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ing this, faith -will look through all, and make a reserve in God him- self.
I shall, — I. Give some instances of this. II. Show the grounds of it. III. Come to that which I chiefly intend ; namely, to discover what it is in God that in such an overwhelming condition faith can see and fix upon to give it support and relief. IV. Show how this differs from that general reserve which the nature of man is apt to take in his thoughts of God in distress.
I. I am to give some instances. And we have a very remarkable instance of this in Jonah, who tells us, chap. ii. 2, that he was in " the belly of hell." Hell in Scripture, when it is applied to the things of this world, doth intend the depth of temporal evils; as in Ps. xviii. 4, " The sorrows of hell compassed me/' saith David, speak- ing of the time of his affliction and persecution under Saul. And " the belly of hell " must needs be the darkness and confusion of all those calamitous distresses. Where did Jonah (viewing himself in this condition) look for the cause from whence it did proceed? He tells us, verse 3, " For thou hast cast me into the deep." He knew the occasion of it was his own sinful frowardness; the instrumental cause, — the mariners, upon his own persuasion; but he refers it all to the principal cause, God himself: " Thou hast cast me into the deep." And how did this affect him? Verse 7, " My soul fainted within me." What relief then had he? Verses 5, 6, " The waters compassed me about, even to the soul ; the depth closed me round about, the weeds were wrapped about my head. I went down to the bottom of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever." No manner of relief, support, or succour to be expected ! What did he do in this case? He tells presently. " My prayer came in unto thee," saith he, looking upon God as him who had cast him into this condi- tion; his eye was to him. David gives us several instances of it in himself. Once, I acknowledge, he was mistaken in his course. He tells us so. Ps. lv. 3-5, he had described the overwhelming condition wherein he was. And what course doth he take? Verse 6, " Oh that I had wings like a dove ! for then would I fly away, and be at rest ; I would wander far off, and be in the wilderness." " 0 that I was gone from the midst of all these perplexities, — that I was rid of those that are ready to overwhelm me ! " But this was not a right course. I might give innumerable instances of the contrary. Ps. xxxi. 9, 10, etc., is a description of as sad a condition as any man can fall into, and which is accompanied with a great sense of God's displeasure, and of his own sin. Verse 10, "My strength faileth because of mine iniquity, and my bones are consumed." What course doth he then take? Verse 14, " But I trusted in thee, 0 Lord; I said, Thou art my God." " When my strength failed because of mine iniquities, and my bones were
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242 GOD THE SAINTS' ROCK.
consumed; when there was nothing but distress round* about me, and that from God, yet then ' I trusted in thee, and said, Thou art my God.' " And this is what God himself invites us unto. Isa. xl. 27, there is a complaint made by Jacob, " My way is hid from the Lord, and my judgment is passed over from m}>- God." We have but two things wherein we are concerned in this world, as we are professors of the gospel; and they are, — our way, and our judgment. Our "way;" that is, the course of obedience and profession which, according to the truth, we are engaged in ; as believing in Christ is called a " way." " My way of faith, my way of worship, my way of obedience, is hid from the Lord; God takes no notice of it;" which is as much as to say, " My all in the things of God is at a loss: God takes no notice of my way." Should that be our condition, really we should be of all men most miserable. But there is also our "judgment;" that is, the judg- ment that is to be passed upon our cause and way, which David doth so often pray about when he begs that God would "judge him in his righteousness." Now saith the church here, " God takes no notice of it, but hath put off the cause to the world. My judgment is passed over, determined for me no more; but he lets me suffer under the judgment of the world." And truly, when our way and judgment is passed over, — profession and obedience as it were hid from God, — God takes no notice of them. And when he puts off the judgment and determination of our cause, what have we more in the world? What doth God now propose to them for their relief? what promises, what encouragements, will he remind them of? Nothing but him- self. Verse 28, " Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, faint- eth not, neither is weary? there is no searching of his understanding." God calls them to consider him in his own nature and being, with those glorious acts suited thereunto. He calls our faith to look for rest in himself alone. It is impossible thy way and thy judgment should thus pass over from him, because he is " the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator."