Sermon :z.~ ofthe GowRIEs. And, thisbcirig clcered, come we now to,J~e 'princij>all caufe ofoul: C:omm!ng~ The r,~, ond Which is, in this pub!Ike manner, eo render omyea~re!~ folemne th.ankes tochriflm Dajcotnpa.ea pominM, for thedehverance ofour Chrtflm Dommt, thl~ day(adehveranc~!1k~ this in the Text;) even for Hts 'l{s percla, at Perth~ Font, and for bo:h pOints mit. That Hi> annointed was not deftroyed, •That they, that p11t fDrth theu 'ha»d to doe ;t,carried it not away, butfound thqeward due cogt~il:y perf<in~. ~h.e two cafes, , thisin theText: 'and that of thls d•y: are both hkemthemame: tfmtrr&umftan. ter, diflike; this ofours hath the advantage. The Jafl more foule, theJdwerance morej'llmi/IJ. . . . . . . • •. . To!peake then ofmalttza dm htt]m, themallcwus prachce ofthts day; Hadthe Kin"' beene anenemie; yea, fuch an enemie as Sat~!; it had beene no warrant. Iiur;he was"noenemie: No, but many wayes,agracious Prince to themboth; I know, pre; tence there was, ofa wrong. Say it had beene one; what was done, was done by others in rhe Kings minority• And though done by others, yet jufily done: and no wrong was it at all, but wrongfully fo called. Secondly, the King wasfout itp, itis true; but not as in the Text, by Go n ;but by wicked men, who found him not cafually (asSaut was) but trained him guileful– ly rothe place, and there!hut him up treacheroufiy. Itwas not fudden, it was along plot: the malice, the more; the facr, thefoulcr. And the~:e he wasc~ticlu(m & dere. liflmboth ;}hutup by Abifhai,forfakenofDitvid. ' , Thirdly, anditwasnot night; nor the Kingajleepe, that hemighthavepa!fed away without any fright or terrour. No: it was D~tmo/0 mtridianm this,am'Q'tJe·d..y l'Cai ~.~; DeviU:He was broad awake,and the feare ofdeath(worfe than death it felfe)I know · ·- not how oft artd marty rimes, before his eyes• · Fourthly: And as beyond it in th&; fo, in the I'riilcijilllbeyotid it too. Both ofthem lift up: Abi(hai, hisJ!eare; this, his dagger, to have given the fatall bl~w• .Abijhai, buronce: This, twice. And certainly, neerer it came theKing, thanDavid wouldfufferit come toSaut: So, the danger neerer, and the delivery greater. And yet,therewasaNeperdainthistoo; and that afirange one: Not byDavid,no : Iudge,ifit may nor feeme a miracle, thlt Go n then !hewed; When there was none to faydeflroy not, elfe; Go n opetied, his mouth that was there fet, himfelfe to be thedef/royer, to fay once and againe, 8deHroy him not, deflroy not the King. The voice was Davids; thehands, Abijhais. Iteals to my minde, what long fincel read in Herodotus: that at the taking ofSardi, when oneranne at Cri>'{Mthe King, to have flainc him, that a little boy borne dumbe, that had never [poken word in all his life, with the fright and horrour ofthe fight, his tongue loofed, and he brake forth and ctied·w~v3}>w.,,,&c. d 1iiandejlroy not the king, and fo faved his life. Sowriteth he, as ofawonder: and fee, ifthis were not like it. But fo we fee, if there vveteno body elfe to fay it,they that are borne dumbe !hall fay it; yea,rhe deftroyer himfelfe !hall fay ir, rather than 'J'V perda{hall not be faid. This would not ferve (though it did to· .Ahijbai ;) but they were worfe than Abifhai, that were here. That Godtherefore might have the honour ofthe day, he paffed over to rhelattet pmofrhe verfe; and When there was none elfe to doe it, hetookethe matter into his ownehands; him– felfehdd rhe aflife, found him guilty, gave order for his executiqn, fentup one to doe tt; and one,thar formerly had beene his fpeciall friend,and (ifJ be'not deceived) ~wornebrother, as Jqab, to bringAbfalom to his end ; that dejiroyedhim, for not heaung dejlroy not. , And yet the goodneffe of Go n ftayed not here, neither; bot, \vl5-ert in the Text, in Sa,.l'scafe, there was but one blow, one danger, oneddivery: In t~is, there Were no leffethanthree, one afrer anorher. Firfi came Ahi/hai; he and hts armed man: Go n delivered him. Thencametheother theM'!fo" ofthemifchiefe,rhen b~rayed, and (as one bewrayed)defpe,rateiy fet : God againe delivered him. Then la ofall (and that was wor!l: ofall) came the popular tumult, whofe rage knowes Aaaana
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