Page:Worm Jacob threshing the mountains (2).pdf/5

Rh wherein this mystery is carried on by Jesus Christ—It is the worm Jacob, denoting the church in general, and every believer or true member thereof in particular, for of these the church consists, as in the text, ver. 13 Without the supplement, Fear not thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel.——One would think, that one designed to be a thresher of the mountains, should be a party of a single, great, and swelling character, a hero, a giant, or if there were any thing could carry the character higher; but, on the contrary, it is very low, surprising low, worm Jacob.——This character points at these five things; especially in the case of the people of God———It points them out as,

1. Weak creatures, really weak for the encounters they must make as a worm for a mountain———God himself gives them this name of extreme weakness, they must be so indeed! They have weak heads, hearts, and hands, for the work they are called to.—Not only does the first grace only find them really weak, but the other supplies of grace also. Heb. xi. 34. Out of weakness were made strong.

2. Humbled souls truly sensible of their own weakness.——By nature they were swelling vipers, but by grace they are humbled worms.——And,

First, Habitually humbled in respect of their state, the creeping worm, whose nature it is to go on his belly.—So the humble and the gracious are equivalent terms, Psal. xxxiv. 2, 3. My soul shall make her boast in the Lord, the humble shall hear thereof and be glad, O magnify the Lord with me, and exalt his name together.— There is a law-work followed with gospel grace wrought on them, issuing in a thorough humiliation, breaking down their natural self-conceit, tumbling down their towering imaginations about themselves, which they had in their state of blindness, bringing em in their own eyes from the consistence of mounns to that of worms, and convincing them they are,, and can do nothing.—Luke xv. 17, 1 Cor, x. 4, 5. Rh