Again, an idle man in his calling, though he pray much and often to prosper therein, God, if he make his word good, will not grant his suit. As he hath said, 'the hand of the diligent maketh rich,' Prov. x. 4, so, on the contrary, he hath said in other places, ' that the sluggard shall be clothed with rags ; that his soul shall desire, and have nothing ; that because he will not plough in the cold, therefore he shall beg in harvest,' Prov. xx. 4, and thou, 0 sluggard, dost thou think then to obtain anything without pains- taking ? So in another kind the Jews bade Christ to come down from the cross, and save himself, if he were the son of God ; when in the mean time
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for tbo very same thing, because he was the Son of God, and had under- taken and promised to finish then the work of our redemption, he might not come down from the cross and save himself from that hour. And further, when a man blosseth himself in sin, as it is Deut. xxix. 19, saying ia his heart, that 'he shall liave peace, walking in the imagination of his heart; adding drunkenness to thirst,' &c., God hath passed his word, that he will not spare such a man, but his wrath shall smoke against him, and all the curses that are written in the book of God shall lie upon him. In this case, continuing and delighting in sin, God cannot hear such a prayer, unless he forget his word. Understand thou, man, God could never be held by such prayers that cross his will, and the manner of his government, yea, such against which he hath so often protested in his word.
Secondly, In the things asked, he understands that such should be good for us in lawfulness of circumstances, as,
1. The quality of the same good things. 2. The time. 3. The means. 4. The manner. 5. The measure.
I. For the hrst, [' the quality ']. We know the main promise, made to the faithful, Horn. viii. 28, is, that ' all things work together for good unto them that love God.' Therefore, that which cannot be unto thee for good it is not intended, nor ever shall be given, if God do love thee. See also in my text, the last part of Christ's last argument is the same in eftect: *how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask them?' The physician knows better than the patient what is good for him, so that I say, for this cause many things are profitably denied us, which could not conveniently without hurt be granted : as we see fathers will keep from their children knives, burning sticks, and all such sharp and dangerous things, not because they love them not, but because they love them so much, therefore they will keep from them all things hurtful.
II. Secondly, For the time. God gives us his bill, but he will pay at his pleasure. There is a time, but when, that is concealed ; not that it is uncertain unto God, but it is hid from thee, as in Ps. Isxxvi. 7, ' He will hear,' but it is ' in the time of trouble ; ' yea, of great trouble and sorrow ; betwixt the cup and the lip, as the proverb is. It was Abraham's experi- ence: Gen. xxii. 14, ' In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen;' all things were there ready for a sacrifice, the wood was laid, the fire was ready, Isaac was bound, the hand and knife lifted up to kill and cut asunder the only son, and son of the promise ; but at an instant came a stop unlocked for, which mercy being so great, it was then made unto us an instance for ever, that even in the most desperate cases we should not despair, but hope against hope, as he did. Now, why the Lord thus delays to help and hear us, thei'e be divers reasons.
(1.) First, That our faith and dependence on him mir/ht he the better tried, which experience, though it be sore, yet we must be courageous, since the is^ue is joyful ; though it be bitter, yet the victory obtained is great, as we may see in the woman of Canaan, a good suitor, having a good suit, yet how dpth our Lord put her off a long time, that to others he might open the faith of this woman, and make her unto us a precedent for ever, Mat. vii. 6, et seq.
(2.) Secondly, Sometimes it is done to humUe men, as Judges xx. In a good quarrel, having a good cause, we know what befell them. See what need we have of prayer to do all things aright. They consult with God
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what to do ; they receive encouragement from him to go on, and jet are overthrown; the second time they weep, and mourn, and are beaten again. In such a case it seemeth strange to be overcome. Well, the third time they weep and fast, are humbled before God for their own sins, ere they seek revenge for other men's, then they prevail. Thus ' God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble,' James iv. 6. Till we be nothing in our own ej^es, he never comes with comfortable deliverance till we come to that pinch wherein we cry. Up, ' Lord, how long,' &c., as Paul saith of himself, ' We had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we might not trust in ourselves, but in God which quickeneth the dead,' 2 Cor. i. 9. The Lord brought him out of hope of life, that he might be humbled, and learn to know where only life, help, and comfort in all extremities is to be found.