The Golden Scepter Held Forth to the Humble, Treatise · Doctrine 6
Come we now to the last words. And I will heale their land.WE have these three points may be observed out of them.
1. That all calamities and troubles proceede from Doct. All calamity is from sin.sinne; this I note from the order of the words: hee first forgives their sinnes, then heales their land.
2. That if calamities bee removed, and sinnes be not forgiven; they are removed in judgement, not in mercy.
3. That if sinne bee once forgiven, the calamity will soone be taken away.
For the first, all calamity is from sinne, troubles from transgression. In the chaine of evills, sinne is the first linke that drawes on all the rest; as grace is in the chaine of blessings and comforts. Consider this in all kinds of judgements, which wee may reduce to three heads.3 Kinde of Iudgemen…
1. Temporall calamities, about the things of this life, they are all from sinne, both publike and private. What was the reason of Salomons troubles? The Lord stirred up an adversary against him, because hee departed from the Lord, and had set up idolatry: so the sword departed not from Davids house, because of his sinne with Bathsheba, and the murther of Vriah. So Asa, 2 Chron. 16. 2 Chron 16the Prophet tels him, Hence forth thou shalt have warre, because thou hast not rested on the Lord. I could give a hundred instances for this.
2. Sort of judgements are spirituall, which are much more grievous than the former; when a man is given up to his lusts, and to hardnesse of heart: and this proceedeth from some other sinnes that went before; and it is a sure rule, that you never see a man given up to worke uncleannesse with greedinesse, or to such open scandalous sinnes, but the first rise of it was his unconscionable walking with God in secret, as the Apostle Paul sayes of the Gentiles. Rom. 1. 20. to 24. That because when they Ro. 1. 20, 24.knew God, they glorified him not as God, God gave them up to vile affections, So Psal. 80. 11, 12. But my people would not bearken, and Israel would none of mee: Psal. 80. 11, 12.So I gave them up to their owne hearts lusts, and they walked in their owne counsels. As if he had said, I used all the meanes: they still refused, and would none of me, and therefore I gave them up. Seest thou a man given up to a lust, his heart so cemented to it, as hee cannot live without it? know this is in judgment to him for some unconscionable walking before, and not practising according to his knowledge.
3 There is yet a judgement beyond these, when the Lord forsaketh the creature, and withdrawes himselfe from a man; which though men doe little account of, is the fearefullest of all others. The losse of Gods presence is a losse unvaluable. Take a man that makes wealth or honour his God, take that prop from him, and how doth his heart sinke within him? how much more, when the true God shall bee departed from a man? that God that is the God of all comfort, if hee bee withdrawne, the heart sinks into a bottomlesse pit of horrour; as when the Sun is gone, all things run into darknesse. All comfort is from some measure or degree of Gods presence, though men doe not take notice of it; which when it is taken away, there remaines nothing but horrour and despaire: when God was departed from Saul, 1 Sam. 16. hee from that day 1 Sam. 16.ranne into one errour after another, in his government, till hee was destroyed; and the cause of this was sinne; he had cast off the Lord, and therefore the Lord rejected him. The like was Caines case, Gen. 4. His judgement was, to bee banish'd from Genesis 4.the presence of the Lord, which hee acknowledgeth to be an insupportable punishment, which hee was not able to beare.
When any trouble is upon thee, sticke not in the Vse 1. To see sin in all troubles.rind and ba…ke of it, but looke through it and beyond it, to the inward root of it; looke to sinne as the cause, and thou shalt finde it so: it may bee the immediate cause and instrument may bee some outward thing, some enemy of thy disgrace, some sicknesse, &c. but who hath permitted them to worke? is it not the Lord? and what is the motive of his permission but sinne? men may have many severall motives to doe this or. that, but nothing moves the Lord but sinne and grace. When an enemy comes upon thee, say not, this man is the cause of this evill, but the Lord hath suffered him to worke, and sinne hath occasion'd this suffering, 2 Chron. 12. 5, 7. Shishak was but the violl, through 2 Chr. 12. 5, 6, 7.whose hands God powred out his wrath; so I may say, sicknesse is but the violl, it is the Lords wrath that is powred out in it. Amend this common errour, that men are ready to seeke out the naturall causes of the evils that befall them: if it bee sickenesse, they looke to such a distemper in diet, or cold, &c. as the cause of it: so if they miscarry in any enterprize, what folly and oversight hath beene the cause of it? These are but the naturall and immediate causes, but Christians should looke to and seeke out to the supernaturall. When there came a famine upon the land of Iudah for three yeares, 2 Sam. 21. 1. the naturall cause was evident, which 2 Sam. 21. 1was a great drought (for that famine was healed by raine afterwards) and so in those hot countries famine came by drought alone, but David rests not here, but went to the Lord, and enquired out the reason, the sinne that should bee the cause of it: And God told him it was for the sinne of Saul, and his bloudy house in slaying the Gibeonites: as wise statesmen, when they find a meane person in a treason, they rest not there, but seeke further what deepe heads was in the businesse, and who was the contriver of the plot. When Iacob saw the Angels descend and ascend, he lookes to the top of the ladder, and saw the Lord there sending them to and fro. Looke not to the stayres of the ladder, one or two that are next to thee, but to the top of the ladder, and there thou shalt see the Lord sending one Angell to do thee a mischief, another to be a Saviour to thee. If you say, how shall I know for what sinne it is? Pray earnestly, and enquire as David did, and as Ioshua did, when he saw the people flie before their enemies, that God would reveale to thee the particular sinne; and if thou canst not find out the particular sin (for it may bee some sin long ago committed, or some secret sinne) yet be sure that sin is the cause of it; for as in the works of nature, we know the vapours arise out of the earth, and ascend invisibly, but come downe againe in stormes and showers which we are able to see, and are sensible of; so the judgements may be open and manifest enough, but not the sins, but some secret sin that past by thee without notice taken is the cause of it.
Learne hence to see sinne in its owne colours; Vse 2. Sin hard to find out.sinne is a secret and invisible evill, and in it selfe as abstractly considered, is hard to be seene of the best: therefore looke upon it as it is cloathed with calamities; and when you view it under the cloathing, you will have another opinion of it than you had before. If you should know a man, who, whersoever he comes, doth nothing but mischiefe, poysons one, stabs another, &c. and leaves every where some prints of his villany; how hatefull and terrible would he be unto you? it is sin that playes all these reaks among us; if sin come upon a man cloathed and armed with Gods wrath, as it often doth at death, then it is terrible. Why do we not look upon it thus at other times, but because we doe not behold it in the fearefull effects of it, as then in the wrath due to it we doe? Sin is the same at all times else, but our fancy is not alwaies the same, as the body is alwayes the same, though the shadow bee greater or lesser: that which we now count a small sinne, as swearing, and petty oaths, will one day bee terrible; such a sinne as was committed by Ananias and Sapphira would seeme small, it may be, to you in it selfe alone, but see it cloathed with that judgement that befell them dying at the Apostles feete; so see the sinne of Ahabs oppressing Naboth, which you may looke at but as doing a little wrong to a poore man, by a great man, but see it cloathed with Ahabs death, and the dogs licking his bloud, and it will appeare to be most hainous; so the prophanenesse of Nadab and Abihu, offering strange fire.
Learne, that if you would remove the crosse, you must remove the sinne first. You may observe Vse 3. How to remove crosses.it in diseases, that twenty medicines may bee used, and yet if you hit not right upon the cause of the disease, the patient is never the better; but if that be removed, the symptomes presently vanish: so when some crosse is upon us, wee set our heads, and hands, and friends aworke to remove it, but all in vaine, whilst wee hit not the cause, and that is sinne, which whilst it continues, the crosse will continue.
The reason why our peace and prosperity is entertained with so many crosses and troubles is, because our lives are interwoven with so many sinnes. The cause of Gods unevennesse in his dispensations of his mercy towards thee, is the unevennesse of thy carriage towards him. Hast thou a healthfull body, a sure estate, many friends? Thinke not that these shall secure thee: see Adam in paradise, Salomon in his glory, David on his mountaine, which hee thought made strong; and you shall see Adam, when sinne had made a breach upon him once, quickly made miserable; and sinne bringing in upon Salomon an army of troubles after it; and upon David in the height, sin bringing in upon him the hazzard of his kingdome, the rebellion of his sonne: sinne in a mans best estate makes him miserable, and grace in the worst estate makes a man happy. Saint Paul with a good conscience was happy in prison, David through faith was happy at Ziglag.
But you will say, how is it, that calamities thus Object.follow upon sinne? wee feele no such thing: and thus because it is deferred, the hearts of men are set to doe evill.
All this is to bee understood with this caution, that sinne when it is perfected, brings forth death, Resp.and not till then. God stayed till Ahab had oppressed Naboth, and gotten possession, and then when he was seene, God sends the message of death to him, What, hast thou killed, and also taken possession? Thus Iudas, he was a thiefe whilst he kept the bag, and went on in many sinnes in Christs family, and Chri stlets him alone, and he goes on till hee had betrayed his Master; and then when his sinne was perfected, and come to its full ripenesse, then at last CHRIST comes with judgement upon him. There is a certaine period of judgement, and if the Lord stay execution till then, thou hast little cause to comfort thy selfe, Eccles. 8. 11, 12. Because sentence Eccl. 8. 11, 12against an evill worke is not speedily executed, therefore the hearts of men are set to doe evill: As if the wise man should have said, Goe to you, you that have peace, and comfort your selves in this, that whatsoever the Word and the Ministers threatten, yet you feel nothing; yet remember that as soon as the sin is committed, the sentence goeth forth, (& therefore he useth the word sentence to expresse this) though it bee not so speedily executed, yet it goes forth at the same time with the commission of the sinne. The sentence, you know, is one thing, the execution another; and many times there is (and so may be here) a long distance betwixt the sentence of the Iudge, and the execution of it: So as his meaning is, that execution is deferred. Therefore flatter not your selves; sentence is gone forth, and execution will follow. For the amplification of this, that vision of Zachary seemes to make it good, Zach. 5. When swearing Zach. 5. 2, 3and theft had beene committed, Verse 3. Hee saw a flying roule, Verse 2. Which Verse the 3. is interpreted to be the curse that goeth over all the earth, for him that stealeth and sweareth, Verse 3. which curse may bee upon the wing long ere it seizeth on the prey: but it goes forth as soone as those sinnes were committed, that is, the execution may be deferred: which is there further shewed in the parable of the Ephah, which sets out (as there) the measure of the peoples iniquities, for so, Verse 8. he sayes, this is wickednesse, which untill it be filled, hath not the weight of leade laid upon the mouth of it, it being a long while ere God comes to execution, and not till their sinnes are full, the plummet of leade being laid; as it signifies that then their sins are sealed up, with the waight of leade rolled upon them, that none might be lost or forgotten, but God remembers them all: and then hee saw two women come, and the wind was in their wings, Verse 9. that is, when their sinnes are thus full, and their measure sealed up, their judgement comes swiftly like the winde, and carries it into Shinar, and there this wickednesse is set upon its owne base, that is, in its proper place, a place of misery, as hell is said to bee Iudas his owne place. Sinne may sleepe a long time, like a sleeping debt, which is not call'd for and demanded for many yeares: but if a man hath not an acquaintance, the creditor may call for it in the end and lay the debtor in prison. It was forty yeares after Sauls slaying of the Gibeonites ere execution went forth, and vengeance was call'd for it. So Ioabs sin which he committed in slaying Abner (which was slaying innocent bloud) slept all Davids time, til Salomon came to the crowne.
Doe not therefore as ill husbands in debt, that suffer the suite to runne on from tearme to tearme, till they bee out-law'd, and pay both debts and charges, and all. Thy sinnes are a bringing swift damnation, and it slumbers not: it is on foote already, and will overtake thee, and meete at thy journeyes end, the end of thy dayes. Let it therefore be thy wisedome to take up the suite and compound the matter with God betimes, else thou shalt not onelyonly pay the debt and smart for the sin it selfe, but for all the time of Gods patience towards thee, the riches of Gods patience spent, and beare all the arrerages, Rev. 2. I gave her space to repent, but shee repented not; Revel. 2.God meant to make her pay for all the time he gave her to repent in.