The glorious Name of God, The Lord of Hofts. ESAY 47. 4. N this Chapter wee have Gods If Ifrael when God was about to deliver from Babylonish Cap tivity should aske the Question that Mofes thought would be asked upon his fending to be their Delive rer from the Egyptian bondage, What is his Name? Exod. 13.3. The Prophet anfwers here, The Lord of Hofts is his Name. There,his Name was I am; Here it is, The Lord of Hofts. And if they should fay, But how can this deliverance be here? Can Babylon bee deftroyed? Babylon is ftrong, who fhall bring downe her power? Yes, there is one can doe it, The Lord our Redeemer,The Lord of Hofts is his Name. B Here Here then we have this glorious title of the Lord, for the comfort of his people in their diftreffe, and the terrour oftheir enemies in their pride, The Lord of Hofts,The Lord of Armies. The English word Hofts is from the Latine Hoftis, becaufe an Army is either for defence,or offence against enemies. Doit. The Redeemer of Gods people is the Lord of Hofts. The work then I have to do in this Sermon, isto teach you how to fanctifie the Name of the Lord in this his glorious title, The Lord of Hofts. It is the duty of the Saints to obferve what the way of God is in the times of their generation, To see what name of God is most confpicuous in his administration, & accordingly to fanctifie that Name of his. We may fay of this Name of God, The Lord of Hofts, as God himfelfe fayes of his Name Fehovah, Exod. 6.3. By my Name Jehovah was I not known to them: So by this name, The Lord of Hofts, God hath scarce been known to us here in England, but now he appears to us by this name in a glorious way: And we shall not know how to fanctifie it, except wee fearch into it, to fee how much of Gods glory there is in it, which we shall find much more then at first view feems to be,then most of us have ever thought; All Gods titles are full of excellencie. The excellen cie of this I fhall open unto you, that this Name of God may not be taken in vain by you, but be fanctified as it is worthy. It is a title that God hath heretofore delighted much, yea gloryed much in; we find it not leffe then two hundred times in the old Teftament, and most fre frequently in the Prophecie of Zechariah, Chap. 1. ver.3.we have it three times in one verse, and in one fhort Chapter, Zech. 8. we have it there eighteene times. But why is it used fo frequently in that Prophecie Quest. more then others? Because the scope of that Prophecie was to en- Answ. courage the people of God in building up Ierufalem and the Temple,in which work they had many enemies,and therefore they had need of a spirit of magnanimity and fortitude in it. Hence it was the Lord revealed him felfe to them fo much by the name of The Lordof Hofts. Times of Reformation, Temple-work, ufually meets with much, with ftrong oppofition. We had need therefore to have this name of God in our eye, and fanctifie it in our hearts,in fuch times, while fuch work is on foot. It is true, God did this work without bloud-ihed, it was done not by power or by might, but by the Spirit of the Lord,as we have it Zech.4.6.but because the work was fuch, as in regard of fecond causes, needed an Army to effect it, although God did it himselfe, yet his Name was to be fanctified in it, as the Lord of Hofts. In the New Teftament we feldome find this title; it is but twice that I remember in all the New Teftament, and in one of those two places it is quoted out of the Old Teftament, Rom.9.29. There the Hebrew word is retained,The Lord of Sabbaoth,not of Sabbath, as many take it. There is a great difference Quievit. between these two, The Lord of Sabbath,and The Lord of Sabbaoth: The one is the Lord of reft, the other is the citus, Lord of Hofts:thofe words come from a different root. Militia. צבא (TT Exer in the Hebrew. The fecond place is Fames 5.4. and there you have not the English word Hefts, but the Hebrew word Sabbaoth likewife. In the New Tefta ment we have Gods Titles fuller of fweetneffe and grace, as The Father of our Lord Jefus Chrift, The God of all confolation, The Father of mercies, The God of peace,&c. The more caufe have we to be humbled, who live in the times of the Gospel,and yet are come to fuch times wherein God hath changed as it were his name, and even in the times of the Gospel appears to us in this dreadfull name of his, The Lord of Hofts. This Title is in it felfe a very fearfull one,and yet before we have done with it we fhall find it like that. name of Christ, Cant. 1.3. Thy name is as an ointment poured forth afweet refreshing pleasant ointment. In the 2.of Sam. Chap.6.ver.2.the Lord fpeaks of this name of his fet between the Cherubims, whofe name is cal led by the name of the Lord of Hoft's that dwelleth between the Cherubims. Now you know the Mercy-feat was between the Cherubims, and that which I fhall endeavour this day is, To fhew you this name of the Lord of Hofts written upon the mercy feat between the Cherubims. Although it be dreadfull in it felfe, yet all Gods Saints fhall have it this day prefented to them from the mercie-feat: A name as full of goodneffe and mercy, as our hearts can defire. We have already feen in this Kingdom the Lord of Hofts on his Mercy feat, making this his dreadfull title to be amiable and lovely to us, from thence difpenfing grace and abundance of mercy in the manifeftation of this his glorious title. It is comfortable to behold the Lord of Hofts fitting upon his Mercy-feat: and up thus thus am I to prefent him this day unto you. Now God is called The Lord of Hofts in two re- Why God fpects: is called The Lord I. First, because all creatures in heaven and in earth of Hofts. are his armies. He is the abfolute great Lord over them all, The Angels,Sunne,Moon, Stars, the Dragons,the Deeps, the Fire, Haile, Snow, Wind, the Mountains, Trees, Cedars, the Beasts, and all creeping things,the flying Fowles,the Kings of the earth, and all people are the Hofts of the Lord. Pfal. 148. ver.2.&c. Secondly, in regard of that fpeciall providence of God in the great affaires of wars and battels in the world. It is true, the providence of God is over the least things in the world, but God challengeth a more fpeciall and peculiar ackowledgment of his work of Providence about War-like affaires, in regard whereof he takes this title to himselfe, The Lord of Hofts: If I should speak of the first, the time would foon. be gone, for there is much in it, it is more generall: therefore I will confine my felfe to the fecond, the more fpeciall, and now moft feafonable. God is the God of Armies. That he might expreffe himselfe the more clearly,and fully interested in War-like affaires, Exod. 15.3. he ftyles himfelfe A man of War. God feemes to glory much in his workings about War-like affaires. Hence Pfal.24.8. Who is the King of glory? The Lordstrong, mighty, the Lord mighty in battell. The Providence of God is great in wars, but especially in thofe wars that concerne his people, whether in a way of chaftifing them, or defenfive to fave them, or offenfive in avenging áll B. 3. him 2 |