One-Hundred Forty-Five Sermons Upon John 17, Sermon 82
SERMON LXXXII. Of Wicked mens hating the Godly, the Cauſes, Effects, and Properties of it.
JOH. 17.14.
And the world hath hated them, becauſe they are not of the world.
THe next thing to be conſidered is the Argument it ſelf uſed by our Saviour in this Petition, Keep them by thy ſpeciall protection, why? becauſe the world hateth them; And I ſhall take in the ſecond Cauſe into the Argument, Becauſe they are not of this world; For I have ſpoken already about theſe things, from verſ. 11. I ſhall adde what was not then mentioned.
In the Argument you may take notice of the Subject or perſons that do hate, and they are ſaid to be the world, that is, wicked men called the world, becauſe they are the greater part of it, and becauſe they retain the wicked inclination of the world minding only worldly things; Now though the world be many times, and it may be here taken for that Society of men that is Heatheniſh, and doth not beleeve in Chriſt, thus the Church and the world are oppoſed 1 Cor. 5.10. yet we may extend it further, even to ſuch as do outwardly profeſſe Chriſt, but in works do deny him, as is more to be ſhewed.
2. There is the act it ſelf, hate, foreign, The word is in the preterperfect tenſe, It hath hated them already, though they had not much tormented it by their preaching, but it would more hate them, when Chriſt was removed, and their preaching more univerſall; It comprehends all times, it hath, it doth, and it will hate them, and hatred you heard was worſe then anger, being more fixed and permanent? The cauſe of this is, becauſe They are not of the world, for as love is to its like, ſo hatred is to that which is unlike and contrary; In the Scripture ſome Learned men ſay to hate is ſometimes taken to love leſſe, not an abſolute hatred, but a reſpective love, Mat. 6.24. He will love one, and hate the other, i. e. leſſe love, And for this end they bring that place, Rom. 9.3. Jacob have I loved but Eſau have I hated, where they would expound hate of a leſſe love, but whatever may be ſaid of the former place, this latter will admit of no ſuch Expoſition, as the Context will eaſily evidence.
3. The Scripture ſpeaks of a good hatred, Rom. 7.15. That which I hate, I do; So we are commanded to hate our Father and Mother, to hate our own lives, Luk. 14.26. Joh. 12.25 for Chriſts ſake; David alſo ſaid, He hated them which hated God with a perfect hatred, i. e. a full complete hatred, he had no love at all to them, that is, in reſpect of their wickedneſſe and their incurable enmity againſt God, though in other reſpects he pitied and loved them.
Laſtly, There is a wicked and evil hatred, of which the Text ſpeaks.
Obſ.Doct. That the wicked men of the world have and will alwaies hate thoſe that are godly; It hath been ſo of old, and will be ſo to the laſt wicked man that breatheth; No ſooner were there a wicked man and a godly, but this hatred broke out into all cruelty; Cain hated Abel, and why? becauſe his own works were nought and his brothers good, 1 Joh. 3.12. No leſſe will ſerve then the bloud of Sheep, ſuch cruell Wolves:
Conſider,To open this Doctrine Conſider theſe things,
I. That there is a twofold hatred.Firſt, That there is a twofold hatred with the Schoolmen, One is called Odium inimicitiae, an hatred of enmity whereby a man wils evil to him, becauſe it's his evil; Even as amor amicitiae, a will of friendſhip wils the good to a perſon loved, becauſe it is his good.
2. There is another kinde of hatred which the ancient Schoolmen had no Name for it, but afterwards it was called Odium abominationis or offenſionis; When a man is offended at, and hateth ſuch an object that is evil, but not the perſon, yea, we may love him dearly; Thus the Childe hateth the death of his Father Odio abominationis, but loveth his Father, yea, becauſe he loveth him, therefore he hateth his death; Now that hatred whereby the world hateth godly men, is Odium inimicitiae, it comes from an inward irreconcilable diſplacency to the godly, it's terminated upon their perſons, becauſe they are ſuch, and therefore they are ſaid to be of the devil, repreſenting his nature, and are the Seed of the Serpent, which hath an imbred enmity againſt man, ſo that though never ſo much evil ſhould befall the Godly; Their goods ſpoiled, their Names blaſted, yet as long as they live, and becauſe they ſtill are alive, the world will hate them.
II. The Cauſes of it.Secondly, The cauſe of their hatred may be reduced to two Heads: 1. The contrariety that is between the nature and actions of the Godly, So that they do not love any godly man, no nor ſuch as never had any commerce with them or medling with them; There is an Odium naturale, which ariſeth from the nature of things, Such an antipathy is often mentioned by Writers, the Serpent that is young though never hurt by any man, yet becauſe they know them of ſuch a ſtamp they cannot love them; It being natural, they cannot give any Reaſon, Hoc tantum poſſum dicere, non amo te: You do not love him, why did he ever weary you? Did he ever ſpeak to you? No, but yet he cannot love him, ſo that as love conſiſts in the conſonancy and conveniency of the good thing loved; Thus hatred is in the diſſonancy and contrariety of that to us which we hate.
The 2d cauſe of hatred is Ignorance, when men know not that Excellency and worth which is in ſuch perſons, and the juſt cauſe of love, which if we did we ſhould quickly lay aſide our hatred, and truly in a great meaſure the world hateth becauſe of their ignorance; They know not what Godlineſſe is, nor what godly men are; They know not their lives, their aims, their ends, but judge of them as hypocrites, proud, and minding only ſelf-ends, and therefore their hatred encreaſeth; Thus the Apoſtle ſaith, If they had known what Chriſt was, they would never have crucified him, 1 Cor. 2.8. and ſo they are ſaid, to ſpeak evil of the things they know not, Jude 10. Doſt thou then rail and deride at godly men, It's thy blindeneſſe and folly, Thou knoweſt not their cloſe walking with God; Thou underſtandeſt not the heavenly priviledges they enjoy; Thou doſt not conceive of their humiliation for their infirmities, judging themſelves before God worſe then thou canſt judge them; Oh if thy eyes were open, thou wouldſt ſay, theſe are the Servants of the moſt high God; Oh that my latter end might be like one of theirs, and of ſuch men the world is not worthy.
III. The effects of it.Thirdly, Conſider the effects of this hatred, and that is in three ſteps and degrees.
1. An inward willing of all evil that may hurt them, and that becauſe it is evil To will a man ſome evil for his good may be lawfull, as when David praieth, Put them in fear O Lord, that they may know themſelves to be men, Pſa. 9.20. Thus the Church of God may pray for afflictions upon thoſe Enemies that are curable, That by their afflictions they may repent and be humbled before God, but hatred hath not this goodneſſe: It wils evil becauſe it is evil, and for evils ſake; It rejoyceth in the evil that befalleth a godly man, as part of its own good and happineſſe; Thus it is with all wicked men, they rejoyce as if ſome great good had befallen them, when ſome great evil hath come upon the godly.
2. Their hatred breaks out into all all hard, cenſorious, and uncharitable ſpeeches, all ſlanders and contumelies, into cruell mockings, as the Apoſtle cals them, Heb. 11.36. The hatred in the heart will ſoon be ſeen in the tongue, as the diſeaſe within is diſcovered by the Tongue; The Apoſtle Jude v. 15. ſpeaks of one end of Chriſts coming, viz. to execute Judgement on men for all the hard ſpeeches which ungodly ſinners were guilty of; David ſpeaks of wicked mens tongues, that they were like Raſors and ſharp Swords, men that breathe Hell Fire every time they ſpeak, This is a fruit of their hatred,
And Laſtly, It breaketh out into actions as that which conſummateth all their wickedneſſe; It was hatred killed all the holy Prophets, crucified Chriſt, and put to death ſo many Millions of Martyrs; Before this hatred no good man, no holy man could ſtand.
Obj. But you may ask, How can a man hate a good man whom he knoweth to be good, ſeeing it is ordinarily ſaid, No man can will evil becauſe it is evil; And to hate a good man becauſe he is good, implieth, That the will can refuſe and deteſt its proper Object.
The Anſwer is, We are ſaid to hate godly men, as wicked men are ſaid to hate God: Now God as he is good and full of all lovelineſſe, ſo cannot be hated, but as he hath that which a wicked man looks upon as evil to himſelf, ſo he hateth him; Thus as God is a holy God, one that will not acquit a ſinner, that will render to every man according to his works, So the wicked hate God▪ In like manner the wicked man hateth a godly man, becauſe his Godlineſſe is that which is contrary to him, an evil to him? It diſcovers thy naughtineſſe, It reproveth and rebuketh thy Impiety, and upon this reaſon he hateth him, yet, the wicked man doth not only hate a Godly man, but all things that belong to him, and every thing a godly man loveth he hateth, Godly Ordinances, the means of Grace, and all becauſe a Godly man loveth them; All Praying and preaching he hateth, All godly Order and Government in the Church of God he hateth, becauſe theſe things are loved by a Godly man, As love loveth not only the perſon but all things that belong to him, ſo doth hatred the contrary.
In the next place Conſider the Properties of this hatred.
1. It is a Cauſeleſſe One, There is no juſt and true ground of ſuch bitterneſſe;IV. The properties of it.
Hence our Saviour, Joh. 15.20, 21. applieth that of David to all the godly, They have hated me without a cauſe: Indeed if you doe regard the contrariety of wicked men to what is holy, this is a neceſſary cauſe, but it's not a juſt cauſe, for this indeed deſerveth the clean contrary; Had the Phariſees a Cauſe to crucifie Chriſt? Had the Galatians a Cauſe to become Enemies to Paul? Oh no, Thoſe thou hateſt ſhould be accounted of as Jewels by thee; Thoſe thou revileſt and reproacheſt the delight of thy ſoul ſhould be to them; It is a cauſleſs hatred.
2, It is an univerſal hatred; For ſeeing he hateth a Godly man for his Godlineſſe, then he muſt needs hate it whereſoever he ſeeth it; Indeed ſome Godly men either through the power and place they have, or for other Reaſons are not ſo ſubject to the effects of wicked mens hatred, but the heart is full of poiſon and venome againſt the one as the other, for he cannot be a good man whom wicked men do not hate one way or other; Wo be to you when all men speak well of you; This hating of Godlineſſe is called hating of the Light, Joh. 3.19. Now all Light is offenſive to ſoar eyes; Thus the Godly man liveth, but he muſt have his portion: Be afraid if wicked men love thee as ſeeing nothing of God in thee, they think thee like one of themſelves, if I did my duty I ſhould be more oppoſed.
3. It is an implacable irreconcilable Hatred, Gen. 3. There was at firſt an Enmity put between the devil and his Seed, and the Woman and her Seed: Though wicked men may ſometimes flatter and applaud, yet the ſting is ſtill in the heart; Safety and opportunity would quickly make them vent their poiſon; You ſee though Saul ſometimes melted to David, ſaying, O my Son David, thou art more Righteous then I, I have ſinned, yet for all this David would nor tempt him, nor go home with him: The Sheep may not think the Wolf ever mindes good to her, Therefore our Saviours advice is good, but very ſtrange, Beware of men, Mat. 10.17. He ſaith not, Beware of Lions and Bears, or Serpents, but of men, as if theſe were worſe then all.
4. It's a cruell hatred, who is able to reckon up the ſeveral kindes of torments that wicked men have invented to excruciate the godly with; No death for Chriſt would ſatisfie the Jews but what was moſt ignominious and painful; Heb. 11. Some were ſawn aſunder, This was like that Command of Nero, Ita feri, ut ſe mori ſentiat; It's known to all that reade Eccleſiaſticall Hiſtory what exquiſite torments have been invented, that the Martyrs might not ſimply die, but die as many Deaths as they have parts of body.
Obj. But you will ask, Whether every godly man is thus hated, Though ſome may be, yet are all?
Anſ. It's the inward diſpoſition of all wicked men to hate thoſe that are godly, but then the effects of it may be reſtrained, ſometimes for fear, becauſe thoſe that are godly may be advanced to places of honour and power; Though even then all wicked men have not been able to refrain; David complaineth that Drunkards made Songs of him, and when he was in his afflicted condition, with what ſcorn and contempt did Shemei revile him? So that if we reſpect the habitual inclination of the heart, no godly man can be loved by a wicked man; though there may be an outward reſtraint; Again, ſometimes God may ſo work the hearts of wicked men, that for ſome time and in ſome exigences they may love the godly, and refreſh them; It's Gods promiſe that when our waies pleaſe God, even our enemies ſhall be friends with us, Prov. 16.7. What a ſtrange thing was that, that when the Iſraelite was ſo tranſcendently hated by the Egyptian, yet God ſhould give them ſuch favour that the Egyptians ſhould lend them their Gold and their Jewels, yea, while all that multitude went away, not ſo much as a dog to bark at them, ſo that though the ordinary Rule be for the Godly man to be hated, yet God may at ſome time preſerve ſome Godly men from the ſtrife of tongues, he can change Eſaus bloudy heart to melt towards Jacob, and he can command Laban to ſpeak kindely to him, thus he promiſed Iſrael, they ſhould finde mercy in the eyes of them who led them captive.
2. Though the world may hate godly men, yet it's not neceſſary that every godly man ſhould be hated by every wicked man; Thoſe Godly men are moſt ſubject to hatred, who by their Office and Calling ſet themſelves moſt againſt vice; Therefore godly Magiſtrates and godly Miniſters are more expoſed to hatred then private Chriſtians, for they are not called to controle ſin, and ſtop the current of it as publike Officers are; Therefore let all ſuch as intend to be godly in diſcharge of their truſt, not matter the hatred of wicked men, Lay that down for a foundation, for as the ſhadow will accompany the Sun, ſo will malice and backbiting the godly actions of holy men, yet ſome are more hated then others: Obadiah could live in Ahabs Court for all Jezabels malice, when Eliſha's Life was greedily ſought for
Therefore 3. In the hatred of the world God hath a ſpecial regard to his Children, he laieth no more on them then they can bear; The ſtrong Chriſtian God calleth to more dangerous combats; All had not ſuch oppoſitions as Paul had, Some are like Ʋriah, put in the forefront of the battel; The devil ſhall caſt ſome of you into priſon, Rev. 2.10. It's but ſome of them; Thus James was beheaded, and Peter was impriſoned, when the other Apoſtles were not touched; God doth wiſely order the affairs of this world, even wicked mens tongues and hands are bound up, and they are let looſe as God pleaſeth.
4. Even amongſt wicked men there is much difference, Some are farre more bitter and cruell then others, Some have more Conviction, Some have better Natures, Some are of a more noble diſpoſition, for although that Seed of Enmity be in all wicked men, yet in ſome it's more ſtifled or diverted then in others, when Herodias ſought the death of John Baptiſt, Herod for a long time preſerved him; Thus as all weeds have not the like noxiouſneſſe, ſo neither is every wicked man like to another; Every one is not a Cain, an Abſalom, a Nero, or a bloudy Bonner.
But then Laſtly, Take heed that if thou haſt not ſo much hatred of the world as other godly men have, that it be not for want of godlineſſe, becauſe thou art not ſo zealous againſt ſin, Thou art more complying with or conniving at the wickedneſſe of others; This is to buy the worlds good word at a dear rate, Thou hadſt better all the world ſpeak againſt thee then to have God and thy conſcience accuſe thee for not doing thy duty.
Ʋſe of Exhortation to the godly, Be not diſcouraged or weakened in thy duty for the malice of the world, Let them rage and rave, but do thou continue in thy ſervice to God; This fear of men and their malicious outrage, hath made many a man wound his conſcience, and grievouſly diſhonour God; Oh but conſider, Am I afraid of a mans tongue that is mortall? and ſhall I not much more tremble at Gods condemnation? Can a man damn thee? how many have had ſad trouble at their Death? They did not their duty for fear of diſpleaſing men.