See this last help to stay up our hands, to wit, that little picture of the great God in the dearness of affection which he hath placed in parents. If thou be a father or a mother, thou knowest it ; but no man can know it but a father or a mother. Also, hast thou not seen what affection may be in a son to the father ? As we read of the son of Crojsus, who, though he were dumb, yet when he saw the murderers to come in, who were ready to kill his father, violence of affection suddenly burst forth into these words, as the story shews, ' Oh, spare my father ! ' (/). If so much may be in a son unto thee, how much more may be in thy God for thee ?
THE KNOT OF PRAYER LOOSED.
251
Now for all this, thou art afraid of thy imperfections, weaknesses, and manifold infirmities, that these shall stay good things from thee ; and there- fore thou criest out, Oh my prayers are lost, they are to no purpose ! oh my sins, weaknesses, and infirmities, these stop the way to my prayers ! What, man ! Hast thou a son, and perhaps he marries without thy per- mission, or doth some other shrewd* turn, which grieves and vexeth thy spirit, and this child, perhaps, comes home wounded unto thee, with blood about his ears, and so falls down before thee, freely confessing his wander- ing and misdemeanours, and prays for thy favour and forgiveness ; tell me, wouldst thou not embrace him, and cry out, * Oh my son, my son ! ' all the rest should be forgotten and forgiven ? What then, O man, thinkest thou of thy God, when thou sayest thou canst have no comfort in prayer ? Thou beast, what wilt thou make of thy God ? What ! is he a God of cruelty, anger, and revenge only? No, no ; in this case thou feignest unto thyself false and abominable conceits of God, and thence the returns of thy comforts are answerable unto thy wretched fancies. But if ever he hath turned thy heart unto him, and dealt graciously with thee, or hath allured thee unto him by his graciousness and kind dealing with others ; or if thou findest in thyself how much thou canst pass by in thy child, though there be many great faults and omissions, make thy advantage of this, and go unto thy God ; whatsoever thy case be, thou shalt find him more exceed- ing merciful, as the church doth, Micah vii. 9, and therefore she comes to triumph : ver. 18, ' Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgressions of the remnant of his inheritance ? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again,' &c.
We are all much to blame in this, even those who have the greatest mea- sures of grace, that we do not aright make use of the nature of God. Sometimes melancholy, temptation, and want of judgment are causes of our error, wherein our understanding, fancy, and other powers of the soul are disordered, until light come in to dispel these clouds. It is strange to think that when we were enemies to God, with our backs to him in our natural blindness, and in sin running from him, then to think he should receive us, and now to stab us with our faces towards him in the state of reconcihation.
To conclude, if it be such a hard thing to pray so as to obtain, if we have need of such and so many helps to Hft and hold up our very hands, which are ready to fall down, the Lord teach us to know our faults, and tell us what is yet further to be done, that we may learn to wrestle with God, and prevail in prayer ! If we have been faulty in times past, let us mend ; and among other things, now when the ark is like to be in danger, let us not prove injurious unto God in forsaking his cause. Hear me ; hath God brought the church in divers places now into such dangers, yea, and some great ones also, environed with fears and crosses, and shall we now prove so injurious to God as to retire from them (at least not to have the benefit of our help and prayers) ? Was it accounted such a foul ofience to cause Uriah to be left in danger in the foremost rank, and then command that the troops should retire ; and shall we not now be much more faulty to leave them in this danger ? Let us aid them, then, with our prayers, until God, who is wonderful in working, and excellent in power, bring light from this darkness. We know not what the issue may be ; but in
* Cf. our Glossary, sub voce. — G.
252 THE KNOT OF PBAYER LOOSED.
the mean time, if we pray, this remaineth always snre, that * if we ask, we shall receive.' Our Lord hath said it ; it is so, it must be so.
NOTES.
(a) P. 235. — ' It was a rule in tlie ancient time, " Lay thy hand on the plough," &c. Sec note c to ' Dii'ine Medilalions,' page 229.