God had offered such a faire meanes to take him off from it There is another in the second of Samuel of a great Souldier and Generall Joab by name when hee was in the pursuit of one Sheba that had played the Rebell and Traytor against his King Joab had pursued him far and now had chac'd him into a Citie called Abell there besieged him and the Citie for his sake with a purpose to batter the Walls downe and to destroy all that were in the Citie as guilty of protecting this villaine very seasonably a wise woman over the wall calls to Joab and would know of him why hee would come to destroy a Citie of Israel and so to swallow up a part of the inheritance of the Lord now marke Joabs answer The Lord forbid saith he God forbid it is farre from mee that ever I should take any pleasure to devoure or swallow up there is no such matter there is one Sheba a Traytor against his King I pursue him onely deliver him up I am gone not a man dies amongst you You see a Souldier a man enur'd to blood abominates the thoughts of it further then necessitie compells to have his hand in the blood of any of Gods people This will yet bee clearer if you consider that the Lord himselfe lookes upon it as the saddest judgement that ever hee gives his people up to when hee suffers them to imbrew their hands in one anothers blood Take but one or two instances that in the 9. of Isaiah at the 19. verse Through the wrath of the Lord saith the Text the Land is darkned the wrath of God was like a furnace and the smoake of it filled all the Land and the people shall bee as fewell to this fire This was a terrible judgement which is expressed in such dreadfull tearmes darkenesse and devouring fire are horrid things nothing more intolerable then these two But what was this judgement or by what meanes should this fierce wrath of God bee executed marke the next words no man shall spare his brother they shall snatch on their right hand and bee hangry and snatch on their left hand and not bee satisfied they shall every man eate the flesh of his owne arme Ephraim against Manasseh and Manasseh against Ephraim and both of them together helpe to devoure Judah No man ever hated his owne flesh faith the Apostle but this people should bee so blinded and so given up to a reprobate sense that they should devoure and destroy their nearest friends and eate as it were the flesh of their owne armes If ever God give up a people to this that brethren thus come to engage in one anothers blood it is a token that the wrath of God burnes the hottest that it can burne against a Land Take one expression more it is in Jer. 13. 14. I will dash them one against another even the fathers and the sonnes together saith the Lord I will not pitty nor spare nor have mercy but destroy them a strange expression from a God of mercy whose delight is in mercy I will not pity shew no mercy kill kill kill but how shall this be executed why I will dash them one against another without any enemy from abroad there shall be no need to send for strangers the father shall destroy the children and children their fathers and a mans murderers shall be his neighbours or the men of his owne houshold You may by these plainly discerne that God accounts it the terriblest of all judgements to give his people up to destroy each other and therefore it must be acknowledged a great mercy to have it prevented To this I might adde that in Gods book those men that are the occasions of peoples ruining one another are accounted the most ahominable and they that endeavour to prevent it are counted the blessedest men that live this is one of the things that Gods soule hates Even that man that sowes dissention amongst brethren boutifews and kindle-fires are an abhomination to him and he will scatter the people who delight in warre he will destroy the Blood-thirsty man the Peace-makers that labour to compose and comprize differences to keep people from it are blessed Blessed are these Peace-makers they shall truly he called the children of God But to open this truth more fully give me leave to cleare these three things First That Blood-shed warre is a terrible judgement wherever it is fall it out among whom it will Secondly That it is yet a greater judgement when Brethren come to devoure and destroy one another brethren of one Nation Civill warres is a greater judgment then war with Strangers Thirdly and above all The greatest of all judgements is when Gods people who are brethren in the profession of his true Religion come to imbrew their hands one in anothers blood these things opened it will certainly be concluded that Gods mercy in preventing this is most worthy to be acknowledged For the first That to have a people given up to warre and blood and spoile is a great plague You all know in the Scripture it is counted one of Gods sorest judgements Ezek. 14. 21. When I send my foure sore judgements upon Jerusalem the Sword and the Famine and the noy some Beast and the Pestilence to cut off man and beast the Sword is the first and chiefe of Gods sore judgements It is granted that sometimes war is lawfull and necessary and indeed never lawful but when necessary when as the saying is Pax populi patriaeque salus gloria regni when publique Safetie Libertie and Religion have no other way to preserve them under heaven but the Sword the Sword is then lawfull and then necessary but however war may sometimes be lawfull it is alwaies a great judgment at least to the one part if not to both It is the Idea of all miseries that can befall a Countrey nothing thrives where this Woolfe sets his foot and hee that would have a Land-skip of it that would have a representation of war let him but conceive the burning of houses confused noise garments rowled in blood ravishing of women and virgins and dashing of Infants against the stones destroy of trade spoyle of wealth blood and wrath and fury marching every where a Countrey like the land of Eden before the face of man and nothing but a desolate Wildernesse when once it have walked over it a Land sowne with the seed of man and beast fruitfull and flourishing suddenly made an Aceldama a Golgatha a Field of blood or a place of Sculs this is warre in a word if a man would in one short sentence describe a Country to bee most miserable hee need say no more but hic fuit hostilitas Warre hath raged and raigned in this place our selves alas for these yeeres past have had so much experience of it that our women and children are able now to bee Rhetoricians in setting forth the miseries of warre
A SERMON PREACHED TO THE TWO HOVSES OF PARLIAMENT At their solemn Meeting to Praise God for his infinite Mercy in the restoring of the said Houses of PARLIAMENT to their Honor and Freedome with so little effusion of Blood At the Abbey-Church in Westminster Aug. 12. 1647. By STEPHEN MARSHALL B.D. Minister of Finchingfield in Essex And David said to Abigail Blessed be the Lord God of Israel which sent thee this day to meet me And blessed be thy advice and blessed be thou which hast kept me this day from comming to shed blood 1 Sam. 25 32 33. Scatter thou the people that delight in Warre Psal. 68. 30. London Printed by R. Cotes for Stephen Bowtell at the Bible in Popeshead-Alley 1647. Die Veneris 13 Augusti 1647. ORdered by the Commons assembled in Parliament That thanks be given to Mr. Marshall for the great pains he took in the Sermon he preached yesterday before the Lords and Commons the day of publique Thanksgiving And that hee bee desired to print his Sermon with the usuall priviledge Sir William Massam is appointed to give him the Thanks of this House and to desire him to print his Sermon accordingly H. Elsynge Cler. Parl. D. Com. I appoint Stephen Bowtell to Print my Sermon Stephen Marshall TO THE RIGHT HONORABLE THE LORDS and COMMONS Assembled in PARLIAMENT My Lords and Gentlemen I Am not ignorant of the truth and weight of that speech of Pliny Aliud est scribere uni aliud omnibus the same holds of Preaching it 's one thing to Preach a Sermon to a Congregation another thing to Preach it to all the world in Print especially upon such an occasion as this and such a season as this when the spirit of jealousie and mis-understanding is let loose and mens hearts as tinder ready to catch and kindle at every sparke yet since you are pleased to conceive that this plaine Sermon may bee usefull to others and thereupon to order my publication of it I humbly obey your Order desiring the Lords blessing to accompany it so farre as to make men wisely consider the wonderfull works of God and returne to him the glory due unto his name The same Lord watch over you sanctifie you and guide all your consultations that you may bee his blessed instrustruments to make this Land a quiet habitation for his people and a place which himselfe may delight in This is the daily prayer Of your humble servant in the Lords work S. M. A THANKSGIVING-SERMON PREACHED To the Two Houses of Parliament August 12. 1647. JOSHVA 22. part of the 33 Verse And the Children of Israel blessed God and did not intend to go up against them in battail to destroy the Land wherein the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt WEE are this day assembled to blesse and praise the name of God for his infinite Mercy in restoring the two Houses of PARLIAMENT to their Honor and Freedome with so little effusion of Blood and for keeping the great CITY and ARMY from dashing one against another And I being called to this Service did endeavour to finde out a Text suitable to this Mercy because a word spoken in season is like Apples of gold in pictures of silver A Sermon suited to the occasion of Time and Place and Persons is not onely more acceptable but profitable But I confesse that in all the Book of God I could not finde one instance where his own People were so neare imbruing their hands in each others blood and God so wonderfully appearing to prevent it as in this our case this that I have read comes the nearest to it of any other for here were Brethren of the same Countrey and of the same Religion who had for a long time been engaged in one common Warre against Enemies which God had subdued before them and there remained nothing but for them quietly to settle themselves in the fruition of all the good that God had wrought for them and now in the very close of all they were ready to destroy themselves and devour one another upon mistakes and jealousies when no other Enemy could do it and we have here also a most blessed end of it by a Treaty wherein God did so remove all stumbling-blocks that their hearts were firmly united and they joyned together to blesse God and resolved not to goe to Warre Which that it may be the more profitable to you I pray take a very brief view of the Story When the Warres were ended in the Land of Canaan the two Tribes and half the Tribes I mean of Reuben and Gad and half the Tribe of Manasseh whose habitation and possession lay on the other side of Jordan were now to returne home and their brethren had dismissed them with a blessing but before they got out of the countrey there fell out an occasion of a quarrell and discord between them and their brethren which begins about the tenth verse of this Chapter and all the rest of the Chapter is a discourse about that discord and jarre that grew between the nine Tribes and halfe and the two Tribes and halfe wherein there are these two things First the Originall of the quarrell or the causa procreans what the difference was betwixt them Secondly causa corrumpens the composure of it the making an end of it The originall of the quarrell briefly was this the two Tribes and halfe when they came upon the bankes of the River Jordan did there build an Altar every way like to the Altar of God which by Gods appointment was to stand before the Arke and the Tabernacle upon which onely the Israelites were to offer their Sacrifices This newes was presently carried to the rest of the Tribes and they looked upon it as if their brethren had built an Altar to offer Sacrifice to God which had beene Crimen apostasiae an Apostasie from then true Religion and they resolved presently in this quarrell to engage their lives and appoint a generall Rendezvouz at Shiloh where the Arke of the Covenant was here they all met as one man togoe up to war against them here was their Quarrell the rest of the Chapter is the taking up of this quarrell and that was done by a Treatie the summe whereof in a few words is this the Tribes did send ten men one for every Tribe and with them they sent Phinehas the sonne of Eleazar the Priest they goe as Commissioners to their Brethren and when they come to them they first expostulate the greatnesse of the sinne which they thought they were committing they shew them the mischiefe that would come of it not onely destruction upon themselves but upon all the whole Congregation unles they in the name of God should revenge it this they prove by the example of the iniquity of Peor from which they were not yet clensed and by the instance of Achans sacriledge which brought wrath upon all the Congregation of Israel but withall
and is it not a mercy when God will prevent this But secondly Looke upon civill wars and you will judge them a greater judgement when brethrens Swords come to bee drawne against their brethren when a mans deadly enemies must prove those that were his old companions when Cities are divided among themselves and Countries among themselves and all the miseries of Warre come to bee inflicted by them that have beene acquaintance and deare to us when safety and shelter may as soon be expected among enemies as old friends let all men that have understanding say whether this doth not double or treble the miseries of warre had it been an enemy that had done mee this displeasure I could have borne it but tu Brute thou my friend and companion that these things should come from thy hand all men know how deepe this sinkes this teares the heart of man in peeces Solomon saith that a brother offended is harder to bee wonne then a strong City and they are like the barres of a strong Castle it 's hard breaking of them but when once they are divided they are more hardly joyned as wee say of a strong Cord made up of a great many threds it is hard to bee broken but when it is broken you 'le hard ever sew it againe to make it strong by how many arguments any did perswade their hearts that they should not receive plunder or spoile or mischiefe from such a man or family from so many arguments ariseth a difficulty if not impossibility to be reconciled and hence arise lasting grounds of animositie enmitie and hatred scarce ever to bee worne out when upon every meeting this thought is suggested This is the man who as an enemy entred my habitation and spoyled my wealth it may bee murdered my children or parents ravished my wife or daughter adde further that frequently in these civill broyles the victory ends not the occasion or ground of the quarrell nor takes away but increaseth the former misery the conqueror commonly proving insolent inhumane cruell and more grievous to the Common-wealth then the thing or persons were against whom men have fought that I may boldly set downe for a certaine the conclusion of a wise man that civill warres are not onely a Malady but a fiery sicknesse even a Frenzie to a State and how ever God sometimes brings good out of them as sometimes men have better health after a deadly sicknesse yet for the most part States are never made better but very often ruin'd by them and when once the seed of it hath tooke deep root in a Land if God from heaven doe not miraculously appeare that fire burnes till all is consumed And is it not then a mercy from God seasonably to prevent brethren when they are falling into civill warres thereby to devoure and destroy one another But thirdly which is nearest to my Text and indeed nearest to the occasion of our meeting The greatest misery of all miseries in the world is When Brethren of the same Religion when Gods people and servants come to bee so farre prejudiced against one another or mistaken that they come to imbrew their hands in one anothers blood this I say is the heaviest judgement that ever God powres upon his Church and people There is nothing so contrary to Christianitie the Lord Jesus Christ is the Prince of peace his holy Spirit is a Spirit of peace his children are all called the children of peace and by their Covenant and duty bound to live in peace if it bee possible they must live in peace with all men but among one another they must keepe the unity of this Spirit in the bond of peace there must nothing hurt or destroy in the Lords holy mountaine wch is his Church now when these that are one body have one spirit have one Father one Lord one hope one Baptisme one hope of their calling one everlasting inheritance prepared for them that these should so farre deny their Christianitie as to imbrew their hands in one anothers blood and not bee content to let one another live and breath on earth with whom yet they hope to live eternally and triumphantly in heaven O quâ—a dementia Quisialia fando temperet à lacrymis who is able to thinke of it without horrour what upon earth brings forth so cursed fruits as warre amongst the people of God Infinite dishonour to Gods name when his redeemed covenant servants walke so contrary to his rule Religion becomes a stumbling blocke a thing even therefore abominated by the enemies of it when the professors of it shall bee looked upon as factious seditious turbulent bloody hatefull and hating one another it overthrowes all power of godlinesse in their owne hearts when once the grace of Love which nourishes all good in the hearts of Gods people is overthrowne and the Spirit of God thus quenched in them grace decayes and the wofull fruites of Satan and sinne prevaile over them and now they grow corrupt in their mindes and conversation loose from their God bitter against their brethren companions with wicked men with whom they joyne against their brethren and so leave their Religion profession and name as a curse behind them Now to have all these prevented not onely warre and civill warre prevented but brethren in Religion who are the Lords people hindred from destroying one another when God seasonably apppeares to prevent all this Is it not a mercy worthy the acknowledgment To all this I might adde the excellency of the blessing of peace which is hereby preserved that blessing which is the Jewell of the world yea the unitie peace and love of the Church and people of God preserved by such a seasonable prevention which is such a mercy as no tongue or pen is able to expresse Behold how good and pleasant a thing it is for brethren to dwell together in unity This is like Aarons garment this is like the dew upon the mountaines of Sion which makes every seed and every plant of Gods planting to prosper where this is the Lord commands his blessing even life for evermore A large Volume would not contain what might be said of this precious Jewell which is hereby preserved But all this further cleares it that it is a mercy worth abundance of praise when God seasonably appeares to prevent his peoples engaging in Warre one against another I come now to the Application of it and there are but three Uses that I shall make of this Lesson First This Lesson doth speak very sadly against severall sorts of People If it be so great a Mercy when God will prevent his peoples destroying one of another then certain it is a great curse for any to bee guilty of making Gods people destroy one another that is clear Therefore al such are guilty as are the Moral causes of the destruction of Gods people in blood and war I mean who live in such sinnes as
compell the honorable Houses of Parliament to passe what they pleased shall reproach them revile them shall thereaten their lives shall enter the House and order what the Speaker must propound to the question what the Glerke must write and after eight houres keeping them prisoners and using them at their pleasure when night was comming on the Members hardly to escape with their lives such an indignitie it was that I am perswaded if rightly understood many hundred thousands in this Kingdome of England would not count their dearest blood too great a price to vindicate or expiate and as if this were not enough against the next Friday Printed Bills set up to call all the company together againe and hereby the Speakers and many of the Noble Lords and Gentlemen compelled to flie so that they could not with safetie of their lives attend the publique serieve this you know was the Originall Secondly Consider the persons that were ingaged in preparation for a new warre First the Honorable Houses tooke both conscience and honour engaged to have this vindicated and their safety provided for The Generall and Officers of the Army hearing of the violence that was offered to the Parliament resolved to enable the Parliament to call it to an accompt or they would perish in it and thereupon the Army that was scattered almost 200. Miles within the space of one weeke was brought together to a Randezvouz which was within a few houres march of the Citie of London The Citie of London not to patronize or protect the insolencie offered against the Parliament for multitudes of them professe and protest an abhorrencie of it but apprehending that the Army would come and either plunder them or give Lawes to them are presently upon their preparation for defence the Army on the other side looking upon the Cities preparation judge that the Citie was resolved to protect this Insolency and Villany that was committed thus both make all possible preparations Thirdly take in the propinquitie of it how neere this was to execution so neere that I am perswaded most men that looked upon it did as to the judgement of man conclude it unavoydable wee must now dash one upon another so neere that the very night before the day wherein we might have been embrewitg our hands in one anothers blood there appeared no probability of right understanding between the two differing parties so neer that I thinke there was never any destructive worke so neere the execution unlesse it were the Gun-pouder plot And lo now in this nicke of time the Lord appeares in the Mount the cloud breakes the Citie will trust the Army they will open their works their gates to them the Army will trust the Citie they will march in peace quite thorough it from end to end no word or act of hostilitie betweene them both The Speakers and the Honorable Lords and Gentlemen who were driven away returne backe the Parliament fits in peace and safety and all this preparation for war and destruction ends in a calme all this hath God done but this will yet appeare more wonderfull if you take in the fourth consideration and that is The Consequents of it First What would have beene and must have been if God had not appeared And Secondly The Consequents that are and I hope shall bee upon this his mercifull appearing for us The Consequents that would have beene my tongue cannot expresse my heart cannot conceive how sad our condition would have beene if the Lord had suffered this neare engagement to have been brought to execution if he had permitted this child of blood to have been borne certainly either the Parliament that hath so dilligently and constantly consulted the good of the Kingdome Citie and Army must have been destroyed or the Army that hath fought so faithfully resolutely and successefully for Parliament for Kingdome and Citie must have been destroyed or the Citie which in the worst of our times hath so cordially with their state and blood adhered to Parliament and Army must have been destroyed and in the destruction of any one of these I am able to apprehend nothing but the ruine and destruction of them all wee should have seene a sad Catastrophy an end of all the expected hopes even the giving up the ghost of what wee have fought and contended for hitherto wee had seene the Embryo of Reformation strangled and made an end of we had seene all delivered up into the hands of that partie that was full with the expectation of such a day and now doubted not but all must be in their hands who hoped soone to give Lawes both to Parliament and Army Citie and Ministers to all godly people by what names or titles soever they bee called each should bee carved out what they would have alotted unto them In a word actum esset there had been an end of England for any good dayes that we should have hoped for but the Lord appearing hath prevented this and given us hopes of better things for already wee have that wch Phinehas took as a blessed fruit of his Embassage here in my Text We perceive this day that God is with us This day have we a further pledge that God is not wearie of the Parliament of England not weary of the Citie of London not weary of the Army but his interposing thus seasonably to take weapons out of their hands shews us new evidence of his watchfull eye of his carefull heart to doe good to us all gives us a further proof that he hath waies of deliverance when wee have none and is not that a blessed consequence and this likewise we see already that the Parliament not only sits in peace and safety but hath an opportunity put into their hands to send some timely succors to Ireland that our Brethren there may have cause to blesse God with us and for us and to settle and make a comfortable close of the long calamities of England and the King and Parliament City and Army come to a better understanding each of other there may be such consequences and fruit of it if God please to blesse and guide the Parliament to improve it that the generations to come shall have great cause to praise God for appearing upon that day when he kept his people from imbruing in one anothers blood Now Honourable and Beloved is not this a mercy worthy of acknowledgments have we not cause to say this day Loe This is our God and we have waited for him and he will save us this is our God we will be glad and rejoyce in his salvation hath not the Lord done very mercifully when as beyond our expectation hee hath put this song of Praise into our mouths whereas this day we might have all been flying into caves or deserts or seeing our dearest friends blood pouring out and our selves given up for a spoil O if you understand these things aright give