(seq. 15)

3.
In ye text we have related Gods diverse dispensa-
tion to diverse sorts of Persons yt do come before
or attend upon him. (1) To ye hungry, or empty, nee-
dy, poor & destitute, whom he fills with good things
(2) To the rich, or full & selfe-sufficient, whom he
sends empty away. The observations from ye words
1. Doc. God of his grace is wont to fill ye hungry yt wait
upon him with good things.
2. Doc. God in justice sends ye rich that come before him
away empty.
1. Doc. God of his grace is wont to fill ye hungry yt wait
upon him with good things. Psal. 107. 9. Mat. 5. 6.
1. Q. What are those hungry ones that God fills?
An. In generall they are such whose hunger is after
spiritual things, those things which are for ye food
nourishment & refreshment of ye soul, particularly
1. Particularly they are such as want satisfying food
for their spiritual nourishment & refreshment.
They are destitute, poor & needy, empty, naked &c: their
tongue faileth for thirst. Isai. 41.17. A hungry man is one yt
does indeed want food, is in a famishing condition
Luk. 15. 17.
2. They are sensible of their want of spiritual food
& nourishment. They know yt if they be not fed with
this in some degree they will famish their souls.
The hungry man feels sensibly his lack of meat, &
so doth the hungry soul yt is hungry in the sense of ye
text. Its true All men are in a hunger-starved
condition, their souls famishing by nature, but thats
the misery of most they are not sensible of it. And
so yy perish insensibly, yy dy without knowledge. Job
36. 12. So Hos. 7. 9. The most of Men, tho strangers, [strong?]
lusts & corruptions have devoured their strength, brought
them into a pining, languishing condition even to gray
hairs, yet yy know it not, yy do not perceive it, yy
are blinded & hardned to their own perdition yt they
should not see their sin & misery, yt so they might
seek out for a Remedy. But these hungry souls they
perceive & feel their want of soul satisfying good.
As Christ sayes; those yt are whole need not ye physitian,
Mat. 9. 12. i.e. conceiting themselves whole yy feel no
need of the physitian, but yy yt know themselves sick.
So here. They that are full or yt conceit themselves so
they feel no need of spiritual food, but ye hungry they
feel a need of it sensibly. As the Prodigal did. Luk. 15. 17.