it is specially recorded now it is onely mentioned Chap. 9 3. now it is twice repeated to shew hee did it onely for this cause and wee to doe the like for the death of the slaine Messiah Thus he plainly foretells and by his example prescribeth this our Christian Fast Secondly as he did it at the time of the feast so hee then continueth this fast much longer than this Feast hee began it the third that is full eight dayes before the feast and ended it if then he did the foure and twentieth that is full three dayes after Thereby no doubt to take in the very day of His death of this most bloudy crucifying the Prince the Messiah plainly teaching all who mean to have no hand in His death to shew thus much by their sorrow for His death Therefore which is observable it is not onely twice repeated but with a great Emphasis 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 three full weekes and till three 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 whole weeks were fulfilled to shew that as his fast took in so much more time above the feast so it was chiefly intended for a further end viz. to take in the very time of his death who being the true Passeover was therefore the true end and complement of that feast And this I take to be one Reason amongst many others of the Primitive and first instituting and so long continuing this Lenten Fast For as Daniel because of the Moones so great variation on which the feast depended that falling sometime higher sometime lower did therefore lengthen his Fast the better to take in the very day of His Crosse suffering so was and it is much more necessary for us Christians not now any longer keeping the foureteenth day of the first moneth Hoc constat satis è sola Paschatis observandi ratione scil inter vicesimum secundum mensis Martii Aprilis 25. inclusi Hoc enim dierum circulo Orientales Christiani Diei Paschatis observationem definierunt ut apprimè necessarium sit praeparatorium illud jejunium Quadragesimale anteriùs in Anni Caput excurrere Vid. Graecor 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ad initium Evangelist Graec. with the Iewes to keep our fast as long nay now much longer for the same reason And now we see even this that Daniels fast thus dipt in the bloud of Iesus is that which maketh it so gracious so lovely so acceptable as we see it is that he fasted now at this time when he foresaw CHRIST should suffer when the Messiah was to be slaine Chap. 9.26 but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not for Himselfe No indeed it was for Daniel and all like him of us who can finde in our hearts to mourne for Him whilest He suffers for us And sure what great matter is this Is it much if we weepe whilest he bleedes if we shed some few teares for Him who shed so much bloud for us So much Bloud not to speake of Teares In the Cradle In the Garden On the Crosse By whipping by scourging by crucifying by nailing by piercing From His hands From His feet From His head From His side From His whole body of which no part was whole but so broken till even His heart bloud issued and powred it selfe out like water And all this so willingly so readily of His own accord For us I lay downe my life saith Hee What good nature can here hold in and not shed teares for Him Surely Daniel cannot The sight melts him to water turnes him to teares his feast to fasting he resolves now on nothing all this time but mourning And truly what should he or we doe else What wife would not mourne for her Bridegroome He is the Bridegroome What friend or brother would not mourne for his friend I have said saith He and speciall grace it is you are my friends What Disciple servant or follower would not mourne for his Lord and Master Ye are saith he my Disciples Who will not shed at least a teare for every one of these Yet Hee being all these in the highest kinde is yet farre more then these For Hee is our Father And what childe will not mourne for his Father He is both Abraham's GOD and our Father Before Abraham was saith He I am Yea saith Daniel Hee is our Prince even the Prince the Messiah Chap. 9.25 26. And what subiect would not lament to see his Prince butchered and slaine before his eyes And truly for Him so Good so Great yet suffering so shamefully so painefully so innocently so undeservedly though great cause to mourne for Him with Him Our Prince The Messiah Yet farre greater cause if greater may be here and now to mourne in thus fasting for our selves Our owne sins For in His being thus cut off we may reade our very sentence our owne doome and death All ours yea in much more fearefull case had not Hee beene ours All like to light most heavily on every one of us had not He been slaine for us In His death we may see the hideous horrid foulnesse of our sins which were able thus to fetch GOD from Heaven and to crucifie Him here on earth If GOD so severely chastice His most beloved Sonne what shall bee done to His unworthy servants In His bloud as with most capitall red letters not onely Gods most infinite loving mercy is recorded thus even to give His Son for us but also His most severely revenging justice whilest he thus gave him to death a bitter cruell and cursed death If GOD so strictly punish His most obedient Sonne onely made sinne for us how shall he torment all Rebellious sinners There is no Christian but abhorres the memory of Iudas Pilate the Iewes and Pharisees that crucified the Lord of Glory For this the Iewes are hatefull not onely to Christians but even to the Turkes and Mahumetans at this day The ancient Christians using to salute one another with a * Sic Die Paschae quo cōmunis quasi publica jejunij religio est meritò deponimus osculum quod cum omnibus faciamus Tertul. De Orat. cap. ult kisse of Peace at their daily Prayers did on Good Friday the day of His Passion omit it as detesting then the Hypocrisie and treachery of Iudas no way willing though but in this to communicate with that wicked Traytor * Inde mos iste hodiernus apud Aethiopas Abassynos Christianos quo Mirum servantes silentium nec inter se salutant dùm sibi mutuò occurrunt in viâ sed mutorū instar demissis oculis praetereunt Nec vendunt nec emunt nec pecuniam tangunt Id faciunt in odium Iudae proditoris qui Christum pacis osculo fraudulenter salutatum argenteis triginta vendidit Tantâque adversus illum irâ incendūtur ut nemo ferè sit qui compositā ex scrutis Iudae imaginē non raptet per viam quod pueris praecipuè ludi magis qùam odij causâ frequentissimum Nullus n.
Altar as accounting that place ever after holy and sacred So we reade Gen. 12.13 and 15. Gen. 12.13 15. Chapters For this Moses and Ioshua are bid put off their shoes as you heard already to remember them that the place where they stood before GOD was holy For this cause must we also that enter hither bee holy as Hee is holy 1 Pet. 1.16 1 Pet. 1.16 because as the Prophet David confesseth Psal 93.5 Psal 93.5 Holinesse ô LORD becommeth thy House for ever S. Cyril Mystag Catechet 5 ta p. 544. Liturg. S. Iaco. p. 30. Lit. S. Chrys 65. S. Basilij 47. This was the reason that in the Primitive Church especially before the receiving of the blessed Eucharist the Deacon stood up and cryed with a loud voyce 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Holy things be to them that are holy And even amongst the Heathen themselves by the light of nature before they began their Sacrifices the Priest first beholding the people round about him demanded 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 who is here c. The people answering 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 many but those onely that are good Intimating that if there were any there guilty to themselves of any foule offence they should separate and goe apart from the rest as unworthy the view and presence of such holy mysteries But what needs will some say such Reverence Objection such preparation as though this place or the duties here performed being so holy could not make us also holy To which I answer with our SAVIOUR Matth. 21.13 Answ Vos fecistis It is most certaine this House cannot sanctifie us but we may defile and pollute it Ezek. 23.38 Yee have made my House * Qui domo Dei non utitur ad Orationis Domum is eo devenit ut speluncam latronum efficiat eam Fr. Iunius lib. 1. Parall 38. a den of theives They have defiled my Sanctuary c. True it is Temples Altars and Sanctuaries even by humane lawes have had the priviledges of defending and preserving the nocent from the hands of their pursuing enemies but against our Spirituall adversaries they are of no more force then is a stately house in the * Horace Non domus aut fūdus non aeris aceruus c. Poets judgement able to defend the owner from a gout or ague for even here sinne lyeth at the doore nay hither it enters and rather hither then into any other place Because Satan is most busie in the House of God I. Thus Iob 1.6 Iob 1.6 Satan stand's amongst the sonnes of God And 1 King 22. 1 King 22.22 He is a false witnesse in the mouth of the Prophets So true is that Proverbe Where GOD hath His Church the Divell hath his chappell According to that story of the saint in the Legend who for one Devill in the Market-place and him altogether idle saw ten thousand in the Church very busie at every mans elbow and surely Gulielm Neubrigens hist. de Reb. Angl. lib. 2. cap. 21. p. 1. Empedocles ap Plutarch had we that gift which Neubrigentius saith one Kettell had at Farneham in Yorkeshire of seeing and beholding the Divels where they are doubtlesse we would confesse Empedocles his position to be most true 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that this aire and place where we are now assembled hath thousands of Devils and commanded spirits all busie about us to see if they can by any meanes divert us from GOD and goodnesse and turne away our minds from that service we come here about 2 Were it so that Satan were kept out yet even with us there entreth sinne and corruption enough to make us unfit for GOD For every one beareth about with him the Body of sin Rom. 6.6 as the Apostle cals it And such a Body it is where the whole head is sick and the whole heart is heavie even from the sole of the foot to the crowne of the head Isay 1.5 6. there is nothing whole No marvell therefore if God jealous of his honour command a Brazen laver to be put betweene the Tabernacle of the Congregation and the Altar for Aaron and his Sons to wash their hands and their feet Exod. 30.20 Rab. Maurus in Exod. lib. 4. c. 12. p. 719. Nè moriantur lest they dye Exo. 30. This did they doe twice a day signifying saith R. Maurus the laver of repentance which we have alwayes need of Maximè autem cùm mysteriis coelestibus ministraturi appropiamus For this cause our Church imitating the ancient formes hath put the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or confession of sins in the first place as it were a striking off the dirt from off our feet as soone as ere we enter And because without Gods grace we can do nothing as also the Divell is then most ready to hinder us when we are most desirously bent to serve and praise GOD Vid. Cassian coll 10. c. 10. P. Lombard in Ps 69. Vid. Bonartium de horis Canon c. 30. Vid. Hug. Vict. De Eccles offic lib. 2. cap. 1. Gemmam animae De Antiq. Ritu Miss lib. 2 cap. 1. 18. Amalarium Fortun. De Ordin Antiphon in Prol. f. 504. Auct BB. PP Psal 95.6 those short Antiphonaries are set in the next place which anciently were used by the religious of Egypt and are found in the beginning of the ancient Liturgies as also in the Iewish more ancient Service O Lord open thou our lips O Lord make haste to helpe us O Lord make speed to save us And lastly because notwithstanding Gods grace given we are ready to reject it and cast it off by our irreverence and neglect That fearefull example of the Iewes rebellion and backsliding is set before us in the 95. Psalme as also our selves are stirred up by the way of an introit to a reverent manner and gesture in praysing GOD O come let us worship and fall downe and kneele before the Lord our Maker Of this the Primitive Christians were put in minde as by the same Psalme so also by those often acclamations of the Deacon Oremus Attenti simus c. And we by these of Praise the Lord. Let us pray And doubtlesse if we marke it by this care of our foot the reverence of our foot is also especially intended For first it is a Rule of all Divines in the interpreting of Scripture That where the literall sense will stand there we must stand to it we may not vary Here therefore we must cleave close to the letter as also in that other Text to the same purpose Phil. 2.10 Phil. 2.10 That at the Name of IESUS every knee shall bow c. Againe it is another Rule in Reason and good Logick That where the greater is commanded the lesser is included If GOD call for the soule much more doth he call for that which hath its being and motion from the soule the body If he command the
Victim S. Hieronym Cont. Iovinian li. 2. c. 6. the latter for this cause termed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 For as S. Hieron well Saturitas ventris Seminariū libidinis A full belly and a foule heart Remove therefore the cause of thy uncleannesse and thy uncleannesse shall be no cause of the Bridegroomes taking away 8 Lastly Fasting is as a signe so a principall cause of mourning Is there any man here that after all this which hath beene sayd cannot yet mourne for the Bridegroome Let him but fast and I dare warrant him to mourne Hunger will bring the stoutest stomackes under it will make them bend It is the Apostle who was in watchings often 2 Cor. 6.5 11.27 1 Cor. 9.27 Vid. Suidam in Lexic verb. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in fastings often 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 saith hee I keepe my body under The word signifyeth a buffetting about the face and eyes as a man would buffet his adversary on his knees This he did by Fasting No way so truly so fully to make us mourne as by fasting If thou canst not mourne betake thee to fasting that will make thee mourne If thou canst mourne yet notwithstanding fast and that will make thee mourne yet more And indeed Sorrow as it came from sinne so it is due onely to sin Gen. 3.16 17. No sorrow before sinne Gen. 3. In sorrow shalt thou conceive to the Woman In sorrow shalt thou eate thy bread to the Man And no sorrow after sinne All teares then shall be wiped from their eyes Apoc. 7.17.21.14 Apoc. 14.13 And from henceforth blessed are they that dye in the LORD No sorrow for them after Death Onely their time is here for sorrow and their sorrow onely for sin We sin dayly and therefore We must sorrow dayly this Godly sorrow not to be repented of 2 Cor. 7 9 10. This is the Valley of teares Here we must mourne But though all this time bee for mourning yet in this there is an especiall time for mourning in an especiall manner Eccles 3.4 And this is that Time Then at that time when the Bridegroome was taken away But here it is usually excepted by them who are no friends to set-fasts Object that this Text speakes of extraordinary fasts in cases of doubt and danger when the Bridegroome and his presence is likely to bee with-drawne or with-holden from us But they are readily confuted 1 By the context Resp and scope of CHRISTS answer which if ad idem must necessarily be meant of Set-fasts For these we read of that did here cavill at Christ and his Disciples did object the continuall Set-fast of the Baptist Mat. 9.14 Mark 2.18 Luke 5.33 the Pharisees and their disciples Why say they doe we and the Pharisees fast oft but thy Disciples fast not All the three Evangelists note this speech concerning their often Set-fasts to have beene the occasion of our Saviours answer But theirs were set and ordinary the Baptist perpetually abstaining as did Daniel from flesh and wine and all desirable meats and drinkes the other also fasting ordinarily * Luke 18.12 De Phariseis Epiphanius 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 S. Epiphan adv haeres lib. 1. haeres 16. Vid. Ioan. Drusium Praeterit lib. 3. p. 107. in locum Luke 18. Abra. Scultet Exercit Evang. lib. 1. c. 25. twice every weeke as doe the * Vid. Ioh. Buxtorf de Synagogâ Iudaic. c. 25. p. 457 Iewes at this day on our Monday their second of the weeke and on our Thursday their fifth of the weeke So that these men must either grant our blessed Saviour not to speake to purpose which to doe were no lesse than blasphemy or they must with us understand him and these words concerning ordinary set-fasts 2 It is demonstrated by the Article 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which in the Greeke roveth not at large but points at exact specialties either let them blot out this word or grant ours and the Texts true meaning Vid. D. Chamier Panstrat Cathol Tom. 3. lib. 19. c. 7. Sect. 43 44 45 46. ubi locum hunc excutit 3 It is proved as we see by the plaine Letter which being the foundation of all other expositions either must stand where 's no reason to the contrary or must bee by reason refelled which being not yet brought by any on the adverse part there can be no cause to depart from it 4 And surely in the fourth place these words referring us plainly to such a time and absence Mat. 9.15 Mark 2.19 Luke 5.34 as is opposite to that time of his presence mentioned in the former Verses it must needs therefore follow that as the one is primarily and properly understood of his then bodily presence upon earth as the time of their rejoycing so must the other also in like manner be underunderstood of His like bodily absence by his Death Passion and Ascention the cause and time of our mourning and therefore of all ordinary fast 5 It is confirmed by the perpetuall exposition of all ancient Christians 6 Yea by the Apostles and whole Churches practice For whereas every week in the course of its dayes hath from thence a commemoration of the Great Day and our joy in Christs Resurrection we celebrating the Lords Day in joyfull prayses and thanksgiving unto God therefore why may we not as well yea much rather conclude there should bee in the same course of times the like day or dayes of mourning for his Passion that we may no lesse mourne and suffer with him the most proper duty of this our sorrowfull and sinfull life here then which is the hope of our after happinesse in Heaven joy and rejoyce with him in the memory of his most glorious and blessed Resurrection 7 But yet againe in the last place even in their sense it is direct for us For if these words are to be applied to all such times when the Bridegroome is or may be removed and withdrawne for our sinnes then is it also proper for continuall and ordinary fasts not only for extraordinary For reason wils that as we sin continually every day of the weeke so we should if it might be fast continually and mourne for our sins which because we cannot daily doe every day fit it is wee should every weeke set some dayes apart and no dayes fitter than those in which hee was even according to the Letter taken away And truly there being alwayes the same reason of every kinde of his taking away by our sins of all our mourning for our sins there being no opposition betwixt them but a subordination of the latter to the former their extraordinary fasts being grounded though in a secondary respect upon the same reason on which are our Ordinary there can be therefore no colour why the Text should be true of one and not of the other Why denied of ordinary and affirmed only of extraordinary fasts especially since our blessed Saviours answer