188 Of RE 1" ENT AN c E, .Sermon "• either !l!!;ndo or !l!!}tt : When thougoe,'f; then ketpe;or bec4rlfe,thougoes1, therefore· kttpe thy felfe ftom fin. With the fame word fpeaketh the vertuous.Ladieto King :•sam.>r.,;s. 'l>!lvid, .fl.yja pr~tliaru pr.tlia Domini,ideonon irwenietur ;,. ti iniquitn<,Deaaufe thou all fightell: the Loa o' s Bad<J.iles,therfotelet there not any iniquity IJe found inthee, ,thy"dayes. . · , . · Si?n~(certainely) at all ti~es is tobe fdrborne. When itis War; and_not ons:!y Luk.•i·H· when lt !S :Wa·r; but whenlt!speacetoo•• ':[akeye heed;leH at any tune (faithChrijl) Tour hearts Ge overlaydwith furfetting, rvith dri!'loe, &c: Not allowingus any time,to eeq_ wicked in.llut,though at all times we be to refraine fin: Yet,not at all timesalike (faith Utfll{es) here. For it is, as ifhe 01ould fay : Bee i~ a,t other times, finne ll)J)' rbetrer'be bornewith; Itjs lelfe perillous: But whcnthorlgoejlforth rvith a'n Hoff:Then, 1hm, with anhigh accent, with anEmplujis, (that isl thenefpccially l then,abovc all -9ihe~<,·times, then, if evfr, it importeth ypu to have leall: to doe with it. Good J.. o ~ o, how crolfe and oppolite is mans conceipt to Go o' s, and how contrari~ .ell~ thoughts unto his ! For evenadoppojitum,to this polition of His,We fee (forth~ mofi p:m)that even they,that are theGO(Tsforth,feemc to perfwade rhemfdves,rh.ar '1}/.m, they may doe what they lift; that at that time, any fin is lawfull ''har, War i; · .p •· I ·• rather aPla<dra, than an Inhibition tofin. A thing fo common, that it made the Hea– then man hold,that betweenMilitiaand Malitia,thercwas as little diffetence in li:nfe :fts 1 infoun>i. , and theProphet Da'TJid, to call Saul' s companies in his dayes, Tot1entts t sam:... s. .JJe(ia{, \oe L.and-flouds oJw!ckedoelfe. Which being well confidered, we may ceafe l~:Sl murmure:.or,toma~yell, I foursozng forth have'not b.eene ever withfuch fuccdfe r ]as ;vqwiQJed,•.i pod,v;R-.o flJouldgwe the,fuccelfe, cottima~diog then arefttaint; anq JDal\,thl!t ilJQUld.need •t,then takmg moll: liberty. Venly, rf we willleame of-God if He !hall tea~ h. us;Sinn~ is n~ver fo untimely,as in the time of War .: !)ever fo our of .~ ,· •;1 .feilfon,as then: for,that ist)le time of,all times, we 010uld have leaftto doe with ir; To.inlifi then a,little upon thispoint,b~caufe it is the ma,ine poim,and to !hew the vi- • ~ gorofthiHon(equent, . - . •. · • I From the verynatllreofIV4r,lirll: Which is an a~ofiujlice,and of Iujlicecor.' ;reflive, whofeo{lice is to punifh !in. Now then, conlide1:and judge,even in reafon; ·,What a thing this is,how great, grolfe, and foule an incongruit(e i,t is to powrc out our felves.into fin,at the very time,when wegueforth tocorre~ finne : Tofet forth,ro punifh rebells, when we our [elves ar~in rebellion againfi God,HisWord,and Spil!atth.!>: •+· rit, Whichlwhat is it but til ctifl out devils Gy the power of Belzebub? ,Sure our hearrs mull: needs firike us in the middefl ofour fin,and rei us,we are in a great and grievous 1 , prevarication, allowing that in our [elves, that we goe to condemnc and toHone t9 ·:1" .. .•. llfoy ••·f· Am,t.J. ler.fO z;• ~Sam,:-.14: . ~eath, in othe~s. Therefore, ~nee to goe toWar,is ro goe to'punifh fin: certainly,the , t~meofpumfhmg fin IS no~a nmc to fin m. z Secondly, fromWArre in rejfec1 o(God, I know not, what were~kon ofWar: . Peace is His ble!ling(we are fure,)and a fpeciall favour it is from Hill!;as rhe Prophets ,account ir;)for aland to fpend moreiron in fcithcs,and plough-fhares, than in fword- .blades or fpeare.heads. And,ifpeace be able!ling,and a chiefe of His ble!lings, we may reduce from thence what War is. To make no otherwife of it than it is, them! of Goo' s wrath (as E[ay termeth it:) his ironjlaile (as Amos:) the hAIIJIIJtr of the earth (as Ieremie:) whereby He dafheth two Nations together; One ofthem mull in peeces l both, the worfe for it. W•rre is no m:ltter offporr.· Indeed, Ifee t..Abper efieeme of it as of a j]>ort; let the yMngmen rife (faith he to Ioab) and{hew mJome j]>ort.But I fee the fame Abner,before the end ofthe fame Cbapter,weary ofhis fport and treating with Joabfor an end ofit. How longjhallthe frvorddw1ure,(faith he)jh•ll v"re• 6 • , it not bebitternelfein the end? So,it maybcflort in the beginning :itwill bebitternejfi in theend, if it hold long. Warrethen being Goo's rod,,Hisfearef,./lrod, and that fo fearcfull that King David (though aWarriour too) when both were in his cho:ce, p.referred thePlaguebefore it, and delired it ofthe twaine : When Goo' s hand with th.isrod, thi~ Hisfearifullrod,is over us,to befo farre from feare,and all due regard,as then,notto lhun finne anyw~i~ the ~ore, butto fall toi.tas fall as ever: it 'annot b~~;
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