1. The evil of denying it.
arms of his providence. The barbarians his justice, when they saw a viper leap upon Paul's hand, Acts 28:4, they say among themselves,
'No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffers not to live.' The mariners in Jonah implored his mercy in their distress at sea; yet they generally attributed affairs to blind chance, and worshipped fortune as a deity.
For this vain conceit the psalmist calls the atheist fool: Ps. 14:1, 'The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.' Potiphar acknowledged it, he saw that the Lord was with Joseph, and favoured his designs:
Gen. 39:3, 'And his master saw that the Lord was with him, and that the Lord made all things that he did to prosper in his hand.'
It will not be amiss to consider this, for the root of denial of providence is in the hearts of the best men, especially under affliction. Asaph was a holy man, Ps. 73:13, saith he, 'Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency.' He had taken much pains with his heart, and had been under much affliction: ver. 14, 'All the day long have I been plagued, and chastened every morning.' And the consideration of this, that he should have so much affliction with so much holiness, so strangely puzzled him, that he utters that dreadful speech, as if he had a mind to cast off all cares about the worship of God, and sanctifying his heart, and repent of all that he had done in that business, as much as to say, Had I been as very a villain as such or such a man, I might have prospered as well as they, but I was a fool to have any fear of God.
Therefore we will consider, 1. The evil of denying providence.
2. The grounds of the denial of it by the heathen, which we shall find in our own hearts.
3. The various ways wherein men practically deny providence.
1. The evil of denying it.
(1.) It gives a liberty to all sin. It give an occasion for an unbounded licentiousness, for what may not be done where there is no government? The Jews tell us* that the dispute between Cain and Abel was this: Cain said, because his sacrifice was not accepted, that there was no judge, no reward of good works, or punishment of bad, which when Abel opposed, Cain slew him. They ground it upon the discourse of God with Cain, Gen. 4:7, 8, which had been about his providence and acceptation of men, if they did well, and punishment of men if they did ill; whence they gather the discourse, ver. 8, Cain had with his brother was about the same subject, for Cain talked with Abel, and upon that discourse rose up against him, and slew him.
And his discourse afterwards with God, ver. 9, seems to favour it, 'Am I my brother's keeper?' Thou dost say thou art the Governor of the world, it is not my concern to look after him. Their conjecture is not improbable. If it were so, we see how early this opinion began in the world, and what was the horrid effect of it, the first sin, the first murder that we read of after the sin of Adam. And what confusion would grow upon the entertainment of such a notion.
Indeed, the Scripture everywhere places sin upon this root: Ps. 10:11, 'God hath forgotten: he hides his face; he will never see it.' He hath turned his back upon the world. This was the ground of the oppression of the poor by the wicked which he mentions, ver. 9, 10.
So Isa. 26:10, 'The wicked will not learn righteousness, he will deal unjustly.' The reason is, 'he will not behold the majesty of the Lord; he will not regard God's government of the world, 'though his hand be lifted up to strike.' There is no sin but receives both its birth and nourishment from this bitter root. Let the notion of providence be once thrown out, or the belief of it faint, how will ambition, covetousness, neglect of God, distrust, impatience, and all other bitter gourds, grow up in a night! It is from this topic all iniquity will draw arguments to encourage itself; for nothing doth so much discountenance those rising corruptions, and put them out of heart, as an actuated belief that God takes care of human affairs. Upon the want of this actuated knowledge God charges all the sin of Ephraim:
Hosea 7:2, 'They consider† not in their hearts that I remember all
their wickedness;' as if God were blind and did not see, or stupid and did not concern himself, or of a very frail memory soon to forget.
(2.) It destroys all religion. The first foundation of all religion is, first, the being, secondly, the goodness, of God in the government of the world: Heb. 11:6, 'He that comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.' He is the object of religion as he is the governor of the world. This denial would shut up Bibles and temples, and bring irreligious disorder into all societies.
[1.] All worship. He that hath not design to govern, is supposed to expect no homage; if he regards not his creatures, he cares for no worship from them. How is it possible to persuade men to regard him for God, who takes no care of them? Who will adore him who regards no adoration?
[2.] Prayer. To what purpose should they beg his directions, implore his assistance in their calamities, if he had no regard at all to his creatures? What favour can we expect from him who is regardless of dispensing any?
[3.] Praise. Who would make acknowledgments to one from whom they never received any favour, and hath no mind to receive any acknowledgments from them, because he takes no care of them? If the Deity have no relation to us, how can we have relation to him? To what purpose will it be either to call upon him, or praise him, which are the prime pieces of religion, if he concern not himself with us?
[4.] Dependence, trust, and hope. What reason have we to commit our concerns to him, and to depend upon him for relief? Hence the apostle saith, Eph. 2:12, the Gentiles were 'without hope, and without God in the world.' The reason they were without hope was because they were without God. They denied a settled providence, and acknowledged a blind chance, and therefore could have no sound hope; so some understand it of denial of God's government. It might
well give occasion to people to utter Pharaoh's speech: Exod. 5:2, 'Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice, to let Israel go? I know not the Lord, neither will I let Israel go,' What is God that I should serve him? I have no such notion of a God that governs the world.
The regardlessness of his creature disobligeth the creature from any service to him.
(3.) It is a high disparagement of God. To believe an impotent, ignorant, negligent God, without care of his works, is as bad or worse than to believe no God at all. The denial of his providence is made equal with the denial of God: Ps. 14:1, 'The fool hath said in his heart,
There is no God.' He denied God, Elohim, which word denotes God's providence; not, there is no Jehovah, which notes his essence, he denied not God quoad essentiam, but quoad providentiam, whereupon the psalmist dubs the atheist fool. It strips God of his judicial power. How shall he judge his creatures, if he know not what they think, and regards not what they do? How easy will it be for him to be imposed upon by the fair pretences and lying excuses of men! It is diabolical. The devil denies not God's right to govern, but he denies God's actual government; for he saith, Luke 4:6, 'The power and glory of the world is delivered' unto him, 'and to whomsoever,' saith he, 'I will, I give it.' God had cast off all care of all things, and made the devil his deputy. He that denies providence denies most of God's attributes, he denies at least the exercise of them. He denies his omniscience, which is the eye of providence; mercy and justice, which are the arms of it; power, which is the life and motion of providence; wisdom, which is the rudder of providence, whereby it is steered; and holiness, which is the compass and rule of the motion of providence.
(4.) It is clearly against natural light. Socrates an heathen could say, Whosoever denied providence did Δαιμονιᾶν, was possessed with a devil.* Should God create a man anew with a sound judgment, and bring him into the world, when he should see the harmony, multitudes, virtues, and operations of all creatures, the stated times and seasons, must he not needs confess that some invisible,