CHAPTER V: A fair and open invitation to enter into heaven when we pray.
purpose in hand, is that in the story we read how that Sennacherib's overthrow was from Hezekiah's prayer in the temple; for upon Sennacherib's letter, and Hezekiah's hearsay of the blasphemy, he took himself thither, went instantly into the temple, and began his prayer thus: 'O thou God of Israel, that dwellest between the cherubims.' He invocates him under that style of his dwelling in the holies, and so hearing prayers there. Thus you have it recorded both in Isaiah and in 2 Kings 29:15. And how suitably, in answer hereunto, it is said here in the psalm, that God gave forth sentence presently out of his tabernacle; yea, and that so suddenly too, as that the very execution is said to be done there, that is, from thence. And yet again, in the 8th verse of the psalm, it is said to be a sentence from heaven too; 'Thou didst cause judgment' (so called because it was the sentence of God as a judge) 'to be heard from heaven.' Thus
Hezekiah prayed, and thus God heard; and both as in the temple.
CHAPTER V
That there is a fair and open invitation to enter into heaven when we pray.—And in such a manner to pray, as those that are thither entered.
It being the condition of many New Testament saints (so much of Moses' veil remaineth on their hearts), that they dare not approach so near as to believe themselves in heaven, or to be 'called up to heaven'* when they are to pray: they hope indeed in the end to enter in thither when they die (and it is true they shall), but stand at present afar off;—our apostle, therefore, vehemently exhorteth them in these words, to draw near, ver. 22; and to enforce this his exhortation, tells them they have a liberty, yea, a right to enter. And then he follows, to back that, with other most potent arguments to persuade them hereunto.
Concerning this his scope, in the general, observe,
1. That this invitation, with that exhortation, ver. 22, is of such persons as are actually believers already; for it is of such that at present have a right to enter, and cause of boldness. 2. That they are supposed to have a true heart, and a saving faith wrought in them; and thereupon are exhorted to draw near, yet nearer, with a full assurance of faith, which is a further degree of faith, in believing their right and interest, and of the acceptation of their persons and prayers when they come. And such a faith of assurance always presupposes a first act of faith of recumbency to be already begun; it is that begins their interest; which faith of recumbency, the apostle
Paul saith, was the foundation faith of himself, and Peter, and the other apostles and Christian Jews: Gal. 2:16, 'We believed on Jesus
Christ, that we might be justified.' Likewise 3. Those he thus invites and exhorts, he termeth 'brethren.' 'Seeing therefore, brethren, we have a liberty, &c., let us draw near,' or 'come to.'
There is another invitation to come to Christ, which is on purpose directed to such as are but as yet under a work of preparation unto their coming to Christ; namely, of those 'that are weary and heavy laden:' Mat. 11:28, 29, 'Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in heart, and ye shall find rest unto your souls.' And that indeed is that coming to Christ by souls that are now a-converting. And so the exhortation there is for them to put forth that first act of faith, which they never had done before, that they may be saved. But this here is an invitation with an exhortation to those that have come to Christ for salvation already, that they would enter into heaven in prayer. And it is certainly a mistake in those interpreters that do extend the direct scope of this here unto men who as yet have not believed, to come in at first to believe. I say this is not the direct scope of our apostle; though I acknowledge (to the honour of this portion of Scripture) that many of the grounds, persuasives, and instructions here given believers to come into heaven, by prayer to Christ, may powerfully be made use of as pertinent invitements, persuasives, and directions to those whom we preach to; and by themselves to persuade them, being
humbled and heavy laden, for their first coming to Christ. As, namely, 1, That they are immediately and directly to come to Christ, as the way to God the Father: as my text also teacheth, and as Christ is here represented. And 2, To come unto him as a high priest, to sprinkle their consciences with his blood, as ver. 20, 22. Likewise, 3,
To come to him as a high priest that is 'over the house of God;' and so as to him that hath the power and commission of admission of souls into that house at first, the household of God his Father, to own and receive them. And this is most proper unto the first act of faith. And 4, To come to God the Father with Christ's blood; to be 'justified by him freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus
Christ, whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood;' and thus to be 'sprinkled from an evil conscience,' that is, from the guilt of all their sins: which, chap. 9, he terms a purging by his blood their consciences from dead works (which word dead works is proper unto the sins and state of a person that hath been unregenerate;* their works are wholly dead works). And 5, To come both to God the Father and the Son, to give them true and sincere hearts unto God and his interest. Also 6, To have their bodies (put synechdochically for the whole man) washed, that is, sanctified by pure water; and their outward conversation made holy and pure by the power of the Holy Ghost, working as clear water.
And as all these are undeniably the main substantials of saving conversion, and which humbled sinners invited to come to Christ do seek for at Christ's hands and God the Father's, so they are all found in the text. And it is also as certain, that after we have believed and been converted, that these are the great things which in prayer we drive at, and treat with God and Christ for, even ever after, till we come to heaven. And so the words of the text may serve for both. And the most of these you will find in David's renewed faith and repentance, in Ps. 51. And indeed it falls out that all the same essentials that are wrought in, or that are to be sought by, converts at the first for their salvation, the very same the most growing
Christians are to continue to exercise in their renewals of faith and repentance in prayer; as David there did. And like as that invitation,
Mat. 11, 'Come to me, all ye that are heavy laden,' &c. (directed to beginners), yet serves many a poor soul's turn, that hath been long and truly turned to Christ; when in temptations, that doubt sins afresh come in upon them; and the Spirit of God makes use thereof for their relief; so on the contrary, this invitation, &c., in my text, though setly intended for believers already as encouragements to prayer, may with an easy alteration be used and turned into persuasives unto those that have not yet believed, to persuade them to come in.
2. It is a universal invitation of all such. He exhorts them, therefore, under the title of brethren, and speaks it as including himself and all other Christians: 'Seeing we have, brethren, all of us the like liberty, let us draw near, even whoever is a brother with us.' As if he had said, in this matter, both of privilege and of duty, we are all alike; the case is all one with me who am an apostle, and all my fellow-apostles, with all Christians. The weakest in faith and hope may crewd into heaven, together with the strongest; you may all come into the holiest, and get up into it, as high as you can get.
Yea, 3. This exhortation and invitation is specially directed unto the weaker sort of Christians (if to any more than others), that stand farthest off; that is, that are under the greatest discouragements in their own spirits to come, and are most backward and stand aloof in and through the sense of their own unworthiness, or weakness of faith and holiness. Unto you it is I more especially speak, of all others. As if he had more familiarly said, Come you and draw nearer, you that stand afar off, the outmost of all the company. Come to, why keep you at such a distance? Your right to draw near is as much as ours that are nearest. Like to that proclamation of peace, Isa. 57:19,
'To them that are afar off, and them that are near.'
These generals being forelaid, to clear the apostle's scope—all which I might have reserved to applications at last, but perhaps do stand as advantageously at this entrance; not only to shew this drift
(necessary at the first), but chiefly that all sorts may know how to