2. Sometimes darkness is put for ignorance and blindnefs of mind, incredulity and unbelief; John i. 5. "The light shines in darkness, and the darkness comprehendeth it not. Mat. iv. 16. The people that fat in darkness, faw great light." Then the meaning is, in this sense, Give glory to God, before he give you up to judicial blindness of mind, and to final unbelief, according to that threatening, Ifa. vi. 10. "Go tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; see ye indeed, but perceive not: make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; left they fee with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed." On! dreadful judgment ! 3. It is put sometimes for error and impiety, in oppofition to truth and holiness; 1 John i. 5, 6. "God is light, and in him is no darkness at all;" that is, no untruth or unholiness: and again, " If we say we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lye, and do not the truth." Now, in this sense, the meaning of it is, Give glory to God, before he give you up to the errors of the times, and to a spirit of delusion, like that threatened, 2 Theff. ii. 10, 11, 12. "Because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved; for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, to believe a lye, that they all might be damned who believe not the truth, but have pleasure in unrighteousness." 4. Sometimes darkness is put for forrow, grief, and heaviness; Mic. vii. 16. "Tao' I fit in darkness, the Lord will be a light unto me;" that is, when I am overwhelmed with heaviness and grief, the Lord will be my comfort; as it is said, "Light is fown for the righteous, and gladness to the upright in heart;" where light and gladness signify the fame things, even as darkness and heaviness signify the fame: hence the meaning of the word in this verse is, Give glory to God, before he cause grief and forrow to come upon you, as travail upon a woman. 5. Darkness is sometimes put in scripture, for the loss of Christ and the gospel, and the blind miferable state that follows thereupon; thus John xii. 35. "Yet a little while, says Christ, and the light is with you; walk while ye ye have the light, left darkness come upon you," ver. 36. "While ye have the light, believe in the light:" then the meaning is, Give glory to God, by believing and walking in the light, before he cause such dreadful darkness, as that of taking away the candlestick, or removing the gofpel, the means of grace and falvation. This is one of the greatest plagues and judgments: but fpiritual judgments, though heaviest, are generally least felt and understood. Therefore, 6. Darkness is, in fcripture, sometimes put for great afflictions, and heavy calamities; Ezek. xxxii. 8, 9, 10. "I will fet darkness upon thy land, faith the Lord, &c. Joel ii. 2. The day of the Lord cometh, a day of darkness and of gloominefs, a day of clouds and of thick darkness; as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong, there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations: a fire devoureth before them. Zeph. i. 14,17. The great day of the Lord is near: the mighty man shall cry there bitterly. That day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and defolation, a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, a day of the trumpet and alarm against the fenced cities. And I will bring distress upon men, that they shall walk like blind men, because they have finned against the Lord; and their blood shall be poured out as dust, and their flesh as the dung. Lam. ii. 1, 2. I am the man that hath seen affliction by the rod of his wrath. He hath led me and brought me into darkness, but not into light." And it is in this sense especially, that fome take the words of the text; and so the meaning is, Give glory to God, before he send more heavy difpenfations, grievous afflictions, and terrible calamities; perfonal, congregational, and national. 7. Darkness is, in scripture, sometimes put for death and the grave; Job x. 31. "Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness, and the shadow of death. Also ver. 22. A land of darkness, as darkness itself, and the shadow of death, without any order, and where the light is as darkness." Then, Give glory to God, before he cause darkness; that is, before his mefsenger, SER. CIV. fenger, Death, be fent to rend foul and body afunder; for, if you die before you give glory to God, by faith, repentance, humiliation, and renovation of heart and life, ye perish for ever. Therefore, 3. 8. Darkness is fometimes also put for hell; Jude, ver. "To whom is referved the blackness of darkness for ever. Mat. xxv. 30. Cast ye the unprofitable fervant into utter darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Mat. xxii. 13. Bind him hand and foot, and cast him into utter darkness; there shall be weeping and wailing, and gnashing of teeth." Why then, Give glory to the Lord your God, before be cause darkness, or before the fhadow of the everlasting evening be stretched over you, when he will get glory upon you paffively, thro eternity, if you do not give him glory actively, now in time. Here, in the text, it seems to be especially meant of the darkness of defolating judgments and calamities, not excluding any of the rest mentioned. 2dly, The next thing I proposed, on this fourth general head of method, was, to offer fome remarks upon the darkness here spoken of. Remark 1. "That by darkness here we are especi"ally, as I have faid, to understand affliction and judg. "ment." God was to judge and afflict Ifrael, and bring them under a feventy years captivity. And judgments are several times expressed by darkness, thus in fcripture, Psalm cvii. 10. Joel ii. 2. Remark 2. Afflictions are, on several accounts, " compared to darkness:" partly, because of their dreadfulness; they are frightful, as men are afraid in the dark: and partly because of their dangeroufnefs ; there is great danger of stumbling in the dark, as in the following part of the verse, where the text lies; "Before your feet stumble upon the dark mountains; and while ye look for light, he turn it into the shadow of death, and make it grofs darkness." Remark 3. "That there are signs of darkness before "it come, or when it is a coming; such as heaviness " and drowsiness, which seize people when the dark "night approaches." Alas! what a fign of darkness is the present security of our day? Men crying, Peace, peace, it says fudden destruction is at the door. Coldness feizes people in the dark night: and so coldness of af fection towards God and Christ, is an evidence of the darkness of our day; the fun down, and the stars appearing. Oh! when the Sun of righteousness is hid, and only the stars appear, only ministers heard, only their gifts seen and difcerned; what a darkness is this! When the wild beasts come abroad, it betokens darkness: thus, when the church is infested with foxes and wolves; fee to this purpose, Acts x. 29, 30. "I know this, that after my departure, shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock," &c. Song ii. 15. "Take us the foxes, the little foxes, that spoil the vines." See also, 2 Pet. ii. 1, 2, 3. Remark 4. "That darkness of trouble and wrath come "not upon a church without a cause." Give him glory before he caufe darkness. "Affliction springs not out of the dalt:" God owns himself the author; "Is there evil in the city, and I have not done it?" There is a concatenation and chain of causes, but God is at the top of the chain; he causes darkness. Remark-5. "That fin provokes God to cause dark"ness." Give glory to God before he cause it; intimating, That the dishonouring of God by fin, is the procuring cause of trouble and darkness, though God be the efficient cause. The darkness of fin is ours, but the darkness of judgment for fin is the Lord's; "Who gave Jacob to the spoil, and Ifrael to the robbers? Hast not thou, O God, against whom we have finned?" Ifaiah xlii. 24. Remark 6. "That God is not willing that darkness " come unawares upon a church and people, but before "he cause darkness he warns them; Give glory to the ८८ Lord, before be cause darkness." He is not willing to destroy; "As I live, I have not pleasure in the death of finners: Turn ye, turn ye, why will ye die?" QUEST. But when darkness is determined, why doth God call finners to turn to him, to repent, to give glory to him? What good service will that do, when to them the darkness and judgment is determined? ANSW. ANSW. If we give glory to God, then either, 1. It will prevent the darkness of judgment threatened, as in the cafe of Nineveh, and make the Lord to turn his hand, tho' he doth not turn his mind. 2. It may delay the darkness, so as there may be peace and truth in our days: or, 3. It may mitigate the darkness, and make it easy, and not fo terrible : or, 4. It may shorten the dark night of judgment, as it is faid, " For the elect's sake these days shall be shortened:" or, 5. It may contribute to strengthen and fortify us for the trial, when it comes, and makes us able to bear it. 6. It will turn the judgment into a mercy, and the darkness to light: for, "All things shall work together for good to them that love God, and are the called according to his purpose," and to them that give glory to God. These are the upright ones, of whom it is faid, "To the upright there arifes light in darkness." V. The fifth thing proposed was, To make application; which may be in an use of information, trial, and exhortation. 1st, We may improve this doctrine for information. And if it be so, that we are to give glory to God, particularly by faith, repentance, and humiliation, before he cause darkness, then we may hence fee, 1. The excellency of CHRIST, in whom all the glo. ry of God shines, and by whom God hath got all the glory that he requires. Hence the fong of the angels before the incarnation, Ifa. vi. 18. "The whole earth is full of thy glory." Heaven, the whole heaven was full of it before, but now the whole earth. And hence the fong of the angels after his incarnation, "Glory to God in the highest! on earth peace, and good-will towards men!" 2. Hence fee the excellency of the Christian religion, in that it tends to give glory to the great God, and the excellency of the gospel, that shews the way how God may get glory. On this score the Popith religion is to be |