Use 1. Hence it is that the manifold wisdom of Christ maJceth use of such variety of conditions ; and hence it is that the Spirit of Christ is mild in some men's ministries, and sharp in others : nay, in the very same minister, as the state of the soul they have to deal withal requires.
Use 2. Sometimes, again, the jjeoph of God need purging, and sometimes refreshing. Whereupon the Spirit of God carries itself suitably to both conditions ; and the Spirit in the godly themselves draws good out of every condition, sure [as] they are that all winds blow them good, and [that] were it not for their good, no winds should blow upon them. But in regard that these times of ours, by long peace and plenty, grow cold, heavy, and secure, we need therefore all kinds of winds to blow upon us, and all little enough. Time was when we were more quick and lively, but now the heat of our spirits is* abated. We must therefore take heed of it, and ' quicken those things that are ready to die,' Rev. iii. 2 ; or else, instead of the north and south wind, God will send an east wind that shall dry up all, as it is, Hos. xiii. 15.
Use 3. Again, if Christ can raise or lay, bind up or let loose, all kind of winds at his pleasure, then if means be wanting or fruitless, it is he that says to the clouds. Drop not, and to the winds. Blow not. Therefore, m'c must acknowledge him in want or plenty of means. The Spirit of Christ in the use of means is a free agent, sometimes blows strongly, sometimes more mildly, sometimes not at all. No creature hath these winds in a bag at command, and therefore it is wisdom to yield to the gales of the Spirit. Though in some other things, as Solomon observes, it may hinder to observe the winds, Eccles. xi. 4, yet here it is necessary and profitable to observe the winds of the Spirit.
Now, for the clear understanding of what we are to speak of, let us first observe —
1. Why the Spirit of God, in the use of the means, is compared to wind. And then,
2. Why the church is compared to a garden ; which shall be handled in the proper place.
But first for the wind.
1. ' The wind bloweth where it listeth,' as it is John iii. 8. So the Spirit of God blows freely, and openeth the heart of some, and poureth grace plentifully in them.
2. The wind, especially the north wind, hath a cleansing force. So the Spirit of God purgeth our hearts ' from dead works to serve the li^dng God, making us partakers of the divine nature,' 2 Pet. i. 4.
3. The wind disperseth and scattereth clouds, and makes a serenity in the air. So doth the Spirit disperse such clouds as corruption and Satan raise up in the soul, that we may clearly see the face of God in Jesus Christ.
* It is printed ' are.' But such inaccuracy is not uncommon in Sibbes and his contemporaries. If the nearer noun be plural, it, and not the nominative proper, ref^uLites the use of the verb. This remark is made once for all, that apparent mis- .prints may not be placed to oversight. — G.
Cant. IV. 16.] * and come, thou south ! ' 9
4. The wind hath a cooling and a tempering quality, and tempers the dis- temper of nature. As in some hot countries there be yearly anniversary winds, which blow at certain times in summer, tempering the heat ; so the Spirit of God allayeth the unnatural heats of the soul in fierj' temptations, and bringeth it into a good temper.
5. The wind being subtle, searcheth into every comer and cranny. So the Spirit likewise is of a searching nature, and discemeth betwixt the joints and the marrow, betwixt the flesh and the Spirit, &c., searching those hidden corruptions, that nature could never have found out.
6. The wind hath a cherishing and a fructifying force. So the Spirit is a quickening and a cherishing Spirit, and maketh the heart, which is as a barren wilderness, to be fruitful.
7. The wind hath a power of conveying sweet smells in the air, to carry tliem from one to another. So the Spirit in the word conveyeth the seeds of grace and comfort from one to another. It draws out what sweetness is in the spirits of men, and makes them fi-agrant and delightful to others.
8. The wind, again, hears doivn all before it, beats down houses, and trees, like the cedars in Lebanon, turns them up by the roots, and lays all flat. So the Spirit is mighty in operation. There is no standing before it. It brings do\vn mountains, and every high thing that exalts itself, and lays them level ; nay, the Roman and those other mighty empires could not stand before it.
For these respects and the like, the ' blowing of the Spirit ' is compared to wand. For which end Christ here commands the wind to ' blow upon his garden.'
1. To blow, &c. See here the order, linking, and concatenation of things one under another. To the prospering of a poor flower or plant in a garden, not only soil is needful, but air and wind also, and the influence of heaven ; and God commanding all, as here the winds to blow upon his garden. To this end, as a wonderful mercy to his people, it is said, ' And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the Lord : I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth ; and the earth shall hear the corn, the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel,' Hos. ii. 21, 22. As the creatui-es are from God, so the order and dependence of creatures one from another, to teach us not only what to pray for, but also what to pray fitly for ; not only to pray for the dew of heaven, but also for seasonable and cherishing winds. It is not the soil, but the season, that makes fruitful, Non ager sed annus facit fructus, and that from seasonable winds and influences. So in spiritual things there is a chain of causes and efiects : prayer comes from faith, Rom. x. 14 ; faith from the hearing of the word ; hearing from a preacher, by whom God by his Spirit blows upon the heai't ; and a preacher from God's sending. If the God of nature should but hinder and take away one link of nature's chain, the whole frame would be distui'bed. Well, that which Christ commands here, is for the winds to ' blow upon his garden.'