Whereof it is easie to gather howe much a do the prophet had with the way-ward people hauing no common rule to direct them either for the worship of God or for the leading of their liues but euery man liuing as himselfe liked best both corrupting the seruice of God with their Idolatrous inuentions and defiling their conuersations with horrible sinnes And after that when the Booke of the Lawe was found and publickly authorized by godly King Iosiah the people for all that became not much more tractable though for his time reduced to some better order yet afterwardes like false-hearted Apostataes they vtterly reuolted to their olde superstitions and loosenes of life And straunge it is to consider what contradiction the holy prophet founde among that stif-necked people who neither regarded the Lorde that sent him nor the Ambassage hee deliuered nor the iminent calamities which were ready to fal vpon their heads None of all these thinges could make their stonie harts to repent but on the contrary they raysed vp troubles and persecutions against the prophet shutting him sundry times in prison sundry times seeking his life they remoued him from one dungeon to another where his feet stucke fast in the myre in so much that he could not bee gotten out till hee was drawne vp with ropes as we see in the 37. 38. chapters And yet notwithstanding he was not dismayd but patiently endured al these afflictions and hauing constantly continued in the faithfull discharge of his propheticall function for the space of more then 40. yeares together at length as it is recorded of him he was stoned to death in Egypt by those Iewes that wer fled thither for feare of the Chaldaeans But now to approch nearer vnto our text When Isaiah that excellent prophet of the Lorde who had bin vehement in rebuking the sinnes of the people had laboured most earnestly to bring them to repentance could not preuaile with all his Trauayle but lost his labour and spent his strength in vain hauing continued prophesying about the space of threescore yeares what hope could our prophet Ieremiah conceiue who succeeded him to preuaile more with that obstinate people then his predecessor had done being both seruants of the same Lord both employed in the same affayres and both ayming at one marke which was the repentance of the people and theyr preseruation from destruction depending vpon their repentance Our prophet therefore as hee was later in time and the destruction of the Iewes nearer at hand so his care was the greater to frame and compose himselfe in speaking to the Iewes after such a sort as his speech might most deepely pierce the very sinnewes of their harts and transfuse it selfe into the marrow of their soules not that he hoped to atchiue any greater maters with them then Isay Ioel his predecessors had done but to make them inexcusable before God and that themselues might acknoledge the Lord to deale most iustly with them when they should feele the rigor of his iudgements hauing bin thereof so often fore-warned This therefore is the cheefest point in Ieremiah his doctrine to be obserued that nowe no hope of pardon was left vnto the Iewes they had so long despised mercy that now vengeance was come and therefore they were to looke for nothing but to feele the waight of Gods heauy indignation And for this they were to thanke themselues for thogh God be ful of patience long suffering and is loth to punish sinners when they do offend yet hee will not alwaies suffer himselfe to be mocked his iustice wil not alwaies be sleeping but at length wil rowze vp it selfe like a ramping Lyon and who is able to indure the fiercenes thereof Though he giue his people a long time to repent sende his seruants to call them to inuite them to intreat them to wo them as a man doth wo a Virgin whom he would make his wife promising that hee wil be merciful to their sins and not remember their iniquities that he wil deal with them in the greatnes of his loue not in the rigour of his iudgement that he will receiue and embrace them as his deare children bestow al good things vpon them both in this life in the life to come if they will amend their liues turn vnto him yet when they wil not be reformed when they remaine impenitent incorrigible and do harden their harts against al these louing gracious admonitions how can the lord do lesse then make them know and feele that as he hath aboundance of sweet mercies laid vp in store for them that feare him so his treasure is not without sharpe arrows swords and al kind of weapons to gore the harts of al his enemies Seeing then the Iewes were such how could the prophet Ieremiah do lesse then sounde out the trumpet of Gods wrath thunder out the threatnings of Gods indignation against them But what did not Isay before him denounce the iudgementes of God against the Iewes Yes verily but with this difference that Isaiah as he was vehement so with his threatnings he alwaies mingled words of comfort and gaue hope of pardon vpon amendment but Ieremiah whē neither Isaiahs preaching would moue them nor the example of their bretheren whom the Assyrians had caried away captiues hauing vtterly destroied their kingdom could work any remorse in their harts Ieremiah after al this seeing the Iewes obstinatly giuen ouer to hardnes of hart he tels them plainly that he must not now dissemble with them but as they were obdurate in their malice without hope to bee reclaimed so they must nowe prepare themselues euer to beare the burthen of Gods wrath without hope to be released And we may further say that God by the prophet Isay did expostulate with the Iewes hee pleaded hys cause against them and brought them to their tryall but by Ieremiah he conuinceth them he findes them guilty and giues sentence against them that sentence was performed euen in Ieremiahs time who saw with his owne eyes the execution thereof Seeing then that the decree was passed theyr destruction determined and the sentence irreuocable Admonitions were vnprofitable exhortations were vnfruitfull to pray for them was forbidden Thou shalt not pray for this people neyther lift vppe cry or prayer for them neither entreat me for I will not heare thee sayth the Lord. Ier. 7 16. This was the cause that our prophet heere frames himselfe to mourne lament and bewayle the misery destruction and calamity of the Iewish Nation Oh that my head were ful of water c. And because this Citty and this land hath bin as much blessed of God as euer Iudah Ierusalem was and the Lordes Gracious care to call you to repentance that ye might not perrish in your sinnes hath beene as great ouer you as euer it was ouer them that so many excellent Preachers indued with such variety of gifts haue been sent vnto you
the daughter of my people There is a time to laugh and a time to Weepe a time to sow and a time to reape a time to commit sinne and a time to be punished for sin The Iews had laughed a long time in security but afterwards they mourned a long time in misery They had a long time sowne the Tares of disobedience but now they were to reape the fruite of wrath and vengeance And as they had spent a long time in running the race of sinne so the Lorde at length found out his time to breake off their course by powring his heauy iudgements vpon them The prophet heere bewayleth the slaughter of the people he makes no mention of their sins which were the cause thereof But in speaking of the effect hee implyeth the cause for had it not beene for theyr sinnes the hoast of the Chaldaeans had not come amongst them and then that slaughter had not bin committed Hereby he teacheth them that it had beene in theyr power to haue preuented this lamentable effect if they had repented of theyr sinnes and accepted the time of Grace when it was offered vnto them but when they had despised mercy had chosen to wallow still in theyr sinnes now was the dore of mercy shut and nothing but miserable destruction to fall vpon them This was the cause that our prophet ceaseth to bewaile their sinnes and insteed thereof he bewaileth the punishment which their sinnes had produced That I might weepe for the slaine He saith not for those that were dead among the people for then he might seeme to insinuate that this destruction should be by some natural cause But when he saith for the slaine he shewes it was by violent death vpon the sword of their enemy And heere consider the destroyers and the destroyed The destroyers are described Ier 22 23. Beholde a people commeth from the North-countrey and a great Nation shall arise from the sides of the earth With Bow and shielde shall they be weaponed they are cruell and will haue no compassion their voyce roareth like the sea and they ride vpon horses well appointed like men of warre against thee O daughter of Zyon And Ier 4 13. Behold he shal come vp as the clowds and his Charicts shall be as a Tempest his horses are lighter then Eagles Woe vnto vs for we are destroyed And Ier 8 16. The neying of his horses was heard from Dan the whole Lande trembled at the neyghing of his strong horses for they are come and haue deuoured the Lande with all that is in it the Citty and those that dwell therein The destroyers then were the hoaste of the King of Babel clad in glitering armor with their bloody weapons their hands vvounding and slaying and killing al that come in their Way their Horsses besprinckled vvith blood trampling vpon the dead Carkasses crushing their flesh and their bones vnder their feet vvhile they lay gasping and panting and breathing out the Ghost The destroyed were the Iewes signified by these Words the slaine of the daughter of my people These are they whome the Prophet bevvayleth hauing theyr flesh mangled their bodies dismembred their limbes scattered vp and dovvne here a legge and there a hand and there a head and their bloud running too and fro in the streets of Ierusalem But is the slaughter among vs such a slaughter Beloued whether our sins may prouoke the Lorde in his vvrath to make such a slaughter of our people I leaue that to your vpright and due consideraon But the svvord of the enemy hath not yet made such hauocke among vs. The Lord hath taken the matter into his ovvne hand He hath sent his Angels to destroy euen from Dan to Bersheba from the one end of the Land to the other and the slaughter they haue made is a great slaghter And the vvrath of the Lord is not yet turned avvay but his hand is yet stretched out still Our sinnes haue made our eyes to see that verified vvhich the Lord threatneth by the Prophet Moses Deut 32 42. I wil make mine arrowes drunke with the blood and my sword shall eat flesh If euer this iudgementwere accomplished in this land it is nowe executed in these our dayes The atrowes of the Lord are drunke with blood and his sword doâ—h not cease deuouring of mans flesh O wretched people that would not be warned in time to escape this fearefull iudgement of the Lord. You therefore that would not followe our counsell when we exhorted you in the name of the Lord to forsake your sins and amend your liues now must you heare vs strike vp the drum of Gods wrath and sound out the Trumpet vnto the Lords battels Oye Angels smite slay pursue till the Lord shall command to make an end of killing and till it shall please him to giue a sign of retrait But so long as your sins strike vp the alarum so long will the Angels of the Lorde destroy First therefore must we sound the retrayte from sinne before the Lord wil sound the retrait from the battell But what shall I put you in hope that if yee presently repent and turn vnto the Lord the lord will forthwith stay his hande and slay no more Beloued I haue no such commission When the Iewes had many yeares taken their full scope to roue and range licentiously in their sinnes despising the admonitions of Isaiah Ioel and the rest of that time our Prophet Ieremiah comming after them finding no better entertainement then they had done in the 4. chap. xii ver hee gyues sentence against them which was too late to bee reuersed And though sometimes hee insert many excellent promises for the comfort of Goddes Church that they might not vtterly despaire of mercy yet those promises wer not to take place till first they had felte the smart of their former contempt as we may see Ier 29 10 c. So the Lord hauing vouchsafed vnto vs the preaching of his Gospell with al temporal blessings accompanying the same so long a time and in so gracious a measure as neuer nation vnder heauen hath beene so blessed of God as this Land and this Citty novv that our sinnes haue as much abounded against GOD as his mercies haue abounded towards vs insomuch that the Lorde could no longer with-hold his iudgements how can we looke that this wrath of the Lord should be so easily remoued which wee our selues haue prouoked til first we haue felt his scourge for our former vnthankfulnes And yet it stands you vpon euen speedily to repent flee vnto the mercy of God in his sonne Christ least you bee not onely cut off by this sword of the Lorde but also perish for euer in the world to come The iudgements of God are of two sortes eyther generall prepared for the destruction of all the world or particuler for the punnishment of certaine Nations Kingdoms Citties or towns The general iudgements are of two sorts Fyrst the Element of Water whereby
the head hath better means to expresse the grief and sorrow of the heart both by mourning with the voyce and by weeping with the eyes And thus I am come to the second point of the gradation which is the second thing that the prophet desireth for the better expressing of his great sorrow He doth not onely wish that his head were full of water but he declares the cause thereof which was not to keepe it still enclosed in his head but that from thence it might bee deriued and resolued into brinish teares as faithfull witnesses of his inward griefe And to this end hee wisheth that his eyes might bee as a Fountaine or as it is in the Haebrewe Originall a vaine of teares which might be alwayes open neuer stopped alwaies running and neuer dry When a man would seeke a well first he digges to get water and when he hath found Water his next care is to draw it out for such needfull vses as occasion requireth Euen so our Prophets desire is first that hee might haue in his body a springing wel that his head might be the conduit and for the better drawing of this water out he wisheth in the next place that his eyes might be as spouts or as conduit pipes to powre forth this water And it could not be but so many as had not harts of flint must needs bee moued with astonishment to see and behold this great lamentation And yet our prophet is not content with this but he addeth as the third step of the gradation that I might weepe day and night It cannot content him to haue his heade full of Water it cannot content him that his eyes shedde teares but as though this were no weeping to expresse further that all thys comes from the inward sence sorrow of his hart he wisheth that hee might weepe and not simplie weepe but weepe so that his eies might neuer linne weeping and his eye-lids might neuer close themselues to take any rest but be alwaies open to weepe day and night Great was that mourning of the women of Bethelem when their children were slaine by the cruelty of Herod whereof our prophet Ieremiah prophecieth Chap 31. 15. which Testimonies is alledged by rhe Euangelyst S. Mathew in the second Chapter and the 8. verse where hee applyeth the same to that slaughter of Herod who seeing himself deluded by the wise men caused al the male children of Bethlehem to be slaine from two yeares olde and vnder with intent to murther Christ among the rest In Ramah was a voyce herd mourning and weeping great lamencation Rachael weeping for her children would not be comforted hecause they were not But that lamentation although it was bitter yet was it not to be cōpared with this of our prophet because that was only for the losse of some of their children but here the prophet bewayleth that miserable and fearefull destruction which shoulde generally come vpon all Iudah and Ierusalem as well young as olde wherein there should scarse be any that should scape not perish either by famine sworde or by pestilence or at least be carried into captiuity It is much that Dauid sayth of himselfe Enery night wash I my head and water my couch with my teares psal 6 6. Oh worthy practise for a penitent soule to imitate touching euery sinner that groneth vnder the burden of his sins to spend the nightes not in sleeping but in weeping not in slumbring drowsynes but in crying and calling to God for mercy shedding the tears of true repentance Worthy also is that to bee remembred which is recorded of the sinfull woman in the gospell Luke 7. who wept so aboundantly that she washed the feete of Christ with the teares that trickled down from her eies But this mourning of our prophet exceeds thē both if not in greatnes yet in continuance whose teares distilling without intermissiō as from the conduit of a springing wel would be sufficient not only to water his couch or to wash the feet of those that came nere him but euen in time to send forth riuers of waters like those wherof Ezechiel speaketh chap 47. which comming forth of the temple were at the first measuring vp to the anckles at the second measuring vp to the loins but at the third measuring the waters were become as a riuer that could not be passed But why doth our prophet weep so immoderatly That by his sheding of many teares some might drop out of theyr eies For the prophet weeps not here for himself but for the great misety that should come vpon the people And though he was likely to sustaine some part of their affliction because he dwelt among them yet himselfe was but one not one of the greatest the state of the Monarchy rested in them that is in the king in the Nobles and the rest of the people And therefore it was the publicke state that he bewayled whereupon euerie priuate mans condition depended as for himself he made no reckoning and besides he knew that God who had employed him in that Message and had preserued him hitherto from the bloudy hands of the Iewes who had slayne many of the Lordes Prophets was also able to preserue him from the hands of the Chaldaeans or to giue him fauour in their eyes that they might do hym no harme as it came to passe afterwards when the City was taken Ier 39 11 12. Seeing then the Prophet doth weepe for the people standes it not with good reason that they should weepe for themselues when our Sauiour was led to be Crucified many Women of Ierusalem followed him weeping But Iesus turned backe and saide vnto them Daughters of Ierusalem Weepe not for me but weepe for your selues and for your Children Luke 23. 28. He blames not their affection but he speakes by way of comparison He tels them that if they knewe all they had more cause to weepe for themselues then for him They wept for him because they loued him but he went to die for them because he loued them Iudge which of these had the greater loue Notwithstanding such was the ingratitude of the Iewish Nation such was their impiety against God their cruelty against his Prophetes and their impenitency in their sinnes that the Lord was determined vtterly to roote them out from being a Nation and for euer to cut them off from being a people And this he performed about forty yeares after by Titus the sonne of Vespasian the Romaine Emperor who brought a final destruction vpon the Iewes And this was the cause that when our Sauior was come nere to Ierusalem and beheld the City he wept for it Luke 19. 41 And in another place he said O Ierusalem Ierusalem which killest the Prophets and stonest them that are sent vnto thee how often would I haue gathered thy children together as the Henne gathereth her Chickens vnder her wings and ye would not Behold your habitation shall bee left vnto you desolate
the old worlde was destroyed But this is no more to be feared for God hath promised that the worlde shall no more bee destroyed by a floud and to that end he hath set his rainebow in the clowdes as a signe of his Couenant Gen 19 13. The other general iudgment is by the element of fire 2 Pet. 3 7. The heauens and earth which are now are kept by the same worde in store reserued vnto fire against the day of iudgement and of the destruction of vngodly men And a little after verse 10. The day of the Lord wil come as a theefe in the night in the which the heauens shall passe away with a noyse and the Element shall melte with heate and the earth with the workes that are therein shalt be burnt vp c. But this iudgement god wil not execute til the end of the world whē the sinnes of al mankind shal bee growne to full ripenes The particuler iudgements are of many sorts but heere we wil not meddle with those that concerne particuler persons but such as are inflicted vpon particular Nations Kingdomes Citties Townes And these are either extraordinary and lesse vsual as fire Brimstone wherewith Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed Gen 19 24. and Earth-quakes wherewith Antioch and manie other Citties were brought to extreame ruines as we may read in the Ecclesiastical histories or cōmon and ordinary which are specialy three war famine pestilence Al these are sharpe arrowes which the Lorde shooteth out against particuler Nations and Citties for the punishment of their sinns Of all these together speaketh our Prophet Iere 14 12. When they fast I will not heare their cry and when they offer burnt offring and an Obligation I will not accept them but I will consume them by the sword by the famine and by the Pestilence Now which of all these iudgementes hath the Lord sent vpon this land He hath caused warres to cease he hath not sent a famine amongst vs he hath in mercy laid vpon vs Dauids choise vvho when he had sinned the lord offred him to chose which of these three he wold three months war seaven yeares famine or three dayes pestilence Of three three euils Dauid choosed the last as the least and thus resolued Let vs fall now into the hand of the Lord for his mercies are great let me not fall into the hand of man 2 Sam. 24 14. Seeing then we are in the hands of the Lord why shuld we think much with the Lords visitation whose mercy doth euidently appeare in this that vvhen our Sins had long cried to heauen for vengeance yet the Lord stil forbare to punish now when our sins would suffer him to forbeare no longer yet it hath pleased him without our desire or desert to lay on vs the easiest of his iudgementes wherefore he hath not left vs without hope that the same mercy wherby he was moued to deale thus graciously with vs in allotting vnto vs thys kind of punishment the same will also moue him not to be too rigorous in the manner and order of inflicting thereof Oh but you will say that is a fearefull iudgement and we had rather die of any other sicknes then of the plague Oh but I must answere you that you must thanke your selues and your sins for it which haue deserued farre greater iudgements Shal we take liberty to our selues to commit what sins it pleaseth vs and shall we abridge the Lord of his liberty Shall wee not giue hym leaue to punish our sins with vvhat kinds of punnishments it pleaseth him Seeing it coulde not stand with the course of Gods Iustice but that same iudgment must needs come vpon this land how coulde the Lorde send an easier iudgement then this vpon vs Would it not be more greeuous to haue their bodies pinched with famine that for the satisfying of your hunger ye shoulde be forced to eat the flesh of your ovvne children as came to passe in the siege of Samaria 2 King 6 29. Would it not be more grieuous to see your houses burnt your goods spoyled your wiues daughters rauished before your faces and afteral this your selues to be slain with the sword of the enemy Al vvhich calamities besides infinit mo are incident to the broyles of Warre What thing could haue hapned more grieuous to Zedekiah King of Iudah then beeing taken by the hoast of the Chaldaeans to see his sonnes slayne before his eyes and all the Nobles of Iudah putte to death and after that to haue hir own eyes put out and after all that to be bound in chaynes carried captiue to Babel Ier 39. Al this might the Lord iustly haue brought vpon vs and therfore haue not we good cause to admire and magnifie his goodnes in taking the Chastisement of our sinnes into his owne hands and not deliuering vs ouer to the will and pleasure of our enemyes And yet it cannot bee denyed but that this is also a grievous iudgement though easie in comparison of the other two for it is accompanyed with terrour danger great discomfort When we consider how men and Women that were lusty and strong are suddenly laide along in the dust of the earth Oh this is terible and fearefull to those that be liuing When we consider how the infection is deriued from one to another by waies and meanes neither visible nor sencible that no man knowes where he shal bee safe Oh this makes the sicknes exceding dangerous when we consider the misery of such a time how euery man will bee doubtfull to accompany with hys neighbor for feare to take harme and carefull to shun those that bee infected Oh what great discomfort is this to the visited persons and what increase of feare to those that be well And heete you may consider the state of those that be infected when this coutagious sicknes shal enter vpon any of your bodies First it fils the head full of paine and then it weakneth the stomacke and makes it able to hold nothing And after when it hath by little and litle ouercome nature being not longer able to withstand the force thereof it doeth as a Captaine who having won a City forth with he spreads his Banners and displaies his ensignes on the top of the wals in token of victory So this cruel Tyraunt when hee hath gotten the maistery displayes his Ensignes on the Wals of our bodies He fils the skin full of spots as the tokens of death which at the first are red shewing his cruelty then they are blewish shewing death to approach And lastly they grow black wherby wee are put in mind of those horrible tormēts that followe after death in the fire of hel And when they are dead hovve shal yee bee buried Which of your neighbors vvil accompany your corpes to the graue And thus by the iust iudgement of GOD those that haue sinned wilfully are buried shamefully What profit haue ye had then of those
Ieremiahs Teares OR A Sermon Preached in York-minster vpon Trinity Sunday in the yeare of our Lord 1604. when the sicknes was begunne in the Cittie BY Thomas Pullein Vicar of Pontefract sometime Chaplaine of New Colledge in Oxford Oh that they were wise then they would vnderstand this they would consider their latter end Deut. 32. 29. LONDON Printed by William Iaggard for Clement Knight 1608. To the Honourable Robert Askwith Lord Mayor of the Citty of Yorke and the Right Worshipfull his Graue Associates and Brethren the Aldermen all spirituall Graces with wordly Prosperity in this life and eternal happines in the life to come HAuing of long time conceiued a purpose my good Lord to giue some publicke Testimony of my Loue to your Honourable Citty the place of my byrth J began now in the latter end of your Lordships yeare to consider that J could neuer haue a fitter opportunity for the accomplishment of my desire Whereupon beeing loath to vse any further delay in letting passe so good an occasion neere lost already I was forced in hast the time so requiring to looke vp my old Papers to see if I could finde any thing worthy to present vnto your Lordship And while I was thus occupied I bethought my selfe of that Sermon which heeretofore I made in the City when it was newly visited with the late contagious sicknes being drawn thither at the earnest request of a Worshipful friend And this J thought the fittest to publish at this time for sundry causes First to put vs in mind of the manifolde Gracious and Fatherly benefites wherewith God hath blessed vs aboue al the Nations of the Earth and how we haue abused the same Secondly to set before vs the horrible sins wee haue committed with our monstrous vnthankfulnesse against his Maiesty Thirdly to renew a fresh the remembraÌ„ce of his seuere Chastisements lately but most iustly inflicted vpon vs which we seeme to haue vtterly forgotten And lastly to admonish vs that if neither his blessings nor punishments wil moue vs to repent amend our liues hee hath yet more fearefull iudgements to astonish our rebellious harts vtterly to make an end of vs which though we haue escaped the plague do still threaten our ruine and destruction All which points I had rather should be obserued out of the sermon it selfe then trouble this place with the repetition therof The reason why I haue deferred this vnto the end of your yere was because I had partly heard by generall report partly seene with mine owne eyes how honorably you haue performed your Office and passed your yeare with as much credit applause as any of your Predecessors I coulde not but reioyce in your Lordships behalfe for a Testimony of my Gratulation bringe with me this pore present to the shutting vp of your yeare not doubting but your Lordship will take the same in good part And thus honorable and right Worshipfull commending this small exercise to your diligent reading carefull practise with my harty Praiers to the Lorde for the continuance of his blessings vpon your Citty that it will please him to replenish the people vnder your Gouernment with the knowledge of his heauenly truth and feruent loue of his holy Gospel framing their harts in obedience thereunto to their eternal Saluation I humbly take my leaue Pontefract this first of Ianuary 1607. Your Lordships and Worships to command in the Lord Thomas Pullein Ornatissimis viris omni doctrinarum genere imprimis conspicuis D. Custodi Socijs caeterisque Alumnis Collegij Noui apud Oxonienses debita vnicuique obseruantia DVodecim plus minus elapsum est annorum interualum doctissimi viri et fratres plurimum obseruandi ex quo insignis vestrae domus Capellanus eforo Collegij vestri in vineam Dominime contulerim Quales exinde labores susceperim non dignos seuseo de quibus dicam Hoc qualecunque opusculum si quid inde sit emersurum boni Ciuitas illa in qua natus fuerim et educatus cui labor etiam iste dâ—stinatus iampridem fuerat optimo iure sibi vendicat vt vbi lucem ipse primum conspexerim quod a me primo profectum est primum etiam in lucem prodeat Si quid tandem vos interpellem rogetis dicam verbo Nihil mihi visum est indignius quam vobis vel inconsultis velsaltem neglectis quicquam moum in publicum prodire Quicquid enim mibi est vobis acccptum fero vobisque animi qua maxime possum gratitudine refero Nullius autum rei magis sum cupidus quam vt vos labores meos siue hos siue alios in posterum fortassis edendos in vestram tutelam suscipere quod recte dictum fuerit aequi consulere si quid proficiendi studio deliquerim indulgenter condonare velitis Deus in studia vestra incumbat Spiritus sui gratia multosque e vestra societate dignos operarios in messem suam emittere dignetur Valete viri praestuntissimi meque alumnum Collegij vestri vestrum in sinum a linguis mordacibus confugientem suscipite fouete tueamini Pontefracti Calendis Ianuarij 1607 Vestra societati addictissimus Thomas Pulleinus Ieremiah 9. 1. Oh that mine head were full of Water and mine eyes a fountaine of teares that I might weepe day and night for the slaine of the daughter of my people AS God hauing tyed Abrahams faith and by tryall found it sincere in walking obediently vnto his will did plant his Church in Abrahams posterity being holie branches of a holy tree so this Church God woulde not leaue destitute of his further grace but as in mercy hee had freely chosen the same from among the rest so in his goodnes he blessed it aboue the rest He sent his Prophets from time to time as dilligent husband-men to employ theyr Prayers both earely and late for the dressing of hys Vineyard and to do all things which might serue to make it fruitfull that as hee had planted the same by himselfe so he might water it by his seruants giue the increase by his spirit Amongst these seruants of God whom the Lord had indued with the spirite of Prophesie some were employed specially among the Iewes consisting of the Tribes of Iudah and Beniamin some were sent to the ten Tribes of Israell which being reuolted from the house of Dauid were now become a seueral kingdome of themselues some exercised a more ioynt function concerning both the kingdome of Iudah Israell and some Prophecied more specially concerning forraigne Nations Of those Prophets whose commission was to preach vnto the Iewes our prophet Ieremiah was neyther the last nor the least who being indued with rare and excellent gifts of God as namely with feruent zeale inuincible courage and vnchaungeable constancy beganne for to prophecie in a most corrupt and daungerous time when the Booke of the Lawe was lost and neuer a coppie thereof extant for the instruction of the people
from so many places besides your ordinarie Preachers whome the Lorde hath placed among you which though they bee few through your owne fault yet are they enow to make you without excuse and al these haue not ceased to cry and cal on you for the amendment of your liues to lay away your swearing your drunkennesse your Whoredome your falshood and deceit in buying selling and bargaining your prophaning of Gods Sabboths your contempt of his word your biting extorting and oppressing vsuries besides infinite others your grieuous and abhominable sinnes and yet all in vaine insomuch that the Lord hauing laid his heauy hand vpon many places of this Land to the destruction of many thousands hath begunne also to stretch it out vppon this Citty and is like to proceed further and not yet to make an end according to that of the Prophet Isaiah 9 12. The wrath of the Lord is not yet turned away but his hand is stretched out still This is the cause that hath mooued me laying aside all matter both of doctrine and exhortation to make choyse of this place of Scripture the better to occasion me to lament bewaile both the hardnes of your hearts and the greatnes of your punishment and to say with the prophet Ieremiah Oh that my head c. The Prophet in these words doth signifie that as their sinnes were monstrous passing al measure so the destruction was fearfull which the Lord was determined to bring vpon them exceeding the measure of his ordinary Iudgements and therefore that hee was not able sufficiently to bewayle the greatnesse thereof For great sinnes procure great punishments and great punnishments are neuer without great sorrow and lamentation Seeing therefore the punnishments which God had prepared for the Iewes were such as they had neuer felt before so the Prophet desireth to bewayl the same with such a measure of Lamentation as neuer had bin heard of before that the greatnes of his mourning might if it wer possible be fully answerable to the greatnesse of their miseries In these wordes wee may obserue two things First the mourning of the prophet and secondly the obiect of his mourning The mourning in these words Oh that mine head were full of Water and mine eies a fountain of teares that I might weep day and night the obiect of his mourning was the slaughter of the people that I might weepe day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people His mourning he sets down in most patheticall and significant terms And this he doth by way of a Rhetoricall gradation for he that weepeth sheds tears and he that sheds tears must haue some inward moisture that must be resolued into tears The prophet therfore framing composing himself to weep and in weeping to exceed measure to passe moderation that he might not be interrupted in the course of his weeping for want of matrer to ministet suply of tears he first wisheth that his head were full of water or rather that his head were resolued into water for that commeth nearer the Haebrew original Oh that some man wold make my head to become as water In this great lamentatiō the prophet seemeth to fear nothing more then that his head should be drawn dry that for lack of moysture he should be constrained in time to forbear weeping for as Seneca saith Nullus dolor longus est qui magna est The sorrow that is great cannot be long for such is the infirmity of nature that nothing vehemēt or violent can bee of long continuance Seeing therefore that this sorrowe was extraordinatie because it did arise of an extraordinary ocasiō here he sets forth in extraordinary hyperbolicall formes of speech rather expressing his desire how hee would haue it to bee then any hope he had that it could so be not so much declaring what was possible likely to bee doone as what was meete and conuenient to bee done The thing therefore that our prophet desireth is first that his head might be ful of water It is not a small quantity of water that will content him but he would haue it ful of water Nay he would haue it resolued into water that so long as it is a heade so long it might neuer be without water to weepe and waile for the destruction of the people But why doth hee wish that his head were full of water and not rather his heart seeing the heart is the seate of all the affections Although the heart is the seate of the affections yet the head is the seat of all the sences both inwarde and outward And the head as it is the highest part of the bodye so the mind which is the chiefest part of the soul hath erected her throne therein keepes there her residence and from thence as from a Watch Tower apprehendeth all things vnderstandeth al things and discerneth all thinges that are brought vnto her by the outward sences which are her handmaids This is the place where the minde doeth sitt as Queene and Gouernour and whatsoeuer it be shee commaundeth prescribeth or directeth that the will and affections are ready to execute And for that cause it is said Mens cuiusque est quisque The mind of euery man is the man himself This is that which first aprehendeth the cause of griefe sorrow and by by Communicateth the same with the hart which is presently moued either to embrace or dislike as the minde Iudgeth the obiect to bee good or euil Like vnto a Porter who keeping the gate doth open it to his friend and shuts it to his enemy By this the prophet in his Prophetical spirit did foresee that horible and bloody slaughter which should be committed by the hoast of the Chaldaeans in the City of Ierusalem And this did so deeply afflict and pierce his hart that he could not containe himselfe but must needs break out into a most dolefull lamentation And the better to continue and increase his sorrow by ministring as it were food thereunto he wisheth that his head wer full of water for as fire consumeth wood and coales and for want of woode or coales the fire it selfe will consume and be extinguished so weeping exhausteth and draweth out teares and when teares are consumed without supply weeping it selfe must needes haue an end And therefore that a fresh supply might neuer be wanting he wisheth that his head might alwaies abound with water And for this purpose the head is a more fit member then the heart First because the obiect of the affections is there apprehended and iudged of and according to that iudgement the hart is affected Secondly for that the head is much larger and of a more capacious figure Thirdly because it is more apt to receiue and hold water both in regard of the ventricles or receptacles of the braine within and also for that it is strongly fenced and enuironed as it were with a hard wall round about And lastly for that