vaile over our sorrow till wee haue heard what God hath to say vnto vs by the mouth of me his vnworthy minister from these words of Moses Moses the servant of the Lord died c. The providence of God which like a well drawne picture eies every particular persoÌ„ in this great house of the whole world and is as inward and familiar to every action therein as our spirit is to our raines did most plainely manifest itselfe in the birth and life in the death and buriall of this man of God For to say nothing of his birth and life wherein both the wisdome and the power of God were deepely printed these words you see call vs to a consideration of his death described in the fifth verse wherein you mâ—y see wee may obserue first the person Moses secondly his praise The Division the servant of the Lord thirdly his period and end he died fourthly the place in the land of Moab and lastly the cause according to the word of the Lord. Had it beene but a privat person yet being so rarely qualified as he was who could haue commanded his passion so much as to bid sorrow be silentâ— but behold it is Moses a guid a governour a prince among the people or had he bin a governour that had proved either a traitour to his Prince or a tyrant to his people both Prince and people might haue beene glad but it is Moses the servant of the Lord or had he beene but gon into the mount to talke with God we need not so haue grieved but hee is dead or had it beene in his owne country the land of Canaan which God had giuen him and his people for inheritaÌ„ce or at home in his owne house but it is there in Mount Nebo vpon the top of Pisgah in the land of Moab where he was withinken of that sweet country And yet that you may not be cast downe with all these crosse accidents or cry out vpon badfortune or condemne the fates or father these crosses vpon some maligne aspect of the planets and constellations knowe that nothing hath come to passe in all this but by the wise guidance and direction of Gods alseeing providence Moses a great man Moses a good maÌ„ is dead that in a strange land but according to the word of the Lord. In the words theÌ„ the person comes in the first place to be coÌ„sidered the consideratioÌ„ thereof that Moses a governour a great maÌ„ is dead affords vs this doctrine that Doct. 1. A great govenour quick ly gone the most carefull conscionable Magistrates caÌ„not look to liue longer yea oftentimes diesooner then other meÌ„ Wise Salomon godly David religious Iosiah are all gathered to their fathers and the most wise godly and religious must follow them assoone as those persecutors of his church and children For first they are but men and therefore mortal Gods in calling but men in condition I haue said yee are Gods and you are all the children of the Psal 82. 6 7. most high but you shall dy like men you princes shall fall like others Secondly the sinnes of the people doth oftentimes provoke God thus to punish them by depriving them of such benefit which they set so light of This punishment God denounceth by his Prophet The Lord God of Israell will take away from Ierusalem and from Iuda hthe stay the strength even all the stay of bread I say c. all the strength of water the strong man and the man of warre the iudge and the Prophet the prudent the aged the captaine of fifty and the honourable and the counseller and I will appoint children to be their princes and babes to rule over them the people shal be oppressed one of another and every one by his neighbour the children shall presume against the ancient and the vile against the honourable Thirdly the Lord doth sometimes suddainely cut theÌ„ off that they may not see the misery which hee sends vpon the church or common wealth this God promiseth as a special blessing vnto that good king Iosiah because thine heart did melt thou hast humbled thy selfe 2 King 22. 19. 20. before the Lord wheÌ„ thou hardest what I spake against this place and against the inhabitants of the same hast rent thy clothes and wept before me behold therefore I will gather thee to thy fathers and thoushalt be put in thy graue in peace and thine eies shall not see all the evill that I will bring vpon this place Thus the righteous perish and no man considereth that they are taken away from the evill to I say 57. 1. come See then beloved what cause we haue to pray for Vse the life and perseruation of godly governours as the Apostle exhorts to prevent their death to our power as 1. Tim. 2. 1. the Israelites praied David that he would not goe forth 2. Sam. 21. 17. to battle least he should quench the light of Israel to bee thankeful for them when we haue them and to be sorrowfull when we see them taken away I know not whether it be our coldnesse in praying or our carelesnesse in praising God for such gracious governours as he hath given vs or whether God be but preparing some heavie iudgement against this whole land his iudgements are secret and I leaue them to himselfe but sure we are senselesse if we cannot see how deeply the Lord hath wounded vs in the head and heart and whole body of this land the remembrance whereof is yet fresh and bleeding He hath wounded the whole kingdome by the vntimely death of a most worthie Prince he hath wounded the court by the suddaine cutting off of a most wise counseller and now he hath wounded the country by depriving it of so honorable a maintainer of peace by righteous iustice If then a king thought he had cause enough to lament the sicknesse of a Prophet not only kindly to visite him but compassionately to weepe over him then giue mee leaue as a Prophet to bewaile the death of a great prince a wise counsellour a worthy pillar of the coÌ„mon wealth in the same words O my father my father the 2. King 13. 14. chariots of Israell and the horsemen of the same or as David lamented the death of Saul Yee daughters of Israel weepe for Saul which cloathed you in scarlet with pleasures 2. Sam. 1. 24. and hanged ornaments of gold vpon your apparell In respect of themselues we haue more cause to ioy and saie as Hierome of his sinnefull time Foelix Nepotianus qui haec non videt Nepotian is a happy man that liues not to see the wicked world and as Saint Ambrose speaketh of such a one he was not so much taken from vs as from daÌ„gers But for our selues and sinnes which haue provoked God we cannot sorrow enough When God ships his Noahs it is a signe there is a floud
of Moab from his owne house and home but it is according to the word and the will of the Lord. That he is dead I wish if it had bin the will of the supremest that we had cause to doubt That he was a Moses and the servant of the Lord lend me but your patience a little lōger and you shall heare Moses is as much as drawne out Ex. 2. 10. And might Moses in name not he say with David Psal 18. 16. He hath sent downe from aboue and saved me he hath drawne me out of many waters Moses pittied the distressed and oppressed estate of his poore country in their misery and when he could In nature 1 His pitty do no more he looked vpon them no doubt with a heavy countenance and a sorrowfull heart yea with hazard of his owne life hee was ready to redresse their wrong Exod. 2. 11. 12. And was not our Moses the onely man that would step forth and stand vp to free his country from all such taxes toules as cunning catchpoles prouling officers could haue been content to haue imposed vpon the people And when they were such as could not be helped yet I know he did heartily grieue at them heavily looke vpon them that were oppressed Moses was a man of peace not a peace keeper only 2 His peace-making but a peace maker When he saw two Hebrewes striue togither he said Sirs you are brethren why do you wrong one another Act. 7. 26. And who knows not what care he had what comfort he took what paines he indured to compose controversies to prevent law suits to perswade peace to procure loue among neighbours Moses was content to leaue the court where hee might haue lived in great credit and account and to 3. His pietie imploy his paines for the good of his country Heb. 11. 24. 25. And who knowes not that it was neither want of wit or wisdome to commende him nor want of friends to countenance him nor want of meanes to mainetaine him that kept our Moses from the court but a godly desire to do his country good wherein neither his purse nor his paines were at any time wāting for did he not many times as Moses did Exo. 18. 14 Sit from morning till even to heare the matters of the people 4. His paines and to iudge amongst them Till of late either his owne experience taught him or his friends advised him as Iethro did Moses Thou weariest thy selfe greatly and the Ex. 18. 18 c. people with thee for the thing is too heavy for thee thou art not able to do it thy selfe alone prepare thee helpers and let them iudge the people at all seasons but every great matter let them bring vnto thee and let them iudge all small causes so shall it be easier for thee when they shall beare the burden with thee In the executing of which works of iustice howsoever His iust dealing in publike feare or favor or gaine makes many faile or faint or deale vnfaithfully yet surely saith God my servant Moses is not so who is faithfull in all my house Num. 12. 7. And who ever could say of our Moses that in matters of iustice or such causes as concerned the good of the common wealth either feare of great men or favour of friends could stoppe his mouth or bribes blinde his eies or his owne private passion or profit prevaile so far as to moue him to speake or do any thing against the knowne truth of the cause but as he was singular in searching out of the truth so was he sincere in iudging I know not whether ever hee did see that table of Ptolome Arsacides which the Emperour Marcus Aurelius found at Thebes was by the same Marcus left as a singular treasure to his sonne Commodus but sure me thought I could plainely in his life cariage of matters in the course of iustice read the summe and sentēces which were written in that table which were these I never preferred the prowde man though he were rich nor hindred the poore if he were iust I never denied iustice to the poore for his poverty nor pardoned the rich because hee was wealthy I never gaue reward for affection nor punished vpon passion I never suffered evill to scape vnpunished nor goodnesse to go vnrewarded I never committed the execution of manifest iustice to another neither determined that which was difficult by my selfe I never denied iustice to him that desired it nor mercy to him that deserved it I neuer opened my gate to the flatterer nor my eare to the backbiter I alwaies sought to be loued of the good feared of the wicked Lastly I alwaies fauored the poore that was able to do little and God who was able to do much alwaies fauoured me This was his faithfulnes in publique Neither did it in his priuate carriage lesse appeare For In Private which of his neighbours hath he causelesly vexed nay whom did he ever vexe which of his tenants hath he cruelly oppressed which of his creditors hath he craftily defeated whom that ever dealt with him hath he deceived Surely in this faithlesse age cum annulis Senee magis creditur quam animis as Seneca speakes wherein a mans hand or signet is better to be trusted then his faith and soule he was not fit to liue He trusted everie one and every one shall I say deceived him no not every one He had those with whom he might with whom he durst haue trusted his own soule who may now sit downe and sorrow as David did for the death of his deare Ionathan 2. Sam. 1 26. Wo is me for thee my brother Ionathan very kinde hast thou beene vnto me thy loue to mee was wonderfull passing the loue of women Another singular cōmendation the holy Ghost hath 6. His meeknesse given to Moses Num. 12. 3 Moses was a very meeke mā aboue all the mē that were vpon the earth And surely such as heard the conference or heeded the commō talke or In his conference observed the carriage of our noble Moses knowe that not many men wil be found more meek then he In cōference who hath ever hard him clamorous and contentious or seeking as some do rather the victory and last word then the truth and verity yea hee would rather meekely yeeld then multiply words so that with whomsoever he did confer his mildnes made it sweet or profitable For where two meeke men meete togither their conference saith S. Bernard is sweete and profitable where one man is meeke it is profitable where neither it proues pernicious And therfore it was S. Bernards māner and our Moses had learned it because he would be sure to retaine this modesty on the one side to be very vrgent vpon those that in their meeknes woulde yeeld much and to yeeld another time to him that vrged And as his graver conference so his cōmon talke
In his cōmon talke did taste and rellish much more of meekenesse I haue often been vouchsafed his company yet I never hard him speake evill of others or good of himselfe But his carriage was the map of meeknes For besides his low ly In his cariage and loving carriage even to the poorest would hee not quietly rather indure two wrongs then complaine of one rather suffer many wrongs then returne one rather put vp al wrongs then revenge one And had he not the happy reward of meekenes attending him even sweet content of minde and a quiet passage of such crosses as accompany this life whereby he did enioy both his rest and sleepe more soundly received his meate and drinke more merrily and thankefully then most men do So in him we might see it true that that which will breake a proud and angry mans heart will not breake an humble and meek mans sleepe I proceed Moses was learned in al the knowledge of the Aegyptians Act. 7. 22. In this indeed Moses did overmatch our Moses but herein our Moses did overmatch the most that I haue knowne that hauing no greater depth of learning he could in any point both conceiue so quickly and obiect so acutely and speake so iudiciously and to purpose as he did Thus you see that Moses is dead Moses for his place of governement Moses for his pittie Moses for his peacemaking Moses for his pietie Moses for his pain fulnesse in his place of iustice Moses for his faithfulnes in publike his true heartednes to his private friends Moses for his meeknesse in what one thing hee came short of Moses it was not so much as most of his ranke came short of him But that which commends all these former commendations 7. His zeale is the praise of Moses in this place the servant of the Lord. And was not our Moses such For his soundnesse and sinceritie in the true religion service of God and perfect hatred of Popery and superstition all the country can witnesse with mee Who hath been more ready to put in execution those good lawes of our land against our wilfull Recusants Who was so great or deare vnto him that he would winke at in this case which concernes Gods glory and the advancement of religion And though in other matters of iustice he was as mercifull as any man living yet in the service of God and punishing of Idolaters his zeal hath beene hot like Moses who when hee saw the people Exod. 32. 19. fall to Idolatrie dancing about the calfe his wrath waxed hot and he cast the tables out of his hands and brake them in peeces and burned the calfe in the fire and ground it to powder and made the people of Israel to drinke of it Exod. 32. 19. which godly zeal of this our Moses made him oftē say me thinks I see with what feeling and fervencie he spake it when there was none present but my selfe alone that til we might see them hansomely shipt and the sea betwixt vs such as haue a Pope in their heart neither can wee bee safe nor the service of God pure and sincere Neither can the country only witnesse but the King and Councell cōfirme their assured perswasion of our Moses his zeale when in those disastrous and dangerous times of the powderplot they pleased to appoint him to that highe most honourable office the command of the whole Country though hee had not long before borne the burden of that office What shall I say of his particular carriage in the service of God I haue often seene him at publike Sermons and service sometime in private we hane prayed together and praised God together And sure his diligent attention in the one as vnwilling that a word should passe him and his devout carriage in the other gaue good signes of a sincere heart not willingly sinning but willingly sorrowing when he had sinned What shall I say more You see now and cannot but say that he was a Moses and the servant of the Lord yet Moses was a man else hee had not died and subiect to his personall sinnes his faults his frailties which God doth punish else he had not died in the land of Moab For if you would knowe the cause why Moses must not come into the land of Canaan but die in the land of Moab when hee is now within kenne of that pleasant country the holy Ghost hath expressed it Deut. 32. 51. Because you haue trespassed Deut. 32. 51. 52. against me among the children of Israel in Kadesh in the wildernesse of Zin for you sanctified me not among the children of Israel Thou shalt therefore see the land before thee but shalt not goe thither See then and obserue hence another point of Doctrine which in my passage I purposely omitted but The best men are subiect to their frailties and faults now comes fitly to be handled namely The best men are subiect to their frailties and falls Even Moses though a rare man yet cannot bee free from infirmities yea sometime fals into such sinnes as God doth severely punish In many things saith St Iames wee sinne all as Iam. 3. 2. might be made plaine by particular instances in the best servants of God But I take no comfort to vncover the nakednesse of worthie Patriarches Prophets who when God but for a time did leaue thē to themseiues did stumble and fall and lie along vnder their sinnes Optimus ille qui minimis vrgetur he is happy could the heathen say that hath fewest faults and those the least for there is none so happy as to haue none Which as Vse it serues for a iust reproofe for all such as are ready to condemne their brethren and cast of their Christian company and kindnesse for some one fault they finde in him and never looke to commend those good graces which they might see so it serues Secondly for instruction vnto the best willingly to submit themselues to the word of God to godly instru ctions Christian admonitions and wholsome reprehensions For none so good but something the word of God will find amisle in them which they cannot amend till they see nor well see till the word of God shew it vnto them Will not the best garments grow dustie if they be not brushed the finest lane and linnē grow loathsome if it be not washed the sweetest garden overgrown with netles or worse if it be not weeded and the best man worse if he will not bee admonished Lastly all should learne hence to run to the mercie of God and lay hold vpon the hornes of that altar Cōmissum atque conscriptum est saith S. Austine vpon the 51. Psalme concerning the adultery and murther of Dauid It is committed by him by him committed to writing for our learning that those who yet stande fall not and those that fall lie not still but may rise againe Stand not vpon the
was now ready to set foot in the promised land liues not to enioy it but when he comes within kenne of it it pleaseth God to prevent him by death to take him away in the land of Moab Which is the fourth particular that I proposed to be handled name ly the place where Moses died In the land of Moab See after all the care paines that Moses hath taken with this people to bring them 4 Paâ—t The place to the promised land now that he was come neere the confines and borders of it God had set him in such a place where he might see it hee suddenly here calls him out of this life Whence wee might well obserue the fickle state and condition of all worldly things Moses greatest comfort I imagine both against the tediousnesse of the way and weiwardnesse of this people and the perplexities of his owne soule was to consider how happy he should bee when after all this hee should come to liue quietly in the land of Canaan and now behold that he is ready to come into it he is suddenly Doct. All worldly hopes quickly vanish cut of O the vncertainty of these worldly things O the vanitie of those men that vex themselues with hope of such things as they shall never haue Great mens favours and old mens shooes thou maist looke for perhaps hope for but never trust to And yet how many Cameleons are there that liue onely by the aire and breath of hope not of heavenly but of earthly things which when a man should put forth his hand to lay hold vpon vanisheth away and is seen no more One hopes to growe rich suddenly his trade failes him another hopes for his fathers or some other old mans living and the old man outliues him a third hopes to rise to honour and his meanes are taken from him The hope that is deferred saith Solomon Prou. 13. 12. maketh the heart sicke If then the hope be defeated mee thinks it should die Moses had as much reason to hope to come to this happy land as any man living of any earthly thing and yet how is his hope quite dasht wheÌ„ a maÌ„ would not haue dreamed how his comfort could haue beene crost It is wisdome then to hope for such things as we may haue and to ground our hope vpon such a foundation as cannot faile Let the word of God be the ground of thy Christian perswasion and so thou maist boldly hope for heaven A second point which from the consideration of the place I will propose and lightly passe by is the vncertaintie of the place where wee shall die As death spares not any persons so it respects not any place When thou art walking peaceably with thy brother in the fieldes thou maist bee murthered as Cain was Gen. 4. 8. when thou art sitting quietly in thy chaire thou maist fall backward and breake thy necke as old Eli did wheÌ„ thou art at thy devotions in the Temple thou maist 1. Sam. 4. 18. dy there as Zenacherib did yea at the very altar as Ioab Isay 37. 37. 1. King 2. 34. Iob 1. 19. 2. King 2. 24. while Iobs sonnes were feasting the house falls vpon them while the scoffing boyes are mocking beares come from the wildernesse and devoure them while Chore and his company are contending the earth opens Num. 16. 31. and swallows them while the captaines their fifties are fetching the Prophet perforce to the King 2. King 1. 10. fire falls from heauen and consumes them Thus death dogges vs wheresoever wee goe and hath his darts ready wheresoever we are Let this then teach vs to take heed that wee bee alwaies Vse prepared for death seeing it is so vncertaine where it will meet vs. Go to now you that say to day or to morrow we will goe into such a city and continue there a Jam. 4. 13. 14 15. yeare and buy and sell and get gaine and yet cannot tell what shall be to morrow for what is your life it is even a vapour that appeareth for a little time and afterward vanisheth away for that you ought to say if the Lord will and if we liue weÌ„ will doe this or that Nay go to you that by play pastime driue away the remembrance of death nay by surfeiting and drunkennesse hasten your owne death and yet never thinke of dying How will you dare to looke death in the face whom you would not vouchsafe the least roome in your hearts nay whom eftsoones you did in your daring humours scorne defie Let experience tell whether many do not meet with death in places of greatest mirth now merry and presently mourned for whether a bone in our meate may not choak vs or a haire in our milk strangle vs or a stone in a raisin stop our breath as it did AnacreoÌ„s O theÌ„ let vs whersoever we are whithersoever we walk make the meditatioÌ„ of our end our vade mecum best companion least like vnthrifty servaÌ„ts in great mens houses having their allowance of light mispending the same in dicing or dancing or drunkennesse at last are faine or rather forced to goe to bed darkling so while we neglect the time of light in this life which God hath granted the night of our death do suddainely surprize vs when we do litle dreame of it To him that is to walke through some darke and dangerous place one light carried before will do more good then many that are brought behinde so the serious preparation for death before it come armes vs both with more confidence against it and comfort in it then that which comes not till death call I will conclude this point with our Saviours words Take heed to your selues least at any time your hearts be oppressed with surfetting druÌ„kennesse Luk. 21 34. 35 26. and cares of this life and least that day come vpon you at vnawares for as a snare shall it come on all theÌ„ that dwell vpon the face of the earth watch therefore and pray continually that you may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to passe and that you may stand before the sonne of man Giue me leaue now I beseech you to apply these things to our present occasion before I proceede to the last particular in my text When our Saviour Luk. 4. 20. light vpon a place of Luk 4 20. the prophet Isaias had red it in the audience of the people hee closed the booke gaue it againe to the Minister and sate downe said this day is this scripture fulfilled in your eares and all bare him witnesse I doubt not beloved but you wil all witnes with me this daie that what you haue hard the same you haue seene and the words which I haue handled are fulfilled in your hearing Moses a great man and our Moses the servant of the Lord is dead and hee died in the land