2. That the Lord's wisdom is infinite, and he can solve those difiicul- ties which are mere riddles to us ; and therefore all thoughts of ours are be to captivated to his will, for he hath ways and means to bring about his purposes, which come not within our ken and perceivance. Alas ! how easily will reason be nonplussed in what coucerneth either our obedience or our faith. Christ's words to Peter are of use here : John xiii. 7, ' What I do thou knowest not now, but thou shalt know here- after.' There are many things which we know not the reason of ; but wait a little while, and obey the voice of God, and all things shall be clear and evident. He is wise in heart, and ' wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working,' Isa. xxviii. 29 ; and therefore we owe him blind obedience. He that can bring all things out of nothing, light out of darkness, meat out of the eater, one conti-ary out of another, deserveth to be waited upon with a constant reliance. We cannot dive into the depth of his counsel, but must yield an implicit obedience to his will, and go on with our duty, referring events to him ; we must absolutely yield to his will because it is his will, and wait his leisure, till we know the reason of it.
3. That that which we give to God out of true faith and love shall be
380 SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. [SeR. LIV.
received again one way or other. Isaac was dead in Abraham's pur- pose, yet Isaac lived, and was received in a figure. That which is spent in charity is lost to us in all visible appearance, yet it is lent to the Lord, and he will pay it again : Prov. xix. 17, 'He that hath pity on the poor leudeth unto the Lord ; and that which he hath given, will he pay him again ; ' and Eccles. xi. 1, ' Cast thy bread upon the waters, for thou shalt find it after many days ; ' all is thought to be cast away as if were thrown into the sea, but it will be repaid with advantage. So what is lost for God's sake shall be found again : Mat. xvi. 25, ' Whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.'
4. When we have had experience of what God can do in former difficulties, we should the less stick at latter. This was Abraham's case, he had received Isaac, as from the dead : Eom. iv. 19, ' He considered not his own body, now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb;' Heb. xi. 12, 'Therefore sprang there, even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude.' Isaac's conception, generation, and birth, were above the power of nature ; his generation was a kind of resurrection, or very like it ; when he begat him he was as dead ; and Sarah's womb, as to any generative power, was dead too ; therefore it is added, ver. 19, ' Accounting that God was able to raise him up even from the dead : from whence he had received him in a figure.' So to us in like manner : Mat. xvi. 8, 9, ' 0 ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves because ye have brought no bread ? Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up ? ' They had experience that Christ could give bread at pleasure ; to be anxious about worldly things after he had shown that he can feed many with a little food, showed a weak faith.
SERMON LIV.
By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau co7icerning ildoigs to come. —
Heb. xi. 20.
The apostle, after he had spoken of Abraham, proceeds to speak of Isaac. That which was notable in his story is the blessing of Jacob and Esau, wherein he showed much faith, though some weakness. His faith is here described —
1. By the act whereabout it w^as convei'sant — He blessed.
2. The i)ersons so blessed — Jacob and Esau.
3. The matter of the blessing — Cojicerning things to come, where the strength of his faith is intimated, that though these blessings were not for a long time to be accomplished, )'et that he could pro- nounce them so confidently in God's name. To open these circum- stances.
[1.] The act whereabout his faith was conversant — ' He blessed.' There is a blessing by way of prayer, and a blessing by way of prophecy.
YeR. 20.] SERMONS UPON HEBREWS XI. 381
By way of pri\ver, as ordinary parents bless their children, praying for blessings for them. Or else by way of prophecy, foretelling what should befall them in time to come. Of this kind is Isaac's blessing ; to which also Xoah's is exactly parallel, his blessing Shera and Japheth afterward, and his cursing Ham : Gen. ix. 2.5-27, ' Cm-sed be Canaan, a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. Antl he said, Blessed be the Lord God of Shem, and Canaan shall be his servant. God shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall dwell in the tents of Shem, and Canaan shall be his servant.' There is much in the ordinary blessing of parents. Micah, you know, was afraid of his mother's curse, Judges xvii. 2. The Lord, to keep up a reverence and a respect to parents, takes notice of their blessings and curses ; if they be uttered with a right spirit, they are not spoken in vain ; they are not as water spilt upon the ground. But there was more in the blessing of the patri- archs, for therein they were in a peculiar manner directed by God, and their blessing was a kind of solemn enfeoffment, a disposing or con- ferring a right to the parties blessed.