Sermon 5: The Mercy of God

SERMON 5. The Mercy of God.

NUMB. XIV.18. The Lord is long suffering, and of great Mercy.

I have considered God's goodness in general. There are two eminent branches of it, his patience and mercy. The patience of God is his goodness to them that are guilty, in deferring or moderating their deserved punishment; the mercy of God is his goodness to them that are or may be miserable. 'Tis the last of these two I design to discourse of at this time; in doing which, I shall inquire,

First, What we are to understand by the mercy of God.

Secondly, Shew you, that this perfection belongs to God.

Thirdly, Consider the degree of it, that God is of great mercy.

First, What we are to understand by the mercy of God.

I told you it is his goodness to them that are in misery, or liable to it; that is, that are in danger of it, or have deserved it. 'Tis mercy to prevent the misery that we are liable to, and which may befal us, tho' it be not actually upon us. 'Tis mercy to defer the misery that we deserve, or mitigate it; and this is properly patience and forbearance. 'Tis mercy to relieve those that are in misery, to support or comfort them. 'Tis mercy to remit the misery we deserve, and by pardon and forgiveness to remove and take away the obligation to punishment.

Thus the mercy of God is usually in Scripture set forth to us by the affection of pity and compassion, which is an affection that causes a sensible commotion and disturbance in us, upon the apprehension of some great evil that lies upon another, or hangs over him. Hence it is that God is said in Scripture to be grieved and afflicted for the miseries of men; his bowels are said to sound, and his heart to turn within him. But tho' God is pleased in this manner to set forth his mercy and tenderness towards us, yet we must take heed how we clothe the divine nature with the infirmities of human passions. We must not measure the perfection of God by the expressions of his condescension; and because he stoops to our weakness, level him to our infirmities. When God is said to pity us, we must take away the imperfection of this passion, the commotion and disturbance of it, and not imagine any such thing in God; but we are to conceive, that the mercy and compassion of God, without producing the disquiet, do produce the effects of the most sensible pity.

Secondly, That this perfection belongs to God.

All the arguments that I used to prove the goodness of God, from the acknowledgment of natural light, and from Scripture and reason, serve to prove that he is merciful; because the mercy of God is an eminent branch of his goodness. I will only produce some of those many texts of Scripture which attribute this perfection to God. Exodus 34:6. The Lord, the Lord God, gracious and merciful. Deuteronomy 4:31. The Lord your God is a merciful God. 2 Chronicles 30:9. The Lord your God is gracious and merciful. Nehemiah 9:17. Ready to pardon, gracious and merciful. Psalm 25:10. All the paths of the Lord are mercy. Psalm 62:12. To you, O Lord, belongs mercy. Psalm 103:8. Merciful and gracious. Psalm 130:7. With the Lord there is mercy. And so Jeremiah 3:12; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2; Luke 6:36. Be you therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful. The Scripture speaks of this as most natural to him (2 Corinthians 1:3); he is called the Father of mercies. But when he punishes, he does as it were relinquish his nature, and do a strange work. The Lord will wait that he may be gracious (Isaiah 30:18). God passes by opportunities of punishing, but his mercy takes opportunity to display itself; he waits to be gracious. To afflict or punish is a work that God is unwilling to, that he takes no pleasure in (Lamentations 3:33); he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men. But mercy is a work that he delights in (Micah 7:18); he delights in mercy. When God shows mercy, he does it with pleasure and delight; he is said to rejoice over his people to do them good. Those attributes that declare God's goodness, as when he is said to be gracious, or merciful, and long-suffering, they show what God is in himself, and delights to be; those which declare his wrath and severity, show what he is upon provocation, and the occasion of sin; not what he chooses to be, but what we do as it were compel and necessitate him to be.

Thirdly, For the degree of it; that God is a God of great mercy.

The Scripture does delight to advance the mercy of God, and does use great variety of expression to magnify it. It speaks of the greatness of his mercy (Numbers 14:19); according to the greatness of his mercy. 2 Samuel 24:14. Let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for his mercies are great. 'Tis called an abundant mercy (1 Peter 1:3); according to his abundant mercy. Psalm 103:8. He is said to be plenteous in mercy; and rich in mercy (Ephesians 2:4). Psalm 5:7. He speaks of the multitude of God's mercies; and of the variety of them (Nehemiah 9:18); in your manifold mercies you forsook them not. So many are they, that we are said to be surrounded and compassed about on every side with them (Psalm 103:4); who crowns us with loving kindness and tender mercies.

And yet further to set forth the greatness of them, the Scripture uses all dimensions. Height (Psalm 57:10); your mercy is great to the heavens. Yes, higher yet (Psalm 108:4); your mercy is great above the heavens. For the latitude and extent of it, 'tis as large as the earth, and extends to all the creatures in it (Psalm 119:64); the earth is full of your mercy. Psalm 145:8. His tender mercies are over all his works. For the length, or duration and continuance of it (Exodus 34:7); laying up mercy in store for thousands of generations, one after another. No, it is of a longer continuance; Psalm 118, 'tis several times repeated, that his mercy endures for ever.

And to shew the intense degree of this affection of mercy or pity, the Scripture useth several emphatical expressions to set it forth to us. The Scripture speaks of the tender mercies of God (Psalm 25:6): "Remember, O Lord, your tender mercies." Yes, of the multitude of these (Psalm 51:1): "According to the multitude of your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions." (James 5:11) "The Lord is very pitiful and of tender mercy." They are called God's bowels, which are the tenderest parts, and apt to yearn and stir in us when any affections of love and pity are excited (Isaiah 63:15): "Where is the sounding of your bowels, and of your mercies, are they restrained?" (Luke 1:78) "Through the tender mercy of our God." So it is in our translation; but if we render it from the original, 'tis through the bowels of the mercies of our God. How does God condescend in those pathetical expressions, which he useth concerning his people? (Hosea 11:8) "How shall I give you up, Ephraim? mine heart is turned within me, and my repentings are kindled together." No, to express his tender sense of our miseries and sufferings, he is represented as being afflicted with us, and bearing a part in our sufferings (Isaiah 63:9): "In all their afflictions he was afflicted."

The compassions of God are compared to the tenderest affections among men; to that of a father towards his children (Psalm 103:13): "As a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him." No, to the compassions of a mother towards her infant (Isaiah 49:15): "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb?" Yes she may, 'tis possible, though most unlikely: but though a mother may turn unnatural; yet God cannot be unmerciful.

In short, the Scripture does every where magnify the mercy of God, and speak of it with all possible advantage; as if the divine nature, which does in all perfections excel all others, did in this excel itself. The Scripture speaks of it as if God was wholly taken up with it, as if it was his constant exercise and employment, so that in comparison of it, he does hardly display any other excellency (Psalm 25:10): "All the paths of the Lord are mercy"; as if in this world God had a design to advance his mercy above his other attributes. The mercy of God is now in the throne, this is the day of mercy, and God does display it many times with a seeming dishonour to his other attributes, his justice, and holiness, and truth. His justice; this makes Job complain of the long life and prosperity of the wicked (Job 41:7): "Therefore do the wicked live, yea become old?" &c. His holiness; this makes the prophet expostulate with God (Habakkuk 1:13): "You are of purer eyes than to behold evil, and cannot look on iniquity. Therefore do you look upon them that deal treacherously, and hold your tongue?" &c. And the truth of God; this makes Jonah complain, as if God's mercies were such, as did make some reflection upon his truth (Jonah 4:2).

But that we may have more distinct apprehensions of the greatness and number of God's mercies, I will distribute them into kinds, and rank them under several heads. 'Tis mercy to prevent those evils and miseries that we are liable to. 'Tis mercy to defer those evils that we have deserved, or to mitigate them. 'Tis mercy to support and comfort us when misery is upon us. 'Tis mercy to deliver us from them. But the greatest mercy of all is, to remit the evil and misery we have deserved, by pardon and forgiveness, to remove and take away the obligation to punishment; so that the mercy of God may be reduced to these five heads.

1. Preventing mercy. Many evils and miseries which we are liable to, God prevents them at a great distance; and when they are coming towards us, he stops them or turns them another way. The merciful providence of God, and those invisible guards which protect us, do divert many evils from us, which fall upon others. We seldom take notice of God's preventing mercy; we are not apt to be sensible how great a mercy it is to be freed from those straits and necessities, those pains and diseases of body, those inward racks and horrors, which others are pressed withal and labor under. When any evil or misery is upon us, would we not reckon it a mercy to be rescued and delivered from it? And is it not a greater mercy that we never felt it? Does not that man owe more to his physician who prevents his sickness and distemper, than he who after the weakness and languishing, the pains and tortures of several months, is at length cured by him?

2. Forbearing mercy. And this is the patience of God, which consists in the deferring or moderating of our deserved punishment. Hence it is that slow to anger, and of great mercy, do so often go together. But this I shall speak to hereafter in some particular discourses.

3. Comforting mercy. (2 Corinthians 1:3) "The father of mercies, and the God of all comfort." The Scripture represents God as very merciful, in comforting and supporting those that are afflicted and cast down; hence are those expressions of putting his arms under us, bearing us up, speaking comfortably, visiting us with his loving kindness, which signify God's merciful regard to those who are in misery and distress.

4. His relieving mercy, in supplying those that are in want, and delivering those that are in trouble. God does many times exercise men with troubles and afflictions, with a very gracious and merciful design, to prevent greater evils, which men would otherwise bring upon themselves. Afflictions are a merciful invention of heaven to do us that good, which nothing else can; they awaken us to a sense of God, and of ourselves, to a consideration of the evil of our ways; they make us to take notice of God, to seek him, and enquire after him. God does as it were by afflictions throw men upon their backs to make them look up to heaven (Hosea 5:15): "In their affliction they will seek me early." (Psalm 78:34) "When he slew them, then they sought him, and they returned, and enquired early after God." But God does not delight in this, he does not afflict willingly, nor grieve the children of men. When afflictions have accomplished their work, and obtained their end upon us, God is very ready to remove them, and command deliverance for us (Isaiah 54:7–8): "For a small moment have I forsaken you; but with great mercies will I gather you. In a little wrath I hid my face from you; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on you, says the Lord your Redeemer."

V. Pardoning mercy. And here the greatness and fullness of God's mercy appears, because our sins are great (Psalm 78:38): Being full of compassion, he forgave their iniquity. And the multitude of God's mercies, because our sins are many (Psalm 51:1): Have mercy on me, O Lord, according to the multitude of your tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Exodus 34:7: He is said to pardon iniquity, transgression, and sin. How many fold are his mercies, to forgive all our sins, of what kind so ever! The mercy of God to us in pardoning our sins, is matter of astonishment and admiration (Micah 7:18): Who is a God like to you, that pardons iniquity! But especially if we consider by what means our pardon is procured; by transferring our guilt upon the most innocent person, the Son of God, and making him to bear our iniquities, and to suffer the wrath of God which was due to us. The admirable contrivance of God's mercy appears in this dispensation; this shows the riches of his grace, that he should be at so much cost to purchase our pardon, Not with corruptible things, as silver and gold; but with the precious blood of his own Son (Ephesians 1:6, 7): To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he has made us accepted in the beloved; in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace.

Having dispatched the three particulars I proposed to be spoken to, I shall show what use we ought to make of this Divine Attribute.

Use 1. We ought with thankfulness to acknowledge and admire the great mercy of God to us. Let us view it in all its dimensions; the height, and length, and breadth of it: in all the variety and kinds of it; the preventing mercy of God to many of us. Those miseries that lie upon others, 'tis mercy to us that we escaped them. 'Tis mercy that spares us. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, and because his compassions fail not. 'Tis mercy that mitigates our punishment, and makes it fall below the desert of our sins. 'Tis mercy that comforts and supports us under any of those evils that lie upon us, and that rescues and delivers us from them. Which way so ever we look, we are encompassed with the mercies of God; they compass us about on every side, we are crowned with loving kindness and tender mercies. 'Tis mercy that feeds us, and clothes us, and that preserves us. But above all we should thankfully acknowledge and admire the pardoning mercy of God (Psalm 103:1, 2, 3), where David does as it were muster up the mercies of God, and make a catalogue of them, he sets the pardoning mercy in the front: Bless you the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me praise his holy Name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits; who forgives all your iniquities.

If we look into ourselves, and consider our own temper and disposition, how void of pity and bowels we are, how cruel, and hard hearted, and insolent, and revengeful; if we look abroad into the world, and see how full the earth is of the habitations of cruelty; we shall admire the mercy of God more, and think ourselves more beholden to it. How many things must concur to make our hearts tender, and melt our spirits, and stir our bowels, to make us pitiful and compassionate? We seldom pity any unless they be actually in misery; nor all such neither, unless the misery they lie under be very great; nor then neither, unless the person that suffers be nearly related, and we be someways concerned in his sufferings; yes, many times not then neither, upon a generous account, but as we are someways obliged by interest and self-love, and a dear regard to ourselves, when we have suffered the like ourselves, and have learnt to pity others by our own sufferings, or when in danger and probability to be in the like condition ourselves; so many motives and obligations are necessary to awaken and stir up this affection in us. But God is merciful and pitiful to us, out of the mere goodness of his Nature; for few of these motives and considerations can have any place in him. This affection of pity and tenderness is stirred up in God by the mere presence of the object, without any other inducement. The mercy of God many times does not stay till we be actually miserable; but looks forward a great way, and pities us at a great distance, and prevents our misery. God does not only pity us in great calamities; but considers those lesser evils that are upon us. God is merciful to us, when we have deserved all the evils that are upon us, and far greater, when we are less than the least of all his mercies, when we deserved all the misery that is upon us, and have with violent hands pulled it upon our own heads, and have been the authors and procurers of it to ourselves. Though God, in respect of his Nature, be at an infinite distance from us, yet his mercy is near to us, and he cannot possibly have any self-interest in it. The Divine Nature is not liable to want, or injury, or suffering; he is secure of his own happiness and fullness, and can neither wish the enlargement nor fear the impairment of his estate; he can never stand in need of pity or relief from us or any other; and yet he pities us.

Now if we consider the vast difference of this affection in God and us, how tender his mercies are, and how sensible his bowels; and yet we who have so many arguments to move us to pity, how hard our hearts are, and how unapt to relent, as if we were born of the rock, and were the offspring of the nether millstone; sure when we duly consider this, we cannot but admire the mercy of God.

How cruel are we to creatures below us! With how little remorse can we kill a flea, or tread upon a worm? Partly because we are secure that they cannot hurt us, nor revenge themselves upon us; and partly because they are so despicable in our eyes, and so far below us, that they do not fall under the consideration of our pity. Look upward, proud man! and take notice of him who is above you, you did not make the creatures below you as God did, there's but a finite distance between you and the meanest creatures; but there's an infinite distance between you and God. Man is a name of dignity, when we compare ourselves with other creatures; but compared to God, we are worms, and not men; yes, we are nothing, yes, less than nothing and vanity. How great then is the mercy of God, which regards us, who are so far below him, which takes into consideration such inconsiderable nothings as we are! We may say with David (Psalm 8:4), Lord! What is man, that you are so mindful of him, or the Son of Man that you visitest him! And with Job (7:17), What is man that you should magnify him, and that you should set your heart upon him!

And then how hard do we find it to forgive those who have injured us? If any one have offended, or provoked us; how hard are we to be reconciled? How mindful of an injury? How do anger and revenge boil within us? How do we upbraid men with their faults? What vile and low submission do we require of them, before we will receive them into favor, and grant them peace? And if we forgive once, we think that is much; but if an offence and provocation be renewed often, we are inexorable. Even the disciples of our Savior, after he had so emphatically taught them forgiveness, in the petition in the Lord's Prayer, yet they had very narrow spirits as to this (Matthew 18:21). Peter comes to him, and asks him, How often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Till seven times? He thought that was much: and yet we have great obligations to pardoning and forgiving others, because we are obnoxious to God and one another, we shall many times stand in need of pardon from God and men; and it may be our own case, and when it is, we are too apt to be very indulgent to ourselves, and conceive good hopes of the mercy of others; we would have our ignorance, and inadvertencies, and mistakes, and all occasions and temptations and provocations considered; and when we have done amiss, upon submission and acknowledgment of our fault, we would be received into favor. But God who is not at all liable to us, how ready is he to forgive! If we confess our sins to him, he is merciful to forgive; he pardons freely; and such are the condescentions of his mercy, though he be the party offended, yet he offers pardon to us, and beseeches us to be reconciled; if we do but come towards him, he runs to meet us, as in the parable of the Prodigal (Luke 15:20). What reason have we then thankfully to acknowledge and admire the mercy of God to us?

Use 2. The great mercy of God to us, should stir up in us shame and sorrow for sin. The judgments of God may break us; but the consideration of God's mercy should rather melt and dissolve us into tears (Luke 7:47). The woman that washed Christ's feet with her tears, and wiped them with her hair, the account that our Savior gives of the great affection that she expressed to him, was, she loved much, because much was forgiven her; and she grieved much, because much was forgiven her.

Especially we should sorrow for those sins, which have been committed by us after God's mercies received. Mercies after sins should touch our hearts, and make us relent. It should grieve us that we should offend and provoke a God so gracious and merciful, so slow to anger, and so ready to forgive. But sin against mercies, and after we have received them, is attended with one of the greatest aggravations of sin. And as mercy raises the guilt of our sins, so it should raise our sorrow for them. No consideration is more apt to work upon human nature, than that of kindness, and the greater mercy has been showed to us, the greater our sins, and the greater cause of sorrow for them; contraries do illustrate, and set off one another; in the great goodness and mercy of God to us, we see the great evil of our sins against him.

Every sin has the nature of rebellion and disobedience; but sins against mercy have ingratitude in them. When ever we break the laws of God, we rebel against our sovereign; but as we sin against the mercies of God, we injure our benefactor. This makes our sin to be horrid, and astonishing (Isaiah 1:2). Hear, O heavens! and give ear, O earth! I have nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against me. All the mercies of God are aggravations of our sins (2 Samuel 12:7, 8, 9). And Nathan said to David, thus says the Lord God of Israel, I anointed you king over Israel, and delivered you out of the hands of Saul, and I gave you your master's house, and your master's wives into your bosom, and gave you the house of Israel, and of Judah, and if that had been too little, I would moreover have given you such and such things. Therefore have you despised the commandment of the Lord, to do evil in his sight? God reckons up all his mercies, and from them aggravates David's sin (1 Kings 11:9). He takes notice of all the unkind returns that we make to his mercy; and 'tis the worst temper in the world not to be wrought upon by kindness, not to be melted by mercy; no greater evidence of a wicked heart, than that the mercies of God have no effect upon it (Isaiah 26:10). Let favor be shown to the wicked; yet will he not learn righteousness.

Use 3. Let us imitate the merciful nature of God. This branch of God's goodness is very proper for our imitation. The general exhortation of our Savior (Matthew 5:48), "Be you therefore perfect, as your Father which is in heaven is perfect," is more particularly expressed by Saint Luke (Luke 6:30), "Be you therefore merciful, as your Father which is in heaven is merciful." Men affect to make images, and impossible representations of God; but as Seneca says, Crede Deò, cùm propitii essent, fictiles fuisse. We may draw this image and likeness of God; we may be gracious and merciful as he is. Christ, who was the express image of his Father, his whole life and undertaking was a continued work of mercy; he went about doing good to the souls of men, by preaching the gospel to them; and to the bodies of men, in healing all manner of diseases. There is nothing that he recommends more to us in his gospel than this spirit and temper (Matthew 5:7): "Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy." How many parables does he use to set forth the mercy of God to us, with a design to draw us to the imitation of it? The parable of the Prodigal; of the good Samaritan; of the servant to whom he forgave 10000 talents. We should imitate God in this; in being tender and compassionate to those that are in misery.

This is a piece of natural, indispensable religion, to which positive and instituted religion must give way (Amos 6:6): "I desired mercy, and not sacrifice"; which is twice cited and used by our Savior. Micah 6:8: "He has showed you, O man, what it is that the Lord your God requires of you, to do justice, and love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God."

This is always one part of the description of a good man, that he is apt to pity the miseries and necessities of others. Psalm 37:26: "He is ever merciful and lendeth." He is far from cruelty, not only to men, but even to the brute creatures (Proverbs 12:10): "A righteous man regards the life of his beast." There is nothing more contrary to the nature of God, than a cruel and savage disposition, not to be affected with the miseries and sufferings of others; how unlike is this to the Father of mercies, and the God of consolation! When we can see cruelty exercised, and our bowels not be stirred within us, nor our hearts be pricked; how unlike is this to God, who is very pitiful, and of tender mercies! But to rejoice at the miseries of others, this is inhumane and barbarous. Hear how God threatens Edom for rejoicing at the miseries of his brother Jacob (Obadiah 10, 11, 12, 13, 14). But to delight to make others miserable, and to aggravate their sufferings, this is devilish; this is the temper of Hell, and the very spirit of the Destroyer.

It becomes man above all other creatures to be merciful, who has had such ample and happy experience of God's mercy to him, and does still continually stand in need of mercy from God. God has been very merciful to us. Had it not been for the tender mercies of God to us, we had all of us long since been miserable. Now as we have received mercy from God, we should show it to others. The Apostle uses this as an argument why we should relieve those that are in misery and want, because we have had such experience of the mercy and love of God to us (1 John 3:16, 17): "Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us. But whoso has this world's goods, and sees his brother have need, &c. how dwells the love of God in him?" That man has no sense of the mercy of God abiding upon his heart, that is not merciful to his brother. And it is an argument why we should forgive one another (Ephesians 4:32): "Be you kind one to another, tender hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake has forgiven you." Chapter 5:1: "Be you therefore followers of God as dear children." Colossians 3:12, 13: "Put on therefore (as the elect of God holy and beloved) bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do you."

And we continually stand in need of mercy both from God and man. We are liable one to another, and in the change of human affairs, we may be all subject to one another by turns, and stand in need of one another's pity and compassion; and we must expect, that with what measure we mete to others, with the same it shall be measured to us again. To restrain the cruelties, and check the insolencies of men, God has so ordered in his providence, that very often in this world men's cruelties return upon their own heads, and their violent dealings upon their own pates. Bajazet meets with a Tamerlane.

But if men were not thus liable to one another, we all stand in need of mercy from God. If we be merciful to others in suffering, and forgiving them that have injured us, God will be so to us, he will pardon our sins to us. Prov. 16:5 says, By mercy and truth iniquity is purged. 2 Samuel 22:26: With the merciful you will show yourself merciful. Proverbs 14:21: He that has mercy on the poor, happy is he. Proverbs 21:21: He that follows after mercy finds life. Matthew 6:14: If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But on the other hand, if we be malicious and revengeful, and implacable to those that have offended us, and inexorable to those who desire to be received to favor, and cruel to those who lie at our mercy, hard hearted to them that are in necessity; what can we expect, but that the mercy of God will leave us, that he will forget to be gracious, and shut up in anger his tender mercy. Matthew 6:15: If you forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your heavenly Father forgive your trespasses. That is a dreadful passage, Saint James 2:13: He shall have judgment without mercy, that has showed no mercy. How angry is the Lord with the servant who was so inexorable to his fellow servant, after he had forgiven him so great a debt, as you find in the parable (Matthew 18:24). He owed him ten thousand talents, and upon his submission and entreaty to have patience with him, he was moved with compassion and loosed him, and forgave him all: but no sooner had this favor been done to him by his Lord, but going forth he meets his fellow servant, who owed him a small inconsiderable debt, a hundred pence, he lays hands on him, and takes him by the throat, and roundly demands payment of him; he falls down at his feet, and uses the same form of supplication that he had used to his Lord, but he rejects his request, and puts him in prison. Now what says the Lord to him (v. 32, 33, 34)? O you wicked servant, I forgave you all the debt, because you desired me. Should you not also have had compassion on your fellow servant, even as I had pity on you? And the Lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due to him. Now what application does our Savior make of this (v. 35)? So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also to you, if you from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses.

God's readiness to forgive us should be a powerful motive and argument to us to forgive others. The greatest injuries that we can suffer from men, if we compare them to the sins that we commit against God, they bear no proportion to them, neither in weight nor number; they are but as a hundred pence to ten thousand talents. If we would be like God, we should forgive the greatest injuries; he pardons our sins though they be exceeding great: many injuries, though offences be renewed, and provocations multiplied; for so God does to us, He pardons iniquity, transgression, and sin (Exodus 34:7). Isaiah 55:7: He will have mercy, he will abundantly pardon. We would not have God only to forgive us seven times, but seventy seven times, as often as we offend him: so should we forgive our brother.

And we should not be backward to this work; God is ready to forgive us (Nehemiah 9:17). And we should do it heartily, not only in word, when we retain malice in our hearts, and while we say we forgive, carry on a secret design in our hearts of revenging ourselves when we have opportunity; but we should from our hearts forgive every one; for so God does to us, who when he forgives us, casts our iniquities behind his back, and throws them into the bottom of the sea, and blots out our transgression, so as to remember our iniquity no more.

If we do not do thus, every time we put up the petition to God, Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us, we do not pray for mercy, but for judgment; we invoke his wrath, and do not put up a prayer, but a dreadful imprecation against ourselves; we pronounce the sentence of our own condemnation, and importune God not to forgive us.

Use 4. If the mercy of God be so great, this may comfort us against despair. Sinners are apt to be dejected, when they consider their unworthiness, the nature and number of their sins, and the many heavy aggravations of them; they are apt to say with Cain, that their sin is greater than can be forgiven. But do not look only upon your sins; but upon the mercies of God. You cannot be too sensible of the evil of sin, and of the desert of it; but while we aggravate our sins, we must not lessen the mercies of God. When we consider the multitude of our sins, we must consider also the multitude of God's tender mercies; we have been great sinners, and God is of great mercy; we have multiplied our provocations, and he multiplies to pardon.

Do but you put yourself in a capacity of mercy, by repenting of your sins, and forsaking of them, and you have no reason to doubt but the mercy of God will receive you; if we confess our sins, he is merciful and faithful to forgive them. If we had offended man as we have done God, we might despair of pardon; but it is God and not man that we have to deal with; and his ways are not as our ways, nor his thoughts as our thoughts; but as the heavens are high above the earth, so are his ways above our ways, and his thoughts above our thoughts.

We cannot be more injurious to God, than by hard thoughts of him, as if fury were in him, and when we have provoked him, he were not to be appeased and reconciled to us. We disparage the goodness and truth of God, when we distrust those gracious declarations which he has made of his mercy and goodness, if we do not think that he does heartily pity and compassionate sinners, and really desire their happiness. Does not he condescend so low as to represent himself afflicted for the miseries of men, and to rejoice in the conversion of a sinner? And shall not we believe that he is in good earnest? Does Christ weep over impenitent sinners, because they will not know the things of their peace? And can you think he will not pardon you upon your repentance? Is he grieved that men will undo themselves, and will not be saved? And can you think that he is unwilling to forgive? We cannot honor and glorify God more, than by entertaining great thoughts of his mercy. As we are said to glorify God by our repentance, because thereby we acknowledge God's holiness and justice; so we glorify him by believing his mercy, because we conceive a right opinion of his goodness and truth; we set to our seal that God is merciful and true (Psalms 147:11). 'Tis said, that God takes pleasure in them that hope in his mercy. As he delights in mercy, so in our acknowledgments of it; that sinners should conceive great hopes of it, and believe him to be what he is. Provided you do submit to the terms of God's mercy, you have no reason to despair of it; and he that thinks that his sins are more or greater than the mercy of God can pardon, must think that there may be more evil in the creature than there is goodness in God.

Use 5. By way of caution against the presumptuous sinner. If there be any that trespass upon the goodness of God, and presume to encourage themselves in sin upon the hopes of his mercy, let such know, that God is just as well as merciful. A God all of mercy is an idol, such a God as men set up in their own imaginations; but not the true God, whom the Scriptures describe. To such persons the Scripture describes him after another manner (Nahum 1:2): God is jealous, the Lord revengeth and is furious, the Lord will take vengeance on his adversaries, and reserveth wrath for his enemies. If any man abuse the mercy of God to the strengthening of himself in his own wickedness, and bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of my own heart, and add drunkenness to thirst: The Lord will not spare him, but the anger of the Lord and his jealousy shall smoke against that man, and all the curses that are written in this book shall lie upon him, and he will blot out his name from under heaven (Deuteronomy 29:19, 20).

Though it be the nature of God to be merciful, yet the exercise of his mercy is regulated by his wisdom; he will not be merciful to those that despise his mercy, to those that abuse it, to those that are resolved to go on in their sins to tempt his mercy, and make bold to say, Let us sin that grace may abound. God designs his mercy for those that are prepared to receive it (Isaiah 55:7): Let the wicked forsake his ways, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. The mercy of God is an enemy to sin, as well as his justice; and 'tis nowhere offered to countenance sin, but to convert the sinner; and is not intended to encourage our impenitency, but our repentance. God has nowhere said that he will be merciful to those, who upon the score of his mercy are bold with him, and presume to offend him; but the mercy of the Lord is upon them that fear him, and keep his covenant, and remember his commandments to do them. There is forgiveness with him, that he may be feared; but not that he may be despised and affronted. This is to contradict the very end of God's mercy, which is to lead us to repentance, to engage us to leave our sins, not to encourage us to continue in them.

Take heed then of abusing the mercy of God; we cannot provoke the justice of God more than by presuming upon his mercy. This is the time of God's mercy, use this opportunity; if you neglect it, a day of justice and vengeance is coming (Romans 2:4, 5): Do you despise the riches of his goodness, not knowing that the goodness of God leads to repentance? And do you treasure up to yourself wrath against the day of wrath, and the revelation of the righteous judgment of God? Now is the manifestation of God's mercy; but there is a time coming, when the righteous judgment of God will be revealed against those who abuse his mercy, not knowing that the goodness of God leads to repentance. To think that the goodness of God was intended for any other end than to take us off from sin, is a gross and affected ignorance that will ruin us; and they who draw any conclusion from the mercy of God, which may harden them in their sins, they are such as the Prophet speaks of (Isaiah 27:11): A people of no understanding; therefore he that made them will not save them, and he that formed them will have no mercy on them. Mercy itself will rejoice in the ruin of those that abuse it, and it will aggravate their condemnation. There is no person towards whom God will be more severely just, than toward such. The justice of God exasperated, and set on by his injured and abused mercy, like a razor set in oil, will have the keener edge, and be the sharper for its smoothness. Those that have made the mercy of God their enemy, must expect the worst his justice can do to them.