe&s;t a vow unto God deferre not to pay it, for he hath no plea&s;ure in fooles;</HI> That is, he is greatly di&s;plea&s;ed with fooles; he means it not of &s;uch as are called fooles for the want of a natu|ral under&s;tanding, but for the want of a good con&s;cience, &amp; &s;uch are all they, who flatter God with their ha&s;tines in making vowes, and then mock him by their &s;lownes in or neglect of paying them. And therefore, take foure Cautions about Vowes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Be not frequent in making vowes; vowing mu&s;t not be like praying, <HI>an every days work,</HI> we may not vow, as we mu&s;t pray, alwayes, and without cea&s;ing. Many have brought them&s;elves in|to great &s;nares by multiplying vowes; and we have need to be cau|tion'd in this thing, becau&s;e the nature of man is carried much to it. The Heathens made many vowes, e&s;pecially when they were in any di&s;tre&s;&s;e, and &s;o meere carnal men will doe to this day, vow great things, what they will be, and what they will doe, if trouble be upon them. It is &s;ayd that tho&s;e Heathen Marriners made vowes when the &s;torme was over and the danger pa&s;t (<HI>Jon.</HI> 1.16.) Many make vowes in a &s;torme whether at Sea or Land, which they little
<PB N="270" REF="148"> minde when the &s;torme is done. But tho&s;e Heathens (which may be a rebuke to &s;ome Chri&s;tians) made vowes of prai&s;e and thank|fullnes when they had e&s;caped the &s;torme. And this is a further proofe of that naturalnes which is in man to make vowes. And the rea&s;on of it is, becau&s;e this &s;atisfieth a natural man, and fills him with confidence that he &s;hall receive good from God, becau&s;e he hath vowed duty to him. Man loves to be upon his owne bottome, and thinkes he &s;hall &s;urely engage God to be mercifull, while him|&s;elfe promi&s;eth to be dutifull and thankfull. Now (I &s;ay) though there be &s;till a lawfullnes of vowes in the&s;e Go&s;pel times, yet take heed of making many vowes, e&s;pecially of conceiting to oblidge God by any of them. As the former may prove a &s;nare, and an entanglement to us, &s;o the latter is a di&s;honour to God, who ne|ver &s;hewes us mercy more freely, then when wee binde our &s;elves mo&s;t to duty.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>When ever you vow be &s;ure you doe it in the &s;trength of Chri&s;t.</HI> None di&s;cover more weakene&s;s in keeping vowes, then they who make vowes in their owne &s;trength, or not wholy in the &s;trength of Chri&s;t. Some have vowed never to commit &s;uch a &s;inne more, and they never committed it &s;o much as after they had vowed. Some have thought to get cure and remedy again&s;t &s;uch a corruption or lu&s;t by a vow, and yet that lu&s;t or corruption hath prevailed more upon them after their vow. The rea&s;on of all is, becau&s;e they have eyther put their vow in the roome of Chri&s;t, as if that could helpe them alone, or el&s;e they have made their vowes alone without relyance upon the power of Chri&s;t. That rule of the Apo&s;tle which obtaines in all ca&s;es of duty, doth mo&s;t in this; <HI>What&s;oever ye doe in word or deed, doe all in the name of the Lord Je&s;us, giving thankes to God and the Father by him</HI> (Col. 3.17.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, In things which are directly commanded or directly for|bidden in the Law of God, we are not to vow the doing, or not do|ing of the thing in it &s;elfe, but only a greater care &amp; &s;tricter watch over our &s;elves, eyther for the doing of the one, or not to doe the other. As for example, we &s;hould not vow ab&s;olutely, that wee will not wor&s;hip Idols, that we will not &s;weare, that we will keepe the Saboath, that we will honour our parents, that we will doe no murder, for all the&s;e duties are expre&s;&s;ely commanded by God, and are therefore pa&s;t being vowed by us. Onely thus, wee (ob|&s;erving
<PB N="271" REF="148"> the treachery of our owne hearts) may vow more care and diligence in and about all the&s;e things. And thus wee are to under&s;tand that of <HI>Jacob</HI> (Gen. 28.21.) vowing <HI>that the Lord &s;hould be his God;</HI> as al&s;o that of <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 119.106.) <HI>I have &s;worne and will performe it, that I will keepe thy righteous judge|ments. David</HI> kept them before, but now he would be more &s;trict then before in keeping them. So then, when we vow things al|ready commanded or forbidden, we mu&s;t pitch and place our vow not upon the matter of the commandement, but upon the manner and inten&s;enes of our &s;pirits in keeping it.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Let not vowes about indifferent things be perpetu|all. All vowes about things expre&s;&s;ed in the Law of God mu&s;t be perpetuall, becau&s;e the things them&s;elves are allwayes a duty. For the affirmative precepts of the Law are at all times binding, and the negative binde at all times. But as for things which are not preci&s;ely under a Law; As for example, in the affirmative, to pray &s;o many times in a day, to reade &s;o many Chapters of the holy Scriptures in a day, to heare &s;o many Sermons in a weeke; and in the negative, not to drinke any wine or &s;trong drinke; not to weare &s;ilke or lace for or upon our Apparrel, not to take &s;uch or &s;uch a recreation in it &s;elfe lawfull. I &s;ay in the&s;e ca&s;es, let not vowes be perpetuall but limited to a &s;ea&s;on, le&s;t thereby wee en|tangle our owne &s;oules, and ca&s;t our &s;elves into temptation, while (through a zeale not according to knowledge) we u&s;e &s;uch meanes to avoyd it. Make no vowes to binde your &s;elves at all times in things which are not nece&s;&s;ary at all times, eyther to be done or not to be done.</P>
<P>From the whole ver&s;e, Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> the an&s;wer of prayer received from the Lord, doth call us to pay and performe all the duties that we have promi&s;ed or vowed to the Lord in prayer.</Q></P>
<P>Though we doe not alwayes make &s;trict and formal vowes when we pray, yet every prayer hath &s;omewhat of a vow in it, &s;o that having prayed at any time, we may &s;ay, <HI>The vowes of God are upon us;</HI> for when we pray we promi&s;e, and then e&s;pecially we doe &s;o, when we pray under any pre&s;&s;ure of trouble, or when we have any extraordinary reque&s;t to make; then, I &s;ay, we engage our &s;elves in a more &s;olemne manner to &s;erve and walke with God.
<PB N="272" REF="149"> And &s;o the returne or an&s;wer of &s;uch prayers ingageth us more &s;trongly to duty. For where&s;oever the Lord &s;oweth, there he lookes to reape, and where he hath &s;owed much, he looks to reape much; but then and there chiefly when we promi&s;e him fruits of duty for our receipts of favour and mercy. Did we take notice of this, we &s;hould not be found as we are &s;o much in arreare to the Lord, eyther for our private or publique mercies? What promi&s;es have we made in the day of our di&s;tre&s;&s;e? that we would be holy, that we would &s;trive again&s;t and mortifie our &s;innes, or the deeds of the body through the Spirit &amp; power of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t. Now let con&s;cience &s;peake; have wee performed our promi&s;es? have we paid our vowes? we can hardly &s;ay that we have put up a prayer which hath not had an an&s;wer by ble&s;&s;ings and &s;ucce&s;&s;es; God hath been to us a <HI>prayer-hearing God;</HI> have we been to him <HI>a vow-paying people?</HI> Who among&s;t us is now more active for God? or more carefull to plea&s;e him then before? Who among&s;t us is more watchfull over his heart, or more circum&s;pect in his walkings then he was before? Who is more carefull over his family, that it may be holy? or more zealous for the publicke, that it may be re|formed, then he was before? What manner of men &s;hould we be in all holy conver&s;ation and Godlines, did we but pay tho&s;e vowes and make good tho&s;e engagements which have gone out of our lips, and we have layd upon our &s;elves before the Lord, in the day of our trouble? how ju&s;t, how pure, how righteous a Nation &s;hould we be were we what we promi&s;ed our utmo&s;t endeavours to be? the Lord hath done much for us; let us up and be doing for him; let us make good what we have &s;poken to the Lord in vowing and promi&s;ing, &s;eing the Lord hath performed what we have &s;poken to him in praying and calling upon his name. God hath an&s;wered us at the fir&s;t call, yea &s;ometimes before we called; let us not put God to call a &s;econd and a third time, much le&s;&s;e often and often for the payment of our vowes. For though the Lord in patience waite many dayes for the payment of vowes, yet according to righteou&s;nes we &s;hould not let him waite one day for it. <HI>All the&s;e &s;pirituall debt-bills are payable at &s;ight or upon de|mand;</HI> God &s;hewes us our owne bills and bonds wherein we &s;tand engaged to his Maje&s;ty every day, and every day (by &s;ome or other of his Atturneyes, that is, by &s;ome meanes or other) he makes his demand, therefore pay to day, pay every day, for we
<PB N="273" REF="149"> can never come wholy out of the&s;e debts to God, or &s;ay, we owe him nothing, how much &s;oever, we have payd him. And know, that if when God hath heard us, we be &s;loathfull in paying our vowes, eyther God will heare us no more, or wee &s;hall heare of him (and that, as we &s;ay, with both eares) till he make our eares tingle, and our hearts ake for not paying them. Swift Judgements have often followed the&s;e &s;low payments. And though they have not been &s;wift in comming pre&s;ently upon the neglect, yet when they have come, they have come &s;wiftly upon the neglecters. And as wee may alwayes &s;ay of the evills and Judgements which come upon any of the people of God, as the Prophet in a like ca&s;e doth to the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (Jer. 4.18.) <HI>Thy way and thy doin<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s have procured the&s;e things unto thee this is thy wickednes.</HI> So in mo&s;t ca&s;es when evills and judgements fall upon and afflict the people of God, we may &s;ay, <HI>Your not doing what you have promi&s;ed, hath procured the&s;e things unto you; This is your vow-breaking or your neglect of paying your vowes.</HI> And how ju&s;t is it that their troubles &s;hould not onely be renewed, but even doubled and trebled, yea, &s;eventimes more encrea&s;ed upon them, who &s;light and throw off tho&s;e very duties which they tooke upon them in the day of their trouble, in expectation to have their troubles removed. Every mans mouth will be &s;topt, when he &s;uffers for not doing that good which the mouth of the Lord hath &s;poken, how much more will his mouth be &s;topt, and he have nothing to &s;ay for him&s;elfe, who &s;uffers for not doing that good, or for not forbear|ing that evill, which his owne mouth hath &s;poken, and &s;olemnly charged upon him&s;elfe as a duty in the pre&s;ence of the Lord. They will have lea&s;t to &s;ay for them&s;elves who goe again&s;t or come not up to what them&s;elves have &s;ayd. Then <HI>pay your vowes.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="22" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="274" REF="150">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 22. Ver&s;. 28, 29, 30.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Thou &s;halt al&s;o decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee: and the light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes.</P>
<P>When men are ca&s;t downe, then thou &s;halt &s;ay, There is lifting up: and he &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</P>
<P>He &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent: and it is deli|vered by the purene&s;&s;e of thine hands.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IT hath appeared in opening the whole Context (of which this is a part) how <HI>Eliphaz</HI> pre&s;&s;eth <HI>Job</HI> with promi&s;es, a&s;&s;uring him that not onely good, but great good &s;hould accrew to him by his returning to God, and acquainting him&s;elfe with the All|mighty. And in the foregoing ver&s;e <HI>That</HI> great benefit was &s;hew|ed, The Lords hearing the prayer of &s;uch as doe &s;o; <HI>Thou &s;halt make thy prayer to him, and he &s;hall heare thee, and thou &s;halt pay thy vowes:</HI> Here <HI>Eliphaz</HI> gives in another excellent promi&s;e; <HI>Thou &s;halt al&s;o</HI> &amp;c. that is, moreover and be&s;ide what I have &s;aid, I adde this,</P>
<DIV3 N="28" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 28.</HI></BIBL> Thou &s;halt al&s;o decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;cidit ab&s;cidit &s;ecuit divi&s;it. Meta|leptice &s;ecuit lites, definivit decrevit. Impor|tat hoc verbum decretum cum quadam &s;epara|tione unius rei ab alia. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE><HI>Thou &s;halt decree.</HI> The word here tran&s;lated <HI>to decree,</HI> &s;ig|nifies properly to divide, to cut a&s;under. So it is u&s;ed (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 3.25.) when <HI>Solomon</HI> gave &s;entence between the <HI>two women that were harlots</HI> concerning the <HI>living Childe,</HI> he &s;ayth, <HI>Divide the Childe;</HI> my decree is that the Childe &s;hall be divided. Now hence by a Trope, the word &s;ignifies al&s;o to <HI>decree,</HI> to de&s;cide, or to determine a matter, becau&s;e in all decrees about or determina|tions of a Controver&s;ie, there is (as it were) a Cutting off the bui&s;ines, a laying a&s;ide of one thing, and a &s;ticking to ano|ther. When the whole matter is debated and weighed in Coun|cell, then the re&s;ult and i&s;&s;ue of all is drawne up and given out in a decree. So that to decree is to divide, or &s;eparate one thing from another, re&s;olving upon that, which we conceive mo&s;t ju&s;t, and rea&s;onable.</P>
<Q><PB N="275" REF="150">Thou &s;halt decree a thing.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a word:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Verbum pro re frequenter per Metonymiam adjuncti.</NOTE> it is u&s;uall in that lan|guage to put <HI>word</HI> for <HI>thing.</HI> And when he &s;aith, <HI>Thou &s;halt de|cree a thing,</HI> wee are not to under&s;tand it at large, as if what&s;oever were decreed &s;hould be e&s;tabli&s;hed, but the meaning is, thou &s;halt decree that which is right and good in it &s;elfe, and good for thee. For the decree being made by a godly man, wee cannot &s;uppo&s;e that he &s;hould decree any thing but that which is ju&s;t and good; and &s;o the &s;ignification of the former word is well applyed to this, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree,</HI> that is, thou having by deliberation and &s;erious di&s;cu&s;&s;ion con&s;idered what is right, and having cut off all evill from thy &s;entence, thou decreeing &s;uch a thing, <HI>it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</HI></P>
<P>There are yet two opinions concerning this decree, as it is an expo&s;ition of the former promi&s;es, <HI>Thou &s;halt be heard,</HI> and,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Poterit e&s;&s;e pracedentis partis expo&s;itio Decernes offer|re vota et deus illa rata effici|et, vel rata &s;emper fundes verba. <HI>Pi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ed.</HI></NOTE> <HI>thou &s;halt pay thy vowes;</HI> that is, what thou &s;ue&s;t for by prayer on earth, &s;hall be decreed for thee in heaven. That is, thy prayer &s;hall cer|tainly be performed, thy prayers &s;hall not be lo&s;t, no, They &s;hall be as the Statutes and decrees of heaven. It is &s;aid of <HI>Eliah</HI> (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 17.1.) what he decreed was done? and what was his decree? his decree was his prayer; See how he &s;peaks as if he had the command of heaven and earth, as if he had carryed the keyes of the Clouds at his girdle. <HI>As the Lord God of I&s;rael liveth, be|fore whom I &s;tand, there &s;hall not be dew nor raine the&s;e yeares, but according to my word.</HI> But what was this word of <HI>Elijah?</HI> the A|po&s;tle <HI>James</HI> expounds that for us, he telleth us what this word was, when <HI>Eliah</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>it &s;hall be according to my word</HI> (Jam. 5.17.) <HI>Elias was a man &s;ubject to the like pa&s;&s;ions as wee are, and he pray|ed earne&s;tly that it might not raine; and it rained not on the earth for the &s;pace of three yeares and &s;ix months: And he prayed againe, and the heavens gave raine, and the earth brought forth her frruit.</HI> The Apo&s;tle explaines, what the word of <HI>Elijah</HI> was, even a Pray|er-word, he prayed and &s;ought the Lord in that thing, and his prayer was as certainly performed to him, as if he had the whole power of decreeing what he would have. Thus here, thou &s;halt powre out a prayer, and thy prayer &s;hall be as a decree e&s;tabli&s;hed with God. So we read (<HI>Gen.</HI> 32.24.) in the report of <HI>Jacobs</HI> wre&s;tling with the Angel, that the word of <HI>Jacob</HI> was as a decree,
<PB N="276" REF="151"> <HI>I will not let thee goe, except thou ble&s;&s;e me;</HI> I will have a ble&s;&s;ing; and it is &s;aid, <HI>as a Prince ha&s;t thou power with God, and with men, and ha&s;t prevailed. Jacob</HI> had what he would in prayer, he decreed a thing, and it was e&s;tabli&s;hed to him. <HI>The prayers of Saints are decrees with God:</HI> and 'tis but rea&s;on they &s;hould be &s;o; becau&s;e their prayers an&s;wer the decrees of God, or they pray for that which God hath decreed; and indeed there is no Saint or Godly man would pray any other prayer, or aske any thing of God, but what God hath determined and decreed before to give: <HI>As a Godly man would doe nothing but what God hath commanded, &s;o he would aske nothing but what God hath decreed.</HI> This is a com|fortable truth, yet I rather conceive the &s;ence of this place more generall, and not tyed up to that of prayer, and therefore</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt take up a re&s;olve, or a purpo&s;e; thou in thy wi&s;dome and prudence &s;halt &s;ay in thy heart, I will doe &s;uch a thing, or I would bring &s;uch a thing to pa&s;s,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ordinabis per tuam providen|tiam facturum aliquid, &amp; qua&s;i rem non futu|ram &amp; incer|tam, &s;ed qua&s;i divina jam vo|luntate con&s;titu|tam illam ha+bebis. <HI>Aquin.</HI></NOTE> and it &s;hall come to pa&s;s or be e&s;tabli&s;hed. For as many men mett together in Councell, make Decrees; &s;o any man in him&s;elfe may make a decree; and we alwayes make decrees in our own minds before wee joyne in any decree with others; fir&s;t, wee &s;peake in our mindes, then we &s;peake out our mindes; <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt re&s;olve to goe &s;uch a way, or to doe &s;uch a thing, and it &s;hall be done. Now, this Ca&s;e of de|creeing mu&s;t be under&s;tood with a Caution, &s;uppo&s;e the thing it &s;elfe be ju&s;t and lawfull (as wee touched before) yet a man mu&s;t not make ab&s;olute decrees (that's the priviledge of God, he onely can make peremptory decrees, who hath all things in his power) we mu&s;t decree &s;ubmi&s;&s;ively to the will of God, and &s;ay, <HI>if the Lord will, if the Lord plea&s;e</HI> wee will doe &s;uch a thing. The Apo|&s;tle (<HI>James</HI> 4.12, 13, 14.) reproves tho&s;e that would make pe|remptory decrees of what they would do in reference to outward affaires: <HI>Goe to now yee that &s;ay to day or to morrow wee will goe in|to &s;uch a Citie,</HI> here is a decree, <HI>wee will goe to &s;uch a place, or doe &s;uch a thing, wee will continue there a yeare, and buy and &s;ell, and get gaine.</HI> It is lawfull for men to take up a purpo&s;e to goe to &s;uch a place, and follow their trade to buy and &s;ell, and get gaine in an hone&s;t way, but no man mu&s;t be peremptory in this, becau&s;e we know not what &s;hall be on the morrow; therefore, the Apo&s;tle directs; <HI>Yee ought to &s;ay, if the Lord will we &s;hall live, and doe this
<PB N="277" REF="151"> or that.</HI> Such decrees mu&s;t be made with the Lords good leave, or with a reference to his plea&s;ure who alone doth what&s;oever plea&s;eth him. As the per&s;ons &s;o the workes of all men are in the hand of God (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 9.1.) And there they are; fir&s;t, as to the performance of them; &s;econdly, as the &s;ucce&s;&s;e of them. They take them&s;elves for more then men, who decree the doing of lawfull things without the leave of God. We mu&s;t not onely &s;ee what we doe is according to the will of God, but we mu&s;t have his good|will for the doing of it; that is, as we mu&s;t have a Law from God for what we doe, &s;o leave from God. Thus <HI>Paul</HI> teacheth us to &s;peake by his owne example (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.19.) <HI>I will come unto you &s;hortly if the Lord will.</HI> And againe (<HI>Chap.</HI> 16.7.) <HI>I mu&s;t tarry a while with you if the Lord permit.</HI> Once more (<HI>Phil.</HI> 2.19.) <HI>I tru&s;t in the Lord to &s;end Timothy to you &s;hortly.</HI> And even Hea|thens them&s;elves by the light of nature have acknowledged &s;uch a &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion as due unto their &s;uperiour Power, <HI>their gods,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ethnicis illudi in ore frequens erat, <HI>&s;i dij vo|lunt.</HI></NOTE> there|fore they u&s;ed to expre&s;s their re&s;olutions thus; <HI>If the gods will;</HI> much more mu&s;t Chri&s;tians &s;peake thus in all they undertake to doe, we will doe it, <HI>if God will.</HI></P>
<Q><L>Thou &s;halt decree a thing</L>
<L>And it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</L></Q>
<P>That is, thou &s;halt have &s;ucce&s;&s;e in it, it &s;hall be confirm'd.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;urget ti|bi; &s;urgere pro exi&s;tere vel ef|fectum dari.</NOTE> The word in the Originall &s;ignifies, to ri&s;e up, as al&s;o to &s;tand. So &s;ome render it here; <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;hall ri&s;e up to thee.</HI> When a thing that we are determined upon, pro&s;pers and comes well on, we &s;ay it ri&s;eth up to us, whereas a bu&s;ine&s;&s;e that failes, falls off from us, or goeth backward. But &s;aith <HI>Eliphaz</HI> to <HI>Job, The thing which thou decree&s;t &s;hall ri&s;e or come up to thy minde, to thy de&s;ire,</HI> or as &s;ome read, <HI>It &s;hall come to thee;</HI> we &s;ay,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Veniet tibi. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> <HI>it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed.</HI> So the word is u&s;ed frequently in Scripture (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 40.8.) <HI>The word of the Lord &s;hall &s;tand.</HI> Now as the word of the Lord &s;hal &s;tand, &s;o &s;hall the word of man while it is according to the word of God. So the word is u&s;ed in the Ca&s;e of a virgins making a vow (<HI>Numb.</HI> 30.4.) <HI>If the father heare it and &s;ay nothing it &s;hall &s;tand, or be confirm'd;</HI> otherwi&s;e if he di&s;like, it is a void vow, a null vow. So that here, to ri&s;e up, or to be e&s;tabli&s;hed, notes only the effectivenes and &s;ucce&s;&s;e of tho&s;e decrees which this god|ly man &s;hould make, the&s;e &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto him for his
<PB N="278" REF="152"> good, he &s;hall have the comfort and benefit of them, while he aymes at the Glory of God in them.</P>
<P>Hence note;</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>The &s;ucce&s;&s;e of our Councells and Decrees is a great mercy.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> brings it in by way of promi&s;e, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</HI> Succe&s;s in any of our right acti|ons is to be acknowledged as a mercy; and therfore the Lord doth &s;o di&s;tinctly &s;pecifie the &s;ucce&s;sle&s;nes of the <HI>Jewes</HI> after their return from <HI>Babylon</HI> in their rural and hou&s;hold bu&s;ine&s;&s;es for neglecting to build his hou&s;e (<HI>Hag.</HI> 1.6.) to &s;hew that he had a Contro|ver&s;ie with them; <HI>Yee have &s;owne much, and brought in little</HI> (no &s;ucce&s;s) <HI>yee eate, but have not enough, yee drinke, but yee are not filled with drinke</HI> (that is, yee are not &s;atisfied) <HI>yee cloath you, but there is no warmth</HI> (which is the effect of cloathing) <HI>and he that earneth wages, earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.</HI> Which is a proverbiall &s;peech, implying that nothing &s;ticks, nothing &s;tayes by a man, no more then money doth in a bag that hath holes in it, or water in a &s;ieve, or in a leaking ve&s;&s;ell. Succe&s;sle&s;nes attended them in all they did, and that was their affliction. So when our Councells pro&s;per, when what we advi&s;e to be done thrives in the doing; when the directing word of a man proves like the Crea|ting word of God <HI>(Gen. fir&s;t)</HI> who did but &s;ay; <HI>Let there be light, and there was light, let there be a firmament, and there was a firma|ment,</HI> &amp;c. Thus when a man &s;hall &s;ay, let &s;uch a thing be done and it is done, when every thing comes forth at a word, like a new Creation, how great both a mercy and honour is this? When he &s;aith, let there be deliverance, and there is deliverance, let there be victory, and there is victory, let there be peace, and there is peace; when in ca&s;es of greate&s;t difficulty and utter impo&s;&s;ibility to fle&s;h and bloud, he &s;peakes like magnanimous <HI>Jo&s;hua</HI> (Jo&s;h. 10.13.) in a commanding language to the creature, while with &s;tronge&s;t confidence in &amp; humble&s;t dependance upon God. <HI>Sunne &s;tand thou &s;till upon Gibeah, &amp; thou Moone in the valley of Ajalon, &amp; the Sun &s;tood &s;till, and the Moone &s;tayed untill the people had avenged them|&s;elves upon their enemies.</HI> Who of the &s;ons of men (who were not al&s;o the &s;ons of God) were ever crowned with &s;uch an honour?</P>
<P>Secondly, He doth not &s;ay, he &s;hall decree a thing and e&s;ta|bli&s;h it, for man may decree a thing, but man cannot e&s;tabli&s;h it;
<PB N="279" REF="152"> the decree is from one, the e&s;tabli&s;hment is from another; and who is that other? <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not expre&s;&s;e who by name, but we may ea&s;ily under&s;tand who it is, even God him&s;elfe. For as it is God alone who hath given a being to all things, &s;o he alone gives all things their e&s;tabli&s;hment, whether they be things wrought by him, or wrought by us, <HI>God &s;hall e&s;tabli&s;h it,</HI> or <HI>it &s;hall be e&s;tabli|&s;hed by the fiat, and con&s;ent of God.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>The &s;ucce&s;s of our Councells and decrees is from God.</Q></P>
<P>There are many who take wi&s;e, yea hone&s;t Councells, which yet are not e&s;tabli&s;hed, becau&s;e the Lord is not plea&s;ed to e&s;tabli&s;h them, and the Lord doth often overthrow evill and malitious Coun&s;els. We read (<HI>E&s;ay.</HI> 7.5, 6, 7.) of Councells and Decrees made; <HI>Syria, Ephraim, and the &s;on of Remaliah, have taken evill Councell again&s;t thee, &s;aying</HI> (they decree a thing, what was it) <HI>let us goe up again&s;t Judah to vex it</HI> (there was the decree) <HI>let us make a breach therein for us, and &s;et a king in the mid&s;t of it, even the Son of Tabeal.</HI> Here was their decree; we will vex this people, we will &s;et a king among them, the Son of <HI>Tabeal.</HI> But what &s;aith the Lord to this? <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord God</HI> (7 ver.) <HI>it &s;hall not &s;tand, neyther &s;hall it come to pa&s;&s;e.</HI> It is this word in the Text, <HI>it &s;hall not be e&s;tabli&s;hed.</HI> You have made a decree, but you have not my con&s;ent for the E&s;tabli&s;hment of it, and therefore it &s;hall not &s;tand, it &s;hall not come to pa&s;&s;e. Take another Scripture (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 8.10.) The Lord doth as it were give them leave to make decrees: make as many decrees as you will, and &s;it together in Councell, lay your Councells as deep as you can, <HI>take Councell together, and it &s;hall come to nought</HI> (you may take Councell, but it is in my Power whether it &s;hall &s;ucceed or no, and I have decreed con|cerning your decree, that it &s;hall come to nought) <HI>&s;peake the word and it &s;hall not &s;tand.</HI> The &s;tanding or not &s;tanding, the fru&s;trating, or the fullfilling of our Decrees and Councells, it is from the Lord.</P>
<P>Thirdly, When he &s;aith, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;ha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</HI> We may ob&s;erve;
<Q>The Councells of the Godly are under a promi&s;e of good &s;ucce&s;&s;e.</Q></P>
<P>They have a kinde of A&s;&s;urance that what they &s;ay &s;hall come
<PB N="280" REF="153"> to pa&s;&s;e; though they have not an ab&s;olute A&s;&s;urance, yet they have much a&s;&s;urance, though wee cannot &s;ay in every particular Ca&s;e, that their decree &s;hall be E&s;tabli&s;hed to them, yet their de|crees in generall are under a promi&s;e of E&s;tabli&s;hment. Chri&s;t &s;peaketh concerning the Decrees of a Church-A&s;&s;embly (<HI>Math.</HI> 18.18.) <HI>Verily I &s;ay unto you, what&s;oever yee &s;hall binde on earth, &s;hall be bound in heaven; and what&s;oever yee &s;hall loo&s;e on Earth &s;hall be loo&s;ed in heaven;</HI> that is, I will E&s;tabli&s;h your Decrees. If when you meet together in my name, you decree concerning a per&s;on to bind &s;in upon him, he &s;hall be bound, if to loo&s;e or pro|nounce him pardon'd, he &s;hall be loo&s;ened, your decree on earth, &s;hall be a decree in heaven, I will binde what you binde, and loo&s;e what you loo&s;e. Now in proportion, the Lord &s;peakes the &s;ame concerning the decrees of any Godly man; what he binds on earth, the Lord doth binde in heaven, and what he loo&s;eth on earth, God loo&s;eth in heaven; that is, there is an E&s;tabli&s;hment of his decrees; and as the Church there hath a promi&s;e that the Lord will joyne with her in her decrees; &s;o a Godly man hath a promi&s;e here that the Lord will joyne with him in his decrees. We have al&s;o an ex|cellent confirmation of it, (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 44.25, 26.) The Lord is many wayes de&s;cribed in Scripture, but here he is de&s;cribed by di&s;appoin|ting and e&s;tabli&s;hing the Councells of men. <HI>He it is that fru&s;tra|teth the tokens of the lyars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wi&s;e men backward, and maketh their knowledge fooli&s;hnes.</HI> Here is a de&s;cription of God in reference to the di&s;appoyntments which he puts upon his enemies, in fru&s;trating their Councells and de|crees; they boa&s;t of the&s;e and the&s;e tokens that a&s;&s;ure them of good &s;ucce&s;&s;e, but the Lord fru&s;trates their tokens. The Diviners &s;ay, O the Starrs promi&s;e good luck, and tell us we &s;hall have good fortune; thus diviners boa&s;t, but the Lord <HI>maketh the divi|ners mad;</HI> how doth he make them mad? by making them &s;ee things fall out quite cro&s;s to what they have foretold or prophe&s;i|ed. Againe, <HI>hee turnes wi&s;e men backward;</HI> that is, he turnes the Councells of wi&s;e men backward, when they have re&s;olved &s;uch a thing, the Lord &s;ets it quite another way: this is the glory of God that he can give check to the Councells of the greate&s;t Polititians, and deepe&s;t Machiavells, he turnes them backward. Thus the Lord is &s;et forth overthrowing the decrees of the wicked; but at the 26^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h <HI>ver.</HI> He is &s;et forth e&s;tabli&s;hing the decrees of the Godly.
<PB N="281" REF="153"> He it is <HI>that confirmeth the word of his &s;ervant, and performeth the Councell of his Me&s;&s;engers; that &s;aith to Jeru&s;alem, thou &s;halt be Inhabited, and to the Cities of Judah yee &s;hall be built,</HI> &amp;c God <HI>confirmeth the word of his &s;ervant;</HI> which may be under&s;tood not onely of the word of Prophe&s;ie (though that be the &s;cope of that place, as if it had been &s;ayd, when the Lord &s;endeth forth his Pro|phets and holy Diviners, 'tis not with them as with fal&s;e Prophets and heatheni&s;h Diviners, who making promi&s;es from the Starres of heaven, not from the God of heaven, are fru&s;trated and di&s;ap|poynted; 'tis not thus with the <HI>Lords holy Diviners,</HI> for <HI>he con|firmeth the word of his Servants.</HI> Now, I &s;ay, wee may under&s;tand that Text not only of that word of prophecy which the Lord puts into the mouths of his Servants by an immediate in&s;piration) but al&s;o of that word of prophecy, or decree, which any one of his faithfull &s;ervants &s;peaketh or maketh according to his already re|vealed will. This word of his &s;ervants the Lord confirmeth al&s;o, and <HI>performeth the Councell of his Me&s;&s;engers.</HI> And the rea&s;on is (as was touched before about prayer) becau&s;e there is a &s;uitable|nes between &s;uch words and decrees of his &s;ervants, and his owne Decrees; for the de&s;ignes of his &s;ervants falling in with his owne de&s;ignes, &amp; &s;o their decrees with his decrees, he in e&s;tabli&s;hing their decrees, doth indeed but e&s;tabli&s;h his owne. For the &s;ervants of God de&s;iering that their decrees may be &s;uitable to the written or revealed will of God, they &s;eldome mi&s;&s;e of a &s;uitablenes to the decrees of his hidden and &s;ecret will. So that their decrees are (as it were) the <HI>Duplicate</HI> or <HI>Counterpane of the Decrees of God;</HI> and therefore no wonder if they be under &s;uch a promi&s;e of &s;ucce&s;&s;e and e&s;tabli&s;hment. The Lord &s;aith concerning his owne Decrees or thoughts; <HI>Surely as I have thought, &s;o &s;hall it come to pa&s;&s;e (I&s;a.</HI> 14.24.) (Now if wee thinke as God thinketh, then what wee thinke &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e too) <HI>and as I have purpo&s;ed &s;o &s;hall it &s;tand;</HI> If wee purpo&s;e as God purpo&s;eth, then our purpo|&s;es &s;hall &s;tand too. Againe (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 46.10.) <HI>I am the Lord and there is none el&s;e, I am God, and there is none like me~: declaring the End from the beginning, and from ancient time the things that are not yet done, &s;aying, my Councell &s;hall &s;tand, and I will doe all my plea&s;ure.</HI> If then the Councells of Saints, be the Councells of God, he will doe all their plea&s;ure. That's the &s;umme of this promi&s;e to <HI>Job; Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto
<PB N="282" REF="154"> thee.</HI> Which appeares further from the la&s;t Clau&s;e.</P>
<Q>And the light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes.</Q>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> in this promi&s;e might po&s;&s;ibly have re&s;pect to <HI>Jobs</HI> former Complaint (<HI>Chap.</HI> 19.8.) <HI>Hee hath fenced up my way that I cannot pa&s;&s;e; and he hath &s;et darknes in my pathes.</HI> As if <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had here &s;ayd, thou did&s;t Complaine a while agoe that God &s;et darknes in thy pathes, doe thou returne unto the Lord, <HI>and the light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes,</HI> or there &s;hall be light in &s;tead of darknes in thy pathes. This light may be taken three wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A light of direction, thou &s;halt &s;ee what to doe; So it an&s;wers the former promi&s;e, <HI>Thou &s;halt decree a thing, and it &s;hall be e&s;tabli&s;hed unto thee.</HI> Thou &s;halt not make blind decrees, or de|crees in the darke, thou &s;halt not decree at a venture, or at ran|dom; the light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes; thou &s;halt have the light of the Word, and the light of the Spirit to direct thee in making thy decrees, and for the ordering of thy whole conver&s;a|tion.</P>
<P>Secondly, Light &s;hining upon his wayes, is the pro&s;perity of his wayes; as if he had &s;ayd, &s;ucce&s;&s;e &s;hall attend thy undertakings, the favour of God and his ble&s;&s;ing &s;hall be upon what thou take&s;t in hand; as the Sun &s;hining upon the earth ripens the fruits there|of, &s;o the light, heate, and influence of divine favour &s;hall ripen thy undertakings, and bring them to a de&s;iered perfection. Light, in Scripture, is often put for pro&s;perity, as hath been &s;hewed from other pa&s;&s;ages of this booke.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>The light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy wayes;</HI> that is, thou &s;halt have per&s;onall Comfort and Contentment in thy wayes; that's a different ble&s;&s;ing from the former; 'tis po&s;&s;ible for a man to be in a pro&s;perous way, and yet him&s;elfe to take no Comfort nor Con|tentment in it. When the&s;e three lights &s;hine upon any man in his way, or upon the wayes of any man, when the Lord &s;hewes him what he &s;hould do, when he pro&s;pereth &amp; &s;ucceeds what he doth, and when he hath comfort &amp; joy in what he is doing or hath don, then the ble&s;&s;ing is full. As the Lord <HI>meets him that rejoyceth in his way and worketh righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> &s;o the Lord doth often meet tho&s;e that worke righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in their way, cau&s;ing them to rejoyce; And then the light &s;hines upon their way indeed. This is a further adddition unto the promi&s;e of &s;ucce&s;&s;e before given.</P>
<PB N="283" REF="154">
<P>From the fir&s;t notion of light, fir&s;t Ob&s;erve;
<Q>The righteous are under a promi&s;e of direction and guidance by God, they &s;hall &s;ee their way, and know what to doe, by a di|vine light.</Q></P>
<P><HI>The &s;teps of a Good man are ordered by the Lord</HI> (P&s;al. 37.23.) That is, the Lord gives him light to &s;ee how to order his &s;teps; He hath not onely an outward naturall light &s;hining in the ayre, and an outward &s;pirituall light &s;hining in the rule, but he hath an inward &s;pirituall light &s;hining in his heart, or that outward rule planted within, as it followes at the 31 ver&s;e of the &s;ame <HI>P&s;alme; The law of his God is in his heart, and none of his &s;teps &s;hall &s;lide:</HI> The law in the heart is a rule within, which directs the good man what to doe, and gives him &s;uch good direction, that <HI>none of his &s;teps &s;hall &s;lide.</HI> He &s;hall not walke like a man upon gla&s;&s;e or ice, all who&s;e &s;teps are &s;lips, or in danger of &s;liding, but he &s;hall walke like a man upon plaine firme ground, who&s;e very &s;teps are as &s;ure as &s;tandings. As Saints who were darknes are made light in the Lord, in reference to their &s;tate, &s;o they have light from the Lord, in reference to their walkings; and as they receive a light from God whereby they know all things, that is, tho&s;e great things which concerne Eternal life (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 2.20.) <HI>Yee have an &V;nction from the holy one, and ye know all things.</HI> Now as they have a light promi&s;ed them, that they may know all things, that is, all nece&s;&s;ary &s;aving truths or doctrines of &s;alvation for attaining the next life, &s;o a light is promi&s;ed them whereby they may doe all things; that is, all their nece&s;&s;ary workes, bu&s;ine&s;&s;es, and affaires, which concerne their duty in this life.</P>
<P>From the &s;econd notion of light, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>Righteous men, &s;uch as turne unto the Lord, &s;hall have a Ble&s;&s;ing in their way, their way &s;hall pro&s;per.</Q></P>
<P>As they &s;hall have a light &s;hining to &s;hew them their way, &s;o to pro&s;per them in their way: God is a Sunne, and he is a Shield, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 84.11.) And as he is a Sunne to give light, and a Shield to protect, &s;o, <HI>no good thing will he withold from them that walke uprightly;</HI> That is, he will not hinder or &s;topp tho&s;e good things from them which their &s;oules de&s;ire, or move after, they &s;hall pro|&s;per in their way, yea, when 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>He will not withhold,</HI> &amp;c.
<PB N="284" REF="155"> there is more intended then expre&s;&s;ed, for the meaning is, he will plentifully give forth or powre out all good things to and upon them <HI>who walke uprightly.</HI></P>
<P>From the third notion of light, learne;
<Q>That the Lord gives Godly men Joy and Comfort in their way.</Q></P>
<P>Though their way be a way of much labour, yea and a way of much danger too, though it prove a way full of &s;weat &amp; trouble, yet the Lord will cau&s;e a light to &s;hine upon them, and refre&s;h them in their way. <HI>To the righteous there ri&s;es up light in dark|nes:</HI> The light of joy in the darknes of &s;orrow, the light of com|fort in the darknes of trouble; They who walke in the light of truth and holines, u&s;ually finde the light of joy and comfort in their way, and are &s;ure to finde it in their end. <HI>The wayes of wi&s;|dome</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon,</HI> Pro. 3.17.) <HI>are wayes of plea&s;antnes, and all her pathes are peace;</HI> and if at any time her wayes and pathes are not peace and plea&s;antnes (as to the outward man they often are not) while we are travelling in them, yet they are alwayes &s;o in the clo&s;e of our travells. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.37.) <HI>Marke the perfect man, and behold the upright, for the end of that man is peace.</HI> Yea when others finde mo&s;t trouble in their way, then God is neere&s;t to him for &s;upport, as it followes in the next words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="29" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 29.</HI></BIBL> When men are ca&s;t downe, then thou &s;halt &s;ay there is a lifting up, and he &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In this and the following ver&s;e, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> gives a firme a&s;&s;urance to <HI>Job</HI> by way of promi&s;e, that he &s;hould not onely be delivered, but &s;hould have two further priviledges.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That him&s;elfe &s;hould be exalted when others were ca&s;t downe, or that he &s;hould be &s;aved in times of common calamity, <HI>ver.</HI> 29.</P>
<P>Secondly, That he &s;hould be a meanes of &s;afety to others, and &s;hould prevaile with God for their deliverance: <HI>he &s;hall deli|ver the I&s;land of the Innocent,</HI> &amp;c. ver&s;. 30. That's the generall &s;cope of the&s;e two ver&s;es, according to our tran&s;lation; as will further appeare in the explication of them.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 29.</HI></BIBL> When men are ca&s;t downe.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> depre&s;|&s;us pro&s;tratus.</NOTE>When they are pre&s;t, or oppre&s;t with mountaines of affliction
<PB N="285" REF="155"> and trouble. So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 2.17.) <HI>The loftines of man &s;hall be bowed downe;</HI> that is, the lofty man &s;hall be bowed downe, as a man with a heavy burden upon his backe. Wee &s;ay, <HI>when men are ca&s;t downe,</HI> the word, <HI>men,</HI> is not expre&s;t in the He|brew text, 'tis there onely, <HI>when ca&s;t downe:</HI> and becau&s;e that word is not expre&s;t, therefore &s;ome &s;upply out of the former clau&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum humiliatae fuer<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">nt viae tuae dicas, elatio il|lis e&s;t, <HI>i. e.</HI> mox &s;enties conditio|n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">m tua~ ex ima factam optima~. Contextus mir&egrave; conci&s;us e&s;t, ideo va<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ie intelligi|tur. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> the word, <HI>way, The light &s;hall &s;hine upon thy way when it,</HI> that is, <HI>when thy way is ca&s;t downe;</HI> though thou be now in a low conditi|on, and though thou &s;houlde&s;t hereafter be ca&s;t into a low condi|tion againe, yet <HI>thou &s;halt &s;ay there is a lifting up,</HI> or, thou &s;halt be lifted <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> If at any time thy wayes be ca&s;t downe in darknes, the light &s;hall &s;hine upon them, thou &s;halt &s;ay in faith, <HI>there is a lifting up.</HI> The Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (in a language like this) of him|&s;elfe and of his fellow-Apo&s;tles (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.8.) <HI>Wee are troubled on every &s;ide, yet not di&s;tre&s;&s;ed; perplexed, but not in de&s;paire, per&s;ecuted, but not for&s;aken, ca&s;t downe, but not de&s;troyed.</HI> Thus here, <HI>when there is a ca&s;ting downe,</HI> or, <HI>when thy wayes are ca&s;t downe, yet thou &s;halt &s;ay there is a lifting up;</HI> Thou maye&s;t be ca&s;t downe, but not de&s;troyed. Yet, I conceive, that Suplement of the word <HI>men,</HI> which we put into the Text, is more &s;uitable to the &s;cope of it, and then the &s;ence is this, <HI>When men are ca&s;t downe,</HI> that is, when &s;inners or ungodly men are ca&s;t downe, when God comes to ruine his enemies, and make them de&s;olate, <HI>then thou &s;halt &s;ay there is a lifting up.</HI> A lifting up for me and for &s;uch as I am.</P>
<Q>Thou &s;halt &s;ay.</Q>
<P>This &s;aying may be taken two wayes, and in both 'tis the voyce of faith.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Thou &s;halt &s;ay</HI> in prayer, or thou &s;halt pray, <HI>O Lord,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Dices, <HI>&s;c:</HI> in tu|is ad deum pre|cibus exaltatio &s;it, <HI>&s;c.</HI> illi de|pre&s;&s;o. <HI>i. e.</HI> ex|alta illum O|deus. <HI>Pi&s;ca<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI></NOTE> <HI>let there be a lifting up.</HI> Thus it is expounded as a promi&s;e to <HI>Job,</HI> that when others were ca&s;t downe, he &s;hould helpe them up againe by prayer, thou &s;halt &s;ay, <HI>There is a lifting up, or, O Lord, let there be a lifting up, namely, of him who is ca&s;t downe, lift him up O Lord.</HI> As prayer is in its owne nature a lifting up of the &s;oule to God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.1.) &s;o prayer in the effect of it hath a mighty power and prevalency with God for the lifting up both of our owne bo|dyes and outward e&s;tates, as al&s;o the bodyes and outward e&s;tates of others out of the deepes of mi&s;ery and trouble. Many a Godly man hath lifted him&s;elfe and others out of the mire by prayer,
<PB N="286" REF="156"> while &s;eing a ca&s;ting downe, he hath &s;ayd, <HI>There is a lifting up, or, O Lord, let there be a lifting up.</HI> This &s;ence carrieth a high priviledge; but I rather conceive that intended in the next ver&s;e. And therefore</P>
<P>Secondly, I &s;hall take the&s;e words of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> as a promi&s;e, <HI>When men are ca&s;t downe,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pollicetur Jobo Eliphaz eximi|am foelicitatem, i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">pijs alijs at&abque; etiam h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;tibus &s;uis ad ext<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">u~ infelicitatis gra|dum praecip<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ta|tis.</NOTE> <HI>thou &s;halt &s;ay,</HI> (or confidently affirme this thing) <HI>there is a lifting up:</HI> that is, I promi&s;e or a&s;&s;ure thee O <HI>Job,</HI> that when thou &s;halt &s;ee the Lord bringing vengeance up|on the wicked, when thou &s;ee&s;t them fall on this &s;ide, and on that, when nothing is vi&s;ible but the ruine and de&s;truction of men and families, yea of Nations, that even then thou &s;halt &s;ay<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>there is a lifting up,</HI> that is, thou &s;halt have faith for thy &s;elfe, that both thou and thine &s;hall be lifted up, or &s;aved and delivered in a time when many wicked men or thine enemies fall and peri&s;h, and &s;hall never (as to any worldly enjoyment) ri&s;e any more.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That a godly man may have much a&s;&s;urance when others are ca&s;t downe, that yet he and others &s;hall be pre&s;erved and lifted up.</Q></P>
<P>When men were ca&s;t downe in <HI>Sodome,</HI> when <HI>Sodome</HI> was over|throwne, <HI>Lot</HI> was lifted up, and a&s;&s;ured of his pre&s;ervation. When all the men in the world were overwhelm'd and &s;wept off the face of the earth with a Deluge, there was a lifting up for <HI>Noah</HI> and his family, he and his were &s;afely hou&s;ed in the Arke floating upon the waters. Thus the Lord hath made provi&s;ion for the pre&s;ervation of his people, when thou&s;ands have been undone, and ca&s;t downe on the right hand and on the left by common calamities; yea when they have been ca&s;t downe, his people have been not onely pre|&s;erved, but exalted and lifted up. <HI>Thou &s;halt &s;ay there is a lifting up,</HI>
<Q>And hee &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</Q></P>
<P>That is, the Lord &s;hall &s;ave him; the vulgar reads thus; <HI>He that is humble &s;hall be in glory.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. <HI>Sept</HI> Interior animi fa&s;tus &amp; tumor per oculos et per omnes externos ge&s;tus &s;e prodit.</NOTE> The Seaventy thus; <HI>Becau&s;e thou ha&s;t humbled thy &s;elfe thou &s;halt be &s;aved.</HI></P>
<P>But I &s;hall keep to our Reading; <HI>hee &s;hall &s;ave the humble per|&s;on</HI> (or according to the &s;trictnes of the Hebrew) <HI>He &s;hall &s;ave him that is low of eyes,</HI> 'tis frequent in Scripture to expre&s;&s;e an humble per&s;on in this forme; <HI>A man that hath low eyes;</HI> as <HI>high lookes and lofty eyes,</HI> are every where in Scripture the periphra&s;is of pride.
<PB N="287" REF="156"> <HI>David</HI> &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 101.5.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non enim is &s;u|pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">biae mos e&s;t, qui latere aut d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;&s;imulari po&s;|&s;it. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE>) <HI>him that hath an high looke and a proud heart will I not &s;uffer;</HI> for you may &s;ee pride in the eye, pride &s;its upon the eye, therefore <HI>David</HI> puts a high looke and a proud heart both together there. And againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 131.1.) <HI>Lord mine heart is not haughty, nor mine eyes lofty.</HI> So that I &s;ay an hum|ble per&s;on, and a per&s;on of low eyes, is the &s;ame, as a proud per|&s;on, and a per&s;on of lofty eyes is the &s;ame in Scripture &s;ence, and both are very &s;ignificant Expre&s;&s;ions; <HI>He &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on,</HI> this humble per&s;on, may be taken two wayes, either pa&s;|&s;ively, or actively.</P>
<P>Pa&s;&s;ively,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non tam mode|&s;tu~ qui &s;e&s;e &s;ub|mittit (ut v r|tute~ &s;ignificet) intelligo, quam affictum et&s;i il|lad etiam &s;en|te~tiae non repug|nat, imo utru~&abque; recte intellexe|ris? <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> &s;o 'tis he that is ca&s;t downe and layd low by afflicti|on. Thus the humble per&s;on is the &s;ame with the humbled per|&s;on; affliction is an humiliation, however the afflicted take it or carry it; and u&s;ually it makes men humble, at lea&s;t in appearance and lowly in their lookes, whereas in pro&s;perity men lift up their eyes u&s;ually and looke &s;oftily, as if they would reach heaven with their heads, while their hearts are farre from it. But affliction makes men &s;toope. We may under&s;tand the Text of a per&s;on who is humble when humbled, who &s;toopes downe quietly to take up and beare his cro&s;&s;e, and doth not in &s;toutnes &s;light it, or in wan|tonnes play with it, but is &s;erious under the rebukes of God; <HI>Hee &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, It may be taken actively,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dimi&s;&s;us oculis e&s;t, qui &s;uo ju dicio &amp; exi&s;ti matione &s;ibi ip&s;i vile&s;cit.</NOTE> <HI>He &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on,</HI> that is, the per&s;on who is low in his owne eyes, while in the greate&s;t worldly heights, the per&s;on that humbles him&s;elfe, and walkes humbly with God and men when mo&s;t exalted. Thus the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> exhorts the brother of high degree, or the rich bro|ther <HI>to rejoyce in that he is made low</HI> (Jam. 1.10.) But if he be rich, how is he made low? he meanes it not of a lownes in &s;tate, but of a lownes or rather lowlines of &s;pirit. The brother of high degree hath no cau&s;e to rejoyce in his highnes, but when he is low in his owne eyes. Lownes of eyes is more then a vertue or com|mon mode&s;ty, 'tis a Grace; That's in a &s;pirituall &s;ence, the mo&s;t Grace-full looke, which is the mo&s;t humble looke. <HI>He &s;hall &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</HI> But with what &s;alvation? I an&s;wer; Salvation is eyther temporal and bodyly or eternal, u&s;ually called the &s;alva|tion of the &s;oule. We may expound this Text of both; The Lord &s;aveth the humble per&s;on both body and &s;oule both temporally and eternally.</P>
<PB N="288" REF="157">
<P>Where note;
<Q>That the Lord takes &s;peciall Care of humble ones.</Q></P>
<P>The Lord &s;eemes to take &s;o much care to &s;ave the humble, as if there were none el&s;e that he tooke care to &s;ave, or regarded what became or them, whether &s;aved or no. And the Lord &s;peakes of proud per&s;ons as if he contemn'd none but under that name and notion. (<HI>Jam.</HI> 4.6.) <HI>He re&s;i&s;teth the proud;</HI> he that is proud of his per&s;on, or parts, or e&s;tate, or witt, or power, the Lord re&s;i&s;teth him. And he &s;peakes of the humble as if none were &s;aved but un|der that name and notion, <HI>He &s;aves the humble per&s;on<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">,</HI> or as that Text in <HI>James</HI> hath it, <HI>He giveth grace to the humble.</HI> What grace? There is a twofold grace; and both are given to the humble; Fir&s;t, he gives them the grace of favour or good will, he is kinde to and re&s;pecteth the humble, or (as this text in <HI>Job</HI> hath it) <HI>Hee &s;aves the humble per&s;on.</HI> Secondly, He gives much grace to the humble, as grace is taken for that gracious worke of the Spirit in us, forming up faith, love, &amp;c. in our &s;oules. The Lord gives more of this grace al&s;o to the humble, that is, he addeth unto the graces which they have, and makes them more humble, more gratious: a man cannot be (in that &s;ence) an humble per&s;on without grace; humility it &s;elfe is a great grace, and the greater our humility is, the greater acce&s;&s;ion we have of other graces. Thus, I &s;ay, we may under&s;tand the text in <HI>James</HI> both wayes; <HI>He giveth grace to the humble,</HI> that is, he favours and re&s;pects them, becau&s;e they are gracious, and he addeth to or encrea&s;eth their graces. We have a promi&s;e very paralel to the&s;e of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> and <HI>James (P&s;al.</HI> 18.27.) <HI>Thou wilt &s;ave the afflicted people, but wilt bring downe high looks.</HI> The word which we tran&s;late <HI>afflicted,</HI> &s;ignifies al&s;o one humbled, and humble, and &s;o we might render the <HI>P&s;alme; Thou &s;halt &s;ave the humbled or the humble people;</HI> and that the humble are to be taken in to partake of the priviledge of that promi&s;e, is plaine from the oppo&s;ite Terme in the latter clau&s;e of the ver&s;e; <HI>High lookes;</HI> that is, <HI>high lookers God will bring downe, but he will &s;ave the hum|ble per&s;on.</HI> Men of low and meane e&s;tates are u&s;ually wrapt up with great ones in the &s;ame judgement, as the Prophet &s;peakes (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 5.15.) <HI>The meane man &s;hall be brought downe, and the mighty man &s;hall be humbled, the eyes of the lofty &s;hall be humbled;</HI> there we have the meane man and the mighty man under the &s;ame wrath|full
<PB N="289" REF="157"> di&s;pen&s;ations of God. The wicked whether high or low, are farre from &s;alvation, but God knowes how to make a di&s;tinction between the humble and the proud, when his wrath makes the greate&s;t confu&s;ions in the world. <HI>Humility it is not onely a &s;weet, but a &s;afe grace, yea a &s;aving Grace; wee never goe under the Covert of God &s;o much as when wee walke humbly with God; He will &s;ave the humble per&s;on.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="30" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 30.</HI></BIBL> Hee &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent, and it is deliver'd by the purenes of thine hands.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The promi&s;e is continued to the man that returnes to God, <HI>Hee &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent;</HI> or as &s;ome tran&s;late, <HI>the Innocent &s;hall deliver the I&s;land.</HI> The &s;ence is the &s;ame; <HI>He &s;hall deliver the I&s;land,</HI> that is, the Inhabitants of the I&s;land; All &s;hall be &s;afe, the I&s;land and they that dwell in it. There is another read|ing of the Text, which yet falls in fully and clearly with this; whereas we reade, <HI>He &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Liberabit noxi|um. <HI>Pi&s;c.</HI></NOTE> it may be read, <HI>He &s;hall deliver him that is not Innocent.</HI> Now becau&s;e this may &s;eeme a very wide difference in the tran&s;lation, wee are to Con&s;ider the ground of it, how this can be made out, that the &s;ame text &s;hould be rendred, <HI>the Innocent, and him that is not Inno|cent?</HI> The rea&s;on is becau&s;e the word which we tran&s;late, <HI>I&s;land,</HI> is taken by many of the Hebrew Doctors,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vocula <GAP DESC="foreign"> quae hic redditur in|&s;ula, idem valet quod <GAP DESC="foreign"> non. <HI>Pi&s;c.</HI> Ego cum veteri|bus <GAP DESC="foreign"> pro ne|gatione expone|re~. Erit&abque; faci|lis &s;en&s;us, <HI>&s;c.</HI> de|us puritate ma|nuum tuarum etiam nocente~, vel non innocen|tem liberabit: <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> as al&s;o by other tran&s;la|tors, onely for a negative particle, &s;ignifying <HI>not</HI> or that which is <HI>not.</HI> So the word is rendred (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 4.21.) when <HI>Phineas</HI> his wife dying in travell gave the name to her Childe, &s;hee &s;ayd, <HI>Hee &s;hall be called Ichabod, There is no glory,</HI> or <HI>not glory.</HI> And againe, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 31.4.) the word is u&s;ed in the &s;ame &s;ence; <HI>It is not for Kings O Lemuel, to drinke wine; &s;trong drinke is not for Princes.</HI> So here, <HI>Thou &s;halt deliver the nocent, or the not Innocent.</HI> And &s;o the whole ver&s;e is thus tran&s;lated; <HI>God, becau&s;e of or for the pure|nes of thy hands, will doliver the nocent, or tho&s;e who are not inno|cent.</HI> Whereas we &s;ay, <HI>Thou &s;halt deliver the I&s;land of the Inno|cent,</HI> or <HI>the Innocent &s;hall deliver the I&s;land.</HI></P>
<Q>And it is delivered by the purenes of thine hands.</Q>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake before in the third per&s;on, here in the &s;econd; 'tis probable he did &s;o purpo&s;ely to make <HI>Job</HI> under&s;tand that he
<PB N="290" REF="158"> meant him. <HI>It is delivered</HI> &amp;c. That is, the I&s;land is deliver'd, according to our tran&s;lation; how is it delivered? <HI>by the purenes of thine hands.</HI> The word notes the mo&s;t exact purity and clean|nes, like that of gold when it is refined in the fire, or of garments that are wa&s;hed with Soape or Nitre;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Manus purae &s;unt opera in|culpata &amp; quae crimine vacant. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> <HI>by this purenes it or the I&s;land &s;hall be deliver'd:</HI> and by the <HI>purenes of his hands,</HI> he meanes the purenes of his actions or admini&s;trations. The hand is the in|&s;trument of action, and pure or cleane hands in Scripture are put for the purity or cleannes of our actions or conver&s;ation. While our doings are holy, our works righteous, ju&s;t, and good, it may be &s;aid our hands are pure. And wee may referre this e&s;pecially to prayer; <HI>Thou &s;halt deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent, and it is delivered by the purenes of thine hands;</HI> That is, thou praying in the purity of thy hands, or with pure hands, &s;halt deliver the I&s;land of the innocent, or (according to that other reading) tho&s;e that are not innocent. And then, purenes of hands, or <HI>pure hands,</HI> are put as a &s;igne for the thing &s;ignified, the ge&s;ture, for that which is done in that ge&s;ture. The lifting up of hands is a ge&s;ture in prayer, and the lifting up of pure hands, notes the purity of prayer. (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.8.) <HI>I will that men pray every where, lifting up holy or pure hands.</HI> Now becau&s;e 'tis u&s;uall in prayer to lift up the hands; and in pray|er no hands but morally pure or holy hands &s;hould be lifted up (and &s;o theirs are in Scripture &s;ence who&s;e lives are holy) there|fore wee may well conceive, that when he &s;aith, <HI>it &s;hall be deliver'd by the purenes of thy hands,</HI> his meaning is this, it &s;hall be delivered by holy prayer, or when thou praye&s;t holyly, it &s;hall be delivered. Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> doth not onely promi&s;e <HI>Job,</HI> that him&s;elfe in per&s;on &s;hould be lifted up and &s;aved when others are ca&s;t downe, but that he &s;hould be a meanes of &s;aving and delivering others, and tho&s;e not &s;ome few or all his owne family, but that the whole Nation or I&s;land in General &s;hould e&s;cape and fare the better for him. <HI>It &s;hall be delivered by the purenes of thy hands.</HI> Learne hence, this Great and famous Truth;
<Q>That, a Godly Per&s;on is a Common good.</Q></P>
<P>He doth good not onely within his owne walles, or to his owne per&s;onal relations, but hee is a Common good, a publique mercy, a general Ble&s;&s;ing, whether wee Con&s;ider general Ble&s;&s;ings either negatively, or affirmatively, that is, eyther as delivering
<PB N="291" REF="158"> from evill, or as bringing in of good, every way the Godly man is a general ble&s;&s;ing, he &s;hall deliver the I&s;land of the Innocent, yea tho&s;e that are not Innocent; the Lord will accept his prayer, and heare his reque&s;t for the deliverance of a place, though there be many wicked ones in it. <HI>Abraham</HI> (Gen. 18.32.) had that priviledge granted him, that for his &s;ake and at his &s;uite the Lord would have &s;pared the wicked, the not Innocent, tho&s;e who were mo&s;t abominably poluted: if there had been but ten righteous per|&s;ons there, <HI>Sodom</HI> had been &s;aved from burning at the &s;uit of <HI>Abra|ham.</HI> Much more will the Lord &s;pare the I&s;land of the Innocent, that is, where there are a great many Innocent ones, at the prayer and reque&s;t of an <HI>Abraham,</HI> a man Eminent in faith and holines. How often did <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> turne away the wrath of God, when it was breaking forth again&s;t the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (P&s;al. 106.23.) <HI>Hee &s;aid he would de&s;troy them,</HI> (that is, the Lord &s;aid it) <HI>had not Mo|&s;es his cho&s;en &s;tood before him in the breach, to turne away his wrath le&s;t he &s;hould de&s;troy them.</HI> The Lord had as it were made a decree that he would de&s;troy that people; but <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> comes and Inter|po&s;eth for them, and the Lord &s;pared them. We read (<HI>Exod.</HI> 32.9, 10.) that how the Lord &s;ayd to <HI>Mo&s;es, I have &s;eene this peo|ple, and behold it is a &s;tiffe-necked people; Now therefore let mee alone, that my wrath may waxe hot again&s;t them, and that I may con&s;ume them, and I will make of thee a great people;</HI> But did <HI>Mo|&s;es</HI> accept this offer of advancement upon the ruines of that peo|ple? No, he deprecates his owne honour, as it follows (<HI>ver.</HI> 11^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h) <HI>And Mo&s;es be&s;ought the Lord his God, and &s;aid, Lord why doth thy wrath wax hot again&s;t this people</HI> &amp;c? Then at the 14^t^h <HI>ver. The Lord repented of the evill which he thought to doe unto his peo|ple.</HI> Thus <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> by the purenes of his hands, holy prayer delive|red a Nation that was not innocent, from con&s;umption in the flames of the Lords provoked Jelou&s;ie. Againe (<HI>Jere.</HI> 5.1.) the Prophet is Commanded <HI>to run to and fro through the &s;treetes of Je|ru&s;alem, to &s;ee and know in the broad places thereof, if he could finde a man, if there were any that executed judgement, that &s;ought the truth, and I will pardon, &s;aith the Lord.</HI> One man &s;hould deli|ver the City that was not Innocent by the purenes of his hands. We &s;ee the Lord puts the whole i&s;&s;ue upon this, <HI>if thou can&s;t finde a man.</HI> But were there not multitudes and throngs of men in <HI>Je|ru&s;alem?</HI> Why then was it propo&s;ed as a matter of difficulty to
<PB N="292" REF="159"> finde a man there? Doubtle&s;&s;e <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> was a populous City, and was filled with men; but a man &s;o qualified, a man of Ju&s;tice, a man that &s;ought the truth was hardly to be found there, and therefore <HI>if thou can&s;t finde</HI> (&s;uch) <HI>a man, I will pardon it &s;aith the Lord.</HI> How pardon it? There is a twofold pardon: fir&s;t, a pardon of the guilt of &s;inne; &s;econdly, a pardon of the puni&s;hment of &s;in. The Lord, upon the finding out of &s;uch a man, would not pardon the guilt of all that were there, nor give them an everla&s;ting par|don, but pardoned they &s;hould be as to pre&s;ent puni&s;hment and ruine, they &s;hould be pardoned or &s;aved from de&s;truction for that time, if &s;uch a godly man could be found among them. God|ly men &s;ave the wicked three wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, They &s;ave them, when by their good Councell and In|&s;truction they turne them from their &s;innes, and bring them to re|pentance; this is a happy way of &s;aving them. And thus a godly man may &s;ave the wicked, every godly Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel is &s;ayd to &s;ave not him&s;elfe onely, but (in this &s;ence) tho&s;e that heare him; becau&s;e he offers and urgeth upon them the meanes of &s;alvation. (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.16.)</P>
<P>Secondly, As they may &s;ave them thus by being a meanes of their Conver&s;ion, &s;o they may &s;ave them by being a meanes of their Direction; One godly man may &s;ave a whole Land by his directing Councell, as well as he &s;aveth many by his converting Coun&s;ell. Of this <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peakes clearely (<HI>Eccle.</HI> 9.14, 15.) <HI>There was a little Citie and few men in it, and there came a great King again&s;t it,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Now there was found a poore wi&s;e man in it, and he by his wi&s;dome delivered the Citie.</HI> That is, He gave wi&s;e and whole&s;ome Coun&s;el, which being followed, proved an effe|ctuall meanes for the deliverance of the Citie.</P>
<P>Thirdly, A godly man may be a publique good to &s;ave and deliver others by his Prayers and Interce&s;&s;ion, by &s;eeking the Lord that they may be deliver'd,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Haud tamen deus id &s;emper facit, ne&abque; e&s;t <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">uod qui&s;quam in hac re certa~ ei legem impo|nat, fallitur er|go Eliphaz &s;i hoc perpetuum e&s;&s;e putavit. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> as the latter branch was opened, hee &s;aves them by the purenes of his hands, lifted up in prayer. Yet wee mu&s;t take this with a Caution; For wee cannot affirme it uni|ver&s;ally, that the righteous have alwayes this priviledge (in the event) to deliver the I&s;land or Nation wherein they are. But wee may &s;ay, that this is a priviledge which Saints have often been ho|noured with, and which none but Saints have been honoured with at any time to be the Saviours and Deliverers of a people among
<PB N="293" REF="159"> whom they dwell; For wee know the Lord him&s;elfe hath given expre&s;&s;e Exceptions to this rule (<HI>Jer.</HI> 15.1.) where hee tells the &s;tubborne <HI>Jewes</HI> by his Prophet; <HI>Though Mo&s;es and Samuel &s;tood before mee, yet my minde could not be toward this people; Ca&s;t them out of my &s;ight, and let them goe forth; and it &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e if they &s;ay unto thee, whither &s;hall wee goe forth, thou &s;halt tell them, thus &s;aith the Lord, &s;uch as are for death, to death; &amp; &s;uch as are for the &s;word, to the &s;word, and &s;uch as are for famine, to famine.</HI> When he &s;aith, <HI>Though Mo&s;es and Samuel &s;tood before wee;</HI> Some may aske, what to doe? I an&s;wer, wee are not to take it for a mute &s;tanding before the Lord, but a &s;tanding before the Lord with earne&s;t Prayers, Interce&s;&s;ions, and Supplications, for the &s;paring of that people; Now &s;aith the Lord, though <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> and <HI>Samuel</HI> (who in their generations were eminent godly men, and eminent favourites of God) though the&s;e &s;hould &s;tand before mee, ear|ne&s;tly praying for this people, yet <HI>my minde could not be toward them,</HI> that is, I would not &s;pare them, nor &s;ave them from death, &s;word, famine, or captivity, no not at their entreaty. And wee have a like In&s;tance (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 14.14.) <HI>Though the&s;e three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it</HI> (there were but two named in <HI>Jeremy,</HI> but here three, though the&s;e three men, <HI>Noah, Daniel,</HI> and <HI>Job</HI> were in it) <HI>they &s;hould but deliver their owne &s;oules by their righteou&s;nes &s;aith the Lord God.</HI> They might have the priviledge mentioned by <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in the former ver&s;e, <HI>When men were ca&s;t downe, they might &s;ay, there is a lifting up,</HI> or there is pre&s;ervation for us, God will take care of us: but God would not be per&s;wa|ded, no not by <HI>Noah, Daniel,</HI> and <HI>Job,</HI> to &s;ave the re&s;t. So that there are ca&s;es wherein the Lord will not heare the Interce&s;&s;ions of the be&s;t of men for a &s;infull people. The I&s;land of the wicked, or of the not Innocent &s;hall not be delivered, no, not by the pure|nes of their hands; yet 'tis an experienced truth, that God hath &s;pared a people for the &s;ake of &s;ome Godly found among them; yea the rea&s;on why the Lord doth not de&s;troy the world which lies in wickednes, is, much, in re&s;pect of them who walk in holines. For were it not (as <HI>Eli&s;ha</HI> told <HI>Jehoram</HI> to his face in reference to good king <HI>Jeho&s;aphat,</HI> 2 Kings 3.14.) that God hath regard to their pre&s;ence in the world, God would not &s;o much as looke to|wards the ungodly, nor &s;ee them for good. This honour have all the Saints, and how great an honour is it to be a publique good,
<PB N="294" REF="160"> to be a Saviour to an I&s;land, to a Nation? Some indeed are of &s;uch narrow &s;pirits, that if they may &s;ave them&s;elves, and keepe their owne &s;takes, they care not what becomes of the publique. But as it is a great honour to be active for the &s;aving and delive|ring of a Nation, &s;o it is a greater honour to have the &s;afety and deliverance of a Nation attributed or given in to us by God him|&s;elfe (though not at all by way of de&s;ert, yet) in a way of favour. <HI>Paul</HI> was at Sea with no good company, yet when all looked to be &s;wallowed up, <HI>An Angel of God appeared to him, &s;aying, Feare not Paul, Thou mu&s;t be brought before Cae&s;ar, and lo, God hath gi|ven thee all them that &s;ayle with thee</HI> (Acts 27.23, 24.) That is, for thy &s;ake, or becau&s;e they are now in thy company, they al&s;o &s;hall e&s;cape the rage of this tempe&s;t. They all owe their lives to thee henceforth as well as to mee, for <HI>to thee have I given them.</HI> The men of this world might hence take notice of their own folly, who can hardly afford them a good word, or roome to live in the world, for who&s;e &s;ake it is that they live. How often doe they wi&s;h and &s;eeke their de&s;truction, for who&s;e &s;ake it is, that them&s;elves are not de&s;troyed? How often doe they accu&s;e the Godly, as the troublers of a Nation, as the hinderers of publique good: where|as they <HI>are indeed a common good, The Chariots and hor&s;emen,</HI> The Protection and Defence, the Salvation and Deliverance of tho&s;e States and Nations where they are. The breaches which wic|ked men make by &s;inning, they make up by praying, to turne a|way the Lords wrath, that they be not con&s;umed. We read how the Lord Complaines, that there was <HI>none found to make up the hedge,</HI> to &s;tand in the gapp when he was coming to de&s;troy them. (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 22.30.) And it is &s;ayd of <HI>Mo&s;es (P&s;al.</HI> 106.23.) that <HI>he &s;tood before the Lord in the breach, that he &s;hould not de&s;troy the I&s;raelites.</HI> Which phra&s;e of <HI>&s;tanding in the breach</HI> &s;eemes to beare an alu&s;ion to an Army be&s;ieging a Citie, who fir&s;t plant their Canon, and make a breach, and then come to the &s;torme. Thus the Lord deales many times with a people, he encampes again&s;t them, and batters them, he makes &s;ome breach upon them by trou|bles and divi&s;ions, and then expects that &s;ome &s;hould &s;tand in the breach, and be&s;eech him not to &s;torme them with the whole Army of his Judgements. And the Lord takes it well when any of the Valiant Ones, when any of the Worthies of his <HI>I&s;rael</HI> pre&s;ent them&s;elves in the breach, praying with utmo&s;t importunity, that
<PB N="295" REF="160"> the Lord would withdraw tho&s;e evills which threaten to come in at the breach like armed men and lay wa&s;t a Nation.</P>
<P>And fora&s;much as men <HI>of pure hands,</HI> or Godly men have this priviledge to be a <HI>common Good,</HI> by being the deliverers of Nations from <HI>common evills and calamities,</HI> I &s;hall hint &s;ome few things from it more di&s;tinctly.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, We &s;ee wherein (under God) the &s;trength and &s;afety of Kingdomes and Common-wealths doth con&s;i&s;t. It is not, &s;o much, in the wi&s;dome of the Coun&s;eller, or in the courage of the Souldier; It is not, &s;o much, in Armyes at Land, or Navyes at Sea; It is not, &s;o much, in walled Cities and fortified Ca&s;tles; It is not, &s;o much, in union at home, or in leagues and confederacies abroad, as it is in the <HI>purity of mens hands,</HI> or in the holines of their lives. <HI>Godlines is the Samp&s;ons locke, wherein the &s;trength of a Nation lyes.</HI> A Heathen could &s;ay, that <HI>A people were never &s;afe by the &s;tand|ing of their walles, while them&s;elves were falling in their virtues.</HI> It is therefore (if there were nothing better in it) good policy to encourage piety, and to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ndeavour the encrea&s;e of a Holy Seed in any Nation. For as the Prophet &s;peakes (<HI>I&s;.</HI> 6.13.) <HI>As a teile tree and as an oake who&s;e &s;ub&s;tance is in them, when they ca&s;t their leaves, &s;o the holy &s;eed &s;hall be the &s;ub&s;tance thereof.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, In this we &s;ee the honour which God puts upon Godly men. What can be greater then this, to be really (though perhaps farre from being accounted &s;o) the Deliverers and Savi|ours of their Country? What an honour was it to <HI>Abraham</HI> when God told a King, that he was beholding to <HI>Abraham</HI> for his life, or that favour mu&s;t be granted to him at the &s;uite and as it were &s;ent him by the hand of <HI>Abraham</HI> (Gen. 20.7.) <HI>Hee &s;hall pray for thee, and thou &s;halt live.</HI> An honour much like this God put upon <HI>Job</HI> al&s;o, at the latter end of this Booke (<HI>Chap.</HI> 42.8.) <HI>My &s;ervant Job &s;hall pray for you, for him will I accept, le&s;t I deale with you after your folly.</HI> Such Honour (in &s;ome degree) have all the Saints.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Let men honour tho&s;e whom God honours thus; and let the Princes and Powers of the world be glad when they heare that they have many &s;uch in their Dominions. When &s;uch are &s;ubject to them, as rule with God. It is &s;ayd of <HI>Zerxes</HI> (the Greate&s;t Monarch in the world in his time) that when <HI>Themi&s;to|cles</HI> came over to him (who was a man eminent for wi&s;dome and
<PB N="296" REF="161"> Eloquence) that, being over-joyed at &s;uch a trea&s;ure, he cryed out in his &s;leepe; <HI>I have got Themi&s;tocles the Athenian.</HI> Spirituall wi&s;|dome renders men a Greater trea&s;ure to States, then moral wi&s;|dome can. Surely then they who are &s;piritually wi&s;e de&s;erve to be rejoyced in. I am &s;ure it is not &s;afe to let them be di&s;couraged by whom our &s;afety is e&s;tabli&s;hed, much le&s;&s;e is it &s;afe to let them fall, by whom in their capacity kingdomes &s;tand; lea&s;t of all, is it &s;afe to ca&s;t them downe, who (by the rule of divine politicks) <HI>are State-upholders.</HI> Therefore let me &s;ay this to all <HI>the powers of this world,</HI> doe not de&s;troy tho&s;e who have the priviledge to be <HI>Saviours and deliverers.</HI> Yea, Take heed of deading and &s;traitning their &s;pirits in prayer for you, above all, take heed of turning their prayers again&s;t you. Doe not provoke your owne Hor&s;emen to fight a|gain&s;t you, and your owne Chariot-wheeles to run over you. As the&s;e are the be&s;t friends to a Nation, &s;o the wor&s;t enemies. Better have many outwardly oppo&s;ing you, then one (upon ju&s;t ground) &s;ecretly praying, or but complaining to God again&s;t you. They who have no power at all in their hands&punc; no not &s;o much as to helpe or &s;ave them&s;elves, may yet de&s;troy many by the <HI>purenes of their hands,</HI> that is, they holding up pure hands in prayer, may bring downe de&s;truction upon many who are wicked, and the ad|ver&s;aries of Chri&s;t becau&s;e their adver&s;aries. But that which they mo&s;tly doe, and that which they wor&s;t of all de&s;ire to doe is, <HI>That Lands and I&s;lands may be delivered by the purenes of their hands.</HI></P>
<P>To &s;hut up this poynt and Chapter, we &s;ee, <HI>that as the Saints are killed all the day long,</HI> by the wicked world, <HI>for the Lords &s;ake</HI> (Rom. 8.36.) that is, becau&s;e they owne the Lord and his wayes: &s;o the wicked of the world are &s;pared even all the day long, or as often as they are &s;pared by the Lord, for the &s;ake of the Saints, that is, becau&s;e the Lord ownes and approves them and their wayes, and doth therefore give peace to the world, that &s;o in their peace, they al&s;o may have peace.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="297" REF="161">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 1, 2.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Then Job an&s;wered, and &s;aid,</P>
<P>Even to day is my complaint bitter, my &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="1" TYPE="verse">
<P>_IN the former Chapter we had the third &amp; la&s;t charge of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> again&s;t <HI>Job,</HI> in this and that which fol|loweth <HI>Job</HI> makes his reply, and defends him&s;elfe again&s;t what <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had objected and charged upon him. There are two opinions concerning the tendency of this reply.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some interpret it in favour of <HI>Job,</HI> as if he onely &s;um|moned his friends to the tribunall of God, being confident of a good i&s;&s;ue there.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others enterpret it as a pre&s;umptuous &s;ugge&s;tion again&s;t God him&s;elfe, and the &s;trictne&s;&s;e of his proceedings with him, which they endeavour to prove upon (as they conceive) the&s;e foure grounds of his complaint.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e he <HI>complained</HI> that his afflictions were beyond all his <HI>complaints;</HI> and that what he had &s;ayd was but little to what he felt, or to the greatne&s;&s;e of his &s;orrow (<HI>ver.</HI> 1, 2.) <HI>Eve<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o day is my complaint bitter, my &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</HI> The&s;e words are conceived, to cary in them, at lea&s;t, an intimation that <HI>Job</HI> thought him&s;elfe too hardly dealt with, or that there was no ju&s;t cau&s;e why he &s;hould be pro&s;ecuted and proceeded again&s;t with &s;o much &s;everity by the continued and renewed &s;troakes of God upon him. And indeed it cannot be denyed, <HI>That he</HI> (who|&s;oever he is) <HI>is ju&s;tly judged as over-bold with God, who judgeth any of the dealings of God with him&s;elfe or with any other man over-&s;e|vere.</HI> But wee &s;hall finde, that though <HI>Job</HI> complained often that his &s;orrows (as to him) were exceeding great, yet he never com|plained, that (as to God) they were unju&s;t.</P>
<PB N="298" REF="162">
<P>Secondly, (Say they) becau&s;e he complained, that he could not get admittance unto God, nor audience with him, which was a further aggravation of his &s;orrow. This he pro&s;ecutes from the third ver&s;e to the end of the ninth. <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him, that I might come even to his &s;eate, I would order my cau&s;e before him, and fill my mouth with arguments, I would know the words which he would an&s;wer me</HI> &amp;c. As if (according to the &s;cope of this expo&s;ition) he had &s;ayd, <HI>I have waited long under my pre&s;&s;ures and burdens, with my petition in my hand, yea I have tendered up my petition, but as yet I can get no an&s;wer; Alas, I am greatly afflicted, yet, &s;o farre from being releeved, That I cannot be heard, I would therefore gett neare God, to &s;pread and order my cau&s;e before him.</HI> To be heard and to be releeved, are often in Scripture &s;ence the &s;ame thing, and alwayes not to be heard &s;ignifies as much as not to be releeved. Till the Lord gives us his eare, he ne|ver gives us his hand, therefore <HI>Job</HI> mu&s;t needs think him&s;elfe farre from being helped while he thought that he was not heard.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Becau&s;e he complained that the Lord did thus afflict and try him, when he already knew what he was, and what he would be after his tryall by the &s;ore&s;t afflictions; when he knew that he was innocent, &amp; that he would continue &amp; hold out in his innocency to the end. That he would not be weary of well-doing, though under the wor&s;t of &s;ufferings. (<HI>Ver.</HI> 10, 11, 12.) <HI>He know|eth the way that I take,</HI> &amp;c. As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>The Lords needs not doe this to try me, for he knoweth well enough who I am, and the way that I goe; he knoweth both the frame of my heart and the cour&s;e of my life; he knoweth how it is with me now, and that I &s;hall be found &s;uch <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> I have often profe&s;&s;ed my &s;elfe to be, when he hath kept me to the utmo&s;t of his purpo&s;e in this fiery furnace of affliction. When he hath tryed me I &s;hall come forth as gold,</HI> that is, <HI>when all's done, he knows that I &s;hall hereafter approve my &s;elfe upright in heart, and that (through his grace, already be&s;towed upon me) I have hetherto kept his way, and not declined nor gon back ftom the commandements of his lips, yea that I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI> Thus <HI>Job</HI> is conceived complaining upon this ac|count, that he &s;hould be &s;o extreamely afflicted, though the Lord knew his way, and that he was both a lover of his Word, and a keeper of his Commandements, and that he would per&s;evere with joy in keeping them to the end, though he &s;hould not &s;ee the ex|pected and de&s;iered end of tho&s;e &s;orrows.</P>
<PB N="299" REF="162">
<P>Fourthly, Becau&s;e he is conceived complaining that he found the Lord altogether inexorable, &s;o that no impre&s;&s;ion could be made upon him by any thing he could &s;ay or doe to take him off from his &s;everity towards him. (<HI>Ver.</HI> 13, 14.) <HI>He is of one minde, who can turne him</HI> (there is no dealing with God) <HI>and what his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth</HI> (let it fall where and on whom it will, he will doe it) <HI>for he performeth the thing that is appoynted for me.</HI></P>
<P>From all which <HI>Job</HI> inferreth, that he had cau&s;e enough to com|plaine, much more that he did not complaine without cau&s;e. (<HI>Ver.</HI> 15, 16, 17.) <HI>Therefore am I troubled at his pre&s;ence when I con&s;ider, I am afraid of him, for God makes my heart &s;oft, and the Allmighty troubleth me, becau&s;e I was not cut off before the dark|ne&s;&s;e, neither hath he covered the darkne&s;&s;e from my face.</HI> Thus you have the parts and &s;cope of the whole Chapter, as 'tis &s;uppo&s;ed to be an over-bold complaint in reference to the dealings of the Lord with him.</P>
<P>From all which 'tis concluded,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Saepe antea &s;ta|tuerat Job, &s;e amicorum exa|cerbantibus &s;er|monibus <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">efe&s;|&s;um, nolle am|plius cum ijs di&s;&s;erere, &s;ed po|tius cum deo ae|qui&s;&s;imo judice; Nunc hoc &s;uum propo&s;itu~ ad im|plere tentans ad deum &s;ermonem dirigit, vel ad &s;eip&s;um, <HI>i. e.</HI> &s;ecum ip&s;e ratio|cinatur. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> that though the Chapter begins with, <HI>Then Job an&s;wered, and &s;aid,</HI> yet, that <HI>Job</HI> doth not an&s;wer <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> nor apply him&s;elfe to what he had &s;aid; but that being wearied with his often repeating, and renewing the &s;ame argu|ments again&s;t him, he doth, upon the matter, leave him and his friends, and all di&s;cour&s;e with them; turning him&s;elfe to God, and powring his &s;orrows into his bo&s;ome; as if the an&s;wer were di|rected to God, and not at all to <HI>Eliphaz.</HI></P>
<P>But I rather apprehend (according to the former interpretati|on of this reply) that <HI>Job</HI> doth here plainly hold forth an an&s;wer to what <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had objected or layd to his charge, and that be|ing &s;till &s;o hotly oppo&s;ed, he doth fir&s;t defend his owne integrity in this Chapter; and that, &s;econdly, in the next he overthroweth the ground or foundation upon which his friends built their gene|rall oppo&s;ition: affirming, that there is neither any certaine time nor way in which the Lord doth puni&s;h wicked men in this world, and that therefore no argument can be framed, or judgement given of any mans condition by his pre&s;ent &s;tate, or the external di&s;pen|&s;ations of God towards him. Taking this &s;ence, we may reduce the whole Chapter to the&s;e two parts.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A preface; &s;econdly, the pleading it &s;elfe.</P>
<P>The preface is layd downe in the &s;econd ver&s;e; <HI>Even to day is
<PB N="300" REF="163"> my complaint bitter, my &s;troake is heavier then my groaning;</HI> the pleading follows in the &s;ub&s;equent parts of the Chapter; the &s;umme of which may be collected into this formal Argumentation.</P>
<P><HI>Yee doe fal&s;ely accu&s;e him of wickedne&s;&s;e, and hypocri&s;ie, who is ready to plead his cau&s;e, and doth earne&s;tly de&s;ire that he may doe it before the throane of God.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But I am ready and doe earne&s;tly de&s;ire to plead my cau&s;e before the throane of God.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore yee fal&s;ely accu&s;e mee of wickednes and hypocri&s;ie.</HI></P>
<P>The a&s;&s;umption only of this Syllogi&s;me is handled in this Chap|ter, from the &s;econd ver&s;e to the end; in which it appeares, that <HI>Job</HI> was ready not onely to di&s;pute the poynt in controver&s;ie with his friends, but was mo&s;t willing that the Lord &s;hould have the hearing of it; for &s;o he &s;ayth, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him, that I might come even to his &s;eate, I would order my cau&s;e be|fore him, and fill my mouth with arguments.</HI> That is, I would pro|duce &s;uch arguments for my &s;elfe, and again&s;t my oppo&s;ers, as would render my cau&s;e ju&s;t and innocent before God, how guilty &s;oever I am found and repre&s;ented in the opinion of men.</P>
<P>Thus farre concerning the general &s;tate of this Chapter.</P>
<P>I &s;hall next proceed to explicate the parts and particulars of it.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 1.</HI></BIBL> Then Job an&s;wered, and &s;aid;</Q>
<P>The&s;e words have occurr'd often before, I &s;hall not &s;tay upon them. But what &s;aid he? and how did he an&s;wer?</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="30" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 2.</HI></BIBL> Even to day is my complaint bitter, my &s;troake is hea|vier then my groaning.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Thus <HI>Job</HI> begins, This is at once his prologue to what he had to &s;ay, and his Apology for what he had (pa&s;&s;ionately) &s;ayd alrea|dy. <HI>Even to day,</HI> or <HI>even this day.</HI> The word <HI>day</HI> is taken eyther more largely for the time neere at hand, or &s;trictly, for the pre|&s;ent time. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 95.8.) <HI>To day if ye will heare his voyce, harden not your hearts;</HI> That is, <HI>Heare his voyce this in&s;tant day, and har|den not your hearts one day longer.</HI> Againe (<HI>Deut.</HI> 4.8.) <HI>What Nation is there &s;o great, that hath &s;tatutes and judgements &s;o righ|teous as all this law, that I have &s;et before you this day,</HI> or at this
<PB N="301" REF="163"> pre&s;ent time. <HI>Jacob</HI> &s;aith to <HI>E&s;au</HI> (Gen. 25.31.) <HI>Sell me this day thy birth-right;</HI> that is, let me have it now, let us &s;trike up the bargaine this houre, or before we part. Thus here, <HI>To day</HI> &amp;c. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;aid, <HI>O friend Eliphaz, I perceive that after all tho&s;e dayes of di&s;putation which have pa&s;&s;ed between us, this day is like to be &s;pent and run out in as har&s;h cen&s;ures on your part, and in as bit|ter complaints on my part as any of the former.</HI></P>
<Q>Even this day is my complaint bitter.</Q>
<P>The word rendered <HI>complaint,</HI> is tran&s;lated al&s;o &s;ometimes <HI>prayer,</HI> and &s;ometimes <HI>meditation.</HI> (Gen. 24.69.) <HI>I&s;ack went out into the field to meditate,</HI> we put in the Margin, <HI>to pray. Hannah</HI> u&s;eth the &s;ame word (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.16.) <HI>Account not thy handmaide for a daughter of Beliall, for out of the abundance of my complaint</HI> (we put in the Margin, <HI>Meditation) and griefe, have I &s;poken hi|therto.</HI> Many complaine, who pray not, &s;ome pray, who com|plaine not, and others meditate, who doe neyther complaine nor pray, yet u&s;ually we meditate, that we may con&s;ider what to pray about, &amp; in prayer powre out our complaints both about tho&s;e &s;ins and wants and mercies, which have fallen under our meditation.</P>
<Q>Even to day is my complaint bitter.</Q>
<P>The Original word hath a twofold derivation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Aliqui deducunt a <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod &s;ignifi at ama|ritudinem, alij a <GAP DESC="foreign"> deno|tane rebellionem &s;eu contuma|ciam.</NOTE> mo&s;t render it as we, <HI>bitter;</HI> Bitterne&s;&s;e in Scripture is often u&s;ed by a metaphor, to denote any thing which is grievous, trouble&s;ome, afflictive, or di&s;ta&s;tfull to us, becau&s;e bitter things are &s;o to the pallate or ta&s;t of man. Bitter things are trouble&s;ome to &s;ence, and troubles are bit|ter to the Spirit. <HI>Affliction is a bitter pill; thou write&s;t bitter things again&s;t me,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>Job</HI> to God before (<HI>Chap.</HI> 13.26.) &s;o that when he &s;aith, <HI>my complaint is bitter,</HI> it &s;ounds thus much, my complaint is as great as great can be, and I have the greate&s;t rea&s;on to com|plaine. For <HI>by complaint,</HI> we are to under&s;tand not onely the act of complaining, but the matter upon which he did complaine, or the cau&s;e of his complaint. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>My afflictions (about which I complaine) are exceeding bitter, no marvaile then if my complaint be &s;o too.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, The word comes from a roote, &s;ignifying to rebell, to di&s;obey, to be exa&s;perated, or (as &s;ome learned in the Hebrew
<PB N="302" REF="164"> give it) to vary or alter the frame of a mans &s;pirit, and the di&s;po|&s;ition of his minde;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> exa&s;pera|tio, propri&egrave; va|riatio, altenitas, ut &s;ic di<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">am; quod qui rebel|let, variet &amp; infringat ver|bum &amp; manda|tum alterius, aut foedus cum eo initum.</NOTE> becau&s;e they who di&s;obey and rebell, doe cer|tainly vary and change their minds from what they ingaged to be, or profe&s;&s;ed they were before; they turne a&s;ide eyther from the lawfull command given them, or from the promi&s;e and faith which they had given. So the word is u&s;ed (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 13.26.) Where the &s;acred Hi&s;tory tells us of a Prophet who was &s;ent out upon a Me&s;&s;age by the Lord unto <HI>Jeroboam,</HI> and though he faithfully per|formed the Me&s;&s;age, yet hearkening to the coun&s;ell of another Prophet, he was &s;laine by a Lion; <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, for as much as thou ha&s;t di&s;obeyed</HI> (or rebelled again&s;t) <HI>the mouth of the Lord,</HI> (that is, the words that proceeded out of the mouth of the Lord,) <HI>and ha&s;t not kept the commandement which the Lord thy God com|manded thee,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Thy carka&s;&s;e &s;hall not come into the &s;epulcher of thy fathers.</HI> Thus the word is tran&s;lated by &s;ome in this Text, of <HI>Jobs di&s;obedience or rebellion;</HI> And they render the whole &s;entence with an interrogation.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Etiam hoc die, contumacia, (habetur) que|rimonia mea? Contuman e&s;t que&s;tus meus, per&s;tat. <HI>q. d.</HI> non paret non cedet &s;olatijs ve&s;tris. <HI>Rab. Sol:</HI></NOTE><HI>What, is my complaint this day accounted rebellion?</HI> as if I did contumaciou&s;ly &s;et my &s;elfe again&s;t God, while I am powring out my &s;orrows before him; whereas indeed, my complaint is rather rebellious or &s;tout again&s;t your con&s;olations, it yeelds not to them, nor is at all abated by them. The way or cour&s;e which you take to comfort me, is too weake to graple with, much more is it too weake to conquer and &s;ubdue my &s;orrows.</P>
<P>Yet further, This &s;ence and tran&s;lation of the word, may be ap|plyed to that &s;peech of <HI>Eliphaz</HI> in the former Chapter (<HI>ver.</HI> 21.) exhorting <HI>Job</HI> to <HI>acquaint him&s;elfe with God, and to be at peace.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Leave off thy di&s;tances, lay downe the weapons of that mo&s;t unholy warre which thou ha&s;t taken up again&s;t God.</HI> To which clo&s;e rebuke <HI>Job</HI> an&s;wers here, what? <HI>Is my complaint to God looked upon by you as a combate with God? or do ye thinke that while I beg pity and favour of God, I have bid him defiance, or declared my &s;elfe his enemy? What el&s;e can be the meaning of it, that you exhort me &s;o &s;eriou&s;ly to reconcile my &s;elfe to God? He that is called to make peace with another, is &s;uppo&s;ed to be at warre with him, or at lea&s;t to beare him ill will.</HI> So then, according to this rendering, and inter|pretation of the Text, the drift of his &s;peech is to &s;hew how little ground there was, yea how unju&s;t it was, that he &s;hould be accu|&s;ed of rebellion and contumacy again&s;t God, while he was onely
<PB N="303" REF="164"> bemoaning his owne &s;ad condition, and putting up his complaint to God. We may forme up his &s;ence into this argumentation.</P>
<P><HI>He cannot be ju&s;tly accu&s;ed of rebellion again&s;t God, who complains much, or greatly, when his griefe is more or greater.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But my griefe is more and greater then my complaint.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore I cannot be ju&s;tly accu&s;ed of rebellion again&s;t God, be|cau&s;e I complaine.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, The text is thus rendred;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Etiam hodi&egrave; e&s;t (vel &s;uo loco manet) exa&s;pe|ratio querelae meae. <HI>Merc.</HI> Qua&s;i ex noxio medicamine vulnus crevit. Etiam po&s;t tot &amp; tanta verba ve&s;tra, quibus &s;perabam fore ut me &s;ola remi|ni augetur mea querela quia ni|hil e&s;t in ve&s;tris verbis con&s;ola|tionis. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Even to day the &s;harpnes or bitterne&s;&s;e of my complaint remaineth, or my &s;orrow is as it was. I am no way ea&s;ed but rather more afflicted by what you have &s;ayd for the ea&s;ing of my affliction. An improper plai&s;ter doth but enflame, not at all heale, the wound.</HI> So that, as according to the former in|terpretation, he tooke off their charge of impatience, contumacy, and rebellion again&s;t God, according to the minde of this he &s;hews the weakne&s;&s;e and in&s;ufficiency of what they had &s;poken, as to the allay of his &s;orrow, and the curing or &s;atisfying of his di&s;temperd &s;pirit. So that here he &s;eemes to renew and confirme that opini|on which he had given of his friends in their procedure with him (<HI>Chap.</HI> 13.4.) <HI>Ye are forgers of lyes, ye are all Phy&s;itians of no value: O that ye would altogether hold your peace, and it &s;hould be your wi&s;dome.</HI> And againe (<HI>Ch.</HI> 16.2.) <HI>Mi&s;erable Comforters are ye all; Shall vaine words have an end? or what emboldeneth thee that thou an&s;were&s;t. So here, ye have done nothing yet effectually to remove my complaint: I am like a poore patient, who having been long under the Phy&s;itians hand, and &s;uffered many painefull appli|cations, is yet as farre from a cure as the fir&s;t houre of his under|taking. Even to day the bitternes the &s;harpenes of my di&s;ea&s;ed minde remaineth. I have been in paine</HI> (as the Church &s;peakes, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 26.18.) <HI>I have as it were brought forth winde. Ye have not wrought any deliverance, neyther hath this inhabitant (my &s;orrow) fallen by your hand.</HI></P>
<P>La&s;tly, Some referre the&s;e words to the promi&s;e made by <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> (Chap. 22.21.) exhorting <HI>Job to acquaint him&s;elfe with God</HI> &amp;c. <HI>and &s;o good &s;hould come to him. But</HI> &s;aith <HI>Job</HI> here, <HI>Though I am cleare from what you accu&s;e me; and al&s;o have communion with God in wayes of holines; yet I experience no &s;uch good as you promi&s;e, I am not brought into wayes of comfort, but rather my &s;or|rows encrea&s;e, and my complaint is as bitter this day, as ever it was.</HI></P>
<PB N="304" REF="165">
<P>And (as it follows in the Text)
<Q>My &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non &s;atis pro gravitate plagae conquerar; Su|perat ploga que|rimoniam. <HI>Merc:</HI> Sic &s;e excu&s;at ab impatientia &amp; contumacia objecta. <HI>q d.</HI> Inju&s;ti&s;&s;imum e&s;t me a v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">bis accu&s;ari quia querar de meis malis cum mul|to grav<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">or &s;it plaga.</NOTE>This he addeth as a further explication, or as a proofe of the former part of the ver&s;e; as if he had &s;aid, <HI>If yee inquire why my complaint is &s;o bitter, it is becau&s;e my &s;troake is &s;o heavy, even hea|vier then my groaning; And why &s;hould ye call my complaint rebel|lion, &s;eing I doe not complaine more, no nor &s;o much as I have cau&s;e. My &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</HI> Thus he is &s;till labour|ing to acquit him&s;elfe of that &s;o often repeated accu&s;ation, impa|tience under the hand of God, and rebellion again&s;t him.</P>
<Q>My &s;troake.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>my hand,</HI> the hand is taken for that which was done by the hand; The in&s;trument for the effect; <HI>my hand,</HI> that is, <HI>the &s;troake of the hand that is upon me;</HI> who&s;e hand was that? the hand of God he meanes. As if it had been &s;ayd more expre&s;&s;ely, <HI>The &s;troake of the hand of God upon me is heavier then my groaning.</HI> In the former part of the ver&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Manus pro pla|ga a manu dei inflicta. Metonymico<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s.</NOTE> he &s;pake <HI>of the bitterne&s;&s;e of his complaint,</HI> here of the <HI>heavines of his &s;troake,</HI> or <HI>that the &s;troake given him was exceeding heavy.</HI> As bitter things are grievous to the pallate, &s;o heavy things are burden&s;ome to the whole body; <HI>We are &s;oone weary of that which is very heavy.</HI> And therfore (<HI>Mat.</HI> 11.30.) when Chri&s;t would convince us that we have no rea&s;on to be weary of that burden, which he layeth upon us, (his holy coun&s;els and commandements) he &s;aith, <HI>My yoke is ea&s;ie, and my burthen light:</HI> My burdens are not like tho&s;e which the Phari&s;ees bind upon you, <HI>heavy and grievous to be borne</HI> (Math. 23.4.) So here, when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>My &s;troake is heavy,</HI> he would have his friends know that his were (in them&s;elves) no light afflictions (though there is a &s;ence in which all the afflictions of the Saints <HI>are light,</HI> 2 Cor. 4.17.) but grievous to be borne.</P>
<P>Secondly, Some read the words thus, <HI>My &s;troake is heavier upon my groanings, or when I groane;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>the more I groane and &s;igh, the more I am wounded, I get nothing by my groan|ings but fre&s;h &s;mitings and additional &s;orrows.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Others tran&s;late the Hebrew word properly, not <HI>&s;troake</HI> (by a Metonymie of the effect) but <HI>hand. My hand is heavy upon</HI> (or becau&s;e of) <HI>my groaning;</HI> that is, <HI>my hand is
<PB N="305" REF="165"> weake becau&s;e of my groaning;</HI> a weake hand, is a heavy hand;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Manus mea ag|gravata &s;uper genitum meum, <HI>i. e.</HI> propter ge|nitus et planctus quos dolores ex|torquent, etiam v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">es meae defi|ciunt, manu&s;&abque; le&s;&s;ae &amp; remi&s;|&s;ae vix prae im|becallitate attol|li po&s;&s;unt. <HI>Scult.</HI></NOTE> that is heavy, which is not lifted up without difficulty. Now when the hand is weake we can hardly lift it to our head (as we &s;ay). The weake hand is a heavy hand, not becau&s;e of the weight of it, but becau&s;e of the weaknes of it, or want of &s;trength to weild any thing with it, or to hold it up. In this &s;ence we are to under&s;tand <HI>Job</HI> crying out, <HI>My hand is heavy becau&s;e of my groaning;</HI> As if he had &s;aid; <HI>My &s;trength failes me, my hands hang downe, and through weakne&s;&s;e I am not able to lift them up.</HI> In the fourth Chapter, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> told <HI>Job,</HI> that he by his good coun&s;el had formerly <HI>&s;treng|thened the weake, or the loo&s;ned hands.</HI> Which forme of &s;peaking an&s;wers that of the Apo&s;tle (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.12.) <HI>Lift up the hands that hang downe.</HI> Weakenes is as a weight fa&s;tned to the hand, and holding it downe. The hand is never &s;o much fa&s;tned, as when it is (in this &s;ence) made lax or loo&s;ened The Original word here u&s;ed intimates, that much &s;orrow and trouble weigh downe the hand; <HI>My hand is heavy becau&s;e of my groaning,</HI> or (as we read) <HI>My &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</HI></P>
<P>Thus we have <HI>Job</HI> &s;till complaining and groaning; whence was all this? even from the &s;ence of his &s;ore afflictions.</P>
<P>Which may teach us;</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That affliction doth u&s;ually vent it &s;elfe in complaints and groanes.</HI></P>
<P>While we are in the fle&s;h, we are &s;ubject to affliction; and all affliction is grievous to the fle&s;h, not onely to fle&s;h as it notes the corruption of the &s;oule, but to fle&s;h as taken for the con&s;titution of the body. <HI>Affliction will be felt; It makes the fle&s;h &s;mart;</HI> and when the fle&s;h &s;marts, it may make him complain and groane who is &s;pirituall; yea, complaints and groanes give &s;ome ea&s;e to our af|flictions. As the paine of affliction cau&s;eth groaning &amp; complain|ing, &s;o groaning and complaining are &s;ome releefe in our paines: &amp; hence it hath been reported as one of the highe&s;t peices of cru|elty not to allow tho&s;e who have been under exqui&s;ite paines to complaine and groane; for though groaning doth not at all abate the paine, yet it doth &s;omewhat divert our thoughts from it; and while we communicate it to others in complaints, we are &s;ome|what the le&s;&s;e &s;encible of it our &s;elves.</P>
<P>Secondly, Whereas <HI>Job</HI> checks his friends (according to the
<PB N="306" REF="166"> &s;econd expo&s;ition of the words) for calling or accounting his complaint rebellion.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That we are apt to mi&s;under&s;tand and wrongfully interpret the complaints of others.</Q></P>
<P>Many are ready to mi&s;-interpret that which we &s;peake delibe|rately, much more what we &s;peake pa&s;&s;ionately and complaining|ly; <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake &s;orrowfully, and he was pre&s;ently judged to &s;peake rebelliou&s;ly: he was but humbling and bemoaning him&s;elfe be|fore God, yet he was e&s;teemed as a man ri&s;ing up again&s;t and warring with God. While <HI>Hanna</HI> was making a prayerfull com|plaint to God, <HI>Eli a good man</HI> thought &s;he was overgon with wine (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.14.) <HI>How long wilt thou be drunke, put away thy wine from thee.</HI> When the Apo&s;tles were uttering the great things of God, as <HI>&s;ome were amazed,</HI> &s;o <HI>others mocked, &s;aying, The&s;e men are full of new wine</HI> (Acts 2.13.) There are two &s;orts of words and actions mo&s;t liable to mi&s;-interpretation.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, When we act or &s;peake highly in holine&s;&s;e; for then the world looks upon tho&s;e of &s;ounde&s;t minds as mad, or vaine, as di|&s;tracted or drunken, <HI>the&s;e men</HI> (&s;aith the world) <HI>are full of new wine;</HI> whereas indeed (as <HI>Peter</HI> makes an&s;wer in the <HI>Acts) they are not drunken, as is &s;uppo&s;ed, but filled with the Spirit. Fe&s;tus</HI> told <HI>Paul,</HI> that he was <HI>be&s;ide him&s;elfe, that much learning had made him mad,</HI> when he heard the di&s;cour&s;e of his wonderfull conver&s;i|on to Chri&s;t, and holy conver&s;ation in Chri&s;t (<HI>Acts</HI> 26.24.) And it &s;eemes that &s;ome among the <HI>Corinthians</HI> had no better nor o|ther opinion of him, el&s;e he would not have made &s;uch an Apolo|gy for him&s;elfe and fellow-&s;ervants in Go&s;pel-worke (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.13.) <HI>Whether we be be&s;ides our &s;elves it is to God</HI> &amp;c. that's a &s;ober madne&s;&s;e indeed which is to God. But thus &s;till we &s;ee they who act or &s;peake highe&s;t in grace, are cen&s;ured as acting and &s;peaking below nature. And as the&s;e who&s;e graces are <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">oving aloft, are of|ten &s;u&s;pected of madne&s;&s;e,</P>
<P>So, &s;econdly, they who lye below complaining under the pre&s;|&s;ures of nature by affliction, are as often &s;u&s;pected of and charged with impatience. <HI>A troubled &s;pirit can hardly judge aright of it &s;elfe, and is &s;eldome rightly judged by others.</HI> I will end this poynt with two Cautions. The fir&s;t to all, concerning tho&s;e that are af|flicted; The &s;econd to all that are afflicted.</P>
<PB N="307" REF="166">
<P>To the former I &s;ay, <HI>judge charitably of tho&s;e who complaine bit|terly;</HI> for as a man in a low condition knoweth not what him&s;elfe would eyther be or doe, were he advanced to the heights of ho|nour and power; &s;o he that is at ea&s;e, and wel, knoweth not what him&s;elfe would eyther be or doe, were he in paine or overwhelmed with &s;orrows. <HI>Extreames in any <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ate are rarely borne with a wel or duely tempered moderation.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, To the latter I &s;ay, let them expect to heare them|&s;elves hardly cen&s;ured, and learne to beare it: let not &s;uch thinke &s;trange of their &s;ufferings, eyther under the hand of God, or by the tongues of men. <HI>Great &s;ufferers &s;peake often unbecommingly, and are as often &s;o &s;poken of.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Fora&s;much as the matter of this &s;ugge&s;tion again&s;t <HI>Job, tumultuous and rebellious &s;peeches,</HI> at lea&s;t &s;peeches &s;avouring &s;trongly of rebellion are incident to any Godly man in <HI>Jobs</HI> con|dition. Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>There may be rebellion again&s;t God in a good mans complain|ings under the afflicting hand of God.</Q>
<P>An unquiet &s;pirit is not onely a great burden to man, but a di&s;|honour to God. Our di&s;&s;atisfaction with the dealings of God, carrieth in it (at lea&s;t an implicit) accu&s;ation of him, or that God hath not done well becau&s;e it is ill (to &s;ence) with us. There is a rebellion again&s;t the rod as wel as again&s;t the word of God. For as our &s;trugling and &s;triving with the word of God and the unqui|etne&s;&s;e of our hearts under any truth when it takes hold of us is rebellion again&s;t God, &s;o to &s;trive, and &s;truggle, with the rod of God, or with the cro&s;&s;e that he layes upon us is rebellion again&s;t him al&s;o. God &s;peakes to us by his rod as wel as by his word; and we &s;purne at God in wrangling with his rod, as wel as in wrangling with his word. Yea to have hard thoughts of God, as that he is &s;evere, and rigourous, that he hath put off his bowells of compa&s;&s;ion towards us, and forgotten to be gratious; &s;uch thoughts, as the&s;e, of God under affliction, are rebellious thoughts. And as there is a rebellion in the thoughts again&s;t God in ca&s;e of affliction, &s;o al&s;o in the Tongue. Thus, to murmur is to rebell. I doe not &s;ay that all complaining is rebelling, but all murmuring is; we may complaine and tell the Lord how &s;ad it is with us, how much our &s;oules, our bodies, our e&s;tates, our relations bleed and
<PB N="308" REF="167"> &s;mart. We may complaine, and make great complaints without &s;in, but the lea&s;t murmuring is &s;infull, yea in the very nature of it, &s;o full of &s;in, that it u&s;ually and de&s;ervedly pa&s;&s;eth under the name of Rebellion. The children of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> were as often charged with rebellion as with murmuring; And therefore when they murmur|ed for want of Water, <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayd unto them, <HI>Heare now ye rebels, mu&s;t we fetch you water out of this Rocke?</HI> (Numb. 20.10.) And againe, <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> chargeth this upon them with his la&s;t breath (as it were) <HI>Deut.</HI> 31.27. <HI>I know thy rebellion and thy &s;tiffe necke, behold while I am yet alive with you this day, ye have been rebellious again&s;t the Lord, and how much more after my death:</HI> yea the Lord him|&s;elfe chargeth rebellion upon that unparalleld payre of Brethren, <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> and <HI>Aaron</HI> them&s;elves, becau&s;e they had not &s;o fully as they ought at all times and in all things &s;ubmitted unto his divine di&s;|pen&s;ations among that people, (<HI>Numb.</HI> 24.) <HI>The Lord &s;pake to Mo&s;es, &s;aying, Aaron &s;hall be gathered unto his people, for he &s;hall not enter into the Land which I have given unto the children of I&s;|rael, becau&s;e yee</HI> (the Lord puts them both together in the &s;in) <HI>rebelled again&s;t my word at the waters of Meribah.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, whereas <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth; <HI>Even to day my complaint is bit|ter.</HI> Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The Afflictions and &s;orrows of &s;ome eminently Godly, &s;ticke by them, or continue long upon them.</Q>
<P>It is with afflictions as with di&s;ea&s;es, there are &s;ome acute di&s;|ea&s;es, &s;harpe and feirce for a while, but they la&s;t not, they are o|ver in a few dayes; for eyther the di&s;ea&s;e departs from the man, or the man departs out of the world by the feircenes of his di&s;ea&s;e. There are al&s;o Chronicall di&s;ea&s;es, la&s;ting, lingring di&s;ea&s;es, that hang about a man many dayes, yea moneths and yeares, and will not be gone while he lives, but lye downe in the grave with him. Such a difference we finde among tho&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> other afflictions and trou|bles which are not &s;eated (as di&s;ea&s;es) in the body, but reach the whole e&s;tate of man. Some are acute and &s;harpe, like the fierce fitts of a feavor, but they la&s;t not; or like Summers &s;udden &s;tormes, which are &s;oone followed with a &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of faire weather. But there are al&s;o chronicall afflictions, tuffe and unmoveable trou|bles, which abide by us, which dwell with us day after day, yeare after yeare, and never leave us while we live, or till we leave the
<PB N="309" REF="167"> world. Many a good man hath carryed his affliction with him to the grave. If any &s;hall object; how then is that of <HI>David</HI> true, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 30.5.) <HI>Weeping may endure for a night, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">t joy commeth in the morning.</HI> I an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, That Scripture &s;peakes of that which is often experienced, but not alwayes: &s;econdly, It is mo&s;t true al&s;o that all our weeping is but for a night, yea but for <HI>a Mo|ment</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.17.) compared with that morning of joy when the day of our ble&s;&s;ed eternity &s;hall begin. Thirdly, the <HI>P&s;alme</HI> hath this &s;cope cheifely, to &s;hew, that the troubles of the Saints are not everla&s;ting, not that they are never la&s;ting; or to &s;hew that the night of weeping &s;hall at la&s;t conclude in a morning of joy to the Godly, not that their night of weeping &s;hall pre&s;ently conclude. For as &s;ome have onely a Summers night, or a &s;hort night of &s;orrow, &s;o others have a winters night, or a long night of &s;orrow. And this night of &s;orrow, may be as long not onely as many natural dayes, or as &s;omes yeares, but as long as all the naturall dayes and yeares of this pre&s;ent life. The mor|ning of joy is not to be under&s;tood of the next morrow after the &s;orrow began, for how long &s;oever our weeping continues, it is night with us, and when&s;oever joy comes (though at midnight) 'tis morning with us. For &s;ure enough as tho&s;e &s;onnes of plea&s;ure are de&s;cribed (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 56.12.) promi&s;ing them&s;elves the continu|ance of their joyes; (<HI>To morrow &s;hall be as this day, and much more abundant, therefore come fetch wine and let us drinke to day, there will be wine enough for to morrow too,</HI> thus they promi&s;ed them|&s;elves that their plea&s;ures &s;hould continue in a &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of many morrows, now as the&s;e &s;onnes of plea&s;ure promi&s;ed them&s;elves the continuance of their delight) &s;o many of the &s;ons &amp; daughters of &s;orrow have found and &s;till finde a continuance of their trou|bles, and have cau&s;e to &s;ay, this day is even as bad as ye&s;terday was; yea our bitter cup, our wine of a&s;toni&s;hment is much more abun|dant, our &s;orrow is greater this day then it was ye&s;terday, that was a blacke &s;ad gloomy day, and this is a day more blacke, &s;ad, and gloomy then that was.</P>
<P>Fifthly, From the&s;e words; <HI>My &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</HI> Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the afflictions of &s;ome of the pretious &s;ervants of God, exceed, and &s;urpa&s;&s;e all their complaints and groanes.</Q>
<P>The groanes of &s;ome are heavier then their &s;troake, and the
<PB N="310" REF="168"> &s;troakes of not a few are heavier then their groanes. Some &s;hew more &s;orrow then they have, and others have more &s;orrows then they can &s;hew. <HI>I,</HI> &s;ayth <HI>Job, cannot tell you no not &s;o much as by the language of my groaning, how heavy my &s;troake is.</HI> As there <HI>is a peace of God,</HI> a peace which he giveth to many of his people in this life <HI>which pa&s;&s;eth all under&s;tanding</HI> (Phil. 4.6.) they have a &s;ence of &s;uch peace &s;ometimes upon their &s;pirits as their under|&s;tandings know not what to make of it, they are &s;o farre from being able to tell you what it is, that they are not able to conceive what it is, but mu&s;t confe&s;&s;e that their peace is greater and larger then their under&s;tanding, now (I &s;ay) as the peace which God gives his pa&s;&s;eth their under&s;tandings) &s;o the troubles and &s;orrows of many who are deare to God, exceed, or &s;urpa&s;&s;e all their ex|pre&s;&s;ions, they cannot declare, nor can any for them, how it is with them. Againe, as there is in this life a joy in beleiving, which is un&s;peakeable (1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 1.8.) &s;o there is a &s;orrow in &s;uffering which is un&s;peakeable. And (which is very wonderfull) the&s;e two meet &s;ometimes in the &s;ame per&s;on, who at the very in&s;tant while his &s;orrow is &s;o great that he is not able to expre&s;&s;e it, hath al&s;o &s;weete and ravi&s;hing joyes beyond expre&s;&s;ion. Yet, I conceive (as to <HI>Jobs</HI> ca&s;e) his &s;pirit was darke, and his minde troubled, as well as his body was pained, and his outward e&s;tate torne and ruin'd.</P>
<P>Sixthly, From the&s;e words; <HI>My &s;troake is heavier then my groaning.</HI> Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> it is &s;infull to groane and complaine beyond the &s;troake that is upon us, or to complaine more then we have cau&s;e.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> &s;eemes here to yeeld it, and confe&s;&s;e, that if his &s;troake had not been &s;o heavy, his groanes had not been innocent; and if it be &s;infull to groane, and complaine more, or beyond our &s;troakes, how &s;infull is it to complaine without any &s;troake at all? Some complaine without cau&s;e, and groane before they are &s;mitten, yea, &s;ome are ready to complaine when they are incompa&s;&s;ed a|bout with many mercies, and are not &s;atisfied when they are fil|led; they complaine, becau&s;e they have not what they would, or becau&s;e others have more then they, though them&s;elves have enough, if they knew what is enough. The Oxe and the A&s;&s;e are a rebuke to &s;uch; For as <HI>Job</HI> &s;peaketh (<HI>Chap.</HI> 6^t^h) <HI>Will the A&s;&s;e
<PB N="311" REF="168"> bray when he hath gra&s;&s;e, or loweth the Oxe over his fodder?</HI> Irra|tionall creatures will not complaine when they have the conveni|ences of nature. Surely then tho&s;e men act much below grace, who complaine when they have food convenient, and health con|venient, yea all things convenient (po&s;&s;ibly aboundant) for the &s;upport of nature; who complaine when they have not &s;o much as an akeing joynt about them, or the &s;cratch of a pin, no nor the want of a pin, nor of a &s;hoe-lachet. Some complaine when they have meate enough, becau&s;e they have not &s;auce, yea &s;ome com|plaine when they have both meate and &s;auce enough, the afflu|ence of all things, not onely for nece&s;&s;ity but for delight. What &s;hall we &s;ay of them who are never well neyther full nor fa&s;ting; who are &s;o farre from having learned the Apo&s;tles le&s;&s;on to be content in all e&s;tates, that are content in none. The people of <HI>I&s;|rael</HI> murmured not onely when they wanted bread, but when they had it; when they had Mannah they murmured for Quailes, and at la&s;t they murmured at their very Mannah, their &s;oules loathed that light bread: Con&s;ider how <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">at their &s;inne is, who com|plaine upon &s;uch termes as the&s;e, who complaine before they are hurt, yea who complaine when they have no cau&s;e but to be very thankfull. Wee live in complaining times, many cry out of pre&s;|&s;ures and burthens, nothing plea&s;eth many among us, becau&s;e eve|ry thing is not as they plea&s;e. <HI>Take heed your groanings be not heavier then your &s;troake,</HI> e&s;pecially take heed yee be not found groaning without a &s;troake, and complaining over your ble&s;&s;ings; the Lord hath healed our &s;troakes in a great degree, but our com|plainings are not healed; If we be found complaining when we have no cau&s;e, or when we &s;hould be giving thankes, wee may quickly provoke God to give us cau&s;e enough of complaining. God ha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h heavier &s;troakes for them, who&s;e groaning is heavier then their &s;troake, and he hath heavie&s;t &s;troakes for them, who groan when they are not &s;tricken. When children cry for nothing, they are u&s;ually made to feele &s;omething which will make them cry to purpo&s;e. This humour is childi&s;h enough in children, it is wor&s;e in men, but it is wor&s;t of all in Chri&s;tians, who are al&s;o the children of God. There are two things which God will not beare in his; Fir&s;t, when they grow wanton with a mercy; &s;econdly, when they complaine without a cro&s;&s;e. To complaine under a
<PB N="312" REF="169"> cro&s;&s;e, is to act below grace; To complaine of a cro&s;&s;e, is to act again&s;t grace. To complaine beyond a cro&s;&s;e, is a defect of grace, but to complaine without a cro&s;&s;e, is a defect in nature.</P>
<P>The Apo&s;tles rule is (1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5.18.) <HI>in every thing give thankes,</HI> and he gives his rea&s;on for it in the words which follow, <HI>for this is the will of God in Chri&s;t Je&s;us concerning you.</HI> Now, if it be the will of God that we &s;hould give thankes in every thing, then it mu&s;t be again&s;t his will that we &s;hould complaine in any thing. <HI>Complaining is contrary to thanke&s;giving.</HI> A godly man may &s;ee two things in the heavie&s;t &s;troakes of his affliction, which may provoke him to thank&s;giving, at lea&s;t, which may &s;top him from all immoderate complaining; Fir&s;t, That God hath a re&s;pect to his good in his heavie&s;t afflictions, and that the i&s;&s;ue &s;hall certain|ly be good to him. Secondly, that how heavy &s;o ever his &s;troake is, his &s;in hath de&s;erved a heavier, and that God could have made it heavier, even his little finger heavier upon him, then his loynes have been. That our &s;troake might have been heavier may &s;top our complaining, but our hea<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">&s;t &s;troake &s;hall turne to our bene|fit, &s;hould &s;tirre us up to thank&s;giving: In heaven there will not be the lea&s;t &s;hadow of a cau&s;e to complaine; Thank&s;giving will be all our worke, and the worke of all in heaven; And by how much we are the more in thank&s;giving and the le&s;&s;e in complaining on earth (unle&s;&s;e it be of and again&s;t our &s;elves for &s;inne) the more heavenly we are. When we are &s;tricken we &s;hould complaine as little as we can, and we &s;hould alwayes be able to &s;ay (as <HI>Job</HI> here) <HI>That our complaint is not greater then our &s;troake.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="313" REF="169">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 3, 4, 5.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Oh that I knew where I might find him, that I might come even to his &s;eate:</P>
<P>I would order my cau&s;e before him, and fill my mouth with arguments.</P>
<P>I would know the words which he would an&s;wer me, and under&s;tand what he would &s;ay unto me.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> having &s;hewed in the former ver&s;e, how bitter and how &s;ad his Condition was, even farre beyond his owne Complaint, and that his &s;troake was heavier then his groaning; he now turnes him&s;elfe from earth to heaven, from the creature to the Creator, from man to God. <HI>Job</HI> had been among his friends a great while, they had debated the matter long, but all in vaine, and without fruit to his &s;oule; he had yet received no Comfort: What will he doe next? &s;ee here his addre&s;s to God.</P>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><P><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 3.</HI></BIBL> O that I knew where I might finde him! that I might come even to his &s;eat,</P>
<P>O that I knew!</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>who will give me to know</HI> &amp;c. The words are a forme of wi&s;hing, ordinary among the Jewes; <HI>Who will give, or who will grant mee this or that, O that I knew</HI> &amp;c. And it Inti|mates or Implyes two things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A vehement and &s;trong de&s;ire after &s;omewhat much de|&s;ierable; who will give mee this? or where &s;hall I have it?</P>
<P>Secondly, It Implyes &s;elfe-Inability, or &s;elfe-In&s;ufficiency to attaine and reach the thing de&s;iered. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;aid; <HI>I am not able of my &s;elfe to finde him, O that I knew where I might finde him! O that I eyther had the light of this knowledge in my &s;elfe, or that &s;ome body would enforme and teach mee! O that I had a friend to Chalke mee out the way, to lead mee by the hand, and bring mee neer to God.</HI></P>
<PB N="314" REF="170">
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quis mihi tri|buat ut cogno&s; cam &amp; inveni am illum. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE>The vulgar latine Reading fixeth both tho&s;e acts upon God as the Object; <HI>O that &s;ome one or other would give mee to know and finde him!</HI> As if his wi&s;h and longing de&s;ire were fir&s;t to know God, &s;econdly, to finde him; or in finding to know him. Our tran&s;lation determines this knowing in <HI>Job,</HI> and finding upon <HI>God. O That I knew where I might finde him!</HI> Who it is that <HI>Job</HI> would finde is not expre&s;t in the text by name, nor is there any Antice|dent in the ver&s;e before, with which we can Connect this relative <HI>him.</HI> Yet 'tis beyond que&s;tion or di&s;pute that he meanes God, <HI>O that I might finde him!</HI> that is, <HI>God.</HI> But why did he not &s;ay, <HI>O that I knew where to finde God,</HI> but, <HI>O that I knew where to finde him?</HI> I an&s;wer, He doth it becau&s;e his heart being full of God, he &s;uppo&s;ed that tho&s;e to whom he &s;pake had their hearts full of him too, and &s;o would ea&s;ily under&s;tand whom he meant, or that he could mean none but God.</P>
<P>Wee finde &s;uch kinde of abrupt &s;peeches (as I may call them) in other Texts of Scripture, &s;till ari&s;ing from fullnes and &s;trength of affection in the &s;peaker. See how <HI>Solomon</HI> begins his Love-&s;ong, <HI>his Song of Songs. The Song of Songs which is Solomons,</HI> that's the title of it; How doth it begin? <HI>Let him ki&s;s mee</HI> &amp;c. Here is a &s;trange Exordium to a Song, none having been &s;poken of before, <HI>Let him ki&s;s mee with the ki&s;&s;es of his mouth!</HI> by whom the Church would be ki&s;&s;ed &s;hee expre&s;&s;eth not, but her heart was &s;o full of Chri&s;t, &s;o full of love to Chri&s;t her Bridegroom, her husband, that &s;hee thinks it needle&s;&s;e to mention him by name, when &s;hee &s;peakes of him who&s;e ki&s;&s;es &s;hee de&s;iered. Her love had pa&s;&s;ed through the whole Creation, through men and Angels, through all things here below, and fixt it &s;elfe onely upon Chri&s;t her Lord and Love. Therefore &s;hee never &s;tood &s;peaking per&s;onally of him, but onely relatively, and leaves all to under&s;tand whom &s;he inten|ded. Thus &s;aith <HI>Job, O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI> when as he had not &s;poken of any di&s;tinct per&s;on before, in this Chap|ter. And wee have a like pa&s;&s;age flowing from a like abundant love to Chri&s;t, in the 20^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h of <HI>John</HI> ver. 15. where <HI>Mary</HI> comes to the Sepulchre (Chri&s;t being ri&s;en) and the Angel &s;eing her weepe asked her the rea&s;on of it; To whom &s;hee replyed, <HI>Becau&s;e they have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him;</HI> having thus &s;aid, <HI>&s;hee turned her &s;elfe backe, and &s;aw Je&s;us &s;tanding, and knew not that it was Je&s;us: he &s;aith unto her, Woman, why
<PB N="315" REF="170"> weepe&s;t thou? whom &s;eeke&s;t thou? Shee &s;uppo&s;ing him to be the Gar|diner &s;aid, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou ha&s;t laid him:</HI> Shee never names Chri&s;t, but onely &s;aith, <HI>If thou have borne him hence</HI> &amp;c. becau&s;e her heart was full of Chri&s;t, &s;hee thought his heart was full of him too, and that hee under&s;tood her well enough whom &s;he meant, though &s;hee &s;ayd not whom &s;hee meant. Thus in the pre&s;ent text, <HI>Job</HI> was to God at that time, as <HI>Mary</HI> to Chri&s;t, at a lo&s;&s;e for him, not knowing where to finde him, God was as it were removed from him, as Chri&s;t was ri&s;en from the Sepulchre; Therefore he complainingly and affectionate|ly enquires; <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI> My &s;oule is a thir&s;t for God, my heart pants after him, <HI>O that I knew</HI>
<Q>where I might finde him!</Q></P>
<P>The Hebrew word &s;ignifieth to <HI>finde,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Verbum <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignificat &s;aepius obviam habere quemquam vel al<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">cui obvium fieri.</NOTE> by going out to meet a man, or (as we &s;ay) to light upon him. As <HI>Ahab</HI> &s;aid to <HI>Elijah</HI> (1 <HI>King.</HI> 21.20.) <HI>Ha&s;t thou found</HI> (or met) <HI>mee O mine enemy? and he an&s;wered, I have found</HI> (or met) <HI>thee.</HI> So the word is u&s;ed (2 <HI>King.</HI> 10.13.) <HI>Jehu mett with the Brethren of Ahaziah King of Judah;</HI> In the Margin wee &s;ay, <HI>Jehu found the Brethren of Aha|ziah,</HI> that is, he mett them upon the way, for he went out to meet them. Read al&s;o (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 10.3.) As if the &s;ence were thus gi|ven; <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI> that is, <HI>whither I might goe to meet him,</HI> though I &s;hould not finde him by accident, or (as wee &s;ay) &s;tumble upon him; I would goe out, I would tra|vell, and take paines upon hopes to meet him.</P>
<P>Secondly, That word &s;ignifies &s;o to finde as to take hold and apprehend, to take fa&s;t hold of a thing; and then, <HI>O that I might finde him;</HI> is, <HI>O that I might lay hold on him;</HI> if I knew where I might have him, I would lay fa&s;t hold on him, and cleave clo&s;e to him. So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 10.10.) <HI>As my hand hath found the kingdomes of the Idolls, and who&s;e graven Images did excell them of Jeru&s;alem and Samaria.</HI> Thus &s;pake the proud A&s;&s;yrian, <HI>my hand hath found them;</HI> Why, the Kingdomes of the Heathen were not in a Corner, that he had need to &s;earch after them, he did not make a new di&s;covery of tho&s;e kingdomes, They were not, <HI>terra Incognita,</HI> an unknowne or a <HI>new found land;</HI> that's not the mean|ing; but when he &s;aith, <HI>my hand hath found them,</HI> the &s;ence is, <HI>I have laid hold on them, and ceized them to my owne u&s;e, I have ad|ded
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<PB N="316" REF="172"> them to my owne dominion, and brought them under my &s;ubjecti|on.</HI> So in the 14 ver&s;e of that Chapter; <HI>My hand hath found as a Ne&s;t the riches of the people,</HI> that is, I have laid hold on their ri|ches, and &s;aid <HI>all's mine;</HI> I have taken the whole ne&s;t with all the eggs, all their goods and trea&s;ures, into my cu&s;tody and po&s;&s;e&s;&s;i|on. Thus <HI>Job</HI> would finde God that he might lay hold on him for his owne or owne him as his. Thus al&s;o the word is u&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 21.8.) <HI>Thine hand &s;hall finde out all thine Enemies, thy right hand &s;hall finde out tho&s;e that hate thee.</HI> It is not meant onely of a di&s;covery of a per&s;on (though it be a truth, that the Lord will di&s;cover all that are his Enemies) but <HI>thine hand &s;hall finde them out,</HI> is, it &s;hall take hold of them, gra&s;pe them, and arre&s;t them. Thy hand &s;hall finde out all thine Enemies, though clo&s;e, though Covert Enemies, not onely thy above-ground Enemies, but thy under-ground Enemies, as well tho&s;e that undermine thee, as tho&s;e that a&s;&s;ault thee. Once more, in the 116^t^h <HI>P&s;al.</HI> ver. 3. we have an Illu&s;tration of this &s;ence; <HI>The &s;orrowes of death Compa&s;&s;ed mee, and the paines of hell gate hold upon me.</HI> The Hebrew text is, <HI>the paines of hell found mee: the pain<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s of hell,</HI> that is, the greate&s;t, the extreame&s;t paines, <HI>gat hold upon mee; they found mee,</HI> that is, they ceized upon mee, and held me fa&s;t: a word of the &s;ame roote is u|&s;ed in both parts of that text, that which wee tran&s;late <HI>to get hold,</HI> is the &s;ame with that, <HI>I found trouble and &s;orrow,</HI> they found mee and I found them; thus &s;aith <HI>Job, O that I knew where I might finde him,</HI> that I might take hold of him; why how doth the hand of a Saint finde God? how doth he take hold of and apprehend God? how doth he as it were, arre&s;t him, and keepe him clo&s;e? I an&s;wer, <HI>By faith,</HI> and reliance upon him; <HI>O that I knew where to finde him;</HI> that the Lord might not be at &s;uch a di&s;tance from mee, as he hath been, but that I finding him might fix my &s;oule upon him. That's a good &s;ence.</P>
<P>Yet I conceive in this place, wee may rather expound <HI>Job</HI> &s;peaking of God after the manner of Magi&s;trates among men, who appoynt certaine places where to &s;it in Judgement, where to heare Cau&s;es, whither all that are wronged and oppre&s;&s;ed re&s;ort for reliefe and right. (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 7.17.) <HI>Samuel</HI> was the Chiefe Magi&s;trate, The Judge in <HI>I&s;rael:</HI> Now the text &s;aith at the 16^t^h ver&s;e, that <HI>he went from yeare to yeare in Circuit</HI> (as wee have the Judges of the Circuit) <HI>to Bethel, and Gilgal, and Mizpeh, and
<PB N="317" REF="172"> Judged I&s;rael in all tho&s;e places, and returned to Ramah, for there was his hou&s;e, and there he Judged I&s;rael;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>his &s;tanding hou&s;e</HI> was at <HI>Ramoth</HI> and thither all cau&s;es were brought and all per&s;ons grieved re&s;orted for Ju&s;tice in their &s;everall ca&s;es. Hee rid Circuit every yeare, that all the people might the more ea&s;ily finde him; yet he had a fixed &s;eate. In alu&s;ion to this practice <HI>Job</HI> appealing from his friends to God &s;aith, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him,</HI> and goe to him for Judgement; O that I might have Audience before him in this great bui&s;ines.</P>
<P>But it may be &s;aid, Did not <HI>Job</HI> know where to finde God? or was <HI>Job</HI> out of the pre&s;ence of God?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, the Lord carryed him&s;elfe to <HI>Job</HI> at that time as a &s;tranger, and though he were with him (as he alwayes is with all his) yet he did not finde him; The Lord is with many of his peo|ple when they are not with him, that is, when they doe not finde him, or are not &s;encible of his pre&s;ence. God is with his people, even when they walke through the valley of the &s;hadow of death, yet they are not alwayes with God: yea God doth not alwayes manife&s;t him&s;elfe to them while they walke in the mo&s;t delicious and light&s;ome paradi&s;es of this life. God &s;ometimes hides him|&s;elfe, &s;o that they cannot make it out that God is pre&s;ent with them. God is never &s;eene in regard of the invi&s;ibility of his na|ture, and he is often un&s;eene in regard of the ob&s;curity of his di&s;|pen&s;ations: as <HI>Job</HI> &s;hewes further at the 8^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>Behold I goe forward but he is not there, and backward but I cannot perceive him.</HI> I goe forward and backward, that is, I goe every way, I take all cour&s;es to finde him, but I cannot perceive God, for he hides and covers him&s;elfe with clouds, that our prayers cannot come at him; as the Church complaines (<HI>Lament.</HI> 3.44.) though wee are al|wayes pre&s;ent to God, yet God is not alwayes pre&s;ent to us, that is, to our apprehen&s;ion; as God is not at all pre&s;ent to our &s;en&s;e, &s;o he is not alwayes pre&s;ent to our faith; that's the meaning of <HI>Job,</HI> when he &s;aith, <HI>I goe forward but he is not there,</HI> &amp;c. God is every where; whither <HI>can I goe from his pre&s;ence</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David, P&s;al.</HI> 139.) <HI>If I goe up into heaven he is there</HI> &amp;c. yet &s;aith <HI>Job, if I goe forward he is not there,</HI> that is, I have no Enjoyments of God there; and upon this ground he &s;aith in the pre&s;ent text, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him! Job</HI> was well acquainted with the doctrine of Gods Omnipre&s;ence, he was farre from thinking that
<PB N="318" REF="173"> there was any certaine place where God was fixt, and whether he mu&s;t repaire as to the Kings and Princes of this world for helpe. <HI>Job</HI> knew better Divinity then this, he was acquainted with the nature and divine perfections of God, but he &s;peaks as to his pre|&s;ent want, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve fir&s;t,
<Q>A godly man hath earne&s;t and longing de&s;ires after God.</Q></P>
<P>What&s;oever, or whom&s;oever he findes, he thinks he hath found nothing, or no body till he findes God; <HI>O that I might finde him!</HI> How doth <HI>David (P&s;al.</HI> 42.1, 2.) &s;hew his un&s;atisfiednes till he found God. <HI>As the hart panteth after the water Brookes, &s;o panteth my &s;oule after thee, O God, my &s;oule thir&s;teth for God, for the living God, when &s;hall I come and appeare before God?</HI> nothing but God was in his mouth, nothing in his de&s;ire; <HI>David</HI> had a king|dome, <HI>David</HI> had a Throne, <HI>David</HI> had honour and riches as much as he could de&s;ire, why would not the&s;e &s;atisfie his thir&s;t? Could not he &s;it downe in the&s;e Enjoyments? no! <HI>David</HI> was hungry and thir&s;ty, and pineing, and empty, and &s;tarveing, and dying, till he had God, till he had this &s;peciall Enjoyment of God; for &s;o wee are to Expound that text, as this. <HI>A wicked man can take up on this &s;ide God,</HI> Cares not to finde him, nay, is afraid to be found of him; he then &s;aith (according to the text touched before) as <HI>Ahab</HI> to <HI>Elijah, Ha&s;t thou found mee O mine Enemy?</HI> He would be glad if God would never finde him, nor he finde God. (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 10.4.) <HI>The wicked through the pride of his Countenance will not &s;eeke after God.</HI> The &s;eat of pride is in the heart, but the pro&s;pect of pride is in the face; <HI>through the pride of his Countenance,</HI> that is, by rea&s;on of that pride which doth di&s;cover it &s;elfe in his Counte|nance, which breakes out there, he will not <HI>&s;eeke after God,</HI> his pride will not let him &s;eeke after God. He that is proud, &s;eeth not his need of God, and he that &s;eeth not his need of God will never &s;eeke after him. Such a one is &s;o farre from longing after God, or &s;aying, <HI>O that I might know where I might finde him,</HI> that hee will not &s;o much as looke after him, when he is told where he may be found. And not onely &s;o, but, <HI>God is not in all his thoughts;</HI> or as &s;ome render it, <HI>all his thoughts are, there is no God;</HI> yea not onely are all his thoughts, but all his hopes are, that there is no God; if hee can but &s;trengthen him&s;elfe in the unbeleef of a God,
<PB N="319" REF="173"> then he is well; all the thoughts and hopes that plea&s;e and de|light him are that there is no God, &s;o farre is he from being &s;oli|citous to know God. <HI>'Tis a condition equally &s;ad eyther when all a mans thoughts are, that there is no God, or when God is not in all his thoughts.</HI> A wicked man may talke of God &s;ometimes, but God never comes neer his heart, as the Prophet &s;peakes (<HI>Jer.</HI> 12.2.) <HI>Thou art neare in their mouth, but farre from their reines;</HI> that is, from their de&s;ires and delights. 'Tis what our reines &s;ay, not what our mouthes &s;ay, that God re&s;pects. A Godly mans chiefe care is to be accepted with God, his thoughts are for God, and of God; and were it not for this thought, <HI>that God is,</HI> or that there is a God, and he a holy God, a ju&s;t God, a gracious God, he would not thinke him&s;elfe (as wee &s;ay) worth the ground hee goes upon. And as all his thoughts are that there is a God, &s;o all his hope and faith is in him, and his de&s;ires are after him; <HI>O that I might finde him, enjoy him, gra&s;pe him, take hold on him,</HI> who is <HI>The All</HI> of my de&s;ires and hopes and thoughts.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That a Godly man is &s;ometimes at a lo&s;s for God, and cannot tell where to finde him.</Q></P>
<P>He hath no &s;en&s;ibly-&s;pirituall Enjoyment of him; The children of light often walke in darkenes; They who feare the Lord much, may be without the feelings of his love, and they who obey his holy commandements without the comfort of his pretious promi|&s;es. Even Chri&s;t him&s;elfe was at &s;uch a lo&s;s for God, when he cry|ed out, <HI>My God, my God, why ha&s;t thou for&s;aken me</HI> (P&s;al. 22.1.) Chri&s;t being to &s;uffer for &s;inners, ta&s;ted of all tho&s;e &s;orts of &s;uffer|ings which are due to &s;in; He endured not onely the puni&s;hment of &s;ence in the paines of his body, but the puni&s;hment of lo&s;&s;e in the hidings of his fathers comfortable pre&s;ence from his &s;oule. If this were done to the Greene tree, much more to the dry, and if our head found an interruption of the pre&s;ence of God, much more may we, who are his members.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That while Saints are at a lo&s;s for God, their de&s;ires are often quicker and more &s;tirring after God.</Q></P>
<P>It is a &s;ad thing not to finde God, but it is farre &s;adder to have
<PB N="320" REF="174"> no de&s;ires after him: Unbeleevers are alwayes at a lo&s;s for God, they live without God in the world, &s;uch a life is a very death, but this is more deadly that they have no de&s;ires after God, that they make no enquiry, no &s;earch after him. Though <HI>Job</HI> were at a lo&s;s for God, yet his heart was full of de&s;ires to finde him; and God (I may &s;ay) is mo&s;t de&s;ireable to Saints while they are at a lo&s;s for him. Thus the Spou&s;e &s;peakes (<HI>Cant.</HI> 3.1.) <HI>By night on my bed I &s;ought him whom my &s;oule loveth, I &s;ought him but I found him not.</HI> But becau&s;e &s;he found him not, when &s;hee &s;ought him, did &s;hee give over &s;eeking him? No, her de&s;ires of &s;eeking and finding him were enflamed by her not finding him when &s;he &s;ought him; as it follows in the &s;econd ver&s;e; <HI>I will ri&s;e now and goe about the City in the &s;treetes and in the broad wayes, I will &s;eeke him whom my &s;oule loveth, I &s;ought him but I found him not.</HI> Thus her &s;e|cond labour in &s;eeking of him was lo&s;t al&s;o. But doth not this quite di&s;courage her, and kill her de&s;ires after him? will &s;he not now give over &s;eeking him? No not yet (<HI>ver.</HI> 3.) <HI>The watch-men that goe about the City found me, to whom I &s;ayd, &s;aw ye him whom my &s;oule loveth?</HI> Shee is &s;till enquiring and &s;eeking, and at la&s;t &s;hee found (<HI>ver.</HI> 4.) <HI>It was but a little that I pa&s;&s;ed from them but I found him, whom my &s;oule loveth: I held him and would not let him goe,</HI> &amp;c. Many who enjoy Chri&s;t have not &s;uch &s;trong de&s;ires af|ter him as they who enjoy him not; as it is with other mercies, &s;o with this, which is the highe&s;t and chiefe&s;t, the &s;umme of all mercies, the Enjoyment of God, our de&s;ires to him grow quicker upon his ab&s;ence, and wee &s;eldome prize his pre&s;ence as we ought, till he is departed or withdrawne from us.</P>
<P>Againe, we may con&s;ider <HI>Job</HI> here in a very afflicted Conditi|on, what doth he doe now? <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI></P>
<P>Note, Fourthly;
<Q>God is mo&s;t &s;weet to an afflicted &s;oule.</Q></P>
<P>The pre&s;ence of God is &s;weet, precious, and delicious to Saints at all times, but then &s;weete&s;t when they finde mo&s;t bitternes in the world. How plea&s;ant is the love of God when we are &s;encible of mans hatred? Some good men have &s;o much &s;weetnes and love in the world, that they cannot &s;o well reli&s;h or ta&s;te the &s;weetnes of the love of God; though indeed nothing argues the Excellency
<PB N="321" REF="174"> of the &s;pirit of a Saint, then this,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Extrema cala|mi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">as &amp; aba lienatio amico|rum ju&s;|tum ho|minem ad deum confugere com|pellebat. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> that the &s;ence of the love of God to him, takes off the reli&s;h of all creature-love, in the mid&s;t of his highe&s;t Enjoyments of it. That &s;oule is purely &s;pirituall, which having abundance of worldly enjoyments, riches, friends, relati|ons, all that he can de&s;ire, yet in the affluence and highe&s;t floate of all the&s;e can &s;ay, that the &s;weetne&s;&s;e which he ta&s;teth in God drownes the reli&s;h of all the&s;e, and makes them as ta&s;tle&s;&s;e as the white of an Egge in compari&s;on of that &s;weetnes which he hath ta&s;ted in the goodne&s;s of God; this is &s;piritualne&s;s in the very height of it; but u&s;ually God is then &s;weete&s;t to us when the world is bittere&s;t to us. <HI>Afflicted &s;oules make mo&s;t ha&s;t after God;</HI> and it is well to doe &s;o; it is a very &s;ad &s;igne, the wor&s;t Symptome that can appeare upon the &s;oules of any, when afflictions draw them off from God, or when they grow cold in their affections towards God, while the love of the world growes cold towards them. The Prophet (<HI>Amos</HI> 6.7.) fore&s;heweth a very great calamity that &s;hould fall upon the people of God; <HI>Thou &s;halt goe Captive with the fir&s;t that goe Captive,</HI> &amp;c. And in the 8 ver&s;e; <HI>The Lord God hath &s;worne by him&s;elfe &s;aith the Lord the God of ho&s;ts, I abhorre the Excellency of Jacob, and hate his Palaces</HI> (As if he had &s;ayd, though I have inve&s;ted him with excellent priviledges, &amp; though he make a great profe&s;&s;ion of my name, yet becau&s;e of his provocations and unworthy walkings) <HI>I will deliver up the City and all that is therein,</HI> there's Captivity; then comes Pe&s;tilence in the 9^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e; <HI>And it &s;hall come to pa&s;s, if ten men remaine in one hou&s;e that they &s;hall dye;</HI> and they &s;hall not bury them after the ordinary way, but burne them, and the neere&s;t relations &s;hall doe it. (<HI>Ver.</HI> 10^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h.) <HI>And a mans &V;ncle &s;hall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring the bones out of the hou&s;e, and &s;hall &s;ay unto him that is by the &s;ides of the hou&s;e, is there yet any with thee? and he &s;hall &s;ay, no, then &s;hall he &s;ay hold thy tongue, for wee may not make mention of the Name of the Lrrd.</HI> As if when all the&s;e evills and plagues were come upon them, they had been &s;topt or re&s;trained from prayer, and totally withdrawn from God, by &s;ome prohibition from men, who were &s;o farre from calling the people to &s;olicite God by pray|er to take off his hand,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Diligentius d<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> irati coluntur.</HI> Sen. l. 1. De|clam: 1.</NOTE> that they forbid them &s;o much as make mention of his name; As if they were eyther afraid or abhorred to mention the name of God, becau&s;e he had been &s;o terrible a|mong them in his Judgements. And whereas we tran&s;late, <HI>We may
<PB N="322" REF="175"> not make mention of the names of the Lord.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ne ill<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> inter pelles ne&abque; illu~ tuis precibus &s;olicites, illius ve nomen aut memoriam u|&s;urpes qui tibi haec mala fecit mandavit vo|luit. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> Our late Annotators take notice of two other readings. <HI>We have not, or, we will not make mention of the name of the Lord;</HI> Implying that the &s;top lay onely in their owne &s;pirits, they being eyther &s;o generally wicked, that they had no minde to call upon God, or &s;o unbeleeving that they thought their ca&s;e de&s;perate, and had no hope of help if they &s;hould. A Heathen hath &s;ayd, <HI>That their gods were mo&s;t wor&s;hip|ped when mo&s;t di&s;plea&s;ed;</HI> but we have &s;ome Chri&s;tians in name who will not wor&s;hip God at all when they are under the tokens of his di&s;plea&s;ure. Thoughts of God are never more plea&s;ing to a gra|tious heart, nor more trouble&s;ome to a wicked, then when they are in trouble.</P>
<P>Fifthly, (which will further cleare what was la&s;t ob&s;erved)</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> The unkindne&s;&s;e and trouble which a godly man findeth a|mong his friends or others in the world, drives him neerer to God.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> be&s;ides the hard&s;hip he found from &s;trangers, had been hardly u&s;ed by his friends. The u&s;e which he made of all this, was to make more u&s;e of or to get neer unto God. <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him.</HI> This was <HI>Davids</HI> wi&s;dome al&s;o (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 142.4, 5.) <HI>I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man would know mee, refuge failed mee, no man cared for my &s;oule.</HI> When all &s;lighted him, when none tooke care of him; what doth he in this ca&s;e? The next words tell us what; <HI>I cryed unto thee, O Lord, I &s;aid thou art my refuge, and my portion in the land of the living.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, Upon the&s;e unkindne&s;&s;es, di&s;re&s;pects and &s;lightings which I found in the world, I tooke occa&s;ion, yea I was &s;tirred in my &s;pirit to cry unto thee, O Lord, and to &s;ay, <HI>thou art my refuge,</HI> that is, then I made thee my refuge more then ever. Having made thee my choyce in my be&s;t times, when men honou|red and embraced me, I am much encouraged in the&s;e evill times when men regard me not, and the more becau&s;e they regard mee not to make thee my refuge, to &s;helter my weather-beaten &s;elfe in thy name and power. As the naturall &s;pirits in the body, when the aire is very &s;harpe, cold, and unkinde to the outward parts, retire inwards, re&s;ort to the heart, keep clo&s;e to the heart; where|as in warmer weather the &s;pirits are drawne forth, and therefore we are more &s;ubject to faintings and &s;woonings in hot weather
<PB N="323" REF="175"> then in cold; &s;o when it is cold weather in the world, when it is as it were fro&s;t and &s;now, &s;torme and tempe&s;t, then our &s;pirituall &s;pirits re&s;ort and come in to God, and keep clo&s;e to him. When we have mo&s;t friends in the world, or when the world is mo&s;t friendly unto us, then God is our be&s;t friend; his favour is the mo&s;t bene|ficiall and de&s;ireable favour, when we have as much as we can de|&s;ire of favour among men. But when the world hates us and frownes upon us, e&s;pecially when (as the Prophet &s;peakes of &s;ome, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 66.5.) <HI>Our Brethren hate us, and ca&s;t us out for the name &s;ake of God him&s;elfe, &s;aying, Let the Lord be glorified.</HI> When 'tis thus with us (I &s;ay) our &s;oules are even forced into the pre&s;ence of God, to renew our intere&s;ts in his love, and to a&s;&s;ure our &s;oules that we are accepted with him. If under &s;uch mea&s;ure from men, we finde not helpe in God, we mu&s;t remaine for ever mi&s;erable. God alone is enough, All without God is nothing to a Godly man. The fullnes of the creature without God cannot &s;atisfie him, and the utmo&s;t want of the creature cannot di&s;content him while he enjoyeth God; the more he wants in the creature, the more he &s;eeketh his content in God, and when he findes nothing be|low, he cryeth out with greate&s;t earne&s;tnes, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him,</HI> who&s;e throane is above, and who is the onely happines of man while he is below.</P>
<P>Sixthly, We &s;ee how Inqui&s;itive <HI>Job</HI> was after God, as he had a de&s;ire and a minde to finde God, &s;o he layes about him for in|formation where and how to finde him.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>They who truely de&s;ire to finde God, are diligent in &s;earching af|ter him.</Q></P>
<P><HI>O that I knew</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Job) where I might finde him!</HI> This was not an Idle wi&s;h; many are much in the <HI>Optative mood,</HI> full of wi&s;hings and wouldings; but their wi&s;hes are altogether wi&s;hes, and their de&s;ires nothing but de&s;ires; and &s;uch de&s;ires are killing de&s;ires; as <HI>Solomon</HI> hath taught us; <HI>The de&s;ire of the &s;loathfull kil|leth him</HI> (Prov. 21.25.) an Idle de&s;ire is a death to the de&s;irer; A godly mans de&s;ires are active de&s;ires, they put him upon en|quiry, lead him to the meanes of enjoying the good de&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ered. And though God be unexpectedly found of &s;ome that &s;eeke him not, yet no man can expect to finde God, but he that &s;eeketh him.
<PB N="324" REF="176"> And indeed what &s;hould the Creature doe, but be upon an enqui|ry after God? there is a Naturality in it, hee being the &s;upream beeing, that we who have our being from him &s;hould &s;eeke after him. And the Apo&s;tle tells us (<HI>Act.</HI> 17.26, 27.) that this is the de&s;igne of God in making of one blood all Nations of men, for to dwel on the face of the earth, and <HI>in determining the times before appoynted, and the bounds of their habitation</HI> (namely) <HI>That they &s;hould &s;eeke the Lord, if haply they might feel after him and finde him, though he be not farre from every one of us, for in him we live,</HI> &amp;c. The Lord is neer all, he hath a pre&s;ence in all places, with all per&s;ons; but the Lord would have all &s;eeke, feele, grope after him, even &s;uch as have but a dim light of him, as tho&s;e have that doe not &s;eeke &s;o much with their eyes as with their hands, they onely feele after the things which they would have. There is a light in the &s;pirits of all men, that haply they may feele after God, and finde him; They who have not Scripture light, Go&s;pel light, the highe&s;t light, yet have &s;ome kinde or degree of light; they have &s;ome glimmerings though no cleare di&s;cernings; And that &s;hould put them on to &s;eeke God; much more &s;hould they &s;eeke after him, who have cleare&s;t light. And where there is any heate of af|fection to God, a little light will &s;erve them to &s;eeke after him; <HI>they that are true de&s;ierers will be diligent &s;eekers.</HI> And they, who &s;eeking God, have found him, will &s;eeke him yet againe, yea they will &s;eeke him more and more, as long as there is any thing more of God to be found; And there will alwayes be more of God to be found; for here we know God but in part, and therefore have found him but in part: and hence it is that all the Saints in this life, or on this &s;ide Glory, even they of the highe&s;t forme and greate&s;t proficiency in grace and knowledge, are called <HI>Seekers (this is the generation of them that &s;eeke him</HI> (P&s;al. 24.6.) not &s;uch &s;eekers (as we finde too many in the&s;e dayes) who, as if all were upon uncertainties in religion, &s;ay; they have as yet found nothing; for as there is &s;omething wherein the mo&s;t knowing and &s;tronge&s;t Chri&s;tians may be to &s;eeke, &s;o there are many things, yea all things nece&s;&s;ary to &s;alvation, or without which we cannot be &s;a|ved, which the weake&s;t may finde and know &s;ufficiently, though not &s;ully. And as they who de&s;ire to finde the&s;e things, will be diligent in &s;eeking them, &s;o they may know in them&s;elves, or be fully a&s;&s;ured that they have found them; and &s;o even while they
<PB N="325" REF="176"> &s;till continue to be &s;eekers, know that they are already Finders.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>God is every where, yet e&s;pecially &s;ome where to be found.</Q></P>
<P>As there is a finding time, &s;o there is a finding place, and find|ing meanes; There is a finding time, &s;aith holy <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 32.6.) <HI>For this &s;hall every one that is godly pray to thee, in a time when thou maye&s;t be found.</HI> The Hebrew is, <HI>in a finding time;</HI> though I would not give any one a &s;top from &s;eeking God at any time, yet I mu&s;t &s;ay there is a &s;peciall <HI>finding time.</HI> And this the Apo&s;tle calls <HI>the Accepted time</HI> (2 Cor. 6.2.) that is, <HI>the time</HI> which we ought to lay hold upon, or accept, as al&s;o, <HI>the time,</HI> wherein we &s;hall be acceptable or finde acceptation. There is al&s;o a <HI>finding place,</HI> there is <HI>a where</HI> as well as <HI>a when</HI> God &s;pecially is to be found, I mean it not of a meere locality, as if God were now to be found more in one place then in another; for <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith, (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.8.) <HI>I will that men every where lift up pure hands without wrath and doubting.</HI> And Chri&s;t told the woman (<HI>Joh.</HI> 4.21.) <HI>The houre cometh when ye &s;hall neyther in this Mountaine, nor yet at Je|ru&s;alem wor&s;hip the father;</HI> not as if Chri&s;t had forbid the wor|&s;hip of the father in tho&s;e places for the time coming; but he en|largeth publick wor&s;hip to all places, or abrogates all differences of place under the Go&s;pel as to the wor&s;hip of the Father. Yet if any man &s;hall enquire, where may I find God, or &s;ay as <HI>Job</HI> here; <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI> I would an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, Seeke him in his promi&s;es, &s;earch the Scriptures, there you will finde God. Secondly, Look for him in his Ordinaces, of prayer and preaching &amp;c. for there he hath promi&s;ed to be pre&s;ent; <HI>Where two or three are met together in my name, there am I in the mid&s;t of them</HI> (Math. 18.20.) When the Church or Spou&s;e in the <HI>Canticles</HI> (Chap. 1.7, 8.) Askes the Que&s;tion; <HI>Tell me (O thou whom my &s;oule loveth) where thou feede&s;t? where thou make&s;t thy flocks to re&s;t at Noone?</HI> Chri&s;t her Beloved, an&s;wers, <HI>If thou know not (O thou fayre&s;t among Women) goe thy way forth by the foote&s;teps of the flocke, and feed thy kids be&s;ides the Sheepherds tents;</HI> That is, follow the holy practices and examples of the Saints in all former ages, which the Apo&s;tle calls <HI>walking in the &s;teps of the faith of Abraham</HI> (Rom. 4.12.) And againe, hearken to the voyce of faithfull Teachers, who as Shepherds feed the flocke of
<PB N="326" REF="177"> God with knowledge and under&s;tanding. Waite at the&s;e Shep|herds tents (&s;aith Chri&s;t) and there thou &s;halt finde a pre&s;ence of God with thee, and his ble&s;&s;ing upon thee.</P>
<P>Thirdly, And above all, <HI>Seeke God in Chri&s;t;</HI> The father is onely to be found in the Sonne; Looke to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, and in him you cannot but behold God; for he is <HI>the brightnes of his glory, and the expre&s;&s;e image of his per&s;on</HI> (Heb. 1.3.) and therefore as he that hath the Son hath the Father al&s;o, &s;o he that (by an eye of faith, and in the light of the Word and Spirit) Beholdeth the Son beholdeth the Father al&s;o. <HI>For the light of the knowledge of the glory of God is given us in the face of Je&s;us Chri&s;t</HI> (2 Cor. 4.6.) The light of the knowledge of the goodne&s;&s;e of God, of his mer|cy, Ju&s;tice, holines (which are his glory) &s;hineth forth from Je&s;us Chri&s;t; that is, in and by Chri&s;t it appeares gloriou&s;ly, that God is exceeding good, mercifull, ju&s;t, &amp; holy. Therefore to every wearied &s;oule complaining of the lo&s;&s;e of God, and crying out, <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him!</HI> The &s;umme of all the Coun&s;ell that I can give, or indeed that can be given is this; Seek God in Chri&s;t, and he will be found. <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him,</HI>
<Q>That I might come even to his &s;eat.</Q></P>
<P>Some conceive the&s;e words as the i&s;&s;ue of a di&s;temperd &s;pirit: others tax <HI>Job</HI> with too much boldnes, that he being but du&s;t and a&s;hes &s;hould thus pre&s;&s;e upon God, and that he was afterwards reproved for it in the 38^t^h Chapter of this Booke, ver&s;e the fir&s;t and &s;econd; <HI>Then the Lord an&s;wered Job out of the whirle|winde and &s;aid</HI> (there he found him) <HI>who is this that darkeneth Councell by words without knowledge, gird up now thy loynes like a man, for I will demand of thee, and an&s;wer thou me.</HI> And againe, in the 40^t^h Chap. <HI>ver.</HI> 2^d, 3^d, 4^t^h, 5^t^h, <HI>Shall he that Contendeth with the Almighty in&s;truct him, he that reproveth God let him an|&s;wer it. Then Job an&s;wered the Lord and &s;aid; Behold I am vile, I will lay my hand upon my mouth. Once have I &s;poken, but I will not an&s;wer, yea twice, but I will proceed no further,</HI> As if he had acknowledged his error and overboldnes in pre&s;&s;ing upon God; as in other places, &s;o al&s;o in this; <HI>O that I might come even to his &s;eate.</HI></P>
<P>Yet I conceive that <HI>Job</HI> in this pa&s;&s;age, doth but put forth the nobler and higher actings of his faith, and that he &s;peaks this,
<PB N="327" REF="177"> not as forgetting the di&s;tance of du&s;t and a&s;hes, from the glory of God, or from the glorious God, but as remembring the promi&s;e, and as in&s;i&s;ting upon his priviledge as a beleever who is invited to come, and to come with boldnes to the throane of Grace. For though that promi&s;e was not given out as to the formality of it in tho&s;e times, yet the vertue of it was, though in a lower degree then now. To come with boldnes to the throne of grace,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> dene|tat lo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">um prae|paratum a <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">a|dice <GAP DESC="foreign"> In voce <GAP DESC="foreign"> pu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o e&s;&s;e meto|tonymiam, <HI>q d.</HI> v&s;&abque; ad locu~ in quo ip&s;e pro<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">p|tus paratu&s;&abque; e&s;t ad audien|dum ubi &s;ui co|p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">am facit. <HI>Coc.</HI> Repre&s;entat de|um tanquam &s;upremum Ju|dicem in &s;olio excel&s;o &s;edente~. ju&s;&abque; &s;uum uni|cui&abque; redden|tem. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> &s;ounds much like this, <HI>to come even to his &s;eate,</HI> and this <HI>Job</HI> did not onely as emboldened by the clearnes of his con&s;cience towards men, but as by the freenes of the Grace of God in Chri&s;t towards him. In pur&s;uance whereof it is well conceived by a learned enterpre|ter, that there is a metonymie, in the word which &s;ignifies <HI>a pre|pared &s;eate,</HI> that is, &s;uch a &s;eate as whereon God pre&s;ents him&s;elfe to poore &s;inners, prepared and ready to give them both admit|tance to him&s;elfe and a gratious audience of their reque&s;ts and &s;uites. The word which wee tran&s;late <HI>&s;eate,</HI> &s;ignifieth <HI>a prepared place, a place fitted,</HI> implying &s;omewhat &s;peciall and peculiar unto God. Heaven is called <HI>the habitation of his holines and of his glory (E&s;ay</HI> 63.15.) yet where&s;oever the Lord is, hee makes it a hea|ven. Thus al&s;o he can make any place where he is a hell. <HI>The wicked &s;hall be puni&s;hed with everla&s;ting fire from the pre&s;ence of the Lord,</HI> (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 1.9.) that is, the very pre&s;ence of the Lord &s;hall be a hell and torment to them. The Lord can be both terri|ble and gratious in his pre&s;ence any where; yet he is &s;omewhere more gratiou&s;ly, &s;ome where more terribly pre&s;ent. Some can|not beare tho&s;e expre&s;&s;ions, <HI>The Throne of God, the &s;eat of God, heaven, and hell.</HI> As if the&s;e were but the Imaginations, fancies and fictions of mans braine. But the Lord hath his &s;eates and dwelling places, whence and where he declares him&s;elfe, both in mercy and in judgement, both in his holines and in his glory. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 6.1.) <HI>I &s;aw al&s;o the Lord &s;itting upon his Throne, high and lifted up.</HI> Thus the Lord manife&s;ted him&s;elfe in vi&s;ion to the Pro|phet; and <HI>David</HI> confe&s;&s;eth, <HI>Thy Throne O God is for ever and ever</HI> (P&s;al 45.6.) that is, thy Power and Soveraigntie. <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes not of a material Throne &s;uch as Kings have; the Power and Soveraignty of God are his throne where&s;oever he is, and is plea&s;ed to declare him&s;elfe in his &s;overaignty and power. So that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>O that I might come even to his &s;eate or throane,</HI> the meaning is, O that I might come as neer him as po&s;&s;ibly I may,
<PB N="328" REF="178"> I would not &s;tand at a di&s;tance, or keepe aloofe off, as a guilty malefactor, but draw neere to him in a holy and well-grounded confidence. Thus <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes in an&s;wer to that Charge of <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> in the former Chapter, <HI>Is not thy wickednes great, and thine iniquities infinite?</HI> Now (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI>) you &s;hall &s;ee what my &s;innes are, and what my guilt, &s;eing I dare venture even to the very throne of God, where no hypocrite dares appeare. While <HI>Job</HI> profe&s;&s;eth, That if God after the manner of men &s;hould &s;it in o|pen Judgement (there will be &s;uch a Judgement at the la&s;t day) he would come neer to him, and not be afraid, he &s;eemes fully a&s;|&s;ured of his owne integrity, or of the goodnes of his cau&s;e, as al&s;o that God would be good unto him.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>That true holines and uprightnes hath abundance of Confidence before God.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Adam</HI> having &s;inned, and the guilt of his &s;in being upon him, dur&s;t not come to the Seat, to the Throne of God: God came to him in the coole of the day to examine and que&s;tion him about his &s;in, but he hid him&s;elfe among the trees of the garden, he with|drew, not daring to abide him: and that's the &s;tate of all &s;inners, who have the guilt of &s;in upon them, they hide, they run from God, when once their Con&s;ciences are awakened. <HI>As &s;in in the act of it is a turning or departure from the holines of God, &s;o &s;in act|ed or &s;in in the guilt of it cau&s;eth not onely a departure but a run|ning and a hiding from the ju&s;tice of God.</HI> Guilty &s;inners are &s;o farre from coming up to his Seat, that they cannot endure to come in his &s;ight; a malefactor hath little minde to come before the Judge, or to the Bench where the Judge &s;itteth. <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Prov.</HI> 20.8.) <HI>A king that &s;itteth in the Throne of Judgement, &s;cattereth away all evill with his eyes.</HI> Wee may under&s;tand it thus, he &s;cattereth evill actions, and evill per&s;ons, evill workes and evill workers <HI>with his eyes;</HI> there's not an evill man willing to appeare, or that dares to appeare before him. <HI>They who are &s;elfe-condemned, mu&s;t needs be afraid that others will condemne them al&s;o.</HI> Magi|&s;trates &s;itting in Judgement are terrible to guilty malefactors. Or thus, <HI>Hee &s;cattereth the evill with his eyes;</HI> that is, he makes evill men reveale and &s;catter their mo&s;t &s;ecret evills, by his prying into them, and indu&s;trious Examination of them; that evill or
<PB N="329" REF="178"> wicked practice which they had bound up in their hearts, and &s;aid, none &s;hall know it, he &s;catters and di&s;covers. <HI>Solomons</HI> proverb carryes an experienced truth in it both wayes. And we may ar|gue from it, That if an earthly King or Magi&s;trate, <HI>&s;itting on the Throne, &s;cattereth all evill with his eyes, how much more doth God?</HI> neither any evill matter, nor any evill man can &s;tand before him. And &s;eing the Lord di&s;covers all the evill that is in the hearts and wayes of men, what can give perfect boldnes in comming to the Throne of God, but onely an Intere&s;t in Je&s;us Chri&s;t, in whom the throane of God is become a Throane of grace to &s;inners? Were it onely a Throne of Judgement and Ju&s;tice, <HI>no fle&s;h could &s;tand before it,</HI> but being a Throne of grace, the wor&s;t of &s;inners, who wait for grace, may come neer, and the neerer they come the welcomer they are. A godly man is never better then when he is neer God, and then thinks him&s;elfe be&s;t when he is neere&s;t unto God; all his happines in this life and his glory in that which is to come, doth con&s;i&s;t in his nearenes unto God.</P>
<P>Secondly, Whereas <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith; <HI>O that I might come even to his Seat.</HI> Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>A Godly man is willing that God &s;hould Judge both his Per&s;on and his Cau&s;e.</Q>
<P>That's the de&s;igne of <HI>Job,</HI> he had appealed from the Judgement of his friends, and begd the Judgement of God; He was re&s;olute in it, to &s;tand or fall according to his &s;entence. But why was <HI>Job</HI> &s;o de&s;irerous of the Judgement of God? why would he goe to his Throne, and appeale to him? When men make appeales from one Throne to another, they have their rea&s;ons for it; When <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aid, <HI>I appeale to Cae&s;ar</HI> (Act. 25.11.) doubtle&s;s he was fully per&s;waded that he &s;hould find better termes with <HI>Cae&s;ar</HI> then among the <HI>Jews;</HI> So when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, I appeale to God (which is the highe&s;t ap|peale, and beyond which there lyes no appeale) doubtle&s;&s;e <HI>Job</HI> was fully per&s;waded that he &s;hould finde better termes at Gods tribunal, then he had found among his friends. And <HI>Job</HI> might have many grounds of better termes from God. For</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, God is wi&s;e, even a God of Judgement, who would not receive Judgement from a wi&s;e and under&s;tanding Judge, e&s;pe|cially from him who is wi&s;dome and under&s;tanding.</P>
<P>Secondly, God is Omni&s;cient; there are many wi&s;e Judges,
<PB N="330" REF="179"> but no Omni&s;cient Judges in the world. Princes are &s;aid to have long hands, and very cleare eyes, they can reach farre, and &s;ee farre, but they cannot &s;ee all; but God is able to Judge the &s;ecrets of all hearts, for he &s;ees all &s;ecrets, and knowes what man cannot. For that rea&s;on a godly man loves the Judgement of God, becau&s;e he knowes his heart; And for the &s;ame rea&s;on wicked men, hypo|crites e&s;pecially, are afraid of the Judgement of God: they know if their outward actons &s;hould come to be &s;can'd, much more if their hearts &s;hould be turn'd outward, it mu&s;t needs goe ill with them. Mo&s;t hypocrites carry it faire onely for a while before the world, they at la&s;t di&s;cover them&s;elves, the di&s;ea&s;e breaks out at their fingers ends, or at their tongues end; Their words or works di&s;cover the rottennes of their hearts, and the formality of their profe&s;&s;ion. But &s;ome hypocrites carry it fayre to the world all their dayes, and feare not the Judgement of men, yet even then a thought of the Judgement of God is dreadfull to them, whereas the Saints, even all who are &s;incere, de&s;ire God to Judge them; for indeed their hearts are better then their wayes, and their af|fections then their actions, and they know that God di&s;cernes with what heart and &s;pirit every thing is done, as well as what is done. He doth not Judge by appearances (as we ought not, <HI>Joh.</HI> 7.24.) and therefore his is a righteous Judgement. God doth not judge things as they appeare, but as they are, unle&s;&s;e they are as they appeare, and what&s;oever their appearance is, he can judge them as they are. He can judge by di&s;cerning what is in the deepe, and follow a matter to the very &s;pring of it; therefore I'le goe to God (&s;aith the upright heart) my de&s;ire is that he &s;hould Judge my cau&s;e.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The Lord is a gratious and a mercifull Judge; he is as full of pity as he is of wi&s;dome, and as ready to relieve as he is quick-&s;ighted to di&s;cerne.</P>
<P>Fourthly, The Lord is very patient; Fir&s;t, patient to heare; and &s;econdly, patient to beare. Patience to heare is a great en|couragement; many Judges are weary of the worke, they will not heare a poore man out, but God will; and God is patient al&s;o to beare with and pa&s;&s;e by the faylings of his people, who&s;e upright|nes he knowes.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, A Godly man knowes that God his Judge hath recei|ved an atonement, that <HI>he is made for him,</HI> and upon grounds of
<PB N="331" REF="179"> Ju&s;tice and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is become his friend. Some who have bad Cau&s;es, yet come up to the Throne of man boldly, becau&s;e they know the Judge is <HI>made for them</HI> by a bride, and &s;o will give &s;entence on their &s;ide, be it right or wrong. Saints know that the Judge is <HI>made for them,</HI> but made in a holy manner, not with ba&s;e bribery to blinde his eyes to pervert ju&s;tice, but he hath received an atonement, he is appeas'd and &s;atisfied by a Mediator at his owne appointment. If God &s;hould &s;earch the be&s;t of Saints nar|rowly, they mu&s;t needs fall in judgement, yet they know they &s;hall &s;tand in judgement, becau&s;e the Judge is reconciled to them by Chri&s;t; yea Chri&s;t who made the Atonement, and is the reconci|ler, is the Judge, this encourageth Saints to come to God; <HI>For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more being reconciled we &s;hall be &s;aved by his life</HI> (Rom. 5.10.) The ca&s;e &s;tanding thus with beleevers, who &s;eeth not ground for their appeale from the judgement, eyther of open ene|mies, or (as <HI>Job</HI> did) mi&s;taken Friends; <HI>O that I might come even to his Seate.</HI></P>
<P>In the two next ver&s;es, <HI>Job</HI> tells us what he would doe if his appeale were granted and him&s;elfe admitted to the &s;eate of God.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="4, 5" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><P><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 4.</HI></BIBL> I would order my Cau&s;e before him, and fill my mouth with arguments.</P>
<P><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 5.</HI></BIBL> I would know the words which he would an&s;wer mee, and under&s;tand what he would &s;ay unto mee.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Thus he de&s;cribes his intended behaviour before his Judge, in allu&s;ion to legall proceedings, where the <HI>Plaintiff</HI> brings in his bill, and the <HI>Defendant</HI> his an&s;wer.</P>
<Q>I would order my Cau&s;e before him.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew word which wee tran&s;late <HI>to order,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t mili|tare verbum at&abque; dicitur de aciebus quae certa ratione ac ordine di&s;ponun|tur.</NOTE> is a military terme, properly u&s;ed for the ordering of an Army, or the putting of them into a Po&s;ture for a battell, we call it <HI>Mar&s;halling an Ar|my.</HI> And hence it is applyed to the ordering of any other thing (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 23.5.) <HI>Thou wilt prepare a Table for mee in the mid&s;t of mine enemies,</HI> to order a Table is to &s;et di&s;h by di&s;h, there is a kinde of method in &s;etting di&s;hes at great fea&s;ts; <HI>Thou wilt pre|pare
<PB N="332" REF="180"> a Table for me.</HI> Againe (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 50.21.) God &s;peakes to the hypo|crite about his &s;infull doings; <HI>I will &s;et them in order before thee;</HI> that is, tho&s;e &s;ins, and confu&s;ed practices of which thou ha&s;t &s;ayd in thy heart, I &s;hall never heare more of them, &s;hall be brought forth and &s;et like a terrible Army in ranke and file before thee. <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes to this &s;ence, <HI>I would order my cau&s;e before him,</HI> or, <HI>to his face,</HI> as the Hebrew Text hath it, that is, in his pre&s;ence.</P>
<Q>And fill my mouth with Arguments.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pleno ore fiden|t&egrave;r, con&s;tanter pro me dicam. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE>I would have arguments enow or good &s;tore to prove that your proceeding hath been unequall toward mee; And when he &s;ayth; <HI>I would fill my mouth with arguments,</HI> it &s;hewes that his heart was full of arguments Chri&s;t teacheth us to argue &s;o (<HI>Luk.</HI> 6.45.) <HI>Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth &s;peaketh; Jobs</HI> heart was full, therefore he would fill his mouth. <HI>David</HI> prayeth (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 71.8.) <HI>Let my mouth be filled with thy prai&s;e.</HI> And the Church &s;peakes of her joy when God had turned their captivity, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 126.2.) <HI>Then was our mouth filled with laughter.</HI> In this language God be&s;peakes his people (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 81.10.) <HI>Open thy mouth wide, and I will fill it.</HI> Open it by faith, and I will fill it, with what? fill it with mercy, and with ble&s;&s;ings. So here; <HI>I would fill my mouth with arguments;</HI> that is, I would not want matter to &s;peake for my &s;elfe,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Os meum reple|bo increpationi|bus. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> or in my owne cau&s;e. The vulgar reades it, <HI>I will fill my mouth with Chidings, or, with reproofs.</HI> The word properly &s;igni|fies, <HI>Conviction;</HI> and then wee are to under&s;tand it in reference to his friends; I would abound with convincing, reproving, or chid|ing arguments again&s;t you,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> non redargutiones intelligit, quibus deum inju&s;titiae accu&s;aret &s;ed rationes quibus &s;e tueretur. Sic <GAP DESC="foreign"> &amp; <GAP DESC="foreign"> Graecie &s;umi|tur. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> who, have thus long reproached mee; I would bring &s;uch arguments as &s;hould not onely be a proofe of mine owne integrity, but a reproof of my friends &s;everity. Some arguments have onely a proof in them; others have a reproof too. <HI>Job</HI> would fill his mouth with arguments, which &s;hould be both proofs for him&s;elfe, and reproofs to his oppo&s;ers. <HI>Job</HI> had not a word to &s;ay again&s;t God, but he had much to &s;ay again&s;t his friends. <HI>I would fill my mouth with Arguments.</HI></P>
<P>Note from it.</P>
<Q>Troubled &s;pirits have many things to &s;ay, and u&s;ually abound much in their owne &s;ence.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Furor arma mini&s;trat.</NOTE>As the pa&s;&s;ion of anger will admini&s;ter weapons to a man
<PB N="333" REF="180"> though he be no great fighter, &s;o tho&s;e pa&s;&s;ions of griefe and &s;or|row will admini&s;ter arguments to him though he be no great di&s;|puter. A troubled &s;oule will hardly be put to a &s;tand or <HI>non-plus.</HI> They who &s;uffer much will alwayes have &s;omewhat to &s;ay; <HI>If na|ture deny</HI> (&s;aid one of old) <HI>yet Indignation will make a man a Poet;</HI> And if nature deny, yet &s;orrow will make a man a Logician; and trouble will make a man an Advocate in his owne cau&s;e. The tongues of many are tipt with Oratory, they have excellent words and &s;trong rea&s;ons too from the pre&s;&s;ures that are upon their &s;pirits: trouble of &s;pirit fills the mouth with Arguments two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Again&s;t them&s;elves, how &s;trongly will &s;ome in that ca&s;e di&s;pute again&s;t their owne peace? what arguments will they bring again&s;t any comfort that is offered them? and how nimbly will they reply to any one that goes about to an&s;wer them? how will they finde out new <HI>mediums,</HI> when tho&s;e are foyled by which they have formerly nouri&s;hed their unbeleefe, and di&s;couraged them|&s;elves from taking hold on mercy. 'Tis wonderfull to heare the pleadings of a troubled &s;pirit; and 'tis one of the harde&s;t taskes in the world to an&s;wer the doubts which &s;uch a man will make a|gain&s;t him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>Secondly, The troubles of many fills their mouths with argu|ments for them&s;elves; that's the meaning of <HI>Job</HI> here in this place; <HI>I would fill my mouth with arguments</HI> to maintaine my Cau&s;e; I &s;hould not want eyther matter or words, to plead this bu&s;ienes, were I before the Throne of God, and yet I would not be &s;o free and forward to &s;peake, as to neglect or &s;light what is &s;poken to me, as it followes.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 5.</HI></BIBL> I would know the words that he would an&s;wer mee, and under&s;tand what he would &s;ay unto mee.</Q>
<P>Some are &s;o ha&s;ty to &s;peake, that they will not heare, they are &s;o forward to plead their owne Cau&s;e, that they will not receive the opinion of another. <HI>Job</HI> di&s;covers an equall &s;pirit to both; <HI>As I would order my Cau&s;e, and fill my mouth with arguments,</HI> &s;o <HI>I would know the words that he would an&s;wer mee too,</HI> I would have the good manners, or the grace rather, to heed and <HI>under&s;tand what God would &s;ay to mee.</HI></P>
<PB N="334" REF="181">
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cogn<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;cam &s;a|nationes quas loquetur mihi. <HI>Sep.</HI> Quam mihi la|boranti curatio|ne~ adhibiturus e&s;&s;et intellige|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">em. <HI>Chry&s;o&s;t.</HI></NOTE>The Septuagint render it thus; <HI>I would know the healings which he would &s;peake to me;</HI> or as another, <HI>What medicine or way of cure he would prae&s;cribe and admini&s;ter to mee;</HI> and this might re&s;pect eyther the quieting of his Spirit, or the repayring of his credit and good name, which had been &s;orely and deeply wounded by his friends, not onely &s;u&s;pecting but charging him as an hypocrite or wicked man. This is a fayre &s;ence, onely it &s;traitens the Text; For we may &s;uppo&s;e <HI>Job</HI> in this addre&s;&s;e and application to God ready to heare what&s;oever God &s;hould &s;ay unto him, whether his were words of approbation or reproof, whether for him or again&s;t him. Though <HI>Job</HI> had (doubtle&s;&s;e) a &s;trong confidence, that God would approve of him and give &s;entence on his &s;ide, yet con&s;ide|ring his owne weakne&s;&s;es and di&s;tempers of minde, he might well conceive that &s;ome things had fallen from him or been done by him which might de&s;erve and call for chidings and rebukes, as the i&s;&s;ue indeed was. And therefore it was mo&s;t congruous that he &s;hould pre&s;ent him&s;elfe before the Lord in a frame of heart to re|ceive reprehen&s;ions as well as con&s;olations. <HI>I would know the words that he would an&s;wer me and under&s;tand</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P><HI>Knowing, and under&s;tanding,</HI> may be taken here two wayes; Fir&s;t, for Con&s;idering and weighing what God would &s;ay, or what Award he would make; In which he &s;eemes clo&s;ely to checke his friends, who thought him &s;o dull and incapable, that &s;urely he did not apprehend nor under&s;tand their an&s;wers. Well (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI>) what&s;oever you thinke of my dulnes to under&s;tand your an&s;wers, or what you have &s;ayd, yet I doubt not but I &s;hall under&s;tand the an&s;wers of God, or what he &s;hall &s;ay unto mee.</P>
<P>Secondly, They note a reverence and re&s;pect to the word of God; <HI>I would know the words that he would an&s;wer;</HI> that is, &s;ubmit to them, I would not oppo&s;e the Judgement or Opinion of God concerning me. Though <HI>Job</HI> did not &s;it downe or acquie&s;&s;e in the judgement of his friends, yet he would reverence and &s;it downe quietly in the judgement of God, &amp; in the an&s;wer which he &s;hould plea&s;e to give. In eyther of the&s;e interpretations, the &s;ence is good. <HI>I would know;</HI> that is, I would &s;tudy to finde out the minde of God, and under&s;tand what he &s;aith to mee, and then reverently &s;ubmit thereunto.</P>
<P>Further, This forme of &s;peaking, <HI>I would know the words, and I would under&s;tand</HI> &amp;c. &s;eemeth to imply a vehement de&s;ire in <HI>Job</HI>
<PB N="335" REF="181"> to know the minde of God concerning him. As a man that is ac|cu&s;ed longs to heare the minde of the Judge, as for others 'tis not much to him what they &s;ay for him or again&s;t him. As <HI>Paul</HI> &s;pake in a like ca&s;e (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.3.) <HI>With me it is a very &s;mall thing to be judged of you, or of mans judgement</HI> &amp;c. <HI>he that judgeth me is the Lord;</HI> that is, to his judgement I mu&s;t &s;tand; He is above all.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That a godly man is carefull to under&s;tand the an&s;wer and determinations of God concerning him.</Q>
<P><HI>I would know the words that he would an&s;wer mee,</HI> and this not onely (according to the &s;uppo&s;ition which <HI>Job</HI> makes here) if God &s;hould &s;peake to him per&s;onally, or mouth to mouth; but in what way &s;oever God &s;hould &s;peake to him. It is the great care of a Godly man to know the word of God written and deliver'd over to us, as the rule of our life and faith; for indeed therein wee have our judgement, and our an&s;wer: as Chri&s;t &s;aith, <HI>the words that I &s;peake, they &s;hall judge you at the la&s;t day;</HI> that is, by the word you &s;hall be judged. Likewi&s;e it is the care of a Godly man to under&s;tand what God &s;peakes to him by his workes and provi|dences, by his rods and cha&s;tnings. In the&s;e the Lord &s;peakes to us and gives us an&s;wers. They who are wi&s;e, will &s;tudy to know and under&s;tand them. We may conceive that <HI>Job</HI> had re&s;pect to two things e&s;pecially, about which he de&s;iered that he might under|&s;tand the an&s;wer, and words of God to him.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That God would &s;hew him the true Cau&s;e of his afflicti|on; for he did not take that to be the Cau&s;e which his friends had &s;o often &s;ugge&s;ted, and &s;o di&s;puted upon that <HI>Fallacy</HI> all along, which Logicians call, <HI>The putting of that for a Cau&s;e which is not the Cau&s;e.</HI> Therefore <HI>Job</HI> hoped to know of God what he would &s;ay, as to the rea&s;on why he did Contend with him.</P>
<P>Secondly, What God would &s;ay to him by way of Direction and Councell, by way of remedy and redre&s;s, he was &s;ollicitous to under&s;tand the minde of God, and what God expected from him under this di&s;pen&s;ation. So that <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope was not at all (as <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> &s;u&s;pected) to plead his owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and holy walk|ings before God, as if God had been beholding to him for them, and &s;o mu&s;t needs grant him (as having de&s;erved it) what&s;oever he &s;hould aske. But that he might be acquainted with the holy
<PB N="336" REF="182"> will and purpo&s;e of God concerning him&s;elfe, and to be in&s;tructed by him about the grounds and ends of his long and &s;harpe afflicti|on, that &s;o he might beare it more chearefully, and more fruitful|ly. As al&s;o (and that principally) that he might heare from his Maje&s;ty which was the great poynt in controver&s;ie between him and his friends) whether he did correct and cha&s;ten him as a &s;on, or puni&s;h and take vengeance on him, as on a rebell; and &s;o &s;et him among the examples of caution for &s;inners in time to come.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note.</P>
<Q>A Godly man re&s;ts in the Judgement of God.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Si me ni&s;ontem pronunciaret, cum gaudio, &s;i &s;ontem cum pa|tientia &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;cipe|rem &s;ententiam ejus. <HI>Scult.</HI></NOTE><HI>Job</HI> would not re&s;t in his friends judgement, but in Gods judge|ment he would re&s;t, and enquire no further; I (&s;aith he) freely yeeld up my &s;elfe to that; if the Lord &s;hould pronounce mee In|nocent, I would re&s;t in his &s;entence, and be thankfull; if the Lord &s;hould pronounce mee faulty, yet I would re&s;t in his &s;entence, and be patient; yea then I would aske mercy and begg his grace for the pardon of my faylings. God is an Infallible Judge, and there|fore no man ought to que&s;tion his determinations; Indeed, <HI>Every mouth &s;hall be &s;topped, and all the world become guilty before God</HI> (Rom. 3.19.) that is, acknowledg the~&s;elves guilty before him when he judgeth. And as there is no avoyding the judgement of God, &s;o a godly man de&s;ires to rejoyce in it. <HI>Good is the word of the Lord,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>Hezekiah</HI> (2 King. 20 19.) When a very &s;ore &s;entence was pa&s;t again&s;t him, <HI>and he &s;ayd, is it not Good? if peace and truth be in my dayes?</HI> By <HI>good</HI> in the former part of the ver&s;e, he meanes ju&s;t and equall; as if he had &s;ayd, though this word be full of gall and wormewood, yet it is no other then I and my people have de|&s;erved and drawne upon our &s;elves: By <HI>good</HI> in the latter part of the ver&s;e, he meanes Gracious and mercifull; as if he had &s;ayd, God in this &s;entence hath mixed the <HI>good</HI> of ju&s;tice and equity, with the <HI>good</HI> of graciou&s;nes and mercy, or in the mid&s;t of Judge|ment he hath remembred mercy. Thus al&s;o when God gave &s;en|tence by fire again&s;t the two &s;ons of <HI>Aaron; Mo&s;es &s;ayd to Aaron; This is that the Lord &s;pake, &s;aying, I will be &s;anctified in them that come nigh me, and before all the people I will be glorified</HI> (Lev. 10.3.) Now, when <HI>Aaron</HI> heard this, the text &s;aith; <HI>And Aaron held his peace.</HI> He murmured not, he contradicted not, but re&s;ted pa|tiently in the judgement of God. And thus <HI>Job</HI> was re&s;olved to
<PB N="337" REF="182"> give him&s;elfe up to the judgement of God what&s;oever it &s;hould be. And we &s;hall finde him (in the next words) hoping &s;trongly to finde God very &s;weete and gratious to him, could he but ob|taine a hearing at his <HI>Judgement &s;eate.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 6,</HI> &amp; <HI>7.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Will he plead again&s;t me with his great power? No, but he would put &s;trength in me.</P>
<P>There the righteous might di&s;pute with him: &s;o &s;hould I be delivered for ever from my Judge.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> &s;till pro&s;ecutes the proofe of his integrity from his willing|ne&s;&s;e to appeare before God, and plead his ca&s;e at his throne; and as in the two former ver&s;es he told us what he would doe up|on &s;uppo&s;ition that he could finde God, and have acce&s;&s;e unto him, even that he would &s;tate his ca&s;e, and then <HI>fill his mouth with arguments;</HI> he would al&s;o &s;eriou&s;ly attend and &s;trive to under|&s;tand the an&s;wer which God &s;hould give him. So in the&s;e two ver&s;es, he holds out what entertainment he a&s;&s;ured him&s;elfe of, in this his addre&s;&s;e to God, as al&s;o what confidence he had of a faire hearing and of a good i&s;&s;ue; As if he had &s;aid, <HI>O Eliphaz, you have often deterred and over-awed me with the Maje&s;ty of God, as if he would certainly cru&s;h &s;uch a worme as I am, and that I could not at at all &s;tand or abide a tryall before him in Judgement (Eliphaz</HI> hath &s;poken to that &s;en&s;e at the 4^t^h ver&s;e of the former Chapter) <HI>Will he reprove thee for feare of thee? will he enter with thee into judgement?</HI> do&s;t thou thinke that God will conde&s;cend &s;o farre, as to treate with thee) <HI>but know, O Eliphaz, that I am not afraid of the pre&s;ence of God; for, though I confe&s;&s;e, if God &s;hould put forth his power, I were not able to hold up my head before him, and that he could ea&s;ily overthrow me with a breath, yet I am per&s;waded he will take a more favourable cour&s;e, and deale with me in mercy, not with rigour or &s;everity.</HI></P>
<DIV3 N="6" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="338" REF="183">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 6.</HI></BIBL> Will he plead again&s;t me with his great power?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>I know he is cloathed with Maje&s;ty, and that the greatnes of power is his; but will he plead again&s;t me with it?</HI> The Hebrew text is, <HI>will he plead with me; to plead with and to plead again&s;t are the &s;ame.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> conten<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">et qua&s;i de jure &s;uo ut illud exi|gat.</NOTE> To <HI>plead</HI> is a Law terme; He that pleadeth again&s;t ano|ther, di&s;covers eyther the faultines of his per&s;on when accu&s;ed, or the weaknes of his Title when controverted. This word is u&s;ed by the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57.16.) <HI>I will not contend</HI> (or plead) <HI>for ever,</HI> I will not argue my owne prerogative, nor will I argue thy &s;infullne&s;&s;e alwayes, or without end; why not? if I &s;hould, <HI>the &s;pirit would faile before me, and the &s;oules which I have made;</HI> where, though &s;pirit and &s;oule are put &s;ynechdochically for the whole man, that is, for fle&s;h and &s;pirit, for &s;oule and body together, yet the Lord mentions onely &s;pirit and &s;oule, becau&s;e of their &s;trength to beare divine contendings beyond the body or the fle&s;h. As if he had &s;ayd, even that which is &s;tronge&s;t in man would fayle, if God &s;hould alwayes contend.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Num copia &s;ui roboris <HI>&amp;c.</HI></NOTE><HI>Will he plead again&s;t me with his great power?</HI> or &s;trictly to the Letter, <HI>with the multitude of his power, with the forces of his power.</HI> The power of God is great, yea the power of God is greate&s;t, all his power is allmighty power, yet God doth not alwayes put forth the greatnes of his power; He is a mo&s;t free agent, and &s;o can re|&s;traine and hold in his owne power, when he plea&s;eth, and not u&s;e it to the terror of a poore creature, or plead again&s;t him with it.</P>
<P>Againe, The power of God may be taken two wayes; Fir&s;t, for his &s;trength, or his power of doing and executing; &s;econdly, for his prerogative authority, or his power of commanding and ruling; we may interpret it here of the latter; will God deale with me by his prerogative power, thinke you? will he oppre&s;&s;e me with his meere authority?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Per multa~ dei fort&igrave;tudine~ po|tentiam ejus ab&s;olutam (&s;um|mum jus dici &s;olet) intelligu~t multi. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> I have another opinion of God; &s;urely he will not doe &s;o; For he is good and gratious, and he will attemper his prerogative with pity, &amp; his great power with much mercy. <HI>Will he plead again&s;t me with this great power? Jobs</HI> que|&s;tion is a confident negation (&s;uch negative interrogations are fre|quent in Scripture) <HI>will he?</HI> is, <HI>he will not plead again&s;t me with his great power;</HI> but <HI>Job</HI> is not &s;atisfied that his &s;peech carrieth a nega|tion in it, and therefore le&s;t any &s;hould not fully enough under|&s;tand
<PB N="339" REF="183"> him &s;o, he expre&s;&s;eth his negative; <HI>will he plead with me with his great power; no, His power is not, nor ever will it be again&s;t me.</HI> He will take &s;ome other cour&s;e with me, he will deale with me upon the account of goodnes and mercy, not upon the account of power; He will not breake me a brui&s;ed reed, nor quench me who am but &s;moaking flax, he will rather bind me up and cheri&s;h the lea&s;t &s;parke which he perceiveth alive in me. <HI>Will he plead again&s;t me with his great power?</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> God hath great power, much power, All power is his.</Q></P>
<P>The power of men and Angels is his; What power &s;oever, whe|ther for kinde or degree, is in the hand of any creature, that power belongs to God. Thus <HI>David,</HI> a man of Great power &s;tates it, <HI>God hath &s;poken once, twice have I heard this, That power belongeth unto God.</HI> The power that is &s;cattered and divided all the world over is centred and united in him. God hath a greatne&s;&s;e of power, in commanding and di&s;po&s;ing what and how things &s;hall be done, he al&s;o hath a greatnes of power in doing and executing what he hath commanded. The commands of men are often unperformed, eyther becau&s;e they to whom their commands are &s;ent have no power to performe them, or becau&s;e they want power to backe their owne commands. Wee may con&s;ider the Greatnes of the power of God &s;everal wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As he can doe all things, and is omnipotent, there is no|thing too hard for him, his hand is not &s;hortened in reference to the longe&s;t or the greate&s;t workes, and difficulties. And as he can doe what&s;oever he hath a will to doe, &s;o he will doe what&s;oever he plea&s;eth to have done, what&s;oever he purpo&s;eth to doe, what|&s;oever is upon his heart to doe: none of his coun&s;ells ever fayled, nor have any of the thoughts of his heart been fru&s;trated. Men often purpo&s;e to doe, but they &s;eldome have power to doe what they have purpo&s;ed; they are bigge with the conceptions of many great matters, but when the children come to the birth, they have no &s;trength to bring forth. God never failes in his power to doe what&s;oever he hath a purpo&s;e or a mind to doe, God hath power enough to backe his commands, and he can &s;upply power to tho&s;e whom he calleth to execute them.</P>
<P>Secondly, The greatne&s;&s;e of Gods power is &s;eene in this; that
<PB N="340" REF="184"> He hath a right to doe all that he doth. As he hath a fullne&s;&s;e of &s;trength, &s;o a fulne&s;&s;e of Authority; he doth not u&s;urp or intrench upon any other power in what he doth, nor upon any mans pro|perty in what he hath; it is his due to doe what he doth, and to have what he hath. God is &s;upream, giving the Law to all, recei|ving the Law from none; his is not a tyrannicall, but a ju&s;t and a righteous power; his is not a might without right, but a might with right. What the Prophet &s;peakes of the <HI>Chaldeans</HI> (Hab. 1.7.) is true of God in every &s;ence, in the &s;tricte&s;t &s;ence; <HI>His judge|ment and his dignity proceedeth of him&s;elfe;</HI> he is a law unto him|&s;elfe, his rule is internall, and his power intrin&s;ecall. All derive power from him, therefore his power is altogether underived. Power underived mu&s;t needs be great power, yea the Greatnes of power.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The greatne&s;&s;e of his power appeareth further in this, <HI>that no man may pre&s;ume to que&s;tion him for what he doth.</HI> He hath great power in what he doth, whom none may &s;o much as aske what doe&s;t thou? <HI>Nebucadnezzar</HI> (a heathen in highe&s;t earthly power) confe&s;&s;eth as much of the power of God, as &s;oone as he regained the rea&s;on of a man (<HI>Dan.</HI> 4.34, 35.) <HI>At the end of the dayes</HI> (that is, after the terme of &s;even yeares was accom|pli&s;hed, when for the heart of a bea&s;t a mans heart was re&s;tored to him) <HI>I Nebuchadnezzar lift up mine eyes to heaven, and mine under&s;tanding returned unto me, and I ble&s;&s;ed the mo&s;t high, and I prai&s;ed and honoured him that liveth for ever, who&s;e dominion is an everla&s;ting dominion, and his kingdome is from generation to gene|ration; and all the inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing, and he doth according to his will in the army of heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth, and none can &s;tay his hand, or &s;ay unto him, what do&s;t thou?</HI> that is, none may &s;o much as que&s;tion, much le&s;&s;e reprove him for any thing that he doth. Though there are many who in the pride of their hearts, and through the forgetfull|nes of their duty, will pre&s;ume to que&s;tion God about what he hath done, and even controule his doings; yet of right or accord|ing to rule, none can. Hence the Apo&s;tle having a&s;&s;erted the &s;ove|raignty of God, <HI>he hath mercy on whom he will have mercy, and whom he will he hardeneth,</HI> brings in &s;ome que&s;tioning his proceed|ings; but he checks them &s;oundly for their boldnes in que&s;tioning, and in&s;tructs them by many upbrayding que&s;tions, that they ought
<PB N="341" REF="184"> not to put that or any &s;uch que&s;tion. <HI>Thou wilt &s;ay then</HI> (ver. 18, 19, 20.) <HI>why doth he yet finde fault, for who hath re&s;i&s;ted his will? nay but who art thou &ocirc; man, that replie&s;t again&s;t God, &s;hall the thing formed &s;ay to him that formed it, why ha&s;t thou made me thus? hath not the potter power over the clay, of the &s;ame lumpe to make one ve&s;|&s;ell of honour, and another of di&s;honour?</HI> what if God were willing to &s;hew his wrath in &s;ome, as well as his grace &amp; mercy in others, what have you or I to doe with it? who gave you or I leave to examine God upon intergatoryes about it? Thus he pleads the power or prerogative of God, this mu&s;t &s;ilence all our queries, and &s;atisfie all our doubts; none may aske him a rea&s;on of what he doth; the rea&s;on is in him&s;elfe. The will of God is his rea&s;on; and there is all the rea&s;on in the world it &s;hould; for his is not one|ly a &s;overaigne will, but a ju&s;t and a holy will. <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 8.4. <HI>Where the word of a king is, there is power, and who may &s;ay unto him, what do&s;t thou?</HI> In all lawfull admini&s;trations, it is true of kings and &s;upream earthly powers, in what forme &s;oever, none may &s;ay unto them what doe yee? their word mu&s;t &s;tand: much more is this true of him who is King of Kings, and Lord of Lords, who is the &s;upream power of heaven and earth; all who&s;e wayes are equall, and his di&s;pen&s;ations righteous, though we &s;ee not the equity and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of them. That, is not onely great, but the greate&s;t power, which <HI>none may que&s;tion.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, This al&s;o demon&s;trates the greatne&s;&s;e of Gods power, that none can &s;top or hinder him in what it hath a minde to doe: what he appoints he executes, and none can &s;top it, or as (<HI>Nebu|chadnezzar</HI> &s;peakes in the place before mentioned, <HI>Dan.</HI> 4.35.) <HI>&s;tay his hand.</HI> The hand of the &s;tronge&s;t power upon the earth may be, and hath been &s;taid; kings have had a check, their hands have been &s;tayd, but none can &s;tay the hand of God; <HI>I will worke</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>and none &s;hall let it</HI> (I&s;a. 43.17.) God &s;hould doe but little worke in the world, if men could let it. Wicked men would let or hinder God in all his workes, and the godly (through their mi&s;takes) would hinder him in &s;ome of his workes; but none can; <HI>He &s;peaks to the Sunne and it &s;hineth not, yea he &s;peakes to the Sunne and it moveth not.</HI> This is the greatne&s;&s;e and the muchnes of the power of God.</P>
<P>But, &s;aith <HI>Job, Will he plead again&s;t me with this great power?</HI> All this power God hath (and this power he can put forth) but he
<PB N="342" REF="185"> will not put it forth again&s;t me (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI> 1.) And what was <HI>Job</HI> that he &s;hould be thus confident, and ri&s;e up to &s;uch a &s;trong a&s;&s;u|rance that God would not u&s;e his &s;trength again&s;t him? <HI>Job</HI> was a godly man, a man fearing God, a man perfect and upright, a man full of faith, even full of faith (though he lived in dark times, and under dark di&s;pen&s;ations, yet, I &s;ay, he was a man full of faith) in the Redeemer. Now it is no wonder if a man of this character, a man thus qualified and priviledged had this confidence, and was much a&s;&s;ured that he &s;hould pro&s;per and &s;peed in it, <HI>That God would not plead again&s;t him with his great power.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve;
<Q>A godly man may be confident that God will deale gently and graciou&s;ly with him. or,</Q></P>
<P>That God will deale with him according to the greatnes of his mercy, not according to the greatnes of his power; The greatnes of the power of God is an exceeding great comfort to the &s;incere, becau&s;e they know it is acted towards them in the greatnes of his mercy. It is comfortable to heare that the Lord, who (as the Pro|phet de&s;cribes him, <HI>Nah:</HI> 1.3.) <HI>is great in power, is al&s;o &s;low to anger</HI> (the greatnes of mans power doth u&s;ually quicken not clogg his pa&s;&s;ions) but it is more comfortable to know, that God who is great in power, is quick and &s;peedy to &s;hew mercy. And hence it is that a true beleever rejoyceth in the power o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> God as well as in his mercy, becau&s;e he knoweth that God hath declared him&s;elfe powerfull for him, as well as mercifull. He knoweth God will not put forth power alone, or nothing but power towards him. God doth exerci&s;e all his refre&s;hing attributes, and divine perfections, in dealing with Saints Whereas upon the wicked he exerci&s;eth his power chiefely, though not onely. <HI>What if God to make his power knowne endured with much long-&s;uffering the ve&s;&s;els of wrath fitted for de&s;truction,</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle (<HI>Rom.</HI> 9.22.) God pleads with the wicked according to the tenour of the Covenant of workes, but with Beleevers according to the Covenant of grace, in which he doth as it were uncloath him&s;elfe of his power, and cloath him|&s;elfe with love, mercy, goodne&s;&s;e, and tendernes to his people. <HI>The Lord</HI> (as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peakes, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 93.1.) <HI>is cloathed with &s;trength, wherewith he hath girded him&s;elfe,</HI> he is cloathed al&s;o with mercy, and with that he hath girded him&s;elfe; he pleads with his
<PB N="343" REF="185"> people (I grant) in righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, as well as in mercy (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Rom.</HI> 3.25, 26.) <HI>God hath &s;et forth Je&s;us Christ, to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righte|ne&s;&s;e, for the remi&s;&s;ion</HI> (or <HI>pa&s;&s;ing over) of &s;ins that are pa&s;t through the forbearance of God, to declare I &s;ay at this time his righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e; and the ju&s;tifyer of him that beleeveth in Je&s;us.</HI> The ju&s;tice or righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God was never &s;o fully declared as in Chri&s;t; for God did not &s;pare him at all, but he having taken our debt upon him, di&s;charged it to the utmo&s;t farthing. God pleaded a|gain&s;t Chri&s;t with his great power, and with his perfect righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e; To which plea Chri&s;t made an&s;wer with as Great a power (his being the power of God) and with as perfect a righteou&s;nes, his being al&s;o the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God. And hence it is, that when God comes to plead with Beleevers, he pleads not again&s;t them with his power and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, &s;eing Chri&s;t with both pleads for them; He pleads for them not onely as he is Je&s;us Chri&s;t the righteous, but as he is the mighty, the All-powerfull God. This is the chiefe&s;t ground of a beleevers confidence, that God (as <HI>Job</HI> here &s;aith) will not plead again&s;t him with his great power. What then did <HI>Job</HI> beleeve would God doe with him? the next words enforme us what his faith was in that particular.</P>
<Q>But he would put &s;trength in mee.</Q>
<P>(So we render) the Hebrew is onely thus; <HI>He will put in mee;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Veruntatem ille pones in me. <HI>Heb.</HI></NOTE> what he would put is not expre&s;&s;ed in the Original; which hath cau&s;ed &s;ome variety of opinion what it &s;hould be that the Lord would put into him; and I finde a threefold conjecture in the poynt.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The &s;upplement is made thus; <HI>He would produce argu|ments or rea&s;ons again&s;t me;</HI> and this is conceived mo&s;t &s;uitable to the context, and &s;cope of the place, as al&s;o to the action of plead|ing before &s;poken of;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Poneret &amp; af|ferret in me &s;u|as rationes. <HI>Merc.</HI> Ip&s;e poneret co~|tentione~ in me, id e&s;t non robo|re mecum age|ret &s;ed verbo|rum contentio|ne. <HI>Ch</HI></NOTE> <HI>would he plead with or again&s;t me with his great power, no, but he would &s;hew me the rea&s;on of his dealings with me;</HI> he would not proceed again&s;t me in a martiall but in a legal way, not in a prerogative but in a di&s;cour&s;ive argumentative way: he would &s;hew me the cau&s;e why he thus contendeth with me, and hath &s;o &s;orely afflicted me. God would conde&s;cend &s;o farre to my weaknes as to give me an account, though I dare not pre|&s;ume to call him to an account; and though he hath both power
<PB N="344" REF="186"> and right to deale with me as he plea&s;eth, yet I am much a&s;&s;ured that he would be plea&s;ed to tell me why he deals thus with me. This interpretation is cleare to the generall &s;cope of the context, and argues nothing unbecoming that holy confidence which the Grace of the Go&s;pel, alloweth, a beleever in, yea encourageth him unto, when in any di&s;tre&s;&s;e he approacheth unto God for the re|liefe and comfort of his troubled Spirit.</P>
<P>Secondly, Another thus; <HI>Will he plead again&s;t me with his great power,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Fonet in me, <HI>&s;c.</HI> cor &s;uum, <HI>i e.</HI> comple<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">eretur me favoure. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE> <HI>no, but he would put his heart upon me;</HI> that is, he would imbrace me with his favour and lay me in his bo&s;ome. Though his hand hath been exceeding heavy upon me, yet I be|lieve his heart is towards me; though he hath &s;mitten me with the wound of an enemy, yet he will receive me as a friend; and give me &s;ignal te&s;timonies of his love. I &s;hould not feele the weight of his hand, but &s;ee the tendernes of his bowels and his heart moving towards me. This al&s;o is an interpretation full of truth, and as full of comfort to a wearied &s;oule.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The &s;upplement made in our tran&s;lation reacheth both the former, and &s;uites al&s;o to the former branch of the Text, with much elegancy;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Alij &s;ub audiu~t &amp; repetu~t <GAP DESC="foreign"> in me robur po+neret ad con&s;i+&s;tendum coram &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e infi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">mum fulciens &amp; ro|borans. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Would he plead again&s;t me with his great power, no, but he would put power, or &s;trength into me,</HI> he will be &s;o farre from putting out his &s;trength again&s;t me, that he will put his &s;trength into me, he knoweth my weakne&s;&s;e, how unable I am to contend with or beare up again&s;t his power, and therefore he would put power into me. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders clearely to this &s;en&s;e, <HI>Would he by his great power plead again&s;t me, no, but he would helpe me;</HI> helpe is power, and he that helpeth another, admini&s;ters power to him; he either puts new &s;trength into him, or joynes his &s;trength with him. So then, <HI>Job</HI> was a&s;&s;ured that God would put &s;trength into him, or be his &s;trength to helpe and carry him through all the difficulties that lay before him.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> A beleiver hath no opinion of his owne &s;trength, or that he can doe any thing in his owne &s;trength.</Q>
<P>He tru&s;ts no more to his owne &s;trength or power, then to his owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e or worthine&s;&s;e. As our Ju&s;tification before God is purely founded in the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t, &s;o all the actings of our &s;anctification are maintained by the &s;trength of
<PB N="345" REF="186"> Chri&s;t. Holy <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake nothing of his owne &s;trength, yea he &s;pake as having no &s;trength of his owne. A Godly man knows his owne &s;trength is but weakne&s;&s;e, and that when he prevailes with God it is with a power which he hath from God. <HI>Paul</HI> u&s;eth a forme of &s;peech which we may call <HI>a divine riddle</HI> (2 Cor. 12.10.) <HI>When I am weake then I am &s;trong,</HI> he predicates or affirmes one contra|ry of another, weakne&s;&s;e is contrary to &s;trength, how a weake man &s;hould be &s;trong, and then e&s;pecially &s;trong when he is weake, is hard to conceive by tho&s;e who are &s;pirituall, and is unconceivable by tho&s;e who are carnal. This a&s;&s;ertion is enough to po&s;e and puzle nature; <HI>He that is weake is &s;trong,</HI> or <HI>the readie&s;t way to get &s;trength is to be weake.</HI> The truth and the Apo&s;tle <HI>Pauls</HI> meaning is plainly this; <HI>When I am weake in my owne &s;en&s;e and opinion, when I am convinced that I have no power of my owne, then I feele power coming in, then Chri&s;t &s;trengthens me, and I am &s;trong,</HI> then I experience that word, <HI>My grace is &s;ufficient for thee.</HI> When I finde the waters of my owne ci&s;terne low and fayling, then I have a &s;upply from the Spirit. So the Apo&s;tle &s;pake, (<HI>Phil.</HI> 1.19.) <HI>I know that this al&s;o &s;hall turne to my &s;alvation through your prayers, and the &s;upply of the Spirit of Je&s;us Chri&s;t.</HI> The fir&s;t <HI>Adam</HI> recei|ved all his &s;trength at once, we now receive our &s;trength by dayly fre&s;h &s;upplyes from the &s;econd <HI>Adam.</HI> The word there u&s;ed by the Apo&s;tle, which we render <HI>&s;upply,</HI> &s;ignifieth an <HI>under-&s;upply,</HI> implying thus much, that as the naturall body and each particular member of it, is &s;upplyed with &s;ence and motion, together with a &s;uitable &s;trength and ability from the head, &s;o beleevers who are altogether the my&s;ticall body of Chri&s;t, and each of them mem|bers in particular, are &s;upplyed from Chri&s;t their head by the Spi|rit, with &s;pirituall life, motion, and &s;trength of Grace for every duty to which they are called, or which is required of them. And becau&s;e as this is &s;o in its &s;elfe, &s;o beleevers are in&s;tructed in it; therfore they di&s;claime and goe out of their own &s;trength, that <HI>the power of Chri&s;t may re&s;t upon them.</HI> Chri&s;t fills none but the hun|gry, nor doth he &s;trengthen any but the weake. <HI>They who thinke they have any thing of their owne, &s;hall receive nothing from him; unle&s;&s;e Chri&s;t be all in all to us, he will not be any thing at all to us.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>God him&s;elfe puts &s;trength into humbled &s;inners, that they may &s;tand before him.</Q>
<PB N="346" REF="187"> As he knows what &s;trength &s;uch need, &s;o he gives them the &s;treng<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h they need; <HI>He will put &s;trength in me,</HI> maybe the confidence of any &s;oule in <HI>Jobs</HI> ca&s;e. We are not able to &s;tand before God under the burden of our corruptions, nor yet are we able to walke before him under the burden of our duties, unle&s;&s;e him&s;elfe be plea&s;ed to admini&s;ter &s;trength to us. And &s;urely if we have cau&s;e even to glory in our infirmities, that the power of Chri&s;t may re&s;t upon us (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 12.9.) then much more have we cau&s;e to glory in the power of Chri&s;t, when we finde &s;o many infirmities re&s;ting in us. The Prophet &s;aw this fully while he &s;aid (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45.24.) <HI>Surely &s;hall one &s;ay in the Lord have I righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and &s;trength, even to him &s;hall men come, in the Lord &s;hall all the &s;eed of I&s;raell be ju&s;ti|fied and &s;hall glory.</HI> That we have &s;trength in and from the Lord, is to us a ground of holy Glorying as wel as that we have righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e in him. For though to be ju&s;tified be a higher favour then to be &s;trengthned, yet unle&s;&s;e we were &s;trengthned, as we could not take in the comfort of our Ju&s;tification freely, &s;o neyther could we give God the glory of it &s;o fully as we ought. And as it is the joy of beleevers that God will put &s;trength into them when they are humbled under the greate&s;t weakne&s;&s;es, &s;o that their &s;trength is &s;till in him. For God doth not &s;o put it into us, as to put that &s;trength out of him&s;elfe. The &s;trength which God puts into us is a &s;trength &s;till re&s;iding in him&s;elfe. The &s;trength which we have received, as well as that which we have not yet received, is &s;till in the hand of God. And from his hand we &s;hall receive renewalls of &s;trength for all our needs and purpo&s;es. Take five in&s;tances in &s;peciall.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A Believer &s;hall receive &s;trength to doe, or an acting power from Chri&s;t; Though Chri&s;t hath done all for us, yet we have much to doe for Chri&s;t, and (&s;uch is the my&s;tery of Godli|ne&s;&s;e) that the &s;ame Chri&s;t who hath done all for us, will al&s;o doe all in us. Chri&s;t layeth a yoak upon the necks of his people, and a burden upon their &s;houlders, but he puts power and &s;trength into their &s;houlders to carry his yoak and beare his burden; and that's the rea&s;on why he calls his <HI>yoake ea&s;ie, and his burthen light,</HI> it is not &s;o con&s;idered in it &s;elfe, as if we could make light worke of the worke of Chri&s;t; but his burden is light, becau&s;e he hath promi&s;ed to give his at lea&s;t a &s;ufficient &s;trength to bear it. A heavy burthen is not grievous to equal &s;trength, &amp; it is light to a &s;uperior
<PB N="347" REF="187"> or greater &s;trength. As all our &s;ins (the lea&s;t whereof is a burden too heavy for us to beare) are light to us through the righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t, &s;o all the commandements of God (the lea&s;t of which is too hard for us alone) are light to us through the &s;trength of Chri&s;t. This was the Apo&s;tle <HI>Pauls</HI> profe&s;&s;ion, <HI>I can doe all things through Chri&s;t that &s;trengtheneth me,</HI> (Phil. 4.13.) A little is too much for us, all is but little for Chri&s;t; as we have the anointing of the Spirit, whereby we know all things, (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 2.20.) &s;o we have the &s;trengthening of the Spirit, whereby we doe all things It is a high priviledge, that Saints who receive their worke from heaven, receive their &s;trength from heaven too. And that as God puts his commands upon them, &s;o he puts this power into them. The Lord is &s;o farre from requiring worke of us, with|out giving us wages for what we have done, that he doth not re|quire worke of us without giving us &s;trength to doe it. When we looke upon our reward it might &s;eeme that we have done all our &s;elves, but when we looke upon his a&s;&s;i&s;tance, it is as evident that we have done nothing of our &s;elves. The Lord is not like tho&s;e <HI>Aegyptian</HI> task-ma&s;ters who called for brick, but would not give &s;traw; no, the Lord who calls for brick, doth not onely give us &s;traw, but &s;trength, even hands, and hearts to doe our worke. Go|&s;pel-grace or new-Covenant-grace promi&s;eth us &s;trength to doe what we are commanded to doe.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Lord gives us, as &s;trength to doe, &s;o to &s;uffer, &s;trength to beare his cro&s;&s;e as well as his yoake: &s;o the Apo&s;tle comforts the <HI>Corinthians</HI> (1 Ep: 10.13.) <HI>No temptation</HI> (that is, no affliction, for as every temptation hath trouble in it, and is therefore ju&s;tly called an affliction, &s;o every affliction hath a try|all in it, and is therefore ju&s;tly called a temptation, in which &s;ence the Apo&s;tle there &s;aith, <HI>no temptation) hath taken hold of you, but that which is common to man, but God is faithfull that will not &s;uffer you to be tempted above what ye are able, but with the temptation will make a way of e&s;cape, that ye may be able to beare it.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; be not afrayd that you &s;hall be oppre&s;&s;ed with the bur|den of any affliction or temptation which ye endure in my cau&s;e or for my name &s;ake; for ye &s;hall receive an ability commen&s;ara|ble to your affliction, what&s;oever it is; you &s;hall be &s;upported in tho&s;e afflictions which are immediately from the hand of God, much more in tho&s;e which are from the hand of man, even in the
<PB N="348" REF="188"> extreame&s;t and hotte&s;t per&s;ecutions. <HI>Paul</HI> had experience of this (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.17.) There he tells a &s;ad &s;tory of the fearefullne&s;&s;e if not of the unfaithfullnes of men, even of good men to him in an evill day, and he tells as comfortable a &s;tory of the pre&s;ence and faithfullne&s;&s;e of God to him in an evill day, even in the wor&s;t and blacke&s;t day that this world could lowre upon him in. <HI>At my fir&s;t an&s;wer, no man &s;tood with me</HI> (that is, no man appeared to &s;treng|then, to comfort me) <HI>all men for&s;ooke me, I pray God it be not laid to their charge,</HI> (What then? was he left of all, becau&s;e left of all men, no &s;uch matter, All men left him, but God who is but one One-mo&s;t God, and who alone is more then all men abode by him, as it followes in the Text) <HI>notwith&s;tanding the Lord &s;tood with me and &s;trengthned me, that by me the preaching might be fully knowne, and that all the Gentiles might heare: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the Lyon;</HI> that is, out of the danger of my dead|ly per&s;ecuters, even out of the danger of <HI>Nero</HI> him&s;elfe, by who&s;e power &s;o many had been de&s;troyed. The Lord alwayes &s;tands by his in time of affliction and tryall, eyther to &s;trengthen them in it, or to &s;trengthen them out of it, that is, to e&s;cape it; eyther to de|liver them from the danger of it, or to encourage them in the dan|gers of it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The Lord puts &s;trength into his people to mortifie corruption, he gives us not onely power again&s;t, but power over our lu&s;ts. Fle&s;hly lu&s;ts and corruptions are &s;trong, and if we have not &s;trength from Chri&s;t to &s;ubdue and conquer them, they will be too hard for us, and foyle us. We are ea&s;ily and pre&s;ently foiled, by pride, by covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, by wrath, by envie, all the&s;e pa&s;&s;ions and lu&s;ts will trample us under their feete in the dirt of all &s;infull|ne&s;&s;e and pollution both of fle&s;h and &s;pirit, unle&s;&s;e we receive power from on high to &s;ubdue and mortifie them. (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.13.) <HI>If ye through the Spirit mortifie the deeds of the body, ye &s;hall live;</HI> that is, ye &s;hall live comfortably, holyly, and eternally. <HI>The deeds of the body,</HI> that is, &s;infull deeds, and the roote of them &s;infull lu&s;ts, count all weapons (as Leviathan doth &s;peares and &s;words) but <HI>&s;traw and &s;tubble,</HI> rather to be laughed at then feared, except one|ly the weapons or power of the Spirit. And when once we take our lu&s;ts to taske with the weapons of the Spirit, they pre&s;ently fall and dye before us. <HI>The Spirit is the &s;trength of God in us for the mortification of Corruption.</HI></P>
<PB N="349" REF="188">
<P>Fourthly, We are &s;trengthened, or God puts &s;trength into us for the re&s;i&s;ting and conquering of the temptations of Satan; we meet with many a&s;&s;aults from the devill, and from the world, who are confederate with our lu&s;ts. The&s;e we mu&s;t <HI>re&s;i&s;t &s;tedfa&s;t in the faith;</HI> and that not onely in <HI>the faith</HI> as <HI>the faith</HI> imports &s;ound|nes of doctrine or divine truth, but as <HI>The faith</HI> imports depen|dance upon Chri&s;t for &s;trength and a&s;&s;i&s;tance. <HI>Peter,</HI> being <HI>a cheife, a grandee</HI> in the traine of Chri&s;t, or among the Di&s;ciples of Chri&s;t, was Satans eye-&s;ore, and the fayrer marke for his fiery darts; Sa|tans fingers itcht to be doing with him, he (&s;aith our Saviour) <HI>de&s;ired to have him that he might &s;ift him as wheat</HI> (Luk. 22.31.) that is, to &s;ift him throughly, not to fetch out his chaffe from him, but indeed to make him chaffe. How was <HI>Peter</HI> upheld? <HI>I have prayed for thee</HI> (&s;aith Chri&s;t) <HI>that thy faith faile not;</HI> that is, I have prayed that God would put &s;trength into thee, that <HI>thy faith faile not;</HI> if once faith faile we are overcome. But is faith our &s;trength? No; but faith goes to and takes hold of him who is our &s;trength, or who puts &s;trength into us that we fall not in temp|tation. But you will &s;ay, <HI>Peter</HI> fell, and he fell grievou&s;ly, his fall was great; he denyed his Ma&s;ter. 'Tis true, <HI>Peter</HI> fell, but he did not fall away, <HI>his faith did not faile,</HI> that is, it was not totally lo&s;t, and therefore when Chri&s;t lookt upon him, and by that looke re|newed his &s;trength, he gat up againe: even when he denied Chri&s;t there was a &s;eed of faith remaining in him, though like a tree in the winter, his fruit was gone, yea and his leaves too, and he look|ed dead and withered, yet there was &s;ap in the roote; his faith fai|led not; whence was this? he had an invi&s;ible &s;upply of &s;trength from God; <HI>I have prayed</HI> (&s;aith Chri&s;t) <HI>that thy faith faile not.</HI> The prayer of Chri&s;t fayled not, and therefore his faith did not; Chri&s;t prayed that he might have &s;trength by beleeving, and though he had not &s;o much faith as to pre&s;erve him &s;tanding, yet he had &s;o much faith as to rai&s;e him from his fall. And what Chri&s;t prayed for <HI>Peter,</HI> he prayed for all that &s;hould beleeve on his name, that in all their re&s;i&s;tings of, and contendings with tempta|tion, their faith al&s;o may not fayle. As faith is one principall piece of our &s;pirituall armour whereby we overcome temptation, &s;o it fetches in that which is the whole of the whole Armour of God, even the &s;trength of God. When the Apo&s;tle exhorts Saints (<HI>Eph.</HI> 6.11.) <HI>To put on the whole armour of God;</HI> He premi&s;es
<PB N="350" REF="189"> another mo&s;t needfull exhortation, or exhorts them fir&s;t (<HI>v.</HI> 10.) <HI>to be &s;trong in the Lord, and in the power of his might;</HI> implying, that it is not any one piece, no nor the whole armour of God ab|&s;tractly or preci&s;ely taken, which is our &s;trength, but that the God of this Armour is our &s;trength in the &s;pirituall combate. <HI>Though our loynes were girt about with truth, and we have on the brea&s;t-plate of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, though our feete were &s;hod with the prepara|tion of the Go&s;pel of peace, and we have the &s;hield of faith in our hand; though we &s;hould take the helmet of &s;alvation, and the &s;word of the Spirit which is the word of God,</HI> yet, if thus arrayed, it were po&s;&s;i|ble for us to neglect or forget the God of the Word, it were not po&s;&s;ible for us to conquer, the <HI>footmen,</HI> le&s;&s;er, much le&s;&s;e the <HI>hor&s;e|men,</HI> Greater, lea&s;t of all, <HI>The Charets of iron,</HI> the greate&s;t tempta|tions of the Prince of darknes. As no carnal weapon hath any thing at all to doe, &s;o no &s;pirituall weapon can doe any thing at all in this warre without the &s;trength of God; or rather (to conclude this poynt) all the&s;e &s;pirituall weapons and Armour are nothing el&s;e but the &s;trength of God, or the various puttings forth of the &s;trength of God in weake man.</P>
<P>Fifthly and la&s;tly, God gives us &s;trength to pray to and plead our cau&s;e before him; he will not dazle us with his glory, nor con|found us with his Maje&s;ty when we come to plead with him, but he will put &s;trength into us. In prayer we prevaile with God, but the &s;trength whereby we prevaile with God, comes from God; yea he doth not onely give us &s;trength in prayer to act by, but he acts that &s;trength in prayer. (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.26.) <HI>Likewi&s;e the Spirit helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we &s;hould pray for as we ought, but the Spirit it &s;elfe maketh interce&s;&s;ion for us with groa|nings which cannot be uttered.</HI> Prayer is &s;trong worke, it calls forth the whole &s;trength of the &s;oul, nor doth the &s;oule in any thing &s;hew its &s;trength more then in prayer; praying is wre&s;tling, and how can we wre&s;tle without &s;trength? Even the king of <HI>Ninevy</HI> gave this direction at his fa&s;t (<HI>Jon.</HI> 3.8.) <HI>Let them cry mightily. And our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t in the dayes of his fle&s;h offered up pray|ers and &s;upplications with &s;trong crying and teares</HI> (Heb. 5.7.) Now, the Spirit is the &s;trength of God in us, for prayer: he help|eth our infirmities, and we are onely a bundle of infirmities with|out his helpe. There is a threefold &s;trength needfull in prayer, and God by the Spir<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t puts the&s;e three &s;trengths into us.</P>
<PB N="351" REF="189">
<P>Fir&s;t, The Spirit helpes us with &s;trength of argument to plead with God.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Spirit helpes us with &s;trength of faith in taking hold upon God.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The Spirit helpes us with &s;trength of patience in wai|ting upon God till we receive what we have prayed for. <HI>Jacob</HI> by this threefold <HI>&s;trength had power with God in prayer</HI> (Ho&s;. 12.3.) and it was the power or Spirit of God by which he had this three|fold &s;trength to prevaile with God. Thus <HI>we are &s;trengthened with might by the Spirit in the inner man</HI> (Eph. 3.16.) We are &s;trong to doe, and &s;trong to &s;uffer, we are &s;trong to mortifie corruptions, and &s;trong to conquer temptations, we are &s;trong to pray and &s;trong to plead our cau&s;e at the throane of Grace, when God puts &s;trength into us. <HI>Job</HI> who had received great &s;trength from God in all the former ca&s;es, was a&s;&s;ured that he &s;hould receive &s;trength al&s;o in the la&s;t, were he admitted to the &s;eate of God. Would he (there) plead again&s;t me with his great power? No, but he would put &s;trength in me, to plead with him. And as he was thus a&s;&s;ured that God would put &s;trength into him to plead his cau&s;e, &s;o al&s;o liberty and freedome to doe it; as appeares more fully in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="7" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;e 7^t^h.</HI></BIBL> There the righteous might di&s;pute with him; &s;o &s;hould I be delivered for ever from my Judge.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There; where? he meanes at the &s;eate of God, as if he had &s;aid; <HI>Could I but once come to the throne or &s;eate of God,</HI> I &s;hould have free leave and liberty enough to open and argue, to &s;tate and de|bate my ca&s;e, my long controverted and yet unre&s;olved ca&s;e with him. He would not <HI>plead again&s;t me with his great power</HI> of Au|thority, but he would give me the power of liberty to di&s;pute, and rea&s;on out that matter with him. Severall pa&s;&s;ages in the for|mer part of this Booke, clearely hold out this &s;en&s;e. (<HI>Chap.</HI> 9.34, 35.) <HI>Let him take his rod away from me, and let not his feare ter|rifie me; then would I &s;peake and not feare him, but it is not &s;o with me;</HI> as yet <HI>God pleadeth again&s;t me with his great power.</HI> Againe, (<HI>Chap.</HI> 13.21, 22.) <HI>Withdraw thy hand farre from me, and let not thy dread make me afraid</HI> (as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Plead not again&s;t me with thy great power) then call thou and I will an&s;wer, or let me
<PB N="352" REF="190"> &s;peake, and an&s;wer thou me.</HI> Tho&s;e Texts already opened are of the fame generall &s;cope and tendency with this underhand; <HI>There</HI> (that is, All things being put into &s;uch a po&s;ture) <HI>the righteous might di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<P>Some read the text in the fir&s;t per&s;on; <HI>There, I, being righteous might di&s;pute with him.</HI> Others, thus; <HI>I &s;hould be found righteous if I did di&s;pute with him;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>I make no doubt of proving my &s;elfe righteous or innocent in this controver&s;ie with my friends; There I &s;hould not be found a fal&s;e-hearted hypocrite, God who knowes both my thoughts and my wayes, would judge otherwi&s;e of me, then men have done.</HI></P>
<P>We reade the text indefinitely, not re&s;training it to his per&s;on, but as taking in any that are righteous; <HI>The righteous,</HI> that is, <HI>any righteous man might di&s;pute with him there;</HI> his Court, his tribunal is free, and open for all that are upright or righteous. In what &s;en&s;e the word <HI>righteous</HI> is u&s;ed in this Booke hath been opened more then once. In a word, the righteous man is not he that is legally righteous, but righteous in a redeemer, or righteous as op|po&s;ed to an hypocrite. In both the&s;e &s;en&s;es, we may take the word here; <HI>The righteous may di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t a|pud alium ita argumentari ut petas re&s;pon&s;io nem qua vici&s;|&s;im &s;i quid er|raveris redar|guaris. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE>The word is properly applyed to &s;chola&s;ticke exerci&s;es; where que&s;tions being put, arguments are brought by the opponent, which the re&s;pondent takes away, and the Moderator &s;tates be|tween them both. This is the nature and manner of a &s;trict di&s;|pute. But in a large or vulgar &s;ence, every di&s;cour&s;ing and rea|&s;oning about a doubtfull poynt is called di&s;puting. <HI>There the righ|teous may di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>God is free, and ready to heare, the pleadings, and rea&s;onings of tho&s;e who are upright and righteous.</Q>
<P>As the prayer of the upright is the delight of God, &s;o their mo|de&s;t and humble di&s;putings are not di&s;plea&s;ing to him. A righte|ous man may plead with God freely, but he mu&s;t not plead with God proudly, eyther crying up and boa&s;ting in his owne righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e, or laying the lea&s;t imputation of unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e upon the wayes of God in dealing with him. The righteous di&s;pute with God, yet they know and keep their di&s;tance, and while they doe &s;o, God is willing they &s;hould, and welcomes them when they
<PB N="353" REF="190"> doe draw nigh to him, di&s;puting as wel as praying. In oppo&s;ition to which 'tis &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 5.5.) <HI>The fooli&s;h &s;hall not &s;tand in thy &s;ight, thou hate&s;t all workers of iniquity. The fooli&s;h,</HI> that is, the wicked man, the hypocrite with his fal&s;e-hearted and flattering tongue, are an abomination to God. The fooli&s;h man that the P&s;almi&s;t meanes, is not the man low in parts, but un&s;ound in &s;pirit. This fooli&s;h man &s;hall not &s;tand in the &s;ight of God, nor will God heare him eyther di&s;puting or praying, but reject him with his di&s;putes and prayers. <HI>Thou hate&s;t all the workers of iniquity, and to the wicked God &s;aith, what ha&s;t thou to doe to declare my &s;ta|tutes, or that thou &s;houlde&s;t take my Covenant in thy mouth</HI> (P&s;al. 50.16.) God will not endure it, that wicked men &s;hould &s;peake of him, much le&s;&s;e will he endure, that a wicked man &s;hould di&s;|pute with him. God will have nothing to doe in way of arguing, and rea&s;oning, eyther with a per&s;on or with a people, while he or they continue in their &s;innes. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.15, 16.) <HI>When ye &s;pread forth your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; yea when ye make many prayers, I will not heare; your hands are full of blood;</HI> that is, eyther of bloody &s;innes in &s;peciall, as murder and oppre&s;&s;ion, or of &s;innes in generall; for every &s;in is blood and bloody, every &s;in may be called blood: and while the hands are full of blood in ey|ther &s;ence, God will not heare, that is, he will not graciou&s;ly heare or accept &s;o much as one of many prayers. But are the wic|ked and their prayers and their di&s;putings excluded for ever? while they continue &s;uch, or to doe &s;uch things they are; and therefore in the next words, the Lord by his Prophet gives them this coun|&s;el; <HI>Wa&s;h ye, make ye cleane, put away the evill of your doings from before my eyes, cea&s;e to doe evill, learne to doe well, &s;eeke judgement, releive the oppre&s;&s;ed, judge the fatherle&s;&s;e, plead for the widdow;</HI> here's a de&s;cription of a righteous per&s;on, righteous in his way, upright with God and men; and with &s;uch God will &s;peake, &s;uch may di&s;pute with him, as it follows (<HI>v.</HI> 18.) <HI>Come now, and let us rea&s;on together. We know</HI> (&s;aith the blind man after he was healed) (<HI>Joh.</HI> 9.31.) <HI>that God heareth not &s;inners</HI> (that is, &s;uch as plead for or plea&s;e them&s;elves in any &s;in) <HI>but if any man be a wor&s;hipper of God, and doth his will, him he heareth;</HI> him he heareth praying, and him he heareth di&s;puting. Whereas of the prayings of the wicked he &s;aith, <HI>they are but meere bablings,</HI> and of their di&s;putings, <HI>they are but vaine fanglings. If</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;. 66.
<PB N="354" REF="191"> 18.) <HI>I regard iniquity in my heart, God will not heare me;</HI> God will not regard his prayers, therefore not his di&s;putes, who regards iniquity; but to the righteous and to &s;uch as repent of and turne from their unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, the Lord &s;aith, <HI>Come let us rea&s;on to|gether,</HI> let us di&s;pute the poynt; <HI>Though your &s;innes be as &s;carlet, they &s;hall be as white as &s;now, though they be red like crim&s;on, they &s;hall be as wool.</HI> Where take notice, by the way, that while God &s;aith, <HI>your &s;ins which were as skarlet &s;hall be as white as &s;now,</HI> we are not to thinke that &s;in &s;hall ever change colour, or be other then it is in the eyes of God: &s;o that <HI>your &s;in &s;hall be as &s;now,</HI> is you &s;inners &s;hall be &s;o. It is a very hard thing, and next to an im|po&s;&s;ibility to change the nature of a &s;inner, yea or the cu&s;tome of a &s;inner (<HI>Jer.</HI> 13.23.) but it is altogether impo&s;&s;ible to change the nature and con&s;titution, yea or the complexion and colour of a &s;in, that lookes ever red, but the <HI>redde&s;t &s;inner</HI> may turne <HI>white as &s;now.</HI> And when once the &s;inner is turned white, God is ready to heare both his prayers, and di&s;putes. God loves to heare &s;uch penitents confe&s;&s;ing their &s;inne, unburdening their con&s;cience, pleading the promi&s;e. And he loves to heare the righteous hold|ing out and maintaining the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of their wayes (again&s;t all the clamours and calumnies of men) before him. <HI>There the righteous may di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Note;
<Q>The righteous are willing and have priviledge to di&s;pute or ar|gue their cau&s;e with God.</Q></P>
<P>The righteous have acce&s;&s;e to God, and boldnes with him in the blood of Chri&s;t; So that they dare not onely, fir&s;t, tell him of their own wants, or &s;econdly, of their wrongs from others, or third-of their integrity, and the uprightne&s;&s;e of their hearts with him, and that he knows it is &s;o, but fourthly (which argues the greate&s;t hight of holy boldnes) they dare tell him of all the &s;innes which they have committed again&s;t him, and di&s;pute with him for mercy as their right upon the account of his owne promi&s;e and covenant made with Chri&s;t in their behalfe, while re&s;pecting and reflecting upon them&s;elves they can ju&s;tifie God in condemning them for ever under wrath. Here is the right Go&s;pel-Logicke; The&s;e are the holy &s;ubtleties which the Spirit teacheth; The&s;e are none of the <HI>di&s;puters of this world, who&s;e wi&s;dome</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;aith,
<PB N="355" REF="191"> 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.20.) <HI>God hath made fooli&s;h and will de&s;troy;</HI> but the&s;e are <HI>Divine Di&s;putants indeed,</HI> or di&s;puters for another world, who&s;e wi&s;dome is of God, and who are <HI>wi&s;e unto &s;alvation. The&s;e righ|teous ones may di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<Q>So &s;hould I be for ever delivered from my Judge.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> proceeds from the the&s;is to the hypothe&s;is, from the third per&s;on to the fir&s;t; The righteous man pleads with him, but he doth not &s;ay, <HI>&s;o &s;hould the righteous be delivered for ever from his judge;</HI> but <HI>&s;o &s;hall I be delivered for ever from my judge;</HI> thus he puts him&s;elfe expre&s;&s;ely into the number of the righteous or up|right, and his argument &s;tands thus;</P>
<P><HI>He that is righteous, or upright, may di&s;pute and be acquitted or delivered when he di&s;putes with his Judge.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But I am righteous, or upright.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Therefore I &s;hall be delivered from my judge when I di&s;pute with him.</HI></P>
<P>The Major propo&s;ition is layd downe in the former part of this ver&s;e; The A&s;&s;umption in <HI>v.</HI> 11^t^h, 12^t^h. The conclu&s;ion ap|peares in the latter part of this 7^t^h ver&s;e, and in the 10^t^h.</P>
<P><HI>So &s;hould I be delivered for ever from my Judge;</HI> That is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">L<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">berarer eva|derem &s;emper a judice meo, <HI>i. e.</HI> ab&s;olverer, vitarem ejus con<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">emnatio|nem. <HI>Merc:</HI> Probata cau&s;a impetrarem ab eo liberationem. <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE> I &s;hould e&s;cape the &s;everity of his &s;entence. The Judge hath him that comes before him in hold, he hath him in his hand or power when his ca&s;e is pleading, but when a man is acquitted, then he is delivered from his Judge, that is, from the condemning &s;entence of his Judge, then he is pronounced free, or (as we &s;ay) acquitted by Proclamation; no man may then medle with him, or charge his crime upo~ him. <HI>Job</HI> was a&s;&s;ured that he &s;hould come off well at his tryall, and that there could be no bringing of the matter about againe. <HI>I &s;hould be delivered for ever;</HI> that is, I &s;hould never be que&s;tioned more, I &s;hould &s;ee an end, or final dermination of my cau&s;e.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vindicabor ad victoriam vel eternitatem u|trum enim <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ignifi|cat. Hoc &s;upremo ju|dicem deciden|tes, a vobis ini|quis judicibus ve&s;tri&s;&abque; &s;u&s;pi|cionibus quovis alio Ari&s;tarcho liberabor victor totalit&egrave;r. <HI>Scult.</HI></NOTE></P>
<P>The word which we tran&s;late <HI>for ever,</HI> &s;ignifies both <HI>victory,</HI> and <HI>eternity; I &s;hould be delivered victoriou&s;ly and eternally, or un|to victory or eternity from my Judge.</HI> The &s;ame word &s;ignifies <HI>victory</HI> and <HI>eternity</HI> in the Original, becau&s;e eternity gets the vi|ctory over all. <HI>Time is a great Conquerour,</HI> that eats out all things here below, who&s;e pedegree is from below; <HI>but eternity will eate it out,</HI> and conquer time it &s;elfe; eternity is the greate&s;t Conque|rer.
<PB N="356" REF="192"> <HI>For ever</HI> is the &s;adde&s;t and &s;weete&s;t word (upon different ac|counts) in the whole Bible; to be condemned had not &s;o much &s;adnes in it, were it not <HI>for ever,</HI> and to be ju&s;tifyed, had not &s;o much &s;weetnes in it, were it not <HI>for ever.</HI> This word <HI>for ever</HI> weighs mo&s;t both in refence to mercy and to judgement. <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayd the utmo&s;t to his owne comfort, when he &s;aid, <HI>I &s;hall be delivered,</HI> or (as M. <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates) <HI>be quit for ever by my Judge.</HI></P>
<P>There is yet a que&s;tion concerning the Judge, or who the Judge is from whom he &s;hould be delivered. Our reading &s;eemes to in|tend it of God him&s;elfe. Others by the Judge under&s;tand his friends or others who charged him &s;o hardly. There is yet a third opinion which &s;uppo&s;eth the Judge to be &s;ome third per&s;on,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Judicem intel|ligit apud quem ip&s;e &s;uam cau|&s;am ageret ad|ver&s;us deum; facit enim deum velut litigato|rem; qua&s;i co|ram tertio quo|dam judice cau|&s;a di&s;ceptetur. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> who &s;hould umpire the bu&s;ienes between God and him. I rather con|ceive that by his Judge he meanes God him&s;elfe, to who&s;e righ|teous and mercifull tribunal he appealed from the hard &s;entence and judgement of his friends. And who having once declared his judgement, not onely the cen&s;ures but even the &s;u&s;pitions of all men, whether friends or enemies, would be &s;ilenced for ever. And &s;o la&s;tly, we may take the word <HI>Judge,</HI> which is here indefinitely propo&s;ed, univer&s;ally. As if he had &s;ayd; when once God hath had the hearing of my cau&s;e I &s;hall not need to feare any, what they can &s;ay, or do again&s;t me, in the capacity of a Judge. <HI>So &s;hould I be delivered for ever from my Judge.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q>God will for ever acquit the righteous, nor &s;hall any have power to condemne tho&s;e whom he hath once acquitted.</Q></P>
<P><HI>There is no condemnation to them that are in Chri&s;t</HI> (Rom. 8.1.) as much as to &s;ay, &s;uch &s;hall be for ever delivered from their judge. <HI>Who &s;hall lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect? It is God who Ju&s;tifieth</HI> (Rom. 8.33.) Though &s;ome will pre&s;ume to lay many and grievous things to the charge of Gods Elect, yet God having Ju&s;tified them,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hac ratione li|ber evaderem ab iniquis vitae meae Judicibus &amp; calumniato|ribus, ut ultra mihi di&s;cepta|tione &amp; conten|tione opus non erit.</NOTE> all their charges &s;hall be reprobated and rejected. God who hath once Ju&s;tified a per&s;on, will never lay any thing to his charge, and what charge &s;oever others bring again&s;t him, Gods ju&s;tification will take it off. The Apo&s;tles challenge is univer&s;al, <HI>Who &s;hall lay any thing</HI> &amp;c? It is univer&s;al two wayes. Fir&s;t, in re|gard of per&s;ons accu&s;ing, he excepts none in earth, heaven, or hell. Secondly, in regard of crimes, he excepts no &s;ort of &s;inne,
<PB N="357" REF="192"> let them &s;eeke and finde what they can, be they &s;ins again&s;t God or man, be they &s;ins of omi&s;&s;ion or commi&s;&s;ion, be they &s;ins ne|ver &s;o much aggravated, or &s;adly circum&s;tantiated, though again&s;t both light and love, yet they will not doe again&s;t a per&s;on Elect and Ju&s;tified. <HI>Who &s;hall lay any thing to the charge of Gods Elect?</HI> wipes away all charges. Accu&s;ed they may be, though ju&s;tified, but condemned they cannot be, becau&s;e ju&s;tified. The be&s;t of Saints on earth have much in them, and much is done by them, which might be matter of charge again&s;t them (for he that &s;aith he hath no &s;in in him, hath indeed no truth in him, 1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 1.8.) but Ju&s;tifying Grace is their full di&s;charge.</P>
<P>Againe, As the word <HI>Judge,</HI> is expounded univer&s;ally, for all tho&s;e that did or might accu&s;e <HI>Job.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q>The be&s;t and mo&s;t righteous on earth, meete with many har&s;h ac|cu&s;ers and hard Judges.</Q></P>
<P><HI>David</HI> had tho&s;e who layd to his charge things that he knew not (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.11.) The <HI>Jewes</HI> returned from <HI>Babylon</HI> to build their City and Temple, were charged with &s;edition; <HI>Jeremie</HI> was charged with trea&s;on; <HI>Paul</HI> was called, <HI>a pe&s;tilent fellow;</HI> and the primitive Chri&s;tians were generally loaded with &s;launders by the Heathen. Mi&s;report and reproach are the portion of Saints from the world. And how &s;adly <HI>Job</HI> was charged all along by his friends, and how &s;everely cen&s;ured, hath appeared every where in this Booke, e&s;pecially in the former Chapter (<HI>ver.</HI> 5, 6, 7.) <HI>Is not thy wickednes great, and thine iniquities infinite? for thou ha&s;t taken a pledge from thy brother for nought, and &s;tripped the na|ked of their cloathing</HI> &amp;c. Had not <HI>Job</HI> rea&s;on to looke upon it as a great mercy to be delivered from &s;uch a Judge. And hath not every Godly man rea&s;on to make <HI>Davids</HI> choyce (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 24.14.) <HI>Let me fall into the hand of the Lord (for his mercies are great) and let me not fall into the hand of men.</HI> Now as men are for the mo&s;t part over-&s;evere executioners of Gods &s;entence, &s;o they are u&s;ually over-&s;evere Judges in giving their owne whether &s;ence or &s;entence concerning others. And therefore <HI>Jobs</HI> faith did prophecy this good to him&s;elfe, That God having heard him, and judged him, he <HI>&s;hould be delivered for euer from</HI> (man) <HI>his Judge.</HI> And let this be the comfort of the righteous who are oppre&s;&s;ed
<PB N="358" REF="193"> with the hard opinions of men, That, <HI>God will at la&s;t deliver them for ever from every rigorous and unrighteous Judge.</HI> In that Great day (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Jude</HI> calls it) the cau&s;e of every righteous man &s;hall be di&s;puted before God, and then they &s;hall be delive|red for ever from their Judge. And this did exceedingly beare up the &s;pirit of the Apo&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> in the mid&s;t of the various cen&s;ures and judgements of men concerning him; he knew their judge|ment &s;hould be taken off at la&s;t, (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.3, 4.) <HI>With me it is a very &s;mall thing that I &s;hould be judged of you, or of mans judge|ment, yea I judge not my owne &s;elfe; But he that judgeth me is the Lord, therefore judge nothing before the time till the Lord come, who both will bring to light the hidden things of darkne&s;&s;e, and make manife&s;t the coun&s;ells of the hearts, and then &s;hall every man have prai&s;e of God;</HI> That is, every righteous man, though di&s;prai|&s;ed, and de&s;pi&s;ed, though judged and condemned by men, though blackt over with fal&s;e reports and reproaches, yet then every righ|teous man &s;hall have prai&s;e from the mo&s;t righteous God. He will then doe all his people right who have been wronged, and pa&s;&s;e a ju&s;t &s;entence upon tho&s;e who have &s;uffered much and long un|der unju&s;t cen&s;ures. <HI>And &s;o &s;hall they be for ever delivered from their Judge.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="359" REF="193">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 8, 9, 10.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Behold I goe forward but he is not there, and backward but I cannot perceive him.</P>
<P>On the left hand where he doth worke, but I cannot behold him, hee hideth him&s;elfe on the right hand that I can|not &s;ee him.</P>
<P>But he knoweth the way that I take, when he hath tryed mee, I &s;hall come forth as gold.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the two former ver&s;es, <HI>Job</HI> expre&s;t much Confidence of a good i&s;&s;ue in his Cau&s;e, could he but finde God and come to tryall. And he reneweth this againe at the 10^t^h ver&s;e, Expre&s;&s;ing the &s;ame Confidence; <HI>When he hath tryed mee I &s;hall come forth as gold.</HI> But though he was thus Confident of a faire coming off in Ca&s;e he could finde God, yet he &s;eemes in the&s;e words to ca&s;t off all Confidence of finding him; fora&s;much as yet he could not, or had not. Expre&s;&s;ing him&s;elfe here as a man that had travelled in|to all parts and quarters of the world, Ea&s;t, We&s;t, North, and South, to finde a friend, yet could not meet with him. <HI>Behold I goe forward but he is not there, and backward but I cannot perceive him. On the left hand where he doth worke, but I cannot behold him, he hideth him&s;elfe on the right hand that I cannot &s;ee him.</HI></P>
<P>There is a threefold &s;cope held forth about the&s;e words.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As if <HI>Job</HI> did here deplore his fruitles paines, in wi&s;hing for his appearing before God, and in appealing to his Tribunal; for as yet he &s;aw him&s;elfe unan&s;wered and fru&s;trated in his expe|ctation; God did not appeare to him in his troubles, nor declare his purpo&s;e towards him.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Declarat Job &s;e non po&s;&s;e ra|tione humana, per res natura|les (quas per quatuor mundi plagas &s;ignifi|cat) cogno&s;cere cert&ograve; &amp; clare rationes divino|rum judicio|rum. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE></P>
<P>Secondly, His &s;cope may be to a&s;&s;ert the hiddennes of the wayes of God, or that the wayes of God are not to be found out, nor under&s;tood by all the paines and indu&s;try, by all the endea|vours and di&s;qui&s;itions of man; let him turne him&s;elfe which way he will, <HI>Ea&s;t or We&s;t, North or South,</HI> yet he mu&s;t &s;ay, <HI>I cannot behold him.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Some conceive that <HI>Jobs</HI> intent is to declare his owne under&s;tanding or meaning in that earne&s;t wi&s;h which he lately
<PB N="360" REF="194"> made,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec &s;ubjungit ad declarandu~ dei immen&s;ita tem, ne quis putaret eum ex i&s;tima&s;&s;e, deum corporeum e&s;&s;e aut corporali loco circum&s;cri|bi cum de illi|us tribunali lo|quutus e&s;t. <HI>Id:</HI></NOTE> about his admittance to the Throne of God; <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him, that I might come even to his &s;eat</HI> (v. 3^d) He was not &s;o gro&s;&s;e as to thinke that God was Confined to any place, or that he had a Seat on which he &s;ate, as the Princes of the Earth have; and therefore he affirmes, that God is <HI>every where, and no where;</HI> that he is every where indeed, though he could not finde him appearing to him any where; as if he had &s;ayd, I doe not circum&s;cribe God in my apprehen&s;ions to this or that place; I enquire after him <HI>Ea&s;t, We&s;t, North, and South,</HI> that is, all the world over, yet I mi&s;s of him and have not attained my purpo&s;e to this houre; for he hath not yet manife&s;ted him&s;elfe unto mee. This &s;eemes to be the generall &s;cope of the&s;e three ver&s;es, which have two things e&s;pecially Con&s;iderable in them.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;olicitous Complaint of the Lords hideing him&s;elfe from him after all his &s;earchings.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Comfort which <HI>Job</HI> tooke in the Integrity of his owne heart, and in the clearnes of his Con&s;cience, that if once he came to tryall, all would be well with him.</P>
<P>The 8^t^h and 9^t^h ver&s;es are all of one Importance, which I &s;hall briefly open, and then give &s;ome notes from them.</P>
<DIV3 N="8" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL>Ver&s;. 8.</BIBL> <HI>Behold!</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Hee &s;peakes here as of &s;ome &s;trange thing, that God who is eve|ry where, &s;hould be no where found by him; <HI>I goe forward, and backward, to the right hand, to the left,</HI> and finde him not.</P>
<Q>Behold, I goe forward.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> aliquan|do temporis ali|quando vero loci principium &amp; prioritatem &s;ig|nificat.</NOTE>The word is applyed in Scripture to &s;ignifie both a priority in time, and a priority in place. Some Interpret it here of time, I looke to the times which were before, and now are pa&s;t. In which &s;ence the word is u&s;ed (2 <HI>King.</HI> 19.25.) <HI>Ha&s;t thou not heard long agoe?</HI> That is, ha&s;t thou not heard of the times which are forward, or which have been before. So (<HI>Prov.</HI> 8.23.) Wi&s;dome thus &s;peakes, <HI>I was &s;et up from everla&s;ting, from the beginning, ere ever the earth was.</HI> So wee tran&s;late it; the Hebrew is, <HI>I was &s;et up from everla&s;ting, from the head of time, before the earth was.</HI> Chri&s;t was before the head of time, or the beginning of time; wee tran|&s;late it here as referring to a place; <HI>Behold, I goe forward,</HI> that is, as &s;ome render, <HI>I goe Ea&s;tward,</HI> or <HI>toward the Ea&s;t.</HI> The world
<PB N="361" REF="194"> Con&s;idered in it &s;elfe hath neither forward nor backward, but man being con&s;idered as &s;etting him&s;elfe to the Sun-ri&s;ing (for that's the natural po&s;ture of man) then <HI>forward is Ea&s;tward,</HI> the Sun ri&s;eth in the Ea&s;t. And then <HI>backward</HI> is We&s;tward. The <HI>left hand</HI> is the North, and the <HI>right hand</HI> is the South; Such is the po&s;ition of every man &s;tanding with his face to the Ea&s;t. Thus here, <HI>Behold, I goe forward,</HI> that is, to the Ea&s;t, or I goe Ea&s;tward; for a man may goe forward, in a large &s;ence, though he goe to the North, or to the South, towards Ea&s;t or We&s;t, which way &s;oever he goes, he goes forward. But to goe forward,<NOTE PLACE="marg">In Scriptura pars antica, Ori|entalis, po&s;tica occidentalis, Au&s;tralis dex|tra: Aquilona|ris &s;ini&s;tra.</NOTE> according to this &s;trict notion is to goe Ea&s;tward, not onely becau&s;e the <HI>Jewes</HI> and <HI>Arabians</HI> were wont to wor&s;hip toward the Ea&s;t, but e&s;pecially becau&s;e man doth naturally turne him&s;elfe toward the Ea&s;t, or the Sun-ri&s;ing. So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 2.8.) <HI>The Lord planted a garden Ea&s;tward in Eden,</HI> or <HI>forward in Eden. Behold I goe forward, but he is not there.</HI></P>
<P><HI>And not hee,</HI> &s;aith the Originall, that is, hee is not to be found,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ante ibo, &amp; non ip&s;e. <HI>Heb.</HI></NOTE> or he is not to be had; not that <HI>Job</HI> did thinke the Ea&s;tern part of the world empty of God, for he was acquainted with the doctrine of Gods Omnipre&s;ence, he knew that God is every where; but his meaning is onely this, he doth not manife&s;t him&s;elfe to mee, nor appeare according to my appeale to him, that I might argue my ca&s;e, and rea&s;on my matters with him. I obtaine no di&s;covery of God, but continue &s;till in darknes and di&s;&s;atisfaction; <HI>Behold I goe forward, but he is not there,</HI>
<Q>And backward, but I cannot perceive him.</Q></P>
<P>The &s;ame word in Scripture (as was noted of the word <HI>For|ward</HI>) &s;ignifieth that which is behinde both in time, and in place.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> nunc ad tempus nunc ad locum re|&s;pectum habet.</NOTE> It is applyed to that which is behinde in time (<HI>E&s;a.</HI> 41.23.) where the Lord Challengeth the Idols to give a proofe of their Deitie, or that they were gods; <HI>Shew the things that are to come hereafter,</HI> or the things that are <HI>backward,</HI> and behinde in time, things that are to be done or to come to pa&s;&s;e hereafter, and wee &s;hall have &s;ome te&s;timony of your God-head, or that ye are Gods. And as it &s;ignifies that which is behinde in time, &s;o that which is behinde in place. Thus wee render it, <HI>I goe backward,</HI> and then (according to the former notion, <HI>forward</HI> beeing <HI>Ea&s;t|ward)
<PB N="362" REF="195"> backward is We&s;tward.</HI> The We&s;terne parts of the world are called the <HI>back parts of the world;</HI> not as &s;ome (gro&s;&s;ely e|nough) give the rea&s;on, becau&s;e the we&s;t parts of the world are the wor&s;t parts of the world, or were fit onely to be ca&s;t behinde the back and be forgotten, as a more ignoble part of the world; but becau&s;e according to the po&s;ition of a man looking toward the Sun-ri&s;ing which is Ea&s;tward, the We&s;t is backward, or upon his backe.</P>
<P><HI>And backward, but I cannot perceive,</HI> or (as the Original word &s;trictly beares) <HI>under&s;tand him;</HI> That is, I cannot finde any marke or print of Gods &s;peciall pre&s;ence with me there. God is as much hidden or &s;ecrets him&s;elfe from me as much in the We&s;t, as in the Ea&s;t, both here and there my pur&s;uits after him are fruitle&s;&s;e. <HI>I goe backward, but I cannot perceive him,</HI> nor doe I yet give over my enquiry; For as it followes;</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="9" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 9.</HI></BIBL> I goe on the left hand where he doth worke, but I cannot behold him.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The&s;e words are a de&s;cription of the <HI>Northern part</HI> of the world, for that is on the <HI>left hand,</HI> (as was &s;ayd) according to the mo&s;t naturall po&s;ition of mans body. And he addeth, <HI>where he doth worke;</HI> which addition gives a peculiar character or de&s;crip|tion of the place, and is variou&s;ly tran&s;lated.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quando opera|tur. <HI>Pagn.</HI> In faciendo ip|&s;um. <HI>Pagn.</HI> Dum operatur. <HI>Vatabl.</HI> &V;bi facit opus &s;uum. <HI>I&s;idor:</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t, <HI>On the left hand when he doth worke.</HI> Secondly, <HI>On the left hand, in his worke,</HI> or <HI>working;</HI> thirdly, <HI>On the left hand while he worketh;</HI> wee render, <HI>On the left hand where he doth worke,</HI> or <HI>where he doth his worke.</HI> Here a que&s;tion is ray&s;ed, why is this de|&s;cription given of the <HI>left hand,</HI> or of the Northern part of the world? doth not God worke on the <HI>right hand,</HI> or in the South as well as on the <HI>left hand,</HI> or in the North.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; Though God worketh all the world over, yet God worketh in &s;ome parts of the world in a more eminent manner. God worketh &s;o in &s;ome places, as if he did worke no where el&s;e: All places are the worke of God by Creation, and God worketh in all places by his providence. The workes of creation would run to ruine, if God did not &s;u&s;taine, and as it were keepe them in re|paration by the workes of providence, yet as God worketh in &s;ome men, and by &s;ome men, more then in, nnd by others, &s;ome
<PB N="363" REF="195"> per&s;ons are to him as his right hand, he calls them forth to be greatly in&s;trumentall to him. So hee worketh in &s;ome places, and nations, and by &s;ome places and nations more then he doth in or by others. God is a free Agent, he worketh where he will, and he pitcheth upon &s;ome &s;peciall places, and per&s;ons, (according to the plea&s;ure of his owne will) to worke in, and by, more then many others. And &s;eing according to this Interpretation, <HI>The left hand where he is &s;aid to worke</HI> &s;o eminently, is the North.</P>
<P>Wee may ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That God worketh more in the Northern parts of the world then he doth in the South.</Q></P>
<P>And the rea&s;on of this may be, becau&s;e the Northern parts of the world are more inhabited and peopled then the Southern are. And which may be a &s;econd rea&s;on of it, The Inhabitants of the Northern parts of the world are more civillized and better in|&s;tructed then the Southerne: Now the providences of God are mo&s;t remarkable where there are mo&s;t people, and they be&s;t taught and in&s;tructed, where the natural faculties of man are mo&s;t rai&s;ed and &s;ublimated by art and regular education, there or by them God doth his greate&s;t workes; tho&s;e places are (as it were) the &s;tages whereon he acts and brings to i&s;&s;ue the &s;ecret purpo&s;es and coun&s;els of his heart, both in wayes of judgement and in wayes of mercy.</P>
<P>Be&s;ides, we finde that the Northerne Nations have in all ages been the mo&s;t active and warlike.</P>
<P><HI>The Fourth Monarchy,</HI> That of the <HI>Romanes</HI> who&s;e &s;eate was more Northerly then any of the former three, was the mo&s;t active and warlike of the Foure, and extended its Dominion by extreame and unwearyed indu&s;try further then any had done before. And tho&s;e irruptions of enemies and Armyes which gaue the greate&s;t checke to the Romane Greatne&s;s, and often plum'd or pull'd off the Feathers of that mighty Eagle, were &s;till made by tho&s;e people who lived and were bred up in climates more cold and Northerly then they; as all Hi&s;toryes doe with one con&s;ent make good. In|&s;omuch that it grew into a Famous Proverb;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Omne malum ab aquilone.</NOTE> <HI>All evill comes from the North,</HI> that is, <HI>all troubles, inva&s;ions, and deva&s;tations are brought upon the Nations by &s;ome hardy people or other coming out of the North.</HI> And the holy Scriptures of the Prophets are full of
<PB N="364" REF="196"> this ob&s;ervation (<HI>Jer.</HI> 1.14, 15.) <HI>Then the Lord &s;ayd unto me, out of the North an evill &s;hall breake forth upon all the Inhabitants of the land. For lo I will call all the familyes of the kingdome of the North, &s;aith the Lord, and they &s;hall come, and they &s;hall &s;et every one his throane at the entrance of the gates of Jeru&s;alem,</HI> &amp;c. By <HI>The North</HI> in this prophecy, he meanes <HI>Chaldea and Babylon,</HI> which are &s;cituate North from <HI>Jeru&s;alem.</HI> And by <HI>all the familyes of the kingdomes of the North,</HI> he meanes all the Northerne parts under the obedience of the King of <HI>Babylon,</HI> who &s;hould readily follow and &s;erve him in his warres again&s;t <HI>Judea.</HI> Againe in the &s;ame Pro|phet (<HI>Ch</HI> 4.6.) <HI>I will bring evill out of the North</HI> (Ch. 6.1.) <HI>Evill appeareth out of the North</HI> (ver. 22) <HI>A people comes forth from the North</HI> (Chap. 10.22.) <HI>Behold a great commotion out of the North.</HI> And when the Lord promi&s;ed to remove far away from his peo|ple the <HI>Northerne Army,</HI> (Joel 2.20.) he therein promi&s;ed them the removall of all Armyes and troubles, becau&s;e the North had mo&s;t of all, if not alone troubled and harrazed them with Armyes. Againe, In the North, the Go&s;pel (which is the highe&s;t teaching and in&s;truction) hath been more generally and more clearely pub|li&s;hed then in the Southern parts of the world; &s;o that in allu&s;ion to that of the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30.26.) we may &s;ay, That the light of our <HI>Northern Moone</HI> hath been as the <HI>light of the Southern Sun, and that the light of our Sun hath been &s;even-fold to theirs, even as the light of &s;even dayes.</HI> And according to the greatnes of Go&s;pel light, the di&s;pen&s;ations, and changes, which we have been under, have been very great; we e&s;pecially in this Northern Nation, with tho&s;e adjoyning to us and united with us under one Government, have had full Experience of, and may therefore (giving glory to God) &s;eale to the truth of <HI>Jobs</HI> po&s;ition; That God worketh on the left hand, or in the North. Have not we found God working in the North? What changes, what variety of action have our Northern parts both &s;eene and felt? What wonders of mercy and &s;alvation? what terrible things in righteou&s;nes hath God wrought of late among us? The heavens and the earth, States of all &s;orts, The heavenly and the earthly, and of all degrees, the higher and the lower have been terribly &s;haken in the&s;e Nations. Providence hath wrought to amazement in our dayes; The Nations round a|bout have heard the report of it, and wondered. Many have and will have cau&s;e to &s;ay of us, what hath God wrought! on the left
<PB N="365" REF="196"> hand, in our North, God hath been at worke indeed!</P>
<P>Moreover, we finde that Mount <HI>Sion</HI> (which was not onely an eminent part of the literall <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> but a figure al&s;o of the my|&s;ticall <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> or whole Church of God under the Go&s;pel (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.22.) This Mount <HI>Sion</HI> (I &s;ay) is Geographically de|&s;cribed in our Northerly &s;cituation (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 48.2, 3. <HI>Beautifull for &s;cituation, the joy of the whole earth is Mount Sion; on the &s;ides of the North, the City of the Great King. God is knowne in her palla|ces for a refuge.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, in <HI>Sion,</HI> on the &s;ides of the North God worketh wonderfully, as it follows expre&s;&s;ely (<HI>v.</HI> 4, 5.) <HI>for lo the kings were a&s;&s;embled, they pa&s;&s;ed by together, they &s;aw it and &s;o they marveiled, they were troubled and ha&s;ted away:</HI> that is, Kings con&s;piring again&s;t the Church were &s;o terrified with the evidences of Gods power working mightily there, that they fled away, or as another Scripture phra&s;eth it, <HI>They came one way and returned &s;even.</HI> And in this forme of &s;peech is both the then <HI>Jeru|&s;alem,</HI> and the Church ever &s;ince expre&s;&s;ed, in that boa&s;t which the king of <HI>Babylon</HI> (who was a type of all the enemies of the Church cloathed with mighty power and &s;overaignty) makes again&s;t her, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 14.13.) <HI>I will &s;it al&s;o</HI> (that is, erect my throane) <HI>upon the Mount of the Congregation on the &s;ides of the North.</HI> Mount <HI>Sion</HI> was called the Mount of the Congregation, becau&s;e there the peo|ple of God the <HI>Jewes</HI> were famou&s;ly knowne to congregate often together, and this (&s;aith that proud boa&s;ter) on the &s;ides of the North. And to compleate this notion of the workings of God in and from the North, <HI>Chri&s;t him&s;elfe is &s;ayd to be ray&s;ed out of the North;</HI> For &s;o &s;ome expound that Scripture (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 41.25.) <HI>I have ray&s;ed up one out of the North, and he &s;hall come, from the ri&s;ing of the Sun &s;hall <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e call upon my name,</HI> &amp;c. This prophecy (I &s;ay) &s;ome expound of Chri&s;t, who &s;hall gather his di&s;per&s;ed and de&s;pi|&s;ed ones from all quarters of the world. The greate&s;t workes of God that ever were done, Chri&s;t did them; and therefore the North, may ju&s;tly be called the place where he worketh, &s;eing he ray&s;ed Chri&s;t from thence.</P>
<P>Secondly, As the words are read thus; <HI>On the left hand while hee worketh;</HI> as if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, I look after God <HI>on the left hand,</HI> or <HI>in the North,</HI> even in the time while he is working, or doing great things, and yet I cannot behold him.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q><PB N="366" REF="197">That God may be, and often is, working great things, and we not able to apprehend or behold him at his worke.</Q></P>
<P><HI>The invi&s;ible thengs of God, even his eternal power and Godhead are &s;eene in the things that are made,</HI> and that not onely in the things that he made while he created the world, but al&s;o in the things which he makes while he governes the world, and yet him|&s;elfe is not &s;eene in making them; and that not onely becau&s;e he is invi&s;ible in his nature, but becau&s;e (which is the poynt in hand) the manner of his working is invi&s;ible. In &s;ome things God workes &s;o evidently, that the natural man cannot but &s;ay, <HI>The finger of God is here.</HI> But in other things he workes &s;o &s;ecretly, that the &s;piritu|all man is not able to &s;ee where the finger of God is, unle&s;&s;e upon that general acknowledgement that the finger of God is every where. <HI>Solomon</HI> (Prov. 30.18.) &s;aith, <HI>There be three things which are too wonderfull for mee; yea, foure which I know not; the way of an Eagle in the ayre, the way of a Serpent upon a rock, and the way of a Ship in the mid&s;t of the Sea;</HI> even &s;uch are the mo|tions of God, the wayes and workings of God among the &s;ons of men; <HI>A &s;hip in the Sea</HI> leaves no track, no path, you cannot &s;ee where the Ship hath &s;ailed; The &s;hip plowes the Ocean, but the furrowes are un&s;eene as &s;oone as made. <HI>A Serpent upon a rock,</HI> makes no dint, leaves no foot&s;teps behinde him; the flying Eagle parts the aire, but there's no di&s;cerning where &s;hee hath pa&s;t.</P>
<P>And thus <HI>Job</HI> &s;eemes to &s;peake here; <HI>Though I goo to the North while God worketh,</HI> yet I can &s;ee no more of him, then of the way of an Eagle in the aire, or of a Serpent upon a rock, or of a Ship in the Sea, <HI>I cannot behold him while he worketh,</HI> nor the way of his working. And further,
<Q>Hee hideth him&s;elfe on the right hand that I cannot &s;ee him.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> cooperi|re, involvere &s;eu occultare &s;ignificat. Qua&s;i deus meridiona|li parte velut operimento &s;e&s;e circumtegat. <GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t mare at <GAP DESC="foreign"> dextra unde etiam meridies dici|tur <GAP DESC="foreign"> Theman Nomi|ni Ja<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">in pra<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">|&s;itio Thau. Exo. <HI>26.18.</HI> unde Theman &s;i ap|pellativ&egrave; &s;uma|tur dextrum Au&s;trale &s;ive meridionale &s;ig|nificat &s;i autem proprie e&s;t no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|men regionis Au&s;tralis. <HI>Hieron.</HI></NOTE>The word which we render <HI>hideth,</HI> &s;ignifieth, to wrap up with a covering, implying that God doth cover him&s;elfe from the eye of man, in or with the <HI>right hand</HI> part of the world. Some render it thus; <HI>He hideth his right hand,</HI> or <HI>his working hand, that I cannot &s;ee him.</HI> We render it well, <HI>hee hideth him&s;elfe on the right hand that I cannot &s;ee him. The right hand,</HI> is put in oppo&s;ition to <HI>the left,</HI> mentioned in the former part of the ver&s;e. There, in the South, God doth (as it were) purpo&s;ely and artificially hide, and ca&s;t a
<PB N="367" REF="197"> vaile over him&s;elfe (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI>) le&s;t I &s;hould &s;ee him there, hee keeps him&s;elfe yet more out of my view and reach then el&s;ewhere. The word which we tran&s;late, the <HI>right hand,</HI> &s;ignifies <HI>the Sou|thern parts of the world</HI> (Cant. 4.16.) <HI>Awake O Northwinde, and come thou South, blow upon my Garden.</HI> (Exod. 26.18.) <HI>On the South</HI> (or <HI>right) &s;ide Southward.</HI> The word is al&s;o rendred, <HI>the right &s;ide,</HI> (2 Sam. 24.5.) <HI>On the right &s;ide of the City.</HI> Fur|ther the word &s;ignifies, as the <HI>right hand,</HI> &s;o al&s;o <HI>&s;trength,</HI> becau&s;e the right hand is &s;tronge&s;t in mo&s;t men and readye&s;t for u&s;e. And &s;o <HI>he hides him&s;elfe on the right hand</HI> may import (as was toucht before) that God hideth him&s;elfe even there, where he puts forth his &s;trength and power.</P>
<P>From all the&s;e expo&s;itions layd together, in that <HI>Job</HI> here &s;aith, hee <HI>went forward and backward,</HI> or Ea&s;t and We&s;t, on <HI>the right hand, and on the left,</HI> or <HI>North</HI> and <HI>South</HI> (from all I &s;ay) it ap|peares that <HI>Job</HI> was a great traveller, that he travel'd all the world over; yet where was <HI>Job</HI> when he &s;pake all this? Was he not up|on his bed? was he not Gods Pri&s;oner, &s;hut up in his Chamber, when he &s;aid, <HI>I goe forward and backward, Northward and South|ward, and yet I finde him not, perceive him not, &s;ee him not.</HI></P>
<P>Hence learne.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That God is every where.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> knew there was a pre&s;ence of God forward and backward, Northward and Southward, He knew that God fills heaven and earth with his pre&s;ence. There is a pre&s;ence of God from which the wor&s;t of men cannot goe, and there is a pre&s;ence of God into which, many times, the be&s;t of men cannot get; there was a pre|&s;ence of God out of which <HI>Job</HI> could not get, while (according to his de&s;ires) he could not get into the pre&s;ence of God.</P>
<P>Secondly, From tho&s;e various negatives here u&s;ed, <HI>I cannot perceive him, I cannot behold him, I cannot &s;ee him.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve;
<Q>God is a &s;pirit, not vi&s;ible at all in him&s;elfe, and he onely appeares, as and to whom him&s;elfe plea&s;eth to appeare to and among men.</Q></P>
<P>The appearances of God are not naturall but voluntary, when his will is to be &s;eene he gives man the priviledge to &s;ee him. It is altogether impo&s;&s;ible to &s;ee him with a bodily eye, (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.16.)
<PB N="368" REF="198"> <HI>God onely hath Immortality, dwelling in the light that no man can approach unto, whom no man hath &s;een, nor can &s;ee,</HI> that is, with bo|dily eyes, and as it is impo&s;&s;ible to &s;ee him at any time with an eye of &s;ence, &s;o he will not alwayes be &s;eene by the eye of our under|&s;tanding, no nor alwayes by the eye of faith. Faith &s;hall hereafter be perfected in the vi&s;ion of God, but here faith is &s;ometime quite deprived of the vi&s;ion of God, <HI>He hideth him&s;elfe from the hou&s;e of Jacob.</HI> Faith is oppo&s;ed to all bodily &s;ight (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.7.) <HI>We walke by faith not by &s;ight;</HI> and faith hath not alwayes a &s;pirituall &s;ight. It is &s;aid (<HI>Heb.</HI> 11.27.) that <HI>Mo&s;es &s;aw him that is Invi|&s;ible,</HI> he &s;aw him with a &s;pirituall eye, the eye of faith; wee have rea&s;on to beleeve, that <HI>Job</HI> at that time, &s;aw God with an eye of faith, but he &s;aw him not with an eye of under&s;tanding, to di&s;cerne the way of his working with him. They who are mo&s;t &s;pirituall and of the large&s;t under&s;tanding in &s;piritualls, can no more com|prehend God then a cockle-&s;hel can containe the Ocean; and ma|ny who are &s;pirituall, are &s;o darke in their under&s;tandings, or God is &s;o darke to their under&s;tandings, that they cannot &s;o much as apprehend or di&s;cerne him, &s;ee or perceive him.</P>
<P>Thirdly, When <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>God hideth him&s;elfe on the right hand, or in the South,</HI> &s;o that I cannot &s;ee him.</P>
<P>This teacheth us;
<Q>That God doth &s;ometimes purpo&s;ely withdraw and re&s;erve him|&s;elfe from his mo&s;t pretious &s;ervants.</Q></P>
<P>The Propher hath a &s;trange de&s;cription of God (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45.15.) <HI>Verily thou art a God that hide&s;t thy &s;elfe</HI> (as if he had &s;ayd) it is thy u&s;e and cu&s;tome to doe &s;o) <HI>O God of I&s;rael the Saviour;</HI> hee was the God and Saviour of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> yet <HI>I&s;rael</HI> could not &s;ee him, for he hid him&s;elfe; When God will conceale him&s;elfe, his <HI>I&s;rael</HI> cannot &s;ee him. And hence wee finde in Scripture &s;o many earne&s;t Deprecations, that God would not hide him&s;elfe, and &s;o many vehement Expo&s;tulations when he did. <HI>Wherefore hide&s;t thou thy face</HI> (&s;aith the Church, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 44.24.) <HI>and forgette&s;t our affliction and oppre&s;&s;ion?</HI> God hides him&s;elfe five wayes, or in five things from his people.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He hides his favour and the light of his Countenance from his people. And (when this is hid God is hid) hee will not let them &s;ee the love which he hath in his heart towards them,
<PB N="369" REF="198"> yea (po&s;&s;ibly) he lets them &s;ee anger, wrath, di&s;plea&s;ure; hee puts on the habit of an enemy, and deales with them as with ene|mies. <HI>Job</HI> complaines more then once that God hid his favour from him, and &s;hewed him nothing but his dread and terror.</P>
<P>Secondly, God hides his workes from his people, hee will not let them be &s;een, nor be &s;eene in them; <HI>O how un&s;earchable are thy Judgements, and thy wayes pa&s;t finding out!</HI> God hath wayes and Judgements which man cannot reach unto. Some of his workes are acted (as we &s;ay) above bord, they are done in a cleare light, hee that runs may &s;ee and read them, and God in them; hee that runs may read love written upon &s;ome of them in letters of Gold, or with beames of light. And he that runs may read wrath written upon others of them in letters of blood, or with &s;treames of dark|nes, and the very &s;hadowes of death; but &s;ome workes of God are &s;o curtaynd about and vailed, &s;o hidden and ob&s;cured, that we cannot perceive them. Though all the works of God are works of light, yet many of them are in the darke to man; <HI>While judge|ment and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e are the habitation of Gods Throne, clouds and darknes are round about him,</HI> (P&s;al. 97.2.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, God hideth the rea&s;on of his working. His works are often hid, but the rea&s;on of his working is oftener hid. <HI>Jeremy</HI> complaines, <HI>Why doth the way of the wicked pro&s;per?</HI> Hee would know a rea&s;on of it; hee &s;aw that God let the wicked pro&s;per, but the rea&s;on he &s;aw not.</P>
<P>Fourthly, The de&s;ign, or end of the worke of God is a hidden thing; as God doth not let men &s;ee the rea&s;on why he doth this or that, &s;o not his aime, and end, what he would have, or what he drives at in doing it. When God afflicts a Godly man, whether it be for the tryal of his graces, or to cha&s;ten him for his failings, or for the purging out of his corruptions, is often his doubt: and as 'tis thus in per&s;onal workings, &s;o al&s;o in publique workings; <HI>Whether God hath to doe with a Nation, or with a man onely, hee hath his &s;ecrets.</HI></P>
<P>Fifthly, As God hides what him&s;elfe doth, &s;o he hides from us what he would have us doe, he hides his owne will from us in &s;ome things; we have indeed his Letters Patents, his proclaimed lawes before us in all things needfull to &s;alvation; but there are &s;ome things which concerne particular actings in our lives, where|in a godly man may be very ignorant of the will of God, &amp; much
<PB N="370" REF="199"> puzzled in his Spirit what to doe, whether this or that be the cour&s;e which God would have him take. God hides him&s;elfe from us in the hidings of his will from us. For as when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith (<HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 4.20.) <HI>Yee have not &s;o learned Chri&s;t,</HI> wee are not to under&s;tand Chri&s;t per&s;onally, but Chri&s;t according to the Reve|lation of him&s;elfe in the Go&s;pel, Chri&s;t there is the will or minde of Chri&s;t; &s;o when God hideth him&s;elfe from or doth not di&s;cover him&s;elfe to us, the meaning may be this; hee doth not di&s;cover his minde and will to us, what he would have us doe, as to our particular ca&s;e and condition. God keepes &s;ome long in &s;u&s;pence, long in the darke about this poynt; &s;o that they often cry out with that good King in his dangerous &s;trait, <HI>We know not what to doe, but our eyes are towards thee.</HI> (2 Chron. 20.12.) Many a man is in as great a &s;trait what to doe in regard of the darknes of his condition, as <HI>Jeho&s;aphat</HI> was, in regard of the dangerou&s;ne&s;&s;e of it.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Note;
<Q><HI>That,</HI> a Gracious &s;oule u&s;eth all meanes to attaine what he de&s;ires, e&s;pecially to finde out the minde and will of God in his workings.</Q></P>
<P>What el&s;e is the meaning of all this? why el&s;e went <HI>Job</HI> forward and backward? why went he on the right hand, and on the left? why did he thus traver&s;e his ground, and repre&s;ent him&s;elfe in the&s;e bu&s;ie enquiries after God, travelling in the multitude of his thoughts upon his bed from &s;ea to &s;ea, and from the river to the ends of the earth, leaving no &s;tone unturned (as we &s;ay) nor path untrodden, that he might get his cau&s;e determined, and his heart &s;etled. <HI>Obadiah</HI> tells <HI>Eliah</HI> after he had met him (&s;ee how indu|&s;trious the malice of <HI>Ahab,</HI> again&s;t that holy man, made him to to finde him out whom his &s;oule hated, 1 <HI>King.</HI> 18.10.) <HI>As the Lord thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdome whether my Lord hath not &s;ent to &s;eek thee</HI> &amp;c. Not that <HI>Ahab</HI> had &s;ent Me&s;&s;engers into every quarter of the world, but the meaning is, that he had been very diligent and indu&s;trious to finde out <HI>Elijah.</HI> And &s;o &s;aith <HI>Job,</HI> there is not any Corner under heaven, where I have not been &s;eeking to finde him whom my &s;oule loveth and longeth for. Thereby importing his exceeding diligence to finde God. They who have a de&s;ire after God indeed, will take paines for him, they will &s;eek him, Ea&s;t, We&s;t, North, and South, and never complaine of the length of their journey. They will not &s;tay till God comes
<PB N="371" REF="199"> home to their dores, but out they will go to &s;eek him. For though it be a truth that no man can &s;eek or looke after God, till God hath fir&s;t looked after and found him, yet they whom God hath once found, have &s;uch an impre&s;&s;ion left upon their hearts, that when God &s;eemes to leave them, and to be as lo&s;t to them, they will more then &s;eeme to looke after and &s;eeke him while he is ab|&s;ent from them; that is, while he hides him&s;elfe from them. Sure|ly God hath never toucht the hearts of tho&s;e lazie profe&s;&s;ors that would faine be &s;aved, but will goe neither forward nor backward, neither North nor South after Je&s;us Chri&s;t; whereas if their de&s;ires were true and genuine, they would u&s;e all meanes, goe all due wayes, leave nothing una&s;&s;ayed that might probably bring them to the knowledge and enjoyment of him; O how bu&s;ie was <HI>Job's</HI> &s;pirit to finde out God? And &s;o bu&s;ie &s;hould our &s;pirits be to finde him out, both for comfort and for coun&s;el in all the turnings of our lives.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Ob&s;erve;
<Q>That after the u&s;e of much meanes to finde God, yet po&s;&s;ibly God may not be found by us as to our apprehen&s;ion.</Q></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> &s;pared no paines to finde out God, and yet he could not &s;peed at that time, after all his &s;earch he found him not, he percei|ved him not, he did not behold him; you may pray, and &s;eek, and advi&s;e, and waite, follow this meanes and that meanes to finde out God, or to recover the &s;ence of his gracious pre&s;ence with your &s;oules, and yet (for a long time) mi&s;&s;e of him. This is one of the exerci&s;es which God is plea&s;ed to put his people to, hee therefore hides that we may &s;eek him; he doth not hide him&s;elfe becau&s;e he will not be found, but he hides him&s;elfe becau&s;e he will be &s;ought; and yet when he is &s;ought, and &s;ought in a right way too, he will not pre&s;ently be found. For though none that &s;eek him in &s;incerity, but &s;hall finde him at la&s;t (<HI>He hath not &s;aid to the &s;eed of Jacob, &s;eek yee my face in vaine;</HI> that is, &s;eek mee and never finde mee, the Scripture &s;peakes no &s;uch thing) nor did <HI>Job</HI> al|wayes &s;eek and not finde; yet, as he in his time, &s;o we in ours may &s;eek him long and not finde him, and yet &s;till we mu&s;t conti|nue &s;eeking, becau&s;e God hides him&s;elfe that we may &s;eek him more, not that he would have us give over &s;eeking. And there|fore in times of de&s;ertion, in hideing, and withdrawing times, doe
<PB N="372" REF="200"> not give over &s;eeking; for the rea&s;on why God doth withdraw, is, that we may &s;eek him more, <HI>and follow harder after him;</HI> that we may &s;eek him (as <HI>Job</HI> did) <HI>Ea&s;t, We&s;t, North,</HI> and <HI>South;</HI> that is, in all meanes, duties, ordinances, he will not alwayes hide him&s;elfe; that's the &s;umme and &s;cope of the 8^t^h and 9^t^h ver&s;es.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="10" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 10.</HI></BIBL> But he knoweth the way that I take, when he hath tryed mee I &s;hall come forth as gold.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Connecto hunc ver&s;um cum <HI>70.</HI> obtinerem a judice nam is novit. E&s;t igitur aetiologia &s;pei; caetera autem qua&s;i per paren|the&s;in inter&s;e|runtur illo loco. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE><HI>Job</HI> could not finde the wayes of God, well (&s;aith he) though I cannot finde out Gods wayes, yet God hath found out my wayes; though he is plea&s;ed to vaile his owne wayes, yet mine are open, He hideth him&s;elfe from me, but I am not hid from him. <HI>Hee knoweth the way that I take.</HI></P>
<P>Further, In this ver&s;e <HI>Job</HI> &s;eemes to give a rea&s;on of his hope to &s;peed well at the &s;eate or throane of God whether he had appea|led (<HI>v.</HI> 3.7.) As if he had &s;aid, <HI>Seing my heart tels me, my way is good, and my Judge knowes it to be &s;o, how can it be but that my judge|ment from him &s;hould be Good? He knoweth the way that I take.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quamvis illum non po&s;&s;it homo per&s;picere, a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> ille per&s;pectas habet omnium mortalium actiones.</NOTE><HI>To know,</HI> may be taken here two wayes; fir&s;t, as an act of the Under&s;tanding onely, <HI>hee knoweth,</HI> that is, hee fully perceiveth and apprehendeth what my way is.</P>
<P>Secondly, As it takes in an act of the affection too, <HI>Hee know|eth,</HI> that is, he approveth <HI>the way that I take;</HI> my way is plea&s;ing to him. When God is &s;aid to <HI>know the way of the righteous</HI> (P&s;. 1.6.) the meaning of it is, he is wel-plea&s;ed with their way, and will pro&s;per them in it, they &s;hall have good &s;ucce&s;&s;e in what they goe about.</P>
<P>Againe, whereas we tran&s;late, <HI>Hee knowes the way that I take,</HI> that is, my cour&s;e of life, or conver&s;ation among men. The He|brew is, <HI>Hee knoweth the way that is in mee,</HI> hee doth not onely know my outward way, or the way that is without mee, but hee knowes my inward way, the way that is within mee. Wee have a way within us, and that is the way of our thoughts, and we have a way without us, and that is the way of our workes. <HI>Hee</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Job) knowes the way that is in mee,</HI> therefore much more the way without mee, hee knowes mee through and through; As if he had &s;ayd, what though I cannot finde him, yet I will leave my cau&s;e with him; for he needs no information of mine, to lead him into
<PB N="373" REF="200"> the under&s;tanding of it; He him&s;elfe knows all things by him&s;elfe; <HI>Hee knoweth the way that I take, or that is in me.</HI></P>
<P>There are three things which <HI>Job</HI> might aime at in this &s;entence.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, an account why he was &s;ure of a right judgement from God, becau&s;e he was not onely a Judge, but an eye-witne&s;&s;e of all the wayes that he had ever gone.</P>
<P>Secondly, A confutation of his friends opinion of him, as if he were a man that did not feare God; whereas he did acknowledge that both him&s;elfe and all his wayes were vi&s;ible and manife&s;t unto God.</P>
<P>Thirdly, A &s;trong a&s;&s;ertion of his owne innocency, &s;eing he could &s;peake thus rejoycingly, that <HI>God knew all his wayes.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> The way of man, even his mo&s;t &s;ecret way, or the way with|in him, is knowne to God.</Q></P>
<P>God wraps up him&s;elfe often in the darknes of &s;ecrecy as to man, but man is never in that darknes as to God; the very chil|dren of darknes, and the wayes of darknes are in the light to him. And as the wayes of evill men, and the evill of their wayes, &s;o the wayes of good men, and the goodnes of their wayes, are knowne to God. We need not feare that the good we doe or have done (though no eye of man &s;ee it) &s;hall be lo&s;t in the darke. We &s;carce know our owne wayes, and wee cannot know our owne hearts, but God doth. (<HI>Jerem.</HI> 17.9.) <HI>The heart of man is deceitfull above all things, and de&s;perately wicked, who can know it?</HI> No man can know all the wayes of his heart; he cannot come to the bot|tome of his owne heart, though he may know the bent of it; but (&s;aith God) <HI>I &s;earch the heart; much of our heart is a &s;ecret to our &s;elves, but to God nothing of it is;</HI> he knowes our in&s;ide fully. As he knowes our actions, &s;o the grounds upon which wee act, and the ends for which we act, and the heart with which wee act; thus God knowes the way that every man takes. And thus none but God can know the wayes of man. Wee can trade no farther then upon the borders of mens wayes, their outward acts, as for the &s;pirit and principle of them, whence they flow, as for the aymes and ends of them, whether they are flowing, with the&s;e God alone is intimate. And with the&s;e God is more intimate then man can be with that which is wholly outward.</P>
<PB N="374" REF="201">
<P>And &s;eing God knowes all the wayes which man takes; let no man goe about to hide his wayes from God; 'Tis vaine to hide any thing from him, who &s;ees all that is hidden. He that comes before a Judge that knowes what he hath done, and is able to prove it, why &s;hould he deny it? The heart of a naturall man is not more bu&s;ied about any thing then in making veiles for his &s;in; the fir&s;t thing that man did after he had &s;in'd was, to make &s;uch a veile. As all men have &s;inned after the &s;imilitude of <HI>Adams</HI> tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ion, &s;o they cover their tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions according to the &s;imi|litude of his covering. The Holy Gho&s;t (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 32.1.) calleth them <HI>ble&s;&s;ed who&s;e &s;ins are covered,</HI> but it is with a covering of Gods provideing, not of their owne; woe to tho&s;e who&s;e &s;innes are hid by a covering of their owne provideing; God hath given us his Son our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t in his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, for our co|vering; while our &s;ins are &s;o covered ble&s;&s;ed are we, but if we co|ver them with a covering of our owne, God will lay them open for ever to our &s;hame. <HI>Wo to the rebellious children, &s;aith the Lord,</HI> (I&s;a. 30.1.) <HI>that take coun&s;el but not of me, and that cover with a covering, but not of my Spirit, that they may adde &s;in unto &s;in;</HI> if we cover our &s;ins with any thing but the righteou&s;nes of Chri&s;t, we cover them with a &s;in, not onely becau&s;e all our righteou&s;nes (which is the be&s;t thing of our owne that we have to cover them with) is &s;infull, but becau&s;e the very act of covering them &s;o is a &s;in; and therefore in &s;o doing, what doe we but <HI>adde &s;in unto &s;in?</HI> And if to cover our &s;ins with our owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e be a &s;in, how doe we heape &s;in upon &s;in while we cover it (as many en|deavour to doe) with our denyalls, di&s;&s;emblings and excu&s;es?</P>
<P>Secondly, Con&s;ider with what Confidence <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes; hee had di&s;cour&s;ed of his fruitles labour and travell in the u&s;e of all meanes to finde God; well (&s;aith he) yet it is a Comfort that God knowes my wayes, though I cannot finde out his.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>It is the Joy of the upright, that God knowes them and their wayes, yea the wayes that are in them.</Q>
<P>Thus <HI>Jeremy</HI> (Chap. 12.3.) having complained of the pro|&s;perity of evill men before the Lord, concludes, <HI>But thou O Lord knowe&s;t mee, thou ha&s;t &s;een mee and tryed my heart toward thee;</HI> this was the Prophets joy, and &s;o it was the Apo&s;tles, when he
<PB N="375" REF="201"> &s;ayd; <HI>But wee are made manife&s;t unto God</HI> (2 Cor. 5.11.) That's the thing that plea&s;eth us. <HI>David</HI> (1 Chron. 29.17.) &s;peakes in the &s;ame frame of &s;pirituall contentment; <HI>I know al&s;o &ocirc; my God that thou trye&s;t my heart, and ha&s;t plea&s;ure in uprightnes;</HI> This was a plea&s;ure to <HI>David,</HI> this was his Joy and crowne of Rejoycing, that God knew him; and a godly man hath much Cau&s;e of rejoy|cing in this, that God knowes him perfectly, con&s;idering how much he is mi&s;taken and mi&s;under&s;tood by men. When our wayes are mi&s;taken by men, 'tis great content to remember, that God knowes the way that we take without the lea&s;t mi&s;take. For this a&s;&s;ures a godly man of three things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That God will reckon his wayes &s;uch as they are, and him &s;uch a one as he is. He is much a&s;&s;ured that God will never put a fal&s;e glo&s;&s;e, or an unju&s;t con&s;truction (which men are apt to doe) upon the text of his life.</P>
<P>Secondly, This a&s;&s;ures him that his workes of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e &s;hall not want a reward; for <HI>God is not unrighteous to forget our worke and labour of love</HI> (Heb. 6.10.) that is, he will not let us goe without a reward for &s;uch workes; for as then we are &s;aid not to forget the word of God, when we obey it; &s;o God is &s;aid not to forget our workes when he doth reward them.</P>
<P>Thirdly, This a&s;&s;ures him that God will give te&s;timony to his integrity, and beare his witnes (when mo&s;t &s;ea&s;onable) to his righ|teous workes. Though men will not give him Te&s;timony, yet God who knowes his wayes will; God will not doe le&s;&s;e for a good man then a good Con&s;cience will; For as an evill Con&s;cience will accu&s;e, &s;o a good Con&s;cience will excu&s;e. (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.15.) <HI>Their Con&s;ciences in the meane time accu&s;ing or excu&s;ing one another.</HI> Con&s;cience knowes our wayes, and therefore Con&s;cience gives Te&s;timony again&s;t them that doe evill, and Con&s;cience will give Te&s;timony with tho&s;e that doe well: let all the world clamour again&s;t them, Con&s;cience will not, becau&s;e Con&s;cience knowes the way that a man takes. Much more then will God Te&s;tifie for that man who&s;e way is good; and how &s;weet is this! 'Tis &s;weete and &s;atisfying to a gracious &s;oule to doe good, but when God him&s;elfe &s;hall te&s;tifie for a gracious &s;oule, that he hath done good, this is much more &s;weete and &s;atisfying. (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.20, 21.) <HI>If our heart (or Con&s;cience) condemne us, he is greater then our heart (or Con|&s;cience) and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemne us
<PB N="376" REF="202"> not, then have we confidence toward God:</HI> even this confidence, that God will not onely not condemne us, but acquit us, yea and te&s;tifie for us; And as it is wor&s;e to be condemned by God then by Con|&s;cience, &s;o it is better and &s;weete<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> to be acquitted by God then by our owne Con&s;cience, when once our Con&s;ciences are acquainted with his acquittall of us and te&s;timony for us. Yea, there is this further Comfort in it, that for as much as our wayes are knowne to God, he will give te&s;timony of them to others, as well as to our owne Con&s;ciences. The world &s;hall know what our wayes are one time or other, as well as God knowes them now: they who are mo&s;t prejudiced again&s;t them, and draw the blacke&s;t lines over them, &s;hall one day be made to know, that they did not know the beauty of them. And this God will doe; eyther</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In this world by &s;ome extraordinary providence; as <HI>Da|vid</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.6.) <HI>Hee &s;hall bring forth thy righteou&s;ne&s;s as the light, and thy judgement as the noon day.</HI> A mans righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e may lye in ob&s;curity, or in the darke, no man knowing it, and mo&s;t men judging him unrighteous, and wicked, but Provi|dence &s;ome time or other will bring forth this mans righteou&s;nes as the light, and his ju&s;t dealing as the noon day.</P>
<P>Or, Secondly, If a good mans wayes lye hid from the world all the dayes of his life in this world, yet the Apo&s;tle a&s;&s;ures him, that in the <HI>great day</HI> God will proclaime them in the eares of all the world. (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.5.) <HI>Judge nothing before the time, till the Lord come, who will both bring to light the hidden things of darknes, and will make manife&s;t the Councels of the heart.</HI> So then a day is coming which will make <HI>thorough lights</HI> in the world, and bring to light the mo&s;t hidden things of the darke&s;t darknes. And by <HI>the&s;e hidden things of darknes, and Coun&s;els of the heart,</HI> wee are to un|der&s;tand not onely evill things, and wicked coun&s;els (&s;ure enough God will bring them to light) but even tho&s;e righteous things, and good Councels of the heart, which have layne in the darke, or unrevealed: God will bring to light all the hidden things of darknes, the good as well as the bad, and then &s;hall every man, that is, every good man, every godly man, have prai&s;e of God. The prai&s;e of man is very plea&s;ing unto man, but O how un&s;pea|keably plea&s;ing is the prai&s;e of God! And this opens a va&s;t diffe|rence, between the hypocrite and the &s;incere; Can a hypocrite re|joyce in &s;ecret, &s;aying thus; God knoweth the way that I take?
<PB N="377" REF="202"> Hee cannot &s;ay thus; and I may &s;ay three things of the hypocrite in oppo&s;ition to this.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The hypocrite endeavours to hide and put his wayes out of the &s;ight of God, as much as he can; As he hath not the light of Gods countenance, or of his favour &s;hining upon him, &s;o he de|&s;ires not to have the light of his knowledge &s;hining into him. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 29.15.) the Prophet de&s;cribes &s;ome <HI>&s;eeking deep to hide their Councels from the Lord, and their workes are in the darke</HI> (both in natural and moral darknes) <HI>and they &s;ay, who &s;eeth us, and who knoweth us?</HI> The endeavour of the hypocrite is that he may be hid. And</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>He cryes alls hid;</HI> as it is his endeavour, that God &s;hould not, &s;o it is his hope that God doth not know his wayes, much le&s;&s;e his heart; He is often &s;ure that men doe neither &s;ee nor know, &amp; he alwayes pre&s;umes that God doth not; and therefore as one out of doubt he puts his doubts, <HI>who &s;eeth? and who knoweth?</HI> Though fla&s;hes of feare come in upon him, &s;ometimes, yet he flatters him&s;elfe with pre&s;umptious hopes and fal&s;e per&s;wa&s;ions, that God knowes him not, &s;ees him not, and that his dark way &s;hall never be di&s;covered; and as in that place of the Prophet, they &s;peake indefinitely, thereby inferring that God doth not &s;ee them; &s;o wee have them in the P&s;alme &s;peaking directly that God &s;hall not. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 94.5, 6, 7.) <HI>They breake in pieces thy people O Lord, and &s;lay the widdow and &s;tranger, and murther the fatherles; yet they &s;ay, the Lord &s;hall not &s;ee, neither &s;hall the God of Jacob re|gard it;</HI> As if they had &s;ayd, though God &s;hould &s;et him&s;elfe to &s;earch us out, and would never &s;o faine &s;ee what we are doing, yet he &s;hall not. We will carry it &s;o clo&s;ely and cunningly, that the eye of God &s;hall not reach us. Their workes were &s;o foule and bloody, that the Sunne might be a&s;hamed to looke upon them, and they were &s;o clo&s;e that they beleeved God could not look up|on them, or bring them to &s;hame for them.</P>
<P>Thirdly, 'Tis a terror to an hypocrite to remember, that God knoweth his wayes. That which <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith of the wicked in gene|rall, is mo&s;t proper to hypocrites (<HI>Chap.</HI> 24.17.) <HI>The morning is to them even as the &s;hadow of death; if one know them, they are in the terrours of the &s;hadow of death.</HI> The Hebrew is very conci&s;e, <HI>if know;</HI> we make up the &s;ence thus, <HI>if one know them,</HI> that is, if God or man know them and their wayes, if they be apprehended
<PB N="378" REF="203"> and di&s;covered, any way, in their abominable wayes, <HI>they are in the terrours of the &s;hadow of death;</HI> that is, they are ready to dye with the fright and terror of it. Hypocrites are &s;o farre from rejoycing in this, that God knowes the way which they take, that to be knowne eyther of God or man is their torment.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Con&s;ider why doth <HI>Job</HI> appeale to God in this Cau&s;e depending between him and his friends? The rea&s;on was, becau&s;e he knew his friends mi&s;-judged him through their ignorance; Therefore he de&s;iered to be heard by a Judge, that perfectly knew his wayes, and &s;o was able to make a righteous judgement of him.</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve;
<Q>God is every way fitted to be a righteous Judge.</Q></P>
<P>There are two things e&s;pecially that fit a man, to be a Judge.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That he hath a principle of righteou&s;nes in him, that he be not bya&s;&s;ed and turned a&s;ide from doing right indiffe|rently without re&s;pect of per&s;ons.</P>
<P>Secondly, That he hath a principle of light in him, that he be (as <HI>Jethro</HI> advi&s;eth <HI>Mo&s;es</HI>) a man of knowledge. Both the&s;e meete perfectly in God; He is ju&s;t and righteous in all his wayes, and hee knowes all our wayes. Some Earthly Judges erre for want of a Principle of righteou&s;nes; and &s;o in things which they plainely know and &s;ee as cleare as the light, are ready to be drawne and wrought off by re&s;pects and intere&s;ts. Againe, there are other Earthly Judges, who are right and hone&s;t enough in their Princi|ples, nothing can take them off, or mi&s;lead them to the right hand or to the left, but they want knowledge and under&s;tanding to di&s;|cerne between good and evill, right &amp; wrong, they cannot &s;ee into the merit of the Cau&s;e, or the integrity of the per&s;on before them, and thereupon &s;tumble in Judgement. Indeed the be&s;t of Earthly Judges cannot alwayes (when they have done their be&s;t) finde out who hath the good Cau&s;e, and who hath the bad; and many times they that plead blinde them with their Rhetorick, &s;etting a faire glo&s;&s;e upon a foule Cau&s;e, or making a faire Cau&s;e looke foule, and &s;o the Judge is deluded; &s;eing he judgeth of things as witne&s;&s;ed and repre&s;ented, as alledged and legally proved, and &s;o it may fall out that while he judgeth righteou&s;ly, his judgement may not be right. But we (as <HI>Job</HI> here) have cau&s;e to rejoyce
<PB N="379" REF="203"> that we have to doe with a Judge, who as he is both righteous and knowing, &s;o he knowes all things and per&s;ons in them&s;elves, and not from others. <HI>He needs not that any &s;hould te&s;tifie of man, for he knoweth what is in man</HI> (Joh. 2.25.) <HI>Hee knowes the way that is in me,</HI> or <HI>the way that I take:</HI> and as it followes;
<Q>When he hath tryed mee I &s;hall come forth as gold.</Q></P>
<P>M^r. <HI>Broughton</HI> reads thus; <HI>Tryed he me I &s;hould come forth Gold;</HI> that is, if God (as I de&s;ire) would vouch&s;afe to try me, I &s;hould appeare what I am indeed, not what I now appeare.</P>
<Q>When he hath tryed mee.</Q>
<P>There are divers wayes of tryall, three e&s;pecially; God tryes, fir&s;t, by pro&s;perity, that's a tryall; a full e&s;tate di&s;covers a man, as well as a low and empty e&s;tate doth. To know how to abound is as high a poynt of grace as how to want (<HI>Phil.</HI> 4.12.) to have power in our hands, di&s;covers us as well as to be oppre&s;t by power. <HI>Magi&s;tracy &s;hewes the man, and it &s;hewes many to be but men.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Magi&s;tratus indicat virum.</NOTE> Great power over men is a great temptation to man, and &s;o like|wi&s;e is the prai&s;e of men. (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.4.) <HI>But in all things appro|ving our &s;elves as the Mini&s;ters of God in much patience, in afflicti|ons, in nece&s;&s;ities, in di&s;tre&s;&s;es,</HI> &amp;c. and by what el&s;e? <HI>by the Armour of righteou&s;ne&s;s on the right hand, and on the left, by honour and di&s;honour, by evill report and good report.</HI> We approve our &s;elves, and tryall is taken of us as well by things on the right hand, as by tho&s;e upon the left, as well by honour, as by di&s;honour. The good report or prai&s;e which a man meets with in the world is as great a tryal as the ill report or di&s;prai&s;e which he meets with in the world; 'tis a great tryal to be di&s;prai&s;ed, to have dirt throwne in our faces, and it is a great tryal to be prais'd, to be commended, and applauded, to be lifted up in the thoughts &amp; upon the tongues of men. <HI>Solomon</HI> hath an excellent pa&s;&s;age (<HI>Prov.</HI> 27.21.) <HI>As the fineing pot for &s;ilver, and the furnace for gold, &s;o is a man to his prai&s;e;</HI> that is, a man is tryed by his prai&s;e, as the &s;ilver is tryed in the fineing pot, and as the gold is tryed in the furnace. When|ever you are prai&s;ed, you are tryed; Then your humility and &s;elfe-denyall are tryed; Then you are tryed whether when you are prai&s;ed by men, you can give the whole glory to God. <HI>Herods</HI> prai&s;e was the fineing pot, and the furnace wherein he was tryed,
<PB N="380" REF="204"> it made him appeare to be but dro&s;&s;e indeed. His hearers <HI>Cryed the voyce of God and not of man;</HI> When you cry up &s;uch a Preacher, &s;uch a Magi&s;trate, &s;uch a Souldier, &s;uch an Oratour, you put him into the fineing pot, &amp; he that is but dro&s;&s;e con&s;umes. <HI>The wormes eate up Herod, becau&s;e he gave not Glory to God</HI> (Act. 12.23.) As it was a mo&s;t dreadfull, &s;o it was a mo&s;t righteous judgement, that he &s;hould be eaten up of <HI>wormes,</HI> who forgot that he was <HI>one,</HI> and forgot it &s;o farre that he was plea&s;ed with their applau&s;es, who cryed him up for a God. Worldly pro&s;perity, power and prai&s;e are the <HI>right hand, way,</HI> by which God tryeth the &s;onnes of men.</P>
<P>Secondly, God doth u&s;ually try by affliction, and that's the <HI>left hand way. (James</HI> 1 12.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man that endureth temptation</HI> (meaning affliction) <HI>for when he is tryed he &s;hall receive the crowne of life,</HI> &amp;c. That is, when tho&s;e temptations and afflicti|ons have tryed him, and he hath approved him&s;elfe in the tryall; then, <HI>he &s;hall receive the crowne of life,</HI> &amp;c. (1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 1.6.) <HI>Though now for a &s;ea&s;on (if need be) yee are in heavines through manifold temptations, that the tryal of your faith being much more precious then of gold that peri&s;heth,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cos aurum pro|bat rectam ten|tamina men|tem. Natura vexata p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">edit &s;eip&s;am.</NOTE> <HI>though it be tryed with fire, might be found to prai&s;e,</HI> &amp;c. Affliction is the tryall of our faith in God, and of our patience under the hand of God. <HI>When nature is vext it &s;hewes it &s;elfe, and &s;o doth grace. Affliction di&s;covereth both what our vertues and what our corruptions are.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, God tryeth man by a kinde of examination; <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes of that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 17.3.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t proved mine heart, thou ha&s;t vi&s;ited mee in the night, thou ha&s;t tryed mee and &s;halt finde no|thing.</HI> In the night the &s;oule is free from bu&s;ines with the world, and therefore free&s;t for bu&s;ines with God, &amp; then did God prove and vi&s;it <HI>David,</HI> that is, examine and &s;ift him, by calling to his minde all his wayes and workes in former pa&s;&s;ages; And the i&s;&s;ue of this tryall was, <HI>he found nothing,</HI> not that his &s;oule was empty of good things, or that there was nothing evill in him, but God up|on examination found nothing of that evill in him, which &s;ome men &s;u&s;pected him of, Namely, eyther any ill will or evill de&s;igne again&s;t <HI>Saul,</HI> in reference to whom he called his cau&s;e a righteous cau&s;e, <HI>or the right</HI> (ver. 1.) <HI>Heare the right, O Lord,</HI> &amp;c. Thus God tryed <HI>David;</HI> And thus earthly Judges try men; They exa|mine them, and their ca&s;e, that's cald a tryall; in this third &s;ence
<PB N="381" REF="204"> wee are chiefly to under&s;tand the meaning of <HI>Job</HI> in this place. <HI>Job</HI> had long before undergone a tryall by pro&s;perity and prai&s;e, <HI>Job</HI> was at that time under tryall by affliction, he had pa&s;t the for|mer and was under the latter, yea, he was deep in it,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Intelligitur de &s;tricto dei exa|mine in &s;uo ju|dicio ad quod Job provocave|rat. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> but as yet hee had not come to this tryall of Examination, or to a judiciary try|all, which hee earne&s;tly beggd of God. All men &s;hall come to &s;uch a tryall in <HI>the Great day. Wee mu&s;t all appeare before the Judgement &s;eate of Chri&s;t, that every one may receive the thingt done in his body, accordeng to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad</HI> (2 Cor. 5.10.) Some expound <HI>Job</HI> appealing here to that Judgement. But I conceive that the whole tendency of his di&s;cour&s;e aymes at an earlyer Judgement or day of tryall then that. And though (po&s;&s;ibly) his expectation was not great, if any at all, that God would grant him a private Se&s;&s;ion (as we may call it) for his per&s;onall tryall, yet (to &s;hew that he had not the lea&s;t &s;u&s;|pition of being acquitted in that day when&s;oever it &s;hould be, he importunately profe&s;&s;eth he could wi&s;h it might be the next day, and that he would refu&s;e no paines nor travell, for the procuring of &s;uch a day, were it to be obtained; being fully &s;atisfied from the light and dictates of his owne Con&s;cience, that when the Lord had &s;o tryed him, he (as <HI>David</HI> &s;pake in the place lately opened) <HI>&s;hould finde nothing,</HI> no &s;uch fault or guilt as was charged upon him. Chri&s;t writing to the Angel of the Church of <HI>Ephe&s;us,</HI> gives him this among other commendations, (<HI>Rev.</HI> 2.2.) <HI>Thou hast tryed them which &s;ay they are Apo&s;tles and are not, and ha&s;t found them lyars.</HI> Many appeare fayre in holines, and boa&s;t highly of their priviledges, (even as high as an infallible Spirit and imme|diate mi&s;&s;ion) who yet being tryed and throughly examined by the Church, or by tho&s;e who are &s;pirituall, and have &s;ences exer|ci&s;ed to di&s;cerne both good and evill, will be found <HI>lyars,</HI> coun|terfeit &s;tuffe, and lighter then vanitie. But <HI>Job</HI> was per&s;waded that though God &s;hould try him, not onely &s;hould nothing be found again&s;t him, nor he found a lyar, but that much would be found for him, and him&s;elfe be found in the truth, as he plainely expre&s;|&s;eth in the clo&s;e of the ver&s;e; <HI>when hee hath tryed mee,</HI> whut then?</P>
<Q>I &s;hall come forth as gold.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Egrediar ex hoc igne probationis meae expurga|ti&s;&s;imus Coru&s;|cabi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> innocentia mea. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE></Q>
<P>Here's the i&s;&s;ue of the tryal. There are &s;eaven words u&s;ed in the Original for gold; That in the text notes the colour or yellownes
<PB N="382" REF="205"> of it,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> generale vocabulum e&s;t a colore &s;ulvo &s;eu flavo, &amp; transfertur ad aliarum rerum munditiem &s;ig|nificandum, &s;ic ab aura &amp; au|rora aurum de|rivat <HI>I&s;idor:</HI> Plenus vino aureo, <HI>i. e.</HI> &s;plendido velut aurum.</NOTE> and is applyed to &s;ignifie any thing that is bright, or &s;hine|ing, pure and &s;plendid, as Gold is. (<HI>Zach.</HI> 4.12.) wee read of <HI>golden pipes which did empty the golden oyle</HI> (or, according to the let|ter of the Hebrew, <HI>the Gold) out of them&s;elves.</HI> That &s;pirituall oyle was called <HI>golden</HI> or <HI>gold,</HI> becau&s;e, like gold, &s;hineing, pure and pre|cious. The gifts and graces of the Spirit are <HI>golden oyle</HI> indeed. So (<HI>Jer.</HI> 51.7.) <HI>Babylon hath been a golden Cup in the hand of the Lord;</HI> Which &s;ome expound tropically; taking the Continent for the thing contained; The cup for the wine, <HI>Called golden wine,</HI> becau&s;e of the &s;plendidnes and beauty of it (as <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peakes, <HI>Pro.</HI> 23.31.) <HI>When it giveth his colour in the cup.</HI> Or <HI>Babylon</HI> is called a <HI>Golden cup;</HI> fir&s;t, becau&s;e of the great glory, wealth, and illu&s;trious pomp of that Empire, de&s;cribed in <HI>Daniel</HI> (Chap. 2.32.38.) by <HI>a head of Gold,</HI> and marked out in <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> by the name of the <HI>Golden City</HI> (I&s;a. 14.4) and &s;econdly, becau&s;e God had cau&s;ed other Nations to drinke deep of his wrath by the power of the Babylonian Empire. Upon which account My&s;ticall <HI>Babylon</HI> is &s;ayd to have a Golden cup in her hand (<HI>Rev.</HI> 17.4.) <HI>Gold,</HI> is the King, the chiefe of metals; gold is among metals as the Sunne is among the Starres and Planets of Heaven, the glory and Prince of them all. So that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>I &s;hall come forth as gold,</HI> his meaning is, I &s;hall come forth pure and in much perfection. Gold is fir&s;t the mo&s;t precious metal; &s;econdly, the mo&s;t honourable metal; thirdly, the mo&s;t weighty metal; fourthly, the mo&s;t du|rable metal; fifthly, the mo&s;t de&s;irerable metal: Every one is for gold;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Aurum per ig|nem probatum &s;ymbolum e&s;t j<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;torum nam ill<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> minime lae|dit examen <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">g|nis, per i&s;ta igi|tur verba vir &s;anctus cando|rem &s;uae inno|centiae &amp; con|&s;cientiae purita|tem maximam cir<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">umloquitur. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> So that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>I &s;hall come forth gold,</HI> his meaning is, as if he had &s;ayd, my tryall will not dimini&s;h, but rather adde unto me; I &s;hall be precious, honourable, weighty, durable, de|&s;ireable after I have been in the furnace or fineing pot of my &s;ore&s;t and &s;evere&s;t Tryalls. And he &s;peakes thus in oppo&s;ition to his friends, who had an opinion of him as if he were but dro&s;&s;e or the <HI>off-&s;coureing of all things</HI> (as the Apo&s;tles were reckoned in their time) <HI>I &s;hall come forth not dro&s;&s;e and tra&s;h, but gold,</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Were I once tryed, I &s;hould be for ever quit of tho&s;e Charges brought in again&s;t mee, and of tho&s;e &s;candals ca&s;t upon mee, I &s;hould &s;hine in reputation and honour like pure gold coming out of the fire. I &s;hould recover my good name, and be found a man loyall to God and righteous towards men.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><PB N="383" REF="205">Grace renders man excellent and precious.</Q>
<P>Every godly man is gold, yea he is more precious then fine gold; <HI>The fine&s;t gold is but dro&s;&s;e to Grace;</HI> the wicked of the world are <HI>reprobate &s;ilver,</HI> or <HI>refu&s;e &s;ilver (Jer.</HI> 6.30.) the Saints are <HI>finer then Gold refined in the fire,</HI> for they are precious, they are honourable, they are u&s;efull, they are dureable and la&s;ting, they &s;hall endure everla&s;tingly, they are weighty in their worth, and their portion is an eternall weight of glory.</P>
<P>Secondly, Whereas <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>when I am tryed I &s;hall come forth as gold.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>A godly man is no loo&s;er by being tryed, yea he gaines by it.</Q>
<P>He who before was reputed but as dro&s;&s;e, and had much dro&s;&s;e in him, comes out of the tryal as gold, and lo&s;eth nothing of his weight, worth, or beauty by being tryed, he onely lo&s;eth (a good lo&s;&s;e) his dro&s;&s;e and the rubbi&s;h of his corruptions. Grace is not onely grace &s;till, but more gracious even glorious after tryall. Some &s;peake of grace as if it were but dro&s;&s;e, con&s;umeable in the fire; as if every temptation and tryal endanger'd it to an utter con&s;umption, or as if, like lead, it would quite evaporate, and &s;pend to nothing in the fire. They &s;ticke not to affirme, that a true be|leever may lo&s;e all his graces, and how much &s;oever enricht before by the Spirit, yet prove a bankrupt in &s;piritualls. <HI>Job</HI> was Confi|de<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t that his gold would hold the tryal, both of the hotte&s;t af|flictions, and of the &s;tricte&s;t examinations. He had been tryed long in the furnace of affliction heated &s;eaven times more then ordinary, and yet held his integrity, and though he &s;hould come to tryal at the Judgement-&s;eate of God, which is more then &s;even|ty-times &s;even times &s;tricter then the Judgement-&s;eate of man (according to truth) can be, yet he nothing doubted, that no|thing (as to the general bent of his heart and frame of life) &s;hould be found or appeare but integrity &s;till. That is but dro&s;&s;ie grace, natural grace, if not hypocritical grace, or a counterfeit onely of grace, which a<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ides not in the day of tryall. They who loo&s;e the grace which they have &s;hewed, had onely a &s;hew of grace. Hypo|crites &s;hall <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e all at their tryal, their paint, their varni&s;h will not endure the fire, eyther of a la&s;ting affliction, or of that la&s;t exa|mination;
<PB N="384" REF="206"> <HI>when once a hypocrite is tryed, then he is &s;ham'd.</HI> He may goe currant for pure gold a great while, but at la&s;t he appeares but as a gilded &s;epulcher or dro&s;&s;e of gold. (<HI>P&s;al</HI> 119.119.) <HI>Thou putte&s;t away all the wicked of the earth like dro&s;&s;e.</HI> And the Lord &s;peaking of the degenerate hou&s;e of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (Ezek. 22.18.) &s;aith, <HI>The hou&s;e of I&s;rael is to me become dro&s;&s;e, all they are bra&s;&s;e, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the mid&s;t of the furnace, they are even the dro&s;&s;e (or dro&s;&s;es) of &s;ilver;</HI> That is, though they are a profe&s;&s;ing people, and hold out my name, yet I having tryed and examined them throughly, finde them to have nothing but a name of pro|fe&s;&s;ion; They being tryed are come forth like dro&s;&s;e. The Apo&s;tle (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.13,) Allegorically &s;hadowing out all &s;orts of &s;uper|&s;tructive doctrine, by <HI>Gold, &s;ilver, precious &s;tones, wood, hay, &s;tub|ble,</HI> &s;aith, <HI>If any man build upon this foundation</HI> (that is, <HI>Chri&s;t) Gold, &s;ilver, precious &s;tones, wood, hay, &s;tubble, every mans worke &s;hall be made manife&s;t, for the day &s;hall declare it, becau&s;e it &s;hall be revealed by fire,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Dum p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">obantur toti in fumum abeunt.</NOTE> <HI>and the fire &s;hall try every mans worke of what &s;ort it is. If any mans worke abide which he hath built thereupon, hee &s;hall receive a reward; if any mans worke &s;hall be burnt, he &s;hall &s;uffer lo&s;s,</HI> &amp;c. The <HI>wood, hay, &s;tubble, &s;hall be burnt,</HI> but the <HI>gold, &s;ilver, precious &s;tones,</HI> will abide the tryall of fire. Whether it be the fire of per&s;ecution, tribulation, and temptation (nothing but holy truth can abide the&s;e fires) or the fire of the holy Spirit (who in Scripture is often compared to fire, and) who together with the light of the Word revealeth the &s;oundnes or fal&s;enes of all doctrines delivered by men, and like fire con&s;umes what is fal&s;e, but gives a further brightnes and lu&s;tre to the truth. Even truth un|tryed may be counted dro&s;&s;e, but being tryed it comes forth like gold. Now, as the truth of doctrines, &s;o the truth of per&s;ons, in their workes and graces will abide when they come to the Te&s;t or tryall; God who puts away all the wicked of the earth as dro&s;&s;e, will gather up all the godly of the earth as Gold, when he hath tryed them, and try them he will. We read (<HI>Dan.</HI> 7.9, 10.) how dreadfully God comes to Judgement; <HI>I beheld till the thrones were ca&s;t downe, and the ancient of dayes did &s;it; his Throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheeles as burning fire; a fiery &s;treame i&s;&s;ued and came forth from before him, the judgement was &s;et, and the bookes were opened.</HI> Which whether it be meant of the la&s;t Judge|ment, or of &s;ome &s;peciall Judgement upon a particular &s;tate or op|pre&s;&s;ing
<PB N="385" REF="206"> power, comes all to one as to the poynt in hand; while it &s;hewes that God in the tryal of men will examine their per&s;ons, and their actions, as by fire. Of every &s;uch tryall it may be &s;ayd (as <HI>Mala.</HI> 3.2, 3.) <HI>Who may abide the day of his coming? and who &s;hall &s;tand when he appeareth?</HI> (The Prophet &s;peakes of the coming of Chri&s;t in the fle&s;h, at which time he was al&s;o mighty in Spirit) <HI>for he is like a refiners fire, and like fullers &s;oape, and he &s;hall &s;it as a refiner and purifier of &s;ilver.</HI> When Chri&s;t came in the fle&s;h to redeeme us, he came with fire al&s;o to purge and &s;anctifie us, and he comes with fire when&s;oever he comes in the Spirit to com|fort and enlighten us, and at la&s;t when he comes in glory, he will come with fire to try, examine, and judge us. When he comes to try us thus, All the faithfull &s;hall come forth as Gold, but the wicked and their works will burne and be con&s;umed. When Saints come to tryal at la&s;t they will &s;tand, and when they are tryed here, they will mend; fir&s;t, their Corruptions will be the more outed, and, &s;econdly, their graces will be the more acted. We may read this i&s;&s;ue of their tryal (<HI>Zech.</HI> 13.9.) <HI>And it &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e that in all the Land, &s;aith the Lord, two parts therein &s;hall be cut off and dye, but the third &s;hall be left therein.</HI> Whether we take <HI>the Land</HI> in particular for <HI>I&s;rael</HI> and the people of the <HI>Jewes,</HI> or typi|cally, for all profe&s;&s;ors thorowout the world, <HI>two parts &s;hall be cut off and dye, but the third &s;hall be left therein.</HI> And what will God doe with them? or how will he deale with them? We may &s;ee what at the 9^t^h ver&s;e. <HI>And I will bring the third part thorow the fire</HI> (of affliction and examination) <HI>and I will refine them as &s;ilver is refined, and try them as gold is tryed</HI> (and what will be the i&s;&s;ue of this?) <HI>And they &s;hall call on my name, and I will heare them.</HI> Here faith and prayer (in which all graces are exerci&s;ed) are put for all graces. When they are in this fire they &s;hall <HI>call on my name,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">In igne deum amant&egrave;r invo|cant &amp; candido &amp; germano &s;unt erga illum &s;tudio. <HI>Theod.</HI></NOTE> <HI>and I will heare them, and I will &s;ay</HI> (when they are in the fire) <HI>it is my people, and they &s;hall &s;ay, the Lord is my God.</HI> They who pray in the fire of tryall, or in the fiery tryall, declare <HI>evidently,</HI> that they are Gold in the fire; but they to whom God &s;aith in the fire of their tryalls, <HI>yee are my people,</HI> and they who (being &s;till in the &s;ame fire) can &s;ay, <HI>the Lord is our God,</HI> are declared both by God and them&s;elves <HI>eminently,</HI> that they are gold in the fire. They are as the choyce&s;t gold, as the Gold of <HI>Ophir,</HI> of whom the Lord &s;aith, (by an act of di&s;tingui&s;hing love) <HI>yee are my people,</HI>
<PB N="386" REF="207"> and who can &s;ay to God (by an act of appropriating faith) <HI>the Lord is our God.</HI> Surely then Saints lo&s;e nothing in the fire (but what is not worth the holding) while God finds and owns them, and they finde and owne God in the fire.</P>
<P>Further, Some read this latter part of the ver&s;e as an offer; <HI>Let him try mee,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Probat me.</NOTE> <HI>and I &s;hall come forth as gold;</HI> as if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;aid, I doe not refu&s;e, but de&s;ire a tryall; <HI>God knowes my way, the way that is in me, let him come and try mee, yea I am ready to come to him for my tryall.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>A &s;incere heart is willing to be tryed.</Q>
<P>'Tis a great part of the worke of a godly man to try him&s;elfe and his workes, and it is one of his greate&s;t wi&s;hes, that God would try him, and his workes. They who are &s;incere are much in trying them&s;elves; <HI>Let us &s;earch and try our wayes</HI> (&s;ay they) <HI>and turne againe unto the Lord.</HI> And they who are much in &s;elfe tryal and Examination, are willing to be tryed and examined both by God and man; &s;ure enough, <HI>They that try them&s;elves much, are not afraid of the tryal of man, no nor of the tryal of God.</HI> If we com|pare the fir&s;t ver&s;e of the 139^t^h <HI>P&s;alme</HI> with the 23<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, we &s;hall &s;ee what an an&s;wer there is in them as to this poynt. At the fir&s;t ver&s;e <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, <HI>O Lord, thou ha&s;t &s;earched mee and knowne mee:</HI> at the 23 ver&s;e hee prayes; <HI>Search mee O God, and know my heart;</HI> why did <HI>David</HI> pray thus to God; <HI>Search mee and know my heart?</HI> having &s;aid before, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;earched mee and knowne mee.</HI> Seing <HI>David</HI> knew that God had &s;earched him, what needed he to pray that God would &s;earch him? why did he begge God to doe that which hee had done already? The an&s;wer is at hand. <HI>David</HI> was a diligent &s;elfe-&s;earcher, and therefore he was &s;o willing to be &s;ear|ched, yea he delighted to be &s;earched, by God; and that not (as was &s;aid) becau&s;e him&s;elfe had done it already, but al&s;o be|cau&s;e he knew God could doe it better. Hee knew by his owne &s;earch, that he did not live in any way of wickednes again&s;t his knowledge, and yet he knew there might be &s;ome way of wicked|nes in him that he knew not of. And therefore he doth not onely &s;ay, <HI>Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts;</HI> but he adds (<HI>ver.</HI> 24.) <HI>&s;ee if there be any wicked way</HI> (or <HI>any way of paine and griefe) in me.</HI> (The &s;ame word &s;ignifies
<PB N="387" REF="207"> both, becau&s;e wicked wayes lead in the end to paine and griefe) <HI>and lead me in the way everla&s;ting.</HI> As if he had &s;aid; Lord, I have &s;earched my &s;elfe, and can &s;ee no wicked way in me, but Lord thy &s;ight is infinitely clearer then mine, and if thou wilt but &s;earch me, thou maye&s;t &s;ee &s;ome wicked way in me which I could not &s;ee, and I would faine &s;ee and know the wor&s;t of my &s;elfe, that I might amend it and grow better, therefore Lord, if there be any &s;uch way in me, cau&s;e me to know it al&s;o; O take that way out of me, and take me out of that way, <HI>lead me in the way everla&s;ting. David</HI> had tryed him&s;elfe, and he would againe be tryed by God, that he being better tryed, might become yet better. He found him&s;elfe Gold upon his owne tryall, and yet he feared there might be &s;ome dro&s;&s;e in him that he had not found, And now he would be re-tryed that he might come forth pure&s;t gold. Pure gold feares neither the furnace nor the fire, neither the Te&s;t nor the Touch&s;tone, nor is weighty gold afraid of the Ballance; He that is weight will be weight, how often &s;oever he is weighed: he that is gold will be gold, how often &s;oever he is tryed, and the oftener he is tryed the purer Gold he will be; what he is he will be, and he would be better then he is. Every man of <HI>Jobs</HI> mettal &s;aith or may &s;ay, <HI>Let him try mee, and I &s;hall come forth as gold.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="388" REF="208">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 11, 12.</HI></BIBL>
<P>My foot hath held his &s;teps, his way have I kept, and not declined.</P>
<P>Neither have I gone back from the commandement of his lips, I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>AT the 21^t^h and 22^t^h ver&s;es of the former Chapter, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having &s;harply rebuked <HI>Job,</HI> gave him very whole&s;ome and holy coun&s;ell. <HI>Acquaint thy &s;elfe now with him, and be at peace, re|ceive the law from his mouth, and lay up his words in thy heart.</HI> In the&s;e two ver&s;es <HI>Job</HI> profe&s;&s;eth that he had done &s;o; that he had kept clo&s;e to God, followed him &s;tep by &s;tep, that he had not declined, or turned back, and that he had done all this out of pure love to the word. So that each member of this context &s;eems to carry a direct an&s;wer to every member of that coun&s;el which <HI>Eli|phaz</HI> had there given him; As fir&s;t, to that of <HI>Eliphaz, Acquaint thy &s;elfe with God,</HI> (he &s;ayth) <HI>I have held his &s;teps.</HI> That man takes and holds neere acquaintance with another, of whom it may be affirmed, that he treads in or <HI>holds his very &s;teps.</HI> Againe, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> advi&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> thus; <HI>Receive the Law at his mouth; Job</HI> an&s;wers, <HI>I have not gone back from the commandement of his lips,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>Or thus;</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>He that takes hold of the &s;teps of God, acquaints him&s;elfe with God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>He that keeps the way of God and declines not from it, is at peace with God.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>He that goeth not back from the commandement of his lips, receives the Law at his mouth.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, He that <HI>e&s;teemeth the word of God more then his ne|ce&s;&s;ary food,</HI> hath &s;urely <HI>layd up the word of God in his heart.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> profe&s;&s;eth in the&s;e two ver&s;es that he had done all this, and therefore he had already done what <HI>Eliphaz</HI> pre&s;&s;eth him to doe. His whole conver&s;ation had exactly hitt the coun&s;ell given him.</P>
<DIV3 N="11" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="389" REF="208">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 11.</HI></BIBL> My foote hath held his &s;teps.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>My foote]</HI> We are not to take the word <HI>foote,</HI> &s;trictly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum dicit, <HI>pes meus,</HI> pro eo habendum ac &s;i dixi&s;&s;et, ego ap|prehendi gre&s;|&s;um ejus. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI> Verbum &s;ignifi|cat aliquid vio|lent&egrave;r detinere, ne labatur, aut fugiat, aut flu|at. <HI>Bold.</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> for that &s;pe|ciall member of the body &s;o called; but by the <HI>foote</HI> we are to un|der&s;tand the whole man; <HI>my foote,</HI> that is, <HI>I my &s;elfe have held his &s;teps,</HI> I have held them; And he meanes &s;uch a holding as hath a kinde of hone&s;t pertinaciou&s;ne&s;&s;e in it, or a re&s;olvedne&s;&s;e not to let goe what is held, a re&s;olute holding, a cleaveing fa&s;t to, a hold|ing with a kinde of violence, &s;uch as <HI>Jacob</HI> expre&s;&s;ed to the Angel (<HI>Gen.</HI> 32.26.) <HI>I will not let thee goe except thou ble&s;&s;e me.</HI></P>
<Q>My foote hath held.</Q>
<P>To lay hold is the proper action of the hand, not of the foote; and it is u&s;ed here onely as it &s;ignifies the keeping of a thing clo&s;e and fa&s;t any way, &s;o as not to part with it; or as it imports, a con&s;tant walking with God.</P>
<Q>My foote hath held his &s;teps, <HI>or</HI> upon his &s;teps.</Q>
<P>The word which &s;ignifies <HI>to goe,</HI> &s;ignifies al&s;o <HI>to be happy</HI> or <HI>ble&s;&s;ed,</HI> and the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e our way or motion &s;heweth what our end and re&s;t &s;hall be; our happine&s;&s;e in the end lieth virtually in our way.</P>
<P>But what were tho&s;e <HI>&s;teps</HI> that his foote took hold of? Steps in the Text may be taken two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, For tho&s;e &s;teps which God hath appointed man to take,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ve&s;tigia dei i|dem &s;ignificare, poterunt quod via dei, <HI>&s;c.</HI> illi|us precepta &amp; legem, quam no|bis tenendam common&s;trat. <HI>Pined.</HI> Gre&s;&s;um ejus accipe pa&s;&s;iv&egrave; id e&s;t ab eo defini|tum &amp; mon|&s;tratum. <HI>Jun.</HI> Ve&s;tigia dei &s;unt divinae a|ctiones quibus ille preit; vel &s;unt ejus effe|ctus ad extra, <HI>&s;c.</HI> Charitatis, clementiae, ju+&s;titiae veritatis. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> walking as and where God would have him; &s;o the&s;e &s;teps are the &s;ame with the law or way of God: not actively for the &s;teps which God takes, but pa&s;&s;ively for the &s;teps which he directs and appoints us to take.</P>
<P>Secondly, We may expound the&s;e &s;teps for Gods own &s;teps, not for the &s;teps which he &s;hews us in his word that we &s;hould take, but for the &s;teps which he &s;hews in his practi&s;e, or in his ex|ample that him&s;elfe hath taken. <HI>My foote hath held his &s;teps;</HI> &s;o to follow the &s;teps of another is to imitate him, and to follow the &s;teps of God is to imitate him; the &s;teps of God are tho&s;e holy actings wherein he goeth before us, and &s;ets us an example. Some of the workes of God are a rule, his actions are directions to us. Then <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning is, I have imitated God, and followed his ex|ample
<PB N="390" REF="209"> in all things that are imitable by man, I have &s;o much ac|quainted my &s;elfe with God, and have been &s;o familiar with him that I have as it were coppied out his way in my life and conver|&s;ation. Thus he &s;peakes of God as leading the way, and going be|fore us; and (&s;aith he) I have not &s;atisfied my &s;elfe to follow him at large, or in the &s;ame common path, but I have &s;et my feete in his very &s;teps, or I have followed him &s;tep by &s;tep.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>That a godly man doth example him&s;elfe by God.</Q>
<P>He followeth the way of God in his workes, as well as in his word, or he obeyeth God doing as well as commanding. Many of the workes of God are infinitely beyond our imitation, yet he workes &s;o in other things that he hath de&s;cended to our imitation. And though we cannot follow God in any thing as to an equali|ty, yet we may follow him in many things as to the &s;imilitude of his workings; we may goe the &s;ame way that he goeth, and take the &s;ame &s;teps that he hath taken, though we cannot take them in that perfection, nor goe with &s;uch exactnes as he hath gone be|fore us. A childe may write the &s;ame letters, the &s;ame words and lines, which the mo&s;t acurate penman or arti&s;t in writing hath pre|&s;cribed him for a copie, and &s;o the childe may be &s;aid to hold the &s;teps of his Ma&s;ter, letter for letter, word for word, line for line, though there be a wide difference di&s;cernable between their writ|ings. To follow God is our dutie, <HI>Godline&s;&s;e is Godlikene&s;&s;e,</HI> or, <HI>an imitation of God, And practicall Chri&s;tianity is nothing el&s;e but our imitation of Chri&s;t,</HI> and that not onely in doing but in &s;uffering (1 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.21.) <HI>For even hereunto are we called; becau&s;e Chri&s;t al&s;o &s;uffered for us, leaving us an example that we &s;hould follow his &s;teps.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">equere deum. <HI>Epict.</HI></NOTE> Chri&s;t is not onely a principle of holine&s;&s;e in us, or our &s;pi|rituall life, but he is al&s;o a patterne of holine&s;&s;e according to which we ought to live. And the &s;ame Apo&s;tle repre&s;ents the holine&s;&s;e of God, both as a rule, and as a motive of that holine&s;&s;e which &s;hould be acted by us (1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 1.15, 16.) <HI>As he that hath called you is holy, &s;o be ye holy in all manner of conver&s;ation,</HI> becau&s;e it is written (<HI>Lev:</HI> 11.14.) <HI>Be ye holy for I am holy.</HI> To be holy <HI>as God is</HI> in all manner of conver&s;ation, is &s;tedfa&s;tly to hold the &s;teps of God. And when (as Chri&s;t exhorts <HI>Math.</HI> 5.55.) <HI>Wee are mercifull as our father which is in heaven is mercifull.</HI> When as
<PB N="391" REF="209"> the Apo&s;tle exhorts (<HI>Eph.</HI> 4.32.) <HI>Wee forgive as God for Chri&s;ts &s;ake hath forgiven us;</HI> when we are patient and long-&s;uffering one towards another, as God is towards us all, then we take hold of his &s;teps; this &s;hould be our bu&s;ine&s;&s;e every day, to follow God in his word, and in his workes, <HI>to follow him fully.</HI> It is &s;aid of <HI>Ca|leb (Num.</HI> 14.24.) <HI>My &s;ervant Caleb hath another &s;pirit, he hath followed me fully.</HI> Here &s;ome may object, to follow the coun&s;el of God fully, is the dutie of all, but to follow the example of God is &s;urely beyond the attainment of any. This &s;eemes to be a hight of holine&s;&s;e too high for man; For if <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aid (<HI>Eccl:</HI> 2.12.) <HI>What can the man doe that cometh after the King? even that which hath been already done,</HI> or (more clo&s;e to the Original) <HI>in tho&s;e things which have been already done.</HI> How much more may we &s;ay, What can the man doe that comes after God the King of Kings? can he doe that which hath been done already? I an&s;wer, no man can paralel the workes of God, but all men are called to imitate him in his workes; though we cannot follow him with equall &s;teps, yet we may follow the equity and holines of his &s;teps. This <HI>Job</HI> did and we (through grace) may doe. <HI>My foote hath held his &s;teps,</HI>
<Q>His way have I kept, and not declined.</Q></P>
<P>The way of God is his Law, in that he will have us to walke, and that is called <HI>his way,</HI> becau&s;e he hath pre&s;cribed it, and is the author of it; as that is mans way wherein he walks, &s;o that is Gods way wherein he will have man to walke; <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the undefiled in the way</HI> (P&s;al. 119.1.) What the way is, he tels us in the next words, <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed are they that keepe his te&s;timonies, and who walke in the Law of the Lord.</HI> His law and te&s;timonies are his way: now &s;ayth <HI>Job, As I have held his &s;teps,</HI> or followed his example, &s;o <HI>I have kept his way,</HI> that is, I have done that which he hath com|manded. The way of God is put &s;ometimes in Scripture for that which him&s;elfe hath done (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 18.25.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Via del &amp; ho|minis &s;umitur; <HI>1</HI> Pro itinere &amp; gre&s;&s;ibus. <HI>2</HI> P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o ip&s;a via &s;trata.</NOTE>) <HI>Heare O hou&s;e of I&s;|rael, is not my way equall,</HI> that is, the way wherein I my &s;elfe have gone, the way of my di&s;pen&s;ations to you, both in rewarding and puni&s;hing. And as the workes of providence, &s;o the worke of Creation is called the way of God (<HI>Pro.</HI> 8.22.) <HI>The Lord po&s;|&s;e&s;&s;ed me in the beginning of his way,</HI> (that is, before he came forth in the worke of Creation) <HI>before his workes of old;</HI> his way and his workes are the &s;ame, or his workes are his way. But in this Text
<PB N="392" REF="210"> (as I touch't before) we may rather take <HI>way</HI> for that which God would have us doe, or for the way in which we ought to walke. And &s;o we have the compleatnes of <HI>Jobs</HI> obedience, he imitated the example and he obeyed the command of God.</P>
<Q>His way have I kept.</Q>
<P>Yet further, There is a twofold keeping of the way of God;</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, by practice and obedience, thus we keepe the way of God by &s;ubmitting to it.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a keeping the way of God by protection and defence; Thus we keepe the way of God, when we &s;tand up to maintaine it. We may take it here in both &s;en&s;es; and in both, doubtle&s;&s;e, <HI>Jobs</HI> Spirit was led out to <HI>keepe the way of God.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>A godly man keepes clo&s;e to the word of God.</Q>
<P>He keepes clo&s;e to it by obeying it, and he keepes it clo&s;e by defending it; and this he doth as <HI>Job</HI> did it univer&s;ally (for &s;o this indefinite propo&s;ition, <HI>His way have I kept,</HI> is to be under&s;tood) it was not this or that way, but any or every way of God which he kept. And thus a godly man keepes the way of God, though it be a difficult and (to the fle&s;h) an unea&s;ie way, though it be (among men) a reproachfull, and ignominious way, though it be (as to his outward concernements) a di&s;advantageous and dange|rous way, yet he keepes it: he that is through with God, doth not onely keepe tho&s;e wayes which &s;uit with his owne plea&s;ure and credit, with the &s;afety of his owne intere&s;ts and accommodati|ons in the world, but if the way of God lie through difficulties, through dangers and di&s;graces, he will yet keepe it. And if we thus keepe the way of God, we may be &s;ure, that the way of God, or rather the God of this way will keepe us, and keepe us in perfect peace, in &s;pirituall freedome, &s;afetie, and honour, though we have trouble in and from the world. <HI>His way have I kept,</HI> and which doth heighten his obedience, care, and zeale in keeping it.</P>
<P>He addes,
<Q>And not declined.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE>The word &s;ignifies, <HI>to be un&s;teady,</HI> or to move every way; As if he had &s;aid, <HI>I have kept his wayes &s;tedfa&s;tly and unmoveably. Job</HI>
<PB N="393" REF="210"> &s;peakes both in the affirmative, <HI>I have kept,</HI> and in the negative, <HI>I have not declined.</HI> Some keepe the wayes of God a while, but they keepe not on, much le&s;&s;e doe they keepe up in keeping them. There is a twofold declining. Fir&s;t, a declining from the way of God to evill and &s;infull wayes; and the&s;e are of two &s;orts, fir&s;t, erroneous opinions; &s;econdly, wicked practices; &s;econdly, there is a declining in the way of God, when though we keepe the good way, yet we are not &s;o good in the way as we were, but &s;lacke our pace &amp; coole in our zeale to the good wayes of God. We may ex|pound <HI>Jobs</HI> negative in reference to both the&s;e; as if he had &s;ayd, I have neither gone out of the way of God, nor have I been &s;loath|full in it. 'Tis the highe&s;t commendation of man, thus to keepe the way of God, <HI>and not decline.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>A godly man is, or ought to be, and 'tis his honour to be &s;teady in a good way.</Q>
<P>Perfeverance is our Crowne. The Apo&s;tle (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 15.58.) <HI>Exhorts to be &s;teady and unmoveable, alwayes abounding in the worke of the Lord.</HI> We &s;hould be alwayes moving in the worke of the Lord, but never moving out of the worke of the Lord: wee &s;hould be as a rock in regard of &s;tedfa&s;tnes, and as fire in regard of activenes. The Author to the <HI>Hebrewes</HI> (Chap. 10.23.) gives this admonition to beleivers, <HI>Let us hold fa&s;t the profe&s;&s;ion of our faith, without wavering,</HI> or without declining. There are &s;ome of whom we may &s;ay, they hold nothing, they hold no profe&s;&s;i|on, they dare not make a profe&s;&s;ion le&s;t they &s;hould be bound to &s;tand to it, or they &s;tand not to that which they have made; and as they hold no profe&s;&s;ion, &s;o they hold no po&s;ition, but as to the doctrine of faith are meere &s;cepticks, they are alwayes que|rying, but never concluding. The Apo&s;tle &s;peakes of &s;ome (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 3.7.) <HI>who are ever learning, but never able to come to the know|ledge of the truth;</HI> and there are others ever learning, but never willing to declare their knowledge of the truth; and they who hold nothing in doctrine, will not hold long in practice. Therefore &s;aith the Apo&s;tle; <HI>Let us hold fa&s;t our profe&s;&s;ion,</HI> let us be &s;teady in it, and that without wavering. And this is the great argument which the Apo&s;tle carries through that whole Epi&s;tle, to e&s;tabli&s;h the Saints, that &s;o they might hold fa&s;t, without wavering, and
<PB N="394" REF="211"> declining in the profe&s;&s;ion of the faith. Let us take heed of eyther of tho&s;e waverings and declineings, before explained. Fir&s;t, Let us not decline in the way, but keepe up in the &s;ame degree of holines and love to Chri&s;t. The Church of <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> is charged with this &s;ort of declineing; and therefore after Chri&s;t had given that Church a great and a de&s;erved commendation (<HI>Rev.</HI> 2.2.) <HI>I know thy workes, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou can&s;t not beare them which are evill, and ha&s;t tryed them that &s;ay they are Apo&s;tles, and are not, and ha&s;t found them lyars;</HI> yet Chri&s;t comes with a <HI>rebuking, neverthele&s;&s;e</HI> (at the 4^t^h ver&s;e) <HI>I have &s;ome|what again&s;t thee, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t left thy fir&s;t love;</HI> that is, <HI>thou ha&s;t declined</HI> from, or abated in thy fir&s;t heate of love. <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> did not totally for&s;ake, nor ca&s;t off Chri&s;t out of her love; <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> did not choo&s;e other lovers, nor &s;ay, &s;hee would have no more to doe with Chri&s;t: The chiefe object of her love was the &s;ame, but her actings were not the &s;ame. The &s;treames of her af|fection did not run into another channel, but they were fallen and ebb'd in their former channel. 'Tis &s;ad, when Saints decline thus; we &s;hould keepe up to the &s;ame height, to the &s;ame heate, to the &s;ame degree of love without declineing, we &s;hould not onely run at fir&s;t &s;etting out, but continue running, or as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.1.) <HI>Run with patience,</HI> that is, run con&s;tantly, or with per&s;everance, <HI>the race that is &s;et before us.</HI> They that run in a worldly race, the neerer they come to the Goale, the fa&s;ter they run, and the more they &s;trive; &s;o &s;hould we in our holy race; we &s;hould &s;till be growing and <HI>encrea&s;ing with the encrea&s;e of God.</HI> A Saint &s;hould be thankfull for the lea&s;t degree, but he &s;hould not &s;it downe in the greate&s;t degree he hath already attained unto. And though &s;ome who have grace doe not actually reach after more, yet they who &s;ay they have enough, or need no more, give too cleare an evidence again&s;t them&s;elves, that they have none at all. As the higher degrees of grace (under a temptation or de|&s;ertion) may be unthriving and un&s;triving after perfection, &s;o the lowe&s;t degree of &s;aving grace is (in its owne nature) thriving and &s;triving after more perfection. He that beleeves, truely, would be|leeve more, and he that loves truely, would love more and more, till his love become a vehement flame, &s;o vehement a flame that many waters &s;hall not be able to quench it, nor the floods (of trouble and per&s;ecution from the world) drowne it.</P>
<PB N="395" REF="211">
<P>Secondly, as we &s;hould thus take heed of declining in the way of grace, &s;o we &s;hould much more take heed, that we decline not from the way of grace, or as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> expre&s;&s;eth it (2 <HI>Ep:</HI> 2.31.) <HI>that we turne not from the holy commandement delivered unto us.</HI> This declining or turning from the commande|ments, is twofold; fir&s;t, to the right hand; &s;econdly, and to the left. The Scripture gives warning again&s;t both (<HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 1.7.) <HI>Be thou &s;trong and very corragious, that thou mighte&s;t ob&s;erve, and doe according to all the Law which Mo&s;es commanded, turne not from it to the right hand, or to the left.</HI> Againe (<HI>Pro.</HI> 4.25, 26, 27.) <HI>Let thine eye look right on, and let thine eye-lids look &s;treight before thee; ponder the path of thy feete, and let all thy wayes be e&s;tabli&s;hed, turne not to the right hand, nor to the left, remove thy foote from evill;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, there is evill both on the right hand, and on the left, therefore turne neyther to the one, nor to the other, that thou maye&s;t <HI>remove thy foot from evill.</HI> But &s;ome may &s;ay, What is here meant by the right hand, and what by the left? and what are the&s;e declineings, or turnings? I an&s;wer; To turne <HI>to the right hand,</HI> notes exce&s;&s;e, when we will take upon us to doe more then God hath commanded, when we will needs over-doe, this is to decline to the right hand; for though, when man hath done his utmo&s;t through grace in this life (con&s;idering his in dwelling corruption) he alwayes falls &s;hort of that exactnes which the Law requires, and &s;o cannot po&s;&s;ibly exceed the Law in holines; yet all they may be &s;aid to act beyond the command, or to out-act the Law of God, as to the matter of their obedience, who doe that which God never commanded, nor ever <HI>came into his heart</HI> (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>Jer.</HI> 7.31.) to command them. They who thus doe what God requires not, and as if God had been too &s;cant in his rules, will needes give a new rule eyther to them&s;elves or others, and as if God had not given them lawes enow, will (in this &s;ence) be a law to them&s;elves or others, eyther in matters of practi&s;e or wor&s;hip (And &s;o indeed make voyd the Law of God by their tradition) the&s;e exceeders are the men who turne to the right hand, though indeed (except they repent this ra&s;hne&s;&s;e) them&s;elves are likely to be &s;et upon the left hand. Men never act more left-handedly then when they thus turne to the right hand, nor doe they ever wrong God more, then when they doe that which is right in their owne eyes: men never &s;hew them&s;elves
<PB N="396" REF="212"> &s;o fooli&s;h, as when they will be wi&s;er then God.</P>
<P>Againe, Declining or turning to the left hand, implyeth a &s;inne in defect, when we doe le&s;&s;e then God commands, when we &s;hor|ten, and &s;treighten the will of God in our obedience to it. Every naturall man thinkes a little much, yea he thinkes much to doe a little; and may therefore be &s;ayd to turne to the left hand, becau&s;e that is the unworking hand, or the hand which doth the lea&s;t work. A natural man eyther makes the Law of God voyd by doing that which is again&s;t it, or he lets it lie voyd by not doing it, and would be glad that this talent committed to him might for ever be wrapt up in a napkin, or be buryed in the earth. Both the&s;e turnings, whether to the right hand, or to the left, are evill. The way of holines, the good way lieth &s;treight forward, right on; It hath no turning either to the right hand, nor to the left. All the wayes of &s;inne are called <HI>crooked wayes,</HI> and they are our owne wayes. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 125.5.) <HI>As for &s;uch as turne a&s;ide to their crooked wayes, the Lord &s;hall lead them forth with the workers of iniquitie.</HI> The P&s;almi&s;t calls them, <HI>Their crooked wayes;</HI> that is, wayes of their own devi&s;ing; whereas the way of holines is the Lords way. To exceed or to doe more, to be deficient or to doe le&s;&s;e then God requires, both the&s;e are crooked wayes; the way of the Lord lyes &s;treight forward, right before us. (<HI>Pro.</HI> 28.18.) <HI>Who &s;o walk|eth vprightly &s;hall be &s;aved, but he that is perver&s;e (or crooked) in his wayes &s;hall fall at once.</HI> The motion of a godly man is like that of the kine that carryed the Arke (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 6.12.) <HI>Who tooke the &s;treight way to the way of Beth&s;heme&s;h, and went along the high way, lowing as they went, and they turned not a&s;ide to the right hand, or to the left.</HI></P>
<P>But you will &s;ay, Doe not good men, even the be&s;t of good men, decline &s;ometimes, and goe a&s;ide? or doth it argue every man to be wicked who declines at any time? I an&s;wer; <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes of what he had not done, not of what it was impo&s;&s;ible for him to doe; he had not declined, yet he might have declined. Wee finde many declinings among the godly; how many are there that decline in degrees, who are godly in the maine; They love &s;till, but they have not the &s;ame warmth of love, the &s;ame heate of af|fection; They obey &s;till, but they have not the &s;ame &s;trength of obedience. There may be a declineing al&s;o not onely in the way, but from the way, to the right hand &s;ometimes, and &s;ometimes to
<PB N="397" REF="212"> the left; there may be an exceeding, and there may be a coming &s;hort in tho&s;e, as to actions, who, as to their &s;tate, are come home to God; the&s;e things are po&s;&s;ible, yea common, but we &s;peake of what many godly men doe, and what &s;hould be the aime, and de|&s;igne of every godly man, that is, to keepe the way of God, and not to decline, to keepe him&s;elfe up in &s;pirituall &s;trength, and to keepe him&s;elfe onne in a &s;pirituall cour&s;e; yea every godly man may, and can &s;ay as <HI>David</HI> did (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.21,) <HI>I have kept the wayes of the Lord, and have not wickedly departed from my God.</HI> Though every godly man cannot &s;ay as godly <HI>Job</HI> did, <HI>I have kept his way, and not declined,</HI> yet every godly man may &s;ay as <HI>David, I have kept his wayes, and have not wickedly departed from my God;</HI> we &s;hould be afraid of declineing and decaying, we &s;hould &s;trive to be alwayes advancing and encrea&s;ing. And as Saints are under a command to be &s;uch, &s;o they are under a promi&s;e to be &s;uch, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 92.12, 13, 14.) <HI>The righteous &s;hall flouri&s;h like a Palme tree: he &s;hall grow like a Cedar in Libanon. Tho&s;e that be planted in the hou&s;e of the Lord, &s;hall flouri&s;h in the Courts of our God, they &s;hall &s;till bring forth fruit in old age: they &s;hall be fat and flouri&s;h|ing.</HI> Here is not onely a mention of growing, but of flouri&s;hing, and here's flouri&s;hing three times mentioned, and 'tis growing and flouri&s;hing not onely like a tree, but like a Palme-tree, (which flouri&s;heth under opre&s;&s;ion) and like a Cedar (not growing in ordinary places, but) in <HI>Lebanon,</HI> where were the goodlie&s;t Ce|dars. Nor doth the Spirit promi&s;e here a flouri&s;hing in boughes ane leaves onely (as &s;ome trees doe, and doe no more) but in fruit; And this not onely fruit for once in a yeare, or one yeare, but they <HI>&s;till bring forth fruit,</HI> and that not onely in the yeares of their youth, or beginnings in grace, but <HI>in old age,</HI> and that not only in the entrance of that &s;tate which is called <HI>old age,</HI> three&s;core yeares, but that which the Scripture calls the perfection of <HI>old age,</HI> three&s;core yeares and ten, as the learned Hebrewes ob&s;erve upon the word u&s;ed in the P&s;alme. What a <HI>divine climax</HI> doth the Spi|rit of God make in this Scripture, to &s;hew that the godly man, as to his &s;tate, is &s;o farre from declining, that he is &s;till climbing high|er and higher? And if any &s;hall aske how comes it to pa&s;&s;e then, that &s;ome godly men are ob&s;erved not onely by them&s;elves, but by others, to decline often in and &s;ometimes from the wayes of God?</P>
<PB N="398" REF="213">
<P>I an&s;wer, the&s;e declinings may be a&s;&s;igned to &s;everall Cau&s;es.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To the power of &s;ome Corruption remaining much un|mortified in them; as in a garden when the weeds grow high, the good herbs decline; And as in a field, when the weeds are &s;trong, the corne is weake; &s;o it is here; the prevailing or grow|ing of Corruption, is the declining of Grace in degree, and by rea|&s;on of it, &s;ome (for a time) decline from the way.</P>
<P>Secondly, Declinings are from the prevalency of temptation; while Satan plieth &s;ome with temptation, he turneth them out of the way, or cau&s;eth them to walke but &s;lowly in it. As temptati|on is a tryall of, &s;o a hindrance unto grace, yea though corruption be kept much downe, yet &s;ome through a violent gu&s;t of temptati|on have been over-borne.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Declinings are cau&s;ed in the good by the example of tho&s;e that are evill, therefore the Apo&s;tle gives that Caution (<HI>Rom.</HI> 12.2.) <HI>Not to be conformable to the world.</HI> A godly man is apt enough to write by a fal&s;e copie, and to doe as he &s;ees the world doth. What was all their way, or their onely way before conver&s;ion, they after conver&s;ion (through neglect of their watch) may be found &s;tepping into, or taking a &s;tep or two in. Before con|ver&s;ion our whole cour&s;e, &s;ayth the Apo&s;tle (<HI>Ephe.</HI> 2.2.) <HI>is ac|cording to the cour&s;e of this world;</HI> And the examples of the world have drawne many a&s;ide, after they have come out from the world. The fa&s;hions and vanities of the world, in pride and plea|&s;ure, are very drawing. All examples, e&s;pecially evill examples (like the Load&s;tone) have an attractive vertue in them; and many of the godly have been drawne a&s;ide thus, and have declined, with much &s;candal, fot a while from the way of God.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Declinings are &s;ometimes from afflictions; and tho&s;e we may con&s;ider of two &s;orts, per&s;onall, or publique: both or ei|ther of the&s;e have cau&s;ed many to decline. The cold fro&s;t of affli|ction hath nipped the graces of &s;ome, and made them to turn a&s;ide from the way of God. Therefore the Church (having reported her great troubles) &s;peakes it as an argument of much &s;inceritie towards God, and &s;trength of Grace received from him. (<HI>P&s;al</HI> 44.17, 18.) <HI>All this is come upon us</HI> (that is, all the&s;e common cala|mities and afflictions) <HI>yet have we not forgotten thee, nor dealt fal&s;ely in thy Covenant; our hearts are not turned back, neither are our &s;teps declined from thy way;</HI> As if &s;he had &s;aid, The&s;e afflictions
<PB N="399" REF="213"> have been &s;trong temptations upon us to cau&s;e us to decline from thy wayes, but through grace we have kept our ground, and re|mained con&s;tant in thy Covenant, <HI>yea though thou ha&s;t &s;ore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the &s;hadow of death.</HI> As, many, yea mo&s;t of the Saints have improved under the cro&s;&s;e, &s;o there have been &s;ome who either through their pre&s;ent unbe|leefe, or forgetfulnes of <HI>the exhortation which</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>Heb.</HI> 12.5.) <HI>&s;peaketh unto them as unto children,</HI> have had their faintings and declinings under it.</P>
<P>Fifthly, Others decline through pro&s;peritie, and worldly injoyments; when they grow rich in temporalls, they grow poorer in &s;piritualls. As their outward man encrea&s;eth, &s;o their in|ner man decayeth; and as they flouri&s;h in the fle&s;h, &s;o hey wither in &s;pirit. Hence holy <HI>Agur</HI> prayed (<HI>Pro.</HI> 30.8, 9.) <HI>Give me not poverty, lea&s;t I be poore and &s;teale, and take the name of God in vaine,</HI> (that would be a &s;ad declining) <HI>give me not riches, le&s;t I be full and deny thee, and &s;ay who is the Lord?</HI> That's a &s;adder declining then the former. Povertie endangers grace much, but riches more. To be rich or great in the world, is a great temptation; <HI>Food con|venient</HI> is the mo&s;t &s;weet and mo&s;t untemptationle&s;&s;e condition. As hypocrites fall quite off from God, when they come onne much in the world; &s;o the &s;incere may be much hindred in their way. And as many godly men have declined through their owne pro|&s;peritie, &s;o &s;ome have declined, or at lea&s;t have been in great dan|ger of declining by the pro&s;peritie of others. <HI>David</HI> was readie to decline from God, when he &s;aw the pro&s;peritie of ungodly men. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.2.) <HI>As for me my feete were almo&s;t gone, my &s;teps had well nigh &s;lip't, when I &s;aw the pro&s;peritie of the wicked. David</HI> was almo&s;t downe, when he &s;aw the wicked up Their &s;tanding had almo&s;t given him a fall; <HI>My &s;teps</HI> (&s;ayth h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> <HI>had well nigh &s;lipt;</HI> now if it put <HI>David,</HI> a man eminent in godline&s;&s;e, &s;o hard to it to keepe his &s;tanding (all the grace in his heart, and a&s;&s;i&s;tance from God could &s;carce hold him up) how much more may they who come farre &s;hort of <HI>David,</HI> decline by &s;eing the pro&s;peritie of wicked men? are not they readie to conclude, &s;urely we &s;hall thrive, and doe well enough, though we doe as others doe, who doe not trouble them&s;elves in a &s;trictnes about matters of religion as we have done, <HI>Verily</HI> (as it follows at the 13^t^h ver&s;e) <HI>we have clean&s;ed our heart in vaine, and wa&s;hed our hands in innocency.</HI>
<PB N="400" REF="214"> If we had &s;pared our paines of labour, we could not have endured more paine of trouble; <HI>for all the day long have we been plagued, and cha&s;tned every morning.</HI> Such arguings as the&s;e &s;hew great declinings. Yet they who are &s;incere will &s;oone recover them|&s;elves againe, and &s;ay as <HI>David</HI> after he had reviewed this Temp|tation (<HI>ver.</HI> 15.) <HI>If we &s;ay we will &s;peake thus, we &s;hould offend again&s;t the Generation of the righteous.</HI></P>
<P>Now &s;eing the Godly are &s;o many wayes endangered to decli|ning, let us be warned of it, and beware of it. The&s;e are declining times, many profe&s;&s;ors have &s;hamed them&s;elves, and the profe&s;&s;i|on of the Go&s;pel. He is a Chri&s;tian indeed that can &s;ay in truth as <HI>Job</HI> did, <HI>I have kept his words and not declined;</HI> they that knew me many yeares agoe may finde me in as good, yea in a better plight then I was then. Hypocrites &amp; true beleevers may look &amp; act very like one another, but as the nature of their e&s;tates have alwayes a va&s;t difference to the under&s;tanding, &s;o the event gives a va&s;t diffe|rence between them to the eye. Hypocrites keep the word of God a while, but they ever decline in the end finally from it, and &s;ome|tims throw it off in the way totally. When they are in the way they grow weary of it, &amp; a &s;mal matter working either upon their hopes or fears, will put them quite out of it. Every difficulty, every danger is to them a Lion in the way, cau&s;ing them to decline from it; wher|as to tho&s;e that are &s;incere, difficulties are not &s;tops, but incitements and &s;purres, they doe but provoke their zeale, they cannot quench it. And hence the holy Apo&s;tle &s;ends a challenge (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.35.) to all the troubles, afflictions, and evills in the world: he bids them doe their wor&s;t, and when they have done it, they &s;hall not be <HI>able to &s;eperate him from the love of God,</HI> neither from the love wherewith Go<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">oved him, or from that love wherewith he loved God.</P>
<Q>I have kept his wayes and not declined.</Q>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That &s;inne is a declining from the way of God.</Q>
<P>That's the Apo&s;tles definition (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.4.) <HI>Sin is the tran&s;|gre&s;&s;ion of the Law;</HI> And tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion is a going a&s;ide, or a going over the line by which God hath chaulked us out our way. God hath not left us at our liberty, though he hath left us (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> calls it, <HI>Chap.</HI> 1.25.) <HI>a perfect law of liberty.</HI> He
<PB N="401" REF="214"> hath not left us to travell over hedge and ditch, but hath &s;hewed us our way, <HI>a high way and a way</HI> (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 35.8.) <HI>And it &s;hall be called the way of holines, the way-faring men, though fooles, &s;hall not erre therein.</HI> Yet fooles are alwayes erring from it, all their walkings are wandrings, and their goings are goings a&s;tray who walke and goe on in a &s;infull way. The word which &s;ignifies &s;inne in the Hebrew, imports mo&s;t properly the mi&s;&s;ing of a mark; becau&s;e &s;inning is a mi&s;&s;ing of the mark, and a declining from the way; <HI>I have kept his way, and not declined.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="12" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 12.</HI></BIBL> Neither have I gone backe from the commandement of his lips, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>Job</HI> proceeds with his negative profe&s;&s;ion, having &s;aid before, <HI>I have not declined,</HI> he &s;aith the &s;ame thing againe in other words; <HI>I have not gone backe from the commandement of his lips.</HI> See, how often he repeats, and inculcates this poynt, both that he might be beleived, and that he might &s;hew how confident he was in the up|rightnes of his owne heart; <HI>I have not declined, neither have I gone backe.</HI> By the&s;e various expre&s;&s;ions, and often repetitions, <HI>Job</HI> &s;ets forth in generall the exactnes of his care in keeping clo&s;e to God; <HI>neither have I gone backe.</HI> The word &s;ignifies both to depart, and to touch; and &s;ome put both &s;ignifications together here,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> rece&s;&s;it, dece&s;&s;it, palpa|rit, tetegit; Ita recedere a re aliqua, ut tangi aut contrectari nequeat.</NOTE> imply|ing &s;uch a departure from a thing or per&s;on, as not at all to touch or come neere it againe; which is a totall apo&s;tacy, or de&s;ertion from it; As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;aid, <HI>I have not apo&s;tati&s;ed from the wayes of God.</HI> But this &s;eemes le&s;&s;e then what he &s;pake before; for having &s;ayd, <HI>I did not decline,</HI> what need he &s;ay, <HI>I did not apo&s;tatize,</HI> for he that doth not &s;o much as decline, is farre from apo&s;tati&s;ing. I an|&s;wer, that in this negative there is that ordinary figure extenu|ation, &s;peaking le&s;&s;e then is intended, or intending more then is ex|pre&s;&s;ed, and &s;o, <HI>not to goe backe from,</HI> is to goe forward in, or to proceed on in the commandements of God; and &s;o the &s;en&s;e ri&s;eth higher; <HI>I have kept his way, and have not declined,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non recedere a mandatis e&s;t il|la opere comple|re tenere, non dimittere de manu aut actio|ne. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE> <HI>neither have I gone backe from his commandement;</HI> I have kept clo&s;e to it without the lea&s;t willing declen&s;ion. I have not layd the comman|dement out of my hand, much le&s;&s;e have I put it out of my heart. And then we are to interpret this negative, <HI>I have not gone backe,</HI> by this affirmative, <HI>I have &s;tood to thy commandements con&s;tantly
<PB N="402" REF="215"> and re&s;olvedly.</HI> The Scripture is full of &s;uch negatives. Thus when the Lord makes that promi&s;e (<HI>Joel</HI> 2.26.) <HI>My people &s;hall never be a&s;hamed;</HI> It &s;eemes to be but a &s;mall matter, that the people of God &s;hall not be a&s;hamed, but the meaning is, they &s;hall be high|ly honoured, they &s;hall have a name and reputation in the world, they &s;hall make their boa&s;t in &amp; of me their God all the day long. So when the Apo&s;tle gives that negative coun&s;el; (1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5.18.) <HI>De&s;pi&s;e not prophe&s;ie,</HI> his purpo&s;e is to exhort the <HI>The&s;&s;alonians,</HI> and us in them to the readie&s;t embraces and highe&s;t e&s;timations of it. Not to de&s;pi&s;e, is to <HI>honour prophe&s;ie,</HI> that is, the preaching of the word in a due expo&s;ition and application of it to <HI>exhortation, and edification and comfort.</HI> So then, there is much more in the&s;e words, <HI>I have not gone backe from the commandement;</HI> then thus, I have not turned, or apo&s;tatized from the commandement, I have not throwne up, nor abjured my profe&s;&s;ion; <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning is, <HI>I have kept &s;trictly and firmely to it, I have a&s;&s;erted it, and affirmed it, and will maintaine it to the end:</HI> as I have hitherto lived, &s;o I am purpo&s;ed to dye in the obedience of it. <HI>I have not gone backe from the commandement of his lips.</HI> We finde the word u&s;ed in &s;uch a &s;ignification (<HI>Prov.</HI> 17.13.) <HI>Who &s;o rewardeth evill for good, evill &s;hall not depart from his hou&s;e,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Semper fami|liariter in illi|us domo ver&s;a|bitur.</NOTE> or, <HI>evill &s;hall not goe backe from his hou&s;e.</HI> As evill &s;hall come, &s;o evill &s;hall not goe backe, he &s;hall not be able to di&s;mi&s;&s;e it when it cometh; evill &s;hall keepe clo&s;e to his hou&s;e, dwell and abide in his hou&s;e, or hang upon him like an unwelcome gue&s;t, he &s;hall not get it out for ever. Againe, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 54.10.) <HI>The mountaines &s;hall depart, and the hills &s;hall be removed, but my kindne&s;&s;e &s;hall not depart from thee, neither &s;hall the Cove|nant of my peace be removed, &s;aith the Lord that hath mercy on thee.</HI> Thus the Lord a&s;&s;ures his people of the grace and good of the new Covenant; <HI>The mountaines &s;hall depart,</HI> that is, though the mountaines depart, or let them depart, and <HI>the hills remove, yet my kindnes &s;hall not depart,</HI> or, it &s;hall not goe back from you; that is, my kindne&s;&s;e &s;hall imbrace you, &s;ticke clo&s;e to you, and abide with you for ever; &s;o here, <HI>I have not gone backe,</HI> that is, I have im|braced, and &s;tuck to <HI>the commandement of his lips.</HI> We al&s;o finde &s;uch a &s;en&s;e of the word, (<HI>Mich.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>Therefore thus &s;aith the Lord, Behold, again&s;t this family doe I devi&s;e an evill, from which you &s;hall not remove</HI> (or withdraw) <HI>your neckes;</HI> that is, the evill which I devi&s;e again&s;t you &s;hall remaine upon you, and &s;tick by
<PB N="403" REF="215"> you, ye &s;hall not get this yoake off your neckes, nor your neckes out of this collar; it &s;hall be an abiding evill, which will not goe backe; as ye have not gone backe from the evill of &s;in, &s;o ye &s;hall not goe backe from the evill of puni&s;hment, it will not remove from you, nor &s;hall ye remove from it. So here, <HI>I have not gone backe,</HI> or removed my necke from the commandement of God, I have not &s;tirred a foote from it.</P>
<P>Yet further, that which before, he called <HI>the way of God,</HI> here he calls <HI>the commandement of his lips;</HI> lips are the in&s;truments of &s;peech. God is a &s;pirit, and hath no corporeall parts: the Scrip|ture &s;peakes thus of God after the manner of men; becau&s;e men &s;peake with their lips (their lips being a principall in&s;trument of &s;peech) therefore the commandement which God hath made knowne, and &s;poken (in a way peculiar to him&s;elfe) is called <HI>the commandement of his lips.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Praeceptum la|biorum, <HI>i. e.</HI> praeceptum la|bijs ejus pro|nounciatum. Genitivus adju~|cti vel efficien|tis. <HI>Pi&s;c.</HI></NOTE> M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates &s;trictly to the letter; <HI>His lips lawes I ca&s;t not off.</HI> And when <HI>Job</HI> calleth the com|mandements of God, <HI>the commandements of his lips,</HI> it hath a great force in it, to oblige man to reverence, and obey them. They are not commandements which he hath publi&s;hed by others onely, he hath al&s;o publi&s;hed them him&s;elfe. They are <HI>the commande|ments of his lips,</HI> that is, tho&s;e commandements which as he made and others &s;peake in his name, &s;o he hath &s;poken them too.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Emphaticus e&s;t i&s;te Hebrai&s;mus ad majore~ prae|ceptoru~ dei com|mendatione~ re|verentiam &amp; ob&s;ervantiam, <HI>&s;c.</HI> quod ab ip&s;o dei ore prolata. <HI>Bold.</HI></NOTE> He is both the Author and the publi&s;her of them. (<HI>Exod.</HI> 20.1.) <HI>And God &s;pake all the&s;e words and &s;ayd. David</HI> (P&s;al. 66.13, 14.) puts that imphatically upon his holy vowes, to &s;hew how he was engaged to performe them; <HI>I will goe into thy hou&s;e with burnt offerings, and I will pay thee my vowes that my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath &s;poken when I was in trouble:</HI> As if he had &s;aid, my vowes are not onely &s;uch as I have conceaved in my heart, and re&s;olved in my owne thoughts, but I have &s;poken them out and declared them openly, therefore it lyes upon me not onely in con&s;cience, but in honour to pay and performe them. If we mu&s;t doe what our lips have uttered, much more wu&s;t we doe what God hath uttered with his lips. <HI>Lip-labour will not an&s;wer tho&s;e commandements which are the labour of Gods lips.</HI> Therefore &s;aith <HI>Job, I have not turned back from the commandement of his lips.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve;
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> A godly mans way is forward, he doth not turne backe.</Q></P>
<P>He doth not decline, either to the right hand or to the left,
<PB N="404" REF="216"> much le&s;&s;e doth he goe backe; he doth not onely &s;tay where he was, but he is better then he was, his cour&s;e is onward and for|ward. (<HI>Job</HI> 17.9.) <HI>The righteous &s;hall hold on his way.</HI> It is bad enough not to goe forward, but to goe backward is farre wor&s;e. <HI>If any draw backe</HI> (&s;aith God, <HI>Heb.</HI> 10.38.) <HI>my &s;oule &s;hall have no plea&s;ure in them.</HI> And what plea&s;ure can their &s;oules take, in whom the &s;oule of God takes no plea&s;ure? To draw backe is per|dition: as they who draw backe are the mo&s;t forward to de&s;troy others (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 5.2.) <HI>The revoulters are profound to make &s;laugh|ter</HI>) &s;o they &s;hall be &s;ure to be de&s;troyed them&s;elves. The people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> in their travels through the wildernes to <HI>Canaan,</HI> did of|ten di&s;cover this &s;pirit of Apo&s;tacy (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 78.41.) <HI>They turned backe and tempted God;</HI> We finde them at a con&s;ultation about it (<HI>Numb.</HI> 14.4.) <HI>They &s;aid one to another, let us make us a Cap|taine, and let us returne into Egypt.</HI> Our Lord Je&s;us had &s;uch a &s;ort of men, who followed him in per&s;on (<HI>Joh.</HI> 6.66.) <HI>From that time many of his Di&s;ciples went backe from him, and walked no more with him.</HI> They were Di&s;ciples who went backe, and there were many of them, &s;o many that Chri&s;t (in the next ver&s;e) <HI>&s;ayd to the twelve, Will ye al&s;o goe away? Then Peter an&s;wered, Lord, whether &s;hall we goe? thou ha&s;t the words of eternall life:</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, we cannot mend our &s;elves whether &s;oever we goe; why then &s;hould we goe from thee? <HI>As a Godly man goeth on, &s;o he &s;eeth rea&s;on why he &s;hould.</HI> 'Tis as irrationall as &s;infull, to goe backe from him who hath the words of eternall life, or from the commandement of his lips, who hath given the promi&s;e of life. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> had a reaching &s;pirit, and he was alwayes reaching forward (<HI>Phil.</HI> 3.12, 13.) <HI>Not as though I had already attained, or were already perfect, but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that, for which al&s;o I am apprehended of Chri&s;t Je&s;us;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I would to the ut|mo&s;t an&s;wer the de&s;igne which Chri&s;t had upon me, when he fir&s;t tooke hold of me effectually by his grace. <HI>Paul</HI> was &s;o farre from going backe, that he forgot what was backward. Some remember what is pa&s;t, or what they have done &s;o much, that they forget what is to be done <HI>But</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Paul) this one thing I doe, forget|ting tho&s;e things which are behinde, and reaching forth unto tho&s;e things which are before, I pre&s;&s;e towards the marke; for the price of the high calling of God in Chri&s;t Je&s;us.</HI> The marke and the price are alwayes before us, there is no coming at the marke, nor win|ning
<PB N="405" REF="216"> of the price by turning backe. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 4.18.) <HI>The path of the ju&s;t is like the &s;hining (or morning) light, which &s;hineth more and more unto the perfect day.</HI> The path of the unju&s;t (if it have any light in it) is but like the evening light, which &s;hines le&s;&s;e and le&s;&s;e, which declines and goeth downward, till the perfect night, and till him&s;elfe be wrapt up in everla&s;ting darkne&s;&s;e. The Sun in the firmament went backe by miracle for a &s;igne to <HI>Hezekiah</HI> that he &s;hould recover the health of his body. But if we &s;ee any goe back who have heretofore &s;hined like the Sunne in a Go&s;pel pofe&s;&s;ion, we have ju&s;t cau&s;e to looke upon it as a &s;ad &s;ymtome, that their &s;oules are in a dangerous, if not in an irrecoverable condition. <HI>I have not gone backe</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>Job) from the commandement of his lips.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, from all the&s;e expre&s;&s;ions, in that <HI>Job</HI> &s;peaking of the &s;ame thing, calls it, <HI>the way of God, the commandement of his lips,</HI> and (in the latter part of this ver&s;e) <HI>the word of his mouth,</HI> to which he had cleaved and wholy devoted him&s;elfe for the guiding of his whole man in the duty which he owed and had been carefull to pay both to God and man.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The word of God is the onely rule of life.</Q>
<P>And in this poynt the word or commandement of God is to be taken in a double oppo&s;ition; fir&s;t, to our owne devi&s;es and rules; &s;econdly, to the devi&s;es and rules of other men; man mu&s;t not pre|&s;cribe to him&s;elfe, nor may we receive the pre&s;criptions of men, to order our practi&s;e by. God is the onely Law-giver, and we mu&s;t receive the Law from his mouth. He that will plea&s;e God, mu&s;t &s;hutt all his own imaginations out of doores, and have no|thing to doe with them; 'Tis not what man hath a minde to doe, but what the minde of God is he &s;hould doe, that plea&s;eth him, or is eyther a wor&s;hip or a &s;ervice acceptable to him. We never di&s;honour God more then when we take upon us to &s;erve him our owne way, and leaving his rule make a rule for our &s;elves. Such a &s;erving of God is rebellion again&s;t him; as was told <HI>Saul</HI> by the Prophet (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 15.22.) <HI>Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings, and &s;acrifices, as in obeying the voyce of the Lord. Saul</HI> thought he had done very well when he &s;aved the &s;heep and oxen for &s;acrifice; But he was told, <HI>that to obey is better then &s;acrifice, and to hearken then the fat of Rams.</HI> God had commanded burnt
<PB N="406" REF="217"> offerings, and &s;acrifice, but he had no delight in them when his owne voyce was not obeyed, or when they were offered, eyther be&s;ide or again&s;t his command. (<HI>Luk.</HI> 16.15.) <HI>That which is highly e&s;teemed among men, is an abomination to the Lord:</HI> His thoughts are not our thoughts, eyther in the doing of what is good, or in the pardoning of what is &s;infull. As man is apt to thinke, that God will not pardon what he hath done &s;infully, &s;o that he will accept of what he thinkes he hath done holyly, though he hath no rule for the doing of it, but what him&s;elfe hath devi&s;ed. We alwayes fayle in our mea&s;ure, while we mea&s;ure God by our &s;elves. And it is as dangerous to take the rule of our acti|ons from men, as not to take the rule of God. In this &s;ence we mu&s;t call no man Ma&s;ter, nor may we be the &s;ervants of the wi&s;e&s;t men. And as we mu&s;t not be <HI>the &s;ervants of men,</HI> becau&s;e (which is the Apo&s;tles rea&s;on, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 7.23.) <HI>We are bought with a price;</HI> that is, dearely redeemed by Chri&s;t; &s;o neyther may we be the <HI>&s;ervants of men,</HI> in following their dictates, becau&s;e we have recei|ved a word from God, whom alone we ought to follow, and none el&s;e, but in &s;ubordination to or complyance with his word and the commandement of his lips, or as it followes in the conclu|&s;ion of this ver&s;e, <HI>the words of his mouth.</HI></P>
<Q>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> having given us two negatives, <HI>I have not declined, I have not turned backe,</HI> as proofes of his integrity and holines, now gives us an affirmative to make up the fullnes of his proofe. <HI>Not to doe evill is commendable, but to doe good is a higher commendation. I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE> The Hebrew word &s;igni|fies two things; fir&s;t, to hide or conceale; &s;econdly, to pri&s;e, va|lue, or e&s;teeme. Some render this Text by the former, not as we, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">In &s;inu meo ab|&s;condi verba o|ris ejus. <HI>Vul<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI> Graecos &s;ecetus <GAP DESC="foreign"> legit non <GAP DESC="foreign"> at ventit ac &s;i &s;criptum e&s;&s;et, <GAP DESC="foreign"> in &s;inu meo ab|&s;condi. <HI>Merc.</HI></NOTE> but <HI>I have hid or layd up the words of his mouth,</HI> that's a good reading, and &s;o M<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates; <HI>More then my daily bread have I layd up the words of his mouth.</HI> The Vulgar gives another reading, <HI>In my bo&s;ome have I hid the words of his mouth:</HI> in this, following the Septuagint, who by the change of a letter in the Originall, tran&s;late the word which we render, <HI>More then my nece&s;&s;ary or &s;tatute food in my bo|&s;ome;</HI> But I pa&s;&s;e that as a mi&s;take of the text in that word, yet
<PB N="407" REF="217"> in the former part it con&s;ents with M^r <HI>Broughton; I have hid, or layd up the words of his mouth more then my daily bread.</HI> And as this tran&s;lation holds out a truth in it &s;elfe, &s;o the &s;en&s;e meets with ours; for as the Originall word doth as properly &s;ignifie to hide, or lay up, as to e&s;teeme, &s;o tho&s;e things are layd up or hidden by us, which are of mo&s;t e&s;teeme. And this action of hiding or laying up the word, is often &s;poken of in Scripture, both as the practi&s;e, and as the duty of the Saints. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.11.) <HI>I have hid thy commandements in my heart.</HI> And the rule is given by wi&s;edome (<HI>Prov.</HI> 2.1.) <HI>My &s;onne, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandements with thee.</HI> Wi&s;dome coun&s;elleth us not onely to receive, but to hide the commandements. And (<HI>Pro.</HI> 4.20, 21.) Wi&s;dome goeth yet further; <HI>My &s;onne, attend to my words, in|cline thine eare to my &s;ayings, let them not depart from thine eyes, keepe them in the midst of thy heart.</HI> The heart (as Naturali&s;ts &s;ay) is in the mid&s;t or center of the body. Holy truths mu&s;t be kept in the mid&s;t of the heart, in the mid&s;t of the middle, that is, in the &s;afe&s;t place, in that mo&s;t retyred chamber, the mid&s;t of the heart. But why &s;hould the&s;e words be hidden in the heart, which are and ought to be proclaimed in the eare and upon the hou&s;e-top? I an&s;wer; wee hide things, fir&s;t, that we may know where to have them; what is throwne at our heeles, wee know not where to have. Secondly, We hide things for &s;afety, or from danger as well as to have them ready at hand for u&s;e. There are enemies who watch their opportunity to &s;teale the word away from us, and therefore, it is our wi&s;dome as well as our duty to hide it or lay it up &s;afe. So that in both notio~s we ought to hide the word of God; fir&s;t, that wee may have it at hand for u&s;e: as it is &s;ayd of the Good hou&s;e-holder in the Go&s;pel, that he layeth up, and hath in his trea&s;ure, things both new and old. Secondly, that it may be kept out of the hand of the theife, who would rob us of that precious trea&s;ure. Satan and the world, are <HI>Word-&s;tealers,</HI> and they &s;teale away the Word, not becau&s;e they de&s;ire to make any u&s;e of it, but le&s;t we &s;hould; therefore as <HI>Gideon</HI> (Judg. 6.11.) <HI>thre&s;hed wheat by the wine-pre&s;&s;e to hide it from the Midianites,</HI> &s;o, &s;eing there are my&s;ticall <HI>Midianites,</HI> who dayly &s;teale away the Word (that mo&s;t nece&s;&s;ary and precious wheat) from thou&s;ands who have heard and received it, we &s;hould (in a holy jelou&s;ie and &s;u&s;pition of them) hide it out of their reach. In conver&s;ion God
<PB N="408" REF="218"> puts the Law in our minde, and writes it in our heart; And through that grace received and dayly renewed, we al&s;o are ena|bled to lay it up there.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pectus meum feci Bibliothe cam dei. <HI>Hie|ron: de Ne|potiano.</HI></NOTE> A Good man (as one of the ancients &s;peaketh) <HI>makes his heart Gods library, there he layeth up whole vo|lumes of holy precepts, and of precious promi&s;es.</HI> And looke what precepts or promi&s;es he finds in the Bible, or written booke of the Word of God, the &s;ame he finds tran&s;cribed into his owne heart, and &s;o into his life. But I will not in&s;i&s;t upon that reading, <HI>I have laid up the words of his mouth, more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI></P>
<P>We render, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth,</HI> &amp;c. The&s;e two rendrings of the word give light to each other. That which we e&s;teeme we hide, and the more we e&s;teeme a thing, the more carefully we hide it. No man will lay up that which is worth no|thing; what we hide is of value, at lea&s;t we judge it to be &s;o. Childrens pockets are often full of Bables, but to them they are no Bables; they e&s;teeme them as men doe gold and &s;ilver, el&s;e they would not take them up, much le&s;&s;e lay them up.</P>
<Q>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth.</Q>
<P>Before it was <HI>the commandement of his lips;</HI> &s;ome make a di&s;tin|ction between the&s;e, expounding <HI>the commandement of his lips,</HI> for the preceptive part of the word, and <HI>the word of his mouth,</HI> for the promi&s;&s;ive part of the word, or for the promi&s;es, which are gracious declarations and manife&s;tations of the love and good will of God to &s;infull man.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dicta oris di|&s;tinguo a prae|ceptis. dictum oris e&s;t verbum gratio&s;ae nuncia|tionis et promi&s;|&s;ionis, <HI>q. d.</HI> gra|tiam annuncia|tam libent&egrave;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> ac|cepi animi fide. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> As if <HI>Job</HI> in the former words had a re&s;pect chiefely to the Law, or rule of doing, and in this latter to the Go|&s;pel or ground of beleeving. But though I &s;ee not well how the&s;e &s;eemes can beare that di&s;tinction, yet the matter doth, yea and &s;eemes to require it; for though a godly man e&s;teemes the precepts of God as well as the promi&s;es, and the commandements are the words of Gods mouth as well as the promi&s;es, yet the promi&s;es are the mo&s;t feeding, fatning, and refre&s;hing part of the word, and if &s;o, &s;urely they were not left out, yea po&s;&s;ibly were principally inte~ded by <HI>Job</HI> in this place, that he might &s;hew how his Spirit was carried out to the full latitude and compa&s;&s;e of the minde of God, both in the Law and in the Go&s;pel. And becau&s;e the promi&s;es have &s;o much &s;oule-food in them, he doth therefore elegantly preferre them before his nece&s;&s;ary food.</P>
<Q>I have e&s;teemed the word of his mouth.</Q>
<PB N="409" REF="218">
<P>But how much, or at what rate did he e&s;teeme them? it fol|lows in the next words.</P>
<Q>More then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</Q>
<P>There is yet &s;ome variety ob&s;ervable in the reading of the&s;e lat|ter words. Some give it thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg">A &s;tatuto meo ab&s;condi eloquia oris ejus. <HI>Mont:</HI> Ex &s;tatuto meo vel more meo, ut ab <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">nevute ae|tate a&s;&s;uevi prae|termittere, quae deus odio habet. <HI>i. e.</HI> plena ele|ctione &amp; deli|beratione fixa a|pud &s;e, non ex|tern&egrave; tantum et levit&egrave;r divinam legem cu&s;todire apud &s;e decre|verit. <HI>Cajet:</HI> Aliqui ad acti|ones hominis con&s;uetas quas de more facit referunt; ut an|tiquius habuerit legem domini a|nimo recondere &amp; ei operam dare quam &s;oli|ta &amp; con&s;titua &s;ibi ac u&s;itata facere. <HI>Merc:</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> proprie &s;tatutum et de|cretum &s;onat, &amp; hinc certam &amp; decretam ci|bi rationem. Quicquid advi|ctum &amp; vitam fovendam ac tu|endam e&s;t nece&s;|&s;arium <GAP DESC="foreign"> appellatur. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>I have e&s;teemed or hid the word of his mouth, according to my former manner, or as I was wont to doe:</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; what I now profe&s;&s;e is no new thing with me, I have not taken up this e&s;timation of the word now on the &s;ud|daine, upon my &s;ick-bed, I have done &s;o long before now, and &s;o I doe &s;till. As it was &s;aid of <HI>Timothy, that from a childe he had learned the Scripture.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, Taking the &s;ame reading, the &s;ence may be given thus; <HI>&V;pon election and deliberation, I e&s;teeme the word of his mouth;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, <HI>I doe not e&s;teeme the word of God for nothing, or as not having con&s;idered it, and judged of the excellency of it, but upon long debate, con&s;ultation, and tryall, I have pitcht my election upon it.</HI></P>
<P>Further, Some in the&s;e words conceave <HI>Job</HI> alluding to tho&s;e things which men doe out of long cu&s;tome, or according to their ancient cour&s;e of life. As if he had &s;ayd; There is nothing more fixed and &s;etled, eyther in my heart, or in my practi&s;e, then the Law of God; Obedience to it is now become to me as ano|ther nature. I &s;light in compari&s;on of that, all humane Lawes and Con&s;titutions; as al&s;o all my owne mo&s;t practi&s;ed formes and cu|&s;tomes.</P>
<P>We render, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI> The Original word &s;ignifies <HI>a &s;tatute,</HI> or <HI>a law,</HI> and &s;o any thing which is e&s;tabli&s;hed or appointed for our u&s;e, as a law, or &s;tatute is. And becau&s;e our food, our nece&s;&s;ary food, is that which is cut out or appoynted to us, eyther by God or man, therefore this word is applyed to &s;ignifie dayly bread, or nece&s;&s;a|ry food. Banquets, and great fea&s;ts, are without all mea&s;ure, and bounds, they know no law, but are u&s;ually full of exce&s;&s;e, both as to what is prepared, and to what is con&s;umed, 'tis &s;eldome that ei|ther providers or eaters keepe the rule in fea&s;ting. But a due nece&s;|&s;ary food, which is for the maintaining of our lives, and the re|newing of our &s;trength, to goe on in our callings, this food hath a bound, and we eate (as it were) by mea&s;ure, or by &s;tatute; therefore we tran&s;late <HI>nece&s;&s;ary food,</HI> others <HI>appoynted food, or a
<PB N="410" REF="219"> portion.</HI> So the word is u&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 47.22.) <HI>Onely the Land of the Prie&s;ts bought he not, for the Prie&s;ts had a portion a&s;&s;igned them of Pharoah, and they eate the portion which he gave them;</HI> their a&s;&s;ig|ned portion is expre&s;&s;ed by this word; a portion it was to live up|on; &s;uch as Schollers have in Colledges, and Almes-men in Ho&s;|pitalls by the Statute of their Founders. And in the booke of the <HI>Proverbs,</HI> we have it twice u&s;ed in &s;uch a &s;en&s;e (<HI>Pro.</HI> 30.8.) <HI>Re|move from me vanity, and lyes, give me neither poverty nor riches, feed me with food convenient for me,</HI> or <HI>with my &s;tatute bread;</HI> that is, give me &s;o much onely as the law of nature, or the law of my nece&s;&s;ity and conveniency calls for, to fit me for duty; with this &s;tatute bread let me be fed, let others have their full tables, this &s;hall &s;erve my turne. Againe (<HI>Pro.</HI> 31.15.) <HI>Shee ari&s;eth al&s;o while it is yet night</HI> (&s;peaking of the good hou&s;e-wife) <HI>and &s;he gi|veth meate to her hou&s;e-hold, and a portion to her maidens;</HI> &s;he doth not throw the hou&s;e out at windows, or make havock of all, as not caring which end went forward. And as &s;he is no prodigal wa&s;ter, &s;o &s;he is neyther niggardly nor &s;craping, neither pineing nor pinching, but giveth a meete portion to her maidens. So here, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the word of thy mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI> This &s;mall proportion of food greatens the &s;en&s;e of the Text, and heightens <HI>Jobs</HI> holine&s;&s;e and piety very much; for when we come to full tables, where there is exce&s;&s;e, our &s;tomacks loath the meate, and the more meate there is, the le&s;&s;e &s;ome are able to eate, becau&s;e the &s;tomacke is over-charged with the &s;ight of it. Appetie may be dull'd with abundance; but when we finde onely a convenient, nece&s;&s;ary &s;tatute portion, as it were, &s;o much as is needfull to &s;a|tisfie hunger, and give &s;ome moderate delight, this plea&s;eth mo&s;t, and is more e&s;teemed by temperate per&s;ons then the greate&s;t fea&s;t in the world. A man doth not nautiate his nece&s;&s;ary food, or loath what hunger craves; a cru&s;t of bread, and that which is cour&s;e is plea&s;ant then; nece&s;&s;ary food is the &s;weete&s;t food, and we are be&s;t &s;atisfied with that which breeds no &s;atiety. <HI>We live mo&s;t comfortably with that food, without which we cannot live at all com|fortably.</HI> So then, when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith here, <HI>I e&s;teemed the word of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food,</HI> it is as if he had plainely &s;ayd, I tooke more care for, and had a higher e&s;teeme of the food of my &s;oule, then for that food of my body, which nece&s;&s;ity forceth eve|ry man to e&s;teeme.</P>
<PB N="411" REF="219">
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That, a godly man hath a high e&s;timation of the word of God.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He doth not onely e&s;teeme it, but he e&s;teems it as food.</P>
<P>Secondly, He e&s;teemes it as nece&s;&s;ary food.</P>
<P>Thirdly, He e&s;teemes it more then nece&s;&s;ary food.</P>
<P>Here are three &s;teps, by which his e&s;timation of the word of God is to be taken. <HI>David</HI> &s;aith of a godly man (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.2.) <HI>His delight is in the law of the Lord.</HI> The word there u&s;ed &s;ignifies both <HI>will, and delight.</HI> Some render it <HI>(voluntas) will,</HI> and others <HI>(voluptas) delight.</HI> We may take in both, his will, and his delight is in the law of the Lord, or he delightfully wills it. Would you know where the delight and joy of a Godly man is; it is in the law of the Lord, there 'tis fixed, and no where el&s;e comparatively, but in the Lord of the Law. The&s;e two are in&s;eparable, he that de|lights in the Law hath fir&s;t delighted in the Lord, and he that de|lights in the Lord, cannot but delight in the Law. There are two metaphors u&s;ed in Scriptute, which &s;hew the e&s;timation and de|light which Saints have in the law of God, or in the word of his mouth.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As the word is compared <HI>to food;</HI> &s;econdly, as the word is compared <HI>to trea&s;ure:</HI> the word is often compared to food, and the mo&s;t delicious food (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.103.) <HI>How &s;weete are thy words unto my ta&s;te, yea &s;weeter then honey to my mouth.</HI> And (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 19.10.) <HI>They are &s;weeter then the honey and the honey-combe:</HI> He doth not meane the honey-combe barely, as the ve&s;&s;ell wherein the honey is kept, but by the honey-combe he means the honey that flows or drops immediately and (as I may &s;ay) natu|rally without any art, or pre&s;&s;ing out of the combe, which is e|&s;teemed the pure&s;t honey; &s;uch is the law of God to the &s;pirituall palate of a Godly man. That fea&s;t (<HI>Math.</HI> 22.2. <HI>Luke</HI> 14.16.) to which &s;inners are invited, is onely the declaration of the word, and minde of God in the Go&s;pel. The word of Grace is the grea|te&s;t fea&s;t which God makes his people. Againe, the word is as of|ten compared to trea&s;ure: what the e&s;teeme, and de&s;ire of man is to trea&s;ure, I need not &s;tay to tell you. <HI>The Judgements of God</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 19.10.) <HI>are more to be de&s;ired then Gold, yea then much fine gold.</HI> And againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.72.127.) <HI>The law of thy mouth is better to me then thou&s;ands of Gold and &s;ilver.</HI>
<PB N="412" REF="220"> And (<HI>ver.</HI> 127.) when he &s;aw how &s;ome made voyd the Law of God, he &s;ayth, <HI>Therefore I love thy commandements above Gold, yea above fine Gold.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, becau&s;e I &s;ee &s;ome men e&s;teeme and reckon thy law as if it were dro&s;&s;e, and throw it up as voyd and antiquated, or taking the boldnes, as it were, to repeale and make it voyd, that they may &s;et up their own lu&s;ts and vaine imaginations, becau&s;e I &s;ee both prophane and &s;uper&s;titious men, thus out of love with thy Law, therefore my love is more enflamed to it, <HI>I love it above gold,</HI> which leads the mo&s;t of men away cap|tives in the love of it; and I e&s;teeme it more then that which is mo&s;t e&s;teemed by men, and gaines men mo&s;t e&s;teeme in this world, <HI>Fine Gold;</HI> yea as he &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 19.) <HI>more then much fine Gold.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>A high and reverentiall e&s;teeme of the word of God, workes the heart and keepes it clo&s;e to the obedience of the word.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> having &s;aid before, <HI>I have kept the commandements of his mouth, I have kept his wayes, and not declined, I have not gone back,</HI> now comes to the &s;pring of all this con&s;tancy in obedience, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth,</HI> &amp;c. Love is the &s;pring of action, and e&s;teeme is the top of love; we love nothing which we doe not e&s;teeme, and what we love much we thinke we can never e&s;teeme enough; And what we thus love and e&s;teeme, we &s;trive to keepe clo&s;e unto. They that receive the truth, and doe not receive the love of it, quickly turne from it to beleive a lye, yea God there|fore &s;ends them <HI>&s;trong delu&s;ion to beleive a lye, becau&s;e they received not the love of the truth.</HI> As not to love, the truth is a &s;in, &s;o it is puni&s;hed with another &s;in, the love of error. Though we have ta|ken much truth into our under&s;tandings, yet unle&s;&s;e we take it into our affections al&s;o, we cannot hold it long. 'Tis love which holds the heart and the word together. No man willingly obeyes that Law which he doth not love. Before <HI>David</HI> could &s;ay, <HI>The Law is my meditation all the day,</HI> he &s;ayth, <HI>O how I love thy law</HI> (P&s;. 119.97.) The hypocrite, <HI>who hates in&s;truction, and ca&s;ts the word of God behinde his backe;</HI> that is, &s;lights and vilifies it to the utmo&s;t (for &s;o much to ca&s;t behinde the backe imports, the hypocrite, I &s;ay, who thus ca&s;ts the word of God behinde his backe) will be talking of the word, and have it much in his mouth, yea he will mouth it &s;o, or be &s;o talkative about it, that God reproves or
<PB N="413" REF="220"> checks him for it (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.16.) <HI>&V;nto the wicked &s;aith God, What ha&s;t thou to doe to declare my &s;tatutes, or that thou &s;houlde&s;t take my Covenant in thy mouth.</HI> So then, the hypocrite was very bu&s;ie with his tongue, and he could &s;peake much of that which he loved ne|ver a whit. But was the hypocrite a man of his hands al&s;o? was he bu&s;ie in obeying the word which he had ca&s;t behinde his back? The next words of the P&s;alme (<HI>ver.</HI> 18, 19, 20, 21.) tell us what he was bu&s;ie about, even this, he was breaking the Law as fa&s;t as he could; <HI>When thou &s;awe&s;t a theife, then thou con&s;ente&s;t with him, and ha&s;t been partaker with Adulterers,</HI> &amp;c. The inditement is large, and upon many heads, yet all true, and is therefore clo&s;ed with, <HI>The&s;e things ha&s;t thou done</HI> (ver. 21.) I the Lord am wit|nes, and &s;o is thy owne Con&s;cience. That Scripture is a cleare gla&s;&s;e, wherein we may &s;ee how all they will u&s;e the Law of God, who doe not highly e&s;teeme the words of his mouth. We may read <HI>Jobs</HI> text backward for their character; <HI>Their feete have not held his &s;teps, his way have they not kept, but declined, they have gone back from the commandement of his lips.</HI> And why &s;o? <HI>for they have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth no more then their un-nece&s;&s;ary food, no more then the &s;craps that fall from their Table, no more then</HI> (as the Proverb &s;aith) <HI>their old &s;hoes. I have e&s;teemed the word of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI></P>
<P>When <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the word of his mouth,</HI> &amp;c. It is, as if he had &s;ayd, this is enough for me that God hath &s;ayd it, to make me e&s;teeme it.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Thirdly,</HI> What&s;oever God &s;aith, is to be e&s;teemed for his owne &s;ake, or becau&s;e he hath &s;ayd it.</Q>
<P>As God needs not borrow light from any what to &s;peake, &s;o he needs not borrow te&s;timony or Authority from any to ratifie what he hath &s;poken. <HI>He is to be beleeved for him&s;elfe.</HI> His words need no &s;anction, but <HI>(ip&s;e dixit) I the Lord have &s;ayd it, or thus &s;aith the Lord;</HI> that is enough to &s;ilence all queryes and di&s;putes both about the truth of what is delivered, and the nece&s;&s;ity of our obedience to it. As the word of Gods mouth is to be obeyed, &s;o it is therefore to be obeyed, becau&s;e it is the word of his mouth. That he hath &s;ayd it mu&s;t command our faith; As he is the true God, &s;o he is the God of truth. Every word of his mouth is pre|tious.
<PB N="414" REF="221"> As what God hath &s;poken mu&s;t be the rule of our faith, &s;o that he hath &s;poken it mu&s;t be the rea&s;on of our faith. <HI>I have e&s;tee|med the words of his mouth,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, From both the&s;e ver&s;es, we may take notice of the &s;everall &s;teps, by which <HI>Jobs</HI> piety did ari&s;e to &s;o eminent a hight.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He &s;trongly tooke hold of the &s;teps of God.</P>
<P>Secondly, He diligently kept his way.</P>
<P>Thirdly, He declined not, eyther to the right hand, or to the left.</P>
<P>Fourthly, He went not backe from the Holy commandement, both which negatives may be re&s;olved into this affirmative, He walked very clo&s;ely and exactly with God, in utmo&s;t per&s;eve|rance.</P>
<P>Fifthly, He tooke a delightfull care about all tho&s;e things, which the word of God called him unto, even beyond all the care which he tooke for tho&s;e things which are mo&s;t conduci|ble to and nece&s;&s;ary for the comforts of his body or natural life.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="415" REF="221">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 13.</HI></BIBL>
<P>But he is in one minde, and who can turne hinc? and what his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN this ver&s;e, <HI>Job</HI> is conceived by &s;ome, at once making di&s;cove|ry of his owne infirmitie, and of the &s;overaignty of God; But though all agree that they carry a full di&s;covery of the &s;ove|raignty of God, yet many are &s;o farre from judging them a di&s;|covery of <HI>Jobs</HI> infirmitie, that they rather di&s;cover the &s;trength and hight of his Grace and holines. To cleare the whole matter, we may take notice, That there are three apprehen&s;ions about the &s;cope and &s;ence of the&s;e words.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As if in them <HI>Job</HI> renderd a rea&s;on of what he &s;pake in the ver&s;e immediatly foregoing, here giving an account, why he had kept &s;o clo&s;e to God, and to his wayes; <HI>My foot hath held his &s;teps, his way have I kept, and not declined, neither have I gone backe from the commandements of his lips,</HI> &amp;c. And why all this? <HI>for he is of one minde.</HI> That is, God will have his way, there's no re&s;i&s;t|ing, his commandements mu&s;t be ob&s;erved; that which he once made a law, and rule for me to walke by, continueth &s;o &s;till: <HI>He is of one minde.</HI> Therefore I mu&s;t keepe clo&s;e to his minde. It were a vaine thing, for me to turne any other way, when God holds the &s;ame way. It were folly for me to change my practice, when I finde no change at all in his precepts; they being &s;till one and the &s;ame in them&s;elves, and having the &s;ame obligation upon me.</P>
<P>Secondly, The&s;e words may give an account, or a rea&s;on of his afflictions; As if he had thus expre&s;&s;ed him&s;elfe; <HI>Though my con|&s;cience beareth me witne&s;&s;e, that I have not gone onne in any &s;uch &s;infull way, as ye tax me with, nor defiled my &s;elfe with &s;uch gro&s;&s;e iniquities, as u&s;ually draw downe the vi&s;ible Judgements of God up|on men; Yet I finde God going on &s;till to afflict me, he keeps his rod upon my backe, and his burden upon my &s;houlders, his terrors &s;till in|camp about me, and his arrowes drinke up my &s;pirit. Nor will he be moved by any entreaty of mine to withdraw his hand from me; What ever plea&s;eth him, he will doe, how unplea&s;ant &s;oever it is to me.</HI> And what's the rea&s;on of all this? <HI>He is in one minde:</HI> God is
<PB N="416" REF="222"> unalterable: therefore doe not thinke, that becau&s;e he continueth the&s;e afflictions and burdens upon mee, that therefore all mu&s;t be re&s;olved into my &s;inne. No, we may re&s;olve all this into the &s;ove|raigntie, and unchangeablenes of God, he is in one minde, and he will doe what his minde is, and none &s;hall turne him.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Egregie tuetur divinam provi|dentiam nam cum amici illa tantum ratione pro divina pro|videntia pug|nent, quod &s;cele|ra puniat, at Job illam agno|&s;cit cum aerum|nas ille immit|tit propter prae|claros fines no|bis occultos &s;oli deo notos. <HI>Pined:</HI> Juri &amp; liber|tati dei a&s;&s;ignat afflictiones, quas amici pec|catis. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE>Thirdly, (which &s;utes the former) That <HI>Job</HI> here &s;hewes his friends, the true way of reconciling his owne innocency, with the &s;harp afflictions and troubles which were upon him, <HI>Job</HI> felt and &s;aw (and others eyther did or might) that he was &s;orely afflicted, And <HI>Job</HI> knew (though others did not) that he was innocent, as to the charge brought again&s;t him. Then how &s;hall he reconcile the ju&s;tice of divine providence, with his owne innocence? His friends knew not how to reconcile, the innocency of an afflicted man, and the Ju&s;tice of an afflicting God. This was a riddle which they could not unfold. And therefore when they &s;aw God thus afflicting him, they concluded as &s;trongly as if they had &s;eene it, that <HI>Job</HI> had greatly offended God. But <HI>Job</HI> knew how to unlocke this &s;ecret, and expound this riddle; Hee knew how to maintaine and a&s;&s;ert his owne integritie while he &s;uffered, and yet acquit the Ju&s;tice of God in laying tho&s;e &s;ufferings upon him. He could &s;ay, <HI>God is &s;upreame; He is in one minde;</HI> And what he doth, he may doe becau&s;e he hath a minde to doe it. He hath deep purpo&s;es and de&s;ignes, which I am not able to reach or fathome: Therefore though I complaine, I doe not complaine as if God had done me wrong, but becau&s;e I &s;mart, becau&s;e I feel &s;uch paines, and &s;o hea|vie a pre&s;&s;ure upon me. I am far from &s;aying that he hath injured me, though he hath thus afflicted me; nor can any thing which he hath done or &s;hall further doe, be an injury to me, for I confe&s;&s;e that he hath a right to doe what&s;oever he plea&s;eth to doe. Thus we have an excellent defence made by <HI>Job</HI> in the&s;e words, to vindi|cate the Lords &s;harp dealings with him from the lea&s;t &s;u&s;pition of inju&s;tice, and to accord the a&s;&s;ertion of his owne afflicted inno|cence, with a beleeving reverence of the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God; and &s;o the&s;e words of his are the breathings of a very gracious &s;pi|rit: teaching us far better then his friends had done, how to an&s;wer for God in his &s;adde&s;t di&s;pen&s;ations towards man. They knew no other way to doe it, but by rendering <HI>Job</HI> a notorious hypocrite, an haynous offender, and the&s;e his &s;ufferings to be the puni&s;h|ments of his hypocri&s;ie and offences. But <HI>Job</HI> re&s;olves all into the
<PB N="417" REF="222"> unchangeablenes of Gods will, and the &s;overaignty of his power. Thus much for the generall &s;cope of the&s;e words.</P>
<DIV3 N="13" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 13.</HI></BIBL> But he is of one minde.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The&s;e words undergoe variety of readings, I will name foure.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some tran&s;late thus; <HI>For he is alone.</HI> That is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ip&s;e enim &s;olus e&s;t. <HI>Vulg.</HI></NOTE> he is the onely Judge, there is none above him, to whom I might appeale from him, nor hath he any equall to ballance him. There's none to be found upon the earth, no nor in heaven, that can alter and controule his decrees, or &s;upercede and checke any of his proceed|ings; <HI>He is alone.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ip&s;e unus e&s;t. <HI>Pagn:</HI> Aliqui <GAP DESC="foreign"> re|dundare pu|tant. <HI>Merc:</HI> Cum nemo ab|&s;olut&egrave; &s;it ni&s;i de|us &amp; nemo &s;it ab&s;olute bonus ni&s;i deus; ita nemo unus e&s;t ni&s;i deus. Deus e&s;t uni&s;|&s;imus. Sed &s;i ip&s;e con|tra unum agit, quis revocet eum. <HI>Jun:</HI> Et ip&s;e in uno. <HI>Mont:</HI> In uno, &s;upple, fixus, ip&s;e per|petu&ograve; &s;ui &s;imilis e&s;t. <HI>i. e.</HI> non mu|tatur ut homo. <GAP DESC="foreign"> Et quis averiet eum. <HI>Mont:</HI> Et quis redire faciet eum re|tror&s;um. <HI>Pagn. i. e:</HI> ab in&s;tituto vel a &s;emel &s;ta|tuta &s;ententia.</NOTE></P>
<P>Secondly, Others conceave there is a redundancy in the affix <HI>(beth,)</HI> in. And &s;o in &s;tead of <HI>He is in one,</HI> the words are thus gi|ven, <HI>He is one;</HI> As if <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning were this, There is none <HI>One but He,</HI> or none <HI>One as He.</HI> As Chri&s;t &s;aith, <HI>There is none good but God,</HI> or <HI>there is but one good,</HI> that is, <HI>ab&s;olutely good;</HI> &s;o there is none one but God, that is, <HI>ab&s;olutely One,</HI> God is &s;uherlatively one, <HI>the one-mo&s;t-one.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Thus; <HI>But if he act again&s;t one, who can turne him?</HI> And &s;o M. <HI>Broughton; Yet when he is again&s;t me, who can &s;tay him?</HI> This hath a cleare truth in it, and fully hits the &s;cope of the place.</P>
<P>But I conceive a fourth reading, (which leads to ours) to be yet more cleare, and that is, <HI>He is in one, and who can turne him?</HI> In one; what one? we an&s;wer, <HI>in one minde;</HI> noting the &s;tabilitie of the thoughts, and purpo&s;es of God, his minde is one, his pur|po&s;e is one, his decree is one, he is alwayes like him&s;elfe in all the&s;e. He doth not change his minde, as man doth; He is con&s;tant and fixed to his owne purpo&s;es, to the dictates of his owne will and wi&s;dome; <HI>He is one</HI>
<Q>And who can turne him?</Q></P>
<P>Or, <HI>Who can turne him away?</HI> Or, as another renders, <HI>Who can make him returne backwards?</HI> that is, who can make him goe back from what he hath determined and once re&s;olved upon. True re|pentance or conver&s;ion is the change of the minde in man. Every man that is converted from his &s;infull &s;tate &amp; cour&s;e by the power of God, becomes another man (as to his morals and &s;piritualls)
<PB N="418" REF="223"> then he was before, but man cannot turne God, and make him any other then he is. God can cau&s;e man to change his minde; but man cannot make God change his minde, nor turn him backward. The Prophet &s;aith of God (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 44.25.) <HI>That he turneth wi&s;e men backward, and maketh their knowledge fooli&s;h.</HI> The turning of the wi&s;e backward, is the altering of their councells. When they will not alter them, God can. He &s;aith, Their councells &s;hall not &s;tand, nor &s;hall they reach the end to which they were appoynted. And it is &s;o.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Sed quid ego? &s;imilis cum &s;it &s;ibi &s;emper &amp; idem. Quis rationem ab eo facti di|ctiv&egrave; repo&s;cat.</NOTE> But can the wi&s;e&s;t of men, or all wi&s;e men plotting and laying their heads together, turne the mo&s;t wi&s;e God back|ward? They cannot. So that the&s;e words hold forth the effica|cie, and &s;tabilitie of the purpo&s;es, coun&s;ells, and decrees of God. <HI>Who can turne him?</HI></P>
<Q>And what his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth.</Q>
<P>God is not like man, con&s;i&s;ting of a &s;oule and body; Man is the re&s;ult of &s;oule and body united together. A &s;oule is not a man, nor is a body a man; man is a third thing ri&s;ing out of both; But <HI>God is a &s;pirit.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Animam ali|cujus &s;umi pro eo cujus e&s;t ani|ma res e&s;t nota, quare anima dei, deus e&s;t. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE> And when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth;</HI> The meaning is, what him&s;elfe de&s;ireth. The &s;oule of a man, is indeed the man, becau&s;e the choyce&s;t part of man; though man hath another part, namely, a body, yet <HI>the &s;oule is he.</HI> The &s;oule of man, being his be&s;t part, is often put for the whole man. But the &s;oule of God is not put here for God, becau&s;e it is the be&s;t part of Him; <HI>His &s;oule is him&s;elfe.</HI></P>
<P>Further, This phra&s;e or manner of &s;peaking, <HI>what his &s;oule de|&s;ireth,</HI> notes onely the inten&s;nes and &s;trength of his de&s;ires, or what he de&s;iereth &s;trongly. The Lord &s;ometimes makes offers to doe that which is not in his heart or de&s;ire to doe: But what ever his &s;oule goes out upon indeed, or would have done, that &s;hall be done. Thus the word is u&s;ed frequently, to &s;et forth the full pur|po&s;e of God to doe a thing (<HI>Levit.</HI> 26.30.) <HI>And I will de&s;troy your high places, and cut downe your images, and ca&s;t your carka&s;es upon the carka&s;es of your idols, and my &s;oule &s;hall abhorre you.</HI> That is, extreamly abhorre you, I will abhorre you with the utmo&s;t ab|horrence. And againe (<HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 1.14.) <HI>Your new moones, and your appointed fea&s;ts, my &s;oule hateth.</HI> That is, I hate them with a per|fect hatred, to &s;hew how deepe his hatred was of tho&s;e things (as done by them) he &s;aith, <HI>my &s;oule hateth them;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd,
<PB N="419" REF="223"> I hate your formality in my wor&s;hip, from the bottome of my heart. We have the &s;ame &s;ence (<HI>Jer.</HI> 6.8.) <HI>Be thou in&s;tructed O Jeru&s;alem, le&s;t my &s;oule depart from thee.</HI> That is, le&s;t I totally depart. I will depart not onely by withdrawing &s;ome of your out|ward comforts, but even tho&s;e which are the more intimate and immediate di&s;coveries of my love, <HI>my &s;oule &s;hall depart from thee,</HI> or, <HI>be loo&s;ed and di&s;-joynted from thee</HI> (as we put in the Mergin) that is, I will be of no more u&s;e to thee, or a helpe to thee, then a member of the body is to the body, when it is di&s;located or remo|ved from its proper joynt. Once more (<HI>Jer.</HI> 32.41.) <HI>I will re|joyce over them to doe them good, and will plant them in this land a&s;|&s;uredly, with my whole heart, and with my whole &s;oule;</HI> That is, I will doe it for them entirely and affectionatly, or with entire&s;t af|fection.</P>
<Q>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth.</Q>
<P>That is, <HI>What he de&s;ireth,</HI> or what&s;oever plea&s;eth him;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Velle e&s;t hoc lo|co aliquid pecu|liarius expetere, concupi&s;cere, &s;o|let ad rem quam piam delecta|bilem referri.</NOTE> We de|&s;ire onely tho&s;e things which are very plea&s;ing, And tho&s;e things which are mo&s;t plea&s;ing to us, are, to us, very de&s;irable. <HI>The de&s;ire of man is love in motion, as his joy is love at re&s;t.</HI> But in God de|&s;ire and joy are not di&s;tingui&s;hable, in him there is no motion, all is re&s;t. <HI>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth,</HI>
<Q>Even that he doth.</Q></P>
<P>The Hebrew is very conci&s;e, <HI>His &s;oule de&s;ireth, and doth.</HI> That is, he no &s;ooner de&s;ireth a thing, but he doth it,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Optat tantam &amp; protinus fectum e&s;t. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> or when he de|&s;ireth, it is done. <HI>The will of God is execution;</HI> though he willeth many things, which (as to man) are not pre&s;ently, no nor till a long time after executed, yet as to him&s;elfe what&s;oever God wil|leth is executed, and when&s;oever he plea&s;eth, his will is actually executed among men. <HI>He de&s;ireth, and it is done.</HI></P>
<P>From the words thus opened, we may ob&s;erve according to the fir&s;t reading of the former part of the ver&s;e. That
<Q>God is one.</Q></P>
<P>There is one God, and but one. Thus the Lord &s;peaks of him|&s;elfe by the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 44.8.) <HI>Is there a God be&s;ides me? Yea there is no God. I know not any.</HI> (I&s;ai. 45.5.) <HI>I am the Lord, and there is none el&s;e, there is no God be&s;ides me.</HI> He is one him&s;elfe, and
<PB N="420" REF="224"> he hath not a &s;econd. The Heathens having many gods, when they were oppre&s;&s;ed by any one god,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Saepe premente deo dat deus alter opem.</NOTE> they &s;ought reliefe from another. As Sorcerers and Witches goe to a &s;tronger &s;pirit, for help again&s;t what a weaker &s;pirit hath done. Heathen gods were devill-gods, and they are many. The <HI>Jewes</HI> degenerating into Idolatry, multi|plyed their Gods according to the number of their Cities (<HI>Jer.</HI> 2.28.) But <HI>Jehovah, The living God, The Lord, is one God.</HI> We af|firme from Scripture that there are three Hees or &s;ub&s;i&s;tences in the God-head (commonly called per&s;ons) Father, Sonne, and Spirit; but the&s;e three are <HI>one,</HI> not onely by con&s;ent, but by nature and e&s;&s;ence. <HI>Heare O I&s;rael</HI> (&s;ayd <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> Deut. 6.4.) <HI>The Lord our God is one Lord.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, From our reading; <HI>He is in one,</HI> or (as we &s;upply) <HI>He is In one minde.</HI> Ob&s;erve that great truth.</P>
<Q>God is unchangable.</Q>
<P><HI>I the Lord change not</HI> (Mal. 3.6.) The unchangeablenes of God may be con&s;idered in divers things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In his e&s;&s;ence or nature; God knoweth no decay. He is a &s;pirit, an eternall &s;pirit; He hath nothing mingled or mixed in him which &s;hould worke or tend to alteration. God is &s;imple, He is mo&s;t &s;imple, even &s;implicity it &s;elfe. There is no compo&s;iti|on in him, no diver&s;itie of qualities in him. Man changeth in his natural con&s;titution, becau&s;e compounded and made up of diffe|rent elements, qualities, and humours, which contending and figh|ting one with another, nece&s;&s;itate his change. Every day brings &s;ome, though in&s;en&s;ible, changes upon us; And in a few yeares our changes are very vi&s;ible, and &s;en&s;ible. The P&s;almi&s;t &s;peaking of the heavens, which of all vi&s;ible creatures are in nature mo&s;t unchangeable, yet calls them changeable in compari&s;on of God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 102.26.) <HI>The heavens are the work of thy hands; They &s;hall peri&s;h, but thou &s;halt endure; yea all of them &s;hall wax old like a garment; as a ve&s;ture &s;halt thou change them, and they &s;hall be changed.</HI> The heavens are the pure&s;t part of the creation, and free&s;t from elementary mixtures, yet they &s;hall wax old, they &s;hall be changed. In oppo&s;ition to which the P&s;almi&s;t adds (<HI>ver.</HI> 27.) <HI>But thou art the &s;ame, and thy yeares &s;hall have no end.</HI> Nor are the yeares of God onely without end, but him&s;elfe is without change. Indeed there is no change of time to God; pa&s;t, pre&s;ent, and to
<PB N="421" REF="224"> come, are all the &s;ame to him, and he is the &s;ame in all; <HI>Thou art the &s;ame,</HI> or more emphatically according to the &s;trictnes of the Hebrew phra&s;e, <HI>Thou art thy &s;elfe, alwayes thy &s;elfe.</HI> As thou art thou wa&s;t, and as thou art and wa&s;t thou wilt be for ever. When <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> de&s;iered to know the name of God, (<HI>Exod.</HI> 3.13.) wee finde it at the 14^t^h ver&s;e; and God &s;aid unto <HI>Mo&s;es, I am That I am; And he &s;aid, thus &s;halt thou &s;ay to the children of I&s;rael, I AM hath &s;ent me unto you.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, As God is unchangeable in his e&s;&s;ence, &s;o in all his divine perfections and attributes; all which are e&s;&s;entiall unto him. God is as powerfull and &s;trong as ever he was (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 26.4. <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 59.1. As high and &s;overaigne as ever he was, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 92.8. as wi&s;e and omni&s;cient as ever he was, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 1.17.) As gracious and mercifull as ever he was, <HI>his mercy endureth for ever.</HI> (P&s;al. 100.5.) As faithfull and true as ever he was (<HI>Rom.</HI> 3.3, 4.) And as ju&s;t and righteous as ever he was, he doth and will reward every man according to his workes.</P>
<P>Thirdly, God is unchangeable in his purpo&s;es, decrees, and coun&s;ells. The <HI>Medes</HI> and <HI>Per&s;ians</HI> boa&s;ted of their decrees, that they alterd not (<HI>Dan.</HI> 6.18.) But the very unalterablenes of hu|mane Decrees is alteration it &s;elfe compared with the unalterable|nes of divine decrees. We have the Lord thus &s;peaking in the Pro|phet (<HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 46.16.) <HI>I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times, the things that are not yet done, &s;aying my coun&s;ell &s;hall &s;tand, and I will doe all my plea&s;ure.</HI> And as the Lord e&s;tabli&s;heth his owne coun&s;el, &s;o he can un&s;etle the be&s;t layd coun&s;els of the &s;ons of men (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 33.10, 11.) <HI>The Lord bringeth the coun&s;el of the Heathen to nought: he maketh the devices of the people of none effect: The coun&s;el of the Lord &s;tand|eth for ever, the thoughts of his heart to all generations.</HI> And hence the Lord, by his Prophet, challengeth the deepe&s;t politicians, the Oracles for coun&s;el, the <HI>Achitophels</HI> of this world <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> &s;traine their wits to the utmo&s;t, for &s;ecuring of their owne coun&s;els from di&s;ap|poyntment (<HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 8.10.) <HI>Gird your &s;elves, and ye &s;hall be broken in pieces, take coun&s;el together, and it &s;hall come to nought; &s;peake the word, and it &s;hall not &s;tand; for God is with us;</HI> he is with us as to protect us again&s;t your open oppo&s;ition, &s;o to bla&s;t your mo&s;t &s;ecret con&s;ultations again&s;t us. And as the Lords coun&s;els are immutable in them&s;elves, &s;o he hath conde&s;cended to a&s;&s;ure us of
<PB N="422" REF="225"> their immutabilitie (<HI>Heb.</HI> 6.17, 18.) <HI>Wherein God willing more abundantly to &s;hew unto the heirs of promi&s;e the immutability of his coun&s;el, confirmed it by an oath, that by two immutable things, in which it was impo&s;&s;ible for God to lie, we might have &s;trong con&s;ola|tion</HI> &amp;c. Oaths are &s;acred and the &s;tronge&s;t confirmations between man and man, and therefore though the coun&s;el of God be im|mutable without an oath, yet that we might have the greate&s;t a&s;|&s;urance that it is &s;o, God hath confirmed it by an oath. That &s;o the heyres of &s;alvation having two immutable things to re&s;t their &s;oules and build their faith upon, might not onely have con&s;olati|on, &s;trong con&s;olation; &s;uch con&s;olation as might ma&s;ter and over|come all the feare and unbeliefe of their owne hearts, and the gaine&s;ayings of Satan.</P>
<P>Fourthly, God is al&s;o unchangeable in his promi&s;es; what e|ver he hath &s;ayd he will doe for his people, <HI>(He is in one minde)</HI> it &s;hall be done. A promi&s;e from God is the be&s;t &s;ecuritie; halfe a promi&s;e, an <HI>it may be</HI> (as he &s;peakes to <HI>the meeke of the earth</HI> (Zeph. 2.3.) <HI>Seeke righteou&s;nes, &s;eeke meeknes, it may be ye &s;hall be hid in the day of the Lords anger;</HI> this halfe promi&s;e (I &s;ay) is better &s;ecurity then the hand or &s;eal, yea then the oath of the faith|fulle&s;t man on earth. (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.20.) <HI>All the promi&s;es of God in him</HI> (that is, in Chri&s;t) <HI>are yea and in him amen;</HI> That is, they &s;hall certainly be performed and accompli&s;hed. God doth not give promi&s;es (as many men doe) to ray&s;e and then di&s;appoynt and abu&s;e our Hopes; He doth not make promi&s;es rather for &s;nares to catch others, then for bonds to tie him&s;elfe, as &s;ome men doe, (which is not only a great unworthines, and di&s;ingenuitie in them, but a great iniquity and &s;in) the Lords promi&s;es are our riche&s;t inheritances; and that not onely becau&s;e he hath promi&s;ed greater and better things then are in the compa&s;&s;e of any mans power to make good, or in the compa&s;s of any mans under&s;tanding to make, but becau&s;e h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> will certainly be as good to us in performance as he hath been in promi&s;e. For <HI>He is in one minde</HI> concerning all that he hath promi&s;ed. He will be mercifull as he hath promi&s;ed, and pardon &s;in as he hath promi&s;ed, He will deliver us from trouble as he hath promi&s;ed, and &s;anctifie all our troubles to us, as he hath promi&s;ed. He will give us his Spirit, as he hath promi&s;ed, and &s;ave us eternally, as he hath promi&s;ed.</P>
<P>Fifthly, He is al&s;o in one minde, concerning his threatnings.
<PB N="423" REF="225"> He will be as good as his word in the evill which he hath &s;poken again&s;t &s;inners, as well as in the good which he hath &s;poken con|cerning his &s;ervants (<HI>Zech.</HI> 1.5.) <HI>Your fathers where are they? and the Prophets doe they live for ever? But my words and my &s;ta|tutes, which I commanded my &s;ervants the Prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? And they returned and &s;ayd, like as the Lord of hoa&s;ts thought to doe unto us, according to our wayes, and according to our doings, &s;o hath he dealt with us.</HI> That is, his threatnings have arre&s;ted us as Sergeants doe a malefactor, or a debtor, and carryed us away their pri&s;oners. As if the Lord had &s;ayd, <HI>Your fathers are dead, and my Prophets are dead al&s;o,</HI> but the words which my Pro|phets &s;pake to your fathers concerning the &s;word, famine, and cap|tivitie which &s;hould &s;hortly come upon them, the&s;e dreadfull pro|phe&s;ies dyed not, yea the&s;e are not yet dead but alive and in force again&s;t you. <HI>If we doe not take hold of the preceptive part of the Law by obedience, the poenal part of the Law will take hold of us for our di&s;obedience.</HI> Thus the Lord profe&s;&s;eth (<HI>Mal.</HI> 3.5.) <HI>And I will come neare to you to Judgement, and I will be a &s;wift witnes again&s;t the &s;orcerers, and again&s;t the adulterers, and again&s;t fal&s;e &s;wearers, and again&s;t tho&s;e that oppre&s;&s;e the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherle&s;&s;e, and that turne a&s;ide the &s;tranger from his right, and feare not me &s;aith the Lord of ho&s;ts, for I am the Lord, I change not.</HI> I will certainly be not onely a <HI>Judge</HI> but a <HI>witne&s;&s;e,</HI> and that a <HI>&s;wift one,</HI> again&s;t &s;uch wicked ones. There is no evading my Judgement, &s;eing I am both witnes and Judge; as a witnes I know all that ye have done, and as a Judge I have power not onely to condemne you, but al&s;o to give you up into the hand of the exe|cutioner; for <HI>I am the Lord of ho&s;ts;</HI> I have all the Armyes of hea|ven and earth at my command and bidding. Thus I will doe, and be ye a&s;&s;ured of it, that I will doe &s;o; <HI>for I am the Lord, I change not.</HI></P>
<P>Sixthly, God is unchangeable, or of one minde in his gifts. (<HI>Rom.</HI> 11.29.) <HI>The gifts, and calling of God are without repen|tance;</HI> That is, The gifts of his effectuall calling &s;hall never be repented of; As they who receive them, will have no cau&s;e to re|pent (yea they will have cau&s;e to reioyce in them for ever) &s;o God who gives them will not repent. <HI>He is in one minde,</HI> he will not alter his gifts. As <HI>Pilate</HI> when he was moved to alter his writing upon the Cro&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t, an&s;wered, <HI>What I have written I have
<PB N="424" REF="226"> written;</HI> that is, what I have written &s;hall &s;tand; &s;o what motion &s;oever &s;hould be made to God to recall the gifts of effectuall cal|ling, he would &s;urely an&s;wer, <HI>What I have given I have given, my gift &s;hall &s;tand.</HI> There are gifts of a meere outward calling, which God takes away againe. His gifts doe not &s;tand with &s;uch, becau&s;e they &s;tand &s;till with his gifts. That was the doome of the idle &s;ervant who had one talent given him; <HI>Take the talent from him, and give it to him that hath ten Talents</HI> (Math. 25.15.28.) But the gifts of effectuall calling &s;hall not be taken away. (<HI>Jam.</HI> 1.17.) <HI>Every good gift, and every perfect gift</HI> (&s;uch is the gift of effectuall calling) <HI>is from above, and cometh downe from the father of lights, with whom is no variablenes, nor &s;hadow of turning.</HI> And as there is no variablenes in God, as to the matter or generall nature of the gifts which he be&s;toweth (they are all good and per|fect gifts in their kinde, though they are not all in the &s;ame degree of goodnes and perfection; God doth not give his people, &s;ome|times bread, and &s;ometime a &s;tone, now an egge and anon a &s;corp|on, now, I &s;ay, as there is no variablenes in God, as to the nature of the gifts which he be&s;toweth) &s;o there is no variablenes in him as to the act of giving or be&s;towing. As the Lord <HI>giveth liberally, and upbraydeth not</HI> (Jam. 1.5.) &s;o he giveth liberally and re|penteth not. Thus we &s;ee he is not onely <HI>one, but in one minde;</HI> He is unchangeable; And that not onely in his e&s;&s;ence and glori|ous attributes or perfections, but in his coun&s;els, and decrees, in his promi&s;es, and threatnings, in his gifts and bounties to all his people; He giveth and repenteth not.</P>
<P>Before I pa&s;&s;e from this poynt, it will be needfull to an&s;wer &s;ome Objections which are rai&s;ed again&s;t it from tho&s;e Scriptures, which &s;eeme to &s;ay, that <HI>God is not of one minde,</HI> or that his minde doth alter and change.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That report which <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> makes of God, &s;eemes to &s;ay &s;o, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 6.6.) <HI>And it repented the Lord, that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart:</HI> What is repentance, but the change of the mind? therefore he that repents is not in one mind. Seing then God repents, how is he unchangeably in one minde? A like appearance of contradiction, we find (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 15.) not onely with this text in <HI>Job,</HI> but between the 11^t^h ver&s;e compared with the 29^t^h of the &s;ame Chapter. The 11^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e &s;peakes thus; <HI>Then came the word of the Lord unto Samuel, &s;aying, it repenteth me that
<PB N="425" REF="226"> I have &s;et up Saul to be King</HI> &amp;c. (<HI>ver.</HI> 29.) <HI>And al&s;o the &s;trength of I&s;rael will not lie, nor repent; for he is not a man that he &s;hould repent.</HI> The &s;trength or victory of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> is God, for it was by his &s;trength that <HI>I&s;rael</HI> had all his victories; and of him <HI>Samuel</HI> &s;aith, <HI>He will not repent,</HI> when as him&s;elfe had &s;ayd a little before, <HI>It re|penteth me</HI> &amp;c. To the&s;e Scriptures we may adde 2 <HI>Kings</HI> 20^t^h, which in words holds out a great change in the minde of God concerning <HI>Hezekiah,</HI> if we compare the fir&s;t and the fift ver&s;es of that Chapter together (<HI>ver.</HI> 1.) <HI>In tho&s;e dayes Hezekiah was &s;icke unto death, and the Prophet I&s;aiah, the &s;on of Amos, came to him and &s;aid unto him, thus &s;aith the Lord, &s;et thine hou&s;e in order, for thou &s;halt dye and not live.</HI> Here is a &s;trong affirmation that <HI>Heze|kiah</HI> &s;hould dye; And to the affirmative the negative is al&s;o ad|ded; <HI>Thou &s;halt dye, and not live.</HI> 'Tis the &s;tronge&s;t manner of a&s;|&s;erting any thing, when the contrary is denyed. As it is &s;ayd of <HI>John</HI> the Bapti&s;t (<HI>John</HI> 1.20.) <HI>And he confe&s;&s;ed, and denied not; but confe&s;&s;ed, I am not the Chri&s;t</HI> &amp;c. So here, <HI>Thou &s;halt die, and not live.</HI> Yet we read (<HI>ver&s;.</HI> 5.) <HI>And it came to pa&s;&s;e before I&s;aiah was gone out of the middle Court, that the word of the Lord came to him, &s;aying, Turne againe, and tell Hezekiah the Captain of my people, thus &s;aith the Lord, the God of David thy father, I have heard thy prayers, I have &s;eene thy teares: behold I will heale thee; on the third day thou &s;halt goe up unto the hou&s;e of the Lord, and I will adde unto thy dayes fifeene yeares.</HI> Doth not this import an evident change in the minde of God? Having di&s;patcht the Pro|phet to tell <HI>Hezekiah,</HI> that he &s;hall die, and not live, He pre&s;ently after, even before he was got out of the Court, &s;ends the &s;ame Prophet backe to tell him that he &s;hall live and not die. We have the &s;ame difficulty in that knowne place in the Prophe&s;ie of <HI>Jonah (Chap.</HI> 3.4.) <HI>Jonah</HI> is &s;ent to <HI>Nineveh</HI> with a direct me&s;&s;age; <HI>Yet fourtie dayes and Nineveh &s;hall be overthrowne.</HI> Notwith|&s;tanding as &s;oone as the fa&s;t was proclaimed and kept, and the <HI>Ni|nevites</HI> had repented and turned from their evil wayes, <HI>The Lord al&s;o repented of the evil denounced again&s;t them;</HI> (ver. 10.) <HI>And God &s;aw their workes, that they turned from their evil way, and God repented of the evil that he had &s;aid, that he would doe unto them, and he did it not.</HI> Here God repented of his threatning. He had &s;aid <HI>Nineveh</HI> &s;hould be over-throwne, yet when they turned from what they had done, God turned from what he &s;ayd he would
<PB N="426" REF="227"> doe. And did he not change his mind, in reference to his promi&s;e to <HI>Zion,</HI> as there in reference to his threatning again&s;t <HI>Nineveh?</HI> The promi&s;e to <HI>Zion</HI> runs in this tenour; <HI>This is my re&s;t for ever; here will I dwell, for I have de&s;ired it</HI> (P&s;al. 132 14.) Yet the Lord remo|ved out of <HI>Zion,</HI> he departed from <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> and gave it into the enemies hands. How many mi&s;eries, and captivities did that peo|ple undergoe, long agoe? and how are they &s;cattered from <HI>Jeru|&s;alem</HI> into all Lands unto this very day? How then &s;hall we re|concile the Text, and poynt in hand, with the&s;e quoted Scrip|tures, and many others of a like interpretation?</P>
<P>How is God unchangable, or, <HI>in one minde,</HI> when we read of his repenting what he had done, of his &s;aying what he would doe, and yet not doing what he had &s;aid, both in his promi&s;es &amp; in his threat|nings? How can the&s;e changes and the Lords unchangeablenes &s;tand together? or how is he but <HI>in one minde,</HI> the tenour of who&s;e doings doth &s;o often vary, both from what he hath formerly done, and from what he hath profe&s;&s;ed he would doe. In a word, How is the Lord con&s;tant to what he &s;ayth he will doe, when eyther he doth it not, or doth the quite contrary to it? He that repenteth is not in one minde, &s;eing repentance is a change of the minde.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, I an&s;wer; Repentance properly taken notes a change of the minde; But in an improper or allu&s;ive &s;ence, there may be re|pentance without any the lea&s;t change of the minde. When God is &s;ayd to repent (as in tho&s;e texts alledged) we are to under&s;tand it improperly, or onely in allu&s;ion unto man. The Scripture in many other things &s;peakes of God, eyther as conde&s;cending to mans under&s;tanding, or as alluding to the common actions of man. God doth not act as man doth, yet by &s;uch expre&s;&s;ions as hold out, what and how man acts, we may come the more ea&s;ily to under&s;tand what God doth. As in the pre&s;ent in&s;tance, when man repents, he doth the&s;e two things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He cea&s;eth to doe, what he began to doe, he breakes the thread of his former motions.</P>
<P>Secondly, When man repents that he hath done, or made &s;uch a thing, he is ready to deface and de&s;troy that which he hath made or done: When man repents that he hath &s;et up &s;uch or &s;uch a thing, he removes and takes it downe. Thus God is &s;ayd to re|pent, not becau&s;e his minde is changed, but becau&s;e (as a man that repenteth) he cea&s;eth to doe what he did, or he de&s;troyeth that
<PB N="427" REF="227"> which he had made. Thus the Lord is &s;aid to repent his making of <HI>Saul</HI> king, becau&s;e he meant to remove him from being king; And to repent that he had made the world, becau&s;e his purpo&s;e was, for the &s;in of man to deface and de&s;troy the pre&s;ent beautie and excellency of the world which he had made. God often puts forth the effects of repentance toward man, but the repentance of a man never put forth any effect upon God.</P>
<P>Secondly, We may an&s;wer thus; <HI>God often minds a change:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Aliud e&s;t muta|re voluntatem, aliud velle mu|tationem. <HI>A|quin: par: 1. q. 19. art. 7.</HI></NOTE> <HI>But he never changes his minde.</HI> And &s;o all tho&s;e Scriptures before mentioned, note onely that God did minde a change, or make a change: But not that he did change his minde. There is a va&s;t difference between the&s;e two, to minde or determine a change, and to change the minde or determination. As for in&s;tance, a man that is re&s;olved to weare garments &s;utable to the &s;ea&s;on of the yeare, and temperature of the weather; in the heate of &s;ummer it is his minde to weare light and thinne garments that he may be coole, and in the cold of winter, his minde is to weare heavier and thicker garments that he may be warme. Now if this man when winter comes leaves off his light thinne garments, &amp; puts on tho&s;e that are heavier and thicker, he cannot be &s;ayd to change his mind, for his minde was alwayes to weare change of garments accord|ing to the &s;ea&s;on of the yeare, and temper of the weather. And thus the Lord according to the changes which he finds among men for the better or for the wor&s;e, doth both minde and make eminent changes among them, as to his providentiall admini&s;tra|tions, whether in wayes of Judgement or of mercy, but in the&s;e he never changes his own minde, fora&s;much as his mind was everla&s;t|ingly fixed, in ca&s;e of &s;uch emergencies, to make tho&s;e changes in his admini&s;trations and dealings with the &s;ons of men.</P>
<P>Thirdly, For further an&s;wer, We are to di&s;tingui&s;h between the outward &s;entence, and declaration of God, and his &s;ecret pur|po&s;e or decree. God doth often change his &s;entence, or the de|claration: But he never changeth his purpo&s;e, decree, or coun|fell.</P>
<P><HI>Quae&s;t:</HI> But is not that externall declaration, the minde of God al&s;o?</P>
<P><HI>An&s;w:</HI> I an&s;wer; The&s;e denounced &s;entences or declarations are the minde of God, yet they are not the &s;ame with the coun|&s;els and purpo&s;es of God, but &s;erve for the fullfilling and bringing
<PB N="428" REF="228"> of them about; for by the change which the &s;entence revealed worketh in man, the coun&s;el of God not revealed is effected. The fru&s;trating of the one, fulfills the other; And the Lords de&s;igne in &s;uch declarations of his minde, is to bring about or accompli&s;h his purpo&s;es and coun&s;ells. God did purpo&s;ely declare or pronounce a &s;entence of death again&s;t <HI>Hezekiah</HI> by the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> to the intent that his coun&s;ell concerning the continuance of <HI>Hezekiahs</HI> life might be fulfilled. And he &s;ent the Prophet <HI>Jonah</HI> to publi&s;h a &s;entence of utter de&s;truction again&s;t <HI>Nineveh,</HI> purpo&s;ely that his coun&s;el concerning the pre&s;ervation of <HI>Nineveh</HI> might be accom|pli&s;hed. The Lords coun&s;el and purpo&s;e was that <HI>Hezekiah</HI> &s;hould live, and recover out of that di&s;ea&s;e. But how did he fulfill this? even by &s;ending him a me&s;&s;age of death, which cau&s;ed him to weepe &s;ore, and pray and cry earne&s;tly to the Lord for life. <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, &s;et thine hou&s;e in order, for thou &s;halt die and not live. Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, &s;aying,</HI> &amp;c. But then it may be que&s;tioned, was that word of the Lord true which he &s;ent to <HI>Hezekiah</HI> by the Prophet, &s;aying, <HI>thou &s;halt dye.</HI> The &s;entence publi&s;hed was true, and would certainly have come to pa&s;&s;e according to the order and working of &s;econd cau&s;es, for looking to them, <HI>Hezekiah</HI> mu&s;t die, his &s;icknes was unto death; <HI>In tho&s;e dayes was Hezekiah &s;icke unto death.</HI> Doubt|le&s;&s;e his Phy&s;itians and all that were about him gave him over for a dead man. Onely God could re&s;tore him, and the way wherein he would re&s;tore him was by prayer. So for <HI>Nineveh,</HI> if we con&s;i|der the de&s;ert of their &s;in, the &s;entence was true, <HI>Nineveh</HI> &s;hall be de&s;troyed. But the Lord &s;ent his Prophet to tell them of their ap|proaching de&s;truction, that they might fa&s;t and turne from their evill wayes, and &s;o his purpo&s;e for their pre&s;ervation might be ac|compli&s;hed. Thus the outward &s;entence is changed, but the minde of God is not changed. And the&s;e changeable &s;entences were de|creed by God, to bring about his unchangeable decree.</P>
<P>Fourthly, I an&s;wer; When God is &s;aid to repent, the change is not in God, but in us, God is alwayes the &s;ame, but wee are not. God is &s;o much the &s;ame, that he never alters, and man is &s;o little the &s;ame, that he is alwayes altering; and, when he hath done evill, it is good for him that he is &s;o. God did not change, but <HI>No|neveh</HI> changed by turning from &s;in, and <HI>Hezekiah</HI> changed by im|proving more in prayer, and therefore he dyed not at that time,
<PB N="429" REF="228"> nor were they then de&s;troyed. The change is in the creature, not in God, when that is changed which God &s;peakes concerning the creature. He is &s;till unmoveable in the &s;ame minde; all the motion is in the minde of man. It is in this ca&s;e as with a &s;hip putting out to Sea. When a &s;hip &s;ets out from the harbour, and &s;ayles by the &s;hoare, the unexperienced pa&s;&s;enger thinkes the &s;hore moves from the &s;hip, whereas indeed the &s;hip onely moves from or by the &s;hore. So when we thinke God changeth, or is moved, the change or motion is onely in our &s;elves In one di&s;pen&s;ation we take no|tice of the love of God, and in another of his wrath, in a third of his ju&s;tice, and in a fourth of his mercy. The&s;e are changes upon us, but not in God. And the&s;e &s;hew that God changeth his cour&s;e towards us, but they are no proofes of a change in God. For the love of God, and the wrath of God, the ju&s;tice of God, and the mercy of God are &s;till the &s;ame, but we changing are ca&s;t &s;ome|time under the effects of his love, and &s;ometimes of his wrath, we are &s;ometimes under the &s;adde&s;t droppings of his ju&s;tice, and &s;ome|times under the &s;weete&s;t influences of his mercy. As when a man changeth his a&s;pect, and turnes about his body to another poynt, That part of the heaven which was before at his right hand, is now at his left; yet the heavens are as they were, they doe not change eyther their po&s;ition, or their motion, but the man hath changed his. Thus the wrath, and love, the Ju&s;tice, and the mercy of God &s;tand alwayes at the &s;ame poynt; but man turneth &s;ometimes <HI>Ju|&s;tice-ward,</HI> and &s;ometimes <HI>mercy-ward;</HI> now he faces the wrath, and anon the love of God. And doing &s;o, he meetes with many changes in the di&s;pen&s;ations of God toward him, but there is no change in the minde of God toward him.</P>
<P>And &s;eing God is unchangeable, or, <HI>in one minde,</HI> take this by way of deduction from it.</P>
<Q>'Tis the duty of man to &s;ubmit him&s;elfe unto and acquie&s;ce in the minde of God.</Q>
<P>Seing the mind of God re&s;ts, we ought to re&s;t in the mind of God; that is, we ought to re&s;igne up our &s;elves, and to re&s;olve our minds into the mind, and our wills into the will of God. What ever plea|&s;eth God, &s;hould plea&s;e us. He is in one minde, and that one minde of his hath nothing in it but ju&s;tice, and righteou&s;nes toward all, nothing but goodnes, and mercy, nothing but loving kindne&s;&s;e,
<PB N="430" REF="229"> and faithfullne&s;&s;e toward his peculiar people. As the minde of God revealed in his word, &s;hould be the <HI>rule of our actions,</HI> &s;o the minde of God revealed by his workes, &s;hould be the re&s;t or <HI>ea&s;e of all our pa&s;&s;ions.</HI> The minde of God is that by which we are to guide our &s;elves in all we doe, and to that we mu&s;t yeeld in all we &s;uffer. While we &s;ee &s;ome &s;orely di&s;compo&s;ed in their &s;pirits, yea vext be|yond all rea&s;on at the di&s;pen&s;ations of God, have we not rea&s;on to beleive, that they have never heard, or at lea&s;t not well learnt and dige&s;ted this great truth, <HI>That God is in one minde.</HI> When the minde of God is done, him&s;elfe is plea&s;ed, and &s;hould not what|&s;oever plea&s;eth God, plea&s;e us al&s;o, yea though it be in it &s;elfe, bitter and unplea&s;ant to us? A gratious heart ta&s;ts &s;weetne&s;&s;e in Gall and Wormewood, con&s;idered under this notion, as it is the will and minde of God he &s;hould drinke it, or feed upon it. It was a &s;trange power that <HI>David</HI> had over the people of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> or it &s;hewes that they had a very &s;trong opinion of his ju&s;tice and integrity, when it is &s;ayd (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 3.36.) <HI>What&s;oever the King did, plea&s;ed all the people.</HI> What was &s;ayd of him, we &s;hould &s;ay in the highe&s;t &s;ence of God, what&s;oever he doth &s;hould be plea&s;ing to all his people. It was once the &s;aying of a Court-flatterer; <HI>That which plea&s;eth the King,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Placet mihi quod regi pla|cet; dixit <HI>Harpalus, Apud Herod: lib. 1.</HI></NOTE> <HI>plea&s;eth mee.</HI> We cannot flatter God in &s;aying &s;o. It is but our duty to &s;ay &s;o; we &s;in if we &s;ay not, and &s;ay not with our hearts, <HI>What&s;oever plea&s;eth God, plea|&s;eth us.</HI> He acts below both the duty and priviledge of a man, who re&s;olves him&s;elfe into the will of any man, how high &s;oever, or though he be <HI>King-High,</HI> and he acts above both the &s;tate and proportion of a man (though much below the duty of a Chri&s;tian) who doth not re&s;olve him&s;elfe into the will of the mo&s;t high God, who is higher then the highe&s;t of the Kings of the earth. <HI>He vainely &s;uppo&s;eth him&s;elfe God-High, who &s;ubmits not to the will of the mo&s;t High God.</HI> What&s;oever God doth or will have done, man &s;hould &s;ay, <HI>Even &s;o be it, as God will have it.</HI></P>
<P>But &s;ome may &s;ay, if it be &s;o, then it &s;eemes we may not endea|vour to extricate our &s;elves from, or to get a removall of any of tho&s;e evills, troubles, or afflictions, which at any time pre&s;&s;e and greive us.</P>
<P>For an&s;wer to this &s;cruple, I &s;ay.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, It is our duty in every trouble that God layeth upon us, to &s;eeke unto God, and to u&s;e all good meanes for the taking of it off from us. But</P>
<PB N="431" REF="229">
<P>Secondly, We mu&s;t not &s;eeke unto God for the removing of any evill from us, as being di&s;plea&s;ed with his laying it upon us: we mu&s;t be quiet under our troubles, and yet we may both de&s;ire and endeavour to be quit of them. Though God be <HI>in one minde,</HI> yet that doth not nece&s;&s;itate man to one condition, nor hinder him from &s;eeking a better then that wherein he is.</P>
<P>I have in&s;i&s;ted the longer upon this poynt, becau&s;e <HI>Job</HI> gives it as a general an&s;wer to all his friends queryes about him, and as the be&s;t expedient for reconciling the difference between them and him. <HI>He is in one minde,</HI>
<Q>And who can turne him?</Q></P>
<P>Hence learne.</P>
<Q>That as God is unchangeable in him&s;elfe, &s;o none can alter or change him.</Q>
<P>Some men are of a very &s;teady &s;pirit, they are not in and out, as we &s;ay, forward and backward: let them alone, and they are true to their own principles, and they will be true to others ac|cording to their promi&s;es. Yet, po&s;&s;ibly, the&s;e men may be turned a&s;ide, and led out of the way, by the per&s;wa&s;ion of others. A &s;ub|tle head and a &s;mooth oyly tongue, may worke them off from their owne re&s;olutions. It hath been a que&s;tion di&s;puted among moral Philo&s;ophers, <HI>Whether a wi&s;e man may be an uncertaine or a various man;</HI> And they re&s;olve it Negatively; Wi&s;dome is as bala&s;t, which keeps the minde from floating. And it hath been &s;ayd of a wi&s;e man among the Heathen, that the Sun might as &s;oone be thru&s;t out of his line, as he from the line of Ju&s;tice; yet let no man glory in man, no not in wi&s;e men. The wi&s;e&s;t, and mo&s;t con&s;tant among men may doe unwi&s;ely and prove uncon&s;tant. The mo&s;t re&s;olved among the children of men, may be wrought upon, and brought over to what they purpo&s;ed not. But this is the glory of God, that as he is in one minde, &s;o none <HI>can turn him,</HI> or make him in two. None can turne him out of the way, eyther of his in|tended Judgements, or promi&s;ed mercies; what he hath a minde to doe, he will not be put by the doing it.</P>
<P>We may affirme three things concerning the workes of God, or concerning God in his workings.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The workes of God are &s;o full of my&s;tery, that none can
<PB N="432" REF="230"> fully comprehend them; there is much in his ordinary workes be|yond man, and his extraordinary workes are all beyond man. We (by rea&s;on of our indiligence) &s;ee but little of any of his workes, and &s;ome of his workes are &s;uch, as we can &s;ee but a little way into them with all our diligence.</P>
<P>Secondly, The workes of God are &s;o full of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, that no man can ju&s;tly reprove, or finde fault with them. They who come with the mo&s;t curious &amp; critical eyes to examine the workes of God, &s;hall not finde any flaw or defect in them. There have been many, who (through their pre&s;umptuous folly) have found fault with the workes of God, but there was never any (who with his mo&s;t refined wit) could finde a fault in them. The <HI>Jewes</HI> of old complained of, and quarrel'd at the wayes of God as unequall (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 18.25.) but when it came to tryall, they could prove nothing but the inequality of their owne.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The workes of God are &s;o full of power, that <HI>none can put a &s;top to,</HI> or hinder the accompli&s;hment of them. The&s;e are three excellent perfections of the workes of God; And the la&s;t is that which is here under hand. <HI>Hezekiah,</HI> though a great King, was not able to bring a worke about which he had a minde to, The re&s;cue of <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> out of the hand of the <HI>A&s;&s;yrians,</HI> and therefore he &s;ends this pitifull cry to the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> (2 King. 19.3.) <HI>The children are come to the birth</HI> (that is, the bu&s;ines is ripe for execution) <HI>and there is no &s;trength to bring forth.</HI> The workes of the &s;tronge&s;t men may &s;ticke in the birth for want of &s;trength to bring them forth. But the workes of God never &s;ticke in the birth upon that or any other account. <HI>He is in one minde, and who can turne him?</HI> There are foure wayes by which men are u&s;ually turned off from or &s;topped in their workes, but by none of them will God be turned, when he hath a minde to worke.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Men are often &s;topt by outward power; they doe not eyther that good or that evill which they would, becau&s;e they cannot, and their <HI>cannot,</HI> po&s;&s;ibly, doth not lie in this, that they have not a power in them&s;elves proportionable to the worke, or becau&s;e they have medled with a matter too great for them, and for which they are no match; but they therefore onely <HI>cannot</HI> doe what they would, becau&s;e they are hindered from doing it. A man may have ability to ma&s;ter the worke he is about to doe, yet not
<PB N="433" REF="230"> to ma&s;ter the impediments that &s;tand in the way of it. But all the power of the creature cannot hinder God; <HI>If he will worke, none can let him</HI> (I&s;a. 43.13.) <HI>The power of men is weakne&s;&s;e unto God.</HI> And that which lookes like weakne&s;&s;e in God, is &s;tronger then the united &s;trength of all men (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.25.) <HI>The fooli&s;hnes of God, is wi&s;er then men; and the weakne&s;&s;e of God is &s;tronger then men.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Men are, or may be turned by coun&s;el or advice: and &s;ome who could not be &s;topt by power, have yet been &s;topt by per&s;wa&s;ion. An eloquent tongue hath prevailed, where a vio|lent hand could not. We read how <HI>Abigail</HI> prevailed upon <HI>Da|vid,</HI> a mightie warrier, and mightily re&s;olved to de&s;troy <HI>Nabal,</HI> and all his hou&s;e (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 25.22.) <HI>So and more al&s;o doe God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light, any that pi&s;&s;eth again&s;t the wall. David</HI> &s;pake not onely peremptorily, but with a kinde of adjuration; And he was upon his march with foure hundred armed men at his heeles to put his purpo&s;e into Execution: Yet a di&s;creet woman goes out to meet and turne him from his cour&s;e, and turne him &s;he did; &s;he did it effectually. But what could <HI>Abigail</HI> a woman doe, to prevaile with <HI>David</HI> and his Souldiers? What &s;he did, &s;he did by per&s;wa&s;ion, &s;he layed arguments before him, and managed them with &s;o much pathetical rhetoricke, and clearnes, that he could not with&s;tand her (<HI>ver.</HI> 32.33.) <HI>And David &s;aid unto Abigail, Ble&s;&s;ed be the Lord God of I&s;rael, which &s;ent thee this day to meete me; and ble&s;&s;ed be thy advice, and ble&s;&s;ed be thou which ha&s;t kept me this day from coming to &s;hed bloud, and to avenge my &s;elfe with mine owne hand.</HI> Thus men may be turned from what they have re&s;ol|ved, e&s;pecially when they doe not well deliberate before they re|&s;olve. But God cannot be turned by any coun&s;el or advice, &s;eing what&s;oever he purpo&s;eth to doe, he doth it upon the unerring ad|vice and coun&s;el of his owne will. Tho&s;e pa&s;&s;ions of anger and jealou&s;ie, in which (as he is &s;et forth to us in Scripture) God is &s;ayd to act, are yet the i&s;&s;ues of infinite deliberation. <HI>He that doth all things by the be&s;t coun&s;el, can never be turned by any.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Men are often turned by petition, when they will not by argument, and you may entreate them to de&s;i&s;t from what they were about to doe, though you cannot advi&s;e them out of it. And we know that of all things prayer is the mo&s;t prevailing with God. Nothing hath ever turned God &s;o much as prayer
<PB N="434" REF="231"> hath; and yet prayer it &s;elfe (in the &s;ence here intended) cannot turne God. We mu&s;t not thinke that we change God by our prayers, though when we pray, God often makes a gratious change for us. What&s;oever his minde is to doe, he doth it, yea though prayer &s;tand in his way. Wee may &s;ay that the greate&s;t providentiall changes that were ever made in the world, God hath made them upon the prayers of his people; yet he never changed his owne minde in the lea&s;t at the prayer of his people. The Lord calls his people earne&s;tly to call upon him &s;o, and meeting him by prayer to &s;top him when he is preparing to doe &s;ome great thing again&s;t them, or to bring &s;ome great evill upon them. (<HI>Amos</HI> 4.12.) <HI>Therefore thus will I doe unto thee O I&s;rael, and becau&s;e I will doe this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God O I&s;|rael.</HI> Wee may take tho&s;e words <HI>prepare to meete thy God O I&s;rael,</HI> not &s;o much for a challenge as for a direction. But how &s;hall <HI>I&s;|rael prepare to meete God?</HI> Not with weapons of warre, not with &s;word, and &s;peare, the&s;e will make no defence again&s;t God. No: but with teares and prayers, the&s;e are the armes and amunition of a Saint, there's no contending with God, but onely by humbling our &s;elves before him.</P>
<P>But you &s;ay, prayer cannot turne God.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; prayer hath cau&s;ed and may cau&s;e God to turne from his outward actings and di&s;pen&s;ations, onely, it cannot turne God from any of his coun&s;els or re&s;olutions. And becau&s;e prayer hath &s;o great a power upon God, to turne him from his outward di&s;pen&s;ations, therefore he &s;ometimes hath forbidden prayer, when he was re&s;olved not to turne from &s;uch threatned di&s;pen&s;a|tions (<HI>Jer.</HI> 14.11.) <HI>Then &s;ayd the Lord unto me, pray not for this people for their good.</HI> As if the Lord had &s;ayd; if any thing could prevaile with me, thy prayer would; But becau&s;e I am fully purpo&s;ed to vi&s;it their iniquities, therefore I will not have thy prayers run wa&s;te. As for them let them pray as long as they will, as their prayers come, onely from their nece&s;&s;ities, not from their hearts, &s;o they &s;hall not come neere mine; nor doe I care how long their prayers (which are but pudle water) run wa&s;te; let them pray and &s;pare not; but let them be &s;ure of this, that though they pray I will not &s;pare; &s;o it follows (<HI>ver.</HI> 12.) <HI>When they fa&s;t I will not heare their cry, and when they offer burnt offering, and an oblation, I will not accept them: but I will con&s;ume them, by the
<PB N="435" REF="231"> &s;word, and by the famine, and by the pe&s;tilence.</HI> Their owne prayers had no power in them to turne God; and he who had a power to &s;top God by prayer, is him&s;elfe &s;topt from prayer, as in the place la&s;t quoted, &s;o once before (<HI>Jer.</HI> 7.16) <HI>Therefore pray not for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make interce&s;&s;ion to me, for I will not heare thee.</HI> And as the Lord &s;topt <HI>Jeremie</HI> from prayer for them, &s;o he profe&s;&s;eth that if they who in former ages had been mo&s;t prevailing with him, &s;hould now a|gaine mannage their &s;uite before him, yet he would not be mo|ved by it. (<HI>Jer.</HI> 15.1.) <HI>Then &s;aid the Lord unto me, though Mo|&s;es and Samuel &s;tood before me, yet my minde could not be toward this people.</HI> As if the Lord had &s;ayd; Though they &s;hould get my chiefe favorites, to &s;ollicit their cau&s;e, and plead on their behalfe, yet they &s;hould finde me <HI>in one minde, and that even they could not turne me.</HI> Je&s;us Chri&s;t never &s;olicited any cau&s;e but he &s;ped in it, but the be&s;t of men may be earne&s;t &s;oliciters and not &s;peed. For though good men will not &s;olicit a bad cau&s;e before God, or pray again&s;t his revealed will, yet they doe not alwayes hit his &s;ecret will. And God who &s;ayth to his people generally (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 50.15.) <HI>Call upon me in the day of trouble, I will deliver thee:</HI> yet in &s;ome particular ca&s;es he will not deliver them, though they call upon him. Prayer is not onely an allowed, but a commanded meanes, and &s;o the mo&s;t probable meanes to obtaine deliverance, yet that cannot alwayes obtaine or fetch it. Yea God who often brings his people into trouble, on purpo&s;e to provoke them to &s;eeke his helpe, yet, &s;ometimes, will not helpe them though they &s;eeke him. And the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e <HI>he is in one minde, and will not be turned from his purpo&s;es, no not by prayer.</HI> If once the Lord be re&s;olved to de&s;troy, prayer cannot &s;ave; Though <HI>Mo&s;es and Samuel &s;tood before me, yet</HI> (&s;aith the Lord) <HI>my minde could not be toward this people, ca&s;t them out of my &s;ight, and let them goe forth, &s;uch as are for the &s;word to the &s;word,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>But if prayer cannot turne God, then you lay a temptation be|fore us to turne away from prayer.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; fir&s;t, as was &s;hewed before; prayer may turne God in reference to his outward di&s;pen&s;ations, though it cannot turne him from any of his coun&s;els and re&s;olutions.</P>
<P>But then it may be enquired; how &s;hall I doe to direct my prayer? For I know not what the purpo&s;e or re&s;olution of God
<PB N="436" REF="232"> is, I onely &s;ee what his di&s;pen&s;ations are. And if &s;o, I may pray again&s;t the minde or purpo&s;e of God; I may aske for the remo|ving or taking away of that, which he is purpo&s;ed &s;hall continue; and I may aske the gift of that, which he is re&s;olved not to be|&s;tow.</P>
<P>To this I an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, That though the minde of God to give us &s;uch a mercy, or to withdraw &s;uch an affliction, be a &s;ecret to us; yet this is revealed, that it is our dutie to pray about the&s;e things. What God will give or doe for us when we pray is a &s;e|cret; but this is revealed, that <HI>in all things</HI> we ought to pray. That's the Apo&s;tles rule (<HI>Phil.</HI> 4.6.) <HI>Be carefull in nothing, but in every thing by prayer and &s;upplication with thanksgiving make your reque&s;ts knowne unto God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Suppo&s;e the things we pray about, whether for the having, or removing of them, be &s;uch as it is not the minde of God either to give or to remove. Yet we may plea&s;e God, in praying for the attainement of tho&s;e things, which it is not his plea&s;ure to give, and in praying for the taking away o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> tho&s;e things, which it is not his plea&s;ure to remove. We doe not offend God, by asking that which he will not give, if the thing be &s;uch, as is in the gene|rall nature of it according to his will. The Lord takes it well at our hands that we pray, and is well plea&s;ed to heare us pray, when he is not plea&s;ed to heare, (that is, to grant) our prayers.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Be not turned from prayer, becau&s;e prayer cannot turne God, for it is a great argument that the minde or purpo&s;e of God and his decree is to give &s;uch a mercy, or to remove &s;uch an evill, if we have an heart to pray much for or about it. For God who hath &s;ayd, <HI>I will be &s;ought unto, that I may doe it for them</HI> (Ezek. 36.) <HI>hath not &s;ayd unto the &s;eed of Jacob, &s;eeke ye me in vaine</HI> (I&s;a. 45.19.) And when God &s;tirres up his people to pray, it is an argument he is ready to heare. <HI>Thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cau&s;e thine eare to heare. (P&s;al.</HI> 10.17.) So that as God takes it well at our hands that we pray for many things which he hath no purpo&s;e to give us; &s;o it is a good ground of faith that he hath a purpo&s;e to doe &s;uch or &s;uch things for us, when he puts it into our hearts to pray for them.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Let not any &s;tumble at the dutie of prayer, becau&s;e of Gods unchangeablenes; for wee pray, not to change the minde of God, but to fullfill it; wee pray for the fullfilling of his de|crees,
<PB N="437" REF="232"> not for the altering of them, for the fullfilling of his coun|&s;els, not the voyding of them. And becau&s;e God <HI>is in one minde, and none can turne him,</HI> we have the more incouragement to pray. For all the good things that are in the minde, coun&s;el, and purpo&s;e of God to doe for us, and be&s;tow upon us, are borne, and brought into the world u&s;ually by the hand of prayer: Prayer is (as it were) the midwife, to bring our ble&s;&s;ings to the birth. Therefore though prayer cannot turne God, yet we have no rea&s;on to turne from prayer.</P>
<P>There is yet a fourth thing which may &s;top men, but cannot &s;top God; And that is nearnes of relation. Men are often turned out of the way when a neare relation &s;tands in their way. They purpo&s;ed to doe this or that, but that &s;uch a friend, or &s;uch a kin&s;|man hath turned them from their purpo&s;e. 'Tis rare to finde &s;uch a &s;pirit as the Lord by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> ob&s;erved and highly commended in the Tribe of <HI>Levi</HI> (Deut. 33.9.) <HI>Who &s;aid unto his father, and to his mother, I have not &s;eene him, neyther did he acknowledge his Brethren, nor knew his owne children.</HI> That is, hee was not turned by the neare&s;t relations from executing that terrible &s;entence of the Lord upon the children of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> his Brethren after they had made the Golden Calfe, of which you may read at large (<HI>Exod.</HI> 32.26, 27, 28, 29.) It is truely &s;ayd, That <HI>relations have little entity in them, but they have the greate&s;t efficacy in them:</HI> And their effi|cacy hath never appeared more in any thing then in this, The turn|ing of man from his purpo&s;e or his duty. But relations have no efficacy in them to &s;top or turne the Lord from his purpo&s;es. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 27.11.) <HI>It is a people that have no under&s;tanding, therefore he that made them, will not have mercy on them, &amp; he that formed them will &s;hew them no favour.</HI> As if the Prophet had &s;ayd; When the Lord threatens to bring evill upon you, po&s;&s;ibly ye will &s;ay, we are the worke of thy hands, he hath made us, &s;urely then he will not de&s;troy us. We finde that argument pleaded (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 64.8.) <HI>But now O Lord, thou art our father, we are the clay, and thou our pot|ter, and we all are the worke of thy hand: Be not wroth very &s;ore O Lord,</HI> &amp;c. To plead our relation to God by Chri&s;t is the &s;trong|e&s;t plea in prayer, and to plead any relation to God, hath a great &s;trength in it. Yet while &s;ome urge the&s;e, they &s;ignifie nothing, and have no force at all. They who are like that people in the Prophet, <HI>a people of no under&s;tanding,</HI> &s;pirituall idiots, &s;uch as have
<PB N="438" REF="233"> no knowledge to doe good, or no practicall under&s;tanding in the things of God; &s;uch, I &s;ay, may urge their relation, and get no|thing by it; <HI>He that made them, will not have mercy on them, and he that formed them, will &s;hew them no favour.</HI> The Lord profe&s;|&s;eth &s;trongly again&s;t any power which a relation &s;hall have upon him to turne him, or take off the proce&s;&s;e of his Judgement under high provocations from the highe&s;t of men. (<HI>Jer.</HI> 22.24.) <HI>As I live, &s;aith the Lord, though Coniah the &s;on of Jehoiakim King of Judah were the &s;ignet upon my right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence, and give thee into the hand of them that &s;eeke thy life,</HI> &amp;c. To be as the &s;ignet upon the right hand, notes the mo&s;t intimate neerenes of relation, yet the Lord breakes thorough this, and will not be turned away by it, from the &s;evere&s;t actings of his owne purpo&s;es. Thus it hath appeared that as the Lord is unchangeable in him&s;elfe, &s;o nothing can change him. <HI>He is in one minde, who can turne him?</HI></P>
<Q>And what his &s;oule de&s;ireth, e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters"> that he doth.</Q>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That God doth what&s;oever he will, or what&s;oever he de&s;ires to doe.</Q>
<P>There is no bound to the power of God, but his owne will. When the Heathen asked in &s;corne, <HI>Where is your God?</HI> The P&s;al|mi&s;t tells them plainely both where he was, and what he had been doing, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 115.3.) <HI>But our God is in the heavens, he hath done what&s;oever he plea&s;ed.</HI> The doings of God know no bounds, but his owne plea&s;ure; <HI>He hath done what&s;oever he plea&s;ed.</HI> He will not indure to have any articles put upon him, nor any circles or limit-lines drawne about him. The power of God is regulated and determined by nothing but his will. A great Prince once &s;ayd, <HI>That he had indeed a circle about his head</HI> (meaning his Crowne) <HI>but he would not beare it to have a circle about his feete; he mu&s;t goe which way him&s;elfe plea&s;ed, and doe what&s;oever his &s;oule de&s;ired.</HI> Yet there are circles drawne <HI>about all the powers of the world, only God hath none.</HI> His government is purely arbitrary. Nor is it fit that the government of any but his &s;hould be &s;o; <HI>'Tis neither fit nor &s;afe that any &s;hould governe arbitrarily or purely at will, but he who&s;e will is altogether pure, but he who&s;e will is &s;o farre from need|ing a rule, that it is one, yea the onely unerring One.</HI> (Ezek. 24.14.)
<PB N="439" REF="233"> <HI>I the Lord have &s;poken it, it &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e, and I will doe it, I will not goe backe, neither will I &s;pare, neither will I repent; accord|ing to thy wayes, and according to thy doings, &s;hall they judge thee, &s;aith the Lord God.</HI> As if the Lord had &s;aid, It is my will to have it thus, and therefore it &s;hall be thus. That which is mo&s;t &s;infull in man, is mo&s;t holy in God, to act according to his owne will. Mans will is to crooked a rule, for others to guide their actions by, or for him&s;elfe to guide his actions by. He that &s;aith, I will doe this or that, becau&s;e I will, doth nothing as he ought. There &s;hould be much willingnes, but none of our owne will in what we doe. But as Gods will &s;hould be both the rule and rea&s;on of our act|ings, &s;o it alwayes is of his owne. There is (as I may &s;ay) an ho|ly wilfulnes in God, <HI>He will have what he will, and he will doe what he will.</HI> God will not doe many things which he can, but he can doe what&s;oever he will, and what&s;oever he will doe, he is ju&s;t and righteous in doing it. And this is the glory of God, to have &s;uch a power, and &s;uch a will. And there being &s;uch a power in God, with &s;uch a will, we need not feare his power. We leave men to their will as little as we can, whom we tru&s;t with much power. When men in power, have nothing but their will to guide them, wee pre&s;ently feare oppre&s;&s;ion and tyranny, and that we &s;hall be farre from leading peaceable and quiet lives under them in all godlines and hone&s;ty, which is the mo&s;t de&s;ireable and ble&s;&s;ed fruit of Magi&s;tracy. Nor is this a pannicke or groundle&s;&s;e feare, &s;eing the will of man is corrupt and &s;infull, &s;elfei&s;h and revenge|full. And who can but feare to be under that power which hath no limits but a corrupt will? But who would feare to be under the power of God, acted by his will, &s;eing he willeth nothing but what is righteous, ju&s;t, and good. What can we expect but right from him, who is righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e? what but good from him (in a good cau&s;e) who is goodnes it &s;elfe, how great or how unlimited &s;oever his power is? If &s;ome men might doe what they would, what evill would they not doe? There's nothing &s;tands between &s;ome men, and the wronging of all men they have to doe with, but the want eyther of power or of opportunity to doe it. The Lord can doe what he will, but he will doe nothing but what is good. He is able to ruine all men, but he will wrong no man, no not the wor&s;t of men. <HI>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth;</HI> but it is impo&s;&s;ible his &s;oule &s;hould de&s;ire to any thing but what is right.</P>
<PB N="440" REF="234">
<P>La&s;tly, When it is &s;ayd, <HI>What&s;oever his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth,</HI> or more clo&s;e to the Originall, <HI>He de&s;ireth, He doth.</HI> We learne, That,
<Q>It is as ea&s;ie with God to doe a thing, as to de&s;ire to have it done.</Q></P>
<P>All men would doe what their &s;oules de&s;ire, but mo&s;t men de|&s;ire that which they cannot doe; yea though men have a de&s;ire to doe a thing, and a power to doe it al&s;o, yet it is not &s;o &s;oone done as de&s;ired; there mu&s;t be a preparation and the u&s;e of meanes before man can doe what he hath a power to doe; &s;o that though a man hath power proportionable to his de&s;ire, yet he is not pre&s;ently a partaker of his de&s;ire. But God can make his power as &s;peedy as his de&s;ire. He can make the declaration of his will, and the execution of it contiguous. For though many things lie long in the will of God before they are done, and what he willed from eternity is don in time, and the time of doing it be yet a great way off, yet he can doe any thing as &s;oone as will it, and what&s;oever he willeth or de&s;ireth, is, to him, as done already. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.30.) <HI>Thou &s;ende&s;t forth thy Spirit, they are created.</HI> The creation there &s;poken of is providence, for that is a continued creation. The fir&s;t creation was the production of all things out of nothing to that being which they had, but there is another work of creation which is the continuing or renewing of things in their being, and of this he &s;ayth; <HI>Thou &s;ende&s;t forth thy Spirit,</HI> that is, thy power, <HI>they are created, And thou renewe&s;t the face of the earth.</HI> Thou ma|ke&s;t a new world; And thus God makes a new world every yeare, &s;ending forth his Spirit, or quickning power in the raine, and Sun to renew the face of the earth. And as the Lord &s;ends forth his power in providenciall mercies, &s;o in providenciall Judgements. <HI>He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; He toucheth the hils, and they &s;moake</HI> (ver. 32.) A man can &s;oone give a ca&s;t with his eye, &s;o &s;oone can God &s;hake the earth, that is, eyther the whole ma&s;&s;e of the earth, or the inferior &s;ort of men on the earth. When he <HI>looketh,</HI> or ca&s;ts an angry eye upon <HI>the earth it trembleth. He tou|cheth the hils</HI> (that is, the powers and principalities of the world) <HI>and they &s;moake;</HI> If he doe but <HI>touch them they &s;moake,</HI> that is, the dreadfull effects of the power and Jugement of God are vi&s;ible upon them. As &s;oone as the Lord calls, all creatures readily ten|der their &s;ervice. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 105.31. <HI>&amp;</HI> 34.) <HI>He &s;pake, and there
<PB N="441" REF="234"> came divers &s;orts of flies, and lice in all their coa&s;ts.</HI> (ver. 34.) <HI>He &s;pake, and the Locu&s;ts came; and caterpillers, and that without number.</HI> If the Lord &s;peake the word, it is done. God &s;pake the world into this beautie, he did but &s;ay, <HI>Let there be light, and there was light.</HI> And he can &s;peake the world into trouble and confu&s;i|on; He doth but &s;ay, <HI>Let there be darknes, and there is darknes.</HI> It was an high &s;peech of <HI>Cae&s;ar,</HI> who meeting with &s;ome oppo&s;i|tion from that yong noble Roman <HI>Metellus,</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>Let me alone, le&s;t I de&s;troy thee.</HI> And pre&s;ently added; <HI>It is ea&s;ier for me to doe this, then to &s;peake it.</HI> Such was his power, that he could ea&s;ier take away a mans life, then give &s;entence of death again&s;t him. This is mo&s;t true concerning the great God of heaven and earth, there is no more difficultie in his doing of a thing, then in his de|&s;iring and willing it to be done.</P>
<P>The generall truth of this ver&s;e carryeth in it a twofold infe|rence.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Of terrour to the wicked, <HI>God is in one minde,</HI> the &s;ame opinion which he had of their wayes, and per&s;ons heretofore, the &s;ame he hath &s;till. The &s;ame cur&s;es and Judgements which he hath denounced again&s;t them formerly, are in force &s;till. Is it not a terrible thing to incorrigible wicked men, to remember that what the &s;oule of God de&s;ireth, he doth, when his &s;oule de&s;ireth nothing but vengeance and wrath for them. <HI>Therefore tremble before the Lord ye wicked, and be ye &s;ore affraid at the remembrance of his un|changeablenes.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Of abundant comfort to the faithfull and righteous. The mind of God is mercy to them, and he is in this one minde to|wards them, none can turne him. His &s;oule de&s;ireth to doe them good; <HI>And what&s;oever his &s;oule de&s;ireth that he doth.</HI> What can Saints de&s;ire more, then that God &s;hould doe all that for them which he de&s;ireth? and all that he will a&s;&s;uredly doe. <HI>Therefore rejoyce in the Lord ye righteous, and give thankes at the remem|brance of his unchangeablenes.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="23" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="442" REF="235">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 23. Ver&s;. 14, 15, 16, 17.</HI></BIBL>
<P>For he performeth the thing that is appoynted for mee: and many &s;uch things are with him.</P>
<P>Therefore I am troubled at his pre&s;ence: when I con&s;ider, I am afraid of him.</P>
<P>For God maketh my heart &s;oft, and the Almighty trou|bleth mee:</P>
<P>Becau&s;e I was not cut off before the darkne&s;&s;e, neither hath he covered the darkne&s;&s;e from my face.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the former ver&s;e <HI>Job</HI> exalteth God, fir&s;t, in his unchangea|blenes, <HI>He is in one minde, who can turne him?</HI> Secondly, in his Almightines, <HI>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth.</HI> In the 14^t^h ver. he &s;peaks of God in reference to his per&s;onal experience, and brings downe the generall propo&s;ition to his owne particular ca&s;e. As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>I indeed have found, that what his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth, mine owne &s;ad experience proves and beares witnes to this truth, my pre&s;ent &s;tate makes the Comment of this text; for he performeth the thing that is appoynted for mee.</HI></P>
<DIV3 N="14" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL>Ver&s;. 14.</BIBL> <HI>Hee performeth.</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> in pri|maria &s;ignifica|tione, denotat, implere, finire, deinde in pace e&s;&s;e; etiam &s;ol|vere, compen&s;a|re. <HI>Pined.</HI></NOTE>The word hath various tran&s;lations, but all are well &s;umm'd up in this, <HI>Hee performeth.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, It &s;ignifies to pay; payment is performance, therefore the &s;ame word is u&s;ed both for performing and paying.</P>
<P>Secondly, The word &s;ignifies, <HI>to be at peace;</HI> and this agrees well with the former, becau&s;e he that performeth and payeth ac|cording to his word, hath peace, both in him&s;elfe and with other men. An hone&s;t pay-ma&s;ter &s;its downe in peace, and prevents his owne trouble. But to the matter; <HI>He</HI> (that is, <HI>God) performeth</HI>
<Q>The thing that is appoynted for mee.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> quia reddet &s;tatutum me|um. <HI>Mont.</HI></NOTE>'Tis the &s;ame word which we had at the 12^t^h ver&s;e of this Chapter, <HI>I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more rhen my ne|ce&s;&s;ary, or my appoynted food.</HI> Here wee render it, <HI>the thing that is
<PB N="443" REF="235"> appoynted for mee.</HI> The word is often u&s;ed in the 119 <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> and &s;ignifieth any Ordinance, Law, Statute, or Decree, whether divine or humane, for all the&s;e are the appoyntments, eyther of God or man, about things to be done, or forborne. And as God makes appoyntments of things which he would have us doe, &s;o of &s;uch things as him&s;elfe will doe to, or concerning us.</P>
<P>Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates it here, as we doe at the 12^t^h ver&s;e, implying <HI>nece&s;&s;ary food,</HI> or <HI>the provi&s;ions of this life. Becau&s;e he fur|ni&s;hed mee with my dayly bread.</HI> That which wee render, <HI>the thing that is appoynted for mee,</HI> he renders, <HI>my dayly bread.</HI></P>
<P>Another, learned in that language,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Perfecit nece&s;|&s;aria mea. <HI>Va|tab: i. e.</HI> perfe|cit quicquid mi|hi erat opus, ip&s;e corporis mei ar|tifex &amp; omni|um quae in me &s;unt.</NOTE> agrees in the &s;ame &s;ence and varyes very little in words; <HI>Hee hath performed, or accompli&s;hed tho&s;e things which were nece&s;&s;ary for mee, or all tho&s;e things which I &s;tand in need of.</HI> He who &s;et up this frame of my body, and hath given mee this life, hath admini&s;ter'd all things needfull for the upholding of this body, and for the maintaining of this life. And &s;o, the words carry <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;ence or acknowledgement of the fatherly care and kindnes of God towards him. <HI>What his &s;oule de&s;ireth, even that he doth, for hee furni&s;heth mee with dayly bread, and hee performeth what is nece&s;&s;ary for me, or &s;upplyeth all my wants.</HI> According to which &s;ence M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders the &s;econd part of the ver&s;e al&s;o; <HI>And many &s;uch graces are with him.</HI> Thus <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake at the 10^t^h Chapter, <HI>ver.</HI> 8.12. <HI>Thy hands have made mee and fa&s;hioned me together round about. Thou ha&s;t granted me life and favour, and thy vi&s;itation hath pre&s;erved my &s;pirit.</HI> So that the minde of the&s;e tran&s;laters &s;eemes to be this, That <HI>Job</HI> would &s;et forth the unchangeablenes of Gods decree in giving him his ap|poynted comforts, as well as &s;orrows.</P>
<P>Yet rather by this appoyntment (or the thing which God had appoynted him) wee are to under&s;tand (as I conceive) his affli|ctions onely and his &s;orrow; As if he had &s;aid;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quicquid deme decrevit ab&s;ol|vet, &s;ive in bo|num &s;ive in ma|lum. <HI>Merc:</HI> Non me mi&s;&s;um faciet, donea impleverit, quae in &s;tatuit. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>I finde that God will doe what he hath a minde to doe, how grievous &s;oever it be eyther to the minde or fle&s;h of man: for he performeth the thing that hee hath appoynted for mee; hee hath appoynted me to &s;orrow, and I have had &s;orrow and trouble &s;tore; And he will not di&s;mi&s;&s;e me or let mee goe out of his hand, till he hath performed every title of what he hath appoynted for my portion of &s;orrow and &s;uffering in this world.</HI> And to &s;hew how much he was a&s;&s;ured of this, He &s;peakes in the pre|&s;ent ten&s;e; <HI>Not he will performe, but he performeth,</HI> &amp;c. As if he
<PB N="444" REF="236"> had &s;ayd; He will as &s;urely doe it, as if he were now a doing it.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That God will certainly performe all his appoyntments con|cerning man; He is able to doe it, and he will doe it.</Q>
<P>This poynt was largely in&s;i&s;ted upon from tho&s;e words of the former ver&s;e; <HI>He is in minde, who can turne him?</HI> God doth what he hath a minde to doe, therefore I &s;hall not here &s;tay to &s;hew the certainty of Gods performing what he hath appoynted, but to &s;hew the appoyntment of all things which he performeth. Take the ob&s;ervation thus formed.</P>
<Q>What&s;oever God performeth, or doth to any man, was before ap|poynted, or decreed for, or concerning him.</Q>
<P>All the workes of God in time, were his decrees before time, hee performeth the thing that is appoynted, and appoynted by him&s;elfe, and his appoyntments are as him&s;elfe is from everla&s;ting. What&s;oever God doth, we finde it under an appoyntment.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, and e&s;pecially, as to (the bui&s;ines in hand) the afflictions and &s;uffering of his &s;ervants; All their &s;ufferings are under an ap|poyntment. (<HI>Micah</HI> 6.9) <HI>The Lords voyce cryeth unto the City, and the man of wi&s;dome &s;hall &s;ee thy name, heare ye the rod, and who hath appoynted it.</HI> As if he had &s;aid; your &s;elves by your &s;ins are the procurers of it; we the Prophets are onely the reporters and publi&s;hers of it; But God him&s;elfe is the appoynter of it. As pub|lique and national rods, &s;o private or per&s;onall rods are appoyn|ted; And as often as we feele their &s;mart, we &s;hould con&s;ider their appoyntment. The Apo&s;tle (1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 3.3.) moves the Saints to a &s;teadines of &s;pirit under affliction upon this ground, <HI>that no man &s;hould be moved by the&s;e afflictions</HI> (he doth not mean that wee &s;hould be without &s;en&s;e of our afflictions, &s;troakes, and &s;ufferings, but his meaning is, that we &s;hould neither be moved by impatience under them, to murmure at them, nor be moved by undue feares to faint in them, why?) <HI>for your &s;elves know that wee are appoyn|ted thereunto.</HI> The afflictions are appoynted to us, and wee are appoynted to them, and <HI>your &s;elves know it.</HI> This doctrine hath been publi&s;hed to you, that afflictions are under a divine appoynt|ment, that there is a decree of God about them. And that, Fir&s;t, as to the matter, of what &s;ort the affliction &s;hall be; &s;econdly, as
<PB N="445" REF="236"> to the mea&s;ure or degree; how great the affliction &s;hall be. Thirdly, the appoyntment reaches the &s;ea&s;on, and that twofold. Fir&s;t, when the affliction &s;hall begin, and &s;econdly, how long it &s;hall continue; every thing, in affliction, is under an appoynt|ment.</P>
<P>Secondly, As our afflictions, &s;o al&s;o our comforts are under an appoyntment. As the Lord hath appoynted the Gall, &s;o the honey of our cup, as the cold and winter, &s;o the warme and &s;um|mer &s;ea&s;ons of our lives. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 61.2, 3.) <HI>The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, becau&s;e the Lord hath annoynted me to preach good tidings to the meeke</HI> &amp;c. <HI>To proclaime the acceptable yeare of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all that mourne; to appoynt unto them that mourne in Sion</HI> (and this ap|poyntment, in execution, is <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> fullfilling of the fir&s;t appoyntment by decree, <HI>to appoynt unto them t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> mourne in Sion) to give unto them beauty for a&s;hes, the oyle of Joy fo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> mourning, the garment of prai&s;e for the &s;pirit of heavines.</HI> And as our &s;pirituall comforts, &s;o our temporall, our outward &s;alvations and protections are under an appoyntment. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 26.1.) <HI>Salvation &s;hall God appoynt for walls and bulwarkes.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, As the wall of protection is &s;et up, &s;o the &s;word and all other in&s;truments of de&s;truction are &s;ent out by appoyntment. (<HI>Jer.</HI> 15.3.) <HI>I will appoynt over them foure kindes, &s;aith the Lord, the &s;word to &s;lay, and the doggs to teare, and the fowles of heaven, and the Bea&s;ts of the Earth to devoure and de&s;troy.</HI> And as the de|&s;troying &s;word, &s;o the place whether the &s;word &s;hall goe to de|&s;troy is under an appoyntment. When the que&s;tion is put (<HI>Jer.</HI> 47.6.) <HI>O thou &s;word of the Lord, how long will it be ere thou be quiet? put up thy &s;elfe into thy &s;cabbard, re&s;t and be &s;till;</HI> The an&s;wer is made (<HI>ver.</HI> 7.) <HI>How can it be quiet, &s;eing the Lord hath given it a Charge again&s;t Askelon, and again&s;t the Sea-&s;hore, there hee hath appoynted it.</HI> He hath appoynted this place, this ground, this Coun|try, this Citie, this &s;hoare for the &s;word; and the &s;word being un|der an appoyntment, mu&s;t doe as it is appoynted. If wee look all the Scripture over, wee &s;hall finde all things under an appoynt|ment; As fir&s;t our children are appoynted; when <HI>Adam</HI> had another Son, his wife <HI>Eve</HI> &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 4.25.) <HI>God hath appoynted mee another &s;eed in &s;tead of Abel, whom Cain &s;lew.</HI> Secondly, our wives are appoynted. When <HI>Abrahams</HI> &s;ervant was &s;ent by him
<PB N="446" REF="237"> to <HI>Me&s;opotamia</HI> for a wife for <HI>I&s;aac,</HI> he &s;aith, <HI>If the woman come whom thou ha&s;t appoynted to be wife to my Ma&s;ter Son,</HI> &amp;c. That this woman rather then any other &s;hould be his Ma&s;ters &s;ons wife, was (he knew) by the appoyntment of God (<HI>Gen.</HI> 24.14.44.) Thirdly, All our Times are appoynted by God. (<HI>Exod.</HI> 9.5.) <HI>My times are in thy hand</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 31.15.) Fourthly, not onely things that are or exi&s;t, but things that as yet are not, come under an appoyntment. What &s;hall be is as certaine to God, as what already is. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 44.7.) <HI>And who as I, &s;hall call, and &s;hall declare it, and &s;et it in order for me, &s;ince I appoynted the antient peo|ple? And the things that are coming, and &s;hall come?</HI> The antient who have been long and &s;till are, were appoynted by me, and the things which are not but &s;hall be in a continued &s;ucce&s;&s;ion, like Linkes of a Chaine holding one in another, are appoynted by me. The things that <HI>are coming</HI> (or that are neere the birth) and <HI>&s;hall come</HI> (things afarre off) all that is to be done, as well as all that hath been done, is under an appoyntment. Fifthly, as all the pa&s;&s;a|ges of our lives, &s;o death it &s;elfe is under an appoyntment (<HI>Heb.</HI> 13.27.) <HI>It is appoynted for all men once to dye.</HI> And as death is ap|poynted, &s;o the &s;ea&s;on or the when of it is appoynted. (<HI>Job</HI> 7.1.) <HI>Is there not an appoynted time to man?</HI> Againe (<HI>Job</HI> 14.5.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t appoynted his bounds that he cannot pa&s;s.</HI> Sixthly, as the dayes of man, &s;o <HI>The day of the Lord,</HI> the day of Judgement, is under an appoyntment. (<HI>Act.</HI> 17.31.). <HI>Becau&s;e he hath appoynted a day wherein he will Judge the world in righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e by that man whom he hath ordained;</HI> the time is fixt, he hath appoynted a day, a day of Judgement. When the appoynted day &s;hall be is a &s;ecret, but, that he hath appoynted a day is revealed, and that he hath ap|poynted all the motions and changes that are coming upon the world, till that day come. So then</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Wee are not governed by blinde fortune.</HI> Nor</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>By a Stoicall Fate.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>But by a divine appoyntment.</HI></P>
<P>Further, The appoyntment of God determineth, fir&s;t, the end; &s;econdly, the meanes leading to and promoting the attainement of the end. La&s;tly, as God appoynteth Great things, &s;o the lea&s;t, <HI>A &s;parrow falls not to the ground without him,</HI> that is, without his appoyntment, or without an order from heaven, yea <HI>the haires of our head are all numbred</HI> (Math. 10.29, 30.)</P>
<PB N="447" REF="237">
<P>This truth well dige&s;ted is enough not onely to &s;upercede and &s;top all the undue feares, but to e&s;tabli&s;h the comforts of all the people of God. What can be better for us, then that all things are in &s;o good a hand, that they are appoynted and mea&s;ured out by God, that he cuts out our condition for us, that he formes and frames our &s;tate for us. It hath been &s;aid, <HI>Every man is the fa&s;hio|ner of his owne Condition,</HI> there is &s;ome truth in that, mens condi|tions are much according to their actings; but God is the &s;u|preame fa&s;hioner and orderer of every mans &s;tate and portion. The portion of the wicked is &s;et out by God (<HI>Job</HI> 20.29.) <HI>This is the heritage of the wicked, and the portion appoynted to him of God.</HI> Theirs is indeed a &s;ad portion, but it is a ju&s;t and a de&s;erved one. He al&s;o fa&s;hions and cuts out a portion for his owne people; And though theirs is often for the pre&s;ent a bitter one, and &s;o de&s;erved by them, yet he alwayes makes it a good one to them, and hath prepared a better for them, which they have not at all de&s;erved. <HI>Hee performeth the thing that is appoynted for me:</HI>
<Q>And many &s;uch things are with him.</Q></P>
<P>Some expound this of the paralel dealings of God with other per&s;ons; <HI>Hee performeth the thing that is appoynted for mee,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec multitudo refertur ad &s;i|milia exempla hominum quos deus &s;imiliter exercet &s;ive ex|e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">cere po&s;&s;it &s;i velit. Non uni|cum (inquit) ego &s;um exem|plum hujus li|berae dei pote|&s;ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">is.</NOTE> <HI>and many &s;uch things are with him;</HI> That is, I am not the onely In|&s;tance, or example of this; God doth the like al&s;o to others, my ca&s;e is not &s;ingular, I am not alone in the thing, God hath not appoynted a portion for mee onely, and performed it according|ly to mee; no, he doth many &s;uch like things; yea what&s;oever hee doth with, or concerning any el&s;e, it is by appoyntment and ac|cording to the determinate purpo&s;e of his owne will: <HI>Many &s;uch things are with him.</HI></P>
<P>But, &s;econdly, I conceive that wee may rather expound the&s;e words <HI>(many &s;uch things)</HI> of &s;uch things as <HI>Job</HI> had already &s;uf|fered; As if he had &s;ayd, The Lord bath <HI>performed the thing that hee hath appoynted for mee;</HI> hetherto (I have had my portion of trouble and &s;orrow unto this day) and <HI>I am like to have more;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum jam me quibus voluerit tormentis affli|gerit, &amp; alia ad huc quanta voluerit mihi infligere pote|rit. <HI>Hieron:</HI></NOTE> <HI>I doe not yet perceive that God hath done with mee;</HI> for as our com|forts, and the provi&s;ions of this, &s;o our afflictions and the &s;orrows of this life, are, or may be renewed or returned upon us every day. Our bread is called (in that prayer which Chri&s;t taught his Di&s;|ciples) <HI>dayly bread,</HI> that is, the bread that is brought out to us
<PB N="448" REF="238"> every day; And when we have received our bread for one day, wee may &s;ay,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mulia jam pa&s;|&s;uis &s;um, ta<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">en &s;i aliud voluerit anima ejus fiet. <HI>Phil:</HI> Videtur &s;e pa|tienti&s;&s;im&egrave; com+para<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e ad nova flagella.</NOTE> <HI>many &s;uch things are with him,</HI> that is, hee hath bread enough for us for to morrow, and for next day, for this yeare and for the next, for all the dayes and yeares of our lives, <HI>many &s;uch things are with him;</HI> So, when we have &s;uffered and been troubled this day, we may &s;ay, hee hath other &s;ufferings and troubles for us again&s;t next day, when the&s;e are gone and blowne over; this I &s;uppo&s;e is the thing that <HI>Job</HI> aymes at; &s;o that he &s;eemes to prepare him&s;elfe for new rods, and to &s;ay, in the &s;weete&s;t and humble&s;t compo&s;ure of a meek and quiet &s;pirit, <HI>It is the Lord, let him doe with me, what &s;eemeth good in his owne eyes. All that God hath performed to me-wards hee hath appoynted for mee, yet I am not of opinion that God hath &s;pent all his appoyntments upon mee; &s;urely hee hath not drawne his quiver dry, hee hath yet more ar|rowes to &s;hoot at my poore already wounded and bleeding brea&s;t. My heart mi&s;gives or rather gives me, that he hath not yet &s;hewed me all the troubles which he hath appoynted for the tryall of my graces, for the exerci&s;e of my patience, and for the purging out of my corrup|tions. For many &s;uch things are with him.</HI> And this wee may take two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In reference to the power of God; hee can doe many &s;uch things as the&s;e, he can doe what he hath done, his arme is not &s;hortned.</P>
<P>Secondly, In reference to his owne de&s;ervings; many &s;ins are with me; and therefore I have rea&s;on enough to &s;u&s;pect, that ma|ny more &s;orrowes are appoynted for mee. I may need more hum|bling and refining, and therefore it is like I &s;hall have it, and that another furnace is heating for me. In how holy a frame was the &s;pirit of this good man! He ju&s;tifieth God in all that he had done, and he was ready to &s;ubmit (though it made his fle&s;h feare and tremble at the thought of it, as he confe&s;&s;eth it did in the next ver&s;e; yet I &s;ay, he was ready to &s;ubmit) to what&s;oever God would yet doe, knowing that he could, and being much per&s;waded that he would doe much and many things more then he had done yet. For (&s;aith he) <HI>Many &s;uch things are with him.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>God hath variety of wayes to exerci&s;e and cha&s;ten his in.</HI></P>
<P>As hee hath more then one Ble&s;&s;ing, &s;o he hath more then one
<PB N="449" REF="238"> Cha&s;tening; as he hath many Comforts, &s;o he hath many &s;orrowes ready at his hand; as hee is <HI>the God of all Con&s;olation,</HI> &s;o hee is the God al&s;o of all tribulation; and as hee can make all Con&s;olation to abound, &s;o hee can make all tribulation to abound; <HI>many &s;uch things are with him.</HI> When you have &s;uffered one affliction, doe not thinke that you have &s;uffered all, there may be a &s;econd at hand. They are u&s;ually <HI>twin-borne,</HI> and &s;ometimes we may &s;ay (as <HI>Leah</HI> in another ca&s;e, <HI>Gen.</HI> 30.11.) <HI>A troupe cometh.</HI> Troubles come by Troupes. We read the Lord threatning his antient peo|ple the <HI>Jewes</HI> after great &s;ufferings, and Judgements had been upon them, with a &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of new Judgements. The whole twenty eight Chapter of <HI>Deuteronomie</HI> is but a continued de&s;cription of that variety both of ble&s;&s;ings and cur&s;es which God hath at hand &s;tored up in his Trea&s;ures. Read how various his Judgements are (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 8.37. 2 <HI>Chron.</HI> 6.28.) <HI>I will puni&s;h you yet &s;eaven times more for your &s;ins</HI> (Lev: 26.18.24.) And that <HI>&s;eaven times more</HI> may be under&s;tood; Fir&s;t, in reference to the variety of their pu|ni&s;hments, you &s;hall have &s;eaven kindes of puni&s;hments more then you had; &s;econdly, in reference to the degrees of their puni&s;h|ment; I will make them &s;eaven times greater then they were. As <HI>Nebuchadnezar</HI> commanded the fiery furnace to be heated &s;eaven times hotter; &s;o the Lord can command the furnace to be heated &s;eaven times hotter: And as the Lord can cha&s;ten and afflict his people &s;eaven times more both in kinde and degree, &s;o they may need &s;eaven &s;orts of afflictions more, and a furnace heated &s;eaven times more then formerly, eyther for the purging out of their &s;ins, or for the exerci&s;e and proofe of their Graces. For though the Lord hath a great variety of afflictions at his command, yet he never layeth any one of them upon us, but when there is need. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> gives us a&s;&s;urance of this from God (1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 1.6.) For having &s;aid, that Saints are <HI>kept by the power of God through faith unto &s;alvation, wherein they greatly rejoyce,</HI> he pre&s;ently adds, <HI>though now for a &s;ea&s;on (if need be) ye are in heavine&s;&s;e through ma|nifold temptations.</HI> Wee &s;ee the temptations wherewith the Lord exerci&s;eth the heires of heaven here on earth, are many, yet they never feele the&s;e but when <HI>need is;</HI> And many have as much need of the rod for their &s;pirituall e&s;tate, as they have of bread for their naturall. <HI>Many &s;uch things are with him.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Note.</P>
<Q><PB N="450" REF="239">Wee de&s;erve more and &s;orer afflictions then God hath yet layed upon any of us.</Q>
<P>They who &s;in lea&s;t &s;uffer le&s;&s;e then their &s;in, how much &s;oever they &s;uffer here. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103.10.) <HI>Hee hath not dealt with us af|ter our &s;ins, nor rewarded us according to our iniquities, &s;o great is his mercy to them that feare him.</HI> The Text is to be under&s;tood of them that feare God: <HI>Hee hath not dealt with us after our &s;ins,</HI> that is, in proportion to our &s;ins, nor <HI>rewarded us according to our iniquities,</HI> that is, wee have not had that mea&s;ure of trouble which an&s;wers the mea&s;ure of our iniquities. <HI>Ezra</HI> made humble con|fe&s;&s;ion of this in the name of the Jewi&s;h Church (<HI>Ezra.</HI> 9.13.) <HI>And after all that is come upon us,</HI> (much is come upon us) <HI>for our evill deeds,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non &s;unt con|dignae pa&s;&s;iones hujus vitae <HI>1</HI> ad praeteritam culpam quae re|mitti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ur. <HI>2</HI> ad prae&s;entem con&s;olationis gratiam quae immittitur. <HI>3</HI> ad futuram gloriam quae promittitur. Punit deus in|tra condignum, &amp; retribuit bona ultra con|dignum.</NOTE> <HI>and for our great tre&s;pa&s;&s;e, &s;eing that thou our God ha&s;t puni&s;hed us le&s;&s;e then our &s;ins de&s;erve,</HI> &amp;c. Their puni&s;hment was great, yet le&s;&s;e then their iniquities. As all the afflictions and mi&s;eries of this life are le&s;&s;e then the glory that is promi&s;ed (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.18.) <HI>I count that the &s;ufferings of this pre&s;ent life are not wor|thy to be compared to the glory that &s;hall be revealed;</HI> So all the &s;uf|ferings of this life are not to be compared with the de&s;erts of the lea&s;t &s;in committed by us, nor with the lea&s;t comfort of the Spirit which is given to us. As the good things which God be&s;tows upon us are above and beyond any worthines of ours, &s;o the evills with which he cha&s;tneth his children, yea or puni&s;heth the wor&s;t of wicked men in this life, are below and on this &s;ide what they are worthy to receave.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="15" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 15.</HI></BIBL> Therefore am I troubled at his pre&s;ence, when I con&s;i|der him I am afraid of him, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>This and the next ver&s;e expre&s;&s;e the &s;tate of <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;pirit upon the former di&s;covery, or how he was affected with this thing, that <HI>many &s;uch things were with God.</HI> I have often met with other pa&s;&s;ages in this booke which have a neernes of &s;ignification with the&s;e words, and therefore I &s;hall with the more &s;peed pa&s;s thorow them, and part with them.</P>
<Q>Therefore am I troubled at his pre&s;ence.</Q>
<P>The words (probably) are an an&s;wer to an objection; for his
<PB N="451" REF="239"> friends had charged him with feare and trouble of &s;pirit at the pre|&s;ence of God upon another account, even becau&s;e of the guilti|nes of his con&s;cience, or becau&s;e of his great wickednes. So (<HI>Chap.</HI> 22. <HI>v.</HI> 10.) <HI>Eliphaz</HI> having &s;hewed him his &s;in, <HI>thou ha&s;t &s;ent the widdow empty away, the armes of the fatherles have been broken,</HI> pre&s;ently adds the &s;ad effects which were upon him; <HI>therefore &s;ud|dain feare troubleth thee, and &s;nares are round about thee;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, thou ha&s;t been very wicked in thy actions, and therefore thou art &s;o unquiet in thy &s;pirit; Thou ha&s;t been uncharitable and injurious to men; <HI>therefore thou art troubled at the pre&s;ence of God.</HI> No, &s;aith <HI>Job,</HI> my trouble of &s;pirit doth not ari&s;e from my guilt (though I have &s;in and iniquity enough about mee, to de|&s;erve greater Cha&s;tenings then the&s;e which are upon me) but the cau&s;e of my trouble ari&s;eth from the knowledge and apprehen&s;i|ons which I have of God, who <HI>is in one minde,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quia ita potens e&s;t, ut ab&s;olut&egrave; quicquid libet faciet, &amp; hac pote&s;tate nunc in me utitur. <HI>Merc:</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> turbare accelerare.</NOTE> <HI>and who can turne him? hee performeth the thing that is appoynted for mee; and many &s;uch things are with him.</HI> This is the &s;pring and ground of my trouble: I am troubled both with the feeling of my pre&s;ent cala|mities, and with the feare of greater.</P>
<P>The word &s;ignifies both <HI>to make ha&s;te,</HI> and <HI>to trouble,</HI> the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e, as &s;ome &s;ay, trouble makes ha&s;t, <HI>ill newes comes apace;</HI> or, &s;econdly, becau&s;e wee are very ha&s;ty to get out of trouble; and u&s;ually over-ha&s;ty; he that is in trouble would faine be out of it; no man loves to &s;ticke in &s;uch a condition: therefore the &s;ame word in the Hebrew elegantly &s;ignifies both to make ha&s;t, and to trouble. And hence one of the Ancients tran&s;lates, <HI>Therefore have I ha&s;tened to his pre&s;ence.</HI> Expounding it thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Propterea ad eum fe&s;tinavi. quod ip&s;e expo|nit. Quia me tribulavit ideo relictis tempo|ralibus ad eum fe&s;tinavi. <HI>Augu&s;t.</HI></NOTE> <HI>Becau&s;e he hath thus afflicted mee, therefore leaving all the world, I make ha&s;t to him, I throw my &s;elfe upon him, and leave my cau&s;e to him;</HI> that's a good &s;ence, and very &s;pirituall; For the Saints being afflicted, make ha&s;t to God, becau&s;e he is their father, and becau&s;e hee alone is able to be their deliverer; who would not make ha&s;t to God upon &s;uch an intere&s;t? A wicked man turnes from God by &s;inning again&s;t him, and he runs away from God afflicting him. He that delights in &s;in, cannot delight in God, who is the avenger of &s;in. But af|flictions draw Saints neerer to God, <HI>therefore have I ha&s;tened</HI> (&s;aith that tran&s;lation) <HI>into his pre&s;ence.</HI> But wee have rendered it (as I conceave) better to the Intendment of this place.</P>
<Q><PB N="452" REF="240">Therefore am I troubled at his pre&s;ence.</Q>
<P>The letter is, <HI>at his face,</HI> or <HI>becau&s;e of him;</HI> that is, for feare of him.</P>
<Q>Therefore am I troubled.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> was troubled upon a twofold account.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Sen&s;u flagello|rum prae&s;enti|um, mutu fu|rorum. <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t, With the paine and &s;mart of his then pre&s;ent &s;ufferings.</P>
<P>Secondly, With feare of further or future &s;ufferings. <HI>I am trou|bled at his pre&s;ence.</HI></P>
<P>The pre&s;ence of God is mo&s;t de&s;ireable; what is it that Saints wi&s;h and rejoyce in comparatively to the pre&s;ence of God? <HI>My &s;oule thir&s;teth for God; when &s;hall I come and appeare before God?</HI> &s;aith <HI>David,</HI> (P&s;al. 42.2.) How greedy was he of the pre&s;ence of God? how did he (as it were) tell the clocks, and count every houre a day, every day a yeare, till he was re&s;tored to it. And in another place, how earne&s;tly doth he deprecate his bani&s;hment from the face of God, as the &s;ore&s;t puni&s;hment, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 51.11.) <HI>Ca&s;t me not away from thy pre&s;ence.</HI> Yet here <HI>Job</HI> confe&s;&s;eth, <HI>I am troubled at his pre&s;ence.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>God can ea&s;ily vary the appearances of him&s;elfe to us.</Q>
<P>He can di&s;cover him&s;elfe &s;o to us, as that his pre&s;ence &s;hall be better to us then life, better to us then ten thou&s;and of the&s;e lower worlds, or as the heaven of this lower world, yea as the onely fe|licity of that heaven which is above. What is heaven, but this pre|&s;ence of God. <HI>Thou wilt &s;hew me the path of life; In thy pre&s;ence is fullnes of Joy</HI> (P&s;al. 16.11.) Thus God can make him&s;elfe knowne with a delightfull pre&s;ence, yet he can make him&s;elfe knowne, and often doth, even to his owne, with a dreadfull and an amazing pre&s;ence. God in whom there is no variablenes, nor &s;hadow of turning, can vary the demon&s;trations of him&s;elfe to us, as much as light varieth from darkne&s;&s;e, or life from the &s;hadow of death. God hath a light &s;ide, and a darke &s;ide as to manife&s;ta|tion, though in him&s;elfe he is light, and in him there is no darknes at all. Sometimes his pre&s;ence is &s;weetnes and joy, even joy un|&s;peakeable and glorious; at other times, his pre&s;ence is bitternes and &s;orrow, even &s;orrow un&s;peakeably grievous. There is nothing
<PB N="453" REF="240"> &s;o dreadfull to wicked men at any time as the pre&s;ence of God. As it hath been their wretched care to hide their &s;ins from God as much as they could, &s;o they would count it their happines to have their per&s;ons hid for ever from the pre&s;ence of God. That which is both the &s;in and trouble of the wicked at all times, is the trouble, if not the &s;in of &s;ome godly men at &s;ometimes, namely, the pre&s;ence of God, not in it &s;elfe, but with re&s;pect to the man|ner of his manife&s;ting him&s;elfe to them, and dealing with them. As will appeare further in the next clau&s;e of this ver&s;e. <HI>I am trou|bled at his pre&s;ence,</HI>
<Q>When I con&s;ider I am afraid.</Q></P>
<P>As if he had &s;ayd,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum diligentius con&s;idero ejus tantam potenti|am, cujus nunc in me &s;pecimen vides, noe po&s;|&s;um quin expa|ve&s;cam, non quid in me, &s;it iniquitas, &s;ed ne deinceps pergat &s;ua potentia me affligere. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>When I &s;eriou&s;ly weigh and have deep thoughts in my minde, when I &s;et my under&s;tanding throughly on work to con|&s;ider the &s;everity of Gods proceedings with me, and when I remember the wormewood and the gall, tho&s;e bitter ta&s;ts and &s;ad experiences which I have had already of his dreadfull power, then I am afraid.</HI> And this feare ari&s;eth not from the guilt or accu&s;ations of my own con&s;cience, but le&s;t the Lord &s;hould againe act and put forth that his terrible power upon me.</P>
<P>But what feare is here meant? or how was <HI>Job</HI> afraid upon the taking up of this con&s;ideration? I an&s;wer,</P>
<P>There is fir&s;t, a pure filial or &s;on-like feare, when wee are afraid to &s;in again&s;t and di&s;plea&s;e our father. This feare is a &s;peciall grace promi&s;ed in the new Covenant, and the beginning of wi&s;|dome.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a pure &s;lavi&s;h feare, when wee dread God as a Judge, and revenger. This feare is the i&s;&s;ue of the Covenant of workes, and the beginning of &s;orrow.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There is a mixt feare, not a pure filial, nor a pure &s;la|vi&s;h feare, but with a mixture or ingrediency of both. Such I conceive the feare of <HI>Job</HI> was; his was a mixt feare; it had &s;ome tang of &s;lavery in it, and it had &s;ome touch of Son-&s;hip in it; there was much of the &s;pirit of Bondage in it; and &s;omething of the Spi|rit of Adoption in it. With the former feare many good men have been much exerci&s;ed in all ages, e&s;pecially before Chri&s;t came in the fle&s;h, and the clearer breaking and beaming out of Go&s;pel light, (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.15.) <HI>Yee have not received the &s;pirit of bondage to feare againe.</HI> And (<HI>Job.</HI> 14.27.) <HI>Let not your hearts be troubled,
<PB N="454" REF="241"> nor be yee afraid;</HI> that is, be not burdened and oppre&s;t with that &s;ervile and &s;lavi&s;h feare which you are &s;ubject to Chri&s;t &s;pake it to his owne Di&s;ciples, for even at that time deep impre&s;&s;ions of that feare were upon them, doubting much what would become of them, when he &s;hould (of which he had told them) leave the world, and be gone from them. And be&s;ides that &s;peciall rea&s;on which the Di&s;ciples then had to feare at that time. This feare u&s;u|ally ari&s;eth from two rea&s;ons, in others, at all times.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, From the Con&s;ideration of their owne weakne&s;&s;e and faylings.</P>
<P>Secondly, From the Con&s;ideration of the Maje&s;ty and great|nes of God; when they Con&s;ider the&s;e things they are afraid. And though Beleevers are freed from the praedominancy of &s;lavi&s;h feare, and are endued with infu&s;ions of true filial feare, yet they are often taken with this mixt feare, as in reference to their owne weaknes, &s;o re&s;pecting the Maje&s;ty of God, with whom they have to doe. <HI>When I Con&s;ider I am afraid of him.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the Maje&s;ty and power of God duely Con&s;idered, are terrible even to his owne people.</Q>
<P>Many men have &s;light thoughts of the great God, they trem|ble not, they feare not; what's the rea&s;on? they Con&s;ider not; <HI>they are careles, and therefore they are fearele&s;&s;e, they are ignorant, and therefore they are confident.</HI> There are none &s;o bold as they who are thus blind. <HI>Who is the Lord</HI> (&s;ayd Hard-hearted <HI>Pharaoh) that I &s;hould obey his voyce, to let I&s;rael goe? I know not the Lord, neyther will I let I&s;rael goe.</HI> That's a &s;ad Confidence that proceeds from ignorance, and a &s;ad fearele&s;nes that hath no ground but carele&s;ne&s;&s;e. I remember what the an&s;wer was of a very Godly man upon his death-bed; who having much trembling upon his &s;pirit at the apprehen&s;ion of the greatnes, Maje&s;ty, and glory of God, it was &s;aid to him by a Godly friend that came to vi&s;it him; <HI>Sir, you have knowne God, and been long acquainted with him, why are you thus full of feare and trembling?</HI> O, &s;aith he, <HI>if I knew God more, I &s;hould tremble more.</HI> If we were but more acquainted with, and did more Con&s;ider of the Infinite greatnes of God, and of our owne di&s;tance from him as creatures, much more as &s;inners, how &s;hould we be &s;wallowed up with divine amazements; &s;o that we
<PB N="455" REF="241"> mu&s;t charge it upon the want of Con&s;ideration, that &s;o many have &s;uch undue and unbecoming thoughts of God, as al&s;o that their thoughts fall &s;o much below both their duty, and their &s;ins: if wee did but Con&s;ider how &s;infull we are, and how holy God is, we &s;hould alwayes &s;erve him with feare, and rejoyce with trem|bling; <HI>When I con&s;ider I am afraid of him. Job</HI> was afraid of him when he con&s;idered him; and &s;o was <HI>A&s;aph</HI> (P&s;al. 77.3.) <HI>In the day of my trouble I &s;ought the Lord, my &s;ore ran in the night and cea&s;ed not, my &s;oule refu&s;ed to be comforted. I remembred God and was troubled, I complained and my &s;pirit was overwhelmed.</HI> Such a remembering of God is not a bare act of the minde, in oppo&s;ition to forgetfulnes, as if <HI>A&s;aph</HI> had &s;ayd, <HI>I remembered God,</HI> that is, <HI>I did not forget him,</HI> but I <HI>remembered God,</HI> that is, I fixed my heart upon him, I minded him fully, or &s;et him fully before my minde: though the rememberance of God is the &s;pring of Comfort to us, and that many wayes, yet an <HI>A&s;aph,</HI> a holy man, The holye&s;t a|mong many men, may be troubled when he remembers God, when he Con&s;iders his glory, greatnes, power, and Maje&s;ty, and him|&s;elfe a poore worme. When the holy Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> &s;aw the Lord (in vi&s;ion) &s;itting upon a throne high and lifted up, and &s;aw the Seraphims covering their faces and their feete, and heard them crying one unto another, and &s;aying, <HI>Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of ho&s;ts, the whole earth is full of his glory.</HI> Then he &s;ayd; <HI>Woe is mee for I am undone, becau&s;e I am a man of uncleane lips,</HI> &amp;c. What a concu&s;&s;ion was there upon his &s;pirit upon the meeting of the&s;e two vi&s;ions; fir&s;t, that of the holines of God; &s;econdly, that of his own uncleanenes, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 6.1, 2, 3, 4, 5.) <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> who had &s;uch intimacy with and acce&s;&s;e unto God, is yet de&s;cribed trembling at his giving the Law (<HI>Heb.</HI> 12.21.) <HI>And &s;o terrible was the &s;ight, that Mo&s;es &s;aid, I am exceedingly afraid and tremble: Mo&s;es</HI> knew that God was his friend, a God in Covenant with him, yet <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;aid, <HI>I exceedingly feare and quake;</HI> the &s;ight and voyce o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> God is our Ble&s;&s;ednes, yet there may be a trouble&s;ome and a terrible both &s;ight and voyce of God, even <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> was afraid: and &s;o was <HI>Habakkuk</HI> (Chap. 3.16.) <HI>When I heard</HI> (that is, thy &s;peech, <HI>v.</HI> 2.) <HI>my belly trembled, my lips quivered at the voyce, rottennes entred in|to my bones, and I trembled in my &s;elfe,</HI> &amp;c. And at la&s;t wicked men (though now &s;o uncon&s;idering who God is) &s;hall have &s;uch Con&s;iderations of him as &s;hall for ever drowne and &s;wallow them
<PB N="456" REF="242"> up in a deluge of feare: the thoughts of the pre&s;ence of God will be Eternall terror to them, who now are unmoved with the thoughts of his pre&s;ence, or who have not God in all their thoughts. There is a pre&s;ence of God which &s;hall be death to them, who have not lived in a due and awfull con&s;ideration of his pre|&s;ence. Thus the Apo&s;tle de&s;cribes the puni&s;hment of wicked men (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 1.9.) <HI>They &s;hall be puni&s;hed with everla&s;ting de&s;truction from the pre&s;ence of the Lord.</HI> Wee may under&s;tand it two wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, They &s;hall be puni&s;hed by being put from the pre&s;ence of the Lord; That's the puni&s;hment of lo&s;&s;e, they &s;hall be for ever excluded and bani&s;hed from his pre&s;ence. That which was their de&s;ire here, &s;hall be their mi&s;ery hereafter. They who care not for the pre&s;ence of God in this world, &s;hall be everla&s;tingly cur&s;ed with the want of it, in the world which is to come.</P>
<P>Secondly, I rather conceive the meaning of that Text to be this, there &s;hall be a manife&s;tation of the wrathfull pre&s;ence of God to them, and that &s;hall be their puni&s;hment; the pre&s;ence of the Lord is everla&s;ting life, and light, and joy to his owne people; but the pre&s;ence of the Lord &s;hall be terrible and dreadfull, even everla&s;ting de&s;truction to wicked men; they &s;hall at la&s;t Con&s;ider it &s;o much, that they &s;hall feare to purpo&s;e. God will powre out &s;uch a pre&s;ence upon them as they &s;hall be equally unable to hide them&s;elves from or &s;tand before, but mu&s;t lie downe and &s;inke un|der it into the bottomle&s;&s;e gulfe of de&s;paire for evermore. If the Godly are &s;ometimes afraid, where &s;hall the wicked appeare, when God appeares. <HI>When I con&s;ider</HI> (with <HI>Job) I am afraid of him.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="16" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 16.</HI></BIBL> For God maketh my heart &s;oft, and the Almighty troubleth mee.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Nihil opinor ad|dit novi, &s;ed tantum ver&s;icu|lum praeceden|tem exponit. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE>This ver&s;e is neere in &s;ence with the former. <HI>Job</HI> herein further &s;hewing both a rea&s;on why he was afraid of God, as al&s;o the effect which Gods dealing with him had upon his owne heart, or how he was affected with it. For
<Q>God maketh my heart &s;oft.</Q></P>
<P>The word rendred, <HI>to make &s;oft,</HI> &s;ignifies the abateing of the &s;trength of the heart.</P>
<P>But it may be enquired, what was this &s;oft heart which God made him?</P>
<PB N="457" REF="242">
<P>I an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, Negatively, by a &s;oft heart here wee are not to under&s;tand a penitent heart, or a heart broken with Godly &s;or|row at the &s;ight, eyther of &s;in acted or wrath threatned. (2 <HI>Kings</HI> 22.19.) The Lord &s;aith by the Prophet to <HI>Jo&s;iah, Becau&s;e thy heart was tender (&s;oft or melted) and thou ha&s;t humbled thy &s;elfe before the Lord, when thou hearde&s;t what I &s;pake again&s;t this place, therefore</HI> &amp;c. The heart of fle&s;h promi&s;ed and given in the new Covenant, is a relenting and repenting heart (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 36.26.) <HI>I will take away the heart of &s;tone, and give you an heart of fle&s;h;</HI> that is, I will make your heart &s;oft, which before was hard. <HI>Job</HI> had &s;uch a heart, a &s;oft heart in this notion, when he &s;pake thus, but that's not the heart here meant; God had given him that &s;oftnes of heart before; for he is de&s;cribed (<HI>Chap.</HI> 1.1.) <HI>A man that feared God;</HI> and a man that feareth God, is a man of a &s;oft heart. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 28.14.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man that feareth alwayes, but hee that hardneth his heart &s;hall fall into mi&s;chiefe.</HI> Where the hard heart and the feare of God are oppo&s;ed; For where&s;oever the true feare of God is in the heart, that is a &s;oft heart.</P>
<P>Secondly, By a <HI>&s;oft heart,</HI> is not here meant the patient heart; that's a &s;oft heart in Scripture, a heart which is willing to &s;ubmit to and beare the burden that God layes upon it: in this &s;ence God makes the heart &s;oft, when, as he accu&s;tomes his to &s;ufferings, &s;o he fits them to &s;uffer. Man naturally is (like <HI>Ephraim,</HI> Jer. 31.18.) <HI>As a Bullock unaccu&s;tomed to the yoake,</HI> both of active and pa&s;&s;ive obedience. Onely God makes man &s;ubmit his &s;tiff neck and hard heart to a &s;uffering condition, and to an&s;wer the call of his &s;ufferings. <HI>Pharaoh</HI> is &s;ayd to have a <HI>hard heart,</HI> becau&s;e he did not yeeld to what God called him to by Judgements, he had not a patient but an unquiet &s;pirit under the plagues &s;ent upon him, nor did he obey what he was &s;ummoned to by the Lords voyce in tho&s;e terrible plagues. Now, though I grant that an heart made &s;oft in patience is an excellent frame of heart, yet wee cannot under&s;tand it &s;o here; for <HI>Job</HI> had a patient heart, yea he had a|bundance of patience before, as he fully di&s;covered at the very be|ginning and breaking out of his troubles; he did not flinch at the Cro&s;&s;e, but did embrace it. The Apo&s;tle exhorts all Chri&s;tians to <HI>Remember the patience of Job.</HI> And wee mu&s;t apply that Scripture to <HI>Job</HI> before he came to this poynt. Therefore the &s;oftnes of heart intended in this text is &s;omewhat be&s;ides this.</P>
<PB N="458" REF="243">
<P>Thirdly, Much le&s;s are wee to under&s;tand by <HI>a &s;oft heart,</HI> a <HI>fearefull</HI> or <HI>a Cowardly heart;</HI> that's a &s;oft heart indeed, but in a bad &s;ence. Wee have it &s;o expre&s;&s;ed (<HI>Deut.</HI> 20.3.) <HI>Heare &ocirc; I&s;|rael, you approach this day unto Battell again&s;t your Enemies, let not your hearts be faint,</HI> &amp;c. The Hebrew is, <HI>let not your hearts be &s;oft or tender:</HI> a &s;oft heart is not for a &s;word, nor for a battel. How &s;hall they &s;tand in dangers, who are fallen below them? A penitent heart, and a patient heart are proper in dangerous un|dertakings, but a cowardly heart is the greate&s;t di&s;advantage in the world; therefore the Lord commanded this to be proclaimed to his people, <HI>Let not your hearts be tender when yee goe forth again&s;t your Enemies,</HI> or as it is expre&s;t afterward; <HI>Feare not, neither trem|ble, neither be yee terrified becau&s;e of them. Job</HI> had not &s;uch a &s;oft heart, he was no coward when he complained before, <HI>that the ter|rors of the Almighty did encamp again&s;t him as a dreadfull Army,</HI> nor while he &s;ayd here, <HI>God hath made my heart &s;oft.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, A &s;oft heart, is an effeminate, delicate, wanton heart. There are too many who have &s;uch &s;oft hearts. Men that are fit for nothing but what is wor&s;e then nothing, to wallow in the &s;infull delicacies and delights of this pre&s;ent world. The Apo|&s;tle u&s;eth a word (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.9.) which expre&s;&s;eth this fully. Wee render it <HI>effaeminate,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. Molles.</NOTE> but both the Greeke and the Latine is <HI>&s;oft;</HI> that is, per&s;ons wantonly and vainely given. And <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> applyes the very word of <HI>Jobs</HI> text to this kinde of &s;oftnes (<HI>Deut.</HI> 28.56.) <HI>The tender (or &s;oft) and delicate woman, that would not adventure to &s;et the &s;ole of her foote upon the ground for delicatenes and tender|nes, (or &s;oftnes) her eye &s;hall be evill towards</HI> &amp;c. This is not onely a &s;infull &s;oftnes of heart,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Liquefecit af|flictionibus &amp; con&s;ump&s;it. <HI>Merc:</HI> Haec mollitudo pertinet ad ti|morem vehe|mente~ quo quis corde &amp; mente cedit divinae maje&s;tati &amp; po+te&s;tati, cum quis facile recipit cogitationem et metum &s;upernae magnitudinis.</NOTE> but the wor&s;t of &s;infull &s;oftne&s;&s;es. <HI>Jobs</HI> heart was farre from this &s;oftnes. As he was at that time a man of &s;orrows, &s;o he had not been at any time a man of plea&s;ure. But if <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;oft heart were none of the&s;e, what was it then?</P>
<P>I conceive the &s;oft heart proper to this place is, <HI>a heart weake|ned and laid low through the burden of affliction.</HI> A heart &s;o worne out and &s;pent that it can hardly beare any more. God had &s;oftned and even con&s;umed his heart with &s;orrow and affliction. As he abhorred a hardnes of heart to re&s;i&s;t the hand of God, &s;o now he feared that his heart was not hard enough to beare it with that chearefulnes and con&s;tancy of courage which he de&s;iered. Hard things are firme, compact, and knitt together; tho&s;e that are &s;oft,
<PB N="459" REF="243"> are weake and unable to beare any weight. So that <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;oftnes of heart was his weaknes to beare;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Teneritatem &amp; imbecillitatem affert animo meo attendenti ad omnipotentiam ejus. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> And he gives this as an account why he was afraid of the power of God in any new &s;ufferings. <HI>O</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>God hath made my heart &s;oft;</HI> that is, I begin to faint, I finde my &s;elfe drooping, I have not that &s;trength of &s;pirit (and though I am not a coward, yet) I have not that courage, that hard|nes, or hardines of &s;pirit which I have had heretofore. He queried indeed (<HI>Ch.</HI> 6.12.) <HI>Is my &s;trength the &s;trength of &s;tones, or is my fle&s;h bra&s;s?</HI> He had much &s;trength, but not the &s;trength of &s;tones, nor was he hard as bra&s;s. Now he &s;aith plainly, my heart is made &s;oft, it mel|teth like wax at the fire; I am &s;o litle like bra&s;s or &s;tones in &s;trength or hardnes, that I am altogether like wax or water. I am &s;o far from having a minde to &s;trive with, or ri&s;e up again&s;t God, that I know not how to &s;tand before him, if he (which he &s;eems to intend) &s;hould &s;till goe on to afflict me. I am growne weake and unable to beare, yet my burden remaines, and will probably be made yet more hea|vie. This interpretation carrieth a di&s;tinct &s;ence in it, and that which is mo&s;t genuine to the &s;cope of the place. M^r <HI>Broughtons</HI> tran&s;lation of the latter clau&s;e of the ver&s;e, &s;uites this expo&s;ition of the former with much clearenes; <HI>For the Omnipotent hath &s;oftned my heart, and the Almighty hath made me &s;hrinke. Whereas wee &s;ay the Almighty troubleth me,</HI> he &s;aith, <HI>The Almighty hath made me &s;hrinke:</HI> For &s;o a man commonly doth who eyther feares or feeles that which he is not well able to beare.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>The heart of a Godly man, even of the mo&s;t Godly, may be &s;o weake|ned under long continued &s;ufferings, that he may finde him&s;elfe utterly unable to beare them any longer.</Q>
<P>Wicked men labour to &s;trengthen and harden them&s;elves all they can, to beare, in oppo&s;ition to God, and Saints would &s;treng|then and harden them&s;elves all they can to beare in &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion to God. <HI>Pharaoh</HI> hardened his heart to oppo&s;e God &s;triking him; hee had &s;troake after &s;troake, and Judgement after Judgement, yet he would not yeeld; but at la&s;t God made his heart &s;oft in one &s;en&s;e, though hee hardened it in another. God appeared at la&s;t too hard for <HI>Pharaoh,</HI> hee could hold out no longer. And we finde the Lord &s;peaking thus by <HI>Ezekiel</HI> to his people, who (it &s;eemes by the language which God u&s;eth concerning them) had,
<PB N="460" REF="244"> as it were, &s;et them&s;elves with unholy re&s;olutions to &s;tand or ra|ther &s;tout it out with God, and beare the wor&s;t that hee could doe unto them; <HI>But</HI> (&s;aith the Lord, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 22.14.) <HI>can thine heart endure? or can thine hands be &s;trong in the day that I &s;hall deale with thee?</HI> When I deale with thee in wayes of Judgement, when I take thee in hand to puni&s;h and repay thee according to thy workes, can thine heart endure? no! it cannot endure, it &s;hall not be able to endure. The Lord doth not meane it of an endureing with &s;ub|mi&s;&s;ion and patience; So it is the honour of Saints to endure what ever God layes upon them, but to endure with &s;toutnes and re|&s;i&s;tance; art thou able to &s;tand it out, or can thine hand be &s;trong? no, thy heart and hand will be &s;oft and weake, thou wilt not be able to beare it when I come to deale with thee. It is &s;ayd of Chri&s;t by <HI>David</HI> his type (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 22.13.) when hee was under tho&s;e terrible &s;ufferings for our &s;ins, that his heart was made &s;oft (and if it were &s;o with the greene tree, what mu&s;t it be with the dry?) <HI>I am powred out like water, and all my bones are out of joynt: my heart is like wax, it is melted in the mid&s;t of my bowells.</HI> Thus the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t our head (who was al&s;o the Captain of our &s;alvation, and the mighty God) made his heart &s;oft and mel|ted him. His heart was not melted with &s;orrow for his owne &s;in, (for he was without &s;in) but the &s;orrow that was upon him for our &s;ins melted his heart. Who&s;e heart will not melt &amp; grow &s;oft, (that is, unable to beare it) when God layeth his hand heavy and long upon him? Therefore we r<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ad in the Prophet, how the Lord takes notice of this, and conde&s;cends to the weaknes of man (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57.16.) <HI>I will not contend for ever, neither will I be alwayes wroth.</HI> I will not goe onne to doe, as I have done. Why? Whats the rea&s;on of it? not but that God is able to continue his Con|tending, and to carry on his warre, whether with per&s;ons or with Nations for ever; but he hath re&s;pect to the poore Creature; <HI>for</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>I will not doe it, le&s;t the &s;pirit &s;hould faile before mee, and the &s;oules which I have made.</HI> How can &s;oules faile? the &s;oule is an immortall &s;ub&s;tance, and &s;hall not faile for ever. The &s;oules of the damned &s;hall be under everla&s;ting Contendings, and never faile, they &s;hall beare wrath for ever and not faile, yea their bodyes &s;hall not faile, but through the power of God (&s;u&s;taining them under his Ju&s;tice) &s;hall endure everla&s;ting torments. The meaning of that expre&s;&s;ion in the Prophet, is the &s;ame with this in the Text,
<PB N="461" REF="244"> <HI>Their heart will be made &s;oft;</HI> as yet they have &s;trength, faith, and courage to beare the&s;e afflictions, but if I continue them longer, their &s;pirit and &s;trength, their faith and patience will faile, and be &s;o worne out that they will not be able to abide it. <HI>God would not Contend for ever,</HI> le&s;t (as <HI>Job</HI> here complaines) he &s;hould make their hearts &s;oft.</P>
<Q>And the Almighty troubleth mee.</Q>
<P>That is, his pre&s;ence, or his di&s;pen&s;ations trouble me,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deus, in cujus potentia &s;uffici|entia&abque; divitia|rum, &s;olatium meum e&s;&s;e de|bebat, is me privavit omni &s;olatio, &amp; ani|mam meam plane dejecit, de&s;erit me, ter|ret me. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE> wee &s;ee how much the &s;pirit of <HI>Job</HI> was carryed out in the thing; And he u&s;eth a word here that &s;ignifieth the power of God to comfort and refre&s;h, or God in his all&s;ufficiency to comfort, yet (&s;aith he) this <HI>Almighty troubleth mee;</HI> that is, the thoughts or remembrance of him troubleth me. He hath ca&s;t downe and grieved my &s;oule already, and I am much troubled with fearefull apprehen&s;ions of like &s;everities from him againe. The&s;e words, the reader will ea&s;i|ly perceive to be of the &s;ame minde and meaning with the 15^t^h ver&s;e of this Chapter, lately opened, and therefore I &s;hall not &s;tay upon them, but proceed to the la&s;t ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="17" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 17.</HI></BIBL> Becau&s;e I was not cut off before the darknes, neither hath he Covered the darknes from my face.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Here <HI>Job</HI> gives another rea&s;on of his being thus troubled at the pre&s;ence of the Almighty. <HI>It is</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>becau&s;e I was not cut off before the darknes;</HI> or, <HI>becau&s;e I dyed not by thick darknes</HI> (&s;o M^r <HI>Broughton</HI>) we &s;ay, <HI>becau&s;e I was not cut off,</HI> hee, <HI>becau&s;e I dy|ed not;</HI> both meete in the &s;ame meaning. For death is a cutting off, and death will cut off or mow downe the &s;trong, yea the &s;tronge&s;t, as the &s;ith doth eyther corne or gra&s;&s;e. Thus &s;pake <HI>Hezekiah</HI> in his &s;icknes (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 38.10.) <HI>I &s;ayd in the cutting off of my dayes,</HI> that is, when I thought I lay a dying. <HI>Job</HI> was troubled becau&s;e <HI>he was not cut off.</HI></P>
<Q>Before the darknes, <HI>or,</HI> from the face of darknes.</Q>
<P>Death it &s;elfe is darknes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Qu&ograve;d me non interemerit, au+ferens a con|&s;pectu non tan|tam hanc cali|ginem &amp; tot mala. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> and yet <HI>Job</HI> would faine have dyed be|fore the darknes. There is a darknes of affliction and trouble &s;po|ken of often in this booke and el&s;ewhere, which is more bitter to man then death it &s;elfe. Some had rather be taken out of the
<PB N="462" REF="245"> world, then endure the troubles of it. This is the fir&s;t part of the rea&s;on, <HI>I am troubled,</HI> why? <HI>becau&s;e I was not cut off before the darknes,</HI> or before this trouble came; As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>I &s;hould have been glad, or it had been good for me, if death had prevented the&s;e troubles; this troubles mee that I dyed not, that I went not to the grave before the&s;e troubles came upon mee.</HI> Thus <HI>Job</HI> gives way againe to his pa&s;&s;ion; hee broke out much in this &s;traine or lan|guage at the third Chapter, where at large he openeth his wi&s;h for death, either that he had dyed before, or pre&s;ently after hee was borne into this world, that hee might have been at re&s;t, and &s;o out of the reach of tho&s;e evills and calamities that did encamp a|gain&s;t or be&s;et him round about. The reader may con&s;ult what hath been done upon that Chapter, of which this ver&s;e is an Epi|tome, and there finde the nature of this wi&s;h for death explained, as al&s;o what lively de&s;ires <HI>Job</HI> had of death, or as this text &s;peakes, that, <HI>he had been cut off before the darknes.</HI> I &s;hall here onely take notice; That to &s;ome, the &s;orrowes of this life are much more bit|ter then death it &s;elfe; yea that God him&s;elfe hath &s;ometimes in a way of mercy and favour called &s;ome out of the world before he would let great troubles in. There was a promi&s;e made to <HI>Jo&s;iah</HI> King of <HI>Judah,</HI> that, God being re&s;olved to bring trouble upon that people, yet he &s;hould be <HI>cut off before the darknes.</HI> (2 Kings 22.20.) <HI>Becau&s;e thy heart was tender,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Behold therefore I will gather thee unto thy fathers, and thou &s;halt be gathered to thy grave in peace, and thine eyes &s;hall not &s;ee all the evill, which I will bring upon this place.</HI> And when <HI>Ahab</HI> had humbled him&s;elfe before the Lord, even he went not without a reward for it, and his reward was this (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 21.29.) <HI>I will not bring the evill in his dayes.</HI> Hee &s;hall be <HI>cut off before the darknes. Jerom</HI> &s;peaking of the trou|bles that came upon the Church,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Foelix Nepotia|nus qui haec non vidit. <HI>Hier:</HI></NOTE> doth as it were applaud the death of <HI>Nepotian</HI> upon that Con&s;ideration, <HI>Happy he that dyed before the&s;e troubles lived.</HI> It hath &s;omewhat of mercy in it, to goe out of the world before extraordinary affliction comes in; yet in the&s;e things wee mu&s;t take heed of being our owne Carvers; it is one thing to have a promi&s;e from God, that the Cloud &s;hall not breake in our time; and another thing for us to wi&s;h and de&s;ire to be out of the world before the Cloud breakes: The former ar|gueth the tendernes and care of God towards us, but the latter mu&s;t needs argue eyther our unwillingnes to &s;uffer eyther from or
<PB N="463" REF="245"> for God; Or our di&s;tru&s;t of his a&s;&s;i&s;tance and pre&s;ence with us to &s;upport us in our &s;ufferings. If God will not cut us off by death before the darknes, wee &s;hould be willing to live in the darke&s;t darknes of outward calamity that ever fell upon this world. <HI>Job</HI> adds a &s;econd rea&s;on of his troubled &s;pirit in the la&s;t words of this ver&s;e and Chapter.</P>
<Q>Neither hath he Covered the darknes from my face.</Q>
<P>I am troubled becau&s;e I have lived in trouble&s;ome dayes, but though I have, yet God could have hidden me from tho&s;e trou|bles, or tho&s;e troubles from me; but as hee hath let me live in the darknes of trouble, &s;o he hath not at all covered the darknes of ttouble from me. I doe not onely live in troubles, but I am al|wayes looking troubles in the face. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders thus, <HI>Nor he yet hideth gloomines from my face;</HI> which he al&s;o paraphra|&s;eth in the&s;e words; <HI>Becau&s;e I finde neyther death nor ea&s;e of &s;ick|nes, that I &s;hould not feele the&s;e afflictions.</HI> So that as he complaines becau&s;e he dyed not before the darknes came; &s;o becau&s;e God did not hide the darknes from him when it came, but let him have &s;uch &s;ad vi&s;ions of it. This &s;till imports that <HI>Job</HI> had not that fullnes of &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion to the di&s;pen&s;ations of God, as duty called him to; and for this <HI>Elihu</HI> reproves him; yea God him&s;elfe chid and re|buked him, becau&s;e he tooke upon him &s;o often <HI>to give the rule,</HI> and did not &s;it downe more quietly under his appoyntment and portion for him. Though <HI>Jobs</HI> patience was great, yet he had not all patience, or all of patience. And though, I doubt not, but his patience had a perfect worke, yet he did not attaine to the per|fection of patience. This (according to our tran&s;lation) is the &s;ence and &s;umme of the&s;e words, concerning which many things have been &s;poken in the former part of the Booke, whether I re|ferre the reader: yet before I pa&s;&s;e them quite out of my hands, I &s;hall gather up &s;ome other Renderings of this ver&s;e, and leave them to the readers Judgement and con&s;ideration.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Thus; <HI>when I was onely not Cut off by darknes,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Nam ubi tan|tum non exci&s;us &s;um propter te|nebras a facie mea &s;e operit caligine. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>hee hath hid him&s;elfe in darknes from my face.</HI> This tran&s;lation the Origi|nall may beare with &s;ome little &s;upplement, which is u&s;uall in like Ca&s;es, when there is no &s;traine upon the generall &s;cope of the place, and the meaning is clearely this, <HI>Whereas I am onely not cut off by darknes,</HI> that is, whereas my troubles are &s;uch as have onely
<PB N="464" REF="246"> not extingui&s;hed my life, when I am in this pitiful mi&s;erable plight, <HI>Hee</HI> (that is, God) <HI>hath hid him&s;elfe from mee in darknes.</HI> So that here he &s;peakes of a twofold darknes or evill that was upon him: fir&s;t, affliction upon his body; &s;econdly, de&s;ertion upon his &s;pirit; and &s;o the negative particle <HI>not,</HI> is rendered by &s;ome <HI>onely not,</HI> it is onely not death with mee,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> non, <GAP DESC="foreign">. Tantum non, <HI>q. d.</HI> hoc effecit in me ab&s;con&s;io ejus ut non quidam ex&s;cinderer, &s;ed exci&s;iom proxi|mus e&s;&s;em. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> yet the Lord is plea&s;ed to hide his face from mee; whereas wee &s;ay, <HI>Hee hath not Covered the darknes from my face;</HI> this tran&s;lation &s;aith, <HI>Hee hath Covered his owne face with darknes,</HI> or, <HI>Covered him&s;elfe with darknes from my face.</HI> Fir&s;t, thereby intimating that God doth often joyne &s;pirituall troubles with corporall, the hidings of his face with the troubles of our fle&s;h. Secondly, that outward troubles are then mo&s;t grie|vous to us, when God hides or withdrawes his pre&s;ence from us.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quod non fue|rim exci&s;us a prae&s;entibus te|nebris, &amp; quod a facie mea a|verterit caligi|nem. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE>Another reading gives it as an admiration; <HI>I am exceedingly troubled becau&s;e I was not cut off by the pre&s;ent darknes, and that he hath turned away darknes from my face:</HI> As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;tood won|dering that his life was thus prolonged; that his &s;icknes and &s;or|rowes had not made an end of him; that ever hee &s;hould continue &s;o long in &s;uch a &s;torme as hee had done, and who or what power it was that in tho&s;e his great pre&s;&s;ures, both of minde and body, did hinder or &s;tay him from being covered with the &s;hadowes and darknes of death.</P>
<P>A third renders; <HI>Becau&s;e hee hath not cut mee off through dark|nes,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Calvin.</NOTE> <HI>but hid darknes from my face;</HI> and he gives the meaning of it thus; the rea&s;on why I am &s;o much troubled and afflicted, is be|cau&s;e God hath not <HI>cut mee off through darknes;</HI> that is, becau&s;e I have not had &s;ome &s;ecret or private affliction, but all the world hath taken notice of what hath been done to mee. God hath not cha&s;tned mee in the darke; the&s;e things have not been done to me in a corner. <HI>Job</HI> might &s;peake as the Apo&s;tle, <HI>I am made a &s;pecta|cle to the world, to Angels and men,</HI> all beholding mee in this piti|full condition. And this occa&s;ions mee much trouble of minde, becau&s;e as I &s;ee plainely, that the hand of God is gone out again&s;t mee, &s;o all others &s;ee it too, and they make &s;everall Interpretati|ons of it. Had I been lo&s;t in the darke I &s;hould have borne it bet|ter, now I am made the common talke of the world, and how to an&s;wer their de&s;cants upon my condition, is more then a little trouble to mee. This tran&s;lation hath a faire &s;ence as to the gene|rall
<PB N="465" REF="246"> truth; but the textuall Con&s;truction (as they who are skil|&s;ull in the Grammer of the Hebrew know) will not beare it. And therefore I &s;hall &s;tay in our owne tran&s;lation, which is faire and cleare as to the &s;cope of the Chapter, &s;hewing this good mans pa&s;&s;ion, breaking forth into &s;ome kinde of quarrell with the di&s;pen&s;ations of God, becau&s;e hee was not carryed out of the world before the&s;e troubles came in, or if hee mu&s;t needs &s;tay, and be contemporary with them, becau&s;e hee found no cover, no &s;helter from eyther the beholding or feeling of them.</P>
<P>Thus I have done with the fir&s;t part of <HI>Jobs</HI> An&s;wer to the third and la&s;t a&s;&s;ault which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> made upon his Innocency; But as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake much again&s;t him, &s;o he could not be &s;atisfied to &s;peake but a little for him&s;elfe; He had more to &s;ay, both for his owne vindication, and the refutation of his opponent. What he &s;ayd, the twenty-fourth Chapter will tell us, which comes next in order to be opened.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="466" REF="247">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 1.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty, doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ad propo&s;itam que&s;tionem re|ct&egrave; pargit Jo|bus, rur&s;um af|firmans, deum eum in a&s;&s;ertun|dis probis, tum in puniendis &s;ce|leratis, non pa|lam &s;emper, &s;ed pleru~&abque; acculta quadam ratione, notis ip&s;i vni temproibus a|gere. <HI>Bez.</HI></NOTE>_THis Chapter containeth the &s;econd part of <HI>Jobs</HI> an&s;wer, to <HI>Eliphaz:</HI> the generall &s;cope whereof, is to pull up the foundation of his friends &s;u&s;pition of him, and di&s;|pute again&s;t him, &s;hewing that many men doe much evill in this life, who &s;uffer none, and that many who are innocent, &s;uffer much evill, and are not releived: from both he concludeth, that the &s;uffering of evill can be no concludeing argument that a|ny man is &s;o; for then it mu&s;t be &s;o with all men, which mo&s;t mens experience contradicteth.</P>
<P>So that here <HI>Job</HI> falls downe-right upon the poynt in debate, affirming what he had often affirmed before, that God both in a&s;&s;erting the innocency of the righteous, and in puni&s;hing the &s;ins of the wicked, u&s;eth much variety; and that his proceedings with the &s;ons of men, are &s;o farre from being alwayes open, and plaine, that u&s;ually they are very &s;ecret, concealed, and &s;o much in the darke, that there is no print of his &s;teps to be found. This &s;eemes to be the de&s;igne and tendency of the whole Chapter; and the ar|gument of it may be formed thus;</P>
<P><HI>Yee, my friends have &s;aid, that God puni&s;heth all evill doers in this life; &s;eing then he knoweth the length and continuance of their dayes in this world, why doth he yet &s;uffer them to &s;lip out of this world un|puni&s;hed. And if they are &s;o frequently puni&s;hed in this world (as ye affirme) why doe not they who know God &s;ee it, and take notice of it?</HI></P>
<P><HI>But &s;o it is, that many wicked men &s;lip out of the world unpuni|&s;hed, and the godly who know him doe not &s;ee judgement executed, therefore &s;urely it is not the way of God pre&s;ently in this life to puni&s;h every offendour; nor can yee conclude that they who are afflicted are
<PB N="467" REF="247"> wicked, &s;eing many of his people are not onely afflicted by him&s;elfe, but lie under the rod of the wicked a long time unrevenged and unde|livered.</HI></P>
<P>In the whole Chapter we may ob&s;erve the&s;e three parts.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A que&s;tioning propo&s;ition in the fir&s;t ver&s;e, <HI>Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Allmighty, doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, We have the confirmation of this propo&s;ition, and that in two branches; Fir&s;t, of innocent per&s;ons not releived; &s;econdly, of wicked per&s;ons not puni&s;hed; Thirdly, he concludes his whole di&s;cour&s;e in the la&s;t ver&s;e of the Chapter by a &s;tronger affirmation of what he had &s;aid before; <HI>And if it be not &s;o now, who will make me a liar, and make my &s;peech nothing worth?</HI></P>
<P>Againe, More di&s;tinctly in this Chapter, we have the propo|&s;ition in the fir&s;t ver&s;e; &s;econdly, the confirmation of it, made by an enumeration, of many gro&s;&s;e &s;innes, which wicked men com|mit, and feele no &s;mart, but pa&s;&s;e unpuni&s;ht; and tho&s;e &s;innes are either, fir&s;t, again&s;t man, or &s;econdly, again&s;t God.</P>
<P>Again&s;t man, fir&s;t, by removing of the Land-markes in the &s;e|cond ver&s;e; &s;econdly, violently taking away of cattell, in the third ver&s;e. Thirdly, turning the poore out of hou&s;e and home, in the fourth ver&s;e; fourthly, lying in waite and watching their oppor|tunities to rob &amp; get their prey like wilde bea&s;ts, at the fifth ver&s;e; fifthly, reaping and carrying away other mens corne out of the fields by violence, at the &s;ixth ver&s;e; &s;ixthly, u&s;ing all manner of oppre&s;&s;ion upon the poore, 7, 8.9, 10, 11, 12 ver&s;es.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Job</HI> di&s;covers their rebellion again&s;t God, &amp; their igno|rance of his wayes: for though both the&s;e be included in the former acts (who&s;oever &s;ins again&s;t man, &s;ins again&s;t God too) yet there are &s;innes that are more peculiar and immediate again&s;t God. And of the&s;e he &s;peakes at the 13^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>They rebell again&s;t the light;</HI> again&s;t the light of the knowledge of God &s;hining with much evi|dence and clearenes, both in his word and in his workes; And then takes occa&s;ion more perticularly to de&s;cribe, fir&s;t, the murderer, and his darke wayes, <HI>ver.</HI> 14. Secondly, the adulterer and his dark wayes, (<HI>ver.</HI> 15, 16, 17.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Job</HI> &s;heweth, that though the wicked doe all this, and are not pre&s;ently puni&s;hed, yet that they are under a &s;ecret cur&s;e, which &s;hall &s;urely overtake them (<HI>ver.</HI> 18, 19, 20.)</P>
<PB N="468" REF="248">
<P>Fourthly, Upon this, he againe revives the mention of their &s;inne; fir&s;t, again&s;t the poore, <HI>ver.</HI> 21. Secondly, again&s;t the rich, <HI>ver.</HI> 22. Together with their puni&s;hment, though late, yet at la&s;t, <HI>ver.</HI> 23, 24.</P>
<P>Fifthly, He re-a&s;&s;erts all that he had &s;ayd, by challenging all men to di&s;prove him (if they could) in what he had &s;ayd, <HI>ver.</HI> 25. So much of the &s;tate and generall &s;cope of the whole Chapter.</P>
<DIV3 N="1" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 1.</HI></BIBL> Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty, doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Locus &s;ubdiffi|cilis &amp; &s;alebro|&s;us. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE>This (as a learned interpreter gives his opinion of it) is a hard Text, and there are various renderings of it. I &s;hall touch upon them, and then draw out that which may be &s;uteable for ob&s;er|vation.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The whole ver&s;e may (as &s;ome conceave) be rather read thus; <HI>Why are not times hidden from the Almighty, &s;eing they that know him doe not &s;ee his dayes?</HI> The meaning of which tran&s;lation is this; it might make a man that is not well in&s;tructed in the wayes and providences of God, to thinke that God takes no no|tice of the times that pa&s;&s;e, nor of the things done here below, &s;eing the be&s;t of his &s;ervants could never yet make it out, that he puni&s;heth ungodly men according to their deeds in this world. Surely then we may &s;ay, That times are hidden from God, for were it not &s;o, godly men could not but &s;ee his dayes, his judge|ment-dayes upon the wicked, and things would not be in &s;uch con|fu&s;ion, and di&s;order as they are. So that <HI>Job</HI> either &s;hewes what men doe ordinarily conclude from Gods indulgence and patience towards the wicked, and his &s;eeming &s;lacknes and &s;lownes in a|venging the wrongs of his owne people, even that as God is in heaven, &s;o thicke clouds are a covering to him there, and that he &s;eeth not what is acted on the earth. As if eyther the Lords eye did not reach this inferior world, or that he would not trouble him&s;elfe about it. <HI>Surely times are hidden from the Almighty,</HI> or</P>
<P>Secondly, that <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes his owne pa&s;&s;ions, and temptations about this poynt; As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>I am tempted to thinke that times are hidden from the Almighty, becau&s;e he doth not &s;end pre&s;ent releife to his people, nor pre&s;ent wrath upon his enemies.</HI> Such temp|tations are di&s;covered in other Scriptures, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 73.2.) <HI>My feete</HI>
<PB N="469" REF="248"> (&s;aith <HI>David) had almo&s;t &s;lipt when I &s;aw the pro&s;peritie of the wicked,</HI> when the wicked and unholy were not puni&s;hed pre&s;ently according to Ju&s;tice, he was urged and tempted to think that God did not regard ju&s;tice, nor declare him&s;elfe in his holines as he ought. And though the Prophet <HI>Jeremiah</HI> dur&s;t not que&s;tion the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God, yet he knew not (in this ca&s;e) how to give an account of it, as hath been noted heretofore from his que&s;tion|ings (<HI>Jer.</HI> 12.1, 2.) <HI>Why doth the way of the wicked pro&s;per?</HI> &amp;c. And with this the following parts of the Chapter &s;eeme to carry a fayre corre&s;pondence, wherein he enumerates many gro&s;&s;e prac|ti&s;es &amp; impieties of wicked men, notwith&s;tanding which they pa&s;&s;e out of this world in worldly peace.</P>
<P>Thirdly, One of the antient Rabbins reads the words as a wi&s;h,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quare non &s;unt ab&s;condita, <HI>q. d.</HI> aequio<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i animo ferrem &s;i e&s;&s;ent ab&s;condita. <HI>Aben-Ezr:</HI></NOTE> or a de&s;ire, <HI>Why are not times hidden from the Almighty?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I could wi&s;h they were hidden from the Almighty, and I could beare it better if God did take no notice of times, then that taking notice of them, he &s;hould not &s;et them in order, and redre&s;&s;e what is ami&s;&s;e; but I pa&s;&s;e that.</P>
<P>Fourthly, The Latine tran&s;lation is po&s;itive, and direct;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ab omni potente non &s;unt ab&s;con|dita tempora. <HI>Vulg:</HI> Latini videntes interrogationem bla&s;phemam o|pinionem cont<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|nere; qua&s;i aut ab&s;condita e&s;&s;e dicat aut optet, <HI>i. e.</HI> dominum tempora &amp; quae hic fiunt non cu|rare aut non videre, &s;ine in|terrogatione verterunt. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> <HI>Times are not hidden from the Almighty, yet they that know him are ignorant of his dayes;</HI> and the rea&s;on why they leave out the interrogation is given thus; becau&s;e they thought there was a kinde of impiety, yea bla&s;phemy in it to &s;ay or querie, <HI>Why are not times hidden from the Almighty?</HI> As if <HI>Job</HI> mu&s;t in &s;aying &s;o either af|firme that times were indeed hidden from the Almighty, or that he wi&s;hed they were. Therefore to avoide that inconveniency they turne it into a direct negative propo&s;ition; <HI>Times are not hidden from the Almighty.</HI> And many of the Jewi&s;h Writers &s;tum|bling at the &s;ame &s;tone, have judged <HI>Job</HI> as denying the providence of God, or his care of times, and &s;ea&s;ons here below; but (upon divers occa&s;ions) <HI>Job</HI> hath been vindicated concerning this poynt, therefore I &s;hall not &s;tay upon it.</P>
<P>A fifth tran&s;lation gives it thus; <HI>If times are not hid, by the Al|mighty, how comes it to pa&s;&s;e that they that know him doe not &s;ee his dayes?</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, were it not for this, or were it not thus, that God doth hide times, or that times are hidden by God, that is, that Gods providences are carried in &s;ecret, and run a great while (as &s;ome rivers doe) as it were under-ground, it could not be, but that they that know him, that is, wi&s;e and holy men (as we
<PB N="470" REF="249"> &s;hall &s;ee afterward) &s;hould &s;ee the effects, and i&s;&s;ues of tho&s;e judgements. The judgements of God (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI>) are delayed in their execution or executed in &s;o &s;ecret a way, that they are mo&s;tly and to the mo&s;t of men undi&s;cerned. Wherein he fully oppo&s;eth what <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;ayd (<HI>Chap.</HI> 20.16.) <HI>They are cut downe out of time;</HI> that is, they are pre&s;ently cut downe, no, &s;ayes <HI>Job,</HI> God hideth their times, that is, he puts &s;tops and delayes upon the times of his revenge; or as he &s;peakes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 21.19.) <HI>He layeth up wrath for his children, but them&s;elves are not pre&s;ently cut downe.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> cur quare. Cur a Saddai nan occultara &s;unt tempora.</NOTE>Sixthly, Thus; <HI>Why are not, or why &s;hould not times be hidden by the Almighty?</HI> &s;o M^r <HI>Broughton.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>What rea|&s;on can be given of this, why times are not hidden by the Almighty? or why &s;hould it not be thought right, and ju&s;t, that times &s;hould be hidden by the Almighty? who can que&s;tion God if he will hide times and judgements, or who &s;hall &s;ay, it is unequall?</HI> The Hebrew par|ticle <HI>(Min)</HI> &s;ignifies as well <HI>by</HI> as <HI>from,</HI> we &s;ay, why <HI>&s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty;</HI> they &s;ay, <HI>why &s;hould not times be hidden by the Almighty?</HI> This rendering beares a cleare and a profitable &s;ence, and therefore I &s;hall give this ob&s;ervation from it.</P>
<Q>God doth hide times from men.</Q>
<P>The providences of God and their &s;ea&s;ons are not carried plaine to every mans eye; and why &s;hould not times be thus hidden by the Almighty? God doth not hide that time from us wherein we ought to doe our worke (he &s;heweth us plainely not onely what we ought to doe, but when we ought to doe it, to every worke there is an appoynted time, and the pre&s;ent time, is our time for mo&s;t workes, yea for all tho&s;e workes which have a proper ten|dency to eternity) but though God doth not hide the times from us wherein we &s;hould doe our worke, yet he doth often hide the time from us wherein he will doe his own worke, and why &s;hould he not? he hides the time wherein he will puni&s;h the wicked, and breake the power of his enemies, and he hides the time wherein he will revive his owne people, and deliver the afflicted. There are &s;ometimes which God keepeth,<NOTE PLACE="marg">In&s;ita e&s;t mor|talibus incredi|bilis quaedam ea quae futura &s;unt praeno&s;cendi cu|piditas.</NOTE> and will keepe <HI>in his owne power;</HI> as Chri&s;t told the Di&s;ciples (<HI>Act.</HI> 1.6, 7.) when they asked him, <HI>Lord, wilt thou at this time re&s;tore againe the kingdome unto I&s;rael? It is not for you to know the times or the &s;ea&s;ons which God hath put
<PB N="471" REF="249"> in his owne power.</HI> That is, which he hath not put forth or di&s;co|vered to the &s;onnes of men. All times are in Gods power, but tho&s;e which he re&s;erves from men, and keepes under lock and key, the&s;e he hath more e&s;pecially put in his power. God will not let tho&s;e times appeare to men, wherein him&s;elfe is purpo&s;ed to ap|peare. The time of tho&s;e workes of God are wrapt up in greate&s;t darkne&s;&s;e when they &s;hall be done, which being done &s;hine forth with greate&s;t light and; God will have it &s;o.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To reprove and &s;top the curio&s;ity of man; There is no|thing more naturall to man then a de&s;ire to know both what &s;hall be hereafter, and when that hereafter &s;hall be: we are very negli|gent, and carele&s;&s;e in &s;eeking out the &s;ea&s;on of that which we our &s;elves &s;hould doe,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Homo e&s;t ani|mal curio&s;um.</NOTE> but over-carefull and curious in &s;eeking out the &s;ea&s;on of what God will doe. Man is given to vaine curio&s;ity, and he is in nothing more vainely curious, then in an itch to know the times which God hath hidden from him. Mo&s;t men are great que&s;tioni&s;ts, and their que&s;tions mo&s;tly are about times, and &s;ea|&s;ons, when &s;hall this, and that be? The Di&s;ciples of Chri&s;t di&s;co|vered this &s;pirit more then once; When Chri&s;t had told his Di&s;ci|ples that of tho&s;e Goodly buildings to which they admiringly poynted him, <HI>There &s;hould not be one &s;tone left upon another, that &s;hould not be ca&s;t downe</HI> (Math: 24.2.) They a while after <HI>came unto him privately, &s;aying, tell us, when &s;hall the&s;e things be, and &s;hall be the &s;igne of thy coming, and of the end of the world?</HI> It did not &s;atisfie them that Chri&s;t had told them &s;uch &s;hould be, unle&s;&s;e he al&s;o tell them the time and &s;ea&s;on when they &s;hould be. The Apo&s;tle found this humour &s;tirring much in the Church of the <HI>The&s;&s;alonians,</HI> for having &s;poken of the re&s;urrection of the body, and that then <HI>the Lord him&s;elfe &s;hall de&s;cend from heaven with a &s;hout, with the voyce of the Arch-Angel, and with the trump of God</HI> (1 <HI>Tho&s;.</HI> 4.15, 16.) He, to prevent their inqui&s;itivenes about the time when this &s;hould be, begins the fifth Chapter thus; <HI>But of the times and &s;ea&s;ons brethren&punc; yee have no need that I write unto you.</HI> Which implies, that either they had intimated &s;uch a querie to him, de&s;iring to be acquainted with the time and &s;ea&s;on of tho&s;e things, or that he fore&s;aw they would be enquiring and making it their next que&s;tion, <HI>when &s;hall the&s;e things be?</HI> when &s;hall the decea&s;ed Saints be rai&s;ed, and the living caught up, when &s;hall Chri&s;t de&s;cend from heaven with a &s;hout, &amp;c? Some have made
<PB N="472" REF="250"> it their &s;tudy to unvaile the times which God hath hid, and to un|cover his &s;ecrets. And it is no part eyther of the honour or orna|ment of the&s;e times,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mathematico|rum &amp; gene<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h|liacorum ve&s;ana temeritas.</NOTE> that A&s;trologers and Mathematicians have been &s;o bold in the&s;e &s;tudyes. As if the &s;tarres of heaven were ey|ther betru&s;ted with the &s;ecrets of the God of heaven, or being &s;o would be unfaithfull Secretaryes, bewraying his &s;ecrets, and put|ting tho&s;e times and &s;ea&s;ons into the power of man which God hath put into his owne power. Ancient hi&s;toryes tell us that the Princes of the world have been very greedy after this forbidden, or at lea&s;t unrevealed knowledge. Being more de&s;ierous to know what &s;hould come to pa&s;&s;e in after times, then diligent in the du|ties of the pre&s;ent time; Whereas indeed, which is</P>
<P>A &s;econd rea&s;on why it is &s;o, God therefore hides the i&s;&s;ues and events of future times, that we might be kept to pre&s;ent duties, to the work and bu&s;ine&s;&s;e of the day. He conceales from man the preci&s;e day of his death, that he might every day be preparing to dye. If men had all times in their hands, they would quickly lay the greate&s;t and be&s;t part of their worke out of their hands.</P>
<P>Thirdly, God hideth times to try the faith of his own people, whether they can depend upon him in the darke; whether when they know not when the time &s;hall be, or what a day may bring forth, they can yet freely tru&s;t him for all their dayes. He that lives by faith at all times, troubles not him&s;elfe about what &s;hall be next in time, nor what the next times may be.</P>
<P>Fourthly, God hideth times, that we may be guided by rules, not by events; That we may &s;teere our cour&s;e through this world according to his divine appoyntments, not according to humane &s;ucce&s;&s;es. Upon all the&s;e and many more accounts, <HI>why &s;hould not times be hidden by the Almighty?</HI></P>
<P>But I &s;hall proceed with our reading, to open that, and give &s;ome notes from it.</P>
<Q>Why &s;eeing times, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
<P>As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, &s;eing the Lord knoweth all times, &s;eing times are not hidden from him, what is the rea&s;on why tho&s;e who know him, and are neere&s;t to him, doe not know times al&s;o? or thus; God knoweth times, they are not hidden from him, why doe not they know times that know him?</P>
<P>We are not to take time here nakedly or naturally as it notes
<PB N="473" REF="250"> dayes, moneths, and yeares, mea&s;ured out by the motion of the Sunne, Moone, and Starres; but time is to be con&s;idered provi|dentially as cloathed with all the varieties of action and event, which are imaginable, as incident to the affaires of mankinde in this life.</P>
<Q>Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty, <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
<P>When <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>Seing times are not hidden from the Almighty,</HI> his meaning is, that Times are clearely and fully knowne to the Al|mighty.</P>
<P>The whole ver&s;e taken together &s;eemes to be a deniall of what is in it &s;elfe very probable; for &s;eeing God knoweth times,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pote&s;t e&s;&s;e ne|gata connexio cau&s;ae probabilis cum effecto. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> it is mo&s;t probable that they who know him &s;hould know times too: for to whom &s;hould God communicate his &s;ecrets, but to tho&s;e who are neere to him, to tho&s;e that are his: As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>Give me a rea&s;on, if you can, why God, to whom all things and times are knowne from eternitie, &s;hould not make knowne the&s;e times to tho&s;e that know him?</HI> And &s;o the argument may be formed in this manner.</P>
<P><HI>Such as know God, &s;hould know his dayes, if any know them.</HI></P>
<P><HI>But they that know God, doe not know his dayes;</HI> therefore God keepes his dayes clo&s;e to him&s;elfe; &s;o that whereas <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;up|po&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> as doubting the providence of God (<HI>Chap.</HI> 22. <HI>ver.</HI> 12, 13, 14.) and asks the que&s;tion, <HI>ver.</HI> 15^t^h, <HI>Ha&s;t thou marked the old way, which wicked men have troden. Job</HI> an&s;wers here, I deny not the providence of God, but I deny that all the wayes of Gods dealing with wicked men, are obvious to the eye of Godly men, and &s;hew me rea&s;on, if you can, &s;eing God knoweth all times, why the way of his judgements are &s;o little vi&s;ible to them <HI>which know him.</HI></P>
<P>But who are they that are de&s;cribed by this circumlocution, <HI>They</HI> (or the men) <HI>that know God?</HI> We may take them in a two|fold notion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, More Generally for all godly men, for all who are tru|ly &s;uch know God.</P>
<P>Secondly, More &s;pecially for tho&s;e Godly men who know God more then others; there are &s;ome who have a peculiar knowledge of him, and dayly intimacy with him, who live as it were in his bo|&s;ome, and &s;ee what is in his brea&s;ts, comparatively to others.</P>
<PB N="474" REF="251">
<P>And further (becau&s;e words of knowledge comprehend the af|fections in Scripture) by tho&s;e that know him much, we are to un|der&s;tand tho&s;e that love him much, that delight in him much, that feare him much, and obey him much. Now though we may ex|pound this text of truely Godly men at large, yet the latter &s;ort are chiefly meant: why &s;eeing times are not hidden from the al|mighty, doe not they that know him, godly men, yea his favou|rites, who know mo&s;t of his minde, who as they are after his heart, &s;o in his heart eminently, why doe not they who know him thus, <Q>See his dayes?</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Diem domini appellamus cum judicium &s;uum exercit in im|pios.</NOTE>Who&s;e dayes, and what dayes doth <HI>Job</HI> here intend? The for|mer part of the ver&s;e an&s;wers the fir&s;t que&s;tion, <HI>They are the dayes of God.</HI> And to the &s;econd que&s;tion I an&s;wer; The dayes of God are tho&s;e dayes wherein he worketh, or brings forth &s;ome great worke, whether it be a worke of Judgement, or a worke of mer|cy. For as Times in the former part of the ver&s;e, &s;o dayes here include the things done in tho&s;e dayes, and hence M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders, <HI>wayes not dayes. None</HI> (&s;ayth he) <HI>that know him &s;ee his wayes.</HI> When&s;oever God doth &s;omewhat among men, which de|clares him in an eminent manner to be God, that in Scripture is called the <HI>Day of God.</HI> Thus the Prophet &s;peakes (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 2.12.) <HI>The day of the Lord of ho&s;ts &s;hall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up, and he &s;hall be brought low. And upon all the Cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up,</HI> &amp;c. Thus <HI>the day of the Lord</HI> is the day of his judgement a|mong men. <HI>I pa&s;&s;e not for mans day,</HI> or for the judgement of man, &s;ayth <HI>Paul</HI> (1 Cor. 4.3. And when he &s;aith, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.13.) <HI>The day &s;hall di&s;cover it,</HI> He meanes a day of tryall will di&s;cover every mans worke, whether it be &s;ilver, gold, hay, wood, or &s;tubble. The day of di&s;covery, will be a Glorious day of God. The Civili|ans have an expre&s;&s;ion which reacheth this notion of a day; They &s;ay of a man that hath had judgement in the highe&s;t Court, from whence there is no appeale;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Summum obij&s;|&s;e diem dicunt Juri&s;con&s;ulti. <HI>vid: Bold:</HI></NOTE> <HI>He hath pa&s;&s;ed his la&s;t day;</HI> that is, his highe&s;t and greate&s;t triall, becau&s;e then there is no more medling with him, or bringing the &s;uite about againe. Such are the dayes of God, of which <HI>Job</HI> here &s;peaketh.</P>
<P><HI>Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty, doe they that know him not &s;ee his dayes?</HI></P>
<PB N="475" REF="251">
<P>From the former part of the ver&s;e, Note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That times are knowne, perfectly knowne to God.</HI></P>
<P>Yea not onely are times perfectly knowne to God, but firmely fixed and mo&s;t wi&s;ely di&s;po&s;ed of by him; men may know that which they have no power to di&s;po&s;e of; but the knowledg of God and his power run paralel through all times and things. So that as when the text &s;ayth, <HI>Times are not hidden from the Almighty,</HI> it notes that they are fully knowne to him, &s;o al&s;o that they are uncontrouleably di&s;po&s;ed, and ordered by him. And as times are knowne to God, &s;o he makes them knowne when and to whom he plea&s;eth. When <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> had revealed to <HI>Pharaoh</HI> both the matter and the time concerned in his dreames, then (&s;aith <HI>Mo&s;es, Gen.</HI> 41.45.) <HI>Pharaoh called Jo&s;ephs name Zaphnath paaneah,</HI> which &s;ay &s;ome &s;ignifies in the Egyptian language, <HI>The Saviour of the world:</HI> Which name, &s;ay they, <HI>Pharaoh</HI> might give him, becau&s;e by his advice in laying up &s;tores of corne in the yeares of plenty, &s;uch a world of men, or &s;o great a part of the world, was &s;aved from peri&s;hing by famine in the yeares of &s;carcity. But, &s;ay others, deriving the word from an Hebrew roote, it &s;ignifies <HI>a revealer of &s;ecrets.</HI> Which title of honour <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> well de&s;erved, and was mo&s;t proper to him, &s;eing he had revealed that Great &s;ecret unto <HI>Pha|raoh,</HI> both that there &s;hould be a famine, as al&s;o the time and &s;ea|&s;on of it. But where had <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> this &s;ecret? was it from any a&s;tro|logicall skill of his owne? He tells us plainely whence it was at the 15th and 16th ver&s;es of the &s;ame Chapter; for when <HI>Pharaoh</HI> had &s;ayd to <HI>Jo&s;eph; I have heard &s;ay of thee that thou can&s;t under&s;tand a dreame to interpret it;</HI> He pre&s;ently an&s;wers, fir&s;t, Negatively, <HI>It is not in me;</HI> and then affirmatively, <HI>God &s;hall give Pharaoh an an&s;wer of peace.</HI> See the like in that mo&s;t remarkeable pa&s;&s;age (<HI>Den.</HI> 2.17, 18, 19, 20, 21.) From all which we learne that God knoweth times and changeth times, that is, makes great changes in times according to the coun&s;ell of his owne will.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, If we take time, for the &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of dayes, weeks, months, yeares, and ages, thus the Lord knoweth times. The num|ber of the dayes of man, the preci&s;e number of the yeares and ages wherein any worldly &s;tate or power &s;hall continue, are not hidden from him.</P>
<P>Secondly, Times are not hidden from God, as times are taken
<PB N="476" REF="252"> for the &s;ea&s;ons and opportunities of action. The Lord knowes what time will be as a wheele or as a &s;ocket fitted for the carrying on or e&s;tabli&s;hing of every worke. We are often troubled at this, and mi&s;&s;e our &s;ea&s;on, but God knoweth every &s;ea&s;on, he knoweth the times, and therefore can time every worke exactly. And the Hebrew word here u&s;ed,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> denotat congruum tem|pus.</NOTE> properly &s;ignifies a fitt or a convenient time, implying that time, in that notion, is not hidden from God. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 50.4.) <HI>God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I might &s;peake a word in &s;ea&s;on to him that is weary.</HI> Which &s;ome tran&s;late thus, <HI>That I might know the appointed time to the afflicted.</HI> An afflicted &s;oule mu&s;t be watched, and a &s;ea&s;on taken, the&s;e times are not hidden from the Almighty, he knoweth the opportunity, and therefore can direct him that &s;peakes to a wearyed &s;oule, as to &s;peake proper and taking matter, &s;o to &s;peake it in a proper and taking time, when it &s;hall be as welcome to the &s;oule as raine to the dry and thir&s;ty ground. <HI>David</HI> &s;aith to the Lord (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.23.) <HI>It is time Lord for thee to worke, for they have made voide thy Law;</HI> that is, now is the &s;ea&s;on, and opportunity for thee to work, if ever thou wilt &s;hew thy &s;elfe doe it now. And when <HI>David</HI> con|fe&s;&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 31.15.) <HI>My times are in thy hand.</HI> He meanes that the &s;ea&s;ons of his comforts,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Per tempora intelligit rerum vici&s;&s;itudines, divitias et pau|periem pacem &amp; bellum &amp;c. <HI>Theodoret:</HI></NOTE> and of his &s;orrowes, all the turnings and changes of his life from one condition to another, were ca&s;t and ordered by the power and wi&s;dome of God. <HI>Why &s;eeing times are not hidden from the Almighty,</HI>
<Q>Doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes.</Q></P>
<P>Thus <HI>Job</HI> de&s;cribes the per&s;ons that &s;ee not the dayes of God; they are &s;uch as <HI>know him.</HI> Which character, as was &s;hewed be|fore, belongs to every Godly man, though it be more peculiar to &s;ome.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Every Godly man knoweth God.</HI></P>
<P>And none but the Godly know him indeed; many ungodly men profe&s;&s;e they know God, and they may know him notionally, but no ungodly man knoweth him truly, experimentally, or practi|cally. Many ungodly men <HI>have a forme of knowledge, and of the truth in the Law</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes of the Jewes. <HI>Rom.</HI> 2.20.) but no ungodly man feeleth the power of knowledge, and
<PB N="477" REF="252"> of the truth in the Law.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pietas e&s;t cog|nitio &s;cientia&abque; dei. <HI>Tri&s;meg.</HI></NOTE> And therefore the wicked are &s;poken of in Scripture, as not knowing God (<HI>Jere.</HI> 10.25.) <HI>Powre out thy fury upon the heathen that know thee not.</HI> And when the Prophet de&s;cribes the wickedne&s;&s;e of the Jewi&s;h State, he &s;aith (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 4.1.) <HI>There is no knowledge of God in the Land.</HI> Which the Chalde Pa|raphra&s;t renders thus; <HI>Neither are there any who walke in the feare of God in the land;</HI> where there is no knowledge of God, there is no feare of God. We neyther love nor feare him of whom we have no knowledge; nor can we beleeve in or tru&s;t him, whom we know not. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 9.10.) <HI>They that know thy name, will put their tru&s;t in thee;</HI> That is, the truly godly will tru&s;t in thee, for they know thy name, but they that know thee not, how can they tru&s;t upon thee? and therefore the Prophet calls us to boa&s;t in, the knowledge of God. (<HI>Jere.</HI> 9.23.) <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, let not the wi&s;e man glory in his wi&s;dome, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches, but let him that glorieth, glory in this, that he under&s;tandeth, and knoweth me, that I am the Lord whech exerci&s;e loving kindne&s;&s;e, judgement, and righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e in the earth, for in the&s;e things I delight &s;aith the Lord.</HI> There is nothing in this world worth the boa&s;ting in, but the holy knowledge of a holy God, or &s;uch a knowledge of God, the fruit whereof is a godly life here, and the end whereof is an eternall life hereafter. <HI>Joh.</HI> 17.3. <HI>This is eternall life, that they may know thee the onely true God, and Je&s;us Chri&s;t whom thou ha&s;t &s;ent.</HI> This know|ledge of God doth not floate in the braine, but &s;inkes into the heart, and is rooted in the affections. Thus the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> ar|gues (1 <HI>Epi&s;t. Chap.</HI> 2. <HI>v.</HI> 3, 4, 5, 6.) <HI>Hereby we know that we know him, if we keepe his Commandements, he that &s;ayth he knows him, and keepeth not his commandement is a liar, and the truth is not in him;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, The true knowledge of God is an obedientiall knowledge, &s;o that if any man &s;ayth he knoweth God, while his life is not &s;utable to what he knoweth, this mans pro|fe&s;&s;ion is vaine, and him&s;elfe is a lyar; <HI>Who&s;oever keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected,</HI> that is, he loveth God with a perfect or &s;incere love, and the love of God is perfected towards him. The &s;cope of his whole di&s;cour&s;e there is to &s;hew that the true knowledge of God is the keeping of the word of God. Many are &s;o ignorant of God, that they know not the word which they &s;hould keepe, and all they who knowing the word keepe it
<PB N="478" REF="253"> not, will at la&s;t be numbered among the ignorant, or among tho&s;e that know not God: But their condition will be wor&s;e, and their puni&s;hment greater then theirs who never knew God accord|ing to the teachings of his word. Their e&s;tate will be bad enough, who peri&s;h for want of the knowledge of God, then, what will their end be, who peri&s;h in the neglect or abu&s;e of plentifull know|ledge!</P>
<P>From the &s;econd notion of the words, <HI>they that know him,</HI> as they intimate a &s;ort of Godly men, who have neerer acquain|tance with, and freer acce&s;&s;e to God then others.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That as all godly men know God, which the wicked doe not, &s;o &s;ome godly men have &s;uch a knowledge of God as many who are godly have not.</Q>
<P>Though the knowledge of all godly men be of the &s;ame nature and kinde, yet not of the &s;ame degree and height. We reade of &s;ome who in old time were called <HI>Seers</HI> (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 9.9.) as if they onely had been endued with &s;ight, and all others were blinde in the things of God. They were the onely <HI>&s;eers,</HI> yea they <HI>were fore|&s;eers,</HI> becau&s;e God did often reveale him&s;elfe, and declare to them what he was about to doe in dreames and vi&s;ions. Now as in tho&s;e times there were &s;ome men called <HI>&s;eers,</HI> &s;o in the&s;e times &s;ome may be called <HI>knowers,</HI> as if none knew any thing of God comparative|ly to them, or as if other godly men were ignorant and under|&s;tood nothing of him. When God (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 3.) appeared to <HI>Samuel</HI> in a vi&s;ion, and revealed the doome of <HI>Elies</HI> hou&s;e to him; the Text &s;ayth, at the 7^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord;</HI> &s;urely <HI>Samuel</HI> did know the Lord as other godly did in tho&s;e times, though he were but young; yea it is &s;aid, <HI>The childe Sa|muel mini&s;tred before the Lord;</HI> and did not he know the Lord? no doubt he did. The meaning therefore is, <HI>Samuel</HI> did not yet know the Lord by any &s;peciall intimacy with him, or particular revelation from him, as afterward he did; he became <HI>a knower of God</HI> at la&s;t, though then <HI>he did not know God,</HI> in this peculiar &s;ence. But God having revealed to him the &s;ecret what he would doe to <HI>Elies</HI> hou&s;e, then he knew God, he knew him as a favourite, that is tru&s;ted with &s;ecrets. So <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 25.14.) <HI>The &s;ecret of the Lord is with them that feare him.</HI> There is a &s;ecret in
<PB N="479" REF="253"> the plaine&s;t truths and doctrines of Godlines, both in Law and Go&s;pel; and many know the doctrine, who know not the &s;ecret; any common profe&s;&s;or may know the doctrine, but the &s;incere onely know the &s;ecret, that is, the power and efficacy, the &s;weet|nes of comfort of the doctrine. There is al&s;o a &s;ecret of God with his in ble&s;&s;ing and pro&s;pering them in the world; of which <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 29.4.) as there is al&s;o a &s;ecret and imperceptible cur&s;e, which the Prophet calls the Lords blowing upon what men have in their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, or for their u&s;e (<HI>Hag.</HI> 1.9.) But be&s;ides the&s;e there is a &s;ecret of favour, which is the &s;ealing of the Spirit, the gift of the hidden Manna, and of the white &s;tone, with a new name in it, which no man knoweth &s;aving he that receiveth it (<HI>Rev.</HI> 2.17) This &s;ecret of the Lord is with them that feare him; and there is yet another &s;ecret of his with them, even the &s;ecret of his purpo&s;e and intendment concerning his owne providentiall workings. Which while many or all &s;ee, yet they know not the meaning of them, I meane it not onely of the wicked and carnall, but even of many who are holy and &s;pirituall in the maine. The &s;ecrets of providence are knowne onely to &s;ome choyce ones, to &s;ome of an excellent Spirit and high attainements, to &s;ome <HI>Abra|hams,</HI> &amp;c. intimate friends, who are to God as his owne &s;oule. There is a &s;ecret of the Lord, which is with all them that feare him, yet &s;ome of his &s;ecrets are not with many of them who feare him. What <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake in the 12th Chapter of this Booke, <HI>ver.</HI> 2. reproving the pride of his friends; <HI>Yee are the men, and wi&s;dome &s;hall dye with you;</HI> you (I trow) have ingro&s;&s;ed all wi&s;dome, and others mu&s;t borrow of you; The &s;ame we may &s;peake &s;oberly and approvingly of &s;ome humble Godly men, <HI>they have the knowledge of God,</HI> and it is but little that others have, though they have a &s;a|ving knowledge. Some conceive the Prophet upbraiding the Jewes (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 58.2.) As if they affected to be looked upon, not onely as &s;uch as know God, but as &s;uch as know him intimately, and were his bo&s;ome friends. <HI>They &s;eeke me dayly, and delight to know my wayes, as a nation that did righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and for&s;ooke not the ordi|nance of their God, they aske of me the Ordinances of Ju&s;tice, they take delight in approaching unto God.</HI> They who doe indeed, as the&s;e <HI>Jewes</HI> &s;eemed to doe, may be numbred among tho&s;e of the highe&s;t forme that know God. <HI>Why doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes.</HI></P>
<PB N="480" REF="254">
<P>Here <HI>Job</HI> hath found out &s;omewhat knowable, which they who know God, doe not alwayes know; and that is, as hath been &s;hewed, the &s;ea&s;on of his judgements.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> The judgements of God are often eyther deferred, carried &s;o clo&s;ely, and &s;ecretly, that the wi&s;e&s;t and holye&s;t men cannot al|wayes di&s;cerne or &s;ee them.</Q>
<P>The judgements of God are often deferred in this life, and they are very often concealed, though pre&s;ently executed. That is not alwayes true which <HI>Eliphaz</HI> a&s;&s;erted (<HI>Chap.</HI> 22.19.) <HI>The righteous &s;ee it and are glad, the innocent laugh them to &s;corne.</HI> The righteous &s;ometimes &s;ee the judgements of God upon wicked men, &amp; his care watching over them&s;elves, but they do not alwayes &s;ee eyther; for as a wicked man may doe evill a hundred times, that is, very often, and goe unpuni&s;hed, as is intimated (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 8.12.) So a wicked man may be puni&s;hed a hundred times, and yet not one of his puni&s;hments &s;eene. Some judgements of God are great and &s;ore, which yet fall not under the ob&s;ervation of the be&s;t, of the wi&s;e&s;t, of the holie&s;t in the world; <HI>They that know him, doe not &s;ee his dayes;</HI> God (for terror and warning to others) doth judgement upon &s;ome openly (<HI>Deut.</HI> 7.9, 10.) <HI>Know therefore the Lord thy God, he is God, the faithfull God, who keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him, and keepe his commandements to a thou&s;and generations, and repayeth them that hate him, to their face to de&s;troy them; He will not be &s;lacke to him that hateth him, he will repay him to his face.</HI> Here are two things in this Text concerning the judgements of God; That they &s;hall come, fir&s;t, &s;uddenly; &s;econdly, openly; they &s;hall come &s;uddenly, <HI>God will not be &s;lack,</HI> they &s;hall come openly, <HI>God will repay them to their face;</HI> as they &s;inned openly, &s;o they &s;hall be puni&s;hed openly. Thus God re|payd the <HI>Sodomites,</HI> he payd them to their face; &s;o he repayd <HI>Pha|raoh,</HI> and &s;o the rebelling <HI>Jewes;</HI> and <HI>he was not &s;lack,</HI> (for as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;aith) <HI>while the meate was in their mouth, the wrath of God fell upon them.</HI> Thus 'tis &s;ometimes: yet judgements are often deferred, and hidden. What the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Rom.</HI> 9.22.) is applicable here; <HI>God willing to &s;hew his wrath, and make his power knowne, indured with much long &s;uffering the ve&s;&s;ells of wrath fitted for de&s;truction;</HI> there are ve&s;&s;ells of wrath fitted for de&s;truction, throwne to hell, not onely to a temporall, but to an eternall de|&s;truction;
<PB N="481" REF="254"> yet God did indure them with much long &s;uffering; that is, he did not pre&s;ently powre out wrath upon them, he was &s;o farre from ca&s;ting them pre&s;ently to hell, that he did not afflict them with any trouble in this life, but indured them with much long &s;uffering, and patience. <HI>David</HI> was much a&s;toni&s;hed with this con&s;ideration (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 36.6.) <HI>Thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is like the great mountaines, thy judgements are a great deepe.</HI> Take both together; <HI>Thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is like the great mountaines, the mountaines of God,</HI> that is, thy righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e indures, and remaines inviolable. But though it be &s;o, yet the execution and actings of thy righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e are not alwayes decerneable, <HI>for thy judgements are a great deepe;</HI> that is, when God doth execute, and put forth his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, few &s;ee it, his <HI>judgements are a great deepe,</HI> many deepes, who can goe to the depth of them? <HI>how un&s;earchable are thy judgements?</HI> &s;aith the Apo&s;tle, <HI>Rom.</HI> 11.33.) they are &s;uch and &s;o deepe that none can reach the bottome of them; and there|fore no wonder if <HI>they are &s;ometimes hidden from tho&s;e that know God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Whereas <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>Why &s;eing times are not hidden from the Almighty, doe they that know him, not &s;ee his dayes?</HI></P>
<P>We may Note.</P>
<Q><HI>That,</HI> if any thing which God doth in this world be &s;eene by any, Godly men are in the Greate&s;t likely-hood to &s;ee it.</Q>
<P>And that upon a twofold ground; fir&s;t, becau&s;e they have the be&s;t eyes, and &s;ences mo&s;t exerci&s;ed to di&s;cerne what God is do|ing. And as this is, becau&s;e they have the be&s;t internal light, and pure&s;t principles to make this di&s;covery with; So in the &s;econd <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">lace, becau&s;e they &s;tand fayre&s;t in the eye of God, to have his pro|vidences manife&s;ted and expounded to them. For as God by the Spirit expounds his word, &s;o his workes to his choyce&s;t &s;ervants. <HI>Shall I hide from Abraham</HI> (&s;ayd God, <HI>Gen.</HI> 18.17.) <HI>that thing which I doe.</HI> And &s;o the Lord &s;aith to the &s;pirituall children of <HI>A|braham</HI> unto this day, Shall I hide from them eyther what I am about to doe, or the meaning and &s;cope of what I have done? If any in the world &s;ee the dayes of God, Saints &s;hall. So that we may conclude, if they &s;ee them not, that eyther they are not yet come, or that God purpo&s;ely concealed their comming. Both or eyther of which may be the minde of <HI>Job</HI> in this place.</P>
<PB N="482" REF="255">
<P>La&s;tly, Con&s;ider the text as a que&s;tion, <HI>Why, &s;eeing times are not hidden from the Almighty, doe they that know him not, &s;ee his dayes?</HI> What is the rea&s;on of this? <HI>Job</HI> here an&s;wers <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> who thought that the judgements of God were ever open, and obvious to all beholders; but as it is not &s;o, &s;o what is the rea&s;on of this? why is it not &s;o? I have heretofore given an account of the&s;e <HI>whyes and wherefores,</HI> of the&s;e que&s;tions about the di&s;pen&s;ations of God. Yet here I an&s;wer further, God is plea&s;ed to cover or defer his Judgement dayes. Fir&s;t, becau&s;e it is his plea&s;ure to doe &s;o, that's an&s;wer enough for man, it is his plea&s;ure. Times are not hid|den from God, but mu&s;t he needs make us acquainted with all times, or &s;hew us the way of his judgements pre&s;ently; no, it is his plea&s;ure to doe otherwi&s;e, and it is his priviledge to di&s;po&s;e of times, &s;ea&s;ons, actions, and judgements as he plea&s;eth; who may &s;ay to him, what doe&s;t thou? or why doe&s;t thou &s;o? he is &s;u|preame, and &s;overaigne, if he will have it &s;o, why &s;hould any one oppo&s;e it, or ri&s;e up again&s;t it?</P>
<P>Secondly, If it be demanded, Why are not the wicked pre&s;ent|ly puni&s;hed, &s;eeing God knoweth times, and &s;ea&s;ons, and how all things pa&s;&s;e among the &s;ons of men? I an&s;wer, God will leave wicked men more inexcu&s;able, the more patience is exerci&s;ed to|wards them, the more long &s;uffering God is to them, the more evi|dent will the ju&s;tice of God be in their &s;ufferings, and they will have the le&s;&s;e, or rather nothing at all to plead for them&s;elves. The lea&s;t &s;in committed by man, may &s;top his mouth, how much &s;oever hee is puni&s;hed by God; how much more may their mouthes be &s;topped, who continued to &s;in greatly, while God con|tinued to &s;pare them long in their &s;in?</P>
<P>Thirdly, The day of the wicked mans &s;uffering comes no<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;uddainly, that the patience of the Saints may be tryed, and exer|ci&s;ed. There are three things which chiefely exerci&s;e the patience of the Saints. Fir&s;t, the Greatnes of their owne troubles; Second|ly, the &s;lownes of their deliverance out of trouble: Thirdly, the long pro&s;perity of wicked men, or the long deferring of their pu|ni&s;hment. The&s;e delayes and &s;tops in the vindicative admini&s;trati|ons of God <HI>towards evill men,</HI> give the graces of his &s;ervants pre|&s;ent worke, and God often forbeares purpo&s;ely to put forth his power, that Saints may put forth their patience, or that it may be &s;ayd of them as in the booke of the Revelations, <HI>Here is the pati|ence
<PB N="483" REF="255"> of the Saints,</HI> in this the patience of the Saints is vi&s;ible. Faith and patience can never have &s;o fit an opportunity to be &s;eene, as when the Ju&s;tice of God in avenging them, and in puni&s;hing the wicked is lea&s;t &s;eene. Yea therefore it is that they doe not &s;ee tho&s;e his dayes with an eye of &s;en&s;e, that they might &s;ee them with an eye of faith. While the Prophet &s;aith (<HI>Hab:</HI> 2.4.) <HI>The ju&s;t &s;hall live by his faith;</HI> He &s;peakes in reference to the deferring and delaying of judgements upon the enemies of the Church; as ap|peares fully in the fir&s;t Chapter (<HI>ver.</HI> 12, 13.) <HI>O Lord, thou ha&s;t ordained them</HI> (namely, the Chaldean Empire) <HI>for Judge|ment,</HI> (that is, to puni&s;h and afflict thy Church, the Jewi&s;h Nati|on) <HI>and O mighty God, thou ha&s;t e&s;tabli&s;hed them for correction;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Thou O Lord, did&s;t not intend the ruine and de|&s;truction of thy people, by arming and &s;ending this bitter and ha&s;ty Nation again&s;t them, but onely their amendment and repentance; yea thou ha&s;t no plea&s;ure at all in the&s;e Chaldeans, by whom thou ha&s;t powred out thy di&s;plea&s;ure upon thine owne people.</HI> For, as it fol|lowes; <HI>Thou art of purer eyes then to behold evill, and can&s;t not looke on iniquity, to approve of it, or to be plea&s;ed with it, and &s;eeing thou can&s;t not; wherefore looke&s;t thou upon them that deale treache|rou&s;ly, and holde&s;t thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man, that is more righteous then he?</HI> That is, why doe&s;t not thou O Lord, take vengeance &s;peedily upon the&s;e evill and treacherous ones? The Prophet having propo&s;ed &amp; urged this que&s;tion to the Lord, What doth he next? you may &s;ee that at the fir&s;t ver&s;e of the &s;econd Chapter; <HI>I will &s;tand upon the watch and &s;et me upon the tower, dnd I will watch to &s;ee what he will &s;ay unto me, and what I &s;hall an&s;wer when I am reproved,</HI> or (as the Hebrew hath it) ar|gued with, by carnall men, or the turbulent pa&s;&s;ions of my own &s;pirit? The Lord giveth him his an&s;wer at large (<HI>ver.</HI> 2, 3.) which is &s;ummed up (<HI>v.</HI> 4.) in this briefe direction or a&s;&s;er|tion, <HI>But the Ju&s;t &s;hall live by his faith.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, proud men will be querying, yea quarrelling, when they &s;ee my provi|dences cro&s;&s;e my promi&s;es, or my workes carrying a pre&s;ent face of un&s;utablenes to my word. When things goe thus, they are pre|&s;ently offended &amp; nonplus'd, they know not what to make of it, un|le&s;&s;e it be to make me <HI>a lyar,</HI> as &s;peaking, what I meant not to doe, or <HI>impotent,</HI> as &s;peaking more then I had ability to doe; But, my people know how to &s;atisfie the&s;e doubts with a &s;aving to my
<PB N="484" REF="256"> honour; <HI>The Ju&s;t &s;hall live by his faith.</HI> And they who live by faith will not have uncomely thoughts of me, what&s;oever it is that ap|peares to their &s;ight: or though that which they hoped would appeare be &s;till kept out of their &s;ight. Though, <HI>they that know him, &s;ee not his dayes,</HI> with an eye of &s;ence, yet they &s;ee them by an eye of faith, and <HI>by that faith they live.</HI></P>
<P>So then the rea&s;on why they who know God, or the Godly, &s;ee not his dayes, is not becau&s;e God is not able to bring a day of vengeance upon wicked men, it is not becau&s;e he beares any good will to them, but to exerci&s;e the faith and patience of his people. That's the &s;cope of this fir&s;t ver&s;e, which layeth downe the pro|po&s;ition by way of que&s;tion, times are not unknowne to God, yet they that know him doe not &s;ee his dayes, his judgement dayes, as <HI>Eliphaz</HI> had before a&s;&s;erted. In the next part of the Chapter, <HI>Job</HI> goes on to prove by an enumeration of particulars, that many &s;orts of wicked men goe on in all &s;orts of &s;inne, who yet feele not the day of God upon them.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="485" REF="256">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 2, 3, 4.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Some remove the Land-markes, they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.</P>
<P>They drive away the A&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e, they take the widows Ox for a pledge.</P>
<P>They turne the needy out of the way, the poore of the earth hide them&s;elves together.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the fir&s;t ver&s;e of this Chapter, it was &s;hewed that they who know God, that is godly men doe not in this world &s;ee his dayes, that is, the dayes of his judgement, and vengeance upon the wicked. In the following part of this Chapter, <HI>Job</HI> proceeds to de&s;cribe wicked men, in &s;everall acts of wickedne&s;&s;e, and how they carry it on, and have many faire dayes in the world, while they are doing fowle, and filthy worke. They doe as much mi&s;chiefe as they can, and they enjoy as much outward pro&s;perity, as they can de&s;ire to have, or tell what to doe with it, when they have it: &s;o that they &s;eeme equally to abound in the practice of evill, and in the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of Good. See what havocke they make, in the words of this context.</P>
<DIV3 N="2" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 2.</HI></BIBL> Some remove the Land-marks, they violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>Some remove]</HI> Of whom <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake in particular, or of what particular time he &s;pake is uncertaine. Some referre it to the dayes before the Floud, for that was a time wherein the world was filled with violence; and that was the &s;peciall &s;inne of that age, &s;et forth (<HI>Gen.</HI> 6.11.) <HI>The earth al&s;o was corrupt before God;</HI> That is, men dwelling upon the earth, were corrupt, morally corrupt, corrupt in their manners. Thus, <HI>the earth was corrupt before God,</HI> and, he &s;hews wherein that corruption did con&s;i&s;t, <HI>and the earth was filled with violence.</HI> But as the character which <HI>Job</HI> gives of the&s;e men, may wel &s;uite tho&s;e times: &s;o what times have not produced &s;uch a &s;ort of men? And though &s;ome times have been more tainted with, and notorious for tho&s;e &s;innes then others, yet all times have
<PB N="486" REF="257"> been tainted with them, and therefore we may take the words ge|nerally as applicable to any age of the world.</P>
<Q>Some remove the Land-markes.</Q>
<P>That is, tho&s;e marks which are &s;et up for the di&s;tinction, or divi|&s;ion of Lands, that every man may know his owne, and not en|trench upon his neighbours inheritance. The&s;e land-marks, or bounds they remove.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> retigit apprehendit vis verbi ea e&s;t ut ita res attinga|tur qu&ograve;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> appre|hendatur, pe<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ti|net ad vim po|tentioris manu~ inijcientis.</NOTE> The Hebrew is, <HI>they touch,</HI> &s;o 'tis tran&s;lated, <HI>&s;ome touch the land-marks;</HI> land-marks were &s;acred things; they ought not to be touched, nor medled with. The Lord &s;peaks of his holy people (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 105.15.) <HI>Touch not mine anointed, and doe my Prophets no harme.</HI> Another word is u&s;ed in the <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> but we may give the &s;ame empha&s;is here, <HI>&s;ome touch the land-marks,</HI> as if it were a fault &s;o much as to handdle, or meddle with them: yet the word here u&s;ed &s;ignifies both to touch, and to take, and &s;o to take, as violently to carry away. (<HI>Zech.</HI> 1.6.) <HI>Did not my word take hold of your fathers;</HI> that is, did it not apprehend, and &s;eaze upon them, yea remove them out of the land of the li|ving. Where the word of God toucheth, it taketh away, eyther to de&s;truction or &s;alvation. And that word in the Prophet hath a double allu&s;ion, either to the hunting of bea&s;ts, or to fighting, and contending with men; the word followed your fathers, it over|tooke them, it tooke them, it laid hold on them, as the hunter layeth hold upon his prey, or as an enemy follows, and over-takes a fleeing enemy, <HI>did not my word take hold of your fathers?</HI> yes, it did, and that to purpo&s;e. The word is u&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 40.12.) <HI>Mine iniquities</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>David) take hold of me, &s;o that I am not able to looke up;</HI> they have dealt with me, as with a fugitive, that runneth away; They have taken hold of me, and they hold me fa&s;t, my &s;inne hath apprehended me. So that, though this originall word &s;ignifies <HI>to touch,</HI> yet it is &s;o to touch as to offer violence, to take away, to remove, as is expre&s;&s;ed in tho&s;e in&s;tances (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 30.8.) <HI>David inquired of the Lord, &s;aying, &s;hall I pur&s;ue after this troope, &s;hall I over-take them;</HI> &s;o (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 15.14.) <HI>David &s;aid to all his &s;ervants that were with him at Jeru&s;alem, ari&s;e let us flee, for we &s;hall not e&s;cape from Ab&s;olom, make &s;peed to depart, lea&s;t he overtake us &s;uddenly.</HI> In which places as this word is u&s;ed, &s;o the u&s;e of it is about violent and forcible actings, &s;o that this touching is tak|ing or removing; they <HI>remove</HI> or <HI>pull</HI> up the land-marks, to &s;et
<PB N="487" REF="257"> them in &s;ome other place for their owne advantage. This was their fir&s;t &s;in, the removing of <HI>land-marks;</HI> which was upon the matter to take away propriety, and to put all men out of po&s;&s;e&s;|&s;ion. There can be no po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion without di&s;tinction;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mira fuit in antiquis tum in con&s;tituendis tum in &s;ervan|dis limitibus fi|des at&abque; religio.</NOTE> naturall riches con&s;i&s;t in lands and cattle, &amp; both beare their owners mark. The care and indu&s;try of the ancients was exceeding great and ac|curate about their land-marks, both in &s;etting them up, and in ob|&s;erving them, that every man might have his owne; wherefore to remove the land-marks, was indeed to take away the land.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>That,</HI> God hath given unto man a proper, &s;peciall, and per&s;onall right in his lands, and goods.</Q>
<P>If it were not &s;o, then, fir&s;t, it were no &s;inne to remove land-marks, or a vaine thing to &s;et them up; if there be no di&s;tinction of inheritances by propriety, what needs there be any di&s;tinction, by marks, or limits, to &s;hew, this is &s;uch a mans land, and that anothers. No man may &s;et a &s;peciall marke, where he hath not a &s;peciall right. Secondly, if there were no propriety, there could not be &s;uch a &s;inne as &s;tealing, and theeving: that which is every mans, any man may take, and be blamele&s;&s;e. Thirdly, if there were not propriety, there would be but little indu&s;try; If mens lands and goods were not their owne, who would be found to take care of them, or paines about them. Fourthly, to make all things com|mon, were to run all into confu&s;ion. There is nothing more une|quall then this kinde of equality. If all had a like right in the things of the world, all would thinke to have a like power in the government of the world. <HI>Propriety and Magi&s;tracy mu&s;t &s;tand and fall together.</HI></P>
<P>But &s;ome may object that practice of the primitive Church (<HI>Acts</HI> 2.44.) who had all things common. And if all things with them were in a community, where was propriety?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, Fir&s;t, This practice of theirs was purely voluntary, not at all impo&s;ed; as appeares plainely from the words of <HI>Peter</HI> to <HI>Ananias (Acts</HI> 5.4.) <HI>While it remained, was it not thine owne;</HI> or more clo&s;e to the Greek, <HI>Remaining did it not remaine to thee;</HI> that is, it was properly thine before thou &s;olde&s;t it, and thou mighte&s;t have kept thy intere&s;t in it. No man compelled thee to &s;ell or give, and if thou had&s;t not &s;old it, thou mighte&s;t &s;till have held commu|nion
<PB N="488" REF="258"> with the Church for all that; But this is thy &s;in, to pretend the gift of all to God, and performe but in part.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, &s;econdly, That community did not extend to the whole e&s;tate of all beleevers, but to what they did con&s;ecrate to releive the publicke nece&s;&s;ity; For if they had put them&s;elves quite out of all propriety by one gift, they could not have exerci&s;ed their charity any more. Whereas the Apo&s;tle directs them to a con&s;tant u&s;e of their charity in making collections for the poore (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 16.1, 2.) And &s;urely <HI>Paul</HI> had made a vaine profe&s;&s;ion when he &s;ayd; <HI>I have coveted no mans &s;ilver, or Gold, or apparell, (Act.</HI> 20.33.) if no man had any peculiar propriety in gold, &s;il|ver, or apparel.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It appeares from the 44^t^h ver&s;e, that even they who &s;old their goods retained &s;ome kinde of right in them; for all did not come to the common banke, and take what they plea&s;ed; but they who &s;old their po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions parted the price to all men, allot|ting to every one a proportion as he had need. It was not &s;hare and &s;hare like, every man was not his owne carver out of the pub|licke &s;tocke, but di&s;tribution was made, as nece&s;&s;ity required. God doth to this day keepe the eighth commandement in full force and &s;trength, as a Fence or hedge about the worldly e&s;tates of men, and he that goes about to breake this Hedge, a Serpent &s;hall bite him, as <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>Eccl.</HI> 10.8.) Hedges are Land-markes; And both are, not onely arguments, but &s;ecurers of pro|priety.</P>
<P>Againe, Seeing land-markes were &s;et up to di&s;tingui&s;h mens e&s;tates.</P>
<P>We learne.</P>
<Q>That we &s;hould u&s;e all due meanes to prevent contentions about worldly po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions.</Q>
<P>As every man hath a title and a right to his owne, &s;o every man &s;hould have a rule whereby to know his owne; peace is a &s;acred and precious thing (even peace about civill things) and therefore what&s;oever makes for peace &s;hould be accounted &s;acred and pre|tious. Ble&s;&s;ed are the peace-makers, but more ble&s;&s;ed are the peace-pre&s;ervers. It is good to heale breaches among Brethren, but it is better when there are none. Preventing phy&s;icke is more de&s;ierable then re&s;toring.</P>
<PB N="489" REF="258">
<P>Thirdly, Note.</P>
<Q>To remove land-makes, which are the meanes of pre&s;erving the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ions of men di&s;tinct, and &s;o of pre&s;erving their right and peace, is very &s;infull.</Q>
<P>This is a &s;in condemned by the light of nature, as well as by the light of Scripture;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Numa pompili|us &s;tatuit ut li|ceret eum tan|quam &s;acrilegu~ occidere qui vi|olare, jus termi|ni au&s;us e&s;&s;et. Etiam qui ter|minum exara&s;|&s;et, ip&s;um &amp; bovem &s;acros e&s;&s;e. <HI>i. e.</HI> Ferro devotos. <HI>Fe&s;tus.</HI> Numa lapides &s;acravit Jovi Terminali.</NOTE> Hi&s;tories report how &s;trict the ancient <HI>Romans</HI> were again&s;t &s;uch offenders; as they were accurate in &s;etting up bounds, &s;o they were &s;evere to puni&s;h tho&s;e, who removed, and di&s;turbed the bounds; it was lawfull by their law to take away the life of him who tooke away his neighbours land-mark. And if any man in tilling the ground, plowed up the land-marke, him&s;elfe and his oxe were both &s;acred, that is, both were to be &s;laine or de|voted to death; yea the <HI>Romans</HI> were &s;o intent, and devout about this thing, that they had a &s;peciall God <HI>of the bounds or limits &s;tones.</HI> And as the old heathens, judging by the rule of common rea&s;on, and light of nature, did abhorre this practice, &s;o the holy Scripture in the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> provides directly and by name a|gain&s;t it. (<HI>Deut.</HI> 19.14.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not remove thy neighbours land-marke which they of old times &s;ett, in thine inheritance, which thou &s;halt inherit, in the land that the Lord thy God giveth thee to po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e it.</HI> And againe (<HI>Deut.</HI> 27.17.) <HI>Cur&s;ed be he that remo|veth his neighbours land-marke, and all the people &s;hall &s;ay Amen.</HI> A <HI>cur&s;e</HI> containes all penalties, and <HI>Amen</HI> &s;eales them all upon the per&s;on of the offender. <HI>Solomon</HI> renewed the&s;e lawes (<HI>Prov.</HI> 22.28.) <HI>Romove not thy neighbours land-marke, which thy fathers have &s;et.</HI> And againe (<HI>Prov.</HI> 23.10.) <HI>Remove not the old land-marks, and enter not into the feild of the fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI> Thus <HI>Solomon</HI> caution'd tho&s;e times again&s;t this &s;in. And the Prophet (<HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> 5.10.) makes this &s;inne as the Standard of all other &s;innes, or as that by which we are to take the greatne&s;&s;e and weight of any &s;inne; if a &s;inne comes neere to this, or be like this, 'tis a great &s;in. <HI>The Princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound, therefore I will powre out my wrath upon them like water;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, the Princes of <HI>Judah</HI> are extreamely wicked: how wicked? even as wicked as they which remove the bound. Now if high-growne wickednes be but &s;uch a thing as removing the bound, how high is their wickednes growne, who remove the bound? But it may be demanded what bound doth the Prophet meane? I an|&s;wer,
<PB N="490" REF="259"> it may be under&s;tood of all &s;orts of bounds, of the bounds of lawes, of the bounds of liberty, of the bounds of religion, as al&s;o of the bounds of lands. It is wickednes to meddle with or remove any of the&s;e bounds, though to remove &s;ome of them be a greater wickednes. To remove the bounds of the lawes, and the liberties of a Nation, e&s;pecially to remove the bounds of religion, are hai|nous abominations and though; to remove the bound of lands, be not &s;o bad as the&s;e, yet that al&s;o may be numbred among the abominations which both God and man hate; and therefore when the Prophet would in one word &s;peake all the abominable practi|ces of the Princes of <HI>Judah,</HI> he cho&s;e to &s;ay, they are like tho&s;e who remove the bound; implying that nothing could be &s;ayd of them wor&s;e then that. The &s;ame Prophet u&s;eth an expre&s;&s;ion &s;omewhat paralel to that (<HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> 4.4.) where de&s;cribing the wickedne&s;&s;e of tho&s;e times, he tells them, that <HI>the Lord had a con|trover&s;ie with the land, becau&s;e there was no truth, no mercy, no know|ledge of God in the land, by &s;wearing, and lying, and killing, and &s;tealing,</HI> &amp;c. then at the 4th ver&s;e, he concludes, <HI>Let no man &s;trive, and reprove another.</HI> ('Tis the &s;oare&s;t judgement of God upon a people or a per&s;on to let them alone and be quiet in their &s;inne, to &s;ay, <HI>Let no man &s;trive, and reprove another</HI>) but why did God give up that people to &s;uch a judgement? The greatnes of their &s;in was the cau&s;e of it; And what was that; the next words &s;hew us; <HI>For thy people are as they that &s;trive with the Prie&s;t.</HI> It was &s;o great a wickednes to contend or <HI>&s;trive with the Prie&s;t,</HI> that the vile&s;t of wickedne&s;&s;es was but an exemplification of it. God forbids that they &s;hould be reproved or &s;triven with for good, who were once growne &s;o evill as to &s;trive with the Prie&s;t; and the greate&s;t reproofe that can po&s;&s;ibly be gives any man, is to &s;ay, <HI>let no man reprove him.</HI> Thus we &s;ee that to <HI>&s;trive with the Prie&s;t, and to remove the bound,</HI> are &s;ins of the fir&s;t magnitude, the one in Spiritualls, the other in Civills.</P>
<P>Fourthly, In as much as the word here u&s;ed &s;ignifies not one|ly quite to remove, but to touch or medle with the land-marks.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That we ought to avoide all tho&s;e acts, that are leading to &s;inne, as well as the &s;inne it &s;elfe.</Q>
<P>It was not ab&s;olutely a &s;inne, or a &s;inne in it &s;elfe, to touch or
<PB N="491" REF="259"> come neere the land-markes, but becau&s;e this had an appearance of evill in it, and becau&s;e while men handled the bounds, eyther it might come into their minds to remove them, or they might po&s;&s;ibly remove them a little again&s;t their minds, therefore even that act is forbidden, as having in it a tendency to that &s;inne. It is good for us to keepe at the furthe&s;t di&s;tance we can from that which is evill. The Apo&s;tles rule is, <HI>Ab&s;taine from all appearance of evill,</HI> (1 The&s;. 5.22.) unle&s;&s;e all the appearances of all the ap|proaches unto evill be ab&s;tained from, we &s;hall hardly ab&s;taine from the evill it &s;elfe. <HI>Solomon</HI> gives a like caution (<HI>Pro.</HI> 23.31.) <HI>Looke not upon the Wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth it &s;elfe aright.</HI> It is not a &s;inne to looke upon the wine, yet <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith, <HI>looke not upon it;</HI> why? becau&s;e that act may occa&s;ion another; while you looke upon the wine, you may be taken with the beauty and colour of it, and &s;o drinke intemperately; for he adds, <HI>it will bite like a Serpent;</HI> which implyes that looking may en&s;nare a man, and cau&s;e him to drinke more then he ought, and then the wine will bite indeed; wine will goe downe without chewing, but he that lets too much goe downe &s;hall finde it biting. And 'tis more dangerous and ve|nemous to be wine-bitten, then to be &s;erpent-bitten; therefore looke not upon the wine. So here, touch not the land-marks, be not bu&s;ie about them, &s;tand off from them, le&s;t you be enticed to remove or take them away; <HI>They that will alwayes doe the utmo&s;t of what is lawfull, may &s;oone be overcome to doe that which is unlaw|full.</HI> It is our wi&s;dome as wel as our duty, not to touch that, which to take away will be our &s;in.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, When <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>Some remove the land-marks;</HI> That is not the onely thing intended, though it be onely here expre&s;&s;ed; for this removing had a further purpo&s;e: as touching comes to removing, &s;o removing the land-marks goeth further, even to the taking away of the land. And they therefore tooke away the land-marks, that they might take away the land al&s;o; they tooke away that which di&s;tingui&s;hed their lands from other mens lands, that &s;o other mens lands might be accounted theirs, and that they might enter upon the po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of them as their owne. Thus, to colour and cover their covetou&s;nes and oppre&s;&s;ion in invading o|ther mens lands, they removed the markes whereby they held and claimed their lands. It were not worth the while to remove land-markes,
<PB N="492" REF="260"> unle&s;&s;e it were for the lands &s;ake. The value of a &s;tone, or of a peice of timber, or of a Turfe of earth (any of which may be made a land-marke) is not con&s;iderable, but the land marked by it, is. The heart of man is cunning and full of contrivance to compa&s;&s;e &s;infull ends by &s;uch wayes, as may keepe the &s;in (as much as may be) un&s;eene. Forceably to take away lands were gro&s;&s;e, but fir&s;t to take away land-marks, &amp; &s;o to rayfe a que&s;tion, or make it a controver&s;ie to whom the land belongs, this is a peice of oppe&s;&s;ion &s;punne with a finer threed. This is robbing without &s;eeming to doe wrong. <HI>Some remove the land-markes,</HI>
<Q>They violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> rapuit, ve|hemens e&s;t o i+ginali illud di|ripiendi verbu~, denotans violen|t&egrave;r capere et vi extorquere.</NOTE>The&s;e wnrds containe the &s;econd act of their wickednes. Before we had land &s;tolne, now cattel, <HI>they violently take away.</HI> The word notes a feirce violence. As 'tis &s;ayd of one of <HI>Davids</HI> Worthies (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 23.21.) <HI>He &s;lew an Egyptian, a goodly man, and the E|gyptian had a &s;peare in his hand, but he went downe to him with a &s;taffe, and pluckt the &s;peare out of the Egyptians hand.</HI> He pluckt it from him by &s;trength of hand, or by fine force. Thus here, <HI>They take or plucke away flocks.</HI> There are two wayes of taking away what belongs to another. Fir&s;t, &s;ecretly, or by fraud; &s;econdly, o|penly, or by violence. Both are forbidden (<HI>Lev.</HI> 19.13) <HI>Thou &s;halt not defraud thy neighbour,</HI> (that is, thou &s;halt not take away his goods &s;ecretly by deceit and cunning) <HI>neither &s;halt thou rob him;</HI> he that cozens or deceives another, robs him; but in that law of <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> by robing is meant violent taking away. There are &s;ome private theeves, &s;o are all they who defraud their brethren; others are bold and open theeves, the&s;e properly are robbers. Might overcomes right. Of &s;uch <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes here.</P>
<Q>They violently take away flocks.</Q>
<P>A flock is a collection of cattell, le&s;&s;e, or great, &s;heepe, or oxen, they make prey of all,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t colle|ctio animalium, tum minorum, ut evium, capra|rum, tum majo|rum ut boum vaccarum.</NOTE> <HI>they take away flocks.</HI> See the greedynes of the&s;e robbers. Any one flock containes many cattel, the&s;e tooke away many flocks, or many a flocke; and that violently; they had no law for it, and they asked no leave for it.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Where the rule of what is done is the will of the doer, any thing is done which he hath a power to doe, whether right or wrong, makes no matter.</Q>
<PB N="493" REF="260">
<P>I will have it, &s;ayth he; and if he be &s;trong enough have it he will. The Prophet <HI>Amos</HI> gives &s;uch a character of the Princes of tho&s;e times (<HI>Chap.</HI> 3.10.) <HI>They know not to doe right, &s;ayth the Lord, who &s;tore up violence and robbery in their pallaces.</HI> 'Tis &s;ad for a people when Princes or <HI>they who dwell in pallaces, know not to doe right,</HI> e&s;pecally when their <HI>know not,</HI> is not, an Ignorance of the Law, but a willfull perver&s;ion of the Law; when their <HI>know not to doe right,</HI> is they have no minde nor will to do right; when Princes <HI>are wi&s;e</HI> (enough, too wi&s;e) <HI>to doe evill, but to doe good they have no knowledge;</HI> &s;uch were they of whom the Prophet complained in that place, <HI>they know not to doe right.</HI> And what are &s;uch like to doe then? The Prophet tells us what; <HI>They &s;tore up violence and robbery in their pallaces;</HI> that is, all the furniture and riches of their pallaces, are but robbery, and violence, or &s;uch things as they have taken away by violence, and robbery. The Lord therefore threa|tens &s;uch, that they &s;hall be &s;courged with violence, (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 7.11.) <HI>Violence is ri&s;en up into a rod of wickedne&s;&s;e, none of them &s;hall re|maine, nor of their multitude, nor any of theirs, neyther &s;hall there be wayling for them.</HI> Violence ri&s;eth up to a rod of wickednes two wayes. Fir&s;t, as violence &s;hootes or puts forth from wicked|nes, as a branch or rod &s;hootes forth from the &s;tocke of a tree; all the violence and oppre&s;&s;ion that ever was committed in the world, is both branch and fruit growing or ri&s;ing up from a wic|ked heart. Secondly, Violence ri&s;eth up into a rod of wickednes, when violence puni&s;herh wickedne&s;&s;e; they who have afflicted o|thers by violence, often finde violence turned into a rod to afflict them&s;elves. And we may give that &s;ence of <HI>Solomons</HI> Proverbs, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 13.2.) <HI>The &s;oule of the tran&s;gre&s;&s;our &s;hall eate violence.</HI> The words are a threat. As wicked men eate violence, that is, what they have gotten by violence; &s;o they &s;hall have violence to eate, that is, they &s;hall be violently dealt with; eyther violence &s;hall compel them to doe their duty, or violence &s;hall puni&s;h them for not doing it, or, as they lived by violence, &s;o they &s;hall die by violence. <HI>The &s;oules of tran&s;gre&s;&s;ours &s;hall eate violence,</HI> as a pun|i&s;hment, becau&s;e (as it followes in the next clau&s;e) they eate vio|lence as their portion. <HI>They violently take away flocks,</HI>
<Q>And feed thereof.</Q></P>
<P>The Original words are rendred two wayes. Fir&s;t, as we, <HI>They
<PB N="494" REF="261"> feede thereof;</HI> that is, they feed them&s;elves with the flocks which they have taken away; Secondly, <HI>They fed them;</HI> that is, they feede the flocks which they have violently taken away. Accord|ing to our tran&s;lation the &s;ence is this, when they have taken away flocks violently, they &s;it downe quietly and feed them&s;elves with the&s;e flocks, they and their families are maintained by the &s;poyle. And I conceave <HI>Job</HI> adds this, not onely to &s;hew another or a &s;e|cond act of their &s;in, but to &s;hew the re&s;olvednes and &s;etlednes of the&s;e men in the wayes of &s;in.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Then a wicked man is hardned in &s;inne, when he feeds, and filleth him&s;elfe with what he hath &s;infully gotten.</Q>
<P>They not onely act evill, but delight in evill, who <HI>take away any thing by violence, and feede thereon. Solomon</HI> &s;peakes of &s;ome (<HI>Pro.</HI> 4.17.) <HI>Who eate the bread of wickednes</HI> (that is, bread (by which is meant all the nece&s;&s;aryes of this life) gotten by wicked|nes) <HI>and they drinke the wine of violence;</HI> that is, the wine which they have gained by violence, or &s;uppo&s;e what they have violent|ly gained be not wine, in &s;pecie, or that liquor which we call wine, yet they drinke it as wine, like &s;weete and plea&s;ant wine. This is a &s;igne of a heart &s;etled in &s;in, when the &s;inner eates his &s;inne as bread, and drinks it as wine. What &s;tomacks have they who can dige&s;t &s;uch hard-meates; and though now they &s;eeme to make a good dige&s;tion of it, yet unle&s;&s;e they vomit up &s;uch mor&s;els and draughts by true repentance, they will lye heavie upon their &s;to|macks, and make them heart-&s;ick to Eternity. The Prophet threa|tens (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 3.14.) <HI>That the Lord will enter into judgement with the antients of his people, and the Princes thereof, for</HI> (&s;ayth he) <HI>ye have eaten up the vineyard, the &s;poyle of the poore is in your hou&s;es;</HI> that is, ye maintaine your hou&s;es by that which is not yours, even by the &s;poyles and vineyards of the poore. When <HI>Jezabel</HI> had got <HI>Naboth</HI> &s;laine, &s;he pre&s;ently &s;ayd to <HI>Ahab, Ari&s;e, take po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of the vineyard of Naboth,</HI> and <HI>Ahab</HI> did &s;o (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 21.15, 16.) But the Lord &s;ent <HI>Eliah</HI> to him with this Me&s;&s;age (<HI>ver.</HI> 19.) <HI>Ha&s;t thou killed and al&s;o taken po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, Art thou indeed &s;o hardned in &s;in, that thou can&s;t goe downe and plea&s;e thy &s;elfe in the u&s;e and po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of what thou ha&s;t gotten &s;infully? how wicked art thou, who art &s;o farre from having thy
<PB N="495" REF="261"> heart to &s;mite thee with &s;orrow, for &s;miting a faithfull &s;ubject of thine to death by thy Authority, that now thou can&s;t delight thy &s;elfe in eating up the vineyard of the dead man. Sometimes a god|ly man &s;ins by inordinate de&s;ires after the creature, but 'tis very rare, that his &s;tomacke doth not turne before he comes to eate his &s;inne. <HI>David</HI> (2 Sam. 23.16.) had a longing de&s;ire to the waters of <HI>Bethlem,</HI> and upon the making knowne of his de&s;ire, three mighty men broke through the hoa&s;t of the <HI>Phili&s;tims,</HI> and fetched him the water; but (<HI>ver.</HI> 16.) when the water was brought him his &s;tomacke turned, he would not drinke becau&s;e it was gotten by the hazzard of three mens lives. For though <HI>David</HI> did not &s;peake tho&s;e words; <HI>O that one would give me drinke of the water of the well of Bethlem;</HI> with an intent to put any of his Soul|diers upon that dangerous enterpri&s;e in fetching it for him; yet that he might declare how farre he was from indulging him&s;elfe in &s;uch inordinate de&s;ires, to engage any mans life for the plea&s;ing of his appetite, or &s;atisfying of his pre&s;ent (though probably a very ur|gent) thir&s;t, therefore he would not drinke it, but powr'd it out un|to the Lord; &s;aying, <HI>Farre be it from me O Lord, that I &s;hould doe this, is not this the bloud of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?</HI> Thus it is with tender con&s;ciences, who though they &s;ome|times &s;peake and doe ra&s;hly and &s;infully, yet before they come to eate their &s;inne, that is, what they have &s;infully de&s;iered or attai|ned, they repent and cannot make eyther meate or drinke of it. Ungodly men can drinke blood, not onely that which (as in <HI>Da|vids</HI> ca&s;e) others have gotten for them with the danger of their lives, but even that which them&s;elves have gotten with the unju&s;t &s;poyle, (&s;ometimes) of other mens lives, but often of their lively|hoods. <HI>They violently take away flocks, and feed thereof.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, I &s;hall touch a little upon the &s;econd reading; <HI>They violently take away flocks, and feed them;</HI> that is, they doe not onely drive other mens flocks away, but keepe them openly in their pa&s;tures, and feed them; &s;o M^r <HI>Broughton,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Vix vel He|braeum <GAP DESC="foreign"> vel latinum pa&s;|cere pro come|dere u&s;u pan<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ur &s;ed &s;aepe pro, pa&s;toris in&s;tar, pa&s;cere. <HI>Pined<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI></NOTE> <HI>They rob away herds, and feed them.</HI> The Originall word in the Hebrew, as al&s;o the Latine is &s;eldome u&s;ed to &s;ignifie mans feeding upon dead fle&s;h, but often to &s;ignifie mans feeding of living fle&s;h or cattel. A Shepheard is &s;ayd to feed his flocke. Thus fir&s;t they play the theeves, violently taking away their neighbours flocks; next they turne Shepheards and Gra&s;iers and feed them openly.</P>
<PB N="496" REF="262">
<P>This implyes three things concerning the&s;e oppre&s;&s;ours, of whom <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That they were great men, not petty robbers, who when they have got cattle away, hide them, or &s;ell them off as &s;oone as they can, they dare not put them in their owne pa&s;tures, and u&s;u|ally they have none to put them in. But the&s;e <HI>Nimrods,</HI> the&s;e mighty Hunters take them violently, and then owne it broadly; they care not who &s;ees what they have done. Thus the Prophet <HI>I&s;aiah</HI> reproves the Princes of <HI>I&s;rael (Chap.</HI> 1.23.) <HI>Thy Princes are rebellious, and companions of theeves;</HI> that is, they doe like theeves, they oppre&s;&s;e, and vex, and violently take away. They are &s;o farre (which is the duty of Princes) from repre&s;&s;ing theeves, that they encourage and countenance them, and not onely &s;o, but are actually Theeves them&s;elves. Theeves in Authority and power are the vile&s;t theeves; who &s;hall deliver from oppre&s;&s;ion, when Princes turne oppre&s;&s;ors, and Great ones theeves?</P>
<P>Secondly, When it is &s;ayd, that <HI>they take away flocks, and fed them,</HI> it &s;hewes, that the&s;e robbers per&s;i&s;ted in their &s;in, and were not a&s;hamed of it. They could &s;poyle their neighbours and never blu&s;h. They declared their &s;in as <HI>Sodome,</HI> they hid it not.</P>
<P>Thirdly, This imports that they had quiet po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion of their ill gotten goods; What they got unju&s;tly, they held &s;ecurely and unmole&s;ted. Their &s;tolne goods were neyther recovered by law, nor forceably retaken from them; they fed them, and kept them as their owne; wickednes pro&s;pered in their hand; no man &s;aw the day of Gods reckoning with them. This their impunity, <HI>Job</HI> &s;pecially aymed at, when he &s;ayd; <HI>They violently take away flocks, and feed them, or feed upon them.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>That God leaves &s;ome wicked men in a long, and quiet po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, of what they have unju&s;tly gotten.</Q>
<P>To hold by inju&s;tice and oppre&s;&s;ion is the wor&s;t and mo&s;t &s;lip|pery title and tenure in the world; yet as unju&s;t gaine makes &s;ome rich, as they improve and thrive, as they trade in, and encrea&s;e by wayes of unrighteou&s;nes, &s;o they live pro&s;perou&s;ly, and hold &s;trongly what they have unrighteou&s;ly gained. They both feed upon and feed the flocks which they have taken away by violence. Though &s;ome oppre&s;&s;ors are &s;o &s;uddainly attached by pur&s;uing
<PB N="497" REF="262"> vengeance, that they can neyther feed nor feed upon their &s;tolne flockes, but even before the meate is in their mouthes the wrath of God and ju&s;tice of man falls upon them &amp; will not &s;uffer them to ro&s;t what they have got in this kinde of cruel hunting, yet o|thers ro&s;t and eate to the full, though indeed, they doe but fat them&s;elves again&s;t a day of &s;laughter, which though it come &s;low|ly will &s;urely come. <HI>Job</HI> &s;till proceeds in de&s;cribing their other acts of violence.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 3.</HI></BIBL> They drive away the A&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e, they take the widows Oxe for a pledge.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There is &s;omewhat con&s;iderable in the&s;e words, though they are but a continued de&s;cription of the &s;ame thing under variety of in&s;tances.</P>
<Q>They drive away the A&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e.</Q>
<P>Here is more violence &s;till. Some conceave the &s;ingular is here put for the plurall; The <HI>A&s;&s;e</HI> for the <HI>A&s;&s;es of the fatherle&s;&s;e;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Abigeus is pro|pri&egrave; dicitur qui pecora ex pa&s;|cuis vel ex ar|men<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">is &s;ubtra|hit, &amp; abigendi &s;tudium qua&s;i artem exercet. <HI>Ulpian:</HI> In&s;igne e&s;t apud Juri&s;con&s;ultos Abigeatus cri|men.</NOTE> that is, all the A&s;&s;es that he had, they left not one, but &s;wept all away. But if we take the word &s;trictly for one &s;ingle A&s;&s;e, then it aggra|vates the &s;inne, <HI>They drive away the A&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e:</HI> Though he hath but one, they drive that away; this hightens the oppre&s;&s;io~, as (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 12.3.) in the parable which <HI>Nathan</HI> put to <HI>David</HI> to convince him of his &s;inne; <HI>He tells him of a rich man that had exceeding many flocks and herds, but the poore man had nothing &s;ave one little Ewe-lambe, which he had bought, and nouri&s;hed up, and it grew up together with him, and with his children, it did eate of his owne meate, and dranke of his owne cup, and lay in his bo&s;ome, and was unto him as a daughter: Now, when the traveller came to the rich man, he &s;pared to take of his owne flocke, and of his owne herd to dre&s;&s;e for the waifareing man, but tooke the poore mans lambe,</HI> &amp;c. So here, <HI>they drive away the A&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e;</HI> though he hath but one, they drive that away.</P>
<P>Further, when he &s;ayth, <HI>They drive away the A&s;&s;e,</HI> there are two things con&s;iderable in it. Fir&s;t, the A&s;&s;e is a u&s;efull and &s;er|viceable bea&s;t for the bearing of burthens. Secondly, the A&s;&s;e is a <HI>meane creature,</HI> a bea&s;t of no great value, though of &s;ome u&s;e. They drive away the very A&s;&s;e, and that <HI>the A&s;&s;e of the</HI>
<Q><PB N="498" REF="263">Fatherle&s;&s;e.</Q></P>
<P>In the former ver&s;e, where it is &s;ayd, <HI>They violently take away flocks, and feed thereof,</HI> there is no mention at all made, who&s;e the flocks were, or from whom they tooke them. But here <HI>Job</HI> &s;eemes to lay the empha&s;is of their &s;inne, not &s;o much upon what they drove away, as upon the per&s;on who&s;e it was, which they drove a|way; They drive away not the great or the rich man a&s;&s;e, but the a&s;&s;e of <HI>the Fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI> The word <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e</HI> may be taken two wayes, eyther &s;trictly, for a childe that is left without a father to take care of him, &amp; provide for him: or &s;econdly, we may expound the word <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e</HI> more largely for any that are poore, and in di&s;tre&s;&s;e; as was &s;hewed (<HI>Chap.</HI> 22.9.) How cruel are they, and how covetous are they, who will not &s;pare the poore, no not poore Orphans! To take from the fatherle&s;&s;e in eyther &s;ence, ag|gravates the &s;inne. Which aggravation of their &s;in is further pro|&s;ecuted in the next in&s;tance of their oppre&s;&s;ion.</P>
<Q>They take away the widdows Oxe for a pledge.</Q>
<P>What a pledge is hath been opened at the 22^d <HI>Chap. ver.</HI> 6. It is not &s;infull to take a pledge; but there is a twofold &s;inne im|plyed in this place, while they are charged with <HI>taking the wid|dows oxe for a pledge.</HI> Fir&s;t, in reference to the per&s;on of whom the pledge was taken, <HI>the widdow;</HI> Secondly, in reference to the thing which was taken for a pledge; it was the <HI>widdows oxe.</HI> For the oxe being u&s;ed for labour in tilling the ground (a mo&s;t nece&s;|&s;ary u&s;e) &s;hould not be taken or at le&s;t not detained as a pledge;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Viduae &amp; pu|pillae a&s;inum &amp; bovem certa vi|tae in&s;trumenta averiunt. <HI>Nicet:</HI> Ip&s;arum vidu|arum facultates per vim eripiu~t qua&s;i jure quo|dam in&s;tar cre|ditorum pigno|rarentur. <HI>Bez:</HI> Qua&s;i &s;ub quo|dam colore ju|&s;titiae viduam gravantes. <HI>Aquin:</HI></NOTE> therefore we finde that tho&s;e things which were for nece&s;&s;ary u&s;e and livelihood, were forbidden to be taken for pledge <HI>Exod.</HI> 22.26, 27.) or if they were taken they were pre&s;ently to be re&s;tored before the Sunne went downe. But the&s;e cruel men took the wid|dows oxe for a pledge, and re&s;tored him not. We may al&s;o under|&s;tand it (as &s;ome) that they tooke the oxe as if it were a pledge, doing it as of right, or under pretence and colour of Ju&s;tice (as be|ing her creditors) for a debt. And &s;o the whole proceeding is ex|pounded eyther of tyrants, that lay heavie taxes upon the poore people, and if they are not able to pay pre&s;ently take all away by di&s;treine: or of common extortioners, who lend money, or let lea&s;es, and upon every default of payment take the forfeiture, and carry all away as due to them&s;elves.</P>
<PB N="499" REF="263">
<P>Further, we may ob&s;erve in Scripture, that as we have the&s;e two u&s;ually put together, <HI>the fatherle&s;&s;e, and the widdow,</HI> &s;o we have the&s;e two u&s;ually joyned together, <HI>the a&s;&s;e, and the oxe.</HI> Thus they are joyned twice in the ten Commandements, in the fourth and tenth, and often el&s;ewhere. But &s;ome may que&s;tion, Hath the poore widdow an oxe? The oxe &s;eems rather to belong to rich men, then to the poore widdow. To which we may an&s;wer,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pro bove foemina &s;umi|tur. <HI>Bold:</HI></NOTE> that the Hebrew word which we tran&s;late <HI>oxe,</HI> &s;ignifies as well the female, as the male, and &s;o it is rendred by &s;ome here, <HI>They take away the cow of the widdow.</HI> The poore widdow lives upon the milke of her cow. Take that from her, and you take away all her living. But whether we under&s;tand it of the one or of the other, the difference is not materiall as to the &s;cope and purpo&s;e of <HI>Job,</HI> who puts the widdows oxe or the widdows cow, eyther for the whole or chiefe&s;t part of her &s;ub&s;tance. <HI>They take the widdows oxe for a pledge.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Some care not from whom or what they take, &s;o they may have it.</Q>
<P>They will take from the fatherles, they will take from the wid|dow. The Prophet <HI>Amos</HI> (Chap. 2.7.) &s;peaking of &s;uch oppre&s;&s;ors, &s;ayth, <HI>They pant after the du&s;t of the earth on the head of the poore, &amp; turne a&s;ide the way of the needy.</HI> The former part of tho&s;e words, hath variety of readings &amp; expo&s;itions, I will not &s;tay upon them: but onely touch that which is mo&s;t &s;utable to the poynt in hand, <HI>They pant after the du&s;t of the earth;</HI> that is, they exceedingly de|&s;ire, and long for it. As <HI>David</HI> de&s;cribes his holy de&s;ires (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 42.1.) <HI>As the hart panteth after the water brookes, &s;o panteth my &s;oule after thee, O God;</HI> that is, I extreamely de&s;ire thy pre&s;ence and communion with thee, even as the hart being hunted and hea|ted de&s;ireth the waters. Thus they <HI>panted after the du&s;t of the earth;</HI> That is, after tho&s;e things which are but as the du&s;t of the earth, or who&s;e original and matter is but the du&s;t of the earth, <HI>gold and &s;ilver.</HI> The&s;e are but the refined du&s;t of the earth; but who&s;e du&s;t did they pant after? <HI>It was the du&s;t on the head of the poore;</HI> if they did but &s;ee a poore man to have gotten a little about him, though onely enough to keepe life and &s;oule together, to pre&s;erve him|&s;elfe and his family from &s;tarving or begging, they pre&s;ently pan|ted after it; They were pa&s;&s;ionately de&s;ierous of it, they ca&s;t a|bout how to get it. They who are enflamed with covetou&s;nes
<PB N="500" REF="264"> are bu&s;ie to finde out, and having found out, are greedy to pur&s;ue all advantages and occa&s;ions to enrich them&s;elves, though it be with the ruine of the poore. They are glad to get &s;omething even from them who (according to common &s;peech) have nothing; they &s;crape from them, who have but &s;craps to live upon. Such was the grace of our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, <HI>that</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 8.9.) <HI>though he was rich, yet for our &s;akes he became poore, that we through his poverty might be rich.</HI> And &s;uch is the cove|tou&s;nes of &s;ome men, that though they are rich enough, yet they care not to make many, who are poore enough already, poorer, that they by making them poorer, might make them&s;elves richer.</P>
<P>Secondly, Con&s;ider the matter, <HI>they drive away the a&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e, and take the widdows oxe (or cow) for a pledge.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P><HI>Some will &s;inne for a &s;mall matter, they will doe much evill,</HI> though they get but little <HI>worldly good</HI> by it, onely a &s;illy a&s;&s;e, or a labouring oxe from the fatherle&s;&s;e or the widdow. Who as they never have many of the&s;e, commonly, but one of each (for both words are of the &s;ingular number) &s;o tho&s;e that they have are u&s;ually none of the be&s;t, fatte&s;t, &s;tronge&s;t, greate&s;t, and &s;o highe&s;t prized ones: As the fatherle&s;&s;e, and the widdow, are poore, &s;o their oxe and a&s;&s;e are but poore ones too; yet &s;ome will unju&s;tly drive and take the&s;e poore things away; <HI>They will play at &s;mall game</HI> (as we &s;ay) <HI>rather then &s;it out;</HI> And act ba&s;ely to get but an a&s;&s;e. The Prophet <HI>Amos</HI> (Chap. 2.6.) repre&s;ents the Lord prote&s;ting again&s;t &s;uch, thus; <HI>For three tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions of I&s;rael, and for foure, I will not turne away the puni&s;hment thereof, becau&s;e they &s;ould the righteous for &s;ilver, and the poore for a paire of &s;hoes;</HI> that is, they &s;ould the right of the poore, when they could gett but a very &s;mall advantage by it, the worth of a payre of &s;hoes. Some in &s;inning are like Eagles, they will not &s;toop at flyes, if they breake the rules of righteou&s;nes and faithfulnes, it &s;hall be for a Crowne or a Kingdome. They who &s;inne for the greate&s;t profit, make a loo&s;ing Bargaine of it: What then doe they who will &s;in for the lowe&s;t profit?</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>They drive away the a&s;&s;e from the fatherle&s;&s;e, and take the oxe of the widdow;</HI> From the con&s;ideration of the per&s;ons wronged. Note.</P>
<PB N="501" REF="264">
<P><HI>It is &s;infull to wrong any, but much more to wrong the poore;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Sordido lucro a&s;&s;ervientes, ne calceos quidem pauperum lucri|facere recu&s;ant, qui extremum hominibus u&s;um prebent. <HI>Theodoret:</HI></NOTE> having met with this poynt from other pa&s;&s;ages in this booke, I onely name it, and adde, that there are two things which &s;hew the &s;infullne&s;&s;e of taking from the poore. Fir&s;t, becau&s;e they are weake and unable eyther to re&s;i&s;t injuries, or to right them|&s;elves; They cannot helpe them&s;elves, nor can they ea&s;ily procure helpe from others. <HI>The poore and him that hath no helpe,</HI> are put together (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 72.12.) and u&s;ually they are the &s;ame. <HI>I retur|ned</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>Solomon, Eccl.</HI> 4.1.) <HI>and con&s;idered all the oppre&s;&s;ions that are done under the Sunne, and behold the teares of &s;uch as were oppre&s;&s;ed, and they had no comforter: and on the &s;ide of their oppre&s;|&s;ors there was power, but they had no comforter.</HI> And they who have no comforter, &s;urely have no helper. Now it is mo&s;t &s;infull to hurt them who are lea&s;t able to helpe them&s;elves, or finde help from others. And who &s;o helple&s;&s;e, as the fatherle&s;&s;e and the wid|dow? Secondly, it is therefore extreamely &s;infull to wrong the poore, and e&s;pecially the&s;e poore, becau&s;e God hath commended them to the care, and tuition of the rich; they are his charge, God hath taken them into his protection, and hath tru&s;ted them over to men of power, that they &s;hould looke to them. Magi|&s;trates &s;hould be as a wall of defence, to the fatherle&s;&s;e, and wid|dow, they &s;hould provide for them, and nouri&s;h them. Therefore to &s;poyle, and rob them of all, how great a wickedne&s;&s;e is this? this is (as much as in them is) to make God a liar, and unfaith|full to his word and promi&s;e. As then it &s;hould be a great encou|ragement to helpe the Godly poore, becau&s;e in &s;o doing we are a meanes to fullfill the promi&s;e of God to them. So we &s;hould therefore be afraid to wrong them, becau&s;e in &s;o doing we doe what we can to make the promi&s;e of God to them voyd. No mar|veile then, if the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> placeth all religion, as to practi&s;e, in the <HI>vi&s;itation of the widdow, and the fatherle&s;&s;e in their affliction;</HI> and if, in that &s;ence, all religion be placed in it, what &s;hall we judge of their religion, who afflict the widdow, and the fatherle&s;&s;e? And if to vi&s;it them in trouble, be an act not onely of charity to them, but of honour and religion towards God, becau&s;e God (who provides for all) hath taken upon him to provide for the fatherle&s;&s;e, and the widdow, by name (So that we di&s;charge Gods debt of promi&s;e to the fatherle&s;&s;e, and widdow, when we doe them good. If, I &s;ay, it be thus) then how gro&s;&s;e an act is it both of un|charitablenes
<PB N="502" REF="265"> to them, and irreligion towards God, to vi&s;it with trouble, to afflict and vexe the fatherle&s;&s;e and the widdow.</P>
<P>Fourthly, From the matter about which they &s;inned; <HI>The a&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e, and the oxe, or cow of the widdow.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the le&s;&s;e any thing is for or about which we &s;inne, the greater is that &s;inne.</Q>
<P>It &s;hews that we value God little, and that we &s;et light by his commands, that we regard neyther his favour nor his anger, when we can doe evill upon &s;uch poore accounts. That, by which many excu&s;e their &s;inne, encrea&s;eth it. They will &s;ay, 'twas a &s;mall mat|ter, a little thing they &s;tole, or tooke away; but to &s;in in a &s;mall matter may be found a great &s;in. What? will you breake through the holy commands of God, and venture his di&s;plea&s;ure for a trifle? though no man &s;hould encourage him&s;elfe to &s;in, becau&s;e he &s;inneth for a matter of importance, yet there is not onely more folly, but more &s;infullne&s;&s;e in &s;inning for a little. Woe to tho&s;e who &s;in for the greate&s;t advantages, but more woe to tho&s;e who value their &s;oules, and the lawes of God &s;o little, as to di&s;obey the one, and endanger the other, when &s;car&s;e any thing which the world calls advantage is to be had. It hath been &s;ayd of old; <HI>If faith or an oath be to be broken, let it be broken for a kingdome;</HI> yet he will be found no gainer, who breakes his oath to get all the kingdomes of the world; what &s;hall we &s;ay then of tho&s;e poore low &s;pirited per&s;ons, who &s;inne (as we &s;ay) for &s;ix pence, and breake the lawes of God, for &s;o poore a profit, as will hardly give them a breake-fa&s;t. The &s;inne of the&s;e oppre&s;&s;ors is not yet full, &s;ee more and greater abominations then the&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="4" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 4.</HI></BIBL> They turne the needy out of the way, the poore of the earth hide them&s;elves together.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The word which we tran&s;late <HI>needy,</HI> &s;ignifies to <HI>de&s;ire;</HI> they who have many wants have many de&s;ires, and the &s;en&s;e of our wants, is the &s;pring of our de&s;ires; And though many who have no want in outward things are full of de&s;ires, yet the needy are properly the de&s;irers; and who&s;oever de&s;ires much, eyther hath many wants, or is not &s;atisfied with his fullnes.</P>
<Q><PB N="503" REF="265">They turne the needy out of the way.</Q>
<P>The Prophet (<HI>Amos,</HI> Chap. 2.7.) reproving the Princes of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>They turne a&s;ide the way of the meek,</HI> or (as others render) <HI>of the poore and afflicted.</HI> That &s;peech of the Prophet &s;eemes to be of neere allyance if not altogether the &s;ame in &s;ence with this of <HI>Job, They turne the needy out of the way.</HI></P>
<P>What way this &s;hould be is expounded foure or five wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some take it metaphorically, for a morall way.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Divertere fe|cerunt impoten|tes a via ju&s;ta. <HI>Sept:</HI></NOTE> And that, fir&s;t, the way of righteou&s;nes and equitie. And the wicked turne the needy out of that way, eyther, fir&s;t, by their evill ex|amples, or &s;econdly, by their threatenings and per&s;ecutions. The &s;infull practices of men in power, lead the needy, or the inferior &s;ort into the practice of the &s;ame &s;ins. And the oppre&s;&s;ions of the mighty doe even compel the needy to turne a&s;ide from the right way of getting their livings,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Qua&s;i cogeren|tur de via recta pietatis diver|tere ad furta &amp; perjuria, &amp; quaerimonias de divina provi|dentia.</NOTE> to &s;tealing and living by &s;poyle and rapine, as they them&s;elves doe. When rich men oppre&s;&s;e the poore, they turne the poore eyther to begging, or theeving. When men are vexed and mole&s;ted in hone&s;t wayes, they lie under a great temptation to turne and betake them&s;elves to tho&s;e wayes which are di&s;hone&s;t. <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith of him&s;elfe being a per&s;ecuter, that he compelled the profe&s;&s;ors of the Go&s;pel <HI>to bla&s;pheme, (Act.</HI> 26.11.) and this he effected in one or both the wayes above &s;pecified, eyther fir&s;t, by his example, he being a bla&s;phe|mer (as he confe&s;&s;ed, 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 1.13.) they imitated him in bla&s;|pheaming or &s;peaking evil of the wayes of God, and of his people: or, &s;econdly, he did it by his cruelty, vexing them &s;o in the pro|fe&s;&s;ion of Chri&s;t, that &s;ome who were un&s;etled fell away, and bla&s;phemed the name of Chri&s;t, whom they had profe&s;&s;ed. But though this be a truth, yet I &s;hall not give it as the intent of this place. Therefore</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>They turne the needy out of the way;</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dejecerunt im|potentes de via ju&s;ta. <HI>Ambr:</HI> Via pro jure &amp; ju&s;titia.</NOTE> out of the way of that ju&s;tice or right which is due to them. And &s;o it &s;uites well with what he &s;ayd before; <HI>they drive away the a&s;&s;e of the fatherle&s;&s;e,</HI> &amp;c. and <HI>they turne the needy out of the way;</HI> that is, from what is his right, or from all meanes of recovering his right.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>They turne the needy out of the way;</HI> that is, out of the way of their livelihood; we commonly enquire, how doth
<PB N="504" REF="266"> &s;uch a man live? and 'tis an&s;wered, he lives in a very good way, he hath &s;uch a way of living, &s;uch a trade, calling, or profe&s;&s;ion; that's his way.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Via pauperum e&s;t facultus, &s;ibi nece&s;&s;aria pa|rundi. <HI>Aquin:</HI> Viam paupe|rum &s;ubvertit tyrannus, cum illa detrahit &s;i|ne quibus ars cui vacatur pauper, exerce|ri non pote&s;t.</NOTE> Thus, to <HI>turne the needy out of the way,</HI> is to put them be&s;ides the way of getting their bread, and maintaining their familyes with nece&s;&s;aryes for this life. In a figurative &s;ence, every mans profe&s;&s;ion and calling is his way, and he that mole&s;ts him in it, turnes him out of his way. As &s;uppo&s;e a man live in the Coun|try, where he keepes a farme, if his cattle be taken away, he is tur|ned out of his way, he can live no longer in that way. He that takes away what is in&s;trumentall to a man in his calling, puts him out of his way; And he that di&s;turbes a man in the worke of his calling, turnes him out of his way. Our ordinary worke is our way, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 1.1.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man that hath not &s;tood in the way of &s;inners,</HI> that is, who hath not taken the cour&s;e which (as &s;uch) &s;inners take. Now as a Godly man turnes out of, or will not &s;tand in the way of &s;inners; &s;o oppre&s;&s;ing &s;inners turne many that are needy and Godly out of the way of their lawfull callings, and will not &s;uffer them to &s;tand or abide in them.</P>
<P>Secondly, We may under&s;tand this way properly for the way or roade wherein men walke or travaile upon their occa&s;ions, and then the&s;e words; <HI>They turne the needy out of the way,</HI> may be expounded, as an argument of the extreame pride of the&s;e <HI>Nim|rods,</HI> or <HI>&s;onnes of violence.</HI> They cau&s;ed the needy to turne a&s;ide out of the way to give them place, or they made the poore to keepe out of their &s;ight for feare of them, le&s;t as they had alrea|dy &s;poyled them of their e&s;tates, &s;o they &s;hould al&s;o abu&s;e their per&s;ons,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Illis gra&s;&s;anti|bus, nullis ne tenuis quidem &s;ortis, viatori|bus tuta e&s;t via; adeo ut deflecte|re a via publica et latebras quae|rere pa&s;&s;im co|gantur. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE> and make them &s;laves. Thus they turned the poore out of the way; that is, they dur&s;t not come in &s;ight for feare; this &s;uites well with the la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>The poore of the earth hide them&s;elves together.</Q>
<P>The word <HI>needy,</HI> in the former part of the ver&s;e (as was toucht before) &s;ignifies one full of de&s;ires; here the word which we render <HI>poore,</HI> notes one that is <HI>humble, meeke, lowly,</HI> not onely one low in e&s;tate, but lowly in minde, not onely him that is poore in pur&s;e, but poore in &s;pirit; &s;o 'tis tran&s;lated, (<HI>Zeph.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>Seeke ye the Lord, ye meeke of the earth,</HI> even the&s;e <HI>poore of the earth hide them&s;elves together;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Invi&s;ibiles fece|runt.</HI> Author Cat:</NOTE> wicked proud men make the poore &s;eeke cor|ners; the poore have often had experience of their cruelty, and
<PB N="505" REF="266"> rough dealing, and therefore run together into holes and corners to hide them&s;elves, as de&s;ireing rather the &s;ociety of wild bea&s;ts, then of &s;uch bea&s;tly men. Further, the word which we render <HI>together,</HI> may be tran&s;lated, <HI>alike; They hide them&s;elves alike;</HI> that is, one poore godly man as well as another, they all fare alike, they deale no better with one then with another, none have hope to e&s;cape the hands of the&s;e unmercifull tyrants. Thus it was in the time of that great oppre&s;&s;ion which the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> were under by the <HI>Phili&s;tims; The I&s;raelites hid them&s;elves;</HI> When <HI>Jonathan</HI> and his Armour-bearer got up, and di&s;covered them&s;elves to the Garri&s;on of the <HI>Phili&s;tims,</HI> the <HI>Phili&s;tims</HI> &s;aid, <HI>Behold the He|brewes come forth out of the holes where they had hid them&s;elves,</HI> (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 14.11.) The Author to the <HI>Hebrewes</HI> gives us a de|&s;cription of the poore Saints thus hiding them&s;elves together, (<HI>Heb.</HI> 11.37.) <HI>They wandred about in &s;heepe-skins, and goate-skins, being de&s;titute, afflicted, and tormented, they wandred in de|&s;erts, and mountains, in dens, and caves of the earth. The poore and meeke of the earth hid them&s;elves together.</HI></P>
<P>Thus we have had a large enumeration of tho&s;e violences which <HI>Job</HI> had ob&s;erved among men, and men pro&s;pering in them. Fir&s;t, violence upon lands; &s;econdly, upon cattle; thirdly, upon per&s;ons, the needy, and the poore are forced to run together into corners; <HI>While The &s;in of &s;ome encrea&s;eth, the affliction of others mu&s;t needes encrea&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Sinners know no bounds.</Q>
<P>They who at fir&s;t wrong men in their lands, will not &s;ticke to wrong them in their cattle, and within a while, they make no bones to fall upon their per&s;ons.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note.</P>
<Q>Tho&s;e evills which are done to men immediately in their per&s;ons, are more &s;infull then tho&s;e that are done to them in their goods, cattle, and e&s;tate.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> &s;hews the wor&s;t of their doings la&s;t. 'Tis bad enough to touch the goods of a poore man, but to trouble his per&s;on, or cau&s;ele&s;&s;ely to make him hide his head, is farre wor&s;e.</P>
<PB N="506" REF="267">
<P>Thirdly, Note.</P>
<Q>That the promotion, and exaltation of wicked men, is the oppre&s;&s;i|on, and vexation of poore men, e&s;pecially of all of poore godly men.</Q>
<P>It is a &s;ad time with poore men, mo&s;t of all with poore godly men, when the wicked are exalted. <HI>Solomon</HI> gives us this note in expre&s;&s;e termes (<HI>Prov.</HI> 28.28.) <HI>When the wicked ri&s;e</HI> (that is, <HI>when they ri&s;e in power and authority) men hide them&s;elves,</HI> that is, good men hide them&s;elves: poore men hide them&s;elves when the wicked ri&s;e, but mo&s;t of all &s;uch poore men as are godly. <HI>The reigne of wicked men is the ruine of the godly.</HI> Which is more plaine by the oppo&s;ition made in the la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e; <HI>When the wicked ri&s;e, men hide them&s;elves, but when they peri&s;h the righteous increa&s;e.</HI> In which Proverb, <HI>ri&s;ing</HI> is oppo&s;ed to <HI>peri&s;h|ing,</HI> but <HI>men</HI> and <HI>righteous</HI> are the &s;ame. When the wicked peri&s;h, tho&s;e righteous men, who before hid them&s;elves, appeare, and &s;hew them&s;elves againe. Some poore men are turbulent, proud, un|tractable, &s;editious, men of unquiet &s;pirits, if &s;uch be dealt with by ju&s;tice, and made to hide them&s;elves, they have their de&s;ert. But the poore who are al&s;o humble, meeke, and of a quiet &s;pirit, (as the word here imports) are the aime of the wicked. Such <HI>Da|vid</HI> found in his low e&s;tate, and again&s;t them he prayed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 35.19, 20.) <HI>Let not them that are mine enemies wrongfully rejoyce over me: neyther let them winke with the eye</HI> (that is, let them not have occa&s;ion to contemne and de&s;pi&s;e me, of which, winking with the eye was a token) <HI>that hate me without a cau&s;e. For they &s;peake not peace, but they devi&s;e deceitfull matters again&s;t them that are quiet in the land.</HI></P>
<P>La&s;tly Note.</P>
<Q>The poore goe by the wor&s;t, and the weake&s;t to the wall, the needy are turned out of the way, and the poore hide them&s;elves.</Q>
<P>And therefore &s;aith God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 12.5.) <HI>For the oppre&s;&s;ion of the poore, and for the &s;ighing of the needy, now will I ari&s;e and &s;et him in &s;afety from him that puffeth at him.</HI> Oppre&s;&s;ion may quick|ly empoveri&s;h the rich, but u&s;ually the poore fall under oppre&s;&s;i|on; they that are full &s;igh when they are made needy and emp|ty, when all is taken from them, but u&s;ually the needy and emp|ty
<PB N="507" REF="267"> are made to &s;igh; <HI>for the oppre&s;&s;ion of the poore, will I ari&s;e &s;aith the Lord.</HI> Rich and great men can defend them&s;elves from op|pre&s;&s;ion, but the poore have no &s;helter; rich men will purcha&s;e their right, but the poore who hath nothing to give, &s;eldome finds a friend to deliver him, and get him his right. The &s;torme falls upon the poore, and mo&s;t upon Gods poore, they are mo&s;t &s;ubject, or lie mo&s;t open to the evills of this world, of whom this pre&s;ent evill world is not worthy, and for whom the good of the next world is prepared. And therefore they &s;hould fly to &s;helter, while they are here, get under covert, run into the name of God for &s;afety and protection; they who are mo&s;t &s;ubject to oppre&s;|&s;ion, need mo&s;t protection. Some are &s;o poore that they have nothing to loo&s;e, and &s;o needy, that they need not feare oppre&s;|&s;ion. They have neyther bread to eate, nor cloathes to put onne, The&s;e are no baite for covetou&s;nes; But, they al&s;o are to be rec|koned among the poore, who have no more then will &s;ave them from poverty; and they are among the needy, who have onely &s;o much as &s;erves to &s;upply their owne needs. The&s;e poore and nee|dy ones are game for the oppre&s;&s;ors, the&s;e the Wolves and Lyons of the earth make their prey. The oppre&s;&s;ion and wickednes of the&s;e hath a&s;cended three &s;teps, in the context now opened, They are fir&s;t <HI>Land-invaders;</HI> &s;econdly, <HI>Cattel-takers;</HI> thirdly, <HI>men-troublers. Job</HI> carrieth on the de&s;cription of their wickednes yet further, in the following parts of this Chapter.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="508" REF="268">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 5, 6, 7, 8.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Behold as wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert, goe they forth to their worke, ri&s;ing betimes for a prey: the wildernes yield|eth food for them and for their Children.</P>
<P>They reap every one his Corne in the field: and they gather the vintage of the wicked.</P>
<P>They cau&s;e the naked to lodge without Cloathing: that they have no Covering in the Cold.</P>
<P>They are wet with the &s;howers of the mountaines, and em|brace the rock for want of a &s;helter.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> proceeds to enumerate the wickedne&s;&s;es of tho&s;e men whom yet God &s;pared, and bare with; he had &s;et downe many of their &s;infull wayes before; they <HI>removed the land-marks,</HI> they <HI>violently tooke away flocks,</HI> they &s;pared not <HI>the a&s;&s;e of the fatherles, nor the widdows oxe;</HI> They <HI>turned the needy out of the way,</HI> &s;o that <HI>the poore of the earth were forced to hide them&s;elves together.</HI> See now the further progre&s;&s;e of their wickednes, even to admiration, for &s;o much the word, <HI>Behold,</HI> with which <HI>Job</HI> leads on his di&s;co|very of their vexatious practices, doth import.</P>
<DIV3 N="5" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 5.</HI></BIBL> Behold as wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert, they goe forth to their worke.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There is a difference in opinion among Interpreters about the &s;ubject of this ver&s;e, whom wee are to under&s;tand under this de|&s;cription, <HI>As wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert, going forth to their worke.</HI> Some of Note conceave that <HI>the poore</HI> are the &s;ubject of the&s;e words,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Exege&s;is praeor|dentis dicti, de intoleranda in|proborum, &s;ev<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|tia in pauperes, quorum opera contra legem a|butuntur. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> or the per&s;ons here intended. And then they hold forth the hard&s;hip and mi&s;ery to which they were reduced by tho&s;e merci|le&s;&s;e tyrants; <HI>Behold as wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert, they goe forth to their worke.</HI> Oppre&s;&s;ors did &s;o vex them and &s;trip them out of all, that they who heretofore had enough to live upon, were con|&s;trained to goe forth to day-labour and worke for their living, at the command, or under the cruel bondage of tho&s;e inhumane Taske-Ma&s;ters.</P>
<PB N="509" REF="268">
<P>Yet I conceive that wee may more clearly expound the&s;e words as carrying a continued &s;eries of the practices of wicked men, who are here compared to wilde a&s;&s;es; and there is a word in the 5^t^h ver&s;e which gives a &s;peciall rea&s;on why this &s;hould not be under&s;tood of the poore or oppre&s;&s;ed, but of the oppre&s;&s;or, where it is &s;ayd, <HI>they ri&s;e betimes for a prey;</HI> now that word which we render <HI>a prey,</HI> cometh from a root which &s;ignifies <HI>to teare,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> carp&s;it di&s;carp&s;it, dila|ceravit denti|bus, pr<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">prium ferarum e&s;t.</NOTE> to rend, to pull a&s;&s;under after the manner of wilde bea&s;ts; and is of the &s;ame &s;ound as well as &s;ignificatio~ with our Engli&s;h word, <HI>teare,</HI> therefore it &s;hould rather be under&s;tood of oppre&s;&s;ors, then of the oppre&s;&s;ed; for a man that goes forth to labour, and worke for his living, cannot properly be &s;aid to <HI>ri&s;e betimes for a prey,</HI> for he goes forth to get his bread hone&s;tly; now a prey is that which is got by violence; and the word is never applyed to men, but in al|lu&s;ion to ravenous and devouring bea&s;ts. <HI>Jacob</HI> comparing his &s;on <HI>Judah</HI> to a Lyons whelpe (<HI>Gen.</HI> 49.9.) &s;aith, <HI>From the prey, my Sonn, thou art gone up.</HI> So <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> (Deut. 33.20.) <HI>And of Gad he &s;aid, Ble&s;&s;ed be he that enlargeth Gad; hee dwelleth as a Lyon and teareth the Arme with the Crowne of the head.</HI> And <HI>David</HI> praying to be delivered out of the hand of his enemy, gives this rea&s;on (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 7.2.) <HI>Le&s;t he teare my &s;oule like a Lyon, while there is none to deliver.</HI> So that the word noting properly the act of a ravenous bea&s;t who lives upon &s;poyle and prey; It is very im|proper to apply it to the worke of a labouring man, who lives and earnes his bread with the &s;weat of his brows. Yet I finde that word &s;ignifying <HI>food</HI> in generall (<HI>Mal:</HI> 3.10.) <HI>Bring yee all the tythes into the &s;torehou&s;e, that there may be meat in mine hou&s;e.</HI> Which the interlineral renders, <HI>that there may be a prey in mine hou&s;e;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;t &s;it praeda in domo mea. <HI>Mont:</HI> &V;t &s;it quod ra|pitis &amp;c. <HI>P<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">gna.</HI></NOTE> and another thus, <HI>that there may be that, which ye &s;natch, in mine hou&s;e</HI> Surely the Lord &s;trikes at &s;ome mi&s;demeanour while he expre&s;&s;eth the food of the Prie&s;ts &amp; Levites, by a word &s;ignifying that which is torne away by violence. And (I conceave) it may either re|flect upon the people who parted &s;o hardly with the tythes which did belong to the Temple at that time, that they were rather torne or pulled from them by a kinde of violence, then freely payd or brought in according to the Law of God: or it might reflect upon the extreme greedines of the Prie&s;ts that did admini&s;ter in the Tem|ple, as if they did look upon the tyths, &amp; their portio~ in them, with as earne&s;t de&s;ire as wild bea&s;ts hang over &amp; wait for a prey. So that
<PB N="510" REF="269"> where this word is u&s;ed to &s;ignifie food, there is &s;omewhat in the circum&s;tance of the Text, which leaves a touch of rapine and vio|lence upon it. And therefore it is not applicable to the earnings of hone&s;t labourers, but to the cruel gettings of theeves and oppre&s;|&s;ors. <HI>The mountaines of prey,</HI> &s;poken of (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 76.4.) were ey|ther tho&s;e places where conquering Armyes devided the &s;poyle after a victory obtained; or where robbers preyed upon pa&s;&s;en|gers. And therefore I &s;hall take the &s;ubject of this ver&s;e to be the oppre&s;&s;ors of the poore, not the poore oppre&s;&s;ed.</P>
<Q>Behold, as wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert they goe forth.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"></NOTE>The particle of likenes <HI>as,</HI> is not in the Hebrew, nor yet the word <HI>A&s;&s;es,</HI> expre&s;&s;ely. And therefore M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> reads &s;trict|ly to the Original, <HI>Behold the wilde in the wildernes goe forth to their worke.</HI> The word &s;ignifies <HI>wilde</HI> at large; but becau&s;e <HI>wilde a&s;&s;es</HI> are extreamely wilde, therefore the word is &s;pecially applyed to them.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Ferus homo.</NOTE> Thus the Angel &s;ayd of <HI>I&s;hmael</HI> (Gen. 16.12.) <HI>And he will be a wilde man.</HI></P>
<Q>Behold as wilde a&s;&s;es in the de&s;ert.</Q>
<P>The de&s;ert is the dwelling place of wilde a&s;&s;es: Tame a&s;&s;es or a&s;&s;es brought to hand, are about the hou&s;e, or in the enclo&s;ed pa&s;tures, but wilde a&s;&s;es inhabit the de&s;ert. The word that wee render <HI>de&s;ert,</HI> comes from a roote that &s;ignifies <HI>to &s;peake;</HI> and the de&s;ert is &s;o called by the figure of <HI>Contrary &s;peaking,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>a</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> Locutus e&s;t per antiphra&s;in qua|&s;i locus a &s;er|mone remotus.</NOTE> becau&s;e there is little or no &s;peaking in de&s;erts; many words are heard onely in Cities or places where many people frequent. It &s;ignifies al&s;o to lay wa&s;t, becau&s;e de&s;erts are wa&s;t and barren places, in compari&s;on of dre&s;t and Enclo&s;ed grounds; &s;uch is the place whether the&s;e &s;poy|lers goe forth <HI>as wilde a&s;&s;es</HI>
<Q>To their worke.</Q></P>
<P>But wild a&s;&s;es worke not, onely tame a&s;&s;es are labouring a&s;&s;es; So that the &s;imilitude runs not upon that poynt; yet we may &s;ay, wilde a&s;&s;es have a worke, and 'tis much like that which wicked men doe in the dererts;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> in. <HI>i. e.</HI> opere vel artificium &s;uum vel artem vnde victu~ quaerunt. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> they worke there, but 'tis wilde worke, &s;uch as wild a&s;&s;es are bu&s;yed about, the getting of prey. <HI>They goe forth to their worke;</HI> and that word &s;ignifies not onely a worke, but an <HI>art,</HI> or a <HI>Craft.</HI> The&s;e &s;poylers were their <HI>Crafts-Ma&s;ters,</HI>
<PB N="511" REF="269"> and could doe mi&s;chiefe cunningly, as having been brought up as apprentices to it, or &s;tudyed it like Schollers, they had well lear|ned and were ver&s;t in their worke, and what their worke was we may learne in the next words.</P>
<Q>Ri&s;ing betimes for a prey.</Q>
<P><HI>Like workemen, like worke.</HI> To take a pur&s;e, or &s;poyle pa&s;&s;en|gers, that's their worke; And they get up and are out betimes about this worke; <HI>For a prey, they ri&s;e betimes.</HI> The Hebrew is,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>a</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> Mane, &s;tudio&s;e quaerunt vel &s;ummo &s;tudio. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> <HI>They morning it;</HI> that is, they ri&s;e early in the morning; to doe a thing in the morning, is in Scripture language, to doe a thing diligently and with greate&s;t Intention of &s;pirit, becau&s;e diligent active men are up early; &s;o that to ri&s;e in the morning is not one|ly an Expre&s;&s;ion of the time of their ri&s;ing, but of their &s;pirit and diligence at their worke when they were ri&s;en, when&s;oever they ro&s;e. The whori&s;h woman &s;aith to the young man, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 7.15.) <HI>Therefore came I forth to meete thee diligently, to &s;eeke thy face.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Verbum he|braicum delarat diluculare, vnde &s;ignificat praeci|puo &s;tudio vel cura aliquid agere.</NOTE> The Hebrew is, <HI>To &s;eeke thee in the morning,</HI> or, <HI>to morning thee,</HI> and yet it was <HI>in the twilight</HI> in the evening, when &s;he came out to meete him, as is expre&s;t at the 9^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter. Here indeed in the text, <HI>To morning it,</HI> notes that they tooke the fir&s;t of the morning for their worke; <HI>ri&s;ing betimes for a prey.</HI> And that not without &s;ucce&s;&s;e, as the la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e &s;heweth.</P>
<Q>The wildernes yieldeth food for them and for their Children.</Q>
<P>Where have they their prey? The text an&s;wers, <HI>they have it in the wildernes.</HI> In the former part of the ver&s;e he &s;pake of the <HI>de|&s;ert,</HI> and in this latter of the <HI>wildernes,</HI> in both he meanes the &s;ame place, both import barrennes, wildnes and wa&s;tnes;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;olitu|do idem quod <GAP DESC="foreign"> de&s;er|tum hinc Ara|bia de&s;erta.</NOTE> M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates; <HI>The va&s;t-Ground giveth him bread for his young.</HI> Wee &s;ay, <HI>the wildernes yeeldeth food for them,</HI> &amp;c. It may &s;eeme &s;trange that a wild wildernes, a wildernes untilled, unplanted, uninhabited, &s;hould yeeld them food.</P>
<P>I an&s;wer; Fir&s;t, The Scripture &s;peaks of many wildeerne&s;&s;es that were planted &amp; inhabited. <HI>John</HI> the Bapti&s;t preached in the wildernes of <HI>Judea (Math.</HI> 3.1.) And the wildernes had many hou&s;es if not townes in it, &s;uch wilderne&s;&s;es yeeld food in plenty. Secondly, the wildernes may be &s;ayd to yeeld them food, not becau&s;e they did
<PB N="512" REF="270"> live upon that which grew in the wildernes, or in the&s;e wa&s;t pla|ces, but becau&s;e in the wildernes they tooke occa&s;ion to &s;poyle and robb tho&s;e that thorough it travailed to other places. Many get their livings there, where none live, and where nothing is to be had of the growth of the place to live upon. Outrages and robberyes are u&s;ually committed in &s;uch places. And therefore in the Prophe&s;ie of that great Peace which Chri&s;t &s;hould give to his Church (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 72.3.) It is &s;ayd, <HI>The moun|taines &s;hall bring peace to the people, and the little hills by righte|ou&s;nes;</HI> He names the mountaines and the hills above other pla|ces, becau&s;e in or upon them violence is often exerci&s;ed; and to &s;ay, <HI>the mountaines &s;hall bring peace,</HI> is much more then to &s;ay the valleys and the Cities &s;hall bring peace: when there is peace and &s;afety upon hils and mountaines, we may pre&s;ume that there is peace every where. Therefore as when God promi&s;eth (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60.17.) that in the latter dayes he will make the <HI>officers among his people peace, and their exactors righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> he meanes that he will make all &s;orts of men peacefull and righteous, becau&s;e he will make them &s;uch who are u&s;ually mo&s;t trouble&s;ome and unrighte|ous <HI>officers and exactors:</HI> &s;o when he &s;aith <HI>the mountaines &s;hall bring peace,</HI> the meaning is, every place &s;hall, or that the peace &s;hall be univer&s;al in all places, becau&s;e mountaines and wilderne&s;&s;es are the places where robbers and &s;poylers take their prey, and get their &s;ub&s;i&s;tence. And hence it may well be an&s;wered, why <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, that <HI>the wildernes yeelded them food,</HI> even becau&s;e that place was fitte&s;t for them &s;o rob and &s;poyle in, who made the &s;poyle of others their dayly food. Thus <HI>the wildernes yeelds food for them</HI>
<Q>And for their Children.</Q></P>
<P>The word &s;ignifies any that are young, and is taken as well for <HI>&s;ervants</HI> as <HI>for Children</HI> (1 Sam. 21.5.) <HI>The ve&s;&s;els of the young men are holy,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>David</HI> to the Prie&s;t concerning his followers. So (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 25.9.) Thus here it comprehends all that are about them, even all their family and retinue. They and all theirs, all that belong to them have their food in the wildernes, that is, there they take opportunity by violence and oppre&s;&s;ion to maintaine them&s;elves and theirs.</P>
<P>Here we may con&s;ider, fir&s;t, that <HI>Job</HI> calls the&s;e &s;poylers <HI>wilde a&s;&s;es,</HI> nor doth the Scripture &s;peake this in vaine.</P>
<PB N="513" REF="270">
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Wicked men are like Bea&s;ts or bea&s;tiall in their di&s;po&s;itions and actions.</Q>
<P><HI>David</HI> compares the be&s;t of that &s;ort, <HI>men in honour,</HI> to bea&s;ts (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 49.20.) <HI>Man</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>that is in honour and under|&s;tandeth not, is like the bea&s;ts that peri&s;h. Davids</HI> man that <HI>under|&s;tandeth not,</HI> is not a man without naturall, but a man without true &s;piritual capacity and under&s;tanding; A man who feares not God, (for <HI>to feare God that is wi&s;dome</HI>) and who departs not from evill, for <HI>to depart from evill that is under&s;tanding (Job</HI> 28.28.) Now how great and large an under&s;tanding &s;o ever any great and ho|nourable man hath, yet if he hath not an under&s;tanding in the&s;e things, <HI>he is like the bea&s;ts that peri&s;h.</HI> It is not &s;ayd he is like this or that bea&s;t, but he is like <HI>the bea&s;ts that peri&s;h.</HI> Take any bea&s;t, or all bea&s;ts, the wor&s;t of bea&s;ts, he is the picture of them all, and he dayly exemplyfyes the vile&s;t of their qualityes in his owne. The Prophet <HI>Michah</HI> (Chap. 3.1, 2, 3.) &s;aith that of them, which &s;peakes them rather bea&s;ts indeed then like bea&s;ts, <HI>Heare I pray you, O heads of Jacob, and ye Princes of the hou&s;e of I&s;rael, is it not for you to know Judgement?</HI> (as if he had &s;ayd, who &s;hould if not you) <HI>who hate the good, and love the evill, who plucke off their skin from off them, &amp; their fle&s;h from off their bones, who al&s;o eate the fle&s;h of my people, and flay off their skin, and break their bones,</HI> &amp;c. How could the bea&s;t be more lively acted then by the&s;e men? <HI>Paul</HI> fought with bea&s;ts at <HI>Ephe&s;us</HI> (1 Cor. 15.32.) which, I grant, may be expounded properly, and po&s;&s;ibly be&s;t &s;o, It being u&s;uall in tho&s;e times of per&s;ecution under Heatheni&s;h power; to ca&s;t the Chri&s;ti|ans to the wild bea&s;ts, and for the common &s;ort to cry out, <HI>Away with the Chri&s;tians to the Lyons;</HI> yet it is as true that <HI>Paul</HI> did fight or contend with bea&s;ts in the &s;hape of men. And he &s;peakes particularly concerning bloody <HI>Nero,</HI> A man in the highe&s;t honour of that age. (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 4.17.) <HI>I was delivered out of the mouth of the Lyon.</HI> The Bapti&s;t called the Phari&s;ees <HI>a generation of vipers, (Math.</HI> 3.7.) And <HI>Herod</HI> is called by Chri&s;t, <HI>that Fox,</HI> (Luk. 13.32.) And 'tis &s;ayd of all ungodly men at once (<HI>Rev.</HI> 22.15.) <HI>Without are Doggs.</HI> Wolves, Lyons, Foxes, Vipers, Serpents; Doggs, the wor&s;t of Creatures for rapine and &s;poyle, doe but ex|pre&s;&s;e the inhumanity and cruelty of wicked men. And becau&s;e
<PB N="514" REF="271"> they are compar'd to wild A&s;&s;es in the text, I will give you &s;ome paralels between them and the wild A&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In their lawle&s;nes and un&s;ubjection to command: car|nal men are lawles.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Libertatis &s;ym|bolum e&s;t Ona|ger.</NOTE> The Apo&s;tle calls them &s;o (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 1.9.) <HI>Knowing this that the law is not made for a righteous man, but for the lawles and di&s;obedient;</HI> not that they have no law, but they live as if they had none, they who love to di&s;obey the law are lawles, and embrace libertini&s;me in &s;tead of liberty. Thus the wicked man is as the <HI>wild a&s;&s;e,</HI> for his licentiou&s;nes and lawle&s;nes; for &s;o the wild a&s;&s;e is de&s;cribed in the 39^t^h Chapter of this booke, ver&s;e the 5^t^h; <HI>Who hath &s;ent out the wild a&s;&s;e free? or loo&s;ed the bands of the wild a&s;&s;e?</HI> what's the freedome of the wild a&s;&s;e? not like that of men who have the priviledge of freedome in an order, but to be free without order. The wicked would be where they will, and doe what they li&s;t, this is the freedome of the wild a&s;&s;e. Now as God him&s;elfe there puts the Que&s;tion, <HI>Who hath &s;ent out the wild a&s;&s;e free?</HI> who hath manu-mitted him? Surely no man hath done it, but God hath planted it in the nature of the wild a&s;&s;e to be free, and to live without bands or bounds. And if we &s;hould ask the Que&s;tion, <HI>Who hath &s;ent out wicked men free? and who hath loo&s;ed the bands of the wicked?</HI> The an&s;wer mu&s;t be, Satan hath done it, and their own evill hearts have done it: they have broke the bands, and ca&s;t away all coards from them, they have &s;et them|&s;elves free, in &s;uch a freedome as it is, which is indeed perfect thraldome to their owne lu&s;ts, and the lawes of the Prince of dark|nes; they are not free by being deliverd from the bondage and condemnation of the law, but by ca&s;ting off all obedience and &s;ub|mi&s;&s;ion to it.</P>
<P>Secondly, Wild a&s;&s;es are extreamly violent and Impetuous in their de&s;ires or lu&s;ts. <HI>Jeremy</HI> expo&s;tulating with the <HI>Jewes</HI> about their revolting from, and rebellion again&s;t God, compares them (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.24.) to <HI>A wild a&s;&s;e u&s;ed to the wildernes, that &s;nuffeth up the winde at her plea&s;ure, in her occa&s;ion who can turne her away? all they that &s;eeke her, will not weary them&s;elves, in her moneth they &s;hall finde her;</HI> there's no medling, no dealing with the wild a&s;&s;e while lu&s;t is upon her, &s;he will have the de&s;ire of her heart if &s;he can. Thus wicked men are given up to and tran&s;ported with their plea&s;ures and inordinate affections, in their <HI>occa&s;ion,</HI> that is, when the heate of their intemperate de&s;ires or lu&s;ts, of any kinde, are up|on
<PB N="515" REF="271"> them, there is no turning of them; onely, <HI>in their moneth,</HI> when &s;orrowes and paines are upon them, they may be &s;poken with. We may al&s;o read both this &s;in and the reproofe of that people in a like allu&s;ion (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 8.9.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, The wild a&s;&s;e is an Embleme of the wicked man, e&s;peci|ally as he is an oppre&s;&s;or or tyrant in his un&s;ociablenes; for as the a&s;&s;e refu&s;eth &s;ociety, &s;o the&s;e are unfit for &s;ociety, and are indeed enemies of mankinde; They are unfit not only for &s;pirituall, but al|&s;o for Politicall, or Civill Society. God &s;peaking of the wild A&s;&s;e (in the 39^t^h Chapter of this booke, <HI>v.</HI> 6, 7.) &s;ayth, <HI>Who&s;e hou&s;e I have made the wildernes, and the barren land his dwellings. Hee &s;corneth the multitude of the Citie, neither regardeth hee the crying of the driver; the range of the mountaines is his pa&s;ture, and hee &s;earcheth after every green thing.</HI> Though the oppre&s;&s;or live in the City, yet hee is like the wild a&s;&s;e in this, he cares not to maintaine &s;ociety as hee ought; hee cares for the &s;ociety of others onely for him&s;elfe, <HI>hee &s;corneth the multitude of the City,</HI> he is for the range of the mountaines, where he may take all he can get, <HI>he &s;earcheth after every greene thing,</HI> what&s;oever hath plea&s;ure or profit in it, he pur&s;ues it for him&s;elfe.</P>
<P>This paralel might be drawne out further; wild a&s;&s;es (as Natu|rali&s;ts have ob&s;erved) are fearefull.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Belocitas timi|ditalis &s;ub&s;idi|um.</NOTE> Tho&s;e Creatures that are mo&s;t &s;wift, are naturally mo&s;t fearfull; and their &s;wiftnes is a releefe to their fearfullnes. Thus, wicked men are fearfull. They onely have true Courage who feare God, and where the feare of God is not,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Timida e&s;t om|nis Nequitia.</NOTE> every other feare is, or every other thing is feared. They who finde not a friend in their owne con&s;ciences, are ready to &s;u&s;pect every one for an enemy. So that though every wicked man would have all that he can get to him&s;elfe alone, yet he dares not be alone in getting it. And upon tho&s;e termes onely he is willing that others &s;hould joyne with him in the profit, becau&s;e he would have them joyne with him in the &s;in. (<HI>Pro.</HI> 1.11.14.) <HI>Come with us, let us lay wait for blood,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Ca&s;t in thy lot with us, we will all have one pur&s;e.</HI> Wicked men are not for &s;ociety, unle&s;&s;e it be in wickednes, and yet theirs is not &s;o much a &s;ociety as a con&s;piracy. A wicked man, let his &s;in be what it will, is glad when he hath partners in do|ing it, or that others doe the &s;ame with him, not onely becau&s;e he hath a &s;u&s;cipicion of the lawfullnes of what he doth, but al&s;o be|cau&s;e he &s;u&s;pects &s;ome &s;uddaine danger in doing it. And hence
<PB N="516" REF="272"> &s;ome have noted that the woman, who committed the fir&s;t &s;inne, did not like to be alone in it, and therefore having eaten her &s;elfe &s;hee gave the fruit of the tree to her husband to eate al&s;o; &s;hee de&s;iered an a&s;&s;ociate both to countenance her in the act, and to helpe beare her out in the con&s;equents of it. And when they had both &s;inned, they &s;hewed them&s;elves like wild A&s;&s;es indeed, run|ning into the thickets at the approach of God, there to hide them|&s;elves both for &s;hame and feare. <HI>Behold as wild a&s;&s;es</HI>
<Q>They goe forth to their worke.</Q></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>To wrong men, to &s;in again&s;t God, is the worke of wicked men.</Q>
<P>That's their bu&s;ienes. Therefore in Scripture they are often cal|led <HI>workers of Iniquity;</HI> Implying that to doe iniquitie is their trade of life, or that which they live by and dayly &s;et them&s;elves about. The worke of God is none of their worke, nor doe they count it &s;o, <HI>being</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, <HI>Tit.</HI> 1.16.) <HI>abominable, di&s;obedient, and unto every good worke reprobate.</HI> Good worke is put into the hand of man by the hand of God, but they have their worke from another hand, <HI>the lu&s;ts of your father yee will doe</HI> (&s;aith Chri&s;t to the Phari&s;ees, <HI>Joh.</HI> 8.44,) that is, ye will doe the devills worke; That's their worke, and they goe forth to it as the hone&s;t labouring man <HI>goeth forth unto his worke and to his labour untill the Evening, (P&s;al.</HI> 104.23.) &s;o the wicked man goeth forth to &s;in as to his worke; And that he doth &s;o is evident upon a foure-fold account.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e he doth not &s;tumble upon it, but intends it; a godly man falls into &s;in, but to &s;in is not his intendment, a godly man may &s;in when he goeth forth, but he doth not goe forth to &s;in, he doth not make it his bui&s;ines. That is properly a mans worke, which he propo&s;eth to him&s;elfe to doe, and purpo&s;eth to doe.</P>
<P>Secondly, He goeth forth to it as to his worke, for he delights in it; he is plea&s;ed with it. It is his meate and drinke, yea his mirth and mu&s;icke to doe evill. That is properly a mans worke, which though it be painefull to him to doe it, yet he is plea&s;ed in do|ing it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Hee goes forth to it as to his worke, for he &s;pends
<PB N="517" REF="272"> his &s;pirits, his &s;trength and time in it; wee doe many things which are not our worke, they are but by-works, or be&s;ide our worke, wee be&s;tow little of our time and &s;trength in &s;uch things: that which a man be&s;towes his time and &s;trength upon, that whereat he labours to &s;weat and wearines of body, that's his worke; now the time of wicked men runs out, and their &s;trength is con&s;umed in &s;inning, and though they are not weary of committing iniquity, yet they weary them&s;elves (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>Jer.</HI> 9.5.) to commit iniquitie, therefore that's their worke.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Wicked men are skillfull to &s;in, they &s;in with a kinde of art, therefore that's their worke; that which is a mans proper worke, hee hath knowledge about it, and is dextrous at; He doth not bungle, but makes cleane worke (as we &s;ay) of that which is <HI>his worke.</HI> A Mini&s;ter &s;hould preach the Go&s;pel like a workman that <HI>needs not be a&s;hamed</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes.) The wicked &s;in like workmen, though the more they doe &s;o, the more cau&s;e they have to be a&s;hamed. The Prophet (<HI>Jer.</HI> 9.5.) bewayling the ex|treame &s;infullnes of tho&s;e times, &s;aith, <HI>They have taught their tongues to &s;peake lies.</HI> As if they had &s;tudyed the art and language of lying: while they told or made gro&s;&s;e lies, they would not make them gro&s;&s;ely, but with a kinde of finenes and neatenes As though what a Godly man doth according to the minde of God, he doth by grace, yet he u&s;eth a kinde of artificialnes in doing it; and is therefore exhorted to walke circum&s;pectly or accurately; that is, to act all his duties with exactnes; &s;o, though what an ungodly man doth again&s;t the minde of God, he doth it by nature, or very naturally, yet he u&s;eth a kind of artificiallnes in doing it, and there|fore he is &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 50.19, 20.) <HI>To give his mouth to evill, and to frame deceit with his tonuge, to &s;it</HI> (as an arti&s;t at his worke) <HI>and &s;peake again&s;t his brother, and &s;launder his owne mothers &s;onne.</HI> Thus, <HI>they goe forth to their worke,</HI>
<Q>Ri&s;ing betimes for a prey.</Q></P>
<P>Whence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>A wicked man is very indu&s;trious and diligent in doing his worke.</Q>
<P>To ri&s;e betimes, and to doe a thing diligently, are the &s;ame in Scripture; ro ri&s;e betimes is to ri&s;e &s;omewhat before the ordinary time of ri&s;ing; Now, when a man breaks his &s;leepe to goe about
<PB N="518" REF="273"> his worke, this &s;hews that he is indu&s;trious at it. As &s;ome wicked men quickly throw off their &s;leepe, that they may doe mi&s;chiefe: So (which argues the &s;ame principle and &s;pirit) <HI>Others &s;leepe not unle&s;&s;e they have done mi&s;chiefe, and their &s;leepe is taken away, un|le&s;&s;e they cau&s;e &s;ome to fall.</HI> (Prov. 4.16.) Their owne &s;leepe is taken away, unle&s;&s;e they take away &s;omewhat which is not their owne. They will defraud them&s;elves of re&s;t, rather then not de|fraud others of their right. They goe not more unwillingly to pri|&s;on after they have done evill, then they goe to bed before they have done it. O how are they &s;et upon mi&s;chiefe, who&s;e &s;leepe departs from them unle&s;&s;e they doe it, and who cannot re&s;t unle&s;&s;e they trouble others. The &s;ervants of God, when they are up in zeale cannot &s;leepe unle&s;&s;e they doe good; as <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 132.4, 5, 6.) <HI>Surely I will not come into the Tabernacle of my hou&s;e, nor clime up to my bed; I will give no &s;leepe to mine eyes, nor &s;lumber to mine eyelids, till I have found a place for God,</HI> &amp;c. hee was &s;o zealous for God that if he could he would not &s;leepe, hee would forbid his owne re&s;t, though hee had never &s;o much minde to it, till he had fini&s;ht that worke for God. So &s;ayth the wicked man, I will give mine eyes no &s;leepe nor &s;lumber to mine eyelids till I have done this or that mi&s;cheife, and brought my de|vice to pa&s;&s;e. When the wicked lye wakeing on their beds, what are they about then? their wakeing thoughts in the night are to doe mi&s;chiefe in the morning. (<HI>Michah</HI> 2.1, 2.) <HI>Woe to them that devi&s;e Iniquity, and worke evill upon their beds.</HI> How doe they worke it upon their beds? they worke it in their thoughts, in their inward &s;hop, there they fa&s;hion it, and <HI>when the morning is light they practice it, becau&s;e it is in the power of their hand;</HI> they hinder them&s;elves from &s;leepe, that they may forward them&s;elves in &s;in; The night is &s;pent in Imagineing, and plotting, and the day in ac|compli&s;hing what they have imagined and plotted. Their morning light is &s;pent in the workes of darkenes, and the text &s;ayth, <HI>They practice it, becau&s;e it is in the power of their hand.</HI> They never con|&s;ider what is Ju&s;t for them to doe, but what they have power to doe, if they have ability they want no will for the vile&s;t pra|ctices.</P>
<P>Againe, as they cannot &s;leepe &s;ometimes for devi&s;ing evill, &s;o when they have &s;lept, their fir&s;t waking thoughts are about evill; and this al&s;o is a further proofe of their extreame indu&s;triou&s;nes in
<PB N="519" REF="273"> doing evill. For as it is with a zealous Godly man, his fir&s;t wake|ing thoughts are with God, and Chri&s;t, or about his owne &s;oule, how God may be honoured, &amp; how his &s;oule may be &s;aved. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.18.) <HI>O how precious are thy thoughts</HI> (that is, thoughts of thee) <HI>to mee O God, how great is the &s;umme of them! when I awake I am &s;till with thee:</HI> that is, <HI>my thoughts and meditations are with thee as &s;oone as ever I awake;</HI> here's the diligence of the &s;oule af|ter God: &s;o the wicked man when he awakes hee is &s;till with &s;in; And if hee cannot awake naturally &s;oone enough to &s;in, hee will force him&s;elfe to awake: And &s;o he may be &s;ayd to awake to &s;in, before he is awake; for as &s;ome nur&s;e up and feed their &s;leepe when they are a little awakened, like the &s;luggard, <HI>yet a little &s;lum|ber, yet a little &s;leepe;</HI> &s;o others offers violence to, or breake their &s;leepe, that is, as the text &s;ayth, <HI>they ri&s;e betimes,</HI> even before the u&s;uall time of ri&s;ing, that they may get a prey. It is no wonder, if they who &s;ticke not at breaking the lawes of God, breake al&s;o the lawes of their owne re&s;t.</P>
<P>Diligence is good about that which is good; it is good to be zealou&s;ly affected alwayes in a good matter, but zeale and dili|gence mi&s;placed, how evill are they! it is better to creep in a good way, then to run in a wrong way; Even idlenes is better then &s;uch diligence; yet they who mi&s;place their zeale and diligence, are commonly more in both then they who place them right; and they who are in a fal&s;e way, make more ha&s;t then they who are in a true. The Scripture notes the extream Inten&s;enes of the builders of <HI>Babel</HI> upon their worke. And that's the &s;traine of mo&s;t men in &s;uch worke as theirs was, the building of a <HI>Babel,</HI> or in doing that, which will be but a monument of their owne pride and folly, or of their rebellion again&s;t and contempt of God. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 11.6.) <HI>This they begin to doe, and now nothing will be re&s;trained from them which they have Imagined to doe;</HI> if they have but a minde to it they will doe it, let it co&s;t what it will, neyther difficulty nor dan|ger &s;hall re&s;traine them. See al&s;o how Indu&s;trious the ten Tribes were in their Idolatrous wor&s;hip which <HI>Jeroboam</HI> had &s;et up, (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 12.30.) <HI>And this thing became a &s;in; for the people went to wor&s;hip before the one even unto Dan;</HI> that is, they went a great way to wor&s;hip; for how&s;oever <HI>Jeroboam</HI> pretended the ea&s;e and accommodation of the people in &s;etting up tho&s;e Calves (<HI>ver.</HI> 28.) <HI>It is too much for you to goe up to Jeru&s;alem; Behold thy
<PB N="520" REF="274"> Gods O I&s;rael, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt</HI> (as if he had &s;ayd, thy Gods are at hand, or in thine eye, thou neede&s;t not toyle thy &s;elfe in going &s;o farre to &s;erve them) yet <HI>Jeru&s;alem</HI> was neerer unto mo&s;t of the <HI>I&s;raelites,</HI> then eyther <HI>Dan</HI> or <HI>Bethel</HI> were. For <HI>Bethel</HI> one of tho&s;e places of wor&s;hip was in the utmo&s;t bounds of the South (<HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 18.22.) &amp; <HI>Dan</HI> the other place of wor|&s;hip was in the utmo&s;t bounds of the North, (<HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 19.47) &s;o that they were willing to take more paines to follow the Idolatrous in|ventions of man, then to keepe to the In&s;titutions of God. <HI>Jeru&s;a|lem</HI> was neerer to mo&s;t of the ten Tribes then either <HI>Dan</HI> or <HI>Bethel;</HI> &amp; yet thither they would goe. All the way to &s;in, whether in ordi|nary practice or wor&s;hip is downe-hill to Nature, we have both the winde and tyde of the world with us, will we &s;et our faces hel|ward; and to be &s;ure, Satan will never checke their diligence who are doing his worke, nor take them off from their pace, who are going or Galloping his way. We have a cleare evidence of this in the ca&s;e of the wor&s;hippers of tho&s;e two Calves in <HI>Dan</HI> and <HI>Be|thel;</HI> and, it is further ob&s;erved by &s;ome, that the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> grew &s;o zealous in a &s;hort time in that abomination, that they who dwelt neer <HI>Bethel</HI> did even di&s;dain to wor&s;hip at <HI>Bethel,</HI> they di&s;dained to &s;erve their God at their owne dores, and therefore they that dwelt at or neere <HI>Bethel</HI> would goe to <HI>Dan</HI> and wor&s;hip; and they that dwelt at or neer <HI>Dan</HI> would goe to <HI>Bethel</HI> to wor&s;hip. The heart of man is &s;o mad upon Idolatry, that he is willing to be at any co&s;t or paines for it; He &s;cornes to &s;erve a fal&s;e God at an ea&s;ie rate, nor is he plea&s;ed (which is the onely thing which plea|&s;eth &s;ome who pretend to the true religion) with a cheape religi|on. You may lay what tax you will upon him, eyther of paynes or pur&s;e, and he is willing, yea even ambitious to pay or performe it. Thus the blinde votaryes among the Papi&s;ts at this day will needes goe a Pilgrimage to remote&s;t places, they will travayle to <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> and vi&s;it the Sepulchre, &amp;c. the&s;e long Journeyes they glory in, it is but a &s;tep to them; hard penances, not onely fa&s;tings but whippings they glory in. The nature of man will carry him two miles at his owne bidding, rather then one at Gods. How may it &s;hame Godly men for their &s;loath in doing the will of God, when they heare how indu&s;trious evill men are in doing their owne? how may it &s;hame them, that they &s;hould take le&s;&s;e paines to keepe a righteous law, then many doe to &s;atisfie a filthy lu&s;t?
<PB N="521" REF="274"> Who <HI>like wild A&s;&s;es goe forth to their worke, ri&s;ing betimes for a prey.</HI> And whereas it followes.</P>
<Q>The wildernes yeeldeth food for them and for their Children.</Q>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Wicked men will have it, if it be to be had above ground.</Q>
<P>They that live by rapine, will live any where; every mans e|&s;tate is theirs, if they can but get it. They finde a harve&s;t in the wildernes, and riches in the de&s;ert.</P>
<P>Againe, Note.</P>
<Q>Wicked men lay up for theirs, as well as for them&s;elves by the &s;poyle of others.</Q>
<P>The light of nature teacheth parents to lay up for their chil|dren, and they who get an e&s;tate by wronging others, yet thinke they are bound to provide for more then them&s;elves (<HI>Nahum</HI> 11.12.) <HI>Where is the dwelling of the Lyons, and the feeding place of the young Lyons? where the Lyon even the old Lyon walked, and the Lyons whelpe, and none made him afraid. The Lyon did teare in peices enough for his whelps, and &s;trugled for his Lyone&s;&s;es.</HI> What did the Lyon? the Lyon did teare in peices! and how much did he teare in peices? not onely enough to fill his owne belly, but to feed his whelps, and his Lyone&s;&s;es; <HI>Hee filled his holes with prey, and his dens with ravine.</HI> Thus the Prophet de&s;cribeth wicked men, providing not onely for them&s;elves, but for theirs, their young Lyons and Lyone&s;&s;es; <HI>The wildernes yeeldeth food for them and for their Children.</HI></P>
<P>Further, Some note the Con&s;ent of the whole family in wick|edne&s;&s;e, from the&s;e words; <HI>The wildernes yeeldeth food for them and for their Children;</HI> that is, they all agree together, Ma&s;ter and Servants and Children, all agree together to doe mi&s;cheife, to &s;poyle and oppre&s;&s;e all they can. Where Parents and Ma&s;ters are evill, Children and &s;ervants are &s;eldome good. It is rare to &s;ee hearts united about that which is good, but they are often and ea&s;ily united in that which is evill. Thus the Lord &s;peakes to <HI>Jere|mie</HI> (Chap. 7.18.) <HI>See&s;t thou not what they doe in the Cities of Judah, and in the &s;treets of Jeru&s;alem; The Children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the woemen knead their dough to make Cakes to the Queen of heaven,</HI> &amp;c. All were at worke,
<PB N="522" REF="275"> bu&s;ie, very bu&s;ie they were about an Idolatrous &s;ervice, the Chil|dren, the fathers, and the woemen act their &s;everall parts. So here, eyther they rob'd for their children, or their children were robbers as well as them&s;elves. <HI>The wildernes yeeldeth food for them and their Children. Job</HI> proceeds in his narrative of their &s;in.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="6" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 6.</HI></BIBL> They reap every one his Corne in the field, and they ga|ther the vintage of the wicked.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In the former ver&s;e <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake of the oppre&s;&s;ion of per&s;ons, in this, he &s;peakes of the &s;poyling of lands and fields; <HI>They,</HI> that is, the wicked, <HI>reap, every one his Corne,</HI> that is, by their &s;ervants whom they &s;et aworke <HI>(They reap every one his Corne) in the field.</HI></P>
<P>But you will &s;ay, what hurt is there in that?</P>
<P>The meaning is, they reap the Corne which doth not belong to them.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Agrum non &s;u|um ante tempus deme&s;&s;iverunt. <HI>Sept:</HI> Agrum non &s;u|um demetunt.</NOTE> The Septuagint give that &s;ence of the text expre&s;&s;ely: <HI>They mowe, or reap the ground or feild which is not theirs.</HI> And &s;o M^r <HI>Broughton, They reap the field that is not their owne;</HI> Or if we keepe to our reading, <HI>They reape every one his Corne in the field;</HI> the &s;ence is, where&s;oever they finde a field of Corne for their pur|po&s;e, they pretend &s;ome title or other to it, they mu&s;t have it as if it were their owne. This is their &s;in, and the affliction of tho&s;e who are their neighbours.</P>
<P>Note from it.</P>
<Q>That it is a great &s;in to reap the Corne which we have not &s;owne, and a great affliction when the Corne which we have &s;owne is reapt by others.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> imprecates this puni&s;hment upon him&s;elfe, in ca&s;e he had done, or were guilty, as his friends had charged him, <HI>then let mee &s;ow, and let another eate,</HI> (Chap. 31.8.) And this is threatened (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.7.) <HI>Your land &s;trangers devoure in your pre&s;ence;</HI> that is, they devoure the fruits of it, the Corne which ye have &s;owed, and and the Cattle which ye have bred. (<HI>Micha</HI> 6.15.) <HI>Thou &s;halt &s;owe, but not reap; thou &s;halt tread the Olives, but not anoynt thy &s;elfe with the oyle, and &s;weet wine, but &s;halt not drinke wine:</HI> others &s;hall come and take it from thee. That Idle &s;ervant charged his Ma&s;ter (<HI>Math.</HI> 25.24.) <HI>Thou reape&s;t where thou ha&s;t not &s;owne.</HI>
<PB N="523" REF="275"> It is the mi&s;ery of &s;ome, that what they have &s;owne is reapt by o|thers, and 'tis a wickednes to reap where we have not &s;owne.</P>
<Q>And they gather the vintage of the wicked.</Q>
<P>That is, the grapes that grow in their vineyards. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders, <HI>The wicked &s;nap off the vineyard grapes;</HI> they were in the Corne-fields before, now they are got into the vineyards.</P>
<P>But how is it &s;ayd, <HI>They gather the vintage of the wicked?</HI> it &s;eemes &s;trange that they being wicked &s;hould gather the vintage of the wicked? Some take it plainly thus; they oppre&s;&s;e tho&s;e that are as bad as them&s;elves. And &s;o we may take this note from it.</P>
<Q>One wicked man will oppre&s;&s;e another.</Q>
<P>Wicked men &s;pare neyther good nor bad,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Lupus lupum non edit.</NOTE> neyther friend nor foe; They &s;poyle tho&s;e that are as bad as them&s;elves; wee &s;ay a Wolfe doth not prey upon a Wolfe, nor a Lyon upon a Lyon, but it is otherwi&s;e with bruti&s;h men, they prey upon and devoure one another.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>They gather the vintage of the wicked;</HI> that is, of tho&s;e whom they Count to be wicked, and &s;o fit to have their goods taken from them; they accu&s;e them of wickednes, and put their names in their blacke booke, as if they were di&s;hone&s;t; that's a truth al&s;o.</P>
<Q>Wicked men often oppre&s;&s;e the Innocent under a pretence that they are wicked.</Q>
<P>Wee have a great In&s;tance of this about the taking of a vine|yard (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 21.13.15.) <HI>Naboth</HI> was Innocent and hone&s;t;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Inter omnia &s;i|millimum vide|tur; vinea~ im|pij, ejus &s;cilicet quem illi habent pro impio, &amp; ideo opprimen|dum &s;ibi Ju<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i|cant. <HI>Merc:</HI> V<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">neam ejus quem oppre&s;&s;e|runt. <HI>Vulg:</HI></NOTE> but <HI>Jezabel</HI> hired two men, <HI>to make Oath that he had bla&s;phe|med God and the King,</HI> and he was pre&s;ently ca&s;t out and &s;toned: his was the vineyard of the wicked, becau&s;e the wicked had a minde to it. Thus, under a pretence of &s;ome evill done, they really do evill: And having brought a fal&s;e accu&s;ation again&s;t a man, they proceed to condemn his per&s;on and confi&s;cate his e&s;tate, as if all were true.</P>
<P>There is yet another reading, (which wee put in the margin of our Bibles) &s;o plaine in the letter, that it needs none of the&s;e In|terpretations to make it out; <HI>The wicked gather the vintage;</HI> As they tooke away the Corne, &s;o the wine al&s;o. Wee need not won|der,
<PB N="524" REF="276"> that they were &s;o injuriou&s;ly bui&s;ie to take that which was not their owne, for they were wicked, and they that are &s;o, make no bones of doing wickedly; a wicked man is ready for any &s;inne, the vile per&s;on will &s;peake villany, and act villanou&s;ly too.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="7" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 7.</HI></BIBL> They Cau&s;e the naked to lodge without Cloathing, that they have no Covering in the Cold.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Their progre&s;s in wickednes is further de&s;cribed by their incom|pa&s;&s;ionatenes and Cruelty; when wee &s;ee any naked wee &s;hould Cloath them; but <HI>they cau&s;ed the naked to lodge without Cloathing.</HI> And they might be &s;ayd to doe this two wayes. Fir&s;t, by not gi|ving them Cloathing; &s;econdly, by taking away their Cloathing; for by <HI>naked,</HI> wee may under&s;tand not onely tho&s;e that are quite naked, but (as was &s;hewed, <HI>Chap.</HI> 22.6.) tho&s;e al&s;o that have but little Cloathing; they tooke away even that little from them, and &s;o <HI>Cau&s;ed the naked to lodge without Cloathing.</HI> Wee &s;ee by what &s;teps of wickednes they proceeded, they not onely &s;poyled them of their Corne and Wine, but pulled their very Cloaths from off their backs; 'tis bad enough not to cloath the naked, but to take away their cloathing, and make them naked, that's wor&s;e. And (which they al&s;o did) to let them lodge without cloathing is wor&s;t of all. <HI>To lodge without cloathing,</HI> notes their continuance in that di&s;tre&s;&s;ed &s;tate. The Prophet rebuking the <HI>Jewes</HI> for their vaine thoughts, puts them this que&s;tion; <HI>How long &s;hall vaine thoughts lodge within thee?</HI> Why doe ye (as it were) make ready a roome, and a bed for them? So while the naked lodge without cloathing, they continue in nakednes. It is a great injury to take away a mans <HI>day-cloaths</HI> from his back, but to take away his <HI>night-cloaths</HI> from his bed, is yet more afflictive and injuririous. If a man have not cloathing for his body by day, yet if he have cloa|thing for his bed he may helpe him&s;elfe, but to cau&s;e the naked to lodge without cloathing, what Cruelty is this? And therefore the Law of God provided again&s;t it (<HI>Deut.</HI> 24.12, 13.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not &s;leepe with his pledge: In any Ca&s;e thou &s;halt deliver him the pledge againe, when the Sunne goeth downe, that he may &s;leepe in his owne rayment</HI> (that is, in his night-cloaths, or bed-cloaths) <HI>and ble&s;&s;e thee, and it &s;hall be righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e to thee before the Lord thy God;</HI> That is, God will looke upon this as a righteous act. The Lord
<PB N="525" REF="276"> was very tender in this poynt, he would not have the poore lodge without cloathing; but &s;ome wicked men care not what the poore &s;uffer, they neyther regard whether they have any lodging, nor whether they have any cloaths to lodge in. <HI>They cau&s;e the naked to lodge without Cloathing;</HI> &s;o <HI>That</HI> (as it followeth in the text)
<Q>They have no Covering in the Cold.</Q></P>
<P>The word &s;ignifies to Cover as with a vaile or with a garment. It is applyed to the pardon of our &s;ins, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 32.1.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man who&s;e &s;in is Covered.</HI> Their condition is mo&s;t &s;ad, who have no covering for their &s;oules, yet theirs al&s;o is very &s;ad who have no covering for their bodyes in the Cold. To have no cove|ring in the Cold winter nights, is not onely uncomfortable, but dangerous. Death is a great cold, and it endangers life to have no covering in the cold, or in the fro&s;t, which is the extreamity of cold. The word is u&s;ed to &s;ignifie fro&s;t, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 31.40.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Gelu.</NOTE>) <HI>Jacob</HI> tels <HI>Laban; Thus I was, in the day the drought con&s;umed mee, and the fro&s;t by night.</HI></P>
<P>The Septuagint tran&s;late thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">. Sept:</NOTE> <HI>They take away the Covering of their &s;oule;</HI> what's that, you will &s;ay? in a &s;pirituall &s;ence, Chri&s;t is the onely covering of the &s;oule, But no tyrant can take away this. Therefore by the covering of the &s;oule here, wee are to un|der&s;tand that which is to a man as his life, take away that and you take away his life. The &s;oule is often put for the body, and then the Covering here meant is the Covering of the body, or that co|vering that is neere&s;t the &s;oule, or neere&s;t life, &s;o that, there is a great elegancy and empha&s;is in it to &s;ay, <HI>They take away the Co|vering of their very &s;oule;</HI> That is, they endanger their lives by it. Some tran&s;late to that &s;ence, <HI>They take away the covering which is next their very skin,</HI> they would not leave them &s;o much as a &s;hirt, that's the Covering (in this &s;ence) of the &s;oule. And when wee &s;peake of the utmo&s;t rigour and cruelty of man towards man, wee &s;ay (proverbially) He hath not left him &s;o much as a &s;hirt to his backe. Yet the Prophet expre&s;&s;eth the rigorous cruelty of man to man, by taking away that which may much more be called the covering of their &s;oule (<HI>Mich:</HI> 3.3.) <HI>They eate the fle&s;h of my people, and flay their skin from off them.</HI> Skin and fle&s;h are indeed the Covering of the &s;oule. To &s;trip the poore to their skin, is to take away the Covering of their &s;oule; How much more to &s;trip
<PB N="526" REF="277"> off the skin from their fle&s;h, and the fle&s;h from off their bones. But, to the words of the text;
<Q>They have no Covering in the cold.</Q></P>
<P>This hath in it a double Inhumanity; Fir&s;t, to expo&s;e them to extreame paine, and then to extreame &s;hame. Not to have a covering is to be expo&s;ed to &s;hame, not to have a covering in the cold is to be expo&s;ed to paine. But what becomes of the poore when they are naked, and have no covering in the cold, The next ver&s;e informes us about that.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="8" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 8.</HI></BIBL> They are wet with the &s;howers of the mountaines, and embrace the rock for want of a &s;helter.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Here's the &s;hift the&s;e poore hearts are put to, <HI>they are wet with the &s;howers of the mountaines;</HI> that word which we render <HI>wet,</HI> is onely found in this place in the old Te&s;tament; it notes not onely to be da&s;ht with raine, but to be &s;oakt thorough with it. We u&s;e to &s;ay of tho&s;e who are very wet, that they are wet to the skin, but the&s;e being naked had nothing to wet but their skin, and their skin was (if it might be) &s;oaked through with the wet, or they were thorough-wet with the <HI>&s;howers of the mountaines,</HI> that is, with tho&s;e &s;howers which they meet with upon the moun|taines; &s;howers gather about high mountaines, there the Clouds engender raine, and there the &s;howers are bred. Travellers ob|&s;erve by the eye, how Clouds gather about the tops of moun|taines,<NOTE PLACE="marg">E&s;t autem qua|lecun&abque; nudita|tis remedium &s;i ille qui ve&s;ti|mentorum ope|rimentum non habet, &s;altem operimento de|mus non careci. <HI>Aquin:</HI></NOTE> and that the raine broods there. This is a further addition to the Cruelty of oppre&s;&s;ors, and the mi&s;ery of the oppre&s;&s;ed; they tooke away their Cloaths, and turned them out of their hou|&s;es naked into the open ayre, and left them to contend with cold and hunger, with all varieties of weather and danger among the mountaines. It is &s;ome helpe to a man, if he have no Cloaths to cover him, yet to have a hou&s;e to cover him; but to have neyther body-cloaths, nor bed-cloaths, nor hou&s;e, nor harbour, how &s;ad is this! And being thus helple&s;&s;e, the next words &s;hew us what a poore &s;hift they made.</P>
<Q>They embrace the rock for want of a &s;helter.</Q>
<P>When he &s;ayth, <HI>They embrace the rock,</HI> his meaning is, they
<PB N="527" REF="277"> make much of it, they are glad of it, for &s;o we are of tho&s;e things which we embrace; in &s;tead of &s;oft warme beds, they were glad of cold hard &s;tones to &s;ecure and &s;helter them from the raine. Againe, <HI>They embrace the rock;</HI> that is, they goe into the holes and clefts of the rock, they had hou&s;es (po&s;&s;ibly) Pallaces before, but now they are forced to dwell in the holes of the rock.</P>
<P>In as much as <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, they did not onely goe to the rock for &s;helter, and make a &s;hift with it, but embrace and hugg it, as being joyfull they had it.</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Great afflictions make &s;mall comforts very welcome to us.</Q>
<P>He that is turned out naked and hath no Cloaths to Cover him, would be glad to have a thatcht hou&s;e, or the meane&s;t Cottage to hide him&s;elfe in; hee that hath no hou&s;e is glad if hee can have but the hole of a rock. (<HI>Lam.</HI> 4.5.) <HI>They who were brought up in &s;carlet embrace dunghills;</HI> hee doth not &s;ay, they are throwne upon dunghills, but they embrace them, they that were bred up in &s;carlet, are now glad of a dunghill to &s;cape in, there to finde a mouldy cru&s;t to eate, there to pick up an old dirty ragge to cover their nakednes with, or old &s;hoes to put upon their feete. So it was in the great famine and de&s;olation of <HI>Jeru&s;alem.</HI> And &s;o it was during the late warres in <HI>Germany,</HI> and the later, in <HI>Ireland.</HI> Some have fought and contended for a peece of Carrion, for a peece of a dead Hor&s;e, nay for a peece of a dead man; that which &s;tunck above ground, they contended for, and having wonne it, they em|braced it and made dainty of it, as of the mo&s;t plea&s;ant meate. Wee that are in our fullnes, and plenty, wee that have abundance, &s;light and make light of many good things; but we may &s;oone be &s;o &s;traitned and put to it, that we would be glad to embrace a rock, or a dunghill, that we would be glad of the crums that fall from our tables, and of the wor&s;t &s;craps we leave upon our tren|chers. Thus the old Saints are de&s;cribed (<HI>Heb.</HI> 11.36.) glad they were of Caves and Dens, <HI>they wandred in de&s;erts, and in moun|taines, and in dens, and Caves of the earth, being de&s;titute, afflicted, and tormented;</HI> they were glad to live among the wild bea&s;ts, when they could not live quietly among men. When the winde and the Sunne beat upon the head of <HI>Jonah,</HI> the text &s;aith, <HI>Jonah was glad of his gourd,</HI> a thing of little value, very meane, and fadeing in it
<PB N="528" REF="278"> &s;elfe; yet when the Sunne &s;hined hot, and the winde beat &s;trongly upon him, then hee was glad of a gourd. In times of plenty and peace, wre are &s;car&s;e thankfull for goodly hou&s;es, for full tables, and rich Cloaths; But a little and that cour&s;e food will cau&s;e the hungry to be thankfull. The naked will catch at old raggs, and they who have no hou&s;e will embrace a rocke. There is a rocke, a my&s;ticall rocke, whom the Saints embrace for a &s;helter, and re|joyce in above all the goodly hou&s;es in the world, yea above this whole world. Chri&s;t is a rocke to be embraced in our be&s;t dayes as our be&s;t &s;helter, and in our bad dayes he is our onely &s;helter. And while we are con&s;trained by outward wants to embrace na|tural rocks for the &s;helter of our bodyes, let us remember, how our inward and &s;pirituall wants, doe alwayes con&s;traine us to embrace that my&s;tical rocke, for the &s;helter of our &s;oules.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The Cruelty of man to man knowes no bounds.</Q>
<P>Wee have &s;eene in this context &s;everal &s;teps of cruelty, men ravening for their prey like wild bea&s;ts, men invading the harve&s;t and the vintage of their neighbours, men robbing both the father|les and the widdow, men pulling cloaths from the backes of the poore, and expo&s;ing them naked to the cold, and to the raine, to the mercy of rocks and mountaines. Thus, man who &s;hould be a God to man, kinde, mercifull, charitable, bountifull, courteous, proves him&s;elfe a Devill to man, churli&s;h, cruel, merciles, yea &s;uch that even his tender mercies are cruell. How cruel are their cruel|ties, who&s;e mercies, who&s;e tender mercies are cruel!</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="529" REF="278">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 9, 10, 11, 12.</HI></BIBL>
<P>They plucke the fatherles from the brea&s;t, and take a pledge of the poore.</P>
<P>They cau&s;e him to goe naked without Cloathing, and they take away the &s;heafe from the hungry.</P>
<P>Which make oyle within their walls, and tread their wine-pre&s;&s;es, and &s;uffer thir&s;t.</P>
<P>Which groane from out of the City, and the &s;oule of the wounded cryeth out; yet God layeth not folly to them.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> &s;till drawes out the line of the oppre&s;&s;ors wickednes, or di&s;|covers the &s;everall wayes of his oppre&s;&s;ion; We have &s;eene much of his bloody worke before, here we have more, even highe&s;t oppre&s;&s;ion, oppre&s;&s;ion devoyd not onely of all ju&s;tice, but of all humanity; &s;uch is that which is next in&s;tanced in.</P>
<DIV3 N="9" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 9.</HI></BIBL> They plucke the fatherles from the brea&s;t.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>They,</HI> that is, the oppre&s;&s;ors before &s;poken of, doe it, eyther with their owne hands, or 'tis done at their command by their mini&s;ters and in&s;truments.</P>
<Q>They plucke the fatherle&s;&s;e.</Q>
<P>The word notes an act of violence, they lay violent hands upon the <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI> Who are meant by the <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e,</HI> hath been ope|ned more then once already. Here the <HI>fatherle&s;&s;e</HI> are taken, not largely for any that are de&s;titute of helpe and meanes, as the word is often u&s;ed in Scripture, but &s;trictly, for children who&s;e fathers are lately dead, and they yet in their minority, yea in their infancy, and in the fir&s;t of their infancy, &s;ucking children, children hanging upon their mothers brea&s;ts; which exceedingly hightens the cru|elty of the&s;e oppre&s;&s;ors. To u&s;e any violence to the fatherle&s;&s;e, though growne up, is (as hath been &s;hewed) a great wickedne&s;&s;e, to u&s;e violence towards fatherle&s;&s;e infants is much more wicked, but to pull fatherle&s;&s;e infants from their mothers or nur&s;es brea&s;t (which is all the livelihood a childe hath) this is utmo&s;t wicked|nes.
<PB N="530" REF="279"> And this is not onely an affliction to the children, but to the mother, a di&s;con&s;olate widdow, who having lo&s;t her husband, is now bereaved of her childe al&s;o. Thus they adde affliction to the afflicted, and &s;orrow to the &s;orrowfull.</P>
<P>'Tis here enquired, what &s;hould move them <HI>to plucke the father|le&s;&s;e from the brea&s;ts,</HI> or what their intent might be in this barba|rous action?</P>
<P>Some an&s;wer, That it was their covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e which moved them to be cruel; They pull'd the children from their mothers brea&s;ts, that &s;o their mothers might be the fitter to doe them &s;er|vice; they would needs weane the children before they were fit, that the mother might be the more fitt to labour, and toile for them; or they pluckt the fatherle&s;&s;e from the brea&s;t, to &s;el them and to make money of them; when they had murthered the father, and ta|ken all from the widow, they made their markets of their children. So we may interpret that of the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 10.2.) <HI>Woe to them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievou&s;ne&s;&s;e, which they have pre&s;cribed, to turne a&s;ide the needy from judgement, and to take away the right from the poore of my people, that widdows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherle&s;&s;e.</HI> So we reade, implying that they tooke away the e&s;tate of the fatherle&s;&s;e, and &s;o robbed them. Others give this &s;ence of th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;e words, that they tooke away the per&s;ons of the fatherle&s;&s;e, or more plainely, thus, That they &s;tole away fatherle&s;&s;e children, and &s;ould them into &s;la|very. There is a generation among us, called <HI>&s;pirits,</HI> who pull chil|dren from the brea&s;t, or enveigle away &s;uch as know not their right hand from the left, to make merchandize of them. <HI>The &s;mell of gaine is &s;weet to &s;ome from any thing, even from the &s;ale of poore fatherle&s;&s;e children.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> mamma, etiam va&s;titas a <GAP DESC="foreign"> va&s;ta|vit. Rapiunt pupil|lo quod po&s;t va|&s;tationem reli|ctum e&s;t. <HI>Tygur:</HI></NOTE>Secondly, Others reade the text thus; <HI>They plucke from the fatherle&s;&s;e that which was left after the prey or de&s;truction;</HI> for the word which we tran&s;late <HI>brea&s;t,</HI> is derived from a roote which &s;ig|nifies to <HI>de&s;troy or lay wa&s;t;</HI> &s;o the &s;en&s;e is given thus; They take away from the fatherle&s;&s;e, even that poore pittance which was left after they had made havocke of all that was their fathers.</P>
<Q>And take a pledge of the poore.</Q>
<P>What a pledge is hath been opened (<HI>Chap.</HI> 22.6.) The words may al&s;o beare this tran&s;lation, <HI>They take that which is upon the
<PB N="531" REF="279"> poore for a pledge,</HI> namely, their rayment, not onely the cloaths which they have by them to &s;pare, (a poore man may have a lit|tle change) but the cloaths which they actually weare. How con|trary this practi&s;e was to the Law, hath been &s;hewed before, which forbad to take a pledge of &s;uch things, as without which the poore cannot conveniently &s;ub&s;i&s;t.</P>
<P>There is a third reading, which &s;ayth not as we, <HI>they take a pledge of the poore,</HI> but, <HI>they take the poore for a pledge.</HI> Of which cruelty we read (2 <HI>Kings</HI> 4.1.) where the poore widdow com|plained to the Prophet, that her husband being dead, the creditors were come, and <HI>had taken her two &s;onnes to be bond men.</HI> Thus here when they had gotten their cattle (as was &s;hewed before) and their cloaths from their backs, then they mu&s;t have their bodyes too, to be &s;laves and drudges. Here fir&s;t, I might note, That the &s;inne of oppre&s;&s;ion is aggravated in reference to the per&s;ons upon whom it is exerci&s;ed. But becau&s;e it hath been ob&s;erved from o|ther pa&s;&s;ages both of this and former Chapters, how &s;infull it is to oppre&s;&s;e tho&s;e, whom we are bound to releive, and to vexe tho&s;e, whom we ought to comfort; I &s;hall not in&s;i&s;t upon it in this place. But</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve, Secondly.</P>
<Q>That covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e knows no bounds.</Q>
<P>As it hath been &s;aid of envy, &s;o we may &s;ay of covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, <HI>Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, whether wilt thou?</HI> whether wilt thou lead, or ra|ther hurry and force worldly men? covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e carryes tho&s;e who are under the power of it no man knowes whether: who can tell where he &s;hall &s;topp or &s;tay when he is once under the power of the &s;pirit of covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e? &s;uch will not &s;pare eyther the fa|therle&s;&s;e, or the widdow, not the cloaths upon their backes, no nor their backes nor bodyes. If a covetous eye can but di&s;cerne any advantage to be made, it will have body and all. There is no &s;inne &s;o hainous, none &s;o ba&s;e, and &s;ordid, but covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e may be both the mother, and nur&s;e of it. A covetous man will not for|beare eyther for the cruelty of the &s;inne, or for the &s;ordidne&s;&s;e of it; Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e is a &s;ordid lu&s;t; Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e is earthy, and mudds our &s;pirits in earthly things. When the &s;pirit of a man is once emba&s;ed by covetou&s;nes, he is ready to doe any ba&s;e thing. There is nothing here below, lower then that Spirit. And hence
<PB N="532" REF="280"> the Apo&s;tle concludes (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.10.) That <HI>the love of money</HI> (which is covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e) <HI>is the roote of all evill,</HI> that is, any evill of &s;inne may grow up from that roote; and therefore the Apo&s;tle adds in the &s;ame place, <HI>That, while &s;ome have coveted it, they have erred from the faith.</HI> Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e is the roote of here&s;ie, which we may thinke farre removed from it. But (&s;aith he) &s;uch have erred from the faith; which may be under&s;tood of erring from the faith, both in regard of practice, and of doctrine; They have both acted and beleeved again&s;t the rule of faith for filthy lucre; and &s;o have peirced them&s;elves through with many &s;orrowes. Cove|tou&s;ne&s;&s;e runneth us into all evill, and provokes many to doe &s;uch things as peirce them&s;elves through with many &s;orrowes as well as others. Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e peirceth the poore and needy, the widdow and the fatherle&s;&s;e with many &s;orrowes, nor doth it &s;pare its own Ma&s;ter, or &s;lave rather, but peirceth him likewi&s;e through with many more and much wor&s;e &s;orrowes.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="10" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s; 10.</HI></BIBL> They cau&s;e him to goe naked without cloathing.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The 7^t^h ver&s;e &s;pake the &s;ence of this; <HI>They cau&s;e the naked to lodge without cloathing, and they have no covering in the cold. Job</HI> toucheth upon their cruelty againe and againe. <HI>They cau&s;e him to goe naked withoat cloathing.</HI> They will not allow him &s;o much as tho&s;e things which are for nece&s;&s;ity. The word <HI>him,</HI> is not expre&s;&s;ely in the Hebrew, which runs onely thus; <HI>They cau&s;e to goe naked without cloathing;</HI> as implying, that they were ready to exerci&s;e this inhumanity upon any one that came next to hand, or &s;tood in their way. Our Tran&s;lation &s;eemes to referre it to tho&s;e poore taken for a pledge, and &s;o the difference between this 10^t^h and the 7^t^h ver&s;e is this; in the 7^t^h ver&s;e he &s;pake generally of the poore, whom they made to goe naked; here at the 10^t^h ver&s;e he &s;peakes of tho&s;e whom they had taken to be their &s;laves, and &s;ervants; <HI>they take the poore for a pledge, and cau&s;e him to goe naked without cloathing;</HI> they take his worke, but they give him no cloathing, they command his labour, but deny him releife. Which &s;en&s;e is carried further, both in the next ver&s;e, and in the next clau&s;e of this ver&s;e.</P>
<Q><PB N="533" REF="280">And take away the &s;heafe from the hungry.</Q>
<P>Some render, they take away <HI>the eares of corne,</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> non &s;olum manipulum in|tegrum &s;ed pau|culas &s;picas quae me&s;&s;oris manum effugere &s;olent &s;ignificat.</NOTE> the gleaneings which the poore have pickt up and gathered together; They take away the very gleaning from them, &amp; that two wayes, eyther, Fir&s;t, they will not &s;uffer the poore to gleane after their reapers; This is to take away the eares of corne from the hungry; &s;uch is the cruelty of &s;ome, that they will not &s;uffer the poore to gleane in their fields; or, &s;econdly, when the hungry have gleaned a few eares of corne, they take all away from them. Again&s;t which cruelty to the poore the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> provided, <HI>Deut.</HI> 24.19, 20, 21. <HI>When thou cutte&s;t downe thine harve&s;t in thy feild, and ha&s;t for|got a &s;heafe in the feild, thou &s;halt not goe againe to fetch it, it &s;hall be for the &s;tranger, for thr fatherle&s;&s;e, and the widdow, that the Lord thy God may ble&s;&s;e thee in all the worke of thine hands.</HI> Now, if the forgotten &s;heafe mu&s;t be left for the poore, &s;urely the &s;cattered eares mu&s;t not be raked up from them. We have an eminent in|&s;tance of the liberty of gleaning in the &s;econd Chapter of <HI>Ruth.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, By <HI>the &s;heafe which is taken away,</HI> we may under&s;tand that little corne which the poore man hath of his owne growing in his owne feild. And <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes in the &s;ingular number, <HI>the &s;heafe,</HI> implying that the poore man hath not many &s;heaves, his corne makes but a &s;heafe as it were; as the poore man in the parable (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 11.11.) had but one lambe, he had not a flock, &s;o the poore man hath but a &s;heafe, he hath not many &s;heaves, and &s;hocks of corn, he hath not barnes full, as the rich man is de&s;cribed&punc; <HI>Luk.</HI> 12. he hath but a &s;heafe, yet they take that away.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The word which we tran&s;late, <HI>&s;heafe,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">E&s;t autem Go|mer men&s;urae genus quod quo|tidianu~ dimen|&s;um &amp; diurnu~ victum hominis cape<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e pote&s;t, er|go nece&s;&s;arium victum ab&s;tule|runt famelicis quem forte &amp; &s;picis minuta|tim collectis &s;ibi &s;umo labore col|legerunt. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> &s;ignifies a mea|&s;ure which did conteine a convenient quantity for a dayes provifi|on; This mea&s;ure the <HI>Jewes</HI> call An Omer (<HI>Exod.</HI> 16.16.) <HI>This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded, gather of it every man to his eating an Omer for every man according to the number of your per&s;ons, take ye every man for them which are in his tents, ye &s;hall have an Omer for every man;</HI> So that an Omer conteines a conve|nient quantity for one mans provi&s;ion for a day, and then the &s;en&s;e ari&s;eth thus, <HI>they take away the Omer from the hungry;</HI> that is, <HI>they take away meere nece&s;&s;ary food or dayly bread from the hungry.</HI> The poore man hath but an Omer, ju&s;t enough for a day, as our Saviour teacheth us to pray, <HI>Give us this day our dayly bread,</HI> or
<PB N="534" REF="281"> the bread of our nece&s;&s;ity, &s;o much bread as will &s;uffice us for a day, our Omer; how much &s;oever we have we are to aske no more, and u&s;ually poore men have no more. The rich have food afore|hand, or food for many dayes or yeares, as he &s;aid to <HI>his &s;oule</HI> (Luk. 12.19.) <HI>&s;oule thou ha&s;t goods laid up for many yeares,</HI> he was before-hand with the world; but the poore man hath only enough for a day, if he hath that, and that the&s;e oppre&s;&s;ors tooke away; <HI>They take away the &s;heafe, or the Omer from the hungry.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The hungry</HI> is put for <HI>the poore;</HI> and to aggravate the &s;inne, 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>they take away the &s;heafe from the hungry;</HI> That is, before the poore man hath eaten his belly full, yea before he hath broken his fa&s;t, they finde the poore man hungry, and &s;o they leave him; for they leave him nothing to appea&s;e his hunger with; <HI>They take away the &s;heafe (the Omer) from the hungry.</HI></P>
<P>There is yet a fourth reading, <HI>and tho&s;e that carry their &s;heaves they make to goe away a hungry.</HI> The meaning is, Their labourers in harve&s;t, or <HI>their harve&s;t-men</HI> have no provi&s;ion made for them, they worke all day, and are &s;ent home hungry at night. Which &s;inne is more expre&s;ly noted in the next ver&s;e, where <HI>Job</HI> taxeth the wickedne&s;&s;e of tho&s;e Ma&s;ters who are forward enough to im|ploy poore labourers, but are backward to give them a reward, or rather keepe backe their reward, altogether.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="11" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 11.</HI></BIBL> Which make Oyle within their walls, and tread their wine-pre&s;&s;es, and &s;uffer thir&s;t.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The la&s;t reading of the 10^t^h ver&s;e joynes fitly with this ver&s;e; <HI>Tho&s;e that carry their &s;heaves they make to goe away hungry,</HI> and <HI>tho&s;e that make oyle within their walls, and tread their wine-pre&s;&s;es &s;uffer thir&s;t,</HI> they are both hungry, and thir&s;ty, who doe their worke.</P>
<Q>Which make oyle within their walls.</Q>
<P>The word which we tran&s;late, <HI>to make oyle,</HI> &s;ignifies <HI>light or noone day</HI> in the nowne,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Meridiati &s;unt inter acervos. <HI>Vulg:</HI></NOTE> and in the verbe to be abroad in the light or Sun about noone-day. And hence the words are thus tran&s;lated by the vulgar latine; <HI>They noone it among the heapes,</HI> or <HI>they are abroad among the heapes at noone.</HI> And there is a double expo&s;ition given of the words in this tran&s;lation; fir&s;t, they are
<PB N="535" REF="281"> expounded of the wicked them&s;elves who oppre&s;&s;e the poore; as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>They come forth to plea&s;e them&s;elves, and take the aire, or to Sun them&s;elves among the heapes of tho&s;e things which they have taken from others by oppre&s;&s;ion.</HI> But I conceave this very un&s;utable to that which is joyned with it in this ver&s;e. Their tread|ing of their wine-pre&s;&s;es and &s;uffering thir&s;t. And therefore I lay it by.</P>
<P>Secondly, The words in this tran&s;lation are expounded of the poore, <HI>They abide till noone day, or till the heate of the day among the heapes;</HI> that is, among the &s;heaves, or among the oile-fats, or among the wine-pre&s;&s;es; poore men labour there unto the very heate of the day, and then are turned home hungry and thir&s;ty, without meate or drinke or any thing to procure eyther.</P>
<P>We tran&s;late, <HI>which make oile,</HI> and the &s;ame word &s;ignifies,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> me|rediati &s;unt, vel oleum fecerunt tam meridies quam oleum a &s;plendore &amp; pu|ritate dicitur Hebraice. E&s;t enim <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;plendere. Vel quia oleum ac|cen&s;um lucem facit ut meri|dies. <HI>Aben-Ezra.</HI></NOTE> <HI>noone-day, light, and oile,</HI> becau&s;e of the light, and &s;plendidne&s;&s;e of oyle. The eye enformes us, that oyle is a cleare body which hath much light, and purity in it; and therefore the word is applicable unto eyther, <HI>which make oile</HI>
<Q>Within their walls.</Q></P>
<P>There is a twofold expo&s;ition of the&s;e words, <HI>within their walls,</HI> that is, &s;ay &s;ome, <HI>within their owne walls;</HI> the poore make oile within their walls, and tread their owne wine-pre&s;&s;es, yet they &s;uf|fer thir&s;t; that is, the poore are &s;o oppre&s;t by the rich, that all the wine, and oile they can make for them&s;elves, will not &s;atisfie their ordinary thir&s;t or nece&s;&s;ity, or when the poore have made wine and oyle within their owne walls they &s;uffer thir&s;t, that is, the rich come, and take all from them. Thus we may enterpret it of the poore making wine, &amp; oile for them&s;elves; For in tho&s;e Countries where Vines and Olive-trees abound, the poore have their quan|tity, and portion of wine and oyle, as here they have of corne or any other commodity, which is of the growth of this Country.</P>
<P>But I rather expound the whole ver&s;e of the poore making oile for, and treading the wine-pre&s;&s;es of the rich. The poore la|bour for the rich, making oile within <HI>their walls,</HI> or <HI>within their rankes,</HI> that is, among their Olive trees they grow in rankes, and tread their wine-pre&s;&s;es, yet <HI>they &s;uffer thir&s;t;</HI> that is, though they labour hard for them, yet they have nothing for their labour, they make oile but they have no oile to anoint them&s;elves, they make
<PB N="536" REF="282"> wine, but they have no wine to quench their thir&s;t; tho&s;e cruell men neyther gave them wine nor oyle (in &s;pecie, or) in kinde; but u&s;ed them as Poets feine of <HI>Tantalus,</HI> who was &s;et in a river of water up to his chin, but could not reach it, &s;o the rich Tanta|liz'd the poore, calling them to worke all day in their oyle fatts, and wine pre&s;&s;es, and yet &s;ent them home hungry and thir&s;ty; or they &s;ent them home without that which is virtually or amounts to wine and oyle, that is, their wages, or reward; they gave them not that which their &s;ervice de&s;erved. This is that &s;peciall op|pre&s;&s;ion, which, I conceive, <HI>Job</HI> intended in this place, both to di&s;|cover and reprove, the uncon&s;iderablenes and cruelty of the rich towards the poore labouring man.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That to deteine the wages of the labouring man is a provoking oppre&s;&s;ion.</Q>
<P>When men carry &s;heaves, and yet are hungry, when they make oile, and tread the wine-pre&s;&s;e, and yet &s;uffer thir&s;t, this is a cry|ing &s;inne. The Lord forbad this expre&s;&s;ely (<HI>Deut.</HI> 24.14, 15.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not oppre&s;&s;e an hired &s;ervant, that is poore, and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of the &s;trangers which are in thy land, within thy gates, at his day, thou &s;halt give him his hire, nei|ther &s;hall the Sunne goe downe upon it, for he is poore, and &s;etteth his heart upon it, le&s;t he cry again&s;t thee to the Lord, and it be &s;inne unto thee.</HI> The Law al&s;o &s;ayth (<HI>Deut.</HI> 25.4.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not muzle the mouth of the ox that treadeth out the corne.</HI> Which though the Apo&s;tle applyeth in two places (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 9.9. 1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.18.) to &s;hew the equity of it, that they who labour in the word and doctrine, or preach the Go&s;pel (which is &s;pirituall food, the food of &s;oules) &s;hould be comfortably &s;upplyed with temporall food, the food of their bodyes (though, I &s;ay) the Apo&s;tle doth pecu|liarly apply it to this &s;ort of labourers, yet it is extendible to all ho|ne&s;t labourers in what kinde or way &s;oever; For if the mouth of the labouring oxe &s;hould not be muzled, then much more the mouth of a labouring man &s;hould not be muzled, that reaps the corne, and treadeth the wine-pre&s;&s;e, that is, &s;uch &s;hould not be &s;ent away hungry and thir&s;ty. The Prophet (<HI>Jer.</HI> 22.13.) thun|ders out a threatning again&s;t tho&s;e who deale thus with the la|bourer; <HI>Woe to him that builds his hou&s;e by unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and
<PB N="537" REF="282"> his chambers by wrong, that u&s;eth his neighbours &s;ervice without wages, and giveth him not for his worke.</HI> As &s;ome unrighteous men build chambers and hou&s;es with the gold and &s;ilver which they have wrongfully gotten from the rich, &s;o &s;ome build their hou&s;es by getting the labour and paines of the poore wrongfully from them, that is, by denying them the wages which is due for their worke; <HI>Woe to &s;uch &s;ayth the Lord.</HI> And againe (<HI>James</HI> 5.4.) the Apo&s;tle chargeth this upon the rich, <HI>Behold</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>the hire of the labourers, that have reaped downe your fields, which is of you kept backe by fraud, cryeth and the cryes of them which have reaped are entred into the eares of the Lord of Sabaoth, or of the Lord of ho&s;ts;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, the Lord who hath all the Armies of heaven and earth in his power, even he hath taken notice how ye wrong the labourer, and he will put forth his power to avenge their quarrel; The Lord of ho&s;ts is the poore labourers friend, and he will be his Avenger. It is a &s;in crying for vengeance, that when a poore man hath &s;weat out his &s;trength to doe &s;ervice to the rich, he &s;hould not have his wages given him to renew his &s;trength, and revive his &s;pirits for further labour. The Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 3.) gives a charge <HI>that they that will not labour &s;hould not eate; we heare</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>that there are &s;ome who walke among you di&s;orderly, working not at all, now then, they that are &s;uch we command and exhort by our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, that with quietne&s;&s;e they worke and eate their owne bread;</HI> and (<HI>ver.</HI> 10.) <HI>If any will not worke, neither &s;hould he eate.</HI> But as they that will not worke have no right to eate; what they eate, they &s;teale: &s;o they who worke &s;hould eate, el&s;e they are deprived of their right. Woe be to tho&s;e who eate, and worke not in &s;ome kinde or other, and woe be to tho&s;e who doe not give them to eate who worke; who com|pel or but call the poore to treade their wine-pre&s;&s;es, and then let them &s;uffer hunger and thir&s;t.</P>
<P>This &s;in is committed not onely by the totall denying of reward, and wages; that's the gro&s;&s;e&s;t way of it; But,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, This &s;in is committed, when the poore man receives not a reward proportionable to his labour, when he hath not what an|&s;wers his worke, but his wages is &s;o &s;canty, and &s;hort, that he is not able to make a living of it for the comfortable (according to his degree) maintaining of his charge: many are apt in this ca&s;e to oppre&s;&s;e the labourer while they pay him. They will give him
<PB N="538" REF="283"> &s;omewhat, but it &s;hall be &s;o &s;hort, and poore, that he is not able to &s;ub&s;i&s;t upon it. Hence that common &s;peech among us, <HI>that there is nothing cheape but poore mens labour;</HI> men care not &s;o their worke be done, though the workman be undone. They care not though the &s;weat of his brows will &s;car&s;e (as 'tis u&s;ually phra&s;'d) finde him water to wa&s;h his hands.</P>
<P>Secondly, This &s;in is committed when the labourer is defrau|ded of that which hath been agreed for, when cavills are rai&s;ed and &s;o the hire detained. This the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> reproves, (<HI>Chap.</HI> 5.4.) &s;peaking of the labourers hire, which (&s;aith he) <HI>is of you kept backe by fraud;</HI> they did not tell them plainely they &s;hould have no wages, but they quarrelled with them about their worke; ye have not done your worke well, or not &s;o &s;oone as ye &s;hould, and therefore they will not pay them, or they pay them to halves. Thus &s;ome by fraud and cavills detaine the labourers hire, as others doe it by open violence, or flat denyall.</P>
<P>Thirdly, This &s;in is committed by delaying to pay the labou|rer. We finde in <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> Law (the equity whereof remaines to this day) that not onely the denying, or defrauding of the labourer concerning his hire, is charged as &s;infull, but the very delaying of it. Suppo&s;e you pay all, at la&s;t, yet if you cau&s;e the poore to waite long for what is their due, this will be reckoned an oppre&s;&s;ion: therefore &s;ayth the Law (<HI>Deut.</HI> 24.14, 15.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not op|pre&s;&s;e an hired &s;ervant that is poore,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Minus &s;olvit, qui minus tem|pore &s;olvit.</NOTE> <HI>and needy, at his day thou &s;halt give him his hire,</HI> (Thou &s;halt not oppre&s;&s;e him &s;o much as by de|ferring it for a day) <HI>neither &s;hall the Sunne goe downe upon it.</HI> Con&s;ider how &s;trict the righteous Lord, and our great Ma&s;ter is in this poynt, That Ma&s;ters &s;hould deale well with their &s;ervants, and day-labourers, The Sun mu&s;t not goe downe upon it, Why, <HI>for he is poore, and &s;ets his heart upon it.</HI> Which is not to be under|&s;tood like that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 62.10.) <HI>If riches increa&s;e, &s;et not thy heart upon them,</HI> that is, doe not fix your affections upon your riches, thinke not your &s;elves happy becau&s;e ye are rich: but when <HI>Mo|&s;es</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>the poore labourer &s;ets his heart upon it,</HI> the meaning is this, the poore labourer having wrought hard all day, thinkes of his wife, and family, for whom he is to provide, and then remem|bers that at the evening he &s;hall have his wages. I (&s;ayth he) &s;hall have &s;omewhat at night, though I worke hard all day; therefore &s;ayth the Lord, <HI>give it him at his day, let not the Sunne goe downe
<PB N="539" REF="283"> upon it;</HI> he reckons to have it when he goeth home, therefore di&s;|appoint him not. <HI>It may be a dangerous thing to be a labourers pur&s;e-bearer for a night, if he de&s;ire to have his hire, and you able to pay it;</HI> to deteine his wages upon tho&s;e termes is &s;infull, for he hath &s;et his heart upon it, and fully expects it; therefore di&s;appoynt him not, doe not make him a&s;hamed of his hopes. This is the &s;inne which <HI>Job</HI> de&s;cribes here, the wicked take, yea ex|act worke of the poore, and then take or deteine their wages al&s;o. They mu&s;t <HI>make oyle for them, and tread their wine-pre&s;&s;es, and &s;uf|fer thir&s;t.</HI> This &s;in cryeth, and this oppre&s;&s;ion makes the poore groane, as it follows in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="12" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 12.</HI></BIBL> Men groane out of the Citie, and the &s;oule of the wounded cryeth out, yet God layeth not folly to them.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>This ver&s;e &s;hewes two things; fir&s;t, the &s;ad effects of oppre&s;&s;i|on, it makes men groane and cry; &s;econdly, the frequent and long impunity of oppre&s;&s;ors; <HI>yet God layeth not folly to them.</HI></P>
<Q>Men groane out of the Citie.</Q>
<P>They vex not onely the Country, but the City too; for as be|fore hee de&s;cribed Country-oppre&s;&s;ors, &s;o now City-oppre&s;|&s;ors; oppre&s;&s;ion is a &s;inne that filleth both City and Country;<NOTE PLACE="marg">E&s;t velut epi|phonema ad &s;u|periora. <HI>Merc:</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> clamare non quoquo mo|do &s;ignificat &s;ed cum &s;ingultu ut &s;olent moribun|di. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> and here we have, as it were, the conclu&s;ion, or a kinde of accla|mation upon the whole matter. Would you know what worke the&s;e men make; they are &s;o high in their cruelty, <HI>that men groane under it.</HI> The word which we tran&s;late <HI>to groane,</HI> doth not &s;ignifie any kinde of groane (for &s;ome cry before they are hurt) but that which is cau&s;ed by the greate&s;t hurt, and comes from the very bot|tom of the heart, even &s;uch a groane as they give forth who are about to dye. <HI>Men groane from</HI>
<Q>Out of the Cittie.</Q></P>
<P>This &s;hews the impudence of tho&s;e men in &s;inne as well as their impunity. We might rea&s;onably &s;uppo&s;e, they would not dare to doe thus in the open Citie, though they had done it in a corner of the Country, where there were but few to take notice of them. To doe thus in the Citie, in the eyes of all men, is an argument that they had lo&s;t their mode&s;ty, as well as their hone&s;ty, and were re|&s;olved
<PB N="540" REF="284"> not onely to doe evill, but to &s;tand to it, or make it good.</P>
<Q>And the &s;oule of the wounded cryeth out.</Q>
<P>That is, the wounded cry out; the &s;oule is put for the per&s;on, or the man; or the &s;oule of the wounded is &s;ayd to cry out, to &s;hew the greatne&s;&s;e and dolefullne&s;&s;e of the cry. As when <HI>Mary</HI> &s;ayd; <HI>My &s;oule doth magnifie the Lord,</HI> it argues that &s;hee magnified the Lord with &s;trong affections, as if &s;hee had been all &s;oule. Su<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h al&s;o is the force of that pa&s;&s;age in <HI>Deborahs</HI> Song (<HI>Judg.</HI> 5.21.) <HI>O my &s;oule, thou ha&s;t troden downe &s;trength;</HI> &s;hee trod downe the &s;trength of the enemy with all her &s;trength. And her &s;oule (which was her &s;trength in God) was in it more then her body. So here, <HI>the &s;oule of the wounded cryeth out,</HI> that is, the wounded cry out mo&s;t lamentably, they powre out their owne &s;oules, while others were powring out their bloud. But what are the&s;e wound|ed? or how were they wounded? Wee may take it eyther of an outward or inward wounding. There is a wounded &s;pirit as well as a wounded body, many are wounded who&s;e fle&s;h is whole, who have not &s;o much as a &s;carre made in their skin; yet here the wounded were &s;uch who&s;e fle&s;h or outward &s;tate was wounded fir&s;t, and then their hearts or &s;pirits were wounded, becau&s;e of that, with griefe and &s;orrow.</P>
<Q>The &s;oule of the wounded.</Q>
<P>The word which we tran&s;late <HI>wounded,</HI> &s;ignifies two things. Fir&s;t, that which is prophane and polluted, and in the verb to pol|lute and prophane a thing. Idol-wor&s;hippers are &s;o called, becau&s;e they are polluted as wounded men with blood. And hence al&s;o it is u&s;ed as a word of abomination, <HI>The Lord forbid,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>David,</HI> (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 24.6.) And againe (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 20.20.) <HI>Farre be it from me, farre be it from me,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>Joab;</HI> in both which places, the acti|ons abominated,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pol|luti prophani <GAP DESC="foreign"> ab&s;it, vox prohibitio|nis &amp; abomi|nationis res pro|phana &s; t mihi.</NOTE> had the defilement or pollution of blood in them. And the <HI>Jewes</HI> &s;peaking this word, u&s;ually rent their garments, &s;hewing the abhorrence and indignation of their minds at bla&s;phe|mie, or &s;uch like abominations. Now becau&s;e wounded men are defiled in their blood, therefore this word &s;ignifieth <HI>the wounded. The &s;oule of the wounded cryeth out,</HI> not onely cryeth, but cryeth out; Which implyeth the greatne&s;&s;e of their wound, and the ex|treame painefullnes of it.</P>
<PB N="541" REF="284">
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>Oppre&s;&s;ion is a crying &s;inne, and makes the oppre&s;&s;ed cry.</Q>
<P>The blood of <HI>Abel,</HI> who was the fir&s;t man that ever was out|wardly wounded, cryed when he was dead; how much more doe they cry who&s;e blood is powring out, and them&s;elves under pre&s;ent feare of death. The &s;oules under the Altar <HI>cryed how long Lord, how long,</HI> (Rev. 6.9.) Tho&s;e &s;oules had &s;uffered, and were pa&s;t &s;uffer|ing, yet they cryed out for vengeance upon their adver&s;aryes, how much more will their &s;oules cry who are under &s;ufferings? The wounds of the wounded are as &s;o many wide mouthes crying out to God, though their owne &s;oules &s;hould be &s;ilent and &s;ay no|thing. I have upon other pa&s;&s;ages in this booke met with the &s;inne of oppre&s;&s;ion, and the cry of the poore upon it, therefore I &s;hall not further &s;tay here, but a while in&s;i&s;t upon the la&s;t clau&s;e of this context, which holds out the chiefe and mo&s;t con&s;iderable matter of it. The oppre&s;&s;our doth all the&s;e wickedne&s;&s;es, but what doth God? Surely we might expect to heare of God in the next words, healing and helping the wounded who make this cry, and wound|ing the hairy &s;calpe of tho&s;e who made them cry; had not God a fit occa&s;ion put in his hand to &s;hew him&s;elfe? fir&s;t, for the releife of the oppre&s;&s;ed; and, &s;econdly, for the puni&s;hment of the op|pre&s;&s;our. He that beholds &s;uch actings as the&s;e, the fatherles pluck|ed from the brea&s;ts, the poore made &s;laves, the labourer denied his wages, the wounded crying, groaning, (he I &s;ay, that beholds all this) might &s;ay in his heart, &s;urely now God will pre&s;ently ap|peare, and indeed God hath often appeared, when the wicked have been in the heate of &s;uch actings, and the poore in the heate of &s;uch &s;ufferings. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 12.5.) <HI>For the oppre&s;&s;ion of the poore, for the &s;ighing of the needy, now I will ari&s;e &s;aith the Lord, I will &s;et him in &s;afety from him that puffeth at him.</HI> Yet here we finde no &s;uch thing, nothing like the Lords ari&s;ing for the &s;aving of the poore from oppre&s;&s;ion, or for the breaking of oppre&s;&s;ors. <HI>Job</HI> &s;aw or had &s;eene the poore oppre&s;&s;ed, and the needy &s;ighing, but did not &s;ee God comming eyther with deliverance or revenge? for he adds, though all this be done,
<Q>Yet God layeth not folly to them.</Q></P>
<P>Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> reads; <HI>And the pui&s;&s;ant marketh not the un|&s;avory
<PB N="542" REF="285"> dealing.</HI> His meaning is not that God did not know that their dealings were un&s;avory, or that he did not ob&s;erve and take notice of their dealings, but he did not ob&s;erve them, &s;o as to appeare pre&s;ently again&s;t them. <HI>God layeth not,</HI> or <HI>God put|teth not,</HI> the meaning is, God imputeth not, or God chargeth not <HI>folly,</HI> or (&s;trictly to the letter of the Hebrew) that which is un&s;avory to them or upon them. That word which &s;igni|fies a thing un&s;avory or without &s;alt, in a natural and proper &s;ence, may elegantly be rendred <HI>folly</HI> in a moral or metaphoricall &s;ence; for fooli&s;hnes or folly is that, which hath no &s;alt of rea&s;on, righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> quod fit praeter om|nem rationem &amp; aequitatem. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE> ju&s;tice, or equity in it. Hence the word is often u&s;ed to &s;ignifie that which is done be&s;ides, without, or again&s;t all the&s;e. So it is &s;ayd (<HI>Chap.</HI> 1.22.) <HI>In all this Job &s;inned not, neither did he charge God fooli&s;hly,</HI> or, <HI>neither did he charge folly upon God;</HI> it is this word. <HI>Job</HI> did not thinke that God dealt unju&s;tly or un|rea&s;onably with him, though he had taken all worldly comforts from him, and heaped all tho&s;e afflictions upon him. And here <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>God layeth not folly to wicked men,</HI> notwith&s;tanding all the unju&s;t and unrea&s;onable things which they have done, in heaping troubles cau&s;ele&s;&s;ely upon the poore. Though aboundance of folly and madnes was committed and acted by them, with a high and heavy hand, yet <HI>God did not lay folly to them.</HI></P>
<P>Some reade the text thus; <HI>Notwith&s;tanding all this, God doth nothing that is un&s;avory;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non ponit in|ful&s;um. <HI>q. d.</HI> nihil &s;ine maxi|ma &s;apientia a|git, vel permi&s;it faciendum deas.</NOTE> we &s;upply tho&s;e words, <HI>to them;</HI> the He|brew text is onely this, <HI>God putteth not folly,</HI> &s;o the la&s;t mentioned tran&s;lation may well &s;tand; for when <HI>Job</HI> had reported all tho&s;e things, it might wel be que&s;tioned, how is it that God permits, and &s;uffers &s;uch wickedne&s;&s;e in the world? O, &s;ayth <HI>Job, God puts no folly, or he doth nothing which is unju&s;t, or unrea&s;onable in all the&s;e things;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>how unrea&s;onable and unrighteous &s;oever men are in the&s;e actings, yet God is not unrighteous, God doth nothing unbecoming him&s;elfe, nothing un&s;eemely or un&s;avory in it &s;elfe;</HI> Severall of the Jewi&s;h Doctors fall in with this tran&s;lation;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deus non facit hoc gratis &amp; fru&s;tra. <HI>i. e.</HI> non temere &amp; ab&s;&abque; ratione. <HI>Rab: Abr:</HI> Deus non ponet imminutionem. <HI>i. e.</HI> rem defi|cientem aliqua vel ju&s;titiae vel aequitatis cir|cum&s;tantia. <HI>Rab: Kimhi:</HI> Deus nihil ab|&s;urdum aut re|prehen&s;ione dig|num agit, dum haec omnia per|mittit. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE> <HI>God doth not this</HI> (gratis or) <HI>without cau&s;e</HI> (&s;aith one) He hath a|boundant rea&s;on to let that be done, which men doe without ey|ther rule or rea&s;on. A &s;econd renders thus; <HI>God doth not that which is defective or wanting in any circum&s;tance of Ju&s;tice and equity.</HI> The &s;ence of both which rendrings or paraphra&s;es of the text, are given in fully in the Annotations of a moderne writer
<PB N="543" REF="285"> upon it. <HI>God</HI> (&s;ayth he) <HI>doth nothing uncomely or blame-worthy, while he &s;uffers all the&s;e things to be done, which are not onely un|comely and worthy of blame, but abominable, and worthy of the &s;eve|re&s;t puni&s;hment.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>What&s;oever God doth, he doth it wi&s;ely and ju&s;tly.</Q>
<P>God who is wi&s;dome and ju&s;tice it &s;elfe, and is to him&s;elfe and all others, the rule of wi&s;dome and ju&s;tice, can no more doe any thing unwi&s;ely, or unju&s;tly, then he can cea&s;e to be wi&s;e or ju&s;t; and he can no more cea&s;e to be wi&s;e or ju&s;t, then cea&s;e to be, for his wi&s;dome is him&s;elfe, and his Ju&s;tice is him&s;elfe. There needs no more to be &s;ayd, to acquit any action of weaknes or unrighte|ou&s;nes, then to &s;ay, God hath done it. <HI>For</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.25.) <HI>The fooli&s;hne&s;&s;e of God is wi&s;er then men, and the weakne&s;&s;e of God &s;tronger then men;</HI> We may &s;ay al&s;o (and in &s;ay|ing &s;o, we &s;ay no more then the Apo&s;tle &s;ayd before) that, <HI>The in|ju&s;tice of God, is ju&s;ter then men,</HI> that is, tho&s;e things which God &s;eemes to doe unju&s;tly and unrighteou&s;ly: As when he &s;uffers wicked men to devoure the man that is more righteous then they, this &s;eemes to be an act of unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, yet this is ju&s;ter and more righteous, then the ju&s;tice and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of men. And if the very unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God (that is, what appeares to man as unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e) be righteous; Then how righteous is the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of God? That I meane which appeares righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e in the eyes of all men. This reading and &s;ence of the words, is &s;afe, and holds out an excellent poynt of truth.</P>
<Q>That God doth nothing which is un&s;avory or unju&s;t.</Q>
<P>Yet our tran&s;lation is both profitable and clearly &s;uitable to the context, and therefore I &s;hall a little in&s;i&s;t upon that.</P>
<Q>Yet God layeth not folly to them.</Q>
<P>As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>The&s;e men doe mo&s;t un&s;avory and fooli&s;h things, yet God doth not charge folly upon them.</HI> The &s;ence of this tran&s;lati|on ri&s;eth by foure &s;teps.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, God doth not pre&s;ently call evill men to an account, or charge their &s;inne upon them.</P>
<P>Secondly, God doth not pre&s;ently puni&s;h evill men for their
<PB N="544" REF="286"> &s;in. To lay folly to a man is not onely to call him to an&s;wer for what he hath done, but to puni&s;h him as having done fooli&s;hly. He looks for a &s;entence next who hath already received his charge, and is not able to acquit him&s;elfe, and wipe it off.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non po&s;uit deus prohibitionem <HI>Vatabl:</HI> in He+braeo e&s;t in&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">lju~ <HI>i. e</HI> nihil adver&s;i &amp; in grati illis accidere pati|tur. <HI>Vatabl:</HI> Qua&s;i in &s;ul&s;um &s;ignificet mala naturae palato mal&egrave; gratas tri|bulationes quas deus impiorum conatibus oppo|nere po&s;&s;it. <HI>Bold:</HI></NOTE>Thirdly, God doth not pre&s;ently &s;top evill men in their worke, or make their worke like the worke of a foole, which &s;eldome pro|&s;pers, or proves &s;ucce&s;&s;efull. The Prophet <HI>Jeremie</HI> complained of this to God (<HI>Chap.</HI> 12.1.) <HI>Why doth the way of the wicked pro|&s;per? Wherefore are all they happy, that deale very treacherou&s;ly?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, Lord, why doe&s;t thou not &s;end out a prohibi|tion from thy Court above, and &s;top the proceedings of wicked and treacherous men? they goe on &s;moothly, they meete no rubs in their way, but carry all before them, they meete with nothing that doth di&s;gu&s;t or di&s;ta&s;t them. A &s;top in our way is to our &s;pi|rits like hard and un&s;avory meate to our &s;tomackes, that which we cannot dige&s;t. Thus (&s;ayth <HI>Job) God doth not lay folly to them,</HI> he doth not make them like fooli&s;h builders that begin but are not able to carry on their worke. God layd folly (in this &s;ence) to the builders of <HI>Babel,</HI> he checkt and confounded them in their worke, &s;o that they left off to build the City (<HI>Gen.</HI> 11.7, 8.) But many begin a <HI>Babel,</HI> a worke of confu&s;ion to others, but are not con|founded them&s;elves, they not onely begin to build, but fini&s;h; They &s;et up the top&s;tone of their worke, while many cry, woe, woe to it, and <HI>yet God doth not lay folly to them.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, Wee may re&s;olve this Negative, <HI>God layeth not folly to them,</HI> into an Affirmative, God lets them goe on as if they had done wi&s;ely, di&s;creetly, ju&s;tly. And whereas it is &s;ayd to Chri&s;t in that prophecy (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 45.4.) <HI>Ride pro&s;perou&s;ly, becau&s;e of truth, and meeknes, and righteou&s;nes.</HI> God &s;eemes to &s;ay to them, <HI>ride pro&s;perou&s;ly, even in deceit, and wrath, and unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e; They hate righteou&s;nes, and love wickednes, yet God &s;eemes to anoynt them with the oyle of Gladnes and &s;ucce&s;&s;e above their fellowes. God layeth not folly to them.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> The wayes of unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e are fooli&s;h, and un&s;avory wayes.</Q>
<P>What&s;oever hath &s;inne in it, wanteth &s;alt in it; Chri&s;t &s;ayth to his Di&s;ciples (<HI>Mark.</HI> 9.50.) <HI>Have &s;alt in your &s;elves, and have
<PB N="545" REF="286"> peace one with another;</HI> that is, let there be a &s;avour of Chri&s;t, a &s;avour of grace, and holine&s;&s;e, and equity in your owne &s;pirits, and be ye &s;weetly, mildly, amiably, brotherly di&s;po&s;ed one to ano|ther. They have no &s;alt of wi&s;dome in them&s;elves, who&s;e conver|&s;ation is un&s;avory and trouble&s;ome unto others. Sin and folly are more then like one another, for they are the &s;ame. They have no &s;ea&s;oning in them, who have no Goodne&s;&s;e in them. Righteou&s;|ne&s;&s;e is the wi&s;e&s;t and the mo&s;t &s;avory thing in the world, in the account both of God and good men. <HI>The wi&s;edome which is from above,</HI> (&s;ayth the Apo&s;tle <HI>James,</HI> Chap. 3.17.) <HI>is fir&s;t pure, then peaceable, gentle, and ea&s;ie to be entreated, full of mercy, and good fruits, without partiality</HI> (towards men) <HI>without hypocri&s;ie</HI> (to|wards God) But the wi&s;edome that is trouble&s;ome and vexatious, rough and har&s;h to others, is earthly, &s;en&s;uall, devili&s;h indeed, down-right madnes, ab&s;urdnes, folly. <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>Oppre&s;&s;ion makes a wi&s;e man mad;</HI> but it will appeare at la&s;t, <HI>that the wi&s;e&s;t oppre&s;&s;ors have been mad,</HI> fooli&s;h, &s;altle&s;&s;e, and brainle&s;&s;e men. Such u&s;e to flatter them&s;elves, and are often much flattered by o|thers in their projects, and policies, for the onely wi&s;e men in the world, but in the end they dye like fooles.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve, Secondly.</P>
<Q>God &s;uffers oppre&s;&s;ours to goe on long before he puni&s;heth them, and he &s;uffers the oppre&s;&s;ed to cry long before he releives them.</Q>
<P>God is often plea&s;ed to winke, while the wicked &s;in, and he as often &s;eemes to be a&s;leepe while the righteous &s;uffer. Hence that &s;ad complaint of the Church (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 44.23, 24.) <HI>Awake, why &s;leepe&s;t thou, O Lord, ari&s;e, ca&s;t us not off for ever; wherefore hide&s;t thou thy face, and forgette&s;t our affliction and our oppre&s;&s;ion.</HI> This al&s;o cau&s;ed <HI>David</HI> to cry out (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 13.1.) <HI>How long wilt thou forget me O Lord, for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from mee? how long &s;hall mine enemies be exalted over mee?</HI> What, un|der the oppre&s;&s;ion of an enemy for ever! while God a&s;&s;ures his people (in that parable of the importunate widdow, and the un|ju&s;t Judge, <HI>Luk.</HI> 18.) that he will deliver them, yet he more then intimates that it may be very long before he doth it, <HI>ver.</HI> 6, 7.) <HI>And the Lord &s;ayd, heare what the unju&s;t Judge &s;aith; and &s;hall not God avenge his owne elect who cry to him night and day, though he beare long with them;</HI> that is, though he exerci&s;e much
<PB N="546" REF="287"> patience towards tho&s;e tyrants who oppre&s;&s;e his elect, yea and much patience al&s;o towards his elect, in regard of their doubts and de&s;pondencies of their feare and unbeleefe about his comming to avenge and helpe them again&s;t tho&s;e Tyrants.</P>
<P>Further, Folly imports not onely &s;in, but the greatnes of &s;in, &s;o that when it is &s;ayd, <HI>God layeth not folly to them,</HI> the &s;ence (ac|cording to this notion of the word <HI>folly</HI>) is, that, though they &s;in greatly, yet God makes no great matter of it, or he doth not charge their &s;in upon them, nor puni&s;h them for their &s;in an&s;wera|bly or in proportion to the greatnes of it,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non ponit &s;tul|titiam. <HI>i. e</HI> non imputat hoc iis tanquam graude peccatum, hoc enim &s;tultitia vocatur.</NOTE> but pa&s;&s;eth it by, as if it were onely &s;ome infirmitie or &s;mall offence; <HI>he doth not lay folly to them,</HI> nor doth he let them feele what egregious fooles they have been. The word <HI>folly</HI> is u&s;ed often in Scripture in this &s;ence, to note a notorious &s;inne (<HI>Gen.</HI> 34.7.) when the &s;onnes of <HI>Jacob</HI> came out of the feild and heard how their &s;i&s;ter had been dealt with, <HI>they were exceedingly grieved, and they were very wrath, be|cau&s;e he had wrought folly in I&s;rael in lying with Jacobs daughter;</HI> that is, becau&s;e he had committed a great wickednes in <HI>I&s;rael.</HI> We have the &s;ame &s;in &s;o expre&s;t againe by folly (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 13.12.) <HI>And &s;he an&s;wered him, nay my brother, doe not force me, for no &s;uch thing ought to be done in I&s;rael, doe not thou this folly;</HI> As if &s;he had &s;ayd; This is a grievous &s;in, therefore doe it not. And when the Lord would &s;hew <HI>Jobs</HI> three friends, the Greatnes of their error and mi&s;take in their di&s;pute with <HI>Job,</HI> he calls it <HI>folly (Job</HI> 42.9.) <HI>My &s;ervant Job &s;hall pray for you, for him will I accept; le&s;t I deale with you according to your folly, in that ye have not &s;poken of me the thing that is right like my &s;ervant Job.</HI> Thus we &s;ee that great &s;ins whether in practice or opinion come under this cen&s;ure in Scrip|ture; onely we may note that the three texts mentioned expre&s;&s;e folly in another originall word then the pre&s;ent text doth. There is folly enough, great folly in every the lea&s;t &s;in, but Great &s;innes de&s;erve more to beare the name of folly in their foreheads.</P>
<P>Taking folly under this peculiar con&s;ideration;</P>
<P>We may ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That, as The Lord in this life doth not puni&s;h any, no not the wor&s;t of &s;inners, according to the ju&s;t demerit and dimen&s;ion of their &s;innes, &s;o he puni&s;heth &s;ome, who&s;e &s;ins are very great, but very little.</Q>
<PB N="547" REF="287">
<P>Though he layeth their &s;inne to them, yet he doth not lay it to them in the folly of it, or as it is their folly. He doth onely touch them with his little finger, while it might be thought he would breake them with his iron rod. He doth but cha&s;ti&s;e them with whips, while their &s;in calls for &s;corpions. The Time will come, when God will lay folly to every wicked man, and make their &s;in appeare, in the puni&s;hment of it, what now it is in the nature of it, out of mea&s;ure &s;infull. Every impenitent &s;inner &s;hall then finde that his &s;in is folly, that is, that his &s;in is very great.</P>
<P>Yet a late learned Expo&s;iter upon this Booke, conceaves, thar the &s;ence is abated and dimini&s;hed in the word <HI>folly,</HI> as if it were,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Non ponit &s;tultitam. i. e.</HI> non dico &s;celera, &s;ed ne <GAP DESC="foreign"> quidem aut fae|cta illepida &amp; in&s;ul&s;a iliis im|patat. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> a terme of extenuation; <HI>God doth not lay folly,</HI> that is, <HI>the lea&s;t &s;inne</HI> to them; he doth not &s;o much as charge them to have done irra|tionally, vainely, childi&s;hly, or unhand&s;omely; he doth not onely not deale with them as if they had &s;inned haynou&s;ly, but he doth not deale with them as if they had done fooli&s;hly. But whether we take the word <HI>Folly,</HI> as implying the Greatnes or the littlenes of their &s;inne; whether we expound it as a terme of diminution, or of aggravation, the &s;ence of the text is not altered: in which <HI>Job</HI> intends onely to &s;hew that though men have done very wick|edly, yet God doth not pre&s;ently render to them according to what they have done. This is true in the fir&s;t &s;ence of the word, if God doe not lay folly to them, as it &s;ignifies a great &s;in, and this is much more true, if God doe not lay folly to them in the &s;e|cond &s;ence, as it &s;ignifies a little &s;in. And this &s;ence of this latter clau&s;e of the ver&s;e corre&s;ponds fully, with the generall &s;cope of the Chapter, and of the whole Booke. For <HI>Job</HI> argues with his friends thus; <HI>Ye charge me with folly and wickedne&s;&s;e, becau&s;e I &s;uffer, yet God &s;uffers the wicked and doth not charge them with folly.</HI></P>
<P>La&s;tly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Et tamen in&s;ul|&s;itatem non de|&s;ignat deus <HI>Jun: i. e.</HI> pergere &amp; confirmari non &s;init tam prava~ admini&s;tratio|nem; quae ideo in&s;ul&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">acis no|mine per&s;tringi|tur, quia nec deo nec homini|bus bonis huma|num al<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">quid &s;a|pienabus proba|tur. <HI>id:</HI></NOTE> I &s;hall onely repre&s;ent another tran&s;lation of the&s;e words, which keepes &s;trictly to the Hebrew; in which tho&s;e words, <HI>To them</HI> (as we render it) are not found, but &s;upplyed. And then the text runs onely thus; <HI>And yet God doth not lay folly;</HI> that is, <HI>&s;uch things as are uncomely, vaine, and fooli&s;h:</HI> As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd; <HI>Though I have made report to you of all the&s;e oppre&s;|&s;ive-wayes of wicked men, yet I a&s;&s;ure you, God will not &s;uffer the&s;e evill admini&s;trations to continue and be e&s;tabli&s;hed; but will at la&s;t beare his witnes again&s;t them, and eminently &s;hew his utter di&s;like
<PB N="548" REF="288"> of them, as of that which is mo&s;t fooli&s;h and un&s;avory, not onely to him&s;elfe, but to all men, who have any ta&s;t or &s;ence of that which be|commeth man.</HI> Let men doe as fooli&s;hly and unrighteou&s;ly as they will, the purpo&s;e of God is to rule the world in righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and in wi&s;edome. <HI>The Kings &s;trength</HI> (as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peaks (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 99.4.) that is, the &s;trength of Chri&s;t (who is called <HI>The King of Kings,</HI> (Rev. 19.16.) both becau&s;e he excelleth all other Kings, and ruleth all other Kings, he I &s;ay) <HI>loveth judgement</HI> (or righteous dealings with all his &s;trength) <HI>and</HI> (as it followeth in the &s;ame ver&s;e) <HI>he e&s;tabli&s;heth equity;</HI> he e&s;ta|bli&s;heth the rule by which others may doe equity, and he e&s;ta|bli&s;heth the acts of equity which others doe; For &s;eeing Chri&s;t loveth judgement, and al&s;o (as we have it in the clo&s;e of the &s;ame ver&s;e) <HI>executeth judgement and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in Jacob.</HI> He cannot but e&s;tabli&s;h acts of equity, which are nothing el&s;e but the execution of judgement and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e. And therefore though he beare with unju&s;t and unrighteous men a while in their vaine projectings and vainer actings, yet he will not e&s;ta|bli&s;h them in it. <HI>He will not lay folly,</HI> he will not lay it as a foundation for them to build and proceed upon. Weake and &s;mall things have often been e&s;tabli&s;hed by God, but he will not long e&s;tabli&s;h wicked and &s;infull things.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="549" REF="288">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 13, 14.</HI></BIBL>
<P>They are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light, they know not the wayes th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">reof, nor abide in the pathes thereof.</P>
<P>The murtherer ri&s;ing with the light killeth the poore and needy, and in the night is as a Theefe.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="13" TYPE="verse">
<P><HI>JOb</HI> having given many particular In&s;tances of the wicked practi|ces of evill men, &s;eemes in this 13^t^h ver&s;e to give us a generall Character of them; <HI>They are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Would you know what the&s;e men are who commit &s;uch horrid wickedne&s;&s;es, who oppre&s;&s;e the poore, the fatherles, the widdow; who detaine the hire of the labourer, and &s;end them away hungry and thir&s;ty when they have done their worke? would you know what &s;ort or kinde of men the&s;e are? I will tell you, They are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light;</HI> that's their genius, or their &s;traine. This generall &s;ence of the words doth very well agree with, and carry on the di&s;cour&s;e which <HI>Job</HI> was upon.</P>
<P>Yet others conceive, that in this 13^t^h ver&s;e, and &s;o forward, <HI>Job</HI> is de&s;cribing another &s;ort of wicked per&s;ons then tho&s;e former|ly mentioned. As if he had &s;ayd, I have before &s;poken of tho&s;e open &s;inners and &s;ons of violence, &s;uch as &s;in'd and cared not who &s;aw them, impudent &s;inners; but now I will &s;peake of a &s;ort of clo&s;e &s;inners, or &s;ons of deceit, who doe their worke no whit more hone&s;tly, yet more mode&s;tly then the former; <HI>They are of tho&s;e who rebell again&s;t the light, they know not the wayes thereof, nor a|bide in the pathes thereof; The murtherer ri&s;ing with the light kil|leth the poore and needy,</HI> &amp;c. In which &s;en&s;e &s;oever we take the con|text, the difference is not much, though I rather adhere unto the former.</P>
<Q>They are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light.</Q>
<P>He doth not &s;ay, they are of tho&s;e who have not the light, or they are of tho&s;e to whom the light hath not &s;hined, he &s;aith not they are of tho&s;e who &s;it in darknes, and in the valley of the &s;ha|dow of death, but <HI>they are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light,</HI> as implying the pre&s;ence of the light with them, and their contempt of it.</P>
<Q><PB N="550" REF="289">They rebell.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> rebella|vit defecit.</NOTE>This word is often u&s;ed in Scripture for rebellion again&s;t any lawfull authority or power &s;et over others to rule and governe them, and that's the Importance of it here, <HI>they rebell:</HI> and from this word <HI>Nimrod</HI> had his name, who was the fir&s;t noted re|bell that ever was in the world; <HI>Nimrod</HI> was a great Prince a|mong men, but he became &s;o by rebellion again&s;t God. Here <HI>Job</HI> di&s;covers <HI>Nimrods</HI> or rebells again&s;t the light. But what was the light, again&s;t which they rebelled?</P>
<P><HI>Light</HI> may be con&s;idered two wayes; Either properly, or figu|ratively; wee may under&s;tand the text of light in a proper &s;ence, and &s;ome in&s;i&s;t cheifly upon that. <HI>They rebell again&s;t the light;</HI> that is, again&s;t the very light of he Sunne, or the ordinary day|light; as if he had &s;aid, <HI>If it were in the power of the&s;e men they would even pull the Sunne out of the firmament of heaven, that they might &s;in un&s;een.</HI> I will not, as &s;ome Interpreters doe, fix the Ex|po&s;ition here, though I grant, this &s;ence may be taken in, wicked men love naturall darknes, and hate even naturall light, the light of the Sunne, becau&s;e it &s;eldome &s;erves but often hinders their occa&s;ions.</P>
<P>Secondly, Take light figuratively for the light of knowledge, &s;o it is more true, that wicked men rebell again&s;t it: and that light in this notion &s;hould be here meant, the words plainly imply; For though &s;ome wicked men would be willing to be &s;hut of the day light, yet it is hard to &s;ay they rebell again&s;t it: and tho&s;e o|ther pa&s;&s;ages, <HI>not to know the wayes of it, and not to abide in the pathes of it,</HI> are not &s;o proper and &s;ignificant to &s;et forth their de|&s;ire and endeavour of avoyding naturall light. So that the light rebelled again&s;t is rather an Internall light, that light which &s;hines into the &s;oule, then that which &s;hines to the eye; and There is a twofold internal light, again&s;t which wicked men may be &s;ayd to rebell.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The light of nature, or natural internal light; There is a light of nature, or as &s;ome call it, a light of the natural con&s;cience, which every man carryeth about him, concerning good and evill, or what is to be done, and what is to be left undone. The Apo&s;tle is direct for this (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.14.) <HI>The Gentiles having not the Law, doe by nature the things contained in the Law, the&s;e having not the
<PB N="551" REF="289"> Law</HI> (that is, the law of God formally publi&s;hed to and pre&s;&s;ed upon them) <HI>are a law unto them&s;elves</HI> (that is, they have the law of nature in common principles and notions of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e in them&s;elves) <HI>and</HI> (therefore) <HI>&s;hew the worke of the law written in their hearts.</HI> Again&s;t this internal light the wicked rebel.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a light of divine Revelation, which &s;hines into the &s;oule from the Scriptures, or written word of God. The word of God is &s;o often called light in Scripture, that I need not give particular In&s;tances. Divine truths in&s;pired and directed by the Spirit of God are there written as with the beames of the Sun. Yet the wicked man rebells, as again&s;t the light of nature, &s;o again&s;t the light of Scripture, again&s;t the cleare&s;t and fulle&s;t di&s;coveryes of the minde of God.</P>
<P>Further; Some by the light again&s;t which they rebelled, under|&s;tand God him&s;elfe, <HI>who is light</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> calls him, (1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 1.5.) <HI>and in him is no darknes at all.</HI> All that rebel again&s;t God, mu&s;t needs rebel again&s;t light, &s;eing God is light. And the very rea&s;on why the light of nature, and the light of Scripture are rebelled again&s;t, is, becau&s;e the former hath &s;omewhat of God in it, and the latter much of God in it; For as God is light, &s;o all light is of God. And that light which is of God mu&s;t needs be rebelled again&s;t by wicked men, &s;eing they mo&s;t of all rebel again&s;t God, who is light and the fountaine of it; for as the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> argues about love, 1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 5.1.) <HI>Every one</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>that loveth him that begat, loveth him al&s;o that is begotten of him.</HI> So we may ar|gue about hatred and the effect of it, rebellion; He that hateth and rebelleth again&s;t him that begetteth light (&s;o God doth, whence al&s;o he is called the <HI>Father of lights,</HI> (Jam: 1.17.) he, I &s;ay, that rebelleth again&s;t him that begetteth light) hateth and re|belleth again&s;t that light, which is begotten of him. <HI>They are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Divine truth is as light.</Q>
<P>As the Sunne gives light to the eye, or outward man, &s;o the Spirit of truth gives light by the word to the inner man. When God &s;ends his word to a people, he &s;ends light to a people: Chri&s;t is light, and the word is light; Chri&s;t in per&s;on, is the light of the world; the word in doctrine, is the light of the world: The truth
<PB N="552" REF="290"> of Divine Revelation is many wayes an&s;werable to the light.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Light is pure, and beautifull, and the light is &s;o pure, that you cannot impure, or defile it; &s;o is truth: Though many have attempted to corrupt the truth and word of God, and &s;hall at la&s;t be dealt with and judged, as they who have corrupted it; yet the truth remaines incorruptible, and ever &s;hall. The beauty of it fades not, nor is the purity of it &s;tained, by all the filth of fal&s;e doctrine which hath been ca&s;t into the face of it, from the begin|ning of the world unto this day.</P>
<P>Secondly, Light is plea&s;ant and delightfull; <HI>Light is &s;weet</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon,</HI> Eccl. 11.7.) <HI>and a plea&s;ant thing it is for the eyes to behold the Sunne:</HI> So truth is &s;weete, and it is a plea&s;ant thing to behold and receave the Sun-light of Divine Revelations, where truth is taken in, it doth even ravi&s;h the &s;oule and fill it with un&s;peakeable delights. Truth is as &s;utable and plea&s;ant to the under&s;tanding, as good is or can be to the will and affections. <HI>David</HI> found not onely delight, this or that &s;ingle delight, but all &s;orts and degrees of delight in the Law of God; And therefore he &s;peakes plurally (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.92.) <HI>&V;nle&s;&s;e my delights had been in thy law, I had peri&s;hed in my trouble.</HI> And againe (<HI>ver.</HI> 143.) <HI>Trouble and angui&s;h have taken hold of me; yet thy commandements are my delights.</HI> All his troubles were over-ballanced and conque|red by his delights in the law, and all his delights and contentments were Center'd in the Law. That light was &s;o much his delight, that it overcame all worldly darknes, and did even extingui&s;h all his worldly lights.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Light hath heate in it, and light is accompanied with influences, or conveighes them with it. All living creatures here below are cheri&s;hed and refre&s;hed, yea and things without life, as Gemms and mineralls are concocted and refined with the warmth and vertue of it. And &s;o hath truth; The light of the word car|rieth heat and Influences with it, to warme the heart and comfort it, to concoct the gro&s;&s;enes of mans minde and &s;ublimate it into an heavenly purity. <HI>Did not our heart burne within us while he talked with us by the way? and while he opened to us the Scriptures,</HI> &s;ayd the Di&s;ciples of Chri&s;ts di&s;cour&s;e with them, <HI>Luk.</HI> 24.31.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Light di&s;covers and makes manife&s;t; &s;o doth truth, (<HI>Joh</HI> 3.20, 21.) <HI>Every one that doth evill hateth the light, nei|ther cometh to the light, le&s;t his deeds &s;hould be reproved,</HI> or (as we
<PB N="553" REF="290"> put in the Margin) <HI>di&s;covered. Light makes manife&s;t; the word of God</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, <HI>Heb.</HI> 4.12.) <HI>is a di&s;cerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart,</HI> it di&s;covers that to us, not onely in others but in our &s;elves, which wee &s;aw not before; wee are much, if not altogether, unknowne to our &s;elves, till we &s;ee our &s;elves in the Gla&s;&s;e of the Word.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Secondly,</HI> The light of truth is Clothed with Authority, the truths of God have a Soveraignety over man.</Q>
<P>Wee cannot be &s;aid to rebell again&s;t any thing but that which hath power and authority over us; a man may oppo&s;e and con|tend with his equall, but hee cannot be &s;aid to rebell again&s;t his equall; wee rebell onely again&s;t tho&s;e that are above us. If a childe oppo&s;eth his father, it is rebellion; if a &s;ervant oppo&s;eth his Ma&s;ter, it is rebellion, becau&s;e fathers and ma&s;ters have authority over their children and &s;ervants. All rebellion is the breaking of the bands of &s;ubjection. And all the bands of &s;ubjection are bro|ken when the light is rebelled again&s;t, becau&s;e the light of heaven|ly truth, is inve&s;ted with all power and authority over us; it hath a power to lift up and a power to humble or ca&s;t downe; It hath a power to convince, and a power to comfort; It hath a power to kill, and it hath a power to make alive; all the&s;e powers the light of the word hath. But it hath two powers more e&s;pecially and eminently.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, It hath the power of a rule, or power to rule and go|verne both the hearts and lives of men; the light of the word doth not onely offer advice, and give Councell, but it gives out a Com|mand, what the word &s;peaketh we are not upon poynt of Indiffe|rencies whether we Will receive it or no, but upon poynt of duty. Therefore not to receive it, e&s;pecially to re&s;i&s;t it is rebellion; the light of the word is as a King, and where the light of that word comes, there is power, and no man may &s;ay, <HI>What doth it?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, It hath the power of a Judge; It gives both Law and Judgement. <HI>He that rejecteth me</HI> (&s;aith Chri&s;t, <HI>Joh,</HI> 12.48.) <HI>and receaveth not my words</HI> (The not receiving of the word of Chri&s;t, is the rejecting of Chri&s;t him&s;elfe, and he that rejecteth Chri&s;t) <HI>hath one that Judgeth him, the word that I have &s;poken, the &s;ame &s;hall Judge him in the la&s;t day.</HI> The word is now the rule of
<PB N="554" REF="291"> living, and it &s;hall be hereafter the rule of Judging; Now it is the rule by which we mu&s;t live to Chri&s;t, and then it &s;hall be the rule by which Chri&s;t will Judge us.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Where it is &s;ayd, <HI>They are of tho&s;e who rebell again&s;t the light;</HI> Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Wicked men cannot abide to be &s;eene in what they doe, nor doe they love to &s;ee what they doe.</Q>
<P>They would neyther &s;ee their wicked practices, nor be &s;eene in them. They are darknes, and they walke in darknes. As they walke in the darknes of &s;in, &s;o they would walke in the darknes of &s;e|crecy, that others &s;hould not &s;ee what evill they doe, and in the darknes of ignorance, that they might not &s;ee that what they doe is evill. They are like tho&s;e uncouth Creatures, Batts, and Owles, that come abroad onely in the night, knowing that if they doe but &s;tirre out in the day, all the birds in the ayre will gather about them, and hoote at them, becau&s;e of their &s;trangenes and deformity. And doubtle&s;&s;e if wicked men did but &s;ee the mi&s;hapen and ugly vi&s;age of their owne wayes in the light of the word, they would abhorre and run from them&s;elves as the mo&s;t abhorred mon&s;ters in the world, and &s;o would all men (who &s;ee the uglynes of &s;in in the gla&s;&s;e of the word) abhorre them and poynt at them as mon&s;ters, did they but &s;ee them in their &s;infull workes. And hence the Apo&s;tle (hinting the general di&s;po&s;ition of &s;inners) &s;aith (1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5.7.) <HI>They that are drunken are drun|ken in the night.</HI> And againe (<HI>Ephe&s;.</HI> 5.12.) <HI>For it is a &s;hame even to &s;peake of tho&s;e things which are done of them in &s;ecret,</HI> that is, when they are out of the &s;ight of men, and, po&s;&s;ibly, had it not been that they were out of &s;ight, or in &s;ecret, them&s;elves would not have done tho&s;e things for &s;hame; For though &s;ome wicked men, as they have ca&s;t off their hone&s;ty, &s;o their mode&s;ty too, and act not onely wickedly, but impudently, <HI>the &s;hew of their faces te&s;tifying again&s;t them, they declaring their &s;in as Sodom;</HI> yet as the mo&s;t of &s;inners pre&s;ume God doth not &s;ee them when they doe evill, &s;o they are unwilling that men &s;hould; for though their Con&s;cience puts no barre to their &s;inning openly, yet their credit doth. So that as every wicked man would be glad he did not know that what he doth is evill, and doth what he can to hinder or ex|tingui&s;h the light of that knowledge in him, &s;o mo&s;t wicked men
<PB N="555" REF="291"> would be glad that no man knew of the evill which they doe, and they doe what they can to hinder others from knowing it; as hy|pocrites love to be &s;een in all the good they doe, and would doe no good, were it not (as Chri&s;t a&s;&s;ures us, <HI>Math.</HI> 6.5.) <HI>to be &s;eene of men;</HI> They fa&s;t, and pray, and give Almes, and all to be &s;eene of men, that is, that men may applaud them, and poynt at them with a Behold (of admiration) There goe the men, The charitable men, The humble men, The devout men; and if men &s;ee them not, or applaud them not, they are as in the &s;hadow of death, they are dead-hearted to every good word and worke. Now (I &s;ay) as all gro&s;&s;e hypocrites love the light, or to be &s;eene while they are doing good, &s;o the mo&s;t prophane and wicked u&s;u|ally avoyd the light, and love not to be &s;eene when they are do|ing evill. For though they are not troubled at the di&s;honour they doe to God by &s;inning, yet to be di&s;honoured among men is a trouble to them. They can ea&s;ily venture their &s;oules as to the life to come, but they are afraid to doe wickedly in the &s;ight of men, le&s;t they endanger their ea&s;e and &s;afety in this pre&s;ent life. That God &s;eeth them not is their hope, that men may not &s;ee them is their care, and that they may not &s;ee them&s;elves is their de&s;ire. They are unwilling to know their duty, le&s;t their con|&s;ciences &s;hould check them for not doing, or for doing that which is not their duty. Thus in every &s;ence, <HI>They are of tho&s;e who rebell again&s;t the light.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, As rebelling again&s;t the light, is an argument (as hath been &s;hewed) that wicked men de&s;ire not to know what they ought to doe, &s;o it teacheth us Further,
<Q>That wicked men will doe again&s;t that which they know.</Q></P>
<P>Men will have fellow&s;hip with the workes of darknes, while their eyes are dazzled with light, if their hearts have not been changed by it. They would be glad if they might never be trou|bled with the light, but &s;uppo&s;e the light doe come (as many times it doth come whether they will or no) &s;uppo&s;e the light darted upon them &s;o clearely and convincingly, that they cannot but &s;ee and know what they ought, and what they ought not to doe, yet they rebell again&s;t it; eyther they will not doe what they know, or they will doe contrary to their knowledge. When &s;ome of the Phari&s;ees were offended at tho&s;e words (<HI>Joh.</HI> 9.39.) <HI>For
<PB N="556" REF="292"> Judgement am I come into this world, that they which &s;ee not might &s;ee, and that they which &s;ee might be made blinde:</HI> What, &s;ay they, <HI>are we al&s;o blind? Je&s;us &s;aid unto them, if ye were blind ye &s;hould have no &s;in, but now ye &s;ay we &s;ee, therefore your &s;in remaineth;</HI> that is, it remaineth in the guilt and aggravations of it. For as they eonfe&s;&s;ed that they &s;aw, &s;o Chri&s;t would convince them that they acted again&s;t what they &s;aw, or that though they had the light, and &s;o knew their duty, yet they had done contrary to duty. Man breakes through all the light that &s;tands in his way, he breakes through the light both of nature and Con&s;cience, both of the Spi|rit and Scripture, till him&s;elfe be made light. The Apo&s;tle demon|&s;trates the former in the example of the old Gentiles, who though they were under a conviction of the power and pre&s;ence of God by the workes of Creation, and &s;o were &s;ayd to know God, yet <HI>they did not like to retaine God in their knowledge, nor did they glo|rifie him as God,</HI> (ver. 21.28.) but rebelled again&s;t that light which &s;hone into their under&s;tandings from the creature. And in the &s;econd Chapter of the &s;ame Epi&s;tle to the <HI>Romans</HI> the Apo&s;tle demon&s;trates the latter in the example of the old <HI>Jewes,</HI> who though they were under a conviction not onely of the power and and pre&s;ence of God, but of the minde and will of God al&s;o, by a divine Revelation, or by the light of the word, yet they rebelled again&s;t that word which they boa&s;ted of; and while they judged them&s;elves onely in the light, and all the re&s;t of the world in dark|nes, they walked in darknes. <HI>Behold</HI> (&s;aith he, <HI>v.</HI> 17, 18.) <HI>thou art called a Jew, and re&s;te&s;t in the law, and make&s;t thy boa&s;t of God, and knowe&s;t his will,</HI> &amp;c. But how did the <HI>Jew</HI> an&s;wer this know|ledge and this boa&s;t, read that (<HI>v.</HI> 21, 22, 23, 24.) <HI>Thou there|fore which teache&s;t another, teache&s;t thou not thy &s;elfe? Thou that preache&s;t a man &s;hould not &s;teale, doe&s;t thou &s;teale: Thou who make&s;t thy boa&s;t of the law through breaking the law di&s;honoure&s;t thou God? for the name of God is bla&s;phemed among the Gentiles through you.</HI> So that wicked men doe not onely rebell again&s;t the light to hin|der the coming of it, or to keepe it off as long as they can, that &s;o they may not know what to doe, but they rebell again&s;t it when it is come, and will doe again&s;t what they know.</P>
<P>Fifthly, When 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>They rebell again&s;t the light.</HI></P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><PB N="557" REF="292">Wicked men are not onely no friends but profe&s;&s;ed re&s;olved enemies of the light, they hate and oppo&s;e holy truths, or the di&s;coveries of the minde and will of Chri&s;t.</Q>
<P>They are in open actuall ho&s;tility, they take up armes and main|taine a warre again&s;t it; not that all wicked men doe expre&s;&s;ely &s;end forth their defiance again&s;t God and his word, but all wicked men carry this defiance in their hearts, and it is to God as an o|penly profe&s;t defiance, though it be not &s;o to man; God heares the language of their hearts, and he knowes that <HI>the wi&s;dome</HI> (or be&s;t) <HI>of the fle&s;h is Enmity again&s;t him&s;elfe, that it is not &s;ubject to the law of God, neither indeed can be</HI> (Rom. 8.7.) That is, while a man continues (as to his &s;pirituall &s;tate) under the power &amp; teach|ings of the wi&s;dome of the fle&s;h, and is unregenerate, as he is not &s;o it is impo&s;&s;ible he &s;hould (continuing in that &s;tate) be &s;ubject to the law of God. The law of God will ever continue as holy as it is, and if the heart of man continue as unholy as it is, how &s;hall they agree? A wicked man &s;tands not upon termes of neutrality with the law and light of God, but he is a direct oppo&s;ite or ene|my, he rebells again&s;t the light.</P>
<P>Sixthly, Seeing <HI>Job</HI> when he had de&s;cribed all tho&s;e wicked|ne&s;&s;es which he &s;aw done, adds this de&s;cription of the wicked who did them, <HI>they are of tho&s;e that rebell again&s;t the light.</HI> This may be Con&s;idered two wayes (as I intimated before) fir&s;t, as the di&s;covery of a new and a greater &s;in then any of tho&s;e particular &s;ins already in&s;tanced in; or as a rea&s;on why they did breake out into tho&s;e enormous &s;ins; the former con&s;ideration yeelds this Note.</P>
<Q>To re&s;i&s;t or rebell again&s;t the light of truth the word of God, is wickednes in perfection, or wickednes wrought and boyld up to the very height.</Q>
<P>As God &s;ometimes brings Judgements upon men in perfection, &s;o men &s;in again&s;t God &s;ometimes in perfection. And if any doe &s;o, &s;urely they doe &s;o, who rebell again&s;t the light: That &s;peciall &s;in again&s;t the Holy Gho&s;t, of which Chri&s;t &s;ayth, <HI>It &s;hall never be forgiven;</HI> what is it? but rebellion again&s;t the light, the high|e&s;t and cleare&s;t light? and the more cleare and high the light is, the more danger there is of falling into that &s;in. And hence &s;ome
<PB N="558" REF="293"> conceive that before Chri&s;t came in the fle&s;h, though there were very high and pre&s;umptuous &s;ins committed, that yet none of them did amount to that which the Go&s;pel calls, <HI>The &s;in again&s;t the Holy Gho&s;t.</HI> There was Go&s;pel-light in tho&s;e times, but it was under types and &s;haddowes, there was not that cleare light, that cleare&s;t light which was &s;hed abroad at the coming of Chri&s;t, and therefore there was not light enough to &s;in again&s;t, for the pro|duction of that &s;in again&s;t the holy Gho&s;t, which is not onely the greate&s;t rebellion again&s;t light, but is al&s;o a rebellion again&s;t the greate&s;t light. And here con&s;ider by what degrees, &s;inning a|gain&s;t light ri&s;eth unto its full height of rebellion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, It is very &s;infull and extreamely dangerous, not to love the light. See how Chri&s;t thunders again&s;t &s;uch as doe not (<HI>Joh.</HI> 3.19.) <HI>This is the condemnation that light is come into the world, and men loved darknes rather then light:</HI> He doth not &s;ay, men rebelled again&s;t the light, he onely charges them with this crime, that they did not love it, but loved darknes rather. <HI>This,</HI> &s;aith he, <HI>is the Condemnation;</HI> that is, this will certainly be matter of con|demnation again&s;t &s;inners, that when light came to them, their hearts did not clo&s;e with it, and embrace it. Now if it be &s;o &s;in|full not to love the light, what is it to rebell again&s;t it? It is very po&s;&s;ible for a man not to love that thing or per&s;on again&s;t which yet he doth not rebel.</P>
<P>Secondly, Not to obey, not to &s;ubmit to the light, is exceed|ding &s;infull. <HI>Je&s;us Chri&s;t &s;hall at la&s;t be revealed from heaven (per|&s;onally) in flaming fire to take vengeance on them, that obey him not as revealed (doctrinally)</HI> that is, <HI>who obey not the Go&s;pel</HI> (2 The&s;. 1.7, 8.) yet it is po&s;&s;ible not to obey the Go&s;pel, that is, to forbeare an active obedience to that which is Commanded in it, and not to rebell again&s;t it actively, the&s;e are di&s;tinct in them&s;elves, though &s;eldome, if at all, di&s;tinct in tho&s;e that doe them. Now then if there be aboundance of wickednes in not obeying the light, in not doing every thing that the light directs us to; then it mu&s;t needs be a more abounding wickednes, when the heart ri&s;es up and re|bells again&s;t it. For though (as was even now intimated) we can hardly divide the&s;e in their exi&s;tences, yet we may di&s;tingui&s;h them in their natures, or at lea&s;t in their degrees; for barely not to obey the light in doing the will of God, is a &s;in of a lower &s;tature, then a profe&s;t rebelling again&s;t it; though in every not doing accord|ing
<PB N="559" REF="293"> to light, there is &s;omewhat of rebelling, yet in that which is properly rebelling, there is more then not doing.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It is a great &s;in not to &s;et a great price upon the light, or not to value it according to its worth; that is, not to value it highly, not to have a high e&s;teem of it, not to have a higher e&s;teem of it then of all the Enjoyments and Comforts of this world, is a high provocation. What is it then to rebell again&s;t it? it is &s;infull not to let all goe, not to &s;uffer the lo&s;s of all for the light, not to &s;uffer even the lo&s;s of life it &s;elfe for the light, this is extreamly &s;in|full. Therefore &s;aith Chri&s;t (<HI>Luk.</HI> 14.26.) <HI>He that will be my Di&s;ciple mu&s;t for&s;ake father and mother,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>yea and his life too;</HI> that is, hee mu&s;t be ready to let all the&s;e goe if called to it, rather then let goe the light or truth of the Go&s;pel. Now if it be &s;o great a &s;in not to be willing to &s;uffer any lo&s;&s;e, or to endure any tor|ment in &s;tanding up for the light; what is it for any &s;oule to ri&s;e up again&s;t the light, or knowingly to with&s;tand it?</P>
<P>Fourthly, The Apo&s;tle &s;aith, that our neglect of the light of the Go&s;pel &s;ubjects us to outer darknes (<HI>Heb.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>How &s;hall we E&s;cape if we neglect &s;o great &s;alvation, which at the fir&s;t began to be &s;poken by the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. As if he had &s;ayd, the wi&s;e&s;t man in the whole world, cannot tell how a man &s;hould e&s;cape eternal darknes or damnation (there is no po&s;&s;ible way, no doore of hope to e&s;cape by) if he neglect that great &s;alvation. But what's neg|lect? it is a light pa&s;&s;ing by of a thing, when offered; non-accep|tance, is a neglect. Suppo&s;e you doe no more, when light is of|ferd to you, but onely pa&s;&s;e it by, becau&s;e you have no minde to it, you are not taken with the beauty and worth of it; If you doe nothing again&s;t it, onely you doe not embrace it, you cannot e&s;|cape. And when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>you cannot e&s;cape,</HI> without &s;ay|ing from what; you may &s;ay the wor&s;t you can or can imagine, and that's it which he meanes you cannot e&s;cape, even the wrath of God and death eternal. Now if but to neglect &s;alvation or the light, which is indeed, onely not to elect it, or not to make it our choice, be &s;o damnable a &s;in, what is it to rebell again&s;t the light? to doe which is the wor&s;t that we can doe, even the perfection of wickednes. Surely they who thus rebel again&s;t the light, <HI>&s;hall</HI> (as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peakes, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 49.19.) <HI>Goe to the generation of their fathers, where they &s;hall never &s;ee light.</HI> They who rebel again&s;t the light of knowledge, &s;hall not enjoy the light of comfort. As
<PB N="560" REF="294"> they have de&s;iered the ab&s;ence of the former light, &s;o they &s;hall be puni&s;hed with the ab&s;ence of the latter.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, As in the&s;e words <HI>Job</HI> &s;hewes who they were that act|ed tho&s;e gro&s;&s;e wickedne&s;&s;es, even they who rebelled again&s;t the light; We may ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>They who rebell again&s;t the light, will clo&s;e with, and embrace any &s;in what&s;oever; <HI>or,</HI> They who are all for darknes, are for any wickednes.</Q>
<P>They who rebell again&s;t this beautifull thing <HI>light,</HI> are forward to embrace the foule&s;t mon&s;ter; Tho&s;e things which 'tis a &s;hame to &s;peake of, or &s;o much as to name, the&s;e rebels again&s;t light are ready to doe. The P&s;almi&s;t moves God in prayer to looke to his Covenant by this argument (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 74.20.) <HI>For the darke places of the earth are full of the habitations of cruelty;</HI> that is, of cruel men, or of men &s;o full of cruelty, that they de&s;erve rather to be called <HI>cruelty,</HI> then cruel, this &s;ort of men inhabit and fill up all tho&s;e pla|ces where the light of holy truth doth not &s;hine. Now if they who want the light, or have no true knowledge of God among them, are hereby (as it were) prepared for and put onne to the acting of all manner of wickednes, how much more are they prepared for the acting of any wickednes who have thru&s;t the light from them, and are in darke places of their owne making. The Prophet <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> &s;hewes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 4.1.) that where there is no knowledge of God in a land (for want of meanes) there is no truth nor mercy, (that is, there is none exerci&s;ed) in that land, but oppre&s;&s;ion, deceit, and fal&s;ehood, beare downe all; how much more mu&s;t it be &s;o where there is no knowledge of God in a land, becau&s;e of the contempt of meanes, and rebellion again&s;t the light. What wickednes will not they doe in the darke, who put out the Candle that they may not &s;ee what they doe? <HI>The&s;e are they who rebell again&s;t the light,</HI> and as it followeth,
<Q>They know not the way thereof, nor abide in the pathes thereof.</Q></P>
<P>The&s;e latter words are an illu&s;tration of the former.</P>
<Q>They know not the wayes thereof.</Q>
<P>This not knowing may be taken either for a &s;imple igno|rance, when we know not, eyther becau&s;e we have not an ability
<PB N="561" REF="294"> to know, or becau&s;e we have wanted all opportunities and helpes to get knowledge; or, &s;econdly, not knowing may be ex|pounded of a willfull affected ignorance; <HI>they know not,</HI> that is, they de&s;ire not to know: and &s;o I conceive the meaning of <HI>they know not,</HI> is not that they were &s;imply ignorant, or invincibly ignorant, as they are who &s;it in a land of darknes, and in the valley of the &s;hadow of death, but that the&s;e rejected the land of light, and &s;o were under an affected ignorance; They knew not the truth, becau&s;e they would not.</P>
<P>Againe, We may be &s;ayd not to know that,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non no&s;&s;e vias lucis e&s;t non a|gere ea quae in luce agi &s;olent. Illud ne&s;cire di|cimur quod non probamus.</NOTE> which we doe not delight in, approve and practice. We know no more to purpo&s;e, then we pre&s;ently doe, or have a purpo&s;e to doe when the &s;ea&s;on or opportunity calls us to it. How much light &s;oever a wicked man hath, yet <HI>he knowes not the wayes of light,</HI> becau&s;e he doth not rejoyce or delight in the wayes of light, as al&s;o becau&s;e he doth not &s;o much as approve the wayes of light; and if he neyther de|light in nor approve of tho&s;e wayes, no mervaile if he walke not in tho&s;e wayes, <HI>nor</HI> (as 'tis in the la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e) <HI>abide in the pathes thereof.</HI></P>
<P>As if he had &s;ayd; Suppo&s;e they come &s;ometimes into the wayes of light and truth, &s;uppo&s;e they &s;ometimes doe that which the light directs them to, yet they abide not in it. This is a further Character of the di&s;po&s;ition and temper of wicked men, who though po&s;&s;ibly for a fit, or for a turne or two they walke in the wayes of light, yet they <HI>abide not in the pathes thereof.</HI> And this latter peice of their &s;infullnes ari&s;eth from the former; why doe they not <HI>abide in the pathes of light?</HI> even becau&s;e they <HI>know not the wayes thereof;</HI> that is, becau&s;e they doe not approve or delight in the wayes thereof. Whence note.</P>
<Q>Wee cannot be con&s;tant in that which wee doe not affect.</Q>
<P>If a man doth not know, that is, love and affect the wayes of light, he will never abide in the pathes of light; what wee love, with that we clo&s;e, what wee affect, in that we &s;tick. The rea&s;on why the wicked abide in the pathes of &s;in, is becau&s;e they love and delight in them. All the pathes of wickednes, are pathes of plea|&s;antne&s;&s;e to the wicked, and therefore they abide in them. No man would be at all, much le&s;&s;e would he be long in a way that he doth not like. And that's the rea&s;on why wicked men if ever they doe
<PB N="562" REF="295"> this or that particular act of righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e and holine&s;&s;e, yet they cannot per&s;evere in &s;uch actings. A wicked man doth Good as a godly man doth evill, upon a temptation, not upon approbation; &s;ome carnal ayme or intere&s;t of profit or credit tempts him to doe good, but he doth not approve the good which he doth. And hence it is that as a good man abides not in the pathes of dark|nes, &s;o a wicked man abides not in the pathes of light. True holi|nes doth not begin at action, but at affection. They begin at the wrong end with Religion, who begin with doing rather then with liking. Many doe this, and they doe that, whereas they &s;hould &s;trive to approve, and pray for a love to the truths and wayes of God which they practice; for want of this they often apo&s;tati<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e and fall back, even from the practice of them. No bonds can hold us alwayes to the duties of obedience, but tho&s;e of love to God, and to the things wherein duty calls us to obey. And as want of this love is the rea&s;on why man is &s;o apt to back&s;lide, and is (&s;o far as a Negative may be) the very &s;eed and principle of back&s;liding, &s;o it is the rea&s;on why God gives &s;uch up to the power and &s;pirit of back&s;liding. (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 2.10, 11.) <HI>Becau&s;e they received not the love of the truth, that they might be &s;aved, for this cau&s;e God &s;hall &s;end them &s;trong delu&s;ion, that they &s;hould beleeve a lie.</HI> What is not begun in our affections, will not abide long in our actions.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Not to abide in the pathes of truth and holines, is the marke of an ungodly man.</Q>
<P>They who are not what they appeare in goodne&s;&s;e, will not al|wayes &s;o much as appear good. They that are (as <HI>Jacob</HI> &s;pake of his elde&s;t Son <HI>Reuben</HI> (Gen. 49.4.) <HI>un&s;table as water,</HI> &s;hall not ex|cell, nor are they to be numbred among <HI>the excellent ones.</HI> The Apo&s;tle exhorts Saints (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 15.58.) <HI>To be &s;tedfa&s;t and un|moveable, alwayes abounding in the worke of the Lord.</HI> Saints move in the worke of the Lord, but they mu&s;t not move out of the worke of the Lord, <HI>Bee ye &s;tedfa&s;t and unmoveable;</HI> but in what? in the worke of the Lord; That is the &s;phere in which Saints move, the &s;phere of their activity and u&s;e; and out of that they dare not move. The Sun in the firmament is moving continually, but it is in his proper line, called by A&s;tronomers, <HI>The Eclipticke line;</HI> So a godly man is alwayes moveing in the way of godlines,
<PB N="563" REF="295"> that's his proper line, and he never moves out of it wholy; Hee may have (through the power of corruption and temptation) his wandrings and goings a&s;tray, but then he hath his repentings and returnings into the way againe; he cannot abide long much le&s;&s;e alwayes in the pathes of darknes; Hee comes to him&s;elfe with the prodigal, and then he comes to his father, he bethinkes him&s;elfe where he is, and comes backes into the path where he ought to be; if at any time he walke in the coun&s;el of the ungodly (the gradation is made in the fir&s;t P&s;alme) which thing he ought not to doe, yet &s;urely he will not (as it followes) <HI>&s;tand in the way of &s;inners,</HI> or if he &s;tand a while in that way, yet, he will not <HI>&s;it downe in the &s;eat of the &s;cornfull;</HI> he will not re&s;t nor &s;tay there. Now as it is an argument and a marke of Godlines, when a man findes, that though he hath many faylings and wandrings, yet he abideth not in the pathes of darknes; &s;o it is an argument of the noughti|nes of a mans heart and &s;tate, when though he now and then hits upon the doing of a good thing, yet he abides not in the pathes of light. Vaine thoughts (as the Prophet Reproves the <HI>Jewes</HI>) lodge in the wicked &s;o long, that the Lord complaines, <HI>How long &s;hall vaine thoughts lodge in you?</HI> But as good thoughts &s;eldome come to an ungodly man, &s;o they lodge not at all with him; they are great &s;trangers to him, and he u&s;eth them as the wor&s;t of &s;tran|gers, yea as enemies, he quickly turnes them off, yea he thru&s;ts them away from him, he abideth not in the pathes of light.</P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> having thus &s;et forth the Spirit of a wicked man, by his re|bellion again&s;t the light, by his unaffectednes with and un&s;tayed|nes in the wayes and pathes of it, proceeds to give us a further ac|count of his wicked cour&s;es and workes of darknes.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="14" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 14.</HI></BIBL> The murtherer ri&s;ing with the light killeth the poore and needy, and in the night is as a Theife.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The murtherer is hee that killeth a man without warrant and authority; every &s;laying of a man is not murther, but to &s;lay a man, or to take away the life of a man without warrant, that's murther: And that's the gro&s;&s;e &s;inne forbidden in the &s;ixt Com|mandement, <HI>Thou &s;halt not kill, or thou &s;halt doe no murther.</HI> And this is u&s;ually committed eyther in malice to the per&s;on, or in Co|vetou&s;ne&s;&s;e after the &s;poyle. Some take away the life of a man in
<PB N="564" REF="296"> malice to his per&s;on, they hate him deliberately, as <HI>Cain</HI> did <HI>Abel,</HI> and therefore they kill him. Others have no quarrel to the man, po&s;&s;ibly they never &s;aw him before, but they covet his goods, and that they may rob him of his goods, they rob him of his life. They are &s;uch as live upon the &s;poyle, and they will &s;poyle, though they cau&s;e the innocent to dye for it, and them&s;elves too in the end. In eyther of the&s;e wayes, wee may under&s;tand the murtherer here. The former, becau&s;e 'tis &s;ayd in the next words, <HI>He &s;layes the poore and needy, and there is little gaine in their blood when they goe downe into the pit.</HI> The latter, becau&s;e 'tis &s;ayd in the latter part of the ver&s;e, <HI>That in the night he is as a theife.</HI> But <HI>Job</HI> fir&s;t &s;hewes us that this murtherer is a diligent man.</P>
<Q>Ri&s;ing with the light.</Q>
<P>That is, ri&s;ing as early, or as &s;oon as the light ri&s;eth. The mur|therer is no &s;luggard, the light doth not finde him in bed; he takes the prime of the morning, he will loo&s;e no time. Men who love hunting ri&s;e early; So doe the&s;e hunters of men. <HI>When the morn|ing is light they practice it,</HI> &s;aith the Prophet (<HI>Mich.</HI> 2.1.) Ho|ne&s;t men ri&s;e early to goe about the workes of their Calling, and wicked men ri&s;e early to fulfill the lu&s;ts of their hearts. <HI>David</HI> &s;aith, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 101.7.) <HI>I will early de&s;troy all the wicked of the Earth;</HI> As if <HI>David</HI> had &s;ayd, I will ri&s;e with the light to de&s;troy the wicked; and here you &s;ee how the wicked are de&s;cribed ri&s;e|ing Early to de&s;troy the righteous, to murther the Innocent. So the next words expre&s;&s;e the de&s;igne of his early ri&s;ing; <HI>He ri&s;eth with the light;</HI> what to doe? no good I warrant you, 'tis</P>
<P><HI>To kill the poore and needy.</HI> That's his bu&s;ienes; He begins his mornings worke with a worke of cruelty; you heare of killing pre|&s;ently. The murtherers heart is full of blood, and it will not be long ere his hand be full too, for <HI>their feete are &s;wift to &s;hed blood (Rom.</HI> 3.15.) and they are skilfull to de&s;troy. But it may &s;eeme that they are not very wi&s;e for them&s;elves, though they are very bloody again&s;t others; For <HI>Job</HI> doth not &s;ay, they &s;lay the fat and full ones, but
<Q>The poore and needy.</Q></P>
<P>There are &s;ome who di&s;tingui&s;h between the&s;e two, and tell us that in the&s;e two words, two yea all &s;orts of poore are Included.</P>
<PB N="565" REF="296">
<P>The fir&s;t word, they &s;ay, intends tho&s;e poore who heretofore were rich, but now empoveri&s;hed or fallen into poverty; and that by the &s;econd word are meant tho&s;e who have been born and al|wayes bred up in a low condition; But wee need not &s;tand upon &s;uch nicities in di&s;tingui&s;hing between the poore and needy. But it may be enquired, why doth the murtherer kill the poore? what doth he get by that? where are the &s;poyles which he brings home? There's nothing to be had from them who have nothing, The poore and needy. And it hath been antiently &s;aid, <HI>The empty tra|veller will &s;ing before the Theife;</HI> why then &s;hould the Theife or the murtherer meddle with, e&s;pecially why &s;hould he kill the poore and needy? <HI>What have they? or what have they done?</HI></P>
<P>Two things may be &s;ayd in an&s;wer to the&s;e queries; fir&s;t, it is thus expre&s;t to &s;hew the extreame wickednes of the murtherer, who doth not care &s;o much for booty as for blood. 'Tis for that he thir&s;ts, his delight is in cruelty, therefore he kills the very poore and needy, the next man he meets with, let him be what he will. 'Tis the &s;in it &s;elfe, or to doe wickedly, which &s;ome men delight in, they care not whether any advantage or profit come in by it; when they have their will, when they have don what they would, that's reward enough for them.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>Some will doe wickedly, though they get nothing by it.</Q>
<P>All the true &s;ervants of God love the work which he &s;ets them, better then the reward which he gives them, and &s;o doe &s;ome &s;er|vants of the Devill. Even the Devill hath &s;ervants who &s;corne to be mercinary. The act of &s;in is &s;weeter to them then any profit that &s;in can bring in; <HI>They are exact and perfect &s;inners, who &s;in out of love to the very act of &s;inning:</HI> As the highe&s;t acting in ho|lynes is to be plea&s;ed with pure acts of holines; To doe them though wee &s;hould get nothing by doing them, though we make no earnings, though we &s;ee no pre&s;ent fruit in doing them. Thus (I &s;ay) to goe onne in wayes of holynes when the wayes of ho|lynes appeare barren and unprofitable to us, yea when they are un&s;afe and dangerous to us, here's the perfection of holynes. So the perfection of wickednes is to be wicked when nothing is gott by it; it &s;hewes a &s;incere love to &s;in (as I may &s;ay) to love &s;in for &s;ins &s;ake; as it &s;hewes a &s;incere love to Grace and goodnes,
<PB N="566" REF="297"> to love them for their owne or Gods &s;ake. Hypocrites love the wayes of God for the &s;poyle which they finde there, for the car|nal advantages which they meete with there; were tho&s;e wayes poore and needy, leane and empty, they &s;hould not at all be filled with their company. The prophane will ri&s;e up in Judgement a|gain&s;t the&s;e profe&s;&s;ors, for <HI>they kill the poore and needy;</HI> They doe evill, where they cannot have any hopes of receaving good by it.</P>
<P>Secondly, For an&s;wer; By <HI>The poore and needy,</HI> wee may here under&s;tand the Innocent and hone&s;t, not as if all who are poore and needy, were al&s;o Innocent (for there are many wicked poore) nor as if all who are innocent, were al&s;o poore and needy (for there are many godly rich) but becau&s;e u&s;ually they are &s;o: men that are rich and great may be Innocent and holy, but the&s;e are rare conjunctions; u&s;ually the Innocent are poore and needy. Againe, wee are not to take the poore and needy for them who (as wee &s;ay) have not a peny to buy them bread, but by the poore we under&s;tand tho&s;e of the midle or rather Inferiour ranke, &s;uch <HI>poore and needy they kill.</HI></P>
<P>But what's their quarrell at them?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e &s;uch poore hone&s;t men &s;tand in the light of wicked men, that is the wicked cannot be &s;o wicked as they would, becau&s;e &s;ome good men are neere them, and therefore they mu&s;t be removed out of the world, that they may be out of their way. Or, &s;econdly, becau&s;e &s;uch poore hone&s;t men eyther have given, or are ready to give evidence, or be witne&s;&s;es again&s;t them before the Magi&s;trate: now, eyther to prevent or revenge this, they <HI>ri&s;e with the light and kill the poore and needy.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That a wicked man will doe his utmo&s;t to remove tho&s;e who &s;tand in his way, or oppo&s;e him in his wickednes.</Q>
<P>He will kill &s;ome that he may vex others; that's his ayme here, the poore and needy are not his utmo&s;t ayme; but the poore and needy &s;tand in his way, they hinder him in his other projects. And what&s;oever interpo&s;eth between him and the enjoyment of his lu&s;t, he will remove it if he can. And as he will kill &s;ome that he may vex others, &s;o he will much rather kill tho&s;e who vex him. Holy <HI>David</HI> being left under the power of a &s;trong Temptation,
<PB N="567" REF="297"> &s;lew <HI>&V;riah</HI> an innocent man, only becau&s;e he could not per&s;wade him to do that which might have bin &s;ome covering of his &s;in from the eyes of men. How much more will the prophane doe &s;o, when hone&s;t men doe eyther profe&s;&s;edly oppo&s;e them in their &s;infull workes, or di&s;cover the &s;infullnes of them.</P>
<P>Further, In that <HI>Job</HI> upon the fre&s;h account which he gives of the wickedne&s;&s;es of men, brings in the murtherer in the fir&s;t place, ri&s;eing with the light and killing the poore and needy. Wee may here take notice, a little, of the greatnes of this &s;in of murther, and demon&s;trate how great a &s;inner the murtherer is. The mur|therer is a &s;inner of the highe&s;t forme, and there are two Scrip|ture Con&s;iderations in generall, upon which we may make this out.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, How &s;infull is it for a man to murther a man, when as the Scripture tels us that if a bea&s;t kill a man he mu&s;t &s;uffer for it: (<HI>Exod.</HI> 21.28.) <HI>If an oxe gore a man or a woman that they dye, the oxe &s;hall be &s;urely &s;toned, and his fle&s;h &s;hall not be Eaten.</HI> A bea&s;t is not capable of &s;ubjection to a moral rule or law, as not being ca|pable of rea&s;on, yet a bea&s;t who is not properly under any Law mu&s;t dye for tran&s;gre&s;&s;ing this Law, <HI>Thou &s;halt not kill;</HI> And this &s;urely, Fir&s;t, to convince man of the greatnes of this &s;in; &s;econdly, to admoni&s;h him le&s;t he commit this &s;in; thirdly, to a&s;&s;ure him, that if he do he mu&s;t dye; For if a bea&s;t mu&s;t dye for killing a man, then much more mu&s;t man, &s;eeing that Law, again&s;t the killing of a man, was given to men, not to bea&s;ts.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Lord gave a rule to the <HI>Jewes,</HI> what to doe for the removing of the guilt of blood, in ca&s;e a man were found &s;laine and no man could tell who was the Author of that murther, read this at large (<HI>Deut.</HI> 21.) from the beginning of the Chap|ter to the end of the 9^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>If one be found &s;laine in the Land which the Lord thy God giveth thee, and it be not knowne</HI> (after diligent enquiry, or hue and cry) <HI>who hath &s;laine him; Then the Elders of thy Judges &s;hall come forth, and they &s;hall mea|&s;ure</HI> (in ca&s;e there be a doubt which City was neere&s;t to the place where the &s;laine was found) <HI>unto the Cities which are round about him that is &s;laine. And it &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e, that the City which is next unto the &s;laine man</HI> (for from thence it was mo&s;t pro|bable that the murtherer came, or that thither he was fled to hide and conceale him&s;elfe, therefore) <HI>even the Elders of that City &s;hall
<PB N="568" REF="298"> take an heifer which hath not been wrought with, and which hath not drawne in the yoke</HI> (therein fitly &s;hadowing the murtherer, in who&s;e &s;tead the heifer was to be &s;laine; for &s;uch are &s;ons of <HI>Belial,</HI> men who will not beare the yoke of obedience) <HI>And the Elders of the City &s;hall bring downe the heifer into a rough valley</HI> (the very place was to carry a re&s;emblance of a murtherous &s;pirit, and of the act of murther, both being rough and uncouth) <HI>and &s;hall &s;trike off the heifers necke there in the valley</HI> (implying that if they could have got the murtherer into their hands, he mu&s;t have dyed under their hand.) Then the Prie&s;t mu&s;t come to decide the controver&s;ie (<HI>ver.</HI> 5.) and (at the 6^t^h ver&s;e) <HI>The Elders of the City that are next unto the &s;laine man, &s;hall wa&s;h their hands over the heifer that is beheaded in the valley</HI> (wa&s;hing of the hands, was, fir&s;t, an argu|ment that blood defileth; &s;econdly, it was a ceremony which im|plyed innocence and clearenes from blood, as appeares by a like action of <HI>Pilate (Math.</HI> 27.24.) But the&s;e Elders mu&s;t not onely u&s;e this &s;peaking ceremony, to &s;hew their innocency, but they mu&s;t explicitly profe&s;&s;e it (<HI>ver.</HI> 7.) <HI>And they &s;hall an&s;wer and &s;ay, our hands have not &s;hed this blood, neither have our eyes &s;eene it.</HI> And then the Prie&s;t mu&s;t pray (<HI>ver.</HI> 8, 9.) <HI>Be mercifull O Lord, unto thy people I&s;rael, whom thou ha&s;t redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people of I&s;raels charge, and the blood &s;hall be forgiven, &s;o &s;halt thou put away the guilt of innocent blood from among you, when thou &s;halt doe that which is right in the &s;ight of the Lord.</HI> This &s;olemne Law and the manner of proceeding upon it, &s;hewes three things, as to the poynt in hand. Fir&s;t, that the Lord is very tender of &s;hedding mans bloud; &s;econdly, that the &s;hedding of mans blood in any murtherous way is extreamely di&s;|plea&s;ing to him. Thirdly, That God will certainly bring ven|geance one time or other fir&s;t or la&s;t, upon the murtherer, &s;eeing a whole City &s;hould be charged, in &s;ome degree, with the blood of a man &s;laine neere them, if they did not publickly and &s;olemnly declare and te&s;tifie their clearenes from it.</P>
<P>But be&s;ides the&s;e two general Con&s;iderations taken from Scrip|ture, and now in&s;tanced in; There are many other grounded both upon Scripture Authority, and common rea&s;on, which &s;et forth the vilenes of this &s;in of murther.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Murther offereth violence to nature in common, there being but one common nature in all men. And hence</P>
<PB N="569" REF="298">
<P>Secondly, He that murthers another offers violence to him|&s;elfe; for though there be a &s;peciall &s;in of &s;elfe-murther, yet the murther of another is &s;elfe-murther too, and that not onely as it is an offering of violence to common nature, but al&s;o as it layes the murderers owne per&s;on open &amp; obnoxious unto violence, and that, both to the violence of a private revenge, and to the violence of publicke Ju&s;tice.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Murther de&s;troyes &s;ociety, men will never live toge|ther where they finde them&s;elves continually in danger of their lives: Man is a &s;ociable creature by nature, how &s;inful then is mur|ther, which breakes the very fir&s;t fundamental lawes of Nature?</P>
<P>Fourthly, Murther doth not onely defile the per&s;on that com|mits it, but the land al&s;o in which it is committed. (<HI>Numb.</HI> 35.31.33.) <HI>Yee &s;hall take no &s;atisfaction for the life of a murtherer, which is guilty of death, and he &s;hall &s;urely be put to death; &s;o ye &s;hall not pollute the land wherein ye are; for blood it defileth the land: and the land cannot be clean&s;ed of the blood that is &s;hed therein, but by the blood of him that &s;hed it.</HI> Murther as acted defileth the per&s;on onely that acts it, but murther (when knowne) defileth a whole land, if it goe unpuni&s;hed. In which ca&s;e there may be defilement upon a land by many other &s;innes, but this is e&s;pecially expre&s;t of murther, as if that among and above all &s;ins were the <HI>land-defi|ling &s;in.</HI></P>
<P>Fifthly, Murther is not onely an injury to man, but an impie|ty again&s;t God; and that's the rea&s;on given in the fir&s;t Law which God made again&s;t it, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 9.6.) <HI>Who &s;o &s;heddeth mans blood, by man &s;hall his blood be &s;hed, for in the Image of God made he man.</HI> For though the body of a man &s;laine be not in the Image of God, yet the per&s;on &s;laine is, even the per&s;on of a wicked man hath &s;omewhat of the Image of God remaining in him. And therefore that law is to be expounded univer&s;ally; who&s;oever the man is, whether good or bad, righteous or wicked, who&s;e blood is un|righteou&s;ly &s;hed; <HI>by man</HI> (that is, <HI>by man</HI> who hath a call to it as being a Magi&s;trate) <HI>&s;hall his blood be &s;hed,</HI> that is, he by his au|thority &s;hall (upon proofe) condemne him to dye, and &s;hall give him up to execution. A contempt of the Image of God in man, is a contempt of God. And he takes it as a high affront to his Maje|&s;ty, that any &s;hould pre&s;ume to deface or &s;poyle his Image, And this doth more aggravate their &s;in, who oppo&s;e, vexe, and de&s;troy
<PB N="570" REF="299"> godly men, becau&s;e they oppo&s;e that more excellent Image of God, the new Creature, or the Image of God renewed in righ|teou&s;ne&s;&s;e and true holynes. As there is an image or likenes of God in every man, &s;o much more in a godly man, for Godlynes is true God-likenes. Therefore to &s;hed the blood of a Godly man is a higher affront to the Maje&s;ty of God. <HI>As the new wine is in the clu&s;ter, and one &s;aith de&s;troy it not for a ble&s;&s;ing is in it</HI> (I&s;a. 65.8.) So we may &s;ay, de&s;troy not a Godly man, for a ble&s;&s;ing is in him, (fir&s;t, from God, and, &s;econdly, for men) but we may &s;ay much more, <HI>De&s;troy him not</HI> for the Image of God is in him.</P>
<P>Sixthly, Murther deprives us of that which is mo&s;t precious in the whole compa&s;&s;e of nature; And according to the value of that wherein the damage is received, is the greatnes of the &s;in commit|ted. Satan repre&s;ented life better then all other things (<HI>Job</HI> 2.4.) <HI>Skin for skin and all that a man hath will he give for his life;</HI> Gold and &s;ilver, hou&s;es and lands are but toyes and trifles to life. There is nothing of man except his &s;oule (which cannot dye) better then his life. And this the murtherer takes away. A mur|therer is the greate&s;t theife, and the vaine&s;t one, he &s;teales away that from another which is to him of highe&s;t value, yet that which him&s;elfe cannot carry away, nor make any u&s;e of.</P>
<P>Seventhly, The &s;infullnes of murther appeares in this; That it is not onely a wrong to that particular per&s;on who is murdered, but a wrong to all that have dependance upon him. The life of one man may have an Influence upon many; wife and children, the whole family, and kindred, all relations, and employments, whether more private, or publicke, are wronged and &s;uffer in his death. Though that which cuts off a mans life, cannot cut off his owne hope (if he have a wel-grounded one) for things to come, yet it cuts off the hopes of all others depending upon him (as an in&s;trument in the hand of God) for good things pre&s;ent.</P>
<P>Eighthly, The murtherer takes away that from a man which no man can re&s;tore to him, or repaire him in; he takes away that which is Impo&s;&s;ible for him to give againe. He that tooke away a mans goods was bound by the law of God to re&s;tore it fourefold, or fivefold, or &s;evenfold, (according to the ca&s;e) and po&s;&s;ibly he might re&s;tore it an hundredfold, but he that takes away a mans life, hath taken that which (though he would) he cannot re&s;tore &s;o much as &s;ingle. The law of nature will not &s;uffer the murder|er
<PB N="571" REF="299"> to re&s;tore life, for 'tis like water which being &s;pilt cannot (by any humane power) be gathered up againe; and the law of God &s;aith concerning the &s;in of murther, that no &s;atisfaction &s;hall be taken for it, and indeed none can. For though &s;ome would commute and have (by the &s;infull indulgence and cruel pity of unju&s;t Ma|gi&s;trates) commuted for it, yet none could ever &s;atisfie for it. And when Magi&s;trates eyther through foule corruption, or foo|li&s;h compa&s;&s;ion, have not taken vengeance upon the murtherer in kinde, but have &s;uffered him to commute, or compound for that &s;in, eyther by paying a pecuniary penalty, or by undergoing &s;ome puni&s;hment le&s;&s;e then death, God hath taken vengeance upon them for it, and hath &s;ayd to them in his providences as he &s;ayd to <HI>Ahab</HI> by his Prophet for the &s;paring of <HI>Benhadad</HI> (1 <HI>Kings</HI> 20.42.) <HI>Becau&s;e ye have let goe out of your hand a man whom I had appointed to utter de&s;truction, therefore your life &s;hall goe for his life, and your people &s;hall be cut off by the &s;word, becau&s;e your &s;word did not cut off the murderer.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Si magi&s;tratus ce&s;&s;ent ab officio deus ip&s;e inju|&s;tas caedes fame pe&s;te &amp; bellis externis aut in|te&s;tinis ulci&s;ci|tur. <HI>Merl.</HI></NOTE> Whole nations have been filled with blood by this kinde of keeping backe the hand from blood.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, The murtherer hurts others, but he chiefely hurts him|&s;elfe. Some expound <HI>Lamech</HI> confe&s;&s;ing this with &s;orrow (<HI>Gen.</HI> 4.23.) while he &s;aid unto his wives, <HI>Hearken unto my &s;peech, for I have &s;laine a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt.</HI> There are divers other Interpretations and readings of tho&s;e words, and we put in the Margin, <HI>I would &s;lay a man in my wound, and a young man in my hurt,</HI> As if he had boa&s;ted of his &s;trength to his wives, that though he were weake with wounds and hurts, yet he would venture to fight with any man, and doubted not to get victory over him &amp; kill him: and &s;o the words carry a &s;ence like that &s;peech of the Prophet (<HI>Jer.</HI> 37.10.) telling the <HI>Jewes</HI> that theirs were vaine confidences while they hoped to be delivered from the <HI>Caldeans</HI> who be&s;ieged them; <HI>for,</HI> &s;aith he, <HI>Though there remained but wounded men among them, yet they &s;hould ri&s;e up every man in his tent, and burne this City with fire.</HI> But as to our read|ing, <HI>I have &s;laine a man to my wounding.</HI> Some expound it onely of a bodily wounding, I have got a wound my &s;elfe, or I have hurt my &s;elfe while I &s;lew a man; much more is this true of a &s;pirituall wounding, and hurt to the &s;oule and Con&s;cience; for though a murtherer &s;lay a man, and come off with a whole skin, yet he &s;layeth a man to his wounding, and killeth him to his hurt. The
<PB N="572" REF="300"> Rabbins have a tradition upon that place; that <HI>Lamech</HI> having been a great hunter in his younger dayes being then growne old was led forth by his young man to take his plea&s;ure in hunting, and &s;hooting at Deere, and that while he was in this di&s;port or exerci&s;e in the feild, <HI>Cain</HI> pa&s;&s;ed by, and the young man poynted him to <HI>Cain, Lamech</HI> (being dim-&s;ighted) &s;hot at <HI>Cain</HI> and killed him in &s;tead of a wild bea&s;t; but &s;oone after di&s;covering that he had killed <HI>Cain,</HI> turned to the young man his guide in a pa&s;&s;ionate anger and killed him al&s;o. This relation they give as the rea&s;on why <HI>Lamech</HI> &s;ayd, <HI>I have &s;laine a man to my wounding, and a young man to my hurt:</HI> but I &s;hall not &s;tay upon that tra|dition of the <HI>Jewes;</HI> and &s;hall onely make &s;o much u&s;e of <HI>Lamechs</HI> confe&s;&s;ion, as at lea&s;t to illu&s;trate, if not to prove, the poynt in hand, that he who &s;layeth a man doth it to his owne hurt and wounding, often to the wounding of his body, e&s;tate, and honour, alwayes to the wounding of his owne &s;oule and con&s;cience. Every &s;in in &s;ome degree or other wounds the &s;oule; But the wounding of others to death is the chiefe &s;in (of all &s;ins again&s;t the body and outward concernments of man) which woundeth a mans &s;oule. The murtherer at one blow &s;trikes through the body of his neighbour and his owne &s;oule.</P>
<P>Further, we might ob&s;erve from tho&s;e words in the text, <HI>ri&s;e|ing with the light:</HI>
<Q>That murderers, and indeed any &s;ort of wicked doers, are diligent and laborious to doe the commands of their vile&s;t lu&s;ts.</Q></P>
<P>But I noted this at the 5^t^h ver&s;e upon tho&s;e words, <HI>Ri&s;ing be|times for a prey,</HI> I &s;hall not &s;tay upon it here. I onely adde this; Let not us be &s;loathfull in doing good, &s;eeing the murderer is &s;o diligent and early up for the doing of mi&s;chiefe.</P>
<Q>And in the night is as a Thiefe.</Q>
<P>The&s;e words may be taken two wayes; For</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The Particle, <HI>as,</HI> is by &s;ome conceived not to be a note of &s;imilitude, but to carry on a direct predication, <HI>He is as a thiefe,</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Particula qua&s;i non dicit &s;imili|tudinem &s;ed proprietatem.</NOTE> <HI>He is a very thiefe.</HI> We finde el&s;ewhere in Scripture, that a particle of likenes doth not onely note the likenes of one thing to another, but the &s;amenes of one thing with another. Taking it thus here; The meaning of the words is as if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;aid, <HI>He ri|&s;eth
<PB N="573" REF="300"> betimes in the morning to play the murtherer, and in the night hee playe's the thiefe.</HI> I have noted the &s;ame &s;ence of the particle heretofore, fir&s;t, from tho&s;e words of the Evangeli&s;t concerning Chri&s;t (<HI>Joh.</HI> 1.14.) <HI>Wee &s;aw his glory as the glory of the onely be|gotten Son of God;</HI> for Chri&s;t was not onely like the onely begot|ten Son of God, but he was really &s;o: as al&s;o from that of the Prophet (<HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> 5.10.) <HI>The Princes of Judah were as or like them that remove the bound,</HI> that is, they did remove the bound.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others keepe to the &s;imilitude, and &s;ay the mean|ing of <HI>Job</HI> is not, that the murtherer doth turne theife, or that he proceeds from killing in the day to &s;tealing in the night;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Facere aliquid tanquam fur e&s;t proverbialis lo|cutio, quae im|portat &s;ecretam diligentem&abque; ab&s;cen&s;ionem.</NOTE> But &s;ay they, this ver&s;e is quite through a de&s;cription of the murtherer, as the next is of the Adulterer. So that to &s;ay, <HI>In the night he is as a Thiefe,</HI> imports onely this; That in the night he doth carry him&s;elfe very clo&s;ely, and very &s;ecretly, or that as a theife in the night is clo&s;e and &s;udden in &s;tealing, &s;o is he the murtherer in kil|ling. We have this &s;imilitude often u&s;ed (1 <HI>The&s;&s;.</HI> 5.2.) <HI>The Coming of Chri&s;t &s;hall be as a Theife in the night.</HI> Read al&s;o (2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 3.10. <HI>Revel.</HI> 16.15.) in which the &s;ame &s;imilitude of a Theife in the night is applyed to Chri&s;ts coming, not as if we could hence conclude, that Chri&s;t will come in the night time, but that, when|&s;oever he comes it &s;hall be as in the night, that is, &s;uddenly, and (as to any antecedent appearances) &s;ecretly upon the world, it &s;hall be unexpected to them, they &s;hall not know the time of it, nor &s;hall they be aware of it, though, when he is once come, his comming &s;hall be accompanyed with &s;o much light and lu&s;ter, with &s;o much &s;plendour and power, as &s;hall not onely awaken, but a&s;toni&s;h all the world. Thus it may be &s;ayd of the murtherer, <HI>In the night he is as a Theife.</HI> And</P>
<P>Hence, it may be noted.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>That wicked men give them&s;e<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ves wholly to watch oppor|tunities of doing mi&s;chiefe.</HI></P>
<P>The murtherer ri&s;eth early in the morning, and in the night is as a Theife: hee takes his advantages in the day, and hee will not forbeare them in the night. As it &s;hewes the great a&s;&s;iduity of Saints in prayer when it is &s;ayd, <HI>They cry to God day and night</HI> (Luk. 18.7.) day and night reach the whole com|pa&s;&s;e of time. So while <HI>Job</HI> tells us that the wicked are doing mi&s;chiefe betimes in the morning, and that they are at it againe
<PB N="574" REF="301"> in the night, if not all the night, What can be &s;ayd more for their watchfullnes and a&s;&s;iduity in doing mi&s;chiefe? The Apo&s;tle (<HI>Eph.</HI> 5.16.) exhorteth Saints <HI>to redeeme the time becau&s;e the dayes are evill;</HI> but we &s;ee in the pre&s;ent example, alledged by <HI>Job,</HI> that wicked men will redeeme the time, that they may doe evill. We cannot po&s;&s;ibly redeeme the time, by recalling or bringing backe the time which is pa&s;t, but we may redeeme the time by our more diligent <HI>actings in the time pre&s;ent;</HI> Now, who can act more dili|gently in improving the time pre&s;ent, then they who are at worke both day and night, which two di&s;tinctions of time include and cary all time. Let not the Godly be found Idling away the day, while the wicked are found labouring (at their worke, &s;uch as it is) in the very night.</P>
<P>Againe, Wee may note.</P>
<Q>That the murtherer doth his bloody bui&s;ines not onely diligently, but clo&s;ely.</Q>
<P>He doth it as a theife in the night. The murtherer, who is at all times feirce and cruel, will &s;ometimes be &s;ubtle and cunning; and this is the gui&s;e of other &s;inners too, e&s;pecially of the Adulterer, who&s;e &s;ecret conveyances and clo&s;e contrivances for the attaining of his filthy delights, are elegantly de&s;cribed in the words which follow.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="575" REF="301">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 15, 16, 17.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The eye al&s;o of the adulterer waiteth for the twi-light, &s;ay|ing, no eye &s;hall &s;ee me: and di&s;gui&s;eth his face.</P>
<P>In the darke they dig through hou&s;es which they have mar|ked for them&s;elves in the day time: they know not the light.</P>
<P>For the morning is to them even as the &s;haddow of death; if one know them, they are in the terrours of the &s;haddow of death.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>WEE have heard many wickedne&s;&s;es de&s;cribed in the for|mer part of this Chapter, and in the foregoing ver&s;e, <HI>The murtherer ri&s;ing with the light killeth the poore and needy, and in the night is as a Theife. Job</HI> proceeds to di&s;cover the practices of two other &s;orts of gro&s;&s;e &s;inners, the Adulterer and the Theife.</P>
<DIV3 N="15" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 15.</HI></BIBL> The eye of the adulterer waiteth for the twilight.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Before I come to open the particular termes of this clau&s;e, or to rai&s;e any ob&s;ervations from it, I &s;hall give in &s;omewhat a|bout Adultery in generall, which is the &s;peciall &s;ubject of the whole ver&s;e. Adultery is the breach of the 7^t^h Commandement. And in that Commandement a twofold Adultery is forbidden. Fir&s;t, Mentall, or the adultery of the minde; &s;econdly, Corporall, or the adultery of the body. It was the former which Chri&s;t in|tended, when he corrected the fal&s;e glo&s;&s;e or expo&s;ition of the Phari&s;ees about the 7^t^h Commandement, (<HI>Math.</HI> 5.27, 28.) <HI>Yee have heard that it was &s;aid by them of old time, Thou &s;halt not commit adultery; but I &s;ay unto you, who&s;oever looketh on a woman to lu&s;t after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.</HI> By which it appeares, that the Phari&s;ees, who were the chiefe interpreters of the Law in tho&s;e times, limited the comman|dement again&s;t Adultery to the outward act; but Chri&s;t the Law-giver who be&s;t knew the mind of the Law, enlarged it to the prohi|bition of the internal act, &amp; told them that there is a heart-adulte|ry, an adultery in thought, occa&s;ion'd by a vaine or wanton glance
<PB N="576" REF="302"> and ca&s;t of the eye, as wel as there's an Adultery of the body, or in the outward act.</P>
<P>The text in hand &s;peakes onely of corporal Adultery, though the other be not excluded as being the roote of it.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Latinae voces adulteri &amp; a|dulterae hanc vim habent ut adulter ad alte|ram, adultera ad A<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">terum &s;e conferat. <HI>Fe&s;t:</HI></NOTE> And This cor|porall adultery is taken in Scripture &s;omtimes &s;trictly, when eyther man or woman to &s;atisfie their lu&s;t with others break their conju|gal Bond; and is eyther that act of uncleanene&s;&s;e which is commit|ted by per&s;ons who are both engaged by marriage-covenant to mutuall faithfulnes, or when at lea&s;t one of them is under that en|gagement. This latter is properly called &s;ingle adultery; the former is double Adultery, or corporal Adultery in the highe&s;t and &s;trict|e&s;t &s;ence of it. Secondly, Corporal Adultery is taken more large|ly, or in a lower &s;ence for fornication or bodyly uncleanene&s;&s;e of any kinde between man and woman. And &s;o it is intended in the Commandement given again&s;t it; <HI>Thou &s;halt not commit Adul|tery.</HI></P>
<P>The foulenes and greatnes of this &s;in of adultery (take it in ey|ther &s;ence) appeares many wayes. The Apo&s;tle puts it in the front of the workes of the fle&s;h (<HI>Gal.</HI> 5.19.) <HI>Now the workes of the fle&s;h are manife&s;t, which are the&s;e, Adultery, fornication, un|cleanne&s;&s;e, la&s;civiou&s;ne&s;&s;e,</HI> there is adultery with all its retinue; and (<HI>Col.</HI> 3.5.) it is &s;et as the fir&s;t of our earthly members, which are to be mortified; <HI>mortifie therfore your members which are upon earth, fornication, uncleanene&s;&s;e, inordinate affection.</HI> Where|as in other Scriptures fornication is included under adultery, in this adultery is included under fornication.</P>
<P>Adultery &s;trictly taken, hath a &s;peciall &s;infullne&s;&s;e in it. Fir&s;t, as it is the breach of a Covenant; every &s;in hath in it a breach of Covenant in generall, but there is a &s;uperadded breach of a &s;pe|ciall Covenant in this &s;in. Hence <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith of the Adultere&s;&s;e (<HI>Pro.</HI> 2.17.) that &s;hee <HI>for&s;aketh the guide of her youth.</HI> One of the Rabbines expounds this woman my&s;tically for the &s;en&s;itive appetite, and that &s;hee is &s;ayd to <HI>for&s;ake the guide of her youth,</HI> becau&s;e in youth appetite commonly for&s;akes rea&s;on, which is ap|poynted to be the guide of it. But we may expound this guide ey|ther for her father, who had the government of her in her younger yeares, or el&s;e for her husband whom &s;he married in her youth, and whom by marriage &s;hee receaved as the guide of her youth, un|der God, who is indeed the guide both of our youth and old age:
<PB N="577" REF="302"> and what guide &s;oever the wife for&s;aketh, &s;hee cheifely for&s;aketh God who is her chiefe guide, <HI>and forgetteth the covenant of her God,</HI> that is, the covenant which God gave her in reference to that par|ticular e&s;tate of marriage. Every beleever is in covenant with God, in reference to his &s;pirituall e&s;tate, but a married per&s;on hath a co|venant with God in reference to that civil &s;tate; And Adultery is the breach of this covenant.</P>
<P>Secondly, This &s;hewes the &s;infullne&s;&s;e of Adultery, that it is a &s;in which cannot be committed alone, there is alwayes a double &s;in, in this &s;in of adultery, two are defiled with it at once. In which &s;en&s;e it is wor&s;e then murther, and theft; For the&s;e may be com|mitted, and but one defiled with the &s;infullnes of them. He that robs is guilty of &s;tealing, not he that is robbed; He that murders is guilty of blood, not he that is murdered; But in Adultery, the Agent and patient are both alike guilty of uncleanenes; The de|filement reacheth both.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The evill of this &s;in appeares, by the many and mani|fold evills which it brings with it. <HI>Solomon</HI> hath &s;et them forth very particularly and fully (<HI>Pro.</HI> 6.26, 27, 28, 29, 30.) <HI>Lu&s;t not after her</HI> (that is, after the &s;trange woman) <HI>in thine heart, neither let her take thee with her eyelids,</HI> (why not? Fir&s;t, thou maye&s;t be undone in thy outward e&s;tate) <HI>by meanes of a whori&s;h woman a man is brought to a peice of bread,</HI> (that is, he is ruin'd in all he hath by it, and brought to &s;o low an ebbe of poverty, that he hath &s;carce the worth of a peice of bread left) <HI>And</HI> (which is both a &s;econd and a wor&s;e evill) <HI>the adultere&s;&s;e will hunt for the pretious life,</HI> which may either be under&s;tood of the naturall life, (&s;ometimes the adulterer is murtherd by the adultere&s;&s;e) or of that which is a more pretious life then the natural, even the life of the &s;oule, or the eternal good and happine&s;&s;e of the &s;oule, &s;he cares not to de&s;troy body, and &s;oule for ever (&s;o her lu&s;t may be &s;a|tisfied) that's the gaine which the adultere&s;&s;e pur&s;ues; <HI>&s;hee hunts for the pretious life,</HI> the life of the &s;oule. Thirdly, <HI>Solomon</HI> de&s;cribes the evill of this &s;in in the 27 and 28 ver&s;es, by the guilt which it inevitably brings with it; <HI>Can a man take fire in his bo&s;ome, and his cloathes not be burnt? can a man goe upon hot coales, and his feete not be burnt? So he that goeth into his neighbours wife, who&s;oever toucheth her &s;hall not be innocent,</HI> that is, he &s;hall &s;urely be very guilty. As if he had &s;ayd, You can no more retaine your innocen|cy,
<PB N="578" REF="303"> while you commit this folly, then you can avoyd being burnt when you carry fire in your bo&s;ome, or tread upon burning coales. Fourthly, the &s;infullnes of this &s;in appeares, by the compari&s;on which the Scripture makes between it and theft, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 6.30, 31.) <HI>Men doe not de&s;pi&s;e a theife,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ferenda e&s;t magis omnis ne|ce&s;&s;itas quam perpetranda ali|qua iniquitas.</NOTE> <HI>if he &s;teale to &s;atisfie his &s;oule when he is hungry;</HI> it is a &s;in to &s;teale, though it be to &s;atisfie hunger; no nece&s;&s;ity can excu&s;e iniquity; and we &s;hould rather chu&s;e to &s;tarve then &s;teale, if at lea&s;t that may be called &s;tealing, which is done meerly to avoyd &s;tarving; Therefore (&s;aith <HI>Solomon) if he be found, he &s;hall re&s;tore &s;eavenfold, he &s;hall give all the &s;ub&s;tance of his hou&s;e;</HI> yet this &s;in of &s;tealing which is to &s;atisfie hunger is but a &s;mall &s;in compared with Adultery, which is onely to &s;atisfie a mans lu&s;t and bea&s;tiall &s;en&s;ualnes. This <HI>Solomon</HI> affirmes to us in the next words; <HI>But who &s;o committeth adultery with a woman lacketh under&s;tand|ing, he that doth it de&s;troyeth his owne &s;oule.</HI> He that &s;tealeth, upon tho&s;e termes doth it for want, but he that commits adultery upon any termes, doth it for wantonnes. He that &s;tealeth doth it for lacke of bread, but he that commits adultery doth it for lacke of under&s;tanding. He that &s;tealeth when he is hungry doth it to &s;a|tisfie his &s;oule, but he that committeth Adultery, (though he doth it not with an intent to de&s;troy his &s;oule, yet in the i&s;&s;ue he) de|&s;troyeth his owne &s;oule. But is not &s;tealing a &s;oule-de&s;troying &s;in too? I an&s;wer, it is; and &s;o is every &s;in in its owne nature, but there are &s;ome &s;ins (and among the&s;e Adultery is a chiefe one) which in the event prove u&s;ually more de&s;tructive to the &s;oule, and have oftener de&s;troyed it. And as this &s;in doth very often de|&s;troy the &s;oule as to its happines hereafter; &s;o it de&s;troyeth it as to its abiding here. Thus the &s;oule may be &s;ayd to be de&s;troyed when the life is de&s;troyed; and this de&s;truction of the &s;oule, <HI>Solo|mon</HI> &s;eemes directly to ayme at, as the next words lead us to Judge (<HI>ver.</HI> 33.) <HI>A wound and di&s;honour &s;hall he get, and his reproach &s;hall not be wiped away, for jealou&s;ie is the rage of a man, therefore he will not &s;pare in the day of vengeance.</HI></P>
<P>Another Scripture to be much minded in this poynt is that of S^t <HI>Paul</HI> (1 Cor. 6.13, 14.) where writing to the Church of <HI>Co|rinth,</HI> (among which people that &s;in was very common before they were called to the knowledge of Chri&s;t by the preaching of the Go&s;pel) he urgeth many arguments upon their con&s;ciences, to prevent their relap&s;e into it. And we may di&s;cover &s;ix argu|ments
<PB N="579" REF="303"> which the Apo&s;tle u&s;eth in that place; I &s;hall onely touch them, and &s;o returne to the text in hand. The fir&s;t appeares at the clo&s;e of the 13^t^h ver&s;e, <HI>Now the body is not for fornication but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, you put the body to a u&s;e for which it was never intended, <HI>the body is not for fornication,</HI> but, <HI>for the Lord,</HI> that is, for the Lords u&s;e and &s;er|vice; and the Lord is for the body, that is, for the good and &s;al|vation of the body. Such is the wonderfull goodne&s;&s;e of God, that looke in what&s;oever we are for him, he is for us; As our bo|dyes are for the Lords &s;ervice as well as our &s;oules, &s;o the Lord is for the good of our bodyes, as well as for the good of our &s;oules. And therefore our bodyes ought to be imployed for his Glory in every thing. The &s;econd argument is taken from the re&s;ur|rection; <HI>God hath both rai&s;ed up the Lord, and will al&s;o rai&s;e up us by his owne power,</HI> (ver. 14.) As if he had &s;ayd, your bodyes &s;hall be rai&s;ed againe; if they were to be lo&s;t in the du&s;t, then it were no great matter how you did defile, and abu&s;e them, but as God hath rai&s;ed up the Lord, &s;o he will rai&s;e you up. Seeing then God hath promi&s;ed, and you are &s;uch as profe&s;&s;e faith in that promi&s;e, that your bodyes &s;hall be rai&s;ed up out of the du&s;t, to put on glo|ry as a Garment in the la&s;t day, therefote in the meane time (while your bodyes are in your keeping) doe ye keepe your bo|dyes pure. Thirdly, He argues thus with the beleeving <HI>Corinthians, (v.</HI> 15th) <HI>Know ye not that your bodyos are the members of Chri&s;t;</HI> not onely is the &s;oule of a beleever a member of Chri&s;t, but his bo|dy too, yet it is not properly eyther the body or the &s;oule that is a member of Chri&s;t, but the per&s;on; for the union is made be|tween Chri&s;t and the per&s;on of a beleever, con&s;i&s;ting of &s;oule and body. But thus the Apo&s;tle argues, <HI>Know ye not that your bodyes are the members of Chri&s;t, &s;hall I then take the members of Chri&s;t, and make them members of an harlot, God forbid.</HI> What! will ye di&s;po&s;e the members of Chri&s;t to &s;o ba&s;e a u&s;e? will ye who pre|fe&s;&s;e, your &s;elves joyned to Chri&s;t, condi&s;cend to &s;uch a ba&s;e con|junction? And hence he expo&s;tulates at the 16^t^h and 17^t^h ver&s;es, <HI>What? know ye not that he which is joyned to an harlot is one body for two, &s;aith he, &s;hall be one fle&s;h,</HI> (They who abu&s;e marriage, are as the marryed, The Adulterer and the harlot are one fle&s;h as well as the husband and the wife) <HI>but he that is joyned to the Lord</HI> (by faith and love) <HI>is one &s;pirit;</HI> He hath a neerer and a more noble
<PB N="580" REF="304"> union then that of fle&s;h, and therefore he ought to maintame the hight of honour and purity, both in minde and body; and as he is one Spirit with the Lord, &s;o to make it good that he is guided and governed by one Spirit, and that <HI>The holy One.</HI> We have a fourth argument at the 18^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e, <HI>Flee fornication,</HI> why &s;o? The rea&s;on is added, <HI>every &s;in that a man doth is without the body, but he that committeth fornication, &s;inneth again&s;t his owne body.</HI> But are all other &s;ins without the body? I an&s;wer; fir&s;t, other &s;innes have the body as an in&s;trument for the committing of them; if a man &s;teale, the body is an in&s;trument, if a man commit murther, the body is an in&s;trument, but in this &s;in the body is more in&s;tru|mentall then in other &s;ins, the body is cheifely in&s;trumentall, in this &s;in; &s;o that comparatively to this, <HI>every &s;in that a man doth is without the body.</HI> And therefore this &s;in is more again&s;t the body then other &s;ins are. Againe &s;econdly, when the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>every &s;in is without the body,</HI> he is to be under&s;tood of tho&s;e &s;innes which are externall, otherwi&s;e every &s;in that a man commits is not without the body, there are a thou&s;and acts of &s;in that are done within the body, or in the &s;oule, envy, wrath, malice, are &s;innes within the body, being bred and acted in the Spirit. But we may &s;ay of every &s;in which is externall, (about which the di&s;cour&s;e there is) that comparatively to this &s;in of adultery &amp; fornication, it is without the body. I an&s;wer, thirdly, The body is not onely the in&s;trument of this &s;in, but the object of it al&s;o; for the un|cleane per&s;on doth not onely &s;in with his body, but he &s;ins again&s;t his body; Adultery leaves that blot and brand of ignominy and ba&s;enes upon the body, which no other &s;in doth, making it the member of a harlot, as was toucht before, and degrading it from that excellent honour whereunto God advanced it, even in a Na|turall con&s;ideration, much more degrading it from that honour, whereuntor God hath advanced it in a &s;pirituall con&s;ideration. And as that was the Apo&s;tles third Argument, &s;o, upon ano|ther relation of the bodyes of beleevers, he makes his 5^t^h argu|ment, which is layd downe at the 19^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>What? know you not that your body is the Temple of the Holy-Gho&s;t, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your owne;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>A Tem|ple is a holy and &s;acred thing, and will ye defile the Temple of the Holy-Gho&s;t?</HI> The <HI>Jewes,</HI> how angry were they? what an uproar did they make, when they thought <HI>Paul</HI> had brought Greeks into
<PB N="581" REF="304"> the Temple, who by the law were looked upon as prophane per|&s;ons, and &s;o not to be admitted to come there; they cry out, <HI>This is the man that hath polluted this holy place</HI> (Acts 21.28.) Much more may it be urged upon Go&s;pel-profe&s;&s;ors, what! commit &s;uch a &s;in as this? what! pollute the Temple of God? <HI>Know ye not</HI> (which every beleever is bound to know) <HI>that your body is the Temple of the Holy-Gho&s;t as well as the &s;oule.</HI> The la&s;t argument concludes the 19^t^h ver&s;e, and is pro&s;ecuted in the 20 h; <HI>Ye are not your owne, for ye are bought with a price, therefore glorifie God in your body, and in your &s;pirit which are Gods.</HI> Redemption is a &s;trong engage|ment, <HI>ye are bought,</HI> and dearely payd for, <HI>ye are bought with a price, ye are not your owne.</HI> Some (who take liberty in this &s;in) would excu&s;e them&s;elves by the contrary argument. <HI>Our bodyes</HI> (&s;ay they) <HI>are our owne, and we may doe what we will with our owne.</HI> No, &s;ayth the Apo&s;tle, <HI>ye are bought with a price, ye are not your owne;</HI> ye have your bodies of God, in their natural con&s;titu|tion, <HI>It is he who hath made us</HI> (in that capacity) <HI>and not we our &s;elves</HI> (P&s;al. 100.3.) <HI>and ye are not your owne;</HI> for ye are re|deemed or bought with a price, both body and &s;oule. Yee are bought out of your owne hands, as well as out of the hand of di|vine ju&s;tice and di&s;plea&s;ure. The Apo&s;tle &s;peaks e&s;pecially to belee|vers; For though it be a truth concerning all, whether beleevers, or unbeleevers, that <HI>they are not their owne,</HI> none of the &s;ons of men are their owne, God hath a right to them by creation, as al|&s;o by his continuall providence, provi&s;ion, and pre&s;ervation, yet beleevers or the redeemed in a &s;peciall manner, <HI>are not their owne,</HI> and therefore they ought above others to <HI>glorifie God in their bo|dy and in their &s;pirit which are Gods.</HI> Having thus opened &s;everal Scripture grounds and arguments to demon&s;trate the &s;oulenes and filthines of this &s;in of Adultery, which is the generall &s;ubject of this ver&s;e; I &s;hall now proceed in the expo&s;ition of particulars in it.</P>
<Q>The eye al&s;o of the adulterer waiteth <HI>&amp;c.</HI></Q>
<P>The word, <HI>al&s;o,</HI> referres to the murderer &s;poken of in the former ver&s;e; implying, that the Adulterer and he, though their &s;ins are very different, yet agree much in taking their opportunities of &s;in|ning. How contrary &s;oever &s;inners are in their particular practice, yet they have all one common principle and Spirit. The Murder|er
<PB N="582" REF="305"> and the Adulterer are alike de&s;ierous of privacy. They both love darkenes rather then light, or that which is neyther, <HI>Twi|light. Jeb</HI> &s;eemes to &s;peake of a man, that is no novice, but of one long ver&s;t and practiced in this way of wickedne&s;&s;e.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Oculus Adulte|ri, <HI>i. e.</HI> ip&s;e A|dulter.</NOTE> <HI>The eye al&s;o of the adulterer waiteth,</HI> that is, <HI>the adulterer him&s;elfe waiteth. Job</HI> doth not &s;ay, the <HI>Adulterer waiteth,</HI> but <HI>the eye of the Adulte|rer waiteth,</HI> becau&s;e the eye is much in adultery; The eye hath &s;o great a &s;hare in that &s;in,<NOTE PLACE="marg">In re amatoria oculi &s;unt leno|nes, prima amo|ris via. <HI>Lucian:</HI> Amoris princi|pium. <HI>Plato.</HI> Amoris &s;edes. <HI>Philo&s;tr:</HI> Nihil in oculis e&s;t quod non &s;it la&s;civum &amp; pe|tulans, nihil in oculorum pupilla in e&s;&s;e dicas, quam amicam, cum potiri non po&s;&s;unt, &s;altem con&s;pectu &s;e &s;a|nunt.</NOTE> that the whole &s;in is here charged upon the eye. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> (2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.14.) &s;peakes of a gene|ration of evill men, <HI>having their eyes full of adultery,</HI> or (as the Greeke Original hath it with much Empha&s;is) <HI>full of an Adulte|ne&s;&s;e.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; they are per&s;ons &s;o given up to un|cleanenes, that they have no de&s;ire to &s;ee any body with their eyes but an Adultere&s;&s;e, nor is any thing el&s;e to be &s;eene in their eyes but Adultery. They are as impudent as they are uncleane, letting out the Adultery which is in their hearts at their eyes, not caring who &s;ees it. Adultery is &s;eated in the heart, there's the fountaine of it (<HI>Math.</HI> 15.19.) <HI>Out of the heart proceed evill thoughts, murthers, adulteries, fornications, thefts, fal&s;e witne&s;&s;e, bla&s;phemy;</HI> Adultery comes out of the heart, but 'tis fir&s;t &s;eene in the eye, yea the eye often gives the fir&s;t occa&s;ion of it to the heart. (<HI>Math.</HI> 5.28.) <HI>Who&s;oever looketh upon a woman to lu&s;t after her, hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.</HI> Wanton love u&s;ually a&s;cends by the&s;e five &s;teps: Fir&s;t, the eye &s;ees; &s;econdly, the heart de&s;ires; thirdly, the thoughts are plotting and contriving how to attaine what is de&s;iered; fourthly, there is hope to attaine what is plotted, and, fifthly, there is joy and delight in the attaine|ment of what was hoped. Thus u&s;ually the eye gives the occa&s;ion and leads the dance in all the meetings of vanity. The Ancient Mo|rali&s;t (in his booke <HI>of the long-comming revenges of God</HI>) makes report that one <HI>Apollidorus</HI> being in a dreame &s;aw his owne skin pull'd off by a barbarous Scythian,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Plutarchus de &s;era numinis vindicta.</NOTE> who then pre&s;ently threw him into a chaldron of boileing water, where being tormented his heart whi&s;pered to him, <HI>I am the cau&s;e of all this.</HI> The heart is the cau&s;e of puni&s;hment and mi&s;ery, remotely, becau&s;e nextly it is the cau&s;e of &s;in, e&s;pecially of this &s;in of Adultery, yet as the heart doth &s;ome|times &s;et the eye a worke to finde out objects, &s;o the eye meeting with objects &s;ets the heart aworke, yea it &s;ets the heart a fire, or all in a flame with vaine de&s;ires and adulterous lu&s;tings. The eyes
<PB N="583" REF="305"> of &s;ome looke out continually for the fuel of tho&s;e &s;ecret fires, and the eyes of others meete with it unlooked for. A good mans eye may meete with a vaine object, but his eye doth not goe out to &s;eeke or waite for it. Again&s;t &s;uch active wickednes <HI>Job</HI> pro|fe&s;&s;ed while he &s;ayd (<HI>Chap.</HI> 31.1.) <HI>I have made a covenant with mine eyes,</HI> &amp;c. A godly mans eye hath &s;omewhat el&s;e to waite upon, then &s;uch en&s;naring objects. And the P&s;almi&s;t tells us upon what the Godly mans eye waites (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 123.2.) <HI>Behold as the eyes of &s;ervants looke unto the hand of their Ma&s;ters,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>&s;o our eyes waite upon the Lord our God untill he have mercy upon us.</HI> The eye of a Godly man waiteth to receive Good, and the eye of a wicked man waiteth to doe evill. The Adulterer hath <HI>a waiteing eye,</HI> and this waiteing notes three things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That the Adulterer is very diligent, and intentive to at|taine his purpo&s;e; he that waites is more then awake; He is not onely awake but watchfull; both the&s;e are put together (<HI>Pro.</HI> 8.34.) where the diligence of the Saints is &s;poken of in their waite|ing upon Chri&s;t in his appointments; <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man that hear|eth me, watching daily at my gates, waiteing at the po&s;ts of my doores;</HI> they who waite at the po&s;ts of wi&s;dome, that is, of Chri&s;t, <HI>watch al&s;o at his gates;</HI> they watch there, and they waite there. It is po&s;&s;ible for a man to watch, as watching is onely oppo&s;ed to &s;leeping, &amp; yet not to waite, that is, not to be diligent or attentive upon any bu&s;ienes, but he that watcheth, as watching is oppo&s;ed to Idling, he is alwayes waiting as long as watching, and he cannot but be watching, who is indeed waiting. Thus the Adulterer takes much paines to obtaine his forbidden plea&s;ures, his eye waiteth and watcheth, he is a diligent &s;ervant or &s;lave rather to his lu&s;t; every man that commits &s;in, is a &s;ervant to &s;in, and every &s;ervant mu&s;t waite; it is the duty of a &s;ervant to waite for his Lord, the adulterer waites upon his lu&s;t as upon his Lord, every lu&s;t would be waited upon as a Lord. Saints watch at wi&s;edomes gates, and waite like &s;ervants at her po&s;ts to know her plea&s;ure. Adulterers watch at whoredomes gates, and at her po&s;ts they waite for &s;infull plea&s;ures.</P>
<P>Secondly, To waite, implyeth the exerci&s;e of much patience; he that waiteth, expects long, he mu&s;t expect and &s;tay till the op|portunity comes, <HI>Even the wicked have patience, upon hopes of in|joyment;</HI> And &s;hall not the Godly? It may &s;hame the Godly out
<PB N="584" REF="306"> of their impatience and loathnes to waite for an an&s;wer of prayer from God, when they heare that <HI>The husband-man waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, untill he re|ceave the early and the latter raine</HI> (Jam: 5.7.) But it may &s;hame them much more out of all their impatience in waiting for good things from God, when they heare that the Adulterer waiteth for the whori&s;h woman, and hath long patience, till he receave his longing.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Waiteing implyeth the Adulterers fixedne&s;&s;e in and re&s;olvedne&s;&s;e to &s;inne, <HI>his eye waiteth;</HI> he doth not &s;in by a &s;udden glance of his eye, or upon a vehement gu&s;t of temptation, or upon an unthought of hurry of wanton pa&s;&s;ions, but he &s;ins deliberate|ly, and (as it were) in coole blood. He waiteth for and watcheth his &s;ea&s;on, he is &s;erious and &s;tudious about his wickednes.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>A wicked man &s;innes with re&s;olution.</Q>
<P>He that waiteth to doe any thing, hath a re&s;olution to doe it. A Godly man &s;ins, but he doth not waite to &s;in; or if at any time he doe &s;o, he at that time acts the wicked mans part in the godly mans &s;tate, and &s;o upon a &s;trong temptation Godly men have done. But u&s;ually he is a wicked man (as to his &s;tate) that waites for a temptation. Afflictions waite every where for a godly man (as <HI>Paul</HI> &s;pake of him&s;elfe, <HI>Acts</HI> 20.23.) and &s;o al&s;o doe Temp|tations. But the ungodly are every where waiteing for temptati|ons. They are not &s;urpri&s;ed, or taken unawares, by a &s;in, but they are re&s;olved to take their fir&s;t opportunity of &s;inning. What a godly man &s;ayth (when he is in a right frame) in reference to the wayes of holynes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 108.1.) <HI>O God my heart is prepared or fixed;</HI> A godly man doth not good upon a &s;udden, or by chance (as we &s;ay) but he &s;ets him&s;elfe to it, his heart is fixed or pre|pared, and his face is &s;et heaven-ward, or for heavenly duties. So <HI>Daniel</HI> &s;pake of him&s;elfe (<HI>Dan.</HI> 9.3.) <HI>I &s;et my face unto the Lord God to &s;eeke by prayer and &s;upplications,</HI> and as a godly man is in the wayes of God, &s;o the wayes of God are in him. Thus <HI>David</HI> de&s;cribes him (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 84.5.) <HI>Ble&s;&s;ed is the man who&s;e &s;trength is in thee, in who&s;e heart are the wayes of them,</HI> that is, the wayes which Godly men walke in, and they are the wayes of God. Now as this is the true &s;tate of godline&s;&s;e when the heart is
<PB N="585" REF="306"> in it and prepared for it, &s;o the true &s;tate of wickedne&s;&s;e is, when a mans heart is in it and prepared for it. This is the proper cha|racter of a wicked man. <HI>The eye of the Adulterer waiteth for the twilight.</HI></P>
<P>Every word hath weight in it, <HI>the twilight</HI> is the Adulterers &s;ea&s;on; It is not &s;ayd, he waites for the night, or for the day, but he waiteth for the <HI>twilight,</HI> which is neither day nor night, but between both. We have &s;uch a de&s;cription of time in reference to the mixt and uncertaine &s;tate of things (<HI>Zach.</HI> 14.6, 7.) <HI>And it &s;hall come to pa&s;&s;e in that day, that the light &s;hall not be cleare nor darke; But it &s;hall be one day which &s;hall be knowne to the Lord, not day nor night.</HI> Such a thing is Twilight, it is neyther cleare nor darke, neyther day nor night, but between both. There is a twofold twilight; fir&s;t, the morning twilight; and, &s;econdly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Diluculum. Crepu&s;culu~.</NOTE> the evening twilight; the morning twilight begins when the night ends, the evening twilight begins when the day ends. The Latines have two di&s;tinct words to expre&s;&s;e the&s;e di&s;tinct twilights by, but our language is not &s;o well &s;tored, and therefore we mu&s;t di|&s;tingui&s;h them by the matter &s;poken of, or the &s;cope of the &s;pea|ker. Thus here, when 'tis &s;ayd in the text, he <HI>waiteth for the twi|light,</HI> we are to under&s;tand it of the evening twilight, not for the morning twilight, and the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e the morning twilight is not for the adulterers turne or purpo&s;e, for then the light prevailes upon the darkne&s;s, but it is the evening twilight, for then darkne&s;s prevailes upon the light. And that this is the Adulterers twilight is cleare (<HI>Prov.</HI> 7. <HI>v.</HI> 6, 7, 8, 9.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nox et tenebrae admini&s;trae &s;unt impijs &s;uarum libidinum. Ip&s;a nox alioquin cae|ca infandarum tamen libidinu~ oculatus te&s;tis e&s;t.</NOTE>) <HI>At the window of my hou&s;e</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon) I looked through the ca&s;ement, and behold among the &s;imple ones, I di&s;cerned among the youths, a man voyd of under|&s;tanding, pa&s;&s;ing by the way to her hou&s;e, and he went neere her cor|ner, in the twilight in the evening</HI> (or) <HI>in the evening of the day, in the blacke and darke night. And behold there met him a woman with the attire of a harlot,</HI> &amp;c. His eye waited for the twilight, and in the twilight he was taken.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The doing of evill hath its proper &s;ea&s;ons, as well as the doing of good.</Q>
<P>Though &s;in be never in &s;ea&s;on, yet it hath &s;ome times which are
<PB N="586" REF="307"> more &s;ea&s;onable for it; to &s;in is never in &s;ea&s;on, as to the lawfull|ne&s;&s;e of committing it, but &s;in hath its &s;ea&s;ons as to the conveni|ency of committing it. The Adulterer takes his &s;ea&s;on, <HI>he waiteth for the twilight.</HI> Whence note &s;econdly.</P>
<Q>Evill men are very carefull to hit their &s;ea&s;ons for the doing of evill.</Q>
<P>It were de&s;ireable that the godly were as carefull to hit their &s;ea&s;ons, and take their times, as the ungodly are. <HI>To every thing</HI> (&s;aith the Preacher, <HI>Eccl:</HI> 3.1.) <HI>there is a &s;ea&s;on and a time for every purpo&s;e under the Sunne.</HI> And becau&s;e it is &s;o (&s;aith the &s;ame Preacher, <HI>Eccl:</HI> 8.6.) <HI>The mi&s;ery of man is great upon him.</HI> But why doth this make the mi&s;ery of man great upon him? I an|&s;wer, The rea&s;on of this mi&s;ery upon man, is not becau&s;e there is a &s;ea&s;on, but becau&s;e eyther of his ignorance or negligence to find it. There are a thou&s;and wayes to mi&s;&s;e a &s;ea&s;on, and but one to hit it; And were there as many wayes to hit as to mi&s;&s;e, it were a thou&s;and to one but man would mi&s;&s;e rather then hit; and therefore the mi&s;ery of man is great upon him, Becau&s;e if once he mi&s;&s;e his &s;ea&s;on, it cannot be recovered, and then he mu&s;t needs be mi&s;erable. Good men are mi&s;erable (as to &s;ome ca&s;es) becau&s;e they are often &s;o carele&s;&s;e to hit their &s;ea&s;on of doing good, and doe &s;o often mi&s;&s;e it, notwith&s;tanding all their care. Wicked men are for ever mi&s;erable, becau&s;e they are &s;o carefull not to mi&s;&s;e their &s;ea&s;on of doing evill, and doe &s;o often hit it. The eye of the Adulterer waiteth for the twilight, and he &s;eldome (as to his own end) waites in vaine. But why is he &s;o greedy for the twilight? The next words &s;ay why, where he brought in
<Q>Saying, no eye &s;hall &s;ee me.</Q></P>
<P>Where &s;ayth he this? he &s;ayth it in his heart, this is his di&s;cour&s;e in his owne brea&s;t; and to whom &s;ayth he this? he &s;ayth it to him&s;elfe, there is a dialogue between the Adulterer and his owne heart, and thus he concludes, <HI>I will waite for the twilight, and then no eye &s;hall &s;ee me.</HI> And when he &s;ayth, <HI>no eye &s;hall &s;ee me,</HI> his mean|ing is, There is not any eye that &s;hall &s;ee me. Thus he playes the foole at <HI>All's hid.</HI></P>
<P>Yet further, this <HI>no eye</HI> may have a threefold reference.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, No eye of common men &s;hall &s;ee me, I will doe this in
<PB N="587" REF="307"> &s;ecret, I will have &s;uch a cover of darkne&s;&s;e over me, that my neighbours and friends &s;hall not be able to take any notice of mee.</P>
<P>Secondly, No eye, may referre to men in chiefe, that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Verba quae &s;e|quuntur exigunt ut i&s;ta de Ma|gi&s;tratus ju&s;ti|tiae&abque; mini&s;tris intelligantur. <HI>Bold:</HI> Qui&s;quis aut officio aut quo|vis alio modo &s;uper alios in|&s;picit, actu&s;&abque; eorum ob&s;ervat vocatur oculus.</NOTE> no eye of the Magi&s;trate, nor of any Mini&s;ter of Ju&s;tice &s;hall &s;ee me. Magi&s;trates are the eyes of a Nation, they &s;hould overlooke all places, eyther by them&s;elves or their Officers, to ob&s;erve what is done. As the adulterers eye watcheth, &s;o there &s;hould be an eye of Ju&s;tice watching to catch Adulterers. Some interpret this Text, e&s;pecially of the adulterers hope, or &s;elfe-per&s;wa&s;ion that he &s;hall e&s;cape the eye or knowledge of the Magi&s;trate, who is appointed to over&s;ee the manners of that people over whom he is placed, and to be a terror, yea a Mini&s;ter of vengeance to them that doe evill; <HI>for he beareth not the &s;word in vaine</HI> (Rom. 13.3, 4.) Ma|gi&s;trates &s;hould &s;o much marke and eye the &s;tate of a people, that they are called <HI>eyes</HI> in Scripture (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 29.10.) <HI>For the Lord hath powred out upon you the &s;pirit of deepe &s;leepe, and hath clo&s;ed your eyes</HI> (what or who are tho&s;e eyes? the next words enforme us) <HI>the Prophets and Rulers, the &s;eers hath he covered.</HI> The Hebrew word which we render <HI>rulers</HI> is <HI>heads;</HI> Rulers are the heads of a people, and what is a head without eyes, or having its eyes cove|red. God did not cover the eyes which were in the peoples per|&s;onal heads, but he covered the eyes which were in their publicke heads. <HI>He hath clo&s;ed your eyes,</HI> that is, tho&s;e that &s;hould be as heads and eyes to you, your Prophets and your rulers. Thus al&s;o &s;ay &s;ome, Government is expre&s;&s;ed by an eye (<HI>Deut.</HI> 33.28.) <HI>I&s;rael then &s;hall dwell in &s;afety alone,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Fons vel oculus Jacob &s;uum im|perium habebit in terra Ca|naan. <HI>Bold:</HI> Apud per&s;arum reges. quidam fuerunt qui di|cebantur <HI>oculi &amp; aures.</HI> Ze|noph.</NOTE> <HI>the fountaine of Jacob &s;hall be upon a land of corne and wine, al&s;o his heaven &s;hall drop dew.</HI> That which we tran&s;late <HI>the fountaine of Jacob,</HI> others render as well, and as truely from the Original, <HI>the eye of Jacob,</HI> that is, (&s;ay they) <HI>the Magi&s;tracy, the ruling power,</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, as the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> in generall &s;hall dwell in &s;afety, &s;o their eye, their go|vernment or their Governours in &s;peciall &s;hall be ble&s;&s;ed with plenty, they &s;hall be upon a land of corne and wine. It hath been ob&s;erved al&s;o in antiquity, that great Princes had certaine men in office <HI>whom they called their eyes.</HI> Princes have their eyes and eares in every place, that is, their Officers. Thus we may expound this Text, the Adulterer &s;ayth, <HI>No eye &s;hall &s;ee me.</HI> The ruling or Ma|gi&s;traticall eye &s;hall not &s;ee me and if what I doe be not &s;eene by
<PB N="588" REF="308"> that eye (let others &s;ee what they will, and &s;ay what they plea&s;e) I &s;hall not &s;uffer at all for what I doe; and then all's well, that's as much as I care for. And here we may note, That, As &s;ome Adul|terers have their eyes abroad, that is, agents to e&s;py out Beauties for them. So mo&s;t of them (if not all) are afraid of the eyes of others.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>No eye &s;hall &s;ee me,</HI> that is, not the eye of God; God him&s;elfe &s;hall not &s;ee me. Thus the adulterer hopes to hide his &s;in from his eye who is indeed all eye,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Homines latere cupiens Dei o|culum non ti|meus.</NOTE> and who&s;e eye is over all. Thus the adulterer &s;uppo&s;eth him&s;elfe under &s;uch a vayl of darknes, that he is free not onely from the eye of men on earth, and from the eye of tho&s;e who are gods upon earth, but even from the eye of the God of heaven.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> A &s;inner is full of vaine pre&s;umption.</Q>
<P>He pre&s;umes that the &s;in which he commits again&s;t the light of his owne con&s;cience, &s;hall never come to light; he pre&s;umes that the &s;in which he commits in his owne eye, &s;hall not come to the eye of others. I have el&s;ewhere noted this ignorant confidence of carnal men, and onely name it here.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note.</P>
<Q>It is not the act of &s;in, but the di&s;covery of it which a wicked man feareth.</Q>
<P>He cares not what wickedne&s;&s;e he doth, &s;o he may goe un|&s;eene; a godly man is afraid of doing evill, though he could doe it with greate&s;t &s;ecrecy, or under the darke&s;t cover: he is afraid to doe evill, becau&s;e of the evill and unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e of it, becau&s;e of the pollution, and unan&s;werablene&s;&s;e of it, both to his owne duty, and the goodne&s;&s;e of God to him; but it is the di&s;covery not the iniquity of his worke, which the hypocrite feareth.</P>
<P>Thirdly, As the eye is taken for the eye of the Magi&s;trate.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That it is the puni&s;hment of &s;in at which a wicked man is troubled, he is not troubled at the &s;in it &s;elfe.</Q>
<P>'Tis the con&s;equence of &s;in, not the nature of it, the &s;mart of &s;in, and not the filth of it, which the wicked would avoyd.</P>
<PB N="589" REF="308">
<P>La&s;tly, As no eye is exclu&s;ive al&s;o to the eye of God.</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Wicked men pre&s;ume that their &s;ins are &s;ecret even to God him|&s;elfe.</Q>
<P>They thinke, &s;ure, God can &s;ee no further, nor no better then man; And &s;o they have hopes to hide them&s;elves, not onely from the eyes of men, but from the eyes of God, as we may &s;ee plainly (<HI>Jere.</HI> 23.23.) <HI>Can any hide him&s;elfe in &s;ecret places, that I &s;hall not &s;ee him, &s;aith the Lord;</HI> This que&s;tion, <HI>can any?</HI> &s;hews that &s;ome had flattered them&s;elves into &s;uch a conclu&s;ion, that they could &s;o hide them&s;elves in &s;ecret places, that God could not &s;ee them. The holy P&s;almi&s;t &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.12.) <HI>The darkne&s;&s;e hideth not from thee, but the night &s;hineth as the day, the darkne&s;&s;e and the light to thee are both alike.</HI> But a wicked man &s;ayth, the darkne&s;&s;e hideth from thee, the night is night to thee. O what beggerly apprehen&s;ions have men of God! As if he who&s;e eyes are ten thou&s;and times brighter then the Sunne, could not &s;ee without Sunlight, or as if he could not &s;ee but in the light, who made the light.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vanus e&s;t qui purat &s;e in tene|bris e&s;&s;e tutum, cum lucem vi|tare non po&s;&s;it, quae lucet in te|nebris &amp; tene|brae eam non comprehende|runt. <HI>Ambro&s;:</HI></NOTE> Naturali&s;ts &s;ay of tho&s;e living creatures which have fiery eyes, that they can &s;ee as well in the darke as in the light, the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e they &s;ee not by taking in the &s;pecies of the object into the eye, but by &s;ending out a light from their own eye upon the object. God hath fiery eyes indeed; he needs no outward light to &s;ee by who is nothing el&s;e but light. Vaine &s;in|ner, what can be darknes to him, who is light, and in whom there is no darkenes at all? There is nothing doth more argue the blind|nes of a &s;inner, then this &s;imple &s;aying of his, <HI>No eye &s;eeth me,</HI> un|le&s;&s;e it be that &s;imple practice of his which he u&s;eth to the &s;ame purpo&s;e, and which is di&s;covered (as his la&s;t &s;hift) in the la&s;t words of this ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>And he di&s;gui&s;eth his face.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>He &s;etteth his face into a &s;ecret;</HI> he muffles him|&s;elfe, he changeth his habit, he puts on a vi&s;ard; harlots were wont to di&s;gui&s;e them&s;elves (<HI>Gen.</HI> 39.14.) when <HI>Tamar</HI> tooke upon her the habit of an harlot, the Text &s;aith, <HI>She put on a di&s;|gui&s;e;</HI> &s;o here the Adulterer puts on a di&s;gui&s;e, he puts a cozzen|ing face upon his face, and then thinkes, that though he be &s;eene,
<PB N="590" REF="309"> yet he cannot be di&s;cerned, and that, though &s;ome may &s;ee where he is, yet none &s;hall &s;ee who he is, <HI>He di&s;gui&s;eth his face.</HI> One would have thought that being in the twilight, and the darkenes of the night ready to compa&s;&s;e him about, that no eye could &s;ee him, he &s;hould not need to have put on a vi&s;ard or a muffler, yet he doth &s;o, he puts a di&s;gui&s;e upon his face.</P>
<P>Which may teach us&punc;
<Q>That when a man doth ill, he never thinks he is &s;afe, or &s;ecret enough.</Q></P>
<P>When a mans con&s;cience tells him he &s;ins, he would not have any other tell him &s;o too. The Adulterer feares twilight is too light for him, and therefore while the naturall darkenes is &s;o im|perfect, he puts his face into perfect artificiall darkenes. <HI>Job</HI> yet proceeds to &s;hew this cowardly temper of &s;inners in their feare to be &s;eene, eyther by a further di&s;covery of the &s;ame &s;ort of &s;inners, or of another &s;ort, in the &s;ame frame.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="16" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 16.</HI></BIBL> In the darke they dig through hou&s;es which they have marked for them&s;elves in the day time, they know not the light.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>We have all along the words, and the works of darkne&s;&s;e; <HI>In the darke, they dig through hou&s;es;</HI> The que&s;tion is, who are here meant by the&s;e diggers; &s;ome under&s;tand the ver&s;e of the adulte|rer; And whereas he &s;peaks here in the plurall number, and be|fore in the &s;ingular; 'tis frequent in Scripture (&s;ay they) to vary the number while the &s;ame &s;ubject is continued. And that while he &s;aith, <HI>They,</HI> the meaning is <HI>One and All</HI> of them are bent and apt enough to doe thus. But is digging through hou&s;es the worke of an Adulterer? In an&s;wer to this, it hath been &s;toryed and remembred, that Adulterers have u&s;ed &s;uch boy&s;terous practi|ces to come at their unlawfull plea&s;ures;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec domorum perfo&s;&s;ia, non ad latrocinia noc|turna, &s;ed ad turpes artes pe|netrandi in a|lienas domos manife&s;t&egrave; perti|net. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> they have digged through hou&s;es to make private pa&s;&s;ages that they might not be di&s;covered when they came to, or when they departed from their lovers. It hath been commonly &s;ayd that hunger will break through &s;tone walls, and 'tis a truth that wantonnes will doe &s;o too. Some have been &s;o mad upon their lu&s;ts, that if they could not finde a way, they would make one to meete with their paramours. Upon this con&s;ideration we may fayrely enterpret this ver&s;e (as the former) concerning the Adulterer.</P>
<PB N="591" REF="309">
<P>But I rather conceive that this 16^t^h ver&s;e containes a de&s;cripti|on of another &s;ort of &s;inners, Theeves or Robbers. Becau&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ego libentius haec de latroni|bus quam de A|dulteris cape|rem; Quia hoc latrones &s;aepe fa|ciunt, Adulte<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i non ni&s;i per quam raro. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE> though it be true, that Adulterers doe &s;ometimes digge through hou&s;es, yet this is both more frequently and more properly the bu&s;ienes of Theeves. Another rea&s;on to per&s;wade this under&s;tanding of the pre&s;ent Text may be, becau&s;e &s;o we have a fuller and more particular enumeration of &s;everal &s;orts of &s;in and &s;inners.</P>
<Q>In the darke they dig through hou&s;es.</Q>
<P>To dig through hou&s;es, is the worke of a theife. And thus Chri&s;t &s;peakes of the theife (<HI>Luk.</HI> 12.39.) <HI>And this know that if the good man of the hou&s;e had knowne what houre the theife would have come, he would have watched, and not have &s;uffered his hou&s;e to have been broken through. Jacob</HI> &s;ayth of <HI>Simeon</HI> and <HI>Levi (Gen.</HI> 49.6.) <HI>In their anger they digged thorow a wall.</HI> Some breake thorow walls for want, or in covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e to rob and &s;teale, others for anger and in wrath to kill and de&s;troy. <HI>They dig thorow hou&s;es,</HI>
<Q>Which they had marked for them&s;elves in the day time.</Q></P>
<P>See the method and cunning of the&s;e robbers; here are three poynts of their &s;infull skill. Fir&s;t; <HI>they marke hou&s;es;</HI> the word &s;ignifies, <HI>to marke with a &s;eale;</HI> as if they did put their &s;eale upon other mens hou&s;es for their owne u&s;e. Theeves goe abroad in the day time to e&s;py where they may commit a robbery with be&s;t ad|vantage, and they &s;et their marke upon &s;uch hou&s;es as they re&s;olve to rob; or, which I rather take to be the meaning, they diligently ob&s;erve the &s;trength of the hou&s;e, the wayes to the hou&s;e, what company is in the hou&s;e, where they may with mo&s;t ea&s;e and advantage breake into the hou&s;e. All this they doe in the day by way of preparation, and in the darke they put their purpo&s;es into execution; <HI>In the darke they digge through hou&s;es which they had marked in the day.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Sinners would make &s;ure worke, they would not mi&s;&s;e.</Q>
<P>And therefore they eyther &s;et their marke upon a hou&s;e, or exactly marke it. O how witty, and how cunning men are to doe mi&s;chiefe!</P>
<P>Secondly, Whereas they went from Towne to Towne, and
<PB N="592" REF="310"> any hou&s;e they &s;aw and liked, they marked it for them&s;elves.</P>
<P>Learne.</P>
<Q>An unju&s;t per&s;on makes every thing his owne, if he can come by it, if he can but get it.</Q>
<P>He &s;ayth of another mans hou&s;e, this is mine, I will fill my own hou&s;e with the &s;poyle and plunder of this.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The theife marked hou&s;es
<Q>In the day time.</Q></P>
<P>He digged through them in the night, but he made u&s;e of the day; he would not breake open a hou&s;e in the day, but had &s;ome|what to doe towards the breaking open of a hou&s;e in the day, he marked it in the day.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>That time which &s;uites not one wicked purpo&s;e, may &s;uite another.</Q>
<P>The theife makes u&s;e of all times, he makes u&s;e of the day to marke hou&s;es, and of the night to digge them through. He is care|full to take his time; to doe the worke of the day upon the day, and the worke of the night, in the night.</P>
<Q>They know not the light.</Q>
<P>But why doth <HI>Job</HI> adde this? &s;ayd he not before, that they marked hou&s;es for them&s;elves in the day? How then doth he &s;ay,
<Q>They know not the light.</Q></P>
<P>Knowing is not meant of a bare act of knowledge, as if they knew not when it was light, and when it was darke, or as if they knew not the nature of light, what kinde of creature it is. But, <HI>not to know,</HI> is not to affect; <HI>They know not the light,</HI> that is, they care not, they love not the light. In which &s;ence words of know|ledge are often u&s;ed in Scripture. (<HI>Nah.</HI> 1.7.) <HI>The Lord know|eth the &s;oule that tru&s;teth in him.</HI> The Lord knows tho&s;e that doe not tru&s;t in him, he knows tho&s;e that are unbeleiveing as well as tho&s;e that beleive in a way of di&s;cerning who they are; but he knows the &s;oule that tru&s;teth in him, in a way of loving and ap|proveing him;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non no&s;&s;e lu|cem e&s;t non a|ma<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e.</NOTE> &s;o here, <HI>They know not the light,</HI> that is, they have no love to the light, no delight in the light, they care not for the
<PB N="593" REF="310"> light. But it may be objected; It &s;hould &s;eeme the&s;e men cared for the light, and liked it well, for they made much u&s;e of it; <HI>In the day they marked hou&s;es.</HI> I an&s;wer, When <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>They know not the light,</HI> we may re&s;traine it to one part of their bu&s;ie|nes, and that the maine, <HI>Their digging through hou&s;es;</HI> for this pur|po&s;e (which was their principall purpo&s;e) <HI>they knew not the light,</HI> that is, they neyther loved nor liked the light, darkenes was more welcome to them. I &s;hall not give any notes from the&s;e words here, having before (e&s;pecially at the 12^t^h ver&s;e, where it is &s;ayd, <HI>They are &s;uch as rebel again&s;t the light, they know not the wayes of it,</HI> &amp;c.) been &s;omewhat large upon the &s;ame &s;ubject; As al&s;o be|cau&s;e the next ver&s;e is but a further illu&s;tration and enforcement of the&s;e words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="17" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 17.</HI></BIBL> For the morning is to them even as the &s;haddow of death, if one know them they are in the terrours of the &s;haddow of death.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>This ver&s;e gives a rea&s;on, why the&s;e theives tooke the night for their worke; or it is an expo&s;ition of what was la&s;t &s;ayd, <HI>They know not the light.</HI></P>
<P>The text may be read thus out of the Original,<NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;mbra mortis <HI>i. e.</HI> tam terri|bilis ut aliquem enecare pote&s;t. Genitivus ef|fecti. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI> Cum venit ma|ne venit umbra, dictum acut&egrave; propter &s;peciem contradictionis.</NOTE> <HI>As &s;oone as it is morning the &s;haddow of death comes upon them.</HI> This Hebrai&s;me the <HI>&s;haddow of death,</HI> hath been opened at the 5^t^h ver&s;e of the third Chapter, whether I referre the reader. In this place, it onely imports thus much in General, That the&s;e wicked men did equally feare the morning as death it &s;elfe; they were &s;urpri&s;ed with feare, as &s;oone as &s;urpri&s;ed with light. What is the rea&s;on of it, why doth the adulterer feare the morning, and why doth the theife feare the morning? they doe &s;o upon the&s;e three con&s;iderations.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Le&s;t they &s;hould be hindred in their wicked workes; &s;econdly, le&s;t their wicked workes &s;hould be di&s;cerned; thirdly, le&s;t their wicked workes &s;hould be puni&s;hed, for the&s;e rea&s;ons they hate the light, and <HI>the morning is to them as the &s;haddow of death.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That good things even the be&s;t things are a trouble to wicked men.</Q>
<P>Sin makes good things evill to us, and plea&s;ant things trouble|&s;ome to us. What a plea&s;ant thing is the light? How beautifull
<PB N="594" REF="311"> are the eyelids of the morning? yet light is a trouble, and the mor|ning a burden to wicked men. And if natural light be a trouble to them, much more is moral and &s;pirituall light. How doe they hate the morning of truth, the dawnings of divine knowledge? The&s;e lights to life, the&s;e enlivening lights are to them as the &s;had|dow of death. In how deplorable a condition are they to whom Good becomes evill, and that which good men rejoyce in, is to them an occa&s;ion of &s;orrow. The whole cour&s;e of nature is out of frame to us, till we are &s;et into a right frame by grace. We put light for darkenes and darkenes for light, till we our &s;elves are brought out of darkenes into light. Nothing is good to us till we are made good, nor doth any thing plea&s;e us, except &s;in or that which we u&s;e &s;infully, till we plea&s;e God. The very <HI>morning</HI> (which gives a new life to all) is to &s;ome <HI>as the &s;hadow of death.</HI></P>
<Q>If one know them, they are in the terrours of the &s;haddow of death.</Q>
<P>The&s;e words are but a further explication of the &s;ame thing, <HI>if one,</HI> that is, <HI>if any one,</HI> man, woman, or childe, as we &s;ay, <HI>know them,</HI> that is, take notice of them, in their wickedne&s;&s;e, or take notice of their wickedne&s;&s;e, they are (as we &s;ay) <HI>dead in the ne&s;t.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum agno&s;cit alius alium. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE>Others render the words thus, <HI>if they know one another,</HI> that is, if only &s;o much of the light of the morning breakes forth, as &s;erves them to &s;ee one anothers faces, they are afraid. So this phra&s;e is u&s;ed (<HI>Ruth</HI> 3.14.) <HI>And &s;hee lay at his feete untill the morning, and &s;he ro&s;e up before one could know another,</HI> that is, before there was light enough to di&s;cerne each other. So the&s;e two readings, <HI>if one know them, or if they know one another,</HI> meete in the &s;ame Ge|neral &s;ence, their unwillingnes to be di&s;covered at their worke; if once there be light enough for the&s;e evill-workers to &s;ee them|&s;elves by, they then know they may al&s;o be &s;eene by others; And if <HI>one</HI> (any one) <HI>know them:</HI>
<Q>They are in the terrours of the &s;haddow of death.</Q></P>
<P>That is, they are troubled like them, who being ready to dye, are yet unwilling to dye; when death &s;tands at a mans bed-&s;ide, when death &s;tands at his back ready to attach and apprehend him, ready to carry him away, while yet he is alltogether unwilling and unready to dye, O in what a terrour is he? Ju&s;t thus it is (&s;aith <HI>Job</HI>) with tho&s;e wicked men, they are not onely afraid to dye,
<PB N="595" REF="311"> but the terrours of the &s;hadow of death are upon them, their ter|rour is &s;uch as men have when death over-&s;haddows them; That's the meaning of, <HI>They are in the terrours of the &s;hadow of death.</HI></P>
<P>A &s;haddow in Scripture is taken two wayes. Fir&s;t, properly, for that darkne&s;&s;e which is cau&s;ed by the interpo&s;ition of a thicke bo|dy, between us and the Sunne. Secondly, improperly or meta|phorically, and &s;o that is a &s;haddow which keepes off the heate of the Sunne, or the violence of the raine and winde; and &s;o by a trope any thing of defence is called a &s;hadow. (<HI>Judg.</HI> 9.9.15.) <HI>Come tru&s;t under my &s;hadow</HI> (&s;ayd the bramble) that is, put your &s;elves under my protection. And againe (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 30.2, 3.) <HI>There|fore &s;hall the &s;trength of Pharaoh be your &s;hame, and the tru&s;t in the &s;haddow</HI> (or protection) <HI>of Aegypt your confu&s;ion.</HI> So (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 49.2.) <HI>In the &s;hadow of his hand hath he hid me.</HI> And (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 51.16.) <HI>I have covered thee in the &s;hadow of my hand,</HI> as birds cover or &s;hel|ter their young ones with their wings and feathers. Thus the Scripture &s;peakes of a &s;hadow. But what is the &s;hadow of death? It is fir&s;t, the appearance of death; &s;econdly, the power of death. So the the meaning is (as was touched before) they are as much terrified, as if death appeared to them, as if the image of death pa&s;|&s;ed before them in vi&s;ion, or as if the power of it had taken hold of them to bring them pri&s;oners to the grave.</P>
<Q>If one know them, they are in the terrour of the &s;hadow of death.</Q>
<P>I have from the former words of this context, as al&s;o at the 12^t^h ver&s;e taken occa&s;ion to ob&s;erve, how trouble&s;ome both the light of the Sunne and the light of the minde are to evill men, and therefore I &s;hall not &s;tay upon any In&s;tructions of that kinde here.</P>
<P>Yet fora&s;much as not onely the Murderer and Adulterer, &s;po|ken of before, but the Theife &s;poken of here, are all for darkenes and concealement.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That &s;inners have a &s;ecret conviction upon them&s;elves, that what they doe is not good.</Q>
<P>They draw up their own enditement, and condemne them&s;elves before God doth. They would rocke con&s;cience a&s;leepe, but they cannot, they would blind it, but they cannot. This their delight in
<PB N="596" REF="312"> darkne&s;&s;e, both outward and inward, is a plaine demon&s;tration that they know their deedes are evill. Chri&s;t &s;ayth as much (<HI>Joh.</HI> 3.20, 21.) <HI>Every one that doth evill hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, le&s;t his deeds &s;hould be reproved.</HI> No man feares his deeds will be reproved, but he that &s;u&s;pects at lea&s;t, that his deeds are his faults, and his actings his tran&s;gre&s;&s;ings; for as it followes, <HI>He that doth truth</HI> (that is, who acts according to the truth) <HI>cometh to the light.</HI> He that doth good, or truth indeed, yea he who is but per&s;waded that he doth &s;o, cares not who &s;ees him; &s;ome are am|bitious to be &s;eene while they doe &s;o, and though any &s;hould be &s;o mode&s;t that they doe not de&s;ire to be &s;eene while they doe &s;o, yet no man that doth &s;o is affrayd to be &s;eene; and u&s;ually &s;uch come to the light, to the light of other mens knowledge, and they would come further into the light of their own knowledg; &s;uch are free to <HI>come to light of all &s;orts, that their deeds may be made manife&s;t, that they are wrought in God;</HI> when a man comes to the light, he gives a fayre evidence that his workes are wrought in God, how ever it argues both that he de&s;ires they &s;hould be &s;uch as are wrought in God, as al&s;o that he is willing they &s;hould come to the tryall, whether they are wrought in God or no, that is, whether they be &s;o wrought, as if God did worke in him, or whether there be any appearance in them that he hath wrought them in the light and love, in the &s;trength and helpe of God. Now as when a man comes willingly to the light, it &s;hewes that he hath an hone&s;t per&s;wa|&s;ion in his brea&s;t, that his workes are good. So when we &s;ee any &s;eeking corners and &s;hunning the light by which others may &s;ee them, or that light by which they may &s;ee them&s;elves, this &s;hews that they have a trouble&s;ome conviction upon their con&s;ciences, that their workes are &s;o farre from being wrought in God, that they are wrought again&s;t God, that is, again&s;t his mind and will. This, the Apo&s;tle teacheth in the example of the old Gentiles (<HI>Rom.</HI> 2.15.) <HI>They &s;hew the worke of the Law written in their hearts, their con&s;cience bearing them witne&s;&s;e, and their thoughts in the meane while accu&s;ing or excu&s;ing one another.</HI> Were there not an unextingui&s;hable light in nature, by which even a natural man may have &s;ome glimmerings of and di&s;cernings between good and evill, he would no more avoyd the &s;ight of others when he doth evill, then when he doth good. And &s;eeing he thus naturally a|voydes the view and &s;ight of all men when he doth evill; This
<PB N="597" REF="312"> doth more then intimate that there is a Judge above nature, who, <HI>without re&s;pect of per&s;ons, will reward every man according to his workes.</HI> Con&s;cience is Gods Deputy in man, and what that (be|ing rightly enformed) doth in man, God will doe too. Wee are &s;o a&s;&s;ured by the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> (1 <HI>Joh.</HI> 3.21.) <HI>If our heart con|demne us, God is greater then our heart, and knoweth all things;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, this is an argument that there is a God to condemn, becau&s;e the heart condemnes; <HI>For God is greater then the heart.</HI> God is the &s;upreame Judge, the infallible Judge, the heart is but an under-officer unto him. Why &s;hould the heart of a man &s;mite him? why &s;hould he be troubled when he hath done evill? why &s;hould he be &s;o troubled to be &s;eene in doing evill? were it not that there is a God, who judgeth both the hearts and wayes of men; While <HI>the foole &s;aith in his heart there is no God,</HI> (P&s;al. 14.1.) the heart of a foole &s;ayth there is a God: while he &s;aith in his heart there is no God to &s;ee my &s;in, his heart &s;aith to him, cover thy &s;in, that it may not be &s;eene; and what Engli&s;h can we make of this &s;aying of his heart, but this, There is a God. For though <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake here of &s;uch gro&s;&s;e &s;inners as have rea&s;on enough to hide them&s;elves and their doings from the eyes of men, le&s;t they &s;hould bring them both to &s;hame and puni&s;hment, yet even tho&s;e &s;inners are fearefull to have their &s;ins di&s;covered, who need not feare any puni&s;hment but from the hand of God.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Sin befools the &s;inner, or &s;inners are very fooli&s;h.</Q>
<P>They are glad if they can e&s;cape the eye of man, when as their &s;ins are alwayes under the eye of God. What is the eye from which darkne&s;&s;e can hide us, to that eye which &s;eeth through darkenes? <HI>If one &s;ee them</HI> (&s;aith the text) <HI>they are in the terrors of the &s;hadow of death,</HI> and yet they are not terrifyed that <HI>One</HI> &s;eeth them. <HI>That One</HI> &s;eeth them alwayes who is more then all men, and yet they are &s;atisfyed if they are not &s;eene of men. That which they would not doe if a little childe did &s;ee them, they dare doe though the Great God of heaven and earth &s;ee them. What the Prophet &s;peakes of feare in reference to &s;uffering, wee may &s;ay much more of feare in reference to &s;inning, (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 51.12, 13.) <HI>Who art thou, that thou &s;hould&s;t be afraid of a man that &s;hall dye, and forgette&s;t the Lord thy Creator? Who art thou?</HI> &s;urely thou
<PB N="598" REF="313"> art &s;o far from being a Godly man, that thou art le&s;&s;e then a man, in this thing, even a foole, and a bea&s;t. What? doe&s;t thou feare to &s;in in the pre&s;ence of a man, or when a man, who &s;hall dye &s;eeth thee, and forgette&s;t that the Lord thy maker &s;eeth thee? that he &s;eeth thee <HI>who hath &s;tretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth.</HI> Well might the Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 3.2.) joyne the&s;e two together, <HI>unrea&s;onable and wicked men,</HI> and give the rea&s;on of both in the words which follow, <HI>for all men have not faith.</HI> Where there is no faith, there is much wickedne&s;&s;e, and he who is much in wickedne&s;&s;e, is nothing in rea&s;on. Faith is above rea&s;on, but not again&s;t it; wickedne&s;&s;e is not onely below rea&s;on, but quite again&s;t it. They who act again&s;t that rule which is given by God to man, act al&s;o again&s;t that rea&s;o~ which is given by God to man. No man acts &s;o much again&s;t faith, as he who doth not beleeve that God &s;eeth him in all his actings, nor doth any man act more again&s;t rea&s;on, then he who beleeveth that God &s;eeth him, and yet is more afraid to be &s;eene of men, then he is to be &s;eene of God.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="599" REF="313">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 18.</HI></BIBL>
<P>He is &s;wift as the waters, his portion is Cur&s;ed in the earth: he beholdeth not the way of the Vineyards.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="18" TYPE="verse">
<P>THere are foure Apprehen&s;ions concerning the general &s;cope of the&s;e words.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Job</HI> is conceived here de&s;cribing a fourth &s;ort of wicked men, or the &s;ame men acting a fourth &s;ort of wickednes; for ha|ving (as hath been &s;hewed from the former words) fir&s;t drawne out the doings of the murtherer, and &s;econdly, of the Adulterer, and thirdly, of the theife at land digging through hou&s;es, he in the fourth place (as &s;ome Interpret the text) proceeds to di&s;cover the Pyrate, who is a theife upon the water, a Sea-theife; <HI>He is &s;wift as the waters,</HI> or, <HI>he is &s;wift upon the waters:</HI> The letter of the Hebrew, is, <HI>He is &s;wift upon the faces of the waters,</HI> he moves in, and upon all waters. It is u&s;uall in Scripture to call the out|ward part of any thing, the face of it, as the face of the heavens, is that part of the heavens which doth outwardly appeare to us, or is next to our eye. <HI>O ye hypocrites</HI> (&s;ayth Chri&s;t, <HI>Math.</HI> 16.3.) <HI>ye can di&s;cerne the face of the skie.</HI> So the face of the earth is the &s;uperficies, or upper part of the earth, and the face of the waters, is the upper part of the waters. The word in the text is plural, <HI>faces, he is &s;wift upon the faces of the water;</HI> that is, when he hath murtherd, committed Adultery, and robbed at land, when the Earth is weary of him, then he betakes him&s;elfe to the Sea, and turnes Pyrate. There is a truth in this,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Velocit&ecirc;r man<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> &s;e ad mare re|cipiunt. <HI>Vatab:</HI> Levis e&s;t ad n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">tandum &s;ive remigandu~ &s;u|per faciens a|quae. <HI>Targ:</HI></NOTE> &s;ome men make &s;uch a progre&s;&s;e in wickedne&s;&s;e; they try all trades of &s;in upon the earth, and then trade &s;infully upon the water, defileing both earth and water, both &s;ea and &s;hoare, polluting all the Elements with their abominations. And in pur&s;uance of this expo&s;ition the two other Clau&s;es of the ver&s;e are thus expounded, <HI>Their portion is Cur&s;ed in the earth,</HI> that is, they who live at land Cur&s;e them when they are gone to Sea, fearing le&s;t they &s;hould take their &s;hips, &amp; &s;poyl them of their goods by pyracy. And then, <HI>he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards,</HI> that is, he will come no more on &s;hoare, he will not live at land: vineyards by a &s;ynecdoche of the part for the whole
<PB N="600" REF="314"> being put for any kinde of home or land po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion, of which vine|yards (in many places) are the chiefe; he who lived by dre&s;&s;ing and planting the earth, now takes another cour&s;e of life, <HI>hee be|holdeth not the way of the vineyards;</HI> he will labour no more in a Country life, he will not get his liveing by the &s;weat of his face, but by the face of the waters. What cares he to get wine by dre&s;|&s;ing of vineyards, when he can get whole Shiploads of wine upon the waters. And having got a &s;match of the &s;weetnes of robbing at Sea, he will worke no more aland. We have too much experi|ence of it, that when a man hath once given him&s;elfe up to &s;teal|ing, he cannot abide labouring. He is better plea&s;ed with an ea&s;ie life that is &s;infull, then with an hone&s;t life that is painefull; and becau&s;e ea&s;e plea&s;eth him more then hone&s;ty, therefore <HI>he will not behold the way of the vineyards,</HI> nor the way of the Corne feilds, nor of the pa&s;ture grounds,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ad piratas re|ferre divinare e&s;t ex proprio cerebro, cum hic tantum de infe|&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">toribus ag<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o|rum mentio fiat, non navium aut maris. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> for all the&s;e are wayes of labour. But I &s;hall not In&s;i&s;t upon this Interpretation, it may &s;uffice onely to name it. And though, as to the thing it &s;elfe, as al&s;o to the practice of many, this be a truth, yet it is &s;car&s;ely probable, that <HI>Job</HI> had that practice in his eye.</P>
<P>Secondly, Wee may here conceave, that <HI>Job</HI> is de&s;cribing the mi&s;erable and un&s;etled Condition of the murtherer, of the Adul|terer, and of the Theife; <HI>hee is &s;wift upon the waters,</HI> or, <HI>&s;wift as the waters</HI> (&s;ay wee) M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders, <HI>He is lighter then the face of the waters.</HI> The Hebrew particle &s;erves eyther reading, <HI>as,</HI> or upon; <HI>He is &s;wift, or light upon the face of the waters,</HI> that is, he is as a light thing that &s;wimmeth upon the face of the wa|ters; light things &s;wim there, things which are of no worth, of no price, as &s;trawes, or chips, or feathers, or the foame (which is light and hoven) &s;wim upon the face of the water. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> tran|&s;lates thus; <HI>He is lighter then the face of the waters.</HI> The &s;ence is the &s;ame, for as tho&s;e things which &s;wim upon the face of the wa|ters are light, &s;o al&s;o is the face of the waters. Every bla&s;t or puffe of winde moves and to&s;&s;eth up the face of the waters.</P>
<Q><NOTE PLACE="marg">Levitas pro ve|locitate &s;umi|tur, leve enim facile movetur &amp; quod facile movetur velox e&s;t.</NOTE>He is &s;wift, <HI>or,</HI> light upon the face of the waters.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew word which we render, <HI>&s;wift,</HI> in our tran&s;lation &s;ignifieth al&s;o <HI>light;</HI> becau&s;e tho&s;e things that are &s;wift in moti|on, are light; wee &s;ay of one that is &s;low paced, hee is heavie heel'd, and that he is a heavy man or that a heavy bea&s;t which
<PB N="601" REF="314"> is &s;low of foot; all &s;wift things are light. The meaning of this Interpretation is, that a wicked man is a Contemptible Creature; what is hee when he hath done all tho&s;e mi&s;chiefes before &s;pecify|ed and walked to wearynes in all tho&s;e &s;infull wayes?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Proverbialis lo|quutio ad expri|mendum aliquid quod flocci pen|ditur &amp; fere nihil e&s;t. <HI>Bold.</HI> Leves erunt ut res quae &s;uper aquas natant, fluctuabunt abi|bant, diffluent.</NOTE> The be&s;t ac|count which we can give of him is this; <HI>Hee is light, or as a light thing, upon the face of the water;</HI> which is a Proverbiall &s;peech to Expre&s;&s;e that which is nothing worth. Thus the de&s;truction of the King of <HI>Samaria</HI> is expre&s;&s;ed (<HI>Ho&s;:</HI> 10.7.) <HI>As for Samaria, her King is cut off as the foame upon the water,</HI> or (as the Margin hath it) <HI>upon the face of the water,</HI> that is, though he be a great King, yet he &s;hall peri&s;h as a very light, and contemptible thing, even as a little foame and froth, or as a buble upon the water.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Wickednes makes men Contemptible and vile, they are but as light things upon the water.</Q>
<P>In the 21^t^h of this booke (<HI>v.</HI> 18.) the wicked are &s;ayd to be <HI>as &s;tubble before the fire, and as Chaff before the whirle-winde.</HI> So (<HI>Da|vid,</HI> P&s;al. 1.4.) &s;peaking of the wicked in general, &s;aith, <HI>They are like the chaffe which the wind driveth away.</HI> Stubble and chaffe are light things, and they are al&s;o worthles things; what's the &s;tubble worth, or what the chaffe? What is the chaffe to the wheat? &s;uch are wicked men in compari&s;on of the Godly. The Scripture doth even &s;trive for Expre&s;&s;ions (as I may &s;ay) to &s;et forth the lightnes, the vanity, Indeed, the nullity, the non-entity, the nothingnes of men given up to their lu&s;ts. <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 62.9.) &s;peaking of them <HI>who tru&s;t in oppre&s;&s;ion, and become vaine in robberie,</HI> &s;aith, <HI>they are vanity and a lye, and that to be layd in the ballance, they are alltogether lighter then vanity.</HI> And <HI>Solomon</HI> put|ting the tongue of a Godly man, and the heart of a wicked man together into the ballance, gives this determination between them (<HI>Pro.</HI> 10.20.) <HI>The tongue of the ju&s;t is as choyce &s;ilver, but the heart of the wicked is little worth.</HI> The heart is there taken in the highe&s;t &s;ence, for the be&s;t thing that the wicked man hath; for though where the heart is nought, it is the wor&s;t thing that a man hath, yet the &s;ence of the proverbe is to &s;hew that the be&s;t thing that a wicked man hath is of little worth, and therefore the in|&s;tance is made in that which he accounts his chiefe&s;t trea&s;ure, his heart; for by the heart, all that man hath within him, all the
<PB N="602" REF="315"> powers and faculties of the &s;oule, with their be&s;t and riche&s;t furni|ture are under&s;tood; all the&s;e &s;aith <HI>Solomon</HI> in a wicked man are little worth; &s;o that take him at his be&s;t, and in his be&s;t, he is but tra&s;h, or as a trifle. Sin is a reproach both to per&s;ons and nations, as honour is a mans weight in the e&s;teeme of others, &s;o reproach abates his weight, &amp; makes him light upon the balance. <HI>Since thou wa&s;t precious in mine eyes, thou wa&s;t honourable,</HI> &s;aith God (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 43.4.) holynes adds honour and weight to our per&s;ons; &s;in makes us light, and then we are lighte&s;t, when we make light of &s;in; &s;in is a weight that pre&s;&s;eth us downe, yet they who &s;in mo&s;t, weigh lea&s;t in the e&s;teeme of God and of all good men. Sin will quickly &s;inke the &s;oule like lead under water, even to the bottome of the water, yet the &s;inner is as a light thing that &s;wims upon the top or face of the water. This is a profitable &s;ence of the words.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Others expound the&s;e words, as a de&s;cription of the wicked mans &s;hifting and running from place to place for feare of pur&s;uers; or that being con&s;cious to him&s;elfe; or &s;elfe-condemned in his owne con&s;cience, he is as the Lord threatned <HI>Cain</HI> (Gen. 4.14.) <HI>a fugitive and a vagabond upon the earth:</HI> &s;wift as the wa|ters of a &s;treame, which glide along and never &s;tay in one place; or he is upon the earth as a light thing upon the waters, continu|ally moved and to&s;&s;ed up and downe. But I pa&s;&s;e from this. And conclude</P>
<P>Fourthly, That wee may rather under&s;tand the&s;e words as a de&s;cription of the &s;pirit and temper of a wicked man in reference to his &s;infull actings, or the fulfilling of his lu&s;ts; <HI>Hee is &s;wift or light as the water,</HI> or, <HI>as the light things upon the water,</HI> that is, hee is a man very un&s;etled, he is hurryed to and fro, there is no &s;tability eyther in his wayes, or in his &s;pirit; He abides not in one place, nor doth he abide in one minde. He is full of Incon&s;tancy, he is con&s;tant in nothing but in his uncon&s;tancy: and it mu&s;t needs be &s;o if we Con&s;ider,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, his lu&s;ts within. How can he but be &s;wift as the water, who hath &s;uch windes blowing and &s;triving in him. A carnal man is hurryed with &s;tormes and tempe&s;ts ri&s;ing in his owne minde: as the winde to&s;&s;eth and rolleth the waters of the Sea or light things upon the water, &s;o the lu&s;ts of evill men to&s;s and tumble them up and downe. Pride to&s;&s;eth &s;ome, and Covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e to&s;|&s;eth others, luxury and wantonnes to&s;&s;e thou&s;ands into a thou|&s;and
<PB N="603" REF="315"> vanities, and &s;inful wayes, as the windes to&s;&s;e the waves of the Sea; Lu&s;ts are &s;trong and boy&s;terous, lu&s;ts are many and nume|rous, he that &s;erveth any one of them is a &s;lave to them all, and mu&s;t goe upon their errand whether&s;oever they will &s;end or ra|ther hurry him.</P>
<P>Secondly, Carnal men mu&s;t needs be &s;wift as the water, or light upon the water, very uncon&s;tant and un&s;etled if we Con&s;ider the temptations that blow upon them from without. For though our owne lu&s;ts are temptations, and <HI>every man</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> &s;aith, Chapter 1.14.) <HI>is tempted when he is drawne away of his owne lu&s;t, and enticed,</HI> yet our lu&s;ts al&s;o are tempted, or our lu&s;ts are drawne away and enticed by temptation. Man is apt e|nough to &s;in of him&s;elfe alone, if once God leave him, but he is &s;eldome left to him&s;elfe alone to &s;in by the Devill; and mo&s;t u&s;u|ally he is tempted with a kinde of violence unto &s;inne; his lu&s;ts (which are a fire) are blowne and kindled by Satans breath, and he is driven to doe evill by vehement bla&s;ts of temptation. Tempta|tions blow upon Saints, they blow &s;trongly upon them; Satan breathes out a mighty wind to make them &s;wift as the water unto &s;in; but they have received a power to re&s;i&s;t and &s;tand fa&s;t. They are founded upon the rocke Je&s;us Chri&s;t; Though the winde moves the water, yet it cannot move the rock: they that are founded upon Chri&s;t, are (in their proporion) firme as Chri&s;t him&s;elfe is firme. 'Tis true, Saints are many times grievou&s;ly &s;ha|ken with temptations; but the wicked are to&s;&s;ed and overwhelmed by them. They are &s;wift as the water, or as the lighte&s;t thing upon the face of the waters, when &s;trongly moved by temptation. Dying <HI>Jacob</HI> called <HI>Reuben,</HI> his fir&s;t-borne, <HI>un&s;table as water</HI> (Gen. 49.4.) though wee will not number him among the wicked, yet hee did a very wicked act, and in reference to that, though he was a great man, and a Patriarke, the head of the Tribe, yet (in refe|rence to that act) he received this Character, <HI>un&s;table as water.</HI> And if he was &s;o un&s;table when hurryed by pa&s;&s;ion and temptati|on, how much more are meer wicked men &s;o, when they meet with &s;uch temptatio~s. For as they are not fixed in any thing that is good, as was touched at the 13^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e, <HI>They know not the wayes of light, nor doe they abide in the pathes of it</HI> (if at any time they &s;tumble upon the doing of that which is right, yet they abide not in the doing of it; they are light as the water, un&s;table and un&s;etled in
<PB N="604" REF="316"> all good wayes) So though they are fixed (as to the &s;ubject) in doing that which is evill, yet they are extreamly to&s;&s;ed and &s;wift|ly moved, both to and in and after the doing of it.</P>
<P>Againe, As this &s;imilitude implyes The ea&s;ines of evill men to be moved by temptation unto &s;inne, even as ea&s;ily as water, or the lighte&s;t things upon the face of the water are moved by the winde. So it implyeth al&s;o their &s;peedyne&s;s and activity in &s;in|ning. The water moves &s;wiftly, &s;inners are like &s;wift &s;hips upon the water, they make &s;peed to doe evill, or to trade upon any for|bidden coa&s;t, but they are very &s;luggs to any thing that is good, or to trade upon any coa&s;t where they are bidden. A learned In|terpreter in&s;i&s;ts much upon the empha&s;is of this Expre&s;&s;ion, to &s;hew not onely the &s;wiftnes, but the feircenes of a wicked mans &s;pirit in &s;inning, hee is &s;wift upon the face of tho&s;e waters, and is carryed on with full &s;ayles in &s;inning; hee runs &s;o &s;wiftly and treads &s;o lightly, that he might run even upon the &s;urface of the water and not &s;inke. Tho&s;e creatures which are very &s;wift, leave little Impre&s;&s;ion behinde them; they that goe &s;lowly, tread hea|vy, and unle&s;&s;e they be upon firme land, fall in. It is &s;ayd in the 8^t^h of <HI>Daniel</HI> (v. 5^t^h) Concerning the <HI>hee-goate</HI> (who repre|&s;ented <HI>Alexander</HI> the Great) That <HI>he touched not the ground. Alexander</HI> was extreame &s;wift in his Conque&s;ts, hee Conquered the world in as little time as another could have traveld over it. His motto was, <HI>Without delay;</HI> or, <HI>I doe all by making no delay;</HI> He was &s;wift upon the face of the earth.<NOTE PLACE="marg">De facilitate peccandi at&abque; velocitate ad ca&s;tandu~, quam|cu~&abque; &s;celeris oc|ca&s;ionem intel|ligi po&s;&s;e vide|tur. Tam leviter in terra figunt pe|dem, ut etiam &s;uper aquas in|cedere pa&s;&s;e vi|deantur. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE> Thus wicked men are light upon the face of the water, that is, they are &s;wift and fierce for the attayning of their &s;infull ends, they run as nimbly at it, as if they could run upon the top of a corne feild, and never pre&s;&s;e a &s;traw, or as if they could run upon the water, and never wet their feete. By which hyperbolies the ancient Poets u&s;ed to expre&s;&s;e the greate&s;t celerity of motion. Wee have a proverbiall &s;aying among us, which reacheth this &s;wiftnes of a wicked man in &s;in; <HI>He</HI> (&s;ay we) <HI>mu&s;t needes run whom the Devill drives.</HI> There is no doubt but evill men are Divel-driven, yea Divel-ridden, he rides them with whip and &s;purre to the doing of his blacke worke, and there|fore no wonder, if they are &s;o &s;wift and make &s;uch ha&s;t about it. That they make ha&s;t to doe it is too vi&s;ible, and that they make more ha&s;t then good &s;peed is as vi&s;ible. For while they make ha&s;t to &s;in, they make ha&s;t al&s;o to the cur&s;e. As it follows in the next words.</P>
<Q><PB N="605" REF="316">Their portion is cur&s;ed in the earth.</Q>
<P><HI>Job</HI> &s;pake in the &s;ingular number before, but here in the plural, <HI>He is &s;wift</HI> &amp;c. <HI>Their portion</HI> &amp;c. His meaning (I conceave) may be this; That, looke how many &s;oever they be of them that are thus &s;wift to &s;in, there's not one of them &s;hall be able to out|run the cur&s;e. They are &s;wift as the water to doe evill, but the cur&s;e will be as &s;wift as the winde to make them mi&s;erable.</P>
<Q>Their portion is cur&s;ed.</Q>
<P>The word &s;ignifieth any thing which falls to a man of right,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pars por|ti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, po&s;&s;e&s;&s;io.</NOTE> or is be&s;towed upon him for his lot or &s;hare.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, that part or portion, which comes by way of Inheritance, is &s;o expre&s;&s;ed (<HI>Gen.</HI> 31.14. <HI>Deut.</HI> 12.12.) The Inheritance that a father gives his &s;on is his portion.</P>
<P>Secondly, It &s;ignifies that part, &s;hare, or lot of food, which is given out to any man for his dayly provi&s;ion. (<HI>Deut.</HI> 18.8.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, It notes that which is given to the poore by way of almes (<HI>Eccl:</HI> 11.2.) <HI>Give a portion to &s;even, and al&s;o to eight;</HI> (that is, give to many) <HI>for thou knowe&s;t not what evill &s;hall be up|on the earth.</HI> It is u&s;ed al&s;o for a &s;hare, or di&s;tribution of the &s;poyle to each Souldier after a victory (<HI>Gen.</HI> 14.24.) <HI>Aner, E&s;hcol, and Mamre, let them take their portion,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>Abram</HI> to the King of <HI>Sodome,</HI> after he had re&s;cued his Brother <HI>Lot</HI> and the captiva|ted Kings. In this place the word is taken in the large&s;t &s;ence, as comprehending what&s;oever they could call theirs, or was any way belonging to them; So that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>their portion is Cur|&s;ed,</HI> his meaning is, all that they have is cur&s;ed. As they have &s;in|ned in all they did, &s;o they are cur&s;ed in all they have. The Grace of God in the Go&s;pel is compared to leven (<HI>Math.</HI> 13.33.) <HI>which a woman tooke and hid in three pecks of meale, till the whole was levened.</HI> As the Grace of God both in regenerating and com|forting runs through the whole man,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pulchra e&s;t in Hebraeo parano|ma&s;ia vocu~ con|jugatorum nam levis &amp; male|dictus ab eadem radice <GAP DESC="foreign"> o|riuntur. Levifi|catio e&s;t male|dictio. <HI>Pineds:</HI></NOTE> &s;o the cur&s;e of God like le|ven &s;owres the whole lumpe of man, it runs through all that a man is or hath.</P>
<Q>Their portion is cur&s;ed.</Q>
<P>There is an Elegant <HI>paranoma&s;ia</HI> in the Hebrew between the&s;e two words in the text, <HI>&s;wift</HI> or <HI>light,</HI> and <HI>Cur&s;ed;</HI> They being both
<PB N="606" REF="317"> repre&s;ented by one radicall word, and the rea&s;on of it is, becau&s;e tho&s;e things that are light, or contemptible, are Cur&s;ed, or in a Cur&s;ed Condition. <HI>They that honour me</HI> (&s;aith the Lord, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 2.30.) <HI>I will honour, but they that de&s;pi&s;e me &s;hall be lightly e&s;teemed,</HI> or, <HI>they &s;hall be cur&s;ed.</HI> There the &s;ame word is u&s;ed in the Origi|nal, which in the pre&s;ent text, we tran&s;late <HI>cur&s;ed.</HI> To cur&s;e a man is to &s;light him to the utmo&s;t, and we never e&s;teeme &s;o lightly or ba&s;ely of any thing or per&s;on, as when we cur&s;e eyther the one or the other.</P>
<Q>Their portion is Cur&s;ed in the earth.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Maledicere e&s;t leviter de ali|quo &s;entire levi|bus acerbi&s;&abque; &s;commatibus a|liquum pro&s;cin|dere.</NOTE>But by whom are they cur&s;ed? or who cur&s;eth them? I may an&s;wer, They are cur&s;ed both by God and man. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, their doeings have been &s;uch upon the earth, that, fir&s;t, all men cur&s;e them, and &s;econdly, God cur&s;eth them. Some are cur&s;ed by men, and yet God ble&s;&s;eth them, others are ble&s;&s;ed or highly e|&s;teemed by men, yet God cur&s;eth them. But the&s;e men are &s;uch who as they plea&s;e not God, &s;o they are contrary to all men (as the Apo&s;tle &s;pake of &s;ome, 1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 2.15.) and therefore God and man joyne in their cur&s;e. <HI>Their portion is cur&s;ed</HI>
<Q>In the earth.</Q></P>
<P>That is, in all their earthly concernments, or they are cur&s;ed even here while they are upon the earth, where they thinke them|&s;elves, and where, po&s;&s;ibly, &s;ome others thinke them al&s;o, mo&s;t ble&s;&s;ed. For though they have gotten much in the earth, or of earthly things, yet all they have gotten is cur&s;ed, and therefore all that they have is cur&s;ed, for they have got nothing beyond the earth.</P>
<P>Againe, The&s;e words may be read by way of Imprecation (wee read them by way of a&s;&s;ertion) <HI>let their portion be cur&s;ed in the earth;</HI> Like that (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 109.8, 9, 10, 11.) <HI>Let his dayes be few, and let another take his office, let his children be fatherle&s;&s;e, &amp;c.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Appareant plan|tae eorum &s;uper terra~ aridae. <HI>i. e.</HI> cum con&s;everint agros &s;uos non gerimnet terra.</NOTE> Some of the Ancients make the Paraphra&s;e thus; <HI>Let the roots of what they &s;ow or plant appeare bare in the earth;</HI> when the root of a tree, or the roots of corne appeare above ground, both tree and corne mu&s;t needs wither, for want of moi&s;ture. For as the earth feeds the root, &s;o the roote feeds the &s;tocke, and the &s;tocke the branches. That is a cur&s;ed tree which beares no fruit accord|ing
<PB N="607" REF="317"> to its kinde, and that tree who&s;e roote is not &s;uckled by the earth can beare no fruit. Every wicked man is eyther cur&s;ed in not bringing forth fruit, or el&s;e the fruit which he brings forth is cur&s;ed. And therefore <HI>Their portion is</HI> (every way) <HI>cur&s;ed in the earth.</HI></P>
<P>There is yet another Interpretation of the&s;e words, which I &s;hall but briefely touch and pa&s;&s;e on. <HI>Their portion is Cur&s;ed in the Earth,</HI> that is, the Region, or place where they dwell is Cur|&s;ed; They dwell in de&s;olate places, or they skulke up and downe in de&s;erts and wilderne&s;&s;es, having done &s;o much mi&s;chiefe among men that they dare not &s;hew their faces where they are knowne. Now, de&s;erts and de&s;olate places may ju&s;tly be called Cur&s;ed pla|ces, becau&s;e of their barrennes, for barrennes is the Cur&s;e which God laid upon the earth for the &s;in of man (<HI>Gen.</HI> 4.17.) As a fruitfull Land may be called a ble&s;&s;ed Land, becau&s;e the ble&s;&s;ing of God maketh a Land fruitfull (<HI>I&s;aac</HI> &s;aid to his Son <HI>Jacob (Gen.</HI> 27.27.) <HI>The &s;mell of my Son is as the &s;mell of a field which the Lord hath ble&s;&s;ed;</HI> that is, as the &s;mel of a fruitfull feild) So it may be &s;ayd that the earth or land where a man lives,<NOTE PLACE="marg">De&s;cribit quo|modo &s;e&s;e gerere|&s;oleant: ut &s;uae maleficia co~mo|dius tegant eli|gunt &s;ibi &s;ed<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s in va&s;tis locis; unde dicit, nec &s;e convertit ad vias vinearum quia vineae in locis cultis &s;itae &s;unt non procul ab urbibus. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> and his portion in it is cur&s;ed while he lives in a barren de&s;olate land, which looks as if it were under the perpetuall cur&s;e of God. And according to this interpretation, the later part of the ver&s;e <HI>(and he beholdeth not the way of the vineyards)</HI> may be thus under&s;tood; He comes not into any fruitfull fields; Vineyards are planted in a fruitfull &s;oyle, and fruitfull vines are full of the ble&s;&s;ing of God. Thus as the portion of the wicked in the earth is alwayes cur&s;ed, by a de|cree from God, &s;o it may be &s;ayd that their portion is &s;ometimes cur&s;ed by their owne Election, becau&s;e for the better &s;ecreting and hiding of them&s;elves from the eye of Ju&s;tice, they &s;pend their dayes in &s;uch places as by rea&s;on of their wa&s;tnes, and barrennes &s;eeme to confe&s;&s;e them&s;elves under a cur&s;e. <HI>Their portion is cur&s;ed in the earth.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Sin brings a Cur&s;e with it.</HI></P>
<P>When <HI>J<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">b</HI> had de&s;cribed the wickedne&s;&s;e of the&s;e men, their murthers, their adulteries, and their thefts, he concludes, <HI>Their portion is Cur&s;ed.</HI> Sin calleth for a Cur&s;e from men, and it calleth for a Cur&s;e from God. <HI>Solomon</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Pro.</HI> 12.26.) <HI>He that
<PB N="608" REF="318"> withholdeth Corne</HI> (that is, who hoards it up and will not &s;el it at a rea&s;onable rate, re&s;olving to make a dearth when God hath made none, he who thus <HI>withholdeth Corne) the people will cur&s;e him.</HI> Now if the people cur&s;e him that will not let them have corne for money, then much more him that &s;tealeth or taketh away their corne without money. He that de&s;troyeth other mens goods, gets a Cur&s;e in &s;tead of good. <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;aith (<HI>Chap.</HI> 5.3.) <HI>I have &s;eene the fooli&s;h taking roote, but &s;uddenly I Cur&s;ed his habitation,</HI> that is, I &s;aw his habitation was Cur&s;ed, or under a cur&s;e, I knew what would become of him &s;hortly. In &s;ome Ca&s;es it may be lawfull for man to wi&s;h a Cur&s;e upon man, and the Cur&s;e of man may be the Cur&s;e of God too; and u&s;ually it is &s;o, when any man is gene|rally cur&s;ed by men.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vox populi vox dei.</NOTE> <HI>The voyce of the people is the voyce of God.</HI> When a man is followed with a Cur&s;e from the mo&s;t of men good and bad, it is an argument that there is a Cur&s;e gone out from God again&s;t him; and that <HI>his portion is Cur&s;ed in the earth.</HI> Sin is the de&s;erving or procuring Cau&s;e, and the wrath of God is the inflicting or productive Cau&s;e of the Cur&s;e. <HI>Balaak</HI> hired <HI>Ba|laam</HI> to Cur&s;e the people of God, but the Cur&s;e could not take, the traine was laid, but he could not make the powder take fire, the Cur&s;e came not, why? the rea&s;on is given, yea <HI>Balaam</HI> him|&s;elfe gives it (<HI>Numb.</HI> 23.21.) <HI>He</HI> (that is, God) <HI>hath not be|held Iniquity in Jacob, neither hath he &s;eene perver&s;nes in I&s;rael.</HI> If there had been iniquity, that is, any national iniquity or publicke iniquity, per&s;i&s;ted in and not repented of among them, that had brought the Cur&s;e inevitably; but though <HI>Balaam</HI> laboured to Cur&s;e them, though he went from hill to hill, and tryed all meanes to get an opportunity to Cur&s;e them, yet he could not, <HI>for</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>God hath ble&s;&s;ed them, and I cannot rever&s;e it. There is no Iniquity in Jacob, nor perver&s;nes in I&s;rael,</HI> therefore their porti|on was ble&s;&s;ed in the Earth. Sin in whom&s;oever it is hath a Cur&s;e in the belly or bowels of it. Even Chri&s;t him&s;elfe taking our &s;in upon him, was nece&s;&s;itated to take the Cur&s;e upon him which was due to our &s;in; Chri&s;t taking our &s;in upon him, <HI>was</HI> (as the A|po&s;tle &s;aith, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.21.) <HI>made &s;in for us,</HI> that is, an offering or a &s;acrifice for our &s;in, yea as the &s;ame Apo&s;tle &s;aith (<HI>Gal.</HI> 3.13.) <HI>He was therefore made a Cur&s;e for us.</HI> And if Chri&s;t who (having no &s;in in him) did onely take our &s;in upon him, could not avoyd the cur&s;e, how &s;hall they avoyd it, who (having no part in Chri&s;t) have all manner of &s;in in them?</P>
<PB N="609" REF="318">
<P>But it may be objected, All men &s;in, and yet many have no ap|pearance of a Cur&s;e upon them, nor is <HI>their portion Cur&s;ed in the earth?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, Fir&s;t, This a&s;&s;ertion is to be limited to unbeleevers or ungodly men. Secondly, unbeleevers and ungodly men are un|der a Cur&s;e, though the Cur&s;e doe not breake out and appeare vi|&s;ibly upon them. As the portion of a godly man may be ble&s;&s;ed, though there be no appearance of the ble&s;&s;ing; when nothing ap|peares upon him but affliction and the Cro&s;s, yet the Godly man is ble&s;&s;ed. The Cro&s;s of a Godly man is like the pro&s;perity of a wicked man. The former hath an outward Cro&s;s, but a Ble&s;&s;ing at the bottome; the latter hath outward pro&s;perity, but a cur&s;e at the bottome, and bitternes in the end. Againe, the peace of the prophane, is like the grace of hypocrites, onely a &s;hew; hypo|crites have a &s;hew of grace, an appearance of holynes, yet they are but painted Sepulchres, full of rottennes within; So the wick|ed have a &s;hew of peace and pro&s;perity, of benefits and ble&s;&s;ings, but a cur&s;e is within them, and a cur&s;e hangs over them, ready e|very moment to drop downe upon their heads. For</P>
<P>Secondly, His portion is cur&s;ed, that is, 'tis under a cur&s;e, though the cur&s;e be not actually inflicted. As the mercies of God are &s;ure to his people, yet many times very &s;low, they come not pre&s;ently, but they will come. So al&s;o the wrath and cur&s;e of God will &s;urely come upon the wicked, though, as to outward effects &amp; impre&s;&s;ions, they are &s;low and long in comming. Actings of mercy are for an appointed time; <HI>Every vi&s;ion is for an appointed time</HI> (as the Lord told his Prophet, <HI>Hab.</HI> 2.3.) The vi&s;ion of Judge|ment and wrath is for an appointed time, as well as the vi&s;ion of love and mercy; That is, all the love, and all the wrath, the ble&s;|&s;ing, and the cur&s;e, which are revealed, (in any way of vi&s;ion, are for an appointed time) <HI>but at the end the vi&s;ion will &s;peake and not lye; if it tarry, waite for it, for it will &s;urely come, and not tarry.</HI> As it is (I &s;ay) in the vi&s;ions of mercy and ble&s;&s;ing, &s;o in tho&s;e of wrath, and of the cur&s;e; <HI>They are for an appointed time,</HI> in the end they will &s;peake. Sometimes the Cur&s;e is quick, it apprehendeth the &s;inner in the very act, it takes him in the manner, as <HI>Phineas</HI> did <HI>Zimri</HI> and <HI>Cozbi.</HI> And as (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 78.30.) <HI>While their meate was yet in their mouthes, the wrath of God came upon them.</HI> The &s;ound of the Cur&s;e is &s;ometimes at the heeles of &s;in, at other times
<PB N="610" REF="319"> the &s;ound of the Cur&s;e is a great way behind the &s;in, no &s;ight nor &s;ound of the cur&s;e for a long time. As, <HI>light is &s;owne for the righ|teous</HI> (P&s;al. 97.11.) that is, They &s;hall have a crop of good things, though it lye, as &s;eed doth, a great while under the clods, and as dead in the furrowes; So darkenes is &s;owne for the wicked, they perceive it not yet, but they &s;hall be wrapt up in it for ever; yea while they perceive it not, they are in it, and they are by &s;o much the more in it, by how much the le&s;&s;e they perceive it. For, this is ever true; <HI>The portion of the wicked is Cur&s;ed in the Earth,</HI> though they &s;eeme compa&s;&s;ed about with ble&s;&s;ings. <HI>I will Cur&s;e your ble&s;&s;ings,</HI> &s;aith the Lord, (<HI>Mala.</HI> 2.2.) <HI>yea I have cur&s;ed them already.</HI> The wicked may be rich, and yet cur&s;ed, honourable, and yet cur&s;ed, &s;ucce&s;&s;efull in bu&s;ienes, and yet cur&s;ed, ble&s;&s;ed, and yet cur&s;ed, God doth cur&s;e their ble&s;&s;ings. That which is a ble&s;|&s;ing in the kinde and matter of it, is to &s;ome a cur&s;e in the u&s;e and i&s;&s;ue of it. So then, <HI>as, godlynes is profitable for all things, and hath the promi&s;e of this life as well as of that which is to come</HI> (1 Tim. 4.8.) Godlynes is compa&s;&s;ed about and cloathed with promi&s;es of all &s;orts and &s;ea&s;ons. So ungodlynes is unprofitable for all things, &amp; makes him that is &s;o, mi&s;erable in all things. For <HI>it hath the cur&s;e of this life, and of that which is to come;</HI> if the promi&s;e doe not meet a godly man in this life, or in the things of this life, yet it will in the life to come, and in the things of the life to come, yea in all things &s;o farre as concernes the life to come, the ble&s;&s;ing alwayes meetes him. And if the cur&s;e doe not meet a wicked man in this life, yet it will in the life to come, and in the things of the life to come, yea in all things &s;o farre as concernes the life to come, The cur&s;e alwayes meetes him.</P>
<P>Then &s;ee the folly of tho&s;e, who feare the Cur&s;e, and are not afraid of &s;in; as if a man &s;hould feare drowning, and yet ca&s;t him|&s;elfe into the water, or feare burning, and yet throw him&s;elfe into the fire; thus doe they who love &s;in, and feare the cur&s;e. If the beauty of holynes doth not take upon the heart, yet the cur&s;e that attends &s;in may deterre from medling with it. And did men know the terror of the Lord, (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 5.11.) they would ea&s;ily be per&s;waded to take heed of &s;in, even of every &s;in, for though u&s;ually great &s;ins bring the cur&s;e, yet the lea&s;t &s;ins may. They who know what the cur&s;e of the Lord is, cannot but know what the terror of the Lord is, that is, that the
<PB N="611" REF="319"> Lord is (to &s;inners) very terrible. For the cur&s;e of the Lord a|biding upon a &s;inner, makes him every way and alwayes mi&s;erable. There needs no more to be &s;aid to prove a man mi&s;erable then this, <HI>that his portion is cur&s;ed,</HI> or that he is under the cur&s;e. For as the ble&s;&s;ing of God makes us happy with any portion, that's e|nough, the ble&s;&s;ing being it &s;elfe the be&s;t and mo&s;t aboundant por|tion (Every good thing is vertually in the ble&s;&s;ing) &s;o the Cur&s;e is vertually every evill thing; therefore that mu&s;t needs make a man mi&s;erable. When the Lord ble&s;&s;eth, it is not an empty word, but a power goes with it to make a man ble&s;&s;ed; And when the Lord cur&s;eth, it is not an empty word, but a power goes with it, to make a mans <HI>portion cur&s;ed in the earth. Job</HI> having layd downe this po&s;ition, gives a proofe of it in the la&s;t words of the ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>Hee beholdeth not the way of the vineyards.</Q>
<P>Some reade the&s;e (as the former) words,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cohaerebit cum &s;uperioribus &s;i haec &s;it qua&s;i praecedentis ex|po&s;itio impreca|tionis. Nullam habeat impius partem in agris loci&s;&abque; frugife|ris, ex quibus ullum fructum percipere po&s;&s;it. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> by way of impreca|tion; <HI>Let his portion be cur&s;ed in the earth, and let him not behold the way of the vineyards.</HI> We tran&s;late a&s;&s;ertively, <HI>He beholdeth not,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>But what is meant here <HI>by not beholding?</HI> is it onely this, he commeth not within the view or &s;ight of them? I conceave there is more in it then &s;o, and that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>he beholdeth not,</HI> his meaning is, he enjoyeth vineyards no more, or he dwelleth no more in a fruitfull and plea&s;ant land, &s;uch as that land is which a|boundeth in vineyards, and &s;o con&s;equently with wine, but he &s;hall live mi&s;erably in a barren &s;oyle. So that we may now interrogate wicked men, whether murtherers, Adulterers, or theeves (as <HI>Paul</HI> doth every &s;inner, <HI>Rom.</HI> 6.21.) <HI>What fruit have ye of tho&s;e things, whereof ye are</HI> (or ought to be) <HI>a&s;hamed?</HI> have ye any fruit of the vine? &s;urely no, For <HI>&s;uch behold not the way of the vineyards.</HI> To behold is to enjoy the plea&s;antnes, to ta&s;t the &s;weetnes of the fruit of the <HI>vineyards.</HI> Wine which is the fruit of the vineyard is plea&s;ant and delightfull, it makes glad the heart of man (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.15.) And vineyards are here named to &s;ignifie all &s;orts of out|ward good things, they being the Chiefe of outward good things: For as &s;ometimes bread &s;ignifieth all outward good things, becau&s;e that &s;trengthens mans heart; &s;o Wine, becau&s;e that cheareth and comforteth the heart of man. So that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>He &s;hall not behold the way of the vineyards;</HI> It is as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>He &s;hall not ta&s;t of or enjoy any good thing.</HI> For</P>
<PB N="612" REF="320">
<P>Againe, Tho&s;e words, <HI>he heholdeth not</HI> &amp;c. are not to be un|der&s;tood as if he did voluntarily refu&s;e to behold, or cared not to behold the way of the vineyards, but as implying a force or con|&s;traint upon him, by which he was kept or hindred from looking that way.</P>
<P>Whence take this briefe note.</P>
<Q>The lo&s;&s;e of good is a great mi&s;ery as well as the enduring of evill.</Q>
<P>It hath been que&s;tioned which is greater, the puni&s;hment of lo&s;&s;e, or the puni&s;hment of paine; but without all que&s;tion, lo&s;&s;e is a very great puni&s;hment; not to behold the way of the vine|yards, not to returne to hou&s;e and land, to wife and children, is a &s;ore affliction. What will it then be never to behold the face of God, but to be under a &s;entence of eternal bani&s;hment from his pre&s;ence. His portion is cur&s;ed in the earth, here in this world, who beholdeth not the way of the vineyards, how then is his por|tion cur&s;ed in the next world, who &s;hall never behold the path or way of life?</P>
<P>There are yet &s;everal other readings and expo&s;itions of the&s;e words.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ab&s;tinebit a via regia et freque~|tia hominum ne cogno&s;catur. <HI>Vatabl:</HI> ita fe&s;tinat fu|gere, ut ne pro|prias quidem vineas olim tam gratas a&s;piciat. <HI>I&s;idor:</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t, As if the meaning were to &s;hew the wicked mans feare of being &s;eene, becau&s;e of his guilt, and that therefore he would not behold or come neere <HI>the way of the vineyards,</HI> that is, tho&s;e places which many people have occa&s;ion to frequent.</P>
<P>Secondly, As if <HI>Job</HI> would here &s;hew what ha&s;t men make to e&s;cape who are under guilt; As if he had &s;ayd, The wicked man will be &s;o <HI>&s;et upon the run,</HI> That he will not &s;tay &s;o much as to view or behold his owne vineyards, formerly &s;o delightfull and plea&s;ant to him.</P>
<P>Thirdly, It is conceaved to be a proverbiall &s;peech, according to which it was ironically &s;ayd of Malefactors who were led forth to &s;uffer death, <HI>They Behold not the way of the vineyards;</HI> No they behold onely the way to the Gibbet or place of execu|tion.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Others divide the word <HI>Cheramim,</HI> which we tran|&s;late,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non refluet, &s;e|cundum con&s;u|etudinem Aliq|rum, <HI>ru<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t.</HI></NOTE> <HI>vineyards</HI> into two; that is, into <HI>Chi,</HI> a particle of &s;imilitude or likenes, and <HI>Ramim</HI> which &s;ignifyes, eyther <HI>per&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ns,</HI> or <HI>things that are high.</HI> Hence <HI>Junius</HI> tran&s;lates, <HI>He &s;hall not returne or flow backe againe, he &s;hall fall after the manner of things that are
<PB N="613" REF="320"> high.</HI> And he expounds the &s;ence of his owne tran&s;lation; <HI>He &s;hall not returne to his former &s;tate, as waters doe which ebbe and flow; but as waters which fall from a high place cannot goe backe, &s;o &s;hall he remaine ca&s;t downe for ever.</HI> Water being a heavy body mu&s;t have a de&s;cent, it cannot a&s;cend naturally, therefore the wa|ter that falls from a high place is gone, and commeth not againe. The wicked man peri&s;heth, as waters that flow from a high place and returne no more.</P>
<P>Another following that divi&s;ion of the word, renders the clau&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non pro&s;picit ince&s;&s;um &s;icut excel&s;orum, <HI>i. e.</HI> non curabit in|cedere eo modo, quo &s;olent in ce|dere illi qui dignitate vel potentia alijs prae&s;unt. <HI>Bold:</HI></NOTE> thus; <HI>He doth not looke to</HI> (or <HI>provide for) his way or his going, as of the High ones;</HI> that is, he &s;hall never goe in that pompe or equipage, in which they goe who are above others in power and dignity. As if he had &s;ayd, hee &s;hall ever live in a low, meane, and mi&s;erable condition; <HI>Hee &s;hall no more behold the way of the high while he lives;</HI> nor (which the &s;ame Author cleaves to as the mo&s;t genuine interpretation) &s;hall he take care or provide to be buryed according to the way, cu&s;tome, or manner of the high ones when he dyeth.</P>
<P>But, I &s;hall not in&s;i&s;t upon eyther of the&s;e rendrings, though they all fall into one common channel with the former, which is to &s;et forth that the wicked man is under a cur&s;e, or that his por|tion is cur&s;ed in the earth, yea, <HI>that a cur&s;e is his portion.</HI> Nor &s;hall I (having often ob&s;erved from other texts of this booke the wofull end of wicked men, for this rea&s;on, I &s;ay, I &s;hall not) &s;tay to give any further ob&s;ervations from this clau&s;e, according to any of the rendrings of it: of all which I mo&s;t embrace that of our owne tran&s;laters, <HI>He &s;hall not behold the way of the vineyards,</HI> not onely becau&s;e mo&s;t of the learned Hebricians render it &s;o, but fir&s;t, be|cau&s;e it makes no divi&s;ion of, nor puts any &s;traine at all upon any of the Original words in the text; And &s;econdly, becau&s;e it car|ryes (to my thoughts) &s;o fayre a corre&s;pondence with the words which follow in the two next ver&s;es.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="614" REF="321">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24, Ver&s;. 19, 20.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Drought and heate, con&s;ume the &s;now waters, &s;o doth the grave the&s;e which have &s;inned.</P>
<P>The womb &s;hall forget him, and the worme &s;hall feed &s;weet|ly on him; he &s;hall be no more remembred, and wicked|ne&s;&s;e &s;hall be broken as a tree.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<DIV3 N="19" TYPE="verse">
<P>THere are two different tran&s;lations of the 19^t^h ver&s;e; I &s;hall propo&s;e them, and then explicate our owne.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, thus; <HI>In the drought and heate they rob, and in the &s;now water, they &s;in to the grave.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, (to the &s;ame &s;en&s;e by way of &s;imilitude) <HI>like as the dry earth and heate drinke up the &s;now water, &s;o they &s;in even to the grave.</HI></P>
<P>Both the&s;e rendrings carry in them two things generally re|markable.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The ob&s;tinacy, and per&s;everance of wicked men in &s;in while they live.</P>
<P>Secondly, Their impunity in &s;in untill death.</P>
<Q>In the drought and heate they rob, and in the &s;now water.</Q>
<P>That is, they rob and &s;poyle at all times, or in all the &s;ea&s;ons of the yeare, in hard times, in the harde&s;t times, in the extremity of drought, and in the extremity of cold, They never give over, <HI>they &s;in to the grave.</HI> This reading is much in&s;i&s;ted upon by &s;ome, and as the &s;ence is u&s;efull,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> rapuit vi &amp; apert&egrave; res aut per&s;onas.</NOTE> &s;o the text may beare it. For the verb &s;ignifies to &s;natch a thing openly, and forceably, as well as to con|&s;ume &s;ecretly, and &s;o may be rendred by <HI>robbing,</HI> as well as by <HI>con|&s;uming.</HI></P>
<Q>In drought and heate they rob, and in the &s;now waters.</Q>
<P>Fir&s;t, We may con&s;ider this drought and heate with the &s;now water as expre&s;&s;ing tho&s;e &s;ea&s;ons which are very trouble&s;ome to the wicked man, to doe his worke in, to rob, and &s;poyle: extreame heate, and extreame cold, are great impediments to action, yet in heate and &s;now they rob.</P>
<PB N="615" REF="321">
<P>Whence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>A wicked man will breake through all difficulties, to finde a way to his beloved &s;in.</Q>
<P>Though he be in danger of melting with heate, or of freezing with cold, yet he will rob, or doe any other mi&s;chiefe that his heart is &s;et upon: neyther heate, nor cold, neyther wett, or dry, &s;hall keepe him in, yea though an Angel with a drawne &s;word in his hand &s;tand in his way (as in the way of <HI>Balaam</HI>) yet, when he hath a minde, he will goe on. We may &s;ay of every bold and pre|&s;umptuous &s;inner, that he &s;ins in heate, and cold, he &s;ins in the &s;ight of wrath and death. The threatenings (which are the por|tion of &s;uch) have the extreamity of heate and cold in them; The threatenings have &s;word and fire in them, wrath and death in them, yet the wicked &s;in in the face of them, and (upon the m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">|ter) dare them to doe their wor&s;t. A godly man, who&s;e heart is bent and &s;et heaven-ward, will walke on his way, though he mu&s;t pa&s;&s;e through heate, and cold, though he meete with dangers, and difficulties, though he meete many Lyons in his way, yet he will not turne out of his way. <HI>Paul</HI> &s;aith of him&s;elfe and his fel|low-labourers (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 6.4.) <HI>In all things approving our &s;elves as the Mini&s;ters of God, in much patience, in afflictions, in nece&s;&s;i|ties, in di&s;tre&s;&s;es, in &s;tripes, in impri&s;onments,</HI> &amp;c. And a little after (<HI>v.</HI> 8.) <HI>By honour, and di&s;honour, by evill report, and good report, &amp;c.</HI> Here was working in heate and cold, in fire and fro&s;t, in all &s;orts of providences from God, in all &s;orts of a&s;pects from men. <HI>Paul</HI> and his colleagues, never minded what men did to them, but what the minde of God was they &s;hould doe. And thus every godly man workes, or doth the worke of God. For though every Godly man attaines not to &s;uch a degree of zeale and holy cou|rage as <HI>Paul</HI> had; yet he hath a truth of zeale and holy courage which will (according to his mea&s;ure) carry him through a world of evills and incumbrances, to the doing of that good, which duty and con&s;cience, or the con&s;cience of his duty calls him to. Now as Godly men labour to approve them&s;elves the Mini&s;ters or &s;er|vants of God, &s;o ungodly men will approve them&s;elves the &s;er|vants of &s;in in much patience, in afflictions, in nece&s;&s;ities, and in di&s;tre&s;&s;es; they will run all hazzards, and venture through all ex|treamities, rather then leave the law of a lu&s;t unfulfilled. The Lord
<PB N="616" REF="322"> put the <HI>Jewes</HI> to much &s;uffering for their &s;ins, yet &s;in they would; <HI>Why &s;hould ye be &s;tricken any more,</HI> (&s;aith he, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 1.5.) <HI>Ye will revolt more and more;</HI> while I have been &s;triking, ye have been re|volting. The &s;ame pertinacy is complained of (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 57.17.) <HI>I &s;mote him, and was wrath, yet he went on frowardly in the way of his heart;</HI> that is, in a &s;infull way. The heart of man knowes no other way, till him&s;elfe is formed after the heart of God, and in that &s;in|full way he will goe, though God make his heart ake as he goes, <HI>I &s;mote him, and was wroth, yet he went on,</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<Q>In drought and heate they rob, and in the &s;now water.</Q>
<P>Againe, we may take drought, heate, and &s;now water, not onely as importing their &s;ufferings while they were doing in &s;uch times, but al&s;o as importing the &s;everall &s;ea&s;ons of time, as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>they will &s;in both winter and &s;ummer,</HI> that is, continually: wee &s;ay of &s;ome, <HI>they are never well neither full nor fa&s;ting:</HI> As full and fa&s;ting imply all the conditions of man, &s;o hot and cold, &s;ummer and winter, imply all divi&s;ions of time.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Evill men will doe evill allwayes.</Q>
<P>Sinning time is never out with them, they doe not &s;in by fits or &s;tarts, in an ill mood onely, or through a &s;tre&s;&s;e of temptation, but they &s;in from a principle within, they have a &s;pring of wicked|nes within, and that will ever be &s;ending and flowing out. A good man may be overtaken with &s;in at any time, but he doth not &s;in at all times, in winter, and &s;ummer, in heate, and cold. Corrupti|on will be working where Grace is, but where Grace is not, no|thing workes but corruption. If wicked men be not doing evill in every moment of time, it is not becau&s;e they at any time would not doe evill, but becau&s;e at all times they cannot; And therefore the tran&s;lation now underhand &s;peakes of their whole life as one continued act of &s;in.</P>
<Q>They &s;in to the grave.</Q>
<P>That is, till they dye, and &s;o are caryed out to the grave. So that this manner of &s;peaking, <HI>They &s;in to the Grave,</HI> &s;ignifyes the ut|mo&s;t per&s;everance of wicked men in &s;inning; as if it had not been enough to &s;ay, they &s;in in heate, and cold, winter, and &s;ummer,
<PB N="617" REF="322"> but they &s;in out the la&s;t inch of time, even till they come to the graves mouth.</P>
<P>Whence Note.</P>
<Q>Wicked men will not cea&s;e to &s;in while they continue to live.</Q>
<P>The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> (2 <HI>Pet.</HI> 2.14.) &s;aith of that generation, <HI>who have eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cea&s;e from &s;in,</HI> &s;in is their nature, it is not what they have acquired, but what is im|planted in them, and borne with them. And becau&s;e &s;in is natu|rall to them, therefore they cannot get it off untill their nature is changed. And hence it is that <HI>conver&s;ion</HI> or regeneration is the change of our nature as well as of our actions. A man unregene|rate &s;ins as naturally as he lives: he &s;ins as naturally as he &s;ees or heares, or exerci&s;eth any of tho&s;e naturall faculties, &s;o naturally doth he &s;in, and therefore he &s;ins to the grave. And this is a ra|tional demon&s;tration of the Ju&s;tice of God in awarding eternall puni&s;hment for &s;in committed in time, or in a &s;hort time, (the whole time of a mans life, in which &s;in is committed, is but a &s;hort time, a nothing to eternity) wherein &s;in &s;hall be puni&s;hed. This, I &s;ay, is a demon&s;tration of the Ju&s;tice of God in puni&s;hing wick|ed men) becau&s;e if they could have lived to eternity, they would have done evill to eternity, they doe evill as they can, and as long as they can. Seeing then, there is a principle in man to &s;in eter|nally, it is but ju&s;t with God if he puni&s;h &s;inners eternally: did not the grave &s;top him, his heart would never &s;top him from &s;in. <HI>In heate and cold they rob, they &s;in to the grave.</HI></P>
<P>Further as the&s;e words are put into a &s;imilitude, they intimate the ea&s;ine&s;&s;e, and naturallne&s;&s;e of their &s;inning, as well as the con|tinuance of it; <HI>Like as the hot earth drinketh up the &s;now water, &s;o wicked men &s;in to the grave:</HI> they &s;in to death, and they &s;in with as much ea&s;e and naturalnes as the earth, when dry and thir|&s;ty, drinks up the &s;now water. Sinners are &s;ayd to <HI>drinke iniquity as water,</HI> (Job 15.16.) They are &s;ayd <HI>to draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and &s;in as it were with cart ropes,</HI> (I&s;a. 5.18.) The la&s;t of the&s;e compari&s;ons notes their &s;trength and gro&s;&s;ene&s;&s;e in &s;inning; The &s;econd notes their wit and cunning in &s;inning; The third (which &s;uites with the pre&s;ent text) notes their ready|nes and ea&s;ynes to &s;inne; They can doe it as ea&s;yly as drinke, as ea&s;yly as the hot earth drinketh up the &s;now water.</P>
<PB N="618" REF="323">
<P>So much of that tran&s;lation; I come now to con&s;ider our owne.</P>
<Q>Drought and heate con&s;ume the &s;now waters.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;iccitas. propri&egrave; aridita|tem terrae &s;igni|ficat, unde pro terra arida &amp; inculta &s;umitur.</NOTE> Drought or drine&s;&s;e; The word notes the drine&s;&s;e of the earth, and is often put for dry earth, as al&s;o for earth undre&s;t, or for a de&s;ert place, becau&s;e in &s;uch places the earth is u&s;ually parcht with heate and over-dry. And hence the word <HI>(T&s;ijm)</HI> in the plural number &s;ignifyes a people that dwell in a wilderne&s;&s;e, or in a de|&s;ert. So the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> were called while they marched &s;low|ly throught it to <HI>Canaan</HI> (P&s;al. 74.14.) <HI>Thou brake&s;t the head of the Leviathan,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> populo &s;o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">itud<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|nicolis, aut de &s;erta incolenti.</NOTE> <HI>and gave&s;t him to be meate for the people, who dwelt in the wilderne&s;&s;e.</HI> And as men, &s;o tho&s;e wild bea&s;ts that dwelt in de&s;erts, or &s;olitary places are called <HI>T&s;ijm;</HI> (I&s;a. 34.14.) <HI>The wilde bea&s;ts of the de&s;ert &s;hall al&s;o meete with the wilde bea&s;ts of the land, and the Satyre &s;hall cry to his fellow, the Shrich-Owle al&s;o &s;hall re&s;t there, and finde for her &s;elfe a place of re&s;t. T&s;ijm</HI> are &s;uch un|couth creatures as inhabit <HI>T&s;ijah,</HI> dry and de&s;ert places. <HI>Drought</HI>
<Q>And heate.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><P><GAP DESC="foreign"> caluit Heb<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">aeis Cham calidum, et chum nigrum &s;onat, hinc cha|mi nomen a ca|lore vel nigre|dine.</P>
<P>Jupiter Hammon.</P></NOTE><HI>Cham</HI> the originall word &s;ignifyes both to be hot, and to be blacke; The &s;econd &s;onne of <HI>Noah,</HI> (who mocked his father) was named <HI>Cham,</HI> and it is &s;uppo&s;ed that the po&s;terity of <HI>Cham</HI> inhabited <HI>Africa,</HI> which is al&s;o called <HI>Ammonia,</HI> being a hot Countrey, and the people of it blacke. And from this Hebrew word (it is conceaved) the Heathens al&s;o called the <HI>Sun Jupiter Hammon;</HI> and they had Sun-Images called <HI>Chammamin</HI> (Levit. 26.30.) which they wor&s;hipped.</P>
<Q>Drought and heate con&s;ume the &s;now water.</Q>
<P>The word (as many other in the Hebrew) hath a neerne&s;&s;e of &s;ound as well as in &s;ence with our Engli&s;h word <HI>gu&s;&s;ell,</HI> and wee &s;ay of Great drinkers, They are Guzzlers. The dry earth <HI>and heate</HI> gu&s;&s;ell or drinke in the &s;now water, as the intemperate per|&s;on gu&s;&s;els and drinks downe his liquor. Thus, <HI>drought and heate con&s;ume the &s;now water,</HI> that is, the &s;now when melted into water.</P>
<Q><PB N="619" REF="323">So doth the grave tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</Q>
<P>There is a wonderfull conci&s;enes in the Hebrew,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> intra brevi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">as quae ob&s;curita|tem parit, non dubium e&s;t &s;i|militudinem e&s;&s;e. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> we finde there no particle of likenes, nor is there any expre&s;&s;ion of <HI>tho&s;e that,</HI> as appeares by the different letter in our tran&s;lation; yet there is no doubt but the words carry in them the force of a &s;imilitude, therefore we may &s;afely &s;upply them, according to our reading;
<Q>So doth the grave tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</Q></P>
<P>The &s;ame word is u&s;ed indifferently in the Original both for the grave and hell; both &s;ignifications are made u&s;e of by Inter|preters in this place. Fir&s;t, the grave or death; &s;econdly, Hell, which is the &s;econd death, and everla&s;ting death <HI>con&s;umeth tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</HI></P>
<P>But why doth he &s;ay, <HI>the grave con&s;umeth tho&s;e that have &s;in|ned?</HI> Can he meane any &s;peciall &s;ort of men by this, fora&s;much as all men have &s;inned and &s;in dayly?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, It is a truth, the grave con&s;umeth, and death reigneth over all, for that all have &s;inned; Where&s;oever &s;in hath to doe, death hath to doe, the terretories of death are as large as the ter|retories of &s;in; And had it not been for &s;in, death had never had any dominion in the world, nor can the grave con&s;ume any but tho&s;e who have &s;inned. The Body of man had never come into the graves mouth, and it had been too hard a mor&s;el for the &s;to|macke of the grave to dige&s;t, had it not been for &s;in; For though the body of man in its materialls and con&s;titution was mortall, that is, was under a po&s;&s;ibility of dying before he &s;inned, yet if &s;in had not brought him under the threat of death, God had never &s;ub|jected him under that decree of dying, in pur&s;uance of both which the grave now con&s;umeth (all) tho&s;e that have &s;inned. The grave con&s;umes Godly men becau&s;e they have &s;inned, and the grave con&s;umes wicked men becau&s;e they have &s;inned; yet there is a great difference among the&s;e &s;inners who dye, and a greater diffe|rence among the&s;e &s;inners when they are dead.</P>
<P>And therefore <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes here de&s;tinctively; for though it be a truth that all whether Godly or wicked have &s;inned, and that the grave con&s;umeth all, who have &s;inned; yet <HI>Job</HI> doth not here intend all men <HI>by Tho&s;e who have &s;inned.</HI> For by them <HI>Job</HI> meanes gro&s;&s;e pre&s;umptuous and impoenitent &s;inners; he meanes it not of
<PB N="620" REF="324"> tho&s;e who &s;in according to common fraylety, but of tho&s;e who &s;in with a high hand ob&s;tinately. Such he meanes, even oppre&s;&s;ours, adulterers, murtherers, of whom he &s;pake by name before; the&s;e and &s;uch as the&s;e are the &s;inners whom he intends, while he &s;aith, <HI>&s;o doth the grave tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</HI></P>
<P>And it be &s;aid, <HI>&s;o doth the grave tho&s;e that</HI> (in this &s;ence) <HI>have not &s;inned.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, The Grave is &s;ayd in a &s;peciall manner to con&s;ume tho&s;e who have thus &s;inned.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e &s;uch &s;inners doe more &s;ubject and lay them|&s;elves open to death, by their wicked cour&s;es and intemperate li|ving. Such &s;inners &s;poyle their bodyes, and corrupt their blood, they fill them&s;elves with di&s;ea&s;es, which bring them early to the Grave.</P>
<P>Secondly, Becau&s;e God doth often cut the thread of &s;uch mens lives when they are &s;trong and healthy, and tumbles them into the graves mouth to be con&s;umed, before they have lived out halfe their dayes.</P>
<P>The words being thus opened, fall under a twofold interpre|tation.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As implying the felicity (&s;uch as it is) of wicked men in dying, or the ea&s;ine&s;&s;e of their death; as they live in plea&s;ure, &s;o they dye without paine. That's a poynt in&s;i&s;ted upon at the 13^t^h ver&s;e of the 21^t^h Chapter, <HI>They &s;pend their dayes in wealth, and in a moment</HI> (or with ea&s;e) <HI>they goe downe to the grave.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Moriuntur fa|cillim&egrave; &amp; &s;ua|vi&s;&s;ime, ita ut nihil doloris aut cruciatus &s;enti ant, non lenta morte contabe&s;|cunt ut magna ex parte probi. <HI>Merc:</HI> Ex Hebraeis ali|qui putant indi|cari leni&s;&s;imam mortem in pio|rum, qua leni|tur et in&s;en&s;ibi|lt<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&egrave;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> liqu fiant, &amp;c. <HI>Pined:</HI></NOTE> And againe (<HI>ver.</HI> 32, 33.) <HI>Hee &s;hall be brought to the grave, the clods of the valley &s;hall be &s;weet unto him.</HI> Where <HI>Job</HI> &s;hews that wicked men have as much ea&s;e in death as others, and many times a great deale more. <HI>They dye in a moment,</HI> not tyred out with the tor|ture of chronical di&s;ea&s;es, but having a quicke and &s;peedy pa&s;|&s;age out of the world, are di&s;&s;olved even as the &s;now is by the heate and warmth of the Sunne. This &s;ence &s;ome of note in&s;i&s;t chiefly upon, as mo&s;t &s;uiteable to <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope in de&s;cribing the cor|porall, and temporall felicity of wicked men, even in death, which carryes the greate&s;t appearance of terror and trouble in it.</P>
<P>But I rather take the&s;e words as a de&s;cription of the mi&s;erable end and &s;ad conclu&s;ion of a wicked man. For the word which we render, <HI>to con&s;ume,</HI> &s;ignifies a forceable &s;wallowing downe, a kinde of devouring, which doth not con&s;i&s;t with that other ex|plication.</P>
<Q><PB N="621" REF="324">Drought and heate con&s;ume the &s;now-waters, &s;o doth the grave tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</Q>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Some &s;in &s;o as if they were the onely &s;inners, or as if they onely had &s;inned.</Q>
<P>All men &s;in, but &s;ome goe away with the name, as if they one|ly were worthy to be called &s;inners. In which &s;ence the Evange|li&s;t &s;ayth (<HI>Luke</HI> 7.37.) <HI>And behold a woman in the City which was a &s;inner, when &s;he knew that Je&s;us &s;at in the Phari&s;ees hou&s;e brought an alba&s;ter box of ointment,</HI> &amp;c. But were not all the wo|men in the City &s;inners? They were &s;o, but this woman had a common fame for a &s;inner, that is, for an uncleane, wanton wo|man; &s;hee was a &s;inner of &s;inners, the chiefe of &s;inners in that Ci|ty. So (<HI>Luk.</HI> 19.7.) when Chri&s;t went to the hou&s;e of <HI>Zacheus,</HI> the Phari&s;ees were vexed, and murmured, &s;aying, <HI>that he was gone to be gue&s;t with a man which was a &s;inner;</HI> As if they had &s;ayd, he is gon to the hou&s;e of a notorious &s;inner, a man &s;o &s;infull, and guilty, that all men &s;eeme innocent and &s;inle&s;&s;e in compari&s;on of him. So they accounted <HI>That Zacheus</HI> the Publican; and doubtle&s;&s;e he was as noted a man for &s;in before his conver&s;ion, as he was for grace after it. As they who are <HI>borne of God doe not commit &s;in, yea, cannot &s;in becau&s;e they are borne of God</HI> (1 Joh. 3.9.) that is, their &s;inning is no &s;inning in Gods account, and comparatively to the &s;inning of others. So they who are borne of the Devill (as Chri&s;t &s;aith tho&s;e contradicting <HI>Jewes</HI> were, <HI>Joh.</HI> 8.44.) doe no|thing but commit &s;in, and &s;in &s;o as if they (and their like) alone did &s;in. For as no godly man &s;ins as a wicked man doth, &s;o &s;om<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> wicked men &s;in at &s;uch a rate, that it may be &s;aid they only &s;in, eve~ in re&s;pect of the generality of wicked men. Thus al&s;o &s;ome God|ly men doe &s;o farre exceed and out-&s;trip other Godly men in ho|lynes and the acting of their Graces, as if they onely were Godly, as if they onely had the acting of tho&s;e graces. <HI>Abraham</HI> beleived as if he onely had been a beleever; and <HI>Job</HI> was patient, as if none had patience but he; <HI>David</HI> was a man &s;o upright, as if onely he had been upright, or a man after Gods owne heart. There are Saints like <HI>Abraham</HI> and <HI>David,</HI> none like them, and there are &s;inners, like <HI>Jeroboam</HI> and <HI>Ahab,</HI> none like them.</P>
<Q><PB N="622" REF="325">So doth the grave tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</Q>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>They who are extreamely &s;infull, make them&s;elves &s;evenfold more &s;ubject to death then other men.</Q>
<P>They who &s;in as if none did &s;in but they, are &s;o &s;ubject to death, as if none were &s;ubject to death but they. For if every &s;in, the lea&s;t &s;in doth put us into the hand or under the power of death, then great &s;ins multiplyed and continued in, put us into the hand and under the power of death much more. The P&s;almi&s;t &s;aith of wicked worldly men (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 49.14.) <HI>Like &s;heepe they are layd in the grave, death &s;hall feed on them, and their beauty &s;hall con&s;ume in the grave, from their dwelling;</HI> or (as we put in the Margin) <HI>the grave being an habitation to every one of them &s;hall con&s;ume their beauty.</HI></P>
<P>But &s;ome may object, Is not this true of Godly men too, are not they thus handled by death, and the grave? doth not death feed on them? and doth not the grave con&s;ume their beauty?</P>
<P>I an&s;wer, though it doth, yet it doth not &s;o feed upon, nor con|&s;ume them, as it feedes upon and con&s;umes wicked men. For the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peakes here of death as it were triumphing over the wic|ked, whereas the Godly triumph over death. For, fir&s;t he &s;aith, The wicked are <HI>layd in the grave like &s;heepe;</HI> They lived like <HI>Wolves or Lyons,</HI> but they are layd in the grave <HI>like &s;heepe.</HI> If it be asked, why like &s;heepe? I an&s;wer, not for the innocency of their lives, but for their impotency in death; as if it had been &s;ayd, when once death took them in hand to lay them in the grave, they could make no more re&s;i&s;tance then a &s;heepe can again&s;t a Lyon or a Wolfe; And when death hath thus layd them in the grave, then &s;econdly (&s;aith the P&s;almi&s;t) <HI>death &s;hall feed on them,</HI> as a Lyon doth upon a &s;heepe, or any wild bea&s;t upon his prey, which is a further degree of deaths triumph over the wicked; And thirdly, <HI>their beauty &s;hall con&s;ume in the grave,</HI> that is, all their bodily and natural beauty (and that is all the beauty which they have) &s;hall con&s;ume in the Grave, whereas the Godly, have a beauty (and they count it their onely beauty) which the grave cannot con|&s;ume, and that is the beauty of their graces, the beauty of holy|nes, the &s;pirituall beauty of the inner man, yea and the &s;pirituall
<PB N="623" REF="325"> beauty of their outward holy actings &s;hall not con&s;ume in the Grave; For <HI>ble&s;&s;ed are the dead that dye in the Lord, for from henceforth, &s;aith the Spirit, they re&s;t from their labours, and their workes follow them</HI> (Rev. 14.13.) that is, their good workes fol|low them (not to death but into life) and will be both beauty and ble&s;&s;ednes to them from the Lord for ever. Whereas cur&s;ed are the dead that dye in their &s;ins, for from henceforth, they &s;hall be denyed re&s;t for ever, and none of their workes, wherein they tooke plea&s;ure in this world, &s;hall follow them into the next to give them any plea&s;ure. All their beauty and outward ble&s;&s;ednes ends in the grave. <HI>If in this life onely we have hope in Chri&s;t,</HI> &s;ayth the Apo|&s;tle of beleevers (1 Cor. 15.19.) <HI>we are of all men mo&s;t mi&s;erable;</HI> then how mi&s;erable are they, who have no hope beyond this life, or if they have, both that, and their pre&s;ent beauty con&s;ume toge|ther in the grave. Thus it is plaine, that though godly men dye, yet death hath not &s;uch a hand over them, as over the wicked. And as wicked men are more under the hand of death then the Godly when they dye, &s;o they are continually more lyable unto death. Sin, which unfits men to dye comfortably, fits them (as it were) to dye naturally: The more &s;infull any man is, the &s;oo|ner may death &s;urpri&s;e him. Holynes hath not onely a promi&s;e of eternall life hereafter, but of a long life here (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 34.12, 13.) And &s;in is not onely under a threat of eternal death hereafter, but of a &s;peedy death here. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 55.23.) <HI>But thou O Lord &s;halt bring them</HI> (that is, wicked men) <HI>downe into the pit of de&s;truction,</HI> (But when? it may be long fir&s;t, the next words make an&s;wer) <HI>Bloody and deceitfull men &s;hall not live out halfe their dayes;</HI> That is, not halfe the dayes which as others doe &s;o they naturally might live; eyther the Ju&s;tice of God or of man &s;hall cut &s;uch men off in the mid&s;t of their dayes. The grave gapes for tho&s;e who have thus &s;inned. So then, though there are many &s;pirituall rea&s;ons re|ferring to eternal life, which may move the &s;ons of men to take heed of &s;in,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pro, &s;epalchru~ e&s;t cur malim infernus aut in|feri, Nam &s;epul|ch<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">um rapit eti|am bonos i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">feri &s;olos eos rapiunt qui peccaverunt <HI>i e.</HI> improbos <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> yet there is a &s;trong motive from the concernments of this pre&s;ent temporal life, and that not onely as to the comforts of it, but al&s;o as to the very continuance of it. They ha&s;ten them|&s;elves to the grave who make ha&s;t to &s;in, and &s;o at once endanger the hopes of the next life, and the enjoyment of this.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Some, becau&s;e the Grave (in a general &s;ence) con|&s;umes the Godly as wel as the &s;inner (in the &s;ence la&s;t expre&s;&s;ed)
<PB N="624" REF="326"> doe therefore re&s;traine the word <HI>Sheol</HI> in this place to <HI>hell,</HI> as it &s;ignifyes the place or &s;tate of the damned, which is proper onely to tho&s;e who have &s;inned, and dye in their &s;innes. So the whole ver&s;e is thus rendred.<NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;t terra torri da &amp; calor ab|&s;umunt aquas invales, ita in|fernus eos qui peccaverunt. <HI>Tygur:</HI></NOTE> <HI>As dry earth and heate con&s;ume the &s;now wa|ters, &s;o hell con&s;umeth tho&s;e that have &s;inned.</HI> All that &s;in and turne not, &s;hall be turned to hell; But &s;hall hell con&s;ume them? they &s;hall ever be con&s;uming, but never con&s;umed. Hell &s;hall con&s;ume them as to a comfortable being, but it &s;hall not con&s;ume them as to a being; they &s;hall be allwayes dying, but never dead. Hell is the portion and all the portion of all wicked men hereafter, what ever portion of worldly profit or plea&s;ure they have had here: hell &s;hall con&s;ume them, and they &s;hall be con&s;uming for ever.</P>
<P>The 20^t^h ver&s;e may carry the &s;ence of this interpretation, but it complyeth more clearely with the former, de&s;cribing the cala|mitous condition of a wicked man at his departure out of this world.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="20" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 20.</HI></BIBL> The womb &s;hall forget him, the worme &s;hall feed &s;weet|ly on him, he &s;hall be no more remembred, and wick|edne&s;&s;e &s;hall be broken as a tree.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The number varyes here againe, <HI>Job</HI> &s;pake in the plural num|ber immediately before, yet here keeping to the &s;ame &s;ubject, he &s;peakes in the &s;ingular.</P>
<Q>The womb &s;hall forget him.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a verbo quod inten&s;i&s;&s;i|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">r&egrave; &amp; tenerri|m&egrave; amare &s;ig|ni&s;icat.</NOTE>That is, They who loved him mo&s;t tenderly and dearely <HI>&s;hall forget him.</HI> The word which we render <HI>the womb,</HI> is of a verbe which &s;ignifyes to love, with greate&s;t inten&s;ene&s;&s;e and tendernes: it is applyed to the love of man to God, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.1.) <HI>I love the Lord,</HI> I love the Lord dearely with bowells of affection; and it is often applyed to the love of God unto man. Some tran&s;late it here by the Ab&s;tract;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vim majorem haber per ab|&s;tractum. Obli|vi&s;cetur ejus mi&s;eratio, &s;ive amor &s;ive dile|ctio, <HI>i. e.</HI> illi qui eum &s;uavi|ter amabunt. <HI>Bold:</HI></NOTE> <HI>Love, mercie, or pittie &s;hall forget him.</HI> Which may be taken two wayes; Fir&s;t, that tho&s;e friends who before were pittifull to him, &s;hould forget him; his lovers, and acquaintance, who were deare to him even as his bowels, they &s;hall forget him; or &s;econdly, <HI>mercy &s;hall forget him,</HI> that is, the mercy of God, or the God of mercy &s;hall forget him, God who is all|together mercy &s;hall forget him; hell &s;hall con&s;ume him, and
<PB N="625" REF="326"> mercy, or the mercifull God &s;hall forget him for ever. The vul|gar reads it by way of imprecation, <HI>let mercy forget him;</HI> others as a direct denunciation, <HI>mercy &s;hall forget him;</HI> But I rather ap|prehend that this phra&s;e, or manner of &s;peaking, <HI>The wombe &s;hall forget him,</HI> doth onely import thus much; That when the wicked man dyeth, he &s;hall be as much forgotten among men, as if &s;uch a man had never come out of his mothers wombe, nor been born into the world. But are not wicked men remembred to have been in the world when once they goe out of the world? u&s;ually they doe &s;uch things in the world as cannot ea&s;ily be forgotten; And are not many wicked men, who dyed &s;ome thou&s;ands of yeares agoe, remembred unto this day, as if they had dyed but ye&s;terday? I an&s;wer, As to forget, alwayes implyeth former knowledge, and acquaintance, &s;o &s;ometimes it implyeth onely pre&s;ent neglect. When we pa&s;&s;e by, or &s;light a man, then we are &s;ayd to forget him, though we not onely remember who he is, but &s;ee him before our eyes. Much more then may we be &s;ayd to forget tho&s;e men being dead, whom we &s;lighted while they lived, and never &s;peake of but with contempt and abhorrence both of their per&s;ons and actions &s;ince they dyed. <HI>The wombe &s;hall forget him.</HI></P>
<P>Yet as the former ver&s;e is expounded by &s;ome, (as was there touched) to &s;hew how quiet and ea&s;ie a pa&s;&s;age wicked men u&s;u|ally have out of this world by death, &s;o this clau&s;e al&s;o of the ver&s;e in hand, yea the whole ver&s;e is expounded to the &s;ame &s;ence; I will onely hint it, and pa&s;&s;e onne.</P>
<Q>The wombe &s;hall forget him.</Q>
<P>That is, his mother &s;hall not be troubled or grieved at his death, becau&s;e he dyed without griefe or trouble.</P>
<Q>The wormes &s;hall feede &s;weetly on him.</Q>
<P>That is, The grave &s;hall be no &s;eveerer to him then to others.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ita &s;uavit&egrave;r ob|dormit, ut in &s;e|pulchro ei ver|mis du&s;ce&s;cere videatur. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> There the wormes feed upon all men, and they &s;hall feed &s;weetly on him; or it &s;hall be a kinde of &s;weetnes and plea&s;ure to him, to have the wormes feeding on him; which is no more then what <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayd upon the &s;ame argument (<HI>Chap.</HI> 21.33.) <HI>The clods of the valley &s;hall be &s;weete to him.</HI></P>
<Q>He &s;hall be no more remembred.</Q>
<P>That is, there &s;hall no hard fate or evill accident befall him
<PB N="626" REF="327"> when he dyes to admini&s;ter matter of di&s;cour&s;e concerning him: for when a man is cut off by &s;ome remarkeable &s;troake of Judgement eyther from the hand of God or man, his death becomes the di&s;|cour&s;e and Table-talke of all &s;orts of men, for that generation at lea&s;t, if not for many more. What hath cau&s;ed <HI>Korah, Dathan,</HI> and <HI>Abiram,</HI> to be remembred to this day, was it not the &s;trangenes of their death? (<HI>Numb.</HI> 14.29, 30.) <HI>And Mo&s;es &s;ayd, If the&s;e men dye the common death of all men, or if they be vi&s;ited after the vi&s;i|tation of all men, then the Lord hath not &s;ent me; but if the Lord make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth, and &s;wallow them up,</HI> &amp;c. This dreadfull hand of God upon them in &s;wallowing them up alive, hath made them to be remembred more then many thou|&s;ands of hone&s;t and good men in <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> who dyed in their beds. Up|on this account <HI>Ananias</HI> &amp; <HI>Saphira</HI> are remembred, and &s;o is <HI>That Herod (Act.</HI> 12.23.) <HI>Who was eaten of wormes &amp; gave up the Gho&s;t, becau&s;e he gave not glory unto God.</HI> But &s;aith <HI>Job</HI> (according to this expo&s;ition) the wicked mans death is commonly &s;o fayre, and &s;o much after the common death of all men, that no man re|remembers him any more.</P>
<Q>And wickedne&s;&s;e &s;hall be broken as a tree.</Q>
<P>That is, the wicked man &s;hall dye like an old rotten tree, he &s;hall moulder away and decay by peice-meale, or gradually, as a tree doth which is never hewen downe, but is &s;uffered to wa&s;t and dye alone. Thus the interpretation is carried through the whole ver&s;e, as a proofe, that bad men may (in this kinde) have a good death.</P>
<P>But though this be a truth, and &s;uites well with <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope in &s;ome pa&s;&s;ages of this Chapter, as al&s;o in other pa&s;&s;ages of this booke, that wicked men dye as to outward appearance as fairely, and &s;weetly, as the godly, &s;o that as no man <HI>knoweth love, or ha|tred by all that is before him, but all things</HI> (in this life) <HI>come alike to all; There is one event to the righteous and to the wicked</HI> (Eccl: 9.1, 2.) So all things come alike to all in death, &s;o farre as it meere|ly concernes the &s;eparation of &s;oule and body; yet I rather con|ceive that this ver&s;e declares wrath and judgement to wicked men dying, or their mi&s;ery and wretchednes in death. And therefore fir&s;t, <HI>the wombe,</HI> that is, his neere&s;t relations, and friends, even his mother, and wife, <HI>&s;hall forget him.</HI> They expected no good from
<PB N="627" REF="327"> him while he lived, and &s;o it was little &s;orrow to them when he dy|ed. Some men live till their friends are weary of them,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Mater quia a vivo nihil ex|pectabat &s;olain, neq pro mortuo amplius angi|tur.</NOTE> &amp; every one thinks the world is well rid of them when they dye. Secondly, <HI>The worme &s;hall feed &s;weetly on him,</HI> that is, as he fed &s;weetly upon &s;in before, &s;o now the worme &s;hall have a &s;weete mor&s;ell of him; Which &s;ome interpret al&s;o as a circumlocution of an ignominious or at lea&s;t a vulgar buryall; as if he had &s;ayd, he &s;hall not have the buryall of the noble and honourable, who u&s;ually are &s;ecured from wormes by &s;pices and imbalmings (&s;pice and perfume fence the dead body again&s;t the worme) But though he lived honourably, death &s;hall overtake him, and he &s;hall be buryed ignominiou&s;ly, or he &s;hall be buryed among common men, he &s;hall not have that priviledge which appertaines to his &s;tate, pre&s;ervation from the wormes. And (which is a greater mi&s;ery then both the former) Thirdly, <HI>He &s;hall be no more remembred,</HI> that is, he &s;hall be no more &s;poken of with honour, but his name &s;hall rot, as a man that is not worth the remembring. His name &s;hall not be regi&s;terd with ho|nour, nor kept upon the file, with men of credit and renowne. So that as the fir&s;t part of the ver&s;e &s;hewes how his neere&s;t relati|ons and lovers &s;hall forget him, &s;o this latter part &s;hewes that <HI>he &s;hall be remembred no more</HI> of any others.</P>
<P>The Original word which we tran&s;late to <HI>remember,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Me&s;hciim &s;e|cretarij zichro|noth, memoriae hi&s;toriae, monu|menta, zacha<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">, <HI>Ma&s;culus.</HI></NOTE> taken in other formes, &s;ignifyes a hi&s;tory, or a monument of record, as al&s;o a recorder or regi&s;ter, who writes and &s;ets downe things for me|mory. And hence al&s;o a man-childe in the Hebrew is called <HI>Za|char,</HI> becau&s;e the family is reckoned by the males, they only being named in genallogyes, and regi&s;tred in the monuments of anti|quity: &s;o that the&s;e words, <HI>He &s;hall be no more remembred,</HI> &s;ound thus much, he &s;hall be a man who&s;e name is quite blotted or ra&s;ed out of all memorialls. And This cur&s;e of being <HI>no more remembred,</HI> may be taken as was intimated before, eyther fir&s;t ab&s;olutely, he &s;hall not be thought of, named, or remembred at all, or &s;econdly, relatively, he &s;hall no more be remembred with honour, his name will &s;mell wor&s;e then his rotten carka&s;&s;e when he is dead, and when&s;oever he is mentioned, it will be like rakeing in a dunghill which rai&s;eth up a filthy &s;tench and vapour. Po&s;&s;ibly while he li|ved he was &s;poken of with honour, he had many flatterers, who crept to him, bowed to him, adored him, and called him a graci|ous Lord, but when he dyeth his reputation dyeth too, he &s;hall be
<PB N="628" REF="328"> no more remembred with honour; <HI>when any man cea&s;eth to be re|membred as he once was, he may be &s;aid not to be remembred at all.</HI> The wor&s;t and wickede&s;t men that ever were in the world may be &s;till remembred, but when they are remembred it is with &s;ome marke of infamie, or with a blacke brand upon their name.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Not to be remembred at all when we are dead, or to be remembred with di&s;honour, is the portion of the wicked.</Q>
<P>Many pretious Saints have both lived in ob&s;curity and being dead 'tis &s;car&s;e remembred that they ever lived, but none of the knowne Saints did ever live in di&s;grace (unle&s;&s;e in their opinion who had no grace) and being dead they are remembred by all (who have grace) with honour. But They who have been mo&s;t famous for wickedne&s;&s;e while they lived in this world, the mo&s;t fa|mous oppre&s;&s;ours, adulterers, and robbers, have dyed unde&s;iered, and their <HI>name<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> hath rotted</HI> being dead (<HI>Prov.</HI> 10.7.) <HI>David (P&s;al.</HI> 69.28.) powreth out this cur&s;e upon his enemies, <HI>Let them be blotted out of the booke of the living, and not remembred among the righteous.</HI> The <HI>Jewes</HI> were wont to number their fami|lyes, and to take their names; &s;o they did when they came out of <HI>Egypt.</HI> In which &s;ence the booke of numbers may be called, <HI>The booke of the living;</HI> and we may take the booke of the living in a double notion, eyther fir&s;t for the booke of tho&s;e who lived na|turally, or &s;econdly, of tho&s;e who lived &s;piritually, and &s;o were &s;uch as &s;hould live eternally (<HI>Phil.</HI> 4.3. <HI>Rev.</HI> 3.5.) <HI>David</HI> &s;eemes to intend this booke of the living, becau&s;e he addeth, <HI>let them not be remembred among the righteous.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, The&s;e men made an outward profe&s;&s;ion and &s;eemed once to be in the li&s;t and catalogue of the righteous, they had once an e&s;teeme and a name among the people of God (as all hypocrites have till they are un|masked) but they have di&s;covered them&s;elves to be of another alliance, therefore let them be no more named nor remembred as having any relation to that &s;ociety. Thus we may interpret that imprecation of <HI>Mo&s;es (Exod.</HI> 32.32.) when the Lords wrath waxed hott again&s;t the people of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> and would have de&s;troyed them, <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> prayed, <HI>Yet now if thou wilt forgive their &s;in, and if not, blot me I pray thee out of the booke which thou ha&s;t written,</HI> that is, out of the booke which thou ha&s;t commanded to be written as
<PB N="629" REF="328"> a record of the people of <HI>I&s;rael;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Voluit Moy&s;es de libro legis deleri nomen &s;uum ne unqua~ ulla in ea plus mentio fieret, nec legi&s;lator haberetur vel dux populi. <HI>Rab: Sol:</HI> Ex pungi &s;e vo|luit ex catalogo qua&s;i &s;criptorum patrum, <HI>i. e.</HI> principum viro|rum populi He|braei, <HI>&s;c:</HI> patri|archarum, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> qui vocabatur liber Ju&s;torum. <HI>Bold:</HI> Ab ip&s;o populi dei catalogo ra|di po&s;cebat, ut nulla deinceps inter fidelium nominis &s;ui me~|tio fieret, quam|vis fidi&s;&s;imus dei &s;ervus e&s;&s;e per&s;everet. Haec deletio nominis a libro viventi|um populi dei opprobrio&s;a ni|mis erat &amp; in|famis &s;celerato|rum poena. <HI>Id:</HI></NOTE> let me be reckoned no more for an <HI>I&s;raelite,</HI> e&s;pecially let me not have a glorious, honourable name in <HI>I&s;rael</HI> (&s;uch a one <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> had being the leader of that people) <HI>Blot me out of the booke which thou ha&s;t written,</HI> let not my name &s;tand upon that record. The Lord had &s;ayd (<HI>ver.</HI> 20.) <HI>Let me alone that my wrath may wax hot again&s;t them, that I may con&s;ume them: and I will make of thee a great na|tion. And Mo&s;es be&s;ought the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. As if he had &s;aid, I &s;tand not upon my own name, I am &s;o farre from being ambitiou&s;ly de&s;irous to be the head of a greater nation then the&s;e, that rather then thy name &s;hould &s;uffer, I care not to be taken notice of as the head of this nation, no nor as the meane&s;t member of them, no nor to be accounted &s;o much as a common <HI>I&s;raelite. Blot me out of the booke which thou ha&s;t written.</HI> This al&s;o is a fayre interpretation of <HI>Pauls</HI> meaning (<HI>Rom.</HI> 9.3.) when he wi&s;hed <HI>him&s;elfe accur&s;ed from Chri&s;t for his brethren, his kin&s;men according to the fle&s;h.</HI> We may &s;uppo&s;e that <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> and <HI>Paul</HI> were moved with the &s;ame Spirit of zeale for the Glory of God in both their wi&s;hes; And that when <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> wi&s;hed (upon that account) to be blotted out of the Booke which God had written, he wi&s;hed the &s;ame thing which <HI>Paul</HI> did, when he wi&s;hed to be accur&s;ed or an anathema from Chri&s;t; That is, to be as a per&s;on &s;eparated or excommunicated from the &s;ociety or communion of the faithfull, and &s;o no more to be remembred among the Saints, or to have his name blotted out of the Church-records, though he had been &s;o great a planter and propagater of the Churches. There are two Scriptures that &s;peake of &s;uch writings or holy records (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 4.3.) <HI>It &s;hall then come to pa&s;&s;e, that he that is left in Sion, and he that remains in Je|ru&s;alem &s;hall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living</HI> (or to life) <HI>in Jeru&s;alem.</HI> Many might live in <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> who were not written among the living, or to life in <HI>Jeru&s;alem.</HI> Thus to be written <HI>to life,</HI> or among the living, is to be written in the Catalogue of tho&s;e who are reckoned to have a life of Grace, holynes, and &s;anctification here, as al&s;o to be heyres and expec|tants of a life of Glory hereafter. Againe we have a like evidence of this (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 13.9.) <HI>My hand &s;hall be upon the Prophets that &s;ee vanity, and that divine lies, they &s;hall not be in the a&s;&s;embly of my people, neither &s;hall they be written in the writing of the hou&s;e of I&s;rael.</HI> As when the Lord brought the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> out of
<PB N="630" REF="329"> <HI>Aegypt,</HI> he commanded them to be mu&s;tered or numbred (<HI>Num.</HI> 1.2, 3.) Thus al&s;o when they returned from the Babylonian Captivity, they were numbred againe (<HI>Ezr:</HI> Chap. 2. <HI>Neh.</HI> Chap. 7.) Now tho&s;e records in which their names were written, are conceaved to be <HI>the writings of the hou&s;e of I&s;rael,</HI> mentioned in this 13^t^h of <HI>Ezekiel,</HI> as al&s;o, <HI>the Booke of the living or to life,</HI> in the fourth of <HI>I&s;aiah,</HI> at lea&s;t that both the&s;e Scriptures allude to tho&s;e records. And it was the cu&s;tome of the <HI>Jewes,</HI> that when any of them acted wickedly, his name was ra&s;ed out of tho&s;e records as unworthy to be remembred among the people of God, and was looked upon as a dead man, yea as a damned man, who hath no name in the booke of life &s;o often mentioned in Scripture, or who&s;e name might be &s;ayd to be blotted out of it.</P>
<P>From all which it appeares how great a cur&s;e it is to be no more remembred, with re&s;pect and honour, which <HI>Job</HI> affirmes &s;hall be the condition of wicked men. Which he further confirmes in the la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e.</P>
<Q>And wickedne&s;&s;e &s;hall be broken as a tree.</Q>
<P>Here the ab&s;tract (as el&s;ewhere frequently in Scripture) is put for the concrete, That man who ob&s;tinately per&s;everes in &s;in, is not onely wicked, but wickedne&s;&s;e it &s;elfe. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 107.42.) <HI>All iniquity &s;hall &s;top her mouth,</HI> that is, &s;uch men as are full of iniqui|ty, &s;hall have nothing to &s;ay or object again&s;t the righteous deal|ings of God, but &s;hall be &s;ilent in darkenes. So (<HI>Job</HI> 35.13.) men extreamely vaine are called <HI>vanity,</HI> and we u&s;ually call crafty men craft, covetous men covetou&s;ne&s;&s;e, and proud men are called pride; So a man much given to peace, is in Scripture-language called peace, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 120.7.) <HI>I am peace,</HI> or <HI>I peace, but they make them&s;elves ready for warre.</HI> They who are much carryed to or in any thing, are &s;ometimes called by the name of that thing, or they take the name of it upon them&s;elves. Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;pake (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 109.4.) <HI>For my love they are my adver&s;aries, but I give my &s;elfe to prayer;</HI> The Hebrew is, <HI>I prayer. David</HI> was &s;o much &s;et upon prayer, that he was prayer it &s;elfe; and a wicked man is &s;o &s;et up|on wickedne&s;&s;e, that he is wickedne&s;&s;e it &s;elfe.</P>
<Q>Wickedne&s;&s;e &s;hall be broken as a tree.</Q>
<P>What tree? The text determines not, but &s;peakes indefinitely,
<PB N="631" REF="329"> <HI>as a tree.</HI> We may under&s;tand it fir&s;t of a barren tree; barren trees are broken, and cut downe. The word <HI>broken,</HI> imports vio|lence, and &s;o <HI>a violent breaking;</HI> wicked men &s;hall be broken vio|lently. Chri&s;t &s;ayth of the Barren tree (<HI>Luk.</HI> 13.8.) <HI>Cut it downe, why cumbereth it the ground.</HI> Fruitfull trees adorne and beautifie the ground, but barren trees doe onely burden and cumber it. <HI>As good not to be as to be good for nothing.</HI> The wicked &s;hall be cut downe and broken as a barren tree; &s;econdly (which provokes more to breaking) <HI>they &s;hall be broken as a tree that bringeth forth di&s;ta&s;tfull, bitter, poy&s;onous fruite;</HI> It is not good to let a tree live, which brings forth evill and deadly fruit. If they de&s;erve to be broken who bring forth no fruit, then much more they who bring forth none but noughty fruit. Now as the wicked are alwayes barren of good fruit, &s;o they are alwayes bearing evill fruit, nor can they beare any other, <HI>Doe men gather grapes of thornes?</HI> Thirdly, they &s;hall be broken as a tree that is rent and &s;hivered both body and boughes with a tempe&s;t, or &s;torme of thunder and lightening; Thus many tall and goodly trees are broken, and thus the wicked &s;hall be broken, a &s;torme, a tempe&s;t from heaven &s;hall breake them. The downefall and de&s;truction of wicked men hath been in&s;i&s;ted upon from other pa&s;&s;ages of this booke, and there|fore I forbeare to adde any thing further here.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="632" REF="330">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 21, 22, 23.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Hee evill entreateth the barren that beareth not, and doeth not good to the widdow.</P>
<P>Hee draweth al&s;o the mighty with his power, hee ri&s;eth up and no man is &s;ure of his life.</P>
<P>Though it be given him to be in &s;afety, whereon hee re&s;teth, yet his eyes are upon their wayes.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> having &s;hewed the mi&s;erable conclu&s;ion of wicked men, begins afre&s;h to de&s;cribe their further progre&s;s in wickedne&s;&s;e in the 21^t^h and 22^t^h ver&s;es.</P>
<DIV3 N="21" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 21.</HI></BIBL> Hee evill entreateth the barren.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Here's another part of his wickedne&s;&s;e, having robbed and mur|thered the innocent, having committed adultery, where he could have opportunity and admittance,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nos putamus explicari non quid improbus faciat, &s;ed qui|bus &s;upplicijs deus ip&s;orum po&s;teros, et&s;i ad tempus &s;tare vi|deantur deijci|at. <HI>Merl:</HI> Con&s;ociat (<HI>&s;c:</HI> deus) ei &s;terile non parituram, &amp; viduam non afficit bono. <HI>Jun:</HI> Ne&abque; vivo ei ne&abque; mortuo ux|or<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> benedicit. <HI>Jun:</HI> Tollit (deus <HI>&s;c:</HI>) &egrave; medio liberos ejus, vel opibus pote&s;tate &amp; ho|nore florenti&s;&s;i|mos. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> hee proceeds, <HI>to afflict the bar|ren,</HI> and <HI>vexe the widdow.</HI> The word which wee render to <HI>evill entreate,</HI> hath &s;everall &s;ignifications, and I finde Interpreters ac|cordingly varying about the &s;ence of the whole ver&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The word &s;ignifies to <HI>a&s;&s;ociate, or joyne together.</HI> Thus M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> (to whom others joyne) renders it, <HI>he adjoyneth the barren which hath not borne childe:</HI> whereas our tran&s;lation holds out the further actings of wicked men in &s;in, this &s;hews the further progre&s;s of God in puni&s;hing them for &s;in; For the relative <HI>hee,</HI> in the text, is not referr'd to the wicked man, but to God him&s;elfe, <HI>hee,</HI> that is, God <HI>joyneth the barren that hath not borne childe (or that &s;hall not beare) and he doth no good to his widdow;</HI> that is, God &s;endeth him a barren wife, and when he dyes his widdow &s;hall live in mi&s;ery. This glo&s;s Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> gives upon his own tran|&s;lation; <HI>God &s;endeth after him a barren wife, that hee &s;hould have no helpe by Children, and &s;heweth no pitty to his widdow.</HI> The next ver&s;e is al&s;o tran&s;lated in this &s;ence; <HI>Hee draweth the mighty after him,</HI> that is, God drawes his Children though they are mighty in|to <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">he &s;ame Condition with him, and if any of them hold out a while, yet they &s;hall be &s;ure to fall at la&s;t. The Original may
<PB N="633" REF="330"> beare this &s;ence, and the Context or Antecedents &s;uite well with it; but yet I &s;hall rather keepe to our owne tran&s;lation then fall into this channell of interpretation, which changes both the per|&s;on and the &s;tate of the text: wee rendering it of the actings of the wicked man in reference unto others, and the&s;e rendering it as the actings of God in reference to the wicked. The rea&s;on of this dif|ference is, as the gramarians &s;peake, becau&s;e the nomnative Ca&s;e is not here &s;et downe (and according to the Conci&s;enes of the Hebrew tongue it is u&s;uall to leave it out) the verbe onely being expre&s;&s;ed, whence &s;ome referre it to man, others to God.</P>
<P>Secondly, As the word &s;ignifies to a&s;&s;ociate,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pavit tam &s;e quam alios; etiam depa&s;tus fuit perdidit de|&s;truxit.</NOTE> or joyne toge|ther; So, to feed, nouri&s;h, and take care of, as a &s;hepheard feed|eth his flock, or a father his Children and hou&s;hold: this &s;uites well with the former &s;ignification, becau&s;e they that are joyned together and a&s;&s;ociated, doe u&s;ually feed together. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 28.7.) <HI>Who&s;oever keepeth the Law is a wi&s;e Son, but he that is a Compani|on of riotous men</HI> (wee put in the margin, <HI>hee that feedeth gluttons) &s;hameth his father.</HI> According to this &s;ence of the word the In|terpretation is given thus; <HI>hee feedeth the barren that beareth not,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Pavit &s;terilem quae non parit. <HI>Vulg:</HI> Alit &s;terilia &s;corta, non pro|lis &s;ed ob&s;caenae voluptatis gra|tia.</NOTE> <HI>and doeth not good to the widdow;</HI> That is, hee runs after harlots, and feedeth them; &s;uch lewd women are expre&s;&s;ed <HI>by the barren,</HI> becau&s;e &s;uch &s;eldome bring forth Children, nor doe they de&s;ire it, being &s;o intent upon the fullfilling of their wanton or covetous lu&s;ts, that they quite forget the ends of marriage. Thus the prodi|gal &s;onne lived after he was gone from his Father, as his Elder brother gave the character of his &s;infull cour&s;e of life, which his father (upon his returne and humiliation) had covered and for|given (<HI>Luk.</HI> 15.30.) <HI>As &s;oone as this thy &s;onne was come, which had devoured thy living with harlots,</HI> &amp;c. They who feed and keepe &s;uch barren ones, &s;hall be kept bare and feed barely enough them&s;elves, if they be not quite devoured.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The word &s;ignifies as the care of the &s;hepheard in feeding his flock, or the care of a father in feeding his hou&s;hold, &s;o it &s;ignifies to feed upon, to eate up and devoure: and then the &s;ence is; <HI>hee eateth up, or hee devoureth the barren;</HI> which rendring falls in with ours, <HI>hee evill entreateth the barren;</HI> hee that devoures and eates them up, <HI>evill entreates them.</HI> To which &s;ence al&s;o the word is tran&s;lated <HI>to breake or to &s;poyle, (Jer.</HI> 11.16. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 2.9.) <HI>Hee &s;hall breake them with a rod of Iron.</HI> Thus hee eateth up or
<PB N="634" REF="331"> hee evill entreateth, that is, hee vexeth, or oppre&s;&s;eth
<Q>The barren that beareth not.</Q></P>
<P><HI>The barren,</HI> in &s;trictnes of &s;ignification, are they that have not received the ble&s;&s;ing of fruitfullnes in Child-bearing; and this phra&s;e, <HI>the barren that beareth not,</HI> implyes a woman that never bare children. Such a one was <HI>Hannah</HI> in a proper &s;ence (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.5, 6.) and in a &s;pirituall or my&s;tical &s;ence, &s;uch were the Gen|tiles for a long time, whom the Prophet thus encourageth (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 54.1.) <HI>Sing O Barren, thou that did&s;t not beare;</HI> that is, Rejoyce O ye Gentiles, who as yet have brought forth no fruit to God. The Church of the <HI>Jewes</HI> was fruitfull, &s;hee brought forth, but the Gentiles were barren; yet at la&s;t the Gentiles were brought forth into a Church, and then they brought forth aboundantly, both in reference to holy actions, and holy per&s;ons; for as the Apo&s;tle applyeth that Prophecy (<HI>Gal.</HI> 4.27.) <HI>The de&s;olate hath many moe children then &s;hee that hath a husband.</HI> Barrennes is an affliction, yea it was a reproach; and therefore that good woman <HI>Hannah</HI> when God heard her prayer and gave her a childe, &s;aid, <HI>God hath taken away my reproach.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Afflixit &s;terilem ne pareret. <HI>Bez.</HI> Confregit uxo rem &s;terilem ne pareret. <HI>Pagn:</HI> Hic e&s;t impro|b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s ille, qui ux|orem propriam quia &s;terilis e&s;t malis afficit. <HI>Merl:</HI></NOTE>Some render the text as if it were the de&s;igne of the wicked man to afflict the barren, though his owne wife, le&s;t &s;hee &s;hould beare him children; others as if this were his wickednes, he af|flicted and vexed his wife becau&s;e &s;hee was barren, whereas &s;uch women ought rather to be comforted by their husbands. As good <HI>Elkanah</HI> did his wife <HI>Hannah</HI> when grieved becau&s;e of her owne barrennes (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.8.) <HI>Why weepe&s;t thou? and why eate&s;t thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee then ten &s;ons?</HI> It is inhumanity in any, e&s;pecially in a husband to afflict the barren, much more to afflict them becau&s;e barren.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>To upbrayd any with their afflictions, e&s;pecially with their natu|rall infirmities, &s;uch as barrennes or any bodyly defect, is very &s;infull.</Q>
<P><HI>God giveth liberally and upbraydeth not</HI> (Jam: 1.5.) and &s;hall wee upbrayd any becau&s;e God denyes them his gifts? This was <HI>Peninahs</HI> &s;in in the pre&s;ent ca&s;e (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 1.6.) and it will be a &s;in to any to doe &s;o in any other ca&s;e.</P>
<PB N="635" REF="331">
<P>Againe, I Conceive wee may take the word <HI>barren</HI> here, not onely &s;trictly for one that beareth not, but largely for any one that is in a &s;ad or afflicted Condition, as the words <HI>widdow</HI> and <HI>father|les</HI> are often u&s;ed in Scripture, not onely for &s;uch as have no fa|ther, or have lo&s;t their husband, but for any that are in a troubled or low e&s;tate. So becau&s;e barrennes was then a &s;tate of affliction and of reproach, therefore by the barren any in affliction may be meant; And &s;o <HI>Evilly to Entreate the barren,</HI> is to vex or oppre&s;s any that are afflicted.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>To afflict the afflicted, is the worke of the wicked.</Q>
<P>Not to &s;upport the afflicted is &s;infull,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Sterilis per &s;e &s;atis afflicta e&s;t ergo dum conte|rit eam, afflic|tae afflictionem addit. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> how &s;infull then is it to adde to their affliction, and encrea&s;e their burden? I onely menti|on this, having di&s;covered this &s;traine of wickednes heretofore, and what this former part of the ver&s;e &s;aith affirmatively, is &s;ayd negatively in the latter.</P>
<Q>And he doeth not good to the widdow.</Q>
<P><HI>Eliphaz</HI> (Chap. 22.9.) charged <HI>Job</HI> with this wickednes that he had &s;ent widdowes away empty, that is, that he had not done good to the widdow; and <HI>Job</HI> at the third ver&s;e of this Chapter numbers it among the evill deedes of the wicked man, that he had taken <HI>the widdowes Oxe for a pledge.</HI> In this ver&s;e he againe reck|ons up the &s;ame piece of the wicked mans uncharitablenes, <HI>He doth not good to the widow;</HI> That is, he admini&s;ters no helpe to the wid|dow in her wants, no coun&s;el to her in her &s;traites, nor any Com|fort to her in her &s;orrows. And this Negative, he doth not good to the widow, hath an Affirmative in it, hee doth her wrong, hee grieveth and vexeth the widow. For as Negative Commandements alwayes containe the Affirmative (while we are forbidden to doe any evill, wee are enjoyned to doe the contrary good) &s;o negative practices u&s;ually imply the affirmative, and while we neglect to doe good, we are active in doing evill. Or as the Negative threat|nings of God containe affirmatives (<HI>Exod.</HI> 20.7.) <HI>Thou &s;halt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vaine; for the Lord will not hold him guiltles that taketh his name in vaine;</HI> that is, hee will hold him very guilty, or look upon him as very &s;infull, and puni&s;h him accordingly that takes his name in vaine; and as Negative
<PB N="636" REF="332"> promi&s;es containe affirmative promi&s;es (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 51.17.) <HI>The &s;a|crifices of God are a broken &s;pirit, a broken and a contrite heart O God thou wilt not de&s;pi&s;e;</HI> that is, thou O God wilt highly e&s;teem, ac|cept of, and delight in a broken heart; and as negative conclu&s;ions imply the affirmative (<HI>Prov.</HI> 17.21.) <HI>The father of a foole hath no Joy;</HI> that is, hee hath much &s;orrow and griefe (<HI>Prov.</HI> 28.21.) <HI>To accept per&s;ons in Judgement is not good;</HI> that is, to accept per|&s;ons in Judgement is very bad; &s;o negative practices of &s;in con|taine the affirmative, as el&s;ewhere &s;o here in the Text, <HI>hee doeth not good to the widow,</HI> that is, he wrongeth and troubleth the widdow, the widdow who is helples, is hurt by him.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ab <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod &s;ignificat c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ll<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|gare &amp; obmu|te&s;cere.</NOTE>The word which we render <HI>widow,</HI> &s;ignifies in the verbe both to <HI>binde,</HI> and to be <HI>&s;ilent:</HI> Both which &s;ignifications are compli|cated in the widows Condition. For fir&s;t the widow is bound, though &s;hee be loo&s;e from her husband: &s;hee is bound, and that two wayes; fir&s;t, with troubles, that's her affliction; &s;econdly, &s;hee is bound to be or &s;tay much at home, that's her duty; &s;econd|ly, as the widow is home-bound, &s;o &s;he is tongue-bound too; the widows eloquence is &s;ilence, &s;he &s;peakes mo&s;t to her owne com|mendation when &s;he &s;peakes little. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Paul</HI> reproves widows about two things, which di&s;cover two faylings in them, oppo&s;ite to both the&s;e latter bindings (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 5.13. <HI>And withall they learne to be idle, wandering from hou&s;e to hou&s;e;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, it is not comely for the widow to wander abroad, &s;he &s;hould &s;tay at home; the widow &s;hould be a fixed &s;tarre, not a planet. Not that the widow is to be a pri&s;oner in her hou&s;e, but &s;he &s;hould be &s;o much there, that &s;hee may de&s;erve the name of a Hou&s;e|keeper, not of a wanderer from hou&s;e to hou&s;e. The Apo&s;tle pro|ceeds in his charge again&s;t the faulty widow, <HI>And not onely Idle, but</HI> (which is the &s;econd vice) <HI>Tattlers al&s;o and bu&s;ie bodyes, &s;peaking things which they ought not;</HI> Tattlers are &s;uch as u&s;e their tongues overmuch, and u&s;ually much more then their hands; whereas the widow &s;hould be much in bu&s;ienes, little in di&s;cour&s;e, alwayes do|ing, &s;eldome &s;peaking. We &s;ee the wi&s;edome of God in teaching proper dutyes in common names; in which thing the Hebrew lan|guage is mo&s;t exact &amp; fruitfull. But I &s;hall returne from this digre&s;|&s;ion (if it may be &s;o called) about the word, when I have onely added, that the &s;ence given from this Etymologie of the word, doth not onely &s;hew the widow much of her duty, but aggrava|tes
<PB N="637" REF="332"> the &s;in of the wicked man in the neglect or omi&s;&s;ion of his duty unto hir, <HI>He doth not good to the widow,</HI> no not to the widow, who is bound downe with many &s;orrowes; he &s;peakes not a good word for the widow, who is as <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes in another ca&s;e (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 39.2.) <HI>even dumbe with &s;ilence.</HI> I have already both in this Chapter as al&s;o in the 22^d &s;hewed how &s;infull it is eyther to neglect or afflict widows, yea that to neglect them is to afflict them; therefore I &s;hall not pro&s;ecute tho&s;e poynts here. Onely from the forme of &s;peaking.</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Not to doe good is &s;infull as well as to doe evill, yea as &s;infull as to doe evill.</Q>
<P>Not to doe what we are enjoyned, is as bad as to doe what we are forbidden. We are not onely forbidden to wrong the widow (<HI>Jer.</HI> 22.3.) but we are often enjoyned to relieve and helpe her, to vi&s;it her and doe her good; therefore the widow hath wrong done to her, when good is not done to her.</P>
<P>The &s;pirit of wickednes is not yet drawne to the full length, &s;ee the wicked man &s;till at worke in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="22" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 22.</HI></BIBL> Hee draweth al&s;o the mighty by his power, hee ri&s;eth up and no man is &s;ure of his life.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In the former ver&s;e the wicked man had to doe with the weake, with the barren, with the widow, but now he grapples with the &s;trong &amp; mighty; <HI>Hee draweth al&s;o the mighty.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> traxit per traxit, oc|culto impetu a|liquem impelle|re quo velis, ver|bis at&abque; rationi|bus aliquem tra|here. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> The word may de|note a twofold drawing. Fir&s;t, drawing by a &s;ecret hidden &amp; imper|ceptible power, a moral power, the power of per&s;wa&s;ion working upon the heart and influencing the affections. There is an inter|nal atractive vertue, which draweth the mind as the load&s;tone doth iron, when nothing is &s;eene, nor &s;o much as a word heard. The word is u&s;ed in that &s;ence (<HI>Judg</HI> 4.6, 7.) where (the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> being &s;ore oppre&s;&s;ed by <HI>Jabins</HI> Army under the conduct of <HI>Si&s;e|ra) Deborah</HI> the Prophete&s;&s;e, who at that time Judged <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> &s;ent and called <HI>Baruch</HI> and &s;aid unto him, <HI>Hath not the Lord God of I&s;|rael Commanded, &s;aying, goe and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thou&s;and men of the Children of Napthali, and of the Children of Zebulun.</HI> Thus God bid them draw to that place.
<PB N="638" REF="333"> But what had God promi&s;ed? <HI>Deborah</HI> tells him what in the next ver&s;e; <HI>And I will draw unto thee to the river Ki&s;hon, Si&s;era the Captaine of Jabins Army with his Chariots and his multitude, and will deliver him into thine hand.</HI> But it may be que&s;tioned how God would draw <HI>Si&s;era</HI> with his Army thither? It was not by any outward force, onely God put a purpo&s;e into his heart to draw up his Army to that place, that &s;o he might fall into the &s;nare; <HI>Si&s;era</HI> had a &s;ecret motion or impul&s;e upon his &s;pirit, which he could not with&s;tand, though he fell by obeying it. Thus al&s;o God draweth &s;oules to him&s;elfe, by the invi&s;ible power of his Spirit, in their effe|ctuall vocation and Conver&s;ion. (<HI>Joh.</HI> 6.44.) <HI>No man can come to me except the father which &s;ent me draw him:</HI> how doth God draw? hee drawes by per&s;wa&s;ion, not by compul&s;ion; his per&s;wa&s;ion carryes a mighty commanding power with it: This drawing is not a bare moral per&s;wa&s;ion, by the propo&s;al of an object before them, and &s;o leaving the &s;inner purely to his owne election, but it is a per&s;wa&s;ion which hath an over-comming power going along with it; God doth not draw us again&s;t our wills to Chri&s;t, but hee drawes the will to Chri&s;t, or makes us willing to come to Chri&s;t. And the Lord drawes beleevers thus al&s;o after conver&s;ion to nee|rer conver&s;e with Chri&s;t. The Church begged the putting forth of this powerfull drawing (<HI>Cant.</HI> 1.3.) <HI>Draw me and I will run after thee.</HI> As the &s;oule mu&s;t have a drawing before we can come to Chri&s;t at all, &s;o after we are come to Chri&s;t, wee need drawing &s;till, that we may follow hard after him. This &s;ence of the word may have place in the pre&s;ent text. Wicked men have a power of drawing others after them, though they doe not act any outward power. <HI>Hee draweth the mighty by his power;</HI> That is, he allureth them to his &s;ide, or to a complyance with him; And he doth this &s;ometimes as without any formal threatnings to exerci&s;e his power again&s;t them, &s;o without any formal promi&s;es of u&s;ing his power for them; As they u&s;ually draw the mighty by the power of per|&s;wa&s;ion, &s;o their power and example draw much without per|&s;wa&s;ion.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a drawing by an outward violence, or a drawing by force. And this I take to be mo&s;t proper here; Hee cau&s;eth the mighty to come in and &s;toope to his power, though they have no mind at all to it.</P>
<Q><PB N="639" REF="333">Hee draweth the mighty.</Q>
<P>That is, fir&s;t, tho&s;e that are mighty in courage; &s;econdly,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t in|gens <HI>1</HI> numero, <HI>2</HI> motu, <HI>3</HI> po|tentia.</NOTE> tho&s;e that are mighty in &s;trength, whether of body or e&s;tate (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 76.5.) <HI>The &s;tout-hearted or mighty are &s;poyled, they have &s;lept their &s;leepe;</HI> hee drawes the mighty, the &s;tout-hearted by his power.</P>
<P>There is a twofold power; fir&s;t, of natural &s;trength or activity; &s;econdly, there is a power of civill &s;trength or authority (<HI>Rom.</HI> 13.1.) <HI>The powers that bee, are ordained of God;</HI> That is, the Autho|ritative or Magi&s;traticall powers are ordained of God. Wee may &s;uppo&s;e the wicked man here &s;poken of cloathed with both the&s;e &s;orts of power; and &s;o as he tramples upon the poore, the widow, the barren, and the weake, &s;o he keepes downe the mighty, the rich, the Great, and in conclu&s;ion he &s;o tyrannizeth and dominee|reth over all, that all are over-awed, to connive at him, and &s;tand as Neuters, if not to joyne with him, and be of his party. <HI>He draweth the mighty by his power.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Oppre&s;&s;ors and Tyrants will reach men of all degrees and qua|lities.</Q>
<P>When wicked men have undone the poore, they will engage the mighty; when they have done with the barren, and with <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">he widow, they will have to doe with the mo&s;t numerous and potent familyes. Their oppre&s;&s;ion of the poore doth not &s;atisfie, but whet their appetites, it doth not Extingui&s;h but onely Encrea&s;e their de&s;ires of attempting greater per&s;ons and things. As godly men proceed from le&s;&s;er acts of holynes to greater, from lower acts of faith to higher, They goe from faith to faith, and from &s;trength to &s;trength, their path is like the morning light &s;hining more and more unto the perfect day; &s;o the wicked goe on from le&s;&s;er acts of wickedne&s;&s;e to greater, from lu&s;t to lu&s;t, from &s;in to &s;in, their path is like the evening darkenes, which darkneth more and more unto the perfect night. As <HI>God addeth eniquity to their iniquity (P&s;al.</HI> 69.27.) by way of puni&s;hment, &s;o they adde iniquity to their owne iniquity in a way of plea&s;ure, and care not to come in|to his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><PB N="640" REF="334">The rule by which wicked men act is their power.</Q>
<P>They act according to their &s;trength, rather then according to righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e or rea&s;on, they will doe what they can, not what they ought; might &s;erves their turne in &s;tead of right, and they thinke any thing is done well enough, which they have power enough to doe. Thus the Prophet <HI>Michah</HI> de&s;cribes the oppre&s;|&s;ors of that age, (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.1.) <HI>They worke evill</HI> (in their thoughts) <HI>upon their beds, when the morning is light, they practi&s;e it, becau&s;e it is in the power of their hand.</HI> So &s;aith the pre&s;ent text, <HI>They draw the mighty by their power.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, See here the powerfull man working upon the mighty man <HI>(Hee drawes the mighty by his power.)</HI></P>
<P>Hence note
<Q>Mighty men may not onely meet with their matches, but be over|matched.</Q></P>
<P>Mighty men thinke them&s;elves &s;afe, or out of danger, and while the poore are under oppre&s;&s;ion (po&s;&s;ibly) they &s;mile at their owne indemnity, and applaud their owne happines; yet it may &s;oone come to the turne of the mighty to be overturned by might, their power may quickly be overpowred; as the might of God doth allwayes overmatch the might of man (<HI>Luk.</HI> 1.56.) <HI>Hee hath put downe the mighty from their &s;eate;</HI> &s;o he often armes men, &s;ometimes the wor&s;t of men, to pull downe <HI>the mighty from their &s;eates.</HI> The power of God is above all power, he is higher then the highe&s;t. And &s;ome men get &s;o high, that they are higher then all others who (be&s;ides them&s;elves) are highe&s;t among the children of men. The mighty may meet with their match, and be overmatched <HI>Hee draweth the mighty by his power,</HI>
<Q>Hee ri&s;eth up, and no man is &s;ure of his life.</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a radice <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;urrexit <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d &s;tandum.</NOTE>The&s;e words are a cleare de&s;cription of the oppre&s;&s;or, <HI>Hee ri|&s;eth up;</HI> the word &s;ignifyeth, fir&s;t, onely to &s;tand, or &s;o to ri&s;e as to &s;tand, which is common to all men in nature. Secondly, <HI>To ri&s;e up,</HI> is to get higher, to advance a mans &s;elfe to further de|grees of honour and power; thirdly, it &s;ignifyes to ri&s;e in a ho&s;tile manner, to ri&s;e as an Enemy again&s;t another. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.39.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t girded me with &s;trength unto the battell; thou ha&s;t &s;ubdued un|der me tho&s;e that ri&s;e up again&s;t me.</HI> And againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 44.5.) <HI>Through thee will we pu&s;h downe our enemies, through thy name
<PB N="641" REF="334"> will we tread them under that ri&s;e up again&s;t us.</HI> The wicked op|pre&s;&s;or, in the text, <HI>ri&s;eth up</HI> in all the&s;e &s;ences: He ri&s;eth up to &s;tand, or to &s;ettle and e&s;tabli&s;h him&s;elfe, to take good footing, and lay a good foundation for the perpetuating of his greatne&s;&s;e; &s;econdly, he ri&s;eth up to higher honour; thirdly, having thus &s;et|led and advanced him&s;elfe, he ri&s;eth up as an enemy to vexe all tho&s;e who oppo&s;e him or &s;tand in his way; fourthly, &s;ome give another &s;ence of this action; <HI>Hee</HI>
<Q>ri&s;eth up or &s;tandeth.</Q></P>
<P>What to doe? even to make faire promi&s;es, and to enter en|gagements what good he will doe, and how good he will be, when as he intends all the&s;e things to be but &s;nares to catch others, not at all to be as bonds to ty him&s;elfe, which &s;uites and falls in fully with the la&s;t words of the ver&s;e; <HI>and</HI>
<Q>no man is &s;ure of his life.</Q></P>
<P>The Hebrew is plural, <HI>No man is &s;ure of his lives.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non fidere vitae e&s;t ambigere de vita, &s;pe abjecta, omnibus circu~|&s;tantijs mortem denunciantibus.</NOTE> As if he had &s;ayd, if a man had an hundred lives he could be &s;ure of none of them, or he could not be &s;ure of one of them, when this man ri&s;eth up. The forme of &s;peaking here u&s;ed, <HI>No man is &s;ure of his life,</HI> or, &s;trictly to the letter of the Hebrew, <HI>No man can tru&s;t or beleeve for his life,</HI> imports a man brought into &s;uch a dangerous and uncertaine condition, that he hath no hold (as it were) of his owne life, nor doth he &s;ee any rea&s;on to beleeve, that he can hold it long, every thing about him carrying the face, and denouncing threats of death. So that it may be &s;aid of a man in that e&s;tate, as <HI>Paul</HI> &s;ayd of him&s;elfe (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.9.) <HI>I received the &s;entence of death in my &s;elfe;</HI> hee that is not &s;ure of his life, hath upon the matter a &s;entence of death in him. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> de|&s;cribeth &s;uch a &s;tate, (<HI>Deut.</HI> 28.66.) <HI>Thy life &s;hall hang in doubt before thee, and thou &s;halt feare day and night, and thou &s;halt have no a&s;&s;urance of thy life:</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, thou &s;halt not be able to call thy life thine own, nor to &s;ay in who&s;e keeping it will be an houre hence; It &s;hall hang before thee as a thing which two are contending and &s;triving for, and no man can determine who is like to be ma&s;ter of it. The life of man doth or ought alwayes to hang in doubt before him, and he can have no a&s;&s;urance of it, whether we re&s;pect the common fraylety of nature, which con|cernes every man, or the &s;peciall purpo&s;e or appoyntment of God
<PB N="642" REF="335"> which concernes him. But there are &s;ome men who&s;e lives hang in doubt before them, and they have no a&s;&s;urance of their lives, becau&s;e of outward reall dangers, or at lea&s;t becau&s;e of their jea|lou&s;ie and &s;u&s;pition of tho&s;e dangers which they phancy to them|&s;elves. <HI>Hee ri&s;eth up, and no man is &s;ure of his life.</HI> The&s;e two parts of the ver&s;e being thus layd together, The whole may be ex|pounded</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Of another man ri&s;ing up, and the wicked man fearing his life, <HI>if any man ri&s;eth up, hee is not &s;ure of his life;</HI> that is, if a man oppo&s;e and &s;et him&s;elfe again&s;t this tyrannous oppre&s;&s;or,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tam timidus et vecors e&s;t tyran|nus quam &s;aevus &amp; crudelis; &s;i enim qui&s;piam audeat re&s;i&s;tere, &s;tatim de vita &s;ua &amp; incolu|mitate de&s;perat. Simplici&s;&s;imus e&s;t &s;en&s;us ut u|tra&abque; pars de impio dicatur, et de illius com|motione animi &amp; metu quem mala con&s;cientia efficit. <HI>Cum &s;teterit non credit vitae &s;uae.</HI> Merc:</NOTE> <HI>hee</HI> (namely, the tyrant, or the oppre&s;&s;or) will not be in any &s;urety of his life. For, As tyrants are very Cruell, &s;o they are very feare|full, and when they &s;ee them&s;elves oppo&s;'d, their feares are en|crea&s;ed. They feare all men, of whom all men are afrayd.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others expound it as an expre&s;&s;ion of the wicked mans &s;ecret feare, even when no man oppo&s;eth or pur&s;ueth him. And thus he is afrayd in the &s;trength of his &s;tate, or when 'tis be&s;t with him. When he ri&s;eth up in greate&s;t power and glory, <HI>hee is not &s;ure of his life;</HI> that is, hee is afrayd of his life; his evill Con|&s;cience troubles him, and darts in continuall feares upon his &s;oule: He feareth falling as &s;oone as ri&s;en up, and death when he is (as to humane provi&s;ion and appearance) &s;afe&s;t and furthe&s;t from dan|ger. The marginal reading of our Engli&s;h Bibles gives this &s;ence of the text; <HI>He tru&s;teth not his owne life;</HI> that is, He doth not tru&s;t that his owne life is &s;afe; Hee doubts his neere&s;t friends will be his enemies, and that they who are of his blood &s;eeke his blood, and are ready to ruine him; he hath evill thoughts of others, and hee thinkes the thoughts of all others are evill concerning him. It can never be wel with him who&s;e con&s;cience is evill; How trouble|&s;ome is that mans life to him, who eyther is alwayes in danger, or &s;u&s;pects alwayes that he is? How un&s;ure is that mans life to him, when he &s;eeth him&s;elfe ready to fall, who ri&s;eth or &s;tandeth up, and yet is not &s;ure of his life?</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Qui re&s;titit ty|ranno &s;tatim de vita &s;ua actum putet.</NOTE>Thirdly, The&s;e words are expounded to &s;et forth the danger of that particular man, or of tho&s;e men, how many &s;oever they are, who oppo&s;e the wicked oppre&s;&s;or. <HI>He that ri&s;eth up is not &s;ure of his life;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, if any man ri&s;e up to &s;top this tyrant in the wayes of his oppre&s;&s;ion, he &s;hall but ruine and undoe him&s;elfe by it. Many an hone&s;t ju&s;t man hath &s;acrificed
<PB N="643" REF="335"> his life to the wrath of powerfull oppre&s;&s;ors, onely by &s;peaking a word again&s;t them, how much more by acting again&s;t them, and &s;ome have not thought their lives deare, that they might doe it.</P>
<P>Fourthly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Et&s;i porrigant manus et foede|ra percutiant, tamen quarunt occa&s;iones nocen|di. Stare acci|pit pro percute|re foedus &s;tan|do. <HI>I&s;id:</HI></NOTE> (Which was toucht before) as this po&s;ture of ri|&s;ing up, implyeth Covenant-making, The &s;ence is this; Though the oppre&s;&s;or give you a&s;&s;urance by the &s;tronge&s;t Covenants, <HI>yet no man is &s;ure of his life;</HI> that is, there is no tru&s;ting to him, though you have his word, though you have his Oath, yet you have not him; though hee give you all the Engagements under heaven, yet hee gives you no &s;ecurity; for he is unfaithfull, un&s;teady, a Covenant-breaker; He that makes a covenant or takes an oath meerely for his owne advantage, will quickly breake both oathes and covenants for his owne advantage, and if no occa&s;ion be offe|red for the making of a breach, he will make one, or at lea&s;t pre|tend one.</P>
<P>Fifthly, According to our tran&s;lation,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Si in&s;urrexerit in aliquem &amp; adoriatur, is quem adortus fuerit, non &s;pe|rabit &s;e ultra victurum. <HI>Va|tabl:</HI></NOTE> the &s;ence may be given two wayes; Fir&s;t, he ri&s;eth up, that is, he groweth very power|full, and then <HI>no man is &s;ure of his life,</HI> that is, no good man is &s;ure of his life. For hee is a terror not onely to evill doers (as all Ma|gi&s;trates ought to be, <HI>Rom.</HI> 13.3.) but he is a terror to tho&s;e that doe well; &s;econdly, <HI>He ri&s;eth up,</HI> that is, he groweth angry and enraged, his choler boyles in him, and then no man (of them e&s;pe|cially again&s;t whom he is enraged) is &s;ure of his life. And when he &s;ayth (in reference to any of the&s;e ca&s;es) <HI>no man is &s;ure of his life,</HI> the meaning is, every man hath great rea&s;on to feare, if not utter|ly to de&s;paire of his life; no man is ab&s;olutely &s;ure of his life at any time; for (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>Chap.</HI> 4.14.) <HI>What is our life? it is even a vapour that appeareth a little time, and then vani&s;heth away;</HI> and how &s;hort the time of its appearance will be no man knoweth, therefore (I &s;ay) no man can at any time be ab&s;olutely &s;ure of his life, no not for the lea&s;t moment of time, but at &s;ometimes our lives are le&s;&s;e &s;ure to us then at others, yea at &s;ometimes we have no a&s;&s;urance at all of our lives, and we ne|ver have le&s;&s;e hope to live, or le&s;&s;e hold of life, then when The wicked man <HI>ri&s;eth up.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The power of a wicked man is the danger of all; good men yea all men are in danger when the wicked man is in power.</Q>
<P><HI>Hee ri&s;eth up, and no man is &s;ure of his life;</HI> when the ungodly
<PB N="644" REF="336"> are in the hight of pro&s;perity, no man is in &s;afety. (<HI>Pro.</HI> 11.10, 11.) <HI>When it goeth well with the righteous the City rejoyceth, and when the wicked peri&s;h there is &s;afety: by the ble&s;&s;ing of the upright the City is exalted, but it is overthrowne by the mouth of the wicked,</HI> that is, by the mouth of tho&s;e wicked men who are in power; their ri&s;ing is the fall of the righteous, and with their fall, the righteous ri&s;e. <HI>When the wicked peri&s;h there is &s;afety.</HI> And againe, (<HI>Pro.</HI> 28.12.) <HI>When righteous men doe rejoyce, there is great glo|ry.</HI> That is, when righteous men pro&s;per (the effect is put for the cau&s;e, or the con&s;equent for the antecedent, joy follows pro|&s;perity, when (I &s;ay) it is thus with righteous men) <HI>there is great glory,</HI> that is, men appeare in their be&s;t both by words and acti|ons. The joy of the righteous is not alone, many others rejoyce with bim, yea, are made joyfull by him. So that when the righ|teous ri&s;e up in honour and authority, all men &s;et them&s;elves out to the utmo&s;t, and doe as it were cloath the dignity of righte|ous men with glory. Then they are willing to &s;hew what they have, becau&s;e they know, they &s;hall keepe what they have &s;afely. And the freenes of their glorying when the righteous rejoyce, &s;heweth the freedome which they enjoy under the power of the righteous. <HI>But</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon</HI> in the &s;ame place) <HI>when the wicked ri&s;e</HI> (which is the word of the text) <HI>a man is hidden.</HI> Which may be expounded fir&s;t thus. The wicked when they ri&s;e doe &s;car&s;e &s;hew them&s;elves to be men, they are &s;o inhumane and cruel, which &s;uites wel with the 15^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter, <HI>As a roaring Lion and a ranging Beare, &s;o is a wicked ruler over the poore people.</HI> So that nothing of a man appeares in them when they are in pow|er. Secondly, we may take the meaning (more nere the pre&s;ent poynt) thus; <HI>When the wicked ri&s;e,</HI> that is, to greatnes and autho|rity, <HI>A man is hidden,</HI> that is, men keepe as clo&s;e and private as they can, as if they were affrayd to be &s;eene, and doubted <HI>they &s;hould be ruined by their ri&s;ing.</HI> When the wicked appeare mo&s;t, the godly run into holes; for they in&s;tead of being a &s;hield of protection and defence to the Godly, are a &s;nare, a &s;word, and vexation to all that are about them; they u&s;e their power for de|&s;truction, and not for Edification. The Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 13.7.) &s;peaking of the power given him by Chri&s;t in the Go&s;pel, &s;aith, <HI>It is for Edification, not for de&s;truction;</HI> the de&s;igne of that power is to build up, and not to throw downe; So the great de&s;igne
<PB N="645" REF="336"> of all power in the hand of the Magi&s;trate as well as of the Mini|&s;tery is for Edification, not for de&s;truction; de&s;truction is that which comes but by accident, by rea&s;on of the &s;in and wickednes that men doe; the great bu&s;ines of the Magi&s;trate is to &s;ave, to build up, and to defend; yet &s;uch is the wickednes of mans heart, that many times when he hath power in his hand, <HI>no man is &s;ure of his life.</HI> Hee is &s;o farre from giving a&s;&s;urance, protection, and defence to all by his power, that his power is every mans danger. And hence <HI>Solomon</HI> concludes (<HI>Prov.</HI> 29.2.) <HI>When the righteous are in authority the people rejoyce, but when the wicked beareth rule the people mourne.</HI> It cannot but be &s;ad with them who have no|thing &s;ure to them; they mu&s;t needes mourne who have neyther e&s;tate, nor liberty, nor life &s;ure to them; they mu&s;t needes mourne who &s;ee nothing &s;o &s;ure to them as &s;orrow. As to have our &s;piri|tuall calling and eternal election made &s;ure to us, is the top of all joy to us in this world; So to have nothing in this world &s;ure to us, no not &s;o much as our life (in the &s;ence explained) &s;ure to us, is the bottome and lowe&s;t of all that &s;orrow which concernes this pre&s;ent world. And this &s;orrow the wicked mans exaltation brings upon all men; <HI>He ri&s;eth up and no man is &s;ure of his life.</HI></P>
<P>But as it felloweth,</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="23" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 23.</HI></BIBL> Though it be given him to be in &s;afety, wherein hee tru&s;teth, yet his Eyes are upon their wayes.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In this 23^d ver&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Si quis ei donet ut tutus agere po&s;&s;it ac nitatur illi, oculi ejus &s;peculantur vias ad nocendum. <HI>Tygur:</HI> Solent boni dare impijs munera ut confident&egrave;r h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">tent inter illos: at po&s;lea infidiantur illis a qu<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">bus mune|ra acceperun<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">. <HI>Vatabl:</HI></NOTE> <HI>Job</HI> further de&s;cribeth the &s;tate of wicked men in their pro&s;perity: wee may read the text thus; <HI>If any one giveth to be in &s;afety,</HI> &amp;c. and &s;o the &s;ence of this ver&s;e falls in with the Interpretation of the words la&s;t opened; <HI>If any one giveth to be in &s;afety,</HI> that is, this man is &s;o wicked, that though any poore man, or any who are in feare of him would be&s;tow large gifts upon him to bribe him for his favour, or &s;tay his hand from oppre&s;&s;ion, that they might live quietly by him, and &s;o &s;hould tru&s;t upon him, that having received their money, &s;urely hee would let them alone, and they &s;hould be quiet, <HI>yet his eyes are upon their wayes;</HI> that is, hee is looking about him, to pick holes in their Coate, and finde &s;ome advantage again&s;t them to bring them into trouble. For as his own Covenants cannot hold him, &s;o neyther can their curte&s;ies, but <HI>his eyes are</HI> (&s;everely and critically)
<PB N="646" REF="337"> <HI>upon their wayes,</HI> to di&s;cover &s;ome fault, if any be, or if none be, yet to &s;ugge&s;t &s;omewhat as matter of accu&s;ation, and &s;o of pro|ceeding again&s;t them. This is a truth, though a man buy his peace at a very deare rate of wicked men, yet there is no a&s;&s;urance to be had: bribeing and &s;ubmi&s;&s;ion, and flattery will not hold long; many examples have proved that the&s;e things have not &s;ecured good men from the oppre&s;&s;ion of tyrants; but they have quickly found out a way to ruine them that have been mo&s;t liberal in re|wards to gaine their favour, and purcha&s;e their owne peace. If any one give to be in &s;afety, and tru&s;teth he &s;hall be &s;afe, his tru&s;t will fayle him; <HI>The more we tru&s;t God the &s;afer we are, but there is no &s;afety to be had by tru&s;ting ungodly men.</HI> This is a good &s;ence, yet, rather according to our tran&s;lation, the words &s;hew the Con|dition of the wicked man him&s;elfe in his pro&s;perity.</P>
<Q>Though it be given him to be in &s;afety, wherein he re&s;teth, yet his eyes are upon their wayes.</Q>
<P>That is, though it be given him of God, or though God give him this priviledge <HI>to be in &s;afety,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ad fi|duciam, nomen Batach in&s;igne~ importat fiduci|am &amp; confiden|tiam &s;ine ullo pavore. Dat ei &s;ecurita|tem; <HI>i e.</HI> dat ei quod ip&s;um red|dere pote&s;t &s;ecu|rum.</NOTE> that is, though he ri&s;e up, and put downe all that oppo&s;e him; though God give him this &s;afety, <HI>yet</HI> &amp;c. The word which wee tran&s;late, <HI>to be in &s;afety,</HI> &s;ignifies the mo&s;t &s;ecure &s;afety, or &s;afety accompanyed with the highe&s;t Con|fidence, that is, when there is not &s;o much as the lea&s;t mixture of any feare, not &s;o much as the lea&s;t Jealou&s;ie or &s;u&s;picion of a change. <HI>Babylon</HI> is de&s;cribed pre&s;uming upon &s;uch a &s;afety (<HI>E&s;ay</HI> 47.8.) <HI>I &s;it a Queene and am no widdow, and &s;hall &s;ee no &s;orrow;</HI> and the wicked are &s;poken of as po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ing and enjoying &s;uch a &s;afety (<HI>Job</HI> 21.9.) <HI>Their hou&s;es are free from feare, neitheir is the rod of God upon them;</HI> they are free not only from the rod of God, but from the feare of the rod; though the wicked man live thus Confidently, and all things are with him according to his wi&s;h; though God &s;eemes <HI>to crowne him with loving kindnes and ten|der mercies,</HI> which are the proper portion of the Saints (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 103.4.) Though hee give him his hearts de&s;ire (which is a pro|mi&s;e peculiar to the godly man (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.4.) though it be gi|ven him to be thus in &s;afety, <HI>wherein, or whereon hee re&s;teth,</HI> that is, though as hee &s;eeth no danger, &s;o hee &s;u&s;pecteth none, but re&s;ts in his &s;tate, and &s;ayth, all's &s;ure, all's well; though the Condition of a wicked man be thus &s;afe and pro&s;perous; and all this by the gift of God, <HI>yet</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<PB N="647" REF="337">
<P>Before I explicate <HI>Jobs</HI> exception upon this great gift, Take two or three notes from the con&s;ideration of the Author and na|ture of this gift, as al&s;o from his re&s;t upon it.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> To be in &s;afety is a great outward mercy.</Q>
<P>We finde it promi&s;ed among many other &s;peciall mercyes to the Church in her be&s;t e&s;tate (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 34.27.) <HI>The tree of the feild &s;hall yeild her fruit, and the earth &s;hall yeild her encrea&s;e, and they &s;hall be &s;afe in their land.</HI> And &s;uch was their old promi&s;e (<HI>Lev:</HI> 26.5.) <HI>Ye &s;hall eate your bread to the full, and dwell in your land &s;afely.</HI> (Deut. 33.28.) <HI>I&s;rael &s;hall dwell in &s;afety alone.</HI> Though <HI>I&s;rael</HI> be alone he &s;hall dwel in &s;afety, or <HI>I&s;rael</HI> alone &s;hall dwell in &s;afety. He &s;hall have &s;afety when others are in danger. <HI>Thou</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 4.8.) <HI>make&s;t me dwell in &s;afety;</HI> and &s;aith the Lord concerning the poore man (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 12.5.) <HI>I will &s;et him in &s;afety from him that puffeth at him.</HI> (Pro. 21.3<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.) <HI>Safety is of the Lord.</HI> Yea
<Q><HI>Secondly,</HI> The &s;afety even of a wicked man is of the Lord.</Q></P>
<P><HI>It is given to him</HI> (by way of common providence) <HI>to be in &s;afety;</HI> as God takes care of his owne &s;ervants in mercy, &s;o <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> takes care of a wicked man in wi&s;edome; hee is the <HI>pre&s;erver both of man and bea&s;t;</HI> hee is the pre&s;erver not onely of good men, but of evill men, who are as bea&s;ts. How bad &s;oever any man is, his good, what&s;oever he hath, is from the Lord. They may have &s;afe|ty, who &s;hall never have &s;alvation. And they who are neere to eternal damnation, may be farre from danger.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Whereas it is &s;ayd, <HI>Though he be in &s;afety, wherein hee re&s;teth.</HI></P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Outward pro&s;perity is the foundation of a wicked mans peace.</Q>
<P>God giveth him &s;afety, and he makes his &s;afety his God. He re&s;teth in the &s;afety which God giveth him, not in God who gi|veth him &s;afety. Carnal men loo&s;e God in the creature; and whereas they &s;hould tru&s;t in God, becau&s;e he &s;endeth them good things, they tru&s;t upon the good things which God &s;endeth. In what&s;oever (be&s;ides God) we place our tru&s;t, that we put in the place of God. <HI>David</HI> was much over&s;hot in this poynt
<PB N="648" REF="338"> (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 30.6.) <HI>In my pro&s;perity I &s;aid I &s;hall never be moved;</HI> God made <HI>David</HI> pro&s;per, and <HI>David</HI> re&s;ted in his pro&s;perity. When <HI>David</HI> was right, he &s;ayd in his adver&s;ity (and every god|ly man may &s;ay in his deepe&s;t adver&s;ity) <HI>I &s;hall never be moved.</HI> God is as &s;trong to us in our greate&s;t weakenes as when he makes our mountaine &s;tronge&s;t; and they who thinke them&s;elves more immoveable when their mountaine is &s;trong, then when it is weak, re&s;t in their mountaine not in God. Now if <HI>David</HI> (a man after Gods owne heart) &s;et or re&s;ted his heart &s;o much upon his moun|taine (that is, his worldly pro&s;perity) becau&s;e it was &s;trong, how much more may carnal men grow into an admiration of their earthly mountaines, and re&s;t under their &s;hadow and &s;helter, as if they could never be moved? Worldly men doe this &s;o much that this is made the de&s;cription of worldly men (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 49.6.) <HI>They that tru&s;t in their wealth, and boa&s;t them&s;elves in the multitude of their riches.</HI> Who the&s;e are is not expre&s;&s;ed, as if every one mu&s;t needs know what &s;ort of men they are who tru&s;t in their wealth; that is who &s;ee all well with them, and who &s;ay all &s;hall be well with them, becau&s;e of the multitude of their riches. For that is pro|perly to tru&s;t in riches, when a man &s;ayth to him&s;elfe (as the rich <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 word"> &s;ayd, <HI>Luke</HI> 12.19.) <HI>Soule, take thine ea&s;e; thou ha&s;t much goods laid up for many yeares, Eate and drinke, and be merry. Job</HI> had another &s;pirit in the mid&s;t of his pro&s;perity (<HI>Chap.</HI> 3.26.) <HI>I was not in &s;afety, neither had I re&s;t,</HI> &amp;c. he &s;pake there of his Con|dition before he was in trouble, when hee had &s;ome thou&s;ands of &s;heepe, &s;ome hundreds of oxen, with a multitude of Camells and A&s;&s;es, when hee had many &s;ons and daughters, with &s;ervants in great number; When it was thus with him, when no Cloud had in the lea&s;t darkened his day, nor &s;o much as a graine of gall or wormewood embittered his cup; when he was thus &s;afe, yet hee &s;ayd I was not in &s;afety. When the Devill &s;aid hee was &s;o &s;afe that hee could not touch him; <HI>Thou ha&s;t made a hedge about him,</HI> yet hee &s;ayd, <HI>I was not in &s;afety, neyther had I re&s;t;</HI> that is, hee looked upon his hedge as upon that which might quickly be bro|ken through, &amp; upon his mountaine, as that which might not onely be quickly moved, but quite removed, he &s;aw all he had &s;hakeing and tottering, and &s;o could not have any re&s;t in any thing which he had: he had re&s;t in oppo&s;ition to murmuring and di&s;content about the things of this world, but he was re&s;tle&s;&s;e in oppo&s;ition
<PB N="649" REF="338"> to confiding in and &s;atisfaction with the things of this world. In this re&s;pect his very &s;afety was un&s;afe, and his re&s;t, re&s;tle&s;&s;e to him. Only the carnal man, when God giveth him to be in &s;afety, re&s;teth in it; he &s;its downe and concludeth that he hath enough at pre&s;ent, and that his Enough will la&s;t for Ever; He re&s;teth in his &s;afety, not onely as being out of danger, but above it. <HI>Job</HI> having thus &s;et forth the outward &s;tate of the wicked man, <HI>he is in &s;afety,</HI> as al&s;o the &s;tate of his inward man, <HI>He re&s;teth in it;</HI> &s;heweth us in the la&s;t place and clo&s;e of the ver&s;e, what God is doing towards him, while he is doing thus, or notwith&s;tanding he doth thus,
<Q>Yet his eyes are upon their wayes.</Q></P>
<P>Some read, <HI>though his eyes are upon their wayes,</HI> and give the &s;ence thus, <HI>though God &s;eeth all their wickednes, yet hee lets them proceed and pro&s;per;</HI> That's a truth; God doth not let wicked men pro&s;per, becau&s;e hee doth not know how wicked they are, or what wickedne&s;&s;e they doe; hee knowes well enough, how ill they are, and what evill they doe, his eyes are upon their wayes, while they abu&s;e his mercyes, and (in &s;tead of re&s;ting in him who gives them &s;afety) re&s;t in the &s;afety which he hath given them.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others read thus, <HI>and his eyes are upon their wayes;</HI> as if the words were a further de&s;cription of the wicked mans out|ward pro&s;perity, and a de&s;cription of it to &s;uch a height,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Qua&s;i intentis in ip&s;os dei ip&s;i|us oculis ut eis omnia ex ip&s;oru~ animi &s;ententia &s;uccederent. <HI>Bez:</HI> Plus e&s;t quod probatur a&s;pectu quam quod &s;er|mone laudatur. <HI>Ambro&s;:</HI></NOTE> as if the eyes of God were fixed or fa&s;tned upon his wayes, to take care of him, and to cau&s;e him to pro&s;per in them; as if the eyes of God did drop ble&s;&s;ings upon him, and guide him every day &s;ucce&s;&s;eful|ly in all his undertakings. The eye of God upon a place or per|&s;on implyeth (in Scripture language) his pre&s;ence with them for good. (<HI>Deut.</HI> 11.12.) <HI>The land whither thou goe&s;t in to po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e it, is not like Aegypt,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>but it is a land which the Lord thy God careth for, the eyes of the Lord thy God are alwayes upon it, from the beginning of the yeare even unto the end of the yeare;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, The Lord is unee&s;&s;antly watchfull over it, both to prevent evill, and to be&s;tow good upon it. Read the &s;ame &s;ence of the phra&s;e (<HI>Ezra</HI> 5.5. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 33.18. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 34.15.) And u&s;ually in Scripture when the eye of God is &s;ayd to be upon any, it is not taken in an evill &s;ence unle&s;&s;e &s;o expre&s;t: as (<HI>Amos</HI> 9.4.) <HI>Mine eyes &s;hall be upon them for evill and not for good.</HI> So that, while <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>And his eyes are upon their wayes,</HI> The words, according to
<PB N="650" REF="339"> this reading, continue, if not highten the former &s;ence, &s;hewing fur|ther the outward pro&s;perity of evill men by the &s;eeming favour of God to them.</P>
<P>But I rather clo&s;e with our reading, <HI>yet his Eyes are upon their wayes;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd; <HI>Doe not thinke that God taketh no notice of their &s;infull Cour&s;es, becau&s;e hee gives them to be in &s;afety, and in &s;uch &s;afety, that they re&s;t and tru&s;t upon it, for I tell you the eyes of God are upon their wayes.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>God alwayes &s;eeth the wayes of wicked men, or hee &s;eeth wicked men in all their wayes.</Q>
<P>It is no argument that God neglecteth the government of the world, becau&s;e wicked men are in &s;afety; Hee fully con&s;idereth their wayes, who eyther through ignorance are wandring from, or, through wilfullnes, turning out of his wayes.</P>
<P>And the eye of God is upon the wayes of &s;uch men, not onely to &s;ee which way,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hic opponitur conniventiae &amp; di&s;&s;imulationi. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> or whither they are going (<HI>Job</HI> 34.21.) but to puni&s;h them for their going wrong. God will not connive at, nor di&s;&s;emble what he &s;eeth when he &s;eeth what is unfit. (<HI>Hab.</HI> 3.6.) <HI>Hee &s;tood and mea&s;ured the earth, hee beheld and drove a&s;under the nations,</HI> that is, he divided and brake tho&s;e nations in whom he beheld iniquity. (<HI>Zach.</HI> 9.8.) <HI>And no oppre&s;&s;our &s;hall pa&s;&s;e through them any more, for now I have &s;eene with mine eyes,</HI> that is, I have exactly &s;eene, I have taken perfect notice of them and their oppre&s;&s;ours, &amp; I will in ju&s;tice &s;o oppre&s;&s;e their unju&s;t oppre&s;&s;ours, that they &s;hall be rid of them for ever, <HI>No oppre&s;&s;our &s;hall pa&s;&s;e through them any more.</HI> Wee may make a threefold difference a|bout the Eye of God upon the per&s;ons or wayes of men.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men, to ob&s;erve what they doe, his eye di&s;tingui&s;heth between good and evill, and di&s;cerneth, as much as beholdeth what is done; His &s;eeing the wayes of men is a cleare under&s;tanding of them.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men to pro|&s;per and ble&s;&s;e them in what they doe well. The eye of God up|on the righteous implyeth, yea and conveigheth mercy to the righteous.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The Eye of God is upon the wayes of men, to pun|i&s;h and cha&s;ten them for what they doe ami&s;&s;e. God hath a vin|dictive,
<PB N="651" REF="339"> or a revengeing eye, as well as an intuitive or a beholding eye. This eye of God is upon all the wayes of wicked men, though for a time hee giveth them to be in &s;afety, wherein they re&s;t. And becau&s;e God &s;eeth the wayes both of the righteous and the wicked, therefore God commandeth us to <HI>&s;ay to the righteous it &s;hall be well with them, for they &s;hall eate the fruit of their do|ings. Wo to the wicked, it &s;hall be ill with him, for the reward of his hands &s;hall be given him.</HI> Every man &s;hall receave from the hand of God, according to what God hath &s;eene with his eye.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Wee may take the&s;e words as an admiring Conclu&s;i|on, like that (<HI>ver.</HI> 12.) <HI>Yet God layeth not folly to them.</HI> They doe fooli&s;hly, yet God doth not deale with them according to their folly; &s;o here they doe wickedly, <HI>yet his eyes are upon their wayes.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, it is a wonderfull thing, even matter of a&s;toni&s;hment, that God who &s;o exactly &s;eeth and knoweth the wayes of wicked men, &s;hould &s;uffer them to be an houre in &s;afe|ty. Is it not a wonder that God &s;hould &s;uffer them to live long and &s;afely, &s;inning, who de&s;erve to dye for every &s;in? As all wick|ed men who dye impoenitently dye in their &s;ins, &s;o God &s;uffers many wicked men to &s;in till they dye; he &s;eeth their wayes and will not &s;top them, till they have run their full cour&s;e. Here is the patience and long &s;uffering of God. Men &s;inne to a wonder, when they goe onne in &s;in after many &s;mitings; as the Lord com|plains by his Prophet (<HI>Amo:</HI> 4.) <HI>I &s;mote them with the pe&s;tilence, &amp; with the &s;word,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>yet have they not returned unto mee &s;aith the Lord.</HI> Now as it aggravates mans &s;in, to &s;in under wrath and &s;mit|ings, &s;o it hightens the goodne&s;&s;e and patience of God to admira|tion, that he doth not &s;mite men in their &s;in, &s;eing he beholds them in their &s;in. <HI>His Eyes are upon their wayes to behold every &s;in,</HI> and every &s;in is not onely di&s;plea&s;ing but burden&s;ome and grievous to him. What a miracle of patience doth this di&s;cover in God? The Prophet <HI>Habackuk</HI> moves the Lord to revenge, and wonders how hee could hold his hand from puni&s;hing, while his eye beheld that done which was &s;o di&s;plea&s;ing. (<HI>Hab.</HI> 1.12, 13.) <HI>Art not thou from everla&s;ting O Lord my God, mine holy one? wee &s;hall not dye, thou ha&s;t ordained them for Judgement, and O God thou ha&s;t &s;tabli&s;hed them for Correction. Thou art of purer Eyes then to be|hold evill, and can&s;t not looke on iniquity. Wherefore looke&s;t thou on
<PB N="652" REF="340"> them that deale treacherou&s;ly, and holde&s;t thy tongue, when the wic|ked devoureth the man that is more righteous then he?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, Lord, I know thou beholde&s;t all the Evill in the world, and art of purer eyes then to behold it with any delight or approba|tion. Now &s;eeing it is &s;o, <HI>why then doe&s;t thou looke on them that deale treacherou&s;ly?</HI> In the former part of the ver&s;e he &s;ayd, <HI>Thou can&s;t not looke on iniquity,</HI> and in the latter he &s;aith, <HI>why doe&s;t thou looke on them that deale treacherou&s;ly?</HI> There is a twofold looke of God; Fir&s;t, (as was toucht before) a looke of approbation; &s;econdly, a looke of patience. And &s;o the meaning of the Pro|phet is, &s;eeing, O Lord, thou can&s;t not looke upon &s;in approvingly, why doe&s;t thou looke upon it patiently? <HI>And holde&s;t thy tongue when the wicked devoure the righteous.</HI> As if he had &s;aid, How is it (Lord) that thou doe&s;t not breake forth into the &s;evere&s;t rebukes again&s;t them? How is it that they have not &s;o much (to appear|ance) as a frowne or an ill word from thee, who have de&s;erved blowes and utter breakings? Indeed if God had but the patience of all Creatures, had he but the patience of men and Angels, the &s;in of man would &s;pend it out in one day: God could not hold his tongue nor his hand an houre, Con&s;idering, that he clearely di&s;|cerneth all the wickednes that is in the wayes of men, and that every the lea&s;t unevennes as well as wickednes is extreamly di&s;|plea&s;ing to him, were not his Infinite patience; God could not hold but de&s;troy all the wicked of the world, or all that world which lyeth in wickednes, were it not that hee is re&s;olved to magnifie his patience. And though for rea&s;ons knowne to him|&s;elfe, hee beares with tho&s;e that are burden&s;ome to him very long, not onely many dayes but yeares, yet the time is at hand when he will bring them to Judgement, and Judge them according to tho&s;e wayes upon which his eyes have been. <HI>Then the wicked &s;hall finde that as the eyes of God have been upon all their wayes, &s;o that he hath not at all, or not in the lea&s;t been plea&s;ed with any of them.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="24" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="653" REF="340">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 24. Ver&s;. 24, 25.</HI></BIBL>
<P>They are exalted for a little while, but are gone, and brought low, they are taken out of the way as all other, and cut off as the tops of the eares of Corne.</P>
<P>And if it be not &s;o now, who will make me a lyar, and make my &s;peech nothing worth.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>JOb</HI> &s;till proceedeth to de&s;cribe, and here concludeth his de&s;crip|tion, of the &s;tate of wicked men, he hath (as hath been &s;hewed in the expo&s;ition of the former part of the Chapter) drawne the blacke&s;t character of their wickedne&s;&s;e, as al&s;o given the fayre&s;t pro&s;pect of their outward happine&s;&s;e; They &s;in and pro&s;per, they &s;in and are &s;afe, they have much good while they doe much evill.</P>
<P>This text &s;peakes againe of their pro&s;perity, yet with a diminu|tion, <HI>they are exalted</HI> (but it is onely) <HI>for a little while, for they are gone and brought low, they are taken out of the way as all others, and cut off as the tops of the eares of Corne.</HI></P>
<P>There are two opinions concerning the general &s;cope of the&s;e words.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some conceive that <HI>Jobs</HI> aime is to &s;hew, that both in life, and death, wicked men fare like other men; <HI>They are exalted for a little while, as all others are, they are gone, brought low, and taken out of the way as all others are.</HI></P>
<P>Yet, &s;econdly, I rather incline that he here intends to &s;et forth the mi&s;erable conclu&s;ion of wicked men, not onely as they are cut off from worldly enjoyments, as all men &s;ooner or latter are, but as they are cut off from worldly enjoyments in a way which is not common to other men, or which is not the common way of man. And the rea&s;on why I rather incline to this as <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope, is, becau&s;e the&s;e various expre&s;&s;ions of the &s;ame thing, <HI>they are gone, they are brought low, they are taken out of the way, they are cut off</HI> (the&s;e various expre&s;&s;ions, I &s;ay) &s;eeme to carry &s;omewhat more then the remove of men out of the world, by the ordi|nary way of dying, or then by a naturall death.</P>
<DIV3 N="24" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="654" REF="341">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 24.</HI></BIBL> They are exalted for a little while, but are gone.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>They, that is, the wicked, the adulterer, the theife, the oppre&s;|&s;our (&s;uch he had before de&s;cribed) <HI>are exalted;</HI> they grow great, and &s;pread farre, they grow high, or are advanced to high places. The originall word which we render, <HI>to be exalted,</HI> &s;ignifies to be lifted up,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> levavit exaltavit, exal|tatus fuit; la|tini Roma~ hac originatione de|corare ge&s;tiunt ab magnitudi|nem.</NOTE> or any thing that is lifted up in height, or greatne&s;&s;e, and hereupon &s;ome Critricks tell us that the Great City <HI>Rome</HI> had her name from this Hebrew roote; <HI>Rome</HI> as all (who know any thing of antiquity) know, is a City which hath been exalted over the nations, a City great in &s;trength, and mighty in power; <HI>Rome</HI> is as much as, <HI>height, or exaltation;</HI> As <HI>Abraham</HI> is a <HI>high father,</HI> an <HI>exalted father.</HI></P>
<Q>They are exalted.</Q>
<P>The word may be applyed to a twofold exaltation; fir&s;t, an in|ward exaltation by pride; &s;ome ri&s;e within, fa&s;ter then they ri&s;e without, yea there are &s;ome that ri&s;e very high within, when they are ca&s;t very <HI>low without;</HI> they exalt and lift up them&s;elves in pride of &s;pirit, though they are ca&s;t downe in &s;tate. The word is often applyed to note pride or haughtine&s;&s;e. (<HI>Micah</HI> 2.3.) <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord, behold again&s;t this family doe I devi&s;e an evill, from which ye &s;hall not remove your necks, neither &s;hall ye goe haughtily.</HI> The word is, <HI>ye &s;hall not goe in your height,</HI> in your altitudes, as ye have done, the ca&s;e &s;hall be altered with you, and the Tables tur|ned; <HI>for this is an evill time,</HI> that is, an evill time to you, a time of calling you to an account about, and of puni&s;hing you for all your wickednes, and e&s;pecially for your pride. As ye have made it an evill time by your &s;in, &s;o ye &s;hall finde it to be an evill time to and by your &s;mart And this hight of &s;pirit often breakes forth, and is &s;ignified in height of action, or in haughty po&s;tures, <HI>The lifting up of the head, the &s;tretching out of the neck,</HI> Thus (I&s;a. 2.11.) <HI>The lofty looks of man &s;hall be humbled.</HI> The heart looks out at the eye, the lofty heart makes a lofty looke; according to the frame of the heart, is the ca&s;t of the eye; the eye is not proud, but as it is in&s;tructed, and tutoured by the heart, &s;o it acts proudly, and looks haughtily. And thus they alwayes act, who though they are not exalted, yet have a minde to exalt them&s;elves, who when
<PB N="655" REF="341"> others ca&s;t no honour upon them, yet they will take it, and reach after it. Thus the word is applicable to internal &s;elfe-exaltation, as well as to external exaltation, or exaltation by others. For as many are outwardly humbled, who are not at all humble: and as &s;ome are inwardly humbled, who are not at all outwardly hum|bled, (they have an humble lowly frame of heart, and are active in humbling of them&s;elves) &s;o many are inwardly exalted, who never had nor de&s;erved, in the lea&s;t, any outward exaltation. They are active to exalt them&s;elves, whom no man be&s;ides them&s;elves, thinks worthy to be exalted. The men of whom <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes were doubtle&s;&s;e forward enough to exalt them&s;elves, yet</P>
<P>I under&s;tand him rather &s;peaking of their outward exaltation. For <HI>Job</HI> is here de&s;cribing the pro&s;perity of wicked men, not their pride. Though, we know, pro&s;perity is the occa&s;ion of pride, and men u&s;ually grow high-minded, when they grow high in the world. As by pride cometh contention, &s;o by exaltation com|eth pride.</P>
<Q>They are exalted.</Q>
<P>That is, they are great, and rich, they are promoted to honour, and &s;et uppermo&s;t among men.</P>
<Q>For a little while.</Q>
<P>The Original in &s;trictnes is onely thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> <HI>They are exalted a lit|tle.</HI> But the word is taken two wayes in Scripture.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, For <HI>little in degree,</HI> or <HI>for a little deale</HI> (as we &s;ay) that is, for a thing that is little (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.16.) <HI>A little that a righ|teous man hath, is better then the riches of many wicked;</HI> His mor|&s;el is better then the others fea&s;t; his penny is better then the wicked mans pound. Thus <HI>Jonathan</HI> &s;pake (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 14.29.) when <HI>Saul</HI> had given that &s;evere charge that no man &s;hould eate till the Sun went downe; <HI>My father hath troubled the land, &s;ee I pray you how my eyes are inlightened, becau&s;e I ta&s;ted a little of this honey;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I did not eat much, not &s;o much as to delight my &s;elfe, much le&s;&s;e &s;o much as to glut my &s;elfe, I did eate but a drop or two, and mine eyes are wonderfully inlightned, that is, my &s;pi|rits are much refre&s;hed and cheared, for naturally, when a man is faint, his eye-&s;ight fayles.</P>
<P>Secondly, For a <HI>little in time,</HI> or for a &s;hort &s;pace of time
<PB N="656" REF="342"> (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.10.) <HI>For yet a little while and the wicked &s;hall not be, yea, thou &s;halt diligently con&s;ider his place, and he &s;hall not be,</HI> that is, he &s;hall not be in power, he &s;hall not flouri&s;h in worldly pompe many dayes. The birth of his pro&s;perity &s;hall not be farre in time from the death of it, nor the grave of all his glory from the cradle of it. So (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 8.5.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t made him a little lower then the Angels;</HI> which prophecy of Chri&s;t is cited (<HI>Heb</HI> 2.7.) Now Chri&s;t was not made a little lower then the Angels in degree; For he was the Lord of the Angels, and when God brought him <HI>his fir&s;t begotten into the world, he &s;ayd, And let all the Angels of God wor&s;hip him.</HI> But Chri&s;t was made lower then the Angels for a little time; And &s;o we put in the margin, <HI>Thou made&s;t him a lit|tle while inferior to the Angels.</HI> Namely, for the while or time when he was aba&s;ed by death and lay in the grave; yet we may &s;ay al&s;o that Chri&s;t was made <HI>a little lower then the Angels</HI> in his ta|king upon him our nature; The Angelicall nature being higher then the humane, as con&s;idered in it &s;elfe. We may expound the word here in eyther &s;ence, <HI>they are exalted a little,</HI> that is, fir&s;t, they have a little exaltation; &s;econdly, how great &s;oever we may con|ceave their exaltation to be, yet they are exalted but for a little while or time. We re&s;traine the word to this la&s;t &s;ence, as refer|ring to the &s;pace of time, wherein the wicked are aloft; <HI>They are exalted for a little while.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The exaltation of wicked men &s;hall not continue.</Q>
<P>They may be high built, but they have not a &s;ure foundation, they may floate aloft, but they have no con&s;i&s;tance below, they are as vapours ri&s;ing from the earth, or as meteors hanging in the ayre, both which are lifted up onely for a little while, and are gone. <HI>Athana&s;ius</HI> &s;aid concerning the wrathful reigne of <HI>Julian the Apo|&s;tate, Let us be quiet, it is a little cloud which will &s;oone pa&s;&s;e away.</HI> The wicked mans civil honor is but <HI>a vapour</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> &s;peaks of the natural life of every man) <HI>that appeareth for a litle time, and then vani&s;heth away.</HI> The exaltation of wicked men, is but for a little while; For, fir&s;t, their exaltation is u&s;ually but for a part of their lives, and that the le&s;&s;er part; and that cannot (upon any reckoning) be more then a little while. Secondly, their longe&s;t and utmo&s;t exaltation can be but for their lives, and the whole life
<PB N="657" REF="342"> of man is but a little while. <HI>David</HI> taking the exacte&s;t mea&s;ure of his life, &s;aith, <HI>Behold, thou ha&s;t made my dayes as an hand breadth, and mine age is nothing before thee</HI> (P&s;al. 39.5.) The whole life of man is very &s;hort, and the preferment, or exaltation of wicked men is eyther much &s;horter then their lives, or their lives are much &s;hortned by their exaltation. They act their power beyond the bounds of Ju&s;tice, and &s;o forfeit their lives, before they come neere the bounds of nature. Now if life la&s;t but a little, and they are ex|alted but a little while of their lives, or if their lives be cut off with|in a while after they are exalted, then they have but little exalta|tion. Many &s;pend a great part of their life before they arrive at exaltation, or preferment in this world, and there are many who out-live their owne exaltation, and there are not a few, who loo&s;e their lives by the abu&s;e of their exaltation. The worldly enjoy|ments of all men are &s;hort, and evill mens enjoyments are &s;horte&s;t. Saints &s;hall have enjoyments hereafter commen&s;urate with eter|nity, but the be&s;t of Saints here, have neyther any lea&s;e of their lives, nor of their enjoyments. And if it be &s;o with the be&s;t of men, then much more with the wor&s;t of men, who as they are wrapt up in the common condition of humane fraylety, with all other men, &s;o they lye under &s;ome peculiar cur&s;es or threatnings which other men doe not. And how &s;oone may a cur&s;e ca&s;t tho&s;e downe who are mo&s;t highly exalted, and bla&s;t or wither all their beauty and bravery, who&s;e branches are greene&s;t, and who&s;e faces &s;hine brigh|te&s;t with earthly &s;plendour.</P>
<P>Secondly, Fora&s;much as the word &s;ignifyeth a little thing, as well as a little time, a little deale, as well as a little while, a thing which in regard of the &s;malnes of it, is incon&s;iderable as well as that which in regard of the weakenes of it, is not durable.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The greate&s;t exaltation that any man can have in the things of this world is but a little exaltation.</Q>
<P>That man is but little exalted, how much &s;oever he is exalted, who is onely exalted in the things of this world; That which is but little in it &s;elfe, cannot make us very great, though we &s;hould have it all as ours, or in our po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion. How little a thing is all this world, and how little a part hath any one of this little? The whole world is but little, what then is a little part of it? which yet
<PB N="658" REF="343"> is all that falls to the &s;hare of the greate&s;t men in this world. Philo&s;ophers &s;ay that the whole body of the earth and Sea toge|ther, is but as a poynt or pricke with a pen compared to the hea|vens; and yet there are very few of the great men of the earth, who po&s;&s;e&s;&s;e &s;o much as a mathematicall poynt or pricke with a pen in the body of the earth. Wee may &s;ay, that the day of the greate&s;t man in the world, is but a <HI>day of &s;mall things.</HI> The Pro|phet to encourage the meane beginnings of <HI>Sions</HI> deliverance (<HI>Zech.</HI> 4.10.) &s;ayd, <HI>Who hath de&s;pi&s;ed the day of &s;mall things?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I know many doe it, &s;ome hoping and others fearing that the&s;e &s;mall beginnings will have &s;maller endings, or end in nothing, but in the joy of the enemies, and in the &s;orrow and di&s;appoyntment of the friends of <HI>Sion;</HI> But I &s;ay unto you, take heed of de&s;pi&s;ing <HI>the day of &s;mall things,</HI> that is, the lea&s;t ap|pearances of deliverance and &s;alvation to <HI>Sion.</HI> Now as we are not to de&s;pi&s;e the workes of God, becau&s;e they are &s;mall, &s;o we have no rea&s;on to be proud of, but even to de&s;pi&s;e the things of the world, for they are &s;mall. Men have great thoughts and make much adoe about &s;mall things, when they have to doe with the greate&s;t things on this &s;ide heaven. <HI>The greate&s;t things that con|tinue onely for a little while, are but tittle worth, then how little worth are tho&s;e things, which be&s;ides that they continue but a little while, are them&s;elves but little?</HI> Though wicked men are exalted, yet no man hath cau&s;e to be troubled at it, or envy them; They are not ble&s;&s;ed becau&s;e exalted, for they are exalted but a little, and that onely for a little while. It &s;hould not be much to us what any man is as to worldly enjoyments, no nor what we our &s;elves are as tho&s;e enjoyments, &s;eeing what&s;oever others are, or what|&s;oever we are in that capacity, is but for a little while. The Apo|&s;tle &s;aith (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.18.) <HI>We looke not at the things which are &s;eene, but at the things which are not &s;eene;</HI> that is, we make not the things of the world our &s;cope, but the things which lye beyond this world, which are &s;eene by faith onely; And the rea&s;on why he looked not at the&s;e things which are &s;eene, was becau&s;e the things that are &s;eene are temporall; <HI>tho&s;e things which are &s;eene, will not be long &s;eene,</HI> they are but for a while, and therefore not to be much looked after. <HI>The Things which are not &s;eene &s;hall be &s;eene for ever,</HI> they are eternal, and therefore mo&s;t worthy to be looked after. The world hath beauty and glory in it, but this
<PB N="659" REF="343"> &s;taines the beauty of all earthly glory, that it may be &s;o quickly &s;tained. The evills and troubles of this world, &s;hould not much trouble us, nor the afflictions of this world pre&s;ent much af|flict us, becau&s;e they are but for a while; &s;uppo&s;e a godly man be ca&s;t downe, and laid low in reference to the world, he is laid low but for a while, therefore no great matter to him, he hath no great rea&s;on to be troubled at it; as the Apo&s;tle argueth in the &s;ame Chapter (<HI>ver.</HI> 16.) <HI>For this cau&s;e we faint not, for our light af|flictions which are but for a moment,</HI> &amp;c. therefore he calls them light, how great and how heavy &s;oever in their owne nature, though they were as heavy as a mountaine, he calls them light, becau&s;e as to their duration they were but for a moment. We &s;ay, A light thing carryed a great way or a great while becometh heavy: He that puts onely a pound-&s;tone in his pocket, will be ve|ry &s;encible of and much burdened with the weight of it, before he comes to the end of a long journey; whereas a great weight is not much burden&s;ome, if it be not much borne. Now as worldly evills and troubles are light, becau&s;e but &s;hort, &s;o are worldly comforts and honours, e&s;pecially the worldly comforts &amp; honours of wick|ed men; of whom it is expre&s;&s;ely &s;ayd, not onely by way of a&s;&s;erti|on (in which &s;en&s;e it may be &s;ayd of all men) but al&s;o by way of commination, <HI>They are exalted for a little while.</HI> Againe, as the profe&s;&s;ion of hypocrites, hath a kinde of appearing goodline&s;&s;e and beauty, but it is little worth, or it is of no worth, becau&s;e they en|dure but for a little while, they are but Temporyes, as the word is in the parable of the Sower. Or as the Lord complaineth by his Prophet (<HI>Ho&s;:</HI> 6.4.) <HI>O Ephraim, what &s;hall I doe unto thee, O Judah, what &s;hall I doe unto thee, for your goodne&s;&s;e is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew, it goeth away;</HI> goodne&s;&s;e it &s;elfe is &s;carce good, goodne&s;&s;e is little worth, if it be but as a morning cloud, if it be but as the dew that goeth away when the heate of the Sunne commeth. The worth and glory of true grace &s;tands in this, that it &s;tands and endures for ever; let the world turne which way it will, true grace &s;tands its ground and turnes not away. Now if all the goodne&s;&s;e and pretended holynes of hypocrites and forma|li&s;ts be nothing worth, becau&s;e it is (like a cloud, or a dew) onely for a little while; how little worth is the exaltation of wicked men, which goeth away, and is as quickly gone, as a cloud is &s;cat|tered and blowne away by the wind, or a dew exhaled by the ri|&s;ing
<PB N="660" REF="344"> Sunne. We may &s;ay of all the glory of the wicked, as the &s;ame Prophet <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> &s;ayth of <HI>Ephraim</HI> (Chap. 9.11.) <HI>As for Ephraim, their glory &s;hall flee away like a bird from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception;</HI> that is, it &s;hall quickly de|part; <HI>by their glory,</HI> &s;ome under&s;tand their children; As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Their children &s;hall flee from the birth;</HI> that is, if borne alive they &s;hall dye as &s;oone as borne; <HI>Their children &s;hall flee from the wombe;</HI> that is, they &s;hall not be borne alive, they &s;hall be abor|tives; <HI>Their children &s;hall flee from the conception;</HI> that is, they &s;hall not be &s;o much as conceived. Wee may read the Prophet backward, and beginning with the la&s;t fir&s;t, &s;ay; <HI>Their glory,</HI> that is, their children, or what&s;oever el&s;e they glory in and make their glory, <HI>&s;hall flee from conception;</HI> that is, it &s;hall not be conceaved, or have any being at all, and if conceived and &s;o have a being, yet it <HI>&s;hall flee from the wombe,</HI> that is, it &s;hall never come to a com|pleate being, but &s;hall be marr'd in the making; or if it be borne and &s;o have a perfect being, yet <HI>it &s;hall flee from the birth,</HI> that is, it &s;hall dye as &s;oone as borne, and come to its grave in &s;tead of or as &s;oon as to a cradle. Thus he de&s;cribes the evill that &s;hall come upon all their glory, it &s;hall &s;uddenly fly away, and this &s;poyles the beauty of all that earthly glory, with which the wicked &s;hine; <HI>They are exalted for a little while.</HI> This &s;uddaine vani&s;hing of the wicked mans glory is further de&s;cribed in foure expre&s;&s;ions; fir&s;t, <HI>they are gone;</HI> &s;econdly, <HI>brought low;</HI> thirdly, <HI>they are taken out of the way;</HI> fourthly, <HI>they are cut off as the top of the eares of Corne.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>Et non ip&s;e.</HI> Heb. <HI>i. e.</HI> non ullus ip&s;otu~. hac dicendi formula &s;olent Heb<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">aei &s;ignificare, quod omnino deletu|ut perit. <HI>Pined:</HI> Mutat pluralem in &s;ingularem ut &s;ignificet quem|libet eorum in|terire. <HI>D<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">u&s;:</HI> Pronomen &s;in|gulare cum ver|bo plurali notat di&s;tributionem in &s;ingula, vel collectionem &s;in|gulorum. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE>Fir&s;t, <HI>They are gone;</HI> the Hebrew is, <HI>they are not;</HI> this kinde of &s;peaking is u&s;ed to &s;ignifie a total or utter peri&s;hing. They are &s;o gon, as if they had lo&s;t not onely their exi&s;tence but their e&s;|&s;ence. The original text is &s;ingular; <HI>They are exalted, and he is not,</HI> or, <HI>he not;</HI> he doth not &s;ay, <HI>they not,</HI> but <HI>he not; Job</HI> changeth the number from <HI>They</HI> to <HI>He,</HI> to &s;ignifie that <HI>every one of them is not,</HI> or <HI>that, not any one of them is.</HI> God will deale thus with every &s;ingle man of them, <HI>he is not;</HI> we &s;ay, <HI>They are gone;</HI> they that goe out of one condition into another, are not as they were, and as to their former &s;tate, they are not at all. They who goe from place to place, from &s;tate to &s;tate, though from a &s;tate of life to a &s;tate of death, have a being, and therefore we tran&s;late wel, <HI>not to be,</HI> by, <HI>to be gone.</HI> Some read the words thus; <HI>They are exalted, and within a little while they are not;</HI> we &s;ay, <HI>they are exalted a lit|tle
<PB N="661" REF="344"> while, and are gone,</HI> or <HI>are not.</HI> The meaning of hoth readings is the &s;ame. To &s;ay, <HI>they are exalted for a little while and are gone,</HI> is as much as, and no more then to &s;ay, <HI>they are exalted, and within a little while are gone.</HI> Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;pake from his owne experi|ence, concerning the pro&s;perity of wicked men (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 37.35.) <HI>I have &s;eene the wicked in great power, and &s;preading him&s;elfe like a greene bay tree, yet he pa&s;&s;ed away; and loe he was not: yea I &s;ought him, but he could not be found. Davids</HI> experience falls in fully with <HI>Jobs</HI> a&s;&s;ertion; <HI>They are exalted for a little while, and are gone, or are not.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The worldly felicity or exaltation of a wicked man, or a wicked man in his worldly felicity and exaltation, &s;hall be as if he had never been.</Q>
<P>Worldly men and worldly things are &s;car&s;e any thing while they are &s;eene, and therefore when once they di&s;appeare and are not &s;eene at all, it may well be &s;ayd, They are not at all. God who is altogether invi&s;ible, is <HI>an eternal being, from everla&s;ting to ever|la&s;ting he is God</HI> (P&s;al. 90.2.) But all tho&s;e things which are al|together vi&s;ible, are altogether vani&s;hing; They are going from us, while they are with us; and when they are gone, they are as if they had never been with us. And as it is with worldly things; &s;o with worldly per&s;ons, when they are gone, they are not, as to any enjoyment, though they &s;hall ever be as to puni&s;hment. <HI>They are exalted for a little while, but are gone.</HI></P>
<Q>And brought low.</Q>
<P>That is the &s;econd &s;tep; Some might &s;ay, po&s;&s;ibly they are gone to a better e&s;tate, then before; they were high before, now higher; &s;ome remove from greatne&s;&s;e, to greatne&s;&s;e, from digni|ty, to dignity, therefore <HI>Job</HI> explaineth his meaning, <HI>They are gone</HI>
<Q>And brought low.</Q></P>
<P>Or degraded from their high places, They are brought low by di&s;grace, or into di&s;grace, They are brought low by poverty, or into the lowe&s;t depth of poverty. In what&s;oever they were exal|ted, they are now made low. Some expound it of death; <HI>They are brought low,</HI> that is, downe to the grave, and that is low in|deed.
<PB N="662" REF="345"> The grave is called the lower part of the earth; And yet the wicked &s;hall be brought lower then the grave, even as low as hel, or as the <HI>lowe&s;t hel,</HI> as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>Deut.</HI> 32.22.) The Apo|&s;tle <HI>James</HI> &s;ayth (<HI>Chap.</HI> 1.9, 10.) <HI>Let the Brother of low degree rejoyce, in that he is exalted; But the rich, in that he is made low;</HI> A poore brother, or a brother of low degree &s;eemes to be farre from exaltation; yet he hath cau&s;e to rejoyce in that he is exalted; and he is doubly exalted; fir&s;t, as he is a brother to the Saints, and a member of Chri&s;t; &s;econdly, as he is a &s;ufferer, or afflicted for Chri&s;t. Every godly man of the lowe&s;t degree is exalted in one of the&s;e wayes, and many of them in both; and any man hath cau&s;e to rejoyce in the&s;e &s;piritual honours and exaltations, how low &s;oe|ver he is in temporals. But how is the rich, or the brother of high degree made low? and why &s;hould he rejoyce in that he is made low? for though there are readings of the text by a &s;upply of o|ther words, yet I judge that to be the be&s;t; But why &s;hould <HI>he re|joyce in that he is made low?</HI> As the poore mans exaltation before &s;poken of, is &s;pirituall, &s;o al&s;o is the rich mans humiliation. The rich man hath great cau&s;e to rejoyce when he is &s;piritually hum|bled, and made low in his owne eyes, when he is highe&s;t in the eye of the world. To be made low in our owne eyes, or in the &s;ence of our owne &s;infullnes while we are rich and outwardly exalted, is a great worke of Grace; But to be brought low by the hand of God, while we are high and exalted in the eyes of men, and in our owne eyes, is the puni&s;hment of &s;in. Godly Great men are made low in their owne thoughts by grace. Wicked men though never &s;o great, &s;hall be brought low in the &s;ight of others for their &s;in. <HI>They are exalted for a little while, but are gone, and brought low.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t;</HI> As the worldly e&s;tates of all men, &s;o mo&s;t of all the e&s;tates of worldly men are &s;ubject to changes.</Q>
<P>Now they are exalted and lifted up, within a while they are de|pre&s;&s;ed and ca&s;t downe. The providences of God ring the changes of mens e&s;tates all the world over. As the e&s;tates and conditions of &s;everall men differ at the &s;ame time; &s;ome men are honorable, others are ba&s;e, &s;ome men are rich, others are poore, &s;ome are exalted, others are ca&s;t downe. So the e&s;tates and conditions of the &s;ame men differ as much at &s;everall times; They who were
<PB N="663" REF="345"> honorable are aba&s;ed, the rich become poore, and the men of ex|altation are brought low. Thus the hils are turned into valleyes, and the highe&s;t mountaines, that is, men as high and &s;trong as mountaines (as we read in the Prophecy of <HI>Zechary</HI> (Chap. 4.7.) become plaines. Our &s;pirituall e&s;tate is like mount <HI>Sion,</HI> which &s;hall never be removed, 'tis founded upon a rocke that can never be &s;haken; But Temporal things are like a wheele which moves continually, and that &s;poke which is now aloft (as that Captive King &s;ayd to his Conquerour) is quickly turned to the ground, <HI>and brought low.</HI> The Apo&s;tle gives an excellent caution in refe|rence to our &s;pirituall e&s;tate (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.12.) <HI>Let him that think|eth he &s;tandeth take heed le&s;t he fall.</HI> And I may &s;ay in reference to any mans temporal e&s;tate, He that is &s;ure&s;t of his &s;tanding, may fall not-with&s;tanding all his heed. And if any one (as the Pro|phet once que&s;tioned, <HI>by whom &s;hall Jacob ari&s;e for he is &s;mal?</HI>) &s;hould que&s;tion by whom &s;hall wicked men be brought low, &s;ee|ing they are &s;o highly exalted? It mu&s;t be an&s;wered, that as <HI>Jacob</HI> ri&s;eth when he is fallen, &s;o the wicked fall when they are ri&s;en, by the hand or power of God. He bringeth them low by his ap|poyntment, and he bringeth them low by his power. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 75.7.) <HI>God is the Judge, he putteth downe one and &s;etteth up another.</HI> And he it is that &s;etteth up and putteth downe the <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">me man. <HI>They are gone, and brought low.</HI></P>
<Q>They are taken out of the way as all others.</Q>
<P>The original word &s;ignifies to narrow, contract, or &s;hut up;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> contraxit cont nuit, o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">hu|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">avit&punc; in piet, fe&s;tinavit ire &amp; &egrave; contrario extendere &s;e, tran&s;ilire.</NOTE> as al&s;o to ha&s;ten, extend, and &s;hoote forth; and the rea&s;on is, becau&s;e by contracting, or drawing any thing backe, we &s;hoote it forward with more force and &s;peed. Wee &s;ee how &s;nakes and other creeping things contract, and g<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ther them&s;elves up, and then ca&s;t them&s;elves forward with much advantage. Both &s;ignifi|cations of the word are made u&s;e of in this place by Interpreters. Some rendring, <HI>They &s;hall be &s;hut up, they are brought low,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Claudentur &s;i|cut omnes. <HI>Pagn: Reg:</HI></NOTE> <HI>and &s;h<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t up,</HI> they (like pri&s;oners) are under re&s;traint, or they are re&s;train|ed in pri&s;on. They are apt to abu&s;e their liberty and their power, to the wrong of others, and therefore they are cut &s;hort and kept in; not onely are their hornes broken, their clawes cut, and their nayles pared, but them&s;elves are &s;hut up like bea&s;ts, which hurt him that is next who&s;oever it is. It is rea&s;on they &s;hould be in
<PB N="664" REF="346"> &s;afe cu&s;tody, who being at liberty no man is in &s;afety.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Saltabunt &egrave; loco &s;uo <HI>Rab. Moy:</HI></NOTE>M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> gives a &s;ence of the word, which imports not their re&s;traint, but their flight, <HI>Every one are made to skip away;</HI> They &s;hall skip or leap out of their places, as if they were forced or frigh|ted, as one of the Rabbins tran&s;lates it. The meaning of both ren|drings meets in the &s;ame thing; for whether a man be &s;hut up in pri|&s;on, or forced to run and hide him&s;elfe to avoyd re&s;traint and im|pri&s;onment, his condition is much alike. By the former he is a pri&s;o|ner, and by the latter he hath lo&s;t his liberty. The difference is not great, whether a man be where he would not, or dares not be were he would. <HI>They are &s;hut up,</HI> or, <HI>they are made to run away.</HI> Both which readings comply fayrely enough with ours, <HI>They are taken out of the way.</HI> For whether a man be carryed away by force, or flyeth for feare, <HI>He is taken out of the way.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>God doth remove, and take wicked men out of their place when they are in their highe&s;t exaltation.</Q>
<P>High e&s;tates have no &s;ecurity in them, yea they are le&s;&s;e &s;ecure, then the lowe&s;t e&s;tate; and that not onely becau&s;e they are more &s;ubject to the envy of men, but becau&s;e they who are in high pla|ces make them&s;elves more lyable to the wrath of God. They u&s;e their power to the ca&s;ting downe and taking away of the inno|cent, and therefore God is engaged to take them away. For, as God often takes his owne people <HI>out of harmes way, &s;o he takes the wicked quite away that they may do no more harme. The righteous pe|ri&s;h</HI> (that is, dye, &s;ayth the Prophet) <HI>and no man layeth it to heart, and mercifull men are taken away,</HI> they are taken away upon that account which few con&s;ider, <HI>even from the evill to come,</HI> (I&s;a. 57.1, 2.) God takes away the righteous, le&s;t they &s;hould &s;uffer evill, and he takes away the wicked, le&s;t they &s;hould continue to doe more evill. The wicked would know no bounds if left to them|&s;elves, and let alone; Therefore God bounds them and &s;aith (as the Apo&s;tle prophecyed of &s;uch evill doers, 2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 3.9.) <HI>They &s;hall proceed no further, for their folly &s;hall be made manife&s;t to all men;</HI> they &s;hall be taken out of the way. God will give them a &s;top; 'tis a forme of &s;peech like that which the Apo&s;tle u&s;eth (2 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 2.7.) <HI>The my&s;tery of iniquity doth already worke, onely he who now letteth, will let, till he be taken out of the way;</HI> there
<PB N="665" REF="346"> was a rub, a remora in the way of the man of &s;in, that he could not doe what he would: The power of the <HI>Romane Empire</HI> &s;tood in his way, and till that was taken out of the way, he could doe no great feates, he could not appeare in his colours. Now as God tooke away the power of the <HI>Romane Empire,</HI> as to that hight wherein it had formerly been exerci&s;ed, That the man of &s;in, might have a liberty to doe evill and fill up the mea&s;ure of his ini|quity; &s;o God takes away many wicked men, le&s;t they &s;hould doe more evill, and even exceed the mea&s;ure of their iniquity. <HI>They are taken out of the way</HI>
<Q>as all others.</Q></P>
<P>This may be expounded; fir&s;t, of per&s;ons; &s;econdly, of things;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tran&s;feruntur ut caeteri, nec pejus illis acci|dit quam cae<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e|ris. Et&s;i ad tempus evecti tandem amplius non ex|tant: tamen non aliter quam alij. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE> <HI>They &s;hall be taken away,</HI> and be &s;ent out of the world as the meane&s;t per&s;ons, or according to the common lot of all men. This is under&s;tood two wayes; fir&s;t, to &s;hew that in death all men fare alike; &s;o that we cannot di&s;tingui&s;h a good man from a wick|ed man by the manner of his death; &s;econdly, to &s;hew that they who are highe&s;t in the world, are as &s;oone overthrowne by death as the lowe&s;t.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>God can as ea&s;ily remove mountaines as mole-hils, and as quick|ly triumph in his anger over the Greate&s;t, as over the lea&s;t.</Q>
<P>They who are highe&s;t in this world, are no more in his hand, who is higher then the highe&s;t, then the lowe&s;t of this world are. No creature &s;trength can &s;tand again&s;t God. When we &s;ee ene|mies high, we are ready to &s;ay, who &s;hall pull them downe, but God can pull them downe, <HI>as all others,</HI> the high Cedars, the &s;trong Oakes &s;hall be like the poore&s;t &s;hrub. <HI>By whom &s;hall Jacob ari&s;e, for he is &s;mall?</HI> (&s;aith the Prophet <HI>Amos</HI> 7.2.) O how &s;hall the weakne&s;&s;e of <HI>Jacob</HI> be &s;trenthened, and the lowne&s;&s;e of <HI>Jacob</HI> be exalted? <HI>by whom &s;hall Jacob ari&s;e, for he is &s;mall?</HI> as we are apt to que&s;tion the ri&s;ing of the people of God, becau&s;e they are &s;mal, &s;o the fall of the enemies of God and of his people, becau&s;e they are &s;trong and great. By whom &s;hall the bloody enemies be brought downe, for they are high? by whom &s;hall our oppre&s;|&s;ours be de&s;troyed, for they are &s;trong? Such are the rea&s;onings and que&s;tionings of our feare and unbeliefe. The text and poynt
<PB N="666" REF="347"> make an&s;wer; <HI>They &s;hall be taken away as all others,</HI> even as the weake&s;t and the meane&s;t in the world; it puts God to no more trouble, to pull the &s;tronge&s;t Princes out of their Pallaces, Forts, or Ca&s;tles, when they &s;tand in his way, &amp; hinder his de&s;ignes, then to turne a beggar out of his cottage, or hou&s;e of Hurdles. Such a &s;corne is put upon the King of <HI>Babylon</HI> (I&s;a. 14.10.) <HI>All they &s;hall &s;peake, and &s;ay unto thee, Art thou al&s;o become weake as we? art thou become like unto us?</HI> Thou thoughte&s;t thy &s;elfe impregna|ble in power, and thou did&s;t looke upon us as contemptible weak|lings, but now thou art become weake as we. While God him|&s;elfe &s;peakes great things of Magi&s;trates, and lifts them up as it were beyond the &s;tate of man, he yet with the &s;ame breath, makes them in one thing but paralel with all other men; ye rule or have power over others like God, but in your &s;elves ye are as weake and mortal as any other &s;ort of men (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 82.6.) <HI>I have &s;ayd ye are Gods, and all of you are children of the mo&s;t high, but ye &s;hall dye like men,</HI> like the common &s;ort of men, <HI>and ye &s;hall fall like one of the Princes.</HI> Or rather, by much, as &s;ome render the Hebrew, <HI>and the Princes &s;hall dye as one,</HI> or, <HI>as any one;</HI> that is, as any ordinary man; For indeed there appeares no argument in the words reach|ing the &s;cope of the place, according to our tran&s;lation, to &s;ay, That Magi&s;trates &s;hall <HI>fall like one of the Princes,</HI> is no abatement to them, but to &s;ay, Princes &s;hall fall like any one, is a great abate|ment and fall to them, and fully reacheth the &s;ence of the pre&s;ent ob&s;ervation.</P>
<P>Secondly, The&s;e words, <HI>as all others,</HI> are expounded of other things, that is, as all worldly things.</P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q>Man in his greate&s;t enjoyments is in as peri&s;hing a condition as any thing he injoyeth.</Q>
<P>Worldly men are as vaine and tran&s;itory, as worldly things are, They are as &s;oone gone as their riches, or their honours, or what|&s;oever they mo&s;t de&s;ired or tru&s;ted to here below. That which they have is peri&s;hing, and &s;o are they too. Chri&s;t calleth all the things of the world, <HI>meate that peri&s;heth,</HI> (Joh. 6 27.) The wick|ed man &s;hall peri&s;h and be taken away, as all peri&s;hing things are, upon which he &s;ets his heart,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Accepimus pe|ritura perituri.</NOTE> or which he hath in his hand. We are alwayes dying, and &s;o is all that we have; ours are dying comforts,
<PB N="667" REF="347"> dying riches, dying honours, ours is dying &s;trength, dying beauty. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 40.6.) <HI>All fle&s;h is gra&s;&s;e, and the goodlynes thereof is as the flower of the feild;</HI> If all things we have be but a flower, and wee our &s;elves but gra&s;&s;e, then, we are taken away as all other things; for flowers and gra&s;&s;e are alike ea&s;ily taken away.</P>
<Q>And are cut off as the tops of the eares of Corne.</Q>
<P>The original word is often u&s;ed to expre&s;&s;e that act which was the &s;igne of the Covenant between God and his people from the time of <HI>Abraham</HI> untill Chri&s;t, namely,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> circumci|dit &s;ecuit, prae|cidit, de praepu|tio carnis vel cordis dicitur.</NOTE> Circumci&s;ion or the cut|ting off of the foreskin of the fle&s;h, and it is applyed not onely to the corpall but &s;pirituall Circumci&s;ion, to the Circumci&s;ion of the heart in the Spirit. Here it is applyed eyther to the common way of cutting off <HI>by death,</HI> or to a cutting off by Judgement, both which may be comprehended under the following &s;imilitude; <HI>They are cut off</HI>
<Q>As the tops of the eares of Corne.</Q></P>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>as the heads of the eares of Corne,</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Summitas vel caput &s;picarum pro ip&s;is &s;picis natis in &s;ummi|tate &amp; capite calami.</NOTE> <HI>as the eares of corne which grow upon the top of the &s;traw.</HI> Where (by the way) the reader may take notice, that the word which we render, <HI>Eares of Corne,</HI> is that hard word which co&s;t the lives of &s;o many <HI>Ephraimites</HI> (Judg. 12.6.) Every man that e&s;caped <HI>was bid &s;ay Shibboleth, and he &s;ayd Sibboleth, for he could not frame to pro|nounce it right; Then they tooke him and &s;lew him.</HI> The <HI>Gileadites</HI> cut off all tho&s;e <HI>Ephraimites</HI> who could not rightly pronounce this word, that &s;ignifies <HI>eares of Corne;</HI> And here <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith that all wicked men <HI>are cut off as the tops of the eares of Corne.</HI></P>
<P>The &s;imilitude (as &s;ome expound it) &s;ets forth nothing el&s;e but the fayrne&s;&s;e and ea&s;ines of the death of wicked men, as hath been &s;hewed before; <HI>They are cut off as the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> that is, they dye as corne when it is fully ripe, at a full age. Thus <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake to <HI>Job</HI> by way of promi&s;e in ca&s;e of his returne to God (<HI>Chap.</HI> 5.26.) <HI>Thou &s;halt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a &s;hoke of corne commeth in his &s;ea&s;on.</HI> But <HI>to be cut off like the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> &s;eemes rather to imply a violent death, and &s;ounds much more like a Threatning then a promi&s;e: Therefore</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, To be <HI>cut off like the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> &s;hewes how ea&s;ily wicked men may be cut off by death or Judgement, rather
<PB N="668" REF="348"> then the ea&s;ines of their death, when they are cut off. How quick|ly may an eare of corne be cut off? wicked men who &s;eeme as &s;trong as oakes, &s;hall be cut off like &s;trawes.</P>
<P>Secondly, It &s;hewes that wicked men are u&s;ually cut off by a violent death, eares of corne are cut off by the reapers &s;ickle, they doe not fall off alone: and though a wicked man dye a naturall death, yet there is a violence in it; he is <HI>cut off</HI> when he dyeth in his bed as wel as when he dyeth upon the block; a naturall death, is a kinde of violent death to every man who is unwilling to dye. Such a man doth not re&s;igne up his &s;oule into the hand of God, but his &s;oule is rent and ravi&s;hed from him. Chri&s;t &s;aith of the rich man, though dying in his bed (for &s;o the parable is to be un|der&s;tood, <HI>Luk.</HI> 12.20.) <HI>Thou foole, this night thy &s;oule &s;hall be re|quired of thee, or this night doe they require thy &s;oule from thee.</HI> It may be que&s;tioned, who &s;hall require it? he doth not meane, that murtherers &s;hould kill him, but that when he dyed his &s;oule &s;hould rather be taken by force, then quietly &s;urrendred.</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>He &s;hall be cut off as the heads or tops of the eares of corne,</HI> may note his de&s;truction when fulle&s;t and highe&s;t. For as the eares of corne are better then the &s;traw (what is the &s;traw to the eare?) &s;o there be &s;ome eares of corne that be <HI>head or chiefe eares;</HI> &s;o that to &s;ay wicked men &s;hall <HI>be cut off as the head of the eares of corne,</HI> is to &s;ay they &s;hall be cut off in their fullne&s;&s;e, in their hight and glory. When the wicked are not onely eares, but heads of the eares of corne, when they are at the highe&s;t, they &s;hall dye; and this re&s;emblance holds not onely becau&s;e &s;ome eares are head-eares, fuller and higher then others, but becau&s;e all corne is cut, when once it comes to a head, that is, to a perfect fullnes.</P>
<P>Fourthly, To be <HI>cut off as the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> may al&s;o &s;ignifie that there is a &s;peciall time or &s;ea&s;on, when wicked men are to be cut off; For as corne is not alwayes ripe for the &s;ickle, &s;o wicked men (though they alwayes de&s;erve, yet) are not alwayes ripe for Judgement; Corne is not cut downe when greene, or when grown high, but when it is ripe &amp; fit for the flaile, it is cut in its &s;ea|&s;on; wicked men &s;hall be cut off in their &s;ea&s;on. And as there is a general &s;ea&s;on for the harve&s;t of the whole world, &s;o for every man in particular. (<HI>Rev:</HI> 14.15.) <HI>Thru&s;t in thy &s;ickle and reape, for the time is come for thee to reape, for the harve&s;t of the earth is ripe,</HI> God will not command the Angel to put in his &s;ickle till the world be
<PB N="669" REF="348"> ripe for Judgement, as he &s;pake al&s;o by the Prophet <HI>Joel</HI> (Ch. 3.13, 14.) <HI>Put in thy &s;ickle for the harve&s;t is ripe, come get you downe for the pre&s;&s;e is full, the fats overflow, for their wickednes is great, mul|titudes, multitudes in the valley of deci&s;ion, for the day of the Lord is neere, in the valley of deci&s;ion;</HI> that is, in the valley of cutting downe, or of cutting off; or as we put in the Margin, <HI>in the valley of conci&s;i|on or thre&s;hing;</HI> When the wicked &s;hall be <HI>cut off as the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> by the &s;ickle of divine wrath, and be under dreadfull breakings and thre&s;hings for evermore.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, This cutting off <HI>as the tops of the eares of corne,</HI> &s;hewes that God doth not cut off wicked men when he hath them at an advantage, when they are weake, when they are low, but when they are as the <HI>tops of the eares of corne,</HI> when they are at their be&s;t, then he doth it; the chiefe of the people are called <HI>the heads of the people,</HI> (Numb. 25.4.) <HI>hang up the heads of the people before me,</HI> &s;ayth God, by <HI>Mo&s;es,</HI> he cut them off who were as the heads of the eares of corne. As &s;ome Tyrants for feare, So God in Ju&s;tice cuts off the heads of the people, the chiefe of Familyes, Princes, and great men. This was Elegantly, though cruelly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Summa papa|verum capita decu&s;&s;it, ut &s;ig|nificaret princi|pes civitatis paulatim e&s;&s;e <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ollendos. <HI>Flor: de Ge&s;t: Rom: cap. 7.</HI></NOTE> expre&s;&s;ed by <HI>Tarquin the proud,</HI> the la&s;t King of the <HI>Romanes,</HI> who when a Citie was taken, or &s;urrendred, and application was made to him how he would have the Citizens dealt with, he an&s;wered, onely by a &s;igne, calling the Me&s;&s;engers into a garden, and having a &s;ticke in his hand, he &s;trucke off the heads of the poppyes, intimating to them, that now the Citizens were in their power, they &s;hould cut off all the chiefe and leading men among them: Thus the Lord cuts off the heads of the eares of corne, the chiefe of men, or men of greate&s;t power, in the greatne&s;&s;e of their power, he cuts them off in love to ju&s;tice and righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, as tyrants doe in feare and jealou&s;ie of their power and greatne&s;&s;e. They are cut off as the tops of the eares of corne.</P>
<P><HI>Job</HI> having at large de&s;cribed the &s;tate of wicked men, and exem|plified many of their wickedne&s;&s;es, concludes by way of chal|lenge.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="25" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 25.</HI></BIBL> And if it be not &s;o, who will make me a liar, and make my &s;peech nothing worth.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In this ver&s;e we have <HI>Job</HI> triumphing, and yet not &s;o much <HI>Job</HI> triumphing, as truth triumphing; for how much &s;oever we &s;peake
<PB N="670" REF="349"> for and defend the truth,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non timet veri|tas fal&s;itatis in|&s;idias &s;ed vel pre&s;&s;a tandem triumphat. <HI>Augu&s;t: Ser: de Sanct:</HI></NOTE> it is not comely that our &s;elves &s;hould triumph, but the truth onely. <HI>Job</HI> indeed &s;hewes his confidence in the equity of his cau&s;e, which he affirmes &s;o ju&s;t and &s;o fully proved to be the minde of God, that he dares venture upon the Judgement of any man alive.</P>
<Q>If it be not &s;o now, who will make me a liar.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Brevi&s;&s;ime in Hebraeo, <HI>Et&s;i non.</HI></NOTE>Some make other men lyars, by teaching them or encouraging them to tell lyes, others make men lyars by proving that they have taught or told lyes; This is <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning when he &s;ayth, <HI>Who will make me a lyar?</HI> Wee may &s;uppo&s;e <HI>Job</HI> at the clo&s;e of his &s;peech ri&s;ing up and looking about him, while he &s;pake thus, <HI>who will make me a liar?</HI> Let me &s;ee the man &s;tand forth that hath any thing to object again&s;t what I have &s;ayd. The words are elegant in the Original, <HI>and if not,</HI> that is, <HI>if it be not &s;o</HI> as I have a&s;&s;erted concerning the dealeings of God with wicked men, that they ma|ny times flouri&s;h and continue flouri&s;hing a long time, if it be not &s;o, let any man di&s;prove me, <HI>and make me a liar,</HI> if he can; let him convince me that I am in an errour if he can. As if he had &s;ayd, I doe not impo&s;e my opinion upon you, but &s;ubmit it to the con&s;i|deration and di&s;cu&s;&s;ion of all men.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>We &s;hould freely offer our opinions and a&s;&s;ertions to the tryall.</HI></P>
<P>'Tis too much for a man to looke that what he hath &s;ayd &s;hould be con&s;ented unto and beleeved, becau&s;e <HI>he hath &s;ayd it.</HI> Onely God him&s;elfe is worthy and may demand, to be thus beleeved by man. That God &s;aith this or that is enough to per&s;wade, yea to require our faith in it, and obedience to it. When God &s;peakes, <HI>he that hath eares to heare, let him heare</HI> (Math. 13.9.) that is, let him beleeve and obey, at his perill be it. He that is truth cannot but &s;peake truth, and therefore is to be beleeved in what&s;oever he &s;peaketh. Man ought not to &s;ay any thing as que&s;tioning the ve|rity of what God hath &s;ayd. But we ought to con&s;ider what men &s;ay, and not to beleeve beyond what we have tryed. And as no man ought to beleeve before he hath tryed, &s;o every man ought to pre&s;ent what he hath &s;ayd to the tryall. Man hath no dominion over the faith of another; <HI>Paul</HI> profe&s;&s;ed he had not (2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 1.
<PB N="671" REF="349"> 24.) and if <HI>Paul</HI> had not who hath? dares any man pretend to a higher priviledge then <HI>Paul</HI> him&s;elfe did? Wee may not bind up the con&s;ciences of men to our dictates any further then what we &s;ay is grounded upon and an&s;werable to the &s;ayings of God. To the Law and to the Te&s;timony, if we &s;peake not according to this word, ye have leave or may take leave to &s;ay (as to that &s;aying) there is no light in us (<HI>I&s;:</HI> 8.20.) We mu&s;t not teach magi&s;terially, but mini&s;terially, we mu&s;t not affect <HI>to be called Ma&s;ters, for one is our Ma&s;ter even Chri&s;t</HI> (Mat. 23.10.) <HI>The Beraeans receaved the word with all readines of mind,</HI> yet they did not &s;wallow downe all whole that was &s;ayd to them, but <HI>&s;earched the Scriptures dayly whether tho&s;e things ware &s;o</HI> (Act. 17.11.) The Apo&s;tles rule is &s;utable to their practice (1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 5.21.) <HI>Prove all things, hold fa&s;t that which is good.</HI> Now as it is the duty of hearers and learners to hold nothing till they have proved it, &s;o it is the duty of Teachers to offer every doctrine to the ballance or tryall which they de&s;ire others &s;hould hold.</P>
<P>Secondly, While <HI>Job</HI> doth thus confidently offer his a&s;&s;ertion to tryall; We learne, That
<Q>Truth is not affrayd to be tryed.</Q></P>
<P>Truth often lieth in a corner, but truth doth not &s;eeke corners, truth never hides her head, as a&s;hamed to be &s;eene or di&s;cu&s;&s;ed by men. Truth (as &s;ome have &s;ayd) lyeth in a deepe pit, it is hard to finde it out, it lieth out of &s;ight, yet truth doth not hide it &s;elfe, but dares &s;tand forth in the face of all the world; truth no more feares the triall, then pure gold feares the touch&s;tone, or then a &s;chollar who hath made good progre&s;&s;e in his learning, feares to be examined; <HI>He that hath truth with him needs not care who appeares again&s;t him.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, In that he &s;ayth, <HI>if it be not &s;o now, who will make me a liar?</HI></P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>Fal&s;e doctrine is a lye.</Q>
<P>(I&s;a. 9.15.) <HI>The antient, and the honourable he is the head, the Prophet that teacheth lies,</HI> that is, (the Prophet that teacheth fal&s;e doctrine) <HI>he is the tayle.</HI> (Jer. 9.3.) <HI>They bend their tongues like their bowes for lies, but they are not valiant for the truth on the earth.</HI>
<PB N="672" REF="350"> The Prophet (as I conceave) intends not &s;o much fal&s;ehood in di&s;cour&s;e, which we call <HI>telling a lye,</HI> as fal&s;ehood of doctrine, which we call <HI>teaching of lyes. They bend their tongues (as bows) for lies,</HI> that is, they &s;et them&s;elves to the maintaining of fal&s;e doctrine to the utmo&s;t &s;tretch of their wit and words. Againe, &s;aith the Lord (<HI>Jer.</HI> 14.14.) <HI>The Prophets that prophecy lyes in my name, I &s;ent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither &s;pake unto them, they prophecy unto you a fal&s;e divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.</HI> The whole doctrine of the man of &s;in is called <HI>a lye. Becau&s;e they received not the love of the truth, that they might be &s;aved, therefore God gave them up to &s;trong delu&s;ion that they &s;hould beleive a lye</HI> (2 The&s;. 2.11.) All the faith-devouring and con&s;cience-wa&s;ting errors that ever the man of &s;in vented to the world, are wrapt up in this <HI>one &s;yllable,</HI> or <HI>word, a lye.</HI> He that receaveth a lye that is told, wrongeth others by it, but he that receaved a lye that is taught wrongeth him&s;elfe mo&s;t by it. To tell a lye is very &s;infull, but to teach a lye, is much more &s;infull. The evill of that &s;in is greate&s;t which &s;preadeth fur|the&s;t, &amp; continueth longe&s;t. A lye that is told and received &s;tick|eth not long in the memory, but pa&s;&s;eth away for the mo&s;t part like a tale that is told, and it is enough to many a man that telleth a lye, if he be beleeved but a little while; But a lye that is taught and receaved &s;ticketh long in the under&s;tanding, and abideth there like a nayle fa&s;tned by the Ma&s;ters of the a&s;&s;emblyes, and it is not enough to him that teacheth a lye, unle&s;&s;e it be beleeved for ever.</P>
<P>Thirdly, When <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>Who will make me a liar?</HI></P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>The wor&s;t thing that can be proved again&s;t any man, is, that he is a lyar.</Q>
<P>To be a lyar is to be as bad as may be; For it is to be as bad as the Devill; He deceaved the woman both by telling and teaching a lye (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.) <HI>He abode not in the truth, becau&s;e there is no truth in him, when he &s;peaketh a lye he &s;peaketh of his owne, for he is a lyar and the father of it</HI> (Joh. 6.44.) Every &s;in is of the Devill, both by temptation and approbation, but onely &s;ome &s;innes are of the Devill by way of practice, and the &s;in which is chiefely of him by practice is lying. Now, every &s;in the more congeniall it is to the
<PB N="673" REF="350"> Devill, the more &s;infull &amp; abominable it is. And therefore among tho&s;e who &s;hall be without, <HI>lye-makers</HI> are chiefe (<HI>Rev.</HI> 22.15.) <HI>Without are doggs, and &s;orcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and Idolaters, and who&s;oever loveth and maketh a lye.</HI> The univer|&s;ality of this exclu&s;ion is onely expre&s;&s;ed upon lyars, as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>to be &s;ure all lyars &s;hall be without.</HI> He that maketh a lye hath nothing wor&s;e to make; and he that maketh (that is, proveth) a man to be a lyar, hath nothing wor&s;e to make of him.</P>
<Q>And make my &s;peech nothing worth.</Q>
<P>The Hebrew is, <HI>And bring my &s;peech to nothing;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ide~ quod <GAP DESC="foreign"> Graeci b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n&egrave; interpre|tantur <GAP DESC="foreign">, verbum &egrave; ver+bo, in non.</NOTE> as if he had &s;ayd, I challenge all men to di&s;prove my rea&s;ons, or to prove that my rea&s;ons are not a proofe of that for which I brought them. In briefe, let any man refute or confute what I have &s;ayd, if he can, and then let all that I have &s;ayd goe for nothing, or be counted nothing worth.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>&V;n&s;ound doctrine is worthle&s;&s;e doctrine.</Q>
<P><HI>The &s;peech of a lyar is nothing worth,</HI> &s;ound doctrine is of great value, it is worth thou&s;ands. <HI>David</HI> preferr'd the word of God before thou&s;ands of Gold, and &s;ilver; every holy truth is the word of God eyther formally or vertually, eyther in termes or by con|&s;equence. The Apo&s;tle compares &s;ound doctrine to things of greate&s;t worth, even to Gold, &s;ilver, and pretious &s;tones, and in the &s;ame place (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.12.) he compares un&s;ound doctrine or doctrine un&s;utable to the foundation (which is Je&s;us Chri&s;t a|lone) to wood, hay, &s;tubble, which as they are things in their owne nature uncon&s;iderable &amp; worthle&s;&s;e in compari&s;on of Gold, &s;ilver, and pretious &s;tones, &s;o, as to the bu&s;ienes upon which he there treates (a &s;uitable <HI>building upon Chri&s;t</HI>) they are altogether worthle&s;&s;e. And if tho&s;e doctrines, which (becau&s;e of &s;ome errour in them) are un&s;utable to the foundation, are to be accounted but <HI>wood, hay, and &s;tubble,</HI> how worthle&s;&s;e are tho&s;e doctrines, which (being altogether erroneous) are incon&s;i&s;tent with and quite o|verthrow the foundation. Such doctrines are worthy of nothing but a dung-hill, being them&s;elves nothing but dro&s;&s;e and dung. What is that worth to us, which is u&s;ele&s;&s;e to us? How worthle&s;&s;e then is that which is de&s;tructive to us? Every error is a Bable, a
<PB N="674" REF="351"> thing of no u&s;e, &s;ome errors are as poy&s;on, deadly in their u&s;e. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> doth not &s;pare to &s;ay as much of them (2 <HI>Epi&s;t.</HI> 2.1, 2.) while he calleth them <HI>damnable here&s;ies, which bring &s;wift de&s;truction upon the bringers of them in,</HI> or the broachers of them abroad; And if they bring de&s;truction upon tho&s;e who bring them, they that receave them cannot be &s;afe.</P>
<P>To conclude this poynt and Chapter, if erroneous doctrine be nothing worth, what are tho&s;e Bookes worth, which are full of erroneous doctrines? To print &s;uch Bookes is but wa&s;t of paines and paper, and when &s;uch Bookes are printed the be&s;t improve|ment that can be made of them, is to make them wa&s;t paper. To buy them is wa&s;t of money, and to read them, is (to mo&s;t) but wa&s;t of time. That &s;peech is not worth the hearing, nor is that booke worth the reading, which (as all erroneous bookes and &s;peeches are) is nothing worth. <HI>Job</HI> granted, that if any could make him a lyar, they, with the &s;ame paines, mu&s;t needes make <HI>his &s;peech nothing worth.</HI> Upon this i&s;&s;ue he &s;huts up his di&s;cour&s;e in an&s;wer to <HI>Eliphaz,</HI> nor dur&s;t <HI>Eliphaz</HI> undertake him any more upon that i&s;&s;ue, and therefore layeth downe the Bucklers and quits the feild; yet <HI>Bildad</HI> takes them up and makes a &s;hort skir|mi&s;h with <HI>Job;</HI> but upon another poynt, as will appeare in the following Chapter.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="25" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="675" REF="351">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 25. Ver&s;. 1, 2, 3.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Then an&s;wered Bildad the Shuhite, and &s;aid,</P>
<P>Dominion and fear are with him, he maketh peace in his high places.</P>
<P>Is there any number of his Armies? and upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>THis &s;hort Chapter containes <HI>Bildads</HI> third conte&s;t with <HI>Job,</HI> in which quite waving the poynt in Que&s;tion concerning the pre&s;ent troubles of the righteous and the felicity of the wicked, he falls, fir&s;t, into a de&s;cription of the glory, power, and maje&s;ty of God; &s;econdly, by way of oppo&s;ition and compari&s;on he &s;ets forth the mi&s;ery and impurity of man. For whereas in the 23^d Chapter, ver&s;e the 3^d, <HI>Job</HI> appealed unto heaven, wi&s;hing that hee might have Admittance to God him&s;elfe, and plead his cau&s;e in his pre&s;ence; <HI>O that I knew where I might finde him! that I might come even to his &s;eate! I would order my cau&s;e before him, and fill my mouth with arguments; Bildad</HI> perceiving him thus confient, labours to take him off by &s;etting before him the greatnes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Bildad iteri<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">m dei potentiam &amp; altitudinem expendit ut Jo|bum co~primat, ne divina~ Ma|je&s;tatem appel|let, &s;uam&abque; co|ram judice tan|to innocentiam jactet.</NOTE> and dreadfullne&s;&s;e of the Lord. He takes up the &s;ame argument upon which he had formerly in&s;i&s;ted; wonderfully exalting the Maje&s;ty of God, and deba&s;ing man in the &s;ight of his owne fraylety. This is the &s;umme and &s;cope of the whole Chapter.</P>
<DIV3 N="1,2" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 1, 2.</HI></BIBL> Then Bildad the Shuhite, an&s;wered and &s;aid, Domi|nion and feare are with him.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>With whom is not expre&s;t, though it be the beginning of a &s;peech. God is often &s;poken of in Scripture without naming. The glorious things which are attributed unto him will fit &amp; &s;ute none but him&s;elfe. Barely to &s;ay &s;ome things are done, is as much as to
<PB N="676" REF="352"> &s;ay, they are done by God, becau&s;e none but God can doe &s;uch things. And as &s;uch things may be named as can be done onely by God, &s;o &s;uch things may be named as can belong to none, but God. As here <HI>dominion and feare are with him;</HI> that is, with God. For the&s;e can belong to none but God. And becau&s;e the&s;e are pro|per and peculiar unto God, therefore <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;eemes to &s;ay thus to <HI>Job; Surely thou ha&s;t not yet con&s;idered (as thou oughte&s;t) the &s;overaigne authority and power of God, which mu&s;t needs &s;trike thee with an awfull reverence of him, and cau&s;e thee to know thy owne di|&s;tance better. Surely thou doe&s;t not mind, that, Dominion and feare are with God, and that thou thy &s;elfe art but du&s;t and a&s;hes, yea im|pure and polluted du&s;t and a&s;hes.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">&V;num hoc agit ut demon&s;t et Jobi de&s;iderium conveniendi de|um e&s;&s;e temera|rium. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE>Thus <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;eemes to chide and rebuke the forwardne&s;&s;e of <HI>Job</HI> in appealing and putting his cau&s;e to God; as if he had been over-bold with God, while he de&s;ired right of him again&s;t the unrighteous accu&s;ations of men. Or as if he had forgotten the &s;overaignty of God, while he was earne&s;tly begging that he would doe him Ju&s;tice.</P>
<Q>Dominion and feare are with him.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Notat efficax exercitium po|te&s;tatis.</NOTE><HI>Dominion,</HI> is that &s;upreame power that God exerci&s;eth over all things, and per&s;ons. The Hebrew is &s;trictly rendred thus; <HI>To rule is his;</HI> wee &s;ay, <HI>Dominion is with him.</HI> There are three things which wee may comprehend under the dominion of God.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, His &s;trength and mighty power, whereby <HI>he is able to &s;ubdue all things unto him&s;elfe,</HI> as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Phil.</HI> 1.21.)</P>
<P>Secondly, His authority, whereby he hath a right to doe what|&s;oever he doth. (<HI>Dan.</HI> 4.35.)</P>
<P>Thirdly, His Efficiency, or the efficacy of his power, whereby he is able to cary every thing through to the de&s;ired i&s;&s;ue (<HI>I&s;:</HI> 43.13.) Many have great power, &amp; great authority, who yet want this effi|cacy &amp; efficiency, they may undertake much, but they cannot carry it through; whereas in God there is a concurrence of the&s;e three, &s;trength, authority, and efficacy, to bring to pa&s;&s;e what ever him|&s;elfe intendeth, or is plea&s;ed to doe. The Dominion which <HI>Bildad</HI> here a&s;cribes unto God, is a dominion cloathed with the&s;e three excellencies. From the &s;cope of <HI>Bildad,</HI> repre&s;enting God in his dominion and greatne&s;&s;e.</P>
<PB N="677" REF="352">
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The be&s;t way to humble man is to &s;et the power and &s;overaignty of God, as al&s;o his holine&s;&s;e and infinite purity before him.</Q>
<P>Any of the perfections of God taken in by faith and well medi|tated upon, may lay the heart of man low. How doth all our bra|very and the high conceits which we have of our &s;elves vani&s;h like &s;moke and become a meere nothing at the appearances of God? Though (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 2 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.12.) <HI>we mea&s;uring our &s;elves by our &s;elves, and comparing our &s;elves amongst our &s;elves are not wi&s;e;</HI> Yet while we onely doe &s;o we &s;eeme very wi&s;e; But when once we compare our &s;elves with God, O what ideots and poore &s;imple things are we. What is our power when once wee contemplate the power of God? What is the dominion which any Prince of the earth hath when once he con&s;iders the domini|on and &s;overaignty of God? What is the wi&s;dome of man, what the holine&s;&s;e of man, to the wi&s;edome and holine&s;&s;e of God?</P>
<Q>Dominion and feare are with him.</Q>
<P>More particularly, in that Dominion is here appropriated to God.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Supreame power is proper unto God.</Q>
<P>There is a dominion put into the hands of men: many have do|minion and power, but originally all Dominion is Gods. In him is the &s;eate and roote of power. <HI>David</HI> &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 62.11.) <HI>God hath &s;poken once, twice have I heard it, that power belongeth unto God.</HI> As my eare hath heard &s;o my heart hath heard and con&s;ent|ed to this truth. And this power or dominion of God may be con&s;idered foure wayes.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In the univer&s;ality of it, (1 <HI>Chron.</HI> 29.12.) where <HI>David</HI> makes this confe&s;&s;ion; <HI>Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reighne&s;t over all, and in thine hand is power and might, and in thine hand is to make great and to give &s;trength unto all.</HI> He that giveth &s;trength unto all, hath &s;trength over all, and his dominion is over all nations and per&s;ons, not limited to this or that particular nation or per&s;on: yea he hath dominion not onely over all here below; but in heaven above; as <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;peakes a little after; <HI>He maketh
<PB N="678" REF="353"> peace in his high places.</HI> Chri&s;t is <HI>Prince of the Kings of the earth</HI> (Rev: 1.5.) <HI>He is Lord of Lords and King of Kings</HI> (Rev. 19.16.) that is, not onely a King or a Lord, excelling all other Kings and Lords, but al&s;o ruling them, or reighning over them: Kings are his Subjects.</P>
<P>Secondly, His is an ab&s;olute dominion, that is, he governes by no law, but by his owne will: this kinde of dominion is proper un|to God alone. He doth and he onely may governe by his owne will. <HI>Hee doth in heaven and earth what ever plea&s;eth him.</HI> This was &s;poken of (<HI>Job</HI> 23.13.) <HI>Hee is in one minde, and who can turne him? and what his &s;oule de&s;ireth that hee doth.</HI> Hee doth not goe out of him&s;elfe for his rule, his owne de&s;ire is his rule, all the de&s;ires of God are holy, ju&s;t, and righteous, and therefore his de|&s;ire and will may well be his rule. It is good that he &s;hould have an ab&s;olute dominion, and rule according to his owne will, who cannot will any thing, but what is good. And 'tis but ju&s;t that he &s;hould rule as he plea&s;eth, who cannot be plea&s;ed with any thing but what is ju&s;t.</P>
<P>Thirdly, His is an everla&s;ting dominion (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 145.13. <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 66.7.) As men are mortall, &s;o are States, Kingdomes, and Em|pires. The &s;tronge&s;t and greate&s;t of them have had their fates and funerals. Wee &s;ee what changes there have been of dominion and power out of one hand into another; but the dominion of God is &s;ubject to no change, nor knoweth it any fate. <HI>The Babylonian, the Per&s;ian, the Graecian, and the Roman Monarchyes have &s;eene their day;</HI> but the dominion of Je&s;us Chri&s;t is an everla&s;ting do|minion (<HI>Dan.</HI> 4.34.) 'tis &s;o acknowledged even by <HI>Nebuchad|nezzar. And at the end of the dayes I Nebuchad-nezzar lift up mine eyes unto heaven, and mine under&s;tanding returned unto mee, and I ble&s;&s;ed the mo&s;t high, and I prai&s;ed and honoured him that li|veth for ever, who&s;e dominion is an everla&s;ting dominion, and his Kingdome is from generation to generation.</HI></P>
<P>Fourthly, His is an Effectuall Dominion. As he hath a right to doe what he will, &s;o he hath &s;trength to effect what he willeth. Such is the dominion of God, and becau&s;e it is &s;uch, even an uni|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">rian, ab&s;olute, everla&s;ting and effectuall Dominion. Therefore, let man remember his duty.</P>
<Q>Dominion calleth for &s;ubjection.</Q>
<P>That's the Apo&s;tles rule (<HI>Rom.</HI> 13.1.) <HI>Let every &s;oule be &s;ub|ject
<PB N="679" REF="353"> unto the higher powers:</HI> and if every &s;oule ought to be &s;ubject unto the higher powers among men: then every &s;oule ought to be &s;ubject, much more to the power of God, for his is the <HI>highe&s;t power.</HI> And thus we ought to &s;ubmit.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Unto his lawes; <HI>Legi&s;lative power is his,</HI> what God &s;ayth mu&s;t be our rule. We may not di&s;pute, much le&s;&s;e quarrell at any of his commands, but obey them: naturally the heart of man re|bells again&s;t the law of God (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.7.) <HI>The carnall minde is enmity again&s;t God: for it is not &s;ubject to the law of God, neither in|deed can be;</HI> that is, it cannot be &s;ubject, while it remaineth carnal; onely a renewed or a &s;pirituall minde &s;ubmits to a &s;pirituall law.</P>
<P>Secondly, Submit to his workes, to what he doth, as wel as to what he &s;aith; and that, fir&s;t, in the provi&s;ion and allowances that he makes for you, that is a part of Gods dominion to cut out a portion for every man. Therefore in every e&s;tate be content; &s;e|condly, &s;ubmit to the works of God in his afflictions, and cha&s;ti&s;e|ments (1 <HI>Pe.</HI> 5.6.) <HI>Humble your &s;elves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time.</HI> When old <HI>Eli</HI> heard that terri|ble me&s;&s;age concerning the de&s;truction of his whole family (for <HI>Samuel told him every whit, and hid nothing from him) hee &s;ayd it is the Lord: let him doe what &s;eemeth him good</HI> (1 Sam. 3.18.) Thus the Church &s;ate downe in &s;ilence not &s;peaking a word be|cau&s;e it was the act of God (<HI>Lam.</HI> 3.28.) Thirdly, &s;ubmit to God in the whole compa&s;&s;e of his government, in ordering the affayres of the whole world, when he breaks, and when he builds, when he &s;ets up, and when he pulls downe, when he makes peace, and when he makes warre, in all the&s;e acts of dominion &s;ubmit to God. When the Prophet calls us to behold what de&s;olations the Lord maketh in the earth, he adds this word as from the Lord, <HI>Be &s;till and know that I am God</HI> (P&s;al. 46.10.) As if the Lord had &s;ayd, Let none que&s;tion mee for what I have done, <HI>I am God,</HI> and if ye know, indeed, <HI>that I am,</HI> ye will not have a word to &s;ay again&s;t <HI>what I doe.</HI> So (<HI>Zech:</HI> 2.13.) <HI>Be &s;ilent, O all fle&s;h, before the Lord: for he is rai&s;ed up out of his holy habitation:</HI> He is ri&s;en to make great changes, therefore be &s;ilent, &s;ubmit, let there be no murmuring at, no contending with his providences; <HI>for dominion and feare are with him.</HI></P>
<P>Some render this word <HI>feare,</HI> as an adjunct or Epithete of the
<PB N="680" REF="354"> former;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Dominatus &amp; quidem formi|dabilis e&s;t penes illum. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> <HI>Dominion and that a terrible fearefull or formidable domi|nion is with him,</HI> but rather di&s;tinctly as wee, <HI>Dominion and feare are with him.</HI> God hath no feare in him, nor upon him, for he is as infinitely above all feare, as he is above hope. But <HI>feare is with him,</HI> or, <HI>feare is his,</HI> becau&s;e he is &s;o much to be feared. <HI>Feare is with God</HI> upon this threefold account.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e many at pre&s;ent doe feare the Lord: every God|ly man is a man fearing God.</P>
<P>Secondly, Becau&s;e every man ought to feare, dread, and &s;tand in awe of God, even the Princes and powers and dominions of the earth, ought to feare the Lord. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 2.11.) <HI>Be wi&s;e now there|fore O ye Kings; be in&s;tructed, O ye Judges of the earth, &s;erve the Lord with feare, and rejoyce with trembling.</HI> Kings and Judges mu&s;t &s;erve and feare the Lord, or &s;erve the Lord with feare. Who then mu&s;t not?</P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Feare is with him;</HI> becau&s;e all &s;hall feare and dread him at la&s;t, whether they will or no, they who&s;e proud hearts &s;tout it again&s;t God, they that goe on impudently in &s;inne, feare|le&s;&s;e of the Maje&s;ty and wrath of God, yet a time will come when their &s;tomacks &s;hall be taken downe; a time will come when all the world &s;hall tremble before the Lord. As now, many doe it, and as all ought to doe it, &s;o all &s;hall doe it. (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 2.19.) <HI>They &s;hall goe into the holes of the rocks, and into the tops of the ragged rocks, for feare of the Lord, and for the glory of his Maje&s;ty; when hee ari&s;eth to &s;hake terribly the earth.</HI> Such a day is comming upon the lofty ones, upon the Cedars and upon the Oakes, upon the fearele&s;&s;e, and they &s;hall feare; and (which is the greate&s;t argu|ment of feare) run into a hole for feare. It is prophecyed (<HI>Re|vel.</HI> 6.15.) That, <HI>the Kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chiefe Captaines, and the mighty men, and e|very bondman, and every free man &s;hall hide them&s;elves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountaines, and &s;ay to the rocks and to the mountaines fall on us and hide us from the face of him that &s;itteth on the Throne, and from the wrath of the Lambe.</HI> They who having been threatned with the wrath of God, were no more afrayd then the rocks, &s;hall, for feare, wooe the rocks to hide them from the wrath of God. Though <HI>Adam</HI> had not the feare of God to keepe him from &s;inne, yet the feare of God fell upon him as &s;oone as he
<PB N="681" REF="354"> had &s;inned. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.10.) <HI>I heard thy voice in the garden and I was affraid; becau&s;e I was naked and I hid my &s;elfe.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>God is in him&s;elfe very dreadfull, hee is to be feared.</HI></P>
<P>God is &s;o much to be feared, that not onely <HI>feare is with him,</HI> but <HI>hee is feare.</HI> As becau&s;e God is &s;o full of love, therefore the Scripture predicates love directly of God, <HI>God is love</HI> (1 Joh. 4.8.) &s;o becau&s;e God is greatly to be feared, therefore he is called <HI>feare</HI> (Gen. 31.42.53.) <HI>Except the God of my father, the God of Abra|ham, and the feare of I&s;aac</HI> (that is, the God whom my father <HI>I&s;aac</HI> feared) <HI>had been with me, &s;urely thou hadst &s;ent me away emp|ty,</HI> &s;ayd <HI>Jacob</HI> in his conte&s;t with <HI>Laban.</HI> And at the 53^d ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter he &s;ayth againe to <HI>Laban; the God of Abra|ham, and the G<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d of Nahor, the God of their father, judge be|twixt us: and Jacob <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ware by the feare of his father I&s;aac;</HI> that is, hee &s;ware by God; for by him onely can we &s;weare in a holy manner, An oath being a part or an act of divine wor&s;hip. The dominion and feare of God are put together (<HI>Mal.</HI> 1.14. <HI>I am a great King</HI> (there is dominion) <HI>and my name is dreadfull among the Heathen.</HI> (there is feare.) Even Heathens who know God o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ely by the lig<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t of Nature, (which is &s;o imperfect a way of knowing God, that the Heathen are &s;ayd <HI>not to know him,</HI> Jer. 10.25. yet I &s;ay, the Heathen who know God onely thus) doe feare him, they feare him in proportion to or according to the way of their knowledge of him. How much more then is the Lord to be feared, and how dreadfull is be to and among his ow<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e people, who know him &s;avingly, who know him by Go&s;pel light. <HI>God is greatly to be feared in the a&s;&s;embly of the Saints: and to be had in reverence of all them that are about him</HI> (P&s;al. 89.7.) Hee is terri|bly dreadfull among&s;t the Heathen, hee is awfully or reverentially dreadfull among the Saints. <HI>Feare is with him.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In reference to the greatne&s;&s;e of his power; con&s;ider what God can doe, and that renders him dreadfull. Wee feare tho&s;e that can doe great things, tho&s;e e&s;pecially that can doe great things again&s;t us. For this rea&s;on Chri&s;t exhorts his Di&s;ciples to feare God, when hee &s;aw them in danger of a &s;urpri&s;al by the feare of what men could doe again&s;t them (<HI>Luk.</HI> 12.4, 5.) <HI>I &s;ay unto you my friends be not afraid of them that kill the body, and af|ter that have no more that they can doe. But I will forewarne you
<PB N="682" REF="355"> whom yee &s;hall feare: feare him which after hee hath killed, hath power to ca&s;t into hell; yea, I &s;ay unto you, feare him.</HI> How is he to be feared, who at one &s;troake can peirce body and &s;oule quite through, and throw both into hell? The Lord is to be feared upon the con&s;ideration of the ordinary providentiall puttings forth of his power, how much more when he puts forth his power ex|traordinarily and Judicially? (<HI>Jer:</HI> 5.22.) <HI>Feare ye not me, &s;ayth the Lord? will yee not tremble at my pre&s;ence, which have placed the &s;and for the bound of the Sea, by a perpetuall decree, that it can|not pa&s;&s;e it, and though the waves thereof to&s;&s;e them&s;elves, yet can they not prevaile, though they roare, yet can they not pa&s;&s;e over it?</HI> I have done this thing, put a &s;top to the Sea, I have put a bridle into the mouth of the Sea, I can check the waves when they roare and to&s;&s;e, and will ye not feare me?</P>
<P>Secondly, God is to be feared for his goodne&s;&s;e, as we read at the 24^t^h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter, where the Lord upbraides their want of feare, while they remembred his mo&s;t ordinary good providences at land; <HI>Neither &s;ay they in their heart, let us now feare the Lord our God, that giveth raine, both the former and the latter in his &s;ea&s;on: hee re&s;erveth unto us the appointed weekes of the harve&s;t.</HI> If God be to be feared for that witnes of his goodne&s;&s;e which is held out by raine and fruitfull &s;ea&s;ons, or by filling the hearts of men in common with food and gladnes, then how much more is God to be feared for the di&s;tingui&s;hing acts of his good|nes and mercy, the pardon of &s;in, and the giving out of his Spirit. <HI>There is forgivenes with thee, that thou maye&s;t be feared,</HI> &s;ayd the P&s;almi&s;t (130.4.) and (<HI>Ho&s;:</HI> 3.5.) <HI>They &s;hall feare the Lord and his goodne&s;&s;e in the latter dayes;</HI> that is, they &s;hall feare the Lord becau&s;e of his goodnes, his &s;peciall goodnes to his Church and peo|ple, in advancing them to all their &s;pirituall liberties &amp; priviledges in the latter dayes. And thus the Lord is &s;ayd to be not onely <HI>glorious in holine&s;&s;e,</HI> but <HI>fearefull in prai&s;es;</HI> becau&s;e we &s;hould feare him when wee are prai&s;ing him, both becau&s;e hee hath wrought &s;o much goodnes and mercy for tho&s;e who are unwor|thy, as al&s;o le&s;t while we receave &s;o much from the hand of his goodnes and mercy, we &s;hould walke unworthyly.</P>
<P>Secondly, When the text &s;ayth, <HI>Feare is with him,</HI> wee learne, That
<Q>God can &s;trike man with feare when he plea&s;eth.</Q></P>
<PB N="683" REF="355">
<P><HI>Power is with him,</HI> and he can put forth his power: if God &s;end out his power, it goeth and prevaileth. So <HI>feare is with him,</HI> and hee can &s;end out his feare to &s;trike whom he will with feare, when and as oft as hee will. The Scriprure &s;heweth the Lord &s;ending forth his feare at plea&s;ure, and attaching the &s;tronge&s;t and hardy|e&s;t of the children of men. It is &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 35.5.) <HI>And they jour|neyed</HI> (that is, <HI>Jacob</HI> and his &s;mall company) <HI>and the terrour of God was upon the Cities that were round about them, and they did not pur&s;ue after the &s;ons of Jacob.</HI> The terrour of God was &s;ent out to keepe them in, &s;o that none of them &s;tirred. El&s;e no doubt but all the Cities would have pur&s;ued them becau&s;e of that high provocation which the &s;ons of <HI>Jacob</HI> had given them by the late &s;laughter of the <HI>Sichemites.</HI> When God promi&s;ed to &s;end Hor|nets before the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> to drive out the uncircumci&s;ed Nations, this feare was the Hornet (<HI>Exod.</HI> 23.28.) God &s;tung their hearts with feare, or (as it were by Hornets) buzz'd a feare into their eares; as he did into the eares of the <HI>Syrians,</HI> who en|camped before <HI>Samaria</HI> (2 Kings 7.6, 7.) <HI>The Lord made the ho&s;t of the Syrians to heare a noi&s;e of Charets, and a noi&s;e of Hor&s;es, even the noi&s;e of a great ho&s;t: and they &s;ayd one to another, loe the King of I&s;rael hath hired again&s;t us the Kings of the Hittites, and the Kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us. Wherefore they aro&s;e, and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their hor&s;es, and their a&s;&s;es, even the campe as it was, and fled for their life.</HI> As a word from God makes the heart confident and bold in the grea|te&s;t danger, &s;o a word from God makes the heart fearefull and cowardly, where there is no danger at all. This is the glory of God, that he can command our pa&s;&s;ions. <HI>That by a word he can make them feare, who doe not at all feare his word.</HI></P>
<P>Many men have feare belonging to them, yet they cannot &s;end out their feare, they are in great place, and &s;o both dominion over men, and feare are with them (for unto whom&s;oever dominion belongs, feare doth belong (<HI>Rom.</HI> 13.7.) <HI>Render to every man his due, tribute to whom tribute is due, cu&s;tome to whom cu&s;tome, feare to whom feare, honour to whom honour</HI> Yet (I &s;ay) many have dominion and feare belonging unto them, who cannot &s;end out their feare. Their power is de&s;pi&s;ed, and none regards them; they command, and are not obeyed, they promi&s;e and are not be|leeved, they threaten, and are not feared. Onely God can &s;end
<PB N="684" REF="356"> out his feare, and make every man fall and tremble before him When many armed men came to take Chri&s;t, Chri&s;t &s;ent out a feare upon them, &s;o that <HI>they went backward and fell to the ground (Joh.</HI> 18.6.) Chri&s;t gave them never an angry word, he onely confe&s;&s;ed him&s;elfe to be the man they &s;ought for, <HI>I am he;</HI> and they were as men a&s;toni&s;hed with feare; Chri&s;t in &s;peaking tho&s;e words did onely let out a little ray or beame of his Deity, and this &s;truck them downe. O what feare will Chri&s;t &s;end out when he commeth to judge the world, who could &s;end forth &s;uch a feare, while he yeelded him&s;elfe up to be judged and condemned by the world. <HI>Dominion and feare are with him.</HI> He can make all afrayd, and yet, as it followeth;
<Q>Hee maketh peace in his high places.</Q></P>
<P>This latter part of the ver&s;e, is a continued de&s;cription of the irre&s;i&s;tible power of God (as all agree) in making peace, yet there is &s;ome difference what &s;hould be meant <HI>by the high places,</HI> where <HI>God maketh peace; Hee maketh peace in his high places.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Many under&s;tand the&s;e <HI>high places,</HI> to be <HI>the Heavens,</HI> or (as the Scripture &s;peaketh) <HI>the Ho&s;t of Heaven,</HI> Sunne, Moone, and Starres; There or among them peace is made through the power of God, keeping them in or to order, that is, in their due&s;t motions. The heavenly bodies are in continuall &s;trong motion, and they are kept in their motion by the power of God. The Sunne, Moone, and Starres, are mighty bodies, and they are in a perpetuall <HI>career,</HI> yet they ju&s;tle not one again&s;t another, nor doe they fall fowle upon one another. In this &s;ence it may be &s;ayd, that God maketh peace among them; They all according to his appoyntment keepe their places, and &s;tirre not out of their owne &s;pheares No man could ever keepe his Watch or Clock in &s;uch order as God keepes the Sunne.</P>
<P>Secondly, By the&s;e <HI>high places,</HI> others under&s;tand that which is &s;omewhat lower; not Sunne, Moone, and Starres, but the &s;eve|rall regions of the ayre; God makes peace in tho&s;e high places, where &s;tormes and tempe&s;ts and all manner of fiery impre&s;&s;ions are bred and wrought. Naturali&s;ts &s;ay, that the &s;econd region of the ayre is both the &s;hop where tho&s;e dreadfull in&s;truments of warre, Thunder, lightning, hayle, &s;now, are formed, as al&s;o the &s;tore-hou&s;e where they are layd up; yet even in tho&s;e high places,
<PB N="685" REF="356"> God maketh peace. If hee &s;peake to the thunder,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Deus vel &s;olo nutu tranquillat elementorum di&s;&s;idia tempe|&s;tate&s;&abque; &s;erenat.</NOTE> it doth not &s;tirre, and to the lightning, it doth not goe forth, if he &s;peake to the winde it bloweth not, and to the &s;torme it is hu&s;ht and quiet. <HI>Fire and hayle &s;now and vapour &s;tormy winde and tempe&s;t, fullfill his word</HI> (P&s;al. 148.8.) And they fullfill it whether in going or in &s;taying. Thus God maketh peace in the high places of the ayre, and upon the high waves of the Sea. Chri&s;t did but rebuke the Sea, and &s;ay to it (when it was in its feirce&s;t rage) <HI>peace, be &s;till, and there was a great calme</HI> (Mark. 4.39.) The ayre is under the Em|pire of God as much as Sea or Land; And he <HI>maketh peace in tho&s;e high places.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, The words are expounded of tho&s;e high places which are the more proper &s;eate of Angels. And &s;o God may be &s;ayd to make peace in his places, becau&s;e hee maketh peace among the Angels, that is, he keepeth the Angels in peace; The Angells doe not contend one with another, and none of them dares contend with God. Some urge this expo&s;ition as mo&s;t pertinent to <HI>Bil|dads</HI> purpo&s;e for the conviction of <HI>Job;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd,<NOTE PLACE="marg">His verbis vel|licatur Job qua|&s;i in&s;olens &s;edi|ti<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;us &amp; queru|lus homo. <HI>Pi|ned:</HI></NOTE> The An|gels dare not contend with God, And doe&s;t thou (O <HI>Job</HI>) con|tend with God? The Angels utter not a word again&s;t God, and dare&s;t thou undertake to plead with him, and engage him in a con|trover&s;ie?</P>
<P>A fourth &s;ort, by Gods <HI>making peace in his high places,</HI> under|&s;tand onely thus much, That all is quiet in heaven, or that God hath a mo&s;t peaceable and quiet fruition, and enjoyment of him|&s;elfe; Hee hath had it from eternity, and will have it unto eterni|ty, this is the ble&s;&s;edne&s;&s;e of God, hee is above all trouble and di|&s;turbment. And thus al&s;o <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;eemes to reprove <HI>Job; Wilt thou begin a conte&s;t with God, wilt thou trouble God him&s;elfe, who maketh peace in his high places, who lives in everla&s;ting re&s;t and quiet. God doth not u&s;e to be &s;ued and pleaded with as thou &s;eeme&s;t over-boldly to de&s;ire.</HI></P>
<P>La&s;tly, The&s;e <HI>high places</HI> are expounded for the high places of the earth; As if he had &s;ayd, God makes peace among&s;t the States, Princes, and powers of the world, who are in high places, and in Gods high places. For every throne is Gods, and thrones are high places. As the heavens are high places in compari&s;on of the whole earth, &s;o &s;ome places of the earth (in a civil capacity as wel as in a natural) are higher then the re&s;t. Now among tho&s;e that
<PB N="686" REF="357"> are in his high places of power and authority, the Lord maketh peace, and this is a very glorious worke of God. Thus wee &s;ee there are many high places, and they are all the high places of God; yet I conceave that <HI>Bilded</HI> cheifely if not onely aymes at Heaven, which is more peculiarly the high place of God; as being that to which (though many lay claime to the high places of the earth) none be&s;ides God ever did make claime or lay title.</P>
<P>Further, Be&s;ides the&s;e different apprehen&s;ions about <HI>the high places,</HI> there is a difference in the reading of the words together; &s;ome thus; <HI>Hee worketh in peace in his high places;</HI> That is, what troubles &s;oever are here on earth, there is peace and quietne&s;&s;e in heaven, or there God worketh in peace and quietne&s;&s;e. Others, thus; <HI>The Dominion and feare which are with him make peace in his high places;</HI> As if the dominion and power of God were that to which peace-making is a&s;cribed as an effect. Or as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>God hath authority enough to compo&s;e all differences, yea he &s;o orders things in heaven that there ari&s;eth no difference in tho&s;e high places, his dominion and feare keepe all in peace.</HI> There are no murmur|ings nor di&s;contents, much le&s;&s;e any rebellions or open warres in heaven.</P>
<P>M. <HI>Broughton</HI> reports the Chaldee tran&s;lation in a phra&s;e very uncouth in our language; <HI>Sultan&s;hip and feare be with him:</HI> (&s;ome Ea&s;terne Princes are called <HI>Sultans) He maketh peace in his high heavens.</HI> To which he adds the expo&s;ition or glo&s;&s;e of the Chaldee Paraphra&s;e; <HI>Michael is on his right hand; and hee is of fire; Gabriel is on his left hand; and he is of water; and the hea|venly creatures be part of fire and part of water.</HI> But M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> gives a good corrective, <HI>&s;uch Fables S^t Paul forbiddeth.</HI> To con|clude, though it be difficult which of the high places before-named are here meant, yet it is a truth that all high places are his high places, and that in what high place &s;oever peace is made, God maketh it. <HI>He maketh peace in his high places.</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Peace-making is the worke of God.</Q>
<P>And as God makes peace every where, &s;o he makes every kinde of peace. Wee finde peace &s;poken of in Scripture in a five-fold oppo&s;ition; and God the maker of that five-fold peace.</P>
<PB N="687" REF="357">
<P>Fir&s;t, Hee maketh peace in the high places of the world, <HI>as peace is oppo&s;ed to any kinde of trouble, or affliction.</HI> Peace is u&s;ually accompanyed with pro&s;perity, and peace &s;ignifies any kinde of pro&s;perity. Peace in this extent is a&s;&s;umed by God him&s;elfe as his proper worke (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 45.7.) <HI>I forme the light, and create darke|ne&s;&s;e, I make peace and create evill, I the Lord doe all the&s;e things;</HI> that is, I doe them and none can doe them without me, or but by mee.</P>
<P>Secondly, God maketh peace as peace is (more &s;trictly) ta|ken in oppo&s;ition to warre and tumults; <HI>He cau&s;eth warre to cea&s;e in all the world,</HI> (P&s;al. 46.9.) <HI>Hee maketh warre to cea&s;e unto the end of the earth; Hee breaketh the bow, and cutteth the &s;peare in &s;un|der, hee burneth the Chariots in the fire.</HI> He that de&s;troyeth all the In&s;truments of warre, doth &s;urely make peace; and he that maketh warre to cea&s;e, doth certainly make peace begin. Peace is made two wayes; fir&s;t, by taking up the differences and reconciling the Spirits of men; &s;econdly, by breaking the power and taking away all provi&s;ions of warre from men. The Lord maketh peace by both the&s;e wayes, or by eyther of them.</P>
<P>Thirdly, God maketh peace as peace is oppo&s;ed to per&s;ecuti|on; There may be no warre in a Nation, and yet no peace to the people of God, by rea&s;on of &s;ore and fiery per&s;ecution; yea a ge|neral peace is the very opportunity which per&s;ecuters looke for, to breake the peace of particular men. The mo&s;t bloody times that the Church ever had, have been the mo&s;t peaceable times of Nations. And when nations are mo&s;t troubled, then Churches u&s;ually get their libertyes, and are mo&s;t quiet. Such a peace as this the Churches had, though I cannot &s;ay they had it upon this oc|ca&s;ion. (<HI>Acts</HI> 9.31.) <HI>Then had the Churches re&s;t</HI> (or peace, that is, they were quiet from their cruel per&s;ecutours) <HI>throughout all Judea, and Galile, and Samaria, and were edified, and walking in the feare of the Lord, and in the comfort of the holy Gho&s;t, were mul|tiplyed.</HI> This peace doth God make for his Saints, his little flocke, that they may &s;ometimes lye downe in Greene pa&s;tures, and be&s;ide the <HI>&s;till waters,</HI> without feare of the Wolves and Lyons, who would alwayes teare and worry them. Thus the Lord promi&s;eth (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 60.17, 18.). <HI>I will make thy officers peace, and thine exa|ctours righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, violence &s;hall no more be heard in thy land, wa|&s;ting nor de&s;truction within thy borders.</HI></P>
<PB N="688" REF="358">
<P>Fourthly, God maketh peace, as peace is oppo&s;ed to <HI>di&s;&s;ention</HI> among brethren. It is po&s;&s;ible there may be no warre in a place, yea no per&s;ecution, none to vex the people of God, and yet they may have great di&s;&s;entions, vexations, and divi&s;ions among them|&s;elves. This peace the Church of <HI>Corinth</HI> wanted, when none from without troubled the Church. Hence that rebuke which the Apo|&s;tle gives them (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.3.) <HI>Whereas there is among you envy|ing and &s;trife and divi&s;ions, are ye not carnal and walke as men?</HI> Thus Saints and Churches warre one with and trouble another, when the world gives them no trouble at all. To the keeping of this peace Chri&s;t admoni&s;heth his Di&s;ciples (<HI>Mark.</HI> 9.50.) <HI>Have &s;alt in your &s;elves, and have peace one with another.</HI> But why did Chri&s;t &s;peake thus to his owne Di&s;ciples; <HI>have peace one with another?</HI> Were they ready to make warre one with ano|ther? had they any Armyes to engage and lead out into the feild again&s;t one another? &s;urely none. Therefore when Chri&s;t &s;aith, <HI>have peace one with another,</HI> his meaning was onely this, wrangle not with one another, fall not out one with one another. The Di&s;ciples were not like to run into any other warre but that of di&s;&s;ention among&s;t them&s;elves. And this warre may be in tho&s;e Churches that live in the mo&s;t peaceable condition. And 'tis God onely who makes peace as in his high places both of heaven and earth, &s;o in his holy places.</P>
<P>Fifthly, and la&s;tly, God makes peace as peace is oppo&s;ed to di&s;|order, for there may be con&s;ent among&s;t men, and yet much di&s;|order among men, yea they may (po&s;&s;ibly) agree, con&s;ent and center together in that which is mo&s;t di&s;orderly. Of this peace the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 14.33.) <HI>God is not the author of confu&s;ion but of peace, as in all Churches of the Saints,</HI> that is, God would have every one keepe his order and his place; He would not have the Prophets &s;peak all together in the Church, for that is di&s;order|ly; nor would he have women &s;peake at all in the Church, for that al&s;o is di&s;orderly. That which breakes order breakes peace, for there can be no true peace without order, and God is not the Au|thor of di&s;order or confu&s;ion in Churches but of peace.</P>
<P>Thus peace-making is the worke of God in this five-fold oppo|tion, as peace is oppo&s;ed to trouble, as peace is oppo&s;ed to warre, as peace is oppo&s;ed to per&s;ecution, as peace is oppo&s;ed to di&s;&s;enti|on, and la&s;tly, as peace is oppo&s;ed to di&s;order. To make peace in
<PB N="689" REF="358"> all the&s;e kindes, is as much the honour as it is onely in the power of God. <HI>He maketh peace in his high places.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Where God is mo&s;t eminently, there is mo&s;t peace.</Q>
<P>Hee makes peace on the earth, but in his high places where his mo&s;t glorious appearance is, there is nothing but peace. And as There is nothing but peace in heaven, where God declares him|&s;elfe mo&s;t clearely, &s;o they to whom God declares him&s;elfe mo&s;t clearely on earth are mo&s;t for peace: the neerer and the liker wee are unto God, the neerer wee are unto peace, and the more wee like it. All true peace floweth out from God, and the more of a healing and peace-making &s;pirit appeares in any man, the more of God appeares in him.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, By way of inference; Take this, Fir&s;t,</P>
<P>Seeing God makes peace in his high places, or in heaven above, how ea&s;ily can hee (when our breaches are wide&s;t) make peace in the&s;e low places of the earth. And becau&s;e, as it is his property, &s;o his promi&s;e to doe it, wee &s;hould waite upon him for and urge him with the fullfilling of this promi&s;e, that he who makes peace alwayes in the high places of heaven, would make that five-fold peace in the low places of the earth.</P>
<P>Secondly, Seeing God is able to make peace in all places, hee can al&s;o make warre in all places. The &s;ame power doth both, and <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;hewes the preparations of God for warre as wel as his &s;anctions of peace. For he hath innumerable Armyes under his command, as it follows in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="3" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 3.</HI></BIBL> Is there any number of his Armies? and upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There &s;eemes to be &s;omewhat a &s;trange conjunction between the&s;e two ver&s;es, <HI>hee maketh peace,</HI> and, <HI>Is there any number of his Armies?</HI> One would thinke wee &s;hould heare of nothing but warre, when we heare of &s;uch numberle&s;&s;e armies. God hath in|numerable invincible armies, alwayes ready for warre, yet hee is mo&s;t ready to make peace; yea he who is <HI>The Lord of Ho&s;ts,</HI> is al&s;o &s;tiled, <HI>The Lord of peace</HI> (2 The&s;. 3.16.) This likewi&s;e &s;peakes the dominion, power, and Maje&s;ty of God in that he maketh peace,
<PB N="690" REF="359"> and can make warre. <HI>His armyes are at hand,</HI> and tho&s;e no con|temptible ones. As if <HI>Bildad</HI> had thus be&s;poken <HI>Job; It is in vaine for thee who art a weake man, to thinke of contending with God, who hath numberle&s;&s;e armyes to take his part again&s;t all oppo&s;ers.</HI></P>
<P>The word which wee tran&s;late <HI>Armyes,</HI> properly &s;ignifies <HI>Troopes. Is there any number of his troopes?</HI> And this is given in name to one of the Patriarchs (<HI>Gen.</HI> 30.11.) <HI>And Leah &s;ayd, a Troop cometh; And &s;hee called his name Gad.</HI> A troop is a little Ar|my; and a great Army con&s;i&s;ts of many troopes. Wee &s;ay, <HI>Is there any number of his Armies?</HI></P>
<P>When the Scripture &s;ayth, that God hath armies, it is not to be under&s;tood as if God needed them, eyther to protect him&s;elfe, or to &s;uppre&s;&s;e his enemies; <HI>The Lord of ho&s;ts</HI> him&s;elfe is infinitely &s;tronger then all the Armyes and ho&s;ts of which he is Lord. Earth|ly Princes have their Armyes, and guards, to protect their per&s;ons and dominions from danger and inva&s;ion. They want armyes to helpe their friends abroad, and to defend their Subjects at home. Woldly Princes borrow power from others to protect them&s;elves, while they undertake to protect others. But God is the guard of his guards, and the &s;trength of his owne armyes. Princes are &s;aved by their Armyes, but God is the &s;afety of his armyes. The Gods of the earth are afrayd of what man may doe unto them, but the God of heaven is not onely above tho&s;e feares, but al&s;o above all want of mans doing any thing for him. So that, <HI>as God is not wor|&s;hipped with mans hands</HI> (as the Apo&s;tle tells The <HI>Athenians, Act.</HI> 17.25.) <HI>as though he needed any thing,</HI> &s;o neyther is he a&s;|&s;i&s;ted by mens hands or by any hand, as if he needed any thing, <HI>&s;eeing he giveth to all life and breath and all things.</HI></P>
<P>And therefore when the Lord is &s;ayd to have Armyes, it is ey|ther to &s;ignifie, fir&s;t, that he hath all things at his command, and is full of power, or &s;econdly, that although he can doe all things by him&s;elfe, yet he will u&s;e the agency of the creature to effect his purpo&s;es.</P>
<P>This que&s;tion, <HI>Is there any number of his armyes?</HI> re&s;olves it &s;elfe into this negative, There is no number of his armyes, or there is no numbring of them. But what are the&s;e armyes of God?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The Angells are his armyes: we reade of one Angel that de&s;troyed a whole army, (2 <HI>Kings</HI> 19.35.) <HI>And it came to pa&s;&s;e that night, that the Angel of the Lord went out, and &s;mote in the
<PB N="691" REF="359"> campe of the A&s;&s;yrians, an hundred four&s;core and five thou&s;and; and when they aro&s;e early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corp&s;es.</HI> If one Angel de&s;troyed an army, what cannot an army of Angels doe? The Angels of God are armyes without number. We read them expre&s;&s;ed by &s;uch great numbers, as render their numbers inexpre&s;&s;ible. So in <HI>Daniels</HI> vi&s;ion of the Glory of God (<HI>Chap.</HI> 7.10.) <HI>A fiery &s;treame i&s;&s;ued, and came forth from before him: thou&s;and thou&s;ands mini&s;tred unto him, and ten thou&s;and times ten thou&s;and &s;tood before him;</HI> that is, an innumerable company &s;tood before him. Chri&s;t &s;ayd to <HI>Peter</HI> when he drew his &s;word and &s;ought to re&s;cue him from the Officers of the High-Prie&s;t that came to arre&s;t and bring him to Judgement, <HI>Put up thy &s;word a|gaine into his place, for all they that take the &s;word &s;hall peri&s;h with the &s;word. Thinke&s;t thou that I cannot now pray to my father, and he &s;hall pre&s;ently give mee more then twelve legions of Angels</HI> (Math. 26.53.) Here is an army of Angels. Chri&s;t &s;peaketh in the Ro|man phra&s;e, who reckoned their armyes by legions, as we doe by regiments, <HI>Six thou&s;and &s;ix hundred &s;ixty &s;ix</HI> was the number of a legion as &s;ome affirme, and if &s;o, Then twelve legions make <HI>Seven|ty nine thou&s;and nine hundred ninety two;</HI> a great Army; but (&s;aith Chri&s;t) my father can &s;end <HI>more then twelve legions.</HI> But how many more, no man can &s;ay. Chri&s;t pitcheth upon a great certaine number, to &s;hew that hee might have what number hee would, if hee did but call for them.</P>
<P>Secondly, The Sunne, Moone, &amp; Starres, are the Armyes of God. (<HI>Judges</HI> 5.20.) <HI>They fought from heaven,</HI> That is, the heavenly or aeriall meteors, wind, thunder, hayle, did as it were joyne their confederate forces for the de&s;truction of <HI>I&s;raels</HI> enemies (as they had done before, <HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 10.11. and as they did afterward, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 7.10.) yea as it followeth in the &s;ame place, <HI>the Starres in their cour&s;es fought again&s;t Si&s;era.</HI> The Starres charged like an Army in battel array, ray&s;ing &s;tormes and dreadfull tempe&s;ts by their in|fluences, and &s;o might be &s;ayd to fight again&s;t and ruine the whole army of <HI>Sicera.</HI> By all which Rhetoricall expre&s;&s;ions the Spirit would lead us to under&s;tand, that the Lord him&s;elfe by invi&s;ible powers did fight again&s;t <HI>Si&s;era,</HI> while <HI>I&s;rael</HI> fought him with a vi|&s;ible power. Surely if the Starres be the Lords armyes, wee may well &s;ay, <HI>is there any number of his armyes?</HI> When the Lord would &s;hew <HI>Abraham</HI> that his &s;eed &s;hould be an innumerable ar|my,
<PB N="692" REF="360"> <HI>hee brought him forth and &s;ayd, looke now towards heaven, and tell the Starres, if thou be able to number them. And hee &s;ayd unto him, &s;o &s;hall thy &s;eed bee</HI> (Gen. 15.5.) that is, thy &s;eed &s;hall be numberle&s;&s;e, as the Starres are numberle&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Thirdly, By the&s;e Armyes wee may under&s;tand, not onely the Angells, and the Sunne, Moone, and Starres, that heavenly ho&s;t, but any creature, yea all the creatures, from the Elephant even to the worme that creepeth upon the ground, or to the fly that buzzeth in the ayre, or to the lice that breede out of corruption. All the&s;e are the Armyes of God; and by the&s;e he can doe his worke as well as by the Angells in heaven. What were the armyes of God, with which he made warre upon <HI>Pharaoh?</HI> were they not flyes and lice and &s;uch like contemptible creatures, mu&s;tred together at his com|mand? therefore the Text may well &s;ay, <HI>Is there any number of his armies?</HI> God can leavy an army upon the earth, not onely of men, but of bea&s;ts, and not onely of Lyons and Elephants, the &s;toute&s;t and greate&s;t bea&s;ts, but of the weake&s;t and meane&s;t, and not onely of the weake&s;t and meane&s;t among living creatures, but of the ve|ry Inanimate creatures, the &s;tones in the feilds, the winds in the ayre, the waters of the Sea, yea the &s;and of the Sea, and the very du&s;t of the earth are the armyes of God, if hee give them commi&s;|&s;ion and &s;end them forth. God and the weake&s;t creature are an overmatch for the &s;tronge&s;t creatures; 'Tis no matter how meane the meanes is, or how incon&s;iderable the in&s;trument, &s;o it be in the hand of God, &s;o it be of Gods providing, and goe forth at his bidding. God can leavy an army where he will, and out of what he will, and it &s;hall doe the deed. Now if all things or any thing may be his army, no marvayle if it be &s;ayd, <HI>Is there any number of his Armyes?</HI></P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>All creatures are the host the Armyes of God.</Q>
<P>They may be called his Armyes in a threefold con&s;ideration.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e of their multitude, a few cannot make an ar|my. There are many creatures of every kinde, how many then are all of every kinde put together?</P>
<P>Secondly, They are his Armyes, becau&s;e of their order; The greate&s;t <HI>many</HI> out of order doe not make an Army, but a throng or heape. Armyes are martiall'd and di&s;ciplin'd, trayned and
<PB N="693" REF="360"> taught. An Army is an ordered company; all the creatures are in order by nature, and when God calls they are in order as it were by Art.</P>
<P>Thirdly, They are his Armyes, becau&s;e as God hath a power to command them, &s;o they are ready to obey him; They (as the Centurion in the Go&s;pel &s;ayd of his Souldiers) goe when God &s;ayth goe, they come, when he &s;ayth come, and if he bid them doe this or that they doe it. Souldiers mu&s;t neyther refu&s;e nor di&s;pute the commands of their General. The mo&s;t violent and boy&s;terous creatures, are obedient to the call of God; <HI>&s;tormy winds and tem|pe&s;ts fullfill his word</HI> (P&s;al. 148.8.) Hee &s;peakes to the <HI>lightnings;</HI> and they &s;ay, <HI>heere are wee</HI> (Job 38.35.) The very thunder which &s;eemes to be all voyce, is all eare at the voyce of God. The An|gels are &s;o ready to goe, that they are &s;ayd to fly, and their readi|nes to doe the will of God in heaven, is made the patterne of our doing it here on earth. The Scripture &s;peakes often of them as of an army employed in warres, eyther to de&s;troy the wicked, or to be a guard to the people of God. We have an illu&s;trious example of the latter in <HI>Jacobs</HI> ca&s;e (<HI>Gen.</HI> 32.2.) <HI>And when Jacob &s;aw them, hee &s;ayd, this is Gods ho&s;t: and hee called the name of that place Mahanaim, that is, two ho&s;ts or companies.</HI> And it might be &s;o called, becau&s;e <HI>Jacobs</HI> company or little ho&s;t, and that company of Angels who were Gods ho&s;t &s;ent out to convoy him in &s;afety, did both encampe upon the &s;ame ground; or rather becau&s;e the Angels divided them&s;elves into two companyes, The one encamp|ing and marching before him as his Vantguard, the other behind him or in his Reere; That &s;o he might &s;ee him&s;elfe every way pro|tected, and might be filled with a full a&s;&s;urance of &s;afety. That God hath &s;uch numerous Armyes alwayes at hand and under command, is</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, A very comfortable hearing to all that love and feare God. The Apo&s;tle &s;ayth (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.31.) <HI>If God be for us, who can be again&s;t us?</HI> that is, none can. Though many be again&s;t us op|po&s;ingly yet none can be again&s;t us prevaylingly. We may &s;ay al|&s;o if the Lord be for us, who will not be for us? If God be our helper, we cannot want helpers, not onely becau&s;e the helpe of God is enough without any more, but becau&s;e, if he be our helper we &s;hall have many more. When we &s;ee our &s;elves utterly de&s;ti|tute of all helpes and helpers, yet God hath an army of helpers,
<PB N="694" REF="361"> he hath auxiliary forces ready for us. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 34.7.) <HI>The Angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that feare him, and delivereth them. David</HI> &s;peaketh as if one &s;ingle Angel were a whole Army; <HI>The Angel of the Lord</HI> (&s;ayth he) <HI>encampeth,</HI> he doth not &s;ay the Angels of the Lord encampe about them that feare him; and in|deed every Angel of the Lord is more in power, then a whole Ar|my of men; yet here, po&s;&s;ibly, is meant that Angel who is the Lord, The Angel of the Covenant, who as Captaine General with his Army of created Angels encampeth about them that feare God. And if &s;o, then they need not be afrayd. (2 <HI>Kings</HI> 6.16, 17.) When the &s;ervant of <HI>Eli&s;ha</HI> cryed out for feare, <HI>Eli&s;ha an|&s;wered, feare not: they that be with us are more then they that bee with them. And Eli&s;ha prayed, And &s;ayd, Lord, I pray thee open his eyes that hee may &s;ee, and the Lord opened the eyes of the young man, and hee &s;aw: and behold, the mountaine was full of hor&s;es; and Charrets of fire round about Eli&s;ha.</HI> And thus it is often with us though wee di&s;cerne it not. Wee have many invi&s;ible &s;uccours, in our vi&s;ible dangers. And as, that the Angels are our helpers in eminent and extraordinary dangers is very comfortable, &s;o al&s;o, that they are &s;o again&s;t ordinary, common or every-day-dangers. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 91.11, 12.) <HI>Hee &s;hall give his Angells charge over thee; to keepe thee in all thy wayes. They &s;hall beare thee up in their hands; le&s;t thou da&s;h thy foote again&s;t a &s;tone,</HI> that is, le&s;t thou take hurt in thy dayly workes and travels.</P>
<P>Secondly, The&s;e Armyes are a terrour to all tho&s;e who rebell and ri&s;e up again&s;t God, or are enemies to his people. Hee that re&s;i&s;ts God hath as many enemyes as there are Angells in heaven, or &s;tarres in the firmament, or &s;tones in the earth, or bea&s;ts in the feild; &s;o many enemies hath he, and if God appeare as Captaine generall, none &s;hall be able to &s;tand before his armyes, though he levy them of Gra&s;&s;e-hoppers, or flyes, or wormes, or lice. How &s;hould the greate&s;t feare to provoke God, who can make them fall by that which is lea&s;t? For as <HI>David</HI> acknowledged (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 33.16, 17.) <HI>There is no King &s;aved by the multitude of an ho&s;t: a mighty man is not delivered by much &s;trength: a hor&s;e is a vaine thing for &s;afety: neither &s;hall he deliver any by his great &s;trength.</HI> So we mu&s;t acknowledge, That if God will, any King may be de|&s;troyed by the &s;malle&s;t ho&s;t, that a mighty man may be overcome by that which hath no &s;trength, that a fly is a &s;ufficient thing for
<PB N="695" REF="361"> ruine, and that, if God &s;ay the word, even that &s;hall not onely trouble but &s;ubdue any man with its little or no &s;trength.</P>
<P>Secondly, Note.</P>
<Q>The power which God can draw forth is a limitle&s;&s;e power. His Armyes are without number.</Q>
<P>When Princes have greate&s;t Armyes they may number them, and tell you how many hundreds and how many thou&s;ands and how many hundred thou&s;ands they have. We have read of many very numerous Armyes, but wee never yet read of an innumera|ble army, onely Gods army is without number, and therefore onely his knowes no bounds. <HI>Is there any number of his Armyes?</HI></P>
<Q>And upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</Q>
<P>Here <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;ets forth the glory of the goodnes,<NOTE PLACE="marg">De homine propri&egrave; dicit <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;uper|quem; et&s;i om|nia &s;imilit&egrave;r lu|men &amp; virtu|tem ab eo acci|piunt. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> omni&s;cience and omnipre&s;ence of God, by his &s;ending forth his beams of light, as he in the former part of the ver&s;e &s;ets forth the glory of the greatne&s;&s;e and power of God by his &s;ending forth the Armyes of his &s;trength.</P>
<Q>&V;pon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</Q>
<P>The text may be read thus; <HI>&V;pon whom doth not his light &s;tand?</HI> or, <HI>upon whom &s;hall not his light &s;tand?</HI> Wee &s;ay, <HI>upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</HI> Both tran&s;lations are good. But what is this light of God?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Wee may under&s;tand it of that common light, the light of the Sunne, for that is Gods light, and the univer&s;all ari&s;ing of it upon the world is a wonderfull worke of God. For as God made the light, and gathered it into that great ve&s;&s;el the Sunne, &s;o hee carrieth it about the world every day. The light of the Sunne is the me&s;&s;enger of Gods care and love to man every morning. (<HI>Math.</HI> 5.45.) <HI>Hee maketh his Sunne to ri&s;e on the Evill and on the Good;</HI> that is, upon all, Good and Evill, divide the whole world between them: and while the text in <HI>Mathew</HI> &s;aith, that <HI>God maketh his Sunne to ri&s;e,</HI> &amp;c. it intimates that the Sunne ri|&s;eth dayly by &s;peciall direction from God; The Sunne is his, and the light is his; There is no creature that enjoyes the light of the Sunne, but is beholding to God for it. Hee that made the Sunne, maketh the Sunne to ri&s;e; as if the Sunne like a weary or tired
<PB N="696" REF="362"> traveller were unwilling to ri&s;e in a morning and renew his Jour|ney, or long &s;tage about the world, till called up by God, and commanded out for the &s;ervice of mankinde; of Sun-light we may &s;ay, <HI>&V;pon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, This light may be taken more &s;trictly for the light of divine goodne&s;&s;e. All the good, the peace, the comfort, which wee injoy in the world, is comprehended under the name of light. When the P&s;almi&s;t &s;ayth, <HI>Light is &s;owen for the righteous,</HI> his meaning is, <HI>good or comfort is &s;owen for the righteous,</HI> (P&s;al. 97.11.) and, <HI>&V;pon whom doth not this light ari&s;e?</HI> The goodne&s;&s;e of God extends it &s;elfe over all. God doth good to all, though he doth more good for &s;ome; for as God would have us to doe good to all, but &s;pecially to the hou&s;hold of faith, &s;o doth hee. Hee &s;ends forth &s;o much light of goodne&s;&s;e as will make all men eternally inexcu&s;able who abu&s;e it, but he &s;ends forth &s;o much light of his goodnes to &s;ome as will make them eternally happy. The light of his goodde&s;&s;e ri&s;eth upon good men to cau&s;e them to rejoyce and live comfortably; And unle&s;&s;e &s;ome light of his goodnes did ari&s;e upon evill men, even upon the wor&s;t of men, they could not &s;ub&s;i&s;t, nor live at all. His light is the life of man, <HI>and upon whom doth not this light of divine goodne&s;&s;e ari&s;e?</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, Wee may expound this light of the light of divine wi&s;dome, which di&s;po&s;eth and ordereth all things; And doth not this light ari&s;e upon the whole creation? doth not this light &s;hine upon every creature? doth not this light direct the wayes of man on earth? yea doth not this light ari&s;e upon the Angels in heaven, to direct them in all their wayes?</P>
<P>Fourthly, Wee may under&s;tand this light of the light of that knowledge by which God him&s;elfe knoweth all things. As God is light e&s;&s;entially, or as all that he is, is light, &s;o we may &s;ay more e&s;pecially of his knowledge, it is light. Knowledge is the light of man, and therefore we &s;ay of an ignorant or unknowing man that he is in darkenes; and thus al&s;o knowledge is the light of God; and when the Apo&s;tle <HI>John</HI> &s;aith (1 <HI>Epi&s;t:</HI> 1.) <HI>That in him is no darkenes at all,</HI> his meaning is in him is no ignorance at all. God &s;ends forth this light of his knowledge all the world over, he takes notice of all; As nothing is hid (in a common &s;ence) from the heate or light of the Sunne in its walke about the world, &s;o no|thing is hid in, any, the &s;tricte&s;t &s;ence from the knowledge of God.
<PB N="697" REF="362"> <HI>&V;pon whom doth not this light ari&s;e?</HI> wee are alwayes in the pre|&s;ence of God, his eye is upon us and &s;ees us, hee &s;ees where we are, and what wee doe; and as this light of his &s;hines upon all things, &s;o it will, at la&s;t, bring all things to light.</P>
<P>Now, among the&s;e foure interpretations given, I conceive that the word <HI>light</HI> is to be taken here in the &s;econd &s;ence, <HI>upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</HI> That is, the light of the goodnes of God:<NOTE PLACE="marg">V detur potius lacis, nomen ad v<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">in quam om|nibus in&s;undit pertinere, per eam &s;unt omnia id quod &s;unt. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> which goodne&s;&s;e is the infinite freenes and readines of his nature to doe good. And this light of his goodnes ari&s;ing upon the crea|ture is five-fold.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, There is an upholding or pre&s;erving Goodnes, by which all things are maintained in their &s;tate and being.</P>
<P>Secondly, There is a quickning and refre&s;hing goodnes, where|by all things (men, and among them godly men e&s;pecially) are renewed and revived in their wel-being.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There is a protecting goodnes of God, whereby his are kept while they are in dangers.</P>
<P>Fourthly, There is a delivering goodne&s;s, whereby his are brought out of and &s;et free from danger.</P>
<P>Fifthly, There is a &s;trengthning and &s;upporting goodne&s;s, whereby his are enabled to beare all the evills with which they are exerci&s;ed in this world. And upon whom (yea upon what) doth not the light of the goodnes of God ari&s;e every day in &s;ome one or more of the&s;e particulars?</P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>All the light of man or the light of all men is from God.</Q>
<P>If any light ari&s;e upon man it is of God, and upon what man &s;oever light ari&s;eth it is of God. As the light of the ayre is his, &s;o al&s;o is the light of our hearts. The light of life is his, and &s;o is all that light of comfort which &s;hines upon us while we live. <HI>God is the father of lights, from whom every good gift and every perfect gift commeth</HI> (Jam: 1.17.)</P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>God is very communicative of his goodne&s;&s;e; upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e?</Q>
<P>God doth not keep his light to him&s;elfe; <HI>he is good, and doth good;</HI> hee hath good, and doth good, he di&s;tributes it; God would not
<PB N="698" REF="363"> have us, much le&s;&s;e doth he him&s;elfe <HI>put his candle or light under a bu&s;hell, but hee &s;ets it upon a candle&s;ticke,</HI> and it giveth light to all the world, it refre&s;heth and warmeth all the world. As the light of the &s;peciall goodnes of God in Chri&s;t ari&s;eth upon all &s;orts and conditions of men in the world, &s;o there is a light of his common providentiall goodnes which ari&s;eth upon each man of every &s;ort and condition in the world.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;u+per quem n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n &s;tabit lumen e|jus ut non &s;olum exorientem &amp; &s;u<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">gentem luce~; &s;ed etiam con &s;i&s;tentem calore&punc; lumine et agen|difacultate prae potentem &amp; re|bus omnibus hu|manis immine~|tem intelliga|mus. <HI>Bold:</HI></NOTE>Another reading &s;ayth, <HI>&V;pon whom doth not his light abide?</HI> The light of God is not onely an ari&s;ing or &s;pringing light, but a continuing and an abiding light; It doth not onely breake out up|on us, but dwell with us. The naturall Sunne ari&s;eth every day upon us, but it doth not dwell with us, but is going from us as &s;oone as it appeares unto us; and therefore it was miraculous when the Sunne &s;tood &s;till, or ha&s;ted not to goe downe about a whole day (<HI>Jo&s;h.</HI> 10.13.) But the my&s;ticall light of the good|nes of God is a light that dwelleth alwayes over our heads, and ha&s;teth not to goe downe. And indeed if God &s;hould withdraw this light, or let it goe downe, if he &s;hould &s;top the influences of his kindnes from us, and cea&s;e to doe us good, wee were ruin'd and undone; <HI>for in him all things &s;ub&s;i&s;t, and are upheld by the word of his power;</HI> if his light did not ari&s;e upon the creature, the creature would &s;inke into darkne&s;&s;e. Nor could wee abide what wee are, if this light did not abide upon us. And as this is true in reference to our naturall &s;ub&s;i&s;tence, &s;o much more in reference to our &s;pi|rituall. This light ari&s;ing and abiding upon the Saints, maintaines and upholds them, both in their graces and in their comforts.</P>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> having thus &s;et forth the power and greatnes of God in his dominion, and feare in his ho&s;ts and armyes, as al&s;o his kind|nes and beneficence in his light ari&s;ing and abiding upon man, proceeds in the latter part of the Chapter to &s;hew the &s;infullnes and unworthynes, the impurity and impotency of man compared with God.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="25" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="699" REF="363">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 25. Ver&s;. 4, 5, 6.</HI></BIBL>
<P>How then can man be Ju&s;tified with God? or how can man be clean that is borne of a woman?</P>
<P>Behold, even to the Moon and it &s;hineth not, yea the Stars are not pure in his &s;ight.</P>
<P>How much le&s;s man <HI>that</HI> is a worme, and the &s;on of man <HI>which is</HI> a worme.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN this context <HI>Bildad</HI> gives further check to <HI>Jobs</HI> pre&s;umption (as hee conceived) in appealing to heaven, and in begging audience of God him&s;elfe, which he did (as hath been &s;hewed) with earne&s;tnes at the 23^d Chapter.</P>
<DIV3 N="4" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 4.</HI></BIBL> How then can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The words are an Inference from what he had in&s;i&s;ted upon and di&s;cour&s;ed before concerning the dominion and feare of God, concerning the number of his Armyes, and the &s;hinings of his light every where: from all which hee concludes, <HI>How then can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Seeing God is &s;o dreadfull, &s;eeing hee is an all-powerfull, an all-&s;eeing, and an all-upholding God, how dare&s;t thou or any man living, plead with him? or how is it po&s;|&s;ible for any man living to &s;tand out with God and live?</HI></P>
<Q>How then can man be ju&s;tified with God?</Q>
<P>This que&s;tion, carrieth a &s;trong denyall, To &s;ay, <HI>How then can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</HI> is more then barely to &s;ay, <HI>Man can|not be Ju&s;tified with God,</HI> How can it be? is not onely thus much, It cannot ea&s;ily be, it cannot probably be, but it cannot po&s;&s;ibly be, or it is Impo&s;&s;ible to be; Such que&s;tions, <HI>how a thing may be?</HI> are u&s;ually an an&s;wer that they cannot be at all. Que&s;tions are &s;ometimes put for Information or with de&s;ire to be directed, or to have the my&s;tery opened how &s;uch things may be. The holy virgin put &s;uch a que&s;tion (<HI>Luk.</HI> 1.34. when the Angel had told her &s;hee &s;hould have a &s;on) <HI>Then &s;aid Mary unto the An|gel, how &s;hall this bee, &s;eeing I know not a man?</HI> her que&s;tion did
<PB N="700" REF="364"> not Import her denyall of the thing, but her wonder at it, nor did it imply her unbeleefe, as if &s;hee thought it Impo&s;&s;ible to be, but her de&s;ire to be Informed in the way and manner how it &s;hould be, and to that &s;ence &s;hee is an&s;wered, <HI>The holy Gho&s;t &s;hall come upon thee, and the power of the mo&s;t high &s;hall over-&s;hadow thee.</HI></P>
<P>But here (I &s;ay) the que&s;tion, (<HI>how can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</HI> is reducible to this plaine negative propo&s;ition; <HI>Man can|not be Ju&s;tified with God:</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> cal<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">ri+lo&s;us aegrotabi|lis, morbis mor|ti&abque; obno<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">lus; &s;ic latini morta|lem pro homine dicunt.</NOTE> <HI>How can man?</HI> that is (as the word &s;ig|nifieth) mi&s;erable man, &s;ickly man, weake Impotent man? and it may note not onely the Impotency of his body, but of his &s;pirit. Man is of a weake body at be&s;t, and of a more weake and &s;ickly &s;pirit. Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughtons</HI> tran&s;lation reacheth both; <HI>And why &s;hould &s;orrowfull man plead Ju&s;tice with the Omnipotent?</HI> Man is compa&s;&s;ed about with &s;orrowes, and every man is in him&s;elfe, what Chri&s;t was more eminently for us all, <HI>a man of &s;orrowes, and acquainted with griefe</HI> (I&s;a. 53.3.) We take the word in its gene|ral &s;ignification.</P>
<Q>How then can man be Ju&s;tified?</Q>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> &s;eemes (as &s;ome expound him) by this que&s;tion, to &s;u&s;|pect that <HI>Job</HI> had a&s;&s;erted <HI>a &s;elfe-Ju&s;tification,</HI> and it mu&s;t be con|fe&s;&s;ed that what he &s;pake at the 23^d <HI>Chapter, ver.</HI> 10, 11, 12. might give him &s;ome colour for that &s;u&s;picion; <HI>Hee knoweth the way that I take, when he hath tryed mee I &s;hall come forth as gold. My foot hath followed his &s;teps, his way have I kept and haue not de|clined, neither have I gone back from the Commandements of his lips: I have e&s;teemed the words of his mouth more then my nece&s;&s;ary food.</HI> While <HI>Job</HI> thus a&s;&s;erted his owne Innocency and Integrity, <HI>Bildad</HI> might po&s;&s;ibly &s;uppo&s;e that hee was a&s;&s;erting his owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e; and therefore not without &s;ome indignation hee expo&s;tulates the matter with him, <HI>How can man be Ju&s;tified?</HI> that is, pronounced cleane and quit at the Throne of God. <HI>Ju&s;tificati|on</HI> (Con&s;idered in the Go&s;pel notion) <HI>is that gracious &s;entence of God, wherein with re&s;pect to Chri&s;t apprehended by faith, hee ab&s;ol|veth the beleever from &s;in and death, and doth repute him ju&s;t and righteous unto eternal life.</HI> Of this the Apo&s;tle treates at large in the 3^d 4^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> and 5^t^h Chapters of the Epi&s;tle to the <HI>Romanes,</HI> and in that to the <HI>Galatians.</HI> This doctrine of free ju&s;tification is the
<PB N="701" REF="364"> foundation and corner &s;tone of all our comfort. For whereas there is a double change in the &s;tate of a &s;inner; fir&s;t, a relative change; &s;econdly, an ab&s;olute and reall change. The one is made in &s;ancti|fication, the other in Ju&s;tification; Sanctification is a reall change, &s;ubduing corruption, de&s;troying the power of &s;in in us; but Ju&s;ti|fication is not a Phy&s;icall or real change in the per&s;on, it doth not make him that is unrighteous righteous in him&s;elfe, nor is man at all Ju&s;tified (in this &s;ence) by any &s;elfe-righteou&s;nes, but it is one|ly a relative change as to his &s;tate. To Ju&s;tifie is a Law-terme, &s;ignifying, the pronouncing or declaring of a man righteous: So that Ju&s;tification is an act of God upon us, or towards us: Sanctifi|cation is an act of God in us. This ble&s;&s;ed Grace of Sanctification alwayes followeth the grace of Ju&s;tification, as an effect or fruit of it; and though it may ea&s;ily be di&s;tingui&s;hed from it, yet it can no more be &s;eparated or divided from it, then heate from fire, or motion from life.</P>
<P>Yet I concave, that <HI>Bildad</HI> in this place doth not &s;peake of Ju|&s;tification in that &s;trict Go&s;pel &s;ence, as it imports the pronoun|cing of a man righteous, for the &s;ake of Chri&s;t, or as if he &s;uppo&s;ed <HI>Job</HI> looked to be pronounced righteous for his owne &s;ake. But <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;peakes of Ju&s;tification here, as to &s;ome particular act; As for in&s;tance, If any man will contend with God (and that <HI>Bil|dad</HI> chargeth <HI>Job</HI> with) as if God had done him &s;ome wrong, or had afflicted him more then was need, is he able to make this plea good, and give proofe of before the Throne of God; <HI>How can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</HI></P>
<P>There is a fourefold under&s;tanding of that phra&s;e, <HI>with God.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Thus; <HI>If any man &s;hall pre&s;ume to referre him&s;elfe to the Judgement of God, &s;hall he be ju&s;tified?</HI> (all at la&s;t mu&s;t ap|peare before the Judgement of God, whether they will referre them&s;elves to him or no; but) &s;uppo&s;e a man referre him&s;elfe to God (as <HI>Job</HI> had done by appealing to him) <HI>can he be Ju&s;tified?</HI> Will God upon the tryall &amp; examination of his cau&s;e give Judge|ment or &s;entence for him? But in this &s;ence it is po&s;&s;ible for a man to be ju&s;tified with God; and thus <HI>Job</HI> was ju&s;tified by God at la&s;t again&s;t the opinion and cen&s;ures of his three friends.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>To be Ju&s;tified with God,</HI> is as much as this, <HI>If man come neere to, or &s;et him&s;elfe in the pre&s;ence of God, &s;hall he be ju&s;ti|fied?</HI> Man u&s;ually lookes upon him&s;elfe at a di&s;tance from God,
<PB N="702" REF="365"> he looks upon him&s;elfe in his owne light, and &s;o thinkes him&s;elfe righteous; but when he lookes upon him&s;elfe in the light of God, and as one that is neer God; will not all his &s;pots and blemi&s;hes then appeare, or rather will not he him&s;elfe appeare all &s;pot and blemi&s;h? When he is once with God, will he be any thing with him&s;elfe, but an impure and wretched creature? In this &s;ence <HI>Bil|dad</HI> might check <HI>Jobs</HI> boldnes in de&s;iering to come &s;o neere God, <HI>even to his &s;eate,</HI> which would but have made him more vile in his owne eyes, and di&s;covered to him his owne impurities, as it did to the Prophet <HI>I&s;ayah</HI> (Chap. 6.5.) and as it did al&s;o to <HI>Job</HI> him|&s;elfe, when he attained his wi&s;h, and got &s;o neere to God, that he called it <HI>a &s;eeing him with his eye</HI> (Chap: 42.5.) Then we have not a word more of pleading his cau&s;e before God; His mouth was &s;topt, <HI>and he abhorred him&s;elfe, repenting in du&s;t and a&s;hes.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, <HI>Can man be ju&s;tified with God?</HI> that is, if man com|pare him&s;elfe with God, an he be ju&s;tified? one man may com|pare him&s;elfe with another and be ju&s;tified. And thus, the f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ith|full people of God are called righteous and ju&s;t in Scripture, com|paratively, to wicked and unrighteous men. But how can any man be ju&s;t or righteous compared with God, in compari&s;on of whom all our righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is unrighteous, and our very cleanenes filthy?</P>
<P>Fourthly, <HI>To be ju&s;tified with God,</HI> is, <HI>again&s;t God;</HI> that is, if man &s;trive or contend with God, in any thing, as if God were too hard and &s;evere towards him, eyther by withholding good from him, or bringing evill upon him; can man be ju&s;tifyed in this con|tention, or will God be found to have done him any wrong? with|out all que&s;tion he will not.</P>
<P>From the words taken in a generall &s;ence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Man hath nothing of his owne to Ju&s;tifie him before God.</Q>
<P>There are two things con&s;iderable in man; fir&s;t, his &s;inne; &s;e|condly, his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e; his wor&s;t and his be&s;t; all grant man cannot be ju&s;tified by or for his &s;ins, nor can he at all be ju&s;tifyed in or for his owne righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e. And that upon a twofold ground.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Becau&s;e the be&s;t of his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is Imperfect; and no Imperfect thing can be a ground of Ju&s;tification and acceptance with God. For though God doth ju&s;tifie tho&s;e who are imperfect,
<PB N="703" REF="365"> yet hee never ju&s;tified any man upon the account of that which is Imperfect. God never tooke cockle-&s;hels for payment, he mu&s;t have pure gold, and he &s;eeth wel enough what poore &s;tuffe, what ba&s;e coyne the be&s;t of our righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e is, and therefore cannot admit any of it in ju&s;tification. For the purpo&s;e of God is to ex|alt him&s;elfe in Ju&s;tice as wel as in mercy by the ju&s;tification of &s;in|ners. And therefore the Apo&s;tle &s;ayth (<HI>Rom.</HI> 3.25, 26.) That <HI>God hath &s;et forth Chri&s;t to be a propitiation, through faith in his blood, to declare his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e</HI> (and he is not content to &s;ay it once, but &s;aith it againe) <HI>To declare, I &s;ay, his righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e, that he might be ju&s;t, and the ju&s;tifier of him that beleeveth in Je&s;us.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, All the righteou&s;ne&s;&s;e wrought by man is a due debt; how can wee acquit our &s;elves from the evill wee have done by any good which we doe, &s;eeing all the good we doe, we ought to have done, though we had never done any evill? When we have done our be&s;t we may be a&s;hamed of our doings, we do &s;o poorly. But &s;uppo&s;e we had done richly and bravely; &s;uppo&s;e our workes (which indeed are full of dro&s;&s;e) were pure gold and &s;ilver, were precious &s;tones and Jewels, yet they are already due to God. Wee owe all and all manner of obedience as wee are creatures; And wee can never ju&s;tifie our &s;elves from our tran&s;gre&s;&s;ions, by &s;atisfying (could we reach them) our obligations. There is enough in Chri&s;t to ju&s;tifie us, but there is nothing in our &s;elves; All that Chri&s;t did was perfect, and Chri&s;t was under no obligation to doe any thing, but what he willingly &s;ubmitted to doe for us. This booke of <HI>Job</HI> beareth as great a te&s;timony to this truth as any; How often doth <HI>Job</HI> di&s;claime all <HI>&s;elfe-Ju&s;tification</HI> (Chap. 9.20, 21.) <HI>If I ju&s;tifie my &s;elfe, mine owne mouth &s;hall condemne mee: if I &s;ay I am perfect, it &s;hall al&s;o prove mee perver&s;e. Though I were perfect, yet would not I know my owne &s;oule, I would de&s;pi&s;e my life.</HI> What can be &s;ayd more fully (to the tenour of the Go&s;pel) for the aba&s;ement of &s;elfe, and the advancement of free grace in ju&s;ti|fication. He &s;ayd indeed (<HI>Chap.</HI> 13.18.) <HI>Behold now I have or|dered my cau&s;e. I know that I &s;hall be ju&s;tified.</HI> But he never &s;ayd that he &s;hould be ju&s;tified for the cau&s;e &s;ake which he had orde|red. There is a twofold ju&s;tification.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The ju&s;tification of a man in reference unto &s;ome parti|cular act, or in his cau&s;e.</P>
<P>Secondly, The ju&s;tification of a man in his per&s;on. When <HI>Job</HI>
<PB N="704" REF="366"> &s;ayd, <HI>I know that I &s;hall be ju&s;tified,</HI> his meaning was, I &s;hall be ju|&s;tified, in this ca&s;e, in this bui&s;ines, I &s;hall not be ca&s;t as an hypo|crite (for hee alwayes &s;tood upon and &s;tiffely maintained his inte|grity) or I know I &s;hall be ju&s;tified in this opinion which I con|&s;tantly maintaine; That a righteous man may be greatly afflicted by God, while in the meane time hee &s;pareth the unrighteous and the &s;inner. A man may have much to ju&s;tifie him&s;elfe by before God, as to a controver&s;ie between him and man; but he hath nothing at all to ju&s;tifie him&s;elfe by as to his &s;tate towards God.</P>
<P>Againe, As the&s;e words are referred to <HI>Jobs</HI> complaint of the &s;everity of Gods dealings with him.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Who&s;oever complaines of the di&s;pen&s;ations of God towards him, cannot be ju&s;tified in it.</Q>
<P>Thus the <HI>Jewes</HI> of old complained (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 18.25.) <HI>Ye &s;ay the way of the Lord is not equall.</HI> But were they ju&s;tified in this com|plaint, with God? How doth the Lord expo&s;tulate with them, in the next words. <HI>Heare O hou&s;e of I&s;rael, is not my way equall? is not your way unequall.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; All the inequality is on your part, there is none on mine. The wayes of God, how hard and grievous &s;oever they may be (as they were towards <HI>Job</HI>) yet unequall or unrighteous they can never be. The u&s;uall dealings of God with us are full of mercy, &amp; his &s;evere&s;t dealings with us have no want of Ju&s;tice. <HI>How then can man be Ju&s;tified with God?</HI></P>
<Q>Or how then can he be clean that is borne of a woman?</Q>
<P>Here's another que&s;tion of the &s;ame tenour, and in the 15^t^h <HI>Chap: ver:</HI> 14^t^h, <HI>Eliphaz</HI> &s;pake almo&s;t in the &s;ame termes, <HI>What is man that he &s;hould be clean? and hee that is borne of a woman that hee &s;hould be righteous? Jobs</HI> friends beate often upon this poynt, vehemently &s;u&s;pecting that he did over-weene his owne condition, and thought too highly of him&s;elfe. Whereas <HI>Job</HI> did not onely freely and ingeniou&s;ly, but with a great deale of holy rhetorique and elegancy confe&s;&s;e again&s;t him&s;elfe againe and a|gaine, that hee neither was nor could be cleane before God; Onely hee would not admit their plea again&s;t him, that hee &s;uffe|red for his uncleanenes, or that hee was uncleane becau&s;e he &s;uf|fered.</P>
<PB N="705" REF="366">
<P>Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates thus; <HI>Or, The borne of woman locke to be cleared.</HI> We &s;ay; <HI>How can hee be cleane that is borne of a woman?</HI> that is, how can hee have a nature at all cleane, or be altogether cleane in his life, who commeth into the world through a world of uncleanenes? Can the &s;treame be cleane, when the foun|taine is uncleane? or the product be better then that which is pro|duced? Man borne of a woman by natural generation (&s;o <HI>Bildad</HI> is to be under&s;tood) comes from an uncleane fountaine, from an impure Original, and therefore, how can he be pure or cleane? What the particular Empha&s;is and importance of this phra&s;e <HI>(To be borne of a woman)</HI> is, hath been opened already (<HI>Chap:</HI> 14.1. <HI>Chap:</HI> 15.14.) and therefore I referre the reader to tho&s;e texts for a further Expo&s;ition. And &s;hall here onely give out this Ob&s;ervation.</P>
<Q>All men borne of a woman by natural generation are impure and uncleane.</Q>
<P>There was never but one man, the Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t, borne of a woman who was not uncleane, and he was borne of a woman, not in an ordinary, but miraculous way; <HI>The holy Gho&s;t &s;hall come up|on thee, and the power of the mo&s;t high &s;hall over&s;hadow thee</HI> (Luk. 1.35.) All el&s;e borne of a woman have been and are uncleane. It is &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 5.3.) <HI>Adam lived an hundred and thirty yeares, and begat a Son in his owne likenes, after his Image, and called his name Seth. Adam begat a &s;on in his owne likenes;</HI> what likenes? it is not meant of his outward likenes, of the figure or feature of his body, that was the lea&s;t part of the likenes there intended, in which his &s;on was borne; every father begets a &s;on in a humane &s;hape; and we &s;ay the child is like his father, not onely as having the &s;ame &s;pecifical nature, but as having the per&s;onal figure and proporti|ons of his father. But when it is &s;ayd, <HI>Adam begat a &s;on in his owne likenes, in his Image,</HI> the meaning is, he begat a &s;on that was a &s;inner as him&s;elfe was, and corrupt as him&s;elfe was, even <HI>Seth,</HI> who was given in the place of <HI>Abel.</HI> God in the creation made man in his image after his likenes; Man by procreation begets a &s;on, not in Gods image, but in his owne; And that not onely like him in con&s;titution as a man, but in corruption as a &s;inner. <HI>David</HI> confe&s;&s;eth of him&s;elfe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 51.5.) <HI>Behold I was &s;hapen in Ini|quity, and in &s;in did my mother conceive mee.</HI> Some to avoyd the
<PB N="706" REF="367"> &s;trength and dint of that text, as to the proofe of the corruption of nature by propagation, put a mo&s;t corrupt and ba&s;e glo&s;&s;e up|on it; As if <HI>David</HI> had therein onely confe&s;&s;ed his parents &s;in|fullnes or inordinate affections in begetting and conceaving him; not his owne natural &s;infulnes as begotten and conceaved. I know no better argument of the corruption of nature, then &s;uch cor|rupt interpretations of Scripture; For doubtle&s;&s;e as <HI>Bildad</HI> here in the Text, &s;o <HI>David</HI> was acquainted not onely with the doctrine of original &s;in, and the corruption of nature, but had found and felt the &s;ad effects of it in him&s;elfe, And from that experience could &s;ay, <HI>I was &s;hapen in iniquity,</HI> &amp;c. as al&s;o con&s;ent to what <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;aith in this place, <HI>What is man that is borne of a woman that hee &s;hould be clean?</HI> doe but acknowledge that any one is borne ordinarily of a woman, and wee may conclude him to be &s;infull and uncleane. That I may make this a litle clearer, I &s;hall touch at three things, which are di&s;tinctly con&s;iderable in the &s;in of <HI>Adam.</HI></P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That particular act, or fact again&s;t the Law, which he committed in eating the forbidden fruit.</P>
<P>Secondly, The legal guilt that flowed from that act, both up|on his per&s;on and upon his po&s;terity.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The naturall Corruption which as a con&s;equent of the former &s;tayned all mankinde. Or there was fir&s;t the tran&s;gre&s;|&s;ion of the Commandement, which was his eating the forbidden fruit; Secondly, there was the puni&s;hment of that tran&s;gre&s;&s;ion, which was death inflicted for eating; thirdly, the depravation of the whole ma&s;&s;e of mans nature, by which, as <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;peaks, <HI>Every man borne of a woman is uncleane.</HI> And the&s;e three fell upon the whole po&s;terity of <HI>Adam,</HI> or upon all that are borne of a woman in a threefold way.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The very act of <HI>Adams</HI> &s;in becometh ours, for wee did participate with him, and had, as it were, a hand in it, becau&s;e wee all were &s;eminally in him; &s;o that when he &s;inned, wee all &s;inned being in his loynes long before we were borne, as <HI>Levi</HI> paid tythes in <HI>Abraham</HI> before hee was borne (<HI>Heb.</HI> 7.9.10.) Thus wee all &s;inned in his &s;inning, and had a &s;hare in that act of his, becau&s;e hee &s;tood as the roote of mankinde, and as having entred a covenant with God in that capacity. For he &s;inned, not onely as a &s;ingle per&s;on, but as hee was the repre&s;entative of all mankinde, and
<PB N="707" REF="367"> therefore what hee did we are reckoned as doing the &s;ame with him.</P>
<P>Secondly, The guilt of that &s;in is ours by particular Imputati|on, as the fact is ours by common participation; for as if <HI>Adam</HI> had &s;tood in a &s;tate of Innocency, that had redounded to us for good, &s;o his fall or &s;in redoundeth to us for evill.</P>
<P>Thirdly, There is the pravity or corruption of nature, i&s;&s;uing from that fir&s;t &s;in, and that is chiefly aymed at in the pre&s;ent text. And this is derived to us by propagation. The defilement of na|ture de&s;cendeth and pa&s;&s;eth from generation to generation: there|fore, <HI>how can hee that is borne of a woman be clean?</HI> and that defile|ment hath two things in it.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The lo&s;&s;e of original purity, or the defaceing and blot|ting out of the image of God in which man was created.</P>
<P>Secondly, A &s;ucce&s;&s;ion of horrible deformity and di&s;order, which con&s;i&s;teth, fir&s;t, in a pronenes to all evill; &s;econdly, in an impotency and weakenes, yea in an aver&s;enes from and enmity a|gain&s;t all that is good. So then, we have to doe with the very act of <HI>Adams</HI> &s;in by participation, with the guilt of it by imputation, and with the filth and deformity of it by propagation: From all which it may wel be que&s;tioned, <HI>How can hee be cleane that is borne of a woman,</HI> and concluded, <HI>Every man borne of a woman is un|cleane.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="5" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 5.</HI></BIBL> Behold, even to the Moone and it &s;hineth not, and the Starres are not pure in his &s;ight.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In this ver&s;e <HI>Bildad</HI> proceedeth to argue downe the pre&s;umpti|on (as hee conceived) of <HI>Job,</HI> by calling him to con&s;ider tho&s;e things which are farre below God, and yet were farre above him; as if he had &s;aid; <HI>Wilt thou contend with God, when thou can&s;t not contend with the Moone and Starres? they have a brightnes beyond any thing of thine, why then doe&s;t thou in&s;i&s;t &s;o &s;tiffely upon the &s;hin|ings of thy conver&s;ation towards men, and the brightnes of thine in|tegrity towards God?</HI></P>
<Q>Behold, even to the Moone and it &s;hineth not.</Q>
<P>There is a twofold under&s;tanding of the&s;e words; fir&s;t, &s;ome expound them by de&s;cending; as if <HI>Bildad</HI> had &s;poken thus; <HI>Be|hold
<PB N="708" REF="368"> O Job, and be both a&s;hamed of and a&s;toni&s;hed at thy owne folly, in venturing upon a tryal before God, who is of &s;uch infinite purity, that while he looketh upon all the&s;e heavenly lights that are above the Moone, even to or as low as the Moone, which (as A&s;tronomers teach) is the lowe&s;t of all the planets, it &s;hineth not, there is no brightnes, no beauty in any of them; They are all in compari&s;on of God but clouds and darkenes, but clods of earth and dirt. And if they &s;hine not in the eye of God, &s;urely much le&s;&s;e doe&s;t thou, who art a worme, and but a clod of moving or breathing earth?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Others expound it by a&s;cending. As if <HI>Bildad</HI> had &s;poken thus; <HI>Behold, O Job, and tremble at thy pre&s;umption in de|&s;iring that God &s;hould take &s;o exact a &s;crutiny of thee &amp; of thy cau&s;e; for look upon all the parts of the inferiour vi&s;ible world, look upon all their glories and excellencies, and look not only upon tho&s;e things that are creeping here upon the Earth, but lift up thine eyes as high as the Moone it &s;elfe, Behold even to the Moone (which is, as it were the boundary between the upper and the lower world; The Moone being the lowe&s;t of the upper world, and the highe&s;t of the lower world, now &s;aith</HI> Bildad, <HI>&s;urveigh the world up to the Moone) and it &s;hineth not.</HI></P>
<P>But doth not <HI>the Moone &s;hine?</HI> yes! the Moone &s;hineth, the Moone is <HI>that le&s;&s;er light which was made to rule the night</HI> (Gen. 1.16.) Why then doth hee &s;ay <HI>it &s;hineth not?</HI> the meaning is onely this, that Moone-light, and Sun-light, that all creature-light is no light, nor their &s;hining to be called &s;hining, when we &s;peake of the light and &s;hinings of God him&s;elfe. The Moone &s;hineth for the u&s;e and to the eye of man, but the Moone &s;hineth not for any u&s;e to or in the eye of God. As becau&s;e he is light, he needeth no light, &s;o becau&s;e there was no light till he created it, the light of the creature is nothing unto him.</P>
<P>The Moone and Starres &s;hine, but when the Sunne is up they &s;hine not, that is, not to our view; the Starres &s;hine as much in the day as in the night, though wee cannot &s;ee them being over-pow|red by that greater light, the light of the Sunne; So when the glo|ry of the Lord appeareth, both Sunne and Moone di&s;appeare, and are no moore &s;eene.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ne luna quidem lucida e&s;t colla|ta eum deo. <HI>Vatabl.</HI></NOTE> The light of the world is no light where God is named; doe but &s;peake of God, and all the beauty and bright|ne&s;&s;e of the creature fades and is extinct. The Moone is a very beautifull creature con&s;idered by it &s;elfe, as <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes to &s;hew
<PB N="709" REF="368"> how farre he was from idolizing it, notwith&s;tanding all that beau|ty wherein it appeared to him (<HI>Chap.</HI> 31.26.) <HI>If I beheld the Sunne when it &s;hined, or the Moone walking in brightne&s;&s;e?</HI> that is, if I beheld eyther Sunne or Moone &s;o as to adore and wor&s;hip them; if I reckoned any thing of Moone and Sunne, in compari&s;on of God, if I did not judge the light of both as darknes and ob&s;cu|rity in reference to him, if I did not behold them &s;o as if I did not behold them, not being taken up or dazzl'd at all with their &s;hin|ing brightnes, &s;car&s;e at all &s;eeing, not at all admiring any brightnes, but the brightnes of God, if it were not thus with me, if I &s;tood not at this di&s;tance, and upon the&s;e termes with the be&s;t of the creatures, then, &amp;c. It argues that there is much natural beauty in the Moone, when as <HI>Job</HI> to &s;hew his &s;pirituall cha&s;tity &s;aith that the beauty of it, did not at all withdraw or &s;teale away his heart from God. Indeed &s;uch is the beauty of the Moone that it is u&s;ed to &s;hadow out the Church in her &s;pirituall beauty (<HI>Cant.</HI> 6.10.) <HI>Who is &s;hee that looketh forth as the morning, faire as the Moone;</HI> The Moone is fayre, yet &s;he hath her &s;pots; But God is fayre without any &s;pot, and therefore the fayrenes of the Moone is no fayrenes at all to his.</P>
<P>There is another reading of the words (<HI>Behold even to the Moon, and it doth not extend its tents,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Et non expandit lumen &s;uum in modum Ten<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> Complut:</NOTE> <HI>or doth not extend its light like a tent;</HI> for when the light is &s;pread fir&s;t out, it is like the &s;preading of a tent upon the mountaines. To which the Pro|phet <HI>Joel</HI> &s;eemeth to allude (<HI>Chap.</HI> 2.2.) in that phra&s;e; <HI>As the morning &s;pread upon the mountaines. Behold to the Moone, and it doth not &s;pread out its light, nor extend its tents;</HI> Our tran&s;lation reacheth the &s;ence fully; <HI>It &s;hineth not;</HI>
<Q>Yea the Starres are not pure in his &s;ight.</Q></P>
<P>The Starres are &s;uppo&s;ed higher and greater then the Moone; The Starres are pure and &s;plendid bodies, as hath been &s;hewed from other places of this booke. So that, when <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;aith, <HI>The Starres are not pure,</HI> it is not an ab&s;olute denyall of their purity, but as him&s;elfe expounds it, they are not pure in the &s;ight of God. The Starres have neyther tho&s;e &s;pots, nor tho&s;e changes which the Moone hath, they are a more cleare and a more certaine light, yet <HI>Even the Starres are not pure in his &s;ight,</HI> and wee may reckon the Sunne among the Starres too, though &s;ometimes they are &s;poken
<PB N="710" REF="369"> of di&s;tinctly, <HI>Sunne, Moone, and Starres.</HI> Thus <HI>Bildad</HI> pleads the excellency of God above the mo&s;t excellent creatures, how much more above man, who is now ca&s;t much behind many of the crea|tures, through the corruption of his nature, and is not di&s;paraged by being compared to the meane&s;t of them. <HI>Behold, even to the Moone and it &s;hineth not, and the Starres are not pure in his &s;ight.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The glory or beauty of the mo&s;t glorious and beautifull Creatures is no glory, no beauty compared with the glory and beauty of God.</Q>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> in&s;tancing in the mo&s;t beautifull Creatures, takes in the beauty of all the creatures; all which is but a ray, a beame of his infinite light, but a drop of his infinite Ocean; their glory is but an effect of his, and though the meane&s;t of them are perfect in their &s;tate, yet the be&s;t of them are not perfect in degree. It was &s;ayd anciently; <HI>Looke upon the heavens they are beautifull, looke upon the earth that al&s;o is beautifull, but he that made heaven and earth is infinitely more beautifull then eyther of them both, or then both of them.</HI></P>
<P>When God had fini&s;hed the worke of Creation, it is &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.31.) <HI>And God &s;aw all that he had made, and behold it was very good.</HI> How then is it &s;ayd here, that <HI>the Moone &s;hineth not, and that the Starres are not pure in his &s;igh?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, Fir&s;t as before, all things which God made were good as creatures, but nothing was as good as the Creator.</P>
<P>Secondly, I an&s;wer, the creature is not now &s;o good as it was when fir&s;t created, the &s;in of man did not onely pollute and &s;taine the glory of man, but of the whole creation; and therefore the Apo&s;tle &s;ayth (<HI>Rom.</HI> 8.20, 21, 22.) <HI>That the creature was made &s;ubject to vanity, not willingly but by rea&s;on of him who hath &s;ub|jected the &s;ame in hope, becau&s;e the creature it &s;elfe al&s;o &s;hall be deli|vered from the bondage of corruption, into the glorious liberty of the children of God, for we know that the whole creation groaneth and travelleth in paine together untill now.</HI> From this illu&s;trious con|text it appeares that God for mans &s;in hath put the whole creati|on to di&s;grace and &s;uffering, and that all creatures are fallen from their fir&s;t perfection by the fall of the fir&s;t man; The very lights of heaven are made darke, and the Starres impure, by mans impu|rity.
<PB N="711" REF="369"> Now if by the &s;in of man, tho&s;e creatures who in them&s;elves are &s;inle&s;&s;e, even the Moone and Starres, have contracted defile|ment, and are not without blemi&s;h in the &s;ight of God; then how much le&s;&s;e is man (by whom they have taken this infection) free from blemi&s;h or infection him&s;elfe, as <HI>Bildad</HI> inferres in the next words and clo&s;e of the Chapter.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="6" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 6.</HI></BIBL> How much le&s;&s;e man that is a worme, and the &s;on of man which is a worme.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>If the Sunne Moone and Starres are not pure in his &s;ight, how much le&s;&s;e is man pure?</HI> Nor is <HI>Bildad</HI> content to &s;ay how much le&s;s is man? but he giveth a very deba&s;ing compa|ri&s;on of man.</P>
<Q>How much le&s;&s;e is man that is a worme,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Cum precedit &s;ententia nega|tiva particulae. illae. <GAP DESC="foreign"> com|mod&egrave; redduntur quanto minus. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE> and the &s;on of man which is a worme.</Q>
<P><HI>How much le&s;&s;e]</HI> We may &s;ay al&s;o, how much more is man im|pure in his &s;ight; So, the original words are often rendred; as the reader may &s;ee in tho&s;e places (<HI>Prov.</HI> 11.31. <HI>Prov.</HI> 15.11.)</P>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> layeth man as low as he can, &s;hewing that he is &s;o farre below the Starres that hee is as low as a worme; and if the Starres be impure in the &s;ight of God, how much more is man a worme? What's a worme? what a darke, dull thing is a worme to a Starre? yet that is not &s;o dull a thing to a Starre, as a Starre is to God, therefore if the <HI>Starres be not pure in his &s;ight, how much le&s;&s;e man that is a worme?</HI></P>
<P>A worme is one of the meane&s;t Creatures, and the word that is here u&s;ed &s;ignifieth the meane&s;t of wormes;<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> vermis parvus in carne aut ca&s;eo na&s;|cens.</NOTE> properly and &s;trictly tho&s;e little wormes which breed in fle&s;h, or Chee&s;e, or in any o|ther kinde of food when it is corrupted. The word is u&s;ed (<HI>Exod.</HI> 16.24.) where it is &s;aid of the <HI>Manna</HI> that was re&s;erved contra|ry to the command of God, That <HI>it bred wormes;</HI> &s;uch a worme is man; and <HI>Bildad</HI> is not content to &s;ay this once, but he &s;aith it againe.</P>
<Q>And the &s;on of man which is a worme.</Q>
<P>Here is the &s;ame thing doubled; And 'tis doubled by <HI>Bildad</HI> to
<PB N="712" REF="370"> a&s;&s;ure us of the truth and certainty of of it; as if he had &s;aid, <HI>I am not afraid to averr what I have &s;poken, I have &s;aid it, and I &s;ay it againe, how much le&s;&s;e man, who is a worme, and the &s;on of man which is a worme.</HI></P>
<P><HI>The &s;on of man;</HI> that is, any man, high or low, rich or poore, learned or unlearned, they who are at greate&s;t di&s;tance in them|&s;elves meete all in this, They are wormes. To be called the &s;on of man, imports the meanenes of man, and minds man of his weaknes and frailty. <HI>Ezekiel</HI> the Prophet is often &s;poken to by the Lord in this &s;tile, <HI>Son of man;</HI> the rea&s;on given by &s;ome is this, becau&s;e hee was a man often rapt up in the vi&s;ions of God, or had the vi|&s;ions of God &s;ent downe to him, hee was a man that lived &s;o much in heaven, that hee might even forget that hee was of the earth, therefore the Lord mindes him often of his Original, by calling him, <HI>Son of man, Son of man;</HI> &s;o here, <HI>Bildad</HI> mindeth man of the meanenes of his birth, he is but <HI>the &s;on of man.</HI> Some proud men have drawne their pedigree from the Gods, or from the Starres. <HI>Alexander the Great</HI> would be called the &s;on of <HI>Jupiter,</HI> which was to &s;ay the &s;on of the Sunne, hee did not like to be called the &s;on of man, though as he was &s;o, &s;o he was &s;oone after convinced and confe&s;&s;ed that he was &s;o.</P>
<Q>And the &s;on of man which is a worme.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ver|mis magnus &amp; parvus. qui ab omnibus teritur &amp; contunditur.</NOTE>Wee expre&s;&s;e this latter branch by the &s;ame word <HI>worme</HI> in our Engli&s;h, but the Hebrew &s;peakes it in a different word; and Ma|&s;ter <HI>Broughtn</HI> renders it differently in the Engli&s;h, <HI>and the &s;on of man a vermin.</HI> The word &s;ignifieth both &s;mall and great wormes, all &s;orts of wormes or vermine; here's the &s;tate of man; and how can hee who is &s;uch a worme &s;tand before God, in his purity, when the Sunne Moone and Starres are impure before him?</P>
<P>Againe, wee may take notice that <HI>Bildad</HI> doth not &s;ay, man is like a worme, but <HI>is a worme.</HI> 'Tis not &s;poken by way of &s;imili|tude, but of a&s;&s;ertion.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>Man is a very poore thing.</Q>
<P>So poore a thing that hee is twice in this Text called a worme; the lowe&s;t things &s;erve for a Compari&s;on and beare the likenes of the highe&s;t and greate&s;t men in the world; man is but a worme,
<PB N="713" REF="370"> and the &s;on of man, is no better, a worme or vermin. As it &s;hew|eth the excellency of God, that nothing is &s;o good, &s;o great, &s;o perfect, that is worthy to be compared with him (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 40.18.) <HI>To whom will yee liken God? or what likenes will yee compare unto him?</HI> Looke over all the Excellencyes that are in the Creature, is there any thing that lookes like God? that hath any excellency or beauty comparatively to him? And againe (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 46.5.) <HI>To whom will yee liken mee, and make mee equall, and compare mee, that wee may be like?</HI> that is, there is nothing that you can com|pare or make mee like unto, I am above all compari&s;on &mdash; Now (I &s;ay) as it &s;hewes the excellency of God, that there is no|thing worthy to be compared to him, &s;o it &s;hewes the meanenes of man, that there is nothing &s;o unworthy but that he may be compared to it, and that without wrong or di&s;paragement. The Scripture doth as it were &s;trive for Compari&s;ons, to &s;et forth the weaknes, the poorenes, the worthle&s;nes of man; hee is compared to, yea called du&s;t (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.19.) <HI>Du&s;t thou art, and to du&s;t thou &s;halt returne.</HI> Hee is compared to the gra&s;&s;e of the feild that groweth to day, but withereth or is cut downe to morrow (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 40.6) Hee is compar'd unto a &s;hadow that hath nothing of En|tity or &s;ub&s;tance, and therefore continueth not but vani&s;heth a|way (<HI>Job</HI> 14.2.) Hee is compar'd to that which is le&s;&s;e then a &s;hadow, even to that which is, as I may &s;ay, <HI>the nothingnes of all things, vanity;</HI> and thus hee is called when at his be&s;t or in his be&s;t e&s;tate (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 39.5.) Further, man is not onely nothing and le&s;&s;e then nothing, but that which is wor&s;e then nothing <HI>a ly,</HI> hee is naturally under &s;uch di&s;grace, that he is the very <HI>word of di&s;|grace, a ly. Surely</HI> (&s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 62.9.) <HI>men of low degree are vanity, and men of high degree are a ly.</HI> Nor doth the Lord &s;peake thus of &s;ingle per&s;ons onely, but of Nations, and not onely of this or that Nation, but of all Nations; take mankind in a clu&s;ter, or as bundled up together; not onely is this or that man, this or that Nation, but all men and all Nations <HI>before him are as nothing, and are counted to him le&s;&s;e then nothing and vanity</HI> (I&s;a. 40.17.) They are not onely du&s;t, but (which is the lighte&s;t and mo&s;t in|con&s;iderable du&s;t) <HI>the du&s;t of the ballance,</HI> and that the &s;malle&s;t du&s;t of the ballance (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 40.15.) they are not onely a drop, but <HI>the drop of a bucket,</HI> which is but the drop of a drop. The &s;imili|tude in the Text layeth man low enough, <HI>He is a worme.</HI> When
<PB N="714" REF="371"> the Lord would &s;peake of his people at the lowe&s;t rate in refe|rence to the opinion which they had of them&s;elves, or which o|thers had of them, hee calls them <HI>a worme,</HI> (I&s;a. 41.14.) <HI>Feare not thou worme Jacob, and yee men of I&s;rael:</HI> God doth not &s;peake this to the di&s;paragement, or to the di&s;couragement of <HI>Jacob,</HI> but to the comfort of <HI>Jacob;</HI> As if he had &s;aid, though thou art a worm, though thou art thus low, thus mean, humbly in thy own thoughts, contemptuou&s;ly in the thoughts of others, yet feare not, yea all &s;hall have cau&s;e to be afraid of thee, for though thou art a worme, yet thou <HI>&s;halt thre&s;h the nations and beate them &s;mall</HI> &amp;c. As National <HI>Jacob</HI> then, &s;o per&s;onal <HI>Jacob,</HI> or <HI>Jacob</HI> in per&s;on be|fore was but a worme in his owne eyes. (<HI>Gen.</HI> 32.10.) <HI>I am not worthy of the lea&s;t of all the mercies (or I am le&s;&s;e then all the mer|cies) and of all the truth which thou ha&s;t &s;hewed unto thy &s;ervant, for with my &s;taffe I pa&s;&s;ed over this Jordan;</HI> that is, I came over in a very poore manner, all my &s;tate was but a &s;taffe. Here <HI>Jacob</HI> in per&s;on &s;pake of him&s;elfe as a worme; <HI>and when wee &s;peake thus like wormes, wee &s;peake mo&s;t like Saints.</HI> Our Lord Je&s;us Chri&s;t &s;pake thus of him&s;elfe, as for our &s;akes he became poore and emptyed him&s;elfe, as for our &s;akes <HI>he tooke upon him the forme of a &s;ervant, and was made in the likenes of man.</HI> (P&s;al. 22.6.) <HI>I am a worme and no man, a reproach of men, and de&s;pi&s;ed of the people.</HI> O how low did Chri&s;t e&s;teeme and &s;et him&s;elfe, as, and while he &s;tood in the place of &s;inners? He not onely confe&s;&s;ed that he was a worme, becau&s;e a man, but that he was a worme and no man. How then ought every &s;infull man to aba&s;e him&s;elfe and &s;ay, <HI>I am a worme and no man.</HI> Man is a worme in a five-fold re&s;pect.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Looke upon his original and con&s;titution, hee is from the earth as the worme is.</P>
<P>Secondly, Looke upon him in his natural &s;tate and condition, hee liveth upon the earth and earthly things, as wormes doe.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Hee is a worme, becau&s;e continually &s;ubject to dan|ger, every foot may cru&s;h him.</P>
<P>Fourthly, As the worme is very &s;ubject to danger, &s;o likewi&s;e unable to re&s;i&s;t, or make defence; the worme is a naked creature, and weares no armes, neyther offen&s;ive nor defen&s;ive. Such a one is man, a worme, unable to defend him&s;elfe, unle&s;&s;e the Lord be his &s;hield and a defence to him round about.</P>
<P>Fifthly, Man is a worme, for hee mu&s;t &s;hortly returne into the
<PB N="715" REF="371"> Earth where the wormes are hou&s;ed; hee is going to wormes, as a worme, and when he comes to the grave it will be worme to worme. As the Lord &s;ayd, <HI>Du&s;t thou art and to du&s;t thou &s;halt re|turne;</HI> &s;o wee may &s;ay, a worme thou art, and to wormes thou &s;halt returne. Thus wee &s;ee man is a poore thing, a very poore thing, and hence I &s;hall make foure or five briefe inferences.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Let no man be proud, or have high thoughts of him|&s;elfe; the &s;on of man is but a worme; O why doth man &s;wel above the clouds, or proudly make his ne&s;t among the Starres, when as he mu&s;t &s;hortly fall among the clods, and as he is a worme, &s;o be ea|ten up of wormes.</P>
<P>Secondly, Let men take heed of adorning one another with great words and flattering titles, let us take heed of having the per&s;ons of men in admiration; it is as vaine a thing, for any man to give great flattering titles to others, as it is to have high thoughts of him&s;elfe. The titles which the Spirit of God gives to man, are humbling titles, a flower, a &s;hadow, &amp;c. any thing which may keep downe his &s;pirit and abate <HI>&s;elfe</HI>-valuations; we &s;hould learne as to thinke of our &s;elves, &s;o to &s;peake of other men as the Holy Gho&s;t &s;peaketh. As he doth not paint man out with prai&s;es, nor &s;peake of him as Courtiers (who&s;e hearts are the &s;hops of com|plements, and their tongues the venters of them) doe of Princes. So neyther &s;hould we: There are two extreames which wee &s;hould labour exceedingly to avoyd in our references to men; and yet mo&s;t men walke in one of the&s;e extreames towards men. Fir&s;t, we &s;hould take heed or reproaching, vilifying, and de&s;pi&s;ing others; for though it be a duty for every man to thinke meanely of him|&s;elfe, and to &s;ay of him&s;elfe, I am a worme; and though wee may lawfully thinke and &s;ay &s;o of all men, as to the general truth of the propo&s;ition, yet it is &s;o farre from being a duty, that it is not at all lawfull to call any man worme, with reproach and contempt of the meanenes of his per&s;on. Secondly, we &s;hould take heed of flat|tering and daubing others, as tho&s;e <HI>Tyrians</HI> did <HI>Herod, crying out it is the voyce of God and not of man</HI> (Acts 12.22.) whereas God to &s;hew their mi&s;take, and that he was indeed but a worme, &s;mote him, and he was eaten up of wormes. <HI>Elihu</HI> concludes and re&s;olves excellently to this poynt (<HI>Job</HI> 32.21, 22.) <HI>Let me not, I pray you, accept any mans per&s;on, neyther let me give flattering titles unto man, for I know not to give flattering titles, in &s;o doing my maker
<PB N="716" REF="372"> would &s;oone take me away.</HI> As God tooke away <HI>Herod</HI> for recea|ving flattering titles, &s;o they who give them are in danger to be taken away by God.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Be not Envious at others; what if another have a lit|tle more glory, riches, beauty, &s;trength, power, then thou ha&s;t, what though he have a little more knowledge, and be a little high|er in gifts then others, yet hee is but a worme &s;till; what's man but a worme, and what's the &s;on of man, (the be&s;t of men) but a worme? why &s;hould a worme Envy a worme, what though &s;ome men are <HI>&s;ilke wormes,</HI> a little better furni&s;hed and richer then o|thers in mind and body, yet they are but wormes in &s;ilke, and ma|ny who appeare &s;o, are but <HI>Glow-wormes,</HI> which &s;hine a little but have no con&s;i&s;tence.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Let the &s;ons of men take heed of vexing one ano|ther; why &s;hould wormes ri&s;e up again&s;t wormes, why &s;hould wormes de&s;troy wormes cruelly, bloodily? Wee are all weake as wormes, let us therefore engage that little &s;trength wee have, for the &s;upporting, not for the ruining of one another. Wee u&s;ually have &s;o much tendernes towards wormes in kinde, that when wee &s;ee them crawling upo~ the ground, we avoyd treading upon them; yet how doe men purpo&s;ely tread upon wormes in likenes. All men are wormes in likenes, we &s;hould not willingly tread upon or hurt any man. But poore men, and men of low degree, are more wormes then rich men, and men in high places are, therefore take heed of oppre&s;&s;ing the poore, for that is indeed, a treading upon wormes. And though while you tread upon wormes the weake and needy, they cannot (as Chri&s;t &s;peakes of &s;wine, <HI>Math.</HI> 7.6.) <HI>turne againe and rent you,</HI> yet if you doe &s;o, God, the &s;trong God will turne upon you and teare you while there is none to deliver.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Take this inference from it.</P>
<Q>Man by &s;in is much degraded and fallen below him&s;elfe.</Q>
<P>Man by &s;in is become inferiour to the meane&s;t creatures, who was once above all vi&s;ible creatures: man in the &s;tate of Creation was the chiefe piece of the vi&s;ible world, hee was next to the An|gels, who are of the Invi&s;ible world, but now man is fallen very low, he is levell'd with the lowe&s;t of the Creatures, a worme; not onely doe the heavenly bodyes exceed him in beauty, but even the earthly bodyes, the bea&s;ts of the field, and the worme that crawles
<PB N="717" REF="372"> upon the earth, and lives in the bowels of it, is good enough to make compari&s;on with him. See what man hath lo&s;t by &s;in! &s;ee how hee is degraded and fallen from his &s;tate and &s;tatelynes! yea I may &s;ay that man by &s;in is not onely fallen from that &s;tate and &s;tatelynes wherein he was created, but he is fallen below the &s;tate of the lowe&s;t creature. Man (by &s;in) is not onely a worme but wor&s;e then a worme; A worme is not capable of morall polution; a toad hath naturall poy&s;on, but man hath morall poy&s;on in him, which is wor&s;e then naturall poy&s;on; and which makes the condi|tion of man yet more vile, his moral poy&s;on (&s;in I meane) is to him naturall. It is his mi&s;ery and his di&s;honour that he hath it, and it is his greater mi&s;ery and di&s;honour, that he loves it, and that it is not &s;o much his di&s;ea&s;e as his de&s;ire: and as the fir&s;t &s;in, the &s;in of nature hath deba&s;ed all mankinde at once; &s;o every man that goeth on in and multiplyeth (with de&s;ire) the acts of &s;in, deba&s;eth him&s;elfe yet more, and maketh him&s;elfe not onely lower then the worme, which is the lowe&s;t of living things, but even low|er then the lowe&s;t things that have no life. Sencele&s;&s;e livele&s;&s;e crea|tures are better then &s;infull men, &s;uch I meane as live in &s;in, and better it had been for any never to have had a being, or not to have lived at all, then to dye in &s;in.</P>
<P>Seeing then &s;in hath degraded us, and placed us among and be|low the wormes, who were once next to Angels, how are we en|gaged to Je&s;us Chri&s;t, who by becoming a worme for us, hath rai|&s;ed us to be heyres of ble&s;&s;edne&s;s with the holy Angels for ever, and hath lifted us up to that hight of honour, that even the holy Angels mini&s;ter to us as long as we are here. And how &s;hould we &s;trive to rai&s;e our &s;elves up higher and higher in the Improvement of all that grace which is freely offered to us in Chri&s;t, even to our dayly <HI>conver&s;ation in heaven, and our &s;itting together in heavenly places in Chri&s;t Je&s;us,</HI> as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Eph.</HI> 2.16.) It is &s;ad for any man who is but a worme, to be lifted up in him&s;elfe, but it is the duty of every man to &s;trive that he may be lifted up, not onely above the wormes, but above the heavens. Wee may quickly &s;in in &s;eeking our owne exaltation in a worldly, But the more we &s;eeke our exaltation in a heavenly &s;tate, the more holy, yea the more humble we are. Wee never act as tho&s;e who know they are but wormes here on earth, till we have an ambition to be like the Angels who are in heaven.</P>
<PB N="718" REF="373">
<P>Thus I have opened and done with this third, and that a very &s;hort di&s;cour&s;e of <HI>Bildad</HI> in this Chapter, wherein he hath &s;poken Excellently as to the generall truth, in exalting God and humbling man, yet he is upon the old mi&s;take, Concluding <HI>Job a &s;elfe-Ju&s;ti|fier, yea a contender with God;</HI> Whereas indeed his thoughts were as low as his &s;tate or per&s;on, in reference to any conceit of righte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e in him&s;elfe, or of any boldnes in charging God with the lea&s;t unrighteou&s;ne&s;&s;e (though there was much &s;everity) in his dealings with him.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="719" REF="373">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 26. Ver&s;. 1, 2, 3, 4.</HI></BIBL>
<P>But Job an&s;wered, and &s;aid,</P>
<P>How ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power? how &s;a|ve&s;t thou the arm that hath no &s;trength?</P>
<P>How hast thou coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dome? and how ha&s;t thou plentifully declared the thing as it is?</P>
<P>To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words? and who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>_THis Chapter containeth <HI>Jobs</HI> an&s;wer to the third and la&s;t di&s;pute or oppo&s;ition of his &s;e|cond freind <HI>Bildad;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non re&s;pondit ad Bildadi dic|ta, &s;ed eum ri|det qua&s;i ea at|tulerit quae pa|rum ad rem fa|ciant, imo ab in&s;tituto aliena. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> wherein he doth two things.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, He complaineth of and in a manner de|rideth <HI>Bildads</HI> dealing with him, as if what he had urged were not onely little to the purpo&s;e, but very wide from it. This he doth in the foure fir&s;t ver&s;es of the Chapter.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Job</HI> gives out a large narrative of the power, per|fections, and excellencies of God, of his wonderfull works, and providences, which <HI>Bildad</HI> had but lightly touched; this he doth in the remaining part of the Chapter.</P>
<DIV3 N="1,2" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 1, 2.</HI></BIBL> But Job an&s;wered, and &s;aid, How ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There is a que&s;tion among Interpreters, who is here meant,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> admiran|tis e&s;t, &amp; haec dicit, <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;ive <GAP DESC="foreign">. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> by him, <HI>that is without power;</HI> and who by <HI>the arme that hath no &s;trength;</HI> who <HI>by him that hath no wi&s;edome.</HI> There are three opinions about the re&s;olving of this que&s;tion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some expound it not of a per&s;on, but of a thing, for the
<PB N="720" REF="374"> original leaves it in &s;uch words as may be determined upon eyther,<NOTE PLACE="marg">In qua re adju|vi&s;ti &s;ententiam tuam de provi|dentia dei par|ticulari, in qua nullae &s;unt vi|ris. Quare ex Hebraeo legit, non cujus &s;ed quid adjuvi&s;ti. <HI>Vatabl:</HI></NOTE> and may as wel be rendred, <HI>that, which hath no power, as, him that hath no power.</HI> And the thing without power, which this inter|pretation aymes at, is the opinion or tenet which <HI>Bildad,</HI> and his friends had held forth in their di&s;cour&s;e: which <HI>Job</HI> is conceived to looke upon, as weake, and without power, as having neyther &s;trength nor wi&s;dome in it. And becau&s;e <HI>Bildad</HI> made the la&s;t re|ply, <HI>Job</HI> (according to this expo&s;ition) be&s;peaks him thus; <HI>Thine owne former arguments, as al&s;o tho&s;e of thy friends, had no power, no &s;trength of rea&s;on, nor true wi&s;dome in them, and ha&s;t thou mend|ed the matter now, ha&s;t thou by what thou &s;pake&s;t la&s;t put any &s;trength into what hath been weakly and feebly argued already? As for my &s;elfe I am neyther better enformed nor comforted, then I was, and therefore have rea&s;on to conclude, that there is no more &s;trength nor power in what is now &s;ayd, then in what was &s;ayd before.</HI> It is u&s;uall to apply &s;trength to a &s;peech, we &s;ay &s;uch a man made a &s;trong &s;peech, as for &s;uch a one, his &s;peech had no &s;trength no &s;i|newes in it. And that &s;peech which hath no &s;trength in it, can ne|ver admini&s;ter &s;trength to tho&s;e to whom it is &s;poken; &s;o that to &s;ay, <HI>how ha&s;t thou helped him that hath no power;</HI> is to &s;ay, the &s;peech by which thou ha&s;t attempted or endeavoured to helpe him that hath no power. Yet I conceave that <HI>Job</HI> doth here in|tend a per&s;on, whom his freinds &s;uppo&s;ed without power, &s;trength, or wi&s;dome,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hoc de deo ac|cipio O quam egreg<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e eum adjuvi&s;ti qui imbecillis erat, &amp; invalido es patrocinatus. Qua&s;i tua de|fen&s;ione deus indigerit. <HI>Merc:</HI> Cujus adju<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">or es num in becil|lis &amp; &s;u&s;tentas brachium ejus qui non e&s;t for|tis. <HI>Vulg:</HI> Cui Auxiliatus es, cui non po|tentia? <HI>Mont:</HI></NOTE> rather then his freinds &s;peech, which him&s;elfe judged and (as his owne releife) found to be &s;o.</P>
<P>Secondly, By <HI>him that hath no power, and the arme that hath no &s;trength;</HI> &s;ome under&s;tand <HI>God him&s;elfe;</HI> who is indeed all pow|er, all arme, who is altogether &s;trong and onely wi&s;e. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, <HI>O Bildad, thou ha&s;t &s;tood up in the defence of God, as if he had not been able to defend him&s;elfe, thou ha&s;t been an Advocate for him, who hath no need thou &s;houlde&s;t. Hath not he power? hath his arme no &s;trength in it? or is he de&s;titute of coun&s;el? &s;urely God hath no need of thy patronage, or a&s;&s;i&s;tance? Therefore con&s;ider who&s;e hel|per ha&s;t thou been? what? the helper of him that is weake, and ha&s;t thou &s;u&s;tained the armes of him that hath no &s;trength? &s;urely no, God hath &s;trength enough to defend his own cau&s;e, and wi&s;dome e|nough to maintaine his own acts again&s;t me and all men el&s;e. Thou oughte&s;t indeed to have helped him that hath no power, but thou ha&s;t onely given helpe to him that hath all power.</HI> Thus &s;ome cary on the
<PB N="721" REF="374"> whole context under that frame and forme of this expo&s;ition, as if <HI>Job</HI> did but rebuke <HI>Bildad</HI> for undertaking the matter on Gods part, whereas he &s;hould have u&s;ed his utmo&s;t endeavours for the &s;upport and comfort of him a poore weake creature, labouring under heavy burdens of mo&s;t &s;ad afflictions, and wanting coun&s;el, how to beare and improve them as layed upon him by the hand of God. For this <HI>Job</HI> had no power and might expect helpe from his friend; but he be&s;towed all his helpe in vindicating the honour of God again&s;t <HI>Job,</HI> not in helping or advi&s;ing <HI>Job</HI> how to beare up under the hand of God, and therefore he thus interrogates him, <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that hath no power?</HI> But</P>
<P>Thirdly, I rather expound the words of <HI>Job</HI> him&s;elfe, as being now burdened and di&s;tre&s;&s;ed with great affliction, and under &s;ore temptations, and therefore fitly repre&s;ented in the&s;e words, <HI>a man without power, an arme without &s;trength, and him that had no wi&s;|dome;</HI> at lea&s;t that he was &s;uch in the opinion and judgement of his friends. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>O Bildad, Thou looke&s;t upon me as a man without power, &s;trength, or wi&s;dome; very well, be it &s;o as in|deed (though not in thy &s;ence) it is &s;o, what ha&s;t thou done? how ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power? how &s;ave&s;t thou the arme that hath no &s;trength? how ha&s;t thou performed the part of a friend, eyther in comforting me, or in coun&s;elling me?</HI> &s;o the words are a clo&s;e Ironicall rebuke of what <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;ayd in the former Chapter. <HI>Thou came&s;t to &s;trengthen and helpe me, con&s;ider how well thou ha&s;t made good thy owne intendment; how ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power? thou ha&s;t &s;poken words fitter to weaken, then to &s;treng|then, to ca&s;t downe then to rai&s;e up; and &s;o ha&s;t quite mi&s;taken the matter. Thou &s;houlde&s;t not have amplyfyed the power and maje&s;ty of God before a man in my condition, Thou &s;houlde&s;t rather have opened the doctrine of free-grace, and of the fatherly affection of God to his poore &s;ervants and children, while they are under his &s;harpe&s;t cor|rections: Thy words &s;hould have been like oyle, like milke and ho|ney, but thou ha&s;t &s;poken very hard words if not gall and wormewood to my wearied &s;oule. Though what thou ha&s;t &s;poken be in it &s;elfe true, yet it is to me improper and un&s;uitable, out of time and un&s;ea&s;onable, and therefore weigh with thy &s;elfe; How ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power?</HI> We may paralel this context with that of the Apo&s;tle, (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 4.8.10.) where with much holy deri&s;ion he rebukes the over-weening and high opinion which the <HI>Corinthi|ans</HI>
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<PB N="722" REF="376"> had of their pre&s;ent attainements, and perfections in &s;piritu|alls; <HI>Now ye are full, now ye are rich, ye have reigned like Kings without us, and I would to God that ye did reigne, that we might reigne with you;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, I could wi&s;h with all my heart, it were as well with you as you thinke it is, that we al&s;o might have a part with you in tho&s;e gloryes of the Go&s;pel; But I feare ye are onely puft up with notions, and that your portion is but &s;mal in true &s;olid &s;pirituall knowledge. I feare ye have little except in conceit, and there ye have a great deale too much; and upon the &s;ame account he puts it upon them againe at the 10^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>We are fools for Chri&s;ts &s;ake, but ye are wi&s;e in Chri&s;t; we are weake, but ye are &s;trong, ye are honourable, but we are de&s;pi&s;ed.</HI> Thus <HI>Job</HI> here, ye looke upon me, as a weake man, as a man of no power, but you are wi&s;e, and learned; &s;ee how you have played your part and di&s;charged your duty&punc; you thinke you have a wonderfull faculty in helping the weake, in &s;aving tho&s;e who are ready to peri&s;h, in teaching the unlearned, in coun&s;elling the un|wi&s;e; whereas I am neyther &s;o weake, nor ignorant, nor de&s;titute of coun&s;el as you thinke I am; and if I were, your oration is wide of the marke or reacheth not my ca&s;e, and therefore can doe me no good. <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that hath no power?</HI> And which is the &s;ame in other words;
<Q>How &s;ave&s;t thou the arme that hath no &s;trength?</Q></P>
<P>The arme is an eminent member of the body, and in Scripture it often &s;ignifies &s;trength, becau&s;e the arme holdeth out and acteth the &s;trength of the whole body; <HI>How ha&s;t thou &s;aved the arme that hath no &s;trength?</HI> that is, the man that hath no &s;trength. There is a threefold &s;trength; fir&s;t, naturall, which is twofold; fir&s;t, of the mind or inward parts; &s;econdly, of the body or outward parts: &s;econdly, there is a civill &s;trength, which is the command or Authority which a man hath over others; thirdly, there is a &s;pirituall &s;trength, which is the command which a man hath over him&s;elfe, both in doing good and in avoyding evill, or both for the due enjoyment of good and induring of evill. When, <HI>Job</HI> &s;aith, <HI>How &s;ave&s;t thou the arme that hath no &s;trength?</HI> we may expound it both of the fir&s;t and third &s;ort of &s;trength. For <HI>Job</HI> had indeed lo&s;t the &s;trength of his body, and his friends thought he had lo&s;t the &s;trength both of his parts and graces. Which is more cleare in the next interrogation.</P>
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<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 3.</HI></BIBL> How ha&s;t th<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">s coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dome?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>To give coun&s;el is the worke of the wi&s;e, and they who are un|wi&s;e have mo&s;t need of coun&s;el, though they &s;eldome thinke &s;o. And it may be a very di&s;putable que&s;tion, who is the wi&s;er man, he that gives good coun&s;el, or he that readily receives it &amp; makes good u&s;e of it. Good coun&s;el directs how to judge of things, how to &s;peake, and how to act. <HI>In the multitude of Coun&s;elers there is &s;afety</HI> (&s;aith <HI>Solomon</HI>) and they mu&s;t needs be un&s;afe, who eyther have none to give them coun&s;el, or refu&s;e whole&s;ome coun&s;el when 'tis given. Coun&s;ell is to a man without wi&s;dome as bread is to a man that is hungry, or as cloaths to a man that is naked. Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates; <HI>What doe&s;t thou coun&s;el without wi&s;dome?</HI> Right coun&s;el is the very &s;pirits of wi&s;edome; but thy coun&s;el is flat and hath no &s;pirits in it. Thus his tran&s;lation referrs the want of wi&s;dom to the coun&s;el which <HI>Bildad</HI> gave <HI>Job;</HI> but ours refers it to <HI>Job</HI> to whom <HI>Bildad</HI> undertook to give coun&s;el. <HI>How ha&s;t thou coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dom?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd; Thou O <HI>Bil|dad</HI> looke&s;t upon me, as a man without wi&s;dome; If I am &s;o, I doe not perceive that thy coun&s;el is like to make me much wi&s;er. Thy coun&s;el will even leave me where it found me, and 'tis wel if it doe not put me backward. What &s;trange kinde of coun&s;el is thine! <HI>How ha&s;t thou coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dome?</HI> From all the&s;e cutting que&s;tions put together,</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> They who are weake, and without wi&s;dome, &s;hould be hol|pen, and tenderly dealt with, by grave and gratious coun&s;el.</Q>
<P>The words of the wi&s;e conveigh &s;trength to the weake, com|fort to the &s;orrowfull, and coun&s;el to tho&s;e who know not what to doe. See the tenderne&s;&s;e of Chri&s;t to the weake (<HI>Math:</HI> 12.18, 19.) <HI>Behold my &s;ervant whom I have cho&s;en, and my beloved in whom my &s;oule is well plea&s;ed, I will put my &s;pirit upon him, and he &s;hall &s;hew judgement unto the Gentiles.</HI> He meaneth not <HI>judge|ment,</HI> as <HI>judgement</HI> is oppo&s;ed to mercy; Je&s;us Chri&s;t did not come in that &s;en&s;e to &s;hew judgement to the Gentiles, he did not come to bring wrath upon them, but he came to &s;hew mercy to the
<PB N="724" REF="377"> Gentiles, to tho&s;e who were &s;inners of the Gentiles, who &s;at in darkne&s;&s;e, and in the &s;haddow of death, he &s;hewed mercifull judge|ment, he &s;hewed them the knowledge of God, he reformed and purged them from their &s;ins and &s;infull Idolatryes, he brought them into a holy &s;tate and order under Go&s;pel Government, this is the judgement which Chri&s;t brought to the Gentiles, &amp; this judge|ment is a mercy; <HI>he &s;hall bring Judgement to the Gentiles;</HI> How &s;hall he doe it? <HI>he &s;hall not &s;trive nor cry, neither &s;hall any man heare his voyce in the &s;treets;</HI> that is, he &s;hall not deale boy&s;terou&s;|ly, and contentiou&s;ly, he &s;hall not be vexatious, and rigorous, he &s;hall not act as a man chafed and enraged, as a man full of wrath and fury, but as a man mo&s;t tenderly affected and full of pity, for <HI>a brui&s;ed reade &s;hall he not breake, and &s;moaking flax &s;hall he not quench;</HI> a brui&s;ed read, and &s;moaking flax, are emblems of the weake, of the arme without &s;trength, of tho&s;e who are without wi&s;dome; Chri&s;t will not deale roughly with tho&s;e, <HI>he will not breake the brui&s;ed read, nor quench the &s;moaking flax,</HI> that is, &s;uch as are broken with the &s;ence of &s;in, &s;uch as are weake in faith, &s;uch as are &s;o much over-powred by corruption, that they doe ra|ther &s;moake, and make an ill-&s;ented &s;mother, then burne or &s;hine in a gracious profe&s;&s;ion, &s;uch as are thus low and meane in &s;piri|tualls, Chri&s;t will not breake with his power, nor quench with his rebukes, <HI>till he &s;end forth judgement to victory,</HI> that is, till he hath perfected their conver&s;ion, and hightned their graces to the full, and cau&s;ed the better part in them to prevaile over the wor&s;e (as the hou&s;e of <HI>David</HI> did over the hou&s;e of <HI>Saul</HI>) till it arive at a ble&s;&s;ed victory. And againe (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 61.2.) <HI>The &s;pirit of the Lord God is upon me,</HI> (for wh<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">t) <HI>becau&s;e the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings to the meeke, he hath &s;ent me to bind up the bro|ken-hearted, to proclaime liberty to the captives, and the opening of the pri&s;on to them that are bound.</HI> Here is <HI>helping tho&s;e that have no power, and &s;aving the arme that hath no &s;trength.</HI> Thus Chri&s;t handles tho&s;e who through temptation, affliction, or any trouble are brought low. For the neglect of this duty, the Lord reproves the Shepheards (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 34.2, 3, 4.) <HI>Son of man prophe&s;ie again&s;t the Shepheards of I&s;rael, prophecy and &s;ay unto them, thus &s;aith the Lord God unto the Shepheards; Woe be to the Shepheards of I&s;rael, that doe feed them&s;elves, &s;hould not the Shepheards feed the flockes?</HI> That is, &s;hould they not be more intent upon the feeding of their
<PB N="725" REF="377"> flocke with &s;piritualls, then upon the feeding of them&s;elves with temporalls? &s;hould they not labour more to feed the peoples &s;oules then their owne bellyes? &s;urely they ought. But what did the Shepheards of <HI>I&s;rael?</HI> The next words &s;hew us both what they did, and what they did not; <HI>Ye eate the fat, and ye cloath you with the wool, ye kill them that are fed.</HI> The&s;e things they were forward enough to doe; But &s;ee what they did not; <HI>ye feed not the flock,</HI> That's a general neglect of duty; then followeth their neg|lect of particular duties; <HI>The di&s;ea&s;ed have ye not &s;trengthened, neyther have ye healed that which is &s;icke, neyther have ye bound up that which was broken, neyther have ye brought againe that which was driven away</HI> (by force of Satans temptation) <HI>neyther have ye &s;ought that which was lo&s;t</HI> (through &s;elfe-folly and corruption) Here is a large enditement again&s;t the Shepheards; All which may be &s;ummed up in <HI>Jobs</HI> language to <HI>Bildad;</HI> They did not helpe tho&s;e who had no power, they did not &s;ave the arme without &s;trength, nor coun&s;el tho&s;e, who had no wi&s;dome. See againe how the Prophet de&s;cribes the compa&s;&s;ionatene&s;&s;e of God to his people in an afflicted condition (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 27.8.) <HI>In mea&s;ure</HI> (that is, mode|rately) <HI>when it &s;hooteth forth thou wilt debate with it, he &s;tayeth his rough winde, in the day of the Ea&s;t winde;</HI> that is, when affliction, like an Ea&s;t winde blowes feircely upon his from the world, then he &s;tayeth <HI>his rough winde,</HI> he will not bring his rough winde out of his trea&s;ures to joyn with the Ea&s;t-winde. God will deale gent|ly with his when they are hardly dealt with by men. And thus it is our duty when it is a day <HI>of the Ea&s;t winde,</HI> a day of trouble, and temptation upon any &s;oule, to &s;tay <HI>the rough winde,</HI> to breath gently, to give refre&s;hment and ea&s;e to the weary &s;oule; <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that hath no power? how &s;ave&s;t thou the arme that hath no &s;trength?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The manner how we performe any duty is to be attended as well as the matter.</Q>
<P><HI>Bildads</HI> bu&s;ine&s;&s;e was to comfort the &s;orrowfull, to &s;trengthen the infirme; how did he performe this? his &s;trengthening was a weakning, his helping was a grieving of <HI>Job</HI> already weake and grieved; and the rea&s;on was, becau&s;e he failed in the manner, or mannaging of this worke; we mu&s;t be carefull as to doe good for
<PB N="726" REF="378"> the matter, &s;o to doe it effectually, which cannot be unle&s;&s;e it be done rightly. Some goe with an hone&s;t purpo&s;e to helpe, who yet admini&s;ter no helpe at all, to every &s;uch helper it may be &s;ayd with rebuke, <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power?</HI> how un|hand&s;omely ha&s;t thou done it? what worke ha&s;t thou made of it? Thou ha&s;t but entangled the poore &s;oule wor&s;e then before. This runs through all duties. We may &s;ay to &s;ome, <HI>How have you prayed, and called upon God?</HI> They onely &s;peake a few words, pre&s;ent a few petitions, but without a heart, without faith, with|out a &s;en&s;e of the pre&s;ence of God, or of their owne wants; how have &s;uch prayed? call ye this prayer? we may &s;ay to others, how have you heard the word of God? is this to heare? what to re|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">eive the &s;ound or the &s;en&s;e of the word, and never to minde it more, never to dige&s;t nor turne what is heard into practice; is this hearing? We may &s;ay to others, how have you f<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&s;ted, and hum|bled your &s;oules before God? <HI>Is this a fa&s;t that God hath cho&s;en, a day for a man to hang downe his head like a bullru&s;h; Is this fa&s;t|ing to God, even to God?</HI> No; This is but a <HI>mock-fa&s;t,</HI> a <HI>No-fa&s;t;</HI> God hates &s;uch formality, in praying, hearing, fa&s;ting, with a per|fect hatred. A body exerci&s;ed and a &s;oule &s;itting &s;till, is not wor|&s;hip. God is a &s;pirit, and will be wor&s;hipped in &s;pirit and in truth; In the truth or according to the rule of his owne word, as al&s;o in the truth or according to the &s;incerity of our owne hearts: unle&s;&s;e we wor&s;hip God in this twofold truth, we wor&s;hip him not at all, as he will be wor&s;hipped, how much &s;oever we &s;eeme to have a will to wor&s;hip him. As <HI>Job</HI> here puts a que&s;tion mixt with admi|ration and indignation to his helper; <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that hath no power?</HI> How ilfavordly how bunglingly ha&s;t thou done it? So the Lord will put &s;uch a que&s;tion to many of his wor|&s;hippers; <HI>How have ye wor&s;hipped him that hath all power?</HI> how &s;lightly, how formally, how hypocritically have ye done it? Therefore in all duties, <HI>looke to the manner, as well as to the matter, and labour to doe them well, as well as to doe them.</HI> To neglect the doing of a duty, or the doing of it negligently, are alike offen&s;ive unto God; and he will &s;ay to the latter with as much di&s;plea&s;ure, <HI>How ha&s;t thou done what I commanded?</HI> as he will to the latter, <HI>Why ha&s;t thou not done what I commanded?</HI> yea</P>
<P>Thirdly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That which is not done as it ought, is to be judged, as if not done.</Q>
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<P>That which we &s;trive not to doe in a right manner, we (upon the matter) doe not at all. We may re&s;olve the&s;e interrogations of the Text into negations, <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that is with|out power?</HI> is as much as this, <HI>thou ha&s;t not helped him: how &s;ave&s;t thou the arme that hath no &s;trength?</HI> is indeed, <HI>Thou ha&s;t not &s;aved him: how ha&s;t thou coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dome?</HI> caryeth this meaning, <HI>thou ha&s;t given him no coun&s;ell;</HI> we u&s;e to &s;ay, <HI>as good never a whit, as never the better,</HI> and how good &s;oever any thing is that we doe, if we doe it ami&s;&s;e, it will be reckoned by God (what reckoning &s;oever men make of it) as if we had done no &s;uch thing. <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;aid to the Lord under a temptation, when he was troubled at the complaint of the people, becau&s;e the delive|rance promi&s;ed did not come on, and they were not freed as was expected; <HI>Lord, wherefore ha&s;t thou &s;o evill entreated this people? why is it that thou ha&s;t &s;ent me? for &s;ince I came to Pharaoh to &s;peake in thy name, he hath done evill to this people, neither ha&s;t thou delivered thy people at all,</HI> (Exod. 5.23.) Is this a deliverance? this is no deliverance; we are apt to thinke the mercyes of God no mercyes, unle&s;&s;e he give us full and perfect mercyes, unle&s;&s;e we pre&s;ently receave all that we looke for, we looke upon it as if we had receaved nothing at all. But how truely may the Lord &s;ay to the children of men, when they performe duties &s;lightly, and neg|ligently, ye have not done them at all, ye have neyther prayed, nor heard, nor fa&s;ted at all, becau&s;e ye have been negligent in, and unprofitable under them. The workes and dutyes of the be&s;t are not every way full, but the workes and dutyes of &s;ome are alltoge|ther empty; and they doe nothing in all they doe.</P>
<P>Fourthly, In the&s;e &s;everall interrogations, are here held forth the &s;everall effects of holy advice given according to the word, and minde of God; <HI>how ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power? &s;aved the arme that hath no &s;trength? coun&s;elled him that hath no wi&s;dome?</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, thou indeed ha&s;t offered me coun&s;ell from God; if thou had&s;t managed it right, this would have been the fruit of it; I who have no power &s;hould have been helped, and I who am as an arme without &s;trength &s;hould have been &s;aved</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>That the word of God or divine truths are mighty in operation, when duely admini&s;tred.</Q>
<P>The word of truth conveigheth &s;trength to the weake, wi&s;dome
<PB N="728" REF="379"> to the &s;imple, comfort to the &s;orrowfull, light to tho&s;e who are in darkenes, and life unto the dead. The word <HI>lifts up the hands which hang downe, and the feeble knees. The law of the Lord</HI> (that is, every holy truth, &s;aith <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 19.7, 8.) <HI>is perfect</HI> (and what can it doe? the next words tell us) <HI>converting or re&s;toring the &s;oule. The te&s;timony of the Lord is &s;ure</HI> (and what can that doe? the next words tell us) <HI>making wi&s;e the &s;imple. The &s;tatutes of the Lord are right</HI> (and what can they doe? even that which is mo&s;t &s;weete where it is done) <HI>reioycing the heart: The comman|dement of the Lord is pure</HI> (in it &s;elfe, and it worketh gloriou&s;ly in us) <HI>enlightning the eyes.</HI> I may &s;ay al&s;o, The word of the Lord is mighty, and it giveth &s;trength to tho&s;e who have no might. As it is mighty for the <HI>pulling downe of &s;trong holds, ca&s;ting downe imaginations, &amp; every thing that exalteth it &s;elfe again&s;t the know|ledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedi|ence of Chri&s;t</HI> (2 Cor: 10.4, 5.) So it is as mighty for the ray&s;ing up of the weake, for the lifting up of tho&s;e who are ca&s;t downe and fallen below the knowledge of God through unbeliefe; and for the bringing of poore &s;oules out of captivity into that ble&s;&s;ed liberty of faith in Chri&s;t. What Great things the word rightly applyed, and divine truths brought home with Authority, have done and &s;till can doe was &s;hewed at the 4^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h Chapter of that booke, ver&s;e 3^d and 4^t^h. As al&s;o at the 25^<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">^h ver&s;e of the &s;ixth Chapter, upon tho&s;e words, <HI>How forcible are right words?</HI> Though we ought to helpe tho&s;e who have no power by more then words, yet words have holpen many who had no power; as <HI>Job</HI> doth more then intimate while he reproves <HI>Bildad</HI> for his un|skillfull wording it with him. <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<Q>And how ha&s;t thou plentifully declared the thing as it is?</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> unde Graecum <GAP DESC="foreign">. Appellatio a <GAP DESC="foreign"> quod e&s;&s;e &s;ignificat, &s;api|entia enim re|rum omnium exi&s;tentium prima &amp; prae|cipua e&s;t. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE>That which we render, <HI>The thing as it is,</HI> is but one word in the Original, and it hath a threefold &s;ignification.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, It is put for the e&s;&s;ence, &s;ub&s;tance, or being of a thing; The Greek word for &s;ub&s;tance, is very neere this in &s;ound, and may po&s;&s;ibly be a derivative from it.</P>
<P>Secondly, It &s;ignifieth that <HI>working</HI> or <HI>operation</HI> which flowes from being; Things fir&s;t are, and then they act, and they are to little or no purpo&s;e unle&s;&s;e they act.</P>
<PB N="729" REF="379">
<P>Thirdly, It &s;ignifieth <HI>coun&s;ell, advice, wi&s;dome,</HI> or &s;ound wi&s;|dome (<HI>Prov.</HI> 3.21.) &s;o M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates, <HI>And make&s;t ad|vice knowne aboundantly.</HI> Others taking up the &s;ame notion ren|der, <HI>How ha&s;t thou declared wi&s;dome abundantly.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Thou thinke&s;t thou ha&s;t opened a trea&s;ure and declared &s;tore of wi&s;|dome and knovledge in this di&s;cour&s;e, or that thou ha&s;t made a very wi&s;e and learned di&s;cour&s;e, whereas indeed it will be found leane and &s;hort in it &s;elfe, as al&s;o impertinent to the poynt in hand.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ad mul|titudinem vel multiplicit&egrave;r.</NOTE> Our tran|&s;lation takes it in the fir&s;t &s;en&s;e, <HI>How ha&s;t thou plentifully declared the thing as it is,</HI> that is, how ha&s;t thou declared the &s;ub&s;tance of the thing, or the &s;olid truth in plenty, or as the Hebrew phra&s;e imports, in great number and with much variety.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> Every thing ought to be declared as it is, that is, the naked truth ought to be declared.</Q>
<P>It is our duty to &s;peake of things as they are, not to put colours upon them, and &s;o make them appeare what they are not, or o|therwi&s;e then they are; truth is plaine, and truth &s;hould be told plainely. The naked truth, or, <HI>the thing as it is,</HI> is mo&s;t beautifull to the eye of the under&s;tanding. And though <HI>Bildad</HI> did mi&s;re|port what he &s;pake of God, yet he did not make a full report. <HI>How ha&s;t thou plentifully declared the thing as it is?</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Hence note.</P>
<Q>As we ought to &s;peake the truth, &s;o to &s;peake the truth out, or all the truth.</Q>
<P><HI>Paul</HI> tells the Church of <HI>E<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">he&s;us</HI> (Acts 20.20.) <HI>That he had kept nothing back that was profitable for them; and</HI> (&s;ayth he, <HI>ver.</HI> 27.) <HI>I have not &s;hunned to declare unto you all the coun&s;el of God. Paul</HI> plentifully declared the thing as it was. <HI>Bildad</HI> &s;pake truth, but not all the truth, as to <HI>Jobs</HI> ca&s;e. He &s;pake great things of the power and holynes of God, but <HI>Jobs</HI> ca&s;e called him to &s;peake as much if not more and rather of the goodne&s;s and kindnes of God. He &s;pake enough to humble and ca&s;t <HI>Job</HI> downe, at the &s;ight of his natural uncleanenes, but he &s;hould have &s;poken more to ray&s;e him up and comfort him by &s;hewing him that fountaine which is opened to wa&s;h in for &s;in and for uncleanenes. Wee may quickly entangle a &s;oule by &s;peaking truth, unle&s;&s;e we &s;hew him all that
<PB N="730" REF="380"> ruth which belongs to his condition. <HI>The Scriptures have plenty of truth in them, and are therefore able to make as wi&s;e unto &s;alva|tion; They are profitable for doctrine, for reproofe, for correction, for in&s;truction in righteou&s;nes.</HI> The Scripture is like that River &s;poken of (<HI>Gen.</HI> 2.10.) which went out of <HI>Eden</HI> to water the Garden, and from thence it was parted and became into foure heads: <HI>Paul</HI> in that place now mentioned (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 3.16.) &s;hewes us the Scripture parting it &s;elfe into foure heads; fir&s;t, of <HI>Doctrine,</HI> for e&s;tabli&s;hing the truth; &s;econdly, <HI>of reproofe,</HI> for removing of error; thirdly, <HI>of correction,</HI> for the beating downe of ill manners; fourthly, <HI>of in&s;truction,</HI> for building up in a holy conver&s;ation; That &s;o (as it there follows) <HI>the man of God may be perfect, throughly furni&s;hed unto all good workes;</HI> that is, in <HI>Jobs</HI> language, that he may be able <HI>plentifully to declare (the &s;olid truth) the thing as it is,</HI> and as knowingly to declare General truths, &s;o to apply them di&s;cerningly to the &s;tate of every per&s;on; A fayling wherein <HI>Job</HI> is &s;uppo&s;ed to charge <HI>Bildad</HI> with in the next ver&s;e.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="4" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 4.</HI></BIBL> To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Here <HI>Job</HI> taxeth <HI>Bildad</HI> with incon&s;ideratene&s;&s;e, in reference to the per&s;on to whom he &s;pake; <HI>To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</HI> ha&s;t thou con&s;idered to whom thou &s;pake&s;t?<NOTE PLACE="marg">Quem docere volui&s;ti, nonne eum qui fecit &s;piramentum. <HI>Vulg:</HI></NOTE> The vulgar tran&s;la|tion referrs it to God, <HI>whom would&s;t thou teach? would&s;t not thou teach him who made the breath? &s;urely thou take&s;t upon thee to teach him, who is the teacher of us all.</HI> Thus many carry on the &s;en&s;e of this fourth ver&s;e according to the &s;econd interpretation of the &s;e|cond and third ver&s;es. With which pre&s;umption <HI>Job</HI> taxed his friends once before, and that in expre&s;&s;e termes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 21, 22.) <HI>Shall any teach God knowledge? &s;eeing he judgeth tho&s;e that are high.</HI></P>
<P>But I conceive <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning is onely to &s;hew <HI>Bildad</HI> that he had not well advi&s;ed about his ca&s;e and condition before he &s;pake; for <HI>Bildad</HI> might &s;ay, is this a que&s;tion to be asked, <HI>to whom have I uttered words?</HI> have not I been &s;peaking to thee all this while? art not thou the man for who&s;e &s;ake we are here met, and about whom we have had all this di&s;pute? Why then doe&s;t thou aske, <HI>to whom ha&s;t thou uttered words? Job</HI> doubted not who it was to whom he &s;pake; but <HI>Job</HI> que&s;tions him as fearing he was not well acquainted with, or had not enough layd to heart the &s;tate of the
<PB N="731" REF="380"> man to whom he &s;pake, do&s;t thou know what my condition is, and ha&s;t thou &s;uited, and cut out thy di&s;cour&s;e to my condition? <HI>to whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>We &s;hould well con&s;ider the &s;tate of every per&s;on to whom we &s;peak, and apply our &s;peech or doctrine accordingly.</Q>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> in the former Chapter had been &s;etting forth the power, maje&s;ty, and dread of God, as al&s;o his infinite purity befo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e whom the Angels are not-cleane; now &s;ayth <HI>Job, to whom ha&s;t thou utte|red the&s;e words?</HI> &s;hould I be thus dealt with, thus handled, who am a man ca&s;t downe already and under the terrours of God? Is this di&s;cour&s;e (though an undoubted truth) &s;utable to my con|dition? Thou &s;hould&s;t rather have repre&s;ented God to my faith in his goodne&s;&s;e, and mercy, in his long &s;uffering, and patience, in his tenderne&s;&s;e and gentlene&s;&s;e towards &s;inners, thou &s;hould&s;t have proclaimed that name of God to me which is his Glory (<HI>Exod.</HI> 34.6.) <HI>The Lord, The Lord gracious, and mercifull, long &s;uffering, and aboundant in goodnes and truth;</HI> this had been a de|&s;cription of God, a proclamation of God fit for a man in my ca&s;e. Whereas thou ha&s;t onely told me of his mighty power and domi|nion, of his Ho&s;ts and Armyes; doe&s;t thou know to whom thou ha&s;t uttered the&s;e words? Je&s;us Chri&s;t, when here on earth, con&s;i|dered to whom he was uttering words, and therefore tells his Di&s;|ciples (<HI>Joh.</HI> 16.12.) <HI>I have many things to &s;ay unto you, but ye cannot beare them now.</HI> Chri&s;t would not put new wine into old botles, but attemper'd his &s;peech to the &s;trength and capacity of his hearers. Some mu&s;t heare that which they cannot beare (when that &s;prings from their pa&s;&s;ion and impatience, e&s;pecially when from their love to and re&s;olvedne&s;&s;e to goe onne in &s;inne; <HI>Amos</HI> mu&s;t not forbeare to &s;peake, though <HI>Amaziah</HI> cry out, <HI>The Land is not able to beare all his words</HI>) But we mu&s;t take heed of forcing words upon any which they cannot beare, or are not fit to heare, eyther by rea&s;on of their afflictions and temptations, or by rea&s;on of their pre&s;ent infirmities and incapacities. The Apo&s;tle (2 <HI>Tim.</HI> 2.15.) bids <HI>Timothy &s;tudy to &s;hew thy &s;elfe approved unto God,</HI> (he doth not meane it in his private cour&s;e of life and dayly con|ver&s;e, which is the duty of every beleever) but in his publicke cour&s;e of life, or conver&s;e as a Mini&s;ter of the Go&s;pel, in that,
<PB N="732" REF="381"> &s;ayth he, <HI>&s;tudy to &s;hew thy &s;elfe approved (unto God) a workman that needeth not to be a&s;hamed,</HI> (what kind of workman was <HI>Timo|thy,</HI> his worke lay in the Word, &s;hew thy &s;elfe a workeman, and a Ma&s;ter in thy worke) <HI>rightly dividing the word of truth;</HI> how is the word to be divided? he doth not meane of a gramaticall, nor of a logicall divi&s;ion (though there may be a u&s;e of the&s;e divi&s;i|ons of the Word) but the dividing of the word intended by <HI>Paul,</HI> is the dividing of it &s;piritually to the &s;everall &s;tates, and conditions of men, giving to &s;uch, a word of in&s;truction, to others a word of reproofe, to a third &s;ort words of comfort: This is <HI>dividing the word aright;</HI> And in doing this, <HI>Paul</HI> would have <HI>Timothy</HI> de|clare himfelfe <HI>a workman that he needed not be a&s;hamed.</HI> He would have him know to whom he uttered words: to know when he &s;pake to &s;inners, and when to Saints, when he &s;pake to the af|flicted, and when to them that were in a comfortable e&s;tate; He would have him know when he &s;pake to tho&s;e who were hardned in their &s;in, and when to tho&s;e who&s;e hearts were broken under the weight and &s;ence of &s;in. And thus as every man who uttereth words, &s;o Mini&s;ters of the Go&s;pel e&s;pecially &s;hould be well advi|&s;ed to whom they utter them. For as the &s;ame garment will not &s;erve every body to weare, nor the &s;ame bed to lye upon, &s;o the &s;ame word will not &s;erve every &s;oule. We mu&s;t not doe as the ty|rant, who made one bed &s;erve all his gue&s;ts, and they that were too long for it were cut &s;horter, and they who were too &s;hort were &s;tretched longer. Yet thus doe they who have but one word for all commers, or for all they come to. We would judge him a very unskilfull Phy&s;itian, who, let the di&s;ea&s;e be what it will, &s;hould pre&s;cribe one and the &s;ame medicine, or apply the &s;ame &s;alve (though a very &s;overaigne one) to every &s;oare. As wee &s;ay, <HI>That which is one mans meate is another mans poy&s;on,</HI> &s;o we may al&s;o &s;ay, <HI>That which is one mans medicine may be another mans poy|&s;on;</HI> That which cures one di&s;ea&s;e may encrea&s;e another. There|fore the Phy&s;ician mu&s;t con&s;ider to whom he gives the potion, as well as what he gives, and the Chirurgion mu&s;t not onely know what his &s;alve is, but to whom he applyes it, &s;o in this ca&s;e, <HI>To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</HI> weigh it wel, whether they be babes or &s;trong men in Chri&s;t, whether they be under peaceable or trou|ble&s;ome di&s;pen&s;ations, whether ob&s;tinate, or tender-hearted; For the&s;e mu&s;t be differently dealt with, as their &s;tates doe differ.
<PB N="733" REF="381"> We may el&s;e doe more hurt then good. We may quickly (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 13.19.) <HI>Slay the &s;oules that &s;hould not dye</HI> (that is, grieve &amp; trouble the godly) <HI>and &s;ave the &s;oules alive which &s;hould not live,</HI> that is, harden and fatten the wicked in their &s;innes. The Apo&s;tle hath left us an excellent rule by his owne practice (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 9.19.) <HI>Though I be free from all men, yet have I made my &s;elfe &s;ervant to all that I might gaine the more, and unto the Jewes I became as a Jew, that I might gaine the Jewes, to them that are un|der the Law, as under the Law, that I might gaine them that are un|der the Law, to them that are without the Law, as without Law, be|ing not without law to God, but under the law to Chri&s;t, that I might gaine them that are without Law; to the weak became I as weak, that I might gaine the weak I am made all things to all men, that I might by all meanes &s;ave &s;ome, and this I do for the Go&s;pel &s;ake that I might be partaker thereof with you.</HI> In this context we &s;ee what was chiefe|ly in the Apo&s;tles eye, (even that which is the highe&s;t and fayre&s;t marke in the world) <HI>the &s;aving of &s;oules.</HI> And that he might at|taine this end, he critically ob&s;erved the temper and &s;tate of his hearers, &s;triving to frame and &s;ute him&s;elfe, and his &s;peech accord|ingly; He was not the &s;ame to all, but he would be as they were to whom he &s;pake, or with whom he did conver&s;e; yet <HI>Paul</HI> did not &s;ymbolize with, nor connive at any in their &s;ins, he did not take upon him all colours, he was not a man for all men, or a man for all houres, and humours. The holy Apo&s;tle did not turne, as flatterers doe, with the times, nor fa&s;hion him&s;elfe to the &s;eve|rall garbes of men in a &s;infull way; <HI>Paul</HI> was &s;o farre from any &s;uch ba&s;e complyances, that he having put the que&s;tion, <HI>doe I yet plea&s;e men?</HI> an&s;wers and concludes in the next words (<HI>Gal.</HI> 1.10.) <HI>If I yet plea&s;ed men, I &s;hould not be the &s;ervant of Chri&s;t.</HI> But weighing the &s;tate of all men, he formed his words, and did accom|modate his Mini&s;tery for their gaine, or rather for the gaining of them. Some are all things to all men, that they may gaine by all, that they may advantage them&s;elves by all (which is a &s;pirit not onely unworthy of a Mini&s;ter, but of a man) but <HI>Paul</HI> complyed with all, that he might gaine them, or bring them in the greate&s;t gaine. Or he complyed with all men, that Chri&s;t might gaine, and faith in him be propagated, <HI>this I doe for the Go&s;pel &s;ake.</HI> I doe not this for my owne &s;ake, I doe not put my &s;elfe into all formes towards men for my own preferment in the world, but that Chri&s;t
<PB N="734" REF="382"> may be preferred in the hearts and acceptations of all men with whom I have to doe, before the world. And that this was his purpo&s;e, we have his &s;ence fully from his owne pen (1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 10.32, 33.) <HI>Give none offence, neyther to the Jewes, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the Church of God, even as I plea&s;e all men in all things, not &s;eeking mine own profit, but the profit of many that they may be &s;aved.</HI></P>
<P>There are five things to be taken notice of, that we may utter words to profit.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, The matter or what we &s;peake. Tho&s;e words which have no worth in them&s;elves can never profit others. While the Pro|phet (<HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 14.2.) exhorteth the people to repentance, He &s;ayth, <HI>Take with you words,</HI> that is, choi&s;e words, &s;elect words, con&s;ider what words you take with you, <HI>when you turne to the Lord,</HI> and plead with him for mercy, <HI>&s;aying, take away all iniquity, and re|ceave us graciou&s;ly.</HI> And as we are to take words with us, choy&s;e words to expre&s;&s;e choy&s;e matter in when we &s;peake to the Lord, &s;o al&s;o in proportion when we &s;peake to Men, as from the Lord.</P>
<P>Secondly, We mu&s;t con&s;ider to whom we are to utter words, we mu&s;t not &s;hoot at random, or without a marke; Some doc|trines are generall, but there ought to be a &s;peciall application of Generall doctrines. Other Doctrines are peculiar to &s;ome. We mu&s;t not ca&s;t pearles before &s;wine, nor give childrens bread to doggs. And we mu&s;t be as carefull, that we &s;peake not to chil|dren, that is, to the truely Godly, as we &s;hould doe to doggs and &s;wine (for &s;o the Scripture calls them) prophane and ungodly men.</P>
<P>Thirdly, We mu&s;t con&s;ider the &s;ea&s;on or time when we &s;peake. Tho&s;e words will take at one time, which will not at another. There is as much care to be had, and as much skill &s;eene in a due timeing of our words, as of our actions.</P>
<P>Fourthly, We mu&s;t con&s;ider the <HI>quantum,</HI> or the mea&s;ure of words uttered, we may over-lay and over-charge tho&s;e to whom we &s;peake; Every one cannot beare a &s;trong &s;hower of &s;peech, or words powred out like a flood upon &s;uch. <HI>Our doctrine</HI> (as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayd his did, <HI>Deut.</HI> 32.2.) mu&s;t <HI>drop as the raine, our &s;peech mu&s;t di&s;till as the dew, as the &s;mal raine upon the tender hearbe, and as the &s;howers upon the gra&s;&s;e.</HI></P>
<P>Fifthly, We mu&s;t con&s;ider the manner in which we utter words: whether to &s;peake as a <HI>Barnabas,</HI> or as a <HI>Boanarges,</HI> whe|ther
<PB N="735" REF="382"> as a &s;on of thunder, of wrath and judgement, or as a &s;on of peace, of joy and con&s;olation. <HI>Of &s;ome have compa&s;&s;ion</HI> (that is, deale tenderly with them, <HI>Jude</HI> v. 22.) <HI>making a difference, and others &s;ave with feare, pulling them out of the fire.</HI> We doe but ca&s;t words into the ayre, unle&s;&s;e we thus make a difference in the man|ner of &s;peech, as they differ to whom we &s;peake. When we have duely weighed, the matter which, the per&s;ons to whom, the &s;ea|&s;on when, the mea&s;ure how much, and the manner in which we ought to &s;peake, then we are like to &s;peake to purpo&s;e, and &s;hall be above this reproofe which <HI>Job</HI> here gives <HI>Bildad; To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</HI></P>
<Q>And who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</Q>
<P>The word which we tran&s;late <HI>&s;pirit,</HI> &s;ignifyes al&s;o the <HI>breath; who&s;e &s;pirit or who&s;e breath came from thee?</HI> The &s;en&s;e is the &s;ame.</P>
<P>And.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some interpret <HI>Job</HI> thus; <HI>Who&s;e &s;pirit, or who&s;e breath came from thee?</HI> That is, Con&s;ider O <HI>Bildad,</HI> who&s;e &s;pirit moved thee, or who breathed the&s;e things into thee? who&s;e breath or who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee when thou did&s;t utter the&s;e words? &s;o 'tis a rebuke of <HI>Bildads</HI> pre&s;umption, as if he had conceaved him&s;elfe wrought or acted by &s;ome extraordinary &s;pirit, while he was &s;peaking, or that the things which he uttered had been dropt into him by an immediate Revelation from heaven; <HI>who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</HI> what breath, what gale hath filled thy &s;ayles? thou ha&s;t high conceits of thy &s;elfe, as if God had &s;poken to thee by his Spirit, or as if thou had&s;t &s;poken the&s;e things to me from his mouth. But is it not rather thy owne &s;pirit, thy owne heart which hath dictated the&s;e words unto thee? Some thinke the &s;ame &s;pirit comes from them when they &s;peak, which came from the ho|ly Prophets and Apo&s;tles, who yet are deceaved. The Di&s;ciples of Chri&s;t thought the &s;ame &s;pirit came from them, which came from <HI>Eliah</HI> when they &s;aid (<HI>Luk.</HI> 9.54.) <HI>Lord, wilt thou that we command fi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e to come downe from heaven, and con&s;ume them as Elias did: But he turned and rebuked them, and &s;ayd, ye know not what manner of &s;pirit ye are of:</HI> As if he had &s;ayd in the language of <HI>Job, ye know not who&s;e &s;pirit comes from you;</HI> ye would &s;peake the words of <HI>Elias,</HI> but ye have not the &s;pirit of <HI>Elias;</HI> you have a zeale but not ac|cording to knowledge; yours is but a humane affection, not a di|vine
<PB N="736" REF="383"> in&s;piration, as <HI>Elias</HI> his was, his was a pure &s;pirit of zeale, but yours is a ra&s;h &s;pirit of revenge. And therefore your motion &s;uites not with your calling; for as I am come, &s;o I &s;end you, <HI>to &s;ave not to de&s;troy.</HI> We may &s;peake the &s;ame words, and doe the &s;ame things which others have done and &s;poken, and yet not with the &s;ame but with quite another &s;pirit. Therefore examine, <HI>who&s;e &s;pi|rit comes from you?</HI> This is a good and profitable &s;ence. Yet,</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Cujus anima prodijt ex te; <HI>i. e.</HI> quem con|&s;olatus es tam efficaciter &s;er|mone tuo, ut a|nima ejus ex maerore qua&s;i in corpore &s;epulta jacebat rur&s;um &egrave; latebris pro|dierit &s;e&s;eq, per corpus ex&s;erue rit <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI> Cujus animam verbis tuis vi|vifica&s;ti? He|braei, Apud <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE>Secondly, Rather thus; <HI>Who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</HI> that is, who&s;e &s;oule, or who&s;e minde hath been recovered out of trouble and feare, out of &s;adne&s;&s;e and &s;orrow by the words which thou ha&s;t &s;poken. Thus the &s;pirit is taken for his to whom he &s;pake, not for his &s;pirit who &s;pake, or not for the &s;pirit with which he &s;pake. This is a Great truth, gratious and right words, rightly applyed, doe as it were releive the &s;pirit, and bring back the faint|ing, yea dead &s;oule, from the grave of griefe and &s;orrow, wherein it lay as buried. Now &s;ayth <HI>Job, who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</HI> Ha&s;t thou recovered or ray&s;ed any langui&s;hing &s;oule by what thou ha&s;t &s;ayd? who hath felt life and power coming from thee? I am &s;ure I have not, though I have heard thee out, and heard thee at|tentively. What the Morali&s;t &s;ayd of Idlenes, the &s;ame may we &s;ay of &s;orrow or heavynes, <HI>It is the buriall of a man while he li|veth.</HI> And therefore he that hath comforted a man and recovered him out of his &s;orrows, may be &s;ayd to give him a new life, and that the &s;p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">rit of &s;uch a man is come forth from him: yea, he that in&s;tructeth the ignorant, and bringeth them to the &s;aving know|ledge of God, may be &s;ayd, to breath or put a &s;oule into them. In which &s;ence &s;ome of the Jewi&s;h writers expound that place, (<HI>Gen.</HI> 12.5.) where it is &s;ayd, That <HI>Abraham tooke Sarah his wife, and Lot his Brothers &s;on, and all their &s;ub&s;tance that they had gathered, and the &s;oules that they had gotten in Charan,</HI> &amp;c. that is, all tho&s;e whom by good in&s;truction and example they had gained to God, or (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 1 <HI>The&s;.</HI> 1.9.) had by their meanes <HI>turned to God from Idolls to &s;erve the living and true God.</HI> The&s;e &s;oules they got in <HI>Charan;</HI> though <HI>Abraham</HI> and <HI>Sarah</HI> were barren of naturall i&s;&s;ue, yet they had much &s;pirituall i&s;&s;ue, many &s;oules or the &s;oules of many came from them. And therefore when <HI>Job</HI> would put a di&s;paragement upon what <HI>Bildad</HI> had &s;po|ken, he puts him this Que&s;tion, <HI>Who&s;e &s;pirit or who&s;e &s;oule came forth from thee?</HI> or whom ha&s;t thou <HI>re&s;ouled,</HI> as the Greeke word
<PB N="737" REF="383"> which the Apo&s;tle u&s;eth for <HI>refre&s;hing,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> doth elegantly &s;ignifie (<HI>Acts</HI> 3.19.) <HI>Repent ye therefore and be converted, that your &s;ins may be blotted out, when the time of refre&s;hing</HI> (or re&s;ouling) <HI>&s;hall come from the pre&s;ence of the Lord.</HI> When a man faints, or is very weary, we &s;ay he hath lo&s;t his &s;pirits, and he is even as a man with|out a &s;oule. But when in the u&s;e of any meanes he is refre&s;hed, then we &s;ay, his &s;pirit or &s;oule is come to him againe. The &s;pirit of man comes onely from God in its natural con&s;titution, he is the <HI>father of Spirits</HI> (Eccl: 12.7. Heb. 12.9.) But the &s;pirit of man may come from man in its refre&s;hings and con&s;olations. And therefore &s;ayth <HI>Job</HI> to <HI>Bildad, Who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee?</HI> or whom ha&s;t thou comforted? Thou ha&s;t undertaken to comfort me; but I am not comforted.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Holy truths or words rightly applyed, have a releiving yea a re|viving power in them.</Q>
<P>Such words give a man his &s;oule againe, when he hath lo&s;t it, and when he is (as it were) gone from him&s;elfe, he is brought backe to him&s;elfe againe. For as it is &s;ayd of the repenting Pro|digall, <HI>he came to him&s;elfe,</HI> he was gone, he was lo&s;t from him&s;elfe, his &s;oule was departed from him, his under&s;tanding was none of his, he was no more Ma&s;ter of any &s;piritually rationall faculty, then a dead man is of any meere rationall faculty; and &s;o his fa|ther reported him whil&s;t in that condition, <HI>this our &s;onne was dead but is alive, he was lo&s;t, but he is found</HI> (Luk. 15.32.) Now (I &s;ay) as it is in extreame &s;innings, &s;o in extreame &s;orrowings and deje|ctions of &s;pirit, a man is lo&s;t from him&s;elfe, he is as a dead man; and &s;o when comfort comes in againe, life may be &s;ayd to come in againe; he who before was lo&s;t is found, and he who was dead re|vives. The word revives from a twofold death; It revives a na|tural man from the death of &s;in, and it revives a Godly man from a death in &s;orrow. How many &s;pirits have come forth at the voyce of the Word, out of the grave of &s;in. Chri&s;t foretold this re&s;ur|rection of the &s;oule by the preaching and publication of the Go|&s;pel (<HI>Joh.</HI> 5.25.) <HI>The houre is coming, and now is, when the dead &s;hall heare the voyce of the &s;on of God</HI> (in the mini&s;tery of the word) <HI>and they &s;hall live.</HI> And le&s;t any &s;hould thinke that this is meant of the re&s;urrection of the body, Chri&s;t &s;peakes of that di&s;tinctly
<PB N="738" REF="384"> (<HI>ver.</HI> 28.) <HI>Marvel not at this, for the houre is coming</HI> (he doth not &s;ay as before, <HI>and now is) in the which all that are in the Graves</HI> (dead bodyes) <HI>&s;hall heare his voyce, and come forth, they that have done good, unto the re&s;urrection of life, and they that have done evill unto the re&s;urrection of damnation.</HI> As if Chri&s;t had &s;ayd, That powerfull voyce (and a voyce le&s;&s;e powerfull then that will not doe it) which is able to ray&s;e dead bodyes, bodyes mouldered in|to du&s;t, from the earth, and cau&s;e them to live againe, (that voyce I &s;ay) is able to ray&s;e a dead &s;oule from a &s;tate of &s;in to newnes of life. The Apo&s;tle &s;aith as much, while he calleth the preaching of the Word <HI>a &s;avour of life unto life in them that are &s;aved</HI> (2 <HI>Cor:</HI> 2.16.) They &s;mel and ta&s;t life, even eternal life at the receaving of the Word. And as it is the meanes of conveighing life to tho&s;e who are dead in &s;inne, &s;o of recovering and renewing life to tho&s;e who are dead in &s;orrow. <HI>Worldly &s;orrow or the &s;orrow of the world worketh death</HI> (2 Cor. 7.10.) and extreame &s;piritu|all &s;orrow, or the extreame &s;orrow of the &s;oule about &s;piritualls, puts us into a kinde of death. Thus <HI>Heman</HI> &s;pake of him&s;elfe in that ca&s;e (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 88.4, 5.) <HI>I am counted with them that goe downe into the pit; I am as a man that hath no &s;trength, free among the dead, like the &s;laine that lie in the grave, whom thou remembre&s;t no more; and they are cut off from thy hand.</HI> As <HI>Heman</HI> was counted among the dead by others, &s;o he was like a dead man in his owne account too, as he &s;peakes at the 15^t^h ver&s;e; <HI>I am afflicted and ready to dye, from my youth up, while I &s;uffer thy terrors I am di&s;tracted.</HI> He was not ready to dye of bodyly di&s;ea&s;es, but of &s;oule terrours, nor could any thing revive him, or fetch him backe from that death, but the favour of God &s;hining to him in the word of promi&s;e; how glorious is the word by the workings of the Spirit, which cau&s;eth the &s;pirit to come forth, and maketh them who were <HI>free among the dead,</HI> become free among the living. This effect and fruit of the word <HI>Job</HI> expected from his friends before, and now from <HI>Bildad,</HI> but all in vaine; As their, &s;o his di&s;cour&s;e with <HI>Job</HI> was fruitle&s;&s;e and ineffectuall. Much hath been &s;poken, but I have got nothing; I have got no &s;pirit, no refre&s;hing, my heart is no whit cheared, nor my &s;oule comforted, both you and the re&s;t of your brethren, have proved <HI>mi&s;erable comforters to me. To whom ha&s;t thou uttered words?</HI> I am no better, then if you had &s;ayd nothing. <HI>And who&s;e &s;pirit came from thee,</HI> not mine, for as yet, (notwith|&s;tanding
<PB N="739" REF="384"> all your rea&s;onings) my &s;pirit is not returned to me; I am as deepe in &s;orrow as ever I was.</P>
<P>There is yet another reading of this la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e gi|ven by M^r <HI>Broughton, And who&s;e &s;oule admired thee.</HI> The &s;ame word may &s;ignifie to admire, and to come forth; becau&s;e the &s;oule or &s;pirit of a man comes forth (as it were) to gaze upon tho&s;e things and per&s;ons which he admireth. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd; <HI>Po&s;&s;ibly O Bildad, thou pre&s;ume&s;t that thou ha&s;t &s;poken like an Ora|cle of Wi&s;dome, even much beyond the rate and proportion of ordinary men, or of what is common to man, and therefore doe&s;t expect to be applauded, yea to be admired. But who&s;e &s;oule is come forth by rea|&s;on of thee? who hath admired thee? not I, nor doe I know, that any man hath rea&s;on &s;o to doe, unle&s;&s;e it be, becau&s;e thou ha&s;t &s;o much mi&s;taken my meaning and intention in what I &s;ayd, and ha&s;t &s;ayd things &s;o improper to my condition. Some have the per&s;ons of men in admiration, becau&s;e of advantage</HI> (Jude <HI>v.</HI> 16.) and others de&s;ire no other advantage, but to be cryed up and had in admiration. I dare not &s;ay, that <HI>Bildad</HI> was a man of &s;uch a &s;pirit, though this tran&s;lation <HI>(who&s;e &s;oule admired thee?)</HI> &s;eemes to charge him with &s;uch a folly.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="740" REF="385">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 26. Ver&s;. 5, 6, 7.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Dead things are formed from under the waters, and the inhabitants thereof.</P>
<P>Hell is naked before him, and de&s;truction hath no cove|ring.</P>
<P>He &s;tretcheth out the North over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the former part of this Chapter, <HI>Job</HI> reproved the la&s;t di&s;|cour&s;e of <HI>Bildad</HI> as unprofitable, not that it was &s;o in it &s;elfe (for that was true and a great truth which he &s;pake of the great|ne&s;&s;e of God) but the method which he u&s;ed, and the applicati|on of it to his ca&s;e made it &s;o. <HI>How ha&s;t thou helped him that is without power?</HI> &amp;c.</P>
<P>In this Context, and the &s;ub&s;equent part of the Chapter, <HI>Job</HI> enters upon or rea&s;&s;umes the &s;ame argument or &s;ubject which <HI>Bildad</HI> had handled before; The power, &s;overaigntie, and dread|fullnes of God in his workes, both of Creation and providence all the world over. <HI>Job</HI> would let <HI>Bildad</HI> under&s;tand, that he was not unacquainted with the doctrine that he had pre&s;t upon him in the former Chapter. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Doe&s;t thou thinke that I know not the&s;e things, &s;urely I can tell thee as much, yea more of the power of God then thou ha&s;t &s;poken, and thereby thou &s;halt &s;ee that I am not to learne, nor to &s;eeke in this matter; yea I will point and paint out the power of God not onely in the vi&s;ible heavens, but in tho&s;e things which lye un&s;eene, I will goe downe to the deepes, to the bottome of the mighty waters, I can tell thee that he is not onely admirable above but beneath, in &s;o much as nothing is bred or brought forth whether animate or inanimate in the va&s;t Ocean, but it is by his power and at his di&s;po&s;ing. Yea I will goe as low as hell and &s;earch the power of God there; I will al&s;o a&s;cend up to heaven, and &s;peake of the great things that God doth in the ayre, and in the clouds, and among the &s;tarrs, whereby you may &s;ee that I am no &s;tranger to &s;uch divine Philo&s;ophy, and therefore this was not the poynt you &s;hould have in|&s;i&s;ted upon, or that I needed to be informed in.</HI> That's the general &s;cope and aime of <HI>Job</HI> in the&s;e words, I &s;hall now touch upon the particulars.</P>
<DIV3 N="5" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="741" REF="385">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q>Dead things are formed from under the waters.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>Jobs</HI> fir&s;t in&s;tance concerning the power of God, is about things under the waters; <HI>Dead, livele&s;&s;e, inanimate things</HI> are formed there; Properly that onely is a <HI>dead thing</HI> which hath &s;ometime lived, wee cannot &s;ay a &s;tone is a dead thing, becau&s;e it never had any life, neither can wee &s;ay that water or earth are dead things, for they never had any life; but tho&s;e things that have had life, whether vegetative, or &s;en&s;itive, or rationall, as man, or bea&s;ts, or plants, when once that life is withdrawne from any of them, that is properly called a dead thing. Yet in a generall vulgar and im|proper &s;ence, even tho&s;e things that never had life may be called dead. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> renders &s;trictly, <HI>not dead things,</HI> but <HI>things without life are formed under the waters.</HI></P>
<P>The Hebrew word may come from a twofold roote, and &s;o hath a twofold &s;ignification. Fir&s;t, <HI>to heale and cure;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> dolorem mitigavit, &s;ana|vit, tran&s;fertur|per Metaphora~ a corpore ad a|nimam ut &s;ig: remittere pec|cata.</NOTE> and in Scrip|ture it is transferred from the healing of the body to the healing of the &s;oule in the remi&s;&s;ion of &s;ins; becau&s;e as the wound of the body is healed by the &s;alve, &s;o is the &s;oules wound, namely &s;inne, healed by remi&s;&s;ion or forgivene&s;&s;e. The word is u&s;ed in this &s;ence (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 6.10.) <HI>Make the heart of this people fat, and make their eares heavy, and &s;hut their eyes; lea&s;t they &s;ee with their eyes, and heare with their eares, and under&s;tand with their heart, and convert, and be healed,</HI> that is, <HI>pardoned.</HI> Secondly,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> debitis di&s;&s;olutus laxus languidus.</NOTE> it &s;ignifies to be di&s;&s;ol|ved or loo&s;ened, to be weake and langui&s;hing; wee tran&s;late it <HI>dead,</HI> becau&s;e things that are dead are weakened and di&s;&s;olved, and therefore death is called a di&s;&s;olution; As <HI>Paul</HI> &s;ayd (<HI>Phil.</HI> 1.23.) <HI>I de&s;ire to depart or to be di&s;&s;olved,</HI> that is, to dye; and the &s;ame phra&s;e is u&s;ed for death (2 <HI>Cor:</HI> 5.1.) <HI>Wee know that when the earthly hou&s;e of this Tabernacle &s;hall be di&s;&s;olved</HI> &amp;c. Againe, by the figure Antiphra&s;is (frequent in Scripture) this word as it &s;ignifies dead and weake things, &s;o al&s;o &s;trong and lively things, yea tho&s;e that are &s;tronge&s;t or mo&s;t lively, and therefore <HI>Gyants</HI> who are the &s;tronge&s;t of men, are expre&s;&s;ed by this word (<HI>Deut.</HI> 2.11.) <HI>The Enims dwelt therein in times pa&s;t,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ecce Gigantes gemunt &s;ub a|quis. <HI>Vulg:</HI></NOTE> <HI>a people great and many and tall, as the Anakims, which al&s;o were accounted Giants</HI> &amp;c. And the vulgar tran&s;lates &s;o here; <HI>Behold, The Giants groane under the waters.</HI> Giants are called <HI>Rephaim</HI> in the Hebrew, which word in the roote &s;ignifies to weaken, not from their nature, but from
<PB N="742" REF="386"> their effects, not becau&s;e they are weake, but becau&s;e they weaken others. Giants are &s;o &s;trong that the very &s;ight of them makes others weake and faint, or pulls downe men of &s;trength and might. It is &s;ayd that <HI>Saul</HI> and the whole Army of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> were di&s;mayed when they &s;aw <HI>Goliah,</HI> and greatly afraid; they were weake before the Giant. There is much labouring to make out this &s;ence of the word here; &s;ome under&s;tand it of the Giants before the flood; <HI>Behold, the Giants groane from under the flood.</HI> Tho&s;e Giants were indeed overthrowne by the waters; and &s;o they conceave that <HI>Job</HI> alluded unto them, but I &s;hall not &s;tay upon that interpretation.</P>
<P>Others expound the text of tho&s;e Gyants who&s;e proper ele|ment is water, the mighty fi&s;hes of the Sea, the Whale, the Levia|than &s;poken of in this booke of <HI>Job;</HI> Leviathan is a Sea-mon&s;ter, a Sea-gyant of huge dimen&s;ions. Naturall Hi&s;torians and travel|lers de&s;cribe the va&s;tnes of the Whale or Leviathan, to wonder and amazement. And 'tis granted, that in the&s;e Gods power is much &s;eene; But I &s;hall lay by this expo&s;ition al&s;o, becau&s;e (I con|ceive) fi&s;hes are &s;poken of in the next words, where they are cal|led <HI>the inhabitants thereof,</HI> that is, of the Sea or waters.</P>
<P>Againe, this word <HI>Rephaim</HI> is often put for the <HI>dead,</HI> or tho&s;e that are departed this life. (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 88.10.) <HI>Wilt thou &s;hew wonders to the dead? &s;hall the dead ari&s;e and prai&s;e thee?</HI> There are two words u&s;ed for the dead in that ver&s;e, one is the ordinary word, the other is that of the Text. <HI>Solomon</HI> (Pro. 2.18.) &s;hewing how dangerous it is to have to doe with the adultere&s;&s;e, &s;ayth, <HI>Her hou&s;e inclineth unto death, and her paths unto the (Rephaim or the) dead.</HI> The hou&s;e of Adultery and uncleanenes is the Gatehou&s;e to death; it is not a hou&s;e ray&s;ed up, but bowed downe, <HI>her hou&s;e en|clineth unto death,</HI> and &s;he who is the governe&s;&s;e, of rather the mi&s;s-governene&s;s of the hou&s;e, will by her ill life bring thee among the <HI>dead,</HI> even among tho&s;e who are <HI>twice dead,</HI> corporally dead at pre&s;ent, and &s;piritually dead for ever.</P>
<P>But that which I &s;hall rather pitch upon according to our tran|&s;lation,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> is that by the&s;e <HI>dead things</HI> are meant &s;uch things as never had any life. Mr <HI>Broughton</HI> expounds his tran&s;lation, <HI>Things with|out life,</HI> of tho&s;e precious things that are formed under the waters, <HI>Amber and pearle and goodly &s;tones;</HI> The&s;e dead things are found under the waters, and there they are formed; <HI>Gods providence reacheth to the furthe&s;t places, even to the bottome of the Sea and
<PB N="743" REF="386"> lowe&s;t earth, which &s;eeme to be as ca&s;t off;</HI> So he glo&s;&s;eth, and &s;o doe other Interpreters,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Incipit dei pro|videntiam &amp; po<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">entiam de|&s;cribere a rebus &s;ubterraneis in|itio &s;ump<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">o. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> concluding that <HI>Job</HI> is here &s;etting forth the power of God in forming minerals and pretious &s;tones under the waters or in the deepes, and &s;o ri&s;eth in his di&s;cour&s;e by degrees to higher things. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>O Bildad, what doe&s;t thou &s;hew|ing me the power and providence of God in the high places, where he maketh peace; I can tell thee that the &s;ame power and providence of God are extended to tho&s;e things which are wrought in the bowels of the earth, and at the bottome of the Sea, and &s;o are furthe&s;t removed from our &s;ight.</HI></P>
<P>And whereas we &s;ay, <HI>Dead things are formed there;</HI> that word properly &s;ignifies to bring forth children, or any living creature (<HI>Job</HI> 39.1, 2.) <HI>Knowe&s;t thou the time when the wilde Goates of the rock bring forth, or can&s;t thou marke when the Hindes doe calve? Can&s;t thou number the moneths that they fulfill, or knowe&s;t thou the time when they bring forth?</HI> yea The Eternall Word and Wi&s;dome of God &s;peakes of him&s;elfe in the language of this Word (<HI>Pro.</HI> 8.25.) <HI>Before the mountaines were &s;etled, before the hils was I brought forth.</HI> It &s;ignifieth al&s;o to be in paine, and groane for paine, becau&s;e child-bearing cau&s;eth much paine and groaning. So the word is u&s;ed in a metaphoricall &s;ence (<HI>Deut:</HI> 2.25.) <HI>This day will I begin</HI> (&s;aith the Lord) <HI>to put the dread of thee, and the feare of thee upon the Nations, that are under the whole heaven, who &s;hall heare report of thee, and &s;hall tremble and be in angui&s;h becau&s;e of thee;</HI> they &s;hall be in angui&s;h as a woman travelling with child and pained to bring forth. Whence that tran&s;lation takes its ground, <HI>The Gyants groane under the waters.</HI> And as it &s;ignifies to forme and fa&s;hion the child or any living thing in the womb, and then to bring forth, &s;o it is applyed to the forming of things that have no life (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 90.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">2.) <HI>Before the mountaines were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world: even from everla&s;ting to everla&s;t|ing thou art God.</HI></P>
<Q>Dead things are formed.</Q>
<P>But by whom? here is no power expre&s;t; <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth onely, <HI>they are formed,</HI> hee leaves that to be under&s;tood; And what or whom can wee under&s;tand but God, or the power of God, by whom or whereby <HI>dead things are formed</HI> as well as living things; for all things, whether animate or inanimate, receave their being and
<PB N="744" REF="387"> forme from him; <HI>Dead things are formed from under the waters.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>That all things are produced in their beings by the power of God.</Q>
<P>Dead things as well as living things, gold and &s;ilver, minerals and gemms are formed by God as well as men or bea&s;ts. And as they were of God in Creation at the beginning, &s;o there is a con|tinuall putting forth of the power of God in the continuing or re|newing of them; God is dayly forming rich and rare things in the &s;ecret Cabinets of the earth, and <HI>from under the waters.</HI></P>
<Q>And the inhabitants thereof.</Q>
<P>That is, as dead things are formed under the waters, &s;o are the <HI>inhabitants thereof,</HI> or tho&s;e living things that dwell in the water; wee put in the Margin, <HI>with the inhabitants:</HI> who are they? The inhabitants of the water are the fi&s;hes, they are bred and abide in the water. As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Tho&s;e precious &s;tones and minerals, called dead things, are formed from under or in the waters as well as the fi&s;hes, who are the proper inhabitants of the water.</HI> Mr <HI>Brough|ton</HI> reades thus; <HI>Dead things are formed under the waters and pla|ces neere them,</HI> that is, in the mountaines and hills, in the clifts and rocks are the&s;e precious things formed. But I rather take our reading, and &s;o the Text gives a further illu&s;tration of the power of God; who as he formeth dead things under the waters, &s;o li|ving things, or the inhabitants of the water.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The power of God is great in forming the fi&s;hes of the Sea.</Q>
<P>And the greatne&s;s of it will appeare if we con&s;ider three things about them.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Their number, as to us, the fi&s;h of the Sea are infinite in number, there is no &s;ort of creatures that multiply &s;o fa&s;t as fi&s;hes doe, therefore when God created the inhabitants of the water, we read (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.21.) how emphatically their encrea&s;e is expre&s;t; <HI>And God created great Whales, and every living creature that mo|veth, which the waters brought forth aboundantly after their kinde.</HI> The waters did not bring them forth by any power of their owne, but they were brought forth in the waters by that power which God had planted in the waters for that purpo&s;e. Now it is not
<PB N="745" REF="387"> onely &s;ayd that the waters brought them forth, but the waters brought them forth <HI>aboundantly,</HI> implying that fi&s;h doe multiply and bring forth more then other creatures; and therefore when the Spirit of God would &s;hew a great increa&s;e of men, 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>They &s;hall increa&s;e like fi&s;h</HI> (Gen. 48.16.) <HI>Jacob</HI> ble&s;&s;ing the chil|dren of <HI>Jo&s;eph,</HI> prayed thus;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Inter omnes be|&s;tias nihil e&s;t foecundius pi&s;ci|bus igitur tra~f|fertur ad mul|tiplicationem immen&s;um.</NOTE> <HI>The Angel which redeemed mee from all evill, ble&s;&s;e the ladds and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers, Abraham, and I&s;aac, and let them grow into a multitude in the mid&s;t of the earth.</HI> The Originall is, <HI>Let them grow or multiply like fi&s;hes into a multitude in the mid&s;t of the earth; or let them be as numerous upon the land as fi&s;hes are in the Sea.</HI> And we finde in the &s;acred Hi&s;tory how the ble&s;&s;ing and providence of God made good this hi&s;tory. For of the &s;ons of <HI>Jo&s;eph, Mana&s;&s;eh</HI> and <HI>Ephraim</HI> were numbred eighty five thou&s;and and two hun|dred men meete for warre (<HI>Numb:</HI> 26.34.37.) which exceeded the encrea&s;e of any one Tribe be&s;ide. How wonderfully doth the Lords power appeare, not onely in tho&s;e infinite &s;holes of le&s;&s;er fi&s;hes, but in the greater al&s;o? Who is able to report the num|ber of the&s;e Sea-inhabitants, or of the fi&s;hes who people the Sea?</P>
<P>Secondly, If wee con&s;ider their various kindes, that al&s;o &s;hew|eth forth the great power of God. Naturali&s;ts ob&s;erve that there is no creature upon the earth, but hath (as I may &s;ay) its repre|&s;entative in the Sea, be&s;ides tho&s;e that have nothing like them on the earth; &s;o various are their kindes.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Many of the&s;e inhabitants of the waters are wonder|full for the va&s;tne&s;&s;e and greatne&s;&s;e of their bodyes; the greate&s;t of all living creatures are in the Sea (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.25.) <HI>So is this great and wide Sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable: both &s;mall and great bea&s;ts.</HI> The P&s;almi&s;t calleth the fi&s;hes bea&s;ts, and there are &s;mall bea&s;ts in the Sea and great bea&s;ts even of a &s;tupen|dious greatne&s;&s;e. The greate&s;t bea&s;ts of the earth are as nothing compared to them; The Elephant is little to the Leviathan. Na|turali&s;ts have written much of this &s;ubject, the numerou&s;nes, vari|ou&s;nes, and va&s;tnes of the&s;e water-Inhabitants. So that wee may &s;ee much of the Maje&s;ty and power of God, as in the&s;e things that are formed under the waters, &s;o in tho&s;e that are formed in the waters. <HI>Job</HI> de&s;cends lower yet in the next words.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="6" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="746" REF="388">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 6.</HI></BIBL> Hell is naked before him, and de&s;truction hath no cove|ring.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>'Tis que&s;tioned what is here meant by <HI>hell.</HI></P>
<P>Some expound hell of the lowe&s;t parts of the earth, &s;o Ma&s;ter <HI>Broughton; The lowe&s;t earth is naked before him, and the lo&s;t</HI> (that is, that which &s;eemes to be lo&s;t and condemned, as him&s;elfe Glo&s;|&s;eth it) <HI>hath no covering.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Hel</HI> is often put for the grave (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 16.10.) <HI>Thou wilt not leave my &s;oule</HI> (that is, <HI>me</HI>) in <HI>hel</HI> (that is, <HI>in the grave) nor wilt thou &s;uffer thy holy one to &s;ee corruption.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, It is mo&s;t u&s;ually taken for that pri&s;on or place of torment, where the Lord detaynes all tho&s;e, in hold, that have re|belled again&s;t him, and dyed impaenitently in that rebellion. In this third &s;ence we may interpret it here (as I conceive) mo&s;t &s;uitably to the &s;cope and purpo&s;e of <HI>Job</HI> in this place.</P>
<Q>Hell is naked before him.</Q>
<P>That is, it is fully di&s;covered to him, he &s;ees who are there, and what is done there, he ob&s;erves all pa&s;&s;ages there, even in that bot|tomle&s;&s;e pit of hel, as wel as in heaven or upon the earth. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd to <HI>Bildad; You told me that God maketh peace in his high places, I tell you God hath to doe in hell, or in the lowe&s;t places. The lowe&s;t hell is naked before him.</HI> The Apo&s;tle &s;peaketh in this phra&s;e (<HI>Heb:</HI> 4.13.) <HI>Neither is there any creature that is not manife&s;t in his &s;ight: but all things are naked, and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to doe.</HI> The words are an allu&s;ion unto bodyes, which being &s;tript, and uncloathed, all &s;ee what they are; there may be many deformities, blemi&s;hes, and &s;carrs, yea ulcers upon the body undi&s;cerned while 'tis cloathed or covered, but when na|ked nothing is hid. <HI>All things are naked before God,</HI> that is, he as plainly di&s;cernes what they are, as wee di&s;cerne what a body is, that &s;tands naked before us. Hell is called darkne&s;&s;e, and utter darkne&s;&s;e, yet it is light to God.</P>
<Q>And de&s;truction hath no covering.</Q>
<P>Here the &s;ame thing is againe repeated, and 'tis u&s;uall in Scrip|ture to &s;peake that in negative words, which was before &s;poken in
<PB N="747" REF="388"> affirmative. As <HI>to be naked,</HI> and <HI>to have no covering,</HI> are the &s;ame; &s;o <HI>hell</HI> and <HI>de&s;truction</HI> are the &s;ame; and the&s;e two are often put together (<HI>Pro.</HI> 15.11.) <HI>Hell and de&s;truction are before the Lord: how much more the hearts of the children of men?</HI> Though we know not where hel is, nor what is done there, though wee know not what is become of tho&s;e that are de&s;troyed, nor what they &s;uffer, yet God doth; and if the &s;ecrets of hel and devills are knowne to him, then much more the &s;ecrets of the hearts of the children of men. And as that proverb teacheth us that nothing is hid from God, becau&s;e hell and de&s;truction are not, &s;o another proverb de|livered in the &s;ame forme, teacheth us, that nothing in the creature can &s;atisfie the de&s;ires and lu&s;tings of man, even as hell and de|&s;truction can never be &s;atisfied (<HI>Prov.</HI> 27.20.) <HI>Hell and de|&s;truction are never full: &s;o the eyes of men are never &s;atisfyed.</HI> The Devill who is the great executioner of the wrath of God, is expre&s;t by this word; as hell is called <HI>de&s;truction</HI> in the ab&s;tract, &s;o the De|vill is called a <HI>de&s;troyer</HI> in the concrete (<HI>Revel.</HI> 9.11.) <HI>And they had a King over them which is the Angel of the bottomle&s;&s;e pit</HI> (or hell) <HI>who&s;e name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greeke tongue hath his name Apollyon;</HI> both the one and the other, the Hebrew and the Greeke &s;ignifie the &s;ame thing <HI>a de&s;troyer;</HI> The Devill, who is the Jaylour of hell, is called a <HI>de&s;troyer,</HI> as hell it &s;elfe is called <HI>de&s;truction</HI> from the Co-incidency of the&s;e two termes. Note.</P>
<Q>Hell is de&s;truction.</Q>
<P>They that are once there, are lo&s;t and lo&s;t for ever. The rea&s;on why hell is called <HI>de&s;truction,</HI> is becau&s;e they that are ca&s;t to hell are undone to eternity. We read of a City (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 19.18.) which was called <HI>the City of de&s;truction,</HI> becau&s;e it was to be utterly de|&s;troyed; Hell may be called a City of de&s;truction, not becau&s;e it &s;hall ever be de&s;troyed, but becau&s;e it &s;hall ever be full of de&s;truc|tion, and nothing but de&s;truction &s;hall be there. There is no e&s;tate on earth &s;o mi&s;erable, but a man may be delivered out of it, but out of hell there is no deliverance. <HI>Heman</HI> &s;aith (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 88.11.) <HI>Shall thy loving kindne&s;&s;e be declared in the grave? or thy faithfullne&s;&s;e in de&s;truction?</HI> There grave and de&s;truction are put together, much more may hell and de&s;truction be put together, or for each other. What ever comes into the grave is de&s;troyed, it rots and peri&s;heth,
<PB N="748" REF="389"> much more doth hell de&s;troy all that comes thither. And, looke as the grave is to the body now, a <HI>de&s;troyer con&s;uming,</HI> &s;o hell is to the &s;oule now, and will be to &s;oule and body after the re|&s;urrection, <HI>a de&s;troyer tormenting.</HI> The loving kindne&s;&s;e of God &s;hall not be declared in Hell, nor any faithfullne&s;&s;e of his in de|&s;truction, unle&s;&s;e it be his faithfullne&s;&s;e (according to what is threatned in the Word to de&s;troy. The Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> &s;ayth, (1 <HI>Ep:</HI> 3.19, 20.) that <HI>Chri&s;t by the Spirit, went and preached to the Spirits in pri&s;on, which &s;ometime were di&s;obedient, when once the long-&s;uffering of God waited in the dayes of Noah,</HI> &amp;c. It is true, that Chri&s;t by the Spirit in the mini&s;tery of <HI>Noah,</HI> did preach to tho&s;e Spirits who were di&s;obedient in the time when <HI>Noah</HI> prea|ched, and were in pri&s;on (or in hel) in the time when <HI>Peter</HI> wrote; But Chri&s;t did not preach by his Spirit in the mini&s;tery of <HI>Noah,</HI> or any other way to Spirits who were in pri&s;on (or in hel) while he preached to them. There are no Sermons in hel, nor any &s;alva|tion there. The loving kindne&s;&s;e of God is aboundantly declared on earth, but it &s;hall not be declared in hel; As there is nothing felt in hel but de&s;truction, &s;o there is no &s;alvation offered to tho&s;e who are in hel. There's teares enow and mourning enough in hel, but there is not the lea&s;t <HI>Godly &s;orrow in hel, which onely worketh repentance to &s;alvation,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Augu&s;t: lib. <HI>21.</HI> de Civ: dei, cap: <HI>17.</HI></NOTE> <HI>not to be repented of</HI> (2 Cor. 7.10.) One of the ancients hath reported the opinion of &s;ome in his time, who thought, that, though there be de&s;truction in hel, yet not eternal de&s;truction, but that &s;inners &s;hould be puni&s;hed, &s;ome a le&s;&s;e, others a longer time, and that at la&s;t all &s;hall be freed; and yet (&s;aith he) <HI>Origen</HI> was more mercifull in this poynt then the&s;e men; for he held that the Devill him&s;elfe &s;hould be &s;aved at la&s;t. Of this opinion I &s;hall &s;ay no more in this place, then this one thing which he there &s;ayd; <HI>The&s;e men will be found to erre by &s;o much the more foulely &amp; again&s;t the right words of God &s;o much the more perver&s;e|ly, by how much they &s;eeme to them&s;elves to judge more mercifully.</HI> for indeed the ju&s;tice of God in puni&s;hing &s;inners is as much above the &s;cale of mans thoughts, as his mercyes in pardoning them are; let not &s;inners flatter them&s;elves in a hope of &s;alvation when they are in hel, who have neglected &s;alvation while they were on the earth. For as the Apo&s;tle &s;aith (<HI>Heb.</HI> 2.3.) <HI>How &s;hall we e&s;cape</HI> (that is, how &s;hall we e&s;cape falling into hel) <HI>if we neglect &s;o great &s;alvation;</HI> &s;o I may &s;ay, how &s;hall any e&s;cape by getting out of
<PB N="749" REF="389"> hell, who neglect &s;o great &s;alvation. <HI>Hel is de&s;truction,</HI> and as be|cau&s;e heaven is a place of happine&s;&s;e and &s;alvation, therefore, hea|ven and happine&s;&s;e, heaven and &s;alvation mutually or reciprocally &s;ignifie one another; to obtaine heaven is to obtaine &s;alvation; to obtaine heaven is to obtaine happines: So becau&s;e hel is a place of mi&s;ery and de&s;truction, therefore hel and mi&s;ery, hel and de|&s;truction &s;ignifie the &s;ame thing, nor can they be &s;eparated.</P>
<P>Againe, when he &s;ayth, <HI>Hell is naked before him, and de&s;tructi|on hath no covering,</HI> we learne.</P>
<Q>There is nothing hid from the eye or knowledge of God.</Q>
<P>Philo&s;ophy and rea&s;on teach us, that the vertue and force of the heavenly bodyes, the Sunne, Moone, and Starres, doe not onely act upon tho&s;e parts of the earth which are uppermo&s;t, but &s;end their influences and powers to the lowe&s;t parts or bowels of the earth, for (as was &s;ayd before) according to the ordinance of God, <HI>dead things are formed there.</HI> Now (I &s;ay) as the power of the heavenly bodyes reacheth downe into the earth, much more doth the power and light of God reach into hell it &s;elfe. I will not &s;tay upon any curious enquiries where this hell is; where&s;oever it is, God &s;eeth it. <HI>Hel is naked before him,</HI> therefore &s;ayth <HI>David</HI> (P&s;al. 139.8.) <HI>If I a&s;cend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell: behold thou art there</HI> (that is, there thou art by thy power and in&s;pection, thou &s;ee&s;t what is in hell (and if &s;o, how much more doth God behold what is done heere upon the earth; if hell be naked before him, then the earth is naked before him; if de&s;truction have no covering, then our actions heere have no covering: Hypocrites put many coverings upon their actions, they have many policies to vaile and &s;creene them from the eye of man; but the actions of men have no covering before God, yea the hearts of men have no covering before God; As <HI>Solomon</HI> in the <HI>Proverbs</HI> (which place was lately toucht upon) argues from this rea&s;on, becau&s;e <HI>hell and de&s;truction are before him</HI> (Prov. 15.11.) <HI>Hell and de&s;truction are before the Lord: how much more then; the hearts of the children of men.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, God who look|eth into hell (which is not onely darkenes, but outer darkenes, that is, darkenes without any thing that hath the lea&s;t ray or &s;imi|litude of light in it, God (I &s;ay) who looketh into this hel) can looke into the hearts of men much more. There are &s;ome men
<PB N="750" REF="390"> (I grant) who&s;e hearts are a very hell, a very deepe, and they hope to hide them&s;elves in the depth of their owne hearts from the &s;ight of God, as the Prophet telleth us (<HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 29.15.) <HI>Woe unto them that &s;eeke deepe to hide their councell from the Lord; and their workes are in the darke, and they &s;ay, who &s;eeth us? and who know|eth us?</HI> And what doth he meane by the deeps which they &s;eeke? doe they &s;eeke caves and dens of the earth to take coun&s;el or con|&s;ult together in? no, they may be in the open ayre and yet &s;eeke deepe to hide their coun&s;ells from God, &s;o that the meaning is, they &s;eeke to keepe their coun&s;els clo&s;e lockt up in their hearts; but woe unto them that digge thus deepe to hide their coun&s;ells from God, for they cannot be hid, for even hel is before him, and de&s;truction hath no covering, how then &s;hall the&s;e de&s;troyers co|ver them&s;elves or any of their coun&s;els from him? As the rea&s;on of all things is naked and manife&s;t before God, &s;o are the motions and actions of all per&s;ons.</P>
<P>Thirdly, When 'tis &s;ayd, <HI>Hell and de&s;truction are before him:</HI> that word <HI>before,</HI> doth not onely imply that God hath a view or &s;ight of what is in hel, but al&s;o that hee hath power in and over hel, and can doe what he will there; <HI>hell is naked before him,</HI> that is, hee hath hell at his di&s;po&s;e.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The power and providence of God reaches to tho&s;e things that are mo&s;t remote.</Q>
<P>He orders all things in hell as well as upon the earth; his power rules there where there &s;eemes to be lea&s;t order, yea where there is no order at all; They who are ca&s;t into hel kept no order while they were upon the earth, nor are they in any willing order there; when we &s;ee confu&s;ions in the world wee &s;ay, <HI>what a hell is there,</HI> or we &s;ay, <HI>Hel is broken loo&s;e;</HI> hell is a place of confu&s;ion, yet hell is before God, he keepes hell in order; And when by rea&s;on of troubles and confu&s;ion among men, wee are ready to &s;ay, <HI>there is a hell in the world,</HI> yet this hell is naked before God, he di&s;po&s;eth and orders tho&s;e places, per&s;ons, and things, which are mo&s;t con|fu&s;ed; hell and de&s;truction are before him.</P>
<P>Before I pa&s;&s;e from the&s;e words, I &s;hall onely take notice, that there are many words in Scripture by which hell is expre&s;t. The Rabbins number &s;even or eight, heere are two.</P>
<PB N="751" REF="390">
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Sheol</HI> or the grave, becau&s;e we lye as it were buried there in a &s;econd death.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>Abaddon</HI> or de&s;truction, becau&s;e all are there in a peri&s;hing &s;tate, or as given up into the hand of de&s;truction.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Hel is called <HI>T&s;almaveth</HI> or the <HI>&s;hadow of death;</HI> and by the <HI>&s;hadow of death,</HI> is not meant a <HI>&s;mal appearance of death:</HI> as the word <HI>&s;hadow</HI> is u&s;ed (<HI>Jam:</HI> 1.17.) where the Apo&s;tle exalts the glory of the Lord in his unchangeablenes, that he is the <HI>Father of lights, from whom every good gift, and every perfect gift cometh downe, with whom is no variablene&s;&s;e, neither &s;hadow of turning;</HI> that is, he is not &s;ubject to any turning at all; but hel is called <HI>the &s;hadow of death,</HI> as &s;hadow is put for &s;trength and power, and &s;o to be under the &s;hadow of God or man, is to be under their pro|tection. Thus <HI>hell is the &s;hadow of death,</HI> that is, the &s;trength and power of it; Death never triumphs &s;o much in its &s;trength, as it doth in hell.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Hel is called <HI>Erets tachith,</HI> which &s;ignifyes, fir&s;t, the <HI>earth under,</HI> or the lowe&s;t and mo&s;t inferiour earth, whence in Scripture hell is called <HI>the bottomle&s;&s;e pit,</HI> and the way to it is de|&s;cribed by de&s;cending and going downe: as heaven is de&s;cribed by a&s;cending and hight; heaven is high, and the highe&s;t a&s;cending is our a&s;cending to heaven: &s;o hell is low, and the lowe&s;t de&s;cending is de&s;cending into hel. Secondly, it imports, <HI>feare, vexation, and trembling;</HI> hell is a land of trembling, it is a land of feare; it is &s;ayd of <HI>Caine</HI> that when he went out of the pre&s;ence of God, after he had murthered his brother he went into the land of <HI>Nod,</HI> that is, into a land of trembling, which &s;ome expound not of any &s;peciall place that he went to, but that every place where he went was to him a land of trembling, hee having much feare and dread upon his con&s;cience after he had embrewed his hands in his brothers blood. Hel is indeed the land of <HI>Nod,</HI> a Trembling land; They who have not rejoyced with trembling in this world, &s;hall &s;orrow with trembling for ever in the world to come.</P>
<P>Fifthly, Hel is called <HI>Ber&s;hiachathith,</HI> that is, <HI>the pi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="3 letters"> corrupti|on,</HI> not that the bodyes of the damned &s;hall corrupt in hell (as they doe in the grave, for though we cannot &s;ay that the bodyes of the wicked &s;hall <HI>be ray&s;ed incorruptible,</HI> as the bodyes of the Saints &s;hall, yet they &s;hall be ray&s;ed immortall, and in that &s;ence incor|ruptible, that is, they &s;hall never dye) but they &s;hall be corrup|tible,
<PB N="752" REF="391"> that is, filthines and corruption &s;hall be upon them: The bodyes of Saints onely &s;hall be ray&s;ed &s;o incorruptible, that no|thing of corruption &s;hall be &s;eene upon them, or felt by them, but the bodyes of the wicked &s;hall ever feele corruption, and beare the markes of it, without total corrupting, or peri&s;hing, as corrup|ting and peri&s;hing are taken for not-being. The wicked would be glad that they might peri&s;h &s;o, but they &s;hall not, hel will be a pit of corruption to them, for what&s;oever is painefull and grievous to the fle&s;h, &s;hall dwell in their bodyes, and therefore it is called <HI>the pit of corruption;</HI> and it may al&s;o be called <HI>a pit of corruption</HI> in a morall &s;ence; becau&s;e all their &s;ins and lu&s;ts &s;hall remaine upon them for ever; hel-fire cannot purge the &s;oule from &s;in, nor free any man from the power of that old man, who (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, <HI>Eph:</HI> 4.22.) <HI>Is corrupt according to the deceitfull lu&s;ts.</HI> Nothing but the blood of Chri&s;t can purge the &s;oule from corrup|tion; <HI>Hell is for the puni&s;hment of corruption, but not at all for the purging of it,</HI> and therefore it is well called, <HI>the pit of cor|ruption.</HI></P>
<P>Sixthly, It is called <HI>Erets Ne&s;ciah,</HI> that is, <HI>the land of forget|fulne&s;&s;e;</HI> as the grave, &s;o hell is called the <HI>land of forgetfulne&s;&s;e,</HI> where the wicked &s;hall be remembred no more; God will remem|ber them no more, to doe them any good, and they are forgot|ten how much &s;oever they are remembred, who are not remem|bred for good. And as God will not remember tho&s;e in hell for good, &s;o they &s;hall forget all the good they have had upon the earth; or the remembrance which they have of it, &s;hall onely be to encrea&s;e their &s;orrow under pre&s;ent evills. <HI>Abraham</HI> in the Parable (<HI>Luk.</HI> 16.25.) &s;ayd to the rich man in hel, <HI>Son remem|ber that thou in thy life time received&s;t thy good things;</HI> and that remembrance of the good things which he once enjoyed was but an addition to all the evills and mi&s;eries which he then endured. <HI>It is better never to have had any good thing, then onely to remember that we have had it.</HI> How mi&s;erable is their condition who &s;hall neither be <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">membred for good, nor remember any good, but to make them more mi&s;erable!</P>
<P>Seventhly, Hel is called <HI>Erets cho&s;cec,</HI> that is, <HI>a land of dark|ne&s;&s;e, a region of darkne&s;&s;e;</HI> there is nothing but darkne&s;&s;e in hell: The wicked <HI>goe to the generation of their fathers, where they &s;hall never &s;ee light</HI> (P&s;al. 49.19.) They loved darkne&s;&s;e here rather
<PB N="753" REF="391"> then light, and they &s;hall be puni&s;hed with darkenes hereafter, which hath no light. Darknes was their choyce in this life, and it &s;hall be their cur&s;e in the next.</P>
<P>Eightly, Hel is called <HI>Gehinon</HI> (whence the Greeke <HI>Gehenna</HI>) from the valley of <HI>Hinnon;</HI> in which the Idolatrous <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> (imitating the abomination of the Heathens) were wont to &s;acri|fice their children with horrible cruelty. And hence the Scripture often makes u&s;e of that word to &s;ignifie the place of torment, or the torments of that place, where the damned mu&s;t abide &s;eparate for ever from the favourable pre&s;ence, and &s;ubjected under the wrath of God. <HI>This Hel is naked before God, and this de&s;truction hath no covering.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="7" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 7.</HI></BIBL> He &s;tretcheth out the North over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>In this ver&s;e <HI>Job</HI> exalts God in his Almighty power, upholding the mighty fabrick of heaven and earth. His di&s;cour&s;e mounts up from the earth, from the waters, and from hell, as high as heaven it &s;elfe; and he &s;peakes of heaven and of the earth in their con|junction together.</P>
<Q>He &s;tretcheth out the North over the empty place.</Q>
<P><HI>Bildad</HI> had &s;poken of the power of God in the heavens, <HI>Domi|nion and feare are with him, hee maketh peace in his high places, is there any number of his armies? and upon whom doth not his light ari&s;e? Job</HI> al&s;o &s;peaks of the power of God in the creation and di&s;|po&s;ition of the&s;e things; <HI>He &s;tretcheth out the North over the empty place.</HI> The word is &s;o rendred to &s;ignifie a gracious act of God to regardle&s;&s;e men. (<HI>Prov.</HI> 1.24.) <HI>I have &s;tretched out my hand, and no man regarded.</HI> God &s;tretcheth out his hand to &s;mite, and he &s;tretcheth it out to &s;ave, but man layeth it not to heart. It is u&s;ed al&s;o to &s;ignifie that powerfull act of God, in preparing the heavens for him&s;elfe (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 104.2.) <HI>Who covere&s;t thy &s;elfe with light, as with a garment: who &s;tretche&s;t out the heavens like a curtaine.</HI> As wee draw or &s;tretch out a curtaine, &s;o God &s;tretcheth out the heavens.</P>
<P>But why doth <HI>Job</HI> &s;ay, <HI>He &s;tretcheth out the North?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, by the North he meaneth that part of heaven that is
<PB N="754" REF="392"> Northward, or the northerne heavens. Againe, the North may be taken for the whole heavens by a Synechdoche: and <HI>Job</HI> might &s;peak of the <HI>North</HI> becau&s;e the North-pole was neere&s;t the climate where he dwelt. <HI>He &s;tretcheth out the North, or the northerne hea|vens,</HI> that is, the whole heavens, both the North and South, Ea&s;t and We&s;t.</P>
<Q>Hee &s;tretcheth out the North over the empty place.</Q>
<P>What is this empty place?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, By <HI>the empty place,</HI> &s;ome under&s;tand the mo&s;t remote and uninhabited places of the earth: Hee over-&s;preads them with heavens, and di&s;po&s;eth things there as well as here; hee &s;preads the heavens over tho&s;e parts where there is no man, and &s;o may be cal|led, Empty places, becau&s;e un-inhabited, or not fill'd with men. <HI>God cau&s;eth it to raine on the earth, where no man is, on the Wilder|nes, where there is no man</HI> (as he &s;peaketh of him&s;elfe to <HI>Job</HI> in the 38<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h Chapter of this booke, <HI>ver.</HI> 26th.) Now as God raineth up|on tho&s;e (in this &s;ence) empty places, &s;o he &s;tretcheth out the heavens over the&s;e empty places, that is, he takes care of them as well as of tho&s;e that are peopled or inhabited.</P>
<P>Secondly, Rather, by <HI>the empty place,</HI> wee are to under&s;tand the ayre, for in the natural di&s;po&s;ition or &s;y&s;teame of the world, the earth is lowe&s;t, the water next, the ayre is the third, and the fire fourth, over which God &s;tretcheth out the heavens; And be|cau&s;e nothing is vi&s;ible to us upwards on this &s;ide heaven but the ayre, therefore it may wel be &s;ayd, that he &s;tretcheth out the hea|vens immediately over the ayre, or the empty place.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Super inane; quod juxta com|munem opinio|ne~ intelligi de|cet. Vulgo enim totum &s;patium a terra u&s;que ad coelum vacuum putatur, quum plenum aere &s;it.</NOTE>But is the ayre or that place which we call the ayre empty? no, the ayre is not empty, there is no vacuity, no empty place in nature; and nature will put it &s;elfe into &s;trange cour&s;es to avoide a vacuity; water will a&s;cend to avoide vacuity, and it will not de&s;|cend, to avoide vacuity; but though the ayre be not empty or voide, taking emptines &s;trictly and philo&s;ophically (for every place hath its filling) yet as emptines is taken largely and vulgarly, &s;o the ayre may be called an <HI>empty place;</HI> when wee come into a roome where there is no artificiall furniture, wee &s;ay it is an emp|ty roome: &s;o the &s;pace between us and the heavens in a vulgar &s;ence is an <HI>empty place.</HI> The Scripture &s;peakes often of things ac|cording to the vulgar acceptation and under&s;tanding. M^r <HI>Brough|ton</HI>
<PB N="755" REF="392"> tran&s;lates thus; <HI>He &s;tretcheth out the North upon the empty.</HI> And wee may conceave <HI>Job</HI> u&s;ing this forme of &s;peech, the more to magnifie and &s;hew forth the great power of God; As if he had &s;ayd, <HI>The heavens have nothing to beare them up but an empty place, what can the ayre beare? the ayre will beare nothing; yet the Lord u&s;eth no &s;upport for the whole heavens but this empty place.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, I conceave that this phra&s;e may be expounded bare|ly of the Creation; For <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> &s;ayth (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.1, 2.) <HI>In the be|ginning God created the heavens and the earth, and the earth was without forme and voyd or empty.</HI> It is the word <HI>Tohu</HI> u&s;ed here in <HI>Job;</HI> over this <HI>Tohu</HI> or empty place did God at the fir&s;t &s;tretch the heavens. And as this was the worke of God at fir&s;t in Creati|on, &s;o it is his worke &s;till in providence; and therefore the Lord &s;peakes of it, as of a continued worke (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 44.24.) <HI>Thus &s;ayth the Lord thy redeemer</HI> &amp;c. <HI>that &s;tretcheth forth the heavens alone, and &s;preadeth abroad the earth by my &s;elfe.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>As the heavens in creation, &s;o the heavens in their dayly motion are &s;tretched out and ordered by God.</Q>
<P>(I&s;aiah 40.22.) <HI>It is he that &s;itteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as gra&s;s-hoppers, that &s;tretcheth out the heavens as a curtaine, and &s;preadeth them out as a tent to dwell in.</HI> The Prophet entitles God to this with a &s;peciall empha&s;is; <HI>It is He</HI> that doth it; as if he had &s;ayd, God doth it, and none but he, and in this he eminently declares that <HI>He is God.</HI> Who ever &s;tretched out &s;uch a curtaine or canopy as the heavens? who ever pitched &s;uch a tent to dwell in? This is a tent or a Tabernacle, which though it &s;hall be changed, yet (as the Prophet &s;peakes of <HI>Sion</HI> in her beauty and glory, <HI>I&s;.</HI> 33.20.) <HI>Shall not be taken downe, not one of the &s;takes thereof &s;hall ever be removed, neyther &s;hall any of the cords thereof be broken.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, Con&s;ider, the heavens have no outward &s;upport; <HI>They are &s;tretched out over the empty place;</HI> Which demon&s;tration of the power of God will be more cleared and hightned in the next words.</P>
<Q>And he hangeth the earth upon nothing.</Q>
<P>If any &s;ay heaven is a thin body, there needs no great matter
<PB N="756" REF="393"> to keepe that up. What will they &s;ay to the earth, which is a gro&s;&s;e and heavy body, a body of an unconceivable weight; who can count or ca&s;t up the weight of the earth, or how much the earth weigheth? God not onely &s;tretcheth out the thinne heavens over the empty place, <HI>but he hangeth the earth</HI> (that mighty ma&s;&s;e of the earth) <HI>upon nothing,</HI> he hath not &s;o much as a pegge in the wall (&s;o the word &s;ignifieth) <HI>to hang it upon.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> appen|dit &s;u&s;pendit.</NOTE></P>
<Q>He hangeth the earth.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t nomen compo&s;i+tum ex <GAP DESC="foreign"> non &amp; <GAP DESC="foreign"> quid qua&s;i dicas nihil quicquam. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI> Philo&s;ophi ra|tionem reddunt, quod illa &s;it in &s;uo centro; in quo res natura|lit&egrave;r, quie&s;cunt, ideoque terra ponderibus li|brata &s;uis qui|e&s;cat.</NOTE>When he &s;ayth, <HI>the earth,</HI> we are to under&s;tand both earth and water, the whole terre&s;tiall globe, This <HI>he hangeth upon nothing.</HI> The Original word is a compound, which in its parts may be ren|dred, <HI>not any thing at all,</HI> that is, <HI>nothing.</HI> But how can any thing be hung upon that which is nothing? if it hang, it mu&s;t be upon &s;omewhat. Philo&s;ophers tell us that the earth hangeth upon its Center, and &s;o is poy&s;ed by its own waight, and cannot moove, which Center or imaginary point is nothing.</P>
<P>But the Scripture &s;ayth the earth hath a foundation; And <HI>Da|vid</HI> (P&s;al. 24.2.) tells us expre&s;&s;ely what that foundation is; <HI>The earth is the Lords, and the fullne&s;&s;e thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein; for he hath founded it upon the &s;eas, and e&s;tabli|&s;hed it upon the floods.</HI> According to this Scripture the Sea is the foundation of the earth, &amp; the floods are the ba&s;is of it. How then doth <HI>Job</HI> affirme, that <HI>He hangeth the earth upon nothing?</HI> That indeed which <HI>David</HI> affirmes, may &s;eeme very &s;trange, <HI>that the earth &s;hould be founded upon the &s;ea, and e&s;tabli&s;hed upon the floods,</HI> is the &s;ea a fit foundation for the earth? and can that which is &s;ta|ble and unmoveable, be e&s;tabli&s;hed upon that whi<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h is the Em|bleme of in&s;tability, floods and waters? <HI>Jacob</HI> &s;ayth of <HI>Reub<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n</HI> (Gen. 49.4.) <HI>un&s;table as water;</HI> and can floods or waters be the whole earths e&s;tabli&s;hment? the earth is rather the foundation of the water: and many Philo&s;ophers tell us that the &s;ea is higher then the earth, and therein is the power of God &s;eene that hee holds in the &s;ea as with barrs, or as with a bridle, le&s;t it over|whelme the earth; how is it then &s;ayd, <HI>the earth is founded upon the &s;ea?</HI> I an&s;wer, the word that wee tran&s;late <HI>upon,</HI> &s;ignifieth, <HI>by, neere, together, with,</HI> &s;o, <HI>he hath founded it upon the &s;ea,</HI> is, by the &s;ea,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Super flumina e&s;t juxta vel &s;ecus flumina quis enim ter|ram initiflumi|nibus dixerit. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI></NOTE> or neare the &s;ea, that is, the &s;ea and the land are next neigh|bours, they dwel &s;o neere each other, that the one &s;eemes to dwel
<PB N="757" REF="393"> upon, or be the foundation of the other. There are waters within the earth; whence it is &s;ayd, that at the time of the Flood (<HI>Gen.</HI> 7.11.) as the <HI>windows of heaven were opened, &s;o the fountaines of the great deepe were broken up:</HI> and wee read of the waters as placed <HI>under the earth</HI> (Exod: 20.4.) yet if we &s;ay the earth is upon the waters, &s;ence contradicts it, and if wee con&s;ider the whole globe together, wee cannot &s;ay which is uppermo&s;t, for in a &s;pheare or round figure, there is neyther uppermo&s;t nor lowermo&s;t, but all the parts are equall and alike, being placed one by another, not one upon another. So that the text, in the <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> which &s;aith the <HI>earth is founded upon the &s;eas,</HI> doth not at all da&s;h again&s;t nor con|tradict this of <HI>Job</HI> which &s;ayth, <HI>He hangeth the earth upon no|thing.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, There is another Scripture that &s;eemes to oppo&s;e this, and from which we may inferre, that &s;urely the earth hath &s;ome|what to &s;u&s;taine it (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.5.) <HI>Who layd the foundations of the earth, that it &s;hould not be removed for ever.</HI> Wee put in the margin, <HI>Hee founded the earth upon her ba&s;is,</HI> if the earth be found|ed upon a ba&s;is or pillar, then it doth not hang upon nothing. I an&s;wer, the foundation or ba&s;is, in the <HI>P&s;alme,</HI> doth not oppo&s;e the earths hanging upon nothing; for the foundation or ba&s;is which upholdeth the earth, is not any created power without, or extrin&s;icall to the earth; God did not build the earth as wee doe hou&s;es, fir&s;t laying the foundation and then &s;eting up the walls and roofe, there is no &s;uch thing imaginable in the worke of God. But the foundation or ba&s;is of the earth, is the infinite and invi&s;i|ble power of God who made the earth. The will and word of the Builder is the pillar which &s;u&s;taineth this building. The thin ayre is all the appearing foundation of the earth. For as the heavens hang over the ayre, &s;o the earth hangs in the mid&s;t of the ayre. What then is the ba&s;is and foundation of the earth? I an&s;wer; which may be the poynt of ob&s;ervation from the&s;e words.</P>
<Q>The earth is upheld by the infinite and allmighty power of God.</Q>
<P>The earth hath no pillar, but hangs like a ball in the ayre; we &s;hould looke upon it as a miracle did we &s;ee a little ball but of an ounce weight hanging in the ayre without &s;upport;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Non fundam<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n|tis &s;uis n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">xa &s;ub&s;i&s;tit terra, nec &s;ulchris &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">is|&s;tabilis per&s;eve|rat, &s;ed dominus &s;tatuit terram &amp; fundamento voluntatis &s;uae continet. <HI>Amb: Hexam: 6.</HI></NOTE> the ayre will &s;carce beare a feather, throw a feather up into the ayre and it will de&s;cend, unle&s;&s;e kept up by a breath of winde, and yet this huge
<PB N="758" REF="394"> va&s;t globe of earth and water, hangs as a ball in the ayre, and we &s;carce wonder at it. The Poets fained an <HI>Atlas</HI> to beare up the heavens with his &s;houlders; God is the <HI>Atlas</HI> that beares up the heavens and the earth too, the upper globe, and the under globe too; he made all things by him&s;elfe out of nothing, and he &s;up|ports them by him&s;elfe upon nothing. We have an excellent ex|pre&s;&s;ion of the power of God in this thing (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 40.12.) <HI>Who hath mea&s;ured the waters in the hollow of his hand? and meted out heaven with the &s;pan, and comprehended the du&s;t of the earth in a mea&s;ure; and weighed the mountaines in &s;cales, and the hills in a ballance.</HI> God made all things in weight and mea&s;ure; and hee keepes the weight and mea&s;ure of all things. As the earth was not till his word and will gave it a being, &s;o his word and will alone is all-&s;ufficient to uphold it in that being. God hath not hanged the earth upon any thing but him&s;elfe, who is indeed infinitely more then all things. Take two or three deductions from this Grand Conclu&s;ion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>The &s;ame power which made the world &s;upports and main|taines it.</HI> Thus the Authour to the <HI>Hebrewes</HI> &s;ets forth the digni|ty of Chri&s;t the Son of God (<HI>Chap:</HI> 1.2, 3.) <HI>Whom he hath ap|poynted heyre of all things, by whom al&s;o he made the worlds</HI> (both the naturall, civill, and &s;pirituall worlds, with all the changes and &s;ucce&s;&s;ions which have been in them) <HI>who is al&s;o the brightnes of the glory of God, and the expre&s;&s;e image of his per&s;on, upholding all things,</HI> (the naturall frame of the world as wel as the civill and &s;pi|rituall frame of it) <HI>by the word of his power,</HI> or by his powerfull word, which as it once commanded all things into a being, &s;o now it commands all things into that continuance of their being in which they are. Which power the Apo&s;tle attributes againe to Chri&s;t (<HI>Col.</HI> 1.17.) <HI>He is before all things, and by him all things con&s;i&s;t.</HI> Sin made the world &s;hake; <HI>And had it not been for a &s;econd creation, the fir&s;t creation had been ruin'd and lo&s;t.</HI> The earth and all our concernements who live upon the face of the earth, hang upon nothing but the will of God. If he let us goe we fall, though all the powers on earth would underprop and uphold us; and if he hold us up we &s;tand fa&s;t though we have no more of any earthly power to prop us up with, then the earth hath, which is propt up with and hangeth upon nothing.</P>
<PB N="759" REF="394">
<P>Secondly.</P>
<Q>God can doe the greate&s;t things without any vi&s;ible meanes.</Q>
<P>This worke of God in hanging the earth as it doth, is to be numbred among the greate&s;t workes that ever he did; and thus it hangs without any the lea&s;t appearing meanes to hold it up. There are three arguments given in Scripture of the mighty power of God.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That he workes by &s;mall, even the &s;malle&s;t, meanes, wee have rea&s;on to wonder when effects exceed all vi&s;ible cau&s;es: as it &s;hewes the great power of God when he &s;tops great meanes from doing any thing; when he cau&s;eth men to labour in the very fire, that is, to toyle and &s;weat them&s;elves to the utmo&s;t <HI>for very vani|ty,</HI> that is, without any hoped for i&s;&s;ue or advantage. Some labour in the fire for very vanity, becau&s;e all they get by their labours is worth nothing; but others may be &s;ayd to labour in the fire for very vanity, becau&s;e with all their labours they can get nothing. And <HI>this is of the Lord,</HI> this is an effect of the Lords power to make the power of man, in the u&s;e and improvement of the be&s;t and choyce&s;t meanes, ineffectual. So on the other &s;ide it is a great magnifying of the power of God, when by a litle power put forth by the hand of a weake in&s;trument, he produceth great effects. The Apo&s;tle <HI>James</HI> brings it in with a behold (<HI>Chap.</HI> 3.5.) <HI>Be|hold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!</HI> When great matters are done by &s;mall meanes, we have rea&s;on to extoll and cry up the power of God.</P>
<P>Secondly, It argues the great power of God when he doth great things by meanes that are improbable, or that &s;eeme no way &s;utable to &s;uch an end; as Chri&s;t cured blindne&s;&s;e with clay &amp; &s;pit|tle, which meanes had no &s;utablene&s;&s;e to &s;uch an end, the curing of blindne&s;&s;e; The meanes u&s;ed to cure <HI>Naaman</HI> had no &s;utablene&s;&s;e for &s;uch a cure; and <HI>Naaman</HI> was &s;o &s;encible of it, that he was very angry with the Prophet about it, as if his lepro&s;ie could be cured by &s;o &s;light a thing as that was; he thought he would have done it with &s;ome ceremony, or in an extraordinary way; yet this &s;hewed that the cure was wrought by a divine power, becau&s;e it was wrought by &s;o improbable an application&punc; As the power of God appeares in doing great things by &s;mall meanes, &s;o by doing great things by unlikely meanes.</P>
<PB N="760" REF="395">
<P>Thirdly, It &s;hews the power of God much more to doe great things without the u&s;e of any meanes at all. Such actings are crea|tings, as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes of the Creation (<HI>Heb:</HI> 11.3.) <HI>Through faith wee under&s;tand that the worlds were framed by the word of God; &s;o that things that are &s;eene, were not made of things that doe appeare.</HI> Nothing appeared out of which this world was created. There was no pre-exci&s;tent matter, out of which the world was made; The world was made out of nothing; That Goodly fabrick of heaven and earth which is now &s;eene, was made of that which was never &s;eene; no man can tell what were the materialls of which God made the world. Now as God &s;hewed his infinite power at fir&s;t in making all things of that which did not appeare, &s;o the great power of God doth appeare now in do|ing great things without the appearance or external concurrence of any thing. The Lord turnes whole Nations &s;ometimes by no|thing; things are done and no man can tell how they were done, or by what. We love to have a fayre Appearance of meanes, when we attempt great matters; But God loves to act when and where nothing appeares. We honour God mo&s;t, when we are &s;encible that the greate&s;t meanes is nothing without him; and that, he him|&s;elfe is enough when no meanes at all appeares to &s;ence. <HI>It is Gods u&s;uall way to doe things in a way which is not u&s;ed; and ey|ther to u&s;e no helpe or that which &s;ignifyeth nothing.</HI> Thus the Apo&s;tle de&s;cribes the dealing of God in bringing &s;oules to him&s;elfe by a holy calling, and in removing what&s;oever &s;tandeth in the way of that call (1 <HI>Cor:</HI> 1.26.) <HI>For yee &s;ee your calling, brethren, how that not many wi&s;e men after the fle&s;h, not many mighty, not many noble are called,</HI> &amp;c. (&s;ome wi&s;e and mighty men are called, le&s;t any thing in man &s;hould &s;eeme too hard for the Grace of God; and not many wi&s;e and mighty men are called, le&s;t any thing in man &s;hould &s;eeme to contribute to or helpe out the call of God) <HI>but God hath cho&s;en fooli&s;h things to confound the wi&s;e: and God hath cho&s;en the weake things of the world to confound the things which are mighty, and ba&s;e things of the world, and things which are di&s;pi&s;ed, hath God cho&s;en, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are;</HI> that is, tho&s;e things which are &s;o fooli&s;h and weake and ba&s;e and de&s;pi&s;ed, they &s;eeme to have no being, or are accoun|ted as nothing, even the&s;e non-entityes, the&s;e poore tooles doth God chu&s;e and take up to doe great things by, and to nullifie or
<PB N="761" REF="395"> bring tho&s;e things to nought, which are all in all among or in the e&s;timations of men. Therefore, &s;o God owne the worke, the mat|ter is not much (I &s;peake not in regard of lawfullnes but likelynes, I &s;ay the matter is not much) what the meanes is; God can over|wit wi&s;e men by fooles, he can over-power mighty men by tho&s;e who are weake. Thus God trivmphs over humane improbabili|tyes, yea impo&s;&s;ibilityes, and would have no fle&s;h eyther de&s;payre becau&s;e of the &s;malnes of meanes, or glory in his &s;ight, becau&s;e of the greatnes of it. How glorious was <HI>Abrahams</HI> faith in the former Chapter, who, was &s;o farre from de&s;payring that he, was &s;trong in faith, giving glory to God, though he &s;aw nothing but death up|on all the meanes which tended to attaine the ble&s;&s;ing promi&s;ed (<HI>Rom.</HI> 4.17, 18, 19.) <HI>As it is written, I have made thee a fa|ther of many Nations before him whom he beleeved, even God</HI> (who was it that <HI>Abraham</HI> beleeved? it was God. And under what no|tion did his faith eye God? even as he) <HI>who quickeneth the dead:</HI> when God is clo&s;ed with under this notion, as quickning the dead, what can be too hard for faith? but there is more in it, <HI>Abrahams</HI> faith eyed God not onely as quickning the dead, but as he that <HI>calleth tho&s;e things which be not as though they were:</HI> that is, as he who maketh &s;omething of nothing; when once <HI>Abraham</HI> had the&s;e apprehen&s;ions of God, then nothing &s;tucke with him, his faith could dige&s;t iron, and therefore (as it followeth) <HI>he again&s;t hope, beleeved in hope,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>and being not weake in faith, he con&s;idered not his owne body being now dead</HI> (as to the procreation of children) <HI>when he was about an hundred yeares old, neyther yet the deadne&s;&s;e</HI> (as to conception) <HI>of Sarahs wombe. He &s;taggered not at the pro|mi&s;e of God through unbeliefe</HI> (that is, he never made any &s;cruples or queries how the promi&s;e &s;hould be accompli&s;hed) <HI>but was &s;trong in faith, giving glory to God,</HI> that is, gloryfying God by be|leeving that he was able to make good the promi&s;e, or that it was as ea&s;ie for God to create a performance, as to make the pro|mi&s;e.</P>
<P>Thirdly, Then <HI>feare not when God is a working, but he will cary on his worke;</HI> deficiencyes in the creature, are no &s;top to his actings: his immediate or &s;ole power is enough who hangeth the earth up|no nothing. Where are the pillars that &s;u&s;taine this mighty ma&s;&s;e? It hangeth fa&s;t by no fa&s;tning, but the order of God; And his order is &s;trong enough to hang the greate&s;t bu&s;ienes that ever was in the
<PB N="762" REF="396"> world upon. The <HI>Jewes</HI> have a &s;aying, in reverence of the written word of God; <HI>That upon or at every Iota or the lea&s;t title of the Law, there hangeth a mountaine of &s;ence:</HI> and 'tis as true in refe|rence to his doings as his &s;ayings: God can hang mountaines upon mole-hils, and turne mountaines into mole-hils for his peoples &s;ake and &s;afety. It is rare that we are put to the actings of faith at &s;o high a rate (There is u&s;ually &s;omewhat in &s;ight to en|courage the actings of our faith and dependance upon God, they that are in the lowe&s;t condition, have &s;omewhat to looke to) but if there be nothing to be &s;eene, then doe but remember, that <HI>God hangeth the earth upon nothing,</HI> and faith will &s;ay, <HI>I have all. Although the meale in the Barrell, and the oyle in the Cru&s;e &s;hould fayle; Although the fig-tree &s;hall not blo&s;&s;ome, neyther &s;hall there be fruit in the Vines; Although the labour of the Olive &s;hall fayle, and the fields &s;hall yeild no meate</HI> &amp;c. yet the Lord fayleth not, eyther in his power for us, or compa&s;&s;ions towards us, and therefore the beleever can even then rejoyce in the Lord, and joy in the God of his &s;alvation. <HI>For while there is nothing in appearance, there is not onely &s;ome thing, but all things are, that are for our good, in the pro|mi&s;e.</HI> Faith may make all &s;orts of comfortable Conclu&s;ions to and for it &s;elfe (and not build Ca&s;tles in the ayre) from this one A&s;&s;ertion, That, <HI>The earth hangeth in the ayre,</HI> or to give it in the words of the text, <HI>That God hangeth the earth upon nothing. The Con&s;titution or &s;yntaxe of Nature wel con&s;idered, is no &s;mall advan|tage to our hightning and &s;trengthning in grace.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="763" REF="396">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 26. Ver&s;. 8, 9, 10.</HI></BIBL>
<P>He bindeth up the waters in his thicke clouds, and the cloud is not broken under him.</P>
<P>He holdeth backe the face of his throane, and &s;preadeth his cloud upon it.</P>
<P>He hath compa&s;&s;ed the waters with bounds, untill the day and night come to an end.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>JOB having &s;hewed how wonderfully God upholdeth the earth which is under us, goeth on to &s;hew no le&s;&s;e a wonder, in his binding up tho&s;e waters in clouds which are above us. What&s;oever God hath done or doth in heaven above or upon the earth beneath, eyther as to creation and the fir&s;t con&s;titution of t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ings, or as to providence, and the continuall motion of things, is wonderfull and glorious.</P>
<DIV3 N="8" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 8.</HI></BIBL> He bindeth up the waters in his thicke clouds.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>As our Engli&s;h word, <HI>Bind,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Colliga|vit vinxit com|pre&s;&s;it.</NOTE> &s;o the Original implyeth a force upon the waters to keepe them within the cloud; Water would not &s;tay there but that it mu&s;t whether it will or no; It would ru&s;h downe pre&s;ently and di&s;orderly to the ruine of all below, but God bindeth it to its good behaviour. As the mouth of a &s;acke is tyed or bound about, that the corne put into it fall not out; Or (which allu&s;ion comes neere&s;t the text) as barrels are bound with hoopes, le&s;t the liquor put into them &s;hould leake out; thus</P>
<P><HI>God bindeth up the waters.</HI> What waters? There are two &s;orts of waters; fir&s;t, upper waters, or waters in the ayre; of which the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peaketh when he &s;ayth, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.3.) <HI>Hee layeth the beames of his chambers in the waters;</HI> that is, in tho&s;e up|per waters, which are neere&s;t the heaven, called in Scripture, <HI>The habitation of his holynes and of his glory.</HI> Earthly Architects mu&s;t have &s;trong walls to lay the beames of their chambers upon, but the Lord who made heaven and earth, can make fluid waters beare up the beames of his chambers for ever. Secondly, the<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e are lower waters, or waters on the earth; Which di&s;tinction <HI>Mo&s;es</HI>
<PB N="764" REF="397"> gave long before <HI>Ari&s;totle</HI> (Gen. 1.7.) <HI>And God made the fir|mament and it divided the waters which were under the firmament, from the waters which were above the firmament.</HI> Where by the <HI>firmament</HI> we are to under&s;tand that va&s;t &s;pace which is extended or &s;tretched out from the earth up to the clouds, commonly cal|led, <HI>The ayre,</HI> and by the waters above the firmament, tho&s;e <HI>raine|waters</HI> bound up in the <HI>clouds.</HI> The&s;e upper waters are the waters of which our divine Philo&s;opher here &s;ayth, that <HI>God bindeth them up,</HI></P>
<P><HI>In his thicke clouds.</HI> Though clouds are much thinner then the water which they hold,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> a <GAP DESC="foreign"> <HI>den&s;itas.</HI></NOTE> as Naturali&s;ts teach us, yet they are thicker then the common ayre, or they may be called <HI>thickned ayre,</HI> and therefore the Hebrew word for a cloud is derived from a roote that &s;ignifyeth <HI>Thicknes.</HI> And though we have a di&s;tinction of clouds into thicke and thinne comparing one with another, yet all clouds compared to the ayre are thicke, and compared to the wa|ters all are thinne; Be&s;ides the Hebrew word &s;ignifyes clouds in|differently as wel thinne as thicke, or rather clouds Generally without any determination or re&s;triction eyther to thick or thinne. And therefore the text is be&s;t tran&s;lated without an Epithete, <HI>In his clouds,</HI> or if any Epithete were given, It would advance <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope and purpo&s;e mo&s;t to tran&s;late it, <HI>In his thinne clouds;</HI> for, the thinner the cloud is, the greater is the power of God, and the wonder the more wonderfull in making them the Continent of &s;uch mighty waters. But, we tran&s;late wel, <HI>Hee bindeth up the waters in his thicke clouds.</HI></P>
<P>It may here be enquired, why the clouds are appropriated unto God in &s;uch a &s;peciall manner, by calling them, <HI>His clouds.</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer, the clouds are <HI>His,</HI> not onely</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, In that common &s;ence (in which all things in the world are his) becau&s;e he maketh and di&s;po&s;eth of them for that u&s;e, to hold the waters which the heate of the Sun exhaleth or draw|eth up in vapours from the earth; But they are called his clouds</P>
<P>Secondly, Becau&s;e God is &s;ayd to u&s;e them as Princes doe Hor|&s;es of State or Charets of triumph to ride upon (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 19.1.) <HI>Be|hold the Lord rideth upon a &s;wift cloud,</HI> as al&s;o becau&s;e, the Lord, to &s;hew the un&s;earchablenes &amp; incomprehen&s;iblenes of his wayes and coun&s;ells in governing this world, and in ordering the affaires of his cho&s;en people, is often expre&s;&s;ed in Scripture as dwelling in
<PB N="765" REF="397"> a cloud, or covering him&s;elfe with clouds (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.11.) <HI>Hee made darkenes his &s;ecret place: his pavilion round about him, were darke waters, and thicke clouds of the skies.</HI> And againe, it is no &s;ooner &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 97.1.) <HI>The Lord reigneth,</HI> but in the very next ver&s;e it is &s;ayd, <HI>Clouds and darkenes are round about him: righteou&s;nes and Judgement are the habitation of his throane;</HI> that is, his admini&s;trations are alwayes full of righteou&s;nes, though &s;el|dome full of clearenes, they are alwayes cloathed with equity, though u&s;ually cloathed with ob&s;curity. His way and his dwelling is in the clouds; and therefore al&s;o the clouds <HI>are his. He bindeth up the waters in his thicke clouds.</HI> Some Philo&s;ophers hold that the cloud doth not &s;o much hold the water, as is water, and that the cloud is di&s;&s;olved into water when it raineth: others that the clouds hold water like a &s;punge, which being pre&s;&s;ed, yeelds it out againe. But <HI>Jobs</HI> Philo&s;ophy lifts up the glory of God mo&s;t, which maketh the cloud as a ve&s;&s;el or garment, in which the waters are bound, and yet, &s;ee the wonder.</P>
<Q>The cloud is not rent under them.</Q>
<P>The waters being of a mighty bulke and weight,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> di&s;cidit rupit, &s;ecuit in duas partes, u|&s;urpatur de qua|vis viole~ta rup|tione aut &s;egre|gatione rerum ante hac cohae|rentium.</NOTE> might ea&s;ily breake their way through the clouds, did not God both bind and ballance them (as <HI>Elihu</HI> &s;peakes, <HI>Chap.</HI> 37.16.) <HI>Doe&s;t thou know the ballancing of the clouds;</HI> To his ballancing to his binding we mu&s;t a&s;cribe the <HI>not renting of the cloud.</HI> As <HI>binding</HI> in the former clau&s;e, noted an act of power and force in God; &s;o this word <HI>renting,</HI> noteth a power and force in the water. It is &s;ayd (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 78.13.) God rent <HI>or divided the Sea,</HI> that his people might pa&s;&s;e through; And this word is u&s;ed (1 <HI>Chron:</HI> 11.18.) concerning tho&s;e mighty men who fetched <HI>David</HI> water from the wel of <HI>Bethlem; And the three brake through the ho&s;t of the Phili&s;tines.</HI> And thus would the waters naturally breake through the clouds, but they are forbidden; The cloud is not rent under all that weight, for God holds it together, and makes it as firme as bra&s;&s;e.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>It is an eminent a wonderfull act of divine power by which the waters are contained and &s;tayed within the clouds.</Q>
<P>The mighty power of God is &s;eene in keeping the waters of the
<PB N="766" REF="398"> Sea in compa&s;&s;e by the &s;ands and &s;hoares; but it is a greater act of power to keepe the waters of the ayre in compa&s;&s;e by the clouds. There are three things very wonderfull, or there are three wonders in this detention of the waters.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That the waters which are a fluid body, and love to be continually flowing and diffu&s;ing them&s;elves, &s;hould yet be &s;topt and &s;tayed together by a cloud, which is a thinner and &s;o a more fluid body then the water. It is no great matter to &s;ee water kept in conduits of &s;tone, or in ve&s;&s;els of wood and bra&s;&s;e, becau&s;e the&s;e are firme and &s;olid bodyes, &s;uch as the water cannot penetrate, nor force it &s;elfe through; but in the Judgement of nature, how improbable is it that a thinne cloud &s;hould beare &s;uch a weight and power of waters, and yet not rent nor breake under them. When <HI>Peter</HI> had enclo&s;ed a multitude of Great fi&s;hes in his net, even an hundred fifty and three (<HI>Joh.</HI> 21.11.) we find this added, as a wonder, <HI>And for all there were &s;o many, yet was not the net broken.</HI> How much more may this be added as a wonder, that &s;uch a multitude of waters &s;hould be held in a cloud, and yet the cloud not broken,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Hac &s;ane e&s;t ex illis naturae mi|rabil<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">bus, quae a&s;&s;iduitate vi|tuerunt.</NOTE> yea though the cloud be to&s;&s;ed and driven with feirce and raging windes. This is one of tho&s;e wonders in nature, which is therefore onely not wondered at becau&s;e it is &s;o common; and, which becau&s;e it is continually done, few enquire into or admire the power by which it is done.</P>
<P>Secondly, As it is a wonder that the cloud is not rent with the weight of the water, &s;o that the cloud is rent at the &s;peciall order and command of God. At his word it is that the clouds are lockt up, and by his word they are opened As in &s;piritualls, &s;o al|&s;o in naturalls,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Nulla gutta de&s;|cendit ex illis donec veniat verbum ejus &amp; mittat illas per plateas. <HI>Mo&s;es Gerund:</HI></NOTE> <HI>He openeth and no man &s;hutteth, he &s;hutteth and no man openeth.</HI> It is not in the power of all the world to rent or open a cloud (though the earth be parcht and all things that live lan|gui&s;h) till God unlocke it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, This al&s;o is wonderfull, that when at the word of God the cloud rents, yet the waters doe not gu&s;h out like a violent flood all at once, which would quickly drowne the earth, as it did (<HI>Gen:</HI> 7.11.) <HI>When the windowes of heaven were opened;</HI> but the water de&s;cends in &s;weete moderate &s;howers (as water through a Cullender, drop by drop and &s;treame by &s;treame) for the moy&s;t|ning and refre&s;hing of the earth; And God caryeth the clouds up and downe the world (as the keeper of a Garden doth his water|ing
<PB N="767" REF="398"> pot) and bids them di&s;till upon this or that place, as him&s;elfe directeth. The clouds are compared to bottles in the 38^t^h Chap|ter of this booke (<HI>v.</HI> 37th) the&s;e God &s;tops or un&s;tops u&s;ually as our need requireth, and &s;ometime as our &s;in de&s;erveth. (<HI>Amos</HI> 4.7.) <HI>I have withholden the raine from you,</HI> and he can withhold it, till the heavens over us &s;hall be as bra&s;&s;e, and the earth under us as iron. <HI>I</HI> (&s;ayth the Lord of his vineyard, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 5.6.) <HI>will al&s;o com|mand the clouds that they raine no raine upon it.</HI> The Reader may finde further di&s;coveryes about this poynt at the 5<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h Chapter, <HI>v.</HI> 10th. Onely here I &s;hall adde.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That we depend upon God not onely for grace, and pardon of &s;inne, but for raine and fruitfull &s;ea&s;ons.</P>
<P>Secondly, When we have raine, let us acknowledge that God hath rent the cloud and given it us; that he hath loo&s;ed the <HI>Gar|ment wherein he had bound the waters</HI> (Pro. 30.4.) that they may i&s;&s;ue downe upon us.</P>
<P>Thirdly, When the cloud rents not, let us goe to God to doe it. <HI>Are there any among the vanities of the Heathen that can cau&s;e raine?</HI> Surely there are none (<HI>Jer:</HI> 14.22.) And therefore the Prophet (<HI>Zech:</HI> 10.1.) &s;ends the people of God to him for it, <HI>Aske ye of the Lord raine in the time of the latter raine, &s;o the Lord &s;hall make bright clouds, and give them &s;howers of raine, to every one gra&s;&s;e in the feild.</HI> Onely he who bindeth up the waters in his clouds, can unbinde the clouds and cau&s;e them to &s;end out their waters. <HI>Job</HI> having thus &s;hewed the power of God among the clouds and upper waters, ri&s;eth yet higher in his di&s;cour&s;e, and from the&s;e waters wherein (as was toucht before) God layeth the beames of his chambers, he a&s;cendeth to the chambers them|&s;elves, even to the throane of God there.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="9" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 9.</HI></BIBL> He holdeth backe the face of his Throane, and &s;preadeth his cloud upon it.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There are three things to be enquired into, for the explication of the former part of this ver&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, What is here meant by the <HI>Throane of God.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, What, by the <HI>face of his Throane.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, What, <HI>by holding it backe.</HI></P>
<P>To the fir&s;t Querie, I an&s;wer. That according to Scripture,
<PB N="768" REF="399"> Heaven or that place above, in oppo&s;ition to the earth, or this &s;ublunary world, is called the throne of God; and that not the in|ferior heaven, or ayre, (which in Scripture is more then once cal|led heaven) but the &s;upreame or highe&s;t heavens. Thus the Lord &s;peaketh by the Prophet (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 66.1.) <HI>The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my foote&s;trole, where is the hou&s;e that ye build unto me,</HI> &amp;c. Thus al&s;o our Saviour in his admonition again&s;t &s;wear|ing (<HI>Math:</HI> 5.34.) &s;aith, <HI>Sweare not at all,</HI> (that is ra&s;hly) <HI>ney|ther by heaven, for it is Gods throne, nor by the earth, for it is his foote&s;toole.</HI> Againe (<HI>Mat:</HI> 23.22.) <HI>Hee that &s;weareth by heaven, &s;weareth by the throne of God.</HI> The rea&s;on why heaven is called the <HI>throne of God,</HI> is, becau&s;e there he manife&s;ts him&s;elfe, as Princes doe upon their thrones in greate&s;t glory and maje&s;ty: as al&s;o becau&s;e there he is more fully enjoyed by glorifyed Saints and Angels. God fills heaven and earth with his pre&s;ence, yet he declares his pre&s;ence more in heaven then here upon the earth. Heaven is the throne of God, but</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Quidam faciem e&s;&s;e hominis pu|tant os tantum &amp; oculos et ge|nas quod Graeci <HI>pro&s;opon</HI> di|cunt, quando fa|cies &s;it forma omnis et modus et factura quae|dam totius cor|poris a faciendo dicta; &s;ic men|tis &amp; coeli &amp; Maris facies probe dicitur. <HI>Gel: lib<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> 13. c. 28.</HI></NOTE>Secondly, What is the <HI>face of his Throne?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer; The face of a thing is taken for the whole outward appearance, or for the appearing &s;tate of it. As the face of a mans body is not onely that fore-part of the head, which we &s;trictly call &s;o, but the forme and &s;tructure of the whole body is the face of it. And in that &s;ence the word is applyed both to tho&s;e great naturall bodyes, the Heaven and the earth, as al&s;o to a civill body, or to the Body-politicke of a Citie and Common-wealth. Thus whereas we render (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 24.1.) <HI>Behold, the Lord maketh the earth empty, and maketh it wa&s;t, and turneth it up&s;ide downe,</HI> &amp;c. The Hebrew is (and &s;o our tran&s;laters put it in the margin) <HI>he per|verteth the face thereof;</HI> that is, he changeth the &s;tate and outward forme of things, and putteth them into a new mould or model, re&s;pecting order and Government. And &s;o we commonly &s;peake after great publicke changes, <HI>The very face of things</HI> is altered, <HI>or things have a new face.</HI> And thus the P&s;almi&s;t expre&s;&s;eth the gratious and favourable changes which God maketh in the things of this world (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.30.) <HI>Thou &s;ende&s;t forth thy Spirit, they are created,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Coeli vultus e&s;t coeli &s;uperficies concava&s;tellata, quae nos re&s;p<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">cit. <HI>Albert:</HI></NOTE> <HI>and thou renewe&s;t the face of the earth;</HI> that is, all things appeare in another hiew and fa&s;hion then before. So then, <HI>the Face of the Throane of God,</HI> is that part of heaven (&s;ay &s;ome) which looketh towards us, or which we looke upon; All that
<PB N="769" REF="399"> Greatnes and beauty of heaven which our eye reacheth unto, and which appeares to us as a va&s;t Canopy &s;et with &s;pangles or &s;tuds of Gold, &s;uch are the Starrs to our &s;ight. But I rather con|ceave. <HI>The face of the throne of God to be,</HI> the vi&s;ible and full de|mon&s;tration of that infinite light and glory wherein God dwel|leth, and which appeareth or is given forth to the ble&s;&s;ed Saints and Angels, who are &s;ayd to be about his throne according to their mea&s;ure and capability of receaving it. The face of his throne, taken thus, he holdeth backe from us alwayes in this life, and as the face of his throne is taken in the other &s;ence, he often holds it backe from us. About which it remaines to be enquired</P>
<P>Thirdly, What is meant by <HI>holding backe the face of his throne.</HI></P>
<P>To <HI>hold backe,</HI> &s;eemes to be the &s;ame, as to hide, cover,<NOTE PLACE="marg">E&s;t tollere ap|parentiam coeli. <HI>Cajet.</HI></NOTE> or conceale the face of his throne; for when any thing is held backe, it is concealed and hidden out of &s;ight. Thus God doth often hold backe or cover the face of his throne (as the face of it notes the Appearances of heaven towards us) with clouds; as it is &s;ayd in the report made of that terrible &s;torme wherein <HI>Paul</HI> had almo&s;t &s;uffered &s;hipwracke (<HI>Acts</HI> 27.20.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Tenere faciem throni, e&s;t coelum occultare et ob|ducere nubibus.</NOTE>) <HI>That neyther Sun nor Starrs in many dayes appeared;</HI> here was a holding backe or covering of the face of the throne of God. And thus our experiences have of|ten found it held backe; the face of heaven, being masked or vay|led over with naturall clouds and vapours. Againe, if we take the face of the throne of God, for that eminent manife&s;tation of him|&s;elfe, as in heaven. Thus al&s;o God holdeth backe the face of his throne, by covering it with a Metaphoricall cloud; as it is ex|pre&s;&s;ed (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 97.1, 2.) <HI>The Lord reigneth</HI> &amp;c. <HI>clouds and dark|ne&s;&s;e are round about him;</HI> that is, we can &s;ee no more of his glory in reigning, then we can &s;ee of a Kings throne which is covered with a Canopy, and compa&s;&s;ed about with curtaines. <HI>Job</HI> gives this plainly for the interpretation of this former part of the ver&s;e, in the latter part of it.</P>
<Q>And &s;preadeth his cloud upon it.</Q>
<P>That is, <HI>upon the face of his throne.</HI> Wee may take this cloud, fir&s;t properly, thus God covers the heavens from the &s;ight of our eyes. Secondly, improperly, as clouds note onely &s;ecrecy and pri|vacy; Thus God &s;preadeth a cloud upon his throne, to hide it
<PB N="770" REF="400"> from the eye of our under&s;tanding; &s;o that, we can no more com|prehend the glory of God in him&s;elfe, or in his wayes and work|ings towards man, then we can &s;ee the Sunne, Moone, and Starres, when muffled and wrapt up in thicke clouds. Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;peak|eth of the Lord (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.11.) <HI>He made darkenes his &s;ecret place: his pavilion round about him, were darke waters and thicke clouds of the skyes.</HI> But the Apo&s;tle &s;aith (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.16.) <HI>That God dwel|leth in light,</HI> How then doth the P&s;almi&s;t &s;ay there and el&s;ewhere that he made clouds and darknes his &s;ecret place and his pavilion? I an&s;wer; As the Lord <HI>is light and hath no darkenes at all in him (Joh:</HI> 1.5.) &s;o, as to him&s;elfe, he ever dwelleth in light, and hath no clouds nor darkenes at all about him. And therefore when it is &s;ayd, that he &s;preadeth a cloud upon his throne, and maketh dark|ne&s;s his &s;ecret place, or his &s;ecret place darke, we are to under&s;tand it in reference to our &s;elves; for when&s;oever God hideth him&s;elfe, or the rea&s;on of his dealings and di&s;pen&s;ations from us, Then the cloud is &s;pread upon his Throne. When God is &s;ayd to &s;pread a cloud over us, or any thing we have, it noteth his care over us, and his protection of us (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 4.5.) <HI>And the Lord will create up|on every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her a&s;&s;emblyes a cloud and &s;moake by day, and the &s;hining of a flaming fire by night</HI> (what is meant both by this cloud and flaming fire is clearely ex|pounded in the la&s;t words of the ver&s;e) <HI>for upon all the glory &s;hall be a defence (or a covering.)</HI> Thus, I &s;ay, a cloud &s;pread by God upon us, implyeth that we are under his covert and defence. But when God &s;preadeth a cloud upon or covereth him&s;elfe with a cloud, this implyeth (all the Scripture over) the hiding and con|cealing of him&s;elfe and his workes from us. And in this &s;ence <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth; <HI>He holdeth backe the face of his throne, and &s;preadeth a cloud upon it.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> God hath a throne.</Q>
<P>Kings have thrones, much more hath God who is the <HI>King of kings. King Solomon made him&s;elfe a great throne of Ivory, and overlayd it with the be&s;t Gold</HI> (1 Kings 10.18.) Kings have for|mall Thrones, God hath a real one. Hee hath all power in his hand, and this he admini&s;treth according to the plea&s;ure of his owne will both in heaven and earth.</P>
<PB N="771" REF="400">
<P>Note.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>God manife&s;teth him&s;elfe in heaven, as Princes upon their thrones;</HI> &s;o heaven is the throne of God. And where God acts mo&s;t, our affections &s;hould be mo&s;t, and our conver&s;ation mo&s;t. Where the Throne is, thither the great re&s;ort is, many flocke to the Court. As it will be our glory hereafter to be in heaven, or about the throne of God for ever in per&s;on, &s;o it is our grace to be dayly there in Spirit while we are here. The earth is Gods foote&s;toole, yet many make that their throne; Heaven is Gods throne, and many make that their foote&s;toole; They tread and trample upon the things of heaven, while they &s;et their hearts upon the things of the earth. 'Tis a &s;ad mi&s;take, when men &s;et their feete where they &s;hould &s;et their hearts, and prophane the throne of God, not onely by levelling it with, but by laying it lower then the ground.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<P>Thirdly; <HI>God hideth his owne glory from the &s;ight of man. He holdeth backe the face of his throne,</HI> he will not &s;uffer the lu&s;tre of it to appeare, but &s;preadeth a cloud upon it. Indeed we are not able to beare the cleare di&s;coveryes of divine Glory (1 <HI>Tim.</HI> 6.16.) <HI>God dwelleth in light which no man can approach unto,</HI> though he were permitted and offered the priviledge to approach unto it. God dwelleth in and is po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed of that infinite perfection of light that no creature is capable of. When <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> made that petition to God (<HI>Exod:</HI> 33.18.) <HI>I be&s;eech thee &s;hew me thy glory.</HI> The Lord an&s;wered (<HI>v.</HI> 20.) <HI>Thou can&s;t not &s;ee my face, for no man &s;hall &s;ee me and live.</HI> It &s;eemes that while God &s;pake with <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> his glo|ry was over&s;hadowed, or that God (to u&s;e <HI>Jobs</HI> language in the text) <HI>held backe the face of his throne, and &s;pread a cloud upon it;</HI> and therefore <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> begg'd the removall of it, or that his glory might breake through it, and &s;hine unto him; <HI>Wel,</HI> &s;ayth God, <HI>thou can&s;t not &s;ee my face;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>If I &s;hould grant thee that reque&s;t, thou art not able to enjoy it, or make u&s;e of it; for as my nature is altogether invi&s;ible, &s;o thou can&s;t not beare the &s;uper-ex|celling brightnes, which the cleare manife&s;tations of my immediate pre&s;ence would dart forth upon thee; for that Glory of my pre&s;ence is too great a weight for humane fraylety to &s;tand under; it would a&s;toni&s;h rather then comfort thee, and in &s;tead of refre&s;hing confound and make thee as a dead man. No man &s;hall &s;ee my face and
<PB N="772" REF="401"> live.</HI> Man mu&s;t dye before he can (in that &s;ence) &s;ee the face of God, and then he &s;hall (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 1 <HI>Cor:</HI> 13.12.) <HI>&s;ee face to face, and know as he is knowne.</HI> So that though we are much &s;hort of the happines of the next life, while we &s;ee as through a gla&s;&s;e darkely, and God holdeth backe the face of his throne, yet it is a mercy to us while we are in this life that he doth &s;o; becau&s;e we are not able to abide the &s;ight of him face to face, or to behold the face of his throne. As Chri&s;t had many things to &s;ay to his De&s;ciples, which they were not able then to beare; &s;o Chri&s;t hath purcha&s;ed &s;uch mercyes and priviledges for his peo|ple, as they are not able to beare while they are on this &s;ide the grave. <HI>Every &s;tate hath enjoyments &s;uitable and proper to it.</HI> Fur|ther as God hideth his glory from man, becau&s;e he is not able to beare it all; &s;o he hideth much of that from him which he is able to beare, both to make him hunger and thir&s;t the more after it, and to draw him into the greater reverence and e&s;timation of it. We u&s;ually e&s;teeme that more which is veyled and under a cloud, then that which is very cleare and openly revealed; and, accord|ing to our pre&s;ent &s;tate and frame, that is mo&s;t reverenced by us, which is mo&s;t concealed from us. When a cloud hath dwelt a while upon the Sunne we de&s;ire the more to &s;ee the face of it, and are the more affected with the &s;ight of it. God will not hold backe the face of his throne from us in glory, nor will he ever &s;pread a cloud upon it, and yet we &s;hall have fre&s;h de&s;ires after it, and high valuations of it everla&s;tingly; But while we dwel in this corrupt and corruptible fle&s;h, wee are apt to neglect that which is alwayes with us, e&s;pecially if it be alwayes alike with us. And therefore as the wi&s;e and gracious God, will not let us &s;ee his throne here at all in the full glory of it, becau&s;e we cannot beare it, &s;o he will not let us &s;ee that glory of it continually, which we are able to beare, le&s;t we &s;hould grow eyther carele&s;&s;e of it, or un|thankfull for it. It is even be&s;t for us, that we have but a darke and imperfect &s;ight of God in this world, both in reference to what he is, and to what he doth: or fir&s;t, in reference to him&s;elfe in his nature and Excellencyes. Secondly, in reference to his wayes or workes in their &s;peciall rea&s;ons and ends. As our darkenes can|not at all comprehend the light of God, &s;o God is plea&s;ed to co|ver much of his own light with darkenes that we &s;hould not com|prehend it. How many glorious truths are there, the face of which
<PB N="773" REF="401"> he holdeth backe from many of his precious &s;ervants? how often doth he &s;pread a cloud as upon the truths which he &s;endeth in his Word, &s;o upon the graces which he hath wrought in us by his Spirit? &s;o that the &s;oule is not onely hindred from beholding what is without, but what is within, and is &s;o farre from beholding the glorious perfection of God and his workes abroad, that it cannot &s;o much as di&s;cerne any of the gracious workes of God at home. <HI>He &s;preadeth his cloud upon it.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="10" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 10.</HI></BIBL> He compa&s;&s;eth the waters with bounds, untill the day and night come to an end.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P><HI>Job</HI> having de&s;cribed marvaylous acts of divine power in the heavens, de&s;cends againe to &s;hew his marvayles in or about the Seas and mighty waters.</P>
<Q>He compa&s;&s;eth the waters with bounds.</Q>
<P>The word which we render <HI>to compa&s;&s;e,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Proprietas pe|caliaris verbi <GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t lineam vel circulum de|&s;cribere qua&s;i circino. Forte etiam in dicatur eodem circum|dandi verbo. u|num effici globu~ ex terra et aqua at&abque; unum &amp; idem utriu&s;&abque; elementi e&s;&s;e centrum. <HI>Pi|ned:</HI></NOTE> &s;ignifyeth properly to draw a line, or make a circle, as Mathematicians doe with a payre of Compa&s;&s;es, &s;o that it notes the &s;hutting up or circum&s;cribing any thing to a certaine place or mea&s;ure, beyond which it cannot move. And thus God compa&s;&s;eth the waters. At the 8th ver&s;e <HI>Job</HI> &s;hewed how God compa&s;&s;eth the upper waters, the waters in the ayre, <HI>He bindeth up the waters in his thicke clouds.</HI> Here he &s;heweth, how God by the &s;ame almighty power compa&s;&s;eth about the lower waters, the waters of the Sea. The Hebrew is, <HI>The face of the waters,</HI> as in the former ver&s;e, <HI>The face of his throne.</HI> The face of the earth is the upper part of the earth (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.29.) <HI>I have given you every herbe bearing (or &s;eeding) &s;eed, which is upon the face of all the earth.</HI> And &s;o <HI>the face of the waters,</HI> is the upper part of the waters, becau&s;e the upper part of the water, as al&s;o of the earth lyeth open to the eye as the face of a man doth. And it may therefore be &s;ayd that he compa&s;&s;eth the face of the waters, becau&s;e (though the whole body and bulke of the waters &s;wel and rage, yet) the face or upper part of the waters is that which at any times breaketh over and overfloweth; And therefore the face of the waters, onely, as to us, is <HI>compa&s;&s;ed about with bounds.</HI></P>
<P>The word noteth, a legal bound, a &s;tatute or decree, and is fre|quently u&s;ed in Scripture, e&s;pecially in the 119^t^h <HI>P&s;alme,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;tanuum con&s;titutie, dec c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">etum; &s;ign fi|cat praecepti con&s;tantiam &amp; durationem nam <GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t in|&s;culpere &s;eu in|cidere lapidi ligno vel Me|tallo. <GAP DESC="foreign">. <HI>Septu:</HI></NOTE> for the
<PB N="774" REF="402"> Law or rule which God hath given man both for his wor&s;hip and continuall cour&s;e of life. And hence the Prophet <HI>Jeremiah</HI> &s;peak|ing to the <HI>Jewes</HI> about this thing, u&s;eth another word to &s;ignifie the Bound of the Sea, and the word which here we render <HI>Bound,</HI> is there rendred <HI>Decree</HI> (Jer: 5.22.) <HI>Feare ye not me &s;aith the Lord, will ye not tremble at my pre&s;ence, which have placed the &s;and for the bound of the Sea, by a perpetuall decree that it cannot pa&s;&s;e it.</HI> And there is &s;o much of a Law, or of an appoyntment in it, that the word is applicable to any thing which is put under a certaine law or appoyntment. So it is put for an appoynted time in the 14^t^h Chapter of this booke (<HI>v.</HI> 13^t^h) and for appoynted foode in the 23^d Chapter of this booke (<HI>v.</HI> 12^t^h) as here for an ap|poynted &s;pace, or circle, within which as within a wall, or with gates and barrs the waters of the Sea are kept. <HI>He compa&s;&s;eth the waters with bounds.</HI></P>
<P>Hence Note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> The Sea is bounded by the power of God.</Q>
<P>As God hath given man under&s;tanding to provide a bit and a bridle for the mouth of the hor&s;e and mule, which have no under|&s;tanding, <HI>le&s;t they come neere unto him</HI> (P&s;al. 32.9.) that is, neerer to him then they &s;hould, or neere to him, not to &s;erve him, or be u&s;ed by him, but to kicke him or tread upon him; Thus God him|&s;elfe who is infinite in under&s;tanding, hath put a bit or bridle into the mouth of the Sea, which is further from under&s;tanding then ey|ther Hor&s;e or mule, le&s;t it come neere to drowne and overwhelme us. Neyther &s;hoares nor &s;ands, neyther cliffs nor rockes are the bound and bridle of the Sea, but the Decree and command of God.</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q><HI>Secondly,</HI> It is an unan&s;werable argument of the glorious power and &s;overaignetie of God, that he is able to compa&s;&s;e the waters with bounds.</Q>
<P><HI>Who &s;hut up the Sea with dores?</HI> (was Gods humbling Que&s;ti|on to <HI>Job</HI> in the 38^t^h Chapter of this booke, <HI>v.</HI> 8.10, 11.) <HI>and &s;ayd, hitherto &s;halt thou come and no further, &amp; here &s;hall thy proud waves be &s;tayed.</HI> The P&s;almi&s;t (<HI>P&s;.</HI> 104.) having &s;hewed how at fir&s;t (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1 1.) the whole earth was covered with the deep as with a garment,
<PB N="775" REF="402"> and that the waters &s;tood above the mountaines, and were in the progre&s;&s;e of the worke of creation &s;ent downe by the valleyes into the place which God had appoynted for them, (having I &s;ay, made this excellent de&s;cription of the waters in creation, he con|cludes with the poynt of providence now in hand (<HI>v.</HI> 9.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;et a bound, that they may not pa&s;&s;e over: that they turne not againe to cover the earth.</HI> In which words the P&s;almi&s;t gives us three things clearely concerning the waters, Fir&s;t, that once (he meanes it not of the deluge, but of the chaos) the waters did co|ver the whole earth, till God by a word of command &s;ent them into their proper channels, that the dry Land might appeare; &s;econdly, that the waters have a natural propen&s;ion to returne backe and cover the earth againe. Thirdly, that the onely rea&s;on why they doe not returne backe and cover the whole earth, is, becau&s;e God hath <HI>&s;et a bound, that they cannot pa&s;&s;e.</HI> They would be boundle&s;&s;e and know no limits, did not God bound and limit them. Wi&s;edome giveth us the like Elogium of the power of God in this (<HI>Pro:</HI> 8.29.) <HI>He gave to the Sea his decree, that the wa|ters &s;hould not pa&s;&s;e his commandement.</HI> What cannot he command, who &s;endeth his commandement to the Sea and is obeyed? Some great Princes heated with rage and drunken with pride, have ca&s;t &s;hackles into the Sea as threatning it with impri&s;onment and bon|dage if it would not be quiet, but the Sea would not be bound by them; They have al&s;o awarded &s;o many &s;troakes to be given the Sea as a puni&s;hment of its contumacy and rebellion again&s;t eyther their commands or their de&s;ignes. How ridiculou&s;ly ambitious have they been, who would needs pretend to &s;uch a Dominion? Many Princes have had great power at and upon the Sea, but there was never any Prince had any power over the Sea; That's a flower belonging to no Crowne, but the Crowne of heaven. There are two things which are more peculiarly under the command of God, fir&s;t, the waves of the Sea, &s;econdly, the heart of man. And becau&s;e God is able to rule the waves of the Sea, take two or three inferences from it; Thus,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That he is able to rule and command the heart of man; <HI>Solomon</HI> makes the paralel in this (<HI>Pro.</HI> 21.1.) <HI>The kings heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of waters: he turneth it whe|ther &s;oever he will:</HI> And as he turneth both whether &s;oever he will, &s;o he &s;tayeth both where&s;oever he will. Mo&s;t men at &s;ome times,
<PB N="776" REF="403"> &s;ome (wicked) <HI>men at all times are like the raging Sea when it canot re&s;t, who&s;e waters ca&s;t up mire and dirt</HI> (I&s;a: 57.20.) who could live by the&s;e raging Seas, the&s;e raging waves of the Sea at once foaming out their owne &s;hame, and threatning to &s;wallow up others in de&s;truction, did not God compa&s;&s;e them a|bout with bounds? did not he &s;ay, here &s;hall your proud waves be &s;tayed; If God did not bound the &s;ea of &s;ome mens Spirits, they would not know much le&s;&s;e keepe any bounds; they would neyther know nor keepe, not onely the bounds of religion and piety, but not the bounds of rea&s;on and civility.</P>
<P>Secondly, God is able to rule and put a bound to the rage of the multitude, who in Scripture are compared to Waters (<HI>Rev:</HI> 17.15.) <HI>The waters which thou &s;awe&s;t, where the Whore &s;itteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and Nations, and tongues.</HI> And the&s;e are as apt to &s;wel and be enraged with vaine pa&s;&s;ions and di&s;contents, as the &s;ea is by windes and &s;tormes (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 2.1.) <HI>Why doe the hea|then rage?</HI> rage as the &s;ea; and thus they will rage &s;ometimes though they know neyther why nor wherefore. (So againe <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 93.3, 4.) <HI>The flooods have lifted up O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voyce: the floods lift up their waves;</HI> which as it is true li|terally and properly, &s;o it is as true (and &s;o I conceave there in|tended) figuratively and improperly or my&s;tically and &s;piritually, that is, peoples and nations like floods lift up their voyce, they lift up their waves as if they would overwhelme all; But what fol|loweth (<HI>v.</HI> 4.) <HI>The Lord on high is mightier then the noy&s;e of many waters, yea then the mighty waves of the Sea;</HI> that is, the Lord can quickly check and &s;top the rage of a people, when, or though they &s;wel like a furious boy&s;terous Sea. And we finde <HI>David</HI> putting both the&s;e together by way of Expo&s;ition (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 65.) where exal|ting the power of God as he is <HI>the confidence of all the ends of the earth, and of them that are afarre off upon the Sea</HI> (v. 5.) He ad|deth (<HI>v.</HI> 6, 7.) <HI>Which by his &s;trength &s;etteth fa&s;t the mountaines; being girded with power. Which &s;tilleth the noy&s;e of the Seas; the noy&s;e of their waves, and the tumult of the people. David</HI> joynes the noy&s;e and waves of the Seas, and the tumult of the people together; eyther implying, that he meant the tumult of the people, by the noy&s;e of the Sea; or that it is an act of the &s;ame power, to &s;till the tumult of the people, and the noy&s;e of the Sea.</P>
<PB N="777" REF="403">
<P>Thirdly, God is able to &s;top tho&s;e &s;eas of error, and give a bound to tho&s;e floods of fal&s;e doctrine, which are ready to over|flow the face of the world. The Sea or Flood of the Arrian here|&s;ie (which denyed the Deity of Chri&s;t, or made him barely a Man by nature, onely cloathed with wonderfull powers and priviledges, this here&s;ie, I &s;ay, like a &s;ea or flood) had almo&s;t over-whelm'd the whole world; yet God compa&s;&s;ed tho&s;e <HI>Blacke</HI> waters with bounds, and gave them a commandement which they could not pa&s;&s;e: and though in this Age they &s;eeme to returne, and &s;trive to over-flow the earth againe, yet both the waters of that here&s;ie and of all other damnable here&s;ies (as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Peter</HI> calls them 2 <HI>Ep:</HI> 2.1.) which abound in the&s;e dayes, and threaten us with a fearefull inundation, are compa&s;&s;ed with bounds which they &s;hall not exceed. The Apo&s;tle &s;peaketh of &s;ome in his time, (2 <HI>Tim</HI> 3.8, 9.) <HI>Who as Jannes and Jambres with&s;tood Mo&s;es, &s;o did they al&s;o re&s;i&s;t the truth; men of corrupt minds, reprobate</HI> (or as we put in the Margin, <HI>of no Judgement) concerning the truth. But they &s;hall proceed no further;</HI> So the Apo&s;tle prophecyed of them; as if he had &s;ayd; They have a mind to proceed further, their will is to oppo&s;e truth and propagate error (in infinitum) with|out end; But they have now gone to the utmo&s;t of their line, they are come to their border, to their bound; <HI>they &s;hall proceed no fur|ther, for their folly &s;hall be made manife&s;t unto all men, as theirs al&s;o was;</HI> that is, it &s;hall appeare to all men that the doctrine which they &s;tood up for, was nothing el&s;e but a bundle of folly, and that the doctrine which they with&s;tood was the truth and wi&s;edome of God.</P>
<P>Fourthly, Then, the Lord is able to &s;top and bound the floods, the &s;eas of affliction, trouble, and per&s;ecution, which are ready to &s;wallow up his Church and people. The Church ble&s;&s;eth God for her deliverance from troubles, under this Allegorie of Waters (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 124.2, 3, 4, 5.) <HI>If it had not been the Lord, who was on our &s;ide, when men ro&s;e up again&s;t us, they had &s;wallowed us up quicke, when their wrath was kindled again&s;t us, then the waters had overwhelmed us, the &s;treame had gone over our &s;oule, then the proud waters had gone over our &s;oule:</HI> Waters, &s;treames, proud waters are nothing el&s;e but the per&s;ecuting &s;pirit and proceedings of ungodly enemyes. And why did not the&s;e lay all wa&s;t? God would not &s;uffer them. When <HI>the Serpent</HI> (Rev: 12.15, 16.)
<PB N="778" REF="404"> <HI>ca&s;t out of his mouth waters as a flood after the woman</HI> (that is, &s;tir|red up many troubles) <HI>that he might cau&s;e her to be carryed away</HI> (that is, utterly ruin'd) <HI>of the flood. The earth helped the woman</HI> (&s;aith the text) that is (as is conceaved) God made earthly men, by the u&s;e of earthly meanes, and for the attaining of earthly ends, as a bound to &s;top tho&s;e waters, or as a gulfe to &s;wallow up tho&s;e waters which &s;hould have &s;wallowed up the Church. All the&s;e things doth he, and we may be fully a&s;&s;ured he can doe all the&s;e things, and many more, <HI>who hath compa&s;&s;ed the waters with bounds,</HI> yea we may be a&s;&s;ured that he will continue to them, becau&s;e as he hath, &s;o he will <HI>compa&s;&s;e the waters with bounds,</HI> <Q>&V;ntill the day and night come to an end; <HI>or as our Marginal reading hath it,</HI> untill the end of light with darkenes.</Q></P>
<P>This la&s;t clau&s;e of the ver&s;e is a proverbiall &s;peech, &s;ignifying perpetuity; or that &s;uch a thing eyther &s;hall not be at all, or &s;hall be as long as the world la&s;teth.</P>
<P>But &s;hall day and night, light and darkenes end when the world or this frame or con&s;titution of things endeth? Will there not be day and light, or an eternal day of light in the heavenly Glory? is not that called, <HI>An inheritance among the Saints in light?</HI> Col. 1.12.) And will there not be night and darkenes, or an e|ternal night of darkenes in helli&s;h mi&s;ery? is not that called outer darkenes? How then is it &s;ayd here <HI>that day and night &s;hall come to an end?</HI></P>
<P>I an&s;wer. Though after the end of this world there &s;hall be both day and night, light and darkenes; yet there &s;hall be no vi|ci&s;&s;itude of day and night, as there is in this pre&s;ent world, and as 'tis promi&s;ed there &s;hall be to the end of this world (<HI>Gen</HI> 8.22.) <HI>While the earth remaineth, &s;eed-time and harve&s;t and cold and heate and &s;ummer and winter and day and night &s;hall not cea&s;e.</HI> The&s;e are called the <HI>Ordinances of the day and of the night,</HI> and the &s;tability of them is made the &s;hadow of that &s;tability of God to his gracious promi&s;e, that <HI>the &s;eed of I&s;rael &s;hould not cea&s;e from being a nation before him for ever</HI> (Jer. 31.35, 36.) In this world, light and darke|nes day and night are comming and going, departing and return|ing continually; And in this &s;ence day and night &s;hall come to an end, at the worlds end. <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes of day and night in cour&s;e and &s;ucce&s;&s;ion, not of day and night in being or con&s;titution, when he
<PB N="779" REF="404"> &s;ayth, <HI>he hath compa&s;&s;ed the waters with bounds, untill the day and night come to an end.</HI> The Hebrew &s;trictly tran&s;lated makes this re&s;olution of the doubt more cleare and doubtle&s;&s;e; for that doth not &s;ay ab&s;olutely <HI>that day and night (light or darkenes) &s;hall come to an end;</HI> but that there <HI>&s;hall be an end of light with darkenes;</HI> that is, of the intercour&s;e or change between day and night, be|tween light and darkenes;<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ad con&s;umma|tione~ lucis cum tenebris. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> or <HI>untill the con&s;ummation of light with darkenes,</HI> that is, untill light and darkenes have con&s;ummated or fulfilled their cour&s;e one with another.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, <HI>Beyond this world there are no changes of times or &s;ea&s;ons.</HI></P>
<P>In the world to come all is day and light to the Godly, to tho&s;e who dye in the Lord; and all is night and darkenes to the wicked, to tho&s;e who dye out of the Lord. Heaven and hell, a &s;tate of eternal Ble&s;&s;ednes or wretchednes, have no changes in them, nor any thing that is Heterogeneall, or of another kinde. Heaven which hath light and joy in it, hath no darkenes, no &s;orrow at all in it; Hell which hath darkenes and &s;orrow in it, hath no light nor joy at all in it; The mixtures and changes of light and darke|nes, of joy and &s;orrow, of paine and plea&s;ure, are made here on earth. The wine of the wrath of God, and the wine of the love and con&s;olations of God &s;hall be powred out without any the lea&s;t contrary tincture or mixture in the life which is to come. Light with darkenes &s;hall no more be heard of; They who goe into light &s;hall never &s;ee darkenes, and they who goe into darkenes &s;hall never &s;ee light. Wee are now (as <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes in the 14^t^h Chapter of this Booke, <HI>v.</HI> 14.) <HI>Waiting all the dayes of our ap|poynted time untill our change come,</HI> and when that change is once fully come, we &s;hall goe beyond all changes; <HI>Day with night will then be at an end.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>What God doth he can alwayes doe.</Q>
<P>As he hath hitherto compa&s;&s;ed the waters with bounds, &s;o he can compa&s;&s;e them with bounds untill the day and night come to an end. Men can doe that to day, which they are &s;o farre from being able to doe untill the end of dayes, that, po&s;&s;ibly they can|not doe it the next day. The hand of man is continually &s;hortning
<PB N="780" REF="405"> in regard of naturall &s;trength or activity, and it &s;eldome keepes long at the &s;ame length in regard of civil &s;trength or Authority. As there are many things which man cannot nor ever could doe, &s;o there are many things, which once a man could doe, but now he cannot. He is changed or the times are changed, eyther he hath not the &s;ame power in him&s;elfe, or the &s;ame powers are not con|tinued unto him. That man may be found &s;haking and trembling, who a while before (as it is &s;ayd of the A&s;&s;yrian, <HI>I&s;a:</HI> 14.16.) <HI>made the earth to tremble, and did &s;hake kingdomes,</HI> in&s;omuch that all (as 'tis at the 10<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h ver&s;e of the &s;ame Chapter) &s;hall &s;peake and &s;ay unto him, <HI>Art thou al&s;o become weake as we, art thou become like unto us?</HI> Thus we &s;ee the mightie&s;t men cannot doe what they have done; they who have compa&s;&s;ed the rage and fury of men with bounds, can bound them no more, bat they breake in upon them like a wide breaking in of the Sea, and beare downe all be|fore them. But the power of God knowes no abatings, nor his hand any &s;hortnings, as he hath bounded both the natural and my&s;ticall waters, &s;o he can and will bound them and none &s;hall hinder, untill the day and night come to an end. <HI>The Lord</HI> (&s;ayth <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 29.10.) <HI>&s;itteth upon the flood, yea the Lord &s;itteth king for ever.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, The Lord doth not onely &s;it up|on (that is, rule and governe) the floods for a while, but he ru|leth and governeth them alwayes, <HI>he &s;itteth upon them king for ever; even untill day and night come to an end.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly; note.</P>
<P><HI>The waters &s;hall never totally overflow the earth;</HI> As God hath given them a bound, &s;o &s;uch a bound as &s;hall keepe them in com|pa&s;&s;e for ever; And as we have an a&s;&s;urance in the power of God, that he can keepe or compa&s;&s;e the waters with bounds to the end of the world; &s;o al&s;o we have his promi&s;e and his faithfullnes en|gaged that he will maintaine tho&s;e bankes and bounds, and keepe them in &s;uch repayre that the waters &s;hall never prevaile over them (<HI>Gen.</HI> 9.8, 9, 10, 11.) <HI>And God &s;pake unto Noah and to his &s;ons with him, &s;aying, and I, behold, I e&s;tabli&s;h my Covenant with you, and with your &s;eed after you,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>neyther &s;hall all fle&s;h be cut off any more by the waters of a flood, neyther &s;hall there be any more a flood to de&s;troy the earth.</HI> And as mankinde is under this promi&s;e of freedome from an univer&s;al deluge, &s;o every godly man may
<PB N="781" REF="405"> ri&s;e up to this a&s;&s;urance, that no waters of any &s;ort can wet &s;o much as the &s;ole of his foote, or the hemme of his garment, but as they have leave and commi&s;&s;ion from him, <HI>who hath compa&s;&s;ed the waters with bonnds, untill the day and night come to an end.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 26. Ver&s;. 11, 12.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The pillars of heaven tremble, and are a&s;toni&s;hed at his reproofe.</P>
<P>He divideth the Sea by his power, and by his under&s;tand|ing he &s;miteth through the proud.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>JOB &s;till proceedeth in the enumeration and illu&s;tration of the mighty works of God; what he doth in the clouds, and what in the heavens, was &s;hewed from the former context; Here <HI>Job</HI> tells us what the Lord doth <HI>with the heavens;</HI> He who made the hea|vens and &s;tretched out the North over the empty place, can make the&s;e heavens totter in their place and tremble, when he plea|&s;eth.</P>
<DIV3 N="11" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q>The pillars of heaven tremble, and are a&s;toni&s;hed at his reproofe.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>There are three things to be enquired into for the opening of this ver&s;e.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, What is meant by the <HI>pillars of heaven.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, How <HI>the pillars of heaven may be &s;aid to tremble, and be a&s;toni&s;hed.</HI></P>
<P>Thirdly, What we are to under&s;tand by the <HI>reproofe of God,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Columnae coeli, <HI>i. e.</HI> Angeli con|tremi&s;cunt. <HI>Aquin:</HI> Angelos vocat columnas coeli, quia &s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ilicet eo|rum officio ad|m<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ni&s;tratur mo|tus coelorum. <HI>Aquin:</HI></NOTE> when he &s;ayth, <HI>they are a&s;toni&s;hed at his reproofe.</HI></P>
<Q>The pillars of heaven tremble.</Q>
<P>There are various opinions about the&s;e pillars; fir&s;t, many of the Latins hold, that the&s;e pillars of heaven are the Angells, by who&s;e a&s;&s;i&s;tance (&s;ay &s;ome Philo&s;ophers) the motions of the heavenly bodyes with their orbes or &s;pheares are guided and maintained. And doubtle&s;&s;e as the Angels have great employments upon and
<PB N="782" REF="406"> about the earth, &s;o al&s;o in and about the heavens, and therefore may (not improperly) be called the <HI>pillars of heaven;</HI> in which &s;ence al&s;o the Angels are called the powers of heaven, as &s;ome in|terpret (<HI>Math:</HI> 24.29.) where Chri&s;t prophe&s;ieth, that <HI>imme|diatly after the tribulation of tho&s;e dayes, the Sunne &s;hall be darke|ned, and the Moone &s;hall not give her light, the &s;tarrs &s;hall fall from heaven, and the powers of heaven &s;hall be &s;haken:</HI> Many of the an|tients interpret tho&s;e <HI>powers of heaven</HI> by the Angels; as if the Lord would doe &s;uch things in that great day, as &s;hould trouble and a&s;toni&s;h not onely men on earth, but the Angels in heaven, who may be called <HI>the pillars of heaven,</HI> as &s;ome eminent men for parts and power are called the pillars of the earth; And wee may &s;up|po&s;e them pillars of heaven, not for the &s;trength and &s;u&s;tainement of heaven,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Stabilita<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e~ per|manente~ in na|tura angelorum intelligamus ne|mine Columna|rum. <HI>Philip:</HI></NOTE> but for the beauty and ornament of it. As we &s;ee many pillars in &s;tately Pallaces, which are not placed there to beare up the weight of tho&s;e buildings, but only to adorn &amp; beautifie them. Or Angels may be called the pillars of heaven, becau&s;e of the firmenes and &s;tability of their owne nature, not as if they were any firmenes or e&s;tabli&s;hment unto heaven.</P>
<P>Secondly, By the&s;e pillars of heaven are conceaved to be meant the high mountaines of the earth, which &s;eeme to touch the hea|vens, according to &s;ence, and &s;o to &s;u&s;taine and beare them up, as pillars; but this opinion not being grounded upon any truth in na|ture, but onely upon a popular errour, (though it be a truth that even the&s;e &s;uppo&s;ed pillars of heaven tremble at the reproofes of God) I &s;hall not in&s;i&s;t at all upon this interpretalion.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The&s;e pillars of heaven &s;ay others are <HI>the ayre;</HI> for as the lowe&s;t parts of the earth are called the foundations of the earth, becau&s;e the foundation of a building is layd lowe&s;t, &s;o the lower parts of heaven, the ayre (which is &s;ometimes called heaven, <HI>yea the firmament of heaven,</HI> Gen. 1.20.) may be called the pillar of heaven. 'Tis true al&s;o that the Lord maketh dreadfull combu|&s;tions by &s;tormes and tempe&s;ts in the ayre, in&s;omuch that tho&s;e <HI>pillars of heaven tremble, and are a&s;toni&s;hed at his reproofe.</HI> But I &s;hall not give this neyther as <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning here.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Terra tota velut orbis totius fun|damentum ac firmanentum. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE>Fourthly, <HI>By the pillars of heaven,</HI> others under&s;tand (not the ayre or the mountains) but the whole body on globe of the earth. Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;peakes (2 <HI>Sam.</HI> 22.8.) <HI>Then the earth &s;hooke, and trembled, the foundations of heaven moved and &s;hooke, becau&s;e he was wroth;</HI>
<PB N="783" REF="406"> where the foundations of heaven in the latter part of the ver&s;e, may be expounded by the earth in the former part of the ver&s;e. For if we con&s;ider the whole fabricke of the world together, then the earth &s;eemes to be the foundation or pillar of heaven. And frequent experiences in all ages, e&s;pecially in &s;ome parts of the world, have felt and reported the trembling of the earth. We com|monly call it an <HI>Earth-quake;</HI> and Philo&s;ophers teach us that the rea&s;on of it in nature is the &s;trength of vapours included in and &s;triving to make their way out of the bowels of the earth. And as this trembling of the earth hath a rea&s;on in nature, &s;o it is often cau&s;ed by &s;peciall command from God, as a reproofe of the &s;in|fullnes of man, or to awaken him from his &s;in; yet,</P>
<P>Fifthly, I rather conceive, that this phra&s;e, <HI>The pillars of hea|ven,</HI> is u&s;ed onely in a generall &s;en&s;e and not particularly intended eyther of Angels or mountains, of the ayre, or of the earth; but that <HI>the pillars of heaven,</HI> are the &s;trength of heaven: the &s;trength of a building con&s;i&s;ts in the pillars that beare it up, take away the pil|lars, and it falls downe, <HI>as Samp&s;on &s;ayd to the lad that held him by the hand, &s;uffer me that I may feele the pillars whereupon the hou&s;e &s;tandeth,</HI> and when he had once moved them, the hou&s;e fell (<HI>Judg.</HI> 16.26.30.) &s;o that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>the pillars of heaven tremble,</HI> the meaning is, the greate&s;t &s;trength of or what&s;oever is &s;tronge&s;t in heaven, the heavens them&s;elves with all their &s;trength,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Metaphorice haec dicuntur, non quod coelum columnas habeat quibus nitatur, &s;ed quod in ve|hementiori orbis concu&s;&s;ione vi|deatur nobis perind&egrave; ac &s;i|nutent ejus co|lumnae. <HI>Merc:</HI> <GAP DESC="foreign"> contritus concu&s;&s;us fuit. <GAP DESC="foreign"> &s;tu|pe~t denotat mo|ram anamiin rei &s;ingularis con&s;i|deratione ad eam cogno&s;cen|dam &amp; ae<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i|mandam. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> tremble at the reproofes of God. So that this is onely a figurative and Rhetoricall expre&s;&s;ion, not that the heaven hath any materi|all pillars by which it is &s;upported, but becau&s;e in tho&s;e mighty concu&s;&s;ions which God cau&s;eth in the world, it is as if the pillars or powers of heaven it &s;elfe were &s;haken and did
<Q>Trembleth and were a&s;toni&s;hed at the reproofe of God.</Q></P>
<P>But how may the&s;e pillars (what&s;oever they are) be &s;ayd to tremble and be a&s;toni&s;hed? I an&s;wer, 'tis thus expre&s;&s;ed in allu&s;i|on to men who being &s;everely reproved, menaced, and threatned, tremble, and are a&s;toni&s;hed. Here are two termes u&s;ed; fir&s;t, they <HI>tremble,</HI> which word &s;ignifyeth (as it were) the pounding and &s;hattering of the heavens to peices, or as if they were even ground to powder, or crumbled to du&s;t. Secondly, <HI>They are a&s;toni&s;hed;</HI> The original word imports not a light, &s;udden, tran&s;ient a&s;toni&s;h|ment, but an a&s;toni&s;hment that &s;tayeth, abideth, and taketh up the
<PB N="784" REF="407"> minde, or which draweth the minde to a deepe con&s;ideration of the matter pre&s;ented, and thereupon to wonder and admiration. (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 29.9.) <HI>Stay your &s;elves and wonder,</HI> that is, &s;it downe and con&s;ider this thing and wonder; barely to wonder is not enough, you mu&s;t &s;it downe, &s;tay, and re&s;t your &s;elves to wonder, you mu&s;t take your fill of wonder at this thing. But how can the heavens be a&s;toni&s;hed, which are not onely without under&s;tanding but with|out life? I grant, that to be a&s;toni&s;hed is proper onely to rationall creatures, yet it is attributed to bea&s;ts metaphorically, yea and to things inanimate or without life and &s;en&s;e, as here, and <HI>Jer.</HI> 2.12. to the heavens; for as rejoycing is attributed to the hea|vens, and to the earth, to the mountaines, and to the valleys, all the&s;e are &s;ayd to rejoyce, to &s;ing; &s;o al&s;o a&s;toni&s;hment, feare and trembling are attributed to heaven and earth. And as livele&s;&s;e crea|tures are &s;ayd to rejoyce, &s;ing, and prai&s;e God when men doe it, &s;o likewi&s;e they are &s;ayd to tremble, when men tremble; when God doth &s;uch things as affect men with a&s;toni&s;hment, then al&s;o heaven and earth are &s;poken of as affected with a&s;toni&s;hment.</P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> increpa|vit, objurgavit, reprehendit du|<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">i<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">&egrave;r &amp; cum pote&s;tate.</NOTE>Thirdly, What is meant by the <HI>reproofe of God,</HI> which cau&s;eth the pillars of heaven to <HI>&s;hake and be a&s;toni&s;hed.</HI> The word &s;ignifies, a &s;ore chiding, the &s;evere&s;t reprehen&s;ion, and that not a bare re|proofe, but a reproofe with authority, and command, as a father or ma&s;ter reproveth his &s;on or &s;ervant. Thus, when <HI>Jo&s;eph</HI> told his dreame, <HI>That the Sunne, Moone, and eleven Starrs made obey&s;ance to him, Jacob his father rebuked him, and &s;ayd unto him, What is this dreame that thou ha&s;t dreamed? &s;hall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow downe our &s;elves to thee to the earth?</HI> And when <HI>Jo&s;huah the high Prie&s;t &s;tood before the Angel of the Lord and Satan at his right hand to re&s;i&s;t him</HI> (Zeph. 3.2.) <HI>The Lord &s;aid to Satan, the Lord rebuke thee &ocirc; Satan, even the Lord that hath cho&s;en Hieru&s;alem, rebuke thee.</HI> This rebuke had a threatening in it, and was &s;poken as with an angry countenance, in which there might be read di&s;plea&s;ure, and indignation. The vulgar tran&s;lates, not <HI>rebuke,</HI> but <HI>nod;</HI> The pillars of heaven tremble at thy <HI>nod;</HI> There is a reproofe in a nod,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pavent ad nu|tum ejus. <HI>Vulg:</HI> Sic illud poetae natu treme-fa|cit Olympum.</NOTE> as it was &s;ayd anciently, <HI>He made O|lympus tremble with a nod of his head.</HI> A nod of the head may &s;ig|nifie a reproofe as well as a word of the mouth. There is a two|fold reproofe; fir&s;t, verball or by words; &s;econdly, reall or by action and ge&s;ture. A verball reproofe may be reall, but every
<PB N="785" REF="407"> reall reproofe is not verball. Both God and man can act reproofes as well as &s;peake them. And the word here u&s;ed is applyed in Scripture not onely to verball, and voyce reproofes, but to re|proofes given by ge&s;tures and by actions; for as the holy lives of Godly men who walke exactly are a reproofe to the world though they &s;peake not a word of reproofe, &s;o the actings of God are reproofs, though he doth not &s;peake. Thus <HI>David</HI> &s;ayth, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 9.5.) <HI>Thou ha&s;t rebuked the heathen, thou ha&s;t de&s;troyed the wicked;</HI> How did God rebuke the heathen? even by de&s;troy|ing the wicked; that act of thine hath been a reproofe to the hea|then, and &s;hewed them their folly. In the &s;ame &s;ence 'tis &s;ayd a|gaine (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 68.30.) <HI>Rebuke the company of &s;peare men, the mul|titude of bulls with the calves of the people, till every one &s;ubmit him|&s;elfe with peices of &s;ilver.</HI> The rebuke there prayed for upon that boy&s;terous and bloody generation, was not a <HI>word</HI> but a <HI>worke</HI> of rebuke, that God would doe &s;omewhat that might be a rebuke upon them, and a &s;top to them; as if he had &s;ayd, <HI>Seing this com|pany of &s;peare men, and multitude of the buls will not heare any of thy words, &s;eing they are not capable eyther of reproofe, or coun&s;ell, there|fore rebuke them by &s;ome extraordinary hand, and vi&s;ible tokens of thy di&s;plea&s;ure</HI> (as it follows) <HI>&s;catter the people that delight in war.</HI> Thus &s;ome under&s;tand it here that God giveth a reproofe to the heavens, not by a word &s;poken, but by his providentiall actings and wonderfull workings in the world.</P>
<P>Further, this reproofe is expounded by that which is indeed the voyce of God (and &s;o called in the 29^t^h <HI>P&s;alme) the Thunder;</HI> which though it hath a naturall cau&s;e (for which rea&s;on Athei&s;ts laugh at the &s;implicity of tho&s;e who are led up to the thoughts of God, and to a reverentiall aw of his power at the hearing of it) yet that doth not at all hinder but that God doth in a &s;peciall manner di&s;po&s;e of it (as he doth of all other naturall things) when he plea&s;eth to &s;erve his providence in the demon&s;trations of his wrath among the children of men. To which end we may &s;ay that God doth often &s;end forth his voyce from the clouds, and chides from heaven in thunder. <HI>The voyce</HI> (this reprooving voyce) <HI>of the Lord is upon the waters</HI> (that is, upon the waters which are above the firmament) <HI>the God of glory thundereth, the Lord is up|on many waters, the voyce of the Lord is powerfull, the voyce of the Lord is full of maje&s;ty, the voyce of the Lord breaketh the Cedars,
<PB N="786" REF="408"> hee breaketh the Cedars of Lebanon, the voyce of the Lord divideth the flames of fire, the voyce of the Lord &s;haketh the Wildernes, the Lord &s;haketh the Wildernes of Kades,</HI> &amp;c. Thus the pillars of hea|ven, proper, and the pillars of heaven, in a figure, tremble at or are a&s;toni&s;hed at the&s;e loud reproofes.</P>
<P>Hence ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The greate&s;t &s;trength of the creature trembleth at the angry di&s;|pen&s;ations and appearances of God.</Q>
<P>As the lifting up of the light of Gods countenance, puts joy in|to the heart more then corn &amp; wine, the be&s;t things of this world, &s;o the darkenes of Gods countenance puts more trouble and &s;or|row into our hearts, then gall and wormewood, the wor&s;t of the world can doe. <HI>David</HI> de&s;cribes at large in what a kinde of hudle and hurry the world was in &s;uch a day (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 18.13, 14, 15.) <HI>Then the earth &s;hooke and trembled, the foundations al&s;o of the hils moved and were &s;haken becau&s;e he was wroth. The Lord al&s;o thundered in the heavens, and the highe&s;t gave his voyce, haile&s;tones and coales of fire, he &s;ent out his arrows and &s;cattered them, and he &s;hot out light|nings, and di&s;comfited them, then the channels of waters were &s;eene, and the foundations of the world were di&s;covered at thy rebuke O Lord, at the bla&s;t of the breath of thy no&s;trills.</HI> What <HI>David</HI> there &s;pake of thunder, and lightning, and hayle-&s;tones, hath been vi|&s;ibly effected for the de&s;truction of the enemyes of the people of God, and for the deliverance of his children. The hi&s;tory of <HI>Jo|&s;huah</HI> gives us a famous in&s;tance at the 10^t^h Chapter; and though it be not recorded that <HI>David</HI> obtained victoryes by &s;uch imme|diate helpes from heaven, yet it is not improbable (con&s;idering the tenour of this P&s;alme) that he did. And we have a notable in|&s;tance of a victory obtained by Thunder and lightning in the Hi|&s;tory of the Church, whence that Chri&s;tian Legion of Souldiers who had earne&s;tly prayed that God would appeare for their help, was called <HI>The Thundering Legion.</HI> But whether we expound this context in the P&s;alme literally and &s;trictly, as expre&s;&s;ing what God did for <HI>David</HI> in this kinde; Or figuratively, as expre&s;&s;ing onely thus much, that God did wonderfull things, in one kinde or other, in helping <HI>David</HI> again&s;t his enemyes, or whether we under|&s;tand it my&s;tically, of what God doth to and for the &s;oules and &s;pirituall e&s;tates of men, yet it holds forth in all the utter inability
<PB N="787" REF="408"> of man to beare up when the Lord &s;hewes him&s;elfe in any ter|rible demon&s;trations of his pre&s;ence. Againe (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.32.) <HI>He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth, he toucheth the hills, and they &s;moake.</HI> There is a twofold looke of God; Fir&s;t, there is the looke of Gods favour, and thus Saints often pray that God will looke downe from heaven upon them; this looke is the re|leiving, yea the reviving of the &s;oule; &s;econdly, there is a looke of di&s;plea&s;ure, an angry, a frowning looke, when clouds and &s;tormes are &s;eene in the brow: Thus in the P&s;alme God is &s;ayd to <HI>looke on the earth</HI> frowningly, childingly, and then it trembled, <HI>he toucheth the hills, and they &s;moak,</HI> that is, they are as all on-fire; The na|tural hils &s;moake at Gods touch, and &s;o doe the metaphoricall hills; when God toucheth the great men of the earth they &s;moake, pre&s;ently they fret and fume, till they breake out into a flame of rage, heating and vexing both them&s;elves and all that are neere them. (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 50.2.) <HI>Behold, at my rebuke I dry up</HI> (or I can dry up) <HI>the Sea,</HI> I am as able to doe it now with a word of my mouth, as I once did it for the deliverance of your forefathers, (<HI>Exo:</HI> 14.21.29.) <HI>I make</HI> (or I can make when I will with my rebuke) <HI>the rivers a wilderne&s;&s;e</HI> (that is, as dry as a de&s;ert or wildernes u|&s;eth to be) <HI>their fi&s;h &s;tinketh, becau&s;e there is no water, and dyeth for thir&s;t.</HI> What &s;trange worke doth the rebuke of God make? By that he drieth the &s;ea, by that he maketh the river a wildernes: and as he doth this by the power of his reproofes upon the &s;ea and rivers natural, &s;o upon the &s;ea and rivers my&s;ticall. He can dry up tho&s;e worldly helpes which &s;eeme as inexhau&s;tible as the &s;ea, and as la&s;ting and con&s;tant to us as a river which is fed with a continuall &s;pring. And when any power ri&s;eth up again&s;t us as deepe and dangerous as the &s;ea, as wel &s;upplyed and &s;econded as a river, yet we need not feare for God can pre&s;ently dry it up, and make us a pa&s;&s;age over it, or through it. Yea they who are as well bottom'd and foundation'd as the earth, &s;hall quickly feele the ef|fects of his power (<HI>P&s;al:</HI> 114.7.) <HI>Tremble thou earth at the pre|&s;ence of the Lord: at the pre&s;ence of the God of Jacob.</HI> But &s;ome may &s;ay, if the earth trembleth at the pre&s;ence of God, then the earth mu&s;t alwayes tremble, for God is alwayes pre&s;ent; or what is the pre&s;ence of God there &s;poken of? I an&s;wer, as there is a pre|&s;ence of God, that maketh all tho&s;e that enjoy it to &s;ing for joy; <HI>In thy pre&s;ence is fullne&s;&s;e of joy, and at thy right hand are plea|&s;ures
<PB N="788" REF="409"> for evermore</HI> (P&s;al. 16.11.) &s;o there is a pre&s;ence of God that is very terrible to the creature; yea that pre&s;ence of God which is comfortable to his people is terrible to his enemyes; for when the P&s;almi&s;t had &s;ayd (<HI>ver.</HI> 2.) <HI>Judah was his Sanctuary, and I&s;rael his dominion;</HI> that is, a people &s;anctifyed to him, and governed and protected by him; pre&s;ently it followeth; <HI>The &s;ea &s;aw it and fled, Jordan was driven backe; The mountaines skipped like rams, and the litle hils like lambs.</HI> The P&s;almi&s;t perceaving all things in &s;uch a trembling fit and confu&s;ion, &s;eemes to wonder what the matter was, and therefore puts the que&s;tion, <HI>What ayled thee, O thou &s;ea, that thou fledde&s;t, yea mountaines that ye skipped, &amp;c?</HI> And pre&s;ently maketh an&s;wer, <HI>Tremble thou earth at the pre&s;ence of the Lord;</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, the cau&s;e of all this terrour and trouble among the creatures, was nothing el&s;e but the pre&s;ence of God. And if the very &s;ence-le&s;&s;e creatures were &s;encible of his wrathfull pre&s;ence, how much more mu&s;t man both be &s;encible of it, and &s;toop unto it. This the Lord in&s;inuates by a cutting que&s;tion (<HI>Ezek.</HI> 22.14.) <HI>Can thy heart indure, or can thy hands be &s;trong in the day that I &s;hall deale with thee, I the Lord have &s;poken it, and will doe it.</HI> The Lord by his Prophet &s;peakes there to a people that had a double &s;trength; they were <HI>&s;trong hearted,</HI> and they were <HI>&s;trong handed,</HI> they had much force or outward power, and they had much courage or inward power; but neyther hand-&s;trength, nor heart-&s;trength, neyther force nor courage &s;hall a|vayle you <HI>in that day</HI> (&s;aith the Lord) <HI>that I &s;hall deale with you</HI> after the dealings of an enemy in wrath and Judgement. God &s;trengthens the hands of his &s;ervants and encourageth their hearts to endure his &s;evere&s;t dealings with them. But when he commeth to deale &s;everely with tho&s;e who are rebellious and wicked, their hearts who are &s;toute&s;t among them &s;hall not be able to endure, nor can they &s;trengthen their hands. <HI>They who have &s;trengthned their hearts and hands mo&s;t to commit &s;in, &s;hall be lea&s;t able to &s;trengthen them for the bearing of the puni&s;hment of &s;in.</HI></P>
<P>And hence by way of Coralary or inference con&s;ider.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, If the pillars of heaven tremble before God, if pillars (who&s;e nature is to &s;tand &s;till) move at the pre&s;ence of God, what &s;hall become of weake man, of man who is a worme? if the pillars of heaven tremble at the reproofe of God, then certainly the pillars of the earth cannot &s;tand fa&s;t at his reproofe. The pillars
<PB N="789" REF="409"> of heaven are the &s;tro<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ge&s;t pillars. When <HI>Jehu</HI> &s;ent Letters to <HI>Sa|maria</HI> unto the rulers of <HI>Jezreel,</HI> advi&s;ing them to &s;et up one of the Sons of <HI>Ahab</HI> King and fight for him, the text &s;aith (2 <HI>King.</HI> 10.4.) <HI>they were exceedingly affrayd, and &s;ayd, Behold two Kings &s;tood not before him, how then can we &s;tand?</HI> And thus may the &s;tronge&s;t pillars on earth cry out with feare at the di&s;plea&s;ure and reproofes of God, Behold the pillars of heaven tremble and are a&s;toni&s;hed at his reproofes, how then can we be e&s;tabli&s;hed? Some men are or are e&s;teemed to be like <HI>James, Cephas,</HI> and <HI>John,</HI> pillars in the Church (<HI>Gal.</HI> 2.9.) and others are pillars in States and Common|wealths; So we may expound that of <HI>Hannah</HI> in her &s;ong (1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 2.8.) <HI>The pillars of the earth</HI> (that is, earthly powers or Magi|&s;trates) <HI>are the Lords, and he hath &s;et the world upon them,</HI> for, in|deed, the world would &s;oone fall into confu&s;ion, and &s;hatter to peices (as to its civil capacity) if the Lord had hot founded it up|on pillars of Government and Magi&s;tracy, or &s;et up Magi&s;trates and Governours as the pillars of it. And yet how often have the&s;e pillars of the earth trembled? how many of them have fallen and been broken at the rebukes of God? There is a &s;ort of pillars that &s;hall never be moved; How great an honour is it to be made &s;uch a pillar, and Chri&s;t hath taught us who &s;hall be made &s;uch a one (<HI>Rev:</HI> 3.12.) <HI>Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the Temple of my God;</HI> Such pillars &s;hall not tremble, they &s;hall not be a&s;toni&s;hed, when all the pillars of the world are ca&s;t downe with trembling and a&s;toni&s;hment. <HI>David</HI> hath a &s;trange expre&s;&s;ion (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 75.3.) <HI>The earth and all the inhabitants of it are di&s;&s;olved,</HI> (if &s;o, whence was it that they were not utterly ruin'd and de|&s;troyed; He an&s;wers) <HI>I beare up the pillars of it.</HI> But how could <HI>David</HI> beare up the pillars of the earth, when all was di&s;&s;olved? he meanes it not of a natural but civill di&s;&s;olution; things were out of order, the bands and ligaments of government were &s;orely bro|ken, men were divided into partyes and factions. Thus the earth, and inhabitants thereof were di&s;&s;olved, which is the &s;adde&s;t condi|tion a people can be in; when it was thus, when there was &s;uch a rupture among the people, Then <HI>David</HI> the chiefe Governour (under God) laboured to heale the breaches, and to be a pillar to tho&s;e &s;haking pillars; He by his great wi&s;edome, Ju&s;tice, modera|tion, and faithfullne&s;&s;e, bore up the bearers of the people, and &s;up|ported their &s;upporters, whether per&s;ons or things; As if he had
<PB N="790" REF="410"> &s;ayd, though there be much confu&s;ion in the earth, yet the Lord enables me to keepe things together, &s;o that they fall not to the ground, and are not utterly ruined. <HI>It is a Great honour to be a pil|lar bearing up the building, but it is a greater honour to be a pillar bearing up the pillars;</HI> All good Magi&s;trates have the former ho|nour, and all &s;upreame Magi&s;trates, if good, have the latter; yet both the&s;e honours doe originally &amp; primarily belong unto God; who as he maketh the pillars of heaven tremble, &s;o he can firmely &s;etle (and will while they willingly &s;erve his ends and intere&s;ts) the pillars of the Earth, though but earthly pillars.</P>
<P>Secondly, Take this al&s;o by way of Corrolary from the text; <HI>If the pillars of heaven tremble, and are a&s;toni&s;hed at the reproofe of God;</HI> what &s;hall we &s;ay of tho&s;e men, or of the hardne&s;&s;e of their hearts?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Who, <HI>heare the reproofes of God dayly, yet tremble not.</HI> What? doe the pillars of heaven tremble at the reproofe of God, and &s;hall not men! yet, thus more then bruiti&s;h are many men; They heare reproofes, &s;evere reproofes again&s;t &s;in, yet they trem|ble no more then the &s;tones they &s;tand upon, nor are moved any more then the &s;eates they &s;it upon; let God thunder, and lighten, and chide, and threaten, they are not &s;tirred with it; The pillars of heaven &s;hall ri&s;e up in judgement again&s;t this dedolent and ob|durate generation. The Prophet (<HI>Jere:</HI> 36.24.) reports a &s;ad &s;to|ry of this; a threatening rolle was &s;ent to <HI>Jehoiakim</HI> king of <HI>Ju|dah,</HI> written from the mouth of <HI>Jeremiah</HI> by <HI>Barucke;</HI> the King cau&s;ed it to be read as he &s;ate at the fire, and then (whereas it might have been expected that he &s;hould be cut at the heart with Godly &s;orrow and contrition for his &s;in) <HI>he cut it with the Pen|knife and ca&s;t it into the fire that was on the hearth untill all the roll was con&s;umed in the fire that was on the hearth; yet they were not afraid nor rent their garments, neither the king, or any of his &s;er|vants that heard all the&s;e words;</HI> as if it had bin &s;ayd, what a won|derfull hardne&s;&s;e was there upon the hearts of the&s;e men, that they could heare &s;uch words read, words &s;o full of terrour, words cloa|thed with &s;uch reproofes, words which &s;pake nothing but death, wrath, de&s;truction, ruine, and de&s;olation, yet notwith&s;tanding all this they were not afraid, neither the King nor any of his &s;ervants regarded it. <HI>The heart of man is more hard then hardne&s;&s;e it &s;elfe, till God &s;often it, or breaketh it;</HI> man moves not, he relents not,
<PB N="791" REF="410"> let God reprove, and thunder, let God doe what he will and &s;ay what he will, let God make (as it were) a hell upon the earth, and, in the greate&s;t earne&s;t, ca&s;t abroad his firebrands, arrows, and death, in the dreadfulle&s;t repre&s;entations of wrath and judgement, yet man trembles not, nor is he any more a&s;toni&s;hed then if all this were &s;poken in je&s;t.</P>
<P>Secondly, What &s;hall we &s;ay of tho&s;e who as they tremble not when they heare the reproofes of God, &s;o they tremble not when they &s;ee his reproofes. When God makes his reproofes vi&s;i|ble, and writes them in blood; when he brings forth his reproofes in wofull effects (For as all our mercyes and comforts are nothing el&s;e but the promi&s;es made vi&s;ible; &s;o all the judgements which God brings upon the world, are nothing but his reproofes and threatnings made vi&s;ible, when (I &s;ay) he brings forth his re|proofes in wofull effects) how de&s;perately and indeed (though it may &s;eeme a contradiction) how pre&s;umptuou&s;ly are they hardned in &s;in, who&s;e ey never affects their heart, who can &s;ee &s;uch reproofs of God yet never tremble. It is &s;aid in the Law of <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> that pu|ni&s;hment &s;hould be openly executed upon the pre&s;umptuous &s;in|ner, (<HI>Deut.</HI> 17.13.) that <HI>all the people &s;hould heare and feare, and doe no more pre&s;umptuou&s;ly;</HI> if all upon the hearing, &s;hould feare, and feare &s;o as to doe &s;o no more, how much more &s;hould all that &s;ee feare, and doe &s;o no more?</P>
<P>Thirdly, What &s;hall we &s;ay of tho&s;e who not onely heare and &s;ee the reproofes of God, but feele them al&s;o, and yet tremble not: when the rod is upon their backs, a &s;word in their bowels, judge|ments round about them, and death climbing up at their win|dowes, yet they are not a&s;toni&s;hed; they are not onely <HI>word proofe,</HI> but <HI>judgement proofe:</HI> they are not &s;encible of what they feele, they are &s;miteen, yet not &s;icke, &s;orrow and griefe of heart touch|eth them not, though they are &s;mitten for their &s;ins, and peirced with many &s;orrows. They are &s;o farre from being troubled at the remembrance of former &s;ins while they &s;mart under pre&s;ent af|flictions, that with wicked King <HI>Ahaz</HI> they &s;in yet more again&s;t God in the time of their affliction. They are &s;o farre from turning as wi&s;edome coun&s;elleth us (<HI>Pro:</HI> 1.23.) at the verbal reproofes of God, or at the reproofes of his mouth, that they will not re|turne while he reproves them with his hand. Surely, at la&s;t the trembling pillars of heaven &s;hall reprove them, who tremble not, nor are a&s;toni&s;hed at the reproofes of God.</P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="12" TYPE="verse">
<PB N="792" REF="411">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 12.</HI></BIBL> He divideth the &s;ea by his power, and by his under&s;tand|ing he &s;miteth through the proud.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The generall &s;cope and &s;en&s;e of this ver&s;e, is an illu&s;tration of the power and wi&s;edome of God by a twofold effect; fir&s;t, by divi|ding and vexing the mighty waters of the &s;ea with boy&s;trous winds and &s;tormes; &s;econdly, by &s;topping and appea&s;ing them when they are in their highe&s;t rage and proude&s;t fury, as if they were &s;mitten to death.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> He divideth the &s;ea by his power.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> movit commovit vol|vit, per Anti|phra&s;in quievit.</NOTE>The word which we render <HI>to divide,</HI> hath a twofold &s;ignifica|tion, in a contrariety, as is frequent in the Hebrew; Fir&s;t, to move and roule, to &s;tirre up, and trouble, as the waters and waves of the Sea are by the winds; which doe &s;o move and &s;tirre them as that they &s;eeme to divide and cut them a&s;under, and cau&s;e them to da&s;h one again&s;t another, and &s;o it is applicable to the Sea in a &s;torme; &s;econdly,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Virtute &s;edavit mare. <HI>Sept:</HI> Virtute ejus quie&s;cit mare. <HI>Vatabl:</HI></NOTE> it &s;ignifyes to quiet and appea&s;e, and &s;o it is applicable to the Sea in a calme. The &s;eventy render it, &s;o here, <HI>He hath ap|pea&s;ed the Sea by his power:</HI> and a learned Hebrician gives the &s;ame &s;ence, <HI>By his power the Sea is quiet.</HI> And 'tis indeed an act of the &s;ame power to quiet the Sea, to hu&s;h the winds, and command a calme, as to ray&s;e &s;tormes upon the &s;ea, or to put the &s;ea into a &s;torme; but I &s;hall not pro&s;ecute that &s;en&s;e in this fir&s;t part of the ver&s;e, becau&s;e the latter part of it &s;peakes rather of that poynt, as will appeare in the opening of it; And &s;o the whole ver&s;e giveth us a compleate de&s;cription of the mighty power of God upon the mighty waters; fir&s;t, in cau&s;ing their rage and fury; &s;econdly, in cau&s;ing them to be &s;till, and quiet. The exerci&s;e of which two powers cary a compleate Empire and Dominion over the Seas.</P>
<Q>He divideth the &s;ea.</Q>
<P>There is a generall interpretation of the ver&s;e which I &s;hall touch before I pitch upon that which I conceave mo&s;t proper. <HI>This divi|&s;ion of the Sea, and &s;miting through the proud,</HI> is &s;uppo&s;ed to be a de&s;cription of Gods dealing with <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and his <HI>Aegyptians,</HI> when he brought the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> out of <HI>Aegypt,</HI> at which time (the Hi&s;tory telleth us that) <HI>he divided the &s;ea by his power,
<PB N="793" REF="411"> and by his under&s;tanding he &s;mote through the proud, or through Ra|hab.</HI> The divi&s;ion of the Sea is unque&s;tionable (<HI>Exod.</HI> 14.21.) <HI>And Mo&s;es &s;tretched out his hand over the Sea, and the Lord cau|&s;ed the Sea to goe backe by a &s;trong Ea&s;t-winde all that night, and made the Sea dry land, and the waters were divided.</HI> The latter part of the ver&s;e is as cleare in the plaine &s;ignification of it, to the &s;ame worke of providence, for then, <HI>By his under&s;tanding did God &s;mite through the proud.</HI> And the word <HI>Rahab,</HI> which we tran&s;late <HI>proud,</HI> is often u&s;ed in Scripture to &s;ignifie <HI>Aegypt.</HI> Thus (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 87.4.) <HI>I will make mention of Rahab and Babylon to them that know me,</HI> that is, of <HI>Aegypt</HI> and <HI>Babylon;</HI> as if he had &s;ayd, tho&s;e places which have been the greate&s;t enemyes to the people of God, &s;hall de&s;ire to joyne with the people of God, <HI>Sion</HI> &s;hall have converts from <HI>Aegypt</HI> and <HI>Babylon.</HI> And the rea&s;on why <HI>Aegypt</HI> is ex|pre&s;&s;ed in Scripture under this word, ari&s;eth from both &s;ignificati|ons of it; fir&s;t, <HI>&s;trength,</HI> for <HI>Aegypt</HI> was a very &s;trong Nation, and therefore the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> were reproved for going to them for helpe, and relying upon their &s;trength, which though great in it &s;elfe, yet &s;hould be to them but a broken reed; &s;econdly, as it &s;ig|nifyeth <HI>pride,</HI> or <HI>the proud;</HI> men are u&s;ually proud of &s;trength, and <HI>Aegypt</HI> being a &s;trong Nation, was al&s;o a very proud Nation; yet this <HI>Aegypt,</HI> this <HI>Rahab,</HI> &s;trong and proud, &s;hall fall downe and humble her &s;elfe before the Lord. And though now <HI>Aegyptians</HI> be &s;trangers from the Common-wealth of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> yet of them it &s;hall be &s;ayd that they were borne (by a &s;econd or new &s;pirituall birth) in <HI>Sion.</HI> We have the like &s;ence of the word, and almo&s;t the &s;ame phra&s;e of &s;peech with this in <HI>Job (P&s;.</HI> 89.9, 10.) <HI>Thou rule&s;t the raging of the &s;ea, when the waves thereof ari&s;e thou &s;tille&s;t them;</HI> then followeth in the next words, <HI>Thou ha&s;t broken Rahab as one that is &s;laine</HI> (that is, <HI>Aegypt) thou ha&s;t &s;cattered thine enemies with thy &s;trong arme.</HI> And againe (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 51.9.) <HI>Awake, awake &ocirc; arme of the Lord, put on &s;trength;</HI> The P&s;almi&s;t &s;ayth, <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;cattered thine enemies with thy &s;trong arme;</HI> the Prophet prayeth, <HI>Awake, awake &ocirc; arme of the Lord, As in the ancient dayes, in the generati|ons of old, art thou not it, that hath cut Rahab, and wounded the Dragon, art not thou it which hath dryed the Sea?</HI> &amp;c. Which plain|ly hints the de&s;truction of <HI>Pharaoh</HI> and his ho&s;t in the red Sea. <HI>Job</HI> al&s;o &s;eemes to ayme at that noble, and notable act of divine power, and under&s;tanding: And the words of the text (as all mu&s;t
<PB N="794" REF="412"> grant) without any &s;traine or trouble are applicable to it; The onely difficulty lyeth in this, becau&s;e it is not agreed upon by any Chronologers, who have &s;earched &s;trictly, and critically into tho&s;e times, that <HI>Job</HI> lived after the departure of the people of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> out of <HI>Egypt;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec accipere de decem plagis E|gypti vix per|mittit aetas Jo+bi, quem mo<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">tu|um put<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> eo an|no quum I<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">aeli|tae eg<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">e&s;&s;i &s;unt ex Egypto. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI> Non plaet haec referre ad di|vi&s;ionem maris rubri in Egypto I&s;<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">aelita ingra|tia quia ante illud e~pus, cre|dimus fui&s;&s;e J b &amp; generalit&egrave;r potius loquitur de dei operibus. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> yea &s;ome affirme, that <HI>Job</HI> dyed that very yeare when the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> departed out of <HI>Egypt,</HI> and if &s;o, then he could not make in&s;tance &s;o many yeares before he dyed (unle&s;s prophetically) con|cerning that miraculous divi&s;ion of the red Sea, and the de&s;truction of the <HI>Egyptians.</HI> Be&s;ides this, another argument is alledged to in|validate this interpretation; becau&s;e all along <HI>Job</HI> in&s;tanceth in the generall works of God, what he doth in the heavens, in the earth, in the ayre, and here in the Sea, &s;o that it doth not &s;eeme probable that <HI>Job</HI> &s;hould de&s;cend to the mention of that particular provi|dence of God to the <HI>I&s;raelites;</HI> though that may &s;erve for a glori|ous proofe &amp; illu&s;tration of the poynt upon which <HI>Job</HI> hath &s;o long in&s;i&s;ted. The workes of God in ordering the workes of nature, beare the re&s;emblance of his workes among the children of men; His repre&s;&s;ing the raging of the Sea, looketh like his repre&s;&s;ing the rage of the wicked who are like the troubled Sea.</P>
<Q>He divideth the Sea by his power.</Q>
<P>We may take that act two wayes, eyther, fir&s;t, as dividing is u&s;ed in an ordinary &s;en&s;e, to cut out and part one thing or one peece of a thing from another. It is a great and powerfull worke of God, to divide the Sea, or the whole bulke of waters to &s;eve|rall parts of the world, and for the accommodation of &s;everall Countries. At fir&s;t the waters covered the whole earth, <HI>all was a great deepe, and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters,</HI> (Gen. 1.2.) Nothing was to be &s;eene, or there was no face of any thing but water. And therefore as it is &s;ayd (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.7.) that <HI>the Lord &s;eparated or divided the waters which were under the fir|mament from the waters which were above the firmament.</HI> So (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.9.) <HI>God &s;aid let the waters under the heavens be gathered toge|ther into one place, and let the dry land appeare, and it was &s;o, and God called the dry land earth, and the gathering together of waters he called Sea.</HI> And as that Scripture in <HI>Gene&s;is</HI> &s;heweth that the Sea is the Gathering together of waters; &s;o other Scriptures &s;hew that the waters of the Sea are divided or run out in &s;everall Divi|&s;ions. The 104^t^h P&s;alme is a continued meditation of the mighty
<PB N="795" REF="412"> power of God put forth both in creation and providence; where the P&s;almi&s;t having &s;ayd of God (<HI>v.</HI> 5.) <HI>Who layd the foundations of the earth that it &s;hould not be removed for ever;</HI> he addeth (<HI>v.</HI> 6, 7, 8.) <HI>Thou covere&s;t it</HI> (that is, the whole earth) <HI>with the deepe as with a garment; the waters &s;tood above the mountaines,</HI> (that is, the waters were higher then the highe&s;t mountaines.) But what did God then? <HI>at thy rebuke they fled, at the voyce of thy thunder they ha&s;ted away</HI> (that is, when thou did&s;t &s;peake powerfully and &s;trongly to them, as with the voyce of thunder) <HI>they goe up by the mountaines, they goe downe by the valleys, unto the place which thou ha&s;t founded for them; thou ha&s;t &s;et them bounds that they may not pa&s;&s;e over, that they returne not againe to cover the earth.</HI> As the waters are now put into one great ve&s;&s;el, &s;o they are caryed out in &s;everall great channels all the world over for the conveniency of trafficke, and for the more ea&s;ie entercour&s;e of nation with na|tion. M^r <HI>Broughton</HI> expounds his tran&s;lation fully to this purpo&s;e; <HI>Of a Generall water, he made many;</HI> and he tran&s;lates the latter part of the ver&s;e fully to that &s;ence; <HI>And by his wi&s;edome he parted the maine water,</HI> or <HI>pride,</HI> that is, the proud Sea; that threatneth to drowne the land. So that though the Sea be but one body of wa|ters, yet it is divided into many members, and receaves different names, according to the differing names, whether of I&s;lands or Continents, who&s;e &s;hoares it wa&s;heth.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others expound this divi&s;ion of the Sea, of the vio|lent motion of the Sea. So, <HI>He divideth the Sea,</HI> is, he maketh the Sea rage, and waters ri&s;e up again&s;t waters, as per&s;ons or nations doe when they are divided among them&s;elves. Sometimes the Sea is (as if it were) all of one peice, in union, and concord, all is calme and quiet; by and by, the Lord divides the Sea, &s;ets wave again&s;t wave, flood again&s;t flood, water again&s;t water, as if the Sea were broken into a thou&s;and factions. It is &s;ayd in that my&s;ticall Scripture (<HI>Dan:</HI> 7.2.) <HI>That the Prophet &s;aw in his vi&s;ion by night, and Behold the foure winds of heaven &s;trove upon the great Sea;</HI> That is, there were great troubles and commotions ray&s;ed in all parts of the world, which vexed, divided, and turmoyled the nati|ons, even as the Sea is when boy&s;terous winds, e&s;pecially when all the winds are let out of pri&s;on to &s;trive and contend with one ano|ther. Men make many fights at Sea, and God many times makes the Seas fight. Which fightings and dividings of the Sea, are a
<PB N="796" REF="413"> cleare embleme of all the divi&s;ions and fights, which ari&s;e among men, and are acted eyther at Land or Sea.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The divi&s;ions, &s;tormes, and ragings of the Sea are by the power of God.</Q>
<P>The P&s;almi&s;t is much upon this, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 107.23, 24, 25.) <HI>They that goe downe to the Sea in &s;hips, that doe bu&s;ienes in great waters, the&s;e &s;ee the workes of the Lord in the deepe, for he commandeth and ray&s;eth up the &s;tormy winde, which lifted up the waves thereof,</HI> (where note, they are lifted up by Gods command) <HI>they mount up to the heaven, they goe downe againe to the depths, their &s;oule is mel|ted becau&s;e of trouble.</HI> (Jon: 1.4.) <HI>The Lord &s;ent out a great winde into the Sea, and there was a mighty tempe&s;t in the Sea.</HI> (Jere: 10.13.) God is &s;aid <HI>to bring the winde out of his trea&s;ure</HI> (and <HI>Prov:</HI> 30.4.) <HI>To gather the winde in his fi&s;t.</HI> The winde is &s;ent out, and the winde is gathered in, 'tis trea&s;ured up, and 'tis di&s;bur&s;ed out by his owne appoyntment to &s;erve his providences and de&s;ignes to|wards men, both in mercy and in Judgement.</P>
<P>We may hence inferre, that
<Q>As the Lord divideth the Sea, &s;o the Earth.</Q></P>
<P>When men are all of a minde, all as one man, he can &s;ever and divide their &s;pirits, and then cau&s;e them to da&s;h again&s;t one ano|ther like the waves of a tempe&s;tuous Sea. The old world was of one minde, but the Lord came downe, and divided them, when he &s;aw them united in that worke (<HI>Gen.</HI> 11.6.) <HI>The people are one, and they have all one language, and this they begin to doe, and now nothing will be re&s;trained from them which they have imagined to doe, &s;o the Lord confounded their language, and &s;cattered them a|broad;</HI> They were building a <HI>Babel</HI> to &s;ecure them&s;elves again&s;t a &s;econd deluge, and to get <HI>them a name le&s;t they &s;hould be &s;cattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.</HI> Therefore God brought their feares upon them, and &s;cattered them. <HI>We lay our &s;elves mo&s;t open to that judgement, which we labour mo&s;t to prevent in a &s;infull way.</HI> As there are divi&s;ions among men which are their &s;in, &s;o God &s;ends divi&s;ions among men which are their puni&s;hment. And as God &s;ends divi&s;ions among men for the puni&s;hment of &s;ome, &s;o for the probation or tryall of others. Chri&s;t &s;aith (<HI>Math:</HI> 10.35.
<PB N="797" REF="413"> <HI>I am come to &s;et a man at variance again&s;t his father, and the daugh|ter with her mother, and the daughter in law again&s;t her mother in law; and a mans enemies &s;hall be they of his owne hou&s;e.</HI> Such divi|&s;ions the Lord makes on the earth, that it may appeare how &s;trongly and immoveably his faithfull ones are united unto him. As we are to a&s;cribe our union, &s;o our divi&s;ions to God; it is he that ordereth all the&s;e things, though they flow from the corrup|tion, pride, and &s;elfei&s;hne&s;&s;e of men. When there are divi&s;ions and emulations among us, we &s;hew our &s;elves (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, 1 <HI>Cor:</HI> 3.3.) and walke as men; But God &s;heweth him&s;elfe righ|teous, and acteth as God; <HI>He divideth the Sea by his power,</HI> <Q>And by his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through the proud.</Q></P>
<P>The dividing of the Sea was a&s;cribed to the power of God in the former part of the ver&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> e&s;t ictu deprimere, ut quum paxillus ictu corpori &s;oli|do imprimitur.</NOTE> and here his &s;miting through the proud is a&s;cribed to his under&s;tanding. The word &s;ignifies to &s;trike &s;o, as to de&s;troy, or kill, to &s;trike dead. (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 30.26. <HI>Numb:</HI> 24.8.) <HI>God &s;triketh home when he &s;triketh the proud.</HI></P>
<P>But who or what are the proud ones, whom God &s;miteth through? The word is <HI>Rahab,</HI> (as was toucht before in the ge|nerall interpretation of the ver&s;e) &s;ignifies two things; fir&s;t, &s;trength, &s;o &s;ome render it here; <HI>By his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through &s;trength;</HI> that is, <HI>tho&s;e things which are &s;tronge&s;t.</HI> The very weakene&s;&s;e of God is &s;tronger then man, and therefore there is nothing &s;o &s;trong, but God can quickly &s;mite it through or de|&s;troy it. Secondly, it &s;ignifyeth pride, becau&s;e men u&s;ually are proud of their &s;trength; whence that caution (<HI>Jer.</HI> 9.23.) <HI>Let not the mighty man glory in his might.</HI> Any kinde of &s;trength is apt to make man proud; the &s;trength of his e&s;tate, and pur&s;e, is a great temptation to pride; &s;trength of body, &s;trength of parts, &s;trength of wit and under&s;tanding (which is the highe&s;t, and noble&s;t natu|rall &s;trength) puts on to pride, yea (&s;o &s;trange are the wayes and methods of temptation) the very &s;trength of grace or &s;pirituall &s;trength hath blowne up &s;ome with pride; For though humility flow properly from the &s;trength of grace, and the more grace the more humility, yet upon a pre&s;umption of the greatne&s;&s;e and &s;trength of their graces, &s;ome have been proud and high-minded, that is, they have not lived in &s;uch dependance upon Chri&s;t as they ought. Our &s;trength lyes much in the &s;ence of our weakenes,
<PB N="798" REF="414"> becau&s;e, then we goe out of our &s;elves to Chri&s;t for &s;trength, that is the meaning of the Apo&s;tles confe&s;&s;ion, <HI>When I am weake, then am I &s;trong</HI> (2 Cor. 12.10.) And they who are &s;trong in them|&s;elves, mu&s;t needs be weake, becau&s;e the &s;trength of God goeth out again&s;t them. And therefore it will not be unprofitable for us, before I come to the &s;peciall explication of the proud here intend|ed, to meditate upon and make u&s;e of this Scripture in the full la|titude &amp; compa&s;&s;e of the word. For who&s;oever he is that is proud, whether he be proud of his naturall or civill or &s;upernaturall &s;trength, let him looke to him&s;elfe, God under&s;tandeth him, and by his under&s;tanding he will <HI>&s;mite through the proud.</HI> The proud man is alwayes in danger of falling, though (becau&s;e of his pride) he lea&s;t of all men, eyther feareth or &s;u&s;pecteth a fall. How can they be &s;afe again&s;t whom God hath declared him&s;elfe an enemy. There's no armour of proofe again&s;t the &s;troakes of God, if God &s;mite as an enemy, he &s;miteth through, and &s;o he alwayes &s;miteth the proud. <HI>Saul</HI> attempted more then once to &s;mite <HI>David</HI> to the wall with his Javelin; yet <HI>David</HI> avoyded his blow and got out of his furious pre&s;ence; But when God ca&s;teth his Javelin at the proud, they &s;hall not e&s;cape a &s;miting through and nayling to the wall. <HI>By his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through the proud.</HI></P>
<P>But more di&s;tinctly, who is the proud in the text whom God &s;miteth through?</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Some &s;ay the <HI>Devill;</HI> He indeed is the <HI>proud one,</HI> his pride was his fall from God, and God hath &s;mitten him through for his pride.</P>
<P>Secondly, Others under&s;tand by the proud, <HI>the whale in the Sea;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Et &s;cientia &s;tra|tus e&s;t cetus. <HI>70 i. e</HI> &s;uo imperio &s;ubegit.</NOTE> thus the <HI>&s;eventy</HI> tran&s;late, <HI>and by his knowledge he hath de|&s;troyed the Whale or Leviathan,</HI> of whom the Lord &s;aith (in the 41^t^h Chapter of this booke, <HI>v.</HI> 34.) <HI>He is a king over all the chil|dren of pride.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Intelligentia &s;ia percu&s;&s;it Gigan|tus. <HI>Targ:</HI></NOTE>Thirdly, The Chaldee paraphra&s;e &s;ayth, <HI>He hath &s;mitten through the Giants.</HI> Which whether it be meant of the Whales who are Giants among the fi&s;hes of the Sea; or of Giants who are like Whales at land, bigger and more formidable then the re&s;t of men, the &s;ence is the &s;ame; both agreeing in this, that God can quickly de&s;troy and &s;ubdue tho&s;e who are greate&s;t, &s;tronge&s;t, and &s;o proude&s;t in this world. But leaving all the&s;e &s;uppo&s;itions, I &s;hall conclude,</P>
<PB N="799" REF="414">
<P>Fourthly, That <HI>by the proud,</HI> we are rather to under&s;tand the &s;trong and mighty waves and waters of the Sea in their greate&s;t hight and pride. This holdeth fayre&s;t corre&s;pondence with the former part of the ver&s;e, <HI>He divideth the &s;ea by his power,</HI> that is,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Percutit, <HI>i. e.</HI> domat &amp; com|pe&s;cit &s;uperbi|am maris. <HI>Dru&s;:</HI> Sua potentia &s;c<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">n<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">it mara, &amp; intelligentia &s;ua compe&s;cit ejus ferociam. <HI>Tygur:</HI> Cum deus tran|quillat mare, percutere et <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">on|culcare videtur &s;uperbum <HI>Pi|ned:</HI></NOTE> He ray&s;eth &s;tormes, and &s;o divides the waters, and when the Sea is in its greate&s;t rage, then <HI>by his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through the proud,</HI> the proud waves, aad &s;o maketh a calme; The &s;ea in it &s;elfe, e&s;pecially in its &s;wellings and &s;tormings is a proud creature; and that title or epethite of pride is often given to it: we reade (<HI>P&s;al:</HI> 124.5.) of <HI>proud waters,</HI> and (<HI>Job</HI> 38.11.) of <HI>the proud waves,</HI> at the 13^t^h ver&s;e of the Epi&s;tle of <HI>Jude,</HI> we reade, of <HI>raging waves of the &s;ea,</HI> and (<HI>Luke</HI> 21.25.) of <HI>roring waves of the &s;ea.</HI> The Prophet (<HI>Jer:</HI> 12.5.) &s;peaketh of <HI>the &s;welling of Jordan;</HI> &s;o that when <HI>Job</HI> &s;ayth, <HI>by his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through the proud;</HI> we may clearely interpret him of the &s;ea-waves, then which nothing in appearance is more proud and &s;welling; and therefore when God allayeth and guideth the high-growne waves of the Sea, he may well be &s;ayd, <HI>to &s;mite through the proud.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>God knoweth how to bring downe the Sea in its greate&s;t rage and pride.</Q>
<P>God doth it by his under&s;tanding, as wel as by his power; As God hath power enough to divide the Sea, and make it &s;tormy, &s;o he hath under&s;tanding enough to calme and quiet it. We read (<HI>Math:</HI> 8.23, 24, 25, 26, 27.) <HI>That Chri&s;t being entred into a &s;hip with his Di&s;ciples, a great tempe&s;t aro&s;e, in&s;omuch that the &s;hip was covered with the waves, but he was a&s;leepe. And his Di&s;ciples came to him and awoke him, &s;aying, Lord &s;ave us we peri&s;h. And he &s;aith unto them, why are ye fearefull, O ye of little faith? then he aro&s;e and rebuked the winds and the Sea, and there was a great calme.</HI> This is a plaine exemplification and expo&s;ition of <HI>Jobs</HI> a&s;|&s;ertion, <HI>by his under&s;tanding he &s;miteth through the proud;</HI> When the Sea was as furious as a mad man, who hath lo&s;t his rea&s;on, and will heare none, yet then Chri&s;t by his divine power and wi&s;e|dome made it as obedient as they who have and act mo&s;t rea&s;on are, when they heare the mo&s;t rational and pre&s;&s;ing per&s;wa&s;ions, or (we may &s;ay) that he hu&s;ht the Sea as a mother doth her cry|ing childe, and rock't it into a &s;leepe; yea he doth not onely calme
<PB N="800" REF="415"> the Sea, but kill it, or &s;trike it dead (as the word of the text im|ports.) There is a particular &s;ea which is called <HI>The Dead Sea,</HI> But God can make all the &s;eas <HI>Dead Seas,</HI> and then he delights mo&s;t to doe it, when they threaten to &s;wallow up all living.</P>
<P>This may be a great &s;upport to us among the &s;tormes which we meete with here at land. When men and nations are divided and raging again&s;t one another, God can quiet them; It is an ea&s;ie matter to make divi&s;ions among men, but it calls for much holy skill and wi&s;edome, even the wi&s;edome of God, to heale and &s;o|der them. And when the &s;pirits of men are proude&s;t and lifted up like the high waves of the &s;ea, then u&s;ually tis Gods time to ap|peare and &s;trike them through At his word (as the Prophet &s;peakes, <HI>I&s;a:</HI> 11.13.) <HI>The envy of Ephraim &s;hall depart, and the adver&s;aries of Judah &s;hall be cut off, Ephraim &s;hall not envy Judah, and Judah &s;hall not vexe Ephraim.</HI> Whence is it that <HI>Ephraim</HI> en|vyeth <HI>Judah?</HI> whence is it that <HI>Judah</HI> vexeth <HI>Ephraim?</HI> is it not from their pride? &s;aith not <HI>Solomon</HI> (Pro: 13.10.) <HI>By pride com|meth contention.</HI> How then &s;hall the contention between <HI>Ephraim</HI> and <HI>Judah</HI> cea&s;e, but by <HI>&s;triking through their pride?</HI> When there is le&s;&s;e pride among men, there will be more peace, and God will &s;mite the proude&s;t rather then his people &s;hall not have peace. As the <HI>Jewes</HI> were divided among them&s;elves, &s;o likewi&s;e were the Jewes and Gentiles, <HI>Till Chri&s;t reconciling both to God in one body by the Cro&s;&s;e, did &s;lay enmity thereby</HI> (Eph: 2.16.) And how did he &s;lay their their enmity, even by &s;miting through their pride, and humbling their &s;pirits under his owne cro&s;&s;e or &s;ufferings, by which, and the throane of Grace, they were at once reconciled to God, and one to another.</P>
<P>Secondly, <HI>That God</HI> who can appea&s;e the rage of the proud &s;eas, can al&s;o appea&s;e or de&s;troy the rage of the proude&s;t men who oppo&s;e his people. So &s;ome under&s;tand that, (<HI>Zech:</HI> 10.11.) where we have a prophe&s;ie of bringing the children of <HI>I&s;rael</HI> out of <HI>Egypt</HI> and <HI>A&s;&s;yria</HI> into their owne land; <HI>And he &s;hall pa&s;&s;e through the &s;ea with affliction, and he &s;hall &s;mite through the waves in the &s;ea, and all the deeps of the river &s;hall dry up;</HI> that is, Chri&s;t the deliverer of his people, &s;hall pa&s;&s;e through the nations who are like the red Sea, &s;tanding in the way of his peoples returne, and he will afflict them, or bring much affliction upon them, and he will &s;mite tho&s;e who like proud waves &s;hall threaten to &s;wallow them
<PB N="801" REF="415"> up; &s;o that <HI>the deepes of the river,</HI> even tho&s;e hindrances, which it was thought could never be removed, &s;hall dry up at his command or rebuke, <HI>and the pride of A&s;&s;yria &s;hall be brought downe, and the &s;cepter of Egypt &s;hall depart away,</HI> that is, they who &s;hall then be to the people of God, as <HI>Egypt</HI> and <HI>A&s;&s;yria</HI> were of old, hard Taske-ma&s;ters and leaders of them into Captivity, &s;hall be &s;ubdued and removed, when they are proude&s;t and in their greate&s;t power. 'Tis matter of &s;trong con&s;olation to all the faithfull, that they &s;erve a God who is able to reconcile the divided &s;pirits of his own people one to another, and cau&s;e all their envy to depart from them; who is able al&s;o to reconcile their greate&s;t adver&s;aryes to them, and eyther to &s;tay their enmity, or to &s;lay them as enemyes.</P>
<P>Thirdly, 'Tis matter of comfort to the people of God. For he who can appea&s;e the rage of the Sea, can al&s;o appea&s;e the rage of Satan, and &s;mite through the proud waves of his Temptations. Satan goeth about continually to rai&s;e &s;tormes, and vex poore &s;oules; O the rage of temptation that many poore &s;oules are un|der, how doe the billowes of it ri&s;e like a violent &s;ea, wave after wave, gu&s;t after gu&s;t. As God him&s;elfe ray&s;eth &s;tormes of temp|tation again&s;t a poore &s;oule (thus <HI>David</HI> &s;pake in his owne ca&s;e, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 42.7. <HI>Deepe calleth unto deepe at the noy&s;e of thy water-&s;pouts: all thy waves and thy billowes are gone over me</HI>) which yet in due time he will appea&s;e; &s;o when Satan by his leave or com|mand, direction or permi&s;&s;ion ray&s;eth &s;tormes of temptation, which he hath no mind to allay but rather to encrea&s;e and double dayly more and more, yet O wearyed and weather-beaten &s;oule, be of good cheere, the Lord can &s;mite through the proud enemy Satan, with all his floods, and waves of temptation, and make a calme.</P>
<P>La&s;tly, Let them al&s;o remember this and be comforted who finde proud waves, proud lu&s;ts, and corruptions, &s;tirring and raging like a Sea within them. For that which is &s;aid by the Prophet of the wicked, is true in part of the righteous, and &s;ometimes it is in a very great mea&s;ure fullfilled in them (<HI>The wicked are like the troubled Sea when it cannot re&s;t,</HI> (I&s;a: 57.20.) that is, they are like the Sea in a &s;torme which is &s;o, not onely becau&s;e of the un|quietne&s;&s;e of their &s;pirits about the providences and dealings of God with them, but becau&s;e their violent lu&s;ts hurry them this way and that way as the &s;ea is toyled and to&s;&s;ed by the windes,
<PB N="802" REF="416"> this (I &s;ay) is true al&s;o in part of Saints) &s;ome more, &s;ome le&s;&s;e are like a troubled Sea, yea they have a Sea of &s;infull lu&s;ts within them, which the Lord is plea&s;ed &s;ometimes to divide and &s;tirre up; their corruptions &s;torme and blu&s;ter, and Satan labours to make them blu&s;ter more &amp; more. We dayly heare the complaints and cryes of &s;oules, thus to&s;&s;ed, comming to Chri&s;t, as his Di&s;ciples once did, and crying to him, <HI>Ma&s;ter &s;ave us we peri&s;h;</HI> we feare we &s;hall be over-whelmed and drowned in this Blacke Sea of our corruptions. To &s;uch Chri&s;t &s;aith, <HI>O ye of little faith,</HI> where|fore do ye thus feare, cannot I &s;mite through the proud, the proud waves of your hearts. Is <HI>unbeliefe</HI> the proud wave, that ye feare will &s;wallow you up? Chri&s;t can give you &s;uch an encrea&s;e of faith as &s;hall &s;wallow up your unbeliefe; is <HI>pride</HI> it &s;elfe the proud wave that is like to overwhelme you? Chri&s;t who &s;miteth through the proud in Judgement, will al&s;o &s;mite through thy pride in mercy. It is a great act of Grace in man to de&s;ire God to &s;trike through his pride, and it is a great act of mercy to man when God doth &s;o. The more God &s;miteth our &s;ins, the more he declares his love to and his care of our &s;oules. The remainders of pride in the Saints &s;hall be &s;mitten through; but &s;inners who remaine in their pride &s;hall be &s;mitten through them&s;elves. God who&s;e power and un|der&s;tanding are made known by &s;miting through the proud waves of the Sea, will at la&s;t make his Ju&s;tice and his holynes knowne by &s;miting through the proud hearts of men, or rather men of proud hearts. Proud men &s;trike at God, yea kicke again&s;t him, no won|der then if he &s;trike and kicke them. All the &s;ufferings of Chri&s;t are wrapt up under that one word, <HI>His humiliation,</HI> implying that as he was &s;mitten for all our &s;ins, &s;o mo&s;t of all for our pride. That man who&s;e pride is not &s;mitten to death or mortifyed by the death of Chri&s;t, &s;hall &s;urely be &s;mitten to death, even to eternall death for his pride. As God under&s;tandeth thoroughly who are proud, &s;o <HI>by his under&s;tanding he will &s;mite through the proud.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="26" TYPE="chapter">
<PB N="803" REF="416">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>JOB, CHAP. 26. Ver&s;. 13, 14.</HI></BIBL>
<P>By his Spirit he hath garni&s;hed the heavens: his hand hath formed the crooked Serpent.</P>
<P>Lo, the&s;e are parts of his wayes, but how little a portion is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can under&s;tand?</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>JOB hath given us a particular of many illu&s;trious works of God, what he doth in the depths below,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Et ut in opere ip&s;ius pulcherri|mo de&s;inam hic ille e&s;t, qui coe|los illa enarra|bili pulchritudi|ne exornavit, &amp; &s;pherae illae &s;uis giris undique coelos &s;erpe~tium in&s;tar percurre~|tes &s;unt opus manibus ip&s;ius tornatum. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE> and what in the hights above; in this ver&s;e he gives another in&s;tance, and that a very choyce one, upon the &s;ame &s;ubject. As if he had &s;ayd; <HI>Af|ter all this large di&s;cour&s;e which I have made of the workes of God, I will conclude with that which is the mo&s;t remarkeable peice of them all. This is he who hath adorn'd the heavens with that unutterable beauty wherewith they &s;hine, and the &s;pheares which wind and turne round about the heavens like Serpents, are &s;moothed and poli&s;hed by his hand.</HI></P>
<DIV3 N="13" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 13.</HI></BIBL> By his Spirit he hath garni&s;hed the heavens.</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>The Spirit of God is taken two wayes in Scripture. Fir&s;t,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><HI>q. d.</HI> vi&s;ua &amp; voluntate, ut no|men &s;piritus &s;ae|pius in &s;criptura u&s;urpatur; &s;ed malo ip&s;um dei &s;piritum almum accipere, quo omnia deus fe|cit. <HI>Merc:</HI></NOTE> for the power of God. Secondly, and &s;o here for God, <HI>the power</HI> as di&s;tinct from the Father and the Son; By whom God wrought all things in the creation of the world (<HI>Gen:</HI> 1.2.) <HI>The Earth was without forme and voyd, and darkenes was upon the face of the deepe, and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.</HI> It is a rule in Divinity, <HI>That the external workes of the Trinity are un|devided;</HI> and &s;o the <HI>Three Per&s;ons</HI> concurred in the making of the world. God the Father created, and is called <HI>Father</HI> in Scrip|ture, not onely in relation to the Eternall ineffable Generation of God the Son, but al&s;o in reference to the production of the crea|ture. God the Son, or the Eternal Word created, (<HI>Joh.</HI> 1.1, 2, 3.) <HI>In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, and the word was God; All things were made by him, and with|out him was nothing made that was made.</HI> God the Spirit or Holy-Gho&s;t, he likewi&s;e created, and He onely is mentioned by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI>
<PB N="804" REF="417"> di&s;tinctly, or by name, as the Agent in the original con&s;titution of all things.<NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> non &s;implicem mo|tionem denotat &s;ed qualem co|lumba perficit cum evis ad ex|cludendum pul|los incubat. <HI>Rab: Selom:</HI> Verbum <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ran|&s;latum ab avi|bus pullitiei &s;uae incubantibus. <HI>Jun.</HI></NOTE> And the Hebrew word (rendred in our tran&s;latio~ <HI>moved, the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters</HI>) by which the A|gency of the Spirit in that Great worke is expre&s;&s;ed, caryeth in it a very accurate &s;ignificancy of that formative vertue or power which the Spirit put forth about it. For it is a metaphor taken from birds who &s;it upon their eggs to hatch and bring forth their young ones; and &s;o importeth the effectual working of the Spi|rit, whereby that confu&s;ed ma&s;&s;e or heape was drawne out and formed up into tho&s;e &s;everall creatures &s;pecifyed by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> in the Hi&s;torie of the Creation; Among which we find the <HI>Garni&s;hing of the heavens,</HI> &s;poken of here by <HI>Job,</HI> is reported by <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> for the worke of the fourth day. Further, we may con&s;ider the heavens; fir&s;t, in their matter and being; &s;econdly, in their beauty and or|naments; <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes of the latter.</P>
<Q>By his Spirit he hath garni&s;hed the heavens.</Q>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> ador|navit, decora|vit, pulchr&egrave; fecit.</NOTE>God hath not onely created, but polli&s;hed, and (as it were) painted or embroydered the heavens. The originall word imply|eth the making of them beautifull, contentfull, and plea&s;ant unto the eye; this is the Lords worke. And therefore as the whole world becau&s;e of the excellent order and beauty of it is expre&s;t in the Greeke by a word that &s;ignifies <HI>beautifull,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign">.</NOTE> &s;o &s;ome parts of the world have a &s;peciall beauty and lu&s;tre put upon them beyond the re&s;t. The heavens are not like a plaine garment (as we &s;ay) with|out welt or guard; but they are laced and trimmed, they are ena|mel'd and &s;pangled, they gli&s;ter and &s;parkle in our eyes with rayes and beames of light. <HI>By his Spirit he hath garni&s;hed the heavens.</HI></P>
<P>If it be asked, what <HI>is this garni&s;hing of the heavens?</HI> I an&s;wer, the &s;etting or placing in of tho&s;e excellent lights, Sunne, Moone and Starres in the heavens, are the garni&s;hing of them. Light is beautifull, and the more light any thing hath, the more beauty it hath. Precious &s;tones have much light in them; tho&s;e lights the Starres are as &s;o many &s;tones of beauty and glory &s;et or moving in the heavens. Light as diffu&s;ed and &s;hed abroad in the ayre is ex|ceeding delightfull and beautifull, but light as it is contracted and drawne together into the Sunne, Moone, and Starres, is farre more beautifull; light in the ayre plea&s;eth the eye, but light in the Sunne conquers and dazzel's the eye by the exce&s;&s;ive beauty and
<PB N="805" REF="417"> brightne&s;&s;e of it. In the fir&s;t day of the Creation God &s;ayd; <HI>Let there be light, and there was light;</HI> but in the fourth day <HI>he &s;ayd, let there be lights,</HI> that is, let there be &s;everall ve&s;&s;ells, to receave, hold, and containe light, and then to i&s;&s;ue it out among the inha|bitants of the earth (<HI>Gen.</HI> 1.14.) <HI>And God &s;ayd, let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven, to divide the day from the night: and let them be for &s;ignes, and for &s;ea&s;ons, and for dayes, and for yeares, and let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven, to give light upon the earth; and it was &s;o. And God made two great lights, the greater light to rule the day, and the le&s;&s;er light to rule the night; he made the &s;tarres al&s;o; and God &s;et them in the firma|ment of the heaven, to give light upon the earth.</HI> God in Creation did with the light, as he did with the waters, which being made were divided, the waters above the firmament were divided from the waters under the firmament, and <HI>the waters under the heaven he gathered together into one place</HI> (Gen. 1.9.) God prepared a certaine great ve&s;&s;ell into which the waters were called and gathe|red that they &s;hould not &s;pread over the earth, as they did at fir&s;t, which gathering together of the waters God <HI>called Seas</HI> (Gen. 1.10.) Thus the light which was &s;pread and &s;cattered through the ayre over all the earth, God gathered into &s;everall ve&s;&s;ells,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Pulchritudo es ornamenta coe|loru~ &s;tellae &s;unt; &s;icut terrae ani|mantia et plan|tae. <HI>Sanct:</HI></NOTE> and the gathering together of light he <HI>called Sunne, Moone,</HI> &amp; <HI>Starrs,</HI> which are (as <HI>Job</HI> here calleth them) <HI>the garni&s;hing of the hea|vens.</HI></P>
<P><HI>Mo&s;es</HI> epitomi&s;eth or briefly &s;umms up his larger narrative of the Creation in the&s;e words (<HI>Gen:</HI> 2.1.) <HI>Thus the heavens and the earth were fini&s;hed and all the ho&s;t of them,</HI> that is, they were fini&s;hed not onely as to their e&s;&s;entials, but ornamentalls; not only was the foundation layd, the walls and pillars, the beames and raf|ters of that goodly &s;tructure &s;et up and perfected, but all the fur|niture of it was brought in, and the beautyes of it compleated. Now, as gemms, minerals, plants, trees, and all living creatures are the Garni&s;hing of the Earth and the ho&s;t of God there, &s;o the Sunne, Moone, and Starrs, are the garni&s;hing of heaven, and the ho&s;t of God there. <HI>David</HI> &s;peaketh of the&s;e di&s;tinctly (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 33.6.) <HI>By the word of the Lord were the heavens made: and all the ho&s;t of them, by the breath of his mouth.</HI> All creatures whether placed in heaven or earth, are for their number, their &s;trength, their or|der, their readynes at a call or command, the ho&s;t of God.
<PB N="806" REF="418"> Earthly Princes &s;hew their power in their ho&s;ts and armyes; of what power God is both his acts and his ho&s;ts aboundantly de|clare. And as the&s;e creatures are the armyes or ho&s;t of God in heaven and earth, &s;o they are the Adornings and Garni&s;hings of heaven and earth. <HI>Job</HI> in this place &s;peaketh onely of the former, <HI>By his Spirit he hath Garni&s;hed the Heavens.</HI></P>
<P>Onely here take notice, that &s;ome expound the word <HI>Spirit,</HI> for the <HI>winde</HI> which bloweth in the ayre, and &s;o render the text thus; <HI>By his winde hee garni&s;heth the heavens;</HI> As if this were <HI>Jobs</HI> meaning, that God &s;ending forth the windes di&s;pelleth and &s;catter|eth tho&s;e clouds, foggs, and mi&s;ts, which often cover the face of the heavens, and hinder our beholding their glory and garni&s;hings. According to this interpretation <HI>the garni&s;hing of the heavens</HI> is nothing el&s;e but the removing of that which ob&s;cureth the Garni|&s;hing of them. And it is true, that when the heavens are maskt over with clouds and darkne&s;&s;e, God by the winds cleareth the ayre, and &s;o reneweth the face of tho&s;e heavenly bodyes. But I pa&s;&s;e by this, and &s;hall onely in&s;i&s;t upon the former expo&s;ition of the&s;e words, as being more &s;utable with <HI>Jobs</HI> &s;cope, and more expre&s;&s;ive of the power and Glory of God, in the great things which he hath wrought for us.</P>
<Q>By his Spirit hee garni&s;heth the heavens.</Q>
<P>Hence learne.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> We ought joyntly to acknowledge and give glory to the Fa|ther, Son, and Spirit, in the worke of Creation.</Q>
<P><HI>Solomon</HI> in his advice to the young man &s;ayth (<HI>Eccl:</HI> 12.1.) <HI>Remember thy creators in the dayes of thy youth;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> creatorum tuo|rum My&s;ter<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">um Sanctae Trinita|tis. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI></NOTE> Wee tran&s;late in the &s;ingular number, <HI>creator,</HI> but the Hebrew is plural, <HI>Creators;</HI> intimating the my&s;tery of the Holy Trinity; as <HI>Mo&s;es</HI> al&s;o is con|ceaved to doe in that plural expre&s;&s;ion (<HI>Gen:</HI> 1.26.) <HI>And God &s;ayd, let us make man in our image after our likenes.</HI> And though this be added in a way of Eminency, when the particular creation of man is &s;et downe, yet we are to under&s;tand it &s;o generally of the whole worke of Creation; and as of the worke of Creation, &s;o of all other divine workes towards the creature. Redemption is the worke of the Father and of the Spirit as wel as of the Son; and &s;anctification is the worke of the Father and of the Son as wel as of the Spirit. The three per&s;ons worke together, onely they have
<PB N="807" REF="418"> a di&s;tinct manner of working, according to which each worke is chiefely attributed to that per&s;on: and &s;o creation is &s;pecially ap|propriated to the Father, Redemption to the Son, and Sanctifica|tion to the Holy Gho&s;t. Seing then all Three worke together in all things towards us, All three ought to be equally and eternally honoured, wor&s;hipped, loved and obeyed by us. <HI>By his Spirit he hath garni&s;hed the Heavens.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The heavens are full of beauty, God hath not onely made them, but adorn'd them.</Q>
<P>What a rich and Royall Canopy hath God hung over the heads of poore wormes, du&s;t and a&s;hes. God did not thinke it enough to give us a hou&s;e, unle&s;&s;e he gave us al&s;o a plea&s;ant hou&s;e, he was not &s;atisfied in &s;etting up a large fabricke for us, unle&s;&s;e he al&s;o fur|ni&s;hed and garni&s;hed it for us. God hath made the world not one|ly u&s;efull but contentfull to us, he hath fitted it not onely for our nece&s;&s;ity but delight. The earth is beautifull, but the heavens ex|ceed in beauty. The heavens are the Ceiling of our hou&s;e, and the Starres are like Golden &s;tuds and &s;parkling Diamonds in that Cei|ling. We may inferre three things from the Garni&s;hing of the&s;e heavens.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, If the heavens which we &s;ee are &s;o glorious, what are the heavens which no eye hath &s;eene. If God hath thus di&s;cerna|bly adorned the <HI>fir&s;t and &s;econd heavens;</HI> how unconceaveable are the ornaments of the <HI>third heavens?</HI> If nature hath &s;o much beau|ty in it, how be<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">utifull a thing is Glory? If God hath prepared &s;uch heavens, as our eyes &s;ee, for tho&s;e who hate him, then &s;urely <HI>eye hath not &s;eene, eare hath not heard, nor hath it entred into the heart of man</HI> to under&s;tand what tho&s;e heavens are which God hath prepared for them and for them alone, <HI>who love him.</HI> The light of the&s;e vi&s;ible heavens is but darkenes <HI>to that inheritance of the Saints in light.</HI> The <HI>Moone-light</HI> (if I may &s;o &s;peake) of that &s;tate, &s;hall be better and more illu&s;trious, then the <HI>Sun-light</HI> of this, and the light of the Sunne &s;hall be &s;evenfold, as the light of &s;even dayes, in that Great day when the Lord &s;hall perfectly bind up All the breaches of his people, and heale the &s;troake of their wound. God, who by his Spirit hath garni&s;hed the&s;e heavens, will be him&s;elfe, with his Son and Spirit, the eternal Garni&s;hing of tho&s;e heavens.</P>
<PB N="808" REF="419">
<P>Secondly, Seing God hath been &s;o bountifull and munificent, as to Garni&s;h the heavens for us, even for us, by his Spirit; &s;eing he hath provided &s;uch a hou&s;e for the comfort of our lives here, who never de&s;erved the meane&s;t cottage; how &s;hould we pray that he would Garni&s;h our &s;oules by the Spirit, as a heaven for him|&s;elfe to dwell in: or as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes (<HI>Eph.</HI> 2.22.) <HI>That we may be builded for an habitation of God through the Spirit.</HI> God hath two hou&s;es, <HI>an upper hou&s;e, and a lower hou&s;e;</HI> The heaven of heavens is his upper hou&s;e, and the heaven of an holy and hum|ble heart is his lower. God is every where, but he dwelleth no where but in a heaven; He dwelleth not in the heart of any man, till that be made a heaven, and that a heaven Garni&s;hed by the Spirit. As the Sunne Moone and Starres are the garni&s;hing of the naturall heaven, &s;o holy knowledge and the graces, faith, hope and love, are the Garni&s;hing of tho&s;e &s;pirituall heavens, the hearts of the &s;ons of men. And untill their hearts be thus garni&s;hed, they are not an heaven for God, but a hell or habitation for the devill; and he puts furniture and garni&s;hings into them &s;utable to him|&s;elfe, and fitting his owne entertainement. We read in the Go&s;pel (<HI>Math:</HI> 12.43, 44.) That, <HI>when the uncleane Spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, &s;eeking re&s;t and findeth none; Then he &s;aith, I will returne into my hou&s;e from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty &s;wept and garni&s;hed.</HI> Lu&s;ts and corruptions, unbeliefe, pride; wrath, envy, the&s;e are the Gar|ni&s;hings of Satans hou&s;e. And as he delighteth mo&s;t to dwel there where he findeth mo&s;t of the&s;e Garni&s;hings; &s;o God delighteth mo&s;t to dwel in that &s;oule which is mo&s;t Garni&s;hed with grace. Then pray, and pray earne&s;tly, that God who hath garni&s;hed the heavens by his Spirit for our u&s;e, would al&s;o garni&s;h our hearts by his Spirit, for his owne u&s;e.</P>
<P>Thirdly, As this &s;hould provoke us to pray that our hearts may be garni&s;hed as a hou&s;e of delight, that God may dwel in us; So it &s;hould provoke us to garni&s;h our lives, that God may be ho|noured by us. And as God hath not onely made a good world for us, as to the matter, but made it plea&s;ant, and adorn'd it for us: &s;o we &s;hould &s;trive not onely to doe that which is good for the matter, but to put ornaments upon it, and make it plea&s;ant to our utmo&s;t in the eyes of God. We &s;hould garni&s;h our workes as God hath garni&s;hed his; God hath (as it were) poli&s;ht and engraven
<PB N="809" REF="419"> his workes for us by exqui&s;ite art and skill, &s;o that the workman|&s;hip is better then the matter; and &s;hall we &s;atisfie our &s;elves, if we doe that which is good for the matter, though we be&s;tow no co&s;t, no holy skill and workman&s;hip upon it? &s;hall we &s;erve God onely <HI>with plaine worke,</HI> when we &s;ee how curious and elaborate his workes are? I grant, <HI>plaine worke</HI> is be&s;t, and mo&s;t plea&s;ing to God, as <HI>plainenes</HI> is oppo&s;ed to hypocri&s;ie; but plaine worke is not be&s;t as plainenes is oppo&s;ed to exactnes. God loves to &s;ee &s;ome lace and trimming (in &s;incerity) upon what we doe; that is, it plea&s;eth him, when he &s;eeth that we do our be&s;t, and that we not onely doe good, but garni&s;h (to his pray&s;e) the good we doe; he would have us not onely walke in the truth, but honour the truth by our walk|ings; He would have us not onely obey the doctrine, but (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes, <HI>Tit:</HI> 2.10.) <HI>Adorne the doctrine of God our Sa|viour in all things,</HI> or (to u&s;e <HI>Jobs</HI> language) <HI>Garni&s;h it,</HI> as he <HI>by his Spirit hath garni&s;hed the heavens.</HI></P>
<Q>And his hand hath formed the crooked Serpent.</Q>
<P><HI>His hand,</HI> that is, his power; hands are a&s;cribed to God in a figure, or in allu&s;ion to men, who doe all their externall workes by their hands. The hand is a noble and mo&s;t &s;erviceable Organ or In&s;trument, and therefore the Great things which God hath done, e&s;pecially the heavens, are called <HI>the worke of his hands, and his handy-worke</HI> (P&s;al. 19.1.) yea the heavens are called <HI>the worke of his fingers</HI> (P&s;al. 8.3.) Which notes (I conceave) the exact|nes and curio&s;ity of the worke, for &s;uch are tho&s;e things which are wrought by the fingers. God being a Spirit invi&s;ible and incorpo|ral, hath no formal hands, but he hath a vertuall hand. That Exe|cutive power by which he performeth and bringeth about his will in every thing is his hand. This hand
<Q>Hath formed the crooked Serpent.</Q></P>
<P>There are &s;everall opinions about this <HI>crooked Serpent,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> Serpentem vec|tem. <HI>Pagn:</HI> Serpentem fu|gacem. <HI>Mont:</HI> Serpentem ob|longum. <HI>Jun:</HI></NOTE> who or what it &s;hould be that <HI>Job</HI> here meaneth. The Hebrew is, <HI>The Sepent the barre,</HI> That is, The &s;erpent which is like a barre or bolt of iron. Some render <HI>the flying or running &s;erpent,</HI> becau&s;e as the bolt or barre of a doore runneth from &s;ide to &s;ide, &s;o that from place to place, Mr <HI>Broughton</HI> tran&s;lates, <HI>the long &s;erpent.</HI> But what
<PB N="810" REF="420"> is this &s;erpent? Divers interpretens connect the &s;ence of the&s;e words with the former part of the ver&s;e, and &s;o place this <HI>crooked &s;erpent</HI> in the heavens, as belonging to the <HI>Garni&s;hing</HI> of them, or as if <HI>Job</HI> were giving a particular in&s;tance of what God hath done towards the <HI>garni&s;hing</HI> of the heavens; <HI>His hand hath formed the crooked &s;erpent.</HI> By which they under&s;tand the coele&s;tiall circles or &s;pheares which are wrapt and involved one within another, as a &s;erpent wrappeth or twineth him&s;elfe in &s;everal rounds.</P>
<P>Another following the &s;ame &s;ence expoundeth it of that which A&s;tronomers call the <HI>milkey way,</HI> which is a beauty in heaven; It being (as it were) the coalition of a number of little &s;tarrs,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Vatablus viam lacteam intelli|git.</NOTE> which becau&s;e they looke <HI>white and milki&s;h,</HI> are therefore called the <HI>mil|key way;</HI> Which al&s;o hath &s;omewhat of the forme of a &s;erpent, as is evident to the eye of any diligent ob&s;erver.</P>
<P>A third, keeping &s;till to that &s;ence, expoundeth it yet more par|ticularly of that &s;peciall con&s;tellation in the heavens knowne among A&s;tronomers by the name of <HI>the dragon or &s;erpent;</HI> Which is &s;uppo&s;ed to be &s;poken of here by <HI>Job</HI> &s;ynecdochically, putting a part for the whole, or one for all the other Con&s;tellations with which the heavens are garni&s;hed; As if it had been &s;ayd, <HI>His hand hath formed the crooked &s;erpent,</HI> that is, all the Starres in their &s;eve|rall &s;hapes and configurations, among which one repre&s;enteth the forme of a Lion, another of a Beare, another of a Ram, and among many others one appeareth in the forme of a <HI>Dragon or Crooked Serpent, &s;hooting him&s;elfe forth or forward like the bolt of a doore.</HI></P>
<P>I finde a fourth &s;ort, who though they keepe the <HI>crooked &s;erpent</HI> of the Text &s;till in the heavens, yet they bring it downe to a lower heaven, that is, from the &s;tarry heaven, or from that heaven which is the Subject of the Starres to the ayery heaven, which is the &s;ub|ject or &s;hop in which the meteors, of all &s;orts, are bred and formed, and among them there is a meteor called by Naturali&s;ts, <HI>the flying &s;erpent.</HI> As if the meaning of the&s;e words, <HI>His hand hath formed the crooked &s;erpent,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Draco vo|lans.</NOTE> were this; God hath wrought and formed by his power &amp; wi&s;dome all tho&s;e fiery meteors that are often &s;eene as it were flying and &s;hooting in the ayre, to the wonder of many, and the a&s;toni&s;hment of not a few. There are the trea&s;ures of the &s;now and of the hayle, there God prepareth a way for the lightning of the thunder (<HI>Job.</HI> 38.22.25.) Some learned interpreters in&s;i&s;t much upon this Expo&s;ition, placing the <HI>crooked &s;erpent</HI> in the
<PB N="811" REF="420"> heavens, eyther the upper or lower, as hath been &s;hewed under foure di&s;tinct titles: nor can it be denyed, but that the hand of God hath wrought all the&s;e things, much le&s;&s;e can it be denyed that the working of the&s;e things is a great argument and demon&s;tration of the power and wi&s;edome of God, which is the purpo&s;e of <HI>Job</HI> in this place; therefore I &s;hall not totally lay it a&s;ide. Neyther yet will I leave it with the reader as the &s;peciall meaning of this place, for this rea&s;on, becau&s;e I much doubt, whether tho&s;e poeticall phancyes in giving &s;uch fictitious names to the Starres of heaven, as, <HI>The Lion, the Beare, the Bull, the Dragon, the Serpent,</HI> &amp;c. of which Philo&s;ophers and A&s;tronomers have made u&s;e, were at all borne, or ever &s;o much as heard of in tho&s;e elder times in which and before which <HI>Job</HI> lived. For though both in the 9th Chapter of this booke (<HI>v.</HI> 9.) as al&s;o in the 38th Chapter (<HI>v.</HI> 21, 22.) many Names are given to the Starres, which both the Greeke and Latine tran&s;laters, and we following them in the Engli&s;h, render by tho&s;e poeticall names, yet The Original Hebrew words beare no allu&s;ion at all to tho&s;e phancyes. As for in&s;tance, The Hebrew word which we render <HI>Arcturus</HI> (Chap: 9.9.) hath nothing at all in it &s;ignifying, <HI>The Tayle of a Beare.</HI> But here in this text, the word properly &s;ignifyeth a <HI>crooked &s;erpent;</HI> and therefore to place it in the heavens as a Starre, when as in the times when this was written, there is &s;o little, if any probability at all, that any &s;uch ap|prehen&s;ions were taken up by any, or any &s;uch allu&s;ive names gi|ven to the Starres, &s;eemes to me &s;omewhat improper.</P>
<P>There is another veine of interpretation carrying the &s;ence of the&s;e words, <HI>His hand hath formed the crooked &s;erpent,</HI> to quite another poynt; for 'tis conceaved by the Authors of this opini|on, that as <HI>Job</HI> gave in&s;tance before in the workes of God above, his highe&s;t workes in nature, the garni&s;hing of the heavens; &s;o hee now giveth in&s;tance in his workes below, or in his lowe&s;t workes. This general interpretation is delivered two wayes di&s;tinctly.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, That as God hath garni&s;hed the heavens, &s;o he hath made and now governeth hel too, <HI>His hand hath formed the croc|ked &s;erpent,</HI> that is, the Devill: That which favoureth this opinion, and hath po&s;&s;ibly ca&s;t the thoughts of many upon it, is, that in Scripture the devil is often called <HI>a &s;erpent,</HI> yea a <HI>crooked &s;erpent,</HI> and that he acted a &s;erpent as his in&s;trument in the fir&s;t temptati|on (<HI>Gen.</HI> 3.1.) <HI>Now the &s;erpent was more &s;ubtile then any of the
<PB N="812" REF="421"> bea&s;ts of the feild, which the Lord God had made, and he &s;ayd unto the woman,</HI> that is, The Devill in or by the Serpent &s;ayd unto her, &amp;c. He hath wel de&s;erved to be called a Serpent who acted his fir&s;t malice again&s;t mankinde by the helpe of a Serpent; And for his thus early making u&s;e of a Serpent, he is called not only a &s;erpent, but, <HI>that old Serpent, (Rev.</HI> 12.9.) <HI>The great Dragon was ca&s;t out, that old Serpent, called the Devill, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was ca&s;t out into the earth, and his Angells were ca&s;t out with him.</HI> The hand of God hath formed this crooked &s;er|pent. To cleare which &s;ome interpret the former part of the ver&s;e in, complyance with this &s;ence, for the good Angells, thus; <HI>By his Spirit he hath Garni&s;hed the heavens;</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg"><P>Spiritus ejus ornavit coelos <HI>Vulg:</HI></P>
<P>i. e. <HI>coele&s;tes &s;piritus orname~|tis, &s;cilicet &s;pi|ritualium deno|rum.</HI> Aquin: Et ob&s;tetri|cante manu ejus eductus <HI>e&s;t coleber tor|tuo&s;us.</HI> Vulg:</P></NOTE> that is, he hath be&s;towed ex|cellent gifts upon the Angels, who are the great ornament of hea|ven, and may tropically be called heaven, as men are called earth. And as holy, wi&s;e, ju&s;t, and faithfull men, are the ornaments, and garni&s;hings of the earth, &s;o the holy Angels are the garni&s;hings of heaven, they having &s;uch mighty power and excellent gifts. Now (&s;aith this interpretation) as God garni&s;hed the heavens with good Angels, &s;o he <HI>brought forth the crooked &s;erpent</HI> the De|vill, by his working power. Not as if they, who &s;tand up for this expo&s;ition, did affirme that God did make the Devill by his im|mediate hand, as he did the good Angels and the re&s;t of the Crea|tures; for when God <HI>&s;aw every thing that he had made, behold it was very good,</HI> and therefore the crooked-&s;erpent as taken under this Notion for the Devill (who is <HI>the Evill one</HI>) could not be of his making. Therefore though the Devill according to his ori|ginal or general nature, as an Angel was formed of God; yet the crookednes of his nature as wel as of his wayes, which properly and formally denominate him a Devill was of him&s;elfe, he having turned away from God, and defiled that &s;tate, by the freedom of his own will, in which he was created pure, and had &s;ociety with his fellow-Angels,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Eduxit deus diabolum &egrave; me|dio Angelorum. <HI>Aquin:</HI></NOTE> till God for his &s;in did (as it were) pull him and his Adhaerents from the mid&s;t of them; and as the Apo&s;tle <HI>Jude</HI> &s;aith (<HI>v.</HI> 6.) <HI>Hath re&s;erved them</HI> (together) <HI>in chaines of dark|ne&s;&s;e unto the judgement of the great day.</HI> But I conceave that <HI>Job</HI> is not here &s;peaking of an Allegoricall or Metaphoricall &s;er|pent, &s;uch a one as the Devill is, but of a reall and proper one; And therefore I lay by this expo&s;ition as un&s;utable to the text in hand.</P>
<PB N="813" REF="421">
<P>And conclude, that <HI>Job</HI> having in the former part of the ver&s;e &s;et forth the power and wi&s;edome of God in garni&s;hing the hea|vens, his meditation de&s;cendeth in this latter part of it, though not &s;o low as hel, yet as low as the waters, e&s;pecially the waters of the Sea, and there &s;heweth us the hand of God at worke both in ma|king and de&s;troying, in forming and wounding the crooked &s;er|pent. For the Hebrew word which we render, <HI>hath formed,</HI> &s;igni|fyes al&s;o <HI>to wound,</HI> and &s;o we tran&s;late it (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 51.9.) <HI>Awake, awake, O arme of the Lord,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>art not thou it which hath cut Ra|hab, and wounded the Dragon?</HI> yea it is &s;o tran&s;lated by &s;ome in this text of <HI>Job, His hand hath wounded the crooked &s;erpent.</HI> Which cometh neere that of the Prophet according to the bare literal reading (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 27.1.) <HI>In that day the Lord with his &s;ore and great and &s;trong &s;word &s;hall puni&s;h Leviathan; the peircing</HI> (or as we put in the Margin, <HI>the cro&s;&s;ing like a bar) &s;erpent, even Leviathan that crooked &s;erpent, and he &s;hall &s;lay the Dragon that is in the Sea.</HI> Where we may note by the way that our tran&s;laters render tho&s;e very original words a <HI>peircing &s;erpent</HI> in this text of <HI>I&s;ayah,</HI> which they render a <HI>crooked &s;erpent</HI> in <HI>Job;</HI> and, I conceave, it is better tran&s;lated, <HI>peircing</HI> (for &s;o bolts or barrs are rather) then <HI>crooked,</HI> another word being al&s;o u&s;ed in <HI>I&s;ayah,</HI> which we tran&s;late <HI>crook|ed.</HI> For <HI>&s;erpents</HI> are both &s;traite and long like a Barre,<NOTE PLACE="marg"><P>Malo hic coetu~ intelligi &amp; ba|laenam. <HI>Merc:</HI> A coeli ornatu ad maris orna|tu~ tanquam ad aliud extremu~ de&s;cendit. <HI>Pi|ned:</HI></P>
<P>Intelligo Balae|nam in&s;igne in|imis opus divi|nae potentiae ef|ficacitatem vo|luntatis atque arbatrij ejus &s;ingularit&egrave;r comprobant. <HI>Coc:</HI></P></NOTE> they are al|&s;o crooked &amp; can winde them&s;elves into a circle when they plea&s;e, or &s;ee it for their advantage. Now the <HI>long Bar-like</HI> (or as we &s;ay <HI>crooked) &s;erpent,</HI> which <HI>Job</HI> here &s;aith the hand of God hath for|med, is according to this interpretation, the <HI>Whale-fi&s;h or Levia|than,</HI> which is the greate&s;t not onely of all the fi&s;hes in the Sea, but of all living creatures; and therefore may well be brought here by <HI>Job</HI> as an in&s;tance to demon&s;trate the mighty power of God, whether in forming or wounding of him; e&s;pecially con&s;idering that God him&s;elfe when he would humble and aba&s;e <HI>Job</HI> in the &s;ight of his owne meanenes, as he had led him to the meditation of many of his great workes in nature, throughout the 38th 39th and 40<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">h Chapters of this, he be&s;towes the whole 41<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> Chapter in a large particular and Rhetoricall de&s;cription of the <HI>Leviathan;</HI> and though he had &s;ayd of the <HI>Behemoth</HI> or <HI>Elephant</HI> (Chap. 40.19.) <HI>He is the chiefe of the wayes of God:</HI> yet he &s;aith more of the Leviathan or Whale (<HI>Chap.</HI> 41.33, 34.) <HI>&V;pon earth there is none like him, who is made without feare, he beholdeth all high things,
<PB N="814" REF="422"> he is a king over all the children of pride.</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, The Elephant is the chiefe of all &s;en&s;itive living creatures upon the earth, but the Whale is greater then the Elephant, therefore he ex|ceeds all creatures moving upon the earth. The Whale is &s;o va&s;t &amp; turbulent a living creature, that he is joyned with the Sea which is the va&s;te&s;t and mo&s;t turbulent creature without life. Thus <HI>Job</HI> &s;peakes (<HI>Chap.</HI> 7.12.) <HI>Am I a Sea or a Whale that thou &s;ette&s;t a watch over me?</HI> implying that the Whale is among &s;en&s;itive creatures as the Sea is among in&s;en&s;itive the greate&s;t and mo&s;t unruly of them, and therefore hath as much need to be watched by a divine providence as the Sea it &s;elfe hath. Thus the P&s;almi&s;t de&s;cribing the great workes of God, putteth the Leviathan or Whale among the chiefe&s;t of them (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 104.24, 25, 26.) <HI>O Lord, how manifold are thy workes! in wi&s;edome ha&s;t thou made them all: the earth is full of thy riches; &s;o is the great and wide Sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable, both &s;mall and great bea&s;ts. There goe the Ships, there is That Leviathan whom thou ha&s;t made to play therein.</HI> Thus we &s;ee how the Scripture con&s;ents in exalting the power and wi&s;edome of God in this part of his worke the forming of this long and mighty, or (as we tran&s;late the Sub&s;tan|tive Epithete) <HI>crooked &s;erpent.</HI> And therefore <HI>Job</HI> might wel cla&s;pe the&s;e two together (while he was &s;tudying to exemplifie in parti|culars the greatnes of the workes of God) his garni&s;hing or peo|pling the heavens with &s;uch infinite variety of Starres, e&s;pecially with the Sunne, and his forming of and &s;o &s;toring the Sea with &s;uch infinite variety of fi&s;hes, e&s;pecially with the Leviathan. For as the Sun is a Prince among the lights of heaven, &s;o Leviathan is a Prince a King among the fi&s;hes of the Sea. His hand hath formed the <HI>Crooked</HI> (or rather the long) <HI>Serpent.</HI> And if any &s;hould ob|ject again&s;t this interpretation, that it &s;eemes un&s;utable to call the Whale or Leviathan a Serpent. I an&s;wer, that the text in <HI>I&s;ayah (Chap:</HI> 27.1.) before alledged may wel beare us out in it; which (though it be to be under&s;tood of the Devill or of his in&s;truments the enemyes of the Churches peace and &s;afety, yet) calleth Levia|than, the <HI>peircing</HI> (which word in the Original, as I hinted before is here in <HI>Job</HI> rendred crooked) <HI>Serpent;</HI> and in the immediately following words, <HI>That crooked Serpent, and the Dragon that is in the Sea.</HI></P>
<P>Wherefore re&s;tg (chiefely if not onely) in this interpretati|on,
<PB N="815" REF="422"> that <HI>Job</HI> having gone up in his di&s;cour&s;e to the heavens, and the garni&s;hing of them, came downe to the Sea, and to the furni&s;h|ing thereof, and in&s;tances in that creature which is chiefe in the Sea, The Leviathan, thereby to exalt and lift up the glory of God in his workes of creation and providence,</P>
<P>Ob&s;erve.</P>
<Q>The Sea, as well as the heavens, and all the inhabitants thereof, declare the mighty workes and workman&s;hip of God.</Q>
<P><HI>As the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament &s;heweth his handy-worke</HI> (P&s;al. 19.1.) So the earth declareth the glory of God, and the Sea &s;heweth his handy-worke. The lea&s;t creatures preach the power of God, how much more the greate&s;t; All beleevers are taught of God, and every thing we &s;ee teacheth us &s;omewhat of God, and this they teach us e&s;pecially that God is the former of them all. The Hand of God hath formed the Eagle, and a le&s;&s;e powerfull hand then Gods could not forme a fly. The hand of God hath formed the Elephant, and a le&s;&s;e powerfull hand then his could not forme a mou&s;e. The hand of God hath formed Leviathan, and a hand le&s;&s;e powerfull then his could not forme a &s;hrimpe. As Je&s;us Chri&s;t was declared many wayes to be the Son of God, but (as the Apo&s;tle &s;aith, <HI>Rom.</HI> 1.4.) <HI>He was declared to be the Son of God with power</HI> (or <HI>powerfully declared to be the Son of God) by the re&s;urrection from the dead.</HI> So all things that are created declare that their Creator is God; But he is de|clared with power or powerfully declared to be God by many of the creatures. Who can make any thing to live, but the living God? Who can make Great things, but the Great God? <HI>His hand hath formed the crooked &s;erpent.</HI></P>
<P>And &s;eing the Lord hath formed the crooked &s;erpent, even tho&s;e creatures that are mo&s;t dreadfull and dangerous to man; then the mo&s;t dreadfull and dangerous creatures are under the power of God, hee formed them, and therefore he can re&s;traine and curb them. As it is &s;ayd of <HI>Behemoth</HI> (Job 40.19.) <HI>He that made him can make his &s;word approach unto him,</HI> that is, though he be too &s;trong for man, yet God who gave him that &s;trength, hath infi|nitely more, and can ea&s;ily Ma&s;ter him, yea and give a weake man skill and power to doe it: &s;o though it be &s;ayd (<HI>Job</HI> 41.26.) of Leviathan that the &s;word of him that layeth at him cannot hold,
<PB N="816" REF="423"> the &s;peare, the dart, nor the habergeon, yet God, who made him, can make his &s;word approach to him, or as &s;ome render the words under hand, <HI>His hand hath and can wound Leviathan the crooked Serpent; He can put a hooke in his no&s;e, and bore his jaw through with a thorne.</HI> And thus God can doe al&s;o with tho&s;e, who are Le|viathans, and crooked Serpents in a figure, The Devill, and all cruel-minded men who doe his worke, and cary on his de&s;igne a|gain&s;t the people of God, as is expre&s;&s;ed in that lately alledged Scripture (<HI>I&s;a.</HI> 27.1.) <HI>In that day the Lord with his &s;ore and great and &s;trong &s;word &s;hall puni&s;h Leviathan, the peircing Serpent,</HI> that is, tho&s;e enemyes and per&s;ecuters of his people, who &s;eeme to be as &s;trong and invincible as Leviathan, and as &s;ubtle and dangerous as the mo&s;t peircing &s;tinging Serpent. Thus the Lord a&s;&s;ured his faithfull ones (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 54.16, 17.) <HI>That no weapon formed again&s;t them &s;hould pro&s;per; for</HI> (&s;aith he) <HI>I have created the Smith that bloweth the coales in the fire, and that bringeth forth an In&s;trument for his worke, and I have created the wa&s;ter to de&s;troy.</HI> Therefore I can hinder the wa&s;ter from de&s;troying, and make all his weapons edgele&s;&s;e, poyntle&s;&s;e, no more able to wound, then a &s;traw or a ru&s;h. How &s;oone can God blunt and abate the keene&s;t &s;pirits of men, and weaken their &s;tronge&s;t armes, when he &s;eeth they will but doe mi&s;chiefe with them? He that cau&s;eth motion can &s;top it; and he that giveth power can call it in, or breake it where it is. While God is on our &s;ide who made all, we need not feare who are made again&s;t us; Though they have teeth like Lyons, and &s;tings like Serpents we are &s;afe; The hand of God can kill and wound, for, <HI>His Hand hath formed the crooked Serpent.</HI></P>
</DIV3>
<DIV3 N="14" TYPE="verse">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ver&s;. 14.</HI></BIBL> Lo, the&s;e are parts of his wayes, but how little a porti|on is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can under&s;tand?</Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>Thus <HI>Job</HI> concludes; after he had given an enumeration or In|duction of many particulars, he doth as it were hold them forth in his hand to the view of all men; <HI>Behold, or, lo the&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> finem extremitatem denotat.</NOTE>The word which we render <HI>parts,</HI> &s;ignifyeth the end or extre|mity of a thing. There is a twofold extremity; fir&s;t, that which is utmo&s;t or furthe&s;t from us; &s;econdly, that which is hithermo&s;t or
<PB N="817" REF="423"> neere&s;t to us. The word takes in both,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Ne me putetis omnia enarra&s;|&s;e, vix enim ex|tremam partem attigi. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> and is u&s;ed for both in one text (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 19.6.) <HI>His going forth</HI> (that is, the going forth of the Sunne) <HI>is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it:</HI> As if he had &s;ayd, the Sunne compa&s;&s;eth the heaven round, and vi&s;iteth both the hithermo&s;t and uttermo&s;t (as to us) extremityes of it. In the pre&s;ent text of <HI>Job</HI> we are to under&s;tand it of the hithermo&s;t extremity, or of that which is next us, imply|ing that there are many and much more glorious things to be &s;poken of God, if we were able to comprehend them, &amp; reach the uttermo&s;t end or extremity of them. And that it is &s;o to be under|&s;tood here, is plaine from the next words, <HI>But how litle a portion is heard of him?</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Ecce hae &s;unt orae viarum e|jus. <HI>Coc:</HI> Licet quae dixi &s;ien&s;ibus no&s;tris, et judicio maxi|ma e&s;&s;e videan|tur et ver&egrave; &s;int &s;tupenda re&s;pec|tu tamen divi|nae potentiae non &s;unt ni&s;i, minu|tiae, perip&s;ema|ta minimaque particulae eorum quae fecit ac fa|cere pote&s;t. <HI>Bold:</HI> Extrema viae erunt opera mi|nora &amp; no&s;tri captus. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> In complyance with which &s;ence &s;ome render the text thus; <HI>The&s;e are the edges or borders of his wayes;</HI> as if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, I have &s;hewed you onely the borders, I have not led you in|to the heart of the Country, or into the mid&s;t of the workes and wayes of God, much le&s;&s;e to the furthe&s;t extremity or out&s;ide of them. I have indeed &s;poken of very great and wonderfull things, yet all that I have &s;ayd is but litle to what might be &s;ayd, or at lea&s;t to what really is. I have given you but as it were the parings and chipings of Gods workes, I have not gone to the bottome, nor reached the depth of them. So that <HI>Job</HI> &s;eemes to di&s;tingui&s;h the&s;e effects and workes of God, about which he had di&s;cour&s;ed, from &s;ome greater workes, which he was not able to attaine unto, nor make any di&s;covery of; There are not onely Cele&s;tiall, but &s;u|per-cele&s;tiall workes of God; wee cannot well apprehend, much le&s;&s;e comprehend what he hath wrought under the heavens, which are onely the out&s;ide of his workes, much le&s;&s;e tho&s;e which are a|bove the heavens: For as none of the works of God appeare to us, or have been found out by us in their fulne&s;&s;e and utmo&s;t extent, &s;o God hath done &s;ome great works which doe not at all appeare to us; And tho&s;e things which appeare are but &s;mall parts or parcels in compari&s;on of tho&s;e which as yet doe not appeare to us. <HI>Lo, the&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI> The wayes of God are &s;poken of in Scripture under a twofold notion.</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, As the <HI>wayes</HI> in which God would have us walke; &s;o the commandements and &s;tatutes of God, are called the wayes of God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 119.33.) <HI>Teach me, O Lord, the way of thy &s;tatutes, and I &s;hall keepe it unto the end.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, The wayes of God are tho&s;e wherein he comes
<PB N="818" REF="424"> and reveales him&s;elfe to us.<NOTE PLACE="marg">Via dei illius opera &s;unt &amp; agendi rationes quibus ad nos ille venire, dici|tur quia in his prodit ad nos et progrediendo &s;e magis magi&s;&abque; no&s;tris &s;en&s;ibus accommodat. <HI>Coc:</HI></NOTE> As that is a mans way wherein or whereby he is knowne, &s;o in what&s;oever God manife&s;teth or maketh him&s;elfe knowne to us, that is the way of God (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 55.8.) <HI>My thoughts are not your thoughts; neither are your wayes my wayes; &s;aith the Lord.</HI> That is, my wayes of mercy are as farre above your wayes of mercy, as your dutyes are below my wayes of holynes; yea what are your wayes of &s;infulnes in doing evill, to my wayes of graciou&s;nes in pardoning the evills which ye have done? Man hath a va&s;t and a large heart in &s;inning, but the va&s;t|nes and largenes of mans heart in &s;inning, is but &s;cantnes and nar|rownes to the largenes and va&s;tnes of Gods heart in pardoning. We may under&s;tand the Lord &s;peaking in eyther of or in both the&s;e &s;ences; <HI>My wayes are not as your wayes.</HI> And in general, <HI>the way of God</HI> is that wherein he acteth or revealeth him&s;elfe to|wards us, whether it be in mercy or in Judgement, in love or ter|rour. God hath &s;ome wayes which we may call foule and trouble|&s;ome wayes; &s;uch are his wayes of judgement: he hath other wayes, which we may call fayre and delight&s;ome wayes, &s;uch are all his wayes of mercy. And as God comes to us continually in one or other of the&s;e wayes of providence, &s;o he came forth of old in the way of creation (<HI>Prov:</HI> 8.22.) <HI>The Lord po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed mee in the be|ginning of his way, before his workes of old.</HI> When God fir&s;t came forth, and appeared in making the world, <HI>hee po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed me</HI> (&s;aith Wi&s;edome) that is, from everla&s;ting. A way is, that wherein we goe out, and &s;hew our &s;elves openly or abroad. And hence it is elegantly &s;ayd, that Creation was the beginning of Gods way, for then God did as it were goe out from him&s;elfe into his workes, and in his workes he &s;hewed him&s;elfe openly, who was before hidden in him&s;elfe from Eternity. God had infinite imma|nent or internal acts in him&s;elfe before, or rather God was one infinite eternal immanent Act before. But the fir&s;t external tran|&s;ient act of God, or the fir&s;t expre&s;&s;ion of him&s;elfe (who can ne|ver be expre&s;&s;ed, to the life, as he is) was by the worke of creati|on; and therefore that was <HI>the beginning of his way.</HI> And of this way, the way of creation, as al&s;o of tho&s;e of providence <HI>Job</HI> &s;peak|eth when he &s;ayth, <HI>lo, the&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg">Accommodat&egrave; ad &s;ubjectam materiam viae dei dici po&s;&s;unt te~pe&s;tates, na <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|que in huju&s;mo|di mirabilibut aeris mutatio|nibus ille va|nire ad nos di|citur.</NOTE>And hence the Scripture calleth &s;tormes and tempe&s;ts, thunder, and lightning, in which God appeareth &s;o terrible, the wayes of God (<HI>Nah:</HI> 1.3.) <HI>The Lord is &s;low to anger, and great in power,
<PB N="819" REF="424"> and will not at all acquit the wicked: The Lord hath his way in the whirlewind, and in the &s;torme, and the clouds are the du&s;t of his feete;</HI> that is, God declareth him&s;elfe to be God by his judge|ments and angry di&s;pen&s;ations, which, like boy&s;terous windes and &s;tormes, which, like clouds and darknes afflict the children of men; <HI>loe the&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> All that we know of the workes of God is but a part.</Q>
<P>As 'tis &s;ayd of <HI>Solomon</HI> (1 Kings 4.33.) that <HI>he &s;pake of trees, from the Cedar tree, that is in Lebanon, even unto the hy&s;&s;ope that &s;pringeth out of the wall: He &s;pake al&s;o of bea&s;ts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fi&s;hes;</HI> &s;o <HI>Job</HI> had been di&s;cour&s;ing from the heights of heaven to the bottome of the Sea, yea to the bottome of hel; and yet he comes off, and &s;ayth, <HI>loe the&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI> He that &s;peaketh and knoweth many things, yea he that &s;peaketh all that he knoweth, hath yet &s;poken onely a part of that which is knowable. The Apo&s;tle &s;ayth (1 <HI>Cor:</HI> 13.9, 10.) <HI>We know in part, and we prophecy in part;</HI> Many know more then they utter or prophecy, but no man can utter or prophecy more then he knoweth; We know but a part of what is to be knowne; and we know what wee know but in part, and therefore when we have &s;poken our all, we have &s;poken but a part. Though every Godly man knoweth all things needfull for him to doe and be|leeve, yet the holye&s;t man on earth doth not know all that God hath done. God hath &s;ome re&s;erved and &s;ecret wayes into which he doth not lead his people. As the be&s;t of Saints &s;ee but the Back-parts of God in this life, &s;o they &s;ee but a part of the wayes of God in this life, <HI>loe, The&s;e are parts of his wayes.</HI></P>
<P>Againe, Taking the original word as it &s;ignifies not only a part but the out&s;ide or extreame of any thing,</P>
<P>Note.</P>
<Q>That which wee know of the workes of God, is not onely no more then a part of his workes, but 'tis indeed only the out&s;ide of his workes.</Q>
<P>'Tis but as the hemme to a garment, or the borders to a Conti|nent. When we have travelled as farre as we can, and as we thinke into the very heart of the workes of God, yet we have gone no
<PB N="820" REF="425"> further then the borders of them; And it is, as if a man comming to di&s;cover this I&s;land, &s;hould onely walke upon the &s;hoare where he di&s;-embarkt, and there viewing the cliffes and rockes, the &s;ands and neere&s;t Mari&s;hes, &s;hould take upon him to report the &s;tate of the whole I&s;land: what hath this man &s;eene? nothing but the extremity, the border of the Land, and can he make a com|pleate di&s;covery of the whole? he hath not &s;eene the plea&s;ant hills and vales, the townes, and Cities, the forts and Ca&s;tles, the trade and riches, the cu&s;tomes and manners of the people; no man can know the chiefe things of a Nation or Country that &s;tands onely upon the &s;hoare. All that we know of the workes of God, is one|ly the &s;hoare, and out&s;ide of them; we cannot reach the heart, nor fathome the bottome of them. The workes of the Lord are great, (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 111.2.) <HI>Sought out of all them that have plea&s;ure therein;</HI> that is, they who take plea&s;ure in them doe their utmo&s;t, to finde out the utmo&s;t of them; A godly man is as indu&s;trious to under&s;tand the wayes and workes of God as he is to under&s;tand his word, yet he cannot reach eyther fully; And therefore that P&s;alme hath an excellent conclu&s;ion, to &s;atisfie us in our exclu&s;ion (as yet) from the perfect knowledge of the&s;e things. <HI>The feare of the Lord is the beginning of wi&s;edome, a good under&s;tanding have all they that doe his commandements;</HI> As if the Lord had &s;ayd, though while ye labour to &s;eeke out my workes, yet, ye cannot finde them out to perfection, be not di&s;couraged, as if ye were &s;hortned in wi&s;edome, and knowledge; for the feare of my name is wi&s;edome enough for you, and obedience to my commandements is the be&s;t under&s;tanding; let this &s;atisfie you while ye know but a part of my wayes. And if wee know but a part, and that the out&s;ide of the wayes and workes of God, then &s;urely we cannot know all of God him&s;elfe: as it followeth in the next words,
<Q>And how little a portion is heard of him?</Q></P>
<P><NOTE PLACE="marg"><GAP DESC="foreign"> pars pa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ticula mur|mur tenuis &s;u|&s;urrus. Su&s;urrum ver|borum ejus. Symmach<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"> ut deinceps cum ingenti toni<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">ru comparet. vix parvam &s;tillam &s;ermonis ejus audierimus. <HI>Vulg: Sept:</HI> In Hebraeo tan|tum e&s;t pa<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">lulu~, pauxillumv&egrave; &s;i|ne ulla guttae, &s;ive &s;tillae men|tione <GAP DESC="foreign"> quanta exigui|tas.</NOTE>The Original notes any thing which is little, or a little portion of any thing. Hence &s;ome render it <HI>a drop,</HI> which is a little or the lea&s;t portion of water. So the vulgar and the Seventy, <HI>Wee have hardly heard a little drop of his &s;peech.</HI> Others render it a <HI>whi&s;per,</HI> which is but a little portion of a voyce. <HI>How little a whi&s;per have we heard of him?</HI> The workes of God are as it were a whi&s;per
<PB N="821" REF="425"> concerning him, all that we &s;ee, or can &s;ay, makes but a kinde of &s;ilent report of God, in compari&s;on to what he is, or to what might be &s;ayd of him. And &s;o the word <HI>whi&s;per,</HI> is oppo&s;ed to thunder in the clo&s;e of the ver&s;e, <HI>But the thunder of his power, who can under&s;tand?</HI> As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, <HI>All that I have &s;poken of God is but a whi&s;per, there is a Thunder of his power, which I am neither able to utter, nor to under&s;tand.</HI> All creatures &s;peake a God, yea they &s;peake much of God, as the Apo&s;tle affirmeth for the con|viction of the Gentiles in their Idolatrous departures from him (<HI>Rom:</HI> 1.20.) <HI>For the invi&s;ible things of him from the creation of the world are cleerely &s;eene, being under&s;tood by the things that are made, even his eternall power and God-head, &s;o that they are without excu&s;e:</HI> The creatures &s;peake loud enough to &s;top mans mouth and leave him without all excu&s;e,<NOTE PLACE="marg">Opera haec no|minat &s;u&s;urrum &s;ermonis ab u&s;u et fine. Sunt e|nim opera dei &s;ignificativa, in|dicant gloriam authoris: &s;ed non &s;unt clarus &s;ermo verum &s;ubmi&s;&s;ior &s;u&s;ur|rus &s;c: indices leviores et be|nigniores, &amp; qua&s;i puerorum magi&s;tri non do|centes omnia &s;ed accommoda|ta captui. <HI>Coc:</HI> Quam pauca &s;unt quae &s;cimus re&s;pectu corum quae ne&s;cimus.</NOTE> yet comparatively they doe but whi&s;per, there is a thunder of God infinitely lowder then their voyce. So that <HI>Job</HI> calleth tho&s;e workes of God wherein he had in&s;tanced a whi&s;per or &s;till voyce, becau&s;e though they &s;ignifie to us and declare the Glory of their Author, yet they are not a full declaration of it, but only &s;uch a one as is accommodated to our childi&s;h capacity. All that they &s;peake or can &s;peake of God, yea all that can be &s;poken of God by the wi&s;e&s;t of men, is onely as a whi&s;per to thunder, or as a drop to the Ocean; But I &s;hall not &s;ay more of the elegancy of this word here, it having been already opened (<HI>Chap:</HI> 4.12.) where <HI>Eliphaz</HI> thus be&s;peakes <HI>Job; Now a thing was &s;ecretly</HI> (or as we put in the Margin, <HI>by &s;tealth) brought to me, and mine eare receaved a little</HI> (a whi&s;per, a drop) <HI>thereof, in thoughts from vi&s;ions of the night,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>All that we know now, of God and his wayes is but little to what wee know not, and but little to what wee &s;hall know hereafter;</HI> every day wee heare great things reported and preached of God both to our eyes and eares, and though we &s;hould have &s;ermon upon &s;ermon, line upon line all the dayes of our lives, yet at the la&s;t day of our lives wee mu&s;t &s;ay, <HI>How little a portion have wee heard of him?</HI> The thunder of his power, the lowde&s;t and cleare&s;t &s;peakings of it, are re&s;erved to that &s;tate when our eares &s;hall be bored and our hearts propor|tionably enlarged to receave it.</P>
<P>Further, <HI>Job</HI> had been long &s;peaking of the workes and wayes of God, yet concludeth, <HI>how little a portion is heard of him?</HI> why doth he not rather &s;ay; <HI>how little a portion is heard of them?</HI> the
<PB N="822" REF="426"> rea&s;on is becau&s;e what ever is &s;ayd of the wayes, and workes of God, is to di&s;cover God, rather then to di&s;cover them. To &s;peake of the earth and &s;eas, of the ayre and fire, of thunder and light|ning, of the heavens and &s;tarres, is not an extolling of the workes of God, but an extolling of God in and for his workes.</P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>The workes of God &s;hould leade us to God him&s;elfe.</Q>
<P>Our &s;tudy of the creature &s;hould be to gaine a clearer light and knowledge of the creator. There are many expre&s;&s;ions, and im|pre&s;&s;ions of God upon the things which he hath made, and we ne|ver &s;ee them as we ought, till in them we &s;ee their maker. A criti|cal eye lookes upon a picture, not &s;o much to &s;ee the colours or the paint, as to di&s;cerne the skill and workman&s;hip of the Painter or Limner, yea &s;ome (as the Apo&s;tle &s;peakes in reference <HI>to &s;piri|tualls</HI>) have &s;ences &s;o exerci&s;ed about <HI>the&s;e artificialls,</HI> that they will read the <HI>Arti&s;ts</HI> name in the forme and exqui&s;itenes of his art; An <HI>Apelles</HI> or a <HI>Michael Angelo</HI> needs not put his name to his worke, his worke proclaimes his name to tho&s;e who are judi|cious beholders of &s;uch kinde of workes: How much more (as the P&s;almi&s;t &s;peakes) <HI>that the name of God is neere, doe his wondrous workes</HI> (both of creation and providence) <HI>declare</HI> to all di&s;creete beholders? that which the eye and heart of every godly man is cheifely upon, is to find out and behold <HI>The name,</HI> that is, the wi&s;e|dome, power and goodnes of God in all his workes, both of crea|tion and providence; It were better for us never to enjoy the creature, then not to enjoy God in it; and it were better for us not to &s;ee the creature, then not to have a &s;ight of God in it; And yet when we have &s;eene the mo&s;t of God which the creature can &s;hew us, we have rea&s;on to &s;ay, <HI>how little a portion is &s;eene of him?</HI> and when we have heard the mo&s;t of God that can be re|ported to us from the creation, we have rea&s;on to &s;ay, as <HI>Job</HI> here doth, <HI>how little a portion is heard of him?</HI> and to conclude as he doth this ver&s;e and Chapter.</P>
<Q>But the thunder of his power who can under&s;tand?</Q>
<P><HI>This thunder of his power,</HI> may be taken,</P>
<P>Fir&s;t, Strictly, and in the letter for natural thunder; for, even
<PB N="823" REF="426"> that is numbred in Scripture among the wonderfull and mo&s;t dreadfull workes of God. The Scripture calleth it al&s;o the voyce of God (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 29.3.) <HI>The voyce of the Lord is upon the waters, the God of Glory thundereth.</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Non, aliter de tonitruo loquun|tur &s;acrae &s;crip|turae quam de dei voce, mag|nifica at&abque; terri|b<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">li, plena&abque; minarum.</NOTE> Thus a learned paraphra&s;t connects the&s;e words with the former; As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd; <HI>Now that I have &s;ayd, all that I can, how little a thing is it in compari&s;on of him and his greatnes; as may appeare by one in&s;tance more, the power and maje&s;ty which he utters in his thunder, which who can &s;ufficiently admire? and therefore none can fully under&s;tand.</HI></P>
<P>Secondly, The Thunder of his power, is any extraordinary worke of God, e&s;pecially his dreadfull and terrible workes of Judgement: For by them he &s;peakes out his infinite power and ma|je&s;ty in the eares of men as it were by thunder. Of &s;uch a voyce we read (<HI>P&s;al.</HI> 68.32, 33.) <HI>Sing unto God ye kingdomes of the earth, O &s;ing pray&s;es unto the Lord, Selah.</HI> Who this Lord is, and how he manife&s;ts him&s;elfe is &s;et forth in the next words,<NOTE PLACE="marg">In&s;ignibus vero illius ge&s;tis qui|bus non tam &s;plendet quam cum tonitru co|ru&s;cat animo percipie~dis quie tandem per fue|rit. <HI>Bez:</HI></NOTE> <HI>to him that rideth upon the heavens of heavens, which were of old, lo he doth &s;end out his voyce, and that a mighty voyce.</HI> Thus al&s;o the Prophet <HI>I|&s;ayah</HI> (Chap: 30.30.) de&s;cribes the Lord comming forth for the re&s;cue of his people, and the utter ruine of the <HI>A&s;&s;yrian</HI> Army. <HI>And the Lord &s;hall cau&s;e his glorious voyce to be heard, and &s;hall &s;hew the lightning downe of his arme, with the indignation of his an|ger, and with the flame of a deveuring fire, with &s;cattering, and tem|pe&s;t, and haile&s;tones.</HI> For though that de&s;truction of the <HI>A&s;&s;yrians</HI> was effected by the mini&s;tery of an Angel (<HI>I&s;a:</HI> 37.36.) yet, doubtle&s;&s;e it was not done in &s;ilence, but eyther with an amazing tempe&s;t, mixt with thunder and lightning, or with &s;uch confu&s;ion and terror as appeared like one. In the Booke of the <HI>Revelation</HI> (which hath as one of the Ancients &s;peaketh, as <HI>many my&s;teryes as words</HI>) the dreadfull judgements prophecyed to come upon the world in the &s;everall Ages of it, are expre&s;&s;ed by Thunder (<HI>Re|vel.</HI> 10.4.) <HI>And when the &s;even thunders had uttered their voyces, I was about to write: and I heard a voyce from heaven, &s;aying unto mee, &s;eale up tho&s;e things which the &s;even thunders uttered, and write them not.</HI> And as el&s;ewhere, &s;o e&s;pecially in this booke of <HI>Job,</HI> we find, tho&s;e things which carry the greate&s;t &s;trength and terror in them, expre&s;t by thunder (<HI>Job</HI> 39.19.) <HI>Ha&s;t thou given the hor&s;e &s;trength? ha&s;t thou clothed his necke with thunder;</HI> that is, ha&s;t thou made the hor&s;e who is &s;o &s;trong and terrible? And at the 25^t^h
<PB N="824" REF="427"> ver&s;e (treating &s;till of the hor&s;e) <HI>he &s;ayth among the trumpets,</HI><NOTE PLACE="marg">Haec nos cogita|ta et levit&egrave;r co~|memorata ob|&s;tupefaciu~t quid &s;i majora quae illius pote&s;tate continentur <HI>&amp;c. Pined.</HI> Quis compre|hendere pote&s;t ingentes domini virtutes, quae velut vocem to|nitrui more at|tollant prae mag|nitudine et mul|titudine. <HI>Merc:</HI> Quis &s;atis con|&s;ideret. <HI>Pi&s;c:</HI> Tonitru fortitu|dinu~ vocat &s;er|monem clarum, fortit&egrave;r prola|tum, quod &s;it velut tonitru maximum. <HI>Coc: Tonitru po|tentiae.</HI> i. e. Ip|&s;um intonantem &amp; loquentem coram. Argu|mentum e&s;t per comparationem majoris. <HI>Jun:</HI> Tonare eos di|cimus qui ora|rationis et elo|quentiae vi ma|xim&egrave; pollent. <HI>Novar:</HI></NOTE> <HI>ha, ha; and he &s;melleth the battaile afarre of, the thunder of the Cap|taines, and the &s;houting;</HI> that is, the hor&s;e is plea&s;ed to heare the Great Commanders &s;peake with a loud voyce, eyther directing, threatning, or encouraging their Souldiers. Thus, <HI>the Thunder of Gods power,</HI> is &s;ome wonderfull act of his power, which lifts up its voyce (as it were) like Thunder. This <HI>who can under|&s;tand?</HI> none can. The word &s;ignifyes al&s;o to weigh and con&s;ider; &s;o &s;ome render it here, <HI>Who can &s;ufficiently con&s;ider the Thunder of his power?</HI> who can con&s;ider it as he ought; eyther, fir&s;t, ac|cording to the depth and my&s;teriou&s;ne&s;&s;e of it, or, &s;econdly, ac|cording to the dignity and worthines of it.</P>
<P>Thirdly, The&s;e words, <HI>who can under&s;tand the thunder of his power?</HI> may be expounded of the highe&s;t and cleare&s;t publication of his power; The thundering of it out. As if <HI>Job</HI> had &s;ayd, <HI>I have whi&s;pered a little to you, but if God &s;hould thunder out him&s;elfe, or if his workes were &s;poken out (as they de&s;erve) in thunder,</HI> the minds of men would be amazed, and their under&s;tandings con|founded; <HI>The thunder of his power who can under&s;tand?</HI> 'Tis u&s;u|all among the learned to expre&s;&s;e high eloquence, and &s;trong con|fidence of &s;peech, by thundering. It was &s;ayd of <HI>Alcibiades, that hee thundred Greece;</HI> He was a man &s;o mighty in Elocution, that he made his hearers tremble. And hence <HI>Chri&s;t him&s;elfe &s;urnamed two of his owne Di&s;ciples (James the &s;on of Zebedee, and John the Brother of James) Boanerges,</HI> which is, <HI>The Sons of Thunder.</HI> They did not &s;peake (as we &s;ay) <HI>like a mou&s;e in a chee&s;e,</HI> but with a great voyce, and with a greater &s;pirit; they &s;pake the me&s;&s;a|ges of heaven as if it thundered from heaven. There may be a great force in a low voyce, while what is &s;poken comes with much clearenes of rea&s;on, and &s;trength of Authority, or (as the Apo&s;tle gives it) <HI>in the evidence and demon&s;tration of the Spirit;</HI> but when all the&s;e are convayed by a mighty voyce, a voyce like thunder, how forceable are they? <HI>Ba&s;il was &s;ayd to Thunder in his doctrine, and lighten in his life.</HI> Such (to the hight) was that voyce of words (in Mount <HI>Horeb</HI> at the giving of the Law) <HI>Which voyce they that heard, intreated that the Word &s;hould not be &s;poken to them any more</HI> (Heb: 12.19.) that is, that it &s;hould not be &s;poken to them any more in that manner, or by an immediate voyce from God, as appeares (<HI>Exod:</HI> 20. <HI>v:</HI> 18, 19.) <HI>And all
<PB N="825" REF="427"> the people &s;aw the Thunderings and the lightnings, and the noy&s;e of the Trumpet,</HI> &amp;c. <HI>And they &s;ayd unto Mo&s;es, &s;peake thou with us and we will heare; but let not God &s;peake with us, le&s;t we dye. We cannot under&s;tand the Thunder of his power.</HI></P>
<P>Hence note.</P>
<Q>Man is not able to receave and beare tho&s;e highe&s;t di&s;coveryes of God.</Q>
<P>God can &s;peake in &s;uch a light as will blind the eyes of man, and in &s;uch a language as will rather a&s;toni&s;h then in&s;truct him. As among beleevers, they who are carnal and babes in Chri&s;t, are not able to eate <HI>&s;trong meate,</HI> they mu&s;t <HI>be fed with milke</HI> (as the Apo&s;tles &s;peakes, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 3.2.) So wee may &s;ay of all Beleevers, even of tho&s;e that are &s;tronge&s;t, God doth onely whi&s;per and &s;peake gently to them, <HI>the thunder of his power they cannot under|&s;tand.</HI> For as there is a <HI>peace of God which pa&s;&s;eth all under&s;tand|ing</HI> (Phil. 4.7.) they that have it not, under&s;tand nothing of it, and they that have it, under&s;tand but little of it; <HI>it pa&s;&s;eth all un|der&s;tanding,</HI> not a naturall under&s;tanding onely, but al&s;o a &s;piri|tuall. And as there is <HI>a love of Chri&s;t pa&s;&s;ing knowledge</HI> (Eph. 3.19.) which yet we &s;hould labour to know; a love which hath an incomprehen&s;ible height, and length, and bredth, and depth in it, which yet all the Saints are labouring to comprehend, &s;o there is a manife&s;tation of the will and workes of God, a Thunder of his power, which were it made and &s;poken out to us, our un|der&s;tanding could not gra&s;pe nor comprehend, how much &s;oever we &s;hould de&s;ire and labour to comprehend it. And therefore God is plea&s;ed to put the <HI>trea&s;ure</HI> of his minde and me&s;&s;ages <HI>in earthen ve&s;&s;ells;</HI> not onely as the Apo&s;tle gives the rea&s;on (2 <HI>Cor:</HI> 4.7.) <HI>That the excellency of the power may be of God and not of us;</HI> but he doth it al&s;o condi&s;cending to our weakenes, le&s;t if he &s;hould give out this trea&s;ure immediately from him&s;elfe, or &s;hould put it into &s;ome heavenly ve&s;&s;el, we &s;hould not be able to beare <HI>the excellency,</HI> or (as <HI>Job</HI> here &s;peakes) <HI>The Thunder of his power.</HI></P>
<P>Thus after a very long ventilation of the Que&s;tion between <HI>Job</HI> and his friends, wee are arrived at the Conclu&s;ion of their di&s;pute. <HI>Job</HI> hath an&s;wered two of his friends thrice, the third (<HI>Zophar</HI> I meane) onely twice. He it &s;eemes, gave out and &s;ate downe,
<PB N="826" REF="428"> whether &s;atisfyed or wearyed, whether having no more to &s;ay, or being unwilling to &s;ay any more, or thinking that enough had been &s;ayd already, I determine not. But though <HI>Jobs</HI> friends have done arguing again&s;t him, yet he hath not done arguing for him|&s;elfe; Which he doth in five entire Chapters, twice called the <HI>continuation of his Parable.</HI> In what &s;ence he calleth his en&s;u|ing &s;peech a parable, together with the &s;ubject matter of it, may through the Gratious pre&s;ence, and <HI>&s;upply of the Spirit of Je&s;us Chri&s;t, who hath helped hetherto, and hath not &s;uffered that little oyle in the Cru&s;e to fayle,</HI> &s;hine forth with a clearer light.</P>
</DIV3>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
</BODY>
<BACK>
<DIV1 TYPE="index">
<PB REF="428">
<HEAD>A TABLE Directing to &s;ome &s;peciall Points noted in the precedent EXPOSITIONS.</HEAD>
<DIV2 N="A" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>A</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>_ABoundance,</HI> a great tryall of Grace as wel as want. <HI>151</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Abundance</HI> of worldly things not to be de&s;ired, yet may lawfully be enjoyed. <HI>250</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Accu&s;ation,</HI> to accu&s;e meerely upon &s;u&s;|pition very uncharitable. <HI>83, 84</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Acquainting</HI> our &s;elves with God, what it is, and the &s;everal &s;teps by which Saints ari&s;e to it. <HI>207, 208, 209.</HI> A twofold <HI>acquaintance</HI> with God. <HI>210.</HI> The more we are <HI>acquainted</HI> with God, the more like we are to him. <HI>211.</HI> No <HI>acquaintance</HI> with God but by a Mediator. <HI>211.</HI> We can have no true peace till we <HI>ac|quaint</HI> our &s;elves with God. <HI>214.</HI> While wee are <HI>unacquainted</HI> or e|&s;tranged from God, we are e&s;tranged from Good. <HI>216. Acquaintance</HI> with God brings in all Good. <HI>218</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Adams</HI> &s;in in eating the forbidden fruit, how aggravated in one particular. <HI>57</HI> Three things in <HI>Adams</HI> &s;in. <HI>706.</HI> Sin of <HI>Adam</HI> fallen upon his whole po&s;terity three wayes. <HI>706</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Adultery,</HI> the kinds of it. <HI>575.</HI> The extreame wickednes of it, &s;et forth many wayes. <HI>576, 577</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Adulterer</HI> hath a waiting eye, which im|plyeth three things. <HI>583</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Affliction</HI> hath much in&s;truction in it. <HI>15.</HI> God hath abundance of <HI>affliction</HI> in his hand. <HI>97.</HI> Difference between the <HI>afflictions</HI> of a Godly and a wick|ed man. <HI>99. Affliction</HI> doth u&s;ually
<PB REF="429"> vent it &s;elfe by complaints &amp; groanes. <HI>305. Afflictions</HI> abide long upon &s;ome who are eminently godly. <HI>308</HI> The <HI>afflictions</HI> of &s;ome exceed all their complaints. <HI>309.</HI> There are two things which a godly man may &s;ee in his greate&s;t <HI>afflictions,</HI> which are matter of thanksgiving. <HI>312.</HI> God &s;weete&s;t to the &s;oule in <HI>affliction. 320. Affliction</HI> drives the godly neerer to God. <HI>322. Affliction</HI> a tryall. <HI>380. Afflictions</HI> fore-ap|poynted by God. <HI>444.</HI> God hath va|riety of <HI>afflictions</HI> in his hand to ex|exerci&s;e his children with. <HI>448.</HI> We de&s;erve more and &s;orer <HI>afflicti|ons</HI> then God layeth upon us. <HI>450.</HI> A godly man may be unable to beare <HI>afflictions</HI> any longer. <HI>459</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Angels,</HI> how in a place. <HI>109. Angels</HI> Gods Armyes or ho&s;t. <HI>690. Angels</HI> how they may be called the pillars of heaven. <HI>781</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Angry</HI> di&s;pen&s;ations of God make all tremble. <HI>786</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Appoyntment,</HI> how all things are under a divine <HI>appointment,</HI> &s;hewed by &s;e|veral in&s;tances. <HI>445, 446.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Arke</HI> in which the Law was put, typed Chri&s;t. <HI>227</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Arme,</HI> in Scripture notes power. <HI>71</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Armyes</HI> of God, what they are. <HI>690.</HI> All creatures the Armyes of God up on a threefold con&s;ideration. <HI>692</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>A&s;&s;es,</HI> or wild <HI>a&s;&s;es,</HI> the re&s;emblance be|tween them and the wicked, &s;hewed in &s;everall things. <HI>514</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>A&s;&s;emblyes</HI> of the Saints to wor&s;hip, are the dwelling place of God. <HI>199</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ayre,</HI> how it may be called an empty place. <HI>754</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="B" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>B</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Barren land,</HI> a cur&s;ed land. <HI>607</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Bea&s;ts,</HI> evill men are like bea&s;ts, or bea|&s;tiall in their di&s;po&s;itions and acti|ons. <HI>513</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Beleever,</HI> he hath no opinion of his owne &s;trength. <HI>344</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Boanerges,</HI> why two of the Di&s;ciples cal|led &s;o. <HI>824</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Body,</HI> in what &s;ence every &s;in that a man doth, except adultery, is with|out the <HI>body. 580</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Bodyes</HI> of the wicked &s;hall be ray&s;ed im|mortall, though not incorruptible. <HI>751</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Booke</HI> of the living, what meant by it; as al&s;o what by the <HI>Booke</HI> which God hath written. <HI>628, 629</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Brethren</HI> of two &s;orts. <HI>53.</HI> To doe wrong to, or not to releive a <HI>brother,</HI> hightens the &s;in. <HI>53</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Building,</HI> and to be <HI>built</HI> up, what it &s;ig|nifyes in Scripture. <HI>134, 135</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="C" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>C</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Carnal men,</HI> their &s;pirits are meerely mercenary. <HI>164.</HI> They are full of uncon&s;tancy. <HI>602</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Cen&s;ure;</HI> The be&s;t of men may fall un|der the ha&s;he&s;t Cen&s;ures. <HI>357</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Change</HI> twofold made in a &s;inner by grace. <HI>701</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Changes</HI> of time or &s;ea&s;on, none beyond this world. <HI>779</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Charity</HI> mu&s;t and will make ventures. <HI>45. Charity</HI> is accepted, and <HI>uncha|ritablene&s;s</HI>
<PB REF="429"> condemned in the &s;malle&s;t matters. <HI>63.</HI> Churli&s;h per&s;ons &s;ticke at &s;mall <HI>charities</HI> as wel as great. <HI>64</HI> How <HI>charity</HI> beleeveth all things. <HI>84.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Children</HI> why compared to a building. <HI>235</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chri&s;t</HI> an everla&s;ting foundation. <HI>154</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Chri&s;t,</HI> how he commeth as a theife. <HI>573</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ci&s;terns,</HI> what kind of <HI>ci&s;terne</HI> the crea|ture is. <HI>217</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Cloathing</HI> put for all good things of this life. <HI>59</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Clouds</HI> and darkenes, how God is &s;ayd to dwel in them. <HI>125. Clouds,</HI> what they are. <HI>764.</HI> Why appropriated un|to God. <HI>764.</HI> That waters are con|tained in the <HI>Clouds,</HI> a great wonder in three things. <HI>766.</HI> Three infe|rences from it. <HI>767</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Comforts,</HI> &s;mal <HI>comforts</HI> are welcome to us in times of great affliction. <HI>527</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Complaining;</HI> to <HI>complaine</HI> more then we have cau&s;e is very &s;infull. <HI>310</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Condemnation,</HI> God will for ever acquit the righteous from it. <HI>356</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Confidence</HI> of many proceedeth onely from ignorance. <HI>454</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Con&s;cience,</HI> Gods Deputy in man. <HI>597</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Con&s;ideration,</HI> the want of it cau&s;eth us to be &s;o little affected with great things. <HI>115, 116</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Contentation,</HI> it is our duty to &s;it downe quiet and <HI>content</HI> under the &s;adde&s;t di&s;pen&s;ations of God. <HI>213</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Contention</HI> about worldly things to be carefully avoyded. <HI>488</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Continuance,</HI> things which <HI>continue</HI> but a little while are but of little worth, <HI>658, 659</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Conviction,</HI> mo&s;t &s;inners have a &s;ecret <HI>conviction</HI> upon them, that what they doe is not good. <HI>595</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Covetou&s;nes</HI> knoweth no bounds. <HI>531</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Coun&s;el</HI> of the wicked, what. <HI>175.</HI> The excellency of good <HI>coun&s;el. 723.</HI> Good and gracious <HI>coun&s;el</HI> &s;hould be given the weake. <HI>723</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Creatures,</HI> we ought to con&s;ider the &s;e|veral excellencyes of them. <HI>116.</HI> The <HI>creature</HI> leads us to God. <HI>118. Creature,</HI> can neyther hold nor give out the good it hath, but by a word from God. <HI>217.</HI> The goodne&s;s and glory of the <HI>creature</HI> is nothing com|pared with God. <HI>710</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Creation,</HI> we ought joyntly to acknow|ledge the Father, Son, and Spirit, in the worke of <HI>creation. 806</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Cruelty</HI> of man to man boundle&s;&s;e. <HI>528</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Curio&s;ity,</HI> very naturall to man to be enquiring into times. <HI>471</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Cur&s;e,</HI> &s;in brings a <HI>cur&s;e</HI> with it. <HI>607</HI> They who are generally under the <HI>cur&s;e</HI> of men, are often under the <HI>cur&s;e</HI> of God too. <HI>608.</HI> Why &s;in doth not alwayes bring a <HI>cur&s;e. 609.</HI> How the wicked are alwayes <HI>cur&s;ed,</HI> even in their greate&s;t pro&s;perity. <HI>609, 610</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="D" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>D</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Damned</HI> under endle&s;&s;e &s;ufferings, one rea&s;on of it. <HI>43</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Darkne&s;s,</HI> twofold, external, internal, this internal <HI>darkenes</HI> twofold. <HI>93, 94</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Day</HI> &amp; night in what &s;ence they end af|ter the end of this pre&s;ent world. <HI>778</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Day,</HI> or to <HI>day,</HI> taken two wayes in Scripture. <HI>300 Dayes</HI> of God or <HI>day</HI>
<PB REF="430"> of God, what in Scripture. <HI>474</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Death,</HI> when and to whom &s;udden. <HI>9<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</HI> The <HI>death</HI> of a wicked man is violent to him, though he dye in his bed. <HI>668</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Death,</HI> the territory of it as large as that of &s;in. <HI>619: death</HI> hath more power over great &s;inners, &s;hewed two wayes. <HI>620. 622.</HI> Some remembred after <HI>death</HI> chiefely for the &s;trange|nes of their <HI>death. 625, 626</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Declining</HI> in reference to the wayes of God twofold. <HI>393, 394.</HI> Some <HI>de|cline</HI> in them, others <HI>decline</HI> from them. <HI>395. Declining</HI> from the wayes of God twofold; fir&s;t, to the right hand; &s;econdly, to the left. <HI>395, 396.</HI> Whether a godly man may <HI>de|cline</HI> or no. <HI>396. Declinings</HI> in grace, &s;everall cau&s;es of it. <HI>398, 399</HI> All &s;in is a <HI>declining</HI> from the wayes of God. <HI>400</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Decree,</HI> by man what; how he may be &s;ayd to <HI>decree</HI> a thing, and have it e&s;tabli&s;hed. <HI>275.</HI> The &s;ucce&s;&s;e of our <HI>decrees</HI> or coun&s;els is a great mercy. <HI>278.</HI> The &s;ucce&s;&s;e of our <HI>decrees</HI> is from God. <HI>279.</HI> The <HI>de|crees</HI> of Godly men are under a pro|mi&s;e of &s;ucce&s;&s;e. <HI>279. Decree</HI> and appoyntment of God, what&s;oever God doth was before appoynted and <HI>de|creed. 444</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Degrees</HI> of excellency and dignity in the creatures, God hath not levelled them. <HI>117</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Delight</HI> con&s;i&s;teth in two things. <HI>254 Delight</HI> in God is our duty as wel as our reward and comfort. <HI>254.</HI> They who mourne for &s;in, &s;hall find <HI>delight</HI> in God. <HI>256. Delight</HI> in the Lord is the choyce&s;t mercy. <HI>257. Delight</HI> in the Lord exceeds all worldly <HI>de|lights</HI> in foure things. <HI>257, 258</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Deliberate</HI> &s;inning the way of the wick|ed. <HI>584</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>De&s;ertion,</HI> God is every where pre&s;ent, yet often not pre&s;ent to the apprehen&s;i|on of his people. <HI>317. 319.</HI> De&s;ires of Saints often quicke&s;t after God in a time of <HI>de&s;ertion. 319</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>De&s;ire,</HI> they who truely <HI>de&s;ire</HI> to finde God, are diligent in &s;earching after him. <HI>323.</HI> Where God is cheifely to be found. <HI>325, 326. De&s;ire</HI> is dili|gent in enquiryes. <HI>370</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Devill,</HI> in what con&s;ideration made by God. <HI>812</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Difficultyes,</HI> an evill heart will breake through all <HI>difficultyes</HI> to find a way to his &s;in. <HI>615</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Diligence,</HI> good in a good way. <HI>519</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Di&s;honour</HI> fallen upon man by &s;in. <HI>716</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Di&s;puters</HI> apt to make fal&s;e inferences from the tenets of their oppo&s;ers. <HI>122</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Dividing</HI> the word of God aright, what. <HI>732</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Divi&s;ions</HI> among men &s;ent as a puni&s;h|ment from God. <HI>796</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Doctrine</HI> and divine teachings, why compared to and expre&s;&s;ed by raine and raining. <HI>220</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>Fal&s;e <HI>doctrine</HI> is worthle&s;&s;e. <HI>673</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Dominion</HI> of God what, Three things it it. <HI>676. Dominion</HI> of God con|&s;idered foure wayes. <HI>677.</HI> The <HI>Do|minion</HI> of God calleth us to a twofold &s;ubjection <HI>679</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Drawing,</HI> twofold. <HI>637</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="E" TYPE="part">
<PB REF="430">
<HEAD>E</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Earth;</HI> men of the <HI>earth,</HI> why the wick|ed are &s;o called. <HI>73.</HI> In what &s;ence the <HI>earth</HI> is founded upon the Sea. <HI>756.</HI> What the foundation of the <HI>earth</HI> is. <HI>757.</HI> The <HI>earth</HI> is upheld by the infinite power of God. <HI>757, 758.</HI> Inferences from it. <HI>758, 759</HI> How the <HI>earth</HI> may be called the pil|lar of heaven. <HI>782</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Earth-quake,</HI> whence it is. <HI>733</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ea&s;t-ward,</HI> why it if called forward. <HI>360, 361</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Aegypt,</HI> why called Rahab. <HI>793</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Election,</HI> the decree of <HI>Election</HI> is an unmoveable foundation. <HI>153</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Empty,</HI> a per&s;on may be &s;ent away <HI>emp|ty</HI> in a threefold &s;ence. <HI>80.</HI> How a place may be &s;ayd to be <HI>empty. 754</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Enemyes,</HI> in what &s;ence we may not or may rejoyce in their fall <HI>187, 188</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Error,</HI> very binding upon t<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters"> con&s;cience as wel us truth. <HI>101.</HI> Hard to judge which is wor&s;e, un&s;etlednes in truth, or tenaciou&s;nes in <HI>error. 102.</HI> The way of <HI>error</HI> old. <HI>139</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ever,</HI> The &s;adde&s;t or &s;weete&s;t word in the whole Bible. <HI>356</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Exaltation</HI> of wicked men &s;hall not con|tinue. <HI>656</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Exta&s;ie</HI> twofold. <HI>191</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Examples</HI> very drawing. <HI>398</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Examples</HI> of puni&s;hment upon &s;inners ought to be marked. <HI>140. Examples</HI> of two &s;orts. <HI>141.</HI> God makes wicked men <HI>example<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">. 182.</HI> A Godly man doth <HI>example</HI> him&s;elfe by God. <HI>390</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Eye</HI> of God upon a place or per&s;on notes his care of them. <HI>649</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Eyes,</HI> high or low, note pride or humili|ty. <HI>286. Eye</HI> much in adultery. <HI>582</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ez<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">kiel,</HI> why &s;o often called and &s;poken to by God, under this name, <HI>Son of man. 712</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="F" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>F</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Face,</HI> lifting vp the <HI>face,</HI> what it im|ports in Scripture. <HI>259. Face</HI> co&s;t downe three wayes. <HI>260. Face</HI> of a thing what it notes in Scripture. <HI>768</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Faith,</HI> the reflect act of it mo&s;t &s;weete. <HI>254.</HI> How <HI>faith</HI> is our &s;trength to re&s;i&s;t temptation. <HI>349</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Fatherle&s;&s;e</HI> and widdow, who in Scrip|ture. <HI>81.</HI> How &s;infull to wrong them. <HI>85, 86</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Feare</HI> taken two wayes. <HI>27. Feare</HI> makes men cruel, and do unju&s;t things as wel as hope. <HI>30, 31. Feare</HI> may be a ju&s;t ground of doing Ju&s;tice. <HI>31, 32. Feare</HI> of two &s;orts. <HI>90.</HI> Sudden <HI>feare</HI> &s;urprizeth &s;ecure &s;inners. <HI>91. Feare</HI> threefold. <HI>453. Feare</HI> ari&s;eth two wayes. <HI>454.</HI> God would be more <HI>feared,</HI> if he were more knowne. <HI>454 Feare</HI> is with God upon a threefold con&s;ideration. <HI>680.</HI> God can &s;trike man with <HI>feare</HI> when he plea&s;eth. <HI>682</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Feared,</HI> God is much to be <HI>feared. 681.</HI> God is to he <HI>feared</HI> as great and as good. <HI>681, 682</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Fire</HI> put to &s;ignifie any Judgement. <HI>201.</HI> There is a different <HI>fire</HI> for the righ|teous and the wicked. <HI>202.</HI> How God is a con&s;uming <HI>fire</HI> in reference to the Godly. <HI>202</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Fi&s;hes</HI> of the Sea, three things mo&s;t
<PB REF="431"> con&s;iderable about them. <HI>744</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Flattering</HI> and reproaching one ano|ther, are two extreames to be care|fully avoyded. <HI>715</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Flood,</HI> the Judgements of God compa|red to it, and why. <HI>148, 149</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Folly;</HI> the wayes of &s;in and unrighte|ou&s;ne&s;&s;e are full of <HI>folly. 544. Fol|ly</HI> put in Scripture to note &s;ome noto|rious &s;in. <HI>546. Folly</HI> of &s;inners. <HI>597</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Forgetfullnes</HI> what implyed by it. <HI>625</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Foundation,</HI> figuratively taken, what. <HI>148. 150.</HI> Everla&s;ting <HI>foundati|on,</HI> what. <HI>152.</HI> The &s;tronge&s;t <HI>foun|dations</HI> which the wicked lay, are quickly overthrowne by God. <HI>152.</HI> A righteous man hath two <HI>founda|tions</HI> which &s;hall never fayle. <HI>153</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="G" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>G</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Giants</HI> terrible, why called Rephaim. <HI>741</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Gifts</HI> of God which hee repenteth of, what they are. <HI>424</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Glory</HI> of God &s;uch as man cannot beare or behold it. <HI>771</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Glorifie,</HI> in what &s;ence man may be &s;ayd to <HI>glorifie</HI> God. <HI>9</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>God,</HI> ab&s;olutely independent and perfect in him&s;elfe. <HI>7.</HI> To thinke of <HI>God</HI> on high, the be&s;t way to quiet our &s;oules in any trouble here below. <HI>104</HI> How <HI>God</HI> is every where. <HI>110.</HI> Carnal men frame co~ceptions of <HI>God</HI> like them&s;elves. <HI>127.</HI> A wrong no|tion of the true <HI>God</HI> is the &s;etting up of a fal&s;e <HI>God. 128.</HI> The pre&s;ence of <HI>God</HI> &s;lighted by carnal men, the onely Joy of Saints. <HI>159, 160, 161. God</HI> hath not given the wor&s;t of men any cau&s;e to be weary of him. <HI>167. G<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d</HI> doth good to them that are evilly, two rea&s;ons of it. <HI>170 God</HI> is to be ac|knowledged as the fountaine of all good to us. <HI>171, 172. God</HI> ready to be at peace with &s;inners. <HI>215. God</HI> infinitely better to the &s;oule then all other things. <HI>218. God</HI> is the de|fence of his people. <HI>245. God</HI> is the riches, the gold and &s;ilver of his peo|ple. <HI>246. God</HI> hath put it into the nature of all men to &s;eeke after him. <HI>324. God</HI> is often doing great things when we &s;ee him not. <HI>366. God</HI> appeareth onely to &s;uch as him&s;elfe plea&s;eth. <HI>367. God</HI> is one. <HI>419. God</HI> doth what&s;oever he will. <HI>438</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Godly</HI> and the wicked have quite con|trary both de&s;ires and feares. <HI>161. 178.</HI> A <HI>Godly</HI> man is one of Gods acquaintants. <HI>207.</HI> He &s;hall be gui|ded the right way, and ble&s;&s;ed in his way. <HI>283.</HI> He &s;hall have comfort in his way. <HI>284.</HI> A <HI>godly</HI> man is a common good. <HI>290. Godly</HI> &s;ave o|thers three wayes. <HI>292 Godly</HI> men mo&s;t likely to be acquainted with what God is doing in the world, for two rea&s;ons. <HI>481</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Godlines</HI> is truly profitable. <HI>17. God|lines</HI> the neere&s;t way to worldly gaine. <HI>248. Godlines</HI> is Godlike|nes or an imitation of God. <HI>390</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Goodnes</HI> of God. Sin hath by &s;omuch the greater evill in it as it is commit|ted again&s;t the greater <HI>goodnes. 171
<PB REF="431"> goodnes</HI> of God fivefold. <HI>693.</HI> God gives out <HI>goodnes</HI> freely. <HI>697</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Good</HI> things many of them a trouble to evill men. <HI>593</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Gold</HI> and &s;ilver how a defence, and why put for all riches. <HI>241.</HI> How <HI>Gold</HI> is to be layd up in the du&s;t. <HI>241.</HI> The natural place of <HI>Gold</HI> &s;hould abate our de&s;ires after it. <HI>242. Gold</HI> the mo&s;t excellent metal in five re&s;pects. <HI>382</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Grace</HI> renders a man precious. <HI>383.</HI> The glory of <HI>grace</HI> is, that it continu|eth. <HI>659</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Greate&s;t</HI> and &s;tronge&s;t as ea&s;ily ca&s;t downe by God as the lea&s;t or weake&s;t. <HI>665</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Growth</HI> of <HI>Grace. 397</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="H" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>H</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Hands,</HI> purenes of <HI>hands,</HI> what. <HI>290</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Hardnes</HI> of heart in &s;in, when the &s;inner can feed upon it. <HI>494. Hard</HI> heart trembles not at the reproofes of God. <HI>790</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Heart</HI> lift up to heaven, the worke of Grace. <HI>106.</HI> Laying up the word in the <HI>heart,</HI> hath a twofold oppo&s;ition. <HI>225.</HI> The <HI>heart</HI> of man is the Arke where the word of God mu&s;t be layd up. <HI>227.</HI> Truth in the <HI>heart</HI> better to us then truth in the booke. <HI>228. Heart</HI> of man makes more fal&s;e Gods then his hand ever made. <HI>128.</HI> The word to be hid in the <HI>heart. 407.</HI> Soft <HI>heart,</HI> what, &s;everal &s;orts of it. <HI>457</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Heathens</HI> confined their Gods to certain places. <HI>114</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Heaven</HI> is the place of Gods &s;peciall re&s;i|dence. <HI>105. 111.</HI> Two inferences given from it. <HI>106. Heaven</HI> and hel know no changes. <HI>779</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Heavens,</HI> what the garni&s;hing of them is. <HI>804.</HI> Vi&s;ible <HI>heavens</HI> are full of Beauty. <HI>807.</HI> Severall inferences from it. <HI>807, 808</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Hel,</HI> in what &s;ence it con&s;umes tho&s;e who are ca&s;t into it. <HI>624.</HI> What meant by <HI>hel</HI> in Scripture. <HI>746. Hel</HI> is de|&s;truction. <HI>747. Hel</HI> expre&s;&s;ed by eight words in Scripture. <HI>751</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Here&s;ie</HI> like a flood, yet bounded by God. <HI>777</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Hiding</HI> the word of two &s;orts. <HI>227.</HI> Three ends of <HI>hiding</HI> the word in the heart. <HI>228</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Hidings</HI> of God from his people. <HI>367, 368.</HI> God <HI>hideth</HI> him&s;elfe five wayes. <HI>368.</HI> God will be as <HI>hid</HI> to his people &s;ometimes, after the u&s;e of much meanes to finde him. <HI>371</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>High</HI> places of God, what they are. <HI>684</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Holynes,</HI> the Lord takes plea&s;ure in it, three rea&s;ons why. <HI>22, 23.</HI> Why we &s;hould be every where <HI>holy. 113. Holynes</HI> hath boldnes with God. <HI>261 328. Holynes</HI> gives us weight and honour. <HI>602</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Holy-Gho&s;t,</HI> &s;in again&s;t the <HI>Holy-Gho&s;t</HI> what it it in general. <HI>557</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Honour,</HI> a threefold <HI>honour</HI> ari&s;ing to God by the fall of the wicked. <HI>189</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Hou&s;es,</HI> God hath two &s;peciall <HI>hou&s;es. 808</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Humble</HI> per&s;ons of two &s;orts. <HI>287. Humble</HI> per&s;ons under the &s;peciall care of God. <HI>288</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="432">
<ITEM><HI>Hypocrites,</HI> &s;ome not di&s;covered in this world. <HI>330. Hypocrites</HI> feare the judgement of God, or to be tryed by God. <HI>330.</HI> An <HI>hypocrite</HI> cannot rejoyce that God knoweth him, &s;hew|ed in three things. <HI>377. Hypocrites</HI> cannot hold out when they come to the tryall. <HI>384</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="I" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>I</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Jelou&s;ie,</HI> guilt makes men full of it. <HI>642</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ignorance,</HI> wicked men love it. <HI>554.</HI> A twofold <HI>ignorance. 560, 561</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Imitation</HI> of God our duty. <HI>390</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Impenitency</HI> under &s;in co~mitted, wor&s;e then the &s;in committed. <HI>44</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Impri&s;onment,</HI> when a cruelty. <HI>54</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Incon&s;tancy</HI> of a carnal man &s;hewed two wayes. <HI>602</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Indu&s;triou&s;ne&s;&s;e</HI> of the wicked in &s;in|ning. <HI>517, 518</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Infinite,</HI> what. Nothing &s;trictly <HI>infinite</HI> but God. <HI>40</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Innocent</HI> oft charged with foule&s;t crimes. <HI>83. Innocent</HI> taken two wayes in Scripture. <HI>192</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Joy</HI> at the troubles which befall wicked men, how lawfull. <HI>186, 187.</HI> What kind of <HI>joy</HI> that is not, and what it is. <HI>192</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Judge.</HI> God the mo&s;t de&s;ireable <HI>Judge</HI> to the godly and &s;incere, five grounds of it. <HI>429, 430.</HI> A Godly man re&s;ts in the <HI>Judgement</HI> of God. <HI>336.</HI> God is every way fitted to be a righte|ous <HI>Judge. 378.</HI> In a <HI>Judge</HI> two things &s;pecially needfull. <HI>378</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Judging,</HI> man apt to <HI>judge</HI> favourably of him&s;elfe, hardly of others. <HI>48.</HI> We mu&s;t take heed of <HI>Judging</HI> upon &s;u&s;pition. <HI>48.</HI> What <HI>Judging</HI> of others forbidden. <HI>49</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Judgement,</HI> wicked ripe for <HI>judge|ment</HI> &s;ometimes before ripe in years. <HI>143. Judgements</HI> of God have &s;omewhat of mercy in them. <HI>168. Judgements</HI> of God upon the wick|ed, how matter of Joy to the righte|ous. <HI>184.</HI> Why the <HI>Judgements</HI> of God upon the wicked are not vi&s;i|ble. <HI>482</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Jupiter Hammon,</HI> why &s;o called. <HI>618</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ju&s;tice,</HI> how blind, and how &s;eeing. <HI>124</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ju&s;tice</HI> mu&s;t be done for the example of others. <HI>182, 183</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ju&s;tice</HI> of God honoured by the fall of evill men. <HI>189</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ju&s;tification,</HI> &s;elfe-<HI>ju&s;tification</HI> ex|treamely di&s;plea&s;ing unto God. <HI>24.</HI> God hath no re&s;pect to our righteou&s;|nes in the bu&s;ienes of <HI>Ju&s;tification. 29. Ju&s;tification</HI> what it is. <HI>700.</HI> Man hath nothing of his owne to <HI>ju|&s;tifie</HI> him before God, two grounds of it. <HI>702.</HI> A twofold <HI>Ju&s;tification. 703</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="K" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>K</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Keeping</HI> the way of God twofold. <HI>392</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Knowers</HI> of God, or they who <HI>know</HI> God, who they are. <HI>473.</HI> Every God|ly man is a <HI>knower</HI> of God. <HI>476.</HI> Some godly men <HI>know</HI> God much more then others who are godly too. <HI>478</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="432">
<ITEM><HI>Knowing</HI> and under&s;tanding taken two wayes. <HI>334. 372</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Knowledge;</HI> evill men will act again&s;t their owne <HI>knowledge. 555. Know|ledge</HI> of God, how and what God <HI>knoweth. 121.</HI> The mo&s;t &s;ecret wayes of man, even the way within him is <HI>knowne</HI> to God. <HI>373.</HI> A ge|neral inference from this <HI>know|ledge</HI> of God. <HI>374.</HI> It is the Joy of the upright that God <HI>knowes</HI> their mo&s;t &s;ecret wayes. <HI>374.</HI> That God <HI>knowes</HI> the wayes of a godly man, a&s;&s;ures him of three things. <HI>375.</HI> No|thing is hid from the eye or <HI>know|ledge</HI> of God. <HI>749.</HI> All our <HI>know|ledge</HI> of the wayes and workes of God is but in part. <HI>819</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="L" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>L</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Labourer,</HI> not to be wronged. <HI>536.</HI> Nothing cheape but poore mens <HI>la|bours,</HI> why &s;ayd &s;o. <HI>538.</HI> It may be a dangerous thing to be the <HI>labou|rers</HI> pur&s;e-bearer but for a night. <HI>539</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Land-markes,</HI> the removing of them very &s;infull. <HI>489</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Law</HI> of God, the Elegancy of the He|brew word, whereby it is expre&s;&s;ed, opened. <HI>220. Law</HI> taken two wayes. <HI>222.</HI> To receive the <HI>Law,</HI> what it is. <HI>225.</HI> God onely can give a <HI>Law</HI> to the con&s;cience. <HI>224. Law</HI> how writ|ten in our hearts by God, and how by our &s;elves. <HI>226</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Left-hand</HI> declining, what it importeth. <HI>396</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Levelling</HI> principles confuted by the na|turall &s;tate of the creature. <HI>117</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Leviathan</HI> or <HI>Whale,</HI> the mighty pow|er of God in forming the <HI>Levia|than. 814.</HI> An inference from it. <HI>815</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Liberty</HI> threefold where the Spirit is <HI>262.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Life</HI> of man, in what &s;ence it &s;hould al|wayes hang in doubt to him. <HI>641.</HI> How no man is &s;ure of his life. <HI>643</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Light</HI> of God fourefold. <HI>695</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Light;</HI> God is with all men by a two|fold <HI>light. 157. Light</HI> threefold &s;hining upon the wayes of a Godly man. <HI>282. Light</HI> twofold. <HI>550.</HI> Wicked love not the <HI>light,</HI> neyther to &s;ee what good they &s;hould doe, nor to be &s;eene in the evill they doe. <HI>554. Light</HI> internall, again&s;t which the wicked rebel, twofold. <HI>550.</HI> Holy truth is <HI>light. 551.</HI> How divine truth is like <HI>light,</HI> &s;hewed in &s;everall re&s;emblances. <HI>552.</HI> Sinning again&s;t <HI>light</HI> exceeding &s;infull. <HI>557.</HI> Foure degrees of &s;inning again&s;t <HI>light. 558</HI> They who &s;in again&s;t <HI>light</HI> are ready for every &s;in. <HI>560</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Looke</HI> of God twofold. <HI>652</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Love,</HI> true <HI>love</HI> to man will not ea&s;ily conceave or nouri&s;h &s;u&s;pition. <HI>102</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Love,</HI> we cannot be con&s;tant in that which we doe not <HI>love</HI> or affect, <HI>561</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Lu&s;ts</HI> and corruptions like a &s;tormy Sea within us. <HI>801, 802</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Lyars,</HI> men are made <HI>lyars,</HI> two wayes. <HI>670.</HI> The wor&s;t that can be &s;ayd of a man is, that he is a <HI>lyar. 672</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Lye,</HI> fal&s;e doctrine is a <HI>lye. 671</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="M" TYPE="part">
<PB REF="433">
<HEAD>M</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Magi&s;trates,</HI> that are bad mo&s;t ready to favour &s;uch as are &s;o. <HI>73.</HI> Why evill <HI>Magi&s;trates</HI> are compared to Oakes. <HI>74.</HI> Evill <HI>Magi&s;trates</HI> favour the great. <HI>75.</HI> They &s;hould take &s;peciall care of the widdow and the fatherles. <HI>86.</HI> They are the eyes of the people. <HI>587.</HI> They are the pillars of the earth. <HI>789</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Maje&s;ty</HI> of God, dreadfull to his owne people. <HI>454</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Man</HI> can no way be profitable unto God. Objections an&s;wered. <HI>7, 8. Man</HI> is a very poore thing. <HI>712. Man</HI> com|pared to the meane&s;t things. <HI>713.</HI> To a worme. <HI>714</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Manner</HI> how duty is to be performed, as con&s;iderable as the duty it &s;elfe. <HI>725</HI> That which is not done in a right <HI>manner,</HI> is not done at all. <HI>726</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ma&s;chil,</HI> the title of &s;everal P&s;almes, what it importeth. <HI>15</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Meanes,</HI> God can doe the greate&s;t things without any vi&s;ible <HI>meanes. 759</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Meditation,</HI> what it is. <HI>220</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Mercy</HI> of God, in what &s;ence &s;in may be &s;ayd to overcome it. <HI>44</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Merit;</HI> The be&s;t of men cannot oblidge God or <HI>merit</HI> any thing at his hand. <HI>4</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Mind</HI> of man hath a formative faculty in it. <HI>131</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Mi&s;-interpretation;</HI> Two &s;orts of words and actions mo&s;t lyable to <HI>mi&s;|interpretation. 306</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Moone,</HI> in what &s;ence it &s;hineth not. <HI>708, 710</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Mouth</HI> of God, how we may be &s;ayd to receave the Law from it. <HI>222, 223</HI> To receave the Law from the <HI>mouth</HI> of God, &s;tands in a double oppo&s;ition. <HI>224</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Murder</HI> committed upon two grovnds. <HI>563.</HI> The greatnes of the &s;in of <HI>mur|der</HI> &s;hewed two wayes by Scripture. <HI>567.</HI> Nine other con&s;iderations &s;hew|ing the greatnes of the &s;in of <HI>murder. 568, 569</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Murmuring</HI> again&s;t the rod or &s;evere&s;t dealings of God is rebellion. <HI>207.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Mutability</HI> of man in bis natural and civil &s;trength. <HI>779, 780</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="N" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>N</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Naked,</HI> who in a Scripture &s;ence. <HI>58</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Nature,</HI> uncleanenes of <HI>nature</HI> runs through all men. <HI>705.</HI> Sinfullnes of <HI>nature</HI> con&s;i&s;teth cheifely in two things. <HI>707</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Nece&s;&s;ary food,</HI> what. <HI>409, 410</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Nece&s;&s;ity</HI> cannot excu&s;e &s;infull actions. <HI>57</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Need</HI> makes a little mercy &s;eeme great. <HI>65</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Negative</HI> commandements and threat|nings of God alwayes imply the affir|mative, and &s;o u&s;ually doe the <HI>Nega|tive</HI> practices of men. <HI>635</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Nimrod,</HI> whence &s;o called. <HI>550</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Northerne</HI> part of the world, why cal|led the place where God worketh. <HI>362.</HI> God workes more in the <HI>Nor|therne</HI> parts of the world, then in the Southerne. <HI>363.</HI> The Go&s;pel hath been more clearly taugbt in the <HI>Nor|therne</HI> then in the Southerne parts of the world. <HI>364</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="O" TYPE="part">
<PB REF="433">
<HEAD>O</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Occa&s;ions,</HI> or acts leading to &s;in are to be avoyded as wel as the &s;in it &s;elfe. <HI>4<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">0</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Omnipotency</HI> of God; It is as ea&s;ie with him to doe a thing as to de&s;ire to doe it. <HI>400</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Omnipre&s;ence</HI> of God. <HI>108.</HI> Two de|ductions from the <HI>omnipre&s;ence</HI> of God. <HI>113.</HI> God is every where, yet &s;ome where e&s;pecially to be found <HI>325</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Omni&s;cience</HI> of God, to deny that is to deny his being. <HI>120.</HI> Sinners fancy to them&s;elves that God &s;eeth them not in all their wayes. <HI>129.</HI> That God is <HI>omni&s;cient,</HI> cleared. <HI>131.</HI> Queries about it an&s;wered. <HI>133</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Onenes</HI> of God both in his nature and mind. <HI>419</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Ophir</HI> the place of Gold; queried where it is. <HI>243</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Opportunity,</HI> a wicked man watcheth it to doe evill. <HI>573</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Oppre&s;&s;ion</HI> of the poore, the mo&s;t &s;infull act of <HI>oppre&s;&s;ion. 60. 501.</HI> The pro|motion of the wicked, proves the <HI>op|pre&s;&s;ion</HI> of the righteous. <HI>506.</HI> Poore mo&s;t &s;ubject to <HI>oppre&s;&s;ion. 506. Oppre&s;&s;ion</HI> falls often upon the in|nocent under pretence of &s;ome wick|ednes. <HI>523. Oppre&s;&s;ion</HI> is a crying &s;in, &amp; makes the <HI>oppre&s;&s;ed</HI> cry. <HI>541</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="P" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>P</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Pardon</HI> of &s;in, the infinite freenes of God in it, and the unlikenes of his thoughts to mans about it. <HI>127, 128. Pardon</HI> twofold. <HI>292</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Peace,</HI> G<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">d ready to be at peace with us, when we apply to him. <HI>215. Peac<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">|making</HI> is the worke of God. <HI>686 Peace</HI> &s;tands in a fivefold oppo&s;ition. <HI>687.</HI> Where God is mo&s;t eminently, there is mo&s;t peace. <HI>689</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Perfection</HI> of our wayes, what. <HI>20</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Per&s;on;</HI> The &s;tate of every <HI>per&s;on</HI> to be con&s;idered to whom we &s;peak. <HI>731</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Per&s;ecution</HI> and <HI>per&s;ecuters</HI> bounded by God. <HI>777</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Per&s;everance,</HI> the duty and honour of a godly man. <HI>393.</HI> Not to <HI>per&s;evere</HI> in a good way, the mark of evill men. <HI>562.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Per&s;wa&s;ion,</HI> more then a moral <HI>per|&s;wa&s;ion</HI> in conver&s;ion of a &s;inner to God. <HI>638.</HI> The power of <HI>per&s;wa&s;i|on. 433</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Phylacteries</HI> among the Jewes, what they were, and their u&s;e. <HI>228</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pillars</HI> of heaven, what. <HI>781</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Plato,</HI> one of his cheife le&s;&s;ons to his Schollars. <HI>118</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Plea&s;ing</HI> of men; how we may, how we mu&s;t not <HI>plea&s;e</HI> men. <HI>733</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Plea&s;ure,</HI> all the <HI>plea&s;ure</HI> which God taketh is in him&s;elfe, or in the full|filling of his owne good <HI>plea&s;ure</HI> in Chri&s;t. <HI>26</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pledge,</HI> taking a <HI>pledge</HI> when &s;infull, &s;hewed in two things. <HI>50. 498</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Poore,</HI> a <HI>poore man</HI> oppre&s;&s;ed or op|pre&s;&s;ing, how grievous. <HI>60.</HI> Want of compa&s;&s;ion to the <HI>poore,</HI> the marke of a wicked man. <HI>66.</HI> The <HI>poore</HI> have a right in what rich men have.
<PB REF="434"> <HI>68.</HI> Not to doe good to the <HI>poore</HI> is &s;infull, as well as to them injury. <HI>70.</HI> Hone&s;t <HI>poore</HI> le&s;&s;e regarded by wic|ked men, then their bea&s;ts. <HI>74. Poore</HI> mo&s;t oppre&s;&s;ed. <HI>84.</HI> Some will oppre&s;&s;e the <HI>poore</HI> to enrich them&s;elves. <HI>499</HI> The &s;infullnes of taking from the <HI>poore,</HI> &s;hewed in two things. <HI>501</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Power,</HI> when evill men are in <HI>power,</HI> all good men are in danger. <HI>643. Power</HI> &s;upreame proper to God. <HI>677.</HI> Three arguments of the <HI>power</HI> of God. <HI>759. Power;</HI> The more <HI>power</HI> we have to prevent evill, the greater is our &s;in if we doe not. <HI>77. Power</HI> of God twofold. <HI>338.</HI> The greatne&s;s of the <HI>power</HI> of God &s;hew|in foure things. <HI>339, 340.</HI> The <HI>power</HI> of God is no way terrible to a godly man. <HI>342. Power</HI> twofold. <HI>639.</HI> The rule by which wicked men act is their <HI>power. 640</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Prayer</HI> may have a twofold &s;top. <HI>217.</HI> We mu&s;t <HI>pray</HI> much for that whereof we have a &s;ure promi&s;e that God will doe it. <HI>263. Prayer</HI> due to God one|ly. <HI>264.</HI> We are never in a fit frame to <HI>pray,</HI> till we turne from &s;in. <HI>264.</HI> To heare <HI>prayer,</HI> what. <HI>265.</HI> God is the hearer of <HI>prayer. 265.</HI> It is a mercy including all mercy to be heard in <HI>prayer. 266. Prayer</HI> profitable. <HI>266. Prayer</HI> is a lifting up both in the act and effect. <HI>285. Prayer</HI> of the righteous &s;hall not prevaile in &s;ome ca&s;es. <HI>293. Prayer</HI> is &s;trong worke; a threefold &s;trength needfull in <HI>prayer. 350.</HI> God mo&s;t willing to heare the <HI>prayers</HI> and pleadings of the righteous. <HI>352.</HI> God is not chan|ged by our <HI>prayers. 433.</HI> God will not &s;ometimes be at all entreated by <HI>prayer. 434, 435.</HI> Ca&s;e an&s;wered how we can <HI>pray</HI> in faith, &s;eing God is not altered, from any thing he in|tended, by <HI>prayer. 346</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pre&s;ence</HI> of God mo&s;t de&s;ired by the god|ly. <HI>318.</HI> God can quickly make his <HI>pre&s;ence</HI> terrible and grievous to us. <HI>452</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pre&s;umption,</HI> a threfold <HI>pre&s;umpti|on</HI> of wicked men. <HI>165, 166.</HI> Other <HI>pre&s;umptions</HI> of evil men. <HI>588, 589</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pride</HI> &s;eene in the eye. <HI>654. Pride</HI> cau&s;eth contention. <HI>800.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Profit;</HI> man cannot <HI>profit</HI> God. <HI>10.</HI> Eight Conclu&s;ions made from that principle, that man cannot <HI>profit</HI> God. <HI>11, 12, 13</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>In what &s;ence a man may live and act to bis owne <HI>profit. 16</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Propriety</HI> in lands and goods given by God. <HI>487.</HI> Objections again&s;t it an|&s;wered. <HI>487, 488</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Pro&s;perity</HI> and honour a great tryall or temptation. <HI>379.</HI> Many have de|clined in goodnes by outward pro&s;pe|rity. <HI>399</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Proud</HI> men alwayes in danger of falling <HI>798. Proud</HI> men &s;hall be &s;mitten. <HI>802</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Puni&s;hment</HI> of offenders, three &s;peciall rea&s;ons of it. <HI>181, 182.</HI> Some who&s;e &s;ins are very great, are puni&s;hed very little in this life. <HI>546. Puni&s;hment</HI> of lo&s;&s;e a great mi&s;ery as wel as that of &s;ence. <HI>612.</HI> Eternal <HI>puni&s;hment</HI> why ju&s;t for &s;in co~mitted in time. <HI>617</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="Q" TYPE="part">
<PB REF="434">
<HEAD>Q</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Que&s;tions</HI> how put in Scripture. <HI>699</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="R" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>R</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Racha,</HI> what it meanes to call one &s;o. <HI>79</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Rebellion,</HI> what it is, or what they doe who <HI>rebel. 301, 302.</HI> How there may be <HI>rebellion</HI> again&s;t God in com|plaining under affliction. <HI>307. Re|bellion</HI> again&s;t light, the highe&s;t wic|kednes. <HI>557</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Redemption</HI> of &s;inners by Chri&s;t is Gods plea&s;ure. <HI>26</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Relations</HI> cannot change God. <HI>437</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Remembred,</HI> &s;ome are onely upon the ac|count of judgements upon them. <HI>626</HI> Not to be <HI>remembred,</HI> as it is a cur&s;e, taken two wayes. <HI>627.</HI> Not to be <HI>re|membred,</HI> in what &s;ence, it is the portion of the wicked. <HI>628</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Repentance</HI> reneweth our communion with God. <HI>207.</HI> Affliction be&s;peakes our <HI>repentance. 230.</HI> True <HI>repen|tance</HI> is a home-returning to God. <HI>232 Repentance</HI> followed with a ble&s;&s;ing and a building of us up. <HI>236.</HI> In true <HI>repentance</HI> &s;in is utterly ca&s;t off. <HI>237</HI> They who <HI>repent</HI> truly endeavour to put away &s;in, not onely from them|&s;elves, but from all that belong to them. <HI>239. Repentance</HI> properly ta|ken, what it is; how <HI>repentance</HI> may be &s;ayd to have been in God. <HI>426</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Rephaim</HI> what it &s;ignifyes. <HI>741, 742</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Reproofe,</HI> how dangerous to &s;in again&s;t <HI>reproofe. 38. Reproofe</HI> twofold. <HI>784</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Re&s;traint</HI> of others from &s;in two wayes. <HI>76, 77</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Returne</HI> to God, when we may be &s;ayd to doe &s;o. <HI>233</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Reward,</HI> the difference between a godly man and a carnal man, in looking to his reward. <HI>16. Reward</HI> twofold. <HI>190</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Riches,</HI> how we may lay up a good foun|dation for our &s;elves by them. <HI>18. Riches</HI> may lawfully be po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed, they are at Gods di&s;po&s;e. <HI>249</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Rich</HI> covetous men, in what &s;ence, they would be alone in the earth. <HI>75, 76</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Right-hand</HI> turning out of the wayes of God as dangerous as left-hand turn|ing. <HI>395</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Righteous;</HI> how the Lord hath and hath not plea&s;ure in us as righteous, &s;hew|ed in &s;ix propo&s;itions. <HI>21, 22. Righ|teous</HI> men often pre&s;erved in common calamityes. <HI>200</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Righteou&s;nes</HI> twofold. <HI>19</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Romans,</HI> their &s;everity again&s;t tho&s;e who removed Land-markes. <HI>489</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Rome</HI> whence &s;o called. <HI>654</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="S" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>S</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Safety</HI> is a great outward mercy. <HI>647</HI> Even the <HI>&s;afety</HI> of a wicked man is of the Lord. <HI>647.</HI> Outward <HI>&s;afety</HI> is the foundation of a wicked mans peace. <HI>647, 648</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Scornings,</HI> how the godly may be &s;ayd to <HI>&s;corne</HI> the wicked in their troubles. <HI>194, 195. Scorning</HI> very &s;infull. <HI>195</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Scripture</HI> parting it &s;elfe into foure heads. <HI>730</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sea,</HI> the mighty power of God in bound|ing
<PB REF="435"> it. <HI>774.</HI> Inferences from it. <HI>775 Sea,</HI> called proud. God can calme the <HI>Sea</HI> in its greate&s;t rage and pride. <HI>799.</HI> This a comfort in our &s;tormes at land. <HI>800.</HI> Two other inferences of comfort from it. <HI>801</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sea&s;ons,</HI> how doing of evill hath its <HI>&s;ea|&s;on</HI> as wel as doing of good. <HI>585.</HI> wicked men very carefull to hit tho&s;e <HI>&s;ea&s;ons. 586</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Secrets,</HI> &s;everal <HI>&s;ecrets</HI> of the Lord with them that feare him. <HI>479</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Serapis,</HI> the honour which the Egyptians did to that Idol. <HI>175</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Serpent,</HI> crooked <HI>Serpent</HI> who or what. <HI>809, 810</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Service</HI> of God counted an unprofitable thing by carnal men. <HI>164</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Shadow,</HI> what properly it is, and what it &s;ignifyeth in Scripture. <HI>595</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Silence</HI> twofold. <HI>214. Silence</HI> comely in women, e&s;pecially in widdows. <HI>636</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sin,</HI> no di&s;advantage to God. <HI>13.</HI> We &s;hould not thinke any <HI>&s;in</HI> little. <HI>36</HI> In what &s;ence no &s;in is little. <HI>36.</HI> It is our duty to take notice of the great|nes of our &s;in. <HI>37.</HI> How we may take the mea&s;ure of <HI>&s;in. 37, 38.</HI> Seven aggravations of <HI>&s;in. 38, 39.</HI> In what &s;ence <HI>&s;in</HI> may be &s;ayd to be infinite. <HI>40, 41.</HI> How our <HI>&s;ins</HI> may be &s;ayd to be innumerable. <HI>42.</HI> The le&s;&s;e we are provoked to <HI>&s;in,</HI> the greater is our <HI>&s;in</HI> if we fall into it. <HI>56. 89. Sin</HI> pu|ni&s;hed in all ages. <HI>139. Sin</HI> breeds an e&s;trangement from God. <HI>206.</HI> Two degrees of putting away <HI>&s;in. 238</HI> A <HI>&s;in</HI> is the greater by how much the matter about which it is committed is the le&s;&s;e. <HI>502.</HI> Some will <HI>&s;inne,</HI> though they get nothing by it. <HI>565.</HI> A wicked man <HI>&s;ins</HI> with re&s;olution. <HI>584. Sin</HI> befooles the <HI>&s;inner. 597.</HI> Speedynes of wicked men to <HI>&s;in. 604.</HI> Evill men would <HI>&s;in</HI> alwayes. <HI>616, 617. Sin</HI> hath degraded man. <HI>716 Sins</HI> of omi&s;&s;ion more frequent and numerous then <HI>&s;ins</HI> of comm&s;&s;ion. <HI>36</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sinners,</HI> &s;ome &s;in &s;o fa&s;t and much as if they only were <HI>&s;inners. 621</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sinning</HI> advi&s;edly, the property of the wicked. <HI>177.</HI> Some will &s;in for the meane&s;t advantage. <HI>500. Sinning</HI> is the worke of wicked men. <HI>516</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Smalle&s;t</HI> matters fall under the know|ledge and care of God. <HI>134, 135</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Soft heart,</HI> of five &s;orts. <HI>457</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sorrow</HI> for &s;in may be exce&s;&s;ive. <HI>96.</HI> There is an unavoydable &s;equele be|tween &s;in and <HI>&s;orrow. 99. Sorrows</HI> of life may be more bitter then death. <HI>462</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Soule,</HI> the <HI>&s;oules</HI> de&s;ireing or hating, what it &s;ignifyes in Scripture. <HI>418. Soule</HI> how and why it &s;hould be gar|ni&s;hed. <HI>808</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Speaking;</HI> that we may <HI>&s;peake</HI> to pro|fit, five things mu&s;t be con&s;idered. <HI>734</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Starres</HI> to be con&s;idered, e&s;pecially in foure things. <HI>116, 117.</HI> The con&s;i|deration of the <HI>Starres</HI> &s;hould make us humble and thankefull. <HI>119</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Steps</HI> taken two wayes in Scripture. <HI>389</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Strength</HI> of God, in what. <HI>215, 216.</HI> God puts <HI>&s;trength</HI> into an humble &s;oule; e&s;pecially for five things. <HI>345, 346</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="435">
<ITEM><HI>Spirit;</HI> many &s;peake the words of the Prophets, who &s;peake not in their <HI>Spirit. 735</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Spirit</HI> of God, taken two wayes in Scrip|ture. <HI>803</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Stedfa&s;tnes</HI> in good the honour of the godly. <HI>393</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Strength;</HI> men u&s;ually proud of any kind of <HI>&s;trength. 797.</HI> Our <HI>&s;trength</HI> lyes much in the &s;ence of our weakenes. <HI>798</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Sufferers,</HI> great <HI>&s;ufferers</HI> u&s;ually thought to be great &s;inners. <HI>46</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Suffering,</HI> few hit upon any other cau&s;e of <HI>&s;uffering</HI> but &s;in. <HI>41.</HI> Other cau&s;es of <HI>&s;uffering</HI> noted. <HI>47.</HI> In <HI>&s;uffering</HI> it is good to &s;u&s;pect our &s;ins, &amp; &s;earch after them. <HI>48</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Super&s;tition,</HI> the forwardnes of mans nature to &s;uch wor&s;hip. <HI>520</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="T" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>T</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Temptation</HI> prevayleth ea&s;ily over car|nal men. <HI>603.</HI> Comfort in <HI>tempta|tion,</HI> what. <HI>801</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Thoughts,</HI> evill <HI>thoughts</HI> of God the Character of a wicked man. <HI>123. Thoughts</HI> of God, how we acquaint our &s;elves with God by them. <HI>208</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Throane</HI> of God, what. <HI>327. 767.</HI> In what &s;ence God &s;preadeth a cloud up|on his <HI>throane. 770.</HI> God manife|&s;teth him&s;elfe in heaven as Prin|ces manife&s;t them&s;elves upon their <HI>Throanes. 771</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Thunder,</HI> a reproofe from God. <HI>785. Thunder</HI> of Gods power, what. <HI>822, 823</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Time,</HI> God can pull downe the &s;toute&s;t &s;inners in a little <HI>time,</HI> even without <HI>time. 144.</HI> God needs not take <HI>time</HI> to doe what he hath a mind to. <HI>145</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Times,</HI> God hideth <HI>times</HI> from men as he plea&s;eth. <HI>470.</HI> Why God hideth <HI>times</HI> or keepeth them in his power. <HI>471. Times</HI> are perfectly knowne to God. <HI>475</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Trea&s;ure,</HI> in what &s;ence the Lords peo|ple are his <HI>trea&s;ure. 8</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Troubled minds</HI> have much to &s;ay. <HI>332</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Truth,</HI> God honoured in his <HI>truth</HI> by the fall of the wicked. <HI>189. Truth</HI> mu&s;t be bought but not &s;ould. <HI>219. Truths</HI> of Scripture like light, &s;hewed in &s;everall things. <HI>552. Truth</HI> is full of Authority and power. <HI>553.</HI> Evill men utter enemyes to the di&s;|coveryes of holy <HI>truth. 557. Truth</HI> is not afrayd to be tryed. <HI>671. Truth</HI> ought to be &s;poken out, or all the <HI>truth</HI> mu&s;t be &s;poken. <HI>729. Truth</HI> hath a reviving power in it. <HI>737</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Tryall</HI> taken of man three wayes. <HI>379.</HI> A godly man is no loo&s;er by comming to his <HI>tryall. 383.</HI> The &s;incere are willing to be <HI>tryed. 386</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Twilight</HI> twofold. <HI>585</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Tyrant,</HI> who or what he is. <HI>50</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="V" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>V</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Unchangeablenes</HI> of God &s;et out in &s;ix particulars. <HI>420, 421.</HI> Objections again&s;t the <HI>unchangeablenes</HI> of God an&s;wered. <HI>424.</HI> As God is <HI>unchange|able</HI> in him&s;elf, &s;o nothing can <HI>change</HI> him. <HI>431</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="436">
<ITEM><HI>Unkindnes</HI> from men occa&s;ions the godly to have more intimacy with God. <HI>322</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Vow,</HI> what it is. <HI>267, 268. Vowes</HI> lawfully made ought to be kept. <HI>269.</HI> Foure cautions about <HI>Vowes. 269, 270.</HI> When God an&s;wers prayer, we mu&s;t be carefull to pay our <HI>Vowes. 271</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="W" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>W</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Wages,</HI> to detaine the labourers <HI>wages</HI> very &s;infull. <HI>536. Wages</HI> of the la|bourer detained three dayes. <HI>537</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Walking</HI> of God and of Satan, how to be under&s;tood. <HI>126.</HI> Our holy <HI>walking</HI> notes our acquaintance with God. <HI>210</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wall,</HI> A fal&s;e prophecy why called a <HI>wall</HI> built with untempered morter. <HI>149</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wanton</HI> love or wantonnes a&s;cends by five &s;teps. <HI>582</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Water,</HI> fire and water put for all man|ner of afflictions. <HI>95.</HI> Grounds of the Allu&s;ion why <HI>water</HI> &s;ignifyeth af|fliction. <HI>95, 96. Waters</HI> twofold. <HI>763</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Way</HI> of God, how taken in Scripture. <HI>391. Way</HI> of a Godly man right forward. <HI>403</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Way</HI> of God, what in Scripture. <HI>817</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Weighing</HI> of actions and per&s;ons, God doth it mo&s;t exactly. <HI>132</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wicked</HI> have impre&s;&s;es of the pre&s;ence of God upon their Spirits. <HI>157.</HI> Pre|&s;ence of God grievous to the wicked. <HI>158</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wicked</HI> men thinke they can doe well e|nough without God, their great folly &s;hewed in it. <HI>159, 160. Wicked</HI> have &s;light thoughts of God. <HI>163.</HI> The <HI>wicked</HI> doe even dare God to doe his wor&s;t. <HI>165.</HI> God gives <HI>wicked</HI> men no cau&s;e to be weary of him, &s;hewed divers wayes. <HI>167, 168.</HI> They doe not acknowledge God the fountaine of all the good they receive. <HI>171.</HI> Portion of the <HI>wicked</HI> lyes on this &s;ide heaven. <HI>174.</HI> A threefold honour ari&s;ing to God by the fall of the <HI>wicked. 189. Wicked</HI> men how made ridiculous. <HI>197. Wicked</HI> men doubly di&s;appoynted. <HI>198. Wicked</HI> men make &s;in their worke or their bu&s;ienes, &s;hewed foure wayes. <HI>516, 517, 518. Wicked</HI> men are not pre|&s;ently &s;topt in their evill wayes. <HI>544, 545</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wickednes</HI> and iniquity, how di&s;tin|gui&s;hed. <HI>36</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Widdow,</HI> what the Hebrew word for a <HI>widdow</HI> importeth concerning her. <HI>78</HI> Two cautions to the <HI>widdow</HI> and the fatherle&s;&s;e. <HI>87, 88. Widdow</HI> why expre&s;&s;ed in the Hebrew by a word that &s;ignifyeth both to binde and to be &s;ilent. <HI>636</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Will</HI> of man by nature goeth out with|out end to &s;in. <HI>43</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Will</HI> or mind of God to be &s;ubmitted to, and &s;hould plea&s;e us in all things. <HI>429 Will</HI> of God the onely bound of all his actions. <HI>438.</HI> How un&s;afe it is that it &s;hould be &s;o with men, though good men. <HI>439.</HI> Dangerous to have mans <HI>will</HI> the rule of what he doth. <HI>492</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Wi&s;edome</HI> and happines goe together. <HI>15</HI> What that <HI>wi&s;edome</HI> is which doth not profit man, &amp; what that is which doth. <HI>15, 16</HI></ITEM>
<PB REF="436">
<ITEM><HI>Workes</HI> of God, three things affirmed of them. <HI>431.</HI> Nothing can &s;top the <HI>workes</HI> of God, foure things in&s;tanced in that cannot. <HI>432, 433. Workes</HI> of God cannot be fully knowne. <HI>819, 820.</HI> The <HI>workes</HI> of God &s;hould lead us to God him&s;elfe. <HI>822</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Worme,</HI> man is &s;o in five re&s;pects. <HI>714.</HI> Foure inferences from it. <HI>715</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Worldly</HI> things, the be&s;t and greate&s;t of them are but little, and for a little time. <HI>657. Worldly</HI> &s;tate of <HI>world|ly</HI> men mo&s;t &s;ubject to changes. <HI>662</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM><HI>Word</HI> of God, in that God di&s;covers him&s;elfe to us. <HI>209.</HI> A Godly man keepeth clo&s;e to it. <HI>392.</HI> The <HI>word</HI> of God is the onely rule of life. <HI>405. Word</HI> of God taken in a double oppo|&s;ition. <HI>405.</HI> A godly man highly e&s;teemes the <HI>word. 411.</HI> Reverence to the <HI>word</HI> keepes the heart up in obedience to the <HI>word. 412.</HI> The <HI>word</HI> of God is to be e&s;teemed for his owne &s;ake. <HI>413. Word</HI> of God right|ly applyed is mighty. <HI>727.</HI> It re|vives the &s;oule, or gives a new &s;oule. <HI>736</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="Y" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Y</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Yoake</HI> of Chri&s;t why called ea&s;ie. <HI>346</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
<DIV2 N="Z" TYPE="part">
<HEAD>Z</HEAD>
<LIST>
<ITEM><HI>Zeale,</HI> &s;uper&s;titious zeale and labori|ou&s;nes of the I&s;raelites in wor&s;hipping the Calves in Dan and Bethel. <HI>519, 520</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
</DIV2>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="index">
<PB REF="437">
<PB REF="437">
<HEAD>A TABLE OF Tho&s;e Scriptures which are occa&s;ionally cleered, and briefly illu&s;trated in the fore-going EXPOSITIONS. The Fir&s;t Number directs to the Chapter, the Second to the Ver&s;e, the Third to the Page of the BOOKE.</HEAD>
<P><TABLE>
<ROW>
<CELL ROLE="label">Chap.</CELL>
<CELL ROLE="label">Ver&s;.</CELL>
<CELL ROLE="label">Page.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Gene&s;is.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>803.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>805.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>744.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>806.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>805.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>78.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>261.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>571.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>705.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>22, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>210, 113</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>92.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>131.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>424.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>569.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>112.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>519.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>736.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>143.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>20, 21.</CELL>
<CELL>112.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>74.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>295.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>262.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>271.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>42.53.</CELL>
<CELL>681.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>275.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>693.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>714.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>35.</CELL>
<CELL>2</CELL>
<CELL>239.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>35</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>683.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>41.</CELL>
<CELL>45.</CELL>
<CELL>475.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>47.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>410.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>48.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>745.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>49.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>603.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="438">
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Exodus.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>235.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>9, 10.</CELL>
<CELL>147.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>193.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>635.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>628.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>161. 111.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Leviticus.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>336.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>18.24.</CELL>
<CELL>449.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Numbers.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>193</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
<CELL>111.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>17, 18, 19.</CELL>
<CELL>66</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>242.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>608.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>183.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Deuteronomy.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>743.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>9, 10.</CELL>
<CELL>480.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>111.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>458.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>1, 2, 3, 4, 5. &amp;c.</CELL>
<CELL>568.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>59</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>14, 15.</CELL>
<CELL>538.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>48.</CELL>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>56.</CELL>
<CELL>253.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>66.</CELL>
<CELL>641.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>8</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>41.</CELL>
<CELL>91.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>437.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>587.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Judges.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>637.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>691.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>540.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>9.15.</CELL>
<CELL>595.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>79.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>Samuel.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>132.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>789.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>76.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>233.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>478.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>11.29.</CELL>
<CELL>424.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Samuel.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>260.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>182.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>193.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>782</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>495.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>Kings.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>124.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>28.30.</CELL>
<CELL>519.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>143.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>275.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>370.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24, 25, 28.</CELL>
<CELL>114.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>1.5.</CELL>
<CELL>425.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>494.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Kings.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>432.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>336.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Chronicles.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>243.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>36.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>223.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Nehemiah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>79.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>258.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Job.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>126.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>256.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>709. 118.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>35.</CELL>
<CELL>6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>39.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>514.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>P&s;almes.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>195.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>19. 411.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>353.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>116. 119.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="438">
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>656.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>785.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>163. 318.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>129</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>73.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>150.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>7</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>113</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>380.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>14</CELL>
<CELL>174 202.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>13, 14, 14.</CELL>
<CELL>786</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>288</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>817.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>411.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>316.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>195.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>460.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>324. 714.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>37</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>478.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>780.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>309.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>648.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>374.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>99. 325.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>34&punc;</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>694</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>36.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>481.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>256, 257.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>376.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>283.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>225. 283.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>39.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>214.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>40.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>227.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>40.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>42. 486.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
<CELL>1, 2.</CELL>
<CELL>318.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>98.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>44.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>44.</CELL>
<CELL>17&punc; 18.</CELL>
<CELL>398.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>45.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>327.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>46.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>687.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>48.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>365.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>49.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>622.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>49.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>513.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>50.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>50.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>705.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>145.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>623.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>56.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>132.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>186.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>65.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>776.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>68.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>186.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>68.</CELL>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>785.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>69.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>56.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>69.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>628.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>72.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>512.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>73.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>399.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>73.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>159.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>74.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>560.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>75.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>789.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>77.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>455.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>82.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>666.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>84.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>584.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>87.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>793.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>88.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>747, 748.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>88.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>738.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>89.</CELL>
<CELL>9, 10.</CELL>
<CELL>793.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>90.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>91.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>180.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>92.</CELL>
<CELL>12, 13, 14.</CELL>
<CELL>397.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>93.</CELL>
<CELL>3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>776.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>94.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>129. 377.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>97.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>185.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>97.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>610.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>99.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>584.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>102.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>420.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>103.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>450.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>103.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>238.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>763.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6, 7, 8.</CELL>
<CELL>795.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>775.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>745.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>30, 32.</CELL>
<CELL>440.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>104.</CELL>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>787.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>106.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>294.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>107.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
<CELL>630. 185.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>108.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>584.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>109.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>630.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>110.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>261.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>111.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>820.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>111.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>113.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6.</CELL>
<CELL>134.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>114.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>787, 788.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>115.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3.</CELL>
<CELL>111.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>116.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>316.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>116.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>190.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>119.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>119.</CELL>
<CELL>106.</CELL>
<CELL>271.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>119.</CELL>
<CELL>127.</CELL>
<CELL>412.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>124.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3, 4, 5.</CELL>
<CELL>777.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>125.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>396.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>136.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>67.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>139.</CELL>
<CELL>1.24.</CELL>
<CELL>386.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>139.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>182.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>139.</CELL>
<CELL>7, 8.</CELL>
<CELL>108.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>139.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>136.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>142.</CELL>
<CELL>4, 5.</CELL>
<CELL>322.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>144.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>123.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>147.</CELL>
<CELL>10, 11.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="439">
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Proverbes.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>753.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>196.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>576</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>742.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>68.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>494.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>20, 21.</CELL>
<CELL>407.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>226.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>25, 26, 27.</CELL>
<CELL>395.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>57.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>26, 27. &amp;c.</CELL>
<CELL>577.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>226.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>511.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>18, 19, 20.</CELL>
<CELL>126.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>818.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>30, 31.</CELL>
<CELL>255.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>34.</CELL>
<CELL>583</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>601.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>152.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>607.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>493.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>749. 747.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>328.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>68</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>219.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>491.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>186</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>20</CELL>
<CELL>747</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>379</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>60.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>644.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>506</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>29</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>38</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>8, 9.</CELL>
<CELL>410. 399</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>366.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>410</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Eccle&s;ia&s;tes.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>259.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>107.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>269.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>258.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>241.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>341.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>586.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>277.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>806.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>107.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Canticles.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>314</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>638.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>7, 8.</CELL>
<CELL>325.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>1, 2, 3.</CELL>
<CELL>320.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>I&s;ayah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>172.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>85</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>15, 16, 18.</CELL>
<CELL>353.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>654</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>6</CELL>
<CELL>59</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>190</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>494.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>629</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>75.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>106</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>94</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>741.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>148.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>279.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>315.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>14, 15.</CELL>
<CELL>173.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>800.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>666.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>365.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>66.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>768.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>816.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>4, 5.</CELL>
<CELL>215.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>725.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>437.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>91.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>154.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>153.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>784.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>587.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>750.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>374.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>223.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>220.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>72.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>476.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>65.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>196.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>41.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>714.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>41.</CELL>
<CELL>14, 15, 16</CELL>
<CELL>191.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>41.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>361.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>43.</CELL>
<CELL>13</CELL>
<CELL>341.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>44.</CELL>
<CELL>25, 26.</CELL>
<CELL>418. 280.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>45.</CELL>
<CELL>24</CELL>
<CELL>346.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>48</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>218.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>50.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>787.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>50.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>476.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>12, 13</CELL>
<CELL>597.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>16</CELL>
<CELL>595.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>20</CELL>
<CELL>213.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="439">
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>793.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>53.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>54.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>634.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>54.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>402.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>54.</CELL>
<CELL>16, 17.</CELL>
<CELL>816</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>8. 8. 127.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>57.</CELL>
<CELL>1, 2.</CELL>
<CELL>664.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>57.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>460 338.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>57.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>801.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>55.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>265.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>253. 19.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>59.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>256.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>59.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>148.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>60.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>95.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>60.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>51<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>62.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>63.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>105.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>65.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>25</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>66.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>108 <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">05</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>66.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>254</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Jeremiah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>784</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>514</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>72</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>232</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>43.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>291.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>22, 23.</CELL>
<CELL>44</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>86</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>419. 60.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>43</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>67</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>5</CELL>
<CELL>5 7.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>159.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>43.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>9</CELL>
<CELL>162.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>434.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>10.8</CELL>
<CELL>293.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>223.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>373.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>109.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>457.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>208.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>31.</CELL>
<CELL>35, 36.</CELL>
<CELL>778.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>36.</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>790.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>49.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>88.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>51.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>382&punc;</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Lamentations.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>246.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Ezekiel.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>244.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>493.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>129, 130.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="2 letters">.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>238.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>629.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>10.13</CELL>
<CELL>149</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>150</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>704.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>6</CELL>
<CELL>71</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>14</CELL>
<CELL>788 460</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>18</CELL>
<CELL>384</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>28</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>184</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>34.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>724.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Danie</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>6</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>34.</CELL>
<CELL>151.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>34, 35.</CELL>
<CELL>340.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>2</CELL>
<CELL>795.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>9.10.1</CELL>
<CELL>384.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</CELL>
<CELL>604.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Ho&s;ea.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>8, 9</CELL>
<CELL>249.172.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>560. 477.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>4</CELL>
<CELL>490.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</CELL>
<CELL>489.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>14.16.</CELL>
<CELL>233. 232.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL><GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">1.</CELL>
<CELL>660.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>601.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>199.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>81.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Joel.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>221.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>402.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Amos.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>500.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>499.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>59.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>493.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>434.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6</CELL>
<CELL>7.10.</CELL>
<CELL>321.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>665.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Jonah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>11<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>4.10.</CELL>
<CELL>425.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3</CELL>
<CELL>8</CELL>
<CELL>234.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="440">
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Michah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>1, 2.</CELL>
<CELL>518.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>654. 402.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>61.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>181.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>168.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>444.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Nahum.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>818. 342.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>592.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Habakkuk.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>340.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>12, 13.</CELL>
<CELL>651.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>173.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>483.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Zephaniah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>166.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>422.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Haggai.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>278.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Zechariah.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>423.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>486.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>784.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>382</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>658.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>91</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>6.8.10, 11.</CELL>
<CELL>183.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>232</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>650.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>800.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>73.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>385.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>197.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Malachi.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>610.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3.</CELL>
<CELL>385.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>423. 235.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>509.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Mathew.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>18<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>79.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>45.</CELL>
<CELL>695.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>49.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>157.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>24, 25.</CELL>
<CELL>154.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>149.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>799.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
<CELL>62</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>30.</CELL>
<CELL>346.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>18, 19.</CELL>
<CELL>723.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>43, 44.</CELL>
<CELL>808.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>280.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>228.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>80.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>47.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>782.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>24.</CELL>
<CELL>37.50.</CELL>
<CELL>92.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>1.28.</CELL>
<CELL>424.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>53.</CELL>
<CELL>691.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Marke.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>50.</CELL>
<CELL>688.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Luke.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>34.</CELL>
<CELL>699.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>162.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>37.</CELL>
<CELL>621.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>54.</CELL>
<CELL>735.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>668.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>36, 37.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>559.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>737.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>406.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>621.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>28.</CELL>
<CELL>261.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>349.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>John.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>558.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>20, 21.</CELL>
<CELL>596.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>325.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>25.</CELL>
<CELL>737.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>44.<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter"></CELL>
<CELL>638.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>66.</CELL>
<CELL>404.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>44.</CELL>
<CELL>672.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>2, 3.</CELL>
<CELL>47.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>39.</CELL>
<CELL>555.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="440">
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>453</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>106.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>684.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>314.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Acts.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>470.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>44.</CELL>
<CELL>487.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>737.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>487.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>380.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>25.27, 28.</CELL>
<CELL>157.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>324.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>503.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>23, 24.</CELL>
<CELL>294.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Romanes.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>158. 118.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>21.29.</CELL>
<CELL>128.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>550.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>375. 158.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>25, 26.</CELL>
<CELL>343.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>17, 18, 19.</CELL>
<CELL>761.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>557.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>348.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>356.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>629.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>146.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>341.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
<CELL>480.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>423.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>184.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>146.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>Corinthians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>26.</CELL>
<CELL>760.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>384.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>5, 6.</CELL>
<CELL>376.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>8.10.</CELL>
<CELL>721.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>13, 14, &amp;.</CELL>
<CELL>578.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>19, 20, 21, 22.</CELL>
<CELL>733.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>347.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>3, 4.</CELL>
<CELL>84.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>9, 10.</CELL>
<CELL>819.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>33.</CELL>
<CELL>688.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>32.</CELL>
<CELL>513.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
<CELL>562. 393.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Corinthians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>422.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>96.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>738.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>262.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>326.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>658.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>325.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>16, 17.</CELL>
<CELL>109.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>4.8.</CELL>
<CELL>615.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>798.345.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Galatians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>634.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Ephe&s;ians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>22.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>800.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>370.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>554.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>10, 11.</CELL>
<CELL>349.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Philippians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>102.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>345.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>79.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>12, 13.</CELL>
<CELL>404.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>347.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>The&s;&s;alonians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>444.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>15, 16.</CELL>
<CELL>471.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>573.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>312.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>The&s;&s;alonians.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>456. 327.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>138.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>6, 7.</CELL>
<CELL>145.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>598.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>Timothy.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>514.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>290.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>636.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>532.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>771.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Timothy.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>731.</CELL>
</ROW>
<PB REF="441">
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>19, 20.</CELL>
<CELL>153.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>8, 9.</CELL>
<CELL>777.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>348.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Hebrewes.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>559</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>656.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>13.</CELL>
<CELL>746.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>23.</CELL>
<CELL>393.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>760.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>11.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>92.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>394.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>19.</CELL>
<CELL>824.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>29.</CELL>
<CELL>202.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>James.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>10.</CELL>
<CELL>287.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>9, 10.</CELL>
<CELL>662.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>27.</CELL>
<CELL>87.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>603.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>58.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>16.</CELL>
<CELL>70.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>6.</CELL>
<CELL>288.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>4.</CELL>
<CELL>12, 13, 14.</CELL>
<CELL>276.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>Peter.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>8.</CELL>
<CELL>254.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>15.</CELL>
<CELL>390.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>21.</CELL>
<CELL>390.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>19, 20.</CELL>
<CELL>748.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">II <HI>Peter.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>14.</CELL>
<CELL>582.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3">I <HI>John.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>1.</CELL>
<CELL>5.</CELL>
<CELL>696.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>3, 4, 5, 6.</CELL>
<CELL>477.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>17.</CELL>
<CELL>66. 53.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>20, 21.</CELL>
<CELL>375.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL COLS="3"><HI>Revelation.</HI></CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>394.381.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>2.</CELL>
<CELL>20.</CELL>
<CELL>77.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>3.</CELL>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>789.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>9.</CELL>
<CELL>42.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>12.</CELL>
<CELL>15, 1<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">.</CELL>
<CELL>777.</CELL>
</ROW>
<ROW>
<CELL>18.</CELL>
<CELL>7.</CELL>
<CELL>152. 81.</CELL>
</ROW>
</TABLE></P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
<PB REF="441">
</DIV1>
</BACK>
</TEXT>
</EEBO>
</ETS>
