Moses his prayer. Or, An exposition of the nintieth Psalme.: In which is set forth, the frailty and misery of mankind; most needfull for these times. Wherein [brace] 1. The sum and scope. 2. The doctrines. 3. The reasons. 4. The uses of most texts are observed. / By Samuel Smith, minister of the Gospel, author of Davids repentance and the Great assize, and yet living.

For it is soon cut off, and we fly away.

MOSES in the former part of this verse, having shewed the mise∣ries, sorrowes, and troubles, incident to the best and flourishing estate of mankinde in generall; in the latter part of this verse, applies it to the state and condition of the Church and peo∣ple of God in the Wildernesse, and shewes: But for us, saith he, our time is cut off swiftly, and we flie away.

For so I take it, it makes the sense plain, though it seemes to be read o∣therwise in our common translation; yet, if we mark the scope of the Holy Ghost, which is to shew, that their estate in the Wildernesse was far worse then other peoples were. Thus, though the ordinary time of mans life be seventie years, or eightie years; yet, we are otherwise dealt withall, our

life is neither so long, nor yet so free from labour and sorrow as other men are, because, we are cut off suddenly, in the turning of an hand, we flie away and are gone.

Hence we may see and take notice of the hainousnesse of sin, [Doct. 4] * 1.1 and espe∣cially of the sin of Infidelity, and murmuring against God, it made the Lord to cut down his people confu∣sedly and hastily, even as a man by his Syth sweepeth down his grasse: Even so the Lord is here said to cut down his people with the sharp Syth of his judgment, as it had been grasse.

And surely, amongst other sins where∣fore the Lord, even in our time, hath cut down so many, some with one disease, & some with another, confus'dly, quick∣ly, and hastily, this sin hath not been the least provoking sin of this land this day: Our distrusting of Gods power and providence, and murmur∣ing against the Lord, as though we should never see peaceable daies a∣gain, or Religion established, and the Gospell to flourish, and that we shall never see those golden daies we have so long defired.

Even this sin of murmuring and distrusting of Gods power and provi∣dence, is no small let and hindrance to our desired peace.

This, this, was the sin of this Church and people, though they had had much experience of Gods power, and good∣nesse towards them, in delivering them from their cruell bondage in Aegypt, and that the Lord had now brought them to the sight of Canaan: yet for their sin of unbeliefe and mur∣muring against. Moses and Aanon, the Lord would not suffer them to possesse that good Land, but cut them off and swept them away by hundreds, and thousands, that they dyed in the Wildernesse. And how severely God hath punished this sin in his own ser∣vants, Numb. 20 8.12. Luke 1.20.

For the Reasons and Uses, see the first Doctrine.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Sin cau∣seth ma∣ny times suddain death.