slew 70 of them upon a Stone and then with a Stone cast upon him by a Woman himself was first brained and after by his own Commandment thrust through by his Page Judg. 8. 27. and 9. 6. Saul takes upon him to offer a burnt Offering to God in the Absence of Samuel The Kingdom therefore is cut from his Family 1 Sam. 8. 9. and nothing after prospers with him but he runneth into other Sins as that of sparing Agag and the Cattle He is overthrown by the Philistines himself and three of his Sons are slain by them 1 Sam. 3. 6. Ishbosheth a fourth Son by Treachery 2 Sam. 4. 6. and seven more are hang'd for appeasing of the Gibeonites Vzzah being no Levite stretched forth his hand and stayeth the Ark from falling It seemed a pious Act yet God presently struck him dead for it 2 Sam. 6. 6 7. Vzziah the King in spight of the Priests goeth into the Sanctuary and would burn Incense which belonged only to the Priest's Office This saith the Text was his Destruction for he transgressed against the Lord therefore whilst he was yet but about it having the Incense in his hand to burn it the leprosie presently rose in his forhead so that he was not only constrained to haste himself presently out of the Temple but to live all his Life after sequestred from the Company of Men and being dead was not buried in the Sepulchre of his Fathers but in the Field there a-part from them 2 Chron. 26. 16 c. Let those that have Impropriations consider whether these Cases concern not them for like Vzzah they stretch out their hands to Holy Things but would God it were to no worse intent like Gideon they bring them into their own Inheritance and like Saul and Vzziah they take upon them the Priest's Office For they are Parsons of the Parish and ought to offer up Prayers for the Sins of the People SECT VI. Sacrilege of Holy Places Churches and Oratories consecrated to the Honour and Service of God And the fearful Punishments thereof shewed by many Examples SAcrilege of the Place is when the Temple or the House of God or the Soil that is consecrated to his Honour is either violated or profaned When God was in the fiery Bush at Horeb the place about it was presently sanctified so that Moses himself might neither come near the Bush nor stand a-loof upon the holy Ground with his Shooes on but in Reverence of the Place must be bare-footed Exod. 3. 5. So when God descended upon Mount Sinai his Presence made the Place round about it Holy He commanded therefore that Marks should be set upon the Border to distinguish it from the other Ground and that if Man or Beast did but touch it they should be either stoned or thrust through with a dart Exod. 19. 21. Thus afore the Law when the Law was given first the Tabernacle and then the Temple were full of Sanctification both by the Presence of God and by the Decree of his Mouth as appeareth abundantly in Scripture Ex. 40. 34 35. 1 King 8. 10 11. Therefore grievous Punishments were always inflicted upon such as did violate them in any thing If any man saith the Geneva Translation destroy the temple of God him shall God destroy for the temple of God is holy 1 Cor. 3. 17. The Greek is much more copious and doth not restrain it to them only that destroy the Temple but extendeth it to all that either destroy or abuse it in any sort 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 The vulgar Latin doth well express it Si quis templum Dei violaverit disperdet eum Deus c. for the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is corrumpo vexo calamitatem infero perdo defloro violo vitio so that it contains as well the lesser Injuries done to the Temple as that great and Capital Crime of destroying it but because the Apostle useth one word in both Places 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they likewise in the ... would have one word in both places ... Upon the word destroy which to my understanding is too particular and might have been better expressed by a word of more general Signification as to say If any Man spoil the Temple of God God shall spoil him that is to say If he spoil the Temple either by destroying it or defacing it or violating it in any Course as by robbing stealing or taking from it any Ornaments ... Goods Rights ... Means of Maintenance or by abusing it in any manner whatsoever God shall spoil him in one sort or other as of his Patrimony Lands Goods Liberty Pleasures Health and Life it self Children Family and Posterity and not so only but by casting also upon him divers fearful Visitations and Misfortunes more or less as in his Wisdom shall soon ... The word destroy is not properly said of any Punishment that tendeth only to work Amendment and God doubtless often spoileth a Man of the things he delighteth in not to his whole Destruction but to awaken him to Amendment Let us see in what manner God hath punished this kind of Sacrilege among the Jews In the time of the Law though frequent Examples are not to be expected for that there was but one Temple of God in both the Kingdoms of Judah and ... namely that of Jerusalem built by Solomon and for the most part p ... preserved in after Ages Another there was at Samaria which ... builded upon Mount Gerizim like to that of Jerulem by Licence of Alexander the Great and being afterward destroy'd by Hyrcanus King of Judah gave occasion to the Samaritan Woman to say unto Christ John 4. 20. Our Fathers worshiped in this Mountain A third also for the dispersed Jews in Aegypt built by Onias Son of Onias the High-Priest in the time of Antiochus Epiphanes Joseph Antiq. l. 12. c. 14. de Bello Judaico c. 7. But these two being against the Commandment of God who would have no Temple but at Jerusalem I meddle not with nor with the Synagogues of the Jews being many in every City 480. in Jerusalem instituted for Strangers as the Temple was for the Citizens and erected of later time without any mention of them in the Old Testament or Books Apocryphal Let us see I say Examples of this kind Nadab and Abihu Sons of Aaron polluted the Tabernacle by neglecting the sanctified Fire of the Altar and offering Incense by strange and common Fire they were therefore devoured by strange Fire sent upon them by the Lord himself Hophni and Phinehas the Sons of Eli made a Sacrilegious Rapine upon the Offering of the Lord upon the Fat and upon the Flesh and upon the Holy Portion polluting also the Sanctified Place with sacrilegious Adultery 1 Sam. 2. 12. God termeth this a dishonouring himself and saith ver 30. Them that honour me I will honour and they that despise me shall be despised Hereupon he threatneth First To cut
enforced them to bring him that Money it being Dedicated part to Aeolus and part to Vulcan Having it he departed but in his return Aeolus raised such a Tempest that many thought him sufficiently reveng'd and Vulcan after burnt him alive Diodor. Sicul. lib. 20. p. 828. A. M. 3608. circ pa. 817. But that which we shall now deliver is most remarkable both for the excessive Sacrilege and Punishment And because the Relation perhaps shall not be unpleasing I will presume to be a little the longer in it The General Senate of the chiefest part of Greece called the Amphictyon imposed a grievous Fine upon the Phoceans for that they had taken a piece of the Ground Cirrhaea being consecrate to Apollo and had profaned it to works of Husbandry adding further that if the Fine were not paid to the use of Apollo their Territories should be consecrate unto him The Phoceans nettled with this Decree as not able to pay the Fine and chusing rather to die than to have their Countrey proscribed by the Counsel of Philomelus they protest against the Decree of the Amphictyones as most Unjust that for so small a piece of Ground so excessive a Fine should be imposed and pretend that the Patronage of the Temple of Delphos it self where the famous Oracle of Apollo was did of Antiquity and Right belong unto them and Philomelus undertaketh to recover it Hereupon the Phoceans make him their General he presently draweth into his Confederation the Lacedaemonians whom the Amphictyones had bitten with the like Decree and with an Army on the sudden invadeth and possesseth the Temple of Delphos slaying such of the City as resisted him The same hereof flew far and wide and upon it divers Cities of Greece undertake in their Devotion a sacred way against the Phoceans and Philomelus First They of Locris give them Battle and are overcome Then the Boeotians prepare an Army for their Aid but in the mean time Philomelus the better to defend his Possession of the Temple encloseth it with a Wall And though he had formerly publish'd through Greece that he sought nothing but the Patronage yet seeing many Cities to joyn in force against him he now falleth apparently upon spoiling of the Temple for supporting of his War taking from it an infinite Wealth in precious Vessels and Oblations Nor did the progress of his Fortune suddenly teach him to repent it for he prevail'd still against the Locrians Boeotians Thessalians and other their Confederates till the Boeotians at last overthrew his sacriligeous Army and slaying a great part thereof drove himself to that necessity that to avoid the Tortures incident to his Impiety he threw himself headlong down a Rock and so miserably ended his wicked Pageant Onomarchus his Partner in the Sacrilege succeedeth in his room of Command and Impiety and after variety of Fortune his sacrilegious Army is overthrown by King Philip of Macedon and by his Command the Soldiers that were taken Prisoners were drown'd and Onomarchus himself as a Sacrifice to his Sacrilege hang'd Then Phayllus the Brother of Onomarchus is chosen General who rotting by little and little whilst he lived died at length in most grievous Torture for his Sacrilege pag. 437. After him succeeded Phaloecus Son of Onomarchus who beyond all the former Sacrilege wherein some accounted that as much was taken as the whole Treasure was worth that Alexander the Great brought out of Persia added this That hearing there was an infinite Mass of Gold and Silver buried under the Pavement of the Temple he with Philon and other of his Captains began to break up the Pavement near the Tripos but frighted suddenly with an Earthquake durst proceed no further pag. 453. Shortly after Philo is accused for purloining much of the Sacred Money committed to his Dispensation and being Tortur'd nameth many of his Consorts who with him are by the Phoceans themselves all put to terrible Death pag. 452. And the Boeotians by the aid of king Philip put to flight divers Troops of the Phoceans whereof 500 fled for Sanctuary into a Chapel of Apollo's seeking Protection under him whose Temple they had so violated But the Fire they left in their own Tents fired their Cabbins and then taking hold of Straw that lay near the Chapel burnt it also and in it them that were fled into it For the God saith Diodorus would give them no Protection though they begged it upon their Knees p. 45 3. Now after ten Years this sacred War came to an end Phaloecus not able to subsist against Philip and the Boeotians compoundeth with him for Licence to depart and to carry the Soldiers he had about him with him The Phoceans without all means to resist are by a New Decree of the Amphictyons or Grand Council adjudged to have the Walls of three of their Cities beaten to the Ground to be excluded from the Temple of Apollo and the Court of the Amphictyons that is to be Excommunicate and Out-lawed to keep no Horses nor Armour till they had satisfied the Money sacrilegiously taken back to the God that all the Phoceans that were fled and all others that had their Hands in the Sacrilege should be duly punish'd and that every Man might therefore pull them out of any place that the Graecians might destroy all the Cities of the Phoceans to the Ground leaving them only as Villages of fifty Houses a-piece distant a Furlong the one from the other to inhabit that the Phoceans should retain their Ground but should pay a yearly Tribute of Sixty thousand Talents to the God till the Sum mentioned in the Registers of the Temple at the beginning of the Sacrilege were fully satisfied pag. 455. The Lacedaemonians also and Athenians who aided the Phoceans had their part and justly in the Punishment For all the Lacedaemonian Soldiers that were at the spoil of the Oracle were afterwards slain by the Lucans pag. 458. and all others universally saith Diodorus not only the principal Agents in the Sacrilege but even they that had no more than their Finger in it were prosecuted by the God with inexpiable Punishment pag. 456. Nor did Phaloecus escape it though he compounded with Philip and lived long after For his long Life was no Happiness unto him but an extension of his Torture living perpetually in Wandring up and down perplexed with restless Fears and variety of Dangers till at last besieging Cydonia and applying Engines to batter it Lightning falling upon them consum'd both them and him and a great part of his Army Yet others say that he was slain by one of his Soldiers pag. 485. Diodor. lib. 16. The residue of his Army that escaped the Fire were by the exil'd Eleans hired to serve against their Countreymen of Elis but the Arcadians joyning with the Eleans overthrew their Exiles and this their Army of sacrilegious Soldiers and having slain many of them divided the rest being about 4000 between them Which done the Arcadians sold their part to be Bond-men
no it is said he died within nine Days and the truth is that he died indeed at his Age of thirty seven Years when he had Reigned sixteen Years and two Months Rog. Higd. Chr. p. 161. col 1. lib. 60. King Edgar understanding that the Welshmen were in Rebellion invaded the Countrey of Glamorgan with an Army and in spoiling of it the Bell of St. Ellutus was taken away and hang'd about an Horse's Neck Therefore in Vndertyde while King Edgar lay on his Bed to rest him saith the Chronicle one appeared to him and smote him on the Breast with a Spear Then when the King was waken he bad restore again all that was taken But the King died after nine Days or as Fabian saith within ten Days Ranulph Cestrens out of the British History This King Edgar was buried at Glastenbury and when Ayleward the Abbot there had unworthily digged open his Grave he the Abbot fell Mad and going out of Church brake his Neck and died Ibidem immediatè supra Griffith the Valiant and Victorious King of North-Wales in aid of Algar Earl of Chester whom King Edward the Confessor had expelled and banished invadeth Herefordshire putteth to flight Radulf Earl thereof and Son of Goda the Confessors Sister with his whole Army and taking the City of Hereford fired the Cathedral Church slew Leogar the Bishop and seven of the Canons that defended it burnt also the Monastery built by Bishop Aethelstane carried away the Spoil thereof and of the City with slaughter of the Citizens and fully restored Algar the Earl both now and a second time Upon this King Edward sent Harald against him who upon his second Voyage into North-Wales burnt his Palace and Ships After this Griffith raising an Army for Revenge and going to meet Harald was by his own People traiterously Murdered and his Head brought to Harald Alfgarus Stalhere that is Constable of the Army to Edward the Confessor invaded the Town of Estre otherwise called Plassie and pulling it from the Monastery of Ely converted it to his own use The Abbot and Monks there besought him by all fair means to restore it but prevailing not they proceeded to denounce daily Curses and Imprecations against him and at last altho' he were so great a Person in the Kingdom to excommunicate him Hereupon the King reproving him sharply and the People shunning his Company he at last sought to be reconciled to the Church and for obtaining thereof granted by his Deed and ratified it by his Oath that the Town after his decease should again return to the Monastery Yet after the Death of Edward the Confessor and Harald the Usurper he was by the Conqueror cast into Prison and there among others in Fetters of Iron ended his Life Jordan Prince of Capua hearing that the Bishop of Rosella had brought and laid up a good Sum of Money in the Monastery of Cassin in Italy sent his Soldiers and by force took it out of the Treasury of the Church but was shortly after strucken Blind Leo. Marsic lib. 3. cap. 45. Upon this Gregory the Seventh calleth a Council and maketh a Canon against Sacrilege and writing to Jordan reproveth him for this and other Offences admonishing him to amend them Baron An. 1078. 24. The Prince touch'd with Remorse granteth in Recompence the next Year after to the Monastery of Cassin divers great Territories and Privileges with a Penalty of 5000 l. of Gold upon the Violaters thereof Leo. Marsic in Chron. Cassin lib. 3. cap. 46. RIchard Robert and Anesgot Sons of William Sorenge in the time of William Duke of Normandy wasting the Countrey about Say invaded the Church of St. Gervase lodging their Soldiers there and making it a Stable for their Horses God deferred not the Revenge for Richard escaping on a Night out of a Cottage where he was beset with his Enemies a Boor whom he had fettered a little before light upon him and with an Hatchet clave his Head asunder Robert having taken a Prey about Soucer was pursued by the Peasants and slain Anesgot entring and sacking of Cambray was struck in the Head with a Dart thrown downward on him and so died Lo saith Gemeticensis we have here seen that truly perform'd which we have heard If any man shall violate the Temple of God God shall destroy him 1 Cor. 3. 17. And admonishing such as spoil Churches to look about them and not to sooth themselves in their Sin for that God often deferreth the Punishment he concludeth with these Verses of another Mans Lib. 6. cap. 13 14. Vos male gaudetis quia tandem suscipietis Nequitiae fructum tenebras incendia luctum Nam pius indultor justusque tamen Deus ultor Quae sua sunt munit quae sunt hostilia punit Dear bought for thou must one Day undergo The price of this Hell Darkness Fire and Woe God's Threats are sure tho' Mercy be among them He guards his Rights and pays them home that wrong them William the Conqueror in making the Forest of Ytene commonly called the New-Forest is reported to have destroy'd twenty six Towns with as many Parish-Churches and to have banished both Men and Religion for thirty Miles in length to make room for his Deer He had ruined also some other Churches in France upon occasion of War and in Lent-time in the fourth Year of his Reign he rifled all the Monasteries of England of the Gold and Silver which was laid up there by the richer of the People to be protected by the Sanctity of the Places from Spoil and Rapine and of that also which belonged to the Monasteries themselves not sparing either the Chalices or Shrines But he that in the like Attempt met with Heliodorus in the second of Machab. 3. met with him also grievously both in his Person and Posterity Touching his Person as God raised Absalom against David so raised he Robert Duke of Normandy against his Father the Conqueror and fought a Battle with him by the Castle of Gerborie in France where the Conqueror himself was unhorst his Son William wounded and many of their Family slain Hereupon the Conqueror as casting Oyl into the Fire of God's Wrath that was kindled to consume his own Family cursed his Son Robert which to his dying Day wrought fearfully upon him as shall by and by appear But to proceed with the Conqueror himself it is very Remarkable that being so great and renowned a King he was no sooner Dead but his Corps was forsaken of his Children Brethren Friends Servants and Followers and wickedly left saith Jo. Stow as a barbarous Person not one of his Knights being found to take care of his Exequies So that a Countrey Knight out of Charity was moved to take care thereof and conveying the Corps to Caen in Normandy the Abbots and Monks of St. Stephens there with the rest of the Clergy and Laity of the Town met it reverently but in conducting it to the Church a
the meanest of the People to Shop-keepers Taverners Taylors Tradesmen Burghers Brewers Grasiers and it may be supposed that as Constantine the Great seeing the inconvenience of the multitude of Comites of his time distinguished them as Eusebius reporteth into three degrees making the latter far inferior to the former so may it one day come to pass among these of our times and it shall not want some precedent of our own to the like purpose Vide Glossarium in voc Comes pag. 109. IV. What hath happened to the Crown it self It now remaineth to shew how the Lands themselves thus pulled from the Church have thriven with the Crown and in the Hands of the King his Heirs and Successors truly no otherwise than the Archbishop I spake of so long since foretold For they have melted and dropt away from the Crown like Snow yet herein that Snow leaves moisture to enrich the Ground but those nothing save dry and fruitless Coffers for now they are all gone in a manner and little to speak of remaining for them to the Treasury for my own part I think the Crown the happier that they are gone but very unhappy in their manner of going for as Sampson going out of Gaza carried with him the Gates the Bars and Posts of the City leaving it thereby exposed to Enemies weak and undefenced so those Lands going from the Crown have carried away with them the very Crown-Lands themselves which were in former times the glorious Gates of Regal Magnificence the present and ready Bars of Security at all Necessities and like immoveable Posts or Hercules Pillars in all the transmigrations of Crown and Kingdom had to our Time 1000 Years and upward remained fixed and amor ... to the Scepter These I say are in effect all gone since the Dissolution the new Piece hath rent away the old Garment and the Title of terra Regis within Dooms-day Book was generally the Targett in every County is now a Blank I fear in most of them But his Majesty hath a great Fee-farm reserved out of the greatest part of both of them 40000 l. a Year they say out of the Crown Lands and 60000 l. out of the Church Lands I confess it makes a goodly sound yet is it but froth in respect of the solid Land which is deemed to be more than ten times if not twenty times as much and this being but succus redditus a sick and languishing Rent will grow daily as our Rents of Assess have already done to be of lesser worth as the price of Lands and Commodities increase and rise higher but I hear there is ... thousand pounds a Year of the Crown-lands gone without any Reservation at all and above ... thousand likewise of the Church Lands and to tell the truth which my self do well know a great proportion of the Fee-farm Rents themselves are likewise aliened already but mihi Cynthius aurem vellit I must launch no further V. What happened to the whole Kingdom generally What the whole Body of the Kingdom hath suffered since these Acts of Confiscation of the Monasteries and their Churches is very remarkable let the Monks and Friers shift as they deserv'd the good if you will and the bad together my purpose is not to defend their Iniquities the thing I lament is that the Wheat perish'd with the Darnel things of good and pious Institution with those that abused and perverted them by reason whereof the Service of God was not only grievously wounded and bleedeth at this day but infinite Works of Charity whereby the Poor were universally reliev'd thro' the Kingdon were utterly cut off and extinguish'd many thousand masterless Servants turn'd loose into the World and many thousand of poor People which were constantly fed clad and nourished by the Monasteries now like young Ravens seek their Meat at God Every Monastery according to their Ability had an Ambery greater or little for the daily relief of the Poor about them Every principal Monastery an Hospital commonly for Travellers and an Infirmary which we now call a Spittle for the sick and diseased Persons with Officers and Attendants to take care of them Gentlmen and others having Children without means of Maintenance had them here brought up and provided for which course in some Countries and namely in Pomerland as I hear is still observed tho' Monks and Friers be abandoned These and such other Miseries falling upon the meaner sort of People drove them into so many Rebellions as we spake of and rung such loud peals in the King's Ears that on his Death-bed he gave back the Spittle of St. Bartholomew's in Smithfield lately valued saith Stow at 308 l. 6 s. 7 d. and the Church of the Gray-Friers valued at 32 l. 19 s. 7 d. with other Churches and 500 Marks a Year added to it to be united and called Christ Church founded by King Henry 8. and to be Hospitals for relieving the Poor the Bishop of Rochester declaring his Bounty at Paul's Cross on the 3d of Jan. and on the 28th day following the King died viz the 28 Jan. This touching the Poor VI. What happened to private Owners of the Monasteries particularly I turn now to the richer sort and shall not need to speak of the Clergy whose irreparable Misery Piers Ploughman foresaw so many Ages before saying That a King should come that should give the Abbat of Abingdon such a blow as incurable should be the Wound thereof Their Misery and Wrack is so notorious as it needs no Pen to decypher it nor will I speak of the loss that the Lay-men our Grandfathers had by this means in their right of Founders and Patronage Meantenures Rents-services Pensions Corrodies and many other Duties and Privileges whereof some were saved by the Statutes yet by little and little all in effect worn out and gone Those I say I speak not of for that they are Wounds grown up and forgotten but of one instead of all that immortal and incurable Wound which every day bleedeth more than other given to us and our Posterity by the infinite number of Tenures by Knights service in capite either newly created upon granting out of these Monasteries and Lands or daily raised by double Ignoramus in every Town almost of the Kingdom For as the Abbies had Lands commonly scattered abroad in every of them in some greater or lesser quantity according to the Ability of their Benefactors so the Leprosie of this Tenure comes thereby as generally to be scatter'd thro' the Kingdom And whereas before that time very few did hold on that manner besides the Nobility and principal Gentlemen that were owners of great Lordships and Possessions which from time to time descended intirely to their Heirs and were not broken out into small parcels amongst inferiour Tenents and mean Purchasers Now by reason that those Abby Lands are minced into such infinite numbers of little Quillets and thereby privily sown like the Tares in the Parable almost in every