[5.] Fifthly, To move you so to order, demean, and carry your- selves, as that you may enjoy the gracious presence of God with you in your greatest troubles and deepest distresses, consider that in great troubles, deep distresses, and most deadly dangers, you ivill most need the favourable signal presence of God with you. We always stand in need of the divine presence, but never so much as when we are under great troubles and deep distresses. For, (1.) In days of trouble and distress, men's affections are most apt to be greatly disordered, and their hearts discomposed, as you see in Job and Jonah, Job iii. ; Jonah, iv. (2.) Now their fears, doubts, and disputes are apt to rise highest. When the wind rises high, and the sea roars, men are most apt to be afraid, Jonah ii. 2-7. (3.) Now Satan commonly is busiest. Satan loves to fish in troubled waters. When the hand of God is heaviest upon us, then Satan will shoot his most deadly darts at us, Job ii. 9 ; James i. 12. The sons of Jacob fell upon the Shechemites when they were sore. Gen. xxxiv. 25 ; and Amalek fell upon God's Israel and smote them, when they were weak, and feeble, and faint, and weary, Deut. XXV. 17-19 ; and Satan falls foul upon Christ, when he was in the wilderness, and when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, and was a-hungry, Mat. iv. 1-11 ; and as he dealt with the head, so he still deals with the members. (4.) Now unbelief is most turbulent, strong, and mighty in operation, as you may see in the spies. Num. xiii. 31-33, ' We be not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we. The land through which we have gone to search it, is aland that eateth up the inhabitants thereof; and all the people that we saw in it are men of great stature ; and there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants ; and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight:' so 2 Kings vi. 33, ' This evil is of the Lord ; what should I wait for the
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Lord any longer ?' FVc?e2 Kings vii. 1, 2, 19, 20 : so David, Ps. cxvi. 11, ' I said in my haste, all men are liars.' The prophets have all deceived me, and Samuel has deluded me, they have told me of a kingdom, a crown, but I shall never wear the one, nor possess the other: so 1 Sam. xxvii. 1, ' I shall now perish one day by the hand of Saul.' Thus his fear is got above his faith, and his soul wherried about with unbelief, to the scandal of the weak, and the scorn of the wicked, besides his own particular disadvantage. (5.) Now fainting- fits will be most strengthened, increased, and multiplied. Now faint- ing-fits, like Job's messengers, or like the rolling waves, will come thick one upon another, Prov. xxiv. 10 ; Job iv. 5 ; Lam. i. 12, 13. (6.) Now conscience will be most startled and disquieted. Gen. xlii. 21, and 1. 15 ; 1 Kings xvii. 18. Great troubles and deep distresses are many times like strong physic, which stirs the humours and makes the patient sick, very sick, yea, heart-sick. Conscience commonly never reads the soul such sad and serious lectures as when the rod lies heaviest upon the back. By all which you see, what high cause the people of God have so to order, demean, and carry themselves, as that they may find the gracious presence of God w^ith them in their greatest troubles, and deepest distresses, for then they will certainly need most of the divine presence. But,
[6.] Sixthly, To move you so to order, demean, and carry your- selves, as that you may enjoy the gracious presence of God with 'you in your greatest troubles and deepest distresses, consider this divine presence luill make you divinely fearless in the midst of your greatest troubles and deepest distresses : Ps. xxiii. 4, ' Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil ; for thou art with me, thy rod and thy stafi" they comfort me :' Ps. xlvi. 2, ' We will not fear though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea : ' ver. 3, ' Though the waters thereof roar,' &c. Why ? ' God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved ; God shall help her, and that right early,' ver. 5 ; ' The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah,' ver. 7 : Num. xiv. 9, ' Neither fear ye the people, for they are bread for us, their defence is departed from them, and the Lord is with us ; fear them not : ' Deut. vii. 21, ' Thou shaft not be affrighted at them, for the Lord thy God is among you, a mighty God and terrible : ' so Heb. xiii. 5, ' I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee :' ver. 6, ' I will not fear what man shall do unto me.' There is no such way to keep down all base slavish fears of men, as to keep up the presence of God in the midst of you. You will not fear the power of men, nor the policy of men, nor the threats of men, nor the wrath of men, if you do but enjoy this gi'acious, this signal presence of God that is under our present consideration. Men's fears are never so rampant as when God withdraws his presence from them, 1 Sam. xxviii. 15, 20. But,
[7.] Seventhly, To move you so to order, demean, and carry your- selves, as that you may enjoy the gracious presence of God with you in your greatest troubles and deepest distresses, consider that there is in God a very great uniuillingness to witlidraio his presence from his people ivhen they are in great troubles and deep distresses : Ezek. viii. 6, ' Son of man, seest thou what they do ? even the great abomina-
WITH HIS PEOPLE IN THEIR GREATEST TROUBLES. 567