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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A21041	Tvvo treatises. The one, a most fruitfull exposition vpon Philemon: the other, the schoole of affliction. Both penned, by the late faithfull minister of Gods Word, Daniel Dyke, Bachelor in Diuinitie: published since his death by his brother, I.D. minister of Gods Word	Dyke, Daniel, d. 1614.; Dyke, Jeremiah, 1584-1639.	1618 (1618)	STC 7410; ESTC S100162	203,709	388

Temple to Bacchus in his Celler In too many families Venus hath her Altars in the Chambers Bacchus his Sacrifices in the Butteries which two hauing made their diuident in the family shared their Deuotoes alas what poore thirds wil be left for God Whatsoeuer disorders are in publike they will neuer be redressed so long as families especially great Ones are vnreformed The Family the Common-wealth the Church are Sunt igitur tres coelestes Hierarchiae de quibus Asini Sophistae tam multa nugātur aliud nihil quam vita Oeconomica politica Ecclesiastica Luther in Gene. the three heauenly Hierarchies as Luther termes them But surely the first is not heauenly vnlesse the last be in it If the church be not in it it wil proue but an hellish Hierarchy yea and will poyson both the other If families were Churches and religiously gouerned what great ease would Gouernours of the Church and Common-wealth finde The way to heale the naughty waters is with Elisha 2. King 2. 21. to goe to the spring to cast in the salt there It is but a folly to complaine of misorders else-where while our own families are misordred Now R. H. as you graced and gaue countenance to the first of this Authors works printed since his death so may you be pleased to accept this last as a testimony of all thankefull acknowledgement of your great and vndeserued fauours As it was the Authors desire in the handling of this holy Scripture the first fruits of his constant ministeriall labours to perfect that noble and honourable family of your Fathers where it was opened as in many other points of Christianity so in the knowledge of family-duties that it might be brought to greater perfection so is it my desire by publishing the same to further the common good of all good Christians in awakening stirring them vp to the conscionable discharge of teaching and right ordering their families to the honour of God their owne and the endlesse good of many soules And that by your diligent reading hereof you would be pleased to obserue practise all such rules directions as may any way tend to the bettering of your iudgement and family For it is with Families as with Churches on earth none completely perfect during our pilgrimage here The which while you shall doe you shall bring vpon your selfe Abrahams blessing promised for his wel-ordered house and Philemons honour of a Church in your family and in the end peace and happinesse to your own soule The which vnfainedly wishing you from the God of peace I humbly take my leaue and rest Epping in Essex August 15. 1618. Your Honors to be commanded in all seruice in the Lord IER DYKE A COMMENTARY VPON THE EPISTLE TO PHILEMON VERS 1. 2. PAVL a prisoner of IESVS CHRIST and our brother TIMOTHY vnto our beloued PHILEMON and fellow-worker And to our beloued APPHIA and to ARCHIPPVS our fellow-Souldier and to the Church that is in thy house BEfore wee come to The Argument of the Epistle the words wee will a little consider of the argument of this Epistle and of some generall instructions there arising ONESIMVS a naughty seruant running away from his master PHILEMON lights vpon PAVL by whose meanes and ministery hee being conuerted is returned back to his Master with this letter of PAVL in his behalfe written to his Master for pardoning him his former misdemeanour and receiuing him into fauour againe This Epistle is of another nature then any other written either by PAVL or any of the other Apostles for though sometimes they write to some one particular person as this our Apostle to TIMOTHY and TITVS and IOHN to GAIVS and the elect LADY yet euen then they write of matters concerning the whole Church and the common saluation as IVDE speaketh Iude 3. But here as the person is but a particular man so the matter is a personall matter proper to PHILEMON and his family concerning the entertaynement of a fugitiue seruant into his family and fauour againe One would thinke this were too low and meane an argument for the Spirit of GOD to handle But yet questionlesse PAVL was as well moued by the instinct and assisted with the powerfull presence of the Holy Ghost in the writing of this as any other of his Epistles as besides the common consent of the Church by the holy heauenly and gracious Character of speech agreeable to his other Epistles may easily appeare Obserue therefore How hereby the Lord would confirme our faith 1. The Scriptures written by diuine inspiration in the truth and certainty of other parts of Scripture for if euen this Epistle written to one man of a priuate matter respecting his owne family were yet writen by the inspiration of the Spirit of Truth how much more may we ascertaine our selues that other bookes treating of higher matters were not penned by the will of man but indited by the Spirit of God himselfe If when PAVL writes to PHILEMON of the receiuing of a poore slaue the Spirit of God leadeth his hand in writing how much more when he writeth to whole Churches of Christ and our Redemption by him of Faith Repentance Iustification and such like mysteries Secondly As hereby our assurance of the infallible 2. Gods prouidence in the preseruation of the Bookes of Scripture Truth of the Scriptures is confirmed so likewise of Gods Prouidence and watchfull care in the preseruation of them whole without any losse to this present day Some are of opinion that whole Bookes of Scripture are lost and among the rest some of S. PAVLS Epistles written to whole Churches as to Corinth Laodicea c. But this little Epistle riseth vp as a great witnesse against them for if the prouidence of God hath extended it selfe to the lesser how much more to the greater It is the argument of our Sauiour Matth. 6. God by his prouidence clotheth the grasse of the field how much more will he doe the like to men to his owne Elect Are not they of much greater value then Lillies So here by like proportion was not the Epistle to the Corinthians if there euer were such a one lost of greater worth then this to PHILEMON Whereof yet not the least jot or tittle hath miscarryed though in regard of the obiect and comparatiuely in respect of others it may seeme a meane Epistle for otherwise indeed nothing of the Spirits inditing is to bee counted meane How much more then would the Lord by the eye of his prouidence haue watched ouer other Epistles and Bookes handling matters of greater moment and consequence If any part of the Canon should be lost one would thinke in regard of that speciall care which God hath of his Churches good it should be that which might best be spared as not being of so necessary vse as the rest Now howsoeuer euery parcell of the Canon and so this Epistle be of singular vse yet we cannot imagine how an

Epistle or Booke of a more inferiour argument lesse respecting the whole body of the Church should haue beene framed by the motion of Gods Spirit What a folly then is it for vs to imagine that Gods eye being vigilant and watchfull in looking to Bookes of lesse vse should be so heauy and drowsie when Bookes of greater vse should haue beene preserued As though he that is carefull for the safe custodie of common pieces of siluer would be negligent in looking to some rare or rich Iewell or precious stone Wee may then by this small Epistle written of so small a matter and yet remayning more then probably gather that either there were no such Bookes euer written as they say are lost or else if there were that they were not Canonicall This doctrine of the Canon entirely preserued S. PAVL plainly confirmeth Rom. 15. saying Whatsoeuer was written was written for our learning Now if some of the Canon be lost what learning can we possibly gather out of it Besides in these Bookes we haue we want nothing as in many bookes of the Heathen which are maymed and imperfect sometimes without head sometimes without taile the iniquitie of the times dealing with them as the King of Ammon with DAVIDS Embassadors But here is no such clipping or curtayling of the Scriptures here be no libri 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Here comes in no Desunt per pauca Desiderantur nonnulla Those bookes wee haue wee haue whole and entire no one sentence no one piece of a sentence is wanting Now how is it likely that that God who would not suffer the least tittle to be blotted out of these Bookes we haue would yet suffer whole Bookes to be razed out at once out of the number of the Canon What hath the prouidence of GOD lesse respected his owne Bookes then the Paynims whereof though many be gone yet not without some reliques and fragments still remayning But here Time which was more fauourable to their bookes nibbling vpon them and as a Moth consuming them by little and little here a piece and there a piece deales farre more vnmercifully with the Scriptures as a Lyon crushing them in pieces at the first with a wide gaping throat as an open sepulchre deuouring and swallowing downe in great gobs whole bookes at once In so much that the least footsteps of them are not to be seene I dwell the longer in this point because it is of such singular vse and comfort For first this care of God in preseruing his Word Vse 1 setteth out and commendeth vnto vs his care for the preseruation of his Church which is vpheld and maintayned by this Word Wherefore so long as we see Gods prouidence so carefully watching ouer the Scriptures we may put our selues in assured hope that he will neuer faile nor forsake his Church If he meant to do so to what end should the Scripture serue There is no vse of them out of the Church for the benefit of the Church doubtlesse are they kept not for Turks and Canibals As long then as wee see the Word of GOD continuing so long may wee assure our selues that God will still continue a remnant at the least of his Church and a holy Seed which shall be fed and fatted with this wholesome food whereof at the first it was made And as this doctrine is comfortable to the whole Church in generall so likewise to euery member thereof in speciall who here-hence haue this gracious and sweet Meditation yeelded vnto them What hath GOD beene so carefull to keepe his Word written with inke in Parchment so pure so perfect notwithstanding the endeuours of Satan to mayme and mangle yea to corrupt and adulterate it O then will hee not much more hauing written his Law in our hearts by the finger of his owne Spirit maintaine this his owne handy-worke and writing against all the dashes blots and blurs which Satan and our owne corruption make continually to deforme yea and if it were possible wholy to deface and raze out this holy writing If the Word of God printed in books after the same manner that the word of men is could neuer yet be obliterated much more then shall the same Word after a wonderfull and extraordinary manner printed and stamped in the fleshly tables of our hearts retayne there his forme and figure for euer as being written with an indeleble Character Thirdly The holy Ghost both first of all exciting 3. The honour that God doth repenting sinners and stirring PAVL to the writing of this Epistle for ONESIMVS as also guiding and gouerning of him in the writing of it we may obserue the great honour that was done to this poore seruant now repenting and becomming the seruant yea the freeman of Christ The holy Ghost himselfe writes a letter in his behalfe to his Master for it was not so much PAVLS doing as the Spirits PAVL wrote but the Spirit indited If wee can get the Kings letter to some that may doe vs good we thinke it a great fauour and our selues much honored What a honour was this then for ONESIMVS to haue the great King of Heauen and Earth to set his holy Secretarie PAVL on worke in writing and his owne Majestie in inditing this letter for him This teacheth vs that the Lord is no respecter of persons but that according to his promise he will honour them that honour him be they neuer so base and dishonourable in the world euen bond-slaues as this ONESIMVS was As on the contrary he will bring shame and reproch vpon them who feare not to dishonour him though neuer so honourable outwardly in the Word What then though thou art small and despised though thou hast but the low degree of a seruant be not discomfited euen so was ONESIMVS yet honouring the Lord by his vnfained repentance see how the Lord honours him taking the paines himselfe to write this Epistle for him and thereby eternizing his memorie to all posterities Many great and mightie Monarchs are dead and rotten and their names are dead with them it is not so much as knowne whether there were such men on the earth in whom is verified that of the Psalmist Psal 37. 35 36. But ONESIMVS a base slaue hath a name of eternall and that most happie memorie giuen him So that wheresoeuer this Epistle shall come this which the Holy Ghost hath done for him shall be spoken of for a memoriall of him The like through Gods gracious prouidence hath befalne many other poore ones in this world as the Woman that powred the Oyntment on Christ RAHAB SIMON of Cyrene diuers others who though otherwise ignoble and obscure yet are now true Canonized Saints indeed hauing their names registred and recorded in Gods owne holy Canon Whereas according to that of the Psalmist Princes themselues haue had contempt powred vpon them contemning God and haue beene quite forgotten forgetting the Lord. Thus the Lord knoweth how to depresse and debase the