The tenth Duty that lies upon those who have been 1burnt up, is to be very importunate with God, to take away those sins that have laid our City desolate, and to keep off from sin for the time to come, and to look narrowly to your spirits, that you do not charge the Lord foolishly, because he 2has brought you under his fiery rod. Job 1. 16. While he was yet speaking, there came also another and said, the fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burnt up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them, and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. v. 22. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. The fire of God (that is, a great, fierce and terrible fire) that fell from Heaven, and consumed Jobs sheep and servants, was a more terrible Judgement, than all the former Judgements that befell them, because God seemed to fight against Job with his own bare hand, by fire from Heaven, as once he did against Sodom: In all this Job sinned not: that is, in all this that Job suffered, acted and uttered, there was not any thing that was materially sinful. Satan he said, that if God would but touch all that he had, Job would curse him to his face; but when it came to the proof, there was no such thing. For Job had a fair and full victory over him, and Satan was proved a loud liar. For Job sinned not in thought, word or deed: Job did neither speak, nor do any thing that was dishonourable to God, or a reproach to his Religion, or a ⟨p. 218⟩wound to his conscience: under this fiery trial Job did not so much as entertain one hard thought concerning God: nor let fall one hard word concerning God, under all the evils that befell Job. Job still thinks well of God, and speaks well of God, and carries it well towards God: Certainly Job had a great deal of God within him, which kept him from sinning under such great and grievous sufferings. O Sirs, it is a far greater mercy to be kept from sinnings under our sufferings, than it is to be delivered from the greatest sufferings. Jobs heart was so well seasoned with Grace, that he would admit of no insolent or unfavoury thoughts of God, or of his severest Providences. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly, or with folly. Some refer the former part of this Verse to the mind, and the latter to the mouth:
The tenth Duty that lyes upon those who have been 1burnt up, is to be very importunate with God, to take away those sins that have laid our City desolate, and to keep off from sin for the time to come, and to look narrowly to your spirits, that you do not charge the Lord foolishly, because he 2has brought you under his fiery rod. Job 1. 16. While he was yet speaking, there came also another and said, the fire of God is fallen from heaven, and hath burnt up the sheep, and the servants, and consumed them, and I only am escaped alone to tell thee. v. 22. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. The fire of God (that is, a great, fierce and terrible fire) that fell from Heaven, and consumed Jobs sheep and servants, was a more terrible Judgement, than all the former Judgements that befell them, because God seemed to fight against Job with his own bare hand, by fire from Heaven, as once he did against Sodom: In all this Job sinned not: that is, in all this that Job suffered, acted and uttered, there was not any thing that was materially sinful. Satan he said, that if God would but touch all that he had, Job would curse him to his face; but when it came to the proof, there was no such thing. For Job had a fair and full victory over him, and Satan was proved a loud lyar. For Job sinned not in thought, word or deed: Job did neither speak, nor do any thing that was dishonourable to God, or a reproach to his Religion, or a ⟨p. 218⟩wound to his conscience: under this fiery tryal Job did not so much as entertain one hard thought concerning God: nor let fall one hard word concerning God, under all the evils that befell Job. Job still thinks well of God, and speaks well of God, and carries it well towards God: Certainly Job had a great deal of God within him, which kept him from sinning under such great and grievous sufferings. O Sirs, it is a far greater mercy to be kept from sinnings under our sufferings, than it is to be delivered from the greatest sufferings. Jobs heart was so well seasoned with Grace, that he would admit of no insolent or unfavoury thoughts of God, or of his severest Providences. In all this Job sinned not, nor charged God foolishly, or with folly. Some refer the former part of this Verse to the mind, and the latter to the mouth:
- 110.
- 2Mal. 2. 15.
