Imatges de pàgina
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refetled there before the end of the world, as it was after the return from the captivity of Babylon, so that though there have been interruption of poffeffion for fo many years, there fhall be no impeachment of title, but their right doth run on, till the time appointed for the reftoring of them.

Concerning the calling of the Jews, and the reftoring of them to the Church, St. Paul hath prophecyed fo plainly, as Rom.11. there can be no doubt thereof.

But for the reftoring of them to the land of promife, we

have no good ground in holy Scripture.

1. Because they have forfeited their eftate therein, which they held with condition of obedience.

When thou shalt beget children, and childrens children in the Deut 4.25 land, and shalt have remained long in the land, and fhall corrupt your felves; and make a graven image or the likenes of any thing,and fball do evill in the fight of the Lord thy God to provoke him to anger. I call Heaven and Earth to witne fe against you this day, that ye shall foon utterly perish from of the Land, whereunto you go over Fordan to poffeffe it, ye shall not prolong your dayes upon it, but shall utterly be destroyed.

And the Lord hall fcutter you among the nations. This is not without hope, for as by fin they loft their inheritance there, fo by repentance it was recoverable.

When thon art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon Verse 3. thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the Lord thy God, and be obedient to his voyce.

He will not forfake thee, nor destroy thee, nor forget the Covenant with thy Fathers.

This proves their tenure conditional, and their reftitution to this land after their return fró captivity was also upon the fame condition of obedience, as appeareth in the words of Chrift. How often wonld I have gathered thy children together, even as Math.23. an hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not. Behold, the houfe is left unto you defolate.

For I Say unto you, you shall not fee me henceforth, till ye shall fay, blessed is he that commeth in the name of the Lord..

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37,38,39.

Jer. 19.11.

I Doct.

That place is plain, that the habitation of ferufalem, that is, Domus veftra, and the temple of which our God faid,Domus mea, now become by abuse Domus veftra, fhall be defolate till the fecond comming of Chrift

2 The Prophefies do speak plain.

Thus faith the Lord of hoasts, even fo will I break this people, and this city, as one breaketh a potters veffell that cannot be made whole again. My conclufion therefore is, that

Though the argument drawn from the free gift of that land to the people measuring out the fame to the tribes, do serve to comfort their captivity in Babylon, with hope of reftitution, yet now in thefe times, and ever fince the difperfion of the Jews for the cause of Chrift, this can minifter no comfort at all to that nation, to promise them their land again. I come to matter of inftruction.

I These words aime not at the generall fcope of this Section, in which is declared that,

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The remembrance of Gods former mercies is a fweet .confolation of prefent afflictions.

2 Because he nameth the measuring out of the land of Canaan, to the tribes, the driving in funder the nations, the fcattering of the mountains, the bowing of the hils.

I Docemur, We are taught, The best form of thanksgiving is that which maketh pèrticular commemoration of the mercies of God to his Church, or to any member of it.

2 That the matter of thanksgiving is an acknowledgment of all benefits,as received from the hand and free gift of God. 3 From the phrafe and manner of speech here used, we are taught, that figurative forms of speech, are in ufe in holy Scriptore.

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In thanksgiving, let us be perticular in our commemoration, we have Davids example for it.

Pfal.103.2. Prayle the Lord, my foul, and forget not all his benefits: fo he ftirreth up himfelf to remember them, to remember them all.

The two Pfalmes 105. 106. are full examples of this perticular thankfulneffe, and they are good guides to fuch as would learn it.

This

This is neceffary. 1 Because the more perticularly we re- Reaf.1. compt the favours of God to us, the more we difcerne Gods love to us,as in the example of this people, Mofes faith.

That God had done much for this people, never fo much for any, read from Verse 32. ad finem 38. And all those favours grew out of one root, Because he loved thy Fathers.

It is the Apostles note. Ecce quantam charitatem,behold, how great love. Sic Deus dilexit mundum, God fo loved the world.

Deut.4.

37.

2. Seeing Gods temporall favours are not always bestowed Reaf.2. in love, but are made rods to whip the ungodly, this is a certain rule, that these favours of God are evermore tokens of his love to fuch as are thankfull for them, and to none else.

3 They that keep an inventorie of their receipts, and are Reaf.3. always reckoning and reporting the bounty of God to them, fhall finde that their receipts of favours have been more and greater then their iffues of prayers.

For how many great bleffings have we from God, that we never prayed for, fo that God giveth us much more cause of thanksgiving and prayle of his name, then of prayer and fupplication.

4 Thanksgiving is a work of juftice: as David, it well be- Reaf.4. commeth the juft to be thankfull, and again, give to the Lord' the glory due to his name, that is for every perticular benefit, perticular prayfe and thanks.

Thanksgiving doth put us in mind of our unableneffe to Reaf.5. requite God, we cannot make him amends for his favours done to us, we fhall finde, that our wel-doing extendeth not to him, we must therefore do good to all, propter Dominum, for

the Lord.

6 Thanksgiving doth put us in mind of our unworthineffe, Reaf.6. as Mephibofbeth to David, what is thy fervant, that thou fhouldst look upon fuch a dead dog as I am. Jacob, Non fum dig

nus, I am not worthy. David himself, what is man, that thou 2 Sam.9.8. art fo mindfull of him?

7 If we will forget, God will remember us, as to David: Reaf-7 I anointed thee King over Ifrael, I delivered thee out of the band

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of Saul, I gave thee thy Masters houfe, and thy Mafters wives into his bofome: Domus Ifrael. Domus fude.

Surely, we have not well taken out the leffon of thankfgiving to God, for to fhuffle it up with generall. God be thanked, for all comes, if but coldly, and is a poor rependam, for all the benefits bestowed upon us.

St. Auguftine upon those words of David: And forget not all his benefits, faith, pro quibus bonis? primo quia es, cam non effes, fedeft & lapis, deinde quia vivis, fed vivit & pecus, fed fecit te ad fimilitudinem fuam, fuum exigit retribue ei fimilitudinem fuam

in te.

Look to the common bleflings of the God in generall : upon the Church in which thou liveft, pay God his debt for the good he hath done, before thou finde fault with the defect in it: recompt what he hath done for the Common-wealth in which thou livest.

Looke home to thine own family, to thine own person: recompt thy fpirituall graces, thy temporall bleflings confider what God hath given thee,what he hath forgiven thee,the preventions, the fubventions of his love: what fpirituall, what temporall evils thou haft either not felt by his keeping of thee, or escaped by his delivering of thee: and to all, and to each of thefe fay; The Lord be thanked.

It is a small duty that is required of us, to repeat what God

hath done for us.

2 Doct. Hee stood and measured the Earth, he drove afunder the Nations, bee Scattered the everlasting mountains. Here wee are taught to give the whole glory and prayfe of all good to God.

We know that Joshua brought this people into the promifed land, that he caufed the land to be measured, that he led them against the Inhabitants of God, and that the people of God did valiantly; yet, Not unto us, not unto us, but to thy name give the praife.

We need no other reafon for this Doctrine,then that of St. James, For every good and perfect gift cometh from him

Thanks

Thanks are given to creatures as the minifters and inftryments of God, by whom he worketh the good pleasure of his will, but none hath a proper right to them but God onely. The Lord giveth, the Lord forgiveth in both he useth the minifteriall means, for both he must be thanked.

1 This ferveth to inform our understanding in the truth of Use 1. this Doctrine, because the ignorance hereof is the mother of unthankfulness: It is Gods complaint: The Oxe hath known his own, the Affe his mafters Crib: but my people do not know, &c. Ifa.1.3. It was charged on them in Hofea.

She did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oile, and Hof.2.8. multiplyed her filver and gold.

2 This ferveth to reprove all thofe that afcribe the benefits which they receive to themselves, like them in the first Chapter of this Prophecy,that did facrifice to their net,andburn incenfe to their dragge, because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous.

3 This reproveth them that murmur, for feeing God is the Author and giver of all good, we must seek all from him, but we muft not be our own carvers, we must learn to abound if the Lord giveth, and to want if the Lord taketh away.

4 This chideth thofe that repine at common bleffings,when they do abate any thing of their own perticuler profits.

Of this God hath given us a fearfull example, for the laft year our portion was fat, and our bread plenteous, great was the unthankfulness of many to God for it.

Then the Landlord complained he could not have his rent: the Tenant that he could not pay it, plenty had undone

him.

Such is the unconscionable rack of rents,generally through the Common-wealth, that plenty is a punishment to many, even a fharpe and fmarting rod. And doth not God begin to vifit our land with fudden dearth, how mnch of the hope of the earth doth now lye in fteep in the drowned earth,never likely to pay the feed that the earth borrowed.

It is time for the Lord to pull thy hand out of thy bosome,

and

Jer.2.8.

Hab.1.16.

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