Gods providence in the midst of confusion set out in a sermon preach'd at the Savoy, January the 30, 1681, being the anniversary of the martyrdom of King Charles I / by Anthony Horneck. Horneck, Anthony, 1641-1697. 1682 Approx. 99 KB of XML-encoded text transcribed from 28 1-bit group-IV TIFF page images. Text Creation Partnership, Ann Arbor, MI ; Oxford (UK) : 2005-12 (EEBO-TCP Phase 1). A44523 Wing H2832 ESTC R13705 11835988 ocm 11835988 49763 This keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the Early English Books Online Text Creation Partnership. This Phase I text is available for reuse, according to the terms of Creative Commons 0 1.0 Universal . The text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. Early English books online. (EEBO-TCP ; phase 1, no. A44523) Transcribed from: (Early English Books Online ; image set 49763) Images scanned from microfilm: (Early English books, 1641-1700 ; 497:26) Gods providence in the midst of confusion set out in a sermon preach'd at the Savoy, January the 30, 1681, being the anniversary of the martyrdom of King Charles I / by Anthony Horneck. Horneck, Anthony, 1641-1697. [2], 52 p. Printed by T.N. for Samuel Lowndes ..., London : 1682. Reproduction of original in Huntington Library. Created by converting TCP files to TEI P5 using tcp2tei.xsl, TEI @ Oxford. Re-processed by University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. Gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. 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Copies of the texts have been issued variously as SGML (TCP schema; ASCII text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable XML (TCP schema; characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless XML (TEI P5, characters represented either as UTF-8 Unicode or TEI g elements). Keying and markup guidelines are available at the Text Creation Partnership web site . eng Bible. -- O.T. -- Psalms XCIX, 1 -- Sermons. Providence and government of God -- Sermons. Sermons, English -- 17th century. 2005-03 TCP Assigned for keying and markup 2005-03 Aptara Keyed and coded from ProQuest page images 2005-04 Judith Siefring Sampled and proofread 2005-04 Judith Siefring Text and markup reviewed and edited 2005-10 pfs Batch review (QC) and XML conversion Gods Providence In the midst of CONFUSIONS . Set out in a SERMON Preach'd at the Savoy , January the 30. 1681. Being the Anniversary of the Martyrdom of King Charles I. By Anthony Horneck D. D. In the SAVOY , Printed by T. N. for Samuel Lowndes , and are to Sold at his Shop over against Exeter-Exchange in the Strand , 1682. PSAL. XCIX . Vers. I. The Lord reigneth , let the People tremble . WHether this Psalm was written by Moses , as the Jewish Rabbins think , or by some other Prophet , or why this Psalm with four and twenty more is destitute of a Title , when all the rest have suitable Inscriptions , is not material to enquire . The Psalm contains a rehearsal of Gods Wonderful Works in the Desert , when he went before his People in the Wilderness , when God wrought Miracles every hour , and the Cloudy Pillar by Day , and the other of Fire by Night , like a Guardian Angel protected the Mighty Host , and rendred them formidable to all Nations that heard of their Name , or had notice of their Approaches ; or , we may call it a Spur to fervent Devotion , and profound Veneration of the infinite Majesty of Heaven , who never leaves such Devotional Prostrations unrewarded ; and if sincere , crowns them usually with loving Kindnesses and tender Mercies : Instances whereof are given in Moses , Aaron , and Samuel , Men who by their Prayers bowed the Heavens , and made God come down , and as it were forced the Almighty into pity , and compassion by their Supplications . To excite our Attention , the Psalmist begins his Hymn with an expression great , and lofty , becoming the Supream Being , and worthy of an Infinite Majesty ; In a few words he gives us the best Description of Gods Providence , that reason can desire , and there could be nothing more magnificent , than to say of him , The Lord reigneth , let the People tremble . That which will oblige me to deviate , or vary a little from the received Translation , is the ambiguity of the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Original , which we render tremble . The word in other places of Scripture stands for being tumultuous , or in a rage , inconfusion , or in great disorder , and this signification seems to me to be most proper here , and to render the sense much clearer , and if you ask me , what that sense is , I shall deliver it in this Preposition . Propos. In the midst of the greatest tumults and disorders , the Divine Providence is awake ; In the midst of the most lamentable confusions , Gods management of things is orderly , and regular . This must necessarily be the Result of the Text , if we Construe the words according to the Interpretation I have given , and the words will naturally bear , viz. The Lord reigneth , let the People in a Commonwealth , or Kingdom be never in so great disorder , or confusion ; even then , when all things seem to be turned upside down , the Lord reigns by his Providence . Let Heathens and Epicureans fancy that God is asleep , when things go contrary to our Carnal Wishes , and fond Expectations , we that enjoy Gods Revelations are better taught ; And though the vast Ship of this inconstant World were sinking , we have reason to believe , that the great Pilot who sits at the Helm , is broad awake , and hath pregnant Reasons for the Dispensation . It 's a weak Argument , that God is careless , because we cannot pry into the Reasons of his Actions ; nor can the inference be less than Childish ; to conclude that the Almighty enjoys his ease , regardless of things below , because our selves are not Omniscient ; We could not be Creatures if we were so , and should lose our dependance upon the God above , if our Wisdom did equal his , or could know all the depths of his Actions . Yet so great is his goodness , that he hath not left himself without Witness , and as mysterious as his goings in the Sanctuary seem to be , he hath let his Servants know the Order of his Providence . So great an advantage are the Scriptures , that while Pagans , like Moles , grovel in the Earth , unable to apprehend what is done above ; We like Children of Light , can unfold Gods darker Proceedings , and inform the World of the equality of his Ways . When the ten Tribes revolted , and shook off their obedience to their Liege Lord Rehoboam , we may easily guess what disorders the Jewish Commonwealth then laboured under , and what confusions that juncture of Affairs produced . Judah fought against Israel , and Israel against Judah , and in both Parties without all peradventure were Discontented Men , who added Fewel to the Fire , and threw Brimstone into the Flame to make it soar the higher ; yet while the Republick lies in that Convulsion-fit , God dispatches a Prophet to the Tribe of Judah , Shemaiah by Name , with order to tell them , 1 Kings 12. 24. Thus saith the Lord , ye shall not go up , nor fight against your Brethren the Children of Israel , return every man to his own house , for this thing is from me ; i. e. Let no Man wonder at these Disorders , for I have a Hand in them , and my Providence doth manage them ; And to this purpose , Amos brings in God speaking , Am. 3. 6. Is there any evil , i. e. any evil of confusion in the City , and the Lord hath not done it ? This , even Jehoram , as wicked as he was , could not but be sensible of , and therefore when in the great Famine of Samaria People were ready to devour one another , and things were come to that extremity , that Women fell a dressing their own Children for their Dinner , the King desperate and melancholick , cries out , This evil is of the Lord , i. e. How dismal soever the state of things appears , the Almighty hath given order for it , and it 's he , whose Power and Wisdom manages this Calamity . But this Subject will require some elucidation , and therefore I shall consider here , 1. What those Disorders , and Confusions are , which seem to infer a carelesness of Providence . 2. Why God suffers , and permits such Confusions and Disorders . 3. How his Providence appears in them , and which way he manages these seeming Contradictions . 1. What these Disorders and Confusions are , which seem to infer a carelesness of Providence . 1. Oppression of the Innocent and Poor , such as we find among the Jews in the time of Amos and Jeremy , Am. 6. 12. c. 8. 6. Jer. 7. 6. And no doubt a dismal sight it is , to see the Rich invade the Poors little all without control , and Great Men crush those of an Inferiour Rank by their lawless Power ; to see Ahab take possession of Naboth's Vineyard ; and Ziba because in favour with the King , wrong the lame and harmless Mephibosheth ; to see the Widdow scorn'd , because she hath no Potent Friends ; and the Orphan trampled on , because his injurious Adversary can out-Bribe him ; to see a Jeremy thrown into a Dungeon , because he speaks the truth ; and a Daniel hurled into a Lyons Den , because he cannot conform to the looser Customes of the Persian Court ; to see an Aristides driven into Exile , because of his Justice , and an Alcibiades deposed from his Office , because the rash Lysander lost the Field . Oppression as it is enough to make even a Wise Man mad , according to Solomon , Eccles. 7. 7. so it is an Argument , that Justice hath forsaken the Tribunal ; and without Justice , Human Societies become Cages of Ravenous Birds , and the Band , which is to hold Mankind together , must necessarily be dissolved . It 's this maintains the health and vigour of the Body Politick , and this once taken away , must on the other side cast it into violent Distempers ; Distempers which render it not only weak , but deformed and odious , and must at last be the Death of it . It 's this whereby God intended Kingdoms , and Cities should be governed , and Men no sooner receive their being , but at the same time receive the Principles of this Vertue . Nature obliges them to it , as much as it doth to self preservation , and with their Mothers Milk they imbibe these Inclinations ; and on these Inclinations the wholesom Laws of all Nations are grounded ; and whatever Orders are contriv'd by Wise men for the well governing of Societies , do all go upon this supposition . Nay , God himself is concerned to see this Justice maintained in Commonwealths , and it is part of his Prerogative to preserve its Laws inviolable , so that it 's being lost in a Corporation , seems to reflect upon him ; and as it was he alone , that first taught Men to gather into Societies , so to let Oppression come among them , which is the Bane , that kills them , to a sensual Eye seems to be no small disparagement to his Providence . 2. Such another Disorder is , when a Covetous , Ambitious Prince is suffered to spoil and harrass the Countrey of his Neighbour Prince , who is at Peace with him , and not so much as dreams of any Hostile Approaches , an instance whereof we have in Benhaded , who without any other cause but that of Interest , and his own glory , fell upon Baashah King of Israel , being in League with him , and surprizing his Territories , plundered , and made himself Master of Ijon , and Dan , and Abelmaine , and all the Store-cities of Naphtali , 2 Chron. 16. 3 , 4. A strange way of War ! to fall upon his Confederate for no other reason , but because he is more Potent , and to deprive the other of his Right and Inheritance , because he is too weak and feeble to oppose him : To fancy because I have got a numerous Army , that therefore I may do what I list ; and because I can be more wicked than another , that therefore I may lawfully be so . To imagine because I am a King , that therefore I am exempt from all Laws , and because there is no Man above me , that therefore I may crush whomsoever I have a mind to , to flatter my self , because God hath advanced my Throne above other Potentates , that therefore the rest must be my Vassals , and because they cannot easily resist me , that therefore I may make them fall a Sacrifice to my Lust and Glory . Conceits monstrous and odious , even to Pagans and Infidels ! and which deserve not only the sharpest Satyrs , but Gods severest Vengeance : We look upon Joab as a Villain , because he killed Amasa Kissing , and David justly called him the worst of Men , because he Murthered Abner under pretence of Friendship , and shed the Blood of War in Peace . Thus Ninus takes what he can get , because his Neighbours are unarmed : and Sesostris of Aegypt discontented that he hath so little , makes even his Familiars a prey to his Ambition : Actions which in Private Men would be punished with the Hangmans Sword , and in Persons of a lower Condition , revenged with the most exquisite Racks and Tortures ; Yet it is not Power , can justifie a Sin , nor the greatness of a Man turn a Vice into Vertue . Robbery is a Crime in a Prince as much as in a Subject , and stealing other Mens Goods the greater injustice in a King , by how much he stands higher , than other Mortals . No Prince hath power to act against the Law of Nature , and what is intrinsically Evil , can never be made Good by the most specious pretences of Authority . Princes that are given to such injustice are Enemies of Mankind , and no marvel , if the Disorders they cause in the neighbouring Dominions are astonishing , for the Sin it self is prodigious . That which amazes the Spectator more , is , that such Unrighteousness very often prospers , and the Disorders it causes , tends to the Renown and splendour of the Perfidious Conquerer , for it makes him not only more adored by Parasites , and Flatterers at home , who call him , Great , Invincible , and a Demy-God , but formidable to Nations afar off , which like innocent Animals , at the approach of the Ravenous Hawk , quake as the Rumour spreads of his speedy , though treacherous Victory ; A Scene of Affairs , which Providence seems to suffer in , and while he , in whose Hands the Hearts of Princes are said to be , le ts loose the Reins , and suffers them to do what they list , Men guided by sense can suspect no less , than that the Lord doth not see , neither doth the God of Jacob regard it ; as those ; Psal. 94. 7. 3. Civil Wars ; when Men of the same Countrey and Nation breaking into Factions , imbrue their hands in one anothers Blood , and thrust their Swords into one anothers Bowels , as the Midianites , Jud. 7. 22. When Neighbour fights with Neighbour , and those of a Man 's own House prove his greatest Enemies ; when Members of the same Commonwealth first run into Discontents among themselves , and thence into open Hostility one against the other ; when different Parties first give one another reproachful Names , from reproachful Names come to Animosities , and feed their Envy and Malice so long till it break forth into a consuming Fire . There is hardly any Nation but some time or other hath felt the smart of these Intestine Divisions ; and if any have escaped the blow , it must be , because there was nothing in the Country worth contending for . How many Mens lives were lost at Rome in the Contentions betwixt Marius and Sylla , betwixt Catilines Party , and the Senate , betwixt Pompey and Caesar , every School-boy knows , that hath read the History . This was the fate of the hot Disputes at Thebes , betwixt Ismenias and Archias , at Jerusalem betwixt Jason and Menelaus , in Greece betwixt the Dorians and Jonians , at Athens betwixt Thucidides and Timon , in Italy betwixt the Guelphs and Gibellines , at Constantinople betwixt Hypatius and the Court Party , at Carthage betwixt Hannibal and Hanno , at Florence betwixt the People and the House of Medices , in France betwixt the Hedui and Sequani , and he that shall peruse our own Chronicles , take a view of the Quarrels betwixt the White and Red Rose , and all the Seditions , Rebellions , and Divisions under the several Kings of this Island , and add to all this what he remembers of the late Civil War , that set Ephraim against Manasseh , and Manasseh against Ephraim , and they both against Judah , cannot but behold a very sad Landskip of Horrour and Confusion . To see Men Drunk with their Prosperous Fortunes , and angry with their own Happiness ; To see them fall foul one upon another , and they that might live in ease and safety , like Mad Dogs bite and devour one another ; To see them enraged one against another upon a punctilio of State , and as if their Lives were nothing worth , throw them away because both Parties cannot be of the same Judgment ; To see them not only begin their Quarrels upon slight Occasions , but pursue them unto Death and Ruine , as it is an Argument of intolerable Pride and Self-conceitedness , so it 's like , the careless Spectator , that sees the Tremendous Effects of it , will wonder , what 's become of Providence in such Disorders . 4. Massacres : When the true Religion is persecuted , as a Pestilent Heresy , and mighty Endeavours are used to Extirpate its Renown and Glory : when Fire and Faggot become Arguments to confute it , and Swords and the Gallows are made use of as the only Syllogisms to batter its Fortifications : when it is not only contemned and derided , but the Professors of it severely handled , and those that dare be so bold as to own it , put to most cruel Torments : when the Floods of Ungodliness threaten to overwhelm it , and the Malice of Men rises to that height , that nothing will serve their turn , but its Ruine and Destruction . Such was the Massacre of the Jews under Antiochus , when to live up to the Law of Moses , was present Death , and to observe Gods Statutes the readiest way to be Tortured , when to believe in one God was to be broken on the Wheel ; and to abhor Idolatry involved the Votary in the danger of most barbarous Usage . Thus was the true Religion treated in the first ten Persecutions by the Heathen Emperours , when to have a Bible in the House , and to be thrown to the Lyons was all one , and not to offer Incense to the Heathen Gods , was cause enough to be torn in pieces by Bears and Tygers ; when Multitudes of Christians were driven like so many Sheep to the Slaughter , and the Hangmen were sooner tired with Executing , than the Professours of Christ's Doctrine with the variety of their Tortures . Thus the Church of Rome dealt with the Waldenses and Albigenses , from the Year of Our Lord 1334. to 1340. and upward , when those innocent Creatures for contradicting the Corruptions of that Church , were hurled into the Fire ; and not to be subject to the Pope in his unlawful Decrees , was counted as bad as Witchcraft ; when Flames were the Portion of Men , that would not believe a Purgatory , and a Dungeon the Reward of adhering close to the Oracles of the Holy Ghost . Such was the Massacre at Paris in the Year 1572. when in one Night many thousands were Murther'd for no other reason , but because they were Protestants : and vast numbers of Men and Women Murthered like Beasts , because they would make the Bible the only Rule of their Faith and Manners , when at Rome they triumphed at the Inhumane Fact , and like the Jews , thought they had done God Service by sacrificing the lives of his Servants to their Rage and Malice . This was the lot of the Protestants in Ireland in the Year 1641. when 200000 of them were destroy'd to make the Popish Clergy sport , and Men that professed themselves to be of the Catholick Church out-did Indians and Cannibals in their Cruelty ; when the more Protestants a Papist killed , the more he Merited , and might tell the Pearls of his Crown in Heaven , not by his Beads , but by the number of Christs Disciples , which as he thought , he had sent to Hell , and offered to the Devil . If God takes care of any thing , thinks the sensual Man , it must be of the true Religion , this we must conceive to be his Darling , and if he hath more tender Affections for one thing than another , this we must suppose is the chief Object of his sollicitude : This makes most for his Honour , and his Glory is advanced by nothing so much as by true , and genuine Worship ; This therefore he must be thought to mind and cherish most , and to look upon with the kindest Aspect : But to see this Jewel scorned , derided , affronted , and its lustre darkened by Clouds of Ignorance and Malice : To see this Pearl broken , shattered , and the dust of it dispersed into the various corners of the Earth : To see its Foes live great , and those that touch this Apple of his Eye , brave it in their pleasures : To see them erect their Throne on the Necks of Gods Servants , and securely trample on these supposed Favourites of Heaven ; what can we conclude , but that either this is not the true Religion , or that Providence is careless , and supine in its Protection ? 5. Such another Disorder is , Base and contemptible mens climbing up to the Thrones of Kings , and displacing the true Owners , and usurping their Authority ; When the vilest of Men are advanced to Royalty , and they that were but Subjects a little before , come to sit in their Lords Tribunal : vvhen Persons of the Dregs of the People get up to the highest Povver , and they that vvere but Scum before , come to svvim like Oyl on the top , and throvv dovvn Gods Anointed ; when a Jeroboam from Surveyor of the Kings Works , rises up to be King himself ; and a Zimri that dvvelt in a Cottage before , comes to possess himself of the Royal Palace . Such vvas the sudden advance of the Famous or rather Infamous Massinello , vvho from a Fisherman , in a day or tvvo comes to be a Prince , and from mending of Nets , in a Weeks time is advanced to be more than Vice-Roy of Naples , whose contemptible Condition is on a suddain changed into Adorations , and his Converse with the meanest of his fellow Subjects , turned into bows and cringes from the greatest of the People : he that before had scarce a Dog to attend him , in a few hours is followed by a Crowd , and receives the Courtships and Caresses of an incredible Multitude : he that knew little but Obedience a little before , now Commands Armies , and from a Slave , comes to give Law to the proudest of the Spaniards . They that before would scarce vouchsafe to look upon him , now are glad of his kinder Smiles : and his threats , that before were accounted little more than the noise of a Hound , are now dreaded more than the Almighties Thunder . Such was the prodigious rise of the late Usurper , whose Crimes , and wonderful Successes in his Bloody Attempts , have given occasion to the sad Solemnity , and the Sackcloth , and Ashes of this Day . A Man , ( if it be not a Crime to call him so , for he outwent Devils in Hypocrisy ) by whose contrivance the Royal Crown fell down , and with the Crown the Church , and with the Church the Nations happiness : a Man , whose Crimes must be detested while time is measured by the intervals of Day and Night , and who by his Actions hath fixed such a blot on Christianity , as perhaps the Tears of many Ages cannot wipe away : a Man , who in pursuance of his Dreams was restless , till he saw what the Evil Spirit had revealed , accomplished ; and first poisoned the Peoples Loyalty , and then made advantage of their Perfidiousness . Who made Religion a Stalking-horse to invade the Throne , and when he had possessed himself of it , was more lawless than the Person , whom he pretended to expel for being so ; Who forced his way to Greatness through a thousand lives , and knowing no means to arrive to it , but injustice in the highest degree , cut down all the Trees that stopt his Prospect ; who made the Bible subservient to his Sword , and held it in one Hand , that he might only do greater Execution with the other ; who under a pretence of Liberty , made the Nation a greater Slave to him than they are in Turky , and while he gave out , that he would set them free , bound them but the faster in their Shackles : who to reform the Church , pulled it down to the Ground , and while he made Purity the Watch-word , brought in darkness greater than the Aegyptian ; for he taught Men a new Religion , how they might be Devout and yet Rob and Steal , and commit Sacriledge without fear , or Remorse of Conscience : who in the worst sence became all things to all Men , to make them all his Prey , and complied with several Parties , to make them all his Devoted Vassals ; who could weep to deplore the Misfortunes of the Time , while he was the chief Instrument to bring them in ; and cry out against Monarchy , while nothing less was the Object of his Ambition ; who waved the Title of a King meerly because he saw it was not safe , and seemed Humble , thereby the better to compass his dangerous Designs and Purposes . Who to stop the Clamours of the People , did them right , thereby to wrong his Prince the better : and to make his Murther Legal , caused him to be condemned by a Law of his own making : who first promoted the Parliaments Independency of the King , and then made himself Independent of their Power : who first gulled the simpler Party into an opinion of his sanctity , and when he had done so , wallow'd securely in the shades of the greatest Villany : who made himself great , by daring to do that , which Heathens would have trembled at , and so his Glory might be set on the Pillars of Fame , was content to make Lucifer both his Instrument and General . Thus lived the proud Vsurper , but what is more , died in his Bed , lamented by the Crew that had served him in his Sins , disposed of three Kingdoms to his Son , who wanted besides Right , his Fathers Cunning , and Personal Qualifications ; yet he saw his Successor applauded , and fawned upon by Men that were then in Power , and had the satisfaction to behold a Man of his own Line in a probability to carry on his own Usurped Authority , which was all that a dying Tyrant could desire , and greater felicity a Man could not possibly aim at , that believed no other Life , or if he did , could not expect a share in its Happiness : yet with his Death his Hellish Laurels did not wither , for his Funeral was Royal , as if it had not been enough to have lived a King , except he died so too , and the pomp of his Interrment such , as attracted the Eyes of the most curious Spectators ; Nay , as after the Storm is past , there remains some agitation of the Waves , so the Agents of Foreign Princes , that had dreaded this Neptunes Trident , while alive , retained some awe of his Power after Death , which was the reason , that with their forced presence they graced his affected : Funeral : An Accident uncommon , and exceeding rare ; and if Asaph seeing the Prosperity of private wicked Men , his Feet had almost slipp'd , and he very near sunk into a slight Opinion , and low thoughts of Gods Providence , what would he have said , had he seen Impiety thus publickly honoured , not only in Life , but in Death , as if Heaven had applauded the Heroick Sin , and loved to bestow Rewards on Men , not only for their great Attempts in Vertue , but for daring to be more than ordinarily Profane and Impious ? But as great as these Disorders are , or seem to be , they are no blemish of Providence , nor doth that Golden Chain look the less lovely , because all the Links are not distinctly seen by Men , whose Eyes by staring upon Sensual Objects , as People that look much on Snow , have contracted a vicious dimness . And so much will appear from what we shall propose in the second General , viz. 2. Why God suffers such Disorders and Confusions to happen in Commonwealths or Kingdoms . 1. God doth it to punish a Nation or People for their Sin. When the Sins of a People are come to a fatal pitch , and the measure grown full , it 's time for God , by sending such Disorders to lash the generality into better Manners ; not that God doth instigate them to these Disorders , but it 's just with him to withdraw his restraining Grace , and not to hinder their wicked Inclinations : And when the Prop that upholds the House is Charity , and that Charity is abused , if the Prop be removed , and the House fall , it 's to make the Inhabitant sensible of his ingratitude . When Pride and Idleness ; and fulness of Bread , and its usual Concomitants , Wantonness and Luxury come once to Rage and Reign , God justly takes away the Partition that kept the Fire and Tinder asunder , and then no marvel , if being committed and let loose to fall one upon the other , they cause a Combustion which is not easily quenched . When the Body is grown Pletharick , and the Humours abound , the Wise Physician breaths a Vein , and though the ignorant Spectator thinks he is going to let out Life , yet it 's only to preserve the whole from perishing . God sometimes afflicts a good King for his wicked Peoples sake , so he permitted the Excellent Josiah to be Slain , because though himself was one of the best of Men , yet his Subjects were Hypocritical to a high degree ; and while they seemed to comply with the King in the true Worship of God , continued Idolaters in their Hearts : So God suffered the Martyr of the day to fall , because the Nation that lived under his Shadow , were grown extravagant in their Manners . And that you may not wonder , how God comes to punish the Innocent , and let the Guilty go free , I must answer , That the Innocent , though seemingly Afflicted , yet lose nothing by the Adversity , but only Anticipate Heaven , and exchange their Temporal for an Everlasting Bliss a few years sooner , while the Sinners , though seemingly prosperous , suffer signally in the loss of their great Representative ; for hereupon they must necessarily fall into confusion , and while they send sometime to the Vine , and sometime to the Fig-tree to Reign over them , and know not where to fix , they at last inconsiderately , yet by Gods wise Permission , fix upon the Bramble for their Prince , whence Fire comes forth , and either Disperses or Consumes the giddy Multitude . Sometimes God punishes the People , for their Irreligious Princes sake , as he sent a Famine on the Land in the days of David , 2 Sam. 21. 1. because King Saul had committed Perjury , and Slain the Gibeonites : And so he would not depart from his anger against the Jews , because of the Sins of Manasseh , 2 Kings 23. 26. where with he had provoked him to anger : For Kingdoms are Bodies Politick , whereof Princes are the Heads , and if either Head or Body be put to streights and inconveniencies , the design of Providence is fulfilled , which is resolved , when heinous Offences are committed in the whole , one principal part should smart for the boldness , that the other may take warning : and though that which suffers may not be so guilty as the other , yet as they sympathize together , so it s seldom seen but that they do contract something , or participate of one anothers Corruptions , and consequently , justly share in one anothers Sufferings : And where the Prince suffers for the People , though it 's confest , the Providence is more astonishing and surprizing , yet it is more Godlike and Majestick , and an imitation of the Death of Jesus , who consented to die for the People , that the whole Nation might not be undone . God never punishes a Nation as a Nation , but only in this present Life ; for indeed that relation extends no farther : when People in the next , come to be judged before the great Tribunal , they are not judged as a Nation , but as single Persons ; for every one shall give an account of himself to God ; and therefore if God Chastises a Nation as a Nation , it is only in this World , and if in such Chastisements , either the generality or some Principal Members suffer , it s enough to answer the design of the Divine Equity , which is to let the Nation see his displeasure against the cursed thing that is in the midst of them ; so that in this case , the Almighty uses a kind of Decimation , he being too pitiful , and too great a lover of Humane Societies to destroy every individual , especially in Ample Commonwealths , wherein are more than Sixscore thousand Persons , that cannot discern between their right hand and their left , Jon. 4. 11. But , 2. As in all these Disorders and Confusions , there are some , who though notoriously guilty , yet escape , and are not so much as singed by that devouring Fire , nay , prosper , and thrive best in such Combustions : so Providence lets them go free , to convince Men of Reason , that there is another World , where their insolence and unrighteousness shall be punished with a witness , Psal. 50. 21 , 22 , 23. God gives Men a taste of his Justice here , that they may not think in their hearts , there is no God ; and yet but a taste , that they may not imagine , that what he doth here , is all he intends to do . Some Judgments he is obliged to send down now , to let the World see , there is a God that judges in the Earth ; and yet he sends not all he means to send , to teach them , there are far more dreadful ones to come . Some careless and debauched Men he lashes here , to hint to us , that there is an All-seeing Eye ; and yet others he lets alone , to assure us , that there is a future and Everlasting Vengeance . There is not a greater Argument of another Life , than Gods being silent now , and not Executing Judgement against an Evil Work speedily ; especially , where the Crimes threaten Omnipotence , and Men attempt to mingle Heaven and Earth together , dare be Giants in Transgression , and make Gods Patience an encouragement to their Irreligion : for God , being a Righteous Governour , cannot but be just ; and since he awakes not to Vengeance here , he will certainly pay the Sinner home with interest hereafter . When Frederick the Emperor heard of a Nobleman in his Dominions , who had run through all the Fallacious Labyrinths of Sin , tasted of all its Luxuries , lived the life of a Beast , or of a Devil rather , had spared no Woman in his lust , and no Man in his anger , had been Drunk and Intemperate to a prodigy , yet had never had any Cross or Sickness , and at last Died softly and quietly without pain or trouble , with Age more than with Sickness , being then above Fourscore ; The Intelligent Prince smote upon his Breast , and said , Either there is no God , or after this comes a Life of Reward and Vengeance : concluding peremptorily , That this Man having escaped Gods Rods and Axes here , must necessarily be Tormented hereafter . So that Prosperous Villains are Gods Witnesses , that Men do not cease to be when they Die , and carry Marks about them of Gods future Vengeance . God in suffering them to thrive , confirmes what he hath said in his Word , and their Flourishing Condition here , is an item , that when this Life is ended , they shall be destroy'd forever ; which is a Truth so important , and which the World is so highly concerned to know , that it is in a manner necessary , Impiety should be prosperous here , that their strength should be firm , and there should be no Bands in their Death , that they should not be in trouble as other Men , nor plagued like other Men , that their Eyes should stand out with fatness , and that they should have more than their hearts can wish , since it is an infallible Argument , that God hath appointed a day , wherein he will render Tribulation and Anguish to every Soul that doth evil , to the Jew first , and also to the Gentile , Rom. 2. 9. 3. Such Disorders come to convince Men , that true Happiness is not to be had in this Valley of Tears , but must be sought in Heaven . To this end the greatest Glories in the VVorld are subject to decay , and Scepters and Diademes are suffered to tumble down , to shew , there is a greater felicity to be gotten elsewhere . To this end the greatest Calm is suffered to die into a Storm , and Halcyon days into threatning VVaves and Billows , to assure us the Prophet was in the right , when he cryed , Arise and depart , for here is not your rest , Mic. 2. 10. To this end Gilimer the Vandal was overcome , and led in Triumph through the Streets of Constantinople ; To this end , Andronicus from an Emperor is made a Slave , and infamously dragged through Common-shores and Kennels ; To this end the Great Vitellius hath Dirt thrown in his Face , and is haled to the Market-place to be Executed ; To this end the Mighty Croesus is like to fall a Sacrifice to Flames , and the Sturdy Bajazet is imprisoned in a Cage : King Boleslaus made a Skullion , and Dionysius forced to turn Schoolmaster ; To this end Valerianus is Flead by the Persian Souldiers , and Salted as if he had been Bacon ; To this end John the Twenty third , though a Pope , is at last constrained to eat his own Clothes , and to feed upon the Flesh of his own Arms , for hunger ; To this end Adonibezeck after the Conquest of Seventy Kings , hath the extremities of his Hands and Feet cut off , and all to teach Men , that these outward Gaudes are vanity of vanities , all is vanity . And indeed the aforesaid Gilimer was so sensible of this , that being after long , but fruitless Resistance necessitated to yield himself to the Enemy , sent to his Conqueror for three things , for Bread , for a Spunge , and for a Cittern : for Bread to support his fainting Body , for a Spunge to wipe away the Tears , he had shed for the loss of his Royal Grandeur , and for a Cittern , to rejoyce in his Experience that all is vanity . The fickleness of these outward Glories is an Argument of their emptiness , and in that like Glasses , they are so easily broke and crackt , Wise Men see , that they are but bubbles ; were they lasting , Men would fancy them to be Heaven , and their uninterruptedness would tempt poor Mortals to say of them , as the surpriz'd Disciple of Mount Tabor , It 's good for us to be here , let 's make Tabernacles . Indeed in the midst of their inconstancy , Men are apt to promise themselves substantial satisfaction : and while they see them slip through their Fingers , they are so unwise as to adore them ; What would they do , were they really what they seem to be , and had they beside their dazling Dress , Eternal duration to make them amiable ? God hath laid up other Felicities for Rational Creatures , and they lie out of the Common Road , that Men might take pains to get them . We must not think God bestow'd Immortal Souls upon us , that we might fix them on Sensual Objects , and when we find , that they are capable of securing such Riches and Pleasures as fade not away , we must suppose , that to do so , was the principal End of their Creation . God hath made these lower things changeable as the Moon , that like the Woman in the Revelation , chap. 12. vers . 1. we may set our Feet upon them , and aim at Delights which transport Souls , ravish Angels , and force Seraphim into Extasies . The deceitfulness of outward Glories appears no where so plain , as in publick Disorders and Confusions , and they are the best Glass to shew us , what unsatisfactory things they are ; For though in private Families disappointments and changes happen every day , yet they are too inconsiderable for a Multitude to take notice of them ; but Publick Disorders convince a Kingdom of the Imperfection of these External Comforts , and the more notorious they are , the more all sorts of Men are perfwaded into a belief of that Imperfection ; so that Confusions of this nature are Sermons preach'd to a whole Nation , and Speeches from Heaven , whereby God intends an Universal Reformation . 4. Sometimes it is to try the Good , and to brighten their Faith , and Hope , and Constancy , which like Gold , is best Polished and Refined by Fire . And this Reason God himself gives , Ps. 81. 7. It is in this case , as in matter of Heresies , which must be , That those which are approved , may be made manifest , 1 Cor. 11. 19. To adhere to a good Cause , when it sleeps under the soft Wings of Peace and order , may be Policy , but to espouse it when discouraged , is an argument of true Honesty and Ingenuity . He that can defend it , when it meets with Opposition , we may conclude , is guided more by its Equity , than his own Interest : and he that sticks to it , when Tempests threaten to overwhelm it , discovers , that it hath not only his bare Approbation , but his Heart and Affections too . To Salute Christ when all Jerusalem cries Hosannah , may be a piece of Civility ; but to speak for him when he is Crucified , is a sign of true Christian Simplicity . Till Persecution came , the Son of God had innumerable Flatterers ; but when that Fire began , the number soon dwindled away into a small Company of Followers . It happens so sometimes , that the good cannot be distinguished from the counterfeit Professors of Religion , and while all meet in the Publick Assemblies , the Wheat and Chaff seem to be one , but Troubles and Disorders like the Wise Shepherd make a distinction between the Sheep and the Goats , and discover the Integrity of the one , and the Deceit and Hypocrisie of the other . To follow David , when all Israel runs after Absalom , is a Mark of Loyalty , but with Achitophel to shrink , when Heaven seems to frown on the right side , is base Treachery . Troubles , like Aqua Fortis , make a separation betwixt Metals , and shew which is the Silver , and which the contemptible Mineral . Those that are good grow better by them : Those that seem only to be so , in the hour of Temptation fall away . That Sap certainly is strongest , which preserves the Leaves of a Tree green and verdant all the Winter , and nothing is so great a sign of strength and hardiness , as to be able to endure the rude assaults of Frost and Snow , and unseasonable Weather . It 's a Character of Infamy , the Evangelist imprints on the chief Rulers among the Jews , who indeed believed in Jesus , but for fear of the Pharisees , durst not confess him , Joh. 12. 42. True Goodness like Lillies thrives , though Thorns and Bryars do surround it , and Salamander like can live in Fire . The late Kings Piety shines the brighter , because he durst maintain it under Temptations to forsake it . The Troubles that came upon him , it 's confest added little to his outward Pomp , but rendred his Goodness more charming and amiable to the Prudent Spectator : It had never arrived to that Renown and Glory , if those Confusions had not been the Touchstone : and when like Lawrel it could stand those Thunders , it was evident that an Almighty Power did uphold it : Had he lived Prosperously all his days , his Vertue would have made him a Saint , but the constancy of it in the severest Tryals , gave him the Character of a Martyr : Had he professed and express'd Meekness , while his Subjects were submissive and respectful , the excellent Qualification might have challenged suitable Commendations ; but to practice it when his Servants became his Masters , and instead of Honouring , loaded him with Indignities and Reproaches , this deserves our wonder : To be true to the Church against his Temporal Interest , was that , which gave him the greatest Credit , and to forgoe a Crown rather than part with his Religion , an act which force the World into admiration . The greater Man he was , the greater was the Tryal , and for such a Tryal , perhaps , nothing was so fit as Royal Vertue . The Disorders he lived to see , made him more sensible of Gods assistance , than all his Sunshine did , and he had never tasted of that degree of sweetness in Gods favour , if Persecution and a Prison had not increased the relish . This gave him a clearer sight of Gods goodness , than the high Specula of his Palace , and his Solitariness afforded him such Contemplations , as he must never have hoped for in the Crouds of Courtiers . This made him look into Paradise , and see the Suffering Jesus on his Throne , and taught him , that a Man might be the Son of God in the very Garden of Gethsemane . This furnished him with Lessons , which the greatest Kings are Strangers to , and with Moses , directed him to behold him that was Invisible . This made his Faith with Abraham , believe even Contradictions , and raised his Confidence , that though he Died , he should live for ever . This made him stand amazed at his own Vertue , and while he saw he was able to do , what he thought had been impossible , admire the immense power and goodness of God , when grace was thus sufficient for him , and made his strength proportionable to his burden . This made him find by blessed experience , what the Saints of old felt in their Chains and Tortures , and assured him , that to rejoyce with joy unspeakable , and full of glory in the midst of Flames , was no Fable . This made him see , that the things Invisible are the most desirable Objects , and find with the great Apostle , that there is a great difference between being Persecuted and forsaken . 5. Such Disorders are sometimes permitted to discover the ill Principles of some Mens Religion , who are like to seduce others by their specious Pretences , that Men who are in good earnest resolved to be saved , may be aware of them , and not fall into the same condemnation , 2 Tim. 3. 1 , 5 , 9. Men who suppose that gain is godliness , when troublesome and Perillous times do come , and Disorders rise , serve themselves of these Tumults , and under a shew of Piety , grasp what they can , and betray their Carnal Ends , which in such times cannot be hid , when there are opportunities and temptations to call them out into Action ; for as in such Disorders commonly the Right Cause , or the Party that have most Justice on their side , are oppressed and come by the worst , so the other make advantage of their Misery , and their Blood and Tears give the other Growth and Stature . It 's possible , Beloved Hearers , you may remember times , when Men walked in Sheeps Cloathing , but within were Ravening Wolves , and while their Voice was exactly like Jacobs , their Hands continued rough as Esau's ; when Men cryed , The Temple of the Lord , and yet at the same time Murthered those that opposed their Insolencies , and talked of the good Cause , while they meant nothing else by it , but enriching their own Purses ; when Men pretended a thorough Reformation , and made their own Souls as black as Hell , and gave out that they fought for God , when it was only to maintain , what they had unjustly purchas'd ; when Men sighed and groaned to get the Prey into their Net , and laboured much for a Spiritual Kingdom , to make a surer settlement of their Temporal Possessions . When Men under a shew of seeking a World to come , did what they could to enjoy this present , and left no Stone unturned to Establish Religion , that thereby they might Establish themselves the better in their Unrighteous Acquists ; when Men to pull down Idolatry , as they called it , set up Robbery and Sacriledge in the room of it , and instead of doing things better than they had been , exchanged only one Sin for another ; when Men call'd that Zeal , which was in good earnest nothing else , but inordinate Passion , and termed that Charity , which was no more but Kindness to their Brethren in Iniquity ; when Men called others Dumb Dogs , that they might more securely Bark at them , and represented them as lazy Droans , that they might carry the Honey , those Bees had made , to their own Hives ; when Men undertook to resolve Cases of Conscience , while themselves had seared their own , and under a pretence of taking Scruples out of other Mens Breasts , felt none for the monstrous Injuries they had been guilty of to their Neighbours ; when Men gave out , they pittied the Divisions of the Church , while themselves were the Causes that began them , and talk'd of Works of Mercy , while they shew'd none to those they had turned out of their Livings ; when they trampled on the Pride of Prelates with a greater of their own , and ran like mad from Babylon to be consumed in the Fire of Sodom and Gomorrah . So I have seen some gaudy Flowers arrayed more gloriously than Solomon , but when dismantled , have been nothing but unsavoury and unprofitable Stalks ; so the deadly Night-shade looks fresh and green , as other Plants , but carries Poison in its Bowels ; so the Prince of Precious Stones , the Diamond , by its Rayes , promises so many Springs of Light , but its Powder kills without Remedy ; so Gold and Silver dazle the Eye , yet are no Steams more odious or loathsom , than those which rise from the Mines , they are digg'd out of ; so the Butterfly is striped with several Paints , yet is no more but a squallid Animal ; so the Glow-worm looks like a creeping Star , yet if you behold it by day light , it is a very homely Creature . These are the true Emblemes of some Mens Religion in the World , and their partial Obedience in times of Disorder and Confusion , tells the Considerate part of Mankind , that what they profess is Varnish not Substance , Glass not Natural Chrystal , Shadow not Reality ; for how can that be true Religion , where I give to God the things which are Gods , and deny to Caesar the things which are Caesars ? where I am conscientious to the Creator , and unjust and perfidious to the Creature ? where I offer Sacrifice , and envy my Brother in my heart ? where I express love to my Maker , and yet do not give all their due , Custom to whom Custom ; Tribute to whom Tribute , Fear to whom Fear , and Honour to whom Honour ; or in St. Peters Phrase , Fear God , and do not Honour the King ? And these Sophistications God commonly discovers in Confusions , intending them as Sea-marks , to give warning to the Ships that see them afar off , not to come near those Sands , lest they split their Vessel , and lose their Goods , which with great cost and labour they have purchased . But it 's time we proceed , and enquire , 3. How Gods Providence appears in these Disorders and Confusions . 1. God puts bounds and limits to the rage of Men , that cause and encourage those Disorders . The proud Senacharib , Es. 37. 24. talks big , he had already put Jerusalem into Consternation , and boasted of greater mischiefs he intended ; By the multitude of my Chariots , saith he , am I come up to the height of the Mountains , to the sides of Lebanon , and I will cut down the tall Cedars thereof , and the choice Fir-trees thereof , and I will enter into the height of his Border , and the Forest of his Carmel . But he that sits in Heaven laughs at him , and the great Jehovah derides the little talking Insect , assures the Prophet , that beyond such a Field he shall not step , and as he saith , he doth ; Because thy rage against me , and thy tumult is come up into mine ears , therefore will I put my hook in thy nose , and my bridle in thy lips , and I will turn thee back by the way which thou camest . When Maxentius had filled Rome with Murthers , and the People feared not only greater Injuries to their Persons , but a total Desolation , ( so great was the fury of the Monster ) the Almighty sets bounds to his brutish Courage , and sends the great Constantine to remove him , and with him the Yoak , he had laid on the trembling People . And thus hath God dealt with most Tyrants , who have thought to crush the World by their Power , when they have threatned Heaven it self , and gone on securely for a considerable time , insomuch that they have flattered themselves , that all was their own , an Invisible hand hath stopt their Progress , and allotted them their limits , Hitherto shalt thou come and no farther . And this hath been Gods method with the most Pestilent Hereticks , whose business it hath been to ruine the Church , and to render it , as the first Mass , a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or a thing without shape or Figure ; Not only Arrius himself was stopt from belching out Blasphemies against the Son of God , by being struck with a fatal Loosness before he could reach the Council , but his Heresie too , when the World was afraid of its Inundation : for after such a term of years , the true Religion flourished again maugre all the opposition , from Constantius , Valens , and the Goths and Vandals . 2. Sometimes God disappoints such Men in their highest hopes and expectations . Benhadad sends to King Ahab , to tell him , 1 Reg. 20. 3. Thy Silver and thy Gold is mine , thy Wives also and thy Children , even the goodliest are mine , and accordingly dispatches his Servants to take their choice of what they liked . Ahab gives the Messengers a resolute denial , at which the Syrian storms and swears , v. 10. The Gods do so unto me , and more also , if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls , for all the People that follow me ; Hereupon he marches with two and thirty Kings , his Vassals at his Heels , and hearing that some of the Israelites were come out against him , he scorns to fight with them , but like a God , at whose nod People must either live or die , bids his men take them alive : But behold how the Phantastick King is disappointed in his hopes , while he thought all Samaria would come out to him with Ropes and Halters about their Necks to acknowledge his Sovereign Power of Life and Death , he and his vast Armies , which filled the Land , are not only chased and beaten , but himself is taken Prisoner , and forced to come crouching and cringing to the King of Israel . Selimus the Turk in the year of our Lord 1569. sets out from Constantinople with 25000 Horse , and 3000 Janizaries , and joins an Army of the Precopian Tartars consisting of 80000 Horse more , besides a Navy at Sea of 150 Gallies Manned , and provided of suitable Ammunition to Invade the Kingdom of Astracan ; he had already swallowed the Empire in his hopes , distributed the various Provinces to his Basha's , and consulted how to govern the Kingdom , conquer'd already in Imagination . It 's true , the Inhabitants of Astracan were in great confusion , but the Mighty God , who sets up one , and pulls down another , comes in , dashes all the swelling hopes of the haughty Sultan , and beyond expectation , all that mighty Army pines and dwindles away in their march , some of them come as far as Azeph , and of that vast Multitude 2000 only return to Constantinople . Vitiges the Goth besieges Rome , makes use of all the Stratagems , that his wisest and cunningest Men can think of , and doubts not of success , but in despight of all these contrivances , he is forced to retire , and acknowledge a Providence . The Spaniards in the famous year 1588. set out their Invincible Armada against England , fright the Inhabitants of the Land with their Titles and Numbers , and promise themselves a perfect Victory , but on a suddain that vast Navy is scattered and torn , and only a few Ships return home to bring King Philip the News , that the rest were lost , insomuch that the Spaniards thought , that God was become a Lutheran . So unexpectedly doth God change the Scene of Affairs in such Disorders . The Amalekites plunder Ziklag , 1 Sam. 30. and then sit down and play , and praise their Gods for the Conquest , while David and his Men are almost distracted with fear and grief . On a suddain , the Clouds clear up , God directs them to the Camp , where the Enemy lay , secure of his Prey , The Foe is beaten , and David recovers all , v. 17 , 18 , 19. Theodosius provoked by Eugenius the Tyrant , Encamps against him ; The Enemies numbers and valour fright the Emperors Men , who look'd upon themselves , as lost ; But behold Theodosius prays , and on a suddain a mighty Wind arises , insomuch that the Enemy is forced to turn his back , and yield . So in Aurelius his Army , when those vast numbers of Men were ready to die for thirst , the Christian Legion calls upon God , and on a suddain the Heavens brake forth in Lightning and Rain , the Tumults among the Souldiers are stilled , and all drink , and are refreshed by Gods kindly Showers . 3. Sometimes God works a mighty deliverance from such Disorders by very inconsiderable means . What misery there was in Samaria in the time of that dire Famine , we read of , 2 Reg. 6. 25 , 28 , 29. any one may guess that hath felt the straights of Hunger ; that in one day there should be so great a change , that a Measure of Fine Flower should be sold for a Shekle , one of the Kings Servants thought to be a thing so impossible , that he ventured to say , if God should rain down Corn from Heaven , it could not be , yet it happened so as the Prophet had said , and the deliverance was effected by four inconsiderable Lepers , who despairing of life , fled to the Syrian Camp , and found such affluence and plenty , that all Samaria was immediately relieved and stored with Provision ; Thus was the Roman Capitol saved by Geese , and the Roman Army chased by Poisoned Birds from the Parthian Walls ; Thus the young Corvinus beat the Gauls with the help of a Raven ; And Immo Henry the Emperors General was delivered from the danger threatned him by Gisilbert of Lorrain , by Swarms of Bees let loose upon the Enemy , which Stung both Horse and Rider , and made them unfit for Action ; Thus Fridlevo the Dane's Army was saved by a Dog ; And Hannibal got a signal Victory over Eumenes by the help of Serpents . The more inconsiderable the means are whereby deliverances are effected , the more they proclaim the Divine Power and Providence ; and when Gideon conquers a numberless Host of the Midianites with three hundred Men , it 's a sign , the Lord of Hosts hath a hand in it . That Sampson smites a thousand Philistines with the Jaw-bone of an Ass , shews that God governed his Arm ; and when Jonathan and his Armour-bearer make the Philistines flee , it 's an Argument , that the Lord reigned in the midst of the frights and fears , which possessed the cowardly Israelites . If Men believe it not , it is because they do not consider the weakness of the Instruments upon such occasions , and the only thing that makes them Infidels , is , because they conclude not from the contemptibleness of the means , that there must be a higher Power , which gives them Strength and Vertue . 4. Sometimes God causes Divisions and Dissentions to arise among the Prevailing Party , that were the cause of such Disorders , that they may fall into great Disasters and Misfortunes . Abimelech , Judg. 9. sets upon his Brethren , threescore and ten Persons , Murthers them all , and fills the City of Shechem with Confusion ; Things go on merrily , and he fears no evil , but when he had Reigned , saith the Sacred Writer , v. 23. Three years over Israel , God sent an Evil Spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem , and the Men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech , which proved both his and their undoing , v. 40 , 54. As great as their Friendship was before , God doth but pull out a Pin , that held them together , and the whole Frame breaks in pieces , and while they see no Foreign Power to revenge their former wickedness , themselves are made the Instruments to do it . God in this case made use of the Law of Retaliation , and the Judgment that came upon them was suitable to their Sin. Ephraim's Righteousness , Hos. 6. 4. is as the Morning Cloud , and as the early Dew it passes away , Therefore themselves shall be as a Morning Cloud , and as the early Dew they shall pass away , Hos. 13. 3. so these Men had sown Divisions , and Dissentions among the People , at last their Sin becomes their Punishment , and that which before had been their delight and pleasure , proves in the end their Yoak and Burthen ; They divide themselves , and are lost . This was the case of the Arcadians , Troezenians , and Thessalonians of old , and hath been re-acted in our days ; for though such Jealousies and Dissentions seem to come by chance , yet there is nothing more certain , than that God thereby visits the Sins of those , that have been the causes of Publick Disorders and Confusions ; and when those , who have assisted them in their attempts , begin to suspect either their Fidelity or Honesty , and thereupon plot , how to remove the Mushrooms , they have raised , its Providence disposes their hearts to it ; not that he , who is of Purer Eyes than to behold Iniquity , prompts them to Sin , but justly sends blindness on their Minds , whereby their Eyes become dim to their Interest , and they tempted to undermine their own Foundations . 5. Sometimes God so orders it , that the Authors of such Confusions shall hearken to ill Counsel , whereby they may be ruined . Ahab by the Prophets Testimony , was a Person , that signally troubled Israel , 1 Kings 18. 18. But behold how Providence deals with him . A fancy takes him , that he must needs go up , and Retake Ramoth Gilead out of the hands of the Syrians ; yet before he adventures upon the Enterprize , he consults both with his Confederates and such Prophets as he had , whether the Expedition were safe or no. All but Micah advise him to it , and to this Advise he hearkens ; but see , how Providence laid the Scene . I saw the Lord , saith Micah , 1 Kings 22. 19 , 20 , 21 , 22. I saw the Lord sitting on his Throne , and all the Host of Heaven standing by him , on his right hand and on his left , and the Lord said , Who shall persuade Ahab , that he may go up , and fall at Ramoth Gilead ? and one said on this manner , and another said on that manner , and there came forth a Spirit , and stood before the Lord , and said , I will persuade him ; And the Lord said unto him , Wherewith ? And he said , I will go forth , and I will be a lying Spirit in the mouth of all his Prophets ; and he said , thou shalt persuade him , and prevail also , go forth and do so ; And so it came to pass , he was perswaded , went , and was Shot , and Died. And though at this day , we see no such Visions as Micah did , yet we may justly imagine , when we see the same events , that they are compassed and effected the same way , i. e. by Gods permitting some Evil Spirit to put ill Counsel into the Heads of those , with whom such Firebrands Advise , that acting according to those Counsels , they may come to that woful End , which their Crimes and Follies do deserve . Were our Eyes quick enough to behold the Transactions and Consultations in the Kingdom of Spirits above us ; could we pry into their Secrets , Order , Proceedings , and Management of this lower World , we should be able to resolve a thousand Phaenomena , and mysteries of Events , which now seem strange and uncouth to our darker understandings ; for on the Molehills of this World , where myriads of little Ants do run , those Spirits exercise their power , and that which we call Accidental , hath been , and is contrived by their deliberate Resolutions . Thus we may suppose they acted , when Rehoboam follow'd the Counsel of his Young Men , and rejected the grave Advice of his Elder Senators ; the very cause of his succeeding danger . Thus they blinded the Carians of old , who rebelling against Darius , set up for themselves , but by neglecting the excellent Counsel of Pixodorus , were Conquer'd by the Persians ; Thus they deceiv'd the tumultuous Athenians , who following the dangerous Advice of Aristagoras , drew the fury of Darius upon them , and laid the Foundation of their Ruine . Thus they couzen'd that unwary and Seditious People , in their Conflicts with the Lacedaemonians , while they obliged them to hearken to Cleophon , who encouraged them to a vigorous prosecution of the War , of which they repented , when it was too late ; for they lost not only all their power and greatness , but became subject to domineering Tyrants , and lost all their ease , and conveniencies too . Thus the Seditious Zedekiah was served by them : Advised by Jeremiah the Prophet to yield himself to the Chaldean Monarch , and expect his Mercy ; he desperately hearkens to the turbulent Counsels of Men as vicious as himself , to stand out against the Babylonian Army , which proved his overthrow , and the utter destruction of Jerusalem . But still those Evil Spirits , as they are Gods Executioners , so they all must attend his Command and Order , and they cannot thus impose on Sinners here on Earth , till the Almighty gives them a Warrant for to do so : And he may do it , as he is the Judge of Heaven and Earth , and it 's just he should do so , to lash the Insolencies of Men , that would confound Kingdoms or Societies . 6. Sometimes he sends upon Men , who are the Causes of such Disorders , a Worm to gnaw their Breasts , even a tormenting Conscience . Such a turbulent Spirit was Pashur the Son of Immer the Priest , in the time of Zedekiah , a Man who set both the King and Nobles against the Prophet Jeremiah , whereupon God threatens him , to make him a terrour to himself , which without all peradventure came to pass , when Nebuchadnezzar took the City , Jer. 20. 4. So that when no visible Judgment appears in such Men , there is an Enemy many times within them , which frights them worse than all External Violence . Cain , who was the first that brought Disorder into the World , behold , how after his Brothers Murther his Conscience haunts him ! Though there were no People in the World , but his nearest Relations , yet he fancies every place he goes to , full of Men and Enemies , and is afraid they 'l kill him . Tiberius , who scarce let a day pass without some Villany , and seemed to be born to the Confusion of the Roman State , cries out , when no Man pursues him , trembles , when no Enemy is near him , and feels terrours within , while without , all seems to be calm and quiet . Nero kills his Mother Agrippina , sets Rome on Fire , Persecutes the Christians , but what ails him ? In the midst of his Guards he is frighted , fancies he sees dreadful shapes before him , feels Arrows in his Breast , while his Flatterers fawn upon him . Constans the Grecian Emperour , dispatches his Brother Theodosius , soon after he cannot sleep ; What 's the reason , was it Sickness ? Was it a fit of the Gout , or Stone , or Collick that troubled him ? No , something within opens his Eyes , and shews him his Brothers Ghost , coming towards him with a Cup of Blood , and saying to him , Drink inhumane Brother ; It was his wicked Conscience . Theodorick King of the Goths uses Symmachus very barbarously , and falls Sick upon it ; Was it any disorder of the Blood ? Was it a Surfeit ? Was it a Fever that discomposed him ? No , he sees a Fish opened , and sees Symmachus his Head in it , and having seen it , cannot put the strange sight out of his mind ; his Conscience rolled and worked within , and drew the dismal Picture before his Eyes , and in such frightful colours , that in Torments of Mind he dies . Thus it happened to Rudolphus , that engaged in Hildebrands Faction against his Master Henry the 4th . Emperour ; his Conscience tore him within , and the remembrance , how he had sworn an Oath of Allegiance to his Prince , and perfidiously broke it , lay upon his Spirits , and Rackt him , and in that Rack his polluted Soul expires . Richard the Third , who for some years had put England into Combustion , the Night before Bosworth-Field , in his Sleep fees all the Devils in Hell about his ears , ready to tear his cursed Soul away . Those Devils were the reflections of his Conscience , foreboding the Flames that waited for him in the black Kingdom of Infernal Furies ; And if History and Fame doth not belie the late Usurper , for all his borrow'd Glories he slept but uneasie , ●nd as soft as his Pillows were , something harder than Lead or Iron lay upon his Heart , which made him start in his Sleep , and betray an unruly Guest within , upon other occasions . This way God lets even the wickedest of Mankind know , not only that there is a living Justice , but that they do but get little by all their desperate Enterprizes ; This way he makes them see , that there is no place so private , but he is present there , and that there is no design so intricate , but it 's naked and open before him ; This way they must come to know , that the darkness doth not hide from him , and that though no Creatures can reach them with their Eyes , they cannot abscond from the All-seeing one of the great Creator . 7. Such Disorders , God not only designs , but manages for his Peoples good ; for theirs is the promise , that all things shall work together for their advantage , Rom. 8. 28. So great a lover is God of Holy Men , that though I will not say with the Jews , that for their sakes he Created the World , yet certainly for their sakes he preserves it , as much as he would for their sakes have spared Sodom and Gomorrah , had any tolerable number of them been found in those corrupted places ; Nay , more than that , for their sakes he not only suffers Publick Disorders to arise , but when they arise , so directs and over-rules them , that they shall receive no small advantage by them . Do Men gather Grapes of Thorns , you will say , or Figs of Thistles ? Can a Fountain at the same place send forth both bitter and sweet Water ? Yes , here this seeming contradiction is true ; and as great as the mischiefs are , that issue from such Confusions , the good God's Servants reap by them , is as remarkable ; In Prosperity their Prayers are apt to slacken ; In such Disorders , their Aspirations become loud and vehement , and whereas before a cloud of dulness and laziness hung upon their Spirits , now it 's shaken off with scorn and indignation ; Ease and Plenty made their Piety lukewarm ; Disorders give them Fire , and Tumults make them look more carefully to their Souls . Their hatred of Sin before was sincere , may be , but such Confusions make them Zealous ; These make their Faith more lively , their Hope more vigorous , and their Love more fervent ; these whet their charity and confidence , and when the Storms are gone , make them not only rellish their deliverance better , but engage them to greater gratitude . But this is not all ; As Godliness hath the promise of this present Life , as well as that of a future , so the good that arises to Gods People from such Disorders , hath respect to their Temporal felicity too ; for this way a lasting Foundation many times is laid for their future Tranquility , and as Trees shaken with the Wind , take the deeper Root , so these Disorders make way for a firmer settlement of their outward Peace Plenty . By the troubles which happened to the Israelites in Aegypt , they are fitted for a quiet settlement in the Land of Canaan , the Land that flow'd with Milk and Honey ; and whereas their Captivity lasted but 400 , their possession of that promised Land continued at least 800 years . Thus the first Persecutions of the Christian Church under Heathen Emperors made way for their free enjoyment of the Comforts of this Life , after the Empire began to be Christian , and though it was now and then interrupted partly by the Arrians , and partly by Julian the Apostate , yet it settled again after a little while , upon its former Basis , and hath continued , at least in the West , unto this day ; And what we say of the Universal , is true also of particular Churches , whose Tranquillity by such Disorders comes to be more durable , as were an easie matter to instance in the Reformed European Churches , when they had for some time struggled under the Seditions and Tumults raised by the Roman Church ; and though I do not take all those , who are Members of a particular Reformed and visible Church to be Gods true Servants , yet even they who are sincere , share in the Tranquility , Peace and Plenty , and Temporal Prosperity of the Church they are of , and consequently the Disorders which are suffered to arise , may reasonably be said to promote the durableness , even of their particular Prosperity . Having thus asserted the Order , Regularity , and watchfulness of Gods Providence in the midst of Disorders and Confusions , it will not be proper to dismiss this Subject without some practical inferences ; 1. The Lord reigneth ; Let all Sinners tremble ; Be afraid ye workers of Iniquity , there is a King above , who as patient as he is , will make you know erelong he hath a Trumpet of War , as well as a Scepter of Love. Good God! How little do Men regard thy Power and Revenging Arm ! If they can but save themselves from the wrath of Men , and the lashes of the Law , how little are they concern'd at thy Indignation ! Thou hast Magazines of Vengeance , Store-houses of Curses , and canst undo a thousand ways ; Thou hast Waters to drown , Fire and Brimston to consume , Arrows to wound , Pestilence and Famine move by thy direction , nay , thou canst destroy both Soul and Body into Hell ; Thou hast threatned desolation , and howling and gnashing of Teeth , outward darkness , and what is more , Fire , that is not quench'd , to Men that chuse rather to gratifie their sinful humours , than obey thy Laws ; Yet they look not pale upon it , their colour changes not , they find no alteration in their dispositions , thy terrours fright them not , thy anger moves them not ; how securely do they laugh and quaff , and sing fear and care away ! How Merry notwithstanding all this , is the Drunkard over his Cups ! How unconcerned doth the Fornicator and Adulterer lie in the Embraces of his Harlot ! How chearfully doth the Covetous hug his Bags ; and how boldly doth the Swearer send up his fearful Oaths to Heaven ! How undisturbed doth the Oppressour , Extortioner , and Murtherer sleep ! and all because they think thou art Patient and Merciful : Thy Mercy makes them wanton , and thy Patience causes Sin to live in their Souls ; Thy Goodness tempts them to be foolish , and thy Compassion prompts them to affront thy Glory ; Thy Kindness proves their Bane , and the Meat thou givest them , encreases their Corruption ; Thy Oyl they turn into Poison , and thy Corn and Wine feeds them into contempt of thy Majesty ; The ease thou givest them , they make use of to fight against thy Laws , and the plenty , they enjoy by thy Providence , gives them courage to make War with that Heaven , from whence that plenty flows . Monstrous Abuse ! Strange Stupidity ! When ever Gods Indignation breaks forth , how violent will the Torrent be ? Deluded Men ! what pains do you take to treasure up Wrath unto your selves ! Were there but the least spark of ingenuity in you , how durst you make Infinite goodness the Object of your scorn ! How could you find in your hearts , to declare your selves Rebels and Enemies to your greatest Benefactor ! Shall Goodness harden you , or Patience make your Breasts impenetrable ! Shall Bowels of Mercy make you hard as Rocks , and Compassion be the Opiate to lull you asleep in your follies ! If your Children served you so , what plagues would you think too big for them ! Or , if your Servants should recompence your kindnesses thus , would not you hate the very sight of their Persons ! And must God put up affronts which you will not ! Must he be contented under scorns and abuses , which you will not bear ! Can such ingratitude be pleasing to him , which is so odious to you ! What conceptions do you entertain of God , that you deal with him thus ! If you believe him to be jealous of his Glory , Will not be vindicate these Injuries ? See how loath he is to punish you , and will you force him to it ! See how slowly he proceeds to Vengeance , and will you hasten him ! See how he waits for your Repentance , and will you make him despair of it ! He is Patient , because he would have you prevent the blow , and will you pull it down on your heads ! He delays his anger , because he would have you kiss the Son , and will you still fight against him , that you may perish in good earnest ! By your trespassing upon his Patience , you aggravate your guilt , and must necessarily aggravate your Condemnation too ; you make Mercy a Witness against you , and Gods goodness your Accuser , and are these Arguments to be Answered ! I mean , the Arguments , that the Mercy and Patience of God will alledge against you in the last day ; If you allow God but the ordinary Wisdom of a great Man , you must needs think , that his Mercies abused thus , will prove your Ruine . Doth not every Wise Man , if he have entrusted his Steward with an Estate , demand of him , how he hath employ'd it , and will not you allow God so much Wisdom , as to be concern'd about the Talents , he hath entrusted you withall ? His Mercy and Patience are those Talents , he gave you to improve into seriousness , and hatred of Sin , and resistance of Temptations , will you bury them under ground , or lay them up in a Napkin , or what is more , misuse them to dishonour the Omnipotent God , and his Law , and expect an Euge ? Will you turn his Grace into wantonness , and believe , you shall be applauded at last , with a well done good and faithful Servant ? Have not you read of the unprofitable Servant , that was deliver'd to the Tormentors , till he should pay what he ow'd ; and is not this your case , that make light of Gods anger , because he doth not power it out upon you , so soon , as your Sins deserve it ? Therefore art thou inexcusable , O Man , whosoever thou art , who despisest the riches of his goodness , and forbearance , and long-suffering , not knowing , that the goodness of God leads thee to Repentance , Rom. 2. 1 , 5. 2. The Lord reigneth , Let 's admire the Wisdom of God , who can draw light out of darkness , and wholsom Medicines from the rankest Poison ; The brutish Man knows it not , neither doth a Fool understand this , and hence come the rash censures of Gods actions ; A Man who is no careless observer of things , will find very strange and uncouth passages , and dispensations in this World , which possibly he cannot reconcile to the principles of that Reason , God hath given him ; yet may he be confident , that as absurd as some Dispensations seem to him , they are carried on with singular Wisdom and Providence , by the Supream mover of all , it being impossible , but the All-Wise , God , who sees and knows , and takes care of all , must act , and suffer things to be acted upon very weighty and prudential Motives ; and I question not , but should God be so kind , as to give us a Key to open the Cabinet of some of his Mysterious Providences , I mean , communicate his Reasons to us , why he disposes and martials things in that order , method , and manner we see he doth , we should be forced with the Apostle to cry out , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , O the depth of the Riches , both of the Mercy and Wisdom of God! That the Holy Ghost should be bestow'd on the Uncircircumcised Gentiles , was a thing which to the Jews seemed not only impossible , but in a manner Impious to believe , it having been a Maxim with them from immemorial times , That the Divine Presence rests on none , but an Israelite , yet when they saw the thing effectually done , and understood the Reasons , they could not but break forth into admiration of the infinite Wisdom of God , and praise and magnifie him whose Understanding is Infinite , and whose Wisdom cannot by searching be found out . It 's a very strange Dispensation , that the greatest part of the World should continue Heathenish and Idolatrous , and the Mahometans exceed the Christians in number by three parts at least , yet he that shall consider seriously , how Christians are sunk , as to the holiness of their Lives , and how unfit by reason of that decay they are for propagating that Holy Religion , they profess ; how careless and negligent Christian Princes are grown , as to the enlarging of Christs Kingdom , and those that have made some attempts that way , have gone about it with sinister designs ; how others had rather spend their time at home in picking and feeding Quarrels in the Church , than advance the Unity of the Faith abroad ; and how the generality of Christians have learn'd to mind the World more than Heaven , and are become lovers of Pleasures , more than lovers of God : and the Religion that is left among them , is either mixt with Idolatry or gross Superstitions , or some other notorious Abuses , and is become a Carnal , rather than a Spiritual Worship , and a Formal rather than a Rational Service ; and how many of the Heathens and Mahometans exceed Christians in Vertue and Morality , and how that Charity , Love , and Peace , which was once the great Character of Christs Disciples , is banished , and the Seamless Coat of Christ torn in a thousand pieces , and those Dissentions cherish'd , maintained , encouraged , and how Religion is become a meer Politick thing ; I say , he that shall consider all this , will not wonder so much , that there are no more Christians in the World , as admire , there are so many , and that the greatest part of them are not consumed or led into Captivity , when they abuse , and so grosly abuse the best , the noblest , and the most excellent Religion , and reproach and dishonour that God , who sent his Son into the World to Reveal it , thinking , Surely , they will reverence my Son. It was Self-denial , contempt of the World , and invincible Patience under Injuries , Stupendous Charity , and very great strictness of Life , that first spread the Christian Religion ; and the Apostles having shewn us the way , we should have trod in their steps , and if we had , we should without all peradventure have had the same success ; for God works by Means , and those having been the Means in the beginning of Christianity , they may justly be supposed to be the genuine Means at this day , and where those are neglected , it 's part of VVisdom to punish Men for their wilful neglect of those Means , by suffering Heathenism and Mahometanism , not only to continue unmolested , but to grow and advance every day more and more , to the weakening of the Christian Interest ; for no wounds provoke so much as those which are given God in the House of his Friends , as we see by Gods proceedings with the Jews , both in their first and second Captivity . So that notwithstanding this seeming inequality of Providence , Gods VVisdom continues unspotted , and we have reason to give it the highest Encomiums and Celebrations . 3. The Lord reigneth ; Let 's not despair , when either Publick or Private Calamities fall upon us . God is our Refuge , a present help in the time of trouble , therefore will we not fear , though the Earth be moved , and though the Mountains be carried into the midst of the Sea , though the VVaters thereof roar , and be troubled , though the Mountains shake with the swelling thereof , Ps. 46. 1. with this Psalm , Pachomius is said to have chased away a Legion of Devils from his Cell , and I see no reason , but it may serve to support the Soul in the greatest dangers . However things go , God is still good to Israel , to them that are of a clean heart ; what ever Tumults arise , Go tell the Righteous , saith God , it shall be well with him . What comfort must this be to a serious Christian ! though every thing goes contrary to his wishes and expectations , yet he may be cofident , that from those contrarieties of Providence his Soul shall be refresh'd . The Prophet therefore had reason to cry , Es. 50. 10. Who is among you that feareth the Lord , that obeyeth the voice of his Servant that walks in darkness , and hath no light , let him trust in the name of the Lord , and stay upon his God. From such a chearful Confidence we may promise our selves great matters , for God looks upon himself as concerned to reward our extraordinary Faith with an extraordinary Providence , as we see in the poor VVidow of Sarepta ; who had the courage to give the remainder of the Meal and Oyl she had , to the man of God , and was therefore miraculously supplied in the time of Famine . Christ could do no mighty works in his own Countrey , because of the Peoples unbelief , Mark 6. 5 , 6. it 's our diffidence in the time of danger , that makes God stay his hand , and our unbelief keeps the former and latter rain of his favour from us . To trust God , when the Figg-Tree doth not blossom , and to rely upon his goodness , when the labour of the Olive doth fail , is the way to see Miracles , and a preparative for the richest Mercies . Let come , what will come upon us , nothing can come , but by the order and Providence of God , infinitely Good , and infinitely VVise ; And what is there , that can come amiss , if it come from these two Fountains ? If Infinite Goodness sends that , which the VVorld calls Misery upon me , most certainly there can be no hurt in it ; and if Infinite VVisdom sends it , most certainly , it must be best for me , for if Infinite VVisdom thinks it so , my shallow Understanding hath reason to submit to its most solid Judgment : God denies me what I would have , because he would fain give me , what I should have . That which he takes away , may be I do not want , and that Grace , I stand in need of , may be I cannot have , without the other be taken away . A Temporal Blessing sometimes stands in the way of a Spiritual one , and if the lesser be taken away to make room for the greater , it 's no more , but what mine own VVisdom would approve of in more trivial concerns . God would have me follow him , not for the Loaves , but for the Miracles of his Love , and if to make me enamoured with him , he sees it necessary to take away the Loaves , it 's no more than what a VVise Physician doth to a Patient , from whose Lips he takes away the pleasant Draught , to make way for a more wholsom Potion . The Lord reigneth : Rejoyce Christian ; Let Israel rejoyce in him that made him , and let the Children of Zion be joyful in their King : Fear not thou Worm Jacob , when affliction , when trouble , when anguish comes , when the VVaves and Billows of the VVaters of Marah rise . Thy God reigneth , thy King watches over thee , the All-sufficient God is thy refuge , and thy hiding place . Surely he shall deliver thee from the Snare of the Fowler , and from the noisom Pestilence : He shall cover thee with his Feathers , and under his Wings shalt thou trust , his Truth shall be thy Shield and Buckler ; Thou shalt not be afraid for the Terrour by Night , nor for the Arrow that flieth by Day , nor for the Pestilence that walks in Darkness , nor for the Destruction that wasteth at Noon-day ; a thousand shall fall at thy side , and ten thousand at thy Right hand , but it shall not come nigh thee . Nothing can hurt a good Christian , for whom is reserved the Crown Righteousness in Heaven ; Men may prejudice his Body , but they cannot hurt his Soul ; They may rob him of his Goods , but they cannot take away his Graces ; They may imprison him , but they cannot keep God out of his Heart ; They may beat him , but they cannot ruine him ; They may make this World bitter to him , but they cannot hinder him from feeding on the sweet Promises of the Gospel . God is thy Shepherd , Christian , therefore thou shalt not want . He will anoint thy Head with Oyl , and spread a Table for thee in the midst of thy Enemies , nay , thy Cup shall run over Goodness and Mercy shall follow thee all the days of thy life , and thou shalt dwell at last in the House of God for ever , even in that House , made without hands , Eternal in the Heavens . 4. The Lord reigneth : Let 's chearfully submit therefore to his Government ; Shall we pretend to be his ●ubjects , and not be Ruled by him ? Shall we call him our King , and follow our own Imaginations ? Shall he only have the name of our Ruler , while we are resolved to be guided by the Flesh , and by the World ? This were to call him King in jest , as the Jews did our Saviour , and to bow the Knee before him , while we buffet him , or run our Sword into his Bowels . Kings on Earth , though they can give Protection to their Subjects , yet they cannot give them being , nor keep their Souls in life , nor protect them from outward and inward troubles . God who is your King , not only can do all this , but actually doth it , and consequently the Motives to be ruled and governed by him , are far greater . I will not launch out here into the vast Sea of his Mercies , what he hath done for our Souls and Bodies , how he hath been with us , when we have gone through the Waters , and with us , when we have passed through the Fire , how he hath loved us in Christ Jesus , and what pains he takes with our Immortal Souls , to make them happy ; What a bountiful , what a charitable , what a condescending Prince he hath been to us upon all occasions ; what benefits we reap by his Government , and how every moment he gives us instances of his kindness . It 's enough to put you in mind , that you acknowledge him to be your King , and that word imports obedience to his Laws , else he is either no King to you , or you are Rebels and Apostates . But while I exhort you to be Ruled and Governed by him , I must not forget , to tell you the measures , you are to observe in your Submission to his Government , and they are these following ; 1. Take heed of thinking , that you please the great King of Heaven , by disobeying your King here on Earth in things lawful , and not contrary to the Word of God. It 's impossible you can believe the truth of the Thirteenth Chapter of St. Pauls Epistle to the Romans , and think so . Obeying God , and being subject to the higher Powers , are not contrary , but subordinate Duties . To think you are Saints , when you have courage to control the Orders of your Superiors , is a sign of a graceless heart ; and to fancy , it 's Religion , to laugh at what the Supream Magistrate Commands , is to exclude your selves from the Kingdom of Heaven . Such Divinity was never heard of in the World , till Vice and Hypocrisie had debaucht it , and had such Doctrines been broacht in the Primitive Church , they would have called them Rebellion and Heresie . The Primitive Saints never contradicted the Laws of their Superiors , but where God gave an express Command to the contrary , and they look't upon 't as pride and peevishness to shew disrespect to that Order of Men , which God intended as his Vice-gerents . It was not the wickedness of their Prince , made them neglect their Duty to his Person , nor could the Injuries he did them , tempt them to forget their Obedience . They remembred , what Authority there was in the Country they lived in , it was of God , and because it was so , thought themselves obliged to be subject , not so much for Terrour , as for Conscience sake . That Dominion is founded in Grace , was a Principle , the Apostles had never taught them , and they justly found fault with those that tore the Orders of the Magistrate , which were given for their Persecution and Banishment ; where they could not comply , they suffered , and thought it a greater piece of Devotion , to be Patient under Affronts and Oppositions , than to be their own Carvers , by repelling Force by Violence . Christ had taught them not to resist Evil , and they Rationally believed , they were no Christians , except they did whatsoever he did Command them . The Wisdom which is from above , is without Partiality , and he that assents to what God saith , in one thing , but not in another , shews , that the love of the Father is not in him . Where the Conscience suspects the Magistrates Command , as unlawful , it must suffer it self to be informed , not only by persons that serve an Interest , but Impartial Men ; and care must be taken , that what we call Conscience , is not unwillingness to cross our Pride or Humour . Conscience is too often pretended , when we have hardened our selves into Prejudice , and therefore the best Rule to go by , in such cases , is to lay by Interest , and hearken to the clear dictates of unbyassed Reason . When the Magistrate Commands a thing that 's doubtful , it 's safer to keep our selves to a known Duty , which is submission to their Orders , than to be obstinate in an uncertain conclusion ; and that Christian is likest to have the greatest peace , that walks on the surest side of the Hedge . 2. Then you submit to him , when you reign over your inordinate desires and passions ; When you curb your anger , restrain your lusts , moderate your joys , bid your grief and sorrow break forth into Tears for your Sins , watch over your Sensual Delights , and keep them within bounds , mortifie your hatred to your fellow Christians , grow eminent in the Love of God , and advance in charity to your Neighbours , kill your Covetousness , and give flame to your Desires after Grace and Mercy . This government in your little World , is that , which pleases the King of Heaven , and you then live like his Subjects , when you Reign and Triumph thus over your Lusts , and force your Hearts into such religious and reasonable Services . He serves not God , but himself , that lets his evil Desires reign over him , and is so far from being submissive to the King of Heaven , that he makes himself a Vassal of the Devil ; This is the mighty priviledge of all the Loyal Subjects of the King of Heaven ; Their being so , makes them Kings , and their inordinate Passions , are the Slaves on which they exercise Dominion and Authority ; Over these God gives them power , and it hath been acknowledged by all Wise Men , that he that conquers these Rebels , is a greater Commander , than he that lays whole Cities and Countreys waste ; for in wasting these , he acts according to his Brutish Desires , but in conquering those Desires , he overcomes himself , and in that consists the perfection of Vertue . Without a serious attempt of this Self-conquest , your Prayers prevail not in Heaven , and the little Devotions , you pay the Immortal King , are rejected , as sapless Services . Without this , your New Moons , and solemn Assemblies are Abominations , and your treading the Courts of the Lord is looked upon , as the Sacrifice of Fools . The King above is not for outward shews , and he that doth not give him the inward Man , as well as the outward , instead of paying Homage to him , turns his Grace into wantonness . The restraining of one inordinate Desire , is more valued in Heaven , than twenty formal Prayers , and the curbing of one Passion , receives greater applauses from the Holy Angels , than a hundred Lord have Mercy upon me 's . That one act of Joseph , in resisting the Temptations of his Mistress , and his own Natural Desires , God approved of more , than of all the Peace-offerings of the Harlot in the Proverbs , chap. 7. vers . 14. And Mary Magdalen's Tears and Sorrow for Sins , melted Christs heart more , than all the pompous Devotions of the Pharisee , for in this Sorrow , she reigned gloriously over her sinful Inclinations , while the other continued a Slave to his desire of Vain-glory. 3. Then you submit to him , and acknowledge him for your King , when you seek first his Kingdom , and his Righteousness ; When you offer unto God the best of your Flock , and let the World have his refuse , and leavings . To give God the sleepiest hours of the day , and to bestow the most lively upon the World , is not to acknowledge him for your King , but to make him the VVorlds Servant ; and to give him the Lame and Maimed , while your profit , and gain engrosses the Sound , and the fat of your thoughts , is Preposterous Devotion . To Sin as long as you can , and then to turn to him , is to play with Religion , and most certainly , nothing looks so like Mockery , as to think of being serious , when you can serve the VVorld and the Flesh no longer . Either God is not the best of Beings , if he must not have our Principal Adorations ; or if he be , our warmest Affections must of necessity be his due . First to secure our Temporal Interest , and then to think of making sure of the Everlasting Riches , is to imagine , that Death will stay for us ; And to give our Youth and tender years to the Devil , is to say our Lesson , as they say , VVitches do the Lords Prayer , backward . To be sure , this is not to be Subject to that King , who in his actions , is ever Orderly and Regular , and therefore requires his Subject ; should be so too . No Man serves him , that doth not serve him orderly , and to begin our Day , and all our lawful VVorks , and Enterprizes with him , to Consecrate to him the Morning and Strength os our Age , and to make our Carnal and Temporal Interest , truckle to his VVill , is true Canonical Obedience . Those that do so , shall reign with him in that Life , his Son hath promised in the Gospel ; who died for this end , that such as yield to these Terms might wear Crowns in Heaven , Crowns not like those of perishable Gold , which decay with Age and Time , but Crowns immarcescible , Crowns which Angels wear , Crowns of Glory , Crowns which are made splendid by the Light of Gods Countenance , Crowns made of Everlasting Light , Crowns which will shine , when the Sun shall shine no more , Crowns which will glitter , when the Stars shall have done twinckling ; in a word , Crowns , the thoughts of which , will transport the Souls that are incircled with them , into Everlasting Comforts and Consolations . FINIS .