Zions deliverance and her friends duty: or The grounds of expecting, and meanes of procuring Jerusalems restauration.: In a sermon preached at a publicke fast, before the Honourable House of Commons. By William Sedgvvicke, minister of Farnham in Essex.

To the Honourable the House of COMMONS, now Assembled in PARLIAMENT.

THE day of Jacobs trouble yet continues: Yea, growes more gloo∣my and darke; clouds of dangers increase, therefore your faith needs all the props, that prayer or Preach∣ing, Pulpit or Presse can afford. If God by this Sermon d••d any whit kindle your Zeale, I wish you had leasure to read it; it may adde a mite more to our treasury, Your faithful∣nesse and constancy. In this Wildernesse your Soules should be fed every day with a portion of spirituall Manna, That you may be strengthened with all might accor∣ding to his glorious power; And God may be your arme every morning. What is good, let it dwell with you, and by it you in God: No place so fit for you in these great affaires, and hard difficulties, as the secret of the most High. You have beene happy in conceiving just and good proposals, be strong and faithfull in maintai∣ning and producing of them: and be not overborne:

Christ dyed under the sentence of a Judge that would have went right if the times had not beene bad, that knew how to propose, but not to prosecute justice; and so left but this to posterity, He would have beene just, but was not. That deserves not the name of a single vertue, that will not indure multiplicity of trials. I know your dangers are great, and your condition as Davids, My Soule is continually in my hand; they have laid a snare for me; Yet erred not I from thy precepts. Your lives are in your hands; and they are pretious, A Diadem in the hand of God: But they are indeed the least of those jewels that you are intrusted with. There is in your hands Gods honour, the Kingdome of Christ, Churches, Nati∣ons, which you must defend and maintaine, if you would have God defend You. You are yet possessed of a richer Jewell then life, innocency and integrity; Let nothing purchase it of You, let no power wrest it from You: Nec Caesar, nec Populus. Resolve with Job, I will not leave mine innocency till I dye. You are the onely hopefull meanes of our deliverance under heaven, an in∣strument in the hand of God, in the eye of faith, in the wombe of Prayer, and in the affections of Gods People: my onely advise that I shall be bold to present unto you, is, That You be Faithfull to the death, and God will Crowne your labours with a happy successe here, and You with a Crowne of life eternally. Thus advises, prayes, and be∣leeves

he, that if he could be lesse himselfe, would be more Gods, the Churches, and Your Servant, WILLIAM SEDGVVICKE.

Notes

• Colos. 1.11.
• Isa. 33.2.
• Psal. 119.109.110.
• Iob 27.5.