Quest. How shall we know whether we exceed in this confidence in the crea- ture or not ?
Sol. 1. We may know it by adventuring on ill courses and causes, thinking to bear them out with Asshur and with horses. But all the mercenary sol- diers in the world, and all the horses at home and abroad, what can they do when God is angry ? Now, when there is such confidence in these things as for to out- dare God, then there is too much trust in them. That trust will end in confusion, if it be not repented of, for that Ufts up the heart in the creature. And as the heathen man observes, * God dehgbts * That is, the ' double-minded' man.— G.
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to make great little, and little great.' It is his daily work to * cast down mountains, and exalt the valleys,' Isa. xl. 4. Those that are great, and boast in their greatness, as if they would command heaven and earth, God delights to make their greatness little, and at length nothing, and to raise up the day of small things. Therefore the apostle saith, ' If I rejoice, it shall be in my infirmities,' 2 Cor. xii. 9, in nothing else ; for God delights to shew strength in weakness.
2. By secitrit)/ and resting of the soul in meaner things, never seeking to divine and religious helps when we are supplied with those that are out- ward. For these people, when they trusted to AssjTia and Egypt, those false supports and sandy foundations, they were careless of God, and there- fore must trust in somewhat else. Wherefore, if we see a man secure and careless, certainly he trusts too much to uncertain riches, to Asshur, to Egypt, to fi-iends, or to outward helps. His security bewrays that. If a man trust God in the use of the means, his care will be to keep God his friend by repentance and daily exercises of religion, by making conscience of his duty. But if he trust the means and not God, he will be careless and weak in good duties, duU and slow, and, out of the atheism of his heart, cry. Tush ! if God do not help me, I shall have help from fiiends abroad, and be supported with this and that at home, horses and the like, and shall be well.
Use 1. Let us therefore enter into our own souls, and examine ourselves, how far forth we are guilty of this sin, and think we come so far short of repentance. For the ten tribes here, the people of God, when they re- pented, say, 'Asshur shall not save us ; we will not ride upon horses.' He speaks comparatively, as trusted in. Therefore, let us take heed of that boasting, vain-glorious disposition, arising from the supply of the creature. Saith God, ' Let not the wise man gloiy in his wisdom ; neither let the mighty man glory in his might : let not the rich man glory in his riches ; but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth this, that I am the Lord, which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteous- ness in the earth,' &c., Jer. ix. 23, 24. Let a man glory that he knows God in Christ to be his God in the covenant of grace ; that he hath the God of all strength, the I^ng of kings and Lord of lords to be his : who hath all other things at his command, who is independent and all-sufficient. If a man will boast, let him go out of himself to God, and plant himself there ; and for other things, take heed the heart be not lift up with them.
1. Consider what kind of thing boasting is. It is idolatry, for it sets the creatm-e in the place and room of God.
2. And it is also spiritual adultery, whereby we fix our affections upon the creature, which should be placed on God ; as it is in James, ' Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God?' &c., James iv. 4.
3. Habakkuk calls it drunkennness, Hab. ii. 4, 5, for it makes the soul drunk with sottishness and conceitedness, so as a man in this case is never sober, until God strip him of all.
4. And then again, it puts forth the eye of the soul. It is a kind of white, that mars the sight. When a man looks to Asshur, horses, and to outward strength, where is God all thii^ while ? These are so many clouds, that they cannot see God, but altogether pore upon the creature. He sees so much greatness there, that God seems nothing. But when a man sees God in his greatness and almightiness, then the creature is
284 THE EETURNING BACKSLIDER. [SeRMON TTT.
nothing, Job xlii. 6. But until this be, there is a mist and blindness in the eye of the soul.
And when we have seen our guiltiness this way (as who of us in this case may not be confounded and ashamed of relying too much on outward helps ?), then let us labour to take off our souls from these outward things, whether it be strength abroad or at home. Which that we may do, we must labour for that obedience which our Saviour Christ exhorts us unto in self-denial. Mat. xvi. 24, not to trust to our own devices, policy, or strength, wit, will, or conceits, that this or that may help us, nor anj-thing. Make it general ; for when conversion is wrought, and the heart is turned to God, it turns from the creature, only using it as subordinate to God. We see, usually, men that exalt themselves in confidence, either of strength, of wit, or whatsoever, they are successless in their issue. For God delights to confound them, and go beyond their wit, as we have it, Isa. xxx. 3. They thought to go beyond God with their policy, they would have help out of Egypt, this and that way. Oh, saith the prophet, but for all this, God is wise to see through all your devices ; secretly hereby touching them to the quick, as sottish persons, who thought by their shallow brains to go beyond God. You think rehgious courses, and the obedience God pre- scribeth to you, to be idle, needless courses ; but, notwithstanding, God is wise. He will go beyond you, and catch you in your own craft. ' There- fore, the strength of Pharaoh shall be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Eg}^t your confusion,' Isa. xxx. 3. Thus God loves to scatter Babels fabrics, Gen. xi. 8, and holds that are erected in confidence of human strength against him. He delights to catch the wise in their own craft, to beat all down, lay all high imaginations and things flat before him, that no flesh may glory in his sight. There is to this purpose a notable place in Isaiah : ' Behold, all ye that kindle a fu'e, that compass yourselves about with sparks,' Isa. 1. 11. For they kindled a fire, and had a light of their own, and would not borrow light from God : ' Walk in the light of your fire, and in the sparks that ye have kindled.' But what is the con- clusion of all ? ' This shall ye have of mine hand.' I dare assure you of this, saith the prophet. ' You shall lie down in sorrow.' Those that walk by the light and spark of their own fire, this they shall have at God's hands : ' they shall lie down in sorrow.'