Surely, This blessed Prophecy hath an eye upon our times, for this is one of those days, as I told you before, wherein God ⟨p. 83⟩will make good these gracious words unto his people; and God hath called together his Ezekiels, his Ministers, to show the House. i. e. 1The form and pattern of the Evangelical House or Church, unto the House of England and Scotland; Show the House to the House of Israel, that they may be ashamed; That is, show them the outside thereof, show them that there is such a House, which they never yet beheld with their eyes, that they may be humbled and ashamed of their former Idolatries, &c. And thus do our Ezekiels tell us there is a way of Gospel Government, of such beauty and excellency, as our eyes never yet beheld, nor the eyes of our forefathers; To the end that we may be ashamed of all our former Idolatries and Superstitions, our monstrous mixtures of Popery and will-worship in the Ordinances of Christ; and that we have not sooner enquired after the mind of Christ, how he will be worshipped in his House: But now, unless we be ashamed; i. e. Deeply and throughly humbled, for all that we have done unworthy of Christ and his Worship, and the Covenant of our God; we shall never see the inside, that is, the Laws and the Ordinances, and the Forms of this House, (which are both various and curious (for so the variety and repetition of the words imply.) The Prophets are not to reveal these unto us, unless we be ashamed, God will either withdraw them from us, or which is worse, withdraw himself from them; so that our eyes shall never behold the Lord in the beauty of Holiness; we shall not be admitted to see the beauty and glory of such a Reformation as our souls long for.
Surely, This blessed Prophesie hath an eye upon our times, for this is one of those dayes, as I told you before, wherein God ⟨p. 83⟩will make good these gratious words unto his people; and God hath called together his Ezekiels, his Ministers, to shew the House. i. e. 1The forme and pattern of the Evangelicall House or Church, unto the House of England and Scotland; Shew the House to the House of Israel, that they may be ashamed; That is, shew them the outside thereof, shew them that there is such a House, which they never yet beheld with their eyes, that they may be humbled and ashamed of their former Idolatries, &c. And thus do our Exekiels tell us there is a way of Gospel Government, of such beauty and excellency, as our eyes never yet beheld, nor the eyes of our forefathers; To the end that we may be ashamed of all our former Idolatries and Superstitions, our monstrous mixtures of Popery and will-worship in the Ordinances of Christ; and that we have not sooner enquired after the minde of Christ, how he will be worshipt in his House: But now, unlesse we be ashamed; i. e. Deeply and throughly humbled, for all that we have done unworthy of Christ and his Worship, and the Covenant of our God; we shall never see the inside, that is, the Laws and the Ordinances, and the Forms of this House, (which are both various and curious (for so the variety and repetition of the words imply.) The Prophets are not to reveal these unto us, unlesse we be ashamed, God will either withdraw them from us, or which is worse, withdraw himself from them; so that our eyes shall never behold the Lord in the beauty of Holynesse; we shall not be admitted to see the beauty and glory of such a Reformation as our souls long for.
- 1Vers. 1.
