Christ the fountain of lifeChrist the fountaine of life

Moses said, the Lord was angry with him, and would not hear him, and yet he did hear him; he limited God to a means to show him that good land, but he need not appoint God a course: Moses knew hot how he should see it, unless he went over, but God knew how he should see it; So that even those prayers, with which God seems to be angry, in regard of some infirmity, that God may see in our prayers, yet this we are to make account of, that even then, when God is displeased with our poor petitions, even then doth he answer them most graciously, Deut. 3.23, 25, 26. God was wroth with me, and would not hear me, And he said speak no more to me of that matter. It was a marvellous strange kind of expression of Gods fatherly counsel to Moses: that when he is angry with some weakness in our prayers, and some unworthiness in us to desire, or have, this or that; see his carriage: Moses his words provoked God, and therefore, because he desires to go over Jordan to see that good land; God was wroth, and God would not have him go, and yet he should see it, he should have as much as he desired, but into ⟨p. 217⟩the Land he should not go; so that come with that confidence in prayer, that though our prayers be such as for which God may be angry with us, yet many times God hears those prayers, and answers them in mercy, far beyond what we could have thought; for Moses saw as much of it as could be seen, and he could not have seen so much of it if he had gone over Jordan, as he did then see. Consider therefore, God marks the very bent of my soul, and desire in every petition I put up, and therefore observing what I desire, he will accordingly grant either the thing I desire according to my desire, or that which I aim at in my desire, and this is a glory to the name of Christ, whatsoever we should ask in our own names would be thrust out of heaven; yet this magnifies the name of Christ, that a Christian soul believing on his name, and laying hold upon him, and cleaving to him, and shall come to God, as believing that God is more ready and able, and willing to grant, then we to ask, and that he will grant us the very petition that we desire; this doth magnify the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and this is to pray according to Gods will, as expressed in his Word.

Moses said, the Lord was angry with him, and would not heare him, and yet he did heare him; he limited God to a means to shew him that good land, but he need not appoint God a course: Moses knew hot how he should see it, unlesse he went over, but God knew how he should see it; So that even those prayers, with which God seems to be angry, in regard of some infirmity, that God may see in our prayers, yet this we are to make account of, that even then, when God is displeased with our poor petitions, even then doth he answer them most graciously,