Exposition of Psalm 25, Commentary 2 · Verse 5
Verſe 5. Behold, I was borne in iniquitie, and in ſin hath my mother conceiued me.
THis is the fourth reaſon, by which he would moue God to forgiue him. That our nature from the very originall is corrupted, from the ſeminarie and fountain of our conception. For from our mothers wombe, we bring nothing but ſinne. And ſurely we cannot throughly acknowledge our ſins, vnleſſe we condemne our whole naturall powers and faculties of vncleanneſſe. So the knowledge of this one ſinne, bringeth him to the examination of his whole life,Actuall ſins are as ſtreames which proceed from original ſin which is the fountaine. till he find nothing in himſelfe but ſin. For if the fountaine be poiſoned, what will the ſtreames be that flow from it. If we would looke backe to our originall ſin, we might hauehave cauſe the more to lament our actual ſins, as poiſonable ſtreames flowing from ſuch a fountaine.
So ſoone therefore as our conſcience accuſeth vsus of any one ſin, we ſhould call to remembrance the whole courſe of our life,Let the remembrāce of one ſin put vsus in mind of all the ſins we hauehave committed. Simil. that it hath bin nothing elſe but a continuall ſinning againſt God; that thus the laſt putting vsus in mind of the firſt, we may not be content to repent and aske pardon for one, but for all. A ſick man hauing obtained health, doth remember how long be was ſicke, whereby for the preſent he both conſidereth his own frailtie and Gods merciemercy in deliuering him, as alſo encourageth and inanimateth him in time to come, by remembrance of former mercies obtained. Happie were we if we would begin to remember our miſeries and Gods mercies.
Lorinus the Ieſuite to ecce addeth enim, which he confeſſeth is not in the Hebrew veritie, and that Saint Ierome hath forgot it, yet maintaineth that it is rightly put in, to giuegive force to the words of his ſin. See the Sophiſt, who granteth the Scriptures, and yet would empaire their credit: as though Gods Spirit were not wiſe enough, and the ſenſe could not hold without enim. The like do they in theſe words, Hoe eſt corpus meum, they adde enim, and ſay, Hoc eſt enim, which is not in the Scriptures, and were altogether vngrammaticall. In a word, they alter and change the Scriptures as they pleaſe, bringing in their enim as a particle of reaſon, which carieth with it no reaſon.
Ye ſee then what the miſerable corruption of our nature is, ſo ſoone as we take life,Man no ſoouer beginneth to liue, but he beginneth to ſinne. Gen. 6.5. we begin to ſin. An infant of one day, is not cleane before God. The maſſe whereof we be formed, is filthy and ſinfull; and ſo much the more filthy, ſeeing it is poſſeſſed with a ſoule vncleane and polluted. The cogitation of mans heart is only euill continually. God knoweth our mold. Pſa 103.14We erre frō the womb. And albeit mariage be a bed vndefiled, Heb. 13.4.by reaſon of the inſtitution, yet the concupiſcence and luſt polluteth the ordinance which is moſt holy.
Children hauehave of iginall ſin.Then children are not free of original ſin: for then why ſhould they be baptized; and why ſhould they die, as many do daily?
But it may ſeeme wonderfull & ſtrange,Obiect. that ch…ldren who can neither doe, thinke, or ſpeake euill, ſhould be culpable? I anſwer by another queſtion; what is the reaſon that a yong fox new whelped,Solut. Simil. doth not ſlay a lamb? is it not becauſe it lacketh ſtrength, and is not come to that maturitie to execute their inclination, which is naturally cruell. So are infants naturally inclined to ſin; and therefore ſo ſoone as they can think any thing, ſpeake or do any thing, it is euill, as daily experience teacheth vsus.Parents ſhould take care to amend by good education that which is deficient in their children by nature. Simil. Originall ſin is ſin. And therefore it becometh Chriſtian parents to take paines to amend that which is deficient and imperfect by nature in their children, by art, inſtruction and correction. That as wilde beaſts are tamed by the induſtrie of men, and barren grounds hauehave become fruitfull by labouring and manuring; ſo euil natures may be corrected by good education.
Ye ſee alſo out of this, that originall ſin is ſin, and offenſiue to the law of God, and the roote of all others: that the moſt ſecret thought of our heart is ſufficient to condemne vsus, if God would deale extreamely. Which impugneth that diuelliſh and erronious doctrine of ſome, who think that the firſt intentions and thoughts are veniall, if conſent come not with them. Our Lord ſaieth, that whoſoeuer ſeeth a woman, and luſteth after her, committeth adulterie, Mat. 5 28.and is as culpable before God as if he had ſinned with her. But that concludeth not, that the motion is not ſinfull, to which ſuch a wicked conſent is added; the greater ſin cannot excuſe the leſſer. Therefore we muſt go with Elizeus to the countaine, and caſt in ſalt in thoſe rotten and ſtinking waters,2 Kin. 2.20 that they being purified, all the ſtreames flowing therefrom, may be alſo cured.
This parentall ſin, hereditarie, radicall, the leuen of the primitiue corruption, the law of the members naturall and generall to all mankind,Nota. cannot be taken away, but by the conception and natiuitie of Chriſt.
But here ariſeth a queſtion, how parents, both being Chriſtians and receiued in the couenant,Obiect. can beget ſinfull children? I anſwer by a familiar ſimilitude;Solut. Simil. the ſeed, ye ſee, when it is ſowne, is made as cleane as the art and induſtrie of man can do, and yet ariſeth with a roote, ſtalke, blade and beard; the cauſe is not in man, the force lieth in the ſeed: ſo in that the parents are purified, they hauehave it of God; what the childe hath, he hath by nature, which either muſt be repaired by grace, or he muſt periſh. Adam, Noah, Samuel, Eli, Dauid, &c. although they were godly & religious men, yet had naughtie and wicked children; which ſheweth vntounto vsus, that religion and godlineſſe cometh not by nature, but by the free grace of God.
Godlineſſe cometh not by nature but by grace.I omit thoſe vain & idle queſtions de originali peccato, which the Papiſts too curiouſly propound, and may be very eaſily anſwered, leſt it ſhould breed errors in your mind, which ye neuer dreamed of.
And in ſin hath my mother conceiued me. The word iechematin, ſignifieih properly Calefacit, warmed me in her wombe, fed or nouriſhed me, referring it to the action of heating and feeding the childe in the wombe nine monethmonth. Wherein the greatnes of Gods worke is to be ſeene, who ſo miraculouſly can preſerue the infant in ſuch an obſcure place, ſo compaſſed with the interiour parts. Alwayes euen there in that poore creature there is ſin, albeit he be ignorant of it. So he hath a burden when he feeleth it not, and lieth wrapped with all miſeries, and thinketh himſelfe then to be in a beſt caſe; for when he cometh out of the womb, with great paine to his mother, and difficultie to himſelf, he weepeth poore ſoule becauſe he is come to ſorrow.
Ezekiel maketh mention of a child new borne, whoſe nauill was not yet cut,Ezech. 16.3.4.5.6. neither ſalt put in it, nor waſhed, lying miſerably in the pollution of nature; which repreſenteth to vsus our naturall filth in ſin, that neither are we cutted away by the knife of the Spirit from our originall corruption, neither waſhed by the blood of Chriſt from our naturall vncleanneſſe, neither ſalted by the ſalt of the word; and if it were not by Gods grace, and care of our ſpirituall parents that we were helped, we would neuer liue, but die and periſh in the filth wherein we hauehave bin conceiued and borne. There is no beaſt which nature hath not taught ſome meanes to help it ſelf,Man were vtterly vndone, if he were not ſupported by the greace of God. as ſome hauehave naturally skins, or haire and wooll to defend them from iniuries, we hauehave none. In a word, man were vndone if he were not ſupported by the grace of God. We may weepe, we hauehave no more; and would God we could ſpiritually crie and mourne, that the Lord hearing our weeping might pitie and helpe vsus.
But becauſe ſo many worthy writers, both ancient and moderne, Papiſts and Proteſtants, hauehave written largely of this place, and I muſt ſay, Sum minimus omnium, I ceaſe to write any more hereof, leſt I ſhould repeate that which they hauehave already obſerued.