63z è laffer greenhorns 74aclings Further, weemay herein defirethe Lord to affoord !entente with vs,when our auk is good, thoughwee benot fovpright in defending it, aswee oughtto be,or when our good caufe is well handled;andthat not forour felues,but inrefpe& ofouraduerfaries ill caufe, hewould deliuer vs:Wherefore whenwewill obtaine our requefts,weemull endeuouras muchasin vslieth,tooffer agoodeaufevntothe Lord,andwell handled. Verf.r fo. Theydrawneere,thatfollowafter malice,andarefarrefrom thy taw. Vedas t. Tboseart neere,OLord:farad thy commandement, are true. IV ]F(hewed before, that themanofGod to theobtaining ofhisrequeft vfeththree v efpeciali arguments : the one drawee from his perfon in the firft föure verlese the otherfrom theperfon ofGod inthe fife verle :the third andTaft fromtheperfon ofhis aduerfaries,containedin thefe twoverfes. The plaine link whereof briefly is thusmuch: They,O Lord,that hauean ill caufe,are readie to bringtheir wiekednes to an end ;and as they arereadie to hurtme,fo they are farre from thy law : wiltthou-then mantaine filch they beingfoneere my necke ? No,they are no more neereto hurt,than thouart neere to. definer me ; they arenot neerer with malice, than thou art with deliueranee. Thus Lee drawethawayhiseonfiderationfrom the judgement of flefhand blood,and looked: down tohiswatch -tower, and tothe Lordhisfan&uarie. O Lord, faith he, I haue cried, Ihaue called upon thee,and that with mine whole heart yI preuented themorning light,and the night-watehes;lwaited on thyword,I Meditatedon thy word;Ihaue obferued thy judge- ments ofold:whenI gin thusneere,wilt thou forfake me ? They are farre from thyword,; rank thou kaue them vnpunifhed s no,thouart neere theirpunifhtnent,and my define-, ranee. I know as theydepart from thee,lo they (hall not efeape vnpunifhed in the end, becaufe their finne is cometo filch rìpenes,asthy iufticecan no longer fullerthem. It is a greattnnptation toGods children,whreh halewalkedvprightly and kept agood confcience,thatthe wickedfhould flit/be tree their nukes. Wherefore ifany filch thing hereafterhappen to vs,wee muttnotbedifeomforted,.or thinke it veryftraoge, feeing we fee thismanofGodwas notwithout it it is no new thing, wee mutt becontent, feeing God bath fo dealt aforetimeswith.tnanyofhis children: Oh What great caufe ofthankl; giving now haue we,that hauingmuchmore delerued tohaue our enemies trample sport vs,than others ofGods Saints,haucnotwithftanding fo long time been debarred ? Andif itcometoyalie that in timewe cometo thehke temptation, let vs labour to beprofitable in thelike tneditation.For flefhandblond thinkeitftrange,that wicked teen fhould flou- rifh in the defending an ill caufe,and that goodmen fhould betroden downefor main- taining a good caulè. This troubledJob, David, Jeremie and Habactecl,,m fee that Gods peoplefhouldbe fo tempted. Wherefore whenwee feethe generation ofGods children condemned,and thegenerationofthewicked iuftified,we muff call ro minde this or lush likemeditations:Seeing thouhaftborne with mineenemiesfo long,it is now theday time to punifh. The caufenowwhy the wicked flourilh fo long, and why the Lorddeferred) to helpe hischildren is,thac the wicked may either bfr his long (offering come to repentance, or elfe be leftexcufelefle : Yea afterhe often ftaiethtopowreforth Illsvengeance,becaufe » their finnes arenot accomplifhed, and their inïgpitie is not come to thefull height,mea- » lure and number, and that his children might haue their ferret finnes punilhed here, i. to ,, humble them; to allure them to obedience, to trie their faith,to prouetheirpatience, to »worke in them a contempt of this world, and a defire ofthe world tocome: fo thatthat which they fuffervniuftly amen, iuftly they filer ofGod. Andwhen Gods children doe not thus profit, the Lordinmercie will let the rod flill tarriè 'Ton them, vntill theyhaue profited in fomegood meafure. Thus we kettle iuttice ofGodwill not fullerhimtopunifh, vntilh finnebe cometo the full,and the loueofGodwill not leaueto corral his, vntihl there growforeprofit ; and yet lo,as inthematic time thechildrenofGod fuftaine no lofle,becaufewhatloeuer they outwardly foie, theyinwardly gaine. Wherefore feeing theLordbath promifed, that the redofthe wickedfhallnot fall an the lot ofthe righteous: and that our temptation.fhal notbe greater
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy OTcyMjk=