Meditation on Mans Mortality, Verse 13 – Verse 14
VERS. 13. Returne, ô Lord.—
THE second Petition followeth, wherein the Prophet prayeth for divine comfort and consolation, by reconciliation unto God, and the sweet effects and fruits thereof: that God would be pleased to minister comfort unto him and to his Church by being pleased to be reconciled in mercy unto them, and by giuing them a liuely sense of the same.
Whence out of the Order that the Prophet vseth here, we may note by the way;
That in the sense of Gods wrath for sinne wee must first desire wisedome, and all the effectuall meanes thereof, that is, the true knowledge and understanding to do Gods will, and to please him, before we desire that he should be reconciled unto us, or expect any drop of sound comfort from him. It is senselesse and against common reason, that in the sense of Gods wrath we should desire or hope for his favour, and yet continue in our folly and wicked courses still. And yet this is the course that most men take, when they lie under any judgement of God; they can call for & hope for mercy and fauour, and pray God to helpe them: but in the meane while they hauehave no desire nor purpose to seeke after true wisedome, that is, the sure and certaine meanes whereby to please God. But if ever in the sense of Gods wrath thou desire that God should be reconciled unto thee, desire first that thine heart may bee applyed unto wisedome.
Now in this Petition of divine Consolation he prayeth;
1. For the grace of Reconciliation itselfe.
2. For the feeling and effectuall fruits of it.
The reconciliation of God to them is noted out principally by two termes;
1. Of returning,
2. Of repenting.
First, Hee prayes the Lord to returne againe: therein resembling God to one that turneth his backe toward us, and in his anger is gone away, and departed from vsus. Whence
1. Wee may note a difference betweene Gods Child and the wicked. The wicked they in their heart desire the Lord in this life to goe farre from them: and they are best content when they thinke God farthest off them. But the Children of God are otherwise affected. This is their greatest misery and woe in this life, when the Lord is farre off them, and when he hides his face from them. They are not so deeply affected with the absence and departure of any, as of God. You shall see in many places of the Psalmes, how Dauid complaines Psal. 13. 1. And 27. 9. And 88. 14. And 143. 7.of nothing more then this.
2. As the Children of God desire nothing more then the face and presence of God: so when God turnes his face from them, and is departed, they easily discerne it, and hauehave lightly a sense and feeling of it; so that as they are able to discerne and feele his presence, so hauehave they a liuely sense and feeling of his absence. And those that never felt the one, cannot possibly feele the other, they that complaine not of his absence, never felt his comfortable presence.
3. Note the effect of sinne even in Gods owne Children. It makes the Lord in their owne sence and apprehension to hauehave forsaken them, and to be gone away from them. And if he bee gone, all blessings are gone with him; and nothing can appeare but terrors and cursings.
4. In that he calls vponupon the Lord not to come, but to returne; that is to say, to come backe againe to the place from whence hee is gone: it shewes, that Gods people hauehave had a sense of his presence, before they felt his absence and departure. Those onelyonly desire the presence of God, and bewaile his absence, that hauehave had former experience of the sweetnesse and comfort of his presence. Till God shew vntounto us his goodnesse and kindnesse, it is not possible for us to desire his presence, but still the more rather to hate it and flie from it.
5. Note a propertie of Gods childe, that is, to runne after God, and to follow him the faster, the faster he departs from him; to seeke him the more, the more hee hides himselfe; to labour to please him the more, the more hee sees him offended: And never to giuegive over, till hee bee sure of Gods fauour: and not to feare that he will turne againe to their hurt, but to their good.
6. Wee learne here, that in the sence of our It was delivered shortly after the, decease of Mr Alex. Redich.Mortalitie, (especially when the Lord shall come neare unto us, as he hath done of late to this Family, whence the members thereof are scattered, &c.) wee should labour therein to see the Lords anger against vsus, and in it behold him as it were; after a sort departed from us: and therefore wee should call vponupon him to returne againe. And calling vponupon him servently, vponupon such occasions as these, out of a sence of his displeasure, and of our sinnes the cause thereof, the Lord will in merciemercy returne to vsus againe; And some way or other bring with him as great a comfort and blessing, as hee hath taken away from us, reparing in his blessed time the ruines and breaches thereof.
—How long?—
THis is an argument to moue the Lord to returne; as if hee should say, Oh Lord nowe returne; for, thou hast beene a long time absent.
Whence we learne, that
1. God vseth many times to be a long time absent from his Children, as one that had utterly forsaken them, and meant never to looke after them more.
2. His children are sensible thereof; and measure the time: And the longer he is away, the more they desire him.
3. A speciall meanes to make the Lord after his long absence to returne, is to urge him herewith.
—And let it repent thee concerning thy Servants.
HItherto of the first Act of Reconciliation; to wit, that God would Returne; that is, shew himselfe a louing and gracious God vntounto them, as formerly he had done.
Now secondly, he desireth that it would repent him: whereby wee are not to conceiue, that the Lord can repent in any such manner as man useth, that is, that he is indeed grieued and troubled for any thing that is done, wishing it had not beene done; Or, that in any thing his minde is altred and changed. God is not as man, that he Num. 23. 19. 1 Sam. 15. 19.should repent; Seeing hee doth not, nor can doe nothing, but it is for good ends; and he ever obtaines his ends; and he never doth any thing, but he doth it with that wisedome, that it is better done then left vndone. Repentance in God is nothing else but a surceasing of his former course; When after hee hath corrected and chastened, he shewes louelove and mercy, which vnderunder his chastisement did lie hid. Yet in eueryevery such change, the Lord seemeth to us, to bee like a person that is sorry for that hee hath done, performing such like actions, as repenting persons use to doe in the like case.
For as a Father, after he hath corrected his child, shewes no signes of sorrow for that he hath done, so long as the childe continues stubborne; but after that hee hath amended his fault▪ and is sorry for it, the Father presently burneth the rod, or by some such signe shewes as if hee were sorry; yea, and bestowes some gift on the child, as if hee had done him wrong, when it is indeede neyther so nor so, but onelyonly a testification of his louelove more plainely to the sense of the child, that was hidden vnderunder correction before. So that, as the child thinkes, his Father hates him, when he corrects him, and repents his hatred, when he ceaseth to correct; So Gods children in a manner so conceiue of God; and God is pleased that they should after some sort so esteeme of him.
1. Then God is sayd to repent, when upon our repentance, he ceaseth to correct and punish vsus: For God doth not alwayes incessantly and continually beat his children, but he vseth mercy and moderation in the correction of them: like a kind Father, who though some time he beat his child till the bloud follow, and the child therevpon can apprehend nothing but that he is a cruell and hard hearted Father; yet those stripes are moderated with mercy; hee will not breake the bones of the childe, nor continually lie beating of him, but will stay his hand; especially then when he hath obtained his end, that his childe is humbled and sorry for his fault.
2. God doth not so onelyonly, but often as a louing Father or Mother useth to do, he manifests a kind of wrath against the rod, wherewith he corrected his childe, That is, those whom he hath raised vp to afflict his Children withall, whom he calls the rod of his indignation; he punisheth them as though Esai. 10. 5.he were angry with himselfe, and with the instruments that he made or used to that end.
3. God doth not so onelyonly, but if his childe be soundly humbled under his hand, laboureth to see his fault, and acknowledge it, God will shew some way or other speciall kindnesse, he will recompence his childe as it were for the hurt hee hath done him, as though he had wronged him. So that God will never shew himselfe more kinde to any then to those that hee hath corrected; He will double and treble his kindnesse unto them.
And the Prophet in praying thus, and teaching us to pray thus, teacheth us to hope; and embouldeneth us in all our afflictions or chastisements to craue this at Gods hands. Yea, the unfained begging of this will bee a meanes of obtaining so much.
1. Therefore hence let vsus learne lying vnderunder Gods hand, though for a long time together, not to despaire, as though when God shewed himselfe once angry, there were no hope or expectation, that hee would ever againe shew himselfe mercifull. Nay, God is a God of mercy; and the Psal. 86. 25,more wrath he shewes to his child, the more mercy and grace he will shew.
2. This should not discourage vsus that trust in God, to see the enemies of Gods children afflict and vex them, and triumph over them. God is a Deut. 32. 36.God that will repent; and when he repents, woe to them: for Gods children shall fare the better for the evill that is done vntounto them; and they the worse, though they hauehave beene instruments of Gods owne wrath and indignation in those euils, that his Children at their hands hauehave endured.
3. There is an holy grieuing and angring of God, when vnderunder his hand we can so humble our selues, that we make him as it were sorry and angry with himselfe, that hee hath beaten vsus. Wee hauehave no other meanes, when God punisheth vsus, to grieue and vex him. Wee cannot make him any other-wise to repent of the euill that he hath done vntounto us.
—Concerning thy Servants.
IN these words is implied a motiue, to stirre up the Lord to grant this request: as if hee should say, Wee are thy servants; ergò let it repent thee concerning vsus.
Note wee hence;
1. That vnderunder Gods correction his Children still remaine the seruants of God. Yea, the more he corrects them, the more studious they are to serue him.
2. That the onelyonly way to make GOD repent him of the judgements hee brings on vsus, is to manifest and professe that wee are his servants.
3. That those that are not the servants of God, hauehave no cause to hope, that God will repent him of any evill toward them. But they are to expect rather evill upon evill, and judgement vponupon judgement; till they come to everlasting judgement.
VERS. 14. Oh satisfie vsus early with thy mercy: that we may reioyce and be glad all our dayes.
HItherto the Prophet prayed for Reconciliation it selfe: now hee prayeth for the feeling and effectuall fruits of it.
These feeling and effectuall fruits of it, are a liuely sense of Gods mercy, and a fulnesse of joy, arising and issuing there-from. For the Childe of God can hauehave no hope of comfort, but in the hope of Gods Reconciliation: nor hope of Gods Reconciliation to him, but in the sense of his merciemercy. And where there is a liuely and full sense of his Mercy, there cannot but be sound, solid, and lasting joy and delight in that soule.
Where note also;
That Gods children are not wont to content themselues with a meere fancie and imagination of Gods savor: but they are never at rest, till they feele it in the signes and fruits of it.
Now for this mercy the Prophet prayeth;
1. In generall in this Verse;
2. In speciall in the next.
In the generall there is a Petition, and a reason thereof rendred.
The Petition is for Mercy wherein hee prayeth;
1. For the Grace it selfe;
2. For the measure of it,
3. For expedition in the granting of it.
The first act or effect of Reconciliation is the worke of Mercy; when the Lord manifesteth that he is affected with compassion towards those servants of his, whom he hath formerly afflicted.
Whence we note:
1. That there is no cause to hope that God is reconciled vntounto vsus, till he some way or other shew mercy vponupon us.
2. That there can bee no unfained desire of mercy till we feele our owne misery, and our just desert; till we hauehave a sense of the just judgement of God vponupon us for our sinnes: Our misery is his mercy.
3. That there is no hope of mercy, where men feele not the want of it, and earnestly begge it at Gods hands.
Secondly, he desireth to be satisfied with it.
Whence wee note:
1. That nothing will satisfie Gods Children but Gods mercy. All is as nothing to them without it.
2. That they desire not onelyonly mercy, but that they may rest in it, and be content with it. They desire nothing but that, making no doubt but that having that; they shall hauehave all things together with it.
3. That they desire not some small drop of it, but craue such a measure of it as may even fill and satisfie their soules.
Thirdly, his suite is that they may hauehave this mercy early; that they may hauehave the sense and feeling of it betimes.
Where obserue we;
1. A difference betweene Gods children, and wicked worldlings. Gods children desire to hauehave Gods mercy betimes: whereas the wicked put it of still from time to time; they desire, with Balaam Num. 23. 10. to hauehave it in the end; but they care not for it early.
2. That those that will be satisfied earely with Gods mercy, must earely repent, and earely seeke after it, and earely desire and pray for it.
The reason followeth, That we may reioyce, and be glad all our dayes.
Whence we note;
1. That Gods children may lawfully desire to rejoyce and be glad all their dayes.
2. That true joy and gladnesse springeth from the mercy of God, and our assurance of it.
3. That Gods children desire no other joy or gladnesse, then that which springeth from the same.