Chap. 3 t. An ..E:xpofition upon the Booke of J O B. Vert. 6. get or co: quer it by their power, But God ( whore the earth i5, and the fuhnes oric ) gave it to them ; therefore they ought to give forn: of the fruits of it to their- poore and needyBret hr,n. ' And while the Lord warms them not to harden their heart, nor to film their hands awinfl them,his meaning is, that they fhould be free and liberal ro the poore and with openheart and hard give them their defire.Thus the Lord explaines his own meaning (y. a a.) Thepoore/hall never ceafe out of the land:therefore Icorn. 'nand thee,faying,thou/halt (not onlynot to (hut but) open thine 'hand wide unto thybrcther, to thy poore, and to thy needy in the land. God could m!,ke all men rich, but he will have tome poore that the charity of the rich may be exercifed. The grace of cha. rity would be idle, and (as it were ) have a perpettiall vacation, did not the providence of God provide fuch objeels for it to work: upon. And as God by Afofes in the Law told the Jewes, The poore fhall never ceafe out f theLand ; foChrift tells us in the Carpel ( Mark 14. 7. ) Te have thepoore with you alwayes,and whenfeever ye wit1,ye may doe them good. Godbath fo ordered ir, that we (hail neve-r want opportunity, though we often want hearts to expreffe our charity. And left any fhould thinke the poore (becaule ponibly not oftheir kindred)un-related to them, therefore the Lord (in that placeof Desterenemie)calls the poore, man ourBrother,and our poore,Thou fhait open thyhand wide un- to thy Rrûther, to thy peore,and thy needy in the land, which though, is had (l grant) a peculiar refpeti to that people,whowere Gods peculiar people, and all Of Abraham, family, yet it reacheth all people, who are all() toaccount the poore their Brethren, and fo their poore, evenas their neereft relations are theirs. Yea the Lord calls the poore our owne flelh ( Ifa. 5. 7.) And that thou hide not thy felfe from thine ownefiefh, As if he had fayd ; Doe not withdraw, and pun backe doe not difappeare when the poore man appearee, for he is not only fiefh as thou art, but thine owne tiefh. And fo if thou fuffereft the poore to peria, thou fuffereft thy relfe, even thine owne flerh (inkinde though not innumber) to pain). That Maxime ofthe Apolite ('Eph. 5. 29.) is founded innature ; 2K2man ever hated bis ownefie/h, but nourilheth and cherifberlo it. Are not they unnatural!, who refute to nourith and cheri(h the poore, whom the Spirit of God calls our own flelh ? And if luth declare againft themfelves (according to this rule ) than
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