14 242. Chap. r9, An £xpojition upon the Book;,of JOB. Veil, r, r7`li1 wert i'e(tationrm ab atiguo apere ant officio, ture, to depart or turne from God, when we neglect his wor- fhip, or when we act any luft, efpecially unbeleefe, Heb. 3, 12. And becaufe the people of Godde to draw neere unto him thus, and 'tis never fo well with them as when they doe fo ; therefore all the people ofGod, are called Gods nigh ones. (Pf tl. 148.14. ) He al7o exalteth the borne of hispeople, the praife ofail his Saints, even of the children of Ifrael ; a people neere unto him ; All the Saints are (as we may fay) Gods kindred (it is this word) a people neere to bim.Our kinsfolke are neere to us. How great a priviledge is it to be neere God, or of kinne to the moll High ? My kjnsfolk,efaile. Friends faile. Fitff, In number when they die, that was not cob's meaning. Secondly, There is a failing in courtefie; thushis kinsfolke failed ; they ceafed to performe the office of kindred tohim ; as. Ruth's kinfrrirn did, ?ob had many of his kindred living, but none in whom kindneffe lived. He had many kinsfolke, but few friends. My kinsfolke,faile. .3`ndmyfamiliar friends haveforgotten me. Familiar friends are expreffed in the Hebrew, by the fame word which was before tranflated acquaintance; onely with a littledifference, this is active, the other pafì'ive as ifhis acquain- tance were rather knowne by him, then knew hini.and hisfa_ miliarfriends knewhim more then they were knowne by him. Familiar friends are fuch as we daily or very frequently con- verfe with. We fay, Out offight, out ofminds. It feemes7ob'i friends raft l imout of their mind, while they were in his light. Forgetfulneffe is the abfence of a thing or perfon from our minds. Memory is the treafury of the minds ; forgetfullneffe exhaufts that treafury. civíyfamiliarfriends, faith lob, Haveforgottenme. Poffibly force of them forgot that they had fuch a friend, but all of them forgot him as a friend, they forgot all the courtefies and kindneffes that ever they received from him, as alto all the kindneffes and courteties that ever they profef- fed to him. Againe,
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