4 Mr. Calamys Sermon 2. This perplexity was not only real, but exceeding great : Iam ina great firait : and there are two things made this fo great. T. The greatness ofthe punifhments propoCed, Famine, Sword, and Nape : thee are the three Befoms with which God fweeps mankind rom offthe Earth : thefe are Gods three iron Whips , by which he chaftifeth finful man : thefe are the three arrows (hot out of the quiver of Gods wrath, for thepunifliment ofman, they are as one calleth them, Tonfiinehominigeneris. In Rev. 6. you (hall read of four Hodes when the four firft Seals were opened,-a white horfe, a red horfe, a black horfe, and a pale horfe : after Chrift had ridden on the white horfe propagating the Gofpel, then follows the red horfe, a type of War, then theblack horfe an Hieroglyphick of Fa- mine : then the palehorfe, theemblem of Peflilence.. NowGod was refolved to ride on one of there horfes, and Davidmuff choofe upon which God fhould ride : this is a great firait : Let me preCent Davids lifting np his eyes to heaven, and fpeaking to God thus: 0 my God, what is this meffage thou haft fent me ? thou offereit me three things : I am in a ftrair, I know which to refute, but which to choofe I know not : the Land of Canaan, a land flowing with milk and honey, (hail this Land endure feven years famine, and be turned into a wildernernels, and dif-peopled ? and (hall I, whole hands thou haft taught to fight , and whofe fiugers to war, (hall that hive filbdued all my enemies, flail I in my old age, and all my Captains; fly thi ee moneths before our enemies, and be driven to caves and rocks .to hideour felves ? 0 thou my God, who art my refuge, (hall I and my people be a prey to the peflilence, that walk- eth in darknefs and defiruffion, that walketh at noon-day ? 0my God, I know not what to do, Iam in agreat Trait. 2. The fecond reafon why this 'trait was fo great,was, becaufe of the guilt of fin that lay onDavids fpirit : for Davidknew that this fevere rneffage was the fruit of the fin he committed in numbering the people.. But youwill fay, Why, was it a fin in David to number the people ? Mofes had often numbred the people, three times, and it was not counted fin. Pfephns anfwereth, the fin of David was, becaufe he did not require the half (hekel, which he was to have had from all that were numbred, Exod. 30.12, 13. Others fay he finned in numbering all ages, whereas, he was to number but from twenty years : but thefe are but conjeaural Reafons. I conceive the fin of David was becaufe he did it with- out a lawful call, and for an unlawful end Sine caufa legitima : he finned in. themanner rather then in the matter for there was no caufe.
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