The greatest of things wrought by God without means. [ 1392]
AS when Gedeon was to fight with the Midianites,* 1.1 pretending that his Army was but a few, How many hast thou, saith the Lord? So many thousand: They are too many; The Lord will not have them all, but com∣mands them to be reduced to one half, and yet there were too many; the Lord would not work by them, they were too strong. At last he comes to make choyce of them by lapping in the water, then they came to three hundred Men,* 1.2 to fight against three hundred thousand; For it is said, they covered the Earth like Grashoppers: And now the Lord begins to work by these Men. And how doth he work? by Weapons? No, but with a few broken pitchers in their hands, and they had the day of it; the Midianites be delivered up into their hands as a prey: This was a wonderful act of the great God, who not tyed to means, wrought out Victory by his own arm. It is true, that means and second causes he hath much honoured in the World, and commands them to be used; but when he comes to effect great things, such as was the Redemption of Mankind by Christ, such as shall be the Resurrection of the dead at the last day, then such means and causes as seek to set him forward, he rejects them, and works not by them, but the clean contrary. The greater stench the bodies have sustained in the grave, shall work it unto greater sweetnesse; and the greater weaknesse it had, the greater strength shall accrew unto it, and wondrous puissance shall God work unto that part that lacked honour, according to his blessed dispensation in all things.