Beloved; 1It is this to thy comfort; If thou loose all,2 make use of that in Mark. 10. If thou loose father, and mother, or brethren, or sisters, or lands, and houses, and all that you have, you shall find all these in him: for, if all these comforts be in him, if thou hast him alone, thou shalt find all these comforts communicated to thee. That is; Thou shalt find the comfort of them in a greater measure, in a more excellent manner, than thou shouldst in the things themselves: why else should he say, You shall have an hundred fold with persecution? And mark the instance; for you shall find the promise repeated again, and he names them every one; I say to you, there is no man that forsakes father, or ⟨p. 75⟩mother, wife, and children, brother, or sister, or lands, and houses, for my sake, and the Gospels, but he shall receive an hundred fold in this world, and in the world to come eternal life. That is, you shall find comfort in God alone; if thou be shut up alone, and yet conversest with God, and hast communion with him, and seest no creature in the world besides him, thou shalt have abundance of sweet comfort: take all those varieties of comforts that these give; as, lands give one kind of comfort, and Parents another, and wives another; thou shalt find all these varieties of comforts in him, he will fill thy soul with all these, for they are in him alone. Mark that reason that the Lord used to Moses, when he complained of his tongue, that he was not able to speak; Send, saith he, by whom thou shouldest send; (saith the Lord) who made the tongue? who made the dumb, and the deaf, and the hearing,3 and the seeing? Is it not I the Lord? As if he should say; Moses, sure I am the maker of all these, though I have not the things in me (the Lord hath no tongue, he hath no eye) yet, saith he, thou shalt find them all in me. That is; His comfort is this, I will be with thee; when Moses might have made this objection; Though thou be with me, yet I shall want a tongue to speak, what will that help? Saith he, I, who made that, I have a power in me, and if I be with thee, it shall be sufficient. I will find out a way for thee, that shall be as good as if thou hadst the most eloquent tongue in the world. The same may I say of all other comforts in the world; who made them? who made ⟨p. 76⟩those fathers and mothers?
Beloved; 1It is this to thy comfort; If thou loose all,2 make vse of that in Mark. 10. If thou loose father, and mother, or brethren, or sisters, or lands, and houses, and all that you haue, you shall finde all these in him: for, if all these comforts be in him, if thou hast him alone, thou shalt finde all these comforts communicated to thee. That is; Thou shalt finde the comfort of them in a greater measure, in a more excellent manner, than thou shouldst in the things themselues: why else should he say, You shall haue an hundreth fold with persecution? And marke the instance; for you shall finde the promise repeated againe, and he names them every one; I say to you, there is no man that forsakes father, or ⟨p. 75⟩mother, wife, and children, brother, or sister, or lands, and houses, for my sake, and the Gospells, but he shall receiue an hundreth fold in this world, and in the world to come eternall life. That is, you shall finde comfort in God alone; if thou be shut vp alone, and yet conversest with God, and hast communion with him, and seest no creature in the world besides him, thou shalt haue abundance of sweete comfort: take all those varieties of comforts that these giue; as, lands giue one kinde of comfort, and Parents another, and wiues another; thou shalt finde all these varieties of comforts in him, he will fill thy soule with all these, for they are in him alone. Marke that reason that the Lord vsed to Moses, when he complained of his tongue, that he was not able to speake; Send, sayth he, by whom thou shouldest send; (sayth the Lord) who made the tongue? who made the dumbe, and the deafe, and the hearing,3 and the seeing? Is it not I the Lord? As if he should say; Moses, sure I am the maker of all these, though I haue not the things in me (the Lord hath no tongue, he hath no eye) yet, sayth he, thou shalt finde them all in me. That is; His comfort is this, I will be with thee; when Moses might haue made this obiection; Though thou be with me, yet I shall want a tongue to speake, what will that helpe? Sayth he, I, who made that, I haue a power in me, and if I be with thee, it shall be sufficient. I will finde out a way for thee, that shall be as good as if thou hadst the most eloquent tongue in the world. The same may I say of all other comforts in the world; who made them? who made ⟨p. 76⟩those fathers and mothers?
- 1Answ.
- 2Mark. 10. 29.
- 3Exod. 4. 11.
