He muft needs temove the other with it. Chrift and comfort are indeed fo united, but nothing befide him is or can be fo. I hope you will fhortly experience the truth of this conclufion, by the comfort God will give you in the abfence of those comforts you have loft. Can you not now have as free accefs to God as before? Yea, do not these very afflictions fend you oftener into his presence? And if God meet you in those duties, (as in days of distress he uses to meet his people), then it will be evident to you that your joy and comfort lives, though your husband and children be laid in their graves. 3. That the removing of your earthly comforts hinders not but that you may still purfue the great end and bufinefs of your life, and carry on all yout defigns for heaven as futcessfully as ever. Indeed, Madam, had we been fent into this world to taife eftates, contract relations, and then fit down in the midft of them as our portion, then our defign had been utterly dashed and disappointed; but you know this is not your main end, or great bufinefs upon earth, but to honour God by an holy fruitful life here, and make ready for the full enjoyment of him hereafter. And what hinders but you may as profperoufly manage and carry on this your defign as ever? You do not think the traveller is difabled for his journey, because he hath fewer clogs and hindrances than before. I think few Chriftians find much furtherance heavenward by their multiplicity of engagements or enjoyments in this world. Your cares and fears about these things, will now lie in a narrower compass than they did before, and thereby you may have your thoughts more about you, to attend the great concerns of God's glory, and your own falvation. 4. But above all, you will certainly find your relief and confolation to lie in the everlasting covenant of God. Thence it was, that David fetched his fupport under a much heavier burden and smarter rod than relations were yours: For your fuch as gave you comfort in their lives, and left you many grounds of hope in their deaths: but his were taken away in their fins. But though the grounds of his forrow (bleffed be God) are not yours, yet I hope the grounds of his comfort in the text are fully yours. I confefs, I have prepared these things in too much haste and distraction of thoughts, which in this juncture was una-, voidable; nor have I beftowed much of art or language upon them: And if I had, they would have been never the more effectual to your relief for that. But fuch as they are, I Ddd VOL. VII. humbly prefent them to you, with my hearty prayers, that God would make them a fovereign balm, by the bleffing of his Spirit on them, to your wounded spirit, and to all other godly families groaning under the like ftrokes of God with you, and remain, MADAM, Your most faithful, Sympathizing friend and fervant, 2 SAM. xxiii. 5. Although my house be not fo with God; yet he hath made with me an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and fure: for this is all my falvation, and all my defire, although he make it not to grow. TH THESE are part of David's laft words. The laft words of dying faints, but especially of dying prophets, are ponderous, memorable, and extraordinarily remarkable; and fuch are these acknowledged to be, by all expofitors: It is a golden fentence, a divine oracle, fit to be the last words of every dying faint, as well as of David. They are called his last words, not fimply, and abfolutely, as though he breathed them forth with his laft breath; (for he fpake many things afterwards) but either they are the last he fpake as a prophet, by Divine infpiration, or because he had them often in his mouth, to his laft and dying day. They were his epicedium, his sweet fwan-like fong, in which his foul found fingular refreshment, and strong support, amidst the manifold afflictions of his life, and against the fears of his approaching death. The whole chapter is defigned for a coronis or honourable clofe of the life of David, and gives us an account both of the worthy expreffions that dropped from him, and of the renown. ed worthies that were employed by him: But all the heroic atchievements recorded to the honour of their memories, in the following part of the chapter, are trivial and inglorious. things, compared with this one divine fentence recorded inmy text; in which we have two things to confider, viz. 1. The preface, which is exceeding folemn. 2. The fpeech itfelf, which is exceeding weighty. 1. In the preface, we have both the inftrumental and prix cipal efficient cause of this divine fentence diftinctly fet down, ver. I. and the efficient, or author of it, ver. 2. The inftrument or organ of its conveyance to us, was David; defcribed by his defcent or lineage, the Son of Feffe; by his eminent ftation, the man that was raised up on high, even to the top and culminating point of civil and spiritual dignity and honour, both as a king, and as a prophet; by his divine unction, the anointed of the God of Jacob; and laftly, by the flowing sweetness of his fpirit and stile, in the divine pfalms that were penned by him, whence he here gets the ti tle of the fweet pfalmift of Ifrael, the pleasant one, in the - pfalms of Ifrael, as fome read it. The principal efficient cause of this excellent paffage, is here likewise noted, and all to commend it the more to our fpecial obfervation and acceptance: "The Spirit of God fpake by me, "and his word was in my tongue.' This ftamps my text exprefsly with divine authority. The Spirit of God fpake by David, he was not the Author, but only the Scribe of it. Thus the enfuing discourse is prefaced. Let us next fee, upon 2. The matter or fpeech itself, wherein we fhall find the maxims, and general rules of government prescribed, and the felicity of fuch a government elegantly defcribed: "He that "ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God." Princes being in God's place, muft exalt the righteousness of God, in the government of men; and when they do fo, they fhall be as the light of the morning when the fun rifeth, even a morning without clouds, &c. What halcyon days fhall that hap py people fee, whofe lot is caft into fuch times and places! All this is typically fpoken of David, and thofe pious princes who fucceeded him; but myftically and eminently points at Chrift, who was to rife out of David's feed, Rom, i. 3. and to fit his throne, Acts ii. 30. So that in this he was raised on high, to an eminency of glory and dignity indeed: he was fo in his ordinary natural feed; a royal race, deriving itself from him, and fitting upon his throne in a lineal fucceffion, till the Babylonith captivity, which was about four hundred and thirty years, And after that, the Jews had governors of his line, at least rightful heirs to that crown, till the promifed Meffiah came. But that which was the top of David's honour, the most sparkling jewel in his crown, was this, that the Lord Jefus was to defcend from him, according to the flesh, in whom all the glo rious characters before given, fhould not only be exactly anIwered, but abundantly exceeded. And thus you find the na tural line of the Meffiah is drawn down by Matthew, from David to the virgin Mary, Matth. i. And his legal line by Luke, from David to Jofeph, his fuppofed father, Luke ii. 23. Now, though the illuftrious marks and characters of fuch a righteous, ferene, and happy government, did not fully agree to his day, nor would do fo in the reigns of his ordinary na tural fucceffors, his day was not without many clouds both of fin and trouble; yet fuch a bleffed day he forefaw and rejoiced in, when Chrift, the extraordinary feed of David, should a rife, and fet up his kingdom in the world, and with the expectation hereof, he greatly cheers and encourages himself: "Although my houfe be not fo with God, yet hath he made ❝ with me an everlasting covenant," &c. In which words four things are eminently remarkable. 1. Here is a fad conceffion of domeftic evils. 2. A fingular relief, from God's covenant with him. 3. The glorious properties of this covenant difplayed. 4. The high efteem and dear regard his houfe had unto it. 1. Here is David's fad and mournful conceffion of the evils of his houfe, both moral and penal. "Altho' my house be not "fo with God," i. e. neither fo holy, nor fo happy, as this de fcription of a righteous and flourishing government imports alas! it answers not to it: For though he was eminent for godlinefs himself, and had folemnly dedicated his houfe to God, Pfal. xxx. as foon as it was built, yea, though he piously refolved to walk in the midst of it with a perfect heart, and not to fuffer an immoral perfon within his walls; yet great miscar riages were found even in David's houfe and perfon, which God chastised him for, by a thick fucceffion of sharp and fore afflictions, Pfalm ci. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. Tamar was defiled by her brother Amnon, 2 Sam. xiii. 13. Amnon was barbarouf ly murdered thereupon, by the advice of Abfalom, 2 Sam. xiii. 28. Abfalom unnaturally rebels against his father David, and drives him out of the royal city, and perishes in that rebel. lion, 2 Sam. xv. 1. then Adonijah, another darling-fon, grafps at the crown fettled by David upon Solomon, and perish es for that his ufurpation, 1 Kings ii. 25. O what a heap of mischiefs and calamites did this good man live to fee within his own walls, befides the many foreign troubles that came from other hands! How many flourishing branches did God lop off from him, and that in their fins too? So that his day was a day of clouds, even from the morning unto the evening of it; Pfal. cxxxii. 1. "Lord, remember David, and all his afflictions." Well might he fay, "his house was not fo with God,” But what then, doth he faint and defpond under these manifold calamities? Doth he refufe to be comforted, because his children are gone; and all things involved in trouble? No, but you find, 2. He relieves himself by the covenant God had made with him: "Yet hath he made with me a covenant.' He looks to Christ, "There is more in the covenant than this my house be"fore God," as the Chaldee turns it. This little word yet, wraps up a great and fovereign cordial in it. Though Amnon, Abfalom, and Adonijah be gone, and gone with many fmarting aggravations too; "yet hath he made with me a cove"nant," yet I have this sheet-anchor left to fecure me. God's covenant with me, in relation to Chrift, this under-props and fhores up my heart. This covenant was, without controversy, a gospel-covenant. It was David's gofpel: For all his falvation and all his defire were in it; which could never be, except Chrift had been in it, who is the falvation of all the ends of the earth, and the defire of all nations. It is true, it was a more obfcure and imperfect edition of the covenant of faith, yet clearer than those that were made before it; it came not up to the fulness and clearness of the difcoveries made by Jeremy and Ezekiel: But yet in this covenant with David, God revealed more of Chrift, than had been ever revealed before; for the light of Chrift, like that of the morning, increased ftill more and more, till it came to a perfect day. It is worthy our obfervation, how God made a gradual discovery of Chrift from Adam, down along to the New-Teftament times. It was revealed to Adam, that he should be the feed of the woman but not of what nation, till Abraham's time; nor of what tribe, till Jacob; nor of what sex and family, till David; nor that he fhould be born of a virgin, till Isaiah; nor in what town, till Micah. The first revelation of this covenant. with David, was by Nathan the prophet; 2 Sam. vii. 12, 13, 14. afterwards enlarged and confirmed, Pfalm lxxxix. By it he knew much of Chrift, and wrote much of him. He fpake of his perfon, Pfalm xlv. 6, 11. Pfalm viii. 4, 5, 6. of his offices, both prophetical, Pfalm xl. 8, 9, 10. priestly, Pfalm cx. 4. and hingly, Pfalm ii. 6. of his incarnation, Pfal. viii. 5. of his death on the cross, Pfalm xxii. 16, 17. of his burial, Pfalm xvi. 8, 9, 10. refurrection, Pfalm ii. 7. and triumphant afcenfion, Pfalm lxviii. 18. there was the fum of the gofpel discover "Plus eft quam hæc domus mea ante Deum, Jon, ༈ |