A Caveat to Prevent Future Judgments, Part 5
Sinne no more.
OVr Sauiour, hauing made this Man whole; here, like a good Phyſitian, tells him what dyet hee ſhould keep, to keepe ſo. The dyet preſcribed is; Sin no more: the meaning is, not as thou haſt done: and ſo he bidds him not to keepe a courſe in ſinne, as before, and not to returne to the vomit which he hath caſt: or, he wiſheth him to looke better to the health of his ſoule, for neglect whereof, he had ſuch ill health in his body; and to take heede that by the ill dyet of ſin he fell not into a relapſe. This may be our Sauiours counſell: where yet he intends not that he can be ſo free from ſin, as that he ſhould neuer fall againe; for that is impoſſible in this mid-vaile: but intimates that his ſickneſſe was the fruit of his ſin:Doct. from whence we may draw this concluſion; that the diſeaſes of the body (for the moſt part) come from the diſeaſe of the minde, cauſed by ſin: and ſo, God correcteth ſin with the whip of ſickneſſe, not alwaies, yet moſt what, and commonly. I ſay not alwaies: for, there are (ſometimes) other cauſes of ſickneſſe beſide ſin, not knowne to vsus, but well knowne to God, Ioh. 9.2.3 yet ſin (ordinarily) is cauſe. The firſt fall gaue vsus this bruiſe, and euer ſince we ſpat blood through or by meanes of it. Indeed, a peace ſince was made betweene God and vsus in the ſeede of the woman, Gen. 3.15. but it neuer reached ſo far as to conclude a peace betweene God and ſin: and he that was contented to be reconciled to ſinners is at emnity with ſin; hence, ſin is the proper and kindly cauſe of Plagues vponupon a whole Nation, or particular perſon; and ſo of ſickneſſes vponupon it, and him. And for generall ſtrokes vponupon a Land, that ſin cauſeth them, it is a plaine caſe in the book of Lamentations: where Ieremy ſhewing what a folly it is for man ſo to vexe himſelf, that is, ſo in vaine by miſ-iudging of his eſtate, helps to winde him out of the by-pathes of ſo foule miſtakes; and directly tells him, that being ſmitten of God, hee ſuffereth iuſtly the puniſhment of his ſin: man ſuffereth for his ſin, Lam. 3.39. but more ſpecially, in the inſtance of ſickneſſes, that theſe alſo come deſeruedly for ſin, beſide the words here, the ſpeech of Chriſt to the ſick of the Palſey, (in which diſeaſe his ſinne held him) doth make plaine as vponupon tables, Mat. 9.26. for, firſt he forgaue him his ſins remouing the cauſe, verſe 2. and then he healed his Palſey, changing the effect, ver. 6. God was comming to Iudah with good things in both hands: but hee turned away: the good came not, which their ſins hindered, and euil things were ſent, which their iniquities were cauſe of, Ier. 5.25. Eliphaz tells Iob, that miſery comes not forth of the duſt, Iob 5.6. and bids him to ſeeke another mother for it, euen the proper mother of miſerie, which is ſin, ver. 3. The rebellious to Gods ordinances (who are foule ſinners) are threatned, for like matter, by the Lord himſelfe, Leuit. 26.15.16. and the Pſalmiſt ſaith that fooles, (by which he meaneth wicked ones) by reaſon of their tranſgreſſion, and becauſe of their iniquities are afflicted, Pſal. 105.17. that is, afflicted with ſickneſſe, and viſited with troubles, Pſal. 89.32. the reaſons: Reaſons
In many things we ſin all, Iames 3.2. and all in ſome: but the leaſt ſin doth, at the beſt hand, deſerue the gentle correction of ſickneſſe, which, hauing the owne due, deſerueth hell and death, Rom. 6.23. Secondly, the euill of puniſhment followeth the euill of ſin: and God cannot make ſuch a breach in his iuſtice, as to ſpare for ſin, when men doe not ſpare to ſin. God is righteous and not mercifull onelyonly: and therefore Dauids ſong to him is of his mercy and iuſtice, Pſal. 101.1. Thirdly, God ſhould doe wrong, if it were not right to viſit mans tranſgreſſion with the rod, and his iniquity with ſtrokes, Pſal. 89.32. but the God of iudgement cannot doe but what iuſt is: and it is iuſt to giuegive to eueryevery mother her owne childe; that is, correction where it is deſerued, and more, where more is due: therefore, God afflicting for ſin, it followeth that ſin is the deſeruing cauſe of that affliction whatſoeuer.
An inſtruction in all we ſuffer, Vſe 1 whether by ſickneſſe, or otherwaies, to confeſſe the right father, euen that which hath begotten all that with the ſeede of ſin: wee muſt confeſſe our ſins to bee cauſe of all, and learne to profit by the hand to amendment. I ſay then: hath God lately croſt vsus in our trades? it is becauſe we traded with ſin: hauehave our fields kept their Sabbaths? it is becauſe we hauehave not kept Gods Sabbaths: hauehave they beene full of weedes? our hearts hauehave been fuller of the weeds of ſin: hath God touched vsus in our bodies? it is, becauſe wee hauehave ſo diſhonored him in our bodies: doth the Land mourne? and may we not ſay, becauſe of Oathes, the Land mourneth? Ier. 23.10. So, for eueryevery ſorrow we muſt ſay; this is our ſorrow; that is, that which we are worthy of, and comes to the right owner, Ier. 10.19. If God lay his finger vponupon vsus, touching vsus, in our eſtate with want, or in our name with diſgrace; nay, if he lay his whole hand vponupon vsus, ſmiting vsus with the calamities of Peſtilence, Famin, or Sword, we muſt cleare the Lord in al, & in al ſay; Righteous art thou O Lord, & iuſt are thy iudgements, Pſal. 119.137. Dauid, when it was told him from the Lord by Nathan, that euil ſhould be raiſed againſt him out of his owne houſe, that the Sword ſhould be laid vponupon it, that his wiues ſhould be defiled, and the childe die, 2. Sam 11.12. pleaded to all this no other defence, but I hauehave ſinned againſt the Lord, verſe 13. And he confeſſeth, that when all thoſe iudgements ſhould come and be executed vponupon him, which God, by his Prophet, had threatned, yet God was free and he in fault. The like confeſſion made Daniel for the people, or rather againſt the people for the Lord, in as fearefull a iudgement as could be executed vponupon a Nation; Dan. 9.5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14. which was, that the Lord was iuſt, and that they had deſerued ſomuch and more: what Dauid & Daniel did in a Plague and calamitie the greateſt vnderunder heauen, that muſt wee doe in like manner, and iuſtifie the Lord in all his iudgements: for, no iudgement is executed, which is not executed for ſin: the law reads the ſentence, and God giues it: if God poure out the dregges of his wrath, it is, becauſe we are frozen in our dregges of ſin, Zeph. 1.12. the earth is filled with cruelty, before God will fill it with water, Gen. 6. and 7. Chap. and Sodom burneth with luſts, before God will burne it with fire, Gen. 18.20. & 19.5.24 25. So Iudah ſerueth ſin, before God will giuegive vp Iudah to ſerue in Babel. Shee will not ſerue the Lord: for 70. yeeres, therefore, ſhee muſt ſerue a ſtrange Lord, in a ſtrange Land. And now for our ſelues of this Nation; the Lord hath lately broken in by a terrible Plague: and ſhall we think other, but that the ſins were ſtrong and maſculine that called for it? and if ſo: ſhould it not make vsus in all that is come, to confeſſe Gods righteouſnes, and our owne open ſhame, becauſe we hauehave ſinned againſt him? Dan. 9.8. ſhould it not make vsus to ſearch and trie our waies, and to turne againe vntounto the Lord? or make vsus to new-caſt our ſelues, that we may be a people, holy to God? Tit. 2.14. If wee doe not, rather, if wee will not, what hope, ſin continuing, (the cauſe of Plagues) but that the effect ſhould follow, great Plagues for ſin? either God muſt looſe his iuſtice, or we periſh, if wee will not be reformed: this was more largely ſpoken of in my Commentary on Pſal. 9 1. ver. 10. the words; there ſhall no euill, &c. Doctrine and Vſes there.
A reproofe of thoſe who being vnderunder the hand of God in their many ſins, Vſe 2 neuer giuegive God glory by confeſſing vntounto him his righteouſneſſe, and their iniquities againſt themſelues, but fret at the rod, and open wide againſt him that ſtriketh with it: ſo did that reprobate, Mat. 25.24. who charged his Lord to be a hard man, and an vnreaſonable taker: one that had a very hard law, a law that reaped where it neuer ſowed: if they doe not what he commandeth, the law is intollerable, and who can helpe it? or, whoſe fault is it but his who ſhould hauehave giuen them better grace? ſo ſay Reprobates; ſo ſaid Cain, and that Gods puniſhment was aboue the fault, Gen 4.13. The Hypocrite, when God laies ſmart vponupon him, and paies him in iuſtice, for iniquity and for ſins, fareth like a beaſt that is ſticked & hal'd with ropes, vſing neither meekenes nor entreaty, but with roaring and ſtrugling, and ſtraining himſelfe doubleth his paine. He neuer conſiders his ſin, in which he is bound faſt vntounto iudgement, but complaines of his puniſhment; alſo, he flutters like a bird in a Net, when God hath caught him: but, what is gotten by ſtrugling thus vnderunder Gods hands? they that are ſo impatient vnderunder the rod, muſt be bound to a forme: and what doe we get by running againſt the rocke and ſtone of offence but a daſhing in fitters, with the Plague-ſore of a tormented conſcience? if (then) we will not bee (as the moſt wicked) when wee are in fault, we muſt humbly (as the moſt penitent) ſubmit when we hauehave to do with the Lord; reuerencing his iuſt law, and cleering him. If hee follow vsus with iudgements, he is iuſt: or, if he reiect vsus, he is iuſt, holy, and righteous. If he take away our corne in the time of harueſt, he may doe it, ſin prouoking him: if hee bring the Plague againe, why may he not, who taking it away in mercy, may in iuſtice, reduce it for ſinne? if he kill with death, we cannot complaine, the wages of ſinne being in our hands, Rom. 6.23. and the iſſues of it in his.
The laſt reaſon perſwading, followeth.