That God will turn away his anger xipon repentance.
Wben there is this course taken, formerly mentioned, to turn unto the Lord and to sue for pardon, to vow reformation, ' Asshur shall not save us,' and a thorough reformation of the particular sin ; and when there is wrought in the heart faith to rely on God's mercy, as the ' Father of the fatherless,' in whom they ' find mercy,' then God's anger is turned away. God, upon repentance, will turn away liis anger. The point is clear. We see, when
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the Lord hath threatened many grievous judgments and plagues for sin, one upon the neck of another, denounced with all variety of expressions in the most tenible manner ; yet, after all that thundering, Deut. xxviii. and xxix., it follows, ' And it shall come to pass, when all these things are come upon thee, the blessings and the curses, which I have set before thee, and thou shalt call them to mind among all the nations whither the Lord thy God hath driven thee, and shalt return unto the Lord thy God, &c. ; that then the Lord thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee,' &c., Deut. xxx. 1, 2, 3. After repentance, you see the promise eomes presently after ; not that the one is the meritorious cause of the other ; but there is an order of things. God will have the one come with the other. Where there is not sense of sin and humiliation, and thence prayer to God for pardon, with reformation and trusting in his mercy, there the anger of God abides still. But where these are, ' his anger is turned away.' God hath established his order, that the one of these must still follow the other.
Another excellent place to the forenamed, we have in the Chronicles, ' If my people that are called by my name shall humble themselves and pray,' (as they did here in this chapter, ' take words unto yourselves') ' and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways,' 2 Chron. vii. 14 ; as they did here, ' Asshur shall not save us, we vnll not ride upon horses,' &c. We will no more rely on the barren false helps of foreign strength. What then ? ' I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and wiU heal their land,' 2 Chron. vii. 14. Here is the promise, whereof this text is a proof. So in all the prophets there is a multiplication of the like instances and promises ; which we will not stand upon now, as not being controversial. It is God's nitme so to do, as we may see in that well known place of Exodus. * Jehovah, Jehovah, God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth ; keeping mercy for thousands, for- giving iniquity, and transgression, and sin,' &c., Exod. xxxiv. 6, 7. And so it is said, ' At what time soever a sinner repents himself of his sins from the bottom of his heart, I will put all his sins out of my remembrance, saith the Lord God,' Hebrews \'iii. 12. The Scripture is plentiful in nothing more ; especially it is the burden of Ezek. xviii. and xxxiii., forgiveness of sins, and removal of wrath upon repentance.
And for example. See one for all the rest. Let the greater include the lesser. Manasseh was a gi'eater sinner than any of us all can be ; because he was enabled* with a greater authority to do mischief, (all which no pri- vate man, nor ordinary gi-eat man, is capable of, not having the like power) ; which he exercised to the full in all manner of cruelty, joined with other gi'oss and deadly sins ; and yet the Scripture shews that, upon his humili- ation and praying, he found mercy. God turned away his anger, 2 Chi'on. xxxiii. 12, 13*.
That of the prodigal is a parable also fitted for this pnrpose, who had no sooner a resolution to return to his father, Luke xv. 23. Filius timet convitinm., d'c. The son fears chiding ; the father provides a banquet. So God doth transcend our thoughts in that kind. We can no sooner humble ourselves to pray to him heartily, resolving to amend our ways and come to him, but he lays his anger aside to entertain terms of love and friendship with us. As we see in David, who was a good man, though he slubbered over the matter of repentance, all which while God's hand was so heavy upon him, that his moistm'e was turned into the drought of summer, he * That is, ' endued.'— G.
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roaring all the day long, Ps. xxxii. 3, 4. But when once he dealt througlily in the business, and resolved, ' I will confess my transgression unto the Lord ; and thou forgavest the iniquity of my sin.' Let our humiliation be real and thorough, with prayer for pardon, and purpose to reform, and pre- sently God will shew mercy.
The reason is clear, because it is his nature so to do. His nature is more inclined to mercy than anger. For him to be angry, it is still upon supposition of GUI' sins. But to be merciful and gracious, it always proceeds from his own bowels, whether we be sinners or not. Without all supposition, God is still merciful unto whom he will shew mercy. ' Who is a God like unto thee,' saith the prophet, ' that pardoneth iniquity ? he passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage, and retaineth not his auger for ever ; because he dehghteth in mercy.' Things naturally come easily, without pain ; as beams from the sun, water fi-om the spring, and as heat from fire ; all which come easily, because they are natural. So mercy and love ffom God come easily and willingly. It is his nature to be gracious and merciful. Though we be sinners, if we take this course here, as the church doth, to pray and be hum- bled, then it will follow, ' Mine anger is turned away from him.' The use is, First, to observe GocVs truth in the j^crformance of Ids yracioiis promises, who, as he makes gracious promises to us, so he makes them good. His promise is, ' If we confess our sins, he v^^ill forgive them and be merciful,' Prov. xxviii. 13. So here he says, ' Mine anger is turned away.' As they confess, so he is merciful to forgive them. It is good to observe the ex- periments* of God's truth. Every word of God is a shield, that is, we may take it as a shield. It is an experimental truth, whereby we may arm our souls. This is an experimental truth, that when we are humbled for our sins, God, he mil be merciful unto our sins, and allay his anger, as it is in this text. Therefore it is said, ' Those that know thy name will trust in thee, for thou never failest those who put their trust in thee,' Ps. ix. 10. Let us then open our hearts unto God, and confess our sins unto him ; and if we resolve amendment, we shall find the trath of his gracious promises. He win turn aside his anger, and will never fail us, if we put trust in him. The name of the Lord is a strong tower, and the righteous fly to it and are safe,' Prov. xviii. 10. This name of mercy, grace, and favom-, is a strong tower to distressed consciences. Let us therefore remember to fly unto it, when om- consciences are awaked and distressed with sin, and sense of God's displeasui'e. Seeing these kinds of promises are as a city of refuge, let us iim unto them, and we shall not be pulled from the horns of this altar, as Joab once was from his, 1 lungs ii. 28 ; but shall at all times find gi-ace and mercy to help us at the time of need. It is a comfortable point, ' Mine anger is turned away fi-om him.'