Maternal consolations. An essay on, the consolations of God; whereof, a man whom his mother comforteth, receives a shadow; and all the children of God, enjoy the substance. Made on the death of Mrs. Maria Mather, the consort of the Reverend Dr. Increase Mather, and the daughter of the renowned Mr. John Cotton, who expired on, 4 d. 2 m. 1714. In the seventy third year of her age. / By Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S. and a son of the deceased gentlewoman. ; [Three lines from II Corinthians]

Maternal consolations. An essay on, the consolations of God; whereof, a man whom his mother comforteth, receives a shadow; and all the children of God, enjoy the substance. Made on the death of Mrs. Maria Mather, the consort of the Reverend Dr. Increase Mather, and the daughter of the renowned Mr. John Cotton, who expired on, 4 d. 2 m. 1714. In the seventy third year of her age. / By Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S. and a son of the deceased gentlewoman. ; [Three lines from II Corinthians]

Table of contents

Title page

THE OCCASION.

Maternal Consolations. Delivered in Boston; 4 d. 2 m. 1714.

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[Page]

Maternal Consolations.
Delivered in Boston; 4 d. 2 m. 1714.

Isa. LXVI.13.‘As it is with a Man whom his MOTHER Comforteth, so will I Comfort you.’

GLORIOUS Things are to be done for the CHURCH of God in the latter Days. And especially for that People which for many Ages was the only Church of God in the World: His Peculiar; which for Ages not a few, has been Repudiated by the Lord, Rejected, Scattered, and cut off by Unbelief; which in the Ages coming on, is to be Converted, & Restored, & set on the top of the Mountains, with all Nations flowing unto it. Glorious Things are spoken of thee, O thou City of God.

[Page] The Noble Prophet Isaiah, under the Inspirations of God, is in the Chapter, and Context now before us, as well as elsewhere, employed as the Herald, by whom these Excellent Things which the Lord will do, are so Proclaimed, as to be known in all the Earth. These Excellent Things are Exhibited under the Term of, Consolations. But then, that the Consolations may be described as exceeding Comfortable, there is a Metaphor used, which carries the Tenderness of the Comforter, beyond all Expression. Our most Gracious GOD, is pleased variously to express His Love to His People, and His Care of them: He has used Similitudes for it, and this in a most Elegant Variety. Among these, Herein God commendeth His Love to us, that He not only assures us, Psal. CIII.13. Like as a Father pittieth his Children, so the Lord pitties them that fear Him: He also gives us this Assurance, As a Mother Comforteth her Children, so will I Comfort them. Yea, I can tell where the Matter is carried further than so; He so Endears Himself unto His People; [Page]Isa. XLIX.15. Can a Woman forget her Sucking Child, that she should not have Compassion on the Son of her Bowels? Yea, They may forget; yet will not I forget thee. Oh! The Endearments of our God! Beyond all the Endearments of the Tenderest Mother in the World!

The Consolations which the People of God find in Him, are here compared, First, unto those which the Child has from the Mother, while in a state of Infancy: The Consolations of the Infant, Sucking at the Breast of Consolations, carried in the Arms, dandled on the Knees of the Mother. But in the Verse now before us, the Comparison for the Consolations goes on, to those which a Man receives from his Mother. I have the Original on my side, in so mending the Translation; As it is with a MAN whom his Mother Comforteth. One Reason for it may be, Because a Mother who sees a Son grown to be a Man, and prove a Worthy and an Useful and a Noted Man, and one that is to her, as they said unto Naomi, The Restorer of her Life, [Page]and the Nourisher of her old Age; Her Affection to such a Son, will be very Passionate, very Rapturous, very Marvellous, nothing will be equal to the Transport of it. A Mother, when she has in her Sight, a Son that is a Valuable Man, and a Rich Harvest of all her painful and anxious Nursery, she places a violent Affection on him; such, that no Tongue is able to utter it! She thinks no Consolations too much for a Son, that affords her such Consolations. They who take Notice of such Things, tell of a Nation in Europe, above others Remarkable for this Quality in the Mothers there, Prae alijs Matribus mire Filios suos Grandevos amant. However, our God has a Kindness for us, which exceeds that of such a Mother. There is also this Reason for it; Our God is concerned for the Welfare of His People, not only in their more early Days, but also all their Days. When Israel was a Child, then I loved him, says the Lord; yea, and so He will in the Riper and Later Years of His People. Having loved thy own, Lord, Thou wilt Love them to [Page]the End, and without End! Particular Saints find it so; The seventy first Psalm contains their Story, and is fulfilled unto them. I have thought of one Reason more for it. The Church will be arrived unto Mans Estate, and and unto Manly Christianity, when this Word shall be accomplished. When the Church is come, unto a perfect Man, unto the measure of the Stature of the fulness of Christ, then, then shall this have its full Accomplishment. I will add but this one Remark more; Every Believer on the Son of God, may claim an immediate Share in these Consolations. Every Child of God, in the Sufferings of this present Time, has a Claim to these more than Maternal Consolations, as well as in the Glory that is to be Revealed.

My DOCTRINE is now ready for me.

The Consolations derived from the most Affectionate MOTHER upon Earth, do shadow out, and are but a shadow of, those with which the Children of God will find their Heavenly Father Comforting of them.

[Page] The Disposition which the Glorious God has to provide for the Comfort of His People, has Two Resemblances, in His Two Testaments; And in both of them, 'tis Resembled unto the Provision which Female-Parents make for their Young ones. Agreeably to the more Sublime and Lofty Dispensation, wherewith our Lord appeared for the delivering of His People, in the Old Testament, we read; Deut. XXXII.11. As an Eagle fluttereth over her Young, hearing them on her Wings, so the Lord. Agreeably to the more Humble and Obscure Dispensation, wherewith our Lord made His Appearance to deliver His People in the New Testament, we read; Matth. XXIII.37. How often would I have gathered your Children together, even as an Hen gathereth her Chickens under her Wings. There is a Vehemence in the ΣΤΟΡΓΗ, and Passion of these Animals, to have their Young ones Defended, Befriended, Comforted. But that the Disposition in our God for the Comfort of His People, may have a yet more lively Emblem given of [Page]it, Behold, an Emblem found for it in the Rational World. As it is with a Man whom his Mother Comforteth! Our God is more disposed for to Comfort us, and has better Comforts for us, than the most Affectionate Mother in the World!

I. The first Thing I am to observe, is this. There are considerable Consolations enjoy'd by those whom their MOTHER Comforteth. 'Tis a Consolation to have a Mother Living. He is a barbarous Wretch, and worthy to have his Eyes pulled out in the Valley of Careases, who does not count it so. Tho' it should be a Decayed Mother, a Decrepit Mother, one under all the Inconveniences of a Superannuation, and one that must be entirely supported by her Children, yet the Presence of their Mother with them, is grateful to them if there be not a Barbarity of Ingratitude in the Children. The Jews have a Proverb among them, That a Mine of Gold in an House were not so rich a Blessing, as the presence of such a Mother there. But then, there are numberless Consolations which good [Page]Mothers give unto their Children. Mothers are the Comforters of their Children. They are by Nature so; have a strong Instinct of Nature for it; are Naturally very desirous to see their Children Comfortable. They can't bear to see their Children in any uneasy Circumstances. From this Natural Inclination in our Mothers to Comfort us, how cheerfully do they, while we are yet in our Minority, go thro' many Fatigues, many Troubles, many Self-denials for us? What poor Shifts had we made in our Minority, if we had not had Mothers to Comfort us? It was required, Deut. XXII.6. If a Birds Nest chance to be before thee, and there be a Dam sitting upon the Young, thou shalt not take away the Dam. A Dam is ill spared from a Nest of Young ones. O Young ones, that have had your Mothers continued unto you, until you have been brought up to your Maturity, Be Thankful; Be Thankful to a Compassionate God, for all the Consolations which He has by your Mothers bestow'd upon you. Nothing like an Own Mother! If she be yet with [Page]you, prize her Exceedingly! 'Tis but here and there, that Mothers-in-Law, are found Mothers-in-Love. Those few that are so, are never enough to be commended! And still, as we grow up, the Concern of our Mothers to Comfort us does not grow Cold. Our Mothers continue their Concern to see us have all sorts of Consolations, as long as they continue their Concern to see us have all sorts of Consolations, as long as they continue with us. But then, there are some Cases, wherein the Consolations we receive in our Mothers, are Aggravated, are Distinguished, are Unspeakable.

First. Our Mothers unspeakably Comfort us, when we have good Instructions from them. There was a Wise Man, whom his Mother Comforted, when he could say, Prov. IV.3. I was a Tender and only one in the sight of my Mother, and then follow the Lessons from her, that helped him to be what he was. There was another Wise Man, whom his Mother Comforted, when there was, Prov. XXXI.3. The Prophecy that his Mother taught him; and she told him what must be done by the Son of her Vows. Mothers do sometimes contribute [Page]very much unto the Wisdom of their Children; yea, do very much to make them Wise unto Salvation. The best Thing that some can be advised unto, is, Forsake not the Law of thy Mother. When our Mothers teach us our Catechism, and nourish our Souls with the sincere Milk of the Word of God, and charge us to do Well, and warn us to shun the Paths of the Destroyer, We are those that have our Mothers Comforting of us.

Secondly. Our Mothers unspeakably Comfort us, when we have good Examples from them. There was a Minister of God, whom his Mother Comforted, when it could be said unto him, 2 Tim. I.4. The Faith which dwelt first in thy Mother, I am perswaded is thee also. As there are Children Ruined by their Mothers, when it may be reported of them, as it was of one; 1 King. XXII.52. He did Evil in the sight of the Lord, and walked in the way of his Mother; So a Man is one whom his Mother has Comforted, when his best way to do that which is Right in the sight of the Lord, is, to walk in the [Page]way of has Mother. Have we had Mothers who have been Patterns of Piety, and of Hobiness in all manner of Conversation? In whom we have seen an Abborrence of every Wicked Thing; a mighty Delight in Conversing with the Word of God; Reading over the Bible perhaps Twice every Year; a constant Regard unto the Religion of the Closet? Yea, with such a Frequency, as no less than six Times in a Day. Such as been very Humble, in other Things, as well as their modest Attire; and very Charitable to the Poor, always Doing for them, or Grieving for them? If they had any little Feminine Weaknesses, yet being Women that feared the Lord, that Honourable Character the Fear of God, made a full Amends for all; and they were to be praised for it. We are those who have had our Mothers Comforting of us.

Thirdly. Our Mothers unspeakably Comfort us when they are continually Praying for us. There are Mothers who can say to their Children, as in Gal. IV.19. My little Children, of whom I Travail in Birth again, until Christ be [Page]formed in you. Mothers who are always Travailing for the Conversion and Salvation of their Children, with Supplications full of Agony on their behalf; As Monica for her Austin; Mothers that mention all their Children before the Lord, with suitable Petitions for them, in their daily Supplications; Mothers that if their Children are in any Distress, make their importunate Visits to Heaven for them, in their fervent Supplications: Truly, these are comfortable Mothers. Perhaps, they have been Mothers, that would, very often, very often, set apart whole Days for Prayer with Fasting before the Lord. We may be sure, they Remembred us on these Days; It may be, we were the main Articles of them. There are Mothers that lay up a stock of Prayers for their Children; This is to lay up a stock of Comforts for them. We read of one, Gen. XXIV.67. He was comforted after the Death of his Mother. When a Devout Mother has been for many Years Praying and Weeping to the Lord for the Blessings of Goodness to be multiplied upon their Children, [Page]they may be comforted after the Death of such a Mother; Comforted in this Consideration; Tho' she be Dead, the Effects and Answers of the Prayers that she made before she dyed, may be Living and Lasting with us!

Thus 'tis, that our good Mothers do Comfort us. But O Children, How can you do any other then study to be Comforts unto such obliging Mothers? When you were first Born unto them, they expected, This same shall Comfort us. Oh! Let them not be disappointed of their Expectations. A Disappointment, which will deserve and procure, that you who give it, should Perish Wonderfully! Your Mothers even Load you with Comforts; and all your Comforts are Theirs. Children. Do not you now fill them with Sorrows; Oh! Do not bring down their Gray Hairs therewith unto the Grave. Be it known unto you; Your Wickedness will fill them, and even kill them with Sorrows. You read, Prov. X.1. A Foolish Son is the Heaviness of his Mother. And, Prov. XVII.25. A Foolish Son is a Bitterness to [Page]her that bare him. Very particularly, All Undutiful, All Rebellious, All Contemptuous Carriage towards your Mothers; Wretches, I tell you, it will be extremely Grievous to them. The Transgressors of the fifth Commandment, are called, 1 Tim. I.9. Murderers of Mothery. If you don't Honour your Mothers, you Murder them. You had best beware, last you so see provoke your Mothers, that they may Pronounce a Direful Thing in the Anguish that you give unto them. Some Direful Thing will befall you, if it should be so. The Direful Thing will be dreadfully Executed on you. There are Executioners that stand always realy for it! You are worse than the Thievish Micah, if the Vengeance of an Irritated Mother be nothing with you. I press for the Reverse of this. Comfort your Mothers, by all possible. Demonstrations of your Affection to them; in speaking to them, in doing for them, all that is Comfortable. Comfort them with contriving all the Methods imaginable to make their whole Condition Comfortable. Comfort them, [Page]with making them the Glad Spectators of such a Laudable Behaviour in you, that their Hearts may Rejoice, even theirs. Finally, Be of the Perswasion, That you never can Retaliate the Consolations you have received from your Mothers; Be perswaded, That you never can do so much for their Comfort as they have done for yours. Children, This is Right! But perhaps there are some of you, whose Mothers after Thousands of Groans to Heaven for you, yet had not the Satisfaction of seeing you brought home to God before they Died; They had the Pangs of leaving you in your Sins, in your sinful Impenitency, when they Died. Oh! that the Thoughts of what your Mothers underwent for you, may this Day make some Impression on you! Oh! that you would this Day resolve, I will no longer Delay what my Dear Mother Died so exceedingly wishing to have me brought unto!

II. But I must pass on to a Second Observation. Temporal Consolations must not be too long dwelt upon. God forbid, that Flesh and Blood should be the [Page]chief of our Consolations. The best Relatives, who Dwell in Houses of Clay, will not long yield us any Consolations. Nor do they ever yield us our best Consolations. Nulli fit Injuria cui Deus praeponitur. It is no Disgrace cast upon the most affectionate Mothers, to say, That we have a better Comforter than the Best of them. Yea, if we have not a better than them, we shall anon find them to be but miserable Comforters. We will draw near now to that better Comforter, and make this Remark.

The Children of God will find their Heavenly Father gloriously Comforting of them, with Consolations beyond what the most affectionate Mother upon Earth can give, or so much as wish, unto her Children. Comfort ye, Comfort ye my People, faith the Lord, speak ye Comfortably to them. The comfortable Things we have now to speak, are such as these. Our God will Comfort His People, His People are His Children; and therefore He will Comfort them. When the good God comes unto the Comfort of His Children, 'tis with them, as with a Man whom his Mother Comforteth. [Page]In the Consolations which an affectionate Mother affords her Children, there is a little Shadow of the Consolations, which the Blessed God bestows upon His. What are the Points, wherein our Mothers are willing to Comfort us? First, All the Comforts that come to us from our Mothers, do Originally come from GOD. GOD fonds us our Comforts by their kind Hands, that indeed love to bring them to us. This Kindness in them to us, is also from GOD. GOD has planted it in them, touched them with it. GOD will do for us likewise all that is done by our Mothers; and very Transcendently so. They Feed us. Our Heavenly Father gives us the Bread of Life. They Cloath us. Our Heavenly Father gives us the Garments of Salvation. They Guide us. Our Heavenly Father leads us in the way wherein we should go. They keep us out of Harms-way. Our Heavenly Father does preserve us from all Evil. They confer Ornaments upon us. Our Heavenly Father beautifies us with Jewels of great Price. They Comfort us, with letting us know, that it is a Pleasure [Page]unto them to see us. Our Heavenly Father says to us, Let me see thy Face, and hear thy Voice; thy Prayer is my Delight. Yea, all the Comforts that our Mothers can wish for us, are such as our Heavenly Father will give to us. What they can only Wish, He will Do. I am still too short in my Language; He will Do for us, far Above all that they can Ask or Think for us, or we for our selves! And there is one Transcendency more in the Consolations of our God. Our Mothers will by'nd by leave Comforting of us. Mortality will put a Period unto their Consolations. They are not suffered to continue by reason of Death. But our Heavenly Father does never Dye; and His Consolations do see no Death; but will Abide with us, yea, Increase on us, after Death. So we read; 2 Thess. II.16. God, even our Father, has lovea us, and given us everlasting Consolation.

But let us now a little more particularly Enquire; What are the more than Maternal Consolations, wherewith God will Comfort His chosen People?

[Page] First; Each of the Three Persons in the Eternal GODHEAD, is Distinctly and Wondrously at Work, to Comfort the People of God. Let us take a View of this Matter, and fall into a just Astonishment at the Contemplation!

First. God the Father will Comfort His People. Our Acknowledgement, our Doxology to the Almighty Father, must be that; 2 Cor. I.3. Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of Mercies, and the God of all Comfort, who comforteth us in all our Tribulation. Certainly, we are comforted by the Infinite Father, when He tells us, That He will be our Father. I will be a Father to you, and ye shall be my Sons and my Daughters, saith the Lord Almighty. What is the best of Mothers, weigh'd in the Ballance with such a Father? Our Father is now the Infinite GOD. But, O ye Adopted & Comforted of the Lord, what an Inheritance have you a Title to? You shall come to no less a Felicity than this; To inherit all Things. Who can Comprehend the Riches of the Glory of that [Page]Inheritance, to which the Saints are Entitled? O the Consolations, O the Consolations, of such an Incomprehensible Inheritance! My Brethren, God the Father informs you, That He has chosen you before the Foundation of the World, that you should be Holy and Blameless before Him in Love. God the Father informs you, That He hath so loved you, at to give His Only-begotten Son for you, to bring you unto everlasting Life. If there be any Comfort of Love, certainly 'tis in this Love! O Children of God, This is the Comfort, wherewith we are comforted of God!

Secondly. God the Sow will Comfort His People. If a bright Angel were now to Preach among you; he would now thus call upon you; Behold, I bring you good Tidings of great Joy; To you there is born a Saviour. And he would not stick to add, Never, never any Comfort came up to this! The Jewish Rabbi's agreed upon it, That the Name of the Messiah should be Menachem, or, The Comforter; Because 'tis He that is thus called, Lam. I.16. The Comforter that should relieve my Soul. [Page]We read of such a Thing as this to be forever taken for granted; Conselation in Christ. Oh! what a Comferter we have in such a Saviour! The Consolations of a Redeemer, who is of God made Wisdom, and Righteousness, and Holiness, and Redemption unto us! No Mothers can do such things for us; nor can it enter into their Hearts to conceive all that is in those things. Truly, Sinners that have the Wrath of God abiding on them, and that are serving diverse Lusts, and that are held by Satan in the Chains of Death, and are in the way that leads down to a Devouring Fire, and Everlasting Burnings; These cannot but be comforted, when they hear a Blessed JESUS calling to them, Look unto me, and be ye saved! And saying, Him that comes unto me, I will in no wise cast out! My Friends, won't it Comfort you, to have a Saviour, who has offered up a Sacrifice to God for you, and supplied you with a Righteousness wherein God will accept of you? A Saviour, who fits on the Glorious high Throne, with the Government of the whole World in His [Page]Hands, and is resolved that in the Administration of His Providence, all the Things that befall you, shall work together for your Good. What shall I say? A Saviour, who is your Brother and a Man lying in the Bosom of God, and infinitely dearer to God, than all the Works of His Hands? What Consolations are these? O my Soul, Why art not thou even Overwhelmed in these Consolations!

Thirdly. God the Holy Spirit will Comfort His People. 'Tis indeed His Office to be their Comforter. We read Joh. XV.26. The Comforter is the Spirit of Truth. Surely, we cannot but be comforted, when we feel our Minds Purified, Rectified, and brought into an Holy Order, & an Heavenly Temper, and the Storms raised by our Irregular Appetites appeased, and succeeded with the Peace of God which passes all Understanding. We cannot but be comforted, when we are satisfied, That our Sins are forgiven to us, and that our Souls are bound up in the Bundle of Life, and that Goodness and Mercy shall follow us all our Days, and [Page]we shall dwell in the House of the Lord for ever and ever. None but a God, can give such Consolations. But, Oh! Holy SPIRIT, Thou art God, and these are thy Consolations!

It has been a little Surprising unto me to find, That in some of the Primitive Writers, the Holy Spirit is called, The Mother. Tertullian uses this Denomination for the Holy Spirit; The Mother, who is Invocated with the Father and the Son. The Denomination was justified by this; That we are Born of the Holy Spirit. And it has a notable Coincidence with it; That when the Holy Spirit comes to take a full Possession of the Church, and in doing so, has formed the Heavenly City; Then is this Prophecy fulfilled; As it is with a Man whom his Mother comforteth, so will I Comfort you. Then the Holy Spirit of God in His Church, will do the part of a Mother, in Cherishing the Souls of His People, and comforting of them, with God becoming their exceeding Joy! A City which is the Mother of us all, so intimately possessed by the Holy Spirit, [Page]that He becomes in a manner One with it; What Consolations will it bring unto us? In the mean time, To be fill'd with the Holy Spirit, is to be always full, full of matchless Consolations!

Secondly. The Promises in the Covenant of God, are alsufficient and inexhaustible Springs of Comfort unto the People of God. The Covenant of Grace is a Covenant full of Consolations. Oh! the Consolations of the sure Mercies laid up in that most comfortable Storehouse! Christian, come to the Covenant of God, as thou wouldest unto thy Mother, on all Occasions, in all Necessities. The Lord will there Answer thee, as He did the Angel; Zech. I.13. With good Words, and comfortable Words. A Servant of God could say, This is my Comfort in my Affliction; for thy Word has quickened me. Whatever it be, by which we may be afflicted, we may find in the Word of God, something by which we may be comforted; A good Word, which may make the Heart Glad, when stouping with Heaviness. The Guilt of Sin affrights [Page]us. That Word will Comfort us, The Blood of Jesus Christ the Son of God cleanseth from all Sin. The Power of Lust annoys us. That Word will Comfort us, Sin shall not have Dominion over you. Furious Temptations assault us. That Word will Comfort us, Our JESUS knows how to Succour the Tempted. We Conflict with Straits and Wants, or the Fears thereof. There is that Word for our Comfort, They that seek the Lord, shall not want any good Thing. We are afflicted and tossed with Tempests of Adversity. We have the Comfort of that Word; Whom the Lord Loves He Chastens, and He Scourges every Son whom He receives. We are bereaved of our valuable Friends. We have the Comfort of that Word; He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. O you feasted Children of God, What an incomparable Provision has your Heavenly Father made for you? No Mother on Earth could have done so for you. None Comforts like Him! Oh! Subsist on these Consolations, and with ravished Souls, often, often make those Exclamations, [Page] In the multitude of my Thoughts within me, O my God, Thy Comforts delight my Soul! This World will not afford any substantial Comfort unto us. But from the Comfort of the Scriptures, we have Hope, of coming e're long to a better World. The comfortable Scriptures have told us, of a Paradise for the Spirits of the Dead, wherein it is said, They are comforted. The comfortable Scriptures have told us of a Resurrection for our Bodies from the Dead, and have said, Comfort one another with these Words. From the comfortable Scriptures we become apprized of those Heavenly Places intended for us, wherein God shall wipe away all Tears from our Eyes, and there shall be no more Sorrow nor Crying there. O the Consolations of these exceeding Great and Precious Promises! How exceeding Great and Precious the Consolations! Why are they given to us? We read, Heb. VI.18. It is, that we may have a strong Consolation. Take it, O Regenerate Souls; Eat, O Friends, Drink abundantly, O Beloved ones.

[Page] But these Things are now waiting for the Improvement that we are to make of them.

I. And now, Behold, what we have to Comfort us, when our Desirable Relatives, and even our Mothers themselves, are taken from us; They which were the Desire of our Eyes, taken away with a Stroke! In the loss of Relatives, we lose our Comforters. And some thereupon abandon themselves to such an Excess of Sorrow, that they Refuse to be comforted. An Error this; Inasmuch as we know where to repair unto one, who tells us, As it is with a Man whom his Mother Comforteth, so will I Comfort you! A Sorrow on the Death of a Mother is very allowable; Yea, 'tis a Phrase for a very pungent Sorrow, Psal. XXXV.14. I bowed down heavily, as one that mourneth for his Mother. But the Sorrow is to be Moderated and Regulated, by the Consolations of God. It is to be considered, That it is GOD who gave us our comfortable Relatives, and made them to be all that they were unto us. It was GOD, who was the Giver, and [Page]Author of all that we found Comfortable in them. It is to be considered, That when God pleases to call for our comfortable Relatives, He does but call for His own; He may do what He will with His own. He does it also to bring us unto a more entire Dependence on Himself alone, for all that is Comfortable. Our other Comforters are one after another going from us. But we have a Glorious GOD still to Comfort us; An Eternal GOD still to be a Refuge unto us. We are so advised; Psal. CXLVI.3, 4. Put not your Trust in the Son of Man, in whom there is no Help; His Breath goes forth; he returns to his Earth; in that very Day his Thoughts Perish. This, this is the Voice of our God unto us, in the Death of our Comforters;, Oh! No longer expect ‘your Comforts from the Children of Men; Children, expect them not from your fondest Parents. They are Dying. Their Comforts will Dye with them. They return to their Earth; see the Vanity of such Earthly Comforts. When their Breath goes forth, in that very Day, the Comforts we had [Page]in them, do all Perish. Retire then unto the Living God; Oh! Cry out for Him, to Him; and say, My God, Thou shalt be my Comforter!’ This was the Comfort which a Child of God once refreshed himself withal; And, Oh! the reviving Refreshment of such a Cordial! Psal. XXVII.10. When my Father and my Mother forsake me, then the Lord shall take me up. In Imitation thereof, it will become us to say, Whatever Comforters forsake me, Lord, I am not Miserable, if thou art still my Comforter. Tho' all fails here Below, Lord, it is enough, that thou art the strength of my Heart, and my Portion for ever!

II. What remains, is this Admonition of the Lord unto us; Despise not, Refuse not, the Consolations which an Heavenly Father has ready for you; Become the Children of God, and put in for a share in His Consolations. 'Tis an Expostulation, which we are every one of us to be address'd withal; Job XV.11. Are the Consolations of God small with thee? My Hearers, The Consolations [Page]of God are small with you, if you count them too small to be worth all your Pains, and all your Cares, & an Head becoming a Fountain of Tears, distilled in your Prayers, from Fired and Flaming Hearts, to be made partakers of them. They are small with you, if you count them so small, that they will not sufficiently Sweeten, and more than Ballance the worst of your Calamities. They are small with you, if all the Riches, and all the Delights under Heaven, do not appear to you small Things in comparison of them. And if you cast Contempt on the Comforts of God, what can you look for, but horrible Torments? The very Reflection on the Folly of the Contempt, will sting the Soul with a Thousand horrible Torments? Or, if you will not have GOD for your Comforter, whom, or what will you find any where to Comfort you? Forsake the Mercies, and the Comforts which you may have to be your own, (a Merciful GOD, who profers to be your own God, and to Bless you!) and you will find your selves in the midst of none but [Page] lying Vanities. Why, why will you so Deceive your selves?

Wherefore, let my Counsil be acceptable to you.

First; Chuse the Glorious GOD, for your God, and Portion; He will then be your God, and Comforter. Come to that Action; Lam. III.24. The Lord is my Portion, saith my Soul; Therefore will I hope in Him. Soul, Do this, and thereon hope for Comfort from Him! We read Isa. XLIX.13 Sing, O Heavens, and Rejoice, O Earth; for the Lord has comforted His People. They are the People of God, who may expect Comfort from God. And who are the People of God? A People willing to place all their Happiness in the Knowledge, and Favour and Image and Service of GOD. A People willing to be under the Conduct of a JESUS, that they may be brought unto the Enjoyment of God. A People willing to be form'd into Holy and Lovely Temples, by the good Spirit of God. This willing People, are they, to whom there belong more Comforts, than there are Stars in Heaven!

[Page] Secondly. Who is He, that is, The Consolation of Israel? O Accept Him; Embrace Him; Close with Him; set the highest Price upon Him. Say to Him, Lord, I am Thine; save me. We read, 2 Cor. I.5. Our Consolation aboundeth by Christ. Believer, when a CHRIST is thine, thou hast Comfort enough. All Fulness, and so all Comfort is dwelling in Him. Go to Him, in all thy Exercises; Look to Him as the Purchaser, look to Him as the Dispenser of all Consolations; Wait on Him for Consolations that will suit all thy Exercises. All Comfort built any where but upon Him, is built on the Sand; will fail the Foolish Builder.

Thirdly. Don't Grieve the Grand Comforter. That is to say, what you have in Eph. IV.30. Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God. If He withdraw from you, all Comfort goes with Him Indulged Sin will cause His withdraw from you. Wretches that wallow in Sin, and pretend at the same Time unto Comfort; O deluded Wretches, what will be the woful Issue of your sportful Delusions? Verily, To lye down [Page]in Sorrow! See that you Walk Circumspectly; See that you Walk before the Lord in the Land of the Living; See that you maintain a Prayerful, Watchful, Fruitful Walk, with a Conscience void of Offence towards God, and towards Man. The Comforter will then fill you with unknown Consolations. The Tendency of such a Walk is to Joy unspeakable and full of Glory. The Pathes of it are Pathes of Peace; and at the End of it the Perfect and Upright find an endless Peace.

Lastly. I will not break off, till I have told you of a Mother, who will Comfort you, yea, bring you the Consolations of God, if you will do your Duty to her. No doubt, you are aware, who that Mother is, that I now point you to. 'Tis the Church of the Living God: The CHURCH, whereto they generally apply that Passage; Cant. III.4. I brought Him into the House of my Mother, and into the Chamber of her that conceived me. Yea, and the particular & instituted CHURCH, of the Neighbourhood whereto you belong, shall have her Demand now [Page]made upon you; and require the Duty owing to a Mother from you. I show you this Day, A Faithful People Associated and Incorporated for the Worship of God our Saviour, and I use the Language of our Dying JESUS to His Disciple, Behold, Thy Mother! My Neighbour, Behold, Thy Mother! You owe no little Duty to such a Mother in Israel! Children, Come under the Wings of your Mother, by joining your selves unto the CHURCH that is ready to receive you. She will then admit you to the Comforts of those Ordinances, that are in her Dispensation; She will Comfort you with the Fruits wherewith Her Beloved has furnished Her for you. She will Comfort you with a Feast of Fat Things full of Marrow, of Wines on the Lees well refined. There are Crowns with which your Mother will Crown you, in the Day when She Espouses you to your Saviour; and brings you to a Gladness of Heart that shall never, never be extinguished. If you have no Value for these Comforts, Heaven will esteem you no better than the Children of Edom.

[Page] What I press for, is, That so many of you would no more turn your Backs on the Table of your Mother, but Conscienciously Prepare for, and Approach to, the Supper of your Saviour there; The Childrens Bread. Some of those, who omit this Duty, are on all other Accounts as well disposed People as any in the World; yet in this, I declare unto you, I Praise you not. It is impossible for them to make any Apology for this Omission, but what will imply a real Miscarriage in them. Their best Apology is, That they have lest the state of their Souls, at such Uncertainties, that they dare not come to the more special and awful Ordinances. But, Syrs, Is this Excusable? Suffer me to go on with my Expostulation. If every one should be disposed as you are, what would become of your Mother? This Omission of yours, will Distress you on a Death-bed, I am certain of it, I am certain of it! How soon you may come to lye on a Death-bed, neither you nor I do know. Would you do what common Sense requires to be done, [Page]by Men in Daily Expectation of their Dying Day, you would be no longer unprepared for that commanded Action of, shewing forth the Death of the Lord. But this I know; That your having left this Duty undone, will be a Bitterness unto you in a dying Hour. You will then blame your selves for it, and Mourn exceedingly, and say with a Regret which who can bear?—Oh! That I had made more thorough Work, in that Article of Obedience unto God; my coming to Him in all His Ordinances!— I wish, that I may not see this Prediction too quickly accomplished on some of my dear Friends, to whom I wish as well as to my own Soul; Friends, whom 'tis because I Love them exceedingly, that I now deal so Faithfully withal, and from this public Place of Thunder, do Repeat the Warnings of God unto them. The Voice of a good Man, is that, 1 Chron. XXIX.3. I have set my Affection on the House of my God. Syrs, 'Tis your Mother, for whom I bespeak this good Affection! But then, if this Church of the Lord, is to have the Regards of a [Page] Mother from you, Beware, beware, that none of you do the Part of a spurious Brood in ill Treating of her. Wish well to her, Deal well by her, Do her no Wrong in the World. ‘Ye shall fear every Man his Mother, I am the Lord your God, who command it, saith the Lord, and will Punish you, if you Wrong such a Mother.’ No, You must Love your Mother dearly; If you have the Love of the Father in you, it will make you do so! You must heartily Desire, mightily Study, zealously Project, that she may Flourish before the Lord, and be well accommodated in all her Interests. What you do for such a Mother, your Glorious Lord will say, You have done it unto me! And He will Reward it Gloriously.

You are sensible, That what has obliged me, to Entertain you with these Meditations, is, The Death of a Pious, Loving, Tender MOTHER, with whose Comforts, I have been for more than one and fifty Years favoured of God. Tho' she commanded [Page]me, To speak little or nothing of her, and I have obeyed her Command, yet, I hope, you will think, that some Things in my Sermon have not been Impertinently, or Unreasonably spoken. When I drew the Picture of a good Mother above half an Hour ago, you may be sure, I had somebody sitting before me for it; You may be sure, I could not say, I had never seen such an one! And there shall yet remain a Truth in that Prophecy of the Vertuous Woman; Prov. XXXI.28. Her Children arise up, & call her Blessed. But I am sure, I am not forbidden to tell you, That no Mother, no Creature, can Solace us with such Consolations as in our Glorious God, we have left unto us.

And Oh! How much is this one Thing to be desired?—That whereas one Generation passeth away, and another cometh on, that which cometh on, may not be on the saddest Accounts another Generation, but that what there was of Heaven in those Handmaids of the Lord may Abide for ever among us. There has been a Set of Aged [Page]and Pious Women taken from us, whereof we cannot but be desirous, that they who survive and succeed may Do like unto them. We read of some, Jud. II.17. They turned quickly out of the way which their Fathers walked in; Those obey'd the Commandments of the Lord; but these did NOT SO. But, O Children, let there not be cause to say, You turn quickly out of the way which your Mothers walked in; These walked with God; but you do NOT SO. I must say to you, That in multitudes of Instances, to have that Proverb actually made Good, As is the Mother, so is the Daughter, would be the way for us to have, Glory dwelling in our Land. It may be said of our departed Mothers, That they did Abound in Supplications Night and Day; and often set apart whole Days for Prayer with Fasting in secret Places before the ¹ [Page]Lord. ² God forbid, that it should be your Character, to lead Prayerless Lives, and rarely go alone to Pour out your Souls unto the Lord, and cast your Burdens on Him. It may be said of your departed Mothers, That they were Sollicitous above all Things, to make their Calling and Election sure, and get their Evidences for Heaven cleared up. ‖ God forbid, That it should [Page]be your Character, To go on from Year to Year in a Neglect of the great Salvation, and unconcerned whether you are so Justified by Faith, as to be at Peace with God. It may be said of your departed Mothers, That they had a distressing Sollicitude upon their Minds for the Conversion of their Children unto God, & their Preservation in the Right ways of the Lord. * God forbid, That it should be your Character, To leave your Children Uncultivated [Page]with the best Endowments, and be able to bear their going on still in their Trespasses. In a Word; Your Mothers are your Monitors, and will not be your Gomforters, No, but your grievous Accusers, if you do not walk after the manner of the Old Time, and as the Holy Women, who trusted in God, and adorned themselves with such Things as are of great Price in the Sight of God.

FINIS.

Notes

1

I have obtained a fair Absolution, for it, if I allow my Page to be illustrated with Two or Three Passages, from the Private Papers of a Departed Mother, here crouded into the Margin.

↵

2

† She Writes thus: ‘While I was a Child, I loved the Ways of God; I took great Delight in secret Communion with God in Prayer. From the Exemple of Daniel, I did not live one Day without Prayer to God Three times a Day. But as I grew Older, Temptations and Afflictions came upon me, that I found, there was no living quietly, without more Acquaintance with my Redeemer. I then pray'd Six times a Day.’

She Writes thus:, ‘I kept a Fast lately, and found such Communion with God, and Answer of Prayer, that I long'd for such another Opportunity. Therefore I came again into the Presence of God for Grace and Mercy. They that will Fast with God, shall Feast with Him too!’

↵

‖

She Writes thus: ‘I was afraid after all I must Perish: But God caused me to give no Rest to my Eyes, nor Slumber to my Eyelids, till I had great Assurance of His Love, and of Eternal Happiness when this frail Life should be ended.’

↵

*

She Writes thus: ‘I kept a Day of Fasting and Prayer, That God would bestow special Grace upon all the Family; and that He would keep all our poor Children, that not one of them should be Guilty of any Scandalous Sins, nor live in any Secret Sins. Oh! Lord, Let not one of my Children Perish; no, Not one, Not one of them! Lord, Let not me be Guilty of the Blood of any one of their Souls. I know, I take much, and it is well if not too much Care of their Bodies; But, Lord, I pray, that I may take much more Care of their Neverdying Souls. Oh! That I may Discharge a good Conscience on that Account!’

Of her Children, she Writes thus further; ‘I was often afraid in having many Children, lest I should have one more than Jesus Christ would accept of: But now I desire to believe for them all.’

↵

§

§

[Page]

[Page]

[Page]

Maternal Consolations.

An ESSAY ON, The CONSOLATIONS of GOD; Whereof, A Man whom his MOTHER Comforteth, receives a Shadow And all the CHILDREN of GOD, enjoy the Substance. Made on the Death of Mrs. Maria Mather, The Consort of the Reverend Dr. INCREASE MATHER, and the Daughter of the Renowned Mr. JOHN COTTON, who expired on, 4 d. 2 m. 1714. In the Seventy Third Year of her Age.

By Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S. and a SON of the deceased Gentlewoman.

2 Cor. I.5.

Able to Comfort them which are in any Trouble, by the Comfort wherewith, we our selves are Comforted of God.

Boston: Printed by T. Fleet, for Samuel Gerrish, at the North-side of the Town-House, 1714.

THE OCCASION.

[Page]

TO pay an Honour unto a MOTHER, yea, and make the Memory of them to Live, in whom we received our Life; 'Tis what a Roman would practise: Even a Roman would make a Funeral Oration for a Mother, especially one whom he could boast, that he had never been reconciled unto: And therefore, it cannot be, that a Christian should Reproach it: Even a Solomon himself was not the Less of One, for the Respect he paid unto his Mother.

Mine Expired in the Night when the Fourth of April, which was the Sabbath, was coming on: and retired unto her everlasting Rest. It was not fit I should let that Day go over, without Entertaining my Neighbours with a SERMON; which is here exhibited in Things, & in Terms also, as near as may be, to what was then delivered. And certainly a Preparation of but a few Hours, bears but a little Proportion of Time for a Requital of the Comforts received for more than half an Hundred of Years; and invites the Reader also to look for but a very mean Performance.

I Remember, that Roquetaillade, (or, De Rupe scissa') wrote a little Book, which is by the Author styled, a, Librunculus, of this Title, Vade Mecum in Tribulatione. I am sure, such Consolations as are here offered, will suit every Christian, and ought to be his, Vade Mecum, in every Tribulation.

§

§

[Page]

BOOKS Printed for, and Sold by Samuel Gerrish, on the Northside of the Town-House, in KingStreet, Boston.

A Discourse concerning Faith and Fervency in Prayer; & the Glorions Kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ on Earth, now Approaching. Delivered in several Sermons in which the Signs of the present Times are considered, with a true Account of the late wonderful and astonishing Success of the Gospel in Ceilon, Amboina and Malabar.

MEditations on the Sanctification of the Lord's Day: And on the Judgments which attend the Profanation of it. With Seasonable Meditations both for Winter and Summer.

[Page] THe Believers Gain by Death, A Sermon, wherein is shewed, Who are they that Live to Christ, and how Death will be Gainful to all that do so.

These Three by Increase Mather, D.D.

BOnifacius. An Essay upon the Good that is to be Devised and Designed, by those who desire to Answer the great End of Life, and to do Good while they Live. A Book offered, in General, unto all Christians in a Personal Capacity, or in a Relative. &c.

THE Sailors Companion and Counsellor. An offer of Considerations for the Tribe of Zehulon; awakening the Mariner, to Think and to Do, those Things that may render his Voyage Prosperous.

ADvice from Taberah. A Sermon preached after the Terrible Fire, which (attended with [Page]some very Lamentable and Memorable Circumstances, on October 2, 3. 1711.) laid a considerable Part of Boston in Ashes. Directing a pious Improvement of every Calamity, but more especially of so Calamitous a Desolation. With an Account of the Desolation then made.

THoughts for the Day of Rain, in two Essays. I. The Gospel of the Rainbow, &c. II. The Saviour with his Rainbow, &c.

A Censure on the Ungodliness, by which the Glorious Grace of God is too commonly abused. With a brief Dissertation on that Case, Whether the Penitent Thief on the Cross, be an Exemple of one Repenting at the last Hour, and on such a Repentance receiv'd unto Mercy?

ADversus Libertinos. Or, Evangelical Obedience Described and Demanded; in an Essay to Establish the Holy Law of the [Page]Glorious God, upon the Principles of Justification by the Faith of the Gospel.

A Perfect Recovery. The Voice of the Glorious God, unto Perlous whom His Mercy has recovered from Sickness. In a Brief Discourse to the Inhabitants of a Place that had pass'd thro' a very Sickly Winter. With some Remarks on the shining Patterns of Piety, left by some very Young Persons. These by Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S.

THe Young Secretary's Guide: Or, a speedy Help to Learning. In two Parts.

AN Abstract of the History of the cruel Sufferings of the Blessed French Martyr, Louis de Marolles. From his Condemnation to the Gallies, to his Death in the Dungeon. Transtated from the French

THe Lives of Mrs. Mary Terry, and Mrs. Clissould. By Thomas Reynolds. (Bound together)

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Title statement

Maternal consolations. An essay on, the consolations of God; whereof, a man whom his mother comforteth, receives a shadow; and all the children of God, enjoy the substance. Made on the death of Mrs. Maria Mather, the consort of the Reverend Dr. Increase Mather, and the daughter of the renowned Mr. John Cotton, who expired on, 4 d. 2 m. 1714. In the seventy third year of her age. / By Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S. and a son of the deceased gentlewoman. ; [Three lines from II Corinthians]

Mather, Cotton, 1663-1728.

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Publisher

Text Creation Partnership,

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Ann Arbor, MI :

Date

2009-04.

ID [DLPS]

N01426

ID [TCP]

N01426

ID [STC]

Evans 1693

ID [NOTIS]

APX2503

ID [IMAGE-SET]

1693

ID [EVANS-CITATION]

99019232

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Early American Imprints, 1639-1800 ; no. 1693.

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(Evans-TCP ; no. N01426)

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— Maternal consolations. An essay on, the consolations of God; whereof, a man whom his mother comforteth, receives a shadow; and all the children of God, enjoy the substance. Made on the death of Mrs. Maria Mather, the consort of the Reverend Dr. Increase Mather, and the daughter of the renowned Mr. John Cotton, who expired on, 4 d. 2 m. 1714. In the seventy third year of her age. / By Cotton Mather, D.D. & F.R.S. and a son of the deceased gentlewoman. ; [Three lines from II Corinthians], Mather, Cotton, 1663-1728..

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44, [4] p. ; (12mo)

Printed by T. Fleet, for Samuel Gerrish, at the north-side of the Town-House,,. Boston: :: 1714.. ("Books printed for, and sold by Samuel Gerrish ..."--[4] p. at end.)

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