Use 2.

of thefe, then to have been made men and women.
-. I will not goe from the example in my Text, to teach you
what we are, for by originall generation we runne like fordan
in a full and swift current, into the great and wide Sea of the
world, and there weloofe our felves in thofe falt waters.

Sometimes as fordan in harvest times, that is,in times of our plenty and fulneffe, and when we have eafe, and whatsoever our heart defireth, we do overflow our banks, and exceed all "meafure...

But when the Preifts of the Lord do bring the Ark of God into us, that is, when we come to have a fenfe and a feeling of Religion, and the fear of God, then do we recoile and ftrive against nature, and overcome nature, and we learn to do the good, that we would not do.

For truly religion doth carry us against winde and tyde: religion leads us all up-hill, and he that will follow Chrift muft deny himself, fo Saint Paul doth. Vero ego, & non amplius ego, fed vivit in me Chriftus: I live, yet not I, but Chrift in me.

Obferve the creature here, and you fhall fee that whatsoever is ingredient in perfect obedience, is afcribed to this River of Jordan; for,

I It was congrua, for it was to God, they were his Priefts, and they did carry his Ark upon their fhoulders, and they had his warrant for it. kolo but 75 35

It was prompta, ready, no fooner did the foales of the feet of the Prielts touch the waters but they fled back, no fooner were they all over, and the ftones carried out of the river to Thoare, but they returned again to their courte.

:

Such let our obedience be, and this is acceptable in the fight of God, this Lecture is read to us in Heaven, in Earth, in the Sea in Heaven we have the example of the Angels, who are called, Angeli facientes voluntate ejus: In Earth we have the examples of all creatures, who in their feverall kinds do his will, according to the generall Law of Creation, and the perticuler law of fpeciall difpenfation. Do sousvilow 5

In the Sea, the winds and fea obey him. Thi
This ferveth to teach us to paffe the time of our dwelling

here

here in fear, because we fee the omnipotent hand of God in the government of the world, that we may fay,

Ah, Lord God, thou hast made the Heaven and the Earth by thy for.32.77. great power, and ftretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee; and he remembreth the wonders of this deliverance out of Egypt, and faith;

Thou haft made thee a name.

This filleth all that think of it with a reverent fear of Gods name, it exalteth him in the congregation of the just, and maketh him fay, Domine, quis fimilis tibi? Lord, who is like thee?

This ferveth to convince the enemies of God,who make nature fit in the place of God, and do give the rule of all things to nature; for what have they to fay for themfelves in thefe great examples:could nature cut a paffage of dry land through the red Sea: could nature draw waters out of an hard Rock, and teach it to follow Ifrael wherefoever they went ? to rest when they refted, to run when they removed? could nature keep their cloaths on their backs, their fhooes on their feet for wearing, for forty years?

Did nature raine Manna, and bring in the Quails, and feed the people till they came to the corne of Canaan?

Did nature make these mountains and high piles of waters in the river of fordan?

Is not the extraordinary hand of God in all the

Verse 20.

Use 3.

This alfo ferveth for encrease of our faith, for we have good Use 4. caufe to caft our care, and faften our truft upon him, who not onely worketh by means, but without them, yea, and againft them. The hardeft leffon in religion, is, to truft God when we fee no means of helpe, as Abraham did when he was commanded to kill the fon of the promife. The very captivity of the Church hath had that comfort in the greateft terror thereof, fo the Pfalmift faith,

819

That God fuffered no man to do them wrong, but reproved even Kings for their fakes.

2 That he made them that led them

away captive to pity

them, and to minifter to their neceflities: they became rather

nurfes then their Jaylors.

Q99 2

Upon

Job 13.15.
Use 5:

Upon comfort of which confidence, fob protefted that, Though he kill me, yet will I trust in Him.

This affureth to us all the promises of God, which the Apoftle diftributeth into thefe two forts,

The promises of this life.

And of the life that is to come.

And this made Abraham when God promised him feed, not Rom.4.19 to confider his own body was now dead, nor the deadnesse of Sarahs 20,&c. wombe.

Zech.8.3.

3.

He ftaggered not at the promise through unbelief, but was strong in faith, giving glory to God.

And being fully perfwaded, that what he had promifed, he was able alfo to perform.

And therefore it was imputed unto him for righteoufneffe; and he addeth;

Now it was not written for his fake alone, that it was imputed to

him.

But for us alfo,to whom it shall be imputed, if we believe.

We fee fome parts of the Chriftian Church now in great extremity, and no way in fight open from their efcape out of great mifery: the Bohemian Proteftants put to cruel deaths: the French Proteftants have the fword drawn against them, and the arrows upon the ftring to fhoot at them: the Palati under profcription, the Prince thereof in exile: Our helpe is in the name of the Lord.

All these will faint, except they believe verily to see the goodneffe of God in the land of the Living. Sweet and full of comfort is the example of Gods people, to whom it was promifed, even when they were in captivity in Babylon, they had hung up their Harps upon the Willows, and fate weeping by the rivers of waters.

Thus, faith the Lord, I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerufalem, and Jerufalem shall be called a City of truth, and the mountaine of the Lord of Hofts, the Holy Moun

taine..

Thus, faith the Lord of Hoafts: there shall yet old men, and old women dwell in the streets of Jerufalem, and every man with his Staffe in his hand for very age.

And

And the streets of the City shall be full of boys and girls, playing in the streets of it.

Thus,faith the Lord of Hoafts, if it be mervellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in thefe dayes; should it also be marvellous in mine eyes, faith the Lord of Hoafts.

I will fave my people from the Eaft,and from the weft Country. This is the help in trouble, ready to be found, let us awake, this help with the loud voice of our importunate fupplications, faying, O Lord,help now, O Lord,now give prosperity.

Let us give him no reft, till he hath bowed the heavens,and is come downe,to vifit the diftreffes of his faithfull fervants.

Our Saviour comforteth us well, faying, My Father worketh as yet, and I work, and if our labour which is, opus in Domino, a work in the Lord, be not in vaine, his labour which is, opus Domini, a work of the Lord, will profper in his hand.

He is as ftrong in the river of Rhine, as in he was fordan, and his Church is as dear to Him now as ever it was, and he is as diligent in making inquifition for bloud, and as attentive to the complaints of the oppreffed as he was.

Verse 11. The Sun and Moon stood still in their habitation: at the light of thine arrows they went, at the shining of thy glittring fpear.

12 Thou didst march through the Land in indignation, thou didst thresh the heathen in anger.

13 Thou wenteft forth for the falvation of thy people, even for fal vation with thine Anointed: thou woundeft the head out of the houfe of the wicked by discovering the foundation to the neck. Selah.

14 Thou doeft ftrike through with his ftaves the head of his villages, they that came out as a whirlwind to fcatter me, their rejoycing was as to devoure the poor fecretly.

I

Read all this together, because I conceive it hath reference
to one ftory, and that is recorded in the book of foshua.
For after Ifrael came into the land of Canaan, and had

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de

5.

Ver.7.

Ver.11.

Ver.12.

Ver.13.

deftroyed Jericho, and the City of Ai: the Gibeonites terrified with this news, craftily pretending themselves to be a people "dwelling in a far Country, and for the name of Gods fake, whofe wonderfull works they had heard of, they defired to make a league with Joshua Joshua and the Elders were deceived, and confirmed a league with them by oath.

Verfe 14..

But after the fraud was detected, Ifrael made the Gibeonites ferve them, but they were under the protection of Ifmaet

it.

This league of Gibeon with fobna did much trople the neighbouring Kings, for they feared Gibeon, being a fong City, therefore five Kings do make war against Gibeon to i The Gibeonites fend to fofbua for fuccours, loftna according to his oath of confederacy with them came from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valour, he gave the affault to the five Kings and their Army, he difcomfited them,and made them fly.

Then the Lord rained ones from Heaven upon them: there were more that died with the kailftones, then they whom the children of Ifrael flew with the Sword.

Then spake Johna to the Lord, in the day when the Lord delivered up the Amorites before the children of Ifrael: Sun ftand thou still upon Gibeon, and thon Moon in the valley of Ajalon.

And the Sun fteod fil, and the Moon ftayed untill the people bad avenged themfelves upon their enemies: Is not this written in the book of Jafher? fo the Sun stood still in the midst of Heaven, and hafted not to goe down about a whole day.

And there was no day like that before it nor after it,that the Lord hearkned to the voice of a man: for the Lord fought for Ifrael.

This is the wonder that Habakkuk our Prophet doth here commemorate, a miracle yet fresh in the memory of the Church, yet by computation of times from the time of Joshua, when this was done to this time of Habakkuk when this is remembred were past, more then 700 years.

Habakkuk doth well to remember this, for of all the miracles that God wrought for Ifracl, this was the greatest; here Heaven fought against Earth, the Sun and Moon flood ftill to give light to the Battail, and the faithfull witneffes of Hea