Coin. 4. O fFä t'nge Chap: S. > 297 I. In the outward Fafl is required a whole days Abflinence, from even to even, Lev. 23. 3 2. and from meat and drink, vnsnm whatfoever is edible and O,r whatfoever is liquid Ezra. ro. =. a general reftraint from both. 2. An abridgment or breaking off 'the ordinary courfe ofour fleep. We mutt Joel. t. 3 watch as well as fail. 3. We mull layby our heft apparel ;andput on morevile clothes,wh'ich in Nehemiah Exod. 33.4 and fundry other places is expreffed by wearing of fackcloth, which we should alto Nèhem. 9. z. layafide,as unworthy ofany ; but that'to avoid flìame, we mull have fomèwhat to cover our nakednefs.; . 4. We mull feparate our felves from all that is delightful to thefenfes, and from all Zach, q. 4* the pleafures and delights of this life ; for,quia non peccavitpiagula, nje)unet f la;be- lls caufe the tafle bath not been the only fenfe which ha offended, therefore that fenfe Bern. mutt not fall alone, but the other fenfes ulnaabilain and beafHided alfo. 5. And as all thefe are forbidden, fo is labour and fervile workalfo. Ler 23. 28. 6.Lafily,we mull give alms and relievethe poor on the day ofour Fafl.The precept we have in Efiy, amongother things required in a Fat}, to draw out thefoul to the Efay 58. to. hungry,and to pity the aftlifted foul.And an example ofit in the Centurion : Alms was joyned with his Failing : for the old rule and Canon is, Ped 'ventri fubtrahitur, ARs to. 4. pauperi detur;what we fpare fromour belly,we mull give, to the poor. But as wePaid before, that bodily yell profiteth nothing, fo we'may fay ofbodily ab(tinence,ïtavaileth little:it is not an outward abflinence will ferve the turn(for the the Kingdom ;of God is not in meat and drink ) ifwe flay there and go no further. Rom. 14.1;, Thereforethe Prophet tells fuck faflers,though they lay in fackcloth awhole day, yet it was not that which God requireth, but inward forrow : becaufe the outward action is ordained for the inward, and the internal Fail is that which God chiefly ac- cepts.What is Paid in theGofpel offacrifice,may be afwel laid ofoutward mourning, Efajr I will have mercyand notfacrifice, Matb.p. t 3.And the Prophet Joel tells us,tt is not Joei 2 58 r2: S the rending ofthe garments,but oftheheart whichGod requireth in our Fafls:TheA- poltle excellently defcribeth the whole courfe ofwhatfoever is required ofus in this Faft:.when they forrowed after a godly fort,what carefulnefs it wrought in thein;yeá' what clearing ofthernfelves;yea,what indignation;yea,what feaeyea,what vehement defire;yea,whatzeahyea,what revenge? A true fait mutt come from the Spirit, and be accompaniedwith figbr and groan: whichcannot be expreffed, as the Apoftle fpeaks' Rom.8. 26. in another cafe.Of this forrow there cannot be anexquifite method,but as he fetteth themdown there, theyare of two forts:t.Firfl,a fear arifing from the apprehenfion ofGods anger provoked,and the punifhmentdue to us for our fins,which mutt work in us a forrow that we have offended fo good a God. 2.Adefine ofamendment for the future, which mutt thew it feltby a more Oriel care that we offend him no more;and this care mull be expreffed by zeal,and ifwe relapfe or go amifs,that then we be ready to punith our felves for it. In a word the fruit of a cór. ta, 3t. thofe Actions which concern Mortification tend to this end, that by jugdingour felves we mayefcape the judgment of God.It was the policy of Benhadad, andhis 1 Xing. an. 32 people to humble themfelves to the King ofIfrael,which turned to their prefervati- on:and it hath been the ufual praf#ice ofrebellious fubjeds to their Prince, thus to behave themfelves,to regain hisfavour,and to make his bowels yern: But after thefe, unlefs there be abinding ofour felves bya vow and promife of reformation and new obedience ( which mull be the feal of our fafling and humi- Neh. 9. liation)all the'rettwill, be to little purpofe.Therefore we find in Nebem. at a folemn & sit. Fall of the Ifraelites,when they were returned from Babylon, that afterfolemn read- ing of the Law four times (for fo fome take the words,verfe 3.) whereas their ordi- nary readings were but twice on one day,and after an humble confeffion, and feri- ous exhortation, they all enter into a folemn Vowand Covenant of reformation of their lives, and fet their hands and feats to it, to remain as a tefliinony againfl them forever ifthey fhould fall back. Thus ifwe upon our folemnFaits do vow andpro- inife to God, unfeignedly to reformwhatwe then confefs tohave been amifs in us; and perform it accordingly, then we maybeaffured our Fair is Each as God accepts. And thus much concerning the fecond rule,for expounding the Commandinerits,ex- tending to, Homogenea. P p The
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