Selected quad for the lemma: book_n
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A02519
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The character of man laid forth in a sermon preach't at the court, March, 1⁰. 1634. By the L. Bishop of Exceter.
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Hall, Joseph, 1574-1656.
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1635
(1635)
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STC 12647; ESTC S118573
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17,473
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88
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THE CHARACTER OF MAN Laid forth In a SERMON Preach't at the COURT March 1 0. 1634. BY The L. Bishop of EXCETER LONDON Printed by M. Flesher for NAT BUTTER M.DC.XXXV VERA EFFIGIES REVERENDI DO NI â—OSEPHI HALL NORWICI EPISCOPI This Picture represents the Forme where dwells 〈◊〉 Mind which nothing but that Mind excells There 's Wisdome Learning Witt there Grace Love Rule over all the rest enough to prove Against the froward Conscience of this Time The Reverend Name of BISHOP is no Crime 〈…〉 TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE and my ever most worthily honoured Lord EDWARD LORD DENNY Baron of WALTHAM Earle of Norwich Right Honourable AS one that hath no power to stand out against the importunity of him whose least motion is justly wont to passe with me for a command I have here sent your Lo the copie of my Sermon lately preacht at the Court which partly the distance and partly the inconvenience of the place and season would not suffer you to heare that now your eare may be supplyed by your eye though not without some disadvantage on my part Let it lie by you as a private and faithfull Monitor instead of Your Lo ps truly and sincerely devoted in all observance JOS. EXON THE CHARACTER OF MAN PSAL. 144. 3. Lord what is man that thou takest knowledge of him or the sonne of man that thou makest account of him Man is like unto vanity c. MY Text and so my Sermon too is the just character of man A common and stale theme you will say but a needfull one we are all apt to misknow or to forget what we are No blacks nor soule-bells nor deaths heads on our rings nor funerall sermons nor tombes nor Epitaphes can fixe our hearts enough upon our fraile and miserable condition And if any man have condescended to see his face in the true looking glasse of his wretched frailty so soon as his back is turned hee forgets his shape straight Especially at a Court where outward glory would seem to shoulder out the thoughts of poore despicable mortality Give mee leave therefore Honourable and beloved to ring my owne knell in your eares this day and to call home your eyes a little and to shew you that which I feare you too seldome see your selves Lent and funeralls are wont still to go both in one Livery There is no book so well worthy reading as this living one Even now David spake as a King of men Of people subdued under him now hee speakes as an humble vassall to God Lord what is man that thou takest knowledge of him In one breath is both soveraignty and subjection An absolute soveraignty over his people My people are subdued under me An humble subjection to the God of Kings Lord what is man Yea in the very same word wherein is the profession of that soveraignty there is an acknowledgement of subjection Thou hast subdued my people In that he had people he was a King that they might be his people a subjugation was requisite and that subjugation was Gods and not his own Thou hast subdued Lo David had not subdued his people if God had not subdued them for him Hee was a great King but they were a stiffe people The God that made them swayed them to a due subjection The great Conquerors of worlds could not conquer hearts if hee that molded hearts did not temper them By me Kings raigne saith the Eternall wisdome and he that had courage enough to encouÌ„ter a Beare a Lion Goliah yet can say Thou hast subdued my people Contrarily in that lowliest subjection of himselfe there is an acknowledgement of greatnesse though he abaseth himselfe with a What is man yet withall he addes thou takest knowledge of him thou makest account of him And this knowledge this account of God doth more exalt man then his own vanity can depresse him My Text then yee see is Davids rapture expressed in an extaticall question of sudden wonder a wonder at God and at man Mans vilenesse What is man Gods mercy and favour in his knowledge in his estimation of man Lo there are but two lessons that we need to take out here in the world God and man and here they are both Man in the notion of his wretchednesse God in the notion of his bounty Let us if you please take a short view of both and in the one see cause of our humiliation of our joy and thankfulnesse in the other if in the former there be a sad Lent of mortification there is in the latter a chearfull Easter of our raising and exaltation Many a one besides David wonders at himselfe one wonders at his own honor and though hee will not say so yet thinkes What a great man am I Is not this great Babel which I have built This is Nebuchadnezars wonder Another wonders at his person and findes either a good face or a faire eye or an exquisite hand or a well shap't leg or some gay fleece to admire in himselfe This was Absalous wonder Another wonders at his wit and learning How came I by all this Turba haec This vulgar that knowes not the law is accursed This was the Pharisees wonder Another wonders at his wealth Soule take thine ease as the Epicure in the Gospell Davids wonder is as much above as against all these hee wonders at his vilenesse Like as the chosen vessell would boast of nothing but his infirmities Lord what is man How well this hangs together No sooner had hee said Thou hast subdued my people under me then he adds Lord what is man Some vaine heart would have beene lifted up with a conceit of his own eminence Who I I am not as other men I have people under me and people of my owne and people subdued to mee This is to bee more then a man I know who hath said I said ye are Gods Besides Alexander the great how many of the Roman Cesars have been transported with this self-admiration and have challenged Temples Altars Sacrifices How have they shared the moneths of the yeare among them April must be Neronius May Claudius Iune Germanicus September Antoninus Domitian will have October November is for Tiberius by the same token that when it was tendered to him he askt the Senat wittily as Xiphiline reports it what they would doe when they should have more then twelve Cesars But if there were not moneths enow for them in the yeare there were starres enow in the Skie there was elbow-room enough in their imaginary heaven for their deification What tell I you of these a sory Clearchus of Pontus as Suidas tells us would be worshipped and have his son called Lightning Menecrates the Physitian though not worthy to bee Esculapius his Apothecaries boy yet would be Iupiter Empedocles the Philosopher if it had not been for his shoo would have gone for Immortall Sejanus will be sacrificing to himself I could tyre you with these prodigies of pride I