VeK. 139.] SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. 469
[2.] Let us speak of the object of zeal. In three things God's interest lies in the world, viz., his truth, his worship, and his servants. Now it is not enough to have zeal that we do not oppose any of these, but they must be tenderly regarded and looked after, and we must be affected with these things as we would with our own concernments. When wrongs are offered to any of these, either to God's truth, his worship, or his servants, they must go more nearly to our hearts than any personal injuries done to ourselves. What we cannot remedy we must mourn for. All these three concur in Elijah's speech : 1 Kings xix. 10, ' I have been very jealous for the Lord God of hosts ; ' there is his zeal. Why ? ' For the children of Israel have forsaken thy covenant ; ' there is his truth perverted : ' they have thrown down thy altars ; ' there is his worship overturned : ' they have slain thy prophets with the sword ; ' there his servants are wronged. So that zeal mainly is concerned when God suffers loss in any of these things. If his truth be perverted, his worship overturned, bis servants be despitefully used, vexed, and grieved, then zeal pre- sently shows itself in opposing these things, or in grieving for them.
(1.) Zeal seeks to preserve the truth of God inviolable. Truth is a precious depositum, trust, and charge which God hath committed to the keeping of his people ; and without zeal to defend and propagate and maintain it, though with the greatest hazard, it will never be kept, and you will never be faithful to God. We are a kind of feoffees for the present age, and trustees for the future ; and the charge of God's truth is put into our hands, and we must see it be transmitted to the world pure and undefiled. Therefore, Jude 3, eira'ywvLt.eaOai, 'We must contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.' When others would violate the truth we must contend with them : Jer. ix. 3, ' They are not valiant for the truth.' A Christian needs not only the labour of an ox, that he may be diligent, but the valour of a lion, that he may appear for God in defence of his truth when it is invaded and encroached upon. And especially doth this concern the officers of the church ; this zeal they should have for the word: Titus i. 9, avTe^o\ievov, 'Holding fast the faithful word.' The word signifies to be good at holding and drawing ; that is, when others would wrest it out of our hands, we should hold it fast ; as a staff that another would take out of our hands, we hold it faster and wrestle with him. So should we wrestle, contend, and hold fast the truth, when others would draw it from us. And Phil. i. 27, ' Striving together for the faith of the gospel.' Oh ! we should not let one dust of truth perish. This is to be zealous for the truth, standing to, and striving for the defence thereof, in our way and place. If God' had not raised up zealous instruments in every age to plead for his truth, what a sad case would the church have been in ? Truth would have been buried under a great heap of prejudices, and Christ's kingdom have been crushed in the very q^^^, and religion strangled in the cradle. But there is a cloud of witnesses gone before us. In every age God sets up some of all sexes, ages, conditions, that have owned his despised and oppugned truths, and have not counted their lives dear, so as they might give their testimony to the truth of God, Eev. xii. 11, and have more greedily embraced martyrdom than others
470 SERMONS UPON PSALM CXIX. [SkPv. CLVI.
honours and dignities in the church ; as Sulpicius Beverus observes, they have with greater desire affected the glory of martyrdom and suffering for the truth, that they might be faithful to God and the souls of men in future ages, and to preserve God's truth inviolate ; they have greedily sought this honour to suffer for God. And Ignatius, he could say, Come, saith he, I desire the beasts that are piepared should be let loose for me ; it is better to die for Christ than to com- mand the ends of the earth. And Basil, when the Arian emperor threatened those that did oppose his religion should die the death. The wild beasts, let them be let out ; would to God it were so, that I had the honour to die for the truth of Christ ! This was notably for the increase of Christ's kingdom, and thus the Lord hath inspired his people with a holy love and zeal.
(2.) For his worship, that that may not be corrupted, but his institutions kept pure. Zeal is conversant about that too : Exod. xx. 5, ' Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them ; for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God.' In the first commandment, God forbids a false god ; in the second, he forbids the false means of worship, as before the false object. Now, because the means of w^orship are apt to be perverted, the Lord shows how jealous he was for his worship: 'lama jealous God;' if the institutions of God be perverted, then ' I will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me.' The children are considered in that commandment, because usually the interest of families is our great snare, when an idol is set up, or a false means of worship. The chiefest false worship is an idol ; and the greatest sin is put for all the rest, before an idol, the imagination or invention of men, when that is set up. The Lord speaks of the interest of families, because men are apt to think they shall undo them and their families if they contend in this matter. Now^, be you zealous of my worship, for I will visit the iniquity of the fathers upon the children. That the interest of families might not abate our zeal, the Lord takes the family into the curse for the violation, and likewise into the blessing for zeal for his institutions. And so Christ saith, John ii. 17, ' The zeal of thy house hath eaten me up.' We should be zealous for God's worship. . Ministers should preach zealously, and magistrates govern zealously to purge God's house, and Christians pray zealously ; every one of us, as far as the bounds of our calling will permit, should be zealous for God's worship. Quis comeditur zelo Domus Dei f saith Austin — who is he that is eaten out with the zeal of God's house ? He that desires that no human invention may be blended and mixed with God's worship, and would fain amend what is amiss. This zeal is the only right and acceptable principle of reformation, our great indignation against all false worship whatever. I remember the story of Valen- tinian, who was afterwards emperor, when according to the duty of his place, being captain of the guard to Julian the apostate and emperor, he was engaged to attend him into the heathen temple of fortune, and the priests were to sprinkle the lustrating and holy water — for that ceremony was common to the heathens with the papists — and a drop of it lighted upon Valentinian, he struck the priest that did it, and said, Thou hast defiled me, thou hast not purged me (he thought