^ Nazian. Orat. xiii. circa med.
JaS. II. 21.] UPON THE EPISTLE OF JAMES. 251
Ohs. 3. From that lolien lie offered Isaac. Isaac is counted offered, because he was .^^o in Abraham's purpose. The note is, that serious purposes of obedience are accepted for obedience. God hath given in pardon upon a purpose of returning : Ps. xxxii. 5, ' I said I would confess, and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.' Only remember they must be such purposes as are like Abraham's. (1.) Serious and resolved, for he prepared himself to the performance ; not vain pur- poses to betray present duties, when men hope to do that to-morrow which they should do to-day ; these are vanishing and flitting motions which God taketli notice of : Ps. xliv. 21, ' God knoweththe secrets of the hearts,' and that such delays are but modest denials, or rather de- ceitful offers, to put off the clamour and importunity of conscience. Nothing more usual than such purposes for the future to justify present neglects. God will search it out : Abraham was ready. (2.) They must be such as end in action, unless in the case of allowable hindrances. When is that ? (1st.) When we are hindered, as Abra- ham was, from heaven ; he, by divine command ; we, by providence : 1 Kings viii. 18, ' Whereas it was in thine heart to build an house unto my name, thou didst well in that it was in thine heart.' When mere providence diverteth us from holy intentions, God accepteth of the will. (2d.) By invincible weakness : Kom. vii. 18, ' To will is present with me ; but to perform that which is good, I find not.' The apostle could not, Karepyd^edat, come up to the rate of his purposes ; in such a case God looketh to what is in the heart. Well, then — (1.) It serveth for comfort to the people of God, who, because they do not perform duty as they would, are much discouraged. God taketh no- tice of the purpose, and judgeth of you, as physicians do of their patients, not by their eating, but their appetite. Purposes and desires are works of God's own stirring up, the free native offering and mo- tions of grace. Practices may be overruled, but such earnest purposes as make you do what you can are usually serious and genuine. The children of God, that cannot justify their practices, plead the inward motions and desires of their hearts : John xxi. 17, ' Thou knowest all things, and thou knowest that I love thee ; ' Neh. i. 11, ' Desire to fear thy name,' &c. (2.) It is for advice to us to be careful of our purposes. Many would be more wicked, were they not bound up.i God takes notice of what is in their hearts : Mat. v. 28, ' He that looketh upon a woman to lust after her, hath committed adultery with her in his heart.' So also Seneca, Incesta est et sine stupro qucc stuprum cupit — the purpose maketh guilty, though the act be restrained. God took notice of the king of Babylon's purposes and intentions : Isa. x. 7, ' It is in his heart to destroy, and cut off nations not a few.' Mo- tions and inclinations should be watched over. (3.) It showeth God's readiness to receive returning sinners ; he met his son ' while he was yet a great way off,' Luke xv. As soon as the will layeth down the weapons of defiance, and moveth towards God, the Lord runneth to embrace and fall upon the neck of such a poor soul, that he may satisfy it with some early comforts. So Isa. Ixv. 24, ' Before they call, I will answer ; and while they are yet speaking, I wiU hear.' Acts of grace do anticipate and often prevent acts of duty. ' Turn me,' saith
^ ' Solve leonein et senties.'
252 AN EXPOSITION, WITH NOTES, [JaS. II. 21.
Ephraim, and theu ' a dear and pleasant son,' Jer. xxxi. 18, with ver. 20 As soon as you set your laces towards God, lie runneth towards you. (4.) It showelh how we should entertain the purposes and promises of God ; look upon them in the promise with such a cer- tainty as if they were actually accomplished : Rev. xiv. 8, ' Babylon is fallen, is fallen.' God can read duty in tiie purpose : we have much more cause to read accomplishment in the promise. ' Hath he said, and shall he not do it ? hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good ? ' Num. xxiii. 19. His will is not changeable as ours, neither is his power restrained.
Obs. 4. From that offei'cd Isaac upon the altar. He bringeth this as the great argument of the truth of Abraham's faith. It is not for faith to produce every action, unless it produce such actions as Abraham's. Such as will engage you to self-denial are troublesome to the flesh. David scorned such service as cost nothing. There where we must deny our own reason, affections, interest, that is an action fit to try a believer. Let us see what is observable in this action of Abraham, that we may go and do likewise. (1.) Observe the great- ness of the temptation. It was to offer his own son, the son of his love, his only sun, a son longed for, and obtained when ' his body was dead,' and ' Sarah's womb dead ; ' nay, ' the son of the promise.' Had he been to contend only with natural affection, it had been much — descensive love is always vehement ; but for love to Isaac there were special endearing reasons and arguments. But Abraham was not only to conflict with natural affection, but reason; not only with reason, but faith. He was, as it were, to execute all his hopes ; and all this was to be done by himself ; with his own hand he was at one stroke to cut off all his comforts ; the execution of such a sentence was as harsh and bitter to flesh and blood as to be his own execu- tioner. Oh ! go and shame yourselves without, you that can so little deny yourselves for God, that attempt duties only when they are easy and obvious, never care to recuv(!r them out of the hands of difficulty and inconvenience. Public duties, if well done, are usually against carnal interests, private duties against carnal affections. Can you give up all that is near and dear to you ? Can you offer up your Isaac? your ease and pleasure for private duties? your interests for public ? Every action is not a trial of faith, but such as engageth to self-denial. (2.) Consider the readiness of his obedience. As Abraham is the pattern of believing, so of obeying. He received the promises as a figure of our faith ; he offered up his son as a figure of our obedience, Heb. xi. 17. (1st.) He obeyed readily and willingly : Gen. xxii. 3, ' Abraham rose early in the morning.' In such a service some would have delayed all the time they could, but he is up early. Usually we straiten duty rather than straiten our- selves ; we are not about that work early. (2d.) Ilesolutely ; he con- cealeth it from his wife, servants, from Isaac himself, that so he might not be diverted froni his pious purpose. Oh ! who is now so wise to order the circumstances of a duty that he may not be hindered in it ? (3d.) He denied carnal reason. In difficult cases we seek to elude tlie command, dispute how we shall shift it off, not how we shall obey it. If we had been put upon such a trial, we would question the vision,