A Good Soldier Maintaining His Militia, Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII.
S…c…neſſe, Deaths H…rbinger and Death its ſelfe are knowne enemies to nature, and the Conquer…urs of this world: yet this Good Souldier is more than conquerour over both, which is m…d… plaine by a diſtinction the Sacred Scripture makes betwixt ſickneſſe, Death and Death.
THis man has brought God downe to his ſoule, and he has brought-up his ſoule to God, engaged to Him: And he has, (and he has all things, for he has God aforeign (i. e.) All things, Gen. 33. 11.,) he has in his Lord Chriſts, there is his confidence, and the ſtabilitie of his graces: And all he has, he layes-out for Chriſt, that is his duty: as all his actings are to Him, ſo are they for Him; An happy man indeed! he is out of the reach of his Adverſaries, the evill of ſickneſſe, the Power of death cannot reach him, is not able to hurt him. We ſuppoſe now, and yet that we need not doe, for it is an uncontroleable Truth, That weakneſſe, wearineſſe, and faintneſſe is that SQVIRE of the Body, which ſtill attendeth nature: And this man, though he may beare it out for a time, and think to wraſtle with this Squire, yet he muſt yeeld to it anon, take-his-bed, as we commonly ſay, lye-down there, tumble-upon it, turning-on this ſide towards his friends, they cannot help him; then on the other ſide towards the wall, as the good King before him, and prayed b2 King. …0. 2….. But all this while, this man is not ſick. It is a Paradox againſt all conceit and reaſon, a very riddle, I know, but we ſhall eaſily read it, if we will read the Scriptures, and as theſe direct us, diſtinguiſh of ſickneſſe; There is ſickneſſe full of wrath: A ſickneſſe full of comfort. This is very conſiderable; of infinite uſe, therefore I muſt infiſt upon it.
There is a ſickneſſe full of wrath, And wrath with his ſickneſſe cEccleſ. 5. 17.Ah Lord! now it is a ſickneſſe indeed: The Lord deliver us from that ſickneſſe wherein is wrath, for that is to be delivered from al… evill. Wrath makes it a ſickneſſe, a pure ſickneſſe, for therein is wrath; It is not the pain of the head, nor of the ſtomack, nor of the heart, which makes it a ſickneſſe: No, no; It is wrath that makes it a ſickneſſe; Wrath! The Lord deliver us from it, for it makes health a ſickneſſe, eating, drinking, playing, ſporting, but a ſickneſſe, all theſe; Marke the words, All his dayes alſo he eateth in darkneſſe. Darkneſſe! what is that? It followes, Much ſorrow. The man indeed feeles not the ſorrow, he is jocund and merry, but the more ſigne of more wrath, which he ſhall feele anon in his monethmonth dJer. 2. 24., when paines come upon him, then he ſhall ſay, I am ſick; for he feeles wrath with his ſickneſſe; Wrath was upon him before, when he was eating, drinking, ſleeping, God was angry with him every day, (all his dayes, he did eat in darkneſſe, ſayes the Text) Pſal. 7. 11.he was not ſenſible of this till now his day, and monethmonth is come, now he is ſick indeed, for he has wrath with his ſickneſſe. Indeed we ſhould not paſſe over this lightly, but I muſt proceed when I have given the ſumme only of what I ſhould have ſpoken, which is this, 1. Wrath with a mercy, be it health, peace, all outward proſperitie, makes all but a ſickneſſe: 2. Love, the will of a heavenly Father with ſickneſſe, wearineſſe, faintueſſe, with warre, and all outward molestations, and inward troubles, makes all healthy, ſound and well. That is the ſumme, the uſe is this, To put every man upon this work in the conſcionable uſe of all means, while health is, and yet his monethmonth is not come, whereby to pacifie wrath: if he be not carefull this way with all his care, then thus it will be when his monethmonth comes, and his eyes be open; then not only every griping in his ſickneſſe, but all that he called health, and all he did in his health, will come unto his remembrance with a ſenſe, and reliſh of wrath: Therefore uſe all meanes to pacifie wrath. And ſo I come to the other ſickneſſe full of comfort, this good mans ſickneſſe the Love of God, the face of God upon this man fils his heart top full with comfort: Though paines be upon him, and a ſore ſickneſſe, yet he will not ſay, I am ſick.
A. But may not God withdraw His face from this man, even at ſuch a needfull time?
B. Yes, that he may, for a night, and the man may apprehend wrath in it, and that apprehenſion makes it a long night: but joy comes in the morning, abundantly recompencing that nights ſorrow. God will not plead againſt his ſervant with His great power: No, but He will put ſtrength in him aJob 23. 6..
A. May not this man have a great diſtemper upon him, ſuch as may make him watch his opportunity to knock his head againſt the bed…ſted? ſo I think I have obſerved it.
B. Poſſible ſo, and ſuch may be the diſtemper of his diſeaſe; but yet the ſpirit is not out of frame; And now his friends will looke to him ſure; and ſuddenly the fit will be over, and then the man is himſelfe, and asketh his friends, (jealons of his behaviour) whether he did ſpeake unadviſedly with his lips? No ſaid they, and they ſaid very true, for it was his diſeaſe, not the man. And the man is very joyfull at this. Oh ſaid he, for ſo I have knowne it to be, I would ſay nothing that might diſhonour my God.
A. I but the man may be ground to pieces with a keen and cutting ſtone in his reines.foreign. Chryſoſt. in Cap. 18. Matth.
B. May be ſo, and yet no wrath in this. It is the will of his GOD, the love of his heavenly Father, ſo to exerciſe His ſon or daughter for a minute; the love of a Father, no wrath in all this.
A. But the man has a loathſome diſeaſe upon him, that we call Seeming mercies are plagues when they come from wrath: And ſeeming plagues are mercies when they come from love: ſaid the Preacher, who gives forth the whole mind of God in the Scriptures, and his words by weight. Mr Marſhall. Text Numb. 25. 11. April 22the plague.
B. True, but not a plague to him, no plague in that houſe, whatever we ſee upon his doore, or tokens upon his body, yet no plague there, if wrath be not there. Put it downe and conclude thy ſoule under this truth, That where is, there is a plague; Where no wrath, no plague: If wrath be pacified, the plague is gone; If wrath be not pacified, the plague remaines, be it ſword, famine, peſtilence, or wilde beaſts: from hence this is the reſult, Talke ye of Peace till your tongues are wearied, there can be no peace ſo long as wrath is not appeaſed; but appeaſe wrath, and then peace indeed, Peace, peace, whether you reſpect a nation or a man only.
A. But this mans acquaintance may be removed from him; Becauſe of his ſore diſeaſe, like a leproſie, a ſeparating ſickneſſe, he may be alone, and none …o comfort him.
B. Not poſſible, granting ſtill, that there is no wrath. None to comfort him! ſaid you; God ſpeakes comfortably to him, never ſo comfortably as now, now all are gone from him; now he feeles the greateſt comforts, the ſtrongeſt conſolations: God comforts Iſa. 66. 13.him now, as one, whom his mother comforteth (oh how does a mother comfort her ſick child!) ſo will I comfort you, and you ſhall be comforted. Ai, for his God undertakes for His ſervant; his God will comfort him, it is not poſſible he ſhould ſay now; I am ſick…
A. Not ſick! his head akes, and ſtomack akes, and back akes, and his heart akes, and yet ſay's he not, I am ſick!
B. No; The Inhabitants ſhall not ſay, I am ſick, for his iniquity is forgiven bIſa. 33. 24.: There is the point, wrath is gone, ſin, that cauſeth wrath, that is forgiven; his fleſh and his heart, thoſe faile him, but God does not faile, He is the ſtrength of his heart, and …ſal. 73. 26.his portion for ever. And now I come to that we muſt all come to, death; we can pull-out the ſting of it quickly, if it be as quickly done as ſaid; Then we muſt diſtinguiſh of deaths alſo, There is a killing death; and there is a quickening death.
A killing death; wherein a man at once, dies twice, dies a ſecond death; dies once, and dies ever; ever dying and never dead, a killing death. The ſacred Scripture aſſureth us it is ſo; They are dead, they ſhall not live aIſa. 26. 14.: they are deceaſed, they ſhall not riſe. What is this? I cannot expreſſe how terrible it is, It is a dying for ever, or a living for ever in the mouth and jawes of death; A living in death for ever, a continuing not in the ſhadow, but in the darkneſſe of death for ever, for the morning Starre ſhall dawne upon him, nor the Sun ariſe: A darkneſſe, where he ſhall never ſee the day, a perpetuall, an everlaſting night. There is another Scripture as terrible, I will kill her children with death bRev. 2. 23., who ſhall be ſo killed? is cleared from the context, that woman Jezabell, as miſchievous to the Chriſtian Church as ſhe was to Iſraell; That woman, and her children, her and her diſciples, who have drunk-in the wine of her ſornications, ſhe and they ſhall be Killed with Death; Killed. with Death! It is very terrible, God may open upon the mother and her children His Armory cJer. 50. 25. … Hoſe. 9. 13. Cruent is caedi…. Jun., ſhe may bring forth her children to the ſword, to be eaten-up with famine, conſumed with the peſtilence; devoured with wild beaſts, as now a dayes, and yet not killed with death. To be killed with death, is, when death ſeizeth upon the woman and her children, gnawes on them for ever, they ſhall dye and never dye; periſh utterly, and never periſh, they ſhall fall by death into an ocean of miſery, like a milſtone, and there be killed with death, ſuch paines as are unconceiveable; and, which is the killing indeed, the Hell indeed, everlaſting paines, which makes every day of paine (if there were any day in Hell) an eternall night of miſery. It is a killing death, when every minutes paines, has the ſenſe of eternity in them.
2. There is a quickening death; Thy dead men ſhall live eIſa. 26. ….: death is no death to them, life rather; It comes unto the godly ſwallowed-up in Chriſt his death (I think I may apply it ſo) that they may have life, and have it in aboundance fJob. 10. 10.. There is a ſhort controverſie marvellouſly carried in a full contrariety of words, but meeting in a point of an eternall truth; The controverſie was concerning the Rulers daughter: The LORD CHRIST ſaid of her, ſhee is not dead gMat. …. 24.: The ſtanders by laughed Him to ſcorne, for ſaith St Luke, they knew ſhee was dead hLuk. 8. 53.: dead and yet not dead, a truth in both; ſhe was dead to nature, alive to Chriſt, Who is the reſurrection and the life: the body is not dead to Him.
There are two other expreſlions very notable; He ſhall not ſee death, nor taſt death; he ſees it not as a conquerour, a king of tenrours, but conquered, unſtinged, ſpoiled, and led-captive: he looks upon as old Jacob upon his ſons wagons; or the Prophet upon his fiery chariot, ſo he looks upon death. He taſteth not of death, no wrath there; It is wrath, the killing with death, that is the gall of Aſpes; but now the wrath is gone; The man ſaid before, I am not ſick, for my fin is pardoned, and all wrath taken away; And now he is ſick indeed, Sick of Love; It is the will of his heavenly Father, that his ſickneſſe muſt unto death, and a fruit of His rich and aboundant love through his Lord Chriſt, by His Spirit, that he ſhould neither ſee death, nor taſt it, but ſee death ſwallowed-up in Iſa. 38. 17. Chaſhak….life and immortality; Indeed he is ſick of love, for the Lord has loved his ſoule from the pit: His loving kindneſſe was better than life to this man all his life long; what it is unto him now at his death cannot be expreſſed; but you ſhall heare his Song of Loves.
§ VIII. The good Souldiers Triumphant Song.
THis man is (ſuppoſed) now ready to breath out his ſoul into the boſome of his Father; the time of his departure is at hand; his work is done; he has fought a good fight, he has finiſhed his … Tim. 4. 6.courſe, kept the faith: He has nothing to doe now, but to die. And that was his care all his life long, To ſet all his houſe, and goods there, body and ſoul and all in that order, that he might have no cumber, nothing at all to trouble him, in that houre of temptation, no other work to doe then but to dye. He has but one Song to ſing now, which, though his body be weake he can ſing in the ſpirit: When he had ſtrength of body, he ſang all Davids Maſchills, Pſalmes to give inſtruction; all his mictams, thoſe pretious ſongs therein recording the rich mercies, and the abundant loving kindneſſe of his God: And then he asked his ſoul, what wilt thou render unto the LORD for all theſe? And then he reſolved upon it, to praiſe his God while hee had any being: Then he ſang the Pſalmes, to call to remembrance; then when he was lively and Pſal. 38. 70.ſtrong he chanted-forth the 30, 31, 32, 103, and 116, 120, and ſo to the end of the book of Pſalmes; all theſe he has ſung with rejoycing: Now he has but one Pſalme to ſing, and it muſt be very ſhort, he will lengthen it out in Heaven, as long as eternity is long, for ever. Now he lifteth up his body, if it be not too ſtiffe, and heavy; and his eyes, if he can, if he cannot, his ſpirit is willing, and the ſpirit carrieth forth the voice, when the tongue moves not; O my ſoule, exalt, magnifie the Lord thy God, He remembred thee, when thou waſt nothing; regarded thee in thy low estate; when thou waſt in thy blood, worſe than nothing, then He called thee, ſaid to thee, live, live; then He waſhed thee with cleane waters, a dorned thee, took a way thine iniquity, tranſgreſſon and ſin, forgave all thine iniquities, healed all thy diſeaſes; redeemed thee out of all adverſity; held thee in life, kept thy feet from falling. Come Lord Jeſu, faithfull and true, whom I have truſted; I have committed my ſoul into thy hands, for thou haſt red…emed it LORD God of truth. His laſt words. And now his warfare is ended, and he compleated; In the very point of his diſſolution, he is made perfect. Now he is where he converſed on earth, and delighted to be even where his love, his joy is, with His Lord Chriſt bleſſed for ever, Rev. 22.(He was his Heaven upon earth, and is his Heaven now;) and with the Saints of light, ſinging together the ſong of Moſes, and the Lamb, Hallelujah for ever and ever.
Let my way be as this mans way; my courſe as his courſe, my life as his life; then my end ſhall be like his, and the recompence of reward the ſame, Amen. So be it. Amen and Amen.