into his world wherefore I vow to giue Almes for him that for this his soule may be bound vp in the bundle of life with the soule of Abraham Isaac and Iacob Sarah and Rebecca Rahel and Leah and with the rest of the righteous men and righteous women which be in the garden of Eden Amen The Lord remember the soule of Mris N. the Daughter of N. who is gone to her world Therefore I vow c. as in the other before Amen The Lord remember the soule of my father and my mother of my grandfathers and grandmothers of my vncles and aunts of my brethren and sisters of my cosens and cosenesses whether of my fathers side or mothers side who are gone into their world Wherefore I vow c. Amen The Lord remember the soule of N. the sonne of N. and the soules of all my cosens and cosenesses whether on my fathers or mothers side who were put to death or slaine or stabd or burnt or drowned or hanged for the sanctifying of the name of God Therefore I will giue Almes for the memory of their soules and for this let their soules bee bound vp in the bundle of life with the soule of Abraham Isaac and Iacob Sarah and Rebecca Rahel and Leah and with the rest of the righteous men and righteous women which are in the garden of Eden Amen Then the Priest pronounceth a blessing vpon the man that is thus charitable as it followeth there in these words Hee that blessed our father Abraham Isaac and Iacob Moses and Aaron Dauid and Salomon he blesse Rabbi N. the sonne of N. because he hath vowed Almes for the soules whom he hath mentioned for the honour of God and for the honour of the law and for the honour of the day for this the Lord keepe him and deliuer him from all affliction and trouble and from euery plague and sickenesse and write him and seale him for a happy life in the day of Iudgement and send a blessing and prosper him in euery worke of his hands and all Israel his brethren and let vs say Amen Thus courteous Reader hast thou seene a Popish Iew interceding for the dead haue but the like patience a while and thou shalt see how they are Popish almost entirely in claiming the merits of the dead to intercede for them for thus tendeth a prayer which they vse in the booke called Sepher Min hagim shel col Hammedinoth c. which I haue also here turned into English Do for thy praises sake Do for their sakes that loued thee that now dwell in dust For Abraham Isaac and Iacobs sake Do for Moses and Aarons sake Doe for Dauid and Salomons sake Doe for Ierusalem thy holy Cities sake Doe for Sion the habitation of thy glories sake Do for the desolation of thy Temples sake Do for the treading down of thine Altars sake Do for their sakes who were slaine for thy holy Name Do for their sakes who haue bene massacred for thy sake Do for their sakes who haue gone to fire or water for the hallowing of thy Name Do for sucking childrens sakes who haue not sinned Doe for weaned childrens sakes who haue not offended Do for infants sakes who are of the house of our Doctors Do for thine owne sake if not for ours Do for thine owne sake and saue vs. Tel me gentle reader 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 c. whether doth the Iew Romanize or the Roman Iudaize in his deuotions This interceding by others is a shrewd signe they haue both reiected the right Mediator betweene God and man Christ Iesus The prophane Heathen might haue read both Iew and Papist a lecture in his Contemno minutos istos Deos modo Iouem propitium habeam which I thinke a Christian may well English let go all Diminutiue Diuinities so that I may haue the great Iesus Christ to propitiate for me CAP. XLI Of the Latine translation of Mat. 6.1 ALmes in Rabbin Hebrew are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Tsedhakah righteousnesse which word the Syrian Translator vseth Mat. 6.1 Act. 10.2 and in other places From this custome of speech the Roman vulgar Translateth Attendite ne iustitiam vestram faciatis One English old manuscript Testament is in Lichfield Librarie which hath it thus after the Latine Takith hede that you do not your rigtwisnes before men to be seyne of hem ellis ye shullen haue no mede at your fadir that is in heuenes Other English Translation I neuer saw any to this sense nor any Greeke coppie It seemes the Papist will rather Iudaize for his owne aduantage then follow the true Greeke The Septuagint in some places of the old TestameÌ„t haue turned Tsedhakah Righteousnesse 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Almesdeeds to little or to no sense As the Papists haue in this place of the new Testament turned 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Almesdeeds by 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Righteousnesse to as little purpose In the Hebrew indeed one word is vsed for both Tsedhakah for Almesdeeds which properly signifies Righteousnesse vpon what ground I know not vnlesse it be to shew that Almes must be giuen of rightly gotten good or else they are no riâ—hteousnesse or they are called zadkatha in Syrian Hu ger Zadek lemehwo they are called righteousnesse because it is right they should be giuen and giuen rightly The Fathers of the Councell of Trent speake much of the merit of Almes whom one may answer in the very words of their vulgar Attendite ne iustitiam vestram faciatis Take heed you do not make them your Iustification CAP. XLII An Embleme A Wall in Rome had this picture A man painted naked with a whip in one hand and foure leaues of a booke in the other and in euery leafe a word written In the first Plango I mourne In the second Dico I tell In the third volo I will and in the fourth facio I do Such a one in the true repentant He is naked because he would haue his most secret sinnes laid open to God He is whipped because his sinnes do sting himselfe His booke is his repentance His foure words are his actions In the first hee mournes in the second he confesses in the third hee resolues and in the fourth hee performes his resolution Plango I mourne there is sight of sinne and sorrow Dico I tell there is contrition for sinne and confession Volo I will there is amending resolution Facio I do there is performing satisfaction CAP. XLIII Mahhanaijm Gen. 32.2 ANd Iacob went on his way and the Angels of God met him And Iacob said when he saw them This is the Host of the Lord and he called the name of the place Mahanaim The word is duall and tels of two armies and no more what these two armies were the Iewes according to their vsuall veine do finde strange expositions To omit them all this seemes to me to be the truth and reason of the name There was one companie with Iacob which afterwards he
of Sancuniathou that wrote the Phaenician history in the same tongue but more of the language he saith not But to the matter That letters were so long in vse before the giuing of the Law I am induced to beleeue vpon these reasons First Iosephus is of this mind that letters were before the flood And the Scripture cites Enochs prophecie which whether it were written by him or not is vncertaine yet if there were any such thing those many places which we find of it in Tertullian Clemens and others do argue that so much could not punctually bee kept by word of mouth A second reason to mooue mee to thinke of letters before the giuing of the Law is to thinke of Iosephs accounts in Egypt which seeme almost impossible without writing Thirdly But omitting that I cannot see how all arts and sciences in the world should then flourish as considering their infancy they did without the groundworke of all learning letters Fourthly Againe for the Iewes vpon the writing of the law to be put to spelling as they that had neuer seene letters before and not to be able to reade it had beene a law vpon the law adding to the hardnesse of it Fiftly Nor can I thinke that when Moses saith blot me out of thy book that hee taketh the Metaphor from his owne bookes which it is probable he had not yet written but from other bookes which were then abounding in the world Sixtly the Egyptian Chronicles of so many thousand yeares in Diodorus and Laertius I know are ridiculous yet their carefulnesse of keeping Records I haue euer beleeued The Greekes were boyes to them as it is in Plato and Moses was scholler to them or their learning Act. 7. Now I cannot thinke that this their exceeding humane learning was kept onely in their braines and none in writing Nor do I think that if it were written that it was decyphered onely in their obscure Hieroglyphicks but that some of it came to ordinary writing of familiar letters CAP. XXX Of the Hebrew tongue WHo so will goe about to commend the Hebrew tongue may iustly receiue the censure that he of Rome did who had made a long booke in the praise of Hercules This labour is in vaine for neuer any one dispraised Hercules Other commendations this tongue needeth none then what it hath of its selfe namely for Sanctitie it was the tongue of God and for Antiquitie it was the tongue of Adam God the first founder and Adam the first speaker of it In this tong were laid vp the mysteries of the old Testament It begun with the world and the Church and continued increased in glory till the captiuitie in Babel which was a Babel to this tongue and brought to confusion this language which at the first confusion had escaped without ruine At their returne it was in some kinde repaired but farre from former perfection The holy Scriptures veiwed by Ezra a scribe fit for the kingdome of heauen in whose treasure were things new and old In the Maccabean times all went to ruine language and lawes and all lost and since that time to this day the pure Hebrew hath lost her familiaritie being onely knowne by schollers or at least not without teaching Our Sauiours times spake the Syrian Kepha Golgotha Talitha and other words do witnesse In aftertimes the vnwearied Masorites arose helpers to preserue the Bible Hebrew intire and Grammarians helpers to preserue the Idiome aliue but for restoring it to the old familiaritie neither of them could preuaile For the Iewes haue at this day no abiding citie no Common wealth no proper tongue but speake as the countries wherein they liue This whereof they were once most nice is gone and this groat they haue lost As the man in Seneca that through sicknes lost his memorie and forgot his own name so they for their sin haue lost their language and forgot their own tongue Their Cain-like wandring after the murther of their brother according to the flesh Christ Iesus hath lost them this precious marke of Gods fauour and branded them with a worse marke Cauterio conspirationis antiquae as saith Saint Bernard in another case Before the confusion of tongues all the world spake their tongue and no other but since the confusion of the Iewes they speake the language of all the world and not their owne And that it is not with them so onely of late but hath been long Theodoret beareth witnesse in these words Other nations saith he haue their children speaking quickly in their owne mother tongue Howbeit there are no children of the Hebrewes who naturally spake the Hebrew tongue but the language of the countrie where they are borne Afterward when they grow vp they are taught the letters and learne to read the holy Scripture in the Hebrew tongue Thus Theod. in quaest on Gen 59.60 About this their training vp of their children and growth of men in their owne tongue and learning a Rabbin hath this saying in Pirke Auoth Perek 1. Ben He He saith At fiue yeares old for the Scripture at ten for Mishneh at thirteene for the Commandements at fifteene for the Talmud At eighteene for Mariage at twentie for Seruice at thirtie for Strength at fortie for Vnderstanding at fiftie for Counsell at sixtie for Old age at seuentie for Gray haires at eightie for Profoundnesse at nintie for Meditation at one hundred he is as dead and past and gone out of the world The Iewes looke for a pompous kingdome when Messias the Sonne of Dauid shall come whom they watch for euerie moment till he come as it is in the 12. Article of their Creed in their common prayer booke Hee shall restore them as they hope a temporall kingdome and of that minde till they were better taught were the Apostles Acts 1.6 and then their tongue shall reuiue againe as they surmise But the diuine Apocaliptick writing after Ierusalem was ruined might teach them what the second Ierusalem must be not on earth but from heauen Apoc. 21 2. But to returne to their tongue The characters we now haue the Hebrew tongue in Scaliger thinkes are but of a latter hatch and not the same that the Iewes vsed from Moses till the destruction of the temple For that they vsed the Phaenician or Cananaean character which now is called the Samaritan How truely I referre to the Readers iudgement The character wee now haue is either a set or a running letter the first the Bible is ordinarily Printed in in the latter the most of the Rabbins The whole tongue is contained in the Bible and no one booke else in the world containes in it a whole language And this shewes that the Scripture speakes to all sorts of people since it speakes of all sorts of things This language is as God said the Iewes should bee if they would keepe his Law A lender to all and a borrower of none All tongues are in debt to this and this to none The
cals his armie and there was another companie of Angels which he cals the Armie of God These are the two Armies that gaue name to Mahanaim two armies one heauenly and the other earthly and from this I take it Salomon compares the Church to the companie of Mahanaim for so the Church consisteth of two Armies one heauenly like these Angels which is the Church triumphant and the other trauailing on earth like Iacobs armie which is the Church militant CAP. XLIIII The booke of Psalmes THe Psalmes are diuided into fiue bookes according to the fiue bookes of Moses and if they bee so diuided there be seuentie bookes in the Bible the vnskilfull may finde where any one of these fiue bookes end by looking where a Psalme ends with Amen there also ends the booke As at Psal. 41.72.89.106 and from thence to the end These may euen in their verie beginnings be harmonized to the books of the Law Genesis The first booke of Moses telleth how happinesse was lost euen by Adams walking in wicked counsel of the Serpent and the woman Psal. 1. The first booke of Psalmes tels how happines may be regained if a man do not walke in wicked counsell as of the serpent woman the diuell and the flesh This allusion of the first booke Arnobius makes Exodus The second book of Moses tels of groaning affliction in Egypt Leuiti The third booke of Moses is of giuing the law Numbers The fourth booke of Moses is about numbring Deutero The last booke of Moses is a rehearsall of all Psal. 42. The second booke of Psalmes begins in groaning affliction Psal. 42 43. Psal. 73. The third booke of Psalmes tels in the beginning how good God is for giuing this law This allusion Rab. Tanch makes very neere Ps. 90. The fourth booke begins with numbring of the best Arithmetick numbring Gods mercie Psal. 90.1 and our owne dayes ver 12. Psa. 107. So is the last booke of the Psalmes from Psa. 107. to the end In the Iewes diuision of the Scripture this peece of the Psalmes and the bookes of the like nature are set last not because they be of least dignitie but because they be of least dependance with other bookes as some of them being no storie at all and some stories and bookes of lesser bulke and so set in a fourme by themselues The old Testament books the Iewes acrostically doe write thus in three letters 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 euerie letter standing for a word and euerie word for a part of the Bible 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for Aorajetha or Torah the law 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for Nebhijm the Prophets 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for Cethubhim or bookes of holy writ this diuiâ—ion is so old that our Sauiour himselfe vseth it in the last of Luke and ver 44. All things written in the Law of Moses and in the Prophets and the Psalmes By the Psalmes meaning that part of Cethubhim in which the Psalmes are set first CAP. XLV Of the Creation TWo waies we come to the knowledge of God by his workes and by his word By his works we come to know there is a God and by his word wee come to know what God is His workes teach vs to spell his word teacheth vs to read The first are as it were his backe parts by which we behold him a farre off The latter shewes him to vs face to face The world is as a booke consisting of three leaues and euerie leafe printed with many letters and euery letter a lecture The leaues heauen the aire and earth with the water The letters in heauen euery Angel Star and Planet In the aire euery meteor and foule In the earth and waters euerie man beast plant fish and minerall all these set together spell to vs that there is a God and the Apostle saith no lesse though in lesse space Rom. 1 20. For the inuisible things of him that is his eternall power and Godhead are seene by the creation of the world being considered in his workes And so Dauid Psal. 19.1 It is not for nothing that God hath set the Cabinet of the vniuerse open but it is because he hath giuen vs eyes to behold his treasure Neither is it for nothing that he hath giuen vs eyes to behold his treasure but because he hath giuen vs hearts to admire vpon our beholding If wee marke not the workes of God we are like stones that haue no eyes wherewith to behold If wee wonder not at the workes of God when wee marke them we are like beasts that haue no hearts wherewith to admire And if wee praise not God for his workes when we admire them we are like deuils that haue no tongues wherewith to giue thankes Remarkeable is the storie of the poore old man whom a Bishop found most bitterly weeping ouer an vgly toad being asked the reason of his teares his answer was I weepe because that whereas God might haue made mee as vgly and filthy a creature as this toad and hath not I haue yet neuer in all my life beene thankefull to him for it If the works of the creation would but lead vs to this one lecture our labour of obseruing them were well bestowed How much more when they lead vs farre further CAP. XLVI The time and manner of the Creation MOSES in the first verse of the Bible refutes three heathen opinions namely theirs that thought the world was eternall for he saith in the beginning c. Secondly theirs that thought there was no God for he saith Elohim created Thirdly theirs that thought there were many gods for he saith Elohim he created heauen and earth The first word in the beginning may draw our mindes and thoughts to the last thing the latter end and this thought must draw our affections from too much loue of the world for it must haue an end as it had a beginning I will not stand to comment vpon the word Bereshith in the beginning for then I know not when to come to an end To treat how the diuerse expositors labour about the beginning of the world is a world of labour How the Ierus Targ. translates it In wisdome and is followed by Rabbi Tanchum and many Iewes How Targ. Ionath vseth an Arabian word Min Awwala a primo Onkelos in primis or in principio Iarchi in principio creationis creauit How Basil the great Saint Ambrose and hundreds others do interpret this is a worke endlesse to examine Satisfied am I with this that the world and all things had their beginning from God that in the beginning created heauen and earth Some of the Iewes do inuert the word Bereshith and make it Betisri that is in the moneth Tisri was the world created This month is about our September and that the world was created in this moneth to let other reasons alone this satisfies me that the feast of Tabernacles which was