The hand of the Lord is not shortened that it cannot save, (Isa. 59.1.) There is no strait so strict, but the Lord can open it, and remove us out of it, or it from us. When the Children of Israel were in that great strait, having the Sea before them, and Pharaoh with his Host behind them, the Lo•d removed them out of that strait, and brought them into a large place. There are a ⟨p. 284⟩thousand instances and experiences of this. David saith, (Psal. 130.1.) Out of the depths have I cried unto thee O Lord: The depth there, and strait here, are the same under several Allusions. David cried out of the depth of misery: when he was at the bottom of the pi•, he cried unto God, and was delivered. We can be in no depth, but the power and mercy of God can reach a hand to us, and draw us out; we can be in no strait, but the power of God can, and his love will make room for us, that we may escape.1 Seeing then (as one of the Ancients speaks fully to this point) God will help because he is so merciful, and can because he is s• powerful, that man shuts the door of hope against himself, who thinks, or through unbelief fears, that either God will not or cannot help him. And therefore when at any time we are in a strait, let the greatness of our straits, be the exercise of our faith, not a discouragement to it. Some make their straits a stop to their faith, they cannot believe they shall be delivered out of great straits; but the greatness of our straits, should quicken, not deaden our faith, it should increase our faith, not weaken it; and so it will, if we consider who it is that undertakes to remove his people out of their straits; it is the great God; and the more their straits are, the greater their difficulties are, the greater is his glory in removing any of them into a large place. 'Tis said in the Psalm, The Lord makes a way for his anger; he doth do so sometimes, he makes a broad way for his anger; yet remember he makes a way for his love and mercy too, that his great power may be seen in opening our greatest straits.
The hand of the Lord is not shortned that it cannot save, (Isa. 59.1.) There is no streight so strict, but the Lord can open it, and remove us out of it, or it from us. When the Children of Israel were in that great streight, having the Sea before them, and Pharaoh with his Host behind them, the Lo•d removed them out of that streight, and brought them into a large place. There are a ⟨p. 284⟩thousand instances and experiences of this. David saith, (Psal. 130.1.) Out of the depths have I cryed unto thee O Lord: The depth there, and streight here, are the same under several Allusions. David cryed out of the depth of misery: when he was at the bottome of the pi•, he cryed unto God, and was delivered. We can be in no depth, but the power and mercy of God can reach a hand to us, and draw us out; we can be in no streight, but the power of God can, and his love will make roome for us, that we may escape.1 Seeing then (as one of the Ancients speaks fully to this poynt) God will help because he is so merciful, and can because he is s• powerful, that man shuts the doore of hope against himself, who thinks, or through unbelief fears, that either God will not or cannot help him. And therefore when at any time we are in a streight, let the greatness of our streights, be the exercise of our faith, not a discouragement to it. Some make their streights a stop to their faith, they cannot believe they shall be delivered out of great streights; but the greatness of our streights, should quicken, not deaden our faith, it should encrease our faith, not weaken it; and so it will, if we consider who it is that undertakes to remove his people out of their streights; it is the great God; and the more their streights are, the greater their difficulties are, the greater is his glory in removing any of them into a large place. 'Tis said in the Psalm, The Lord makes a way for his anger; he doth do so sometimes, he makes a broad way for his anger; yet remember he makes a way for his love and mercy too, that his great power may be seen in opening our greatest streights.
- 1Dum deus velit misereriquia bonus e•t, & possit quia o• nipotens est: •pse contra s• di•inae pietat•s januam claudit, qui deum sibi aut non velle aut non posse misereri credit. August: S•r: 88. de Temp:
