A practical commentary, or an exposition with observations, reasons, and uses upon the first…A practicall commentary, or an exposition with observations, reasons, and vses upon the first…

2 It may teach Gods people not to admire▪ and be offended at it; first, if they see men of good esteem and profession fall off, wonder not, such were never of the Church, 2 Tim. 2.17, 18, 19. Prov. 10.25. the righteous are as an everlasting foundation, which God hath founded, and every one of them hath this seal, The Lord knows who are his, and therefore be not discouraged, when you see others whom you thought better of than of your selves fall, for the foundation of God standeth sure; 2ly, let not other men be offended, if they see some that were professors fall off into vile courses, say not they are all of one Sect, they are all of the same Spirit, none better than other, this is the course of them all; say not so, for God gives them up to these base courses to manifest it, that they were not true Members of the Church, God would have it thereby manifested, ⟨p. 160⟩that these spots of the face of the church are not spots of the Body of the church, but spots in the Visors of the church; but God keeps his church unspotted and undefiled, so that even Balaam could say, How goodly are thy Tents, O Jacob; therefore if you see any in the church grow corrupt, and defiled, it implies they were never members of the church, God hath nothing to do with such, therefore he turns them out that it may appear what they are; if God at any time leave his people to any scandalous course, that God casts shame on them (which is very rare) if he do, he gives them such unfeigned humiliation, and broken-heartednesse, and such chastisements that they recover themselves, that all the World may see, neither doth the church allow it, nor God, but as they were patterns of sin, so they shall be patterns of Repentance, 2 Sam. 12, 11, if David do fall into scandalous sins, God will follow him with such chastisements, that God will manifest he is no approver of such courses; and David himself shall proclaim, that he repents unfeignedly, so that he was not so careful before to cover it, as he is now to divulge it, and declare that it was the cause of bitter anguish to him, so that neither God, nor the church, nor themselves approve of their sin, but are against it.