A Gospel Glass, Title page – Preface
A GOSPEL-GLASSE, Repreſenting the MISCARRIAGES OF Engliſh Profeſsors, BOTH In their Perſonal and Relative Capacities, for which God is contending with them, by the Sword, Plague, &c. and (ſince the writing of the greateſt part of the following Treatiſe for the Preſs) by the dreadful Fire in London. OR, A CALL FROM HEAVEN To SINNERS and SAINTS.
By Repentance and Reformation to prepare to meet God.
Levit. 19.17. Thou ſhalt not hate thy Brother in thine heart: Thou ſhalt in any wiſe rebuke thy Neighbour, and not ſuffer Sin upon him.
Jer. 2.35. Yet thou ſayeſt, Becauſe I am innocent ſurely his anger ſhall turn from me: Behold, I will plead with thee, becauſe thou ſayeſt, I have not ſinned.
LONDON, Printed in the Year MDCLXVII.
THE Authors PREFACE.
WHEN it is a day of darkneſs and of gloomineſs, a day of clouds, and of thick darkneſs, then (ſaith the Prophet) Blow ye the Trumpet in Zion, Joel 2.1, 2.and found an Alarum in my holy Mountain: Let all the Inhabitants of the Land tremble. Lam. 2.1.How hath the Lord covered the Daughter of Zion with a Cloud in his anger, and caſt down from Heaven unto the Earth the beauty of Iſrael, and remembred not his Foot-ſtool in the day of his anger? He hath violently taken away his Tabernacle, as if it were of a Garden; V. 6 he hath deſtroyed the Places of the Aſſembly: The Lord hath cauſed the ſolemn Feaſts and Sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion, and hath deſpiſed in the indignation of his anger his Prieſts. V. 7 Yea, the Lord hath caſt off his Altar, he hath abhorred his Sanctuary, the Law is no more, her Prophet, alſo find no Viſion from the Lord. O that now mine eyes could fail with tears, V. 9 and my bowels were more troubled within me! O that my Liver were poured upon the Earth for the deſtruction of the Daughter of my People, V. 11 becauſe the Children and the Sucklings ſwoon in the ſtreets of the City! We ſee not our Signes, there is no more any Prophet, Pſal. 74.9.neither is there among us any that knoweth How Long.
When we, 2 Sam. 6.1, 2.like David, were reſtoring the Ark of God, I mean, the preſence of Chriſt, in his Worſhip and Ordinances, what Stumblings of the Oxen have we ſeen? What miſerable Diſappointments have we met with? And what ſad breaches have there been made? How hath God ſtopt our way, and branded our Enterpriſes with wonderful remarks of his ſore diſpleaſure?
Hear therefore the word of the Lord, Hoſ, 4.1.ye Children of Iſrael, for the Lord hath a Controverſie with the Inhabitants of the Land. We poor Miniſters have pleaded with you, till we can plead no more: the Lord hath bid us stand by, whileſt he himſelf takes up the Controverſte. O is it not a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God? Hebr. 10.31.Are you not ſenſible what Arrows God hath begun to ſhoot amongst us? How many thouſands, Pſal. 58.9. Iſa. 5.25.and ten thouſands hath he taken away as with a whirlwind by the Peſtilence? For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is ſtretched out ſtill. How hath God ſhaken our Heavens, Hag. 2.6.and our Earth; the Sea, as well as dry Land? How doth he contend still by the Sword? And how much precious blood hath the Earth and Sea drunk up? For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is ſtretched out ſtill.
O! Come, Pſal. 46.8.Behold the works of the Lord, what deſolations he hath made in the Earth. Every Providence of God, (eſpecially his more notable Acts) hath a reaſon written upon it, could mans eye read it. When the Church complained that God was as a ſtranger in the Land, Jer. 14.8, 10.and as a wayfaring man, that turneth aſide to tarry for a night: The Lord replyes to them, Thus have they loved to wander, &c. The Controverſie began on their ſide: they may ſee their Sin in the Puniſhment, as in a Glaſs. Do they winder I grow ſtrange to them? The eſtrangement began on their part. Nothing appears more our inſtant Duty, than to enter a ſerious ſcrutiny, What have we done? Wherein have we offended? Lam. 3.40, 41, 44.Let us ſearch and try our wayes, (ſaith the afflicted Church of Judah, upon this very occaſion, of the Lords covering himſelf with a Cloud, that their Prayers could not paſs through) and turn again to the Lord. Let us lift up our heart, with our hands, unto God in the Heavens. O! Hag. 1.5.7.Conſider your wayes: The Lord doubled it, Your iniquities have ſeperated between you and your God, Iſa. 59.2.and your ſins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.
I find men will eaſily ſubſcribe to this, that Sin is the procuring cauſe of all miſery; but I find an aptneſs to transferr the guilt from one to another, from one party to another; and though people do even ſell themſelves to work wickedneſs, yet ſo predominant is Self-love, that it ſees no ſpots in it ſelf. Ahab is not the troubler of Iſrael, but Elijah: Nay, a good man, Aaron excuſeth himſelf, Exod. 32.22.and layes the blame on others. The Sin is theirs, not mine. Men have a natural deſire to juſtifie themſelves, and their deſire is ſo ſtrong, that they care not whom they beſpatter or burden, ſo they may but eaſe and acquit themſelves.
And indeed, Sin is ſuch an ugly Monſter, that no man will own it, if he can chooſe; but had rather lay this Child of Darkneſs at any mans door, yea at Gods, than Father it himſelf.
My Deſign in this Enterprize, is, to obviate this Distemper, and to bring you, all of you, to own your iniquity; that you may ſay (reſolve upon it) that you will confeſs your iniquity, Pſal. 32.5.that ſo God may forgive the iniquity of your ſin. My Place, and Duty, as a Minister (though wholly unworthy of that Relation to God and you) binds me to cauſe Jeruſalem to know her abominations; Ezek. 16.2.and therefore I have deſcended to Particulars, that, if it be the will of God, I might hit the humour, 1 Kings 8.38.and ſhew to every man the plague of his own heart.
The Lord knoweth, I take no pleaſure to rake in theſe Dunghills: I dread the ill uſes, that the Sons of Belial may make of this Enterprize: I expect various Cenſures from them, who ſhould be otherwiſe min…ed; but my record is on high, that the great Deſign of this Publication is, to reduce Profeſſours to a more aweful, humble, ſerious Repentance towards God, and ſingular Converſation before men.
I thank God for the freedome that a Reverend Brother hath taken with the ejected Ministers: Vox clamantis in Deſerto.and I muſt profeſs, that ſince the peruſal of that moſt ſeaſonable Pi…ce, I have had no quiet in my Conſcience, till I entred upon this Labour. Though my bodily Diſtempers pleaded loud for my ſilence; though I was told, the prudent ſhould hold their peace in an evil day; though I know 'tis an unthankful office to admoniſh and reprove, &c. Yet I have laid by all Impediments and Objections that Self was obtruding; and wiſh I had ſuch gifts, and ſuch affections, and ſuch a diſcerning of the hearts and lives of Profeſſours, as might render me ſome way uſeful, to put you upon ſelf-reflection, upon ſelf-tryal, in order to a full Repentance: I pray God, I may ſo farr at least ſucceed, as to obſtruct that curſed exclaiming againſt the ſins of Governours, and the ſins of divided Parties, as at length to make you cry out, What have I done? O! how have I provoked God?
Out of pity to your ſouls have I undertaken this ſubject: Our pangs, like thoſe of a travailling Woman, are hastening: the Clouds are ſwelling, I am loth they ſhould fall on you in a ſecure and impenitent condition, I am not aſhamed to tell you, that I foreſee foul weather; and I would you ſhould be in readineſs for boiſterous Seas. I know nothing ſave guilt will then ſink your hearts: the load of affliction will be ſo heavy and hard upon you, that I would have nothing elſe (not the load of millions of unrepented ſins) at the ſame time, to preſs you down. Sins unrepented of, will ſoon, as poyſon, drink up your ſpirits. If ſin be confeſſed, and repented of, if God hath forgiven, no matter what loads lye upon the back, ſeeing no guilt lyes upon the Conſcience.
Having given you an accompt of my Deſign, and the reaſon of it, I ſhall only add,
That it may not be expected I ſhould give you a full Catalogue of all your ſins, which are provocations in the eyes of the Lord this day. Who can underſtand his errours? Cleanſe thou me (and the Land) from all our ſecret, Pſal. 19.12.as well as known, faults.
God forbid I ſhould be ſo cenſorious, as to judge all Profeſſours guilty of theſe ſins, in all the Particularities, or in all the Aggravations of them. Some are to be charged one way, ſome another: few can waſh their hands in innocency, that they are no ways Principals or Acceſſories.
Farr be it from me to be partial in my Charge, to advance any Faction of men upon the ruines of their Brethren.
I deſire you would take this Catalogue into your Cloſets with you, and as you read, ſet a ſpecial mark of obſervation on thoſe ſins, which are chiefly yours, in order to repentance, and amendment, and then give the Lord no reſt, till he hath took his Pen, and dipt it in the blood of his Son, and blotted them out of his Diary, and remembrance.
And Laſtly, Let me beſeech the Reader, to be very importunate with the Lord, for an humble, tender ſpirit; that prejudice, unbelief, and hardneſs of heart, may not accompany him in the peruſal of the following lines, and thereby, both his, and my own endeavours, become abortive.