IHÌ„S R V SOLE FRA LE STELLE Tenet Angelus Deam A new yeeres guift whose good well seene May please the wisdome of a Queene True vse whereof well weide in deede May stand the gracious in good steed HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE THE RIGHT WAY TO HEAVEN And the true testimonie of a faithfull and loyall subiect Compiled by Richard Vennard of Lincolnes Inne MATH 6. First seeke the kingdome of Heauen and all things shal be giuen AT LONDON Printed by Thomas Este 1601. R. V. SALVATOR MVNDI I IN this thy Name my soule great comfort findes H Heald from hir leprous sinne by thy deere bloud E Eschewing that molests disturbed mindes S Seeking for that may doe my conscience good V Vouchsafe thy Nature as thou giuest thy Name S Sweet Iesus that a blessed Sauiour came C Come comforter behold my soule is sad H Helpe with thy Mercie that thy Hand hath made R Regard mee so with hope I may be glad I In thy deere grace let all my deedes be staid S Sonne of thy Father such true lightning send T That in thy fauour Christ our liues may end AMEN TO THE HIGH AND mightie Princis Elizabeth by the grace of God Queene of England France and Ireland defendor of the Faith c. Richard Vennard of Lincolnes Inne Gent Wisheth all happinesse in this life And in the world to come Celestiall Eternitie MOST Renowned Soueraigne pleaseth it your Sacred Maiestie at the humble hands of your loiall subiect to accept this little handfull of my harts labour wherein my feeling of Gods mercies my knowledge of your gracious goodnesse and my care of my countries well doeing haue made me take such paines as if it may be pleasing in your sight shall breed no little ioy to my Soule Who kneeling at your Royall feete doe besech the God of all Glory to indew your Highnesse with his infinite blessings and long to preserue your sacred Maiestie in all ioyfull health and prosperous life Your Maiesties most faithfull and loyall subiect Richard Vennard Laudetur Dominus in aeternum OH Heauenly Spirit of especiall power That in thy hand thy praise of praises holdest And from the top of Truthes triumphant tower The hidden sence of fairest thoughts vnfoldest Inspire this hart and humble soule of mine With some sweet sparkle of thy power deuine Teach me to thinck but on that onely thought Wherein doth liue the grace of vertues glory And learne no more then what thy truth hath taught To those best wits that write thy worthie storie Wherein is seene in heauen and earths preseruing The highest point of praises praise deseruing Let not compare come neere vnto none such Heauen bee my thought and let the world go by And say withall that say I nere so much All are but trifles to thy treasurie For all no more then what thy mercie giueth Who can behold wherein thy glory liueth No I can see the shining of the Sunne But cannot sound the Essence of the light Then of thy face in whom that faire begunne How can my soule presume to haue a sight No my deere God thy glory hath a beeing Where Eie nor Heart nor Soule may haue a seeing And therefore Lord since such thy glory is As cannot bee but of thy selfe conceiued And heauen nor earth conteines that sparke of blisse But from thy hand of Mercy is receiued What spirit can hir sweetest passion raise Neere to the due of thy deserued praise Yet since all glory doth belong to thee Thy name in all things must bee magnified And by thy Mercie thou hast made mee see How in my soule thou maist be glorified In that sweet Mercy make my Soule to know How best I may thy blessed glory show Oh glorious God what creature can there bee That moues or Breathes or growes but shewes thy glory What art or science but doth speake of thee And writes the wonder of thy wisedome story What sound or sence can reasons Soule refine But speakes in glory of thy grace deuine The Sunne in brightnesse glorifies the light That in the beames but of thy beauty liueth The Moone and Starres amid the darkest night Shew what a light thy louing Mercy giueth So Sunne and Moone and all those shining creatures Doe shew thy glory in their lightsome natures Is not the daye a figure of perfection Wherin thy creatures were created first And Night of sinne that with a fowle infection Shewes how the Soule is for hir sinnes accurst But night once past the Glorious daie appeering Shewes sinnes forgiuen the ioy of mercies cheering So Sunne and Moone and Starres and daie and night Speakes of thy glorie in their cause of beeing And how they serue but in obedience right Vnto the grace but of thy will agreeing While wisdome shewes in state of reasons storie They giue vs light that wee may giue thee glory The Azure Skie more cleere then Chrystalline Wherin the Sunne doth cast his beames abroad How doth it figure that faire hand of thine Wherein thy Mercie makes hir most aboade While to the humble soules beleeuing eye Thy glory shines farre brighter then the Skie The Clowds that shed those dropps of blessed dewes That water the drie places of the Earth What droppe so small but it thy glory shewes To bring a plenty where was earst a dearth How doe they figure faithfull sorrowes teares Whence sin-burnt soules the fruit of mercie beares The Aier that giues each liuing creature breath Speakes of thy glorie in that breathing power And when it leaues the creature vnto death It shewes thy glory in that parting hower To leaue the flesh so in corruption wounded Till grace renue that was in sinne confounded The earth that yeelds such choice of fruits and flowers How doth it shew that glorious power of thine When all vnseene doe hidden lie those powers That Arte or Nature neuer can define How sweetes and formes and colours so should grow But that thy glorious will would haue it so And as the spring brings forth the budding greene With beauties dies for to adorne the field So in the winter few or none are seene That can the eye contentiue pleasure yeeld So that the earth that neuer silence breaketh In hir dumb speech yet of thy glory speaketh The Sea wherein those worlds of fishes liue That floate and tomble in the tossing waues What Notice doe they of thy glory giue That from the Whale the little Herring saues And makes the Dolphin wound the Whale so sore As driues him from the Sea to die on shore What beast so great or creeping worme so small what bird so high or of so low a flight But that thy name is glorified in-all who hauing made them by thy heauenly might Preseruest them so that all the world may see They haue their beeing onely but in thee The beast his heare the feather of the bird The fishes scale and euery tree his barke These for defence doth Nature all aforde As of thy
is nothing more necessary to suppresse and subdue his haughty affections then continuall remembraunce what he is from whence he came Eccle. 7. and whether hee shall That in calling to minde his base mettle his wretched condition and mortall generation he may the rather bee moued more humbly and lowly to conceiue and esteeme of himselfe What is Man Telluris invtile pondus an vnprofitable Man what lump of earth like as one might say to a peece of yee thou wast water thou art water and to water shalt thou bee turned againe So Man was earth hee is earth and to earth hee shall bee turned againe Thou hast fashioned mee of mould and earth sayth Iob and I am become like dust ashes O homo saith Chrisostome Iob. Chrisost si consider as quid per os quid per nares quid per ceteros meatus egrediatur numquam vilius sterquilium inuenisti What is Man his matter is base slime clay his nature weake feeble his birth paine sorrow his life vayne and miserable his state slippery vncertaine his time short tedious his sins horrible filthy his end grieuous lothsome What is Man A mirrour of misery a play of fortune and a pray of death he is borne wee ping and wayling to shew his wretchednesse hee liueth laughing and toying to beewray his folly and dyeth sighing and sobbing to declare his weake infirmitie What is Man Apuleius a Philosopher and scholler to Plato describeth him in this wise Men Apulcius sayth hee are liuing creatures dwelling vpon the earth hauing soules immortall brutish seruile bodies subiect to death light carefull mindes apt to errour vaine in labours diuers in conditions long ere they be wise their time but short and during life neuer content What is the state of Man Saint Barnard describeth Barnard it in this manner There commeth before thine eyes faith he a man poore naked miserable mourning that hee is a man blushing that he is naked weeping for that he is a wretch replenished with misery and fearefull for that his time is but short A great part of his life passeth away in doing that is euill a greater part in doing nothing and the greatest part in doing thinges to small purpose And as the life of man is vaine transitory and miserable euen so is the world with all things else wherein humaine nature taketh pleasure and delight as health wealth honour wisedome strength beautie or whatsoeuer What is the World A vale of misery a sincke of sinne a mould of mischiefe a denne of theeues a World Court of Sathan a purgatory of payne a mother to the wicked and a stepdame to the good where the proude and vitious are daily aduanced without desert and the humble and vertuous oppressed without cause the way ward and seditious befriended and the quiet and obedient molested the ignorant and foolish permitted to speake and the wise and discreet put to silence crafty dissemblers extolled and simple innocents despised What is the world hir mirth is but sorrow hir pleasure but payne hir wisedome but folishnesse and hir wealth but misery where nothing is to bee looked for but euen a rancke of troubles one following in anothers necke A great trauaile is created for all men sayth Iesus the sonne of Sirach Eccle. and a heauie yoke vpon all mens children some so pinched with pouertie and oppressed with miserie some tossed and tormented with strife and contention some tormented with sicknesse sores and contagious diseases that if an old man would set downe the tragedie of his life from the day of his brith till his departure to his graue a man would wonder that the body could suffer and the heatt could beare so painefull and dolorous a pilgrimage All the godly from the beeginning haue tasted the troubles of their time Adam when his children did one kill another Abraham when he wandred into a strāge coūtry Iob when he saw the spoile and hauocke of his goods the destruction of his children and his owne body tormented with botches and sores Ioseph felt his part of miserie beeing sould by his brethren and imprisoned without cause Noah felt his part of miserie beeing persecuted by the wicked Lazarus was both sicke sore hungry thirsty Father Iacob complayned that his daies were few and euill Dauid said hee was a worme and no man Solomon was weary of his life beecause all hee saw vnder the Sunne was nothing but vanitie miserie and vexation of minde Father Ierome complayned that Sathan sought to ouer throw him and that his weake flesh was ready to consent The prophet Ieremy cursed the day of his birth Ionas said it was better for him to dye then to liue Chrisostome called the daies of his life the daies of his sorrow Nazianzen wept that his mother had brought him forth to see such miserable daies Such trauayle hath God giuen vnto men vnder the Sunne to be exercised therein Cap. IIII. Of the race of mans life And certenty of death AND as the daies of this our painefull pilgrimage are vaine and miserable so are they short and tedious The one foote no sooner on the ground but the other is ready to step into the graue Man that is borne of a woman saith Iob hath but a short time to liue and is full of miserie hee springeth as a flower vadeth like a shadow and neuer continueth in one state The life of man is aptly compared to a vapour to the trace of a cloude to a ship passing ouer the waues of the Sea tossed beaten with tempest to a bird that flieth in the Aire or a shaft that is shot at a marke and neuer staieth till it light on the ground Euen so man as soone as hee is borne doth begin immediatly to draw to his end The godly Patriarks who liued in the first age Certainety of death of the world saw many yeeres yet at last they dyed Death was alwaies the end of their song Adam liued 930. yeeres Seth 912. Enoch 905. Kenan 910. Mahelael 895. Iarard 962. Methuselah 969. Lameth 777. Noah 950. and they dyed saith the text Abraham the Father of the faithfull Dauid a man according to Gods owne heart Iohn Baptist of whom our Sauiour Christ saith there hath not risen a greater among the children of women yet they dyed All the Prophets Apostles godly Martirs wer greatly in Gods fauour yet they dyed Rich and poore wise men fooles learned and vnlearned godly and vngodly all must follow the daunce of death Many are gone before the rest must follow after Wyse Solomon Rich Iob Strong Sampson faire Absolon haue trode the path of al flesh Great Alexander cōquered the whole world yet could finde no weapon to conquere death The stiffest steele yeldeth to the hammer the strongest Oke to the Axe and the stoutest hart vnto nature And as death is a thing of all other most certaine and sure so is the
remembred And as we are now clothed with the image of Adams corruptible body subiect to death misery so shall we then bee clothed with the image of Christs glorious body changed into perfection and sinceritie When Christ shall appeare saith the Apostle we shal be like vnto him see him as he is though wee shall not then as now bee maintained with earthly or elementall foode but as the Angells of Heauen yet our bodies of the same humane nature shape and fashion of flesh bones with all parts and members of a man as in this lise not altered in substance but changed in property Behold my hands and my feete saith our sauiour to his disciples for it is euen I my selfe handle mee and see for a spirit hath not flesh and bones as ye see mee haue And as we shal be new men so shall we haue new sences to vnderstand things not as they seeme but as they are in deed behold the diuine Maiestie of God face to face the fruition of whose glorious presence as the originall fountaine from whence all wisedome gladnesse ioy vertue and true felicitie proceede shall so rauish content and satisfie euery member power and sence of both bodie and minde with such full perfection of pleasure and delight as neither eye hath seene eare hath heard tongue can expresse nor any hart of man imagine in comparison wherof all the desired and gladsome pleasures of this world are but fayned shewes and darke shadowes And as our sauiour Christ laid aside part of the Maiestie tooke vpon him the forme of a seruant hauing performed due obedience subiectioÌ„ vnto his father is now aduanced to the highest dominion and crowned with honor glory so that all knees shall bow vnto him So after the last day when he hath performed the office of a Meditor he shall yeeld vp into the hands of his Father both the kingdome name and crowne of glory that God may bee all in all to whose heauenly mansion the God of all glory bring vs for his Sonne Christ his sake AMEN A most godly and comfortable Praier in time of Aduersitie O Eternall and most louing Father thou GOD of mercie iudgement to whom all things in Heauen earth doe bow obey at the continuance of whose glorious Maiestie the wohle world doth tremble quake who hath fashioned Man of slime and earth couered him in his mothers womb and deliuered him from death and hell To thee our heauenly Father I humbly bow the knees of myne heart beseeching thy Fatherly goodnesse in Iesus Christ to heare mee poore wretched childe of Adam begotten and borne in sinne disquieted with troubles wrapt in aduersitie and oppressed with miserie yet by thy secret purpose pertaine to thy kingdome A Sheep of thy fold by election and calling though vnrulie A seruant of thy household by obedience dutie though vnprofitable A sonne of thy famely by adoption and grace though vnworthie I will call mine owne waies to remembrance confesse mine iniquities against my selfe powre out my complaint beefore thee Giue eare to my praier O Lord consider my distresse and pardon the voice of my humble desires let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my hart be alwaies acceptable in thy sight O Lord my strength and my reedemer I haue sinned grieuously O mercifull God against heauen and before thee now Ioh. 13 17. in the vexation of my â—pirit the anguish of my soule remembring thy fatherly kindnesse toward penitent sinners I appeale to thy eternall mercie acknowâ—edge my wickednesse and lament my grieuous offences My hart is broken with sorrowes my life waxen olde with heauinesse my yeeres with mourning How long wilt thou be angry with thy seruant O Lord how long shall I seeke counsaile in my soule and be so vexed in my spirit how long shall I poore sorrowfull wretch bee tossed with these troublesome floods of mortaletie bewailing the tediousnesse of this my irkesome pilgrimage The infant ouercommeth his mother with crying the childe his father with weeping and the seruant his maister with submission and wilt thou be no more intreated o Lord wher are thy tender mercies which haue beene euer of old our father 's hoped in thee and were deliuered they put their trust in thee an I were not confounded Thou art the Father of the fatherlesse and the helper of the friendles thou hast alwaies hard the humble desires of the poore and thou preparest their hartes to call vpon thee and thine eares harken therevnto thou deliuerest them from wrong and right deere is their blood in thy sight Why art thou so full of heauinesse then O my soule and why art thou so disquieted within me O put thy trust in God for I will yet giue him thanks which is the helpe of my countenaunce and my God yea though hee kill mee yet will I trust in him I will sing vnto the Lord so long as I liue and will praise my God so long as I haue any being He hath chastened and corrected mee but not giuen me ouer vnto death and therefore my hart daunceth sor ioy my flesh shall rest in hope and in my song will I praise him I will honor him with due obedience serue him with feare and reioyce vnto him with reuerence Rebuke me not in thine anger O Lord neither doe thou chasten mee in thy heauie displeasure forsake me not in mine old age when my strength faileth me but comfort my heauinesse pittie my misery and relieue my necessitie Clense mee from my secret faults and pardon the sinnes of my youth Graunt mee a new hart a new minde a new spirit and a new life and I wil offer vnto thee the sacrifice of thanksgiuing and reioyce in my saluation O thou most highest An Exhortacion to continew all Subiects in their dew obedience together with the reward of a faithful subiect to his Prince To the Reuerend Lo. Bishops and the Clergie FOR-asmuch as your ecclesiasticall office is giuen you from God as the next principall members vnder the head to gouerne the Common wealth of this misticall bodie and that there is required at your hands an extraordinarie dutie touching the function of the Soule Let mee entreate you to be as vigilant as the fiue wise Virgins hauing Oyle alwaies in your Lamps against the Bridegrome comes forth of his chamber Your office is the Soule of the Laitie the heart of gouernement the verie Epitome of all obedience From you as the Moone boroweth hir light of the Sunne all inferiour Ministers take their order of perfection Let then your doctrine be pure stedfast like Moyses bush that alwaies burned but neuer cousumed your preaching in season and out of season and your conuersation as spotlesse as the sacrifice of Turtles You best know what plentie of Manna hath rained in Israel how many Homers ful euery man ought to gather Be not any of you the first that