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<DATE>2011-05-09</DATE>
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<NAME>Olivia Bottum</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
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<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
<PB REF="1">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<P>THE Po&s;&s;ibility of Gods For|&s;aking a people, That have been vi&s;ibly near &amp; dear to him TOGETHER, <HI>With the Mi&s;ery of a People thus for&s;aken,</HI> Set forth in a SERMON, Preached at <HI>Weathersfield,</HI> Nov. 21. 1678. Being a Day of FAST and HU|MILIATION.</P>
<P>By Mr. <HI>Jo&s;eph Rowland&s;on</HI> Pa&s;tor of the Church of Chri&s;t there. Being al&s;o his la&s;t SERMON.</P>
<Q><BIBL><HI>2 Chron. 15.2.</HI></BIBL>
<P>The Lord is with you, while ye be with him, and if ye &s;eek him, he will be found of you: but if ye for&s;ake him, he will for&s;ake you.</P></Q>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ho&s;. 9.12.</HI></BIBL>
<P>Wo al&s;o to them, when I depart from them.</P></Q>
<P>BOSTON in <HI>NEW-ENGLAND</HI> Printed for <HI>John Ratcliffe, &amp; John Griffin.</HI> 1682.</P>
</DIV1>
<DIV1 TYPE="to the reader">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<PB REF="2" MS="y">
<HEAD>To the Courteous READER, (e&s;pecially the Inhabitants of the Town of <HI>Weathersfield,</HI> and <HI>Lanca&s;ter,</HI> in <HI>New-England.</HI></HEAD>
<P>Gods for&s;aking of &s;uch as he hath been near to, is a thing of &s;uch weight, and &s;olemnity, and hath &s;uch bitter effects, that it is a meet Subject, (e&s;pe|cially in a dark and mourning day) for Mini&s;ters to &s;peak to, and for People to hear of: that the one may warn of the danger, and the other avoid the judgement. As Gods pre&s;ence is the greate&s;t glory to a People on this &s;ide Heaven, &s;o his ab&s;ence is the greate&s;t mi&s;ery on this &s;ide hell; this therefore mu&s;t needs be a concerning point, to &s;uch as will concern them&s;elves in their concernments. The en&s;uing <HI>Sermon</HI> will appear a &s;olemn word, if duely con&s;ide|red: the &s;ubject matter is very &s;olemn and weighty, (Treating of Gods being with, or for&s;aking a peo|ple) the time when it was delivered was a &s;olemn time, (a day of <HI>FAST</HI> throughout the Colonies) the Reverend <HI>Author</HI> that Compo&s;ed, and Preached it; was one &s;olemn and &s;erious above many others, and that which adds one great circum&s;tance to its &s;olem|nity, is, in that it was the la&s;t word he &s;pake to the
<PB REF="3" MS="y">World, being but about two dayes before he left it. As it is &s;olemn, &s;o 'tis &s;ea&s;onable, and pertinent. It is a time wherein we have given God ju&s;t cau&s;e to for&s;ake us. a time wherein God is threatning to for|&s;ake us. A time wherein God hath in &s;ome mea|&s;ure for&s;aken us already, and what can be more &s;ea|&s;onable, then to &s;hew the evils that befall a for&s;aken People, that we may yet be awakened, and return, that the Lord do not for&s;ake us utterly.</P>
<P>As for the <HI>Reverend Author,</HI> there needs no|thing to be &s;aid in his commendation, he was known among&s;t the Churches in the Wilderne&s;s, and known to be a workman that needed not to be a&s;hamed. That his Name (which was &s;ometimes precious among&s;t tho&s;e that knew him) may not be forgot, and that being dead, he may yet &s;peak to a land that have in &s;ome mea&s;ure for&s;ook their God, and are in danger of being for&s;aken, is the ground work of the pub|li&s;hing this &s;mall part of his labours. It is com|mended e&s;pecially to the peru&s;al of the Inhabitants of <HI>Lanca&s;ter</HI> and <HI>Weathersfield:</HI> He was a Man well known to you, the one had his Life, and the other his death; and both his lo&s;s, you cannot ea&s;ily for|get his name, and 'tis de&s;ired that you may not forget the labour and travel, he hath had among&s;t you; the word which he Preached to you was acceptable whil&s;t he was living, and it is pre&s;umed it will be accepted with the like candor now he is dead. In|deed had it been intended, and fitted by him&s;elf for the Pre&s;s, you might have expected, and found it more
<PB REF="3">large, and poli&s;hed; but as it is, it is thought fit, not to be lo&s;t, and may be of great u&s;e, and benefit, to open to us the danger of for&s;aking God, to humble us for all our coolings, and declinings from God, to quicken us in our return to, and clo&s;e walking with God, and that it may attain this end, is the hearts de&s;ire, and prayer of him, who abundantly wi&s;hes thy welfare, and pro&s;perity in Chri&s;t Je&s;us.</P>
<CLOSER><SIGNED>B. VV.</SIGNED></CLOSER>
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<DIV1 TYPE="sermon">
<PB REF="4">
<PB N="1" REF="4">
<EPIGRAPH>
<Q><BIBL><HI>Ieremiah 23.33.</HI></BIBL>
<P>And when this People, or the Prophet, or a Prie&s;t, &s;hall ask thee, &s;aying, what is the burden of the Lord? thou &s;halt then &s;ay unto them, what bur|den? I will even for&s;ake you; &s;aith the Lord.</P></Q>
</EPIGRAPH>
<P>IN the Words, there lies before us, <HI>(Fir&s;t)</HI> A Que&s;tion, &s;uppo&s;ed, to be propounded, wherein there is two things: 1. The Que&s;tioni&s;ts, this People, or a Prophet, or a Prie&s;t. 2. The Que&s;tion it &s;elf, or the matter of it, <HI>What is the burden of the Lord? (Secondly,)</HI> There is an An&s;wer, and a &s;olemn An&s;wer too, which is put into his mouth by the Lord, and which he is to return as the Lords An&s;wer to the Que&s;tion? <HI>thou &s;halt then &s;ay unto them, what burden? I will even for&s;ake you, &s;aith the Lord.</HI></P>
<P>In which An&s;wer there is three things.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. An expre&s;&s;ion of Indignation, <HI>What burden?</HI></ITEM>
<PB N="2" REF="5">
<ITEM>2. An a&s;&s;ertion by way of An&s;wer to the que|&s;tion, <HI>I will for&s;ake you.</HI></ITEM>
<ITEM>3. A Seal of ratification, in the la&s;t words, <HI>Saith the Lord.</HI></ITEM>
</LIST>
<P>God having before dealt with the Pa&s;tors, that did de&s;troy, and &s;catter the flock, as in the be|ginning of the Chapter, <HI>Wo be to the Pa&s;tors that de&s;troy and &s;catter the &s;heep of my pa&s;ture,</HI> &amp; ver. 2 <HI>I will vi&s;it upon you the evil of your doings, &s;aith the Lord, and al&s;o with the fal&s;e Prophets, that pro|phe&s;ied lies in his Name,</HI> as ver. 9. <HI>My heart with|in me is broken becau&s;e of the Prophets,</HI> &amp; ver. 32. <HI>Behold I am again&s;t them, that prophe&s;ie fal&s;e dreams, &s;aith the Lord, and do tell them, and cau&s;e my people to err by their lies, and by their lightne&s;s:</HI> which &s;ort of Prophets went without their Com|mi&s;&s;ion, as <HI>ver.</HI> 21. <HI>I have not &s;ent the&s;e Prophets yet they ran.</HI> He proceeds from the head Ru|lers, to the people that were &s;educed by them: for by this means their hands were &s;trengthened in &s;in, &s;o as that they did not return from their wickedne&s;s, as <HI>ver</HI> 14. It was a u&s;ual thing for the Prophets of the Lord, to begin their Ser|mons (the matter whereof was minatory, where|in the Lord threatned them with ju&s;t judge|ments) with that Phra&s;e, <HI>the burden of the Lord,</HI> as will ea&s;ily appear if you con&s;ult, <HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 13.1. &amp; 15.1. &amp; 22.1. &amp; 30, 6. Now they do in the words of the Text, or are &s;uppo&s;ed in mockery to demand, what <HI>Burden</HI> he had from the Lord, for them.</P>
<P><PB N="3" REF="5">
For the opening of the words And: or moreover becau&s;e he here enters upon new matter: <HI>this People,</HI> or the prophane &s;ort of them, whom the fal&s;e Prophets had &s;ecuced, to which he joyns the Prophet, and the Prie&s;t, in hit they were alike prophane, as <HI>ver.</HI> 11. <HI>for both Prophet and Prie&s;t are prophane, yea in my hou&s;e,</HI> &s;aith the Lord: and when Prophets are prophane there is wont to be a pack of them, as <HI>Jer.</HI> 5.31. <HI>The Prophets prophe&s;ies fal&s;ly, and the Prie&s;ts bear rule by their means, and my people love to have it &s;o:</HI> &s;hall ask thee &s;aying, <HI>viz.</HI> in a deriding way, not out of a holy end, or de&s;ire, <HI>What is the burden of the Lora? or from the Lord?</HI> &s;o were the Prophe|&s;ies &s;tiled, that contained in them, <HI>Threatnings, Judgements, and Plagues,</HI> 2 King. 9.25. as if they had &s;aid, <HI>what ha&s;t thou further mi&s;chief in thy head to declare? further Woes and Threatnings to pronounce? ha&s;t thou nothing el&s;e to prophe&s;ie, but Mi&s;chief and Calamity? What is the burden now?</HI> Thou &s;halt then &s;ay unto them, the Lord know what they would &s;ay to him, and tells him what he &s;hould &s;ay, by way of reply, <HI>What burden?</HI> a retorting by way of holy indignation; ask ye indeed <HI>what burden?</HI> and that in a way of deri|&s;ion? are you of that &s;train, and &s;pirit? I will even for&s;ake you &s;aith the Lord: a burden hea|vy enough, and you are like to &s;eel it &s;o ere long, heavy enough to break your Backs, to break your Church, and your Common wealth, and to
<PB N="4" REF="6">&s;ink your haughty Spirits, when this Burden &s;hall come upon you, in its force and weight.</P>
<P>Doct. <HI>That the Lord may even for&s;ake a Peo|ple that have been near to him, and he hath been near to, though for the Lord thus to do, is as fearful and hideous a judgement as can be inflicted on any People.</HI></P>
<P>The Doctrine is double, it hath two parts:</P>
<P><HI>Fir&s;t,</HI> That the Lord may do thus.</P>
<P><HI>Secondly,</HI> When he doth, it is a very &s;ad and heavy burden. It may be pro&s;ecuted as two di|&s;tinct points.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1.<NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 1.</NOTE> God may for&s;ake a People that hath been near to him, and that he hath been near to. This may be &s;poken to in this order.</ITEM>
<ITEM>1. What is meant by Gods for&s;aking a People.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. How may it appear that God may for&s;ake, even &s;uch a People as the point &s;peaks of?</ITEM>
<ITEM>3. The Rea&s;ons.</ITEM>
<ITEM>4. The u&s;e.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P N="1">1.<MILESTONE N="I"> What doth Gods for&s;aking mean? what is intended thereby?</P>
<P><HI>Sol.</HI> It means Gods with drawing him&s;elf, as the Prophe: <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> phrai&s;es it, <HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 5.6. <HI>They &s;hall go with their Flocks and their Herds to &s;eek the Lord, but &s;hall not find him, he hath withdrawn him&s;elf from them.</HI> They &s;hall &s;eek him, and not find him, and there is a good rea&s;on, he hath
<PB N="5" REF="6" MS="y">withdrawn him&s;elf, he is gone, in re&s;pect of his gracious pre&s;ence. We mu&s;t here di&s;tingui&s;h betwixt Gods general pre&s;ence, and his precious pre&s;ence. In re&s;pect of his general pre&s;ence, he is not far from any one of us, <HI>for in him we live, and move, and have our being, Act.</HI> 17.27, 28. We have not only our beginning from, but our being in him. As the beam hath its being in the Sun. Of this general pre&s;ence of God, we read, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 139.7. There is no flying from it. <HI>Whither &s;hall I go from thy Spirit, or whither &s;hall I &s;lie from thy pre&s;ence?</HI> In this &s;en&s;e God is every where, as it is <HI>ver.</HI> 8, &amp; 9. <HI>If I a&s;cend up into Heaven thou art there: if I make my bed in Hell, behold thou art there.</HI> He fills Heaven and Earth, and there is no hiding from him, <HI>Jer.</HI> 23.24. <HI>Can any hide him&s;elf in &s;ecret places, that I &s;hall not &s;ee him,? &s;aith the Lord do not I fill Heaven and Earth? &s;aith the Lord.</HI> He hath Heaven for his Throne, and the Earth for his Foot&s;tool, as it is, <HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 66.1. This general pre&s;ence of God, if believingly apprehended, and &s;trongly be|lieved, might be of great u&s;e.</P>
<P>But it is not this general pre&s;ence that is meant: but his e&s;pecial pre&s;ence, his favourable and gra|cious pre&s;ence, the removing whereof, is that that is intended, by the for&s;aking that the Text and Point &s;peaks of. God is &s;aid to for&s;ake a People two waves.</P>
<LIST>
<ITEM>1. As to Affection.</ITEM>
<ITEM>2. As to Action.</ITEM>
</LIST>
<P N="1"><PB N="6" REF="7">
1. As to Affection, when he di&s;continues his love to them, when he takes away his love from a people, then he takes his leave of a people. <HI>My mind is not toward this people,</HI> Jer. 15.1. a ve|ry heavy Judgement, and &s;ad removal. Be in|&s;tructed O <HI>Jeru&s;alem, lea&s;t my Soul depart from thee.</HI></P>
<P N="2">2. As to Action, when God takes away the &s;igns of his pre&s;ence.</P>
<P N="1">1. When he takes away merciful and graci|ous providences, when he carries not towards them as he was wont to do: but vexes them with all manner of adver&s;ity, <HI>Deut.</HI> 31.17. <HI>I will for&s;ake them, and many evils and troubles &s;hall befal them:</HI> when he cea&s;es to protect them from e|vils, and enemies, as in times pa&s;t, and provides not for them, as he was wont to do. 2. When he takes away his Ordinances, and bereaves a peo|ple of the glorious things of his hou&s;e; or take away his &s;pirit from accompanying them, where|by the glory cea&s;es, and the ordinances are ren|dered in effectual for the &s;aving good of a peo|ple.</P>
<P N="2">2.<MILESTONE N="II"> How may it appear the God may for&s;ake finch a People?</P>
<P>It may appear by what God hath threatned. What God hath threatned, to &s;uch as the point &s;peaks of, may be inflicted on them: but God hath threatned &s;uch judgements to &s;uch a peo|ple. My anger &s;hall be kindled again&s;t them,
<PB N="7" REF="7">and I will for&s;ake them, as near as they are to me, and as dear as they have been to to me, <HI>Deut,</HI> 31.17. Many &s;uch threatnings are found in the Scri|pture again&s;t <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> who are &s;tiled a people near unto him.</P>
<P>In that &s;uch as have been near to God, and he near to them, have complained of their being for&s;aken by God. Thou ha&s;t for&s;aken us, is one of the bitter moans, on record, that the Church of God did often make unto him</P>
<P>What God hath inflicted on &s;uch, may be in|flicted on &s;uch again; what God hath done to &s;ome, he may do to others, in the &s;ame &s;tate, and relation: for he is unchangeable. Tho&s;e that were once the only peculiar people of God, near to God, and had God near to them, yet what is is their condition at this day? A for&s;aken condi|tion, is the condition, of the Off &s;pring of <HI>Abra|haem</HI> Gods Friend, a &s;eed whom he had cho&s;en, and hath been &s;o, for above &s;ixteen hundred years. God hath been angry with them, and for&s;aken them, as they were foretold long ago. How is it with the Churches of <HI>A&s;ia,</HI> that were once famous golden Candle&s;ticks? that had E|pi&s;tles written to them. Are they not in a for|&s;aken condition? not the face of a Church to be found among&s;t them.</P>
<P>In that they may do that, which may de&s;erve a for&s;aking, therefore they may do that which may actually procure it. They may do that
<PB N="8" REF="8" MS="y">which may de&s;erve a for&s;aking, they may through the corruption and unbelief of their hearts for|&s;ake God, and God may in ju&s;t judgement reta|liate, and thereupon for&s;ake them. This is &s;po|ken to in the forequoted place, <HI>Deut.</HI> 31.16, 17. <HI>They will for&s;ake me, and break my Covenant which I have made with them: then my anger &s;hall be kindled again&s;t them in that day, and I will for|fake them, and hide my face from them.</HI> So again, 2 Chron. 15.2. <HI>But if you for&s;ake him he will for|&s;ake you;</HI> the fir&s;t is &s;uppo&s;ed, <HI>if you for&s;ake him,</HI> the latter is impo&s;ed, <HI>he will for&s;ake you:</HI></P>
<P>But why doth the Lord for&s;ake &s;uch a People?<MILESTONE N="III"> The Rea&s;ons:</P>
<P N="1">1. To &s;hew that he hath no need of any, he hath for&s;aken many, and may for&s;ake many more, to &s;hew that he hath no need of any. God would have all the world to take notice, (that though all men have need of him, yet) he hath no need of any man.</P>
<P N="2">2. To te&s;tifie his Sanctity, and &s;everity again&s;t &s;in. He will not &s;pare them, that have been near him, if they will not &s;pare their &s;in for him. He is a holy God, and if they will have their &s;ins, and their lu&s;ts, and their wayes, and their lovers, he will vindicate his holine&s;s, by inflicting this judgement on them.</P>
<P N="3">3. To be a warning to all that enjoy his gra|cious pre&s;ence. That they &s;ee that they make much of it, and that they take heed that they
<PB N="9" REF="8" MS="y">do not &s;in again&s;t him, and for&s;ake him, and pro|voke him to for&s;ake them al&s;o.</P>
<P><HI>Caut.</HI> The point is to be under&s;tood of a peo|ple that are vi&s;ibly and externally near and dear to him, and the&s;e may be totally and finally for|&s;aken of God: and yet here it mu&s;t be noted, that God may exerci&s;e a deal of patience, and forbearance toward &s;uch as he is about to for&s;ake, he did &s;o with the old world, he did &s;o with the <HI>I&s;raelites</HI> of old, he did &s;o with the &s;even Chur|ches of <HI>A&s;ia:</HI> he is not wont &s;uddenly, and at once to for&s;ake a people, that have been near and dear to him; but he is wont to give them warn|ing, and in patience to bear a while with their frowardne&s;s, and wait to &s;ee if there be any re|turning to him, before he doth inflict this heavy and &s;harp judgement.</P>
<P><HI>&V;&s;e</HI> It &s;erves to admoni&s;h us,<MILESTONE N="IV"> not to bear our &s;elves too high, upon the account of priviledges. It is a great priviledge to have the Lord near us, and to be near unto him: and &s;ome lean upon this though they abide in their &s;in, <HI>Micah</HI> 3.10, 11. <HI>They build up Sion with blood, and Jeru&s;alem with iniquity, yet will they lean upon the Lord, and &s;ay, is not the Lord among&s;t us?</HI> But if our de|portment be not according to our priviledges, if we do not carry it thereafter, by becoming an humble, fruitful, and holy people; the Lord will bring forth this heavy burden again&s;t us, we &s;hall be rejected, and for&s;aken of the Lord, what|ever
<PB N="10" REF="9" MS="y">our external priviledges be.</P>
<P>But the &s;econd part of the Doctrine;<NOTE PLACE="marg">P. 2.</NOTE> or the &s;econd Doctrine may be now &s;poken to, <HI>viz.</HI></P>
<P><HI>That it is the heavie&s;t burden, or the &s;ore&s;t of Judgements for the Lord to for&s;ake a people.</HI></P>
<P>There may be two things &s;poken to in the ma|nagement of this truth. 1. Arguments to e|vidence it. 2. The U&s;es of it.</P>
<P N="1">1. If God hath threatned it as a very &s;ore judgement, then &s;ure it is &s;o. Now when God hath been angry with a people, he hath manife&s;t|ed the &s;ame by menacing them with his for&s;aking them: when he hath been de&s;igned to do them a deep di&s;p&s;ea&s;ure, upon the account of &s;ome high provocation he is wont to threaten them not by taking away this, or that outward comfort from them; but by taking away him&s;elf from them.</P>
<P>And that is a woe indeed, a woe with a witne&s;s, <HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 9.12. Yea, woe al&s;o to them, when I depart from them: this is the wofulle&s;t day that &s;uch a people are wont to meet with.</P>
<P N="2">2. Gods for&s;aking a People is a &s;ore judge|ment, in that it expo&s;es them to all judgements. Sin is a great evil in that it expo&s;es to all evil this is a great evil of puni&s;hment, in that it expo&s;es to all puni&s;hments. If God be gone, our guard is gone, and we are as a City, in the mid&s;t of E|nemies, who&s;e walls are broken down. Our &s;trength to make re&s;i&s;tance, that's Gone, for God
<PB N="11" REF="9" MS="y">is our &s;trength, as a carca&s;e without life, is a prey, to bea&s;ts of prey; &s;o are a people for&s;a|ken of their God, to all their devouring enemies, and to infernal, and cur&s;ed &s;pirits: they are ex|po&s;ed to mi&s;chief, and the malice of all their ma|lignant enemies. When the Lord had for&s;aken <HI>Jeru&s;alem,</HI> the <HI>Romans</HI> quickly made a prey of it; when they were de&s;titute of God, their habita|tion became de&s;olate. There is no Protection to a People, whom the Lord for&s;akes; but they are perplexed on every &s;ide.</P>
<P N="3">3. Becau&s;e the evils that are on &s;uch, whom God hath for&s;aken, they are only evils. The Prophet <HI>Ezekiel</HI> &s;ometime hath the expre&s;&s;ion, <HI>Ezek.</HI> 7.5. <HI>Thus &s;aith the Lord God, an evil, an only evil behold is come.</HI> This is &s;uch an evil, an only evil to a people. An evil whil&s;t God is pre&s;ent, may have much good in it, the Lord may &s;ancti|fie it for abundance of ble&s;&s;ing: there is hopes of this whil&s;t the Lord continues among&s;t them; but if he be gone, it is an only evil, and the evils that come upon them are &s;uch, they have no|thing but evil in them.</P>
<P N="4">4. Becau&s;e no creature can then afford any help; for what can creatures do when God is departed, he makes the creatures u&s;eful and help|ful, but without him they can do us no good, &s;tand us in no &s;tead: they may &s;ay to thee as the King of <HI>I&s;rael,</HI> &s;aid to the Woman, that cried <HI>Help O King,</HI> He an&s;wered, <HI>If the Lord done
<PB N="12" REF="10" MS="y">help, whence &s;hall I help thee?</HI> all creatures may &s;ay if God be departed, <HI>we cannot help:</HI> Nay the very Devil cannot help if God be gone: when God departed from <HI>Saul,</HI> he &s;ought help from the Devil, 1 <HI>Sam.</HI> 28.15. <HI>Wherefore</HI> (&s;aith the Devil) <HI>aske&s;t thou of me? &s;eeing the Lord is de|parted from thee.</HI></P>
<P N="5">5. It appears to be a &s;ore judgement, by the an|gui&s;h and di&s;tre&s;s, that &s;uch have been in, that have been &s;en&s;ible that God hath for&s;aken them. Sin hath flown in the face of &s;uch, and terified them: Oh the ble&s;&s;ed God is gone, and if he is gone, mercy is gone; and Oh for &s;uch and &s;uch &s;ins, that lie upon me! what &s;hall I do? what a moan have Saints them&s;elves made in &s;uch a ca&s;e? as <HI>David,</HI> P&s;al. 22.1, 2. <HI>My God, my God, Why ha&s;t thou for&s;aken me? Why art thou &s;o far from helping me? and from the words of my roaring? Oh my God, I cry in the day time, but thou heare&s;t not, and in the night &s;ea&s;on, and am not &s;ilent.</HI> Oh how <HI>Saul</HI> roared out his di&s;tre&s;s! and that on this account e&s;pecially, that God was departed from him, not &s;o much that the <HI>Phili&s;tines</HI> were upon him, had not God been gone, he could have dealt well enough with them; but here was the mi&s;ery, and the &s;ting of the mi&s;ery, <HI>God was de|parted from him.</HI></P>
<P N="6">6 It is a &s;ore puni&s;hment, in that it is a great part of the puni&s;hment of Hell. The e&s;&s;ential parts of that puni&s;hment, is pain of lo&s;s, and &s;en&s;e,
<PB N="13" REF="10" MS="y">and the &s;ormer &s;ome reckon the greater.</P>
<P><HI>&V;&s;e</HI> 1. How fooli&s;h are &s;inners that do even bid God depart from them? as we read, <HI>Job</HI> 21.14. <HI>Therefore they &s;ay unto God depart from us, for we de&s;ire not the knowledge of thy wayes.</HI> But do they know what they &s;ay? Oh &s;inners is this your wi&s;h? if it be granted it will prove your woe for ever. Happily Gods pre&s;ence is now your trouble; but I tell you his ab&s;ence would be your torment.</P>
<P N="2">2. Se here what an evil it is to for&s;ake God, is it a judgement of judgements to be for&s;aken of God? &s;urely then it is the &s;in of &s;ins to for|&s;ake him: the evil of puni&s;hment is in being left by God, and the evil of &s;in is in leaving God. What, for&s;ake God, who is our only good? God who made us, and po&s;&s;e&s;t us from our beginning, God that hath been the guid of our Youth, that hath been good to us, and fed us all our dayes? <HI>Jer.</HI> 2.19. <HI>Know therefore and &s;ee, that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou ha&s;t for&s;aken the Lord thy God.</HI> And there is an aggravation of it, <HI>ver.</HI> 17. <HI>Thou ha&s;t for&s;aken the Lord thy God, When he led thee by the way.</HI> As a guid to direct thee, as a &s;taffe to &s;upport thee, as a convoy to guard thee, as a Fathe to provide for thee, that thou ha&s;t wanted nothing: well may it be &s;aid, <HI>how evil and bitter a thing is it,</HI> that thou ha&s;t for&s;aken the Lord? He adds in the 31. <HI>ver&s;e. Oh Generation!</HI> Generation of what? of what you will; God
<PB N="14" REF="11" MS="y">leaves a &s;pace that you may write, what you plea&s;e, generation of Vipers, or Mon&s;ters, or any thing rather then Generation of Gods peo|ple. See ye the word of the Lord behold your face in that Gla&s;s. So your cau&s;le&s;s apo|&s;ta&s;ies, have I been a wilderne&s;s unto I&s;rael? Have you wanted any thing, Oh ye degenerating crooked, and wilful generation? God may &s;ay to &s;uch &s;inners, as <HI>Pharaoh</HI> to <HI>Hadad,</HI> when he would be gone, 1 <HI>King.</HI> 11.22. <HI>But what ha&s;t thou lacked with me, that thou &s;eeke&s;t to be gone?</HI> what ha&s;t thou lacked &s;inner, that thou &s;eeke&s;t to be gone from the Lord? The &s;inner mu&s;t an&s;wer with him, nothing howbeit let me go in any wi&s;e. He came to him in his di&s;tre&s;s, and when his turn was an&s;wered, away he packs. They for&s;ake becau&s;e they will for&s;ake.</P>
<P N="3">3. Wonder not that Gods Saints have been &s;o &s;olicitous with him, not to for&s;ake them. Thus <HI>David, P&s;al.</HI> 1198. <HI>Oh for&s;ake me not utterly.</HI> He might well be &s;olicitous in this matter, for he un|der&s;tood what it was to be for&s;aken of the Lord. They pre&s;s hard with the Lord whatever he doth he would not leave them, nor for&s;ake them. <HI>Jer.</HI> 14.9. <HI>Leave us not.</HI> And no wonder, there are &s;uch moans, when the Lord may have &s;eemed, to have for&s;aken them.</P>
<P N="4">4. If Gods for&s;aking be &s;o &s;ore a judgement, it &s;hould make us more cautelous, and wary lea&s;t we pull down this judgement on our heads. Men
<PB N="15" REF="11" MS="y">&s;hould be afraid of this heavie&s;t of judgements, more then the Child of whipping.</P>
<P N="5">5. Let Gods dear ones take heed of conclu|ding again&s;t them&s;elves, that they are under this judgement. They are readie&s;t to couclude a|gain&s;t them&s;elves, and yet really in the lea&s;t dan|ger. Thus we read, <HI>I&s;a.</HI> 49.14. <HI>But Zion &s;aid, the Lord hath for&s;aken me, and my Lord hath forgot|ten me.</HI> But why &s;aid <HI>Zion &s;o?</HI> it was from diffi|dence: as Saints do not for&s;ake God as others do, <HI>P&s;al</HI> 18.21. <HI>I have not wickedly departed from my God:</HI> &s;o God will not for&s;ake them as he for|&s;akes others not utterly for&s;ake them: His for|&s;aking of his is but temporary, and partial.</P>
<P>But here a que&s;tion may be moved what is the difference betwixt a &s;inner for&s;aken and a Saint for&s;aken? for the Lord doth not for&s;ake both a|like. 1. When God for&s;akes his own, yet they cry after him, he withdraws him&s;elf from them &s;ometimes, yet &s;o as that he draws their hearts after him as a mother may hide away from her Child, that it may &s;eek and cry the mor earne&s;tly after her. 2 They retain good thoughts of him in his withdrawment, or ab&s;ence. As the Spou&s;e in the Canticles, &s;he calls him her beloved &s;till. As the faithful wife: &s;he retains good thoughts of her husband, and keeps up her re|&s;pect, though he be gone from home but the wic|ked when the Lord for&s;akes them, harhour hard thoughts of him. Is this to &s;erve the Lord, and walk in his wayes? what good have <HI>I</HI> got by all <HI>I</HI> have done? &s;ee how he hath &s;erved me.</P>
<P N="3"><PB N="16" REF="12" MS="y">
3. They will &s;eek him, till he return again, when the Lord for&s;akes others, the will &s;ees after vinities to make up the want of Gods pre&s;ence. The Adu&s;tre&s;s in her Hu&s;bands ab&s;ence will &s;eek after other leavers. The true Saint will be &s;atis|fied in nothing el&s;e but the Lord till he return. Moreover there is a difference in Gods for&s;aking the &s;inner and the Saint, when he for&s;akes the wicked <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="1 span"> in darkne&s;s: but when he withdraws from his own he leaves &s;ome light, whereby they &s;ee which way he is gone, he leaves &s;ome glimmering light, by which they may fol|low after him, and find him.</P>
<P>And again, when he leaves his own, yet his bowels are owards them, <HI>Jer.</HI> 31.20 <HI>My bow|els are troubled for him, I will &s;urely have mercy upon him, &s;aith the Lord.</HI> He hath an eye to|wards them for much good, in his for&s;aking them.</P>
<P><HI>&V;&s;e.</HI> 2. Of <HI>Exhortation:</HI> 1. To thankful|ne&s;s to God, or that he hath not yet for&s;aken us. Whatever he hath &s;tript us off, he hath not yet &s;tript us off him&s;elf, he hath not as yet for&s;aken us. He might have done it, and have done us no wrong; but he hath not yet done it.</P>
<P N="2">2. To do our utmo&s;t that he may not for&s;ake us. And here there may be added Motives and Means.</P>
<P N="1">1. Con&s;ider Gods lothne&s;s to for&s;ake us. This is a thing that he is not de&s;irous of he doth not willingly afflict us with this fort of Affliction, or grieve us with this grievous &s;troak. God hath
<PB N="17" REF="12" MS="y">&s;hewed him&s;elf loth to depart from tho&s;e that have departed from him; but have warned them of his di&s;plea&s;ure, that they might &s;tay him. It goes near Gods heart to for&s;ake a People that have been near to him. Methinks I hear him &s;aying thus, <HI>How &s;hall I give thee up, Oh New-England!</HI> thence &s;peaking to warn us, of. our for&s;akings of him, and to be in&s;tructed, why? lea&s;t his Spirit depart from us, <HI>Jer.</HI> 6.8. <HI>Be thou in&s;tructed Oh Ieru&s;alem, lea&s;t my Soul depart from thee, lea&s;t I make thee de&s;olate, a land not inhabited.</HI> You may ea&s;ily &s;tay him, the matter is not &s;o far gone, but you might yet &s;tay him were we but as loth he &s;hould for&s;ake us, as he is to for&s;ake us, he would never leave us. His gradual mo|tions from a people argue his lothne&s;s, and un|willingne&s;s to leave them.</P>
<P N="2">2. Con&s;ider what the Lord is to us, or what relation he &s;tands in to us, while he is with us. He is our friend, we have found him to be &s;o, and a &s;pecial friend too: men in the World are not willing to forego a Friend, a good Friend: he is as faithful, skilful, powerful, and tender heart|ed a Friend as ever a people had, he &s;tuck by us when al&s;o we had been in a woe ca&s;e, <HI>P&s;al.</HI> 124.1. <HI>If it had not been the Lord, who was on our &s;ide may I&s;rael now &s;ay.</HI> And had not the Lord been on our &s;ide, may <HI>New-England</HI> now &s;ay. He is a Father, and a tender-hearted Father, <HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 63.16, <HI>Doubtle&s;s thou art our Father.</HI> Can children
<PB N="18" REF="13" MS="y">be willing their Father &s;hould leave them? he is a Husband, <HI>I&s;ai.</HI> 54.5. <HI>For thy Maker is thy Hu&s;|band,</HI> a loving, careful, tender husband too; can the Wi&s;e be willing to part with her Husband? if the Lord for&s;ake us, we are bereft of our friend, left friendle&s;s, he is all friends in one, none can be our friend, if he be not. If he leave us, we &s;hall be as Orphans, for he is related as a Father, and how &s;ad is the &s;tate of poor Orphans: and we &s;hall be in a &s;tate of Widow-hood, a very &s;oli|tary, and &s;orrowful &s;tate. He is our guide, and our pilot; what will become of the blind if their guid leave them? and what will become of the Ship if the Pilot de&s;ert it? thus the Lord is to his, and well may he &s;ay, as <HI>Mic.</HI> 6.3. <HI>Oh my Peo|ple what have I done? or wherein have I wearied thee, or given thee any cau&s;e to be weary of me.</HI></P>
<P N="3">3. Con&s;ider there are &s;hrewd &s;igns of Gods intent to leave us, unle&s;s &s;omewhat be done. If you enquire what? I An&s;wer:</P>
<P N="1">1. The &s;ins for which God hath for&s;aken o|thers are rife among&s;t us. The &s;ins for which God for&s;ook the Jews, are our &s;ins.</P>
<P N="1">1. <HI>Horrid Pride,</HI> Ho&s;. 5.5. <HI>The Pride of I&s;rael doth te&s;tifie to his face.</HI> Pride in Parts, and pride of Hearts, pride in Apparel, and Ve&s;tures, and in Ge&s;tures, and in Looks, how lofty are their eyes! <HI>New-England</HI> is taken notice of abroad, for as proud a People, of a profe&s;&s;ing people, as the World affords.
<PB N="19" REF="13" MS="y">When a People are humble the Lord will &s;ay with them. If our immunities, which are Gods mercies, puffe us up, God will empty us: he will bla&s;t that to us that we are proud of.</P>
<P N="2">2. <HI>Deep and high Ingratitude.</HI> Do you thus requite the Lord? <HI>Deut.</HI> 32.6. So the Prophet <HI>Ho&s;ea</HI> taxes them, <HI>Ho&s;.</HI> 2, 8. <HI>God gave her Corn, and Wine, and Oyl, &s;ilver and Gold, but &s;he con&s;u|med them on Baal.</HI> We have been ble&s;t but hath God had the glory of our ble&s;&s;ings.</P>
<P N="3">3. <HI>Oppre&s;&s;ion. Amos</HI> 8.4. <HI>Ye that &s;wallow up the needy.</HI> The&s;e Jews were like the Fi&s;hes, the greater did devour the le&s;s. Some are like wild Bea&s;ts, like Wolves that tear off the fleece, and eat the fle&s;h of the Flocks. There is more ju|&s;tice to be found in hell, then among&s;t &s;ome men on earth: for there is no innocent per&s;on op|pre&s;&s;ed there.</P>
<P N="4">4. <HI>Wearine&s;s of Gods Ordinances.</HI> Amos 8.5. <HI>When will the Sabbath be done?</HI> They that are weary of the &s;ervice of God, and the Ordinan|ces of God, they are weary of God. God in|deed hath fed us to the full, as to Ordinances: and we are glutted, and &s;urfeited, and have lo&s;t our e&s;teem.</P>
<P><PB N="20" REF="14" MS="y">
When mens Commodities bare but a little price in a place, they will remove the market! if Go|&s;pel Ordinances are but a cheap commodity, have lo&s;t their price, and men are weary of them: God will let out his Vineyard to another People. If our mercies become our burdens, God will ea&s;e us of them.</P>
<P N="5">5. Cou&s;enage in mens dealings, making the Ephah &s;mall, and the Sh&ecirc;kel great, &s;elling the re|fu&s;e of Wheat, <HI>Amos</HI> 8.5, 6. <HI>They pick out the be&s;t Grain for them&s;elves, and the refu&s;e is to &s;ell.</HI></P>
<P N="6">6. Idolatry, which is Spiritual Adultery, and is there nothing of this? chu&s;ing of new Gods.</P>
<P N="7">7. Incorrigiblene&s;s, or oppo&s;ition of a &s;pirit of reformation. When God calls to a People to return, by repentance, but they will go on &s;till in their &s;in: God calls to them by his judg|ments, and by his Rod; but they will not hear, as 'tis <HI>Ier.</HI> 5.3. <HI>Thou ha&s;t &s;tricken them, but they have not grieved; thou ha&s;t con&s;umed them, but they have refu&s;ed to receive Correction: they have made their faces harder than a Rock, they have re|fu&s;ed to return.</HI> When it is thus with a People, God will pluck up and be gone; &s;o <HI>Ier.</HI> 7.13, 14 <HI>Becau&s;e they would not hear, and would not an&s;wer the call of God, I will do to this hou&s;e, as I did to Shiloh,</HI> why? what did the Lord do to Shiloh? ver. 12. <HI>Go to Shilch, and &s;ee what I did to it, for the wickedne&s;s of my People I&s;rael.</HI> Go, and view it, and you will &s;ee what he did, he left tokens of
<PB N="21" REF="14" MS="y">his wrath upon them, and for&s;ook them.</P>
<P N="2">2. Another &s;ign of his intent to for&s;ake us, is, in that he is dealing, with us as he is wont to deal with them that he is about to for&s;ake. He takes away tho&s;e that are mo&s;tly with him. He will take away his <HI>Mo&s;es's</HI> tho&s;e that &s;tand in the Gap, and binds his hands with their Prayers, when he is de&s;igned to pour out wrath upon a People: he will remove be lights, when he is about to darken a land. W<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="UOM" EXTENT="2 letters">e men &s;end away their Plate and Jewels and choice things; it in|timates their intention of removal</P>
<P N="3">3. Another &s;ign is our Luke warmne&s;s, and Indifferency in Religion: a u&s;ual forerunner of its removal When a People care not for God, and the things of God, he hath le&s;t them in &s;ome mea&s;ure, already, and if that Spirit abide he will not tarry long with them.</P>
<P><HI>&V;&s;e</HI> 1 Of <HI>Direction.</HI> 1. Examine and hum|ble your &s;elves, for all your departures from God, your for&s;akings of him; humble your &s;elves for them, confe&s;&s;ing with bitterne&s;s your evil therein bemoaning your &s;elves before the Lord upon the account thereof. May the Lord hear his People, from <HI>Dan</HI> to <HI>Beer&s;heba</HI> bemoan|ing them&s;elves, <HI>Ephraim</HI> like, then the Lord will hear, and have mercy, and not leave us, for his Names &s;ake.</P>
<P N="2">2. Judge your &s;elves worthy to be for&s;aken, becau&s;e of your for&s;aking of him. If you judge
<PB N="22" REF="15" MS="y">your &s;elves worthy to be for&s;aken, God will not judge you worthy to be for&s;aken, 1 <HI>Cor.</HI> 11.31.</P>
<P N="3">3. Pray the Lord not to for&s;ake you, the Lord is &s;ometimes &s;taid with Prayers: Prayers have prevailed with his Maje&s;ty often, and may do again.</P>
<P N="4">4. For&s;ake your &s;ins, whereby you have for|&s;aken him. Nothing le&s;s then this will prevent this mi&s;chief, coming upon us. If there be any, either Son or Daughter that will not leave their fins for God, God will leave &s;uch.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
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<P><HI>ERRATA.</HI> In the Preface to Mrs. <HI>Rowland&s;ons</HI> Narrative Page 1. Line 3. for <HI>Thur&s;day</HI> read <HI>Tue&s;day.</HI></P>
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