man dyed innocently not the whole Congregation which followed but they which led the Congregation were to be guiltie of his death Secondly The imposing of hands vpon the Malefactor was the making of him as it were a politicke Sacrifice for mundi expiatio est malorum occisio as the Priest so the Prince hath his Sacrifice to offer as the CHVRCH so the Common weale the execution of Malefactors is a propitiating of GOD. And GOD in the Common-weale of Israel in cases wherein he refused the Ceremoniall was well pleased to haue this Sacrifice and to admit it as expiatorie of the Common-weale I told you of the thing before but of the deuoting of the person to pacifie GOD I could not speake till I came to this place You the Penitent may hereby see how zealously the State should be bent against you and how much it concernes vs to see Iustice done vpon you Hauing thus sufficiently opened the punishment I come now to shew you vpon whom it must be executed Quicunque vpon him whosoeuer he be that curseth or blasphemeth here must be no respect of persons high or low rich or poore be he what he may be he is liable to punishment if he curse his God Though it be a false-one yet if it be his the Law saith plainly he shall beare his sinne The words may be vnderstood either as a relation or as a commandement As a relation what other Nations doe how zealous they are for the honour of their Gods In the Storie of the wonders which GOD wrought in deliuering the children of Israel out of Aegypt we find that when Pharaoh would haue the Israelites sacrifice to their GOD in the Land of Aegypt Exod. 8. Loe said Moses shall we sacrifice the abhomination of the Aegyptians before their eyes and will they not stone vs How did Nebuchadnezzar cause the Furnace to be heated to consume those that would not worship his golden Image What a doe kept Demetrius the Siluer-Smith when St Paul was thought to blaspheme Diana Protagoras was banished Socrates was put to death for disgracing the gods of Athens The Mahumetans lay on many stripes vpon them that disgrace their Alearon I will omit the solemne Bellum sacrum of the Graecians Thus the words may be conceiued by way of relation and then see how GOD argues Doe the Heathen punish those who dishonour or curse those that are onely gods in their erroneous reputation Much more then ought he to be punished that blasphemes the true GOD. Thus doth GOD oftentimes shame his owne people for their Impieties by setting before their face the Pietie that is in Infidels Hath a Nation changed their Gods which yet are no Gods Ier. 2. But my people hath changed their glorie for that which doth not profit And againe Mal. 3. Will a man rob God Yet ye haue robbed me So that the punishment cannot be denied to be iust by true Religion which is held most iust by the glimmering light of Reason But the words may haue in them more then a bare Relation they may containe a commandement also a commandement that whosoeuer curseth God though it be but his God that is a false God shall be punished for conscientia erronea ligat so long as any man in his conscience is perswaded that he is the true God he must worship him as if he were such It is true that when he commeth to the knowledge of his error Esay 8. Esay 2. he may then curse his false gods he may cast them to the Bats and to the Moles But so long as his vnderstanding is clouded with error his Reuerence must follow the Rule of his Conscience It is good Diuinitie that is deliuered in the Booke of Wisdome touching Idolatrous periured persons They shall be iustly punished Cap. 14. both because they thought not well of God giuing heed vnto Idols and also vniustly swore in deceit despising holinesse â—or it is not the power of them by whom they sweare but it is the iust vengeance of sinners that punisheth alwayes the offence of the vngodly And no maruell for were it a true GOD they would vse him so their ignorance is not antecedent but concomitant and such ignorance doth not excuse the quantitie much lesse doth it excuse the qualitie of sinne But to leaue his God and come to the Name of the Lord. Here Quicunque must be repeated againe we may lesse admit exception of persons amongst them that blaspheme the Name of the Lord then amongst them that curse their God But here we meet with a markable distribution of quicunque whosoeuer Whether saith the Text he be a Stranger or borne in the Land Though morally all men are bound and may be perswaded by Ministers and others to acknowledge and worship the true GOD yet politickly Infidels cannot be compeld And why It is a worke that needeth the assistance of supernaturall grace which is not annext vnto the Sword Notwithstanding the Ciuill Sword may take vengeance vpon all euen Strangers Infidels that openly blaspheme the Name of the Lord though they may be tollerated in their false yet may they not open their mouthes against the true Religion Quicunque whatsoeuer Stranger doth so he must be stoned And if a Stranger much more he that is borne in the Land for he is tyed to honour GOD by a double obligation a natiue a votiue as a man as a member of the Church Now the more obligations the more guilt the more guilt the more iust the punishment therefore Quicunque whosoeuer borne in the Land blasphemeth the Name of the Lord he must be stoned to death I must carrie Quicunque a little farther the root of Blasphemie may be without vs or within vs Without vs the Diuel who may suggest it and then it is no sinne of ours though a sinne except we consent vnto it and delight in it Within vs it may be three-fold First Ignorance Secondly Infirmitie Thirdly Malice There is great odds betweene these to GOD-ward St Paul blasphemed but he did it ignorantly he did not beleeue that IESVS was the CHRIST St Peter blasphemed but he did it of infirmie he did it being ouertaken with feare of death The Pharisees they also blasphemed but they did it out of malice they did it against their owne conscience Now of these three Rootes the two first leaue place for repentance St Peter and St Paul are ensamples thereof Math. 12. Not so the third it is the sinne against the Holy Ghost not to be forgiuen in this world nor in that which is to come But howsoeuer there is this odds to GOD-ward yet in regard of the Magistrates sword there is no difference Quicunque be the root ignorance be it infirmitie be it malice he must be stoned to death his body must be made an expiatorie Anathema or Sacrifice by the State whose Soule notwithstanding vpon repentance may be saued in the day of the Lord. And verily the Blasphemer
Well done seruant faithfull and true enter into thy Masters Ioy. Πάντοτ◠δοξά Θηῶ. TEN SERMONS Deliuered on the nineteenth Chapter of Exodus contayning the Preface of GOD and the preparation of the people to the promulgation of the LAW BY The Right Reuerend Father in God ARTHVRE LAKE late Bishop of that See LONDON Printed by W. S. for Nathaniel Butter 1629. TEN SERMONS DELIVERED ON THE NINETEENTH CHAPTER OF EXODVS contayning the Preface of GOD and the preparation of the People to the promulgation of the LAW The first Sermon EXODVS 19. VERS 1 2. In the third moneth when the children of Israel were gone out of Egypt the same day came they into the Wildernesse of Sinai For they were departed from Rephidim and were come to the Desert of Sinai and had pitched in the Wildernesse and there Israel camped before the Mount YOu may remember that opening vnto you those words of our Sauiour Christ in the Gospell of Saint Matthew Chap 22. Thou shalt loue the Lord thy God with all thy heart with all thy minde with all thy soule and with all thy strength and thy Neighbour as thy selfe I told you they were the generall contents of the Decalogue whereof I then promised you a speciall and distinct explication I haue not forgotten that promise although I haue beene interrupted by interuenient texts occasioned by the times wherefore my purpose is this day to begin my performance of that promise And I could not doe it on a fitter day for this is Ascension day and it was an Ascension day that is mentioned in my text Moses being a type of that whereof Christ was the truth began vpon the day here mentioned to ascend into the Mount thence to bring the Law as our Sauiour Christ vpon this day which wee solemnize ascended into Heauen thence to send the Holy Ghost which as the Apostle telleth vs giueth life to the Law Adde hereunto that as Christ ascended into his glorie so Moses in his Ascension had a kind of Transfiguration for comming neere vnto God his face so shined that he was faine to put a vaile vpon it because the children of Israel could not endure to behold it There is then a good correspondencie betweene this Feast and my text Neither doe I only thinke so but our Church also which commandeth the tenth of Deuteronomie to be read this morning wherein is a report of this Ascension of Moses So that the time which I haue chosen is fit and I meane God willing not to bee scant in my performance I will pay you the principall with interest for I meane to vnfold not only the twentieth Chapter but also the nineteenth of this Booke though that more fully yet this competently And there is good reason why for the nineteenth containeth a remarkable preparation to the twentieth neither will the twentieth bee so well vnderstood or regarded so well if the nineteenth doe not make vs more docill and attentiue then vulgarly men vse to bee Wherefore what God thought fit at the giuing of the Law will not amisse be remembred at the expounding thereof it will bee behoofefull for you that I quicken your capacitie and raise your attention with these powerfull obseruations wherewith the Holy Ghost doth preface the promulgation of the Law You must then take notice of the forerunning Circumstances and Solemnitie which are recorded in this Chapter The Circumstances whereof only I shall speake now are two First the Time Secondly the Place of both which we haue here the two termes A quo and In quo Whence they take there beginning and where they haue their ending Of the Time the reckoning beginneth after the children of Israels going forth out of Egypt and it endeth on the third moneth the verie same day that is the verie same day that the third Moneth began As for the place the text teaceheth vs first whence they came immedately from Rephidim Secondly where they tooke vp their rest in the wildernesse of Sinai thereon the cloud pitched and they encamped before it These be the particulars which I meane to obserue in these Circumstances That you may the better vnderstand them I will resume them againe God grant that as I open them more largely so you may heare them more profitably The first Terme then of the Time sheweth vs whence the reckoning doth begin it beginneth at the children of Israels comming out of Egypt which words doe not only note a motion from a Place but also an Alteration of their State for they did not only come out of the Land but also out of Bondage wherewith they were oppressed in that Land And such a going out giueth the name vnto this Booke this Booke is called Exodus and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is nothing but a going out a going out of bondage into libertie There is a great mysterie in the word which concerneth Christ and his Church wee learne it in the Transfiguration of Christ therein Moses and Elias appeared vnto him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Luke 9.31 and spake of the Exodus or departure which he should performe at Hierusalem The Apostle maketh it plaine Heb. 2. By death which is an exodus Verse 14 15. for wee vsually say that a man is departed when wee meane hee is dead he ouercame him that had the power of death that is the Deuill that hee might set them free or giue them an Exodus which all their life time werein feare of bondage And who are they but the Church Let this be the first note A second is That God did not giue his Law to Israel when they were in Egypt but when they were come thence when they were a Societie by themselues then he gaue them a Policie whereby they might be Distinguished and Ordered Distinguished first from themselues for though before they were a Church yet was it but Domesticall each Family at least each Tribe was left vnto it selfe but now they were to become a Nationall Church to bee knit into one Bodie which could not bee but by one forme of gouernment And this forme being of Gods Ordinance must needs distinguish them Secondly from others also whose Policie was but of humane institution Moses telleth them that the very heathen should acknowledge the difference especially if as God did them the honour to distinguish them by the Law so they should answere the Distinction in the good order of their Liues whereat the Law did principally aime There is a mysterie in this point also which Saint Paul doth obserue out of the Prophets Esay and Ieremie Come out from amongst them 2. Cor. 6. v. 17 18. and separate your selues saith the Lord and touch no vncleane thing and I will receiue you I will bee your Father and yee shall bee my sonnes and daughters saith the Lord Almightie So long as we are mingled with the heathen and learne their workes God will not vouchsafe vs his Oracles nor incorporate vs for his people the branch
they ascended and descended vpon him when God brought his first begotten into the world Heb. 1. that was done which he commanded Let all the Angels worship him Mat. 17. And what did the Saints Moses and Elias came to him in the Mount and conferred with him about his death many also rose out of their graues and appeared in the holy City There remaines onely the place where God dwels and those blessed Spirits that also was shaken more than once for more than once did it open as we reade in the Gospell and in the Acts. You doe not doubt by this time but that the vppermost Heauen was shaken which was shaken so many waies Onely that shaking was answerable to the subiect it was without all corruption Come we now to the second Heauen that also had a shaking a double shaking Mat. 2. there appeared a Starre that was neuer seene before at Christs Birth which drew the Wise-men to seeke out him that was borne King of the Iewes And at his death the goodliest Starre in the Firmament I meane the Sunne lost his light when the Moone was at full Which sight was so strange to the Philosophers at Athens that as the Story saith it drew from Denys the Areopagite that memorable saying Aut Deus naturae patitur aut mundi machina dissoluetur either the God of nature is ouercharged or is disposed to end the world Tertullian obserues that the Romanes did register this Eclypse in their Chronicle I say nothing of the renting of that Heauen too Acts 7.55 for the vppermost could not be opened without opening the second also that the Doue might descend that St. Stephens sight might ascend and see Christ standing at the right hand of God The third Heauen remaines that also was shaken for Christ commanded the windes and they were calme hee suffered not the ayre to transmit the Species but was inuisible yea hee commanded it not to giue breath and to giue breath to men as pleased him you finde it in the storie of those that came to apprehend him Iohn 19. Enough of the Heauens the first part of the great world Onely obserue Acts 2. ver 17 18 19 20. that that which out of Ioel St. Peter obserues was in part performed in this shaking of Heauen The second part of the great world is the Earth The Earth in the beginning was one confused Globe of Water and dry Land vpon Gods commandement these two Elements were separated and each appeared by it selfe as wee reade Genesis 1. As then they first were and as they now are so are they here mentioned and so wee must vnderstand them Touching their shaking I might in few wordes referre you to the Psalme Let the Sea roare and the fulnesse thereof Psal 98. let the Flouds clap their hands let the Hils bee ioyfull together before the Lord for he commeth to iudge the Earth c. But I will shew you some particulars out of the New Testament there shall you reade the Earth-quakes that were when Christ was in the flesh the cleauing of Rockes Mat. 27. the opening of Graues which made the Iewes returne from his Crosse knocking their breasts made the Centurion say Of a truth this was the Son of God put the Scribes and Pharisees and high Priests to their briberie Mat. 28. lest the Souldiers should bewray what they could not deny As for the Sea that apparently tooke notice of Christ when he wanted Tribute-money he commanded the Sea to supply him and it did by a Fish when Peter Iames and Iohn had laboured all night at Sea and caught nothing he commanded them to cast out their net and the fish came readily and filled it to their great astonishment at another time when their ship was ready to be drowned Christ did but rebuke the waues Mat. 〈◊〉 and presently there followed a great calme Thus apparently did the Sea acknowledge Christ come into the World But because the word that wee render dry Land doth properly signifie a Desert or Wildernesse it is not vnlikely but that these two words doe imply a parallel of that which fell out while Christ conuersed on Earth and that which was wrought at the deliuerance of Israel out of Egypt the Sea then diuided and gaue passage to the Children of Israel vpon dry Land it did more to Christ it became it selfe as dry Land he walked vpon it and made St. Feter to doe so also And as for the Wildernesse it was to Israel no Wildernesse no more was it to Christ they were amongst wilde beasts there and so was hee and neyther was annoyed the Wildernesse yeelded them plenty of food and in the Wildernesse did Christ multiply the Loaues and the Fishes so that after many thousands were fedde the remainder was much more than was the first prouision There remaines one part of the Earth which I haue not yet touched and that is Hell Hell holdeth fast all that come thereinto but it could not hold him when hee descended thither and while hee liued vpon Earth how did the Fiends confesse him obey him come and goe at his pleasure It is cleare then fully cleare that seeing shaking doth signifie an extraordinary manifestation of the Deity working by or on the Creature contrary to their vsuall course the great world and the parts thereof were shaken at the first comming of Christ Let vs see now how true this is of the little world the world of mankind here called all Nations which are distinguished into Iewes and Gentiles both had their shaking The Iewes their whole policie was dissolued I meane that which was peculiar to them whether Ecclesiasticall or Ciuill as Daniel foretold Dan 9. Heb. 12. Gen. 49.10 so St. Paul affirmes both receiued an end by the comming of Christ Iacobs prophecie was then fulfilled The Scepter departed from Iuda and the Law-giuer from between his seete that State was not only shaken but shiuered all to pieces As for other Nations they had their shaking a double shaking a spirituall and a corporall Spiritually their heads were shaken their iudgements were illightened and amazed that euer they should be so sottish as to worship stockes and stones â—say 2. cap. 8. the workes of mens hands yea the Diuels themselues vpon this they threw away their Idols and cursed their forged gods This abrenunciation doth Gregorie Nazianzene Orat. 37. and Austin de Ciuit. Dei vnderstand by this shaking To this shaking of their head wee must adde a shaking of their heart A contagious aire is not purged but by thundering and lightening and a corrupt conscience must feele the terrour of Mount Sinai before it can haue the comfort of Mount Sion The voyce wherein God spake to Elias was a soft voyce 1 Kings 19. but there went before it Fire Winde Earth-quake c. the Peace which you shall heare of hereafter comes not to the spirituall Temple of God without some terrour going before The
Quo modo how this Sacring was performed it was performed Signo visibili verbo audibili with a visible signe and an audible word The Signe commeth first in the Text we are told what it was and what it ment It was the shape of a Doue and by it was ment the Spirit of God But touching this Signe wee learne here moreouer Vnde and Quo Whence it came where it pitcht whence the Heauens were opened vnto him and the Spirit of God descended where it pitcht the Spirit that descended lighted on Iesus You see what was the Visible signe A visible signe of it selfe is but a dumbe shew it may amaze it cannot instruct therefore it must bee illustrated and it is here illustrated by an audible word the word is called Vox de Caelo a voyce from Heauen and it was fit it should be so for from whence came the vision from thence was the Reuelation for to come the vision was from Heauen therefore the Reuelation thereof also But this is not all that we learne here concerning the word goe on and you shall finde Cuius and de quo who it is that vttereth it and of whom He that vttereth it is not exprest but fairely implied in Filius meus my Sonne Iesus could not be the Sonne but of GOD the Father therefore is it GOD the FATHER that speaketh the word And the word that he speaketh concerneth Iesus it teacheth vs first What he is to God the Father and secondly What he doth for vs. He is neere because the Sonne and deare because his beloued Sonne adde to both the Article 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that Sonne that beloued Sonne and then he will prooue neere and deare indeed From him that is so great with God we may not exspect small matters that which hee doth is answerable to that which hee is he doth that which neuer any other person could doe he propitiateth GODS wrath and by him we finde grace in the eyes of GOD These blessings of IESVS are contained in the last words In whom I am well pleased There is one Point more All this commendations that is giuen vnto IESVS referreth to 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 This this person that is in the middest of you that maketh so little shew and is so little regarded is hee whom I so esteeme and vpon whom depends your soueraigne good I will not you may not for his Humilitie defraud him of his Glory You haue seene a glimpse of the Sacring of Christ though I should not yet the Text would require you to entertaine it with your best regard for the visible signe the audible word both are prefaced with a particle of attention Loe loe the Heauens were opened Loe a voyce from Heauen the word doth summon your eyes your eares to behold to attend these holy Mysteries And I pray GOD so to sanctifie your eyes and your eares that while I take a sunder this Text and shew it you more fully in the parts the blessed Trinitie may vouchsafe by them to instill into you some fructifying drops of our blessed Sauiours heauenly Vnction Amongst the particulars where-into I resolued the Text the first was the circumstance of Time when CHRIST was baptized CHRIST was baptized before he was Sacred hee was receiued into the new Couenant by Baptisme before hee became a dispenser thereof And the Church neuer thought it fit to swarue from so good a Patterne and conferre Holy Orders vpon any that was not first incorporated into the Church Yea it hath alwayes gon for a grounded truth that it is Baptisme that maketh a man capable of other Holy rites and that being vnbaptized he is vncapable of them Secondly the circumstance of Time doth notifie the kinde of grace that was figured in the descension of the Doue he descended not in but after the Act of Baptisme Had hee descended in the Act it might haue beene thought that onely Gratia gratum faciens the grace of regeneration or sanctification had beene represented by the Doue but descending after some farther kind of grace is more ouer intimated What that grace was let vs breifely inquire Some fetch hence the Originall of Confirmation and suppose that Christ the Head confirmed himselfe here vnto his Body the Church So that as in the Church Baptizati recipiunt spiritum sanctum they that are first baptized are after confirmed so CHRIST would be confirmed after hee was baptized There is no doubt but the Right of confirmation is Apostolicall notwithstanding the friuolous exceptions that by some are taken to it and it may passe inter pie credibilia that CHRIST did vouchsafe in his owne person to sanctifie that as hee did many other sacred rites of the Church But yet it may not be denied that ouer and aboue here is ment another kind of grace a grace that is not common to euery member of the Church as the grace of confirmation is but peculiar vnto a publique Person such as CHRIST was now called to be And therefore I call it Sacring grace such a kind of grace seemeth to be intimated by the circumstance of Time The second circumstance is that of Place the Place was where CHRIST stood after he came out of the water that was the banke of Iordan which St. Iohn calleth Bethabara the very name doth containe a Monument of the children of Israels first passage there into the land of Canaan and then the Place is not without a Mysterie the choice thereof giueth vs to vnderstand that the Historie of Iosua was performed in Iesus that the waters of Baptisme were become a passage from earth to Heauen from the condition of Nature to the condition of Grace and that euen while wee liue in this vaile of miserie we are thereby enrolled among the Saints Adde hereunto that Bethabara was now a place of great concourse Hierusalem Iudaea all the Regions about Iordan and all sorts of men resorted thither to be baptized of Iohn and it was meete that so great a worke as CHRISTS Sacring should be performed in a great assembly Yea all the remarkeable manifestations of our Sauiour his Miracles his Sermons his Death c. are noted to haue beene publike they were not as St. Paul obserues to King Agrippa done in a corner the vnbeleeuing Iew or other that doubts or disputes of their truth is by the circumstance of Place conuicted to doe it out of affected ignorance And let this suffice for the circumstance I come to the substance of the Sacring where first wee must see who it is that was sacred Wee finde that it was the same Person that was baptized the Sonne of God clothed with the nature of man Where note that Iesus had two Abilities an Actiue a Passiue one to giue another to receiue the Spirit hee that was able for to giue was contented 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 according to the diuine dispensation and humble condition whereunto for our sakes hee submitted himselfe to receiue the Spirit And indeed
repaire to him and none but he must be our Physitian He cureth but how Per auditum by the Eare. Wee haue two Rationall Senses and contentions haue beene made about their precedencie the bookes that are giuen vs to studie will easily resolue the doubt they are Gods workes and his words if the sight of his workes might haue recouered vs we should not haue needed the Preaching of his word but the infirmitie of the former is argued by the supply of the later and whatsoeuer Philosophie thinkes Diuinitie must hold that wee are beholding much more to our Eare then to our Eye for Sauing wisedome when I name the Eare I meane the bodily the Enthusiasts haue an Eare but it is onely for Gods spirit but we must haue an Eare for Gods ministers for ordinarily God dispenseth not the Comforter but by their ministerie Fead Iob. 33. And this is the highest commendation of sacred Orders and that which must worke the greatest reuerence of the people towards them for that God conueieth heauenly treasure by these earthen vessels 2. Cor. 4.7 and into their hands hath put the power of the Keyes yea to their tongues hath he in a maner tyed the efficacie of his word they bind and loose mens soules they open and shut vnto them the King dome of Heauen They doe it did I say rather God doth it by them so are we taught by my Text God must make Dauid to heare it is not enough that God send his word and great be the number of Preachers God must breath also with his spirit 1. Cor. 37. and when Paul hath planted and Apollo watered he must giue the increase Acts 16.14 if God doe not then open the Heart as hee did Lidia's we may be no better then Francis Spera whose bones being broken with the conscience of his sinne he could not be cured because the many exhortations that were giuen vnto him by the words of men could haue no entrance into his Heart there wanted there the spirit of grace therefore we must with Dauid begge that God would make vs heare But I hasten to the last point you haue heard who giues the Physicke you must heare what Hope there is that Dauids petition will succeed there appeareth good hope good hope in the phrase for it is not onely Supplicatorie but Assertorie I obserued the like vpon the former Verse I will not repeate it But there appeareth more hope in the contexture for there Dauid is confident that the medicine shall not bee applyed in vaine the bones that thou hast broken shall reioyce so it is in the Originall marke an excellent difference betweene Gods children and others Reprobates in such a case Optare possunt sperare non possunt they may wish themselues in a better case but they cannot hope for better but the children of God when their bodies are euen brought to the graue and their soules to the gates of hell yet will they trust in God and trust to see the louing kindnesse of God in the land of the liuing We doe not belieue that the Sunne hath lost his light though the skye be ouer-cast with clouds Read Psal 77. neither will we thinke that God hath forgotten to be gracious euen when hee layeth deadly strokes vpon vs. The Chaldee Paraphrase obserues not onely a Reall ioy of the broken bones but a Vocall also not onely shall our soules be comforted and our bodies with our soules but out of the sense hereof wee shall breake forth into the Praises of God we shall praise our God with ioyfull lips Finally marke the method the sorrow of the Inward man casteth the Outward into a Consumption so likewise the Outward shall partake of Consolation if so be Consolation by the Eare be distild into the Inward Caro vt Cor no lesse the flesh then the spirit being quickned shall reioyce in the liuing God I conclude all As we are all subiect vnto sinne so are we not free from the distresses of Conscience When we are put to it let vs heare what the Lord will say for he will speake peace vnto our soules if our sorrow be godly let vs not be without hope Blessed are they that mourne so for they shall be comforted let vs rest assured that though Wee sow in teares yet we shall reape in ioy the Lord will turne our captiuitie Psol 12â— he will sill our mouthes with laughter and our tongues with songs AMEN PSAL. 51. VERS 9. Hide thy face from my sinnes and blot out all mine iniquities THe remedie that King Dauid sought in this Penitentiall was answerable to his distresse That which distrest him was sinne whereof the onely remedie is grace The sinne as you haue oftentimes heard was two fold first that which himselfe committed and secondly that which hee inherited from his parents he seekes a remedy for both in Grace You haue heard that it yeeldeth a remedy for the sinne which himselfe committed for the Impietie thereof by Expiation and by Consolation for the Malignitie that is therein It followth that now you heare of the remedy which Grace doth yeeld to the sinne which he inherited from his parents that is a Natiue Euill we commonly call it Originall sinne Grace cureth this partly by Forgiuing and partly by Regenerating forgiuing of the sinne and regenerating of the sinner These two points are commonly knowne by the names the first of Iustification the second of Sanctification of Sanctification by regenerating our sinfull nature you shall heare in the next Verse on this Verse I must speake of Iustification from by Forgiuenesse of originall sinne To come to the breaking vp of the Text there is something therein implyed and something exprest that which is implyed is Gods Prouidence that which is exprest is Gods Indulgence of Gods Prouidence we haue here intimated two Acts his Eye seeth all things and all things are recorded by his Hand Did hee not See all things it were needlesse to pray Hide thy face and it were as needlesse to pray Blot out were not all things recorded by his Hand such prayers must needes presuppose those workes Besides this Prouidence of God so implyed the Text will teach vs the Indulgence of God which is here fairely exprest for the better vnderstanding whereof I will open vnto you first the suite that King Dauid maketh for it and then the possibilitie that there is of his obtaining it In the suite wee shall see how answerable his desire is vnto Gods worke Gods worke is to See and Record and his desire is that hee would not See hide thy face that he would cancell blot out But in the prayer we must more-ouer marke 1. to what 2. how farre he would haue his desire extend To what not to his person but to his sinnes hide thy face not from me but from my Sinnes blot out not mee but mine iniquities Hee restraineth then Gods acts to their proper obiect But hauing so restrained them he
is the swiftnesse of the flight The Eagle flieth very high Prou. 23. Ier 49. whereupon many Prouerbs are grounded in Scripture And this high flight intimateth that the Israelites were carried aboue the reach of their enemies so that they could neither hinder nor hurt them Not that they were lifted vp in the aire but they were as safe as if they had beene because saith the Psalmist thou hast made the Lord the most high thy habitation Psal 91 â— there shall no euill befall thee Certainly the Cloud interposed betweene the Israelites and Egyptians would not suffer them to take any harme And indeed the children of God are very secure except it bee for their good their enemies shall neuer haue their will of them no more then the Egyptians had of the Israelites As the Eagle flieth high so doth hee flie swift also the Scripture groundeth many similies hereupon Iob 9.1 Sam. 1. and giueth vs to vnderstand that from the time that the Egyptians let the Israelites goe which was â—o soone as Moses had performed all the miracles intended of God for plaguing the Egyptians the Israelites had a very quicke passage And indeed it is a wonder that sixe hundred thousand men besides women and children and a rabble of strangers should in one night be readie and get out of their enemies land and that with all their impediments of stuffe and cattle and flockes Neither was it a lesse wonder that in one night they should all passe through the Red Sea and standing on the shoare the next morning see that all their enemies were destroyed Certainly they that made such speed were carried vpon Eagles wings it was a diuine power that conueyed them And how quickly doth God change the face of the world when he is pleased to worke a great deliuerance The Church of Christians is not herein inseriour to the Church of the Israelites For as the Israelites had a Dragon so Pharaoh is called Ezek. 29. from whom they fled euen so haue the Christians Reuel 12. And Eagles wings are there giuen to the woman the type of the Christian Church to slie into the wildernesse as the Israelites vpon Eagles wings were carried into their wildernesse So like is God alwayes to himselfe and the Church alwayes prouided for a like I may not forget the order of these words that worke which was first done is first commemorated and that which was last done is commemorated in the last place And why though God for sinne doth otherwise punish the wicked yet in this world he doth it commonly that hee may free his Church But I toucht at this before therefore I will passe it ouer and come to the end of both workes God brought them to himselfe And this is a greater blessing then that he carried them on Eagles wings that shewed a deliuerance from euill this a bestowing of good The Eagle doth sometimes carrie her young ones only from a dangerous vnto a safer nest sometimes shee rouseth them out of their sloth and directs them where they may find their prey Euen so dealeth God with his children hee freeth them from danger Luke 1. and bringeth them to comfort Hee bringeth them to himselfe to his seruice saith the one Chaldie Paraphrase to the doctrine of his Law saith another and indeed we are deliuered from our enemies that wee may serue God and liue according to his Lawes If there were no more in it it is a great comfort so to be imployed But there is more in it I told you that the end was a Couenant of wedlocke so that to my selfe is as much as to be appropriated vnto me and to be my Spouse to bee the Mother of my children and beare inheritors of the Kingdome of Heauen Any way to come neere God is a great honour but to come so neere and become so deare is more grace then mans heart can conceiue or his tongue vtter But the two next Sermons will bee spent for the most part in amplifying this therefore I will speake no more of it at this time You haue heard of both the workes One point remayneth which I will touch in a word Both these workes are vndeniable the proofe is Vos vidistis I appeale to your eyes whether I speake not a truth and your fresh experience doth iustifie my words Rationall proofes satisfie much but not so much as sensitiue therefore the intuitiue knowledge that Angels haue is farre more excellent then our discursiue and what is our hope but that our faith shall be turned into sight Neither doth sight worke so vpon our head only but vpon our heart also Segnius irritant animos dimissa per aures Quam quae sunt oculis commissa fidelibus had God done these things and they had only heard of them they would haue beene moued with them much lesse the more vndoubted their knowledge the more strong should their affections be Finally obserue that Vos vidistis you haue seene is referred not only to the worke of Mercie but also to that of Iustice wherein God doth condescend to an affection that is predominant in vs. It doth adde not a little to the content we take in our better estate if we see withall our enemies brought into our worser Psal 58. When the righteous seeth the vengeance he will reioyce and wash his feet in the bloud of the wicked Mal. 1. Your eyes saith God to the Iewes shall see the desolation of Edom and you shall say the Lord will be magnified from the border of Israel Luke 16. Lazarus in Abrahams bosome to his greater comfort seeth Diues burning in Hell Esay 66. And after the last judgement the Saints shall goe forth and see the carcasses of them that haue transgrest against God This doth not commend 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 but allowes congratulating of Gods iudgements To conclude These two workes serue to worke two affections which sway much in the ordering of our life Feare and Loue. In the worke of Iustice you see that God is almightie there is no striuing with him hee that will not relent with repentance shall bee grinded with his vengeance In the worke of Mercie you see that God is bountifull Let vs not bee vnthankfull but let vs repay Loue with Loue. In a word seeing euery day God doth present such spectacles before our eyes God grant wee bee not like the Israelites of whom Moses complayneth that they were as if they had no eyes RAther he giue vs grace to make such vse of our eyes in beholding his workes that his Feare and his Loue may euer liue in our hearts So may hee euer manifest his Iustice for vs his Goodnesse to vs vntill hauing deliuered vs from all our enemies here on earth hee bring vs to himselfe to liue with him blessed for euer in Heauen AMEN The third Sermon EXODVS 19. VERS 5 6. Now therefore if yee will obey my voice indeed and keepe my Couenant then shall yee
men It was grosse ignorance in the Iewes to thinke that the outward Character could denominate them without the inward and that they should goe for sonnes of Abraham who in Pietie were so vnlike Abraham Therefore Saint Iohn correcteth this ignorance of theirs and telleth them they are not worthy of so Honourable a title nay God himselfe doth vilisie them calling them sometimes Gentiles in generall sometimes descending to particulars Amos 9 are you not all as the children of Aâ—thiopia vnto me And as if that parentage were too good Thy natiuitie saith God is of the land of Canaan Ezech 16. thy father was an Amorite thy mother an Hittite yet this doth not villifie them enough the worst place of Canaan was Sodome and Gomorra thither doth God send them for their Pedigree Deut. 32. Finally after yee are past Sodome there remaineth nothing but Hell and so low doth Christ debase them Ioh. 8. You are of your father the Diuell euen you that say yee haue Abraham to your father I doe not wonder why Saint Paul after that he had reckoned vp all the parcels of his corporall Nobilitie concludeth I am not the better I am the worse for all this all this is but dung it recommendeth me nothing vnto God nay it may make me blush for that I haue no inward resemblance of him with whom I haue this outward alliance It were good our Nobilitie and Gentrie did learne this who haue nothing to shew that they are the of spring of such worthies as their fathers were but onely that which Tully yeeldeth to Piso a Genealogie or an earthly patrimonie Saint Chrysostome compareth such vnto froth and indeed generous liquor doth cast a froth which froth is insipid and hath nothing of that taste which is in the liquor euen so are they descended of their Parents but their Parents liue not in them and therefore all that they can boast of Ignabiliâ— nobilitas is but an ignoble Nobilitie as Theophylact speaketh it is not worth the standing vpon Malo Pater tibi sit Thersites dummodo tu sis Aeacidae similis Vulcaniaque arma capessas Quam te Thersitae similem producat Achilles The truth whereof Saint Chrysostome setteth before vs in an excellent Simile Behold saith he Gold commeth of the earth a precious mettall of a very base Element we esteeme the Gold we care not for the earth euen so Opaere imperfect in Matth. if a child be worthy it skilleth not how vnworthy his Parents were faithfull Abraham is not the worse because the child of idolatrous Sarah The similitude goeth on Siluer yeeldeth Tinne the better a worse mettall wee neglect the Tinne and keepe the Siluer so if a child be vnworthy what doth it auaile him to be of worthy Parents What is Ismael the better for being the sonne of Abraham If this rule haue exceptions as indeed it hath in worldly societies for many make Idols of rich Nabals Filâ— Deâ—nulla externa prarogatiua aesimâ—nâ—â—â— and knottie blockes yet to Godward the rule is true none can claime spirituall kindred with Abraham but they that are new Creatures dissimilitude of manners argueth Bastards and no Sonnes You haue heard the first branch of their Ignorance they maimed the truth The second is they misplaced it for they began their defence against the wrath to come at this claime We haue Abraham to our father The fathers note that this is preposterous dealing it is not enough for vs to take care that we partake as well of the substance as of the ceremonie in sacred things we must adde a second rule which is this As in knowing God so in knowing our state to Godward we must rise from the effects to the cause that so afterward we may from the cause conclude the effects the euidence is in the effects whereof the assurance is in the cause that wee are the children of God we see most cleerely in our vertues though the ground whereupon wee stand most assuredly is Gods couenant Wherefore the Couenant is not the first step where wee must begin our triall much lesse may wee begin at Predestination we must by degrees of reason read the gifts of God in our Faith Hope and Charitie to worke which the Word and Sacraments were ordained if wee find these they argue Gods loue to vs they prooue wee stand in good tearmes with him And when we haue thus argued from the effects we may safely make demonstrations from the cause and then it will bee a good plea if our Conscience doth question the certaintie of our saluation because the good that we would doe we cannot doe Rom. 7. to say with Saint Paul thankes be to God through Iesus Christ our Lord or that which is equiualent I haue Abraham to my father This plea was prouided to keepe vs in heart in that conflict Of this the Iewes were ignorant and therefore Saint Iohn correcteth this in them blameth them for putting in their claime to the Couenant before they had giuen some proofe of their vertue We are not ignorant of the Romish calumnies and of the distraction of our brethren in forraine parts about this doctrine happily some occasion hereof may be because some deliuer Theologie more Theoretically then practically It were to be wished that at least in so much as must come to the vulgar eye and eare this method were changed lest as it hath so it prooue dangerous to many though I dare say that if the parts of the doctrine publikely authorized by the Reformed Churches be charitably laid together and otherwise to construe the writing is against good manners by a rule in the Ciuill Law wee shall find nothing but that which may passe for sound and good But to leaue methods of Bookes and come to methods of our liues when I rip vp the Tracts of this Argument written by those that either would seeme to be or are indeed zealous of Pietie I find that mens liues opened both their mouthes and set both their Pens a writing therefore I thinke there can be no more compendious course to silence the slaunders of the one and reconcile the distractions of the other Mat. 5.16 then to Let our lights so shine before men that they may see our good workes and glorifie our father which is in heauen And thus much of S. Iohns answer to the first part of their errour the correcting of their Ignorance I come now to the second part their Arrogancie double arrogancie for first they appropriate Abrahams family to themselues As they thought themselues to be holy so did they think theÌ„selues to be the onely children of Abraham In their Synagogues it is one of those things for which they giue thanks vnto God that they are born Israelites not Goim Gentiles of whom they neuer speak but with great scorn Cyril Alexandrinus amplifieth this point vpon Osea cap. 9. The Israelites looking loftily and speaking bigge boasted we haue Abraham to our father he addeth
into the lowest part of the earth not onely to the earth the lowest part of the world but euen to the lowest part of the earth for wee say in our Creed He descended into Hell he tooke his rising from the lowest place to ascend into the highest And herein doth Christ reade a good Lecture to vs hee teacheth vs that Humility is the way to glory and the more we are humbled the more wee shall be exalted Adam and Angels were both ambitious both did desire to climbe but they mistooke their rising and so in climbing tooke grieuous falls If wee would climbe without a fall wee must learne to climbe of Christ so shall wee bee sure to tread the steppes of Iacobs Ladder which from earth will reach as high as heauen I may not omit to obserue that the Apostle speakes significantly when hee saith that He that ascended is the same also that descended Non ascendit alius licet aliter Nestorius was condemned for an Hereticke who distracted Christs two natures and made of them two persons but as it is Gods truth so it is our great comfort that the person is but one and these are the workes of one and the selfe same person they both concerne the same person in the nature which hee tooke from vs Hee that was humbled is the same person that was exalted And so will God deale with vs crowne no other person than him that doth conflict and in the depth of our Humiliation euery one of vs may say with Iob Chapt. 19. Though after my skinne wormes destroy this body yet in my flesh I shall see God Non alius Sed aliter though the same person of Christ ascended which descended yet hee ascended otherwise than hee descended for hee descended Metaphysically ascended Physically hee descended not by changing of place but of state the Godhead that is infinite could change no place but it could exinnanite it selfe and become of a worse condition than it was But in the Ascension the person changed place the manhood remoued from earth to heauen hee that in his Incarnation being onely God became man in his Ascension went into heauen God and man hee that to make way to his passion suspended the influence of his Godhead into his Manhood did in his Ascension permit the one to indowe the other so far as a Creature was capable of the influence of his Creatour And wee shall ascend though not other men yet otherwise than wee descend wee descended morally but wee shall ascend physically in our descending wee put on other affections than before wee had wee exchange our naturall pride for Christian humility but in our Ascension wee shall change our place remoue out of this wildernesse into Canaan from earth to Heauen and the same God that is pleased here for a time to make vs sowe in teares will then yeeld vs a plentifull haruest which wee shall reape in ioy wee shall then see the fulnesse of his loue towards vs which too vsually wee misdeeme by reason of the Crosse which hardly can wee conceiue that it can stand with his good will towards vs Castigo te non quod odio habeam sed quod amem is a proposition more true than euident the combination is so strange that it is no wonder if we be hard of beleefe but God will then cleare it and we shall confesse we had no reason to discredit it One Note more and so an end Before you heard of Grace now you see that grace is a spoile a spoile taken from that enemy that tyrannized ouer vs and this is no small improuement of grace Before you heard that grace did fill vs but now you see that wee were captiues and the condition of captiues is to endure hunger nakednesse all kinde of miserie and how welcome is that grace that fils such empty persons Before you heard that this grace was a gift but here you finde that Christ payed dearely for it the more it cost him the more precious should it bee in our eyes What shall I say then to you but wish you to couple this third Sermon with the first that you may bee more feeling of the loue of God in Christ O Lord that wouldest descend before thou diddest ascend grant that wee may make our way through Humility to Glory giue vs grace to consummate thy Triumph by manfully resisting and conquering of Sathan Let vs not feare to tread on him whom thou hast disarmed yea enrich vs wee beseech thee with the spoyles which thou hast taken from him and make vs euer willing and deuout captiues of thine Let it neuer grieue vs to serue thee who hast so mercifully saued vs Let vs now ascend in heart whither we hope to ascend in place and so prepare vs on earth by a holy conuersation that wee may partake with Christ of a happy condition in the kingdome of Heauen Amen IHS A SERMON PREACHED IN WESTMINSTER BEfore his Matie the Lords and others of the vpper House of Parliament at the opening of the Fast Iulie 2. 1625. 1 KINGS cap. 8. vers 37 38 39 40. If there bee in the Land famine if there bee pestilence blasting mildew locust if there bee Caterpillers if the enemie besiege them in the Lund of their Cities Whatsoeuer plague whatsoeuer sickenesse there be What prayer and supplication soeuer bee made by any man or by all thy people Israel which shall know euery man the plague of his own heart and spread forth his hands towards this House Then heare thou in Heauen thy dwelling place and forgiue and doe and giue to euery man according to his wayes whose heart thou knowest For thou euen thou onely knowest the hearts of all the children of men That they may feare thee all the daies that they liue in the Land which thou gauest to our Fathers THese words are a Clause of that Prayer wherewith King Salomon did dedicate the Temple and expresse that vse thereof which commeth very neare our present case Our case is twofold we suffer from Gods wrath wee are suppliants to Gods mercy And lo two like cases are presented in these words the case of Sufferers verse 37. and in the three next verses the case of Suppliants But more distinctly to rip vp the Text We will consider therein first the manner of the deliuerie and secondly the matter that is deliuered The Manner it is a Prayer the words are conceiued in that forme In the Matter we shall see 1. Whom these words concerne and 2. Wherein they doe concerne them Those whom they concerne are the inhabitants of Canaan the children of Israel the People of God this you may gather out of the 37. and 38. Verses And they concerne them in two maine Points for they shew first that they may vnderlye the heauie hand of God secondly that they must then haue recourse vnto the Throne of Grace The heauie hand of God is here set downe first definitely it may afflict Israel eyther only in
of Austria It is true that in Electiue States men are absurd that make choyce of a woman but in States that are inherited Municipall Lawes she was 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the transgression she past the bounds which GOD set her and broke a Law which was ordained to be a rule of her life Ioyne she was deceiued with she was in the transgression and then you shall see how the Serpent instils sinne into man we are not constrayned but allured to doe ill we swallow euill that is branched with the shew of good so did Eue and so doe all But how doth the Apostle deny that Adam was guiltie as well as Eue We must obserue that he doth not deny that Adam was in the transgression for then he should contradict himselfe who saith elsewhere that by man came sinne into the world yea he should contradict Adams owne confession Rom. 5. who acknowledged to GOD that his wife gaue him and he had eaten of the forbidden fruit Some therefore answer that not Adam but Eue was first in the transgression posterior in factura prior in culpa saith St HIEROME and because she was so forward not he but she was to beare the blame Some cleare the place by vnderstanding the words comparatiuely as if Eues sinne were so much greater then Adams that Adams deserued not the name of sinne in comparison of hers she was deceiued by the Serpent he by his Wife by how much more vnreasonable it is for a woman to be guided by a Serpent then for a man to be guided by his wife by so much was her sinne more soule then his But neither of these two answers fits the argument It lyeth rather in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Eue was deceiued and not Adam she made tryall of her wisedome in reasoning with the Serpent Adam did not she deceiued Adam Adam did not deceiue her consider her passiuely consider her actiuely she shewes her selfe vnfit to be a teacher wherefore she must be contented to be a scholler Semel docuit saith St Chrysostome omnia perturbauit she taught once and disordered all the world let her neuer be allowed to teach againe And indeed GOD so doomes her Gen. 3. Thy desire shall be to thy husband and he shall rule ouer thee If this subordination be not kept the course of nature will be depraued saith St HIEROMI and faults will be multiplyed in the world But we may not mistake and thinke that sinne was the first cause of womans subiection and that she was made inferiour quia abus◠est parilitate because she abused that coequalitie which she had with man which was the opinion of some ancient and moderne Diuines that conce it is refuted by the first Reason But as man before the Fall was to husband the ground which after the Fall was imposed vpon him to be done with the sweat of his browes so women were to obey before but after the Fall their obedience was made more harsh and vnpleasant yea and a verball ordination is added to the reall But I will conclude with reference of all this vnto our present occasion Adam and Eue liue still their weaknesse liues in their posteritie if you doubt it behold here spectacles of it I mistake Eue is away but here are many of Adams children Eue shewed the frailtie of the whole nature of her sexe and if her daughter were here I would let her see how like she is to such a mother but because she is not I will direct the rest of my speech vnto these sonnes of Adam Those that are blind seeke such guids as can see and they will be sure they haue better sight then themselues before they will commit themselues vnto them we chuse the best Lawyers for our Cases the best Physitians for our Bodyes but to supply the defect of our Soules to guid our Iudgement and our conscience in Religion we trust we know not whom certainly you haue and shewed your selues vnworthy to be men that could be so weake as to become Schollers to a woman I cannot tell how better to resemble your humor then to the distemperate appetite of girls that haue the Greene-sicknesse their Parents prouide for them wholsome food and they get into a corner and eat chalke and coales and such like trash so you that may in the CHVRCH haue graue and sound instructions for the comfort of your Soule in Conuenticles feed vpon the raw and vndigested meditations of an ignorant vsurping Prophetesse You may happily thinke that your fault is but small but it is no small fault to violate the orders set down by GOD for women to lift themselues aboue their ranke or men to fall below theirs it is lesse lawfull to doe so then for men to weare womens apparell or women to weare mens Put you on their Vaile and be you their glorie and let them put it off and be the glorie of GOD contrarie to St PAVLS rule or if you be loath to make such an exchange hence-forward let euerie man keepe his ranke and be forrie that you haue broken it yea be sorrie that you haue raised a scandall against your Soueraigne and your Pastors Conuenticles make shew that you haue not freedome of Religion and thereby you derogate from the honour of his most Christian gouernment and you haue wronged your Pastor by your Conuenticle casting an imputation vpon him that he cannot or he will not instruct you as he ought These things are included in your fault and you are to be sensible of these things confesse them and aske GOD and his CHVRCH forgiuenesse for them And God grant that you and we all may remember that it is our greatest honour to obserue Gods Order and that no woman presume to be an Eue no man abase himselfe to be an Adam to imitate either of them in that wherein they inuerted their ranke but that euerie one may abide in that whereunto he is called of God Amen A SERMON PREACHED AT St ANDREVVS IN WELLES WHEN ONE DID PENANCE FOR BLASPHEMIE LEVIT 24. VERSE 15 16. 15 And thou shalt speake vnto the children of Jsrael saying Whosoeuer curseth his God shall beare his sume 16 And he that blasphemeth the Name of the LORD he shall surely be put to death and all the Congregation shall certainly stone him as well the stranger as he that is borne in the Land when he blasphemeth the Name of the LORD shall be put to death COmmon-weales are gouerned by two kind of Lawes fundamentall and occasionall Fundamentall I call those by which the Common-weale was first framed Occasionall such as are from time to time added vpon emergent occasions you may resemble them by our Common and our Statute Lawes If men did liue as they ought according to the former I meane the fundamentall Lawes there would be no great need of the Lawes which I called occasionall But because they doe not Ex malis moribus bonae leges the enormous behauiour of some
mind my countrie and reioyce in my hopes These things I would doe but by reason of my paine I cannot doe What remaineth then but that I desire release and thou denie not my desire I make my suite as one that desireth to speed passionately feelingly â—pray but my prayer is a Crie and my crie is powred forth not onely by my tongue but also by mine eyes Behold Lord a true Penitent whose voice is not onely verball but reall and canst thou stop thine eares against such words can thy relieuing hand forbeare to succor when it is importuned by such deeds thou that hast opened my mouth vouchsafe to open thine owne eares and let the fountaine of mercifull comfort streame downe vpon him from whose eyes thou hast drawne flouds of Teares speake comfortably to him that speaketh penitently to thee and deale graciously with him that prostrateth himselfe humbly before thee So shall I willingly be a soiourner in earth that I may be a Citizen of heauen a stranger to the world that I may be a friend of God the ease that thou giuest me shall encourage me in thy seruice and I will liue so heare as hee that shall not liue long And because I shall when death commeth bee no more a mortall though neuer so worldly a happie man I will endeauour that I may be by thy grace an immortall an eternall blessed Saint A Meditation vpon Psalme 63. VERSE 1 2. 1. O God thou art my God early will I seeke thee my Soule thirsteth for thee my flesh longeth for thee in a barren and wearisome land where no water is 2. So haue J appeared before thee in thy Sanctuarie that I might see thy power and glorie O Lord I want I seeke reliefe to whom shall I come but vnto God And with thee I dare be bold thou art my God there is store in God and my want cannot be relieued but by his store I am in a wildernesse for what is this world but a wildernesse Nay my selfe am a wildernesse what is a wildernesse but a drie earth which tireth those that passe through it And what is the cause It hath no water no water to quench the traueilers thirst no water to make fruitfull the soile that it may beare foode to sustaine his hunger no water which may inable the earth to become greene or be imbellished with flowers the sight wherof may ease the wearisomnesse of the traueller that languisheth and fainteth through thirst and hunger This is the state of a wildernesse and in such a wildernesse am I drie and wearie no moysture no strength and why I haue no fountaine I haue spent that moysture which I receiued from thee Thou madest me a greene tree but I am become drie withered no fruit no leaues no sap as farre spent as was the prodigall Sonne and all by sinne And yet sinne doth not leaue me it turmoiles me still and my bloud being spent my spirits wasted the bloud and spirits of grace and goodnesse now I faint now I am wearie And gladly would I recouer some strength euen as gladly as the prodigall child would haue fed vpon Huskes but he found none that gaue him And here in my wildernesse I find no waters except they be the waters of Marah so bitter they cannot be drunke or of Iericho so bad that they will make the land barren of such Waters I haue springs enough Euerie outward sense and euerie inward my vnderstanding my will are fountaines of such waters fountaines that streame forth and moisten my whole man yea and turne the whole man into a dead Sea This goodly as it were Garden of the Lord which was set euerie where with trees of life I meane my bodie and soule inwardly and outwardly representing the Image of God what are they now but euen as the dead Sea And what are all the fruites thereof but euen as Sodome I want not waters then but sweete waters the want of them maketh me a wildernesse fruitlesse and yet fruitfull fruitfull in rootes of bitternesse in thistles in briers the fruits of a cursed soile But fruitlesse am I in whom groweth neither the Lilly nor the Rose neither is my life innocent nor my heart patient I am as indisposed to suffer for well-doing as to doing well But as for these better plants the Vine that cherisheth God and man the Oliue by which they are honoured both and the sweete figtree that groweth in Paradise they grow not in my soile drie soile that hath no sap of that kind And yet a soile in husbanding whereof I tire my selfe and therefore well may I call it a wearisome soile all the fruit it beareth is but vanitie of vanities and all my comfort is but vexation of spirit Seeing this is my case where lies my comfort The comfort of my Soule the comfort of my bodie both are a wildernesse But neither would bee so the thirst of my Soule the desire of my flesh my drie my tired soule and flesh speake their wants and speake more audibly then can my words what I want what I beg The thirst is mine but that I thirst it is thy gift O Lord the desire is mine but that I doe desire O Lord it commeth of grace it is thy holy spirit that teacheth me this language which can be learned in no other schoole And why Lord hast thou taught it me Is it not because I should speake to thee That my drougth should speake my wearinesse should crie That both should aske of the Lord raine For with thee is the well of liuing waters it is thou that turnest a wildernesse into a standing water and drie ground into water springs Vnto thee then come I O Lord that onely art able to relieue me because thou art a God of power and no lesse willing then able because thou art my powerfull God Euen thou O God that art three in one and one in three O God the Father I come to thee and in the bowels of a Father thou canst not reiect me thou art my God I haue no other God then hee that is my Father O God the Sonne I come to thee thou canst not refuse him whom thou hast made thy brother thou art my God I haue no other God then hee that is my Sauiour O holy Ghost I come to thee wilt thou despise him whose comforter thou hast vouchsafed to bee thou art my God I haue none other God then he that is my Comforter A threefold cord cannot be broken and how should I faile that haue this threefold stay Let me be a wildernesse a drie a wearisome wildernesse was it not this God that of the Chaos vnshapen and emptie Chaos made this solid this beautifull fabricke of the world And cannot be transforme my wildernesse into a paradise Yea the waters of the Sanctuarie no sooner entred the dead Sea but they became liuing waters all things presently liued in it and the Tree of life grew plenteously all along the bankes of it