[2.] Secondly, If God be thy portion, then in all thy str aits, tHals, trou- bles, and wants, thou wilt run to thy God, thou wilt fly to the Lord,as to thy only city of refuge :' 1 Sam.xxx. 6, 'And David was greatly distressed, for the people spake of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved (or bitter) every man for Tiis sons, and for his daughters ; but David encouraged himself in the Lord his God.' When a shower of stones were coming about David's ears, he runs and shelters himself under the wings of his God. Though David was an exile in an hea- thenish country, though Ziklag, the place of his habitation, was burnt, though he had neither house nor home to flee to, though his wives were in his enemies' hands, and though his friends and followers were des- perately incensed, enraged, exasperated, and provoked against him, and took counsel together about stoning of him, looking upon him as the author of all their crosses, losses, calamities, and miseries ; yet now he comforts and encourages himself in the Lord his God : Ps. cxlii. 4, ' I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that woiild know me : refuge failed me ; but no man cared for my soul.' But what
» Ps. xxviii. 1 ; xxxi. 2, 3 ; Ixi. 2 ; Ixii. 2,6,1; xcii. 15 ; xciv. 22 ; xxxii. 1, 2.
Lam. III. 24.] an ark for all god's noahs. 85
doth the psalmist do in this case ? Doth he despair or despond ? No. Doth he cast away his hope and confidence in God ? No. Why, what doth he do then 1 Why, when all outward comforts fail him, he runs to God as to his last refuge : ver. 5, 6, 'I cried unto thee, O Lord : I said. Thou art my refuge and my portion in the land of the living. Attend unto my cry, for J am brought very low : deliver me from my persecutors, for they are stronger than I.' He doth not run in his straits from God to the creatures, for that had been to run from the fountain of living waters to broken cisterns, Jer. ii. 12, 13, John vi. 68, Isa. xxxiii. 1 6, from the light of the sun to the light of a farthing candle, and from the Rock of ages to a leaf driven about with the wind, and from paradise into an howling wilderness, &c. But whither doth he run then ? Why, he runs to God ; he knew that God was his light, his life, his love, his peace, his joy, his strength, his shelter, his safety, his security, his crown, his glory, and therefore he runs to his God. And, indeed, in times of danger, whither should the child run to shelter him- self but to his father ? and whither should the wife run but to her husband ? and the servant but to his master ? and the soldier but to his stronghold ? and a Christian but to his God 'i Pro v. xviii. 10, 'The name of the Lord is a strong tower, the righteous runneth into it and is safe.' Sometimes by the naime of the Lord we are to understand God himself, but most commonly God's attributes are called his name, because by them he is known, as a man is by his name ; and here by the name of the Lord we are to understand the power of the Lord, for by that God is known, as men are known by their names. Now God him- self is a strong tower, and the power of God is a strong tower, yea, it is a tower as high as heaven, and as strong as strength itself ; it is a tower so deep no pioneer can undermine it, so thick no cannon can pierce it, so high no ladder can scale it, so strong that no enemy can assault it or ever be able to stand before it, and so well furnished and provided for all purposes and intents, that all the powers of darkness can never dis- tress it, or in the least straiten it. Now to this impregnable and inex- pugnable tower the righteous in all their distresses and dangers run. All creatures run to their refuges when they are hunted and pursued, and so do righteous souls to theirs. But what doth the righteous man gain by running to his strong tower ? Why, he gains safety ; he is safe, saith the text, or rather according to the Hebrew ^iK'J^ exaltatur,^ he is exalted, he is set aloft, he is a soul out of gunshot, he is a soul out of all hazard and danger, he is safe in everlasting arms, he is safe in his strong tower of defence, he can easily overlook all hazards, yea, he can look upon the greatest dangers with an holy neglect. And when the burning fiery furnace was heated seven times hotter than at first, whither doth Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego run ? Why, they run to God : Dan. iii. 16-18, 'Shadrach, Meshech, and Abednego, answered and said to the king, O Nebuchadnezzar, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter. If it be so, our God, whom we serve, is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace ; and he will deliver us out of thy hand, O king. But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set
* The Hebrew word is from Sagab, that signifies to exalt, or to set aloft.
86 AN ARK FOR ALL GOD's NOAHS. [LaM. III. 24.