WINE FOR Gospel Wantoness: OR, CAUTIONS AGAINST Spiritual Drunkenness.  
Being the brief Notes of a SERMON Preached at Cambridge in New-England, upon a Day of Public Fasti●● and Prayer throughout the Colony, june 25. 1645. in reference to the sad estate of the Lords People in ENGLAND.  
By that Reverend Servant of the Lord, Mr. THOMAS SHEPARD deceased Sometimes the Pastor of the Church of Christ there.  Jer. 7.12. 
But go you now to my place which was in Shiloh, whe●● I set my Name at the first, and see what I did to it for t●● wickedness of my p●●●le Israel.  〈…〉 
Yet let no man strive nor reprove another: for 〈…〉 they that strive with the Priest.  
●●●●imatur. Charles Chauncy. john Sherman.  
〈◊〉 in the Year 1668.   

Wine for Gospel Wantoness.  Jerem. 13. 12, 13. 
Therefore thou shalt speak unto them this word, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine: and they shall say unto thee, Do we not certainly know that every bottle shall be filled with wine?  Ver. 13. 
Then shalt thou say unto them, Thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this Land, even the Kings that sit upon David's throne, and the Priests, and the Prophets, and all the Inhabitants of jerusalem with Drunkenness.  
THis Chapter contains a Prophecy of the Captivity of God's Church in Babylon; which is set down (to take the deeper impression on their hearts) First, under the type of a Girdle, which is taken from the loins of the Prophet, and put into an hole of the Rock near Euphrates, which did lick the banks of Babel, which after a time was so marred, that it was good for nothing: so will I mar the glory, and the great pride of jerusalem. When a people will not be vile in their own eyes, God hath a time to make them vile: when they will not be the glory and praise of God, they shall be the filth and shame of the world. Secondly, under sundry Similitudes: the first is in these Verses; where note two things: 1. The similitude itself; wherein he compares them to bottles, wherein wine was wont to be put: which is set down (1.) In a plain affirmation of the thing, from God's Command [Every bottle shall be filled with wine] this he was to preach, and testify. (2.) From their ignorant and disdainful receiving of this message from God; q. d. who knows not that? what great matter is that? what do you publish and press us to believe that? we know that every bottle shall. Now the Lord had caught them, and made them yield thus far, he comes in upon them with the second thing, viz. the Explication of the Similitude. Similitudes prove nothing, but when God applies them, then there's proof enough.  
Briefly, a little to open the meaning of the Text.  
By every bottle, is meant all the inhabitants of the Land, and more particularly, the Kings, and the Priests, and the Prophets.  
By Wine, is meant that spirit of Drunkenness wherewith the Lord will fill them: and by filling of the vessels, is meant they shall be full of drunkenness: and by bottles, is meant their weak condition; for they thought themselves vessels of honour, that could withstand the dint of any stroke: but saith the Lord, I will dash you one against another:  
I will do it, saith the Lord, by filling them with a spirit of drunkenness; and the manner how, is by dashing them one against another: I will break all relations asunder, and will not pity, nor spare, but destroy. It would take much time to open all these particularly. We shall only speak concerning one particular; viz. What is meant by a spirit of drunkenness: Sometimes it is taken for the drunkenness of men's bodies; sometimes for the Soul-calamities that men are under, in such wise that they know not what to do: Lam. 3.15. He hath made me drunken with wormwood; that is, with sore and bitter afflictions. Sometimes it is taken for a spiritual Judgement on the Souls of men, which is a sin; and not so much a misery, unless it be a spiritual misery, when the Lord doth give men up unto a reprobate sense; and so it is often taken in Scripture, Isa: 29.9, 10. They are drunken, but not with wine nor strong drink; for the Lord hath poured out upon them a spirit of deep sleep. The calamity of the people here is expressed in those words, in being dashed one against another, but now drunkenness it goeth before, as that which prepareth for this misery: Saith the Lord, I will fill all the Inhabitants of the Land with a spirit of drunkenness, until I have destroyed them every one. From hence observe, Doct. That spiritual Drunkenness, it is a certain forerunner of destruction merciless unto a people.  
I will show them no pity, nor spare them, but destroy them, saith the Lord: That look as it was with Belshazzar, he had been drinking overnight, and the same night the hand-writing of the Lord comes out against against: Nahum 1.10. While they are drunken as drunkards, they shall be devoured as stubble.  
For the Explication of the Point, I shall show you, 

1. What are the Causes of this spiritual drunkenness.  
2. By what Effects it doth manifest itself.  
3. When it is a Sign of destruction.  
4. I shall give you the Reasons why it is so.    
First, what are the Causes of this spiritual drunkenness. Look as it is with bodily drunkenness, it ariseth from inordinate drinking of wine or strong drink: so this drunkenness, it ariseth from drinking in those things which are the causes thereof: which are principally these two:  
1. When the Wills and Affections of men do inordinately drink in the pleasures of sin, and of those things that their hearts should be weaned from, and that should in comparison of better things, be bitter to them; when men shall give themselves up to this. Thus ye shall find in this sense the Prophet calls the Kings and the Priests and the People, The drunkards of Ephraim, such as did fill and satiate themselves with sins, and the lusts of their own hearts. It is a fearful Judgement of God, when the Lord shall give men their contentment in this way. jer. 25. ye shall read there of a Cup that the Lord gives, and it must go round, and be put into the hand of all Nations. Many times the case is thus with many sinners whom the Lord intends to destroy, they have many sad fears; now the Lord in his just Judgement he puts his Cup into their hands, and bids them take their pleasure in their sins, and so by this means they come to be hardened against the fear of Death and Judgement, yea of those very Judgements which are at their very doors.  
2. When the mind and judgement of man drinks in the 〈…〉 any delusion, or corrupt counsel, this 〈◊〉 from the 〈…〉 Gods just hand, 2 Thess. 2.11, 12. Corrupt Doctrines, these make men drunk in the very understanding of men. Rev. 17.6. when Antichrist doth corrupt the judgements of men with false doctrine, it is called the Cup of the wine of fornication: by drinking these in, the mind it is made drunk.  
The Second Particular to be opened, is those effects by which this spirit of Drunkenness doth appear and manifest itself.  
Drunkenness appears in staggering and reeling; so this spiritual drunkenness appears,  
1. In a spirit of Unstedfastness and Unsetledness, both in holy resolutions in matters of Faith, and opinions in matters of Judgement.  
In Faith: there is no hold of men, but unsettled and unsteadfast in Doctrine, and in matters of practice, Isai. 29.9. They are Drunken but not with wine, they stagger, but not with strong drink, when men's hearts are grown unsteadfast: and for this the Lord he professeth that he will never forgive this sin until they come to confess it in particular: when men shall walk at peradventures in matters of Religion, and do so stagger that the Lord knows not where to find them but as waves of the sea: It is true, there is a staggering that ariseth from weakness, as a child may, and of that I speak not; but now when men shall stagger being drunk with their lusts, this is that spirit of Drunkenness which goes before ruin. Drunkenness takes away the use of reason; and so this.  
2. It manifests itself, in a spirit of Sottishness and Blindness, which the Lord in his just judgement inflicts upon men for not receiving the truth in the love of it. Isai. 29. The Lord hath poured out upon them a spirit of deep sleep, the wisdom of your wise men shall perish, and the understanding of your prudent men shall be hid saith the Lord. Isai. 28.7. but they have erred through wine and strong drink, they err in vision, and stumble in judgement. Look as it is with drunken men, though their reason be not taken away, yet the use of their reason is gone from them, it befools them, and makes them sottish, giddy, and stupifies their understandings and senses. Isai. 19.14. The Lord hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: now reason will not move men, they can go against common sense and reason: thus when the Lord gives men up to a spirit of delusion, it is a spirit of Drunkenness.  
3. It manifests itself in a spirit of Rage 〈…〉 against another, especially when there is no reason for it 〈…〉 Lord shall give men up to a spirit of rage, and division, an 〈…〉, and the Lord leaves men here, even his own dear people that shall one day meet in Heaven, no means, no friends can persuade them to agree, but they are given up of God unto a spirit of wrangling and contention; this is that which goes before the calamity of a people, Mica. 7.4. The best of them is a briar, the most upright of them is a thorn hedge, the day of thy watchmen and visitation cometh, now shall be their perplexity. Look as you see it is often with drunken men, no counsels can persuade them to be quiet, unless that you use violence, and they are very much gone then, when men are in a wrangling condition; so Nabal in his Drunkenness: no counsel can be heard, they think themselves wiser than others, though they be in their drunken fits, and deluded frames, unless the Lord by some strong hand do bring them down.  
4. When the Lord doth leave men unto a spirit of deep sleep and security; when the Lord doth give men over to such security as is a kind of dead sleep, when the Lord doth leave men to such a sleep as that no awakening providences of the Lord can awaken them: and thus ye shall find it in sundry places, jer. 51.39. I will bring them, saith the Lord, to such a dead sleep, that when the plagues of God are upon them, they shall never awaken.  
5. A spirit of Drunkenness appears in this, in that it causeth men for to open their Secrets, their Nakedness and Shame, as Noah; when God doth leave a people for to manifest hidden sins, that were hidden before; Isai. 28.8. all their tables are full of Drunkenness, so that there is no place clean: So that mark now, when the Lord doth leave men unto such a spirit of Vnstedfastness in the truth; a spirit of Sottishness and Blindness; a spirit of Rage and Fierceness, a spirit of deep sleep and security, that now they manifest their secret wickedness like Sodom; I say, when God leaves men to such a spirit as this is, than it is a forerunner of destruction.  
Thirdly Only here is the question, when is it thus, for every spirit of Drunkenness is not a forerunner of destruction?  
I shall answer this briefly in three things, from the text.  
1. When the Lord doth fill all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, for the body of them, though some particulars it may be otherwise with them.  
2. When God fills men with this; men may be drunk, but yet there may be some room for some wholesome counsel; but now when men shall be filled full with their delusions, that there is no room for wholesome counsel, that they are uncapable of receiving the counsels of peace and truth.  
3. When the Lord doth give men over to this as to a judgement, when the Lord gives men over to a spirit of delusion, so as that the means which should do them good, it makes them worse; when men are in the midst of contention, and the means for their peace makes them more unquiet; when the word of God that should awaken men, it makes them more secure, and the judgements of God abroad in the World harden them the more.  
Now in the fourth place I shall give you the Reasons why it is thus, That the spirit of Drunkenness is a forerunner of destruction merciless.  
Reas. 1. Because now a man is immediately disposed unto all wickedness; he is filling up his measure very fast.  
Reas. 2. Because when the Lord giveth men over to a spirit of Drunkenness, they cannot now understand the cause of their ruin: they are now besotted, and blinded, the Plague of the Lord upon them is not removed, nor they know not the cause of it.  
Reas. 3. This spirit of Drunkenness it brings division among a People, and this is a forerunner of all misery: ye need not now to doubt of a fire, for it is begun already.  
Use. 1. Hence learn, when you see any Nation, Churches or People, given over to a spirit of Drunkenness, to bemoan and bewail their condition bitterly; for they have the tokens of certain ruin upon them.  
And for this end let us take a little pains to consider the state of God's People at this day in England: let us see whether the cup of this wine is not given to the Godly party there: there is no doubt of it to the wicked, but that it is now for the godly part, let us examine it in three things.  
First▪ Hath not the Lord given them up to a spirit of blindness in matters of Doctrine? I will not mention the thousands of persons doubting and staggering, and unsettled souls, not knowing what to do, nor what side to take; and abundance among them, that any religion will serve their turn, so long as their stakes may be settled, and may be in peace and quiet.  
1. Some there be that are Antinomians, that do deny the use of the Law to any that are in Christ, to be any Rule of Life to them: such are not under the Law, but under Grace. And hence it follows, they will not take any comfort of their good estate, from any conformity of their hearts to the Law of God, nor from any Law of God written in their hearts; for what have they to do with the Law? for they are under Grace, and they look to Grace only: and in truth are become Patrons of free vice, under the mask of Freegrace. And hence not being under the Law, and having nothing to do with it, their Consciences have their liberty, and they will not take any discomfort from any sin against the Law of God, or Rule broken; for if not under the Law, there is no sin, and why should there be sorrow for any sin? and these sort do now abound there. You know they are the very things that did Leaven this poor Country, for which the wrath of God hath broken out against the Patrons of it. These very Delusions they have now their elbow-room to spread there, and they spread far and wide.  
2. Others are Anabaptists, and there is such swarms of them, that they are like the Locusts, they begin to eat up all the green grass in the Land: Multitudes there be that are carried aside with them, whom though in former times they had other marks whereby they were known, yet now in these days they profess that they hold but one thing differing from the godly Orthodox, viz. That they would not have any Children to be Baptised: and so they make the condition of the Children of the Saints of God, (dear to God) in as miserable an estate, as the Children of any Turk or Pagan, and but as lawful to Baptise them, as a Cat or a Dog: Now though they say they hold but this one thing, yet it is impossible that they should hold this, but there will be forty others that will follow upon it: As now, they must of necessity hold, That the Baptism of all the Churches of God, is no Baptism; and therefore must be done over again. And again, as they hold Churches are made by Baptism, then if there be no new Baptism, there is no true Churches, and then no true Administration of any Ordinances of the Lord, but they are all abominations in the sight of God: and what that reacheth unto, let wise men judge. And if they deny the Seal, they must deny the Covenant of Grace to Infants, and so by consequence do undermine all hopes of posterity for time to come. This, wherever it hath come, it hath been a Troubler.  
3. Others are Rigid Separatists, that refuse to hear an holy Minister preach, or to communicate in their Assemblies, because not altogether purified according to the purification of the Sanctuary; hence forsaking Christ and his Servants, before Christ forsake them: their whole course full of Confusion and Scandal; either edifying themselves by their own Gifts only, or choosing Unlearned Ministers, abhorred in Bishops: challenging a licentious liberty to speak, and rule, and do, and not be ruled.  
4. Some are Seekers; they deny all Churches: Some that be risen up of late, that think there be no Churches, nor no Ministers, nor Ordinances of God in any place of the world, but they are in a seeking, waiting condition, for Apostles to be sent to make a Reformation: and this spreads very far.  
5. There be others that think the Soul of Man is mortal, and dies with the Body; they Print this, and speak thus, and many are deceived by them: Others think that they are both Mortal, and that there is no Resurrection.  
6. Others there be that would give Liberty and Toleration to all Religions; their colour is this, No man should be punished for his Conscience: and it is wonderful to think how this doth dazzle the eyes of many men, which for my own part, as I believe any other Truth of God, I do believe and judge it to be the foundation of all other Errors and Abominations in the Churches of God, if it once be attended among any People of God. It is a sad thing, That that which was accounted of as the heavy plague of God among the people of Israel, in the latter end of the Book of judges, That every man did that which was right in his own eyes, that it should now be accounted of as a blessed way of God; which indeed is the heaviest Judgement of God upon a People or Nation. Now is not here matter of Mourning to God for poor England, that is left to be full of these Delusions? If the Lord love his People, he will bring them very low, and stock them, and whip them, till he make their spirits sober and humble; or else mark what I say, England's misery is near at hand.  
Secondly, See if the Lord hath not left them to a spirit of Division, and they increase every year more and more, worse and worse. In former times the People of God, when the Wolf hath been abroad, they have been glad to be of one mind: but now, when God himself is come with a drawn Sword, and stands at the door, that now there should be such a division, methinks this should be the sobriety of the people of God: there is God's Hand on the one side very dreadful, and God's Mercy on the other side working all for them; I say, this should be their sobriety, now to lie down and mourn at the feet of the Lord. Humiliation and Praise should now be the work of God's People in England: But how is it, The Lord hath filled all the Inhabitants of the Land with a spirit of drunkenness? Sermon against Sermon, reviling one another; Head against Body: Go into the Camps, whom can they trust? Religion it is the occasion of the breach of peace, and look into the Parliament, Upper House against Lower House, and many pretended Friends, but secret Enemies, and by means hereof the Enemy is encouraged, Religion it is scoffed at: and what Religion would ye have men to hold unto? Many godly People they are discouraged, and Gods Servants desiring to say nothing, but rather to lie hid, and mourn for their own sins, and the sins of the people there. And let me say this, and you will find it is certain, At this very day the principal strength of the Land, are such as be seeming Friends to the Parliament, but secret Enemies to the Truth, and Ordinances, and People of God, and his Ways, and deadly ones too.  
Lastly, The deep Security of England under the sins that are now laid open. I will tell you what is their Complaint still. Their words be these: One especially, that in former times did publish as glorious Works as any in that Kingdom; saith he, I would I could speak it with tears, never more talking of Reformation, but never less practice of Reformation; our Churches are reform, but our Hearts and Houses never less reform; our high Altars are pulled down, but our high Minds are not brought down; the Worship of God is more pure, but the Worshippers as impure as ever; we have less Idolatries, but more Adulteries and Fornications; I do not say more Punishment, but never less punished, and more committed. Is there a Law against Scandalous Ministers, and none against Scandalous Lords and great ones? Men are not ashamed to profess their Adulteries before the face of the Sun. We never lived in such days, wherein there is more judging of others, and less of ourselves. Never more sad days in England, and yet never such pride in Apparel; never such Formality in God's Worship, never such Murmuring, never such Censuring: never more talk of Reformation, never less reform▪ never more security, then when the Ship is a sinking; never times wherein fewer converted▪ and the power of godliness more decayed, and sin abounding; never more Controversies how Churches should be gathered, never fewer added to the Church then in these times; never such Controversies how the Churches should be governed, and yet never less care of the Government of Christ in our own Houses and Hearts. Godly men have not leisure to study Faith, and Repentance, and brokenness for sin. I speak it for this end, that the Lord may affect our hearts with the estate of England; for this is some hope, that though they be thus, yet they are not all yet filled, but there is some room left for counsel, Habak. 2.5.  
Bend your Prayers against some persons, though you know them not, that make others to be drunk; give the Lord no rest until he make them Examples to the world, rather than the poor Church of God should be made drunk, and being made drunk, should dash one against another.  
Use 2. Let it be a Use of Warning to us all, to take heed of such sins for which the Lord may give us over to a spirit of drunkenness. The time is come, and it is the Lords great work at this day in the world, to give all the world this same Cup, as the just and heavy Judgement of God upon men, for the contempt of the Gospel of peace; and therefore is distraction and confusions in all that men do. Most men in the world have seen an end of the perfection of all God's Ordinances and Gospel, and they begin to grow stale things to them; therefore will the Lord put his Cup into your hands, and every bottle shall be filled with wine, unless it be that number which the Lord doth preserve in his great mercy. This is the misery, when once the Lord leaves any man to a spirit of Drunkenness, misery shall be at his door certainly coming upon him, and he shall not know it.  
Many inquiries are among us, What is the cause of the Lords hand against us, dashing our Ships in pieces, that the Lord should break us in our infancy, and tell us that he is gone in part, and that he is taking away some of our precious ones from us? Would you know the cause of this? you will never know it, until the Lord do take away this drunken distemper from us: So long as we are not kept sober in the love of the Truth, we shall never know the true reason why the Lord is thus angry with us. We cannot say the Lord hath filled all the Inhabitants of the Land with drunkenness, but yet the Cup is given us in part: The Head it doth begin to stagger in a great measure; do we not see great staggering? Unsetledness in the Covenant of God, Walking with God at peradventures, and such hankerings after the Whoredoms of the World at this day: And so likewise Divisions and Distractions; little done, and time spent, and the Country burdened with Charge; nothing done without much Division and Contention. Certainly something is amiss, every thing threatens some sudden blow to New-England; yet blessed be the Lord he hath not filled every one with a spirit of Drunkenness. But let it be the last Motive to think of what I speak, that the Lord should bring us hither, and give us peace in Church and Commonwealth, and in all our Colonies; let us look upon it as a rare and singular mercy of the Lord, that the Lord hath kept us here in peace, and saved us from being poisoned with the Delusions in the world.  
You will say; How shall we be preserved from this spirit of drunkenness?  
Here are many things that I should have spoken: but only think of this; hath not the Lord given us other things, and better things to take delight in: the Lord hath given us his blessed Scriptures to solace ourselves in, we had else been like herds of beasts going to the slaughter? and we have jehovah himself to go unto at any time; an infinite God we have to go unto.  
But that ●e may be preserved from this spirit of delusion, for help herein, I shall only name these particulars.  
1. Take heed of drunken company: I would not have a godly man to go into the company of an erroneous person: his words are infectious.  
2. Let God's People take heed of being deceived by mere colours and pretences of things; as now upon the colour of Freegrace, they bring in Free-vice, and under the colour of liberty of Conscience, liberty in sin: and good men have been deceived, and why not I, and the truth that I have received for truth, be an error.  
3. Love dearly the truth that you know already; such truths as discover your sin unto you, make much of them, and certainly the Lord will make much more known to you, and preserve you from error: I will send, saith Christ, joh. 17. the spirit of truth whom the World cannot receive; for you know him and he dwelleth in you. Look as it is with a man, if he hath taken down good drink, he will not be apt to take poisoned wine; he will not run to the Alehouse and be drunk, that hath good beer at home. Love the truth thou knowest, and the Lord will then teach the feeble in his way.  
4. Drink no more than will do you good: my meaning is this, drink in those truths that ye have known have done you good; take fast hold of them, and keep them. I will never forget thy precepts, saith David, for by them thou hast quickened me. And then likewise take no more than you have need of, you shall find this, you need every truth of God; as now you are tempted to deny evidencing your grace by conditional promises, by such promises wherein the Lord doth write down the names of those that he will do good unto, consider whether there be need of that Doctrine, and do you not need the contrary? do you not need to know that them that are pure in heart shall see God? do you not need this in time of temptation, although for the present, some can walk with a bold Conscience. And so for Baptism, do you not need a promise of God for your poor children?  
Lastly, When the Lord doth leave you under the sense of your own weakness, that you know not the truth, and under sense of distemper, and that the Lord is withdrawn from you, and you know the sin of your heart wherefore the Lord is gone: in this case take the counsel of skilful and merciful Physicians, go to the servants of the Lord, sober and understanding men, old acquaintance with the truth of God, go and ask their counsel: the Priests lips should preserve knowledge; come with an humble and meek spirit, and then the Lord will teach you his mind and will. In England, the great reason why so many are deluded, it is because they want instruction; and our condition here is pretty sad, that we should not have our discipline here published to the World, and to ourselves, and therefore we have cause to bless the Lord that he hath put it into the hearts of his servants to take pains herein. And there are but these three things that can hinder you from knowing the truth of the Lord.  

1. Unthankfulness.  
2. Want of Prayer.  
3. Contempt of their message, whom the Lord sends to be his Ministers.   
FINIS.