Sermons upon Deuteronomy

Now Moses speaketh here expressly of Gods highness and greatness, and of the mighty power of his hand. As if he should say, that God had made him to feel an extraordinary working, and that the grace whereby he was induced to pray unto GOD, was a special one above that which every man feeleth. For God §30had uttered an unaccustomed manner of power, so as they we no common things which he showed unto Moses. That then was the cause why he desired to be brought into the land of promise. As if he had said, My God, thou knowest that thou hast chosen me, not as some other person among us, but as an elect vessel: & therefore forasmuch as thou hast used me in thy service, now vouchsafe to bring me into the land. And herein we see, that Moses desired this, not §40so much for his own sake, as for the whole peoples sakes, that all of them might have fared the better by it. For it was a thing that might have troubled the weaklings, to see the leader of the people die. Ye see they were a people that were overbold, at leastwise in rashness: but yet when they should obey God, they were seen to be cowardly enough: and when Moses died, it was enough to have made them utterly unwieldy, insomuch as it might have caused great offence §50among them. What meaneth this [might they have said?] The Lord was determined to put us in possession of the land: and why doeth he now bereave us of him whom he had ordained to be our guide? Moses hath been his lieutenant unto this hour, and now he goeth away to die. It should seem then that God had altered his mind, and intended not to go through with the thing he had begun. Moses had an eye to all this. And therefore, if we look no further,§60 we see so much the more, that his desire was good and holy: but his fault was, that being condemned of God, whereas he ought to have held him to it and not to have gone any further to reply against it: he did it not.

Now Moses speaketh here expressely of Gods highnesse and greatnesse, and of the mightie power of his hand. As if he should say, that God had made him to feele an extraordinarie working, and that the grace whereby hee was induced to pray vnto GOD, was a speciall one aboue that which euerie man feeleth. For God §30had vttered an vnaccustomed maner of power, so as they wee no common thinges which he shewed vnto Moses. That then was ye cause why he desired to bee brought into the lande of promise. As if he had saide, My God, thou knowest that thou hast chosen mee, not as some other person among vs, but as an elect vessel: & therefore forasmuch as thou hast vsed mee in thy seruice, nowe vouchsafe to bring me into the land. And herein wee see, that Moses desired this, not