I. Scripture-light the most sure light ... delivered in three sermons on 2 Pet.…

You will say, How should David have known that it was but the darkness of a cloud?

You wil say, How should David have known that it was but the darkness of a cloud?

David prayed, The Lord turn the Counsels of Ahithophel into folly; and before David had overcome Absalom, and was restored to his Kingdom, Ahithophel did hang himself: David singled out Ahithophel to pray against, and the Lord heard his prayer: that Judgment of Ahithophel was the return of Davids Prayer; here the cloud opened, and this Answer of his Prayer in the interim, was a Seal to David of the full deliverance that came afterwards,¹ for God seals divers matters with the same Seal. So when a man is in the dark by reason of some temptation, affliction, or desertion, which he cannot see the end of; if in this interim, ⟨p. 51⟩before the full deliverance comes, he hath some lesser deliverance, that lesser deliverance in the interim, is a Seal unto him of the future deliverance, and he may say, here is a pledge of my full deliverance, for here is the opening of the cloud. Now thus it is always with the People of God; they never are in any affliction, temptation, or desertion, but before their great deliverance comes, they have some special Providence, some reviving in the midst of their trouble, some interim of light, some openings of the cloud; and therefore in the midst of all they may say, surely this my darkness, is not the darkness of a night, but of a cloud; I say, there is no discouragement doth befall the Saints, but the matter thereof is a cloud, and they may say, it is but a cloud, it will pass over, and therefore why should they be discouraged? Surely there is no reason for their discouragements whatever their condition be.

David prayed, The Lord turn the Counsels of Ahithophel into folly; and before David had overcome Absolon, and was restored to his Kingdom, Ahithophel did hang himself: David singled out Ahithophel to pray against, and the Lord heard his prayer: that Judgment of Ahithophel was the return of Davids Prayer; here the cloud opened, and this Answer of his Prayer in the interim, was a Seal to David of the full deliverance that came afterwards,