When any trouble is upon thee, stick not in the 1rind and ba•ke of it, but look through it and beyond it, to the inward root of it; look to sin as the cause, and thou shalt find it so: it may be the immediate cause and instrument may be some outward thing, some enemy of thy disgrace, some sickness, &c. but who hath permitted them to work? is it not the Lord? and what is the motive of his permission but sin? men may have many several motives to do this or. that, but nothing moves the Lord but sin and grace. When an enemy comes upon thee, say not, this man is the cause of this evil, but the Lord hath suffered him to work, and sin hath occasioned this suffering, 2 Chron. 12. 5, 7. Shishak was but the viol, through 2whose hands God poured out his wrath; so I may say, sickness is but the viol, it is the Lords wrath that is poured out in it. Amend this common error, that men are ready to seek out the natural causes of the evils that befall them: if it be sickness, they look to such a distemper in diet, or cold, &c. as the cause of it: so if they miscarry in any enterprise, what folly and oversight hath been the cause of it? These are but the natural and immediate causes, but Christians should look to and seek out to the supernatural. When there came a famine upon the land of Judah for three years, ⟨p. 282⟩2 Sam. 21. 1. the natural cause was evident, which 3was a great drought (for that famine was healed by rain afterwards) and so in those hot countries famine came by drought alone, but David rests not here, but went to the Lord, and enquired out the reason, the sin that should be the cause of it: And God told him it was for the sin of Saul, and his bloody house in slaying the Gibeonites: as wise statesmen, when they find a mean person in a treason, they rest not there, but seek further what deep heads was in the business, and who was the contriver of the plot. When Jacob saw the Angels descend and ascend, he looks to the top of the ladder, and saw the Lord there sending them to and fro. Look not to the stairs of the ladder, one or two that are next to thee, but to the top of the ladder, and there thou shalt see the Lord sending one Angel to do thee a mischief, another to be a Saviour to thee. If you say, how shall I know for what sin it is?
When any trouble is upon thee, sticke not in the 1rind and ba•ke of it, but looke through it and beyond it, to the inward root of it; looke to sinne as the cause, and thou shalt finde it so: it may bee the immediate cause and instrument may bee some outward thing, some enemy of thy disgrace, some sicknesse, &c. but who hath permitted them to worke? is it not the Lord? and what is the motive of his permission but sinne? men may have many severall motives to doe this or. that, but nothing moves the Lord but sinne and grace. When an enemy comes upon thee, say not, this man is the cause of this evill, but the Lord hath suffered him to worke, and sinne hath occasion'd this suffering, 2 Chron. 12. 5, 7. Shishak was but the violl, through 2whose hands God powred out his wrath; so I may say, sicknesse is but the violl, it is the Lords wrath that is powred out in it. Amend this common errour, that men are ready to seeke out the naturall causes of the evils that befall them: if it bee sickenesse, they looke to such a distemper in diet, or cold, &c. as the cause of it: so if they miscarry in any enterprize, what folly and oversight hath beene the cause of it? These are but the naturall and immediate causes, but Christians should looke to and seeke out to the supernaturall. When there came a famine upon the land of Iudah for three yeares, ⟨p. 282⟩2 Sam. 21. 1. the naturall cause was evident, which 3was a great drought (for that famine was healed by raine afterwards) and so in those hot countries famine came by drought alone, but David rests not here, but went to the Lord, and enquired out the reason, the sinne that should bee the cause of it: And God told him it was for the sinne of Saul, and his bloudy house in slaying the Gibeonites: as wise statesmen, when they find a meane person in a treason, they rest not there, but seeke further what deepe heads was in the businesse, and who was the contriver of the plot. When Iacob saw the Angels descend and ascend, he lookes to the top of the ladder, and saw the Lord there sending them to and fro. Looke not to the stayres of the ladder, one or two that are next to thee, but to the top of the ladder, and there thou shalt see the Lord sending one Angell to do thee a mischief, another to be a Saviour to thee. If you say, how shall I know for what sinne it is?
- 1Use 1. To see sin in all troubles.Vse 1. To see sin in all troubles.
- 22 Chr. 12. 5, 6, 7.
- 32 Sam. 21. 1
