and tells them that it was necessarie that Iudas should play the Apostate that the Scripture might be fulfilled and that it was also necessarie to fill his roome that the number of those might bee made up againe whom Christ had appointed to be witnesses of all that he did and said His next Sermon was ad populum after that the Holy Ghost was descended the people that heard the Apostles speak with divers tongues wondred and marvelled at the matter some said that they were drunken but the Apostle Peter in his Sermon made it knowne to them all how the matter was Act. 2.14 and at the hearing of this Sermon there was three thousand converted to the Christian faith Another Sermon also hee made to the people upon the occasion of healing of a lame Man at the hearing of which there were five thousand converted to the faith of Jesus Christ and in effect the most part of the historie of the Acts to the 13. chapter concernes the Apostle Peter and his service in the Ministerie and so by all these evidences it appeares that Saint Peter was precedent of the Apostles It appeares also in this that Peter was chiefe Apostle of the Circumcision because his chiefe stay for many yeares was at Ierusalem Although the Apostle Iames was the peculiar Bishop of that Citie yet in regard of the generall charge that hee had over the whole Nation his most frequent abode was there for both the times that Paul went to Ierusalem both the third yeare after his conversion and fourteene yeeres there after he found Peter there yea that his chiefe residence was there at that time it is manifest by the Apostle Paul his resolution for he saith Galat. 1.18 that three yeares after his Conversion he went to Ierusalem to see Peter and abode with him fifteene dayes The Apostle Peter also maketh manifest that the Gospell over the Circumcision was chiefly committed to him by directing his Epistles onely to the Jewes for his first Epistle is only written to the Jewes whom hee calleth strangers scattered throughout Asia Galaâ—ia Pontus Cappadocia Now it is most certaine that in all these Nations at that time when he writ his Epistle there were many Gentiles converted to the Christian faith and yet hee writes to none of them but to the Jewish Nation only so that we may very easily perceive that his chiefe care was oâ— the Jewish Church and that the second Epistle was written tâ— them only it is manifest to any that will reade but the third chapter of the said Epistle Now the question may be asked who gave Peter this precedencie and Prioritie of order among the Apostles I answer This question is without all question for no doubt Christ his Master gave it him Againe it will be asked when it was that Christ gave it him Answer some thinkes that he gave him this dignitie when he changed his name and called him Peter some againe that he was thus advanced when hee promised to give him the keyes of the kingdome of Heaven And indeed both these are certaine signes of preferment The deliverie of the Keyes to any was ever a signe of preferment yea also of Power and Authoritie for he that hath the keys he goeth thorow all as when the Husband giveth the keyes to his new-married wife hee declares that he gives her power over all even so when the Master of the family gives the keys to his steward he gives him power over all his affaires for this same cause it is that the keys are delivered to a Prince when he first enters in any City of his dominions it is a speciall signe of his power and authority within that City even so when our Saviour gave the keys of the kingdome of heaven to his Apostles he gave them power to rule and govern his house according to his will revealed in his Word he gave them power to open the gates of heaven to the penitent and to shut them upon the impenitent so the Apostle Paul 1 Cor. 4. 1. Let a man so account of us as of the Ministers of Christ and Stewards of the Mysteries of God The proofe of this we have Esay 22.20,21,22 where the Prophet Esay at the command of God threatens Shebna Chamberlain to King Ezekiah and tels him that hee shall be driven from his Station and Civill place Eliakim in his roome and in signe of his preferment and authority hee saith and the Key of the House of David will I lay upon his shoulders so hee shall open and none shall shut and hee shall shut and none shall open that is hee will give unto Eliakim chiefe power in Ezekias house and in the City of Ierusalem whose advancement was a figure of the Kingdome of Christ And by the spirit of God applyed to Christ Revelat. 3.7 Which power he conferred upon his Apostles when hee said All power is given unto mee both in heaven and in earth Whose sins yee remit shall be remitted and whose sins you retain shall be retained whose sins yee bind in earth shall be bound in heaven whose sins yee loose in earth shall be loosed in heaven and this the Spirit of God confirmeth Revel. 2.26 where hee promiseth to that Minister of the Church of Thyatira that overcommeth and keepeth his works unto the end power over the Nations which is not to be understood of civill power and authority Christ meddles not with that but of spirituall power and jurisdiction even as I received of my Father saith he V. 27 so then when Christ promised to Peter that hee would give him the keys of the Kingdome of heaven out of all question it was a signe of his preferment to some dignity but not of his power and authority above his brethren for that which hee promised to give to him hee made a covenant to give it to all the rest as well as him indeed had he not breathed upon all the rest as well as Peter and said to all receive the holy Ghost Whose sins yee remit c. I would have perswaded my selfe that Christ had given Peter power and authority over the rest and not only a priority of order and a precedencie of Moderation Some thinks that our Saviour Christ give not Peter this precedency till after the resurrection yea after hee had given the generall commission to all the Apostles in common when hee said to him Feed my Sheep feed my Lambs but for my part I will not dispute when hee gave in him sure all these are evidences that Christ and none other did advance him in that kind and many more then these as may be collected by the former doctrine and which I shall make more plain hereafter Againe it will be asked how long this precedencie of Peters was to continue for a yeare or halfe a yeare or how long truly for any thing can be said in the contrary he had it for his life time What Christ hath joyned together what man dare put
hearing Christ bid Peter pay toll for himselfe and for him and hearing him promise to him the keys of the kingdome of heaven and to none of the rest they tooke occasion and their Mother to goe to Christ and to desire of him that one of them might sit upon his right hand and the other upon his left hand in his kingdome for they dreamed even as all the rest did of a temporall kingdome Math. 20.20 and Mark 10.35 which suit of theirs Christ did not altogether refuse at first but told them that they knew not what they asksd and also asked them if they were able to drinke of the Cup whereof hee was to drinke and be baptized with the Baptisme wherewith he was to be baptized and when it was answered yes Then he tels them that it was his Fathers right to give that which they desired and that it was prepared for others and was to begin in them of his Father in his own time so that by Christ his Answer to Iames and Iohn and their Mother we may easily collect by the way that Christ did not condemne the dignity as unlawfull in it selfe but a proud affectation of the dignitie this he condemnes in his speech to the rest that tooke offence at Iames and Iohn their presumption Christ had promised before that they should sit upon 12. thrones and judge the 12. Tribes of Israel which very well might have sufficed them but they would needs contest who should be chiefe among themselves they would not commit it to their Masters arbitrement and therefore Christ telleth them who must be this chiefe not he that affected it most not he that aspired to it out of a conceit of his owne worth but hee that was humble and meeke and lowly and therefore Christ said to them that he that was lest among them all to wit in conceit he should bee greatest yea further saith our Saviour hee must bee like a little child in his owne eyes A child although he be the sonne of a Prince he will make himselfe companion to the sonne of a peasant even so they that have chiefe place among Gods Ministers must account all the rest as brethren yea as Christ saith they must be servants to the rest even as Christ was As he that serveth so must they that have chiefe place under Christ in his Church be as servants to the rest of their inferiour Ministers and this made Origen to say That he that was called to a Bishoprick was called unto the service of the Church Homil. 6. in Esaiam and the Counsell of Carthage decreed 4. Can. 34. wheresoever a Bishop sitteth he must not suffer a simple Priest to stand before him and that the Bishop in the Assembly of Priests ought to sit in the highest place but within the house let him know that he is their fellow Now I will beg leave of the learned to vent a certaine conjecture of my owne which I hope shall give offence to none which conjecture Iames and Iohn and their Mothers petition to Christ and Christs answer to them againe has given mee occasion to apprehend The affectionate Mother being desirous of her sonnes preferment shee comes in all humility and falls downe before him and earnestly intreates him on the behalfe of her sonnes that one of them might sit on his right hand and another on his left hand in his kingdome she expected that at this time Christ was to restore the kingdome to Israel and she would faine have had her two sonnes in the most honourable roomes of Christs Court little knew they that Christs kingdome was not of this world and therefore hee tells her and her sonnes both that they knew not what they asked and yet he answered her according to her owne mind as he did the Disciples after his Resurrection when they asked him if he was to restore the kingdome to Israel at that time he answered that it was not for them to know the times and seasons which the Lord had in his owne hand Even so our Saviour Christ answered the sonnes of Zebedee and their Mother These dignities saith he the bestowing of them is not in my hand but in my Fathers and they shall bee given of my Father to them for whom they are prepared I am confident that Christ by this answer of his doth not meane of any two that were to be advanced to the highest degrees of glory in heaven for first because this were not to answer ad rem for her meaning was of some dignities here upon earth and therefore wee must not thinke but Christ would answer her according to her owne meaning next we doe not reade of any right hand or left hand that Christ shall have in heaven or of any that shall sit upon either of his hands there wee reade of his Fathers right hand where Christ sits for the present and shall sit untill his second comming to Judgement wee reade also of degrees of glory in heaven but not in these termes but the good woman had no such meaning her meaning was of the greatest dignities upon earth as Christ had to bestow and therefore I thinke that our Saviour meanes of two to whom his Father was to give the two greatest dignities in his Church the event shewes moe that Christ doth meane of these For he had advanced the 12. Apostles to 12. Thrones and had given them power to tread on Serpents and Scorpions hee had promised to give them the keyes of the kingdome of heaven that they might shut it upon the impenitent and open it to the penitent greater power they could not get greater dignity they might it was but honour and dignitie that the sonnes of Zebedee craved and that upon earth too they desired not power and authoritie over their brethren And this dignitie was no more but a primacie of moderation and a prioritie of order amongst the Governours of the Church that Christ had to bestow upon those for whom his Father had prepared it Christ was not to distribute to any of his Apostles state imployment and places of honour and dignities in the Common-wealth he left that to bee done by worldly Monarchs Now I find in the Scriptures that our Saviour Christ gave this prioritie of order and primacie of moderation to two of his Apostles and honoured them as it were the one upon his right hand and the other upon his left hand these two Apostles were Peter and Paul the one to have prioritie of order in the Church of the Jewes the other in the Churches of the Gentiles that Christ gave the chiefe precedencie amongst the 12. Apostles to the Apostle Peter it is more then evident in the Scriptures for is it also for Pauls moderation in the Churches of the Gentiles The 12. Apostles were first appointed by their Master to be chiefe Governours of the Church of the Jewes and therefore when Christ sent them out two and two to preach the Gospell hee directed them