A TREATISE OF CHRISTIAN BENEFICENCE AND OF THAT LIKE CHRISTIAN THANKEfulnesse which is due to the same The which as they are duties of singugular account with God so are they of as necessarie vse to all Christians for the keeping of faith and a good conscience as are fire and water for common vse and comfort to the naturall life of all men Honour the Lord with thy riches and with the first fruits or chiefe of all thine increase Pro. 3.9 Go ye and learne what this is I will haue mercie and not sacrifice Matth. 9.13 A man that hath friends ought to shew himselfe friendly for a friend is nearer than a brother Pro 18.24 He that rewardeth euill for good euill shall not depart from his house Pro. 17.13 Printed at London by Iohn Harison for Thomas Man 1600. TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE SIR IOHN POPHAM Knight Lord chiefe Iustice of England one of her Maiesties most honourable priuie Counsell AMong the rest of the most holy and wise Prouerbes of king Salomon who both for godly policie and also for purity of Religion may worthily be esteemed the wisest of all kings all the time of his vprightnesse and sinceritie these sentences Right Honorable are expresly commeÌ„ded by the most holy Spirit of wisedome it selfe to belong to the wise yea euen to those who ought to be most wise aboue all other to wit the Princes Iudges and Rulers of the people of God It is not good saith the wise king to regard the face that is the person of any man in iudgement The reasons follow Him that saith to the wicked Thou art righteous shall the people curse yea multitudes shall abhorre him But to them that rebuke him shall be pleasure and vpon them shall come the blessing of euery goodman They that is euery good man shall kisse the lippes of him that answereth vpright words Prou. ch 24 ver 23.24.25.26 The which SenteÌ„ces do briefly very pithily giue to vnderstand these two things first how great vprightnes ought to be in all Princes Iudges and Rulers to the end they may iudge righteous iudgement secondly how great the blessing is which by the sentence of God himself doth belong to all such namely that they shall be a ioy to the people of God that the people again shal reuerence theÌ„ that God wil heare their prayers for theÌ„ They shew also herewithal that on the contrarie such as take an vniust course haue reproch and dishonour yea vengeance due vnto them So gratiously is the God of righteousnesse inclined and bent toward his righteous seruants and so wrathfully is he setled in his iudgement and decree against the rest But leauing to treate of the dutie of the Magistrate and Gouernour which is not the present purpose may it please your Honour to giue one poore Minister of the word of God in the name of manie who by the grace of God haue care of our own bounden dutie your fauorable good leaue in regarde of the premises to testifie that great ioy which we haue by you and that reuerend estimation which we haue of you with harty desire of all increase of Gods best graces and blessings vpon you the rest of our good Gouernours vnder her Highnesse because of that care of vprightnesse of iudgement wherewith God of his mercie hath honoured and graced you in the sight of vs all to the sensible and publike benefite of all seeing as it is euident from the holy sentences before rehearsed it is the will and pleasure of God that we of dutie should so do And the rather also because we perceiue that mercie is linked with iustice in your gratious and currant proceedings the which we know from the booke of God to be effectuall to helpe singularly to the establishing of the honour peace of the throne of our most gracious Queene Elizabeth whose royall souereigntie through her whole dominions we humbly beseech God of his infinite mercy euen for Iesus Christs sake long and happily to continue and aduance among vs. Amen Such right Honorable our very good Lord is the generall purpose of the present writing but yet so as the more particular intent is to testifie the late increase of our ioy reuerend estimation humble prayer with hartie thanksgiuing to God for you all other our good godly Gouernors vnder her Maiestie as also the increrase of our huÌ„ble harty thankfulnes to you and theÌ„ and to her gratious Maiestie especially euen for the late point of so great mercifull iustice which you haue established and put in execution among vs to the singular glorie of God honor of your gouernment and comfort of all well-disposed subiects in that you haue suppressed the vagabond life of a most wicked and vnprofitable yea a most dangerous and harmeful sort of people the which being of too ancient breede among vs were of late yeeres so mightily increased that by their licencious and vniust yea verie sturdy and shamelesse vagring and begging all mercie of almes-giuing was so violently catched vp and deuoured at euery rich mans gate and also at euery meane mans doore that mercie was degenerated to the cruell and wastfull feeding and fostering of such an idle and wicked rout as by the rule of the holy Apostle were altogether vnworthy of any almes in so much as they were such as vtterly refused to work And be sides in vaine confidence and proud presumption of an imagined prescription of time at the first mention of their restraint they feared not at our dores to speake contemptuously and skornfully of so holy a purpose as if it had bene an impossible thing that rogues shold haue abiding places and that beggers should liue of their labours But thankes be to God to her Maiesty and to you this excellent point of mercifull iustice was no sooner aduanced and authorised by gratious Statute wisely penned and enacted by high Court of Parliament to the same effect and purpose but it hath so prosperously and with so speedie successe preuailed that God hath to the great comfort of all that loue true iudgement mercie shewed euidently that his good hand went with the execution of it as no doubt his good Spirit was formerly president in that holy consultation and aduise which was taken about it The which one Act right Honorable how many good acts it hath wrought highly to the honour of God and her Maiestie and the whole gouernment and also how good coÌ„modious it is to the publike weale of the whole natioÌ„ a long narration would hardly suffice worthily to declare O how much filthinesse of adulterie and fornication of the vagabonds themselues is hereby cut off which was wont in more then brutish maner to be practised in all places of their confused lodging together at euery Faire and market through the land after they had filled themseâ—ues with the fattest of the rost and drunke themselues drunken with the strongest of the Beere that their Hostesse could
vnmercifull sonne Shallum Shalt thou reigne saith the Lord by his Prophete because thou closest thy selfe in Cedar Did not thy father eate and drinke and prosper when he executed iudgement and iustice When he iudged the cause of the afflicted and poore he prospered was not this because he knew me saith the Lord And so the holy Prouerbe teacheth chapter 20.28 concerning euerie good king Mercie and truth preserue the King for his throne is established by mercie And therefore when the Lord speaketh of the most blessed king and of the most happie and stable kingdome that may be he describeth it to be such a kingdome whereof the king should be most mercifull to the poore and needy and that hee should preserue their soules c. This kingdome most happie and flourishing is onely the kingdome of our Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ Psalme 72. verses 12.13.14 Thus we haue two examples out of the olde Tement Now one or two out of the new Testament and so will we draw to an end of this chapter In the beginning of the 10. chapter of the Actes of the holy Apostles the Euangelist Luke reporteth that the Angell of the Lord is from heauen a witnesse to Cornelius a religious and mercifull Captaine that his prayer and almes were come vp into remembrance before God and that therefore it pleased God to grant him the desire of his soule that he might be more perfectly instructed and confirmed in the Christian knowledge and faith of his saluation and the Angell telleth Cornelius further that God had for the same purpose appointed Peter who at that time lodged with one Simon a Tanner dwelling by the sea side in Ioppa that he should bee the Apostle and Minister of God to teach and instruct him and therefore willeth him to send thither for Peter All which came gratiously to passe according vnto the message of the holy Angell And it was doubtlesse a greater mercie and blessing to Cornelius and his familie and manie other of his kinsmen and speciall friendes then if hee could by any couetous pinching and sparing haue increased his worldly riches by manie thousandes yea greater then if by anie warlike valour and outward force hee could with with a few men haue conquered the whole world to himselfe Finallie that God might leaue to all posteritie a most memorable demonstration howe well pleasing to his Maiestie the sacrifice of beneficence and mercie is it hath pleased him that by the ministerie of the Apostle Peter euen now mentioned one Dorcas a Christian woman of singular mercie and liberalitie to poore Saintes should at the lamentation of manie Christians both widdowes and other who mourned for the losse of her bee miraculously raised vp from death to life Act. chap. 9. verse 36. c. God thereby giuing all to vnderstand both howe pretious his poore beleeuers and Christians are vnto him in that rather then they should be fosterlesse he will raise mercifull men and women out of the graue and also how deare they are vnto him who relieue such as hee maketh so speciall account of For they are the heires of the resurrection of the righteous to euerlasting life and happinesse in the kingdome of heauen Thus then euen by a fewe examples as by two or three witnesses which especially on the Lords behalfe may suffice for the establishing of any truth it may be euident vnto vs as the cause by the effect that the promises of God made to assure all mercifull men and women of his great fauour and blessing are not giuen forth in vaine So that as it is sayd of the vpright and righteous man Psalme 37. verse 37. Marke the vpright man and behold the iust for the end of that man is peace we may boldly affirme the same of the mercifull man For the vpright and iust man and the right mercifull man is all one as is euident in the whole tenure of the same Psalme God no doubt who moued king Dauid to remember to shewe kindenes to the sonne of Ionathan for that kindnes which Ionathan had in former times shewed vnto him For therefore did King Dauid allowe Mephibosheth the sonne of Ionathan alwayes to eate breade at his owne table as if he had bene one of the kinges owne sonnes 2. Sam. ch 9. The same God who worketh the same affection vsuallie in the heartes of all his good seruantes as we shall haue further occasion to declare in the second part of this Treatise yea that God who oftentimes turneth the heartes euen of verie wicked and cruell men to shewe kindenes to his children as the Egyptians to the Israelites and Esau to Iaakob c. He himselfe I say will much lesse forget them that be kinde to anie of his for that loue which they beare vnto him For as God is infinitelie more gratious mercifull and bounteous then man can bee so hath he by infinite degrees a more perfect remembrance to requite all kindenesses then they can possibly haue And as hee hath a most perfect remembrance infinitelie aboue man so also is hee most able aboue man to recompence all kindenesse in that hee is the Almightie and likewise most willing aboue man seeing hee is the most mercifull aboue all as was said euen now That God is thus most willing we reade 2. Cor. ch 9.10 He that findeth seed to the sower saith S. Paul wil minister likewise bread for food multiply your seed increse the fruits of your beneuolence That on all parts ye may be made rich to all liberalitie c. That God is likewise most able look back to the 8. verse of the same chap. God is able saith the same Apostle to make all grace to abound toward euery free-hearted and chearefull giuer for of such he there writeth And that God is not forgetfull we haue seene before from the 10. verse of the 6. chap. of the epistle to the Hebrewes Where it is worthy to be diligently noted of vs that God accounteth it a part of his righteousnesse to haue the worke and labour of the loue of his good beneficiall seruants in gratious remembrance For God is not vnrighteous saith the Apostle that he should forget c. Wherefore we may be euen as sure certaine that God wil not forget vs as we are sure that he neither is nor can be in any thing vniust Let vs not therefore as the same Apostle exhorteth chap. 10.35 cast away our confidence in this behalfe which vndoubtedly hath great recompence of reward Though man should forget those that haue deserued well of them Yea though as it doth not seldom fall out that man requiteth good with euill as Psal 38.20 They that reward euill for good as the holie Prophet complaineth are mine aduersaries because I follow goodnesse Yet God will at no hand deale so but though we can claime nothing by desert from him but we are to account our selues vnprofitable seruants as touching any benefite which we yeelde vnto him yet through his
him great giftes if he could interpret the writing that appeared vnto him Keepe thy rewards to thy selfe saith Daniel and giue thy giftes to another Neuerthelesse he read the writing and shewed the interpretation thereof to the King The Prophet Samuel beeing a Iudge in Israel may worthily be a notable example to all both magistrates in ciuill iustice and also to ministers of the word of God For he hauing the grace we speake of hath obtained this testimonie from the holy Ghost that he tooke no bribe or corrupting gift at any mans hande 1. Sam. 12.13 c. Behold here I am saith Samuel in his Apologie or in way of renderring vp an accounte of his office of Iudge-shippe beare ye record of me before the Lord and before his annointed Whose oxe haue I taken or whose asse haue I taken or whom haue I done wrong vnto or whom haue I hurt or of whose hand haue I receiued any bribe to blinde mine eyes therewith and I will restore it you Then they sayde thou hast done vs no wrong neyther hast thou hurte vs neyther hast thou taken ought of anie mans hande And he saide the Lord is witnesse against yee and his annointed is witnes this daie he speaketh of Saul whoÌ„ the people had made king ouer theÌ„ that ye haue fouÌ„d nought in my hands they answered he is wâ—nes But why may some say is Samuel thus earnest in his owne defence verily not in desire of any prayse to himselfe but that he might cause it to be esteemed a matter of great respect that the publike Magistrate should b◠〈◊〉 himselfe 〈…〉 corruptly in the discharge of his duty before the Lord and towarde his people as also that he might let the people see their sinne in casting off him from the rule and gouernement of them without cause on his part yea contrarie to that vprightnesse and fidelitie which he had vse â—â—oward them as appeareth in the faâ—â—â— 1â—â—hâ—â— q. 18. 19. And according to that which God himselfe 〈◊〉 spoken before ch 8.7 They haue not cast thee away but they haue cast me away that I should not reigne ouer them Thus therefore Samuel resigned his office of Iudge-shippe though he â—â—â—â—seth not to be a Prophet to the people For for it followeth vpon the request which the people make that he would pray for them ch 12. verse 23. God forbid that I should sinne against the Lord and cease praying for you but I will shew you the good and right way The like protestation vseth Moses Num. ch 16.15 A Gift must be receiued reuerendlie though not so largly laied forth but somewhat more directly vnto God I haue not taken saith Moses to the Lord so much as an asse from them neither haue I hurt any of theÌ„ Hetherto of the first grace necessarie concerning the receiuing of a gift From whence easilie may it appeare that the generall exhortation of the Apostle is to great purpose Heb. 13.5.6 in that he thus writeth to all Christans Let your conuersation be without couetousnes and be ye content with those thinges which ye haue for he that is God hath said I will not leaue thee neither forsake thee So that we may boldly say the Lord is my helper neither will I feare what man can doe vnto me Of like sorte is the counsell of King Salomon Prou. 23.6 Eate thou not the bread of him that hath an euill eye And the prayer of King Dauid his father Psal 141. Let me not eate of the delicates of the wicked c. The next grace and vertue requisite to the Christan receiuing of such giftes and benefites as may lawfully expediently be receiued for necessarie reliefe and comfort it is Reuerence For they must be receiued not simple as from men but with a reuerent regard of Gods spiciall goodnes in mouing the heartes of his good seruantes and deare children by his holy spirit to haue so louing and tender a care ouer vs. Yea it is the part of all such as are succoured this way so to consider of Gods owne goodnes herein that they may humblie acknowledge themselues vnworthy of so greate a grace and fauour according to the example of Iaakob Gen. 32.10 who saith vnto God I am lesse then any of thy benefites And as King Dauid saith 2. Sam. 7.18 Who am I ô Lord God and what is my house that thou hast brought me hetherto c. Such humility I say ought to be in those that are succoured by the honorable instrumentes of Gods bounteous goodnes and mercie It is verilie specially in times of great distresse no lesse to be esteemed then if God should cause the cloudes of heauen to raine downe Manna as he did for the reliefe of the Israelites according to that comparison which the Apostle Paul maketh in the same respect A Gift is to be receiued reuerendlie 2. Cor. 8.15 And the rather is this estimation to be made of it if such be in any singular manner beneficiall to any who were before strangers to their benefactors and had performed no dutie whereby they might be induced therunto Finally to make this point of reuerend receiuing of benefites more familiar and plaine this we say that the reuerence which is due to benefactors is such a reuerence as belongeth from dutifull children to their louing and kind parents For in so much as they doe the part of parentes to so manie as they doe relieue and cherish it is good reason that these againe should yeeld a childlike duetie and honour vnto them according to the 5. commandement of almightie God Honour thy father and thy mother c. And thus we haue a good occasion after this mention of honour to proceed to speake in the third place of thankfulnesse seeing this beeing the third grace requisite to to the Christian receiuing of giftes is also a fruite of that honourable reuerend account which ought to be made of all good and beneficiall Patrons and friends Of the which dutie it behoueth euery one whom it concerneth to be the more carefull because it is the preseruatiue or rather a certaine seed for multiplication of benefites For to such as shall be found truly thankfull and walke in good dutie the Lord will continue the beneficence of his seruantes yea he will amplifie and inlarge them so farre as he knoweth to be meete and expedient for any of his obedient children But it may be here obiected that we must on all hands giue all our thanks vnto God seeing all good things come of his bountie alone and he requireth it also as a spiciall dutie of his worship saying as we read in the 50. Psal Offer ye prayse vnto God And againe in the same Psalm He that offereth praise glorifieth me It is true no man may deny it God onely is to bee thanked and praysed with religions diuine praise A Gift must be receiued thankefully which doe indeede belong onely to him that is the author
a mercifull and liberall man To whom also willingly doe I say as the Spirit of God moued Paule to answer Agrippa in that question about true faith Would to God that not onely one or a fewe almost which reade this and the rest of the holie Scriptures concerning this dutie of beneficence might both almost and altogether become mercifull and liberall men But howsoeuer this will not be for the children of this world will still and alwayes be like themselues the couetous man will be couetous still and he will increase in his vnmercifull courses yet I know assuredly that the word and promise of God will effectually and strongly preuaile with all that belong vnto him not onely to prouoke them to obedience but to fill their hearts also with exceeding comfort in the performance of the duties thereof For verily as the holy Apostle truly testifieth Hebr. chap. 6. vers 10. God is not vnrighteous that he should forget your worke and labour of loue which yee haue shewed toward his name in that ye haue ministred vnto the Saints and yet do minister sc Wherefore worthily did Nehemiah in perswasion of this goodnesse and faithfulnesse of God embolden himselfe to pray to God not onely to remember that kindnesse of his which he had shewed toward the house and religion of God as we haue seene before but also that it would please him of his goodnesse to remember him according to all that he had done for the reliefe of the poore of his people Remember me ô my God saith he in goodnesse according to all that I haue done for this people Nehem. 5.19 In which chapter euen from the beginning to the end is this part of Nehemiahs kindnesse mercie and liberalitie fully described for our singular instruction specially of those that be in higher places and haue greater power then others to do more good Finally that we may conclude this point let vs hearken to that of the same Apostle Heb. 13. from the beginning of the chapter Let brotherly loue continue saith he Be not forgetfull to logde straungers for thereby some haue receiued Angels into their houses vnnares So indeed did Abraham So also did Lot either of them being giuen to hospitality as hath bene obserued before In which words after that the Apostle hath giuen to vnderstand that Loue is so tender and daintie a plant that if it be not charily cherirished and maintained it will weare away he would giue vs further to vnderstand that though we are not in these dayes to looke that Angels should in the shape of men resort to our houses as of ancient times they did to the holy Patriarches and others yet easily may such as loue and practise hospitalitie receiue into their houses such seruants of God as be more deare and precious in his sight thē they are ware of which kind of guesse ought alwayes to be very welcome to euery good man And then also who knoweth how great blessing God will grant at their holy sute supplication to those good housholders and families where they are at any time for the Lords sake kindly and louingly intertained Doubtlesse howsoeuer it be not alwayes so apparant as heretofore it hath bene made sometime by miraculous gratifications in the ministerie of the Prophets yet as touching spirituall recompence and blessing the Gospell hath bene and shall bee as beneficiall as euer the law or times before the law haue bene to the magnifying of the bountie of the most glorious grace of God reuealed and published therein to the end of the world Hetherto therefore in the second part of this chapter of the promises of blessing vpon those that shall exercise their liberalitie and beneficence to the relieuing euen of the poorest of the people specially of such as be greatest in the obedience and patience of the faith of the Gospell It remaineth now that henceforth we do confirme or rather make plaine that which is most true and certaine of it selfe by some examples of those to whom the promise blessing of God hath bin in this respect manifestly perfourmed vpon them But I will vse the former examples here because they which haue bene alleaged in the former part of this chapter are so many confirmations of this also in so much as the same who are dutifull maintainers and vpholders of Gods true religion and worship they are also as a ioint fruit of their zeale to God louing and kind relieuers of the poore people of God euen for that loue which they beare vnto God So that the blessing in either respect is the blessing of al through one and the same rich mercy large bountie of the Lord who is a plentifull rewarder of euerie one that truly seeketh wayteth vpon him Now among those so fewe examples we will not forget to make mention of Iob seeing he may well serue vs in steed of a thousand authenticall examples For as he was a man of singular goodnesse and mercie as was rehearsed among the manifold examples of beneficence recorded in the holy Scriptures so was hee singularly blessed of God with all kinds of blessing both spirituall and also belonging to this life It is true indeed that it pleased God to afflict and trie him for a certaine time with verie great calamitie by losse of all his goods and cattell by the hands of wicked men yea and by a sodaine destruction of all his children as it were from heauen All which the Lord did to the end he might make Iob a notable patterne of patience to all posteritie and that the malice and crueltie of the diuell being poured out vpon so good and mercifull a man as Iob was might be so much the more euidently discouered to the Church of God as also for other notable ends which are to be obserued from that excellent storie Neuerthelesse after that Iob was tried the Lord to shewe that he did not forget his former goodnesse he renewed yea increased doubled all his former mercies vpon him For he gaue him sonnes and daughters as many as he had before and his daughters the most beautifull women that could be found in the land And of sheepe camels oxen and asses God gaue him twise so many thousands of euery kind as he had before For whereas he had before seuen thousand sheepe now he had foureteene thousand then three thousand Camels now sixe thousand then fiue hundred yoke of oxen now a thousand then but fiue hundred she Asses now a whole thousand So the Lord blessed the last dayes of Iob more then the first And after this calamitie he liued an hundreth and fourtie yeares and saw his sonnes and his sonnes sonnes euen foure generations and left inheritance to all his children Chapters first and last of that booke Another excellent example we read of in the 22. chapter of the Prophesie of Ieremiah verse 15 c. where God saith of the good king Iosiah he vsing his example to the reproofe of his