Christ is dead and rizen I know no greater sinner then Iohn Taylor Of all his Death did Ransome out of Prizzen And therefore heere 's my Pride if it be Pride To know Christ and to know him Crucifide Thine in all humilitie Iohn Taylor TAYLORS VRANIA 1 ETernall God which in thine armes do'st Graspe All past all present and all future things And in ineuitable doome dost claspe The liues and deaths of all that dies and springs And at the doomefull day will once vnhaspe Th' acusing booke of Subiects and of Kings In whom though ending nor beginning be Let me ô Lord beginne and end in thee 2 All cogitations vaine from me remooue And clense my earthly and polluted heart Inspire me with thy blessings from aboue That to thy honour I with Artlesse Art May sing thy Iustice Mercy and thy Loue Possesse me with thy Grace in euery part That no profane word issue from my pen But to the Glorie of thy name Amen 3 I do beseech thee Gracious louing father Reiect me not in thy sharpe iudging Ire But in thy multitude of mercies Rather Recall me to thee Recolect me Nigher My wandring Soule into thy bosome Gather And with thy Grace my gracelesse heart Inspire Dictate vnto my minde what it may thinke Write with thy spirit what I may write with inke 4 Thou all things wast eu'n then when nothing was And then thou all things did'st of nothing make Of nothing All thou still hast brought to passe And all againe to nothing must betake When sea shall burne and land shall melt like brasse When hills shall tremble and the mountaines quake And when the world to Chaos turnes againe Then thou Almighty All shalt all remaine 5 And since this vniuersall massie ball This earth this aire this water and this fire Must to a ruine and a period fall And all againe to nothing must retire Be thou to me my onely All in All Whose loue and mercy neuer shall expire In thee I place my treasure and my trust Where Fellon cannot steale or canker rust 6 All things but only God at first began The vncreated God did all Create In him Alone is equall will and can Who hath no ending or commencing date To whose Eternitie all time 's a span Who was is shal be euer in one state All else to nothing howerly doth decline And onely standes vpon support diuine 7 Our high Creator our first Parents form'd And did inspire them with his heau'nly spirit Our Soules seducer Sathan them deform'd And from Gods fauour did them disinherit Our blest Redeemer them againe reform'd And ransom'd them by his vnbounded merit Thus were they form'd deform'd reform'd againe By God by Sathan and our Sauiours paine 8 Mans Generation did from God proceed A mortall Body and a Soule Eternall Degeneration was the Deuils deed With false delusions and with lies infernall Regeneration was our Sauiours meede Whose death did satisfie the wrath supernall Thus was man found and lost and lost was found By Grace with Glory euer to be crownd 9 Man was produc'de seduced and reduc'de By God by Sathan and by God agen From good to ill from ill he was excusd'e By merit of th' immortall man of men The vnpolluted bloud from him was sluc'de To saue vs from damnations dreadfull den Thus man was made and marde and better made By him who did sinne death and hell inuade 10 Let man consider then but what he is And contemplate on what he erst hath bin How first he was created heyre of blisse And how he fell to be the Childe of sinne How of himselfe he howerly doth amisse And how his best workes do no merit winne Except acceptance make them be esteem'd Through his obedience that our Soules redeem'd 11 Before thou wast remember thou wast nought And out of nought or nothing thou wast fram'de And how thy Body being made and wrought By God was with a liuing Soule inflam'de And how th' eternall Nomenclator taught Thee name all Creatures that were euer nam'de And made thee Stuard of the worlds whole treasure And plac'de thee in a paradice of pleasure 12 Then wast thou Viceroy to the King of heau'n And great Lieuetenant to the Lord of hosts The rule of all things vnto thee was giu'n At thy command all creatures seru'd like posts To come or go and at thy becke were driu'n Both neere and farre vnto the farthest coasts God all things made as seruants vnto thee Because thou only shouldst his seruant be 13 He gaue life vnto herbes to plants and trees For if they wanted life how could they grow A beast hath life and sence moues feeles and sees And in some sort doth good and euill know But man 's before all Creatures in degrees God life and sence and reason did bestow And least those blessings should be transitory He gaue him life sence reason grace and glory 14 Then let our meditations scope be most How at the first we were created good And how we wilfull Grace and goodnes lost And of the sonnes of God were Sathans broode Then thinke the price that our redemption cost Th' eternall sonne of Gods most precious bloud Remember this whilst life and sence remaine Else life and sence and reason are in vaine 15 Thou to requite thy God that all thee gaue Ingratefully against him didst rebell Whereby from Regall state thou turnedst slaue And heau'nly Iustice doomb'd thee downe to hell As thy rebellion from thy God thee draue So 'gainst thee all things to rebellion fell For when to heau'n thy due obedience ceast Thy disobedience taught each brutish beast 16 Now see thy miserable wretched state Thou and the earth is eake with thee accurst All worldly things which thee obaide of late In stiffe commotion now against thee burst And thou for euer droue from Eden gate To liue an exilde wretch and which is worst Thy soule Gods darling fell from her preferment To be the Deuils thrall in endlesse torment 17 But Mercies sea hath quenched Iustice fire And Heau'ns high heyre in pittie of mans case In person came and satisfide Gods ire And Gracelesse man new Repossest in Grace The sonne of God came downe to raise vs higher To make vs Glorious he himselfe made base To draw vs vp downe vnto earth he came And honor'd vs by putting on our shame 18 Who can conceiue the Glory he was in Aboue the heau'n of heau'ns in throan'd in blisse Who can conceiue the losse that he did winne To rectifie and answere our amisse Who can conceiue the Mountaines of our sinne That must be hid with such a sea as this No heart no tongue no pen of mortall wight These things can once conceiue or speake or write 19 Man may collect th' abundance of his vice And the deare loue his God to him did beare In thinking on th' inestimable price Was paide his sinne polluted soule to cleare To gaine him an immortall paradice And to Redeeme his foes to pay so
of the Treasure And great Recorder of this world of dust The Vnderstanding giues true Iustice measure To Good to Bad to Iust and to Vniust Inuention and Remembrance waite the leasure Of Memorie and Understanding must Haue Wisdom for hir fellow and hir guide Else Prince and Peeres and Commons stray aside 40 Truth and false Lying on the Tongue attends The one instructs hir plainly in the Truth The others proper and improper ends Doth teach to lye and vouch it with an oath The Tongue loues one of these yet both contends But she wants entertainment for them both At last she takes in Lying for hir Page And bids Truth walke a beggers Pilgrimage 41 When Wisdom must giue Follie cap and knee When hare-braind Will o're Wit doth rule raigne When Lying shall make Truth regardles be When Loue is paide with hatred and disdaine When Sense and Appetite do all agree To serue a false rebellious heart and braine When they haue Reasons Court thus vnderminde It is a signe that Vnderstanding's blinde 42 Then is the place where Vertue had abode Made a fowle Rendeuouz for filthy Vice The Temple of the holy Spirit of God Esteemes his blessed presence of no price Man spurns against his iust reuenging Rod Worse then the Iewes that for his Coat cast Dice Men falne into a reprobated Sence Dread not their Makers great Omnipotence 43 Then what art thou poluted earthly clod Thou span thou froth thou bubble and thou smoke Worse then the dust that vnder-foot is trod Dar'st thou thy Makers furie to prouoke Why wilt thou wilfull thy perdition plod And with damnation thy saluation choke Christ bought thy Soule and lent it thee to vse it T is none of thine and therefore not abuse it 44 Dar'st thou profane with thy vngodly breath His Name that did before the world elect thee Dar'st thou dare him his Iustice sword t'vnsheath Dar'st thou prouoke his mercy to reiect thee Dar'st thou run headlong to perpetuall death Whereas eternall torments shall correct thee And dar'st thou wretched worme of earthly race Belch blasphemie against thy Makers Grace 45 He thou offendest is the King of Kings Heau'n Earth and Hell do tremble at his frowne Bright Angells and Archangells alwaies sings Before the seat of his immortall Crowne His foes to fell confusion downe he slings He giues his seruants Honor and Renowne His power 's not circumscribed here or there But All in All is All and euery where 46 Can nothing moue thy flinty heart to Ruthe That of thy selfe thou some remorse wouldst take And not to spend thy beauty strength and youth To serue the Sou'raigne of the Stigian Lake Say not to morrow thou wilt seeke the truth And when sin leaues thee thou wilt sin forsake When thou no more through weaknes canst offeÌ„d Then lame old rotten thou wilt God attend 47 When hoary haire and blood all frozen chill When eyes waxe dim and limbs are weake lame And that no more thy rash rebellious will Cannot performe vile deeds of sinne and shame When thou hast lost thy strength to do more ill Then vnto Heau'n thy minde thou ' ginst to frame Thy youth in Sathans seruice being spent In age thou thinkst on God and dost repent 48 Suppose a man that 's much ingag'd to thee Hath a good Horse which thou dost much desire Thou offrest for him thrice his worth to be The Master of this Beast thou dost require But this ingratefull wretch will not agree To giue to sell him thee or let thee hire But lets him all his youth be rid by those Who are thy spightfull and thy mortall foes 49 And when hee 's leane and old and lame and blinde Gall'd foundred filthy wanting no disease Botts Glaunders Spauin broken in his winde Not a tooth left to mumpe on beanes and pease Then this Companion most vnkindly kinde Will let thee haue this Palfraie if thou please If now past good thou scornest to receiue him Hee le flay his skin off and the dogs shal haue him 50 Betwixt thy God and thee such is the case When thou art young strong sound of winde and lim Thy soule and bodie shuns his heau'nly Grace Thou wilt not serue thy God nor waite on him But heedles headlong runn'st a hellish race Till age hath brought thee to the graues haâ—d brim Then being clog'd with sin diseasd and foule Thou offrest God thy body and thy soule 51 But dost thou thinke he is at thy Command Or that his mercy must attend thy leasure Or dost thou thinke thou canst in Iudgment stand And scape the Iustice of his high displeasure Or dost thou thinke that his Almighty hand Is shortned or that his supernall pleasure Regards not how the Sonnes of Men do liue Or that without Repentance hee 'le forgiue 52 Sly Sathans Rage is almost at an end And well he knowes his dominations stint He therefore now doth all his Engins bend To batter and confound our fleshly Fort He and his Ministers do all attend To draw vs to his damn'd infernall Court. For if he loose our soules at latest cast T will be too late when all his power is past 53 And therefore now he plots his diuellish drifts To separate vs from our God so louing In making vs vnthankfull for his gifts And by our heynous sins his Anger mouing Whilst wings of Faith our prayers vpwards lifts To praise our Maker as is best behouing Then Sathan kills our Zeale and vnawares We are intangled in vile worldly snares 54 God made enough all men to satisfie Yet not enough to giue one Man content For he that had the worlds whole soueraigntie Would couet for a further continent Ambitious thirst of fading Dignitie As though they were for euer permanent Doth banish Loue and euery heau'nly Motion Blinds all our Zeale and murders our Deuotion 55 T is truly writ in many a thousand storie And thousand thousand sheets of blotted paper Declares how terrene things are transitorie Incertaine certaine wasting like a Taper How froathy painted Pompe and gaudie Glory When least we thinke doth vanish like a vaper Experience teacheth this and truth bewraies it And various humane accidents displaies it 56 To day great Diues in a purple coate With Epicurian Apetite doth feed His cups with wine do ouerflow and floate His baggs with quoyne his heart from feare is freed And on the world and wealth doth only dote As if his death his life should not succeed He loues himselfe himselfe loues him agen And liu's a hated wretch of God and Men. 57 Nor stone or dropsie or the groaning Gowt Can make him with his Wealth to liue in hate He maugre paine takes pleasure to finde out New Proiects to increase his too great state To marry muck to muck he casts about And neuer dreames of his expiring date Vntill he heare the fatall bell to towle And Hell stand gaping to deuoure his Soule 58 I'haue heard of an extortionizing Curr That hath
Gallant mounted all in gold Like Alexander on Bucephalus The ground in his conceit too base to hold Him whom the smiles of fortune fauours thus But in his height of heat how soone hee 's cold By death snatch'd from his pompe himselfe and vs. His Name and Noble-Mushrom-fame forgot And all things but his shame must lye and rot 78 The beauteous Lady that appeares a Saint Of Angells forme and Heau'n admired hue That can by Art defectiue Nature paint And make false colours to the eye seeme true Yet Death at last hir brau'ry doth attaint And spight hir Art she must pay Natures due The rarest features and the fairest formes Must dye and rot and be consum'd with wormes 79 Wealth Beauty as they are abusde or vsde They make the owners either curst or blest As Good or Ill is in the minde infusde They adde a ioyfull rest or woes vnrest To vse them well th' are blest but if abusde Thy God doth thee and them loath and detest And turns his blessings which shold most coÌ„teÌ„t thee To dreadfull cursings which shal still torment thee 80 Seek then Heau'ns kingdom things that are right And all things else shall be vpon thee cast Thy daies of Ioy shall neuer turne to night Thy blessed state shall euerlasting last Liue still as euer in thy Makers sight And let Repentance purge thy vices past Remember thou must drink of deaths sharp cup And of thy Stuardship account giue vp 81 Had'st thou the beautie of faire Absolon Or did thy strength the strength of Sampson passe Or could thy wisdom match wise Salomon Or might thy riches Cressus wealth surpasse Or were thy pompe beyond great Babylon The proudest Monarchie that euer was Yet Beauty Wisdom Riches Strength and State Age Death and Time will spoile and ruinate 82 Make of the World no more then as it is A vale of Cares of miseries and woes Thinke of it as the sinke of all amisse That blinds our Sences with deceiuing showes Account it as a den of balefull blisse The which vnthought of all estates o'rethrowes How Sathan in it beares a Lordly sway And how none but his subiects it obay 83 And whilst thou runn'st this transitorie race Vse well the blessings God to thee hath sent Do Good with them whilst thou hast time and space And know they are but things vnto thee lent Know that thou must appeare before Gods face To answer if they well or ill be spent If thou hast spent them well then heau'n is thine If ill th' art damn'd to hell by doome diuine 84 But ten times happy shall that Steward be Which at the last the Lord shall faithfull finde Heart tongue or eyes cannot thinke speake or see The glory that to him shall be assinde He shall out-passe the Angells in degree He shall out-shine all Starrs that euer shinde He shall for euer and for euer sing Eternall praises to his God and King 85 Vnto which God the Father first and last Whose goodnes all conseru's preseru's and feeds To God the Sonne whose merits downe hâ—ath cast Sinne death and hell due vnto Sinners meeds To thee ô Holy Ghost that euer vvast The blessing that from Sire and Sonne proceeds And to the vn-deuided Three in One All Power and Praise and Glory be alone FINIS THE SEVERALL Sieges Assaults Sackings and finall Destruction of the famous ancient and memorable Citie of IERVSALEM Deuided into two parts By IOHN TAYLOR LONDON Printed by Edward Griffin for Nathaniel Butter and are to be sold at his shop at S. Austins gate at the signe of the Pyde Bull. 1616. TO THE TRVLY worthy and right Worshipful IOHN MORAY Esquire one of the Gentlemen of his Maiesties Royall Bed-chamber Earths Honors and Heauens happines THis Booke Good Sir the issue of my braine Though far vnworthy of your worthy view Yet I in dutie offer it to you In hope you Gently it will entertaine And though the Method and the Phrase be plaine Not Artlike writ as to the stile is due Yet is it voide of any thing vntrue And truth I know your fauour shall obtaine The many fauours I from you haue had Hath forc'd me thus to shew my thankfull minde And of all faults I know no vice so bad And hatefull as ingratefully inclinde A thankfull Heart is all a poore mans pelfe Which with this Booke I giue your Worthy Selfe Your Worships euer most obliged IOHN TAYLOR The seuerall Sieges Assaults Sackings and finall destruction of the famous ancient and memorable Citie of IERVSALEM THe Iustice Mercy and the Might I sing Of Heau'ns iust mercifull almighty KING By whose fore knowledge all things were elected Whose power hath all things made all protected Whose Mercies flood hath quencht his Iustice flame Who was is shall be one and still the same Who in the Prime when all things first began Made all for Man and for himselfe made Man Made not begotten or of humane birth No Sire but God no Mother but the Earth Who ne're knew Childhood or the sucking teate But at the first was made a man compleat Whose inward Soule in God-like forme did shine As Image of the Maiestie diuine Whose supernaturall wisdom beyond Nature Did name each sensible and senceles creature And from whose Star-like Sand-like Generation Sprung euery Kinred Kingdom Tribe and Nation All people then one Language spake alone Interpreters the world then needed none There liued then no learned deep Grammarians There were no Turks no Scithians no Tartarians Then all was one and one was only all The language of the vniuersall Ball. Then if a Traueller had gone as farre As from the Artick to th' Antartick starre If he from Borcas vnto Auster went Or from the Orient to th' Occident Which way soeuer he did turne or winde He had bin sure his Countrey-man to finde One hundred thirty winters since the Flood The Earth one only Language vnderstood Vntill the sonne of Cush the sonne of Cham A proud cloud-scaling Tower began to frame Trusting that if the world againe were drown'd He in his loftie building might rest sound All future Floods he purposd to preuent Aspiring to Heau'ns glorious Battlement But high Iehouah with a puff was able To make ambitious Babell but a bable For what is man that he should dare resist The great Almighties power who in his fist Doth gripe Eternitie and when he please Can make and vnmake Heau'n and Earth Seas For in their expectation of conclusion He plag'd them all with sundry Tongues confusion Such Gibrish Gible Gable all did iangle Some laugh some fret all prate all diffring wrangle One calls in Hebrew to his working Mate And he in Welch Glough whee Comrage doth prate Another gapes in English or in Scotch And they are answer'd in the French or Dutch Caldaicke Siriacke and Arabian Greeke Latin Tuscan and Armenian The Transiluanian and Hungarian The Persian and the rude Barbarian All these and diuers more then I can