Loves Revenge VVHEREIN IS BRIEFLY SHEWED FROM THE HISTORIE OF the holy Scripture the rising grouth and finall fall of the Man of Sinne with the long and continuall strife betwixt the two Seeds how they have from time to time sought to disinherite each other and how that Christ by his righteous life and long sufferings in the end shall get the victory and justly revenge himself upon his adversarie Omnia vincit amor c. By Ios Speed HABAK. 1.5 ACT. 13.41 Behold ye despisers and wonder and vanish away for I work a work in your daies a work which ye shall not believe if a man should declare it you At AMSTERDAM Printed by Richard Raven 1631. The Preface WHen darknesse is supprest by light That nights black shadows shun the day True faith doth give the soul clear sight To see and finde the living way Then must proud Death give place to Life In vain it is his strength to try For Hope will end that deadly strife And swallow Death in victory And Errour must acknowledge Truth For all his fierce and cruell rage For Loue hath threatned him in youth And will not spare him in his age When Faith hath light for to discerne And Hope can hold in storm and rain If Love be there to guid the stern The wished shore they shall attain No travell can unfruitfull prove When Faith Hope do work by Love When unbelief is beaten down And Faith hath got the upper hand Then light doth shew true faith her crown Which she shall have if she do stand And then despair of force must flie In vain it is if she contend For life will give Hope victory If she continue to the end And hatred must of force depart And give true Love free place to dwell For truth will give Love true desert And hatred due reward in hell Light is the glance of Faiths clear sight Life is the crown which Hope requires Truth is the guide which leads both right Through Love to finish their desires Where Light and Life and Truth agree Faith Hope and Love make unitie To the Reader LEt prejudice be laid aside Christian Reader in thy reading Let love unfained be thy guide Thy thoughts to equall judgement leading The labour and the charge is mine I wish the profit may be thine To think that I should all men please All men would think such thoughts were vain Esteeming it a fools disease Arising from an idle brain That labour which I here bestow Is but to pay the debt I owe Vnto my Countrey and my Friends And all which do professe Christs name In him our faith begins and ends By him we hope to purchase fame If then our love be like to his We all shall see him as he is If any thing displeaseth thee When thou my Faith and hope dost prove Yet fasten malice to that tree On which she once did murder love And break in twain that Serpents head For love shall reigne when hate is dead I seek to trouble no mans minde Nor yet to give offence to any Yet dare not hide nor leave behind That good which may redound to many Whereat if any kick or hinch Were he not gauld he should not winch The mark whereat I chiefly aim Is to unfould the fraud of sinne What rightes and titles he doth claim The evill daies that we live in Our present danger his desire To bring us to eternall fire If then by chance I hit the mark At which my bow is holy bent Or if I misse this subtle Clark T is but one headlesse arow spent Yet hit or misse thus much I know The blinde by chance may kill a Crow The Authors Faith I Do believe in God alone Whose love doth passe all breadth length And do relie on other none To make the arm of flesh my strength My faith is such not to remove Such is my Hope such is my Love He is the onely Lord of lords A King of mighty strength and fame His Majesty with truth accords And great Iehovah is his name The first the last the totall summe Which is which was which is to come He is the God of Israel Their root and generation The vanquisher of Death and Hell The horn of our salvation Before whole throne all flesh shall come The wicked to their finall doom Then why should I fear mortall man Whose breath within his nostrills lies His life for length is but a span Although his malice never dies My body he may keep in thrall But cannot hurt my soul at all Let cursed Cain then fret and rage And wicked Lamech boast his fill Let scoffing Ham come on the stage Let bloudy Nimrod work his will Let Babels Tow'r through Satans pride Be once again re-edifi'd Let pharaoh with his hoast pursue Let Amaleck stand in the way Let Og and Sihons hatefull crue Their bloudy banners still display Let proud Goliah's hellish cry The God of Israel defie Let Balaam lay a stumbling block Let Rabshecah come railing down Let dogged Doeg accuse Christs flock Let Shemey curse let Nabal frown Let Philistines their battells pitch Let Saul ask counsell of a Witch Let the ten tribes of Israel Give care to Ieraboam's call Let Ahab marry Iesabel And build an altar unto Baal Let Baals Priests cry till heare doth break Their God can neither hear nor speak Let Nebuchadnezar pour out His thundring threats rage and revile Let Baltazar his drunken rout The vessells of the Lord defile Let haughtie Hamans pride bewray His hatefull thoughts to Mordekay Antiochus that wicked root Let him run on his wretched race To waste and trample under foot Gods Temple and his dwelling place Let Holofernes rule and sway Till Iudith take his head away Let Samballat the Horonite With all his cursed crue accord To race to sack to vanquish quite The walls and building of the Lord. Let men conspire with malice fraught Yet shall their counsells come to nought Let cruell Herod still assail The tender infants for to stay Let Scribes and Pharisees prevail Give Iudas money to betray My faith is fixt on him above So is my hope so is my love His waies are right his judgements just His mercy alwaies firm and sure To such as on his goodnesse trust And stedfast to the end endure He giveth all men life and breath And grieveth at the sinners death He did admonish wretched Cain To leave his wicked enterprise Suffer said he not sinne to reigne Least Abels bloud for vengeance cries Abandon wrath ther 's grace in store If not lo sinne is at thy door And when he saw and well perceiv'd All flesh corrupting of their waies His spirit strove his soul was griev'd Contain'd his wrath yet many daies Had true repentance there been found The world had sur'ly not been drown'd When Sodom and Gomorahs cries Ascended up unto his throne Yet was there mercy in his eyes He would have saved them each one Could he have found some godly
What God hath promised in troth To Abrahams posterity And hath confirmed by an oath That cannot fail God cannot lie Then Isaac dead and Jacob slain No seed but Esau is to reigne Should I do this and Jsaac live In vain my labour would be spent God would him strength and courage give My wicked purpose to prevent And raise him seed in Iacob's stead Although Rebekahs wombe were dead Have I not once before been crost When I did think my self most sure Then Ishmael his birth-right lost God did old Abraham procure Another seed which then was bred In Sarahs wombe decaid and dead Revenge applauded this for good But hatred overcome with rage Could not contein her angry mood Nor could her passions asswage Her soul was ready to depart Vntill her tongue had eas'd her heart Thus was his project overthrown By trusting of his secret friend This rumour soon abroad was blown What mischief Esau did intend Which comming to Rebekahs eare The losse of both her sonnes did fear Wherefore she then without delay Call'd Iacob in her youngest sonne Sent him to Haran there to stay Vntill his brothers rage were done And Iacob willing to obey Receiv'd his charge and went his way As darknesse doth pursue the light And constantly his course doth run So doth the day expell the night At the arising of the Sunne Each one doth chase each one doth flie Till light at length gets victory Darknesse did claim the highest right Because he was the first in place But God did soon beget true light Proud darknesse from the earth to chase And that the day might bring to light What darknes had wrought in the night Darknesse betrothed was to lust Which did conceive beguiling sinne Who being born mans soul with rust Was cankred foul and eaten in Man scarcely had received breath But man was subject unto death But light took faith to be his wife Which did conceive unfained love Who being born abandon'd strife Did darknesse daunt and sinne reprove Bondage renounce and death affright And brought eternall life to light The Serpents craft his crown did gain By craft he made the woman fall The woman by her craft again Did thrust the Serpent out of all By craft he won by craft he lost Thus craft by craft was ever crost The Serpents seed by cruelty Did seek his crown for to maintain The womans seed as cruelly In time shall thrust him out again When bloud doth flow up to the brink Then bloud for bloud shall be his drink But once again for to return The Serpents malice to relate Who did through rage and fury burn To execute his deadly hate And did the shadow hunt and chase Vntill the substance came in place At him it was that he did aim At him which should his seed advance At him which did by promise claim True Canaans inheritance Could he bring him unto his fall The Serpent then was lord of all In time the substance did appear This Isaac was Gods onely sonne Which came to shed his bloud most dear To lose the works which sinne had done His life eternall life did win His death destroy and vanquish sinne The Wisemen from the East did spring When they did see his starre appear For to be hold this blessed King And worship him in love and fear And did enquire of the Iews To know where they should finde this news But Herod taking it in scorn Perceiving it for to be true The star did shew a King was born He called all the learned crue This King which shall subdue the earth Quoth he where shall he have his birth At Beth-lehem they did reply In Davids house he must arise According to the prophesie This hearing he did call the wise And sent them there to seek about Vntill that they had found him out When you have found him come and tell Me where he is that I may go And worship him I know it well This King is borne it must be so His star will go before your face Vntill you come unto the place These men they went as Herod told They found the babe and did him greet They did present incense and gold And did fall down before his feet But being warned of this thing They went not back unto the king But did return another way Vnto the place where they did dwell Which Herod hearing left delay And calling murder out of hell This cruell bloudy Edomite Did seek to cut off David's right David quoth he did Ioab send To trample Edom under foot And slay his males ev'n to the end And leave him neither branch nor root He thought he would not leave him one For to uphold his fathers throne But Hadad being then a childe Escaped David's tyranny And Ioab also was beguild For Hadad did to Aegypt flie Where he did finde a dwelling place For to preserve our kingly race This Hadad did escape alone Of all the kings posterity But Herod will leave David none He now shall prove my tyranny I le lay his males all at my foot And leave him neither branch nor root With that he sent his Horsemen out To execute his full command At Beth-lehem and there about All males to murder out of hand Even all from two years old and under Must feel the rage of Herod's thunder But Ioseph warned in the night This Persecutor then beguil'd And into Aegypt took his flight With Mary and this tender Childe There to preserve this Infants breath Vntill this cruell Tyrants death This Childe escap't the Tyrants rage For he was manifest to none Till he was thirty years of age And then baptized was of Iohn For John was sent to make him known Though not received of his own When he out of the water went Then presently faith hope and love Which God from heav'n unto him sent Came down upon him like a Dove This Spirit kept him from all evill When he was tempted of the Devill Twise twenty daies and nights arow He then did fast no more nor lesse And did to extream hunger grow Who being in the wildernesse A desolate and barren place Began to wail his wofull case And to his father he did cry Oh help me out of this distresse And suffer not thy sonne to dye For hunger in this wildernesse Let not my soul be overthrown Father thou know'st I am thine own When Ishmael did heare this cry As he was shooting in that place He did imagine presently This sure is he for whose disgrace I and my mother heretofore Were both of us thrust out of dore I was deprived of my right And brought into this wildernesse Where hunger did my soul affright And I did lie in great distresse Which did augment my mothers grief Till God from heav'n did send relief Now he is come into my case Hunger doth make him now complain Now will I mock him to his face And get my birth-right once again With meat I will delude his eye But keep him fasting till he
men He would have spar'd them all for ten But Cain which was through malice led Quite to renounce his chiefest good Did in his wicked collar shed His brother Abels guiltlesse bloud And wrath commixt with deadly hate Brought Cain to be a Runagate And boasting Lamech could not scape Which in his heart a man would slaie The wicked world for filthy rape Was drown'd and taken all away And Ham which in the Ark was nurst Was after for his sinne accurst And Nimrod was not quite forgot Which hunted sonnes of Shem away The wicked ones which vexed Lot The Lord at length did them repay They suffer for their foul desire The vengeance of eternall fire And Pharaoh with his hoast was drown'd The waters ouerwhelm'd them all When Israel did finde drie ground And passed through both great and small Thus can the Lord from Satans rage Preserve his own from age to age For Amalech was rooted out And Sihon was cast headlong down And mighty Og in battell stout Was dispossessed of his Crown And proud Goliah wicked bred Returned back without his head When Balaam came at Balacks call To bring his wickednesse to passe To work the means of Isr'els fall He was rebuked by his Asse And Ashurs king could not prevail Though Rabshecah ceas't not to rail Doeg Shemey Nabal and the rest Vilde instruments of Satans rage Whose mindes with malice be possest Quite to supplant Gods heritage With Dives shall in flaming fire Receive their due deserved hire And Israels anointed King Saul did himself of grace deprive Sinne struck him with a mortall sting For sparing Amalec alive His heart and hand was wholly bent To persecute the innocent And Ieroboam could not stand Because he was a wicked man God struck him with a with'red hand When he did sacrifice at Dan. For money he wrought many evills Made Priests which sacrific'd to Devills And Ahab wicked imp of hell Which built an altar unto Ball Was rooted out with Iesabel None left to pisse against a wall For in that place where Naboth stood The dogs lick't up the Tyrants bloud And Nebuchadnezar for pride Was metamorpos'd to a beast And Baltazar whom lust did guide Received judgement at his feast A hand prescribing on the wall His overthrow before them all And haughty Hamans sudden fall Whose thoughts all good men did deride May be a president to all Whose mindes be puffed up with pride That Gallows did his malice slay Which he set up for Mordecay Antiochus that wicked root Which did Ierusalem deface And trode Gods Temple under foot And set an idoll in the place God did him strange diseases send And brought him to a fearfull end And Sanballat must taste wraths cup For his proclaiming up and down That such as build Gods Temple up Be rebells to their King and Crown And Holofernes on his bed Must pay his ransome with his head And cruell Herod was accurst That he the tender Infants smote And Iudas for his trason burst Which never more shall be forgot And Christs dear bloud still vengeance cries Vpon the Scribes and Pharisees Behold and see what hath been past How sinne hath raged from his birth Such was the first such is the last There is no new thing on the earth Yet can no storm nor tempest move True Faith firm Hope and constant Love Ioshuah Speed Loves Revenge Wherein is briefly shewed from the history of the Holy Scripture the rising growth and finall fall of the man of sinne with the long and continuall strife betwixt the two Seeds THe Serpent which did first begin The powers of mans soul to draw To separate himself through sinne From God by breaking of his law Having by craft our Parents slain Did Tyrant-like begin to reigne For man did lose his first renown The world through justice to maintain Sinne swaies his scepter wears his crown And by injustice now doth reigne And will do still both far and near Vntill the righteous Iudge appear For man could now no man acquit Which was a breaker of Gods law Not any man condemne by right And not himself to judgement draw For man by sinne once overthrown Then judging sin condemnes his own This was the Serpents subtle bait Which did unto mans crown aspire To draw the woman by deceit To win her man to his desire That he might in his first-born Cain Begin and end his wicked reigne This Viper bred in Paradice No sooner born but instantly Drew Adam unto sinne and vice By changing truth into a lye And Adam caught in Satans gyn Became a bondslave under sinne By hearing Evah was deceiv'd By seeing Evah was beguilde By tasting Evah hath conceiv'd This man of sinne that cursed childe By taking in the Serpents breath Lust brought forth sin sin brought forth death Eare eye foot hand lips tongue and all Did band themselves against Gods law To work mans ruine by his fall And man through sin to judgement draw Thus was man brought in Satans thrall Eare eye foot hand lips tongue all But God whose love doth far exceed The fraud and malice of the Devill Did then make known his truth decreed To raise man out this lake of evill To quicken him which then lay dead And break in twain the Serpents head But Adam which could not discerne Twixt good and evill but through sinne Must now another lesson learne By grace to seek by faith to win That crown of glory joy and blisse Which he had lost for him and his For he which once was lord of all Had sole command did rule and sway Must now attend an others call Another rule and he obey For he once lending sinne his eare Must now for sin sins burthen beare And with a sad and heavy heart No vows nor prayers might avail Out of the Paradice depart His sinfull act there to bewail His mother Earth to plow and furrow And sweating eat the bread of sorrow And with his poore distressed wife Our mother Evah first misled Excluded from the tree of life whereof before they might have fed Their first neglect of Gods free grace Lost them the freedome of that place For now the way was full of fear No entring in but by the sword The Cherubims stood Centre there That none might passe without the Word Which word is Christ who on the Crosse Must pay mans debt redeem his losse Then Adam having known his wife In time brought forth her first-born Cain Next Abel whose unspotted life Did shew his life which must be slain And by his death and bloud then spild Declare his death which since was kild But Cain who in the flower of youth The supream power did obtain To judge with equitie and truth And by true justice for to reigne And by the vertue of his birth To be sole ruler of the earth In time true justice did pervert And was to wickednesse inclinde The Serpent did possesse his heart And made his eyes through malice blinde He which by
dye The Serpent thought here is no fence This man he is with hunger crost Distrusting of Gods providence Sharp hunger Esau's birth-right lost Could I but bring him to despaire His case were mine and I the heir While Isaac then through hunger great Vnto his father loud did cry Came Ishmael and shew'd him meat And did present it fore his eye But did intend to give him none But mock him till his breath was gone He seeing food for food did cry Restore my birth-right then quoth he No Ishmael I le rather die Then sell my birth-right unto thee Though hunger doth my soul affright Yet will I not resigne my right If thou refuse the means to live It sheweth but a stubborn will For man must take when God doth give The law doth say Thou shall not kill If thou wilt live lay hold in time For murther is a deadly crime What cruelty was that in Saul On his own sword to fall and die Ahitophel's sinne was not small Which hang'd himself as wickedly Wilt thou be strangled with sins coard Or run thy self on hungers sword Or canst thou change these stones to bread Thy hungry body to sustein Or dost thou think for to be fed With Manna here yet once again What hope hast thou to finde red resse Within this desert wildernesse When Abraham returned faint From that great slaughter of the kings His hungry soul did make complaint Melchisedech him succour brings And he his life for to defend Did take such food as God did send What need I reason any more Or why dost thou contend in vain What measure thou didst mete before I le measure now to thee again For if thou live thou must resigne Or if thou die the right is mine Though thou have bread and I have none Though thou be strong and I be weak Yet man lives not by bread alone But by each word which God doth speak Vpon each word I will relye Although I should for hunger dye When God did Abraham command To offer up his onely sonne The knife was ready in his hand He said Oh Lord thy will be done He knew Gods promise was not vain His might could raise him up again To leave the means which God doth give Is God to tempt death may ensue To sell my birth-right for to live Is to distrust that God is true As if Gods justice truth and might Could not give life to maintain right The law which saies Thou shalt not kill It doth reprove all other evill And teacheth to obey Gods will And not submit unto the Devill If I through hunger faint and pine That is Gods sword and none of min Saul spent his daies and time in hate Neglected truth and equity Therefore his end was desperate Did hopelesse live and hopelesse die His life nor death resemble mine But life and death and all is thine Ahithophel grew to despair Because his counsell might not stand And hung himself up in the aire The Tempter being at his hand Therefore I do no counsell crave From such as wicked counsell have Melchisedech to Abraham Did bring a blessing with his meat But this doth come from cursed Cham And brings a curse if I do eat I le rather fast and dying win Then eat to live and die for sinne Dost thou to me what thou dost crave That I to thee should do again Then justice thou shalt surely have Thy labour is not spent in vain I hunger thou dost keep thy store But thou shalt hunger evermore Though I can change no stones to bread Nor God from heav'n no Manna rain The Spirit which me hither led Will surely bring me hence again No subtle plot nor hungers lust Shall make me in my God distrust This arrow being spent in vain He did provide another shaft I le shoot quoth he yet once again Experience hath taught me craft Trust and distrust did both conspire And Esau's crown laid in the mire When he by birth was plac't on high And seated on the highest Tower Gods providence was alwaies nigh His Angels watching day and hower Vain confidence did work his fall Neglecting means neglected all The Hart and Hinde were Esau's game And fish and fowl both small and great With other beasts both wilde and tame And Venison was Esau's meat He daily hunting daily found Which made him daily to abound And therefore laid up none in store Nor did for any want provide But vainly trusting to have more Did tempt the Lord set means aside And once dismissed of his game He lost his birth-right and his name But now I see that hungers sword Cannot bring this man to despaire But still he feeds upon Gods word I le take him up into the aire And set him on a Tower hie There prove if he will live or die His faith is firm I now will prove And trie him if his hope be sure If so I le tempt him in his love And prove if I can him allure If he can stand out all these three Then I shall know that this is he The Serpent then did thus begin Quoth he I am not void of pitie Thou seest that I have brought thee in The compasse of this holy Citie And freed thee from the wildernesse VVhere thou didst lie in great distresse And now I cleare and plainly see That fire water famine sword No beasts nor fishes cruelty Can make thee to forsake Gods word That is thy buckler sword and shield Wherewith thou dost maintain the field And sure it is that God is just And true for he did never fail Those to preserve which in him trust His eye is alwaies in the sail No hight nor depth can fright or scare That man which liveth in his fear I call to minde how God did save Daniel in the Lions den The fishes wombe was Ionah's grave Yet God did bring him out agen Three holy men walk't in the fire Which had no pow'r to sienge their tire Eliah was by Ravens fed VVhen as the famine first begun One handfull meal gave daily bread To him the widow and her sonne That little oyl and meal did last Vntill that famine great was past And God did David still preserve From cruel Saul's pursuing sword Such men I say which do not swerve But still do feed upon Gods word Gods love to them cannot be cold They cannot perish though they would Now thou art freed from hungers power Her 's food enough within this town But how shall I come from this Tower Leap off from hence cast thy self down No danger can lay thee on board While thou dost feed upon Gods word His Angels have charge over thee If that thou be his Holy-one Thou canst not fall by his decree Nor dash thy foot against a stone This is the writing of Gods hand What God hath written that must stand But it is written then again Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God Then labour thou no more in vain For I will settle mine
abode Here in this place to void offence Till God send means to bring me hence If thou wilt not leap from this Tower Tell me wherein thy hope then lies Pale hunger will thy soul devoure VVhile plenty stands before thine eies Thy misery and great distresse Is worse then in the wildernesse If I should bend unto thy will My self cast down and falling die The law which saies Thou shalt not kill VVould tell me I had gone awrie I will not like a blinde man grope But live in faith or die in hope Those men which walked in the fire In hope did live by faith did win But those which wrought the kings desire Did hopelesse die to cast them in And Jonas in his jeopardye Did cast hopes ankor in the sea VVhen hopelesse Saul began to frown Then hopefull David he must flie Yet David's hope did win Saul's crown And hopelesse Saul must hopelesse die Eliah's hope was not in vain VVhen he did pray and hope for rain The Prophet in the Lyons den By faith did live through hope endure And hope did bring him out agen His cause was just his life was pure But his accusers they must try The Lyons force and hopelesse die That God which shut the Lyons jawes To shew his false accusers spite And bound their strong and cruell claws That they could neither scrach nor bite And by his mighty hand did keep The Prophet Ionas in the deep That God which did bring Ioseph out That desolate devouring pit Where envy hate and malice stout Had thrown him in there for to sit In deep despair and fainting dye VVhere no man should heare Ioseph cry That God which by his mighty hand Did once devide the raging sea And made the foming waves to stand Like walls to shew his strong decree And close again at his command To swallow up proud Pharaoh's band That God which in the wildernesse So many thousand souls did feed And succour them in their distresse And made their enemies to bleed And by his strong and mighty hand Possesse them in that holy land That God which Ieremy did call For to accomplish his desire Out of that dungeon of thrall VVhere he lay strugling in the mire And with one handfull meal did save Eliah's body from the grave That God which alwaies did defend His servant David in his thrall And did him means and comfort send VVhen he pursued was by Saul That God which on proud Saul did frown Brought lowly David to his crown That God which doth restrain the force Of burning and consuming fire And make the waters change their course To part or close at his desire Gives Lyons power to save or kill And makes the Whale attend his will That God which hath from age to age Been alwaies mercifull and just And hath preserv'd from tyrants rage His servants which did in him trust What should he now when all is done Forsake his own and onely Sonne Though thou do now my soul pursue And think I am forsaken quite Yet I do know that God is true And will not cast me from his sight In him alone is all my trust For he is mercifull and just The Serpent being at a stoun Amazed thus to hear him speak Thought should I cast him headlong down His faith is strong though he be weak And faith will win hope being by Will swallow death in victory But what is faith or what is hope If love be wanting all is vain For want of love doth make men grope And blindlings seek for to attain And catch at any thing they finde When want of love hath made them blinde With that he took him up again And set him on a mighty mount Where he did lay a subtle train To call him to his last account There he must either lose or win And thus the Serpent did begin I found thee in the wildernesse A desolate and barren field Where thou didst lie in great distresse And almost ready for to yeeld Thy vitall breath and there to die In extream grief and misery Hunger had compast thee about No means there was food to attain Nor any way for to come out Not one to whom thou might'st complain Such was the place such was thy state Forsaken waste and desolate There I did come and bring thee meat Requiring thee but for to yeeld But thou refusing for to eate did'st put on faith to be thy shield And like a Captain bould and stout did'st fight and stand that combate out But then to prosecute this ditie Thy faith yet further for to try I brought thee to the holy Citie And set thee on a Tower high Where plenty was of bread and wine Though thou refuse to eat of mine There thinking for to prove thy faith If that thou would'st leap down and eat But then it was the Scripture saith Thou shalt not tempt thy God for meat Then hope did bear the greatest sway To come down thence some other way But now thou art left destitute Of faith or hope for to attain For now I see that thou art mute Thy faith thy hope and all is vain This is thy last extremity Then either yeeld to live or dye Iust Abraham denide his wife When he in Gerar went to dwell And all was to preserve his life Least beauty should ring murders knell Of him that promis'd Isaac came And art thou more then Abraham When famine was in Canaan And Isaac in much perill stood He did forsake his land and ran Vnto Abimelech for food And more then that to save his life He did deny his lawfull wife And Iacob to prolong his daies When hunger would have strok him dead Did call his sonnes and left delaies And sent to Aegypt to fetch bread Three holymen in one agree And art thou more then all these three Then yeeld or else for hunger sterve Think not the widows meal or oyl Or Ravens shall thy life preserve Give up thy right and end this broyl For life and death stand equall nigh Then eat and live or fast and die For thou art bound in hungers bands No hope thou hast for to get free What God can pluck thee out my hands What power can deliver thee Thy faith must fail for all thy trust Doth now lie bleeding in the dust Though I be ready for to sterve And see no means how to get free Yet know the God which I do serve Is able to deliver me And though he do forsake me still Yet will I not yeeld to thy will With that the Serpent did transform Himself his glory did appear And said All this is but a storm A calm will follow do not fear Nor fall thou not into despair I will make thee my onely heir Nothing I see will make thee yeeld Thou shalt be now my sole delight If thou wilt not forsake the field But wilt maintain my lawfull right All what I have all what is mine Do thou but crave it shall be thine And now behold
in flaming fire But now again in brief to shew The subtle Serpents cruell spite How he did seek to overthrow Grace mercy justice truth and light And to maintain and nourish sinne That cruell murther still might win An eye I must have in the sayle Quoth he I will not let him rout For he beginneth to prevail And many men begin to doubt His wonders do amazement strike Because no man can do the like But if he now be come to reigne I le keep him out by open wrong I le put him to reproch and pain And make himsing another song I and the woman will combine To murder him then all is mine But yet the woman shall not know VVhat is my purpose and intent By striking of this deadly blow Although she be my instrument She shall accuse and I will judge That I may once revenge my grudge Fair Sarahs fancy once I fed When she was almost in despair She layed Hagar in her bed That Abraham might have an heir Now will I draw her unto mine That she may be my Concubine And now I must no longer stay It cometh now upon the knip Much danger lurketh in delay If I occasion let slip I le round the woman in the eare And set before her hope and fear Sarah quoth he Princesse divine The wife of heavenly Abraham All blisse in heaven and earth is thine For thou shalt bear that blessed Lambe VVhich shall subdue and conquer all And bring the world in servile thrall Thou shalt conceive when strength is spent And beare this sonne when hope is gone Then let not Hagars sonne prevent The right of Sarahs lawfull sonne You know how Abraham full well Did love his first-born Ishmael For Abram's love to his first-born Made Ishm'el Isaac to disdain But Sarah took it in great scorn And did to Abraham complain Quoth she to ease my heart of doubt The hand-maids sonne must be put out If Abraham yet once again Hath caused Hagar to conceive How should it misse it is most plain So Sarah constantly believe Her time of bearing will draw near And blessed Isaac shall appear This man he is thy hand-maids sonne VVho is his father no man knows If so this thing by God be done It still most plain and clearly shewes This is he which did Isaac flout And Hagars sonne must be put out When Abraham to Gerar went To dwell he did deal craftily For fearing of some ill event His loving spouse he did deny Least that the beauty of his wife Should cause the king to take his life And in that land was Isaac born That sonne of promise for to reigne Whom Jshmael did mock and scorn Yet Sarah did his right maintain And Ishmael thrust out of door Though Abraham did grieve therefore But when Abimelech did see That God for Abraham did stand And Abraham by Gods decree Grew rich and mighty in his land And that he had a lawfull heir Abimelech did half despair And he with his chief Captain stout In hast to Abraham did ride Saying Oh man I stand in doubt For God I see is on thy side That thou wilt turn me out of all And bring me and my house in thrall If thou wilt vow thou wilt refrain To injure either me or mine Then thou shalt deal with me again As I have dealt with thee and thine When as a stranger thou didst come To sojourn here I gave thee room Then Abraham without delay To put him out of servile fear Did covenant with him that day And to Abimelech did swear That love with love he would requite And not deprive him of his right And that Abimelech might see He sought not to possesse his land He did perceive his constancie When God did Abraham command To sacrifice that promis'd seed He would have made young Isaac bleed For Abraham was nothing slack He would not fail in any case But lai'd the wood on Isaac's back To carry it unto the place To which his father him then led Where he should have been offered An altar there he then did make While Isaac by amazed stood He bound his sonne and did him take And laid him up upon the wood Then took the knife into his hand To execute the Lords command An Angels voice then to him came Descending down out of the skie Which called unto Abraham Who said My Lord lo here am I Thy sonne quoth he thou shalt not slay I see thy love for to obey These things do clear and plainly shew If Sarah will but ope her eies This is the ground where truth doth grow From hence the substance must arise For Abraham did shew the way For thee to walk in and obey If thou the truth hereof wilt finde And bring an end unto this strife Then say thou hast thy right resign'd And art no longer Abram's wife Thou dost not sleep in Abram's bed The Emperour is now thy head Him now thou must obey and fear And bow unto his royall might And hold the oath which thou didst swear By seeking to maintain his right And not to injure him nor his Then nothing can be done amisse Then apprehend this stumbling stone This fellow which makes all this strife And bring him unto Cesars throne And let him there plead for his life Then shalt thou finde if thou do so Whether he be thy King or no. Bring him before the judgement seat Accuse him of some wickednesse That I with rods his back may beat Vntill he truly doth confesse What things that he hath done amisse And tell me true from whence he is If he be mocking Ishmael I le mock him with a thorny crown That will please Sarah passing well For she will lead him out of towne And make him there an open scorn When back and sides with rods be torn For if this fellow should prevail And all the people to him cleave The Roman forces will assail Your Towns and Cities and not leave Till they have thrown all under foot And leave you neither branch nor root If this be Isaac from above Most sure it is he shall not die No other way thou hast to prove The truth and know the certainty By life or death thou must it know Whether he be thy sonne or no. If this be Isaac which shall reigne To whom the promises were made He shall come from the crosse again The substance must be like the shade Yea in the last extremity He shall come down and shall not die If that he die upon the crosse Thou hast no cause at all to fear For Sarah can sustain no losse T is not the sonne which she should bear If that he be thy Hand-maids sonne Then there is but a mocker gone Suppose that he some Prophet were One that had done no wickednesse It needfull is that one should beare The peoples sinnes and trespasses Gods favour once again to win And to appease his wrath for sinne If he be Isaac understand A thing it is must come
a childe For Abram did obey her voice Went in to Hager she conceive He was content with Sarahs choise For he did stedfastly believe God would not fail in time of need To raise him up a holy seed When Hager found her self with childe She presently gan to disdain Sarah her Mistrisse meek and milde Who unto Abram did complain I put my handmaid in my place And now she holds me in disgrace Quoth Abram then to end this strife Peace loving Sarah I am thine Thou art my spouse and lawfull wife And Hagar but my concubine Thy maid is bound but thou art free Do with thy maid what pleaseth thee Then Sarah did rebuke her maid for her disdain and haughtinesse And Hagar being sore afraid Did flie into the wildernesse Where sitting by a fountain fair An Angel found her in despair Hagar quoth he what makes thee cry How art thou come into this place My Dames displeasure made me flie Quoth she I dare not see her face Return quoth he remove this blame Submit thy self unto thy Dame Thou art with childe and from this birth I will encrease and multiply Thy seed to overspread the earth Like as the stars do fill the skie For multitude so infinite That none shall number them aright To Abram thou a sonne shalt beare Amongst his brethren he shall dwell He shall be wilde and full of haire He shall be called Ishmael The course and tenor of his life Shall be to live in hate and strife When Hagar brought forth Abrams sonne The Serpent did begin to vaunt The day is got the field is won Quoth he this is Gods covenant Though Cham may here no longer dwell Yet I shall reigne in Ishmael But Abram being full of yeares They were in number ninety nine The Lord again to him appears I am the God of thee and thine Quoth he thou art my sole delight Walk thou before me be upright With thee I le make a covenant VVith thee I say with thee alone Thy seed shall be inheritant VVithin this land and other none Yea thou shalt many nations breed And kings shall from thy loyns proceed Thou shalt be called Abraham And Sarah be thy Spouses name Which shall bring forth that blessed Lamb At least the shadow of the same For Sarah hath the blessing won She shall conceive and beare a sonne Then Abraham fell on his face And laughing said within his heart I have almost run out my race Am almost ready to depart An hundred years have spent in care My wife ten lesse shall she now beare Quoth Abraham then at the length Let Ishmael live in thy sight He is the first-born of my strength Let him not lose his lawfull right He is as yet my onely sonne I say no more thy will be done Then quoth the Lord I heare thy cry Concerning Ishmaels first birth I will increase and multiply And make him fruitfull on the earth Do thou not languish faint nor fret Twelve Princes shall thy sonne beget But will establish my decree My covenant shall firmely stand Which I before did make with thee When thou didst leave thy native land In Isaac will I plant my fear Which Sarah shall to Abram beare The Serpent then found little chance For now he plain and clearly saw That Canaans inheritance Was giv'n by promise not by law And neither craft nor birth nor merit Could make the handmaids son inherite Wherefore he grew much discontent Yet knew not where first to assault But like a Hound which lost the sent Run back again to finde the fault He did no time nor travell spare Thinking at length to kill the hare And while the game was yet afoot His first exploit that would not addle Now laies the axe unto the root To win the horse or lose the saddle He now did think to make all sure To get this crown and sit secure For Isaac grown to yeares and strength And Abraham through yeares decai'd He took to him a wife at length A vertuous a godly maid Rebekah she was cal'd by name A comely sweet and lovely dame But she was barren could not breed VVhich caused her to mourn and grieve But Isaac praid to God for seed VVho soon was heard she did conceive Now quoth the Serpent I le entombe My self within Rebekahs wombe I now have found that onely pair Though Hagars son could have no chance Rebekahs sonne and Isaac's heire Must have the sole inheritance Then though Rebekahs womb should burst Yet will I strive to be the first VVhen as Rebekah felt this strife VVithin her wombe she gan to muse And almost weary of her life VVent to the Lord to know this news VVhat hath quoth she my wombe possest That thus deprives me of my rest Within thy wombe two nations Are bred quoth he be not derided Two sundry generations Shall out thy bowels be devided The greater shall for honour hunger Yet shall the elder serve the yonger VVhen she came to deliverance Twins did appear she had a pair The first born to inheritance VVas ragged red and rough with hair The yongest white and smooth to feell VVho held his brother by the heel The Serpent now did nothing want He was no longer under awe For he was in the Covenant By birth by promise and by law By birth by law the land possessing By promise to obtain the blessing He which rebuked was at first That he our father had undone Then by the sonne in Cain accurst For hatefull murdring of the sonne In Ham a treble curse did merit For vexing of Gods holy Spirit Yet now he thought the field was won He from the curse should now be freed For he was Isaac's lawfull sonne And one of blessed Abrams seed The former curse was all in vain He which did curse had blest again But now the story to relate What time in time did bring to passe These boyes grew up to mans estate Esau a cunning Hunter was And in the field much time he spent Plain Iacob dwelling in a tent Esau was Isaac's onely boy He brought his father pleasant meat But Jacob was Rebekaes joy His mothers love to him was great In him she had her whole delight And kept him alwaies in her sight Vpon a time it came to passe That Esau weary almost spent In great distresse through hunger was Who comming to his brothers tent Give me quoth he some broth bread For I am faint and almost dead Then Jacob thought he would requite His brother for his former wrong That he by strength had got his right When he was weak and Esau strong I le strive quoth he yet once again Though he be rough and I be plain I faint I languish I despaire Shut not thine eares unto my cry Quoth Esau then shall Jsaac's heire Through hunger perish fainting die What shall our father Jsaac say If Jacob do his first-born slay I do not seek to have thy life Nor shorten any of thy dayes I am not
bent to hate nor strife Quoth Iacob then t is hunger slayes Isaac's first born so Esau die Thou shouldst provide so well as I. That man doth kill that will not save A man from death if in his power For God I say will mercy have Not cruelty for to devoure Quoth Esau then let mercy move And do not break the band of love Sell me thy birth-right then quoth he And I will lave thy hungry soul But thou shalt sweare twixt thee and me That it shall stand without controul Which being done I then will save Thy fainting body from the grave Then Esau with himself at strife Began to reason in his minde Should I through hunger lose my life VVhat comfort should I therein finde To sell my birth-right were a shame An endlesse blemish to my name Should I refuse for to consent And yeeld unto my brothers will And perish so through discontent The law which saies Thou shalt not kill Would soon reprove this evill fact And judge it for a murdrous act Should I unto my brother give My birth-right for a messe of broth I were unworthy for to live I should exclude my self by oath From Canaan the worlds delight Mine heritage by law and right Should Esau Jsaac's first-born die VVithout his blessing he would grieve Should he through hungers cruelty Perish unblest who should relieve His dying soul in this distresse And bring him unto happinesse Two evills hold my soul in thrall I must choose one I le choose the least Lose life I lose my land and all And more then that shall die unblest To live is bad to die is worse To lose a crown and win a curse Should I not shun sharp hungers blow And seek my self for to defend How should my father Isaac know VVho brought his first-born to his end I le sell my land and hold my blisse For live or die the land is his And yet to live in this disgrace Is worse then languishing to die For where shall Esau finde a place For him and his posterity When Jacob is by oath possest For Esau's seed there is no rest Better had Esau been unborn And never to have seen the light Then thus to be with hunger torn And live or die to lose his right Oh Jacob heare thy brothers cry Give me some broath I faint I die Sell me thy birth-right thou shalt have Both bread and broth to save thy life But thou must yeeld to what I crave And by an oath must end this strife What hopes can Esaus birthright give If Esau die and Jacob live Thus Esau was at length compel'd When he was weak could hardly stand Through cruell hunger for to yeeld Vnto his brothers full demand To sell renounce and binde by oath His birthright for a messe of broth But yet alas this was not all A greater wo was yet to come This but an entry to his fall A passage to his finall dome For now he lost laws right alone The promise lost then all was gone As he grew up in yeres and strength So did he grow in worlds delights And took to him two wives at length Both daughters of the Cananites Whereat Rebekah mourn'd and pin'd They were a grief to Isaac's minde But Isaac waxing old and blinde His glasse then being almost run His first-born came into his minde He called for his eldest sonne Let Esau come let him appear Father quoth he thy sonne is here My sonne quoth Jsaac I am old And almost ready to depart My first-born Esau is enrold Within the bowells of my heart Make haste my sonne and be not slow Take thou thy quiver and thy bow And get thee gone into the field Provide for me some pleasant meat Such as the woods and forrests yeeld Such as thy father loves to eate That I may feed thou standing by My soul may blesse thee fore I die Rebekah hearing what had past When Esau to the field was gone She called then in all the haste For Iacob her beloved sonne Who letting other matters fall Attended on his mothers call Thy father hath sent Esau out With all his instruments to hunt My sonne quoth she be bold and stout Thou must yet stand another brunt And I will be thy instrument Thy brothers blessings to prevent He that our mother Eye misled And did beget that wicked seed VVhich stroke our father Adam dead And made our brother Abel bleed And held mankinde in fetters bound Till God the world in justice dround Then did deride his fathers shame Almost brought Sarah to despair That vertuous and godly dame Distrusting how to have an heir And in my wombe did make such strife That I was weary of my life Shall he which was accurst in Cham In Hagars sonne was made a slave Be blest again in Abraham And in Isaac the promise have Then will he still himself advance In Iacobs true inheritance VVhile Esau Venison doth kill Bring thou two kids out of the fold It shall misse of a womans will If he which then his birth-right sold Lose not his blessing now again And Jacob unto both attain I will provide thee dainty meat And thou shalt bring it unto him Such as his soul desires to eate He cannot see his eies be dim Stand thou but by while he doth feed Thou shalt be blest in Esau's stead Then Iacob to his mother said My brother Esau he is rough And I am smooth therefore afraid With Esau's Heifer for to plough Though he be blinde I stand in doubt That he will feel and finde it out Thus doing I may him provoke Sharply to punish this offence And bring me under Esau's yoak A just reward and recompence For such a fact Nay that is worse My blessing may turn to a curse My sonne quoth she be not afraid But hearken to thy mothers voice Thou onely do what I have said Out of the goats take thou the choise Bring me two kids fat and well fed Then let the curse light on my head In all the haste then Iacob went And did his mothers minde fulfill His brother Esau to prevent He brought two kids and did them kill Rebekah she made pleasant meat Even such as he did love to eate And to attain to her desire All other things then being done She took her eldest sonnes attire And put it on her yongest sonne The yong goats skins she then did take His neck and hands rough for to make Then she did put into his hand That pleasant meat which she had drest Go thou quoth she at my command And bring it him thou shalt be blest When he came to his father near He said My father I am here Quoth Isaac then but who art thou Thy first-born Esau then quoth he I bring thee pleasant meat even now I have done as thou baddest me Arise and eate father t is I Give me thy blessing fore thou die Then Jsaac rising from his bed Began again for to demand How is my sonne so