temptations as Sathan doth and yet that God doth tempt men So hee is said in plaine words to haue tempted Abraham And Rabbi Tanchum wittily obserues that Abrahams two great temptations begin both with one straine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Get thee gone The first Get thee gone out of thy country from thy kindâ—ed and fathers house Gen. 12. the second Get thee gone to the land of Moriah and offer thy sonne Isaac vpon one of the mountaines Gen. 22. May we not safely say here that God lead Abraham into temptation But as it followes liberautt à malo God deliuered him from the euill of the temptation which is being ouercome And Saint Iames saith sweetly though at first he may seeme to croste this Petition 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Brethren account it all ioy when ye fall into diuerse temptations Iac. 1.2 to be in temptation is ioy for God chastiseth euery sonne that he receiueth and yet pray lead vs not into temptation but deliuer vs from euill let the latter comment vpon the first lead vs not into the euill of temptation which in the Apostles Phrase is suffer vs not to bee tempted aboue our strength CAP. XXII Septuaginta interpreters I Will not with Clemens Iosephus Austen Epiphanius and others spend time in locking them vp seuerally in their closets to make their translation the more admirable I will onely mind that They did the worke of this translation against their will and therefore we must expect but slipperie doing And that appeares by them Their additions variations and without doubt ouersights may well argue with what a will they went about this businesse It were easie to instance in thousands of places How they adde men and yeares Gen. 5. and 10. and 11. and 46. How they add matter of their owne heads as how they helpe Iobs wife to skold Iob 2. adding there a whole verse of female passion I must now saith she go wander vp and downe and haue no place to rest in and so forth And so Iob 1.21 Naked came I out of my mothers wombe and naked shall I returne thither the Lord hath giuen and the Lord hath taken away euen as pleasâ—th the Lord so come things to passe blessed be the name of the Lord which clause euen as pleaseth the Lord so come things to passe is not in the Hebrew but is added by them and so is it taken from them into our common prayer booke in that paâ—t of the manner of buriall To trace them in their mistakes is pretty to see how their vnpricked Bible deceiued them As to instance in one or two for a tast Hebrew Gen. 15.11 It is said that the birds light vpon the carcasses and Abraham droue them away in Heâ—rew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vaijashhebh Iudges 5.8 The Hebrew saith they choose new gods then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 lahhem shegnarim was warre in the gates Iudges 7.11 The Hebrew saith and hee and Phurah his seruant went downe to the quarter or side of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hhamushim the armed men Septuag They reade in stead of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vajashhebh hee droue them away 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vajeshhebh hee sate by them and of this Saint Austen makes goodly Allegories They say they chose new gods as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 lehhem segnorim barly bread They say he and his seruant Pharah went downe to the quarter of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Hhamishim fiâ—ty men Thus doe they vary in a world of places which the expert may easily see and smile at I omit how they vary names of men and places I will trouble you with no more but one which they comment as it were to helpe a difficulty 1. King 12.2 It is said of Ieroboam that hee dwelt in Egypt 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vaijeshhebh bemitzraijm 2. Chron. 10.2 It is said that he reâ—urned from Aegypt 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vaijashobh mimmitzraijm The septuagint heales this thus thus translating 2. Chron. 10.2 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And he had dwelt in Aegypt and he returned out of Aegypt Such is the manner of that worke of the Greeke Now to examine the Authoritie of this wee shall find it wonderfull That some of the Iewish Synagogues read the old Testament in Greeke and not in Hebrew Tertullian seemeth to witnesse But those were Iewes out of Canaan for they were not so skilfull in the Greeke tongue in Canaan for ought I can find as to vnderstand it so familiarly if they had beene I should haue thought the septuagint to bee the booke that was giuen to Christ in the Synagogue Luke 2.17 Because his text that he reades does nearer touch the Greeke then the Hebrew But I know their tongue was the Mesladoed Chaldee The greatest authority of this translation appeareth in that the holy Greeke of the new Testament doth so much follow it For as God vsed this translation for a Harbinger to the fetching in of the Gentiles so when it was growen into Authority by the time of Christs comming it seemed good to his infinite wisdome to adde to its Authority himselfe the better to forward the building of the Church And admirable it is to see with what sweetnesse and Harmony the New Testament doth follow this translation sometime euen besides the letter of the old to shew that he that gaue the old may and can best expound it in the new CAP. XXIII The Septuagint ouer-authorized by some SOme there were in the Primitiue Church like the Romanists now that preferred this translation of the Greeke as they do the vulgar Latine before the Hebrew fountaine Of these Saint Austen speakes of their opinion herein and withall giues his owne in his fifteenth booke de Ciuitate Dei Cap. 11.13.14 where treating of Methushelahs liuing foureteene yeares after the flood according to the Greeke translation Hence came saith he that famous question where to lodge Methuselah all the time of the flood Some hold saith he that he was with his father Enoch who was translated and that he liued with him there till the flood was past They hold thus as being loath to derogate from the â—uthority of those bookes quos in autoriâ—atem celebriorem suscepit ecclesia which the Church hath entertained into more renowned Authority And thinking that the bookes of the Iewes rather then these do mistake and erre For they say that it is not credible that the seuentie Interpreters which translated at one time and in one sense could err or wouldly or erre where it concerned them not But that the Iewes for enuy they beare to vs seeing the Law and Prophets are come to vs by their interpretation haue changed some things in their bookes that the Authority of ours might be lessened This is their opinion Now his owne he giues Cap. 13. in these words Let that tongue be rather beleeued out of which a translation is made into another by Interpreters and in Cap. 14. The truth of things must be fetched
Testament for they touch each other What do the Papists then when they put and chop in the Apocripha for Canonicall Scripture betweene Malachi and Matthew Law and Gospell What doe they but make a wall betweene the Seraphins that they cannot heare each others crie What do they but make a stoppe betweene the Cherubins that they cannot touch each others wing What do they but make a ditch betwixt these grounds that they cannot reach each to others coasts What do they but remooue the land-marke of the Scriptures and so are guilty of Cursed be he that remooues his neighbours marke Deut. 27.17 And what do they but â—â—â—orce the mariage of the Testaments and so are guilty of the breach of that which God hath ioyned together let no man put asunder These two Testaments are the two paps of the Church from which we suck the sincere milke of the Word One pap is not more like to another then are these two for substance but for language they varie in colour The old as all can tell is written in Hebrew but some forraigne languages are also admitted into Scripture besides the Hebrew as forraigne nations were to be admitted also to the Church besides the Hebrewes A great peece of Ezra in Chalde because takeÌ„ from Chalde Chronicles Those parts of Daniels visions that concerne al the world are written in the Chaldee the tongue then best known in the world because the Chaldeans were then Lords of the world The eleuenth verse of the tenth of Ieremie is in the same tongue that the Iewes might learne so much of their language as to refuse their idolatrie in their owne language Other words of this Idiome are frequent in the Scripture as I take two names giuen to Christ as Bar the sonne in Psal. 2.10 and Hhoter the rod of Iesses stemme Isa. 11. to be natiuely Chaldee words and for that they do shew the greater mysterie viz. that this Sonne and this Rod should belong to Chaldeans and Gentiles as well as to Iewes or Hebrewes Infinite it is to trace all of this nature and language The Arabian is also admitted into Scripture especially in the booke of Iob a man of that country whether Philistin Phrases and other adiacent nations Dialects be not to be found there also I referre to the Reader to search and I thinke he may easily find of the eloquence of some peeces aboue others and the difficultie of some bookes aboue others those that can euen read the English Bible can tell I would there were more that could reade it in its owne language and as it were talk with God there in his own tongue that as by Gods mercy Iaphet dwells now in the tents of Sem or the Gentiles haue gained the preheminence of the Iewes for religion so they would water this graffing of theirs into this stocke with the iuyce of that tongue thereby to prouoke them the more to Ielousie CAP. XXXIII Of the New Testament Language or the Greeke THe Greeke tongue is the key which God vsed to vnlocke the tents of Sem to the sonnes of Iaphet This glorious tongue as Tully cals it is made most glorious by the writing of the New Testament in this language God hath honoured all the letters by naming himselfe after the first and the last as Homer shewes the receit of all the Grecian ships by shewing how many the greatest and how few the least contained Iauan is held both by Iewes and Christians to haue planted the Country The tongue is likely to be maternall from Babel The Iewes vpon Genesis the forty ninth thinke that Iacob curseth his sons Simeon and Leuies fact in one word of Greek Macerothehem that is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 their swords but all the Chaldees and other Translations render it better their habitations Gen. 49.5 The ancientest Heathen Greek aliue is Homer though the tongue was long before and Homers subiect of Ilias treated of in Greeke verse by Euanders Wife of Arcadia as some haue related Homer watered the tongue and in succeeding ages it flourished till it grew ripe in the New Testament The Dialects of it familiarly knowne to be fiue The Attick the Ionick c. The Macedonian was something strange as appeares in Clemens Alexandrinus Strom. 5. Especially their deuout Macedonian or about their oraisons How God scattered and diuulged this tongue of the Greekes ouer the world against the comming of Christ and writing of the New Testament is remarkeable Alexander the great with his Macedonians made the Easterne parts Grecian The Old Testament at Ptolomaeus his request translated into Greek was as an Vsher to bring in the New Testament when Iaphet should come to dwell in the tents of Sem. The Iewes vsed to keepe a mournefull fast for that translation but as Iewes mourne so haue Gentiles cause to reioyce In like sort for the preparation for the Gospell of late which as farre as Antichrist his power could reach lay depressed but not ouerwhelmed the Greeke tongue at the sacking of Constantinople by the Turkes was sent into these Westerne climates that we might heare Christ speake in his owne language without an Aegyptian to interpret to vs as Ioseph had to his brethren What need we now to rely vpon a Latine foundation when we haue the Greeke purity Neuer did the Turke any good to Chriâ—tianity but this and this against his will but God worketh all things for his owne glory And we may say of the poore inhabitants of Grecia as of the Iewes by their impouerishing we are inriched As Athens in old time was called the Grecia of Grecia so the New Testament for language may be stiled the Greeke of Greeke In it as vpon the crosse of our Sauiour in the title are three tongues Hebrew Greek and Latine Greeke the foundation the other two but little additions In the Greeke Master Broughton hath giuen learned rules and examples of the kinds of it viz. Septuagint Talmudick Atticke and Apostolicke The Hebrew or Syrian for so that word Hebrew in the title of the crosse must bee vnderstood is easily found out euen in translations Latine there is some in the Gospells but not much 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Census for tribute 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a ward or watch Matthew 28.11 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 spiculator Marke 6.27 which word is vsed by Targum Ieruselamy in Gen. 37. of Potiphar that hee was Rabh Sapulachtaria Princeps spiculatorum And some other words of the Latine tongue which language in our Sauiours time the conquest of the Romans had scattered in Ierusalem and in the parts adioyning and so may one finde some Latine in the Syrian Testament and abundance of Greeke CAP. XXXIIII Of the Chaldee and Syrian Tongues THe Chaldee and Syrian tongue was once all one as appeareth in Genesis 31.47 Ezra 4.7 Dan. 2.4 In Character indeed they differed they of Babilon vsing one kind of letter they of Syria another This was that that nonplust the Babilonian wizards about
Prouinces Alastarasom and Dodonia Which last word Alastarasom I take to be mistaken by joyning two words together and missing the last letter 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Mem for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Samech which is easily done they bee so like The word Alastarasom should without doubt be Alas or Elis Tarsus Elis frequent in all Authours Eilision in Homer in Baeot. Elensine in Plutarch in Theseo are places in Greece bearing the name of their old planter Elisha Dodonim is registred in the name of old Dodona Tarshish left a memoriall of himselfe in Cilicia in the Citie Tarsus Which was as Pliny saith vrbs libera a free Citie nat hist. lib. 5. and Saint Paul is free of that Citie Act. 22. Tarshish in Gen. 10. is the name of a man in Ionah 13. in Chald. Par. it is vsed for the sea In Exod. 28. for a pearle in Act. 22 the name of a Towne I thinke I may safely suppose that the towne tooke the name from the man the sea from the towne and the pearle from the sea Cittim got into the I le Cyprus neere his brother Tarshish from him that Iland in old time was called Cethin as Ant. di Gueuara nameth it in Relox de los princip And the men of Cyprus acknowledged Cythnon quendam one Cythnus or Cittim for their predecessor as saith Herodotus lib. 7. That Iland sent out colonies further to replenish the Westerne world who bare the memorie and name of their father Cittim with them all along as they went Macedon or Macetia is called Cittim 1. Mac. 1.1 At last they ariued in Italy which is called Cittim Num. 24.24 and so rendered by the Chaldees Thus Iauans posteritie grew great in Greece and Italy and at last sent vs men ouer into these Isles of the Gentiles CAP. VI. Of Iewish Learning THe Iewes chiefe studies are about the Scriptures or about the Hebrew tongue but some haue dealt in other matters Their tongue is their chiefe learning which is indeed the ground of all sacred knowledge In it some are most ignorant and some againe as accurate They value it so highly that the mistaking of a letter in it say they destroyes the world He that in this verse En kadosh caihouah readeth Beth for Caph makes it there is no holinesse in Iehouah and destroyeth the world He that will may see most copious worke of this nicety in Tauch on Gen. 1. How nimble textualists and Grammarians for the tongue the Rabbins are their Comments can witnes But as in Chaucer the greatest Clarkes are not the wisest men so among them these that are so great textualists are not best at the text In humane Arts some of them haue practised Kimchi and Leuita for Grammar Rabbi Simeon for logicke and others in other things as Buxdorfius in his collection of Iewish Authors will fully satisfie CAP. VII Of the Talmud WHo so nameth the Talmud nameth all Iudaisme and who so nameth Mishneh and Gemara hee nameth all the Talmud And so saith Leuita Hattalmudh nehhlak c. The Talmud is diuided into two parts the one part is called Mishneh and the other part is called Gemara and these two together are called the Talmud This in the Iewes Councell of Trent the foundation and groundworke of their religion For they beleeue the Scripture as the Talmud beleeues for they hold them of equall authority Rabbi Tanchum the sonne of Hanilai saith let a man alwaies part his life into three parts A third part for the Scriptures a third part for Mishneh and a third part for Gemara Two for one two parts for the Talmud for one for the Scriptures So highly doe they Papist-like prize the vaine traditions of men This great library of the Iewes is much alike such another worke vpon the old Testament as Thomas Aquinas his Catena aurea is vpon the new For this is the summe of all their Doctors conceits and descants vpon the law as his is a collection of all the Fathers explications and comments vpon the Gospells For matter it is much like Origens bookes of old vbi bene nemo melius c. and where they write well none better and where ill none worse The word Talmud is the same in Hebrew that Doctrine is in Latine and Doctrinall in our vsuall speech It is say the Iewes a Commentary vpon the written law of God And both the law and this say they God gaue to Moses the law by day and by writing and this by night and by word of mouth The Law was kept by writing still this still by tradition Hence comes the distinction so frequent in Rabbins of Torah she baccathubh and Torah she begnal peh the law in writing and the law that comes by word of mouth Moses say they receiued the law from Sinai this traditionall law I thinke they meane and deliuered it to Ioshuah Ioshuah to the Elders the Elders to the Prophets and the Prophets to the men of the great Synagogue And thus like fame in Virgil creuit eundo like a snow-ball it grew bigger with going Thus doe they father their fooleries vpon Moses and Elders and Prophets who good men neuer thought of such fancies as the Romanists for their Traditions can find bookes of Clemens Dionysius and others who neuer dreamed of such matters Against this their traditionall our Sauiour makes part of his Sermon in the mount Matth. 5. But he touched the Iewes freehold when he touched their Talmud for greater treasure in their conceits they had none like Cleopatra in Plutarch making much of the Viper that destroyed them CAP. VIII Talmudisme TO omit the time when it was written and the distinction of Ierusalem and Babilon Talmud the chiefe end of them both as they thinke is to explane the old Testament The titles of the bookes shew their intents Pesachin about the Passeouer Sanhedrin about the high Courts Beracoth about thankesgiuing Sometime they comment sometime they allude sometime controuert sometime fable For this booke containes their common law and ciuill and commonly some things aboue all law and ciuility To instance in one or two that by Hercules foot ye may guesse his body Iudges 9.13 It is said by the vine shall I leaue my wine which cheereth God and man How doth wine cheere God Rabbi Akibhah saith because men giue God thankes for it There also they question or controuert whether a man should giue thankes or say grace for his meate and drinke before he taste it And otherwhere whether a man may blesse God for the sweet smell of incense which hee smells offered to Idols Whether a man may light a candle at another candle that burnes in a candlesticke that hath images on it Whether a man at his Deuotions if a Serpent come and bite him by the heele may turne and stoppe to shake her off or no which question Rabbi Tanchum answers very profoundly that they must not so much as shake the foot to get a Serpent off and
paines to prooue the text vncorrupt against a gaine saying Papist For they haue summed vp all the letters in the Bible to shew that one haire of that sacred head is not perished Eight â—undred eight and fourty marginall â—otes are obserued and preserued for the more facility of the text The middle verse of euery booke noted the number of the verses in euery booke reckoned and as I said before not a vowell that misseth ordinary Grammar which is not marked So that if we had no other surety for the truth of the old Testament text these mens paines me thinks should be enough to stop the mouth of a daring Papist CAP. XIIII Of the marginall readings THat the margin should so often helpe the text as I may so say as in 848. places may seeme to taxe the text of so many errours But the learned can find a reason why it is so I hope I may satisfie my selfe without any hurt with this reason till mâ— learning will affoord mee a better Namely that when they tooke iâ— hand to reuiew the Bible after the captiuity as all hold Ezra did that they did it by more coppies then one which when they thus varied they would not forsake either because they were loath to add or diminish therefore they tooke euen their varying one in the text and the other in the margin Yet doe I not thinke it was done onely thus without some more speciall matter in some places for the writing of Nagnarah so often Nagnar does make mee thinke if I had nothing els to perswade me that these marginals are not only humane corrections CAP. XV. Ex Kimchio in Ionah 1. KImchi questioning why the book of Ionah should bee Canonicall c. giues one most comfortable reason which vpon reading I could not but muse on His words are obseruable and they are these It is questionable why this Prophecie is written among the holy Scriptures since it is all against Niniueh which was Heathennish and in it there is no remembrance or mention of Israel and among all the Prophets besides this there is not the like But we may expound it that it is written to be a checke to Israel for loe a strange People which were not of Israel was ready to repent and euen the first time that a Prophet reproued them they turned wholly from their euill But Israel whom the Prophets reproued early and late yet they returned not from their euill Againe this booke was written to shew the great miracle that the blessed God did with the Prophet who was three dayes and three nights in the belly of the fish and yet liued and the fish cast him vp againe Againe to teach vs that the blessed God sheweth mercy to the repentant of what nation soeuer and pardons them though they bee many Haec Kimchi Vpon whose last words I cannot but enter into these thoughts Could wee looke for a truth from a Iew or comfort from a Spaniard And yet here the Spanish Iew affoords vs both comfortable truth and true comfort God will pardon the Repentant there is a comfortable truth and hee will pardon them of what nation soeuer if they repent there is most true comfort When a Iew thus preaches repentance I cannot but hearken and helpe him a little out with his Sermon That as God is ready to forgiue the Repentant of what Nation soeuer so for what sinnes soeuer if they be truly repented Here I except the impardonable sinne the sinne against the Holy Ghost which what it is the Scripture conceales in close words partly because we should not despaire if wee fall our selues and partly because wee should not censure damnably of our brethren if they fall into a sinne that is nigh this so that not into it To maintaine the Iewes words and mine owne for pardon of Nations and of finnes I haue as large a field as all the Countries and all the sinnes of the world to looke ouer I will onely for Countries confine my selfe to Niniueh and for sinnes to Mary Magdalen Niniueh a heathen towne built by a wicked brood inhabited by a wicked crew yet repenting Niniueh is pardoned Mary Magdalen a manifold sinner a customary sinner a most deadly sinner yet repenting Mary Magdalen is forgiuen The Iew brings me into two christian meditations about Niniueh or into two wholesome Passions Feare and Hope God sees the sinnes of Niniueh then I know mine are not hid this breeds in me feare of punishment But God forgiues the sinnes of Niniueh then I hope mine are not vnpardonable this breeds hope of forgiuenesse Col debhaurau she amar lehareang libhne Adam saith the Rabbin bithnai im lo jashubhu All the euills that God threatens to men are threatned with this condition if they doe not repent As before the Iew spake comfort and truth so here hee linkes comfort and terrour God threatens euill there is terrour but it is with condition there is comfort Niniueh finds both in the story Fourty dayes and Niniueh shall be destroyed there is a threatned terrour But the Lord repented of the euill that hee spake to doe vnto them and did it not there is a comforting condition So that as Dauid does so will I hopefully and yet fearefully sing of mercy and judgement First mercy then iudgement Mercy vpon my repentance lest I bee cast downe and Iudgement vpon my sinnes lest I be lifted vp Mercy in Iudgement and Iudgement in mercy Is there any one that desperatly reiects Niniuehs exhibited mercy let him feare Niniuehs threatned iudgment or is there any that trembles at Niniuehs threatned Iudgement let him comfort himselfe by Niniuehs obtaining mercy But in the mouth of two witnesses let the mercy bee confirmed Let mee take Mary Magdalen with Niniueh and as I see in it the forgiuenesse of a multitude of sinners so I may see in her of a multitude of sinnes Those many sinners pardoned as one man those many sinnes made as none at all Saint Bernard speaking of her washing of Christs feet saies shee came thither a sinner but shee went thence a Saint She came thither an Aethiope and a leopard but shee went thence with changed skin and cancelled spots But how was this done She fell at the feet of Christ and with sighs from her heart she vomited the sinnes from her soule Prosternere tu anima mea as saith the same Bernard And cast thou thy selfe downe oh my soule before the feet of Christ wipe them with thine haires wash them with thy teares which teares washing his feet may also purge thy soule Wash his feet and wash thy selfe with Mary Magdalen till hee say to thee as hee did to Marie Magdalen thy sinnes are forgiuen CAP. XVI Of sacrifice SAcrifice is within a little as old as sinne and sinne not much younger then the world Adam on the day of his creation as is most probable sinneth and sacrificeth and on the next day after meditates on that wherunto his sacrifice aimeth
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