An exposition with practical observations continued upon the eighth, ninth, & tenth chapters of the prophesy of Hosea being first delivered in several lectures at Michaels Cornhil, London / by Jeremiah Burroughs ; being the seventh book published by Thomas Goodwin ... [et al.]

The workman made it; therefore it is not God.

There are Two Arguments why their Calf was not God.

First, From the workman that made it.

Secondly, Because it should be taken in pieces. It's the greatest folly to look upon that which hath its excellency from our selves to be superior above us, and that in the highest degree. To forsake that God that made us, and to make that to be a God unto us that we have made our selves: The Father looks upon his Child as inferior to him, because he was the instrument of his being, and so he may well: If any man have maintainance by one, or is raised by him, he expect that he should be serviceable to him.* 1.1 Only Idolatry makes men go against the very prin∣ciples of reason: They made it and yet they accounted it their god,

And an especial Note from hemce it, That man by any work of his own cannot put a Divinity upon a creature. They made it, therefore it is not God. Man by any work that he can do cannot put Divinity upon a creature, no, he cannot so much as put holiness into a creature; all the workmanship of man by his consecratien or any thing that he can do, cannot make stones and mortar to be holy, so as now it should be a sin to use them to any* 1.2 common use, man takes too much upon him to think to raise the crea∣ture so near to a Divinity, he cannot by any work of his put any Religious respect on any creature so as that God shall be neerer to him, or he neerer to God than in any o∣ther place. Whatsoever is of mans work in Gods Wor∣ship it perishes in the use of it, surely then mans creation cannot be God, The work man made it, therefore it is not God.

Indeed there is a creation of man that the Scripture speaks of that is called, God, but not truly, not God really, rather a Metaphorical God;* 1.3 that creature that the Scrip∣ture speaks of in 1. Pet. 2. 13. he cals their Kings and Go∣vernors mans creation, man made them; and you know the Scripture calls Governors, Gods. I have said, you are Gods.* 1.4 I but it is said, they die like men: this text will shew it: if man made them they cannot be Gods. And the former Scripture tells us, that Kings and Governors are mans

creation. In your books it's translated mans Ordinance but it is in the Greek,* 1.5 mans Creation: man made them and therefore they are not Gods; therefore we must not give them the honor of a God, to subject our consciences unto them, no, neither are we bound to subject our outward e∣states and liberties, and lives to their humors and lusts, meerly to their own wills, for this is proper to God to subject all to his will, meerly because it is his will; but seeing man made them they are not truly God, and there∣fore they must not have the honor that is due to God.

If all the Art, and Skill, Power and Riches, if all the men in the world were put together, and all the wisdom and power of Angels joyned to it, to extract all excellency in all things in all creatures, and to make that which should have all created excellency in it, yet this surely could not be a God to us; I say, if we conceive all art, skill power, and riches, of all the world brought together into one man, yea, all the skill and power of Angels put into him too, and if he were able to make an extract of all the excellencies of all creatures, and put into one thing, yet this could not be a God unto us; because it was made. And shall we say further, God himself by his infinite po∣wer cannot make any thing to be a God to us: I say, God himself by his infinite power cannot make any thing to be a God to us; if he himself were made he could not be God to us; nay, if God himself were made he could not be God: therefore surely that which the workman hath made cannot be a God.

How vile then are our hearts? and how do we debase our selves, to subject our selves to every vanity, as if it were a God, when as that all the power in God himself cannot raise a created excellency to that height as to be a God to us? how vain is the heart of men that makes plea∣sure their god? as the voluptuous, his belly; that makes money his god, as the covetous; that makes honor and the applause of men, as the ambitious, to be a god unto us.

Bernice and Agrippa came with great Pomp,* 1.6 they came with much Phansie as the word signifies; the excellency that al their pomp had,* 1.7 it was but that that phansie put upon them.

In this God shewes the excellency of an Immortal Soul,* 1.8 that it is in that excellency that only an Infinite Eternal being that is of Himself can be a God to us.

Again,* 1.9 This is an argument against the Idol of the Mass▪ a vile Priest, a filthy Whoremaster makes it a God: What a Deity is that that is from his maker? Is there any greater stumbling-block to Jews, Turks, or Heathens, to keep them from Christian Religion than this, That Christians should make their God, and eat him when they have done? That's the first Argument: It is no God, because the workman made it.

Secondly: But the Calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces.

No God surely.* 1.10 He speaks here with indignation (it is not God, it is a Clalf) as he doth in that of the Psalmist, he made a Calf that eat grass, It shall be broken in pieces, it shal not be able to help it self, much less help them; it shal be as Dagon before the Ark, broken all to pieces.

Hierom upon the place saith, that he learned from an Hebrew (this word, broken in pieces, the word is not a Verb, but a Noun, shall be breakings in pieces) he learned from an Hebrew, that this word signified a thin web,* 1.11 like Spiders webs in the air, As you see in some times of the year in the Fields, thin Webs, and upon the grass, thin webs like Spiders webs that presently dissolves into Attoms; so that their Calf shal be like unto those thin Webs, like unto Spi∣ders Webs that dissolves it self and comes to nothing. All the confidence and hopes in any thing we set up in the place of God,* 1.12 it's such unto us; What difference is there between such a thing and a strong Rock, and an high To∣wer,

such as God is to his people.

And again, The word signifies Saw-dust that comes from Timber that is sawn, and so it shal be broken in pieces: Look as the Calf in the wilderness was broken even to dust, to pouder, and Moses made the people drink of it; so God will serve this Calf.

And then further observe:* 1.13 Idols are to be broken in pieces; so God commanded, Exod. 34. 13. Deut. 7. 5. Ezek. 20. 7. with many other Scriptures; and thus godly Magistrates have ever done, broke Idols in pieces. And blessed be God for that that hath been done of late among us that so many Idols, and that great Idol that was in the eminent place of the City, that God put a spirit into those that were in Athority to break it in pieces: it must be done by the Magistrate.

I remember Austin in his sixt Sermon upon Christs Ser∣mon, speaking of that place in Deut. 1. 5. first, saith he, You must possess the Land, and then, you must overthrow their Altars. And then notes, That those which have the pos∣session of the Land, as now those Publick places, men only in Authority have the possession of them, and therfore it is for them to break the Idols in pieces.* 1.14 In the City of Basil we reade, that every Ash-wednesday (as they call it) is ob∣served a Feastival instead of the Popish Fast on that day, because of the burning of Popish Images, and they account it a great mercy. And though we have no such warrant to observe such a day as an Holy day, yet certainly as a day of an outward civil rejoycing, we have cause to ob∣serve those times wherein notorious and abominable Idols have been broken in pieces.

Again,* 1.15 Whatsoever it is that is subject to be broken in pieces, certainly we are not to make it to be our God. Now all crea∣tures in the world are subject to breaking, your estates are in danger to be broken in pieces, therefore they are not Gods; that's the argument of the holy Ghost here: yea it may be many of your estates are broken in pieces al∣ready,

Oh what poor Gods were those that you made to your selves before, and so any creature whatsoever? there∣fore Oh let's trust in the Lord for ever, for in the Lord Je∣hovah is everlasting strength. Isa. 26. 4.

The last note from hence is this,* 1.16 That the putting too much upon a creature, the bringing a creature too neer to God, and Dei∣fying of it makes way for the destruction of that creature. The Calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces because it was made an Idol: If you will make use of your estates as a servant to you, to fit you for Gods service you might keep it, but if you would set it up in Gods place, it is just with God it should be broken in pieces: Whatsoever you set your hearts upon and make a God unto you, it's just with God it should be broken in pieces; if you set your hus∣band, your wife, your child, your friend, in the place of God, it's the only way to undo them, to undo them in re∣spect of you at best.* 1.17 Many great Instruments of God, God hath been fain to break them to pieces, because that men have set them up in the place of God, and made even Gods of them. It follows.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Idolatry drives men against principls▪ of reason.
• * 1.2

  in case of need.
• * 1.3

  1 Pet. 2. 13. Kings and Ma∣gistrates mans crea∣tion in some sort.
• * 1.4

  Ps. 82. 6
• * 1.5

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.6

  Act. 25. 23.
• * 1.7

  〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
• * 1.8

  The excel∣lency of the soul.
• * 1.9

  Use 2. the abomi∣nableness of the Mass
• * 1.10

  Psal, 106. 20. Rom. 1. 23.
• * 1.11

  Signifi•• of the word
• * 1.12

  A God.
• * 1.13

  Obs. 1.
• * 1.14

  A custom on Basil.
• * 1.15

  Obs. 2.
• * 1.16

  Obs. 3.
• * 1.17

  England.