The Case and Cure of a Deserted Soul, Chapter 1
CHAP. I. That the godly are ſometimes deſerted.
THough moſt men, ſince God and they parted in Adam, live without God in the world, Eph. 2.12, 13. and are ſo far from him, that they neither enjoy him, nor know him; yet there is a generation of men whom God hath made nigh by the bloud of Chriſt, with whom he hath renewed that old acquaintance and amity which at the firſt he had with them,Heu Domine Deus, rara hora, & brevis mora. Bern. in. Cant. 13. and they with him; which bleſſed eſtate, as it is not here perfected, ſo it's often interrupted; their comforts are ſweet alwayes, but ſhort often: there are but few (if any) whoſe joyes in a comfortable communion with God, are not ſometimes clouded with ſorrowes in a dolefull elongation from him, ſo that if you lay but your eare to the doore of their cloſets, you ſhall often heare the daughters of Sion (as heires of their mothers miſeries) complaining in their mothers language, The Lord hath forſaken me, and my God hath forgotten me, Eſay 49.14. If you ſix your eyes upon them, you ſhall ſee Sions teares in their eyes, her paleneſſe in their faces, her ſorrowes in their ſoules; in conſideration of, and compaſſion to theſe mourners, I ſpent ſome thoughts upon this ſad ſubject.
Deſertions then are either Common, or Special.
Theſe which I call common, are ſuch as all men ſhare in by nature, God having forſaken and withdrawne himſelfe from Adam, and all his poſterity, with Apoſtate Angels.
The ſpeciall, I ſhall handle as they concerne Godly.
The ſpeciall, I ſhall handle as they concerne Hypocrits.
Deſertions, as they concerne men truly regenerate, are Gods withdrawing himſelfe;
In reſpect of quickning quicting or cōforting of the ſoul.
Deſertions, as they concerne men ſeemingly regenerate, are Gods withholding of thoſe influences, by which they had a kinde of life comfort ſpirituall.
To begin then with deſertions as they concerne the godly: I ſhall firſt ſpeake ſomething in generall of them, and then deſcend to the more ſpecials. That which I ſhall ſay in the generals, I will comprize in two things:
1 That there is ſuch an evill as ſpirituall deſertion.
2 How they are deſerted.
That there is ſuch an eſtate,That the godly may be deſerted, proved. its almoſt loſt labour to prove; yet becauſe as all in Chriſtians is hidden and ſecret, ſo nothing more than their comforts and diſcomforts. I will, and that in two words make it good; we will call in two witneſſes to give evidence to the truth.
The experience of the Saints: Aske Sion, By experience.you have her verdict; Eſay. 49.14. And Sion ſaid, the Lord hath forſaken me, and my God hath forgotten me. You ſee here the Church clad all in blacke, bewailing her widowhood, as one bereft of her deareſt husband; every word of her ſpeech is bedewed with tearesbforeign. Plut. l. de conſolat. ad Apol., and beareth a drop from her bleeding ſoule. The Lord, Iehovah, he whoſe power and fidelity hath been to me as the pillars of the earth, he hath forſaken me, he hath caſt me off. My Lord, he who was mine in covenant, mine in communion, he who was the joy of my life, the life of my joy, the ſtrength, the ſtay, the ſpring of my life, he hath forgotten me: he hath caſt me not onelyonly out of his armes, but out of his heart; I am quite out of his love, not onelyonly forſaken, but forgotten.
And in this, Sion is not alone: Aske David, and you ſhall heare him as ſoon as you come neare him, ſighing, ſobbing, crying, ſoaring; but what ſaith he, what ailes him? he telleth you, Pſal. 22.1. My God, my God, why haſt thou forſaken me? See how well their teſtimonie agreeth: how can a man looke upon David, and not count him as a poore Orphan, that is left in woe caſe, friendleſſe, helpleſſe, comfortleſſe a but yet we will heare a greater than David, that is, the Captaine of our ſalvation, the firſt & head of the whole ordercChriſtus Primicerius. q. in primâ cerâ, vel primus in cerâ; antiqu ſ… ilicet cereis is ebanturtabulis, & primus in tabula vocabatur Primicerius, ſic Aug. appellat Stephanum Primicerium martyrum; & foreign. Phavorin., & what he ſaith, and we will goe no further to aske of others. David was here a type of Chriſt, and as himſelfe was but the ſhadow of Chriſts perſon, ſo was his ſorrow but a ſhadow of Chriſts ſorrow. David did but taſte of the cup which Chriſt afterward drank more deeply of, when in the anguiſh of his ſouler upon the Croſſe, he cryed out, My God, my God, why haſt thou forſaken me? Matth. 27.46.
And this Cup hath gone round ever ſinder, ſo that few have ever taſted of the wate…s of life, but they have drunke alſo of theſe waters of Marah dforeign. Hom. & Plut. l. de conſolat. ad Ap.; The experience of all the Saints almoſt contributes to the evidence of this truth: where ſhall we finde a man that hath not met with theſe rocks and ſands, and hath not ſeen ſome gloomie dayes, & winter ſtorms, paſſing through many changes, ſometimes rejoycing as the plants in the Springeforeign. Odyſſ. 8., in the ſight and ſenſe of Gods gracious preſence; ſometimes again mourning for his loſſe of God; ſometimes lift up to heaven in his ſoule, and mounting as it were on Eagles wings; ſometimes again depreſſed to the deeps of hell, & held as with chains of braſſe or iron; now quickned, but growing dull againfAliquando infirmior fit regenitus regeneratione progrediente, quam ineuate. Camer. amic. Coll. p. 289.? few can ſay they have once found God, but may ſay they have often loſt him.
Adde to the experience of the Saints, the witneſſe of God himſelfe;Divine teſtimony. David, and Heman, and Iob, and Zion, might ſpeak much out of diſtruſt, impatience, paſſion, &c. but when God himſelfe ſhall come in and confirme their evidence, it is paſt doubt. But God doth ſo; for doth Sion bewaile herſelfe as a widow forlorne without an husband? God ſaith it was ſo: The Lord hath called thee as a woman forſaken, and grieved in ſpirit, and a wife of youth, when thou waſt refuſed, ſaith thy God, Eſay 54.6. God ſaith he had in a ſort divorced her from him: yea, and whereas Sion complained that God forſooke her, its no more than God ſaith himſelfe, verſ. 7. For a ſmall moment have I forſaken thee; ſo that this is ſometimes the ſad portion of the Saints, to be deſerted.
And this I have the rather ſpoken, that the mourners in Sion may ſee this uncomfortable ſtate may conſiſt with grace; it is a comfort to know that thy deeps are paſſeable, and thy caſe cureable; others have walked in this heavy way, and are now in heaven; others have beene in theſe ſtormes, yet have ſafely arrived at the land of promiſe: None other affliction hath befallen you, but that which is common to men; therefore be not overwhelmed in griefe, give not thy ſelfe for loſt: diſquietneſſe will hurt, but it cannot helpe; rather ſtir up thy ſelfe to take hold of God, repent, pray, beleeve, wait, for God is faithfull, and will not ſuffer you to be tempted above that you are able, but will with the temptation alſo, make a way to eſcape, that ye may be able to beare it, 1 Cor. 10.13.