Gospel-worship, or, The right manner of sanctifying the name of God in general and…

The Fifth Note is this, That the beginnings of things of high concernment, do meet sometimes with great difficulties and interruptions. This Note I gather from hence, That Nadab and Abihu were struck at the very beginning of their Priest-hood: As now, suppose there were a new Office erected in a Common-wealth that concerned the public good of the Kingdom, and in the very first erecting of the Office there falls out some hideous accident that rings throughout the whole Kingdom, as if God from Heaven had done something against them in that Office: As now, Suppose that the first time the Judges should come at the Bench, that God should strike them from Heaven dead at the very Bench, it would be a mighty matter to darken the glory and honour of that Office. So one would think that it should have been a mighty matter to have darkened the glory and the honour of the Priest-hood always: but God stands not upon that, many times the beginnings of great things are darkened by sad accidents, and therefore let us not be offended though we see some sad accidents to fall out at the beginning of great things, for though accidents fall out sadly at first, yet God may prosper it afterwards, as he did the Priest-hood.

The Fifth Note is this, That the beginnings of things of high concernment, do meet sometimes with great difficulties and interruptions. This Note I gather from hence, That Nadab and Abihu were struck at the very beginning of their Priest-hood: As now, suppose there were a new Office erected in a Common-wealth that concern'd the publick good of the Kingdom, and in the very first erecting of the Office there falls out some hideous accident that rings throughout the whol Kingdom, as if God from Heaven had done something against them in that Office: As now, Suppose that the first time the Judges should come at the Bench, that God should strike them from Heaven dead at the very Bench, it would be a mighty matter to darken the glory and honor of that Office. So one would think that it should have been a mighty matter to have darkned the glory and the honor of the Priest-hood alwaies: but God stands not upon that, many times the beginnings of great things are darkned by sad accidents, and therefore let us not be offended though we see some sad accidents to fall out at the beginning of great things, for though accidents fall out sadly at first, yet God may prosper it afterwards, as he did the Priest-hood.