wealthy remember the rich foole Luk. 12. Will you needs liue in pleasure on earth with contempt of all that feare God remember the Sodomites Will you be glorious and pompous spectacles remember Diues Do you approue of any thing except Religion and the feare of God Heare what your brethren and companions say that are gone to yours and their home before you heare what they said when they were aliue as you are now Wild. 2. throughout And againe heare what they say now being dead as you shall be Chap. 5. 4. 5. 6. c. And you proud oppressing pompous mockers what aduantage is your wit your wealth your pride and pompe to you when your riches are vanished when your idols your bodies are rotten when your children are begging and come to fearfull ends and when your soules are in hell Remember this thou yong man to moderate thy fleshly ioy pleasures delights to pacifie thy wrath to mollifie thy rigor to teach thee wisedome and humilitie and aboue all things to seeke the kingdome of God Verse 10. Therefore remoue sorrow from thine heart and put away euill from thy flesh for childhood and youth are vanitie A Conclusion with an exhortation which is twofold The first is destructiue or negatiue teaching mortification in this verse The other is astructiue or affirmatiue teaching viuification Chap. 12. by which meanes the heauie iudgements of God are auoided and true happinesse is attained Therefore put sorrow from thy heart and put away euill from thy flesh to wit inordinate affections and lusts Put away moodinesse anger impatience carnall loue worldly zeale hatred enuie griefe sorrow c. And put away all inordinate and insatiable desires and lusting after worldly things riches honours pleasures vainglorie pompe gluttonie voluptuous liuing pride venerie epicurisme euen all disordered affections and lusts For childhood and youth are vanitie A reason to enforce the exhortation As childhood soone vanisheth away so doth youth or middle age as morning is soone spent so is the mid day and old age hasteneth as the Sunne to his going downe The pleasure of youth is vaine and momentanie it is like the fading flower in the Spring whose verdure and beautie soone vanisheth the blast of the East winde and the scorching beames of the Westerne Sunne cause it to wither in a moment As the time of youth is fleeting and transitorie so is the state thereof sinfull and dangerous Sinfull because the plasme or vessell of the soule is now strongest in her temptatious dangerous because the diuell and the world are now most busie to imprint folly in the hearr of the yong man He is now in winning or losing The way of a yong man is like a serpent vpon a stone a bird in the aire a ship on the sea which way these will turne no man certainly knoweth CHAPTER XII Verse 1. Remember now thy Creator in the dayes of thy youth while the euill dayes come not nor the yeares draw nigh when thou shalt say I haue no pleasure in them THis Chapter hath two parts an exhortation and a conclusion The exhortation is contained in the first seuen verses It is the astructiue or affirmatiue part of the conclusion Chap. 11. 10. exhorting to Christian or godly life specially duties of pietie consisting in faith and obedience as in the former Chapter he exhorted to duties of charitie Remember This word is opposed to forgetfulnesse the common corruption and vanitie of youth For youth being violently carried with headstrong passions and vnbridled lusts is most apt to forget God to despise instruction and hate correction Remembrance is historicall or practicke and effectuall The former is the bare vnderstanding and bearing in mind of a thing past as not pertaining to vs but the wise man maketh vse of euery thing The latter is the vnderstanding remembrance of that which pertaineth to vs to do or a dutie to be performed It is particular or generall Particular is of euery mans dutie in that calling wherein God hath placed him Generall is of Christian duties to be performed of all Particular callings and duties are sanctified by the generall and comprehended vnder it Therefore this remembrance is holy and generall holy because it is a remembrance of God and his glorie generall because it extendeth to the whole man inward and outward Therefore he saith Remember thy Creator that made thee in his image and all things for thee Remembrance therefore is to direct all faith hope loue feare obedience euery action of life and cogitation of the mind to God onely euen to his praise and glorie Contrarily to forget is to be vnthankefull and disobedient Deuteron 8. 11. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God not keeping his commandements and his lawes and his ordinances c. 14. Then thine heart be lifted vp and thou forget the Lord thy God c Therefore this word Remember implieth continuall obedience in euery thing or perpetuall thankefulnesse Thy Creatour This is not an ampl fication but an argument of confirmation Remember God fâ—r hee hath made thee anâ— that in his owne image therefore art thou bound to him in pe petuall duety and seruice Now. Hee speak in of the time present as the Apostle doth Hebr. 3. 13. Exhort one another daily while it is called to day A d what is this but to remember God while we haue our being as Dauid sayth Let euery thing that hath breath praise the Lord euen whiles it hath breath Then must we needs remember him from the comming in tiâ—l the going forth of the breath And so often as we drawe our breath lâ—t vs remember that wee drawe life and all things for life from him And as we send forth our breath so must we returne all in thankefull obedience to him We draw the all-nourishing ayre into our bodies and send it out of our bodies euen so what we haue receiued from God let vs returne it againe to God with aduantage This is the practike or effectuall remembrance here spoken of In the dayes of thy youth Hee sayth not whiles thou arte young or in time of youth but maketh mention of dayes to intimate that euery particular day of this life is to bee consecrated to the Lord that is not the bare time as some giue the Sabaoth to God but all our thoughts words and workes in the day and not some but all For wee are not our owne but the Lords as Saint Paul sayth to Seruants Serue the Lord not men And to speake as the thing is the whole time of life is a Sabbath The Sabbath was ordained for the reliefe and helpe of our infirmitie and also to shew forth our consociation and fellowshippe with our fellow-members and fellow-seruants in the Church triumphant as farre foorth as the necessities of our bodies heere below will permit For eternall life is heere begunne Therefore wee owe nothing to the flesh not one minute of time nor one thought of the heart We are the
Spouse of Christ as Paul sayth he presented the Corinthians a pure Virgine to Christ Wee must be chaste as the Angells are beautified with all chastitie Concerning olde age there is no doubt made For euery one thinketh that a man must then beginne to draw neare vnto God but they imagine yong age to be a time of libertie But heerein these indifferent minded men are like the sacrilegious Iewes Malach. 1. 13. 14. They offer the torne the lame the sicke the corrupt the leane as Caine did Therefore are they accursed verse 8. Goe offer it to thy Prince will hee be content and accept thy person It is the offering of an olde Dogge Men commonly offer health strength beauty Youth to their lusts to the world and to Satan but sickenesse weakenesse deform tie olde age to God When they can serue the world no longer then come they to God the adulterer and the olde whoore The world is an harlot when her louer is quite spent she casteth him off then commeth he to God with his olde carkasse Those things that the world contemneth or little regardeth must God haue but howsoeuer the world must haue the first offer Pouertie and basenesse we can be content to giue to God but riches and honour to our selues and the diuell For he saith indeede All is mine Luke 4. 6. God must be serued of Lazarus Diues is too great too good therefore hee must not abase himselfe to stoupe so lowe but rather honourably deuote himselfe to his belly and to the Diuell the lord of the belly The virginitie of the tender beautifull woman is too good to be consecrated to the Lord to liue chastly so the lewd lourdaine thinketh So Nabal thought any morsell of his meate or bottle of his drinke too good for Dauid but nothing was enough nor good enough for himselfe So the Churle can spare nothing to the poore Minister nor giue one houre of the weeke to God But the olde whoore the olde thiefe the olde adulterer the olde Nabal c. that are sodden and rotten in their lusts can be well content to giue their carkasses vnto God And when they haue at their last end disposed their goods to their children and their rich friends and kinsfolkes they will happly send for the Minister to instruct them and to pray for them but they will not yet remember the afflictions of Ioseph And wherefore to pray that God would now accept that carrion-idoll and receiue it into the kingdome of glorie and company of the Angells of Light These wicked beasts thinke that they owe no more seruice to God all their life but this But dogges whoores whooremongers gluttons liars and couetous persons shall be without and cast downe into the fierie Lake among their fellow diuels for whom is reserued the blackenesse of darkenesse for euer Reu. 22. 18. Solomon teacheth here a contrary lesson And so doth Dauid Psal 119. 9. Wherewithall shall a young man redresse his way Euen by taking heede thereto according to thy word Heere is both rudenesse ignorance and ethnicall ciuilitie excluded A young man must redresse his foule wayes and purge out his menstruous or naturall filth by the word of God that both mortifieth and quickeneth killeth and maketh aliue The young man must be offered in sacrifice with Isaac and grow in grace as he growes in yeares Yong children were to be taught the meaning of the Passeouer and so is the word to be preached to children the grounds of Religion are to be settled in them But let vs examine and insist vpon the words of Dauid alittle or whosoeuer was the Authour Wherein heb bammeh that is In what thing principally or in what thing alone The words doe imply an excellencie or singularitie Young man heb nagnar that is rude precipitant inconsiderate passionate it properly signifieth a confusion or mixture of things cast out of the lappe without regarde of order Redresse his way heb iezakkeh in the con ugation piel that is wholly and all together and also alway and continually For the first there are no excuses delayes or alleadgements for young men they are tâ—eâ— to sobrietie as well as olde though euery mans infirmitie be to be borne withall Young men are rash and heedlesse olde men are peeuish and rigorous c. Saint Paul sayth Tit. 2. 6. Exhort young men that they be sober minded graec sophronein id est temperantes esse Now temperancie is a vertue ouer-ruling all lusts and inordinate appetites subdewing them to the Lawe of God or godly reason The partes thereof are shamefastnesse honesty abstinence sobrietie chastitie continence humilitie modestie seueritie parsimonie innocencie The Apostles will is that the faith of young men and women be exercised in these vertues Againe verse 10. Seruants must adorne the doctrine of God in all things and they are most commonly young and especially arrogate rudenesse and libertie as it were by their owne right Moreouer Ephes 6. 4. Children must be brought vp in instruction and information in the Lord. graec en paidâ—ia cai nouthesia Instruction stands in incouragement to vertue and in correction and reproofe Concerning the former he saith Prouoke not your children to anger to grow into stubborne resolutions but cheerefully to obey you with loue and delight Concerning the second Prou. 22. 15. Foolishnesse is bound in the heart of a childe but the rodde of correction fetcheth it out Information standeth in doctrine or catechizing and in precepts of good manners For the second signification he must redresse his way alwayes and continually euen in childhood First because as in the time of the Law the first-fruits were offered to the Lord Deuter. 26 2 and euery male first borne was giuen to God So men must consecrate their children vnto the Lord and young men must offer themselues to the Lord. To which offering Saint Paul alludeth Rom. 12. 1 specially the young man 1. Corinth 7. 34. In the Law God commanded young men to be taught the meaning of the Passeouer and to rehearse his Lawes to their children according to which precepts Timothie was brought vp and Obadiah 1. Kings 18. 12. Abrahams and Cornelius families and 2. Iohn 4. I reioyced greatly that I found thy children walking not in ethnicall ciuilitie in the truth This condemnes all vncleane beasts Againe yong men haue promised in baptisme and set their seale that they will forsake the world the flesh and the diuell For baptisme is the restipulation or repromission of a good conscience It is the badge of our pro session which is to consecrate our selues wholly to Christ into whose name we are baptized Now we are consecrated to God when we die to sinne slaine with the sacrifice crucified with Christ yea risen out of the graue of sinne and glorified or sanctified with him Gal 2. 20. Yong men are to remember their promise or vow in baptisme and not like carelesse dingthrifts to throw the debt on their sureties as Esau that
the fountaine or the wheele broken at the Cisterne BY siluer coard is meant the marrow in the backe which is inclosed in a bright smoothe skinne like to siluer it is more properly called of the Arabians the Nuche of the backe whereof this word Eunuch is compounded For marrow is but the superfluity of nutriment arising from the bloud for the moistening and nourishment of the bones But the Nuche is of the nature of the braine engendred of seede created for sence and motion to wit to procreate the sinewes For from the braine and the Nuche proceed diuers combinations or couples of sinewes seruing for the sences as hearing seeing feeling and motion of the members For many sinewes are deriued thirty couples as the Anitomists write are sprung of this cord and deriued from the knuckles or turning-joynts of the chine or backe bone into all the body seruing for bodily motion from which againe small haires or threeds like those of the rootes of trees and leaues are dispersed When this cord is loosed the backe bendeth motion is slowe and feeling faileth Or the golden bowle be broken This golden bowle is the thinne membrane or sinewie skinne of yellow colour called Pia mater compassing the braine like a swathing cloth or inner thinde of a tree and entring within the diuers infoldings of the braine and as it were cloathing the sides of the three ventricles or hollowes wherein the imagination reason memory are formed It serues not only to inuolue and keep the braine whole and solide in his place as the shel or skin next the shell doth the egges but also to containe to gather together and sustaine the veins and arteries which are deriued from thence like small ramified channells or pipes or like a net All the braine within and without is enwrapped and incompassed with this veiny and arteriall or sinewy net The veines feede and nourish the braine with bloud the arteries bring heate and spirit to it from the heart to giue the sence of feeling vnto it For though it impart sence to all other parts yet it hath none of it selfe namely the narrowie white substance but conuerteth or digesteth the vitall spirits of the heart attracted by this sinewie pia mater or golden bowle into animall or sensible spirits In like case the sperme hath foture and sustenance in the matriâ—e by and from the chorion or secundine Or the pitcher be broken at the fountaine By the pitcher he meaneth the veines by the fountaine the liuer For the liuer is the shop of bloud conuerting the white chile which commeth of the meate digested in the stomacke into bloud The substance thereof is red and like clottered or curded bloud assimulating the chile to the qualitie of it selfe In the neather hollow part thereof is the portall veine called the great carrying veine which hath many branches venae mesaraicae like the small and threddie rootes of a tree by which the chile or iuyce of meaâ— concocted in the stomach is transported froÌ„ the stomach to the liuer And the portal vein hath issuing from it many small veines like a net throughout the whole body of the liuer that the chile being distributed into small parcels might be more perfectly concocted and conuerted into bloud And the bloud is ingendered and purified in the middle of the liuer which containeth the masse of the foure humours Now it being here purified and boyled the more heauie superfluitie which is seculent or dreggie settleth to the bottome and is carried by a veine into the spleene It is the earthly sowre or tart part of the chile and is called blacke choler or melancholy Againe the lighter superfluitie boyleth vpward which is the fiery bitter or sharpe part of the chile called yellow choler which is caried by a veine into the gall Vnderstand by melancholy and yellow choler not the purest thereof which is mixed with the bloud but the separate superfluitie or impuritie thereof Thirdly the waterish superfluitie is caried to the kidneys and passages of the vrine In the convexitie or vpper bowing part of the liuer is the hollow veine or bloudgate whose branches receiue the bloud purified in the middle of the liuer from the branches of the portall-veine From the bloudgate are innumerable veines ramified throughout all the body For as the bulke of a tree receiuing sap from the roote as that againe doth from the small spires is ramified into all the branches so doth the hollow veine being the greatest in all the body vehiculum alimenti distribute the bloud throughout the body by his other veines and first into the right ventricle of the heart to receiue his vital heate for the nutrition of the whole body Or the wheele be broken at the cisterre By wheele is meant the head by cisterne the heart from whence the vitall spirits are conueyed to the braine and there conuerted into animall to giue sence and motion to the body When the braine is weake the sinewes loosed and the head hanging downe the wheele beginneth to breake Verse 7. Then shall the dust returne to the earth as it was and the spirit shall returne to God who gaue it AS before he hath shewed the vnaptnesse and disabilitie of old age to performe such seruice as the Lord requireh to be performed of man hauing liuelily depainted it sorth before his eyes to the end that euery one may be stirred vp in youth and middle age to doe good workes euen with all diligence to practise the duties of pietie and charitie so here he putteth them in minde also of death and their account that they must make before their Iudge And the dust returne to the earth as it was By dust he meaneth the corpse made of the dust by a metonymie of the matter By earth he meaneth the elements whereof the body is compounded As the body was created of the earth so shall it returne thither againe euen into the first and simplest matter And the spirit shall returne to God that gaue it By spirit he meaneth the soule which is compared to winde or aire as the body is to dust or earth Because winde or aire being an inuisible substance is the fittest thing in nature to vnderstand the nature of the soule by For whiles we are in the flesh we vnderstand and conceiue of inuisible spiritual eternall things humano more by the phantasie per similitudines locos as Tully saith and that either affirmatiuely or negatilely To God that gaue it Hee doth not here define whither the spirit shall go but to whom namely to his Iudge who shall require a iust account of all the workes done in the flesh good or euill and shall accordingly giue sentence vpon it 2. Cor. 5. 10. Verse 8. Vanitie of vanities saith the Preacher all is vanitie A Conclusion which is twofold particular of this treatise of mortification to the 13. verse Generall of all Christian doctrine from thence to the end Vanitie of vanities He concludeth