An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-fifth, thirty-sixth, and thirty-seventh chapters of…

When God is about to send rain, the noise that is in the Clouds tells the world that 'tis coming. Some are very skilful in observing these things; such we call, weatherwise. From this I would only infer, If God doth fore-show or give signs of the change that he makes in natural things, then surely he doth much more give his people warning of the changes he is about to make in civil things, in the States and Kingdoms of this world. There are some things which do, as it were, predict or fore-show such and such changes near, if we were wise to observe them. The Jews were very inquisitive to know of Christ the signs of the times; These signs they enquired of him, not so much out of curiosity (which had been bad enough) as out of treachery, to entrap him in his words, yet mark what Christ said to to them (Math. 16.1, 2, 3.3) He answered and said unto them, when it is evening, ye say it will be fair weather, for the sky is red ⟨p. 425⟩(a red sky shows concerning fair weather) and in the morning it will be foul weather, for the sky is red and louring. When the sky lowers, or, as here in Job, when the Cloud cometh between us and the light, that tells us it will be foul weather. Now, saith Christ, do you think that God hath given us such warnings about changes in natural things, and hath he not given signs which may fore-show changes in other things, which more concerns us? Therefore Christ checks them in the 3d verse, O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky, and can ye not discern the Signs of the times, that is, what changes God will m•ke in the times? As if he had said, if you were wise ye might discern the signs of ruin approaching •o you and your City. A dreadful black Cloud of destruction hung over the City of Jerusalem at that time, as Christ had fore-told them in several places of the Gospel: the time is coming (saith he) when there shall not be left one stone upon another; yet you cannot see the signs of these things; you are very skilful to discern a fair day & a foul day (there are natural prognostics of these things) but ye hypocrites cannot discern the signs of the times: Do ye not think God hath given you warning, hath he not fore-showed what he will do with you and with this City? if ye were wise ye might understand that shortly it will be overthrown, and so it was by Titus Vespasian not long after.