Tropes and Figures, Treatise 1 · Head 5 · Part 7 – Part 8
Hope compared to an Anchor.
Heb. 6.19. Which Hope we have as the Anchor of the Soul, both ſure and ſtedfaſt; &c.
HOpe is not only compared to an Helmet, but alſo to an Anchor, as the Soul is compared to a Ship, which Metaphor is opened under its proper Head.
Queſt. What is this Hope that is called the Anchor of the Soul?
Anſw. 1. Negatively. It is not a Hope of being rich, great, and mighty in the World. They eſteem not of things below at ſuch a rate, as to make them their Hope: If I have made Gold my Hope, or have ſaid to the fine Gold, Job 31.24thou art my Confidence, &c. Gold is put here (by a Synechdoche of the Part for the Whole) for all earthly things; ſo that whereas Job ſaith, If I have made Gold my Hope, his meaning is, if I have made any good things on Earth my Hope.
There is great difference (ſaith Mr. Caryl) between hoping for Gold, and making Gold our Hope; we may hope for worldly good things, but we muſt not make any thing of this Life our Hope. And further he ſaith,
'To make Gold, either gotten, or to be gotten, our Hope, implieth theſe four things:
1. An high Eſtimation of it, as that which can do great things for us, or ſtand us in ſtead, beyond any other thing, to make us happy.
2. A longing Deſire after it. There is always ſo much Deſire of that we hope for, that the thi…g hoped for is ſometimes expreſſed by the Deſire.Prov. 13.12. Hope deferred maketh the Heart ſick; but when the Deſire (that is, the thing hoped for) cometh, it is a …ree of Life.
3. Utmoſt and unwearied Endeavours to obtain it. That which a Man makes his Hope, he will make his Work, and never ceaſeth working till he hath attained it, or is convinced there is no poſſibility of attaining it.
4. To make Gold our Hope, implieth much Trouble and Anxiety of Mind, when once we ſee our Endeavours ineffectual and unſucceſsful about the attaining of it. If Hope deferred makes the Heart ſick, (as was hinted before) then when Hope dies, or as Zophar ſpeaks, chap. 11.20. is as the giving up of the Ghoſt, the Heart muſt needs die too.
2. It is not Hope of Length of Days: If I wait, the Grave is my Houſe, &c.
But then, 2. Poſitively, it is a patient and well-grounded Expectation of the Accompliſhment of what God hath promiſed. Faith ſees the Promiſe, and beholds it, tho afar off: Abraham ſaw my Day, ſaith Chriſt: But then in comes Hope, and keeps the Soul alive, in a well-grounded expectation of the fulfilling and accompliſhment of it. See the Deſcription of it where Faith is compared to an Helmet.
Why Hope is compared to an Anchor, may appear by what followeth.
| Metaphor. | Parallel. |
| AN Anchor is a good Stay and Security to a Ship in a Storm. What would the Mariner do, had he not an Anchor to caſt out of the Ship, when he is in danger of Rocks and Sands? | SO Hope in God, through Chriſt, is a moſt excellent Stay for the Soul of a Believer, in a Day of Trouble and Perſecution.Heb. 10.34 They ſuffered joyfully the ſpoiling of their Goods, knowing in themſelves, they had in Heaven a better and enduring Subſtance. We are ſaved by Hope, &c. It ſtays the Soul, as an Anchor does the Ship. |
| II. An Anchor takes hold of ſomething which is out of ſight. | II. So Hope, the Anchor of the Soul, takes hold of ſomething which is not ſeen with carnal Eyes, which is within the Vail, &c. |
| III. An Anchor, when it takes hold of a Rock, or firm Ground, faſtens and ſtays a Ship more ſteadily, preſerving it from ſuffering Shipwrack. | III. So Hope, the Anchor of the Soul, taking hold of Chriſt, who is called a Rock, ſtays the Soul in a perilous Time moſt firm and ſteadily, ſo that it is ſafe from ſpiritual Shipwrack. |
| IV. An Anchor would be of no uſe without the Cable to which it is faſtened. | IV. So Hope without Faith is of no uſe, nor can avail the Soul any thing in time of Need; thoſe two Graces always co-operate, and work together for the help and ſuccour of a Believer. |
| V. An Anchor, that it may be of advantage to a Ship, requires Skill rightly to caſt it. | V. Hope, the Anchor of the Soul, muſt be rightly caſt, or elſe it will not profit a Saint any thing in the Day of Trouble. It muſt be caſt within the Vail, Heb. 6. whither the Fore-runner is for us entred, even Jeſus, &c. |
| Metaphor. | Diſparity. |
| AN Anchor is caſt down into the Sea, River, &c. | HOpe, the Anchor of the Soul, is caſt upward; the Saint's Hope is in Heaven. |
| II. An Anchor may let go its hold, or be broke, and ſo become uſeleſs to a Ship, by which means the Ship may be loſt. | II. Hope, the Anchor of the Soul, is both ſure and ſtedfaſt; hence it is ſaid, Hope maketh not aſhamed. If their Hope was not firm, or were there any danger of its being loſt or broke, the Saints of God were in a ſad Condition, and they might turn away with their Faces aſhamed. If their Hope ſhould fail them, they would have no Refuge left. If Hope holds, all holds; but it Hope be gone, all is gone. Neither is it to be thought, that the Hope of holy Job, Heman, and others, who in Trouble ſpake of their Hope being gone, and periſhed from the Lord, was indeed utterly loſt and periſhed, but that it was only ſo in their own Apprehenſion, they being in great depths of Deſpondency, and under ſad Deſertion of Spirit. Like as the Church was, when ſhe ſaid, My God hath forſaken me, my God hath forgotten me; which God himſelf graciouſly anſwers, It was not ſo, nor could be ſo. A Saint's ſtanding in Chriſt is firm; the Covenant is ordered in all things, and ſure. But to confirm this glorious Truth, and make it yet more clear, and that I may leave no room for an Objection, that Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt, &c. Conſider the many ſtrong Bars that are cemented together, (as ſo many Bars of Iron) hammered by the Spirit, to the making of this bleſſed Anchor of the Soul both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Firſt; The Love of God is a ſure Ground of the Saints Hope.Jer. 31.3. Pſal. 89.30, 31, 32, 33. I have loved thee with an everlaſting Love, &c. If his Children forſake my Law, and walk not in my Judgments; if they break my Statutes, and keep not my Commandments: Then will I viſit their Tranſgreſſions with the Rod, and their Iniquity with Stripes. Nevertheleſs, my Lovingkindneſs will I not utterly take from him, nor ſuffer my Faithfulneſs to fail: My Covenant will I not break, nor alter the thing which is gone out of my Lips. Zeph. 3.17 — The Lord thy God in the midſt of thee is mighty, he will ſave, he will rejoyce over thee with joy, he will reſt in his Love, he will joy over thee with ſinging. I am perſuaded, that neither Death, nor Life, Rom. 8.38, 39. nor Angels, nor Principalities, nor Powers, nor Things preſent, nor Things to come, nor Height, nor Depth, nor any other Creature, ſhall be able to ſeparate us from the Love of God, which is in Chriſt Jeſus our Lord. If the Love of God be from everlaſting to everlaſting to them that fear him; if he reſts in his Love; if he will not remove his Loving-kindneſs from them, notwithſtanding their Sins and Infirmities; if nothing can ſeparate them from the Love of God, which is in Chriſt Jeſus our Lord: then the Hope that Believers have in God is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Secondly; God hath choſen, elected, and predeſtinated Believers in Chriſt unto eternal Life. For whom he did foreknow, he alſo did predeſtinate, Rom. 8.29, 30. to be conformed to the Image of his Son. Moreover, whom he did predeſtinate, them he alſo called; and whom he called, them he alſo juſtified; and whom he juſtified, them he alſo glorified. The ſame Perſons that are predeſtinated, are called; and the very ſame that are called, are juſtified; and the very ſame who are juſtified, are, or ſhall be glorified: — Therefore the Hope that Believers have, is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Thirdly; Chriſt's Death is a ſure Ground of Hope. Who is be that condemneth? It is Chriſt that died. I lay down my Life for my Sheep. Chriſt in an eſpecial manner laid down his Life for thoſe which the Father gave to him, with an abſolute Purpoſe and Intention eternally to ſave them; and he ſhall not loſe his Purchaſe, nor miſs of the Merit of his moſt precious Blood: Therefore the Saints Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Fourthly; Chriſt's Reſurrection is a ſure Ground of Hope. Chriſt roſe again from the Dead, to juſtify all thoſe who truly believe in him. Who ſhall condemn? Rom. 8.34 It is Chriſt that died, yea, rather that is riſen again. — Who was delivered for our Offences, and was raiſed again for out Juſtification. Thus Chriſt, by his Reſurrection, doth actually juſtifie all that believe in him; therefore the Saints Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Fifthly; The Interceſſion of Chriſt is a ſure Ground of Hope.Rom. 8.34 Who is he that condemneth? It is Chriſt that died, yea, rather that is riſen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who alſo maketh Interceſſion for us. Heb. 7.25. Joh. 17.24 Luk. 22.31 1 Joh. 2.1, …. Seeing he ever liveth to make Interceſſion for us. Father, I will that thoſe alſo whom thou haſt given me, be with me where I am, &c. I have prayed for thee, that thy Faith fail not. If any Man ſin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jeſus Chriſt the Righteous. Chriſt prays the Father, that all his Children may be kept from falling, that their Faith fail not, that they may have their Sins pardoned, and may be where he is, &c. And he is always heard and anſwered by the Father: I know thou heareſt me always. Therefore the Saints Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Sixthly; The Covenant of Grace is a ſure Ground of Hope.2 Sam. 23.5. Iſa. 54.10. Although my Houſe be not ſo with God, yet he hath made with me an everlaſting Covenant, ordered in all things, and ſure; for this is all my Salvation, and Deſire, tho he make it not to grow. For the Mountains ſhall depart, and the Hills be removed; but my Kindneſs ſhall not depart from thee, neither ſhall the Covenant of my Peace be removed, ſaith the Lord that hath mercy upon thee. The Covenant ſtands in Chriſt, it was made in him, he undertook to perform the Conditions of it by his Spirit, in behalf of all true Believers, as their Surety. We ſtand not in Chriſt, in the New Covenant, as we ſtood in Adam, in the Old. Adam was a Perſon, that might, or might not ſtand, it was in his own power to ſtand or fall; but the Covenant of Grace is more firm and ſure in many reſpects, eſpecially in regard of the Excellency, Power, Ability, and Immutability of Jeſus Chriſt, who, as the ſecond Adam, and publick Perſon, hath undertaken for all his Seed. If our ſtanding was in the New Covenant, as Adam's was in the Old, doubtleſs we ſhould not continue in our ſtedfaſtneſs one moment: For if he was overcome by Satan, that had no evil or depraved Nature in him, for Satan to faſten a Temptation upon, how ſhould we eſcape him, that have ſuch a Body of Sin and Death in us, even the Seed or Root of all Corruption, our Hearts being like Tinder, ready to take with every Spark of the Devil's kindling. I will make an everlaſting Covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them Good: Jer. 32.…0. But I will put my Fear into their Hearts, that they ſhall not depart from me. As God will not turn away from us, ſo he will not ſuffer us to depart from him. This is not like the Covenant he firſt made. Therefore the Saints Hope of Salvation is both ſure and ſtedfaſt, an Anchor that will hold, and cannot be broken. Seventhly; The Fulneſs of Grace, which is treaſured up in Chriſt for Believers, is a ſure Ground of Hope. It pleaſed the Father, that in him ſhould all Fulneſs dwell. Col. 1.19. Joh. 1.16. Phil. 4.19. And of his Fulneſs have we all received, and Grace for Grace. Hence it is that all the Wants of Believers are ſupplied: But my God ſhall ſupply all your Needs, according to his Riches in Glory by Chriſt Jeſus. Inſomuch that when ever any, tho the meaneſt and weakeſt Saint, is in need of Support or Help, in time of great and imminent Danger, he may have not only Supply in one reſpect, but a full and compleat Supply in all reſpects, anſwerable to the various Exerciſes that Believers meet with in their Chriſtian Courſe, to the end they may not miſcarry, or ſuffer Shipwrack; for that in Chriſt they have a Fulneſs of Wiſdom to inſtruct and counſel them, a Fulneſs of Love and Care to guide them, a Fulneſs of Power and Strength to hold them up, that they may be ſafe, and to ſtay them from ſinking, as he did Peter, who, when under the fear of miſcarrying, cries out to Chriſt for help; a Fulneſs of Pity and Comp…ſſion, to commiſerate them in all their Diſtreſſes; and a Fulneſs of Grace and Mercy, to pardon and fully blot out all their Sins and Failings, and be with them in all their Sorrows and Sufferings. Therefore the Saints Hope of Salvation is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Eighthly; The Mercy of God is a ſure Ground of Hope. If the Mercy of God can fail, the Saints Anchor may fail; but the Mercy of God endureth for ever. Behold, Pſal. 33.18 & 52.8. Iſa. 63.13. the Eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him, upon them that hope in his Mercy. I truſt in the Mercy of God for ever and ever. Where is the ſounding of thy Bowels, and thy Mercies towards me? Are they reſtrained? The Saints of God, as appears from hence, truſt in the Mercy of God, and that endureth for ever and ever. His Bowels to his People can never fail. Can a Woman forget her ſucking Child, that ſhe ſhould not have compaſſion on the Son of her Womb? Yea, they may, but I will not forget thee. Therefore the Saints Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Heb 6.16, 17, 18, 19. Ninthly; The Promiſe and Oath of God are a ſure Ground of Hope. For Men verily ſwear by the greater, and an Oath for Confirmation is to them an End of all Strife. Wherein God willing more abundantly to ſhew unto the Heirs of Promiſe, the Immutability of his Counſel, confirmed it by an Oath: That by two immutable things, in which it was impoſſible for God to lie, we might have ſtrong Conſolation, who have fled for Refuge, to lay hold upon the Hope ſet before us: Which Hope we have as an Anchor of the Soul, both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Tit. 1.2. 2 Cor. 6.16. In Hope of eternal Life, which God that cannot lie promiſed, before the World began. As God hath ſaid, I will dwell in them, and walk in them, and I will be their God, and they ſhall be my People. If the Promiſe and Oath of God be not enough to aſſure Believers of their ſafe and firſt ſtanding in Chriſt, and of their Aſſurance of Heaven, nothing is. Therefore the Saints Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Tenthly; That Relation which Believers ſtand in unto God, is a ſure Ground of Hope. He is their Father, and they are his dear Children; he is their Husband, they his Spouſe: Will a dear Father ſuffer his dear Children to periſh, and be torn in pieces, if he hath Power to help them? or the dear Husband his dear Wife? The Love of God to his Saints exceeds the Love and Pity of either Father or Husband; therefore Hope, the Anchor of the Soul, is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. Joh. …0.27, 28, 29. Eleventhly; The Power of God is a ſure Ground of Hope. My Sheep hear my Voice, and follow me, and I give to them eternal Life, and they ſhall never periſh, neither ſhall any pluck them out of my Hand. My Father that gave them me is greater than all, and none is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand;—who are kept by the Power of God, through Faith, unto Salvation. If the Power of God be ſufficient to keep Believers from falling, and to preſerve them to his heavenly Kingdom, then their Hope is both ſure and ſtedfaſt. |
Object. But it is through Faith they ſtand, and their Faith may fail.
Anſw. Chriſt, as I ſhewed before, hath prayed, that their Faith fail not; and beſides,Phil. 1.6. he is the Author, Increaſer, and Finiſher of it. He that hath begun a good Work in you, will perform it unto the Day of Chriſt.
John 3.6. 1 Pet. 1 23.Twelfthly; Regeneration is a ſure Ground of Hope. That which is born of the Fleſh, is Fleſh; that which is born of the Spirit, is Spirit. Being born again, not of corruptible Seed, but of incorruptible, &c. Such as is the Seed, ſuch is the Product of it: The Seed being immortal, by which the Saints are regenerated; ſure this may be ſure Ground of Hope, that they ſhall not periſh. There is in them an holy and Divine Principle, ſo that they cannot ſin unto Death, or loſe eternal Life.
Let us now put all theſe together, and then doubtleſs we ſhall conclude, that the Saints Hope of Heaven is no Fancy, but like an Anchor that is both ſure and ſtedfaſt.
Inferences.
FIrſt; Examine your ſelves, what Hope you have; there is a falſe Hope, as well as a true. What is the Ground of thy Hope?
1. Some Men ground their Hope of Heaven upon outward Proſperity. This is the Worldlings Hope. They conclude God loves them, and will give Heaven to them, becauſe he hath given them ſo much of the Earth, not remembring, that God gives ſome Men their Portion in this Life:Pſal 17. Luke 16. Remember, Son, thou in thy Life time receivedſt thy good Things, &c.
2. Some ground their Hopes of Heaven upon Civility, and external Righteouſneſs: They live ſober and honeſt Lives, and are not guilty of any groſs Sins. This is the moral Man's Hope, the Phariſee's, the young Man's in the Goſpel; the fooliſh Virgins had this Hope, and yet loſt Heaven.
3. Some ground their Hopes of Heaven upon the Merits of their own Works. This is the Papiſts Hope; for tho they place ſome Hope in Chriſt, yet they put Confidence in their own Works. Now this is to caſt Anchor on the Sands. Firſt; That which merits muſt be our own; but none of our good Works are our own. They are our own ſubjective, becauſe wrought in us, and they are ours in regard of the Benefit of them; but in reſpect of the Original they are none of ours, they are the Fruits of the Spirit; 'tis God hath wrought all our Works in us. Secondly; They muſt be compleat and perfect, or not meritorious; but the beſt Works performed by us are both impure and imperfect, more Droſs than Gold. Thirdly; That which merits muſt not be due upon any other account; paying Debts is not meritorious: Now there is nothing that we do, or can do, but it is due, 'tis a Debt we owe to God; we owe him all we have, are, or can perform: Therefore ſaith Chriſt, When you have done all, ſay you are unprofitable Servants.
Secondly; It ſhews, that the Hope of Believers is a glorious Hope; the Apoſtle ſaith, a bleſſed Hope, that is the Stay or Anchor of the Soul, &c.Tit. 2.13.
Thirdly; All thoſe that have not this precious Grace, are at preſent in a hopeleſs Condition.
Queſt. How may a Man know whether he hath a true and well-grounded Hope?
1. If thou haſt a lively Hope, thou art born again; the new Birth entitles to a new Hope. What Hope can a Man have of Heaven, if he be not converted?1 Pet. 1.3. John 3.3. Ʋnleſs a Man be born again, he cannot ſee the Kingdom of God.
2. A true and well-grounded Hope is attended with a Train of other Graces. Tribulation worketh Patience, and Patience Experience, and Experience Hope, Rom. 5.3, 4, 5.and Hope maketh not aſhamed, (why?) becauſe the Love of God is ſhed abroad in our Hearts by the Holy-Ghoſt. Thoſe that have the Grace of Hope, have the Graces of Faith and Love, and all other Fruits of the Spirit, more or leſs, in them.
3. Hope purifies the Heart: He that hath this Hope in him, purifieth himſelf, 1 John 3.3even as he is pure. If thou haſt an unſanctified Heart, never boaſt of thy Hope; it makes not only the Heart holy, but the Life alſo.
4. Hope of Salvation is grounded upon the Promiſes of God. The Promiſes give Intereſt, and upon Intereſt ariſeth Hope; therefore he that hath not took hold of God's Promiſe by Faith, is deſtitute of Hope, the Anchor of the Soul.Pſal. 11….49. Remember thy Word unto thy Servant, upon which thou haſt cauſed me to hope.
5. Hope keeps the Soul in a ſteady and ſure expectation of the Good of Promiſes, under Affliction and Sufferings; a Saint is hereby ſtayed and quieted, whilſt he is expoſed to the Loſs of all other things for Chriſt's ſake.Heb. 10.34 They took patiently the ſpoiling of their Goods, knowing in themſelves, they had in Heaven a better and more enduring Subſtance.
6. True Hope makes a Chriſtian very lively, and valiant for Chriſt, and his Truth: It fills the Soul full of ſpiritual Activity, it is called a lively Hope, it makes him bold, and not aſhamed of the Croſs, &c.
Love compared to Death, and the Grave, and to Coals and Flames of Fire.
Cant. 8.6. Love is ſtrong as Death, Jealouſy is as cruel as the Grave: The Coals thereof are Coals of Fire, which have a most vehement Flame.
Verſe 7. Many Waters cannot quench Love, neither can the Floods drown it, &c.
THe Grace of Love which Chriſt hath infuſed into the Heart of his Spouſe, and all gracious Ones, is compared by the Holy-Ghoſt in theſe Scriptures to three things, which are of a mighty powerful and prevailing Nature, againſt whom there is no ſtanding: Firſt, Death; Secondly, the Grave; Thirdly, Coals and Flames of Fire: Which ſhew forth the vehement Power and Force of Divine Love to Jeſus Chriſt; Which cannot be quenched.
Firſt; Love is compared to Death and the Grave.
| Metaphor. | Parallel. |
| DEath and the Grave overcome the ſtrongeſt Men, it prevails over the moſt powerful, wiſe, and learned in the World; neither can the moſt mighty Monarch encounter Death, or ſtand before it; there is no diſcharge in that War. | SO Love, that is in the Heart of a ſincere Chriſtian, prevails againſt all Difficulties and Oppoſitions, Temptations, Afflictions, and moſt cruel Sufferings and Torments, that can be exerciſed upon them, as appeared by the bleſſed Martyrs. Nothing is too hard for Love, it cannot be ſubdued, it overcomes all Sin and Suffering whatſoever. |
| II. Death and the Grave ſeize upon every part of the corporal or mortal Body. | II. So Love, when ſhed abroad in the Heart, ſeizeth upon all the Faculties of the Soul. Hence it is, that true Chriſtians are ſaid to love Chriſt with all their Hearts, and with all their Souls. |
| Metaphor. | Diſparity. |
| DEath and the Grave put an end to natural Life, and ſo cauſe all Motions or Actions from thence to ceaſe. | BUt Love hath that Virtue, as it is a Grace of the Spirit, that it ſets all the Faculties of the Soul upon Acts of a ſpiritual Life. None are ſo lively as thoſe that truly love Jeſus Chriſt. |
| II. Death overcomes and deſtroys that which we would (if poſſible) keep, viz. our Lives, that are moſt dear to us. | II. Love only overcomes that which is offenſive and contrary to us, or that ſtands in oppoſition to the Soul's Union with Chriſt, making that which would be injurious to Fleſh and Blood, to become profitable and advantagious; yea, tho it be to the Loſs of Life, yet Love takes away the Fear of Death, and makes the Soul willing to part with Life for Chriſt's ſake. |