Part 7
spoils he acquired, were all that Jerusalem might be built. So it follows in
the 45th chapter 1-4 verses, and so on, Thus saith the Lord to Cyrus, whose right hand I have strengthened to subdue nations before me ; and I
will loose the loins of kings. He was to overcome other nations and kings, before he could come at Babylon ; as Croesus, that rich king of Lydia, &c. And God threw down all afore him : I will go before thee ; I will break in
pieces the gates of brass, and cut in sunder the bars of iron (all difficulties
liew open, and nothing could stand in his way), and I will give thee the
treasures of darkness, the hidden riches of secret places. And why did God do all this for him ? For Jacob my servant s sake, and Israel mine
elect. For otherwise, says God of this Cyrus, thou hast not known me, so
* perform God s
verse 4. All this which God did for him was that he might
pleasure, saying to Jerusalem, Be built, and to the temple, Thy foundation
shall be laid, as you had it out of the last verse of the foregoing chapter. And then again, when the foundation thereof was thus happily laid, there
stood (as you see in the text) another mountain in the way to the finishing and perfecting of it, namely, this Samaritan faction, who gained the power of that Persian monarchy to be against it ; of which mountain the prophet here in like manner says, that it should be made a plain. And if the Persian monarch Darius had not come off too as he did, Ezra vi., from the 1st verse
to the end of the chapter, God would have served him as he had done
: Be ye wise therefore now, kings, and instructed, -ye judges of the earth.
Babylon
Reason. The reason of all this lies but in three words which God hath
spoken once, yea twice, JEdificabo ecdesiam meam, I will build my church, which have more force in them than all the created power of heaven, earth, or hell. He had said it in the Old Testament (as you heard), Isa. xliv. 28,
saying to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be built ; and to the temple, Thy founda
tion shall be laid. And Christ said it over again in the New Testament : Mat. xvi. 18,
* I will build my church. He speaks of that church under the New Testament, which in future ages was to come. And what follows ?
* The gates of hell shall not prevail against it. You heard before in the Old
Testament, that the brass gates were opened to make way for the building of that temple, Isa. xlv. 2. But here in the New Testament there are
stronger gates than of brass ; here are the gates of hell ; which yet Christ,
like another Samson, flings off their hinges. As whilst the devil is god of the world, jffldificabo ecdesiam meam shall be sure to be hindered, if he can ; so whilst Christ is king of this world, and hath all power committed to him, both in heaven and earth, most certainly the gates of hell shall never pre vail against it. It is this same JEdificabo ecdesiam meam, I will build my church, that hath made all the stir in the world. I remember in the year 1619, or 1620, or thereabouts, when the wars in Germany began, it was re
ported that a great brass image of the apostle Peter, which had that pre tended claim, by which Rome would hold her keys, fairly embossed upon a
roll that hung down upon the image, in these words, Tu es Petrus, et super hanc petram adificabo ecdesiam: et tibi dabo claves, dc.,
* Thou art
Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church ; and I will give to thee
the keys, &c., standing (as I take it) in St Peter s Church at Rome ; there was a great and massive stone fell down upon it, and so shattered it to
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 115
pieces, that not a letter of all that sentence (whereon Rome founds her
claim) was left whole, so as to be read, saving this one piece of that sentence,
jffidificabo ecclesiam meam t I will build my church, which was left fair and
entire.
That promise, I will build my church, is the magna charta, yea, the
prima charta, the great and first charter of the saints in the New Testa ment ; those words in the 16th of Matthew being the first that Christ uttered about it, and so contain within them all lesser promises of all sorts that
follow, that concern the building of his church, or any piece of it. Now all
that concern the building of his church are reducible unto these two heads :
First, the preservation and enlarging of his church mystical, and of his
saints on earth ; and thus considering them personally, although they should be scattered each from other. Or secondly, the building up his church, as
gathered in assemblies to hold forth his public worship in the world, as that
place fore-mentioned is apparently to be understood by the next words ; for he speaks of the keys in the following verse, whereby are meant all media
cultus, all ordinances of worship whereby his church is built. So then this
reason, taken from adijicabo ecclesiam, branches itself into two parts : the
first is taken from his love to his church mystical, or his saints simply con
sidered as such ; the second is from his interest in his own worship ; for which he loves his churches that are the seat of it more than all the world.
1. His love to his church mystical is such that no mountain of opposition can stand before it, to hinder the enlargement and building of it up. This reason you have Isa. xliii. 3, 4, I gave Egypt for thy ransom, Ethiopia and Seba for thee. Since thou wast precious in my sight, thou hast been
honourable, and I have loved thee : therefore will I give men for thee, and
* because I have loved thee, and that more than all the world. Or if you will have it
people for thy life. It is put upon this reason, quia amavi te,
expressed in the language of this similitude here in the text, Mountains
shall depart, and hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart from
thee, says God, Isa. liv. 10. It is such a kind of speech as that of Christ s: Heaven and earth shall pass away, but not a tittle of my word, &c.
2. His love to his churches, holding forth his name and worship in the
world, is such, as nothing shall withstand the repairing and perfecting of
them, and of that his worship, and every parcel of it. If God had not such assemblies in the world, he should have no worship. Therefore these churches are called the ground and pillar of truth, both where it grows and where it is held forth, 1 Tim. iii. 15. He there speaks of church as
semblies, as wherein Timothy was to learn how as an evangelist to behave
himself, in the ordering and governing of them, as you have it in the words
: That thou mightest know how to behave thyself in the house of God, &c. And the truth is, that that building of the house of God, of which only Zechariah here gives us occasion to speak, was but the
immediately foregoing
completing all the ordinances of worship. It was not so much the building up the nation of the Jews that was here directly intended, but the building of their temple, the seat of worship, and introducing the candlestick, &c. And their assemblings there to worship according to God s own prescription was more to him, and is so still, than whatever else was or is done in the world. In the 87th Psalm, ver. 2, The Lord loves the gates of Sion more than all the dwellings of Jacob. The gates of Sion were the gates of the
temple that stood upon mount Sion, set open for the Jews to worship in ; and these he loves more than other societies or assemblings, though of Jacob, and this more than them all, take them all together ; whether civil in their
116 ZERUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IV. 6-9.
cities and families, or religious in their synagogues ; where they were capable but of some few, not of all the ordinances that were in the temple.
And the reason of this his love, is the great concernment that his public worship is of unto him. God hath but three things dear unto him in this
world, his saints, his worship, and his truth ; and it is hard to say which of
these is dearest unto him ; they are mutud sibi fines. God therefore ordained
saints to be in the world, that he might be worshipped ; and reciprocally ap
pointed these ordinances of worship as means to build up his saints. In
the commandments, the epitome of the Old Testament, the institutions of God s worship have the second place. The second commandment is wholly
spent thereon ; and therein how jealous doth God profess himself of any aberration or swerving from his own rules. Now jealousy, you know, pro ceeds from the deepest love. Yea, the third and fourth commandments are taken up about it also : the one about the manner, that his name (for so his
worship is called, Micah iv. 5, compared with verses 2 and 3) might not be taken in vain ; the other about the time. And then in the Lord s prayer, which is the epitome of the New Testament, in the second petition, if not the
first, the worship and government of his church comes in ; for his worship
is his name, as was said, and we desire that to be hallowed : and nothing is more properly Christ s visible kingdom here than the right administration
of ordinances in his church, which do set him up as King of saints. To this
purpose I shall open that in the 15th of the Revelations, where, when the saints had got a temple over their heads, ver. 6, as was before hinted, then they call for a true and right worshipping of Christ, and this because he was
: Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God almighty ; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints, Who shall not fear thee, Lord, and glorify thy name ? for thou only art holy
King of saints. They sing
: and
all nations shall come and worship before thee, &c. There are three pairs or conjugata, which harmoniously answer one to another : first, here is a double title and kingdom given unto Christ, (1.) Lord almighty ; (2.) King of saints ; or, if you will, he is King of nations, and King of saints :
(1.) King of nations, for so in that parallel place, Jer. x, 7, from whence these words here uttered are evidently taken, and therefore it is quoted in the
margin, he is called ; and so is all one with that expression here, Lord God
almighty, unto which (2.) they add this other, Thou King of saints. And so these two are distinct, and both his titles. Then, secondly, here is a double duty suitably due unto him, according to these his titles, to fear him, and to worship him, both which are expressed by this general, to glorify his name. Thirdly, here is a double declaration of the justness of these titles, and the ground that calls for both these duties ; his great and marvellous works in the world declaring him to be Lord God almighty or King of
nations, and therefore fear is due unto him ; and accordingly in Jeremiah we only read, Who would not fear thee, King of nations ? And then
there are his just and true ways, declaring him to be King of saints, which these here in their song add unto that of Jeremiah ; and this calls for worship from us unto him :
* Who shall not worship thee, King of saints ? for true and righteous are thy ways and judgments. In fine, here is Christ s supre macy acknowledged both in matters civil and ecclesiastical, in his govern ment of the world and of his church. And as he is known to be King of
nations by his works of providence abroad in the world, so to be King of
saints by those true and righteous ways wherein his churches are to walk. And a parallel place unto this latter, as that of Jeremiah was unto the
former, is that in Ps. Ixviii. 24, where the psalmist, speaking of this worship of Christ, says, They have seen thy goings, God, even the goings of my
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 117
King in the sanctuary. Mark it ; the goings he speaks of are restrained to
his goings in the sanctuary, and spoken of him also as the church s King, my king. And so the words are the very same in sense that they in the
* Just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. And the psalmist evidently speaks of his ways of worship in the church, as
temple here do utter,
appears by the very next words : ver. 25, The singers went before, the
players on instruments followed after, &c., expressing the worship of him
in his church in the language of the Old Testament, and he as their King in
the midst of them, going in his greatest state. And yet more clearly, ver.
26, Bless ye God in the congregations. Yea, and all this proves to be New Testament too, and a prophecy thereof, though uttered in the phrase of and in a prophecy of the Old. For what is said in ver. 18 before of this
their King, is by the apostle, in Eph. iv. 8, applied unto Christ s ascension: Thou hast ascended up on high, thou hast led captivity captive, and hast
received gifts for men, namely, the gifts for building of his church, and
directing of his worship under the new Testament, as it is expounded by the
apostle in the following verses. And therefore, that which I have even now
cited out of that psalm, vers. 24, 25, 26, &c., is to be understood as meant
of the worship of the gospel in the congregations thereof, erected after
Christ s ascension. I shall add but this : these ways are called just and true, in opposition to ways invented by men, which on the contrary are unrighteous and false : Ps. cxix. 104, Through thy precepts I get understanding
: there
fore I hate every false way. There is certainly a right rule or way chalked out for every administration in God s sanctuary, if we could find it out. To illustrate all this by a similitude from other kings. Two things mani
: 1. His
fest a king to be a king, and shew forth the glory of his majesty
power and rule abroad throughout all his dominions ; 2. The observance, the
worship, and state ceremonies that are at court ; and these shew him to be
king as much as the former. This we may see in Solomon, whose royalty and majesty was held forth thereby, as much as by his power
: 2 Chron. ix.
4, When the queen of Sheba had seen the house that he had built, the meat
of his table, the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his ascent
by which he went up into the house of the Lord, it was said, there was no more spirit in her. And in the 17th and 19th verses, He made a throne
for the glory of his majesty, the like whereof was not made in any kingdom. Now, Christ s court on earth are his churches, which are called God s house, Heb. x. 21 and 25 compared. And there his throne is set up, as in the
temple of old. In all the visions of God, as sitting on a throne, made unto
the prophets, that throne is presented as in the temple. So Isa. vi. 1, I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. The temple was therefore called the place where God s hon our dwells, Ps. xxvi. 8, that is, his court, as some of our king s houses are
called honours. And thus in the New Testament, in the representation of the church on earth as worshipping him, Rev. iv. 8th, 9th, and 10th verses, this church hath a throne in the midst of it, and God sits thereon, ver. 5,
6, 7. So that, indeed, there is nothing doth more exalt and glorify God than
his public worship, and the government of his church purely and rightly ad ministered : 1 Chron. xvi. 29, Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name ; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. These two are joined together ; the like you have Ps. xxix. 2. And it is part of that song which David made when he brought back the ark, and so set up God s worship. And further, in Isa. Ix. 7, it is called the house of his glory ; and that
chapter is a prophecy of the gospel, ver. 5. Now, if the worship of God, and the government of his house, and every
118 ZEEUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IV. 6-9.
ordinance thereof, tend so much to his glory, and set him up as King, then how much is he engaged to perfect it ! He will fully shew himself to be
King of saints in his worship, as well as King of nations in his works. And
therefore, as his work is said to be perfect, Deut. xxxii. 4, so he will in the end make his worship perfect (I speak for the outward administration of it.) even the perfection of beauty, as the psalmist calls it, Ps. 1. 2, which it can
not be styled whilst any part is wanting or misplaced ; or, to conclude this
reason in the language of the metaphor in the text, God is not like the foolish
builder, that will begin to lay the foundation of his church, and not fully per fect and finish it.
Use 1. The first use shall be an extract of the first branch of this doctrine. Let God s people, therefore, know their strength. Though their enemies be
as mountains, yet in a cause of God and his church, let them not be affrighted at them, Deut. vii. 21 ; yea, let them despise them all, as the phrase is,
Isa. xxxvii. 22. When Rabshakeh brought a threatening embassage from
the king of Assyria, with this preface unto it, Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria, Isa. xxxvi 4, Where are they among all the gods of the
countries, that have delivered their land out of my hand ? &c. In answer
to this, what doth good Hezekiah, through the prophet s encouragement, return again, but this, The virgin, the daughter of Sion, hath despised thee,
Isa. xxxvii. 22. Although she be but a virgin, yet she hath a champion who
is in love with her, that will take her part, and fight her quarrel. The people of God are weak in themselves, but they have a strong captain ; so Christ
declares himself to be unto them : Joshua v. 14, As the captain of the Lord s host am I come. And if a lion be the captain, though the army consists but of harts and sheep, yet they will be too hard for the wolves that come against them. It is the comparison the Scripture useth : Isa. xxxi. 4, Like as the lion and the young lion roaring on his prey, when a multitude
of shepherds are called forth against him, so shall the Lord of hosts come down to fight for mount Sion, and for the hill thereof. And then how still and quiet is the enemy and avenger
! Jesus Christ was born, as to be a
king, so a conqueror ; and we may style him King Jesus the Conqueror. So Rev. vi. 2, He went forth conquering, and to conquer. Use 2. If God will throw down all mountains of opposition that hinder
the perfecting of his church, then get up your faith and resolution for this
great work of reforming the church, and forecast not what opposition you are like to encounter with ; get but your hearts filled with faith, and you will be able to say (as Zerubbabel here), Who art thou, great mountain ?
It was long ere Zerubbabel could be brought to believe, or to resolve to do
it, the discouragements were so great. The greater mountain of the two was
the unbelief in his own heart ; but when he once did resolve to set upon the
work, he found all those mountains to vanish before him. To speak still in the language of the metaphor
: have but as much faith as a grain of mus
* say to this mountain, Be removed into the sea, and it shall be removed. Hezekiah was a great reformer ; he removed the high places, and brake the images, and cut down the groves, and brake
tard seed, and you may
in pieces the brazen serpent, 2 Kings xviii. 4 ; and then, withal, it is added
in the following words, He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, ver. 5. They that will reform a church or state, must trust more in God in doing it than
in any work else.
Use 3. It is a word of caution ; for if the worship of God and every part of
it doth so much concern God s glory (as hath been shewed in the reason of
this doctrine), then take heed how you meddle with it. Be sure you set the
service of the house of the Lord in its right order (as the phrase is of Heze-
ZECH. IV. 6-9.J FINISH THE TEMPLE. 119
kiah s reformation, 2 Chron. xxix. 35), and that according to clear light from
the word of truth. Know and consider that you meddle with edge tools when
you take this work in hand (which I speak, not to discourage you from it, but to make you wary in and attentive to it) ; more than all the works you ever
did set your hands and hearts unto. It was a good and a religious purpose in David to bring back the ark, and for the substance of the duty he was right in it. He mistook but in the order ; he set it upon a cart, whenas the
priests should have carried it. Himself thus speaks of it : We sought not God after the due order (that is, God s institution), 1 Chron. xv. 30 ; and when it was like to fall (God confuting thereby their error) Uzzah did but
touch it to keep it up (and that too was done out of a good zeal). God smote him for it, though God himself acknowledged it to have been but an error
or rashness in him, even when he smote him : 2 Sam. vi. 7, The anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and God smote him for his error. But yet it was an error about the ark (God s worship), and a small one there
is dangerous. But you will then say, We had best not meddle with it at all, but let it alone, and leave it as it is. It is true that David himself in his
* David was afraid of God that day. How (says he) shall I bring the ark of God home to me ?
fear had just the same thoughts
: 1 Chron. xiii. 12,
If men be stricken thus for touching of it, God be merciful to me (thought
he), let it rather remain where it is : So David brought not the ark home
to himself, but carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom, ver. 13 ; but God did soon confute him of this his error also, for the 14th verse tells us
* the Lord blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that he had. And when David began to bethink himself, Surely if it brings a blessing upon the house of Obed-edom, it will do the like on mine too. And then we read in
that
the 13th chapter, He prepared a place for it, and brought it home ; and he,
being by this breach made put upon searching into the word, found that the
Levites only ought to carry it ; and that because they did it not at the first, the Lord therefore made a breach upon them, ver. 30. Now, above all we
observe, that when he amended that error and brought it home, he was blessed, and blessed indeed ; for no sooner did he think of building a house for it but God promised to establish his house for ever, 2 Sam. vii. 11. And read the 18th chapter, and you shall see how all his enemies upon this were subdued
* He
afore him. And then of his son Solomon, God says in the 13th verse,
shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his
kingdom for ever. His own house and the kingdom were established toge ther by it. Thus likewise when this second temple was to be finished, God
provokes them to it by this, From this time will I bless you, Hag. ii. 19; and as he blessed them, so he will bless you and your families, and the
kingdom. To instance in some particulars, which have been in your hearts
also, as that purpose was in David s, together with encouragements out of the Scriptures suited thereunto. You have declared your godly resolution to be (to express it in your own words), to use your utmost endeavours to esta blish learned and preaching ministers, with a good and sufficient maintenance, throughout the whole kingdom, wherein many dark corners are miserably destitute of the means of salvation, which project tendeth to enlarge Christ s
mystical church. From this time God will bless you (look for it), and establish the kingdom by it. The Scripture, for your encouragement, holds forth an example of just the like practice of one of the best kings, and of that same blessing following upon it, which is in all your aims : 2 Chron.
xvii. 7-10, Jehoshaphat, in the third year of his reign, sent to his princes to teach (that is, to countenance the teaching of the word) in the cities of
Judah, and with them the Levites and priests ; and they taught in Judah,
120 ZERUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IV. 6-9.
and had the hook of the law of the Lord with them, and went throughout all
the cities of Judah, and taught the people. Here is the same practice that
you have resolved upon, and the success is answerable to your hearts desire ;
for, ver. 10, it follows, And the fear of the Lord fell upon all the kingdoms of the lands that were round about Judah, and they made no war against Jehoshaphat. This will secure the land as much as that posture of war you intend. You have also issued out an order for the purging out divers inno
vations in and about the worship of God, for the abolishing of all crucifixes, scandalous pictures, &c., and other the like superstitions. Go on to estab
lish it ; you will establish the kingdom by it. Not to quote the book of
Kings and Chronicles, which is abundant in such examples, we have an
instance more ancient of the like blessing of God upon the like practice
: Gen.
xxxv., Jacob reformed his family of all their strange gods, and all their ear
rings, ver. 2 and 4, and the success was, that the terror of God was upon all the cities round about them, ver. 5. You have likewise declared that you intend a due and necessary reformation of the government and liturgy of the church, &c. ; you will find the like blessing to be upon this also, in the war you have undertaken against the popish Irish rebels. When Abijah, king of Judah, was to fight with Jeroboam, king of Israel, that had perverted the worship of the Lord, see how he pleads the cause against them and his army
: Ye have cast out the priests of the Lord ; but as for us, the Lord is our God, and we have not forsaken him ; and the priests which minister unto the Lord are the sons of Aaron ; that is, such as by God s own appointment were to govern the church, and to minister afore the Lord : And they burn unto the Lord every morning and every evening burnt sacrifices and sweet incense ; the shew-bread also set they in order upon the pure table, and the
candlestick of gold, with the lamps thereof. We keep the charge of the Lord our God, but you have forsaken him ; and behold God himself is with us for our
Captain, but you shall not prosper, &c. ver. 9-12. And the issue of all this
is recorded ver. 16, 17, God smote Jeroboam and all Israel before Abijah and Judah, and the children of Israel fled before Judah ; and Abijah and his
people slew them with a great slaughter, so that the children of Israel were
brought under at that time. But on the contrary, if you falter in the matter of religion and worship, know that from that time God will curse you, as he did Jeroboam and Israel with him, who, when he had set up the calves to hold the people to him, God threatens his house, to take it away,
* as a man takes away dung until it be all gone, 1 Kings xiv. 10. And as for Israel and the state of that kingdom, he threatened to smite it as a reed is shaken with the water, ver. 15. Whereas you may stand as a rock in the waters, and
all alterations and turnings of the stream would but dash and break them
selves upon you, you all that while abiding firm and unmoved ; you will then become as a reed in the waters, tossed up and down with contrary motions of fears and troubles, as the stream carries you this way or that
way, even as that state of Israel from that time was hut fluctuating, and at best
* unstable as waters, with variety of governments and governors, the stream of the people sometimes turning one way, sometimes another (as in the story appears) ; and in the end God says that he will root up Israel out of this good land, and pluck up this reed even by the roots, when it hath been tossed awhile up and down. So it follows there.
I will end this caution with two rules. First, be sure you establish no
thing but what you have full, clear, and general light for. Secondly, con demn nothing, and suffer nothing to stand condemned, in which you in your consciences are doubtful there may be a truth ; for if you should build the
least hay and stubble, you will not only suffer loss, but lay a foundation of
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 121
a new rent and division in the age to come. For there is a Spirit mentioned
in the text, even the Holy Ghost, who will not rest working in men s spirits
till the whole building be rightly framed according to the pattern in every
piece of it. And whatever is amiss, and not according to his mind, the
light of his fire will both discover it and burn it up ; which leads me to the
fifth observation, which is this,
Obs. 5. That God carries on the work of finishing his temple, not by power nor might, but by his Spirit. By Spirit he meaneth the Holy Grhost.
by a more immediate hand stirring up men s spirits unto this work; turning and convincing them of the truth, and of their duty towards it ; and likewise
by coincident acts of providence, so apparently wheeling about to the effect
ing of it, that though might and power be brought to concur in it, yet so as
his hand alone shall be seen and acknowledged in it. And thus his Spirit here is manifestly interpreted in the 10th verse, where it is said that as all should
* see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel (the instrument of
building it), so they should perceive those seven eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth (that is, his eyes of providence, called seven, because of their perfection), these to have so guided and ma
naged all the affairs thereof, that all the rays and beams of providence issuing from those eyes might be seen to meet in the accomplishment of this as their ultimate aim and scope. Now these seven eyes, Rev. v. 6, are called the seven spirits of God, sent forth unto all the earth. And Rev. i. 4 are
plainly interpreted to be the Holy Ghost in his various workings, for grace and peace is there wished from the seven spirits. Thus much for the
explication of it.
Now that the building of the temple is thus more immediately carried on by the working of the Holy Ghost, you may read it all along in all the story of the building of this temple in the Old Testament, as likewise in that of the New.
First, the laying the foundation of this temple, it was done indeed by the power and might of Cyrus ; but yet, Ezra i. 2, it is added, The Lord
stirred up the spirit of Cyrus ; and how, but by a mere act of foresight or
providence aforehand about it ? God had, an hundred years before his birth, by his Spirit written a prophecy of him, and that by name, Isa. xliv. 28, which these Jews shewing him, God s Spirit stirred up his spirit thereby ; for in his proclamation himself says, The Lord hath charged me to build him an house at Jerusalem, so ver. 2 of Ezra i. And when he had thus
given leave to the Jews to go and build it, yet still it was a great matter of
self-denial to them to leave their houses and gardens which they had built and planted at Babylon, Jer. xxix. 5. Therefore it is further added in the
fifth verse of that first of Ezra, Then rose up the chief of the fathers, and the priests and Levites, with all them whose spirit God had raised up, to build the house of the Lord. And then again, when it came to this second work, the finishing of it, they were exceeding backward to it ; but God sent two prophets, who convinced them of their duty ; and therefore, Hag. i. 14, it is expressly and on purpose put in, that the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel, and the spirit of Jeshua, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people, and they came and did work in the house of the Lord their God. And again, whereas the Persian kings had made decrees against the building of it (which was the greatest impediment of all the rest), God brought Darius his heart at last off to it, and that by so unexpected a way, as made all the
people joyful. So it is expressly said, Ezra vi. 22, They kept the feast of unleavened bread with joy : for the Lord had made them joyful, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands
122 ZERUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IV. 6-9.
in the work of the house of God. Yea, and his heart was so much stirred in it, that he not only makes a decree for it, ver. 8, but likewise against all those that should oppose it, under a capital punishment, ver. 11 ; yea, he curseth all that should put to their hand to alter it, ver. 12, so that the enemies that before opposed it were now constrained to further it, ver. 13. All this was done, as you see,
* not by power, nor by might, but by God s
Spirit. Thus much for this instance in the text out of the Old Testament. See the like in God s building his church in the New ; both in setting up his church in the world at first, when heathenism, backed with the power of the Roman empire, stood in the way of it, and likewise in raising it up again, when antichrist had thrown it down. For the first (the erecting of it), did he use might, or power, or an army (as it is varied in the margin), to conquer the world by ? No such matter. He chooseth twelve or thirteen men, whereof the most were poor fishermen, and he sends them not all together in one troop neither, but dispersed apart into several parts of the world, some taking one country to conquer, some another : the most ridiculous course in appearance for such a design that could be imagined. Yet (as Rev.
vi. 2) Christ in these went forth conquering, and to conquer, and took
nothing with him but his bow (as it is there) and his arrows (as it is Ps.
xlv. 5), the preaching of the gospel, even * the foolishness of preaching (as the apostle calls it) ; yet hereby the people fell so under him (as the
psalmist s phrase there is), that in three hundred years that whole empire was turned Christian, and heathenish worship thrown down ; and this, you see, not by power, nor by might, but by his Spirit. But then again antichrist steps up, the beast of Rome, and after him all the world wandered (that is, the European world), Rev. xiii. 8, saying,
4 Who is like unto the beast ? who is able to make war with him ? ver. 4. But at the 14th chapter a lamb encounters him, and but with a handful in
comparison, out from among whom he sends a few emissaries, to preach the everlasting gospel to every nation, tongue, and kindred, ver. 6, &c. ; and
in the end he wins all the northern kingdoms to embrace that gospel, and
will still go on to conquer and win ground ; so that, in the 15th chapter and 2d verse, we read of a perfect victory over the beast. And whereas before
* his holiness the pope, Who is like unto the beast ? now it is said, ver. 4, Who shall not fear thee, Lord ? for thou only art
it had been said of
holy. And whereas afore All the world wondered after the beast, and
< All nations
worshipped him, the world is now so altered, that it is said,
shall come and worship before thee, in the same 4th verse. And now the wonder is as much how all this is brought about :
* Not by power, nor by might, but by his Spirit. So it is expressly said, 2 Thes. ii. 8, speaking of
* this man of sin, he says, Whom the Lord shall consume with the Spirit of his mouth ; that is, by his Spirit, in the preaching of the gospel, and
working in the hearts of men, and overcoming kingdoms unto Christ and his church. So we read, Rev. xvii. 4, The Lamb shall overcome the kings that made war with him, and yet not by power, but by his Spirit. Reason. The reason of this is, because the building of God s church is his own business, in a more special manner, more than any other ; therefore he
will be sure to do it himself, and more immediately be seen in it. As it is
said of Christ personal (the tabernacle of his human nature), Heb. ix. 12, that it was
* not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building (as the apostle there speaks) ; that is, it was not framed by the power of nature, as other men are, but by the Spirit; so it is true of Christ mystical, his body, and the tabernacle of his church. It is not of the ordinary make that other
societies of men (whether families or kingdoms) are of; it is not made with
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 123
hands (with human wisdom or power, as they are), that is to say, is not of
this building. Thus, Heb. iii. 4, Every house, says the apostle, is built
by some man ; that is, all kingdoms, families, and societies, God in an
ordinary providence leaves to men to build in their own way ; but, says he,
* he that built all things is God. Which is spoken of God s building his church (which is his house), and all things appertaining unto it, as is evident both by the foregoing words, ver. 3, He that built the house (the apostle speaking of Christ, who is God) hath more honour than the house, and
also by those words that follow after, Moses, was faithful in all his house
(namely, in the building of that house then), as a servant ; but Christ as a Son over his own house (now) ; whose house are we. The reason why thus himself by his Spirit builds it, is held forth in that one word. It is his own
house, and therefore he will oversee the doing this himself ; and will do it
so that none shall share in the glory with him, although he useth them.
Use 1. First use is that which is made of it in the 10th verse, namely, that in matters which concern the building of the church, we should learn to
despise* the day of small things. The prophet speaks it by way of re
* Who hath despised the day of small things ? because the beginnings of this work then were but small, and there was little appearance in human
proof,
foresight to effect it. Therefore, who almost was there that did not despise
it and despair of it ? Remember that there is a Spirit in the text, and no man knows how far he may carry on the smallest beginnings, which he lays as the foundation of his greatest works, that his own immediate hand may the more appear. The kingdom of heaven was at first but
* as a grain of mustardseed, says Christ,
* the least of all seeds ; but when it is grown, it
is the greatest of herbs, and becomes a tree, Mat. xiii. 32. In Dan. ii.
84, 45, there is mention made of a stone that was cut out of the mountain without hands ; which expression is used not only to shew the divine power that accompanied it, but to intimate that it was at first but some little stone which without hands dropped out, or was blown down from the mountain ; for if it had been a great one, it must then have had hands to cut and hew
* this little stone became a
it out, and to throw it down. And yet, lo !
mountain, and filled the whole earth, as it there follows. A second use is that which is in the text, that when you see anything done
for God s church, beyond the reach of human wisdom and foresight, that you would fall down and cry (as they are taught here, ver. 7), Grace, grace, unto it. You are not to cry up, Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel, that is, any means or instrument whatever, whether king or parliament, much less this man or that man, but to exalt the free grace of God, the work of which alone it is and hath been.
One word more unto Zerubbabel ; the text calls for it : This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel. From which let the observation be this : That this work of finishing the temple lies first and chiefly upon Zerub babel and his elders to take care of, that is, upon prince and elders. And though Jeshua and his fellows the priests are intended (as being the one of those olive-trees formerly mentioned), yet Zerubbabel and the magistrates are only spoken to. All such motions should come first from you ; it is your duty to be the he-goats of the flock, to lead on all the rest, as the prophet Ezekiel speaks. Thus, Ezra i. 5, Then rose up the chief of the fathers of Judah and Benjamin to build the house of the Lord ; it had otherwise never been done to purpose. So in the building of the temple at first, the motion came first into David s heart : 1 Chron. xxix. 3, I have, says he, set my
* Qu. not to despise ? ED.
124 ZERUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IY. 6-9.
affection to the house of God. And then, ver. 6, The chief of the fathers and princes of the house of Israel, they follow ; and then fell in the people, and they rejoiced and offered willingly, so ver. 13. You should commend unto the people what is good and right
: Let us bring back the ark of our God unto us, said David, 1 Chron. xiii. 8 ; and no sooner had he com mended it unto them, but (as it follows, ver. 4), all the congregation said
they would do so : for the thing was right in the eyes of all the people. And the reason why this is your more especial duty is, because God hath honoured princes and magistrates above, and set them over, others. And
as those who honour God, God will honour, so those whom God hath hon
oured, he expects should honour him, and you cannot do it better than this way ; for how much his honour is concerned in his worship, you heard
before.
Let the honour of it move you. Take the renowned men in Scripture, and their greatest glory hath been to be builders of God s house. It is men
tioned as Moses his highest honour, Heb. iii. 2-4. And David, though a
king already, accounts this a greater honour than his crown. So 1 Chron.
xxix. 14, Who am I, says he, and what is my people, that we should
offer so willingly ? He speaks it of offering towards the building of the
temple. And in the New Testament it is the apostles honour, that they were master builders ; yea, it is made Christ s highest honour : Heb. iii. 3, This man was accounted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. So far as you are capable of it, and have power to do it, be in this conformed unto him. The prize of this honour is set before you, and you have the first offer of it. An opportunity such as these last hundred years well nigh have not afforded the like to it. This parliament seems to have been called by God for such a time as this ; and if you will not do it, God will do it without yon. As he said that deliverance, so (say I) reformation will arise some other way. God hath a Spirit here in the text that will work it out in men s hearts, if
power and might should not ; and that will be little to your honour, as De borah said to Barak. In the 5th of Micah, ver. 7, The remnant of Jacob
is said to be as a dew from the Lord, and as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men. The prophet useth two similitudes, to shew both that the multiplication and growth of the church depend not upon man : first, for their propagation, and their be
ing multiplied, he compares them unto the dew, which is engendered and dis
tilled from heaven immediately ; therefore, Ps. ex. 3, new converts added unto the church are compared unto the dew, and God s begetting of them unto the womb of the morning, when over night the earth was dry. Again, the growth and maintaining of them he compares unto the sprouting up of herbs and grass in wildernesses where man comes not, and so their spring ing tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men, for them to come with watering-pots to nourish them (as herbs in gardens do), but these have showers from heaven that give the increase : I the Lord, speaking of this
vineyard, do keep it ; I will water it every moment, Isa. xxvii. 3.
The conclusion. Now for a conclusion, and winding up of all. Is this word of the Lord spoken to you in a way of general application only, such
as similitudinary examples, which in some things hold a likeness, use to have,
* for examples, and are written
(all things happening in the Old Testament
for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come, as the
apostle speaks, 1 Cor. x. 11 )? Or is there not some more special word that
applies this vision of the candlestick and olive trees as prophetic types of the
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 125
like work of finishing the temple, to fall out under the times of the gospel, when the church is come out of popery ? That Babylon was the prophetic
type of Rome, you all know where to find that ; it is in the 17th and 18th
of the Revelations, and so applied by the Holy Grhost. And that the foun
dation of this temple was the type of our first reformation, when we came out from Babylon, was in the first observation shewn you out of chap. xiv. and xv. And that the Samaritans are by the Holy Ghost made the type of those that shall in any age corrupt the worship of God, by mingling idola
trous or popish superstitions, as our innovators have done, we meet with the
application thereof, by the Holy Ghost himself, unto some living in the best
* who
of churches under the gospel, namely, that of Philadelphia, Rev. iii. 9,
say they are Jews, and are not ; Behold (says God), I will make them to come and worship before thy feet, and to know that I have loved thee, (as speaking unto that church.) Now, whereas the Holy Ghost, describing them
to be such as say they are Jews, but are not, it is in a periphrasis of
speech all one as to say they are Samaritans. Josephus tells us that, when the Jews were in a prosperous estate, the Samaritans would then say that
they were Jews ; and that fore-mentioned place, the 4th of Ezra, manifestly implies as much, for they there plead,
* We worship God as you do, &c. And although we pass not this judgment on men s persons, yet we may speak of causes and things, as the Scripture hath done before us. Now, as certain
it is that those God s magistrates who, under the times of the gospel,
especially in these last days, have and shall assist the reformation of the churches from under those Samaritan superstitions intermingled with their
worship, and shall afford their countenance and aid to the finishing and per
fecting the temple, they are typified out by the olive trees here (which were then Zerubbabel, their chief governor, and his elders). And accordingly we
find as express an application of it by the Holy Ghost himself, as propheti
cally intended herein. Thus, in the same book of the Revelation (in which
prophecy of the New Testament the Holy Ghost borrows all the elegancies and flowers in the story of the Old, thereby to set out the story of the New in succeeding ages), in the llth chap. ver. 4, the Holy Ghost describes the two witnesses that should oppose the beast and his party in all, and espe
cially the latter, ages, saying, These are the two olive trees, and the two
candlesticks, standing before the God of the earth, where, by the candle
sticks, are meant the churches, as was shewn before, and by the two olive
trees, the eminent magistrates and ministers that supply oil for the main
taining of these churches light and glory now, as Zerubbabel and Jeshua the
priests did then. Yea, the Holy Ghost deciphers them, not only by the very same hieroglyphic that is presented here in Zechariah, but also he useth the
very same words which we find there in the interpretation of the vision, standing before the God of the earth. And, further, this vision of the
candlestick, and those two olive trees, in Zechariah, did signify, as was shewn, not so much, if at all, the first laying of the foundation of the temple, which had been done many years before ; but was eminently, if not only, to hold forth that work of finishing and completing it, which remained then to be done, and to stir them up thereunto was that vision as there given. Therefore, answerably now, the full analogy of the type must principally fall upon, not so much the first reformation, as upon a second work of the per fecting and finishing of them. And accordingly, as Zerubbabel there in Zechariah is seen, with a plummet in his hand, ver. 10, to measure out what remained unfinished for the building of the temple, so here in the 1st Terse of the llth of the Revelation, John hath a reed given him, (he representing the godly of those ages) and is bidden to measure the temple
126 ZERUBBABEL S ENCOURAGEMENT TO [ZECH. IV. 6-9.
of God, and the altar, and the worshippers ; and this, as supposing a temple
to have been already built, only having too vast and great an outward court
laid to it, ver. 2. And although the computation of the whole time of anti
christ s reign is there mentioned and annexed to these occurrences, yet but
to this end, to shew how that time allotted him to reign should end and ex
pire ; and so in that to shew what passages should fall out in the church, towards the expiration of it, as a warning and signal of it (whereof these are
the chief) ; for, chap. x. ver. 6, the angel that gives that prophecy in
the llth, swears that time should be no longer (that is, the beast s time), but
until the days of the seventh trumpet, which were shortly then approaching ;
for immediately after these occurrences rehearsed, we find that that seventh
trumpet sounds, ver. 15 of that llth chap.
But then, you will say, there is mentioned after this an overcoming and
killing of these witnesses by a war of the beast, even his last war against the
saints, whereby he shall throw down their candlesticks, and cut down these
olive trees ; and, if so, where then is all the encouragement which you have
given ?
I dare not say that this killing is as yet to come. It is the greatest con
troversy in this book whether it be past or no ; but, however, supposing it
not yet past, to take off discouragements from thence,
First, For the time of it, we know it not how long, it may be a good while
unto it, and, in the mean time, we may yet enjoy a summer of the gospel, and an harvest of a better reformation, a little time of which (if it were to be
bought) were worth a world.
Secondly, If you attentively observe it, you shall find that killing ex
pressed by an allusion unto Christ s being crucified at last, and then their
rising again, like his rising again with an earthquake, and j ascending unto
heaven, as these are said to do, ver. 11-13. Now, with what doth Christ
comfort himself before he was to die ? Destroy this temple, says he, and in three days I will raise it up again ; with the same may you be
encouraged also, though you supposed it yet to come. It is but a destruite
hoc templum, a destroying of that you are about to repair, this temple, and
but for three days and an half, no longer ; for After three days and an half
(as it is twice said, in the 9th and llth verses), God will rear it up again, and that with advantage, making a better edition of it, even an holy of holies,
in which the ark is seen (as ver. 19), in comparison of the former. Yea, and further (as some think), this killing shall be but a civil death, that is, of them as witnesses only ; not a natural death, as men. (For how else are
their bodies said to lie dead for three years and an half ?) And so the same
persons shall rise again, and enjoy the fruit of their former labours, and
ascend into a greater glory.
And thirdly, Suppose this should come upon you, even when you are
about to finish your work (as the 7th verse hath it, orav rtXeGuoi, when these
olive trees are about to finish or perfect their testimony (as some do read
it), yet let not even this cause you any whit to forbear this work. Christ knew he was to be crucified, yet he casts the money-changers out of the
temple ; and so do you. Purge and reform the temple, though you die for it
in the doing of it. It is worth the observing, that though it was told good
king Josiah, in the beginning of his reign, that God would bring evil upon Jerusalem, because of their apostasy in Manasseh s time, and he knew that
all he could do in reforming should not quench God s wrath, 2 Kings xvi. 17,
yet he reformed with all his might, and therein there was no king before him that was like unto him, ver. 23, 25. Do you your duty, and serve
* Be strong, and let not your
your generation (as David is said to do).
ZECH. IV. 6-9.] FINISH THE TEMPLE. 127
hands be weak, for your works shall be rewarded, as it is in 2 Chron.
xv. 7.
I conclude all with that speech unto this whole State, which David used
: 1 Chron.
to Solomon, concerning the building of the temple in his days
xxviii. 20, 21, Be strong, and of good courage, and do it : fear not, nor be
dismayed, for the Lord God will be with thee ; he will not fail thee, nor for sake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house
of the Lord. And behold, the courses of the priests and the Levites shall be with thee, for all the service of the house of God : also the princes and
the people will be wholly at thy commandment.
Die Mercurii, 27 Aprilis 1642.
It is this day ordered by the House of Commons in Parliament, that Mr Goodwin and Mr Caryll be desired to print their sermons preached the last fast-day before the said House ; and that no man shall print those sermons for the space of two months next ensuing, without their particular licence and approbation.
H. ELSYNGE, Cler. Parl. D. Com.
These are to give notice, that 1 appoint K. Dawlman to print my sermon.
THO. GOODWIN.
APPENDIX.
VOL. XII.
NOTE.
It is necessary that we should give some account of the pieces that follow. The
first is copied from a folio volume of broad-sheets, in the British Museum. No date or authentication is attached to it, but it forms part of a collection of similar documents attributed to the Divines of Goodwin s time. We have no doubt that it is, as it professes to be, a genuine collection of Goodwiniana, collected by some loving friend.
The others, Nos. 2-11, are notes of sermons by Goodwin, taken by one of his Cam
bridge hearers. They are copied from an interesting MS. volume belonging to Mr
Grosart, containing notes of a great number of sermons by Cambridge preachers, between November 1629 and August 1630. The volume is inscribed on a fly-leaf, MS. by Dr Crackenthorpe, Purchased by Mr Paul with his Bible and his Defence of Con-
stantine, January 20. 1838 J. P. Then a note in pencil informs us that J. P. is
J. Player of Saffron Walden, Essex. We see no reason to doubt that the notes are in the handwriting of Dr Crackenthorpe, At all events, they are certainly as they were written from day to day by some one of Dr Goodwin s hearers at Trinity Church. They are not of great intrinsic value, especially as most of the sermons from which they are taken are extant. But this gives them additional interest as a curiosity. In comparing their meagreness and confusion with the fulness and order of the ser mons as published, we ought to remember that the auditor probably heard only the rough draft of the sermons, which were afterwards elaborated and expanded for
publication. A few blanks occur, representing words that we have been unable to decipher. It
is quite possible that these ought to have been more numerous, as there are some other words that we may have read wrongly; but these, if any, we are confident are very few. We cannot but congratulate ourselves on being able, through Mr Grosart s
kindness, to enrich our reprint of Goodwin s Works with what is virtually a work of his hitherto unpublished. ED.
APPENDIX.
1. SHORT, HOLY, AND PROFITABLE SAYINGS OF THE REVEREND DIVINE, DOCTOR THOMAS GOODWIN,
WHO DEPARTED THIS LIFE FEBRUARY 23. 1679-80.
We sail to Glory, not in the salt Sea of our tears, but in the red Sea of
Christ s precious Blood.
A sanctified Heart is better than a silver Tongue. A Heart full of Graces is better than a Head full of Notions. Notional knowledge, it makes a Man s Head giddy, but it will never make
a Man s Heart holy.
The Wheat and the Chaff, they may both grow together, but they shall
not both lie together.
In hell there will not be a Saint amongst those that are terrified ; and in heaven there will not be a sinner amongst those that are glorified. Will you pity a body that is going to the Block ? and will you not pity a Soul that is going to the Pit ?
What a sad visitation is that, where the Black Horse of Death goeth
before, and the Red Horse of Wrath followeth after ! A Man s Condition in this Life may be honourable, and yet his State as
to another Life may be damnable.
There cannot be a better being for us, than for us to be with the best of
That which makes Heaven so full of Joy is, that it is above all fear ; and that which makes Hell so full of Horror is, that it is below all hope.
To be a Professor of Piety and a Practiser of Iniquity is an abomination
to the Lord.
Oh ! Sin is that Mark at which all the Arrows of Vengeance are shot. Were it not for Sin, Death had never had a beginning ; and were it not
for Death, sin would never have had an ending. Oh ! did Sin bring Sorrow into the world, then let Sorrow carry Sin out of the world.
Let the Cry of your Prayers outcry the Cry of your Sins.
Nothing can quench the fire that Sin hath kindled, but the water which Repentance hath caused.
You that have filled the Book of God with your sins, should fill the Bottle of God with your tears.
132 APPENDIX.
He can never truly relish the sweetness of God s Mercy, who never tasted
the bitterness of his own misery.
None can promise us better than Christ can, and none can threaten us worse than Christ can.
Can any Man promise us anything better than Heaven ? or, can any Man
threaten us with anything worse than Hell ?
Heaven is promised to those that love Him, and hell is to be the Portion
of those that hate him.
To live without fear of death, is to die living
: to labour not to die, is
labour in vain.
Men are afraid to die in such and such sins, but not afraid to live in such and such sins.
Oh ! the hell of horrors and terrors that attend those Souls that have
their greatest work to do when they come to Die !
Therefore, as you would be happy in Death, and everlastingly blessed
after Death, prepare and fit yourselves for Death.
Did Christ Die for us that we might live with Him ? and shall we not
desire to Die, and be with Him ?
A believer s dying day is his crowning day. God protects Men when they are in His way, but not out of His way. Sin is never at a higher flood, than when Grace is at a low ebb.
Though the Church s Enemies may be Waves to toss her, yet they shall
never be Rocks to split her.
It is not a time for Sion s Sons to be Rejoicing, when their Mother is
Mourning.
When the Church s adversaries make long furrows upon her back, we
should cast in the seed of tears.
Many, instead of sympathising with Believers in their Misery, are censur
ing them for their Misery.
True love to Christ can walk on the water without drowning, and lie on
the fire without burning.
How shall we land at the Haven of Rest, if we are not tossed upon the Sea of Trouble ?
A saint of God lives upon the love of Life, and fears not the terror of Death.
None are so welcome to that spiritual Canaan as those that swim to it
through the Red Sea of their own Blood.
Saints are not so much afraid of suffering as they are of sinning
: in suf
fering, the offence is done to us ; but in sinning, the offence is done to God.
2. Mr GOODWIN of Katherine Hall, at Trinity, the 5th of November 1629.
They knew God, but glorified him not as God, neither were thankful.
ROM. I. 21.
Thankfulness hath relation to God as a good God. Thanksgiving is the
subject I am upon ; and it is the duty of this day to reckon up some of God s common mercies to this land. The Lord made all men of one blood,
yet he appointed certain times for them to live in ; and therefore some ages are happier than others ; nations, some are happier than another. We
could never have come forth in a more happy and blessed time.
1. For the age, which is counted the dotage, yet is blessed. Two bless
: (1.) Human knowledge and wisdom ; (2.)
ings make a nation happy
APPENDIX. 133
Knowledge of God, which sanctifies saints, as the other civiliseth men. Both
: (1.) For the human
lights have shined more clearly now than in any age
knowledge the Egyptian all hath been afforded us. (2.) The knowledge of God, of which any nation hath not been partaker of. Blessed are those
eyes that see those things ye see : Deut. v. 3, The Lord made that cove nant with us, not with our fathers. That light, in regard of the people s
light, though not as the ministers ; full sea it is now, if ever it was, amongst the people.
2. The place. If thou hadst had the wings of a dove to cull out the
place thou most desired, couldst thou have culled out a more happy place to set thy foot in than this ?
3. For the healthful temperament of it in regard of fundamental laws, which are as a wholesome air to the body. We enjoy our own good, which
cost our forefathers much pains.
4. The succession of princes, which was sometime hazarded, but God hath continued it still. For this God is to be magnified, for they are, 1 Sam. ii. 8, the pillars of the world ; for he compares the world to a rotten
house, which is underpropped with such pillars. 1 Tim. ii. 2, he commands
to give thanks for kings ; for heathen, much more for Christian. Great
things hath he done for us, which are never to be forgotten, in delivering us so often.
5. The peace and tranquillity of this land, which is above all blessings ;
therefore, saith Solomon, Prov. xvii. 1, More one morsel in quietness, &c. Blessed are the people in such a case ; but peace with gospel, as fair weather
in harvest : Acts ix. 81, Then had the churches rest, edified, comforted.
6. The security of religion established amongst us, and a standard of
religion as the doctrine of the churches. The saints who live amongst you are in great abundance. The preaching of the gospel, which excels all the Jesuits ; they cannot imitate us herein, because God helps us to make ser mons in an immediate manner.
7. The special deliverances of this land, which are two great ones : that in 88, and this which we celebrate, wherein God gave us new charters, and renewed our lease of the gospel that we have had. Oh ! what cause have we to be thankful. This day is holy to the Lord as a Sabbath as a
fast ; though our hearts ought to run in another channel, namely, of thanks
giving, they are mourning. Now, as these mercies are public, so public thanksgiving ought to be had ; and herein we may make melody to the Lord. You that are students ought to regard this the more,
1. Because they are common mercies and public. Because all the mercies God brings on this land are for your sakes. They are all yours,
* that the abundant grace might, &c., 2 Cor. iv. 14, 15. 2. Because by public mercies God hath most glory. His name is made