Onely Mercy is our friend, that maketh Chrift our justice, our wifedom, our fanctification and redemption; that maketh truth perform gratious promifes,and his power becometh our protection, his patience our peace; Divitia mifericordia, riches of mercy. This feemeth to excellent ufe; his 1 To affure to us the favour of God, because it is built 1 vse. upon the foundation of Gods mercies, of which Dauid faith, The mercy of God endureth for ever, mercy is euerlafting. The knowledge of falvation given by the remiffion of our fins is, Through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the day-spring 78. from on high bath vifited us.. So that if God be angry with us for our fin, yet his vvrath doth not burn like fire; but as he fayd of Solomon, I will chaften him with the rods of men, but my mercy will I not take utterly from him Lom del 2 It feemeth to rebuke thofe hat put their truft in humane merits, or works of the Law, they that come to God for wages, forfake their own mercy; nothing fo contrary to Divi.e mercy, as humane condignity. Luk.1.77, Nabu.1 2. 3 Because here is anger and mercy together,this killeth all 2 Cor.1.3. prefumption, for he that is called The God of mercies, is called a jealous God, and a furious Avenger.i And the rods of men well laid on will fimart, and draw bloud. 4 This inviteth to new life, becaufe, The goodness and mercy of God leadeth to repentance, and the Crown of it. 5 Seing we have fo much need of mercy our felvs,let us fhew mercy unto others. Eftote mifericordes, ut pater vefter cœleftis, be ye mercifull, as your heavenly father; for there fhall be judgement vvithout mercy to him that fheweth no mercy Chrift abideth yet naked, and fick and imprisoned, and hungry and thirsty, in our poor brethren, as his mercy embraceth us, fo let our mercy embrace him, that he may fay, efurivi & paviftis, I was hungry, and ye fed me. Ver. Rom. 2.6. 7.23. Ver.3. God came from Teman, and the holy one from mount Paran, Selah. His glorie covered the Heavens, and the Earth was full of his praife. 4 And his brightness was as the light, he had horns coming out of his hand, and there was the hiding of his power. 5 Before him went the peftilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet. T Fid. divif. He fecond part of this Pfalm doth contein a celebration of the prayfes of God,which alfo doth declare upon what grounds, the Church in affliction and captivity doth put truft in God. The whole Section is a commemoration of the great power and glory, and power and mercy of God fhewed in behalf of his own people,v. 3,4,5. ad finem,v. 15. 1 In his coming to them from Paran and Teman. 2 Of the fame power and glory declared in giving of the poffeffion of the land of Canaan to Ifrael. 3 In the difmay of the Nations, v.7. 4 In the marvellous Water-works,8,9,10. 5. In their great victories within the Land. I begin at the first ; God came from Teman, and the holy one from Mount Paran The best expofition that I do finde amongst many, of thefe words, is,that here is remembred the coming of God to Ifrael, when he gave them the Law written in two Tables of ftone, with his own hand. For God came then from Teman and Paran: Paran was a great mountain neer to mount Sinai, but Teman fignified the South;fo God came from the South,thence came God to give Ifrael his Law, wherein he did exprefs himself the King of this people, by coming fo neer to them, by fhewing himself fo penly, and by revealing his wil to them fo plainly. This was fo great a favour done to them,that he addeth Selab, which word is onely used in Davids Pfalmes, and in this Pfalme, and the word in the judgments of the learned is fometime vox optantis, the voice of one that wifheth, æquivalent to Amen, or vox admirantis, the voice of one admiring, fhewing fome speciall matter, or vox affirmantis, of one affirming, avouching what is faid, or vox meditantis, of one meditating, requiring confideration of what is faid. But withall, it is a rest in Mufique. Jerome faith, it is, commutatio metri, or viciffitudo canendi, his glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praife.] And His Brightneffe was as the Light,] he meaneth the brightneffe of that glory wherein he appeared, when he gave the Law fet forth. Exod. 19.16. For there were Thunders and Lightnings. He had Horns comming out of his hands,]by Horns, in Scripture,ftrength is fignified, the horne of falvation is the ftrength of falvation, the exalting of the horne is the advancing of power, and these are faid to be in his hands, because the hands and arms are called the strong men in the body, they are the inftruments of power. And there was the hiding of his power,] there in that apparition, God did hide his power from the reft of the world, and declared it perticularly to his Church, as David faith. He hath not dealt fo with any nation, and as for his judgments,they have not known them. Before him went the Peftilence,] and burning coals went forth at his feet.] His meaning is that God then declared himself mighty in the punishinent of his enemies,and the enemies of his Church, for under thefe tvvo kinds of punishments by. peftilence and fire, he fhevveth that God hath the command of all the inftruments of vvrath, of vvhich thefe tvvo, by plague and fire, are the moft licking and devouring, putting no difference where they go. Ggg And Pfal.147. 20. And this hath reference to the many plagues wherevvith he punished the Egyptians, vvhen he brought his people from the land of Egypt, from the houfe of bondage. The fumme of all is this, that God hath declared himself glorious. S1 In his fpeciall favour to his people. 22 In his juft vengeance. From vvhence thefe points of doctrine iffue. I That the confideration of Gods former mercies, doth ftrengthen faith in prefent tribulations. 2 That the Church of God hath a speciall intereft in the povver and protection of God. 4 That God is armed vvith povver to punish evill doers First, the confideration of former mercies doth strength- Therefore do they commemorate the manner of Gods glorious comming from Teman and of Paran, vvherein he had glory in the heavens, and prayfe upon the earth. David did make good ufe of this point often. For vvhen my diftreffe came, he found comfort in this remembrance. Novv thou art farre of, and goeft not farth with our armies. Pfal. 44.9. Thou makeft us turn back from the adverfary, and they which 10. bate us spoile for themselves, &c. Pfal.74.9. Pfal.77.2. Verse 5. To comfort this affliction, he beginneth that Pfalme. we have heard with our ears, O God, and our fathers have told us, what thou didst in their days, and in the times of old. How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and planted them, &c. So, again, complaining of great afflictions. We fee not our fignes, there is no more any Prophet, this is his comfort. God is my King of old, working Salvation in the midst of the Earth. Thou didst divide ehe Sea by thy power, &c. So again, In the day of my trouble, I fought the Lord, my fear ran, and ceafed not, and in the night my foul refufed comfort. Then I confidered the days of old, and the years of ancient times Pfal.4.1. Thou haft enlarged me when I was diftreft. The reason why this doth miuifter comfort to the Church, 1 Reas. is, because we have learned that our God is conftant in his love, whom he once loved, he ever loveth; for he is without variableneffe, and fhadow of changing, as the Apostle and the Pfalmift faith. But thou art the fame,& thy years shall have no end. Pf. 102. The children of the fervants shall continue, and their feed shall be eft ablished before thee. The goodness of God endureth continually. 27. 28. Pfal. 52. 1. Because the commemoration of former benefits is a work Reaf.2. of thanksgiving and prayfe, and that is the highest service that we can perform to God in his worship, this is,Sicut in cœlo, it is heaven upon earth; For it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to fing prayfes to the Name of the most High. Pfal. 92.1. It is good for God, for, He that offereth me praise glorifieth Pl.50.23. me, and for that he made us. It it good for us, for, with fuch Sacrifices God is well pleased; there is our happiness, for in his favor is light. . Reaf.3 Again, the thankfull commemoration of former mercies of God to us doth draw on new benefits; for thanksgiving as it is Gods crop which he gathereth from us of the feed of his many favours, fo it is our feed which we caft into the ground of Gods kindness, and it bringeth us an harvest of new bleffings. Every man thinks his feed well beftowed in good ground that yeeldeth an encrease, and God hath faid; I Sam.2. 30. Them that honour me I will honour. This point is of excellent ufe, to ftir us up to a wife confide- Ufe. ration of the conftant love of God, to fuch as fear& ferve him. Benefits are foon forgotten, therefore,as David faith, Icalled ироп the Lord in my trouble, fo he stirreth up himself to thankfulness; My foul praife thou the Lord, and forget not all his benefits, He found great comfort in this looking back.: When he undertook Goliah, and Saul difcouraged him as unable for it, he looked back to the time paft, and remembred how God had delivered him from a Lion, and a Bear, and Ggg z from |
