An exposition with practical observations continued upon the thirty-eighth, thirty-ninth, fortieth, forty-first, and forty-second,…

Note, First; We cannot get our ordinary food without much labour.

The Husband-mans life, is a painful life; Ploughing and Harrowing are hard labours; and what is all this for? but to bring forth the necessaries of mans life, bread to strengthen mans heart, and ⟨p. 367⟩by consequence what ever else is food for man. Adam was commanded to dress the Garden, and to keep it, (Gen. 2.15.) Adam was not put into that pleasant Garden, only to take his pleasure and to eat the fruit of it; but he was put into the Garden to dress it, and to keep it. Even Adam was to eat upon his labour, though not such labour as man now eateth upon; that came in by sin after the fall; labour was imposed upon man, not only as a duty, but as a penalty. It was imposed upon man before the fall as a duty, but it was imposed upon man after the fall as a penalty, (Gen. 3.17, 18, 19.) Cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life. In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground. Our ordinary bread is not easily come by; remember the Husband-mans labour. Hence the Apostle, when he would show what pains God taketh, either immediately by the work of his Spirit, or mediately by the labour of his Ministers, to convert and build up souls in the faith, he tells us (1 Cor. 3.9.) That we are Gods husbandry, and Gods building. As if he had said, great pains hath been or must be bestowed upon you, that your souls may be saved, and that ye may bring forth fruits of righteousness unto eternal life. The Lord hath his spiritual Plough-men, his Labourers, his Oxen; by these the faithful and industrious Ministers of the Gospel are emblemed, and set forth in the holy Scriptures, (1 Cor. 9.10.