[2.] The majesty and greatness of God. Look up to him, that is at the upper end of all these causes, that are so sweetly subordinate to one another in the world ; and he can turn them as he pleaseth : Job, speaking of the bright cloud, saith, chap, xxxvii. 12, ' It is turned round about by his counsels ; that they may do whatsoever he commands.' Look up to him that is the head of angels. We are dazzled at the splendour and magnificence of an earthly king or prince ; when we see him surrounded with dukes, earls and lords, these seem great things to us. How should we wonder at the majesty of God, that is encompassed with cherubim and seraphim, principalities, powers, thrones and domi- nions ! How do we wonder at the majesty of kings riding in triumph in their chariots ! Oh, how should we wonder at him that rides upon the wings of the wind ! It was the brag of the king of Assyria, Isa. xix. 8, ' Are not my princes altogether kings ? ' But he hath angels for his courtiers, and clouds for his chariots, Ps. xviii. 10, 11, and a golden garment of light for his covering, Ps. civ. 2, whose throne is in heaven, and footstool is upon earth ; and in heaven he sits in great majesty, commanding all things ; and hath all creatures ready pressed for his service ; he can but beckon to them, and they engage in his quarrel : Judges, v. 20, ' They fought from heaven ; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera.' He hath the stars in order, and all causes in order to fight his battles against a wicked man. The fighting of the stars I believe might be explained out of Joseplms, lib. v. cap. 6, who thus relates it: 'When Israel was to engage against the Canaan- ites, there arose a great storm of hail, which the wind drove violently in the faces of the Canaanites, and did so benumb their hands with cold, that carried the targets, darts, and slings, that they could not use them ; and did so batter their eyes, that it took away their sight, that they could not look up : but it came on the backs of the Israelites, which encouraged them to fall upon them, so that they made an utter slaughter of them.' Certainly the force of the stars is very great upon storms of hail, thunder, and winds : Job xxxvii. 6, ' He saith to the snow, Be thou on the earth : likewise to the small rain, and to the great rain of his strength.' So, ver. 12, ' He turned it about by his counsels, that they may do whatsoever he commandeth them upon the face of the world in the earth.' He can call the winds, and they will make a ready answer to God : Job. xxxviii. 35, ' Canst thou send lightnings, that they may go, and say unto thee. Here are we?' All creatures are ready; he doth Init beckon to the creatures, and they presently go
424 SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. [SeR. XI.
upon his errand ; Lord, here are we, send us : whether shall I go ? saith the lightning ; where shall I go ? saith the thunder ; where shall I go ? saith the hail. They are ready to be despatched in an errand for the punishment of sinners.
SERMON XL
Through faith loe understand that the loorlds loere framed hy the word of God, so that things wliich are seen loere not made of thinjs which do appear. — Heb. xi. 3.
Vse. 2. It showeth us the excellency of order ; how pleasing order and method is to God : God hath always delighted in it. All his works are managed and carried on in an accurate order. So in all artificial works ; God speaks like a wise architect about the ark of Noah ; God gave directions how it should be framed : Gen. vi. 15, ' The length of it shall be three hundred cubits, the breadth fifty cubits, the height thirty cubits.' So for the tabernacle, it was according to the pattern in the mount, Exod. xxv. ; so for the table of show-bread, the knobs, bowls, and shafts of the candlestick, God gave special directions about them. Certainly God is a God of order, and not of confusion, 1 Cor, xiv. 33. All order is from God ; but all discord and confusion is from the devil. Order is pleasing to him in the state and civil administra- tions, in tlie church, and in the course of your private conversations.
1. In civil administrations in the commonwealth, there are several orders and constitutions that God hath made. Tiie beauty of the world lieth in hills and valleys ; so in the state, some advanced to high places, others are low and poor. To bring all to one size, pitch and level, would soon introduce confusion into the world. There is order in heaven, order in hell, and there should have been order in innocency. There is order in heaven among the good angels. The scripture speaks of an archangel, 1 Thes. iv. IG ; though he be not a monarch, there are others of the same rank and order: Dan. x. 13, 'Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me.' And we read in Job of the morn- ing stars,' Jobxxxviii. 7; that is, the archangels that excel the rest in glory. There are many of them, and God himself presides among them. Then there are inferior ministering angels, thrones, principal- ities, powers, dominions. Though we cannot define the difference, yet the scripture plainly intimates one, and lays down an order and sub- ordination among the angels. Nay, thei'e is some kind of order in hell itself. There is a prince among the infernal spirits; whence comes that expression, ' The devil and his angels,' Mat. xxv. 41 ; and Rev. xii. 7, ' The dragon and his angels,' who is ' called the devil and Satan,'' ver. 9. Jesus Christ, though he doth not jiositively lay it down, yet he doth not deny the common opinion of the Jews, that Beelzebub was the prince of evil spirits. The devils are not without their head and prince. And in innocency there should have been order too, if we had continued