John Trapp on Joel 2:13

Verſe 13. And rent your heart and not your garments,] i. e. not your garments onely,Schindler. which was geſtus perturbationis, among the Jews, a geſture uſuall with them, to ſet forth the greatneſſe of their grief and diſpleaſure; as 1. At funerals, and loſſe of friends,Tumpius Aeneas humer[illegible: 2 letters] abſcinaere veſtem Auxilioque vocare Deos, & tendere palmas. Virg. Aeneid. as Gen. 37.2. In caſe of blaſphemy, as 2 King. 18.3. In time of common calamity, Eſth. 4.1. Godly ſorrow for ſinne ſhould exceed all other ſorrows whatſoever, both in intention, and extenſion: the whole ſoul ſending continuall ſtreams into it out of every faculty. And hence it is that the Prophet here calleth upon them to Ront, and as it were to diſcontinuate their hearts, Cor integrum, cor ſciſſum, the broken heart is the onely ſound heart: and to rent the garment, and not the heart, is as very a juggle as that of Players, who ſeem to wound themſelves, but do not; and make a ſhew of thruſting themſelves thorow their bodies, but the ſword paſſeth onely thorow their clothes. Stage-players can act to the life thoſe whom they perſonate; yea out-ſtrip them in outward actions: ſo do hypocrites the true Chriſtian.2 Cron. 34.27 Doth good Joſiah melt at the menaces of the law, and weep, and rend his clothes, and humble himſelf? wicked Ahab will, alſo in like caſe,1 King. 21.27. rend his clothes, put ſackcloth upon his fleſh, faſt, lie in ſack cloth, and go ſoftly and heavily, as ſorrowfull men and mourners uſe to do. Doth the Publican fix his eyes on the ground? thoſe hypocrites in Eſay will hang down their heads as bulruſhes. Doth holy Timothy weaken his conſtitution with religious abſtinence? the falſe Phariſee will not onely weaken his conſtitution, but wither and diſfigure his complexion, [non-Latin text not transcribed], that he may appear to men to faſt, Matth. 6.16. Such pains men will be at for applauſe, for a little ſtinking breath; which yet cannot blow one cold blaſt upon them, when they ſhall be frying in hell for their ſeemingneſſe. Rent therefore your hearts, ſaith the Prophet: break up your fallow-ground, circumciſe your ſelves to the Lord, and take away the filthy fore-skin of your hearts, Jer. 4.3, 4. waſh them from wickedneſſe that ye may be ſaved, verſe 14. Be ye active, and voluntaries in your ſorrows for ſinne. Virtus nolentium nulla eſt; Fained and forced grief is nothing worth. Judas grieved, confeſſed, reſtored, and yet miſcarried. He went not forth, as Peter, to weep bitterly: he did not caſt himſelf: into heavineſſe, as Iam. 4.9, 10. It was fired out of him, as ſweet-water out of roſes. It was ſqueezed out of him, as Verjuice out of crabs. Gods people are commanded to afflict themſelves with voluntary ſorrows, Lev. 16. to loath themſelves for all their abominations,Rom. 8.13. Ezek. 16. to mortifie the deeds of the body by the ſpirit, to do it with their own hands: and not to give over the practiſe of it, till they feel their hearts to ake, and quake within them, yea to fall aſunder in their boſomes, like drops of water. See all this done by David, after he had numbred the people, 2 Sam. 24.10. Some ſhadow of it we have in the example of Epaminondas the Theban Generall, who the next day after the Victory and Triumph, went drooping and hanging down his head: and being asked,Plutar. why he did ſo? he anſwered, Yeſterday I felt my ſelf too much tickled with vain-glory: therefore I correct my ſelf for it to day.2 Sam. 24.10. Expounded. But we have a better example in holy David, whoſe heart ſmote him, ſaith the Text, and made him ſmart inwardly. He was not yet ſmitten, either by Gods hand, or the Prophets reproof (as afterwards) but his ſanctified conſcience did its office of a faithfull Monitour, and houſhold Chaplain: his heart miſgave him. Bee-maſters tell us, that thoſe are the beſt hives, that make the greateſt noiſe. Sure it is that that's the beſt conſcience, that ſuffers not a man to ſleep in ſin. Davids heart ſmote him. But for what? for numbring the people. It was for his own ſin, for a ſmall, for a ſecret ſin, for a failing in the manner only. David knew that a man may dye as well of an inward bleeeding, as of an outward hurt. The good ſoul is oft afflicted for faylings in that holy duty which others applaud and extol. And David ſaid unto the Lord: he could not reſt till he had opened his mind unto him by confeſſion and ſupplication, and ſo got a vent to his troubled ſpirit: as when a ſore is opened, there is eaſe immediately. To God therefore he addreſſeth himſelf, not to men (as Judas did and Papiſts do, and many amongſt us being in pain of conſcience will rather ſhark for eaſe, then ſue for pardon,) and acknowledgeth with aggravation the iniquity of his ſin, the ſinfulneſſe of it as Pauls expreſſion is Rom. 7.13.Pſal. 32.3. (for ſin is ſo vile that he could call it no worſe then by its own name) I have ſinned greatly in that I have done: his ſin ſwelled like a toad in his eyes, and he ſpat it out of his mouth with utmoſt indignation. He confeſſeth ſorrowfully, but not deſperately, as Iudas: for he both cryes for pardon. Take away the iniquity (for as for the puniſhment how he ſtood affected ſee verſe. 17. Let thine hand, I pray thee, be againſt me, and my fathers houſe) and concludeth himſelf Gods ſervant, yea proveth himſelf ſo, (as ſome godly learned think,) by thoſe following words, For I have done fooliſhly; q. d. If I deſerve not to be called Gods ſervant in regard of my late ſin (and indeed God calls him but plain David verſe. 12. Goe and ſay to David, not to my ſervant David, as at other times,) yet at leaſt in regard of my later ſervice of confeſſion joyned with Reformation; for now I ſee I have done very fooliſhly, who once thought I had done wondrous wiſely and politickly.

and turn unto the Lord your God] Of turning to God ſee at large, the Note on Zach. 1.3. Here it is preſcribed as a remedy againſt Gods wrath, and preſſed again and again, to ſhew the neceſſity of doing it, or we are utterly undone. So elſewhere, Turn you, turn you, why will you dye? except ye repent, ye muſt needſly periſh. Aut poenitendum aut pereundum, Either you muſt turn on earth,Ioh. 3.3. or burn in hell: be born again, or ye cannot ſee the kingdome of God. Heaven was too hot to hold the Apoſtate-Angel. And although the devill could get into paradiſe: yet no unclean thing ever gat into heaven. No dirty dog may trample on that golden pavement. The pure in heart only can ſee God, as whole eyes can look upon the Sun-beames, and as tranſparent bodies receive the light. Turn you therefore unto the Lord, If a man ſee a Lion or a burning fire before him, he will make ſome ſhift to turn another way. So here: biaſſe, for there is no ſafety in going forward: ſith our God is a conſuming fire: and as a roaring lion will tear, and rent the cawle of our hearts in ſunder Hoſ. 13.8. if we rent not our hearts, and turn unto him. By turning may well be here meant Reformation, that Repentance from ſin (as Humiliation before required, is in ſcripture called Repentance for ſin) for it is not enough to mourn unleſſe we mend alſo, to bewail our wickedneſſe, but we muſt embrace better courſes, Jer. 26 13. Eſa. 1.16. Mat. 3.8. Rom. 12.9, & 13, 11. Eph. 4.22. God for this cauſe gives us the light of Nature and Scripture, beſides other meanes, and time enough. Had he given us but one Prophet onely, and but forty dayes, as he dealt by Nineveh, we ſhould have done it as they did. How much more now that we abound with leiſure (read Jezebels ſin and ſentence Rev. 2.21.) and have ſo many Prophets riſing up early and ſpeaking to us,Iob. 13.4. Turn ye again now every one from his evill way Jer. 25.4, 5. what will become of us if we refuſe to be reclaimed, hate to be healed. This one Prophet here fills his mouth with arguments. Firſt, it is not to a tyrant or a ſtranger that you are exhorted to turn, but to the Lord your God, to him that is your head, husband, father, who hates putting away, having once betrothed you to himſelf in righteouſneſſe and in judgement, and in loving kindneſſe, and in tender mercies Hoſ. 2.19. Next, This Lord our God is, for his ſweet and patient nature here ſet forth to be Gratious, and will therefore love you freely Hoſ. 14.4. Merciful, and will therefore pitty your miſery: Slow to anger, or not apt to ſnuff, but a maſter of his wrath Nah. 1.2. and one that can bear more then any other whatſoever Mic. 7.17.

And,Bagnal Chemah. of great kindneſſe] or Much in goodneſſe, doing good to the evill and unthankful, as our Saviour yokes them.

and repenteth him of the evil] A little puniſhment being enough to a father for a great fault,Pro peccato magno paululum ſupplic[illegible: 1 letter]i ſatis eſto patri Terent. Where note, that Gods repentance is not a change of his will, but of his work only: and ſo he repents for his people, when he ſeeth their power is gone, Deut. 32.36. when there is dignus vindice nodus, an extremity fit for divine power to interpoſe: when the enemies are ready to devour the church or Satan to ſwallow down Gods child in deſpair, his bowels work, he can hold no longer, but cries Save my child, ſave my church &c Jer. 31.20. then he ſends out his Mandamus for deliverance, Pſal. 44.4. then he comes with his Non obſtante as Pſal. 106.8. Iſay. 57.15 Now who would not return to ſuch a God? and what heart can reſiſt ſuch powerfull Rhetorick? An heape of words we have here (taken for moſt part out of Exod. 34.6.) and all to draw out faith, and encourage thoſe that have any mind to look toward God. It is no ſuch eaſie thing to beleeve, as fond folk conceit; and to comfort a conſcience caſt down in the ſenſe of ſin and fear of wrath is no leſſe difficult, ſaith Luther, then to raiſe the dead from the grave. If men fear they ſhall fail of mercy upon their return to God. Either they will fall into dedolency or deſpair. But perſwade them once of the goodneſſe of God, and it will lead them to repentance; Rom. 2.4. Let them ſee that in their fathers houſe is bread enough, and they will home immediatly: that God will abundantly pardon, and he ſhall have ſuitors great ſtore. Eſa. 55.7. The ſweet and gratious nature of God ſhould be as a perpetuall picture in our hearts; and an effectual motive to make men turn unto him.