Hezekiahs Recovery, Title page – Errata
HEZEKIAHS RECOVERY. OR, A SERMON, SHEWING what uſe HEZEKIAH did, and all ſhould make of their deliverance from ſickeneſſe.
Firſt preached, and now publiſhed by ROBERT HARRIS, Paſtor of HANWELL.
LONDON, Printed by R.Y. for Iohn Bartlet, at the golden Cup in the Goldſmiths Row in Cheape-ſide. Anno M. DC. XXVI.
TO THE PRESENT READER, ESPECIALly to his once-Hearers about LONDON; THE AVTHOR WISHETH all peace and goodneſſe.
MVch honoured, and reſpected in the Lord; its no time to dwel upon private paſſages, all our ſpare houres are too few for publique prayers and praiſes: Peters Enlargement.of thoſe I have ſaid ſomething already, I only adde this for the preſent. The eſtate of the Church abroad, or States aſſembled at home, challenge our utmoſt performances in that kinde. Of theſe I cannot (indeed, who can?) ſay enough. The mercies of God are wonderfull towards us, as men, as Christians, as Engliſh Chriſtians. When I lay our ſelves by other Nations and Churches, I cannot reade what Moſes ſaid to his Iſrael, and not make it ours. Happy art thou O England, who is like vntounto thee, O People ſaved by the Lord? &c. Deut. 33.29. For what Nation is there ſo great, who hath God ſo nigh unto them (the onelyonly glory of a Nation) as the Lord our God is, in all things that we call upon him for Deut. 4.7. What publique ſuite did we ever preferre that did not proſper? inſtance one; nay judge, what could have beene done more for this Vineyard, that the Lord hath not done in it? Eſa 5.4. If peace be worth thanks, we have had it, if plenty, wee have had it, if victory, wee have had it, if the Goſpel, if all, wee have had all; if wee have loſt anything, thanke unthankefulneſſe, if we looſe more, it will bee our owne fault: for God takes no forfeiture, but what unthankefulneſſe makes. Let us not then ſtand ſtill till the Lord recever his owne from us, as once from Iſrael: but whilſt he bleſſes us, Hoſ. 2.9.1. Chr. 29.14let us preſent him with his owne, and ſhew our ſelves truly thankefull, whilſt he is infinitely bountifull. Now true thankefulneſſe, is not a leſſon ſoone learned; 1. the thing it ſelfe is made up of many parcels: 2. the party that undertakes it muſt be more than a man: David, Pſal. 9.1. intimates ſo much, Pſal. 9when for the matter, hee delivers it in foure parts: foreign unde foreign & foreign, Graec. For of foreign Cyphar ſeemes to come.whereof, the firſt is acknowledgment of God in all, the ſecond, a cypharing and ſumming up of ſpeciall mercies, the third an expreſſion of ſpirituall joy in God, as well as in his gifts, and the fourth, a dedication of our ſongs and ſelves to his Name, Verſ. 1.2. And for the manner, preſſes, 1. integrity, for ſubject & object, Ver. 1.2. ſincerity, for affection and end, Verſ. 2. If then we intend true thankefulneſſe, we muſt ſo ſee Gods Name written upon every token of his love, that withall, wee keepe a regiſter of the chiefeſt, and ſo looke upon the gift, that in it we reliſh the giver, and ſacrifice our ſelves to his Name. Wee bee too ſhort, if wee ariſe no higher than to Gods bleſſings: the bleſſed God is farre and farre beyond all created bleſſings; he is better than health, than wealth, than peace, Iam 1.1.than grace: all theſe be but ſtreames that lead us to the fountain, but beams that guide our eyes to that father of lights, to that Sonne of righteouſneſs, Mal. 4.2.God reconciled, God incarnate; God, made ours by his own gift and goodneſſe, is our peace, our helpe, Pſ. 18.1.2.our health, our life, our every thing, as David can never ſay enough this way: and when wee ſee, and taste, and feele all comfort, ſweetneſſe, happineſſe in him, and there upon unite our ſelves to him, be transformed into him, paſſe into him, as that holy Auſten ſpeakes, and make him our joy, our feare, our trust, our Lord, our food, our houſe, our covering, our all, then, then are we truly thankefull. Let us not then looke upon health, peace, other bleſſings in themſelves, looke upon them as they bee in God; ſee him healing, bleſſing, ſaving: nay looke not ſo much what hee is to us, as what hee is to the whole body, nay, what he is in his Chriſt, nay, what in his bleſſed ſelfe: how glorious, how rich, how good, how far above all creatures, Nch. 9.52.all praiſes, all thoughts: O the pretiouſnes of his thoughts to us! O the height, depth, breadth, length of his love in Chriſt: theſe cannot be fadomed by a David, by a Paul: but O the boundleſſe, bottomleſſe ſea of beauty, glory, excellency, power, wiſedome, goodneſſe, that is in the fountaine it ſelfe! O the matchleſſe ſplendor that is in that un approcheable light, that no mortall eye, no immortall Angell can be hold; here not to looſe our ſelves in admiration, is not to louelove; not to beer apt and raviſhed with the Church, is not to praiſe aright: Aad thus we ſhall never praiſe, till we ſee the great God in the leaſt mercy, Pſ. 51.15.and an univerſall good in particular bleſſings, nay, when wee doe ſo, unleſſe God open the mouth and enlarge the heart, our lips will not praiſe him: therefore we muſt have helpe from God if ever we will ſing to him: Aug.For as no man can define God without God, ſo neyther can he praiſe him. Labour therefore to be ſild with the fulnes of God, with the Word of God, Col. 3.16. with the Spirit of God, Eph. 5.13. with the comforts and goodneſſe of God, and then our mouthes will be full of ſongs, then we ſhall ſing to his Name, as the Prophet ſaith, Pſ. 63.52.magnifie him, live to him, doe all to him, which is true life, true thankefulneſſe. This is that thankeſ giving which here I call upon every Reader to performe, eſpecially upon my ſelfe, and my Chriſtian friends about the City. It hath pleaſed God to wound and heale us as he de did Hezekiah, there are not many of us, who did not (I thinke) receive in our ſelves the ſentence of death, is Hezekiah did: now we are reſtored to life againe, what ſhould we doe, but ſing with him all the dayes of our life? I have begun to you, as I was then able, when God (after perſonall and domeſticall ſickneſſes) brought me into his Houſe; I beſeech you ſecond me, and let not any prejudice fruſtrate my exhortation.
Truth it is, I have not beene able to anſwer your loves, your deſires; but reckon that amongst my croſſes, not my faults: Tis true, I undertooke you with much feare, but that did ſlow frons your ſufficiency, and mine owne inabilities. I left you quickly; tis true, and in ſo doing, if I did not deſerve praiſe, here I am, I did pitry. Beloved, I never had, I never looke to have in this pilgrimage, that comfort in my labours that there I found: What daſhed ſo hopefull beginnings, time will ſpeake when I am ſpeechleſſe. In the meane, I am upon a better argument: When I ſpeake of man, I ſpeake of a poore nothing; I am now in ſpeech of the great King, Pſal 45.1. When I ſpeake of mens infirmities (as needs I muſt, if I will heale my ſelfe) I am raking in a channell; Traducatur nomen ſibi ut appar humanitas domini. Chry. ad Pop. Ant. hom. 12. Aug. de Donatiſt.whilſt I am contemplating Gods excellencies, I am in a garden of ſpices: pardon me, if I preferre this to that; and in caſe I forget my owne name to magnifie Gods, and be content to receive a ſcar, that many may eſcape a wound, hold mee excuſed: it ſuffices mee that wiſedome is ſatisfied. As for wilfulneſſe (which will not yeeld to truth, becauſe tis wedded to fancy, and paſſion) and ignorance, Foelix ſeelus virtus vocarur, & contrà.(which names vertues and vices from the event) they are unſatisfiable. Me thinks this concluſion ſhould content modeſty. If at any time, in any thing I have given offence, I humbly crave a par…on; where none is given, none will bee taken by the charitable: For the reſt, I ſay with that Angelicall man, So Chryſ. of Paul.let them be honeſt, it ſufficeth, though I bee as a reede, 2. Cor. 1.17. as a Reprobate, 2. Cor. 13.7. And now my worthy friends, let mee proceede in my exhortation. Should I not love you, I were not a man: for your love to mee hath exceeded all deſert and expectation; and all the while ſome (by occaſion of your call) have gamed more by my poore labours, than I can poſſibly looſe, I have no reaſon to repent me of this acquaint ance, but more abundant cauſe of bleſſing God, and loving you; only whereas I could not here to fore in perſon correſpond as was fit, let me at leaſt in writing make that expreſſion of my love, that I am able, before I goe the way of all fleſh. Now what expreſſions can be expected from a Preacber, but praiers, praiſes, exhortations, &c? When you dyed, I prayed for you as I could: now you live, I rejoice with you, and call upon you to ſing with me. And whereas (as tis well noted) we uſually are beſt when worſt, Optimos eſſe nos dum infirmi ſumus. Pli.ep.l.…. Max. Tales eſſe ſani perſeveremus, & cibib.and live beſt when wee dye faſteſt, I call upon you, as upon my ſelfe, to remember) your ſelves, and not only caſt (as the Heathen teaches) how to hold your owne, but rather to exceed. I ever dealt freely with you, let me not now alter. Famce ſaith, that London is as couetous, as proud, as wanton, as ſecure as ever. I cannot beleeve it: it is almoſt impoſſible, that ſo great a judgement, ſo gracious a deliverance ſhould ſo ſoone be buryed. Alas (London) thou haſt as yet ſcarce buryed thy dead: the noiſe of bels, the cry of parents, the ſcrichings of thy widdowes are not yet out of thine cares, the grim face of death ſtands yet in thy ſight, thy bloudy wounds are ſcarcely ſtanched as yet: If thou couldſt forget judgements, thou canſt not bee unſenſible of Gods mercies and thy change. If London ſhould, yet doe not you (Beloved,) let others ſecurity bee your feare, others impenitency your ſorrow; and the leſſe others take to heart Gods great, Gods remarkeable workes, by ſo much the more doe you improve the ſame to all holy purpoſes. More would I ſay to you, but that I have prevented my ſelfe in my more publique exbortation; both that and this (more privately ſpoken out of my ſpeciall relation and affection to you) I now commend to your ſerious conſideration and Gods bleſſing, who alone can ſpeake to the heart, beſeeching him, Aug. in Ioh. op. Minatur poenas, ac poenas inferat. Theod, in Exe. cap. 7.who therefore threatens that hee may not ſmite, to give us cies to ſee plagues afarre off, and hearts to profit by leſſe, that we may not feele plagues yet ſeven times more, yet ſeven times worſe than all yet felt, Lev. 26. Amen.
Hanwell, March 20. Yours ever in the Lord, ROB. HARRIS.
GEntle Reader, I entreate thee correct theſe faults (being the most materiall) with thy pen.
In the Epiſt. pag. 1. l. 8. read our. p. 4. l. 9. for here r. fure. ib. in marg. r. ſervi. In the Serm. p. 16. l. 23. r. no more. p. 22. marg. r. Videatur. p. 26 l. 11. r. Noble Hezekiah. p. 29. marg. l 8. & to. r. quod. p. 33. l. 11. r. finnefull povertie. p. 41. marg r. Tacuimus. p. 42. marg. for vol. r. Reg. p. 43. l. 29. r. much.