soules and shall we dispose of them after our pleasures to offend him who doth wholly support vs and that continually Secondly here note Christ saith his sunne not the sunne teaching vs that the sunne which shineth in the firmament is Gods sunne not mens God himselfe is the sole author and gouernour thereof hee continueth that beeing which it hath and the power and vertue which it sheweth forth And the same thing by proportion must be vnderstood of all other creatures both in heauen an earth the moone and starres all beasts and cattell yea and we our selues are Gods creatures and hee is our creator our Lord and gouernour Psal. 50. 12. The whole world is mine and all that is therein Now hence we must learne two things First not to abuse any creature to our lust as food raiment c. but to vse whatsoeuer we enioy to Gods glorie according to his wil. Secondly to endeauour to bee lead by the creatures which we enioy to the knowledge of our creator for they are his but alasse the practise of the world is otherwise men suffer themselues by the creatures to be drawn from God for some make their bellie their God to others riches and pleasures are their God Thirdly Christs saying of the Father that he maketh his sunne to arise on the euill and on the good doth shew vs that common bountie which God vouchsafeth to his creatures both good and bad for the rising and shining of the sunne is an excellent worke of God by which many other blessings are conuaied to the creatures For first euery thing vpon the earth receiueth heate and warmnesse from it nothing is hid from the heat thereof Psal. 19. 6. In which regard it may well be called the vniuersall fire of the whole world Secondly the sunne serueth notably for the distinction of times by daie and night weekes moneths quarters and whole yeares whereby wee know the tearme of times from the beginning and so may doe till the ende of the world in regard whereof it may well bee called the clocke of the whole world Which things considered may make vs to blush and bee confounded in our selues for that light regard we haue had of so excellent a creature whereby God conuaies so manifold blessings vpon the earth let vs therefore learne to blesse God for the sunne and to expresse our thankfulnesse by all good duties And sendeth raine on the iust and vniust Here is noted the second common blessing bestowed of God vpon the world to wit the falling of the raine vpon the ground both of good and bad Now here first obserue the forme of speech vsed by Christ saying God raineth see Deut. 11. 14. The Lord giueth raine in due season the first and latter raine This worke is attributed to God for waightie causes First to shew that the same God who ordained in the beginning that the clouds should water the earth doth by his owne power vpholde the continuance of the same blessing vnto this daie and indeede if he should not will the continuance hereof it would for euer cease to raine vpon the earth Secondly to teach vs that God disposeth of the raine that falleth restraining and enlarging it at his pleasure either for the blessing or the punishment of the place whereon it falleth and that many times without the helpe of the second causes Leuit. 26. 3 4. If yee walke in mine ordinances I will send you raine in due season and verse 19. But if you will not obey me I will make your heauen as yron and your earth as brasse Amos 4. 7. I haue with-held the raine from you and caused it to raine vpon one citie and not vpon another one peete was rained vpon and that which was not rained vpon withered Here then we learne first that wee ought to pray vnto God for his raine of blessing that is for fruitfull seasons and also to be thankfull vnto God for seasonable weather when we receiue it because hee sendeth it 2. This must teach vs to obey serue God for he hath the clouds in his hands like a spunge when he wil he presseth out the raine therof now if we obey him he wil cause it to fall vpon the earth for a blessing but if we rebell against him he will either hold it backe or powre it downe vpon vs for a curse 3. Seeing God sendeth down the raine we may gather that no man can certainly tel by the course of the heauēs the particular season of the weather day by day If the raine depended wholly vpon the celestiall bodies then should it fall alike in all places that be of like position to the heauens but that is not so for God ordereth it according to the state of the people vpon whom it falleth either for a blessing or a curse as we haue heard 4. Hence we may gather that neither witches by the help of Satan nor yet Satan himselfe can cause raine as many thinke for it is God alwaies that raineth The deuill indeede is the prince of the ayre and by Gods permission he may ioyne himselfe vnto a storme make it more terrible and hurtful as he did in the destruction of Iobs cattell children by fire from heauen by a mightie winde but yet he cannot make the matter of winde or of raine that is proper to God 5. Doth God raine vpon the earth then we may well consider why the land is so often plagued with vnseasonable raine it is no doubt for our disobedience as we haue heard Leu. 26. 19. the contempt of the word among other sins is one maine cause of this iudgement Now if we would either remoue or preuent this plague at any time we must turne vnto the Lord and repent of our sins for thereto we are called by this iudgement Amos 4. 7. And if we doe turne then wil the Lord send a gratious raine vpon our land but if we wil not turne we shal haue another raine the raine of Sodome and Gomortha for vpon the wicked God will raine snares fire and brimstone And this is certaine where God sends his iudgements for the contempt of his word and yet men doe not repent there one iudgement is but the fore-runner of a greater till they bee consumed And sith experience teacheth that after invndations of waters vsually comes plague and pestilence for the preuenting of these Iudgements let vs repent The last point to bee here obserued is this in what tearmes our Sauiour Christ expresseth who bee the friends of God and who bee his enemies His friends he calleth good and iust his enemies euill and vniust Now that we may discerne of our estate towards God in this behalfe we must see what a good and iust man is In euery such a one two things are required First true faith whereby a man laies holde on Christ for his
fasting then much more wil he blame them that fast not at all though neuer so iust occasion be giuen vnto them for in this case it is not a thing indifferent but necessarie for the want whereof God doth many times renue and increase his iudgements as wee may see I say 22. 12 13 14. Wherefore to mooue our hearts hereunto let vs consider these reasons First wee haue here in the worthy president of most holy men in time past who carefully performed this dutie when occasion was offered as Dauid Daniel Ezra Nehemiah our Sauiour Christ and his Apostles especially Paul who fasted often now their examples must bee a cloud of witnesses vnto vs for we come farre short of them in many graces of God and in obedience and therefore had more neede to humble our selues Secondly wee haue among vs continuall occasions of fasting both in publike and priuate as I. Gods iudgements present for when haue we beene free from some one of these either famine or pestilence or vnseasonable weather II. Gods iudgements imminent and hanging ouer our heads for our professed enemies watch for our subuersion and we are in danger to haue the kingdome of heauen taken from vs in the power of the Gospel the comfort of praier and of the Sacraments because wee doe not bring forth the fruites thereof III. We haue our owne corrupt natures to subdue and many sinnes to breake off with particular iudgements vpon our selues to remooue for any one whereof we haue great neede to fast often IV. Though wee had no such cause in regard of our selues yet the horrible sinnes that abound in our land are cause sufficient to bring vs on our knees Paul feared hee should be humbled at Corinth in bewailing many that had sinned and shall not the common Atheisme the contempt of Gods word and iudgements the blasphemies oppression and fearefull securitie of this age cause vs to waile and mourne V. We should oft humble our selues for the Church of God and for the continuance of the Gospell in sinceritie among vs and to our posteritie hereby wee shall best expresse zeale for Gods house which should â—â—te vs vp as it is said of Christ and of Dauid Gods Ierusalem should be our chiefe ioy and we must testifie it by praying for the peace thereof Christ praied and fasted when he chose his Apostles for the planting of his Church much more therefore must we doe it for the continuance of it Fourthly Christ here disallowes not onely the affectation of prayse in these Pharisies but the disfiguring of their faces by a kind of pyning of themselues whereby he would teach vs that a true fast stands not in the afflicting and weakening of the bodie Now albeit few offend this way at this day for most are giuen too much to pamper the flesh yet here may fitly be shewed what care men ought to haue of their bodies And first of all a two-fold care must be auoyded as well an immoderaâ— care to pamper the bodie with meate and drinke for that makes the heart heauie and the head drousie and hereby lust is kindled and sinne cherished which the Apostle forbids Rom. 13. 14. as also too little care whereby the bodie is pined and pulled downe to ouermuch weaknes which is one thing here reprooued The care required is that moderate regard vnto the bodie whereby it is so sustained by meate and drinke that it may alwaies become the temple of the holy Ghost and a sit instrument for the soule vnto workes of righteousnesse and the worship of God Now he that would thus order his bodie must doe two things First he must obserue perpetuall temperance in foode and rayment taking that which may well suffice nature but not fulfill the lusts thereof Secondly if this will not serue to subdue the flesh but that it will still rebell against the law of the spirit of life as in some it will not then fasting must be vsed in which the body is to be afflicted and the soule humbled for the subduing of the rebellious flesh but yet herin we must beware that we destroy not our health our strength or our constltution for thus we neglect our life which is a sin of murther wherein though few yet some doe offend who in the meane time liue in the practise of soule and grosse sinnes otherwaies Fiftly here note how farre the Pharisies goe in outward humiliation they are content to afflict their bodies euen to the disfiguring of their complexion but yet they will not repent and leaue their sins no though Ioh. Baptist Christ preach repentance vnto them wherein behold the propertie of our corrupt nature in Gods seruice if outward actions and bodily exercises wil serue the turne we can be content to bestow much cost to take great paines and to endure some affliction but yet still wee desire to liue in our sins This is euident in Popery for who are more auâ—tere to their own bodies in watchings wandring in whipping themselues fasting c. and yet where is more abhominable filthines then among them this makes that religion so embraced because in dispensing with sin for the performaÌ„ce of these bodily actions it fits so well to our corrupt nature Wherfore let vs take notice of this our corruptioÌ„ though we must not neglect the humbling of the body vpon iust occasion yet let vs principally looke to the mortifying of sinne and the obedience of the heart vers 17. But when thou fastest annoint thine head and wash thy face 18. That thou seeme not vnto men to fast but vnto thy father which is in secret thy father which seeth in secret wil reward thee opeÌ„ly Christ the true doctor of his Church hauing in the former v. sought to reforme the exercise of fasting from Pharisaicall abuses doth in these two verses seeke to restore the same to his right vse not so much intending to command vs to fast as to bring vs to the right maner of fasting The exposition When thou fastest c. It seemeth that Christ here speaketh especially of a priuate fast for besides that he vseth words of the singular number Thou Thine c. he inioyneth the concealing of it froÌ„ others which cannot be done in a publike fast and yet the maine thing here inioyned is the approbatioÌ„ of the heart vnto God which must be obserued in all religious fasts as well publike as priuate Annoynt thine head wash thy face Here Christ alludeth to the custom of the Iewes who to shew their cheerefulnes vsed to annoynt their heads with sweet oyntments and to wash their faces as we may see by Naomies coÌ„mand to Ruth by Dauids practise when he perceiued his child was dead would testifie that he had ceased from mourning for it as also by the speech of Christ iustifying the woman that annointed his feet with oyntmeÌ„t mine head
whereof Hatred is the roote and the rest are the branches Thirdly Christ laies downe the cause for which this persecution shall be inflicted namely for my sake or as S. Luke saith for the sonne of mans sake which expoundeth this phrase for Righteousnes sake v. 10. to wit for professing beleeuing and maintaining the doctrine of the Gospel taught by Christ touching remission of sinnes and life euerlasting to them that beleeue The vses in generall We see that Christ vrgeth this Rule of blessednes more largely then the former this he doth for speciall cause first hereby he would teach his Disciples and vs in them that it is the will of God his Church in this world should be vnder the crosse in such affliction and persecution as their blood shall be sought for the maintenance of the faith And this hee will haue to bee the state of his Church for speciall causes First that the members thereof by their afflictions may be acquainted with their owne wants and infirmities which they would not much regard if they were freed from the crosse Secondly that by affliction they may be kept from many grieuous sinnes into which they would fall if they liued in peace Thirdly that others seeing the correction of the Church for sinne might learne thereby to hate and auoide sinne and lastly that the Church might glorifie God in a constant and couragious maintenance of his truth vnto death for euen in persecution is Gods truth preserued against the reason of mans wisdome patient suffering for the truth beeing faithfull witnes-bearing thereunto Secondly Christ had newely called the Twelue out of all his Disciples to be Apostles whereupon they might thinke that they should be aduanced to some outward honour ease and peace but Christ hereby calles them from that conceit puts them in mind of affliction which should befall them in time to come that when it came they might the better indure it And thus he prepares all churches to suffer affliction yea and we our selues must hereby learne in time of peace to prepare our selues against the day of triall because his will is that whosoeuer would liue godly in Christ Iesus must suffer affliction Thirdly hereby Christ intends to lay a ground of comfort to his disciples in their persecution by a plaine and ful declaration of their happines that suffer for righteousnes sake in that they haue sure title to the kingdome of heauen out of which estate no sound comfort can be had And this same must we lay vp in store against the time to come for we liue now in peace by Gods mercie but we know not how long it will continue we haue beene threatened and dangerously assaulted by our enemies many a time beside the rodde of God shaken with his owne hand against vs and wee may not thinke our peace will last alwaies but seeing our sinnes increase we may be sure our ioy and peace will one day bee turned into sorrow and therefore it will be good to haue this Rule engrauen in our hearts that they are blessed which suffer for righteousnesse sake If therefore tribulation come for the defence of the Gospel we must haue recourse to this promise of blessednesse and that will be our comfort More particularly In the words of this Rule Blessed are they c. Christ would let vs see that deadly hatred which the world beares vnto Gods Church for so much the word persecute importeth The reasons of this hatred may be these First the Church of God in the ministerie of the Gospel seekes the ruine of the diuels kingdome who is the Prince of the world the diuell therefore rageth and inflames the hearts of his instruments with malice against Gods Church that they may persecute and quite destroy it if it were possible Secondly Gods Church is a peculiar people seuered from the world in profession doctrine and conuersation and therefore the world hates them Ioh. 15. 19. And this very point may serue to stay our hearts when we shall bee persecuted for the profession and embracing of the Gospel of Christ for the world doth hate Gods Church and will doe to the end there must be enmitie betweene the seed of the serpent and the seede of the woman as then he that was borne of the flesh persecuted him that was borne after the spirit so is it now Gal. 4. 29. Secondly obserue that this hatred of the world is not onely against the members of Gods Church but euen against Christs holy religion so Christ saith for my sake or for my Religions sake This is to be marked as a most excellent argument to perswade our consciences that the Gospel of Christ which we professe is the true and blessed doctrine of God because the wicked world doth alwaies hate it yea it hateth vs also for the Gospels sake now if it were a doctrine of men it would fit their natures well and they would loue it for the world doth loue his owne Ioh. 15. 19. Thirdly if they be blessed that suffer persecution then how may any man lawfully flie in persecution Answer A man may flie in persecution with good conscience these two things obserued first that he be not hindred by his particular calling secondly that he hath libertie offered by Gods prouidence to escape the hands of his enemies The intent of this verse is not to forbid flight but to comfort such as are in persecution and cannot escape for the word signifieth such persecution as is by pursuite and oppression which cannot be auoided Lastly seeing they are blessed that suffer for righteousnes sake Whether are they alwaies cursed that suffer deseruedly for an euill cause for the contrarie reason is in contraries Ans. They are alwaies accursed saue in one case to wit vnlesse they repent for their vnrighteousnes for which they are afflicted but by true repentance they become blessed The thiefe vpon the crosse had liued in theft and was therfore attached condemned and crucified and so he suffered for vnrighteousnesse but yet hee was saued because hee repented and beleeued in Christ. It is added for righteousnesse sake In this clause we are taught a speciall lesson namely that when God shall lay vpon vs any affliction or persecution as imprisonment banishment losse of goods or of life it selfe we must alwaies looke that the cause be good and then suffer willingly This is a necessarie Rule for we must suffer affliction either publikely or priuately if we will liue godly in Christ Iesus Now it is not the punishment but the cause that makes a Martyr and to this purpose Peter saith Let none of you suffer as a Murtherer a Thiefe or a busie-body but if any man suffer as a Christian let him not be ashamed but glorifie God in this behalfe and therefore we must be sure the cause be good yea this we must looke vnto in our particular priuate crosses Verse 11. Blessed are ye when men reuile you and
which we speake or thinke of others els how could this be true that rash Iudgers shal be so rewarded in their kind seeing men may coÌ„ceale their thoughts and many times their words from the eyes of men To this purpose Salomon admonisheth not to curse the king no not in thy thought nor the rich in thy bedchamber for the foule of heauen shal carie the voice and that which hath winges shall declare the matter And this must teach vs to make conscience of all our speaches and thoughts that concerne others yea then when we our selues are iudged When Dauid was rayled vpon by wicked Shemei he staied himself with the consideration of this that God knew it and had appointed Shemei to curse Dauid 2. Sam. 16. 10. Lastly here it may be doubted howe God can be cleared from the guilt of rash iudgement seeing in his prouidence he causeth it by his decree Answ. Though he decree it yet is he free from the fault thereof for first he decrees it not to be the cause thereof himselfe but to permit it among men leauing them to be the authors thereof secondly he decrees to dispose of it well and to order it as a iust punishment of the rash iudgement of others and so in no sort is the cause of the euill in rash iudgement howsoeuer he dispose hereof for the iust punishment of offenders in this kinde The second confirmation of the first reason is contained in this parable which tendeth to the same ende with the former sentence And with what measure you mete it shall be measured to you againe That is the Lord hath ordained that men shall be rewarded in their kind like for like Hence we may obserue this rule of Gods iustice in the punishment of sinne namely to reward men in their kind punishing them in the same things wherein they offend David sinned by committing adulterie with Bathsheba the wife of Vriah and God by way of punishment raised vp euil against him out of his owne house in the same kind for his own son Absolon deflowred his fathers coÌ„eubines in the sight of all Israel 2. Sam. 12. 9. 11. 16. 22. And experience shewes that blood will haue blood for though the murtherer escape the hands of the ciuill Iudge yet the terror vengeaÌ„ce of God doth ordinarily pursue him to destruction A notable exaÌ„ple hereof we haue in the holy league as it is called but indeed the bloodie league wherein the enemies of Gods grace and truth did confederate themselues to roote out true religion and the professors thereof from off the earth but the Lord hath rewarded them in their kind and turned their owne swords against theÌ„selues causing them to spoile one an other according to the prophesie of Isai Woe to thee that spoilest and was not spoiled and doest wickedly and they did not wickedly against thee when thou shalt cease to spoile thou shalt be spoiled Isa. 33. 1. This rewarding iustice of God well obserued doth discouer vnto vs yea and denounce a fearefull woe not onely against all those that giue out rash iudgement of others but against all vsurers and oppressors who metâ— out hard measure vnto others euen cruelty without mercie but so shall they be serued againe Gods heauie hand hath heretofore laine sore vpon this land for many yeares in dearth and scaâ—fitie which also in some sort hath bin made more grieuous vpon the poore by hard hearted rich men who are like to great fishes that deuoure the lesser for they grind the faces of the poore and plucke off their skinnes from theÌ„ and their flesh from the bones by their wicked couetousnes yea doubtlesse their cruelty costs many a mans life Some in higher place by inclosing and racking of rents others of meaner sort by ingrossing and withholding the commodities of the land froÌ„ the common good till a time of dearth come wherein as the Prophet saith they may make the Epha small and the Shekel great that is sell little for much lessening the measure and enhauncing the price And indeed such a time of dearth is the worldlings day wherein they doe inrich themselues by the spoile of the poore but they must know that a feareful woe belongs vnto theÌ„ for the like mercilesse measure shall be measured to them againe and when they cease to spoile then shall they be spoiled for when the hand of God is heauie vpon the poore then no doubt is vengeance preparing for hard hearted rich men who increase the same The Lord forbiddeth to trouble the widdow or fatherles child Exod. 22. 22 2â— c. for if thou vexe and trouble such and so he call and cry vnto me I will surely heare his crie then shall my wrath be kindled and I will kill you with the sword and your wiues shall be widows and your children fatherles This is Gods word and it must stand The Lord himselfe foretold that towards the latter day iniquitie should abound and charitie should waxe cold are not these the times whereof Christ spake for what power hath the Gospel to withdraw mens hearts from iniquitie and when was there euer lesse charitie then is now well these are forerunners of greater iudgements and therefore in the feare of God let vs make conscience of this and all other sinnes euen in consideration of this that the Lord will pay vs home in that kinde wherein we offend v. 3. And why seest thou the mote that is in thy brothers eye and perceiuest not the beame that is in thine owne eye 4. Or how saiest thou to thy brother Suffer me to cast out the mote out of thine eye and behold a beame is in thine owne eye These two verses containe a second reason to inforce the former coÌ„mandement against rash iudgement The meaning of the words is this Why seest thou that is vpon what ground forwhat cause and with what conscience seest thou And so in the 4. v. How saiest thou that is with what face with what honestie and conscience saiest thou So much these interrogations how and why import Seest sight here is not a light or sudden beholding of the mote but a seeing with attention a serious and considerate obseruation thereof A mote the word vsed in the originall may as well be translated a straw or a peece of a straw as a mote as it hath beene in former times for it will beare eiâ—her translation yet the word beame seemes rather to haue reference to a straw then to a mote but which way soeuer it be taken it signifies small and little sinnes as sinnes of ignorance and infirmitie such as the best Christians doe commit cannot be free from in this life Again it signifies supposed sinnes such as are not indeed sinnes before God but onely in his opinion that giues rash iudgement And perceiuest not this perceiuing is properly an action of the minde standing in consideration and thinking which follows after seeing Thus the word