Jerusalem to you my death is the â—arbinger of many deaths For in the 29. vers. Behold the days are coming in the which barrennesse shall be held a blessing in which you will hold it easier to lie under the weightiest mountaine then under the burthen of my bloud You will rue the time that ever you Crucified your King And therefore Weep not for me but for your selves And indeed good Kings are sure Survivors must feel their losse good Kings are sure they passe to peace but seldome or never leave peace behind them And therefore the taking away of a King a good King cals for penitence and especially the taking away of this King In the fourth verse of our present Chapter Behold saith Pilate I bring him forth unto you that you may know I finde no fault in him a faultlesse King cannot be put to death without a fault would you know then whose fault it was It was Pilates fault it was the Jews fault it was the Gentiles fault yea which is more it was thy fault and my fault it was the fault even of us who live at this day our sins as well as his Subjects voted him to death It was our Pride that brought him into derision our Covetousnesse made him poor our Pomp that stripped him our Wrath that wounded him It was our Drunkennesse that made him thirst our Lust that procured his thornes our Riot that drew his bloud so that indeed it concerns not only the Jews but even us also to be penitent it concernes not only his immediate persecutors but even us also to be humbled and be cast downe for the death of our King for not his Enormous crimes but the Rebellion of his Subjects brought him to his end Act. 3.19 when Saint Peter had laid before the Jewes the murther of their King he exhorteth them in these words Repent ye therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out no way to be delivered from the bloud of their King but by penitence they must repent that ever they voted repent that ever they apprehended repent that ever they Arraign'd Condemn'd and Crucified their King Pilate in all emâ—nent languages proclaimed their guilt Hebrew Greek and Latine spoke their shame but not a Declaration in all the languages under heaven not all the oratory in the world no not any thing in the world but what St. Peter specifieth nothing but acknowledgement nothing but repentance can purge this guilt Repent therefore and be converted that your sins may be blotted out The way to change our guilt into an Interest the way to avoid the curse and procure the blessing of this bloud it is to be truly penitent to be heartily sorrowfull to be grieved and pricked at the very heart that we have done that for the which Royall and Divine Majesty did so deeply suffer Nor only must we repent saith St. Peter but convert also that is we must set the King upon his throne we must as Saint Paul renders it 2 Cor. 10.4 Pull down all strong holds cast down every imagination and bring every thought to the obedience of our King For he who was despised rejected of men even he was the beloved the Anointed of the Lord he who was insolently triumphed over and trampled upon by his Subjects yet even he was more then Conquerour yea he who was cut off from the Land of the living even he yet liveth and liveth the King of glory So that indeed unlesse we be converted unlesse we suffer him to raign over us unlesse we kisse reverence and obey the Son we perish from the right way we cannot avoid the guilt of his bloud In a word to conclude all with that in Rom. 8.17 If so be that we suffer with him we shaâ—l also be glorifyed with him if the King could not but by sufferings enter into his glory why should we dream or reckon upon a smoother way If he through Thorns and shame through anguish sorrow and shamefull death if he through bloud even his own bloud was forced to march unto his throne how can we hope to sit on thrones unless we will trample on thornes No Crosse no Crown It is enough for the Servant to be as his Lord enough for Christians since their King before was not even after death to be glorious And indeed did we as he so look upon the joy that is set before us as to spurne at the splendid vanities of this World had we an Eye piercing into the Heavens we would then as did he indure the Crosse and despise the shame we would not then to go to God much fear or care what man can do unto us Let us then in all our sorrowes all our sufferings in all the changes and chances of these sad Times remember we are the professed Servants of a Crucified King of a King who as to the immaturity injustice shame scorn and cruelty of his death suffered more then we can fear and all this to take away the sting of our sufferings to teach us looking upon him not to fear to suffer to teach us that his sufferings are the sanctification of ours to teach us not to value our bloud in his cause who was pleased to shed his upon the Crosse for us To that King then who bore our shame let us asscribe al honour to that King that bare our sorrowes let us give all praise to that King who gave his life for us let us give up our lives so shall we who believe him Crucified behold him glorified and out of his fulnesse receive such a glory as shall never be taken from us Which he vouchsafe who was Crucifyed for us Jesus Christ the righteous To whom be all honour and glory now and for ever Amen THE GRAND CONSPIRACY OF Jews against their King A Demonstration of the highest insolencies proceed from men of the lowest and most base Extractions THE Husbandmen Kill the Sonne Vine-dressers Kill the Heire Peasants Kill the Lords Anointed Virg. Aen. 12. v. 236. Nos patria amissa Dominis parere superbis Cogimur Herc. oet. ad fin Act. 2. O quod superbae non habent unquam Domus Fidele semper Regibus nomen LONDON Printed by E. C. for R. ROYSTON at the Angel in Ivie-lane 1654. Herc. oet. ad fin Act. 2. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} Homer Iliad 7. de foeminis Capt. {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} {non-Roman} I. SIns of Ignorance sins of Knowledge some wittingly and some unwillingly put the Heir to death II. Persons eminent either for Honour or Holinesse they are the most liable to Envy Spleen Hate and Malice The Heir in whom Honour and Holinesse met in a most eminent degree him above all others did the Husbandmen put to the most Ignominie and most affliction Lam. 1.12 III. Since Covetous and Ambitious persons fear no difficulties the Conscientious and Religious should much lesse do it IV. All Conditions are comprehended under Coloni to teach that all
hands make light worke but if we would piercingly and exactly look upon this Passion upon this murthering of a King we shall finde many hands indeed but for work the heaviest that ever was read of and how could it well be other when the miseries of this poor King was to satisfie the malice of two parties Mat. 27.1 When the morning was come all the chief Priests and as the Greek hath it the lay-Presbyters or the Elders of the people took counsell against Jesus to put him to death they who prepared plotted and purposed their Kings destruction they who raised an Army and sent Swords and staves to apprehend him these were you see an Assembly of Priests and Elders yet these were not they that did the deed these were not the Executioners these Voted but these did not Crucifie Now in verse 27. of the same Chapter you shall find the Souldiers of the Governours took Jesus into the common Hall and gathered unto him the whole band of Souldiers and they stripped him they fooled him verse 28. they crowned they mockt him they spit upon him verse 29. and when they had sported enough at his sorrowes then in the 35. verse of the Chapter They Crucified him they not the Presbyters or Elders but the Souldiers brought him to the block they Crucified him Not barely and simply put him to death but they put him ad mortem erucis to the death of the Crosse and indeed this had not been Envies Master-piece had it not been so had they not cloathed him with shame as well as macerated him with pain had they not put him as well to an ignominious as an irksome death Envy would have seemed too dull and too cool a persecutor And therefore to expresse the zeal and activity of their cruelty it is not said here they slew but they Crucified him that is they inflicted on him the extremity of shame sorrow death To a person of Honour and especially to the fountain of Honour to a King shame and dishonour it is bitterer then death so that indeed it is hard to say whether the disposition to and manner of his death was not more affliction to the King then death it self for if we look upon these three particulars though we must passe over a thousand bitternesses 1. What was done before they brought him to the Court of Justice 2. What was done there 3. What after Sentence we shall finde there was nothing done but what speaks Tyranny and Malice For first to take off the appearance of their Envy and to make Malice seem zeal unto the publick behold the King must be brought as a Prisoner to the Barre and as a Malefactor before the Court of Justice but if we observe the Tryall we shall finde nothing but envy and Malice in it For in a place I now cited Mat. 27.7 I shewed unto you how the Priests and Elders took counsell against Jesus to put him to death before ever they brought him to the Court of Justice before ever any Processe drawn or witnesses found out the Priests and Elders had resolved upon the question they sate in Councell and had agreed the King must die the President must and should give the Sentence of death upon him So that indeed the bringing him before a Judge the bringing the King before Annas Caiaphas Herod and Pilate this his appearance at four severall Courts it was only to put a faire Face upon an ugly Sentence it only was by the mockery of justice to cloak the cruelty of malice for before ever he came thither the Councell had determined Jesus their King must die Secondly see the carriage of the businesse when it came there and we shall finde that he was not tryed by any course of Law or by any legall principles for if we look upon him as before Caiaphas before the chief Priests and the Elders Mat. 26.59 we shall find that all his Judges were parties for the Scripture expresly saith the chief Priests and Elders and all the Councell sought false witnesse against Jesus all the Councell all that sate his Judges or that did rise up in Judgment against him they conspired and plotted how to put their King to death or look we upon him as he stood before Pilate before the President and we shall finde it was the Multitude it was the Tumult it was Voices not Law that carryed the cause against him When Pilate saw that he could not prevail any thing but that rather a Tumult was made Mat. 27.24 then he released Barabbas and delivered Jesus to be Crucified Tumult and Votes not Law or Justice brought the King unto his Crosse Indeed in the 25. ver. of the said 27. Chapter of St. Matthew it is written Then answered all the people his bloud be on us and our children the chiefe Priests and Elders the prime and close managers of this designe they interest and intitle the people to it as if this had been an Act of the whole people as if it had been the peoples desire to have their King cut off all the people said his bloud be upon us and upon our Children Whereas indeed if we look close into the story we shall find that had the people been let alone they would have been as they were some five dayes before all for the King they would have prosecuted their former engagement and have brought their King to his City with safety and honour they were more inclinable as it is in Mat. 21. to cry Hosanna then Crucifie and had rather have strowed their garments in his way then have imbrewed his in bloud Mat. 27.20 The chiefe Priests and Elders perswaded the multitude the Leaders and Commanders they over-ruled the people yea if it were as hard to get into Pilates as it was into Caiaphaâ— Court there might then be more or at least but few present at his tryall but such who were the Creatures and followers of the chief Priests and Elders for you shall finde in the 18. of Saint John and the 17. verse That the doore was shut and Sainâ— Peter got not in but upon the interest of St. John and no wonder if they spake as they were taught Crucifie him Crucifie him yea St. Peter in Acts 3.17 imputes it to the ignorance of the people which Pilate flatly layes to the fury of Rulers and indeed no People nor Rulers but were extreamly ignorant of what they did when they did this the foulest of attempts Crucifie their King Thirdly as you have seen what they did before they came unto the Court and how things were carryed there even so if we look upon what was done after Sentence we shall finde nothing but Cruelty nothing but a studiyd mixture of Infamy and Sorrowes And this wil appear from these two things 1. The place 2. The Instrument of his death First the place Jerusalem the Royall City the City of David and must it not needs be an aggravation of shame and sorrow for the Sonne of
David for the King of Sion there to lay his head upon the block there to wear a Crowne of Thornes and there judicially to be put to death where he and he only should have sate upon the Throne Indeed it was not done before his Palace it was not done before his own doors but it was done in Occidentali parte it was done in the West part of the City it was there done where it might bring most disgust and distaste upon him Mans Calvariae id est decollatorum Mount Calvary that is according to Jerome the place of common Execution the place where Malefactors were beheaded now there where that same day a couple of theeves were to be put to death there and in the midst of them as if he had been like to one of them as a Tyrant a Traytor a Murtherer and a publick enemy they Crucifyed their King and they put to death even the Lord of glory So that indeed not only the place but the very instrument of his death that he should be nayled to the Crosse be numbred among transgressors and dye a Malefactor this is to a King to a righteous innocent King a thing bitterer then death Secondly And in a word then to conclude this point when the Jews were so Rebellious as to conspire and attempt the Killing of their King they added this wickednesse above all they killed him after the most ignominious way after the most irksome and tedious invention that those times had They were not so mercifull as to lay an Axe unto his throat or a Sword unto his Heart but in the places most remote in the Hands and Feet where they might multiply anguish and not hasten death where they might wound but not kill where they might afflict but not dispatch there they tormented there they tortured there they studyed to grieve and vex his righteous Soul So that of all the sad spectacles under Heaven of all the cruelties that ever the Beasts of the people presented to the world there is none like to oppressed Majesty never is Ambition Envy Malice or what brutish affection soever so predominant never is Rage and Fury so highly and so full fed as when it drinks the bloud Royall So that the saddest object that was ever yet recorded it was this in my Text the Betraying the Buying the Arraigning the Deriding and the Crucifying of their King Pilate abhorred and yet gave way unto it the Jews denied and abjuâ—â—d it yet did it they were ashamed to own yet not affraid to act the villany Shall I Crucifie your King saith Pilate and do you think we would say the Jews We have no King but Caesar A plain evidence that it was Fear Passion Envy which against all Conscience Law Right or Reason thus barberously used a King So that all now remaining is to see what use we should make of it and that I shall dispatch under these three heads 1. It should teach us to be patient 2. It should teach us to be charitable 3. It should teach us to be penitent First it should teach us to be patient looking in all our crosses and troubles on a Crucified King Well known is that Motto Bona agere mala pati Regium est To do good and suffer evill it is a Royall and Kingly part and indeed never did any King so act this part as the King in my Text for if we look upon his concessions and acts of grace we shall find that they were beyond all that were ever granted And on the otherside if we look upon the injuries and indignities he suffered if we look upon the provocations and vexations the Insolence and Malice Jealousies and Feares did heap upon him we shall finde him a Patient beyond President so that indeed it is hard to say whether this King did more good or suffered more evill for us such good he did that except the integrety of his soul he Sacrificed all the rest Such evill he endured he lost but all which man could deprive him of such good he did that preserving what might make him a Saviour he gave up even all as he was a Soveraign such evill he indured that those very wretches for whom he suffered triumphed in his miseries and though his Subjects gloried to insult upon him So that indeed there cannot be an exacter piece of patience then this harrowed and Crucified King 1 Pet. 2.2 Christ suffered for us leaving us an example that ye should follow his steps Our King not only suffered for satisfaction but also for imitation so that indeed we are not only to look upon him as a Saviour but also as a sufferer not only who suffered for us but also as one who made himselfe an example to teach us to suffer and indeed in what can we suffer in which we have not him for an example Honour Freedome Estate Friends Life these are the darlings that we dote upon and in which of these can we so deeply suffer in as our King did In Honour we cannot for his is the Throne and ours but the Footstoole he the Fountaine and we but the wast of his fulnesse And yet in point of Honour never was such a sufferer as he was and indeed they could never have made him such a sufferer had they not first wounded and devested him of his Honour we shall see in Num. 16. that grand and first conspiracy of Corah Dathan and Abiram it began with aspersions and calumniating authority vers. 3. Ye take too much upon you they endevoured to make Moses and Aaron appeare Tyrants and usurpers upon the people even so when the Jews had a designe and a desire to Crucifie their King the first thing they endevour is to make him odious and to lay they care not how false so prevalent Treasons misdemeanours or any things hatefull to his charge John 2.17 of whom it is there written The zeal of thy house hath eaten me up even him they accuse and traduce unto the people as one who would destroy the Temple He of whom it was written By me Kings Reign he who gave it in expresse charge Matth. 22.21 To give unto Caesar the things that are Caesars yet even he Luke 22.2 stands there indicted for forbidding tribute to be paid to Caesar and for being no friend to Caesar He who indeed was ipsa veritas Truth it self him they charge as an Impostor or a Deceiver He in whose mouth there was found no guile he who was as a Lamb with out spot even him as a Malefactor and a Villain they deliver up He who was the only one to save him they traduce and charge for the perverter of the people Now I beseech you which of us should not with alâ— patience heare and bear the calumny of the people which of us shoulâ— no arme against accusations slanders and evill Tongues when you see the King of Glory the King of Righteousnesse the King of Peace he had his honour laid in the dust