Ioo Chap. 30.- 4n Expo/ition upon the Broke of f o a. Verf. ire unto thyfervant. Thus Solomon' cord was loofed, andhisfervant loofed the bridle before him. As for his fon and fucceffour. Rrhoboans, God loofed his chard while he, following the counfel of ,the young men refolved to flraiten theirs ; attempting to make theme flaves, he loft them as fob wise and they.threw up the bridle profeffedly and daringly before his face, (s Kings 12. 16.) So whenall Ifraelfaro that the King barknednot unto them, the peopleanfoered the King, .fit ying, What portion have we in David ? neither have we inheritance in thefon r f 7rjre toyour tents, O Ifrael : nowfee to thineown boufr, .David fo Ifrael departed unto their tents. If ever any people, furely thefe loofed the bridle before their Princes face. And all this was of God, in ¡dgement, for the great fins wherewith So- lomon had provoked him. There is a fpirit of p. ide and difobedience in man ready to throw off the bridle ofChrifts government, who is fee as King by the m ghty hand ofGod, upon the holy hil of Sion, Mal 2. 1; 2. ) why doe the heathers rage, and the people imagine artaine. thing ? The kingsof theEarthjet themfelves, and the rulers take counfel together, againfl the Lord, and again,jl bit anointed,fajing, Let P.4 breake their bands afunder, and raft away their cordsfrom its. Thus the unruly fons ofmen,both Princes and people would quite lay afide Chrift, and breake all the bands and coards by which he reftrains &. governs them. Howmuchmore when God loofeth the cordofearthly Princes,will their people let !mire the bridle, and breake all bands ? nothing (hall hold them. It is For, brit, the power and foveraignty, norfecondly, the wifdome and policy of Princes, nor thirdly, their riches, nor fourthly, their friends and alliances that can keepe up the peoples reverence and refpee` to them,if once God withdraw from them. Some Princes have hoped and projee ed tohold their fubjedsunder by power, and policy, by Armies at home and confederacies abroad, yet couldnot doe it ; Ml thefe cords have been broken (as Samp/in brake the withs and ropes withwhich the Philiftines bound him) as a thread oftow is br. ken when it touchetb (or finelleth) the fire. How is it imaginable that fo.many hundred.thoufands of men fhould fubmit themfelves to the power ofone, or of a fewmen, unleffe God werein it ? Therefore, to fbut up this poynt,I fball. cedyadde thefe two words ofcounfel to Magifirates. Firft,
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