XI. HaviHg seen the crook itself, we are, in the

next place, to consider of God's making it. And here is to be shewn, 1. That it is of God's ma- king. 2. How it is of his making. 3. Why he mai;3s it.
First. That the crook in the lot, whatever it is, is of Gad^s- makings appears from these three con- siderations
Firsts It cantiot be questioned, but the crook in the lot, considered as the crook, is a penal evil, whatever it is for the matter thereof; that is, whether the thing ip itself, its immediate cause and occasion, be sinful or not, it is certainly a pun- ishment or affliction. Now, as it may be, as such holily and justly brought on us, by our Sovereign .Lord and Judge, so he expressly claims the doing or making of it, Amos iii. 6. '"Shall there* be evil " in a city, and the Lord has not done it ?" Where- fore, since tliere can be no penal evih but of God's making, and the crpek in the lot is such an evils it is necessarily concluded to be of God's making.
Secondly^ It is evident, from the scripture dec- trine of divine providence, that God brings about every man's lot, and all the parts thereof. He sit^ at the helm of human affairs, and turns them about whithersoever he listeth. ''Whatsoever the Lord '* pleased, that did he in heaven and earth, in the ** seas and all deep places," Psal. cxxxv. 6. There is not any thing whatsoever befals us, without YHs, over-ruling hand. The same providence that brought us out of the womb, bringeth us to, and fixeth us in the condition and place allotted for us, by him who "hath determined the times and ih-x '' bounds of our habitation," Acts xviir 26. I: C 2
^{0 The Crook in the Lot:
over-rules the smallest and most casual thin^ about us, such as '* hairs of our head falling on the " ground," Mat. x. 29, 30, " A lot cast i»to a lap," Prov. xvi. 33. Yea, the free acts of our will, tvKereby we chuse for ourseh'ts, for even ''' the ** king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the "rivers of water," Prov. xxi. 1. And the whole steps we make, and which others make in refer- ence to us ; for " the way of man is not in himself; ** it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps,'* Jer. X. 23. And this, whether these steps, causing the ctook, be deliberate and sinful ones, such as Joseph's brethren selling him into Egypt; or %rhethcr they are undesigned, such as man-slaugh- ter purely casual, as when one hewing wood, kills his neighbour with *'the head of the ax slipping *' from the helve," Deur. xix. 5. For there is a holy and wise providence that governs the sinful and the heedless actions of men, as a rider doth a lame horse, of whose halting, not he but the horse's own lameness, is the true and proper cause ; where- fore, in the former of these eas^js, God is said to have sent Joseph into Egypt, Gen. xiv. 7. and in the latter, to deliver one into his neighbour's hand, Exod. xxi. 13.
Latithj^ God hath, by anefemal cl; crec, immov- able as mouKtatns of brass ^ Zech. vi. 1. appointed the whole of every one's lot, the crooked parts thereof, as well as the sti-aight. 3y the same e- temal decree, whereby tlie high and low parts of the earth, the mountains and th.^ vallies, were ap- pointed, are the heights and depths, the prosperi- ty and adversity, in the lot of the inhabitants there- of determined ; and they arc brought a.bout, in time, in perfect agreeableness thereto.
The mystery of provi dence, in the goVermhcnt of the worl' " all tlie parts thereof, th-e b\n '
The Crook in the LA, 31
in^ reared up of God, in exact conformity to th : plan in his decree, " who worketh all things aft "' the counsel of his own v/ill," Eph. i. 11. l that there is never a crook in one's lot, but may be run up to this original. Hereof Job piously sets MS an example in his own case, Job xxiii. 13, 14. " He is in one mind, and who can turn him ? And ** what his soul desireth, even that he doth. For " he perform eth the thing that is appointed for "me : and many such things are with him,"
Secondly, That we may see ho^v the crook in the lot 16 of God's making, we must distinguish between pure sinless crooks, and impure sinful ones.
First^ Th€re are jnire and sinless crooks ; the which are mere afflictions, cleanly crosses, griev- ous indeed, but not defiling. Such were Laza- rus's, Rachel's barrenness, Leah's tender eyes- the blindness of the man who had been from his birth, John ix. 1. Now, the crooks of this kind are of God's making, by tlie ^-fiicacy of his pov/er directly bringing them to pass, and causing them to be. He is the Maker of the poor, Prov. xvii. 5. " Whoso mocketh the poor, reproacheth^his ** Maker," that isjreprcacheth God who made him poor, according to that, 1 Sam. ii. 7. '*'The Lord *' maketh poor." It is he that hath the key of the womb, and as he sees meet^ shuts it^ 1 Sam. i. a, or opens it; Gen. xxix. 31. And it is '^hethat "formed the eye," Psalm xciv. 9. And the man was " born blind, that the works of God should be ''made manifest in him," John ix. 3. Therefore he saith to Moses, Exod. ix. 11. "Whoniaketh " the dumb, or deaf, or the seeing, or the blind? '' iTave not I, the Lord V Such crooks in the lot are of God's making, in the most ample sense, and In ♦:hpir full comprehtnsiQr., boine "- >■ - t.-
32 The Crook in the Lot.
fects of his ngency, as w^ll as the heavens and the earth are.
S^ondiy^ There are impure sinful crooVsy which, in their own nature, are sins as well as afflictions, defiling as well as grievous. Such was the crook made m David's lot, through his family disorders, the defiling of Tamar, the murder of Aninon, ihe rebellion of Absalom, all of them unnaturaL Of the same kind was that made in Job*s lot by the Sabeans and Chaldeans, taking away his substance and slaying his servants. As these were the af- flictions of David and Job respectively, so they jprere the sins of the actors, the unhappy instru- ments thereof. Thus one and the same thing may be, to one a heinous sin, defiling and laying him under guilt, and to another an affliction, laying him under suffering only. Now, the crooks of this kind are not of God's making, in the same la- titude as those of the former : For he neither puts •^vil in the heart of any, nor stirreth up to it : " He ** cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth *' he any man," James i. 13. But they are of hfs making, by his holy permissipn of them, power&:l bounding of them., and wise over ruling of them to ^ me good endc
1*/, He holily /?^rmi/* thcifl, suffering men ^' to " walk in their own ways," Acts xiv. 1 6. Though he is not the author of these sinful crooks, causing them to be, by the efficacy of his power : yet if he did not perm't them, willing not to hinder them, they could not be at all ; for *' he shutteth and no ** man opcneth," Rev. iii. 7. But he justly with- holds his grace, which the sinner doth not desire, takes off the restraint under which he is une«sy, and since the sinner will be gone, lays the reins on his neck, and leaves him to the swing of his lust. Hos. iv. 17. * Ephraim is joined to idoh : lej him
The Cr&ok in the Lot, -33
aione." Psal. Ixxxi. 11>.12. " Israel would none *' of me : So I gave them up to their oivn hearts ** lust." In which unhappy situation, the sinful crook doth, from the sinner's own proper motion, natively and infallibly follow; even as water runs down a hill, wherever there is a gap left open l^fc- fore it. So in these circumstances, '^ Israel Avalk- '' ed in their own counsels," ver. 12, And thu this kind of crook is of God's making, as a )l Judge, punishing the sufferer fey it. '^The \i%'-c\ view of the matter silenced David under Shv-at/i* cursings, 2 Sam. xvi. 10. " Let him alor» *' him curse ; for the Lord hath bidden him."
2dlif^ He powerfully bounds them, Psal. Ixxvi:. 10. '' The remainder of wrath," (namely, the crea- ture's wrath) "thou shak restrain." Did uot Go-l bound these crooks, howsoever sore they are in a- ny one's case, they would be yet sorer : B it he sav^ to the sinful instrumtnt, as h^ said to the sea, " Hitherto shalt thou come^ but no further ; and " here shall thy proud waves be stayed." He L'.ys a restraining band on him, that he cannot go one step farther, in the v/ay his impetuous lust driv than he sees meet to permit. Hence it comts iv> pass, that the crook of this kind is neither tt/cre nor less, but just as great as he by his powv^^r v:l bounding makes it to be. An eminent inst. co hereof we have in the case of Job, whose 1 crooked through a peculiar agency of the but even to that grand sinner, God set a b«- the case ; " The Lord said unto Satan, Pt h '* that he hath is in thy power, only upon V *' put not forth thine hand," Job u 12. No tan v/ent the full length of the bound, leavi: thing within the compass thereof untouched, 'a '■:.■ he saw could make for his purpose, ve v. Ij. i'> But he could by no means move one step beyorrd
34 The Crook in the Lot.
it, to carry his point, which he could not gain with- in it. And therefore, to make the trial greater, and the crook sorer, nothing remained but that the bound set should be removed,^ and the sphere of his agency enlarged; for which cause he saith, '* But touch his bone and his flesh, and he will *' curse thee to thy face," chap. ii. 5. and it being removed accordingly, but withal a new one set, ver. 6. " Behold he is in thine hand, but save his ** life ;" the crook was carried to the utmost that the hew bound would permit, in a consistency with his design of bringing Job to blaspheme ; " Satan ** smote him with sore boils, from the sole of his *' foot, unto the crown of his head," ver. 7. And had it not been for this bond, securing Job's life, he, after finding this attempt successless too, had doubtless dispatched him for good and all.
^dly^ Ho wisely over-rules them to some good purpose, becoming the divim* perfections. While the sinful instrument hath an ill design in the crook caused by him, God directs it to a holy and good €nd. In the disorders of David's family, Amnon's design was to gratify a brutish lust ; Absalom's, to glut himself with revenge, and to satisfy his pride and ambition ; but God meant thereby to punish David for his sin in the matter of Uriah. In the crook made in Job's lot, by Satan, and the Sa- beans and Chaldeans, his instruments, Satan's de- sign was to cause Job blaspheme, and their'd to gratify their covetousness : but God had another design therein becoming himself, namely to mani- fest Job's sincerity and uprightness. Did not he wisely powerfully over-rule these crooks made in men's lot, no good could come out of them ; but he always over-rules them so as to fulfil his own holy purposes thereby, howbeit the sinner meaneth not so ; for his designs cannot misQarry, his ^* ceua-
The Crook li^the LoU ^5
"sel shall stand," Isa. xlv. 10. So the sinful crook is, the over-ruling hand of God, turned a- bout to his own glory, and his people's good in the end ; according to the word, Prov. xvi. 4. " The * Lord hath made all things for himself." Rom. viii. 28. " All things work together for good to "them that love God." Thus Haman's plot for the destruction of the Jews " was turned to the "contrary," Esth. ix. 1. And the crook made ia Joseph's lot, by his own brethren selling him into Egypt, though it was on their part most sinful, and of a most mischievous design ; yet as it was of God's making, by his holy pennis«ion, powerful bounding, and wise over-ruling of it, had an issue well becoming the divine wisdom and goodness : both of which Joseph noticethto them, Gen. 1. 20. " As for you, ye thought evil against me ; but " God meant it into good, to bring to pass, ascitis " this day, to save much people alive."
Thirdly, It remains to enquire, Why God makes a crook in one's lot ? And this is to be clear- ed by discovering the design of that dispensation; a matter which it concerns even,' one to know, and carefully to notice, in order to a Christian improv- ment of the crcok in their lot. The design there- of seems to be chiefly seven-fold.
Fir sty The trial of one's state. Whether one is in the stpte of grace, or not t Whether a sincere Christian, or a hypocrite? Though every affliction is tr)-ing, yet here I conceive lies the main provi- dential trial a man was brought upon, with refer- ence to his state, forasmuch as the crook in the lot, being a matter of a continued course? one has occasion to open and shev,r himself again in the same thing; whence it comes to pass, that it niin- isters ground for a decision, in that momentous point. It was plainly on this bottom that the trisri
3b The Crook in the Lot^
of Job's state was put. The question was, wheth» cr Job was an upright and sincere servant of God, as God himself testjiied of him ; or but a mercena- ry one, a hypocrite, as Satan alledged against him t And the trid hereof was put upon the crook to be naade in his lot, Job i. 8 — 12, and ii. 3-— 6. Ac- cordingly, that which all his friends, saME Elihuthc liist speaker, did, in their reasoning with him un- der his tiial aim at, was to prove him a h}'pocrite ; Satan thus making use of these good men for gaining his point. As God took a trial of Israel in the wilderness, for the land of Canaan, by a train of afflicting dispensations, the which Caleb and Joshua bearing, strenuously, were declared meet to enter the promised land, as h^vivs^folloxv- ed the Lord fully ; while others being tired out with them, their carcases fell in the wilderness ; so he makes trial of men for heaven, by the crook in their lot. If one can stand tliat test, he is mani- fested to be a saint, a sincere servant of God, as Job was proven to be ; if not, he is but a hypocrite : he cannot stand the test of the crook in his lot, but goes away like dross in God's furnace. A me- lancholy instance of which we have in that man of honour and wealth, who, with high pretences of religion, arisirtg from a principle of moral seriousness, addressed himself to our Saviour, to knew *' what he should do that he might inherit eternal life," Mark x. 17, ^1. Our Saviour, to discover the man to himself, makes a crook in his lot, where all along before it had ■stood even, obliging him, by a probatory com- mand, to sell and give away all that he had, and follow him, ver. 21. " Sell whatsoever thou hast, " and give to the poor, and come take up the cross ^* and follow me." Hereby he was, that moment, itt the court of consc^nce, stript of his great pes-
The Crook in the LoU ^7
sessions.; so that thenceforth he could no longer keep thsm, with a good conscience, as he migiit have done before, The man instantly felt the smart of this crook made in his lot ; '' he was sad *' at that saying," ver. 22. that is, immedlately upon the hearing of it, being struck with pain^ disorder, and confusion of mind, his countenance changed, became cloudy and louring, as the same word is used. Mat. xvi. 3. He could not stand the test of that crook ; he could by no means sub- mit his lot to God in that point, but behoved to have it, at any rate, according to his own mind- So he " went away grieved, for he had great po- ssessions," He went away from Christ back to his plentiful estate, and though with a pained and sor- rowful heart, sat him down again on it a violent possessor before the Lord, thwarting the divine order. And there is no appearance that ever this order was revoked, nor that ever he came to a bet- ter temper in reference thereunto.
S^ondlij. Excitation to dulij^ weaning one from this world, and prompting him to look after the happiness of the other world. Blany have been beholden to the crook in their lot,^ for that ever they came to themselves, settled and turned serious^ Going for a time like a wild ass used to the voilder^ Tiessy scorning to be turned, their foot hath slid m due time ; and a crook being hereby made in their lot, their month hath come wherein they have been caught, Jer, ii. ^4. Thus was the prodigal brought to himself, and obliged to entertain thoughts of returning unto his father, Luke xv. 1 7* The crook in their lot convinces them at length that here is not their rest. Finding still a pricking thorn of uneasinessj v/hensoever they lay down their head D
58 The Crook in the Lot.
where they would fainest take rest in the creature, and that they were obliged to liit it again, they are brought to conclude, there is no hope from that quarter, and begin to cast about for rest another way, so it makes them errands to God, which they had not before ; forasmuch as they feel a need of the comforts of the other world, to which their mouths were out of taste, while their lot »tood c- ven to their mind. Wherefore, whatever use we miike of the crook in our lot. the voice of it is, A- rise ye and deport^ this is ?iot your rest. And it is surely that, which of all means of mortification, of the afflictive kind, doth most deaden a real Christian to this life and world.
Thirdly t Conviction of sin. As v/hcn one walk- ing heedlessly is suddenly taken ill of a lameness ; his going halting the rest ol his way convinceth him of having made a wrong step ; and every new pain- iul step brings it afresh to his mind : so God makes a crook in one's lot, to convince him of some laise step he hath made, or course he hath taken. What the sinner would otherwise be apt to overlook, for- get, or think light of, is by this means recalled to mind, set before him as an evil and bitter thing, and kept in remembrance, that his heart may eve- ry now and then bleed for it afresh. Thus, by the crook men's sin finds them out to thei** conviction, *' as the thief is ashamed when he is found," Num. xxxii. 2-3. Jer. ii. 26. The which Joseph's brethren do feelingly express, under the crook made in their lot in Egypt, Gen. xlii. 21. ** We " arc verily guilty concerning our brother," chap, xliv. 16. " God hath found out the iniquity of thy ** servants." The crook in the lot doth usually, in its nature or circumstances, so natively refer to tlie false step or course, that it serves for a provi«
The Crook in the Lot. 59
dential memorial of it, bringing the sin, though of an old date, fresh to remembrance, and for a badge of the sinner's folly in word or deed, to keep it e- ver before him. When Jacob found Leah, through Laban's unfair dealing, palmed upon hiui for Ra- chel, how could he miss of a stinging remembrance of the cheat he had seven years, at least, before, put on his own father, pretending himself to be Esau? Gen. xxvii. 19. How could it mi?^s of gal- ling him occasionally afterwards during the course of the marriage ? He had imposed on his father the younger brother for the elder ; and Laban imposed on him the elder sister for the younger. The dim- ness of Isaac's eyes favoured the former cheat , and the darkness of the evening did as much fa- vour the latter. So he behoved to say, as Adoni- bezek in another case, Judg. i. 7. ♦* As I have done, so God hath requited me." In like man- ner, Rachel dying in child-birth, could hardly e- vite a melancholy reflection on her rash and pas- sionate expression, mentioned, Gen. xxx. 1. " Give *' me children, or else I die." Even holy Job read in the crook of his lot, some false steps he had made in his youth many years before, Job xiii. 26* *' Thou writest bitter things against me, and ma- " kest me to possess the iniquities of my youth." Fourthly^ Correction, or punishment for sin: In nothing more than in the crook of the lot, in that word verified, Jer. ii. 19. "Thine own '"' wickednefs shall correct thee, and thy backsli- dings shall reprove thee." God mav, for a time, wink at one's sin, which afterward he'll set a brand of his indignation upon in crooking the sinner's lot, as he did in the case of Jacob, and of Rachel, men- tioned before. Though the sin was a passing ac- tion, or a courae of no long continuance, the mar!^
40 Tho CrooK vi the Lot.
of the divine displeasure for it, set oil the o. ....,:. in the crook of his lot, may pain him long and sore, that by repeated experience he may know what an evil and bitter thing it was. David's kill- ing Uriah by the sword of the Ammonites was soon over ; but for that cause " the sword never " departed from his house,*' 2 Sam. xii. 10. Ge- hazi quickly obtained two bags of money from Naaman, in the way of falsehood and lying ; but as a lasting mark of the divine indignation against the profane trick, he got withal a leprosy which clave to him while he lived, and to his posterity after him, 2 Kings v. 27. This may be the case, as well where the sin is pardoned, as to the guilt of eternal wrath, as where it is not. And one may have confessed and sincerely repented of that sin, which yet shall make him go halting to the grave, though it cannot carry him to hell. A man's per- r.on may be accepted in the Beloved, who yet hath a particular badge of the divine displeasure, with his sin hung upon him in the crook of his lot, Psalm xcix. 8. " Thou wast a God that forgav^st ** them, though thou tookest vengeance on their ** inventions."
Fifthli}^ Preventing of sin,*Hos. il. (S. " I will " hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall '' that she shall not find her paths." The crook in the lot will readily be found to lie cross to some wi'bng bias of the heart, which peculiarly sways with the party: so it is like a thorn-hedge or stone wall in the way which that bias inclines him to. The defiling objects in the world do specially take and prove ensnaring, as tliey are suited to the par- ticular cast of temper in men : but by means of the crook in the lot, the paint and varnish is worn ofT »Vir flphlincr object, whereby itlrm.^t^ it
The Crook in the Lot. 4i
king -appearance: so the fuel being removed, the edge of corrupt affections is blunted, temptation weakened, and much sin prevented ; the sinner, after " gadding about so much to change his waj'^ *' retuniing ashamed," Jer. ii. 36, o7^ Thus the Lord crooks one's lot that "he may withdraw *' man from his purpose ; and hide pride '' from men :" And so, "he keepeth back his soui *' from the pit," Job xxxiii. 17, 18. Every one knows what is most pleasant to him ; but God a- lone knoAV's what is the most profitable. As all men are liars, so all men are fools too: He is the onlij wise God^ Jude, ver. 25. Many are obliged to the crook in their lot, that they go not to those excesses, which their vain minds and corrupt af- fections would with full sail carry them to ; and they would from their hearts bless God for making it, if they did but calmly consider what would most likely be the issue of the removal thereof, "When one is in hazard of fretting under the hard- ship of bearing the crook, he would do well to con- sider what condition he is as yet In, for to bear its removal in a Christian manner.
Sixthly^ Discover\^ of the latent corruption, whe- ther in saints or sinners. There are some corrup • tions in every man's heart, which lie, as it were, so near the surface, that they are ready on every turn to cast up ; but then there are others also which lie so very deep, that they, are scarcely «b- served at ail. But as the fire under the pot makes the scum to cast up, appear a-top, and run over ; so the crook in tfee lot raiseth up from the bottom, and brings out such corruption as otherwavs one would hardly imagine to be within. Who would >.ive suspected such strength of passion in the meek D2
^i2 TheCiGOK ill trie Lot,
Moses as he discovered at the waters of sti i:^, „.id for which he was kept out of Canaan, Psalm cvi. 32, ^o. Numb. XX. 13 ? So much bitterness of spi- rit in the patient Job, as to charge God with be- coming cruel to him. Job xxx. 21 ? So much ill- nature in the good Jeremiah , as to curse not only the day of his birth, but even the man who brought tidings of it to his father, Jer. xx. 14, 15? Or, such atrvvang of atheism in Asnph, as to pronounce religion a vain thing, Psalm Ixxiii. 13? But the crook y.i the lot, bringing out these things, shewed them to have been within, how long soever thev had lurked unobserved. And as this design, how- ever indecently proud scoffers allow themselves to treat it, is in no ways inconsistent with the divine perfections ; so the discover}^ itself is necessary for the due humiliation of sinners, and to stain the pride of all glor\' , that men may know themselves. Both which appear, in that it was on this very de- sign that God made the long-continued crook in Israel's lot in the wilderntss j even to humble them and prove them, to know what was in their heart, Deut. viii. 2.
Lastluy The exercise of grace in the cliildren of God. Believers, through the remains of indwel- ling corruption, are liable to fits of spiritual lazi- ness and inactivity, in which their graces lie dor- mant for the time. Besides, there are some gra- ce's, which, of their o\^ti nature, are but occasional in their exercises ; as being exercised only upon occasion of certain things whicli they have a ne- cessary relation to ; such as patience and long-suf- fering. Now, the crook in the lot serves to rouse Up a Christian to the exercise of the graces, over- powered by corruption, and withal to call forth to "action, the oecasional graces, ministering proper
riie Crook hi the Lot, 4I>
^vCaSioiis for them. The truth is, the crook in the lot is the great engine of Providence for making men appear in their true colours, discovering both their ill and their good ; and if the grace of God be in them, it will bring it out, and cause it to dis- play itself. It so puts the Christian to his shifts.^ 'hat however it makes him stagger for a while, yet ;t will at length evidence both the reality and the strength of gi*ace in him. ** Ye are in heaviness " through manifold temptations, that the trial of '' your faith, being much more precious^ than of '' gold that perisheth, may be found unto praise,'' 1 Pet. i.'6, 7. The crook in the lot gives rise to many acts of faith, hope, love, self-denial, resig- nation, and ether graces ; to man)^ heavenly brea- things, pantings, and groanings, w^hich otherways would not be brought forth. And I make no ques- tion but tliese things, howsoever by carnal men despised as trifling, are more precious in the sight of God than even believers themselves are aware o/, being acts of immediate internal worship ; and will have a surprising notice taken of them, and of the sum of them, at long-run, howbeitthe persons themselves often can hardly think them worth their own notice at all. We know who hath said to the gracious soul, " Let me see thy countenance ; thy *^ countenance is comely," Song ii. 24. " Thou " hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes," chap. iv. 9. The steady acting of a gallant army of horse and foot to the routing of the enemy, is highly prized ; but the acting of holy fear and humble hope, is in reality far more valuable, as be ing so in the sight of God, whose judgnient, we ^nre sure, is S'^.cording to truth This the Psalmist teacheth. Psalm cxlvii. 11, 12. " He delighteth " not in the strength of the horse ; he taketh rot
I . 7'he Crook in the Lot.
"' pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord taketh ** pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope • in his mercy.'' And indeed the exercise of the graces of his spirit in his people, is so I'ery preci- ous in his sight, that whatever grace any of them do excel in, they will readily get such a crook made in their lot, as will be a special trial for it, that will make a proof of its full strength. Abra- ham excelled in the grace of faith, in trusting God's bare word of promise, over the belly of sense : And God giving him a promise, that he xvonld nake of him a ^reat nation,, made withal a crook n his lot, by which he had enough ado with all the trength of his faith; while he was obliged for good and all to leave his country and kindred, and sojourn among the Canaanites ; his wife continu- ing barren, till past the age of child-bearing; and when she had at length brought forth Isaac, and he was grown up, he was called to offer him up for a burnt-offering, the more exquisite trial of his faith, that Ishmael was now expelled his family, and that it was declared. That in Laac only hi? seed should be called^ Gen. xxi. 12. *•' Moses W43 '* very meek above all the men which were upon the " face of the earth,'* Numb. xii. 5. And he was intrusted with the conduct of almost perverse and unmanageable people, the crook in his lot plainly designed for the exercise of his meekness. Job excelled in patience, and by the crook in his lot, he got as much to do with it. For God gives none ofhis people to excel in a gift, but some one time or other he will afford ihem use for the whole com- pass of it.
Now the r/5f of this doctrine is threefold, (1.) For reproof. (2.) For consolation. And. (3.) For txhortatioHe
The Crook in the Lot* 45
Use 1. Of reproof. And it meets with three iorts of persons as reprovable.
Firsts The carnal and earthhj^ who do not with awe and reverence regard the crook in their lot a* of God^s making. There is certainly a signature of the divine hand upon it to be perceived by just observ^ers ; and that challcngeth an awful regard, the neglect of which forbodes destruction, Psal. xxviii. 5. '*' Because they regard not the works of " the Lord, nor the operation of his hands, thou " shal. destroy them, and not build them up." And herein they are deeply guilt)', who poring upon se- cond causes, and looking no farther than the un- happy instruments of the crook in iheir lot, over- looking the. first cause, as a dog snarles at the stone, but looks not to the hand that casts it. This is, in effect, to make a God of the creature ; so regarding It, as if it could of itself effectuate anything, while, in the mean time, it is but an instrument in the hand of God, " the rod of his anger," Isa. x. 5. " Or- " dained of him for judgment, established for cor- ^^rection," Hab. i. 12. O! why should men terminate their view on the instruments of the crook in tht?ir lot, and so magnify their scourges ! The truth is, they are, for the most part, rather to be pitied, as having an undesirable office, which, for their grat- ifying their sensuality, set themselves to despise the crook in their lot, to making nothing of it, and to their own corrupt affections* in making the crook in the lot of others, returns on their own head at length with a vengeance, as did " the blood of Jez- '^ reel on the house of Jehu," Hos. i- 4. And it is specially undesirable to be so employed in the case ot such 05 belong to God ; for rarely is the ground of the quarrel the same on the part of the instrument IS on God's part, but ver\^ different; witness Shi-
4-b riii: Crook m the Lot.
mei's cursing David, as a bloody man, meaning the blood of the house ot" Saul, which he was not guil- t}' of, while God meant it of the blood of Uriah, which he could not deny, 2 Sam. xvi. 7, 8. More- over, the quarrel will be, at long-run, taken up be- tween God and his people; and then their scour- gers will find they had but a thankless office, Zech. i. 15. "I was but a little displeasc*d, and they help- *■' ed forward the affliction,*' saith God, in resent- ment of the heathen crooking the lot of his people. In like manner are they guilty, who impute the crook in their lot to fortune, or their ill luck, which in verj' deed is nothing but a creature of imagi- nation, framed for a blind to keep men from ac- knowledging the hand of God. Thus, what the Philistines doubt, they do more impiously deter- mine, saying, in effect, *' It is not his hand that *' smote us, it was a chance that happened us," 1 Sam. vi. 9. And, finally, those also, who, in the way of giving up themselves to carnal mirth and sensuality, set themselvtj* to despise the crook in their lot, to make nothing of it, and to forget it. I question not, but one committing his case to the Lord, and looking to him for remedy in the first place, may lawfully call in the moderate use of the comforts of life, for help in the second place. But as for that course so frequent and usual in this cast- among carnal men, if the crook of the lot really be, as indeed it is, of God's making, it must needs be a most indecent unbecoming course, to be abhorred of all good men, Prov. iii. 11. *' My son, despise " not the chastening of the Lord." It is surely a very desperate method of cure, which cannot miss of issuing in something worse than the disease, however it may palliate it for a while, Isa. xxii. : 2, 14. " In that day did the Lord God of hosts
The Crook in the Lot. 4
• call to weeping and mourning, and behold joy and •'• gladness, eating flesh and drinking wine : And it " was revealed in mine ears, by the Lord of hosts, " Surely this iniquity shall not be purged from you ''till ye die."
Secondly^ The unsuhmhsive^ whose hearts, like the troubled sea, swell and boil, fret and murmur, and cannot be at rest under the crook in their lot. This is a most sinful aud dangerous course. The apostle Jude, characterising some, ** to whom is *' reserved the blackness of darkness for ever," ver. 1. saith of them, ver. 16. " These are murmurers, *'• complainers," name!}', still complaining of their lot, which is the import of the word there used by the Holy Ghost. For, since the crook in their lot, which their unsubdued spirits can by no means sub- mit to, is of God's making, this their practice must needs be a fighting against God : and these their complainings and murmurings are indeed against him, whatever face they put upon them. Thu?; when the Israelites murmured against Moses, Numb. xiv. 2. God charges them with murmuring against himself : " How long shall I bear with this " evil congregation, which murmured against me V ver. 27. Ah ! may not he who made and fashioned us without our advice, be allowed to make our lot too, without asking our mind, but wc must rise up against him on account of the crook made in it c" What doth this spt^ak, but that the proud creature cannot endure God's work, nor digest what he hath done ? And how black and dangerous is that tem- per of spirit ? How is it possible to miss of being- broken to pieces in such a course ? '^ He is wise in " heart, and mighty in strength : Who hath harden- " ed himself against him, and hath prospered:'* Job. ix. 4,
48 TIlc CrooK lit inv i^(jX,
Lastly^ The careless and unfruitful^ ivho do not set the iusclvcs datilally to comply with the design of ihe crook in their lot. God and nature do noth- ing in vaiii. Since he makes the crook, there is, \ ..-•d in duty to iall in with, according to that, J\ticah \ i. 9. " Hear ye the rod." And, indeed, if oise ^liut not his own eyes, but be willing to un- cle rstand, he ma}' e:vsily perceive the general design thereof to be, to v/can him from this world, and move hinv to seek and take up liis heart's rest in God. And the nature, and the circumstances of the crook itself beiiig duly considered, it will not be very hard to make a more particular discover of the design thereof. But, alas ! the careless si., ner, concern to discover the design of Providence in the crook; so he cannot fall in with it, but remains un- fruitful ; and all the pains taken on him^ by the great Husbandman, in the dispensation, are lost. *' They cry out by reason of the arm of the migl " ty;" groaning under the pressure of the crook i: self, and weight of ihe hand of the instrument x\^i\ of: ''*' But none saiih, Where is God my maker: they look 17 ot, :hey turn pot un^o Gi)d for all th:. Job. xxx\^ 9. 10.
Ui>e 2. Of eojuoli . It speaks comfort to xh afflicted children of God. Whatever is the cro(> in your lot, it is of God's making; and therefor you may look upon it kindly. Since it is your Fa- ther has made it for you, question not but tlitre i;^ a favourable design in it towards you. A disc re l child welcometh his father's rod, knowing that br inj rot fjrod's children welcome the crook in their 1 ;: as desig-cd by thfir Father, 7>'ho cannot ini.'-/.;d'
The Crook in the Lot, 49
his measures to work for their good, according to the promise? The truth is, the crook in the lot of a believer, how painful soever it proves, is a part of the discipline of the covenant, the nurture se- cured by the promise of the Father t© Christ's children, Psalm Ixxxix. 30, 32. *^ U his children '' forsake my law, and walk not in ray judgments, *' then ■will I visit theirtransgressions with the rod." Furthermore, all who are disposed to betake them- selves to God under the crook in their lot, may take comfort in this, let them know that thtre is no crook in their lot but may be made straight ; for God made it, surely then he ctn mend it. He him- self can make straight what he hath made crooked, though none other can. There is nothing too hard for him to do : ".He raiseth up the poor out of the *' dust, and lifteth the needy out of the dunghill ; *' that he may set him with princes. He maketh '' the barren -vvnoman to keep house, and to be a joy- *' ful mother of children," Psalm cxiii- 7 — 9. Say not that your crook hath been of so long continu- ance, that it V,' ill never mend. Put it in the hand of God, who made it, that he may mend it, ioid wait on him : and if it be for thy good, that it should be mended, it shall be mended ; for, ** no good thing " will he withhold from them that walk uprightly," Psal. Ixxxiv. 11.
Use last. Of exhortation. Since the crook in the lot is of God^s making, then eyeing the hand of God, in your's, be reconciled to it, and submit un- der it whatever itis ; I say, eyeing the hand of God init, for otherwise your submission under the crook in your lot cannot be a Christian submission, ac- ceptable to God, having no reference to him as your party in the matter.
E
50 The Crook iji inc Lou
Object. 1. But some will say, * The crook in
* my lot is from the hand of the creature ; and ' such a one too as I deserved no such trcatmen'*
* from.'
Ans, From what hath been already said, it ap- pears, that although the crook in thy lot be indeed immediately from the creature's hand, yet it \r, mediatelv from the hand of God ; there being no- thing of that kind, no penal evil, but the Lordhatli done it. Therefore, without all peradventurc, d- himself is thy principal party, whoever be the \ principal. And albeit thou hast not deserved th; crook at the hand of the instrument or instrumeiit? whicli he makes use of for thy correction, thou certainly deservcst it at his hand ; and he mav make use of what instrument he will in the mat- ter, or may do it immediately by himself, cv - -> seems good in his sight.
Ooject. 2. ' But the crook in my lot migl;
* quickly be evened, if the instrument or instri;
* ments thereof pleased ; only there is no d*. ; :
* with them, so as to convince them of their : "• in making it.'
Ans» If it is so, be sure God's tia^c is not ar> v- come, that that crook should be evened ; for, if i- were come, though they stand now like an iui pregnable foil, they would gi\ e way like a saiidt bank under one's feet: they should *' bow du>\ : '' to thee with their face toward the earth, and lie' '* up the dust of thy feet," Isa. xlix- 23. Mean v/hile, that state of the matter is so far from justi- fying one's not eyeing the hand of God in the crook in the lot, that it makes a piece of trial in which his hand very eminently appears, namelv, that men should be sijjnally injurious and burden :oomc to othf-rs, yet l)y no meims susceptiLle n^
The Crook in the Lot, 51
.onviction. This was the trial of the church from her adversaries, Jer. 1. 7. " All that found them " have devoured them ; and their adversaries said, " We ofiend not, because they have sinned against *• the Lord, the habitation of justice." They were very abusive, and gave her barbarous usage ; 3-et would the}^ take v/ith no fault in the matter. How could they ward off the conviction ? Were they verily blameless in devouring the Lord's straying sheep ? No, surely ; they were not. Did they look upon themselves as ministers of the di- vine justice against her ? No : they did not.
Some indeed would make a question here, How^ the adversaries of the church could celebrate her God as the habitation of justice? But the original pointing of the text being retained, it appears, that there is no ground at all for this question here, and •^vithal the whole matter is set in a clear light. '^ Ail that found them have devoured them ; and *' their adversaries said. We offend not : because *' they have sinned against the Lord, the habitation ** of justice." These last are not the words of "ihe adversaries, but the words of the prophet, shewing how it came to pass that the adversaries devoured the Lord's sheep, as they lighted on them, and withal stood to the defence of it, when they had done, far from acknowledging any wrong ; the matter lay here, the sheep had sinned against the Lord, the habitation of justice ; and, as a just pun- ishment hereof from his hand, they could havx no justice at the hand of his adversaries.
Wherefore, laying aside these frivolous preten- ^^es, and eyeing the hand of God, as that which iiath bowed your lot in that part, and keeps it in the bow, be reconciled to, and submit under the rrook, v/hatever it is, saying from the heart
52 The Crook in the Lot.
" Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it,'-* Jer.