Sermons on Deuteronomy, Sermons · Sermon 183
On Thursday the iiij. of Iune, 1556. The CLXXXIII. Sermon which is the sixt vponupon the two & thirtith Chaper.
20 So he sayd, I will hyde my face from them, and see what shall befall them. For they bee a fickle generation, children in whome there is no stedfastnes.
21 They hauehave mooued mee to ielouzie by the thing that is not god, and they hauehave prouoked mee to displeasure with their vanities. And I [likewise] will moue them to ielouzie by them which are no people, and by a foolish nation will I prouoke them to indignation.
22 For the fire is kindled in my wrath, and shal burne to the verie bottome of the pitte, and deuowre the lande with the fruite thereof, and burne vp the foundations of the mountaines.
WE sawe yesterday how God is more grieuously displeased, when such as ought to honour and serue him, do forsake him, than when it is done by silly ignorant vnbeleeuers. And not without cause. For God adopteth vsus with this condition; that his glorie should shyne forth in vsus: and therefore must it not needes be a dubbling of the offence, when wee be a reproche to him? If a father bee despysed in his owne house, euen by those whome he hath begotten, will it not grieue him much woorse, than if some one of his neighbours shoulde misuse him? Seeing then that God hath vouchsafed to choose vsus to be his children, and hath done vsus the honour whereof wee were not worthie: let vsus beware that our conuersation bee such, as our faultes and misdeedes may not prouoke him, nor the thing befall vsus which Moses addeth here, namely, that he will hyde away his face. Nowe by this saying the Scripture meaneth that when GOD hath vsed patience in bearing long with men, winking at their vyces, and ceassing not to doe them good, and yet seeth that they bee altogether set vppon stubbornesse and vnreformable: hee giueth them ouer for such as they bee. Nowe all our welfare and happinesse lyeth in Gods defending of vsus, and in his caring for vsus. For if hee forget vsus and vouchsafe not to succour vsus, and to bee our defence, in what taking are wee? It were better for vsus to bee destroyed out of hande, than to linger beeing out of the protection of our God. Therefore heere is a horrible threat, and such a one as ought to make vsus to quake, when as it is sayde that when GOD hath tarryed a long tyme, hee will withdrawe himselfe for our vtter alienating of him away from vsus.
Wee hauehave seene heere afore, howe GOD vsed long sufferance and gaue not ouer his people at the first dash: but yet that at length hee was fayne to shewe that hee will not that his goodnesse shoulde bee abused after that fashion, nor that men shoulde harden their heartes by flattering themselues, when hee punisheth them not out of hande. Therefore let vsus looke to ourselues. For if wee hauehave offended God, although hee lift not vppe his hande to punishe vsus for it at the first instant, yet must not that make vsus to fall asleepe. Let vsus (I say) preuent the vengeaunce of our God: for if hee be patient and beare with vsus, it is to winne vsus by his gratious goodnesse and gentlenesse,….4. as S. Paul declareth in the second to the Romanes. The more then that God spareth vsus, the more let vsus take warning to turne againe vntounto him, and let it make vsus ashamed that we hauing so good a father, hauehave beene so stubborne against him. And if wee will needes still welter in our owne filthinesse, and heape naughtinesse vponupon naughtinesse, so as there is no ende nor measure of our transgressions: then must GOD be faine to execute the thing which he speaketh heere by Moses, namely; Hyde a way his face; that is to say, that after hee hath hadde a care of our welfare, and continued in dooing vsus good; he will at length giuegive vsus ouer, and shew that he is no longer bounde vntounto vsus, and that although hee spared vsus for a time, it is not his intent to bolster vsus continually in our euill dooinges. Wherefore let vsus bee afrayde of this threate: and so long as GOD maketh vsus to perceiue that he beholdeth vsus with pitie, let vsus walke as before his eyes, as though he were euer present with vsus, and in all our thoughtes, wordes, and deedes, let vsus hauehave our eyes still vponupon him.
But by the way we hauehave to marke, that God hydeth not his eyes in such sort, but that hee seeth and marketh all mens dooings, and dealinges. But it is so sayde, because God seemeth to shrinke away and to hauehave no more care of vsus, when he succoureth vsus not at our neede. For if aduersitie and afflictions oppresse vsus, and wee flee vntounto God, and yet finde no ease, but pine away still continually: it can not be but that according to our vnderstanding, we must needes imagine that GOD hath quite forgotten vsus, and that he regardeth vsus not any more. After this maner doeth Moses tell vsus heere, that God hydeth away his face. Furthermore we must vnderstande, that when GOD hath once forsaken vsus, there neuer happeneth any euill vntounto vsus, but it commeth from him: that is to say, all the afflictions which wee feele are punishmentes from his hande. We must not then thinke that GOD letteth men alone at all aduenture when he punisheth them for their offences, but rather that hee is then neere them, to make them feele his power, shewing himselfe a Iudge of their wicked deedes. But as for to holde them in his tuition, or to defende them; in that behalfe he threatneth himselfe to be absent, that is to say, that they shall not perceiue any more that he broodeth them vnderunder his winges,… 2.12 according to the similitude which he had vsed afore.
And it is sayde expressely, That hee will see what their ende will be. Heere GOD speakes after the manner of men: for hee knewe all thinges aforehande euen before the creating of the worlde, and he needeth not to be taught by time as mortall wightes doe. But forasmuch as we can not attayne to the heigth of Gods maiestie, hee is faine to make himselfe like vntounto vsus, and all for our instruction and edification. It is all one therefore as if he should say to such as despised him, Goe too, yee make no account for me, I behaued my selfe familiarly towardes you, and you hauehave abused that grace of mine; I hauehave required to be serued and honored of you, and you hauehave done mee all the shame ye coulde deuise: you hauehave borne yourselues in hande that I was tyed vntounto you, and that I was of necessitie to continue a father towardes you without ceassing, notwithstanding that you played the rebellious children against mee. But nowe will I giuegive you ouer for such as you be: doe the worst yee can, and at length yee shall finde what it is to hauehave forsaken mee. I will hide myselfe from you, that is to say, I will giuegive you ouer. In steede of maintaining and defending you as I hauehave done heeretofore, I vtterly renounce all acquaintaunce with you. See nowe what your state shall be, and I also will see what your ende will bee, that is to say, it shall bee perceiued in what plyght men are, when I hauehave no longer care of them. GOD then speaketh heere not so much of his owne knowledge, as of that which shall be seene and perceiued in the ende by experience. For (as I sayde afore) GOD is not to bee taught by the chaunge of thinges, (for all thinges were present with him before the making of the worlde) but heere he declareth, that when folke are so forsaken, it will appeare by them that all the happinesse of man consisteth in beeing preserued by GOD: and that on the contrary part, they bee most wretched and vnhappie, when God hath giuen them ouer.
And hee addeth the reason. It is a fickle and frowarde generation, Children in whome there is no trueth. The first worde that Moses vseth heere, commeth of a verbe which signifieth to turne and returne. And so it is as much as if he shoulde say, It is a generation of wickednesses; for he vseth the plurall number: and it importeth as much as if he should say, It is a frowarde and cursed generation, or else a mutable and chaunging generation, and whereof there is no holde; nowe heere; nowe there: whereby is vttered not onelyonly the vnconstancie, but also the disloyaltie of that people. He addeth that there was no stedfastnesse in them. The worde betokeneth vprightnesse, whereby is meant both loyaltie and faithfulnesse. To be short, GOD declareth heere, that he hadde tryed his people too much, and that in the ende it appeared that there was no vprightnesse in them, but all manner of treason and trecherie. Forasmuch therefore as hee founde such leaudenesse in them, hee sayeth hee will hyde himselfe from them. But we must call to minde againe what I hauehave sayde afore; to witte, that for a time GOD may fauour vsus and beare with vsus, and spare vsus though we deserue to hauehave rigour towardes vsus: but when hee is so patient, it is to make vsus diligent in examining our owne faultes, and to call our selues dayly to account, and to looke neerely to the thinges which are to bee found fault with, in vsus. Also let vsus marke well the saying that hath beene alleadged out of Saint Paul, howe that God allureth vsus to amendment by gentlenesse,Rom. 2.4. when hee punisheth vsus not at the first, according to our deseruinges. Sith the case standeth so, whensoeuer God sheweth himselfe fauourable and gratious towardes vsus, let eueryevery of vsus consider howe hee hath liued; and if we hauehave abused the benefites which he hath bestowed vppon vsus, let vsus condemne ourselues for it, and be sorry for our sinnes, and returne to him with such sorrowe as may appeare to bee vnfained. That is the thing which we hauehave to remē ber in the first place. But if we will needes discharge ourselues by flatterie, to take leaue to doe euill: then must hee needes execute his vnreuocable sentence of hyding away his face from vsus after he hath borne long ynough with vsus, and of seeing what will become of vsus, and he must needes let vsus rotte in our wretchednesse, forasmuch as we could not abide that hee should reach out his hande to helpe vsus. And in any wise let vsus marke that GOD can not away with hypocrisie in men: for among other thinges he requireth soundenesse and trueth in vsus, that our conuersation shoulde bee vtterly voide of all dubble meaning, and that we should not be dissemblers before him. True it is that our nature is full of fainednesse, as we see howe Ieremy reporteth of mans heart,Ier. 16.16. that it is frowarde and besnarled with all naughtinesse, and that it is euen as a bottomlesse pit. And therefore we must chaunge, if wee will hauehave God to admit and allowe vsus for his children: and wheras we be inclined to euill, so as there is nothing but bitternesse and hardnesse of heart in vsus, we must pray vntounto God to indewe vsus with his holy spirite, who is the spirite of constancie, and to ridde vsus in such sort from all our naughtinesse and vnfaithfulnesse, as we may walke on before him in pure and vndefiled soundnesse. Thus yee see what we hauehave to remember vppon this place.
Nowe it is saide further, That forasmuch as the Children of Israell had prouoked GOD to iealozie by the thing that was not god, and prouoked him by their leazinges through the superstitions which they hadde deuised: he also would prouoke them by a people which was no people, and moue them to iealozie by a Nation that was no Nation. Heere GOD speaketh againe after the manne… of men, like as if a man seeing his wife so wicked and leaudely giuen that he could not restraine her, should say, Well, I must needes diuorce her, and to doe her the more disgrace I will take some chambermayde in her steede, to occupie her place. Now then if a wife hauehave liued in honorable state with her husbande, and afterwarde behaue her selfe so naughlily and stubbornely, that hee casteth her off, and thereuppon taketh some poore wench that was of no estimation, and vseth her as his maried wife; his former wife will take the more spyte and griefe at it, as who woulde say, What? Shall such a one nowe occupie my place? Must I be thrust out for her? Must I be pointed at with euerie mannes finger and bee shamed and ill spoken of euerie where? After that manner is this text to bee vnderstoode. For thus doeth GOD vtter his minde. What? They hauehave prouoked mee to Iealozie by the thing that is no god: I am the liuing GOD, and besides that, they ought in reason to take mee for their father, because I hauehave shewed my selfe so towardes them, declaring howe deerely I loued them, in that I hauehave preferred them before all other Nations of the worlde: and yet hereuppon hauehave they forged Idolles. But there is but one GOD: and therefore when men turne away from him, they must needes forge ydolles after their owne imaginations. Thus hauehave they prouoked me to ielozie by the thing which was not god.
And afterwarde he addeth, their vanities. As if he shoulde say, If a man marke what their superstitions are, and whereon they bee grounded: he shall finde them to be nothing else but lyes and deceites. Yet hauehave they prouoked mee with them sayeth he: and nowe will I also hauehave my reuenge, for I will prouoke them by a people which is not a people, and by a nation which is not a nation, that is to say, which are not esteemed to be of any reputation. I will then take to me such folke as are nowe of no estimation, and set them in the same degree of honour wherein these thankelesse folke were before, which hauehave so abused the fatherly louelove that I bare towardes them. This thing came not to passe out of hande, but was then accomplished when the Gospell was spredde through out the whole worlde. True it is that in part God gaue some tokens of these thinges aforehande, in exalting the Assyrians and Chaldees aboue those which boasted themselues to be the holy ofspring and ye kingly priesthoode:Exod. 19.6. but yet was not this definitiue sentence performed to the full, vntill the comming of our Lorde Iesus Christ. God (I say) shewed partly some signe heereof aforehande, at such time as the people of Israell were scattered, brought to desolation, carried away into strange countryes, and there kept as banished wretches without order vnderunder the slauerie of cruell tyrannie. For euen then did GOD beginne aforehande to make them perceiue, that his threatning of them to prouoke them by a people which was no people, was not in vaine. For first the Assyrians and afterwarde the Chaldees hadde the honour to reigne ouer the children of Abraham,Ioh. 8.33.34 which vaunted themselues to be at libertie, but they were bondeslaues of sinne. And forasmuch as they had withdrawen themselues from the obedience of GOD, it was good reason that they shoulde be vnderunder the bondage of Tyrans. GOD then gaue a certaine signe of fauour to those that hadde beene vnbeleeuers, when hee magnified the heathen so much, euen as though hee had beene minded to disanull the promise which he had made to those which had earst boasted themselues to bee his people, and had purposed to put them to vtter shame. Yet notwithstanding the Chaldees and Assyrians did not so reigne ouer the children of GOD, that they could preiudice their saluation. Neither could the Syrians doe it, nor any of all the other nations that troubled them (as wee see in the time of the Iudges) & which inuaded the Lande of Chanaan and brought the children of Israell vnderunder tribute and subiection. For euen then although the children of Israell were oppressed, and cast downe, as it were, and thrust vnderunder foote, and their neighbours which were heathen and Infidelles had their full scope: yet notwithstanding, Gods adoption abode still in the linage of Abraham, and the case of those that reigned ouer them was neuer a whit the better for it, because they ceased not to serue their ydolles still. But when the Gospell was preached openly to the worlde, then did we succeede in the place of those which hadde beene heires of the promise afore, accordingly as Saint Paule likeneth vsus to wilde slips which are graffed into a good stocke,… 10.19. euen so is it with vsus. For we be but thinges borne out of time, if wee bee compared with the Iewes who were after a sorte the naturall children of God. Howbeit forasmuch as GOD had promised Abraham that he would be the sauiour of his ofspring,… the same belonged to all such as were descended of him,… 3.25. accordingly also as Saint Peter telleth them, You be the children of the prophetes, and heires of the promise: as who shoulde say that saluation belonged to them, euen by true and lawefull succession: but when as they did cutte off themselues from it by their owne vnthankefulnesse, then did GOD call vsus vntounto him. True it is that if the Iewes had receiued our Lorde Iesus Christ, yet had the doctrine of the Gospel bin spredde abroade neuerthelesse, throughout the worlde, and so shoulde wee hauehave beene ioyned and knit together in one. But forasmuch as the Iewes conueyed themselues out of the housholde and Church of God, and imbraced not the grace which was offered vntounto them: their roome became emptie, and so wee entred thereinto, insomuch as GOD hath nowe banished them, to the intent to make as it were a new house. And therefore S. Paul applyeth this text to his owne time.… 10.19. For hee sayeth that as then the Iewes had too greatly prouoked Gods iealozie by their ydolatries, and that God was faine to raise vp a people which was no people, or a nation which was not reputed as a Nation, which thing was done to make them the more ashamed of their despising of the benefit which had beene profered vntounto them. Truely, the Iewes had not at that time any outwarde ydolatry. When Iesus Christ came into the world, the Temple of Ierusalem was not defiled with any ydolles, sacrifices were made there according to the Lawe of Moses: and yet for all that there was nothing but contempt of God & wickednesse, it was a piteous case to see the great number of grosse superstitions, and all the purenesse of the Lawe was corrupted.
Let vsus marke well therefore yt men are counted ydolaters, not only when they hauehave puppets of stone, of wood, or of peinters worke, but also when they sticke not to the pure simplicitie of Gods word, but mingle their owne superstitions with the doctrine of saluation, ouershooting thēselues and turning away to al euil. After that manner was GOD prouoked to iealozie by the Iewes, but specially by their refusing of Iesus Christ, who is the image of the father. For whosoeuer hath not the sonne (sayth Saint Iohn) hath not the father.Col. 1.15. 1. Iohn. 2.23 Col. 1.19. & 29. And why? Because the whole fulnesse of the Godheade dwelleth in our Lorde Iesus Christ. Seeing then that the Iewes despised the onelyonly sonne, who was the image of the father, seeing they would not accept him which was ordained to be souereigne king, and of whom also it is sayde in the Psalme, Kisse the sonne;Psal. 2.12. whereby men are commaunded to doe him homage and to kneele downe vntounto him as it is sayde in other textes: seeing that the Iewes hauehave so refused Iesus Christ, seeing they hauehave so giuen ouer the true Religion; they hauehave made themselues vtter strangers to the liuing GOD which had chosen and adopted them. To bee short, if we take not Iesus Christ for our GOD, surely wee hauehave nothing else but an ydoll. As for example, the Turkes at this day doe make greate bragges that they worshippe the GOD which created heauen and earth. What is their God? He is but an ydoll. The Iewes can well ynough say; our meaning is to serue the God which gaue vsus his Lawe by the hande of Moses, and spake by the prophetes. Their God is but an ydol. And why? For the Godheade which is in Iesus Christ is vnknowen vntounto them. But it is sayde that the whole fulnesse of the Godheade dwelleth in him,Col. 2.9. yea euen perfectly and in verie substaunce, without any manner of shadowes or figures. Seeing then that GOD hath fully reueiled himselfe to vsus in our Lorde Iesus Christ, and will hauehave his face to bee seene there: surely we can not boast that we hauehave the true God, vnlesse our Lorde Iesus Christ reigne among vsus, and be so honoured of vsus that wee sticke throughly to him and rest wholely vppon him. Nowe the Iewes denyed him and vtterly disclaymed him: by meane whereof they prouoked GOD to iealozie, and there remayneth nothing with them but folly and false imagination whereby they hauehave deceiued and beguiled themselues. And therefore not without cause doeth Saint Paule alleadge this Text,Rom. 10.19 saying: Seeing that the Iewes hauehave prouoked Gods wrath by refusing to imbrace his onelyonly sonne: therefore hath he raysed vppe a people which was nothing afore.
And heere we see yet much better the thing which I tolde you afore, namely that GOD vsed long sufferaunce towardes such as were worthy to hauehave beene thundered vponupon out of hande: for betweene the Lawe and our Lorde Iesus Christ there were about two thousande yeares. And if wee recken the yeeres, the Iewes began to meddle with the infections & filthinesse of the heathen by setting vp of ydols by and by after ye death of Iosua. Ye see then how God suffered aboue eighteene hundred yeeres to passe, wayting still for some amendement. Not that he dissembled with them, for he chastised them to put them in minde of their faults. And they returned vntounto him. But yet by and by after they fell away newe againe. Insomuch that when they had acknowledged that those harmes befell them for their sinnes sakes, and had giuen some token of repentaunce: by and by, or within a while after they fell to their olde byasse againe: and God likewise fell to punishing them newe againe. At the last came the captiuitie of Babylon which is described to hauehave beene so horrible and vnhappie, that it banished them out of the Lande which hee had promised them for their inheritaunce, and they were driuen out of their owne houses. Neuerthelesse, in the ende GOD pitied them and brought them home againe. Notwithstanding, they were no sooner come home into their natiue countrey, and restored to libertie, but by and by they became againe worse than before. Therefore was GOD also faine to punish them with punishment vppon punishment euen to the vttermost. Then came our Lorde Iesus Christ to remedie all their diseases, in respect whereof he is iustly called euen the resurrection of the dead.Iohn. 11.25. For although the Iewes had then beene all scattered abroade, yet would God hauehave gathered them home againe to him by the hande of his sonne, if they hadde knowen the day of their visitation. But they well bewray that they be wilfully bent against GOD, and that there is nothing but bitternesse and venime, yea and diuelish rage in them. For it sufficed them not to hauehave skorned the grace which was offered vntounto them, and the redemption which they had pretended to hauehave longed for so greatly; but they did also crucifie the Redeemer which was sent vntounto them. Forasmuch therefore as the Iewes did vtterly refuse all the grace of God: the Gospell was published through the whole worlde.
But (as I sayde) we must marke well the long suffering which GOD vsed towardes them, that it may keepe vsus from sleeping in our sinnes. For if wee abuse the goodnesse of our GOD when hee spareth vsus, and vseth not such vengeaunce as we hauehave deserued: we shall be driuen to pay the arrearages. Therefore let vsus returne to him when hee threatneth vsus. For it had beene much better for the Iewes to hauehave suffered temporall punishmentes, than to hauehave beene so borne with, and in the ende to hauehave had so horrible vengeaunce layde vppon them as we see befell to the Citie of Ierusalem. For if we looke vponupon the aduersities that fell vppon it, wee shall not finde the like examples at any time since the beginning of the worlde, that the men of that countrey, and all other inhabiters were so afflicted. They played the madde men one against another for their vittelles, and the veryest cutthroates bare the chiefe sway. They durst not go out of their citie to ease themselues because they were inclosed on euerie side: and yet they were more cruelly handled within by theeues and rakehelles. The ruffians were readie to cutte the throats of them that came once out of their doores. Thinges were so farre out of order and so horribly put to hauocke, that women were faine to kill their owne children for hunger and to eate them, and it spited the father to see the mother steale her owne children to deuoure them into her owne bowelles. Therefore let vsus bethinke ourselues, and when thinges are so farre out of square, and wee perceiue it to be our Lordes will to giuegive vsus such examples, to the intent we should liue in awe and feare, and yet notwithstanding that he giueth vsus leasure to returne vntounto him; let vsus goe vntounto him, yea and that with speede, & let vsus not driue off frō day to day, for feare least the gate be shut against vsus. That is the thing which wee hauehave to beare in minde.
Nowe let vsus proceede to that which Moses addeth, namely: That GOD did then rayse vppe a people which was no people, and a Nation which was no Nation. By these words we be doone to vnderstande, that vntill such time as GOD hath chosen vsus, and drawen vsus to the knowledge of his trueth: it is all one as if we were not at all. True it is that Gods setting of vsus in this worlde is not a benefite to be despised, neither doeth he set vsus heere as Asses, Oxen, and Dogges: but as reasonable creatures, and he putteth his image into vsus. Inestimable is the benefit which he doeth vsus therein: but yet for all that, forasmuch as we be corrupted in Adam, and all of vsus are accursed; insomuch that sinne doeth so reigne in vsus, that the Image of GOD is wiped out, and the vnderstanding which we weene our selues to hauehave is but brutishnesse, and our hearts are turned vpside downe, so as there is nothing but rebelliousnesse in vsus: therefore it is sayde that wee bee not worthy to bee counted a people, that is to say, it were better for vsus that wee were not at all. Not that GOD is not glorified continually in his creatures: but this is spoken in respect of vsus. For we will needes glorifie ourselues and seeme great men, for wee see howe men beleeue wonders of themselues, and they be so blinde that they surmise this and that of themselues. But let the children of this worlde esteeme of themselues what they lyst, and aduaunce their owne glorie as much as they list: yet doth GOD in one worde heere cut their combes, saying that their beeing is as though they were not at all. And it is not heere onelyonly that the scripture vseth such speech: for Saint Paul sayeth generally, that GOD calleth the thinges which are not,Rom. 4.17. 1. Cor. 1.28. as though they were. Ye see then howe our first being is when GOD calleth vsus to the knowledge of his trueth: according whereunto Saint Paul sayth in an other place,1. Cor. 1.30. yt our being is of God in Iesus Christ, insomuch that we hauehave nothing at all before that time, because there is nothing in vsus but corruption. Seeing the case standeth so, men can not looke for any thing but eternal death, vntil God hauehave reached them his hand, and gathered thē home to himselfe. That is the thing which we hauehave to remember in this text where it is sayde, that God would prouoke the Iewes to ielozie by a people which were no people.
Furthermore let vsus marke, that whereas we hauehave beeing at this day, that is to say, whereas God hath aduaunced vsus, (according also as hee sayth by his prophet Esay,… I hauehave brought vppe children and aduaunced them) forasmuch as God dealeth so graciously with vsus as to put vsus in the place of them that were his naturall children, euen vsus which were as children borne out of time: let vsus assure our selues that if wee prouoke God to wrath, and make him as it were iealous, he will surely rayse vp other Nations in our steede, according to this saying of our Lord Iesus Christ to the Iewes;… The kingdome of God shall be taken from you. This threat is spoken to vsus nowadays. For (as sayth saint Paul) if God hauehave not spared the naturall braunches of the oliue,… but hauehave cut them quite and cleane off, and cast them into the fire: how shall hee spare the wilde ones? What shoulde wee hauehave who were barreine by nature? Could wee say we were the children of Abraham, and that God had adopted vsus at the first? No. For as long as the doctrine of saluation was among the Iewes, our forefathers were as rotten members, they had no hope of saluation, they were without GOD in this worlde, as sayeth Saint Paul. But nowe wee bee come to the heauenly kingdome.… Because the Iewes are departed from it, through their owne vnthankefulnesse, and fallen from the degree wherein they were, GOD hath aduaunced vsus to it euen against nature. And thinke wee then that if wee become like those which were our superiours in dignitie, GOD will not in the ende powre out the like vengeaunce vponupon vsus as wee hauehave seene vppon them? Yes: and therefore let the Iewes bee a lookingglasse for vsus to make vsus behaue ourselues humbly, that we abuse not the grace of GOD. True it is that wee must be assured that GOD will holde out to the ende in the thinges which he hath begonne for our welfare, specially if we on our side be not so malicious as to disappoint his grace. But if we followe those which hauehave gone before vsus, let vsus not thinke to speede better than they hauehave done. Thus yee see what wee hauehave to beare away in this Text where it is sayde that God will prouoke his people to iealozie by such as were not a people aforetimes.
And Moses sayeth, That they shall be a foolishe Nation. And it behoueth vsus yet againe to marke this well. For we imagine ourselues to be verie wise; and that is the thing which plucketh vsus backe from submitting ourselues obediently vntounto GOD, and disappointeth vsus of the modestie to embrace by faith, whatsoeuer is propounded to vsus in his name. But heere the holy Ghost bewrayeth vsus what we be, to witte, that there is nothing in vsus but starke folly, vntill GOD hauehave inlightened vsus. What must bee our wisedome then? Euen that which we learne in Gods schoole. Heereby all selfe weening is beaten downe, that menne should not imagine themselues to be of sufficient abilitie to gouerne themselues, nor despise the doctrine of GOD, but yeelde themselues teachable thereunto. And herewithall let vsus marke also, that generally God ment to bereaue men of all glorie in that he sayth that they be not at all, and that they be but fooles, that is to say, that there is nothing in thē but reprochfulnesse.
And hee addeth foorthwith, that his wrath shall be kindled, and that it shall enter vntounto the bottomlesse pittes, and consume the Lande with her fruites, yea euen to rootes of the Mountaines. Heere Moses ment breefly to touch those yet better and neerer to the quicke, which were so bedoted, that they could not come to the knowledge of their sinnes. And he not onelyonly spake to yt people, whom he knewe to be stubborne and stiffenecked:Exod. 34.9. but also through the power of Gods spirite he prophecied of those that were to come. As for Moses, he knewe them not to outwarde appearance: but GOD who knoweth what men are, gaue his sentence vppon them aforehande. And forasmuch as hee seeth them so blockish he handleth them in their kinde, saying, Goe too, I see you be not greatly moued at my threatning, and that ye proceede from euill to worse: but I tell you that my wrath will bee no light fardle to beare, as though I gaue you but a yerke with my rodde by the way. What then? It is a fire that burneth vp all afore it, as we hauehave seene heeretofore in the fourth chapter,Deut. 4.24. where it is sayde, Knowe thou O Israel that thy God is a consuming fire. This was expresly spoken for the hardenesse of the peoples hearts. For it is certeine that God is desirous to shewe himselfe louing towardes vsus, conditionally that we come vntounto him with all meekenesse, and be readie to followe his voyce, taking him for our sheepehearde, and behauing ourselues towardes him as his sheepe. If wee doe so, then will not God fray vsus, nor shewe himselfe terrible to vsus. But if he see vsus play the wilde beastes, so as wee can not by any meanes be tamed: then is hee faine to vse rigour, according to this saying of his in the eighteenth Psalme,Psal. 18.17. that hee will bee harde to such as are harde, and that if men shew themselues vnreformable, hee also will come roughly against them, and they shall finde nothing in him but vtter terrour and dreadfulnesse. After the same manner is it in this text, where he sayeth, My wrath shalbe as a burning fire. Yea, and thinke not (sayth he) that I will burne but the chaffe and the strawe; for I will burne vp the verie grounde, there is not so hard a mountaine but it shall melt before me, yea euen to the verie bottome: and there shall not be so deepe a pitte, but I will go to the verie bottome thereof. Now we see what the purpose or intent of Moses was in this place.
And heereby let vsus take warning, not to tempt God; accordingly as the Apostle in the Epistle to the Hebrewes applyeth the forealleaged text to the same purpose. My friends (sayeth he) knowe ye that God is a consuming fire:Hebr. 12.18. and therefore let vsus liue in his feare, & not tempt him: as soone as he speaketh, let vsus quake at it: let vsus not tarry till hee smite vppon our heades with main blowes: but let vsus go vntounto him obediently: and let vsus pray him to hauehave pitie vponupon vsus. For if we goe about to winne him by stoutnesse, surely we shall finde howe it is not sayde without cause that Gods wrath is a burning fire to consume all thinges: and wee shall feele that although we be neuer so stubborne, and that our heartes (to our owne seeming) bee as whot as fire through ouerweening, whereof wee hauehave made our selues as it were foretresses, towers, and bulwarkes for our great safetie: yet notwithstanding, God will so vndermine vsus, that we shall find howe there is nothing in vsus wherewith to make resistaunce, and that we hauehave no more power to stande before his wrath and vengeaunce, than stubble or hay which is consumed out of hande by fire: nay we shall be no better than towe. Thus ye see howe wee may benefite ourselues by this doctrine, if wee will not hauehave the sentence that God pronounceth executed vppon vsus. That is to wit, that forasmuch as his wrath burneth so whot and is able to consume all: wee must turne vntounto him as soone as he threatneth vsus, yea and so returne, as he finde vsus not to be foolishe and wilde headed folke, as in whom there is nothing but lightnes and vnconstancie.
Nowe let vsus fall downe before the maiestie of our good God with acknowledgement of our faultes, praying him to open our eyes more and more, that we may see our owne wretchednesse, and vponupon the knowing thereof, bee also so touched by his holy spirite, that our heartes may stoope, and hauing felt what wee hauehave deserued, we may steppe to him aforehande to obtaine fauour and merciemercy of him: and so continue therein, that all our life long, our whole seeking may be to increase and to be settled in his feare and louelove: that taking him for our father, and reposing ourselues wholly vponupon him and his goodnesse, we may neuerthelesse yeelde him such reuerence, as to quake at his threatninges, and yet assure ourselues that hee will be so good a protector and defender of vsus, that we shalbe safe from all daungers, when he hath once taken vsus into his protection and safekeeping. That it may please him to grant this grace not only to vsus, but also to all people and Nations of the earth, &c.