chance to produce their Sensible Images in the matter most capable of these impressions when the Heat of Nature incites them to dilate themselves into new Productions In fine but too many events are daily seen in the world which prove this verity and demonstrat that the Imagination hath a Marvelous command over Bodyes This yet hinders not Jacob from following the instincts of a Supernaturall conduct to purchase the Reward his Services deserved However it were Animadvertit quoque faciem Laban quod non effet erga se sicut heri nudiustertius Gen. 31. v. 2. Laban grows extraordinary Sad because his flocks bring him no fruit For this purpose he alters the Contract between him and his Son-in-Law But perceiving that his unfaithfull dealing afforded no better Success he could no longer dissemble his thoughts unto Jacob who presently discovered in his Father-in-Law's countenance very sensible marks of his indignation This was partly then the occasion which made Jacob resolve to return into his own Countrey Maximè dicente 〈◊〉 Domino revertere in terram patrum tuorum c. Gen. 31. v 3. Misit votavit Rachel Liam in agrum vbi pascebat gregeâ— Gen. 31. v. 4. Dixitque as viâ—eo faciem patris vestri quod non sit ergâ— me sicut heri nudiustertius Gen. 31. v. 5. Surreâ—it itaque Jacob impositis liberis suis ac consugibus super Camelos abiit Gen. 31. v. 17. Nuntiatum est Leban die tertin quod fageret Jacob. Gen. 31. v. 22. Qui assumptis fratribus suis persecutus est cum c. Gen. 31. v. 23. Vtaitque in somnis dicentem sibi Deum cave ne quidquam aspere loquaris contra Jacob. Gen. 31. v. 24. Et dixit ad Jacob quare it a egisti Gen. 31. v. 26. Venierge ut ineamus foedus c. Gen. 31. v. 44. Lahan vero de nocte consurgens c. Gen. 31. v. 55. Jacob quoque abiit itinere quo caeperat c. Gen. 32. v. 1. but since he could not accomplish this design without the consent of his wifes he acquainted them with all that had passed Assoon then as they had assented thereto Jacob seeing the time God had ordained for his return began his journey in the most secret manner he could with his wifes Children flocks baggage and the rest of his family They marched in great haste and had already passed over the River Euphrates when Laban advertised of this departure took his brother his cosins and the greater number of his Friends to pursue these fugitives whom at last after Seaven dayes travell he discovered afar off upon Mount Galaad where Laban reposing a while God appeared unto him and enjoyned him not to use Jacob ill He could not yet contein himself from complaining of this unexpected departure and principally for the Idols which Rachel had carryed away without acquainting Jacob therewith but amongst these reproaches there was a necessity of agreeing and after a Mutuall accord Laban returned into Mesopotamia and Jacob pursued his journey toward the Land of Canaan There he immediatly discovered those Troops of Angels which came to meet him as so many SquadroÌ„s Quos cum vidisset ait castra Des sunt haec appellavit nomen loci illius Mabanaim id est castra Gen. 32. v. 2. which God deputed for his safe-guards This was the cause why Jacob called that place where these Legions appeared Mahanaim which signifies Armies And in effect these were Battalians rank'd in order in favour of Jacob. These were Deputies of Heaven which came to congratulate his Triumphs These were Angels of Paradise Spirits of glory who came with applauses to receive this glorious Conqueror this happy Traveller and this Angell of peace who brings Love and contentment unto his Parents and to his whole Country Mean while Esau came with four hundred men Venimus ad Esau fratrem tuum ecce properat tibi in occursum cum quadringen is viris Gen. 32. v. 6. Timuit Jacob valde perterritus divisit popubum qui secum erat greges queque eves boves Camelos in duas turmas Gen. 32. v. 7. and I fear lest his fury may re-inkindle at the sight of his supplanter I fear lest the remembrance of his past misfortunes may awake at the noyse of these troops I fear lest the meekness which is naturall unto Jacob may cast Oyl into the Fire which Esau had covered for the space of twenty years under the Ashes of his mischievous disposition For the Love of God beware Jacob and take care of these gracious Pledges and of these happy depositaries you have acquired with so much labour Divide then your Flocks separate all your Souldiers set aside your Wifes and Children and above all expose not Rachel unto Assaults and Danger and much less her dear and onely Joseph Jacob did prudently all that any Man could act upon such an occasion But God who manageth Hearts and boweth the most savage and rebellious persons will know how to Order Esau in such sort as Jacob shall never receive the least prejudice from him It is enough then for Jacob to march under the Standard of Divine Providence and follow those Squadrons which the God of Battails hath appointed for his preservation The Earth is but a point in comparison of the Heavens and an Angel of the lowest order surpasteth in power and vertue all the Creatures which live in this World If this be so what favour did God shew unto Jacob in giving him so many Angels to guard him under their protection and what a happiness is it unto every one to have an Angel for his Guardian My God I render thee most humble thanks for him in the name of all men and from henceforth I abandon my self into thy hands and will live and dye under the wings of this amiable Guardian whom thou hast given me for the Director of my Life for the Guide of my Pilgrimage for the Pylot of my Navigation and in a word for a friend and for an Angel which will accompany me even unto my Tomb. CHAP. VIII Jacobs Wrastling with the Angell and his return into Canaan IF continuall practice renders a Souldier bold valiant dexterous and expert Men who are amidst perpetuall assaults unexpected surprises incessant combats in a continuall Conflict with all Creatures Life of Man ought to be well versed in the exercise of War Now there is no person exempted from these Laws War without truce and a Man must be single in the World and have neither Soul nor Body to have no Enemies St. S. Chrys in Psal â— Chrysostom was of this opinion when he said That his Life was continually amidst assaults And for this cause it was necessary for him to stand alwaies upon his Guard And Seneca who liv'd amongst employments Nobis quoque militandum est quidem genere militiae in quo nunquam quies nunquam otium datur Sen.
approach of the skins of Wolves and that Lambs scarce come out of the Yeows belly have neverthelesse natural apprehensions of the Wolf My soul hast thou not seen Chickens hiding themselves under the wings of a Hen at the meer shadow of a Kite Partridges flying before Haukes and even Lyons roaring at the sight of a Cock I ask of thee From whence proceeds this fear these affrightments and Antipathies If thou tellest me they are Natural and have bin as it were infused by Nature even from the first to the last of each kind I likewise answer that this Original stain of culpable Nature is derived from father to son and from the first man to all his of-spring and so it comes to be imprinted in the substance of their Souls And if thou hast a desire to passe further and know the reason I am content stand then upon thy guard my Soul for I intend to fight thee with thy own Weapons Is it not true that when by thy desires thou kindlest fires and infamous flames in thine Eys thou art the cause of this Burning and that it is thy self who renders them Criminal Is it not as true that when thou armest thy Hands to commit a Murther and thy Tongue to detract and bite like a Dog or to vomit forth some Blasphemy it is thou that makest both thy Hand and Tongue culpable which are thy Members thy Officers thy Slaves and Executioners which act perform and execute what thou hast commanded them In like manner Adam having bin chosen by God for the Head and Father of all mankind Original sin his Heart was the Fountain which should powre out it's qualities into the substance of their Souls even as doth the Head and Heart into the armes into the tongue and into all the Members of the Body Moreover the Will of Adam was so streightly united to that of his Children as when he acted they seconded all his Actions From whence I conclude that as Actuall sins committed by the Ears Eyes and Hands take their Malignity from the Heart and Will which is their Cause and Origin so likewise those sins which are commonly called Originall The first Contagion and are found in the Soul of all Mankind have as it were crept in and taken their Descent from Adam as their Author and beginner which having been once infected hath afterward made its venom pass from Father to Son as by Hereditary right Poor Children of Adam pittifull Reliques of an unfortunate Father behold your Patrimony the Rights of your Families and what Adam and Eve have left you for Legacies Let no Man hereafter be astonisht to see you wandring about Countryes Pittifull Reliques of Sin and going from door to door in Cities with Tears in your Eys Sighs in your Mouths with dusty Hair and Sun-burnt Faces Let no Man be any more astonished to see you goe bare-Headed and bare-Footed a Wallet on your Shoulders and a Staff in your Hand for these are the portions of Sin Miserable Mortals the Earth from henceforth shall be to you but a Dark Prison Life but a Gally and the World but a great Chain of Misfortunes The Elements shall joyn in Arms against you The Fire shall inkindle frightfull Comets over your Heads The Air shall dart forth merciless Thunder-bolts upon your Houses The Sea shall raise its Billows against your Towers and the Earth shal be the Theater of VVars the Meadow in which the Plague shall Mow and the Field of Battail where all the powers of the VVorld and Hell it self shall deliver you up to Tragick Combats In fine your Bodies shal be Subject to all sorts of Maladies and your Minds to all kinds of Passions I hear already Envie grumbling and murmuring in the Heart of Cain I hear the cry of Abell Let us observe a while what passeth CHAP. VI. The Murther of Abel and the Despair of Cain ANtiently in Temples Houses and Closets Concil 6. in Trullo Can. 32. the Images of Jesus Christ were drawn in form of a Lamb which was the most lively Mark and Symbol that Painters could find out to frame some Copy of Meekness Abel was this Picture from his Birth and shewed from the beginning so sweet and facile so plyant and tractable a disposition as Adam and Eve were even inforced to bestow on him their most tender affections Cain on the contrary who was his Elder Brother Diversity of Natures appeared to be of so fierce and imperious a Nature that at length to sweeten it they resolved to oblige him to cultivate the Earth that his spirit might learn how to soften the hardest of Elements and to temper the harshness of his Courage Abel at the same time employed himself in keeping Sheep Fuitque Abel pastor ovium Cain agricola Gen. 4. v. 2. and guiding his Fathers Flocks amidst the Pastures His mind in repose and amidst the silence of the Fields began to take its flight And as God had chosen his Heart to powre into it his dearest favours he easily felt himself surprised with a Holy thought and a Sacred desire which was elevated to God to offer unto him the purest and choicest Sacrifices Cain also felt some touch of Piety Factum est autem post multos dâ—es ut offerret Cain de fructibuâ— terrae munera Domino Gen. 4 v. 3. Abel quoque obtulit de primogenitis gregis sui de adipibâ—s corum Gen. 4. v. 4. and but passingly beheld a glorious Light which sufficiently shewed him all he was to doe from whence I gather by the way That there is no Clymate so barbarous no Land so desart nor no Cave so tenebrous into which God casts not his Shafts and darts not his Lights to illuminate our Hearts and Souls But it often comes to pass that we shut the Doors and Windows suffering our Day and Life to slip away to expect Death and Blindness in the Night Abel received the Day from its Aurora and neither the Interests of the World nor the Goods of the Earth were ever able to separate his Soul from the Interests of Heaven and Piety His Intentions were still most pure and he had no other Object than the Glory of a God who requires the whole and not a single part who demands Hearts and not bare Words and who cannot permit upon his Altars but the fairest and most liberall Victims of Love Now this is what our innocent Shepheard did when he rendred his Sacrifice most perfect offering unto God what he had most beautifull most fat and rare among his Flocks having first set apart the First Fruits and afterwards Immolated them with the rarest Lights of his Understanding and the purest Flames of his Will Cain on the other side erects Altars Very different Sacrifices Rupert lib. 4. in Gen. c. 2. Cain cum Deâ— of seriet sua scipsum sibi retinet and offers Fruits But in offering his Presents saith Rupertus he retains Himself And his Earthy
out then Pharaoh cry out and awake so many sleepy Souls which lie in soft Downy Beds as Coles under Ashes to entertain the ardor of their impurity Doe you see these lascivious men and these ravinous Wolves who are in quest of their Golden fleece and seek out Flesh and Bloud to satiate the rage of their brutality For this they ingage their Servants and Hand-maids they subborn confidents they lay ambushes every where and either soon or late some chast Sara must be taken away But at the same time Luxuria dulce venenâ—m pernicâ—osa potio humanum corpus debâ—itaâ— vâ—â—lâ—s animi robur â—nervat Hugo à S. Vict. lib. 4. inst Monast lâ—t l. saith Hugo Victorensis the poyson of their infamous Mouths cast forth into the Bosom of Virginity reascends into its Source and steals almost insensibly into the Veins of a Body which immediatly becomes corrupted from whence ariseth that the Heart it self is presently infected and it is from this Plague of Souls and this Canker of Bodies so many fatall blindnesses so many blind furies and so many furious errors doe afterwards Spring which cause in the Body an Abysse of Maladies and in the Soul a Maze or Labyrinth of reason These burning coales and these flames saith Justinian which beget such sad fires in the body and fill souls with so black Ignis internalis est luxuria cujus materies gula cujus flamma superbia cujus sintillae prava colloquia cujus fumus infamia cujus cinis inopia cujus finis gebenna Laur. Just c. 3. de sop in lig vitae and thick a smoak rise from the fire of hell It is this fire to which good chear serves for Nourishment It is this fire which Pride and Presumption inflame and inkindle on all sides It is this fire whose sparkles are Lascivious provocations its smoak is but a most dishonorable Fame its ashes are Miseries and Calamities and in fine it is onely in the Hells of this World where this intestine fire is found Let us judge then after this of the Greatnesse of Evill by the excesse of Punishment and if some one have a mind to die the most detestable death in Nature let him lead the most enormous and execrable life which can be in the sight of Heaven But let us return to Pharao who was constrain'd to stifle his unlawfull Loves in the Ocean of his miseries and who at last restor'd to Abraham the flower which had bin cruelly wrested from him CHAP. III. The Agreement of Abraham and Lot upon the Controversy between their Shepheards PEace and Purity are two sisters which have no other Father or Origin but Love and the Spirit of God which cannot breath but in a calm and in cleannesse there is its native Air Element Temple and the usuall place of its residence And it is peradventure for this reason Solomon was accustomed to adorn the gates of his Temple with Lillies and Olive-branches Inseparable companions desiring thereby to inform us that none are to enter there but by the doors of Peace and under the shade of the Olive-branches which are marks and symboles of Peace and Purity This being so I wonder not that Abraham who was animated with the Spirit of God and endued with no other than the purest passions did express so much love and inclination to Concord and Peace He seemed Neverthelesse to have some cause to commence a sute Unde et facta est rixa inter pastores gregum Abram Loth. Gen. 13. v. 7. to wage war against Lot for the preservation of his rights and authority which might receive some prejudice by the strife which arose between his servants and those of Lot their design being to become Masters contrary to Justice and Reason Which Abraham seing to prevent all the disorders which might ensue on this first design he saith unto Lot Nephew I pr'y thee remember Dixit Abram ad Loth ne quaeso sit jurgium inter me te pastâ—res meos pastores tuos fratres enim sumus Gen. 13. v. 8. that hetherto I have not treated thee as an Uncle but rather as a Brother what a scandal would it be if we should begin to live together either like strangers or else as Enemies I had rather lose all the goods of the world than that of thy friendship But I see clearly that these Shepheards Ecce universa terra coram te est recede à me obsecro si ad sinistram eris ego dexteram tenebo si tu dexteram elegeris ego ad sinistram ibo Gen. 13. v. 9. and mercenary friends are the persons who endeavour to engage our passions with their interests It would then be more prudently done to sever our flocks than to disunite our Mindes and therefore dear Nephew take what you please If thou goest to the right hand I will take the left and if the left I will passe to the right Well then is not this to love peace and to purchase at his own expence so pretious a treasure Is not this to be magnificent and can any one seek an accord with more Prodigality Interessed Souls Where are then these little hearts and these narrow Souls which are still bury'd amidst their own interests Where are these worldly People whose Eyes may sooner be turn'd out of their heads than monies out of their hands Where are all these Pertifoggers and these Lawiers who are alwayes for delatory futes and place all their hopes on a forged will or a false contract They are like Moles which have alwayes their Noses in the Earth and incessantly inlarge their holes and graves What shame is it for a man of courage to be still fighting on a flight occasion and to contest upon the point of a Needle who shall carry it Alas where are the Abrahams where are the brothers kindred and friends who shall say one to the other for Gods sake let us live peaceably rather let us dye a thousand times than wage war for those goods which either soon or late we must leave My God! These are generous The Golden Age and heroick thoughts To hear them I conceive my self to be in those golden Ages when men carry'd their hearts on their lips Crowns of Olive-branches on their heads hornes of plenty in their hands their eyes in each part of their body and the Chains of a holy friendship as bracelets and collers of Gold Finally where the goods of the earth were trodden under foot as common to all men And this caused that plenty of all things was carry'd every where upon a Triumphant Chariot casting Gold and Silver to all that would but take the paines to gather it God himself governed the Reignes of this fortunate Chariot and as if he had a purpose to make every man a Monarch of the universe he said the very same to them as to Abraham when the love of Concord and Peace had sever'd him from Lot My friend Abraham lift
Soul was so violently transported with terrestriall affections as he gave nothing unto God but by constraint and with regret This was the cause Et resâ—eâ—it Dominus ad Abel munâ—ra â—sus Gen. 4. c. 4. why God cast his Eyes upon Abel and his oblation That is to say as Saint Hierom notes God approved it and in the twinckling of an Eye as with an amorous lightning consummated the Sacrifice which was offered to him Ad Cain vero munera illius non respexit Iratusque est Cain vehementer Et concidit vultus ejus Gen. 4. v. 5. leaving Cains Fruits and offerings dry and aride upon the Altar The which so violently disturb'd the mind of this Impious Sacrificer as it immediatly inforced a change in his countenance as not being Master in the Trade he learnt of betraying by his Mouth and Eyes his sincerest thoughts God then said unto him Dixit Dâ—minus ad eum Quare iratus â—s cur concidit facies tua Gen. 4. v. 6. Cain what doth transport thee what Excess of Anger appears on thy Brow And whence comes it that thy Countenance is thus dejected It is a token doubtless that thou art meditating on some tragick Design But return into thy self raise a little thy Eyes and read in me what may and must befall to thee Remember Cain that I have upon my Heart and in mine Eyes a great Myrrour of Essences which bears for device these terms of Justice Just toward all The Device of the Myrrour Omibus aequus Nonne si bene egeris recipies sin autem malè statim in foribus peccatum aderit Gin. 4. v. 7 If then thou feelest some Storm and touches of Fury in thy Soul thou wilt discern them in this Glass And if thou enjoyest therein Tranquillity Peace and Meekness thou wilt acknowledge that I have no more Justice for thy Brother than thy self Besides what ever thou do'st doubt not but I understand all that thou wilt act for Sin speaks in silence And its shadows though thick are not obscure enough to extinguish the Day and Lightnings of my Vengeance Sub te erit appetitus tuus dominabitur illius Nevertheless though I am both God and a most powerfull God yet will I not enforce thy Liberty O Liberty Liberty cruell Liberty Dangerous Liberty pernicious Indulgence tyrannicall Power disloyall Free-will proud Will blind Mistress of all our Motions Cain on what thinkest thou Answer me I prethee thou canst what thou willest but if thou wilt have thy Liberty entire thou must desire what God desireth and thy desire ought to be conformable to thy power and then thy power wil be consonant to those of thy God Why then art thou deaf to the words of God why art thou blind to his Lights art thou in Despair God calls him but he flyes away his Parents are willing to detain him at Home and he inforceth his Brother to follow him into the Fields As if the presence of the Elements as St. Ambrose saith were a terror to this wicked man he seeks out desolate places Dixitque Cain ad Abel Fratrem suum Egrediamur for as cumque essent in agro consurrexit adversus Fratrem suum Abel inter secit eum Gen. 4. v. 5. and where Air and Earth appear not but amidst the shades and by halfs This untamed Horse runs on without Bit or Bridle and drags along his younger Brother with him In fine as soon as he perceives himself in a Solitary place he casts himself upon Abel like an inraged Wolf upon a Lamb and as a Vulture seizing on his prey Cain what dost thou It is thy Brother it is Abel it is thy other self it is the second support of thy Parents and of thy Family Cain even Pitty Bloud Nature and the Laws thunder already over thy head Alas stay thy hand and the revenging Thunder-bolt of the Just and powerfull God which is ready to cleave the Clouds It is too late The murthering of Abel the stroak is already given Abel is dead I see nothing but a Body stretched out upon the Earth which swims in his own Tears and Bloud Behold the Waves of his Bloud which mount to Heaven and even unto God himself who is ready to mingle his Lightnings Thunder and Voice with this Storm Cain where is Abel Et ait Dominus ad Cain Ubi est Abel Frater tuus Qutrespondit nescio nam custos Fratris mei sum ego Gen. 4. v. 9. where is thy Brother where hast thou put him what hast thou done with him Oh what Answers Cain Am I my Brothers Guardian hast thou given me him in charge I know not where he is Ah! thou brazen-faced Creature Observe I beseech you how vices spring from one another and how they frame a long Web of Miscries which heap shadows upon shadows untill they have at last lead us into a Precipice and into the Eternall obscurity of the Tomb and of the dismall Night Cain hath not washed his hands since the Murther of his Brother he still keeps the Knife in his Throat and he could not wipe away the stains and Drops of this Innocent Bloud Execrable impudence and yet this Homicide denyes his Crime and this Murtherer attests an abhominable Lye to his Assassination Good God! what boldness what insolence what temerity Cain art thou not ashamed to disavow this prodigious Inhumanity these Brutish Furies and the Massacer on which thy Eyes are still fixed Perjured Man as thou art thou say'st thou knowest not what is asked of thee thou seemest amazed and thou art even ready to cry Murther first and to call for help But thy Brothers Bloud speaks lowder than thy self that Bloud more pure and innocent than Milk is become blacker than Inke to write and mark out thy offence in Characters which will never be effaced The Earth it self calls incessantly on Gods justice Quid secisti vox sanguinis fratris tui ad me clamat de tora Gen. 4.2.10 and thy Brother's bloud seems to have given it a soul a sense and voice to excite complain and provoke his Indignation Detestable Cain insolent Hypocrite execrable Lyer Envious Brother most cruell Executioner thou say'st that Abel was not under thy tuition and that thou never tookest charge of him Oh! Art not thou his Elder Brother But I hear thee yet thou hearest not mee It is thy sin which casts a veil over thy face And it is the shadow of this dead body which dazels thine Eyes and is the Cause thou canst not discern it What e're it be the Earth hath spoken too efficaciously its demands and accusations are too Just and a man is obliged to give Credit to Bloud and Nature when they freely condemn themselves There needes then no further proof no other accusers or witnesses But nothing now remaines saving the decree and sentence of the Judge Hear then unnaturall Brethren hear and A dreadfull sentence as
many as you are become wise at the Cost of Cain Let Execration Anathema Nunc igitur maledictus eris super terram quae aperuit os suum et suscepit sanguinem sratris tuide manu tui Gen. 5. v. 11. Vagus et profugus eris super terram Gen. 4. v. 12. and Eternall Malediction saith God fall on the infamous Head of Cain Let him be accursed upon Earth and let all disasters powre down on the labours of his hands and to the end his sight and presence may not infect nor corrupt his fathers House he shal be a fugitive vagabond and wanderer upon the Earth At this stroak the Heart of Cain becomes a little sensible and the hardness of his Soul although too late begines to soften Dixitque Cain ad Dominum Major est iinquitas mea quam ut veniam mercar Gen. 4. v. 12. Alas Lord saith he my Iniquity is greater than thy Mercies and my sin is too enormous to hope for Pardon I confesse it and from this very moment I depart from hence like a banished man to wander day by day without peace or relaxation where the Sun and Moon spread their light and clarities Besides my Brothers Ghost pursues and torments me with too much severity Ecce ejicis me Hodie à facie tua abscondar et ero â—agus et profugus in terra Omnis qui invenerit me occidet me Gen. 4. v. 14. Even thy self O my God and my Judge chasest me away far from thy Countenance and far from the pleasing glances which issue from thine Eyes Ah then let the Sun and Moon cease to enlighten the World and let me for ever wander amidst the Murtherous shades of Abel Stings of conscience and let my life pine away in obscurity Otherwise I fear saith he that at the first sight and encounter some one may kill and treat me according to my deserts No no Dixitgue ei Dominus Nequaquam ita fiet sed omnis qui occiderit Cain septuplum punietur Posuâ—tque Dominus Cain signuum ut non interficeret eum omnes qui invenisset cum Gen. 4. v. 15. Cain saith God nothing of what thou fearest shall happen to thee and if any one be so rash to attempt on thee I will make him feel the excesse of my wrath and his punishment shall passe even to the utmost extremity my vengeance can extend For this effect God imprinted a sensible mark upon his forehead which served him for a safe-guard against all the Assaults of his Enimies This done the poor wretch went away of his Enimies The disquiets and the banishment of Cain This done the poor wretch went away all alone pale trembling pursued by the stings of his Soul and after some wandrings arrived in the Land of Eden lying Eastward It was under this Clymate and neer unto Mount Libanus that this Fugitive at last made his retreat there it was where he built a Citie and had by his Wife a very numerous posterity CHAP. VII The Desolations and Spoyles of Envie IMagin that it is from this first Colony and this unfortunate Mariage that Provinces Cities and Villages are since peopled with so many Brothers and Sisters who have been the lively Images of Cain I mean with so many unnaturall Men and Women who without respect or compassion towards their own Bloud have violated the purest and most holy Laws of Nature Bloud raiseth every where storms against it self and the Members of the Body and all the Powers of the Soul seem only united to wage War against themselves at a neerer distance Republicks complain Families and Races sigh all Countries lament and there is no House nor little Cottage that shews not the Prints and Foot-steps of this poyson which hath seized the Hearts of all Brothers and Sisters Cain hath so far extended his Race that he hath every where Associats Followers and Children and one would swear to behold the Cruelties Out-rages and Treasons which are daily discovered amongst Brethren that the Tomb of Abel was the Sepulcher of that Piety and mutuall Amity which to all Brothers should be in lieu of Fortresses and impregnable Holds This abominable Monster of Jealousy whose Teeth and Breath are putrified hath exhaled the blackest vapours in the self same Cradles insomuch as Brothers suck in with their Milk its Plague and Venom Scarce are they born Ex relatione Michaelis Angli ad an 7. perig but at the same instant they resemble those Birds of bloud and prey which live in the unfortunate Islands neer the North Pole and devour one another even in their Neasts These Envious and Jealous Spirits these Angels of Night and Darkness carry continually in their hands glasses of a thousand Faces and coloured with as many passions which cause fire to be taken for smoak black for white and all beauties for deformities or deceits I know not by what name to call these incarnate Devils these Jealous Souls and these Heirs of Cain I know very well that there are such every where They are seen at Balls at Feasts and Comedies They insinuate themselves into designs Councils and the most secret Assemblies They have the Key of Closets and private Houses and cause themselves to be seen in Publick and felt in Secret They resort the Randevouz of pleasure they delight in Circuits and are every where without abandoning themselves In fine In vitis Patrum Aâ—uch that which is less credible and which for my part I would not have beleeved if a most Holy and learned Anchorite had not said it above seaven hundred years agoe that this invisible Murtherer this impious Cain and this Jealous Spirit is so presumptuous as to pass even into the Precinct of the Worlds Paradise and of Religion There it cartys its Torch and Firebrand to the very foot of the Altar It enters even into the Sanctuary and powreth out into the same Chalice the Bloud of Jesus Christ and of his Brother This Deicide this Assasin and this Anthropophagus eats the Body of the Son of God with the Flesh of Men and that Table which serves for the repast of the one serves also for the Feast of the other from whence it ascends into Pulpits it passeth through Tribunals and in the midst of all the Sacrifices it bursts it fumes it inrageth it detests it waxes pale it resolves to make a thousand factions unworthy of a generous spirit it makes secret Conspiracies it springs Mines it provides Dungeous it besiegeth Hearts it sells the friendships of some it purchaseth the protection and favour of others it renders it self a Slave and Mercenary to this or that Man to be the Tyrant and Master of an other Finally in all places and times when it perceives it self the strongest and amongst those who have either given or sold themselves to its Service this Sacrilegious Soul this future Apostata this Traitor this Envious and wicked Monster Jealous of his Brothers Life and Happiness not
her considerable by her fruitfulness and by the birth of four Sons Videns autem Dominus quòd despiceret Liam aperuit vulvam ejus Genes 29. v. 31. Quae conceptum genuit silium vocavitque nomen ejus Ruben Gen. 29. v. 31. Rursúmque concepit peperit filium vocavitque nomen ejus Simeon c. Genes 29. v. 23. the first of which was called Ruben the second Simeon the third Levi and the fourth Judas which were the four principall causes of Rachels envying Leah It is the vice of great souls to be touched with envy and the effect of an unworthy melancholy to seek good from anothers mishap It is no wonder then if women for the most part are subject unto these abominable motions but I am astonished at the violence of this passion when it transports men even unto despair Rachel will dye Cernens autem Rachel quâ—d insoecunda essâ—t ci maâ—â—to sua da miht liberos c. Gen. 30. v. 1. Câ—i iâ—aâ—us respondit Jacob Nâ—m pro Deo ego sum c. Gen. 30. v. 3. Ingressâ— ad se viâ—o concepit peperit filium Gen. 30 v. 5. Et idâ—iâ—co apellavit nâ—mâ—n esus Dan. Gen. 30. v. 6. Rursumque Bala concipiens peâ—erit alterum Gen. 30. v. 7. Vocavitque eum Nephthali Gen. 30. v. 8. shee saith if no children be given her What man I beseech you can bestow a favour which God hath reserved to himself was not this then a means to make Jacob dye seeing that his wife asked that which lay not in his power to give her It was requisit neverthelesse that the goodness of God should aleviate the grief of this sad Mother giving unto her handmaid two Sons one of which was called Dan and the other Nepthalim God immediatly after shewed the same favour to the Handmaid of Leah who brought forth Gad and Asser After which Leah her self conceived of Jsachar then of Zebulon and at last of a Daughter called Dina. It was by the means of these generations God began to accomplish the Promise he had made to Abraham Isaack and Jacob And it was out of these first springs issued a thousand and a thousand streams of this blood of Patriarcks which was to overflow the fairest Lands of the Universe Recordatus quoque Dominus Rachelis exatedivit eam aperuit vulvam ejus Gen. 30. v. 22. Quae concepit peperit filium Gen. 30. v. 23. 〈◊〉 vocavit nomen ejus Joseph Gen. 30. v. 24. At that time Jacob saw the time approching during which he had tyed himself to serve his Father-in-Law Laban Rachel neverthelesse was troubled at her barrenness But at length God heard her prayers and made her the Mother of a Son whose birth effaced all the marks of her shame and dishonor This Joseph this miraculous Infant was the delight of his parents the glory of Rachel the love of Jacob the wish and desire of both the support of his family the King of all his brethren the Saviour of his people and the master-peece of the graces and favours of God CHAP. VII The reward Jacob received for his services and his departure out of Mesopotamia WHen Jacob had finished his fourteen years of service he began to long for liberty Nato autem Joseph dixit Jacob socero suc dimitte me ut revertar in patriam ad terram meam Gen. 30. v. 25. and for his own country where he had never lived under the command of a Master and Father-in-Law but under the tuition of a Father and Mother who had always treated him not as a Servant but as their Child Hee intreated then Laban to give way unto his retirement But as interest is the first inciter of all passions Laban immediatly felt his Heart assaulted with all sorts of Motions In fine Ait illi Laban Inveniam gratiam in conspectu tuo c. Gen. 30. v. 27. the hope he had that Jacobs presence would every day increase the blessings and Graces of Heaven upon his family he invites Jacob to remain some small time with him To which Jacob freely accorded well foreseeing the trouble he should have in his journey being burthened with Women and Children too weak and young to resist the incommodities of travell He condescended then to the desire of Laban Dixitque Loban quid tibi daâ—o At ille ait nibil volo sed si feceris quod postulo iterum â—ascam custodiam 〈◊〉 tua Gen. 30. v. 31. Gyraomnes greges tuos separa cunctas ves vaâ—ias sparso velâ—â—â—e quodcumque fâ—râ—â—m maculosum varIumque suerit tam in ovibus quam in capris erit merces mea Gen. 30. v. 32. tollens ergo Jacob virgas populeas virides amygdalin as c. Gen. 30. v. 37. upon condition he might have the government of his flocks and Herds and that he would distribute them in such sort as from thenceforth all the beasts which were found spotted should be his and those which should be of one single colour were to be Labans The agreement is made to the Content and liking of both parties but disunion and Iealousie arose quickly on Labans part seeing his own flocks barren and on the contrary those of Jacob very fruitfull This was as Theodoret believ'd a miraculous artifice of divine Providence which incited Jacob to place white and green wands before the Eyes of his flocks when they were in copulation which caused various impressions and effects conformable to the desires of Jacob Posuitque eas in canalibus ubi essundebatur aequa ut cum venissent greges ad bibendâ—m ante oculos haberent virgas in aspectu earum coreiperent Gen. 30. v. 38. Arist lib. 3. de Hist anim Varro in Solino and agreeable to the picture which an Angel had represented to him I conceive neverthelesse absolutely speaking that such productions are not above the power of Nature It is the opinion of all Philosophers and amongst others of Aristotle who affirms that in Antandria there are two great Rivers in one of which the beasts which drink of it grow white and in the other become black In like manner the River Seamander breeds golden colours And in the red Sea there is a fountain as Varro observes which changeth every thing into Carnation It is then no impossible thing for the imagination to produce like effects and to form in Bodyes what the Sun doth in the clouds and Painters in their pictures These are draughts of the Soul which in the strict Union shee hath with the Body is the source of its Actions and Motions Portraicts of the Soul so that she labors therein as a Workman doth upon his Matter and a Designer upon the Platform which he contrived And truly if a Carver can shape upon Marble and Brass the intelligible form and the Idea which is in his Fancy and Reason What disorder can there be if the Sensitive Soul the Fancy of Animals
fear'd lest the Hall into which they were brought might be changed into their Prison and that the Dinner prepared for them might prove their last repast they then whispered in each others ear that without doubt they were drawn into danger by reason of the Money which had been found in their Sacks and that infallibly there was an intention to make them undergoe the punishment of a crime of which they were no wayes guilty This said they run after their Conductor and having Stayd him at the door they related to him what had passed protesting that they knew not who had designed them this mischief and besides that they had never the least thought of his Money in witness whereof they had brought it with the surplusage summe which was necessary to buy their Commodities No no answered he you need not fear any thing Peace be with you it is your God and the Lord of your Father who hath put into your Sacks the Money you found in them As for that which you gave me it is very good and you ought not to disquiet your self concerning it This said Simeon was conducted to them and then they brought water to wash their feet In the interim they prepare their Presents in expectation of Joseph who intended to dine with them As soon as he came they immediatly cast themselves at his feet saluting and presenting him with what they had brought Then Joseph saluting them again with all manner of courtesie and goodnesse Obtuleruntque ei munera teuentes in manibus suis adoraverunt proni interram Gen. 43. v. 26. At ille clementer resalutatis eis interrogavit eos dicens c. Gen. 43. v. 27. Qui responderunt sospes est servus tuus pater noster adbuc vivit Et inclinati adoraverunt eum Gen. 43. v. 28. Attolens autem Joseph oculos vidit Benjamin fratrem suum uterinum ait iste est frater vester parvulus rursum Deus iâ—quit misereatur tui sili mi. Gen. 43. v. 29. Festinavitque quia commota fuerant viscera ejus super fratre suo crumpebant lacrimae introiens cubiculum flavit Gen. 43. v. 30. inquired of them how their Father did and whether he were yet alive Yes answered they your most humble Servant and our most honoured Father is yet living and as we believe in perfect health Saying this they all bowed down before him and rendred their duties in the most affectionate manner it was possible for them to doe After all these honours Joseph lifting up his eyes and perceiving Benjamin then demanding whether he were not the youngest amongst them whom they had formerly mentioned he said unto him Ah! my Son I beseech God to have pitty on thee and to take thee into his holy protection Now he perceived that his heart was ready to discharge by his eyes part of the affection joy and compassion wherwith he was touched at the sight of Benjamin which obliged him to leave them suddenly and to retire into his Chamber to weep his fill The eyes are not onely the gates of light but also of all passions Amongst others Love and Mercy make their entries and sallies by them Sometimes also Joy becomming so excessive passeth through these Christall gates and it seems that these living Mirrours are constrained to melt at the same instant the Soul hath received some darts from the hand of Love Pitty and Joy The most generous spirits are commonly most subject unto these sweet tendernesses The most unworthy are those which never weep and surely as they have but Souls of Ashes so their eyes are alwaies dry But on the contrary a good Spirit being in the Body as a great River in a bed of Sand Decent tenderness the least wind can hardly rise without breaking down its banks and escaping at least by the two Eyes which are as so many Chanels through which the Spirit disburthens it self Now as there may be many causes of this inundation so we should often fear that it might happen either in the day or in publick For there would be some danger that without Ink and Paper secrets might be written on our Cheeks with that water which flowes from our eyes We might often also accuse of weakness even the most noble and most generous Sentiments of our hearts In fine there be seasons dayes and places in which we ought not to speak but by silence and where the Eyes as well as the Tongue should be dumb Joseph could not restrain his tears at the sight of Benjamin but it was a most prudent Act to withdraw himself to pay this tribute unto the goodness of his mind and to an object worthy of pitty Joy and affection Having then dryed his eyes Rursumque lota facie egressus continuit se ait ponite panes Gen. 43. v. 31. Quibus appositis searsum Joseph scorsum fratribus Aegyptii quoque qui vescebantur simul seorsum illicitum est enim Aegyptiâ—s comedere cum Hebraeis Gen. 43. v. 32. and washed his face he came back to them and without making shew of any emotion he commanded that the Table should be presently covered which being done he set himself on one side and his Brethren by his command were placed on the other and since it was prohibited the Jews to eat with the Egyptians all those that were with Joseph and used to take their repast with him took their places apart All things were well-ordered at this Feast Josephs Brethren were seated every one according to his age Sederum coram eo primogenitus juxta primogenita sua minimus juxta aetatem suam Gen. 43. v. 33. Sumptis partibus quas ab eo acceperant Majorque pars venit Benjamin ita ut quinque partibus excederet Gen. 43. v. 34. Biberuntque inebriati sunt cum eo Gen. 43. v. 34. the Eldest was in the most honourable place and the youngest sate according to his degree Joseph himself took the pains to wait on them But the greatest cause of their astonishment was that after they had all received their portions it appear'd that Benjamin had five times more for his share than any other This nevertheless did not hinder the Joy and mirth of the Feast for there were nothing but acclamations and rejoycings God knows whether Joseph forgot the health of the Father of his Guests and whether he drank that of Benjamin However it were the holy Scripture saith in express termes that they were all drunk I know not yet whether Joseph and his Brethren were inebriated with Wine which being taken in excess useth to raise dazeling fumes and confused vapours in the head Whence it happens that the brain being troubled all the gestures of the body and the operation of the Senses are out of order The face waxeth pale Plin. lib. 14. c. 22. the nose grows sharp the checks swell the eyes are inflamed the tongue falters the mouth drivels the hands tremble the feet interferre
Maids to see what it was I know not who was this fortunate Handmaid which had this Commission but she brought unto her Mistress the little Vessel in which was inclosed the Honor and Prosperity of the people of Israel Yet at first there onely appeared a childe weeping in its swadling clothes and whose bare aspect moved compassion in this good Princess who perceived that it was an effect of her Fathers Edicts Câ—i soror pueri Vis inquit ut vadam vocem tibi mulierem Hebraeam c. Exod. 2. v. 8. and some remnant of Egypts misfortune The Sister then of this found Infant who expected nothing less than such an incounter asked whether they would think it fit for her to bring a Nurse for him Respondit Vade Perrexit puella c. Exod 2. v. 8. Ad quam locuta fiâ—ià Pharaonis Accipe ait puerum istum c. Exod. 2. v. 9. To which the Princess having willingly condescended she ran instantly to finde the Mother of the childe who came as unknown to present her self and to whom presently the Daughter of Pharaoh gave the charge of nursing up this Infant O God! How profound are thy thoughts and how impenetrable are they to ignorant and frantick souls When will the day come when thou wilt withdraw the veil which hides from us so many secrets Children of men poor Egyptians blinde people Will you never open your eyes to follow the light of this sage Intelligence which governs the World under his Laws Is it not the part of a Fool to endeavor to stop the course of this Primum mobile which moves the Heavens and makes all the Elements to quake Is it not to oppose Feathers unto the Waves of the Sea and to the Thunders of the Air Is it not to be more brutish and less sensible than Beasts which follow the instinct and conduct of their Creator It is then in my Dominion saith this Lord all Beasts of the Forests abide they are all mine Sovereign Empire and it is in my bosom where I see every year the beauty of the Fields displaying it self It is I who bear Riches and Honors in my hands and who place Diadems upon the heads of Kings All Temples then must be demolished and all Altars rased where we adore casual Destinies and frightful Fortunes which yield nothing but smoke obscurity dread and terror For my part Confidence in God I had rather float in a Cradle of Bulrushes and land at a good Haven having God for my Pilot his Providence for my Helm his Power for my Mast Hopes for my Sails his Love for my Cordages Faith for my Anchors his Favor for my sweet Gales and good Works for my Oars than to bury my self alive in the midst of an Abyss led by Pharaoh and followed by an Army which hath neither Assurance nor Hope but on the Wings of the Winds always light and mutable in an Element ever perfidious amongst unskilful men and a thousand hazards which blow in the Sails and govern the Stern during the course of so dangerous a Navigation O my Saviour I am but an Orphan abandoned by Father and Mother forsake me not be thou my guide upon the Billows and in the Tempests of this life my Watch-Tower in the midst of the Night and my secure Haven during the storm O my most sweet and most amiable Redeemer do not abandon me since I am thine both by Nature and Grace at least place me under the protection of thy Mother of thy Daughter and of the Eldest Sister thou hast given me It is enough for me to live in the favor of Mary it sufficeth me to enjoy the least of her regards to be eternally happy Let us steer then O my Soul Let us steer against the current of the Water Pharaoh loseth his labor in despight of Egypts rage of Hell and of all the Infernal Spirits soon or late thou wilt land in the fortunate Iland where thou shalt be received into the Arms of the Queen of Heaven Yes Desireable Lot my Soul if thou dost dedicate thy self unto thy God I promise thee a Fortune as glorious as that of this little Infant which was exposed on the River Nilus and who under the amiable conduct of his Sister Mary hapned to fall into the lap of a Queen who adopted him for her Son Where observe I beseech you Quem illa adoptavit in bocum filii vocavitque nomen ejus Moises dicens Quia de aquis tuli eum Exod 2. v. 10. That it was this Royal Mouth which for a sign she had prese rved him from the Waters gave him this fair name of Moses and caused him to be educted and taught at Court with cares worthy of a wise Princess and a good Mother It was in this Noble School he learnt all the Arts and Sciences which were then current in Egypt that is to say Geometry Arithmetick Astronomy Musick and the most hidden Mysteries of the Hierogliphick in which were found all the rarest Secrets of naturall Philosophy Theology and Policy Clement Alexandrinus also believed that he then learn't Physick and the Civill Law Philo adds over and above that they called thither Masters out of Greece as the best versed in the Liberall Sciences and Chaldeans came by her appointment to teach him the way how to foretell things to come by the aspect of the Planets as also Assyrians to teach him their Ciphers and Characters In fine it is most certain that God poured his most beautifull Lights into his mind and it was this great Master who taught him the Command over Passions and chiefly Meekness Love Affability Liberality greatness of Courage and all the Vertues requisite for a person who was to be Governour of the people of Israel and the Lieutenant Generall of the Armies of the Omnipotent God CHAP. II. The Zeal of Moses and his Marriage with the Daughter of the Prince of Madian THe fairest Vertues would be but bodyes without a Soul Planets without light Excellency of Zeal and its Source and extinguished Torches if these generous ardors and those bright irradiations which we call by the name of Zeal and will give motion light and splendour unto the most holy Actions were taken from them God himself was pleased to take upon him the name of Zelot and when he appeared unto the Prophet under the shape of a man having one half of his body in a flame of fire this was but an Image of the Zeal which inflames him And it is for this cause as I believe Sophonius said that the world shall be devoured by the fire of this Divine Zeal Now it is out of this Furnace that Angels and Men have drawn vigorous flames which inkindled in their hearts a Zeal which all the waters of the Deluge could not have quench'd Viditque afflictionem corum â—â—rum Aegyptiacum percutientem quendam de Hebraeis fratribus suis Exod. 2. v. 11. Cumque circumspexisset
Moses took the Rod in his hand as God had commanded him and then he took leave of his father-in-law to return into Egypt whither he carried his wife and Children It was upon the way God appeared to him the second time Dixitque ei Dominus revertenti in Aegyptum Vide ut omnia ostenta quae posui in manu tua sacias coram Pharaâ—ne ego indurabo cor ejus non dimittet populum Exod 4. v. 21. Ecce ego interficiam silium tuum primogenitum Exod. 4. v. 23. and where he advertised him of the future obduration of Pharaoh's heart and that after so many signs he should persist in his obstinacy and in the design of detaining the Children of Israel It was also commanded him to carry unto this unfortunate Prince the first news of the death of his Eldest Son which was to be the last dart of the revenging Justice of God and that which was to open the eyes of Pharaoh and to mollifie his heart for some time In some part of Moses Journey into Egypt Cumque esset in itinere in dâ—ersorio occurrit ei dominus qui volebat occidere eum Exod 4. v. 24. he was met by an Angel who offer'd to kill him with the Sword he held in his hand Rabbi Solomon who had a wit more inventive for a Romance than a true one for a History would induce credulous mindes to believe That this Angel had appeared under the shape of a Dragon and that he had devoured Moses even to the place of the Body where Circumcision was wont to be applied The two Eusebius's of Caesaria and Emissene believed That the cause why God threatned and afflicted Moses was for having brought his Wife with him the which might vilifie his Mission and render it suspected unto the Hebrews But that which followed renders the conception of St. Isidore of Damietta of Rupertus and Cajetan more probable who believed That it was done to punish the disobedience and the too long delays of Moses to whom he had given command to circumcise his Children Gen. 17. v. 12. Tulit illico Sephora acutissimam petram circumcidit praeputium silii sui Exod. 4. v. 25. For presently his Wife desiring in some sort to repair this fault and to withhold the hand of the Angel took a Knife made of a Stone to circumcise her Son The which being done she kneeled down to mitigate the wrath of this Angel who vanishing left the Husband and Wife in a sad astonishment In such sort as Moses was not able to speak a word Vide Cajetanum and Sephora beholding his eyes bathed in tears and his hands red with blood could not open her mouth but to say unto Moses That in truth he was her Husband but a bloody Husband Et â—it Sponsus sanguinum tu mihies and whom she had as it were acquired by shedding the blood of his own children Now from this example Advice to Parents all Fathers of Families should learn to obey the Will of God and testifie their Zeal and Piety not onely in their own persons but also in the person of their Children Above all they must take a Knife into their hands to cut off all that is impure And if men be therein less manly that is to say less generous than their Wives it is their part to take up Arms and as I have already said upon two or three occasions not to spare either Fire Sword or Blood provided it be done with Prudence Counsel and Piety CHAP. VI. The Embassie of Moses and of Aaron into Egypt TO the end God may be obeyed when he commands Necessary Obedience we must march when he sets forth and we ought not to be silent when he puts words into our mouths to speak by his order Kings hold their Scepters from him and all their Power is but a flash of light which issueth from this Sun without which all Thrones Empires and Crowns would have neither lustre Post haec ingressi sunt Moises Aaron dixerunt Pharaoni Haec dâ—cit Domirus Deus Israel dimitte populum meum Exod. 5. v. 1. At ille respondit Quis est Dominus ut audiam vocem ejus dimittam Israel Nescio Dominum Israel non dimittam Exod. 5. v. 2. nor resplendency Moses and Aaron then need not fear to appear in the presence of Pharaoh and to say boldly unto him That he who is their Lord and God commands him to restore Liberty unto his people But who is this God saith he unto Moses and Aaron of whom you speak For my part I know him not and in despight of him I will detain this people which you demand of me He doth much more for he heaps punishment upon punishment and orders these poor people to be used with more rigor than before Now as it is the custom of the miserable Occurreruntque Moisi Aaron qui stabant ex adverso egredientibus à Pharaont dixerunt ad eos Videat Dominus judicet quoniam foetere secistis odorem nostrum coram Pharaone c. Exod. 5. v. 21. and of those that suffer to complain of every thing and oftentimes to make even those the Authors of their afflictions who endeavor to procure their good so the people of Israel began even to murmure against Aaron and Moses as if the design of their coming-in had been to increase their sufferings There is nothing more cruel and less supportable to a good soul than Ingratitude It is the justest occasion can interrupt the current and continuation of a Benefit and not wholly to stop it we must seek constancy in God who alone hath power and goodness enough to oblige even the most ungrateful persons It is also to him Moses addresseth himself and it is into his bosom he makes an amiable discharge of all his thoughts Alas Reversusque est Moises ad Dominum ait Domine cur afflixisti populum istum quare misisti me Exod. 5. v. 22. Ex eo enim quo ingressus sum ad Pharaonem ut loqueâ—er in nomine tuo afflixit populum tuum non liberasti â—os Exod. 5. v. 23. Lord saith he why dost thou permit the oppressions of thy people And if I be not able to bring them relief why hast thou sent me rather to exasperate than comfort their Afflictions After this loving complaint God discovered himself fully unto Moses to give him a more assured mark of his love Go from me saith he and know that I am that Adonijah whose name is ineffable and whom the quickest and most peircing eyes do not discover but amidst obscurities Yes surely For it is onely under the veils of Faith and through the clouds which cover the Sanctuary God can be known Blindness of Humane Wisdom We must be guided by his obscure Clarities or God himself must inform us who he is otherwise we shall be the Disciples of Aximenes who will swear That God
Subjects But these Flies were so troublesome and furious and they fed with so much eagerness on Pharaoh Aben. Sir and the Egyptians that the Hebrews made a Proverb of them calling all those who lived in the World on blood and slaughter The Flies of Egypt They entred saith Philo even into their Noses into their Eyes into their Mouths and it seemed as if Hell had vomited them forth as so many Devils Nevertheless Digitus Dei hic est Exod. 8. v. 19. Feceruntque similiter malefici incantationibus suis ut educerent sciniphes non potuerunt Exod. 8. v. 18. it was an effect of the right hand of the Omnipotent and even in the sight of the Magicians of Egypt It was the Finger of God which had created them All the effects also of their magick could not produce the like nor shoot such Arrows and Darts as Heaven did at Pharach O God! How insensible then is this King and must this Army increase to heighten his disaster This was but the third Plague which I would fold up under the same title with the fourth The fourth Plague not knowing how to finde tearms or names peculiar enough and which may clearly distinguish the one from the other It is sufficient to know that God first assaulted Pharaoh by Rivers of Blood Secondly With Frogs thirdly and fourthly with Armies of Flies But the first which appeared were as some have believed of a particular Species and of which none like them had been ever seen till that time Albertus Magnus 〈◊〉 lib. 16. de animalibus It a describit sciniphes Albertus the Great affirms That these kinde of Creatures had Wings and Heads like Flies and Bodies like little Worms with a sting in their mouths which they darted like a Javelin chiefly into the softest and the most humid parts of the Nose to draw and suck thence the most subtile and pure Spirits of the Head Whatever may be said thereof surely these were Flies of a miraculous kinde which as Philo and Origen say were most offensive and cruel yet their stings did not pierce deep enough into the heart of Pharaoh but it was further requisit to assail him with new Battalians to see whether he would yield It is true That God might have raised Bears Leopards and Panthers against him as well as Flies and Frogs But it is for men to require great forces to supply their own weakness whereas he that can do all of himself hath need of nothing and the most vile and meanest Creatures in the World are able to do all things with him Pharaoh having again then refused to permit the people of Israel to depart Induratumque est cor Pharaonis non audivit eos sicut praeceper at Dominus Exod. 8. v. 19. Ecce ego immittam in te omne genus muscarum Exod. 8. v. 21. Faciamque mirabilem in die illa terram Gessen in qua populas meu◠est ut non sint ibi muscae Exod. 8. v. 22. Vocavitque Pharao Moisen Aaren ait eis Ite sacrificate Deo vestro in terra hac Exod. 8. v. 25. Et ait Moises non potest ita fieri Abominationes enim Aegyptiorum immolarimus Domino Ded nostro Quod si mactaverimus ea quae colunt Aegyptii coram eis lapidibus nos obruent Exod. 8. v. 26. God besieged him the fourth time with all sorts of Flies so that Egypt was full of them except the Land of Gessen where those Hebrews lived who were exempted by a particular privilege from God who would distinguish his people from the Egyptians and evidence unto them both that their good and bad estate proceeded from him Whereupon Pharaoh commanded Aaron and Moses to come before him and permitted them to Sacrifice upon his Territories That they might appease the wrath of him who so prodigiously afflicted him and by such admirable chastisements but they answered him That they could not accept of this offer by reason this were to expose the Hebrews to the hazard of their lives and to be stoned by the Egyptians who abhorred the Sacrifices of Beasts which were nevertheless the Victims whereof the people of Israel ordinarily made use Nevertheless the fury of these little Soldiers which wasted Egypt without relaxation Dixitque Pharao ego dimitiam vos ut sacrificetis Domino Deo vestro in deserto Exod 8. v. 28. Et ait Moises Egressus à te orabo Dominum recedet musca à Pharaone à servis suis Verumtamen nols ultra sullere utnon dimittas populum sacrificare Domino Exod. 8. v. 29. Et ingravatum est cor Pharaonis ita ut nec hac quidem vice dimitteret populum Exod. 8. v. 32. and chiefly Pharaoh seeing himself assaulted and assassinated by them on all sides was at last inforced to give way to Moses going into the Wilderness there to pay the duties of his Religion and earnestly to invoke the goodness of God on his behalf To which Moses consented promising him that this Cloud of Enemies which persecuted him should be quickly dispersed upon condition notwithstanding he would no more deceive him and retain his people But the truce which followed and the favor which was shewn by the Prayers of Moses was no other than a new occasion this detestable King took to abuse the Patience of God CHAP. XII The Plague and Ulcers THe Plague is a fatal poyson The fift Plague and pernicious to all Nature which is ingendred in the Body by the disorder of Humors and by the mixture of the Air with certain putrified and infected Atoms which we draw in and swallow in breathing and so go directly to the Heart which is the Fountain of life and as the Hearth on which the natural heat is nourished which this poyson extinguisheth and consumes Whence I conclude Marciline Ficinus in Epidem with one of the most learned Physicians and most subtile Philosophers which hath ever been That the particular causes of this disease are commonly either the Defections of the Planets and especially of the Sun and Moon or their Conjunctions as of Saturn and Mars or the Malignant Impressions of Comets and certain Meteors which pervert the qualities of the Air and which by the sequel of some over hot and moist Winds or else by immoderate Rains or from some other effects of which they are the Origin raise Seeds of Putrifaction and horrid Vapors which impoyson the Elements and all other Bodies into which they insinuate themselves Moreover this Contagion may grow from too violent and too immoderate excesses in sleep or watchings in repose or exercise feasting or abstinence but chiefly from disorder which begets in the Humors of the Body the Passions of the Minde amongst which Love is a Wilde-fire and Brand of Hell which inkindles a thousand Inflammations a thousand Coals and a thousand Plagues In fine Particular causes of the Plague There are many particular causes of the Plague and
139 Hail plague of Egypt 286 Wretched Harvest of worldly men 152 Hail-storm in Constantinople 268 Hardness of Pharaohs heart 269 Hardness of heart a woful estate 271 Grashoppers of Egypt 289 I. Jacob and Esau 121 Figure of the Christian and Jewish people 116 Jacob Esau 's elder brother and how 137 His agreement with his father-in-law Laban 155 Jacob resolves to send Benjamin into Egypt 207 His descent into Egypt to see his son Joseph 223 The answer he made to Pharaoh concerning his age 229 His death and last words 231 Idols and their subversion 344 Detestable Idolatry of amorous persons 39 Jethro the counsel he gave to Moses to establish Judges for deciding differences between the people of Israel 337 Atheistical ignorance 85 Images of Jesus Christ anciently painted in Temples and Houses in the form of a Lamb 27 Image of a generous courage 69 Image of Gods judgement 86 Image of the lives of men 126 Image of the life and death of Jesus Christ 145 Image of Chastity 184 Image of the World 198 Imagination the effects and properties thereof 156 Unnatural impudence of Cham 48 Inconstancy of created things 113 Dreadful incertainty 135 Incarnation its draught and picture 144 Innocence secured 170 Innocence victorious 179 Inhumanity more than brutish 220 Joseph born of Rachel 154 Joseph sold by his brethren 165 Joseph known by his brethren 214 His lamentations for the death of his Father Jacob 242 Joshua his victories over the Amalekites 332 Isaac his birth 93 The discourse he held with his father asking him where was the victim of his Sacrifice 108 His submission and obedience 109 His mariage with Rebecca 116 Most exact Justice 83 Judges a fair example for them ibid. Judas the brother of Joseph made a speech to him in the name of his brethren 216 Judgements of God incomprehensible 290 Prodigious increase of the people of Israel 247 Jacobs Ladder 141 Jacobs wrestling with the Angel 159 K. Kings of France true successors of Abraham 80 L. Laban is grieved for the barrenness of his flocks 156 His agreement with Jacob and his return unto Mesopotamia 157 Lesson to husbands and wives 17 Leah considerable for her fruitfulness 154 Dangerous liberty 29 Liberality cannot be without freedom 79 Liberality portraict of the Divinity ibid. Liberty of holy Souls 80 Liberty of Esau cause of his misfortune 128 Laws their excellency 357 Their establishment 368 Lot delivered out of the hands of his enemies by the means of Abraham 70 Luxury destruction of souls and canker of body 64 Love its effects and properties 3 Love architect of the world ibid. Gods love never idle 73 Incredulous love 224 Ladder of divine providence 146 Lots wife transformed into a pillar of Salt 89 Irreparable loss 184 Life of man a war without truce 159 Life and death inseparable companions 231 M. Magicians of Pharaoh and their enchantments 270 Admirable magnificence of God 58 Malediction of parents dangerous 132 Malediction of God on the Serpent 23 Malediction of Noah on his son 48 Malice of an eloquent woman 20 Manna of the desart 320 The time when it was to be gathered 323 Mariages subject to many disasters 123 Mariage of Isaac with Rebecca 116 Assured marks of our disposition 126 Martyrdom of love 103 Mixture of fortune 166 Excellent meditation 298 Pleasing Metamorphosis 63 Murther of Abel 27 Michael the Emperor quits his Empire to enter into a religious life 58 Mirror of Essences the motto thereof 29 World error of some Philosophers touching the beginning thereof 8 Monarchy of Adam and Eve over the Univers 19 The world is a Theatre 116 Extreme mortification 145 Motives which induced God to create the world 1 Motives of Conscience 140 Powerful motives to divert the brethren of Joseph from wicked designs 172 Moses 246 His birth and education ibid. His learning 252 His zeal and mariage with the daughter of the Prince of Madian 253 His fear at the sight of the flaming Bush 257 His Commission concerning the deliverance of the people of Israel 260 The certain marks of his power 263 He excuseth himself for accepting the Commission which God gave him 265 The threats God used to him 266 His Embassie into Egypt 267 He is visited in the desart where he creates Judges and Magistrates 334 His last Actions 385 His Testament 386 His last Canticle 402 Mysteries hidden under the Paschal Lamb 300 Man necessary for the world 9 Men eloquent when it concerns their own praise excellent conceptions upon this subject 10 Man the sport of the gods 148 Honest man what he is 163 N. Nature of God beneficent 320 Nature her power limited 269 Nembrod cheif contriver of the Tower of Babel his spirit and disposition 49 Noah his obedience to the command of God 41 His going out of the Ark and his sacrifice on the Hills of Armenia 44 Names Chariots of Essences 74 O. Obligation of fathers and mothers 128 Dreadful obstinacy 271 Oeconomy of the humane body 12 Opinion of Hesiod touching the Creation of the World 8 Original sin 15 Ornaments of the Sanctuary 369 P. Peace and Purity inseparable companions 65 Terrestrial Paradise 16 Paradise first habitation of man 16 Passions their different nature 181 Patience very awful 84 Persecution of modesty 184 Perfidiousness of the world 206 Plague of Egypt 284 Natural causes of the plague 285 Pharaoh King of Egypt makes Joseph his Lieutenant by reason of the truth of his predictions 196 Command of Pharaoh concerning the murther of all the male-children of the Hebrews 248 Pharaoh swallowed up in the Red Sea 304 Plagues of Egypt 275 Antient Policy 356 Portraict of the Justice of God 86 Predictions of Joseph 192 Efficacious prayers 122 Prevision of merits 137 Proclaming of Joseph by his Brethren 172 Promulgation of the Law on Mount Sina 343 Paternal Prudence 169 Punishment of Adam 14 Shameful pusillanimity 69 Putipher his over-great credulity 186 The impudence of his wife and her attempt upon the chastity of Joseph 178 Paschal Lamb 299 Planets the beginning of their courses 5 Pillar of Fire and Clouds 379 Picture of Hell 91 Picture of Fortune 194 Pains of women in child-bearing 23 Prayer the power and effects thereof 122 R. Rachel and her sterility 154 Radegond a despiseth France to become religious 59 Ramerus King of Aragon follows the same destiny ibid. Amiable resemblance between Joseph and Jesus Christ 222 The recompence of Jacob for his services 155 Pitiful reliques of sin 26 Remorse of Conscience 32 Remedies against Envy 35 Reproaches of God to Cain 28 Very just resentments 77 Rosignation of Abraham 101 Angelical resolution of Joseph 181 Rock and its motto 102 Ruben his affection towards his brother Joseph 173 Rivers their bounds and limits 5 River of Charity 80 S. Sacrifices very different of Abel and Cain 28 Sacrifices of Aaron consumed by fire from Heaven 376 Sanctification of the Sabhath 346 Sarah her death 113 How long she lived 115 Scamander i'ts properties effects