Wherein the kinds, and nature, of fear are opened,
A Practical Treatise of Fear. midſtofarmedtroops,and regiments, whilst he knows thatthe generalof that army is his own father ? The more power this filial fear ofGodobtains inourhearts, the leſs willyou dreadthe powerofthecreature. When the Dictator ruled at Rome, thenall otherofficers ceafed ; and ſo, in agreat meaſure, will all other fears, where the fear ofGod is dictator in the heart.
This is the remedy.
3.Andto enable us to apply this remedy inthe worſt, and moſt difficult times, wehave a fingularencouragementpropoſed : ifwewillthus ſanctify the Lord ofhosts himself, by fuch an acknowledgmentof, and child-likedependance onhim intimes of danger, thenhe will be to us for afanctuary, Afyli loco, (i. e.) hewill furely protect, defend, and provide for us in the worſt times,and cafes *; thenwillthe Lord " createuponeverydwel- " ling-place ofmount Zion, and uponher aſſemblies, acloud,
" and ſmokebyday, and the ſhining of a flaming firebynight :
" forupon all theglory ſhall be adefence, andthere ſhall be " a tabernacle for a ſhadow in theday-time, from the heat,
"andfor aplace ofrefuge, andfor acovertfrom the ſtorm and " from rain."
Let the winds roar, the rain beat, the lightnings flash, you are in fafety, andhave a good roof over your heads. Hencetheſe two pointsofdoctrine offer themselves :
Doct. 1. That the best men are too apt tobe overcomewith ſlavishfears, in times of imminent diſtreſs, and danger.
Doct. 2.That thefear ofGod is the most effectual means toextinguish thefinfulfear ofmen, and tofecureusfromdanger.
Theſe two points take in the ſubſtance,andſcope ofthe text; butbecauſe Ideſign to treat, inthe following chapters, ofthe kinds, nature, uſes, causes, effects, and remedies offear, I ſhall notdistinctly proſecute them, butproceed inthis order, inthe following chapters.
CHAP.
II.
Wherein the kinds, and nature offear, are opened, andparticularly the distracting, flaviſs fear ofcreatures.
Sect. I.THHERE is a threefold fear found in man, viz.
1. Natural.
2. Sinful.
3. Religious fear.
*Praeftabit vos inacceſſos, et inviolabiles ab his regibus.
He will renderyou inacceſſible, andpreſerveyou frombeingvi olatedby theſe kings.
Practical Treatise of Fear.
1. Natural fear, ofwhich allare partakers that partake of the common nature, not one excepted.
Naturalfear is the trouble, orperturbation ofmind, from the apprehension ofapproaching evil, or impondingdanger.
The word φόβος, comes from a † verb that ſignifies flight ; this is not always finful, but it is always the fruit,and confequent of fin.
Since fin entered into our nature, there is no ſhakingoff fear. No foonerhad Adamtranſgreſſed, but he fearedandfled, hiding himself among the trees ofthe garden, Gen. iii. 8. When hehad tranſgreſſedthe covenant,hepreſently feared the execution ofthe curſe: firſt he eats, thenhe hides; and his afflictive paſſion is from him tranſmitted, and derived to all hischildren.
To this natural fear, itpleaſed our LordJesus Chriſt to ſubject himſelf, in the days ofhis fleſh ; he was afraid, yea, he was fore amazed, Mark xiv. 33. for though his human nature was abfolutely free from fin, yet he came in the " likneſs of ſinful
" fleſh," Rom viii. 3 .
This fear creates great trouble, andperturbationinthemind, 1 John iv. 18. Fearhath torment ; in proportion to thedanger isthe fear, and in proportion to the fear, the trouble, anddiftraction of the mind: ifthe fear be exceeding great, reaſon is diſplaced, and can conduct us no farther, as the pfalmiſt ſpeaks ofmariners in a ſtorm, " they are at their wits end," Pfal. cvii.
27. or, as it is varied in the ‡ Margin, all wisdom is ſwallowed up. And this is the meaning of Deut. xxviii. 25. that they ſhould go out against their enemies one way,and " flee before " them ſeven ways," (i. e.) ſo great ſhall be the fright, and diſtraction, that they ſhall attempt now one way, then another, ſtriving every way, but liking none ; for fear ſo far betrays the fuccours of reaſon, that their counſels are always in uncertainty, and at a loſs, and the uſual voiceofa man in this condition is,
Iknow notwhat todo, Iknow notwhich way to turn.
Evil is the object offear, and the greater the evil is, the ſtronger the fear muſt needs be, and therefore the terrors ofan awakened and terified conſcience must be allowed to be the greatest of terrors, becauſe in that caſe aman hath todowith a great and terribleGod, and is ſcarred with apprehenfions of his infinite and eternal wrath, than which, no evil is, or can be
+ φεβομαι fugio, perfect. med. πεφοβα, inde φοβος timor,fuga.
‡ Rector in incerto est, nec quidfugiatve petatve, invenit, Ovid.
Pavidifemperconfilia in incerto,
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greater. You fee at whatheight Chriſt's conflict wrought with itwhen it made him ſweat as it were great clots of blood.
Of alltemporal evils, death is the greateſt, and therefore Job calls it theKing of terrors, Job xviii. 14. or the moſt terrible of terribles.
Thuanus * relates two ſtrange inſtances of the fear ofdeath : " One of a certain captain, who was ſo terrified with " the fear ofdeath, that he poured out a kind ofbloody ſweat,
" from all parts ofhis body.
Another is of ayoung man con- "demned for a ſmall matter by + Sixtus Quintus, who was
" ſovehemently terrified with the fears ofdeath, that he ſhed a " kindofbloody tears."
Theſe are ſtrange and terrible effects offear, but vaſtly ſhort ofwhat Chriſt felt and fuffered, who grappled with a far greater evil than the terrors ofdeath , even the wrath ofanincenſedGodpoured out tothe full, and that immediately upon him.
But yet evil, as evil, is rather the object of hatred than of fear, it must be an imminent or near approaching evil, which we fee nothow to eſcape or put by, that provokes fear, and rouzes this lion. And therefore the faints inglory are perfectly freedfrom fear, becauſe they are out of the reach of alldanger: nordowe, that are here in the midst of evils, fear them tillwe ſee them approaching us, andwe fee nothow to avoid them. To hear of fire, plague or the ſword inthe Indies, doth not affright us, becauſe the evil is ſo remote from us; it is far enough off, weare in nodanger of it; but when it is in the towa, much morewhen within our own dwellings, we tremble.
Evil hurts us notby a ſimple apprehenfion of its nature, butof its union; and all propinquity is a degree of union, as a I learned divine ſpeaks. And it is worth obſervation, that all carnal ſecurity is maintainedby putting evils at a greatdiftance from us; as it is noted of thoſe ſecure ſenſualiſts, Amos vi. 3."They put far from them the evil day."
The meaning isnot thatthey did, or could put the evil one minute farther fromthem in reality, but onlyby imagination and fancy; they ſhut their own eyes, and wouldnot see it, left it ſhould give anunpleaſing interruption to their mirth; and this is the reaſon whydeath puts the living into nomore fear,becauſe it is appre- * Dux quidam indigno mortis metu,adeo concuffusfuit, utfanguincumfudorem toto corporefudit. Hift. lib. 11 .
+Juvenis ob levem caufam a Sixto V. damnatus, prae doloris vehementiafertur lacrymas cruentas fudiffe.
Lib. 80.
‡Dr. Reynolds.
VOL. IV.
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hended as remote, and at an undetermined diſtance, whereas ifthe precife time ofdeath were known, eſpecially if that time werenear, itwould greatly ſcare and terrify.
This is the nature of natural fear, the infelicityof nature, whichwe all groan under the effects of : itis in all the creatures in ſome degree, but among them all none ſuffer more by it than man, for hereby he becomes his own tormentor; nor is any torment greater than this when it prevails in ahigh degreeupon us.
Indeed all conſtitutions and tempers admit not the fame degrees of fear; ſome are naturally couragious and ſtout, like the lion for magnanimity and fortitude; others exceeding timorous and faint-hearted, like the hare or hart, one littledog will make a hundred of them flee before him.
Luther was a man of great courage and prefence of mind in dangers, * Melandthon very timorous and ſubject todeſpondency.
Thus thedifference betwixt them is expreſſed in one of Luther's letters to him : " I am well nigh a ſecure ſpectator
" ofthings, andeſteem notanything theſe fierce and threaten- " ing Papiſts ſay.
I much diſlike thoſe anxious cares, which, 66 as thou writeſt, do almoſt confume thee."
There might be as great a ſtock of grace in one as in theother, butMelancthon's gracehad not the advantage of ſo ſtout andcourageous a temper of body and mind as Luther's had. Thus brieflyof natural fear.
Sect. II. There is a fearwhich is formally and intrinsically finful, not only our felicity, but our fault, not our ſimple affliction and burden, but ourgreat evil and provocation ; and fuch is the fear here diſſuaded, called theirfear (i. e.) the feat wherewith carnal and unbelieving mendo fear, when dangers threaten them; and the finfulness of it lies in five things.
1. Inthe fpringand cause ofitwhich is unbelief, and anunworthy diftruſt ofGod, whenwedare not rely upon the ſecurity ofadivinepromife, nor trust toGod's protection inthewayof
: ourduty.
Thiswas the very caſe of that people, Ifa. xxx. 15.
" Thus faith the LordGod,the Holy One of Ifrael, in return- " ing and reſt ſhallye be faved, in quietneſs and in confidence
" ſhall beyour ſtrength; andye would not.
Butye ſaid, no, " for we will fleeupon horfes; thereforeye ſhall flee: andwe " will ride uponthe fwift; therefore ſhall they that purſue you
" be ſwift. One thousand ſhall flee at the rebuke of one," &c.
Thus ſtood the cafe: Sennacherib with a mighty hoſt was ready to invade them; this puts them into a fright; in this
* Epist. ad Melanct. Ann. 1549 .
APractical Treatise of Fear.
diſtreſsGod affures them, bythe mouth of his prophet, that in"returning and reſt they ſhall be ſaved, in quietneſs and " confidence ſhouldbe their ſtrength." The meaning is, never perplex yourſelves with various counſels and projects to ſecure yourſelves under the wings of Egypt or any other Protector, butwith a compoſed, quiet, and calm temper of mind, reſt uponmy power by faith, take mypromiſes for your ſecurity, this ſhall be your ſalvation and your ſtrength, more effectual to your preſervation than armies, garriſons, or any creaturedefence inthe world; one act of faith ſhalldoyoubetter fervice than Pharaoh and all his forces cando.
Butye ſaid no, q. d. we dare not trust to that, a good horfe willdo us more ſerviceat ſuch a time than a good promiſe;
Egypt is a better ſecurity in their eye thanHeaven.
This is the fruit ofgroſs infidelity. And as wicked mendothus forfakeGod, and cleave to the creature in the time of trouble, fo there is founda ſpice ofthis diſtruſtfulness ofGod, producing fear and trouble, inthe beſt of men.
It was in thediſciples themſelves, Mat. viii. 26. " Why are ye fearful, O ye of little
" faith ?" A ſtormhad befallen them at ſea, anddanger began to threaten them, and preſentlyyou find aſtorm within, their fearswere more boiſterous than the winds, and had more need of calming than the fea ; and itwas all from their unbelief, as Chriſt tells them; the leſs their faith, the greater their fear.
If amancanbut rely uponGod in a promiſe, ſo far as he is enabled to believe, ſo far he will reckon himſelf well ſecured.
* Illyricus, inhis catalogue of the Witneſſes, relates this remarkable paſſage of one Andreas Proles, a godly ageddivine, who lived ſomewhat before Luther, and taught many points foundly, according tohis light then; he was called to a Synod atMilan, and afterwards in the Lateran, where oppoſing a propoſition of the Pope about burdening the church with a new holiday, he was brought into much danger, and eſcaping very narrowly from Rome, he bought him abowand weapons; but as he was riding, hebegan to bethink himself, that the cauſe was not his but God's, andnot to be maintained with ſword andbow : and if it were, yet what could ſuch a decripit old man dowith weapons ? upon which he threw away his weapons, committed himself, his cauſe, and his journey toGod, relied upon his promiſes more than fwordor bow, and came home ſafe, andafterwards died quietly in hisbed.
B 2 * Illyrici Cat. Teſt. Lib. 19.
A Practical Treatise of Fear.
2. The finfulness offear lies inthe exceſs andimmoderacyof it, whenwe fearmorethanwe ought; for it may be truly faid of our fears, as the Philoſopher ſpeaks of waters, difficile fuis terminis continentur, it is hard to keep them within bounds; everybuſh is abear, every pettytroubleputs us into a fright; our fear exceeds thevalue and meritofthe cauſe.
It is agreat fin to love or fear any creature above the rate of acreature, as if they were maſters of all our temporal and eternal comforts.
Thus whenthe men of Ifraelheardofthe confederacy andconjunction of their enemies against them, the text faith, " their
" hearts were moved, as the trees ofthewood are movedwith " the wind," Iſa. vii. 1. or as we uſe to ſay proverbially, like an afpine leaf: It is a ſad fight to beholdmen ſhaking and quivering as the treesdo on a windy day; yetthusdidthehouseof
David, partly through the remembrance ofpaſt calamities, but eſpecially through incredulity in God's protecting care intheir preſentand future dangers ; yea, this is toooften the faultof good men increature-fear as well as in creature-love, to tranfgreſs the due bounds ofmoderation.
It isnoted ofJacob, tho amanofmuch faith, andone thathad the ſweetest encouragement to ſtrengthen it, both from former experiences, andGod's gracious promiſes to be with him, yet when Efauwas come nigh, he was " greatly afraid anddiſtreſſed," Gen. xxxii. 7. It was but a littlebefore, thatGod had graciouslyappeared tohim, and fent a royal guard ofangels toattendhim, even two hoſts or armies of angels, ver. 1, 2. and yet as foon as Efau approached him, he was afraid, yea greatly afraid, afraid and diſtreſſed, notwithstanding fuch an encouraging vifion as this was .
3. The finfulness ofour fears lies intheinordinacy ofthem; to fear it more thanwe ought is bad enough, but to magnify its power above the power of a creature; toexalt thepower of anycreature by our fears, andgive it ſuch an afcendant overus, as ifit had an arbitrary and abfolute dominion over us, or over our comforts, todo with them what it pleaſed ; this is to put the creatureout ofits own claſs andrank, intothe place ofGod, and is therefore a very finful and evil fear.
To truſt in any creature, as if it hadthe power of aGod tohelp us, or to fear any creature, as if ithad the power of a God tohurt us, is exceeding ſinful, and highly provoking to God: This inordinate truſt is taxedand condemned, in Ilaiah xxxi. 3. They would needs go down to Egypt for help, and truſt in their horſes and horſemen, becauſe they were ſtrong; i. e. in their opinion, they were able to ſecure them againſt all
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thoſedangerstheprophet from the Lord'sownmouthhadthreatenedthem with: but, totake them offfrom this finful and inordinate dependence on the creature, he tells them, ver. 3.
"Now the Egyptians are men, and notGod; and their horfes " fleſh, and not fpirit: when the Lord ſhall ſtretch forth his
"hand, both he that helpeth ſhall fall, and hethat isholpen " ſhall fall down, and they ſhall fall together." q. d. It is a ſinful anddangerous miſtake forone creature, togive that truſt anddependence toanother creature, whichisdueonlytoGod, tolook uponmen as it they were gods, and horfes as if they were ſpirits : all creatures, even the ſtrongest, are but as the hop, the vine, or the ivy; if they clafp about the pole, the wall or the oak, they may be ſupported, as you may alfo by leaning uponGod; but ifthey depend and entangle themſelves oneuponanother, as you andtheEgyptians do, you shall fail,
( andfall all together.
And, as one creature is apt inordinately and finfully thus to truſtand lean upon another, ſo there is asgreat a profaneneſs inthe creatures inordinately to fear anddread each other, as if thecreature feared were rather agod than aman, rather a ſpirit than fleſh; andthus our fear magnifies andexalts the creature, and puts it, as itwere, into the room and place ofGod. This was the finwhichGod rebuked inhis own people, Ifa . li. 12,
13. " I, even I, amhe that comforteth thee : Who art thou, " that thou ſhouldſt be afraid of aman that ſhalldie, and of "the ſon of manwho ſhall bemade as grafs ? and forgetteſt
" the Lord thy maker," &c.
See how fear exalts man, and depreſſethGod; it thinks upon the noxious power of men fo much, that it forgets theſaving power ofGod, as if that ſtood for nothing : thus a mortal worm, that ſhall periſh as thegrafs, eclipses the glory of the great God, that ſtretched forththe heavens, andlaid the foundations of the earth.
And thiswas the evil against which Chrift cautioned his own diſciples, inMatth.x. 28. " Fear not themwhich kill the body,
" but arenot able tokill the foul; butrather fear him,which is " able to deſtroyboth foul andbody in hell; " q. d. Have a careyou never fear any man, be he armedwith never fo much powerand rage; as ifthe power ofmaking or marring you for everwere inhis hands, as if you layat the feet ofhis will and pleaſure tobe ſaved or ruined for ever: fear not him that can onlytouch your bodies, as ifhe could damn your fouls ; inveſt notanycreaturewith the fovereign and incommunicable power ofGod.
4. The finfulness of fear confifts in the diſtracting influence
A Practical Treatise of Fear. ithath upon the hearts of men, whereby itdiſcompoſeth and unfits them for thediſcharge of their duties.
Fearſometimes puts menintoſuchanhurry,andtheir thoughts into ſuch diforder, that for the preſent theyhave ſcarce any fuccour or relief from their graces, or from their reaſon; for under anextraordinary fear both grace and reaſon, like thewheels of awatch, wound above its dueheight, ſtand ſtill, andhave no motion at all.
It is rare to find aman ofthat largeneſs and conſtancyof heartand mind, in aday of fear, that was found in Jehoſhaphat, 2 Chron. xx. 2, 3. "Then there came fome
" that told Jehoſhaphat, faying, There cometh a greatmulti- " tude against thee from beyond theſea,onthis ſide Syria, and " behold theybe in Hazazon-Tamar, which is Engedi ; andJe- " hoſhaphat feared, and ſet himself to ſeek the Lord." He ſet himſelf, i. e. he compoſed and fixed his heart for prayer in the timeof ſo great a fright, and terrible alarm: but it is rare tofind ſuch conſtancyand evenneſs ofmind as this ; in like caſes it iswith moſt in great frights, as the prophet deſcribes the condition of the Jews, Iſa. xxii. 2, 3. when the city ofJerufalemwas besieged, andthe enemy came under the walls of it ; thatwhich a little before was the joyous city, or as ſome read, the revelling city, is now in ſuch a panic fear, that it is fullof ftirsand tumults, ſome run up tothe tops ofthehouſes, either tohideor bewail themselves, or take aview of the dreadful enemy without; others prevent the ſword of the enemy, and die by fear before-hand, their own apprehenfions of miſery killed them before the ſword of anyother enemy once touched them; but you read of none that ran into their cloſets to feek the Lord ; the city was full of ſtirs,but none of prayers, alas, fear made them cry tothe mountains, rather than toGod, ver,
5. The beſt men find ithard to keep their thoughts from wandering, and their minds from diſtraction, in the greateſt calmof peace, buta thousand times harder in the hurries and tumults of fear.
5. The ſinfulness of fearconſiſts in the power ithath to difpoſe and incline men to the use of finful means to putby their danger, and tocaſttheminto the hands and power of temptation. "The fear ofmanbringeth aſnare," Prov.xxix. 25. or puts and lays a ſnarebefore him: Satan ſpreads the net, and fear, like the ſtalking-horſe,drives men right into it.
Itwas fearwhich drewAbraham, that great believer, intothe ſnare of diſſimulation, to the great difparagement of religion ; for it was ſomewhat an odd ſight to ſee Abimelech, anHeathen, ſo ſchooling anAbraham for it, as he did, Gen.xx. 9. And for
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the fameevil you findGod chidinghis people, in Ifa. Ivii. 11 .
" And of whom haft thou been afraid, or feared, that thou " haft lied, and haft notremembered me ?"
There is adouble lieoccafionedby fear, one inwords, andanother indeeds : hypocrify is a lie done, a practical lie, and our church-hiſtory abounds with fadexamples ofdiſſimulation through fear : it is
Satan's great engine tomake histemptations victorious and fuccefsful with men, Sect. III. There is an holyand laudable fear, a fearwhich is our treafure, not our torment; the chief ornament of the foul, itsbeautyand perfection, not its infelicityor ſin, viz. the awful filial fear ofGod; natural fear is a pure and ſimple paſſion of the ſoul; finful fearis the diſordered andcorrupt paffion of thefoul; but this is the natural paſſion ſanctified, and thereby changed and baptized into the name andnature of a ſpiritual grace.
This fear is alſo mentioned inmy text, and preſcribed as an antidote againſt ſinful fears ; it devours carnal fears, as Moſes's ferpent did thoſe of the enchanters.
It is one ofthe foreſtjudgments tobe in the fear ofman day andnight, Deut.
xxviii. 65, 66, 67. and one of the sweeteſt mercies to be inthe fear ofGod all theday long, Prov. xxiii. 17. The fear of man ſhortens our days, Iſa. xxii. 34. but the fear of the Lord prolongeth our days, Prov. x. 27. The fear of the Lord is afountainoflife, Prov. xiv. 27. But the fear of man afountainof miſchiefs and miſeries : By the fear of the Lord men depart from evil, Prov. xvi. 6. but, by thefear of man, men runthemſelves into evil, Prov. xxix. 25.
This fear is a gracious habit orprincipleplanted by God in thefoul, whereby thefoul iskept under an holy awe of the eye ofGod, andfrom thence is inclined to perform and do what pleaſethhim, and toShun andavoid whatsoever he forbids and hates.
1.It isplantedinthefoul asa permanent and fixedhabit; it is notofthe natural growth and production ofman's heart, butof ſupernatural infufion and implantation, Jer. xxxii. 40. " I will
" putmy fear into their inward parts." To fearman is natural, but to fearGod is wholly ſupernatural.
2. This gracious fear puts the foul under the awe ofGod's eye, Pfal. cxix. 161. " My heart ſtandeth in awe of thy
" word."
'Tis the reproach ofthe ſervants ofmen tobe eyefervants, but it is the praise and honour ofGod's ſervants tobe fo.
零 3. This reſpect to the eye of God,inclinesthem toperform and do whatsoever pleaſeth him, and is commanded by him :
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Hence, fearingGod, and workingrighteouſneſs, are connected andlinked together, Acts x. 35. Ifwe trulyfearGod, we dare notbutdo the things he commands; and if his fear be exalted inourhearts to an high degree, it will enableus to obey him induties accompanied withdeepeſt ſelf-denial, Gen. xxii. 12 .
" Now I know thou feareſt God,ſeeing thouhast not withheld " thyſon, thine onlyſonfrom me."
4. This fear engageth, and in ſome degree enableth theſoul, inwhich it is, to ſhun and avoid whatsoever is diſpleaſing to God, andforbidden by him ; in this Job diſcovered himself a true fearer ofGod, he would not touch what God had forbid. den,andtherefore washonoured with this excellent character,
" He was onethat fearedGod, and eſchewed evil," Job i. 3 .
And thus of the ſeveral kinds of fear.
CHAP.
III.
Shewing thevarioususes ofFear, both natural, ſinful, and religi ous, in the government of the world by Providence.
HAVING taken a briefviewofthe ſeveral kinds and forts that are found among men, our next work will be toopen the uſes of them in the government of this world ; for one way or other they all ſubſerve the moſt wife and holy purpoſes ofGodtherein. Andwe will firſt enquire into 1. The use ofnaturalfear.
Which ifwewell conſider, itwillbefoundexceeding necefſary and useful to makeman a governable creature by law, and confequently the order, comfort and tranquillity of the world neceffarily depend upon it. How immorigerous and intractable would the corruptions of man's nature make him, uncapableofany moral restraint from themoſt flagitious and barbarouscrimes, hadnotGod plantedfuch apaffionas this inhis nature, which, like a * bridle, curbs in the corrupt propenfions thereof.
Iffeardid notclap its manacles and fetters upon thewild and boisterous lufts ofmen, they would certainly bear downall milder motives, andbreak loose from all ingenuous bands of reftraint; the world would inevitably be filledwith diforders, tumults, rapines, thefts, murders, and all manner
* Fear is like a bridle, by which the horse isgoverned: ifthis paſſionoffearis removed, all other reſtraints willbe broken down.
Labat, on Prov.xxix. 25.
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ofuncleanneſs and unrighteouſneſs, nechofpes ab hofpite tutus, i. e the lodger is not ſafe from the perfon entertaining him ;
†men would become like the fiſhes of the ſea, as the prophet complains, Habbak. i. 14. where the greater ſwallow up amultitude ofthe ſmaller fry alive at one gulp; propriety could notbe maintained in the world, no man's perſon couldbe tafe or inviolate; power and opportunity to do miſchief would meaſure out to mentheir lot and inheritance, and conſequentJy all ſocieties muſt diſband and break up.
We ſay, and the obſervation is fure, He thatfears not hisown, may easily be master of another man's life.
It is the law, and fear of punishment, that keeps the world in order : men are afraid todo evil, becauſe they are afraid to ſuffer it; they ſee the law hath inſeparably linked penal and moral evils together ; if they will preſume upon the one, they must neceſſarily pullthe other upon them too; and this keeps them in ſome order and decorum : there wouldbe no order or ſecurity without law; but if laws hadnot annexed penalties to enforce them, and give them their fanction, as good there were no laws ; they would have no more power to reſtrain the corruptions ofmens hearts, than the new cords orgreen withs had to bind Sampson.
And yet, if the ſevereſt penalties in the world were annexed to, or appointed by the law, they could ſignify nothing totheends of thegovernmentwithout fear.
This is that tender ſenſiblepower, or paſſion, on which threatenings work, and ſo brings men under moral government and reſtraint, Rom. xiii. 3 , 4. " Magiſtrates are a " terror to evil works ; wilt thou not then be afraid of the " power ? But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid, for he
" beareth not the ſword in vain." And by this means aworld of evils is reſtrained and prevented in theworld.
It was the cuſtom and policyofthe Perſians, (I cannot fay laudable) atthedeath of their kings, togive everyman liberty for the ſpace offive days, todo what he would; and fuch mitchiefs weredone every-where by the unbridled lufts of men in thoſedays, that it made the people long and pray for the inſtalment oftheir nextking: it exceedingly endeared government to them.
BleſſedbeGod for law and government, for curbingby † An intelligent creature, as a creature, has a Superior, towhoſe providence anddiſpoſal it is ſubjected; and as itis intelligent, it is capableofmoral government, by which it maybe directed to good, and reſtrained from evil; andſucha law isabſolutely neceſſary to it, thatitmay live ſuitablyto its nature.
Suarez oflaws, book 1. c. 3 .
VOL. IV.
A Practical Treatise of Fear. this means the raging luſts ofthe hearts ofmen, and procuring reft and comfort for us in the world thisway.
2. The use offinfulfear.
This is formally evil and finful in its own nature, as well as thefruit of fin, and offspring of finful nature; yet the Lord knows how to over-rule it in his providential government of theworld to his ownwife and holy purpoſes. And he doth fo, 1. By making it his ſcourge topuniſn his enemies.
Ifmen willnotfearGod, they ſhall fear men ; yea, they ſhallbe made a terror to themselves. And indeed it is adreadfulpunishment forGod todeliver aman up into the hands of his own fears.
Ithink there is ſcarce a greater torment to be found inthe world, than for amantobe his own tormentor, and his mind madearack and engine of torture to his body. We read in 2Kings xvii . 25. that God ſent lions among the people; but certainlythat is not tobad as forGod to let loose our own fears uponus. No lion is ſo cruel as this paſſion, and therefore
David eſteemed it so great a deliverance to be delivered from all his fears, Pfal. xxxiv. 4. It is adreadful threatening which is recorded inDeut. xxviii. 65, 66, 67. against the diſobedient andrebellious, " Thou shaltfind no eaſe, neither ſhall the fole
" ofthyfoothave reſt, but the Lord ſhallgivethee therea trem- " blingheart, and failing ofeyes, and forrow ofmind, and thy
" life shallhang indoubt before thee, and thou ſhalt fearday " and night, and ſhalt have no aſſurance of thy life.
In the " morning thou shalt ſay, WouldGod it were even ; and at " eventhou ſhalt ſay, WouldGod itwere morning, for the fear
" of thineheart wherewith thou ſhalt fear, and for the fight of " thine eyes which thou shaltſee."
Whenfearhath once feized the heart, you may fee death's colours diſplayed in the face.
What adifmal lifedo they live, who have neither any peace by day, nor reft bynight, butweariſomedays and nights are appointed them ! Thedays ofſuch menare tireſomedays ; they with for the night, hoping it may give them a little reſt; but their fears go tobed with them, their hearts pant andmeditate terror; andthen, Oh that itwere day again !
2. By fear God puniſheth his enemies inhell: it is thatflagellum Dei, terrible ſcourge ofGod, by which a great part of the torment of the damned is inflicted on them .
Divines uſe tomake this tripartite diſtinction of hell-torments, andtellus, Godpunishes the wicked there partly by remembrance ofwhat is paft, viz. the mercies andmeansthey once had, but are there inrecoverably loft; partly by the ſenſe ofthings prefent, even the
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wrathofGod overlaying foul andbody; and partly by the fear ofwhat is to come; and ſure this is not the least part of themifery oftheſe wretched caft-aways. Oh that fearful ‡ expectation offiery indignation ! more and more ofGod's wrath ſtill comingon, as the wavesofthefea, thrusting forward one on another ; yea, this is that which makes the devils tremble,
James ii. 19. Φεισσεσι, the word fignifies fuch anoiſe as the roar ofthe ſea, or the roaring ofthe waves whenthey break themſelves against the rocks, and this isoccafionedby thefears which are continually held as awhip over them.
3. Providence makes use ofthe flaviſh fears and terrors of wicked men, to diſſipate and ſcatterthem, when they are com bined, and confederated against the people of God; by theſe havetheybeen routed, and put to flight, when there hath been noother viſible power todo it : it is faid Plalm lxxviii. 55. God caſt out the heathen before his people Iſrael ; and by what meanswere thoſe mighty nations fubdued? Notby the ſtrength ofmultitudes of the Ifraelites, but by their own fears; for it is faid, Joſh. xxiv. 11, 12. " The Lord sent the hornet before " them, which drave them out *."
Theſe hornets were the fears and terrors of their own guilty and preſaging mind, which buzzed and fwarmed in theirown breasts, and ſtung them tothe heart, worſe than theſwords ofthe Ifraelites could do.
+The- " odoret relates a memorable ſtory of Sapores king of Perfia, "who had besiegedmany Chriflians inthe cityNifibis, andput
" them to great traits, ſo that little hopes offafety were left " them; but inthe depth oftheirdiſtreſs,God fent an army of " hornets, and gnats, among their enemies, whichgot intothe
" trunks of theirelephants, and ears, and noſtrils of their hor- " fes ; which ſo enraged them, that they brake their harness,
" caft their riders, and put them all to therout, by which pro- " vidence the Chriſtians eſcaped."
Theſehornets were terrible to them,butfears, which are hornets ina figure, are ten thou-
‡ The mind, anxious about futurity, is inacalamitous ſtate, and miferable before miſeries come. Sen.
* Hornets, by a metaphor, ſignifyſudden fear which was raiſed intheir guilty minds by God.
Lavat. on the place.
+ Sapores rex Percarum cum urbem Niſibin in qua erant Chriftiani, obſediſſet ; eamque affligeret , magna viscrabonum et culicum repente venit, et in promufcides cavas Elephantorum confedit, complevitque aures equorum, ita ut feffores excuſſerint, et turbatores ordines infugam converterint, Hift. lib. 2. cap.30, C2
A Practical Treatise of Fear. ſand times more terrible ; they will quell, and fink the very hearts of the ſtouteſt men; yea, they will quickly make thoſe that in their pride, and haughtiness, took themselves rather tobe gods, and almighty powers, toknow themselves tobebutmen, as it is, Plal ix. 20. "Put them in fear, O Lord, that theymay
" know themſelves to be but men." One fright will ſcare them out of a thousand fond conceits and idledreams.
3. The use of religious fear.
IfGodcanmake ſuch fruit togrow upon fuch abramble as the ſinful, ſlaviſhfear ofman is, what may we expect from religious fear, a choice root of his own Spirit's planting ? The uſes, and benefits hereof, are innumerable, and inestimable ; but I must contract, and will only inſtance inthree ſpecial uſes of it.
1. By this fear the people of God are excited to, andconfirmed in the way of their duty .
Ecclef. xii. 13."FearGod, " andkeep his commandments "
It is, custos utriusque tabulae, the keeper ofboth tables, becauſe theduties ofboth tables are influencedby it.
It is this fear of God that makes us have a due reſpect to all his commands, and it is as powerful to confirm us in, as it is to excite us to our duties.
Jer. xxxii, 40. " I will put my fear into their inwards, and they ſhall not " depart from me."
Look, as he that fowethdoth not regard the winds, but goes on in his labour, whatever weather the face of heaven threatens ; ſo he that fears God, will be found in the wayofhis duty, let the aſpect of the times be never fo lowring, anddiscouraging: and, truly, this is no ſmall advantage, in times of frights, and diſtractions.
Slaviſh fear ſetsa manuponthedevil's ground, religious fear uponGod's ground:
And, how vaſt anodds is there in the choice of our ground, whenwe are to endure agreatfight of affliction !
2. Another excellent useofthis fear is, to preſerve thepurity and peace of our confciences, by preventing grief and guilt therein, Prov. xvi. 6. " The fear of the Lord is todepart from " evil."
See how it kept Joſeph, Gen. xxxix. 9. and Nehemiah, chap. v. 15. And this benefit is invaluable, eſpecially in a day of outward calamity and diſtreſs.
Look, in what degree the fear ofGod prevails in our hearts, anſwerable thereuntowill the ſerenity, peace, and quietness of our confciencesbe; and proportionable unto that will our ſtrength and comfort be in the evilday, and our courage and confidence to look dangers inthe face.
3. To conclude, a principal use of this fear ofGod is, to awaken us to make timely provifions forfuture diſtreſſes, that
A Practical Treatise of Fear.
whenſoever theycome, theymaynot come byway ofſurprize uponus.
Thus " Noah, being moved with fear, prepared an " ark," Heb. xi. 7.
Itwas the inſtrument ofhis and his families falvation.
Some men owe their death to their fears, but goodmen, ina ſenſe, owe their lives to their fears; finful fears havelain ſome, andgodly fears have faved others. " Awife
" man feareth anddeparteth from evil, (faith Solomon) but a " fool ragethand is confident."
His fearsgive him a timelyalarmbeforetheenemyfalls intohisquarters, andbeatthemup; by thismeans he hath time toget intohis chambers of ſecurityand reſt, before the ſtorm fall: " But the fool rageth, and is confi- " dent;" he never fears tillhe begins to feel; yea, moſt times he is paſt allhopebeforehebegintohaveany fear.
Theſe are ſome of the uſes God makes of the ſeveral kinds offear.
CHAP.
IV.
Wherein thesprings and causes offinful fearare searched out, andthe evils offuchfears thence discovered.
Sect. 1.HAVING ſhewnbefore, the kinds, anduſes offear; it remains, that next we ſearch out the ſprings from which theſe waters ofMarah are derived, and fed. And,
Caufe 1. First, We ſhall find the finful fears of moſtgood men to ſpringout oftheir ignorance, andthe darkness of their own minds ; all darkneſs diſpoſes to fear, but none like intellectual darkness.
You read, Cant. iii. 8. how Solomon's lifeguardhadeveryman his ſword upon his thigh, because offear inthe night.
The night is the frightful ſeaſon, in the dark everybuſh isabear; we fometimes ſmile by day, to fee what fillythings thoſewere that ſcaredus inthe night. So it is here; were our judgments but duely informed, how ſoon wouldour hearts be quieted ?
Now there is a five-fold ignorance, out of which our fears aregenerated:
1. Ignorance of God: Either we know not, or at leaſtdo notduelyconfider his Almighty Power, vigilantcare,unſpotted faithfulness, and how they are all engaged, by covenant, for his people.
This ignorance, and inconfiderateneſs, lay at the root of their fears, Ifa. xl. 27, 28. " My way (faith Zion) is
" hid from the Lord, and my judgment paſſed over from my God: Words importinga fufpicionthatGodhath lefther
APractical Treatise of Fear. out ofthe account ofhis providence,and the catalogueofthoſe whomhe would look after, andtake care for.
But were it once thoroughly understood, and believed, what power there is inGod's hand to defend us, what tenderneſs in hisbowels to commiſerate us, what faithfulness in all the promiſes, in which they are made over to us, O how quiet and calm would ourhearts be ! Our courage would quickly be up, and our fears down.
2. Our ignorance of men generates our fears of men; we fear them, becauſe we do not know them; if we understood them better, we would fear them less; we over-value them, and then fright at them.
They say the lion is paintedmore fierce than he is ; I am fure our fancy paints out manmore dreadful than indeed he is ; if wicked men, eſpecially ifmultitudes of wicked men be confederated againſt us, our hearts fail, and preſently apprehend inevitable ruin .
"The floods of "the ungodly made me afraid," faith David, (i. 6.)the multudes of them which he thought, like a flood ormighty torrent of water, muſt needs ſweep away ſuch a ſtraw, ſuch a feather, as he was, before them; but, in the mean time, we know, or confider not that theyhave no power against us, but what is given them from above, and that it is ufual withGod to cramp their hands, and clap on thebands of reſtraint upon them, when their hearts are fully ſet inthem to do miſchief: did we fee, and conſider them as they are in the hand of our
God, we should not tremble at them as we do.
3. Ignorance of ourselves, and the relation we have toGod, creates lavish fears inourhearts, Ifa. li. 12. for did believers but thoroughly underſtand how dear they are toGod, what relations they ſuſtain tohim, of what account, and value, they are in his eyes, and how well they are ſecuredby his faithful promiſes, and gracious preſence, they would not ſtart and tremble at every noiſe, and appearance ofdanger, as theydo.
God reckoned it enough to cure all Abraham's finful fears, whenhe told him howhis God ſtood engaged for his defence.
Gen. xv. 1. " Fear not, Abraham, I am thy ſhield."
Andnoble Nehemiah valued himself intimes of danger and fear, by his intereft inGod, as his words import, Neh. vi. 11 .
The confpiracy against him was ſtrong, the danger he and the faithful withhim atthat time were in, was extraordinary; fome, therefore, adviſed to flee to the temple, and barracado themſelves there, againft the enemy: But Nehemiah understood himself better; Should fuch a man as Iflee? And who, being as I am, fhouldflee ? faithhe, q. d. Aman ſocalled ofGodto this ſervice,
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amanunder ſuch promiſes, aman of fuch manifold andmanifelt experiences, ſhouldſuch a man flee ? Let others, who have noſuchencouragements, flee if they will; for my part, Iwill
'not flee. I remember itwas an argumentufedby ‡ Tertullian, toquiet the fears, and ſtay the flight of Chriftians in thoſe bloody times ; Art thou afraid of aman, O Chriſtian ! when devils areafraidofthee, asap.iſoner ofhis judge, andwhom the world ought to fear, as being one that ſhall judge the world.
Othatwe could, without pride and vanity, but value ourſelves duely, according toour Chriftian dignitiesand privileges, which, ifever it be neceffary to count over, and value, it is infuch times ofdanger and fear, when theheart is ſo prone todejection, and ſinking fears.
4. Ignorance ofourdangersand troubles, cauſes our frights and terrors ; we mistake them, and therefore are frighted at them, we are ignorant of two things in our troubles among others, viz.
1. The comforts that are in them.
2. The outlets andeſcapes from them.
There is a vast odds betwixt the outward appearance, and face of trouble, and the inſide of it; it is a lion to the eye at adiſtance, but open it, and there is honey in its belly.
Paul and Silas met that ina priſon which made them ſing at midnight, and fo have many more fince their day.
Andaswe arenot ignorantofthe comforts that are ſometimes found in our troubles, ſo of the outlets, anddoors of eſcape,
Godcan, and oftendoth, open out of trouble ; " ToGod the " Lord, belong the iſſues fromdeath," Pfal. lxviii. 20. "He
" knowethhow to deliver the godly out oftemptation," 2Pet. ii. 9. He can, with every temptation, make away to eſcape,
1 Cor. x. 13. the poor captive exile reckoned upon nothing, butdying inthe pit, making their graves in the land of their captivity, Ifa. li. 14. for they couldthink upon none, but the uſual methods of deliverance, power, or price, and they had neither; littledid they dream of fuch immediate influences of Godupon theking's heart, to make him diſmiſs them, freely, contrarytoall rules of ſtate policy, Ifa. xlv. 12 .
5. But eſpecially the fears ofgood men arife out of their ig- †Art thou afraid of a man, O Chriſtian ! who ſhouldſt be feared byangels, fincethou art to judge angels ; who ſhouldſtbe fearedby devils, ſincethouhaft got powerover devils; who ſhouldſtbe feared byall the world, fince all the world is to be judged by thee,
Tertul, on Fear,
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norance and inconfiderateneſs of the covenant ofgrace.
Ifwe werebetter acquainted with the nautre, extent, and ſtability of the covenant, our hearts would be much freed thereby, from theſe tormenting paſſions; this covenant would be a panacea, an univerſal remedy against all our fears, upon ſpiritual, or temporal accounts, as will be made evident hereafter inthis diſcourſe.
Cause 2. Another cauſe, and fountainof ſinful fear, is guilt upon the confcience. A fervant of fin cannot but, firſt, or laſt, be a ſlave of fear ; and they that have done evil, cannot chuſebut expect evil. No sooner hadAdam defiled, andwounded his confcience with guilt, but he preſently trembles, and hides himself: So it is with his children; God calls to Adam, not ina threatening,but gentledialect; not in a tempeſt, but inthe cool ofthe day ; yet it terrifies him, there being in himſelf mens confcia fatti, a guilty, and condemning confcience,
Gen. iii . 8. " It is * Seneca's obſervation, that a guilty con- " ſcience is a terrible whip, and tormentto the ſinner, perpe- " tually laſhing him with follicitous thoughts and fears, that "he knows not where tobe ſecure, nor dare he trust to any
" promiſes of protection,but diſtruſts alldoubts, and isjealous " ofall." Of ſuch it is ſaid, Job xv. 21. that a dreadfulfound is in their ears; noting not only the effects of real, but alſo of imaginary dangers : His own preſaging mind, and troubled fancy, ſcares him, where no real danger is, ſuitable to that,
Prov. xxviii. 1. The wicked fleeth when none pursues, but the righteous is bold as a lion.
Just as they ſay of sheep, that they are affrighted by the clattering of their own feet, whenonce they are ſet a running; ſo is the guilty ſinner with the noiſe of his own confcience, which ſounds nothing in his ears but miſery, wrath, and hell. We may ſay of all wicked men in their frights, as † Tacitus doth of tyrants, "That if it were
" poſſible toopen theirinſide, theirmindand confcience ; many terrible ſtripes, and wounds, would be found there: "
And it is faid, Iſa. xxxiii. 14. the ſinners inSion are afraid, trembling taketh holdof the hypocrite.
Fear and trembling as naturally ariſe out of guilt, as the ſparks do out of a fiery
* Malefacinorum confcientia flagellari, et plurimum illi tormentorum effe,eo quodperpetuo illamfolicitudo urget, ae verberat quodfponforibus fecuritatis fuae non poteft credere.
Senec.
Epift . 97.
† Si recludantur mentes tyrannorum poffe afpici laniatus et ittus.
Annal .
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charcoal.
Hiſtories abundantly furnish us with ſad examples ofthe truth of this obfervation.
Cataline, that monster of wickedness, would ſtart at any fudden noiſe, being haunted with the furies of his own evil confcience.
Charles IX. after his bloodyandbarbarous maſſacre ofthe Protestants, could neither ſleep nor wake without muſic to divert his thoughts. And our Richard III. after the murder of his two innocent nephews, fawdiversimages or ſhapes like devils inhis ſleep, pulling and haulinghim.
Mr. Ward tells of a Jeſuit in Lancaſhire, who being followedbyone that hadfound his glove, out of no other deſignbut to reſtore it to him, but being purſued by his own guilty confcience alſo, he leaped over the next hedge, andwas drowned.
And remarkable is that which Mr. Fox relates ofcardinalCrefcentius, who fancied the devil was walking inhis chamber, and ſometimes couching under his table, as he waswriting letters toRome against the Proteſtants.
Impius tantummetuit, quantumnocuit : fo much mischief as confcience tells them they havedone, ſomuch it bids them expect. Wolfiustells us ofone John Hofmeiſter who fell fick with the very terrors of his own confcience in his inn, as he was travelling towardsAuſpurge in Germany, and was frighted by his own confcience to thatdegree, that they were fain to bind him in hisbedwith chains ; and all that they could get from himwas,
Iam caft awayfor ever, I have grievouslywounded my own confcience.
To this wounded and trembling confcience is oppoſed the ſpirit of afound mind,mentioned 2 Tim. i. 7. "God hath not givenus the ſpirit of fear, but of power, of love, and ofa
" foundmind : " Afound mind is, in this place, the ſamething with apure and peaceable confcience, amind or confcience not infirm, orwounded with guilt, as we faya found orhale body, whichhath nodiſeaſe attending it, ſuch a mind is oppoſed to the ſpirit of fear ; it will make a man bold as a lion;
--Nil confcirefibi, nulla pallefcere culpa, Hicmurus aheneus efto.By this thy brazen bulwark of defence,
Still to preſerve thy conſcious innocence, Nor e'er turn pale with guilt.
Ho. 1. 1. ep. 1.
An evil and guilty conſcience fomentsfears andterrors three ways.
1. Byaggravating ſmall matters, and blowing them up to theheightofthe moſt fatalanddeſtructive evils ; ſo itwaswith
Cain,Gen. iv. 14. " Every one that meets me will flay me."
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Now every child was a giant in his eye, and anybody he met his over-match . A guilty confcience gives a man no fight of his enemy, but through a magnifying or multiplying glaſs.
2. It begets fears, by interpreting alldoubtful cales in the worſt ſenſe that can be faſtened upon them; Peffimus in dubiis augur timor.
If the ſwallows dobut chatter in the chimney, Beffus interprets it to be a diſcovery of his crime, that they are telling tales of him, and ſaying, Beſſus killed aman. Nay,
3. Ifa guiltyconfcience hath nothing to aggravate and magnify, nor anydoubtful matter to interpret in a frightful ſenſe, itcan, and often doth create fears and terrors out of nothing at all: the rules of fear are not like the rules in arithmetic, where many nothings make nothing, but fear can make fomething out of nothing, yea, many things, andgreat things out of nothing at all, Pfal. liii. 5. there were they ingreatfear where nofear was ; here was a great fear raiſed or created out of nothing at all ; had their fear been examined and hunted home to its original*, it would have been found a pure creature of fancy, a chimera having no fundamentum in re, no other foundationbut a troubled fancy, and a guilty confcience ; thus it was with Paſhur, he was a very wicked man, and a bitter enemy to the prophet Jeremy, and if there be none to fright and terrify from abroad, rather than he ſhall want it, he ſhall be a terror to himself, Jer. xx. 3, 4. hewas his own bugbear, afraid of his own ſhadow; and truly this is a great plague and miſery; he that is a terror to himself, can no more flee from terrors thanhe can flee from himself.
Oh, the efficacy of conſcience ! how doth it arreſt the ſtouteſt ſinners, and make them tremble, when there is no viſible external cauſe of fear ! Nemo ſejudice, nocens abfolvitur ; i. e. No guilty man is abſolved, even when himself acts the part of thejudge.
Objection 1. But may not a good man, whoſe ſins are pardoned, be affrighted with his own fancies, and ſcared with his own imaginations ?
Solution.
No doubt he may, for there is a twofold fountain of fears, one in the body, another in the foul, one in the conſtitution , another in the confcience ; it is the affliction and infelicity of many pardoned and gracious ſouls, to be unitedand married tofuch diſtempered and illhabitedbodies, as ſhall af- * In time of fear and danger, objects of terror appear to thoſe who are terrified more numerous andgreater than they are in reality; as ſuch things are then more credulouſlybelieved, and more easily imagined.
Cicero.
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Bict them without any real cauſe from within, andwound them by their own diſeaſes and diſtempers ; and theſe wounds can no more be prevented or cured by their reaſon or religion, than any other bodily diſeaſe, ſuppoſe an ague or fever, can be ſo cured.
Thus * phyſicians tell us, when aduft choler or melancholy overflows and abounds in the body, as in the hypochondriacaldiſtempers, &c. what ſad effects it hath upon the mind as well as upon the body, there is not only a fad and fearful afpect or countenance without, but forrow, fear, and afflicting thoughts within ; there is a fore affliction to many good men, whoſe conſciences are ſprinkled with the blood of Chriſt from guilt, but yet God fees good to clog them with ſuch affliction as this for theirhumiliation, and for the prevention of worſe evils.
Object. 2. But manybold anddaring ſinners are found, who, notwithstanding all the guilt with which their confciences are loaded, can look dangers in the face without trembling, yea, theycanlookdeath itſelf, the king of terrors, inthe face, with leſs fear thanbetter men.
Sol. True, but the reaſon of that is from a ſpiritual judgment of God upon their hearts and confciences, whereby they are hardened, and feared as with ahot iron, 2 Tim. iv. 2. and ſo confcience is diſabled for the preſent, to do its office, it cannot put forth its efficacy and activity now, when it might be useful to their ſalvation, but it will do it to purpoſe hereafter, when their caſe ſhall be remedileſs , Cause 3. We seewhat a forge offears aguilty confcience is, and no leſs isthe fin of unbelief, the real and proper cauſe of moſt diſtracting and afflictive fears ; ſo much as our fouls are empty of faith, theyare, in times of trouble, filled with fear :
We read of fome that have died by no other hand but their own fears ; but we never read of any thatdied by fear, who wereonce brought to live by faith ; if men would but dig to theroot oftheir fears, theywould certainly find unbelief there,
Matth. viii. 26. Why areyefearful, Oye of little faith!
The leſs faith, ſtill the more fear : Fear is generated by unbelief, andunbelief ſtrengthenedby fear, as innature there is an ob- * Fernel. Pathiol. lib. 2. cap. 16. Corporis babitusficcus et macilentus, aspectus inconftans, horridus ac mæſtus, in morbis animi metus et mæftitia, taciturnitas,folicitudo, innanis rerum commentatiofomnis turbulentus, horrendis infomnusfluctuans, et agitatus
Spectris rerum nigrarum, doc. D2
A Practical Treatise of Fear. fervable κυκλόγενησις, circulargeneration, vapoursbegetſhowers, and ſhowers new vapours; ſo it is in things moral, and therefore all the ſkill in the world can never cure us of the diſeaſe of fear, tillGod firſt cure us of our unbelief; Chriſt therefore took the right method torid his diſciples of their fear, by rebuking their unbelief.
The remains ofthis ſin inGod's own people isthe cauſe and fountain of their fears, and more particularly to ſhew how fear is generatedby unbelief, let a few particulars be heedfully adverted to.
1. Unbelief weakens and ſtumbles the aſſenting act of faith, andthereby cuts off from thefoul, in agreat meaſure, its principal relief againſt danger and troubles.
Itis the uſe and of ficeof faith to realize to the foul the inviſible things of the world to come, and thereby encourage it against the fears and dangers of the preſentworld: Thus Mofes forfook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king, for he endured, asfeeinghim that is invisible, Heb. xi. 27.
If this affenting act of faith be weakened or ſtaggered in the foul, if once inviſibles ſeem uncertainties, and viſibles the only realities, nowonder we are ſo ſcared and frightedwhen theſe viſible and ſenſible comforts are expoſed and endangered, as they often are and will be in this mutable world.
That man muſt needs be afraid to ſtand his ground that is not thoroughly persuaded the ground he ſtands on is firmandgood; itis not to be wondered that men ſhould tremble, who feem to feel the ground ſhake and reel under them.
2. Unbelief ſhuts up the refuges ofthe foul inthe divine promiſes, andby leaving itwithout thoſe refuges, must needs leave it in the hand of fears and terrors .
That which fortifies and emboldens a Chriſtian in eviltimes, is his dependance upon God for a protection, Pfal. cxliii. 9. Ifly unto thee to hideme.
The cutting off this retreat (which nothing but unbelief can do) deprives the foul of all thoſe ſuccours and ſupports which the promiſesafford, andconfequently fills the heart with anxi, etyand fear.
3. Unbelief makes mennegligent and careleſs inproviding for troubles beforethey come, and ſo brings them by way of ſurpriſe upon them ; and the more ſurpriſing any evil is, the more frightful itisalways found to be : we cannot think that Noah was ſo affrighted at the flood, when it began to ſwella bove all the hills and mountains, as all the restof the world was; nor was there any reaſon that he ſhould, having foreſeen
*Multafidempromiſſa levant, i. e. Manypromiſes ſupport faith
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itbyfaith, andmadeproviſion for it, Heb. xi. 7.ByfaithNoab, beingwarned of God, prepared an ark. *Auguſtine relates a verypertinentand memorable ſtoryofPaulinus,biſhop ofNola, whowas a very rich man both in goods and gráce: he had much of theworld in his hands, but littleof it inhis heart; anditwaswell there was not, for theGoths, abarbarous peo ple, breaking into that city, like ſo many devils, fellupon the prey; thoſe that truſted to the treasures which theyhad, were deceived and ruined by them, for the rich were put to tortures toconfeſswhere they had hid their monies: This good biſhop fell into their hands, and loſt all he had, but was ſcarce moved at the lofs, as appears by his prayer, which my author relates thus: Lord, let me not be troubledfor mygoldandfilver : thou knoweſt it is not my treasure ; that I have laid up in heaven, according tothy command. Iwas warned of this judgment before it came, and providedfor it ; and where allmy interest lies,
ㅕ Lord, thou knowest .
ThusMr. Bradford, when the keeper's wife came running intohis chamber ſuddenly, with words able to have put the moſt meninthe world into atrembling poſture : Oh, Mr.Bradford! Ibringyou heavy tidings; to-morrow you must be burned, and yo your chain is nowbuying: He put off his hat, and faid, Lord, Ithank thee ; I have lookedfor this agreat white, it is not terrible to me; God make meworthy offuch a mercy.
See the benefit ofa profpect of, and preparation for fufferings !
4. Unbelief leaves our dearest intereſts and concerns in our ownhands, itcommits nothing toGod, and confequently muſt needs fillthe heart with difſtractingfearswhen imminentdangers threaten us. Reader, if this be thy cafe, thou wiltbe aMagor miffabib, ſurroundedwith terrors, whenſoever thou shaltbe furrounded with dangers and troubles.
Believers in this, as well asin manyother things, have the advantage of thee, that they havecommitted all that is precious and valuable tothem into the hands ofGodby faith, to him theyhave committed the keeping oftheir fouls, I Pet iv. 19. and all their eternal concernments, 2Tim. i. 16. And theſebeing put into ſafe hands, they are not diſtracted with fears about other matters of leſs value, butcantruſtthemwhere they have entrusted the greater, and enjoythe quietness and peaceof arefigned foul toGod, Prov. xvi. 3.
But as for thee, thy life, thy liberty, yea, which is infinitelymore thanall theſe things, thy foul will ly upon thy hands inthe day of trouble, and thou wilt notknow what to *Aug. de Civitat. Dei, lib. 1. cap. 10,
A Practical Treatise of Fear. dowith them, nor which wayto diſpoſe ofthem. Oh ! theſe be the dreadful ſtraits and frights that unbelief leaves men in; it isa fountain offears and distractions.
And indeed it cannot but diſtract andconfound carnal men, inwhom it reigns, and is in its full ſtrength,when ſad experience ſhews uswhatfears and tremblings the very remains and reliques ofthis ſinbegets inthe beſtmen, who are not fully freed from it.
Ifthe unpurged reliques of unbelief in them can thus darken and cloud their evidences, thus greaten and multiply their dangers ; if it can drawfuch ſad and unfrightful concluſions in their hearts, notwithſtanding all the contrary experience of their lives, as we fee inthat fad inſtance, I Sam. xxvii. 1.
What panic fears, and unrelieved terrors muſt itput thoſe menunder, where it is in its full ſtrength anddominion ?
Cause4. Moreover, we shall find manyof our fears raiſed and provokedinusby the promiscuous adminiſtrations of providence in this world, when we read in ſcripture, that " there is one
66 event totherighteous and tothewicked, and all things come " alike to all," Eccl. ix. 2, that whenthe ſword isdrawn, God ſuffers it tocutoff the righteous and the wicked, Ezek . xxi. 3.
The ſwordmakesnodifferencewhereGod hath madeſogreat a difference by grace; itneither diftinguiſhes faces, nor breaſts, but is as foon ſheathed in the bowels of the beſt as the worst of men.
When we read how the ſame fire ofGod's indignation devours thegreen tree and thedry tree, Ezek. xx. 47. howthe baſketsofgood figs (the emblem of the beſt men ofthoſe times) werecarried into Babylon as wellasthebad, Jer. xxiv. 5. how i the fleſh ofGod'sſaints hath beengivenfor meat to the fowls of heaven, and to thebeasts of the field, Pfal. xcvii. 12. and how the wicked havedevoured the man that is more righteous than himſelf, as it is Hab. i. 13. I ſay, whenwe obſerve fuchthings in ſcripture, and findour obſervations confirmed by the accounts andhiſtories of former and later ages; whenwe reflect upon theunspeakable miſeries, and butcheries ofthoſe plain-hearted and precious fervants of Chriſt, the Albigenſes andWaldenfes, how theyfell as a prey totheir cruel adverfaries, notwithstanding theconvincing ſimplicity and holiness of their lives, and alltheir fervent cries and appeals to God;how the very flower of the reformed Proteſtant intereſt in France was cut offwith more thanbarbarous inhumanity, ſo that the ſtreets were waſhed, and the canals ofParis ran with their precious blood.
What horrid and unparalleled torture the ſervants ofGod felt in that cruel maſſacre in Ireland, a hiſtory too tragical for a tender-hearted reader to ſtay long upon; and how, in our own land, the moſt
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eminentminiſters, and Chriſtians, were fent to heaven in a fiery chariot, in thoſe doleful Marian days : I iay, when we read, and confider ſuch things as theſe, it rouzes our fears, and puts us into frights, whenwe fee ourſelves threatened with the fame enemies anddanger; when the feet ofthem that carried out the dear ſervants of God in bloodywinding-ſheets to their graves, i ſtandatthedoor, to carry us forth next, if providence looſe their chain, andgivethem a permiſſion ſo todo; and our fears, onthis account, are heightened, by conſidering and involving theſe four things in our thoughts, which we are always more inclinedtodo, than the things that ſhould fortify our faith, and heighten our Chriſtian courage. As, 1. We are apt to confider, that as the fame race, and kind ofmen, that committedtheſe outrages upon our brethren, are ſtill inbeing, andthat their rage, and malice, is not abated, in the leaſt degree, but is as fierce, and cruel, as ever it was.
Gal. iv. 29."As then he that was born after the fleſh perfecut- " edhim that was born after the ſpirit, even ſo it is now." So itwas then, and juſt ſo it is ſtill : the old enmity is entailed upon all wicked men, from generation to generation.
Multi adhuc qui clavum fanguine Abelis rubentem adhuc circumferunt, Cain's Club is to this day carried up and down the world, ſtained with the blood of Abel, as Bucholtzer ſpeaks.
It is a rooted antipathy, and it runs in a blood, and will run, as long as there are wicked men, from whom, and to whom it ſhallbe propagated, and a devil in hell, by whom it will not fail to be exaſperated, and irritated.
2. We know, alſo, that nothing hinders the execution of theirwicked purpoſes againſt us, but the reſtraints of providence; ſhouldGod looſe the chain, and give them leave to act forth the malice, andrage thatis in their hearts, no pitywould be ſhewnby them, or couldbe rationally expected from them,
Plal. cxxiv. 1 , 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. We live among lions, and them that are fet on fire of hell, Pfal. Ivii. 4.
The only reason ofour ſafety is this, that he who is the keeper of the lions, is, alſothe ſhepherd of the ſheep .
3. We find, that God hath many times let looſe theſe lions upon his people, and given them leave to tear his lambs in pieces, and fuck the blood of his faints: how well foever he loves them, yet hath he often delivered them into the hands of their enemies, and ſufferedthem to perpetuate, and act the greatest cruelties upon them; the beſt men have fuffered the worſt things, and the hiſtories of all ages have delivered down uatousthe moſt tragical relations oftheir barbarous uſage.
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4. We are conscious to ourſelves, how far ſhort we come, in holineſs, innocency, and ſpiritual excellency, ofthoſe excellent perſonswho have ſuffered theſe things ; and therefore have no ground to expect more favour from providence, than they found: we know, alſo, there isnopromiſe inthe fcriptures, to which they had not as good a claim, and title, as ourſelves.
With us are found as great, yea, greater ſins, than in them; and therefore have no reason to pleaſe ourſelves with the fond imaginations of extraordinary exemptions.
If we think theſe evilsſhall not come in ourdays, itis likemanyof them thought ſotoo; andyet theydid, and we may find itquite otherwise.
Lam. iv. 12. " Who would have thought that the enemy " ſhouldhave entered in at the gates of Jerufalem ?" The revolving of theſe, andſuch like confiderations, inour thoughts, and mixing our ownunbelief with them, creates a world of fears, even ingoodmen, till, byreſignation ofalltoGod, and acting faithupon the promises that affure us of the ſanctification ofall our troubles, as that Rom. viii. 28. God's prefence with usinour troubles, as that Pfal. xci. 15. his moderation of our troubles, to that meaſure, anddegree, in which they are ſupportable, Ifa. xxvii. 8. and the ſafe, and comfortable outlet, and final deliverance from them all at laſt; according to that in Rev. vii. 17.
Wedo, at last, recover our hearts out of the hands of our fearsagain, and compoſe them to a quiet, and ſweet fatisfaction in the wife, and holy pleaſure ofourGod.
Cause 5. Our immoderate love oflife, andthe comforts, and conveniencies thereof, maybe aſſigned as a proper, and real ground, and cause ofour finful fears, when the dangers ofthe times threaten theone,or the other: did we love our lives lefs, we ſhouldfear, and tremble leſs than we do. It is faid ofthoſe renowned ſaints, Rev. xii. 11. " They overcame by the blood
" of the Lamb, and by the word of theteftimony, and they " loved not their lives unto the death. "
They overcame not only the fury of their enemies without them, but their ſinful fears within them; and this victory was atchievedby their mortification tothe inordinate, and immoderate love of life.
Certainly, their own fears had overcome them, if they had not firſt overcome the love of life : itwas not, therefore, without verygreat reason, that our Lord enjoined it upon all his diſciples, and followers, to hate their own lives, Luke xiv. 26. not abſolutely, but in comparison, and competition with him, i.e. to love it in ſo remiſs a degree, as to flight, and undervalue it, as a poor, lowthing in ſuch a comparifon: he forefawwhat ſharp trials, and fufferings were
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cominguponthem, andhe knew if the fond, and immoderate loveof life were not overcome, andmortifiedin them, it would make them warp, and bendunder ſuch temptations.
This was it that freed Paul from flaviſh fears, and made him ſomagnanimous, and undaunted; indeedhe had leſs fear upon his ſpirits, tho' he was to fuffer thoſe hard, and ſharp things, inhis ownperſon, than his friends had, who only ſympathized withhim, and were not farther concerned, than by their own love, and pity: he ſpake like aman who was rather a ſpectator, than a ſufferer.
Acts xx. 24, 25. " None of theſe things move " me," faith he.
Great foul ! not moved with bonds, and afAictions! howdidhe attain ſogreat courage, andconſtancyof mind, in ſuchdeep, anddreadful fufferings ! Itwas enough to have moved the ſtouteſt man in the world, yea, andto have removed the reſolutions ofany that had not loved Chriſt better than his own life : but life was a trifle to him, in comparison with Jeſus Chriſt, for fo he tells us in the next words, " I count
" not my life dear unto me," q. d. It is a low-prized commodity in my eyes, not worththe ſaving, or regarding on fuch ſinful terms. Oh ! how many have parted with Chriſt, peace, and eternal life, for fear of loſing thatwhich Paul regarded not.
And ifwe bring our thoughts cloſer to the matter, we shall foon findthat this is a fountain offears in times of danger, and that from this exceſſive love of life we are racked and tortured withtenthouſand terrors.
For, 1. Life is the greateſt and nearest intereſtmennaturallyhave in this world,and that whichwraps up all other inferior intereſts in itſelf, Job ii. 4. " Skin for ſkin, yea, all that a manhath,
" willhe give for his life."
It is a real truth, thought itcame from the mouth of the father oflies ; afflictions never touch the quick, till they touch the life; liberty, eſtates, and other accommodations inthis world receive their value and eſtimation from hence ; if life be cut off, theſe accidents periſh, and areof no account, Gen. xxv. 32. " Behold I am at the point todie,
"(laidEſau) and what profit ſhallthis birth-rightdo to me ?"
2. Life being naturally the dearest intereſt of men in this world, the richeſt treaſure, and moſtbeloved thing on earth, to a natural man; that which ſtrikes at, and endangers life, muſt, inhiseyes,be the greateſt evilthatcanbefal him; onthisaccount deathbecomes terrible to men; yea, as Job calls it, the king of terrors, Job xviii. 14. The black prince, orthe prince ofclouds and darkness, as ſome tranſlate thoſe words: Yea, ſo is terrible isdeathupon this account, that the very fear ofithath fomeVOL. IV.
APractical Treatise of Fear. times precipitatedmeninto the hands of it, as we ſometimes ob ferve in times of peftilence, the exceſſive fear ofthe plague hath induced it *.
3. Though death be terrible in any ſhape, in the mildeſt form it can appear in ; yet a violent and bloody death, by thehands ofcruel and mercileſs men, is the moſt terrible form thatdeath can appear in; it is now the king of terrors indeed, inthe moſtghaftly repreſentation and frightful form, in its ſcarlet robes, and terrifying formalities ; in a violent death, all the barbarous cruelty that the wit of our enemies can invent, or their malice inflict, is mingled together ; in a violent death are manydeaths converted intoone, and itoftentimes approaches menby ſuch flow anddeliberatedpaces, thattheyfeel everytread ofits foot, as itadvanceth towards them.
Moriatur,utfentiat Jemori; Lethim fo die, (faid the tyrant) that he may feel himfelftodie; yea, and how he diesby inch-meal, or flow, lingering degrees and this is exceeding frightful, eſpecially to thoſe that areofmoſt ſoft and tender nature and temper who must needs be ftruck through with the terrors ofdeath, except, the Lord arm them against it with the affurance of a better life, and fweeten theſe bitter apprehenfions by the foretaſtes of it.
This is enough to put even fanctified nature into conſternation, and make avery gracious heart to fink, unless itbe ſo upheldby divine ſtrength and comfort : And hence come many, very many of our fears and terrors, eſpeciallywhen the fame enemies that have beenaccuſtomed to this bloody work, ſhall be found confederating and deſigning again to break inupon us, and act overagain as much cruelty, as ever they have done upon our brethren in times paſt.
Cause6. To conclude: many of our finful fears andconſter. nations flow from the influences ofSatan upon our phantafies.
Theyſay winds, and ſtorms are oft-times raiſed by Satan, both by feaand land; and I never doubted, butthe prince ofthe power of the air, byGod's permiſſion,can, andoftendoth, put theworld intogreat frights and disturbancesby ſuch tempeſts,
Job . i. 19.
He can raiſe the loftieſt winds, pour down roaring ſhowers, rattle in the airwith fearful claps ofthunder, and ſcare
*Galen reports, that fome havedied ſuddenly through fear : It is not therefore athing to be wondered at, in the opinionofAriftotle, and almoſt allothers, that a man ſhould die, through the fear ofdeath. Thefear ofevil ſometimes brings onmen thatwhich they dread; as is evident from the example ofthoſewhoſe fear haspreventedthedeathappointedthembythejudge.Stern.onDeath,p.167-