made gods of every thing they saw or imagined, of every thing, in, and between heaven and hell, we read of no man that sacrificed to himself. Indeed no man flatters me so dangerously, as I flatter myself, no man wounds me so desperately, as I wound myself; and therefore, since this which we call mediocrity, and competency is conditioned so, that it is enough to subsist alone, without relation to others, dependency upon others, fear from others, induces a confidence, a relying upon myself; as, that which we imagine to be the middle region of the air, is the coldest of all, so this imagined mediocrity, that induces a confidence in ourselves, is the weakest rest, the coldest comfort of all, and makes me a lie to myself. Therefore may the prophet well spread, and safely extend his asseveration, his surely, upon all, high, and low, and mean; Surely to be laid in the balance, they are altogether lighter than vanity.

Here then, upon a full enumeration of all parts, the prophet concludes upon all. If therefore thou have the favour of great ones, the applause of the people, confidence in thyself, in an instant, the power of those great ones may be overthrown, or their favour to thee withdrawn from thee, (and so that bladder is pricked, upon which thou swammest) the applause of the people may be hushed and silenced, (either they would not, or they dare not magnify thee) and, thine own constancy may be turned into a dejection of spirit, and consternation of all thy faculties. Put all together, (which falls out seldom, that any man can do so) but if he can do that, (which is the best state of man, that can be imagined in this world, that he hath all these together, the favour of high and low, and of himself, that is, his own testimony in his conscience, (though perchance an erring, a mistaking conscience) yet, the prophet had delivered the same assurance before (even of that state of man, which is rather imagined, than ever possessed) Surely every man, at his best state, is altogether vanity; and here, he adds, lighter than vanity 52. Vanity is nothing, but there is a condition worse than nothing. Confidence in the things, or persons of this world, but most of all, a confidence in ourselves, will bring us at last to that state, wherein we would 52 Psalm xxxix. 5.

fain be nothing, and cannot. But yet, we have a balance in our text; and all these are but put together in one balance. In the other scale there is something put to, in comparison whereof all this world is so light. God does not leave our great and noble faculty, and affection of hope, and trust, and confidence, without something to direct itself upon, and rectify itself in. He does not; for, for that he proposes himself; the words immediately before the text, are, God is a refuge; and in comparison of him, To be laid in the balance, Surely they are altogether lighter than vanity.

53.

54

So then, it is not enough not to trust in the flesh (for, for that, Cursed be man, that trusted in man, or maketh flesh his arm53 ; their flesh cannot secure thee, neither is thine own flesh brass" that thou canst endure the vexations of this world, neither can flesh and blood reveal unto thee the things of the next world 5). It is not enough not to trust in flesh, but thou must trust in that that is spirit. And when thou art to direct thy trust upon him, who is spirit, the spirit of power, and of consolation, stop not, stray not, divert not upon evil spirits, to seek advancement, or to seek knowledge from them, nor upon good spirits, the glorious saints of God in heaven, to seek salvation from them, nor upon thine own spirit, in an over-valuation of thy purity, or thy merits. For, there is a pestilent pride in an imaginary humility, and an infectious foulness in an imaginary purity; but turn only to the only invisible and immortal God, who turns to thee, in so many names and notions of power, and consolation, in this one Psalm. In the last verse but one of this Psalm, David says, God hath spoken once, and twice have I heard him. God hath said enough at once; but twice, in this Psalm, hath he repeated this, in the second, and in the sixth verse, He only is my rock and my salvation, and my defence, and (as it is enlarged in the seventh verse) my refuge and my glory. If my refuge, what enemy can pursue me? If my defence, what temptation shall wound me? If my rock, what storm shall shake me? If my salvation, what melancholy shall deject me? If my glory, what calumny shall defame me?

53 Jer. xvii. 5.

54 Job vi. 12.

55 Matt. xvi. 17.

I must not stay you now, to infuse into you the several consolations of these several names, and notions of God towards you. But, go your several ways home, and every soul take with him. that name, which may minister most comfort unto him. Let him that is pursued with any particular temptation, invest God, as God is a refuge, a sanctuary. Let him that is buffeted with the messenger of Satan, battered with his own concupiscence, receive God, as God is his defence and target. Let him that is shaked with perplexities in his understanding, or scruples in his conscience, lay hold upon God, as God is his rock, and his anchor. Let him that hath any diffident jealousy or suspicion of the free and full mercy of God, apprehend God, as God is his salvation; and him that walks in the ingloriousness and contempt of this world, contemplate God, as God is his glory. Any of these notions is enough to any man, but God is all these, and all else, that all souls can think, to every man. We shut up both these considerations, (man should not, that is not all, God should be relied upon) with that of the prophet, Trust ye not in a friend, put not your confidence in a guide, keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lies in thy bosom 5; (there is the exclusion of trust in man) and then he adds in the seventh verse, because it stands thus between man and man, I will look unto the Lord, I will look to the God of my salvation, my God will hear me.

50 Mic. vii. 5.

156

THE SECOND OF MY PREBEND SERMONS UPON MY FIVE PSALMS.

SERMON LXVI.

PREACHED AT ST. PAUL'S, JANUARY 29, 1625.

PSALM LXiii. 7.

Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.

THE Psalms are the manna of the church. As manna tasted to every man like that he liked best', so do the Psalms minister instruction, and satisfaction, to every man, in every emergency and occasion. David was not only a clear prophet of Christ himself, but a prophet of every particular Christian; he foretells what I, what any shall do, and suffer, and say. And as the whole Book of Psalms is oleum effusum, (as the spouse speaks of the name of Christ) an ointment poured out upon all sorts of sores, a cerecloth that supples all bruises, a balm that searches all wounds; so are there some certain Psalms, that are imperial Psalms, that command over all affections, and spread themselves over all occasions, catholic, universal Psalms, that apply themselves to all necessities. This is one of those; for, of those constitutions which are called apostolical, one is, that the church should meet every day, to sing this Psalm. And accordingly, St. Chrysostom testifies, That it was decreed, and ordained by the primitive fathers, that no day should pass without the public singing of this Psalm. Under both these obligations, (those ancient constitutions, called the apostle's, and those ancient decrees made by the primitive fathers) belongs to me, who have my part in the service of God's church, the especial meditation, and recommendation of this Psalm. And under a third obligation too, that it is one of those five Psalms, the daily rehearsing whereof, is enjoined to me, by the constitutions of this church, as five other are to every other person of our body. As the whole book is

1 Wisdom xvi. 20.

2 Cant. i. 3.

manna, so these five Psalms are my gomer, which I am to fill and empty every day of this manna.

Now as the spirit and soul of the whole Book of Psalms is contracted into this Psalm, so is the spirit and soul of this whole Psalm contracted into this verse. The key of the Psalm, (as St. Hierome calls the titles of the Psalms) tells us, That David uttered this Psalm, when he was in the wilderness of Judah; there we see the present occasion that moved him; and we see what was passed between God and him before, in the first clause of our text (Because thou hast been my help) and then we see what was to come, by the rest, (Therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice). So that we have here the whole compass of time, past, present, and future; and these three parts of time, shall be at this time, the three parts of this exercise; first, what David's distress put him upon for the present; and that lies in the context; secondly, how David built his assurance upon that which was past; (Because thou hast been my help). And thirdly, what he established to himself for the future, (Therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice). First, his distress in the wilderness, his present estate carried him upon the memory of that which God had done for him before, and the remembrance of that carried him upon that, of which he assured himself after. Fix upon God any where, and you shall find him a circle; he is with you now, when you fix upon him; he was with you before, for he brought you out to this fixation; and he will be with you hereafter, for he is yesterday, and to-day, and the same for ever3.

For David's present condition, who was now in a banishment, in a persecution in the wilderness of Judah, (which is our first part) we shall only insist upon that, (which is indeed spread over all the Psalm to the text, and ratified in the text) that in all those temporal calamities David was only sensible of his spiritual loss; it grieved him not that he was kept from Saul's court, but that he was kept from God's church. For when he says, by way of lamentation, That he was in a dry and thirsty land, where no water was, he expresses what penury, what barrenness, what drought and what thirst he meant; To see thy power, and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. For there, my

3 Heb. xiii. 8.