By his envy and subtilty we were driven out of paradise at the first, and now he envies us the paradise of a good conscience ; for that is our paradise until we come to heaven, into which no serpent shall ever creep to tempt us. "When Satan seeth a man strongly and comfortably walk vdth God, he cannot endure that a creatiire of meaner rank by creation than himself should enjoy such happiness. Herein, like some peevish men which are his instruments, men too contentious and bred up therein, as the salaman- der in the fii'e, who when they know the cause to be naught, and then* ad- versaries to have the better title, yet, out of malice, they will follow them with suits and vexations, though they be not able to disable then* opposites' title. If their malice have not a vent in hurting some way, they will burst for anger.
It is just so with the devil ; when he seeth men will to heaven, and that they have good title to it, then he follows them with all dejecting and un- comfortable temptations that he can. It is his continual trade and course to seek his rest in our disquiet, he is by beaten practice and profession a tempter in this kind.
3. Again, what Satan cannot do himself by immediate suggestions, that he labours to work by his instruments, who are all for casting down of those who stand in their light, as those in the psalm, who cry, ' Down with him, down with him, even to the ground,' Ps. cxxxvii. 7 ; a character and stamp of which men's dispositions we have in the verse before this text ; * Mine enemies,' saith Da\dd, ' rej)roach me.' As sweet and as compassionate a man as he was, to pray and put on sackcloth for them, Ps. xxxv^. 13, yet he had enemies, and such enemies, as did not suffer their malice only to boil and concoct in their own breasts, but out of the abundance of their hearts, they reproached him in words. There is nothing the nature of man is more impatient of than of reproaches ; for there is no man so mean but thinks himself worthy of some regard, and a reproachful scorn shews an utter disrespect, which issues from the very superfluity of malice.
Neither went they behind his back, but were so impudent to say it to his face. A malicious heart and a slandering tongue go together, and though shame might have suppressed the uttering of such words, yet then- insolent carriage spake as much in David's heart, Ps, xxxix. 1. We may see by the language of men's carriage what their heart saith, and what their tongue would vent if they dared.
And this their malice was unwearied, for they said daily unto him, as if it had been fed with a continual spring. Malice is an unsatiable monster, it will minister words, as rage ministers weapons. But what was that they said so reproachfully, and said daily ? ' Where is now thy God ? ver. 3. They upbraid him with his singularity, they say not now. Where is God, but Where is thy God, that thou dost boast so much on, as if thou hadst some special interest in him ? where wo see that the scope of the devil and
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wicked men is to shake the godly's faith and confidence in their God. As Satan laboured to divide betwixt Christ and his Father, ' If thou beest the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread,' Matt. iv. 3, so he laboui'S to divide betwixt Father and Son and us. They labour to bring God in jealousy with Da\ad, as if God had neglected him bearing himself so much upon God. They had some colour of this, for God at this time had vailed himself fi'om David, as he does oft from his best children, for the better discovery of the malice of wicked men ; and doth not Satan tip the tongues of the enemies of religion now, to insult over the chm'ch now lying a bleeding !* What's becomef of their reformation, of their gospel ? Nay, rather what's become of your eyes, we may say unto them ? For God is nearest to his children when he seems farthest off. ' In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen,' Gen. xxii. 14 ; God is with them, and in them, though the wicked be not aware of it ; it is all one, as if one should say betwixt the space of the new and old moon. Where is now the moon ? whenas it is never nearer the sun than at that time.
Quest. Where is now thy God ?
Am. In heaven, in earth, in me, everywhere but in the heart of such as ask such questions, and yet there they shall find him too in his time, filling their consciences with his wrath ; and then, where is their God ? where are their great fiiends, their riches, their honours, which they set up as a god ? what can they avail them now ?
But how was David affected with these reproaches ? Their words were as swords, ' as with a sword in my bones,' &c., ver. 10, they spake daggers to him, they cut him to the quick when they touched him in Ins God, as if he had neglected his servants, whenas the devil himself regards those who serve his turn. Touch a true godly man in his religion, and you touch his Ufe and his best freehold ; he lives more in his God than in himself ; so that we may see here, there is a murder of the tongue, a wounding tongue as well as a healing tongue. Men think themselves freed from mm-der if they kill none, or if they shed no blood, whereas they cut others to the heart with bitter words. It is good to extend the commandment to awake the conscience the more, and breed humility, when men see there is a mur- dering of the tongue. We see David, therefore, upon this reproach, to bo presently so moved, as to fall out with himself for it, ' Why art thou so cast down and disquieted, 0 my soul ?' This bitter taunt ran so much in his mind, that he expresseth it twice in this psalm ; he was sensible that they struck at God through his sides ; what they spake in scorn and hghtly, he took heavily. And indeed, when religion suffers, if there be any heavenly fire in the heart, it will rather break out, than not discover itself at all. We see by daily experience, that there is a special force in words uttered from a subtle head, a false heart and a smooth tongue, to weaken the hearts of professors, by bringing an evil report upon the strict profession of religion ; as the cunning and false spies did upon the good land. Num. xiii. 27, as if it were not only in vain, but dangerous to appear for Chi'ist in evil times. If the example of such as have faint spirits wUl discourage in an army, as we see in Gideon's history. Judges vii., then what will speech enforced both by example and with some show of reason do ?