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A03639
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A sermon preached before the Kinges Maiestie, by I. Hopkins, one of his highnesse chaplaines
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Hopkins, John, fl. 1604-1609.
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1604
(1604)
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STC 13767; ESTC S116562
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17,384
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47
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A Sermon preached before the Kinges Maiestie by I. Hopkins one of his Highnesse Chaplaines EZLA 7.26 27. And whosoeuer will not doe the Law of thy Gods and the Kinges Law let him haue iudgement without delay whether it be vnto death or to banishment or to confiscation of goodes or to imprisonment Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers which so hath put in the Kings hart to beautifie the house the Lord that is in Ierusalem Imprinted at London by W.W. for Thomas Manne 1604. Ezra 7.26.27 The edict of the King The offenders against God against the King their punishment set downe in general the thing itselfe the circumstances of the persons of the time distributed into particulers greater Death banishment smaller in goodos in libertie The thankesgiuing of Ezra the thing person to whom attribute the cause the roote the fruite action subiect A SERMON PREACHED BEFORE THE KINGES Maiestie by I. Hopkins one of his Highnesse Chaplaines EZRA 7.26 27. And whosoeuer will not do the Law of thy God and the Kings law let him haue iudgement without delay whether it be vnto death or to banishment or to confiscation of goodes or to imprisonment Blessed be the Lord God of our Fathers which so hath put in the Kings heart to beautifie the house of the Lord that is in Ierusalem A Speciall duetie required in a Minister of the Gospel is to apply himselfe in his teaching to the present time and occasion in handling such poyntes of doctrine as may be fittest for the hearers from which ground I haue made choyse of this Scripture consisting of these two partes 1 The foote or conclusion of a Commission graunted by Artashashte the Persian Monarch to Ezra the Priest for the stablishing of Religion and punishing of offenders 2 A thankes giuing of Ezra for this great benefit that God had so mooued the heart of the King to haue such care of his Church The words of the text are so plaine they need no farther interpretation I wil therefore endeuour to collect and gather such profitable instructions as will directly arise out of the same for our edification It appeares by all this Edict that this Heathen King had a speciall regard care for the seruice of the great God of heauen which care of his though hee were a heathen man came not of a heathen spirit but by the spetiall direction of the spirit of God and no doubt recorded by the holy Ghost to be an example and mouing president to all Christian Princes to looke vnto this poynt as a principall dutie required at their hands of the Lord by whom they raigne of whoÌ„ they hold their crownes namely to aduance the glory of God in setting vp and maintayning his worship and seruice and to correct and punish the contomners and transgressors of the same And as their loue vnto God hath drawne godly and good Princes to this care so hereunto are all the promises of happines tyed Iosu 1.8 Iosua being commaunded to obserue and do according to all written in Gods law was promised thereby to haue his way prosperous and thereby to haue good successe When the Lord promised the Kingdome of Israel to Ieroboam 1. Kin. 11 38. the Prophet speaketh thus to him from the Lord. If thou hearken to all that I commaund thee and wilt walke in my wayes and do right in my sight to keepe my statutes my commaundements as Dauid my seruant did then will I be with thee and will build thee a sure house as I did to Dauid and will giue Israel to thee So as all this prosperitie to him and to his seede was ptomised vnder this condition of practising the Statutes Commaundements of God 2. Chr. 26 2. Chr. 27 The storie reporteth of Vzziah that he sought God in the daies of Zachariah the Priest who vnderstood the visions of God and when he sought God God made him to prosper Iotham also became mighty because he directed his wayes before the Lord whereto agreeth the saying of our Sauiour If any man serue me Ioh. 12. him wil my father honour Now as al these blessings were thus promised performed so the falling from this course hath bin the ouerthrow of many great Princes with their houses as appeareth in the examples of Saul Ieroboam Ioas with many other Seeing therfore this dutie is both commaunded of almighty God graced blessed with promises of happines and the neglect thereof hath been so fearefully punished these can not be but strong and powerfull motiues to perswade euery one to the true care and practise therof But it is commonly graunted of all that haue any sparke of true religion that Gods honour in the establishing of his worship is to be sought and put in practise but in the performance thereof what slouthfulnes there is euery place yeeldeth too many examples yea those that haue otherwise good graces and largely tasted of the heauenly light herein are too slacke finding excuses as did the people in Hagges time Hâ—g 1.2 who denied not to build the Lordes house but layd it was not yet time to do it They haue their excuses with the Spouse who though she knew it was her beloued that knocked yet makes this answere I haue put off my coate how shall I put it on Cant. 5.3 I haue washed my feete how shall I defile them Exod. 4. Like Moses who though he knew well he ought to obey God yet makes manie excuses and delayes as appeareth in the 4. of Exodus But if we obserue the order of our text we shal finde that this being set in the first place teacheth vs that it should be the first care and practise of all worthy and Christian Princes as the true ground-worke foundation of all future happines yea the first care and practise of euery one of what calling or condition soeuer And this order Almighty God hath obserued in giuing vs his Law placing the duties of his seruice in the first table as first and principally to be respected and obeyed The like order our Sauiour hath giuen vs in our Prayers teaching vs to pray for the sanctifying of his Name glory of Kingdome obedience to his Will before all or any earthly or spirituall benefite to our selues Vnto this also agreeth that coÌ„maundement of our sauiour Christ Mat. 6. First seeke the kingdome of God c. This therfore being Gods order commandement must of necessitie be our practise whereto also we are prouoked specially Kings Princes that are Gods Leiutenants vpon earth by many famous memorable examples recorded in the holy Scripture Gideon being appoynted of the Lord the deliuerer of his people from the Midianites Iud. 6 27. the first Commaundement he receiued which he also first put in practise was to destroy the Alter of Baal 1. Chr. 29.3 Hezechia the first yeere and first moneth of his raigne opeâ—ed the Temple dores 2 Chr. 34.3 Iosia being
did Amasa in the action of Absolon and yet none of these capitally punished The prayer of Dauid herein is an excellent rule Psal 39. Be not mercifull to them that offende of malicious wickednesse with which also agree the wordes of the text He that will not doe the law of God c. implying wilfull contempt and not ignorance or weakenesse And thus much for the execution of iustice in generall Next to be considered are the two circumstaunces hereto annexed obserued in the method of the text of the persons and of the time The persons whosoeuer that none by their greatnesse should be priuiledged in the matters of Gods Law For as it is a like giuen to all so should it be alike obeyed of al and this is a principal dutie of the Magistrate to do euen Iustice equall iustice pleaseth the good and terrifies the ill for Lawes should not be like Spiders webbes to catch the Flies onely and the Swallow should beare them away on her winges Dat veniam coruis vexat censura columbas And therefore they were wont to paint Iustice blinde intending that no respect of persons should be had in iudgement neither doth this impugne that which was before spoken For it is to be vnderstood of such as are a like guiltie where the zeale of Gods glory should take away all partiality 2. Chr. â—â— This is that for which Asa is commended in deposing Maacha his mother from her regencie because shee had made an Idol-groue and on the contrary the destruction of Eli his house came by reason of this partialitie towardes his Sonnes in such high offences against the Lord. The next circumstaunce is of the time without delay not that rashnes is any way tollerable in great executions for Princes should proceede to them as Chirurgians to their cauteries and dissections last when all other remedies haue been firsh tryed considering it more honour to a Prince to gaine one then to execute many for many executions to Princes are as funerals to Phisitians medicorum maculae and if in common businesse reshnesse is so hurtfull as Salomon sayth Prou. 29. Seest thou a man hastie in his matters there is more hope of a foole then of him much more in matters of Iustice vpon the due execution whereof standes oftentimes the good of the state and sodaine and rash executions haue been hurtfull to Princes both in too late repentance and losse of their subiectes affections But the intent of this poynt is that Princes should not be zelous in punishing their owne wronges and carelesse in wronges done to God and least by slâ—cknesse of punishing the wicked should be incouraged according to that in the 8. of Eccles Because the sentence against an euill worke is not executed speedily therefore the hart of the children of men is fully set in them to do wickedly And lastly least for slacknesse of punishing offences done against God the Lord be prouoked to take the cause into his owne hand to punish both the euill doers for their offence and the Magistrats for their slacknesse which also it seemed this Monarke feared as appeares before in the 23. verse For why should he be angrie with the realme of the King and his children The next poynt in the text is the distribution of the punishment into particularities differing in degree according to the qualitie of the fault For as all sinnes are not alike so neither ought all punishments to be alike but the compensation of punishment in the ballance of Iustice should euer hold proportion with the waight of the fault Of these the first is capitall which being for wilful disobedience against the law of God the question might well be touched of punishing obstinate and wilfull Heretiques professed Athistes vpon blasphemers Idolaters and such like with death which is both commaunded in the Law Deut. 17. Exod. 22.20 and exemplified to vs in the practise of Moses Exod. 32 Asa 2. Chr. 15.13 Iosia 2. Kings 23. with many other in the Scripture And whereas some do obiect Fayth is the gift of God and men ought not to be punished for wanting that which is not in their power By the same reason no malefactour should be punished for grace to doe well is the gift of God as well as fayth and as farre out of any mans power as fayth is Yet the Magistrate doth not punish want of fayth but either publique contempt or lewd practise Moreouer christian Princes being keepers of both tables ought to be as zelous against the breakers of the first as of the second and so much more because the first concerns more neerely the glory of God which ought to be of higher accompt then their owne liues As for the argument here against out of the parable of the tares it is not worth the answering seeing by the tares is not meant Heretiques only but all the vngodly as Christ himselfe doth expound it In the rest of the punishments that descend from the highest to the lowest I onely obserue that contempt against the smallest poynt of Gods law should not be vnpunished for Qui contemnit minima paulatim ruit in grauiora And thus much for the first part of this Scripture contayning the decree of the King for the good of the Church Now followes the thankefulnesse of Ezra for so great and vnlooked for ablssing And as in the former part all christian Princes haue an example giuen them to seeke further the aduancement of Gods glory so in this we all may see a patterne of our dutie when we inioy such great mercies from the Lord. For as the best Sacrifice a subiect can offer to his Soueraigne is obedience so the best Sacrifice both Soueraigne and subiect can offer to God is thankfulnesse He that offereth prayse he honoureth me saith the Lord in the 50. Psalme But this age growes like the Heathen who when they knew God did not glorify him as God neither were thankfull Rom. 1. Like the nine Leapers that beeing clensed neuer turned backe to giue thankes and yet few ages or people haue had greater cause then we of this age nations to be thankful to God whose mercies haue bin and are so infinite towardes vs. What greater benefite then the enioying of true religion For had we all the world and beeing ignoraunt of the true God should loose our soules we were most miserable yet hath not the Lord only giuen and continued this vnto vs but euen when wee most feared both the losse of it and our peace together the Lord bestowed such a blessing vpon vs as had an Angell from heauen foretold it before it came to passe he should scarce haue been beleeued For it was contrary to our merite aboue our hope and beyonde all calculation of humane reason True it is the blessings are the same we enioyed in our late Soueraignes time but then seasoned with the bitter pill of Feare to loose them now our hopes do promise the future