2 Austin saith, Lord, I am content to suffer any pains and torments in this world, if 1 might see thy face one day ; at such a rate did he prize the face of God.
378 THE MUTE CHRISTIAN [Ps. XXXIX. &
Scripture and history ; but no man was ever yet found that was weary of tlic love and favour of God. No man sets so high a price upon the sun as he that hath laid long in a dark dungeon, &c. But,
6.] Sixthly, Hereby the Lord will train up his servants in that precious life of faith, which is the most honourable and the wvosi happy life vn all the world : 2 Cor. v. 7, 'For we walk by faith, and not by sight.' The life of sense, the life of reason, is a low life, a mean life ; the life of faith is a noble life, a blessed life. When Elisha de- manded of the Shunamite what he should do for her, whether he should speak for her to the king or the captain of the host, she answered, ' I dwell among my people,' 2 Kings iv. 13 ; that is, I dwell nobly and happily among my people ; I have no need to make any suit to king or captain ; and this she accounts her great happiness, and indeed it is the greatest happiness in this world to live much in the exercise of faith. No man lives so free a life, so holy a life, so heavenly a life, so happy a life, as he that lives a life of faith. By divine withdrawing* the soul is put upon hanging upon a naked God, a naked Christ, a naked promise, Isa. 1. 10 ; lxiii. 15, 16. Now the soul is put upon the highest and the purest acts of faith, viz., to cleave to God, to hang upon God, and to carry it sweetly and obediently towards God, though he frowns, though be chides, though he strikes, yea, though he kills, Job xiii. 15.1 Those are the most excellent and heroic acts of faith that are most abstracted from sense and reason ; he that suffers his reason to usurp upon his faith, will never be an excellent Christian. He that goes to school to his own reason, hath a fool to his schoolmaster; and he that suffers his faith to be overruled by his reason, shall never want woe. Where reason is strongest, faith usually is weakest. But now the Lord, by forsaking of his people for a time, he makes them skilful in the life of faith, which is the choicest and the sweetest life in this world. But,
[7.] Seventhly, By divine withdrawings, you are made more con- formable to Christ your head and husband, who was under spirit mil desertion as well as you : Mat. xxvii. 46, ' My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me V Ps. xxii. 1 , 2. There is an hidden emphasis in the Hebrew word : El signifies a strong God ; Eli, Eli, My strong God, my strong God. The unity of Christ's person was never dissolved, nor his graces were never diminished.2 In the midst of this terrible storm, his faith fortifieth and strengthened itself upon the strength of God, My God, my God ; yet in respect of divine protection and divine solace, he was for some time forsaken of his Father. And if this be thy case, thou art herein but made conformable to thy Lord and master ; nay, thou dost but sip of that bitter cup of which Christ drank deep ; thy cloud is no cloud to that which Christ was under. But,
[8.] Eighthly and lastly, By these transient and partial forsaking*, the Lord will exceedingly sweeten the char, full, constant, and unin- terrupted enjoyments of himself in heaven to all his people, Ps. lxxi. 10, 21. Ah ! how sweet and precious was the face and favour of the king to Absalom, after he had for a time been banished, and at length restored to his royal favour again ! Onesimus departed from Philemon
1 Faitb acts in the most kingly way when it hangs upon a killing God.
8 Christ was only forsaken in regard of his human nature, not in respect of his Godhead.
Ps. XXXIX. 9.] UNDER THE SMARTING ROD. o79
for a season, that he might receive him for ever. So the Lord departs from his people for a time, that they may receive him for ever ; he hides himself for a season, that his constant presence amongst his children in glory may be the more sweet and delightful to them, &c.
Object. 9. Oh ! but I am falsely accused and sadly reproached, and my good name, which should be as dear or dearer to me than my life, is defamed and fly-blown, and things are laid to my charge that I never did, that I never knew, &c. ; and how then can I be silent ? how can I hold my peace ? I cannot forget the proverb, Oculus et fauna non patiuntur jocos, a man's eye and his good name can bear no jests; and how then can I be mute to see men make jests upon my good name ? and every day to see men lade it with all the scorn and contempt ima- ginable, that they may utterly blast it ? &c. To this I say,
(1.) First, That it must be granted that a good name is one of the choicest jewels in a Christian's crown. Though a great name many times is little worth, yet a good name is rather to be chosen than great riches. It is better to have a good name abroad, than silver or gold laid up in a chest at home. ' A good name is better than precious ointment,' Eccles. vii. 1. Precious ointments were greatly in use and highly esteemed of amongst the Israelites in those eastern parts ; they were laid up amongst the most precious things even in the king's trea- sury, Isa. xxxix. 2. Sweet ointments can but affect the smell, and comfort the brain, and delight the outward man ; they reach not the best part, the noble part, viz., the soul, the conscience of a Christian ; but a good name doth both. What is the perfume of the nostrils to the perfume of the heart ?J
I have read that in some countries they have a certain art of drawing of pigeons to their dove-houses in those countries, by anointing the wings of one of them with sweet ointment, and that pigeon being sent abroad, doth, by the fragrancy of that ointment, decoy, invite, and allure others to that house, where itself is a domestic. Such is the fragrancy of a good name, that it draws other men after the savour thereof. Among all sorts and ranks of men in the world, a good name hath an attractive faculty ; it is a precious ointment that draws hearers to attend good preachers, patients to attend physicians, clients to attend law3^ers, scholars to attend schoolmasters, and customers to attend shop- keepers, who, with Demetrius, hath a good report of all good men, 3d epistle of John 12. Let a man's good name be but up, and he can- not easily want anything that men or money can help him to. A good name will bring a man into favour, and keep a man in favour with all that are good ; therefore, say the moralists :
Omnia si perdas, famam servare memento, Qua semel amissa, postea nullus eris.s