JOEL. 2. 13.
WE are arrived to the fourth Observable passage in the Prophets Exhortation, and that is the form or nature wherein this turning to God doth consist. The very being and substance of conversion to God, is expressed in this phrase, Rent your hearts, and not your garments. To Rent the heart, is a Metaphor from bodies or garments, as in the Doctrine is to be shewed: Onely two things may be taken notice of in this phrase. To rent the garments, was a custom among the Jews, whereby they did declare their excessive and impatient sorrow or detestation: Thus the High Priest rent his cloathes, when he charged Christ with Blasphemy; and Ahab rent his cloathes, when there was fear of some great judgements coming upon them: Thus Paul and Silas rent their garments with indignation, when the people of Lystra would have sacrificed to them as Gods, Acts 14. 14. Thus you see it was a custom among the Jews, in apprehension of great grief, either for sins or judgements, to rent their garments; as they used also to cover their heads with ashes, and to go in sackcloath, which outward forms of mourning, are not to be drawn into practice among us, because all Nations have their several ways of publique mourning. The next thing observable is, the expression by way of negation, Rent your hearts, and not your garments; its usual with the Hebrews, to express a comparative by a negative, Rent your hearts, and not your garments, that is, rather then your garments; so, I would have mercy, and not sacrifice; i. e. rather then sacrifice: God by this teaching us, that all external duties of Worship and Religion are nothing at all, without the gracious and godly frame of the heart.
That Conversion unto God, is accompanyed with a tearing or rending of the1 heart.
It is with as much grief and agony, as if the very heart were torn asunder. He tells us, that turning to God doth not consist in outward acts of humiliation and sorrow; if this were so, hypocrites would be very diligent in it; no, there must be a cutting or dividing the heart asunder, from all those former sins, that were so constantly committed. This point is worthy the Ministers earnest zeal, for people generally are not in earnest about this work; they will hear much, yea, it may be, say much about it; but to have the heart thus wrought upon, is very rare.
To open it therefore, consider, First, That the Scripture hath other equivalent expressions to this in the Text: That which is here called A rent heart, in other2 places is called A broken heart, yea, A contrite heart, Psal. 51. 17. A wounded spirit A tender melting heart, An heart of flesh, A soft heart, Ezek. 32. All which have, their peculiar efficacy, to demonstrate this gracious work of God.
A broken heart, is taken from a broken vessel, or broken bones: Now this doth imply, what pain, what grief, yea and misery a man undergoeth, while he is in turning unto God. David expresseth his broken heart, by broken bones: Oh think not then, that thou who hast lived with an heartfull of ease, mirth, and carnal jollity, that ever thou hast attained to this duty: No, this is that thou art afraid of; As Luther said, his soul hated the word Repent, because he apprehended it a word of bitterness, gall and wormwood, and at that time knew nothing of Christ, and the Gospel that might sweeten this bitterness: Thus the hearts of many wicked men, do even hate and abhor the very name and thoughts of a broken and rent heart for sin: They would not be put out of those pleasures and jolly security in sin, upon any terms.
Again, as the vessel, when broken, hath presently all that was in it discovered and laid open: Thus it is with an heart in conversion to God, the breaking of it, makes all that wickedness and ungodliness appear, which formerly was hid and covered: Then he wallowed in such foul and noisom ways, and never took any notice of it; then he always blessed and flattered himself, still saying, I hope in God, I trust in God, I have a good heart, &c. O but when once the spirit of God breaks that hollow and hypocritical heart of thine, then O what depths of iniquity appear! What swarms of lust shew themselves! Then thou art monster, and abominable in thy own eyes; then thou canst no longer indure thy self, thou wilt be no longer a stranger, and unknown to thy self. The heathens commended that sentence, as fallen down from heaven, Nosce teipsum, Know thy self: But (alas) they had onely candle light, or moon light, not the light of the Sun, the Scripture, to discover themselves, and to judge of themselves by it.