of that in Melchi-tsedek a Kingly priesthood And so our Lord and great priest came not of Leuies tribe as did all the legall priesthood but of Kingâ—y Iudah as is euident hebr 7.14 15. And as this legall priesthood was onely tied to Leuies type during their ceremoniall seruice so not euery Leuite offred this sacrifice but such sufficient-ones onely as were of Leuies sonne Kohath As for the two yonger houses Gershom and Merari they were shut from the Altar and employed in inferiour places and seruiceâ— Numb 3. and 4. Wherein though darkely might be represented Christ the elder brother in whom the sacrifice satisfactory rested together with his two yonger brethren for we are all so called to be priests Reuel 16. Pet. 2.9 Rom. 22.1 namely Minister and Lay-man who are employed in inferiour seruices subordinate to Christ Iesus our hie-priest Which priesthood of ours consisting in offring vppe our selues a reasonable sacrifice is as farre differing from that of Christs as Gershoms and Meraris from that of Kohath Gershom and Merari with Israel were called a Kingdome of Priests as now all Christians are termed to the same God Kings and Priests but as he was To die the death whatsoeuer hee was that touched the arke with Vzzah though a Leuite but not of Kohath and Aaron so whatsoeuer he amongst Christians that shall vsurpe vpon Christs sacrifice or with Apostate Papisme encroâ—h on his office they stand condemned of high treason conspired against the Lord and his Annointed for Mâ—ssiah is the Sacrificer absolute hauing trod the wine-presse alone They and wee are but Sâ—crificers Respectiue so termed in respect of conforming our selues vnto him who hath beene so sufficient for vs as members not vn-naturall must needes conforme themselues to their head This generally of the Office shadowing and shadowed now to the three particulars before specified his Enstalment his Garments his Action For his Enstalment first Moses bearing the person of God he causeth Aaron and his Sonnes for he was to haue them ioyned therein to come from amongst the people assembled in whose presence he declareth Iehouahs wil touching Aaron and his sonnes for sâ—crifice-hood Secondly Moses wâ—sheth them with water Thirdly he putteth on them the prescribed ceremoniall garments Fourthly he filleth their hands with oblâ—tions frumentall and animall shaking them before the Lord and then offering them according to the ceremonie prescribed putting of the blood on their right eare on the thumbe of their right hand and on the great toe of their right foote annoynting them with the sacred oyle Fiftly they feasted at the Tabernacles dore with the consecrated bread and flâ—sh Sixtly they were to watch seauen dâ—yes aâ—d seauen nights at the tabernacles dore for that was the time of their consecration as they would avoyde to haue sodaine death inflicted from heauen vpon them All his installment according to ceremoniall appearance it was passing glorious and notablie shadowed forth the super-excelling installment of Messiah to the worke of Redemption Did not Aaron take this office vnto him but was he caled of God thereto So neither did Christ take this honour to be made the hie-priest but he that said vnto him Thou art my Son this day I begot thee euen he gaue it him And being consecrated was made the Author of eternall saluation vnto all them that obay him and is called of God an high priest after the order of Melchi-tsedek Only where the Leuiticall priesthood had Co assistants in that sacâ—ifice Christ Iesus had no helpe for looking about as Isaiahâ—aith â—aith if there were any to helpe him loe there were none and so his owne at me sustained him Assistants he had in the Gospels publication namely his Apostles Euangelists and Prophets but in the worke of our absolute redemption he had no fellow which further was shadowed forth in the Hie-preist who only might enter into the Sanctum sanctorum for making attonement For Moses his washing them that shadowed the immaculate and vnspotted estate of Iesus For such an hie-priest it besemed vs to haue as is holy harmeles vndefiled seperate from sinners hebr 7.26 The annoynting them with such sauoury oile it shadâ—wed the Holy Spirit with his sauory operations by vertue whereof euery thing in him was to his fathers nosâ—thrills redolent The blood sprinkling oblations burning did fore-type the sufferings of our hie-priest for without his blood was no purgation That feasting at the Tabernacles dore it shadowed with what cheerfulnes our Messiah came to do his fathers wil. As for the seuen dayes and their nights they so continued it well resembleth our Sauiors consecration for this busines to the whole seuen ages of the world for he is the Lamb slaine from the beginning of the world Christ ' yesterday to day the same for euer This instalment was preached in Paradise belieued of Adam shadowed in his Abels sacrifice and so continued almost 4000 yeares what time he appeared in our nature for effecting of that amongst men which otherwise to his father was from the beginning in Act seeing with God there is no time past or to come but all things present This breifely of the installment into office Lect. XXII FOr the Garments of his office they are numbred Eight first A breast plate secondly An Ephod thirdly A Robe fourthly A broydered Coate fiftly A Miter sixtly A Girdle seauenthly A plate of pure Golde and lastly linnen Breeches With these eight was Aaron clothed what time he was to exercise his Arch-function Of the which erant quatuor vt annotaâ—it Beda minoris ordinis sacerdoâ—ibus concessa foure of these eight were grantâ—d to Priestes of the lower order namely the breches the broidered coate vnworthily turned a strait linnen in the old latine as Arias and Pagnine haue obserued then the Girdle and Miter And if the Mâ—tter and forme of this sacred attire be considered O howe truly Pontificall were they But thereof only a taste Their Coates their mitred ornaments and breeches were made of pure-fine linnen termed Bisse So were their girdles but perfected vp also with blew silke and purple scarlet and needle-worke But for the other garments wherin the Minor-priests had no interest there behold more The Robe called of the Greeks 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a garment to the foot such a one as our Sauiour is represâ—nted in Reuel 1.13 it was to be altogither of blew silke and the hole for the head of wouen worke strong as the coller of an Habergeon Vpon the skirts whereof were tached Golden-bells and Pomegranates The number of whch Bels and the Pomegranâ—ts must be no lâ—sse are of Clemens Alexandrine sâ—d to be 166 but Beda affirmes them to be but 72. from the testimonie of Iosephus the Priest in his Antiquities For my part I rest where the scripture resteth It affirmeth nothing of the number nor will I. The Ephod a shorter garment drawne ouer the Robe it was made of Golde and blew silke and
it is an excellent Comforting nature and also repercussiue Vnder this odoriferous Nard I mystically vnderstand first the sacrifice of a faithfull penitent heart whose sighes and confessions petitions and praises are as Noahs oblations in Gen 8.21 called the odours of the Saints Reue. 8.4 and secondly they be these sauourie almes which the faithfull minister to the Saints termed by the Apostle an odour that smelleth sweete a sacrifice acceptable and pleasant vnto God Philip. 4.18 The first of these doe specially respect God the second our Neighbour For as in Church-Communion God and Man are considered at one and in Christ made one so no soule can manifest it selfe to be of this fellowship that first persumeth not Christs head then secondly his members with this aromatike odour Christes head is the Father and his body is the church 1. Cor. 11.2 12.27 To the Father of heauen are all deuotions of the heart to be offered vpon the golden altar of Messiahs obedience for onely this Angell of the East Reuel 8.1 c. whose starre appeared in the East hath a golden censor for censing the prayers of the Saints As for the oblations of the hand the contribution of the faithfull they appertaine to the faithfull needy-ones Do good we must vnto all but specially to the houshold of faith Galat. 6.10 And this specialtie appeareth when as the speciall almes termed the Collection for the saints 1. Cor. 16.1 and sundry times called a Grace in 2. Corinthi 8. and 9. they be appropriated to the vse of the sanctified of the Gracious Not that we are to contribute onely to the visible Gratious for as God without respect to mans worke dooth good to the verie wicked so are we but specially we are to tender the gracious as God by a Speciall grace hath regarded them beyond others In both we are to be like vnto God and both of them be vnto him as the Morning and Euenings incense Thus Christ as a King feasteth with his church and the church againe feasteth with him in sauourie words and workes but made sauourie onely by his spirit Iudas Iscariot will finde fault with the effusion of this oyle not because he loueth the poore but for that he hath the bagge and studieth how to robbe the poore Let not Mary cease to offer her Deuotions to God and her Almes to Messiahs members for howsoeuer Iudas thinke all but oyle spilt vpon the ground our Iesus will say No let her alone against the day of burying she kept it There be a number of Dogges now that neither will themselves doe good to the poore nor can bee contented that others do them Good With Iudas they thinke all lost that is spent vpon Christ and his members and herevpon it is that our Ages Atheists doe robbe the Church intending with Iscariot the paunching of themselues Let them in time repent and in time make restitution lest God in his iustice do leaue them with theefe Iudas to the halter or at least to haue their portion with Hypocrites and Foxes The Brownist which now teacheth them to robbe the Church will then be farre enough from defending the play or helping Sacri-legists out of Hels-mouth that gapeth to receiue them as they gape to swallowe vp the Churches inheritance Let Iesus and his members feast together while they may for after the feast there wil be a fast a day of Crucifixion a darke and gloomie day While the Bridegroome is with vs let vs publikely bestow our odours on God and Man when the gospels sunne shall be eclipsed and Christ haue yeelded vp the ghost then with the Centurion let vs knocke our breast moorne and lament for that darkenesse is ouer all our Earth Lect. XIIII HAuing thus praised her Loue for that was past shee now commeth to that praise which toucheth the present time whereas she first compareth him to a bundle of Myrrhe secondly of Copher For Myrrhe it is an Indian tree and in taste very bitter and of the second degree hote and drie and of preseruing nature for which cause Nicodemus in Iohn 19.39 doth mix Myrrhe with Aloes for embalming the body of Iesus That Christ is to the church a nosegay of Myrrhe what meaneth it but that he doth by his Spirits heate exiccate or dry vppe the superfluitie of our degenerate nature wherby body and soule is preserued to eternall life For as it is the office of Messiahs spirite to kill or mortifie sinne in vs so likewise to viuifie and quicken vp in vs the spirit of true life The first is done by the bitternesse of the Law the second is done by the redolent doctrine of Faith or Gospel And as the church hath in the present a sense thereof so shee couenanteth for future time that this Messiah shall as a bundle of Myrrhe be couched betweene her breasts and that no doubt for these purposes first for manifesting how deare Christ crucified is vnto her with all his bitter agonies secondly for keeping her rebellious sprowting lusts vnder all her life That the bitter crosse of Christ is of great esteeme in the harts of the faithfull consider not onely in this that they desire with Paul onely to know Christ and him crucified 1. Cor. 2.2 but also are baptized into his death and so with the Apostle doe die dayly 1. Cor. 17.29 30. For such as walke on in wickednesse lâ—bouring their owne particular these are not common-wealâ—s-men but common-illes-men and as Paul termeth them Enemies vnto the Crosse of Christ Philip. 3.18 so farre are they from exulting with the Apostles in bitter sufferings and sharpe temptations This bundle is no Nosegay for their bosoms That the church placeth it betweene her breasts for the subduing of deceitfull lusts which are euer ready to spring out of the heart it also appeareth in this that the faithfull mâ—ditating the death and agonies of Iesus they thereby are drawne to remember their owne sinnes which lashed him goared him killed him the remembrance whereof wil easily proue a cooling carde for Philautus able to kill self-loue and to cause a loathing of fleeting deceiuable pleasures To which purpose our Lordes Supper setting forth his death till he come it is a soueraigne medicine For as the meditation of the world causeth Demas to runne backe and embrace the world euen so the meditation of Christ crucified it causeth Mary Magdalen to leaue carnall couch arise earely to repayre vnto his sepulchre And vpon this ground was builded but through a blinde zeale the ancient Monasticke solitarie life estranged from the communion of the church fitter for a Timon of Athens an hater of Mankinde then for a common-wealths man or one of christian fraternitie seeing we are not called to seeke only our selues but the common vtilitie of his church in a mortified conuersation It was prettily but vnfitly saide of Hierome to Vigilantius Ego cùmfugero non vinco in â—o quod fugio sed fugio ne vincar I in flying the societie
knowing it to be a tiâ—e fitter for him to fast then with the residue to feast and this was represented by the pollutions legall which made the body vncleane to the euening as also but done in part though in a greater part when the sinner is not onely put away from the sacrament of Communion but also from the prayer of Communion And this was represented vnder the Law when for certaine contagion they were expelled the hoste and were no more to conuerse with Israel till death except the Lord cleansed them And howsoeuer this excommunication be a putting forth from all communion yet it doth admit the partie some brotherly loue seeing in such estate hee is not to be counted as an enemy but admonished as a brother Though familiaritie be gaine said him yet not brotherly admonition seeing not the Spirit but the flesh was deliuered to Satan for beeing humbled and that for preseruation of the spirit in the Lords day of visitation for this power is not giuen vs for destruction but for edification Of this debarring from the Lords Table as also driuing forth and deliuerie to Satan Chrysostome is plâ—ntifull In one place how earnestly doeth he wish to know them of the assembly who the day before had bin absent from sermon and present ad iniquitatis spectacula at wicked playes To what end would he know Vt eos à sacris vestibulis arceam that I might saith he driue them forth of the Church non vt perpetuò foris maneant sed vt correcti denuò redeant not to the end they should stay without for euer but that after coâ—rection they might returne againe shewing afterwards how such dealing is oftentimes beseeming a father in his familie and a Pastor in his church In another place he exhorteth his fellow Presbyters to debarre all knowne vnworthy ones from the Lords Table and then turning as it were to one of them he thus cryeth out Quod siipsum pellere non audes mihi dicas non permittam ista fieri Animam prius tradam meam c. If thou darest not debarre the wicked tell mee for I will not suffer it I will rather lay downe my life and suffer my blood to be powred out then I wil agree to giue the Lords bodie to the vnworthie rather then I will graunt that most holy blood to any but the worthy And how zealous Ambrose was in this that his expelling of Theodosius his Emperour will stand euer for witnesse Ambrose seeing no apparance of schisme or churches harme like to ensue such expulsing a great signe that his ministerie was gracious withall he so putteth the King forth till he was willing to cleare his hands of blood by publike repentance Thinke not saith Nissenus that such segregation proceedeth of an Episcopall arrogancie Vetus est regula ecclesiae quae cepit à lege fuit confirmata in gratia This is an ancient Rule in the Church hauing his beginning from the Law and his confirmation in the Gospel The second kinde of cutting off is absolute as from all diuine communion so from humane familiaritie and all this for euer This excommunication is of the Apostle termed Maranatha 1. Cor. 16.22 of Mare Lord and Atha hee commeth for N. is interposed for sound sake because such a person is excommunicate to the death and left to the Lords coâ—ming who can and will take vengeaunce of them that Loue him not Such wicked-ones haue once knowen and loued Christ as Iesus their Sauiour but afterwards doe voluntarily fall away from that Loue as some Hebrews that turned backe to Indaisme and many now to meere Atheisme who doing it against the Sight and Sence they had are now held to be damned of their owne Conscience and to crucifie againe the Lord of life wherof more largely I haue written in a peculiar treatise and this kind of cutting off was represâ—nted vnder the Law by that Cherem or deuoting of things to destruction so termed in Ioshuah 7.1 and elsewhere Thus the Magistrate with his sword is to sease on the foxes the Minister also with the Word of God is to seaze on them If they cleaue like Burres to the vines we are to stay them from further euill as much as in vs is but not for dragging them away to pull the Vine downe the Church on our heads If we can loose the hold they haue we are hauing taken them to thrust them out of the vineyard that Satan who raigneth without hee may vexethem till by repentance they cease to be foxes as Nabuchad-nezzar comming to the acknowledging of the true God ceased to be a Beast Nimrod hunted and Esau hunted but the Holy-ghost hath marked both with a blacke cole as an hunting whereof they may be ashamed The Prophets hunted the Apostles hunted our ancient fathers hunted and all of them hunted the Church-foxe The same is our duetie and in dooing it it is our glorie The Magistrate and minister is now assembled in Royall honourable parliament the GOD of Heauen blesse them guide and assist them for strengthening our Vine and for hunting out all sorts of foxes the Churches and our Soueraignes aduersaries Amen Lect. X. 16 My Welbeloued is mine and I am his hee feedeth among the Lillies 17 Vntill the day breake and the shadowes flee away returnâ— c. THE Church hauing finished Messiahs speach first for calling her to obedience secondly for remoouing impediments shee now concludeth this diuine Act first with Praise secondly with Prayer The matter of Praise lyeth in this first verse Wherein is vttered the praise of Messiahs loue and feeding His loue is laid downe in the gift of himselfe to her wherby shee in the next place was made His. Hee being hers shee therewith became His. God so Loued the world that he hath giuen his onely begotten Sonne that whosoeuer belieueth in him should not perish but haue eternall life First the Father giues the Sonne and he is willing to be giuen for vs secondly the Father giueth vs faith as an hand to receiue his Sonne and with him eternall life So that the giuing of Christ to vs first doth constraine vs to giue our selues to him in the next place His loue causeth vs to loue We loue him because he loued vs first Yea saith our Sauiour Iohn 15.16 Ye haue not chosen me but I haue chosen you And so the Apostle noteth our comprehending of Christ to grow from our being comprehended of him Philip. 3.12 Whereby it commeth to passe that wee are not onely Members of his body of his flesh and of his bones Ephes. 5.30 but also as Saint Peter witnesseth 2. Ephes. 1.4 partakers of the diuine nature namely by qualification and vnitie with the essence it selfe God and man in Christ becomming one And thus whilst the Church praiseth Christ she preacheth her owne blessednesse giuen her by grace with Christ. After shee hath extolled his Loue shee praiseth his Feeding affirming that
Hebrue forme Iitscak in English Laughter And who is the Churches laughter The Psalmist saith that when Israel was freed from Babels capituity their mouths were filled with laughter As that deliuerance shadowed the faithfull their freedome from satan and sinnes captiuitie so their deliuerer is Christ whereof after and He is it onely that filleth our hearts with laughter For which the Apostle saith Reioyce in the Lord alway againe I say reioyce And indeede all laughter and ioy out of Christ is but a Diabolicall grinning Abraham hearing that hee should haue a sonne in his old age hee for ioy laughed and the world in his old age bringing forth Christ Iesus according to the ancient promise hath occasion much more of laughter and holy reioycing God giue vs hearts to reioyce in this Isaac For the thing Isaac was freely offred vp of Abraham and yet not He but the Ramme died The Ancients here haue obserued and applied much I onely here doe vrge these particulars Sicut Isaac ipse sibi ligna portauit ita Christus in humeris portauit lignum crucis as Isaac himselfe carried wood for himselfe so did Christ Iesus carry the wodden crosse Because with the wood that is the fruite of the tree we were wounded in Adam wee are againe by the mysterie of wood healed namely by Christ his death vpon the legall tree accursed For he became a curse for vs that we might become a blessing to his Father Furthermore when all came to all the onely begotten of Abraham died not but the Ramme entangled in the briers died So not the onely begotten of our heauenly father died in the nature whereby he was his onely begotten but in his sheepish nature by which he set free the sheepe of his pasture Died he not Significat domini diuinitatem dum non fuit occisus in that he was not slaine that representeth his diuine nature He so died for vs in his humanity as notwithstanding he remained immortall in his diuinitie The Godhead being impassible it was by the Scape-goate in Leuiticus 16. that went from the sight of men al-arets gezérah into the land of sequestration As for his Humane nature that was the Ramme entangled in the briers and thickets of our sinnes for if worldly cares be thornes Math. 13.22 then well may the sinnes of the world be the thickets that held Christ Iesus to death So I vnderstand it of sinnes rather then with some other of sinners And yet it is true that abhominable sinners compared to thornes 2. Sam. 23.6 they apprehended and bound him as a Malefactor Others vnderstand it of Christ crowned by the Iewes with thorne and so indeede he was crowned and abused But properly and next hand it was our sinnes put vpon him that captiued his humanity during the occultation of his diuinitie O cruell crowne of thorne deserving nothing at all to be worshipped but much more cruell sinners that bound him as a Malefactor and notorious pricking sinnes that plagued him to the death The snares of death tooke hold of him when our snare thereby was broken and wee as a Bird deliuered Well may the mountaine where he suffered be called Iehouah-ijreh The Lord will prouide for as it was promised to Abraham it hath beene performed to vs God hath prouided what a Sauiour for his people The Lord make vs thankefull That secondary sense whereby Isaac shadowed the Church I here omitte And this shall suffice for a â—aste of Personall shadowes before the Law Now I will as God shall enable beginne with such personall types as were vnder the times of the Lawe and hereof also but a taste of some fewe And this is it to be done first by producing some circumcised secondly some vncircumcised and yet both sortes figures of Messiah and glorious things accompanying him For circumcised vnder the Lawe I first will propound Aharôn the great sonne of Leui the high-priest first ordained to Israels tabernacle Lect. XXI Aharon IN Aharon I will not obserue whatsoeuer might be obserued for that were to exceede much the proportion I haue kept before in other shadowes but onely these particulars first his Name secondly his Office or function And in that function first his forme of Instalment secondly his garments thereto consecrated thirdly the official Action First to his Name Aharon is a Mountaine or as Ancients vsually expound it a mountaine of height or high mountaine And how well in this Name Messiah and his Kingdome is shadowed let vs consider specially in two scriptures The first shall be that in Isaiah 2.2 the second that in Dan. 2.44 45. Isaiah saith that in the latest of Dayes Beacharith haiamim The mountaine euen the house of the Lord should be prepared in the height of the mountaines and that it should Lift vp it selfe aboue the Hills and whereto all Nations should flowe c. that is In the latest or last of the worlds dayes that is in the worlds sixt age God will effect this glorious worke namely hee will Lift vp his Sonne and he shall draw all faithfull of the Gentiles so well as of Iewes vnto him A standart shall be lift vp and from farre they shall bring their sonnes and daughters to march vnder it to become subiects of this kingdome called typically sometimes The mountaine of his holinesse As for Daniel he telleth Nebuchadnetsar plainely how in the last times God would set vp a Kingdome which should neuer be destroyed yea such a Kingdome as should abolish humane vaine Regiments for making roome to it selfe because of a little stone cut from the mountaine it should grow to be a great mountaine filling the whole earth Which Stone is that Petra where of Petrus tooke name the corner stone and Rocke of our Saluation who howsoeuer small at first yet finally is growne as a mighty mountaine his Christian Kingdome filling the earth which is indeede the Reall mountaine of Gods Holinesse He the Stone and Head but his mysticall body and Church iâ— the Kingdome and large spread mountaine for such is the vnion of Christ and his members that what is first said of him is often againe in the second place applied vnto them specially in their ioynt-communion And thus in the name of Aharón is shadowed forth that Messiah in his mysticall body is as a Mountaine first so Eminency and height ouer all the earth He ouer the People his people ouer the earthly Abiects secondly for Vniuersalitie seeing in tract of due time his Church should no more be paled in Iudea but should flowe through the earth with such successe as it should neuer be destroyed The breadth the length and depth and height of our heauenly Father his loue in Christ it secretly is couched in this litle Name O thou great man of God Aharon For his Office it was Kehunnáh that of Priesthood incommended to Israel till Messiah came who was to be a Priâ—st after an other order euen
to diuine Writers let vs from scriptures of our God labour to finde out the beginning continuance and ending of Gabriels seauens of yeares The Angell commeth to Daniel for giuing him vnderstanding as of the Thing in particular so of the grosse time and his partes When the Angel came vnto him it is noted in Dan. 9.1 namely in the first yeare of that Darius the Mede which before diuided the Kingdome with Cyrus vppon the present surprizing of Babel Which also in 2. Chron. 36.22 and Ezra 1.1 is termed the first yeare of Cyrus From this time the computation was to haue his beginning Which may appeare first from Cyrus Edict then going out wherto the Lord long before had made him his annointed secondly from the other Darius in Ezra 6. who there groundeth his proclamation vpon the Memorandum of Cyrus his established-canon For as the Lawes of Medes and Persians were not to be altered Dan. 5.8 15. so this King fastens his commaundement vpon the decree of Cyrus And vnto this Word of Cyrus the Iewes did leane in their answer to the Aduersarie nor durst the Aduersarie but appeale thereto if so such a decree was extant Ezra 5.7 8 9 10 c. Thirdly it appeareth from the Angels mouth who saith that the 70 seauens were to begin with the Edicts out-gate for returning the people to build Which returne was then made in the first yeare of Cyrus and his Darius Fourthly if the words outgate must be that of the other Darius which in their computations must be some hundred or 64 or moe yeares after Cyrus then the age of diuerse of the Returned would arise to an incredible number For as there were diuerse beholders of the New-Temple who before had seene the first Temple Ezra 3.12 and that with such iudgement as they wept at the inferioritie of the second so giue them but 30. yeares at the time of their captiuitie then the seauentie of captiuitie then a hundred or sixtie foure after thâ—ir Returne and so they must be aged then two hundred yeeres or 164. yea and so much the more aged as the temples worke endured after that second authorized onset But that many cohabitants should then be so aged it is not easily credible It was a faire age to be 149. and within 49 years of the returne the work was to be finished as the Angell telleth in saying From the out-gate of the Word to cause a Returne and build Ierushalem shal be 7. seauens that is 49. Whereto it is like the Iewes cast their eye in Iohn 2.20 Where they say the Temple was 46. yeares a building not compting the first three yeares when â—he foundation had beene laide and staide Obiection So in Iohn 8.57 they say that Iesus was not yet fiftie yeare-old doth it follow therefore he was neere fiftie Answer I answer first they were more expert in such monuments as the Temple wherein they had a deepe superstition than in our Sauiours age which nothing they regarded Secondly they were to determine not what our Sauiour was but what hee was not namely that he was not so aged as Abraham And to this purpose they had spoken well inough if they had saide thou art not yet a 1000. yeares old where as Abraham died aboue 1770. yeares since Object Gabriel saith not alone that there should be seauen seauens to that building but also to the Annointed and your selues grant that Iesus the annointed then came not Answere I answer the words And to the Messiah or Annointed they are ioyned to the 62. seauens following secondly they that would by Messiah vnderstand the Iewish body of gouernement they neither can deny but that they had a Messiah shadowing Gouerner Zorobabel the Lords signet in their first returne With the Ancient Clemens whom infinite troopes haue followed I conclude this thus Quod in septem bebdomadib aedificatum sit Templum hoc clarum est It is as cleare as the Sunne that the Temple was aedified in the seauen seauens of yeares that is in the first 49. yeares following the Edict of Cyrus And so doth Dauid Chytreus conclude from Metasthenes the Persians accompt as of all most probable For the 62. seauens that is 434. yeares they stand as an intervallum of time betweene the materiall temple which was the shadow and that holy of Holies Christ Iesus the Temple shadowed who after to the Iewes thus saide Destroy this Temple pointing at himselfe and in three daies I will raise it vp againe For the last 7. of yeares therein our Sauiour was baptized publiquely preached and died And that his death put an end to this seauen and so to the 490. yeares I see no otherwise from the Angels speach For howsoeuer he speak of their Citties finall desolation by Vespasians army yet he brings it not within the compasse of the former Seauens but precisely placeth it after Messiahs death it being a iudgement vpon them and their Children for preferring the Murderer Barabas to the Lord of life Iesus And as hee precisely affirmes that Messiah in the halfe of that last Seauen shold cause sacrifice and oblation to cease and that was by this death he himselfe preaching that in his last speach it is finished so the Angel in his first speach saith that 70. seauens were cut out c. for consuming iniquity making reconciliation for bringing in eternall iustice for sealing vp vision and Prophet and for annointing the Holy of Holies The Epoche or period of all which most probably can be fastned to our Sauiours death euen that time of offring vp himselfe vpon the crosse the time of Euening sacrifice wherein Gabriel came first to Daniel for enforming him of these Seauens If any of these yeares should ouer-reach his death I would then thinke with diuerse ancient and moderne writers holy Christians that it should be three yeares and an halfe giuen vnto the Apostles for full conuincing the Iewes by the Gospel And hereto the Text seemeth to lend a looke when as the hebrew readeth Halfe the seauen shall cause oblation and sacrifice to â—ease Where the word chatsi signifying Halfe or Middle and it is generally held that our Sauiour preached halfe seauen yeares it hath caused some to thinke it to be the first halfe rather than the second But the former is to me most probable Notwithstanding if any in this or the former parts of number be otherwise minded I meane not thereabouts to be contentious Only herein let vs at least accord that the Angell hath spoken properly and plainely but our sinnes hinder vs from conceiuing many things rightly And this so briefely and plainely as I can in so intricate a question 1. Did Cyrus the annointed Shadow send forth that Edict or word whereby Ierushalem and the Temple were builded O but the annointed Substance Christ Iesus sent forth a Worde for building his Church and framing Temples to the Holy ghost things greater than that of Ierushalem and the Temple in