minded the meek as well as the angrie or angerlesse the courteous as well as the flatterer or churlish the sincere as well as the dissembler or bragger the civilized man as well as the rustick or the scoggen or the officious pleasant the just as well as the unjust must all once die The stout man may fight against death the temperate man keep a sober dyet to prolong his life the liberall propine it the magnificent make expences the magnanimous disdain it the modest smile at it the meek embrace it the courteous cherish it the civilized welcome it the just man execute judgements upon others but none of them can overcome death Look to the superiour faculties The religious divine in foro poli the curious lawyer in foro soli the skilfull mediciner in his shop must all once die The first of these may teach of it the second may make a testament after it the third may prescribe a recipe against it but none of them can cast off its yoke Look to the arts and sciences the experimented Grammarian may finde out sundrie significations of the word Death in divers languages the dainty Poet may make an Epitaph or Epicede the flowing oratour a funerall Sermon the subtile Logician may dispute pro contra the ingenuous moralist may discourse trimly upon it but what can these do but what mortall men can do after all that they can do die Therefore let not the beaten warriour thinke that all his stratagems can defend him or the polished polititian dreame that all the maximes of Matchiavel or the counsell of Achitophel can preserve him Let not the Geometer bee so busie as to search out the place or the Arithmetician number the day or the Astrologue tell the manner of his death let not the profound naturalist wade into the deep thereof nor the transcendent Metaphysician flee from it for there is no art nor science under heaven which will learn a man not to die Looke to the ages the embrion in its mothers bellie the babe on its mothers breast the wanton child the rash young man the strong man the wittie man the old man the decrepit man all must once die Look to the conditions of men Prince pastor and people all must once die And to compendize that which I thought to enlarge both elect and reprobate all must once die they for the abolition of their miseries and position of their happinesse these for the position of their miseries and remotion of all happinesse They to be glorified in soule and body these to bee damned in both So that the godly die that they may live to God and with God in heaven the ungodly die that they may live to the devill and with the devill in hell God preserve us from hell and reserve us to heaven I prove the second point of this doctrine which is this There is nothing more uncertain then the time place and manner of death as a poet saith Nemo novit mortis tempusve locumve modumve The time whether in the spring summer harvest winter of the year or of mans years whether at the point of the day morning mid-day evening night midnight it is uncertain He that dieth early in the morning is the babe he that dyeth at the third houre is the young man he that dieth at the sixt houre is the strong man he that dieth at the ninth houre is the old man and he that dieth at the eleventh houre is the decrepit man And therefore the Greek poet compareth man to an apple which is either pulled off before the time or else in time falleth off on the ground And Epictetus to a candle which is exposed to winde it may shine a little and then goeth out The place whether in thy house or in the temple in thy bed or at the table in the mountain or in the valley in the wildernesse or in the fields on sea or by land in or out of thy countrey it is uncertain The manner whether by sword famine pestilence sicknesse heat cold hunger thirst racke rope by peace or warre by a naturall or violent death it is uncertain Of all these I might bring both exotick and domestick examples but I leave them to your daily reading and hearing of divine and profane histories Onely I inferre these uses upon the precedent doctrine by way of direction from the dead and consequently from these two dead corps lying before us Receive first then three directions upon the first point viz. The certainty of death The first direction is Vive memor lethi fugit hora Persius In thy life remember of thy death for thy houre slippeth Time is precious but short and this is a hard lesson Memento mori This was accustomed to be said to the Emperours in that great triumph at Rome Memento mori homo es mortalem te esse memineris Remember to die man thou art and remember that thou art mortall All these did follow Philip Alexander the greats father who commanded his chamberlain thrice every day to round the same sentence in his eares To this effect when the Egyptians did solemnize their natall dayes they had a dead scull upon their table to put them in minde of their mortalitie One Church-yard in Paris I remarked hath moe sculls then there are living heads in Scotland St. Jerome was wont to have in his studie before him a dead mans scull with a running glasse But alas such is our follie that scarcely can wee remember of death when wee see the same painted upon the mort-cloath wee may lose a legge to day an arme to morrow an eye the third day and these will not teach us to prepare our selves towards it Consumption in the lights a stone in the bladder the gout in our feet the palsie in our hands 2000 known sicknesses in our bodies to omit unknown for every member of our bodie is subject to diverse diseases will not advertise us Our house is ruinous but we cannot flit out of it Chance telleth us that death is latent infirmitie that it is patent old age that it is present as saith Hugo What for all this we cannot be enough admonished And this is it that Jerome findeth fault with Quotidie morimur quotidie commutamur tamen aeternos esse credimus We die daylie we are changed daily yet we think our selves eternall In the mean time in our most lively life we may perceive the verie print and footstep of death For we do see continually and hear the cryes of mothers for their children of spouses for their husbands of servants for their masters visitation of sick mediciners preachers in our houses at our bedheads all warning us that we are besieged by death The second direction is Fac hodie quod moriturus agas so lead thy life as if thou wert even now dying Every day that we live complaineth Anselmus wee come from our countrey to our banishment from the sight of God to darknesse from
requested by my near and dear friends yea abundantly warranted by these who have the prioritie of place in church government above me and as it seemeth by your favourable silence and Christian attention invited to speak I have purposed by the speciall concurrence and assistance of the spirit of my God to deliver unto you a brief meditation upon death Pray ye all to God to engrave it by the finger of his all-pearcing spirit in the vive depth of my heart that again by way of spirituall communication I may write it upon the tables of your hearts as it were with a pen of iron and the point of a diamond that both preacher and hearer may lay it up in their memories and practise it in their lives and conversations And I intreat you all and most of all these who are of a tender conscience I entreat you I say in the tender bowels of mercie not to misconstruct my coming hither which ought rather to be a matter of singular comfort then of prejudged censure a matter of profitable instruction rather then of envious emulation a matter of pious devotion then of repining contention I think not shame with the glorious apostle to preach in season and out of season for the converting winning and ingathering of soules I do not say this That I consent to these who contemne and condemne altogether such meetings for albeit I would confesse unto them that the time place and persons were extraordinarie as indeed they may seem to these who have not travailed out of their paroch churches or seen forrein countries yet the customes of the primitive church see Nazianzen Ambrose Jerome c. and of our reformed churches in France Genevah Germanie upper and lower in great Britaine and elsewhere maketh all three ordinarie and the subject of this present meditation viz. Death proveth the same to be common THE SERMON Hebr. 9. 27. For it is appointed for men once to die c. THis is a short a memorable a grave assertion Short because few in words but full of substance Memorable because a remembrance of death Grave because the vive representation of it before our eyes should teach us our frail and transitorie condition in this world But that I may proceed with a clear method without the which there is no solid discourse marke these points 1 The logick analysis of these words 2 The grammaticall and criticall expositions 3 The doctrines conforme with their severall uses inferred upon them 4 And lastly the conclusion of this whole action by way of application to these two dead corps As for the analysis I shall not be curious in it Ye see only the subject of this sentence is Men once to die The attribute Appointed The sentence it self is generall because the appointment is generall Death generall The subject of death Man generall The number of death Once if unitie can be a number As for the exposition There are three words which need to be cleared The first whereof is appointed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 expounded by worthie Suidas Laid up as a reward and so indeed death is the wages of sinne Phavorinus following that most learned Hesychius turneth it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is prepared and so indeed it is prepared for all men once to die But our Greek and Latine ancient and moderne writers translate it ordeined decreed established for all men once to die I embrace their orthodox versions yet they will suffer me to explain this word by others in scripture 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is foreseen 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is foreknown 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is fore-purposed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 it is predestinate that all men must once die I confesse all these foure words are to man diverse modo percipiendi yet to God they are all one who howbeit he be the first and the last yet in him there is neither first noâ— last So that the meaning is this It is the irresistible will eternall decree unchangeable purpose unsearchable counsel of the wise and everliving God That all men and women living upon the face of the earth must once die Obj. But this may be called into question by two or three instances taken out of the old and new testaments In the old Genes 5. we read That Enoch was no more seen by man but taken by God And 2 King cap. 2. that Elias was caught up in a fierie chariot unto heaven so that they were both translated not to see death In the new we read 1 Thess 4. That these who shall survive at the day of judgement they shall be changed in the twinckling of an eye and caught up into the clouds for to meet with the Lord in the aire and to be ever with him so that these also shal not taste of death I answer first That some few extraordinarie instances do not altogether break the band of ordinarie courses once set down by God who is without shadow of turning or changing Secondly I answer That Enoch and Elias in so far as they were men they were mortall but in so far as they were such men they were immortall that is In so far as they were types of the resurrection and of the prototype Jesus the immortall coeternall coessentiall Son of God the Father And as for those who shall remain alive upon the earth on that great day their death will not be reall but analogicall not actuall but virtuall or equivalent that is They shall not die as their predecessours a naturall death but their extraordinarie change shall supply or be in stead of an ordinarie death So that ye may manifestly perceive the appointment of God is surer then the center of the earth or the foundation of the heavens for these two are grounded upon it and it upon none except it self the center and fundament of all whose appointment is himself in whom there is no composition no accident Quicquid enim in Deo Deus est that is whatsoever is in God is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 very God him very self one and the same yesterday to day and for ever And thus far of the exposition of the first word appointed The second word is Death Suidas by a periphrase 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is a refuge from evils and as it were a most safe haven after some storme Phavoâ—inus who wrote after the rest of Greek authours giveth foure short descriptions of death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that is A separation of the soul from the bodie A disjunction of the foure elements whereof our bodies are made The loosing of the life The chasing away of cares Scripture calleth it a loosing not a losing or dissolution not a destruction Our Theologues they commonly make three sorts of death First 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Naturall death not that nature is the cause of it for it is sui conservatrix a defender of it self but that it is made common
worlds would not hold us back from them for if there were so many they would not bee able to content our illimited desires and infinite appetites What is then able to fill them I answer the soveraigne good the great GOD with the superabundant treasures of his free grace and undeserved favour and bottomlesse ocean of the multitude of his medicinall compassions O Lord drowne us therein that the deep of our uncurable miseries may be swallowed up by the deep of thy restaurative and preservative mercies for this is the life of thee our everloving everliving God in Christ Jesus Sweet hearts pray that ye may bee once inspired by this and surely heaven shall bee your home God your portion strength salvation with whom if once ye dwel there yee shall lacke nothing What would yee have Is there a better then eternall life it is there Would yee have a crowne Is there a bettter then an incorruptible crowne of uncomprehensible glorie it is there Would yee have a kingdome Is there a better then that which cannot be shaken it is there Would yee have an inheritance Is there a better then an immortall undefiled that fadeth not away it is there And where where the poorest begger of you shall bee richer then all the kings of this earth for putting a way his clouts he shall put on the glorious robe of Christs righteousnesse and receive that crowne of justice weightier then the whole masse of this earthly globe because it is the eternall weight of glorie and so is more precious then all the diadem's and scepters of Alexander Caesar with the mightiest princes who now are turned into muddy dust filthie stinke dreadfull horrour perpetuall oblivion for death is able to make us know our selves one day It will tell to the proud that he is abject to the rich that hee is a beggar to the beautifull that hee is evill favoured to the ambitious whom now territories and dominions will not content then seven foot of ground shall cover him with these two short words hic jacet here he lyeth quem terra non cepit urna capit Hee whom the universe could not containe his ashes lye in a little pitcher The second doctrine by way of consequence is this Is it appointed c Then man should prepare himself not onely for the end of this decrepit world that is come upon us but also for his own end with a generous and masculous courage saluting and inviting that which he cannot shunne The thing that makes us so negligent is our not preparation at all for the day of our dissolution is assuredly at hand death is at the doore where it knocks it must enter no iron or brasen gates are able to resist it it will take the man whom God hath pointed out with his finger with its flooked arrow it wounds him to the heart and like a rigorous sergeant layeth hold upon him and imprisoneth him till that his life which is our debt for sinne be payed This is the King of kings great taxation from which there is no redemption exception exemption from Caesar to the cotter For how thinke ye death will reason with all and every one of us whatsoever part of argument we hold it will overcome us for our obligation is personall or individuall none can sit the summons Come O king from thy throne come O counsellor from thy counselhouse come O courtier from thine attendance come Oswaggerer from thy cloaths of silver and gold come O nobles from your pastimes come O prelats preachers from your chayres come O husbands from your wives come O merchants from your shops come O craftsmen from your trades come O beggars from your brats come Caesar come cotter sleep all in the dust And howsoever ye differ in ranks qualities sexes conditions there is no distinction of persons king and subject rich and poore noble and ignoble young and old all are equal here Juvenal saith Mors sceptra ligonibus aequat Death equalls the mace with the mattock And Horatius Pallida mors aequo pede pulsat pauperum tabernas Regumque turres Pale death levelleth the countrey cabine and the kingly palace both alike Ambrose more clearly Nulla distinctio est inter corpora mortuorū nisi forte quia gravius foetent divitum corpora luxuriâ distenta There is no difference betwixt dead corps but that rich menscorps stink worse then others Chrysostome more pathetically Proficiscamur ad sepulchra ostende mihi patrem ostende uxorem tuam ubi est qui purpuram induebat nihil video nisi putrida ossa vermes differentiam nullam video Let us go to the sepulchres shew thy father shew thy wife where is he who was cloathed in purple I see nothing but rotten bones and wormes no difference can I perceive Therefore laying all worldly considerations aside the king his scepter the counceller his robe of justice the courtier and swaggerer their roaring shewes the nobles their sword the scholar his pen the labourer his spade the merchant his purse the tradesman his instruments the beggar his bagge Every one of them promiscuously and indifferently must conclude thus O rottennesse thou art my father O worme thou art my mother and my sister Beleeve me saith Augustine in opened sepulchres have been found in dead mens sculs earth-toades in their nerves serpents in their bowels worms This is a grave meditation and profitable contemplation to thee O man and I pray thee consider it deeply with mee I am assured to die ere it be long but thou art hewen out of that same rock thy mothers bellie with mee and art made of that same stuffe dust and ashes with mee I am conceived in sin so art thou I am born in sin so art thou I am fostered in sin so art thou I am in the prime of my years but alas in the strength of sin I know not if thou be in the first I know well thou art in the last and worst estate God immortall pitie us mortall men and prepare us in time to redeeme our mispent time and to number our dayes one by one for feare when the decretorie day of death is come we have not oyle in our lamps and our loyns girded towards our Masters coming And againe we beseech thee O gracious Father who delightest not in the death of sinners prepare us of all sinners the most for endlesse and unspeakable are the torments of an unprepared man before at and after death O dissolute and desperate sinner then make no more delay and let thy conscience be troubled at this let thy spirit tremble at it let thy heart smart for it and let all the faculties of thy soul be afraid of it that when it is come ye need not to fear at all Use of exhortation Therefore let us not be so foolish and sluggish as those who onely learn to die upon their death-bed as if it were an easie and momentanie lesson Augustine Sero parantur
judge in that great day of retribution and remuneration and hee cannot but looke upon thee with compassionate eyes seeing he is flesh of thy flesh and bone of thy bones and thy cause is his cause for he is thy advocate and intercessour daily 7. Object But the paines of hell which are unspeakable universall eternall are very fearfull and much affright me Answ That same Jesus thy redeemer as he made the grave his bed so hee keeps the keyes of hell and the gates thereof cannot prevail against thee To conclude then let us all resolve couragiously to attend death laying aside all fear ever hoping that the Lord shall be with us to the end and in the end Blessed shall we be if we die in him for so we shall rest from our labours and in death celebrate three solemnities First our birth day for wee shall revive Secondly our mariage day which shall be accomplished with Christ Thirdly our triumph day for through Christ we shall triumph over the world our own flesh sinne death the grave hell the devill principalities and powers whatsoever and receive that crowne of glory So that through Christ we are more then conquerours who saith I will redeem them from death O death I will be thy death O grave I will be thy destruction Hosea chap. 13. 14. Are wee gods in Christ let us not fear death Lethum non omnia finit Propertius Death puts not a period to all things I say more death maketh us endlesse Cicero affirmeth that after death hee shall bee immortall Horace that the best part of him shall live Ovid that the best part of him shall be carried above the starres The Egyptians Brachmanes Indians Thracians Persians Macedonians Arabians Americanes and all polished nations have consented to the immortalitie of the soule But here wee surpasse them that after death and resurrection our bodies shall live for ever This is an essentiall and fundamentall point of our belief THE SUBIECT Men once to die NOw let me speak of the subject of this assertion Man once to die It is not said in the originall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to all men but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to men because indefinite propositions in matters necessary are universall The meaning is All men and women must once die Ovid Tendimus huc omnes we tend all to death and that once Horace saith very well Omnes eodem cogimur Omnes manet una nox calcanda semel via lethi This is a passage common to all and let it be so wee should live again wee must runne over the same race Catullus and Epictetus say That as our life is but one day so our death is but one night The doctrine upon the subject is this As there is nothing more certain then death so there is nothing more uncertain then the time place and manner thereof This doctrine hath two points I prove the first that there is nothing more certaine then death leaving the former reasons First from the word fatum which expresseth the nature of death so called a fando because the Lord hath spoken it his word is his work And seeing he hath uttered this sentence That all men must once die it cannot but come to passe So that there is a fatall infallible inexpugnable necessitant necessitie laid upon man once to die Man is tearmed 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the end of all 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 nature perfected 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a visible God 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a compend of this great world and as the heavens and earth wax old and perish so he the resemblance of both must follow the patterne I confesse with Zoroaster and Trismegistus that he is an admirable piece of nature because both natures superior and inferior uncreated and created do meet in him And if these visible creatures bee as so many scales to climbe to that invisible Creator man must be one of the most curious steps of that ladder If we look within the intrals of the earth we may see there rich mines of silver gold and precious stones If we behold the face of it we shall finde there such a varietie of herbs flowers fruits trees creatures which may breed admiration in the dullest spirits And is the sea lesse admirable by reason of the flux and reflux thereof the quantitie of fishes and monsters therein nourished And is the aire any thing inferior to these two full of fowles clouds raines snow haile lightnings thunder and innumerable meteors But when wee lift up our eyes to the astonishing vault of heaven whose curtaines are spread over these enlightned with the sunne and moone and twinkling stars with their towres retowres aspects effects influences we cannot but be ravished with a more singular and divine contemplation Yet here is a greater wonder that all these things are abridged in thee O man of seven foot-length And as the world is a book in the which God may be read in capitall letters so both the world and God may by the most ignorant easilie be read in thee as in a written table seene in thee as in a clear glasse Thy flesh represents the dust thy bones the rockes thy liver the sea thy veines rivers thy breath the aire thy naturall heat the fire thy head the heavens thy eyes the stars thy joynts moving so actively sinnews stirring so nimbly senses working so quickly like the secret resorts of nature But I pray thee enter within thy inward parts so excellent thy spirit so supernatuall thy reason so divine thy appetite so infinite thy soule 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the engraven image of God thou maist justly say that thou art ultimus naturae foetus the last essay and effort of nature and the theater whereupon God may be seene with mortall eyes representing the foure corners of the world thy face the east thy back the west thy right side the south thy left the north And whereas other creatures have their countenance downward towards their naturall mother the earth thine are upward toward thy spirituall father God that thou mayest raise thy self from all earthly vanitie to a serious contemplation of the divinitie wherein are placed thy unchangeable comfort thy unspeakable contentment thy unconceivable felicitie Whence I inferre this Whatsoever of us is like to the creature must die but that which hath received the indeleble character of God is perpetuall So that our souls are immortall our bodies are vassals and slaves of death in which respect wee are all said to die And that this doctrine may bee the more clear I shall prove it in the second place by way of induction Look to the vertues the stout as well as the rash or the coward the temperate as well as the untemperate or stupid the liberall as well as the prodigall or avaricious the magnificent as well as the niggard or vainglorious the magnanimous as well as the proud or pusilanimous the modest as well as the ambitious or base