no Heir by Inheritance to the Crown and was rejected by Gods Spirit and David by Gods own appointment was to Succeed him in that Kingdom 1 Sam. 16.1 13. and was anointed by Samuel to be King in his stead which was very much Yet this Good Subject when Saul was put into his Hands and his servants perswaded him to take the Advantage of that good opportunity 1 Sam. 24 24. and to do justice upon that Wicked King he would by no meanes be advised by them nor suffer them to Rise against his King and when Abishai told him that God had delivered his enemy i.e. Saul into his hands and therefore desired that if David would not do it himself he would suffer Him to smite him David answered No by no means 1 Sam. 26.9 10 11. and he yeelds this reason Who can stretch forth his hand against the Lords anointed and be guiltless And he addeth The Lord shall smite him but God forbid that I should stretch forth mine hand against him Nay more then this when David took the Speare and the cruse of water from Sauls boulster and then went a great way from them he cried unto Abner and said Vers 16. Wherefore hast thou not kept thy lord the King As the Lord liveth ye are worthy to die because you have not kept your Master the Lords anointed Where you see David sweareth a Great oath As the Lord liveth and therefore he jesteth not They are worthy to die not they Alone that Kill their King but they also that hazard not their own lives to Protect and preserve the life of their King be their King never so Wicked I am sure in Davids judgment this is True Divinity Yea more then all this when Saul had fallen upon his own sword because he would not fall into the hands of his uncircumcised enemies and being in extream anguish desired a young Amalekite that was passing by to rid him out of his pain and the young man in favour to him performing his request and out of his respect to David that was to succeed him he brought the Crown that was upon his head and the Bracelet that was upon his arm unto David that the enemies might not have them and to shew that he took no pleasure in the death of Saul he came in a very mournfull manner with his Clâ—athes rent and Earth upon his head and likewise to shew his Loyal respect unto David he fell to the Earth and did Obeysance unto him and though he was a stranger and Subject neither to Saul nor to David therefore owed no service unto either of them yet because he took away the Life of Davids King the anointed of God and his Vicegerent here on earth David caused one of his young men 2 Sam. 1. to fall upon the poor Amalekite and for his mistaken curtesie unto Saul and unwelcome service unto David to smite him that he died So dear was the life of this Wicked King unto this Godly man that was a man according to Gods own heart the best subject that ever we read of and therefore was honored by God to become the best King that ever Israel had So that in the Genealogie of Christ the King of Kings he is preferred before Abraham as S. Matth. 1.1 Matthew sets it down The book of the Generation of Jesus Christ the son of David the son of Abraham And is it not Strange that these Jews that were given so much to read the Scripture and had them more readily then our Puritans have them at their fingers end and could tell how many Affirmative and how many Negative precepts were in all the Bible and how many times every word was therein mentioned and yet that they would not now consider that Job saith Is it fit to say to a King Thou art wicked Job 34.18 Psal 105.15 Eccl. 8.4 Numb 16. Deut. 33.5 Hos 1.4 2 Reg 21.24 and that God himself saith Touch not mine anointed and the wisest amongst the sons of men saith Where the Word of a King is there is power and Who may say unto him What doest thou Or that they could not remember how fearfully God destroyed those Rebels that rose against Moses that was a King in Jesuron and destroyed the posterity of Jehu because he had destroyed his own King Ahab and stirred the people to slay all them that had slain Amon though he was a most wicked King But the truth is that the Old Serpent the Prince of darkness teacheth his Schollers to reject the Old light and now to stand altogether for New lights new Revelations and new Divinity therefore S. Augustine speaks most truely of these Scripturists that they had the Bible In manibus but not In cordibus and they had the truth in Codice but not in Capite for now Caiphas contrary to all the Old Scripture Joh 18.14 hath a New Revelation that it is expedient Pro salute populi that One man should dye for the people therefore Christ their King must needs be Killed and all the people cried out for justice and double their crie Crucify Him Crucify Him Salus Populi doth require it 2 From the Word of God 2. To prove it Lawfull to put any King to death Prosalute Populi he that hath all Scripture ad unguem can furnish you with a Text of S. Peter 1 Pet. 2.13 that affirmeth the Kingly office to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 an Humane Ordinance or creature therefore the people being the maker of the King Ob. they may destroy their Own creature if he failes in the End for which he was created To this our True Divines have oftentimes most truly answered 1. That the Jews held their Royal Government to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 1 Sol. Immediate from God and to be in force without the Election of Ordination from man and all other dominions and rule to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Humane Ordinance because God had determined and set down the Plat-form of their Government which he had not done to other Nations that as the Prophet saith had not the knowledge of his Laws and therefore S. Peter writing here to the Jews tels them that although the Kingly office should be but as they held an Humane Ordinance and not as theirs was a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a Divine Rule yet his Precept was that they should Submit themselves thereunto for the Lords sake i.e. though the Governours were Heathens and their Government Heathenish yet Obedience and not Resistance is due unto them for the Lords sake by whom All Kings both Jews and Gentiles do bear rule 2. That although the Jurisdiction of Kings for Extent in some Part 2 Sol. and in some Degree might be said to be Humane from men yet the power of the Sword which hath Potestatem vitae necis is simply and absolutely Divine from God For who can give power over the Life of man but he that
rebellion and disobedience of the people as here because Zedechia was not suffered by these stubborn and disobedient people to follow the advice of this our Prophet therefore they were all delivered into seventy years Captivity And as the Lord is extream angry with those rebellious people that disobey and labour to displace the Kings and Governours that he sets over them So he sheweth abundance of his love and kindnesse to them that submit themselves to his ordinance and behave themselves dutifully and loyally towards those Kings whatsoever they be that God placeth over them as you may see it in the whole course and Story of King David and Saul for as he was the most dutiful and most faithful subject that ever we read of so God was pleased to raise him to be the best King that ever reigned over Israel for his King and his Governour was Saul the very first of that Order among the Jews and he was an hypocrite a persecutor a murderer a tyrant and a mad man yet when David whose life he thirsted after had him at his mercy and could as easily have taken off his head as to cut off the lap of his garment he said The Lord forbid 1 Sam. 24.6 that I should do this thing unto my Master the Lords Annointed to stretch forth my hand against him and his heart smote him because he had cut off his skirt And when he had him again in the like trap he said unto Abner Art not thou a valiant man and who is like thee in Israel wherefore then hast thou not kept thy Lord the King this thing is not good that thou hast done As the Lord liveth you are worthy to die because you have not kept your Master the Lords Annointed and his oath As the Lord liveth sheweth 1 Sam. 26.16 that he spake it in good earnest and jested not And if they be worthy to die that defend not and protect not such a wicked King especially in going about so vile an action as the murdering of so good a man and so dutiful a subject as David was then what shall become of them and what are they worthy of that murmur and grudge and plot against the life of such a â—ood King as maintained peace and jâ—stice amongst his people and offered no special injury to any particular man of us all Surely if I had the wisdom of Solomon and the eloquence of Demosthenes I were not able to expresse the odiousnesse of their sin that conspired against the person and proceedings of such a King as is inoffensive before God and all good men But to go on to shew unto you how faithful this good subject was to this bad King when the young man that was an Amalekite and none of Saul or Davids subjects came of his own accord to bring tidings unto David of Sauls death and of the good service that he thought he had done unto Saul at his own request to put him out of his pain David presently caused him to be put to death 2 Sam. 1.15 because he durst presume to offer any violence though that violence seemed to be a favour unto the Ruler of the people whom we are straightly forbidden to revile Exod. 22.28 or to speak evil of him So dutiful and so loyal a subject was David to so evil a Governour and so wicked a King as Saul And this his loyalty and fidelity unto Saul was one of the chiefest vertues that we find commendable in him before God had according to his fidelity to his King raised him to the Rule and Government of his people And I wish that all and every one of us would strive and study to imitate this good man in our obedience fidelity and loyalty to our King and Governours that God hath placed over us But here it may be some troubled and discontented spirit will say I could willingly yield all due respect and obedience unto our Kings and Governours could I be satisfied that God appointed them to be the Kings and Governours of his people Jeremy 23.21 but as the Lord saith of the false Prophets They run and I sent them not So he saith They have set up Kings but not by me Hosea 8.4 and they have made Princes and I knew it not And should we be obedient and faithful to such Kings and Governours that ambitiously set up themselves and are not righteously set up by God To these men that stumble at this block I answer 1. That the Prophet speaketh there as I shewed to you before not of any Soveraign Monarch but of the Aristocratical government of many men that will all be as Kings and Princes ruling and domineering over the people for so you see the Prophet speakes in the plural number of many Kings that in all the whole Scripture you shall never find to be either appointed or approved by God to be the Governours of his people for indeed those many Kings and Governours of equal authâ—rity are none of Gods Governours neither are they set up by God nor as I find approved by God in any place of all the Scripture But as God is One and the only Monarch of all the World so he ever appoints one Monarch only to be his Deputy to govern the people or nation that he committeth under his charge 2. I say that this Monarch and Governour whom God raiseth to govern his people attaineth unto his Throne and right of Government even by the ordination of God divers wayes as 1. Sometimes by Birth which is the most usual best and surest way and most agreeable to Gods will 2. Sometimes by Choice and the election of the people as Herodotus saith the Medes chose Deioces to be their King and the Princes of Germany now chuse their Emperour and they commonly chuse him that is by Birth the eldest son of the deceased King 3. Sometimes by the power of the Sword as God gave the Monarchy of the Medes unto Cyrus and the Kingdom of Darius and of many others unto Alexander and the Empire of the Romans unto Augustus and many other Kingdoms unto others that had no other right unto their Dominions but what they purchased with the edge of their Sword Which right though it be nothing else but Vsurpation and Intrusion in these ambitious hunters after rule and dominion yet notwithstanding it must needs be a very good right as the same cometh from the just God who is the God of war and giveth the victory unto Kings when as the Poet saith Victrix causa diis placuit And he having the right and power Paramount to translate the rule and transferre the dominion of his people to whom he will he hath oftentimes for their sins thrown down the mighty from their seat and translated the government of his people unto others whom some waies he thought fitter to effect his Divine will as he did give the Kingdom of Saul unto David and of Belshazzers unto Cyrus and
that the same true God which giveth the Kingdom of Heaven to his children only giveth the Earthly Kingdoms both to the good and to the bad as he pleaseth yet alwaies justly And for Nimrod I say the words bear no more then he became mightier then other Kings or began to Tyrannize more then all the other Kings And for S. Peters words I say he means it only of Elective Kings Which in another place I shewed more fully than the time will now give me leave in what sense he calleth them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Therefore I say the calling of Kings is the proper Ordinance of God as it is fully and most learnedly shewed by a most Reverend Prelate of our Church lately published and intituled Sacro-Sancta Regum Majestas Howsoever as I said we condemn not as unlawfull the right of all Elective Kings yet we ought to acknowledg how much more bound we are to God that himself in a rightfull line of succession hath appointed our Kings to raign over us so that we need not fear the error of our Election if there be no error in our submission 2. As we are to consider quem whom so we ought to remember qualem what manner of King we are commanded to honor for as the unjust Vsurper may govern the people justly as they do sometimes and in some places so they that have just Titles to their Crowns may prove unjust in their Governments as too too many both of the Kings in Israel and Judah and I fear many other Kings have been And yet if they be our lawfull Kings be they what they will Cruell Tyrannous or Idolatrous or if you will put all together I say we are bound to honor them and no waies to Rebell against them for if thy Brother the son of thy Mother or thy son or thy daughter Deut. 13.6 or the wife of thy bosome or thy friend which is as thine own soul shall intice thee to Idolatry and to serve strange gods thine eye shall not spare him neither shalt thou have any pity upon him but for the son to rise up against the Father the wife against her Husband the servant against his Lord or the subject against his King here is not a word and we are not to do what the Lord doth not command as Tostat well observeth upon this place Therefore though Jeroboam made Israel to sin by setting up his calves to be adored Nâ—buchadnezzar commanded all his people to worship his Golden Image Ahab Manasses Nero Julian and the rest of the persecuting Emperors did most impiously compell their Subjects to Idolatry and exercised all kinds of cruelty against Gods servants yet you shall never find that either the Jews under Jeroboam or Daniel in Babylon or Elias in the time of Ahab or any Christian under Julian or the rest of those bloody Tyrants did ever rebell against any of those wicked Kings for they all considered the law of God and I beseech you all to consider it likewise 1. Exod 22.28 Moses saith Thou shalt not speak evil of the Ruler of thy people yea though he should be evil yet must thou not speak evil of him for as thou art to honor thy Father not so much because he is good as because he is thy Father and therefore the son of Noah was accursed because he despised his Father when his father sinned so we are to honor our King and to speak no ill of him though he should be never so ill for Is it fit to say to a King Thou art wicked And to Princes Ye are ungodly Job 34.18 2. 2 Not to do the least indignity unto our King As we are to bridle our tongues so much more ought we to refrain our hands from offering the least violence unto our King When the Lord saith peremptorily Touch not mine annointed where he doth not say Non occides or ne perdas the worst that can be but ne tangas the least that may be neither doth he say Sanctos meos my holy ones but Christos meos my annointed ones whether they be holy or unboly good or bad therefore though Saul was a wicked King and a heavy persecutor of David without cause hunting him like a Partridge upon the Mountains and seeking no less then to take away his life yet when the men of David said unto him Behold the day of which the Lord said unto thee I will deliver thine enemy into thine hand that thou maist do to him as it shall seem good unto thee what seemed good unto him Truely no waies to hurt him nor to do the least indignity unto him for his heart smote him because he had cut off the skirt of his robe and therefore he said unto his men 1 Sam. 24.4 5 6 The Lord forbid that I should do this thing unto my Master the Lords annointed to stretch forth my hand against him And why so because he is the annointed of the Lord that is not because he is a good man but because he is my King Nay we are not only forbidden to offer violence That we are to protect our King with the hazard of our lives but we are also injoyned to give our best assistance to protect the persons of our most wicked Kings for David not only staid his servants with the former words and suffered them not to rise against Saul but when Saul lay sleeping within his trench and David and Abishai took away his speare and had the power to destroy him What saith David unto Abner Art not thou a Valiant man And who is like thee in Israel Wherefore then hast thou not kept thy Lord the King This thing is not good that thou hast done as the Lord liveth 1 Sam. 15.16 ye are worthy to dye because you have not kept your Master the Lords annointed And if this thing is not good and David jesteth not but sweareth As the Lord liveth they are worthy to dye that preserve not the life of their King be he never so wicked then certainly this thing is not good and they are more then worthy to die that not only refuse to assist but also rise in Arms to persecute and to take away the life of a most Pious and a Gracious King So you see the person whom we are to honor the King whatsoever he be good or bad 2. The Honor that we are to exhibite unto him is to be considered out of the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a word so significant that it not only comprehendeth all the duty which we owe to our Father and Mother but it is also used to express most if not all the service of God when he saith If I am a father Malach. 1.5 where is my honor And therefore when Ahassuerus asked Haman What should be done unto the man Whom the King would honor he answered let the Royall apparell be brought which the King useth to weare and the Horse that the King rideth upon
Copy hath it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which Beza translates Non norunt vocem alienorum they know not the voice of strangers as our English translation hath it very right Therefore I conceive that by the stranger Whom doth Christ mean by the stranger and who by the strangers he meaneth that foolish Idol Shepherd whereof the Prophet Zachary speaketh that should come in the time of Christ to be the type of the great Anti-christ that should be manifested in our time and by the other strangers he meaneth those many Anticks that S. John speaks of the Hereticks and false Prophets that from time to time and now more then at any other time Ier. 14.14 c. 23.21 do intrude themselves into the Sacred Function of the Ministry and as the Prophet Jeremy saith do run when Christ hath not sent them and do speak what he hath not commanded them but do preach the lying inventions of their own heads to seduce the sheep of Christ to follow the Anti-christ and to relinquish the true received worship of the living God But the true and right sheep of Christ will hear none of these nor follow after any of them for they know that as they which are not lawfully called or allowed to be the lawful Ministers of Gods Word should not preach and cannot do it without great offence to God that may justly say to them as he doth to the Jews by his Prophet Quis avobis requisivit hac Who hath required these things at your hands So they cannot hear them without the like offence to God yea though they should preach the truth and nothing but the truth unto them for as Christ reproved Satan and bad him hold his peace when he spake the very truth that he was the Son of God because he had no Commission to be the Embassador of Christ to publish that truth unto his people so shall they be sharply censured by God though they preach the very truth when they are not lawfully called and have no Commission from God to do the same 2 Chro. 26.21 I think the fearful Judgement of God upon King Uzzia for invading the Priests office and upon Uzza for doing that which appertained to the Levites to do 1 Chron. 13.10 and upon King Saul for offering Sacrifice to the Lord should be a sufficient warning for them to take heed how they thrust themselves into the Ministry for King Uzzia presuming to burn Incense unto the Lord which appertained to the Priests the sons of Aaron to do the Lord suddenly smote him with Leprosie and so he continued a Leper to his dying day And Uzza putting forth his hand to hold up the Ark when the Oxen shook it which belonged only unto the Levites to carry it the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzza that he smote him dead in the very place and Saul lost his Kingdome for his intrusion into the Priests Office and how date these men to intrude themselves into this Sacred Office to be the Embassadors of Christ to declare his will and to expound his meaning without Commission And if they should dare to preach how dare the sheep of Christ hear their voice when as Christ tells us plainly his sheep will not hear the voice of strangers and the Lord commands them by his Prophet not to hearken to those whom he hath not sent And Solomon saith Ier. 27.14 c. 29.8 Cease my son to hear the instruction that causeth to erre from the words of knowledge Prov. 19.27 Surely none would do it but that we love to shew our selves to be the children of Adam and to stretch forth our hands to the forbidden fruit and as the Poet saith Nitimur in vetitum semper cupimusque negata We long to do what we are forbidden and will the rather do it because it is forbidden like the man that for some just impediment never went out of his house but being for some offence injoyned to keep his house he was so moved for the debarring of his liberty that to cross the command of his Superiours and to become liable to his censure he would needs presently walk abroad and so with Shimei 1 Reg. 2.46 Our wilfulness to do what we are forbidden bring himself to death And so it is with us we will not hear when we are commanded to hear and we long to hear those that we are forbidden to hear as if God envied our good when he forbad us when as he forbids nothing but for our good as when we forbid a man to drink poyson that it might not kill him 2. Having heard how the sheep of Christ are called Secunda pars I know them it followeth that I should shew how they are justified in these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and I know them that is I do acknowledge them for my sheep and do own them for my people for my servants and for my children for there be very many that go under the shape and shew of Gods sheep and are indeed the Foxes Wolves and Lyons of Satan of whom Christ never saith I know them but rather Depart from me I know you not you workers of iniquity Yet these subtil Foxes and these Wolves in sheeps cloathing The wicked and the hypocrite not acknowledged by God to be his sheep Gen. 34.23 The Sichemites how served for their deceitful hypocrisie V. 26. that profess themselves to be the only Saints and are indeed the destroyers of Gods servants may easily blind the eyes of men but they cannot beguile the all-seeing God for as the Sichemites whereof Moses testifieth that they came with dissembling hearts to deceive Jacob and his children were contented to be circumcised and take upon them the habit of Gods children in hope that all theirs should be their own if they were circumcised as themselves confess yet the Lord that knew the◠to be hypocrites doth not acknowledge them for his children and therefore their dissembling of Religion brought on their destruction and their Circumcision which they thought would be the means to inrich them became the means to destroy them for while they were weak and sore by reason of their Circumcision the sons of Jacob fell upon them and slew all that were male which was a just judgment of God for the dissembling of their Religion And as the Gibeonites with false hearts and a dissembling shew of a religious desire of communion with Gods children came to the children of Israel and through their lies and dissimulation made a league with them and so freed themselves from the Sword of Joshua and deceived the Israelites Josh 9.15 yet they could not deceive the Lord who knew their hypocrisie and knew them not for any of his people and therefore made them slaves and drudges to draw water carry wood V. 27. The Gibeonites how served for their dissimulation and do all manner of servile work for the sons of Israel So amongst us in
saith If it had been an open enemy that had done me this dishonor I could well have born it but it was thou my companion and mine own familiar friend my disciple mine Apostle my Servant and my Purse-bearer and for thee to betray thy Master it is a Treason beyond all Treason and a murder more execreble then any murder because that besides their malice towards their Masters such servants as Judas and this Zimri were do shew themselves replenished with ingratitude to render so much evil to them that have done so much good to them which is a monster in nature and a sin most odious amongst the Heathens whose proverb was Ingratum si dâ—xeris omnia dixer is and therefore though there is no vice in the World which hath not room and entertainment in some Kingdom or other as Pride among the Babylonians Envy among the Jews Anger among the Thebans Covetousness among the Tyrians Gluttony among the Sidonians Lying among the Cretians Witch-craft in Thessaly Magick in Egypt and other sins so well known that I need not name them in Germany France England and Ireland yet ingratitude is such a sin that no Countrey will willingly receive it nor any man own it or entertain it into his house for though thy self shouldst be as ingratefull to thy neighbour as Pharaohs butler was to Joseph Laban to Jacob Saul to David Joash to Jehojada Demetrius to Jonathas Augustus to Cicero Carthage to Hannibal Rome to Scipio and many more that either banished or murdered those that protected and preserved them from ruine yet thou canst not abide that any man should prove ingratefull unto thee but having so well deserved at his hands thou wilt cry out that he is worst then the brute beasts as we must confess an ingratefull person is indeed for you see the dog will love his Master and often venture his life for him for a piece of bread and the very Tygers Bears and Lions will love those that keep them and do feed them and they will shew their thankfulnness for the benefits that they do receive as it is manifest by that which fell to Helpis the Samian who upon a certain Coast of Africa having drawen out a bone that stuck in a Lions throat was in recompence of that benefit fed and maintained by the Lion's hunting so long as his ship lay at anchor on that shore and that which A. Gellius saith befell to Androdus a Roman slave who being banished out of Rome and wandering in a Forrest that was full of wild and savage Beasts met a Lion that came fawning upon him and shewing unto him his Pawe that was wonderfully sore and swollen by reason of a thorn that was over-head got into it which the slave pulled out and so cured the poor distressed Lion who in requitall of that curtesy accompanied him out of the Forrest and kept him from the danger of all other Beasts and afterwards that Lion being taken and carried to Rome and the slave some certain years after returning to Rome was apprehended and adjudged to be throwen unto the Lions and being cast among the Lions his cured patient presently knew him and fawning upon him Gellius l. 5 c. 14. as congratulating their meeting he not only did him no hurt but also preserved him from all the rest that they durst not touch him and the reason being known the slave was pardoned and the people termed the Lion his host and him the Lion's Physitian And if brute and savage Beasts were thus gratefull for some small benefits what Beasts are they that will destroy their best benefactors and what words can be found fit to express this ingratitude that goeth beyond all other villanies For to murder a man is most odious as I shall anon shew unto you but to murder a King is far more abominable and such a King as is our Master and such a Master as useth us not like slaves but as our Saviour saith Hence forth I call you not servants but I have called you friends Joh. 15.15 like his companions is a sin most abominable and so far transcendent beyond my capacity to express it that as Valerius saith of Sejanus Valer. M. l. 9. c. 11. He is now in bell if the Devill will receive so vile a varlet and can find out torments sufficient for his deserts so will I say of Zimri and of all such servants as slay or betray their Masters I leave them seriously to consider what they have done and to abhorre themselves in dust and ashes or to expect that fearfull judgment that hangs over their head And I do exceedingly honor the honorable House of Commons and do most Highly commend the Votes and Orders that I understand they have made concerning those men that had any hand in the death of our late Pious Just and most Gratious King whereby they have shewed themselves to be most Religious towards God and most Loyall toward their King So I have done with the persons mentioned in this Text Elah and Zimri the Master and his servant 2. Two Things mentioned in Jezabels speech The things mentioned in this speech are these two 1. Murder 2. Peace 1. Murder the very worst of all human actions 2. Peace the very best of all worldly blessings And so here is Zimri's fact and Zimries punishment 1. His fact is the slaying of his Master which is Murder 2. His punishment is to be deprived of all Peace which is the greatest punishment of all plagues 1. For his fact which is murder before I speak thereof I shall humbly intreat your Honors and all the rest of these Christian auditors not to mistake my words or meaning in any Application thereof otherwise then I mean for in the prosecution of this point I purpose not to touch upon any of those that his Majesty hath most graciously pardoned by an act of Oblivion for all their former offences nor upon any of them that were slain in the war 2 Sam 11.25 when as David saith The sword devoureth one as well as another but my discourse shall reach no further then my Text goeth that is those that in cold blood shall maliciously persecute their neighbours unto death as Cain did his brother Abell and Joab Amasa and those that shall treacherously slay their Master as Zimri did his King and his Master Elah And those also that shall deliberately and judicially condemn an Innocent person unto death as the Judges of Jezreel did Naboth and the Jewish Sanhedrim condemned their King and our Saviour Christ And though the Prophet saith Consolamini populum meum and the sons of Consolation are commanded to bind up the broken hearted and to Preach the glad-tidings of the Gospell unto the penitent yet there must be Boanerges sons of Thunder to sound out the Alarme of Gods judgments against transcendent and impenitent malefactors and to lay the axe to the root of the Tree to cut down every tree that beareth not
straightly prohibite to be done is a disgracing of God himself and all the contempts done to this Image do presently redound to God that is represented without all question in this Image And the City of Thessalonica besides many others can well testifie how severely the Emperours punished the abusing of their Images when they deemed all the dishonour that was done against their Images to be Treasons against themselves 8. And lastly this killing of a man not only defaceth the Image of God but also robbeth God of his Temple which is Sacriledge and makes none account of but trampleth under feet that which God did so highly esteem and purchased at so high a rate as with his own blood And in a word it is so odious so haynous and so horrible a sin every way as it is impessible for me to expresse the vileness and the haynousnesse of this sin of Man-slaughter or the malicious killing of a man And therefore to shew how odious this sin is in the sight of God immediately after the Flood the great Commandment and the only Commandment that he gave to all the sons of Noah was to abstain from shedding of mans blood and he doth so pathetically and with such terrible threatnings expresse the punishment of the Transgressors saying Surely that you need not doubt it your blood of your lives will I require yea at the hand of every beast will I require it See Exod. 21.28 and though they be void of reason and understanding of what they do yet will I not hold them guiltless if they shed mans blood And therefore much rather and much sooner at the hand of man and at the hand of every mans brother Gen. 9.5 6. See Numb 35.31 33. Levit. 24.17 Math. 26.52 will I require the life of man and to that end he did appoint Kings that they should ordain Magistrates under them that whosoever sheddeth mans blood by man should his blood be shed And the reason why God is so severe against Man-slayers is here rendered for that in the Image of God made he man and so whosoever killeth a man except it be whom the Law killeth destroyeth the Image of God and God cannot endure to have his own lively Image which no painter but Himself hath made to be defaced And therefore in Numbers 35.31 the Lord saith Ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a Murderer which is guilty of death but he shall be surely put to death And the reason is rendered verse 33. And truly I do not find any sius I will not say that are irremissible but that are so difficult so hard and so seldom remitted as these two Videlicet 1. The abuse of God's Messengers and 2. The shedding of Innocent blood For Of the first it is said that when the Jews mocked the Messengers of God and despised his words and misused his Prophets 2 Chro. 36.16 the wrath of the Lord arose against his people until there was no remedy Of the second it is said 2 Kings 24.4 that the Lord sent Bands of the Chaldees to revenge the Innocent blood that Manasses had shed which the Lord would not pardon Also when God gave his Laws unto us on Mount Sinai the first Commandment of all that doth concern men after the duty that we owe to our Parents that bring us into the World and bring us up and feed us when we cannot feed our selves is Thou shalt not kill And truly in these respects I for my own part do so far hate the killing of any man except it be to save mine own life from him that would maliciously take it from me that I had rather do any servile work for a penny a day Greg. habetur 23. q. 8. si in mortem than receive the greatest Salary Honour and Preferment for killing of men And I think S. Gregory not far from my mind when he said Si in mortem Longobardorum me miscere voluissem hodie Longobardorum gens nec regem nec ducem baberet sed quia Deum timeo in mortem cujusâ—ibeâ— hominis me miscere formido For he that feareth God will be afraid to be the death of any man and will study by all means vacuas caedis habere manus Ovid. de arte l. 1. to keep his hands clean from blood And if it be so unnatural so unreasonable so devilish so beastly so haynous and every way so inexplicable and so detestable in the sight of God and all good men to kill and murder a man I would fain know what tongue what eloquence what Orator though he had the tongue of men and Angels can expresse the haynousness of a subject's killing his own King and a servant's killing his own kind and loving Master as Zimri did his King and his Master Elah 2 Sam. 18.3 and some others did such a King as was worth ten thousand of his subjects And therefore well and wisely might Jezabel demand Had Zimri peace that slew his Master But the wit of man is so crafty that it thinks to find a way to effect his own end and yet to evade the hand and escape the judgement of God when they keep their own hands free from blood but will notwithstanding prosecute the innocent person whom they hate either judicially as the Jews did Christ by their high court of Parliament that pronounced judgement against him for a malefactour which may and ought to be put to death by the Law of God or else secretly by others their assassins whom they procure to be their instruments to bring whom they hate to his untimely death either by poyson as Alexander was by Thessalus and Sir Thomas Overbury by Sir Jervase Eloway or by some other secret contrivance as King David plotted the death of Vrias and then as the Harlot commits Adultery and wipes her mouth and is clean so they will bring Christ and his servants to their death and then with Pilate they will wash their hands clean from their blood Truly methinks these are very fine shifts for murderers and malefactors to free themselves from blame if they could as well blind the eyes of the All-seeing God as they do many times deceive simple men that think those Judges to be just that have most unjustly beheaded innocencie it self And those murderers to be innocent that have killed their neighbors by the hands of their assassins But though Davids hands were far from that fact free from the blood of Vrias that was slain by the sword of the enemy yet God tels him he was the murderer his wit shall not serve his turn to wipe away his punishment though it was the High Court of Justice that condemned Naboth unto death yet the Prophet tells Ahab that God will condemn him and his posterity for it for as the devill saith S. Aug. is said to be a murderer non gladio armatus non ferro accinctus sed quia ad hominem veniendo verbum
all think that which is evil and all speak that which they think and finally where all men do what they list in such and so unfortunate a Realme where the people are so wicked let every good man beware that he be no inhabitant for in a short time there must happen there either the ire of the gods or the fury of men to the depopulation of the good or the destruction of the bad when as nothing can betide the people in such a Kingdom but Oppressions and Taxes murmurings distractions and dissentions until the fire be kindled among them to consume and to destroy one another But if the personal shedding of the innocent blood be thus haynous and so severely punished what shall we say to National shedding of such Blood as was shed in these Kingdoms that was so infinitely more abominable than the other But as Doctor Turner when he was terrae filius in the University said to his Opponent Thinkest thou with terrible words to terrifie terrible Turner So these monsters of men that dare to kill both Kings and their Masters and then to suppresse the good and to advance the wicked to silence the wise and to magnifie fools will say these things are but shadows and bug-bears to frighten Babes and poor-spirited men that have neither the courage of Heroicks nor the knowledge of Scriptures for they can tell us well enough that although some King-killers have been punished like Zimri for slaying their Masters yet à particulari non est syllogizari we must not conclude a General Rule from particular examples for Baasha slew his King and his Master Nadab and yet he reigned 24. years and died peaceably in his bed And Jehu killed Joram his King and his Master and yet he reigned 28. years and prospered and died peaceably in his bed And Menahem slew Shallum his King and reigned 10. years and died peaceably in his bed and so did many more that are recorded in prophane Authors and the ambitious hunters after Kingdoms perswade themselves that they may speed with the best and not perish with the worst fortune And so likewise those Common-wealths and Kingdoms that have killed their Kings which they conceived to be wicked In the third speech at the Conference of Parliament pag. 15. Eutrop. l. 1. did not only escape free from punishment but were prosperous and had good successe and were the instruments of much good unto the people As it fared with the Senate of Rome which as Halicar l. 1. saith killed and cut in pieces their King Romulus and afterwards expelled Tarquin and judicially sentenced Nâ—ro to death as some do write and is the onely sentence for death that I have read in any history though for deprivation not so which sentence notwithstanding was never executed yet was it decreed and as those and the like Senators do alleadge the Common-wealth prospered after it I answer that una hirundo non facit ver and though Balaams asse once spake shall we think that all other asses shall be able to speak So one or two examples in particular are of no force in the generall but the truth is that Gâ—ds judgements are unsearchable his wayes are in the Seas his paths in the great waters and his footsteps are not known yet this we may know for certain that although a sinner do evill an hundred times and God prolong his dayes yet it shall be well with them that fear the Lord but it shall not be well with the wicked neither shall he prolong his dayes but be shall be like a shadow because he feareth not before God and so the Prophet David testifieth at large and Job did the like before him And we may know also that although Jehu and some others that had speciall Commissions from God to fulfill his will prospered and escaped the hand of judgement for their zeal to Gods service and their repentance for their transgression Psal 37.9.10 yet is it a most certam truth that murderers King-killers and all other like wicked malefactors shall never escape unpunished and yet God doth not alwayes punish them in like manner Either in respect 1. Of the time or Either in respect 2. Of the punishment or Either in respect 3. Of the persons for 1. In respect of the time he reserveth the punishment of some though they be never so wicked for the next life and suffereth them to prosper all their dayes in this world as he did the rich glutton what evill soever he did and this both holy Job and the good King David do sufficiently prove and examples enough might be produced of most wicked tyrants and murderers and the like malefactors that escaped the hand of God in this life but how they escaped the next I cannot tell themselves by this time know and this future punishment is the heaviest punishment in the world and the prosperity of such malefactors is the worst and the unhappiest prosperity that can be Others he punisheth in this life and yet those not all alike in respect of the time of their punishment but some presently as Achan Cosbi Corah Dathan and Abiram Nadah and Abihu Ananias and Saphira and the like others have some time given them to see if in that time they will confesse their sinnes repent them of their wickednesse amend their lives and make satisfaction to the parties wronged Zimri 7. dayes so Zimri had 7. days given him before he was punished Shallum that slew Zacharia had one month given him Otho that caused Galba to be slain had leave to reign four months before he suffered for his murder Otho 4. months Vitel. 8. mon. Phil. Arabs 5. years Decius 2. years Niceph. l. 18. c 58. Phocas 8. years 2 Kings 15. Peka 20. years and Vitellius that was the destruction of Otho had 8 months before Vespasian brought him to death Philip Arabs that slew young Gordian had 5. years given him before Decius revenged the death of Gordian and Decius that was the death of Philip raigned 2. yeares before he was punished for the death of Philip Phocas had 8. years after he killed his Master Mauricius before he had his punishment and Peka raigned 2. years after he killed Pekahiah before Hoshea revenged the death of Pekahiah so the Prophet tells the Nintvites they should have 40. days before they should be destroyed the children of Israel 40. years in the wilderness and Jerusalem was not destroyed in 40 years after they had crucified Christ the Son bearing with them just so long as his Father bore with them in the wilderness the old world had 120 yeares given them to repent before they were destroyed and the wickednesse of the Amorites remained well-nigh 400. years before it was revenged having continued from the wandring of the Israelites in the wildernesse even till the dayes of King Saul And therefore let no man wonder that we see not adulteries oppressions and murders presently punished neither should we think that because
barbarous Heathens And therefore no doubt but these Jews and these Gentiles shall rise in judgement and condemn our most wicked and rebellious generation But you will say What if my King seek to kill me for so now the Rebels have ascended to that height of impiety that they are not ashamed thus slanderovsly to taxe him and most falsely to accuse him Doth not nature it self teach me that common principle vim vi pellere and rather kill him than suffer my self to be killed To resolve this Question I demand of thee What if thy father seek to kill thee Mayest thou rather kill him than be killed First thou must know That the father next under God is the cause of the very Being 2 The sons obligation to his father is more than ever he can do to requite it and the giver of the life of his son so is not the son of the father 2. The father as I proved upon the 5th Commandment had under the Law of Nature and for many years after Moses potestatem vitae necis the power of life and death over all his children and the children unlesse they grew very ungracious and more than unnatural never durst resist them otherwise when God commanded Abraham Gen. 22.2 to offer up Isaac for a burnt-offering he might have answered First that he had no right to do it Secondly that he was old and feeble and the Lad was young and lusty as you see he was better able to carry the wood upon his shoulders than his father and therefore he might fear his son would be his death if he went about to sacrifice him But Abraham knew that his son was better taught and that nature shewed him The child should not with cursed Cham despise his father no not in his sin much lesse to resist him in his right And yet the King to whom the Paternal-right is transferred is more than any private Father for he is the publique Father of us all under whom we we may lead a quiet and a peaceable life in all godlinesse and honesty 1 Tim. 2.2 as the Apostle speaketh and without whom we can have neither our Estates enjoyed nor our Persons secured from the violence of the strongest but that every one shall be exposed to the will of him that can master him which was the case of the Jewes when there was no King in Israel and will be little better with us if God doth not preserve our King And therefore men though they may flee with David to preserve their lives yet ought not to offer violence unto their King though he should prove as wicked as Saul was to David without cause to seek to take away their lives then certainly most wicked are those men that rebell and fight against a good King that expendeth his own fortunes and exposeth his own life to preserve the Estates and Lives of all his loyall subjects but to proceed 3. The last branch of that honour which I said was due unto our King 3 To assist our King is aid and assistance in all his urgent necessities which aid we all confesse to be due and yet few of us will believe or can endure scarce to hear the truth how far this aid is to be extended How far the aid that we owe unto our King extendeth I must tell you what the Scripture saith that it comprehendeth 1. Our Estates For 2. Our Persons For 1. He that bids us render unto God what is Gods 1 To the uttermost of our abilities bids us also render unto Caesar what is Caesars and S. Paul tells you that this tribute is due unto him Indeed when there is no urgent necessity it is a great deal seemlier for the Majesty of a King as Artax said to give then to take by pulling from his subjects and it is a golden Apothegm of King James unto his Son where he saith Enrich not your self with exactions from your Subjects but think the riches of your Subjects your best treasure And so it is generally conceived that whosoever in the time of peace overchargeth his subjects with taxations either for his own Luxury or to enrich his Favourites is very unwise because he that ruleth over men must be just 2 Sam. 23.3 ruling in the fear of God and Justice tells us he must take nothing from any man but when necessity requireth And then the ordinary glosse and Mr. Calvin also saith Neque nostrum est vel principibus praescribere quantum in res singulas impendant vel eos ad calculum vocare It is neither our part to prescribe how much they shall expend nor to call them to an account for their expences that account must be given to a higher Judge But we read that when Saul was annointed to be King over Israel Samuel told him he should come to the Plain of Tabor and there should meet him three men going up to God to Bethel one carrying three kids another carrying three loaves of bread and another carrying a bottle of wine and they should salute him and give him two loaves of bread which he should receive of their hands which thing wanted not a mystery but was an embleme as Divines make it of the right of Kings in their necessities The mystery of the gift of the men that met Saul unfolded two parts of three which was a very great proportion and yet we find that divers of the heathens went much further when after the coronation of their Kings most of his subjects especially the Nobility and those of any Fortunes presented unto him a Purse with a key hanging thereat by which Hierogly phick they shewed that all their treasure was submitted to his necessities he might unlock their Store-horse and put into his Purse What the heathens did give unto their Kings whatever pleased him because they conceived it right that he which protected all should have the use of any part of all when his necessity did require it and seeing they were bound to expose their persons for him they saw no reason they should detain their estates from him because my life should be dearer unto me then all my wealth And if our King had such subjects as these Heathens I think he needed not to have wanted to supply his necessities But our Kings are not like Augustus that taxed all the world as much as he pleased nor like Charles the fifth Qui immania tributa populis imperavit as Oscrius writeth nor like the Eastern Kings that impose upon their subjects what they will but of their speciall grace and favour have granted such priviledges and made such concessions limitations and pactions with their subjects as cannot be discussed or expressed within my limited time to set down how far and to shew how well or ill they were concluded and therefore all that I shall say herein is this that we ought to consider how far God requireth us to assist our King and take heed
prophane all Holy-daies even those that are set apart for the Commemoration of the blessed Birth Circumcision and Ascension of our only Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ and all other days that the former Saints and the whole Church of Christ had appointed for the children of God to meet to give thanks to God for the great blessings that all we had received from him I demand of any man even themselves being Judges if it be not very just that they should be plundred and pressed and even lose their livings which have so unjustly and so perfidiously done those things in hope to retain their livings for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Non te latuerit O supreme Jupiter horum malorum quisquis autor extitit The Heathen man can tell us God will not be mocked neither can we blinde the all-seeing eyes of God nor hide our selves out of his sight when we do commit such evils and Christ tells us plainly he that saveth his life shall lose it and he that loseth his life for his sake shall finde it And were the Martyrs so ready to lose their lives for his sake and shall we be so unwilling to forgo a little worldly pelf and some small living for his sake that tells us plainly whatsoever we give or lose for his sake we shall be required an hundred-fold and shall receive eternal life Let them therefore that will if not out of faction or ignorance but for the love of their livings reject our inoffensive and divine Liturgy that is so conducing to peace and good order so little obnoxious to any just exception and so exceeding profitable for the instruction of the people for mine own part I know it to be the true service of the true God and the best way that I know to serve God and therefore by God's help I will never omit it nor be guided by their directory for all the livings that they could or can heap upon me and I pray God it be not layd to their charge that to comply with the factious opposers of it or to retain their livings have done it to betray the service of God and to lay aside those heavenly prayers that were made by holy Saints and approved by all the best Doctours of the Church and appointed by authority to be used to help the devotion of God's people and in the stead thereof to authorise or at least by their example to encourage every Ignoramus to prate nonsence and sometimes to belch out blasphemies in his prayers to God and in the face of the Church without shame God forgive them Secondly For the lay-subjects of the King that have had their part in the miseries of these latter days The lay-subjects I speak onely of those that in their Consciences approved of their King's cause for his enemies their portion perhaps is yet unpaid I may divide them into two ranks just as were the followers of Gideon 1. Judges vii 7. Some were faint hearted and they were the greatest part and that by much 2. Others were very faithful and couragious but they were by far the smalest number not above 300. of 32000. so were the following subjects of King Charles First The faint-hearted Royalist the fainthearted subjects that loved the King and wished that he might prosper and prevail against his Adversaries but feared the powerful numerous multitude of the Parliament abettors that were very many and were just like the Inhabitants of Meroz that hated the Cananites but did nothing for the Israelites so did these nothing or so little as nothing for the King and for their fellow-subjects that were with him And yet the Scholes tell us and so do the Heathens also that Qui potest liberare alium non liberat occidit he that can deliver another that is from anundeserved death as in his Conscience he believeth is innocent and delivereth him not killeth him and is thereby guilty of his blood and the Canonists do say Scotus in sent dist 15. decret secunda parte c. usa 23. q. 3. Et Seneca passimâ— qui succurrere perituro potest cum non succurrâ—t occidit And Cicero saith Nâ—l habet fortuna majus quam ut possit nec nâ—turametius quaÌ„ ut velit servare Pro. xxiv 11 12. qui non repellit injuriam à Socio cùm potest tam est in vitio quam qui facit he that hindereth not an injury or a wrong that is done his fellow when it lyeth in his power to do it is as much in fault as he that doth the injury and Solomon saith If thou faint in the day of Adversity thy strength is smal and if thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death and those that are ready to be slain and sayest behold we knew it not doth not he that pondereth the heart consider it and he that keepeth thy Soul doth not he know it and shall not he render to every man according to his works and the Prophet David biddeth us to defend the Fatherless and the Widdows and to see that such as be oppressed have right which was the practice of Job as himself confesseth and of Moses also when he killed the Aegyptian to deliver the oppressed Israelite out of his hands and the Poet that knew no more then what the dim Light of Nature shewed him saith Turpe erit in miseris veteri tibi rebus amico Auxilium nulla parte tulisse tuum Ovid. lib. 2. De Ponto It is a foul shame for any man to leave an old friend in distress and not to further him with his aid and assistance And if men are thus obliged to assist their Neighbours and their Friends A shameful thing to neglect our Friends in Adversity when they are wronged how much more are they bound to aid and to defend their King when they see him wronged and sought to be murdered or dethroned for these men had sworn Allegiance and fidelity to their King at divers times and many of them if not most of them had their places and offices at least their Protection formerly from him and passing over those that were furthest from my knowledge and to speak of them quorum pars magna fui mine own Country men and Kinsmen with some great I know not how good men had like Aeneas and Vcalegon invited the wily Greeks to enter Troy and to come into our Coasts the chiefest Gentry were all moved and perswaded to swear and to take an Oath so well deviced and penned as the best and most learned Divines in all those parts could do it to be true and faithful unto their King and to the uttermost of their power with the hazard of their lives and the expence of their goods and fortunes to oppose all those Adversaries The inconstancy of many men that then opposed him and the chiefest of them by name And yet behold the Constancy and the Faithfulness of these good Subjects how good Christians I know not before one drop of their blood