Selected quad for the lemma: justice_n
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A39921
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Primitiae regiminis Davidici, or, The first fruits of Davids government vowed to God before, and offered at his actual admission thereunto / represented in a sermon at the assises held at Reading for the county of Berks, Feb. 28, 1653 by Simon Ford.
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Ford, Simon, 1619?-1699.
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1654
(1654)
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Wing F1496; ESTC R26139
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19,580
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42
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Primitiae Regiminis Davidici OR THE FIRST-FRUITS OF DAVIDS GOVERNMENT Vowed to God before and offered at his actual admission thereunto REPRESENTED In a Sermon at the Assises held at Reading for the County of Berks Feb. 28. 1653. By Simen Ford B. D. and Pastour of the Congregation at St. Laurence Church in the said Town Published At the joint desire of the High Sheriff and Justices of Peace for the said County which with some mis-reports since blown about concerning it and the Author inclined him to give way thereunto LONDON Printed by S. G. for John Rothwel at the Fountain and Bear in Gold-smiths Row in Cheap-side 1654. TO THE HONOURABLE Judge Atkins one of the Justices of the Common-Plea's as also to the right Worshipfull William Backhouse of Swallowfield Esq High Sheriffe of the County of Berks together with the right Worshipfull the Gentry both of and out of the Commission for the Peace of the said County and principally to those at whose request this Sermon was made publique My Lord and Gentlemen THis Sermon having adventured it self upon the hazardous Tryal of God and the Bench was adjudged to the Press when its Author was not by to plead on his own behalf who surely had he been privy to the Judgement which was onely reported to him by some few of the number would have intreated the Gentlemen not to adventure the reputation of their discretions upon a piece too unworthy the notice of such an Honourable Judicature I confesse I looke upon the comming under the Stationers Presse in these dayes as a punishment to a Sermon no lesse in its kind then that of the same denomination which you in some cases inflict upon offendors seeing it is thereby exposed to the weight of publique calumnies and reproaches of which I am sure mine shall not want its sufficient load The onely remedy I have herein is once more to present its case before you its Judges which I doe in this Dedication and to intreat you that the Grand-Inquest you impannell to enquire concerning it may be so wise as to understand the evidence of Truth that is in it and so honest as not to returne an Ignoramus for Billa vera Surely My Lord and Gentlemen you that are sufficiently acquainted with the Yerburies Chillendens Ives's and others of an inferiour Order whom it would be too much honor to name seeds-men of the Devil with whom this poore Town hath beene perpetually pestered and poysoned will I doubt not see cause for that tartnesse of application in the close for which I have been sufficiently persecuted by the tongues of those who found their backs too tender to be rubbed Those mens names and some of the Errors and Heresies they vented I represented to your last Grand-Jury and hoped they also would have seen cause either to have reported them to your Lordship and the Bench or at least not to have misreported me as some of them did to others as unable to justifie my charge My Lord and Gentlemen I commit the Vindication of my name and of this Truth first to God who I am sufficiently assured will bring forth its righteousness as the light and among men to your wiser and more impartiall judgements hoping that you will as farre as it concernes you impresse the substance of it upon your Consciences and walkings And I pray that that Edition may be correctior emendatior more perfect then the Originall Copy it self that you may live Sermons better then I can Preach or print them And upon that account I will preach and print as often as you please upon other terms I care not how seldome And this because I am Reading May 24. 1654. My Lord and Gentlemen Your most zealously affectionate well-wisher and upon that account servant in the Gospel SIMON FORD A SERMON Preached at the Assises holden for the County of Berks at Reading Feb. 28. 1653. Mr. William Backbouse of Swallowfield SHERIFFE PSAL. 75. 4 5 6 7. I said or rather I will say to the fools deal not foolishly and to the wicked lift not up the horn v. 4. Lift not up your horn on high speak not with a stiffe neck v. 5. For promotion cometh neither from the East nor from the West nor from the South v. 6. But God is the Judge he putteth down one and setteth up another v. 7. THis Psalm is a good Magistrates Directory because it is the Copy of that Kings heart who was a man after Gods own heart David at the time of the writing hereof is by most sound Interpreters supposed to have been in that Morning-Twilight of Royalty a midling condition between a King and no King which you have described 2 Sam. 2 and 3 Chapters Ishobsheth the son and heir of Saul the late King was yet strugling for ten parts in twelve of the whole Kingdome 'T was an hot dispute of two years continuance But at last Davids house grows stronger and stronger and Ishbosheths weaker and weaker chap. 3. 1. This day-star of approaching Royalty being thus got above the Horizon and fore-telling the nearness of the Sun to dispel the mists of his long doubts and fears it is supposed sets Davids harp and heart in tune and thereupon he takes occasion to testifie his thankfulness in this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or triumphant thankful Ode His thankfulness is partly Verbal in the acknowledgement of Gods faithfulness in so near an issue of an expected mercy for this he means by the nearness of Gods name v. 1. and of his Soveraign Power and Justice in the way wherein he accomplished it v. 7 8 9. And partly Real in the resolvedness of his heart to repair the breaches and ruines of Sauls dissolute Government The whole State both Ecclesiastical 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Dissolutus liquefactus fuit and Civil was like a melted Vessel run into a lump of confusion and disorder for that is the Original emphasis of that phrase The earth and all the inhabitants thereof are dissolved v. 3. And there was no hope that ever it would be a Vessel for honour or use any more except a skilful Founder undertook to new cast it Such an one was David and that he might give assurance of his undertaking he before-hand declares the mould or model unto which he will reduce it 1. He will first cement the broken pieces of the old frames viz. Religion Law and Justice which are the pillars of all Government 2. He will secure those pillars from the insolent petulancy of bold and presumptuous offenders by a severe execution of the utmost severity and rigour of divine and humane Laws upon them And both these he will do upon the consideration of his conscientious obligation thereunto and that upon this account because all his power is confessedly subordinate to Gods which is the sum of my Text and the following verse I will say for so I read it with Paraeus and Musculus unto the fools deal not so foolishly c.
God would take away his Vineyard from them and let it out to other Luk. 20. 16. husbandmen God forbid And for my part I heartily joyn with you in that prayer so Gods Honour and his Truth may be saved otherwise let all the Titles in the world go for me Better the pride of mans glory should be stained then God any way disparaged For a remedy of these evils I beseech you Sirs let my counsel be accepted of you For Gods sake and your own and your posterities sake Get the true knowledge and the fear of God into your Families do not maintaine a company of Ruffians Drunkards Swearers and unclean wretches in your Livery use them to Reading Prayer Repetition of Sermons those contemned exercises of true and real godlinesse ride abroad and encourage honest Lectures and bring your Tenants in by your example who seldome goe to Heaven or Hell but as their Landlords lead them Get Bibles and Catechismes and Books of Practical Divinity as Perkins Preston Reynolds Sibs Bolton Greenham c. into your houses in stead of Cards and Dice and Tables restore if it be to be known what sacrilegious bits any of your Ancestours have devoured give more to a godly Minister to maintain him then to a drunken Huntsman or Falconer let not the Gospel be cheaper to you then your pleasures Think not less Religion will carry a Gentleman to Heaven then a poore labourer Nay I tell you he had need of more if Christ may be believed Mat. 19. 24. If I am plainer with you then you desire I pray forgive me this wrong seeing I do it for your good My Apology for it is that of Salust when he hadript open the vices of his times Bonum nulla oratio laedere potest quippe vera necesse est bene praedicet Salust Bell. Jugurth falsam illius vita moresque facile superant And now the Publique solemnity of this dayes meeting calls for some particular addresses to those for whose sake I was called hither And they shall be very brief because I am loath to be your hinderance from your publick businesses And first of all my businesse is to you My Judge Atkins Lord concerning whom though I am a stranger to your face and acquaintance yet the reputation you have among good men where you are most known emboldens me to say as the Apostle Paul in another case concerning the Coriuthians that your forwardnesse of minde is such that it is something superfluous for me to exhort you and let 2 Cor. 9. 1. me adde from him also thus much that I hope you will shew the proofe of your love to Religion and Justice and of our boasting on your behalfe 2 Cor. 8. ult Onely I beseech you to give me leave faithfully to represent to you the state of the County you have now to doe withall that so your forward minde may have sufficient matter to worke upon And first of all my Lord as to Religion I know not what we are I am sure very few of us are what we should bee But for this little Town where your present imployment lies I speake my thoughts freely without spleen or passion that I verily perswade my selfe if all Augustines and Epiphanius's Catalogues of Heresies were lost and all other ancient and moderne Records in that kinde yet it were no hard matter to restore them with considerable enlargements from hence We have Anabaptisme Familisme Socinianisme Pelagianisme Raunting and what not and the Devil is served in Heterodoxe Assemblies as frequentlyas God in ours * Concerning whom there will ere long be a publique account given upon the evidence of snndry Oaths as to both parts of this Charge and that in print by a faithfull hand There is one of the most eminent Church-Livings in this County possessed by a blasphemer and one in whose house I beleeve some here can testifie the Devil is visibly as familiar as any one of the family And shall tne horns of these beasts never be pared off by the Civill Magistrate My Lord I beseech you act I know you will to the uttermost of your power to restraine these unruly beasts and where you want power represent that want to those that can bestow it and I hope by this time they see need enough to do so themselves As for Civill Affaires we have blessed bee God some among us that would be zealous and faithfull in the Offices they are intrusted withal if they might be borne out in so doing Wee had the last yeare a few active Officers and no lesse then three or foure vexatious suits and some of them it may be may come before your Lordship this Assises commenced against them by notorious offenders for pretended irregularity in some circumstances My Lord you have one suite before you at the least from the issue whereof the whole County will collect whether they may dare to doe Justice or no. Surely if Humane Law-givers bee like the Divine no man should bee punished for too much zeale in the execution of the Law My Lord Drunkennesse is growne more impudent 1. Thess 5. 7. among us then it was in Saint Pauls time And our Officers dare not meddle with a Gentleman Drunkard for feare of an Action of Battery And for Sabbath-breakers would God we had Magistrates among us of Nebemiabs temper that would contend with them lay bands upon them too I am in hope a word from your Lordship Neh. 13. 11 17 25 would doe much towards the execution of those Acts and Ordinances that concern that businesse Here be insolent Robbers about the Countrey almost every where scarce a Gentlemans or other able mans house round about this Town but hath been assaulted or threatned at least and 't is said there is a Corporation of them I hope Justice will make some of them free of the Hang-mans Corporation for a terror to others As for you Gentlemen that are of the Commission of the peace I doe somewhat please my selfe that I can now call the most of you confidently by that name We were like to have had not long since a Linsey-wolsey Heterogeneous Beneh such as the Medley Constitiution of those times would allow And indeed it was not to be expected but that those that endeavoured the extrination of the Ministery to set up Jeroboams Priests should discard the Gentry and fill their seats with John of Leydons Dukes both of the same stuffe the meanest of the people Though I would not hereby disparage those whose knowne worth makes them esteemed in the Countrey who have the thing which first gave Nobility and are as fit to begin a line of Honour to be continued to their posterity as those from whom our present Gentry descend But I conceive that such mixtures except very sparingly made and that upon weighty considerations much prejudice the esteeme of Authority to the people I beseech you honoured Sirs do not think it enough to appeare upon the