withered, it is become like a stick. They that be slain with the sword, are better than they which be slain with hunger; for these pine away stricken through for want of the fruits of the earth. The hands of the pitiful women have sodden their own children, they were their meat in the destruction of the daughter of my people. The Lord hath accomplished his fury, he hath poured out his fierce anger."

6. The sixth terrible judgment is a famine of the Word, which is threatened, Amos viii. 11, 12. "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will send a famine in the land; not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord: and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, and they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, and shall not find it."

A famine of the Word is a worse judginent than a famine of bread! Indeed few do really think so, because the most judge according to sense; but that it is so, is evident to a man of faith and consideration: for as the soul is more excellent than the body, and the concernments of the other life, far beyond the concernments of this life so the provisions for the soul are more excellent than the provisions for the body, and the means of getting eternal life, to be preferred before the means of preserving temporal life; and therefore by consequence the death and scarcity of provisions for the soul, must needs be a greater judgment than a scarcity of provisions for the body. Unto which I might add, that the famine of the Word doth usually bring with it many

temporal judgments; the burning of the temple at Jerusalem, and the failing of vision was accom❤ panied with slaughter by the sword, and captivity of the land.

7. And lastly, God speaks most terribly unto a people when he sends divers of these judgments together, as Lam. i. 20. "Abroad the sword be

reaveth, at home there is death;" when enemies without, plague and famine within. God speaks terribly, when fire and sword go together, or sword and famine, or famine and plague, or famine of bread, and famine of the Word.

These are some of the terrible things by which God doth sometimes speak.

SECT. III.

Why is it that the Lord doth speak unto a people by such terrible things?

THE reason is, because people do not hearken unto him, speaking any other way. "God speaketh once, yea, twice, but men perceive it not," Job xxxiii. 14. God's gentle voice is not heard or minded, therefore he speaks more loudly and terribly, that people might be awakened to hear. Particularly God speaks thus terribly,

8. Because people do not hearken to the voice of his Word and messengers; God speaks audibly

by ministers, and when they are not regarded, he speaks more feelingly by judgments; he speaks first by threatenings, and when they are slighted, he speaks by executions. God first lifts up his voice, and warns by his Word, before he lifts up his arm, and strikes with his rod: when men grow thick of hearing the sweet calls of the Gospel, God is even forced to thunder, that he may pierce their ear: when God speaks to the ears and they are shut, God speaks to the eyes and other senses, that his mind may be known; especially when men obstinately refuse to hear, God is exceedingly provoked to execute his terrible judgments upon them. See Zech. viii. 11, 12. "But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears that they should not hear: yea, they made their hearts like an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of Hosts had sent in his Spirit by the former prophets: therefore came there a great wrath from the Lord of Hosts." So also when God gave up Jerusalem to desolation and ruin, see the sin which provoked the Lord hereunto, 2 Chron. xxxvi. 16. "They mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord, arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

2. Because they do not hearken to the voice of his goodness and mercies. The goodness and forbearance of God, doth speak unto men from him, and call upon them to forbear sin for shame; to repent and return to him, Rom. i. 4. But when men despise the riches of his goodness, and deafen their ear unto the language of his mercies,

and trample his patience under foot, (though God hath appointed a day of wrath hereafter, wherein he will reckon with the whole ungodly world together, and give them the just demerit of their sin;) yet sometimes his patience is turned hereby into fury, and his anger doth break forth into a flame, and consumes them by the blow of dreadful temporal judgments.

3. Because they will not hearken to the voice of lesser afflictions. When God's word is not heard, he speaks by his rod; when his rod is not heard, he shoots with his arrows and strikes with his sword; and if lesser afflictions be not minded, then God speaks by more dreadful awakening judgments: as the sins of men do precede the judgments of God, so usually lesser judgments do precede greater judgments; and as there are degrees and steps which men usually do make before they arrive to a great height in sin, Nemo repentè fit turpissimus, so there are degrees and steps which God usually doth take, in inflicting his judgments for sin. Look into one place for all, which shews how God doth proceed from less to greater judgments, Lev. xxvi. from the 15th verse to the 40th. When his "statutes are despised, and covenant broken;" first he threateneth to send them upon consumption and a burning ague;" then he threatened that "they shall fall before their enemies," and if "they will not hearken to his voice" in these judgments, he threateneth to "punish them seven times more for their sins;" and to "make the heavens as iron, and the earth as brass;" and "send a dearth amongst them." And if they will not " yet

66

66

hearken," he threateneth to "send wild beasts, which should devour their children and cattle." And if they would not be reformed by these things, but still" would walk contrary unto him," he threateneth "to walk contrary unto them, and to punish them yet seven times more for their sins:" he threateneth to bring a sword upon them, to avenge the quarrel of his covenant; and when they should be gathered together in their cities, to "send the pestilence amongst them: and hereunto to add the "famine." And if they would not yet "hearken unto God, but still walk contrary unto him," he threateneth "that he will walk contrary to them in fury, and make them eat the flesh of their sons and their daughters, and lay waste their cities, and make their sanctuaries a desolation: and upon them that are left alive," he threateneth "to send such faintness of heart, that they should flee at the sound of a shaken leaf, and fall when none pursued them; and that they should pine away in their iniquities in the land of their enemies. Thus God proceeds by steps and degrees, in the execution of his fierce anger upon a rebellious people; when God speaks by ordinary diseases and is not heard, then sometimes he sends a plague: and if after a plague, people will not return to him that smiteth them, nor seek to pacify God's anger which is kindled against them; but walk so much the more contrary unto him, he will walk contrary to them in fury, and send fire into their cities to devour their habitations. And if the voice of the fire be not heard, he hath other judgments in readiness, sword, famine, and the like.