April 15, 2012

Jeremiah Burroughs (c.1600–1646) on God Begging

This Westminster divine wrote:
Sixth encouragement may be, He sends his Ambassadors to woo you to come in, and tells them they shall not take a denial at your hands, 2 Cor. 5. 20. They entreat and beg as in his Name, nay it is the beseechings and entreatings of God himself, as if a King should send one of the Attendants on him to a poor condemned Prisoner, and say, Go tell such a one that he must come for his pardon, and tell him, I beseech him, and take no denial of him, I beseech him to come in; would not this manifest the great willingness of the King to pardon; God does so, he sends his Ministers and beseeches you to come in and take a pardon; 'tis as certain God speaks thus by his Ministers, as if you heard God speaking by himself, this should move you to come in, Christ begs and entreats you to be reconciled, that his blood might not be shed in vain: seeing it is so, that God begs of thee to come in, why shouldest not thou come in, and take pardon of thy sin, Why cans't not thou come in and give up thy self and all thou hast and are to him?
Jeremiah Burroughs, Gospel Remission, Or a Treatise shewing that True Blessedness Consists in Parton of Sin (London: Printed for Dor. Newman, and are to be sold at his Shop at the Kings Arms in the Poultry, 1674), 216-217. [Some of the spelling has been updated]

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Burroughs is one among many sovereign grace advocates that I have documented who have used this begging metaphor. The other names include Augustine, Hugh Latimer, Samuel Rutherford [Westminster divine], Thomas Manton, John Trapp, Sydrach Simpson [Westminster divine], Robert Harris [Westminster divine], Theophilus Gale, Isaac Ambrose, Stephen Charnock, John Flavel, Richard Sibbes, John Shower, William Gurnall, George Swinnock, Ralph Venning, Daniel Burgess, Samuel Willard, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Solomon Stoddard, Samuel Davies, Andrew Gray, Ralph Erskine, Charles Spurgeon, Thomas Chalmers, Walter Chantry, Erroll Hulse and John MacArthur.

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