For Sibbes, then, is not claimed the title of 'great' — so much abused, and indeed vulgarised — in the world's meaning. Weighed again.st contemporaries — Shakespeare, Bacon, Milton — he has no awful crown of genius. Placed beside other divines, Church and Puritanf he lacks the orient splendour of Jeremy Taylor, the massive- ne.ss of Barrow, the intensity of Baxter, the unexpected wit of Thomas Adams, the exhaustiveness of John Owen, the profundity of Thomas Goodwin ; nor has he left behinjd him any great work such as that on the 'The Creed' by Pearson, or the 'Defensio' by Bull. In reading him, we never come upon recondite speculation, wide-
PBEFATORY NOTE. XI
reaching generalisation, sustained argument, burning eloquence, flashes of wit, aphoristic wisdom, not even, or but rarely, melody of words. But a ' soul of goodness' informs every fibre and filament of his thinking ; nor is there a page without FOOD for the spiritually 'hungry.' He has few equals, and certainly no superior, for ingenuity in bringing 'comfort' to tried, weary ones, and in happy use of Scripture, his mere citation of a text being often like a shaft of light.* It should be noticed, that the very invariable- ness of Sibbes's excellence hides his richness and power, as the very commonness of the air makes us forget the wonder and the blessedness of it.
In a word, Richard Sibbes seems ever to come to us from his knees, ever brings with him a 'savour' of Christ, and beyond almost every contemporary approaches the office of the Holy Spirit, whose specific work is not to do 'great' but 'good' things, ever taking 'of the things of Christ and shewing them.' May the Master own and use this edition of his long-departed servant's Works in these ' latter days.' A. B. G.
* See ' Affliction' and ' Assurance' in General Index.
BALAAM'S WISH.
VOL. VII.
BALAAM'S WISH.
NOTE.
' Balaam's "Wish' forms ono of the scrnuins which compose ' Evangelical Sacrifices' (4to. 1640). [Cf. Vol. V. page 156.] Its separate title-page is given below.*
• BALAAi.IS WISH.
In ono Funerall Sermon upon NvMB. 23. 10.
By
The late Learned and Reverend Divine,
Rich. Si bbs :
Doctor in Divinity, Mr of K a t n e r i n E Hall
in Cambridge, and sometimes Preacher
to the Ilonourable Society of
Gkayes-Inne.
Peo. 13. 4. The soule of the sluggard desireth, and fiath nothing.
London, Printed by £. Purslow, for N. Bourne, at the Roy- all Exchange, and /?. Harford at the gilt Bible in Quecnes head Alley, in Patcr- Noster-Row. 1 6 :•! 9.
BALAAM'S WISH.
Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end he like his! — Numb.
XXIII. 10.
The false prophet Balaam goes about to curse, where God had blessed. But God reveals his wonders in his saints by delivering of them, and keeping them from dangers, when they never think of them. They never thought they had such an enemy as Balaam. The church of God is a glorious company, and the great God doth great things for it. So long as they keep close to him, their state is impregnable, as we may read here. Neither Balak nor Balaam, that was hired to curse them, could prevail, but the curse returns upon their own head.
These words I have read to you, they are Balaam's desire, Balaam's acclamation. Divers questions might be moved concerning Balaam, which I will not stand upon, but come directly to the words, wherein are con- siderable these things.
First, That the righteous men die, and have an end as well as others. _
Secondly, That the state of the soul continues after death. It was in vain for him to desire ' to die the death of the righteous,' but in regard of the subsistence of the soul.
Thirdly, That the estate of righteous men in their end is a blessed estate, because here it was the desire of Balaam, ' Oh that I might die the death of the righteous ! '
Fourthly, There is an excellent estate of God's people, and they desire that portion : ' Oh let me die the death of the righteous.' These are the four things I shall unfold, which discover the intendment of Balaam in these words.
For the first I will touch it briefly, and so go on.
Obs. 1. The righteous die, and in the same manner outwardly as the wicked do.
For Christ, in his first coming, came not to redeem our bodies from death, but our souls from damnation. His second coming shall be to redeem our bodies from corruption into a ' glorious liberty.' Therefore wise men die as well as fools. Those whose eyes and hands have been lift up to God in prayer, and whose feet have carried them to the holy place, as well as those whose eyes are full of adultery, and whose hands are fuU of blood, they die all alike, in manner alike. Ofttimes it is the
4 BALAAM S WISH.
Bamo in the eye of the world. Death comes upon good and had, hut to the good for their greater glory; for the shell must ho hroken hefore they come to the pearl. Death it fits them for the hlessed life after the hody lying a while in the gi"ave, the soul hcing in the hands of Crod. And death now it makes an end of sin, that hrought in death ; and it makes us con- formahlo to the Son of God, our Elder Brother, that died for us. The point is pregnant, and full of gracious and serious meditations?