neare secondly him they shall not come neare him then Surely surely they shall not come neere him Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him First the asflictions of the faithful are likened to waters Fire and water haue no mercy we say But of the two water is the worst For any fire may be quenched with water but the force of water if it begins to be violent can not by any power of man be resisted Canutus who was King of England Scotland Denmarke Norway and a great part of Suevia all at once sitting at a low water vpon the Thames shoare commanded the water not to come neare him But notwithstanding his commandement the water returning and flowing againe as that in Ezekiel which came to the ankles then to the knees and yet higher to the necke so neuer left rising till it came vp neere him and wet him Then turning about to his noble men that were there attendant on him he said You call me your Soueraigne Lord and Master and yet I can not command this little channell of water to keepe aloose osf from me Whereupon he went immediatly to Westminster and with his owne hands sâ—…t his Crowne vpon the Crucifix there and could neuer be perswaded after to weare iâ—… vpon his owne head This experience that Canutus so mightie a King made doth directly prooue that no man but God onely can set barres and doores against the water and say Hitherto shalt thou come but no further and here shalt thou stay thy proud waues The afslictions of the righteous therefore beeing here compared to waters must needes be very violent For thus the Psalmist saith Thine indignation lieth hard on me and thou hast vexed me with all thy waues And God himselfe I will powre out my wrath vpon thee as water So that the securitie and selicitie of the faithfull man is inuincible He may be often in daunger of tribulations as of great waues or waters but they shall neuer ouerwhelme him Surely in the flood os many waters they shall not come neere him But these our tribulations which are waters are also many waters Our common prouerb is Seldome comes sorrow alone But as waters come rouling and wauing 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ther so the miseries of this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Prophet Ezekiel saw the roulâ—… 〈◊〉 written with in and withouâ—… and there was written therein Lamentations and singing and woe This booke is written within and without to shew that many are the troubles of the righteous both outward and inward And it is two to one if any thing befall vs it is rather an ill happe then a good happe Seeing for one singing there is in the booke a double sorrowing lamentations and woe Or if it be read as some translate it Lamentations and mourning and woe then it is yet more plaine that in this world many troubles as many waters come one in the necke of an other no earthly ioy or comfort comming betweene This the good King greatly complaineth of One deepe calleth an other because of the noise of the water pipes all thy floods and stormes haue gone ouer me And Iob He hath giuen me one wound vpon another and he hath runne vpon me as a gyant And Saint Paul though in one place he write God shewed mercie 〈◊〉 him that he should not haue 〈◊〉 vpon sorow yet oftentimes elsâ—… 〈◊〉 speaketh of his owne manifoâ—…d daungers I soffered thrice shipwracke saies he night and day haue I bin in the deepe sea In iourneying I was often in perills of waters in perills of robbers in perills of mine owne nation in perills among the Gentiles in perills in the citie in perills in the wildernesse in perills in the sea in perills among false brethren Thus we see how many waters the godly man is subiect to in this life For one ioy he hath at the least two sorowes if he haue no more one deepe calleth an other one wound bringeth another he hath sorow vpon sorow perills vpon perills Many waters many dangers Neuer thelesse Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neare him Thirdly the dangers of this life are as a â—…lood The very naming and mentioning of a flood must needes be very terrible euer since Noahs flood destroyed the whole world For euen as a horse or a mule of whom the Prophet a little after speaketh in this Psalm hauing beene once well lashed with a whippe doth euer after feare if he heare but the bell which is tied to the 〈◊〉 so man since the world was so well scoured and scourged with a flood could neuer almost abide either to talke or thinke of it Now though our whole life be nothing else but a flood of many waters yet nothing in the world may more fitly be so called then our going out of the world This indeede bringeth with it a â—…lood of many waters and an Ocean sea of infinite cares Aristotle writeth that nothing is so terrible as death which Antiochus feeling sensibly in himselfe crieth out thus Oh into what aduersitie am I come and into what floods of miserie am I now fallen He addeth the reason anon after For I must die with great sorrow in a strange land What speake I of a wicked tyrant Holy men often are in great perplexitie at the time of their departure S. HieroÌ„ writeth of Hilarion that being ready to giue vp the ghost he said thus to his soule Go forth my soule why fearest thou go forth why tremblest thou Thou hast serued Christ almost these threescore and ten yeares and dost thou now feare death Christ himselfe also feeling that he was compassed about with the sorrowes of death beganne to be afraid and to be in great heauinesse and he said moreouer My soule is very heauie euen to the death I know well Christ was afraid without sinne nay with great comfort For he prayeth thus Not as I will but as thou wilâ—… And againe Into thy hands I commit my spirit This then was his comfort that the Iewes could do nothing in putting him to death but as S. Peter testifieth that onely which his father both by his counsell and will had decreed and by his hand had ordained Hilarion also that holy antient Father comforteth himselfe with this that he had serued Christ almost seauentie yeares Other children of God haue had other comforts and all haue this that both in life and in death they are happie in Christ. Howbeit seeing many holy Christians and euen Christ himselfe feared death it remaineth that death simply and in it selfe considered is a flood of many waters But yet the faithfull man euen in death is out of all danger Surely in the floods of many waters they shall not come neere him Thus much for the first part which is the danger In the flood of many waters The second part followeth which is the deliuerance Surely they shall not come neere
was verâ—…e well prouided for in respect of liuing For which my L. his Grace of Canterbury now liuing is much to bâ—… reuerenced and honoured But beeins so well to passe both for himselfe anâ—… for his children so dainely he fell sicke He was taken with an ague a squinsey both together And the more vsuall that was the lesse dangerous was this accompted but the euent shewes the contrarie For the squinsey beeing both by himselfe and his friends no greatly regarded within foure dayes tooke away his life These were many waters and diuerse tribulatioâ—…s Besides a thousand more which I cannot now stand to repeate Yeâ—… he carried himselfe so in life and death as these waters seemed not once to come neere him He was professour of the Hebrewe tongue in this Vniuersitie thirty yeares As his father in law D. Larkyn bad beene professour of Phisick siue or sixe and thirty yeares Which tongue howsoeuer some account of it yet ought to bee preferred before all the rest For it is the antienst the shortest the plainest of all A great part of wisdome as Plato sheweth is in the knowledge of true Etymologies These in other tongues are vncertaine in this taken out of the naturall qualities of euery thing that is named In so much as wheÌ„ any man hath found the Hebrewe Etymologie then he neede seeke no forther Besides all the Scripture written before the birth of Christ except a fewe chapters of Daniel and Ezra were written in Hebrewe And the Rabbins themselues though they haue no small number of fables and lies in them yet diuerse things they haue notwithstanding fit for the opening of the old Testament Therefore though a man cannot reade the Rabbins yet vnlesse he can vnderstand handsomely well the Hebrew text he is compted but a maimed or as it were but halfe a Diuine especially in this learned age Lastly diuerse learned men are of opinion to whome I very willingly assent that the holy tongue which was spoken in paradise shal be eternally vsed in the heauenly paradise where the Saints shall euer extoll and praise God But this worthy professour deceased got him great credit as well by the continuance as by the holinesse of his profession For he was not a professour for one or two yeares as others are but full thirtie yeares together Nathan Cytraeus writeth that in Prage an Vniuersitie of Bohemia where Iohn Hus and Hicrome of Prage professed that they that haue continued professours for the space of 20. yeares together are created Earles and Dukes both together And therefore their style is to be called Illustres whereas they which are singly and simply but onely either Earles or Dukes are called Spectabiles Neither maketh it any matter that they haue no reuenewes to maintaine Earldomes or Dukedomes For they haue the title notwithstanding euen as Suffragans haue of Bishops Our good brother hauing no such profit or dignitie propounded vnto him but contenting himselfe with his stipend spent halfe his life in this place For he was vpon threescore yeares old when he died He wrote a book of Annotations vpon the first fiue small Prophets dedicated to that great paâ—…ron of learning and learned men Sir Francis Walsingham Wherein diuers speeches and phrases of the Prophets are compared with the like in Poets and Oratours both Greek and Latin and many notes neither vnpleasant nor vnprofitable to be read are set out of the Rabbins But in mine opinion he took greatest pains in his Chronologie which he dedicated to Doctor Iohn Whitgift the reuerend late Archbishop of Canterbury This booke indeede is full of hidden learning and sheweth infinite reading in stories I asked him within this little while whether he had written no more bookes He tould me he had but printed no more because he had no time to peruse and per 〈◊〉 them for other businesse Now by busines he meant I weene especially his studie care to performe well his taske in the translation Wherin how excellently he was imploved all they can witnes who were ioyned with him in that labour For though they be the very slower of the Vniuersitie for knowledge of the tongues yet they will not be ashamed to confesse that no one man of their companie if not by other respects yet at leastwise for long experience and exercise in this kind was to be compared with him For indeede he was so desirous that this busines begunne by the commandement of our most gratious Soueraigne King Iames should be brought to a happie ende that oftentimes in many mens hearings he protested he had rather die then be any way negligent herein Which as some thinke by all likelihood came indeede so to passe To wit that too earnest studie and paines about the translation hastened his death and brought it on sooner Now as he liued so in his profession in his writings in his translating as though all the floods of many waters had neuer comn ' neare him euen so also he died During the short time of his sicknes he caried himselfe as alwaies before humbly mildly quietly constantly One of his louing friends standing by his bed and saying M. Liuely I pray God you may haue patience and hope and especially faith vnto the ende He lifting vp his hands said heartily and cheerefully Amen Little he vsed to speake and more he could not say for the paine and impediment of his squinsey Which though it made a speedie ende of him as the apoplexie did of the good Emperour Valentinian yet how could any death be sodaine to him whose whole life was nothing els but a meditation of death and vvhome the Lord whensoeuer he came might finde doing his dutie Wherefore no reason we should lament his departure out of this world He liued blessedly he died blessedly in the Lord. Rather you Reuerend and learned Vniuersitie-men lament for this that you haue lost so famous a Professour and so worthie a writer Lament you translatours beeing now depriued of him who no lesse by his owne merit and desert then by the priuiledge of his place was to order and ouersee all your trauailes Lament you poore orphans eleuen poore children of you which he left behind him as Christ ascending left eleuen Disciples bereaued of your kinde and deare Father destitute of necessaries for your maintenance to seeke of all helpe and meanes but onely as poore folkes vse to speake such as God and good friends shall prouide Lament lament all of you of the tovvne as vvell as of the Vniversitie because our Schoole hath lost such a singular ornament of this age because our Churches haue lost such a faithfull and syncere sâ—…ruant of Christ. Questionlesse as it should seeme by the taking away of this man almightie God is greatly angrie with vs all for our sinnes Christ Iesus our Master as though he meant no more to care for vs seemeth to lie fast asleepe in the ship while vve most miserably in the flood of many waters are
Vnskilfull swimmers when they begin to sinke if they catch hold of weedes in the bottome the faster they hold the surer they are drowned and in like sort they that shake hands with the world and embrace the pleasures and prosperitie thereof most greedily plung themselues most deeply into destruction But God hath called vs. And therefore neither aduersitie nor prosperiti◅ can hurt vs. Maruell not saith our Sauiour thogh the world hate you It hate◅ me before it hated you If you were of the world the world would loue you but because you are not of the world but I haue chosen you out of the world therefore doth the world hate you Well as the world hateth vs so vve must hate it againe As it contemneth vs so we must contemne it againe According to that of S. Paul The world is crucified to me and I vnto the world I am crucified to the world that is The world contemnes me the world is crucified to me that is I contemne the world The world contemnes me and I contemne it For as Gregorie saies He that hath nothing that he loues in the world hath nothing to feare of the world And Cyprian What neede he to feare of the world who hath God his protectour his tutor his defendour in the world He that is of God ouercommeth the world And this is our victorie whereby we ouercome the world euen our ◅aith Whereupon our Sauiour saies Be of good comfort I haue ouercome the world and behold I am with you euen vnto the ende of the world So that the world and the trouble we shall haue in the world shall haue an ende but the comfort we haue in God shall haue no end Behold I am with you saith he And if God be with vs and haue called vs out of the world what can the world doe against vs If God be with vs who can be against vs The third enemie against vs is the flesh Salomon saith this is one thing which maketh the earth euen tremble when a seruant beginneth to beare rule The flesh is and ought to be a seruant Yet it beareth rule in the vnregenerate Yea it striueth to beare rule and beginneth to beare rule euen in the godly A mans enemies are they of his own house It is mine owne familiar friend that listeth vp his heele against me This familiar friend was Paul much troubled withall when he said I see an other law in my members rebelling against my minde and leading me captiue vnto death And Lot who beeing a iust man that could not be ouercome with all th◅ sinnes of Sodom by immoderate drinking of wine fell to ◅llie And Sampson who otherwise impregnable yet yeelded to Dalila Therefore in the bosome it lieth which striueth to lay our honour in the dust But God hath iustified vs. And hauing iustified vs in some measure also hath begunne to sanctisie vs. So that the flesh lusteth against the spirit and the spirit against the flesh in so much as we cannot doe as we would Not onely the flesh against the spirit but also the spirit against the flesh So that we cannot doe as we would For if we would serue god so holily as the angels we can not because the flesh lusteth against the spirit againe if we would sinne with full consent of wil so brutishly as the wicked doe we cannot because the spirit lusteth against the flesh But euen as Castor and Pollux liue by turnes one one day an other an other so the flesh and the spirit preuailing sometimes one sometimes an other make mixt actions So that neither can our good actions iustifie vs because in them the flesh lusteth against the spirit nor yet can our ill actions condemne vs because in thē the spirit lusteth against the slesh For now that Sara is mortified her wombe is dead and it ceaseth to be with her after the manner of women Now that Iacob hath wrestled with God his thigh is shrunke vp Now that Paul is conuerted he chastiseth his bodie and bringeth it into subiection Now that the blessed virgin is freely beloued she keepeth her selfe within and knoweth no man And therefore sa◅ the Angel Haile Mary freely beloued the Lord is with thee But the blessed Virgin fearing the Angel added Feare not Mary for thou hast found fauour with God As if he should haue said Feare not the angel of the Lord seeing the Lord of the angel is with thee Thou hast found fauour with God to haue the fruit of thy slesh the sauiour of thy foule So that if God haue a fauour vnto vs and haue iustified vs in Christ what can the flesh doe against vs The spirit will not let it doe as it would For If God be with vs who can be against vs The fourth enemie against vs is the deuill And he is the worst enemie of al◅ Therefore sai's the Apostle we hau◅ not to fight with flesh and blood but vvith principalities and povvers and vvith the Prince of darknesse that ruleth in the aver This Prince vvarreth against ◅s tvvo vvaies By persecutions and per◅vvasions For the first he is described ◅n the Reuelation to ride vpon a blacke and a redde horse The blacknesse of the horse snevveth hovv terrible the deuil is the reddenesse hovv bloodie Neither doth he come single but seauen of them at once possesse Mary Magdalen Neither doe they onely sight against vs beeing aliue but the deuill fought vvith Michael th'arkeangel for the bodie of Moses vvhen he vvas dead Neither doe they terribly set vpon vs to get our bodies onely but our soules also Especialy they do this at the day of death and vvill doe more diligently at the day of iudgement Novv their persvvasions are yet more dangerous then their threatnings When they come to vs in the shape not of an vncleane spirit but of an angel of light Thus Satan did set vpon the first Adam Hath God indeed commanded you not to eate of the tree He makes a question of it And if ye eat you shall be as Gods knovving good euill A faire promise but a contrarie performance So he did set vpon the second Adam All these things vvill ◅ giue thee if thou vvilt fall dovvne and vvorship me He vvould hire Christ and giue him good vvagesto serue him vvhich vvould haue depriued our Sauiour of all his eternall glorie But God hath glorisied vs. It is not now to be doubted whether Satan shall preuaile against vs or not but it is most sure he shall not He hath glorified vs. saith S. Paul Though the possession of it be to come yet the assurance of it is past Euen as our Lord auoucheth is an other place He that beleeueth in me hath passed from death to life Not shall passe but hath passed So S. Paul He hath made vs to sit with himselfe in heauenly places aboue No◅ he will make but he hath Therefore Chrysostome writeth verie resolutely
his wounds perswades the people to grant Emilius triumph Aaron burning incense in his golden censer perfumeth the whole sanctuarie Noah pointing to his rainebowe putteth God in minde of his promise Iaacob laying forth his roddes make most of the lambs his owne Abel holding vp his blood cals and cries for mercie Christ shewing his hands and his side appeaseth his father As if our Sauiour should say thus vnto his father O my louing father looke vpon the face of thine annointed looke vpon the hands looke vpon the side of thine annointed The hands of thine annointed how cruelly they are mangled the side of thine annointed how wofully it is wounded Behold and see if there be any sorrow like to my sorrow These hands can signifie what exceeding sorrow I haue suffered this side can shew that I haue humbled my selfe and haue beene obedient vnto death euen vnto the death of the crosse Therefore O my deare father Put thy finger here and see my hands and put forth thy hand and put it â—…nto my side and as thou art not faithlesse but faithfull so be not mercilesse but mercifull for my sake and pitifull to thy people So much for the second cause which is to appease his father The third cause why Christ hath his wounds yet to be seene in his bodie is to confound his enemies When Saint Paul the Apostle before his conuersion persecuted the Church of God Christ called to him from heauen and said Saul Saul why persecutest thou me Who art thou Lord saies Saul I am saies Christ Iesus of Nazareth whome thou persecurest Alluding to the title of his crosse which was Iesus of Nazareth King of the Iewes At which words Saul both trembling and astonished said Lord what wilâ—… thou haue me doe Now if Saul who repenâ—…d him afterward of his persâ—…cuting Câ—…st stood so astonished when he 〈◊〉 but a peice of the title vpon his crossâ—… 〈◊〉 then shall all they be astonished how shall they be confounded which without any repentance or remorse of consâ—…ience persecute Christ continually wheâ—… at the latter day not onely the title written ouer his head but euen the very print of the wounds in his hands and side shall rise vp in iudgement to condemne them When like as Ioseph saide to his brethren I am Ioseph your brother whome you sold into Egypt so Christ shall say vnto them I am Iesus of Nazareth whome you persecuted and put to death Wonderfull indeede is the feare and confusion of a wicked conscience Aâ—…ter that Herod had beheaded Iohn Baptist he imagined still he saw and heard that holy head showting crying out against him Whereupon hearing the same of Iesus he said not as others said It is Elias or It is one of the Prophets but It is Iohn saies he whome I beheaded he is risen from the dead Saying whome I beheaded he confesseth not his fault in true repentance but onely vvith his owne mouth beareth witnesse oâ—… his owne wickednesse In so much as that may be said to him which Dauid said to the Amalakite who brought him newes of Sauls death Thine owne mouth testisieth against thee saying I haue slaine the Lords annointed Now if the remembrance of this cruell act so vexed and disquieted Herod day and night that he could take no rest for it but still thought waking and dream'd sleeping Iohn Baptist was risen againe to be reuenged of him how then shall they be affrighted how shall they be confounded which haue not beheaded Iohn but crucified Christ yea and crucisie him continually with their sinnes wheÌ„ at the resurrection of all slesh they shall see him vvhome they haue pierced and wring their hands and vveepe waile before him Scipio appointed his sepulâ—…hre to be so placed as his image standing vpon it might looke directly toward Africa that beeing dead he might still be a terror to the Carthaginians after the same sort the Prophet Esai prophesying of Christ saith In that day the roote of Iesse shall stand vp for a signe vnto the people and euen his sepulâ—…hre shall be glorious So that as the bodie of Cadwallo an auntient king of the Brittayns being embalmed and dressed vvith svvete confections vvas put into a brasen image and set vpon a brasen horse ouer Ludgate for a terrour to the Saxons in semblable sort he that is called Faithfull and true shall sit vpon a white horse and out of his mouth shall proceede a sharpe sword wherewith he shall smite and slay the heathen The sword wherewith Dauid hackt off Golias head after he had wrested it out of his hand was kept in the Tabernacle wrapt in a cloath behind the Ephod Which when Abimilech the Priest brought forth Dauid said There is none to that giue it me Christ also did conquer death euen with those weapons and armour wherewith death assaulted him And he keepeth still a memorial of this conquest in the tabernacle of his body That as the Philistims were afraid when they sawe Dauid fighting in the â—…ield with that sword so all Christs enemies may be confounded when they shall see the signe of the sonne of man appearing in the clouds with power and great glorie It was a strange miracle that of Aarons rodde which budded Therefore the Lord said vnto Moyses Bring Aarons rod againe before the testimonie to be kept for a token to the rebellious children The bodie of Christ was a greene tree before it was crucified After beeing dead it was clung and dry like Aarons rodde But it budded when as the third day it rose againe Therefore it is kept still for a token to the rebellious children That as Aaron conuinced the murmuring Israelites and confirmed the authoritie of his priesthood by the budding of his rod which otherwise was but a dead and a drie thing so Châ—…ist may conâ—…ound his enemies when he shall shewe such flourishing glorie such excellent maiestie in his bodie which hath yet in it the tokens and the markes of death It is reported that Zisca the valiant captaine of the Bohemians commanded that after his discease his skinne should be fleed from his body to make a drume which they should vse in their battels affirming that as soone as the Hungarians or any other their enemies should heare the sound of that drume they would not abide but take their flight And surely euery battell of the warriour is with noise and with tumbling of garments in blood but this battell wherein Christ shall tread Satan and all his enemies vnder his feete shall be with burning and consuming of fire So that no drum can be more terrible then the last trumpet shal be when the Lord Iesus shall shewe himselfe from heauen with his mightie angels and shall so come downe with the very same marks and scars in his skin as the men of Galile sawe him ascending vp They which dispatched noble Iulius Caesar in the senate house did set a good face of the matter
one onely holy and happy example hath done which we see euery day before our eies Neither need ye be greatly put in mind to keepe in mind the word heard Memorie ye haue enough vnderstanding enough knowledge enough learning enough When you haue heard a Sermon you can remember and repeat and carrie away and keepe much of it But this this is the thing which I must â—…all vpon my selfe and vpon all you to thinke of to wit that we bring forth the fruit of the word in patience in temperance and in all other vertues of a sanctified life For that Samaritan Woman did not fill her pitcher at the well â—…o spill it by the way but to carrie it home full of water and there to vse it as occasion seru'd Here where the word is preached is the well of liuing water flowing forth to eternall life But this water we must carrie away with vs and keepe it to wash and purge our consciences to clense our wayes to water the roots of Gods graces in vs continually that we may bring forth fruit with patience Rachel also that other holy woman did not desire the mandrakes so much to hold it in her hand or to smell â—…o it as to be made apt thereby 〈◊〉 bring forth the fruite of her wombe To teach vs that we must not labour so much to knowe the word that we may subtilly dispute or discourse of it as to practise it that we may shewe the fruite of it in the amendment of our liues Therefore king Dauid beeing readie to redresse diuers things among his people saith in one of the Psalmes O Lord teach me goodnesse and knowledge knowledge that I may keepe thy word and goodnesse that I may shewe the fruit of it For I am sure saies he that al my keeping without fructifying all my knowledge without goodnesse is to no purpose Wherefore ó Lord giue me goodnesse and knowledge But first goodnesse and then knowledge Because indeede a little goodnesse though it be neuer so small is better then all knowledge though neuer so great One handfull of goodnesse is worth an hundred headfulls of knowledge For the feare of the Lord is the beginning of wisedome a good vnderstanding haue all they that doe thereafter the praise of it 〈◊〉 sor euer A good vnderstandâ—…ng 〈◊〉 all they that doe thereafter Why so Because an ill vnderstanding haue all they that doe not thereafter They that haue vnderstanding and doe not thereafter that is bring not forth fruit according to it they haue an ill vnderstanding But they that haue vnderstanding and do therafter lead their lise according to it such haue a good vnderstanding The praise of these shal endure for euer O how highly shall Christ praise you how richly shall he reward you if you haue a conscionable care to expresse his vertues to be transformed as it were into the obedience of his word Then he shall say vnto you Come ye blessed of my Father inherit the kingdome of heauen For ye haue not onely heard my word and kept it as farre as knowledge goes but also ye haue practised it and fructified thereby I was in prison and ye visited me I was harbourlesse and ye lodged me I was hungry and ye gaue me meate These and such other haue beene the good fruites which haue follovved your hearing and keeping of my word Therefore now ye shall be praised for your weldoing and for euer ye shall be blessed for your fruit-bearing Which God graunt to vs all for Iesus Christ his sake to whom with the Father and the holy Ghost be all honour and glorie power and praise dignitie and dominion now and euermore Amen FINIS A FVNERALL SERMON PREACHED in S. Maries May 10. 1605. Psal. 32. 6. Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him THe principall scope os the Prophet in this place is to prooue that the righteousnesse and so the blessednesse of man consisteth onely in the free forgiuenes of his sinnes and gratious imputation of Christs merits His argument may be framed thus That which the whole Church and euery godly man therein hath euer especially praied for in all afflictions and troubles that is happinesse But for remission of sinnes euery godly man will â—…ray in time of tribulation Therefore this is the felicitie of the faithfull To confirme this reason more fully he setteth downe first the circumstances going before the prayer For this shall euery one that is godly make his prayer vnto thee in a time when thou maist be found Then the forme of the prayer it selfe Thou art a place to hide me in thou shalt preserue me from trouble thou shalt compasse me about with â—…ongs of deliuerance Lastly the effect following the prayer Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him Prayer is the true sacrifice of faith The efficacie whereof is briefly but pithily set downe to the Hebrewes And I haue spoken els-where somewhat largely of this point Now but a word onely to make a fit entrance into this sermon Take it therefore thus The effocts of prayer heretofore haue beene wonderfull Prayer hath fet down hailestones from heauen to ouercome fiue Kings with their armies Prayer hath shut vp the windowes of heauen that it should not raine and againe hath opened them that the earth might giue her encrease Prayer hath staied the swist course of the sunne and caused it to go backward fifteene degrees Prayer hath held Gods hands that he could not strike when he was readie to plague his people Prayer without any other helpe or meanes hath throwne downe the strong walls of Iericho Prayer hath deuided the sea that the floods thereof could not come neere the Israelites In this place it deliuereth the faithful man from all the dangers of this world Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him The summe is this That no calamities of this world no troubles of this life no terrours of death no guiltines of sinne can be so great but that a godly man by meanes of his faith and felicitie in Christ shall wade out of them well inough For howsoeuer other things goe still he shall haue such a solace in his soule such a comfort in his conscience such a heauen in his heart knowing himselfe reconciled to God and iustified by faith that Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him Which that it may the better appeare I shall desire you to obserue two things The danger the deliuerance The danger is in these words In the flood of many waters Where the tribulations that the godly man is subiect to in this life are likened First to waters then to many waters thirdly to a flood of many waters In the flood of many waters The deliuerance is in these words Surely they shall not come neare him Where the deliuerance of the godly man hath three degrees also First they shall not come
separate him from the loue of God which is in Christ Iesus Wherefore seeing the godly man is so inuincible that neither the gates of hell nor the flood-gates of many waters can preuaile against him Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him In the last place must be considered the asseueration Surely For if both liuing and dying my 〈◊〉 be most certaiâ—…e in Christ and yet I know not so much what comfort can I gather thereby Now in all aduersities this is my greatest ioy that the fauour of God which is most constant in it selfe is fully assured also to me For I know that my redeemer liueth And if I be iudged I know I shall be found righteous And I know whome I haue beleeued and I am sure In one word I am Surely perswaded that neither life nor death nor any thing els can separate vs froÌ„ Christ. Nay in all the flood of waters we shall be more then conquerours They shall not come neere to conquer vs. But rather we shall conquer them Yea that which is strangest of all Surely we shall be more then conquerers ouer them Though an hoast of men were laid against me yet shall not my heart be afraid and though there rose vp warre against me yet will I put my trust in it Not in him as it is ill translated in the English but in it that is In the very warre it selfe I will not feare Nay I will be of good hope Yea Surely in the very warre will I hope and trust For euen as a building made arch-wise the more waight is laide vpon it the more strong still it is so the more force and strength is brought against me the greater triumph victorie I shall haue Therefore I will not be afraid of tenne thousand of the people that haue seâ—… themselues against me round about For a thousand of them shall 〈◊〉 at my side and ten thousand at my right hand but they shall not come neere me The Arke in the 〈◊〉 was not drowâ—…ed as other things were but floated vpon the waters Yea the higher the waters encreased the higher Surely for that did the Arke still arise Likewise the redde â—…ea did not hinder the Israelites passage but opened an easie way to them Yea Surely it vvas morcouer as a vvall to backe them against all their enemies The vvordes o Saint Iames are verâ—…e plaine My brethren count it exceeding â—…oy when you fall into diuers temptations Tentaâ—…ion of it selfe doth vexe and disquiet a man But to the godly it is a ioy As we read els where That they â—…vhich are iustisied by 〈◊〉 haue peace nay haue easie accesse to God and great ioy in tribulations But the Apostle adding that this ioy is not common or ordinarie but Surely exceeding ioy raiseth vp the ampliâ—…ication as high as may be Whereunto S. Paul also accordeth We are afâ—…licted on euery side yet we are not in distresse in pouertie but not ouercome of pouertie we are persecuted but not forsaken cast down but we perish not Here he prooueth directly that the flood commeth not neere the faithfull But where is the Surely It followeth in the same epistle As dying and behold we liue as chastened and yet not killed as sorrowing and yet alwaies reâ—…oycing as poore and yet making many rich as hauing nothing and yet possessing all things O the securiâ—…ie and feliciâ—…ie of the faithfull For his faith maketh life of death ioy of sorrowe riches of pouertie What shall I say more or what would you haue me say more then as the Apostle saies It makes all things of nothing As hauing nothing saies he and yet pâ—…ss ssi g all thingâ—… But the special thing to be noted in this sentence is As dying and Behold we liue For they import that death is no death but As it were death an image or a shadowe of death beeing indeede life and Surely a better life and more immortall then we had here Therefore he saies Behold we liue to shewe that by death the faithfull liue a life wherein there is some great specialty and excellency worthy indeed to be beholded regarded As if he should say Behold we liue Behold we liue a more happy life then euer we liued in our life S. Augustin often commeÌ„deth the saying of his master S. Ambrose when he was readie to die Speaking to Stilico and others about his bed I haue not liued so among you saith he that I am ashamed to liue longer if it please God and yet again I am not afraid to die because we haue a good Lord. He doth not say Mine ovvne goodnesse puts me out of feare but Gods goodnesse This goodnesse of God makes me quiet in my conscience and secure in soule readie to embrace death vvhensoeuer it commeth Wherefore Surely is fitly added For afflictions as vvaters doe not ouercome the faithfull Nay they come not neere him But contrariwise the faithfull conquereth afflictions Yea Surely he is in them all more then a conquerour In vvarre he is not afraid Rather he greatly hopeth And Surely euen in the verie vvarre he hopeth The flood of vvaters commeth not neere to drovvne the Arke but lift it vp And so much the higher Surely the arke still riseth as the flood riseth The sea staieth not the Israelites passage It is a dry land for them to march on As a vvall moreouer to backe them Surely against all their enemies Tentation not onely is no matter of sorrovve but also on the other side of ioy Surely of great ioy Death is no death but a life and Surely such a life as onely of it vve may say Behold vve liue So happie both in life and death is the faithfull man Surely in the flood of many waters they shall not come neere him To conclude then No calamitie or aduersitie can possibly disseuer that coniunction vvhich faith maketh of euery godly man with Christ. For feeling the remission of his sinnes assured and sealed vnto him he contemneth not onely the works of the world and dismaiments of his conscience but euen the very feares and terrours of death This our deare brother M. Edward Liuely who now resteth in the Lord lead a life which in a manner was nothing els but a continuall flood of many waters Neuer out os suits of law neuer-ceasing disquieters of his studie His goods distrained and his caâ—…tell driuen off his ground as Iobs was His deare wife beeing not so well able to beare so great a flood as he euen for very sorrow presently died A lamentable and ruefull case So many children to hang vpon his hand for which he had neuer mainâ—…enance neither yet now had stay his wife beeing gone Well but that sorrowfull time was blowne ouer He was appointed to be one of the chiefest translators And as soone as it was knowne how farre in this trauaile he did more then any of the rest he
turmoiled and tossed Wherfore let vs in time crie aloud and awake him with our praiers Or rather indeede he is not asleepe but awake alreadie We haue awaked him not with our praiers but with our sinnes Our sinnes haue cried vp to heauen And the Lord beeing awaked as a gyant comes forth against vs and as a mighty man refreshed with wine For not onely those are waters which are in the chanell or in the sea but as waters are here vnderstood euen those fires are waters those fires I say which very lately awaked vs at midnight affrighted vs at noone day which raged on the South side and anon after on the North side oâ—… the towne It was but a fewe mens losse but it was all mens warning And what shall we make nothing of this that one kind of disease deuoureth vp the townesmen an other the schollers This is now the tenth course of schollers which within this moneth hath beene brought forth to buriall not one of them dying of the plague whereas heretofore if one or two scholers haue died in a whole yeare out of all Colledges it hath beene accompted a great matter This and such like grieuous iudgements beloued doe plainely declare that the Lord beeing awaked with the cry of our sinnes is grieuously displeased and offended at vs. Wherefore let vs yet now at the length in the name of God rowfe vp our selues and awake out of our deadly sinnes Let this that our holy brother did so sodainly in a manner fall asleepe be a loud O yes as it were to awake vs all Let euery one of vs amend one iudge one accuse one condemne one that we be not all condemned of the Lord. Let euery one of vs I beseech you crie vp to heauen for mercie and say with Dauid I haue sinned and done wickedly Or with Ionas Take me for I knowe that for my sake this great tempest is vpon you Then our most mercifull father shall blesse vs all as he hath done this holy Saint both in our life and in our death by the pardoning of our offences couering all our sinnes with the bowells and blood of Christ. And though in this world we be euer subiect to a flood of many waters yet he shall drawe vs still out of many waters as hee did Moses Surely in the floode of many waters no more then they did to Ionas they shall not come neare vs. Neither onely shall we be safe in the flood of death but also in the flood of the day of iudgement For that also is a flood and a terrible fearefull one too To wit not of water but of fire As it was in the dayes of Noah so shall it be at the comming of the sonne of man In the first flood they which had not an arke ranne vp to the toppes of houses to the tops of trees to the toppes of mountaines because they desired to hold vp their heads aboue the still rising raging water In the second they which are not found in Christ shall say to the mountaines Fall vpon vs and to the caues Couer vs and hide vs from the wrath of the Lambe Then they shall be glad to creepe into euery hold and corner that they may auoide the burning of fire But we that confesse our sinnes and forsake the fame shall lift our heads to no other mountain but tò Christ from whome commeth our saluation we shall desire to be couered with no other rocke but onely with that out of which came the blood and water of life For neuer did Noahs flood so cleane wash away all wicked men from the face of the earth as the blood of Christ shall purge vs from all our sinnes and present vs blamelesse before the face of our father onely if we be faithfull vnto death For then the next thing is felicitie and the crowne of life Which God for his mercie sake graunt vs all that as we make no doubt but this our holy brother now triumpheth with Christ so all and euery one of vs after we haue waded through this world as a flood of many waters may inherit that kingdome of glorie which our louing Lord Iesus hath purchased for vs with his deare blood to whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost be all honour and glorie now and euermore Amen FINIS A SERMON PREACHED AT WHITEhall before the King on tewsday after Lo Sunday 1604. 2. Cor. 3. 18. But all we with open face behold as in a glasse the glorie of the Lord and are transformed into the same image from glorie to glorie as by the spirit of the Lord. THe old Testament and the new Testament in summe and substance are all one Christ Iesus the very summe substance of them both in himselfe is one and the same yesterday and to day and for euer Those mysticall wheeles which Ezekiel sees in a vision are one within an other After the same sort there is gospell in the lawe and there is lawe in the gospell One wheele is within another one testament is within another For neither is the lawe so full of threatenings but that it hath some comforts in it neither is the gospell so full of comforts but that it hath some threatenings in it So that the lawe is nothing else but a threatning gospell and the gospel is nothing els but a comfortable lawe The two cherubims which shadowe the merey-seat haue their faces one toward another In like manner the two testaments which shadowe out Christ the true mercy-seat vnto vs haue their faces one toward another For the old testament looketh forward toward the newe which is come and the newe testament looketh backeward toward the old which is past Those glorious seraphims which sing Holy Holy Holy do call to one another So the lawe and the gospell lauding him alone which is the holy one of God doe call to one another Behold the Lambe of God which taketh away the sinnes of the world There the lawe calls to the gospell when Iohn commends Christ. Among them that haue beene borne of women there hath not risen a greater then the Baptist. Here on th' other side the gospell calls to the lawe when Christ coÌ„mends Iohn Whereupon also commending his spouse he saies Thy two breasts are like two young roes that are twins feeding among the lillies The two breasts of the church are the tvvo testaments out of which vve that are the children of the church suck the pure milke of the vvord of God These testaments feede among the lillies Because they treate and discourse especially of Christ vvho saies I am the lilly of the valleyes These testaments also are like tvvo young roes that are tvvins Because tvvins as vve reade of Hippocrates tâ—…ins vvhen they goe they goe together vvhen they feede they feede together And after the same fashion the tvvo testaments beeing the tvvo breasts of the church go together and feede together like tvvo young roes that are