Miscellanea spiritualia: or, Devout essaies: composed by the Honourable Walter Montagu Esq.

§. V.

The infirmity of our Nature conforted by Examples, Holy and Prophane; and the acquiescence to Gods Order with constancy, perswaded.

BEcause this tryal of us requireth all the strength of our Grace, or our Reason, to secure us farther from being dismayed at the proneness of our Nature to slack•••• in the confidence of our Cause, upon the prosperity of the advers party, we may look upon one of the strongest vessels of Gods building, and we may finde him in this storm dri∣ving upon all his anchors, when he confesseth, My 〈◊◊〉〈◊◊〉 * 1.1 almost gone, and my steps well ••igh stipping away, when I saw the

peace of sinners; they are not in trouble, as other men, neither are they plagued as others: He could have no ease in the inqui∣sition of the reason of this inverted appearance of Justice, till, as he says, he went into the Sanctuary of God: So when we finde our selves upon Davids slippery steps, we must fol∣low him who leads us to take Sanctuary in Gods universal Providence, taking hold of his Altar there, his Inscrutable Wisdom; and the passions of our Nature will be afraid to violate that holy Refuge, in disputing to draw us out of that Sanctuary by their Violences, as long as our thoughts rest themselves there, and our Reason doth not venture abroad to rove in the inquisition of second causes.

It was upon the holy ground of this Sanctuary that King David trode, when he climbed up the mount Olivet bare∣foot; his steps were then firm and sure, even upon all these sharp stones which were under them; even those stones which Shimei threw in his way, did not give him the least trip, he walked upon this ground of, The Lord hath ordained him to curse David, who shall then say, Wherefore hath he done * 1.2 so? it may be the Lord will look on my affliction, and requite me for this days cursing: Here we see King David walks so firmly on Gods Order and Providence, as his steps broke in pieces all Shimei's stones they trode upon; and he was now no more moved in the diffidence of his cause, then he was elated with the right of it, when Shimei came to meet him, and lay prostrate at his feet to be trode upon: He then raised up his enemies person, and kept onely his injuries un∣der his feet, which were so many steps to raise his eternal Throne: and certainly, all that Shimei threw at him proved the most precious stones, which the Hand of Pro∣vidence set in the Everlasting Crown of this Blessed King.

Thus we see the common infirmity even of the most sanctified Natures, while they are working upon the stock of their own Reason in Humane occurrences, and what a firmness and stability we may finde when we lay all our

thoughts up to rest in the bosom of the Divine Providence, taking this advice in all advers Events, Yea, when thou shalt say * 1.3 he considereth not, be judged before him, and expect him. And as it is observed in the motions of the Heavens, that as the Orbs are nearer the first mover, so they go the faster in the common diurnal motion, & the slower in their own peculiar, which is opposite to the other; so we may truly say, the nearer our mindes are raised to an adherence to the first Divine moving order, our Reason shall go the quicker in a consent∣ing motion to all the common occurrences of Providence, and shall move the gentlier in the retrograde motion of her own Orb of Nature, and consequently the disquiets of our Nature shall move less in their passionate oppositions to all sinister Events, and we shal be the less frighted when with the Apostles we are going into the cloud, remembring the re∣proach * 1.4 God maketh to tottering confiders, Am I onely a God * 1.5 at near hand, and not the same at distance?

If ever we could have hoped to have been informed of the reason of the present advantages allowed to the wicked, it should have been when the Prophet Jeremy (one sanctified even in his Mothers womb) did so earnestly ask God this que∣stion, with a conjuration upon his Justice, saying, Lord, thou ar•• just when I argue with thee; yet let me talk with thee of thy Judge∣ments: * 1.6 Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper? Wherefore are all they happy that deal treacherously? And yet God affords him no answer to this desire, but leaves him in such a su∣spense and perplexity, as in an holy confusion he challengeth even God of having misinformed him in his Judgements * 1.7 upon sinners, which were so long deferred: So we can look for no satisfaction in this point, greater then that answer which God makes to Daniel, when he asked, What sha〈…〉〈…〉 ••e * 1.8 the end of these things? Go thy ways, Daniel, for the words are closed, and sealed up till the time of the end. Wherefore, in all the distractions and subversions of Kingdoms, pri〈…〉〈…〉 Ruines and Confusions, we must recur to Daniels conclu∣sion, Blessed be the Name of the Lord; wisdom and power are h••••,

he removes and constitutes KINGS and Kingdoms.

By this precedent, as near as our giddy Nature will admit, we must seek to fix our mindes upon that incomprehensible course of Gods Providence, which changeth all things without any mutation in it self; and the nearer we come to this con••ixure unto that stability, the less obnoxious we shall be to the estuations of joys and fears, or the anxiety of won∣der in all contingencies: For the chief motive of the dis∣quiet of our minde, is the imperfect broken view we have in this life of the chain and coherence of second causes we see several links lying scattered and parted without the rings which make the connexion▪ that is, we see daily mutations of all conditions, from good to bad, and interchangeably from advers to prosperous estates, but we discern no reason that linketh and accordeth these variations with our judge∣ments, making a coherence satisfactory to our understand∣ings in this distributive part of Gods Justice.

This half-sight of the form of things, excites wonder in us, which is broken knowledge, when our understanding meets objects of strange effects, divided from their apparent causes; for if we could see at once this chain of Providence set together, all events hanging linked to their final reasons, our wonder would presently cease: As we may suppose if the Prophet Daniel had lived to see actually the accomplish∣ment of his Visions, while others had wondred at Alexan∣ders enterprise upon the Monarchy of the World, and all the strange occurrences that did effect that work, he would have been little moved at those Events: And when cursed Antiochus destroy'd Jerusalem, and set up Idols upon the altar of the Temple, and abolished all form of true Religion; when venerable Mathathias, and the glorious Maccabees had reason * 1.9 to rend their garments, and to be astonished at the desolation of Gods people, Daniel would not have been perplexed and amazed in all this confusion, as having had a prenotion of this, and the rest of the chain of Providence, which made the coherence of this action.

In the like maner in all other prodigious Events, which coupled the successions of the other designs of God upon the world, whereof Daniel had a prevision; he could not be confused at that, whereat others (who looked but upon the broken pieces of the chain) were justly astonished: But if Daniel had survived the issues of all his Revelations, and had come to those Times of which he was desirous to know the sequences and determinations, and was refused that illumi∣nation, and told, They were sealed Mysteries, and not to be opened * 1.10 to him; if then he had seen the destruction of Gods people, and the violation of all things sacred, by the inhumanity of Gods enemies, he would then have been posed to have given a reason of these disorders, and must have resorted to Davids answer to himself, Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, it * 1.11 is too high, I cannot attain to it.

Some satisfactory rest may be derived from the experi∣ments and acquaintance with such cases, but still the reason of that order (which is so preposterous to our conceptions) will remain in the smoke of the Temple, wherein we may see * 1.12 God is present, but not how he worketh in it: The order of Gods administration rests in the Temple described in the Re∣velation, which is filled with smoke from the Majesty of God, and none can enter into it until all be consumnate.

One that shall study the Story of the World in one Age or Century, shall finde Iniquity and Violence prevailing, it may be, many years over all Piety and Justice; and inse∣quence of time shall come to reade the prosperers and pre∣sumers in their powers destroy'd and extirpated by some ex∣emplary vengeance; then for some time may meet with ver∣tue and godliness flourishing so, as to protect all their Vot••∣ries; and then as he goes on, it may be, he will meet with a storm blasting, and withering all the fruits of innocence he saw before so flourishing: Thus alternatively through the whole age, he shall commonly finde an interchangeable va∣riation from the happy to the persecuted state of goodness: And although in the period of that portion of time he

chance to finde the most notorious impieties of it punished and revenged, in such sort as that particular may give him some sensible satisfaction of Gods Justice, yet he shall finde in no age the audict so perfectly made up, between Impiety and Punishment, as he shall not still remain perplexed in the account of Gods reckonings with the world.

They who shall live to see, or reade the full Account of this present Age, will certainly finde at the end of it, the Fractions and Divisions ••urnm'd up nearer the true Account of Gods Justice, then it appears now in all these scattered orderless figures, which seem to have little reference to Equity; but still the end of this Age will leave some con∣fused parcels of Injustice, which are referred to the suc∣cession of time to make up, and rectifie: And in this kinde of sequence and relation, Times will turn and rowl over to one another, the last bringing still somewhat imperfect to the next it flows into, until Time it self shall be drowned in eternity; so that while we see, as Solomon tells us, All things * 1.13 happen alike to him that offers Sacrifice, and him that breaks down Altars, he gives us this excellent caution, not to be tempted to say there is no Providence, If thou seest the vio∣lent perverting Justice, and Judgement in a Province, marvel * 1.14 not at the matter: for he that is higher then the highest regard∣eth, and there be higher then they.

This is a cordial the Holy Spirit hath confected for us, to take in the strongest fits of Humane vicissitudes, to keep us from fair••ing in the unsuccessful state of a righteous cause: I shall onely give one or two Historical instances of many, which all Times afford in this Argument.

The first is so memorable and adequate in all circumstan∣ces for our instruction, as no times can match a better, and no sort of Christians can reject it as president. This is the case of St. Lewis King of France, a person so holy, as if the most sanctified voyces of his Time had been to elect a King, they would probably have chosen him: This great and holy King starning with the zeal of repossessing Christians of the

Holy Land, which is a figure of their Birthright, the heaven∣ly Jerusalem, kindled most of the Christian Princes with the same ardor, which carryed many of their persons upon the place for the atchievement of this blessed Design: The beginning of this Enterprize was prosperous, in the recovery of many possessions from the Infidels, and restitution of the Worship of Christ into them: But soon after Gods secret Judgements strook this Army with an evident mark of his present displeasure, and by a pestilent sickness consumed most of his Forces; insomuch as he was reduced to a dis∣honorable Treaty with Gods Enemies, and forced to return with a total defeature of his Design: Under which rough hand of God, his sanctity in Syria, like one of their Palm∣trees, grew the higher by the weight of adversity it was charged with, and after a perilous return into France in his old age (his zeal burning still the brighter in all the darkness of his Successes) he made a second Expedition, with three of his Children, upon the same Enterprize, and landing in Africa, his Army was again seized by the destroying An∣gel, and one of his Sons strool first, and presently he him∣self was arrested by the same hand, and executed in his sen∣tence of Mortality, though truly delivered out of his pri∣son, and translated to that higher Crown which he had con∣quered in all his defeats.

This was the unhappy Event, according to the stile of the world, which that pious King, and unquestionable Cause; left the world to opine upon; of which we cannot give a better vote, then he himself did in his sickness out of the Wise-mans mouth, Who can conceive the ways of God, 〈◊〉〈◊〉 * 1.15 more then a Tempest which no eye can see? for most of his works are hidden; Who can declare the works of his Justice, or who can stand under them? for his covenant is afar off, and the tryal of all is in the end.

There is another notorious president I have met with in the Ecclesiastical Story, which I have chosen of many, as it hath relation particularly to this Nation. King Ha∣rold

of Denmark, who was the first planter of the Faith of Christ is his Countrey, and a Prince whose eminent sanctity deserved the publike testimony of the Church, by his admission into the Catalogue of the Saints: This de∣vout King in his old age was assayled by the Rebellion of his own Son, called Swayn, a desperate Enemy of Chri∣stianity, yet it pleased God to give him Victory against his Father, and to Crown the old King with Martyr∣dome in the Defence of Christs Cause, and his own Right; for he dyed of his wounds received in the Bat∣tel, where his impious Son remained Conquerer, and King.

But soon after Gods Vengeance rose up against this Pa∣tricide, and expulsed him out of his Kingdom, and in many changes of Fortune reduced him to take Refuge in England and Scotland for many years. At last in many va∣riations of his Unhappinesses, it pleased God to change his heart, and convert him to Christianity, of which af∣terwards he became a great Champion, and a Zealous; and God imployed him here in ENGLAND to pu∣nish King Ethelred (who though his person was not stained with his Mothers bloody hands, yet he did rise to the Crown, not by a Legitimate Descent in Blood, but by an Execrable effusion of his elder Brothers, through the wickedness of his Mother) so as Swayn of Denmark dispossessed this King, and soon after dyed invested of the Crown of England.

I thought this Example, in the various Occurren∣ces of it, very apposite to this subject of declaring GODS mysterious Judgements, His Justice, Mercy; and Longanimity, which is the Attribute whereby we are so much relieved in all our provocations of his Ven∣geance.

These Examples may temper an hasty impatience to censure Causes by the Events, and repress in us that Na∣tural forwardness of judging with the JEWS, those

to be the greatest sinners, on whom the Tower of S〈…〉〈…〉 doth chance to fall, for we know our Saviors decision of such conclusions.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Psal. 72.
• * 1.2

  2 Kings 15.
• * 1.3

  Job 35. 14
• * 1.4

  Luke 9.
• * 1.5

  Jer. 23.
• * 1.6

  Jer. 12.
• * 1.7

  Jer. 20. 7.
• * 1.8

  Dan. 12. 9.
• * 1.9

  Mac. 2.
• * 1.10

  Dan. 12. 9.
• * 1.11

  Psal. 138. 6.
• * 1.12

  Apoc. 15.
• * 1.13

  Eccles. 9.
• * 1.14

  Eccl. 5. 7.
• * 1.15

  Ecclus. 16. 20.