wallow and therefore beholding the goodnesse and seueritie of God on them to whom hee giues no grace seueritie but towards thee to whom he bestoweth his gifts goodnesse if thou continue in this goodnesse doe thou praise thy God and pray for them that for his sake that is ascended vp on high and hath led captiuitie captiue God would be pleased to bestow his gifts and graces vnto men that so all men may ascribe and giue all praise and glory vnto him which was and is and shall be through him which was dead and is aliue and liueth for euermore Amen A Prayer O Most gracious God which hast giuen thine only Sonne Iesus Christ to die for our sinnes to rise againe from the dead to ascend vnto Heauen to prepare a place for vs and to send vs thy holy spirit to fill our hearts with all heauenly graces which are necessarie for the gathering of thy Church and the sanctifying of our soules to prepare vs vnto eternall life we most humbly beseech thee to giue vs that grace to be truly thankfull vnto thee for all thy graces Increase our faith stirre vp our hope and kindle our loue both towards thee and towards all men for thy sake and because all graces are begotten increased and preserued by the hearing of thy Word and receiuing of thy blessed Sacraments we pray thee O Lord to giue vs grace to heare thy Word attentiuely to beleeue it faithfully and to receiue thy Sacraments worthily that so being filled with thy spirit we may despise all worldly vanities and haue our conuersations in Heauen while we liue on earth and at last bee receiued into that Kingdome which thou hast prepared for them that loue thee through Iesus Christ our Lord Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS The Seuenth Golden Candlesticke HOLDING The Seuenth greatest Light of Christian REIGION Of the duty of CHRISTIANS 1 THESSAL 5 2◠〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Brethren pray for vs. I Haue shewed thee O man The coherence of this Treatise with all the other Treatises how man behaued himselfe towards God offending his Maiesty with hainous sinnes and I haue shewed thee what God hath done for sinfull man how hee sent his onely begotten Sonne to be made man to suffer paine and sorrow and to die a cursed death for man thereby to ouercome all our enemies sinne death and hell to arise from the dead to assure vs of our deliuerance to ascend into heauen to prepare a place for vs and to send his holy and blessed Spirit into the hearts of men to fit them with the gifts and graces of the same to prepare them for heauen that the poore man might bathe himselfe in the poole of Bethesda and be made perfectly whole that the wandering sheepe might bee reduced and brought home vpon this mans shoulders and that sinfull man might be reconciled and revnited vnto God againe And therefore now Quid nisi vota supersunt what remaineth sauing onely prayers to render thankes vnto God for this great kindnesse and to aske those things that hee requisite for vs and to teach vs how to doe the same I haue chosen to treate of this short Text Brethren pray for vs. It is a Text independent either of precedent or subsequent matter and it containeth points of piety points fit to bee preached and fitter to bee practised by your sacred Maiesty by the worthiest Nobles by vs Priests by all men and therefore da veniam Imperatâ—r I humbly craue attention but a short time to dilate vpon this short Text Brethren pray for vs. I may say of it as Saint Hierome said to Paulinus of the Catholike Epistles of Saint Peter Saint Iohn Saint Iames and S. Iude Eas breues esse pariter longas that they were short in words but full of matter for herein our blessed Apostle as was said of that famous Hystorian Verborum numero sententiarum numerum comprehendit in this paucity of words hath couched plenty of matter the parts are two The diuision of the Text. 1. A most friendly compellation Brethren 2. A most Christian request or exhortation pray for vs. Out of the first I note two things 1. His affection whereby we are taught to liue in vnity 2. His discretion whereby wee may obserue a Christian pollicy not such as is abusiuely though commonly so termed in the world but such as is ioyned with true piety And in the second I obserue likewise two things 1. The action pray which is a worke of piety 2. The extention for vs which is an act of charity And so you see that from this short Text we may learne 1. Vnity 2. Pollicy 3. Piety 4. Charity Brethren pray for vs. CHAP. I. Of the diuers sorts of Brethren and how this teacheth vnitie FIrst Brethren is verbum amoris a word full of loue Of the vnity of brethren but it is diuersly taken in the Scripture For First Aug. ser 61. de tempore sometimes Omnem hominem per fratrem debemus accipere saith Saint Augustine we ought to vnderstand euery man by the name of brother as he that hateth his brother i. e. he that hateth any man is a man-slayer Secondly Sometimes it signifieth those of the same nation as Moses went out vnto his brethren Exod. 2.11 and saw an Egyptian smiting an Hebrew one of his brethren Thirdly Sometimes cognatos Scriptura dicit fratres Aug. l. 1. locut de Gen. Math. 12.4.7 Mar. 3.32 the Scriptures calleth our kinred by the name of brethren as behold thy brethren stand without desiring to speake with thee Fourthly Sometimes it is put for the sonnes of the same parents as Heua bare againe his brother Abell and Caine said Am I my brothers keeper Gen. 4.2.8.9 v. Fiftly 1 Cor. 1.26 Sometimes we vnderstand those of the same religion and profession as you see your calling brethren Et sic fratres dicti Christiani and so all Christians are called brethren saith Saint Augustine and so Saint Paul meaneth in this place Brethren pray for vs for otherwise he was an Hebrew of the seed of Israel of the Tribe of Beniamin 2 Pet. 1.10 and they were Grecians of Thessalonica the Metrapolitane City of Macedonia built by Philip king of Macedon and so called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Aug. ser dom in monte fol. 343. of his victories obtained in Thessaly in which respect also he called his owne daughter Thessalonica as Suidas saith but they were all Christians and therefore brethren and therefore the deerer one to another because Christian brethren Quia maior est fraternitas spiritus quam sanguinis because the fraternity or brother-hood of Christians which is in respect of the Spirit that begetteth vs with the same immortal seed in the wombe of the same mother the Church to bee brought forth and brought vp as children to the same Father which is in heauen is a great deale more excellent then the brotherhood of flesh and bloud Nam
some like not the Preacher others haue not leisure some visit their friends which is a deede of Charity others cast their accounts which is a poynt of Pollicy to see how the world goes with them others wearied with cares it may be with gaming all night before doe rest and sleepe which is an act of necessitie others playing at dice or at cards or at bowles or some other game and all but for their recreation which is a thing allowed and they will all say God forgiue vs and they thinke that is enough What a danger it is to neglect publike praiers But alas beloued what if God should dislike thee for disliking him whom he hath appointed to teach thee or should visit these visiters with some mortall sicknesse and send their soules presently to hell because their bodies were then absent from the Church or what if he should then call the accounters of their wealth vnto an account for their deeds or smite in his indignation those drousie sleepers with some deadly appoplexie and those impious players with some fearefull vengeance I trow they would vnfainedly wish to haue bin rather praying in the Church with the congregation then either visiting or counting or sleeping or playing for gaine or recreation But you will say that you hope God is mercifull Ob. and you trust in him and therefore he will not be so seuer against you as we are to preach vnto you I answer that you may trust in Gods mercie Sol. but I know no ground that you haue for it for they that call on him shall be saued and the righteous shall be preserued and hee will be mercifull to them that feare him there is no question of it To hope for Gods mercie and to neglect Gods seruice is vaine presumption but then they which neglect Gods seruice should haue any part in Gods mercies they may thinke to haue it but I know no promise in the world they haue for it and therefore if we desire God to heare vs and doe looke for the blessing of saluation let vs goe into his Church to heare his voice and to pray vnto him in this appointed time of Deuotion and seeing the Lord requireth vs to watch with him but one houre to doe him seruice yea for our owne happinesse let vs take great heede vnto our selues that wee robbe him not of that one houre and so commit such fearefull wickednesse so offensiue to God and so dangerous to our owne soules Fiftly for the manner how wee ought to pray the Apostle saith we know not how to pray as we ought Quia nihil tam longe distat a nobis quam orare vt decet because nothing is harder for vs to doe then to pray as we should and therefore our Sauiour was most carefull to teach vs how to pray both in the matter and in the manner of Prayer Christ did set vs downe a perfect pattern of prayer First In matter when you pray say thus Our Father which art in Heauen c. to make them ashamed of their impious conceits which reiect this heauenly prayer and affect those monstrous prayers of their owne begettings whose birth praecedeth their conceptions for in this Prayer nothing is wanting that should be desired nothing is more then ought to be required I might here inlarge this Treatise into a Volume to expresse the excellencies and to explaine the misteries and so comment vpon this Prayer and vpon euerie particular petition of the same but that I see my booke swelled already into a bigger Volume then at the first I did suppose it would and I know many famous and worthie men haue most worthily and learnedly left many excellent expositions vpon the same which you may finde obuiously in euery place Secondly In manner hee left his owne example when hee Prayed for in the Garden of Gethsemane 1. He kneeled downe in all humilitie Delights of the Saints 334. 2. He said Father in the assurance of Faith 3. He said O my Father to shew his zeale 4. He prayed three times to shew his constancie 5. Vpon the Crosse he said Father forgiue them to shew his charitie And 6. Throughout all his life he was a true seruer of God and delighted only in doing the will of God to shew his pietie And all this he did to teach vs to pray first in humilitie secondly in faith thirdly in zeale fourthly in constancie fiftly in charitie sixtly in pietie That we ought to pray in all humilitie First In humilitie because the prayer of him that humbleth himselfe pierceth the skies and will not depart vntill God hereth it saith the Sonne of Syrach Now there be 2. things that should teach vs to be humbled First the consideration of our owne miseries what poore and miserable creatures wee bee wormes and no men dust and ashes and therefore why art thou proud thou dust and ashes Secondly the consideration of Gods greatnesse to whom thousand thousands of Angells doe administer Varus Germinus was wont to say to Caesar Qui apud te O Caesar audent dicere magnitudinem tuam ignorant qui non audent humanitatem tuam nesciunt they that dare speake to thee doe not know thy greatnesse they that dare not are ignorant of thy humanity and meekenesse I may say farre better our God is meeke and lowly in heart that wee may speake vnto him but hee is so great in Maiestie and Power that one ought to speake in all humilitie and that not with the Gentiles whose heathenish fashion was adorare sigillaria sua residendo to worship their Gods as they sate but meekely kneeling vpon our knees That we ought to pray in faith that we may shew both inward and outward humilitie for this was the practise not onely of great sinners or men of meane estate in the world but also of the holyest Saints Cyprian 2. ad Don. and of the greatest men of greatest account in the world Kings Princes and Monarches Apostles Prophets and Priests Moses Aaron Dauid Salomon Samuell and Christ himselfe the Sonne of God did often vse to fall downe to kneele and prostrate himselfe vpon the ground when he prayed vnto his Father prostratus in terra orat medicus non inclinatur aegrotus and shall this heauenly Physitian kneele and we thinke much to stoope O then beloued seeing thousand of thousands of heauenly Angells doe administer vnto the Lord our God consider with thy selfe saith Saint Bernard Quanta cum humilitate debet rana paupercula odorare eum with what great humilitie ought wee poore wormes of the earth to adore him And therefore as Eusebius reporteth of that most christian Constantine that it was his vsuall custome euery day to shut vp himself close into some secret place of his Pallace and there vpon his bended knees and with a most submisse humble voice to make his deuout prayers and soliloquies vnto Almightie God so let vs worship God not onely in
as hee which beleeueth in Christ as sayth the Apostle and prouideth not for his familie hath denied the faith and is worse then an Infidell and as he which professeth Christian Religion and with his knowledge and Faith and Baptisme hath no good maners no holinesse of life and conuersation which may expresse the liuelihood of this doctrine but hath onely a certaine shew of Religion hauing denied the power thereof is farte worse then an Infidell so is he which sinneth wittingly through knowledge by so much worse then he is which sinneth through ignorance as an inexcusable sinne is worse then that which hath a iust excuse And so Saint Isidore sayth Jsidorus de summo bono l 2. that tanto maius peccatum esse cognoscitur quanto maior qui peccat habetur according to the quality of the offender so is the qualitie of the offence Criminostor culpa est vbi honestior status the greater the man is which sinneth the greater is the sinne which he committeth for as Plato sayth that ignorantia potentum robustorumque hominum hostilis atque teterrima res est the ignorance of great and mighty men is a most vile and hatefull thing Why the sins of great men of eminent place are the greatest sins because it may bee very hurtfull vnto many so may we say that the sinnes of great men and of those that are in place and authoritie are exceedingly sinnefull and doe deserue the greater condemnation not onely because their sinnes are exemplarie sinnes as the old verse sayth Regis ad exemplum totus componitur orbis and as the prouerbe is like Priest like People Matth. 6.23 but also because in them is required the more eminent vertue wee should bee the light of the world and the great men should be the defenders of the distressed and the helpers of the needy and therefore Si lumen quod in te est tenebrae sunt ipsae tenebrae quatae erunt If thou which shouldest be at patterne of all vertue committest sinne how great is thy sin and if they which should be Patrons of the poore Preachers become robbers of the Church and they which should be Releeuers of the needy become oppressors of their neighbours how intollerable is that cruelty Surely though these things should be but small sinnes in others yet in vs they are horrible transgressions Chrysost hom 24 in c. 7. Matth. Quia impossibile omnino nobis est ad ignorantiae praesidium aliquando confugere Because it is vnpossible for vs to finde any excuse for our selues And therefore though Gentlemen and Courtiers Citizens and worldlings doe leade their liues in lewdnesse and turne the graces of God into wantonnesse and thinke it no great sinnes but either the infirmities of their youth or but the custome of their times yet in vs that are the Preachers of Gods Word or in those that are the Gouernours of the people the least sinne or mis-cariage of our selues which perhaps alijs ignoscitur nobis imputatur is but a veniall sinne in others and shall be pardoned will be found a haynous sinne in vs for which we shall be surely punished Bern. l. 2. de consid ad Eugen. for so Saint Bernard saith Inter seculares nugae nugae sunt in ore sacerdotis sunt blasphemiae Triffles are but triffles among secular men but in the mouth of the Priests triffles proue to be blasphemies and therfore the wise man saith that the meane and the simple man shall obtaine mercy Wis 6.6 when the wise and the mighty shall be mightily punished CHAP. VI. How euery sinne and the least sinne of euery one bringeth death YOu haue heard the diuersity of sinners and the inequality of sinnes and therfore I might now proceed vnto the second part which is the reward of sinne but that I may not forget to obserue that the Apostle saith indefinitely the reward of sinne is death to teach vs these three speciall lessons 1. That euery One sinne brings death 2. That the sinne of euery one brings death 3. That the least sin of any one brings death for First He sayth the reward of sinne is death not of sinnes That any one sinne is sufficient to bring death vnto the Sinner 1 Sam. 17. 2 Sam. 20 9. Sueton. in vit Caesar One is inough if there were no more For as one leake in a shippe is sufficient to sinke it and one vaynes bleeding is inough to let out all the vitall spirits and one wound may kill Golias and Amasa as well as 23 did Caesar So one proud disdainefull thought may cast Lucifer out of Heauen one Apple may cast Adam out of Paradise and one sinne may bring death vpon any one of the sonnes of Adam And therefore seeing the puritie of God can abide no sinne and his iustice will so seuerely punish euery sinne Gen. 3.24 we should not giue way to any sinne for though we keepe the royall Law James 2.10 yet if we fail but in any one point we are guilty of all not that he which committeth any one sin committeh all sinnes but that he is as guilty of death by that one sinne as if hee had committed all sinnes and God can as easily spie out one sinne in man though he had no more as well as he could spie out one man amongst his guests which had not on his wedding garment Matth. 22.12 Secondly as One sinne so the sinne of any one brings death That the sin of any one man be he great or small brings death Gal. 3.10 Jerem 22 24. for cursed is euery one whosoeuer he be that continueth not in all things that are written in the Booke of the Law for to doe them saith the Lord and the soule which sinneth that soule shall die saith the Prophet and Coniah if he offend though he were as the Signet on Gods right hand yet will God cut him off saith the Lord. But what haue not Kings and Princes Lords and Ladies great men Knights and rich men haue not they any priuiledge to haue their pleasures nor any prerogatiue to commit any sinne must they haue no more liberty then the poorest peasant Yes that they haue for when the meane men cannot offend but presently they shall be reprooued and it may be punished whereby many times they are brought to repentance and are themselues cleansed and haue their sinnes pardoned the great men The dangerous estate of Great men because many of vs dare not reproue them for feare to offend them and so to be offended by them may goe on in their sinnes without controulement they may doe it without feare though with the more danger for though it be true of a poore fearefull Preacher dat veniam coruis vexat censura columbas that he dares not reprooue these mighty men yet with God there is no respect of persons but Veniam laeso numine nullus habet If Moses the Prince of Gods people
but hee not contented to be a man aboue these but desiring to be a god aboue all was made a worme and no man inferior vnto all and then all like Acteons dogges seeing vs metamorphosed from men to worse then beasts began to rebell against vs and most furiously to pursue vs Gen 19.24 the fire to consume vs as it did Sodome and Gomorrah 2 Sam. 24. the ayre to infect vs as it did the Israelites in the time of Dauid the water to drowne vs as it did the whole world in the dayes of Noah Gen. 7.23 the earth to swallow vs as it did Corah Num. 16.32 Dathan and Abiram and all other creatures to deuour vs as the beares did those children that mocked Elizeus the Starres in their order Judg. 5.20 did fight against Sisera and since we haue sinned and rebelled against the Lord there is no creature but hath cast away the created yoke of obedience and haue rebelled against vs so that now hic labor hoc opus est It is a taske too great for Hercules to bring them againe to the obedience of man And thus you see that from our first entrance into this wretched life sinne laboureth still to kill vs and doth at all times and by all meanes vexe vs grieue vs weaken vs by passions sorrowes sicknesses and such like and will neuer leaue vs vntill it layeth vs downe in the dust and therefore that all these are the prodromi the fore-runners and beginnings of death or rather like so many little deaths that doe bring vs vnto our last and fatall death For all these are the reward of sinne and therefore branches of this death And so you see what is meant by Death For the second point hauing seene what is meant by death Of the large extent of death that is all the miseries that doe consume and waste our liues we are now to consider how farre this death extendeth And this the Apostle sheweth briefly when he saith Statutum est omnibus semel mori It is appointed for all men once to die Heb. 9.27 and the very Heathens say as much Seneca Lex vniuersa iubet nasci mori It is an vniuersall Law and a debt that we owe and must pay to Nature that euery one which is borne to life should passe away by death Laertius lib. 2. c. 3. And therefore when it was told Anaxagoras that all his sonnes were dead he answered Sciebam me genuisse mortales I knew that I had begotten mortall creatures for as nullis amorest medicabilis herbis so nihil est moderabile morte There is nothing in the world that can moderate the rage or preserue vs from the fatall stroke of death Non Torquate genus Horatius lib. 4. non te facundia non te restituet pietas saith Horace vnto his friend Torquatus And we see the faith of Abraham the strength of Sampson the wisedome of Salomon the riches of Craesus and the Kingdomes of Alexander could not preserue them from Death Polydor Virgil writeth that King Canutus seeing the Sea beginning to flow said I command thee not to touch my feete but his command was bootlesse for he had scarce ended his Edict but the surging waue dashed at his teeth So we may out-braue death in words but we may be sure that as the Sea so Death How vnresistable is death antiquum obtinebit will keepe his old wont Yea though wee could hinder the course of the Sea for meanes haue been found to tame the fiercest beasts to breake the hardest marble to mollifie the impenetrable Adamant and to deale with the Seas as Xerxes did with the waters of Hellespont or Caesar with all the Riuers of Germany yet is there no meanes in the world to escape the hands of death and therefore Saint Augustine saith August Psal 121. Resistitur ignibus vndis ferro resistitur regibus imperijs venit vna mors quis ei resistit Fire Waters Swords Kings Kingdomes were resisted but who hath euer withstood the stroake of death Quia nec miseretur inopum nec reueretur diuites Because as Saint Bernard saith it neither pittieth the poore Ber. de conu cler nor regardeth the rich but Nereus the faire Thirsites the soule Craesus the rich Irus the poore Solym the cruell Solyman the magnificent Diomedes the Prince and Damaetas the Peasâ—nt must all fall downe at Deaths feet Because that no teares no prayers no threatnings no intreâ—tings will serue the turne to turne away the face of death So stiffe so deaffe so inexorable is death How the Egyptians expressed death to be the sole enemie of all men And therefore the Egyptians in their Hierogliphickes painted Death like a Goddesse holding a sickle in her hand with this inscription Nemini parco I spare no man And because they found her so hard-hearted so implacable and so inexorable that nothing could appease her wrath when she did meane to cut vs downe but that she tooke the Husband from the bosome of his louing wife and the Parents from the poore helpelesse Infants and so fulfilling her owne will and carefull for none else therefore they built her no temples they offered no sacrifice they celebrated no rites vnto her but seeing she vsed all alike Constantinus imperator famulus meus making no difference betwixt Agamemnon and Thirsites therefore all vsed her alike and stood all vpon their guards to defend themselues so well and so long as they might against all her darts though they knew that in the end she would ouercome them all because they had all sinned and the reward of sinne is death Psal 50.22 O consider this all ye that forget God all ye that neglect God all whosoeuer Kings Lords and great men old and yong rich and poore one with another for though you liue like gods and none dare say why doe you so yet you shall die like men and if you fearelesly commit the sinne I dare boldly say that you shal be sure Aequo pode pulsat pauperum tabernas regumque turres Horatius most fearefully to indure the punishments for as you see Death spareth none but cutteth downe as well the Cedars of Lebanon and the Oakes of Bashan as the Shrubs of Cades So much lesse will God spare any man that sinneth CHAP. V. How Death worketh variably in diuers respects and the diuers causes thereof FOr the third point we must consider that although Death passeth ouer all yet that it worketh not vpon all alike but worketh variably and that as we find it in foure speciall respects 1. Of the manner 2. Of the time 3. Of the place 4. Of the effects or consequents of Death For the first we finde that there be more wayes of death then there be meanes to preserue our life for as the Poet saith Mille modâ—s laethi miseros mors vna fatigat Though there is but one way for all men to come into
their consciences and they shall see that they must part from all the things that they haue gathered but that not one of those sinnes will part from them which they haue committed and least they should forget them Satan will now open his booke and set all their sinnes before their eyes and then he will bestirre himselfe because he knoweth his haruest is great and his time is but short and therefore he will tell them Matth. 19.17 that if they would haue entred into life they should haue kept the commandements as our Sauiour Christ himselfe doth testifie Rom. 2.13 he will alleage against them that not the hearers but the doers of the Law shall be iustified and he will inferre that if the iust shall scarce be saued it is intollerable for them being wicked men to appeare How Satan discourageth the wicked at their death and what the Preachers of God now cannot beat into the thoughts of these carelesse men this wicked damned spirit will then irremoueably settle in their deepest considerations 1 Cor. 6.9.10 viz. that neither adulterers nor fornicators nor drunkards nor swearers nor vsurers nor extortioners nor lyers nor enuious men nor haters of men nor any such like shall inherit the Kingdome of God and of Christ O then what agonies and perplexities will inuade and teare the wofull hearts of wicked men In that day saith the Lord I will cause the Sunne to goe downe at noone Amos 8.9.10 and I will darken the earth in the cleare day I will turne their feasts into mournings and their songs into lamentations that is they shall be sure then to haue the greatest griefe and vexation when they haue the greatest need of comfort and consolation for I will make all those things that were wont most sweetly to delight them now most of all to torment them the pleasure of sinne shall now turne to be as bitter as Gall and now they shall see that they must die and liue they can no longer and that Satan whom they would not forsake all their life-time will not forsake them now at their death-time but wil be still sounding in their eares Me you haue serued and from me you must expect your wages We read the Deuil assayled the best-Saints Saint Martin Saint Bernard Eusebius Ignatius and others Luke 23.31 and if these things be done in a greene tree what shall be done in a withered saith our Sauiour If he be so busie about the Saints Pet. 4.17 which haue the Angels of God round about them to preserue them Psal 91.11 What shall he doe to sinners who haue nothing but deuils round about them to confound them This is the state of wicked men at their dying day and therefore mors peccatorum pessima of all terrible things the death of sinnefull men is the most terrible Secondly After the seperation of the body and soule How death aequalizeth the bodies of all men then death indeede makes different effects for though it makes the bodies of all alike their dust is so mingled and their bones are so like one another that we know not Irus from Craesus as Diogenes being demaunded by Alexander what he sought for among the tombes sayd he sought for his father Phillips bones but among so many dead mens soules hee knew not which they were yet in respect of the soules How death sendeth the soules of the good to Heauen and of the wicked to hell it worketh very different consequents for it sends the good soules into Abrahams bosome and the wicked soules to hell to be tormented in fire for euermore Now that the efficiente cause of death which is sinne should be the same in all men and that the fruites and effects or subsequents of death should be so different in the godly from all other men we find a treble reason A three-fold reason of the subsequent different effects of death The 1. Is the practise of a godly life 2. Is the meditation of our owne death 3. Is the application of the death of Christ These things as Sampson sayd in his riddle out of the eater bring meate and out of the strong sucke sweetenesse these things doe translate the sting and curse of death into a sweete and a blessed life Of the first Saint Augustine sayth Mala mors putanda non est Aug. de ciuit dei l. 1. c. 21. That to liue well is a speciall meanes to make vs die well quam bona vita praecessit It is impossible that his death should be ill whose whole life hath beene alwayes good quia nunquam Deus deserit hominem quovsque homo deserat deum because God will neuer forsake that man at his death which hath truely serued God throughout all his life and therefore Seneca sayth Seneca in quad epist Ante senectutem curaui vt bene viuâ—rem vt in senectute bene morerer While I was young all my care was to liue well that when I were old I might die well and so let vs doe if wee would die well let vs liue well let vs learne artem viâ—endi the art to liue the life of the righteous and wee shall bee sure to die the death of the righteous for seeing the wages of sinne is death it must needs be that the lesser and the fewer our sinnes be the better our death will be But if we liue like Baalam which loued the gaine and wages of vnrighteousnesse it is vnpossible that we should die the death of Israel for God beheld there was no iniquitie in Iacob Numb 23 21. nor any peruersenesse in Israel and therefore the Lord his God was with him Godly sorrow for sinne and the meditation of our death is the death of sinne Of the second Bosquierus sayth that à culpa natae sunt duae filiae Tristitia Mors hae duae filiae hanc pessimani matrem destruunt Sinne brought forth two goodly damosells Sorrow and Death and these two daughters like the brood of vipers doe eate through the bowells and destroy that wicked mother For First Paenitudine commissa delentur by repentance wee wash away the sinnes that are past and therefore Iohn Baptist sayth O generation of Vipers if you would kill your cruell wicked mother Matth. 3.7 8. that is Sinne bring foorth fruits meete for repentance for that is the onely way for you to escape death and to flee from the wrath to come And Secondly Meditatione mortis futura cauentur by the frequent meditation of death we come more and more to detest and to beware of sinne Aug l. 1. contra Man for so Saint Augustine sayth that nihil sic reuocat hominem à peccato quam frequens meditatio mortis Nothing is so powerfull to make a man hate sinne as continually to consider of this bitter fruit and reward of sinne which is death and Seneca before him sayth the same thing and therefore he aduiseth euery man
now I come to restore it to make him ashamed to confesse his sinnes And surely thus hee deales with vs all hee makes vs shamelesse to commit all sinnes euen with Absolon in the sight of all Israel 2 Sam. 16.22 and in the sight of the Sunne but he makes vs ashamed to confesse any sinne But if wee feare this punishment of sinne all miseries in this life death shortning life and eternall torments after death and would bee deliuered from it then let vs not make the Ministers afrayde to reproue our sinnes nor be our selues ashamed to confesse our sinnes for as the first degree of righteousnesse is not to sinne so the second is to acknowledge and forsake our sinnes If we had not sinned we had not died and if we doe acknowledge and forsake them we shall receiue no dammage by death but if we continue in sinne we shall die and we shall iustly die for the reward of sinne is death And so I come to the third part which is the equitie of this reward because death is the wages of sinne PART III. The equity of this payment Death is the stipend of Sinne. Part. 3. CHAP. I. How iust a thing it is to punish Sinne. The reward of Sinne is Death YOu haue heard of a world of miseries that are inflicted on man for sinne here in this life you haue heard of eternall death and intollerable torments for euer and euer that shall be inflicted on sinfull soules in the future life and now it resteth that I should shew the equity of this punishment how iust it is with God to render all this on man for sinne and therefore that I may the more fully cleere this point Three points to be considered to shew the equity of the punishment of sinne I must desire you to consider these three especiall things 1. That it is iust to punish sinne 2. That God is the iustest Iudge that can be found to punish it 3. That this punishment which God imposeth and inflicteth for sinne is most right and iust First there is nothing in the world Cicero de nat deorum l. 1. saith Cicero more agreeable to reason then that true and honest labour should bee commended and rewarded and the vices of men should be seuerely punished according to their iust desert for it is vnpossible saith he that either house or Common-wealth should stand Si in ea nec rectè factis proemia extant vlla Idem l. 3 de nat deor nec supplicia peccatis if there be not in the same both rewards for good deeds and punishments for sinnes and therefore Solon being demanded what was most profitable for the well-fare of a Common-wealth said Si boni proemijs innitantur mali paenis coercentur Stobaeus ser 41. to defend and reward the good and to restraine and punish the bad and M. Cato saith that there is nothing more pernicious vnto any state Plutarch in Apoth Quam si improborum mores paena non coerceantur then to suffer wicked men to goe away vnpunished and therefore he would haue those Magistrates that did not punish the impieties of the wicked and dissolute fellowes Non tantum non ferendos The Law of Nature teacheth that sinne should be punished sed lapidihus obruendos not onely not to be suffered but to be stoned with stones to death and so the Lawes of all Nations doe prouide that good and vertuous deeds should be rewarded and euill deeds should be punished for wee finde it very true by experience that impunitas delicti inuitat homines ad malignandum To forbeare the punishment of sinne doth increase the number of sinners Prou. 17 15. because punishment is deferred the hearts of the children of men are euen set to doe euill and therefore God himselfe doth say that whosoeuer iustifieth the wicked is a like culpable before him as if he had condemned the innocent and Saint Ambrose tels vs plainely that it is sometimes miserecordia punire crudelitas parcere a pious work to punish and a cruelty for to spare for this doth not onely incourage sinners to goe on from one wickednesse to another but it is an ill patterne and a great prouokement to draw others to doe the like and therefore wee may well conclude this first point that it is a most iust thing to punish sinnes and offences CHAP. II. How God is the iustest Iudge to punish Sinne. SEcondly that God is the iustest Iudge that can be found to punish sin it appereth by these 3. reasons God loueth righteousnesse Psal 45.7.8 Heb. ◠9 First because he loueth righteousnesse For it is the propertie of a iust Iudge not onely to iudge righteously to iustifie the innocent and to punish the offenders but also to loue righteousnesse and to hate iniquitie but of God the Prophet saith Psal 5.5 Thy throne O God is for euer and euer thou hast loued righteousnesse and hated iniquitie wherfore God euen thy God hath annoynted thee with the oyle of gladnesse aboue thy fellowes And againe thou hatest all those that worke vanitie Secondly because he iudgeth without any respect of persons God is no respecter of persons for this is one of the chiefest properties of a righteous Iudge to iudge according to the equitie of the cause and according to the quality of the person and therefore Iethro Iehosophat Exod. 18.21 and others doe make this not respecting of persons 2 Chron 19 7. to be one of the essentiall properties of a righteous Iudge Prou 24.23 1 Sam. 6.7 Act. 10 33. Gal. 1.6 Psal 50.10 Psal 149 8. Deut. 26.7 but with God there is no respect of persons for he will not be corrupted with the reward of the rich for all the beasts of the Forrest are his and so are all the cattell vpon a thousand hills he will not be terrified for feare of the mighty for he will binde Kings in fetters and Nobles in linkes of iron neither is he angred or molested with the incessant complaynings of the poore but he will heare their cry Psal 145.19 and will helpe them Psal 145.19 Indeed with men it is a common practise With men we finde Iustice often peruerted to haue our lawes like a spiders webbe wherein the little flies are catcht and the great buzzing bumble bees doe easily passe through and therefore it is truely said of mans Law That Dat veniam coruis vexat censura columbas It spares the rich but spoiles the poore But Gods law is rete Vulcanium like Vulcans iron net That God is most iust which apprehends and condemnes all alike for if the greatest men hurt the poorest and those poore men cry vnto me saith the Lord I will heare them that is to helpe the oppressed and to punish the wrong doer and therefore Moses saith of him Deut. 10.17 that he is a great God mighty and terrible which accepteth no person nor taketh reward but
Israel by making mutuall matches and mariages betwixt their Children whereby the anger of the Lord was so kindled that hee slew of them three and twenty thousand in one day 1 Kings 12.31 The other was the practice of Ieroboam the sonne of Nebat a great King that to establish his Kingdome did make Officers and Priests of the basest of the people 1 Kings 12.31 and thereby hee made all Israel for to sinne And therefore if you would suppresse or hinder the increase of sinne you must take heede among other things of these two especiall points First Marry not your Children vnto sinners That we should not marry our Children but to the best men but looke rather into the sincerity of their Religion the purity of their profession and the vprightnesse of their conuersation then the greatnesse of their reputation here amongst men and if you finde them Drunkards Swearers Players Idolaters superstitious or leud liuers or any wayes inclined to these or the like sinnes decline you from them and meddle not with them least their sinnes doe bring a plague and punishment to consume both you and yours for though it be a good thing to bestow thy Daughter in marriage yet is it not good vnlesse it be to a man of vnderstanding saith the Wiseman but they are a people void of reason and a Nation destitute of vnderstanding that turne the Diuine Verity into Idolatry or that doe any wayes erre from Gods Commandements Secondly make not any Officers especially Priests That we should not make any Officers especially Priests but those that are truly religious and honest of the basest of the people but looke into their liues and consider well their profession yea marke their inclination and whom you see corrupted with sinne or any wayes infected with the poyson of iniquity drunkennesse prophanenesse cruelty idolatry or superstition promote them not vnto your seates of Gouernment or if they be promoted and preferred by others yet haue you nothing to doe with this stoole of wickednesse receiue them not into your Houses entertaine them not at your Tables haue no commerce or conuersation with them meddle not with them fauour them not for you may be sure that they will fauour sinne and you should feare least by medling with them you should be defiled and tainted with sinne for the bewitching of naughtinesse Wisdome 4.10 doth soone obscure things that are honest But make much of them that feare the Lord and whom you see zealously affected to follow the true Religion and earnestly labouring to leade an vpright conuersation O let them be helped and furthered to be promoted both in Church and Common-wealth for you may be sure That we should make much of those that are good and godly men and doe our best to promote such into dignity that they will faithfully doe what lyeth in them to suppresse Idolatrie and all iniquitie Who so is wise will ponder these things and he shall vnderstand and perceiue and feele the louing kindnesse of the Lord. And as sinne seekes to creepe by degrees so if you looke into the liues of men you shall see how it comes fairely clad and vayled with the shaddowes of vaine excuses Sometimes of infirmity either of Age or of Nature young men thinke it too soone for them to be precise old men are weake and are not able to endure any longer seruice the wrathfull man Gen 4.23 with Lamech layeth all the fault on his fury if he slayes a man in his wound and a young man in his hurt the Drunkard saith it was his drinke and not he that acteth all the mischiefe and the lasciuious man excuseth himselfe with the heate of his bloud and the lust of his flesh Of the manifold excuses that sinners haue to lessen and to excuse their sinnes Gen. 3.7 Sometimes of conformity the proud the drunken the ambitious the couetous and the like sinnefull men they doe but as most men doe and why should they be singular Sometimes of simplicity there meaning is good what euill soeuer they doe And thus sinne couers it selfe like Adam with the fruitlesse figge-leaues of hypocrisie But alas beloued we must know that for Gods Husbandry no season proues vnseasonable but young men and maidens old men and children Psal 148.12 must praise and serue the Lord and Nature must be subdued by Grace if euer we will be the Children of Glory and all your excuses of sinne will not free your soules from eternall death but as the Prouerbe is Kill a man when thou art drunke and thou shalt be hanged when thou art sober So sweare and raile and rage and offend thy God and abuse man when thou art in thy drinke in thy fury and God will lay the punishment on thee and not on thy drinke when thou shalt not haue a drop of drinke to quench thy thirst nor a droppe of water to coole thy tongue Luc. 16.24 That we ought to keepe our selues spotlesse in the midst of the wicked And we haue learnt in Gods Schoole that Iuda must not sinne no though all Israel should play the Harlot but as the Riuer Alphaeus conuayes it selfe through the Seas into his beloued Arethusa and yet participates not at all with the Sea-saltish humour so must Lot preserue himselfe chaste in the middest of Sodome and the Saints in the middest of the World as I haue shewed at large in my Treatise The Delights of the Saints Page 47. of the Delights of the Saints And the Schoole of Diuinity teacheth vs that Bonum est de integra causa The beginning meanes and ending of euery action must needes be right or the whole action will proue wrong and therefore wee must take away these vailes from sinne if we would perceiue the vglinesse of sinne and so escape the wages of Sinne which is Death Secondly seeing Sinne is the reall and radicall cause Et mali morbi mortis Of weakenesse sickenesse miseries death and destruction a pernicious parent of most dreadfull and deadly off-spring for foolish men are plagued Psal 107.17 because of their offences and I will smite thee saith God himselfe vnto Iacob because of thy sinnes and it is an axiome infallible Mich. 6.13 that sinne and punishment are inseparable companions so inseperable that the Hebruists doe often call them both by one name as where the text sayth Sinne lyeth at the doore Gene. 4.7 and ver 13. and My sinne is greater then I can beare and againe your Sinne shall find you out there Arias Montanus and Tremellius translate it punishment Numb 32.23 That wee should acknowledge our owne sinnes to be the true cause of all our miseries Jere. 44.17 therefore if we feele any plagues or miseries either Dearth of Corne or decaying of Trade increase of Superstition or decrease of Religion or any such like plagues and miseries let vs not blame the times nor trueth of God but let vs lay the
fault where it is vpon our selues and vpon our owne Sinnes for though the many multitude say it was a good world with them When they sacrificed vnto the Queene of Heaven yet the King of Heauen knowes what a wofull time it was for Man when the Crucifixe was kissed with the kisses of their Mouthes and Iesus Christ was crucified againe with the workes of their hands and when they changed The trueth of God into a lye and Worshipped and serued the creature made a god with their owne hands Rom. 1.15 More then the Creator who is blessed for euer Amen And if we would be free from plagues free from punishments let vs free our selues from sinne I know that feare of Poperies comming againe with superstitions hath spread it selfe ouer the face of this whole Iland but alas Wee feare where no feare is for I dare confidently affirme that it neuer was his Maiesties minde nor the purpose of the State to bring in Idolatry and superstition into this land againe Cantic 5.3 for We haue washed our feete and shall we foule them againe But the secrets of State is more then either I can perceiue or most of you well vnderstand Or if they did yet were it vayne Quia non est concilium contra Dominum because no deuice of man can subuert the truth of God vnlesse our sinnes doe prouoke our God Reuel 2.5 Nulla nocebit aduersitas si nulla dominetur iniquitas Gregor Cyprian to remoue our Candlesticke and to take away our light and therefore though all the Iesuites of the world and all the Cardinals of Rome nay though all the Deuils of Hell should doe their worst against vs yet if we feare our God and forsake all Sinne the diuels may haue all their seruants before they all shall be able to hurt any one seruant of the Lord quia non plus valet ad deijciendum terrena paena quam ad erigendum diuina tutela 1 John 4.4 because He that is in vs is greater then he that is in the World and is more able to preserue vs then the Prince of darkenesse is to destroy vs. That wee should turne to the Lord our God And therefore if you thinke Poperie to be euill and would be free from superstition neuer feare the State nor lay the blame on others but leaue your sinnes and Turne to the Lord your God with all your hearts and with all your soules and you shall see the Saluation of the Lord which hee will shew vnto vs this day Exod. 14.13 for the Egyptians whom you haue seene and feare you shall see them againe no more for euer the Lord shall fight for you and you may be sure no euill shall happen vnto you it shall not come nigh your dwelling for the onely way to escape all punishments is to forsake all sinnes Neither doe I say this as if we could be cleane from sinnes for I know it was Nouatus his error and we must all know it for an error Hieron adversus Pelag. that a Christian after Baptisme doth not sinne and it was but a Pellagian conceite before him inuented by Pythagoras that the exercise of Vertue rooteth out all the seede of Vices Matth. 7.18 for a Bad tree cannot bring foorth good fruit and in some things sayth the Apostle I feare I may say as it is in our last English translation in many things wee Sinne all Iames 3.2 1 Iohn 1.8 And if wee say wee haue no sinne wee deceiue our selues and there is no trueth in vs. But I say this that we should haue a feruent desire not to sinne and to say with the Prophet O that my wayes were made so direct that I might keepe thy Commandements and that wee would endeuor pro virili to the vttermost of our abilities not to sinne and labour alwayes with the Apostle Acts 24.16 to keep a cleere conscience in all things both before God and Man Thirdly Seeing all miseries death and damnation are as iustly inflicted vpon the sinner as the poore Souldier may iustly claime his little stipend we should not complaine against God Sueton. in vita Vesp C. 10. with Vespasian Immerenti sibi vitam aripi that he tooke away his life without any fault of his or without any fayling on his part but we should with the Leuites in Nehemiah with Daniel with Ieremie and with all the rest of the men of God commend the Lord and condemne our selues saying surely thou art iust in all that is come vpon vs thou hast dealt truely Nehem. 9.33 but wee haue done wickedly And thus I haue shewed thee O man quid sit malum what is euill and you haue heard a large discourse of Sinne and the most lamentable effect and wages of Sinne And now it is a thousand to one that the first thing many one of vs will doe is to goe home or perhaps afore wee goe home to sinne some to sweare some to their whores some to be drunke some to deceiue and most of vs to some sinne or other But if euer any of you doe for those sinnes receiue this pay remember I haue told you what you should haue Death for the wages of Sinne is Death and I can doe no more but pray to God that he would giue vs grace to forsake Sinne that we may escape Death through Iesus Christ our Lord To whom with the Father and the Holy Ghost three distinct Persons of that one eternall in diuided Essence be giuen as is most due all prayse and glory for euer and euer Amen A Prayer O Blessed God which hast created Man we doe acknowledge that thou hast made him righteous but he sought out many inuentious and hath most grieuously sinned against thy diuine Maiestie and thereby hath most iustly pulled vpon himselfe and all his posteritie all miseries death and damnation But thou desirest not the death of a Sinner but rather that hee should turne from his wickednesse and liue And therefore we doe confesse our sinnes we doe detest our sinnes and we doe most humbly pray thee euen for thy mercies sake to bee mercifull vnto vs to deale with vs not according to our offences but according to thy Grace to giue vs Grace to serue thee that so we mâ—y be deliuered from our iust deserued punishment and be receiued into thine euerlasting fauour to prayse and magnifie thy blessed Name for euer and euer Amen A wearied loathed Life I leade content with onely Sadnesse To see my selfe opprest with Sinne and with this worlds Madnes I alwayes striue with wicked Sinne yet doth my Sinne preuaile I therefore hate my Selfe because my Sinnes I cannot quaile And I doe likewise wish for Grace that I might neuer offend But truely serue my Master Christ and please him to my end And yet I see this tyrant Sinne and wicked men doe wrong me To Hell the one to Miserie th' other still would throng me But reason bids
worke for euer and euer because he cannot non 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 not to worke by reason of the necessitie of his immutability those things which are called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. aeternorum the acts of eternitie and this power is likewise two-fold The power of God in respect of his inward acts is twofold 1 Speciall 1. Speciall to each person 2. Common to the Father Sonne and Holy-Ghost First The speciall power is that which pertaineth vnto one person and not vnto the other as potentia 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the power of begetting is proper vnto the Father and not to the Sonne nor to the Holy Ghost because this Power is his Power as hee is a Father and not as hee is God therefore it is proper and not common because that for the Father to beget and not to be begotten and for the sonne to be begotten and not to beget and for the Holy Ghost to proceede and not to beget nor to be begotten are Proprietates 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 personall proprieties whereby the persons of the Godhead are distinguished betwixt themselues Secondly the common Power 2 Common is that which doth appertaine to each person in generall as well to the one as to the other as the Power of working those internall operations which are common vnto the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost such as are those acts of louing each other vnderstanding each other and the like Secondly the Power of God considered All the outward actions of God are comâ— on to each person of the Godhead in respect of his outward operations is that whereby God created all things gouerneth all things and can doe all things whatsoeuer pleaseth him And this is so common to the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost that it is most rightly said that opera trinitatis ad extra sunt indiuisa The outward workes of the Trinity are indiuisible that is common to each person And therefore this Power of God in respect of these outward operations though in our Creed it is ascribed vnto the Father lest that because he is called Father we should imagine some defect and impotency to bee in him as to the Sonne we finde Wisedome ascribed lest that because he is called Sonne we might conceit some ignorance or in experience to be in him yet as the wisedome of God Gen. 1.2 Iohn 1.3 Heb. 1.2 Iob 26.13 so is this Power of God and the workes of this Power common to each person of the Deity as we may see in the first of Iohn and the third Heb. 1.2 Gene. 1.2 Iob 26.13 And we find this Power of God to be 1. Proper vnto God 2. Absolute in all things That the power of God is so proper vnto God as that it cannot be communicated to any creature First It is proper yea so proper vnto God alone as that it cannot be communicated to any creature no not to the humanitie of our Sauiour Christ because the humanity existing and hanging vpon the crosse was not able to helpe it selfe but was faine to cry vnto his Father My God my God why hast thou forsaken me And therefore Aquinas doth most truely conclude that the soule of Christ was not capable to receiue into it selfe infinite Power no more then a creature is able to containe or comprehend his Creator and yet I confesse with the Apostle that in him Coloss 1.9 i. e. in the person of Christ dwelleth the fulnesse of the Godhead bodily yea and that the man Christ Iesus receiued grace not by measure Sed vsque ad plenitudinem but euen vnto the fulnesse i. e. so much as a creature is any wayes capable of because the Godhead did Communicate such perfections vnto the humanity as the condition of a creature could possibly beare yet is it manifest that all those perfections and excellencies wherewith the manhood of Christ was indowed and innobled were all of them created excellencies because no attribute of God can be Communicated vnto any created substance because euery attribute of God is God himselfe but whatsoeuer is giuen â—nd bestowed vpon any creature must needs be a created thing and therefore neither the wisdome nor the power nor the goodnes which are attributed vnto God as they are the essentiall properties nay the very Essence of God it selfe can be any wayes communicated to any thing but that which is communicated vnto vs must needes be some other thing from them as the goodnesse which we haue is a created goodnesse and not that nor any part of that goodnesse which is in God and therefore though the Power Wisedome and goodnesse of God as they are God himselfe are indissolubly vnited by a personall vnion vnto the humanity of Christ innobled with all possibly created excellencies yet are they so proper vnto the Deity as that they cannot be communicated to be the Essentiall properties of it or of any other creature whatsoeuer and so the very names of them that they are the properties of God doth sufficiently shew that they cannot be the properties of any other thing Secondly as this Power of God is proper vnto God alone so it is absolute because it is not so limited by the vniuersall Law of Nature That the Power of God is absolute in three respects as if beside or aboue it God could not do any thing that he would but it is plenary and vniuersall because nothing is vnpossible vnto him but that without all limitation or determination he can do all and euery thing which howsoeuer and whensoeuer it pleaseth him And it is called absolute or omnipotent in three respects First because he can doe whatsoeuer he will doe First he can doe what he will Psal 135.6 for whatsoeuer pleaseth the Lord that did he in Heauen and in Earth and in the Sea and in all deepe places and the Wise man saith that he can shew his great strength at all times when hee will and it is worth the obseruing that as he can doe what he will Sap. 11.21 so he c n doe it as he will he need but say the word and they are done Let there be light and there was light Gen. 1.3 He can do any thing without meanes with meanes with small meanes and many times contrary to the nature of the meanes that hee vsually vseth Without meanes as in creating all things of nothing with meanes Hosea 2.21 as to fructifie the earth by the dropping of the cloudes Psal 77.20 with weake meanes as to leade his people out of Egypt by the hands of Moses and Aaron and by the foolishnesse of Preaching 1 Cor. 1.21 to saue those that beleeue and contrary to the nature of meanes Sap. 19.20 as when to let Israel passe through it he caused the red Sea to stand vpon heapes and to preserue the three children Dan. 3.27 he made the fire to forget his owne vertue and not to singe
power Prou. 25.11 but both ioyned together it is like apples of gold in pictures of siluer And therefore as before he had shewed his power that hee was able to helpe vs so now hee sheweth his goodnesse that he is most willing to releeue vs And to shew how plenteous his goodnesse is he expresseth the same by seauen speciall and seuerall particles I will handle them by Gods helpe as they lye in order The first particle of Gods goodnesse here expressed is that hee is Mercifull Touching which we must vnderstand that Mercy in God is no passion nor any griefe of minde conceiued through the miserie of another Cicero in 4. Tusc Senec. de clem Aug de ciuit Dei l. 9. c. 5. Jer. 31.20 as mercy is commonly defined to be vnlesse you vnderstand it per 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 improperly spoken onely for our better apprehension as when he saith My bowels are troubled for Ephraim Or as it is ascribed to the Sonne of God Christ Iesus who doth indeed condole our miseries and sympathize in our afflictions because he is man as we are and subiect to all like passions as we be sinne onely excepted Heb. 2.17 But mercy in God signifieth a propensitie and a readinesse of minde to helpe not onely the miserie but also the wants and all the defects of man Mouet enim pium iudicem fragilitas considerata peccantium Cassiod in Psal What mercy in God signifieth For he remembreth that we are but dust and therefore he pittieth our frailties and he helpeth our infirmities yea hee cryeth and calleth and seeketh after vs when wee by our sinnes doe runne away and flie apace from him For When Adam by the wisedome that he got by the Serpent had found him a way to runne away from God and so to fall into the depth of despaire and as a man without helpe without hope voide of grace and full of sinne to become free amongst the dead excluded from God and exiled from the Land of the liuing a slaue of Satan which makes me abhorre to thinke of it and a fire-brand of eternall destruction which makes me tremble for feare of it yet then behold the neuer-dying mercy of the God of all mercy did presently finde the meanes to bring him backe againe by repentance and to make him an example of his mercie to many babes that were as then vnborne for he thâ—t doth neither slumber nor sleepe would not suffer him to lye and sleepe in sinne but presently runnes after him that was running from him and cries Adam where art thou Gene. 3.9 and what is become of thee and he did this not because he knew not where Adam was which knoweth euery thing but because he would haue Adam to know where himselfe was in a state destitute of all grace and replenished with all miseries that so finding himselfe in the depth of such miseries hee might the more earnestly seeke vnto God for mercies So he did to Dauid Examples of Gods infinite mercies in the speedy seeking after his Saints when they hâ—d sinned against him 2 Sam. 24.10 Jonas 1.4 when Dauid had offended him in numbring Israel hee stirred vp his heart that it presently smote him that he might not be smitten of God so to Ionas when hee began his iourney to flie from God he sent the windes to flie after him and as a purseuant to arest him and to bring him backe againe to him who otherwise would haue posted to hell so to Peter when he denied his Master and swore that hee knew him not to whom a little before hee had sworne thâ—t hee would die with him he looked backe vpon him to bring him backe againe to repentance and hee caused the Cocke to crowe Matth. 26.74 the dumbe Beast to crie vnto him to send him out to crie vnto God for mercie and to weepe so bitterly for his sinnes vt lachrymae lauarent delictum that God seeing his sorrow and teares might bee inclined to heare his prayers and so he doth vnto vs all when we doe fall and sinne and sleepe and sinne he sends his Preachers still to call vs and his owne spirit into our hearts to moue vs to repentance not to bee repented of and to promise to shew compassion on vs and to receiue vs into his grace if wee would shew our contrition and promise to leaue and to forsake our sinnes O then that this mercifull seeking of vs That the goodnesse of God seeking after vs should moue vs to seeke vnto God would make vs to seeke vnto him while he may bee found and that this calling after vs to recall vs from our miseries would make vs call vnto him for mercie for if wee doe seeke and pray for Grace wee may assure our selues that our Saluation is neerer then wee thinke but if we still continue in sinne we may be sure our damnation is neerer then we feare for the day of grace passeth away and the night of death commeth when no man can worke and therefore while it is to day let vs heare his voyce John 9.4 so louingly calling vs so carefully seeking vs so mercifully offering to receiue vs to kisse vs with the kisses of his mouth to deliuer vs froÌ„ the shadow of death and to bring vs vnto the land of euerlasting life such is the neuer-dying streames of the mercie of God it is like a boundlesse Ocean there is no end of his goodnesse and therefore Saint Bernard in admiration thereof crieth out vnto God saying Quam diues es in misericordia magnificus in iustitia munificus in gratia Domine Deus noster O how rich art thou in Mercy how magnificent in Iustice and how bountifull in Grace O Lord our God Nam tu munerator copiosissimus remunerator aequissimus liberator pijssimus For thou art a most liberall bestower of Heauenly gifts thou art a most righteous rewarder of humane workes â—nd thou art a most gracious deliuerer of all that trust in thee Yea and besides all this Tu gratis respicis humiles tu iustè iudicas innocentes tu misericorditer saluas peccatores thou doest freely exalt the lowly thou doest iustly deliuer the innocent and thou doest most mercifully saue those sinners that doe put their trust in thy sufferings and therefore Quis similis tibi O Lord our God who is like vnto thee that when there was not a righteous man vpon the face of the earth August in p. 48 not one that did good no not one thou sentest one from Heauen that by him wee might bee all brought vnto Heauen So great is the Mercy of God towards vs poore wretched Men. And it is obserued by Diuines that the Mercy of God consisteth chiefely in these three things viz. In Wherein the mercie of God doth chiefely consist 1. Giuing of Graces 2. Forgiuing of sinnes 3. Qualifying punishments The first extendeth it selfe vnto all creatures the second
that we haue John 1.17 we haue them all through Iesus Christ our Lord. And thus by the helpe of Gods Spirit wee haue thus farre sayled through the boundlesse Ocean of Gods goodnesse and in all this we can shew you no more then little drops of raine or small sparkes of fire What wee should learne from this doctrine of Gods goodnesse in comparison of the huge elements of fire and water so great is his goodnesse and so vnable is our small vnderstanding to apprehend the greatnesse of Gods goodnesse It should teach vs First to be afraid to sinne for there is mercy with God First to be afraid to sinne that he may be feared or if we haue sinned to make vs presently to forsake our sinnes and to be sorrowfull for our offences for the mercy of God leadeth vs to repentance saith the Apostle And herein is the difference betwixt the wicked and the godly mans application of Gods goodnesse First the wicked considereth how gracious and how mercifull the Lord is as well as the best but he maketh the worst vse of this that possible can be for he saith vnto himselfe Ezek. 18.32 that the mercy of God is great and he desireth not the death of a sinner which is most true but then he inferres a most damnable consequence How the wicked doe abuse Gods goodnesse Rom. 2.5 that therefore he may the more boldly goe on in sinne or at least with the lesse feare offend his God and so he maketh the grace and goodnesse of God to be as an horse to carry away his sinnes or as his sole incouragement to goe on in sinne and therby he heapeth vnto himselfe wrath against the day of wrath because as the wise man saith Mercy and wrath come from God and his indignation falleth downe vpon sinners But Secondly the godly considering the goodnesse of God doe thereupon exceedingly feare to sinne because they are loath to offend so good a God The consideration of Gods goodnesse is a meanes to preserue the good men from sinne that hath beene so gracious and so bountifull vnto them and if at any time through their infirmitie they doe offend him they will presently returne to God because they know God is euer ready to receiue them and so they make the consideration of Gods goodnesse to be a hinderance of their sinning and offending God and to be a furtherance of their repenting and returne to God And I would to God wee would all make this vse of the Mercy of God and say with that Christian Poet Ah miser an summi quoniam propensa parentis Ad veniam est bonitas in scelus omne ruis Ah wretched men that we are shall we abound in sinne because God abounds in goodnesse God forbid for that were to turne the grace of God into wantonnes and to abuse his goodnes for our destruction and not to vse it for our saluation And therefore the better God hath beene to vs the more wee should bleed to offend that God we should call to minde if wee can wherein God wronged our names that wee should so often at euery word almost abuse the most sacred name of God or when hee was hard to vs that we should so hardly deale with him as by our sinnes we doe to render him euill for good and hatred for good will Secondly neuer to despaire of Gods Mercie Rom. 5.2 Secondly this Doctrine teacheth vs neuer to despaire of Gods Mercy for where sinne aboundeth grace superaboundeth i. e. though thy sinnes be neuer so great neuer so many yet the Mercie of God is greater and therefore thou art deceiued Caine to say Gen. 4.13 Thy sinne is greater then can be forgiuen thee for though my sinne were greater then euer hath beene committed yet it is not greater then God can forgiue me or though I were neuer so full of sinnes yet is God more full of mercies because no sinnes of man can exceede the Mercy of God Chrysost hom 19. in Gen. as Saint Chrysostome saith and therefore though my sinnes were neuer so many euen as many as haue beene committed in the world since the beginning of the world Esay 44.22 yet seeing the Lord can put them all away like a cloud and though they were neuer so haynous euen as red as scarlet yet seeing the Lord can make them as white as snow I ought neuer to despaire of the grace and Mercy of God Quia semper inueniam Deum benigniorem quaÌ„ me culpabiliorem Because I shall be sure to finde God more Mercifull then I am sinfull as Saint Bernard saith Bernard ser 1. Et quia vberior Dei gratia quam precatio nostra semper plus tribuens quam rogatur And because God is euer reâ—dier to forgiue then we are to craue pardon and doth alwayes bestow more then vsually we desire as Saint Ambrose saith Ambros super Luc. l. 5. Et deserentes se non deserit And doth not alwayes leaue them which forsake him as Saint Gregory saith Sed impios quaerit qui eum non quaerebant But doth oftentimes seeke for those wicked men Greg. ho. 22. super illud Ecce caeperunt excusare c. that neuer sought for him And this is the chiefest end and the rightest vse of the Mercy of God for as Medicamentum propter vulnus The salue is made for the wound and not the wound because I haue a salue so the Mercy of God is taught to heale our wounded soules and not to incourage vs to wound our soules with sinne saith Saint Augustine But here it may be obiected Ob. that there is a sinne against the Holy Ghost which cannot be pardoned and therefore all sinners cannot from hence conceiue hope of pardon I answere first Sol. What the sinne against the holy Ghost is Beza ho. 28. de pass Dom. That sinne is called irremissible three wayes that although we may partly know what this sinne is viz. A willing witting malicious totall apostacie yet I say we can neuer discerne where it is Sine rarissimis inspirationibus Without some rare and speciall inspiration as Beza saith which few or none can now say he is sure of Secondly I say that a sinne may be called irremissible three wayes First Priuatiuely when the sinne by congruence of merit deserues damnation though by the congruence of Gods Mercies it may be pardoned and so are all sinnes irremissible if we consider their iust desert Secondly Contrarily when the sinne doth not onely deserue punishment but also opposeth pardon and refuseth all the meanes of remission and so is the sinne against the Holy Ghost irremissible because it not onely not seeketh but also reiecteth and opposeth pardon Thirdly Negatiuely That there is no sinne in the world but God can forgiue it when the sinne can no wayes be remitted and so in my iudgement is no sinne vnpardonable For though in regard of our impenitency and perpetuall
obstinacy in resisting the holy Ghost as S. Steuen said of the stiffe-necked Iewes this sinne shall neuer be forgiuen as our Sauiour saith yet in regard of Gods infinite Mercies which both for number and greatnesse doe exceed all sinnes and in respect of Gods power which is able to doe all things and to subdue all things vnto himselfe I say this sinne and all sinnes are pardonable and can bee forgiuen if we could repent and aske forgiuenesse of the same else should our sinnes be more infinite then Gods mercies which is impossible And therefore whatsoeuer thy sinnes haue beene neuer so great neuer so many sinnes of darkenesse sinnes of Death sinnes more in number then the sands of the Sea yet if thou hast but that grace to wish for grace if thou doest it from the bottome of thy heart despaire not of the Mercy of God but call and cry and say vnto him Lord be mercifull vnto me a sinner 1 Iohn â— 7 and the bloud of Iesus Christ shall cleanse thee from all sinne Esay 42.3 for a bruised reed he will not breake and a smoaking flaxe he will not quench O Lord who is a God like vnto thee What a haynous sinne it is to despaire of the Mercie and goodnesse of God It is sayd of Iudas that he sinned more in despayring of the mercy of God then in betraying of his Sauiour Christ for the betraying of his master was but the corruption of man but the despairing of Gods mercy was a denyall of this goodnesse of God and so to make God cruell at least not so good as he was euill then which a greater indignity cannot be imagined against the Diuine Maiestie and therefore whatsoeuer our liues haue been as bad as Salomon 2 Chron. 33.1.2 c. or worse then Manasses yet let vs vs not adde this vnto all the rest of our sinnes which alone will proue vnto vs worse then all the rest to despaire of the grace and goodnesse of GOD Heb. 4.16 but rather let vs in the name of Christ draw neare vnto the Throne of Grace and we may be sure to finde mercy against the time of neede Thirdly to imitate God in all these particulars of Gods goodnesse Thirdly This Doctrine teacheth vs to Imitate God herein in all these speciall points of goodnesse For though there be many inimitable workes of God wherein it is a sinne to attempt to doe the like as Mundos fabricare mortuos suscitare inter fluctus ambulare To create worlds to raise the dead to walke among the waues and the like yet we are commanded to be holy as he is holy and to imitate him in goodnesse that so wee may bee the Children of our Father which is in Heauen And therefore First to bee Mercifull Luke 6.36 Ouid. de ponto cleg 9. Staâ—â—us in Thebaide First we should be mercifull as he is mercifull Regia crede mihi res est succurrere lapsis And as another saith Pulchrum est vitam donare petenti It is a pleasant thing to be pittifull But the man of bloud or the sonne of cruelty can neuer be the Childe of the God of mercy for Iob 6.14 Matth. 26.11 he that hath no mercy hath cast away the feare of the Lord saith holy Iob. And yet alas mercy is now gone out of our Countrey The poore are euer with you saith our Sauiour and neuer so many poore as now That there is a great want of Mercy amongst vs. for in Court and Countrey in Church I am sure we are almost all beggars and yet we may labour not onely all night with the Apostles but all the dayes of our life and get nothing because we haue nothing to giue such is our time that if euer that saying was true it is now true Si nihil attuleris ibis homere foras Most is sold soules and all little is giuen either in Church or Common-wealth and all is spent vpon our selues and vpon our friends and not vpon the painful seruants or poore members of Iesus Christ 2 Sam. 24.23 It is said of Araunah that being but a Subiect as a King he gaue vnto the King but we goe like Princes in soft rayments and we fare like Kings Luke 16. daintily euery day and we giue like bankerouts not a bit to the poore not a penny to the painefull But O beloued Mutemus vitamsi volumus accipere vitam We must change this course of life if euer we looke for eternall life And we must remember the afflictions of Ioseph and put on the bowels of mercy and compassion if euer wee be the Children of this God of mercy Secondly we should be gracious that is amiable 2. To be gracious and affable and curteous one to another rather like Titus Vespasian that was Deliciae generis humani The delight of mankinde delighting onely in doing good and not like Cinicke Diogenes or carping Zoylus that were vnsociable and vnfit for any societie Thirdly we should be slow to anger for 3 To be slow to anger Eccâ—es 7.11 Prou. 14.29 Anger resteth in the bosome of fooles but he that is slow to wrath is of great wisedome because as the Poet saith Furor iraque mentem praecipitant Wrath and fury doe so blind the minde and iudgement of man Ne possit cernere verum That as Cato saith He cannot discerne betwixt good and euill And therefore Euripides saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Whosoeuer precipitately fostereth anger must needes fall into an euill end because nothing can more preiudice man in the whole course of his life then the poysonous weede of wrath and the bitter fruits of hasty anger Fourthly we should abound in all goodnesse 4. To abound in all goodnesse for the more good we doe the more excellent and the more god-like we shall be for good cannot proceede but from God and cannot tend any where but to God And wee are all Trees in Gods Vineyard well planted well fenced and well watered for our Land is good our Law is good our Seruice and our Sermons good And therefore we should be good and bring forth good fruits Math. 3.10 meete for repentance or else we shall be hewen downe and cast into the fire for though it be very true that hee is a good man S. Chrysost in serm de virt vit which doth no euill yet is it as certainely true Malum esse non fecisse bonum That he is an euill man which doth not good because there are priuatiue sinnes not to doe good as well as positiue sinnes to doe euill And therefore the Iewish Rabbines that haue beene curious to account all the Commandements in Moses Law Munster in precept aff neg haue found 365. negatiue ones iust as many as there be dayes in the yeere and 248. affirmatiue ones iust as many as there be limbes or bones in a mans body not only to
teach vs Psal 103.1 35.10 that all parts of man at all times of the yeere are to be imployed in Gods seruice but also to shew vnto vs that wee are not onely to abstaine from euill 1 Cor. 15.58 but also to doe good because not onely the riotous and wastfull Steward that imbezelled his Masters goods but also the idle and thriftlesse seruant that did no good with his Masters goods shall be bound hand and foote and be cast cut into vtter darkenesse where shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth And so we reade of Diues that he is tormented in flaming fire Non quia tulit aliena sed quia non dedit propria Not because he did euill to any but because hee did not good to poore Lazarus Luke 18 11. And therefore we should all striue not onely with the Pharisee to be truly able to say that we thanke God we are not Adulterers Swearers Extortioners Drunkards Raylers Lyars or such like but also as Saint Peter bids vs to adde vnto our Faith 2 Pet. 1.5 Vertue and to our Vertue Knowledge and to Knowledge Temperance and to Temperance Patience and to Patience Godlinesse and to Godlinesse Brotherly kindnesse and to Brotherly kindnesse Charity and so to goe on from one grace vnto another vntill at last we doe attaine vnto the perfection of goodnesse for assuredly to doe good will be our chiefest comfort Rom. 2.7 in life in death and after death for glory and honour and peace shall be to euery one that doth good and God himselfe will say vnto him Euge serue bone Well done thou good and faithfull seruant Math. 25.23 enter thou into thy Masters ioy Fiftly we should loue the Truth and say the Truth euery man vnto his Neighbour yea and so accustome our selues to Truth Vt mentiri lingua prorsus ignoret 5. To accustome our selues to say the Truth That our tonguâ—s should not know how to lye for as God is Truth so Truth makes vs the Children of God And therefore Pythagoras being demanded wherein men become likest vnto God answered Cum veritatem exercent Stobaeus Ser. 11. When they accustome themselues to say Truth I doe not know two more excellent things Zach. 8. Veritatem pacem diligite and more comfortable for the life of man while hee liues here in this World then Peace and Truth Peace to free vs from all euill and Truth to preserue vs in all good And yet I feare me we may now take vp the Prophet Esayes complaint that Truth is fallen in the streete yea and as Ieremy saith Is perished and cleane gone Esay 59.4.14 Jerem. 7.18 for though as Euripides saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Truth is a simple speech that requires neither welt nor guard yet now we doe so cunningly and craftily adorne lyes That there is a great want of practising to say the Truth amongst vs. and falshoods that we make them passe currantly for Truth and he that cannot dissemble and deceiue his Neighbour is accounted but a foole that cannot liue in the World So that now it is growen into a common speech to say We know not whom we may trust and we doe verifie that ancient saying Multis annis iam peractis Nulla fides est in factis Mel in ore verba lactis Fel in corde fraus in factis Many yeeres past and gone Faith in deeds there is none Hony in mouth words sweete Gall in heart deceit in deede But if we will haue any part in this God of Truth we must neither vse to speake a lye nor to conceale the Truth for Qui veritatem occultat qui mendacium prodit vterque reus est ille quia prodesse non vult iste quia nocere desiderat Aug. in l. de Agon christiano He that conceales a Truth and he that inuenteth lyes are both alike culpable in the sight of God the one because hee will not doe good the other because hee desireth to doe euill And though Veritas odium parit The Preachers of Truth shall finde little grace with men as Saint Ambrose saith yet must we not hide the Truth for any feare nor yet speake a falshood for any gaine but in all things we must hold fast the Truth Heraclid in sua hist Theat Zwing if we will be like vnto this God of Truth It is reported of one Idor an Abbat that for three things he was most excellent First that he neuer lyed at any time Secondly that he neuer spake euill of any man Thirdly that hee neuer spake any thing without great necessitie I onely wish we were all like him herein 6. To abound in the workes of mercy Sixthly we should reserue mercy for thousands that is to abound in the workes of mercy and compassion and that towards all men either in action or affection for where effecting meanes are wanting God neuer reiects a charitable meaning whereas the doing of good without good will or a large giuing with small charitie proues to be of no validity because he giues but externally some things without himselfe and not internally De semetipso From his heart And thus our mercy should extend it selfe to thousands because wee haue alwayes those before our eyes that haue neede of mercy and that in a double respect The outward workes of mercy are principally sixe 1. Of a corporall necessitie 2. Of a spirituall miserie The Schooles auouch the first to consist chiefly in sixe points 1. Visiting the sicke 2. Feeding the hungry 3. Clothing the naked 4. Redeeming the Captiue 5. Intertayning the Stranger 6. Burying of the Dead And for the second I see not lesse formes of pitty then there be deeds of Charity or acts of iniquity In the first respect the rich may be mercifull and shew pitty vnto the poore and in the second respect the rich may be pittied by the poorest men in the World because none are more lamentable then those that are poore and naked and destitute of the true spirituall riches And therefore in both respects we ought euer to shew mercy and compassion vnto our distressed Brethren Now in mercy there are two speciall acts Sinners are the men that are chiefly to be pittied 1. To see their miseries 2. To helpe their infirmities 1. To see with our eyes and then to helpe with our hands or at least to pitty with our hearts Diues saw Lazarus full of sores and we see men now full of sinnes and yet he did not pitty him nor these will not be helped by vs for if either by reprehension or instruction or by the mildest manner of aduising them yea or by most humbly requesting the Spirituall Lords That it is dangerous to seeke to redresse the dangerous estate of great men and temporall Potentates of this age to looke into their miserable estate wee would seeme to pitty them or make any attempt to helpe them they would make vs all to be
whether visible or inuisible whether inwardly conceited in our mindes or outwardly exposed to our senses for so the Apostle saith that because the Gentiles knowing God glorified him not as God but changed his glory into the Image of birds beasts and creeping things Rom. 1.18.24 therefore the wrath of God was reueiled from Heauen against their vngodlinessse Deut. 32.17 and he gaue them vp to vile affections Deut. 7.26 to doe those things which were not conuenient for this sinne of Idolatry is so offensiue vnto God that it is tearmed a seruice of the Diuell and therefore abhominable and accursed by God and most dangerous vnto Man Secondly a perfidious tempting of God The doubting of Gods goodnesse towards vs is a most horrible wickednesse Psal 78. c. 1 Cor. 10.9 as whether hee be with vs or whether he can or will doe what he promised for vs for so the Psalmist saith that the Israelites tempted God in their hearts and spake against him saying Shall God prepare a table in the Wildernesse He smote the stony Rocke so that the water gushed out and the streames flowed withall but can he giue bread also or prouide for his people and therefore the Lord was so wroth that the fire was kindled in Iacob and there came vp heauy displeasure against Israel because they beleeued not in God and put not their trust in his helpe for God is so able and so willing to helpe his owne seruants that none can doubt thereof without horrible inâ—ignity offered him And therefore we should euer relye upon him and neuer doubt of this infinite goodnesse of God Thirdly a murmuring against God To murmure or to be discontented with God a heauie sinne Gen. 4.5 and complaining secretly as it were in our hearts that he doth either presse vs sore with heauy yoakes and punishments or that he dealeth not so gently and so louingly with vs as he doth with others for thus Caine murmured against God that he accepted the oblation of Abell better then his and thus the Apostle saith 1 Cor. 10.10 the children of Israel murmured against God that he had dealt hardly with them in bringing them out of Egypt to suffer hunger and thirst in the wildernesse and therefore they were destroyed of the destroyer and therefore we should beware of murmuring which is nothing worth and take heed of this muttering against God for there is no thought so secret that it shall goe for naught Wisd 1.11 Iob 13.15 Rom. 8.28 but we should with Iob in all estates put our trust in him though he kils vs knowing that he worketh all things for the best for them that loue him Fourthly an obstinate contumatious rebelling against God To refuse to obay God a fearefull sinne as when we refuse to heare his word wil not be obedient vnto his lawes but will say with the Iewes Let vs breake his bonds asunder and cast away his cords from vs Psal 2.3.4.5 for against these the Psalmist saith He that dwelleth in Heauen shall laugh them to scorne the Lord shall haue them in derision and then shall he speake vnto them in his wrath and vexe them his sore displeasure And therefore we should take heed of rebelling and refusing to heare and to obey the Word of God least the wrath of God should be suddenly kindled against vs and consume vs. To oppose the knowne truth a most horrible sinne Num. 14.37 Fiftly Blasphemy against God and the slandering of the Truth of his Doctrine especially when we oppose it fully though wee know it to be Truth most certainely as the spies that were sent to view the Land of Canaan did and therefore dyed by the plague before the Lord for this is a sinne of a malicious wickednesse and a branch of that vnpardonable sinne against the Holy Ghost and therefore we should euer take heed to oppose the Truth against our consciences Deut. 27. Disobedience to Parents a most fearefull sinne Sixtly Disobedience and dishonoring of our Parents for so the Lord saith Cursed be he that despiseth his Father his Mother and let all the people say Amen And therefore we finde heauy iudgements inflicted vpon Cham Absalon and all other like children of disobedience and the Lord requiring that vpon the bare testimony of the Parents saying This our child is disobedient and will not be ruled by vs they should carry him out of the Citie and stone him with stones till he dyed Gen. 4.10 The shedding of mans blood a most haynous sinne Seauenthly The shedding of Innocent bloud especially of those that are the sonnes of God for the voyce of blood as may be seen in Abell is such a shril piercing vndeniable voyce that it will speedily ascend to Heauen and neuer depart vntill vengeance bee powred out vpon the sinners Oppressing the poore a fearefull sinne Eightly The oppressing of the poore the fatherlesse and the Widdowes for if you hurt the Poore and they cry vnto me saith the Lord Et indignabitur furor meus I will surely heare their cry and my wrath shall waxe hot and I will kill you with the sword and your Wiues shall be Widdowes and your children fatherlesse Vntamed lusts a most odious sinne Ninthly Vnbridled wandring lusts such as were the lusts of the Citizens of Sodome and of all those that giue themselues to doe adulteries whoredomes and following after strange flesh for the Lord hateth all such lasciuious liuers and therefore destroyed of them three and twenty thousand in one day 1 Cor. 10.8 and wrought a most grieuous slaughter vpon the whole tribe of Beniamin Judg. 19.25 for that one foule abuse offered vnto the Leuiteâ— Wife Tenthly Sacriledge and prophaning of holy things for this is a robbing of God as the Prophet sheweth Mal. 3.8 Sacriledge a fearefull sinne and such a high transcendent sinne as that I could farre easier fill whole volumes of most fearefull examples of Gods vengeance executed against sacrilegious persons then finde you one man either in Diuine or humane stories that wronged and robbed the Church of God and scapt vnpunished both in himselfe and his posterity vnto the third and fourth generation Eleuenthly Continuall swearing a most dangerous sinne Continuall swearing and prophaning of the blessed Name of God for of all the sinnes forbidden in the Commandements this onely with Idolatry is forbidden with sub paena with a curse yea a grieuous curse denounced against vs if we will not shunne it for the Lord will not hold him guiltlesse that taketh his Name in vaine These and such like lewde and wicked sinners they say God absoluing will not absolue because the doers hereof haue no loue of goodnesse no care of godlinesse no sence of sinne no remorse of conscience and therefore is the Wrath of God so exceedingly kindled against these sinners sinners 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 these grieuous huge and horrible sinners that he will neuer
of themselues but as Dauid was much moued when he saw the people smitten for his sinnes 2 Sam. 2â— 17 and as Iacob halted when the Angell smote him on the thigh Gen. 32.31 so are we many times more grieued to see and more affraid to heare that our Children and the fruits of our loynes shall be punished then our selues And therefore seeing that fearefull curse of the Prophet To serue God is the greatest good that wee can doe vnto our Children Let the iniquity of his Father be had in remembrance and let not the sinne of his Mother be done away doth light so heauily vpon the Children of the wicked it should teach all Parents that loue their Children To feare the Lord and to striue more to get Gods blessing rather then the greatest patrimony vnto our Children for they may assure themselues that as the old verse saith De male quaesitis vix gaudet tertius haeres If they haue inlarged their substance by wicked meanes it will be the onely meanes to cut off all their posterity as may be seene in Saul Achab Ieroboam and the like but the blessing of the Lord perpetuateth the same And therefore as some for the loue that they beare vnto their Children will giue themselues vnto the Diuell by committing all sinnes in oppressing others to inrich them so let vs if we loue our Children cease to sinne for this will free our selues from woe and bring the best blessing vnto them and Secondly It should teach all Children to be humbled and to pray to God with our lyturgy saying Remember not Lord our offences nor the offences of our Fore-fathers but spare vs good Lord spare thy people and giue vs thy grace and forgiue vs all our sinnes through Iesus Christ our Lord Amen And thus I haue shewed thee O man Quid sit optimum What is the chiefest good and what we may learne concerning God that he is an Omnipotent eternall being good vnto all specially vnto his Saints and iust vnto sinners And now Quid nisi vota supersunt What remaineth but to apply all this vnto our soules to beleeue in him to loue him and to feare him and to prayse his name his blessed name for euermore for it is a good thing to sing prayses vnto our God yea and it becommeth well the iust to be thankefull Psal vlt. Verse vlt. And therefore prayse thou the Lord O my soule and all that is within me prayse his holy name and let euery thing that hath breath prayse the Lord through Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen Amen A Prayer O Eternall God whom to know as thou art is vnpossible as thou hast reuealed in thy Word eternall life wee most humbly beseech thee to open the eyes of our vnderstanding that wee may see thee at all times in all places and in all our actions and giue vs O Lord thy heauenly grace that seeing thee wee may loue thee with all our hearts feare thy power extoll thy goodnesse and admire thy iustice to preserue vs from all sinnes and to retaine vs in thy wayes to thine eternall glory and to our endlesse comfort Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS The Third Golden Candlesticke HOLDING The Third greatest Light of Christian RELIGION Of the Incarnation of the WORD IOHN 1.14 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And the Word was made Flesh I Haue described in my formost Treatise O Theophilus The coherence of this Treatise with the former Treatises O dearely beloued of God the miserable estate of that poore man that was eiected out of Paradise and left halfe dead betweene Ierusalem and Iericho betwixt Heauen and Hell being already excluded out of Heauen but not fully thrust and intruded into Hell and in my next Treatise I haue shewed vnto thee a poole of Bethesda John 5.2 and brought vnto thee a good Samaritan that is onely able and willing to heale all thy maladies but as yet thou wantest an Angel to stirre the Waters and this good Samaritan hath not alighted and therefore I must now shew you how to apply the salue vnto the sore and how the Angel of the Couenant Iesus Christ alighted and descended from the throne of his Maiestie which is his horse for he â—ideth vpon the Heauens Psal 68.4 as vpon an horse to releeue this poore distressed and afflicted man And this by Gods helpe I shall doe out of these words The Word was made flesh for here is the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Esay 7.14 the salue laid vnto the sore here is Emmanuel God with vs the blessed God which I haue described in my last Treatise vnited and made one with vs which in my first Tract I haue shewed to be so miserably afflicted and therefore we may now reioyce and be assured of our health and saluation because the Word is made flesh CHAP. I. Of the excellency of the Knowledge of Iesus Christ God hath fixed many impressions of his goodnesse in the creatures WHosoeuer will religiously and seriously obserue those manifold impressions of the Diuine goodnesse which the Lord God hath not slightly planted in the natures of all liuing creatures for a short space to be preached but hath also indelibly fixed in the memory of all ages most seriously to be considered he shall surely finde sufficient matter of reuerence loue and admiration but he shall be neuer able sufficiently to comprehend the excellency of so huge an Ocean of goodnesse within the straight and narrow compasse of his vnderstanding This were but with Saint Augustines Boy to empty the Ocean Sea with an Oyster-shell into an hole and therefore the serious and continuall contemplation of such plentifull and farre-spread goodnesse of God did so inuade and fill the thoughts of that Kingly Prophet Dauid that being as it were rauished or wrapt in an extacie at the inexplicable expression and vnconceiueable consideration of the same hee breaketh forth into these heauenly acclamations saying O Iehoua In coelis est benignitas tua Psal 36.5.6.7 O Lord our Gouernour How excellent is thy Name in all the world thou that hast set thy glory aboue the Heauens thy faithfulnesse reacheth vnto the cloudes thy righteousnesse is like the strong mountaines Psal 147. thy iudgements are like the great deepe thou sauest O Lord both man and beast But I will not suffer my speech at this time to enter into that infinite Ocean of Gods goodnesse whereby he giueth food vnto all flesh feeding the young Rauens that call vpon him and whereby he adorneth the fields with all kinde of fruitfull trees and pleasant flowers and all flowers with sweet smels and delicate colours neither will I enter into any part or parcell of his excellent prouidence whereby he gouerneth the whole world by his wisedome sustaineth all things by his power and relieueth all things by his goodnesse for this is too large a field for me to post ouer in so short a space as is now allotted me to
other by creation then is the second a creature and therefore but one God vncreated and if one bee from the other by generation then the first gaue the second either a part or his whole substance if a part then is God partible may be diuided which cannot be said of such spirituall indiuidible substance and if the first gaue the rest his whole Essence then haue all the same Dietie and so all must be the same Godhead And so Anâ—isthenes saith it was the opinion of the best Philosophers Plures esse Deos populares vnum naturalem That although the people worshipped many Gods yet indeed there was but one onely God by Nature And therefore against the Valentinians thirty couple of gods Jrenaeus contra Valentin and all others that professe many gods it must needes follow euen from reason it selfe that there can be no more gods but one not specificall but numericall i. e. so absolutely one Tertul. l. contra Hermog e. 17. that he is one alone besides whom there can be none other and is therefore called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 onely one for we deny all number in the Deitie vnlesse you meane in the personall proprieties and therefore Gregory Nissen saith well Quod in multitudinem extendere numerum Deitatum eorum duntaxat est Nyssen ad Eustach l. de trin qui laborant multitudinis deorum errore That to extend the number of the Deities into a multitude belongs onely vnto them which doe erroniously maintaine a multitude of gods for the Catholicke faith is this that wee should worship the Trinity in Vnity and the Vnity in Trinity that is Basilius Ep. 141. ad Caesarium the trinity of Persons and the vnity of Essence because all number is to be reiected from the Essence of God saith Saint Basil For the Diuine Essence is so simple and so numerically one that no diuersitie can be giuen whereby the very persons doe differ in regard of the Essence and therefore in respect of this identitie and vnitie of Essence in the three persons of the Godhead our Sauiour saith I am in the Father and the Father in me Iohn 14.10 Wherupon Saint Cyril addeth further for the explanation of the same that we may not say that the Father is from the Sonne nor contained in the Sonne nor the Sonne to be in the Father as we are said to be and to liue in God for that we are onely by the effects of his grace he in the vnitie of his essence i. e. wee are one with God by grace but the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost are one by Nature so that whatsoeuer the Father essentially is the Sonne is the same and the holy Spirit is the same That the Essence of God is distinguished into three persons Gen. 1. And yet we must know that this one onely one indiuisible Essence is distinguished into three persons which we call the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost for so the Scriptures plainely teach vs as Let vs make man in our image and behold the man is become like one of vs saith the Lord himselfe to shew that in this vnity of Essence there is a plurality of persons and againe the Lord rained vpon Sodom and vpon Gomorrha from the Lord out of Heauen Gen. 19. that is the Sonne rained from the Father as Iustin Martyr Tertullian Epiphanius Cyprian Irenaeus Eusebius Cyrill Sozomen the Councell of Smyrna held in the yeare of Christ 336. Socrates Eccl. hist l. 2. c. 30. wherein Marcus Arethusius against the heresie of Photinus and many others doe so expound that place And so the three men that appeared vnto Abraham and that Heauenly harmony of Cherubims saying Holy holy holy Lord God of Sabboth Esay 6. doe sufficiently declare the Trinitie of persons in the Vnity of Gods Essence Ob. But then it may bee some will say these and the like places are too obscure to confirme the truth of so great a point Sol. Why God did not fully and plainely reueile the mysteries of the Trinitie at the first I answere that God at first would not shew this great mystery vnto all lest that being so prone as they were in the infancie of the Church to fal into Idolatry they should shake off the seruice of the true God therby be drawn to worship many Gods but the more his Church did increase in abilitie to vnderstand the more did God reueile vnto it both this mystery of the Trinitie and also many other mysteries of the Incarnation Passion Resurrection and Ascention of Iesus Christ And therefore what hee obscurely shadowed in the time of the Patriarchs hee did more cleerely shew vnto his Prophets and most plainely in the time of the Apostles proclaime the same vnto all people For Christ bad them goe and baptize all men Matth. 28. in the name of the Father and of the Sonne 1. Iohn 5. and of the Holy Ghost And so Saint Iohn saith there be three that beare witnesse in Heauen the Father the Word and the Spirit And yet these three be but one saith the Apostle For as in one Sunne there are the body of the Sunne the Sunne beames and the heate Aug. de Trinit the beames are begotten of the Sunne and the heate doth proceed both from the Sunne and the Sunne beames but the Sunne it selfe proceeds from none Euen so in the one Essence of God there are the Father the Sonne and the Holy Ghost the sonne is begotten of the Father the Holy Ghost proceeds from both but the Father is of himselfe alone and as the fountaine begets the brooke Jdem de verbis Domim and both the fountaine and brooke doe make the Poole and yet all three is the same water so the father is the Fountaine which begets the Sonne and from the Father and Sonne proceeds the Holy Ghost That there are certaine similitudes of the Trinity to be seene in the creatures and yet is the Deity of all three the same in like manner the fire hath motion light and heate and yet but one fire and in the soule of man there are three faculties the vegetatiue the sensitiue and the rationall and yet but one soule and in all other creatures wee may behold certaine glimpes and similitudes that doe after a sort adumbrate and shadow out this ineffable and inexpressable mysterie for by their greatnesse we may consider the power of the Father by their beauty we may see the wisedome of the Sonne and by their vtilitie we may note the goodnesse of the Holy Ghost God left not himselfe without witnesse no not wholly of the manner of his subsistence if not to proue this blessed mysterie yet at least to illustrate it Thom. p. 1. q 32. art 1. and to proue as Aquinas saith Non esse impossibile quod fides praedicat That those things are not impossible which faith preacheth But it may be some
beginning and ending The second is proper to seules and spirits which haue beginning but shall neuer haue ending The third is proper to all compound bodies which as they had beginning so they shall haue ending Quia omnia orta occidunt omnia aucta senescunt Because all raised or created things shall fall and whatsoeuer increaseth waxeth old After the first sense the Word was neuer made in any time but is the Father of all times and before all times After the second sense the Soule of Christ was made in time but to continue euer immortall for all times And How Christ was made in time After the third sence the Body of Christ was likewise made in time and to continue here but for a time in respect of his mortall condition before it was inuested with the indowments of immortality And so both Body and Soule of Christ were made in time to subsist in the person of him that made all time that time wherin he was made thus to subsist was in the fulnesse of time saith the Apostle for as places so times haue their fulnesse and their emptinesse some places are empty hauing nothing in them but onely ayre and some are full of gold and pearles and precious things euen so some times are voyde of strange accidents How time hath his fulnesse and sometimes are full of admirable occurrents and in such a time was the Word made flesh the Sonne of God made man for now the time was full of peace full of plenty and full of wickednesse the Diuell had broken loose and had possest the minds of most and the bodies of many men more then euer before or euer since as some imagine by reason of those multitudes that they reade of to be really possessed with Diuels in our Sauiours time And therefore being so full of all vnrighteousnesse Rom. 29. he that was the fulnesse of grace came to root out the euill weeds of our sinnes Iohn 1.16 and out of his fulnesse to offer vs grace for grace For First hee would not come before Adam fell because that had beene superfluous to seeke the sheepe before the sheepe were lost Secondly he would not come presently after because thereby he would shew the greater loue to mankinde for though in some cases it be true that gratia ab officio quod mora tardat abest delayed kindnesse looseth halfe his goodnesse yet herein the long tarrying of Christ before he came to be incarnate was a manifest signe of his greater goodnesse towards vs for these three speciall causes First that by the Law of nature Why Christ stayed so long before he came and by the written Law of God man might be conuinced and see his owne sinnes and so be the more moued to seeke his Sauiour Secondly that he tarrying for a while might be the more earnestly desired and make him being obtayned to become the more acceptable vnto vs Quia diu desiderata dulcius obtinentur because that things long desired are more sweet when they are obtained as Saint Augustine speaketh Thirdly that due preparation might be made by the Patriarches and Prophets before his comming and the people made by them apt and ready to receiue him and to imbrace his comming that so his comming might be the more profitable vnto them for they were sent to prepare Matth. 3.3 and to make straight the way of the Lord and therefore as his tarrying now from comming to iudgement is an exceeding great argument of his goodnesse because he doth it to see if his long patience will leade vs to repentance so his long tarrying then was a sure signe of his greater loue because he would haue vs thereby to be fitted to make the better vse of his comming and yet Why Christ would not stay any longer then he did Thirdly he would not stay vntill the last end of the world Ne fides spes de promisso semine nimis tardatae perirent Least staying so long there should be no hope left to expect him no faith to beleeue in him and no charity to loue him when hee should come For though there was but a little goodnesse then God knowes Patrios ante dies filius quaerebat in annos Yet there is a great deale lesse now all the world sees Terras Astraea reliquit For our Sauiour told vs that towards the end of the world The loue of many should waxe cold and faith should scarce be found vpon the face of the whole earth And therefore seeing that to come in the beginning of the world had beene too soone and to tarry till the latter end had been too late he came in the fittest time in the fulnesse of time to be incarnate and made flesh The particular time of the Words incarnation And if we search a little further to know more particularly what time was this fulnesse of time we shall finde it to be 1. In the sixt Age of the world 2. In the Raigne of Augustus and Herod 3. In the tenth Moneth of the yeare 4. In the shortest Day of the Moneth 5. In the first Day of the Weeke 6. In the first Houre of the Day First We must note that as man which is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the little world so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the great and large Vniuerse hath his times and his ages for Damascen Lucidus and others as Clicthouaeus collecteth doe affirme that the worlds age is seauen-fold How the world is diuided into his seuerall ages First the infancy of it from Adam to the flood Secondly the child-hood of it from the flood to Abraham Thirdly the youth of it from Abraham to Moses Fourthly the riper and liuelier youth from the Law to Dauid Fiftly the man-hood of it from the Temple of Salomon to the Captiuity Sixtly the maturity of it from the Captiuity of Babylon vnto Christ Seauenthly Aug. de ciuit Dei l. vlt. c. vlt. the dotage of it from Christ vnto Iudgement but Saint Augustine Saint Chrysostome Saint Isidore Bede Arrias Montanus and others though they say the world doth consist of seauen ages yet they doe diuide them otherwise viz. 1. From Adam vnto Noahs Flood containing 1656. yeares The diuision of the worlds age 2. From Noahs Flood vnto Abraham 293. or 383. 3. From Abraham vnto Dauid 941. 4. From Dauid to the Captiuity 485. and 6. Moneths 5. From the Captiuity vnto Christ 620. 6. From Christ to the day of Iudgement 1624. hitherto and how many more none can tell As our Sauiour shewth Of that day and houre knoweth no man 7. From the day of Iudgement vnto all Eternity for euer and euer And so according to this account Christ was borne in the yeare of the world 4085. but according to the seauenty Interpreters account he was borne in the yeare 5461. and according to our account he was borne in the yeare 3948. and so I find in the account of yeares
is not offended in him Why then O thou incredulous Iew wilt thou not receiue thy Sauiour is it because he came poore without any shew of worldly pompe why that should make all men the rather to imbrace him and the more thankefully to acknowledge him because that he which might haue come in Maiestie Cum caelestibus Attended on by Angels would come in pouerty and haue his bed made cum iumentis among the beasts that perish that so by his comming poore we might be all made rich through him and therefore O Iew I doe aduice thee that as thy Fathers accomplished the decree of God in condemning him so doe thou according to the will of God in beleeuing on him and thou shalt be happy for he that beleeueth in him shall neuer perish To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be ascribed all Honour Thankes and Praise both now and for euermore Amen A Prayer O Eternall God who as in all things else so more especially in giuing thy dearest Sonne co-eternall coequall and co-essentiall vnto thy selfe to be made flesh subiect to our humane frailties and in all things like vnto vs sinne onely excepted hast shewed thy goodnesse and thy loue to man to be like thy selfe infinite and incomprehensible we most humbly beseech thee to giue vs grace to know thee and whom thou hast sent Iesus Christ to be the onely true God whom to know is eternall life through the said Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS The Fourth Golden Candlesticke HOLDING The Fourth greatest Light of Christian RELIGION Of the Passion of the MESSIAS LVKE 24.46 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And thus it behoued Christ to suffer YOu haue heard dearely beloued how miserably man is distressed by sinne The coherence of this Treatise with the former Treatises how he may be releeued onely by the Mercy of God and how this reliefe is applied vnto vs by the Incarnate Word for he is the true Samaritan that doth helpe the wounded man he is the blessed Angell that doth stirre the poole of Bethesda and giue vertue vnto the water to heale our sores to helpe our soules But alas this Angell as yet is but descended and the waters are not troubled and this Samaritan is but alighted and the poore semi-dead Traueller is not set vp vpon his horse to be carryed towards his Inne that is hee hath not yet entred into the waters of tribulations to saue our soules from drowning in Hell neither hath he put our sinnes vpon his backe that we being freed from the burthen might walke on towards Heauen this resteth yet behind and this Tragedie is yet vnheard and therefore though he much humbled himselfe by his Incarnation yet is that nothing it is but the beginning of sorrowes in respect of his sore and bitter Passion For to redeeme our soules from sinne the deepe waters must enter into his soule and all our sinnes must be laid vpon his backe and for our sinnes It behoueth Christ to suffer Hic labor hoc opus est And this is that which we are now to treat of Thus it behoued Christ to suffer CHAP. I. Of the manifold vse and commodities that we reape by the continuall meditation of the sufferings of Christ Three things that mooue attention THere be three speciall things that doe vse to moue attention 1. An eloquent Author 2. An important matter 3. A compendious breuity And all these three doe here ioyne and meete together in this Text of Scripture For First the Author of these words is Christ Luk. 11.49 First the Author of these words is Iesus Christ the wisedome of God Wisedome it selfe so incomprehensibly wise that all men wondred at the gracious words that proceeded out of his mouth Secondly the summe of these words is the Tragedy of Iesus Christ Secondly the matter is the Tragedie of himselfe the laborious life and the dolorous death of the Sonne of God the chiefest Tragedy of all Tragedies for the Catastrophe hereof hath the effusion of bloud and the mourning not onely of the Sufferer or Parents and Friends but of Heauen and Earth and all the whole world farre more dolefull then the mourning of Hadadrimmon in Valley of Mâ—gyddo The Actors of this Tragedy are Kings Vice-Royes Dukes Scribes Pharises High-Priests Elders of the people The Actors of this Tragedy the Apostles themselues and others all great Christ the King of Kings Herod the great King Pilate the Vice-Roy Annas and Cayphas high Priests Peter and Iudas great Apostles and those that were mute as the Sun the Earth the Stones the Vaile of the Temple and the very Graues did by apparant signes most dolefully bewayle the nefarious death of the Son of God yea more the Angels mourned and the Diuels trembled to behold the same The Theater on which it was acted was Ierusalem The Theater was Ierusalem the very midst and heart of the earth as some imagine according to that saying of the Psalmist Operatus est deus salutem in medio terrae GOD hath wrought saluation in the midst of the Earth Heere is the place where it was acted Hic hic mors vita duello Conflixere mirando Here life and death did striue for victory and here the beholders were men of all Nations Hebrewes Greekes and Romans and the time was their most solemne feast wherein all did â—eete to eate their Paschall Lambe And therefore if there be any Theame that may challenge our eares to lysten and our hearts to meditate vpon the same it is this for this is one of those things that was once done that it might be thought of for euer that it might be had in euerlasting remembrance And the continuall meditation thereof is 1. Acceptable vnto Christ 2. Profitable for vs. For First The continuall meditation of Christs passion what it doth if the rod of Moses which wrought so many miracles in Aegypt and the Manna which fed the children of Israel 40. yeares in the Wildernesse and the Booke of the Law which was deliuered vnto Moses vpon Mount Sinai were to be preserued in the Arke First It is most acceptable vnto Christ as testimonies of Gods loue throughout all generations how much more should we keepe the remembrance of the Crosse of Christ of the Body and Bloud of Christ and of the glad tidings of saluation which we haue by the death of Christ in the Church of God for euermore Our Sauiour gaue but two Sacraments vnto his Church and one of them is chiefely instituted to this end for a remembrance of his suffering for as often as you eate this Bread and drinke this Cup Luc. 22. you shew the Lords death vntill he come 1 Cor. 11.1 And the remembrance of Christs death saith Saint Chrysostome Est beneficij maximi recordatio Chrys hom 8. in Matth. caputque diuinae erga nos charitatis Is the commemoration of the greatest benefit that euer we receiued
to be Malefactors so the consideration of Christs suffering being as the Doue as innocent as innocencie it selfe should moue in vs not onely a commisseration of the sufferer but also a detestation of the persecutors for who can heare or reade of the death of righteous Abel by that wicked Caine the burning of Laurentius by that Tyrant Decius the flaying of Saint Bartholmew by his bloudy enemies or the dragging of Hippolytus with wilde Horses and such like cruell and bloudy Tragedies without a detestation of such horribly wicked Actors And can we heare the sufferings of innocent guiltlesse Christ without a deadly detestation of those inhumane Butchers That Christ was a good man Acts 10.38 Thirdly He was not onely a iust man that did no hurt to any man but he was also a good man that did good to euery man for He went about saith the Apostle doing good and that both in words and workes for first He often taught them in the Temple in the Synagogue vpon the Mount in the High-wayes in Houses in all places his goodnesse would not suffer him to conceale any thing in silence that might be any wayes profitable vnto his hearers but to dispell with all diligence all mysts and cloudes of errors from the inward eyes of the people and to instruct them cleerely in all the heauenly mysteries of saluation Secondly He cured the bleeding wounds of afflicted consciences he reclaimed brought home many stragling sheepe and wandring sinners he gaue eyes vnto the blinde feete vnto the lame speech vnto the dumbe eares vnto the deafe bread vnto the hungry yea many times hee restored health vnto the diseased and sometimes the dead vnto their lamenting friends And as Saint Paul saith Who is weake and I am not weake 2 Cor. 11.23 who is offended and I burne not So might our Sauiour more truly say Who is burthened and I am not grieued at it for he commisserated the corporall and spirituall infirmities of all men yea he did not onely pitty them in vs but he put them all vpon himselfe Et tulit in se vt à nobis tolleret and tooke them all vpon himselfe that he might take them all from vs as Saint Chrysostome saith And therefore if the people did so much condole the naturall death of Dorcas Acts 9.39 because shee was so good a Creature as to bestow some few clothes vpon some few poore distressed people how much more ought wee to bewaile the shamefull and the dolefull death of Christ that did so much good and neuer any ill all the dayes of his life Fourthly He was not onely Iustus bonus A iust and a good man or an innocent man voide of sinne and a vertuous man full of grace but he was also more honourable and noble then all the sonnes of men for he was Christus That Christ is 1. A King 2. A Priest 3. A Prophet Math. 2.2 Annointed to be a King a Priest and a Prophet First King Simul natus simul Caesar He was a King by birth Where is he that is borne King of the Iewes He descended of the regall race Saint Mathew reckons foureteene Kings in his pedegree and hee was a King to his dying day Iesus of Nazareth John 19.22 King of the Iewes Pilate writes it and he will not alter it for God himselfe had spoken it Psal 2.6 I haue set my King vpon my holy hill of Sion Secondly Priest for The Lord sware it Psal 110.4 and he will not repent it that he is a Priest for euer after the order of Melchizedecke The noblest Order and the royallest Priesthood in the World for this holy Priest was also a noble King Esay 9.6 for hee was King of Shalem King of peace euen as Esayas calles him The Prince of peace Thirdly Prophet for Deut. 18.15 A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise vnto you And he shall be a Prophet 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the highest degree euen the Prince of Prophets and so great a Prophet that Whosoeuer will not heare him he shall surely die Ier. 22.18 And therefore if Ieremie taketh vp that mournefull lamentation for the death of King Iosias and say Alas for that noble Prince ah my Lord or ah his glory and yet he came to an honourable death in the Field without any shame and but little paine then what shall wee say for the death of this King of Kings this Priest of the most High God and this great Prophet of the Lord that was annointed with the Oyle of gladnesse aboue his fellowes Psal 45.8 The Lord had said Touch not mine Annointed and doe my Prophets no harme Psal 105 15. yet we see Kings the Annointed of God are slaine and Ierusalem killed the Prophets and stoned those that are sent vnto them Luke 13.34 But behold a greater then all Kings is here Et quasi vnus è decem milibus And such a one as ten thousand Kings are not equal vnto him and yet he is not brought to an honorable death of a Priest at the Altar or of a King in the Field but to a most shamefull and reprochfull death the most accursed death of the Crosse among the wicked O then let vs consider if euer such a person came to such a death That Christ was a true and eternall God Math. 17.54 Fiftly He was not onely the highest among all the Sonnes of men but he was also the Sonne of the most High God Pilate heard it and feared the Centurion saw it and confest it Truly this was the Sonne of God And the very Diuels felt it and proclaimed it We know who thou art euen the holy one of God yea the trembling Earth quaking Luke 4.34 the flinty Rockâ—s cleauing asunder and the dolefull graues opening themselues did by a visible voyce confirme him to be a God And so that strange Eclipse that was seene at his death and that vnexpected darkenesse that vayled the face of the Sunne for three houres together because it was no defect of Nature the Moone being at the full and the day being at the middest and therefore could not be any vsuall Eclipse caused by the head or the tayle of the Dragon vnlesse you meane that olde Dragon the Diuell it made that great Phylosopher Dyonisius Dionys in Ep. then in Athens to say That now the World was at an end or the God of Nature suffered violence so strange were these accidents beyond the power of Nature The enemies of Christ ascribe that to him in mockerie which he was indeede Mat. 26.68 Nay the very enemies of Christ acknowledged him to be a Prophet a King a God for while the people play vpon him and contemne him yet notwithstanding they confesse him to be a Prophet saying Prophesie vnto vs thou Christ who is hee that smote thee And as Saint Ambrose saith Compungentes coronant illudentes adorant While the Souldiers denied him
maius opprobrium quo nullum vilius A punishment then which there could not be greater and a shame then which there could not be viler The first which was but the least thing that grieued him yet it caused a colluctation of the flesh with paine Aristot 3. aethic with death because the flesh naturally is desirous to escape them both Et omnium terribilium terribilissimum est mors And of all terrible things death is the most terrible thing saith the Philosopher and therefore the very remembrance of the same Secondly His Shame The Shamefull handling of Christ was more grieuous vnto him then all his corporall sufferings must needs bring a terror vnto flesh and bloud And the second which was the shamefull things that were to be done vnto him to be scorned and scoffed accounted as wicked taken by the wicked and condemned with the wicked and so shamefully handled shamefully deemed shamefully dying did a great deale more perplexe and grieue him then the former any man wishing rather to dye then to suffer shame shame being a greater punishment vnto the minde and soule then any torture can be vnto the flesh Nature alwayes releeueth the part most distressed for nature cleane contrary to the course of the world which alwayes taketh part with the stronger-side and layeth helpe vpon them that are mighty vseth alwayes to assist the weaker part as it appeareth plainely in the letting of bloud in the arme or in any other place for then nature as it doth still send the bloud Quasi agmine facto as it were on heapes from all the parts of the body thither vntill the said rupture be stopped vp againe and so likewise when the heart of man which is the seate of feare begins to be troubled with any vehement or horrible feare then will nature presently collect the bloud about the same for to assist it whereby the face is left pale and all the exterior parts as it were voide of life and when the face of man which is the seate of shamefastnesse and honesty is aspersed with shame and reproach then presently the bloud relinquisheth all the interior parts and gathers it selfe vnto the face as to that part which now hath most need to be sustayned wâ—ereby we truely say that Pallor timentium rubor erubescentium est signum To blush is the signe of shame and to be pale is an argument of feare And therefore though the feare of his punishment and of death did neerely touch him yet to shew that the consideration of this most shamefull handling of him did more perplexe him his bloud did not collect it selfe vnto the heart though the same was much affrighted but leauing the heart as it were destitute of all helpe it flew into his face as vnto that part which for shame of their dispitefull vsage of him had most neede to be assisted and from thence as the pretious oyntment that was powred vpon Aarons head ranne downe vnto his beard and from thence vnto the skirts of his cloathing So this pretious bloud of Christ gushing out chiefly at his face it plentifully trickled downe to the ground Secondly The deferring of his suffering much grieued our Sauiour As the consideration and fore-sight of these things did much grieue him so the dilation and deferring of them did not a little trouble him for as the expectation of death is many times more grieuous vnto the affrighted flesh then death it selfe so was the dilation of that good which was to proceede from his death a great deale more grieuous vnto him then many deaths for hee was most greedy of our saluation and as the Horse made ready vnto the battle and hearing the Trumpets sounding Virgil. l. 4. Aeneid Stare loco nescit micat auribus tremit artus fraena faerox spumantia mandit doth fame and fome and cannot stand but still striueth to goe forward so Christ hauing this baptisme to be baptized with he was exceedingly pained vntill that was ended Quia spes quae differtur affligit animam Because as Salomon saith hope deferred or expectation prolonged languisheth the soule and therefore as Ionas saâ—d Irascor vsque ad mortem I am exceedingly angry euen vnto death that is because death comes not to me for I doe seeke for death and it flies from me so Christ was grieued vnto death Ambr. 7. in Luc. Non ex metu mortis suae sed ex mora redemptionis nostrae Not for any feare of his owne death but by reason of the delaying of our deliuerance from euerlasting death as Saint Ambrose saith What Christ fore-saw in respâ—ct of vs. Secondly As he fore-saw these things in respect of himselfe so in respect of others he fore-saw First the neglecting of his bloud First The small account that many men would make of this his so great a suffering he saw how few would imbrace it and how many would contemne it and therefore when he considered with himselfe Quae vtilitas in sanguine suo What profit might accrew from his bloud knowing that the least drop of it was of sufficient value to saue the whole world and yet by reason of the iniquitie and incredulity of men that all of it being spilt and shed it should notwithstanding saue but a remnant and a small company of men it could not choose but grieue and vexe his righteous soule to see his bloud spilt in vaine for would it not grieue any man to pay an infinite price to saue a base slaue from death and to see that villaine presently cast himselfe to death and with all his strength and wit to seeke the death of his Redeemer this was the case of Christ for he was willing to redeeme vs with his owne most precious bloud and yet he saw the wicked would trample this benefit vnder foot account the bloud of the couenant as an vnholy thing Heb. 10.29 and make none other vse of it but most fearefully to sweare by it and abuse it and so bringing vpon themselues swift damnation and therefore seeing euery sin grieues God this must grieue him most of all O then beloued brethren seeing as it grieueth the Husbandman to see his ground well manured still continuing barren so it is a griefe to Christ to see his bloud grow fruitlesse and that it is a ioy to him by our conuersion to see the fruits of his labours O let vs neuer cause him to say Esay 49.4 In vacuum laboraui I haue laboured in vaine but let vs truely repent vs of our sinnes and faithfully lay hold of his death that so both the Angels and this Lord of Angels may reioyce Secondly He fore-saw the great punishment and aduersitie that should light vpon many men and vpon many sorts of men for The dispersion of the Apostles Zach. 13.7 and by meanes of this his sufferings and his cruell death As First Vpon his owne Disciples and decrest Apostles for I will
sole of his foote vnto the crowne of his head Esay 1.6 there was nothing whole in him but wounds and swellings and soares most full of grieuous paines And in all this his great and grieuous sufferings we must know them to be the sharper in respect of the tendernesse of his body and the senciblenesse of his spirit because as Aristotle saith Quo complexio nobilior quo mens dexterior Aristot l. 2. de anima c. 9. co tenerior esse solet caro The more noble our complexion and the more quicke and nimble is our apprehension the more sencible is our flesh of the least paine and correction but the flesh of Christ of all other men must needes be the most tender The tenderer our flesh and the quicker our spirits the more sensible wee are of paine because as I shewed you before he was soly begotten of a pure Virgin and his minde must needes be most intellectiue and most apprehensiue of all paine because he was of that age which is most sensitiue and therefore the sufferings of Christ in all respects must needes be most insufferable And yet all this was but the least part of his sorrowes not neere the halfe of his sufferings for hee was to wrestle with the wrath of God that was due to vs for our sinnes yea hee was to tread the fiercenesse of the wrath of God Reuel 15.5 And there can be no conflict in the World so great as to grapple with an angry God for the Prophet Dauid speaking hereof Psal 76.7 saith Thou euen thou art to be feared and who can stand in thy sight when thou art angry The Earth trembled and quaked Psal 18. v. 7. 15. the very foundations also of the hilles shooke and were remoued because he was wroth yea the springs of waters were seene and the foundations of the round World were discouered That the sufferings of Christ were a great deale more then are expressed by the Euangelists or then can be conceiued by any man at thy chiding O Lord at the blasting of the breath of thy displeasure And if his anger and displeasure be so great O who can endure the height of his furie who can ouercome by suffering the fiercenesse of his wrath And therefore to shew how vnspeakeable and how dangerous a tâ—ing it is for any man to define what the vnspeakeable sufferings and the incomprehensible feelings of Christ were both in the Garden of Gethsemane before his Iudges and especially vpon the Crosse in Mount Caluarie the Fathers of the Greeke Church in their Lyturgie after they had recounted his bloudy sweate his shamefull crowning his spitefull handling and all the other particular sufferings which are recorded by the Euangelists they doe most excellently conclude 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 By thine vnknowne sorrowes and by those infinite sufferings incomprehensible to vs though most sensibly felt by thee Haue mercy vpon vs and saue vs O Lord our God And in all this he truly suffered not imaginarily as some haue imagined Sed vere languores nostros ipse tulit But he truly bare our infirmities and carried our sorrowes Not as the Priests of the Law Leuit. 10.17 which were likewise said to beare the sinnes of the people i. e. typically in the figure but truly in the fact hee bare the punishment of them all and that not in outward appearance as malicious Marcion held it Tertull. contra Marc. l. 4. 8. Aug. de haeresibus ad Quodv heres 46. and afterwards the Manichees maintained it as Saint Augustine saith but as he was a man 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 physically and truly so hee endured and suffered all these sorrowes Vere sicut verus homo Most truly as being a true naturall man as Aquinas saith He did most sencibly and feelingly suffer them all for it was not with him as it was with the three Children in the third of Daniel Dan. 3 27. who were cast into the fierie Furnace and yet came out not hauing their hayre singed nor their coates changed nor the smell of fire had passed on them but as Plutarch reports of Coriolanus hee can yet shew his wounds that he suffered and make demonstratiue expressions of his sorrowes farre beyond the apprehension of any man to conceiue them But if any man demand how Christ being God could suffer any paine seeing the Deitie is subiect to no passion Heinsius P. 81. Heinsius answereth that Christ suffered not in respect of the diuine nature which he had as God but in respect of his humane nature which he had as he was Man for though the Deity was in the sufferer yet was it not in the suffering How the Godhead suffered not but sustained the manhood that it might suffer though it was in the Body of Christs passion yet was it not in the passion of Christs Body but as I shewed vnto you before Page 438 the humanity onely suffered and the Deity sustained it that it might suffer because the impotency of the one required the omnipotency of the other Christ being a man that he might suffer and being a God that he might be able so to suffer such insufferable things And therefore we say that Christ in respect of his Deity remained still intire vntouched invulnerable impassible and that very then when his humanity suffered and was dead the Deity liued impassibly and rent the vayle of the Temple sealed vp the Sunne-beames vnder a signet of Cimmerian Cloudes caused the Earth to tremble the Centurion to auerre that Christ was the true and essentiall Sonne of God and raysed vp the interred Carkasses from their graues And we say that it was the humane nature of Christ that stood and suffered vpon the Crosse and in the anguish of its passion breathed out that dolefull complaint euen to the Godhead hypostatically vnited vnto it as well as to the Father and to the holy Spirit saying My God my God Math 27.46 why hast thou forsaken me And although the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the distance betwixt these two Natures be so great and the disparity be so euident as that the one was passible and mortall the other impassible and immortall yet are they so combined and vnited in our Sauiour Christ that although he is not one nature yet is he but one person one Christ one Redeemer and when the humanity suffered and was buried yet was it not neither could it be possibly cast off or forsaken by the Deity vnto which the linkes and ligaments of Gods loue had so strictly and eternally obliged it by an hypostaticall and indissoluble vnion Thus Christ though he was God yet as man Dixit multa gessit mira pertulit dura dura verba duriora verbera durissima supplicia He bore and suffered an incredible paine and vnsufferable sorrowes Esay 53. so great and so grieuous that Esayas may well call him virum dolorum No sorrow like the sorrowes of Christ
miser homo non compatitur pro quo solo deus patitur Hiron in Mat. and therefore how can we behold his head resting vpon a pillow of thornes his hands pierced with iron nayles and his heart bleeding for our sinnes and not to bee moued to a godly sorrow for those our horrible sinnes that caused all his sorrowes It is reported in the Gospell that when our Sauiour suffered the Sun withdrew his light as being ashamed to see so wofull a spectacle the earth quaked and trembled as it were for feare to see her Creator put to death and the stones did cleaue in sunder yea wicked Iudas that betrayed and sold our Sauiour when he saw the indignities that were offered vnto him did repent and grieue that he had betrayed that innocent bloud and therefore what strange hearts haue wee worse then Iudas and harder then stones if we can behold the torments of his Passion and not be touched with compassion The naturalist telleth vs that the Adamant stone is of an impenetrable hardnesse Plinius l. 37. c. 4. and yet he saith that if it be steeped in the warme bloud of a Goate it will be mollified and therefore if the bloud of Christ which is farre more excellent then the bloud of Buls or of Goates cannot intenerate our hard hearts wee are worse then the Adamants and no better then the Diuels That Christ should bleed for vs and we not weepe for our owne sinnes Secondly To make vs thankefull For the second Our Sauiour hauing suffered all this for sin to saue sinfull men and to eternize mortall men He hath broken the head of the Serpent he hath wounded the great Leuiathan and by the merit of his Passion he hath subdued Hell conquered the graue rebated the sting of death taken away the force and guilt of sinne and remoued those Cherubims and that flaming sword which was placed to afright vs and to keepe the way of the tree of life Gen. 2.2 and he hath blotted out the hand-writing of ordinances that was against vs and laid open vnto vs the gates of eternall life and therefore now we should all say with the Psalmist What shall we render vnto the Lord for all his benefits that hee hath done vnto vs Psal 116 11. for we must not thinke it inough to weepe in commiseration of Christ his paine but we must be also thankefull for Christ his suffering The whole world knoweth what great loue hee hath shewed to vs and what bitter Passion he hath suffered for vs and therefore vae tacentibus de te domine Woe be vnto them whose ingratitude hath silenced them from praising thee Sed faelix lingua quae non nouit nisi de te Sermonem texere but most happy is that tongue which can praise thee O Lord though it should be able to speake of nothing else because not onely nothing can be carried better in our mindes nothing can be sweeter in our mouthes nothing more melodious to our eares as Saint Augustine saith then deo gratias to ascribe all praise and to render thankes vnto the Lord our God but especially because as Saint Bernard saith no sacrifice can be more acceptable vnto God for who so offereth me thankes and praise hee honoureth mee and nothing can be more offensiue vnto Satan then to praise the Lord for though thou watchest he careth not because himselfe neuer sleepeth though thou fastest hee regards it not because himselfe neuer eateth any thing but if thou beest thankefull vnto God for his great loue to thee then is Satan grieued because thou being a silly worme on earth dost performe that here in the vally of misery which he being a glorious Angell in Heauen could not performe in that seat of Maiestie and therefore as the Prophet Dauid saith Psal 107.15 that he would rise at midnight to praise the Lord for his righteous iudgements so with the Prophet Dauid I wish to God that men would praise the Lord for his goodnesse especially for this great goodnesse and declare the wonders that he hath done and especially this suffering this great suffering that he vnderwent for the children of men and that they would praise him from the ground of the heart And because virtus nisi cum re vilior alga That we should shew our thankfulnesse to Christ by our workes Luke 2. Matth. 2. thankefulnesse consisteth more in workes then in words therefore let vs not onely with the Angels sing Glory be to God on high but let vs with the wise men present our gifts vnto him gold to clothe the naked and to feede the hungry soule Frankinsence to maintaine the preaching of Gods Word and Myrrhe to be prepared for our death Macrob. Saturnal l. 2. c. 4. that we may liue for euer with him Macrobius tels vs that a certaine souldiour of Augustus Band that had often aduentured his life in Caesars cause being to appeare before those Iudges whom he feared he desired Augustus for to assist him and the Emperour presently wished him to choose whom he would and he would appoint him for his aduocate but the Souldier replyed O Caesar I appointed no Deputy when your life was in danger to be lost but I hazarded mine owne life and receiued all these scarres which he then shewed in his body to preserue you from all hurt and doe you now appoint another to pleade for me what haue I done so much for you and will you refuse to do so small a kindnes for me euen so beloued brethren Christ did not onely hazard his life but gaue himselfe to death and suffered scarres and wounds and the shedding of all his bloud of his dearest bloud for vs and shall wee doe nothing for him Matth. 25 40. O yes beloued let vs euer doe what lyeth in vs for the poore members of Iesus Christ for whatsoeuer you doe to any one of them you doe it vnto me saith our Sauiour Thirdly to teach vs how dearely and how truely we ought to loue our Sauiour Christ For the third as Christ hath so dearely loued vs as to suffer all these things for vs so we should truely loue Christ againe and we should the rather loue him not onely because hee hath done all these things for vs but also because he requireth nothing for all these things but loue he exacts no tribute hee requires no homage he expects no requitall but loue O then let vs not say with the vncleane spirits in the Gospell What haue wee to doe with thee Marke 1.24 O Iesus thou Sonne of God but let vs rather say with the Church Cantic 2.5 in the Canticles Stay me with flagons and comfort mee with apples Bern. in Ser. de pass dom for I am sicke of loue and as thy loue to me Erat talis tantus vt nesciret habere modum was such and so great that it could not containe it selfe within the compasse of any bounds so my
thee in his Name and for his sake to forgiue vs all our sinnes to accept his death as a plenary satisfaction to acquit vs from euerlasting death and to giue vs thy grace that for this and all other thy louing sauours vnto vs we may be truely thankefull and most dutifully obedient to please thee and to praise thy blessed Name for euer and euer through Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS The Fift Golden Candlesticke HOLDING The Fift greatest Light of Christian RELIGION Of the Resurrection of CHRIST MATH 28.4.5.6 And for feare of him the Keepers did shake and became as dead men And the Angell answered and said vnto the Women feare not you for I know that you seeke Iesus which was crucified He is not here for he is risen as hee said come see the place where the Lord lay OVR blessed Lord God The coherence of this Treatise with the former and louing Father out of his excellent prouidence and secret loue to Man hath so tempered all the accidents and whole course of mans life with such proportion and equall counterpoyse that euer and anon ioyes and sorrowes are mixt together as wee may easily see in our blessed Sauiour for vpon Mount Thabor he was transfigured in glory Math. 17.2 that his face did shine as the Sunne and vpon Mount Caluary he was disfigured in sorrow that confusion went ouer his face and that in him there was neither forme nor beauty and vpon Mount Oliuet euen now Esay 53.2 Luke 22.43 Verse 44. an Angell comforting him and by and by an agony affrighting him so vpon the Crosse euen now he cries as destitute of all helpe My God my God why hast thou forsaken me yet by and by after as assured of comfort he saith O my Father into thy hands I commend my spirit Math. 27.46 Euen so it is with vs all Nocte pluit tota Luke 23.46 redeunt spectacula mane Heauinesse may indure for a night but ioy commeth in the morning To day we may be sicke at the point to die to morrow wee may be restored to life againe to night in prison and in distresse to morrow at liberty and aduanced to dignitie And this we see plaine in my Text for the last day was a day of cloudes and darkenesse a day of griefe and sorrow for the passion and suffering of the Sonne of God But behold this day is a day of ioy and gladnesse a day of Iubile for the most glorious resurrection of this Omnipotent Son of God for as it behoued him to suffer for our sinnes as you heard so it behoued him to rise againe for our iustification saith the Apostle And so this Angell testifieth that he did Rom. 4.25 He is not here but is risen as he saide Come see the place where the Lord lay And In these words we may obserue The diuision of the Text. 1. The persons here mentioned 2. The action of each person plainely expressed First The Persons mentioned are especially of three sorts 1. Keepers 2. Women 3. Angels Secondly The actions expressed are 1. Of the Keepers watching Christ 2. Of the Women seeking Christ 3. Of the Angell 1. Terrifying the former 2. Comforting the latter And from all this we may see these three things 1. The malice of the Iewes 2. The deuotion of the Women 3. The Office of the Angels And the maine summe of all is The Resurrection of Christ PART I. CHAP. Of the malice of the Iewes against our Sauiour Christ FIRST The malice of the Iewes against our Sauiour Christ is seene in that they did not onely spitefully oppose themselues against him throughout all his life and most vniustly deliuer him to a most shamefull death but also maliciously watched him in his graue that he might not rise to shew the right property of the wicked not onely to throw the righteous downe but also to keepe them downe and to trample them still vnder feete and to hire the Watchmen to belie both themselues and his Disciples that the truth of his Resurrection might not be knowne and beleeued for our saluation O miseri quae tanta insania ciues O wretched men that you are what is your rage as strong as death nay stronger then death and longer then death For the man is dead and he is buried And yet Vos excandescitis ira Your rage is implacable you set armed Souldiers to watch and ward ouer this dead harmelesse man And so we finde what the Scripture saith of the wicked to be true in you Malicia eorum excaecauit eos Wisedome 2.21 Your malice and your wickednesse haue blinded your eyes Nay but this deceiuer said saith some of them That after three dayes I will rise againe A deceiuer indeede Sed pius seductor How wicked men are deceiued But of them onely that deceiue themselues either First By relying too much on his mercy and not thinking of his iustice or Secondly By fearing too much his iustice and forgetting all his mercy or Thirdly By not beleeuing his power either to saue the penitent beleeuers in him or to punish the wicked contemners of him for of all these and the like the Prophet saith The Lord will deceiue you that is suffer you to deceiue your selues He will make his Arrowes drunken in bloud Deut. 32.42 and hee will cause his Sword to goe through your sides But them that truly trust in him he will neuer deceiue nor suffer them to be deceiued in him For our Fathers hoped in him Psal 22.4 and were not confounded But what if you had seene him rise againe what would you haue done would you haue beleeued in him no surely for you know he rose his Disciples testifies it to your faces and your owne Souldiers sayes it and you are faine to hyre them to say the contrary What then would you haue done would you haue crucified againe the Lord of life Yes no doubt such is the malice of the wicked that the death of the godly decies repetita placebit is neuer often enough inflicted O therefore good Lord thou King of Heauen Giue me any head saue the head of a Serpent and any malice saue the malice of an enemy For death it selfe cannot hide me from these but they will rage and rayle on my very Ghost And so much for the malice of the Iewes Part. 2 PART II. CHAP. I. Of the number and the names of these Women that came to seeke our Sauiour Christ in his Sepulcher SEcondly The deuotion of the Women is here commended in that they are said to come early while it was yet darke to seeke Iesus Iohn 20.1 for to imbalme him And for the better vnderstanding of this point these three especiall things must bee considered 1. Their number 2. Their names 3. Their action First Saint Mathew here seemes to say they were two Why three Women went together vnto the Sepulcher Mary Magdalen and the other
of feare is euill for we loue and desire the good and we feare onely that which is euill And therefore how can it be that we should feare him which is the chiefest good I answere That it is true that the obiect of feare is euill and that euill to come for what is past we call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Heauinesse which is the relique and the effect of that euill which we haue suffered but that which is to come we call 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Feare And yet I say that wee may feare that which is good in two respects First We may feare that which is good In what sense we may be said to feare God which is the chiefest good Ne bonum à nobis per malum auferatur Lest that good be taken away from vs by reason of our euill So the body feareth death lest by that death it should be depriued of the fruition of the soule So we feare God thâ—t is good lest that for our euill he will leaue vs and depriue vs of the fruition of his most blessed Societie Secondly We may feare that which is good Ne per bonum propter malum malum nobis inferatur Lest that which is good should inflict some euill vpon vs for our euill So the Malefactor feareth the Iudge lest the vprightnesse of the Iudge should cause punishment to be inflicted vpon him for his euill deedes So we feare the good God lest he should punish vs for our euill And so in very deede the thing that we feare is not his goodnesse but the iust desert of our owne wickednesse For to speake properly God as he is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 a louer of man and the chiefest good cannot be feared but he is onely to be feared as he is a iust Iudge 2 Thess 1.8 which rendereth vengeance to them that know not God And therefore though the obiect of feare be euill yet in tâ—ese respects we ought while we liue on earth for in Heauen there is no feare 1 Iohn 4.18 because perfect charity expelleth feare to feare God the chiefest good And blessed is he that alwayes feareth for he that feareth the Lord will doe no euill But as the bankes of a Riuer doe bound in the waters from ouer-flowing so doth the feare of God hedge in our affections that it suffereth not our soules to sinne whereas the bankes being broken and troden downe the waters then Velut agmine facto Will rush in heapes and soone couer the whole face of the plaines So the feare of God being once reiected Bloud toucheth bloud Hosea 4.2 as the Prophet saith and all sinnes and wickednesse will be committed euen with greedinesse Secondly The Angell doth herein denotate who ought and who ought not to feare for he saith vnto the Women Feare you not because you seeke Iesus of Nazareth that was crucified which is all one as if he said They that seeke Christ or goe about to doe the will of Christ to honour him to imbalme him with their odoriferous prayers and the sweete swelling flowers of pious and religious workes as you doe they neede not feare no euill can happen vnto them because God is vnto such a most louing Father that will doe them good and not euill all the dayes of their life but they that seeke to presse him downe and to trample him vnder feete like the Tyrants or to suppresse his truth like the Heretickes or seeke him not crucified but to crucifie him againe and to make a mocke of him by their wicked sinnes as the Apostle saith Heb. 6. â— They may well with these cursed Keepers feare and tremble because God will be vnto such a most iust Iudge Rom. 2.6 that will render vnto euery one according to his deedes And so you see who neede not feare those good and godly Saints that seeke for Christ that liue like Christians for the more godly we are the lesse we neede to feare If we had no sinne we had neede of no feare for in Heauen among the Saints there is no feare because there is no sinne Sinne brought feare into the World but there is perfect loue and perfect loue expelleth feare because feare is the defect of loue and the effect of sinne for if Adam had neuer sinned Adam needed neuer to haue feared but when he had once transgressed then assoone as euer he heard the voyce of God Gen. 3.10 he feared For so he saith I heard thy voyce in the Garden and I was afraide But they that goe on in sinne and drinke iniquity like water they may well feare and tremble and the more they sinne the more they should feare Psal 5.5 Heb. 10.31 The more sinfull we are the more we ought to feare because the Lord hateth all them that worke wickednesse and it is a fearefull thing to fall into the hands of the liuing God And therefore Saint Iames saith That the Diuels feare and tremble and no doubt but their feare is exceeding great because their sinnes are great And therefore Feare not O Iacob my seruant saith the Lord but reioyce O ye Righteous and be glad all ye that are true of heart For the more you feare the lesse you neede to feare the more you feare your selues to fall to sinne the lesse you neede to feare my wrath to punish you for your sinnes this blessed feare to sinne expelleth feare of vengeance But goe-to-now you carelesse wicked wretches weepe and howle Iames 5.1 for your miseries that shall come vpon you For seeing you haue no feare to sinne you should feare and tremble at the consideration of that punishment which you must suffer for your sinnes for so our Sauiour saith Luke 12.5 You should feare to haue both body and soule cast into Hell fire As if he said Though you feare not to sinne yet you may and should feare this punishment for sinne Thirdly The Angell perhaps herein How or after what manner we ought to feare God would intimate how we ought to feare for there is too little feare and this proceedeth Ex carentia fidei through want of faith and there is too much feare and this springeth Ex superabundantia spei through too much confidence and excesse of hope and both these sorts of men Tum sperando tum desperando miserè pereunt By hoping vainely or fearing desperately doe miserably perish And therefore the Angell might well disswade these Women from both these kindes of feare and say Feare you not Too little you doe not for I see you affrighted and too much you may not you neede not because you seeke Iesus that was crucified but in a meane and a middle sort you may and you should feare for Blessed is the man that alwayes feareth Because there bee three states of a Christian man 1. Of grace 2. Of laps 3. Of recouerie and Feare must be wanting in none of these For That God ought to be feared in
number of his twelue Apostles First he appeared vnto Mary Magdalen apart Marke 16.9 First to Mary Magdalen and why where wee must obserue that he appeared first vnto a woman that no woman should thenceforth be any wayes reproached by any man for their first transgression and seduction of man quia vt culpam vire transfudit transfudit etiam gratiam Ambros l. 10. in Luc. 24. Beda in cap. vlt. Luc veterisque lapsus aerumnam resurrectionis indicio compensauit because that as a woman was the first instrument of death so she was the first messenger of life and brought the first tidings of the resurrection of Christ which is the surest argument of the saluation of man And hee appeared to this woman first August meditat cap. 35. quia Dominum prae caeteris dilexit ideo prae caeteris videre meruit because she loued him aboue all therefore she obtained to see him before all She loued much saith our Sauiour and she saw him first saith the Euangelist and therefore no doubt but he shewed himselfe to her first because shee loued him most whereby wee see that with God there is no respect of persons no difference of sects but whosoeuer loueth him man or woman young or old that person shall be respected of him for I will loue them that loue me saith the Lord and therefore whosoeuer feareth God and worketh righteousnesse whosoeuer loues him most and seekes him first he may be sure he shall be first found of him And secondly he appeared to this woman first because this woman was most memorious and mindfull of him and of all those mercies and benefits wherewith Christ had inriched her soule Hieron ep de quest hedibiae and therefore he was most mindfull of her But who this Mary Magdalen was it is easier questioned then answered for Theophylact Stapulensis and others Ambros l. 10. in Luc. 24. Albertus in Luc. 7. doe auouch that there were three Mary Magdalens Saint Ambrose saith there were two Albertus Aquinas in Iohn 12. and Roffensis de tribus Magdalenis Whether there were more Mary Magdalens then one do constantly affirme there was but one and shee they say was a Noble woman one of the bloud-royall of the Tribe of Iuda the daughter of one Syrus and Eucharia a sister vnto Lazarus and Martha which diuided the inheritance of their father betwixt them three Lazarus had all the possessions that were in Ierusalem Martha had Bethany and Mary had Magdalum Castrum the Castle of Magdala from whence she was called Mary Magdalen For my part I confesse curiositie is to be auoided yet the truth is to be imbraced and Maries face is not like Moses face so vailed with mysteries but that wee may without danger inquire who she is and therefore to say what I thinke I am of St. Ambrose minde that at least there were two if there were no more Mary Magdalens for Saint Iohn saith that Mary Magdalen stood at the Sepulcher weeping Ioh. 20.1.11.18 and that Iesus appeared vnto her and said touch mee not here is a Mary Magdalen all alone and Saint Matthew saith that Mary Magdalen and the other Mary came vnto the Sepulcher and were instructed by the Angels that Christ was risen and therefore they departed and went away with ioy Matth. 28.1.9 and it is not said that Mary Magdalen staied behinde but that both went for he names but two and as they went to tell his Disciples Iesus met them and they came and held him by the feete and worshipped him and therefore no doubt but there must be two distinct Mary Magdalens for shee whereof Saint Iohn speaketh was alone and staide by the Sepulcher weeping and was denied to touch Christ because as Saint Ambrose saith she doubted Why Mary Magdalen was not suffered to touch Christ and did not as yet fully beleeue the truth of his resurrection but shee whereof Saint Matthew speaketh was accompanied with the other Mary and returned with the other Mary and met him in the way and held him by the feet and worshipped him Christ suffering her to doe this because she beleeued him to be risen from the dead Now which of these Mary Magdalens was the woman to whom Christ first appeared Marke 16.9 Saint Marke plainly sheweth that it was she out of whom he had cast seuen deuils a great sinner and a great louer of our Sauiour Christ the chiefest sinner of all these women and the first seeker of our blessed Sauiour for she came alone while it was yet darke before the day light Iohn 20.1 by the light of grace but the other Mary Magdalen came with Mary the mother of Iames and Salome at the rising of the Sun Marke 16.2 long after her A great comfort and a raâ—e patterne for all sinners her sinnes repented of and relinquished were no hinderance of her to see our Sauiour first but because her sinnes were great we see her repentance was very great The great care and diligence of this Mary Magdalen her care was great her loue was great for shee wept and washed our Sauiours feet with her teares and wiped them with the haires of her head a true token of inward sorrow she powred a boxe-full of precious ointment vpon his head as hee sat at meate an apparant argument of her outward works shee rose earely shee sought him carefully and she wept bitterly not with those vndiscreet women for Thammyse which was a brazen image with leaden eies that being molten with heate did seeme to weepe Ezech. 8.14 and so caused the women to sympathize in teares and to weepe as is thought for Adonis but shee weepes for Adonai for her Lord and Sauiour Iesus Christ a rare example of great pietie and therefore though shee had offended much yet because shee sorrowed much she loued much she had much forgiuen her and much loue shewed vnto her for he which is first and last did shew himselfe first vnto her O that they which walke in her sinnes would tread in the same steps of her repentance Secondly he appeared to all the women together Secondly to the three women returning homeward as they returned homewards from the Sepulcher to teach vs that neuer any truly sought for Christ but with these women they should be sure to find him Thirdly he appeared to Simon Peter alone Thirdly to Simon Peter alone Chrysost 1 Cor. 15.5 the first among the men saith Chrysostome for when the women told the Disciples that Iesus was risen Peter and Iohn ranne both vnto the Sepulcher and though Iohn came there first yet Peter entred first to note vnto vs not onely that mysticall truth which diuers of the Fathers haue obserued viz. that the Synagogue of the Iewes like Iohn that came first to the monument but would not enter had the first meanes to come to Christ and yet refused to come vnto him for it commanded the precepts of the Law
imbraced and most willingly granted vnto the Axe but the successe answered not the expectation of the Trees for instead of pruining the corrupted branches it soone wasted stocke and roote vntill it made way for the Plow vncontrolably to passe through the middest of the Forrest And so I feare saith Roffensis your Maiesty will proceede with the possessions of the Church So he did and so doth sinne deale with euery Man it demands but little but it still incroacheth vntill it destroyeth our soules And therefore we should withstand sinne at the first and neuer suffer it so much as to enter into our soules And we should follow the councell of the Bridegroome Cant. 2.10 Arise my Loue my Doue my faire one Make haste as the Angell said vnto Lot Gen. 19.22 to saue thy selfe and come away O come come with me from Lebanon my Spouse with me from Lebanon Cant. 4.8 looke from the top of Amana from the top of Sheâ—ir and Hermon from the Lyons dennes and from the Mountaines of the Leopards Secondly We ought to make haste to rise from sinne and to beginne betimes to serue the Lord by reason of the shortnesse and vncertainty of our life for as Hugo Cardinalis saith The way that we are to passe is long the place that we are to goe vnto farre and our time short and wee know not how soone God will call for vs And therefore we ought to worke the worke of God while it is day Iohn 9.4 For the night commeth when no man can worke That we should striue to be first in Gods seruice And here we must further obserue that as he rose early so he rose first of all for He is the first fruits of them that sleepe To teach vs that we should also striue to be the first in all goodnesse but we are loath to doe this we will doe as others doe we cannot abide to be singular such is our Nature we striue with the Pharisees to be first in honors Nec quenquam iam fere potest Caesarue priorem Pompeius ve parem We would faine be the first in reputation but we neuer striue to be the first in performing the duties of Religion It was otherwise with Iosua who called all Israel together and perswaded them all to serue their God or if they would not he told them plainely That he and his House would serue the Lord Iosua 24.15 And I would it were so with vs for it is our greatest honour to be the first in Gods seruice Thirdly In respect of his owne person Christ rose First Truly without hypocrisie not fainedly but certainly So should we for woe be vnto you hypocrites Matth. 23.13 and woe to him that goeth two manner of wayes that holds vp his hands and lifts vp his eyes to Heauen and yet hath his heart full of all vnrighteousnesse for though with men things are iudged as they seeme yet God seeth our hearts and we deceiue our selues if we thinke to deceiue him It is obserued in Nature that the Foxe nips the necke the Mastiue the throate the Ferret the liuer but God careth onely for the heart for he saith Sonne giue me thy heart Ecclus 2.12 That we shold raise our selues truely and not hypocritically from sinne and he is said to be a searcher and a tryer of the hearts And therefore we must not make Saint Pauls shew of godlinesse to be Saint Peters cloake of wickednesse to rise from sinne in shew and not in truth for these rise like Samuel fainedly not truly by a Witch not by God It is that Witch hypocrisie worse then the Witches of Thessalie that raiseth them vp a little to deceiue the World and to make vs beleeue they are true Samuels whereas indeede they be very Diuels Our Sauiour bids vs to beware of such 2 Tim. 3.5 that haue Iacobs voyce and Esaues hands the words of Saints and the workes of Iewes And I bid them beware of Satan 1 Pet. 2.16 for being raised vp by him and not by the power of Christ he will at last vnmaske their hypocriticall faces and then he will cast them downe and destroy them for though it is reported that in a certaine battell some lost their liuings for running away which notwithstanding were bestowed vpon others that fled ten leagues further yet it is not so with God for 2 Cor. 5.10 He will render vnto euery man according to his worke Secondly Christ rose totally without partition That we shold raise our selues from all sinnes for he left no part behind him So should we rise from all sinnes or else all is but in vaine for we reade that Herod at the preaching of Iohn Baptist did raise himselfe from many sinnes but from his deerely beloued Herodias he would not rise so many men can be perswaded by the Preachers to forsake many sinnes but from their bosome darling vsuall customary sinnes they will not rise And â—urely euery man is naturally inclined to some sinnes more then to others as some men to good-fellowship and drunkennesse some to wantonnesse and these could willingly be contented to refraine as they doe sometimes from all or most other sinnes but from these their naturally beloued or vsually practised sinnes they cannot they will not abstaine It is their infirmity and they cannot leaue them and therefore as Naaman the Syrian said vnto Elizeus 2 Reg 5.18 onely in this thing the Lord pardon thy seruant so say these men but in a worse manner onely in this sinne the Lord be mercifull vnto me and I will striue to raise my selfe from all other sinnes whatsoeuer Aulus Gellius attic noct l. 12. c. 1. It is reported by Gellius that Phauorinus seeing a mother sharing her duties betwixt her selfe and her nurse said Quodnam est hoc contra naturam imperfectum dimidiatum matrum genus What a strange halfe-kinde of mother against nature is this to bring forth and presently to cast forth from her the fruit of her owne wombe such halfe-kinde of Christians haue wee now a dayes that will scarce performe halfe their duties it were well if they were like Naaman Act. 26.28 or like Agrippa almost Christians if they were so and could goe in sincere practice as the young man in the Gospell went in proud profession all these things haue I done from my youth vp Matth. 19.20 yet because with that young man they want one thing all the other things will auaile them nothing for to be behinde in no gift as Saint Paul speaketh is the generall description of euery truly renued Christian and we know that as on what part soeuer of a man a Lion catcheth hold he will hold it fast and draw vs by that part vnto himselfe or we must suffer that part to be torne off from our selues and what gate soeuer the enemy findeth open hee can through that one gate leade in all his Army into our Citie euen so
office of this Angell here expressed to serue Christ to affright the souldiers and to delight these women to teach them to direct them Reuel 4.8 and to preserue them in all their wayes for as they neuer cease to serue the Lord so they neuer cease to preserue the Saints vntill they cease to serue their God and therefore to vse Saints Bernards exhortation Quantum debet hoc verbum inferre reuerentiam afferre deuotionem conferre fiduciam How ought this doctrine to moue vs and worke in vs reuerence for their presence confidence for their custody and obedience vnto God for so great an argument of his beneuolence vnto man as to giue his Angels charge ouer vs Et quam cauté ambulandum and how warily ought we to walke seeing the Angels of God are euer present with vs when all the men of the world are absent from vs It is reported of a godly Virgin that being often sollicited by a gallant vnto vnlawfull lust at last she yeelded that if hee met her at such a place he should haue leaue to worke his pleasure with her both came to the place appointed and the place was full of people then the mayden told him that now if he pleased he might vse her as he would he answered that now for shame he durst not doe it in the sight of so many men and women then she replyed and thinkest thou that I dare doe that in the presence of God and his holy Angels which thou darest not doe in the sight of mortall men and I wish euery one of vs did so that is to be ashamed to doe those things in the sight of God and his holy Angels Psal 139.2 Velleius paterculus which we are afraid to doe in the presence of men for they alwayes see vs though wee see not them they are about our beds and about our pathes and spie out all our wayes and therefore as Marcus Drusus when one told him he could build him an house of such a forme as that no man might see what he did therein answered that hee liked better of such an Architector as could build his house so as that euery one passing by might plainely see what was done therein so I wish to God that euery one of vs would striue and labour so to liue as it becommeth vs to doe in the sight of God and of his blessed Angels And so we see the Resurrection of Christ fully and plainely shewed vs to the eternall praise and glory of God and to the endlesse ioy and happinesse of all Christians through the said Iesus Christ To whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be ascribed all power and dominion both now and for euer Amen A Prayer O Blessed God which gauest thine onely Sonne Iesus Christ to suffer death for our sinnes to descend into Hell to destroy our enemies and to rise againe for our iustification and so to declare himselfe mightily to be the Sonne of God and the true Sauiour of all men We most humbly beseech thee to raise vs from the death of sinne from all our sinnes and to giue vs grace to beleeue in thee to be thankfull vnto thee and to serue thee in holinesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of our life that when we shall be laid to rest in our graues we may rest in assured hope to be raised vp by Christ to liue with him for euermore through the same Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS The Sixt Golden Candlesticke HOLDING The Sixt greatest Light of Christian RELIGION Of the Ascention of our SAVIOVR and of the Donation of the HOLY GHOST EPHES. 4.8 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Wherefore he saith when hee ascended vp on high heeled captiuity captiue and gaue gifts vnto men AFter that the blessed Apostle Saint Paul had by many arguments proued vnto the Ephesians that they should earnestly studie The coherence of this verse with what goeth before and most carefully labour to preserue the vnity of the Church of Christ he seemeth in the seuenth verse to answer a certaine obiection that might bee made viz. seeing the graces the gifts and the offices which God hath bestowed vpon his Church are so many and so manifold so diuers and so vnequall some hauing many graces some but few some one gift and some another how can it be that this vnity can be so faithfully preserued therefore the Apostle sheweth that the diuersity and inequality of gifts is not onely no hinderance but is indeed a great furtherance to cherish and preserue the same First Because all these gifts do flow from the same fountaine Iesus Christ Secondly Because they are all giuen and imparted for the same end and purpose that is to gather together the Church of Christ into the vnity of faith The first reason he proueth out of this Prophesie of Dauid who speaking of the Messias triumphing ouer his enemies saith Thou art gone vp on high thou hast led captiuity captiue and receiued gifts for men And The second reason he confirmeth at large in the verses following where he sheweth that Christ gaue some Apostles and some Prophets and some Euangelists and some Pastors and Teachers and all to this end that is for the perfecting of the Saints for the worke of the Ministery for the edifying of the boâ—y of Christ till wee all come into the vnity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Sonne of God Two things contained in this verse And therefore we finde contained in this verse two speciall points First A confirmation of the Apostles alledged reason that all graces doe flow from Christ in these words 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Wherefore he saith Secondly A Propheticall prediction of the Messias in these words When he ascended vp on high he led captiuitie captiue and gaue gifts vnto men That the Scripture is the best warrant for all Preachers For the first I meane not to stand long vpon it I will onely note this one thing that all we the Teachers of Gods people according to the example of this Apostle nay of Christ himselfe and of all Christs true Schollers should not teach any positiue point of doctrine vnlesse we can either directly or by necessary consequence proue and confirme the same out of the Sacred Scriptures for whatsoeuer hath not authority from the word of God Eadem facilitate refellitur qua probatur may as well be reiected as receiued Hieron in Matth. c. 23. saith Saint Hierom and whatsoeuer is therein contained it requires absolute faith without doubting because as Hugo Cardinalis saith Quicquid in sacris literis docetur veritas est sine fallacia quicquid praecipitur bonitas est sine malicia quicquid promittitur faelicitas est sine miseria Whatsoeuer is caught in the Scripture it is truth it selfe without fallacy whatsoeuer is commanded it is purely good without the commixtion of any euill and whatsoeuer is promised it is perfect felicitie without the least
the same sence as the word ascendit for hee descended as God and God filleth all places and therefore it is not phisically to be vnderstood of any locall descent but for his exinination and the assumption of our flesh but hee ascended as God and Man and therefore must phisically be vnderstood of a locall ascent and whole Christ is said to ascend by reason of the communication of the properties and the vnion of both natures into one person Secondly the action or ascending of Christ Secondly Saint Paul hauing thus fully described and shewed the person ascending i. e. he that descended expresseth the verie acte or motion in this word ascendit hee ascended vp on high touching which wee must consider these three especiall points 1. The time of his ascention 2. The place of his ascention 3. The manner of his ascention All which are fully shewed by Saint Luke in the first of the Acts. Acts 1.3 First he saith that hee shewed himselfe aliue after his Passion by many infallible proofes for the space of forty dayes touching which number The time when Christ ascended why he remained on earth iust forty dayes many men haue collected many mysteries Moses was in the Mount with God forty dayes the children of Israel wandered in the wildernesse forty yeeres Elias fasted forty dayes Niniue had time of repentance forty dayes our Sauiour fasted forty dayes and many other like examples might bee found of this iust period of forty dayes Bosquierus de monomachia Christi and I will not here search into the reason of these things he that will let him looke into Bosquierus but I will onely note those two reasons why he continued so long on earth after his resurrection which Saint Luke setteth downe vnto vs First to prooue the certanity of his resurrection therefore he saith thâ—t hee appeared vnto them Secondly to instruct his Apostles in faith hope charitie and all other points concerning the Kingdome of God as Eusebius noteth and the Euangelist plainely expresseth saying Eusebius l. 4. de praeparat Euang. that he was seene of his Apostles forty dayes speaking of the things pertayning to the Kingdome of God But here we must obserue that for this space of forty dayes he was not with his Apostles and Disciples after the same manner as he was with them before his Passion for that now hee was not continually conuersant with them but did onely at some times appeare vnto them If then you demaund where he was for that space while hee was not with his Disciples whetherin the Wildernesse as some doe thinke or in the terrestriall Paradise which Bellarmine affirmeth to remaine still though Pererius saith it was quite abolished by the deluge or in what place he secluded himselfe I will no wayes venter to determine for I will alwayes hold that excellent rule of Prosper Quae deus occulta esse voluit Prosper de vocat gentium non sunt scrutanda quae autem manifesta fecit non sunt negligenda ne in illis illicite curiosi in his damnabiliter inueniamur ingrati What God hath concealed they are not to be searched and what hee hath declared they are not to be neglected lest that in the former we shall be found to be vnlawfully curious and in the latter most damnably carelesse Secondly For the place from whence he ascended it is said The place from whence he ascended that he went from Galilee to Bethanie from Bethanie to Mount Oliuet and from Mount Oliuet vnto Heauen Galilee signifieth transmigration and Bethanie is interpreted the House of obdience to shew that as he descended by reason of our disobedience to suffer for our sins and to giue vs an example of obedience thereby parare nos mansioni to prepare vs for Heauen so by reason of his most perfect obedience in fulfilling all righteousnesse He ascended into Heauen Parare mansionem nobis Act. 14.12 to prepare a place for vs or else Bethanie may signifie the House of affliction to shew that by many afflictions and tribulations we must enter into the Kingdome of God And he ascended from Mount Oliuet because he would vse no miracle while the strength of nature serued and whosoeuer doth otherwise The manner of Christ his ascending Luke 24.51 tempteth God rather then trust in God Thirdly For the Manner Bonauenture obserueth that hee ascended First Blessing his Apostles as the Euangelist saith While he blessed them he was parted from them which is an exceeding comfort vnto vs the poore distressed Ministers of Iesus Christ for though the world hate vs and curse vs and say all manner of euill against vs yet behold Christ parting left his blessing with vs to defend vs against all their malice And he blessed them with his hands lifted vp to teach vs that in our prayers we doe with Moses fight with God we hold his hands and suffer him not to strike vs with the sword of vengeance and this is the Victory which ouercomes our God euen our prayers and to teach vs that when our mouth prayeth to God we should likewise moue our hands to doe the workes of God and further to teach vs that by this manner of praying with our hands spread and lifted vp Prudentius hymno 6. we should professe Christ crucified as Prudentius saith Secondly He was not suddenly snatcht from them as Elias nor secretly taken away as Enoch was Sed videntibus illis but in the presence of them all his Apostles and Disciples he ascended vp to Heauen Act. 1.9 Thirdly That as he ascended the cloudes receiued him out of their sight to shew that he was the Lord of alâ— his creatures he had already trampled vpon the earth walked vpon the Sea vanquished Hell Bern. Ser. 2. de ascent p. 192. and subdued all infernall things vnder his feet and therefore now the cloudes receiued him and the Heauens are opened to make way for this King of glory to enter in Fourthly He ascended in voce tubae in the sound of a Trumpet not on earth sounding Hosanna but in Heauen crying Haleluiah for God is gone vp with a merry noise and the Lord with the sound of a trumpet Psal 46.5 saith the Psalmist So You haue heard how he went and you shall see him comming after the same manner saith the Angell First With the sound of a trumpet that shall raise the dead and this great trumpet of God is the voyce of the Angels a voyce fearefully crying Surgite mortui venite ad iudicium Arise ye dead and come vnto iudgement a voyce that alwayes made Saint Hierome to quake and tremble whatsoeuer â—ee was a doing Secondly He shall come in the cloudes and we shall be taken vp into the cloudes 1 Thes 4.14 that as we see the cloudes protect vs from the heate of the Sunne so we may be ouershadowed from the heate of the wrath of God by that true cloude Iesus
like King Therons Coursers that were neuer weary of running that so they may escape all the fiery darts of Satan and finish their course with ioy when they shall receiue that Crowne of righteousnesse which the Lord hath prepared for them that loue him And thus dearely beloued you see that although man for his sinne was eiected out of Paradise and subiected to all miseries yet through the mercy of God in sending his Sonne to be made man to suffer for man to ouercome the diuell sinne and death to raise himselfe from death to ascend to Heauen to send his holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his heauenly graces wee shall if we beleeue in him and serue him praise his Name for all his blessings loue one another and pray one for another attaine vnto euerlasting happinesse Vnto the which happinesse the Lord of his goodnesse bring vs all through Iesus Christ our Lord to whom with the Father and the Holy Spirit be ascribed as is most due all Glory and Honour and Praise and Thankes and Power and Maiesty and Dominion both now and for euermore Amen A Prayer O Eternall God and our most gratious Father wee most humbly beseech thee for Iesus Christ his sake to forgiue vs all our sinnes which we acknowledge and confesse to be more in number then the sands of the Sea which cannot bee numbred cleanse vs O Lord with the bloud of Christ and plant in vs those heauenly gifts and graces whereby wee may be inabled to serue thee as we ought to doe in holinesse and righteousnesse all the dayes of our life increase our faith stirre vp our hope and kindle our loue and our charity both towards thy selfe and all men for thy sake giue vs patience to vndergo without offending thee whatsoeuer miseries this wicked world shall any wayes heape vpon vs blesse our gracious King the Prince and all the royall issue blesse all the Ministers of thy Church and all the Magistrates of this Common-wealth Grant O Lord thy grace vnto thy Ministers that they may faithfully preach the Word of truth and sincerely liue a most vpright and a godly life grant to the Magistrates thy grace O God to defend right without remissenesse and to punish vice without maliciousnesse and because we are all thy creatures the workes of thy hands made by thee preserued by thee and inioying all we haue life and liuelihood from thee O Lord be mercifull vnto vs all and remember that we are but dust consider O consider that we are but as grasse not able to doe what we would not able to doe any thing that is good vnlesse thou dost it in vs O then let our soules liue and wee will praise thy Name we will magnifie thee for euer and euer for all the blessings that we haue receiued from thee our Creation Redemption Sanctification Preseruation and our assured hope of Glorification and all other graces whatsoeuer through Iesus Christ our Lord. Amen A Soliloquie of the Author O Eternall God thou hast created me and I haue offended thee thou hast redeemed me and I still continued vnthankefull vnto thee and yet thou hast heaped many blessings vpon me and giuen me grace to be desirous to serue thee and according to my poore and weake ability to shew forth these lights vnto thy Church I confesse O Lord whatsoeuer is ill herein is onely mine and whatsoeuer is good is truely thine and therefore I desire thee to pardon mine euill and to make me thankefull for thy good and so to accept that worke done by thy grace that it may be crowned with thy glory I doe not long for any worldly thing the whole world lyeth in wickednesse but I desire my soule may be married vnto thee to liue with thee for euermore and therefore O blessed God seeing that as I haue none in heauen so I haue none in earth but onely thou to be my helper I beseech thee to be my redeeming kinsman to preserue my wearied body from the malice of this world and to preferre my disconsolate soule vnto euerlasting ioyes through Iesus Christ mine onely Sauiour Amen IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FINIS THE TABLE AB ABstaine from sinne is from God 205 God neuer absolueth vnrepentant sinners 242 Absurdities God shunneth in all things 324 Absurdities of the Lutheran doctrine touching the communication of properties 377. c. Absurdities following the high-Priest saying that the Disciples stole Christ away 564 Nature not able to shew the reason how the world should be made 138 God able to doe what he will 147 To hinder what he will not haue done ibid. To doe more then he did or doth or will doe 148. 149. c. Phrases of being able or not able how to be vnderstood 158 God able to produce any thing of nothing 163 God able to forgiue all sinnes 164 God not able to doe contrary to what hee decreed 165 Not able to doe things contrary to his Nature 165 Gods ability to helpe vs a great comfort to the godly 177 Absurdities of the doctrine of transubstantiation 174 God able to saue men without the Incarnation of his Sonne 320 None able to know God as hee is in himselfe 120 Abstract names of all excellencies most proper vnto God 122 Goodnesse of God abused by the wicked 225 Abuse of Christ not paralelled in any age 474 AC To be an Accepter of persons what it is 210 We should acknowledge whence wee haue all our goodnesse 211 Inward actions of God euer in doing necessary incommunicable 275 Christ how falsly accused by his enemies 471 Whereof accused before Pilate and how false those accusations were 472 Acts meerely voluntary no sinnes 15. 32 Actuall sinne what it is 10 All actions adiudged according to the disposition of the will 55 Act of punishment least agreeable to Gods nature 195 No act can exceed the power of the agent 209 Actors in the Tragedy of Christ his Passion who they were 421 Gods free actions not curiously to be searched into 555 Chiefest Acts of Dauid types of Christ 617 AD Adam sinning we all sinned 3 Adams fall brought on vs a two-fold euill 3 What God commanded Adam how small a thing it was 98 Adamant how mollified 5â—6 Aduersity makes the Saints more resplendent then prosperity 207 Aduersity and affliction not simply good ibid. AE Aescilus how he came by his death 613 AF. Affirmatiue precepts how many viz. 248. 230 Christ why afflicted by God 496 Affections of Christ how they differ from ours in three respects 444 AG. Agony of Christ what was the cause thereof 443 The seuerall ages of the world 402. 403 Agents that there be three sorts 162 Christ borne in the sixâ— age of the world and why 403 Age of man diuided into foure parts 68 AL. How all we haue is from God 129 All men taste of Gods goodnesse 201 How all men may be said to hate the Preachers 435 Alcestes how deerely she loued her Husband 425 AN. Anabaptists heresie what
227 IV Iudas what benefits he receiued from Christ 458 Why chosen to be an Apostle 459 Why made the Purse-bearer ibid. Why he betraied Christ ibid. Why he gaue them a signe 461 How sought to be reclaymed by Christ 461 462 What his treason should teach vs. 461 His arrogancie and iniquitie how great 461 Why he kissed Christ 461 That it is a iust thing to punish sinne 90 Iustice is often peruerted with men 91 God iudgeth all men according to what they haue actually done 95 Euery one according to his desert 92 God most iust proued 91 God in the strictnes of his iustice might inflict more punishmeÌ„t vpon the damned 187 Whatsoeuer he doth is iust 237 Iustice of God taken diuers waies 237 Iustice of God requireth a day of iudgement 245 How it stands with God iustice to punish the fathers sinnes vpon the children 245 Iustice and truth how they pleaded against man 319 That we should as well feare Gods iustice as hope for mercie 244 Iudgements of God must be threatned when his mercies doe not allure vs. 696 Iustification what it is 208 Christ Iustified by his enemies 429 KI KIngdome of heauen could be giuen by none but by God 321 Kisses that there be fiue kindes 460 Kings and Magistrates to be prayed for and why 734 KN. God knoweth best when to helpe vs. 724 Knowledge most necessary for Preachers 642 Adams desire of knowledge brought ignorance vpon vs all 58 Sinnes of knowledge most fearefull inexcusable sinnes 29 And yet we doe what we know to be fearefull sinnes 29 The excellencie of our knowledge makes our sinnes the more horrible 30 All knowledge of God extinguished by sin 64 Three wayes of knowing God 120 We are not able to know him as hee is in himselfe 120 Knowledge of Gods power the foundation of our faith 134 We know many things negatiuely as what God is not which we know not positiuely 176 We know what God cannot doe though we know not what he can doe 176 To know Christ the onely thing that makes vs happy 259 It suppresseth all vices 261 The Gentiles had a measure of the knowledge of God 311 The diuels know God and the mysterie of the Trinitie 314 Knowledge of Christ two-fold 356 Knowledge of Iesus Christ the chiefest knowledge in the world 391 The diuell chiefly laboureth to corrupt it 391 We know not what is good for our selues 726 LA. LAbour vndertaken vpon hope of reward 1 Labourer presently to haue his pâ—ay ibid. Law of nature and of all nations teacheth to punish sinne 90 Lawes of men like a spiders web 91 Law of God like an yron net ibid. Lawes must bee made according to rules of mens abilitie to keepe them 210 Law in the Gospell 224 That the law was not created 286 To keepe Gods lawes made Dauid wiser then his teachers 571 Law of God giuen to be kept not to be talked of 600 Languages and readie speech requisite for preachers 641 LE. Letters how vsed by the ancient to signifie diuers things 473 LI. God the verie life of all things 125 Life of Christ a continuall suffering 437 A good life what it effecteth 601 Bad life what euill it doth 601 The wicked are lifted vp to bee throwne downe 612 Life of Christ a continuall suffering 437 LO Loaues of bread how multiplied by Christ 174 God onely absolute Lord. 131 Lord and Iehoua equiualent ibid. Lord taken two waies ibid. Men may be called Lords 131 Our Lord should bee feared and serued for three speciall reasons 132 Christ most properly called Lord. 132 Logos what it signifieth 306 Why vsed by the Euangelist 310 The best knowne name of Christ among the Iewes 311 God loueth not the wicked 189 Loue of God in giuing Christ to be incarnate how great it was 303 To loue God is not to offend him 305 Loue of the Father seene in giuing Christ to be incarnate 357 Loue of Christ seene in his incarnation 359 Our loue to God increased by the meditation of Christ his Passion 424 Loue of God to mankinde moued him to giue his Sonne to die for man 498 How great his loue was to man ibid. Loue of Christ to man how vnspeakable 499 How deerely we ought to loue Christ 508 To loue one another how wee are bound vnto it 511 Want of loue the cause of all mischiefe in the world 511 We ought to loue all men ibid. Loue of money what it doth 565 Loue shewed foure wayes 693 That there is a gradation in the loue of God 684 Man lost a two-fold good 321 LV Vntamed lusts what an odious sinne 240 Saint Lukes words he shall be called the Sonne of God how vnderstood 248 Lutherans what they teach concerning the vnion of the two natures of Christ 377 Lutheran doctrine what absurdities it brings foorth 377 MA. MAn following his vocation is the safer from Satan 13 Man receiued power to beget man like himselfe 7 Manner how euerie sinne is committed fourefold 26 Sinnes of malice haue two violent properties 32 Malice of Satan restrayned 178 Man what a poore and a miserable thing 104 Manhood described and the miseries therof 70 Manner how the Father begetteth the Sonne or the Holy Ghost proceedeth is ineffable 227 Manner of diuine mysteries not curiously to be searched into ibid No man truly rich 281 Malice of Hereticks seene in denying the God-head of Christ 305 Not to marrie with wicked sinners 109 Mankinde produced three waies before Christ his time 333 Manner how Christ was conceiued 335 It is ineffable 336 Christ made a perfect man 340 Marcion his heresie 343 Macedonius his heresie ibid. Manichaeus his heresie ibid. Manhood of Christ seene by the sufferings of Christ 343 Word made flesh why the Euangelist saith 369 How one thing may be made another thing three waies 37â— Manhood of Christ how adored 383 Mary rightly called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the mother of God 385 Mary of what Tribe she was 397. 398 Mathew and Michoa how reconciled touching the place of Christ his birth 407 Magi what they beleeued Christ to be 4â—3 Man of al creatures most subiect to sufferings 434 Malice of Satan Christ prayed against 456 Malchus how he vsed Christ 467 Masters that are ill make ill seruants 467 Malice of the Iewes against Christ 495 517 Manner of Christs suffering incomprehensible 5â—2 Mary Magdalen a sinnefull woman 529 How shee liued after her conuersion 533 Mary Magdalens how many there were 568 Why not suffered to touch Christ 568 Magistrates in what sence to be feared 538 Manhood of Christ how said to bee euerie where 5â—4 Martyrs how constantly they professed Christ 577 Manna had twelue wonders in it 703 ME. Memorie what an excellent facultie it is 60 Wherein it excelleth all other faculties ibid. God recommendeth all his benefits vnto it ibid. How defiled by sinne 61 How faithfull to record vaine and vile things ibid. How faithlesse to retaine good things 61 What we should alwaies remember 62 Meditation of
may be said two waies 167 In what sence God willeth sinne 167 Will of Christ two fold 296 301 To doe the will of God will sooner bring vs to know God then to heare his word 571 Wings wherewith we flie to heauen what they be 631 Wine how deceitfull it is 45 Why wisedome is ascribed to the Sonne 273 By the wisedome whereof Salomon speaketh Prou. 8 22. what is meant 285 How hard for the wisedome of God to please foolish man 3â—0 Christ how said to be with God 297 Not as we are said to be with God ibid. To be with God and in God how the same 298 Witnesses of the birth of the Messias 411 WO. Woe trebled to the inhabitants of the earth 46 Christ why borne of a Woman 334 Women why three went together vnto the Sepulchre 519 Why they were all three called by the same name ibid. They were a type of the Church and of euery christian soule 520 How sorrowfull they were ibid. How distinguished and knowne one from the other 521 How they signifie three properties of the Church â— 521 How fearelesse they were in seeking Christ 521 How they laboured to increase the numbers of beleeuers 522 How peaceably they came to the graue 522 Many women were made instruments of great goodnesse 532 Word of God diuided into two parts 12 That the word was before he was made flesh 278 The word GOD no accidentall but an essentiall word 285 The word how he may be said to be created and begotten 289 Words of Dauid this day haue J begotten thee how vnderstood 290 Words of the Apostle he is the first borne of euery creature how vnderstood 290 Words of Saint Luke be shall be called the Sonne of God how vnderstood 248 Words of Salomon the Lord created me how vnderstood 286 Words of Christ my Father is greater then I how vnderstood 300 Words of Christ I came not to doe mine owne will how vnderstood 301 Words of Saint Paul then the Sonne shall be subiect to the Father how vnderstood 301 Words of Christ I came from aboue how vnderstood 344 345 Words of the Apostle God sent his sonne in the similitude of sinfull flesh how vnderstood 346 Words of our Creede he descended into hell how vnderstood 580 581 c. The seauen gratious words that Christ spake vpon the Crosse 486 Christ called the Word because he declareth his father vnto vs. 322 How God can expresse himselfe with one word 307 Why Christ is tearmed the word ibid. How the word GOD resembleth our outward word 308 How it resembleth our inward word ibid. How it differeth from our word 309 Whether it be a name of Christ his person or hâ—â— office 310 Why Saint Iohn vseth the Word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the word 310 The word why made flesh 317 318 Why the Word rather then the Father or the Holy Ghost 322 The word onely assumed our flesh 326 How said to be made flesh 368 c. All the world without Christ will auaile vs nothing 263 Philosophers striue to proue the world to be eternall 136 World made by God proued 137 World diuided into his seuerall ages 402 To flie the world the next way to finde Christ 571 Workes of our vocation to be followed 13 Outward workes of God common to each person of the God-head 145 274 They are transient and voluntarie ibid. Inward works of God are euerin doing 275 They are necessary and incommunicable i. e. proper to each person 275 Worke of the incarnation how common to the three persons and how proper to Christ the Word 326 God worketh one contrary out of another 351 Workes of Christ testifie him to bee the true Messias 417 Workes of any man testifie what he is ibid. Workes requisite to expresse thankfulnes 507 God worketh all the good that is in the Saints and how God worketh our willingnesse to doe good 530 Good workes what they be 670 God worketh foure wayes with meanes without meanes with weake meanes contrary to meanes 147 Workes of God proue the power of God 159 Our best workes haue need of mercy 185 Workes of mercy of two sorts 232 Outward workes of mercy chiefly sixe 232 God worketh diuers wayes 237 Wormewood wherefore good 527 Worth of the sufferings of Christ how to bee considered 502 Wounds of Christ why reserued by him 572 WR Wrath of God feared by Christ 545 Wrath of God quite turned away by our repentance 195 YO YOuth described and the miseries thereof shewed 69 ZE. ZEno what he said of the Word 312 IEHOVAE LIBERATORI FJNJS