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A46742 A sermon preached at the assizes held in Warwick, March the nineteenth 1682/3 by Samuel Jemmat ... Jemmat, Samuel. 1683 (1683) Wing J550; ESTC R34479 10,599 38

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A SERMON PREACHED at the Assizes held in WARWICK MARCH the Nineteenth 1682 3. By SAMUEL JEMMAT M. A. sometimes Fellow of Vniversity Colledge OXON now Vicar of St. Nicholas's Church in the Borough of WARWICK OXFORD Printed by Leonard Lichfield Printer to the University for George Teonge Bookseller in Warwick 1683. To the Worshipful THOMAS LUCY of CHARLECOTE Esquire HIGH SHERIFFE of the County of Warwick THere are three things which if universally conjoyn'd would certainly make this Nation happy The just Awe and Reverence of the Divine Nature Loyalty to the King God's immediate Vice-gerent upon Earth And the due Execution of Justice for the terror of evil doers and the praise of them that do well The first would make them good Christians the second would make them good Subjects and the third would either perswade or force them to be good Men. In order to the attaining of these ends I have made it my business according to my slender capacity to evidence that there is a God who ruleth over the highest and that He is so far graciously pleased to promote the good of Humane society as to make Government his own Ordinance that they who are Subjects are bound to be obedient and loyal by God's authority and that they who represent our gracious Sovereign in the high seats of Judicature are obliged to fidelity by the greatest Commands and Encouragements SIR being selected by Your undeserved favour to be your Chaplain at this remarkable time I was perswaded that I could no way better publish the true sentiments of your Loyal heart or discharge my Own Duty than by endeavouring to instill into the minds of my Auditory these weightier matters of the Royal Law If I have in the least degree promoted the Honour of God and the King satisfied your Self confirmed any true Christians in their just sentiments and convinced or confuted any seditious Anarchical spirits I have compassed my end shall give God the glory and remain Honoured SIR Your most Humble and Faithful Servant SAMUEL JEMMAT 2 CHRON. 19.6 And said to the Judges take heed what ye do for ye judge not for man but for the Lord who is with you in the Judgment IEhoshaphat was one of the best of all the Kings of Judah it having pleased the Spirit of God to record it of him about the beginning of his Reign a 2 Chron. 17.3 4. that he walked in the first ways of his Father David and sought not unto Baalim but sought to the Lord God of his Fathers and walked in his commandments and not after the doings of Israel And afterwards towards his latter end the same spirit testifies b 2 Chr. 20.32 that he walked in the way of Asa his Father and departed not from it doing that which was right in the sight of the Lord. And on the other side He only chargeth him with breaking Leagues with c 2 Chr. 18.3 Ahab and d 2 Chr. 20.3 Ahaziah two wicked Kings of Israel which according to humane policy might seem agreeable enough with the reasons of State and for not removing the High places e 2 Chr. 20.33 which the people still had recourse unto having not throughly prepared their hearts to the God of their Fathers By all which it is intimated though his Predecessors had their failings yet He in the beginning progress and end of his reign was highly commendable That he had a constant respect unto the holy commandments of God and made them the rule of his own life as well as the Government of his Kingdom The consequent whereof was this that he did more in the reformation both of Civil and Ecclesiastical affairs than any that had gone before him since the days of David The words which I have read are part of the charge which this good King gave to the Judges commissioned by himself And therefore from them we may rationally expect to learn some of the main and principal duties which concern all those who live in any degree of Eminency or Authority either in Church or State and more especially those that are in office appertaining to Justice This good King being dead yet speaks and that aloud in the words of the Text saying to the Judges take heed what ye do for ye judge not for man but for the Lord who is with you in the judgment Which words present us with four remarkable and profitable truths The two first of which ought to be of general influence and the two latter principally concern those Sages which are in Commission They are these Truth I That the primary source and original of Judgment is God Though Judges are chosen commissioned by and must give their accounts to the King yet they judge not for man but for the Lord. Truth II That the Kings of the earth are the secondary springs and fountains of Justice Next and immediately under God judgment flows from them And therefore the King in the Text gives his command to the Judges in these words He said to the Judges Truth III That it is highly incumbent upon all Judges to be most critically cautious and careful Both God and the King say to them take heed what you do Truth IV That all they who are duly advanced to such eminent places of trust and dignity have the greatest motives in the world to be faithful in the performance of their duty and that because God is with them in the judgment I begin with the first of these viz. That the primary source and original of Truth I Judgment is God Though Judges are chosen commissioned by and must give their accounts to the King yet they judge not for man but for God I am not ignorant that there were two sorts of Judges among themselves in the days of Jehoshaphat such as were concern'd in Ecclesiastical and such as were intrusted only with Civil affairs The constitution of both is manifest from vers 11. of this chapter where the King declares Behold Amariah the chief Priest is over you in all matters of the Lord and Zebediah the son of Ishmael the Ruler of the house of Judah for all the King's matters Yet do I not think it rational for any man so to appropriate Ecclesiastical affairs to the Lord as to exclude him from his interest in those that are Civil but have good reason to conclude that the King speaks to both sorts of Judges when he saith ye judge not for man but for the Lord. That 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which he makes use of vers 10. by instancing in particular cases sufficiently proves what I say And what cause soever shall come to you of your Brethren that dwell in their cities between blood and blood between law and commandement statutes and judgments ye shall even warn them that they trespass not against the Lord. Those criminal causes between blood and blood were certainly Civil as well as those which related to the statutes and judgments were Ecclesiastical and yet the
enacted and continue in force for the Government of this Nation wherein we live And for superadding the high favour of his Royal Promise to govern by Law and to protect the true Protestant Religion as it is by Law established as well as the Properties of his Subjects against all invaders and opponents For these inestimable benefits all the grateful Addresses of his Subjects the greatest inlargement of their hearts and most intimate exultations of their souls are too mean returns Nothing but unmoveable Loyalty to the King Conformity to the Church and active Obedience to his Laws can bear any true proportion to them Certainly we have as great reason as any Nation under Heaven to make an hearty and grateful use of that Exclamation of the Psalmist e Ps 144.15 Happy are the people that are in such a case yea blessed are the people who have the Lord for their God That it is highly incumbent upon all Truth III Judges to be most critically cautious and careful Both God and the King say to them Take heed what you do Caution and Care in such high concerns as they are conversant withal seem to me to include these four things 1. Wisdom and Knowledge Prudence and Experience 2. Courage and braveness of spirit 3. Vigilance and Activity 4. True Christian Piety The first will teach them how to take heed The second will make them dare to do it at all times and in all causes The third will not suffer them to slip any opportunity wherein they ought to be cautious And the last will make them have respect both to God and the King 1. When Caution is thus recommended to the Judges it is implyed that they ought to be men of Wisdom and Knowledge Prudence and Experience i. e. men of great natural abilities and skilful in all those Causes which shall come before them They ought to have a general knowledge and comprehension of the Laws and still to apply that knowledge to the greatest variety of actions Without these it will be impossible for them to take heed what they do notwithstanding they be of themselves well-minded and willing to do justly because Ignorance as forward as it is can hardly be more impudent than it is weak nor can Folly be more swift to discover its Presumptions by its undertakings than it is to testifie its Impotency by its miscarriages But when Prudence and Experience come to be superadded to great natural Abilities and acquired Accomplishments they will certainly prove the most excellent ingredients out of which Care and Caution can be compounded 2. It is implyed hereby that they should be endued with courage and braveness of spirit without which Knowledge and Experience will be but insignificant words and ineffectual sounds Which may sufficiently appear from the consideration of the persons with whom they have to deal the high matters about which they are conversant the rebukes and punishments they are subject too from those who are above them the hatred and violence of inferiours as well as the obloquies and evil speeches of the multitude things which no man in the world can be able to cope withall except he be endued with an extraordinary spirit Mean souls are naturally unfit for high imployments because Cowardice will certainly betray men to base and ignoble actions 't will make them afraid of righteousness both in a Legal and Evangelical sense because it wears a sword 3. T is implied that they should be men of Vigilance and Activity industrious to discover the Truth in every Cause and willing to be guided by it when discovered Though Justice it self ought to be blind yet the Ministers thereof ought to be all eye because the great Governour of the World who hath stiled them Gods never made them Omniscient and though he calls them by his Own name to add Veneration to their Authority yet hath he frequently made it evident to themselves and the world that they are but Men by their Failings It is the unparallel'd excellency of God that He is Omnipresent i. e. as the Schools interpret it in all places at all times by the same indivisible act and undoubtedly he expects it from all those of whom he hath said ye are Gods that they should endeavour to assimilate themselves to Himself by a Politick Vbiquity From whence t is evident that such high Officers are obliged to testifie their Fidelity by their Care their Conscience by their Circumspection Especially because the lives and fortunes of their Brethren are frequently put into their hands and t is possible for them without such caution not only to do unrighteousness in Judgment but also to become the veriest Cut-throats and Pick-pockets in the world Lastly it is implyed that they should be endued with true Christian piety because that will be sure to make them have respect to the commands both of God and the King to the commands of God for his own to the commands of the King for God's sake It will make them reverence Justice because God is the Authour and Archetype thereof and t will incline them to moderate the rigour of Justice with lenitives of Mercy lest they should transgress the rules of true Christian charity You see how necessary it is for them to be cautious and careful both from the nature of the thing it self and also from the Commands of God and the King To which I may most justly superadde the consideration of the Age in which we live This calls for the height of Wisdom the greatest Abilities the bravest spirits the most eminent Activity and the best grounded Religion Because the purest Church which Christ hath this day upon Earth and the best of Monarchies are design'd to be subverted and ruin'd by men of the most different Principles and Interests The Jesuites abroad and the Fanaticks at home are closely engaged in undermining both The former will own no Allegiance to the King if it be inconsistent with the Supremacy of the Pope nor think the vilest murthers or treasons sinful if they will but promote their Hierarchy And the latter behave themselves as if they were of different interests both from the Church and Kingdom and it were chiefly incumbent upon them to ballance Prerogative with Property They therefore study the King's Laws that they may be in a capacity to evade his Power and pretend the Laws of God to take away the force of the Laws of the King They are ready upon all occasions to plead the liberty of the Subject whenever it may prove a snare to the Government and make use of those Franchises and Liberties which have been given by the gracious Kings of this Realm to their once loyal Subjects to deprive their Successors of their Sovereign Authority They so well understand the inclinations of the giddy multitude as at most of their Popular Elections they design to choose such Representatives of the People as are best qualified to restrain the spirit of Princes as if they were with the degenerating Romans to set up the Tribunes of the People with this only design that they might beard the Consular Dignity That 's the third Truth Truth IV Give me leave to speak very briefly to the last and I shall immediately conclude It is this That all who are duely advanced to such Eminent places of Trust and Dignity have the greatest reason in the world to be faithful in the performance of their Duty and that because God is with them in the Judgment T is certain that Omnipresence is an attribute inseparable from the Divine nature they that climb up into Heaven and they that dig down into Hell they that take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the Sea and they that cover themselves with the most opacous darkness can never get out of the sight or company of the Almighty And yet God hath been pleased to make the promise of his special presence an act of Grace and that whereby he would incourage his most eminent Servants in the performance of his own work Hence we read Psalm 82.1 God standeth in the Congregation of Princes He is a Judge among Gods and in the Text He is with you in the Judgment God is with them and stands by them not as an idle Spectator or unconcern'd Auditor but as one who gives them their best Commission will countenance maintain protect and reward them for their lawful Acts but will keep a severe book of remembrance against them if ever they force Judgment which should run as as a pure and mighty stream to spring up as f Hos 10.4 hemlock or g Amos 5.7 wormwood My Lords I don't question but that You are prepared and resolved to obey the King and to judge not for man but for the Lord and therefore I have good warrant to declare that God will be with you in the Judgment For which and all other gracious vouchsafements to Mankind let us render unto the Glorious and Eternal Trinity God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost the only Wise and True God all Honour Obedience and Adoration now and for ever Amen THE END ERRATA Pag. 2. l. 7. read making p. 5. l. 10. r. for the Lord. l. 12. r. the Jews p. 7. l. 5. r. whosoever p. 10. l. 2. r. viz. the fear of p. 18. l. 21. r. mens p. 21. l. 2. r. that Allegiance p. 23. l. 1. r. with them p. 31. l. 11. r. 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