The Rising Sun, Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII. Unchangeableness the last Incommunicable Attribute.
VVE are come to the last Incommunicable Attribute, Unchangeableness. All things below are subject to mutations; Kingdomes are changed, and Republicks changed; Men, Manners, Cities, Families, Congregations changed. Apparel, Fashions, Opinions daily changed; and which is saddest of all, there are changes in Religion: yea, the Moon is daily changed, but the Sun never: his Essence the same, Light as clear, Heat as cheering, Influence as operative, Motion as swift as ever. Hence the Sun is often in Scripture brought in as a demonstration of the unchangeablenesse of Gods Decrees, Love, and Promises towards his people. Thus saith the Lord, which giveth Jer. 31. 35, 36.the Sun for a light by day, and the Ordinances of the Moon and Stars by night.—If those Ordinances depart from me, saith the Lord, then may the seed of Israel cease, &c. Again, If you can break my Covenant of the Jer. 33. 20, 21day and of the night, that there should not be day and night in their season, Then may my Covenant be broken with David my servant, &c I suppose it but a dream of the Astronomers, Ferè quart… pars decessit …ltitudini solis in margine eccentrici, qua res digna est admiratione, dubitari enim potest utrum propter senectam mundi delabatur sol factus languidior paulatim ruente naturá: an verò in senecta natura tanqu… effoeta opu… sit viciniore positu Solis eam foventis.that the Sun is come down lower, and moveth neerer the earth, by one fourth part, then it did in ancient times. But be it so, Christ is the Sun unchanged in his effence, grace, glory, merits, all-sufficiency; unchanging in his purposes, promises, gifts, callings, love, compassion to his people. He is Alpha and Omega, the same yesterday, to day, and for ever; the Lamb slain from the beginning of the world. And if he be at all changed, it is in his Approximation, and neerer approach to the earth in his incarnation, and the other passages of his Humiliation.
App. 1. Then is Christ able to save to the utmost, all that come unto the father through him, he hath the same penny for the last, asNam hoc tempore Sol proprior est Territ quam Ptolomaei temporibu… milliaribus Germanicis novem millibu… non gentis septuaginta sex. Frigius l. 14. Deut. 34. 7. and 8. 4. for the first. His hand not shortned, nor mercy abated. It is remembred of Moses, as that which was not ordinary, that after an hundred and twenty years, his eye was not dim, nor his natural strength abated. And that more strange, that all the Israelites garments waxed not old in forty years space. But how admirable is it, that the eye of the Sun is not made dim, nor strength abated, nor do his garments wax old after six thousand years. He is as a mighty Gyant, as fresh after so great labours, and after so many ages revolution as ever; and as faire as the young Bridegroome, as the Psalmist hath it,Psalm 19 the emblem of this our Sun, and his unchangeablenesse. He is Lux Perennis, h… is fons perennis; the Sun whose light, th… spring whose water is perpetual; generations passe, the Sun remains; new Traveller… come to the old fountains where their fathers drank; there they are, and as fresh they runne; there Abraham drank, an… Rom. 4 22there do we; He believed, and it was counted to him for righteousnesse; we believe, an… it is our righteousnesse: …here David dran… in his time; he believed and therefore spake, w… 2 Cor. 4 13also believe, and therefore speake: there dran… Paul▪ long after, and was revived; he believedforeign. 1 Tim 1 16 and obtained mercy; and was set forth for an example to all after beleivers. It is the most glorious Anthem that ever the Church militant sung, His mercies endure for ever; therefore appointed to be sung in their most Solemn feasts. Besides you have it twenty six times in one Psalme, the burden1 Chron. 16 41 2 Chron. 7. 3 and 20, 27 Ezra 3 11 Psal. 136 per totum. of every verse, a meditation that can never be oft enough repeated, remembred, studied and believed.
2. Is Christ so unchangeable? then if he hath appeared to thee once, chosen, called, loved thee, his love is an everlasting love, free at first and without cause, firm Jer. 31 3 Rom. 11 29to the last and without change. His gifts and callings are 'foreign, without repentance. The Sun is the faithful witnesse in heaven; if it did shine into thine house yesterday, it wil to morrow, and for ever, as long as the house stands. The Scripture usually comforteth godly ones upon this consideration, God is faithful by wh…m ye are called 1 Cor. 1. 8, 9into the fellowship of his Son Iesus Christ. Therefore he shal confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blamelesse in the day of our Lord I…sus Christ. Again, faithful is he who calleth 1 Thes. 5 14you, who also wil do it. Hence the godly soul comes to safe Anchor after all storms. My salvation is not in my hands, it is in Gods; my unfaithfulnesse hazards it, his faithfulnesse secures it; my unbelief shakes it, his faith settles it; my mutable wil and condition endangers all, his immutable decrees and love secures all; my foundation is subverted, my seals cancelled; the foundation of God yet 2 Tim. 2 19 Rom. 11 1…abideth sure, and hath his seal—Our happinesse is, the root bears the branch, not the branch the root: our faith, love, holiness, is not the ro…t, but branches of the love of God; the branch is broken, the root remains. We are changed, and so sometimes we cannot do as at other times; we think God is changed, he is not. Children in a Boat think the houses and trees remove; it is the boat, not the trees: We measure Gods love to us, by ours to him; and so perplex all. But the Scripture puts it out of doubt; our unbelief makes not void Gods faithfulnesse: ifRom. 3 3 2 Tim. 2. 13 we be unfaithful and deny him, he yet abideth faithful and cannot deny himselfe; if we forget we are children, he cannot forget to be1 Sam. 15 11 a father. He may repent (it may be) that he gave Saul a Kingdome, or Jeroboam ten Tribes; never repents of grace given, because this flowes from unchanged fatherly love, the other from common providence.
3. Then are the promises firm, which Christ hath made, He is the Amen, Rev. 3. 14. And all his Promises are yea and Amen▪ 2 Cor. 1. 20As the Suns motion is certain, varyeth not a minute, hence Eclipses can be so long foretold by Artists, and every Countryman can tel you where the Sun wil be, and of what length the daies seven years hence. If ever therefore there was a promise to a believer, to justifie the ungodly, to count faith Rom. 4. 5, 24 & 14. 4for righteousnesse, it wil as wel reach us, as Abraham, as the Apostle reasons.
The Sun moves constantly with in his Tropicks, and comes sooner or later to all such climates as are within his bounds; Christ doth as certainly meet those that wait for him in his way.Isa. 64. 5.
4. Terror to wicked ones: If Christ his love, and promises firm, then his threats, his truth, justice, jealousie, hatred of sin, is as much as ever: If he ever hated an ungodly person, he loves not thee. He shews mercy to thousands, but by no means clears th… guilty. Exod. 34, 7. His garments are white as wool, but his eyes red as flames of fire, and he hath a sharp two edged sword in his mouth. Rev. 1. 13Woe to them who walk in the way of Cain, Balaam, or Corah, their damnation slumbers not, though their conscience slumber.
The Sun never goes an inch beyond his Tropick, but returns; nor wil Christ the Son of peace ever come to such as are out of the way of peace, but return back again.Luke 10. 6