perfect Sabbath hee had performed some part of the Lawe and thereby beene partaker with Christ in the worke of our Redemption Againe if Adam had continued in the image of God which is in righteousnesse and true holinesse vntill the Sabbath hee would haue performed the ordinances of the Sabbath which was to eate of the tree of life which was made for a Sacrament of conseruation vnto him and should not haue needed a Redeemer Hee did not eate of the Tree of Life for God after his fall setteth Cherubims to keepe the way of the Tree of Life least Adam eating should liue for euer Whereby it appeareth that if hee had eaten thereof before hee had not fallen Therefore it cannot be that Adam continued perfect vnto the Sabbath And further it is written Psal 49. Adam being in honour continueth not one night but is like to the beasts that perish Cedrenus a Greeke writer saith that Adam fell the sixt day of the first weeke Saint Augustine saith the woman streight way after her creation before she accompained with Adam became into the transgression otherwise Kaine had beene conceaued without sinne Theophilact vpon Matthew sayth that as man was formed the sixt day and did eate of the tree the sixt howre so Christ reforming man and healing the fall was fastened to the tree the sixt day and the sixt howre And in the storie of the creation in Genesis presently after the fall Moses speaketh of the Redemption And without wee compare the Creation with the Redemption wee misse of all For Adam to bee compared with Christ is the summe of all And wherefore should all the actions of the Redemption bee accomplished in such rarenesse except to bee aunswerable both to the fall and to the time of the fall Wherefore it is needfull wee should know our thraldome if wee will receaue comfort by the Redeemer thus First Christ the Restorer was borne of a Virgine Why because by a Virgine destruction came to the world Chrysostome compareth Eue and Marie together thus Eue beeing a Virgine hearing the wordes of the SERPENT and beleeuing them brought foorth DEATH The Virgine Marie hearing the wordes of the Angell Gabriel and beleeuing them brought foorth Life Againe why should Christ die on the sixt day rather than on the fifth or fourth And why was there darkenesse vntill the coole of the day rather than till the Sunne setting but to make the Redemption answerable to euery part of the fall because God according to the secret counsell of his owne will before the foundations of the earth were laide would make the Art of saluation so easie and the harmonie of the Bible so tuneable that no musicke in the world can bee more pleasant to the eare than the meditation of the loue of God towards vs in Christ is comfortable to the heart of man Therefore the meditation of Adams fall and the victorie of Christ ought to bee continually in our mindes Now compare Christ with Adam Adam Christ The first Adam was made a soule hauing life of earth earthly therefore by the earthly one came disobedience sinne iudgement condemnation death was created on the sixt day and did eate of the tree the sixt howre was made a man without a Father made not inferiour to the Angels lost all was tempted lost saluation at the time of eating was made ruler of the world and did not hold it did fall in the Garden his soule was in darkenes from the sixt houre vntil the ninth howre by breaking one commandement lost all was called to account at the ninth howre was debarred of the tree of life was driuen out of Paradise was the head of his Wife was a King Prophet Sacrificer liued a thousand yeeres wanting seuentie The second Adam was made a spirit giuing Life from heauen heauenlie thetefore by the heauenly one came obedience grace forgiuenesse iustification life reforming man healing the fall is fastened to the tree the sixt day the sixt howre was made a man without a Father made lower then the Angels is crowned with glory and all the Angels worship him being man whereby wee may know the world was made subiect to a man was tempted brought saluation to all at the time of eating was made ruler of the world and did hold it went into a Garden to recouer Adams fall in the garden when he suffered caused darkenes to couer the whole earth from the sixt howre till the ninth howre by fulfilling all the commaundements brought life to all at the ninth howre yeeldeth vp the Ghost and goeth to giue account to his Father is the true Tree of Life on that day openeth Paradise to the poore theefe the head of his Church was a King Prophet Sacrificer was borne seuentie yeeres before foure thousand BEcause these two Tables consist onely of numbers and that numbers in the scripture are great helpes for the vnderstanding of the same before wee come to speake of Seth it is not amisse to lay downe what numbers are of most vse in the Bible namely 1 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 12. 1 Expressing the vnion of the Godhead and from thence the vnitie of all godly as being members of one head Christ Iesus which is made plaine Psal 133. Behold how good and comely a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in vnitie c. 3 The distinguished Trinitie within which number many excellent things fall out still to put vs in minde of the vndeuidable coeternitie of Father Sonne and holy Spirite To shew that neither in eldest yongest or middlemost but in Gods free election standeth our eternall happinesse Adam Kaine Of Adam the eldest extreame wicked Abel Of Adam the eldest extreame wicked Seth. Of Adam the eldest extreame wicked Noah Iaphet Of Noah the youngest wicked Sem Of Noah the youngest wicked Cham. Of Noah the youngest wicked Terah Haran Of Terah the middlemost was wicked Nachor Of Terah the middlemost was wicked Abram Of Terah the middlemost was wicked Three Angels appeared to Abraham in his Tent. Three Fowers of precious stones were set in Aarons breast Three Things reserued in the Arke Three Taken vp in the old Testament and 3 in the new The Booke of the Lawe The pot of Manna and Aarons rod that did alwaies flourish Three Parts was Ierusalem diuided into Three Letters the root of euerie word in the Hebrew tongue Three Captiuities of the Iewes Three Times was the Temple grosly poluted by the Babilonians Antiochi Romanes Three Times a yeere were the Iewes bound to come to Ierusalem to giue account of their Religion Three Dayes and Nights was Ionas in the Whales belly Nights and dayes was Christ in the graue Iohns viz. Iohn Baptist Luk. 1. Iohn Euangelist Mat. 4. Iohn Marke Act. 12. Iob saued 3 Eliphaz Sophar Bildad Daniel saued 3 Ananias Azarias Mishael Noah saued 3 Sem. Cham. Iaphet In the 3. seuenth Iubile the Iewes felaway and then Ieremie said O earth earth earth Heare the word of the Lord
shall come and carrie away captiue these excellent things and thy Sonnes shall bee courtiers in the court of the king of Babell He hath Fifteen yeares longer allowed for the time of his life in this world and hath this warranted by the course of the Sun going fifteen degrees backward He knew the end and period of his life and thereby no doubt had a wonderfull glorie This is certaine that none can tell by outward blessings how farre he is in the fauour or disfauor of God Ezechias dieth to the end hee should not see the euill dayes 3311. Manasses his Sonne raigneth 55. yeres being wonderfull wicked HEre the long patience of God appeared calling men to repentance as in the dayes of Noah while the Arke was in preparing 3366. Amon his Sonne raigned Two yeares HE committed euill in the sight of the Lord as did Manasses his Father For Ammon sacrificed to all the Images which Manasses his Father had made and serued them and he humbled not himselfe before the Lord as Manasses his Father had humbled himselfe but this Ammon trespassed more and more and his Seruants conspired against him and slue him in his owne house And the people of the Land made Iosias King and hee raigned One and Thirtie yeares and hee did vprightly in the sight of the Lord and walked in the wayes of Dauid his Father and bowed neither to the right hand nor to the left He taketh vp the Prophets bones and burneth them vppon their Altars and purged Iudah and Ierusalem So hee fulfilleth that prophecie Read the 3. King 23.16 He was verie godly at Sixteen yeares of age at Eighteen the Booke of the Lawe is found It is a great question what Booke of the Law it was It is certaine that the prophets had the law to studie as Esay Amos and Ezechiel Therefore the meaning cannot be that before this finding they had no copies of Moses but the truth is Now was found the verie originall which Moses wrote for wicked Manasses was the occasion of hiding thereof Vpon this finding and reading thereof God saith 2. Chron. 34. Because thy heart did melt and thou hast humbled thy selfe before the Lord therfore thou shalt be gathered vnto thy fathers and shalt be put into thy graue with peace He was slaine by Pharaoh Neco at Megiddo for the Lord turned not from his fierce wrath wherewith he was angrie against Iudah because of the prouocations of Manasses therefore hee determined to put Iudah out of his sight Vpon this Ieremie writes the Lamentations of his death In his dayes Ieremie and Sophony prophecied 3399. Ioakim Eleauen yeares HE would not beleeue the iudgments of God against Iudah and Ierusalem pronounced by Ieremie 22. Thus saith the Lord against Ioakim they shall not lament him saying Ah my Brother or ah Sister neither shall they mourne for him saying ah Lord or ah this glorie he shall be buried as an Asse is buried euen drawne and cast forth without the gates of Ierusalem And then began Nebuchadnetzar to besiege Ierusalem and Ioakim cuts Ieremies Lamentations in peeces Therefore he was buried like an Asse and here the succession ended Gregorie Martin herevpon keepes a stirre as if the Scriptures were not true because Saint Mathew saith that Ioakim begat Ieconias and his brethren whereas in truth Ioakim died childlesse The Scripture is true for this word Sonne is taken for any kinsman and so vsed in the scripture He was his Vncle in proper sence and Sonne by succession Here is now the saying fulfilled Ierem. 22. O earth earth earth heare the word of the Lord write Iehoiakim voide of Children Nathaniel he saith of Christ Ioh. 1. Thou art the King of Israel The purpose of God in this Kingdome was this that Christ should bee King for euer whose gouernment they in some sort shadowed and yet seeing they could not performe ciuile Iustice for this life how shall wee if wee trust in our owne righteousnesse appeare in the sight of God The next in order of time to be handled is Nebuchadnetzar and the Storie of the Captiuitie but because before I could not conueniently handle the Kings of Israel before I come to the captiuitie I will heere handle their Stories in generall termes TIll Ieroboams time Iuda ruled ouer all the Tribes but when Salomon was dead and Roboam succeedeth the Ten tribes fall away from Iuda and then those Tribes make another Kingdome by their diuision and frō this time Israel is a kingdom diuided the ten Tribes bearing the name of Israel and the other Tribes Iuda and Beniamin the Kingdome of Iudah This diuision continueth vnto Ezechias time and there endeth the ten Tribes being carried captiue by Salmanasar The Prophet Oseas expresseth their state in this sort Cap. 1. GOe take vnto thee a wife of Fornications and hee tooke Gomer which signifieth a whole bodie or multitude the Daughter of Diblaim which signifieth Barrennesse which was a name of one of the standings in the wildernesse And she conceiued and bare a Sonne and called him Isreel So God calleth the whole state of Israel a whole bodie as barren as the wildernes She conceiued againe and bare a daughter and called her Loruhamah not pitied She bare againe another Sonne and called his name Lognamj that is not my people The meaning is thus much Goe to the multitude of Israel whose Fathers pitched their Tents in the wildernesse of Diblaim and because they fall to Idolatrie worshipping molten Calues as their fathers did in the wildernesse not regarding the glorie of Shiloh tell them that their state shall be as Israel that is like the slaughter of Iehu vpon Achab in the valley of Isreel and they shall be so vnpitied that they shall be as though they were no people vntill they know I am the Lord. Of these calamities Oseas preacheth vnto them in Ieroboams time telleth them vnder these termes of three alterations the one by Iehu which he expresseth by his first Sonne Isreel because a little while and I will visite the blood of Isreel vppon the house of Iehu and will make the gouernment of the house of Israel to cease and at that day will I also breake the bowe of Israel in the valley of Iesrell The Second by his Daughter Loruhamah without mercie For I wil no more haue pitie vpon the house of Israel but I will vtterly take them away which was performed in Tighath Pelesars daies without mercie The Third Lognammi no people for yee are not my people therefore will I not be yours This was performed when Salmanasar caried them cleane away It is not expressed of what Tribes the Kings of Israel were because the Lord keepeth not the wicked in remembrance If any be mentioned it is for some speciall vse in the Storie as Iehu may be supposed to be of Gad because there is mention made that he came from a Towne in that Tribe Ieroboam is of Ioseph and is a plague to Israel when hee erected
of iron and clay and brake them to peeces then was the iron the clay the brasse the siluer and the gold broken all together that no place was found for them and the stone that smote them became a great mountaine and filled the whole earth Dan. 2. Daniel sawe some great beasts come vp from the sea the first a Lyon the second a Beare the third a Leopard the fourth vnlike the former with teeth of iron and tenne hornes Dan. 7. These great beasts which are foure are foure Kings which shall take the kingdome of the Saints of the most high In the thirteenth of the Reuelation Iohn sawe a beast rise out of the sea hauing seauen heads and tenne hornes mouthed like a Lyon bodied like a Leopard footed like a Beare and the Dragon gaue him his power And Daniel beheld till the thrones were set vp and the Ancient of daies did sit whose garment was white as snowe and the haire of his head like the pure wooll his throne was like the fiery flame and his wheeles as burning fire a fiery streame issued and came forth from before him thousand thousands ministred vnto him and tenne thousand thousands stood before him the iudgement was set and the bookes opened the beasts were slaine and their bodies cast into the burning fire and behold one like the Son of man came in the clowdes of heauen and came to the Ancient of daies and he gaue him dominion and honour and a kingdome that all people nations and languages should serue him his kingdome shall neuer be destroyed so as Reuel 20. Iohn sawe a great white throne and one that sate on it from whose face flied both the earth and the heauen and he sawe the dead both great and small stand before God and the bookes were opened and another booke was opened which was the booke of life and the dead were iudged of those thinges which were written in the bookes according to their workes and whosoeuer was not found written in the booke of life was cast into the lake of fire Dan. 3. Nebucadnetzar erecteth an Image and commaundeth to worshippe it Sidrach Mishach and Abednego refused This sheweth that wicked lawes cannot compell godly men to doe that which God forbiddeth for the faithfull are alwaies assured that God wil defend them this is the meaning of this place and will not feare him that can throwe the body into the fire but stand in awe of him that can throwe both body and soule into eternall fire so in Apoc. 1◠As many as would not worship the image of the beast were killed 3409. Ioachin three moneths HE was eight yeares old when he beganne to raigne and hee ruled three monthes and ten dayes in Ierusalem and did euill in the sigh of the Lord. And when the yeare was out King Nebucadnetzar sent and brought him to Babel with the pretious vessels of the house of the Lord. He beganne his raigne at eight yeares and raigned ten yeares when his father was aliue and after his fathers death which was the eighteenth yeare of his age he raigned alone three monthes and ten dayes So he was brought prisoner to Babel and Zedechias his brother but in truth his Vncle was made King in his steede so he continued in prison all the daies of Nebucadnetzar that is seauen and thirtie yeares after Nebucadnetzar had carried him captiue vnto the first yeare of euill Merodach King of Babel who succeeded Nebuchadnetzar This was foretold him by the Prophet Ieremie cap. 22. Thou that dwellest in Lebanon and makest thy nest in the Cedars how beautifull shalt thou be when sorrowes come vppon thee as the sorowes of a womā in trauaile as I liue saith the Lord though Coniah that is Ioachin or Ieconias the sonne of Iehoiachim King of Iuda were as the signet of my right hand yet would I plucke thee thence and I will giue thee into the hand of them that seeke thy life and into the land of them whose face thou fearest euen into the hand of Nebucadnetzar King of Babel and into the hand of the Chaldeans and I will cause them to carry thee away thy mother that bare thee into another countrie where ye were not borne and there shall yee die but to the land whereunto they desire to returne they shall not returne thither But after the death of Nebucadnetzar euill Merodach his sonne did lift vp the head of Ioachin or Ieconias King of Iudah out of the prison and spake kindely to him and set his throne aboue the throne of the Kings that were with him in Babel changed his prison garments and he did continually eate meate before him all the daies of his life and his portion was a continuall portion giuen him by the King euery day a certaine all the daies of his life 3410. Zedechias Eleauen yeares HIs name was first Mattamah but Nebucadnetzar changed his name to Zedechiah Hee was one and twentie yeares olde when he beganne to raigne And he did euill in the sight of the Lord according to all that Iehoiakim had done Therefore the wrath of the Lord was against Ierusalem and Iudah vntill he cast them out of his sight And Zedechias rebelled against the King of Babell and in the ninth yeare of Zedechias raigne the tenth month and which day of the month Nebucadnetzar King of Babel came he and all his host against Ierusalem and pitched against it and they built forts against it round about So the citie was besieged vnto the eleauenth yeare of King Zedechias and the ninth month the famine was so great in the citie that there was no bread for the people of the land So that the fourth of Ieremies Lamentations was trulie performed that mothers did eate their owne children So the citie was broken vp and the King Zedechias fledde but the armie of the Caldees pursued after him and tooke him in the deserts of Iericho and all his host was scattered from him Then they tooke the King and carried him vp to the King of Babel to Riblah where they gaue iudgment vpon him and they slue the sonnes of Zadechias before his eyes and put out the eyes of Zedechias and bound him in chaines and carried him to Babel Heere is performed the wordes of Ieremie the Prophet chap. 24. I will giue Zedechias the King of Iudah and his Princes and the rest of Ierusalem for a terrible plague to all the kingdomes of the earth and for a reproch and for a prouerb for a common talke for a curse in all places where I shall cast them and I will send the sword the famine and the pestilence among them till they be consumed out of the land that I gaue to them and their Fathers And Ier. 5. For the house of Israel and the house of Iudah haue grieuouslie transgressed against me saith the Lord they haue denied the Lord and said It is not he neither shall the plague come vpon vs neither shall wee see sword nor famine