understood in scripture, as containing the nature of a promise, relating
to the supply thereof: Thus our Saviour tells his disciples, in Matt.
vi. 32. _Your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these
things_; which is the same as though he had told them, that God had
promised or designed to bestow those outward blessings upon them: And
when he designed, or promised to deliver his people out of the bondage,
in which they were in Egypt, he says, _I have surely seen the affliction
of my people: I know their sorrows_, &c. Exod. iii. 7. Thus concerning
the manner in which the promises are laid down in scripture.
We shall now consider how they are to be made use of in order to our
direction and encouragement in prayer. And here it may be observed, that
the promises either respect outward, or spiritual blessings, both of
which we are to pray for: Thus the apostle says, in 1 Tim. iv. 8.
_Godliness has the promise of the life that now is, and of that which is
to come_; the former respects the temporal dispensations of providence;
the latter, grace and glory, or the things that accompany salvation.
[1.] We shall consider the promises that respect temporal or outward
blessings which we are obliged to pray for, as we stand in need of them.
These are of various kinds;
_1st_, There are promises of health and strength, whereby our passage
through this world may be made easy and comfortable, and we better
enabled to glorify God therein: Thus it is said, in Prov. iii. 7, 8.
_Fear the Lord, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel,
and marrow to thy bones._ And in Psal. ciii. 5. _Who satisfieth thy
mouth with good things; so that thy youth is renewed like the eagles._
_2dly_, There are promises of food and raiment, or the necessary
provisions and conveniences of life, in Psal. xxxvii. 3. _Trust in the
Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou
shalt be fed._ And in Deut. x. 18. _He doth execute the judgment of the
fatherless and widow, and loveth the stranger, in giving him food and
raiment._
_3dly_, There are promises of comfort and peace in our dwellings, in Job
v. 24. ‘Thou shalt know that thy tabernacle shall be in peace; and thou
shalt visit thy habitation, and shalt not sin.’ And, in Psal. xci. 10.
‘There shall no evil befal thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy
dwelling.’ And in Psal. cxxi. 8. ‘The Lord shalt preserve thy going out,
and thy coming in, from this time forth and forevermore.’
_4thly_, There are promises of quiet and composed rest by night, on our
beds, in Job xi. 18, 19. _Thou shalt take thy rest in safety: Also thou
shalt lie down, and none shall make thee afraid._ And in Prov. iii. 24.
_When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid; yea, thou shalt lie
down, and thy sleep shall be sweet._
_5thly_, There are promises of success, and a blessing to attend us in
our worldly callings, in Psal. cxxviii. 2. _Thou shalt eat the labour of
thine hands: Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee._ And
in Deut. xxviii. 4, 5, 12. ‘Blessed shall be the fruit of thy body, and
the fruit of thy ground, the fruit of thy cattle, and the increase of
thy kine, and the flocks of thy sheep. Blessed shall be thy basket and
thy store. The Lord shall open unto thee his good treasure, the heaven
to give the rain unto thy land, in his season, and to bless all the work
of thine hand: And thou shalt lend unto many nations, and shalt not
borrow.’ And in Psal. i. 3. ‘He shall be like a tree, planted by the
rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf
also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doth shall prosper.’
_6thly_, There are promises of an intail of blessings on our families,
in Psal. cxxviii. 3. ‘Thy wife shall be as a fruitful vine, by the sides
of thine house; thy children like olive-plants round about thy table.’
And, in Psal. ciii. 17. ‘The mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to
everlasting, upon them that fear him; and his righteousness unto
children’s children.’ And, in Psal. cii. 28. ‘The children of thy
servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before
thee.’ And, in Psal. xlv. 16. ‘Instead of thy fathers shall be thy
children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth.’
I might have mentioned many more promises of outward blessings, which
God will bestow on his people, though with this limitation, so far as it
may be for his glory, and their real good, viz. such as respect riches,
as in Psal. cxii. 3. ‘Wealth and riches shall be in his house; and his
righteousness endureth for ever;’ or honours, as in 1 Sam. ii. 30. and
these accompanied with long life; as, in Prov. iii. 17. ‘Length of days
are in her right hand; and in her left hand riches and honour.’ And, in
Psal. xxxiv. 12, 13. ‘What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many
days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from
speaking guile;’ or, if God does not think fit to give them this, he
will take them out of the world in mercy, and gather them into a better,
to prevent their seeing the evil he designs to bring on the inhabitants
thereof, Isa. lvii. 1. ‘The righteous is taken away from the evil to
come.’ He has also promised some blessings that respect their good name,
in Zeph. iii. 20. ‘I will make you a name and a praise among all people
of the earth.’ And in Prov. x. 7. ‘The memory of the just is blessed.’
But that which I shall principally add concerning these and such-like
outward blessings, is, that God has not only promised, that he will give
them to his people, but that he will sanctify them to them for their
spiritual advantage, and enable them to improve them aright to his
glory, which will render them more sweet and desirable to them. Thus God
has promised,
_1st_, That he will free his people, who enjoy outward good things, from
the sorrow which is oftentimes mixed therewith, and tends greatly to
imbitter them, in Prov. x. 22. ‘The blessing of the Lord maketh rich,
and he addeth no sorrow with it.’ He has also promised to give them
inward peace, together with outward prosperity, in Psal. xxxvii. 11.
‘The meek shall inherit the earth; and shall delight themselves in the
abundance of peace.’
_2dly_, He has promised to give them spiritual and heavenly blessings,
together with the good things of this life, in Job xxii. 24-26. ‘Thou
shalt lay up gold as dust, and the gold of Ophir as the stones of the
brooks. Yea, the Almighty shall be thy defence, and thou shalt have
plenty of silver: For then shalt thou have thy delight in the Almighty,
and shalt lift up thy face unto God.’ And in Psal. xxiii. 5, 6. ‘Thou
preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; thou
anointest mine head with oil, my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will, or, I shall,
dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.’
_3dly_, God has promised together with outward blessings, to give a
thankful heart, whereby his people may be enabled to give him the glory
thereof, in Deut. viii. 10. ‘When thou hast eaten and art full, then
thou shalt bless the Lord thy God, for the good land which he hath given
thee.’ And, in Joel ii. 26. ‘Ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the Lord your God, that hath dealt wondrously
with you; and my people shall never be ashamed.’
_4thly_, He has not only promised that he will confer outward good
things on his people, but that he will make them blessings to others,
and thereby enable them to lay out what he gives them for their good, to
support his cause and gospel in the world; and to relieve those that are
in distress, in Gen. xii. 2. ‘I will bless thee, and make thy name
great; and thou shalt be a blessing.’ And, in Deut. xxvi. 11. ‘Thou
shalt rejoice in every good thing which the Lord thy God hath given unto
thee and unto thine house, thou and the Levite, and the stranger that is
among you.’ These promises more especially respect those who are in a
prosperous condition in the world.
But there are others which are made to believers, in an afflicted state;
and, indeed, there is scarce any affliction which they are liable to,
but what has some special promises annexed to it. Accordingly,
(1.) There are promises made to them when lying on a sick bed, in Psal.
xli. 5. ‘The Lord will strengthen him upon the bed of languishing; thou
wilt make all his bed in his sickness.’ And, in Deut. vii. 15. ‘The Lord
will take from thee all sickness, and will put none of the evil diseases
of Egypt (which thou knowest) upon thee; but will lay them upon all that
hate thee.’ And, in Exod. xxiii. 25. ‘I will take sickness away from the
midst of thee.’
(2.) There are other promises made to believers, when poor and low in
this world, in Psal. cxxxii. 15. ‘I will abundantly bless her provision;
I will satisfy her poor with bread.’
(3.) There are other promises that respect God’s giving a full
compensation for all the losses which his people have sustained for
Christ’s sake, in Matt. xix. 29. ‘Every one that hath forsaken houses,
or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or
lands for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundred-fold, and shall
inherit life everlasting.’ And, in chap. x. 39. ‘He that findeth his
life shall lose it; and he that loseth his life for my name’s sake shall
find it.’
(4.) There are other promises made to believers under oppression, in
Psal. xii. 5. ‘For the oppression of the poor, for the sighing of the
needy, now will I arise (saith the Lord) I will set him in safety from
him that puffeth at him.’ And in Hos. xiv. 3. ‘In thee the fatherless
findeth mercy.’ And, in Psal. lxviii. 5. ‘A father of the fatherless,
and a judge of the widows, is God in his holy habitation.’
(5.) There are other promises made to believers, when reviled and
persecuted for righteousness’ sake, Matt. v. 11, 12, ‘Blessed are ye
when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner
of evil against you falsely for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad;
for great is your reward in heaven.’ And, in 1 Pet. iv. 19. ‘Wherefore
let them that suffer according to the will of God, commit the keeping of
their souls to him in well-doing, as unto a faithful Creator.’
(6.) There are promises made to God’s people, when they are in distress,
and, at present, see no way of escape: Thus when Jeremiah was shut up in
the court of the prison, he had this promise given him, in Jer. xxxiii.
3. ‘Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty
things, which thou knowest not.’
(7.) God has made promises suited to the condition of his people, when
their lot is cast in perilous times: Thus it is said, in Isa. xliii. 2.
_When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through
the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: When thou walkest through the
fire, thou shalt not be burnt; neither shall the flame kindle upon
thee._
Now there are several mercies which God has promised to his people,
under the various afflictions which we are exposed to, as,
(_1st_,) Sometimes he promises to prevent the afflictions which we are
most afraid of, in Psal. cxxi. 7. ‘The Lord shall preserve thee from all
evils; he shall preserve thy soul.’ And, in Job v. 19. ‘He shall deliver
thee in six troubles; yea, in seven there shall no evil touch thee.’
(_2d_,) He has promised to preserve his people from, or defend them in,
a time of trouble, in Gen. xv. 1. ‘Fear not Abram: I am thy shield, and
thy exceeding great reward.’ And, in Ezek. xi. 16. ‘Thus saith the Lord;
although I have cast them far off among the heathen; and although I have
scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them a little
sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.’
(_3d_,) He has promised to moderate their afflictions, in Isa. xxvii. 8.
‘In measure when it shooteth forth, thou wilt debate with it; he stayeth
his rough wind in the day of his east wind.’ And, in Jer. xlvi. 28.
‘Fear thou not, O Jacob, my servant, saith the Lord, for I am with thee,
for I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven
thee, but I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in
measure; yet I will not leave thee wholly unpunished.’
(_4th_,) He has also promised, that if need be, he will shorten the
affliction, in Psal. cxxv. 3. ‘The rod of the wicked shall not rest upon
the lot of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands unto
iniquity.’ And, in Mark xiii. 19, 20. ‘In those days shall be affliction
such as was not from the beginning of the creation: And except that the
Lord had shortened those days, no flesh could be saved; but for the
elect’s sake, whom he hath chosen, he hath shortened the days.’
(_5th_,) God has also promised his people that he will enable them to
bear those afflictions which he lays upon them, in Psal. xxxvii. 24.
‘Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; for the Lord
upholdeth him with his hand.’ And, in 2 Cor. xii. 9. ‘He said unto me,
My grace is sufficient for thee; for my strength is made perfect in
weakness.’
(_6th._) He has promised to shew his people the particular sin that is
the cause of the affliction, that they may be humbled for it, in Job
xxxvi. 8, 9. ‘If they be bound in fetters, and be holden in cords of
affliction; then he sheweth them their work and their transgressions
that they have exceeded.’
(_7th._) He has promised to bring good to them out of their afflictions,
in Isa. xxvii. 9. ‘By this therefore shall the iniquity of Jacob be
purged, and this is all the fruit to take away his sin.’ And in Psal.
xcvii. 11. ‘light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the
upright in heart.’ And in Zech. xiii. 9. ‘I will bring the third part
through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will
try them as gold is tried: They shall call on my name, and I will hear
them: I will say, that it is my people; and they shall say, Thou art my
God.’ Thus concerning the promises that more especially respect outward
blessings which God bestows on his people.
[2.] There are other promises contained in scripture, that relate more
especially to spiritual blessings, which are of great use to us, when we
are asking them of God in prayer.
_1st_, There are promises that relate more especially to the ordinances
or means of grace: These are various,
1. Some respect the duty of prayer, and also the event and success that
shall attend it, in God’s giving gracious returns, or answers thereof,
in Psal. xci. 15. ‘He shall call upon me, and I will answer him.’ And in
Jer. xxix. 12, 13. ‘Then shall ye call upon me, and ye shall go and pray
unto me, and I will hearken unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me,
when ye shall search for me with all your heart.’ And, in Psal. l. 15.
‘Call upon me, in the day of trouble, I will deliver thee, and thou
shalt glorify me.’
2. Another ordinance to which promises are also annexed, is meditation
about spiritual things, in Prov. xiv. 22. ‘Mercy and truth shall be to
them that devise good.’ And, in Josh. i. 8. ‘This book of the law shall
not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and
night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written
therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou
shalt have good success.’ There are also promises made to those who read
the word of God, to wit, that he will make known his words to them, so
that they may understand them, Prov. i. 23. ‘Turn you at my reproof:
Behold, I will pour out my Spirit unto you, I will make known my words
unto you.’
3. There are promises made to those who attend on the public worship of
God, in Psal. xxxvi. 8, 9. ‘They shall be abundantly satisfied with the
fatness of thy house; and thou shalt make them drink of the river of thy
pleasures.’ And, in Psal. cxxviii. 5. ‘The Lord shall bless thee out of
Zion; and thou shalt see the good of Jerusalem all the days of thy
life.’
4. There are promises made to religious fasting on special occasions, as
in Mat. vi. 17. ‘When thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy
face; that thou appear not unto men to fast, but unto thy Father which
is in secret, and thy Father which seeth in secret, shall reward thee
openly.’
5. There are promises made to alms-giving, in Prov. xi. 25. ‘The liberal
soul shall be made fat; and he that watereth shall be watered also
himself.’ And, in Eccl. xi. 1. ‘Cast thy bread upon the waters; for thou
shalt find it after many days.’—And in 2 Cor. ix. 6, 7, 8. ‘He which
soweth bountifully shall also reap bountifully: God loveth a cheerful
giver, and is able to make all grace abound, _&c._’
6. There are promises made to believers, when they appear in the behalf
of truth, at those times when it is opposed and perverted, that by this
means it may not be run down, nor they confounded, or put to silence by
its enemies, Luke xxi. 15. ‘I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which
all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay, nor resist.’
7. There are promises made to the religious and strict observation and
sanctification of the Lord’s day, Isa. lvi. 2. ‘Blessed is the man that
doth this; that keepeth the Sabbath from polluting it, and keepeth his
hand from doing any evil.’
_2dly_, There are promises, contained in scripture, which respect God’s
giving his people special grace, together with that joy, peace and
comfort that flows from it, which will be of great use to them, in order
to their engaging aright in the duty of prayer.
1. There are promises of the grace of faith, and others that are made to
it; as it is said, in John vi. 37. ‘All that the Father giveth to me
shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.’
And, in Eph. ii. 8. ‘By grace are ye saved, through faith; and that not
of yourselves; it is the gift of God.’
2. There are promises of the grace of repentance, in Rom. xi. 26. ‘There
shall come out of Zion the deliverer, and shall turn away ungodliness
from Jacob.’ And, in Ezek. xx. 43. ‘Ye shall remember your ways, and all
your doings, wherein ye have been defiled, and ye shall lothe yourselves
in your own sight, for all your evils that ye have committed.’
3. There are promises of love to God: Thus in Gal. v. 2. ‘The fruit of
the Spirit is love.’ And, 2 Tim. i. 7. ‘God hath not given us the spirit
of fear, but of power and love, and of a sound mind.’ And, in Rom. v. 5.
‘Hope maketh not ashamed, because the love of God is shed abroad in our
hearts, by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.’ And, in 2 Thes. iii.
5. ‘The Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the
patient waiting for Christ.’
4. Another grace promised is an holy filial fear of God, in Jer. xxx.
39, 40. ‘I will give them one heart, and one way, that they may fear
them for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them.
And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn
away from them to do them good; but I will put my fear in their hearts,
that they shall not depart from me.’ And, in Hos. iii. 5. ‘They shall
fear the Lord and his goodness.’
5. Obedience to God’s commands, which is an indispensable duty, is also
considered as a promised blessing, in Deut. xxx. 8. ‘Thou shalt return
and obey the voice of the Lord, and do all his commandments which I
command thee this day.’
Moreover, as there are promises of the graces of the Spirit, so the
comforts that flow from thence are also promised: Thus it is said in
Isa. li. 12. _I, even I, am he that comforteth you._ And, in chap. xl.
1. _Comfort ye, comfort ye my people: Speak ye comfortably to
Jerusalem_, &c. more particularly,
(1.) There are promises of peace of conscience, which is a great branch
of those spiritual comforts which God gives his people ground to expect:
Thus it is said in Isa. lvii. 18, 19. ‘I will restore comforts unto him,
and to his mourners. I create the fruit of the lips; peace, peace to him
that is afar off, and to him that is near, saith the Lord.’ And, in
chap. xxvi. 4. ‘Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is
stayed on thee; because he trusteth in thee.’
(2.) God has promised a good hope of eternal life, in 2 Thes. ii. 16.
‘Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, who hath
loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation, and good hope
through grace, comfort your hearts.’ And, in Rom. xv. 4. ‘Whatsoever
things were written aforetime were written for our learning; that we
through patience and comfort of the scriptures, might have hope.’
(3.) God has promised spiritual joy to his people, in Psal. lxiv. 10.
‘The righteous shall be glad in the Lord, and shall trust in him; and
all the upright in heart shall glory.’ And, in Psal. xcvii. 11, 12.
‘Light is sown for the righteous, and gladness for the upright in heart.
Rejoice in the Lord ye righteous; and give thanks at the remembrance of
his holiness.’
Here we shall consider a believer, when drawing nigh to God in prayer,
as depressed and bowed in his own spirit, and hardly able to speak a
word to him in his own behalf, as the Psalmist says, in Psal. lxxvii. 3,
4. _I complained and my spirit was overwhelmed. I am so troubled that I
cannot speak_; and how he may receive great advantage from those
promises which he will find in the word of God; as,
(_1st_,) When he complains of the wickedness, hardness and perverseness
of his heart; in this case God has promised, in Ezek. xi. 19. ‘I will
put a new spirit within you, and I will take the stony heart out of your
flesh, and will give you an heart of flesh.’ And, in Jer. xxiii. 29. ‘Is
not my word like a fire, saith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh
the rock in pieces.’
(_2d_,) When a believer is sensible of his ignorance, or, at least, that
his knowledge of divine truths bears no proportion to the means of
grace, which he has been favoured with, and that he is often destitute
of spiritual wisdom, to direct his way, and carry him through the
difficulties he often meets with, as to what concerns his temporal or
spiritual affairs: There are promises suited to this case, in Prov. ii.
3-6. ‘If thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for
understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her, as
for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord; and
find the knowledge of God.’ And in James i. 5. ‘If any of you lack
wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally and
upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.’
(_3d_,) If they complain of the weakness of their memories, that they
cannot retain the truths of God when they hear them; Christ has
promised, in John xiv. 26. that the Holy Ghost shall _teach_ them _all
things, and bring all things to their remembrance_.
(_4th_,) If they complain of their unthankfulness, or that they have not
hearts disposed to praise God for the mercies they receive, he has
promised, in Isa. 21. _This people have I formed for myself, they shall
shew forth my praise._ And, in Psal. cxl. 14. _Surely the righteous
shall give thanks unto thy name, the upright shall dwell in thy
presence._
(_5th_,) There are many who are not altogether destitute of hope that
they have the truth of grace, but yet are filled with trouble, as
apprehending that they do not make those advances, in grace, as they
ought, but seem to be at a stand, which they can reckon little other
than going backward, and they dread the consequences thereof; such may
take encouragement from those promises that respect a believer’s growing
in grace; as it is said, in John viii. 7. _Though thy beginning was
small, yet thy latter end shall greatly increase._ And, in Isa. xl. 29,
31. _He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might, he
increaseth strength. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles, they shall run and
not be weary, and they shall walk and not faint._ And if they complain
of their unprofitableness under the means of grace, and not receiving
any spiritual advantage by the various dispensations of providence which
they are under; there is a promise adapted to this case, in Isa. xlviii.
17. _Thus saith the Lord thy Redeemer, the holy One of Israel, I am the
Lord thy God, which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the
way that thou shouldest go._