of his Mother vpon the day of his espousall And therfore because according to the history it cannot agree to Salomon who was a sinner we must necessarily since the Scripture cannot speake vntruth vnderst and it of another true Salomon who was Christ and that with great reason For Salomon doth signify peaceable that name was imposed vpon him because he made no warrs in his time as his Father Dauid had done And therfore God was not pleased that Dauid who was a (f) Not of cruelty towards his subiects but of conquest ouer his enemyes man of bloud but his peaceable Sonne should build that famous Temple of Hierusalem wherein he would be adored Now if the name of peaceable were imposed vpon Salomon because he was peaceable according to the peace of the world which sometymes wicked Kinges maintaine vpon how much more reason is this name due (g) Christ our Lord is the true Salomon the true Prince Peace to Christ who made the spirituall peace betweene God and maâ— to his owne so great cost the paine of all our sinnes which caused the emnity betweene God and vs falling headlong vpon him He also made peace betweene those people which had been so contrary to one another namely the Iewes and Gentils taking away that wal of emnity which stood betweene them as S. Paul sayth That is to say the Ceremonies of the old Law and the Idolatry of the Gentills To the end that both the one the other hauing left their particularityes and thâ—se rites which they deriued from their ancestouâ—â— might submit themselues to the new Law vnder one Fayth one Baptisme and one Lord hoping â—o participate the same inheritance as being all the sonnes of one Father of heauen who begot theâ— a second tyme by water and the Holy Ghoâ—â— with more honour and aduantage then they were engendred before of flesh by their Fathers to misery and shame All these blessinges came by Christ Iesus who is the pacifyer of heauen aâ—d earth and of one people with another and of a man with himselfe whose warre as it is mâ—â—â— troublesome so the peace is more desired Thâ—â— peace could not be made by the other Salomon but he had the name of the true pacifier only in figure as the peace of Salomon which was temporall is a figure and shaddow of that which as spirituall and which hath no end If then thou do well remember O thou spouse of Christ which in reason thou must neuer forget the Mother of this true Salomon who was and is the blessed Virgin Mary thou shalt find her to haue crowned him with a fayre garland giuing him flesh without any sinne vpon the day of the Incarnation which was the day of the coniunction and espousall of the diuine word with his sacred humanity and of the word being made man with his Church which Church we are From that sacred wombe did Christ issue as a spouse who riseth from his bed of state and he beginneth (h) Psalm 18. to runne his Carriere like a strong Giant taking the worke of our redemption to hart which was the hardest thinge that he could enterprise And at the end of this Carriere he did vpon the day of our Good fryday espouse (i) Christ espoused the Church to himselfe vpon the Crosse his Church by wordes de prasenti For which he had taken paines as (k) Genes 19. Iacob did for Rachel And then was she drawne out of his side when he was reposing in the sleepe of death as (l) Gen. 2. Eue was out of Adams whylest he slept And for this worke so excellent and of so great loue which in that day was wrought Christ called that day his day when he saith in the (m) Ioan. 8. Ghospell Your Father Abraham reioyced to see my day he saw it he reioyced thereat Which was accomplished as S Chrysostome saith when the death of Christ was reuealed to Abraham by the resemblance of his sonne Isaac whome God commaunded him to (n) Genes 22. sacrifice in the mount Moria which is mount Sion Then did he see this painefull day and he reioyced at it But at what did he reioyce was it perhaps at the scourges at theâ— afflictions and at the torments of Christ No it is certayne that the affliction of Christ was so great as to be sufficient for the making of any hart though neuer so cheerefull to be euen oppressed with compassion And if you belieue not me let those three beloued Apostles tell you this truth to whome he said My (o) Watt. 10. Mare 14. soule is sad euen to the death What did their hartes feele in themselues at the sound of that word which vseth to wound their hart with the sharpe knife of sorrow who heare it spoken but a farre off And his scourges torments nayles and Crosse were so full of torment to him that whosoeuer should see them though he had a most inflexible hart could not choose but be moued by them Yea I know not but that those very wretches that tormented him seing his meekenesse in suffering and their owne cruelty in afflicting must needs sometymes haue compassion of one that suffered so much and euen for them though they knew not that Yf therefore they who abhorred Christ might be afflicted by the sight of his torments vnlesse their hartes were made of hardest stone how shall we say of a man who was so greately Gods friend as Abraham was that he reioyced to see the day whereon Christ was to endure so much CHAP. LXIX Wherein he proseâ—uteth that of the former Chapter pondereth this passage of the Canticles in contemplation of the passion of Christ. BVT that thou mayst not meruaile so much at this do thou hearken to another thing yet more strange and which is expressed by these wordes of the Canticles That this garland was put vpon his heade in the day of the ioy or triumph of his hart The day of his so excessiue griefe as that no tongue is able to vnfold it doest thou call the day of his ioy And that no ioy which was counterfaite and exteriour only but they call it the day of the ioy of his very hart O (a) Note and learne hereby to loue God thou ioy of the Angells and thou full riuer of their delight in whose face they desyre to looke by whose most puissant waters they are swallowed vp by finding themselues within thee and by swimming in that ouer abounding sweetnesse of thyne and what is that at which thy hart reioyceth in this day of thyne afflictions At what doest thou reioyce in the middest of those scourges those nayles that dishonour that death Is it true perhaps that they did not afflict thee Yes verily they did afflict thee and more thee then they could haue afflicted any other though it were but euen for the delicacy of thy complexioÌ„ But because our miseries do afflict thee yet more then thyne owne
and how he carried his crosse vpon his shoulders and was after crucified vpon it with all that which passed there till such time as he recommended his spirit into the handes of his Father and so dved On Satturday do thou rest in thinkng vpon that cruell thrust of the lance into his sacred side and how they tooke him off from the Crosse and layed him in the armes of his blessed Mother and afterwardes in the sepulcher And goe thou accompaning his soule to that Limbus of the holy Fathers and be present at the ioy yea the paradise which there was grannted to them Be carefull also vpon this day to thinke vpon the much greife which the virgin Mother felt and be a faithfull companion in taking part thereof with her For besides that this office is most due to her from thee it wil be full of profit to thy selfe Of Sunday I say nothing because thou knowest already that it is deputed to the consideration of the Resurrection and of the glory which the inhabitantes of heauen possesse and in this thou art to imploy thy selfe vpon that day In (d) This may best be practised by persons who are of good health who liue not in cōmunities not are ordinarily of great pennance otherwise particuler I recommend to thee that vpon Thursday night thou take as little sleepe as possibly thou canst to keepe company with our Lord who after those vexations of his arrest the long way that he went betweene the house of Annas and Caiaphas and after many buffets and scornes and other lewd impieties that were put vpon him did consume the rest of that night in excessiue affliction in a prison extreamely hard with so great abuse by such as kept him that neither had he a mind to sleepe nor would any other man forbeare to lament and weep if he well knew what passed there Which was so much as that S. Hierome saith will not be knowne till (e) Our Lord graunt that we may know it then to our comfortes not to our confusiō the day of iudgement Demand of him a part of his paines and take thou for him euery thursday night some such paine in particuler as himselfe shall addresse thee to For a great shame it is to any Christian if he put no difference betweene that and other nights And there was a certayn person that said Who is he that can find in his hart to sleepe vpon a Thursday night And I belieue also if the truth were known that the same person did not sleepe much vpon Friday night CHAP. LXXIII Of the way which we are to hold in the consideration of the life and passion of Iesus Christ our Lord. THIS exercise of thinking vpon the paces of the life and death of Iesus Christ our Lord may be performed in one of these two manners Eyther (a) How we are to thinke of the passiō of Christ our Lord. by representing to thy imagination the corporall figure of Christ our Lord or by meerly thinking without any imaginary representation And (b) Note do thou know that since the most high inuisible God did make himself a visible man to the end that by meanes of that visible he might conuey into vs the consideration of that which is inuisible there is no question but that it was a very profitable thinge to behold him with corporall eyes that so men might come to behold him with the spirituall which are of Faith if the malice of the looker on had giuen no impediment And without doubt all that which in our Lord was corporall was excellently ordered did carry a particuler efficacy towards the helping of a pious hart to raise it selfe vp towards spirituall thinges Nor was it a small fauour for them to enioy this sight which many Kinges and Prophets desired to enioy but obteyned it not And although we that come after do not enioy this fauour in so complete a manner yet may we not forbeare to help our selues thereby in the best sort we may And to this purpose our Mother the holy Church doth with great reason propose to vs the images or pictures of the body of our Lord that so being stirred vp thereby we may remember his corporall presence and he may communicate to vs by meanes of his resemblance some part of the much which would haue been communicated to vs by his presence And since a picture which is painted without my selfe vpon a piece of wood doth bring me profit without doubt that which is painted within me and in the imaginatiue part of my mind will also profit me by taking it as a steppe whereby I may be raised higher For (c) This is most certainly true and our Lord be blessed because it is so all that which hath relation to our Lord and which concerneth and representeth him doth carry a meruailous force towards the conducting vs towards him And although these thinges may seeme meane to thee yet because they are a way to higher thinges these also must be esteemed high And by this meanesse God will haue them to begin who are humbled and whome by his hand he will aduance to greater matters But they (d) Take heed of too high flying at the first who instantly giue themselues to such high flying thoughts as seeming to be full of tast and more worthy of their consideration may looke for a fall sure inough For as the Scripture (e) Prou. 1◠saith He that goeth a pace will stumble And (f) Prou. 28. he that maketh hast to be rich shall not be without sinne And it happeneth to these men that if they would afterwards returne to thinke of such things as carry proportion with their poorenes they cannot light vpon it because they haue beene entred with such a gluttonous appetit vpon greater matters And so they runne such a kind of hazard as a bird may do which maketh too much hast out of her nest whither it cannot returne againe nor yet proceed by way of flight Therefore it will be fit for vs to beginne at the bottome with the consideration of our sins as hath beene sayd and then with the Meditation of the sacred humanity of Iesus Christ our Lord that so we may be exalted to those altitudes of his Diuinity CHAP. LXXIIII Wherein the way of considering the life of Iesus Christ our Lord to the end that it may be of greater profit to vs is prosecuted in a more particuler manner BEING then retyred into thy Oratory at the tyme which thou deputest to this Exercise first make thy (a) According to that pious forme which is vsed in the Holy Catholike Church Confiteor Deo Ommuipotenti Confession in generall desiring pardon of our Lord for thy sinnes and especially them which thou mayst haue committed since the tyme of thy last Confession and thou shalt say a few vocall prayers according to the former aduice which I gaue when I treated of the
nothing of the matter which signifieth that he did not approue or like it And he that shall consider how God (t) Osâ—ae c. 8. abandoned King Saul the same God hauing placed him in the Kingdom wil find that he (v) A sad example but fit for ambitious men to looke much vpon hath much reason to vndeceiue himselfe since there will be no assurance giuen him by any that he is not to proue as frayle as Saul but only by his owne pride and ambition of command Of (x) Note this I am very sure that he shal neuer more honestly enter into it then Saul did S Augustine had reason when he sayd That authority and dignity is necessary for such as are to rule the people and that when a man is in it he must administer it according to reason but that it is vnlawfull for him that hath it not to desire it And of himselfe he sayd That he desired and procured to saue his soule in a low place that he might not put it to hazard in a higher This is especially to be done when the place whereof we speake doth concerne the charge of soules the well discharging whereof doth carry with it so much difficulty as that it is called the Art of Artes. These (y) Certaine excellent directions for practise dangers ought to be fled by vs as much as with a morall possibility we may in imitation of the example already touched which our Lord did shew in flying from the acceptance of a Kingdome he hath represented to vs many other holy wise persons who haue fled the like with al the harts they had And such as enter into these places had need do it either by reuelatioÌ„ of our Lord or by obedience to such as haue power to command them or by counsell of such others as do well vnderstand the obligation of such an office and the dangers thereof and they must be sure to keep the iudgment of God before their eyes and to cast all temporall respects behind their backes If these conditions may not be found it will at least be needfull that there be ground for good coniecture that God is pleased to lay such a burthen vpon them that such or such a man may giue credit to those coniectures before he imbarke himself into so great a danger And notwithstanding all this there will be matter inough of feare and continuall watch must be kept and our Lord must be prayed that since he kept the entrance free from ill he may also defend them in the issue of it for feare least otherwise it end in euerlasting condemnation For we haue seen many of them who liued with much contentment in such command dye full of wishes that they had neuer beene imployed therein and loaden with great feares of that whereof before they were in their opinion secure And (z) Platerv and false iudgment is then out of date in all likelyhood the truth of a mans iudgment concerning temporall thinges doth shine brighter vpon him when he is departing from them when he is more approaching to the iudgment of God wherein all Truth remaynes CHAP. V. How much we ought to fly from the pleasure of flesh and â—loud and what a most dangerous Enemy this is of what helpes we are to serue our selues for the subduing thereof FLESH and Bloud speakes of Delights and pleasures sometymes expresly sometymes vnder a colour of necessity The warre which is made vpon vs by this enemy besids that it brings vs much affliction is full of danger Because it fightes with pleasure in the hand which is (a) Note and take heed the strongest weapon of all others This doth euideÌ„tly appeare since many haue beene conquered by pleasure who were not so by riches honours or eueÌ„ by cruel torments Nor is it any meruayle For this ware is so secret and so in the way of ambush or treasoÌ„ that a man had need of much coÌ„sideration for his defence Who (b) We may well beleeue it vpon the infinit experieÌ„ce that hath byn takeÌ„ would belieue that death and death eternall should come towards vs vnder a maske of sweet and smooth delight death being the top of bitternesse delight the very thing that we most aspire to tast A cup of gold with a draught of poyson is this false pleasure whereby they are made drunke who haue no eyes but for the exteriour This is the treason of (c) 2. Reg. 20. Ioab who killed Amasus by imbracing him and of (d) Matt. 26. Marc. 14. Luc. 22. Iudas who by that treacherous kisse of peace deliuered ouer his blessed mayster into the hands of death So is it when by drinking the pleasure of a mortal sin Christ dyeth in the soule vpon whose death it also dies for company for the life it had came from him So sayth (c) Rom. 8. S. Paul If you liue according to the flesh you shal dy And in another place (f) Tim. 5. The widdow that remaynes in pleasure being yet aliue is dead aliue by the life of her body but dead by that of her soule By how much the more closely we are ioyned to this (g) It is a traytour lodging in our bosome flesh and bloud so much the more we are to feare it for our Lord hath sayd (h) Matt. 10â— That a mans enemies are they of his owne house And this flesh bloud is not only belonging to this house of ours but of the two walls whereof the same house is made this is one For this and other reasons S. Augustin sayd that the combate of our flesh bloud was continuall and the conquest full of difficulty and whosoeuer will proue victorious must go armed with many and strong (i) Of Armes pieces For the pretious iewell of chastity is not imparted to al but to such as by the much sweat of many earnest prayers and of other holy peÌ„nance do obteyne it of our Lord. He was pleased to be wrapt in a fayre sheete of linnen which must passe through many rude handlings before it wil come to be white Wherby we may vnderstaÌ„d that the man who desireth to obteyne to conserue the guift of chastity and so to lodge Christ in himself as if it were in another sepulâ—her must be content with a great deale of cost labour to gayne this purity (k) Chastity is such a iewell as that it can neuer be ouer-bought which is a thing so rich that whatsoeuer be spend vpon it he may account himself to buy it cheap And as many more painfull works of pâ—nnance satisfaction are to be required at his hands who hath much offended our Lord then at his who hath not so much offended so though all of vs who liue in flesh must be afrayd of it and watch ouer it bridle it and rule it with discreet-temperance yet they who particulerly are infested by it wil haue need to vse
not returne till they be conquered and deseated that they may no more remaine vpon their feet but they shall fall vnder mine What is there of greater profit then that which S. Augustine beggeth when he sayth O Lord make me know thee with an (r) Yea his prayer was heard amourous knowledge and let me also know my selfe Now (f) The excellent vse fruit of tēptations desolations what meanes is there so proper for the making him know himselfe as to see himselfe experimentally in such traunces That he may touch as a man may say with his owne hands his owne weakenesse and that so very truly as to be wholy vnbeguiled of any estimation which he might make of himselfe And on the otherside he findeth by experience how faythfull God is in fulfilling the promises of his succour in the tyme of necessity and how powerfull he is in deliuering his seruantes from so great weakenesse by the suddaine gift of so admirable strength and how ful he is of mercy in visiting and pittying them who are so extreamely afflicted By this meanes a man doth fall flat vpon his face acknowledging his pouerty and misery and he adoreth his God by both louing him and hoping for succour from him when he shall find himselfe in new dangers S. Paul (t) Rom. 5. affirmeth that it hapned to himselfe after this manner I will not sayth he haue you ignorant my Brethren of the tribulation that we suffered in Asia whereby we were afflicted aboue measure and aboue our owne strength so (u) We must not be deiected in being much afflicted since S. Paul himselfe was discomforted farre as that euen to liue was a trouble to vs and we did within our selues belieue assuredly that there was no meanes for vs to escape from death And this hapneth so to the end that we might not haue confidence in our selues but in God who giueth life to the dead He who hath deliuered vs out of so great dangers and by whom hereafter we also hope to be deliuered CHAP. XXX Of many reasons which there are why we must hope that our Lord will deliuer vs out of all tribulation how greiuous soeuer it be and of two significations which this worde Belieue may be accounted to haue It is true which S. Gregory sayth That the accomplishment of thinges past giueth assurance concerning things to come And since men are wont to trust others vpon taking pawnes we seeme not to do much for God if we hope for a deliuerance out of future tribulation since he hath so often done it in tymes past It (a) A liuely comparison wherin we ought to take much comfort is certayne that if any man should haue made vs find his loue and fauour in succouring vs ten or twelue seuerall times in our troubles we should belieue he loued vs and that still he would do vs fauour if in other afflictions of ours we should haue need And why then shall we not haue a confident beliefe that God will defend vs in all our dangers since they are not twelue but many more tymes that we haue taken experience of his succour in our tribulations Remember well how often he hath drawen thee with victory out of those sharpe skirmishes of thyne against thy aduersaries and thou wert gratefull vnto him for it and thereupon thou didst conceaue a reason to belieue and confide that he loued thee since after the tempest he sent fayre weather and ioy after teares and since he had byn thy true Father and defendour And why then if now he please to try thy confidence thy loue and thy patience by a present tribulation as if he hid himselfe because he answereth not to thy cryes dost thou let thy selfe fall into such weakenesse as that the present triall which commeth to thee maketh thee loose the confidence which in many former proofes thou hadst gained It is true that we feele those things most which at the present lye vpon vs and if thou markest the straytes wherin thou findest thy selfe and how our Lord doth not free thee of them thou wilt perhaps conceaue that our Lord hath layd aside the care which formerly he had of thee and thou wilt say as the Apostles did in that great sea-tempest to our Lord who then was sleeping Maister (b) Marc 4. doest thou not care though we perish and thus wilt thou be ouertaken by the reprehension of that scripture which sayth The foole changeth like the moone Because it is sometymes after one manner and sometymes after another And thou wilt be like a Vane vpon the top of a house which is subiect to many changes in one day because it is gouerned by euery wind Thou wert in possession of our Lord as one that was carefull of thee and thy defence in the tyme of trouble because then he breathed vpon thee by the wind of his mercy and comfort wherewith he gaue thee deliuerance and thou didst pay him with thankes And because now there blowes another wind wherewith our Lord is pleased to prooue and trouble thee thou art no longer of that beliefe and confidence which before thou hadst So that thou doest belieue but what thou seest thou dost not valew our Lord but according to that which at the instant tyme he doth towards thee without helping thy selfe of that which thou hast tried at many other tymes that so at the present thou mayst be comforted in our Lord. A strange incredulity was theirs who hauing seene the meruayles of God in Egypt and the victories and fauours which he wrought for them in the desert would not take his word whereby he told them that they should enter into the land of promise For this sayth S. Paul they entred not And so is it true though not according to equality yet with some resemblance that the disconfidence and pusillanimity of that man is great who notwithstanding that God hath deliuered him many tymes frō dangers past groweth not yet to confide that he shall not be abandoned nor confounded in the danger eyther present or future since as we haue sayd the hope which one putteth in our Lord if the man be not infault wil neuer faile nor wil there be cause that a man should say I was deceaued Now it is to be vnderstood that sometymes this word (c) Note Belieue is taken for that worke which the vnderstanding performeth by setling it selfe in the truthes of the Catholike fayth with a supreme kind of certitude as formerly hath been sayd And he that belieueth against this fayth is called with a full mouth and is indeed an Heretike and an incredulous person and such an errour belieued hath the name of an heresy or of incredulity But the disconfident person of whome we haue spoken hitherto is neither incredulous nor is he subiect to incredulity because he hath no obligation to belieue in quality of an article of fayth that God will deliuer him out of that present trouble
thinges togeather by saying He (g) Marc. vâ—â—uno that shall belieue and be baptized he shall be saued The same Lord of ours sayd also to his Apostles when he instituted the Sacrament of Pennance Whose (h) Ioan. 10. sinnes you shall pardon they are pardoned c. and consequently grace and iustice is giuen by this Sacrament since there can be no pardon of sinne vnles grace be giuen withall which is signifyed and contayned in all the seauen Sacraments of the Church And it is giuen to him that receaueth them welâ— euen with more abundance then (i) To which dispositioÌ„ out of the Sacrament there would not be allowed so great a grace though yet still the receaâ—â—â— must haue good dispositioÌ„ if he meane to acquire new graâ—e and not to coâ—â—â—t a new â—acri ledge there is disposition in the receauer in regard that they are priuiledged workes which by the very being receaued do conferre grace Therefore ought they to be receaued and renewed in extraordinary manner as the Catholike Church doth belieue and teach vs. Now (k) This is worthy oâ— great consideration if Fayth were in the beginning of the Church so frequently mentioned preached it was fiâ— to be so because the fayth was then newly planted and the endeauour was to make infidells receiue it and to enter by it as by the first gate which sheweth the way to saluation that when once they were come in they might be informed more particulerly both of what they were further to belieue and what they were to do So also was it necessary in those tymes to expresse after a particuler manner the mystery and high valew of the passion and death of our redeemer Iesus Christ who with extreame dishonour had then byn crucified and how the fayth of this mystery maketh men belieue and confesse That vpon that wood which to outward appearance was so dishonourable that diuine life was hanged and that there in the middest of the earth God wrought by meanes of his death the recouery and saluation of the world This fayth being such doth honour the dishonour of the Crosse and is the exaltation of that basenes which was exercised thereon in a strang and extreame manner For which reason it was fit to make often mention of the name of fayth and that with great respect since it resulted to the honour of Iesus Christ our Lord of whose person and merits she (l) The Church giueth testimony by preaching the height thereof So as if the Scripture say That men are iustifyedly fayth it is not meant as if that alone were sufficient but because it is the beginning and foundation and rote of all that is good as the Councell of Trent defineth and (m) O how true is this they who attribute iustification to fayth alone do but seeke for comfort in their tepidities or in the impiety of their liues desiring to secure themselues by the way of belieuing that their Circle may be the wider in the way of liuing And the peace and confidence of a good conscience which is caused by perfect charity these men will needs obteine without the taking of such paines as the perfection of vertue doth require Yea and they content not themselues herewith but although according to the very truth no man can be entirely certayne in this life whether he be worthy of loue or hate though yet according to the grace verâ—ue which he hath more or lesse he may haue more or fewer reasons of confidence yet these men who giue that certainty to such as belieue according to their owne imagination that they are pardoned by God which a Christian man is to haue in belieuing an article of fayth are people deceaued by the diuell and these things are belieued by such as haue neyther any firme ground of fayth nor any sanctity of life but are haters of all obedience and who being blindfold go groping after the mysteries of God and indeed if they were not blinded the diuell could not so easily deceaue them CHAP. XLV Why our Lord did resolue to saue vs by the meanes of Fayth and not of humane Reason and of the great subiection which we must yield to those things which our Fayth doth teach of the particuler deuotion which we owe in especiall manner to that which our Lord Iesus taught vs by his own sacred mouth THE methode of the words of this Treatise did require that after the first word therof I should declare the second to thee but the order of the sentences whereof the first and the third say the same thing requireth that forbearing at the present to touch the second I now declare the third which sayth thus Incline thyne care By this thou art to note that so great is the height of the mysteries of God and so low poore is thy reason and so easily subiect to deceite that for the security of our saluation God resolued to saue vs by our faith and not by our knowledge And this not without most iust cause because since the world as Saint Paul sayth did not know God by meanes of wisedome but sell impertinently vpon many crrours asâ—â—â—bing the glory of God to the Sunne and Moone and other creatures And because others who by the trace of those creatures came to know God tooke such a deale of pride in their way of tracing the knowledge of a thing so high this light was taken away for their pride which our Lord had giuen them through his goodnesse and so they fell into the darknesse of idolatry and into a multitude of other sinnes such as they had fallen into who neuer had knowne God For which reason as after the fall of the wicked Angells God taking as a man may say a kind of warning by that he would not suffer any creature to remaine in heauen that could be able to sinne perceiuing how ill the creatures serued themselues of reason and because the world as S. Paul sayth did not know God by wisedome he would not leaue the knowledge of him the saluation of themselues in the hands of their wisedome Therefore as soone as the holy Ghost had giuen vs counsaile by the two words already mentioned of Heare and See he doth instantly aduise vs by a third which sayth Incline thyne eare Whereby he giueth vs to vnderstand that we must submit our reason most profoundly not be too confident therin if we meane that our hearing and our seeing which were giuen vs for our good may not be the occasion of our eternal perdition Certayne it is that many haue heard the word of God and haue had an excellent sight and notice of high and subtile things but yet because they rested vpon the curiosity of their sight more then they did â—â—cline the eare of their reason with obedience their sight grew to be starke blindnes they went stumbling in the light of Noone-day as if it had beene in vtter darkenes If therefore
as if it were some great and wholesome Truth A (*) Heresy is one of the most terrible iudgmēts which God inflicts for the punishment for other sinnes great and extreame iudgment of God is this and since he is iust that sinne must needs be great whereof the punishment is such and what this sinne is S. Paul (e) Thess 2. himselfe declareth to vs by saying Because they receaued not the loue of Truth to be saued thereby For if thou consider how powerfull the Truth is of that which we belieue for the helping vs to serue God to be saued soone wilt thou acknowledge it to be a great fault not to loue this Truth and not to follow that which it teacheth and much more to worke wickedly against it How (f) A good and iust consideration far should he be from offending God who belieueth that for such as offend him there is prepared an euerlasting fire with other innumerable tormentes wherewith such an one is to be punished as long as God shal be God without all hope of the least remedy How will he presume to sinne who belieueth that when sinne entreth into the soule by one dore God goeth out by another And what kind of creature a man is without thee O Lord he well knew who prayed O (g) Psal 4◠Lord depart not thou from me For when God is gone we remaine in the first death of sinne which is but an introduction to the second death of infernall paine With great reason did Iob (h) Iob. 6. say Who can find in his heart to taste that which being tasted bringeth death Without doubt it is but reason that since we would not taste of any food which a Physitian whom we belieued should tell vs did carry death therin we should lesse taste of sinne since God hath sayd That (i) Ezech. 18. the soul which finneth shall dye For the Fayth or beliefe which thou hast in the word of God doth not worke that effect in thee which the word of that Physitian doth worke and yet this later both can deceaue and vseth sometymes to do it which God neuer doth And since God hath sayd That he is the eternall reward of such a seruant why doth not this make vs all go towards his seruice with great diligence and courage although we were to passe through many labours and that it should cost vs euen our liues Why do we not loue our Lord whome we belieue to be supreame goodnesse and whom we know to haue loued vs first yea and that so farre as to dye for vs And so (k) Note we should discourse in all other things which this holy Fayth doth so powerfully teach vs and inuite vs to for as much as concerneth it our selues are in great fault for leauing to follow it yea and for doing the very contrary things to it Can there be a more prodigious thing in the world then that a Christian should belieue the things which he belieueth and that yet he should do so wicked things as many of them do In punishment therefore of this that they did not loue the Truth whereby they might haue byn saued putting in practise that which they were taught thereby it is a most iust iudgement of God VVho (l) Psal 65. is terrible in his counsailes ouer the sonnes of men That this Fayth be taken from them they be permitted to belieue errour And if thou do consider how God doth suffer the snare to be prepared whereby Iewes and heretikes are chastised as we haue sayd it will appeare to thee that it is a thing rather to be trembled at then to be talked of Aske any of these that are so peremptory in following the obstinacy of their errour vpon what it is that they ground themselues The (m) Almost all heretikes do offer to shrowd thēselues vnder holy scripture one sort will say that it is the Scripture of the old Testament and the other of the New and thou shalt plainely see the prophesy of Dauid accomplished when he sayth The (n) A passadge of holy Scripture excellently pòdered Table of these people shall be turned into a snare and into a punishment and into a stumbling blocke Didst thou euer see a thing of so contrary appearance as that the Table of Life should be turned into a snare of death the Table of comfort and pardon into a punishment that Table where there is light which guideth men into a way that leadeth to life to conuert it selfe into a meanes of making one loose the way and fall vpon death Great without (o) A holy contēplation of the Authour of much terrour to such as are in heresy all doubt is the fault which deserueth such punishment that a man should be blinded in the light and that his life should be conuerted into death But thou art iust O Lord and thy iudgements are iust and there is no wickednes in thee but that wickednes is in them who serue not themselues well of thy goodnesse and therfore it is fit that they should but stumble vpon the same goodnes of thyne that the dishonour should be punished which they do both to it and thee A great blessing O Lord an extraordinary blessing is thy Fayth being reuered obeyed and put in excution as al reason doth require And a great blessing didst thou bestow in giuing vs thy holy Scripture which is so profitable and so necessary for vs in the way of thy seruice But (p) Note because the wind which bloweth vpon this sea is a wind that cōmoth from heauen and there haue byn some who would needes sayle by the earthly windes of their owne braynes and studyes they haue beene drowned and thou hast suffered it Because as in the Parables which thou O Lord didst preach on earth those men were secretly taught therby who had a good disposition thereunto whereas others were blinded euen thereby through thy iust iudgment so doest thou also gouerne the profound sea of thy diuine Scripture which is deputed for the shewing of mercy to the lambes of thy fold who may swimme therein to the profit both of themselues and others and so also is it designed for the shewing of iustice in suffering proud Elephants both to drowne themselues others also A fearefull and very fearefull thing it ought to be esteemed to enter into the diuine Scripture and no man ought to runne vpon it without much preparation as to a thing wherein there may be much danger to him Let him that (q) An-vnderstāding exercised in humility a lifeled in piety are good dispositiōs for the reading of holy Scripture with profit entreth into it carry with him the sense of the Catholike Roman Church and he shall auoyd the danger of heresy Let him for his further profit by it carry purity of life as S. Athanasius doth aduise by these wordes Goodnes of life and purity of the soule and Christian piety is