lye dead and worke not vpon the affections There might then haue beene a doubtfull disputation of the fact and cause and much might haue bene alleaged too and fro whether he had done well or noe in comming to the feilde in leauing his sheepe in questioning about this quarell as if he ment to intrude him selfe for a party And with the inequallity of his strength to hazard the honor of the whole Army But speaking thus quickly and resolutely by way of interrogation saying What haue I now done is their not a cause Hee by this question putt's all out of question and driue's his brother to see Sect. confess that ther is a cause And me thinke's I see the bloud startle in his face the ruddy youth lookes redder then he had wont that Zeale which afterwards eate vp his hart appeares in his countenance and at length though he purposed to keepe silence his tongue brake loose into these or the like words O Brother is there not an apparant cause requiring mine and yours and all our attentions Is it not past deniall past colouring almost past remeay Truly I admire how you and the rest of these valiant and able men and profest souldiers can so long looke on and heare see the name of God blasphemed and your King scorned and your whole Nation challendged braued and dishonoured with patience I wonder that you being my elder brother doe not leade me one by example and incorage me with applause in this high honorable and holy vndertaking rather then restrayne me by your coldnes and quench my Zeale by your vnseasonable vpbraydings I wonder any man should not be ashamed to reprehende my forwardnes Nay I wonder all of you are so backward when such necessity requires the expression of yours best abillityes It is not seasonable discretion but dulnes and doâ—tishnes that pul's vs back from timely action neither is that temper which can heare and see these things with silence the sober vertue of a man which wee terme PATIENCE But the cowardice or senceles and slothfull stupidttie of an Asse A poyson mistaken for a preservatiue a vice for a vertue Israell had wont to haue Iosuahs and Gedions and Baruchâ—s and Iepthae's and Sampsons who coulde sright a whole hoast of these vncircumsised Philistims Israell had a Deborah who though a wooman had courage enough to daunt a whole Armye of Infidels O then what a shame is it that the King amougest all this multituae should finde never a man to stand betweene him and reproach to hazard his life for th honor of his Prince O what a shame is it that amongest all these brethren of one father of the flesh one father of the faith Abraham there is not one that dare ingage his life for the redeeming of all O what a shame is this that whilst wee call our selues the people of God and say wee alone professe the true religion and serve the true God truly there is not one member in the whole boay that dare present it selfe to stopp the mouth of this blasphemous and vncircumcised Philistine or honor himselfe his family by his endeavour to doe iâ— though with the losse of his owne life After such a manner me thinke's this worthy seemes to expostutate the case with his brother and to wring from him by a kinde of loving violence a confession of the truth of all this discourse he see 's now the necessitye of the case the vertue of his brother and soe David leaue's him to veiwe his owne error to see his owne shame by a silent reflection One valiant man Sect. by his example putts spirit into a thousand as lampes light each other and many Cowards met in a heape infect the whole crowde and by their secure sensuall arguments begett a senslesnes of honour in the harts of their next neighbours The customary beating of a Lyons whelpe make's him as tame as a Lambe and persons naturally valiant may be made artificiall cowards by being brought vp vnder the rodd and taught to swallow base and grosse inuryes without chewing Thus the slaues of Sparta rebelling agaynst their masters and being encountred with bastinadoe's in stead of swords lost that courage which made them take armes and like true slaues submitted themselues to their olde bondage Such mindes feare not the cryme but the punishment and thinke that there is nothing dishonorable but that which disturbe's their priuate peace and that slothfull security wherevnto they are accustomed from youth I cannot but thinke there were valiant men in this Armye It is a great part of valour in a Prince to gather an army Some tyrants dare not trust their owne guard or suffer an assembly of their owne subjects to meet These are possest with such a timorous spirit as the English Poet discribe's Feare ' himselfe to bee whome he bringes in flying away from himselfe whilst no man pursuse's him and affrayde of the clashing of his owne armour Insomuch as that which should keepe him from feare is the cause of his feare But Saule was soe farr from such base pusillanimity of spirit as he was personally present in this Campe and had before giuen proofe of his valour agaynst the Philistims by single opposition Agayne it is probable that Ionathan was in the Campe with diuers other Worthies of whose valour there was no question I am sure Davids three bretthren were there all likely to be valiant men soe that it is wonderfull that none of these offered themselves to the combat in this quarrell But perhaps one discouraged an other and the backwardnes of some dishartned others and some out of vnseasonable modesty woulde not offer themselues least they should bee thought proude or ambitious or the like poore spirits that will be frighted from good purposes by the scoffes jest's and reproches of sluggards and cowards who dare doe nothing but censure good mens actions and call their owne basenes and trechery loyall discretion Or Tydeus corpore animo Hercules lastly God tooke away there harts and infused a double spirit into David that his power might be seene in weaknes and how he is able to overthrowe the proudest adversarye by babes and sucklings even with weake meanes or without meanes or by contrary meanes David therefore beholding all this with sorrow and seeing such a generall disposition in the whole army to faynt and fly rather then to fight or as beasts are in droues driuen to be butchered when being single and out of the crowde they woulde breake loose he awaken's the sleepy courage of his brother and the rest with this quick expostulation what haue I now done Is there not a cause From the Manner of speaking wee descend to the Matter or subject of Davids speech which in fewe but weightye words containe's the motiue or impulsiue cause of his famous attempt atcheiuement following immediatly after For whilst he sayth Is their not a cause he take'es the cause as
graunted and evident enough Let vs then labour to finde it out for all actions and soe this are warrantable or wicked as they haue an evident cause to justifie or condemne them CAVSES are either ordinary or extraordinary Those which we call ordinary are all second causes which are readie at hande lying open to the eye of vulgar observation and proceeding by a legall common course of Nature Extraordinarie causes are either wholy hid or farther remooved so that they are not seene at all or at least not by all The highest among'st ordinarie causes for wee speake of that spheare wherein the rule of man is wholy busied and taken vp is the sovereigne or supreame Power and all other powers subordinate to it This hath conveniency and vtility as the most proper end of it's operation and ayme For though it be convenient profitable to haue such subordinate power setled yet it is not of absolute necessity that wee haue them Extraordinary causes in this classe or forme haue Necessity for their proper and direct ende and begin onely to worke when there is defect of operation in the ordinary causes as Physick is administred to helpe decayed nature and expell malignant humor Thus when Saul the supreamest amongst ordinary causes in the common wealth of Israell is slack in his office God rayseth vp David to quicken his zeale and when Ely growes olde and negligent and through indulgence suffers his sonnes to abuse their office God rayseth vp Samuel to provoke him to more dilligence And thus at all tymes in defect of ordinary pastors God hath raysed vp prophets to teach his people and to publish his judgements openly and playnely It is as I haue before noted very-vncertayn whether such promises were ever propounded on no by the King because wee never see them repeated challenged or performed by Saule to David after the worke wrougt though with the perill of their owne liues If any man object therfore that the reward propounded by the King ver 25. was the principall cause that excited David to vndertake this quarrell I doubt not to say they are much deceiued For though intisements to vertue and indowments for vertue doe well and though men come seldome to the markett where nothing but bloud and blowes are to be bought and solde yet true fortitude is not mercenary nor coulde all those words make our worthy dip his finger in bloud by vndertaking a single combat except a greater necessity call him forth then prayse or profitt or pleasure or preferment It must not be an ordinary but extraordinary cause therefore that moue's this extraordinary person and what other thing coulde that be then the present daunger wherein he beheld the church and state involved together with the desperate ingagement of the King and Kingdomes honor Hee see 's all these in hazard to receiue either a totall overthrowe or at least a violent and vnrecoverable blowe by this Blasphemer For will it not stagger true beleeuers when they see the enemy braue God as it were to his face and goe away vnpunished The wicked then encourage themselues in infidelity and with open mouth deride and discreditt the former miracles of God soe much spoken of For if God doth not every day create new worlds or confound olde enemyes or produce new miracles man will not beleeue that ever he made the world or confounded the rebellious race of idolatrbus Gyants or ever did a miracle or perhaps scarce thinke there is a God to doe such thinges At least that he is not the true God except he marcheth away with the conquerour For prosperity and externall glory so bewicheth and dazeleth the eyes and judgements of mortall men as they cannot suspect guilded falshood nor embrace ragged truth And therefore Rabshakeh comming agaynst Ierusalem by the commaunde of Sanacherib King of Ashur elevated with his former victories crye's out with an open and jmpudent mouth and demaunds of the Israelites wherein they trust and put confidence that they doe not presently render themselues to the mercy of his Master where sayth he is the God of Hamah and of Arpad where is the God of Sepharuaim or how haue they deliuered Samaria out of my hands whoe is he among all the Gods of these lands that hath deliuered their Country out of my hand that the Lord should deliver Ierusalem out of my hands The text sayth the Blasphemer receiued no answere till God stopt his mouth with a miracle For all then and there were colde benumde and silent as persons decayed in spirit and fitted for that defection and forreigne Captiuity and subjection which not long after followed But our Champions heart burne's more hott in this place with zeale and indignation to see and heare the boasting and blaspheming enemy rayle agaynst the God of Israell of whose loue and power David had large experience and whose name by way of thankfulnes he had extraordinary cause to defend from dishonor whilst he had power make 's him begin the onsett as it were to this conquest by conquering his priuate feares his brothers frownes and the cavelling exceptions of all other envious beholders with this bolde and braue demaund what haue I now done Is there not a cause And thus much of the cause or matter here mentioned to shew that it was a cause of necessity which compeld ' his vndertaking for Is there not a cause hauing reference to nothing els then to the publique perill and common calamity of the church and state threatned by this idolatrous Champion Which is a cause more then sufficient to compell him that is a true member of the mysticall body of Christ to shew his Spirituall life by strugling for the generall liberty The conclusions therefore from hence deduced are these following CONCLVSION 1. First there must bee an apparant cause of necessitie to justify every extraordinary action or vndertaking performed by a priuate person APriuate Person is hee that hath noe direct or publique calling to the action he vndertake's In which sense a publique person in one kind may be a priuate person in an other respect Aron is a publique person to sacrifice but not to rule and Vzziah is a publique person to gouerne but not to sacrifice A magistrate is a publique person but not for all actions for if he take vpon him to administer the Sacraments he therein becomes a priuate person Nay when he doeth any acte of Iustice without a Law he then laye's by the prerogatiue and dignity of a publique person and acts the parte of a priuate man Because the lawe is the instrument sword of the publique magistrate without which to strike is to Tyrannize and without which to converse in any puplique busines is to become priuate Thus wee see Mayors other subordinate officers who are shadowes types of the supreame goeing abroad without their Swords Maces the ensignes of their offices become priuate for the present time till they assume those types
to this end did they write and propound these examples to our imitation nor can wee choose but reverence their antiquity though wee doe not Canonize their verity Iudith another woman in case of necessity for preservation of her Country and Religion hauing before given testimony of her Chastitie Modesty Charity Contentment in a retyred course of life as if now shee had layd by or forgot all these and become vpon a suddayne wanton and loose and merciles and monstrous vndertaks a worke which makes men tremble Whilst they thinke vpon it and shews how strong God is in weake instruments when he begins to worke Good old Tobit in case of necessity buryes his bretheren though with the hazard of his owne life and estate he is banished for this but the same God that set's him to worke raises him freinds at Court to helpe and restore him Archiacharus beg's his goods which were confiscated and his life which was forfeited for this pious offence and rectore's them vnto him Yet being restored he doth not therefore cease doing good in time of necessity for feare of the penalty threatned and formerly inflicted nor can his mocking neighbors fright him from his duty but he reiterate's the same charitable and holy transgression againe and againe whilest if any man reprâ—hends him for it he can say with David What haue I now done Is their not a cause In necessity rather then chastity shal be condemned by injustice because she would not bee deflowred by lust God stirs vp the spirit of young Daniell without an ordinary calling to coÌ„demne them that were ordinary Iudges and to cleare the innocent from imminent danger For wheresoever I haue an occasion offered me by God to doe good I haue a calling and command from him to doe it In necessity Mathias withstand's such as sacrifice contrary to the law and whilst the vsurping King commaunds the doeing of it he kill 's the person that presumes to doe it And for this is parralelde with zealous Phineas whose like act of necessary yet extraordinary justice without an ordinary calling or warrant on the behalfe of God and the truth was so farre from finne and shame as it was counted vnto him for righteousnes vnto all generations for evermore and is stiled by the Psalmist according as the septuagint expounded it a prayer of peace a sweet smelling sacrifice of attonement which caused the consuming pestilence to cease To speake of Prophets both ordinary extraordinary after all these who haue done the like in their kind as Ieremiah Micheas Esay Daniell Amos with otthers were but to proue what nothing but tyannous custome dare's and nothing but invicible ignorance or villanous Atheisme will deny Objection or call into doubt But if any shall say these are no presidents to follow because they were extraordinary I answer Answer therefore they are to be followed because they are extraordinary For their examples fitt extraordinary times and occasions best And yet what action is done but a man might say as much of it if that were enough to make it lye dead and vseles But who can know whether an other man hath the same extraordinary mover or noe where the same cause present's it selfe verely none but the person himselfe who hath the testimony of his owne conscience to acquitt or condemne him other men judging by the naked fact or badd successe may mis-judge and condemne a worke for wicked which proceede's perhap's from the good spirit of God And this must neede 's be true except wee thought the spirit of God that spake by the Prophets speake's not now to Gods people in the Church but that Oh blasphemy God were now growen olde and become blinde or deafe or dumbe or forgott himselfe and his poore afflicted flock Breifly whilst some will not beleeue God when hespeakes and workes by extraordinary meanes and others will not beleeue him except he soe speake's and worke 's wee are come to that passe that wee see not our tokens neither will wee heare others admonishing vs nor doe what wee ought without admonition nor suffer any man to speake or doe worthily without an vnworthy censure To conclude this point though the actions of all these men before recited might be called in question as many of them were by a cavilling and envious enemy and some of them challendged of partiality others of singularity of popularity presumption pride disobedience irregularity treachery or the like So that none shoulde escape vncontroled yet they all passe currant in the Church vnder the generall warrant of Necessity and may all stand vp with these words of David in this place what haue wee now done Is their not a cause Such a cause there was as if Abraham had not fought he had bene registred for lack of good nature for lacke of courage for lack of zeale in his frends case in the states in Gods And as this Father of the faithfull so should all that succeede him aswell in religion as greatnes and goodnes of minde haue vndergone censure in their perticulars for omission as now they haue by their worthes attayned the favour of God and men For in the case of necessity God himselfe dispenseth with his written law Because the law of Nature which he hath written in every mans hart Gâ— 38. 26. Exod. 17. 20. 21. Iud. 3. 15. subjects him thervnto So that it excuseth or at least extenuateth in some sorte the incest of Thamar the disobedience of the Midwiues the cruelty of Ehud Iael 1 Sa. 19. 2. Pro. 6. 30. Tho Aqu 22. q. 62. st 5. 4. the falshood of Ionathan bewraying the Councell of his Father his King insomuch as Salomon saith men dispise not a theefe that steales for necessity Yea in case of necessity it shall be lawfull to breake the Sabboth and to eate the shew-breud to dispose of the holy vessells to omit circumcision For a woman to circumcise and all this without blame whilst all of them haue this Buckler of Davids to defend themselves from obloquie What haue I now done Is their not a cause Vbi vrget necessitas excusabilis est dispensatio vbi vtilitas provocat laudablis est vtilitas inquam communis non propria Neither is this a Paradoxe in divinity nor yet a thing practised only amongest the Iewes but a law vniversall both of nature nations So that wheresoever wee shall finde man wee shall finde the footstepps of this practise And the more noble the nation is the more frequent the examples The Grecians and Romanes shall suffice and some few amongest them Codrus King of Athens vnderstanding by the oracle the benefit his Kingdome should receiue by his losse and the losse it should haue by his life disguised himselfe and provoked an enemy with harde words and then exposed himselfe voluntarily to his enraged and suddaine revenge that so by his singuler daunger and death he might procure the generall good of all Mutius Scevola for his countrey