Right Thoughts in Sad Hours

p. 1Right THOUGHTS IN Sad Hours,

Me have ye bereaved of my CHILDREN; Joseph is not, and Simeon is not—all these things are AGAINST me.

THE common, but causeless mistake of Pious Men, under and about Afflictions, is represented in these Words; of which words the venerable Chrysostom in his Ancient Commentary on them, speaks truly, They are fit words to express the Relenting Bowels of a Parent; and yet we may without ill manners venture to add, The words do not altogether p. 2so well become the Grace, the Faith, the Patience of a Christian.

In this Book of the Worlds Beginning, which contains an admirable Narrative of Transactions for above Three and twenty Hundred Years from the first Dawn of Time; the Revolutions which went over the Patriarch Iacob, are not the least spoken of by Moses, the Inspired Historian; and there are especially Three Travels of that renowned Man, which the History of his Life and Death is Elegantly woven into: The last of those Journies was of near Two hundred Miles, namely from Canaan unto Goshen, occasioned by his Son Ioseph's Advancement to be Vice-Roy of Egypt, and the Relief which that Honourable ViceRoy had provided against the sore Famine then raging in the Countries round about.

This Chapter entertains us with a very affecting story of some accidents preparatory thereunto; a story, How the Ten Brethren of Ioseph, by whose Villany he had been Spirited away into Egypt, made their Humble Address unto him for Corn, while his Grandure and his Policy concealed him from their knowledge: How by a contrivance he made one of them, Simeon by name, a Prisoner; in the mean time obliging p. 3the rest to return with another Brother of his, by name Benjamin, who was by them left behind as the chief solace of their Aged Father, and the only remaining Child of his deceased Mother. Old Iacob was made acquainted with the true state of the Case, and in this Verse we have his grievous Resentment of it. In this Querimonious Lamentation of the good old Saint there are especially Two things intimated:

p. 3First, Here seems to be a Suspecting of his Childrens Wickedness; his words are, Me have ye bereaved of my Children, Joseph is not, Simeon is not, and ye will take Benjamin away. Methinks the sorrow of his oppressed Heart seems thus to vent it self, q. d.

This is a strange, and a very sad thing; I cannot trust you all together, but one or other of you, that you think I have a particular kindness for, must come short home. I am now confirmed in my doubts, that you were the Wildbeasts, the unnatural Tygres who tore my Ioseph to pieces. I am not without my Fears, that you are the Iaylors, Shall I say? or the Hangmen who have got my Simeon out of the way. And I am jealous p. 4that you have some ill design upon my best Darling Benjamin too. Never had any man such mishaps in his Children, as your miserable Father has.

Next, Here seems to be a Bewailing of his Makers providence: His words are, All these things are against me. Some render them, All these things are UPON me, q. d.

As for you, you make light of these matters, as if they were no concernment of yours: For my part, I feel them, they go very near to me.

But our Translation of it, seems more worthy of Approbation and Acceptation; All these things are AGAINST me: And then this Paraphrase will carry the sence of it, q. d.

The things which have been my Trouble, will be my Ruine; they are a sort of things which I cannot conceive any advantage to my self consulted in, or accruing by. When I look upon the dealings of the Lord, I cannot but be full of awful Apprehensions that I am utterly banished from the mercies of the Lord; these things render me an undone Man.

Now, remember that the happy event proved him egregiously mistaken here; Ioseph is not, said he; yet, he was, and his p. 5Father had no cause to be sorry that he was what he was: Simeon is not, said he; yet he was, and his Father might have been starved, if he had not been where he was. Those things which he so fondly counted against him, were the very things that not only try'd his Grace, but also sav'd his Life. Let us admit the deplored Child himself, to correct the sad mistake; he said afterwards in Gen. 50. 20. God meant it unto Good.

p. 5The Truth which from this Mistake we may raise for a Doctrine to be now insisted on, is therefore this:

The People of God are apt very frequently, but not a little wrongfully to conclude, that the Afflictive Dispensations of the most High towards them, are very highly to their Prejudice, or but a little to their Benefit.

The Propositions that may serve to state this Truth distinctly in your Thoughts, are such as these.

p. 6Proposition I.

The People of God are sure to be exercised with Afflictive Dispensations of the most High towards them in the World.

There is in every Generation a Remnant, a Little little Flock of Men, who are effectually called from the Vanities which the biggest part of perishing Mankind is wofully drowned in, unto the service of the Living God; who have chosen God as their Best good, and their Last end; chosen Christ as their Lord Redeemer, and resolved to be for him and not for another. These renewed Children of Adam are the Mystical Children of Israel; they may with an Eye to a Spiritual relation, point at Iacob, and say, A Syrian ready to perish was my Father. Now these must even in a peculiar manner expect to be like their Father Iacob, who in the close of his days was forced to say, Gen. 47. 9. Evil have been the days of the years of my Life. In every Age and in every Place, we may see the most High God afflicting of a Iacob in his Relations; of them, some are Churlish, others are Profane, and others are Taken p. 7away. We may behold the Lord ◊fflicting of an Heman in his Mind; th◊ Man complains, Lord, Why dost thou cast off my Soul? While I suffer thy Terrors, I am distracted. We may behold the Lord Afflicting of a Timothy in his Body, he feels a weak Stomack, with often Infirmities. We may behold the Lord Afflicting of a Lazarus in his Estate, he is reduced unto Beggery at the Doors of a wicked Belly-God. We may behold the Lord Afflicting of an Elijah in his Esteem, he is Libelled as a Seditions Boutefeau, always Troubling of his Country. In a word, we may ordinarily behold a David, a Iob, a Paul, Afflicted in all, or most of these regards.