Chap. 3 5. an Ix ìo frion rem the 13oekef I o B. Verf. 12. Lord is not far from any of ús as men, for in hten we live, move, and have our being,( v. 28.) and he givethw all life, andbreath, and all things, for the f ipport of life and natural being ; but he is far from all proud men, as to any complacency in their perfons, and as to the hearingof their prayers.He is far from hearing them, and hi knows them a far oil, (Pfal.t 38. 6.) that is, he deals with them as with men at a di(lance. Thus the Lord told the impeni- tents among hi..; own people by,the Prophet, (1fa. 1.1 ç.) 7hough you mkmany prayers, -I will not hear, for your hands are full of blood. Ye are full of bloody fins, and ye have not humbled your (elves, nor cleanfed your hearts and hands by the blood of the Covenant to thisday ; -and being in that cafe, you may cry and pray till your hearts ake,, and your tongues ake too, yet no pre- vailing with God, no grant, no hearing. Another Prophet tells themas fad newes from the Lord, ( Ter. t t. II.) Behold, I will firing evil upon them, which they fhall net be able to efcape, ( or, go forthof) and though they fhall cry unto me, I will not hearken to tbem.Though the Lord thteatned,Ï,'ill bring fótch evil.upon them, that they (hall not efcape ; they might fay, well, but when the evil bath taken hold of us,we hopeGod will hear us, and deliver us. No, faith God, when the evil bath overtaken and arreffed you, yet your prayers (hall not overtake me ; Thoughyou sry,yet 'will not hearken unto you. That's a dreadful Scripture of the fame im- port, ( Plat. 18.41. ) They cryed , but there was none tofave them : even unto the Lord, but he anfwered them not. They cryed being in great diarefle, and they cryed to the Lörd ; he brings in thatleft any fhould fay, they cryed indeed, but poffibly 'twas to `falfe gods, to idols, poffibly they knockt at a wrong doore, and fo were not. heard : No, they cryed to the Lord, to the, Lord by name ; they were right as to the objea . of prayer, but their hearts were not right ; they were not right fubje&s of prayer. That once blind man faw this truth, when anfweting the Pharifees about the perfon by whofe power he received his fight; he told them plain- ly, ( rob. 9. 31.) We know that God heareth notfingers ; that is, Such as love and live in fn, firth as go on ampenttently in theirfoss. By this anfwer heclofely,but flrongly confused that blafphemous opinion and cenfure of the Pharifees, who reputed and reported the Lord JesusChrifl, who came into the world to fave ûnners, as oneof the vileft fingers in the world, and upon that account
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