Exposition of Jude, Exegesis of Jude · Verse 6 · Part 2
OBSERVATIONS.
1.Obſerv. 1. How glorious a majeſty is the God of Angels! If the loweſt of earthly creatures, if a ſpire of graſſe, a worme, an ant, ſpeak his wiſdome and power, how much more do thoſe glorious ſpirits, who excell in ſtrength and underſtanding! How pure and ſimple a being, is that God, who is the father of all theſe ſpirits, How glorious he whom angels adore, and before whom principalities fall down! How ſtrong is he, who with one word of his mouth, made ſo many thouſands of thoſe angels, one of whom overthrew an hundred fourſcore and five thouſand men in one night! How wiſe he, who is the father of all that light which angels have, and which is but one ray of his ſun! Infinitely greater is the diſproportion between one God, and all the angels, than between all thoſe glorious hoſts and the leaſt ant upon the molehill. How can that king of glory want forces, who hath ſuch a militia, ſo many thouſands of ſuch Chariots to ride upon, Pſal. 68.7.ſuch a heavenly hoſt as all the millions of angels! Wonder, O man, that this Majeſty, who is furniſh'd with the attendance of angels, ſhould accept of the ſervices of worms. That he, the beholding of whoſe face is the heaven of thoſe bleſſed ſpirits, and who hath their beuties conſtantly before him, to look upon, and the ſweetneſſe of the exactly skilfull and melodious muſick of a conſort, a chore of angels to delight him; that this God ſhould accept of the chatterings of cranes, the blackneſſe of Ethiopians, the ſtammerings, the liſpings of infants, the jarrings of our poor broken inſtruments, the bungling ſervices of which, even poor we our ſelves are aſhamed. What a word of condeſcenſion is that of Cant. 2.14. Let me ſee thy countenance, let me hear thy voice; for ſweet is thy voice, and thy countenance is comely; and Joh. 4.23. The father ſeeketh ſuch to worſhip him. Lord! thou doſt not ſeek thus, becauſe thou wanteſt ſervants, but becauſe we want work; not becauſe thou art defective in attendants, but abundant in grace and rewards, and delighted with that of thy ſelfe, which thou ſeeſt, whereever thou findeſt it.
2. How highly advanced is he who is God and man! Obſervat. 2.The excellency of angels ſpeaks the greater excellency of him, who is above all principalities, and power, Eph. 1.21. Phil. 2.9.and might, and dominion, who hath a name above every name, Heb. 1.4, 6.1 Pet. 3.23.who is made better than the angels, whom all the angels are to worſhip, and unto whom angels, and authorities, Mat. 4.11.and powers, are made ſubject. When Chriſt was upon earth, the angels were his miniſters: angels proclaimed his entrance into the world. Yea, not only at his incarnation, but tentations, reſurrection, aſcenſion, angels attend him, ſerve him, woſhip him. Our King hath not a guard of men, as the great princes of the earth, but a guard of princes; and not of princes only, but even of principalities and powers. Chriſt is the Lord of the holy angels. Exod. 25.20.The eyes of the Cherubims are fix'd upon the Mercy-ſeat, the angels look upon Chriſt as their Maſter, expecting his commands. The vail of the tabernacle which covered the moſt holy, Exod. 26.31.(expreſly ſignifying the fleſh of Chriſt, which hiding his divinity, made way for us to heaven) was made of broydered work with Cherubims; there being hereby noted unto us, the ſervice which the angels give to Chriſt as man. They are called, Mat. 16.27. the angels of the Son of man. Chriſt tooke not upon him the nature of angels, and yet they undertake the ſervice of Chriſt. Bluſh, O man, that angels ſhould obey him, and that thou ſhouldſt rebell againſt him. Oh, ſince he is come to his own, let them receive him. Let not Chriſt ſuffer for his condeſcenſion. If ſubmiſſion to Chriſt, be the grace of angels, contempt of Chriſt is the ſin of divels. Oh kiſs the Son, ſubject your ſelves to him, and ſo ſtoop to your own bleſſedneſſe. And take heed of diſgraceing that nature by ſin, and of making it lower than divels, which Chriſt hath advanced above Angels.
3.Obſervat. 3. Pſal. 8.3. How much below angels is poor mortall man! When David ſaw the Moon and Stars, he had ſelfe-debaſing thoughts; how much more ſhould wee, when we contemplate angelicall excellency! Angelus, ſi cum anima rationali comparetur, dici poteſt anima perfecta, quemadmodum & a nima dici poteſt angelus imperfectus. Angelus eſt integr a perfectáque ſubſtantia ſpiritualis; anima human a dimidiata & imperfecta, quia eſt forma corporis ac pars hominis. Angelus eſt totus ſpiritus; homo partim ſpiritus, partim caro, vel partim Angelus, partim beſtia. Bell. de aſcenſione grad. nov.Even the beſt part of man, his ſoul, is lower then angels. An angell is a perfect ſoul, and a ſoul but an imperfect angel, for the angel is an intire, perfect, ſpirituall ſubſtance, but the ſoul is a ſpirit but imperfectly, and by halfs, becauſe it is the form of the earthly body, and hereby a part of a man. An angel is all ſpirit; man part ſpirit, and part fleſh: partly like an angel, and partly like a beaſt; an angel is all gold; a man partly gold, partly clay. How childiſh, yea brutiſh and dull is our underſtanding, in compariſon of that of angels! What great pains doth man take for a little knowledge, how is he beholding for it to his ſenſes, and diſcouſe from the effects, to their cauſes; and after all induſtry, how doubtfull, ſuperficial, and ſtaggering is he in his apprehenſions! but angels behold things with one view, at once diſcern things, both effects and cauſes, and pierce into the ſubſtance as well as the accidents of things. As much difference between the knowledg of men and of angels, as there is between the ſight of an Owl and an Eagle; an illumin'd Doctor, and a ſucking child. How weak and impotent are the operations of the ſoul of man in compariſon of thoſe of an angel! the ſoul by the command of its will, can only move its own body; and that too, how ſlowly, how creepingly, and with what a dull progreſſiveneſſe, upon the dunghill of this earth! nor can it bear up this upon the water, in the aire, and carry it whitherſoever it will; whereas theſe ſpirits, with their alone force, can carry vaſt and heavy bodies upward, and whither they pleaſe. One angel wants no weapons, nay no hands to deſtroy a whole army. How far below the angels are we in habitation! The pooreſt pigeonhole is not ſo much inferior to the ivory palaces of Solomon, or the blackeſt under-ground dungeon to the moſt magnificent manſions of a king as is mans habitation to that of the angels. How glorious is that court which is adorned with the preſence of the King of glory; and how bleſſed thoſe attendants which ever behold his face therein! Poor man hath no better lodging for his noble, heaven-born ſoul, than a cottage of clay, and that too ſo frail and crazy, as were it not once or twice every day daub'd over, it would fall about his ears; and whetherſoever he goes he is forced to carry, to drag this clog, this clay, this chaine with him: whereas angels, free from the ſhackels of fleſh, can move from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven, even as ſwiftly as can our very thoughs! Poor man! wilt thou yet be proud? Oh that we were as low in heart as in condition. How uncomely a garment is pride, for thoſe who imbrace the dunghill, when the glorious angels are clothed with humility! But alas, as the height of heaven cannot make an angel proud, ſo neither can the lowneſſe of earth, no not of hell, make ſinners humble. Oh that we might only have high thoughts of that condition, Luk. 20.36.wherein we ſhall be equall to the angels. Lord, though I beg that I may be more thankfull for the metcies which I enjoy, than dejected for the troubles which I endure in this life; foreign.yet grant, till I come to be like the angels in the full enjoyment of thy ſelfe, that about the ſweeteſt of earthly comforts, I may rather be imployed with patience, than delight.
5.Obſerv. 4. Angelicall ſervices require proportionable abilities As angels excell in forwardneſſe, ſo in ſufficiency▪ to be Gods meſſengers; they are wiſe, ſtrong, ſwift. Provide thou (ſaid God, when he directed Moſes what Officers to chuſe for publick employment) out of all the people, Exod. 18.21.able men, ſuch as fear God, men of truth, &c. not favour, money, ſeniority, &c. but grace, wiſdome, and courage muſt advance men unto rule: A ſteed is not commended for prancing and trappings, but for ſwiftneſſe, and holding out; officers in Church and State are not for ſight, but for ſervice. We judg not of a pillar by its beauty, but its ſtrength. Should the pillars of a building bee all gilded and adorned, yet if within they were rotten and crazy, we ſhould fear to abide within that building. Its better to be under a zealous faithfull John Baptiſt, though his rayment bee hair and leather; than under a ſilken Diotrephes, who is all for preheminence, nothing for performance. Oh with what unworthy traſh and rubbiſh have we, and ſtill do we put off the gerat King! In prelaticall times, he that could but ſing, and croſſe, and cringe; and ſince, he that can but make a noiſe, and hath but boldneſſe enough for an hour, was, and is ſufficient for that work which requires the abilities of an angel. Mal. 1.14.Curſed be that deceiver, who hath a male in his flock, and ſacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing. And what but curſes from God and man thoſe will meet withall, by whoſe means ſuch corrupt and contemptible ſervices are offered to the great King, I do not underſtand. Is thy lame, thy ſickly, thy dulleſt child, the refuſe of all thy number, good enough to make a Miniſter? Had Achiſh no need of mad men, and hath God need of Ideots?
5. Angelicall abilities require proportionable ſervices. Obſervat. 5.Angels excell in ſufficiency, and they likewiſe excell in forwardneſſe to be Gods meſſengers. They are wiſe, ſtrong, ſwift; but they think not their beſt and greateſt gifts too good, too great for him that is the beſt and greateſt. God expects his tribute out of all our receits, and they ſhould be all for him, as they are all from him; Luk. 12.48.Where much is given, much again is required. They who are full, ſhould be free, and pour out to others. We muſt returne as we have received. They who have received the endowments of angels, ſhould return their employments. He who hath ability to do better than others, and yet is but equal to them, doth therefore worſe, becauſe he doth not better. How unworthily do thoſe deal with God, who are angels for taking in, and yet, below the very brutes for laying out of their abilities! even the very Oxen are ſtrong to labour. How bad, how hard a maſter is God proclaimed, by ſuch ſervants, who can, but will not work! How little is the place, the age wherein they live, beholding to them! David ſerved his generation, and then fell aſleep; but theſe fall aſleep while they ſhould be ſerving their generation, and reſt from their labours, even before they are dead. How juſt with God is it that theſe who will not give God the intereſt, ſhould forfeit the principall! and that they who will not uſe, ſhould loſe what God hath given them! Gifts will not be augmented, unleſſe acted; nay, how frequently, but ſadly, have I obſerved, that they who have been even angels for their abilities; have by ſloth and ſenſuality grown even below men, and loſt the edg and ſmartneſſe of all their parts; and like unſavoury ſalt, been good for nothing but the dunghill!
6.Obſerv. 6. Greatly is that God to be feared who hath all the angels at his command. Sinners are never ſafe when moſt ſecurely ſinning. If God ſpeaks the word, angels will execute his pleaſure upon them. Who dares to provoke a General, that is in the head of a puiſſant army! The heavenly hoſts do but wait for the word, to deſtroy the enemies of their Maſter, and Commander in chief. An angel ſmote proud Herod, who robb'd God of his glory. How fooliſhly-bold is that ſinner, who thinks to prevail againſt God by rebellion! The beſt policy is for us to caſt downe the weapons of ſin, and to make him our friend in Chriſt, who is the Lord of all thoſe glorious hoſts; and if a King ſhould conſider whither he be able with ten thouſand, to meet another King coming with twenty, how ſhould we conſider whether our hearts can be ſtrong in contending with that God, between whom and us, there is an infinite diſproportion, and as we are ſinners, an infinite oppoſition.
7.Obſerv. 7. Pſal. 34.7. Gods people are alwayes ſafe. The angel of the Lord pitcheth his tents about them that fear him. None are ſo nobly attended as Saints; they have a life-guard of angels to encompaſſe them about: Angels are as carefull of the faithfull, as a nurſe of her ſucking child; they bear them up in their arms, that they daſh not their feet againſt a ſtone. Pſal. 91.11.God at the birth of the faithfull, puts them (as it were) out to theſe to tend; and at their death, he makes theſe nurſes to bring home his children again. They keep them from receiving hurt from others, and offering hurt to themſelves. The faithfull are not to be judg'd by what we ſee of their danger, but what we read of their ſafety. Could they but open the eyes of their faith, they might ſee the mount ains full of horſes and Chariots in all dangers, and more with them then againſt them.
8.Obſervat. 8. Its our duty to take the care of thoſe who are below us. None can be ſo much under us, as we are under angels. If thoſe heavenly ſpirits attend upon a lump of earth, how regardfull ſhould we be one of another, Heb. 13.3. Iſai. 58.7.as being in the body! How unſutable is it to hide our eyes from our own fleſh! The angels are not aſhamed to ſerve us though we ſmel of the earth, and the dungeon; and do more condeſcend, than a Prince in attending upon a man full of ſores and vermine; Rom. 12.16.let us condeſcend to men of low eſtate; and account no work too low for us, but ſin.
9. The higher the priviledges are which any abuſe, Obſerv. ult. Pſal. 103.20. Mat. 12.29. Rev. 10.1. 2 Kin. 19.35. 2 Chron. 6.17. Pſal. 68.17. Pſal. 14.20. Dan. 8.16. and 10.14.the greater ſhall be the puniſhment for abuſing them. Angels were creatures placed in the higheſt form of the Creation; for their nature, they are ſpirits; for their dignity, they are principalities and powers; for their employment, the meſſengers of the moſt high; in ſtrength they excell; the Divell is call'd the ſtrong one. Angels can break iron chains, open priſon doors, and iron gates; one can deſtroy whole armies. They are the hoſts of heaven, Gods militia, his chariots. For their wiſedome, they are termed by Philoſophers Daemons and Intelligences; admitable is their knowledg, naturall, experimentall, revealed. The widow of Tekoah told David, that he was wiſe according to the wiſdome of an angel of God, 1 Sam. 29.9. 2 Sam. 19.27.to know all things on the earth. And when the Scripture attributes the higheſt praiſe to inferiour creatures, the compariſons are borrowed from the angels. The king of Tyrus is called an annointed Cherub. Ezek. 28.14. Mat. 11.10. Rev. 2.1. Act. 6.15. Videtur haec apud Judeos, pa. raemialis locutio. Lorin. in Act. 6. Pſal. 78.25.The moſt eminent among men are called angels. David admiring mans glory, breaks forth thus, Thou haſt made him little lower than the angels. They ſaw the face of Stephen, as if it had been the face of an angel. If I ſpeak (ſaith Paul) with the tongues of angels. If they had tongues, they would ſpeak incomparably better than the moſt eloquent Oratour. Man did eat angels food. But the higher the created excellencies of angels were, the lower did ſin pull them down. Sin will make one who is an angell for perfections and priviledges, to become a divell for impiety and puniſhment. If an angel ſins, he makes himſelf a divell; if he falls, he falls as low as hell. The more accompliſh'd any one is, with abilities, when that is wanting which ſhould ſanctifie and ſeaſon them, the more deſtructive their abilities become to themſelvs and others. The better the weapon is, which a mad man holds, the more dangerous is his company. Nothing more precious and beneficiall than an Uuicorns horn in the Apothecaries ſhop, but nothing more deadly than it, when uſed by the fierce creature to wound men. None have done the Church of God ſo much hurt, or tempted ſo many to ſin, as ſome whom we may call faln angels; who, by their places, were the Lords meſſengers, and for their knowledg, as the woman of Tekoah ſaid of David, 1 Sam. 14.17. Ingenium Galbaemalè habitat.like an angel of God. Great pity that their abilities had ſo bad a lodging; and that either their heads ſhould be ſo good, or their hearts no better. Whom hath the divel made uſe of in all ages for Hereſiarcks, and ringleaders into hereſie and prophaneſſe, but faln angels, Popes, Popiſh prelates, Jeſuites, and men reputed, at leaſt for ſubtilty, and often for piety. But the eminency of their abuſed parts and places, Non datur ſal ſalis; ejus deperdita vis non poteſt reſtitui.makes a diſmall addition to their wretchedneſſe. None hath God left to fall ſo irrecoverably; nor is the loſt ſavour of this ſalt, againe to be reſtored; for what ſalt is there that ſhall ſeaſon unſavoury ſalt? Nor hath God ſpared to throw ſome of them (the popiſh Apoſtates) already on a dunghill of diſgrace, and made them trampled on by all: and without repentance, the preſent ſeducers muſt look for the ſame reward. In a publick Miniſter of Church or State, ſmalleſt ſins are abominations, blaſphemies. God will be ſanctified in thoſe who draw near to him in any eminency of employment. If a Princeh ave ſervants in places remote from his perſon, he looks they ſhould not diſgrace him by their carriage; but if they wait upon him at his table, then he expects more exactneſſe of deportment from them. God looks for holineſſe in all his ſervants; but moſt of all in his angels. Thoſe whom he prefers to places of miniſtry and neareſt ſervice about himſelf.
The ſecond particular conſiderable in the revolt of the angels is, from what they made their defection.
1. From their firſt eſtate.
2. From their own habitation.