He can punish man by Frogges, by Flyes, by Lice, by Graffehoppers, and fuch like armies of his.

Yet he chose to deftroy the army of the Midianites by themfelves, rather then by any other means;

The Lord fet every mans fword against his fellow, throughout all Jud.7.22. the boast.

He could have employed other executioners, to have done vengeance upon blafpheming Senacherib King of Affyria, but he would fhew that no bonds of fociety, or nature can hold them together, whom God hath not joyned.

Therefore it came to paffe as he was worshipping in the house of Ila.37.39; Nif.ock his God that Adrameleck and Sharezer his fons (mote bim with a fword.

2. We are therefore taught to unite our felves in the Lord by the bonds of true love; for all other bonds will be like the new cords wherewith Sampfon was tied, break in funder, and we shall caft them from us.

for

The great friendship that is made by bribes cannot be fincere;

I. The receiver of them knowes that his love is a dear penny worth to his friend; it is not a gift but a perquifite, and therfore he cannot call it fure.

2. The giver knoweth his mony,& not his love made the friend; and if this friendship bear him out of the hands of justice, his confcience will still tell him, that his money, not his innocency acquitted him; if this friendship prefer him,his confcience with in him will fay that his money, not his worthineffe, hath advanced him.

Therefore the frienship thus made is not fincere.

But they whom Religion and the fear of God doth unite,are of one heart, and of one foule; here is no lack of any thing, if A&s 4·32 any of them may supply it; the wounded man fhall have both the oyle and wine of the Samaritane out of his veffels, and the help of his hand, and of his beast, and of his word and of his purse.

Our Saviour Chrift faith, Go thou and do the like.

How can we say we are neighbours, when we' are so far from healing our brethrens wounds, that we rather fet them into a fresh bleeding, and open them wider; we rather make more

Doctr.4.

Jer. 2. 13.

1 Sam.17.

in the whole and found flesh; we rather take away their oils and wine, and beast and money wherewith they should help themselves; and instead of putting them into an house, we take their houses over their heads,and expose them to ftormes.

The God of peace fanctifie us throughout, that his peace may knit us together in him.

Those who trust in men, have no understanding.

Here on earth we do much value the wifdome and judgment of man, by his choyce of adherence and dependance; and we judge them unwife that addrefle themselves to fuch, as cannot either fupport them as they are, or put them on farther.

But the word of the Lord faith, there is no understanding in Edom to trust in man; and the Pfalmift, Non relinquat hominem; he adviseth,

Truft not in Princes, nor in any fon of man, for there is no help in him; God goeth farther in my text, there is treafon in him;subducet auxilium fuper inducet exitium.

He will bring thee to thy uttermoft borders, and there he will leave thee.

Jun. reads, Cujus vulneris non erit intelligentia, as pointing out fo great a plague upon Edom, ut ipfam nequeat mens huma na comprehendere, nedum curare arte & intelligentia.

Joannes Draconites readeth the text thus, Ante proderis hoftibus quàm animadvertas.

But the fenfe is eafie, God cenfureth them for fools, that put their truft in man.

For God himself faith, they commit two great evils, They forfake God the Fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cifterns, broken cifterns that can hold no water.

The Philiftims trufted in their great Champion Goliah, and 10. they defied the hoaft of Ifrael, and defpifed David; the Aramites fent Ifrael word, that the duft of their land should not be. 1 Reg. 20, 10, enough to give every one of their Army an handfull.

The reafon of this folly, is, the god of this world hath blinded 2 Cor. 4·4• the eyes of them that beleeve not; for Satan worketh strongly in the children of difobedience; he hath ftrong illufions for them, to make them beleeve lies.

They that trust in lying vanity, faith Jonah, do forfake their

own mercy.

It

38.

It is a lying vanity to truft the falfe gods of the Heathen. Deut. 3 2. God upbraideth the Apoftate Jewes fo, Let them rife up and help you, let them be a refuge.

It is a lying vanity to truft in any confederacie against God :

It is Gods woe,

Woe to the rebellious children that take counsell, but not of me, that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may adde Ifa.33.1. fin unto fin.

That walk to go downe into Egypt, (and have not asked at my mouth) to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt.

Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the truft in the shadow of Egypt your confufion.

He declareth this folly in the next chapter.

Now the Egyptians are men, and not God, and their horfes flesh, and not fpirit; when the Lord fhall stretch out his hand, he that helpeth fhall fall, and he that is holpen shall fall down, and they all Shall fail together.

This fheweth want of faith, when we truft in the vain help of friends.

It is true, that we must use all good means to further Gods providence; but we must not put any truft in these means; there may be help by them, there is no help in them,

David fetteth these two in oppofition, and declareth the differing fucceffe of them.

Some truft in chariots, and fame in horfes, but we will remember the name of our Lord.

They are brought down and fallen, but we are rifen, and stand upright.

Is it not folly for man to run himself upon the curfe of God? God hath faid it, Curfed be the man that trufteth in man,and maketh flesh his arme, and withdraweth his heart from the Lord.

The Poets, the Prophets of the Heathen, can tell us what ill fucceffe the Gyants of the earth had, which their confederacie against the gods.

Non eft confilium contra Dominum.

The Ufe of this point is

Let us all labour and pray for understanding.

Ifa.31.3.

Pf20,7,8%

Jer.17.

1. To know the impotencie of the creature, that we may not trust to it.

2. To know the omnipotencie of our Creator, that we may not oppose it, but seek our reft under that shadow.

This will change our vain confidence into a strong faith; and faith is a fhield in all our wars,

VERSE 8.

Shall I not in that day (faith the Lord) even deftroy the wifemen.out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Efau.

Their fourth hope despaired.

They trufted to their wifdome;God doth threaten to destroy Doctr. both the wisdom, and the wife men of Edom. In this paflage confider we

Ecc' 9,14

1. The judgment upon Edom, Destruam fapientes, I will deftroy the wife men.

2. The affurance, Dicit Dominus, faith the Lord.
3- The time, in that day.

1. Concerning the judgment, we are taught that humane wifsome and counfels without God, are no fense for a State,

Here is the mother disease of humane nature; Eva heard that wisdome was to be gotten by eating the forbidden fruit, and she aspired in the pride of her heart to be like God, knowing good and evill; ever fince, man hath much affected wisdome; therefore God, who hath revealed the true wifdome to his Church, hath ever professed himself an enemy to the wisdome of this world: it hath two titles, inimicitia apud Deum,& ftultitia, enmity and folly.

The true and faving wifdome is Chrift, he is made unto us of God wifdome; and his word is fufficient to make the man of God Wife unto falvation.

There was a little City and few men within it; and there came a great King against it, and befieged it, and built a bulwark against it.

Now there was found in it a poor Wife man, and he by his wif dome delivered the City.

This little City is the Church of God, the few men in it, be the little flock of Gods chofen;the enemy that affaultech it is Satan, the Prince of darkneffe, the god of this world.

The poore wife man in it is Jefus Chrift, the Carpenter, the fon of poor Mary, of whom the Scribes and Priests said, Is not this the Carpenter?he by his wifdome faved his Church.

This wisdome dire&eth to the whole Armour, and teacheth how to fit it to us, that we may be able to refift Sathan, Ephef. 6.

But the wisdom that is ofthe world, that ftudieth how to carry things on without God, sometimes against God, for God is not in all their wayes, and this was ever a broken reed, it doth both deceive and wound him that leaneth on it; For,

The wisdom of the flesh cannot be Subject to the Law of God, Rom. 8.7. yet it striveth in vaine; For

There is no wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel against the Prov, 21. Lord, for it is written, Job 5. 13. He taketh the wife in their ro. own craftineffe.

1. The reafon is given by the Prophet.

1 Cor.3.19

Yet he also is wife, meaning there the wisdom of direction,and Jsa. 31.2. counsel, for that belongs to him only; the wifdome of obedience and fequence is that which we most seek.

Therefore God refifteth and deftroyech all thofe that ufurpe his wifdome, but take counfell and not of him; and cover with Jfa. 30.1, a covering, but not of his fpirit; that is, feek protection and coverture against evils, but not confulting his fpirit, who alone claimeth right in that title to be cuftos hominum, the preserver of men.

2. God hath chofen the foolio things of the world to destroy the 1Cor.1.7 wife, the reason is given,

That no flesh fhould glory in his prefence; God is the only fub- ver. 19.

ject of glory properly in himself; we give it to him in our Lords Prayer. Tuum eft regnum,potentia & gloria. Thine is Kingdome, &c.

He is a jealous God,he hath sworn that he will not give his glory toany creature;wifdom is one of his glories,ForThe foolishnes Cor.1.25 of God is wifer then men. And for this caufe God will deftroy the wife men of Edom: both their perfons,and their wisdom, as he did Achitophel the Oracle of those times, he defeated him,

for