manifold allegations of sacred Scripture both of the old and new Testament in the manner abouesaid It followeth that in the next place we mention certaine such examples as may serue to illustrate the foresaid rules and those we do distinguish into two ranckes The one is of such notable persons as are recorded in holy writt to haue attained to riches by right meanes and to haue vsed the same according to the rules of this art the which haue bene blessed of God and haue prospered for their regularities sake The other rancke is of such others as in labouring and studying to bee rich haue bene irregulars that is either haue not attained to riches by the right way or else neuer vsed them after the right manner and therefore haue beene accursed of God Of the first ranke the examples are these Abraham the father of the faithfull Gen. 12.1 2 3 7. 13.4.18 14 20 18.23 20.17 21.33 23.13 24.34.35 was a regular student in this Art for hee was a man that feared God deuoutly called vpon his name diligently obeyed his voice readily liued amongst men vprightly following the vocation the Lord had called him vnto carefully Hee was likewise carefull for all such as were vnder his charge that they should doe the like for he commanded his sonnes and his seruants to keepe the way of the Lord euen to liue religiously and soberly and iustly in this present world And the Lord blessed him exceedingly hee magnified and multiplied him so that he gaue him in great store men seruants and maid seruants siluer and gold Camels and Asses Sheepe and Beeues Gen. 12.5 14.12 19.1 2 3. 13.5.6.7 Lot Abrahams brothers sonne was likewise a regular Student in this Art Hee was a man that feared God vpright in his waies hospitable charitable and diligent in his calling And the Lord blessed him with store and aboundance of sheepe cattell and tents so that the land could not beare them that hee and his Vncle might dwell together Gen. 26.2 3 4.12.13.14.24.25.26.27.28.29.30 Isaac the sonne of Abraham was also a regular Sudent to wit a man fearing the Lord vpright charitable and diligent in his calling And the Lord whom hee serued deuoutly was with him effectually and blessed him exceedingly so that hee waxed mighty and still increased his hand brought forth an hundreth fold hee had flockes of Sheepe and heardes of cattell and a mighty housholde so that the Philistines amongst whom hee dwelt enuied his greatnesse but king Abimelech seeing manifestly that the Lord was with his seruant Isaac made an alliance and couenant of amity peace with him Iacob the sonne of Isaac Gen. 28.13 14.15 16 17 18 19 20.21.22 30.27.43 31 17.18.38.40 32.9.10 7. 33 4.11 35 1 2 3.4 36.6.7 was a man father-like religious iust charitable and diligent wherefore the Lord was with him whithersoeuer hee went so that hee became very rich and increased exceedingly for he had man seruants and maid seruants Camels and Asses and many flockes of sheepe and heards of cattell yea Laban his father in law who was an Idolater was blessed of God with temporall increase for Iacobs sake And it is very likely that God blessed also Esau with temporall blessings for receiuing his brother Iacob at his returne so kindly and so tenderly as hee did and for being appeased towards him For Esau hearing that his brother Iacob was comming home againe hee ranne to meete him and embraced him and fell on his necke and kissed him and they wept And therefore Iacob called the present hee sent to his brother Esau of his goods his blessing I pray thee quoth hee to him take my blessing that is brought thee The holy man insinuating thereby that as it was a blessing from God vnto Iacob so it should bee a blessing from God vnto Esau by Iacobs hand And consequently a meanes to make Esau more blessed in worldly wealth for Iacobs sake Ioseph the sonne of Iacob Gen. 37.26.27 36. was a man that feared God sober and chaste in his carriage vpright amongst men and diligent in his calling first in Potiphars house 39 2 3 4 5 6 20 21 22 23. 41.14 38 39 40 41 42 43 44. then in the prison and afterwards in the Princes palace The Lord was with him euery where and he prospered yea all his maisters prospered for his sake Potiphar Pharaohs Steward was his first maister who bought him at the hands of the Israelites vnto whom his brethren had sold him Potiphar seeing that the Lord was with him and that hee made all that he did to prosper in his hand of a slaue he made him the ruler of his house and put all that hee had vnder his hand And the Lord blessed the Aegyptians house for Iosephs sake yea the blessing of the Lord was vpon all that he had in the house and in the field His second maister was the maister of the Kings prison house After that he was put in prison by the malitious craft of Potiphars wife But euen there the Lord was with Ioseph and got him fauour in the sight of the maister of the prison so that he committed to Iosephs hand all the prisoners that were in the prison and looked vnto nothing that was vnder his hand but trusted Ioseph with all seeing the Lord was with him for whatsoeuer he did the Lord made it to prosper His third maister was King Pharaoh himselfe who sent for him out of prison to interprete his dreames and afterwards for his diuine wisdome made him chiefe ruler ouer his house yea ouer all the Kingdomes of Egypt so that all the reuenues and riches thereof came vnder his hand Thus we see Ioseph of a slaue made a seruant and a ruler of seruants in his maister Potiphars house and thereafter of a prisoner made a ruler of prisoners in the prison and in the end of a poore prisoner made a potent Prince so that such as hee once serued were made to serue him and hee made the maister and Lord of such as had beene his maisters before His brethren had sold him for siluer into Egypt Gen. 45 4 5 6 7 8 9. and hee afterwards sold them without siluer corne in Egypt yea saued them in Egypt from the great famine euen his father and all his family Thus we find it most true which the holy woman Anna singeth in her song 1 Sam. 2 7 8. Psal 113.7.107 33 34 35 36 37 38 40 41 42. and the sweet singer of Israel in his Psalme The Lord maketh poore and maketh rich bringeth low exalteth hee raiseth vp the poore out of the dust and lifteth vp the begger from the dung-hill to set them among Princes and to make them inherit the seate of glory Hee turneth the wildernesse into pooles of water and the dry land into water springs And there hee placeth the hungry and they build a Citie
and workes as flow from the spirit of wisedome knowledge and vnderstanding And therefore they bee such exercises and employments as a Gentleman borne ought not to bee ashamed to learn thē and to practise them rather thē to liue in idlenesse If then euen almighty God himselfe disdained not to worke for the benefit behoofe and good example of men for as for himselfe there was neuer yet any that needed lesse to worke then hee what reason haue wee to bee ashamed to worke with our hands chiefly such as haue no other meanes besides working to liue by And not onely hath God wrought but also the best Gentlemen that euer were haue likewise followed some one laborious occupation or other and that both to gaine by it and to keepe themselues from idlenesse which is the roote of all euill and maketh a mans both soule and bodie poore Genes 2.15 3.23 4.2 9.20 13. 26. 29. 0. Adam the first father of mankind and the monarch of the earth when as he was yet innocent and therefore out of doubt a better Gentleman then any that are now was put into the garden to dresse it and to keepe it Though God was his father by creation and formation for besides him he had no other father yet hee was not brought foorth or borne to be idle but to be a gardiner before his fal a labourer of the ground after his fall Also his two sonnes were men of occupation Abel a keeper of sheepe and Cain a tiller of the ground And Noah the father and monarch of the renewed earth was he not an husband man and did he not plant a vineyard and were not Abraham and Lot Isaac and Iacob and their children husbandmen and shepheards Yea more all of these had lands fields and pastures besides houses and flockes yea more then many Lords and Knights now adaies haue and yet wee see they disdained not to labour whereas many of our Gentlemen that haue none of all these or but very little will be ashamed to doe as they did But what will our idle Gentleman say of Dauid who being a young man was the keeper of his fathers sheepe 1. Sam. 16.11.12.18.19.21.22.23 17.33.34.35.36.37.45.46.47.48.49.50.51 8.17.18.20.23.25.27 and who if God had not taken him from the sheepe-coate to make him a King and a keeper of his people would haue plaied the husbandman still was not young Dauid a Gentleman euen then when hee kept the sheepe If any one doubt of it I will shew them that he had euen then moe gentlemanlike qualities then any of our Gentlemen now a daies haue King Sauls seruants reported to their master that Ishai the Bethlemite had a sonne who was a cunning player vpon the harpe a man of warre strong and valiant and wise in matters and a comelie person and such a one as feared the Lord which is the crowne of al Gentilitie and Nobilitie Wherefore King Saul sent messengers vnto Ishai and said send mee Dauid thy sonne which is with the sheepe Thus Dauid was fetched from the sheepe-coate to the Kings court and brought from feeding of sheepe to bee the Kings Fauorite his Musition and Physition both at once For when the euill spirit came vpon the King Dauid tooke an harpe and plaied with his hand and Saul was refreshed and was eased for the euil spirit departed from him Also he was the Kings armour-bearer for hee was so strong that when as hee yet kept his fathers sheepe he slue both a lion and a beare that came among the flocke and afterwards in the field hee slew the mightie Giant Goliah Finallie hee behaued himselfe so valiantlie against the Philistims who were Gods enemies that by his vertue and valour hee deserued the mariage of the Kings daughter howsoeuer that hee was as he saith of himselfe to Saules seruants who in the Kings name made offer to him to bee his sonne in law a poore man Matth. 1.20 13.55 Marke 6.3 Luk 1.27 2.4.51 4.22 and of small reputation Thus I haue shewed then that Dauid was as good a Gentleman as any Gentleman of these daies is euen then when hee kept his fathers sheepe Moreouer what can our idle Gentlemen say of Ioseph the husband of the blessed virgin who was a man of the house and linage of Dauid and by the Angell called the sonne of Dauid was he not of as good an house and of as Gentle blood as any of our idle Gentlemen are yea and better by many degrees and yet he for all that disdained not to bee a Carpenter and to follow this trade Finallie Christ the sonne of Dauid yea more the Son of God would not be idle when as he was yet young but was subiect to his supposed father Ioseph and vnto Marie his mother and exercised the Carpenters trade and therefore the Iewes called him in disdaine not onely the Carpenters sonne but also the Carpenter Wherefore I wish that neuer a Gentleman borne should be ashamed of a mechanicall craft after our Sauiour Christ and that no Christian Common-wealth should esteeme a man to haue lost his Gentilitie for exercising of a trade Alas what will our idle Gentleman say when he shall be asked at the last day concerning the calling he should haue followed here in this life shall he haue no other thing to answere but that hee was of no craft or occupation because he was a Gentleman borne what an vnsauorie answere will it bee before God who not onely hath taught men mechanicall trades but also disdained not to worke himselfe by the word of his mouth in creating the world in planting the garden of Paradise and in making of skinne-cloathes for Adam and Eue What an vnsauourie answere shall it be I say before our Sauiour Christ Mark 3.6 Luke 2.51 Matth. 4.18.21 the Sonne of God who disdained not to worke in the Carpenters trade in his supposed fathers house Ioseph who was of the same craft Iohn 21.3 and before his blessed Apostles which were fishermen as Saint Paul was a Tent-maker Then I feare me Act. 18 1.2.3 shall the idle Gentleman say Would God I had been a Tailer when I was a stealer a Rope-maker when as I was a Robber a Pedler when as I was a Pirat a Dier when as I was a Dicer a Carter when as I was a Carder and a Shoomaker when as I was a swaggerer Would God I had been of any lawfull calling when as I was an idle man liuing without all calling And trulie if a man must render an account of euerie idle word hee speaketh in this life Matth. 12.36 at the day of iudgement as our Sauiour himselfe hath said how much more must he render and giue account of his idle liuing in this life at that day Idlenesse and excesse as the Prophet teacheth vs were two of the sinnes of Sodom Ezek. 16.49 and therefore if wee would shun and eschew the fire and
Babylonians to spoyle their merchandise to robbe them of their riches to ouerthrow their pleasant houses and costly buildings to seise vpon their Shippes and to destroy their Citie The which was most famous for her scituation being euen at the entrie of the sea for the resort of people from so many places Countreies and Isles for the beautifulnesse of her buildings for the strength of her Nauie for the greatnesse of her Armie for the multitude of her Shippes and Sea-men and for her store of most exquisite wares as white Wooll fine Linnen broydred worke blew Silke Purple costly cloathes Iron Tinne Lead Brasse Gold Siluer Chaines Corall Pearles Emeraudes Horses Mules Vnicorne-hornes Elophants teeth Peacockes Wheate Honey Oyle Balme Wine Lambes Rammes Goates Cassia Calumus and all kinde of spices For as the Tyrians attained vnto so great wealth most part by vnlawfull and vngodly meanes so both the Prince and the peopple were lifted vp in heart because of their prosperity and riches Thine heart saith the Lord by his holy Prophet EZEKIEL vnto the Prince is lifted vp because of thy riches and by the multitude of thy marchandise they haue filled the middest of thee with cruelty by the iniquity of thy marchandise hast thou defiled thy selfe therefore will I cast thee as prophane out of the mountaine of God I will bring forth a fire from the middest of thee which shall deuoure thee and I will bring thee to ashes vpon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee all they that know thee amongst the people shall bee astonished at thee thou shalt bee a terrour and neuer shalt thou be any more Amos. 1.6.7.8.9.10 The inhabitants of Samaria and head-smen of Israel in the time of the Prophet Amos were irregulars in the way of Enriching for they oppressed the poore and destroyed the needy And therefore saith the Lord haue I giuen you cleannesse of teeth in all your cities and scarcenesse of bread in all your places yet haue ye not returned to me I haue with-holden the raine from you when there were yet three monethes to the haruest and I caused it to raine vpon one Citie and haue not caused it to raine vpon an other Citie one peece was rained vpon and the peece whereupon it rained not withered yet haue yee not returned vnto me saith the Lord. I haue smitten you with blasting and mell-dew your great gardens and your vineyards and your figge-trees and your oliue trees did the palmer-worme deuoure yet haue yee not returned vnto me saith the Lord. Pestilence haue I sent amongst you after the manner of Aegypt your yong men haue I slaine with the sword yea I haue made the stincke of your tents to come vp euen into your nosthrils Amos. 5.5.11.12 yet haue yee not returned vnto me saith the Lord. Forasmuch as your treading is vpon the poore and yee take from him burthens of wheat yee haue built houses of hewen stone but yee shall not dwell in them yee haue planted pleasant vineyards but ye shall not drinke wine of them for I know your manifold transgressions and your mighty sinnes they afflict the iust they take rewardes and they oppresse the poore in the gate They lie vpon beddes of iuory and stretch themselues thereupon they eate the Lambes of the flocke and the Calues of the stall they sing to the sound of the violl they inuent to themselues instruments of musicke they drinke wine in bowles and annoint themselues with the chiefe oyntments but no man is sorry for the affliction of Ioseph Heare this Amos 8.4.5.6.7.8 O yee that swallow vp the poore that yee may make the needy of the land to faile saying When will the new moone be gone that wee may sell corne and the Sabaoth that wee may set forth wheat and make the Ephah small and the sheckle great and falsifie the weights by deceit that wee may buy the poore for siluer and the needy for shooes yea and sell the refuse of the wheate The Lord hath sworne by the excellency of Iacob surely I will neuer forget any of their workes Shall not the land tremble for this euery one mourne that dwelleth therein The Citie of Ierusalem had many irregulars in the way of enriching before the time of her great desolation Isay 1.17 21 22 23. Their Princes and Iudges loued gifts and followed after reward saith the Prophet Isaie they iudged not the fatherlesse 3.14 15. neither came the widowes cause before them they eate vp the vineyard the spoyle of the poore was in their houses they beate the poore people to peeces and did grind their faces Ierem 48.29 And as in Moab there was stoutnesse and arrogancie and hautinesse of heart amongst their other sinnes for which they were destroyed by the king of Babel so the people of Ierusalem were loftie Isay 2.7 because of their wealth they were proud because their land was full of siluer and gold of treasure of horses chariots 3.16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 32 9 10 11 12 13 14. their women liued in ease were idle negligent and carelesse they were proud hautie and walked with stretched-out neckes and abounded in braue apparell and costly attire the mens chiefe care was to ioyne house to house and field to field 5 8 9 10. to haue whereupon to maintaine this brauerie and superfluitie of their wiues to find them the ornament of the slippers the calles and the round tires the sweet balles the bracelets and the bonnets the tires of the head the sloppes and the head bands the tablets the rings the eare-rings and the mufflers the costly apparell the vailes the wimples and the crisping pinnes the glasses the fine linnen the hoods and the lawnes Another of their mens chiefe and ordinary exercises 5.11 22. was to rise vp early to drinke wine and to shew themselues strong in powring in of strong drinke and to continue their tippling til the wine did consume them And as the Lord threatned the hauty daughters of Syon with the spoyle of their ornaments 3.16.24 telling them that their silke and their sattin should bee changed into sack-cloth their balles and sweet smelles into dust and ashes 5 8.11.22.23 so doth hee by his holy prophet pronounce a woe vnto these ioyners of house to house and layers of field to field till there be no place but for them that they may be placed by themselues in the middest of the earth and likewise a woe vnto these earely vprisers to follow drunkennesse and yet a third woe vnto all vniust iudges and lawlesse lawyers which iustifie the wicked for a reward and take away the right of the vpright man from him euen vnto such as decree wicked decrees and write grieuous things to keepe backe the poore from iudgement and to take away their right that they may prey vpon the poore widowes and spoyle the fatherlesse Likewise the