He is in a strait that doubts what good to choose, much more is he in a strait who seeth that what-ever he chooseth, he must ⟨p. 283⟩choose some evil. Paul was in the former strait, and David in the latter: Paul was in a strait, it was a trouble to him, being doubtful, which good to choose, (Phil. 1.23.) I am in a strait betwixt two; betwixt what two? betwixt two very good things, namely, living here in doing good, and going to heaven to receive his reward; he was in a strait whether to live here to do more work, or to go to heaven to receive the reward of his work. 'Tis some trouble, but a blessed trouble, when we are in a doubt which good to choose. But they are in very great trouble, who are in such a strait, that whatsoever they choose, they must choose evil: That was Davids strait, (2 Sam. 24.14.) the Lord gave him a choice, and a very sad one, of three evils, either of famine, or of pestilence, or of flying and falling before his Enemies; hereupon David said, I am in a great strait; somewhat he must choose, and what-ever he chose, it was evil, that is, penal evil; but seeing it was so, and could not be otherwise, (e malis minimum) he would choose the least, he chose to fall into the hand of God, rather than into the hands of men. Into such kind of straits are the people of God sometimes cast, they have somewhat before them to choose, but what-ever they choose, it is very hard, and troublesome; troublesome to stay, and troublesome to go, troublesome to abide by it, and troublesome to fly from it, every way it is a trouble; and how many of the precious people of God have been brought into these troubles! Only this is their comfort as well as their duty, that though they may be in such straits as necessitate them to choose a less good, or a penal evil, yet as God will not, so man cannot bring them into any such straits as necessitate them to choose a moral or sinful evil. Troubles are straits. He would have removed thee out of a strait into a broad place.
He is in a streight that doubts what good to chuse, much more is he in a streight who seeth that what-ever he chuseth, he must ⟨p. 283⟩chuse some evil. Paul was in the former streight, and David in the latter: Paul was in a streight, it was a trouble to him, being doubtfull, which good to chuse, (Phil. 1.23.) I am in a streight betwixt two; betwixt what two? betwixt two very good things, namely, living here in doing good, and going to heaven to receive his reward; he was in a streight whether to live here to do more work, or to go to heaven to receive the reward of his work. 'Tis some trouble, but a blessed trouble, when we are in a doubt which good to chuse. But they are in very great trouble, who are in such a streight, that whatsoever they chuse, they must chuse evil: That was Davids streight, (2 Sam. 24.14.) the Lord gave him a choyce, and a very sad one, of three evils, either of famine, or of pestilence, or of flying and falling before his Enemies; hereupon David said, I am in a great streight; somewhat he must chuse, and what-ever he chose, it was evil, that is, penal evil; but seeing it was so, and could not be otherwise, (e malis minimum) he would chuse the least, he chose to fall into the hand of God, rather than into the hands of men. Into such kind of streights are the people of God sometimes cast, they have somewhat before them to chuse, but what-ever they chuse, it is very hard, and troublesome; troublesome to stay, and troublesome to go, troublesome to abide by it, and troublesome to flie from it, every way it is a trouble; and how many of the precious people of God have been brought into these troubles! Only this is their comfort as well as their duty, that though they may be in such streights as necessitate them to chuse a less good, or a penal evil, yet as God will not, so man cannot bring them into any such streights as necessitate them to chuse a moral or sinful evil. Troubles are streights. He would have removed thee out of a streight into a broad place.
