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A30293
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A sermon preached before the late King James His Majesty at Greenwich the 19 of Iuly 1604 together with two letters in way of apology for his sermon : the one to the late King Iames His Majesty : the other to the Lords of His Majesties then Privie Councell / by John Burges ...
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Burges, John, 1561?-1635.
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1642
(1642)
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Wing B5720; ESTC R313
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21,287
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32
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miserably and when he was dead his people made no mourning for him as for other Kings so he was neither happy living nor honoured dead because he sought not the good of his people for the house of the Lord Iehoas also did well as long as Jehoida his good Councellour lived but when Jehoida dyed the Kings goodnesse dyed with him Then the Princes came to the King and spake reverently to him and compasse him with good words as with a net for as Salomon saith He that flattereth a man spreads a net for his steps he yeelds and forsakes the house of the Lord But what became of it First the Aramires came and with a small band they overthrew a great Army and slew the Princes that had misled the King and left the King himselfe in great diseases so that he was spared to live longer to be as it were but longer in dying and yet at last his owne servants slew him and when he was dead they buried him not in the sepulcher of the Kings as not thinking him worthy of a Kings sepulcher that had not done a Kings office for the house of the Lord I might speake of others and all to shew that God hath specially humbled Princes when they have forsaken or impugned his true worship doing executions upon them on as high a stage as they played their parts on that their punishment as their faults might be of speciall height and note I will adde one observation more that through neglect of this care of Religion the power of Christian Princes was lost and while they put off to the Prelates all the care of the house of God God also cast from them their authority and made them vassals So they lost their greatnesse and the Clergy found it and it hurt them both It is as I remember a note of Platina in the life of Adrian the third that after they had fully ingrossed the Emperiall power there was never since Emperour of strength or Pope of vertue so they lost both by it And indeed as the blood if it fall any way out of the veines too much there is some danger but if it fall into the body extra vasa there is more danger for there it will corrupt and putrifie so was it with the supreame authority of Princes when they suffered it to fall unto the Clergy as it were extra vasa And here I desire to informe a mistery a mistery of iniquity to shew how from the authority usurped in Ecclesiasticall causes claime is made to the whole power of Princes Bellarmine saith in his fift Booke of the Roman Bishop a fourth and sixt Chapters that the Pope hath nothing to doe with temporalties of Kings properly nay his word is directly but he hath it indirect indirectly as true as may be indirectly indeed As how He may not saith he depose Princes simply as a Lord but for the safety of soules for the good of the Church so from the care of the Church they challenge power over Princes Good cause have Princes then to maintaine their supremacy in causes Ecclesiasticall and to be jealous of that title as also to use that power for the good of the house of the Lord lest if they cast away one moity God cast away the other And here may come in that last branch of the first part which through haste I forgot which I desire might be of use though it come somewhat out of the proper place I meane that time that Now of which he said I will speake peace Why now ment he that he would doe it out of hand and keepe the word of a Prince which is to them as great a band as an oath of the subjects Nay but by this note of time Now as Illericus well observes in his Clavis Scriptura not so much the time as the circumstance of the time is often noted And so it carrieth a reason why he would now speake peace unto them yea and as I thinke why he would now procure their good for the house of God sake For I see not but that it may be referred to the whole Grant I will now speake peace unto thee I will now procure thy wealth But why Now Because the people were so forward and came thus to the house of God and said Our feet shall stand in thy gates O Jerusalem Therefore in this float of good affections in the Subjects the Kings heart is inlarged and he promiseth now to speak peace and now to seeke their good Wherein it is good to consider that when God disposeth the hearts of the people to goodnesse to Religion Princes should specially cherish them and incourage them It is noted of David in 1 Chron. 29. that when the people offered willingly the King rejoyced Of Hezekiah also in 2 Chron. 20. when he drew the people to Jerusalem to worship and they came and offered that the King rejoyced that God had made the people so ready for the thing was done sodainly And indeed then to use them graciously and then to seeke their good for the house of Gods sake when God hath best disposed their hearts is a speciall meanes to cherish goodnesse it selfe and is the crowne of the benefit We read of Ethelbert that Christian King of Kent that he would compell none to Religion but he drew religious men about him and countenanced them and by that meanes increased them innumerably And surely this is a worthy course to advance godlinesse and vertue as strong as any compulsary meanes Because every man saith Salomon seekes the face of the Ruler which if no man could finde but in the way of godlinesse and honesty none would seeke to finde in the way of vice and flattery To this circumstance I adde that as by the course of the Moone there be spring-tides at the change and at the full so at the change if any man will change a false religion for the truth and at the full if any man be growne to a full measure such as we attaine in this poore life I meane if any man be well thriven in goodnesse it is sit that spring-tides of favour should slow unto such But now to returne to the consideration of the house of God for which he will seeke their good The very words carry their weight and shew why he should specially seeke their good for the house of Gods sake and the good of the house of God It is the house of the Lord of Jehovah Should not that be cared for there is care of provision for the Kings house and good cause there should be so and he is not worthy to be the subject of a good Prince that should grudge it Now should there not be care for the provision of Gods house He addes our God that is his God and their God He must needs seek their good for the house sake of that God which was their God One God to both one house of God to both chara pignora one God
as we read in 2 Chron. 20. The high places were not taken away in good Jehosaphats time who was a godly Prince because the peoples hearts were not prepared to the God of their Fathers Finally seeing the hearts of Kings are in the hands of God as the rivers of waters it is our duty now and alwayes to become humble sutours to almighty God so to guide the heart of our gracious Lord the King as he may ever seeke the good of Gods people and specially of the Church of God to all our comforts and his owne immottall honour and everlasting happinesse through Jesus Christ to whom with the Father and the holy Ghost be honour and glory now and for ever Amen FJNJS The Copy of the Letter presented with the Copy of his Sermon aforesaid by Master Burges to the Lords of his Majesties Privie Councell being convented before them for the same 22. Iune 1604. MOst humbly giving thanks unto your Honors for so gracious usage of me at my late convention before you I now present unto you the copy of my Sermon preached before his excellent Majesty To say that there is no word added abated or altered were a speech not credible of a Sermon penned since and not before the preaching of it But this J professe before the God of truth unto your Honours J know not where J have varied from my selfe in matter or manner of speaking to the benefit of one word And therefore as in the preaching through a slip of memory J lost one whole branch of the first part out of the proper place and recovering it afterward did insert it in a place not so fit so have J willingly misplaced it now as then unwillingly yea for some allegations wherein J missed some words of the Author which J could now by the Authors have supplied J have chosen rather to shew the then failing of memory then now to faile in that which is a point of honesty a just report of my speech as J remember it aecording to my promise to your Honours For the rest J doe upon my knees beseech your Lordships to lay the whole together before you censure the parts of it and to consider the generall doctrines respectively to his Majesty by mine owne particular applications to his royall person As touching the to sparing acknowledgement of his Majesties Princely graces and the unspeakable good we have by him I humbly pray your Lordships to beleeve and I take God to witnesse that I failed mine owne purposes therein a fault in a speech unset to one not acquainted with such a presence contracted by the time much more easie to commit it then excuse because it is as needfull to acknowledge to the full what we have received as to incite unto that which is to be continued or added lest we seeme captious rather then zealous of small things studious of greater unthankefull Farther my most Honourable good Lords perceiving his Majesty out of his apprehensive depth to be jealous of some secret purposes in me to aime undutifull intentions to his Majesty under generall coverts as I cannot deny unto his Highnesse most just cause of indignation at me for ever if I should have intended so to a King a Christian King my King and in his presence and before his servants so I wish the Lord even so to give me favour with your Honours yea with his Majesty nay with Christ at his â—oming as my heart and purposes were upright to God the King and State in that service free from popularity and from all purpose of depressing the glory of so worthy a Prince or depraving personally any of his Highnesse servants I doe also further crave leave to protest that I had therein no intelligence no conference with any man living but ran that course out of opinion that it was my duty to speake before the King and State of such things as the best Kings and States shall have need to consider of while the world standeth As touching mine owne reverent heart and particular opinion of his Majesties gracious disposition if my speeches to that end cleared it not enough yet even that doth which is made to accuse me my freedome to speak of that duty so liberally before his presence an undoubted argument of good times like those of Trajan wherein as it is said one might thinke what he would and speake what he thought Howbeit I am so sensible of his Majesties distaste as I could not out live the discouragement thereof if the integrity of my heart before God in that poore Sermon and his Majesties gracious readinesse to receive satisfaction did not relieve me As for any construction of my speech by his Mnjesties subjects whom I have elsewhere and often taught and incited to be joyfull and thankefull to God for this favour that not being best people we are blessed with the best King under heaven I should mourne not a little if any spiderly minde sucke poyson out of that not flower but pothearbe that had no poyson in it And because it is matter of humbling to be thought casually and unwillingly the instrument of any hurt I doe freely offer that if the honest wise Auditors will say upon their conscience that my Sermon incited them to lesse reverence of his Majesty or joy in him then to silence my selfe from preaching to give up my maintenance and if that be to little to depart my Countrey in which yet I had rather live under his Majesty poore as I am then to abound in any other Kingdome of the world But what meane I to sentence my selfe I am in your Lordships to whom I submit my selfe with all reverence nothing so much fearefull of any punishment as sory to have grieved that royall heart the joy comfort and contentment wherof I wish and pray for more then my life as I am bound to doe ' and shall doe whether his pleasure shall be to pardon or punish his poore servant And thus professing my selfe to have great cause already to thinke the more reverently of your Honors while I live and to pray to God the more earnestly for you I humbly crave leave of you of presenting to your Honours an account of my selfe for my twenty yeeres Ministry which if I shall give untruly in any point I aske no favour of your Honours no mercy of God himselfe And for the rest beseech God to make you as honorable in life happy in death as ever were any in your places Your Honours in all humble duty JOHN BVRGES Master Burges Letter to the KINGS Majesty Most mighty King MY no lesse dear then dread Sovernigne I recount mine owne secret intentions in my Sermon preached before your Majesty the dearnesse and tendernesse of my heart to your Majesties person and honour and the many prayers and teares spent upon it that it might be faithfull and acceptable to God and your Majesty I am amazed at that distaste which your Highnesse hath taken of it and