and gloried in their owne wit force and power as though thereby they had gotten all their victories with increase of wealth and honour and so they robbed God of his glorie In reuenge of such kind of vnthankfulnes when as superstitious people in the time of Hosea Hos 2.5 to the 11. ascribed vnto their louers that is to their Idols the gift of their bread and wine corne and oyle wooll and flax siluer and gold then Almightie God returned in high displeasure and tooke away his corne in the time thereof and his wine in the season therof and he recouered his wooll and his flax which he had lent vnto them for a time to couet their shame withall But Dauid to auoid the like both sin and punishment also thereof protesteth here that he will sing the mercie of God I say the mercie of God toward him and not his owne merits And hereupon it was that being hardly beset greatly distressed and perplexed in the daies of Saul while his hope of the kingdome was suspended he maketh his prayer in these tearmes Shew thy meruailous mercies Psal 17.7 thou that art the sauiour of them that trust in thee from such as resist thy right hand And he hopeth one day to come into the house of God Psal 5.7 in the multitude of his mercie Looke backe to former ages and you shall finde Iacob at his returne from Mesopotamia homeward in the way to Canaan being greatly inriched after the seruice of almost three apprentiships vnder Laban framing his praier of thanks giuing in this wise O Lord I am not worthie of the least of all thy mercies and all the truth Gen. 32.10 which thou hast shewed vnto thy seruant for with my staffe came I ouer this Iordan and now haue I gotten two bands And I conceiue assured hope that by this example my gracious soueraigne doth often meditate vpon the mercie of God toward himselfe in respect of the great increase of temporall blessings which he hath found and felt since the time that he first peaceably entred the towne of Berwicke and so passed ouer the riuer of Tweede And as for vs beloued all of vs which be ranged in the number of subiectes considering on the one side the manifold haynous sinnes which haue formerly raigned amongst vs both vnpunished and vnrepented of and on the other side the fearfull dangers that we haue escaped I can say nothing but that which Ieremie spake in his lamentations long agoe Lam. 3.22 It is the mercies of the Lord the we are not consumed because his compassions faile not Pray we therefore on the behalfe of our King that it would please Almightie God to pronounce of him as he spake in elder time by Nathan of Salomon 2. Sam. 7.14.15 I will be his father and he shall be my sonne and if he sinnes I will chasten him with the rod of men and with the plagues of the children of men but my mercie shall not depart away from him Pray we likewise for this Church of England Scotland and Ireland that God would vouchase to hallow it with that blessed promise which in Isai was vttered ouer the whole Church of Christ militant by the spirit of prophesie thus The mountaines shall remooue and the hils shall fall downe but my mercie shall not depart from thee neyther shall the couenant of my peace fall away saith the Lord that hath compassion on thee This done then may both King and subiects euen euerie of vs vtter with ioyfull cheare that which we read in the Psalme Psal 89.1 I will sing the mercies of the Lord for euer Thus Dauid hauing already song the mercy of GOD toward himselfe he will sing also the iudgement of God toward his enemies And to beginne with his grand and capitall enemie King Saul after that he had beene wounded by the archers of the Philistines 1. Sam. 31.3.4 fearing least the vncircumcissed should haue come and thrust him thorow haue mocked him he tooke a sword and fell vpon it himselfe and so a cruell life had a desperate ende And as for Dauids chiefe enemies in the Court among Sauls fauorties namely Chush Doeg we read the ruine of them both For Chush trauailed with mischiefe and brought forth a lye he made a pit and digged it Psal 7.1.15.16 and fell into it himselfe his mischiefe returned vpon his own head his crueltie fel vpon his owne pate And after that Doeg had for a space boasted himself in his wickednes that being a man of power he could doe mischiefe Psal 52.1.5 at the length God pluckt him out of his tabernacle and rooted him out of the land of the liuing Beside these particulars God gaue vnto Dauid the necks of his enemies in generall Psal 18.40.42 and he did beat them as small as the dust before the wind and he did tread them flat as the clay in the streets Thus let thine enemies perish O Lord and the Kings enemies likewise but let him be as the Sunne when he riseth in his might Iud. 5.31 And blessed be God who hath put into his head to celebrate euerie Tuesdaye with publike prayer and preaching in remembraunce of Gods mercie towardes himselfe The earle of Gowries conpiracie and Gods iudgement towards his enemies by that which was acted at Saint Ionstone vpon the fifth of August in the yeare 1600. Now the good that may ensue by the consideration of the fall of Gods and the Churches enemies is of two sorts First God is thereby magnified as may appeare is the person of Pharaoh whom God appointed for this cause to shew his power in him Exo. 9.16 and to declare his name throughout all the world And in the destruction of the Babilonians the earth was filled with the knowledge of the glorie of the Lord Hab. 2.14 as the waters couer the Sea Secondly men if they haue grace may be thereby edified according to the confession of the faithfull in Isai saying Isay 26.9 VVee O Lord haue wayted for thee in the way of thy iudgementes for seeing thy iudgements are in the earth the inhabitants of the world shall learne righteousnes Hitherto Dauid hath sung mercie and iudgement in respect of the time past by way of praise and thanksgiuing Now he proceedeth to sing the same song in regard of the time to come touching the administration of his kingdome by way of practise knowing that the dutie of princes and publike Magistrates Rom. 13.3 1. Pet. 2.14 is to be the ministers of God for the wealth of them that doe well by the exercise of godlinesse and honestie and to take vengeance on them that doe euill committing impietie and iniquitie And these two mercie and iudgement must goe hand in hand being in association combined together least if they were altogether and vtterly seuered then mercy without iudgement might turne into foolish pittie and iudgement without any temper
A SERMON Preached at Greenwich before the Kings Maiestie vpon Tuesday in VVhitson weeke being the 14. of Iune 1603. By the Reuerend Father in God Antonie Rudd Doctor of Diuinitie and Lord Bishop of Saint Dauids LABORE ET CONSTANTIA LONDON Imprinted by I. H. for Thomas Man and Clement Knight 1603. TO THE Christian Reader FOrsomuch as I was at this sermon among other auditors who iudged it verie diuinelike for the matter the manner of handling of it and afterward vnderstood that diuers which hard it preached and more which did onely heare of it by the report of others were verie desirous to haue the view eyther written or rather printed therfore hauing obtained a copie of it for mine owne vse I thought it expedient to commit it to the presse for the publike good of all such as will vouchsafe to read it with patience and iudge of it by the rule of charitie ⧠A Sermon preached at Greenwich before the Kings Maiestie vpon Tuesday in VVhitsonweek being the 14. of Iune 1603. Psal 101.1 I will sing mercie and iudgement to thee O Lord will I sing IN this Psalme the kingly Prophet Dauid declareth how he will behaue himselfe in his kingdome first touching his owne person and afterward touching his subiects both in the Court and in the countrie In this first verse of the Psalme he vndertaketh or promiseth to sing the dittie of the song is mercie and iudgement The person to whom he singeth is expressed in these words To thee O Lord will I sing In that he assumeth to sing the matter which he hath in hand it implieth that he will doe it with ioy with a loud voice and with his full power It argueth ioy Iam. 5.13 Psal 137.1.2.3.4 For is any man among you afflicted let him pray is any merrie let him sing And how should the children of the captiuitie sing one of the songs of Zion in a straunge land when they sit mourning and weeping by the riuers of Babell where they haue hung vp their harps vpon the willows that grow thereby And as a pleasant song requireth a merrie heart so doth it also a stretched out voice with great strength put thereunto So then by this example of Dauid we are taught in the meditations of our heart the words of our tongue and the actions of our life tending to godlinesse and iustice to doe all with cheerefulnes feruencie and to the vtmost of our power For example in the case of our inward affection toward God our dutie is To loue the Lord our God with all our heart with all our soule Deut. 6.5 and with all our strength In the matter of Gods worship ioyned with the aduancing of his glory and the furtherance of our saluation 2. Sam. 6.14 Behold Dauid daunceth before the Arke with all his might Of the kingdome of Christ it is prophecied thus by the Psalmist Psal 110.3 Thy people shall come willingly at the time of assembling thine armie in holy beautie Psal 69.9 The zeale of Gods house did eate vp the princely prophet And from the time of Iohn the Baptist hitherto Mat. 11.12 The kingdome of heauen suffereth violence Act. 17.16 and the violent take it by force If Paule come to Athens and see the Citie subiect to Idolatrie his spirit will be stirred within him And if he and Barnabas being at Listra perceiue the people readie to sacrifice vnto them by the names of Iupiter and Mercurie Act. 14.14 then they will euen rent their clothes in signe of detesting and abhorring it Exod. 32.15 vnto the 21. If Moses when he commeth downe from the Mount vnderstand that the people in his absence haue made a golden Calfe and giuen worship vnto it then his wrath waxeth hotte and he casteth the tables which were the worke and writing of God out of his hands and breaketh them in peeces and taking the Calfe he burneth it in the fire and grindeth it to powder and stroweth it vpon the water and maketh the children of Israel to drinke of it to despite them of their Idolatrie If we speake of charitable almes thē by S. Pauls rule The Lord louech a cheerefull giuer 2. Cor. 9.7 If execution must be done vpon the enemies of God and his holy Church Ier. 48.10 then Ieremie pronounceth him cursed that doth the worke of the Lord negligently Rom. 12.11 We should by Pauls aduise to the Romanes Tit. 2.14 be feruent in spirit And by his admonition giuen in the epistle to Titus we ought to be zealous of good workes And surely if any doe frame themselues after the patterne of the Laodiceans who were luke-warme Apoc. 3.16 neither hore nor cold it will come to passe that God shall spew them out of his mouth To preuent which inconuenience Dauid here affirmeth that he wil sing this heauenly dittie of mercie and iudgement the which words may be construed two waies the Analogie of faith preserued First in respect of the time past by way of praise for Gods mercie toward himselfe and Gods iudgements against his enemies Secondly in regard of the time to come touching the gouernment of the kingdome by way of practise of mercie toward the good and of iudgement against the bad The first interpretation yeeldeth vnto vs this doctrine in generall that we should shew our selues thankfull vnto Almightie God for all his benefits bestowed vpon vs according to the comaundement of God ioyned with a comfortable promise Psal 50.15 Call vpon me in the day of trouble and so will I deliuer thee and thou shalt glorifie mee And after the example of the Psalmist saying Open thou my lips O Lord that is Psal 51.15 giue me occasion to praise thee and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise And if God vouchsafe to deliuer Dauids desolate soule from the sword and the power of the dog Psal 22.20.21.22 from the lions mouth and the hornes of the Vnicornes then will Dauid declare his name vnto his brethren and praise him in the midst of the congregation But alas if a viewe be taken of vs vpon whom the ends of the world be come it is to be feared that we shal be found no better in this case then they were in the daies of our Sauiour Christ when as of ten leapers that were cleansed onely one returned to giue thanks Luke 17.15.16 And verely so haue worldly minded men beene vsually accustomed to mistake the originall and spring-head of the temporall benefits which they receiue that the Nimrods of the earth which liued in the daies of Habacuk Hab. 1.15.16 whēas they took vp al with the angle and catched it in their net and gathered it in their yearne whereof they reioyced and were glad then they sacrificed to their net burnt incence to their yearne because in their false imagination by them their portion became fat and their meat plenteous that is they flattered themselues
thornes in their sides When Ioash the King of Israell came downe to visit Elisha lying sicke vpon his death bed he was willed by the prophet to take into his hand the arrow of the Lords deliuerance against Aram to smite the ground 2. Reg. 13.14 to the 20. wherupon he smote thrise and ceased But the man of God was angrie with him said thou shouldest haue smitten fiue or six times so thou shouldest haue smitten Aram till thou haddest consumed it where now thou shalt smite Aram but thrise The meaning is that Ioash deserued iust reproofe and great blame because he seemed content to haue victorie against the enemies of God for twise or thrise and had not a zeale to ouercome them continually and destroy them vtterly And surely Saul cannot spare Agag sauing to his owne hurt 1. Sam. 15.22.23 Neither can Ahab haue the life of Ben-Hadad but with his owne losse 1. Reg. 20.42 2. Chro. 15.16 Wherefore King Asa did not faile to depose his grandmother Maachah from her regencie because she had made an Idoll in a groue which Idoll he brake downe and stamped it and burnt it at the brooke Kidron Consider heere a little with me beloued the mishap that I say not miserie of diuers princes keeping me within the limits or bounds of the holy scripture in this case of shewing mercie and practising of iudgement For first of all it falleth out not seldome that those notorious malefactors deseruing death whom princes doe pardon in mercie if not vpon foolish pittie doe afterward most vnthankfully and treacherously seeke to take the Scepter out of the hand and to pull the Crowne from the head and to withdraw life from the bodie of their benefactors who had graciously forgiuen them their crimes and so consquently giuen to them their liues lands goods libertie and all This may be fitly exemplified in Absalon who after that he was pardoned for the murdering of his brother Amnon 2. Sam. 15 and restored to fauour in court rose vp early and stood hard by the entring in of the gate and reached forth his hand to euerie suiter of account and by slaunder flatterie and faire promises he stale away the harts of the people and at the length he brast forth into actuall rebellion against his naturall father 2. Sam. 3.27 Ioab likewise when he had escaped without punishment for stabbing of Abner he was thereby emboldened to proceede forward to the murdering of Amasa Ibid. 20.9.10 and this done without controlment he presumed to ayde aspyring Adonijah to the preiudice of Salomon 1. Reg. 1.7 who was to succeede in the kingdome by the appointment of his father Dauid yet liuing Secondly Princes haue been sometimes ouerawed by the peeres of the Realme or otherwise for feare of tumult in the state they durst not eyther shew kindnes and giue entertainment to good men whom they loued or to execute mightie malefactours as in dutie they should haue done Of the first sort we haue an example in Achish the king of Gath 1. Sam. 29.6.9.10 who confessed that Dauid pleased him as an Angel of God but therwithall he told him that he must be packing out of his companie because the princes of the Philistines did not fauour him Of the second sort we haue an example in Dauid who though he spake and did much in detestation of Ioabs murdering of Abner yet he durst not put him to death for it as it may be collected by these words of his I am this day weake and newly annointed King 2. Sam. 3.39 and these men the sonnes of Zeruiah be too hard for me 2. Sam. 3.36 the Lord reward the doer of euill according to his wickednes 1. Reg. 2.5.6.8.9.31.44.45.46 But this falleth out well and rightly that whom Dauid spared in pollicie those Salomon executed in iudgement as rayling Shimei and bloodie Ioab Heere let me stand a little vpon Dauids promise to sing Mercie and iudgement and consider whether he performed the same alwaies or not I will put the case in the example of lame Mephibosheth the sonne of his olde and deare friend Ionathan 2. Sam. 9.1.3.7 to whom I confesse he did kindly shew mercie for his fathers sake by restoring vnto him all the fields of his Grandfather Saul and licensing him to eate bread at his own table continually but when he came to the point of iudgement I finde him defectiue For when Dauid fled before the face of Absalon Ziba the seruant of Mephiboseth meeteth him with a large present of his masters goods 2. Sam. 16.1.2.3.4 and presenting the same vnto him he frameth sycophantly a most false accusation of treason against his master as thogh he had said this day shall the house of Israell restore me the kingdome of my father Whereupon rashly without leauing the one eare for the defendant he gaue sentence condemning the innocent in fauour of the plantiffe being a calumniator saying to Ziba behold thine are all that pertained vnto Mephibosheth And when as Mephibosheth afterward met Dauid returning victoriously after the ouerthrow of Absalom and fully cleared himselfe of the haynous crime of treason wherewith he had beene falsely charged then Dauid giueth sentence in this wise 2. Sam. 19.29 thou and Ziba deuide the lands Herein Dauid did euill in taking his land from him before he knew the cause but much worse that knowing the truth he did not restore them And here we may obserue that in the case of iustice our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is more vpright then our 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 our contemplation is sounder then our practise Or to speake to the capacitie of the meanest hearer a man may more easily penne the cause of Iustice in his priuate studie then rightly practise it in publike vpon the bench For in solitarie meditation a man may without difficultie abandon all rashnes and partiall affection but in Iudiciall place abroad respect of persons and other corruptions do easily enter into our mindes and hearts by the ministerie of our eyes and eares Now the way to preuent this mischiefe is to doe that sincerely which Dauid promiseth heere to doe namely to sing vnto the Lord that is to shew mercie and practise Iudgement to the glory of God wherunto all things ought to be referred according to Saint Pauls direction whether ye eate drinke 1. Cor. 10.31 or whatsoeuer ye doe do all to the glorie of God Insomuch as almes must be giuen in charitie without the sound of a trumpet Mat. 6.1 to the 7. and prayer must be made of deuotion without publike ostentation And to descend from the generall doctrine to the particular instruction which I haue in hand miserable was the case of that wretched Iudge who did right to the poore widow Luke 18.4.5 not for feare of God or reuerence to man but onely to auoid her clamor and importunity And no better was the case of the-Philistins in the booke of the Iudges who when as the Timnite gaue his daughter being Samsons wife Iudg. 15.1 to the 7. to an other man they regarded not to punish this vniust and adulterous act But when as Samson in reuenge of this wrong had with three hundred Foxes turned taile to tayle hauing firebands fastened thereto set on fire and burned vp the rickes and the standing corne with the vineyards and Oliues of the Philistins then they came vp in troupes and burnt the Timnite and his daughter with fire Thus the wicked punish not vice for loue of Iustice but to be reuenged in respect of former losse and for feare of future daunger which else might come vnto them Againe to thee O Lord will I sing that is howsoeuer by the chaunting of this dittie of mercie and iudgement I shall seeme to howle in the eares of the vngodly yet my song to thee O lord shal be thought very melodious Whereby we are taught this generall doctrine that in doing of our dutie in our seuerall vocations this ought to be our comfort that our words and works are pleasing vnto God howsoeuer they be displeasing to the world of wicked men So though Noe was scorned by the men of his time for preparing the Arke and vrging repentance to preuent the perill of the Deluge to come yet is he by the prouidence of God ad perpetuam rei memoriam chronicled for a preacher of righteousnes And though Dauid for dancing before the Arke being girded with a linnen Ephod 2. Pet. 2.5 2. Sam. 6.14.16.20.21.22 was by his wife Michal despised in her heart yet was he had in most high reputation by the maids of honour attending vpon Michal Yea Dauid will yet be more vile then thus and he will be low in his owne sight knowing that all shall be acceptable in heauen which is heere on earth done before the Lord that is for no worldly affection but onely for the zeale which we leaue to Gods glory Isa 8.18 Wisd 5.15 Isai and the children which God gaue vnto him were as signes and wonders in Israel yet their reward was with the Lord. If Iohn come neither eating nor drinking they say he hath a diuell Mat. 11.18.19 And if the sonne of man come eating and drinking they say behold a glutton and a drinker of wine Act. 26.24.25 a friend of publicanes and sinners but yet wisedome is iustified of her children If Festus be iudge of Pauls speaches 1. Cor. 4.9.13 then Paul is beside him selfe much learning doth make him madde Howbeit Paul is not madde O noble Festus Ibid. ver 3. but he speaketh the words of truth and sobernes The Apostles were made a gazing-stock vnvnto the world and to the Angels and to men they were counted as the filth of the world 2. Cor. 4.15.16 and the ofscowring of all things howbeit they passed verie little to be iudged of mans iudgement knowing that they were vnto God the sweet sauour of Christ in them that are saued in them which perish to the one the sauour of death vnto death and to the other the sauour of life vnto life Thus the sweet singer of Israel promiseth to sing the diuine dittie of mercie and iudgement 2. Sam. â—â— â— to the Lord of Lords euen God the father the sonne and the holy Ghost to whom three persons and one euerliuing God be all honour and glorie both now and for euermore Amen