An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eleventh, twelfth, & thirteenth chapters of…

Yea, but there was a Second Reason. God made advantage ¹of that flight of his. As many times God is pleased to turn the flights of his people to abundance of good unto them, they may fly because of the danger of their Enemies, and they may think that if they can but have their lives for a prey, if they can avoid the danger of the Enemy it will do well; yea, but God may have a further end and intend abundance of good to them, that they shall find more mercy in that place where they fly ²but to get a shelter for their lives, than ever they had in all their lives before; many that have fled from persecution of ungodly men, they have found greater mercy in the place they have fled unto, though they have fled from their Fathers house, and from their own Country, yet they have found greater mercies there than ever they did in all their lives, they can tell great stories of the mercies of God unto them in the places of their flight. So it was here with Jacob; that was one end of God that he should fly, that he might provide a Wife for himself out of his Mothers kindred, for so he was charged, you shall find ⟨p. 359⟩in the story of Gen. 28. that he was charged there by his Father to get a Wife of the Daughters of Laban. And now observe it in Gen. 28. 3. ver. when as Jacob did thus fly into Syria, because Isaac did see that he was like to endure ³a great deal of trouble and affliction in this his flight, Isaac doth renew the blessing upon him. And thus God doth use to do when he sees his people to be in such a way wherein they are like to suffer sore and hard afflictions, the Lord prepares them by renewing his blessing upon them, by a fresh manifestation of himself unto them, and the renewing of Gods blessing is enough to ⁴carry a man or woman through abundance of afflictions, for that did help much to carry Jacob through all his afflictions.