Back to the index.
Both the word of God, and everywhere almost the continual experience of God’s providence and of his dealing towards his kirk and people, makes this to be manifest and clearly seen to be true, that the godly, while they are here, are subject to many distresses in the world,—to trouble, persecution, contempt, reproach, and scornings of the worldly and natural man, and of wicked men. And therefore, seeing it is so, we had need of strong consolation against so great and so grievous a tentation as this is, and to know how to be freed, and to be conquerors over all these. As, indeed, it has ever pleased the Lord yet to deal with his kirk, that for every horn that has exalted itself against her, the Lord has letten us see a hammer to beat it down.
We have here set down, in this Psalm, a general rule both for the kirk of God, and for every child of God, to be used by every one of them in their trouble, distress, grief, and vexation by the world. There is no remeid (help) for us: then, although indeed we may and ought daily to cast down our eyes for our sins, which we commit against God, yet in respect of our troubles by the wicked in the world, let us lift up our eyes confidently to God for relief, considering that the Lord who is our master, and he whom we serve, he is a mighty God, and is able to deliver us from all our enemies. And we may learn to do this by that which we see every day in our own houses, or in the houses of others; that even as servants of both sexes looks to the hand of their masters and their mistresses for help, when anything ails them, or they are wronged by any, especially having the conscience in themselves of dutifulness and loyalty to them; even so may we, having the conscience of dutifulness and of obedience to God, look for help from him. And upon this confidence and persuasion, then propone our petitions to God; and let us even double our petitions at the throne of his grace; so that still the more we be opposed by the enemies, and the more obloquies they raise against us, we may be the more earnest in our supplications to God, and bring them before him, as Rabshakel’s libels, and spread all out before him, whatever we have to say; and then we may assure ourselves that we shall not go away comfortless, but the Lord shall answer our petitions to us.
There be two parts to be considered in the psalm:—1. The proposition or profession that the kirk makes. 2. The petition that the kirk presents to God.
In the kirk’s proposition there is—1. The profession of her confidence: “Unto thee lift I up mine eyes.” 2. In whom her confidence is, or the reason of it: “O thou that dwelleth in the heavens.” Tt is placed on the transcendent providence and power of God, who sits in the heaven above, and rules the earth beneath, at his pleasure. 3. The greatness, or (if so I may say) the vehemency and earnestness of this confidence of the kirk, expressed by a comparison taken from servants of both sexes. “As the eyes of servants wait upon the hand of their masters, and as the eye of maids looketh unto the hand of their mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God.” 4. There is the continuance of this onwaiting of the kirk: “Until that he have mercy upon us.” That is, we will still wait till the blessed time come, that he shew himself to be gracious to us, and so work our deliverance.
First. “Unto thee lift I up mine eyes.” The eyes, ye know, are a principal member of the body; and there are many members joined in the face, wherein, (as one has marked well), the soul is said to have a kind of commerce or representation; and principally the eyes appear there, and the eyes are said to be the mirrors of the mind. And except that it be done in hypocrisy, to feign our looks,—I say, where hypocrisy is not, where the eyes are bended, there the mind is bended also, the inward and the outward sight still going together. Now, ye will {ind sometimes that the children of God will have their eyes cast down, so that for shame they cannot look up to heaven, nor to God who is in the heavens: as the publican, Luke 18:13, he stood afar off, and could not so much as lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, and cried, “Lord, be merciful to me a sinner.” This was because he was pressed with the burden of his sins. And Matthew 26:39, our Lord, he cast himself down upon the ground, and hid his face, as not daring to lift up his eyes to heaven. This was not because he was pressed with the burden of his own sins, as the publican was, for he had no sin at all; but the cause why he looked down was, because he was pressed with the burden of our sins, which he was now bearing upon his back, and that he might satisfy the justice of God for them. And he also, John 9:41, lifted up his eyes to heaven, when he was raising a dead man there; and being confident that he should do it, therefore he lifts up his eyes to God, and to heaven. And many times says this prophet David in the psalms, “Unto the Lord do I lift up mine eyes.” “I lift up my eyes to the mountains, from whence my help comes,” etc. This is the refuge of the children of God in their greatest straits. Now for the wicked and worldly man, again, in the time of his adversity, because he has not had the right sense of sin, nor had the right challenge for it, nor true humiliation, he looks not down as the publican did in the sense of his sin; but he looks up, he is effronted, supercilious; he has that haughty eye spoken of in the Proverbs, and therefore he cannot lift up his eyes to God. He may well be haughty in himself, and think himself great beside others, as a man who is standing upon a high place, he will think all these who are beneath him to be but little beside him; but he cannot lift up his eyes in confidence to God. So this is the difference between the spiritual and the natural, the renewed and the unrenewed man. The spiritual and renewed man, in his greatest troubles, when he is molested and troubled on all sides—there are troubles at his right hand and at his left, behind him and before him, and he can win no way out of trouble—then he directs his eyes upward; he knows that port is not closed; and says to God, “Unto thee lift I up mine eyes.” And when the child of God directs his eyes towards men, and seeks help and relief from them, and all of them refuse him, and will not hear his complaints, yet this he knows, and he is sure of it, The living God, he is aye to the fore, and his ears are evermore open to hear the complaints of his own, when they come to him: and upon that they are bold to lift up their eyes to him. This indeed is the great difference between the wicked and the godly; for when the worldly and wicked men are in great distress, except they see some means how they think they may be delivered, they give over all hope of deliverance. And surely, albeit when we have peace, health, strength, etc., we think not much of this, and it cannot be distinguished, yet in time of affliction and persecution this will be seen: as when there is sickness on our bodies, or anything of that kind upon ourselves, or when there is a common calamity upon the kirk or land where we live, or when death calls upon us out of this life, or when we are called by our Lord to judgment, then it is comfortable to us, that we dare lift up our eyes in confidence to God. And there is no way for us to lift up our eyes thus to God, but to cast down our eyes first in the distrust of ourselves, and to humble ourselves: I mean not of the bowing of the head, or casting ourselves down upon the ground, but to cast down ourselves before God, in true humiliation, in repentance, and sorrow for sin. If thou do this, then indeed it is a forerunner to thee, that thou shall be exalted; and if thou be thus humbled before God for sin, then thou may be bold to lift up thy eyes to God for help in thy greatest trouble.
Mark here secondly, The kirk makes profession of her confidence in God in the time of her greatest trouble, and complains to God of the enemies who trouble her. Then, in time of trouble, confidence in God is a very necessary thing, either for a Christian soul, or for the kirk of God; and there is not any one thing by (besides) faith, that is more spoken of in Scripture than this same confidence in God in time of trouble. Men may, indeed, when they speak much of a purpose, speak it idly, but when the Lord speaks much of a purpose, and insists upon it, he does it not idly; but where he speaks much of a thing, we are evermore inclined to the contrair, and it is sure, if we get not that, then we will perish.
Now, wherefore is it that the Lord speaks so much of this? for that is sure, he has aye some special reasons for it, when he does it. First, to let us know that these who will be presumptuous, and seem to be confident in God in time of prosperity, yet they will be distrustful of him in time of adversity. Secondly, he speaks this so often, to let us know, that it is necessary for us to have confidence in God in trouble: for except we have confidence in God in trouble, then we will have no courage against it, nor patience under it, nor spiritual security not to be overcome by it, nor will we have any constancy always to depend upon God. Once take away confidence, and take them all away; but have this, and then join them all: but specially to take away our confidence, which is the daughter of faith, and is the mother of all the rest,—if the soul be spoiled of this main one of confidence in God, then farewell to all the rest. Thirdly, It is necessary for us to have confidence in God, because of our condition and state of life heree. 'What are we in our life here? We are nothing else but strangers; and all will acknowledge that they are nothing else but strangers and in a pilgrimage here: and while thou art in this pilgrimage, this is the only staff that must uphold thee. Ay, our life here, it is a warfare; and shall a man go to war, and not have confidence to be victorious? If we have this confidence in God, though all the world were agaist us, we may well be slain, but we shall not be overcome. He that keeps his confidence fast in God, and his courage in him, the devil and the world and all cannot be able to overcome him. But upon the contrair, if we want this confidence in God, albeit we had never so much wit upon our side, albeit we had multitudes from Dan to Beersheba—from the one border of the land to the other, and had also men of great natural courage and strength of body, great rents, much money, strong houses, etc., yet he can strike us with such terrours and fears, as we shall be quite overcome. If once we begin to doubt of God, and put not our confidence in him, then we need not to look for any good. Desperation thinks that there is not a way of escaping, and presumption imagines that there is a way where there is not a way. A man who is shipbroken (shipwrecked), if he have any confidence to be safe, presently he makes to (sets to work), and works with feet and hands as fast as he can; but he who has no confidence lies still, and so sinks to the ground. And what else has it been but this confidence in God that has made so many confessors of the truth, and so many martyrs for it? And, therefore, since the servant of God, David, has made this profession of confidence in the Lord, in the name of the kirk, let us make this confession also. Since we have of late made a confession of our faith, let us make a confession of our confidence in God.: And there be two ills, which this confidence in God will militate against. First, It will militate against difficulties, which we may meet with into the way. When we would do our duty to God, and would do no more but our duty, and yet, for all that, we find oppositions against us, even m doing of our duty, then let us have courage and confidence in God. Shall we leave our duty undone because we think it a hard matter to be done? Yea, shall we leave it because it is impossible, as we think?—to say, There is a lion in the way; it will slay me if I go there, (which is the sluggard’s pretext) No; but let us go forward, and fear them nothing, when our confidence is in God. Ye see what the Lord says to Jermie (Jeremiah), Jeremiah 1:17-19, “I have made thee a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and a brazen wall against the king of Judah and the whole princes (all the princes) thereof, against the priests and the whole people in the land. They shall fight against thee, but they shall not prevail; for I am with thee, to deliver thee. And therefore gird up thy loins and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee; be not dismayed of their faces.” And this same is the word that is used of the apostles, (and indeed it was very rightly applied to them), “That they spake with boldness all that the Lord had delivered to them.” They might say, O! if I say this, then men will oppose themselves against me, and I will offend these who are in authority; and yet, nevertheless, they went on, and says all that the Lord had commanded them to say. And this same is ascribed by the apostle Paul to himself, 1 Corinthians 16:9, “For a great door and effectual is opened to me, for there are many adversars.” As if he said, I see many adversars to oppose the truth, and therefore it is that I resolve to be the more bold, and to go on against all their oppositions.1 For, for us to yield, or to fall back from the truth, because there are many adversars into the way, that were to make truth to yield to errour, to make God subject to man, and to give the ordinance of man above the ordinance of God. Secondly, This confidence in God, it militates against uncertainty of success. Some will say, When I have spent my health, strength, estate in the world, what certainty have I that I shall have success? Ans. A particular certainty thou has not indeed, because that is not revealed; but resolve thou to do thy duty, and thou shall find the success to be good and comfortable. Even as Esther, she said, “I will go in to the king; and if T perish, I perish.” Mordecai had told her that the people of God should be delivered, (for he in that, in a manner, was a prophet), and she believed that they should be delivered; but she knew (knew) not that that should be the time of their deliverance; yet she resolved that she will hazard fair, and so upon that she goes in and hazards all, come as it will come. And the three children also, Daniel 3, they resolve upon the like. They see the hot fire burning before them, and they were to be casten into it; and they think with themselves, we know not whether we will be safe or not at this time, that we shall not be brunt; but this we know, that our God is able to save us, and therefore we will not bow to the image, whether he keep us unbrunt now or not. And so it is evermore the best for us to do that which God commands us to do, whatever appearance of success we see into it. And for jthe cause that we have in hand, let us still go on in doing our duty, remembering always that the duty of anything belongs to us, but the success of it belongs to God.
“Who sits, or dwells, in the heavens, to thee lift I up mine eyes.” Then this is the nature of true confidence, not to trust in ourselves, not to trust in the arm of flesh, but to deny ourselves and all others, and to put our confidence in God. Even when thou art perplexed on all hands, and wats (wots) not what to do, then direct thine eyes to God: acknowledge this with Jeremiah 17:5 “Cursed be the man that puts his trust in the arm of flesh.” Turn thy eyes from thyself, and turn them towards God, as Solomon, Proverbs 28:25-26, he counsels men not to trust in their own wisdom, but to trust in the wisdom of God. And why does he this? Because he himself had much wisdom, and yet he saw that it was not to be lippened (trusted) to; and therefore he counsels others not to lippen to their wisdom.
Secondly. There is the ground of the kirk’s confidence. “O thou that dwelleth in the heavens.” Ye know the heavens, and the heaven of heavens, are not able to contain the Lord, as a house does a man and his family, or as this kirk does us, and yet he is said to sit or to dwell in heaven, because there the fairest glory of God is seen. There is much of his glory, and more than we can consider of, seen in the earth; and aye the higher that we ascend, the more glory; as in the firmament there is the sun, the moon, the stars; and there is more of his glory to be seen in the heaven of heavens, and much more in any of them, than in the earth. And what were all this glory that is in the earth, all these precious and divers colours in it, if so be we had not light from heaven? then all things in the earth would be alike to us. And so there is great glory of God in the heavens, and aye the farder up that we ascend, there is the greater glory; and when we ascend to that place, where his angels and saincts glorified are, there there is great glory, and from thence is it that his glory does appear to the children of men. And therefore it is said, Psalm 115:3 “The Lord is in the heavens, and does whatsoever he pleases;” and Deuteronomy 32:26 “The Lord rideth in the heaven for thy help, and for his excellency in the sky.” And this is it which is set down in the beginning of the Lord’s prayer to that same effect, “Our Father which art in heaven.” Wherefore call we him, Our Father, but because he is in heaven, and does what he will? He is Deus optimus et maximus; he is the best Lord that is, and he is the greatest Lord: he is our Father, and therefore he is a God of great kindness to us. And then he is exceeding great, and so he is both willing, and he is able, to bestow all things needful upon us. He being our Father, how can he be but willing? and his power is great, because he can rent the heavens in sunder, as he did for his people Israel, and so deliver his people.
The lesson that we have to learn of this is, that the ground of all our confidence and joy is because of the power of God and of his providence. Once learn to call him God and Father, and then we may conclude also that he is mighty, and sits and rules in heaven, and does among the children of men whatsoever he will. And therefore I would have you to be acquaint with the power and providence of God, that as ye profess he is mighty, so ye would also believe it. Consider, therefore, that the power of God is difterent from the power of man, as indeed it is. 1. God is able to do what he will; but for any man, he is not able to do what he will, and so there is a very wide difference there. The greatest man in the world is not able to do whatsoever he will. One man, I grant, is able to do more than another; a king is able to do more than any of his subjects, but he cannot do what he will. The Lord, indeed, can put bounds upon their will; but when he has given them liberty to will such a thing, then he can restrain their power;—albeit they should rage as the sea, yet it can go no further than the own bounds. But whatsoever God wills, that he is able to do; his will and his power are of equal bounds; the one of them surpasses not the other. One thing and another are alike in him; what he wills to be done—what his wisdom devises, and his goodness thinks meet—he has power to do it; but it is not so with men. 2. Whatsoever is possible and may be done, that God is able to do; but there are many things possible, and may be done, which men are not able to do. It is possible of stones to raise up children to Abraham, yet man cannot do this; but whatsoever is possible, and may be done, that God can do. Then, if whatsoever is possible, and may be done, God can do it, what needs us to run to another to get it done? If it be a thing we think impossible, why run we to a indirect mean, who cannot do all things possible? and if it be a thing that is possible, why go we not to God with it, who is able to do all? He that sits and rules in heaven, he has fulness of power in him—he can do all things. One creature can do one thing, and another another; one man can advise a thing, and another give counsel how to bring it to pass; a third will give money for it, another will undertake to do the turn, etc.; yet one cannot do all. And when all the creatures are gathered together, there is no fulness in them, there is evermore emptiness to be seen in them and vanity; and especially there is not fulness of power in them all, but only in God. Gather all the creatures together, God can do that which they can do all; ay, he can do more than they can do all. Yea, moreover, is there any power in the creature, but that which he givesto it? None; for it is in him that all things live, move, and have their being. That is true in all, which our Lord said to Pilate. When Pilate says to him, “Knowest thou not that I have power to crucify thee, and I have power to release thee?” Jesus answers him, “Thou couldst have no power at all, except it were given thee from above.” So there is no man, who has any power at all to do anything, either for thee or against thee, but as he has power from above. If ye were acquainted with the power of God, [O] but ye would think it to be wonderful! Ques. What needs you to insist thus upon the power of God, and to tell that his power is in heaven? who is there who doubts of that? Ans. It’s true all will profess he is in heaven, and all will profess he has power enough in time of prosperity; but when there comes any distress upon yourselves, or any who belongs to you, or any judgment upon the land, then your faith proves to be exceeding weak in apprehending the power of God. And then it is that our confidence in the power of God should kyth;2 for when man cannot help us, then have we the benefit of our confidence in God. Believe this, therefore, that God is in the heavens, and that we have to do with one who is both a gracious and a mighty God; believe it, and make the right use of it. Remember that he who made all things, and upholds them all, he can do this for me also. If it be any comfort for thy soul, or any lust that thou would have overcome, or if it be a deliverance to the kirk, God can do that: he who has now changed the face of the earth, and made it green where it was withered,3 he can change the face of the kirk, and of thy soul also, when he thinks time. And if authority be against the changing of the face of the kirk, in making it to be green again,4 he who is in heaven can help that. Remember that London is as near to him who is in heaven as Scotland is, and so God can fall in upon the heart of the king, and of these who are about him, and let him and them see the right way. And be comforted in this, because the Lord has given evidences of his power already, and has done much for his own glory already: and he who can do that, why can he not do the rest also? If so be that we by our sins hinder him not to work, he will bring it to a consummation and perfection at last.
Thirdly. “As the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their master, and as the eyes of a maid looketh unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God.” This is to express the manner of confidence that a Christian soul or a kirk has in the power of God: even as servants look to the helping hand of their masters, so do they to God. ~Servants, 1 grant, they are always miserable; but they were in another manner of misery then nor they be now, for then they were readily exposed to much contempt and to many injuries. Servants then had no power to wear any weapon; but indeed they were used almost as beasts in thraldom everyway; and when they were injured, they might not mint (attempt) to help themselves, but behoved to look only to their masters for help, and complain to them: and so behoved a handmaid to do to her mistress also. 1. Consider that there be two sorts of servants set down here, man-servants and maid-servants; and this is to let us know that both sexes may be confident in God. Not only may men be confident in the power of God, but even women also, who are more frail and feeble. Not only may women mourn to God for wrongs done to them, and have repentance for sin, but they may be confident in God also. And therefore see, in that rehearsal of believers and cloud of witnesses, not only is the faith of men noted and commended by the Spirit of God, but also the faith of women: and among the judges, Deborah, Jael, etc., are commended as worthies, and courageous in God. And the women also in the new Testament are noted for their following of Christ; when Judas had sold him, Peter forsworn him, and when Pilate and the priests had condemned him to the shameful death of the cross,—even when all fled from him, then they followed him. And therefore we must not judge of grace as we do of nature; for there may be Christian courage in women as well as in men, albeit courage be not so natural to them: and they may adhere to Christ even when men forsake him.
2. Ye may perceive here, that by the relation that is between masters and servants ye may know the relation between God and his people. A master by the disposition that he has to his servant may know in some measure what is God’s disposition towards him. A kind master will be loath to see his servant wronged, and he will count that which is done to his servant to be done to himself; so the Lord, be will not suffer his children to be wronged by the world; he says to Saul, “Saul, why persecutest thou me?” And the servant also may be confident by that which his master does to him. If he be a dutiful servant and faithful, then he will look for his fee and his reward from his master; but if any serve not their master, they can look for no good thing from them. So if we serve God faithfully, he shall bless us with all good things; and we shall be saved by him, and protected from all ills.
3. But the special thing that we have to learn from this [is],—If we would have confidence in the power and providence of God in the time of our trouble, we must be dutiful servants to God. He who is not a dutiful and an honest servant to his master dare neither look for his hand to help him in his distress, nor yet to reward him; nor yet a maid who has not done her duty to her mistress. But if so be that they have been faithful and honest servants, and has done their duty, and has to do with good masters also, then they fear not but to be defended and rewarded. And therefore, as ye would wish the Lord’s hand to help you any way, strive to serve him faithfully; and if we will do that, then we may look confidently for help from him.
There is a twofold looking to our master. First, there is a looking to his eye; secondly, there is a looking to his hand. We must look to his hand indeed, to help and to reward us, but we must also look to his eye, to get direction from it. When thou looks to God’s eye, and by his eye knows what his mind is, and runs to the obeying of that, then thou may also look to his hand, that he will help thee, and reward thee, as he sees meet. There be many servants who look to the hand of their master, to reward and to help them, who look not to their eye also to direct them, and so do we to God also; but we should look to both. And therefore, if we would have help from God in trouble, or if we would have any good thing from him, let us be dutiful servants to him. And to the end that we may be dutiful servants to God, there are three things required of us. 1. Continual attendance upon God. We should still wait as in the presence of the Lord, set ourselves continually as in his sight; but especially we should be present at his courtdays upon his Sabbaths. Say this, Shall I profess to be one of his vassals, and he has ordained them to convene to his court-day, and when he calls upon his vassals, shall he miss me? Men who has many vassals, albeit some of them be away, they will not be missed, but it is not so with God; he will miss the meanest of his vassals: and therefore resolve, I will keep his court-days, and I will always attend, as in his presence. 2. If we will be dutiful servants to God, obedience is required of us, and that great obedience. Disobedience is a thing that becomes not a servant; for let us wait upon God as we will, if we do not the thing that he bids us do, it is all for nought. We must do the will of God, but not our own: so we must be obedient servants, not looking to our own will, but to our master’s will only. This is a question disputed by Aulus Gellius and some others, If a servant be employed about a matter, and he has gotten direction from his master to do it after such a manner, and after he has gotten direction the servant sees another way to do it, how it may be greater credit and honour to his master, and greater gain also, the question is,— Whether of the two ways he ought to follow: whether that which his master directed him, or that which he has seen to be best for his master’s honour, and for his profit also? But there needs not such as this here; for it is sure that it is evermore greatest honour for God, and will be greatest contentment to thy own soul, to do that which God has commanded: and there is no obedience but that. 3. Faithfulness is required also. And ye shall take up this faithfulness in two parts. First, in uprightness. That is, when thy mind bears thee witness that, in that which thou does, thou art seeking thy master’s honour only; albeit, indeed, thou may have other by-thoughts in anything thou does, yet thou censures these, and goes on in doing that, and cares not albeit thou should be disgraced in the doing of it, if so be that God be honoured. We would think, when we are suffering anything for a kind friend, O if he knew of this, he would not let it be unrewarded: but God knows what we do for him, and so will reward it. And if we be the servants of God, we must make a count of everything that we do; and therefore we must be upright, and do that which God bids us do, albeit all should be displeased with us for the doing of it, yea, albeit that thou thyself should be displeased. And remember that when we are doing that which God commands us, none will be displeased with us but these who are the enemies of God: and why may not we, (ay, we must), displease God’s enemies? And remember that these who oppose against thee in doing the commandment of God, they must stand before him to be judged. The second thing required in faithfulness is diligence. For what, albeit one were never so upright, and wronged not their master, and yet be not diligent in doing that which they should do, they cannot be called faithful. And albeit a servant were never so diligent, if his diligence be only for himself, then he is not faithful. Whatever task the Lord has given you, do it uprightly, and whatever talent the Lord has bestowed upon you, use it diligently for your master’s honour.
If we would wait upon God at all times and in all places, and be obedient to his will and commandments, and be up right and diligent and so faithful servants to him, and thus look to the eye of God to direct us, we might then confidently look to his hand also: and indeed he has a large hand, both to reward us, and also to save us.
There be two things we must look to here, and also beware of. 1. Slaves, they serve their masters more for fear nor for love, and for reward more nor the master’s honour. We cannot indeed get fear altogether put away, but see that we have love also to stir us up to serve God. And we may also serve for a reward, and have our eye to it, but we must not think that that reward is due to us for our service, but that it is freely conferred to us of the free grace of God: and see that thou look more to the honour of God in that which thou does than to the reward. 2. Eye-service is also censured in servants; that is, they will be busy when their master or mistress are looking to them, but when their back is turned, then they slack of that. They would work a sore work, if they would aye work as they do at that time when their master is beholding them. I would have you to be - eye-servants in that respect, and to be aye busy, because your master’s eye is aye looking upon you; but as he looks aye to you, so I would have you to have your eye continually upon him. If we consider this, that God is evermore looking upon us, to see what we are doing, it would be good for us: it would teach us to be upright and diligent, and so to be faithful to him.
Fourthly, There is the continuance of the kirk’s confidence. “Until that he have mercy upon us.” That is, I will evermore trust in God, I will still pray to him, and continue in prayer, till he open his plentiful hand, and give me that which I seek. Whatever thou be seeking of God, either for the kirk of God or for thy own soul, wait on whill (till) thou get all that thou would have. As a dog when he has got one morsel of meat, he looks aye up to get more till he be full, so hold thou thy eye still upon God till thou be fully satisfied. Beloved, there is a time when the Lord uses to exercise his kirk and children with afflictions, and a time when he uses to shew mercy to his people, and to deliver them from these afflictions. Before the time that the Lord has appointed, he will not shew them the favour of deliverance, but when the time of deliverance is once come, then there is no more delay of it: and all that time that he afflicts us we should have our eyes upon him for deliverance. There was a time when the posterity of Abraham was afflicted in Egypt, and it continued whill the set time; and when the time was come, there was no more delay, but that same night they were delivered. And there was a time as appointed for them to be in Babel, and when that time was expired, presently they were set free. Sometimes the Lord tells beforehand how long the captivity of his people shall remain, to let us know that he could tell it always; but most ordinarily he reveals it to none, but keeps it secret to himself. And therefore all the matter for us is, that all the time, till the Lord crown the work of our deliverance, we should have our eyes upon him, and wait upon him till he have mercy upon us: and it was for this end that I did choise (choose) this text at this time.
The Lord has begun to be merciful to us, and to bring back our captivity in some degree; and therefore let us still have our eye upon him for help, till he perfyte the work that he has begun. Remember of that which is written Isaiah 62:6-7, “Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep no silence, nor give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise of the earth.” What is the grace or mercy that ye look for, and are seeking from the Lord? Is it not that God would establish Jerusalem, and make it the beauty of the land? Now has Jerusalem been the beauty of the land these years by-gane? The Lord, indeed, has now begun to draw some draughts of it; but these years past it has been the deformity, the blot, and the division that was in the land. The kirk of Scotland these years bygane has been the shame of Scotland; and all the talking that has been has been of ministers. Now this should be our desire, that the kirk may be the beauty of the land again. The Lord, he has begun to draw some draughts of the kirk’s beauty again; but if we insist not in our prayers, the Lord will stand still, or make it as ill, or worse than it was again. Now all of us should be of these who make mention of the Lord; and therefore let us still cry to the Lord, and give him no rest, no Sabbath nor no day, but let every day be a Sabbath for that, till the Lord make the kirk of Scotland to be the beauty of Scotland. The kingdom of itself, indeed, is not very glorious, but he may make his kirk to be glorious in it, and make his kirk here to be the praise of the earth again; and he can also make the kingdom glorious because of the glory of the kirk. And ye who are women, be like to that woman of Canaan, go often to your knees, and pray to God, and take not an answer; although the Lord seem to refuse you at the first, yet insist still, and ye shall get such an answer and a commendation as she gat.
Will not God avenge himself when the ambition, pride, insolency of the enemies is come to a height? Then it is a fit time for the Lord to work; as it is Psalm 12:3-5, when the enemies are begun to speak proudly, then it is time for him to arise and lend his foes a rap. No, we needed not to doubt, but if we were as far humbled before God as the enemies has exalted themselves, but the Lord should shew mercy to us. But if so be that we turn back again to our sins, or turn away from prayer, this is the very way to make the Lord to turn away from us; but forsake sin, and insist in prayer to God, and he shall come. And marvel not albeit he come not at the first cry to us, for many a time has he cried upon us and we have not heard him. But let us endure in prayer, and be fervent both in private and public, and then there is no question but the Lord shall hear us, and shall stretch out his hand to help us, for our comfort, and for the good and comfort of the generations that shall follow after us. which the Lord grant may be done, for Jesus Christ’s sake, To whom, etc.