Ver. 27, ' Because thine heart was tender,' &c.
Now here comes a comfortable message to good Josiah, that he should * That is, 'naughty,' wicked G.
THE TENDER HEART, 31
be taken away and not see the miseries that should befall his people ; the cause whereof is here set down, ' Because thy heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before God ;' which cause is double.
1. Imcard. 2. Outicard.
1. The inward is the tenderness of his heart and humbling of himself. 2. And then the outward expression of it is set down in a double act :
(1.) Bending of clothes. (2.) Weeping.
' Because thou hast rent thy clothes, and wept before me.' After which comes the promise, ' I have also heard thee,' saith the Lord ; ' behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be put in thy grave in peace, and thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place, and upon the inhabitants of the same.'
I will first remove one doubt, before I come to the tenderness of Josiah's heart.
Quest. What! may some say, Is there anything in man that can cause God to do do him good ?
Ans. No. One thing is the cause of another, but all come from the first cause. So tenderness of heart may be some cause of removal of judgment ; but God is the cause of both, for they all come from the first cause, which is God. So that these words do rather contain an order than a cause. For God hath set down this order in things, that where there is a broken heart there shall be a freedom from judgment ; not that tenderness of heart deserves anything at God's hand, as the papists gather, but because God hath decreed it so, that where tenderness of heart is, there mercy shall follow ; as here there was a tender heart in Josiah, therefore mercy did follow. God's promises are made conditionally ; not that the condition on our part deserves anything at God's hand, but when God hath given the condition, he gives the thing promised. So that this is an order which God hath set down, that where there is grace, mercy shall follow. For where God intends to do any good, he first works in them a gracious disposition : after which he looks upon his own work as upon a lovely object, and so doth give them other blessings. God crowns gi'ace with grace.
By ' heart ' is not meant the inward material and fleshy part of the body ; but that spiritual part, the soul and afi'ections thereof. In that it is said to be ' tender' or melting, it is a bon'owed and metaphorical phrase. Now in a ' tender heart' these three properties concur :
1. It is sensible. 2. It is pliable. 3. It is yielding.
1. First, A tender heart is always a sensible'-^- heart. It hath life, and therefore sense. There is no living creature but hath life, and sense to preserve that life. So a tender heart is sensible of any grievance ; for tenderness doth presuppose life, because nothing that hath not life is tender. Some senses are not altogether necessary for the being of a living creature, as hearing and seeing; but sensibleness is needful to the being of every living creature. It is a sign of life in a Christian when he is sensible of inconveniences. Therefore God hath planted such afiections in man, as may preserve the life of man, as fear and love. Fear is that which makes a man avoid many dangers. Therefore God hath given us fear to cause us make our peace with him in time, that we may be freed from inconveniences ; yea, from that greatest of inconveniences, hell fire.
2, 3. Again, A tender heart is pliable and yielding. Now that is said to be yielding and pliable, which yields to the touch of anything that is put to it, and doth not stand out, as a stone that rebounds back when it is
* That is, * sensitive.' — G.
32 THE TENDER UEART.
thrown against a wall. So that is said to be tender which hath life, and sense, and is pliable, as was is yielding and pliable to the disposition of him that works it, and is apt to receive any impression that is applied to it. In a tender heart there is no resistance, but it yields presently to every truth, and hath a pliableness and a fitness to receive any impression, and to execute any performance ; a fit temper indeed for a heart wrought on by the Spirit. God must first make us fit, and then use us to work. As a wheel must first be made round, and then turned round, so the heart must be first altered, and then used in a renewed way. A tender heart, so Boon as the word is spoken, yields to it. It quakes at threatenings, obeys precepts, melts at promises, and the promises sweeten the heart. In all duties concerning God, and all offices of love to men, a tender heart is thus qualified. But hardness of heart is quite opposite. For, as things dead and insensible, it will not yield to the touch, but returns back whatsoever is cast upon it. Such a heart may be broken in pieces, but it will not receive any impression ; as a stone may be broken, but will not be pliable, but rebound back again. A hard heart is indeed like wax to the devil, but like a stone to God or goodness. It is not yielding, but resists and repels all that is good ; and therefore compared in the Scripture to the adamant stone. Sometimes it is called a frozen heart, because it is unpliable to anything. You may break it in pieces, but it is unframeable for any ser- vice, for any impression ; it will not be wrought upon. But on the con- trary, a melting and tender heart is sensible, yielding, and fit for any service both to God and man. Thus we see plainly what a tender heart is. The point from hence is,