And in every promise, single out that which best suiteth with thy present condition. If thou art in any great distress, think upon the almighty power of God. Lord, thou hast made me of nothing, and canst deliver me out of this estate. Behold, I % unto thee for succour, &c. If thou art in perplexity for want of direction, and knowest not what to do, single out the attribute of God's wisdom, and desire him to teach thee the way that thou shouldst go. If thou art wronged, fly to his justice, and say, 0 God, to whom vengeance belongeth, hear and help thy servant. If thou be sur- prised with distrust and staggering, then go to his truth and faithfulness. Thou shalt always find in God something to support thy soul in the gi-eatest extremity that can befall thee ; for if there were not in God a fulness to supply every exigent * that we are in, he were not to be worshipped, he were not to be trusted.
Man is lighter than vanity in the balance. Every man is a liar, that is, he is false. We may be so, and yet be men too, but God is essentially true. He cannot deceive and be God too. Therefore ever, when thou art disappointed with men, retire to God and to his promises, and build upon this, that the Lord will not be wanting in aniy-thing may do thee good. With men there is breach of covenant, nation with nation, and man with man. There is little trust to be had in any ; but in aU confusions here is comfort. A religious person may cast himself boldly into the arms of the Almighty, and go to him in any distress, as to a faithful Creator that will not forsake him.
Use. Oh, let us be ashamed that we should dishonour him who is ready to pawn his faithfulness and truth for us. If we confess our sins, ' God is faithful to forgive them,' 1 John i. 9. He will not sufler us to be tempted ' above that which we are able,' 1 Cor. x. 13. AVhen we perplex ourselves with doubts and fears whether he will make good his promise or not, we disable His Majesty. Do we not think God stands upon his truth and faithfulness ? Undoubtedly he doth, and we cannot dishonour him more
* That is, exigency. Brooks uses ' exigents ' in the title of one of his raciest books, viz., ' The Mute Christian under the Smarting Rod, with Sovereign Antidotes against the most miserable Exigenia.' 12mo, 1669. — G.
THE saint's hiding-place IN THE EVIL DAY. 413
than to distrust him, especially in his evangelical promises. We make him a liar, and rob him of that which he most glories in, his mercy and faith- fulness, if we rest not securely upon him.
See the baseness of man's nature. God hath made all other things faith- ful that are so, and we can trust them ; but are ever and anon questioning the truth of his promise. We may justly take up Salvian's complaint in his time, ' Who hath made the earth faithful to bring forth fruit,' saith he, ' but God ? Yet we can trust the ground with so^ving our seed. Who makes man faithful, who is by natui-o the most slippery and unconstant creature of all other, but God only ? Yet we can trust a vain man, whose breath is in his nostrils, and look for great matters at his hands, before an all-sufficient God, that changeth not. Who makes the seas and the winds faithful, that they do not hurt us, but God ? And yet we are apt to trust the wind and weather sooner than God, as we see many seamen that will thrast forth their goods into the wide ocean in a small bark, to shift any way, rather than trust God with them.'
Yea, let Satan, by his wicked instruments, draw a man to some cursed politic reasons, for the devil doth not immediately converse with the world, but in his instruments, and he will sooner trust him than God himself. So prone are our hearts to distrust the Almighty, to call his truth in question, and to trust the lies of our own hearts and other men's, before him. Let us, therefore, lament our infideUty, that having such an omnipotent and faithful creator to rely upon, yet we cannot bring our hearts to trust in him. There are two main pillars of a Christian's faith : —
1. The power of God.
2. The goodness of God.
These two, like Aaron and Hur, hold up the arms of our prayers. Let our estate be never so desperate, yet God is a Creator stiU. Let our sins and infii-mities be never so great, yet he hath power to heal them. Oh, how should this cheer up our souls, and support our di'ooping spirits in all our strivings and conflicts with sin and Satan, that we yield not to the least temptation, having such an almighty God to fly unto for succour.
We must not trust the creature. ' Cursed is that man which makes flesh his aiTU,' Jer. xvii. 5. He that we trust in, must be no less than a Creator. * Cease from man, whose breath is in his nostrils,' saith God, he is a poor creattu-e as thyself is ; raised of nothing, and shall come to dust again. If we would be trusting, as we needs must, for we are dependent persons, and "want many things whilst we are here, let us go to the fountain, and not to broken cisterns for comfort.