Caryl - Houston-Packer Collection BS1415 .C37 v10

Chap, 34, An Expofixionatpon the BoolZ,of J ò B. Verf. 6. 5 2 The Lord may, and dothtake liberty to (oil thofe grievoufly, who have notfinnedgreatly. There is no man liveth and linnethnot, yet everyman is nor ( in aria fenfe ) a fitter, that is, a great (inner, a rebell, aworker of iniquity ; yet the Lord when 'Lis needful! giveth them great wounds, who have not ( comparatively ) finned greatly. Though no fin fllould be little in our eye, yet there are degrees of fin, and fome are leffe thenothers in the eyeboth of God and man. Elihu chargethJob , not asfaying he had no fin , but becaufe he complained his wounds were great, though his fins were not; or that there was not a due proportion between his offence and his puniflunent, his fins and his fufferings. Hence note, Fourthly. Though the Lord taketh liberty to affliîl thofegreatly thathave notfinnedgreatly, yet they muft not take liberty to complaine of the greatnefs of their of !lions, how little foever their fins have been. A gracious heart lookes upon the leaf of hismercies, asgrea- ter then the greatefl of his good defervings, and upon the grea- ter of his fufferings, as leífe then the lean of his ill defervings or demerits. And furely ( befides that liberty which God bath, as he is fupreame,and foveraigne, to afflict whom he will, and in what degree he will we mull know,thar,the leali fin deferves the greatefl wound. An evil! thought deferves all the evil! that can be heaped upon us. Whatfoever we fuller on this fide hell is lefs then the leafy of our fns. And therefore if we have reafon to con- fefíe our little fins great, and our greateft wounds little, compa- red with our little fins ; howmuch more íhould we confelhe our great futferings little,compared with our great fins,as the Church did ( Ezra g. 13. ) After ail that is comeupon us (our long and hard bondage in Babylon) for our evill deeds, and for our great trefpaffe, thou 0Lord, haft punifhed us lefféthen oar iniquities de- ferve. Further, from the whole verfe, in that Elihuchargeth with thefe fverall fyings. Obferve , Finn. agood trans,fayings are often `t worfe thenhis meanings, y y EliT t6

RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=