John Trapp on Hosea 2:9

Verſe 9. Therefore will I returne] i. e. I will alter my courſe, change my ſtand, change the way of mine adminiſtrations, deale otherwiſe with them then yet I have done: they ſhall bear their iniquities, and know my breach of promiſe, as Num. 14.34. they ſhall know the worth of mine abuſed mercyes, by the want of them another while. I will go and returne to my place, till they acknowledge their offence and ſeek my face: in their affliction they will ſeek me early. Hoſ. 5.15. Finally, I will cut them ſhort of alimony and hold them to ſtraight allowance;Hoſ. 7.14. and then I ſhall be ſure to heare them howling upon their beds for corne and wine: as dogs do that are tied up, and cannot come at their meat. And take away my corn, and my wine] thoſe precious fruits of the earth, as S. James calleth them, James. 5.7. the product of Gods great care, from years end to years end, Deut. 11.12. without which the earth could not yield her increaſe: neither would there be a veine for the ſilver, a mine for the gold, iron taken out of the earth, or braſs molten out of the ſtone. Job. 28.3. All that we have is his, in true account, and he is the great Proprietary, Mat. 20.15. who onely can ſay (as he in the goſpel) May not I do what I will with mine own? And what ſhould he ſooner and rather do, then take away meate from his childe that marrs it? If fulneſſe breed forgetfulneſſe, (as the fed hawk forgets his maſter, and as the full Moon gets furtheſt off from the Sun) ſo men, when they have all things at the full, forget God, and wickedly depart from him, what can he do leſſe then forget them (that ſo they may remember themſelves) and make fat Ieſhurun look with leane cheeks, that they may leave kicking,Deut. 32.15. Iſay. 26.9. and learne righteouſneſſe? Neither doth God do this, till greatly provoked, till there is a cauſe for it, Therefore I will returne. He may well ſay, as that Roman Emperour did, when he was to pronounce ſentence of death, Non niſi coactus, I am even compel'd to it, there is no other remedy, 2. Chron. 36.16. As a woman brings not forth but with paine; and as a bee ſtings not, but provoked: ſo here, Ille dolet quoties cogitur eſſe ferox, he afflicteth not willingly, nor grieves the children of men, Lam. 3.33. It's ſin that maketh him returne as here: that puts him out of his road of mercy into wayes of judgment, that putteth thunderbolts into his hand, and maketh him do his work, his ſtrange work, and bring to paſs his act, his ſtrange act. Iſay. 28.21. What can a Prince do leſs then diſarme a rebel? what can God do leſs, then take away his own and be gone from ſuch an impudent adultereſſe, as is here deſcribed?Jer. 7.18. ſhould he ſuffer her with his corn to make cakes to the Qu[illegible: 1 letter]en of heaven, and to poure out his wine for drink-offerings to other gods, that they might provoke him to anger? No: rather then ſo, he will take away corn in the time thereof, and his wine in the ſeaſon thereof] He will cut off the meate from their very mouths, Ioel. 1.16. and pull their morſel from between their teeth. Juſt at harveſt, when their corne is to be inned, God will blaſt it, or otherwiſe blow upon it, when all their old ſtore is ſpent, and they reckoned upon a good recruit, they ſhall be defeated and fruſtrated. Therefore hath God watched upon the evill, and brought it upon us, ſaith Daniel, chap. 9.14. Lo, God watcheth his time when to be even with his enemies: and taketh his fitteſt opportunity for their greater miſchief. They that are wicked overmuch ſhall dye before their time, Eccle. 7.17. Not before Gods time (for ſta[illegible: 3 letters]a cuique dies, every mans time is ſet, Job. 7.1. our bounds are preſcribed us, and a pillar pitcht up by him, who beares up the heavens, which we are not to treſpaſſe) but before their own time that they had propounded and promiſed to themſelves as that rich foole, Luk. 12.19. who talked to himſelf (as fooles uſe to do) Verſ. 17. ſaying Soul, thou haſt much good laid up for many years. But we know what became of him that very night; his many years were quickly up, his glaſs was run, when he thought it had bin but new turned.Pſal. 64.7. God ſhot at him with an arrow ſuddenly, he fetcht off this bird with a bolt whileſt he was gazing at the bow, or pruning himſelf upon a bough. He chopt into the earth before he was aware: as one that walketh in the ſnow chops into a pit. He died tempore non ſuo (as ſome render that forecited text in Eccleſiastes) not in his own time, but in Gods time; then when it had been better for that foole to have done any thing, then to have died, becauſe (like Elies ſons) he died in his ſins: and like Jezebels children, he was killed with death. This made Auſtin ſay,Rev. 2.23. that he would not for the gaine of a world, be an Atheiſt for one half hour: becauſe he knew not but that God might,Job. 27.8. in that time, call him: And then, what is the hope of the hypocrite though he hath gained, when God taketh away his ſoul? He is troubled, when God taketh away his corn in the time thereof, and his wine in the ſeaſon thereof: he is hungry and hardly beſtead, and therefore ready to curſe God, and look upward, howling againſt heaven, as the hungry wolf. But firſt he ſhould conſider,Eſay 8.21. that the corn and wine and wooll and flax that he hath in keeping is not his, but Gods; and that he reſerves the propriety of all in his own hand: neither hath any man ought, in reference to him the Monarch of the world, that he can call his own. The rich fool indeed talked much on this manner, Luk. 12.18. I will pull down [my] barns and build greater, and there will I beſtow all [my] fruites, and [my] goods. All was his own belike: God was not in all this mans thoughts; For if he had, he would ſoon have known what to have done: ſc. he would have acknowledged God the Author and owner of all (as Moſes mindeth men) he would alſo have fed the hungry with his corn,Deut. 8.17.18. and clothed the naked with his wooll and flax, as Tyrus converted did with her merchandiſe Iſay. 23.18. he would have ſaid to God as David did,1 Chron. 29.14. all things come of thee, and of thine own we give thee. Bernard reports of Pope Eugenius, that meeting with a poore but honeſt Biſhop, he ſecretly gave him certain Jewels wherewith he might preſent him. If God did not firſt furniſh us out of his treaſury; we ſhould have nothing wherewith either to honour him or to help our ſelves or others; Gods poore, I meane, whom Solomon calleth owners of our goods and maketh us but their ſtewards, Pro. 3.27. with-hold not thy goods from the owners thereof. Next, the hungerbit hypocrite ſhould conſider, that there is a worſe hunger yet behind: and an heavy account to be given of the corn, wine, wooll, and flax, the creatures that he hath deteyned in unrighteouſneſs, and ſpent upon his luſts, Jam. 4.3. If the huſband men muſt be aſhamed and howl becauſe the harveſt of the field is periſhed: If the drunkards muſt wake, weep and waile becauſe the new wine is cut off from their mouths, Serm. 4. in Quadrageſs. Jo. de comb. Comp. Theol. l. 6. c. 21. Joel. 1.5, 11. How ſhall they much more howl in hell, ubi nullus unquam cibus eſt, nulla conſolatio, ſaith Bernard, where there is no manner of meate, no drop of water to be had for love or mony: where they muſt faſt, and find no mercy for ever, where they muſt hunger and thirſt in aeterno Dei as the Schooles ſpeak, as long as God is God. The ſufferings of this world to the wicked, is but as the falling of the leaves in compariſon of the trees, that will fall upon him hereafter, in that eternity of extremities. If here, In the fulneſſe of his ſufficiency he ſhall be in ſtraits, and every hand of the troubleſome ſhall come upon him. When he is about to fill his belly, God ſhall caſt the fury of his wrath upon him, and ſhall raine it upon him while he is eating, as it is threatned Job. 20.22.23. what think we, will their portion be in hell? Meane while God will recover his wooll and his flax] He will ſnatch it away (as the word ſignifieth) in great diſpleaſure, as a man doth his ſtolen goods out of the hands of a thief: He will reſcue them, as Abraham did Lot and the captives from Chedor-laomer, Gen. 14. 1 Sam. 30. as David did his wives, goods, and friends from the Amalekitiſh rovers. The poore creatures, corn, wine, wooll, &c. groan heavily under the abuſe of graceleſſe perſons, Rom. 8.22. and God heareth them, as he did the oppreſſed Iſraelites in Egypt, for he is gratious, He hears them I ſay, and recovers them: He ſpoiles their poſſeſſours of them, as Jacob did Laban of his ſheep, [non-Latin text not transcribed] Gen. 31.10.16. as the Iſraelites did the Egyptians of their Jewels: the ſame word is uſed there, as here, and it is a wonderfull ſignificant word ſaith Mercer, S. Paul, imitateth it, when he ſaith the creature ſhall be delivered from the bondage of corruption. This God doth when he ſnatcheth away kingdomes from tyrants, wealth fron worldlings, ſtrength from royſters, ſpirituall common gifts from the proud and ſecure. Zech. 11.17. See the note there, when men abuſe mercies, they forfeit their right in them: wicked men have not onely a civill title, but a right before God to the things that they poſſeſſe; It is their portion, Pſal. 17.14. And what Ananias had was his own whiles he had it, Act. 5. And God gave Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar as pay for his pains in taking Tyre. True it is, all was forfeited in Adam: but wicked men have yet a right to all they do enjoy in a lawfull way, by divine donation, till the day of execution: As when a traitour hath his life given him, for a time at leaſt, he hath meate and drink alſo given him to maintain his life for that time. God dealeth not as that cruel Duke D'alva did, who ſtarved ſome priſoners after that he had given them quarter, ſaying, Though I promiſed you your lives,Hiſt of Netherl. I promiſed not to finde you meate. That which wicked men are charged with, and ſhall be accountable for, is, not their right to uſe the creatures, but their not right uſing them: This makes the creature cry in its kinde and long for liberty: even as birds do that thruſt a long neck out of a cage (ſo much the Apoſtles word importeth Rom. 8.19.) And God who heareth the cry of the widdow and fatherleſſe, and looſeth his priſoners Pſal. 146.7. [non-Latin text not transcribed]. heares and frees the poor creatures groaning under mans abuſe &c. Given to cover her nakedneſſe.] This is the end of garments ſo called quaſi gardmentes: they arme and fence our bodies againſt the injury of winde and weather, againſt heate of ſummer, cold of winter; They alſo cover our nakedneſſe and deformity, thoſe parts eſpecially that are by an Antiphraſis called verenda & pudenda (here principally perhaps intended) becauſe they ought never to be laid naked but kept covered pudoris gratia for common honeſty ſake: that the ſhame of thy nakedneſſe do not appeare, Rev. 3.18.Vatab. Nature teacheth to cover our nakedneſſe; Therefore alſo when a man hath commttted a ſin, he bluſheth: the blood, as it were would cover the ſin. But nothing will do that, ſave onely the righteouſneſſe of Chriſt, the fleece of that immaculate lamb of God, whom therefore we muſt put on, Rom. 13.14. in all his offices and efficacies. Our firſt parents indeed were born with the royall robe of originall righteouſneſſe on their back; but the devill ſoon ſtript them of it; and therehence they became ſore aſhamed of their bodily nakedneſſe (but chiefly of their ſpirituall) which therefore they ſought to hide as they could, their privities eſpecially. Whence ſome are of opinion that to look upon the nakedneſſe of another is a ſin againſt nature. The Prophet Habakkuk taxeth it in the Chaldees Chap. 2.15. and the Hebrewes there ſay, It was a filthy cuſtome amongſt them, common at their feaſts. Cloathes are the enſignes of mans ſin, and the cover of our ſhame. To be proud of them, is as for a thief to be proud of his halter: to brag of them, is as for the Lazar to brag of a plaſter laid to his filthy ſore: the fineneſſe of ſuch is their filthineſſe: their neatneſſe, naſtineſſe, as one ſpeaketh.