where he has said, you shall keep but a part of the sabbath ; and if they cannot shew that, it argues much boldness to go lo rob God of his due. That a who'e day be designed and set ap;irt for God's s])ecial worship, is a perpetual statute, while the eliurch remains upon the earth, saith Pet. iMartyr. Of this oj)inion also ^rere Theo- doret, Austin, Iraineus, and the chief of the fathers.
2. As the whole sabbath is to be dedica- ted to God, so it must be kept holy; you see the manm;r ol" sanclii'yiug tlu; Lord's day, by reading, medltatiou, prayer, hear- ing of the word, and by singing of psalms to make melody to the Lord. Now, besides what 1 hav(! said ior the keejiing this day holy, let me make a short eoniineiit or ]>ar- aphrase on that seiijituic, Isa. Iviii. 13., " If thou turn away thy ^iwi from the sain bath, (Vom doing thy jdvasure on njy holy day : and call tiie saUhath a delight, the holy of the Lord, honourable ; and shall honour him, not doing thy o\vn ways, nor Hnding thine own pleasure, nor speaking
OF THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT.
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tliine own words :" Here is a description of the riglit sanctifying a sabbath.
(1.) " If tli.'U turn away thy foot from the sabbatli." That may he understood cither literally, or spiritually. — First, llter- allv, " If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath," that is, if tluui withdrawest thy foot from takiuf^ long walks or journeys on the sabbath-day : So the Jewish doctors ex- pound it. Or, secondly, spiritually, " If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath," that is, if thou turn away thy affections (the feet of thy souf) from inclining to any worldly business.
(2.) " From doing tliy pleasure on my holy day." That is, thou niuKt not d«) that which may please the carnal ])art, as sports and pastimes : this is to do the devil's work on (lod's day.
(3.) " And call the sabbath a delight." Call it a delight, that is, estt-em it so : though the sabbath be not a day for carnal pleasure, yet holy pleasure is not forbidden. Tlie soul must take pleasure in the duties of a sabbath. The saints of old counted the sabbath .a delight; the Jews called the sab- bath dies /ucis, — ' a day of light.' The Lord's day, on which the Sun of Righteous- ness shines, is both a day of light and de- lijjht. This is the dav of sweet intercourse between God and the soul. On this day a Christian makes Ins sallies out to heaven ; his soul is lifted above the earth ; and can this be without di'light? The higher the bird flies, the sweeter it sings. On a sa!)- bath the soul acts its love to (iod; and where the love is, there is the dilight. On this day a believer's heart is moiled, </. '/. cpiickened, enlarged in holy duties ; and liow can all this be, and riot a secnt delight go along with it? On a sabbath a gracious soul can say, as Cant. ii. 3., " I sat <!(»wn under his shadow with great delight, and his fruit was sweet to my taste." How can a spiritual heart choose but call the sab- bath a delight? Is it not delightful to a queen to be putting on her wedding -robes in which she siudl meet the king: her bride- groom ? When we are about sabbath-exer- cises, we are dressing ourselves, and put- ting on our wedding-robes in which we are to meet our heavenly bridegroom the Lord Jesus : and is not this delightful ? On the
sabbath God makes a feast of fat things, he feasts the ear with his word, and the heart with his grace. Well then may we call tho sabbath a delight ; and to fnid this holy de- light, is to " be in the Spirit on the Lord's day."